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Friday, March 28, 2003
Writer ABS-CBN Interactive, Inc. >A minute of your peace. Sign up! >Life begins at 3am. Actually, sleep begins at 3am. I just finished editing my story and now I'm off to bed. Well, the sleeping bag that is. In Edit 1. Yeba! I'm excited for the weekend. The war has made me sad, though. Must think of happy thoughts. Such as my check-out dive...  Class picture! Yosemite...  Papa and his 2 bunsos. :) and Bangkok.  My sister Carla and me. There's a song playing in my head playing in my head right now...Dear Ate Helen... (I'm goin' nuts. Good night!)
Tuesday, March 25, 2003
 My online research on Taal Lake led me to this very pretty satellite photo taken by Nasa. It took my breath away, seeing all the ridges around the area, and admiring Taal Volcano, one of the world's smallest and cutest volcanos. Only with a top shot such as this can one appreciate the uniqueness of Taal, why it is said to be an "island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island."The large black area is Taal Lake and in one book written by Dr. Thomas Hargrove (The same man who inspired the movie Proof of Life.), he claims that underneath all this blackness is a city, the old town of Taal, originally founded by the Malays and later on by the Spanish. Only after the town was buried in rock and fire was the capital of Batangas moved to Batangas City in 1754. Can you believe that? A hidden city, like Atlantis! Well, more like Pompei I guess, considering that it was submerged in magma and the like. And it's still a theory. But still! I find it amazing, which is why I'm so excited to meet Ross Harper-Alonso this April. She's going to give me the lowdown on how deep Taal's history is and how far we should go to protect it. This is Philippine history. Philippine archeology! Amazing.
The reporter of an AM radio station said that that the the US' budget for Iraq's rehabilitation is $20B. To which the other reporter replied, "Please, bombahin niyo na rin kami!" What's so amusing about being pinoy, or being human for that matter, is no matter how hard times are, we always find ways to twist painful events into funny topics of conversation, just to save ourselves from all the misery. *** >Sadness for the misled. Taken from AnP's blog: "5 brave American soldiers have died since they started fighting to rid the world (that includes France and Germany last time I checked) of weapons of mass destruction. So I think your criticism is really mean spirited. Think about what is at stake. And, who liberated your country from the Japanese, and at what cost to American lives? Look at all those white crosses out in Makati. Who liberated the country you live in right now from a ruthless dictator? How many thousands of my countrymen died in that fight? If this is the attitude once we start down a path, then no wonder we dismiss claims of our arrogance as pure jealousy. Nothing less." This was written by her American friend, whom I now feel sorry for. No, I don't feel any anger at all. Just sadness because she doesn't know the truth. My Uncle Mike was one of the first Americans to go to the Philippines as a member of Kennedy's US Peace Core and when he came here, his eyes were opened to many truths about the Phil-Am relationship. His new discoveries saddened him, but at the same time it made him stronger because at least he was taken out of the ignorant Americans pool. I've heard many times that the American history books are screwed up with lies, which is why their citizens think that their country saved us. But please, the Japanese and the Americans used the Philippines as a strategic point for war. After bombing Pearl Harbor, I think the Japanese attacked Clark Airbase in Pampanga to destroy the Americans' parked planes. When the Japanese army finally settled here, the Filipinos also put their lives on the line. My great grandfather, Jorge Vargas, was labeled a coward for being the Japanese's puppet president before Laurel took the position; but he did everything out of courage to save the people because if he hadn't followed the Japanese and negotiated with them, more people would've been killed, or at least starved since one of his main goals was to make sure that food supplies came into the city. And the Americans and Filipinos fought side by side. Many books would say that the Americans fought for the Filipinos, but who aided them? Who tended to their wounds? Who joined forces with them, maybe not to be friends, but to fight a common enemy? The Filipinos did. And if you include the time when America "saved" us from Spain's rule, well, the answer is no, we were not liberated. We were bought! Then they staged a mock battle in Manila Bay! Sad fact for some Americans, but even sadder for a Filipino. We were bought, just like that! And we weren't even that expensive either. Actually, it's sad for both Americans and Filipinos. They fought and fought while the big shots in the US and Spain staged it all. Talk about history possibly repeating itself. It bothers me that some Americans are misled, because they are told twisted stories. Not that it's their fault. I just feel sorry for them. And with a president like Bush, God. Who wouldn't? *** And here we are collecting barnacles on this miserable island. -Captain Hook.
