There Will Be Food, or, My Giant Face

A few things I learned after my appearance on Kababayan LA:

1. Apparently, Daniel Day Lewis won some sort of an award.
2. Kababayan LA's Oh So Lovely Host, Ms. Jannelle So, is Oh So Lovelier in the flesh.
3. The camera doesn't only add 10 pounds, it adds a giant fat face to otherwise semi-normal and proportionate food blogger bodies.

With all that said, I still had a very good time taping my segment about "blogging." Like I mentioned in my previous post, I really had no idea what to expect going into this. And when I arrived at the LA 18 studios yesterday, I only met with the Oh So Lovely Ms. So for 2, maybe 3, minutes before I went on camera.

During this short meeting, the Oh So Lovely Ms. So explained that she would be asking me the "positives and negatives" of blogging--and that was pretty much all the notice I got as far as what I'd be asked. It seemed pretty general, but I figured I could handle it and get some of my points across.

Also during this briefing, the Oh So Lovely Ms. So said that she had forgotten that she would be doing an Oscar wrap-up show that day and that I probably wouldn't be on for very long--which in all honesty, was kind of a relief to me.  I was extremely nervous at this point and figured that the less time I was on camera the better.

After our little impromptu chat, the petite, red-clad hostess left me to my own devices in the green room while she went on camera to conduct an over-the-phone-interview with another guest for that day's show--a Pinoy news anchor from the BBC.

At this point, my nerves were really getting the best of me. I knew that in a couple of minutes, I'd be called in for my on-camera interview. I was doing everything I could to not piss myself.

Luckily, any chances of pee-pee pants were averted because before I knew it, I was being sat down in a wobbly director's chair next to the host and having a mic clamped to my coat. The Oh So Lovely Ms. So was very nice and went out of her way to make me feel relaxed in the moments leading up to my interview. I must've looked a wreck because she told me to not be nervous and just focus on her and not the cameras and lights.

I didn't think it would be all that difficult to keep my eyes on the petite host in red, but as you'll see in the clip, my eyes are darting every which way as I stumbled, stuttered, and sweat through my answers.

But before I get to the clip, here's a little bit of a glimpse into my internal dialog during the precious few moments before the camera lights turned on:

Holy motherf* sh*t, this is a rickety-ass chair! This apparatus is an unacceptable device for holding humans upright! Unacceptable, I say! Dude, keep your balance, do not fall out of this chair! But that would be hilarious though! Don't look up at those lights, if you think about the lights you will start to sweat! Crap! Stop sweating! Stop sweating you idiot! Think cool thoughts, cool thoughts, ice, snow, beer. Beer. Ahhhhhhh. Wait, what did I want to talk about?!! Do not make an ass of yourself! Do the Lakers play tonight? I think this is their year. Can Jannelle hear my stomach grumbling?!! Oh man, I hope my mic isn't picking that up! Holy son of a bitch, they're counting down! OK! Focus! Focus! Eyes on Jannelle, eyes on Jannelle! Wooooowwwww... No, higher! Eyes on Jannelle's eyes. Her eyes dammit!

3...

2...

1...

Aaaaaaaannnnnd scene.

For my first time on camera, I think I did OK considering I followed DDL smooching Clooney (strange, that). I was obviously nervous, and I'm not completely sure I got my points across. I tried my best to steer the interview towards food, but I also didn't want to be argumentative. After all, I'm just some random food blogger and I was just happy with the opportunity to have been invited on the show.

I was very thankful that that the Oh So Lovely Ms. Jannelle So let me onto her show and stutter away my thoughts.  And I'm even more thankful that I didn't piss myself. Good times.

Comments

[manggy]

WHOO-HOO!!! International fame!! ;) Lookin' sharp, Marvin! I don't think your face looks fat on camera. My favorite moment is between 1:12 to 1:16, hehehehehehe :)
Looks like our host looked up the Wikipedia entry for blogging. I have no idea why she was focusing on the anonymity of bloggers. Tell me, Marvin, what's the pros and cons of being semi-anonymous on Burnt Lumpia? (btw, they could've shown your url at any time...)
Great stuff, Marvin :) Represent!

[TeddyKim]

There Will Be Blood, or, My Left Foot?

