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Archive for April, 2008

when I first arrived in 1980…

30 Apr

… my food life had fewer choices here in the Big NO. I was a (poor) college student and most of the places closed by 10 PM. Sure, there were a few Chinese restaurants, plus some really good Mexican and Greek on the ethnic front… and there was always Denny’s for after hours food. But I also came from a culture where a more affordable variety of good eats was available 24/7. Yes, I accepted (OK… embraced) the food culture here (Hey, good food is good food!) and assimilated enjoying the fare that was offered but every once in a while there was a hankering for what I grew up with.

I had a couple of room-mates (also of the Malaysian ilk) who had been here for a few years (before I arrived) and on occasion we would get a wild hair… drive to San Francisco (3 hours away) on a Friday night to a little hole-in-the-wall on Montgomery Street and feed our need for good after hours Chinese food. The big bonus was… the joint was open until 3 or 4 AM (depending on the customer flow).

As time went on and the Fresno palate widened (along with the ethnic diversity) so did the variety of cuisines offered. I remember how excited I was when the first Pho place (Vietnamese noodles) opened. I went there often because it was as close to the street food I loved back home… but still the hours stuck by conventional times. Earlier this year I noticed one of my favorites (Pho 75 #2) had extended it’s hours.

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I kid you not when I say that my heart jumped for joy. Now a fragrant steaming bowl of noodles is once again available to me after hours. (Further evidence that this city is growing up?) Apart from noodles they have a good selection of rice dishes.

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On top of that you can get roast and barbecued pork (what the lovely Joy calls “candy”) by the pound… and a whole roasted duck is only $13! But really the absolute best part of all of this are the hours that it is available! Seriously, there is something quite enchanting about supping on good food in the wee hours of the morning with a small group of friends.

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This has become a bit of an “open secret” now as I constantly run into (my more American) friends who also sup there on a more regular basis… including a couple of chefs I know. So, now the version of “cafe culture” (“life begins at 10 PM”) that I grew up with is once again available to me and Fresno has become even a little more home than it used to be.

BTW… for you locals… it’s on the north east corner of First and McKinley.

EDIT: 1:30 PM

Yeah, I’ve always liked the warm nostalgic feel of this song. “Goodbye” written and produced by Paul McCartney (CLICK HERE FOR HIS DEMO VERSION) for Mary Hopkins.

 
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lecram the stupid

29 Apr

I had one of those dunderhead moments yesterday. I was doing some clean-up and decided the vacuum cleaner needed to be emptied out… to improve the power of suck. So, I crack it open and …yep… it’s full. Pull out the filter, empty out the contents, snap it back and turn it on. But now the damn thing is spitting out dust every where I had cleaned not 10 minutes before! “Bloody Hell! This thing is broken!” Nope… Lecram the Clueless had forgotten to put the filter back.

Yeah… more updates as the day rolls along.

EDIT: 10:00 AM

Another of the Zonthar in the Classics series.

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“hey, isn’t that…”

28 Apr

It’s been a while since I got into a movie watching binge. Not that I did this weekend but I did watch 3 between Friday and Sunday. (A binge for me is at least 3 movies a day.) What is mildly significant (a fanfare is OK… but no red carpet necessary) is that these movies came to me via various mediums. Also though all three were very different… each of them produced “hey, isn’t that…” moments.

perfume.jpgI bought the DVD (used) of “Perfume” some months ago but only popped it in Friday night. I had heard mixed reviews of it but thought I’d check it out to decide for myself. I liked it… a lot. Appealed to my quirk factor (an often twisted, sick and wrong sense of aesthetic) in many ways. Part of that was the fable tone of how the story was told.

Not giving the plot away though because it is one of those that really deserves the joy of discovery (if you should decide on this adventure). Beautifully shot… both brutal and divinely spectacular (really, you can almost smell this movie) with a sweeping epic feel about it… plus a very definite European sensibility (think “The Tin Drum” crossed with “Amelie“). The quirk (appreciation for me) is that the film has a delicious amoral sense to it sprinkled with moments of sweetness and dark humor… which I suspect is one of the elements that garnered the more negative responses.

My “hey, isn’t that…” moment was the effective use of a narrator’s voice as a device to set the fabled feel. Not unlike some other films I have enjoyed in the past that employed a similar style such as “Cannery Row“, “City of Lost Children” and “Raising Arizona“.

good_german.jpgThe next day I streamed “The Good German” via my Netflix account. (OK… I really love the fact that I can do this to watch movies on demand.)

