November 8th, 2009
Still learning, and reviving an old laptop.
POSTED AT 12:22 AM
My last Facebook status had read: "... is amused at the fact that no
matter how long you've known the people you love, you still learn
something new about them. It makes your friendships and relationships
more interesting and exciting day by day."
So
true. Even though you think you know a person inside and out, no matter
how close you already are, you still discover something new about them,
like a new quirk, a new hobby or talent, or just something that they've
been keeping for quite a long time. Or it just tells us that we still
grow and learn something about ourselves and others every day. That's
what also makes me love my friends and loved ones even more.
Randomness.
I inherited a laptop from my brother 3 years ago, then it crashed and
when I was about to have it fixed, we couldn't find the adapter because
my mom had misplaced it along with a whole bunch of wires and cables.
Never got around to buying a new adapter because I had resorted to
using the PC again. Even though every file and raw photo in the laptop
was very precious, I learned how to detach myself and have a clean
slate again. The laptop stayed in my room, untouched, like a huge
paperweight or bookend.
But surprise, while my mom was looking
for a spare antenna this morning for one of our old radios, she finally
found the bag that had the laptop's adapter inside, along with an extra
mouse, a USB cable and two 3 1/2 floppy disks, hahaha. After 3 long
years, my laptop was alive again. Of course, I had to check and
reformat the darn thing and re-install some stuff this entire evening,
but yay, at least I have a working laptop again. And to think that
before I had to look for the adapter 3 years ago, I was about to pay
someone to do all that stuff for me, when I could actually do it myself.
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November 3rd, 2009
Those classic (board) games.
POSTED AT 08:38 PM
I caught an episode of My Boys on ETC this afternoon. The subplot was about this "decathlon" of board
games that Brendan, Kenny, Mike and Andy play at Crowley's. They were
playing these classic board games and other crazy games, such as
Sorry!, Candy Land, and I think they were also playing Taboo during one
scene.
The last time I played a board game was about 3-4 years
ago. Someone left a Snakes-and-Ladders game in the office, and we would
play a couple of rounds after lunch. Then there was also that time when
Carms, Jay, Grae and I went crazy over Jenga when we met up once at
Hobbes last month.
I miss board games and those simple game
nights with friends. I want to play Clue, Uno, Monopoly, Taboo, Jenga,
Pictionary and Twister again! To anyone who's stumped about what to
give me for my birthday (not to be joined with Christmas, hahaha!),
those classic (I mean the real thing) games are also on my wish list.
Then let's have a game night!
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When worlds collide.
POSTED AT 08:21 PM
I had mentioned in my previous post about worlds about how worlds
collide, like when I took Tad to Peaberry Cafe last Sunday to meet
Ronelli.
Ronelli
had been a friend of mine from Trumpets Playshop Alabang's first
musical theater class under Tita Menchu. It was the first
acting/musical theater workshop I had ever taken. I was only
comfortable in class because I had friends there. Other than that, I
was quiet as a mouse. I had too many inhibitions that I was afraid that
I might do all the exercises wrong. Part of the reason was that I knew
all of us weren't in the same "skill level," as some of them had
already done this before, even professionally. I was even careful about
the way I moved and talked. But hey, I did make a lot of friends
through that workshop. Good friends, though not as close, save for a
couple of them. I even put Putting It Together (our showcase) and the class' bond on a high pedestal even after the
few workshops after that. Sure, we bonded, but I felt as if there were
still walls separating some of us because of certain differences. Just
a feeling. It would sometimes seem as if there was something's wrong
with the way that girl stared, or how that guy spoke.
Fast
forward to several years later. I started from scratch and attended a
beginning acting workshop under Tanghalang Pilipino. Again, I was sort
of comfortable at first only because I had a couple of friends enrolled
in the same class. During the first couple of days, I put up a wall
because I was still used to the Playshop environment. But day by day,
the wall came down. I realized that all of us were on the same playing
field, just there want to learn, and just have a go at it. I was no
longer afraid to try anything. My eagerness and enthusiasm removed my
inhibitions. I stopped listening to people's accents because to them, I
was the one with the weird accent (hahaha, Mimay and Nicco can attest
to this, because they did this often). This was a class that had no
pre-judgments over you, or wherever you came from, as long as you knew
how to get along with different people, wear your heart on your sleeve,
and give it all you've got. So we have the passion. We also had that
crazy bond, the type that you can never get sick of each other. Our
crazy glue? The girl with the amazing voice and upbeat personality who
played my alter ego, and the guy with so much passion in his bones and
loves his friends til the end.
