mud sweat and tears

here's what i've been up to these past few months:

i learned pottery in college, and had always wanted to go back to it. i really love the texture of clay, the feeling you get when you're perfectly "centered" on the wheel, and of course the moment your pieces come out of the kiln.

several months ago, i found a studio near my office named "mud sweat and tears". it's the cleanest studio i've ever worked in, and everyone's friendly. a real convivial place -- such a contrast to the somewhat hierarchical culture that i've experienced among japanese potters. now it's where i spend most of my weekends. in some ways it's great meditation. it takes my mind off work, and i concentrate so much that i sometimes forget to eat, which you know -if you know me- never happens! i wouldn't call it relaxing, though. kneading the clay and controlling it on the wheel takes quite a lot of strength, and i always end up with stiff shoulders and muscle cramps all over. and some days i mess up and go home with nothing to show for my hours of work, which is extremely frustrating. so "mud sweat and tears" isn't just a cute name, it's a perfect one.

in tokyo, watching tv and youtube

i'm at the end of a 2-week break in tokyo.
my previous visit was about 4 days, which gave me little time to do anything. this time, i was able to meet a lot of friends, some even twice. i also made it out of town, a 2-day trip with my parents to a hot spring resort in nagano.

i also spent some mornings just lazing on the sofa watching japanese tv. for some reason i found it kind of reassuring that the usual, veteran comedians were still on. like tamori-san. i am a big fan of his soramimi hour...

meeting up with friends from school made me think about my old life in tokyo. then i found this on youtube:

oh, i am feeling all nostalgic for the red train and that boy who made me listen to sappy j-pop.

(fa so la ti do... that sound is made by siemens)

jose gonzalez and feist

i know i dissed new york the other day... but i've been reminded in the past few weeks of how great it can be. the cooler weather is definitely helping. and there have been some good concerts this month that made me appreciate being here. it's easy to take it all for granted, but there are always interesting shows on.

jose gonzalez at spiegeltent was simply amazing. my favorite was his version of kylie minogue's hand on your heart... i melt a little every time i hear that one. i thought his concert might be more of a sit-down affair, but the spiegeltent was a good match for his melancholy tone.

and feist (with broken social scene) at the mccarren pool in green point was lots of fun. what a great venue, and a strong live performer!
(photo by ryan dombal)

oh, and speaking of green point, the rumor is that the hakata ramen chain ichiran is opening a shop in williamsburg in a month or so. i'm hoping it's true! i wonder if they'll still have those silly curtains to block everyone's view from each other. i can't really see new yorkers being too timid to order an extra helping of noodles. there was a sceptical preview in new york magazine, but they don't really know anything. mmmm... i can't wait for some of that spicy tonkotsu goodness...

i (heart) SF

i fall in love with cities very easily. so i have many favorites: rome, istanbul, bangkok, tokyo, and of course new york... but at the moment, my heart belongs to san francisco.

i travelled to the bay area this week for work, and gave myself the weekend to be a tourist. what can i say? it's beautiful! and after weeks of sticky heat in new york, the northern california weather was such a treat. i did get some typical san francisco fog for a few hours every morning while i was there, but by noon the air was crisp and the sky a bright blue.

and here is the ferry building where they have a farmer's market every weekend.











i wandered around on saturday morning for a few hours, sampling great cheese and wine before sitting down for a nice lunch at the slanted door, which my colleague eric recommended. i've always held a deep suspicion of asian "fusion" cuisine, i think for good reason, but the food here was quite good. the wine list was pretty impressive too. the tourist in me would have preferred to see more californian wines represented, but it was a good show of the buyer's smart and quirky taste. and it was nice to have a view of the bay, even with a heavy mist hovering over it.

after lunch, i walked back to my hotel on nob hill, my arms loaded with "cal red" peaches, grapes, bread and cheese. when i climbed to the corner of california and geary and turned around, i discovered the fog had lifted. the entire bay had suddenly come to life, as if by magic, sparkling with little waves and white sailboats.

so, can someone please remind me what's so great about new york?

tanglewood

lying on a blanket under the stars, listening to a great orchestra... could anything sound more enchanting? when my friend sayaka suggested a weekend trip to tanglewood, the boston symphony orchestra's summer venue, i replied yes in a heartbeat.

we brought straw mats and candles along with some wine, cold cuts and local cheese from guido's in great barrington. i thought we were pretty organized, but i was impressed by how well prepared some other lawn-ticket holders were, setting up proper tables and bringing real cutlery!

but when the orchestra began playing, it was all about the music and the night's main performer: yo-yo ma. i had never listened to dvorak's cello concerto live, and was blown away. such a vivid piece that brings out the best in a good orchestra and a brilliant cellist.

the orchestra also played from the new world... the funny thing is that in japan, local governments used to play part of this piece over public speakers at around 6 p.m., with an announcement telling children to go home because it's getting dark. so it reminds me of early evenings in tokyo, with the sky turning a hazy orange and the smell of dinner wafting from the windows. but after tanglewood, i might forever associate it with the sight of a billion stars and the smell of freshly-cut grass.

bianca

is a cute italian restaurant on bleecker street near lafayette. i'm in love with their gramigna with peppers and sausages.

and during the summer they serve prosciutto with ripe, juicy melons... what could go better with a glass of chilled pinot grigio?

the only problem with bianca --as with many restaurants-- is that it gets a bit noisy, so you find yourself shouting at your dinner partner. and by making yourself heard across the table, you often end up being heard very clearly by your neighbors as well. which can be a bit embarassing if, for example, you're discussing with a girlfriend details of your last disastrous date!

breakfast lunch tea --from rose bakery

i stopped wanting everything my sister had when i was around 7, and she came home from the orthodontist with a full set of braces. but when i found this cookbook from the rose bakery in paris on her kitchen shelf last weekend, i knew i had to have the same.

part of the book's attraction is the pretty green cover with the cool design so typical of phaidon press, but it's not just the appearance: the photos are beautifully but honestly presented, and the recipes so well explained, with generous tips on variations and alternative ingredients. my sister made me a pancake from the book, and it was definitely one of the best i've ever had: fluffy inside, with a crispy surface, and not too sweet. it went really well with peaches we bought from the weekend farmers' market in old town, alexandria, where she now lives.

she also made me some scones from the book, and put them in a ziploc bag for me to take back to new york. she's already acting like a mother --well, she only has a few months to go! i've been eating the scones for breakfast, lunch, tea... and the occasional dinner, so they're almost gone. i'll have to make some myself now.

italy, july, 2007

there's something about italy that feels so foreign and familiar at the same time. i wasn't quite sure about going on my own this year, but i'm glad i went.

great food and wine are definitely reasons i've been back so often...












but it's also the people...









and the way they live (they do it well, as you can see)...

and the feeling i get when i climb to the top of siena's palazzo pubblico, and overlook the tuscan countryside.

a rainy day in astoria

sitting on my sofa, waiting for the rain to end, listening to feist...

slowly getting used to this new life.