Saturday, June 18, 2005

List of Last Things

Last Book Read - The Blind Assassin, by Margaret Atwood. The story of two sisters, one of whom becomes a novelist and leaves clues about her anarchist lover. Highly recommended.

Last Fine Dining Restaurant Visited - The Museum Cafe at the Ayala Museum, Ayala Center, Makati. It was my dad's birthday last Sunday (Independence Day). We had a good South African white wine with various Asian fusion style dishes. Everyone else's orders were good, although the short ribs in tamarind sauce I ordered were over-marinated and and became too salty. They have an interesting salad that includes fresh leaves of alugbati (very good). The dessert, a caramelized banana tart topped with pastillas de leche ice cream, was divine. Price-wise, it costs much less to dine there for the style and quality, as compared to dining at a hotel restaurant. Recommended attire: smart casual.

Last Fastfood Visited - (I'm only including this for the novelty.) Pizza Hut Bistro, on the second floor of Gateway, in Araneta Center (Cubao). This place fills up quickly. The salads are quite good, ranging in price from P115 to P140, and a grilled chicken sandwich order (two fist-sized sandwiches topped with melted cheese) was to be had for P99!

Last MP3 Downloaded - When I See You Smile, by Bic Runga. This Kiwi singer gave us the hit Sway. Check out her albums Drive and Beautiful Collision. Highly recommended if you enjoy an angelic voice accompanied by acoustic guitar. Comparable to artists Sarah McLachlan, Dido,and Jewel.

Last Movie Watched - Frank Miller's Sin City (last Tuesday, at the Powerplant in Rockwell). Directed by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez, with guest director Quentin Tarantino, based on Frank Miller's graphic novel. Actually, I've only read the volume about Marv and Goldie, but it's enough to acquaint yourself with the style of the movie - very noir, with coloration. That part they did rather well. There are three volumes of the graphic novel that were incorporated into the movie. I enjoyed the movie; I think I'll get it on dvd. The only thing that bothered me was the excessive prosthetic makeup on Mickey Rourke (to make him look as craggy as Marv), which made him look like a plastic action figure in comparison to the other leads Bruce Willis (good role here) and Clive Owen (in a two-dimensional role for such a good actor, unfortunately). In a milieu where the leads are reluctant heroes, the remaining men corrupt officials/criminals and all the women are prostitutes, it's impossible not to notice the women. Jessica Alba REALLY dances well. And Rosario Dawson has an interestingly feral quality about her, such that you'll wish she played Catwoman instead of Halle Berry.

Last Dream I Had - I dreamed that someone gave me a pale tabby kitten as a gift. One day I left for work, and returned home to find the kitten colored with bright orange stripes. I went around on a rampage looking for characters who might've spiked the cat food with neon dye. (As I read this I'm laughing at myself!)

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