backwards

Indeed, it is a happy holiday for me because I am on a Christmas break. Yahoo! a week without work… I can watch DVD movies at home, sleep late, wake up late, jog at Montefaro, bum around, see friends, and sleep… sleep… sleep. I love to sleep.

This is our first Christmas at our new home. Earlier today, we went shopping for stuffs needed for Noche Buena. Then yesterday, auntie Inday’s Christmas package for the whole family arrived… That’s why I am grinning like a contented cat because there’s a stash of chocolates and pistachio nuts at home. And Danish cookies. Hehe, it really is Christmas… I will open ate Olive’s gift for me on Christmas day itself just to feel like I am like a little kid again celebrating Christmas.

When I was still in grade school, my siblings and I anticipate the end of the Christmas mass because that means we can open the presents Mama and Papa gave. One time, we even stayed up just to play with the toys Papa bought for each of us. It also means Mama cooking lots of food.

The New Year, meanwhile, will be celebrated at my other aunt’s house in Paranaque. Auntie Inday, who went home for the holidays, will be spending the New Year with us. This is a first too.

Well, gotta run. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone! May we be blessed with God’s grace and enlightenment now and the coming months and years.

It’s really a happy birthday for me this year. The Man up there answered all my prayers and the answers came in one sweep. Yesterday, I was really overwhelmed and utterly thankful as I got "regularized" at work and the healthcards for my parents. In addition to these good news, we are soon going to move in to our new home. Yahoo!!!

It’s also a great bonus to know that people who mean a lot in my life remembered my birthday… These are the things that matter most. And an even greater bonus to receive an early birthday present from my co-workers. They were so excited that they decided to give their gift four days ahead of my birthday. To all those who remembered, thank you for the birthday greetings. They mean a lot.

And simple joys come in the following forms:
1) Mama and I having a spur-of-the-moment mall trip. We just went around Robinson’s-Imus and window shopped. It was fun because I felt like a little kid again. It reminded me of the time When Mama would always tag us along to SM, church, my aunt’s place in Ledesco Village, etc. It also reminded me of days when I would beg her to take me to McDo and buy me a cheeseburger meal. I find joy in sharing a PHP 35 Burger King meal with Mama… in killing time and talking about nonsense with my mother.
2) my nephew Joaqui, waking me up every weekend. Every Saturday, Joaqui would barge into our room and wake me up. To wake me up, he would say, "Maam, (he calls me Maam after I taught for one SY. It was my father who made such new nick, sigh) gising na! Umaga na!" My nephew knew that Saturday would mean me playing and watching movies with him. After lunch, we would take the nap together.
3) watching My Sassy Girl with my brother and my Ate. Yeah, I know I have watched this movie for several times already but it still makes me laugh and feel giddy… and makes me sigh.
4) chatting about "showbiz chismis" with Joaqui’s mother. I rarely talk with Geselle. So having her stay at home for over 12 hours is something… and talking with us, even if it is about something trivial like about Ruffa-Annabelle rift, is even something.

The weekend was wasted watching the Korean TV series "My Girl." Was it good? After finishing eight episodes, it already felt dragging. Yet I finished watching all of the 16 episodes, skipping some of the parts. Korean TV series always have the four-sided love angle. Boy has an ex-GF who went back to him but then their relationship wouldn’t work out because the boy realized that he’s in love with the heroine. And then another conflict comes in, a close friend of the boy is also in love with the heroine. But in the end, the heroine will still end up with the boy. It’s quite predictable that I wish they would have some new ending. Anyway, I always find myself wishing the heroine would choose the other boy.

Most of the time, I read entertainment and showbiz stories to take a break from work. Some stories are amusing and informative (like what is angelina jolie’s latest movie project, what are the latest TV series). Others, however, are nonsense and turn you off… like the latest word war between Willie Revillame and Joey de Leon. I am not siding with anyone in this stunt. Both have their mistakes in how they handle situations, both don’t know how and when to shut up, both earn from purportedly making other people, especially the financially deprived ones, happy. Both make fun of other people just to gain attention. Poor humor, I say.

If Joey did not make any snide remarks, like "Dito walang dayaan," on air and if Willie just shut up and let Joey’s remarks pass, then nothing as trivial as this would happen. We were taught since time immemorial that when we do something good we don’t need to let everyone know about it and Joey could do something for the common good by silently filing a complaint about the cheating incident to proper authorities. And most of all, all networks and TV production should make sure that they serve their clients honestly and responsibly… that means when they produce a game show, they should make sure that there is no room for cheating.

We are all victims here. Joey and Willie should think that the viewing public (especially those who don’t have a cable TV subscription) are the biggest victims here because they are left without a choice but live with the "trash" they dish out every single day. And I just hope we should try to be responsible viewers too… I mean, we can do something about this too. Stop the proliferation of rubbish TV shows and demand TV networks and artists to stop using the media to spread negative things and stuffs that will not exactly help people progress and grow by demanding from the government and TV networks proper monitoring and regulation of TV shows. We have abused the so called freedom of speech and press so much already.

Movies Watched Over the Weekend:
1) The Shawshank Redemption (2nd viewing) - based on one of Stephen King’s stories. It’s slightly similar to Green Mile — quite long but never dragging… is inspiring with a happy ending.

2) 1408 - another movie based on one of Stephen King’s stories. Is actually not that scary, but because I always anticipate that something scary will appear or happen in the movie, I couldn’t watch the entire movie with my eyes fixed on the TV set. Talo pa ako ng pamangkin ko. The movie will keep you thinking and asking questions.