My first reaction (a funny one at that) was the fact that George Clooney’s character seemed to get beat up every 5 minutes or so. (Yeah, I will find the strangest things to laugh at.) The movie itself employed the classic (noir) style of the 1940′s… in Black and White with a slightly over the top acting style from that era. Even plot and character elements such as the gruff, cynical hero and the beautiful, complex but flawed love interest borrowed heavily from the period.

The “hey, isn’t that…” moment came halfway through (after the smoky bar scenes, etc) when I mused that perhaps there would be an airport scene just like in “Casablanca“. By gum, there was!

12milereef.JPGThen yesterday as I was flipping through channels on the tube I came across “Beneath the 12-Mile Reef” in glorious cinemascope. Really, I was just looking for some background noise but found myself drawn into the movie. Not that it was any good… but more so out of a strange perverse pleasure.

The plot was silly and trite with convenient “explain aways” and “easy resolves” which is pretty typical of many movies from the 50′s. Also of particular amusement to me is the use of Mexican American actors to portray Greeks… like Anthony Quinn in the title role of “Zorba” and in this case Gilbert Roland as “Mike Petrakis”.

With this movie (there are movies and there are films… this one is a movie) the “hey, isn’t that…” moments were more obvious. Like… hey, isn’t that Robert Wagner? Hey, isn’t that Peter Graves? “Hey, isn’t that Richard Boone? Yeah, finding (often bad) movies that actors had their early careers in is hugely entertaining to me.

So, that was my weekend (check the post below to the other part of my weekend) of movie watching. Hope you are having a good start of the week.

 
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tis the (block sale) season

26 Apr

One of the great features living in my hood is the annual season of Block Sales. Last year I featured the grand-daddy of them all on Terrace Ave. (2 streets south of mine)… at which I got food. The one today was on Princeton Ave… and over the next few weeks streets north and south of my street will be teeming with crowds. In reality it’s not just one block but averages up to 3 or 4. I will usually amble through and look only to buy food… especially good home made tamales (which I did today). Today was a little different. This morning as I sauntered I was joined by my friend Jeff. Here are some pics I snapped on my amble.

This year… I just had to have this…

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Yeah, a Flying Pigeon. Beauty, eh? It’s parked right outside my door now.

If you are interested in slightly bigger versions of these pics… CLICK HERE!

 
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Da Count – discovering a treasure from the past

25 Apr

dacount

Earlier this week, as I was scrounging through the pantry I came across a treasure that had been stashed away in two vacum sealed packets. I knew exactly what they were and excitedly (but carefully) opened one. The aroma that escaped tickled my nostrils and put a smile on my face. I had come across a batch (probably the last) of my grandmother’s curry powder.

Every family in the old days had their own secret recipe that was a closely guarded secret and source of family pride. Of course I am partial to ours. I remember when she was alive how she would buy the various spices needed. They included dried red chillies, fennel seeds, cumin… and many others. There would be sheets laid out in the sun at the back of the house for them to “cook” under. Then they would be portioned out, weighed and mixed into the various needed curries. This alchemy produced curry powders for various dishes. Meat, fish, “general”… plus specialty dishes like “feng“.

Once separated into various bags my Grandmother would hop the bus to the mill to have them ground and return to divide them for her 4 children and their families. (She did this well into her eighties.) On a Sunday once every two months at the weekly family lunch each family would be given their stash.

Yes, I cooked up a batch with chicken and both Mum and I savored the curry with quiet delight. Finally she said.. “How nice… I haven’t had this for a long time.”

I can’t begin to tell you how much this counts.

To find out what Da Count is all about… click the flashing sign above.

p.s. No, I’m not even sharing a picture of the packets because then you would know what they looked like… and I would have no choice but to hunt you down and kill you to protect the family honor.

 
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for my money this one is creepier…

24 Apr

… than the original. This is the latest in the “Zonthar in the Classics” series.

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Late start on the blog today. The early morning breeze blew up a mess of pollen in the air so that has determined that it will be a “meds day” since I will be spending part of it doing clean-up in the garden.