Monday, March 24, 2003
Amen! *** >Cured of Wednesday Group withdrawal. It’s been weeks since I attended an Every Wednesday session and almost a month since I last saw my friends from the group. But I was delighted to find an email from Joey last week called “a fun-filled weekend” and he listed down the 4 events that we were going to attend together. A movie at his place, Indie Rocks in UA&P, Mich’s show for Fila, and the Oscars in someone’s house. I rushed to Makati Thursday night to watch Narc with Joey, Margie, Quark, Ramon, and Carlo (who left really early). I was so excited to see them, but since the movie had already started, I had to find a seat quietly. The movie was pretty cool with an interesting edit and filters, but I didn’t like the ending. Not that it was bad. It was ok actually. I just, well...I just didn’t like it. Lia passed by and we chatted a bit, and when she and Quark went home, Joey, Margie, Ramon and I went to Cable Car along Pasay Road. I had never been there before, but I knew that it was the happening place back then and that it used to be overflowing with people, even before sunrise since it was open 24 hours. Margie told me that some people would stay ‘til about 4am and end up ordering breakfast. But it was only midnight and we enjoyed a delicious dish of sisg rice (Thanks so much, Margie!) and a few beers with some fashion talk, war talk, and Joey's hair talk. Hehe. Friday was fun. We all met up in Pearl Drive after watching the indie bands in the Indie Rocks concert that Alexis and his friends organized in UA&P. It was like an Every Wednesday session on a Friday night. Most of the girls were missing, but I still had fun. Plus I got to see Jomi and Krissy in Chris’ place before the concert started. We watched Samurai Jack and the beginning of Battle Royale, which I must say is incredibly pysochtic, I’m dying to see the whole thing. We also found Joey’s college yearbook. Haha! He had such a funny write-up. My Saturday was spent facilitating a retreat in my high school. I was there the whole day and the experience was quite fulfilling. The next day, I went to the Manila Polo Club to watch Mich’s show for Fila. The event started off with a polo game and I cheered for the team of Sonny Borromeo since he was the only one I remembered from an old GamePlan shoot on polo. They were giving away free white wine mixed with carbonated water and syrup (I forget what it’s called.) and I sat there watching the polo game and feeling so in with the old rich. Cool. I know polo. Tsk! Seeing Mich and Goldie again was refreshing. They can both drive now and Mich looked extremely cute in her outfit and with her new Murakami bag. When Ramon arrived, we walked around the pool area and found that the old kiddie pool area was deserted. The pools had become sand boxes as he said. The playground was still the same, except we both didn’t remember the airplane jungle gym, and the diving boards were still there to remind us of our fun times and accidents as kids. Chris and Maggie caught a bit of the polo game and we had fun watching the game, cracking jokes and drinking free Coronas. Delicious. It was already dark by the time the fashion show started and I really liked Mich’s creations for Fila. I’ve always had a problem with people wearing sporty things when they weren’t sporty at all, but Mich’s work just looked really cool. The mix of classic and aerodynamic designs can actually work for athletes, although I can imagine that some sporty people, like me, wouldn’t be able to get away in some of them since our built is bigger than that of the models. But other than that, I think that Mich did a great job incorporating her unique style into sportswear. So there you go. One whole weekend with my friends and I feel that I can last another month without seeing them again, but that’s it. Just one month! That’s my limit! But I wish that I had gone with them to watch the Oscars. And I didn’t get to see Neva nor Hannah, so I hope to see them again soon. Now to work on my high school barkada withdrawal. Hehe. :) *Pictures from the Indie Rocks gimmick are in the Trigger Happy March 2003 gallery. *** I have a friend in DC who emailed that she was asked to buy a gas mask. And someone from my high school is fighting for the US Army in Kuwait. How sad. Hearing that people you know are suffering because of the war just makes things more painful. But I can only hope for the best. We can only hope for the best.
Hehe! The contestants in Fear Factor have to eat balut. Plus, there're ducks and ducklings waddling around them and swimming in the lake. Alright! Filipinos should join this show, but I bet that like Survivor, they wouldn't be permitted to. An adventure racer named Thumbie once told me that he'd have a huge chance of winning Survivor if he'd be allowed to join. He'd demand for immunity in exchange for hunting down a wild animal and making it lechon, building bahay kubos for his allies, and making musical instruments from punongkahoy for entertainment at night. Well, I think that he'd be voted out first. Haha! Muscles and long hair pa lang, giveaway na! And if he isn't voted out early enough, I bet he'll be so bored surviving that he'd organize an adventure race in the camp, just for fun. :)
Thursday, March 20, 2003