3) North Country - based on the historic sexual harassment case involving the first female mine workers in Minnesota. Sometimes you will hate Charlize Theron for choosing to be silent about her past; thus, people think she is at fault and see her as an indecent person.

4) The Family Stone (2nd viewing) - heartwarming and funny… and close to reality.

The house my ate bought is almost finished and we might move in by October or earlier. I am sure the next few months will be busier with my deadline coming, the CDO trip, the moving, my brother’s first vacation at home, and my auntie’s homecoming.

Mama is quite worried over the possibility of my brother getting married soon. Yesterday, my mother reported to my ate that Gene Paolo called and told her half-jokingly (I assume) that he is getting married soon. After replaying their phone conversation for the nth time, Mama thought aloud, "He couldn’t be serious, could he?" Maybe yes, maybe no. Jokes are half-meant, anyway.

It just got me thinking that my auntie made a wrong prediction. She always thought that I am the first one to tie the knot. Yeah, right! Most likely, our youngest brother, Gene Mark, would end up right about when I will settle down.

Nights ago, we were watching a feature story on Korina. It was about two high school classmates who met again during their HS reunion. They were in their 70s and both were widowed by the time they met again. Gene Mark suddenly turned to me and said, "Ng, I think you will have the same love story as theirs. You will marry someone whom you will meet in your HS reunion." He grinned like a stupid cat after saying that. Yeah, right… It reminded me of what Miko said years ago. "Get married at 50." And all I could say was, "Nag-asawa pa ako." It also reminded me of what someone told me… I deserve someone perfect. If that’s the case, I will never get married because not one person on earth is perfect. Perfection doesn’t exist. Ayan, wala na itong patutunguhan.

Long weekend na naman.

I am really looking forward for weekend to come for the past few days… Yey, weekend na talaga!

Tomorrow will be a day with my cousins from my mother’s side. Ng Charina is in Manila for a seminar and has extended her stay until Sunday so that we can have a mini get-together with Penny, Paul, and my two sisters (I just hope my little bro will change his mind and come with us). I haven’t seen Ng Charina since December 2005.

As usual, the rest of the weekend will be spent at home, watching TV and DVDs, playing with my nephew, and sleeping. I rather do these monotonous stuffs than think of java (hay… sakit sa ulo gid ya).

I just need to think of what September has in store for me. Not the deadline but the upcoming CDO-Camiguin trip I will have with my ate, my constant travel buddy Rosary and her other half, and my former co-workers Jolan, ate Riza, and John.

Speaking of Camiguin, I’ve watched Ouija last night. The movie lacks originality. The story is obviously ripped off from the Japanese horror movies "Ringu" and "The Grudge." Hay, can’t we make any movies not patterned after foreign films. I am sure there a lot of original ideas out there. And the fact that we watched a bad DVD copy of the movie made it worse. Instead of being scared, I kept on laughing because I could hear people screaming in the background and could see heads of people.

Other movies watched over the weekend:

The Big White — starring Robin Williams, Holly Hunter, and my new crush, Giovanni Ribisi. Gusto ko dito si Ribisi. Parang maiinis ka minsan sa kanya dito. It has its funny moments. Can keep boredom away.

Heaven — still starring Ribisi and Cate Blanchett. Hmmm, there are loopholes in the story. Something’s missing to make it a movie worth watching. Redeeming factor ang pagkacast kay Ribisi at Blanchett.

Finished reading, Nicholas Sparks’ At First Sight. So-so. At the end, somebody died. Thought it gives reader a realistic take on trust in relationship.

And I wish I could watch the 12 Girls Band concert on AUgust 11 but the ticket prices are expensive. PHP 1,500 ang pinakamura. Wah!

Life is complicated.
My head uttered something like that while we were whiling time away after lunch today.
Life is indeed complicated. Oftentimes, I wish everything would stop. I wish that living is simply breathing in and out, inhale, exhale… without wondering why do we need to breathe. I wish that life doesn’t need much thinking or making choices and decisions. Sometimes, this freewill thing sucks because all these choices make your head spin.
And when you make a bad choice or decision, all you can say to console yourself is…dyandyaran — "Well, that’s life!"
Oh yeah, is life really like that? What if life is really actually just plain inhale-exhale until you get so tired of breathing? But then we are all smart, we defined "life…"
I am just messing with my head… and your head too. Cheers to life. May we find purpose in this breathing-in-and-out business.

Bernhard Schlink’s "The Reader" will be turned into a movie. The filming of the said film will start next month. Nicole Kidman is part of the movie’s cast. I love the book. I just hope that movie will be as good as the book (because most of books turned into movies are badly done with the story straying away from the book and cutting some crucial parts).

Anyway, here’s a very short list of books turned into movies that I have seen and liked.

1) Silence of the Lambs — based on the Thomas Harris book of the same title. I first watched this during our film art class in college. The suspense and mystery will keep you interested all throughout the movie. It must be the fact the it has a good cast (Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins). I like the book, too. 

2) The Notebook — based on the Nicholas Sparks book of the same title. I thought this was another bad movie. I didn’t like the book, anyway. I ended up enjoying the movie version than the book.

3) The Client — based on the John Grisham book of the same title. This is the reason why I used to love Grisham. The movie starred Brad Renfro (it’s a plus that he is in the movie… Most HS girls then have a crush on him) and Susan Sarandon.

4) The Thirteenth Warrior — based on the Michael Crichton book entitled Eaters of the Dead. The story is similar to Beowulf.

5) Pride and Prejudice — based on Jane Austen book of the same title. Both the book and the movie are entertaining (save for the middle part of the book which is dragging).