Ad Exdreamum

More vivid dreams, and by vivid I mean I can remember more details.

I was at Mendiola Street standing outside Holy Spirit College (University?) when I see Eileen coming towards me, dressed all in white and looking svelte. I complimented her on her looks while we walked together towards...

I'm in a church w/ a majority of my high school batchmates. We're doing some kind of formal full dress-rehearsal for a wedding. Not sure who the groom is, but the bride kept switching between 3 of my high-school crushes: J, M and S, all of whom are -- not coincidentally -- married in real life.

Even back in my SJCS days, during programs like this I never stay in my seat, but instead hang out "backstage." They showed the audience a video on the giant white screen where they usually project the church song lyrics. It was mid-afternoon and the lights inside the church weren't on, which was fine; that way they'd be able to see the video. It was R (lesbian batchmate) showing us around J's place and going through her stuff like some hybrid reality show-mix of Cops and MTV Cribs.

Backstage I was hanging w/ KV (not sure if he was part of the entourage or hosting this thing) when I decided to go the entrance of the church to see if they could do something about the heat. No lights inside, but no fans, either. While sweating in my barong Tagalog I remember thinking we're using money from the alumni funds, w/c wasn't much so we probably didn't pay the church much. I saw Edrich seated in the back, but I confused him for Sherman (both of them being big dudes) and complimented him on an excellent softball game we (never) had last week. I then made my way back to where KV was when I realized we were on a break. L was coming down the altar looking bushed. We stopped by our dining room (w/c looked like the one in my house) and got some water from the cooler. Shelby checked up on her too see if she could still go one more round.

Strange Dream Time

(Then again, when isn't a dream strange? )

Mine involved me, BoiT and a 3rd person whose face is being obscured by the nature of dreams fading quickly. I can only remember the last moments of it.

We were at my old high school (again!?), and encountered 3 white horses, strapped but w/o saddles. Somehow we managed to get on them and trotted our way... back into the school? After we got off some politician was calling out for Boit, but for some reason we ran in the opposite direction, right into a crowd of people waiting to the arrival of President Arroyo.

While nudging and shoving our way into the crowd we suddenly found ourselves in front of the President. Correction: I found myself in front of her. I felt time slow down and was left speechless.

Finally I just took my hand out and shook hers, saying "Merry Chirstmas, Ma'am!" Boit wouldn't stop giving me grief, saving over and over: "That's it?" I told him I had something in my head I wanted to tell her, but my mouth was disobeying my brain.

S.P.I.T.fire

Had an early dinner, then drove out to Bonifacio High Street in Taguig to catch Aryn Cristobal's show at the Mag:Net cafe. Turns out she's part of S.P.I.T., an comedy improve group (think Who's Line Is It, Anyway?). The Silly People's Improv Theater was founded by Gabe, the rotund dude you might recognize from recent Yakult TV commercials, as well as his own show Noypi.

The show started 2 hours later than what Aryn told me, so I had plenty of time to kill. Good thing Dee and KV showed up around the second hour. I was buying the food, Dee the drinks and KV the tickets. Talk turned up some interesting bits about their social lives. Dee was sotra seeing some pastor-in-training, while K broke up w/ his band-singer girlfriend (and subsequently removed any trace of her in his F'ster page), and was contemplating making contact w/ another ex who's already married and has 1 kid. Times like this I'm glad me and G are taking it slow. (Insert ironic smirk here.)

And how do D and K know each other? Not from our Beijinoy days, as I thought. Turns out D's good friends w/ K's ex, Band-Singer Girl. This time they're the ones that hang out. (More ironic smirking...)

Anyhoo, on w/ the show. Aside from contributing to some of the bits Aryn acted as the emcee. Each member seemed to have their own way of "delivering the funny," from bad puns to one-liners to dryly delivered but quick comebacks. Kenneth (the only Tsinoy in the group?) was impressive with his talent for spewing historial trivia (some of it may even be factual). Joel Trinidad (last saw him in Avenue Q as Trekkie Monster) lay down his vocabulary skills with the Alphabet Soap game. I can't name the rest of the cast but rest assured most of them were good. Not-so-good? The singing games. Lord, this time I'm sure the guys in Who's Line do multiple takes of Hoedown and Irish Drinking Song. Verbal improv is hard enough, but to give it rhyme and melody? If I was onstage doing that refunds would be a standard.

We also saw a bonus show of sorts. Some guys from MTV Demark were there to shoot a music viedo and proceeded to shoot around the audience. It was surreal seeing big dudes bump your table and run backstage while S.P.I.T. was still performing. First I thought someone was playing a prank and pissed off the guys who were chasing him. Turns out it was just Take 2. (Hope they captured my good side.)

