MICHAEL JACKSON : 1958-2009

My cousin bob texted me around 9am today. I was deep in sleep having slept around 6.30am already. Bob doesn't text me alot nor do i text him. I probably havent sent my cousin a message more than 5 times this year, not neccessarily because i don't have anything to say to him but simply because i don't really text people. even my own mother would wail about how could i not text them back home for weeks, sometimes months. how would they ever know if im already a rotting corpse in my room here in cebu, she'd cpmplain. What a lonely corpse i must be if that happens. Simply put, i always say, im not really a text fan.

I was sleeping when that Mario Brothers ringtone sounded and thought the beep was my alarm. I grappled from my bed to get hold of my phone a the chair where i left it a few hours back and was disappointed that it was just a message and not my alarm that woke me up from such a dreamy state. i read the message and thought it was odd that my cousin would send me one. The message my cousin sent was "Mike patay na si Michael Jackson". I thought it was a joke or a cruel prank. Half-awake, i scrolled down ten times and hoped the screen would move and would flash something like "u got punked" with Ashton Kutcher wearing a devilish smile. Well, there wasnt any of that page so i replied, "That's sad".

Arriving at the office, the buzz was about Michael Jackson. Suddenly, everyone is a fan. Everybody claims to know his songs. And everyone else seem to know the moonwalk. I grabbed my chair and took my calls of the day.

I am a fan of Michael Jackson's music. Not so much the uber fanatic type, but i used to listen to his music back in the 90's when i discovered his Thriller album (which was released in the 80's) and when i was introduced to his moonwalk and crazy dance moves via a local TV station's almost daily airplay of his Bad Tour. His concerts were like prayer rallies, I thought back then. People collapsing and bursting into tears when he goes out of the stage. It was like the people were looking at the face of God and chanting songs like it's gonna save them. It always seemed to me like fanaticism gone way beyond but hey, i liked him anyway and the concerts were so...Michael Jackson. Until now, after watching numerous concerts on dvd, nothing still beats the showmanship of the gloved one . I remember I even bought his HIStory album- a compilation of his well-loved hits on cassette (CDs were unheard of back then).

The King of Pop is dead and BBC says the internet suffered a great deal of lag when news broke out about his demise. I am just glad that in this lifetime I lived to witness a true legend. We never got to live the days of the Beatles or Elvis but we were witness to the complex life and music of MJ.

Michael Jackson. May you rest in peace. 1958-2009

WHY TEACHERS ARE SO STRESSED...

These are forwarded by a colleague at work and I cant help but laugh so hard going through them. Makes me realize teachers should get a raise. :)

Lucky Strike

Lucky Strike

sitting.
waiting.
sighing in intervals
and waiting for
Newtonian apples to fall
like rain.
when will my luck ever come?

10.06.09
6.44am
in my room/cebu

BOB's just got hitched!

so the bride walked down the aisle and his man was waiting at the altar. fast forward, the groom on his tailored white suit kissed the bride and nothing could be more picture perfect than these two people who looked like models on television. the lady in the flowing white gown with a long train every bride would envy is Barbie Alvez and her man is Charles Calunod, my cousin, whom i and the rest of our kin fondly call BOB.

Watching my cousin say his vows sounded weird simply because my memories of him was when we were still little kids running around their wide backyard. The I do part snapped me into reality--- i am a kid no longer. For heavensakes i am 25!

So with my handy digicam, i couldnt help but snap and shoot some photos...It was a beautiful wedding. It was an expensive one! and i have never surrounded myself with that much socialites (Kim Chiu's sister was there and Cebu's hottest young designers Lord Maturan and Lorymer Villareal) in my whole life, ehem...but well, i did just fine and truly enjoyed watching my cousin tying the knot. from the edge of the one of the chapel's pews, i sat as one of the groom's men and i couldn't be any prouder to be there to show support.. May the newlyweds be blessed with a happy life together..:)






and the prenup photos courtesy of one of Cebu's top photographers were nothing short of sexy....

