incessant rambling

i had lunch with karen and anne in metro gourmet and in the middle of our animated conversation (yes, we wave our hands a lot and we do a lot of play acting to emphasize a point during our conversation) i heard someone say "hi excuse me..." i quickly glanced behind me and saw an old caucasian fellow looking at us, i turned around to motion for karen and anne that the guy probably wanted to talk to them. as it turned out, he was actually trying to get my attention. great, if i hear any annoying complaint about my two blabber mouth friends... as it turned out, he just wanted to strike a conversation and the first thing he said was: "are you from here?" that sort of confused me, didn't expect that. "uh, what do you mean if i'm from here?" "was just wondering if you're filipino, you don't look like a typical filipino." great, just my luck, that would have to be the dumbest pick up line. "i'm part filipin...

2011 is done and the Rabbit literally jumped into the hole with an unprecedented disaster in Southern Philippines to end the year. The Golden Rabbit seem hell bent on introducing the Water Dragon with endless rain that soaked most of Christmas and fizzled numerous fireworks during New Year. According to the Chinese system, 2011 was supposed to be a "good" year.  I'm scared shitless over what a bad year is going to be compared to 2011. If that's not enough, the Mayans predicted that 2012 is the end of the world. That, or they just ran out of parchment or rock to record their calendar. Whatever happens in 2012, there's so much to be thankful for in 2011. As with most web chroniclers, here are some personal highlights for 2011: - it was a great year for a gastronomic trip with new restaurants added to my usual staple (Yaki Mix, SumoSam, Joed's, Everything Yummy, Fudge, Dong Juan, Hawker 101, Choi City, Tsim Sha Tsui, Don Merto, The Bee Farm, Pala Pala ...

Firepoi, Year End Party and Luau 2011 So Gold's gym is setting up it's Cebu branch in Mandaue and is actively recruiting people from other gyms to move to their facility. If you don't know who or what Gold's is then it shouldn't matter. On the other hand, a few of my friends are making the move despite the fact that the area is prone to flooding, I guess the extremely attractive price is the come on but one has to consider the distance from where one lives as well as the convenience of the location. year end luau party in Citigym, lovely friends Nikki and Anne! I'm staying put in Citigym for a number of reasons (1) it is very close to where I work (2) the facility is superb and well maintained (3) they provide working sauna, steam rooms and shower with really strong water (4) towels are included (5) access to the pool (6) it is still rather "snobbish" as the price discourages the rather obnoxious crowd (i hate it though when they have the ...

the Cebuano market is very finicky, if you want to see if your dream of pinoy gustatory domination will work then you should try setting up in Cebu City.  a number of restaurants have set up their operations here only to close down or downscale business due to low patronage. yes, we are still enamored by the usual brand thing and most of us would troop to the newest national/gobal brand that opens shop in the City.  if you account for the market that actually goes out to eat, that would give you about a year or a year and a half max to sustain your operations. not enough to cover your return of investment. the only way to survive is to adapt and learn the ubiquitous Sugbuano Rating System when it comes to restuarants. when Cebuanos eat out, the first question that majority asks is "Pila?" (Price?), and if the price is within a certain budget they next ask "Dako?" (Big Portion?) and followed by "Lami?" (Delicious?) which is sadly, the last consid...

I totally blame my new Asus Transformer tablet.  i haven't been writing (writing with effort, not just to get something in my blog) seriously for the past few months and as a result i have a esfektakular (this is another story,  a person i know, and many of you probably don't know,  refuses to pronounce "spectacular" properly) pile of pictures and stories that make up my fabulous life. I have been practically travelling every weekend, throw in a trip to Vietnam, Hong Kong and Macau, mixed in with local Cebu travel to Camotes, Tabogon, Danao and Barili. I also managed to insert some travel time to Bacolod where i rediscovered the beauty of Bago City's waterfalls. Camotes was specially fun as i spent a weekend exploring spooky caves, gorgeous beaches and lakes with my very dear friends. Last weekend alone I was in Manila to visit family and see friends, had a mega humongous burger in the Sunday Legazpi Weekend Market, oblivious to the raving of ...