Weekend Meets & Greets (Updated w/ Pix)

FRIDAY: Dinner w/ Eileen at Greenbelt 5. While waiting for her I caught a bit of Julia Fordham's performance at GB Park. Jazzy is as jazzy does. Didn't even know she was British. Before the last song I heard her perform she was encouraging the audience to get off their bums and dance. Good luck w/ that, Julia. Pinoy concert audiences are the "have seat, will sit" type, and probably wouldn't be caught dead bustin' moves at a jazz concert, anyway.

After dinner we headed for Murphy's Bar (and got flagged and fined by a --gasp-- honest traffic cop for an alleged illegal left turn) for Ana Gonzalez' B-day bash. My actual appearance (as in showing up, not my looks) seemed to have left as good an impression as my birthday gift: Neil Gamain's Fragile Things audiobook on CD. Met her little sister. Saw Andy, Grand and Ferds again. Had a surreal chat w/ Ana's soused beau Igo, w/c was my first enounter w/ someone who was drunk but acted comtemplative. Eileen had an alkie-choco drink while I ordered light beer.

SATURDAY: Forced to mall around SM Centerpoint (IMO the most mediocre of the SM Malls I've been to, probably due to the lack of a decent book shop. Then again, Centerpoint shoppers don't strike me as the bibliophilic type. I think they're just making due w/ the dog-eared 'zine section of NBS) waiting for Ma and 2-Kim to finish their shopping on this 2nd day of the 3-Day Sale. While waiting I had a snack consisting of the toughest chicken breast fillet sandwich Wendy's had to offer. Bad enough local taxes are applied on top of the VAT, now they're serving me really salty fries and leather chicken.

When we finally got home I spruced up 'coz I was supposed to meet Cathy Yao for dinner. We decided on Trinoma and tried out that Greek restaurant Cyma. They literally seated us in the corner with a window view overlooking a parking lot. Ariel Ureta (and his wife, I assume) was seated two tables away. Cathy didn't know him, though. We ordered a cheese dip flambe (w/ bread), an appetizer w/ the extra entertainment value of having the waiters light the cheese on fire and yell, "O-PA!" Unfortunately they had to do it near Ariel Ureta's table instead of ours because we were in a narrow section, and the lamp shade above us was made of wood. Seems whoever designed this resto didn't consider flammable lighting fixtures and waiters who'll occasionally play around w/ open flame a safety hazard.

Our main dish of spaghetti topped w/ stewed beef shanks was unfortunately garnished w/ two of my least favorite herbs/or spice: coriander (aka cilantro) and cinnamon. Had those 2 ingredients not been added I might've been enouraged to finish off the "shared" serving size (made for approx. 3 people), but instead now I have big beef shank bone stuck in the fridge.

Our nightcap was at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (or NAMBLA), where discussions on faith and religion got spirited, to say the least. Cathy's views on life appear to be defined by her faith, w/c clashes my my somewhat agnostic take on it. Two encounters in, and there's still something missing. That spark. And I think I know why. And I think in the back of my mind I've always known.

(Also, I'm not going full disclosure on all this, 'coz Cathy knows my blog address, and I'm a wimp.)

SUNDAY: Had brunch w/ G in Kulinarya at the PowerPlant Mall. Days before I had a set of questions and other things I wanted to ask and tell her. Definitely easier thought than said. In the end I could only ask her how she thinks we're doing as a "couple." She said she enjoys the companionship but wouldn't want to change things, at least not drastically. (Cross out making out under the bleachers during the big football game...) I said I wished she was available more often, if only it wasn't for her busy work schedule. And I asked for her home phone number.

(I like her. I like being w/ her. I like myself when I'm w/ her. Hmm, it occured to me that in all the times we've gone out I've not once held her hand. Nor kissed her (save for that peck on the cheek in church). Slowly but surely can be a real pain, sometimes. Step up, foo'. Nuffa dis "friend date" stuff.)

We had a bit of trouble finding it, but we finally got to the church where G's officemates were getting married. I had to leave her there 'coz of the Batch '94 alumni meeting at Little Asia's Tomas Morato branch. Sherman Oranga and Jasper Soon were there when I arrived. Winston Co followed, then fashionably late (w/ her red "Seriously..." Grey's Anatomy t-shirt) Jehan Sia, Josephine (Mapua) De Lucia, Henrison and Khristine (Chan) Lim, Chris Karen (Sy) Uy and Jervy Santiago. While enjoying the crepe and spring rolls we discussed fundraising plans and official appointents. I was appointed head of communications.

Better get started on a new webpage...

Clone Today, Gone Forever

Sony closed down its Imagestation site this month, taking w/ it my uploaded Clone Pix Series. Sigh. Bad enough the Agno PC crash of '07 made me lose all my pix from 2005 onwards, now the Internet's working against me.

I should've stuck to Multiply.

Don't u fail me, Blogger. I'm starting from scratch. Again.

