Acquiring the art of the daily indulgence
MANILA, Philippines - It is completely impossible to own it all, but to totally abstain from admiring better things is a bit of denial. Beautiful things are sustainable in their own way. They grow beautiful with age and have rich stories to tell apart from the journey of discovering in the least likely of places (whether on the Net or in bricks and mortar).
Here are eight daily things that may be acquired tastes but don’t fail in being discreet or coyly habit-forming.
1. Sic Gloria leather strands
Roughly translating “to the glory of,” these ensure pleasure to 20/20 vision and no sorrow for clingy eyeglasses. These leather bands from Swede architect and graphic designer twosome Sic Gloria are handmade in limited editions, briefly “the glory of youth and summer and endless afternoons.”
Available at www.sicgloria.com
2. Sandqvist Viveka sleeve
There’s been a quick turnaround in cafe tabletops with very convenient tablets functioning like a mobile library. These vegetable-tanned leather sleeves are the slimmest and crispest sleeves so far — one of those safe universal online puchases. What next? Maybe a Kindle, too?
Available at www.sandqvist.com
3. Travel Almanac
Happen to daydream about escaping the city and going out of town to host yoga retreats in Malapascua? If you fell in love with organic swimwear in the manner of Return to the Blue Lagoon, this first issue of Travel Almanac (out this year with a sold-out success) can put you in an atlas of islands or continents you may not have heard of.
Available at www.travelalmanac.com
4. Les Ateliers Ruby helmet
Motorbikes may not be the primary source of transport here (unlike in Vietnam) but these handsome helmets are just the endgame for biker caps. Even nicer to carry around when not stuffed inside your scooter cabin.
Available at www.ateliersruby.com
5. Season-less espadrille
You can’t wet the jute rope sides so espadrilles make a good indoor slipper during the rainy season. These navy ones (always a size smaller for a tight fit) are perfect for the tropics as an alternative to velvet slippers.
Available at www.castaner.com
6. Gattaca
Part of the highs of living in a digital world is an online archive of films we’ve grown up with. This sci-fi film is more than a spectacle of a utopian film — it has ideas. From identity theft to visions of an elite world, just what kind of gene pool makeup could you possibly take away?
7. Malagos Farmhouse blush cheese
It may not taste like sour socks like the traditional blue cheese, but this locally-sourced semi-soft cheese from Davao’s Malagos Farmhouses is milder, and pairs well with dark chocolate. Bea Misa and Roberto Crisostomo of Ritual Grocer stock this and other intriguing edibles from all over the country, depending on seasonality.
Available at ritualshopnews.blogspot.com
8. Italo Calvino’s Six Memos for the Next Millennium
There are some useful texts you forget then reread with better understanding. This handy paperback (available in e-book) is a bilingual text on the virtues of writing from anything from twiteratti posts to organizing more mindful written declarations.
Available at www.nationalbookstore.com
