I could spit on a stranger.


You go, Aristophanes!

This week, we had an activity over at my Introduction to Science Communication class. We were asked to explain a natural phenomena, but first we have to create an entirely fictional myth about it. We created a sad sad report about the Magnetic Hill at Los Banos. Let’s not wallow in the sad part.

There’s an old saying by them old folks that: “Love is a myth.” While most sick cynical fucks rejoice at that idea, Aristophanes (Okay. Well, Plato) proves it by creating one of my favorite myths about love. Stephen Trask and John Cameron Mitchell rolled that one big chunk of speech and made it into a song: “The Origin of Love” which was written for the ultra-amazing rock musical, Hedwig and the Angry Inch (which incidentally, is very similar to the Brian Gorell-DJ Montano thing that happened this summer. Instead of money though, Hedwig wants his songs back).

Aristophanes’s Speech which was from Plato’s Symposium can be read by clicking here. While the specific performance from the film can be streamed from YouTube. It’s better to watch the scene because it’s much more emo and there’s some really cool animation.

While there are already a lot of scientific hullabaloos concerning love and chemical reactions (like this TIME article here)–can I just say that while those things are very interesting, I still believe that love is something that doesn’t need an explanation or something. Just like shit–love happens.

Plus, isn’t it more interesting to swoon over something that tells you that your soul mate was originally something that was attached to your back? And that making love is your way of shoving ourselves back together? (That’s just my own opinion.)

Yes, folks. I’m still one sick hopeless romantic fuck.



Jeff Mangum is a god.

I’ve been walking past the hustle and bustle of Los Banos with a a fat dreamy smile on my lips. Why? It’s because of this song.

Jeff Mangum’s Live at Jittery Joe’s album had been playing non-stop this week on my player. Though I adore every single song on that wonderful, super-awesome live album, I just found myself hitting the rewind button everytime “I Love How You Love Me,” plays.

It’s exactly the song that I’d whisper to someone as we lay in bed like some Mumblecore Slacker. ZOMFG, how I miss being in love.

I fully agree with Tomi’s guitar.

—————–

This week, I finished reading Ira Levin’s The Stepford Wives (whose first film adaptation became a sequel-chuggin’ machine, while it’s second film adaptation was just downright awful). What can I say, it is a very empowering novel for women. For me (and other douchebags) it’s a very hilarious story about some chick struggling for gender equality. The Stepford Wives only proves two things: (1) females are conspiracy theorists by nature and (2) males love watching pornography and drinking alcohol.

Gender equality is something that puzzles me. Girls want equality, but they also want a separate MRT cart, they want you to stand and give them your seat, and they want you to carry their bags. Where’s the “equality” in that? I say; carry your own bag (what’s another 10 pounds?), ride the regular MRT cart, don’t give us the stink-eye when we’re sitting and you’re standing! Oh, and pay for your own dinner.

Before you start calling me a misogynist, let me first say, “Hello, sexy ladeh, I love you.” After I slap you and make you go back to the kitchen, that’s when you can start calling me a misogynist. (Clearly, friends. I’m joking.)

After reading The Stepford Wives, I moved on to something male and gay… Which only means one thing: GUS VAN SANT! So far, Pink’s really interesting. So far, it’s good. Everything that I know and love about Gus Van Sant translates so well into a novel.

On the acads side (yes, I have an acads side now), I’m having a blast reading the history of broadcast and print here in the Philippines. Though I can’t seriously memorize all the names and dates, it’s fun to know how the mass media that we know now came to be. Yes, my friends; for the first time in my 4 years of college life, I’ve actually picked up readings and read them. A new dawn is emerging… You can gasp now.

————

I just came from a wedding, but I seriously can’t talk about it. If I start talking about weddings, and love, and the birds, and the bees… I’m afraid I’ll start choking up alone in front of my monitor. It also might incite my “emo feelings” which I have been suppressing so well inside me. Though, I’d like to wish Kuya Tong and Ate Malou a fruitful and happy life. I’ve known them since forever, and I do know that they love each other. Hooray for you guys. Congratu-fucking-lations!

I just know that after every wedding… Here comes the fun part!



How ‘Annie Hall’ is starting to seem quite a lot like you and me.

“There’s an old joke – um… Two elderly women are at a Catskill mountain resort, and one of ‘em says, “Boy, the food at this place is really terrible.” The other one says, “Yeah, I know; and such small portions.” Well, that’s essentially how I feel about life – full of loneliness, and misery, and suffering, and unhappiness, and it’s all over much too quickly.

The… the other important joke, for me, is one that’s usually attributed to Groucho Marx; but, I think it appears originally in Freud’s “Wit and Its Relation to the Unconscious,” and it goes like this – I’m paraphrasing – um, “I would never want to belong to any club that would have someone like me for a member.” That’s the key joke of my adult life, in terms of my relationships with women.”

- Alvy Singer



Unit 1 Vs. Unit 3: It’s a win.
June 26, 2008, 4:36 pm
Filed under: Abyssmal nothingness, For Teh Lulz!, UPLB, Yupielbi

Our war against our evil neighbor has come to a halt. Or at least I think it has. Tuesday night, she attacked us again, not once but twice. Imagine that.

The first encounter, Tuesday night happened while Pam and Kim were talking. Knowing Pam, her voice is a tad bit louder than that of normal people, but let me set this up straight: she’s not fucking noisy. Our lovely neighbor (let’s not elaborate on the lovely part.) came a-knockin’ on our door again and started off with: “Hoy babae! Ang laki ng bunganga mo!” Seriously, her mouth is like an a-bomb dropping in on us. I’d have to admit though, the things that she exhibited in front of our house was THE EXACT OPPOSITE of WHAT SHE WANTS TO HAPPEN. She wants us to shut up, when she herself is creating a scandal right in front of our doorstep. Way to go!

After 35 minutes or so of lecturing us about decibels and vibrations, after threatining us that we weren’t going to graduate, and after threats of calling the barangay officials, then the police; thank god she finally left. I remember that she wants us to come to an agreement, we gave suggestions of course and she shunned them all then and there. Okay, she wants an agreement, but she won’t agree on our terms? Where does that leave us?

She left, of course our voices were finally moderated like she wanted to. BUT NO, shortly after she left she pounded a broomstick on our door. I was the one who opened it, and she started screaming outside. “PUTANGINA!” she mentioned 2 times. She then threatened us again that she will go to the police, and that the next time this would happen, she would throw a bottle in our house. Way to go!

(more…)



Evil Cannibalistic Plants, For Teh Win.
June 22, 2008, 1:36 pm
Filed under: Books, Films, Reads., Reviews | Tags: , , , ,


[SPOILERS AHEAD!]

In Carter Smith’s The Ruins, two American couples spending their summer in Cancun before they all move on with their post-collegiate life decides to tag along with a German on a whim, to look for the German’s brother in an ancient Mayan ruins. Upon arriving there, they discover that there’s a creeping horrific “other” amongst them.

While this might sound like your good-’ole Torture Porn movie with blood, gouging eyes, and throat slashing galore, I’d have to shun perception now. No folks, The Ruins managed to put something effectively that’s been missing with countless torture porn features as of late–serious dramz.

While there’s still the gut-wrenching violence (a graphic headshot, a little kid getting shot, a very primitive leg amputation scene, and yes, evil cannibalistic plants), The Ruins (just like the best-selling novel of the same name), is more of a character-driven psychological thriller and a tale about the lengths that people will go if fear starts to surface, than a straight up “dead teenager movie.” (more…)



So Sick.
June 21, 2008, 12:17 am
Filed under: Alcoholically Me, Books, Boredom, Fanboy Mode, Films, For Teh Lulz!, Reads., Reviews

Ugh. I’m sick. It’s kinda surprising since I haven’t been this sick in a long while. I have a slight fever, which after a couple of paracetamol tablets is slowly going away. I drank last night with my cousins because Ate Girlie, one of the best cousins evar is leaving for Dubai on Sunday. After that, I went to Ciciboy’s house to check out Metal Gear Solid 4. I was actually fine when I got there, though I felt weird after a couple of minutes. I fell asleep after that, maybe it was the fatigue and all.

I had a weird dream which includes three Kurimao guys slashing my arms and throat. After they slashed me like a round cabbage, I was still alive (on the dream) and went on to smash their heads with a hammer. I have a theory that this was a warning of my bubbling fever. I also started to notice that I’ve actually grown irritated by the smallest things (like crazy drivers, and scenesters with eye liners), it seems like I’ve been slowly becoming a violent person.

Recently, I’ve been having day dreams of torturing people who irritate me. Torture in every sense. I’d imagine hammering nails in their heads, grabbing their heads and bashing it on the concrete floor. Those kind of stuff. Of course, I won’t do it. They’re just random fantasies. Though I fear that maybe one day, if some random dude sticks a knife on my torso and aims to get my cellphone and belongings… I fear that I would really fulfill my fantasies of bashing heads on the concrete floor. IF EVER THAT HAPPENS, you’ll know that I only did it because of self-defense. I seriously hate holdapers, kidnappers, petty thieves, and evil ex-boyfriends (and scenesters with eye liners). Why can’t they all just study, get a decent job, and earn money?

Seriously, if ever I get held up one of these days… I know that there will be blood oozing on the concrete, and it won’t be mine. Crazy Asian Violent Movies, For teh WIN! Sabi nga ni Incredible Hulk… “Don’t make me… hungry.

——————

Thank heavens my love for reading has returned again. When my Quiapo addiction surfaced, I kinda stopped reading books. Now that I’m getting great books for dirt cheap prices, I’m enjoying it quite a lot. Example, I got this hardbound copy of The Ruins from Booksale; the best thing about it is that I only got it for 30 Pesos. Thirty-fucking-pesos. During that trip to Booksale, I also managed to pick up A Million Little Pieces for 40 pesos.

The Ruins is pretty good. There wasn’t a boring moment in the book (well, at least so far), and the thrills are awesome. Plus, I really liked Scott Smith’s way of writing; his words are simple, he tells you exactly what you need to know, and he builds up every character really well. There’s a movie adaptation that was released earlier this year (it was slated to open here in the Philippines this week, though MTRCB/SM/or the Pansy distributors must have blocked the way), and based on the reviews that I’ve read–it’s a decent adaptation and a strong horror flick (Read: gore gore gore!). I do think that it will be faithful to the book, because Scott Smith also wrote the screenplay. I trust book-to-film adaptations whenever the author’s involved in the process of making the movie. (E.g. Chuck Palahniuk’s upcoming Choke and Bryan Lee O’Malley’s been hand-in-hand with Edgar Wright for Scott Pilgrim)

I do have a problem, though. Like any other books turned to movies that I’ve read in the past few years, I always use the star who played the character in the movie as the dude in the book. While reading The Ruins, I mixed up the stars in my mind. In my head, Jonathan Tucker and Jena Malone are Eric and Stacy, while Shawn Ashmore and Laura Ramsey are Jeff and Amy. In the movie though, it’s the other way around.

Heard that the leg amputation scene is br00tal and
it initiated various walkouts.
Awesome!

Yesterday, before heading over to my cousin’s house I managed to sneak in a little time to wonder about Robinson’s Pioneer. I thought it would be an awesome mall, but it was just meh. They didn’t have a Booksale, but there was a little used bookstore called Pick-A-Book. I shuffled about the store and got three awesome books that I will read after The Ruins.

Both The Last Picture Show and Thumbsucker had been transformed into films already (The Last Picture Show on 1971 and Thumbsucker just last 2005), I have seen Thumbsucker and I liked it mainly because of Lou Taylor Pucci’s awesome performance and the strong supporting characters which included Vince Vaughn, Keanu Reeves, and Tilda Swinton. I haven’t seen The Last Picture Show just yet, but I know Francis has a DVD of it. I’ll check it out after I’ve read the book.

Pink, on the other hand is the work of one of my favorite directors of all time: Gus Van Sant (which is why even though the book was a bit expensive for a used book, I grabbed it anyway.) Judging by the title alone, you know that this is some crazy gay shit–which I really don’t mind because Gus Van Sant’s been gay since… forever (and I like his films that way.). I know little about the book, but I do know that it’s about an old infomercial director (can we say… Gus Van Sant’s alter-ego perhaps?) who’s grieving over the death of his favorite infomercial actor (can we say… River Pheonix?).

I’m buying too many books, and I know it. I’ll get to them one-by-one since I refuse to bring all my DVDs in Los Banos (which is really helping because I’ve been focusing on reading and writing as of now). Holy shit, I should get to bed. Though I do feel a lot better now.

*UPDATE* Lo, and behold, an Unrated DVDrip of The Ruins emerged on the intarnets after I posted this. I can feel the cosmos aligning already. Eeeek! I better finish the book fast before I watch this.



First Day High! HIGH! HIGH! HIIIIIIIIGH!

Sadly enough, I wasn’t high today. It’s back to College for me, which is kind of hassle because I went to three fucking classes without even taking a bath. Good thing the rooms were all air-conditioned and shit. You gotta love, DevCom man. In other not-so-great-news, I think I still have 2 years to go before I graduate. Which really isn’t a problem because at least I will graduate with a FAT SMILE on my face because it goes well with what I want to do: Help People (this is not a joke) and be a Media Dude. I still don’t know what I’ll be doing when I graduate, though. Maybe I’ll be one of them Mumblecore Slackers. Or maybe I’ll get up my ass and go to random places and do random stuff that would… Help People.

I’m taking up really kick-ass courses right now. 4 Fundamentals of… courses. Fundamentals of Development Journalism (my professor told me that he googles himself and looks out for his student’s blogs and shit… So Hello, Sir Harold Grande!), Fundamentals of Educational Communication and Technology (my planned major) and the other two Fundamentals which I still haven’t attended (we’ll start class tomorrow).

My Flatmates are crazy.  We’ve got two new dudes in our house, Franco and Biboy. I’ve known Biboy since high school so it’s really not a problemand Franco’s been a friend since freshman days, so there’s nothing really new in our place. Because of Pam’s departure from our apartment, Kim was crowned the queen of the house (because he’s gay). He will now handle the bills, the rent, and be our Queen (because he’s gay). We’ve got a Scott Pilgrim-Wallace Wells thing going on right now. If you read Scott Pilgrim, then you’ll know that we’re not having sex. It’s a Scott Pilgrim-Wallace Wells thing. Yes. Plus, we all get along fine because of our love for alcohol and cigarettes. Hooray!

I feel good now that I’m blogging again. It’s been a looooooooong hiatus. At least this is fun and it totally takes all my stresses away. Hooray!

———

Have I mentioned that El Explorador (my solo-project which seriously kicks ass but is also sucky.) has a MYSPACE! Why yes, El Explorador is starting to become a Myspace whore. He will gather girls and fans, alike. Hooray. If ever he has fans. Click on El Explorador’s ugly mug so that you could add him and tell him how you love/hate him. Hooray!



Brief Encounters

I asked my mom to buy me some underwear because my briefs and boxers were starting to look like fried bacons. I asked her to do it because I had to take my awesome brothers to see The Incredible Hulk (which WAS INCREDIBLE). Now, I’m a little cheap-ass when it comes to underwear. I like the 3 for 100 bargains and shit, because honestly they’re all the same. Imagine my surprise when my mom got me stuff from Bench Body which costs like a bazillion pesos. Gah, and I had to pay for it.

Honestly, I hate expensive underwear because they’re not laden with fairy dust which would turn me instantly to this:

What is it with these Male Bench Models? They’re all so sexy and gay which makes me want to puke every time I see humongous billboards of them scattered across Metro Manila. If they’re supposed to make us buy briefs, then why use sexy men to advertise them? I mean, no heterosexual guy would stare at Dingdong Dantes’ crotch and go, “Ohhh, nice. I think I’ll go and buy this.

This is why I conclude that Bench Body really targets the homosexuals (no offense).

Hooray for the heterosexual plain white briefs!

I’ve got a suggestion for Bench: Why not take Francine Prieto and make her wear male briefs. Seriously, the moment I see that I’ll buy whatever she’s wearing in a heartbeat. Plus, a female wearing men’s briefs? It spells sexxxy for me (and not lesbian).

—————-

After months and months of complaining at generic call center agents because of my crappy Smart Bro connection, they finally had the guts to conquer my house and fix teh internet. It’s now faster than ever and my download speeds are actually decent. Hooray for Torrents!

Because I was such in an “Oh-my-god-I-don’t-have-somebody-to-love” mood, I went off and downloaded Brief Encounter to shove the knife in my heart even deeper (emo). Before there was Before Sunrise and Sunset, Once, and Quiet City… There was Brief Encounter.

I fucking love classic movies, especially the sweeping love epic ones. An exception would be Gone With The Wind. I hated it! Scarlett O’Hara is a huge bitch, and that movie is all about her being a bitch. 230 minutes of her bitching around. Rhett Butler on the other hand, now he’s the guy that I want to be. Suave and sexxay!

Scarlett O’Hara: Rhett, if you go, where shall I go? What shall I do?
Rhett Butler: Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.

Rhett Butler, For Teh Win!

It’s sad to know that due to the internet, due to vanity, due to changes in the way people perceive love and all–we could never ever love again like the people in black and white movies. Srsly. I know I can, but with whom? Oh, my Ilse Lund… where art thou?