Alabangin' BBQ

Last Friday I was still in the midst of deciding whether to host a small dinner party Saturday at my place w/ Bejinoys Des and Ferndinand or just grab a bite at Rockwell. Fortunately Fernds had a better idea and invited us to attend his friend CB's birthday BBQ in Ayala, Alabang. I left the CRV (and inadvertently my cellphone) at Fernd's Asia Tower condo before we (along w/ Des and Ferd's Chinese-American friend Andy) took his AUV.

Traffic was terrible, but we still arrived plenty early at CB's house. Dude works in private security, w/c would explain all those flak jackets that hung in his room. Not sure how to explain the presence of his 30-pound cat, though. At the garden/pool grounds I tried out their 2-wheel rocking skateboard, w/c was definitely as difficult as it sounds to ride.

In the course of the evening, my tolerance for alcoholic drinks was tested (totaling 2 Red Horse, 1 SanMig light and 1 shot of J. Cuervo, w/c burned the back of my throat), but I got to meet cool folks like Anna (the unofficial party photographer/ part-time painter), Frisca (architect), Aryn (hand model and fellow VO artist), Rosanna (architect), Justin and Ria (San Miguel Marketing), Pico (other unofficial photographer w/ the better camera) Charisse and Carlos. I definitely forgot to mention some people or misspelled their names, so apologies in advance.

Initially we thought of only staying a couple of hours, but ended staying past midnight. Initially we were delayed because Fernd's brother Grand took the AUV to pick up his friends in P'que. But even after they returned we were all still mixing and mingling w/ the other party guests.

So just to make it clear, I'm not complaining. My worries were for w/ my "missing" phone (didn't know it was at Fernd's condo at the time) and not being able to text Elaine to tell her we wouldn't be able to meet her in Rockwell. When we finally left we still dropped off Des at Embassy before returning to Asia Tower.

I really glad I went to the party, as I rarely get a chance to meet new people and make new friends. Also really glad the 'Rents were in Naga for the weekend (to attend TinTin's engagement party), since coming home past 1AM is something they would've bugged me about the morning after.

10 Thoughts on Cloverfield

Caught this at Promenade w/ Des (and her kidney curing elixer, w/c smelled like used gym socks), who's here from Cotabato on vacation:

• Apparently there are no ugly people in Cloverfield. Even when they die from falling with a collapsing bridge or from a chopper, blown up by army missiles or explode due to an infected monster bite, they retain their good looks. (And not one Pinoy in that Manhattan party? Imposible!)
• As a MassCom student I've learned to appreciate proper stance and arm position when using a video camera. Granted that Hud, as the main video camera operator, was probably using one the size of a pocketbook (as opposed to the Harry Potter hardcover-sized models I used to have) and wasn't really an expert, but if I were him I woulda kept the steady-shot button on. And in real life vidcam jump cuts are not that noisy.
  
• Personal video cameras are lousy w/ night shots. Though it would've killed most of the suspense, I wish the monster attacked during lunchtime. Also wish the movie was as well-lit as their publicity photos.
• The eye-level view was part of this movie's charm. Comic-wise this was the equivalent of Marvels. You feel you're with them as they try to escape the shower of debris from the sky, racing down the subway tunnels to avoid the monster (or getting hit by bullets) or wondering how the hell that one chick ran around in a panic while in high heels.
  
• Only recognized one person in the whole cast: Lizzy Caplan, who played the tomboyish Kat Warbler in the canceled sitcom The Class. It's that obscure. Guess that's party how they kept the film budget at 25 mil. No big names. Just big CGI monsters.
• Monster movie equations: Lots of people moving slowly + suspension bridge = Death. Also, 4 people + 1 darkened tunnel = Death. Finally, couple waiting under a bridge - inability to get the hell outta there + army carpetbombing the city = Death.
• Possibly the freakiest (i.e. best) scene was in the subway tunnel the moment Hud switched the camera to "night mode" and we saw the Cloverfield Monster's spawn crawling on the ceiling. The more talkative audience member gasped then shut up after that. Second freakiest goes to the full-on encounter w/ the monster in the climax, w/c gave me some Jurassic Park flashbacks.
  
• Suspension of disbelief was tested not w/ the monster seemingly going around Manhattan in circle, but w/ the army guy letting the main cast (those still alive, at least) go back into the city to rescue a girlfriend. This was so the plot would move forward, I know, but the dude should have at least given them a weapon.
• Yeah, Mr. Helicopter Pilot, instead of flying us to safety, hover over the disaster area while I try to get a good shot of those planes blowing up the monster. What could possibly go wrong?
• This movie is best seen in the theater for the full visually visceral experience. (Probably better on IMAX, but would worsen the inevitable motion sickness.) Kudos to director Matt Reeves and writer Drew Goddard, and sorry that producer JJ Abram's name seemingly overshadowed your hard work in the marketing of this film.

