Chiq Boutique » good buys

Sightings:Extaordinary Encounters With Ordinary Birds

Chiqui — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 20:29:38 +0000

Sightings by Sam Keen is a book I found in our local library’s booksale. It’s published by Chronicle Books (a really cool publisher in my opinion) and filled with illustrations by Mary Woodin. I’ve been reading it for several nights now, the last thing I do before i turn off my bedside lamp. It features the birds that the author has had the chance to observe in the wild. Keen has been an avid bird watcher since he was a child. In this work, he talks about his observations of different birds and how each one has lead him to a certain realization in his life. What I read in the introduction struck me so profoundly that I scrambled out of bed, rifled through my desk for a piece of paper, and scribbled away furiously. They were words I didn’t wish to forget. They compelled me to keep on reading.

Here is what got me all excited at half past 12 AM last Wednesday: Our most intimate revelations of the sacred come in odd ways that seem meaningless or trivial to an outsider. In these pivotal moments when we are struck dumb by the simple existence of a flowering tree, we detect faint echoes of an unknowable G____. A brief opening appears in the cloud of ultimate ignorance under which we dwell. Yet the experience is so private, so idiosyncratic, that we don’t know how to talk about it. We stutter in an effort to put into words something that is ineffable.”

Another favorite line is “….we glimpsed the infinite in some finite disguise”. What he means is that sometimes, out of the blue, we see God, who is boundless and limitless, in the tiniest details of his creation. In a very fleeting moment He reveals something to us, communes with us and moves us in a way that others can’t understand. Now finally I get what William Blake meant in this poem that used to irritate me so much:

“To see a world in a grain of sand,

And heaven in a wild flower,

Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,

And Eternity in an hour.”

I have not finished this, but, for several more nights, it will definitely be on top of the reading pile on my nightstand. I hope to find more gems in it.

3 AM Food Thoughts

Chiqui — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 14:53:58 +0000

3 AM. I am cooking. Crazy day ahead. I look up and see this can of wasabi and soy sauce almonds on the kitchen shelf. I know I bought it for my husband to snack on while at work, but I wonder what it tastes like. Like sushi maybe. So I open it up. Not bad. I can’t stop eating, in fact. The wasabi kick, which makes sushi-eating such an adventure, is there. Enuff to sting your nasal passages, but not potent enuff to burn your sinuses and make you want to bang your head. Which reminds me…..

Wasabi mango is one chocolate concoction I can’t get off my mind. See that chocolate-filled plate above? The square one with the green and yellow stripes – that’s the wasabi mango chocolate. My god! Who would have thought that the perfect accompaniment to raw fish would taste just as good with chocolate and a fruit. Another knockout flavor is the chili apricot. It’s the one with the orange square design on it. A year ago I tasted the Lindt Cherry Chili chocolate bar. It was okey, but the chili was almost imperceptible. If you eat it like a pig, you would hardly notice its presence. But this one… Whew! When you bite into it, the first thing you notice is the sweetness of the apricot. And just right after you say “So where’s the chili?”, you feel its unmistakable warmth spreading down your throat.

And the best thing about my newly discovered gustatory pleasure is that it’s being made just a block away from where I live. They come from a store called L’ Artisan de Chocolat. What a surprise! Our area is not exactly the best piece of real estate around. Just yesterday the police had closed off several streets because of a robbery that took place two blocks away. Traffic was moving at a snail’s pace. Two police helicopters were circling close to our apartment. Black and white cars are a common sight here. You’d never, for a moment, think that this could be a place for an award-winning chocolatier. Beverly Hills maybe, but not Koreatown.

I feel like giving myself a knock on the head. This place has been around for six years and I learned about it only last month. First week of November – the kids and I drove beyond First and Virgil. Just a few feet away from that intersection, maybe five to ten feet away from that Korean nightclub that we see all the time, was a small brick storefront. French flag hanging above the doorway. ”L Artisan De Chocolat” , I read the sign in my best french-sounding voice. I pointed it out to my son and suggested that we check it out the following week.

