JessicaRulestheUniverse.com

“Once a joke or a cautionary tale, today gold-digging is being offered as a viable career choice for women, viewed with a new regard, even glamour. High-end cosmetics line Laura Mercier has launched The Gold Digger Collection this summer so we can all look like one. Walk down the local high street and you’re likely to see a young woman in a T-shirt proclaiming “Golddigga”, or, for those who prefer a more formal approach, “Hello, My Name is Gold Digger”. You can purchase T-shirts online that say “Sugar Daddy”, “I Love My Sugar Daddy”, “Wanted: Sugar Daddy. Please Submit Bank Details Upon Application”. This is supposed to be ironic, but would these same women wear a T-shirt emblazoned with “Prostitute”?”

Sarah Churchwell on Material Girls in The Guardian.

Working conditions in my house, originally uploaded by 160507.

Eight years ago we picked Saffy up from my friend Joya’s house on Finlandia St, and since then she has ruled the household. Her full name is Saffron Sassafras Saoirse Shia Schmitz Scorsese Sandler Stewart Snuffleupagus Zafra Safin-Sprungli. She demands constant attention, and will sit on my notebooks until she gets it.

When my shoulder bag emerged from the X-ray machine the tech said, “What have you got in there, books?” Apparently carrying books is suspicious behavior. No wonder people have always feared me; I thought it was the misaligned eyebrows (one permanently higher). In fact I am carrying corrosive material: I’m rereading The Best Of Saki on this trip.

PAL 318 to Hong Kong was rocked by turbulence for most of the flight. I passed on the lunch and had the salad and a glass of wine, which due to the buffeting of the plane settled in my esophagus. Hong Kong cloudy, scattered rainstorms, cooler than I’d expected. Heavy floods in the past week–just found out that in HK they have a storm signal number 8. The taxi drivers all seem to be auditioning for Formula One, or else they fear that the cab will explode if they drive under 50.

I’m in Room 910 of the Marco Polo Hotel, which is literally in a mall. The hotel’s old but well-maintained, and walking distance to the new bookstores Ted my Jedi master told me about. In true Jedi fashion he couldn’t remember the names of the bookstores, the streets they’re on, or the buildings they’re in. But this has never been a problem for those on a quest for books.

Pattaya drag show, originally uploaded by 160507.

In Pattaya we took in a show at El Alcazar, a theatre featuring transvestite performers. The show was sold-out, the audience composed mainly of Indian and Russian tourists. The revue was brisk and professional—elaborate sets including a replica of a museum, fabulous costumes, and attractive performers. The choreography was on the conservative side, and as for the “girls”, they might as well have been natural-born females—very demure and lady-like. Not campy. The overall effect was not comic or racy, but genteel. Three performers lipsynched to “Dreamgirls”. In Manila, this would be a prelude to a duel in which each performer attempts the funniest, most outrageous version of “And I am Telling You I’m Not Going”. In Pattaya it is the show itself. El Alcazar sticks with impersonation; in Manila the showgirls are not merely playing, say, Diana Ross, but making fun of her, of themselves, and of the audience.

Then again, Manila is more postmodern than most cities.

Thailand. What’s not to like? in Emotional Weather Report, today in the Star.

Mat reading Saki, originally uploaded by Koosama.

There are quite a few stories about talking cats, and this is probably the best one: Tobermory by the unbearable, spellbinding Saki (H.H. Munro).

Caregiver directed by Chito Roño, written by Chris Martinez, and starring Sharon Cuneta, is a well-intentioned melodrama about the hardships of Filipinos working overseas. It belongs in the tradition of Anak (domestic helpers in Hong Kong), Milan (farm workers in Italy), and Dubai (hotel workers in the UAE), and should probably have been titled London. Caregiver is alright, But

Why do OFW movies always feel like wakes?
Why are the British actors made up to look like cadavers?
Why are the British characters so emotional?

Caregiver tells us that although millions of Filipinos are clamoring to work abroad, an OFW’s life is hard. Um, we already knew that. We appreciate their hardship, and we know that if they had opportunities in our country, they wouldn’t leave their families. Hey, we’re not exactly sitting by the pool sipping banana daiquiris either. Most of us work, all of us have problems. It is also possible to experience alienation and isolation in your homeland. How about a little respect for the Pinoys who stick around and do the best they can in truly trying circumstances? No one has a monopoly on suffering, but everyone has a unique story. We need fresh insights on the Pinoy experience at home and abroad, not recycled cliches.