I Love You…Harry Potter

Wow, I never heard that there was a project about the I Love You virus starring Jericho Rosales! This should be interesting. I never really knew the whole story behind it, so this could make for an interesting watch. I hope it doesn’t play out like a B-movie, but more like an independent film. I’d tap it.

And of course, it’s almost a ritual, for me to post the trailer for the FINAL (cue ominous SFX) Harry Potter film. I’m sure most of you have seen this already, but I just had to post it. After this…it is over. Weird, I already know what will happen, but I’m still so eager to see what will happen (or more like HOW it will happen). I’m actually most eager to see when Mrs. Weasley calls Bellatrix a bitch! I’d probably stand up and cheer at that part. And of course, cry like a baby when it finally ends.

Siam In Rehab

Yup, you read it right. Siam is in doggie rehab, or doggie boot camp. But it’s nowhere as bad as it sounds. At my most trying time, I remembered this guy that I met when I hosted a pet event, this guy named Lestre Zapanta who I interviewed onstage, and who turned out to be an animal behaviorist. Just for reference, think a local dog whisperer. At the time, I was talking to him about my aggressive chihuahua. But at the time that my poodle Siam was keeping me and my neighbors up with his relentless 4:00am barking (refer to my at-my-wit’s-end blog post about it HERE), the time when I was so close to giving up and contemplating defeat for the very first time (and giving Siam away), I remembered Lestre. So I tried to find the calling card he gave me, and I found it amid the tons of cards I messily keep in one drawer, and gave him a call. He told me about his company, PETiks Atbp.

Lestre told me that there was a lot of hope for Siam, and that he can board Siam in his place, and try to fix what needs fixing. The problem was, Siam was a mere 3 months old at the time, with only 2 shots in, and they couldn’t board him unless all his shots were complete. So suffice it to say, I bit the bullet and kept Siam for an extra 5 months, through all his shots, his neutering and my 2-week vacation. After all that, finally, Siam was ready. In Siam’s defense, he already evolved from a canine menace into a lovable companion in the past 5 months. He doesn’t really whine anymore, but he still gets a bit restless when left alone and starts shredding the houseplants’ leaves into leaflets, among other things. Nothing major anymore, and the idea of giving him away had been long filed under the “No way, Jose!” drawer. But I still agree with Lestre’s initial diagnosis that Siam is way too intelligent, and needs more intellectual stimulation than I know how to offer. So I finally decided to board Siam with Lestre, and he’ll figure out what makes him tick, identify possible behavioral problems, and find a way to correct these behaviors. Plus, Lestre promised to teach Siam lots of tricks, which poodles crave, because it gives them mental challenges that they hungrily need. So hopefully after a week or so, Siam will be a “better” dog (I put the word “better” in quotes because we love Siam just the way he is; we just feel there’s always room for improvement). Of course Lestre has a “no visiting” policy from us “parents” so as to have Siam’s full attention. We the enablers/spoilers might be an unwelcome distraction. Check out the PETiks Atbp website by clicking HERE. Their website is under renovation so you can check out their Facebook page in the meantime.

As resolute as I am about Siam’s rehab, of course it was torture leaving him in a strange new place for the first time since we got him last November. It felt like leaving our kid at school for the first time! Siam gave me a look as if to say: “Daddy, am I in jail?”

I can’t wait to have him back home! Hang in there Siam, we’re rooting for ya!

The Script Live In Manila!

It was a dream come true. The Script is one of the music acts that’s really on my list that I’d LOVE to catch live. So when I found that we had Patron tickets when we were so late in buying tickets, I was ecstatic. When Delle told me we had row F seats, I thought it was row F from the front, so I couldn’t believe our luck! But it turns out it’s row F from the 2nd half of the Patron tickets, so we were pretty far from the stage. Anyhoo, after the initial disappointment, the excitement washed over whatever misgivings I might’ve had and I couldn’t wait for the show to start.

