The origin of love
or my annual tribute to Hedwig and the Angry Inch

When the earth was still flat,
And the clouds made of fire,
And mountains stretched up to the sky,
Sometimes higher,
Folks roamed the earth
Like big rolling kegs.
They had two sets of arms.
They had two sets of legs.
They had two faces peering
Out of one giant head
So they could watch all around them
As they talked; while they read.
And they never knew nothing of love.
It was before the origin of love.

The origin of love

And there were three sexes then,
One that looked like two men
Glued up back to back,
Called the children of the sun.
And similar in shape and girth
Were the children of the earth.
They looked like two girls
Rolled up in one.
And the children of the moon
Were like a fork shoved on a spoon.
They were part sun, part earth
Part daughter, part son.

The origin of love

Now the gods grew quite scared
Of our strength and defiance
And Thor said,
"I'm gonna kill them all
With my hammer,
Like I killed the giants."
And Zeus said, "No,
You better let me
Use my lightning, like scissors,
Like I cut the legs off the whales
And dinosaurs into lizards."
Then he grabbed up some bolts
And he let out a laugh,
Said, "I'll split them right down the middle.
Gonna cut them right up in half."
And then storm clouds gathered above
Into great balls of fire

And then fire shot down
From the sky in bolts
Like shining blades
Of a knife.
And it ripped
Right through the flesh
Of the children of the sun
And the moon
And the earth.
And some Indian god
Sewed the wound up into a hole,
Pulled it round to our belly
To remind us of the price we pay.
And Osiris and the gods of the Nile
Gathered up a big storm
To blow a hurricane,
To scatter us away,
In a flood of wind and rain,
And a sea of tidal waves,
To wash us all away,
And if we don't behave
They'll cut us down again
And we'll be hopping round on one foot
And looking through one eye.

Last time I saw you
We had just split in two.
You were looking at me.
I was looking at you.
You had a way so familiar,
But I could not recognize,
Cause you had blood on your face;
I had blood in my eyes.
But I could swear by your expression
That the pain down in your soul
Was the same as the one down in mine.
That's the pain,
Cuts a straight line
Down through the heart;
We called it love.
So we wrapped our arms around each other,
Trying to shove ourselves back together.
We were making love,
Making love.
It was a cold dark evening,
Such a long time ago,
When by the mighty hand of Jove,
It was the sad story
How we became
Lonely two-legged creatures,
It's the story of
The origin of love.
That's the origin of love.

You remind me of a firework, boy

You touch the ceiling, you touch the floor
You sparkle and burn but you take your time
And i bet i could carry you across state lines

I'd tell you why, but i don't know
It's simple and so complicated
I could walk all day on the railroad track
But there's much more to it than that

You know all of my secret ideas
The ones i'm giving up on and the ones i'll keep
And everybody sees a funny look in our eyes
'Cause we know that we already won the sweepstakes prize

I'd tell you why, but i don't know
It's simple and so complicated
I could walk all day on the railroad track
But there's much more to it than that

I ask you if you ever think that maybe
It's what's inside of us that drives us crazy
Fingers feeling underneath your skin
There's blood and bones and some rivers to fall in

I'd tell you why, but i don't know
It's simple and so complicated
I could walk all day on the railroad track
But there's much more to it than that

I'm so lucky because i asked you once
"What are you doing? Do you wanna come up
For a cup of tea? Come visit with me
We'll play guitars and i'll give you my number"

I'd tell you why, but i don't know
It's simple and so complicated
I could walk all day on the railroad track
But there's much more to it than that

I'd tell you why, but i don't know
It's simple and so complicated
I could walk all day on the railroad track
But there's much more to it than that

-from Mirah's brilliantly titled You Think It's Like This, But Really It's Like This, one of my all-time favorites

Hoy!

I am in beautiful Bacolod. Will be in Iloilo this Friday, Nov. 16. Boracay - Saturday, Nov. 17 until maybe, Nov. 19. Manila on Nov. 23 - 25. Flying out on Nov. 25. My mobile: zero nine one six four two one six nine zero eight. I don't have a lot of contact numbers on me, so text me if you want to meet up! Woohoo! See you soon!

Blogging from Korea

I am in Incheon. It's about 6.15 am in the morning. I have two minutes left on my 500-won 10-minute accesss. Flight was okay. Watched 3.75 movies! That's a record for me. I didn't feel like sleeping. Had a nasty ham n cheese samwich. The server was nasty, too. Um, I don't understand anything on this browser. I am crazy. Why even blog? Ugh. Gotta remember to wipe my tracks. Don't want some Korean kid hacking into my blog... Aight, peace out.