WARNING! SEXUALLY EXPLICIT TRIVIA AHEAD! READ FOR YOUR OWN ENTERTAINMENT. do you know that a pig's orgasm can last as long as 30 minutes? that a female praying mantis needs to rip off the male mantis' head before he can ejaculate? (yan ang tinatawag na "deadly experience"). similarly, black widows kill their mates after having sex (naman, pag sinabi sa yo "kainin mo ako" wag naman gawing literal. pero kung baboy sila, maiintindihan ko kasi pagod na siguro si mareng black widow pagkatapos ng 30 minutes.) that according to a survey, half the men who were raised in farms have had a sexual encounter with an animal (i'm guessing duck and chicken are the usual victims. this gives a new meaning to the term "dog style"). dolphins are the only other mammals aside from men that have sex for pleasure (i bet you, they haven't met the pig) some fish are asexual and can change gender based on certain environmental or hormonal cycles. (sila ...

did anyone see the front page picture of imelda marcos doing a duet with gwen garcia in yesterday's sunstar? i'm posting another picture of the ladies with imelda holding up an "I Love Cebu" shirt together with gwen. i don't understand why we are celebrating a lady whose family has been convicted of plundering the philippine coffers? the only reason why i would have my picture taken with imelda is if i get the chance to post it in facebook with an arrow pointing at her labeled "FREAK!" i kept my silence when they recently published a picture of a gloating imelda as an honored guest in a recent museum opening in cebu if only for the small amount of satisfaction seeing madam in a "prison" turned museum. that's the closest you'll see her behind bars. we pinoys have this uncanny ability for forgive and forget. unfortunately, that hasn't taught us to learn from our lesson. today, more than ever, corrupt political families are buil...

i don't understand this "DESIRE" to catch a movie on its first day. it's not like the Transformers Dark of The Moon plot is going to change after a couple of days. Megatron is still going to die and Sentinel Prime is still a traitor. oh wait, did i just give a spoiler? can i just rant for a bit? putakting sm eto, amputchang sakit ng neckers ko looking up the crotch of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, pati kulangot ni optimus prime kitang kita ko, in 3D. dapat ipagbawal ang neknekeng first three seats in the front! parang kumain ako ng isang toneladang lechon at nahilo ako pagkatapos panoorin ang super-feeling-close-up action right in front. speaking of transformers, there are a lot of that in the philippines. boy by day, girl by night. and if this is not enough, i read in the newspaper that the mega-transformer herself, dr. belo just announced her engagement with hayden "manyak" kho. di bale, vicky can fulfill the fantasies of hayden of having a virginal...

my nokia china rip-off dual sim phone finally croaked after three years of faithful service and many months of frustration trying to figure our the menu items that are in chinese. and since my word for the day is "Eulogy" , here are my last words, sentences, phrases, euphemism, allegory and thoughts dedicated to my phone: eskandalosa ka. lintek sa lakas ang ringtone, keypad at message tone mo! naman, pati kapitbahay ko nagigising sa lakas ng alarm mo. nung isang araw nakalimutan kitang i set, nag reklamo si ate charo at na late daw sya sa gising dahil hindi ka nag ingay. sa sobrang pikon ko, ginamit ko tuloy yung isang pre-recorded tone na pang-gising, ayun natahimik si ate charo ng nag-ingay ka na "peking na mo" (repeat 200X). da best ka din, sa halagang less than payb thousand, meron kang radyo, mp3 player, voice recorder, video and TV recorder, 8 megapixel camera (pero di ko alam kung bakit blurred pa din ang quality), dual sim at snake xenxia na paboriton...

nung isang araw nanood ako ng "Forever and a day". hep, walang kokontra, please, pinilit lang ako. katapat lang isang scoop sa gelatissimo ang bribe sa 'kin. and yes, namatay si sam milby sa movie. at kung nag react ka sa statement na yan, obvious nanood ka din (ipokrita!). anyways, me isang scene, si kc nag dialogue kay sam: "i want to hear your eulogy for me...", aaminin ko, medyo affected ako, samahan pa ng singhot at impit na hikbi ni doktora minnie sa tabi ko, medyo mapapaluha ka din. kasi naman, ang daming kurot ni minnie, sakit ha?! dyos ko po, 30 years old (hep, ano sabi ko? WALANG KOKONTRA) na tayo?! kinikilig pa din?!?! syempre, ready na si doktora sa kanyang pang urian best actress for a single scene emote award sabay kuha ng panyolitong puti. yung isa pang kasama namin na si doc ron ready na rin sa showtime bigtime performance. dapat one tear lang, right eye. di rin patatalo si doktora emik at nangi-ngilid luha na ang maldita habang bumubul...

