trippings

Manila Kingpin: The Asiong Salonga Story

2012-01-01T23:27:00.015+08:00

Who would've thought I'd go to one of the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) movies. Not that I'm a snotty, snobbish film critic.

"I don't like it. It's not boring enough."

But the MMFF movies have the tendency to be bad -- really bad. Imagine Scary Movie 3 or The Epic Movie and add maybe a little drama to that, then you'll have the usual MMFF movies. Panday, Enteng Kabisote, Shake Rattle & Roll ( I wasn't even born the first time they made Shake Rattle & Roll -- though I did enjoy the first SRR movies), Ang Tanging Ina Mo. And they keep adding sequels to these movies, trying to spin-off every possible story they could squeeze from their brains. Panday meets Enteng. Enteng meets Tanging Ina Mo. I'm still wondering why they never thought of putting aliens in Panday -- now that would be interesting. Maybe not original, but originality rarely matters in MMFF.

But Manila Kingpin: The Asiong Salonga Story is different. I thought it's interesting the first time I saw the posters but wasn't really thinking of watching it until my friends invited me to the movies. And I thank them for that.

"Doesn't this scream badass to you?"

Directed by: Tikoy Aquiluz
Cast: Jeorge Estregan, Carla Abellana, John Regala, Baron Geisler

In a gist, the movie is about the life of Asiong Salonga (well, duh?!) as the leader of a gang in Tondo (the most notorious district in Metro Manila). He was a young fella but was able to control parts of Tondo and kept other gangsters at bay, thus protecting the oppressed people of Tondo. Yep! Like Robin Hood!

Now MMFF is not the Oscars, as I told you. But Manila Kingpin is definitely a step up from the usual kitsch movies in mainstream media we have nowadays. Mind you, the movie is not utterly perfect and the flow of the story can be painfully all over the place at times. Then again, this is just the Producer's Cut (in which case, we have to see the Director's cut).

But the film has a lot of merits. One is the cinematography. There are a lot of beautiful stills and shots in the movie, which is worth an Academy Award if I may say so. The action scenes are just amazing to behold. Anyone would fall in love with them. I could rant about beautiful scenes in the movie, but then I'd just give away the whole story. My favorite is the shooting scene with the calesa (sorry I can't help myself, I just really love that scene).

The setting is also well-chosen. Cobble-stoned roads, old churches, old houses. It makes me want to visit Tondo for a while. For a moment, I forgot that Tondo is the kind of place where I can get stabbed the moment I step in there.

There are also good performances from the supporting characters. Okay, I don't really like Jeorge Estregan for the role. Let's see. He's not very likable for me. I hated watching him, especially his love scenes with the beautiful girls in the movie. They made me cringe really. They reminded me a lot of Danny Trejo kissing Lindsay Lohan/Jessica Alba/Michelle Rodriguez in Machete or Tommy Wiseau's sex scene in The Room .

"Eeek! My conscience wouldn't let me show the still for the sex scene"*

Other than that, it's kinda weird when it's revealed at the end that Asiong died at 27 as Jeorge Estregan doesn't look 27 at all.

Back to the supporting characters. Phillip Salvador's performance is really good in this movie, especially towards the end. Baron Geisler and Jay Manalo also carried out their roles really well. At one point in time, I wished Jay Manalo took the role of Asiong. As for the lead female role, we actually thought that Carla Abenally would be painfully awful. But, to our surprise, she did an amazing job!

However, my friends and I are still of the opinion that the film shows or maybe even venerates some nasty things. Misogyny, bending of laws, adultery, the its-ok-if-he-kills-people-as-long-as-he-gives-me-benefits-kind of mentality -- Asiong, then, seems like our typical politician. But then again, maybe that's how people think back in the 40s. Here's to people like me who are hoping to have stronger female characters in the Philippine mainstream cinema in the future.

In general, Manila Kingpin: The Asiong Salonga Story is a Filipino movie worth seeing. I actually hope they would release the Director's Cut as all the crappy aspects (except for Jeorge Estregan), such as annoying and awkward scenes, would have probably been removed from the movie. So instead of being a movie for campy entertainment (which is usually what the mainstream is), this would actually be a great film. And hopefully, more directors and filmmakers would follow suit.

Anyway, this is also a call. WE WANT THE DIRECTOR'S CUT!

Watch Out! We Got A Rick Scott Right Here!

2011-12-31T13:29:00.007+08:00

Remember the douchebag named Rick Scott? If not, let me remind you of him here. Okay, so he said sorry after his daughter give him a tut-tut in public. Then why does he come up again?

It's because my country's Commission on Higher Education (CHED) is going to do the the same thing here in the Philippines.

A memorandum issued by the commission in September 2010 said that starting school year 2011-2012, there would be a moratorium on the offering of five programs: nursing, teacher education, information technology, business administration and hotel and restaurant management (HRM).

(Martin 2011, Manila Times; Read the whole article here).

So why bully these courses? Because CHED says the sheer number of graduates is too much for them to handle. Too many grads, not enough jobs. But you see, I'm in the opinion that they're missing the point here.

Not enough jobs? So we pop the balloon of these courses, another balloon will grow and then we pop that one too? Last time I heard, some schools don't even have enough teachers. And if they cut down students taking education, then where will the government get their teachers? And how about the long run? They put a moratorium now, and the next thing we know no one's going to attend to our mutilated legs and life and death crises in the hospitals.

Education, it's a business prospect for these people. College is a factory line. We are nothing but supplies that must fill the current demands.

They make life sound like a boot camp. And I thought they wanted to fight off communism (at least the communism used in China, North Korea and past USSR). Next thing we know they'll be deciding which food to eat, which brands to use, which things to like or which things to hate. Or wait, didn't they start doing that already to the general public?

*"Don't be scared. I'm just gonna hold your breasts. No big deal."*

Trains, Desks, Crustaceans and the World

2011-12-30T02:12:00.015+08:00

Part I:

This is hopefully my final semester in college. It's been a struggle lately. I'm anxious when thinking about graduation. All sorts of worries, doubts, etc come creeping into my head when I think about it. But I only have to deal with two Physical Education (PE) classes this semester (and that one academic subject I need to complete before the semester ends).

The problem is I'm not a very big fan of sports. Academics I can more or less deal with, even at times when I'm just dragging my feet. But PE -- that's a different story.

One of my issues (that I have to solve) is that I hate doing things that I find senseless. I don't like going to lectures where I know the teacher's just messing with the class because I won't get anything from the experience anyway (kinda the reason why I got an incomplete for one subject). I'd rather stay at home than endure a painful lecture then bang my head on the wall after listening to crap.

Well PE is not crap, but I don't see the whole point of it being required in the college level. Who are they kidding anyway? Requiring students to take 4 PE classes each doesn't make us any healthier. It just makes us more stressed because a.) it's difficult to get any PE subject when every person in the university has to take four, and b.) it just adds to the strain we have to endure when we are already mentally and physically stressed from the academic work (try having just 15 min of sleep in 48 hours just to finish a term paper -- and do that repeatedly).

Add this dilemma to the mix of doubts on the whole graduation/getting-a-job-after-work affair, then everything just becomes a train wreck.

Part II:

To escape the chaos of university life, I took two part-time jobs. One is home-based and the other is an office job. This proved to be a bad idea.

What I do in the office job is reviewing documents and digitizing them. I spend the entire day inside a freezing cold office, my butt on the same seat the entire day, flipping through the files then scanning them. It pays well, but it requires much more of my emotional confidence.

It's a very significant project, I can say that. I don't doubt the importance of the work I have to do. It's just the mind-numbing drag that is the whole thing. And then I feel insignificant. In a place like that, there is no room for learning or creativity. You write what you read, you scan. That's it. You succumb to your boss (and accept whatever annoying little comment he has to make that may degrade your entire soul). I hate it.

The whole place suffocates me. I feel caged every time I'm in the office.

And then I become more anxious than I already was. Is this the kind of life waiting for me after I graduate? Is this what I have to do to earn? Then money, for me, becomes undesirable -- hateful even -- if I have to be thrown in a cage like that.

Part III

Pathetic. And so this is what I'm going to be. And this is how people will look at me because I refuse to go with the herd -- like Will the Krill. Or maybe, like that ridiculous crustacean, I'm just trying to bite off more than I can chew.

PS. My back hurts so much I want to break it.

10 Awesome Songs

2011-12-28T23:46:00.019+08:00

When a meme hits you, it hits you bad. You can't sleep, you can't think of anything else, you can't eat (there's some contention about that). It fills your head until you say to yourself, "Ah crap! I'm going to join the bandwagon otherwise I won't have anything done". Look at how 9gag has taken many souls -- it must be the devil itself (some Christian church in Southern USA might've already thought it is, or maybe not). And yeah, I "browse" through 9gag every now and then (like maybe 8 hours a day, not bad).

So here's a meme I found. It's actually a Top 100 favorite songs, but I don't think I'm already Asian level (if you're on 9gag, you'll get that) in music to have something like that.

So I whip up a Top 10. Not in chronological order, by the way. I'm not like Rob Gordon of High Fidelity that makes list in a particular order (chronological, ascending, autobiographical).

Here goes.