Oh gosh, horror of horrors. Ran out of time and had to get more coins from the currency exchange desk. Logged back in and this thing was still up. Thank goodness I got the right machine. Imagine how scary that would have been if the next user logs on and my blog pops up. Ugh! Anyways, I have about 30 minutes worth of coins now.

And an hour and half before my flight to Manila. And then a five-hour or so wait at the airport and then an hour-long flight to Bacolod. I guess it gets bearable over time. They should really put massage chairs in this airport, though.

I saw Knocked Up, The Perfect Man (this one was an Italian movie), Once (about a Czech immigrant and a songwriter she meets on the street) and about 3/4 of A Mighty Heart. I think I might watch the rest of A Mighty Heart if they have it on the Korea-Manila flight.

Check back later. Oh wait, this is cool: ㅗ디ㅣㅐ 재깅. 해ㅐ유ㅛㄷ 재깅

Across the sea

Hopefully, in 48 hours I will be just that. Um, I don't know. Things have been looking up. I got accepted to the one business school I applied to. This is a good excellent thing, because I was stupid enough not to have a safety. This time tomorrow I will probably be sitting around at JFK or on the plane. Off to the land of massages on the beach, Cafe Bob's and cellphone pickpockets.

Sarski and I are thinking of opening a bar called the Lab, and we're serving drinks in Erlenmeyer flasks and beakers. And shots in test tubes. Maybe we could autoclave drinks? Anyways, the bartenders will wear white lab coats and goggles. This is even better than my idea to create a comic strip called The Adventures of Winnie the Puta. That Bodge was going to draw if she didn't go and become the coolest doctor ever.

Also, tomorrow I'm cutting my hair off. Made a last-minute appointment at the salon. I don't think I'm going to be able to stand island weather with hair down my back. I think I made ten inches, anyway. Also, I might get a Lomo.

Two weeks ago, my college roommate Cyb came for a visit and we went to see STOMP. It is AWESOME. I'm still reeling from it. Met a couple of her friends from CADS. We had dinner somewhere on St. Marks. After the show, we hung around like groupies until the actors came out. Took a couple of pictures. And then we saw one of the actors on the subway. I was standing right next to him, so I tapped him on the shoulder and was all, 'Hey man, great show.' Ha! So lame. He was very gracious; all of them were. We took a picture right there. And then on the way out of the train, some guy groped me. Put his hand out just like that. Apparently some people get a kick out of that. Fucking pervert.

Last week-end at the shore was great. It was really cold and the waves were crazy and we went for a walk on the boardwalk. There were restaurants right on the beach. We looked at the menus and they didn't seem that expensive, so we're going someday. And then we oggled the mansions in Deal. It's crazy how rich some people are. Most of the houses were huge, some ghetto fabulous, and most were empty. We had Mexican twice, once at a surfer-themed restaurant and the other at a hole-in-the-wall place. I love it.

Hmm. I want to be in the Philippines, and yet I want to be here.

Shoutoutz to my homiezz Rocky Roc and D-re

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

We will be together again one day. I know it.

Word.

what if, don't even think it
but why not

Two major developments:

1. I submitted my application to business school.

2. I'm off the singles market.

Universe, please conspire.

Yay!

So color me stunned

Last night I told the guy I liked that I like him. This is a first for me. I've never laid my feelings open like that. On YM. I shudder just thinking about it. But then again, it was going to happen anyways. It's just weird for me because I haven't been in and out of relationships in such a short span of time. It usually takes, literally, years. I've never been so spontaneous or vulnerable or not-in-control. Something's changing. This is going to be interesting.

Cos I love the way you call me baby

It's that song from the Old Navy commercial, Ingrid Michaelson's The Way I Am.

In due time we'll finally see there's barely time for us to breathe

I think P asked me out yesterday. I don't know. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me. I think I either ignored it or said no. What I said was this: We'll see. Anong we'll see we'll see. Indi na ko gani katulog sa panumdum sang lalaki nga ni. Tapos mahambal pa ko we'll see??? Bulay-og!!!

