The Devil in my Reading List

There is nothing like breaching open the cover of a book while comfortably seated on my bed with the lights turned off and the room illuminated only by a cheap reading lamp. No TV, no radio, and no computer. It’s like watching a movie wherein you open your mind to whatever it is you are about to immerse yourself into. It might require the suspension of disbelief or the suspension of judgment but unlike a movie I dictate the pace.

I am not really a lover of works of fiction I would much rather pick up something whose context is historical in nature. My recent foray at the recent Book Fair held at the World Trade Center probably illustrates my preference. I shunned the huge sections gobbled up by Powerbooks, National Book Store, and Fully Booked and found a gold mine with the small and simple booth of the National Historical Institute (NHI). I was beside my self with joy when I found the Memoirs of General Atemio Ricarte that I just had to tell someone about it. I texted a friend who replied with: “Ok, I won’t even ask who that is.”

My loot that day included 4 books that have been reprinted by the NHI, the most recent original publishing date was in the 1960’s and it was written by Teodoro M. Kalaw (I think the street was named after him). The other 3 books dates back from 1899 to 1908.

My preference was once described by a friend of mine as reading up on a lot of trivia. I guess there is some truth in that since talking about the military strategy of the Katipunan in Cavite in 1896 wont get you any “pogi” points when you’re trying to impress a girl while seated somewhere in Libis or Metrowalk while sipping a mocha frap. You would probably get that “oohh, that’s interesting” look as she frantically texts a friend to put into motion one of her prepared escape plans.

I do try to create a semblance of balance and sanity by reading the more mainstream and popular books. Like everybody else, I do read Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Da Vinci Code, and what have you. Like every body else I am often on the lookout for something new or something different, I’ve always said that I’d like to expand my horizons and see things from different perspectives and to do that you have to be willing to try something new.

I’ve seen it a few times in the shelves of Powerbooks and I know it has been made into a movie but it wasn’t something that I seriously considered reading. I heard some people talking about it in the office and I made the mistake of asking if the book was any good and if it was actually worth reading. Big mistake! I soon found a copy placed on my desk by a co-worker with the explicit instructions that I should finish it before August 30 because it would be showing in theaters by then.

I am talking about The Devil Wears Prada… A book about a girl who works for an impossible boss at the world’s most “fabulous” fashion magazine… So it’s a lot of girl stuff set in the world of fashion… Ok, so it’s not my usual fare. I did ask for something different and I guess this really is well, different. My mind went on overdrive thinking how such a book could possibly prove tolerable for a guy who hates shopping and who has absolutely no fashion sense. I could also just imagine how people who know me would react, it’s was sooo not me… It was with a lot skepticism that I picked up the book.

I am happy to report that I survived my exposure to “Chicklit” with no visible injuries or any lasting side effects despite the fact that there was no violence, conspiracy, or controversy I was able to get through it without suffering from nausea nor falling asleep. I’d even say that it wasn’t so bad, it wasn’t just about fashion, it was really about a person struggling with a difficult job in an environment she wasn’t really accustomed to, a place where a lot of people doubted her abilities and were often outright hostile. I can’t say I can really relate but it paints a picture of just how difficult and complicated a situation could be and it’s given me a glimpse on how a girl might think given a particular situation. I should have taken notes…

Saturn Return

I didn’t expect much when I decided to buy this book called The King of Nothing To Do by Luis Katigbak, I was perusing the books displayed at UP’s booth during the recent Book Fair at the World Trade Center when I came across this particular book. It was just a compilation of short essays or columns by this writer and all I hoped for was to pick up some ideas about writing short essays and maybe help me get back into the groove of writing in my blog or at the very least get some laugh out of it. As it turns out Luis Katigbak is actually a prolific writer who have won several awards like the Palanca, and he graduated from UP and that comes with the honor of being given the benefit of a doubt that you are not a Neanderthal.

Well he wasn’t, I actually found my self, jotting down words that I would later look up in an online dictionary. Yes, I admit my vocabulary is limited compared to this guy. The stuff he writes about is typically light and the type that doesn’t require much research, but they were amusing and I’d say a welcome change of pace. But I did come across an article whose topic I had never even heard off and it got my attention, it was about The Saturn Return.

Though it was well explained in the article I felt the need to do a little bit more reading about it using google. My interest was spurred by the fact that I am at that time of my life when Saturn has returned.

Wikipedia describes The Saturn Return as:

The Saturn Return is the astrological phenomenon that occurs in a person's natal chart at approximately 28-30 years old. The planet Saturn takes approximately 29.5 years to orbit the Sun; when it returns to the exact degree along the ecliptic it occupied at the time of a person's birth this is referred to as "The Saturn Return," "The Return of Saturn," or simply "Saturn Return."

Saturn is symbolically/astrologically associated with time, challenge, fear, doubt, confusion, difficulty, seriousness, heaviness, and hard lessons, among other more positive things such as structure, significance, accomplishment, reflection, power, prestige, maturity, and order -- this is why astrologers believe that the thirtieth birthday is such a major rite of passage and is considered by many astrologers to mark the "true beginning" of adulthood, self-evaluation, independence, responsibility, ambition, and full maturation.

I was in Starbucks with my old buddies from college, Tuesday and Mayee, waiting out the heavy traffic caused by the heavy rains. As usual we were ranting about the small injustices and ironies that was common in our respective work places and it was at that point when I decided to tell them about Saturn Return. It just seems appropriate to talk about this thing since we are all in the midst of this Astrological phenomenon. If such a thing was true then we can blame all the troubles and little failures in our lives on this cosmic event as if there was a grand conspiracy or something. The conclusion that if something goes wrong around this time of our lives then we can handily blame it on Saturn was appealing. We soon parted ways with the expression “blame it on Saturn” stuck in my head.

In a few months I would technically leave behind my youth and become an adult. My excitement about this life defining moment that is supposed to usher in a new era in my so called life can be described in one word… blehhh… Yes, it’s utterly meaningless and denotes the most profound levels of indifference. I greatly doubt if there will be an Earth shattering kaboom to mark the occasion nor would there be an epiphany that would mark the beginning of wisdom. I think I can say with some amount of authority that my life is… well… Blehh…

I guess its normal to sometimes feel like the world is out to get you, or that everybody is better off in some way than you. So if your life sucks and you are aged 28 to 30 then you can just blame it on Saturn.