My officemates and I were smoking in our Istarbuko in the garden. It started drizzling, but we didn’t budge, until the drops slowly got bigger and we decided to move in to the shaded smoking pit. The rain started pouring all of a sudden and I joked that God must’ve been nagging us, “I’m sending rain! Get out of Istarbuko, you lazy smokers!” My officemate said that maybe it’s also raining in Iraq. “God is crying,” said the other. Silence. Pout. Sigh. We have a TV in the Probe Team area and we were all watching Bush’s speech on CNN this morning. The first stages of war have begun and I teared a bit, wondering if I had relatives I didn’t know in the US Army, or how the families of those soldiers are feeling, or what would happen in Mindanao. The Muslims down South and in our neighboring countries are angry with the US, so who knows what they might do. And whose side is the Philippine government on? Yes, we all know what the stupid answer is. I don’t know what good war can do. It has been good for some yet devastating for others, even useless when there’s no resolve at all. But I just wish that everyone could get along. Why can’t we all just get along? Akiko and her friend have this new project. They’re giving away prayer journals where you can write down how God answers your prayers, even after a long time, just so you can see how God works in your life. I said that my first entry would be Bush’s decision not to go to war. So much for that prayer. We’re still following the news right now. There are bright lights exploding over Iraq. And vessels launching missiles. We live in very sad times. But when you think about it, who hasn’t? *** >Cheche Lazaro on Straight Talk. Ma’m Cheche, or CLL as she is called in the office, was on this show on ANC called Straight Talk yesterday and for the last segment of the show, the host read all these questions that viewers texted in during the interview. Many were praises while others were quite scary, but CLL handled herself so well with quick and safe answers that we couldn’t help but admire her for being one of the top broadcasters in the country and our very own Mother Hen at work. One viewer asked what CLL would do if ABS-CBN asked her to go back and she said,” I’d rather not answer that question because it hasn’t happened yet.” Good answer. Another asked if she had ever thought of working for CNN and she explained that they did ask her to work for them years ago when The Probe Team was already popular; but the job required that she leave Philippine TV. So she declined because she wanted to help Philippine TV and bring excellent programming to the public. My favorite question was why 5&Up was moved to ABC 5, to which she replied, “Because Channel 7 cancelled it.” Woohoo!!! She said it with such poise, but we could see all the disappointment, maybe even anger in her eyes that we started screaming and cheering in the cubicle, “Yeah! Go, Ma’m!!!” Near the end of the hour, a question came in asking what CLL’s most dangerous story was. Then the interviewer went on to asking how she and her staff go about shooting stories that pose danger for the crew. I awaited her answer with bated breath. I knew that she never liked it when reporters went on dangerous shoots, but I wanted to hear how she’d say it without sounding like too much of a mother. A crew from The Probe Team was supposed to go to Iraq, but CLL decided not to allow it. During the meeting, they weighed the pros and cons and CLL’s major priority, of course, was always safety. She also questioned their motives. Of course they wanted a good story, but was that all? Did getting the best scoop mean risking lives? So the crew opted to find good stories related to the war here, to probe in on how the war will affect the country, what the people’s fears are and how they’re handling everything. She wanted stories that hit closer to home, and she wanted them done with the safest means possible. That was a good answer. Other reporters in the networks would’ve thought that we Probe Productions people were sissies for cancelling shoots in Mindanao or where ever threats were present, but I’m glad that we’re always able to find other ways of doing stories without having to boast that we risked our lives. Just our limbs. Haha! Joke. I remembered my favorite Probe Team story by Howie Severino. He was a single-man crew in Basilan with some GMA reporters and they were all caught in a crossfire. Instead of staying for a stroy, they evacuated teh area and he made his experience the story. The title of his piece was May storya nga, patay naman. No matter how many problems come pouring down on our company and no matter how difficult shoots may be, I love how watching CLL work and talk about how everything started becomes a sort of energy. Yes, we’re not here for the money. And yes, we don’t make much. But after all the hair-pulling and nail-biting, coffee breaks, yosi breaks, coke breaks, and instant mami breaks, we still love what we do, and I think that that’s a big factor on why our shows are successful. Of course, CLL almost said that GamePlan was a game show. Haha! But she made a quick save and said “sports show”. Phew! Thanks, Ma’m. :)
Tuesday, March 18, 2003
You dream for more. Only a few people know that I used to like reading as a very young child. I was content with my fairytales and my favorite was The Little Mermaid. I loved fish and the water, and the thought of being able to breathe underwater was more fantastic than walking on the moon. I don’t remember how old I was, but Papa brought me to the beach once and it was the first time I realized how salty seawater was. I wanted to look at the fish in the murky water of whatever beach it was we were in and I strained my eyes for as long as I could, with each dive becoming less painful than the last. By 9, my eyes were a little more accustomed to the salt; but in a family trip to Anilao, Batangas, Tita Betty of Aquaventure taught me how to skin dive and the beauty of Anilao and the sea itself became so much clearer to me. Whenever the divers went out, I rode with them, played with their bubbles and snorkeled near the boat. I was amazed with how deep they could go and during one of their dives, my Tita swam up to me with a porcupine fish, all blown up and covered with spines. So blame the porcupine fish! Because since then, I dreamt of becoming a professional diver, a marine biologist and an environmentalist. Scuba lessons were too expensive, but I stopped littering, studied marine life, watched The Discovery Channel almost 24/7, and applied for Biology and got into the Ateneo. I even went to a marine camp in Danjugan Island right before college and my love for the environment was on a roll. Then I failed Chem. Whoops! I shifted to Comm and things just changed from then on. Now I have a dream job in GamePlan where my being a jock in Comm was a plus, and little did I know that almost 2 years later, this huge shift in life would lead me back to my childhood dream. And all it really took was an opportunity