Goodness knows it's been a wonderful run

Sometimes I go on Beulah's site, which is still up three years after their break-up. I know they're never getting back together or making another record. I just like to look at all the shows I missed, or the sold out shirts I won't be able to buy. Well, bad news is frontman Miles Kurosky has been in and out of surgeries in the past year and has only recently started playing the guitar again. Swan will not be helping out on his solo album; he's been producing records and playing session trumpets on his own. But! Their song Don't Forget to Breathe is on a new experimental CBS online show called Clark and Michael, which stars Clark Duke and Michael Cera. It's only 10 episodes long so I am pacing myself, but I was supposed to look at my official GMAT scores uh, two hours ago, and instead I have been laughing my head off. Right now, I am getting ready to watch Episode 4, which is the episode where the Beulah song is featured. I am giddy with anticipation. Because Mike Cera + Beulah = <3. Obviously.

John Vanderslice says

Sooperbad

I think maybe Evan in Superbad would be my ideal guy. Well, when he grows up. I mean a grown-up Evan but with Evan sensibilities. You get the picture.

Ch-ch-ch-changes

In the last two weeks, I have:

1. broken up with my boyfriend,

2. conquered the GMAT,

3. and failed my road test for the second time.

I have felt:
1. elated
2. miserable
3. nervous
4. excited
5. disappointed
6. grateful

and maybe everything in between.

Today after the aforementioned unsuccessful road test, I went home, took a shower, went to my favorite Vietnamese restaurant, had some Tsingtao, and watched 2 days in Paris.

It's about a couple who have been together for two years. They go on a vacation to Italy and on the way back to New York spend two days in Paris. Arguing. I actually really liked it. I adore both Adam Goldberg and Julie Delpy, and the dialogue was funny and real.

Right now, I am going to catch up on The Office Season 3, just in time for Season 4's premiere tomorrow, and maybe enjoy a piaya or two.

I miss the Cardigans

Carnival came by my town today.

Eloquence

from T.S. Eliot, my favorite poet next to Drey.

HYSTERIA


AS she laughed I was aware of becoming involved
in her laughter and being part of it, until her
teeth were only accidental stars with a talent
for squad-drill. I was drawn in by short gasps,
inhaled at each momentary recovery, lost finally
in the dark caverns of her throat, bruised by
the ripple of unseen muscles. An elderly waiter
with trembling hands was hurriedly spreading
a pink and white checked cloth over the rusty
green iron table, saying: "If the lady and
gentleman wish to take their tea in the garden,
if the lady and gentleman wish to take their
tea in the garden ..." I decided that if the
shaking of her breasts could be stopped, some of
the fragments of the afternoon might be collected,
and I concentrated my attention with careful
subtlety to this end.

Man in the Mirror

If I don't pass the GMAT, I'm buying an electric guitar and learning this.

Kaya Mo Na, Part!

for Sarah

Gaydar
- the intuitive ability to determine whether another person is gay or bisexual
- Whether anyone actually has such an ability is a debated question, especially in Western (or Asian) culture
- relies on indirect senses and intuitions rather than direct questions or fact-finding
- also relies on sensitivity to certain mannerisms: anything from flamboyant or overt rejection of traditional gender roles (including occupation, grooming habits, and so on) to more subtle clues, like one's style preferences or other personal tastes or habits
-A study published in 1999 showed that homosexuals are better at correctly identifying sexual orientation than heterosexuals from silent videos and photographs

-from Wikipedia and personal observations

Ang dason nga kapitulo

Ay te. Budlay guid kung bungol kay lain-lain ang nabatian.

Sang isa ka adlaw may ginpakita si P nga litrato sa telepono niya. Hambal niya: "Ari ang hinablos ko nga lalaki. Kag ang akon xxxxx." Hambal ko sa kaugalingon ko, ano tong ginhambal niya man? Daw 'peeps' bala mo. Galing daw ka buyong. Daw indi man na siya maghambal 'peeps' luas kung nagapakadlaw siya. Kag daw wala man siya nagapakadlaw sadto. Ah siguro, 'niece' ang ginhambal niya.

Mga amigo kag amiga, kung nagasuspetso kamo nga indi maayo ang inyo pamatian, mas maayo guid kung magpamangkot.

Kagapon nagkitaay kami kay ginhatag ko sa iya ang dibidi sang Ang Opisina Ikaduwa nga Panahon. Siyempre didto naman kami nag-inom sang amon nga ginlugo nga prutas sa may lulubngan. Kag samtang naga-istoryahanay kami nasambit niya ang iya nga bata nga babayi. Hambal ko, "Ah, may bata ka?"