1.) Lisztomania (Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix) by Phoenix

Phoenix started back in the mid-90s, but released their first album in 2000. Their songs had been played in two movies, Shallow Hal (with Jack Black and Gwyneth Paltrow) and Lost in Translation (with Bill Murray and Scarlet Johansson; watched this film back in high school and never really got it). They won a Grammy in 2010 for Best Alternative Rock Music.

The song feels pretty much like being on acid trip just because listening to it gives off the feeling of floating on air. I guess it has something to do with Thomas Mars's voice. I like his voice and the beat of the song is really great. The first few lines go like this: "So sentimental. Not sentimental, no. Romantic, not disgusting yet".

2. Sail (Megalithic Symphony) by AWOLNATION

AWOLNATION is a pretty recent band. They began in 2009 after the vocalist, Aaron Bruno, was here and there with the major labels. The song is pretty much about not properly dealing with the "normal" flow of life. Something I can very pretty much relate with. "Maybe I should cry for help/Maybe I should kill myself...Maybe I'm a different breed/Maybe I'm not listening." Bruno's voice is also filled with force and beauty -- another reason to like the song.

3. Sweet Jane (Loaded) by The Velvet Underground

Very obvious answer, maybe. Most people like (or maybe should like) this song. Lou Reed's voice is just so chill, makes you feel chill too. "And that, y'know, children are the only ones who blush. And that, life is just to die."

4. Sakasama no Chou (Hatsuyuki) by SNoW Yukie

The song comes from SNoW's debut album. It is featured (as well as another one of her songs called Nightmare) in an anime called Jigoku Shoujo or Hell Girl (watched it and I love the first two seasons; the last season was a drag and forced). She's a Japanese singer, but she has a few songs in English (On and On; I'm No). I'm not sure if she's still in the Japanese music scene as it is difficult to stay well-known in their music industry (save for Arashi and Utada Hikaru, and maybe Morning Musume).

SNoW has a very soulful voice that transcends to the heart. Her voice is just amazing. I can't remember the exact translation of the song but the title means "Inverted Butterfly". I love the video too!

5. Solanin (Magic Disk) by Asian Kung Fu Generation

The lyrics of the song came from the manga of the same name written by Inio Asano, which was later made into a movie. Both the manga and the movie are really good. I adore Asano's What a Wonderful World manga (a collection of one-shot mangas). Asian Kung Fu Generation was commissioned to make the lyrics written in the manga into an actual song as the actors (who are in a band) have to sing it in the movie. And they did a pretty good job.

The song (and the film) is about leaving your past and moving on. Rough translation of a part of the song (from here): "Even if that frail happiness had somehow lingered on/A bad seed would've surely sprouted/So, I guess this is goodbye."

Typical insightful Japanese artistry for you.

6. Grow Up and Blow Away (Grow Up and Blow Away) by Metric

I found out they're Canadians a few months ago and was excited. I like Canada! Well because my mother had been there before (when I was 8) and she told me a lot of nice things about Canada. Plus another one of my fave band, Tegan and Sara, are from Canada as well!

I have another one of their album (Fantasies) but I like this one better because it's more melodic -- especially this song. "If this is the life why does it feel so good to die today/ Blue to gray/ Grow up and blow away." Emily Haines has a really sweet voice. And she's really sexy!

7. Breaking the Habit (Meteora) by Linkin Park

Linkin Park is the first band I ever liked and got me out of the ditsy world of pop (I was 12!)into the awesome realm of rock. Chester Bennington has a really powerful voice and the emotions there just run deep.

I love this album (their 2nd). The fusion of Eastern instruments, electronica (go DJ Hahn!) and nu rock is just wonderful. I read somewhere that Breaking the Habit is about Chester's victory over drug addiction. The lyrics are very powerful and Chester puts in his whole heart in singing it. I remember screaming my lungs out while singing along to this song. "I don't know what's worth fighting for/ Or why I have to scream/ I don't know why I instigate and say what I don't mean/ I don't know how I got this way/ I know it's not alright/ So I'm breaking the habit tonight".

8. Under Pressure (Greatest Hits) by Queen and David Bowie

I love Queen. I adore Freddie Mercury. He has one of the most amazing vocals in the history of music. This is one of my favorite Queen songs, but I chose this for the list because there is so much truth in it. "Pressure pushing down on me/Pressing down on you no man ask for/ Under pressure, that burns a building down/ Splits a family in two/ Puts people on streets."

9. The Con (The Con) by Tegan and Sara

This is the song that got me following Tegan and Sara. They're Canadian identical twins doing indie music since they were in school and released their first album in 1999 when they were 19. They're thin, high-pitched voice is very unique and makes them very distinct.

10. 19-2000 (Gorillaz) by Gorillaz

I was in high school when I first heard this song and I instantly liked it. It has a right blend of funkiness and bad-ass video. I was taken by Gorillaz and fell in love with their other works - Clint Eastwood, Demon Days, Feel Good, Inc.. I even bought a tape of Demon Days when I was in high school (lost it somewhere, though). I just got a CD of The Fall a day or two ago and I like what I've heard so far. My brother loves them too so I got him their 3rd album, Plastic Beach, for Christmas.

Anatomy of a Massacre: A Review

2011-11-29T08:21:00.003+08:00

Repost from a community blog I write in:

I had the chance to attend the Anatomy of a Massacre talk, which is in accordance to the International Day to End Impunity. The speakers were Ed Lingao from the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) and Cristina Palabay from End Impunity Alliance. I was very much interested to go to this talk (sometimes talks are more interesting than university courses) and hear what they have to say on the Maguindanao Massacre. I am a child of Mindanao, and every inch of my being is deeply connected to it. And in many ways, the Maguindanao Massacre has affected me so much.

For a backgrounder on the Maguindanao Massacre, click here.

Ed Lingao started with a video that showed how powerful the Ampatuans are even after the Maguindanao Massacre was publicized. Many of the Ampatuans related to the massacre are now in jail waiting to be convicted. But while they are resting their butts inside the prison, 10 of them still managed to run during the last elections in 2010 and 8 of them actually won. 42 Ampatuans were elected around the Philippines — most of which ran for positions in Shariff Agwak, the fort of the Ampatuans.

The Ampatuan is a politically and economically powerful family with properties all over the country, money stashed everywhere (they’re not very fond of banks, so go look for moolah in their vaults) and a firm grip on Maguindanao. Their lawyer, Fortun, says otherwise. He said he didn’t ASK the exact monetary value of the Ampatuans under his care so he’s not so sure how rich they are, but I just think he was too afraid to ask.

They have a firm hold of the entire Maguindanao province — one of the most impoverished provinces in the country, with most residents not having enough to eat or enough means to support themselves. But take note that this is one of the areas which is heavily funded by our government. Last 2010, 3.42 Billion from the Filipinos’ hard-earned taxes were allotted to Maguindanao. And yet, there is no slight development in the situation of the people. They are still hungry, children can’t afford to go to school, not enough social services. Hey! Some of their employees don’t even get paid for a time! Imagine working almost for free.

And as the people go hungry, the Ampatuans are able to expand their properties, acquire high-tech guns and ammunition, and fund a private army composed of vigilantes hired by the government. Hey! They are even rich enough to hire Fortun (and maybe Fortun should consider that). And they even have a mosque inside one of their houses! Regular people, eh Fortun?

So what drives these horrific people to still be in power?

First and foremost, our own government. They are kept in power because they keep the higher-ups in power. 1.3 Million voters — that is really something to think about when you’re running for president.

As Sir Ed Lingao said, the Filipino citizens are also responsible for people such as the Ampatuans to stay in power. They are there because we voted for them to be there. They are there because we forget that their purpose is to serve our communities — and this service is not a charity-work or privilege for them to give. They are there because we turn a blind eye to the horrendous things they do — or we accept their actions as if to say, “It’s okay that he killed my neighbor. He gave me money so he should be a good guy and I’ll vote for him” or “Ms. so and so is so great because she gave us a TV and so I’ll forget that she got my brother stabbed”. We don’t hold them accountable for their actions. So my fellow countrymen, the next time you vote please consider this: your vote, your politician, your responsibility. And since s/he is your responsibility, you must hold her accountable for every crap s/he does.

Ms. Cristina Palabay commented that many of the massacres around the Philippines are state-perpetuated. Many of them are supported or even initiated by the government officials. In the Jabidah Massacre, 200 soldiers from Sulu were killed as instructed by Marcos for abandoning their mission to capture Sabah. 7 farmers were killed and 27 had gun shots in the Hacienda Luisita Massacre in 2004 because they were fighting (with stones and sticks against the heavy armaments of the police and the military) for their right to own the lands that they have tilled across the years — which is, by the way, is rightfully theirs because Hacienda Luisita was bought by the Cojuangcos (related to the Aquinos) using government money with the promise to give these lands to the farmers after several years. As the Cojuangcos stay in the economic echelons of the country, and the Aquinos stay in their political seats, they keep an iron hand on these lands. So hard is their grip that they’d cast the first shot at the bare farmers.

To know more about the crap of the Aquino-Cojuangcos, click here.