there are four distinct cliques in my gym. the bratty college kids on a summer break who go around in packs and seem to be preoccupied with talking more than working out. i hate how they think they own the joint and sit on benches while the ones who want to use the machines have to wait. i don't want to sound snotty, but i definitely paid more than their bloody student summer rates to use the gym. the other group is made up of "athletes". boxer-wanna-be, stationary cyclists, road runners. the ones who raise their shirts in a snap to admire their abs and talk about their next cycling activity, the next marathon, the next basketball game. often they flock around the tv to catch the latest NBA game. they also have the annoying habit of hanging out in the spinning room to chat up the instructor, never mind that we're in the middle of a class. the worst offenders join the cardio classes, do mocking attempt at following the teacher, laugh out loud at their "feigned...

harold camping of FamilyRadio.com - May 11, 2011 Rapture Prediction if for every lie, pinocchio's prick would expand, harold camping could easily have the longest dick in the known universe. as it is, he's probably the biggest DICK in the world. at least for those that believed his rapture story and went ahead and quit their jobs and went on a euphoric acid trip believing that May 21, 2011, at exactly 6:00PM, the rapture will happen and signal the end of the world. seriously, it can't happen that soon. the expiration on my Coke Zero can said June 15, 2011 and I still have to watch the last episode of Oprah and let Americans make the biggest mistake of voting for the worst American Idol season winner of all time. i sat through mass during the Saturday, May 11, 2011 6:00PM anticipated schedule. if there was anyone who was going to suddenly dissipate and rise to heaven, it would have to be the priest standing in the pulpit in front of all the sinners. guess what...

that's it. the last straw came when they got rid of haley and left two country hicks to duke it out for the finals night in american season 10. they got it all wrong when they started with casey abrams getting eliminated early in the show and the judges using their season save to bring him back. just when i thought they have somehow managed to correct a glitch in the system, pia toscano got the axe. a loss that caused a minor uproar as the judges were alternately angry and upset over the results. a pattern followed suit, the non-white contestants got the boot week after week and it came to a head when casey abrams was eliminated from the show. i admit, casey is my favorite but he's not exactly american idol material though i think out of this batch, he'd have a great career in front of him. james durbin was my other bet and it looked like he was set to reach the finals with amazing performance week after week. my other bet was haley who was similar to casey in the way ...

Can someone tell me where is the quality of life in this scenario? what the church doesn't understand is that the very act of publicly condemning the Reproductive Health (click on link for the full text of the proposed bill) and making it the subject of full page ads in national papers only add to the interest of the otherwise apathetic attitude of most filipinos. they should have taken their cue from "Da Vinci Code". i've heard the rhetoric and selective interpretation from the catholic church regarding the (proposed) RH Bill. RH Bill is Anti-Life. RH Bill promotes Abortion, RH Bill promotes pre-marital sex. RH Bill should not be funded by taxes paid by Filipinos, majority of which are Catholics thus making the tax money, a Catholic fund. each pronouncement, adding more fuel to the curiosity of the filipino why the church is exerting an all out war against the RH Bill. the church claims they are fighting for the life of the yet unborn child but more filipinos...

