Best of

A hand-picked selection — my own favorites from the blog.

• November 7, 2011 The novel

  Moments of clarity in life -- unblinking, elemental, mere momentary openings to pure consciousness -- often rise, unpremeditated, after the fallow yea...

• August 12, 2011 The real afterlife: Sleep No More

  "Sleep No More" — three hours' worth of orgies, murders, love-making, and ghosts, often astutely choreographed to dance and performed across three aba...

• July 5, 2011 Caterpillar perfume

  Inspired initially by Bianca Stewart. (Does she have more than one poem?) Caterpillar Perfume Yesterday we went running the stoplights out of tune ora...

• August 24, 2011 Story of my first crush

  As a 5 th grader at Faria A+ Elementary, I was smitten by a girl in my homeroom — Jocelyn K., a thin, black-haired, ponytail-wearing girl who, in the ...

• July 30, 2011 Jasjit, clean shaven

  I've been saying many goodbyes lately. I said more during graduation, but back then, the atmosphere was so chaotic, my family needed attending to, and...

• September 16, 2011 Life rhapsodies in guitar

  Part 1. At the end of my journey in college, I decided to learn how to play the guitar. It wasn't a last-ditch attempt to woo a girl, but it was a gir...

• August 29, 2011 A summer in publishing

  Parts 1 and 2. Part 3 to come. When I arrived at Abrams publishing company, I was led not to my desk, but to a 5-foot tall roll of bubble wrap. “Take ...

• August 15, 2011 Cleaning Yale

  “I would definitely consider leaving here. In a heartbeat.” Sherri B.’s hips are hanging over the sides of her chair. When she shifts her body, the fa...

• September 29, 2011 Leaving Yale: must pee

  Part 1: Lychees and a Sock The weather is perfect, unbelievable. The summer solstice has bent away, and the days are supposed to be shrinking, but it ...

• September 4, 2011 The Yale '07-'11 class rankings

  I might be in the Philippines, but that doesn't mean I can't feel in a Yale mood. Let's have a little fun and rank the 36 classes I took, from worst t...

• November 5, 2011 Philippines master NGO listing

  My goal for this blog post is to have it reach #1 for the Google search, "Non-profits in the Philippines." 1. Overview of Philippines 2. Sector Specif...

• September 18, 2011 The red light district in Manila

  Part 1 & 2 & part of 3. Or check out my actual conversations under the ochre lights. Part 1: Red-light wandering I arrived in Manila on a Friday at th...

• August 30, 2011 Public transportation in Los Angeles

  At 10 p.m. at the Coffee Bean in Orange, California (20 minutes away from Disneyland), there is exactly one public transportation option if you want t...