wowowee

It's such a delight to watch Wowowee, really. I won't even be plastic and pretend I don't watch local shows because I do and I enjoy it immensely. Call me shallow but that's simple happiness.

What captivates me to WWW is the fact that one can be oneself when in this show. Though real is still a twisted truth, people here have freedom to be who they want to be, or change it, if only to make their lives better. I think the show is really about its viewers; mirroring the difficult life that our other countrymen is experiencing. But more important, the show is but a glimmer of hope for them. Providing an "altruistic" solution to their everyday problems- or perhaps making that specific moment just a little better, just a little lighter. That's good enough.

I like the first hour of the show specifically. I like Willie as a host (just what I see on tv; and not including his character). He's slapstick but not the joey de leon or vic sotto kind of slapstick. Willie's hosting style is very much pare-pare like. It's like hanging out in a sari-sari store where everyone's friend. And everyone sucks up to the boss. Willie is refreshingly witty and often times annoying. This clashing personality is what I like about him. This makes him a little charming and a little annoying. His comments are perfectly timed and very honest. The jokes he makes are childish and yet can be a little "adult" sometimes too. At best, he can really bring out the funny and ugly in you. The way he interviews his contestants have little substance, but you appreciate the real-ness he puts on it. He is delighted by those who are also interested and game; and is turned off by those who has a sponge for personality.

I like the game hep-hep hooray. It's nothing original nor mind-blowing. It's just a simple game that will keep you glued to your seat as they act out the lines hep hep and hooray. I like how these people fight out, argue with hosts and really give their best to win.

I like the elimination round of Willie of Fortune. The contestants are egged to tell their life stories to the public. This is where it gets tricky; some contestants can become poseurs, some will come in with ulterior motives, and the rest just plain funny. But at the end of it, whether they tell sob stories or stories of triumphs, or Willie just dishing out his silliness to the contestants, it's refreshing to watch these people show their life unabashed.

I like the batian portion too. I like how these people really prepare to get seen on TV. And even really give their dancing best just to get chosen to become one of the BigaTENS.

I like the energetic dance numbers dished out by guests and ASF dancers. They are bordering on gratuitous but that's okay. Including the sponsors segment where the promo ladies dish out their own novelty lines trying to impress Papi. That still is sponsor's time after all. Subliminal Advertising. 

It's just sooo hilarious.

But I also don't like the three female hosts endlessly being perky. They just keep shouting and shouting and talking fast. Is that supposed to be energy? And I also don't like how they always favor the grannies who act miserably old and poor. Really now? This is no charity show. I know vicarious wins and stuff like that count for a lot in making us feel lighter and better. But to see them rig games for the sake of these lolas? Good thing if the other contestants are not in need. Well these lolas just have to play sickly and miserable and they are guaranteed a win. That's just not fair. And when this happen, I switch channels. No, not to Eat Bulaga - to somewhere else. (I don't know why but watching eat bulaga feels like watching a rerun, or de javu. I know I've seen it somewhere. More important, the jokes are stale. the casting, annoying. The lines, yucky. And concept, so template. It's nothing different. What you watch today is the same thing you will see tomorrow, and the next and the next....)

Bottom line, it is a good way to really forget life's hardships even for just a while. 

 

Not Feeling Well

I made plans last Monday. No, not just plans- but great plans. Fantastic, world domination plans even! But all that was gone in just one night. Poof. Kaput. Zit. Nada.

I wanted to use this one week leave to really go all out on the gym. Do my best in lifting heavy weights so I'd be ripped by June 2. Attend all the group exercises at the gym so I can be my leanest ever. And really just go all out and try something new. Unfortunately it didn't happen. I got a bad case of viral gastroenteritis or food poisoning and have been abed since last Monday night.

What caused it, until now I still haven't figured. For the day, I know, though, that I ate the following items: KFC at MRT Ayala Station for lunch. Yogurt for pre-dinner (on an empty stomach). Apples. Lumpia and sauce. That's all I ate. Nothing too hardcore. 

I suspect it could be one of the things. That or it could also be this medicine that I took the for the first time that day - lean and mean fat burner from GNC. 

Well, bottomline, I've been LBMing nonstop the past three days and have not been able to really maximize my long break. I am kind of bummed out by it especially since I had plans.

