Indian Kidnapper Joke

This is a take on a famous urban legend. Remember how your mother scared you into sleeping because if you don't a Bumbay will come and take you. Now this story tells us that Indian nationals are indeed into kidnapping. Their ring leader is Surinder Singh. So the police would only shout:
Pulis, ini! Surinder, Magsurrender ka na!!!!

Not Really Victims of Globalization

A review of the Sex at the Margins: Migration, Labour Markets and the Rescue Industry by Laura María Agustín Zed Books, 224pp, £16.99, said:
Most migrant women, including those who end up in the sex industry, have made a clear decision to leave home and take their chances overseas. They are not "passive victims" who must be "saved" by anti-trafficking campaigners and returned to their country of origin. Rather, frequently, they are headstrong and ambitious women who migrate in order to escape "small-town prejudices, dead-end jobs, dangerous streets and suffocating families". Shocking as it might seem to the feminist social workers, caring police people and campaigning journalists who make up what Agustín refers to as the "rescue industry", she has discovered that some poor migrant women "like the idea of being found beautiful or exotic abroad, exciting desire in others".
Let the debates begin.

Gabby Concepcion sparks 'Gabbymania!' at ABS-CBN; will do teleserye, films for Star Cinema

This is the headline of abs-cbnnews.com in a way to fan the dead flame on Gabby Concepcion, last seen singing in lounge bars in Vegas. Ramil Gulle, please stop this. You are embarassing me.

Are we seeing just the beginning of Gabbymania? Less than 24 hours since actor Gabby Concepcion set foot in the Philippines on Sunday--for the first time in 13 years --he already sent fans and production staff a-screaming when he came to ABS-CBN.

Didn't Gabby know? The Earth Hour was meant to silence him

Only One Winner of P250M Lotto Jackpot? I Smell an Abalos

Only one winner after weeks of the pot growing huger and huger. The last time saw very long queues which saw the pot rise from P216M to P249M. And only one winner. We are now under an administration that tries to make money wherever is possible. DA research funds. ZTE. NorthRail Project. You name it. You think PCSO is immaculate. Remember that time when Manila Mayor Fred Lim wanted to investigate PCSO and he won First Prize? How believable is that? It's almsot impossible so it's even safer to say it was rigged. I think someone would investigate on who actually won the jackpot. It's very probable that the "guy in Luzon" may pronounce his favorite food as boor-jehr!

Sid's Easter Poem

Poet's Easter Morning at the Beach

The sun shedding its cloudy shroud;
The grey mountain rising up to green;
The shore reclaiming its former shape;
The early swimmer surfacing to air;
The crab scurrying out of its burrow;
The hermit abandoning its shell;
The driftwood touching land;
The poet at the threshold of wakefulness,

for a time losing all words for all things,
forgetting all names and all meanings,
and it doesn’t have to be a Sunday.

Sid

I got a text from dear Babeth early this morning:

Fr a CCP Official - Sid Hildawa will be cremated this morning then wake will be at the Dis Bosco Chapels. He passed away last nyt due to pneumonia

So I said something about April Fools
Her next txt was:

Sid's last entry in his journal yesterday night said: "I tried to cross the river but the current was so strong."

Letting Go

Why Some of My Lady Friends are Having a Hard Time Searching

Some years ago, I was awakened early one morning by a phone call from a friend.
She had just broken up with a boyfriend she still loved and was desperate to
justify her decision. “Can you believe it!” she shouted into the phone. “He
hadn’t even heard of Pushkin!”

Read the rest of this essay about literary noncompatibility and why it is indeed a matter of love or muerte

Music Sunday: We are all Sons of The Boss

Which is true. For years, I have been carrying Bruce S's book and listening intently to his music. Although my music has since expanded, I still care for The Boss. Here's the best albums so far this year
And how stupid of me to know only now, New York Times features a superblog written by Suzanne Vega, Rosanne Cash, Andrew Bird and Darrell Brown

The Explanation

It was supposed to be a relay race but I was the only one waiting for them. They all lost their batons. And a few meters would be the nude beach zone. So that was the dilemma. I had to help these three girls who strayed from the path

Why I Hit the Beach

Crazy Post

I am in Ilocos right now, listening to a local Ilocano radio station announcer reading texts. One sender wrote "BTW" and the announcer tried pronouncing it as "bitiw" or "bitew" or "bataw." Dumbfounding. Fifty words women hate Number 9 is male pattern baldness. No 20 is Superbowl.
Tentacle love. Please explain

Hoy Gloria! Bayaran mo Strawberries mo!