and a push from the producers’ dive instructor Tantan. After the GamePlan checkout, I was envious but passive, until Tantan told me that I could join a class of solo flighters just like me. At this point, my financial issues took a bit of a backseat and boom! I took the classes late at night, played habulan in the Aqua One pool and we were off to Batangas for our check out dive in the Aquaventure Reef Club. On the second weekend of March, I became a certified diver. Insert WAHOO here! An open water check out is made up of four dives, so we had 2 on Saturday and 2 more on Sunday. Our first two dives consisted of drills so that we could review everything we learned in the pool. We dove 40 feet underwater in front of the resort and the funniest thing was seeing Tantan’s Bensia pencil break apart. He was teaching us underwater navigation and while trying to write on his slate, the pencil leads, or bullets as I call them, just shot out and started floating to the surface. I wish I had a camera because the bullets looked so cute speeding away from us and we must’ve looked so funny trying to grab them one by one. In the end, we were able to get 5 or 6 bullets and Tantan just scratched his head and fixed it somehow. So besides Porna’s shaking her head to say “no” and hitting Tantan underwater, the scratching of the head is another one of my favorite unofficial underwater signals. Our third dive was in Arthur’s Rock and although it was slightly murky, floating and breathing 60 feet underwater for the first time and experiencing a sensory overload –water, current, pretty creatures, semi-zero gravity – was so overwhelming that I kept leaving my buddy Mon behind. Bad student! I’d be fixed on a particular fish or coral and it would take more than a few bangs from Tantan or Tolits to get my attention again. After a 1-hour surface interval (Naks!), we went down to Cathedral with plastic bags filled with tasty bread, and I got to feed lots of fish, just as my co-producers did the month before. I copied what Carlo did and placed a piece of bread partly in my mouth and the little fish came so close to my face, some of them even pecked on my lips. I was ticklish and kilig the whole time, until we ran out of bread. Sad. We swam to the castle near Cathedral to take some class pictures and I was having such a blast, I think I posed upside down a few times. Learning how to play with your buoyancy is so much fun, it’s like learning how to drive a car and manipulate the mix of the clutch and the gas so you can rev up or brake with style. I was also glad that Tantan told me about taking the reg out of my mouth so I could smile for pictures underwater. Haha! A few minutes before ending the dive, we went under the boat for one final exercise. Mask removal and mask replacement. This was difficult for my classmates who wear contacts, namely Billie and Mon. So when my buddy Mon placed his mask back on, I had to tap on his mask when there was still some water and tap on his shoulder when his mask was completely cleared. Then he opened his eyes and gave me the ok. It was really easy for me because I can open my eyes underwater and put my mask back on with no worries, except that snot might come out of my nose when I blow air into my mask. But when I took it off and opened my eyes, I was amazed that I felt no pain at all, not even the slightest sting from all the salt 15 feet below the surface. For the first time, I felt nothing, as if I was just swimming in a country club pool. I placed my mask back on and I was so aliw, and I felt as if diving on that very day at age 23 was just perfect, as if I had done so much since grad anyway that it was time to go back to what I had forgotten I wanted to be many years ago. Cool. I experienced the beauty of weightlessness in Arthur’s Rock, fed the fish in Cathedral, and made new friends who love the sea (And not to mention alcohol!) just as much as I do. The journey has begun and I’m ready for more! I want to go all the way with this, and I’m blessed to have an extremely supportive family that’s ready to back me up, many good friends rooting for me, and many new friends helping me out. So thank you, thank you to the people of Aqua One, Aquaventure, Instructor Tantan Rosal, buddies Porna Lanto, Billie Lee and Mon Roldan. You’ve no idea how much this new experience means to me. On the other hand, I think you do. I just had the most wonderful weekend at the beach and I think I'm going to be saying that a lot more because I can imagine that every dive weekend will be better than the last. Thanks also to Tolits, Benz, Jay, and Grace for making our dive "the more, the manier." Hehe. Let’s go diving!!! :)  When divers don't have night dives...I told you they loved alcohol! :)  Picture! Picture! Billie and Jay sitting down, Tantan, Porna and Tolits standing up, and Miko and I being happy up on the bench.  One last class picture. Tantan, Billie, Jay, me, Tolits, and Porna. Too bad Mon had already left by then. *More pictures to follow when everything’s been developed. *** I reread The Little Mermaid in National Bookstore and I cried. In National Bookstore! Weird. I think it's because now that I’m of age to fully understand the meaning and the impact of that story, I know that I can never have everything I want or love. But at least I have diving. Yeah, I’m a diver, baby! One dream down. Yippee! Dang, I'm dying to get back in the water. *** “When you dim your light so someone else could shine, the world gets darker.” – from Playing Mona Lisa Just a little something that inspired me today. :)
Monday, March 17, 2003
Have you ever had a dream and felt like oh my God, it's all coming true? Well, dreams don't just come true overnight and shit, but man, something good is coming and I can feel it. It'll be a long journey, but I'm going to start with it and I'm going to take things one day at a time. Before I get to all that, though, take a peak at my new dolphin's log. More to come when I've time to upload everything, including my thoughts on the most wonderful feeling I've ever felt in my entire life. (Which can only be beaten by true love at last and having kids. :) Ciao!
