tomato cafe

Game of Thrones: What the characters do on their spare time

2012-02-02T03:59:00.000-08:00

Allow me to introduce the other side of the Game of Thrones characters. Are you excited for the next season? I watched some of the newly released teasers and they added up to a growing impatience. I hate waiting. And fuck you Joffrey Baratheon!

Cersei Lannister is a part-time, steaming hot lesbian and florist.
She likes the smell of flowers.

While she walks around half-naked (most of the time) in the Game Thrones,
Daenerys Targaryen also loves her blazers...and dyeing her hair from time to time.
She keeps her little dragon eggs in a Coach.

Jamie Lannister is actually the editor of Gizmodo.

Khal Drogo shaved at least once in his life.
He hangs out at the beach with David Hasselhoff.

Lord Eddard Stark works hard for his cash
--which is the reason why he dies in almost every movie.
Spell SAKIM!

Robert Baratheon is a cave man.
He once sold colorful vitamins to children.

Tyrion Lannister is just cute with the unruly hair.
He is not smart all the time.

And lastly, Viserys Targaryen knew "creepy" before it was cool.
Fuck this guy. He's just sick.

my reaction to yesterday's annual check-up

2012-01-30T18:11:00.000-08:00

I went to my annual executive check-up yesterday, after the bliss that is Los Banos / my friend's wedding. The doctor said there's a mass in my right boobie and I'm hoping that it's just a bunch hyperactive gland cells. Hello period, where are you? I've never been this excited to see you (at this sort of circumstance, because I know I'll never have a pregnancy scare).

FUCK

Hahaha. Side note: buti na lang cute yung nurse na kumuha ng blood sample ko. Hello ate, this is my poopoo and wiwi sample, too!

Sa una kong pag-eeebig. Dyan ka lang, pabalik na ko!

2012-01-24T21:06:00.000-08:00

Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, Los Banos, Laguna. Humanities Building: ang sira-sirang gusali sa pwet ni Oble. Ang paborito kong lugar sa buong mundo (na kinalalagyan ng paborito kong basement classroom na kung tawagin namin ay Dungeon). Pabalik na ko, dyan ka lang! Photo borrowed from the Paperscratcher's tumblr account.

How to kill a tomato

2012-01-21T22:38:00.000-08:00

Yep! So if you want to kill me, just dissolve
one Biogesic tablet in water and have me drink
it after a loooong and tiring workout.

Getting sick could be such a bitch both in the physical and economic aspects of life. Sorry for the Sunday rant, but a severe headache (coupled with muscle pain) has kept me awake until three in the morning. It's like someone hit my head with a baseball bat a hundred times over. Now, this wouldn't be a problem if I had not been allergic to some common, over the counter drugs like paracetamol, ibuprofen, and mefenamic acid. Yes, these little pills can cause my eyes and my wind pipes to swell and ultimately deliver me to hell.

So for the last 11 years (since the doctors found out about the allergies) I've been using remedies like a hot compress for menstrual cramps, Omega, Salonpas, and Bengay for muscle pain, Cool Fever patches, lots of water, sleep, etc. for fever. It only takes a day for most people to recover from fever, while I get to stay in bed for at least two. Good or bad? Read: two sick leaves in a row and an awful lot of backlogs. So exactly how hard is it for me to get a flu? Wala na. Either I stay in bed for three or more days or go to a hospital so they can prescribe pill after pill after pill.

It's like this. They give me paracetamol like Biogesic to get rid of the fever, Iterax (US brand name, I think is Atarax) to negate my system's allergic reaction to paracetamol, and another prescription drug to protect me from the gastrointestinal side effects (like pain + dry mouth) of Iterax.

One time, I tried taking half a tablet of Biogesic thinking I could get away with it. Hehe. So I ended up the ER of Makati Med with needles on my wrist and Sir Andy, the HR manager who took me there, taking pictures of my eyes, until he nearly shit himself laughing.

Oh life, why are you so good to me? Why this on a long weekend? Sana may mag deliver ng xiao long bao sa bahay fresh and hot from Binondo. Ahem, O. :)

May cheap na kababuyang nangyayari dito: A food diary entry by TCF

2012-01-15T22:16:00.000-08:00

The kababuyan will not stop even after Christmas. We've been eating a lot of breakfast this January just because. Here are some of the photos that I look at kapag gusto kong kiligin. Happy viewing! And if you do have a very nice food porn collection, please share the love.

Vietnamese Seafood Noodles (Pho) at Namanama
Tastes okay but not authentic.
P200 for a huge bowl enough to stuff two people.

Tenderloin Steak at North Shore, Ayala Technohub
Cooked medium and not exactly the "melts in your mouth" kind of steak.
Cheap at P400.00.

Caesar Salad at North Shore, prelude to a meat-eating frenzy

Classic BLT at Country Style
The ideal breakfast that's healthy compared to the junk served at McDo.

Roasted Baboy at Distrito Night Market, Makati
For hungry meat lovers on a budget. P120.00

Seafood Paella at Distrito Night Market, Makati
P90.00. May look appetizing but Does not taste like Paella at all.

Shabu-Shabu at David's Tea House
P899.00. No service charge, VAT included. Again, a cheaper alternative to
Healthy Shabu-Shabu, Thousand Cranes, or Mini Shabu-Shabu

Big Brekkie at Stackers, Eastwood.
Fried eggs, fried rice, sausage, and extra bacon strips.
P230.00. THE after gym food.

Classic Fish and Chips, Stackers, Eastwood.

Angus Beef Tapa at Chef Laudico's BFast Cafe, Ayala Triangle.
There is a cheaper counterpart at Skew You, Kapitolyo.
This is just screaming ONIONS. P100++

Oh happy day!

The Expo

2012-01-15T08:37:00.000-08:00

Alessandro Conti served cheese that stank in a compoundpopulated by depressed yuppies. During his prime, he opened his restaurant thatbecame popular for risotto cooked with bone marrow and pasta with generousservings of crab fat. His wife, Roberta, lived on a bizarre diet of truffledsea salts, porchetta, mayonnaise, and caramelized sugar—she drank less than aglass of water every day and indulged in espresso shots every hour, a glass ofwine in the evening. Roberta, who grew up to 365 pounds, died in 2004 after developingvarious unnamed diseases. Roberto kept her body until it deteriorated, enough forhim to sweep parts of her away with a broom and a pan. Three years later, heswept the very last pieces of her, bones and teeth.

Across Alessandro’s restaurant is a bar whose waitresses havethis uncanny fixation of consorting with other women. The owner itself, lovedby the bar’s patrons and affectionately called Maeve, has lived with a girl tenyears younger than herself. Together, they shared a bed, food, alcohol,clothes, and even syringes. On a very hot day sometime in 2007, during thetwenty second birthday of her lover, Maeve wore a red leather jacket, which sherefused to take off for as long as she lived. Maeve was found dead October ofthe same year, in her Cubao apartment that faintly smelled of iron and decay. The Postal Service played on the background. The jacket was forcefully torn off exceptthe left sleeve that adhered to her arm so severely; it would tear what’s leftof her flesh if anyone dared to remove it.

Kevin opened his first café when he was 26. He dreamt of aplace populated by artists—poets, sculptors, and filmmakers—a piece of heavenwhere people talked about aesthetics and literary criticism, where they engagedin debates about the interpretation of art in a society that is unwelcoming ofshock value. One year later, the café went bankrupt, and he busied himself withfilmmaking. That day in 2007, he was screening a film in another café adjacentto Alessandro Conti’s when a man approached him and whispered, “B film.” Six hourslater, Kevin sat still in his single-bedroom condominium in Greenhills,pondering about his life, drinking Jack on the rocks, trying to breach the known limits of one's blood alcohol content. He woke up the next day, around 4:00 pm,sensing a deep lacuna. He wished the bed could eat him alive.

Guarding the pay lounge within the compound is Peter. Hecharges the guests five pesos if they need to pee, ten if they need to shit, zeroif some vain woman simply wanted to use the mirror, and zero, still, for peoplewho are nearly blind and badly in need of some space to puke. Beside him satthe sullen vendor named Boy, who charges three pesos for one stick of cigaretteand twenty five for a pack of ten sticks. On typically slow nights likeMonday’s, they would talk about recent purchases. Boy recently bought an iPodwithout a charger from a neighbor at the price of four thousand pesos. He paidin cash. The following week, on a hot day in 2007, Peter bragged about alaptop, which he bought on installment for twelve thousand pesos. When Peterarrived home that night, he immediately proceeded to his cabinet to get aneight year old Compaq Presario. He played pinball and Minesweeper. His child had been missing for the past two weeks.

Remy’s thrift shop, called The Cellar, was situated near theexit of the compound populated by depressed yuppies. She has read every singlebook displayed in her store from the superficial works of Sophie Kinsella, thepapers of Soren Kierkegaard, to the secrets of the Kremlin, except for one bookby Ivan Pavlov. One Saturday afternoon in 2007, a woman, 35 years of age walkedinto the shop. She sifted through several titles, smiled occasionally, andsmelled the pages with much pleasure, before finally bringing a book to thecounter. It was, of course, Pavlov. That night, Remy unboxed several vinylrecords, chose The Eagles, and listened to it using a phonograph. She lit acigarette, smoked up to half of it, and threw what’s left to her pile of books, untila hefty amount of smoke rose from the volumes. She walked towards the door andlocked it the same way she locks the door every night.

To this day, only the ruins of the compound remain—ofcourse, along with stories of the strange people who used to work there.

Limbo

2012-01-08T00:27:00.000-08:00

I got hit by a speeding car on my way home from a function,actually from some weird engagement I can’t seem to remember. The last thing Isaw were the headlights of a black Honda,before waking up inside a bare room.

My room, on a bed that had no sheets or pillows. The books havedisappeared, the windows without curtains. Outside, I saw a strange kind ofbrightness—a clear shade of blue but there was no sun. The nearby buildings andpower lines were gone. There was no sound.

It was the most neutral of environments, where time didn’tseem to exist, like the world was on standstill, and the concept ofeternity has not yet been conceived. I was stuck. There was nothing else left to do but pacearound the room waiting for some sort of disturbance.

And in despair I realized I was dead.

There was a knock on the door. I didn’t hear it but I’mcertain there was. It was my mother, who wanted to give me pair of earphones. Ifelt happy seeing her.

Then I started sobbing.

This is one of the scariest dreams I ever had. Ever.

2011 "Eval Form": Yes, may ganito!!

2011-12-27T00:02:00.000-08:00

The idea came from I.S. my officemate. She does it everyyear with a standard set of questions. Here’s my version of the “eval form.” Please feel free to use it, no one will sue for copyright infringement. :)

Person of the year?

My brother, J., who is about to finish an economics degree,was fortunate to get into the Philippine Stock Exchange as an intern. ThisChristmas, he finally ditched buying Lee Pipes and had enough sense to buy tiesand a new suit. I’m so happy I could cry. I hope he gets into a good brokeragefirm after college.

Movie / theatrical production of the year?

2011 seemed like a very lame year for movies, so I’m puttingthe default answer, Harry Potter. For the theater production category I’d sayCare Divas. No other production has made me walk out of the theater with such abig smile—thinking, "tangina this, tangina this!"

Restaurant(s) of the year?

1. Wabi-Sabi at theCollective, Makati for vegetarian pho. I crave for it every now and then,but they close as early as 9 (and I still have to travel from Eastwood toMakati).

2. Malcolm's at Makati. I only knew about its existence when Boss took the whole team out for the Christmas dinner (I think she's friends with the owner). This is a haven for carnivores, haha!

3. Bowler Restaurant at Salcedo Village, for very cheap draft beer.

4. Relish, still at Salcedo Village, for very sulit date food. Yes, this is the time to say "ayiiiiii!"

Destination of the year?

Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam.Cheap beer, coffee, and cigarettes. Probably the most chillaxmetropolis I’ve been to and for a time I had delusions of working there as anart director (because Filipino art directors are in demand in that specificregion). The only problem is I don’t know two shits about art directing. My friendMannix worked there for a year and he said it was bliss. He came home to PHwith a damaged liver.

Met new people this year?

Many, thanks to my job! The little box where I put the year's business cards is now brimming. Most significant, I think, was the formation of the Dream Team (basically a photo shoot team composed of make-up and hair stylists, a set stylist, photographers, and models). The Dream Team has made some of my work requirements so much easier. They are Verna Marin, Victoria Contreras, Raven Agarpao (make-up), Sheryl Songsong (styling), Paola Aseron, Paolo Buendia, Ryan Sulit (photography) and last but not the least, the Mercator models. In a year, we have worked on a couple of projects in various shoot locations such as: the studio of Ivan Acuna, Tippi Ocampo's atelier, the venetian house of Tessa Valdes, etc. Oh si manong Randy nga pala who drove the van for us! haha

Anything you tried doing for the first time this 2011?