Te amo na. May bata siya, duwa. Isa ka babayi nga katorse anyos, kag lalaki nga dese-sais. Um, bata sang asawa niya bag-o pa niya nakilala ang asawa niya, nga gin-adoptar niya. Pero siya ang nagsagud halin sang duwa ka tuig ang mga bata. Subong sa nanay nila sila ga-istar. Kag subong wala na sila sang asawa niya, suno sa napat-ud ko. Hambal niya, "Te amo na, ginkasal ako ka-isa." Ang sabat ko, "Ha?" Amo na gali guro nga nagsaylo siya balay sang Pebrero.

Tapos hambal ko: "Daw indi pa guid ko kasarang magsagod sang bata."

Hahaha! Indi ko gani kasarang magsagod sang kaugalingon ko! Pero ang punto da, dyutay man lang ang agwat sang edad namon pero wala sapayan nga damo na guid siya nahimo kumpara sa akon. Kung nagapasaka pa lang ko sa bukid, siya medyo lampas na gamay sa putokputokan.

Kung sa bagay, wala ini tanan pulos sa akon kay, diba, may nobyo ko.

Budlay guid kung bungol.


PS. Kanami gali sang Ilonggo nga linggwahe. Ay Hiligaynon gali. Ang iban sa mga tinaga nga ara sa diksyunaryo: KITKIT (nibble). MADALAGDALAG (yellowish). LAYGAY (advice).

let's talk about somebody else's 'love problems' for a change


Caught the tail end of the Hong Kong Film Festival at BAM. Saw Crazy N' the City and thoroughly enjoyed it. The subtitles need a little bit of work because they're literal translations and one needs to decipher exactly what they mean. On the other hand, it was kind of fun to come up with how the dialogue would have sounded in English. Next week: the Korean Film Festival.

Naninikip ang tiyan nakatingin sa buwan

Alam ko naman na tama yung ginawa ko. Ang hirap-hirap lang talagang gawin. Pakiramdam ko sumikip yung dibdib ko, tapos yung buong katawan ko, pati gilagid. At dahil simula noong may nagsabi sa akin na sabihin ko lang yung gusto kong sabihin, wag ko daw balutin ng asukal, parang di ko na kayang magsinungaling, sinabi ko oo. Kahit habang sinasabi ko yung oo, gustong gustong gusto kong sabihin hindi, wala.

Release or buildup?

The earthquake
Is making
The house shake
The house shake

The earthquake
Is making
The house shake
The house shake

I don't know
What to do
In times of
Disaster

Solid things
Go liquid
And the breath
Gets faster

I ask you
What you think
Of my forward question
Is this a
Release, or
A build up
Of pressure?


I failed my roadtest, miserably. For two days before AA took me around my neighborhood practicing right turns and left turns and pulling in, and we concluded that I had a fighting chance. But after waiting in line for three hours under a scorching hot sun, I simply lost interest. I felt groggy and just wanted to go home and didn't pay attention and forgot to signal and drove on the curb. That's right, on the curb. But the inspector was oh so nice, not entirely what I expected. I'm definitely going back there for my second test.

PS Pinadalhan ko ng maikling sulat sa pangkalawakang sapot yung kras ko kahapon kasi nag-alala ako na baka natangay ng bagyo yung bahay niya (Peksman, totoo to, andaming natangay na bubong sa nayon namin). Tiniyak ko na iisa lang yung tanong ko para isang sagot lang din siya. Pero tanong siya nang tanong. Kaya sagot ako nang sagot. Kaya ayun. Mag-uusap daw kami sa susunod na linggo tungkol sa pagmamaneho ko. Aaaaahhhhh!!!

Mirah live in Houston

Old video, but five years ago, I played Mirah's "You think it's like this but really it's like this" for three months straight.

Anobaanobaanoba

Niyaya ako ng matagal ko nang kras sa opisina upang kumain ng prutas na nasa tasa kanina. Matagal na kaming nagbibiruan na sabay kaming pupunta sa prutasan pero kanina lang niya ko tinanong nang seryoso. Alam ko dahil tinanong ko siya, "Seryoso ka ba?" Sabi niya oo. Pumayag ako dahil wala akong sapat na dahilan kung bakit hindi. Baka sabihin nag-aakala ako. Alam ko dahil nangyari na sa akin yon dati. Rocs, kung nasaan ka man, naaalala mo ba, "sometimes it's just lunch!" At sa totoo lang, matagal ko na siyang gusto, mula pa noong wala pa kong boypren. Bakit ganun? Matagal na kaming magkakilala, ngayon lang niya ko niyayang kumain. At kahit na mabait siya, at sa tabing-dagat siya nakatira, at masaya siyang kasama, at magiging maganda o guwapo ang anak namin, at, at, at, hindi na puwede. Ang boypren ko ang pinakamabait na tao sa balat ng lupa at di ko siya ipagpapalit. Pansamantalang kilig lang. Ang gulo ko. Sometimes it's just lunch!