WHAT I DID LAST SUMMER

it's june. sunny days are over. rainy days are back. and with the change of season i have buried this blog in a tiny spot in my head hoping i'd forget my blogging duties as i tend to life's routine squabbles.

the past months have been quite a rollercoaster for me. i've had some highs and terribly low lows. cofusion, loneliness, homesickness, the feeling of being lost,of being meaningless, of being directionless, of fear that the future is bleaker than it already is....all of them toyed with my thoughts.

and it was such a treat that in between the sleepless days of anxiety, the always reliable summer is always there to refortify my state of being....talk about BANTAYAN ISLAND!

it was fun and i realized it's been quite a long time since i genuinely had one. i'm not so much a people person and i could bask in the sun alone and truly enjoy the beauty of the island. despite my companion's heeding to the call of sleep, i savored bantayn like i might not be able to go back to its fine white sand and crystal blue waters. can't wait where to go next..the Bohol plan with friends was a flop...now im thinking...i should plan alone...tsk!






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LEMONADE sa COLON

sa usa ka jip labay sa colon.
usa ka manong ka higkod ang panuigon naneguro sa iyang destinasyon.

manoy: bai, siguraduha baya bai ha nga di ko malapas sa lemonade.
a few seconds later...
drayber: diri ra naog noy. colonnade na.
manoy: di ni mao bai. unahan pa man to. sa may lemonade ba..
drayber: wa may lemonade noi. colonnade ra may naa diri sa colon.
manoy: drayb lang doi kay ako ray tan-aw kung mao na. dako man to kaug ngalan nga lemonade
drayber: wa lagi lemonade diri. colonnade ra.
manoy minaog. wa mibayad. gabagulbol.
manoy: peste ning draybera, magbuot.

5 GOLDFISHES

1.55am / 2.24.09

Five goldishes in an aquarium
thinking they are treading the empyrean
inside a burning room of loud music
and murky thoughts .
Have their mothers told them
their memory only lasts three seconds?
Just when they learn they're swimming in hell,
they're back in heaven again.
Three-second memory. a bliss?

****just so you know i have 5 goldfishes that i feed everyday. last weekend i saw them in my dreams drowning which is a very strange way of telling me that i had to change the water in the aquarium. never really thought goldishes have telepathic powers.. tsk tsk

kurtina

1.47am
2.23.o9

i feel a change coming.
the dust that cling on the
billowing breeze go past
the window pane.
it is sadness they always bring.
they blur the glass windows.
they antiquate the television
and alter the shade of things
into the lonely color of wood.
from my bed, i noticed
the green curtain swaying to
the direction of the air
spun by the whirring electric fan.
it's a shade sadder than yesterday
a color almost like the half-withered
leaves of May.

SINULOG 2009 - 2.8 M People in Attendance!!!

the pics are kinda late.. i was quite busy the past weeks that i didnt really have time to update my small space here... i have ots of posts lining up but cant pst em all at once...tsk tsk...

anyway, these are my pics last Sinulog. 2.5-2.8 Million people went out to celebrate the feast of the Sto. Nino...undeniably, Sinulog is the queen of all festivals and Cebu, the country's powerhouse of faith. Tangub won the contest for the traditional category while the Bee contingent won in the free interpretation category. Cebu was teeming with people. Celebritie were around to join the festival and everyone was on high spirits.

There was a photo contest held and I was kinda jealous of the contestants' high-end cameras. I just love the sound when they click and click. I bet they were taking great photos...well, i can only do so much with my digicam. I am posting em below...hope they're evn good enough...

My First Mass for '09

i had the time of my life when i wen to the Sto. Nino Basilica to hear mass. The novena is said each day until Sunday whne the big feast will happen and thousands upon thousans flock at the basilica to say their prayers and pay homage to the Sto Nino. It was a sight seeing all the devotees of all ages waving their hands to the Holy Child. It has been a long time since i have heard mass and I am glad I did. Somehow, my feet carried me to Colon and down the Basilica without any plans at all of going there.

And i took pics!

Sidetrip in Dumaguete

On my way back to Cebu, I had a little spare time to roam inside Silliman University, walk along Kagwasan Avenue, pray inside the Dumaguete's centuries-old stone church, and wander aimlessly around the city streets. Though I always pass by the city evrytime I go home, I never had the chance til last weekend to really immerse myself in the crowd (again)of the ever gentle Dumageuetenos. Indeed, the city has come along way since I last studied there - hmmm circa 2000, haha. more traffic, more stores, more bars, more booze lying around the boulevard, more foreigners and more people rushing to and fro. It wasn't as busy as it used to be and I love more the way it was before.Hmmm, but that didnt stop me from taking my precious time and enjoying it with the sights and sounds of the city.