1. Ran my fist 5K at the adidas King of the Road, timed 39:25,which isn’t bad for beginners (at least according to some friends). After this, we still continued training.

2. Invested money and diversified. It felt like a grown-upthing to do. Besides, I was greedy.

3. Surf!!

4. First time to get an award that is industry related.

5. Bought a gym membership because of vanity even with all my commitment issues.

Man, what a boring year.

Biggest achievement?

Realizing that I truly belong tocorporate PR.

Biggest failure?

Failure to take a lot of things seriously.

Failure to be wise and decisive.

Failure to grow some balls and start a small business.

Failure to make a couple of people happy.

Fcuk it. :(

Anyone close to you who had children or got married?

My Co-AE in my previous work got married. My college roommateK., was supposed to get married this December, but everyone pleaded for a chanceto slim down, so the ceremony was postponed until January next year. Haha.

Big purchases?

None really, but I bought a laptop because the old one brokedown and an iPod touch to help me with running. Err, that’s it. I’m poor asshit.

How do you feel about 2011?

Average. The world is about to end, but I am still me. I never learn.

What are things that you look forward to in 2012?

More money, DP for a car by February ( I can do this shit!!!), a girlfriend for my dog, sponsor a grad trip for my brother (he is requesting Beijing). Peace ofmind and more books to read. If it isn’t too muchto ask. Please? :)

Have a great 2012!

ILIGAN Relief Operations: How to help.

2011-12-18T19:08:00.000-08:00

FROM ILIGAN BLOGGERS'NETWORK

 Iligan Bloggers Society,Inc. is humbly requesting your generous help for the victims Bagyong Sendong ofIligan City.

 Iligan Bloggers Society,Inc. is accepting donations in kind for the victims of Typhoon Sendong in thecity. We encourage the following items for donations: canned goods, noodles,bath and laundry soaps, toothpaste, rice, used clothings, slippers, and cashdonations.

Drop off points:

ILIGAN – BASED DONORS:  St.Michaels’ Cathedral, DXIC Radio Staion, City Hall, Rizal Park, and Calda PizzaIligan City Branch will be the drop off point for the donations in-kind ofcash. Please do not hesitate to ask to verify for you to extend your help tothe victims of Typhoon Sendong. 

NON-ILIGAN BASED DONORS:

LUZON DONORS DROP OFFPOINTS:

Makati City: 3553 DurangoSt., Palanan, Makati City 1235. Contact Migz @ 09065777812 or09227130006 OR 6-D Cypress Gardens Condo 112 VA Rufino St. Makati City c/oMeikah Delid

Quezon City: BerkeleyResidences, Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City. Contact Jamie Steffani Mijares @09157744244

Manila/Taft Avenue: MadisonSquare Condominium, Taft Avenue, Manila, Right infront of De La Salle University,Right beside Kenny Rogers . Contact Roden Lim @ 09228446777

Ship your donations via LBCfor FREE and send it to the address:

LBC has been generous andaccepts shipping of donation to affected areas for free ( HERE) ONE FOR ILIGAN (Iligan Bloggers Society, Inc.) c/o CALDA Pizza, The Strip QuezonAve, Pala-o, Iligan City, 9200

DonationPaypal ID: singcol.inquisitor@gmail.com 

UNION BANKAccount: Revilla N. Carbonell-Noel– 109451077611

ILIGAN BLOGGERS SOCIETY,INC. SITE: http//:iliganbloggers.com EMAIL:iliganbloggers@gmail.com FB Fanpage: http://www.facebook.com/iliganbloggers

LISA (LAI) MARIE MIRASOL |Pinay Travelista, @pinaytravelista (IBS, Inc. Web Content Manager) http://www.pinaytravelista.com/ 09062558863;(+63) 222-2117 

ALEXANDER SINGCOL | iliganInquisitor, @lexuzinquisitor (IBS, Inc Board of Trustee Member) http://theiliganinquisitor.blogspot.com/ 09053117925,(+63) 8360272 

REVILLA CARBONELL-NOEL |Adventures in Life (IBS, Inc Board of Trustee Member) 092193209944,09427009788

For more Updates on IliganCity status after Typhoon Sendong: DXIC: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/rmn-dxic-iligan FBFanpage: http://www.facebook.com/iliganbloggers

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL WELFAREAND DEVELOPMENT:

DSWD Manilaneeds volunteers to sort & pack relief goods. National Resource OperationsCenters, Chapel Road, Pasay City! Contact: Francia Fabian+63918-930-2356.

DONATIONS:

NationalResource Operations Center (NROC)
Chapel Rd. Pasay City (Back of AirTransportation Office)
Contact: Francia Fabian 0918 9302356  

  DSWD Field Office IV-A: Alabang-ZapoteRoad, Alabang, Muntinlupa City 1770
Tel. No.: (02) 807-4140 Fax No.: (02)807-1518
Contact: Gina Laranan 0910-886-0826  

DSWD Field Office IV-B: 1680 F.T. Benitez St., Malate Manila
Contact: Shiela Tapia (02) 5252445

RED CROSS PHILIPPINES:

Via creditcard & bank deposit. Visit http://www.redcross.org.ph/donatenow
ViaGlobe. Text RED < amount > to 2899. You may transfer P5, 25, 50,100, 300, 500
ViaSmart. Text RED < amount > to 4143. Valid donation amounts 10, 25,50, 100

ABS-CBN SAGIP KAPAMILYA:

Donations accepted in cash and in kind.
Details: http://www.facebook.com/notes/anc-247/heres-how-you-can-help-victims-of-sendong-via-sagip-kapamilya/10150529342939122

GMA KAPUSO FOUNDATION:

Accepting donations for Sendong victims.
www.kapusofoundation.com.
9284299,9289351.
MetrobankPeso Savings account:
GMA Kapuso Foundation, Inc. / Account Number:3-098-51034-7

LA SALLE GREENHILLS:

Donations will be accepted starting December 19, 2011(Monday) -- Donations in cash and kind can be received at Gate 2 of LaSalle Green Hills at 343 Ortigas Avenue, Mandaluyong City 1550. You may alsocall any of the following telephone numbers for further inquiries:

AlumniOffice — 721-2729, 722-7750, 725-4720
GSPrincipal — 721-2482
HSPrincipal — 721-8914
Buildingsand Grounds Office — 721-8904 (Telefax)
La SallianMission Office — 726-5851 (Telefax)

XAVIER UNIVERSITY, CDO

Needs donations in CASH, FOOD (noodles,canned goods, etc.), BOTTLED WATER, and CLEAN CLOTHES. Detailshere: http://www.xu.edu.ph/index.php/other-news/642-bagyong-sendong-relief-operations-in-xavier-university.

Fr. EricGarcia Velandria S.J.
Coordinatorof Sendong Operation,
KKP Office,Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan, Corrales Ave.
9000Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines.

Cashdonations can be deposited at this account
AccountName: Xavier University
AccountNumber: 9331-0133-63
BPI MAINBRANCH

Trabahong Baboy Level 100, achieved.

2011-12-11T17:27:00.001-08:00

This year’s birthday getaway wasn’t at all planned. In thelast week of November, we received—actually, begged for—an invitation from a clientto go to Cebu and attend their annual lechon party. And yes, it’s officialbusiness; we went there with the intention of eating Zubuchon and popping acouple of veins.

Boss A. and I landed Friday afternoon only to realize thatdear client didn’t need our help in the event set-up anymore. With about fouror five hours to burn until the party, we decided to do what most bored peoplelove to do. Eat. Trabahong Baboy Level95!

At Diamond Tongs for a 275-peso buffet and beer at 3 forP100:

Fish and seaweed, such an awesome combination. I think these are the types eaten byAriel, Marina, and Mutya.

If you want to practice sucking, then this is for you! Kuholis the new Chupachups!

Most people hate okra but I love it to death, steamed or sautéed.Nag iisip ako ng witty remark pero wag na, medyo bastos.

Dahil may mga bagay na dapat talagang sinusulit and it’s notthe fresh salmon or tuna in the sushi bar (sa Yakimix) or the fucking freshfruits that you could get at the grocery. And because there are some excellent chefsout there na ginagawang sabaw ang butter.

At La Marea for dessert:

I know this looks morelike frozen egg yolk but it’s actually Brazo de Mercedes Mochi. Hard as NutriBunand best eaten using a steak knife. Orgasmic nonetheless.

Oh this is the famous cup from that Youtube video that wentviral. Ay! Hindi pala! This is absolutely yummier than that piece of shit. LaMarea’s famous brownie cup.

After achieving Trabahong Baboy Level 95, we went to the dreadedparty where my eyebrows got shaved against my will—don’t ask why, hahahaha—and mywaistline grew another inch bigger.

Instead of staying in Cebu for a measly 14 hours (which wasthe case in a prior trip to Davao for the very same purpose, ay nako talaga iyon malupet, muntik nakaming maiwan ng eroplano dahil sa failure to set the alarm properly!) Iasked O. to follow, so we could spend the next three days oversleeping,reading, reflecting, watching TV, and drinking beer in Mactan.

And so we did. Boss A. (who donated her breakfast stub tous, thank you very much!) took an early flight on Saturday morning, about thesame time O. landed. We took a quick meal at Harold’s and proceeded to a poorman’s walking tour of the city.

Well everyone goes to Magellan’s Cross and so did we.

Still high after reading the Name of the Rose, we visitedthe Cebu Cathedral Museum, hoping to find the Shroud of Turin, the Holy Grail,and among other things, a tooth or a preserved limb of Michael of Cesena. Unfortunatelywe only found these:

A book the size of your center table. A relic of the ancient times, when kids watched Super Book instead of Waktu Rehat.

Some costumes used in a very holy theatrical production ofLittle Red Riddin’ Hood.

We also went to the Cebu Cathedral. O. said her prayers,while I sat beside her waiting to combust.

Then came my favorite part of the day. Lunch!

At Casa Verde, IT Park (which is like a more pleasant version of Ayala TechnoHub):

Brians Ribs. Trabahong Baboy Level 100!!!

Death by Chocolate. Chocolate cookie at the bottom, icecream in the middle glazed with a layer of, guess what, chocolate! Ang mgaCebuano talaga, ang hilig sa masarap na nakakamatay.

Fish and fries! Fresh fucking fish that looks verysuspicious due to its, uhm, shape. But it’s so awesome hindi mo ikakahiyangmag-beer ng tanghaling tapat!

Their improved version of the Jolly Spaghetti. See thatyellow ball on the upper right? That’s a ball of cheese and margarine. Oh howsinful. I will die early in Cebu.

Andfinally we went to Pacific Cebu, a six hectare resort hotel at the very edge ofMactan.

With my most favorite person in the world

Who likes sniffing around the hotel room, looking for bed bugs...while making a peace sign.

AMEN!

Natal day reflections on names, criminal plots, and adverbs

2011-11-30T17:34:00.001-08:00

The cab driver was probably around seventy-five to eightyyears old. I had enough reason to doubt his vision and capacity to maneuver thedamn wheel, but since he was on the driver’s seat, I had to keep calm and justhang on for my dear life. Yet another cab-ride-of-my-life after burning threehours in Morato, devouring Umberto Eco’s postscript on The Name of the Rose.These are some of my thoughts while manongpawned the truck and bus drivers in EDSA.

Names

My dad named me after a goddess. When our volumes ofBritannica Encyclopedia were still up to date he consulted them and found anentry about the Roman goddess of hunting, depicted as an archer. I was born 30^thof November under a sign that is famous for its temperament, in theyear of the earth dragon—which goes to say that I am the most neutral of allfire breathing assholes out there. Haha.

And speaking of names. I’d like to think that a name is oneof the most overlooked antiquities in the world. From Christendom’s point ofview, the first man Adam had a name, and so did Cain, Lilith, Malachi, Isaiah,David etc. Even from literature and other less known mythologies, ancient charactershad names: Morpheus the Dream Lord, Eric Northman, Persephone, Loki, thatfucking wolf from Game of Thrones had a master that called him Shaggy Dog.

Today I turned twenty-three; the People’s Princess wouldhave been around 50; the jazz pianist is 47. But I stillwonder how old our name is.

The art of escapism

Of all the forms of escapism I turned to books. Sometimes Ifeel guilty of taking fiction too lightly I refuse to take part in the morearduous parts of interpretation. So I leave the narrative as it is and cling tothe words of GGM with little regard to context. When Umberto Eco told the wholeprocess of how the book was put to together (research, drawing the setting,profiling each character), he also tried to construct a reader:

“I wanted to create a type of reader who, once the initiationwas past, would become prey—or, rather, the prey of the text—and would think hewanted nothing but what the text was offering him. A text was meant to be anexperience of transformation for its reader. You believe you want sex and acriminal plot where the guilty party is discovered at the end and with plentyof action, but at the same time you would be ashamed to accept old-fashionedrubbish made of the living dead, nightmare abbeys, and black penitents.”

For at least one hour a day I read a book and indulge in theflight of my imagination thinking I do not have to submit to its rules.