A Nocturne

I almost cried when I saw the first part of this video. It uses one of my favorite songs of all time, Jon Brion's "Row."

I'm talking about this video!

You have to watch this video.

1. Providence-boston trip - fab,fun,big brunch, IVY league, harvard & brown, duck tours,aquarium,futon,dimsum




Mario, Edsel and I in a threesome at one of the dorms. We walked around empty ivy-covered buildings before finally finding our way to bustling Harvard Yard.

2. Les miz - lea salonga as fantine, syncopated jean valjean, hot marius, great range


Les Miserables was okay. I saw it for the second time. I got slightly annoyed with the way Jean Valjean sang - in a weird syncopated tempo - but he had great range. I spotted Leah Salonga gamely climbing the barricade stage prop as a member of the ensemble after her I Have A Dream solo.

3. Avenue q songs - great for road trip

Random thought. But true

4. Bodies bodies - executed chinese people?




Mario and I saw this the last time he came to New York, and we found it absolutely amazing, such that we bought matching knee-high skeleton socks. It was pointed out to me recently that the Chinese are very serious about death, and they would never donate their cadavers willingly for an exhibition. The official story is that the bodies are unclaimed or unidentified, and all necessary steps were taken before they were turned over to Dalian Medical University. Nevertheless, the whole thing still sounds fishy, especially because of China's record of human rights abuses and the rumors of transplant organs being harvested from executed prisoners. Read more here.

5. Hiphop abs - awesome but still fat. Maybe more reps? Oh yeah, dumbells




I nagged incessantly until I got this as a gift, and I've been doing the standing abs exercises in my "free time". They're really fun to do, and not at all hard. I have layers of fat to get rid of before I can get a six-pack, though.

6. Men in trees - alaska is pretty, could move there, cool songs

I could not find a suitable photo but if you've seen any episode of Men In Trees, you will agree that the scenery looks fabulous, although, it is not in Alaska as we're made to believe (damn these producers!) but in New Zealand.

7. Staten island ferry - best free ferry ride

Yes. It says so in all the guidebooks.

8. Transformer orig concept designer - floro dery, filipino, laid off after 3rd season, seems bitter

I was livejournal-hopping and found this. From this,

"I did not leave the show. After I finished the movie I was laid off by Marvel Studios. Since, I dominated the show and "I became the Transformers", they probably had to get rid of me. I created too many designs, that they no longer needed me. So, I was jobless and walking in Hollywood for a while. The artists who did the turn-arounds and clean-up of my designs carried on the work for a long time. Life sucks doesn't it? I'm not surprised though. Some other person even got credit for all the work I did."

and this,

"No, Unicron is my own original concept design. Even the planet transforming into a robot is my original idea. That's why my credit in the movie is original concept designer. Maybe Takara copied my design because a lot of fans wanted a Unicron toy, but one was never made by Hasbro."

I gather there was some sort of falling out.

9. Pisay movie by aureaus solito - feelings of inadequacy


Watch it! It's like real life. I swear I had a math teacher who spoke exactly like her: "Now hu can tell me wat a hy-poo-te-sis es??" And I can imagine Marc saying, "You are nothing but a uni-cellular, protozoan... amoeba!!!" And I swear we've been called "da bist ob da bist!" and "da crim ob da crim ob da crap!" And the lab gowns and uniforms!

Solito showcases brilliant young finds in ‘Pisay’
By Ruben V. Nepales
Inquirer
Last updated 02:09am (Mla time) 06/23/2007
LOS ANGELES — Acclaimed director Auraeus Solito recently e-mailed us some sneak peek photos of the cast of his latest film, “Pisay.”

He wrote that about 200 kids auditioned for the film inspired by his student years at the Philippine Science High School, affectionately nicknamed by its students and alumni as Pisay.

“Eight brilliant kids made it to the cast,” Auraeus shared.

Lucky eight

The filmmaker behind the much-lauded “Ang Pagdadalaga ni (The Blossoming of) Maximo Oliveros” briefly described his lucky eight: “Matt (Carl Barrameda, formerly of ‘Going Bulilit’); Wena (Annicka Dolonius, half-Swedish niece of Robin Padilla); Rom (Gammy Lopez, twin brother of ‘Maximo’s’ Nathan Lopez);

Minggoy (Elijah Castillo, Singapore best actor award winner for ‘Pepot Artista’); Daki (Alfred Labatos, another ‘Going Bulilit’ alumnus); Euri (EJ Jallorina, also from ‘Going Bulilit’); Andy (newcomer Jonathan Neri), and Liway (Shayne Fajutagana, a true Pisay graduate who recently graduated with honors and made it to UP’s College of Medicine.”