A farmer in La Trinidad billed the office of the President P6,000 for the strawberries she and her staff collected for the photo opportunity. Ignacio Canuto said PGMA got 60 kilos last Black Saturday. For P100 a kilo, that goes for P6,000. Fair enough? Not so, sabi ng DA. They paid him P7,200 to shut up and not to talk with the media.
Well, better than coming up with a blog and telling the president to pay up! Team Ignacio! Yap yap yap

You Still Have a Chance to Join the Gucci Gang or Be a Playboy Pinoy Centerfold

Still no winner of the Superlotto 6/49. 42-43-27-24-21-7! The pot was worth P216,452,088.00. The pot is expected to reach P230 million. Of course, that is still peanuts for Ben Abalos. Also, subtract P3 M if you want Brian's blog to stop. Get your ticket before the Sunday draw.
Also on the left side, our man "Doc" Prudente is dead. Prudente, a political prisoner during the Martial Law years, was a pillar of the education sector. He headed the PUP, then known as the Philippine College of Commerce. On Nov. 11, 1987, Nemesio survived an ambush by unidentified gunmen in Manila's Sta. Mesa district. He survived the attack.
On the front side, Loren Legarda said that she will go after thepinoytube.com for being lewd and exploitative of women and children. Remember the winning combination? 42 and 43 year old men preying on women 27, 24, 21 and 7 years old? I am not aware of the site until Loren mentioned it. The good senator also successfully sued boybastos.com last year.
Playboy Philippines was also launched. No frontal nudity so L.L. could be on the centerfold. I heard they want Tina T's sister to grace the magazine. I much prefer Tina T.

Burnham Park is now a WiFi Zone

Burnham Park is now a wifi zone. I am not sure if it is a free wifi zone. The challenge now is to surf without snatchers, preachers, vendors and badings pestering you. Try renting a boat and surf in peace unless they turn on the fountain. But isn't that a fun thing? Wifi in Burnham.
Cafe by the Ruins is also now a free wifi zone. People there will tell you I was the one who nagged them into it.
Also Cordillera Coffee in SM, Hotel Elizabeth, Nagomi Spa at Midland, Burnham View Hotel and Zola are free wifi. Also Igorot Lodge where the UP Writers Workshop would be holding their thing!

Not a Malubay Fan

Someone commented on Malubay:

Alright, my only question is how the tiny girl is still on. She looks so disconnected from everything she's singing/saying. Does she even understand the words she's saying? Who is voting for her? I don't think Chikezie deserved to win, but he shouldn't have been kicked off yet.

By aclare on 03/27/2008 at 3:43pm

Two answers, my friend:
Team Brian
Jasmine Trias

Tibet

In one guerrilla maneuver, Kawayan de Guia and I draped Tibetan prayer flags at the "dragon lamp" after Ferdi Balanag and Karlo Altomonte's Sex, Drug and Rock n Roll performance at the Cafe by the Ruins last night. Just our way of saying, Free Tibet!
Now the figurehead of all this worldwide movement is, of course, the Dalai Lama. Come to think of it, why is he so coooooooooool?
Here's the reason. Meditayshun.

Meditation may increase a person's ability to feel empathy and benevolence for others, according to a study published March 26 in the journal PLoS ONE.

Scientists asked subjects — both expert meditators and novices — to practice compassion meditation while inside a functional magnetic resonance imaging machine (fMRI). The participants heard sounds designed to provoke an empathetic response, such as a distressed woman calling out, as well as positive sounds (a baby laughing) and neutral sounds (background noise at a restaurant).

When subjects heard the sounds, both groups experienced more brain activity in areas associated with empathy and emotions while meditating than while not meditating. The distressed sounds elicited stronger empathetic responses than the positive and neutral noises, and the brain activity in these regions was much stronger in the seasoned meditators.

If Only For One Night

It is again that time in AI when they are made to sing a song that came out when they were born, leaving us brooding and nonvoting fans another time to ponder about wisdom and aging. Chikezie, the 22 year old Californian with only one name, sang "If Only for One Night" if I recall was sung by the late Luther Vandross and it was not even his best song. Simon Cowell said, "You chose the wrong song last night. ... It wasn't original." I agree.
Here are some of the songs in 1985 that Chikezie should have sung:
"Nightshift" by Commodores, "Glory Days" or "I'm On Fire" by Bruce Springsteen, "Suddenly" by Billy Ocean, "Valotte" by Julian Lennon (Ha ha ha), "Summer Of '69 by Bryan Adams, "Lay Your Hands On Me"by Thompson Twins, "Broken Wings" by Mr. Mister, "Don't You (Forget About Me)" by Simple Minds, "Sea Of Love" by Honeydrippers, "Raspberry Beret" by Prince & The Revolution, "Things Can Only Get Better" by Howard Jones, "The Boys Of Summer" by Don Henley, "Fortress Around Your Heart" by Sting, "Voices Carry" by 'Til Tuesday, "Be Near Me" by ABC, "Get It On (Bang A Gong)" by Power Station and "You Are My Lady" by Freddie Jackson

or better yet, "We are the World" by USA for Africa

Another Five Things I Learned from Brian

1) You wait for months, even years, for a leather bag. What do you need to wait for? An elephant or a seal with impeccable skin and great fashion sense?
2) No matter how touching your story is. If you misspell the last word, people would remember you for that. It's called "Last Word Syndrome."
3) The way to Celine's heart is to show her a Vogue article about "Twenty Must-Haves" and let her choose one. The way to Tina T's heart is to show the Aristocrat Restaurant menu and let her choose all or one. The way to Pepper T's heart is the locker room of the Pen.
4) Yugatech has many enemies
5) Whatever happens to the blog, it would be discussed in Philippine Journalism 101. I will not have respect to those teachers who will not.

