New Domicile

Hi!

Thank you for visiting this blog.


I have moved a couple houses down Harvard Street and have occupied a new domicile. Quite near the commercial district of Cubao. An on-line ukay-ukay/baratillo blog of my own. Drop by and you will the find me there writing, reflecting and selling some stuff.


Three of my blogs - Harvard Street Cubao, Library 7 and cine67 - have now merged. Here is my new blog:


baratillo books cinema & pinoy blog @ cubao


Drop by anytime.

Again, thanks for visiting.

Juned

Wiki and peanutbutter

Anyone interested in setting up a wiki?

For me its a fun way to keep notes and keep a database on-line. One of the e-groups I belong use it to compile a file of everyone in the group and some random notes. Its fun. And a handy thing to have, I set-up one and use it to keep notes and arrange stuff. I have been meaning to write about it for sometime then they came up with a promo to promote them in exchange you get to double space. There are nice things about marketing campaigns.

Anyway you might the able to use their services, I did ... no kidding.

By the way their tagline is:

“PBwiki makes creating a wiki as easy as making a peanut butter sandwich”

And it takes only ten seconds to set-up the wiki.


Here are the links to PBwiki





Check out the PBwiki tour!

Get a free wiki at PBwiki.com.

Blank books

This is I guess a fancy word for a notebook, a diary and a journal. A number of them can be a bit pricey, especially the notebooks they sell at Fullybooked. Some are so beautifully made that it seems to be a waste just to write on them.

But it still a notebook.

What is the use of a notebook if not used?

Nothing.

A blankbook or a notebook is probably one of my favorite type of books. It is the tabula rasa on which one jots down one's idea , a reminder, a note or a curse. For in some cases the notebook becomes the repository of our knowledge and intent. The proverbial hole in the ground where we can shout our inner thoughts. The scapegoat that becomes the recipitory of our sins. And in some cases the coliseum where we deal with our inner demons and enemies. Also a place to store notes.

There is a restaurant in China that serves an authentic and multiple course Imperial Feast. Wealthy patrons go to this restaurant to feast on dishes that were prepared for the Emperor of China and served only in Forbidden City. The proprietor of the said restaurant was a descendant of one of the minor court officials who was in charge of preparing the food. And this court official was taking down notes of what dishes were served, how they were cooked and what were the ingredients. Probably to ensure that the Emperor and his Court will always get the right and consistent meal they were used to.

Another blank book became the diary of a Jewish girl, who for a time hid with her family in an attic. They were hiding from the Nazis. Unfortunately, they were discovered, separated and sent to different concentration camps. The diary remained in the attic and after the war it was published. In its pages survived the thoughts and interactions of the people inside that attic from the point of view of the girl, Anne Frank.

Its useful to write things down in a notebook. The act itself purges us of ill-thoughts and records our opinion and musings. And in retrospect it allows us to judge more fairly our thoughts of the moment. Similar to a blog.

Except, a notebook, diary or journal allows us to be more candid, a great deal more candid.

About Practical Cats

I am not really an avid poem reader. One of the few poems I remember, rather a few lines I remember comes Emerson's poem about a tree and Jose Rizal's Mi Ultimo Adios. I do know the complete lines of a lot of nursery rhymes and JRR Tolkien's poem found in nearly all the books of the Lord of the Rings- The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King.

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,/span
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to rule them all,
One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
--J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

I even memorized the parts that were written in the One Ring.

Ash nazg durbataluk
Ash nazg gimbatul
Ash nazg thrakatuluk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul
--J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

The Dark Tongue was easier to retain than any of the Elvish tongue. Although, I had friends who studied it and acquired enough knowledge to converse in it. This was before the Jackson's film came out. Even before Bakshi's film came out as well. The Orc version of the rhyme did play a small part in a couple of friends belief that I was possessed several years ago. Never mix alcohol and works by JRR Tolkien.

So these were the only set of poems I had continually read through the years. Then several months ago I found myself in a book store, drifting from aisle to aisle. Glancing at books, books and books. Until, I saw this small book, almost a pamphlet really. It was mocha colored and had an odd cartoon of a cat with a bowler hat. It was sofbound and the book was written by TS Eliot. The book was titled,Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats.

The book caught my eye because I was familiar with Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Cats, which was a musical adaptation of Eliot's works. So I browsed it and soon enough left the store. I had bought the book.

The book, which is a compilation of TS Eliot's cat poems, is and interesting read. In it he describeds the different types of cats. It is one of those books that you can take out and read in the park or inside a coffee house. Guaranteed to bring a smile to your lips.