The store is actually bigger inside. There’s a small area for displaying their wares. Most of the space is used as a workshop. When we came in, a friendly gentleman with a french accent greeted us. He was making chocolates with a Korean lady. I learned, when I visited their website, that they are a husband and wife team, trained in a French culinary school. Their work has earned them many awards. Mostly they supply restaurants and hotels. Hotel Sofitel of Beverly Hills is just one of their famous clients.

ginger, korean garlic, and olive

Since this discovery I know I won’t be stopping by the Godiva chocolate store anymore. These candies are just as expensive as Godiva, but not as sweet. Their flavors are extremely adventurous. First time I was in the store, my heart was racing and I couldn’t stop grinning. Inside their display case was a wealth of chocolate combinations I’ve never even thought possible. Hibiscus (Gumamela), rose, bacon, kumquat, tomato, pumpkin, rosemary. OMG! I remembered Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Jelly Beans in the Harry Potter novel. What are they gonna come up with next? Booger and pencil shavings flavor? My son and my mother rave about the Korean Garlic. I haven’t tasted it, but it’s next on my list.

hibiscus, melon, and tomato

My Perfume

Chiqui — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 21:49:12 +0000

Who cares what perfume I’m wearing? I’m not some big celebrity, afterall. It’s not like I’m Beyonce and everybody would want to know everything I do.

WAIT… in this website I am Beyonce and the real Beyonce doesn’t matter here.

So back to my perfume…. I bought a 30 ml bottle of Harajuku Lovers a few weeks ago. $42 is a bit expensive for a such a small amount, don’t you think? I’m not a big perfume person really. I’ve always been uncomfortable with scents on my body. It took me years to consume even just half of the bottles that used to sit in my bathroom shelf. But lately I’ve been thinking it’s time to create a new ME. I need to be more sophisticated.

With my bored nine-year-old son, I started sniffing testers at a store. He told me that the “G” scent of the Harajuku Lovers line was the best. So I got it. Before my penny-pinching rational mind could talk me out of my frivolity, I handed my credit card to the salesperson. “G” smells upbeat, young, fun, and yummy. Like coconut candy. I wear it a lot, especially when I feel deprived of husbandly affection. It makes me happy. When I take out the bottle with its doll cap, my three-year-old daughter gets all excited. She thinks I have a new toy. Seeing me spray myself, she demands that I give her a spritz or two. We snicker. Not wanting to be left out, my son extends his neck. I give him a spray. He smiles at us. Enter hubby, ” Is that a new air freshener?”.

OMG. You spend so much to be more sophisticated and he calls your new perfume an air freshener! Maybe next time I shouldn’t let my son choose my scent for me.

Book Finds

Chiqui — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 02:57:03 +0000

Inspired and determined not to be outdone by Jose Ma. Victor, a friend who has an impressive reading list on Facebook and Friendster, I went to a thrift store to see if I can get some good books for a song. I went in at 12 noon and left Goodwill at around 2PM. For two hours I scanned the shelves and dug into three large bins filled with used and dusty books. I’m very happy with what I found.

Here’s a list of the books I need to finish:

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood, paperback, $15.00 @ Barnes & Noble, on sale @Amazon for $10.20, only $.99 @ Goodwill

Cat’s Eye by Margaret Atwood, paperback, $14.95 @ Barnes & Noble, on sale @Amazon for $10.17, only $.99 @ Goodwill

Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, brand new audio book, unabridged version, 11 CDs, $39.95 @Barnes & Noble, on sale @ Amazon for $30.36, only $1.99 @ Goodwill

The Artist’s Way * A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron, paperback, $16.95 @ Barnes & Noble, on sale @ Amazon for $10.85, only $.99 @ Goodwill

If I had visited the nearest bookstore, Barnes & Noble, I would have spent a total of $86.85 on these four items. If I had gone online and purchased them at Amazon, I would have spent a little less at $61.58. But no — I went to Goodwill and only paid $4.96.

Smart Girl! Yup, that’s me!

Cherry and Chili Chocolate

Chiqui — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 09:10:24 +0000

Worth a try. I like darks, but I’m wary of those that say 70% or 60% cacao. They’re usually bitter. When I saw this one, I was intensely curious. So I bought it. Cherry in chocolate. I’ve heard of that before. Cherry plus chili…. That’s new to me.