The Daily Brian Fix

I decided not to open Brian's blog and read the Star instead because it's free in McDo. I only noticed that Bea Ledesma, the alleged ghost writer of Celine Lopez, still has a column and -- I don't know if it's the printer's error but -- she is all red. She was bathed in red light and although the "pensive from below"made her look slimmer, she looks like a lechon. And she still refused to talk about Brian.

Bad EggS

Nanay Mameng Diunida, chair of the urban poor organization KADAMAY), led members of her organization, the Anakpawis partylist and the NNARA Youth-UP Diliman in an Ouster Sunday egg hunt at the public market in Trabajo, Sampaloc. They searched for the Easter eggs until they collected all the 10 eggs that spell OUST GLORIA.
Also:
A UROLOGIST
GUITAR SOLO
RIOTOUS GAL
OUT GO RAILS
RITUAL GOOS
GOAL IS TOUR
SUGAR TO OIL

Update on the Punctuation Family

Cory Aquino's : puts -PGMA force in ?
Kris's delayed . becomes ...
Colon cancer is in the genes so Noynoy has a ;

Bad Day for Pacquiao

Pacquiao visits Quiapo Church and it's big deal for the media. Rep. Joson filed a bill banning boxing to prevent ugly boys from kissing Ara Mina when they become famous. Pacquiao would rather face Julio Diaz rather than Joey Marquez because Marquez felt he was robbed by the judges when they said that he overpriced the walis tingting he bought when he was mayor (?) Freddy Roach was squashed (bad pun) but survived a traffic accident in LA. There's a tsismis in Ilocos that Chavit Singson bribed the judges to give the victory to Pacquiao.

Political Ad

This is a Tim Yap Post

And it is in French, so you can enter with a visa to Embassy

This is not a DJ Montano Post

This is not a Tina T Post

This is my idol, Aretha Franklin, from a recent engagement. The comments in the Celine in a bikini made me tune off for now. The comments are nasty but not witty. The Stupids have taken over.

Canadian Reporter

Reporter Makes a Flip - This happened to Noli de Castro and Lito Lapid

Create a Crowd

Counting the people in a crowd is a test of a writer's objectivity. If you are for that group, you add a thousand or a hundreds. If you are against what a crowd is demostrating for, you subtract. Either that or you have a bad sense of crowd estimating. To practice, here's a French site about creating a crowd. Learn some of the words and you couls manipulate the number, space in between and even the type of crowd you want. It's fun!!!

Punctuation Family

Cory Aquino has cancer of the colon.
Her daughter easily missed her period.
Her son is in a pause.

Five More Things I Learned from the Gucci Gang Controversy

1) It's not advisable to have a wiki entry about you. Especially if you are controversial, you have to edit and re-edit your life because of the vandals and truth-tellers. Case in point: Tina Tinio, of course
2) Friendster is better. Brian just had a friendster account. Of course, Tina T wants to be your friend.
3) Why do we hate Tina Tinio? Her photo with alleged Celine Lopez's ghost writer, Bea Ledesma, is so...challenging. They take up too much space you don't know if they were posing beside Mayon Volcano. Chocolate Hills, the manor of Nash or Smokey Mountain.
4) Some people actually check Brian's blog every five minutes waiting for his every word. And then they comment, First! The problem is they aren't so they look like fools.
5) Jobert Sucaldito as Tim Yap??? Then Boy Abunda as DJ Montano would suffice. And another thing, Boy Abunda really uses his magic mirror because his columns for the Star mirror the wikipedia

Hitler in Boracay

Sorry, Brian G. The newest sensation in Bora is not the Gucci Gang or your absence but the Fuhrer himself.

Parokya

Right now, I am at the Cordillera Coffee. A few meters from me are the Parokya ni Edgar having a concert courtesy of Samsung. The audience which in most places could be called "birthday-party exclusive" are screaming and wiggling. The Manila people have gone home. The young Baguio metlogs can not believe their eyes and ears to be this near from their idols. They have played seven songs so far. I am drinking coffee and saw this story on civet dropping coffee from my friend Rene Bartolo of Davao

Tough

Jo Ellen Gryzb and Robin Chandler, authors of 'The Nice Factor: The Art of Saying No' want you to stop being too nice and start being tough. Here's their 10-step guide to getting tough

1. Don't smile Smiling gives someone permission to think you don't really mean what you say as you have this big grin on your face
2. Stand your ground Backing off is wishy-washy. Standing your ground gives weight to your intention. This means both physically and verbally
3. Tell the truth Let the other person know what you are feeling. Let them know you aren't comfortable with what they are doing
4. Agree when it's unexpected If someone tells you you're being silly, agree. They have no place to go after that. "You're a bit touchy." "You're right, I am." It takes the wind out of their sails
5. Don't point fingers If you intend to tell someone you don't like their behaviour, start sentences with how you feel, not what's wrong with them. Pointing an accusatory finger will only make them more defensive
6. Make up a list of handy excuses This will get you out of situations long enough to see clearly what's going on before you put yourself back in the fray
7. Change your mind whenever you want to You have the right to change your mind, whether it's two minutes, two hours or two months after the fact. There will be times when you don't want to honour your commitments
8. Keep things short and sweet Gabbling won't help, it just gives the other person rope to hang you with
9. Don't engage Never apologise or explain. Don't supply fuel for someone to use against you
10. Get your 'no' in quickly Set your marker right at the beginning of the discussion. You can always change your mind later, but if you say it fast, it's out on the table and can't be ignored

W.H.Auden's Porn Poem

The Platonic Poem

Our eyes met. I felt sick. My knees turned weak.
I couldn't move. I didn't know what to say.
In a blur I heard words, myself like a stranger speak
"Will you come to my room?" Then a husky voice, "O.K."