They didn’t disappoint. And the Filipino crowd wowed the band in return. When they first stepped on stage, the thunder of the crowd shook Araneta coliseum to the rafters! They opened with “You Won’t Feel A Thing” from the 2nd album and from there it was one hit after another. Of course it seemed like all songs were hits because even the unreleased album cuts like “Science & Faith” , “Dead Man Walking” and “If You See Kay” were received with thunderous applause, as if they were chart toppers!

Of course my personal favorite of all their songs is “Talk You Down”, and as I sang (more like scream) out every note with all of my heart, I squirted a tear or two out of sheer overwhelmedness of the experience. I tried to swallow the lumps in my throat, but to no avail, as I sang: “Just a cigarette gone, no you couldn’t be that far, so I’m driving in my car where I hope you are. Maybe I can talk you down…” It was an emo-gasm!

Of course suffice it to say the showstoppers were the expected hits like the sing-along awesomeness of “The Man Who Can’t Be Moved” and the heartbreaking rocker “Breakeven”. The crowd writhed in paroxysms of emotional nakedness, pumping fists in the air and screaming lyrics (some correct, some approximated). In the end, though the concert was relatively short, we all came out completely satisfied. We all needed a proverbial cigarette after. Personally, I would’ve wanted to hear “Exit Wounds” (which I think is one of their best written songs EVER) and the original version of Kris Allen’s lead off single, “Live Like We’re Dying”.  And the sound was a little weird though; many times we could hardly hear Danny O’Donoghue voice over the instruments. It just would’ve been nice if we heard it more, since he was often drowned out. But that said, we were satisfied customers raring for second and third servings. Come back to Manila lads, and we’ll be there! It goes without saying that during our flight to Indonesia tonight, I’ll have the script blaring in my iPod!

Vacation Time!

Later, I’ll be on a flight to whisk me away to 3 new destinations to conquer! I’ll be gone until for a couple of weeks, and I’ll be back on the show on May 4. We’ll go to 2 destination first, then I’ll be back for two days, April 28 & 29 (because we have a wedding hosting we already said yes to), then off again to the third destination. My usual long vacation happens in November, and this is the first time we’re doing it in summer. So let’s see if we won’t be plagued by rains as we always do on a yearly basis because we always travel during the monsoon months. Hopefully, it’ll be a super sunny vacation, I plan to get really dark, an soak up as much sun and salty water as I safely can!

Travel is the one thing that sustains and replenishes me. Nothing else on earth heals me as much. So even if it sometimes costs an arm and a leg, I NEED this. So hopefully all the bad juju is exorcised after a 2-week jaunt, and I return refurbished for the better. I’ll try to blog on our first two destinations, but I think the third will be a very rustic, technology-free site, so let’s see. And hopefully we het to dive, so I get to use my spankin’ brand-new underwater camera casing.

So that’s it, wish us a safe voyage, and see you on April 28!

The Fire And The New “Gadget”

Prologue: When I was on my way home after boardwork, I was shocked to see a dark plume of smoke rising from where I could estimate our village was. Of course this sent chills down my spine and sent me into panic mode, given that we’ve already had a fire in our family’s history, and it’s something I’ve grown to dread extra. So I sped up a little faster, and soon as I had my sight on our house, and saw that it was smoke-free, I was able to breathe a sigh of relief. But sadly, there was a fire around 3 blocks away, still a little too close for comfort, so we watched and waited until thankfully, the firemen were able to put out the fire. After all that stress, I whispered to myself that I needed to detoxify and therefore: “I NEED TO GO SHOPPING.”

Which brings me to — I finally bought it! The Ikelite 6242.95, the underwater casing for my Canon S95. It’s not really a gadget, but a “gadget”, since it only houses the official gadget. Whatever. I needed to upgrade my underwater photography gear, which I had since 2003. So no more Olympus Camedia 5060. The Canon S95 takes really kick-ass images, much better than my old camera. It’s great for low light, and I’ve seen pictures from regular folks and the underwater creatures looked incredible! So since I’m leaving soon for my annual long vacation, I decided to buy the casing since we might go for a dive or two, and I’d flog myself if we see spectacular stuff and I don’t have my camera with me. I still plan to buy strobes for my new set-up, but the strobes can wait. For now, I just need to be able to bring my camera into the depths of the deep blue. I can’t wait! I want to go diving already!!!