When the most revered mother-hen Aquino — Cory Aquino — was in power, 13 unarmed farmers were shot in Mendiola during a rally. In the regime of Cory’s son — Noynoy Aquino — there are already 65 victims of extrajudicial killings. So that’s what he was been busy with for the past year. Instead of doing true and good reforms, he gets people killed. Oh, but he also awarded the tree in front of his house! What an action man he is (*sarcasm*).

The political situation in the Philippines sounds like a shogunate (not exactly, but I’m trying to do an allegory here) with warlords, private armies and enslaved people. A lot of innocent people have been killed since the American colonization because they were fighting for their rights — rights that clash with the greediness of rich people. Conflict of interest, as Marx said (oh shit! I’m gonna be marked as a communist *sarcasm*). In Arroyo’s term alone, around 1,200 were victims of extrajudicial killings — and she even hunted down, with her pet Jovito Palparan, students, farmers, ordinary people.

The military gets top one in the National Budget and still they get the people killed . Lest they forget, their salaries and benefits come from the people who work and pay taxes which go to the National Budget. And these hounds don’t really protect the people (which should be their job), but put them in danger instead. And by the way, with the tons of massacres in the country, none of those responsible have been convicted. Makes you feel safe, doesn’t it? (*sarcasm*)

For my last call: End Impunity! Do not let these people kill more people.

And a few quotes from Sir Ed Lingao:

“Journalism is about change”.

“Filipinos have fallen in love with revolutions. But real change comes from one’s self”.

Reflections on Changing Education Paradigm

2011-11-12T08:59:00.005+08:00

The video above is an animated version of Sir Ken Robinson's lecture entitled, "Changing Education Paradigm". He talks about how current education system was modeled on the ideas of the Enlightenment (and that was seven centuries ago!) in which there is only one form of intelligence. This is the basis of standardized tests and standardized curriculum -- and grades too! And intelligence as a resource is used as a driving force for one thing -- economic gain.

"Education is modeled on the interests of industrialisation and in the image of it." -- Sir Ken Robinson

But, this type of education system is no longer appropriate in the present context and era! And in fact, it's alienating most people whose capacity and learning does not conform with the standards of the Enlightenment. And as Sir Robinson suggests:

"If you are interested in the model of education you don't start from this production line mentality.It's (production line mentality) essentially about conformity -- increasingly about that as you have standardised testing and standardised curriculum. And it's about standardisation. I believe we need to go exactly the opposite direction. That's what I mean about changing the paradigm."

(parentheses mine)

Great ideas have stemmed up from people who did not conform. These people challenged conformity and the generally accepted ideas of the time. What would've happened if Copernicus just accepted the geocentric model of the solar system? Or Darwin just followed the creationist trend of his era? Or if Einstein was too overwhelmed to challenge the widely accepted Laws of Physics by Newton?

These people revolutionized the world and they didn't even follow the hegemonic education system. We know that Darwin was kicked out from his program -- but that didn't stop his love for learning. And we know that Einstein couldn't even speak until he was 9! But he has the most amazing mind there ever was on Earth. And what about Andy Warhol? One of the greatest artists of our time? If you're using Pop Art anywhere -- then you are using the forte of Andy Warhol. And he has an IQ of less than 80!

But IQ is just a bunch of "standardized" tests made by certain people who don't really take account of the multiple ways of knowledge, learning and talent in this world. I don't think they even tried to learn about other people. But a lot of people are walking around the world who do not recognize (or just gave up on) their brilliance because the world says brilliance is only this and only that.

We have a specific way to gauge brilliance. Those who top Maths are considered brilliant -- but those who can spew epic riffs on their guitar are considered not as good as the Math Whiz. And I don't understand why. All forms of learning have skills, talent and brilliance embedded in them. There is no such thing as one form of intelligence. And Sir Robinson says so too!

I remember Rick Scott of Florida who commented that anthropologists are not needed in his state. Further saying that more graduates from STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) should be produced for economic purposes. I wrote a blog about it here.

But why should learning be inhibited by the market? By something that is as whimsical and constantly changing as the Philippine weather? 5 years ago a lot of people took up Nursing for economic purposes -- but now, those people can't have jobs.

Einstein didn't theorize Relativism for the sole purpose of industrialization and economy. Neither did the other amazing minds that existed on Earth -- Boas, Newton, Darwin, etc. Economy isn't everything.

And by inhibiting education, we are also inhibiting the different forms of ideas and thoughts from springing up. By saying that there is just one answer, we are limiting creativity. Just imagine the tons of ideas and inventions that people could come up with if society didn't teach them to only think in one particular (authorized and sanctioned) way.

I have written the superficiality of diploma (here) and grades (here) somewhere else so I won't repeat them here.

Anyway, this is one of my favorite lines from the talk:

"Why is there an assumption that what they have in common is how old they are? Is this the most important thing? The date of manufacture?"

We have to change our idea of a monolithic learning system in education. We have to change the education paradigm. And here's an Indian movie that resonates Sir Robinson's ideas in his talk. The title is Every Child is Special.

Tenbin wa Hana to Asobu

2011-10-28T19:01:00.005+08:00

Genre: Gender Bender, Shoujo Ai, School Life, Seinen, Supernatural
Author: Unohana Tsukasa
Publisher: Houbunsha
Magazine: Manga Time Kirara Forward
Rating: 7.75/10

Characters:

Quick Synopsis: Youko transfers to an all-girls' school, Lotus Girls Academy, and meets Shuu, the most popular girl in school. Not long enough, Youko discovers Shuu drinking blood from the neck of Hasumiya-sensei, the nursing teacher and also Shuu's brother. Youko learns that Shuu suffers from "Vampire Syndrome", which makes her need human blood ever so often. Also, this illness causes Shuu to be genderless (and thus, just holding a facade to the entire school) and will achieve a gender on her/his (???) 18th birthday depending on which blood s/he drinks the most by then. With this, Youko vows to protect Shuu no matter what. Thus, adventure begins. Oh and do we sense a hint of romance too?

Quick Review: Okay, that might not have been the quickest synopsis I've ever written.

Tenbin wa Hana to Asobu is by no means a Shakespearean work and it is a cliche when it comes to Shoujo Ai stories, but (and a big BUT it is) it is still a fun read. I find Shuu's character very interesting, as s/he binds herself in different layers of personalities. Oh, and how cute s/he is as she figures out her true feelings for Youko. Youko, on the other hand, is a very energetic girl. She's very different from Shuu, but she compliments Shuu really well.

The art is well done. Shuu is drawn pretty elegantly, as well as his/her brother, Hasumiya. Yep, they are quite the pretty people. Though there is not much detail in background (Oh I do love detailed backgrounds), the characters are drawn well.

It's a textbook story on Shoujo Ai love set in high school. And at times, it might just give the reader a feeling of warmth and fuzziness with the thought of young 'uns falling in love. At least it makes me wanna fall in love all over again.

Other Reviews:

Okazu
Timeless Grey

Mushishi

2011-10-20T01:19:00.004+08:00

*image borrowed from here

Mushishi
by Artland
Rating: 9.5/10

Quick Synopsis: Mushishi follows the life of Ginko, a "mushishi", as he travels around Japan studying "mushi" and helps people infected by these creatures.

Quick Review:

"Mushi" literally translates to "insect" but in the context of the anime (adapted from the manga), "mushi" are supernatural organisms, neither animal nor plant. But they do coexist with earthly organisms in this world and sometimes they disrupt the lives of humans for their existence.

Anyone who likes xxxHolic (which I reviewed here a long time ago) would surely like Mushishi.There is the same folkloric feel and air of mystery in both series -- though xxxHolic can be more comical at times.

Comparison aside, Mushishi is very likable for its unique stories. Watching them certainly feels like standing in a warm room while listening to grandma's stories (as I said, it has a folkloric feel). The main character, Ginko, might probably not the type who makes girls squeal, but I really like him. He'd be a good example of a nerd during his era (which doesn't really exist in Japanese history, but for the sake of fiction, it exists before the present Japanese era).

The series is not episodic, so you can start anywhere at times and still won't get lost in the story. Some characters, however, appear more than once. As for the characters, a lot of them are very interesting. Won't spoil anything here, but watch out for cool characters.

I find the background art very impressive but the art for the characters don't cross the line to awesomeness. Anyway, it fits the story very well. Sometimes simplicity is best to convey a meaning well.

Other reviews:
Anime News Network
Star Crossed Anime Blog
Minitokyo

No need for Anthropology? What?

2011-10-18T23:44:00.005+08:00

*image borrowed from here

Last week, there was much news on Rick Scott's comment that his state doesn't need more anthropologists, saying further that Florida needs more graduates from STEM (Science,Engineering, Technology and Mathematics).

"I want to spend our money getting people science, technology, engineering and math degrees. That's what our kids need to focus all of their time and attention on: Those type of degrees that when they get out of school, they can get a job."

-- from here .

It spurred a lot of reactions from the Anthropology community. See here (from Anthropolaris), here (from MotherJones),here (from Neuroanthropology) and here (American Anthropological Association). In a letter addressed to Gov. Scott, AAA wrote:

"It is very unfortunate that you would characterize our discipline in such a short-sighted way...Perhaps you are unaware that anthropologists are leaders in our nation's top science fields, making groundbreaking discoveries in areas as varied as public health, human genetics, legal history, bilingualism, the African American heritage, and infant learning" -- American Anthropological Association

I live in a country in which Anthropology is taken much for granted, even if it had been established here for a long time. The Philippines is the first country in Southeast Asia to have a Department of Anthropology, which can be found in the University of the Philippines Diliman. It is, by now, more than 90 years old.