Tuesday, March 11, 2003
A book on Peace is being put together by a team of artists working to propagate anti-war, anti-globalization and pro-peace sentiments. If you want to submit your works for publication in this book, please feel free to do so. Writers, visual artists and photographers from the Philippines and abroad are invited to submit poems, short stories, one-act plays, essays, photographs or artworks. A qualified committee will screen all submissions. The deadline is on March 20, 2003. For more details, please call 371.1219 or text 0918.520.4533 (for inquiries regarding artworks) or 0916.545.9327 (for inquiries regarding literary works). Guidelines: 1. Photographs and artworks should be scanned/digitized and must not exceed 512 x 384 pixels, then e-mailed as a .jpg file. 2. Poems, short stories, plays and essays may be in English, Filipino, or any Philippine dialect (with Tagalog or English translation). Submissions must be sent as .rtf file. 3. E-mail all submissions to artpeace2003@yahoo.com before the deadline. If you don’t have access to e-mail, contact us for alternative submission arrangements. 4. Maximum length for literary submissions: poem - three (3) A4 pages; essay - five (5) A4 pages; short story - ten (10) A4 pages. 5. All literary submissions must be typed double-spaced (except for poems, which should take on the structure you want the poem to have when published) with font size of at least 10 points. 6. An artist may submit a maximum of two literary works; or two artworks; or a combination of one literary work and one artwork. 7. Include a brief artist’s profile with your submission(s). 8. All submissions will be screened. Artists whose works will be chosen will be notified by March 31, 2003. Visual artists and photographers whose artworks will be chosen may be required to submit the original piece. 9. All submissions, whether they will be chosen or not, will not be returned to the sender. *Hmmm, I think I'd like to submit something. That would do my Mama proud. :) *** Hahaha! Haha! Meg! Nicole can't read this one ha! Unless you're an unconventional ninang. :) >30 Harsh Things A Woman Can Say To A Naked Man 1. I've smoked fatter joints than that. 2. Ahhhh, it's cute. 3. Why don't we just cuddle? 4. You know they have surgery to fix that. 5. Make it dance. 6. Can I paint a smiley face on it? 7. Wow, and your feet are so big. 8. It's OK, we'll work around it. 9. Will it squeak if I squeeze it? 10. Oh no... a flash headache. 11. (giggle and point) 12. Can I be honest with you? 13. How sweet, you brought incense. 14. This explains your car. 15. Maybe if we water it, it'll grow. 16. Why is God punishing me? 17. At least this won't take long. 18. I never saw one like that before. 19. But it still works, right? 20. It looks so unused. 21. Maybe it looks better in natural light. 22. Why don't we skip right to the cigarettes? 23. Are you cold? 24. If you get me real drunk first. 25. Is that an optical illusion? 26. What is that? 27. It's a good thing you have so many other talents. 28. Does it come with an air pump? 29. So this is why you're supposed to judge people on personality. 30. I guess this makes me the early bird.
Monday, March 10, 2003
This is the cutest blog ever. I can't wait for her to post some more. It's like watching her grow up. So please, please go, go!
Friday, March 07, 2003
>Walang utang na loob. Nakabasa na rin ako ng dyaryong Libre ng Inquirer sa MRT. Naaliw ako at lahat ng mga tao sa tren ay nakatago sa likod ng batang Bonakid ad sa likod ng dyaryo. Kaunti lang ang mga pahina nito, kaya may mga artikulo na sobrang bitin at di naman importante, pampasayang lang ng tinta at mga puno. Sa ilalaim ng panagalawang pahina ng Sports ang column ni Nap Gutierrez na pinamagatang sNAPshots. Ilan sa mga pinag-usapan niya ay ang pagbukas ng PBA 2003, paglipat ng PBA sa NBN 4 na siyang magbibigay ng panibagong itsura at mga commentator, at ang pag-retiro ni Benjie Paras. Bumagsak ang panga ko nang mabasa ko na nag-retiro si Paras. Siya lamang ata ang nakatanggap ng Rookie of the Year at MVP sa unang taon ng paglalaro sa PBA. Sinulat ni Gutierrez na 34 pa lamang siya at isa siya sa mga pinakasikat na manglalaro sa kasaysayan ng PBA. Ayon kay Gutierrez, "Kasabay nina Patrimonio, Codinera, Lastimosa, Magsanoc, at Alvarez, naging instant superstars sila nugn early 90's. Kahit saan sila magpunta e pinagkakaguluhan sila. Kahit anong gawin nila ay media news." Minahal sila ng publiko at media, pero tulad ng lahat ng mga atleta, ang media rin ang nakakasira sa kanilang mga reputasyon at propesyon. Sa umpisa, hangang-hanga si Gutierrez sa popularidad ni Paras. Pero sa bandang huli, bigla na lang naging tsismoso. Si Jojo Lastimosa ay nag-retiro na rin at "binigyan siya ng asawa niyang si Butchik ng isang surprise tribute kung saan dumating lahat ng kanyang mga kaibigan from the basketball world at maging yung mga personal friends niya." Sumama na naman ang loob ko kasi naman, dalawa silang nag-retiro. Sinundan ko ang PBA noon at napanood ko si Lastimosa sa Shoot That Ball ata at si Paras sa Last 2 Minutes. Nalungkot ako sa mga balitang 'to, pero nagalit ako nang mabasa ko ang mga huling talata. "Mabuti na lang at may isang masipag na misis si Jolas na nag-isip ng tribute na yun. E paano kaya kay Benjie, wala na siyang misis? Sino kaya ang puedeng gumawa ng tribute kay Benjie?" Anong pagwawakas naman 'yan? Maaaring ipinapalabas niya na dapat mayroong gumawa ng tribute para kay Paras. Pero basahin mo naman. 