Wednesday, May 31, 2006

a lesson on ethics

couple number 1: a and b

couple number 2: c and d

'a' is a friend. 'c' is a friend. 'b' has been wooing 'd'. this i found out today.

question: should i tell 'a'? or should i stay away from this mess, which, in time, i am quite sure will create shockwaves and aftershocks. sigh.

Read More...

toxic city

wow. i went on for almost a week without updating this. i can't believe it.

and to think that i had 3 days free last weekend to celebrate memorial day. whatever. where did my hours ago?

hmmm. saw 3 movies last week: x-men, over the hedge and yes, that lindsay lohan flick just my luck. it was my first lohan flick and i'm ashamed to say that i kind of enjoyed it. hah! the night before that, freaky friday was on abc and i caught a good part of it. i was a bit surprised to see there a long-haired chad michael murray (one tree hill) as lohan's boy toy. oh well.

x-men was good. i don't believe published reports that say there's no more sequels after this. how could that happen? (spoiler alert). oh well, magneto's 'back' so to speak, after getting 'cured' so to speak. hah. and professor x? well. psylocke's a pinay! yay! she's quite pretty. her name's mei melancon.

ben foster (aka angel) had a very interesting (and really bvery short) role. too bad he only appeared in about 3 scenes. what's up with that. the way his wings spanned, the way it was made made him really look like a winged man. damn good.

over the hedge was funny and hi-hi-larious. the most memorable ones? bruce willis (well, at least his voice) delivered in his role as rj. wanda sykes was hysterical as the skunk. garry shandling as verne was emotional. steve carell was quite a scene-stealer too. the film? commercialism at its best, and very realistic. the film had laugh out loud moments.

last sunday was beautiful: the weather was fine, the sky blue, and it was not really warm. hah. the best time to go to the beach. so what would momar do?

i freaking cleaned the house.

and i did my laundry. two loads, and counting. armed with a vacuum cleaner, sucked the dirt out of every nook and cranny of my place, including the stairs. cleaned the refrigerator as well. took out all the expired food/delivery/take-out that have been calling my ref home for the past six months or so. hah. i'm happy.

monday. i woke up and my entire body was aching. the last time i felt like this, physically drained and all, was when i was in northern mindanao with a 3-man team for 2 months straight, hopping from one bus to another covering the entire area from iligan and marawi to surigao and siargao. hah. those were the days my friend.

anyhow, i never thought that cleaning non-stop would give me a body-ache. heh. i used to clean my room before, 30 minutes, tops. this time, i cleaned and cleaned for hours on end. i have new-found respect fr all the cleaning ladies (and gentlemen) of the world.

Read More...

Friday, May 26, 2006

hectic

wow. tgif. wow.

the tv season is over. until this fall.

my take on the dead. wow. a lot of dead people this year. farewell to marissa (the oc); the hundreds or so from 24 (including tony, michelle and president palmer); spydaddy, spymommy and arvin sloane on alias; who else.

and taylor won american idol. i really don't like him. he bugs me. everytime he says 'soul patrol', my dislike in him multiplies a hundred-fold. i think chris' fans and ellioot's fans joined forces to pool their votes toether and give it to taylor. plus the votes from votefortheworst.com. plus simon pimping? there was no way in hell katharine was going to win. sorry, girl.

during the 24 season finale, they aired a plug for one of their shows. i got hooked on a teaser for vanished. looks promising.


that's gale harold (queer as folk), ming na (er), rebecca gayheart (nip/tuck), and a bunch of support. hehehe.

Read More...

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

the crucifixion of madonna

this was what happened during the controversial 'crucifixion' part where madonna sang 'live to tell' while images of suffering children were shown on the multiple giant screens at the arena. and there was a screen on top of the stage with a counter, which ended at 12,000,000. that's the number of orphaned children in africa because of aids.

