Cling wrap and such

Last night, I was wrapping the cling film around the pseudo-pyrex oval container containing the gooey chocolate pudding that my husband had whipped up out of a whim. Probably it was to counteract the sour performances on AF Session 6. But I'm digressing.

As I carefully clung the transparent film, my mind was jolted to the time when I visited a good college friend of mine, Amy in New York during the summer of 2002.

My memory bank sifted to the exact point in time to the remark Amy had made after I asked her "Why do you call it that?" I was referring to the fact that she called the cellophane tape "Scotch tape" as opposed to its generic name of cellophane tape.

She matter-of-factly offered that Americans usually use the pioneering brand to refer to certain everyday, consumer items. Thus explains Scotch Tape is for cellophane tape, Saran Warap for cling wrap, and Post-it for that slip of adhesive notepaper. Other food items include Cola for carbonated drinks, Cornflake is for the typical breakfast cereal and Jell-O for gelatin-like desserts. Oh yes, there is also Xeroxing that is used to describe photocopying.

I actually look up this phenomenon on the Net and it is called genericized trademark. For more information, please go here, here and here.

Incidentally, I wonder if there is a compilation for Malaysian's version of generic trademark. Perhaps, perceptive readers out there can shed light on the matter?

Uh oh, I'm sidetracked yet again.

The New York jaunt to see Amy was a fun diversion for the primary purpose of my visit stateside. Following a rut at work and in my relationship (or lack thereof), I seriously wanted to clear my head and take it easy. The five-year reunion invite of Class of '97 provided the chance for me to ruminate on my life. Or, on the flip side, to run away from it.

Whatever it was, I was more than happy to get away from it all. It was a welcome breather seeing a close buddy of mine who was, at the time, pursuing a Masters Programme in Journalism in Columbia University. That also meant I got to bunk in with her for free! With her room mates away for the summer, we had the pad all to ourselves to catch up on things.

She showed me around the must-see tourist spots of New York like the Statue of Liberty, Wall Street, Times Square, Macy's, Rockefeller Centre and Bloomingdales. I especially love the cafes that she had brought me including Serendipity 3 (featured in the film 'Serendipity' starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale) and the one featured in You've Got Mail where Kathleen Kelly waited for her mysterious online friend, viz Joe Fox.

Amy, the intelligent and worldly Mid-Western, has a very impressive gift for writing and is interested in learning about other cultures and travelling the world. She is unlike most of the other college mates I'd come to know who either kept a distant with foreigners or maintained a superficial rapport with us, non-US residents.

There are many wonderful memories that I'd shared with Amy, such as going on a road trip to that theme park, Cedar Point during Senior Class Weekend and attending the JPW (Junior Parents Weekend) with her and her parents who had 'adopted' me for the night.

One funny incident involved the time when her then-boyfriend, K piggybacked me through the stairway all the way from the second floor to the ground floor of the woman dormitory where we had resided. That happened during our Sophomore year. I forgot what had actually entailed which possessed him to carry me - it was probably either a bet between him and Amy or between me and him - but it was totally unexpected and hilarious all the same. People who saw us must have thought we were high on something! But the Hawaiian K was like a brother to me that I forgave him almost immediately. It sure took the stress away from our finals!

Naturally, like all friendships, ours went through the usual periods of peak and trough. As an individualistic American, Amy is quite used to saying her piece and prefers to spend her downtime alone. I found myself having to carefully navigate these two traits so as I won't be seen as being too needy and too accommodating. I must show that I too was independent, even though at times I lapsed into a state of helplessness and loneliness.

I still remember the time when a misunderstanding ensued which I attribute to the collision of our different personalities, following a five-year period of being out of sync. She made it clear that she's Type A when it comes to being punctual and on time. The clueless me really didn't think it was a major problem since I was an old friend visiting but after several times being late, she was full of annoyance and left me in a huff.

Apart from those hiccups, our friendship has stood the test of time. We might not be communicating as often, nor are we physically there to vent out to each other. Yet, it's interesting how things have unfold in a span of more than 10 years.

And how such an ordinary and simple domestic act like Saran-wrapping could release a deluge of unexpected yet pleasant reminiscence.