This is the only stanza I can quote. The rest are pornographic but in rhyme.

The Sebadoh Gloria Concert

As a socialist eventologist, I had to come up with a disco party in Burnham Park this Black Saturday, playing the DJ/MC with a mixlist of 70s dance music to expurgate the GG. So far, it's fun. And no freebies. Kaya mo yan, Tiny Tim?

Why is "My Way" a Killer Karaoke Song?

I was pondering on this question a long time now being the authority on "karaoke deaths." Now I know why. Claude François, the French pop star, who composed "My Way" was accidentally electrocuted when he tried to fix a broken light bulb while standing in a filled bathtub. The song was actually entitled "Comme d'habitude." So you got the connection there. Death. Electricity. Karaoke.

Tina T

Brian is officially on leave but the commenting continues. Here's the old Tina T

The new wikied, wicked Tina T!

Idol Update

Basketball

It's been years since I last played pick-up basketball. The last time was at the fire station at Camp John Hay and that's ages ago. I think I have to go back for health sake (when we were young, we stopped playing for health sake. Dislocated shoulder. broken fingers) Like Bryan Boy, I looked at the Internet for some gears and here's what I found:


Not impressive you say. But then our idol Phoenix Suns guard/environmental pointman Steve Nash created this new basketball shoe, Nike Trash Talk $100, with an upper made of leather and synthetic leather pieces collected from the factory floor, mid-sole from factory scrap foam, and the outsole using less toxic rubber plus Nike Grind material from outsole manufacturing waste.

But the ball will make up for this environmental awareness. Nike Limited Edition Jordan 23 Basketball ($150). Only 2323 of the full-grain leather balls are being made, featuring the trademark Jumpman on the side, and a graphic chronicling his Airness' triumphs wrapping around.

So I Lied, Here's the Last Post for Today

Psssst. Here's what the prim-and-proper-but-still-tsismosos were saying about "le scandale in la perla Manille"
Don't mention the B word here when you comment

My Last Brian Blog For Today

Hey, don't hate the Gucci Gang. I'm sure some of you anonymous commenters are now queueing for the 6/49 lotto tickets hoping to win the P200 million jackpot so you can finally join them. Hey, and before you do, read the Bible. This is the GG Bible:

McCartney"s Not Really Happy Now

From Vulture. Amanda is "Back in the USSR." I felt bad because her streaked hair reminds me of my neighbors back in the 1980s. And Ramielle? Not good but I think the Fil-Ams are indeed solid behind her. She's only behind to who else? Brian! Ha ha. Ar chu.

Stop the Presses (Hey, They Stopped)! The President Commented on Brian's Blog

It's true! The appearances of Parisian Belle (Is datchu KC?) and Henry, the pusher notwithstanding, it's Madame President's comment that made my day:

March 20, 2008

Dear Mr. Gorrell,

It is my pleasure to personally visit your site. I felt sad that one of our citizens has caused you traumatic and agitated your psychopathic tendencies. I already gave a marching order to study this case and a possibility to pay you back the said amount.

However, I will encourage you to return to my country to receive that amount. The Filipino people will be glad to meet you in person. Incidentally, my present administration has a similar experience to yours. I value transparency, accountability, integrity and honesty, which my people give me a high regard.

Last night, I talked to God for guidance against those who wanted me to resign in my managerial position. God wants me to stay in power until 2009 or more. It is the same God who wants His (gay) people to be liberated against oppression. I am His instrument in bringing PEACE, PROSPERITY, and JUSTICE to this land.

I am also tired and displeasured to hear negative remarks against my family. My direct connection to the Supreme Being has guided me throughout these years. We still pray and kneel before we sleep at night. On the deathbed of the late Pope, he gave me his blessings and persuade me to be always humble. Humility and relying to His providence are the keys for eternal happiness.

Brian, I will direct my "men" to deliver justice for your humiliation. At this moment, I am in Bora for my lenten break. Ug mangita fafa, charing...

Sincerely,

Ate Glue

Supahfweak

I bet you sang that when you read it. That's the beauty of an unforgettable opening line of a song. And Nash, can you guess the immortal movie lines in my other blog?

