Mary Jane in Shanghai

As I type this my friend Bitey is currently drunk and (probably) high from smoking weed in Shanghai.

Man, some people have all the fun.

(The weed, not the drunkeness. That she needs help for.)

Cute Easter Images

From my front yard:

Ryan & Jade. Awen't they cute?

* * *

The problem with a blog is a lack of control in terms of audience. Some people you know (re: relatives) read it and think that about putting their 2 cents in by way of Ma, of all people. Concern noted, Sis. But at the risk of stating the obvious, w/ relatives it's a fine line between concern and butting in.

Sigh. This is a place to vent. Any repurcussions that might come from my venting I will handle. I mean, last time I checked I'm still an adult.

Not Exactly an Image of Mohammed....

But it gets a good point across:

From The Devil's Panties

Crap

Feel like crap. For the past 2 hours I was writhing in mild agony in bed. Sis' kids are here, with Mia and Ryan sick. Probably caught some bug from then, and in less than 24 hours... no less. Stuffy nose, stomach cramps (though that might be due the lasanga for dinner and milk just before bed), chills, and skin feels sensitive. Actually got up to drink some water and blog my current situation at 3 AM (while looking up something on acupressure points to relieve stomach pain).

ARrrrgh. Feel. Like. Crap. Must... quarrantine... children...

UPDATE: It's now 9 1/2 hours later. After much "sleep," fluid intake and peeing, my condition has improved. Abs feel sore, but at least headaches are gone. Actually dreamt an idea for a TV series (as well as me complaining to Ma for not checking up on me).

Best Babe Buds Birthday Bash

As good friends go, I could never go wrong with Becca, DJ and Mitch, all of whom I met in college. Along with Vince, Victor, Sasha, Joanna and Ellie (and at some point in time Zsar), I was endeared to this small circle of HabitatTM memebers. Their propensity in English plus love for comics and American pop culture had me hooked. It was like I finally had a outlet for my Western sense of humor. If this was Sex & the City I'd be.... Stanley, unfortunately.

Every time we meet (w/c is rarely) there's never enough time to catch up. This year (the meetings seem to be annual) it was at The Dome just outside Podium. We chatted and laughed away like old times while I attempted to chew through a leathery excuse of a rib-eye beef sandwich. Bex bought me cake while DJ treated us to Starbucks. Alas, she couldn't stay long, so the rest of us opted to meet up with Victor (w/ me driving) as he was closing up his crepe restaurant in Greenhills.

Do You Make Out Next to a Parking Meter?

From Reuters:

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Unrelated people who kiss each other on the lips for more than five minutes at public places in the Indonesian city of Tangerang will face arrest.

The government in Tangerang, a suburb west of Jakarta, defended the regulation as a practical guideline for its officers to follow up on tough and heavily criticized anti-prostitution laws passed by the city council last year.

How would this be enforced w/o having cops look like leering perverts?

"Whacha lookin' at?"
"Shhh. They've been spit-swapping for 3 minutes and counting."
"I'm getting reports of a robbery in the store around the corner..."
"Screw that. This is way hotter."

Niece Talking w/ You

Talking to my almost-5-year-old niece Mia last week, I was glad to know that she knew the difference between cartoon violence and real violence. Sure, she doesn't know how to read yet, but as life lessons go, this was a big leap foward.

The topic was The Tom & Jerry Show. She knew that any demise met by Tom the cat would mostly prove fatal to real cats. How'd she know? She told me she saw a cat get run over by a car outside her home, and even added detail about how the eyes popped out. I asked her if she cried or if it scared her, and she said no. (Thanks, television's power of desensitizing the youth.)

And you can tell she's been watching a lot of TV. She knows The Justice League. Her familiarity with Spider-Man is from the movies and not the comics. Last Christmas her gift of choice was Polly Pocket.

My Weekend So Far...

Friday: Had dinner with Beijinoys old at Yuujin, the new Japanese restaurant (that looked like it used to be a house) on Wilson Street. Pricey food, but Lyndon wanted to try it out. Met Arlene (Ang)'s boyfriend Ritchie, Shinyzz (wearing glasses and looking like Jessica Zafra, Jr.) and Diane Sy (alleged Heart Evangelista lookalike). Finally paid and got the planes tickets for our Boracay trip.