'Bat pa siya ikinumpara kay Lastimosa? Inintriga niya ang paghiwalay ni Paras at ng kanyang asawa, na malas niya, pagkakamali niya, at huling hirit pa ang pagkasulat. Wala naman itong relasyon sa kanyang propesyong bilang manglalaro ng PBA. Kung intriga ang gusto mong ipalabas, lumipat ka na lanag sa ibang section, o sumali ka sa The Buzz. Nagretiro na nga yung tao eh. Nararapat lang na positibo o objective ang isinulat tungkol sa kanya. Leche. Respeto at utang na loob ang dapat nating ipakita sa mga atleta. Sila ang ginagawa nating kabuhayan bilang mga sports writer at producer. Nandyan tayo sa pagsikat nila, sa pag laos nila, at sa pagretiro para gumawa ng bagong buhay. Siguradong may mga personal na isyu silang lahat, pero lahat naman tayo ay may isyu eh. Kaya huwag na nating intrigahin. Hindi natin trabaho 'yan, at hindi siya tama. Tuldok. *Ernan! Sorry na lang kung may mga mali. :) *** >Make way for the newbies! Shaan Bermudez is training to become the first female commentator in the PBA. Exciting times! I'm really excited for her because she did such a good job in the Asian Games, as if she knew everything about the sports and the athletes she was reporting on. She could've just had a good research team, but her intelligence in sports commentating definitely showed. I'm also excited for NBN 4. Since the PBA coverages were turned over to them, I'm hopeful that they will bring a fresh change to help the PBA rise again. Their Asian Games coverage was good and simple, plus they've good reporters (including Shaan) who are way more qualified than the UAAP's ditsy Kamiseta girls. Aren't they horrible? No, one isn't better than the other. They're both horrible. Waste of airtime, waste of talent, smile somewhere else. We need people who talk b-ball. Dang, I sound like I love the darn sport. *** >We will take action and we don't need the approval of the United Nations to do it. - W. Bush Bush is the devil. Or an alien weapon sent here to destroy the world. A-la Species. I hope he chokes on a microphone. Or on candy. Or whatever his favorite food is.
Thursday, March 06, 2003
Our company website just got a facelift and I like it. With every refresh, a certain show is put in the spotlight, including 5&Up which is still airing replays every Saturday morning on ABC 5. Dang, I miss those kids. Production stopped last year. Anyway... GamePlan also aired the first plug for this year's Del Monte's The Great 202 Quest. I'm pretty proud of it because I shot, edited, and Judex got the graphics done in one day; and people admitted that it made them excited for the race this May. Making plugs can be really tricky, even if it's just a 10 or 15-second plug because you've to think of creative ways to cramp everything up. A short intro on the place or service, contact numbers and address have to be clear or readable. In this case, the Del Monte plug had to have an intro to the race, requirements to join and the 3 addresses where entries can be sent to. Too many things to read. My plug turned out to be a minute and 9 seconds long. Not bad for a race plug. To tell you the truth, my new inspiration for plugs is the cool Merrel plug because it's only 5 seconds flat but it gets its message across. All the VO says is, "Where ever you go. Merrel performance footwear." That's it! And it's effective with a loud bolt of lightning to grab your attention in the beginning. It's honestly one of the most effective plugs I've ever seen.
Hmmm, I never thought I'd ever analyze plugs and wish to be good in making them. Speaking of plugs, there was a funny 10-seconder in Quark's class' screening last Monday. A young girl opened her closet and took off her shirt and bra with her back facing the audience. We were all screaming and hooting and when she threw her clothes to the side, it cut to her clothes landing beside this piece of paper that said "SEX SELLS". Haha! Effective. *** >While I'm at it... Are you ready for a three-day action packed adventure in a quest to win P100,000 in cold cash? Then it's your turn to join Del Monte's The Great 202 Quest! Eight lucky adventure-seekers will team up with a GamePlan host and battle it out on the rough Philippine terrain. If you think you have what it takes then send in the following requirements: - Short Essay: Do you have what it takes to be part of Del Monte's The Great 202 Quest? - Bio-data. - Full-body picture. - 4 Del Monte 202 Labels. And mail your entries to the following addresses: - P.O. Box 1977, Makati Central Post Office, 1259 Makati City. - GamePlan Headquarters: 13 Matipid St., Sikatuna Village, Diliman, Quezon City. The deadline for submissions will be on April 28, 2003. See posters and print ads for details, or log on to www.gameplan23.com. Del Monte's The Great 202 Quest. Do you have what it takes? Yeba! :p
Tuesday, March 04, 2003