However, for some reason or another, people still fail to recognize the use and importance of Anthropology in the Philippines. I know very much for a fact how many policies failed because politicians in the country do not consult any social scientist.

Looking at Philippine society, I can see how much this nation would've improved if Anthropology is just allowed to gain access, research and help communities. But then again, Filipinos remain ignorant of what Anthropology is about -- putting STEM at the highest pedestal still -- and thinking that social sciences are unimportant and are just "easy" courses. But it's a big loss for society if the social sciences -- such as Anthropology, which runs through the core of humanity -- are taken for granted.

As Dr. Alex Phillips had said in his blog:

"It’s not science, technology, engineering, or mathematics that makes me a pleasant coworker and employee in the regular service-industry jobs I’ve worked in college, it’s anthropological principles like cultural relativism and the social/cultural determinants of behavior that actually provide intellectual tools for being more pleasant, patient, and understanding in everyday interactions. I also have the good fortune of being able to travel to our nation’s capital this weekend to present on a panel about academic praxis (practically applying theory and research) with two far more experienced and older individuals than I–another exciting resume bullet that owes not to my own ability but to learning anthropology."

A lot of people (even friends) think that I transferred to Anthropology because Physics was much difficult for me. They just don't understand that it's not really that. Although I did fail my first Math, it wasn't because it was too difficult but I was such a nervous wreck at that time (first semester of my first year in UP). To be honest (which a lot of my friends don't know), I did well in the succeeding science courses I took and even topped my Math 53 (Calculus I) class. However, my transfer to a social science major was enough to make me "intellectually incapable" according to their opinion (annoying, but I just don't care anymore). But Physics wasn't the thing for me. It didn't quite satisfy my curiosity about the peoples of this world. Might've been the perfect major for other people, but didn't fit me too well. I know I can make more difference with Anthropology as my major.

Yesterday, I posted this on my Facebook wall, which was a response to Gov. Scott:

I know some people who give me a *tut tut* for leaving the natural sciences and transferring to the social sciences. I never react to their comments. I think it's difficult to know what you don't understand. And many people don't really understand the core of the social sciences -- perhaps because it's too much up their faces that they fail to recognize it. I am currently in Anthropology and I must say that being in this course added a new dimension in my understanding of the world. Not that being in this course makes me "elite" or "more intellectual". Honestly, I believe that different sciences are just different lenses in understanding this world. No discipline is higher than the next. Last week, there was much discussion about Gov. Rick Scott's comment on Anthropology, which I failed to join because of many reasons (academic or otherwise). But again, he seems to be just like one of those people who give me a *tut tut*. Even so, people in my discipline continue and will forever continue to help not just his state, but the entire world -- even if they realize it or not.

To end, a presentation entitled "What is Anthropology?" which includes actual works of anthropologists in South Florida

Quote Me! From the Inquirer

2011-09-28T10:38:00.003+08:00

Education 101 by Conrado de Quiros

Learning there is a world out there, that there is a value that goes beyond looking out for No. 1, is learning. It is studying. It is getting educated. The UP students protesting the SUCs being shoved into the backburner of budget priorities are living up to a glorious tradition, one the Collegian put this way: “Kung hindi ngayon, kailan pa? Kung hindi tayo, sino pa?” It was the students then and the students now who grasped the fundamental truth of that motto, the compelling imperative of that battle cry, who lived, and have lived, up to the ideal of being a iskolar ng bayan. They were and are the ones who have served the people.

Internet and Research

2011-09-05T01:20:00.004+08:00

*I "researched" this image from cybernetnews.com

I completely don't understand why a lot of people would call surfing the internet as research and use Wikipedia as if it's a reliable source.

Seriously.

Internet can indeed be a good tool for academic purposes. I got a lot of Lit Reviews for my papers from the internet. But we always have to be careful in what kind of sources we deem as reliable before putting it in our list of references.

It's easier to judge books. Books can have a lot of bullshit in them, but it would't leave the press if it didn't pass a lot of scrutiny from a lot of people -- the editor/s, publisher, peer reviewer, etc, etc. The publishers, especially, are always careful in taking care of their names AND profits. And even if after all that jazz, the contents of the book remain unwarranted and somewhat hazy, other books will be published on the merits and weaknesses of the first book.

Judging sources from the internet is trickier. Anonymity and the fact that anyone (and I mean anyone) can just write or edit information makes it harder still to judge. You never know what kind of information you're getting.

And besides, I consider research an art. And typing a few words on Google is definitely not artistic. There's something extraordinary about having a journey in getting knowledge rather than having a sketchy information that glares at you after one click.

The Incident Following Mr. Lao's Misshap and What It Says About the Filipinos

2011-08-04T23:38:00.008+08:00

*image borrowed from citizenshift.org

So instead of studying for my Methods in Physical Anthropology class, I lost my track and wandered in Youtube where there is a lot of bashing going on about one Mr. Christopher Lao and his actions. I'm not going to post the video here as I disagree with the fact that it's treated like the main attraction in a circus.

But I would like to write here about my lamentations after reading the comments on Lao and his actions.

A.) I can't believe how racist my countrymen can be.
Saying things like, "It's because his Chinese" or "This is what Chinese people are like" or "He should send his Made in China ass back to China" are just disgusting. For Pete's sake! First and foremost, people should realize that he is more of a Filipino than Chinese because he was brought up in the Philippines, was integrated in the Philippine community and was brought up in the Filipino culture. Thus, it wasn't really Chinese "values" that they're bashing, it's more of attacking their own cultural values.

Second, what's one person's actions got to do with an entire ethnicity? One person cannot represent the whole population (much more the incorrect population as he is not really a Chinese national). If one Chinese-Filipino is a douche on TV for just 2 minutes of his life, that doesn't mean that the entire Chinese population is a douche.

B.) I can't believe how insensitive my countrymen are.
So, okay, the guy made one mistake. And he was so damned unlucky that it was shown on GMA (a popular television network). But, he does not deserve to be cyber bullied. One mistake doesn't make his entire existence a failure. Calling him "stupid" or "moron" or "idiot" wouldn't really change anything.

Everyone makes mistakes. Why be high and mighty and curse him for his bad judgment? We're just lucky our "stupidity" (and I'm sure everyone has one) wasn't caught on camera. A person (any person) doesn't deserve to have a miserable, tainted life just because of one trivial mistake. It's amazing how merits are kept unwarranted, while one mistake could ruin everything.

C.) I can't believe how unethical journalism is in my country.
What happened to responsible journalism? The last time I check, journalism isn't meant to ridicule one person, but instead it is meant to inform people about nationally relevant issues. What's nationally relevant with what happened to Mr. Lao?

This reminds me of the bus accident in Manila. Journalists should really make parameters on their profession. This kind of journalism makes me lose my faith and trust to Filipino mainstream media.

D.) I can't believe how flooding is still not solved in Manila.
Manila has been flooding since the 19th century. Back when our national hero was still alive. I can't believe that Manila still has the same problem until now.

What happened to Mr. Lao made me realize three things: 1.) Manila is not a very good place to stay in because of the bad flooding; 2.) When it floods, roads are impassable so people will not be able to evacuate when they need to; 3.) That no one is doing anything about it -- let us just ridicule someone who gets hassled by these floods.

ENDING: I agree that Mr. Lao shouldn't have acted arrogant, though I can see how frustrated he was. He does not deserve the way people are treating him right now.

As for the reactions of my countrymen, I just heave a long sigh and wish that they represent only a minimum percentage of the country. I was so disheartened after reading the comments on Youtube. But I don't want to lose faith in my country. I hope, one day, many of the Filipino Youtubers would learn to be more sensitive, compassionate and just learn to grow up.

STOP RACISM. STOP CYBER BULLYING. STOP INSENSITIVITY.

P.S. I'm gonna move on with my life now and I hope those haters would, too.

Rummage: "Why I'd punch the sheriff too" from the Philippine Collegian

2011-07-12T19:54:00.006+08:00

The following article is from the Philippine Collegian. Obviously, I wouldn't post it here if I didn't think it's interesting. The article is in defense of Mayor Sara Duterte (of Davao City) punching one of the sheriffs of the city.

Like the author of the article, I'd definitely "punch the sheriff too" and without hesitations if I was in Mayor Duterte's shoes.

The contents of the following article are not mine. All rights go to the author, Richard Jacob Dy of the Philippine Collegian.

Why I’d punch the sheriff too
(This article was first published in print in issue 3-4 of the Philippine Collegian on 05 July 2011.)
by Richard Jacob Dy

In the age of social networks, we are used to seeing hashtags such as “savages,” “barbaric,” and “uncivilized,” which often pertain to “violent” individuals whose “lack of education” deprive them of moral virtues like decency, self-control and diplomacy.

When Davao City’s Sara Duterte punched the “powerless” sheriff, who commanded over a demolition team, many condemned the act as “savagery,” saying it was wrong for a government official to lose temper and publicly embarrass an officer. Many pundits agree that the both frowned upon and celebrated incident may cost Duterte her office, and it could also be a valid ground for her disbarment.