After dinner we headed out to Greenhills and ended up in Bizu. Pricey pastries, so I just had water.

Saturday: Spent the whole afternoon w/ Eileen at Gateway (luckily driving to and from there was easy). Watched Ice Age 2 (wait for DVD), bought a couple Marvel hardcovers (and the latest 100 Bullets trade) and had sandwiches at Subway. (Thatsa SPI-cy olives!)

The 'rents were going out for dinner so I bought some KFC takeout. When I got home Sis and the kids were there (house being fumigated for termites) to stay overnight (the kids, anyway). Did 2 supersets (lower back pain!) and had a KFCLT sandwich(on wheat bread) with Tang for a late dinner. Ah, details.

Sunday: Oti's GF Dionne's b-day today. Cake was served. Pancakes for merienda later on. They went off to SM Megamall to watch Ice Age 2. Circle of Life complete.

How Lazy Do You Have to Be...

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - A Muslim couple in India has been told by local Islamic leaders they must separate after the husband "divorced" his wife in his sleep, the Press Trust of India reported.

Sohela Ansari told friends that her husband Aftab had uttered the word "talaq," or divorce, three times in his sleep, according to the report published in newspapers Monday.

When local Islamic leaders got to hear, they said Aftab's words constituted a divorce under an Islamic procedure known as "triple talaq." The couple, married for 11 years with three children, were told they had to split.

Back From Bicol

Mom and I spent the weekend in Naga City (and in the Hi-Ace for both 8-hour trips to and back) to attend my cousin Errol's wedding. Wish I was in the mood for more detail but it's just too freaking hot! Summer weddings blow! Let the pix tell the story:

Saw this in an old issue of FHM at my cousin's house (where we stayed). It's my Beijinoy friend Tina! (shown acutal size, heheheh...)

Cousins Ai & Tin sharing a Sony Cybershot moment at the chapel. (As an aside, I was the only male in who attended in a T-shirt.)

Post wedding photo-shoot.


As you can see, the photo crew followed us all the way to the newlywed's home for mi-sua (angel-hair-like noodles) eating and tea serving. Donna the newlybride serves the ceremonial tea to the siblings-in-law.


Just some lines from the wedding missalette that caught my eye (and ear). Arrhae? A kid is carrying this, so I'm pretty sure saying coin bearer instead would get his attention faster.
As for the responsorial psalm, I think it's kinda harsh. I pictured the forgetful party's tongue getting cut off. Worse yet, he wouldn't remember why!


This was posted outside the dining hall. For some reason it reminded me of an ad for a local airline. (Or a Korean chick-flick.)

I think my relatives have the only gas station in the city where the family name is displayed more prominently than the franchise name (SeaOil).

This is why it's not a good idea to open wedding presents at the reception. Hey, an oven toaster! Now for the rest of our kitchen showcase...

The wedding car: a 1972 Mercedes Benz, bought by 3 of my cousins/brothers to start off their vintage limo rental business. Hopefully they'll be enough nostalgic newlyweds, prom-goers and period-movie film shootings around town (it does look the the Ecto-1 from Ghostbusters from a certain angle) for them to recoup their money...

Parting shot: The Batmobied spotted outside a meatshop on our way home.

Also.. things I've learned from my mom and uncle telling childhood stories at breakfast:

• Uncle Pete (God rest his soul) was a bit of a klutz. Seems his adult lost-2-fingers-in-a-firecracker-accident was just a continuation to his childhood poked-a-nail-below-his-eye and dislocated-his-elbow-incidents.
• Uncle Pete, depsite all the incidents mentioned above, was one of the pioneers in the invention fo the LPG lamp. In the past they mostly used kersosene lamps, but for some reason he never got around to getting a patent.
• Aunt Rose told a story of how her mom tried to remove one of her daughter's loose milk teeth by flicking on it w/ her index finger. Funnily (or disastrously) enough the girl accidently swallowed the flicked tooth!
• Star Margarine was considered a luxury item in their time. Bread (not doughnuts) dunked in coffee was the norm.