The Adjustment Bureau if matt damon and emily blunt are part of a chemistry experiment, we'd refer to them as combustible. "adjustment bureau" partially succeeds in delivering an enthralling love story purely based on the spark between the two lead actors but eventually falls into the "love conquers all" cliché. i am surprised that the roman censorship machinery didn't take offense in the loose description of God as the "chairman" who is not as omnipotent as what we roman catholics believe in. apparently, according to the movie, chairman (aka God) and his angels all live in New York, have static disturbance when rain falls or surrounded by water, must only have male agents in the roster, has interest in a select few mortals, and needs magical hats. the ending falters to a literal *poof* after building up the tension and is the cinematic equivalent of pre-mature ejaculation or impotence. I am # 4 aliens on earth, can only be killed in a s...

laws are just as stupidly absurd as the lawmakers that did them. in a twist to the ongoing debate against the reproductive health bill being deliberated in congress, village officials of Ayala Alabang, a soshyal barangay in Muntinlupa, passed their own ordinance requiring the issuance of a prescription to buy condoms. i knew it, too much use of botox can cause brain damage. botox, a toxin used to paralyze muscles is often used by some sosi residents of Ayala Alabang. surprisingly, they can do an out patient procedure to do this without a written prescription from a physician whereas they need a prescription for condoms. i'm reposting the news from abs-cbnnews.com for reference Ayala Alabang requires prescription for condoms By Jojo Malig, abs-cbnNEWS.com Posted at 02/24/2011 6:45 PM | Updated as of 02/24/2011 7:31 PM MANILA, Philippines – Barangay Ayala Alabang in Muntinlupa City is now requiring people who buy condoms to present a doctor’s prescription. In a barangay ...

and i'm not talking about doing a facebook re-tagging of your friends in their worst condition. I'm talking about getting a ready-to-wear outfit, cutting out the tag (logo), pasting your own then selling it for a thousand times its original worth. in a shocking turn of events in the fashion world, Puey Quiñones, who rose to fame as the bibo enfant terrible of philippine fashion, may just as quickly realize that his career has gone the way of the dodo, EXTINCT. he sold a jacket to a client tagged as Bobon by Puey Quiñones at a hefty price of Php 30,000 and forgot to remove the Dansen logo still stitched in the inside pocket of the suit. the same jacket that would cost Php 3,000 in your nearest sari sari store - Shoemart. in a matter of minutes after the damning evidence was posted in tweeter, the whole online community was a-buzz with this fashion scandal and has a deeper repercussion in the perception that this may not be entirely an isolated incident amongst filipino des...

PostSecret is a blog that i follow for its unique concept of posting random notes and private secrets left by strangers in libraries and bookstores across the US. it's the equivalent of going through confession but done in a publicly anonymous catharsis. Anyone can read it, and most of the notes end up published by the administrators who run PostSecret . I half suspect that majority of the readers and subscribers of the site are those that left their notes (often done in a very creative artsy manner) with the hope that they will see their "dirty" little secret out in the open. the notes are usually short, some are cryptic, often dark. nevertheless, i've never really felt the urge to put out a comment about anything in the site until today when i saw something that caught my eye: "I have a case of 158.73 and it is turning me into the kind of librarian that I hate" the clue was already there: librarian. This got me thinking that 158.723 is a libra...

if you like the azkals then stop right here. still here? well... dang! just when i am resigned to the fact that the Philippine Basketball Association is unofficially Phil-Am Basketball Association with its influx of ameyricans and crossbreeds playing for its ranks, our football team has stepped up to recruit drop dead gorgeous halfbreed players to fill in its ranks. the only difference is that most of these meeestizos are not amboys (american pinoys) but europines (i just made that up, european pinoys). it suddenly feels like high school all over again where the meestizos in the class wanted to play soccer. but that's another story, i'm digressing really. my lady friends kept texting and posting facebook shoutouts about azkals this, azkals that. i have this theory, 90% of the audience and fans are women. not that they have any dang clue why people need to kick someone else's ball and why it takes an average of an hour before anyone ever scores (hmmm, slow forepla...

the movie felt like the millionth re-run of a "Friends" episode and the "jen" hairstyle remained the same, very much like the career of jennifer aniston - has seen better days. adam sandler didn't fare too well either. he's like the keanu reeves of comedy, at least you can say he has consistency - he acts in the same style in every movie. the real scene stealer are the kids, the faux-british daughter and the drugged out, blackmailing boy. and yeah, wait for the children of the corn scene. heee-larious. don't get me wrong, i enjoyed the movie even though it's a complete rehash of the same jen and adam stereotype characters. for more incessant rambling , visit my blog .