Here is one of the poems -

The Naming of Cats

The naming of cats is a difficult matter,
It isn't just one of your holiday games;
You may think at first I'm mad as a hatter
When I tell you a cat must have three
different names.

First of all, there's the name
that the family use daily,
Such as Victor, or Jonathan,
George or Bill Bailey--
All of them sensible everyday names.
There are fancier names
if you think they sound sweeter,
Some for the gentlemen,
some for the dames;
Such as Plato, Admetus,
Electra, Demeter--
But all of them sensible everyday names.

But I tell you,
a cat needs a name that's particular,
A name that is peculiar, and more dignified,
Else how can he
keep up his tail perpendicular,
Or spread out his whiskers,
or cherish his pride?

Of names of this kind,
I can give you a quorum,
Such as Munkustrap, Quazo or Coripat,
Such as Bombalurina, or else Jellyrum--
Names that never belong
to more than one cat.

But above and beyond
there's still one name left over,
And that is the name that you will never guess;
The name
that no human research can discover--
But The Cat Himself Knows,
and will never confess.

When you notice a cat in profound meditation,
The reason, I tell you, is always the same:
His mind is engaged in rapt contemplation
Of the thought, of the thought,
of the thought of his name:
His ineffable effable
Effanineffable
Deep and inscrutable singular Name.
The Naming of Cats by TS Eliot,Possum's Book of Practical Cats

By the way, This book is a nice buy.

Books and Films

Never judge a book by its movie. - JW Eagan

In a few weeks the movie Brokeback Mountain will have its commercial run in Metro Manila. Ang Lee's Cowboy-Shepherd Love Story will be a hit in Metro Manila. The range of interest for the movie cuts across personal sexual preferences.

There are two things general about movie adaptations.

First, Always note the word/caveat "adapted from", this means that the Director, Writer and Producer may have tampered with the story, for the sake of expediency and to hype up the story.

Second, The resulting movie story is not as good as the original story. Rarely, the only film that seems to improve with the movie adaptation was Pierre Boulle's "Le pont de la rivière Kwai" and the movie was David Lean's The Bridge on the River Kwai. And probably, the film "Spartacus", which was adapted from Howard Fast's novel of the same title. Then again Bridge on the River Kwai and Spartacus are good examples of ensemble work at are finest.

However, despite this I like movie adaptations and I do not mind queuing up to watch them. Partly because to see their treatment of book and more importantly the interest it generates ushers in new batch of readers. Not to mention new and better editions of the story.

So for that I like movie adaptations. Movie adaptations that have ushered in a renewed interest in books include:

Please note, the books mentioned in this post are books that I like and I am quite aware there are more books and film adaptations out there worthy of praise and attention.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

I like the Fellowship of the Ring, but not its subsequent adaptations. It did, however, bring in new editions of JRR Tolkien works. The Lord of the Ring Trilogy is a good buy, but a better buy would be "The Hobbit", "Farmer Giles of Ham", and "The Tolkien Reader" - which include “The Leaf by Niggle”.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe

The movie adaptation has brought about a new set of editions of CS Lewis' works. I would disregard the derivative works. Concentrate on the original works. Collect the whole Chronicles of Narnia, the Silent Planet Trilogy, “The Screwtape Letters” and for those serious readers the rest of Lewis' works. For movie it wont hurt to check out the movie “Shadowlands”.

Animal Farm

George Orwell's fable has been done twice and both adaptations to put mildly were not good. In both occasions somebody thought of improving the story, bad idea. One does not improve a story on an excellent story.

Anyway, Excellent movie adaptations of books include:

Godfather I and II, Mario Puzo's “The Godfather” includes the story of Michael Corleone and Vito Corleone. The ending though was a more powerful in the book.

“The Princess Bride”, this is an odd-one. It seems to be more of a book adapted from the movie. The movie is nice and the book is a nice read. It pays that the screenwriter and writer of the book are the same, William Goldman.

James Ivory's film adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro's “The Remains of the Day” is a gem. The book more so.

A book and film are two mediums to express a story. Movies are dynamic and visually overwhelming. However, it is limited by time (there is a human limitation to the amount we can watch) and by the caprices or tastes of all its creators. A book or written word can be dynamic but works on the individual level, it uses word to describe action and it uses phrases to impart subtle and not-subtle meaning to these actions. It may not be visually overwhelming but it works effectively in imprinting an image in our conscience. More effectively than any film can.

By the way, I am now reading Annie Proulux's "Broke Back Mountain" it should be an interesting read.