L Blogger

Archu? Test here:

1. You post song lyrics of a song on your blog, as though the songwriter wrote it specially for your miserable soul. Ya, right.
2. You talk about how discriminated you feel against homophobes and concurrently, why you hate men. How ironic.
3. You have a category dedicated to your fluctuating emotions called, erm, Emotions.
4. You vengefully and viciously write about how your Ex has started dating your best friend.
5. You post eeeeeeendless photographs of yourself and that delicately waxed-to-death hair of yours.
6. You post eeeeeeendless photographs of your pussy. And I mean the cat.
7. You don’t blog on Thursday nights because you’re at Play with the girls.
8. A rainbow flag don the corner of your blog.
9. Your Google AdSense has ads promoting GAY COWBOYS and 12-INCH-DILDOS.
10. You have blankanvas on your Blogroll.

Unholy Week

Some photos from the fabulously surreal David LaChapelle

The "Makapal" Controversy

After blurting it out, those in the media already were already rewinding their tapes and listening to it. Was it "Makapal" or "Makapag"? Among the media, the "Makapag" were the Team Yap and the "Makapal" were the "Team Brian." Meaning, there are far more members of the "Team Brian." Common sense would tell you that if he said, Makapag, why did he have to repeat it and not just continue? Maybe it's Freudian. But more so because he has a lisp. He stuttered five times in his speech.
But PGMA's flubbing his name is a class act. That's the humor I wanted from the President not sending him to Basilan like what she did with the class goat years ago. Have fun! Malamig dito sa Baguio pero not anymore.

Health Advisory: Sterilize the Nails for Crucifixion

So it's not enough, to be writhing in pain as you are nailed and suspended under the cruel sun, watched by thousands who wanted you to do something like die. Now the DOH said that you have to sterilize the nails for your health's sake.
Which reminds me of Brian. All these crucifiying.
Hey, he is getting interesting anew. And he is the only one who feels for Marcel Crespo. Tsk tsk. And Tiny Tim is back and OMG the appearance of the apo of The Apo. Our holyhours suddenly became unholyhours.

Jimi

Internet and Journalism

Know why internet journalism will rule the world? The newspapers are so focused on the same things. Project for Excellence in Journalism's annual State of the News Media report said: Two stories - the war in Iraq and the 2008 presidential election campaign - represented more than a quarter of the stories in newspapers, on television and online last year, the project found. Take away Iraq, Iran and Pakistan, and news from all of the other countries in the world combined filled up less than 6 percent of the American news hole.

100 Best Last Lines

this way this way this way this way this way this way this
way out this
way out
O

–Ronald Sukenick, Out (1973)


This is the difference between this and that. –Gertrude Stein, A Novel of Thank You (1958)

Now everybody— –Thomas Pynchon, Gravity’s Rainbow (1973)

And the last word from the ringleader of Gucci Gang:

And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God bless Us, Every One! –Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol (1843)

Tiny sabi nyo e di Tiny. More here

Have No Moolah to Join the Gucci Gang But Want the Same Hi?

Join the DIY Bucci Gang here

Eric Clapton in North Korea's Approved Lyric Sheet

From McSweeney's

Wonderful Tonight

It's late on another glorious evening; she's wondering what clothes to wear.
She puts on just a modest amount of makeup, and brushes her unpretentiously short black hair.
And then she asks me, "Do I look all right?"
And I say, "Yes, you look wonderful—but not wonderful in a seductive way—tonight."

Tears in Heaven

Would you know my name
If I saw you in some socialist paradise in the afterlife?
Would it be the same
Again, if I saw you in some socialist paradise in the afterlife?

Cocaine

If you got bad news (which does not exist), you wanna kick them blues (ditto).
Unlike Americans, don't do cocaine.
When your day is done and you wanna stay. Go home.
No Korean has ever tried cocaine.

Five Things I Learned from the Gucci Gang

1) Frenemies. enemies acting like they're best friends.
2) Some people actually dream of having HIV+ lovers
3) Chowder. Hmmm. Used to be bulalo.
4) The rich should ukay more often
5) The rich are actually clueless

Patis and Birdman

On Saturday, April 19, 2008 Kusina Salud presents, "Bird-Man: An Earth Day Celebration" .
Bird-Man begins at 3 pm with a talk/open forum by Wild Bird Photographer Romy Ocon, entitled "For the Birds". He will also give a slide-show presentation of the numerous birds he has passionately documented in their natural habitat. This will be followed by the ribbon-cutting of Romy's exhibit in our small gallery. Please visit http://romyocon. blogspot. com for more information.

The second half of our celebration is yet untitled because it is a 15-minute performance art collaborative by multi-awarded poetess Nerisa Guevara, seasoned thespians Nonie and Shamaine Buencamino, inimitable sound designer Malek Lopez, and educator-visual designer Blums Borres. As we speak, we are setting Nerisa's poetry to Malek's music, which will be followed by Nonie and Shamaine's interpretation of the "songs" into movement. Technical Director Mark Lakay and Production Manager Perky Parong will provide the necessary support
system to ensure the seamlessness of this once in a lifetime performance.

Tickets are PHP 500 each which also includes an all-day vegetarian buffet and a raffle of 13 prizes from artists and entrepreneurs: Master Potters John Pettyjohn and Ugu Bigyan, Brass Sculptor Carlito Ortega, Manila Tourguide Carlos Celdran, Mosaic Artist Denise Celdran, Photographer Isa Lorenzo, Chef Billy King, Accessories Designer Anton Pamintuan, Casa San Pablo, Casa Rap, Earthkeepers, Pilar Antiques and Patis Tesoro.

