umi nom for typhoon ondoy victims

Dear Readers, if you live in New York and are looking for more ways to help the victims of Typhoon Ondoy in Manila, there will be a special benefit brunch and dinner at Umi Nom on October 11, 2009. Some generous Filipino chefs in New York are banding together for this event, which will raise money for the San Antonio Parish Youth. This is one way you can help and also be sure that the money goes straight to those in need, foregoing any bureaucratic red tape.

Brunch is from 2pm-5:30pm (last seating at 3:30) and costs $75. Dinner is from 7pm-10:30pm (last seating at 8:30) and costs $100.

Of course, it is a perfectly valid point that you might as well give all of the money you would otherwise spend on the meal to those in need. For me though, I think of it as more like if I'm going to go out and share a nice meal with friends or my boyfriend that weekend anyway, then I'll just go to Umi Nom so that I can do some good while enjoying a great meal. In other words, if I'm going to spend good money on eating out during the weekend, then might as well spend my money at the fundraiser, right?

I'm not sure yet who the other participating chefs will be, but I assume Chef King Phojanakong is one. This Filipino-Thai chef is the man behind Umi Nom and Kuma Inn, the Lower East side tapas establishment I love going to (Incidentally, Tyra Banks is apparently also a fan of this Asian tapas joint). I've been meaning to check out Umi Nom so this is a great reason to do so.

Please feel free to pass this information along! The flood victims need all the help they can get.

Umi Nom is located at 433 DeKalb Avenue between Classon Avenue and Taaffe Place, Brooklyn, NY. Tel. (718) 789-8806

Images via Time Out NY

hp mini 110 by studio tord boontje

It's a little harder to blog these days, when all I can seem to think about are the victims of the flood back home. It seems inappropriate to talk about spectacular meals and shopping desires when there are people back home who have literally lost everything ... but the blog can't just freeze, so I guess for now I'll talk about things that I find both beautiful and relevant.

I've been thinking of getting a small laptop since I am hoping to go back to school next year. I'm planning on doing graduate school in the evenings while continuing to work full time during the day, so it would make writing papers and keeping up with schoolwork much easier if I have a laptop that I can carry around in my bag. My top candidate right now is the new HP Mini 110 by Studio Tord Boontje:

I love Tord Boontje's work, and I've been lusting after this garland shade that he designed for over a year now. Maybe the HP Mini is a more useful investment.

What I like about this product is its environment-friendly slant. The packaging and user guides are made 100% from recycled materials and printed with soy-based ink. The intricate design of the cover shows endangered animals like the polar bear, blue whale and red squirrel, raising awareness about their plight. I have to say that I wish HP would go a step further and donate a portion of profits to a wildlife conservation fund. The environment-friendly angle that they currently have, while still commendable, seems a bit half-baked.

The product does not seem to be available yet, but I saw it on the window of Lord & Taylor two weeks ago because they're doing some promotional thing with HP. It is really lovely in person. And check out how small it is! Just use the sunglasses as a point of reference.

It weighs just 2.68 pounds, and is just a little over an inch thick. The screen measures 10.1 inches and the keyboard is at 92% of the standard size, which is fine by me and my 11-year-old sized hands. HP boasts that this mini uses 3D PC surface technology (a first), which is why the layers of design appear to float on the cover. So pretty. The best part, I feel, is that this version has a pretty good price at $399 (compared to the Vivienne Tam version that I am still lusting over, which was priced at $699). Maybe I'll finally get a Tord Boontje piece one of these days ...

please help

I woke up on Saturday to the news that my hometown, Manila, was submerged in the worst flooding the city has seen in four decades. Thankfully, my relatives in Manila are safe, and our home there was spared from the flood. But it was staggering to see how it could've easily not been so. Our family's ancestral home, the home I grew up in, was submerged in flood waters all the way to the roof. On Facebook, I watched friends' status updates with horror as they listed names of people who were trapped on their rooftops and on the higher floors of homes for days with dwindling food and water supplies. Just to give some perspective on how bad these floods were, Hurricane Katrina dumped over an inch of rainfall in Louisiana for 3 hours and another 0.5 inches per hour over the next 5 hours on August 29, 2005. Tropical Storm Ketsana dumped an average of 2.24 inches per hour for six hours over the Metropolis.

One way to help from outside the Philippines is to make a donation to Red Cross through this website. I'm trying to find a more direct way to help. I've heard that Filipinos are mobilizing in New York to get relief goods together to send back to the Philippines, so I'll try to help through that group. I'm appealing to readers to please do what you can to help as well.

See the following articles to read up on the tragedy that has befallen Manila:

TIME

CNN

BBC

an epic day

What a truly amazing day yesterday was. In the morning, I saw President Barack Obama in the flesh.

At the end of the day, I got to watch U2 perform at the Giants Stadium. I have always said that U2 is the one concert that I must see before I die. I love U2.

Last night was undoubtedly one of the best nights of my life. I have been dreaming of jumping up and down to "Elevation" and "Vertigo", of feeling deep fervor over "Sunday Bloody Sunday", of experiencing the throbbing emotion of "With or Without You" for so long. It was surreal to finally experience it last night.

Truly the definition of an epic day.

halston

Love, love, love these ethereal dresses by Halston for Spring/Summer 2010. What more could a girl want from a summer dress than flowy white fabric, delicate gold beading, and simply flattering lines? I want all three!

*sigh*