Now I had appointments yesterday lunch and evening. And I had every intention of attending it. Why not? First of all, the lunch that I was supposed to attend was the despedida that was being thrown for me. Nice one. I evaded my own despedida. Secondly, the evening date was supposedly the Ayala Malls Cinema's Partners Night, which I helped sell to my old merchants. They were premiering SEX and the CITY last night. How could I have missed free food and free screening????!! Darn.

Instead, after all the excruciating pain and agonizing nonstop visit to the loo, I had to go to St. Luke's ER for a quick check. After three hours of waiting, the doctors said I was okay enough not to be confined but I had to monitor my bowel movement. The tests done proved negative on parasitic and ova attacks so it was likely something I ate. I had to avoid dairy and oily food in the meantime.

At that point, I realized it must be the yogurt. Drinking it on an empty stomach perhaps did it.

Today, it has been slightly better. I didn't frequent the loo that much anymore but there were still spasmodic spells occasionally. I am hoping all will be gone by tomorrow. 

I really want to get well badly. Not only because I want to party on a friday night, but largely because I want to make the most of this.

BUT WAIT!

If there's anything good that came out from this, I spent the last three days here at home with mom. I have not spent this much time with her since i dont know. And it really feels wonderful! So I am not at all depressed that I am just here because she's here and took care of me. Ohhh, mother's love.

And I also discovered the joy of watching ABS shows again. 

Hahaha

Meantime, I have to go drink my hydrite because I have been dehydrated.

*BURP*

ZsaZsa In Manila

For all the ZsaZsa Zaturrnah lovers here, you may click on this site for the first six pages of the new comic book sequel from Carlo Vergara himself. Credits to MGG where I got this link. Happy reading.

PS: it was fun and exciting. And the supposedly world's tallest building, that is in Makati, suspiciously looks like GT Tower. Hahaha

http://carverhouse.blogspot.com/2008/05/zaturnnah-sa-maynila-pages-1-to-6.html 

Big Yellow Taxi

I know. 

We've heard it on TV and Radio. We've read it in internet and newspaper and straight from the mouths of the taxi and jeepney drivers. The effects of rising gasoline prices is affecting even those who don't drive.

Gas prices have affected almost everyone and everything. All you hear are complaints. And why nit, it really is damaging and bad. 

Meantime, jeepney drivers have been granted a one-peso increase. Taxi drivers are still waiting. In the meantime, taxi commuters like me are getting enraged with "passes" made by these drivers.

For two weeks straight now, taxis have been asking for more money than what it indicated from the taxi meter. Just the other night, this CROWNSTAR Taxi had its meter "adjusted". It was running at speed faster than Lydia De Vega. I even witnessed it myself. In ten seconds, my fare changed five times.I called his attention and all he said was,  "ay nasira na naman ang metro ko. Magkano ba binabayad mo dun?"

No apologies. No nothing. That creep. Binarat ko talaga. Alam kong mahal ang gas, pero di mo naman kailangan mandaya.

Gone are the days when tipping was optional. Now taxi drivers ask for additional money, no questions asked.

Just earlier, the cab asked for an additional 30 bucks dahil he is lugi ng 300 pesos almost daily. He even brought up the mouths he has to feed and the frustration he has with work. I didn;t care. We all have our own baggages but 30 is a little too much to ask / forcibly ask from you, yes. In fact, that's another taxi's flag down already!!!! 

Or the other versions, "ay sorry, wala akong barya. May P5 lang ako." Good news, your meter reads P72.50 and you are going to be given P5 as change. Nice one. Really nice one. What a way to start your day.  There are many more derivatives to this wala akong change scenario. Gail pointed the right thing to do. Ask for bargain. Don't pay.

It's harsh yes. But more than anything THIS IS PUBLIC SERVICE> why on earth are they leaving their terminals WITHOUT any money in their pocket. I remember this driver even asking me to ADVANCE my bayad to pay for the gas!!! Kapal.

In the meantime, i dread the day that taxi and gasoline prices will continue to rise. What this means simply is that I have to start learning how to drive a gas-efficient car.

Hay.

Sex and the City

I am just wondering why sex has become so public that it has become such a cheap commodity. Last Saturday, I watched "Virgin Territory" starring Mischa Barton and Hayden Christiansen. It was a funny movie, sometimes entertaining, but sexually gratuitous.