Proceeds from ticket sales will be shared with the Philippine Bird Photography Forum and the Artists Welfare Project. Please reserve now as limited seating is available. Kusina Salud is located in San Pablo, Laguna. Call/text Apple or April at 0921.7726985 or 049.5736155. Please e-mail us at kusinasalud@ gmail.com or kusinasalud. yahoo.com

Brian is Dead but Not that Brian

Dear friends,

It is with deep sadness that we inform you of the recent passing away of Dr.
Brian Fegan.

Brian was a dynamic figure for some 40 years in Philippine studies; a scholar
who was unfathomable about rice growing in particular, about which he wrote his
extensive thesis, as well as many other anthropological/cultiural aspects of
Philippine society.

Brian was admired by all who came to know him, and not simply for his remarkable
fluency in Tagalog. In the last 10 or so years he was employed as a consultant
on Philippine matters by international and Australian organizations, and,
knowing Brian, he was adept at his tasks, and told it as it was.

Brian had been suffering from asbestos induced illness for several years, and
died quietly in his sleep, always optimistic to the end.

With all sincerity, we will miss Brian and is indomitable character and profound
experience and guidance.

"Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine"

Patti Smith sang this in her "Gloria." Who could not want to listen to the next lyric? That is the glory of great opening lines in songs and stories. They get you into the groove. They set the mood. "She was more like a beauty queen in a movie scene," MJ sang, and you know that Billy Jean is somebody you need to meet. When the Righteous brothers started their "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" with "You never close your eyes anymore when I kiss your lips," you just want to cry.

Hexed Exes of the Bora Rich

After all these excesses, sometimes you wanted to see naman the lives of the bading rurogs.
Napakasimple, may mga tuba gatherers pa and bathing by the waterfalls.

Enough of Brian, Lets Talk About Me: Bryan Boy

Ha ha ha. A quarter of a million holding on to the grapevine about the Gucci Gang. And now, Brian would be opening the comments pages: the most interesting of them all.
But now, we go to Bryan Boy for a schadenfreudeian view of comments:
girl interrupted wrote: Celine stole my doll when we were kids and never returned it
xoxo wrote: I know Brian (personally) and DJ was a passing acquaintance. And yep B's stories are true. DJ is a sleazeball who ripped B off. It's just sad how these blog has rocked and devastated several people including mine. I had 5 days of bad sleep, cant eat and think right. I hope DJ pays up soon. Although B did someting cruel to me as well, I think DJ should get his act up now before this crosses over to mainstream media.
Too late, xoxo
jon wrote: to bring out the crazy: well, let me tell you one thing... i'm rooting for EVERYBODY!!! I'm not taking sides. Team Brian! Team Celine! Team DJ! This whole "thing" is even more screwed up than me which I love!!! It's like anything I blog now is gonna be boring. I mean come on, how can someone TOP that? I spoke to a few other bloggers and they are ALL hooked... NOBODY is blogging anymore lol.
Here's the best:
from vannie
I guess it's almost art. The sordid tale with the glamorous pictures, very well done, very Bret Easton Ellis. But why is your hand on Mephistopheles' leg? And what's with the cheeky smile on your face? Are you his pimp? Are you the Keyser Söze in this tale. I think you are :)

Nobel Fish Fries Anew

As sure as I'm standing here, I can see the "Pacquiao Unity headlines" coming. Here's from gmanews.tv:

Palace sees unity among Filipinos after Pacquiao victory

03/16/2008 | 01:16 PM

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang on Sunday congratulated Manny Pacquiao for his victory over Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez, saying his triumph had once again proven that the Filipino can excel in any endeavor.

Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Lorelei Fajardo said Pacquaio's victory also showed that the Filipino can still be united as a nation.

Once again the Pacman has proven that the Filipino can excel in any endeavor and that we can all be united as a nation for the interest of out country," Fajardo said.

Here's abs-cbnnews.com:



Filipinos unite anew for Pacquiao, even for just a few hours

The Filipino people will once again be united, even for just a few hours, to support their boxing hero, Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao as he battles Mexico's Juan Manuel Marquez in their much-awaited rematch on Saturday night (Sunday morning in the Philippines).

Pacquiao, who is also called the "People’s Champ", will try to wrest the World Boxing Council (WBC) superfeatherweight title from Marquez...

For me, this is the blow-by-blow account that untied the nation.
This is better

Pacquiao

Ciara Sotto sang the Philippine national anthem Lupang Hinirang followed by Teo Gonzales who sang Mexico's El Himno Nacional. Filipino American Jasmine Villegas sang the Star Spangled Banner. That's all you need to know because Pacquiao won b a split decision like the singing of the national anthems. He floored Marquez in the third round but true to form, the Mexican came back. Both had bloody eyes. It was a good fight. Click on the pix to see how strong P's left was

Cafe by the Ruins Turns 20

Cafe by the Ruins will be celebrating 20 years of Feeding Souls and Pleasing Palates since 1988. From March 26 to 29, there would be food and frenzied performances galore. The opening of the installation and photo exhibit would be on the 26th with Ruel Bimmuyag and friends doing the pattong. The video on Robert Villanueva, one of the founders of the cafe, would be shown at night. The Thanksgiving Canao would be on the 28th featuring performances from Karlo Altomonte and Pinikpikan. Karla Delgado will be holding a food writing workshop in the morning of 29 and at night, the Baguio Writers Group will hold a poetry reading. Nancy Pobanz would be conducting a mixed media collage workshop followed by a performance from Yazon Banal and a jamming concert from Repolyo Republic, Alikabok and Spaceflower Show.