Sadly, today, after reading the postscript, I realized amassive escapism fail! Even if I felt this autonomy from the circumstances ofWilliam and Adso, I fell prey to Umberto’s scheme.

Yep, you cant go wrong with a book that has pictures!

On asking dumb questions

In an interesting plenary session (2004) about HenrikIbsen’s play, a boy-eaglet poses this very serious question “What is the thesisof the story?” I was only high school then, but I knew from my heart, it was avery wrong question to ask. And now Mr. U gives us further instructions onkeeping your dignity in front of high school kids.

“For two years I have refused to answer the idle question inorder of “Is your novel an open work or not?” How should I know? That is yourbusiness, not mine. Or “With which of your characters do you identify?” ForGod’s sake, with whom does an author identify? With the adverbs, obviously.”

TCF is a happy glutton!

2011-11-25T01:24:00.001-08:00

I got this idea of documenting what I ate and liked for the past week (because O., I believe, has been very religious in documenting hers in Calorie Counter). Hahaha! So here it is! A food-photo diary of sorts, taken using the trusty iPod camera and processed with Pixlromatic (Sophia-Vignette-Nolaroid). Apologies for the very, very poor shots; this is why I am an account executive and not a part of the creative team.

Jack Daniel's Salmon with mashed potato and steamed veggies on the side from TGI Fridays. Best paired with a bottle of San Mig Premium. This is not really the best Salmon ever though, despite being much pricier. Try the one at Bowler or Relish in Makati.

COLD ( and let me emphasize COLD ) champorado with powdered milk prepared by my mom. I don't know why, but I can eat no other champorado but this. Is there gourmet champorado somewhere in the 7,107 islands of the Philippines that could taste as good as this? Nada!

Green mango with bagoong! Who does not love this? If you hate bagoong I guess we are not meant to be friends! Haha! Ensalada (green mango + onions + tomatoes + itlog na maalat) is one of the best appetizers ever. Recently though, I chanced upon the burong mangga of MilkyWay at Pasay Road and it was damn good kapag may kasamang lechon kawali. Truly a putok-batok moment.

Somethin' Fishy's Seafood Soup. It's like cream of mushroom without mushroom (you get what I mean?) but with a mix of crabs, mussels , scallops, squid, and LARGE slices of pepper. Not bad, except than when I ordered the item, I expected clear soup. Hahaha.

A KFC Bucket Meal for three hungry lesbians during lunch break. Yes, there are three lesbians in the office and we all do not know how to eat healthy.

Grilled pork and atsara for ulam / pulutan: a guilty pleasure.

The after workout meal: Chicken Spaghetti Meal with extra rice + medium fries and a Monster Float, which are not in the photo :(

Three classic pancakes and strips of bacon + an egg and coffee at Pancake House. I love eating breakfast food any time of the day. Once upon a time, before moving in with the G2 girls, I had a house mate who cooked excellent chocolate pancakes with Cadbury bars. F-ck, I miss those pancakes badly.

Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf's Break 'O Day: bread, scrambled eggs, turkey ham, butter, and fruit jam. O happy day. <3 Had this one at 2 PM. Told you, I could eat breakfast forever!

Posted for the heck of it. Do you know a restaurant that serves breakfast all day (except that of Chef Laudico's at Ayala Triangle)? Tell me, please!

Twenty three

2011-11-20T21:37:00.001-08:00

My favorite cousin who lives in Sydney and who Ioccasionally talk to using BBM told me that in the realm of business, no onewould take you seriously ‘til you're 25.

At 22 he finished a degree in Adelaide, proceeded workingfor a couple of multi-nationals, and finally settled into a pharma company (asa category manager) that gives him 20 paid leaves a year, enough money to payfor a flat, a new car, and insurance, still some cash left to build a modeststock portfolio, and play a round of golf once or twice a month. He is now 28.How very mature.

Weeks ago, O. e-mailed another article from Thought Catalogentitled Dear Person Who Has Life Figured Out. And oh, how timely. I am scaredshit of not having anything figured out at 23. Inasmuch as I desire thesophistication and the intelligence of someone with the makings of a corporate PR/ crisis communications veteran, I still fall short in so many ways.

While with friends, I still prefer beer to wine, becausewine is supposed to be sipped and not glugged down so you can send drunk textsand crawl your way back home. Although I do have money in deposit accounts andmutual funds, I lack the brains and resources for a full stock portfolio (and Istill need a find manager to do the thinking). I also have 20 paid leaves,which I do not use wisely. I don’t play golf. There is nothing spectacularabout this sport and to this day I still wonder why old people love it dearly.

After a really bad day, I still baby talk to my dog andexpect him to answer with a “Woof!” or “You dumb f-ck.” I do not have a placeof my own—living with my parents saves me at least fifteen thousand a month forrent, food, laundry, and utilities, and I’m not about to let those comforts go.

On the 30^th I’m finally turning 23 (officially fouryears living as a professional because I graduated at 19). What exactly am Idoing?

At 23 I feel like I have everything to lose. I have to keepmy sh-t together and maintain balance between doing well at work andnot forgetting that I also have a life. Underneath the little excesses is avery taxing chore of making myself credible until someone, anyone takes me seriously(at 25!!). The problem of being so attached to a corporate system is that youcan never, ever, ever, EVER have the privilege of breaking down atmid flight.

Dear Universe, I don't want to turn 40 only to regret doingwhat I do now. So please, send me a manual on how to be mature and decisive.Remember that blasted lesson in economics about trade offs? Well there you haveit: you have to let go of certain liberties to make room for success. I can never be too sure on accepting those trade-offs.

there's a cute girl in the office and her name is matilda

2011-11-17T19:08:00.001-08:00

tangina this waste of cash.

2011-11-14T19:49:00.001-08:00

I just signed up for a one-year gym membership despite certain commitment issues. Well at least I have O.'s permission to check people out while she does yoga. Yeah? Hahaha. This is TCF paving the way to a ~~predatory~~ healthy lifestyle (thanks to some company benefits). I love you, O!

Dear future fitness trainer, this is how I imagine you to be. Do not be a disappointment. I expect you to give me a massage after every workout and join me in the sauna. Thank you very much!

ULAM.

The Ultimate Taste Test 7.0 | 17 November | Mercato Centrale

2011-11-13T07:28:00.001-08:00

I am so game for live food porn. Let's, mga lola! Text directly lifted from the blog of Anton Diaz , for @superboi @isaisbi @ignacioandrea and all the gluttons out there. November 17, Thursday, 7:00 pm to 10 pm, Mercato Centrale.

__________________

Here is a checklist toprepare you for Ultimate Taste Test 7.0:

◯ Decide who would you like to enjoy the UTTexperience with? Family or Foodie Friends?

◯ Practice rating your food that you like from ascale of 1 to 5:

1 - Thank You but I had Better. (If you don't like itat all, rate it 1) 

2 - It is OK. (If it is good but not memorable) 

3 - Wehad a good time. (If you had fun eating it) 

4 - I love it! (Ifthe food is really good and you would order it)

 5 - Awesome! I wouldrecommend it! (If the food is really good that you would tell everyone about itor give it away as Christmas gifts to your friends and family)

◯ Strategize how to successfully taste all the food(starting with the ones you like). Here is the list ofconfirmed vendors so far:

Think Wink Cookies"Chocolate Chips" and Kahlua-Raisins
Swiss Gourmet hungariansausage
Bakeorrific
Joan Baylon sirloin steakand saikoro
Sassy Sisig Squid Sisig onCups and Pork Sisig on Cups
Papa Roti
Happy Tummy Spam Musubi(Wasabi mayo, garlic mayo, chocolate or caramel)
Merry Moo's food for thegods and peppermint choco flavors
Blackinese Brownies withJack Daniel's and Absolut vodka
Bugle Boy Drink
Katsu House's Katsu maki(Torikatsu, Tonkatsu, Tofu Katsu mochi ice cream chicken teriyaki burger
Carl Quema Glazed GingerChicken Marinated in Special Glaze 5hr Roasted Japanese Lechon with Crispy SkinMarj's Black Samba
8 Spoons Catering & FoodServices
Dulcelin Honeyed BeefBourguignon and shrimp&uni pasta
Chinque chicken inasalfillet and chicken bbq fillet
Seoul sistes "chickenchops"
Formosa Express "Lo BaBong"
Tacoholics Pinoy tacos
Ging regalado's ChickenGalantina, Ham, Banana loaf/ rum cake, carrot cake
Mio Gelati gelatimochilatoChoclery Artisan Chocolates Manchego Almond Cointreau
Central Luzon StateUniversity's tilapia ice cream
Istituto Culinario limonada
Joanie’s Cupcakes Heartmelting choco, cupcake, and cupcake de mercedes
Green Pigs Kitchen bdaymisua fish, chicken, and veggie burgers

◯ To Beer or Not to Beer? Beer can be used toenhance the overall experience by pairing it with food. Your ticket comeswith one bottle of Premium All Malt, Cerveza Negra or Super Dry. (TO BEER, there is no question!)

◯ Buy and Claim your UTT tickets now! Tickets are available thisweekend in Mercato Centrale :)

You can reserve and purchaseticket through Bank Deposit until November 16, Wednesday:

Creative JuiceCommunications Inc. 

Banco de OroChecking Account

# 308032191.

Email a copy of the depositslip to admin@ultimatetastetest.com to reserve the tickets. You can present youroriginal deposit slip to claim the UTT tickets at the gate. We will be selling ticketsfor walk-ins on the event itself.

TCF's favorite tweets re: Pacquiao-Marquez Fight

2011-11-12T22:40:00.001-08:00

This is my best effort in compiling Filipino reactions to the Pacquiao-Marquez Fight. Too bad Twitter does not have a time stamp, so these tweets are in no particular order. I woke up 1:30 PM today only to see my social networking sites flooded by comments about the decision. Here are some of my favorites:

OscarDeLaHoya Oscar De La Hoya

Paquiao cannot compete witha counter puncher like Marquez. Juan has the Patience to wait and capitalize onmistakes.

43 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

Retweetedby GilbertCRemulla

GilbertCRemulla Gilbert C. Remulla

Kundi rumble nalang. "@michaelpalacios: It's agood thing the Philippines and Mexico are separated by the world's largestocean."

gangbadoy Gang Badoy Capati

Let's try to study Manny'sfacial expression and compare to 2007 post-poll photos of Migs Zubiri.

nixiechixie Anika Punzalan 

The Pacquiao Marquez shit isKim Kardashian's wedding sports edition. #justsayin

darwinmariano Darwin Mariano

Surprised/amazed that evenManny's fans think he should have lost the fight. Proof for me that the Pinoy'ssense of fairness trumps emotion

Jason_Webb_Phil Jason Webb

RT @RealSkipBayless: Don'ttell Mayweather, but Pacquiao such a boxing genius that he used that fight as atuneup to lure Floyd into ring.

tuesday_v Marizel

He has fought bravely somany times and this is the first time we saw him bleed, still 3 judges decidedhe won so let's show him our love.

Karen_DaviLa Karen Davila

Clearly, Manny is the starof Las Vegas. And I will FOREVER be on Manny's side. But let's go with what'sFAIR and RIGHT!

jasonirving Jason IrvingRombaoa

Sana talaga napanood niMayweather tong laban na to at hindi siya nagbowling or nanood ng Lady Gaga orkung ano na namang dahilan.

HecklerForever ProfessionalHeckler

You know Manny Pacquiao's inbig trouble when it's Freddie Roach who's trending worldwide on Twitternow. #PacMarquez

FlowGalindez Flowell Galindez

Manalo Matalo, Proud Pinoypa rin ako! Pilipinas lupain ng mga Bayani at Matatapang! @TeamManila

TeamManila TeamManila

Hindi naman masama loob nyoif binigay na lang yun win and belt kay marquez bukas?

gmanews GMA News

Actress Eva Longoria (@EvaLongoria) expresses shock over theresults of #PacquiaoMarquez3:"Whoaaa! Did Marquez lose that fight???"

tjmanotoc TJ Manotoc

That wasn't the bestPacquiao. And that was vintage Marquez. This is yet another controversial winfor Pacquiao. Marquez will whine for sure

rajolaurel Rajo Laurel

Yahoo!!! Bravo! @jinkee_love in white, wearing adress by Filipino designer @charinasarte #PinoyPride

iamsuperbianca bianca gonzalez

somebody punch mario lopezplease.

hilarion Larry Cayco

Things to avoid later:tequila, Mexicali. #revengeofthemexicans

ang_mungo Ang Mungo

Someone wins boxing by decisionand we ask questions... While someone becomes a rubber-up, we rejoice? Whatgives? Crab, anyone?

iloveruffag RUFFA Gutierrez

Inaaway kami ng mgaMexicano!!!!! Stop being sore losers. One guy just yelled at me: LOSER. Sabi!Leaving now. Baka mapaaway pa kami.

djmotwister Mo Twister

Marquez was fucking robbed.

iloveGEORGINA Georgina Wilson

I'm so happy Manny won - but I wish that he won in abetter way. Marquez was clearly the better fighter today. Kawawa the mexicans.

ogiediaz ogie diaz

Nakakalokah! Nanalo na ngasi Pacquiao, meron pa ring mga nalungkot? Ayaw pa?

cristallebelo Cristalle B.Henares

They say @MannyPacquiao hasn'tbeen sleeping, waking up at 4am everyday. Something's bother him. I wonderwhat!