Read More...

finales galore

yes, it's that time of year again.

tonight makes me all confused. the series finale of alias is on (overlap!) almost the same time as the season finale of 24. damn, two of my favorite shows on earth are on at the same freaking time.

so i just finished watching 24 (i taped alias) and it was a great finale (complementing a great season). alias, i will watch in a few minutes. it's still on as i do this, and will end in about 10 minutes. that's when i will start to watch it, without interruptions please.

Read More...

Sunday, May 21, 2006

ma-ma-ma-my-madonna!


see you in a couple of hours madge!

tonight's the first night of the confessions world tour, and where else to start but in los angeles! yay! this is my third madonna concert after drowned (2001) and re-invention (2004) and i am quite excited. i'm not a fan. hehehe.

Read More...

much ado about da vinci

(and i don't really care about the negative reviews that the film has amassed so far.)

watched three movies: mission impossible 3 (because it was close to impossible to get a ticket for a da vinci code screening at the grove friday night) and poseidon (curiosity got the better of me) and da vinci code (finally, a secure seat (thank you arclight) for the 11:30 pm screening on saturday night).

capsule reviews: mission impossible was quite good, despite the lukewarm response to the film, which tom cruise inflicted on himself because of his weird, crazy, wild goin' bananas antics lately.

it was like watching a larger-than-life version of alias. damn. years of watching that show made me notice the kinda obvious references that jj abrams used in the film. first up. what was agent weiss doing there? heh. and felicity? she had a very short role, i was actually disappointed. i kind of hoped she had a meatier role. maybe i just miss watching keri russell.

alias was conceived right after felicity, when something crossed jj's mind - what if felicity were a college student and a secret agent at the same time? that's how sydney bristow's character started. anyhow, keri did well in her stunts, i now wonder if jj would have chosen her to be in alias instead of felicity. which is actually a rhetorical question since jj would not have conceived of alias if not for felicity. anyway.

poseidon was okay. hated the kid. he was just too hateable. hate it that they killed nadia. woohoo, another alias reference. but josh lucas was good. kurt russell is old. emmy rossum is whiny.

and the da vinci code? critics have been very vocal about the film, and as i said, i could not care less. some of their (critics) criticisms were actually valid and i shared them.

first. the film was way too long. some scenes could have been deleted. second, and i hope i am not alone here. i still cannot figure out (for the love of mary magdalene!) why tom hanks is robert langdon. third. audrey tautou's acting was bland. beyond bland, actually. it's as if her lifeblood was sucked out of her completely. fourth. hans zimmer really went overboard with his score this time. oa. fifth. some parts actually dragged and it felt as if the energizer bunny was there all the time. it just kept on going, and going, and going...

and the things i liked? could sir ian mckellen be any more better? that just sounded redundant, but mckellen was awesome in his role. paul bettany as silas was, i can't think of the right word, haunting? his performance was so nuanced the audience could actually feel his pain.

oh, and one more thing that i did not like? the catholic (as theyc laimed) protesters (around five of them) who had placards asking people not to watch the movie. they staged their protest on fairfax, on the spot where people/cars turn left going to the grove. sorry for them, all the screenings were sold out friday and a 1:00 am screening was opened just to accommodate the crowds.

come on. it's just a freaking movie!

Read More...

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

dizzy in dc

the past few hours i have been here has been crazy and all the stuff going around made me dizzy. hah. so much for being alliterative.

just finished watching american idol, and may i just say how much i dislike taylor hicks? i cannot exactly pinpoint why i hate don't like him. just that watching him tonight made me cringe. just how many times does he need to blurt out 'soul patrol' for crying out loud! he must've said it more than 20 times tonight, in every single opportunity he got.

i think somehow my 'like' in mcphee returned tonight. i think i'd rather see a katharine-elliott showdown than a taylor-elliott one but if i head simon right earlier, i think he has made up his mind that taylor would be in the finals next week. so if that is the case, taylor-elliott trumps taylor-katharine.

it was nice to see the good ol' mayor of los angeles, antonio villaraigosa. woohoo! way to go tony! lol.

my events will be at the smithsonian tomorrow. i just need my caffeine fix before i sleep (yeah, i know i'm weird) and it doesn't help that there is a starbucks in my hotel. hah.

Read More...

Tuesday, May 16, 2006

it comes in threes

there is an old saying that luck, whether good or bad, always comes in threes.

i did not believe that it was all possible. until it happened to me.

my friends r and j brought me to the airport last night for my trip to washington, dc. we had dinner first since r has been craving for sukiyaki for weeks on end. so we headed to our favorite sukiyaki and shabu shabu place in little tokyo. this little joint's called zakuro. anyhow, after dinner, we went to my place to pick up my luggage and head to the airport.

since it was tad too early to go to the airport (i was taking the red eye), we decided to have coffee first. while sipping my french roast decaf, i had an uncanny feeling that i left something in the apartment. i checked my luggage and true enough, i left my orange pouch (freebie from shangri-la/st. francis) where i kept all my cords. and all my cords are important. my cellphone's battery was low. my digital camera's battery was drained. i am toast.

so we went back to my place to retrieve the cords. one.

we proceeded to the airport. since i had extra baggage because tptb wanted me to bring a video cam (we bought it this afternoon) and a gigantic tripod. i am really toast. so mentally, i was preparing everything that i need to bring. i told r and j to just drop me off at the curb so they can go home early. so check-in i did, went through the xray for my baggage, escalator up for another xray. it was here when i realized that i was missing something. my cellphone.

i called j and told him that i think i left my cell in the car. he checked, and indeed, it was there. they went back to the airport, needless to say. i am not liking it. strike two.

i chose an exit row for the flight from los angeles to atlanta. where we were to change planes en route to dc. i slept through both flights. finally, at around 11ish, we landed at the ronald reagan airport in washington dc. i was so paranoid thinking that i might lose the hi-tech tripod (with its own bag) or worse, the new video camera. i woke up mentally checking if the tripod or the camera is with me.

i went all the way to the baggage carousels and realized that i may have lost my wallet. since it was bulking from my back pocket, i put it in my jacket. it might have slipped while i was sleeping and changing positions. i have never lost a wallet in my lifetime and i was hoping i was not going to lose one now.

strike three.

and hassles of all hassles. i had to go through the entire process of checking in just so i can go back to the gate and hope that someone picked my wallet up and gave it to the airline peeps. my legs were shaking and i was sweating bullets.

in the end, i found a nice lady on the phone and the last words she said to the person on the other line was 'he is filipino' so i said, 'ma'am you have my wallet? i might have left it inside the plane.' she smiled, bade goodbye to the person on the other line and said, 'he's here.'

wow. and it's not even lunch time yet.

Read More...

Monday, May 15, 2006

bloody week

and i am excited!

i am taking the red-eye tonight from los angeles to washington dc. wee! first time! i am covering the filipino centennial event at the smithsonian. i am so stoked.

last week was also a bloody week, and i survived. had lots of things to do, lots of things to write. things that make me go abuzz.

so i will be missing in action until friday (my hotel has free wi-fi, so i might be blogging live. hah!). jed madela's concert here in los angeles is also on friday. da vinci code opens on friday. then on sunday. oh yes, sunday.

it's the first night of madonna's confessions tour ever. and i got tickets. stoked as well. it's my third time to see the material girl live in concert -- drowned world tour in 2001 and reinvention world tour in 2004. i'm not a fan. hah.

Read More...

Thursday, May 11, 2006

semi-upset

because a couple of my friends scheduled last night as a movie night (another post!), i was not able to watch the american idol results show.

because i liked two other shows more (amazing race and alias), i was not able to to tape the american idols results show.

because a friend from the east coast texted 'oh my god' around the time that ai was pretty much wrapping up in their time zone, i knew this was going to be a great show.

because a friend from up north called in and was quite jubilant. earlier in the day, same friend called my office and asked who was leaving tonight. 'without a doubt, it's katharine,' i said without skipping a beat.

because a friend called in upset (gusto kong murahin ang buong america! i'm out! hinding hindi na ako manonood ng show na ito!) a full hour before the actual results show, i knew who was leaving. and that made me pretty upset as well.

because i could no longer contain my excitement, and to confirm that he was actually the one voted off, i called another friend. this was before 9:30 and the bottom two has been announced.

because i was not able to tape it, i had my trusty computer do the work for me.

because i am not explaining what torrent means (google it!, just a little bit), but i am thankful that my computer didn't fail me.

because i still could not believe that it happened, i watched the episode and i was forced to write this post moments after watching (and yes, rewatching it) the episode.

because katharine mcphee and chris daughtry were my original final two (i know, carrie underwood- bo bice redux!) i was genuinely and extremely shocked. (my fascination for mcphee diminished by the day, to a point where i didn't like her anymore, to a point where i wanted her off my tv, to a point where i actually liked taylor more than her already, and that's saying a lot because i DO NOT like taylor!)

because elliott yamin rocked the house on tuesday night and was on the verge of elimination since he was perceived as the weakest of the four, in terms of fanbase.

because i voted a lot for elliott (and the last time i actually cared to vote was when this guy sway penala was still there. hah.) and i wanted him safe.

because of the results show, katharine is now being dubbed as the season's nikki/jasmine (not a great club to be in) just because other more qualified (dare i say better) contestants should have been in their place at the top 3 (tamyra and la toya come to mind).

because i am so looking forward to an elliott-taylor showdown (an elliott-katharine match-up sounds just fine) in two weeks, i promise i will dial like crazy next tuesday night.

Read More...

Monday, May 08, 2006

lost

no, this post is not about the show.

it's about the much-awaited confrontation between the two los angeles home teams in the semis of the western conference nba that's not gonna happen this year because, well, the lakers just lost game 7.

it was the first first-round series loss for zen master phil jackson. the phoenix suns is just the eighth team in nba history to come from a 1-3 deficit and win a series.

i was at the sipa (search to involve pilipino americans) anniversary dinner at the marriott airport earlier when a good friend who works with sipa approached me and told me the news. (probably some guys sneaked out of the ballroom and went to the sports bar near the hotel lobby) oh well.

looking at the brighter side: the LA clippers (others call them as 'the other team from LA'. ouch!) will have the staples center as their home and i just hope that they win this series not just for themselves but to avenge the loss of the lakers. hah! as if.

my boss watched game 3 with her family last week and she told me that parking alone at staples on the night they watched was $50! and this was in a parking lot 3 to 4 blocks away. those lots 1 to 2 blocks away charged almost twice as much. 50 freaking dollars for a parking lot? C-R-A-Z-Y. (photo via the associated press)

Read More...

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

and so were they

they = real-life couple ryan gosling and rachel mcadams -- both canadians -- who went out of their way last monday to join hundreds of thousands of immigrants like us march along wilshire boulevard.

Read More...

i was there

day without immigrants.

estimates say that more than 500,000 people trooped and marched along the stretch of wilshire boulevard to protest hr 4437 yesterday, may 1. i think the figure was more than that, i'm not just sure by how many.

it was a sea of stars and stripes this time, as the mexicans in the crowd heeded los angeles' mayor antonio villaraigosa's plea to bring just one flag: the american flag. i've been saying all along that it's ironic that they bring mexican flags when they are actually pleading their case to become americans.

notable who's who: martin sheen, who seems to have imbibed on his role as democratic president much on the west wing; tom morello, guitarist of the band audioslave (formerly of rage against the machine); some local politicians; fil-am author noel alumit (hi noel!), and others.

Read More...