kitchen poems

Sunday, July 28, 2002

In a fit of pure reading rainbow on crack, i scoured the net and made
some of the greatest, dirt-cheap on-line purchases ever.
i'm a monster. somebody stop me. needless-to-say, i have my
summer reading list. although i've read some of the books already,
it's nice to have a "slightly worn, tight spine, near perfect" copy for
esguerra, aaac and yawpers alike. (note: average price per book, including
shipping ~ 4.50) woo hoo! aaac library, here we come!!!
Monkey Bridge
Cao, Lan
Gunga Din Highway
Chin, Frank
Chickencoop Chinaman And The Year Of The Dragon
Chin, Frank
Troublemaker And Other Saints
Chiu, Christina
The Rice Room: Growing Up Chinese-American
Fong-Torres, Ben
Memoirs Of A Geisha (.99 cents!)
Golden, Arthur S.
Snow Falling On Cedars (booo...but it was 5 cents!)
Guterson, David
When Heaven And Earth Changed Places
Hayslip, Le Ly
Volcano, A Memoir Of Hawaii
Hongo, Garett
Farewell to Manzanar
Houston, Jeanne Wakatsuki
Paradise Of The Blind
Huong, Duong Thu
M Butterfly
Hwang, David Henry
Typical American
Jen, Gish
The Woman Warrior
Kingston, Maxine Hong
China Men
Kingston, Maxine Hong
Obasan
Kogawa, Joy
Interpreter Of Maladies: Stories
Lahiri, Jhumpa
One Hundred Years Of Solitude
Marquez, Gabriel Garcia
Love In The Time Of Cholera
Marquez, Gabriel Garcia
Red Azalea
Min, Anchee
Bone
Ng, Fae Myenne
The English Patient
Ondaatje, Michael
The Satanic Verses
Rushdie, Salman
Midnight's Children
Rushdie, Salman
Roots : An Asian American Reader
Tachiki, Amy
American Knees
Wong, Shawn
Porcelain And A Language Of Their Own: Two Plays
Yew, Chay
Picture Bride
Uchida, Yoshiko

marlon esguerra 12:17 PM

Tuesday, July 09, 2002

(Tagalog lesson. Work in progress. -- sdr)
YES-NO QUESTIONS
This type of question in Tagalog is easily identifiable because it is marked by the particle BA, referred to by many grammar books as the yes-no question marker. It also has a rising intonation just like question patterns in English.
The Particle BA
The particle BA usually comes after the first element of a sentence. BA works about the same as a question mark. It lets the speaker know that you are asking a question. Please note that BA is only used for questions that must have a yes or no.
Example (based on a true story):
Two people are on an elevator in a hospital. One is a Filipina nurse (Cora), the other is a doctor -- non-Filipino, non-Tagalog speaking; I'm not going too far out on a limb by assuming he's non-Asian and non-Hispanic. Hell, let's just make him from Schaumburg. Anyway, the elevator door opens on a floor and there is another Filipina nurse (Mila) who is not sure which direction the elevator is travelling.
TAGALOG
MILA: Ba baba, ba?
CORA: Ba baba.
Let's play this scene back in English.
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
MILA: Is this elevator going down?
CORA: Yes, it is.

Breaking down the Tagalog. In Mila's line, the word "baba" (pronounced ba-BA) is a verb form meaning "it is descending". The first "ba" transforms the sentence into a question so "it is..." becomes "is it...?" Because of the context, "elevator" is implied. A rising intonation also supports the sentence as an interrogative. The last "ba" makes the question less formal as well as supporting the sentence as an interrogative and is translated roughly as, "...isn't it?"
Cora's answer is in the affirmative which is just the root form of Mila's question, without the last "ba". A downward inflection makes it more of a statement.
Hope this was not as confusing as it was for Dr. Shaumburg, MD.

Sam del Rosario 1:46 AM


about it's fresh. it's raw. it's kitchen poems freewrite.
prompt "write where it hurts" archive connects reading list memento excercise the collective aa writers workshop - nyc mikekim miserychick	Sunday, July 28, 2002 In a fit of pure reading rainbow on crack, i scoured the net and made some of the greatest, dirt-cheap on-line purchases ever. i'm a monster. somebody stop me. needless-to-say, i have my summer reading list. although i've read some of the books already, it's nice to have a "slightly worn, tight spine, near perfect" copy for esguerra, aaac and yawpers alike. (note: average price per book, including shipping ~ 4.50) woo hoo! aaac library, here we come!!! Monkey Bridge Cao, Lan Gunga Din Highway Chin, Frank Chickencoop Chinaman And The Year Of The Dragon Chin, Frank Troublemaker And Other Saints Chiu, Christina The Rice Room: Growing Up Chinese-American Fong-Torres, Ben Memoirs Of A Geisha (.99 cents!) Golden, Arthur S. Snow Falling On Cedars (booo...but it was 5 cents!) Guterson, David When Heaven And Earth Changed Places Hayslip, Le Ly Volcano, A Memoir Of Hawaii Hongo, Garett Farewell to Manzanar Houston, Jeanne Wakatsuki Paradise Of The Blind Huong, Duong Thu M Butterfly Hwang, David Henry Typical American Jen, Gish The Woman Warrior Kingston, Maxine Hong China Men Kingston, Maxine Hong Obasan Kogawa, Joy Interpreter Of Maladies: Stories Lahiri, Jhumpa One Hundred Years Of Solitude Marquez, Gabriel Garcia Love In The Time Of Cholera Marquez, Gabriel Garcia Red Azalea Min, Anchee Bone Ng, Fae Myenne The English Patient Ondaatje, Michael The Satanic Verses Rushdie, Salman Midnight's Children Rushdie, Salman Roots : An Asian American Reader Tachiki, Amy American Knees Wong, Shawn Porcelain And A Language Of Their Own: Two Plays Yew, Chay Picture Bride Uchida, Yoshiko marlon esguerra 12:17 PM Tuesday, July 09, 2002 (Tagalog lesson. Work in progress. -- sdr) YES-NO QUESTIONS This type of question in Tagalog is easily identifiable because it is marked by the particle BA, referred to by many grammar books as the yes-no question marker. It also has a rising intonation just like question patterns in English. The Particle BA The particle BA usually comes after the first element of a sentence. BA works about the same as a question mark. It lets the speaker know that you are asking a question. Please note that BA is only used for questions that must have a yes or no. Example (based on a true story): Two people are on an elevator in a hospital. One is a Filipina nurse (Cora), the other is a doctor -- non-Filipino, non-Tagalog speaking; I'm not going too far out on a limb by assuming he's non-Asian and non-Hispanic. Hell, let's just make him from Schaumburg. Anyway, the elevator door opens on a floor and there is another Filipina nurse (Mila) who is not sure which direction the elevator is travelling. TAGALOG MILA: Ba baba, ba? CORA: Ba baba. Let's play this scene back in English. ENGLISH TRANSLATION MILA: Is this elevator going down? CORA: Yes, it is. Breaking down the Tagalog. In Mila's line, the word "baba" (pronounced ba-BA) is a verb form meaning "it is descending". The first "ba" transforms the sentence into a question so "it is..." becomes "is it...?" Because of the context, "elevator" is implied. A rising intonation also supports the sentence as an interrogative. The last "ba" makes the question less formal as well as supporting the sentence as an interrogative and is translated roughly as, "...isn't it?" Cora's answer is in the affirmative which is just the root form of Mila's question, without the last "ba". A downward inflection makes it more of a statement. Hope this was not as confusing as it was for Dr. Shaumburg, MD. Sam del Rosario 1:46 AM