DYANCASTILLEJO DYANCASTILLEJO

MARQUEZ TEAM IN THE LOCKERthey say they were robbed

piacayetano pia cayetano

Good point RT @Mariecast: let's remember Marquez was thechallenger. He had to make Manny bleed and cry, for him to win. He didn't dothat.

Jimparedes Jim

I feel good though thatPinoys seem to have a sense of fairness and justice despite our obvious lovefor Manny.

angelicopter899 Angelika Schmeing

Should've listened to @djmotwister and bet on Marquez.Balato naman diyan Mohan

fwancheen Francine Prieto

“@GujiLorenzana: RT @ChynsOrtaleza: Everybodywins today.. #Pacman isstill the champion ang #Marquez winsour Respect.”

boochanco Boo Chanco

Arum is the only clearwinner. Best outcome for the fight promoter

piersmorgan Piers Morgan

Just because crowd wasbooing doesn't mean result was wrong. Audience booed me every week on America'sGot Talent and I was usually right.

1 hour ago Favorite Retweet Reply

Retweetedby Tippi_Ocampo

FakeNoynoy Noynoy Aquino III

President Obama is stillasking if they can build a huge Manny Pacquiao statue to scare off Mexicansfrom illegally crossing the US border.

catilacad cat ilacad

RT @elg_d "@BIDABEST2011: Galing ngtweet na 'to: After round 12, Marquez praised himself while Pacquiao prayed.See the difference?"

See, there are as many perspectives as the people who watched the fight. Tomorrow we will succumb into social amnesia and go on with our lives. After everything that's been said and done, Pacman still won the fight and people will be making money again in the re-match.

Dear Mayweather, I hope you realize that this was all planned for your entertainment. Happy Sunday!

Because this is worth reposting: 53 signs you work in public relations by Lauren Fernandez

2011-11-10T03:42:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wonder why Ichose this profession. This article was originally published in PR daily andsent by O. via e-mail days ago. My comments initalics.

1. Your day starts and endswith a cup of coffee. Check.

2. You can power-walk in5-inch heels with your laptop bag while checking your BlackBerry. Cliche, I wear flats. Everyone in the office does it on flats.

3. Inside jokes with yourcolleagues will get you through the day—especially the insanely stressful ones. Check.

4. You constantly engage in“PR is dead” and “the press release doesn’t have a place in business”arguments.

5. You are so used to puttingthe client first that you usually forget to eat lunch. We refuse to eat lunch. Everyone is on a diet.

6. It’s detrimental to yourhealth and workday when you forget your headphones. And my PILOT Hi-Tecpoint V5.

7. You can toggle among aPowerPoint presentation, a press release, Twitter strategy, and PSAoutlines—all in an hour. Check, check, check.

8. You recite billing codesin your sleep. Hahahahaha. NO. I refuse.

9. You preface Happy Hourwith: “Sorry, I need to keep my phone on the table. I have to be connected toemail and phone just in case.”

10. You know more about APstyle than Microsoft Office. Because of this, you’re a regular in the ITdepartment.

11. You proudly put “PR pro”in your Twitter bio, knowing it’s the one place you don’t have to explain yourjob. I put my blog url in the Twitter bio.

12. Your speed-dials connectto the CEO, CFO, CIO, CRO, and Arby’s.

13. Your BlackBerry sleepswith you every night. Your better half does not. Check. I could feel the emptiness in my bed without my Blackberry. Hahahah, joke lang O.!

14. You no longer countcalories—just your re-tweets.

15. You start to rock in yourchair when you can't catch a look at your BlackBerry over dinner.

16. “Relax" time is inthe shower when you always seem to come up with the best PR pitches.

17. After your coffee, youspend 20 minutes deleting Google Alerts of clients, competitors, and everythingin between. Yes! And MediaMeter, too.

18. Your home number is onyour office voice mail "just in case a reporter calls," and non-PRpeople regularly express surprise that you'd let it out. You don't understandwhy they even think that. I have a life you know.

19. The first thing you dowhen you start your day is "communications triage," and it oftenbegins at home.

20. Your client wants to beon Oprah. Alternately, you are beyond grateful that this is Oprah's finalseason—so you never have to hear a client say they want to be on Oprah again. ANC Business Nightly and UKG in my case.

21. EVERYTHING in yourlife—from doing the laundry to playing a round of golf—is recorded in your mindin 15-minute billable increments.

22. You set three alarms torise at 4 a.m. to make the early morning in-studio segment. 6 am studio segments. And it does not happen everyday.

23. You engage in weeklyconversations with your clients that start with, “Why weren't we included inthis WSJ article?”

24. You've heard all thelines about sleep: "Sleep is overrated." "You can sleep all youwant when you die." "Do you ever sleep?" My officemate gave me a neck pillow last Christmas because I'm so good at taking power naps.

25. You start your day bydigging out of client and competitor alerts and checking email, all beforeyou're out of bed. Thank you MediaMeter for all the emails. I love you!

26. You check HootSuite inthe morning before you get out of bed just to monitor what has been said aboutyour clients overnight.

27. Every Friday around 5:00p.m. you think, “This could be crisis time!” And it ruins the day.

28. You know what time it isanywhere in the world and every country's phone code, all without having tolook at a reference guide. Singapore and Hong Kong have a special place in my heart.

29. You're afraid to go morethan 15 minutes (max) without checking Twitter/Facebook/news feeds to make sureyou're not missing anything. My iPod is connected to the office WiFi for all the notifications. If I do not respond, it means I'm not interested. Haha.

30. You rely on to-do lists(yes, plural) to get you through your day, but often don't get to crossanything off until 4 p.m. (after managing a few surprise crises). One in an old school note pad, one in my Blackberry. And StickyNotes.

31. You wake from a dream inthe middle of the night, rolling over to grab the pen and paper you keep onyour nightstand to jot it down so you won't forget an idea for yet anothercrazy PR stunt. Work on the mind during the day and work on the mind while yousleep! NO, NO, NO.

32. You can't look at orlisten to any form of media without thinking, "My client should be on/inthat." Except the tabloids.

33. My iPhone is mygirlfriend. My MacBook Pro, my best friend.

34. You're the only persongroaning out loud when reading the paper on the bus. How were we not included? No, I power nap in the shuttle and the cab.

35. You check your smartphonebefore brushing your teeth.

36. People have asked you ifyou sleep in your office and you've actually thought about where you'd put thesleeping bag…if it ever got to that.

37. Checking of smartphonesand news becomes an everyday routine before bedtime and in the mornings. Duh.

38. You read/hear about acompany's crisis and instantly think, "I wonder who their AOR is." True with the BP oil spill and Eton Properties.

39. You have one copy of theAP Stylebook at work, one at home, one on your Kindle, and the app on yourphone.

40. At cocktail parties, youspeak in quotable sound bites. Memorized and rehearsed, often with figures. X percent. XXX billions in revenue.

41. You never plan meetingson Fridays afternoons or make personal plans on Friday evenings. You know that“the call" is coming at 4:45 p.m., and everything will need to be droppedanyway.

42. You actually takesurveys. It's good client karma, right?

43. You think and speak in140 characters or less. It all began with Plurk and not Twitter.

44. You call taking any photoa “Photo-op.” Yes, is there anything else you would call it??

45. Post-it notes are yourlifeblood.

46. You almost die if yourBlackBerry is sent for servicing! Yes, that is why I sit and stare at the service guy for two hours so he can speed things up. Pressure.

47. Your friends think you'recrazy for your undeniable attachment to your social networks.

48. Client's products aredecorations on your desk. I wish I can decorate my desk with residential towers, townhouses, stocks, bonds, electricity, a power plant, deposit accounts, and a foundation, but no. I do have SkyFlakes and tuna. And alcohol.

49. You eat every meal at theoffice and have a shelf dedicated to your favorite snacks, most of whichinclude some kind of protein or snack bar. SkyFlakes and tuna. Gadamit!

50. You work out at 4:00 a.m. I run at 9PM. Hahaha. At The Fort / Ultra, for a great view!

51. You watch televised pressconferences for fun and to steal really good talking points. Lacierda was once a favorite. Hahaha.

52. Your morning consists ofsimultaneously pitching different campaigns, for different clients, acrossdifferent media markets, and often, in different languages.

53. Something really badhappens and you're the first to announce, "We don't have problems; we haveopportunities." The STATEMENT is fun to write, but only if a lawyer is there to clear it. When the lawyer is out for lunch, my mouth froths and I begin to have seizures.

There are several accounts that I dream of handling: alcohol, cigarettes, firearms, and mining. I take inspiration from Thank You For Smoking (2005). It makes me delusional--it gives everyone the idea that being a publicist is cool, and a publicist is awesomeness personified.

Year right. Haha

Paper

2011-11-06T20:13:00.000-08:00

The night before, I purposely dug up heaps of paper fromunder the bed so they could be brought in to a recycling event in Greenhills—tohave them weighed, sold to a recycler, and made into something for the good ofthe environment. Two, maybe three hours into the exercise and what Iaccomplished was the creation of a god-awful mess. Not one sheet was takento the event.

I have a strange attachment to paper, especially those thatare ring bound, stained with coffee, with fading prints, and at various stagesof disintegration. I like them because aside from causing another episode ofallergic rhinitis, they have preserved some of my notes, Venn diagrams, and “Iam bored” scribbles, coupled with drawings of tapsilog, halo-halo, and electricfans.

I’ve seen my ring bound copies of Introduction to LiteraryTheory, various handouts about Critical Writing, a copy of the Orchid of FiveWounds, The Death of Fray Salvador Montano, loose pages of Alice Walker,Malcolm X, select articles from The Norton Reader owned by S. Most of these stories, theories, and devices I have forgotten becausefor the past three and a half years, I’ve been obsessed with the ‘the moreimportant things in life’ like making a living.

There’s been a change in the way I read books / ring boundcopies of fiction. I don't want to think about the complexities language, orJesus fucking semiotics. I do not want a theory to give direction to myreading. I just want to read for thesimple, unadulterated pleasure of it—like having sex with no strings attached.

Gone are my two roomies I exchanged books with. One stuck toher true love and took a masters degree in comparative literature; the otherbecame a serious advertising executive. We used to discuss books with a bit ofdepth. A bit, because our ‘intelligent’ discourses normally last 10 minutes andthen end up in gossip. I have not the slightest idea how it happens. (Andsometimes, I wonder if my AE friend ever started reading her very expensivepaperback of Kant and the Platypus after getting intimidated in the first page,ha, ha).

The night before, I found a paper, part of the criticalwriting handout, written by Neil Garcia about gay liberation in thePhilippines, citing Jose Garcia Villa, Tony Perez, and Severino Montano. (Consequentlythere is also a discussion about Tony Perez in this blog, which I follow) I sawmy notes. I’ve forgotten the junctions of gay liberation and post-colonialism.I mean, what the fuck, there is such thing?

The night before, I found my notes on signification. Thetriangle was a creature that fancied gaping at someone’s ignorance.

Today, I finished reading ‘Tis (Frank McCourt), a sequel tohis famous memoir, Angela’s Ashes. It’s a simple narrative. A boy from theIrish slums sails to New York to work, make something out of himself, and givehis mother a comfortable life back in the Old Country. This is a very common immigrant story. Afteralmost a decade of staying in New York, getting a degree, he gets a low-paying jobas a teacher in a vocational high school. Satirical, dark, good for somereading in a holiday afternoon. McCourt ditchedteaching ‘relevant things’ (racial ambivalence, the Vietnam war, and other hottopics back then) and stuck to giving homework in grammar or autobiographicalessays.

Sometimes being superficial is such a great comfort, but itgradually kills you inside.

I’m reading Dostoevsky again for the sake of having a bit ofmental activity. Russian authors are not much of a favorite—I feel no sense ofredemption in killing a frail pawnbroker and confessing to it after a longfight with guilt and hypochondria. But it reiterates the lesson that subscribingto dualities, good vs. evil, will kick you one hundred steps backward inunderstanding human nature.

I’ve seen my notes on this particular novel again. In awhite paper, which is my cheat sheet in socialism.

It’s a strange feeling, being out of touch with what you onceknew. I wish I never dug up these weird files, but I’m keeping them again to beseen again in a few years, to be surrendered to a recycler. I’m keeping themagain, for now.

And that is how I lost my battle against paper this weekend.

Yet another bleeding nose moment.