Yesterday was pretty much a “no do” day. I did accomplish the needed chores in the morning and supply shopping. Then some of the afternoon was spent watching an enjoyable and silly DVD. I zonked out for a nap at 6 and awoke at 8 PM refreshed. So, the “no do” day was justified.

Yeah, no HNT today. Wasn’t feeling inspired. But thanks to those of you who visited… and left comments. It’s nice to be remembered.

Back to my flurry of activity… don’t want to lose momentum – I’m actually on a weeding break. Perhaps an update or two later in the day.

 
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haven’t even brewed a pot of coffee yet…

23 Apr

… and in the stupor of having just woken up. I’ll post the latest in the “Zonthar In The Classics” series as a place holder for a post to come later.

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EDIT: 20 minutes later

OK… glossy catalogs are slippery to step on. I just did and nearly fell on my ass. In these litigious times we live in perhaps glossy magazines should include a hazard warning. (Yeah, like we need yet another one.)

I did a fair amount of clean-up work around the homestead yesterday. So, last night I hit the local watering hole for the reward of a drink and company to chat with. I thought to myself how it used to be a routine hanging out there not so long ago. Now it feels more of a treat because the visits are a once in a while occurrence. I kinda like that.

It’s threatening to sprinkle around these parts today so any clean-up work will have to be more of the indoor variety. Coincidence? I think not.

Last night I was thinking that Anthony Minghella died about a month ago. Sad because I considered him one of the better screenwriters and directors of my generation. Some of his movies include The English Patient and The Talented Mr. Ripley. Though one of my all time favorites is his directorial debut Truly, Madly Deeply. Here is one of my favorite scenes from it. Always puts a warm smile on my face.

 

 

 

Have a wonderful Wednesday.

 
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it’s about gethsemane, isn’t it?

22 Apr

Really, it is. The doubt. The questioning. Ultimately the surrender.

Ah… but that is a discussion for another time. Different post in the morning.

 
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over the last couple of days…

21 Apr

… I’ve had to fix/replace the drip lines at my vegetable beds. (Thanks APJ for helping me get the parts.) I just finished the last of it and cracked a beer (before noon!) and celebrated in smug satisfaction with my handi-work. In a bit I’ll get to lunch then more in terms of general clean-up around the area.

Last night turned out to be a bit of a YouTube night. Someone uploaded the entire “Beatles Anthology” and I suddenly had a wild hair to watch it. (BTW I got through to Episode 3. If you feel the sudden insanity to follow suite… GO HERE click on the user’s profile… go to page 4 of the uploaded videos and work backward.) So, at first it was a little irritating that segments were broken up into 10 minute chunks… but I eventually eased into it and actually found it liberating. (Potty breaks, etc.)

OK… now lunch then back to work. But before I go ::drumroll:: here is the next in the series of “Zonthar In The Classics”!

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Oh, and another thing… (no, you can’t get rid of me that easily) I also found this from a movie I really like. Enjoy.

 

Enjoy… though an update could very well happen. Cheers!

 
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things that do not keep me awake at nights…

19 Apr

… but I still think (and sometimes worry) about anyway.

(Part 1 of an off an on posting topic)

godfatherwis.jpgThe Godfather – the musical.

With things in the Broadway arena over recent years trending toward adapting movies into stage musicals (Sunset Boulevard, The Evil Dead, Legally Blond, etc) the possibility may be closer to actualizing.

I’m really not sure Don Corleone breaking out into “An Offer You Can’t Refuse” (ala Fagin’s “You Got To Pick A Pocket Or Two” from “Oliver”) or the Clemenza’s Tarentella flavored ditty “First We Cook The Spaghetti Sauce And Then You Kill The Bastardo” are really good ideas.

Of course musical production numbers would have to include dances from the era. For instance, the entire gang war will be choreographed to a soft shoe… every now and then breaking into a flurry of tap dancing to simulate tommy gunfire. Michael will have to sing two love duets and I’m sure, there won’t be a dry eye in the house when his wispy ballad “She Got Blown To Bits In A Car” ends Act One.

The operatic finale “Tonight All Debts Are Settled” staged with the baptism center stage as a ballet of executions conducted on the multi level set will be theatrically spectacular.. but really, still, all in all, just a bad (nightmarish) idea to me.

EDIT: 10:40 AM

Ahh… just warms the cockles of yer heart, don’t it?

 

 
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