We got Auraeus to reveal who his alter ego is in the movie: “Euri was based on me,” he shared.

The film’s synopsis: Eight students make it to the country’s premier science high school during the politically volatile ’80s. These gifted students come from all over the Philippines.

The Philippine Science High School was created to provide an education that focuses on the sciences. Those who make it are hailed as future leaders of science and technology.

Reunions

Auraeus elaborated: “I was from Pisay’s batch ’86. When I traveled around because of ‘Maximo Oliveros,’ I had reunions with batch mates who now live in North America and Europe. One of them went into exile in the Netherlands for political reasons. I’d always wondered why she suddenly disappeared during my senior year. I got my answer when she and her family watched ‘Maxi’ at the Rotterdam International Film Festival!”

Beautiful tales

He added, “My friend’s story inspired me so much that I e-mailed my batch mates in our Pisay86 yahoogroup — then, they started telling me their stories. Many beautiful tales came up, and they inspired me to write ‘Pisay.’ Eventually, I asked Henry Grageda to write the screenplay.”

Asked if it was easy for him to make a semiautobiographical movie, Solito answered,“It was hard. I discovered that high school movies are not easy to make — plus, this is a period movie set in the ’80s.

“It looks like fun, but personal movies can be intense. High school life isn’t easy. There are painful moments and profound emotions you struggle to understand. I almost gave up.”

“Pisay” will premiere at the Third Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival at the CCP next month.

Show dates, times, & venues:

* 21 Jul/Sat 03:30 PM

Venue 1 - CCP Main Theatre / Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo

* 22 Jul/Sun 09:00 PM

Venue 4 - CCP MKP Hall / Bulwagang Alagad Ng Sining

* 24 Jul/Tue 09:00 PM

Venue 1 - CCP Main Theatre / Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo

* 25 Jul/Wed 09:00 PM

Venue 2 - CCP Little Theatre / Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino

* 26 Jul/Thu 06:15 PM

Venue 5 - CCP Tanghalang Huseng Batute

* 27 Jul/Fri 10:00 AM

Venue 1 - CCP Main Theatre / Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo

* 28 Jul/Sat 03:30 PM

Venue 2 - CCP Little Theatre / Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino

Plot

Amidst the chaos of Martial Law in this Third World country in the 1980s, eight teenagers in the top high school for the sciences discover themselves as they go through the joys and pains of adolescence. They were the top two hundred students from all over the Philippines who passed the examination for the Philippine Science High School, which was created for the purpose of giving an education highly enriched in the Sciences to exceptionally gifted Filipino children. Selected from the best and brightest from all over the country, they endure college-level courses in biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics from their sophomore year onwards. Those who can make it are hailed as the future science and technology leaders of the New Republic, those who don’t are deemed unfortunate victims of natural selection. They all learn however that they are neither isolated from the real world, nor are they exempted from living real lives. They find the world outside, erupting into the People Power revolution in 1986 against the Marcos dictatorship, being replicated within the school as they struggle to graduate, contend with teachers, classmates, family, school officials, and a new classification to segregate students meeting the high standards of excellence from those who do not.

10. Almost scratched eye out while playing fur elise - strange spasm feeling, must practice hannon scales again! To restore finger fluidity




This is the best for finger exercises!"

Damn you, internet

Since I've wasted two hours already, I might as well post pictures and be done with it.




This is me with curly hair. French stylists are so convincing. "You speak French, no? Well, at least you have zee French manicure. Let's curl your hair!"



I went to The Cloisters two week-ends ago. It was lovely, but we only spent an hour there since we came late. At night people hang out at the parking lot to blast music and who knows what else.




This is my lovely VFT, all grown up. I had to cut that flower off because it saps the plant's energy. Soon I'll be feeding it tiny crickets. I'll post pictures then, too.

Disclaimer

I knew I shouldn't have posted that sappy, sickeningly sweet anecdote (see previous post). Actually, it's more about a compromise of religious beliefs than marriage. See, even though I'm a regular doubting Thomas, at the end of the day, I still think all the good things that happen in my life are because of God. He was raised completely differently.