Resumes That Work

Here are 36 resumes that are effective and pleasing to the eye without being too OA
If you noticed, there are white spaces galore, none use Times New Roman, they are simple, there are cotnrasts and the names are big. They used bullets and the contact infos are all one one spot.
And of course, you must watch this amazing video: The return of the "We Are the World" powerhouse singers in Tokyo

The Thing

"...our times have demonstrated what it means for the gates of the underworld to be opened... Things whose enormity nobody could have imagined...turned our world upside down." C.G. Jung 1981 PS 37 The Bronx New York

The Thing about Sideviews

The Sins of Patronage

Everyday there are full-page ads from a local government unit or a group of LGUs vowing their support of the administration of President Arroyo. Today, there was a correction of an ad from the Assumptionistas eternally beholden to the President. It corrected names of deceased included among the signatures. A full page ad from the Inquirer costs about P250,000. The Assumptionista correction cost about P75,000. This infuriates me because they eat up space that would have had stories from journalists like me. Instead, we are bumped off because the mayor of Maasin, Southern Leyte is spending a huge chunk of its IRA to say that he loves to lick the ass of an evil person. Until I remembered what a powerful person in authority told me last week: that these ads were paid by the government. It all made sense now. You pay for the ad so that you can have a semblance that people are still on your side while at the same time, you dislodge stories that are mostly critical of your government. This is the essence of the patronage politics. Hey, I pay you so that you will support and silence me. President Arroyo (God Bless her Soul) will be paying generals, mayors, governors and many, many others until 2010. She will be using up our money to silence these potential enemies. She has to stay till 2010 because she has to pay the people who made her buy her way through the elections. Which meant that she had to extend her term to pay off her enemies now. That's why we also need to cut her now and cut cleanly.

Meanwhile in Vietnam

In my earlier blog, I wrote about the culling of cats in Beijing. Meanwhile, in Vietnam there was a hamster craze because this is The Year of the Rat. There were so many hamsters bought as pet that the Vietnam government decided to curb it. Anyone caught with a hamster would be fined for as much as $1,800. Meanwhile, a London retiree (Nash, take note) who allegedly confessed to a pair of cats that he had beaten his partner to death was cleared of murder on Friday. David Henton, 73, was accused of killing Joyce Sutton at her home near Neath, in south Wales, in January 2006. He was arrested after police bugged his car and home and believed they had heard him confessing to Sutton's pets, Twinkie and Pudsey.

Stripped

Roget and his Thesaurus

Peter Mark Roget loves to make lists, because that was his therapy for medness and the early deaths of his loved ones. "As a boy, he stumbled upon a remarkable discovery -- that compiling lists of words could provide solace, no matter what misfortunes might befall him. He was particularly fond of cataloguing the objects, both animate and inanimate, in his environment. As an adult, he kept returning to the classification of words and concepts. Immersion in the nuances of language could invariably both energize him and keep his persistent anxiety at bay."

Pi Day

Today is the birthday of my brother, the ukay-ukay magnate of South City Homes in Binan, Laguna. It is also the birth aniversary of Albert Einstein, who not many knows is a radical in politics. Because in numerical annotation, March 14 is 3/14 it is also pi day.

New Killer Karaoke Song: Country Roads

A Thai doctor and her friends had a karaoke party and were murdering John Denver's Country Roads when a neighbor came to them and shot her and her seven guests. Weenus Chumkamnerd, 52, put his gun to the head of a respected female doctor and seven of her guests as they partied at her home in Songkhla Province, South Thailand. He said that he was infuriated with the singing. How bad was the singing? He didn't realize he shot his brother-in-law, who was among the guests.

Ten Things to Avoid

Food

Flora Pro-Activ

Hovis Wholemeal bread

Actimel Pro-Biotic drink

Nutri-grain cereal bars

Diet Coke

Beauty

Clairol Nice 'n Easy 120 Hair Colour 120

Nivea Moisturising Lotion

Calvin Klein 'Eternity'

Olay 'Regenerist' Replenishing Cream

Garnier's Ambre Solaire Gloss Bronzer

Seven Downloadable Poetry Chapbooks

Plath, Larkin, T.S. Eliot, Seamus Heaney, Ted Hughes, Sassoon and WH Auden.
Here's Sylvia's

You're


Clownlike, happiest on your hands,
Feet to the stars, and moon-skulled,
Gilled like a fish. A common-sense
Thumbs-down on the dodo's mode.
Wrapped up in yourself like a spool,
Trawling your dark as owls do.
Mute as a turnip from the Fourth
Of July to All Fools' Day,
O high-riser, my little loaf.