The movie is about a couple of mid-century ladies and gents who are in the verge of sexual discovery and heat. Set against the backdrop of Church, they keep talking about preserving their virginity as if it were a sacred law. But the irony is the church as the very institution who propagates is the first one to actually break it. The nuns in that church look for a deaf-mute so they can have sex with them without him telling on anyone. Clever but it cites a certain truth. Priests and nuns are perceived to be holier-than-thou here but they are human like the rest of us. They just don't talk about it.

Mind you, this is virginity for both men and women. 

At one point, the issue on love is also raised. Would you really wait to give virginity as the ultimate gift? I ask the question, is there even a virgin in the country today (not counting the minors)? What gift is this?

I suspect that even those who have not reached 18 yet are no longer virgins. Sex trade is so cheap and commodified that it is being:

blogged - internet and social networking sites

published - veiled as massage, escort services, in buy and sell (this is really the pits)

smsed - sex for load - this is really sad.

eyeballed - one look and people hit it off.

I mean really, the sexual energy in the country today has peaked that it has no whether to go but bust. People do it, but they don;t talk about. Some do. Some don't.

But at a time when moral and social concepts have become weak, sex is slowly destroying other relationships.

I am not a prude, but i just think people should do this with utmost concern and preparation. If you can;t be sure, just be safe. 

At a time where gas prices is rising sky high and rice shortage is imminent, we don;t need more mouths to feed.

I cannot help but wonder: Is Manila getting more promiscuous and careless? 

Clueless

I came across the official soundtrack of Clueless once again and it feels perfectly wonderful to be listening to it again. I will try to write the lyrics but no promises and I will get it right.

"Clueless OST"

She is literally the polaroid of perfection. She has everything and she'll give it to you in a second. Looks can deceive. She wears her heart on her sleeve. She'll steal you away. Not just one day, everyday, she's an ordinary girl. In her world, she's an ordinary girl.

The song is obviously referring to the Cher (Alicia's character in the movie). She may be a ditz and a blonde bimbette, but she does mean well to other people. For me her character is something that we can consider admirable.

She likes to help other people help themselves. Whether it's setting up people or making over fugly students, she obviously wants to see other people happy. Though it may not be the most comfortable thing to experience, don't we all just love the excitement of what can be?

People may say that her character is very shallow and superficial, I call that simplicity of living. Really, do we need all the gunk that life throws at us? There's just so many issues that are being raced and hurled against us that sometimes we really just want to slow down. Dont we all just want to be living a simpler and less complicated life? She may be a ditz with so many things, but she does care for other people and that's enough.

She loves to love. She may have fallen to a "gay" guy in the movie, and eventually to his own half brother, but then that's love. She fell in love and really went all out. Against all odds. Enough said. Sometimes we just wish we could let go, but we don't. We can't. We shouldn't.

Finally, she may not say the write things always, but she says it like she means it. And that's nice.

When people call other people a blonde, a ditz, or a superficial slut even, they are missing some point. They just can't see the beauty of simplicity and genuine concern for others. Instead they impose their rather pathetic life to others. 

I remember my friend Marisssa. She was the one who told me to stop and slow down. We had a thirty minute discussion about Princess Mononoke and Narnia, that eventually got to stones and flowers. She told me to stop and appreciate the falling leaf and the pebbles by the ditch. At that time, I decided that she was a nut case.  But now looking back, she's right. I've missed the point of appreciating life as i was pre-occupied with all things harrowing.

Now I am enjoying the simplicity of life for what it is. 

yes to simplicity.

Bye Bye Ayala

Today was my last day with Ayala Malls Group. I am going back to where I came from a week from now and my excitement has waned. Well, there've been unpleasant news and to be honest and I'm quite saddened by it.

My last day also marked the celebration of Ayala Land's achievements on the recently concluded Ayalalympics. The company won the cheering competition. The last time it copped it was 1988, 20 years ago. So this year, it IS a legitimate excuse to celebrate. As Mr. Jim Ayala himself said, the people have been working (in the office) and playing (in the extras) so hard that we also deserved to party hard (!).

So off we were to NBC Tent for the 80s inspired celebration. There were some cheering, some awarding, some food and some dancing. It is the earliest party I've ever been to. We started at 10am and promptly ended by 1pm. People started vanishing as soon as JIA announced that we can take the rest of the day off. By 1pm, the area was stat clean. 

It is also the first party where there was no alcohol served. For a company which holds mass several times in a month, why am I still surprised?