Anyhow, my reaction to any mention of marriage is "Yaaaakkkkk!," or "Eeeewwww," which just goes to show how mature and ready I am about this.

So, no, I am not engaged nor will I be in the near future. But if you insist on sending congratulatory presents, I will find it in my heart to accept these gifts. If you like, I will post a wish list.

A short history of nearly everything

On the ride home from The Cloisters, the Big K, Toys R' Us and dinner at the cousins' house, while Sugar Ray's Someday was playing on the radio and we were both singing along, I asked him if when he (note: he, not we) gets married, if he would have a church wedding. He turned down the volume and said, "Yeah, of course, if it's important to you." "Even if you don't believe in God?" And he said, "But you do."

Not that I'm getting married in the near future. It's not in the plans. It's just nice to know.

My top 2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee words:

Triticale
Abseil
Cyanophycean
Grognard
Fauchard
Oberek
Rognon
Serrafine Serrefine


Word.

Shame



Shame is a documentary about Mukhtaran Mai, a Pakistani woman publicly gang-raped by order of a tribal council, in retribution for an alleged relationship between her 12-year-old brother and a girl from a prominent family in the village of Meerwala. This is a common occurrence in her village, but she was the first woman to take her case all the way to the Supreme Court. As her story became known throughout the world, donations starting pouring in. Yet she refused to leave her village and instead put up, first, a girls' school, and then later on, a boys' school. Even when the money stopped coming, she continued to support the schools and her village, and continued to speak out against inhumane practices by her society. The government, which initially supported her, tried to keep her quiet by refusing to give her a visa to leave the country. There is an almost comical scene in the film where Mukhtaran Mai and a government official are holding a press conference together, and they are simulataneously stating contradictions: the official that Mukhtaran Mai was never kidnapped, and Mukhtaran Mai that she was, in fact, being held against her will. The film was very inspiring, and after the screening, which was part of the Tribeca Film Festival, Mukhtaran Mai herself answered questions from the audience. I was captivated by her quiet strength and self-assurance and lack of self-promotion. The director, Mohammed Naqvi, aptly concluded the meet-and-greet by explaining that he called the film "Shame", because of the many connotations of the word - the shame felt by Mukhtaran Mai and her brother, the shame inflicted by the tribal council and the rapists, the shame that the Pakistani government felt Mukhtaran Mai brought to her country, and so on.

I don't give a...

The thing about Houston is that everything is so far away. Spent half of the week-end driving, rather riding, on the freeway at 90 mph, clinging to my seatbelt, checking the rearview mirror for cops.

My cousin's wedding was beautiful. The ceremony itself was so touching. Another cousin said if everybody heard what the pastor said, the divorce rate would be much, much lower. Basically he said that when you get married, everything else becomes second priority to your spouse, except God. Your main concern is to make sure that your spouse is happy. Most marital problems stem from self-centeredness, he said. If couples would put their spouse first, then the marriage would be relatively wrinkle-free.

That's why I really can't tolerate infidelity in a marriage. For me, it's just such a serious commitment. If you were going to mess it up, then why even get into it in the first place. You shouldn't have gotten married if you're going to go behind your wife's back taking a girl half your age to seedy motels. I have even less to say to girls who go out with married men. I think that's the lowest of the low you can do, besides murder. Who do you think you are, taking this man away from his wife and kids. I know it's really judgmental of me, but I just can't stand liars and adulterers. When I'm married, even if I get attracted to other people, I hope I have the strength and decency to look away and remain true, because I promised to. Well, hopefully I've made sure before then that I'm married to the only person I want to be married to.

Yay! I must say, the decision to finally trade in my maaad old nokia 6610 was difficult (we've been together 4 years) but totally necessary, since it's so obsolete that I can't do much with it and the paint is so chipped it doesn't even look white anymore. So, tadah! I'm typing this from my new red blackberry pearl which is so great that I was so ready to go all hardcore on some poor customer service rep just because I lost online access for two days. But now it's back and everything is okay again. I think I am secretly disappointed that I didn't get to bitch at anyone, though.

Spent a week-end in Boston traipsing around in ducks and trolleys. Ducks are these military vehicles that go on both land and water. Very exciting. Also the tour guide was very knowledgeable about the city and its history and made it very funny and interesting. We got goBoston cards, which came up to just over 30 bucks for the aquarium, the trolley, the harbor cruise and the duck tours. Whew.