Thanks to this growing exercise of posting commentary in social media, people went as far as carelessly quoting Niccolo Machiavelli’s “the ends justify the means” to render the idea of destroying homes acceptable. For these people, in exchange of a bloodbath, a justified end can be reduced into a beautiful site of 2,000-square meter land.

People seemed to care less about the fact that Duterte punched the sheriff because his impatience led to a bloody riot that injured individuals. Certain people were quick to discount Duterte, for a mistake can never be solved by another mistake, according to God knows who.

But how can one be diplomatic enough not to punch a man responsible for more than ten injuries, when it could have been clearly avoided? After helping families whose houses and lives were affected by devastating flash floods in Davao, how can one be calm when you hear news about men ruthlessly destroying the shanties that hundreds of families, for years, call their home?

For some people, there is only one kind of violence. When residents challenge demolition teams with stones and sling shots, it seems normal for people to call them “illegal,” and that they don’t have the right to protest. Hence, for them, it seems normal to call them violent.

People don’t usually call demolitions violent, because they all seem necessary and just, even if it means forcing individuals to leave their homes and forcing people to move to unliveable places. In the name of “development projects,” people don’t call laws that force individuals to vacate contested terrain violent.

When choosing whom to call violent, some people take sides without looking beyond the obvious. For some, the mayor used her fist; she abused her power.

In the spate of demolitions in Quezon City, particularly in Sitio San Roque where the office of the city mayor stands nearby, the residents fought for their homes, but they received no help from the city government. Rarely does it happen that a government official takes the side of the people in demolitions. Duterte was an exception. She punched the sheriff, and she joined the violent ones.

I would punch the sheriff too, and that makes me a pompous bastard. But I don’t care, especially when all I can think about are the individuals who quickly dismiss Duterte’s punch as violent, and yet see nothing wrong with displacing families from their homes.

Life so far...

2011-07-01T23:16:00.004+08:00

I haven't seen my psychiatrist for almost 6 months now. Probably not a good idea. I feel that the world hates me. And I'm angry at myself and the world.

I haven't slept well at night for 6 straight days now. My bones are shivering as my insides have frozen. I can barely control my emotions anymore. Today I made a big fuss in the photo station. I was beyond myself and it was too late when I realized the scene I had made.

Everything annoys me now. I begin to see and even feel myself tying electric wires around my neck and choking myself to death. I imagined that even at the photo station. And it feels real every time I imagine it. One day, it might end up being true.

But I am no more than a coward. I fear the unknown. A coward forever cowering in the darkness.

Fallen

2011-07-01T02:02:00.005+08:00

*image borrowed from dark.prozadia.org

I fear mediocrity. But I also know I've been mediocre my entire life. It is spun into a web and I've been caught in it -- unable to move, unable to escape. And the harder I budge, the stronger it sticks to my body, enveloping my existence.

Writing troubles me. I admit I'm not a good writer (though I try to be) but my writing is no longer as free flowing as before. Reading has become much harder as well.

I sink and sink into oblivion. I thought I was almost near grasping the light but now I have fallen again. I have succumbed to the voices inside my head and I can't say "no" to them.

Going to class is no longer as fun as before. Sometimes I'd enter a classroom and I feel trapped -- trapped because I know that my learning ability is at its limit...and I'm going to fail this class. Fail it hard.

Painful. Agonizing. Screeching. Burning. Failure.

I no longer enjoy doing laboratory work. I see my classmates eager to know each part of the skeletal system and I envy them. I am envious and I am sad because I can no longer do that.

My insides are dead. What more is, like before, I've become allergic to crowds.

People make me feel uneasy. Perhaps because I know they are going to trample on me. It is not that hard to trample on a person who has been stagnant, frozen, unable to move... dead. I don't really blame them.

I might not be able to finish college. Who cares?! The world never cares for a tiny dust that will eventually get blown away. No. The world continues to move as I squeeze my body in a dark, tiny box. Awake but asleep. Alive but dead inside.

"We are like sinking ships".

I've already sunk and anchored in the abyss.

Please Read: An Open Letter to All Japanese Nationals Around the World

2011-06-20T12:40:00.003+08:00

I am sorry but I have to send this unfortunate message to you. It breaks my heart, but I decided that you should also be made aware of this. And I hope you read this intently as this concerns both of our nations.

First and foremost, I am very sympathetic to the endeavors of your fellow Japanese in wanting to find the lost remains of the Japanese soldiers here in my country. It is bothersome to think that ancestors, yours or mine, won't be able to go through the rituals in place for them to have a peaceful death. However, in relation to this, I would like to make you aware, as Japanese nationals, of how some of your fellowmen have taken my ancestors in the belief that they are Japanese.

We feel the same pain. But I hope that the Japanese won't aggravate our pain so as to alleviate your own. I hope you would read this with concern:

http://wwt.gmanews.tv/story/222452/nation/expert-japanese-may-have-looted-palawan-caves

To quote my professor, Dr. Victor Paz:

At the rate the looting is going, we will have nothing left for future generations of Filipinos to protect and learn from; thousands of Filipino and ancestral Filipino remains will be processed through Shinto rites, and will give the Japanese people closure as they are consoled in the belief that the spirits of their compatriots are in peace. The Japanese people should know the truth. As a final thought, should the closure of this dark past in Japanese history once again be at the expense of our history and heritage?

(Paz, 2011; emphasis mine)

*This letter was also sent to my Japanese friends.

First Day

2011-06-15T01:38:00.005+08:00

*image borrowed from www.edbiado.blogspot.com

Six years experiencing first-days in college can be tiring. I wonder if Plato would have had kicked me out by this time in his academy. But then again, I'm female so it doesn't matter 'cause I wouldn't be able to step into the academy anyway. If I lived in his time, I'd be stuck learning how to be a housewife -- and perhaps learn some letters if I was lucky enough. The trouble is, that's not my kind of thing at all. The thought of being a housewife is just unimaginable for me. Me? Wearing an apron? No way! I can just imagine my friends laughing at the thought of this.

But why spend six years in school? I asked myself this question before and during enrollment. Why ask this question at this time? Because enrollment in UP is just one ticket away to hell. And perhaps hell is even just 15 minutes away. Why would anyone endure this much hardship and suffering (both emotional and yes, physical)?

The question recurred to me after a conversation I had with a couple of people this evening at Sarah's. One of the people I was drinking with asked a question. Why go to the academe when there's no money in it? You'll starve to death in just trying to publish something -- a data, a discovery, an idea.

And as I recounted the reasons in my head (I usually don't dare to speak in debates because it takes time for my brain to gather and organize thoughts and ideas), I realized why I endured college (and for so long).

Pursuit of knowledge? But of course! However I'd be pretending to be noble if I say it's the main reason why I go to school. Sadly, I'm not like my Japanese friend who took up Economics even though she's not interested in it so she can help the poor in the future.

I went to school because of the sheer pleasure of having to learn something new and sharing it. You may ask, "Is that the reason why you spent six years in college?". Of course not! I'm not a misunderstood genius. I spent six years in college because I get scared so many times that I wanted to run away. But something always pulls me back (or I get my ass kicked so I'd realize I should go back). I'm scared that I may not be cut out for this.

Wimpy much?

Anyway, I'm ranting again. I'm at odds because I don't really want to talk about myself. But then all I can really talk about is myself. It's so self-centered and it angers me. I want to be mature and knowledgeable enough to talk about things outside myself. I need to escape out of this box.

The first step in solving a problem is recognizing it. And then make "little steps" (as quoted from a wise friend) to solve it. I understand that. It seems difficult to do in practice, however.

My mom says "Be mature. Control your emotions. You're not a kid anymore". I know that. But I can't do it. Or is it I shan't do it? But why? I've been mature as a kid, but why can't I do it now when I'm supposed to be mature?

Rants, rants, rants! Blah, blah, blah. Words, words, words.

I thought I'd be able to contribute something if I write from the bottom of my heart. But these words don't translate into anything.

Period. And as always, a disoriented end.

Quotes from Lighthousekeeping

2011-05-29T22:32:00.003+08:00

Lighthousekeeping, Jeanette Winterson

"The world is nothing. Love formed it.
The world vanishes without trace.
What is left is love."

"Memory is not like the surface of the water - either troubled or still. Memory is layered. What you were was another life, but the evidence is somewhere in the rock -- your trilobites, and ammonites, your struggling life-forms, just when you thought you could stand upright."

"There’s always a woman somewhere, child; a princess, a witch, a stepmother, a mermaid, a fairy godmother, or one as wicked as she is beautiful, or as beautiful as she is good…then there is the woman you love."

"We know the world by and through our bodies. This is our lab; we can't experiment without it."

"Love is an unarmed intruder."

"I think of love as a force of nature -- as strong as the sun, as necessary, as impersonal, as gigantic, as impossible, as scorching as it is warming, as drought-making as it is life-giving. And when it burns out, the planet dies."

"Never rely on what you see. Not everything can be seen."

"There is so little life, and it is fraught with chance. We meet, we don't meet, we take the wrong turning and still bump into each other. We conscientiously choose the 'right road" and it leads nowhere."

