My Acceptance Speech
The awards season is upon us and I have decided to post the acceptance speech I practice in my mind every time I see a celebrity collect something I guess I'll only ever see in People Magazine. Well, scratch that. The couple of times I was in the press rooms at the Grammys and at the TV Guide Awards, I saw those puppies close up.
"[smiles modestly]. This is unbelievable. I remember being a little kid of 7 or 8 in Rowland Heights and practicing this kind of thing in the bathroom mirror. [smiles modestly, shakes head]. Of course, no one arrives at this kind of achievement alone. I owe everything to the people that have helped me, guided me, talked to me, laughed with me, and made me feel ordinary and extraordinary all at the same time, and so utterly alive.
Thanks to my small team of stylists that turn a dark girl with dead skin cells into a tan, glowing babe. Extra special thanks to my facialist Jennie -- acid on your face was never so good for you. Pamela at the Jacques Michel salon, thanks for the painstaking work with those thread-like highlights whose effects are absolutely angelic. My personal shoppers, thank you for not hating me when I asked you to just bring those back to Harry Winston just one more time...
Mrs. Buccola for giving me the gift of communication, which stayed with me and helped me explore the frontiers and meet the people of my dreams... M. Waco for trusting me and building my confidence... L. Ciccone for keeping the good eye out, and seeing something in me I was too shy to show... Roby, for life's most precious gifts and setting the standard... my family all over, for the humor and vitality that I know runs through me, too... Stella let me sing... Reyna let me trust... Jose for helping me live, and helping me laugh in life, because there is simply nothing finer. My father, because everything I do reflects his generosity and hard work. And my mother, because beauty, patience, and dignity are things you can only learn by example.
... Oh, John Williams is waving the wand and I'm running out of time... I'll be quick summing it all up. Um, I guess thanks also to the cooks at Tandoor for the great chicken tikka masala, and for knowing me by name."
Pride
It's a very hard thing to live with. Pride forces you to live with decisions you made emotionally, not intelligently, things that you cannot possibly take or give back, or change. It's a very torturous thing because you know what is the right thing to do but because all you want to do is save face, and have your way, you sacrifice that logical and plaintive solution. Pride can be an useful weapon of defense or a boon -- it lets you have your dignity and allows the swell of satisfaction, that incomparable feeling of infallibility.
But there is a tricky balance and unfortunately, most people use their pride in very clumsy ways. It's a complex tool just like anything else and it involves practice to get it just right.
A Lil' Chicken Kebab Never Hurt Nobody
When you're really hungry, anything will taste good. Stale bread. Old candy. Beef jerky. But I think that there is nothing quite as rewarding as a good Persian meal. Get yourself a some boneless chicken kebab, with the charbroiled tomato and the saffron-infused basmati rice, and you are absolutely in Diner's Heaven.
I saw "How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days" last night. I enjoyed it a great deal for the following 5 reasons:
1. Kate Hudson's gray and gold dresses
2. Kate Hudson's blonde hair
3. Matthew McConaughey's torso
4. Matthew McConaughey's kissing technique
5. Matthew McConaughey's torso
Two of those are repeats, but it was worth mentioning twice. The ultimate irony of this movie involves wondering how Kate Hudson would ever be able to lose a guy in 10 days, looking the way she does. There is no movie nor plotline that could serialize enough wacky and irritating things that she would have to do to actually accomplish this. I think even somebody with Matthew McConaughey's glorious body would be put to that test. And did I mention that he looks to be a fantastic kisser?
The Storm Has Passed
It was absolutely torrential down here for the past two days, and I mean this meteorogically as well as figuratively. I just have so much going on, and to quote the great M. Chereau, it is "marvelous and horrible at the same time." I love that my life is so liberally peppered with fantastic personalities, that I have people who offend me and praise me, people who turn to me and people who I turn to. This week, I unwittingly attended a meeting of adversaries that I thought would only convene when hell froze over; felt as if the floor had dropped from under me as my new name became C3; played cat and mouse games in the library (but mainly with myself); compiled some kind of a legal brief with a few shards of brain... all in all, witnessed life's many twists and turns, understood what irony could really mean. I laughed, I cried, I sang, I whispered, I talked many hours into the night.
Oh yes, and I preened a great deal.
I feel very much alive right now.
Buzz Words for February 8
Brief. Control. Anger. Indignance. Vulnerability. Dance. Drink. Sunny. Respect. Esteem. Happy.
Oh, if I could turn back time.
The Party That Ended 1,000 Political Careers
That's what Slim Shama called the informal gathering of law students on Saturday night, which included plenty of booze and a fire-blowing man. I had some kind of toxic Goldschlager drink that briefly incapacitated me -- but I was capable of doing some things, hee hee.
Giulia and my auntie are leaving on Wednesday for Italy. It was really nice having them around and I was genuinely pleased to be reunited with my various cousins again. Last night, there were strangely comforting vibes floating around as I ate won tons with Beulah and Giulia. I think my aunts could feel it, too. Even though there was no child at that table younger than 21, they referred to us as "little children" in Chinese and I liked that momentary reversion to a time that should have, but never existed. I asked Beulah (as I was the only one corny enough to think up such an event), "When was the last time we were all together in the same room?" Giulia posited that it was well over 10 years ago.
Time flies, especially when you're having fun.