And this is also the first party where the oldies and the mid-aged professionals outdanced the younger set. The younger set ate and run. Went shopping? I don't know. 

I stayed on because I missed dancing. I had so much pent up dance energy that I had to let it loose already.

After the party, Melody and I went to Larry's for a round of beer. At that point, I was feeling a little bora-state of mind. Under the afternoon sweltering humidity and sweat, I needed an ice-cold bottle of San Mig. Heaven I gulped inside Larry's bar.

A few minutes later, it was raining hard. I was too red and a little buzzed.

This is a kick-ass way to end my "alcohol drought" and party-less mode in the last 3 minutes. 

Can i just say that this is the first party I attended where i didnt have to effing usher anyone. thank goodness. 

What Indiana Jones meant to me

Well, I am a little ashamed that the latest installment of Indiana Jones movie is the only Indy movie I've seen so far. It is quite pathetic since we have the DVDs at home and I never really bothered to preview the movies before watching. I purposely delayed watching them because I wanted a clean perspective with this latest installment. I didn't want to bias my judgment or anything. 

May 22, Indy finally hit shores. Prior to that, I've been spying on the net what the comments have been so far since it previewed it Cannes. As expected, the reviews were mixed. The die hard fans liked it to death that they even hummed along to the fanfare. The others said they were bored all through out and that the wait was all wasted.

To be honest, I had been eagerly awaiting for this movie. The trailer was fantastic and the casting was interesting. Cate Blanchett as a Russian communist and Shia Le Bouff as Indy Jr. and Karen Allen returning. It was a casting coup! And the shots were fantastically done. And two high profile directors working on this movie. That must really translate into something, yes?

So I went ahead and waited no more. I watched on the first night. 

When the movie started playing, i had to take a pause and really admire the nice aerial shot of the dessert. Everything went downhill after that. Dont get me wrong, the photography was fantastic all through out. I wish I could say the same though for the story.

I will not divulge the story here so you could watch it yourself in GREENBELT 3 - yes, shameless plugging.

To be fair, I was kept at the edge of my seat all throughout the movie. It was an action-packed movie that you have hardly enough time to pee. But I was getting antsy at one point. The scenes were far from believable and that's not a good thing. Normally, I don't comment like that because I like scenes which are over the top and proudly dangles its creative license to me. But this one, it's too much! How can it be possible for these old bats to fall down THREE TIMES from a very high waterfall without getting scathed or anything. Much less proceed to run, swim, hike, climb and all things obstacle course. NOT POSSIBLE.

Well, yes, it's Indiana Jones, it's forgiveable.

Fine.

But really what I cant forgive is the presence of martians in the movie. True to Steven Spielberg form, there's got to be ET and martian presence. I wonder why? Is this his signature scene as John Woo's flight of pigeon's during fight scenes?

Anyway, i found the whole movie quite formulaic and corny.

Formulaic because it was sooooo standard. The twists were so expected. The action scenes, you could almost smell it coming. And the foreboding angles, c'mon! Most of the scenes were dead giveaway.

Corny because of camp factor. It was very kitschy. Although I thought the angle on the peru land patterns were interesting until the aliens came. Couldn't it have been some conspiracy theory instead? 

Well, my money didn't go to waste because if for anything, Indy is still Indy. It only raised my wanting to watch the other Indy films.

Meantime, i will shift my energy to Caregiver and Sex and the City movies next week.

PS: I saw the mummy 3 trailer and it is kick ass! i've never been this proud of jet li and the terracota warriors. The movie however is especially close to the MANDARIN story of Marvel comics. Hmmmm....

a teary eyed sunday homily- an account by a proud mama's boy

i want to share a portion of our church homily this morning. the notes below are just excerpts and interpretations that i obtained. these are personal reflections.

my mom and i have always been closed. though there have been rough roads in the past, our relationship generally is a strong strong one. I love my mother more than anything in this world. Next to God, I trust, listen and heed her for anything and everything. She has told me several times that she loves me too. i believe that we're soul mates (not in a romantic way of course) as i have the uncanny gift of feeling what's she's feeling too.

anyway, the homily was about how we should treat our mothers.

1. respect them- be a pious son

I respect my mother. sometimes i may not agree with her as i have my personal bias but i know she means well. no matter what, she is more experienced and smarter than me and therefore i need to heed her advise. my mom is the best adviser. she says things the way it should be. and i respect her for that.