2011-10-26T00:10:00.000-07:00

DAMN!

The term actuarial science really gives me a bad case of stomach cramps. At this very moment an actuarial expert speaking in front of us, with two excruciatingly long formulas: one about managing all sorts of market risk and another on how to compute for ROI (return on investment). It's actually worse than my programmer friend who talks in 0001000011100010010111101010101 or fashionistas blabbering about cuts and fabrics and metals, ugh.

Obviously, I'm a lot more interested in the latter (ROI) because I do have a couple of investments that are on a downward trend. Also, in the prospect of getting millions in the next 20 years of employment and in the redundancy of insurance. Dear C. said that in the next ten years we would be experiencing a very slow global GDP growth, as low as 2+ percent, regardless if China (or India) continues to record 6 to 7 percent.

When Philippine stock values went up after the 2008 economic crisis, some mutual funds delivered as much 11 percent year to date returns. Now its down to a modest 6 to 8 percent or a little over the inflation rate! I put a 10-year time horizon to my money and if growth is going to be slow then, that would make me a very unhappy kid.

Anyway I'm glad that I dont understand the whole global stock market dynamics or I won't be able to sleep soundly every night thinking of losses and gains (or if it is more worthwhile to set up a surf shop in Siargao and maybe have seafood dinners everyday). I AM ONE KEMBOT AWAY FROM LOSSES! Bleh, done with shitty numbers for now. The actuarial guy is also done talking and just like my Econ classes I learned nothing and I'm going back to the office empty headed.

Well, just typing away to appear busy! When conversations have the potential to suck the life out of you, you have to avoid it--in the most creative means.

Oh yes we did!

2011-10-23T19:41:00.001-07:00

Our first finisher's medal ever!

Cap ou pas cap?

2011-10-22T09:32:00.000-07:00

Don't say a word. Let me talk. You missed me? Because I missed you. You're a real tyrant. It's so hard to be mad at you. But don't kid yourself, I still am. I want to talk and forget the game, just for once. Like my dress? I hesitated. Nabbed it off my sister. She has another red one, like a thermonuclear bombshell. That's the one I should've worn. I must've spent three hours in front of the mirror. But I got there, see? I'm pretty. You better like it or I'll kill you! No, wait, where was I? The problem is, that even if you said, "I love it," I wouldn't believe you. Julien, I no longer know when you're playing or not. I'm lost. Wait, I'm not finished. Tell me you love me. Tell me, because if I tell you first, I'm afraid you'll think it's a game. Save me, I beg of you. - Marion Cotillard as Sophie Kowalsky

The most heartbreaking part of this monologue is that it wasn't said to Julien but to a stranger in a library. Four years hence, Julien will walk in the cafe where Sophie works as a barista and ask her for dinner. Julien would give her a ring and then break her heart. And that, for me, was the best part of the film.

Jeux d'enfants (literal translation is Children's Game) was released in 2003 as Love Me If You Dare: a story of childhood best friends who began a playing a dare game, which no one found funny, and in most instances dark and seasoned with good madness. The story would span as long as 20 years, all filled with selfishness, irresponsibility, and hunger pains of the worst kind. I've watched this about three or four times and it still fractures me as would a demolition ball hitting a brick wall. Don't you hate spilling happy hormones for no good reason?

Anyway, what I'm saying is watch it. The film's setting is a small town in Belgium but the quality is screaming French, like Amelie, 8 Femmes, or La Mome (where Marion Cotillard stars as Edith Piaf). I like it because watching two characters destroy their lives at will feels like deliverance--it's everything you're aching for (imagine pissing on your pants while facing an authority) but cannot bring yourself to do because..."Being an adult means to have a speedometer that marks 210 and not driving over 60."

Perhaps I should thank the gods that this one had a particularly happy ending. An afternoon exchanging candies, eternal love preserved in a concrete block.

Happy weekend! :)

Dream Work: Notes on Freud’s Dream Psychology (Reading Diary)

2011-10-17T18:43:00.000-07:00

This is an attempt to gather, filter, find associations inmy thoughts that are all over the place, as I read Dream Psychology (SigmundFreud). To make the process a bit more interesting, I will listen to Gregoryand the Hawk, Lemon Jelly, and, uhm, Tori Amos? There are two quotes in the firsttwo chapters that got my attention:

"An idea merelyexisting in the region of possibility is replaced by a vision of itsaccomplishment." Quoted in reference to dreams of children, which do nothave as many layers and not as condensed as our dreams. I’ve read that amidstthe complexity of our dreams (as adults) hides a desire not realized.

"The dream does nottrouble itself about things, which are not deserving of our concern during theday, and trivialities, which do not trouble us during the day, have no power topursue us whilst asleep."

Apparently, there are no dull moments in the dream world. What is it about desire that keeps a human occupied even when the restof his body is on sleep, stand by, power save mode? What I know by heart isthat there is a hierarchy of needs and they can be understood using Maslow’sflimsy triangle. Desires that go beyond it (truffles and grade 12 steakseveryday, a bar stocked with great alcohol, a soft king sized bed, frequentholidays at Four Seasons) are obviously wilder and more sinister.

I’m happy that Freud’s statements validated what I consideredas half-truths in the past. Despite several subjects in Psychology, I never hadthe inkling to deconstruct my own dreams for lack of a good application in my frenziedwaking world. The only reason I took the Psych units was to move up from levelone in the course of self-discovery (yeah, right), which unfortunately didn'thappen because I became busy memorizing names and variations ofschizophrenia.

Perhaps, the realm of Morpheus the Dream Lord (sorryfor the geek speak, this is from Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series) is also an intersectionof my conscious and subconscious worlds. If I happen to meet the wild animal inthat intersection, perhaps, I'd know what to do with my life.

Perhaps I would learn not to settle.

What is there to chase anyway? Fame, money, sex, career,happiness, demigod status? I completely doubt my capacity to self-analyze, butlet’s give it a shot. Tonight’s dream would be subject to a quick analysistomorrow. I hope it’s not about rushing a press release again; maybe somethingmore pleasant, like a vacay at Marrakech. Pfft, hahaha dream on, TCF!

Thank you for reading this hell of a mess! :)

Running: the modern approach to fighting temptations!

2011-10-12T02:58:00.000-07:00

Hellooooo, I'm back! The past weeks have been admittedly bland (acceptmaybe when Steve Jobs died and everyone cried iSad). Our whole (office) team finallypicked-up a Tuesday / Thursday exercise sched at Ultra—running + the NikeTraining Club, both of which are NOT easy but designed to systematicallydestroy your cellulite. You weigh the pros and cons.

It’s less than two weeks until the adidas King of the Road.We still struggle at 5k, not one of us lost weight significantly, and thenumber of yosi sticks smoked in a day has not decreased. That, dearies, is workin progress in the superlative form. Read: after the workouts we eat burgers,wings, shawarmas, and drink beer to our hearts' content.

BUT last night, I met two people who slapped me with a bit of encouragement: a retired general and a priest (you read it right, a priest) who arerunning across the Philippines (a total of 2,800 kilometers) for eight wholemonths—Gen. Sam Tucay and Fr. Carmelo Diola. From what I recall, Fr.Diola is a friend of one of our clients; he is also a UPLB alumnus, oh yeah. Let's drop the arguments about the RH bill for a sec and all the other issuesthat contribute to my hostility towards the church to simply dwell on whatthey had to say about running.

The message of their project, Takbo Maharlika is unity, fitness,and discipline—if you’ve read about Maharlika, you'd know that it sums up allthe noble characteristics of a Filipino. Maharlika also refers to the roadnetwork that runs from Luzon to Mindanao where they would travel along. For both runners, prayer plays animportant role in sustaining them in the run and in catalyzing change. Prayer is not true for me (obviously) but I’d like to think that any formof reflection / meditation is vital to achieving change.

Sam says that whenever he is tempted to do something he isnot meant to do, he puts on his shoes and runs a full 10k, sweating off the unduestress. There is more to it than covering distance at a certaintime frame. I look back in my days of leisurely running in college and itbecomes clear somehow. The reason I loved it so much is because it is a veryreflective activity—it channels your energies into the right places so youdon’t fall into life’s common traps—that keeps you away from nurturing murderousthoughts and, uhm, giving in to Alak + Sugal + Kape + Babae = Kabaong (well, that was before I learned how to smoke, hahahahaha).

Our meeting with the two guys lasted for at least two hours. WhenI told Fr. Diola that I haven't been to church for several years, he simplysmiled and said “I’ll pray for you.” I said thanks and told them I’m joining inthe Laguna leg if it does not fall into a workday. Gut tells me he is the goodkind of priest and that Sam is definitely the good kind of military man. Well, what could I say, thank the gods for people like them, I just wish they are aplenty.

(Do you sometimes get that feeling that the world would be a better place if people become a little less like you and a little more mabait? Man. Less smokers, less drinkers, less argumentative? Ooops. Hahaha joke lang! )

Mean time let’s drop the pessimism (for a change) and hopethat their message gets across Moder Pinas. Now I’m off to run. Yes I will, I'm damn serious.

TCF's Sunday Playlist 1: Pink

2011-09-04T08:12:00.000-07:00

This blog post took an awful lot of time to be "written." I spent the whole Sunday morning oversleeping and the whole afternoon at PETA for their 44th season production, William. There are two things that got booted off the Sunday routine: an episode of Dog Whisperer and my secret indulgence to oldies, meaning from Beatles to the Carpenters, to Ace of Base (yes Ace of Base is already old and so are you).

But Sunday ain't over yet, so let's do some catching up. I hope this gives you a shot of sweet, unadulterated wistfulness. Dear hipsters, the playlist is all pop, do not threaten to crucify me. I had little to no capacity for political correctness when I was a kid so I implore you, no bitch'. Listen at your own risk. :)

Enjoy and do share some happy thoughts once you're done listening.

Wisdom from TCF: Quit your bisyo by learning another bisyo

2011-08-27T21:26:00.000-07:00

Let me tell you a short history of my vices. Three and a half years ago (when I was in college) I drank four times a week--one pitcher of margarita after another, seven to ten beers in rapid succession, until I’m dead drunk and badly in need of goto sa tabi-tabi. I smoked half a pack of ciggies each day, which ruined my routine of running (for leisure) uphill from the lower campus of UPLB to the NCCA building.

For the record, I am not an alcoholic. I just learned a very important lesson in college: drink until you’re dying or don't drink at all. Siempre, this philosophy is not applicable once you’ve become a yuppie. Now I only drink once or twice a month.

Killing the kapre in me

I am ultimately bored and a bit worried because smoking is dragging me faster and faster to hell—that’s a scientific fact. I’ve lessened my drinking but not my ciggies. So last Saturday, I drafted a game plan that would eventually keep me off from smoking as much as I do now.

Part of that is putting some smoking demotivators on my cork board and joining my first legit 5k run on October 23, the adidas KOTR. See that photo above? That's Eperly or Eps, my smoking demotivator.

Thanks to our officemate, my registration and O.’s came free! Another fun fact is that the race bibs are customized, so I put in “TotoyBato” as my name. Saktong nine characters! After living a sedentary lifestyle, I doubt if O. and I could run 100 meters without stopping (Note: we tried running together ONCE but we got tired after 15 minutes, so we stopped and just ate. Yon talaga FAIL!)

Still, a challenge is a challenge. Yesterday we went out to buy our running shoes and luckily, some brands are on sale. We got ourselves a white and maroon sports performance Fila that was only P1,500. Such ka-cheapan I must tell you! (We didn't even support our friend’s brand, but we know she’ll understand. Hahaha)

Hopefully once we’ve started real training, I’d be able to lessen my smoking. The goal is to finish 5k in less that an hour. I’ve been reading some forums and learning that beginners can actually time 27 minutes! Not for me though. Suntok as buwan, moder!

Wish me luck!

Ah, human nature.

2011-08-24T23:54:00.000-07:00

This is a very general post about human nature, our inclination to discontent, especially once we've gone so used to being OK. According to papa god, it's hard to make the good things last--you reach a goal, you become satisfied, you feel okay, and soon you'll succumb to kind of boredom that cannot be cured funny cat videos. No, not even exploding cat videos.

Pretty soon The Sims Social will fail to amuse me. I will start downloading music and movies that will further eat up the office bandwidth. I am at wits end.

I want a fucking chocolate bar.

Zomba Day Apocalypse: Awaard!

2011-08-12T10:10:00.000-07:00

It's National Zomba Day on August 31 and you better be ready! But first---

Let’s begin by defining which film genre Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington belongs. Is it a gay movie? Well that’s not too much of a giveaway, is it? Is it a comedy? Down to the marrow--not just because Eugene Domingo and Roderick Paulate are in the cast. Is it a zombie movie? Yes, only that there are not too many shotguns and semi-automatics involved. Thank the universe as well, because not too much gay-zombie blood was spilled.