A botanical adventure

Today I went to the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx for The Orchid Show. Everything was lovely. We were amazed at how similar the plant life in South America is to the Philippines. In one of the exhibits, there was a green-colored vine prominently featured hanging from the ceiling which was supposedly from the Philippines, but which I have never before seen in my life. It was called the jade vine and had a fascinating tinge, kind of like the fake dye they spray on roses at the flower shop to make it "green".

Anyway, the afternoon was well spent and quite enjoyable until we found ourselves at The Shop where you could purchase various botanical things and sundry, and now I am googling VENUS FLY TRAP CARE at 2 am. No matter. Apparently, you only have to feed these suckers insects, preferrably live, about four times a year. And although they are capable of digesting human flesh, I really won't have to deal with that until it's at least 14 inches long.

Tried and true

I don't know. This blogger/gmail thing confuses me. Has it occurred to anyone how dependent we are on passwords and pin numbers? At work alone, I have to memorize four passwords to get through the day. And then I have one for my yahoo, my blogger, my netflix, my friendster. And the list goes on.

I am going to be very busy this year (this I realized three months into the new year, on the first day of spring, no less). If all goes well, next year I will have learned to drive, be a US citizen, be in business school, and be in Europe for spring break. Sounds fabulous, doesn't it? If only I could get my act together.

I did manage to take the TOEFL two weeks ago. It went well, besides the fact that I was too impatient, was the second person to walk out, and as a result have no idea whatsoever what range my score is in . It was very distracting having everyone around you trying to speak clearly into their microphones while you're trying to listen with the non-noise-blocking headphones. While I was in the middle of writing an essay, my keyboard decided to get stuck and I had to summon a proctor who had to summon somebody else, while my time was running out. Also, I had bought Ticonderoga No. 2 pencils for the occasion but didn't get to use them as only pencils provided by the testing center were allowed. The test center was awful, by the way; their system consisted of a person calling out room numbers, which we were supposed to locate on a hand-written list posted on a wall somewhere. It was all very confusing.

Anyhow, as evident in my non-presence on the internet, I have been kept busy by other things such as weekly trips to Costco, outlet shopping, laundry, magazine recycling and the like, and will probably continue to be if I everything goes as planned and I get ahold of Shaun T's Hip Hop Abs video. In other words, I have been gaining weight like crazy (hello bacon and eggs everyday) and in dire need of an activity that doesn't involve typing.

This makes me giggle every time.

The Flea

MARK but this flea, and mark in this,
How little that which thou deniest me is ;
It suck'd me first, and now sucks thee,
And in this flea our two bloods mingled be.
Thou know'st that this cannot be said
A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead ;
Yet this enjoys before it woo,
And pamper'd swells with one blood made of two ;
And this, alas ! is more than we would do.

O stay, three lives in one flea spare,
Where we almost, yea, more than married are.
This flea is you and I, and this
Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is.
Though parents grudge, and you, we're met,
And cloister'd in these living walls of jet.
Though use make you apt to kill me,
Let not to that self-murder added be,
And sacrilege, three sins in killing three.

Cruel and sudden, hast thou since
Purpled thy nail in blood of innocence?
Wherein could this flea guilty be,
Except in that drop which it suck'd from thee?
Yet thou triumph'st, and say'st that thou
Find'st not thyself nor me the weaker now.
'Tis true ; then learn how false fears be ;
Just so much honour, when thou yield'st to me,
Will waste, as this flea's death took life from thee.

- John Donne

Ah, life was so much simpler back then.

Ode to divorce - Regina Spektor

The food that I’m eating
Is suddenly tasteless
I know I’m alone now
I know what it tastes like
So break me to small parts
Let go in small doses
But spare some for spare parts
There might be some good ones
Like you might make a dollar
I’m inside your mouth now
Behind your tonsils
Peeking over your molars
You’re talking to her now
And you’ve eaten something minty
And you’re making that face that I like
And you’re going in, in for the kill, kill
For the killer kiss, kiss for the kiss, kiss

I need your money, it’ll help me
I need your car and I need your love
So won’t you help a brother out?
Won’t you help a brother out?

---
My iPod, faithful (and defiantly nameless) companion for three years, is finally dying. The battery was the first to go; it only stays on for a couple of minutes. Now, it's the backlight. I still lug the mammoth (so weird and bulky-looking beside the spiffy new models) around, though, plugging it in my work computer so I could listen to the songs I've collected over the years. The boy got me a Creative Zen V Plus for Christmas, but I only use it on Sundays when I listen to my praise and worship lineup and need that extra bass. (My iPod's earphones have long been retired; I now use a cheap Sony one). Sigh. Letting go is hard to do.