Do I win anything? :P

Congrats dude. And, btw, she indeed does look oh so lovely;)

[raissa]

I wished she talked more about your blog than just about blogging in general. Is it just me or she sounded defensive about negative blogs. wonder if she was a subject of one. Her voice got a bit pitchy when she was asking about it LOL

woot Marvin!! I agree with Manggy, you look sharp.

[joey]

Woohoo!!! Way to go Marvin! And no, your face does not look extra big on cam...you looked great and seemed very comfortable :) Go, go you!

I have to agree with Raissa, I think the lady did focus a wee bit too much on how blogs can be negative...although that was a nice dress :)

Hopefully more Filipino restaurants will open up in your area now! Hehe :)

[Katrina]

Congratulations on not pissing yourself! For a first TV appearance, that's about as much as anyone can hope for, right? ;-D

Seriously, I think you did fine! In fact, I wish the interview had been just a little longer; as a viewer, I like to know more about a topic than can fit in 3 minutes. Then again, given how nervous you say you were, maybe 3 minutes was just right. ;-)

[veron]

You look great, Marvin! You are famous now! And no, your face does not look big on tv nor do you look nervous. I am a little annoyed with how oh so lovely ms Janelle was so focused on the negativity of blogging. There are so many positive blogs out there ...but you handled her questions very well!

[Mila]

Ms. So, or her writers/producers, need to look beyond gossip blogs that are focused on negative news. Food blogs, travel blogs, literary blogs, even political blogs are far more concerned about positive issues. Her comments simply fuel the idea that negative news sells, when most of us are more interested in reading or writing about what is good and interesting.

I'm glad you kept your balance on the ricketydinky chair!!!! Lol

[dhanggit]

yahooooo!! congrats marvin!! i enjoyed watching it!! you did excellent..nice to know the face and the voice behind burnt lumpia :-)

[Janice]

you's a superstar boy, why you still up in the food?!

awesome! thanks for posting the video! the sad thing is...she kept sounding like Peanuts adults (wah-wah-wah) and i only listened to your parts. :)

[dp]

You did great! If it was me, I'd probably fallen off the chair!

[cam cam]

You did great! You actually look much more comfortable and at ease than you think . . .and you don't look fat! Congrats.

[bernadette]

My! You can pass off as a Japanese more than a Filipino, Marvin :-)! But then Americans and other Westerners pass me off too as Thai and not Pinoy. For me it often is a good opportunity to say that I am from the Philippines...and their reactions are often well, enigmatic.

I agree that Ms. So should have concentrated on your blogging more than the "negative" bloggers out there. What about the witty and creative ones---such as yours? :-)

[Christine]

Woah!! How cool is that!! You did great! The only thing I wish is that it was longer, I was a bit bitin. Thank you for sharing the clip with us. It's nice to see the face behind our favorite lumpia man. :)

[Wandering Chopsticks]

Doh! I left my comments in the wrong thread. But just to reiterate. Whoohoo! You were awesome! :)

[pleasurepalate]

And the Oscar Goes to....Best Blogger Under Pressure. :) Good job, Marvin, although I wish she concentrated more on you and your blog than on blogging in general.

It would have been better if had been given the chance to share some of your more interesting blog entries on the show like making kalamansi infused vodka or Filipino Caesar salad or whatever. I think that's what people would have been more interested in hearing about.

[oggi]

Second time to watch it and you did great! Hope they'll invite you back and talk more about YOUR BLOG.:)

[Jikuu]

You looked and sounded great, Marvin. If anything, you should have smiled more, but it's totally understandable since you're nervous. I'm glad you got the TV spot. That's awesome, and hopefully there will be just a little more knowledge spread about with word of the blog out and all. Good job!

[Matt Hurst]

Next time you're on TV, wear this ...

[Matt Hurst]

Arrggh ... it didn't post.
Click here:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ODNUND3uVwo

[James]

That was awesome Marv. Until I build my credentials in the Pacific Northwest as a restaurant cook, we need to keep promoting our food. We have a filipino food cart in the city called Tita Pista http://titapista.com. In Cali, Chef Rodelio Aglibot used to be in LA (I believe he is in Seattle now) and Chef Kelly Degala in the Bay Area. They are promoting our food through the "pan-asian" themed restaurants. In due time.