The film claims to be Asia’s first gay zombie comedy. Based on a private screening that I’ve been into hours ago, yes, it very well fits into the genre(s). Cross my heart, hope to die, it delivers!

Plot

As a kid, straight boy Remington seems to have a real knack for bullying the unsuspecting gay population of Lucban, with these simple words: bakla, bakla, bakla. One sunny day while visiting the cemetery with his mom, Remington gets a face-to-face encounter with a crying-bading, whom he carelessly annoys with the same old, boring formula—baklaaaaaaa. Unknown to Remington, was the fact that Mr. / Ms. Crying Bading has power to alter his life significantly. And so begins a cursed life, where he is haunted by (of all things!) a red pashmina and the likelihood of becoming shokla in the future.

Fifteen years later, Remington grows up to become a mighty tambay and tanggero (day-in, day-out, solid alcoholic) along with his friend Jigs (Kerbie Zamora). He is now undergoing a gradual but alarming transformation from macho to mamon. At the same time, a serial killer is on the loose and he seems to have a distinct liking for gay victims.

With things getting scarier every moment, TCF suddenly comes up with the newest t-shirt idea: WWRD (What Would Remington Do?). Is there a remedy for Remington’s impending gayness? Should gayness be remedied at all? Well, in the real world, that would be an effing long discourse. Ask your parish priest about it.

Now watch the trailer here!

Production and early acclaim

According to Raymond Lee, Zombadings was shot entirely at Lucban, Quezon for a total of 20 days. The big idea came to him in the streets of Lucban itself. A young boy looked at him and pronounced, “Bading.” After that, a film was born--talk about a eureka moment! As to how Eugene Domingo, John Regala, Janice de Belen, and Roderick Paulate became part of the cast, well, it's a rather inspiring story of Origina8’s guts to pitch the script to veterans plus a healthy serving of hopefulness.

The film just got the highest grade – an A – from the Cinema Evaluation Board (CEB). In the post-review summation the CEB showered the film with praises, calling it a “thoroughly entertaining and hilarious offbeat comedy that presents a very different story — one which Philippine cinema needs in these days when formulaic films dominate the movie fare of today” and “an incredible achievement with an amusing and rare synergy of horror, comedy, satire and drama.”

For those who would dare ask THE question: YES both Martin Escudero and Kerbie Zamora are as STRAIGHT as the straightest Meralco post you have seen.

Being gay in the Philippines

There are many issues surrounding the Philippine LGBT community, not just in terms of public acceptance, marriage and family, but also meaning. More than just a matter of sexual preference, the definition of gay has varied from culture to culture and it has taken dissertations to properly pronounce what gay is in our country. So, are you Vice Ganda-gay, Piolo Pascual-gay, or Boy Abunda-gay?

To all my gay friends, we will fight looooong and haaaaard for our rights. For now, let’s take on baby steps by eliminating all the homophobes in town. Joke lang! Today, the least we can do is COME OUT and pave the way for acceptance in the family, friends, work, etc. In addition, never ever apologize for getting attracted to the same sex.

* * *

Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington opens in theaters nationwide starting August 31. For updates, follow RemingtonTheMovie on Twitter and Facebook. Also check out: www.Origina8media.com.

Meantime, Origin8 invites groups, organizations, and companies in dire need of laughter – or a fundraiser – to organize a Zombadings screening. Origin8’s Tammy Dinopol says, “There are limited sneak previews before the nationwide release. We are open for booking. We’ll provide the venue and film. Just show up with your people.” Interested parties may contact Tammy at tammy@origin8media.com or at 0916-6645806 and 0920-9064793.

Pilipinas, Tara Na! Music Video (1 of 3) is now out.

2011-08-10T23:09:00.000-07:00

Now that looks promising! Methinks the Department of Tourism (DOT) is starting to redeem itself after their previous ad campaign nose-dive.

I watched the behind the scenes video days ago (got excited upon seeing Pepe Smith, still cool and pa-cool as ever) and now the first of three Pilipinas, Tara Na! official music videos is actually up on Facebook. Here is the video, all for your entertainment--enough with the scrutiny ha, the Philippines is now densely populated with inept art critics, who have never really been to art galleries:

Pilipinas, Tara Na! Music Video: Lyrics by Perceptions, Inc. Chairman Rene Nieva, Music by Rico Blanco and Mike Angelo Villegas

Funny, it is gives you the same feeling as watching a network’s christmas station ID for the first time—goose bumps, teary eyes, and the occasional “Uy, si *** baka magka-career na ulit.” A total of 57 artists are participating to include veterans Noel Cabangon, Jett Pangan, and Rico J. Puno for crying out loud! The much younger artists are the likes of Sam Conception, Aiza Seguerra, and Ebe Dancel. Ebe says there is life after Sugarfree so don’t be a prick and just be happy for his solo career.

You know what’s interesting? The artists signed up for the project without charging a cent all for the love of Moder Pinas. This is of course, not without corporate sponsors--Smart Communications did the job, so expect a fair amount of coverage soon. Hehe. So now, there is another entity that can actually mount such a big collaboration apart from Rock Ed. Congrats again to DOT and their PR team.

What’s the campaign message? Wag maging dayuhan sa sariling bayan. So let us all wait fervently for the next domestic seat sale and fight strongly for our remaining vacation leaves!

Check out the Facebook page of Pilipinas, Tara Na! right here.

Christopher Lao: Official Statement (Apology)

2011-08-04T20:33:00.000-07:00

This apology is enough for me. Anyone who wants to ridicule him further belongs to a pool of blithering simpletons who could not get over something so trivial. Don't you have anything better to do? Get a job kaya? Or enroll at law school? Let us move on, people. It's been days since the GMA broadcast.

I am so sick of seeing Christopher Lao on my feed, so please lang!

For the benefit of everyone who's had enough of the issue.

___________________________________________________

Official Statement from Christopher Lao

4 August 2011

The past few days have been very disheartening for me and my family. As you know I have been a subject of a viral video that showed my helplessness during a trying moment. As it stands right now, I have several hate pages in Facebook and Twitter with hurtful and derogatory messages attacking my person. The reputation that I built the past years has been besmirched. A bad day has now turned into wounded feelings and sleepless nights for me and my family.

I have been silent the past few days as I want this to go away soon but not before saying sorry and thank you to people who matter.

I would like to apologize for my behavior that was seen on nationwide television and now on the internet. It was unfortunate that I was caught on camera immediately after an overwhelmingly stressful mishap.

I would like to again sincerely thank those who braved the flood to help a distraught stranger like me. Their selfless act reminded me of how dependable Filipinos are in times of crisis.

Lastly, I would like to thank my family, friends and all of those who showed empathy, consideration and support throughout these trying times. You have given me strength and courage to rise above and be a better person.

Sincerely yours,

Christopher Lao

PLUNDER from the Powerbooks Power Sale: I am so damn happy!

2011-07-31T08:28:00.000-07:00

People! I bring you the spoils from this Saturday's Powerbooks Power Sale--up to 75% off on select titles until August 21. The kind sales guy told us that they're trying to free some space in the warehouse, ergo, this wonderful idea to sell old stocks for as low as P50. As usual, our shopping spree was totally unplanned--O. and I never heard that there would be such a sale, but we were fortunate to pass by the Greenbelt branch and now this, THIS!

We bought a total of twelve books, a mix of fiction and non-fiction, from authors like McCourt, Sartre, Maguire, Rushdie, etc. At first, I was determined to look for and buy the whole Lemony Snicket's and Cirque du Freak series (so what if it's a book series for young adults. Judge me, I don't give a shit. And if I see you eyeing Twilight books, then yes, I am judging you as well, leche), but I later gave up. It's too much of a chore to look for 19 books in a sea of eager bargain hunters. Mura na nga kumpleto pa, wag masyado na akong ambisyosa!

Anyway, here we go:

'Tis by Frank McCourt (Paperback)

This is a follow-up to the Pulitzer-winning piece, Angela's Ashes. I got a feeling that anyone who read and loved McCourt is actually a long lost brother or sister. Here's a toast to milk, apples, and a good shit!

Retail Price: P429.00--Sale Price: P50.00--Total Savings: P379.00

Flags of our Fathers by James Bradley (Paperback)

Most of the books that I have are either fiction or hardcore history, and this is one of the few books that I have categorized as historical fiction. I haven't seen the film adaptation (2006), which is good. If this happens to be a good read then I might get a reason to download the film.

Retail Price: P339.00--Sale Price: P50.00--Savings: P289.00

Teacher Man by Frank McCourt (Paperback)

Need I say more? I'm a McCourt fan girl. O. bought this for me. Haha! :)

Retail Price: P429.00--Sale Price: P50.00--Total Savings: P379.00

The Divine Comedy (Paradiso) by Dante Alighieri

This is the only classic we bought in the sale.

Retail Price: P275.00--Sale Price: P50.00--Total Savings: P225.00

Lost by Gregory Maguire (Paperback)

O. is a big, big fan of Maguire and the broadway adaptation of Wicked, so when she saw this one, she just wouldn't put it down. Very understandable.

Retail Price: P649.00--Sale Price: P100.00--Total Savings: P549.00

The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR by Al Ries and Laura Ries (Paperback)

We are actually anticipating the fall of advertising and the rise of social media, but hey, this one still looks promising.

Retail Price: P629.00--Sale Price: P100.00--Total Savings: P529.00

The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory (Paperback)

O. got this one. I thought it was something connected to Alice in Wonderland but nope. It's the story of a crazed woman who wants his son to be king. If you dare contra, she'll chop your head off.

Retail Price: P799.00--Sale Price: P200.00--Total Savings: P599.00

Twilight of the Idols and The Anti-Christ by Friedrich Nietzsche (Paperback)

O.'s choice. Dear O., can you please finish reading The Unbearable Lightness of Being before you open this?

Retail Price: P525.00--Sale Price: P150.00--Total Savings: P375.00

Luka and the Fire of Life by Salman Rushdie (Hardcover edition)

Bingo! Ting ting ting ting! We bought two copies of this, one for her and one for myself. Even if we are a couple, we're not really into sharing books. Haha.

Retail Price: P1099.00--Sale Price: P200.00--Total Savings: P899.00 x 2

Existentialism and Human Emotions by Jean-Paul Sartre (Paperback)

If you think existentialism is too gloomy and that it nurses a totally bourgeois mentality, then read this. Also, if you like flaunting your amazingly fat brain, then go to a coffee shop and let everyone see that you actually comprehend existentialism. Next, strike a conversation with someone and tell him that Ulysses should be read fifth graders.

Retail Price: P439.00--Sale Price: P100.00--Total Savings: P339.00

The Present Age by Soren Kierkegaard (Paperback)

Because once in a while, it's nice to review the concept of god and morality, especially if you have considered yourself amoral for so long and you think that nothing is worth believing.

Retail Price: P529.00--Sale Price: P50.00--Total Savings: P479.00

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (Paperback)

I honestly don't know why I bought this. I like the stickers inside, though.

Retail Price: P525.00--Sale Price: P100.00--Total Savings: P425.00

There you have it! You can still catch up and shop until the 21st. I got a feeling that Powerbooks is still hiding a lot of good stuff. Haha. Kidding aside, last Saturday was the most exciting book shopping experience I ever had--siksikan kulang na lang girian at sikohan! Total retail price: P7764.00, Total Sale Price: P1400.00, Total Savings: P6364.00.

HAPPY WEEKEND IT IS!

Historic sources: The story of Ortigas Foundation and its Filipiniana collection

2011-07-18T22:17:00.001-07:00

What began as one man’s passion is now a most important contribution of the Ortigas family to Philippine art and culture

(Article was produced in time for the celebration of Ortigas & Co.'s 80th Anniversary and also, in honor of the late Rafael Ortigas Jr. Published at The Philippine Star, 11 July 2011)

There are various histories enclosed in brittle pages and tooled leather book covers that are only known to the avid collector.

Those who take the effort to build a modest book collection do not only amass volumes, but also great stories that merit an audience. Rafael Ortigas Jr., better known as Rafa, is one such collector, contributing to a lasting heritage with a story that is written at the very walls of the Ortigas Foundation.

Esteemed bibliophile Morton Netzorg, born to Thomasite parents, was in the business of buying warehouses of Filipiniana items and shipping them to a Detroit home base. Like other collectors and scholars, Rafa frequented Netzorg’s bookshop during visits to the United States.

When Rafa received news that Netzorg passed away and that his wife, Petra was putting all items in the Cellar Bookshop for sale, he set out for Detroit, Michigan along with Alberto Montilla to explore the possibility of buying Netzorg’s Cellar collection. The collection was made up of about nine thousand books, maps, periodicals, and photographs. The trip became a tedious two-week long ordeal of checking the items one piece at a time, at Michigan’s biggest dealer of Filipiniana articles.

A deal was closed and Netzorg’s collection which included John Taylor’s Philippine Insurgent Records, Marion Wilcox’ Harper’s History of the War in the Philippines and a copy of the Japanese War Crimes Trials in several volumes landed onto the shelves of Rafa’s personal library.