Two workshops that were so
different from each other. Both were similar outlets, yet showed
different sides of me. In Playshop, I was one of the quiet, yet
friendly ones. Too intimidated by the ones who have more experience
than I did. In TP, I was more outgoing, yet still grounded. I had
learned to wear my heart on my sleeve and learned the difference
between theater as a passion and as a hobby.
When Ronelli, a
former classmate from Trumpets Playshop, and Tad, my boyfriend from TP,
met at Peaberry last Sunday, I had no idea if they had anything in
common. Ronelli talked the way she always did, straight English with a
slight accent. Tad was merely being himself and compromised, and didn't
mind stumbling over the occasional English words. I was actually amused
at the fact that it was the first time I heard Ronelli say anything in
Filipino. When we started talking about coffee drinking, coffee
routines, and the different kinds of coffee, the "language barrier"
disappeared.
I have yet to invite Ronelli to a TP show. Hopefully when Flores Para Los Muertos does a rerun, I'll invite her to come. She did say that she hasn't seen
a play in ages. And I have to check out Peaberry's acoustic nights.
Maybe I could get Tad to sing during one of those nights, hehehe. And
who knows, maybe Ronelli can overcome her "singing trauma" as well,
even if I have to hold the microphone for her, hahaha.
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November 1st, 2009
"Sundate" at Peaberry Cafe.
POSTED AT 11:40 PM
During this morning's homily, I heard Father Gerry say that heaven can be found in simple contentment.
He's right. I always find bits of heaven in simple joys--a sincere and
comforting hug, a welcome visitor, spending time with a loved one,
meeting old friends, pigging out to good food, and hanging out at a
coffee shop. I found all those in one lovely Sunday afternoon such as today. Tad had been kind of busy with Madonna Brava and Flores Para Los Muertos that we haven't spent much quality time together, let alone drop by my
house for a visit. He's been feeling kind of down and out lately that
sometimes he could get pretty cranky, even though it was his birthday
last Friday, so I persuaded him to come visit so he can let out some
steam, chill and basically just hang out. I told him I wanted to check
out Peaberry Cafe, this coffee shop that my friend Ronelli had just
opened here at our village, and I thought that we could go there as my
belated birthday treat for him. I knew Ronelli from the first year Playshop opened an Alabang branch,
as we were both in Tita Menchu's musical theater workshop. I haven't
seen her in years, so this was a good excuse to see her. I've seen
photos of Peaberry on Facebook, and the place looks pretty promising.
It sort of reminded me of Central Perk from Friends, plus the "Kopihaus" from Kopihaus # 8 (Drei and Nicco's thesis). Thankfully, Ronelli told me that Peaberry was open today even though it
was a holiday, but when we got there, I actually thought that they were
closed (even though the sign out front said that they were open)
because there was hardly anyone there except for this middle-aged lady
sitting in one of the couches, and one of the employees behind the
counter. Oh well, they're open anyway, so Tad and I each ordered ice
blended coffees, then sat at a table outside so he can smoke. I got the ice blended black forest while Tad played it safe with a
white chocolate mocha. Thankfully the black forest was sweet enough for
my taste, because I don't like it when drinks get too sweet. Tad
thought thought that the white chocolate mocha was pretty OK as well,
though I knew he was looking for a certain taste. While we were sitting
there, a group of girls arrived and also sat at a table outside.
Finally, more customers, hahaha. I guess we just came at lazy hour
during a holiday, which was why there wasn't anyone there. Anyway, when
I saw the other group order a plate of mini tacos, I was dying to try
those as well, but I stayed put. But a few minutes after Tad had
finished his drink along with a couple of cigarettes, he wanted to
order another drink, hahaha! We waited for a few more minutes then he
stood up to order the mint java chip this time. I, on the other hand,
was curious about their cheeseburgers, because the photos and comments
on their Facebook page sounded so appealing. No sooner after the cheeseburger (that came with a side order of French
fries) arrived, a car pulled up right in front of the cafe. It was
Ronelli and her husband Paul. Man, it was great to see Ronelli again!
Haha, when she saw the cheeseburger (which was untouched because we
were still on the fries), she affirmed that the cheeseburger was their
best selling item on the menu. Once she stepped inside for a while, I
let Tad have a go at the cheeseburger first before I did. And yep, it
really was awesome. The burger patty was thick and juicy, and the
entire thing was bursting with flavor. No wonder it's their best-seller. Yummy. Ronelli sat with us for a while and talked and caught up on news as we
finished off our food and drinks, so she got to know Tad a little more.