There's a seminar on March 27 called the 2nd Mobile Marketing Workshop: How to Design Your Own SMS Campaign. This'll be from 9am - 5pm in the AIM Conference Center (ACCEED), Makati City. For inquiries, call Jenny at 813-2745/ 32/ 03, or email them at dmforum@edsamail.com.ph. The point of the seminar above is this: The Philippines is still crazy over texting. But the market is changing. How do you use this to your advantage? Discover the right way to use this powerful new medium. Yes, this generation of ours, especially the younger ones, is filled with SMS slaves dependent on cellphone technology. Sure it's fun, and fine, let's give in once in a while. But I think it's getting out of hand. Have you heard of Confession Via Text? It's the stupidest thing on earth! You text your confession to a priest and he replies with the appropriate penance. Penance my ass! If you truly believe in the power of confession, you'd humbly face the priest and confess your sins IN A CHURCH! What's wrong with these people? They can't even walk to Church now? What, having masses in malls and country clubs aren't enough for them anymore? Next thing you know, the text tube channel's gonna air masses and people will reply via text! Freakin' bums! God! This really pisses me off. And I'm sure You're pissed off, too, God. Come on! Admi it! Grrrr. *** >Grunge day. It's tough being the resident happy girl. My morning started horribly (What with all the a-hole drivers on Edsa) and now I have this...mood. Ew. I came in the office with my hair down and shades to hide this, um, mood, and the fairly new guard greeted me with much enthusiasm in his voice, "Wow, Ma'm! Parang ibang-iba na kayo ah!" Hmmm, bad form, Manong Guard. Days like this, when I dress with a darker tone and and hide my face, people usually compliment me on how cool I look. Dude, I'm not trying to be cool. Please, God, give me someone who'll understand me when I'm not happy happy joy joy. And it's all Probe Teamers in here. Where the hell are all my co-producers?!?! *Yuck. What a bad post. Eck. On a lighter note... *** Maggie's short film! :) Almost everyone from the Wednesday Group went to Quark's class yesterday to catch Maggie's first short film and the shorts of the other Senior students. A lot of students submitted music videos, though. Or shorts heavily dependent on music. But since this was digital filmmaking, and as Joey told me, that's what their prof Quark does, then I guess it's ok. The first film that we saw was something with the famed Jasper (Or MYX VJ Franco) and the Akafellas. I found a little bit cheesy and long, but I enjoyed watching the Akafellas, especially Robi who's an old friend and he's always been that kalog on cam and off cam. One of the shorts I appreciated the most was Joel S.' PokPok. It was funny with well-timed SFX that added to the hilarity of the situation. The whole thing was very upbeat and the audience was always waiting for the next laugh. It was about 4 or 5 or maybe even 6 friends putting their money together to hire a prostitute and when they finally do, well, they kind of forget something pretty important. The acting was very Bubble Gang slash Tropang Trumpo, something I so love because I'm so corny. The next one was Habulan by I don't know who. The flow of the story was a little too long, stretched to something I'm not comfy with, but I liked the fact that they experimented with the edit, using filters and clipping the speed at certain points. There were some inconsistencies in the story and the dialogue, but the plot itself had an interesting conflict. A priest's brother was murdered and he eventually finds the murderer and questions God what he should do to him. The prayer and thoughts of the priest are subtitled, but I would've appreciated some visuals similar to that of Dekada '70 when Piolo Pascual tells his mother that his firend was tortured and killed. That would have been more expensive, though. :p Other than that, I thought it was pretty good. I don't know the title of the last film that was shown. The student rushed it in at the last minute and it turned out to be a pretty long one with some dragging parts that he tried to correct with fastmos and funny music. But the story was still very amusing, about a guy asking his neighbor's permission to hang out with him. Then they become partners in crime and they do silly things that keep the audience thinking of what other stupid ideas they might dish out. Towards the end, though, you're thinking, "What's the point of this movie? I'm lost!" Then you see what happens and you're like, "Aaaaah. Haha!" Nakakatuwa. Quark's students are funny. Then, of course, there was Maggie's film entitled Two in the Morning. Yeeeey!!! It was based on a book or a short story I think and her crew consisted of her brother Chris, Joey, and Vida. Cute! It started out with this guy eating alone in a little restaurant and moves to sit with this girl at another table. Turns out that she was his old crush, played by CADS' Kat Dingcong (Uy, si 86!) and they recall something that happened between them in the past. It was a really sweet short film edited by Trinka and it was so much fun to watch. I liked it when one would remember something that the other had completely forgotten. Hehe. Yippee! I'm so happy for Maggie. :) Among all the films, hers and Joel's had stories that flowed smoothly and never dragged. Basically, I got very sentimental yesterday, sitting inside the Comm Dept where we used to watch our friends' films in college, hearing all their production bloopers and travails and inpirations and screw up's. Now we're watching the films of a new and younger bunch that will hopefully join the filmmaking community and make a difference in Philippine Cinema / TV. Hell, some of these kids might end up working with me! When that happens, I will definitely feel very old and overworked. "Oh my God, you were Quark's student? Wow! Wow. I'll go smoke now."  It's Maggie! :) For more pics, click [here]. Congratulations again, Maggie! :) *** Ooh! Before I forget, watch Quark's Mariposa music video for Sugarfree! Hanep! I don't know if you can catch it on MTV yet, but you must, I repeat, you must see it. You can also purchase Sugarfree's overdue debut album Sa Wakas in Tower Records. Go now, NOW!