In the meantime, Dr. Gregorio Zaide, professor and life-long student of Philippine history was able to collect about five thousand Filipiniana books. This collection, most notable for books written by and about Jose Rizal, was also acquired by Rafa.

Being a visionary with a high regard for education, Rafael Ortigas, Jr. laid out his goal of creating a center that would encourage the study of Philippine history, art, and culture. This was made real upon the incorporation of the Ortigas Foundation on November 7, 1996, and the building of the Ortigas Foundation Library.

Nine thousand volumes from the Cellar, five thousand volumes from Dr. Zaide, and about eight thousand volumes coming from Rafa and his wife’s personal collection formed the base of the Ortigas Foundation Library.

To date, the library houses at least twenty two thousand items, some dating as far back as 1666 and with several titles that, for scholars and researchers, could be hard to ignore: Hakluyt’s translation of Melchisédech Thévenot’s Relations de Divers Voyages Curieux, 1767 edition of George Anson’s Voyage Round the World with forty-two copper plate engravings and maps, including an account of the capture of the Manila Galleon by the British, and Juan de la Conception’s 1788 – 1792 Historia General de Filipinas complete in fourteen volumes.

The Ortigas Foundation Library is the cornerstone of the Foundation’s ongoing research and conservation program. In fact, several rare books in the collection are being handled with the help of consultants who are trained in international standards of archival conservation. The rare books section is maintained properly with controlled temperature and humidity to ensure that fragile books and maps remain intact. Restored rare books would soon be available for public viewing once digitized.

Consultants also aid in keeping the library up to date by screening new titles, which content and quality would prove useful as references in the future. The Foundation holds workshops on conservation recommended for private collectors, librarians, library staff and students. Last February, Mr. Loreto Apilado, who is a conservation consultant of the Ortigas Foundation Library, facilitated one such workshop.

The Ortigas Foundation continues to acquire and create resource materials for researchers and students, proof of which is the launch of its first book.

La Casa de Dios: The Legacy of Filipino-Hispanic Churches in the Philippines is also the brainchild of Rafa Ortigas, who was then the president of the Foundation. He commissioned two photographers, Betty Lalana and Boy Arboleda to go around the Philippines in search of Spanish colonial churches from all religious orders. It took more than a decade to photograph and meticulously compile all these materials. La Casa de Dios was launched last year and is now available in the Ortigas Foundation Library.

Rafael Ortigas passed away in 2009 before the book was even published.

The Ortigas Foundation, however, continues to fulfill the vision of Rafa, as well as of the other Trustees of the Foundation. It remains to be the most important contribution of the Ortigas family to Philippine art and culture—not only serving as a great resource, and as a venue for renowned and new artists to showcase their works, but also as a house full of wonders that have been gathered as Filipinos continue to read and make history.

________________________

Some love notes from TCF: I was fortunate to meet the La Casa de Dios team last year during its launch at the Ortigas Foundation Library. Here they are! From left to right: Betty Lalana, Ige Ramos, Jonathan Best, and Lino Arboleda.

TCF is also in the picture and so is conservator / lifestyle columnist Bambi Harper. Hahaha! (I've been meaning to send this photo to FHM, but heck, wag na lang).

Several days after the launch, we were joined by Fr. Javellana himself, who was interviewed by the team of Jacs Sampayan of Town and Country. One question I clearly remember was this:

Q: What made you write the book?

Fr. Javellana: Money!

This was of course followed by a lot of laughter. Are all Jesuits as jolly as this guy? Really? I promise to give a review of La Casa de Dios---once I get the money to buy a hardbound edition worth P3,500. Hahaha! Anyway, I'm sending my happy birthday to client, Ortigas & Co, Ltd. Partnership. Tomorrow, they'd be hosting a gala dinner, which I still dread.

Pray that I don't step on my gown, or break anything, or hurt anyone.

The world needs Freud

2011-07-17T08:14:00.000-07:00

It pains me so much to realize that the weekend is over and I just woke up (and still trying to recuperate after J's party). For a change, it's not that I had too much to drink, in fact, I only drank Yakult and orange juice the whole night! I discovered several months ago that my alcohol tolerance has gone significantly low (compared to college levels) that my stomach couldn't take anything more than beer, alcopops, and a little white wine--anything else and I will puke my week's wages out.

Anyway, this weekend was pretty interesting because:

1. a most recent book purchase at Remi's thrift shop at Cubao Expo. Tada! Sigmund Freud at P180!

2. in the last 24 hours I have seen: two guys making out in a foam party (the venue was next to Cattleya Resort in Antipolo), and lastly

3. a drunk friend of J. almost got fed to the wolves due to a shortage of charcoal.

It seems that Mr. Freud is haunting me these days.

Ah yes, Freud never gets out of style, because people commit Freudian slips everyday, and the whole population has its various fixations, and fetishes, and secret lives. Hahaha. Now here's a quick story, which I think I owe you, dear reader, because I have indiscriminately put Freud in the picture. Psychoanalyze this:

V., J., a new friend B., and I went outside the safety of our nice little pool to smoke and talk about the glamorous, but shitty and bitch-infested world of advertising. This happened around 1 AM and most of the gay guys in the other party were also getting their share of fresh air, having some very neat conservations, flirting, smoking. In the course of our senseless blabber, R. (J.'s friend who's only wearing board shorts and was probably drunk), suddenly appeared

and slowly,

innocently,

walked towards us,

smiling ear to ear.

And cut.

You know those instances when you realize that something is wrong, but you are just too dumbfounded or shocked, that instead of issuing a warning, you simply stand frozen, with your mouth agape.

When for a good two seconds you seem to have lost all five sense, but more than able to feel the halted conversations, followed by a menacing silence, and then a rapid shift of the eyes? And when you truly wanted to protect your guy friend, but it's just too late because he has now become just a walking piece of meat--kulang na lang sauce and he's effing steak tartare? Apparently, R. was grilling liempo and he ran out of charcoal. So, he opted to approach us (half-naked), in full view of the gay platoon to ask if J. is keeping charcoal somewhere in her pocket or between her legs. Hahaha.

The world needs Freud.

TCF's reading diary: The original kiss-up

2011-06-29T19:47:00.000-07:00

First, let me introduce my reading diary. If you are one of the two nitwits who read the Tomato Café Blog, then you might have noticed that I like babbling about books I haven’t even finished. I cannot find a more fitting rationale for a reading diary other than keeping (scribbling / typing away, whatever is appropriate) some of my thoughts—with little regard to form or structure, or grammar—before they evaporate. Ergo, this shit. Don't complain. Deal with it.

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Tonight, I was fortunate to read about some of the most cunning individuals during the onset of the American occupation: Pardo de Tavera, Jose Luzuriaga, Benito Legarda, and ma-mehn Felipe Calderon. Two things we should know about these guys: first, is that they have impressive Ilustrado credentials, second, is that they were probably the archipelago’s finest smooth-talkers. Yeah of course I made the last part up.

Pardo de Tavera was the original kiss-up—an American collaborator from the very beginning who introduced the former Republican / Aguinaldo-boy, Felipe Calderon to the Philippine Commission. I’m pretty sure that the bouncing little duo was one of the reasons why the Americans got convinced of our capacity to participate in the colonial government.

Despite some petty engagements with Aguinaldo loyalists, called insurgents (tama ba yon?), in select provinces, the political landscape of Manila was changing rapidly. For that we could thank the ambitious urban elite who were starting to get comfy with the new set-up (read: church and state separation that was mind blowing and totally in-your-dreams-hindi-magkakatotoo during the Spanish era). Our guy Calderon started a caravan with his newly found white friends, establishing municipal governments and appointing Filipinos in key government posts.

Sorry, but I could imagine Calderon as the Chihuahua tucked neatly in the arms of these Americans.

If you were smart / rich enough—meaning educated in UST or Europe—to know that the Americans came to the Philippines to stay, then you might have joined the bandwagon with other Ilustrados. They decided to suck it up in order to protect acres of land and fifty thousand pesos in the bank.

Give or take a year and some revolutionary non-combatants either “got caught” or surrendered. They were so back and so ready to join the clamor for positions! The problem was, the Americans didn't think they were cool enough to join the club, so for a time, our retired revolutionaries stayed in a cave, waiting for the next big opportunity. Besides, I think the poor Chihuahua got threatened. So NO, Paciano Rizal, EDS (Epifanio de los Santos, wala pa yung Avenue), and Pedro Paterno, you are all uncool.

Eventually, the five-man Philippine Commission added three new Filipino members: Tavera, Legarda, and Luzuriaga. The three stooges were the first Southeast Asians to enjoy a cozy spot in the colonial government. Wow. Isn’t it strange that we are the first to achieve independence and the first to get legit spots in a colonial government immediately after the kastilaloys got kicked out?

Parang, pa-next lang?

This group of American collaborators was dubbed Partido Federal and being part of this clique significantly increased ones chances of getting appointed to office. Rafael Palma, one of the uncool kids, vehemently called the Federalistas the cream of plutocracy. Can you smell his bitterness? Hold on, because revenge is best served below zero

To be continued…

Currently in an Ilustrado reading mode: Mike Cullinane just made me even more cynical

2011-06-27T02:29:00.000-07:00

Unity that transcends social classes remains as fictitious today as it was a century back. I wouldn’t know when it will change, heck, I don’t know if it ever will. Currently reading Ilustrado Politics: Filipino Elite Responses to American Rule, 1898 – 1908 (Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2003).

Please don't accuse me of reading another piece of orientalist BS—it is, after all, an effing dissertation and is supposed to be rid of all forms of biases (weh)! This book was written by Michael Cullinane, who is one of the relatively popular post colonial scholars based in the University of Wisonsin and who is also the reason why a friend chose to over analyze the seditious plays of Aurelio Tolentino for her undergrad thesis.

In truth, I am still appalled by the striking similarities between the Philippines led by Aguinaldo and the Philippines as it is today—most notable for the implicit difference in the agenda of the middle class (empleados as defined by Cullinane) versus the educated elite or Ilustrado class. This, while the gospel Filipino freedom by virtue of national unity is being preached in schools.

I’ve learned in time that it’s more practical to let the kids know as much truth as they can handle. So I implore you, do not just mention the factions in the revolutionary government in passing as though they’re so inconsequential. Divisions that occurred in the era are beyond the Magdiwang and Magdalo.

Right above the Katipunan is a handful of Ilustrados who saw themselves as prepared and worthy to lead the country given the opportunity. Some of them were even wary of the middle-class fueled Katipunan. Ilustrados supported the revolutionary movement only on its later years after the execution of Rizal—it sent tremors, it gave an awful realization of their standing as part of the colonized (despite the privileges of education).

The Katipunan, despite using the name of Rizal and quoting various propagandists based in Madrid, was deemed potentially dangerous to the Ilustrado hopes of running the country by collaborating with either the Spanish or American governments (which goes to say that our beloved Rizal is PROBABLY a freak in his own class). You be the judge!

I guess it’s safe to assume that Philippine history in not just a product of patriotic sentiments but also rampant opportunism. Now do cringe at my cynicism? Want to punch me in the face? Be my guest. Joke! Wag naman. :p

The weather and Kafka Tamura

2011-06-19T20:59:00.000-07:00

The weather—a subject of dull conversations and often number one in the list of life’s trivialities—does have a strange effect on people’s moods. I based the statement on personal experience and numerous Facebook status updates of friends, who seem to get either melancholic or downright lazy on rainy days and happy as damn kids when the sun is up.

The reason I’m writing about it is because I somehow feel so rested in my two days of just staying in the house, listening to my college playlist, reading parts of Kafka on the Shore, with my phone off, and my e-mail shut. I can see a perfect picture of that boy’s framed image inside the Komura Library while looking out my window in view of the power lines and the impending rain.

For now, I’m not capable of rationalizing the connection.

This weather gives me the same feeling as reading Murakami—a feeling that chaos is building up in some obscure part of the universe and it’s about to jump at me at any given time. But at the moment, everything is so damn still.

Ah, baka dahil may pasok na bukas. Agree? But this day is unbelievably slow.

*Photo by Paul Giles

I’m ditching the anonymous drama –Love, TCF

2011-06-18T20:51:00.000-07:00

This bright idea came to me two nights ago while on my way home from a long shoot day. Here’s the thing: as a glamorized slave with several disconcerting job titles (chimay / sheep in the midst of hungry wolves / account executive), I sometimes get to work with people who have very interesting stories to tell. I often wish I could share these stories in the Tomato Café Blog but my lousy screen name, TCF, limits me to mentioning only initials and completely censoring brands.

Sayang naman, diba?

The Tomato Café Blog was created to serve as my trash bin of awful memories, exceptionally bad days, and foul words vs. very-very foul people, who could easily get me into jail for defamation. BUT, a lot has changed since 2009. I have decided to take on a new perspective and reconsider the more positive side my job as a slave rather than rant and say fuck, fuck, fuck my life.