2. show them that we care

sometimes we're too busy with work or personal life that we forget all about our parents, especially mum. mums have always looked after us and so we should show a little gratitude for all their hardwork and unnecessary pains brought about by raising us. 

i always text my mum how much i value her and how much i care for her. better say these things now as we don't know when one of us should pass on soon. and better that she is reminded so she constantly forgives me for my booboos, hehe.

3. do not let them worry.

i am guilty for being careless sometimes that i make her worry. i go home late usually and that's what we always argue about. mums will be mums. when one of her brood is not home yet, she will worry. and i have a habit of not texting her to tell that i will be late. She worries when i am not home yet. especially at times now when it is soo unsafe.

when mums worry, it;s like inflicting wounds on them. and that;s not good. they worry and they can;t fall asleep. expect the following day masungit sila. hahaha. but the point is, a mum will never feel comfortable when she knows that not all her children are safe and safely tucked in bed.

three scenarios that the pastor shared:

LOVE FLOWS DOWNWARD - this is a common statement that our moms would always say. until we become parents we will never know how much our mums love us. our mums are out source of love. their love flow toward us and that;s why we feel safe after, we heed her, we look for her, we want the smell of her, we want to be comforted by her. no matter how much you love her, she will always love you more. twice, thrice, more than enough.

whenever i go home, i make it a point to pass by her room first. i always lie down on her bed or wait for her sa restroom while making kwento. sometimes not even to make kwento, i just want to be beside her after a very long day. i know she gets pissed when i mess with her bed, but it's very reassuring to be in her bed and just see her there. 

NO MUM COULD EVER RESIST A CHILD ABED - when we're sick, mum is the most stressed person around. she does everything to make you feel better. whether it is accompanying you to the hospital, cooking for you or just being by our bed side, she makes sure we get well soon enough. 

in HK, during the outbreak of SARS, HK hospitals demanded that all family guests and visitors MUST leave the hospital for fear of contamination. but this mum refused to leave and sacrificed getting ill just to see the final days of her cancer-stricken son. she quipped in cantonese, "will i leave my son now when he is spending his last few hours on earth? is my health more important to me now when my son is very weak and dying? is my good health going to make me feel better when he departs earth? I am a mother, my heart is here with my son."

At this is point, i was getting quite teary-eyed already. Until this:

LOVE LETTER OF A MOTHER TO HER SON. This is not the original text anymore.

when we get busier in life, we tend to lose our patience faster. especially with dealing with the older set, it's quite a challenge to stay composed and patient when the other end is becoming more demanding. an already aging mom writes to her son especially about that.

when i grow old and ---

i cannot stand on my own, lend me your young and energetic arms to help me stand up. remember you were once like me. (when we were younger and still learning to walk up, remember who taught us how to do that.)

i dirty myself because i cannot hold my spoon right, remember you did the same to me. when i was teaching you how to eat, i had to endure so much just to get you to eat.

i pester you about me taking a bath. remember how much creativity i put to get you to take a bath. how many baths did i draw just to keep you clean and comfortable.

i forget about things. remember you were once forgetful and i had to repeat myself a few times to make you remember. or even reading a story book ten times just to make you fall asleep.

i keep bugging you about things. it's not that i want to meddle with your life, but because i want to be with you and know that i am needed.

or when i can;t understand gadgets, remember i was the one answering all your whys.

___________________________________________________________________________

at this point, i was already sobbing profusely. it's easy for us to forget about all her hardships when we are inconvenienced. but this opened my eye to look back and really appreciate her. we can never repay the love she gave us. probably the thing we need to do is to pay it forward. nothing warms the heart of a mum when she's told that she's raised a fine kid.

happy mums day to all mums.

i love you mum! very much.

though she will never be able to read this entry but i want to write it just the same. I want to tell her that she's my inspiration to always be humble and better myself.

Big Week Coming

Don't look now but this week is going to be another big one for me. 

Wish me luck as I wait for what's "out there" for me.

Con-temptation

This is contemplating on something so tempting. 

Just yesterday, I went through another round of contemptation. I very well know that i should not have done that but i did it anyway. Boy, am i in for another big trouble?

Well, let's just say that i am still young and can still afford to these things but at one point i do have to stop and be a strong willed person.

Generally I am in, but i am sure quite sure that this also happens to you. 

