BANANACUE
11" X 17"
pen and ink on paper
11" X 17"
pen and ink on paper
... a hot afternoon on a sunday. it's one of those rare sundays i find myself doing nothing... no squaredancing at the club, no interesting show on tv, no interest in reading a book, no drive to draw nor eat. the only things i have going for me were two legs itching to go out.
I put on my tattered jeans, slipped on my white rubber thonged slippers, put on an old grey t-shirt frayed on the edges to give it that "vintage" look and thumped my feet down into the lower stairs. I reached my iron gate and slowly opened the lock. (I can feel the heat penetrating the iron plates you can fry an egg on it) I stepped outside into the hot street, wiped a mongo-sized drop of sweat on my bald head and announced to myself "Today is Bananacue Day". I realized, I have been having a craving for bananacue for several days and today is the right time to finally succumb to it.
I walked around the corner of Leveriza. I passed Liana's, the big grocery that forever fascinates me for selling the largest selection of junk food I've ever seen. Then I passed Mameng's - a 24-hour carinderia where Aling Mameng would be sitting in that same afternoon telling Gloria to do this or do that, while contemplating on why the Lord decided to grant El Shaddai a lot of blessings and sell it through handkerchiefs. In my mind, I wonder too but with a hint of sarcasm.
There! I finally reached the banana-cue stand. As always Aling What's-her-name is hard-pressed at swooshing the the oil filled with frying bananas and dark caramelled sugar. "Isa hong istik." I asked Aling What's-her-name. With complete aplomb she whisked off two deep-fried bananas from it's oily/caramel pool, stuck them on a stick, laid them on a banana leaf to drip its oil and handed me my change for the ten-peso i gave her. it al happened in less than two blinks of an eye.
When the banana-cue sufficienty cooled a bit I took it and walked back home with a wide grin on my face while I took a few tiny nips from my hot afternoon prize.
I put on my tattered jeans, slipped on my white rubber thonged slippers, put on an old grey t-shirt frayed on the edges to give it that "vintage" look and thumped my feet down into the lower stairs. I reached my iron gate and slowly opened the lock. (I can feel the heat penetrating the iron plates you can fry an egg on it) I stepped outside into the hot street, wiped a mongo-sized drop of sweat on my bald head and announced to myself "Today is Bananacue Day". I realized, I have been having a craving for bananacue for several days and today is the right time to finally succumb to it.
I walked around the corner of Leveriza. I passed Liana's, the big grocery that forever fascinates me for selling the largest selection of junk food I've ever seen. Then I passed Mameng's - a 24-hour carinderia where Aling Mameng would be sitting in that same afternoon telling Gloria to do this or do that, while contemplating on why the Lord decided to grant El Shaddai a lot of blessings and sell it through handkerchiefs. In my mind, I wonder too but with a hint of sarcasm.
There! I finally reached the banana-cue stand. As always Aling What's-her-name is hard-pressed at swooshing the the oil filled with frying bananas and dark caramelled sugar. "Isa hong istik." I asked Aling What's-her-name. With complete aplomb she whisked off two deep-fried bananas from it's oily/caramel pool, stuck them on a stick, laid them on a banana leaf to drip its oil and handed me my change for the ten-peso i gave her. it al happened in less than two blinks of an eye.
When the banana-cue sufficienty cooled a bit I took it and walked back home with a wide grin on my face while I took a few tiny nips from my hot afternoon prize.
23November2006
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