For instance, the last three shoot days have been so physically taxing (takbo, buhat, tawag, etc., get the idea?) but rewarding thanks to the awesome team who worked with me. A shopping center is yet to launch a campaign that involves heaps of clothes and a totally new way of interpreting fashion. Credits to the following people for a job well done: Verna Martin (make-up artist from the sponsor, L’Oreal), Victoria Contreras , Grace del Rosario, and Raven Agarpao (hair stylists), Ryan Sulit (photographer), Cris Lomotan, Kerbie Zamora, and Kate Bautista (models), Hanie Ampuan (agent), Laureen Uy , Sheryl Songsong, Nikki Santiago, and Rosanna Aranaz (stylists).

Pwedeng mag-plug? 4 x 4 x 4. Abangan.

In real life, TCF is Diane Hidalgo—a 22 year-old account executive, an iska, heavy smoker, sweet lover (put******a, what?). I will try to be as truthful as I can even if believe whole heartedly in the words of Milan Kundera:

“For Sabina, living in truth, lying neither to ourselves nor to others, was possible only away from the public: the moment someone keeps an eye on what we do, we involuntarily make allowances for that eye, and nothing we do is truthful. Having a public, keeping a public in mind, means living in lies."

And hell yeah, I work in PUBLIC RELATIONS, but I will try my best not to lie compulsively. Mean time, I will proceed in writing my revised About page to reflect more of my life’s gory details. Thank you for reading! Echos. :p

Saigon, delicious dirty coffee, and the miracle tea that makes you dead sleepy (or so they say)

2011-06-09T08:58:00.000-07:00

I guess you’ve already heard that due to the sheer volume of motorcycles, Saigon is not very pedestrian-friendly. In my short four days in this Quiapo-like city, I have acquired an irrational fear of crossing the street; that fear of coming home to Manila with a missing limb or, worse, no front teeth. If you’re planning a trip here, beg your travel agent to get you insurance. Now don’t get me wrong, there are many things I like about Saigon and here is a quick run down:

You will become an instant millionaire

1 USD = 21,000 dong. 100 USD = 2,100,000. I was so damn rich.

Cheap Beer

A bottle of Saigon Special Beer, which by the way, tastes like San Miguel Premium, costs 15,000 dong or roughly 33 pesos. The standard pulutan—Pringles Sour Cream and Onion—costs around 22,000 dong or about 43 pesos. In this part of the world, you will not be marked odd if you drink beer at 12 noon (because in Manila, only alcoholics and people with them fucken’ fake American accents usually do that). Getting drunk everyday is cheap and easy. This is my kind of place.

Pho

Duh. It is very, very essential to visit the noodle house that has photos of Bill Clinton all over the place. That’s Pho 2000.

Dirty Coffee / Traditional Vietnamese Coffee

Much as I wanted the trip to be a mind-blowing cultural experience, it happily turned out to be an eat-and-drink-all-you-can mission with beer in every meal and delicious dirty coffee at least four times a day. By dirty coffee, I mean the traditional Vietnamese blend: glassful of hard-core-super-fucking-black-as-hell espresso (well, drip coffee actually) with condensed milk and lots of ice. The only reason we call it dirty is because we saw the soiled fingernails of the lady who prepared our drink. Oh, we drank it anyway, ha ha. This, while we sat across the Ben Than market, waiting for the Boss to finish buying her linen.

This is the best way to enjoy dirty coffee:

Find a dirty coffee store in some of the city’s busiest streets e.g. Truong Dinh (District 1). Make sure you have a pack of ciggies with you.
Sit on one of those little chairs facing the street.
Order your coffee. Light a cigarette.
People-watch and wait for an accident to happen (and trust me, it won’t happen).

Lotus tea

Lotus tea works a lot like beer, Valium, bed-weather, and stupid movies. It puts you to sleep (well, that’s what they say). You can choose to buy it in teabags or in its typical form (like a ball, or maybe a shrunk coconut with a pink bald spot). I bought the cute little Lotus balls and tried them after I got back to the hotel and had my fill of Saigon beer. And guess what! I slept and dreamt of NOTHING (even after watching Shutter Island). But the yummiest detail of this story is that I was able to peaceably take a dump the morning after.

Fake Northface Bags

Got one at 200,000 dong or about 400 pesos. I hope it doesn’t fall apart in the next trip. Cheap things are generally short lived.

Anywhoo, that's about it. I hope you had fun reading several paragraphs of BS. Seriously, though, I think Saigon is a great city. Two days is enough to explore it, but that's if you're not too heavy a shopper. If you just want to buy and buy and buy forever, I suggest you stay at New World Hotel (where we stayed because it is most convenient to the Boss) which is five minutes away from Ben Than, Saigon Square, and other shopping centers.

Metro Manila’s No-Smoking Law and my foretold demotion from corporate slave to street sweeper

2011-05-29T21:45:00.000-07:00

Dear MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino, I love you for hiring a super awesome Twitter team but due to the implementation of the Metro Manila No-Smoking Law, break na tayo.

Starting today, the MMDA guys, policemen, and sanitation officers will be on the look out for obstinate smokers (random violators) to be rounded up like rabid dogs. If we can’t pay the penalty fee, which is P500, we’ll have to render eight hours of community service—not bad, since it easily translates to eight hours of doing nothing. And with compliance clearly out of the picture, at least for some people, then it’s just a matter of choosing the lesser evil: P500 off your drinking money or 8 hours off your sleeping time.

I’m certain that the MMDA, the representatives of the 17 LGUs, and the Bloomberg Philanthropies (that gave P9.5M to fund this thing) tried as much as they can to picture a smoke-free Manila with the RA properly implemented. Dear Kill Joy Coalition; even if you have taken away my many liberties as a smoker, I think this is still a noble idea. I cannot question the goodness of your intentions.

BUT, looking at the more realistic side of things, for as long as there are effing PUVs that belch 10 kilos worth of smoke at varying gradations from black to gray to off-white, the dream will remain a dream—unless of course, we cover Metro Manila with Boysen’s miracle paint.

The good thing about this, though, is that we can expect the PBComm Lung Center in Ayala Ave. to disappear soon. Less income for vendors around the area but at least unwary passersby can deflect from smelling like kapres in the morning.

If by any chance you catch me sweeping the Guadalupe overpass, it means that I have miserably failed in being a good citizen and that I have no cash. What else is new?

Just, please, give me a chance to redeem myself. In case.

Antithesis Collective: Call for Manuscripts

2011-05-25T04:24:00.000-07:00

Remember that college professor who indiscriminately vaporized what’s left of your self-esteem in a workshop or creative writing class? Yes? I left college about three years ago thinking “I can take on all of life’s challenges after surviving a semester with Marisa Sanchez” in Filipino, “Kayanin ko na lahat ‘pag nalampasan ko si B.” I was so fucking wrong—because life can offer a more daunting set of critics who actually compensate and help you pay the bills.

If you managed to survive college with your ego in tact and if, at the moment, you are still capable of producing good fiction, then this piece of news might be interesting. Antithesis Collective, a newly launched publishing group, is currently scouting for manuscripts to be purged, pruned, ameliorated, or Gorilla Glass Stress tested for publication. Uh huh, you read it right. If you are not vain or rich enough to self-publish (ang tamaan wag magalit) then Antithesis Collective is presenting you a great chance.

Here are the guidelines:

All submissions must be author’s original material, have not been previously published, and are not currently under review by any other publisher. (So baka, pwede pa kayong mag-recycle ng mga manuscript na na-submit at na-reject for Dumaguete National Writers and the likes? Haha. Joke lang!
Submitted works should NOT be essays, poems, school term papers, snippets of thesis etc.
Submitted works should have a total of 1,500 words or less. (Bawasan ang adjectives, baka lumampas sa word limit!)
Submitted works could be in English and/or Tagalog.
Authors can submit a maximum of five (5) works or materials.
All submissions must be sent via email to: theantithesiscollective@gmail.com or submissions@theantithesiscollective.com
When submitting your manuscript/s, please do not forget to include your name and contact number.

You may submit entries until July 2011. You still have two months! Cramming is optional. For more information, you may visit www.theantithesiscollective.com.

Encounters of the awesome kind: Ivan Acuña

2011-05-21T23:22:00.000-07:00

One thing I like about public relations is complete lack of or absence of dull moments—there is so much gossip and drama whether in a pitch presentation or in a consumer event (where some notoriously high-strung individuals become so prone to getting homicidal). The brighter side of it is that you get to meet the most interesting people in the social circle from multi-million fund managers to UP isaw-eating cultural activists.

Last month, I was fortunate enough to meet master abstract artist Ivan Acuña for a quick interview and a photo shoot in his W Tower studio. Most of Ivan’s paintings are seen in interior design showrooms and not in art galleries—it was, in fact, Budji Layug who started dealing his paintings back in the early 2000’s. (Parang ang tagal na, but yes, matagal na nga! It was 10 years ago!)

I guess it’s no surprise that his Moroccan style penthouse smelled like drying paint, complemented by the staleness of Ming Dynasty porcelain. Something you’ll find rather interesting is a collection of bulols—demigods of harvest found in the mountainous regions of the Philippines. Some replicas are easily found in the Baguio flea market, Tam-Awan, and some souvenir shops. I actually have a black, one-foot tall replica and I can’t even look at it at night! Christ! But, Ivan’s bulols are freakin’ real, I can't imagine how he could stay in his gallery alone at night. Oh my lord, that’s Okatokat material, ha!

According to Ivan, there are about 10,000 artists in the Philippines but a measly 200 galleries where they could showcase their works. The Philippine market seems a little picky with its art since paintings are valued based on antiquity and prominence of the artist—is it a Joya, BenCab, Arturo Luz—among other factors.

Art buyers in neighboring countries like Hong Kong and Singapore, on the other hand, tend to be a little more bent on personal taste.

So, Ivan Acuña deals his antiques and his paintings at Sotheby’s, Hong Kong. This is where the wealthy Chinese buy back their porcelain at about 40 to 60 million HKD with little regrets. “Buy back” because some of these treasures actually came from Mindanao (as heirloom pieces) and other countries where the galleon trade flourished.

Well now, isn't this an interesting way to make money? Haha. Not if you can’t determine real from fake.

A couple of days after our photo shoot, the photographer P. and I dropped by his studio to hand over a little something (uy ano kaya ito!). To my surprise, dear Ivan gave me a 2 x 2 abstract painting, which is now mounted on my wall. It neatly fits my room that’s so cluttered I can hardly sleep on my (abstract) bed. This is the first piece of art that was given to me for free, ang galing!

Well, that's about it, thank you, reader! It’s a hot Sunday afternoon and I still have a deadline for a business daily. That's PR for you--masaya but Sunday is still a working day!

A convoluted post courtesy of Mr. Syjuco

2011-05-19T18:57:00.000-07:00

Okay, my friend S. told me this morning the Miguel Syjuco’s short stories are a lot better than the multi-layered and convoluted Ilustrado. Months ago, I found a copy of the book in my boss’s car and she told me how (but not why) she dropped reading it after the fourth chapter.

TCF of course, has a Type B personality, ergo more patience in dealing with a chaotic story-telling and a never-ending discourse about how a Filipino writer should write (hello Jessica Hagedorn).

And alas, I made it to the last page. Ilustrado was intriguing enough to keep me awake in the next hour and a half, after I’ve crossed it out the reading list. I half-dreamt, wondered, tried to decide which reality weighs heavier, Crispin’s or the fictional Miguel’s--even taking the extra mile by drawing a Venn Diagram (nerd) to know where I stood. Until the Epilogue blew it all away. Nakakainis!

Talk about dealing with such an extreme multiplicity of personas and narratives—the last thing I wanted to happen was get lost in the middle of things. What delighted me at least, was the little surprise that I’ve been hearing Crispin’s voice all along—thank you, crazy italics. The Bridges Ablaze, despite not being found by the fictional Miguel, landed right before me. Pero parang nakakainis din 'to.

Hay jusmio! Such as mischievous manuscript this TBA!

Anyway, next in the bucket list is Rizal's Morga (commonly known as Rizal's unread masterpiece, still more commonly known as Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas by Antonio de Morga, or, or, or Events in the Philippine Islands, ang haba no), courtesy of the National Historical Commission.

In case you haven't heard, we are celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Rizal this June. So, instead of re-reading the Noli and Fili again (which I still dread) and after getting traumatized thanks to Mr. Syjuco, I decided to take on something that's a little straightforward and easy.

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On the side, I wish someone could recommend a book on the history and culture of Saigon. We'd be going there early June for a quick-quick trip to look for authentic pho (and good beer and bargains). I realized that going for a little "side-trip" to Siem Reap (para mag-pose ala Tony Leung sa Angkor Wat) would be a stretch, so might just dismiss the idea and hope that I'd be able to see the best of colonial Saigon in four days. Fingers crossed.