[junemoon]

Marvin ~ My my, you are very handsome! I laughed when I read of your worries of whether your face looked big and fat on camera cuz I always worry about my face being too round and my cheeks being to big :)

Congrats on not peeing your pants and for staying upright in that chair - it did look like it could be potentially unstable. I think the Oh So Lovely hostess could have clued you in prior to the interview that she was most interested in having you address negative bloggers. Nonetheless, I think you did a great job and your blog certainly was showcased in the background on the big screen. Kudos to you Mister Handsome Blogger! junemoon

[Cynthia]

Hey Marvin! Great job and congrats on your new TV fame :)

I thought that you did really well. In terms of the structure of the piece, was it supposed to be about blogging in general or more about food blogging and specifically Filipino food?

I'm asking because I wanted to hear more about the latter part of the interview that ended all too quickly and rushed.

By the way, you did not look fat.

I have to tell you, I enjoyed the internal dialogue (lol)

[prac]

You looked and sounded great!

[White On Rice Couple]

Could you please send us an autographed photo of yourself ? We are so serious....you looked and sounded, seasoned, professional , confident and well spoken. You brought up some very good points about there not being enough Filipino restaurants! Great answers to all her questions. You represented the food blogging world very well.
You did a great job and this is just the beginning of a great future in food for you! We're so happy for you and we were smiling the whole time! You're so right, she is so cute!

[desie the maybahay]

hey, you looked super pogi marvin. well-done!
you might think the hostess is 'oh so lovely' but you came across as a lot more proffesional and smart than she did. sorry, but i found her voice grating and she simply did not give you the chance to talk enough :-(
you should be proud.

[Burnt Lumpia]

Thanks manggy, but international fame is a little bit of an overstatement;)

You are correct TK, but you do not win anything.

Thanks very much for watching raissa!

Thanks joey. Maybe my face didn't look fat, but I think overall I just have a large noggin;)

Hi Katrina. After watching the vid a few more times, I do kinda wish I had longer, but I'm thankful nonetheless.

Thanks veron, but I am not at all famous!

I agree Mila. There are so many interesting blogs out there besides the negative ones.

Thank you very much, dhanggit.

Thanks for listening to me only Janice;)

Hi dp. I know it didn't look like it, but the chair was really rickety!

Thank you cam. And it's not that I think I look fat, it's that my head looks humongous!

I'm most often mistaken for being Korean or at least half Filipino. I rarely get mistaken for Japanese, bernadette;) But I'm 100% Pinoy.

Thanks Christine!

Thanks Dub C. And trust me, my autograph is worthless;)

Thanks pleasurepalate. I do wish I had gotten more of a chance to talk about those things.

Thanks oggi. I think 2 times is more than enough to see that! :P

Jikuu, it's very rare that I smile at all;)

Hurst, thanks but no thanks.

Hi James. Yes, we all need to do our part to promote our culture.

Aw shucks, junemoon, thanks!

Honestly Cynthia, I'm not sure what the structure was supposed to be about. I was quite surprised by everything. Thanks for watching.

Thanks prac.

W.O.R.C., you definitely do not need a picture of me! Thanks for the kind words.

I was afraid of someone giving me negative pogi points, desie, so thanks for the compliment!

[Krizia]

Dude Marvin, you look way different than what I expected (in a good way...got a younger brother? jk jk). From all that "I love beer" talk, I thought you'd be sporting the beer belly. Congratulations on this spot! You look pro up there. Would you sign my wok? Heehee.

[Burnt Lumpia]

Geez, Kriz. So what are you saying? I'm too old?!! ;P

And yes, I do have a younger brother, but he is taken and is by far not as pogi as I. That is a fact.

[Julie]

Dang, I finally got a chance to watch this clip--you did great! And yeah, you did a good job trying to direct the discussion to keep it pertinent, so good for you. Hooray for you, dangit!!!!

For the record, I think there are no Filipino restaurants because the general public still doesn't know what Filipino food is, and they don't stay open long enough for the adventurous trend setters to find them and establish a standard for non-Filipino foodies. And, like you said, they don't stay open long enough because the Filipino community will patronize a place only if it meets their standards, which are different from a regular foodie's standards ... if that makes any sense ...

[Julie]

Oh yeah--watching Jannelle made me remember why I talk so dang fast. I think it's a Filipino woman thing.

[Lulu]

I think you look great...too funny though - the pros and cons of blogging. I think Ms. Oh So was a little worked up on this topic...most blogs that are popular and not celebrity gossip related tend to be upbeat. I think the key is that they are not politically or gossip focused. Anyway, I'm really enjoying your blog!