Haha, Ronelli from my past world of theater and Tad from my current. I
love it when worlds like these collide. Tad was a little tongue-tied
because Ronelli spoke straight English most of the time, but they were
in the same wavelength when we started talking about different kinds of
coffee. Hmmm... maybe some time, after a few more visits, maybe Ronelli
can teach me to do latte art, hehehe. Plus we could definitely hold a
Playshop MT '99 reunion there. We never got to hang out inside the cafe as we chose to sit in the
smoking area, but I have to admit, the interior of the cafe is really
gorgeous and had that cozy, homey feel. We'll surely come back and
frequent this place, because it's got a lot of promise, from the
coffee, the food (I have yet to try their pasta), the ambiance, and of
course, the friendly owners. Shamless plug... If you guys (especially the ones in the South) want to
check it out, Peaberry Cafe can be found at 511 Capitoline Hills, BF
Resort Village, Las Pinas City. They're open everyday from 11:00 am
until 11:00 pm.
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October 31st, 2009
Some things never change, so we just get used to it.
POSTED AT 09:53 PM
Chat session with a friend. Well, this is not to be taken too
seriously, but part of it is really serious matter. We just took it
lightly to ease things up. Hindi pa rin talaga maiwasan ang mga
ganitong tao. Or worse, mga ganitong kaibigan. Friend: o kumsta pala sya? Friend: ako hindi na nya ko tintetext Friend: nakuha na nya gusto nya eh!! Friend: user si _____! Friend: hahaha Me: wahahahahahahaha Me: i-text siya ngayon, dali Friend: ayoko Me: ay, tampo Me: hahaha Friend: wala syang kwenta Friend: user sya Friend: HAHHA Me: eh parang hindi ka na nasanay kay _____ Me: magpaparamdam lang yan if may kailangan or if you sing [him/her] praises Friend: ewan ko sa kanya Friend: tse sya! Friend: haha Me: sabihin mo tampo ka, magtetext yan Friend: hindi nga ako mgakatext . huhuh Friend: sira ba ang globe? Ahahaha, then we dropped the subject. Well, some things never really change. So we have no choice but to move
on and get used to it. But because we're still friends, we still love
them no matter what.
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October 29th, 2009
On fanatics.
POSTED AT 10:44 PM
Brief exchange from last Saturday... Kath: May kamukha ka na artista... Sa ABS... Me: (*shrugs*) Uhm, wala akong alam sa showbiz eh. Kakahiya, ahehe. Kath: Mas nakakahiya naman pag masyadong marami kang alam, hahaha! I admit, I used to be a groupie of some artist at some point in my life.
I know at least a handful of people who can attest to that. I had some
access to certain information, being friends with some of the "inner
circle" and the artists themselves. But at least I know where to draw
the line. There are some who don't. While I was chatting with Teena,
she had even mentioned a particular "R" from our past. That person's
still out there somewhere, and even though R had drifted away, that
same person is still lurking in other people's interests to the extreme. My advice to people who tend to go crazy with their fanaticism--please
don't go overboard. I mean, it's alright to do research on people you
admire, but there's a fine line between researching and stalking (to
include other people that are connected to that object of obsession as
well). It could start off as funny or amusing, but it could come out as
annoying to some. Just a thought. Not to point fingers, really, but just to state a
point, because I'm really concerned about some people who could be
involved.
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October 27th, 2009
Brooding.
POSTED AT 12:34 AM
"Nakakapagod magtampo." That's a line that I haven't used in over 2 years. And sad to say,
that's what was running in my head the whole day. I hate it when you
think things will be OK that day then it all just goes pffft. I always
put off one day to spend the time just to be there, and I guess I was
expecting that today will be like that. But I guess it wasn't so I
wasted the entire day just brooding, right until the very last minute
of the day. And to make things worse, I think this damn computer monitor is ready
to give up on me. It keeps flickering and changing colors and it annoys
me like hell because it's hurting my eyes. I just want to slam my fist
into it not just because of that but because I've been brooding. Anyone
want to buy me a new monitor?
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October 25th, 2009
A wedding pictorial.
POSTED AT 01:13 AM
Went to Carms and Jay's wedding pictorial at Jay's house this
afternoon until evening. Nope, don't think that these are the pre-nup
photos, but they're just a little extra with the people involved in the
wedding. And even before today, I knew I would have a blast. And I was
right.
The
pictorial was supposed to be scheduled for tomorrow, Sunday, but
because some people couldn't make it, they had to stagger the schedules
so each one can make it on a specific day. So I was one of the people
who were rescheduled to a day earlier, which is today.
