Year: 2011

bizu!

A Sunday lunch date to mark our 23rd month together! I’ve never eaten at Bizu before but I’ve been dying to try their desserts.

This restaurant’s highly recommended. Good value for your money.

Three Dips and Baguettini. Munchpunch says this appetizer’s good for 4 persons, but let’s just pretend we didn’t see that.

French Onion Soup. Looks messy but this is heavenly.

My entree: baked sole with artichokes. The artichokes were cooked perfectly. My knife just cut through them like butter. Though J chastised me for not taking note of all the components (potatoes, capers, prosciutto). Also: this is from watching too much Hell’s Kitchen.

I really loved J’s order. I’ll definitely get this next time: Butter-Poached Salmon with Pommery.

For desserts, we just went ahead and ordered the chocolate soufflé. Rich and creamy and we couldn’t finish it. Heh.

But I think that’s just because we had the Strawberry Shortcake first.

I loved it! I thoroughly enjoyed this lunch.

Now for our second anniversary next month, we’re thinking that instead of checking into a hotel or traveling, we’ll just eat at a nice restaurant. (We’re also trying to save money.)  Mamou? Mariott Cafe? The Stock Market? What would you recommend?

So it’s Monday and I opened my email and got this:

Hey Eliza,

I just wanted to tell you that I read your story “December” in StoryQuarterly 44 and it was unlike any other short story I had ever read. You took conventions and cliches and turned them on their heads. It was one of the most unlikely relationships I had ever seen put to paper, and by the end of the story I was rooting for them. The climax was emotionally resonant and came out of nowhere. I loved it.

Thank you very much! It’s amazing that there are people who take the time to read my work and write to me.

Have a great week everyone.

Drinking on our 23rd month together. I got to his place after work last night, and dinner (chicken with cheese, onions, and bell peppers on a baguette – I wolfed it all down and forgot to take a picture) was already waiting for me. You’re the sweetest. Here’s to more gin (tequila later into the night) + pineapple juice + grenadine + potato chips + Hell’s Kitchen nights together.

Now regarding work: its often tiring, and draining, but strangely enough, I’m happy. I’m actually having fun. I genuinely like the people I work with, and I know how rare that is and I’m thankful for it.

I’d probably be bitching and moaning again come Monday, but whatever. It’s the weekend, and I can look at everything through my happy lens! Cheers, all.

basement stories issue #4 is now up!

It’s been up for a while now, sorry for the tardy post. I can’t believe my name is listed on the cover alongside these big names!

You can read the issue’s introduction here, and my poem here. Thank you to James Dent and Carol Kirkman for having me.

Fiction

“TimeSnip” by Cat Rambo

“Sugarplum Karma” by S. Hutson Blount

“A Void Wrapped in a Smile” by T.A. Pratt

 

Poetry

“Dreams After the Storm” by Eliza Victoria

“Remorse and the Pariah” by Michael J. DeLuca

“Birthing Monsters” by Siobhan Carroll

“Dawn” by WC Roberts

 

Articles

“And All My Idols  Are Angels, With the Faces of Cranky Old Men” by George Potter

 

under the storm poetry anthology launch

September 2 at the Ayala Museum. Thanks to Ian for guiding us haha!

Got held up at work so unfortunately I missed a huge chunk of the event, but J and I got there in time to meet up with Charles, Jordan, Lyza, and Tin (who sassed the waiters at MCafe for being so goddamn slow). Met Eva for the first time, and forgot to tell her that I loved this poem of hers. Met Richard Bolisay for the first time (oo kailangan full name haha) and saw Gian again. And it was wonderful to see Andrea! So sabaw I forgot to ask for autographs. I would love to round up all of these lovely people in one corner of this city and just talk and drink – that would be nice, yes?

Read my poem, “Crime Scenes“. I was a member of a writing organization in college that regularly held poetry readings, but I’ve never read a poem before. Yep – never. So of course I was nervous and frightened but people said it was okay. Not too painful? Beautiful. I listened to Andrea’s recording of my reading (probably coming soon on YouTube now on YouTube, thanks to Andrea and Kate) and boy, did I hate my voice haha. Next time I’ll just make someone else read my work.