But not all contemptation will turn out bad... when i bought my macbook, i know it was really not necessary. In fact, it's really just a want. but now that i bought it i realized that i have use for it. and this is my best purchase so far for the year. this was a product of contemptation. because when i bought it, i only bought it for this one secret reason... hahaha

then again, yesterday was different. sigh.

PS: no, it's nothing to do with illegal substances like drugs or e.

Twist

what if by some twist of fate, what if i become a client of mccann kaya? what do you think?

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha! (cue evil laughter fading while i sip red wine by the window sill with thick velvet drapes and piercing light from outside. slowly the wine spills and i drop the glass. the shattered glass pieces scratches my foot but i feel no pain. suddenly, ang mga bata, they all appear out of nowhere. I stare into a blankwall as if im hypnotized telling the boys to ligpitan sila!)

this message was originally intended for cha and mdj. but i deleted their names sa headline and placed it here instead. hehe. la lang.

Theme B

This year I decided that 2008 will be my banner year. Today, officially, i am dropping that mission for something that's more relevant and meaningful to me. It will be about introspection and what I can really do.

I want to stop focusing on what i need to do this year. Instead, i will focus on what i can do and do better. I will focus my energies in doing what i strongly believe in and win in it. My first four months was okay. Nothing great, i was treading. But then something was missing. Though i gained a lot of things like time for myself, new friends and learning new things, but i felt something was missing. I felt something was wrong.

And so i felt lost. But today i am ready to return to my roots. the prodiguous journey has ended and i am coming home.

COMEBACK.

This is my new theme for myself. Comeback. It will be more back to basics and living the life that i've always dreamed of. And time to concentrate and get the pieces back together.

COMEBACK.

Today, I will be back to where i used to be.

See you soon. Sooner than you think.

Sticking Out Like A Sore Thumb

Ayala Land had its townhall meeting today. You know, the one where the company president showcases the achievements, state of the company and the challenges the company will face in 2008. More important, it was the time to rah-rah and rally its people to success.

But for me, the townhall is really a show of force. It is to show that more than ever, the company has a sense of direction and that it is thinking of its people. For one, management, the bosses and its talent work together and look at the same piece of blue sky. Key word is same.

Well, so much for SAME.

I arrived early this morning since I was anticipating traffic along buendia and edsa. But since there was not much traffic at 7am, i got there in a jiff. I wanted to wear something nice because it is a time to show who's fashionable and who's not today. I also wanted to feel "good" and "responsible" and so i wore a nice shirt, naturally. I wore my ever reliable jacket to keep me warm too.

Cut to me walking along market market trying to figure out where the building was. The building was called "EVERY NATION". It was a rather strange name for a building. I saw a couple of guys in green polo shirt. Then another set in white polo shirt. But all of them in jeans and rubber shoes. I thought, nah, couldnt be. How can they come to an official function in shirt and jeans?? or can they?

At this point i broke into cold sweat. i texted my officemate slash friend regarding the dress code. "Is there a dress code for today?" He texts back saying, "A is in polo barong". I text back, "that's not an answer! is there a dress code today? I saw other people in official company polo shirt!" At this point, i wanted to die. But i kept walking hoping that my group was actually required to wear formal business clothes.

I got inside the building and i saw a sea of people in white and green. I was greeted by another officemate, "speaker ka ba? bakit iba ang damit mo." Because i was on leave yesterday, nobody told me about the dresscode. I really wanted to sock the face of my "friend". Did he do that on purpose? He texted me jokes and shit yesterday but this. I really wanted to strangle him. And here he was texting me, "Sodee". One, sodee sounds sooo retarded. and two, it's not funny.

a few more confrontational texts he admits it was his fault. he should have told me. I just couldn't take it. Hate him.

As the townhall finished, there was an upside to what i wore. While the rest were feeling extremely cold, my jacket and long sleeved kept perfectly warm. ha!

what i dont get really is how can people forget to mention these things?! and our secretary, she didn;t even bother. Come to think of it, she never really bothered for anything.

I knew how it feels to be like sore thumb. But this sore thumb was a nicely manicured one. No thanks to my cheery disposition. hahahahahahahah!

B. Double B.

Beginning tomorrow

I promise to take charge of my health and lose significant fat content and manage my weight. I will be more active and serious when it comes to fitness and dieting.

Hay, help me God.