Vague as fog and looked for like mail.
Farther off than Australia.
Bent-backed Atlas, our traveled prawn.
Snug as a bud and at home
Like a sprat in a pickle jug.
A creel of eels, all ripples.
Jumpy as a Mexican bean.
Right, like a well-done sum.
A clean slate, with your own face on

Who's your Juan dela Cruz?

In the U.S., they are John Doe, Jane Doe, John Q. Public, Joe Blow, Joe Schmoe, Joe Sixpack, John Smith, Eddie Punchclock (for blue-collar workers), Joe Botts (particularly in New York City), J. S. Ragman (U. S. Navy). In the UK, these are Joe Bloggs, John Smith, A N Other, R Punter, "Tom, Dick, and Harry", Ronnie (or Ronny) Arbuckle. But what about Vietnam, Slovakia or Brazil?

Drinking Water in Sual, Pangasinan 100 Years Ago

Many Americans were puzzled by the news, in 1902, that United States soldiers were torturing Filipinos with water. The United States, throughout its emergence as a world power, had spoken the language of liberation, rescue, and freedom. This was the language that, when coupled with expanding military and commercial ambitions, had helped launch two very different wars. The first had been in 1898, against Spain, whose remaining empire was crumbling in the face of popular revolts in two of its colonies, Cuba and the Philippines. The brief campaign was pitched to the American public in terms of freedom and national honor (the U.S.S. Maine had blown up mysteriously in Havana Harbor), rather than of sugar and naval bases, and resulted in a formally independent Cuba. The Americans were not done liberating. Rising trade in East Asia suggested to imperialists that the Philippines, Spain’s largest colony, might serve as an effective “stepping stone” to China’s markets. U.S. naval plans included provisions for an attack on the Spanish Navy in the event of war, and led to a decisive victory against the Spanish fleet at Manila Bay in May, 1898. Shortly afterward, Commodore George Dewey returned the exiled Filipino revolutionary Emilio Aguinaldo to the islands. Aguinaldo defeated Spanish forces on land, declared the Philippines independent in June, and organized a government led by the Philippine élite. More from New Yorker

Holy Week

Next week is Holy Week. Eat fish. A message from David Lachapelle (who also took that photo of Love below)

The Juice

After the wedding, the Baguio girl (whom people there thought that she was the the bride) called up the groom and said something like, "It's your fault. Now I can't even show myself in public." And she is indeed not showing her face lately. The press release of her camp is now saying that she has set her eyes on a congressman (once married to an actress) and another ex-congressman who ran for senator. Well, the ex-cong was indeed becoming a frequent visitor of Baguio.

Drowning, Shabu and Sakada

Nearly 2.5 million people were surveyed in Bangladesh, China, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam by UNICEF and the Alliance for Safe Children, a US-based aid group. The survey found injuries were the leading cause of death in children older than one year. Drowning was the top cause of injury-related deaths in all countries, accounting for about half of all cases.

The use of illegal drugs, particularly of methamphetamine hydrochloride or “shabu," is becoming an emerging cause of stroke among Filipinos, according to the Stroke Society of the Philippines (SSP). Dr Jose Navarro, vice president of SSP, said “shabu" can cause stroke because it can initiate inflammation of the arteries in the brain.

Not even arthritis stopped a retired “sakada" in Hawaii from being honored by the Philippine consulate after celebrating his 103rd birthday last week, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported on Tuesday. Juan Cube, born on March 5, 1905, is the oldest surviving former sugar cane plantation worker who was among the 50 Ilokanos who hopped on a Japanese ship in 1924 and landed in the US island-state.

Azon

Azon, the wife of Balweg, died of a heart attack last night. She was supposed to write the book about his husband a year ago. But some CPLA people campaigned against it because they wanted to be in the limelight and the book project was shelved.

Beijing to Slaughter 50,000 Cats

Hundreds of cats a day are being rounded and crammed into cages so small they cannot even turn around. Then they are trucked to what animal welfare groups describe as death camps on the edges of the city. The cull comes in the wake of a government campaign warning of the diseases cats carry and ordering residents to help clear the streets of them.
In the end, they would have killed 50,000 cats. I thought they are going to use them for siopao.

Ifugao Away

Here's what I got from Gerry Alanguilan's blog:

The original Ifugao movie poster

The death of Lorca

Stuck in an outdoor resto because it is raining. How weird is that? March and it's still raining. I'm having lots of coffee, which in this poem has a sinister meaning.

Resources
Julia Casterton

For sleeping between two chairs at the hospital –
two books, which I place under my head,
and a cotton shawl from India, maroon and cream batik,
to lay across my legs.

Of the books, one is Chekhov’s stories in Spanish,
which I don’t read,
and one a life of Lorca,
which I do.

In his last days
hiding out in the house of a fascist friend,
and in his last hours
in the holding house far from anywhere

before they gave him lots of coffee,
the code for shoot him,
I am there in the olive grove
with the old teacher chained to him

and he is here with me
perhaps wrapped in my Indian shawl,
the knowledge of his last hours in my vigil by your bed,
the knowledge of my vigil by your bed in his last hours.