"He doubted her. You must never doubt the one you love.
But they might not be telling the truth.
Never mind that. You tell them the truth.
What do you mean?
You can't be another person's honesty, child, but you can be your own.
So what should I say?
When?
When I love someone?
You should say it."

" 'Why are you afraid?' I asked myself, because fear is at the bottom of everything, even love usually rests on fear. 'Why are you afraid, when whatever you do you will die anyway?' "

"He wrote on a piece of paper with his pencil: Psyhocis: out of touch with reality.
Since then, I have been trying to find out what reality is, so that I can touch it.

Tattoo Nube

2011-05-29T15:32:00.006+08:00

*photo credit: mine

There are many ways to tell a story, especially of one's life. This is my story in one tattoo.

The swirls -- the ebb and flow of my life. Life that has never been constant, never still. It goes not in one straight line, but curves and slopes in avoidance (and sometimes in accordance) to challenges and difficulties.

The fish -- it represents my element, the water. Not stable. Easily disturbed.

And finally, the guitar -- the music of my life. "Our life is a broadway show". It fills my heart with hope until my heart could hold no longer. It keeps my heart beating, my self alive. Music keeps me warm.

"Pintados". The painted people. You are still beyond my grasp, but slowly, I take one step towards you.

Austronesia

2011-05-28T15:41:00.002+08:00

An interesting video on Austronesia and Austronesians:

Liar Game: The Final Stage

2011-05-28T04:16:00.004+08:00

Director: Hiroaki Matsuyama
Cast: Shota Matsuda, Erika Toda, Michiko Kichise, Kosuke Suzuki

Quick Synopsis: The Liar Game series concludes in the film Liar Game: The Final Stage. The game played in the film is similar to the game played in season 1 called the Majority game. But instead of casting votes in a paper, this time, they are provided with three types of apples: gold, silver and the red apple of truth, which they can use in voting. The rules are long and complicated, so I'll leave the viewer to just watch the film.

Quick Review: It's not as exciting as I expected it to be, being the finale and all. But then again, I might just be expecting too much.

There's a lot of deception in the film. More interesting, however, is how Nao deals with it and even learns to lie for the good of every participant in the group. Akiyami, however, mellows down in this film -- his anger seems to have dissipated. His revengeful spirit fades away -- which is disappointing, in my opinion, because the series kind of harped on that.

Anyway, I was expecting that the players would be more challenging than before. But, Ryou Katsuragi turns out to be their most formidable foe and the thing is, she's no longer in this film. I find it rather unbelievable how some characters got to be in the final stage.

At least, Nao seems to have touched the hearts of the people especially those behind the Liar Game. I find it interesting, also, how there are sweet moments in the film even without Akiyama and Nao kissing each other. It is very obvious that they like each other and that they're gonna end up with each other as exemplified in this scene:

Akiyama: My lies? Can you live with it?
Nao: I guess so.

My heart is melting. I'm not conservative so it doesn't matter if they kiss. But I find the sweet moments more profound and deeper that they could pull it off without any physical expression.

Rating: 8/10

Other Reviews:
from vonyvonne
from Twitchfilm
from sgclub

Liar Game Season 2

2011-05-28T03:22:00.004+08:00

Broadcast Network: Fuji TV
Cast: Erika Toda, Michiko Kichise, Shota Matsuda, Rinko Kikuchi, Kosuke Suzuki
Episodes: 11

Quick Synopsis: The liar game pushes on in the 2nd season. Nao and Akiyama are faced with more difficult challenges and even more difficult opponents. And in the end, Akiyama gets to face the only person who was able to beat him --Katsuragi Ryou.

Quick Review: The dark style from the first season remains here in the 2nd. Things are also as fast-paced and as nerve-racking as ever.

At times, Nao's character can be annoying but then again, the whole point of her character is to be downright trustful. It just gets annoying when she's betrayed to her face. But then, her sweetness can still captivate. Also, there is a sense of maturity in Nao's character here in the 2nd season -- which is very interesting to see. As for Akiyama, he is still as dark and brooding as before (and mean, especially when he's winning). I am still really amazed with his strategy skills. Some of them can be kinda lame (i.e. Episode 9), but you just gotta give credit to the guy. With the mess that Nao makes, he can turn everything around.

Aside from these two, this season is filled with interesting characters. Mushroom Fukunaga is still as fickle as ever and Katsuragi Ryou is the devil straight from hell. It's interesting to watch how she gets head-to-head with Akiyama. The secondary characters are just as interesting.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10. If you watched the previous season, you just gotta watch this one.

Other Reviews:

from Addicted Fanatic
from yonasu.com

How to Become Myself

2011-05-25T20:42:00.003+08:00

Director: Jun Ichikawa; Cast: Riko Narumi and Atsuko Maeda

Quick Synopsis: The film centers on Hinako's and Juri's student life, and how they deal with its dynamics. They start off being different, one is a popular girl whose status was flipped 180 degrees, and the other is an average student who tries to deal with her life and blend in. As Hinako transferred to a different school, Juri sends her text messages and give her instructions on how to become popular. In turn, Juri finds an interesting story for her literature club.

Quick Review: Ultimately, this film is about finding out who you are and accepting it. The issues tackled in the movie is something that every teenager across the globe experiences such as finding one's identity, finding friendship, etc. etc. The movie feels like a textbook for every teenager out there and I wish I was able to watch it when I was still in high school.

These two students are commendable as to how they handle their lives and how they keep being strong no matter what the adversaries are. They make mistakes, sure -- which is also shown in the film. But more importantly, they learn from these mistakes.

This is really an inspiring film.

I am just amazed as to how profound the Japanese can be. It amazes me how reflective they are. This reflexiveness is something that many teenagers should learn.

Rating: 8.5/10

Other Reviews:

from lunapark6.com
from Asian Movie Web
from A Nutshell Review

Solanin

2011-05-25T14:37:00.004+08:00

Quick Synopsis: Solanin revolves around the seemingly mundane lives of college graduate Meiko and her boyfriend, Taneda. Both of them, lost and without direction -- both of them not happy with what they are doing. Taneda belongs to a band that doesn't seem to take off. His sadness and frustrations grew and grew until one day, he dies in a crossroad. Meiko, sad and hopeless with the death of Taneda, suddenly tries to bring back Taneda's band. She works hard and finally, she's able to bring back the band with the help of Taneda's bandmates.

Quick Review:

In a gist, the film talks about alienation and existentialist problems felt by the youth in a society such as Japan. It is being in a place you don't want to be, doing something you don't want to do, saying something you don't want to say -- just because it's expected of you. The emptiness of living -- many of us can relate to that.

Again, as expected of every Japanese film, Solanin is rich in symbols and symbolism. It also exudes a feeling of being in a liminal space in which everything is at a halt and the clock is not ticking. It lets you enjoy and relish every scene, every square of the film.

The film is also filled with vintage stuff, which is something I like. There is always something magical about vintage things -- perhaps because they have witnessed a great amount of memories and still keep their beauty.

I love how Meiko changed into her new self -- leaving the melancholic memories behind and moving on while realizing the valuable things in life. It is something that Taneda wasn't able to do. And perhaps, it is something I must do as well.

This film struck something familiar and sentimental to me perhaps because I am so much like them in many ways. Disconnected and lost to the present world I am living in. I am here, but it doesn't feel like I'm here.

I give it a 9 out of 10. I love the movie and it has really awesome songs (such as Solanin by Asian Kung Fu Generation). Now I feel like getting my guitar and striking some chords.

Other Reviews:

from www.moviereviewsquare.blogspot.com
from goninmovieblog.wordpress.com
from metropolis.co.jp

Solanin by Asian Kung Fu Generation

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

2011-05-24T14:12:00.005+08:00

Quick Synopsis: Makoto, an ordinary high school girl, accidentally gains the ability to literally leap across time. The viewers are taken as to how she "spends" this ability.

Quick Review: The thing I like most about this movie is the importance it stresses on human relationships and friendship. It might be an old rusted subject in the world of movies and films, but The Girl Who Leapt Through Time puts a new dimension into it.

Like a lot of Japanese movies, it has a lot of symbolism. And even though the symbols in the movie consume a large part of it, I mean larger than the usual (like almost half of the film), I really appreciated it as I got myself devoured by the senses of the movie. I still wonder about the red balloons in Japanese films as I saw an exact same scene in Solanin. Anyway, especially intriguing is the fact that Makoto is just your usual, average, ordinary girl tucked into a very extraordinary situation.

The film is also something like the "butterfly effect" and thus rendering viewers the moral lesson about thinking first before acting -- as, like in the film, someone might actually die of one's actions.

I'd give this film a 9/10. I've watched this film two time already and it doesn't get old. It's a must-watch for anime lovers.

Other Reviews:

from animefascination.wordpress.com
from animenewsnetwork.com
from anutshellreview.blogspot.com

Spider Lilies

2011-05-20T01:42:00.004+08:00

Quick Synopsis: Two women bound by fate falls in love with each other. Each coming from a different background. Takeko (Isabella Leong) is haunted by her past and Jade (Rainie Yang) is haunted by her present.