Sunday, March 02, 2003
This is Krysztov! The cutest cat in the world! Second to my dead cat Sgt. Tibbs that is. :) After many months of zero drinking sessions, Jofab and I actually grabbed a beer each (NOTE: Only one beer. He wanted to quit drinking. Ows?!) in Katips, Katipunan and as usual, we covered many topics of conversation. It was nice seeing him again. Analyzing people and events was always fun with Joflabby. I went to his apartment for the first time and I must say that I was jealous of his solo pad. It was a studio, a little wider than Vida’s place, but with a real kitchen counter and a bigger bathroom, plus a nice view of busy Makati. I loved his couch and his nifty G4, but his bed had horrible sheets. Yack! The best thing in his place, however, wasn’t a thing. It was his pet cat Krysztov (Named after his favorite director.). Krysztov is an orange tabby Persian kitty and he’s so cute, he beats Damian any time! (Sorry, Mo. :) When I first tried calling Krysztov, he ran away. Yup, he's a scaredy cat. But eventually he let me pet him and all was well. He’s kind of a torpe cat, eager to get some affection but still very wary of new visitors. Later on I became aggressive and I just kept on lifting him and calling him Miming. I was going nuts, and I’m sure that Neva would go nuts, too, when she meets him. He’s the cutest! Looks like I found a reason to visit Jofab more often. I was surprised that Jofab even HAD a pet. He never struck me as a pet person. But now that he has a cat, they seem to make the perfect pair because they’re both laid back sleepy heads, quiet and steady. Having a dog would’ve been a disaster. My next project is to get Jofab an aquarium. :p *I wish he had a balcony, though, so that I could smoke. Every visit to Jofab’s is smoke-free. On the other hand, that’s actually a good thing. *** >A mix and a rowdy match. Audie Vergara, Rex’s friend and former manager, texted me that he was in town and wanted to get together. So we set the date for Friday and my sister Carla and family friend Gars agreed to meet us there as well. That afternoon, I hung out in Miggy’s place in Makati and since he and his friends Denise and George were meeting in Aposento, we decided to make everybody go there. I even invited Jofab and when Audie arrived with friends Moris and Kai and everyone met (For the first time!), we had a riot of fun. Let me elaborate on why this mix was so weird by typing up everybody’s occupations. Moris is a game and graphics designer while Audie is working for The Filipino Channel (His favorite show daw is GamePlan. Haha, sipsip!). My sister’s a consulting specialist, Gars is an investor, and I’m a segment producer. Jofab’s a freelance director/ photographer, Miggy’s studying to be an engineer, Denise works in an ad agency, and George works for an I.T. company. So how did we all get along? I’ve no idea. It must’ve been all the 80s talk about computer games and cartoons. Or all the gay jokes about Miggy and George going to the CR together, or Jofab’s watch that supposedly charms the girls (AND Miggy and George. :). It also could’ve been all the Pinoy jokes, and Audie talkin’ jive! One thing’s for sure, though. Everyone had a friend who met a friend and another friend. We made new friends and had a reunion at the same time, and I think that that was a major factor in all the fun. I like it when my different groups of friends meet and they all get along really well. The gay jokes got a little out of hand, though. Haha!. :) *** >Razzle dazzled with all that jazz.  Ooh lala, this dance is hot! Jofab and I watched Chicago! Chicago! and I loved it. It was a really good movie with wonderful lighting, hayop dance sequences and really good editing. It was like watching the Broadway musical with a good mix of film realism. Dance scenes would intercut seamlessly with the real life situations and the choreography was perfect because the dances had to match the realistic scenes, complete with the musical timing. Between Moulin Rouge and Chicago, well, I can’t really decide which one I like more. Something’s telling me that eventually, my feelings for Chicago will grow, especially when I see it in the big screen. But you can't really compare them because they’re still 2 different movies -- sorry, I meant musicals -- dealing with different things. In Moulin Rouge, I enjoyed the play with old songs and the flashy production, and I cried because of the tragic love story (As in hagulgol! Really!). In Chicago, however, I enjoyed the story (Probably because I’m in the media business.) and I cried because of the beautiful dance sequences. All of them were beautiful, the most impressive one being the puppet theme. That must’ve been the most difficult one to dance. I also appreciated the fact that director Rob Marshall used very little CG, maybe even none at all. Catherine Zeta Jones, Renee Zellweger, Queen Latifah (Whooh! She is the queen!), and Lucy Liu were really awesome. John Reilly has always been good with support roles, and Taye Diggs’ little stints were ooooh, sexy. But Richard Gere? Hmmm. Very unimpressive. He really just has one face, doesn’t he? Reminds me of David Duchovny’s SNL skit where he squints like Gere and keeps only one facial expression: happy, sad, scared...Haha! Sad. But I must admit that Gere's tap dancing was really cool. *** >Bob Fosse: Smooth operator. I was watching the profile of E! True Hollywood Stories on renowned choreographer Bob Fosse. He choreographed Sweet Charity in 1966, which was a big hit in Broadway but a huge flop on Hollywood’s big screen, and Chicago in 1975, which ran for 2 years and Broadway, had an extended tour, and is now one of the biggst movies in the US. A melodrama inspired him to create Sweet Charity and it became his life. For 3 years, he frequented the dance studio late at night and worked on dance combos while the world slept, not knowing that one of the biggest musicals ever was dancing in someone’s mind. When it was time for auditions, an African American dancer, whose name sadly escapes me right now (All I remember is that the chargen said “Entertainment ‘Pippin’” under his name.), came in for a part and he was blown away by Fosse’s demonstration. Fosse was dancing with a fresh cigarette in his mouth and this was what caught the dancer's eye. The whole time he was watching Fosse’s cigarette and the ash never broke off. Finally Fosse was done. Then he took the cigarette from his mouth and flicked the long chunk of ash off. And the dancer said, “Man. This guy’s smooth.” Yes. The man was smooth. And if that isn’t smooth, then I don’t know what is.
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