Skip to main content

Latch


Kim wanted Italian, so we went to a place called Afrique’s. This was in Iloilo, a city I know nothing about. We ordered our Sicilian pasta, a seafood pizza, some garlic bread, and a pitcher of cucumber cooler from a fine looking waitress. While waiting for the food, I went out for a quick smoke.

   It was a long day for the both of us. We were bone tired after eight straight hours of repacking and distribution of relief goods to victims of Typhoon Yolanda. Iloilo was one of the cities that was most affected by the tropical cyclone, and with the help from our employer, the LGUs, courageous volunteers and generous partners, we were able to distribute relief packs and conduct medical missions to the affected areas.

   Kim was nine years younger than I. She wore a light green spaghetti strap tank top, some cut off jean shorts, and a pair of flip-flops. There were no rings or bracelets on her hands. Her skin was lightly tanned and her silky black hair fell around her shoulders almost to her waistline. She had nice athletic legs, a trim waist, and shapely hips.

  When she’s not spending time volunteering for disaster relief, she’s doing content marketing and web design. She was from Bacolod and had braces and was witty and could play the violin. I realized that the best way to win her friendship was through pot. So, I took out my pipe, we went out for a toke, and the next thing I knew, she was lecturing me about marketing and Vivaldi.
 
   The sauce on the fettuccine was delicious. The pizza was a bit overrated but was soon gone. We were still chatting about all manner of things at around 10 p.m., but our eyes were getting heavy and we both agreed that it was time to call it a day and head back to the hotel. 

   We talked comfortably for an hour while sipping beers at the lobby. It was amazing. This woman was hilarious and easy to talk to. Then for a long, jittery minute, we stared at each other in silence and then Kim stood up and wished me a good night's rest.
 
   I examined her until we reached the head of the steps. Then I watched her disappear in the darkness of the hallway, and heard the latch of her door slide into place.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

This guy makes suits of armor for mice and cats

Calgary-based multi-media artist Jeff de Boer creates suits of armor… for cats and mice. He started designing and building these meticulously crafted metal pieces over 30 years ago as a little side project on his sculpting class at the Alberta College of Art and Design, where he majored in jewelry design. The side project eventually turned into a full time job. Jeff's work is inspired by Medieval times, Ancient Rome, the Renaissance Era, and Japan's Edo period. He uses different metals for his sculptures, but mostly bronze and copper. Though his creations look wearable, the artist has never really tried putting them on mice, though he did get scratched by one of his cats while doing so. While most of Jeff's work is done on a commission basis, he occasionally have pieces available for sale. Check out more of his impressive sculptures on his website and follow him on Facebook .

Sayaka Ganz creates amazing art menagerie from discarded plastics

I could never get enough of Sayaka Ganz . The Japanese-born artist saves the planet from plastic, at the same time creates brilliant animal sculptures. Raised under the Japanese philosophy of Shintoism, she hopes to bring greater awareness to the condition of our environment through her art. When creating sculptures, Sayaka organizes the reclaimed plastic objects into color groups, constructs a wire frame, and then carefully attaches the fragments of waste until she creates the shape she has envisioned. Her work has been exhibited in many places around the globe, among them Parma, Tokyo, Denver, New York, and San Francisco to name a few. Sayaka's Reclaimed Creations is currently on view at the Asian Arts & Culture Center at Towson University in Maryland. She regularly posts on Facebook, so be sure to like and follow her page for updates.

'Apophenia' by Luis Lopa

If you're into large-scale, color-intensive, and multi-layered art pieces, Luis Lopa 's work is an absolute delight. The Filipino artist, who works primarily in acrylic, paints beautiful contrast of textures, shapes, and lines with pops of vibrant colors reminiscent of kaleidoscopic patterns, but soothing to the eye.  Luis graduated from the University of British Columbia with a major in Visual Arts. He started off his career in Vancouver, where his illustrations appeared on t-shirts, ski sets, and the walls of various galleries. Now, he's back in Manila and is currently working on finding his spot in the local art scene. Luis draws inspiration from all forms of visual culture, from books and films to cartoons and fashion. His recent solo exhibition,  Apophenia, showcased not only his raw and spontaneous visual power but also his open-minded versatility. You can check out the photos here .