Jay's
house was all the way up north, but somewhat familiar due to (very)
occasional visits to the area. Thanks to Opa's specific (and Nicco's
super vague) directions, I suddenly realized that I sort of already
knew my way around. Thank goodness Carms got Jay to pick me up at the
gas station outside their village, as the tricycle fare inside the
village was pretty pricey.
Went straight to this recreation room
(as I called it) where Carms and Kath were fully armed with tons of
make-up. I breathed a sigh of relief when Carms had said that she and
Kath will be doing our make-up, as I know I'd make a mess of it if I do
it on my own. While Carms was putting foundation on, she even offered
her and Kath's make-up services when it's my turn to get married,
hahaha! She and Kath were quite the pros, and once Kath was done with
me, I told them, "You're hired!" Hahahaha!
Aside from me with
the bride and groom, 3 other people were in the pictorial--Yas, Ila and
Alex. All 3 of them will be hosting the wedding reception, while I'll
be handling the more technical stuff. Because I was the first one in
the make-up chair, I ended up watching Kath work on Ila and Yas. Man, I
envy girls like these who are make-up pros. Well, like Kath had said,
she easily learned it because of constant make-up application in the
theater. Please teach me, hahaha!
Watching Ila and Yas, I easily
realized why Carms had picked them to host the reception. They're very
conversational, easy-going and charming. Alex, Jay's friend and 3rd
choice as host, on the other hand, is quite the goofy clown. Ang
kuliiit! His upbeat personality complimented the 2 girls', so all 3 of
them make quite a perfect team.
Pictorial time! After a set of
photos of the couple with some of Jay's family members, I was then
prompted that it was my turn next. When I headed to the adjoining
bathroom to change, I found the door locked. Hmmm... maybe it was left
locked by accident, so Carms let me go through the other door in Jay's
room. Eep, also locked. After knocking a few times, we realized that
there was no one inside, so it was locked from both doors by
accident... and they can't seem to find the key! So while I dressed
behind the bar table, they tried to search for the key but ended up in
vain, until one of Jay's helpers decided to climb through the window to
open the doors from the inside. Hahaha, success!
So anyway, I
had to have solo photos taken, and I honestly had no idea how to pose,
hahaha! I think I just stood there like a tree stump for a while until
Jay had set that metal stool in front of me. I still had no idea what I
looked like, but I just tried to go with it. I must've looked awkward
in some of those photos, but Tito Ernie said that it came out pretty
good (awww, thanks). I didn't want to see it yet, though, ahehe. I
think I'll just wait until, say, February, hahaha!
After my
photos with the couple, it was the hosts' turn. I only got to watch
Ila's solos, because I had to change into a 2nd outfit, but she was a
natural in front of the camera. I heard that when all 3 hosts were
doing the group photos, they looked like they were starring in a
sitcom, hahaha! Well, just watching the 3 of them together did look
like a sitcom, ahehehe.
There was one more set of photos, the
group cocktail attire. Haha, at first, we were instructed to wear
"Sunday dresses," but for the life of me, I have no proper Sunday dress
in my meager wardrobe. Thank goodness that Carms almost immediately
changed the attire to cocktail dresses, hahaha. Even while we were
shooting that set, we still cracked up because of Alex the walking
sitcom.
After the group photos, we wrapped up and it was time to
eat. Hahaha, I think I filled up and cleaned my plate about 3 times.
I'm such a pig. It's just because the ham was pretty yummy. Hahaha, I
even did the "Filipino way" and left one piece for any other takers,
but it still ended up on my plate. When I was finally done, I joined
the rest (as I was sitting with Kath at the other table with Jay's
niece, Anya) as they chatted away. Ahaha, I was so amused at how Kath
was so surprised to find out that Tad's my boyfriend. Well, I guess
it's because during the occasional times that I met her (during Nicco's
surprise birthday bash was the first, I think), I was still dating
Jerald. Wow, that was so 3 years ago. And man, I wish I had enough
space here to blog all the Alex antics, but I can't. Every quip that
came out of his mouth was punctuated with everyone's laughter. He even
showed off a video of himself on the race tracks (he's a pro-racer)
when I made a little quip about that upcoming billboard of his,
wahahaha. I think I managed to digest everything I ate just by sitting
there, laughing. I even joked at least once or twice that I have a
feeling na kay Alex ako mangangarag during the program because of his
crazy antics, hahaha. But even with that, I have a feeling that with
these three hosts, I'm sure it's going to be a fun program. Carms had mentioned (while I was getting my 3rd serving of food, ahehe)
that she and Kath sometimes work at events, and even said that if I
want to, I could give it a shot and join them. Not a bad idea. I
haven't done those one-day events in ages. It would be fun to go back to that.