(Pole) Dance Fever

Watched Sweeney Todd and and had dinner (sorta) w/ my new friend Cathy Yao last Saturday. The latter was all-too-brief because I had a prior commitment to catch other friend Mirell's performance at Teatrino, where mutual friend Lola was waiting in line for tickets. All I knew was Mirell did modern dance, and that a steel pole was involved. Ah, favors for friends...

Security was lax, promo items for sale (like the calendar) were shoddily produced and food was so-so, but none of that took away from the excellence in Mirell's performance. I found the choice of some of the songs odd (or too literal, like having dancers dressed in black for Black Magic Woman) and male dancers distracting (one guy was doing John Rambo by way of John Travola in Staying Alive), but again, Lola and I were here for Mirell, and she did not disappoint. Lola said Mirell hates performing the more "provocative" dance numbers, w/c I found ironic she was in almost all of them. A particular favorite was the schoolgirl number danced to a remake of Yakap Sa Dilim. Brief and amusing intermissions came in the form of stagehands who quickly climbed the poles w/ rags in hand to wipe them down. They're like the pole dancing equivalent of the guys who wipe the sweat off the basketball courts during playtime.

The center pole --which was bolted from floor to ceiling, but still wobbled-- took the most punishment, from the belly dancers that dry-humped it to the sexy heifers (pronounced HEH-fer) that climbed it like a rope ladder hanging from a helicopter. I then realized why pole most dancers had thick thighs: all that cellulite is needed to get a better grip on the pole when they attempt their Cirque du Soleil-like balancing acts on it. Mirell was again the exception, as her "hams" were fitter than Vina Morales' abs. Still, I think none of them escaped any bruising to their inner thighs, w/c would probably make those guys from Law&Order: SVU cringe if interpreted the wrong way.

After the show we had a nightcap at Starbucks, where Mirell showed us her slightly blackened palms. Dirty Dancing, indeed.

RIP, Patrick Verona Cassanova Joker

I was startled and audibly gasped this morning when I saw CNN.com's headline about Heath Ledger's passing. Selfishly my thoughts wandered to hoping he finished filming his parts as the Joker in The Dark Knight.

Speaking of which, some people on the 'Net were commenting on how Heath's Joker look resembled that of Brandon Lee's in The Crow, i.e. pasty white w/ dark circles painted around his eyes. Lee died while filming Crow. Guess they can go compare notes now. Sigh.

Well, if celebrity deaths do come in 3's, Heath would be the second of his age range (Brad Renfro's the first at 25, Heath at 28).

10 Thoughts on Ace Water Spa (Not the Movie)

Hmm, plastic foliage...

Went with my brother, sis-in-law and all nephews and nieces to kill the late-afternoon-to-early-evening hours. My first Philippine spa visit. Ever, be it wet or dry.

1. While they make you leave whatever footwear you came in (even slippers) at the front desk of the locker, the facilities aren't bad. Showers use liquid instead of regular bath soap, w/c sucks since they don't provide loofahs for them.
2. Ah, swimcaps: the great equalizer for balding men using the pool.
3. We started at the Lazy River, where a semi-strong current drags your lazy ass around the water spa's perimeter (provided you're using their styro-board or inner tube), encountering both misty and hard showers along the way.
4. While the Cold Water Pool lived up to its name, I really wanted to try out their Hot Herbal Pools (Say that w/ a Cockney accent; it's really funny. Awt erbal puhls, guvnah?). Set in 3 different colors and temperature settings, it felt like I was dipping myself in large pools of tea. At the edge of the pools were "cold pillows:" stainless steel pipes generating cold for you to rest on head on while you concentrate on not farting underwater.
5. The sauna and steam rooms still haven't differed from the first time I tried them in JiuZhaiGou, namely, why folks in Finland like the feeling of being steam-cooked is beyond me.
6. Other water facilities felt like amusement park gimmicks, like the eight nozzle shower or the dunk-yourself-w/-a-wooden-bucket area. I noticed the latter had a float ball in the bucket, like the ones you see in toilet tanks, w/c made this imagery slightly disturbing.
   
7. My favorite water massage came from Rainfall Acupuncture. Lying on my stomach while being bombarded w/ high pressure water, I couldn't even lift my legs. Too bad I also couldn't fully rest my head down, since I might drown in inch-deep chlorinated water.
8. The other jet massages weren't as pleasant, since it felt like most of them were trying to force water up my butt. Hmm, they oughtta hand out nose/ear/butt plugs before getting into those pools.
9. On the other hand, the bubble massages were a pleasant experience, just pushing up your butt instead of performing an unwanted enema. It got so foamy at times I thought someone mixed liquid detergent in the pool.
10. They gave us coupons for free soup afterwards, but they ran out of corn and served us Nido soup, instead. Wonder how many packets of Knorr Chinese soup mix they go through in a day?