I just love Dumaguete...except the weird NORECO posts that are literally on the street already. hahah...







ALIENS BAI
and then there came the omnipresent Koreans who are slowly invading the country - they're just everywhere. Next thing we'll hear they are also in Sulu studying at the Notre Dame of Jolo...LOL...well, this group of the arirang race does look somewhat lost..



I also was able to take, well, better photos than what i have above..LOL.. and of me at the Silliman University Library.












Meeting the Original Punk
....but nothing could prepare me to see Krissie's dad like this ----- which led me to ask, didn't the Dumaguete punks know that Ninoy was the original punk?...tsk tsk...

LET's TALK ABOUT BODYBUILDING

I have been passing along V. Rama for the longest time (on a jeepney of course) and have noticed the sign outside a fitness gym. It perplexed me how that person came with the whole idea of saving the country from the pit of poverty through....what else but BODYBUILDING.



i think the idea is very original...politicians should consider the idea. after all, body builders are a disciplined pack of people. maybe thru it we'll be less lethargic and be more alert and active with healthier lifestyle. the country will be sunnier with people beaming with smiles doing fitness exercises early morning or after work. no one is fat. everyone is lean and healthy. some can choose to have the mr universe bodies. or maybe not. with people who are on the go, we will spend just enough time for sleep instead of sleeping ten hours at night and still doze off in the office. it will be inevitable that with a healthier mindset, we'll ultimately see a progressing country as we slowly shed those fat.

maybe it will work. hmmmmm....it will be expensive but how about starting by sparing a room in health centers for working out...DOH?

SHAVED

sa jipney padung colon. 3 ka kolehiyala naghisgot-hisgot.

girl 1: di gyud ko ganahan mag short kay balhiboon man ako legs. nipis ra nuon.

girl 2: ako pod gali. pero dali ra na ui. unsay gamit sa shave. tig shave mu?

girl 3: di ko tig shave ui.lain kay manuslok-nuslok man gud.

girl 2. ako kay every after day jud ko tig shave.

girl 1: lage nuh? mag shave na diay kog sugod every after day arun masuot nako tong mga shorts nako.

KAWATAN? are we?

Sa may call center dapit sa Sugbo. Mga ahente nagtubag sa nagpanawag nga mga Amerkanong nanginahanglan ug tabang. Customer Service in short.

Caller: You are stealing our jobs. Why are you stealing our jobs?

Agent: I'm sorry sir but we are not allowed to answer such questions. But I can definitely help you with your account.

Caller: Your job is to answer questions. I am asking why are you stealing our jobs? ...Dya wanna know why?

Agent: Hmm, sure sir. Why?

Caller: Because you are cheap. All of you people are cheap.

Agent: Not at all. Sir... We have our jobs because we are smarter and we are better than you are. And we did not steal your jobs.

Caller hung-up.

Agent: dah.. hung-up lage ka!


***********************


Caller: I want an American agent. Tell your bosses they should transfer back all callcenters to America.

Agent: I appreciate that you raised that concern sir. Certainly, we will be escalating your views to our higher management.

Caller: And why in the heck am i calling all the time to the Philippines for chrissakes?

Agent: You see sir, your president and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who is my president, are very close friends. That's the reason why you are talking to someone in the Philippines right now.

Caller: That's bull. I don't believe you.

Agent: It's true sir.

Customer hung up.

ANDRES VOUITTON? - what's on his mind?

So what the heck is on Andres Bonifacio's mind?...

A bad cae of halitosis? Bad breath ba cya?
Kiss mark on his neck?
Hmmmmm....Andres Bonifacio going gay?
Babaeng Pilipina na ba xa?
Ka Andres can't breathe?
Is Cebu too polluted?
Is it a "Bawal UMIHI dito" sign?
Is Ka Andres trying out modeling? hankies in place of 'nek-nek mo'?
No decent hanky designers in the Phils?
Or just wala lang..


Tell me what u think....