Creep Factor

Chinese memorials have always been very intricate. From the old traditions to the superstitions that one has to follow, all of these are passed on culture from one generation to another. But more important, this incorporates into its very nature religion and mysticism. For lack of better word, I am using mysticism because the play of nature and time is very crucial to get desired effects. This concept is more popularly termed as fung shui (or wind and water).

To those familiar with the concept of fung shui, there's a special time to do all things. This follows looking at directions, birth signs, time of the day and what can and can't be done on the same day. Even the personalities involved have to be carefully factored and thought about. If one of the items were not followed, potentially, something bad is going to happen.

This afternoon, I attended a memorial / burial rite as a sign of respect to the elders of my aunt. This all happened in a jiff since I wasn't aware of the burial date. I was a distant relative. In anycase, I accompanied my mom.

True to fashion, we were already rushing to the funeral parlor as the rite was already about the start. By rite, I meant taking the kabaong out of the room going into the car. Now, this is very interesting. If you've seen Mano Po, they've already underlined this part before. Cogie Domingo was in the same scene on the first installment.

This whole thing starts off with the "mosiko" playing really loud music to call the spirit of the dead relative. Then the whole family and attendees will light an incense and say their last word and pay their last respects. Then the family goes around the kabaong IN ONE DIRECTION only. It is believed that when you go back you will be next. And by next, ikaw na ang iniikutan.

Now the association guys or the masons or whoever is assigned will take the body out of the funeral room. Take note, at this point, timing has to be very precise. At my lolo's memorial, we had to be out by 10AM. Apparently, all the other rooms had to be out the same time too. Again, that day was a good day, and there was no better hour than 10AM. So timing has to be precise. Dapat, you will be first. So we had arranged a back door exit so we won't meet opposing traffic. At this point, also, all those who are of the unlucky and opposing signs must NOT look at the crypt being taken out. He also should not make salubong the crypt. So they are asked to step out of the room, and even the building to be sure.

After the crypt has been delivered to the car, together with the paper items as pa-baon, off you go to the street for the "death march" - for lack of better word. The eldest son of the family calls onto the name of the dead so he will follow the crypt. This will give you goose bumps since you're already out in the street, with matching "hao lam sa" or the sack clothes as sign of mourning. And everyone's holding on to a rope attached to the kabaong. This is showing last respects. Then at one point, you have to stop and get in the car and then the get off again when you're near the cemetery. Well, you do all this for "practical reasons" of being safe.

Anyway, going back to my kwento. We were kind of late. And me and mom were from the opposing signs. So we just stayed back and waited for the march to reach our area (where we were standing up). At this point, you need to hold on to an umbrella because it was too dang hot! Then we drove off to Chinese Cemetery in Blumentritt. Well, as explained to me, we were not supposed to join the libing but since nandun na rin kami, might as well. I was already saying good bye to my work out today. bUt still hoping i could do my other plans.

When we got Chinese, it was kind of drizzling na. But the sun was shining hard naman. Until we loaded off the crypt and deliver it to its final resting place. At this point, it was already raining. We had three umbrellas in the car. But i guess out of busyness and all, the relatives of the deadfolk forgot to bring umbrellas. We lent them two umbrellas while me, mom, my cousin Ericka and uncle shared one umbrella in the rain. Since we're from the opposing sign, we couldn't go near the grave. Instead, we viewed from afar where no tent was setup. As the final rites is about to finish, it was already thunderstorming. It was already making kidlat and kulog and the wind was getting stronger and stronger. Even the rain was blowing harding and the sky darker. I only had one thought in mind: regal shocker.

As she is put to rest, the rain and the wind and the thunder were getting heavier too. I don't know if that had any connection to the dead relative but you know, in my mind, feeling like i was in a scene of a movie, something eerie was taking place. hahaha.

Then the whole rite was finished. And so was my brand new white puma sneaks. we were too wet and cold when we got in the car. I was hoping we could go home already. but as they say in chinese, we have to finish the entire thing. so we had to go to Singguan temple in Narra St., Tondo, Manila to eat Misua for tsai ki or good luck.

At that point, the rain has stopped already. But it was just about to get creepier. I thought i saw the dead (as in yung kakalibing palang) eating with her relatives on the table. okay. wait. i am changing my mind. I will discontinue finishing this story na. I am sensing something while i type this. not good. i will just make kwento some other time. I need a good sleep tonight. I can;t be bothered by bad vibes.

anyway, yun lang. it never rained this hard since last year. I was just freaked that it had to be today. yun lang.

:P