Matikman nga…

Not bad. It’s a novel treat for the tastebuds. Pa konti-konti lang. Definitely not the type you’d stuff down your throat. The bitterness is there, but you don’t mind it so much because of the sweet chocolate mousse filling. When the cherry oozes out, tartness explodes in your mouth. Then comes the final layer of flavor, the hotness of the chili. Very subtle. I was a bit disappointed. It was more like a whimper than a bang. I thought it was barely perceptible, but then again if they had made it any stronger it would probably taste like a southwest mexican salsa and I would need some tortilla chips to go with it. I suppose the gourmet chocolatiers knew what they were up to when they did what they did.

A must buy for housewives (and also other people, but most especially housewives), who have limited opportunities for adventure in their lives.

Icepan Ice Cream

Chiqui — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 02:44:56 +0000

West Hollywood Plaza – corner of Sta. Monica and La Brea, LA. When my daughter and I were finished picking up the things we needed at Target, we went to the ground floor for some ice cream at Ben and Jerry’s. To our disappointment, it wasn’t there anymore. A new business had taken its place. The sign said: ICEPAN. What a dull name for a store that sold something as exciting as ice cream! I stood hesitantly at the door and looked around for other places where we could eat. Baja Fresh was full. I wasn’t in the mood for a Jamba Juice smoothie. Didn’t want coffee from Starbucks. Pomodoro sounded expensive. No choice. I pulled the door and went in. The interior was all sleek and modern, not really the type of look you’d associate with a sweet treat. The storekeepers looked like Koreans. “Great! Another overpriced Korean establishment!”, I thought with dismay. I wanted to back out, but the ladies behind the counter were very nice and welcoming.

I let out a sigh and ordered a large cup. Learned that they make ice cream in front of you. You pick from all natural ingredients, choose your milk (soy, whole, and lowfat) and choose your toppings. First they blend the ingredients, then they spread it out thinly on a round, frozen, metal pan. With two wide, metal spatulas, they scrape, scrape, scrape. Chop. Chop. Chop. Scrape. Flip. Pat. Flip. Spread. Scrape. Chop. Scrape. Pat. Flip, until …. viola! It’s scoopable ice cream. Natural and healthy. Tastes good, too. Flavors are not as intriguing as Ben & Jerry’s (Cherry Garcia, Phish Food, or John Lennon’s Whirled Peace), but you can be sure I’ll be back, even just for the pleasure of watching them make ice ice cream.

Beachballs in Winter

Chiqui — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 20:21:04 +0000

Nope, I wasn’t planning to take my kids for a dip at the beach when I bought a dozen inflatable beachballs last December. I’m not that crazy. Even in the summer, seawater can feel like it had been placed in the freezer for two hours. No thanks, American beaches are not for me. I’ll wait ’til I get enough money to go home and splash at Boracay. So what’s with all the beachballs then?

My son is very inquisitive, always asking where this and that country is. I’ve been thinking of buying him a globe, but it’s very expensive. It can cost from 40-60 dollars.Good thing I saw these balls designed to look like a globe. I bought twelve of them for only seven dollars at Rhode Island Novelty. My kids can kick them and toss them around. They can have fun and learn from them at the same time.

Long, long time ago I read somewhere that kids in the States lag behind in knowledge of geography. I noticed, when I got the chance to live here, that many people think of America as the center of the world, that everything here is the best and everyone out there (especially in developing countries) is still swinging in trees. I’ve always wondered why they call their baseball championship the World Series when , except for Canada, there are no teams from other countries playing in it. Smells like arrogance if you ask me. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

I don’t want my children growing up with that kind of mentality. Hence the need for the globe — to teach them that there’s an interesting and maybe even better world outside of America’s borders. It’s a nice addition to the geography games I make my son play online .

Of course the world map is not very accurate, but it’s good enough to satisfy the curiosity of my eight-year-old. I’m giving away four of them to three nieces and one nephew. I still have eight more left for my kids. Plenty of reserve just in case they kick too hard and destroy one. Definitely one of my best purchases.