 

The Top Ten Pacquiao Quotes

We did this right after Manny Pacquiao beat Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto to a pulp. Anything that had to do with Manny we included, even the jokes. What’s great about Manny, is that he’s got a nice sense of humor about him. I’m sure he’s heard the jokes, but he’s such a great guy that I think he even enjoys them. We won’t see another Manny Pacquiao, at least not in a LOOONG time. And of course when we say “Pacquiao Quotes”, these include Mommy Dionesia quotes/jokes.

November 16, 2009 → The Top Ten Pacquiao Quotes

1. Lockon Stratos – “Fooling her? Try hidden soldiers!”
2. Weiss and Mojacko – Manny pulled out of an endorsement deal with McDonald’s. The reason? McDonald’s slogan: “Love Cotto.”
3. Blitzkrieg – Tabloid headline: “History Na Si Pacquiao!” (he made history, he’s not dead)
4. No name – Dionesia: “Manny, may seeds ka!” Pacman: “Ha? Buto ng ano?” Dionesia: “Hindi, may seeds ka sa silpun mo!”
5. Kalee1111 – Dionesia: “Anak paabot ng seeds.” Manny: “Magtatanim ka?” Dionesia: “Hindi, maaraw sa labas, nasisilaw ako.”
6. Gracia – Dionesia: “Manny gusto mo ng Mirinda?” Manny: “Ayoko, gusto ko Royal!” Dionesia: “Hindi, Mirinda, miron tayong McDu!”
7. Awesom – Dionesia: “Ang bait talaga ni Manny, nung lumipad ako papuntang Bigas, nilagay niya ako sa Business Class, eh wala naman akong negosyo!”
8. SC – (during dinner with PGMA) PGMA: “Waiter, I’ll have Swiss steak and french fries.” Manny: “Uhm…sige…sweepstakes na rin at first prize.”
9. Sarah – Cristy Fermin to Manny: “Ang yaman-yaman mo na, hindi ka na mukhang snatcher!”
10. No name – (actual Pacman quote): “Live your life, you know, because people want are what to be done and always think about them, also our fight that needs to finish and everybody.”
11. Gab – Nike produced the first ever boxing shoes for Manny Pacquiao, and it costs $1,000. And it’s the first time Nike endorsed a sport not in their line.
12. Homer Singson – Freddie Roach: “Manny, I don’t feel well, call me a doctor…” Manny: “You’re a doctor! You’re a doctor!”
13. No name – Manny during a post-fight interview: “He said he wanted to box me, so I box him, and we box together.”
14. No name – Interviewer: “How important is this fight to you?” Manny: “It is important to me because it is my seven times title if I win.”
15. Dolce Vita – Pacman’s humility is real. After defeating Dela Hoya, Pacman told him: “You are still my idol.”
16. Babyjen – Nintendo can get Manny as an endorser singing: “I did it…My Wii…”
17. Reichen – Aling Dionisia quote during a presscon for her new movie: “Idol ko si Imilda Papin. Buhay pa ba siya?”
18. Wandering Eneri – Jimmy Kimmel: “Why are you called Pacman? Do you play Pacman?” Manny: “I play with Pacman, my dog.” (apparently Pacman din pangalan ng aso nila)
19. Hannah Banana – Chavit: “O Manny, bakit mo ulit pinipinturahan ang bahay mo?” Manny: “Sabi kasi ng pari kanina sa misa…REPENT!”
20. Homer Singson – Manny: “Jenky, buksan mo naman yung sweets.” Jinkee: “Wow! Binili mo kong chocolate?” Manny: “Hindi, yun oh! Yung sweets ng ilaw. Ang dilim eh.”
21. Randy – Pag nagpatayo si Pacman ng paaralan, ang ipapangalan, Pacman University…or for short, PAC U!”

Why Parents Shouldn’t Be On Facebook!