Quick Review: First things first.. I just have to say this -- the two girls in this movie, Leong and Yang, are just steaming hot. That said, this film is a must-watch for all avid lesbian film watchers.

Well the good thing about this film is that there's no big hullabaloo about the sexuality of the characters. They are comfortable with their skins and it's a good thing to see. They're confident with their sexuality -- a positive image, in my opinion.

However, though there are sweet, "awwwh" moments in the film, it didn't strike through the heart as much as Love My Life and I Can't Think Straight did for me. Chemistry, though not lacking, needs to be upgraded.

But even so, this is a good addition to the collection of Lesbian films.

Rating: 7.5/10

Other Reviews:
from lovehkfilm.com
from afterellen.com
from dvdtalk.com

Rockin' in Field School

2011-05-18T19:50:00.005+08:00

Field work is a very significant part of Anthropology. What separates Anthro (and makes it special) from all the other social sciences is that anthropologists engage in participant-observation -- a method that can only be done by doing field work. Thus, field work is a very crucial part of being an Anthropology student.

For our field school, my batch went to a place somewhere in Bicol. Our studies centered on the river that bisects the city. 12 people, 12 research studies.

It was exciting but it was also a very nerve-racking experience. It was our first serious field school and the city, the university, the people were expecting outputs from us. Also, urban antro in general, is a difficult undertaking. People are more suspicious and less friendly in the city. And we only had 6 weeks in the field, so it's not like we could establish any rapport.

But even with a few struggles, we did learn a lot about ourselves. Personally, I was just happy that I was able to conquer it.This field school had been awesome and I have great batch mates. Cheers to this field school and to the coming field work in the future!

Florence + The Machine -- Cosmic Love

2011-03-21T23:28:00.002+08:00

This song always has a profound effect on me. It wraps me in a wool of enchantment every time I listen to it. Florence has a very magical voice -- much like a siren that lures fishermen out of their course.

The stars, the moon, they have all been blown out
You left me in the dark
No dawn, no day, I'm always in this twilight
In the shadow of your heart

When I listen to this part, I remember how I always fall in love with the wrong girl because she's straight and I can never be more than a best friend. And there's nothing I can do but be stuck in the darkness.

You can find the complete lyrics here.

Celebrity Crush #2

2011-03-09T04:23:00.004+08:00

*found it posted in www.afterellen.com

Nationality: American with Indian heritage
Profession: Actress
First saw her at: the film, I Can't Think Straight
She's famous for: choosing interesting characters (i.e. her role in ABCD)
Other Projects: Movies - The World Unseen, Three Veils, Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World, etc.
She also: does theater and served in the AmeriCorps
Birth date: June 24, 1976
What caught my eye: She has a very lovely smile and captivating eyes.

So much for stress-reliever. Now back to t-tests, chi-squares, Yates' correction, etc.

In The News: Gender Inequality? UP transsexual student files complaint to UP Prof

2011-03-04T00:20:00.003+08:00

Transsexual coed tells UP prof: I am not a ‘he’

by Paterno Esmaquel II

A transsexual student at the University of the Philippines (UP) in Diliman, Quezon City has complained against a professor for allegedly acting with religious prejudice toward the coed's identity, sparking an online debate on freedom of speech.

A Plunge Into Sadness

2011-03-02T01:37:00.006+08:00

*image borrowed from www.fanpop.com

I have been lethargic for a couple of days now. Most of my work this week are half-accomplished and half-baked -- work that I know I'd be ashamed of in the future. But right now, I can't spark the fuel in my body to be inspired and do things that should be done.

Most of today is spent being lost and wallowing in sadness -- longing for feelings that I once felt but now I'm unable to capture. The longing is extreme that it's almost like a withdrawal from heavy drugs -- in my case, the drugs are the feelings of joy and warmth.

I puffed a stick of cigarette hoping that the melancholy and anxiety would be relieved in every blow -- away it goes in every smoke that circulated my lungs and coming out of my mouth. But they didn't. I stepped on the cigarette butt and wondered how many more should I puff until all forms of sadness will be sucked away from my body.

Maybe I feel sad for being like this. Or maybe because I know I'll never find true happiness and that I'll be forever lonely.

Most times I've already accepted this fact. Most times I don't really mind. But sometimes, I can't help but ask, "why". Why?

Here I am thinking too much again about things that I shouldn't even think about. There are more pressing matters at hand -- such as trying to graduate from college.

Maybe I just need to sleep.

Quote Me! #9

2011-03-01T00:57:00.002+08:00

The term “culture” is often misused. In its early anthropologic usage, culture referred to the shared patterns of life that define social groups. This usage tended to portray cultures as bounded, fixed entities, neglecting crucial differences among and within groups, and it risked reducing culture to an autonomous variable among others. But culture is not a thing; it is a process by which ordinary activities acquire emotional and moral meaning for participants.

- Arthur Kleinman, Culture and Depression

I Can't Think Straight

2011-02-27T22:26:00.007+08:00

*image borrowed from www.movieposterdb.com

Quick Synopsis: Tala, a beautiful girl from an elite family in Jordan, travels to London 6 weeks before her wedding (her fourth engagement, actually). While in London, she gets introduced to Leyla, a Muslim girl with Hindi heritage, through Leyla's boyfriend, Ali. Tala and Leyla become attached and grows intimate to each other until both of them finally understand why they never get satisfied with men.

Directed by: Shamim Sarif
Starring: Lisa Ray, Sheetal Sheth
Production Company: Enlightenment Productions

Quick Review: May I just say how lovely Lisa Ray and Sheetal Sheth are? Both of them are very captivating. Sheetal's smile, Lisa's eyes -- they will make anyone's heart melt.

I Can't Think Straight is one of those films that will set your heart aflutter. It talks about two central themes in the lives of gay women -- falling in love and coming out.

Though the film is rather perfect, hence more fictionalized, films like this give hope and joy to a lot of gay women all around the world. It inspires us.

Rating: 8.75/10

Black Swan

2011-02-25T12:06:00.008+08:00

*image borrowed from www.empiremovies.com

Quick Synopsis: Nina Sayers, a dedicated ballet dancer, gets the lead role for The Swan Lake. She struggles with her performance and her life until finally the performance swallows her up.

Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Natalie Portman, Winona Ryder, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel

Quick Review: This is one hell of a psychological roller coaster. I was on the edge of my seat every second of the movie. And my heart was still thumping after the movie had ended and I was already in the cab that my friend and I had to buy food to comfort us. It is a very intoxicating movie. The feeling is just like drinking tequila with gin as chaser (brings back memories).

Natalie Portman did a superb performance as Nina Sayers. She is nominated for Best Actress in the Academy Awards and she deserves to win it. Nina Sayers is a very complex character and Natalie embodied Nina's character really well.

I was also surprised to see Winona Ryder after such a long time. The last movie I watched in which she starred in was A Scanner Darkly. And as always, Winona Ryder is fantastic.

The film is really magical -- though not of a Disney-magical-kind. It was an experience to watch the movie.

Rating: I'd give this film 9.5/10, which means it's a must-watch. I would've given it 10 if not for the massive amount of bloody scenes in the film. I just don't like blood.

P.S.
We were supposed to watch Tangled but it wasn't in the cinema when we went there so we watched Black Swan instead. And what an alternative. The lezzy scene was also amazing -- haha! -- well because the tension and the longing Nina Sayers has was amazingly portrayed.

Other Reviews on Black Swan:
from Screenrant
from The Guardian
from Collider.com

Trailer:

Death and Dying (You couldn't be more morbid than that!)

2011-02-23T21:15:00.007+08:00

*borrowed from wannasmile.wordpress.com

The thought of death is something not new to me not because I'm into the "emo" genre (though I do like some "emo" bands, i.e. Saosin) but it's a feeling that has been gnawing inside me for a long time. "Emo" people might think it cool to be suicidal, but for me it is not. Having the thought of death in your head every single day is an agonizing burden.

But truth be told, I am actually scared of the process. If you're asking why, I'll try to explain it as best as I can.

Aside from hating blood and all, the deepest reason I have is because I'm scared to be forgotten. In high school I remember thinking that no one might care if one day death swoops down on me No one would cry. No one would notice that I have disappeared. I won't be missed. These things make me feel very melancholic perhaps because I don't want my existence to be senseless.

But then really what have I done to deserve some credit in this world? Have I been able to touch someone's life? Have I contributed something of value to this world?

Sometimes I would hold the knife in my hand ruminating of pushing it to my belly. I would take the pills on my palm and wonder if I should put them all in my mouth. I would look down from the top floor of a building and think if I should let myself fly.

But what's the point? If I leave now, everything would be in vain -- my mom's hard work, my grandpa's hopes, my brother's dreams. I would be more selfish than I had ever been.

Also I am afraid of the uncertainty of what happens next after death. I don't like risks (though I try to leave my comfort zone as much as I can). I don't like the feeling of not knowing. What if it's just darkness after death? What if I'll be enveloped in nothingness? What if I'll be alone -- more lonely than I ever was?

Call me a wimp. Perhaps I am.

I was in the hospital last week and that left me ample time to reflect on certain things. I didn't have any chance to contemplate up to that moment. When you're juggling more than 19 units plus extracurricular work, you have no time to think of yourself.