When
we were finally done, Carms, Jay and Kath gave me a lift all the way
back to the south. Super thanks, you guys! Road trip ito. Haha,
probinsya ba? Kasi pati gas prices nahiritan natin eh, hahaha!
I
had such an awesome time today. My one-on-one date with Carms is
already a couple of years overdue, but being with her during these
occasional days until the big day really makes up for it. But I sure
hope that one-on-one date will happen sometime, whenever she's not too
busy working on her wedding plans. Friends like these are quite the
treasure.
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October 21st, 2009
Inspired by Betty's "Missing People."
POSTED AT 01:17 AM
Betty posted a note on Facebook with that title. This was what she wrote: I don't say I love you and I miss you enough. Wala lang, I just miss
you guys terribly. Lalo ka na Mimay! Mebbe got something to do with
watching Nicco rock it out in Spring Awakening this afternoon. Seeing
Tin accidentally in Bonifacio High Street nung gabi while waiting for
the young cinema festival chuchu. I remember Carme's Christmas text message that year saying something
like what I am paraphrasing: One of the most memorable moments of my
life was that summer. Hay, naiiyak ako. Then she posted a photo of a book cover of Thornton Wilder's Our Town.
Our workshop recital back during that summer with the experiences that
we can never seem to top. And since then, I've always put that summer
experience on a very high pedestal. It made me miss all the same people too. With Betty as my constant textmate, chatmate and "boyfriend," my mom from
the quaint town of Luntiang Parang has been always there since our
Batman and Robin days. We've even shared crazy dreams with Opa and
Mimay, we've conquered our "nemesis" and managed to pull one heck of an
awesome and memorable show for Mimay's final class before she graduated.
She never fails to drop me a line almost every day, even though they're
random texts about her lovelife, or projects, or even rants just so she
can let out some steam. I miss my alter-ego Mimay more and more. It still hasn't quite sunk in
that she's out there in California for good, and to think that on
random days, we could just meet up at Burger King in Glorietta and hang
out until the wee hours in Gloria
Jeans. It's so funny how I always try to match her hype about
everything we do. I love how she has so much energy for the both of us. Of course, how could I not forget my then-hubby Nicco, who's now a "rockstar" in his own right? HAHAHA. When I saw him in Spring Awakening as Moritz, I knew the spark he had back during the good ol' days was
back because he had claimed that he lost it. Don't get me wrong, he
never lost the passion, but I knew he had found that happiness he was
looking for, which was why I was (as he had said) "jumping for joy"
during the curtain call. He's still one of the most awesome people I
know, and I'm darn proud of this
guy, and he still remains to be my baby brother despite the many crazy
disagreements and tampuhans that we had over the past years. The last time I actually saw Carmela was over a year ago when Mimay and
I were shooting Mimay's thesis film, and I had decided on a whim to
sleep over at her house because it was really late, and then in the
morning, I had left while Carmie was still asleep (but hey, I sent a
text message, didn't I? Hahaha). She claimed that she wasn't the type
to really delve into theater, but she had a lot of spunk and knew she
could do it as well as the next person can. When we reconnected over a
week ago, we ended up reminiscing about that amazing summer that
brought us all together. I can never leave Tin out in this entry. It was great seeing her when we both watched Spring Awakening along with Hil, and she's still the same upbeat young lady (who can
still talk super fast) that we saw grow up. And it was still a blast
hanging out with her at the Rent auditions even though I had to leave way too early (despite her
complaints of my being "corny" or "boring" just because I had to leave
my post to support my boyfriend at his play, hahaha). I've seen my
offstage baby sister go through a lot of emotional stuff that first
year we were friends, but I knew she could always manage to pick herself up and go off even stronger than before. I wish I could catch up with the rest of the BA gang. In Our Town, the Stage Manager
had said that "We all know that something is eternal... There’s
something way down deep that’s eternal about every human being." I hope
what's eternal between these amazing people I was with was the bond we
had formed that summer. That bond that Ian and Miss Tess had noticed
when we were all strutting our stuff. In the play, Emily had asked, "Does anyone ever realize life while they
live it... every, every minute?" I don't think we always do. That's why
we really should cherish those precious minutes, those times when we
wish that time would just stop so we can just look and appreciate
certain things even more. I love you guys and I still miss you like crazy. At ang ganda pa rin ng moonlight.

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tymeless |
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