A couple of posts ago, I blogged about how parents shouldn’t be texting. There’s a news collection now of why parents shouldn’t be on Facebook. Here are some gem of examples to illustrate the point:

Check out the website HERE.

 

Acupuncture And Ventosa

I’ve been complaining about this gnawing pain on my right shoulder blade, and many have said it could be because of the daily 4-hour mouse-ing I do on the computer while we work. Which is probably true, because the pain is most intense around 2 or 3 hours into the show. I’ve tried getting massages, to get rid of the “lamig’, and my barber did say it’s like I have knots the size of golf balls on the right side of my back. So finally I decided to have it checked by my nephew JC who’s an acupuncturist. He’s an MD, but he also does acupuncture, so he’s got the best of both worlds.  He said it is most likely the strain my laptop is causing, and that if unchecked, the damage will spread to other parts of the arm system. So he put needles all around the shoulder blade, then he attached some wires to the needles which carried an electric current. I didn’t feel an electric shock, it was more like pulses, which made my muscles twitch, like a reflex. It was an odd feeling, but not painful, just new. After the acupuncture, he also did some ventosa on me, which is basically glass cups that act like suctions, which alleviate pain and remove toxins in the body. As you can see in the picture above, the marks on my back were where the glass cups were. The darker the marks, the more toxins were removed. The marks disappear after a couple of days. It was quite an experience, but I must say, it really helped ease a lot of the pain, actually more like intense “ngawit”. I did this in the afternoon yesterday, and since then I haven’t had the pain back. I shouldn’t have waited for a couple of weeks to get treated, it wouldn’t have gotten this bad if I got needled at the start of the pain.

Anyway, I just thought I’d blog about the experience because it might help out some of you who might be having some problems with your back, muscles, sports injuries, and actually any other medical problems. My nephew’s pretty good at what he does, and I’m not saying that just because I’m related to him. In case you want to try acupuncture or ventosa, you can set an appointment with him, his name is Dr. JC Aniban, you call him up at 0917-8224015.

Sushi The Poodle Abused

Thanks to @glenncenabre on Twitter for sending me the link to a video showing a man training his Toy Poodle (named sushi) to sit up, and hitting him CRUELLY over and over again. To be honest, I couldn’t sit through the video after just a few seconds of seeing the abuse. I just can’t stomach how some people can be so heartless to another living being. I don’t want anyone to hurt these people, because violence has never been the antidote to violence. The last thing we need is mob mentality to dilute the more important issues. But there are laws on animal abuse, and I want these people to take responsibility for their actions. Civilized society should not tolerate such barbaric behavior towards animals. For me, the most urgent things at this point is to get Sushi away from these people and put him in a safe, animal-friendly home. Sometimes we need to show people that there are limits to what we can do to our companion animals. I’m still pretty much shaken up by what little I saw of the video. And having a poodle myself, I was shaken to the core. Horrible.

Here’s the full video in case you have the stomach for it:

Looking Back

Since I posted an entry yesterday about my Everyday Project, where I will document my face for 365 days to see how I age in year’s time, it reminded me of two SPECTACULAR photo series, by visionary photographers Irina Werning and Tom Hussey.

Irina Werning has an ongoing series called Back To The Future, where she tried to re-create, as close to the original as possible, people’s baby pictures, but this time using their adult selves. The relults were nothing short of AMAZING:

(Phtotographs © Irina Werning)

To see the rest of Irina Werning’s incredible photos, check out her website HERE.

Another similar project is by photographer Tom Hussey, who paired images of elderly people, looking into a mirror and seeing their younger selves. The photos are equally stunning, and looking at them invokes a certain melancholic nostalgia:

(Photos © Tom Hussey)

To check out the rest of Tom Hussey’s photos, click HERE.

I wish I could have something like that, either to recreate an old baby picture of mine or to show me looking at a younger version of me in the mirror. I just hope I age gracefully, and not ending up like the Duchess of Alba, who didn’t exactly do that. She became an internet sensation because of the hot mess she’s become: