October 25th, 2006 at 1:58 am I went to two birthdays this week. First was at the old Hyatt for Reg, one of my closest friends, where we gorged on delightful room service versions of the Quattro Formaggi, the salmon steak and the katsudon (the food is surprisingly good there); and second was at Gary s, where I was invited to come at the last minute. In both celebrations, poker was the centerpiece, and I won in each.
After the Tuesday night bday bash at Hyatt, I went home and slept at 2 to wake up at 530 for my 9am at the World Bank. The agenda of the PDF meeting was to harmonize LGU efforts with the workplans of other working groups, which include ours, the MDGs and Social Progress WG. I was a tired dog, but headed home right after the meeting to get a few things done and prepare for rehearsal that evening.
Just before I was about to leave, Chikki texted if I wanted to dine for free at Abe, a new restaurant in Serendra. So of course I said yes, because I was going to Makati that evening anyway. Lo and behold, Dawn J, communications director for the LJC group, was there.
Well actually, I called her up when I was losing my way because I remember her telling me about Abe during our lunch at Bollywood. So anyway, we hooked up, got settled, met her friend Karen, spokesperson for LJC, and then another surprise Judith J of BusinessWorld, my dear friend whom I have not seen in aaaaaages. That night turned out to be a whole lotta fun, despite the fact that I was sooooo late for practice.
My bandmates can t kill me anyway even if they wanted to haha
On Thursday I hung out with Z who generously (and proudly) gave me a copy of their upcoming album. Finally, Snakecharmer s about to fly
Friday was the gig at Handlebar. The place was packed, but the crowd was not too appreciative, like they feel so obligated to applaud or cheer.
Kim was out so the singing chops came from me and Cow. My friend Chi came, as well as Stacey, Mitch and Rubi we all had great fun laughing our asses off, thanks to Rubi s Beijing shebang. We laughed until the 3:30am closing time.
On Saturday, Z was at my doorstep unexpectedly to catch YouTube vids on my PC. Joke. I left at 6 for the Days palanca night where I will be giving the palancas to my cousin kit who s a participant (their batch is A34 I m A17 deng!
) Iza was also a participant. Then I smoked and stayed until lullaby to sing some Days staples .Ghost, Nothing Compares To You and Come Away With Me.
I still got it
Sunday I drove my cousins home after Days for two hours I was on the road. I had tons of work waiting at home, which I miraculously accomplished (well, not all of them) while chatting with Zann the man. It was like being Diane Sawyer, because he regurgitated one of his miscalculations.
Hahahaha that kept me up.
Slept at 5am woke up at 11. Headed to the office, printed stuff then headed for SM North to have my iPod with the sad mac checked and go to the gym.
Bad news .the iPod would set me back a gruesome 8k. Putang ina lang talaga hassle.
Oops sorry. Anyway, tears embarrassingly welled up in my eyes. My precious iPod now gone.
So I went to the gym, prepared myself for the run without the music (sigh). Surprisingly, I ran for 25mins straight!!
! I could ve gone longer, but I didn t wanna push it. I had MTV s Wildboyz to entertain me, no iPod.
Now I m psyched to go on the treadmill again tomorrow! Yahoo!!
! Then I dressed up and headed for Makati to join my friends at Circles. I was with Chi, Stacey and Chikki.
My dinner was on the Chef, for the profile I wrote for him for his cookbook. However, after the dinner, turns out the Chef paid for all four of us unintentionally of course. Chi has to explain to him tomorrow how that happened hehe.
All the guys there are their usual generous selves they prepared special entrees such as a platter of huge king prawn tempuras and sea bass with mango salad. The dinner was splendid .but the dessert station was horrendously downgraded.
I can t believe people can no longer enjoy the delicious flourless cake, plated cakes, puff pastries, creme brulee .On the other hand, the food at the other stations were delightfully good.
We went to Red to hang out with Ed who promised us free bottles of wine.
Thanks to my main man Erick, we got free champagne!!!
That rendezvous at red was so much fun all the jokes were hilarious!!!
Ed pa went on and on about his kapilyuhan days. So funny. Then my poker masters called to say they were about to start the 2nd game, so I ll be blinded out.
I headed for Blue s house and joined Chot, Mich and Jay and some of their HS friends for some poker, which I lost instantly.
Then I went home, took a bath and got a good rest
October 21st, 2006 at 2:00 pm Here s just something I would like to go back to once in a while, especially when I feel like killing somebody
1. After a long hard day one of the best stress relievers is exercise.
Get out there and sweat it out. It will release much-needed endorphins and help lift your spirit.
2.
Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. This helps you gain focus.
3.
Sing. Sing loud; sing hard, and rock out. This is a great way to scream away your frustrations.
4. Treat yourself to a massage or some form of pampering after your rough day.
5.
Read inspirational quotes and sayings.
6. Call a friend and ask if they would like to talk and walk.
Talking and walking are two of the best ways to get it all out.
7. Go out of your way to help someone in need.
This helps bring your life back into perspective and reminds you about the things going right in your life - instead of the things going wrong.
October 16th, 2006 at 12:09 am Although I did not reach the point of passing out at any time through over-inebriation, I sensed that too much Red Horse and smoking may have penetrated the deepest recesses of my brain this week. I don t feel fried, but I had the weirdest dreams, like being fired from the band, which to me was more like a nightmare.
I started the weekend early, and hung out with Snakecharmer at the Rockmoto gig at Motorsports Alley last Thursday. I came at 10, they played at 3:30am. But hanging out and just listening to some new bands was surprisingly refreshing.
I couldn t remember the last time I listened to a young band joyfully personifying their illusions of being Steve Vai for a night, like this band that played Sabbath s War Pigs and Children of the Grave (awesome). Personally, Snakecharmer s 4 song set after the eternal wait was almost transcendental, after enduring an amalgamation of noise and premature talent ejaculation from some bands (more practice puhleez ). Or maybe because I m biased.
Correct me by asking that host who went up to me and asked Hey, are you Snakecharmer s groupie? Some nerve. Of course I knew what she meant, but I answered so blankly anyway and said No, I m a friend.
If Emily Post was a trailblazin hippie on acid and she heard that comment, prudence would be translated into a punch in the nose. Everybody say . You do not use the term groupie when striking up a conversation with a girl you don t know.
If I looked like a slut, it would have been excusable. But I looked amazing (as I usually do haha) so .excuse me?
You callin me a groupie? Uhm, I happen to sing for some rats Thank Gad I ended the morning on a happier note with Zann the man at mickey dees for some early breakfast.
Moving on I had a date with the Ver on Friday, as I was carless that night and we had to go to a common friend s despedida.
It was actually my first Ver trap, but I was pretty prepped for it. We bonded, and she knows too much about me now. Some very private info was actually divulged indiscreetly to her boyfriend s friends (who are like 40-ish old) by her of course after a few beers and a few smokes.
Hay. But thankfully, there was another party goin on in the other room, with some people more my age who roam the same musical circuit as I do. That was more fun than getting stuck in the stuffy smoky room where weirdness and mild impropriety were brewing.
I m glad I got home safe and sane
Saturday was my day of rest, but Tom that night did not resist badgering me about my inactive social life, if you know what I mean, and mocked me to death
Tonight we went to Donna s 9th day novena mass, where me and my high school buddies were informally reunited once again. The food was delicious
Plug: The surreal inimitable sound of Salindiwa was launched in a pre-album launch party last Saturday, October 14 in Alabang. These guys are guuuuud.
Buy their album when it s out. Too cool. Publicity artwork below by Cowboy Santos
October 9th, 2006 at 12:21 am Another meaningful weekend swung by like a breeze, reminding me of how much I dread tomorrow s Flag Ceremony at DSWD where I have been tasked to sing a Cyndi Lauper classic to evoke the importance of sincerity to my distinguished public service colleagues.
The weekend started on Wednesday night, which was devoted to band rehearsal and poker. I finished third lang, but it s cool. Ninoy s serving of Color Me Badd, Backstreet Boys and Francis M tunes was nostalgic, but it drove me nuts.
I think that s why I lost my all-in magic.
Huka, D4 and Firebottle
Ok last Thursday, I had the distinct horror of braving the floods to get to Conspiracy to sing Bob Dylan with Ruben Flores of Snakecharmer, a dear friend, who requested me to back him up with the awesome harmony parts on Oh Sister. Thankfully, the car survived the storm and was able to make it to Joric Maglanque (Firebottle), Kakoi Legaspi (Salindiwa) and Ruben Flores (Snakecharmer) s Dobro 3 or D3 set.
Thanks to Joric, the trio took on a new monicker, D4, because of me, the dopedeeva, who jammed with them on the melancholy Elmore James classic It Hurts Me Too. Moreover, my duet with Rubs was pretty awesome, the harmony really clicked in my opinion and Kakoi s harp playin sealed it. When I actually first heard the song, it reminded me of the mesmerizing scene in Almost Famous when William chanced upon two folk singers (Peter Droge and Elaine doing Small Time Blues ) rehearsing by the entrance hall of a hotel room.
Anyway, Edwin Vergara (formerly of Lampano Alley) of Color It Red and Noel Cabangon, also came to jam with Huka, one of my favorite local bands. And somehow, I missed Edwin, who played with the Rats for three Saturdays at Hobbit in Joey s absence when he went to the States in the summer. That guy has serious guitar chops.
Alex (or Indian Joe) of Huka s breathtaking performance was the highlight of my evening. This guy is phenomenal. He s my idol when it comes to just letting it lose on stage.
It was also good to see Eric, Huka s bassist, again. It s been a while since we last saw him at Hobbit at our last gig there. And of course, Kakoi also deserves credit for saving Joric and the rest of Firebottle by taking on the guitar reins with the absence of their 2 band members.
I think we left Conspiracy at about 3am, with 3 Strong Ice beers swimming in my blood stream.
I was so stressed out on my way to the gig because I had to write the Secretary s speech for the GK event the next day. Very important that I finish it before I leave for the gig.
Thankfully, I checked in on time. Kaya pala, there wasn t a crowd waiting. I thought at first that it might not be a good night for us, but later into the night, the whole experience was divine.
The highlight? Zann Pacificador and Ruben Flores of Snakecharmer, 2 of my bestest blues buddies since Moira days, jammed with me and the rest of the Blue Rats again, with It Hurts Me Too. (Yun kasi yung alam nila eh.
) and Mel Po and this other jammer Janno were amazing too. But my moment with my boys was priceless, because it was a true reversal of roles. I used to jam with Snakecharmer all the time, pre-Rats days.
And now, they re the ones jamming with me on stage! It s like forming one big bluesy and incredibly crazy family, with Rats and Snakes in the pot. Btw, I also enjoined singing Janis Piece of my Heart, a most requested song, because I think I killed it haha.
Donna was my classmate in high school. We used to be seatmates all the time, because in the order of alphabets (hence, seating arrangements), Mislang preceded Molina. 2 weeks ago, a 2cm tumor in her brain ruptured during surgery, which caused her to lie in a comatose state until her demise last October 6.
I was devastated, although I knew that her untimely death (at the age of 24) was imminent because of her condition.
The wake was held at The Heritage Park in Fort Bonifacio, a place so idyllic and peaceful. It looked like a resort actually, and I wanted to have my remains stashed there too, hehe.
Seriously. The solemn mass was presided by her brother, Father Carlo, and eulogies from her best friend, her boyfriend s mother and her boyfriend touched my heart. The AVP of her short life was filled with countless photos of awesome memories.
She really made an indelible mark in the lives of the people who surrounded her.
For me, Donna is my silly schoolmate, who laughed with abandon and loved with abandon.
To Donna, thank you for the honor of knowing you.
You make me want to sing Good Day Sunshine by The Beatles with your smile. Stay bubbly and happy in heaven. 
October 2nd, 2006 at 11:22 pm I am livid with fury.
These industrialists who make millions of dollars just dumped their waste in this poor country in Africa, making innocent people suffer. And for what? To evade the higher cost of safe waste disposal.
Now so many people, including the children, are paying the price. They are already poor, but they are people like everyone else who have the right to live. You irresponsible tycoons in your nifty suits you have already been blessed.
Why are you still heartless?
October 2, 2006
ABIDJAN, , Sept.
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