I regret not being able to arrive earlier, though. Bitin! But at least I got the chance to stay, even for a short while.

Again, thanks to editors Joel and Khavn for letting me be a part of this.

Photos from Jovie Angelica Dayon.

editor khavn de la cruz

zombadings 1: patayin sa shokot si remington

I watched the film last night with J and some office mates, and initially, I didn’t care much for it. Only later (and I mean the-next-day later) did I understand what the filmmakers were trying to do. Homosexuality in Zombadings is shown as a curse, a choice, and a state from which you need saving (and by a “real man” – tunay na lalake – to boot) because that is how Filipino society, even in this day and age, sees it. This is how Remington sees it, this obnoxious, pa-macho young man who thinks gays are disgusting. He has to learn to respect homosexuality, and with him being so hardheaded, the only way to do it is for him to experience it. He has to learn how fun it is, and how dangerous, so dangerous that you can be murdered simply because of the way you look, the way you walk, the way you talk, and the gender of the person you choose to love and share your body with.

It’s sad. And stupid, and the filmmakers know this. A character launches into his favorite hate speech, and he is drowned by the sound of a marching band. Sure he has arguments, but it is pointless to listen to them, so why do we have to torture ourselves? Let’s just have music.

Final points:

  • Mart Escudero is brilliant.
  • Sound and editing could have been better.
  • Eugene Domingo!
  • Mart Escudero is brilliant.
  • We didn’t really need the zombies.
  • Oh, have I said that Mart Escudero is brilliant? Because he totally is.

the 61st palanca awards night

In 2009, I didn’t even think of having my hair did or applying make-up because hair and make-up takes two hours at least and I was feeling lazy. In any event (graduation, awards nights, book launches, work days), all I use are: eyelash curlers, pressed powder, blush-on, lipgloss and lipstick, a comb. I don’t know how to apply eye make-up, and even if I did, I don’t know how to make it last. I have this habit of touching my eyelids and turning smokey eye make-up into a pair of smokey smudges.

This year, I asked J if he could ask his sisters to do my make-up for me. I really just wanted to make my eyes pop out. For the pictures! (Whatever else!)

V and V were kind enough to agree. (V & V already sounds like a salon. They should put up one! Where they can also sell pastry!)

The makeover worked so well that my father gave a start when I reached our table the night of the event, hehe.

Blast from the past!

My parents:

My date! Howee.

Natasha Gamalinda and Rosmon Tuazon (who won 2nd Prize for Tula) were sitting at our table, but I didn’t recognize them! I thought Facebook would be able to help me in moments like this. Thank you Natasha for introducing yourself, and hope I’ll get the chance to see you guys again. (Oh my god I hope the two of you didn’t see me eating like a pig haha.) Congrats to your future hubby, Natasha! :)

Got a picture with the Alfars while waiting for the event to start. Congrats to Nikki for bagging the first prize for Short Story for Children, and Dean for sitting as chairman of the board of  judges for the Short Story category!

Always lovely to see the Spec Fic crowd. :)

With Aste, Grand Prize winner for the Short Story category. (And my boss! Ha!)

Food, then the usual staging of one of the winning dulang isang yugto.

This is Remi Karen Velasco’s “Ondoy: Buhay sa Bubong”. Hilarious!

Fooling around while waiting for the awarding to start.

Guest of honor is F. Sionil Jose.

Here’s the complete list of judges and winners. Congrats to everyone!

And of course, after the event, photo-op sa stage! Parang graduation lang!

I have a couple photos with my father’s mouth open, because he kept talking while the pictures were being taken. Worried na baka hindi raw masama yung Palanca logo sa likod. Haha!

With Ricky Davao, chairman of the board of judges for Dulang Pampelikula. Mr. Davao asked me, “Bakit hindi mo i-try mag-screenplay?” Well! Challenge –

no, not accepted. It’s too hard. /whine

Anyway this picture made my father really, really happy.

The cast of “Ondoy” with the author herself. :)

Of course we need to have our photos taken with Cai Cortez! “We’re big fans of Septic Tank!” said I, and she replied, “Na-enjoy niyo yun? Kahit wala akong linya?!” Winnur.

A wonderful night.