I was in the hospital because I almost died. I had respiratory failure caused by my asthma and worsened by pneumonia. My doctor said my heart was already weak because of too much work trying to distribute oxygen to my body when I went to the emergency room. Another hour more without proper medical assistance and I would've really died.

When I was losing my breath (I wasn't responding to the nebulizer any longer), I thought, "hey, I was thinking of dying and now here it is". Then suddenly I realized, shit, I didn't want to die that way. It was too much torture. And a bit ridiculous reason for an early 20s girl to die of. At the last minute, I tried my best to chase after my breath.

I spent a week in the hospital, in which case I was thankful that my friends visited me. It made me really happy. My mom also flew to Manila to take care of me which really warmed my heart.

You might think me pathetic. I wanted to die and got chicken when I had the moment. But yeah, no matter how much I'm attracted to death, I still fear it.

And I realized in my bed-ridden days that I should try to be brave once in a while and try to live. I should stop running away from life. Near-death experiences do change people.

A song by Saosin:

On Solheim's Nusantao -- Filipino Origins

2011-02-20T15:58:00.004+08:00

I’ve posted something about Bellwood’s hypothesis on the peopling of Southeast Asia and Oceania somewhere in this blog. And I believe that when one discusses Bellwood, s/he is also obliged to discuss Solheim’s – well, not really hypothesis yet – but suggestions. And his suggestions are indeed based on something concrete – citing a gazillion other scholars – which he didn’t just think in a drunken spur of the moment. The Nusantao Maritime Trading and Communication Network is something that Solheim has been thinking through since the 1960s – aside from his Sa-Huynh Kalanay complex.

First off – what the heck does Nusantao mean? It was derived by the linguist George Grace from the root words “Nusa” which means “South” and “Tau” which means “Human”. We can see in the etymology itself how it differs from Bellwood’s hypothesis. Solheim suggests a South-to-North dispersal of the Austronesian-speaking peoples starting from Sarawak and Southern Mindanao.

The most striking part about Solheim’s thoughts is his emphasis on the cultural aspect of the peoples of Southeast Asia, East Asia and Oceania – yet again another alternative to Bellwood’s thinking who puts more emphasis on the biological origin of the peoples in the area. Solheim stresses that the spread of language and culture in the aforementioned areas was not a product of migration but a product of years of trading – the Nusantao Maritime Trading and Communication Network.

Beyond Bellwood’s given date of the spread of the Austronesian-speaking peoples, Solheim suggests that there had been massive maritime network in parts of the areas as far back as 30,000 BC. This is evident through the commonalities in culture in Southeast Asia’s Hoabinhian, Korea’s Early Neolithic and Japan’s Early Jomon, Jomon and Yayoi period (up to Eastern Honshu). Some linguists would even say that there are certain Japanese words – mostly related to farming – that might have originated from Southeast Asia. A species of rice – Javanica – which originated in Sarawak, is also present in parts of Japan. Moreover, Japonica, the rice species that they have in the Mainland China (where Bellwood thinks the proto-Austronesians originated before moving on to Taiwan) is not archaeologically present in Insular Southeast Asia.

However, the Nusantao Maritime Trading and Communication Network started, as Solheim thought, 5000 B.C. He suggested four lobes dividing parts of East Asia, Southeast Asia and Oceania – the Eastern Lobe, the Central Lobe, The Northern Lobe and the Southern Lobe. All of these lobes’ point of origin is the Central Lobe.

*image borrowed from Flessen's article

The NMTCN (Nusantao Maritime Trading and Communication) isn’t ripe yet, in my opinion. Indeed, most people would adhere to Bellwood’s claims. However, I see many points and potentials in Solheim’s thinking – though it is still very early to say which one among them is right or if really anyone is indeed right. Bellwood has his points and Solheim has his. In my view, we need more data. Excavations in the Philippines and much of Southeast Asia and Oceania are not yet sufficient to give a clear picture. Much of Mindanao – which is archaeologically crucial, in my opinion – has been left out in framing hypotheses (though Solheim looked into it more than Bellwood did, the latter concentrating more on Northern Philippines and no attention whatsoever in the South).

In the end, both of them might be right. They just might be two sides of the same coin. There might be clashes in their hypotheses, but there’s also a way to fit them in – if fit them in is what we should do.

References:
Flessen, C. 2006. Bellwood and Solheim: Models of Neolithic movements of people in Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Available: https://files.itslearning.com/data/ntnu/44801/bellwood-solheim.pdf [Accessed: 11/26/2009].

Solheim, W. 1996.Nusantao and the North-South Dispersals. Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association Bulletin, 2: 101-109.

Solheim, W. 2006. Archaeology and Culture in Southeast Asia: Unraveling the Nusantao. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press.

Archaeology and Me

2011-02-20T05:15:00.004+08:00

Archaeology is not as mind-numbing as Calvin think it is.

It's been three years since I first started volunteering for archaeological digs. Never really thought I'd be interested in it at first. My interest was really on Medical Anthropology. That's what I really wanted to do.

But three years ago, a friend of mine urged me to join an excavation. The team was composed of students from my university and from Australia. That year, they wanted volunteers from my department -- Department of Anthropology.

I was hesitant to join, actually, primarily because I didn't have an Archaeology background at that time. Though I did dig in our yard when I was younger -- it was the result of watching a movie with the Brady Bunch in it (something about them going to Hawaii or someplace in the Pacific Islands, whatever).

My friend pushed me on to join and I was glad she did. We went together in the first season and that proved to be one of the most memorable events in my life. After that, I got addicted. There's something magical about unearthing something that belonged to another person in another time. We were literally digging up history.

I've joined the excavation team for 3 seasons now and hopefully, I get to join the 4th one. I still like Medical Anthropology -- and I might do something related to it in the future -- but I also want to do Archaeology. It truly is more than just Indiana Jones.

Back!

2011-02-02T21:40:00.003+08:00

I just got back from field work. It was a tiring three weeks of my life, but I never felt so happy in my life. I was so excited to find a burial jar this year. I couldn't even believe it that I found one.

But then, it's back to reality once again. Acads, acads, acads. Will it ever end?

Liar Game

2011-01-01T18:43:00.001+08:00

Image borrowed from www.jphile.wordpress.com

Quick Synopsis: Nao Kanzaki is the type of girl who believes in everything that comes her way, therefore being called honest to the point of being stupid. She receives a mysterious package one day, which involves 100,000,000 yen and an invitation to join the Liar Game – a “dreadful battlefield” in the words of Nao-chan. She unwittingly joins the game and ends up getting tricked of her money, leaving her in a debt of 100,000,000 yen. Enter knight-in-shining-armor Akiyama-san. Having heard that he is a genius swindler, Nao-chan asks for his aid. Thus, the two of them gets entangled in this brain-racking game in which everyone’s mental strength will be tested.

Not-So-Quick Review: Liar Game is not your usual buttercup-topped-with-icing-type of JDorama. Ultimately, it is a bunch of strategy games jam-packed in one series – like playing huge and elaborate combinations of chess, poker and other strategy games. It reminds me a lot of the game “Murder” which I learned only last month.

At first I was hesitant to watch the series because my friends had told me how unlikable Nao’s character is; perhaps because being an uto-uto or easily deceived is a negative thing in the Filipino culture. But anyway, I gave it a shot just by the mere fact that Erika Toda and Michiko Kichise are in it – and I was not disappointed.

Although Nao is very different from Erika Toda’s character in Boss (where she’s more independent and eccentric), I still think her sweet demeanor in Liar Game is just so adorable. Her character seems to take me by the hand and says “the world is not as bad as you think it is”. But I wonder if there really is someone who is as pure, honest and caring as Nao in the real world.

As for Akiyama – if you watched Hanazakari no Kimitachie, he is exactly like Sano. He’s your typical snobbish guy – quiet on the surface, but something deep runs inside. These types are always fighting some inner battle and always, ALWAYS, only the female character can save them. But I still like his character, even with the cliché (it can’t be helped, even Nao’s character is a cliché, but that doesn’t mean we can’t like them). He is very intelligent and the way he thinks is rather interesting.

Some of the characters’ very negative view of this world is extreme in my opinion. The world can be bad, but not all the time. And this is where Nao’s character comes in – to challenge those opinions.

I like this series primarily because it makes the viewers use their brains. I’d say the Japanese are masters in intellectual storylines, being that Death Note and Ghost in the Shell came from them. The audience is not just passively following the storyline – one also gets to participate in analyzing the situation – that is before the end part where everything is revealed.

It deserves a10 out of 10.

New Name But Still The Same

2010-12-29T17:20:00.003+08:00

Suddenly, I felt like changing my profile name in this blog. I was ruminating about it since I woke up this morning.

I've had the name "geek" for three years now mainly because at first, I planned this blog to be the venue for my geeky tendencies -- anime, movies, books etc. Since I was too lazy to create another blog, I ended up posting other stuff than geekery here as well.

These days, being a geek has become a fad. And I realized, I don't want to be part of that fad. I've never been part of the trendy group and I'm really not the type who is chasing after it. Truth be told, I'd rather not be in it. It's too troublesome and stressful to always try to fit in.

So, I'm changing my name to "Kert". My friends (and bosses) already know this is my blog anyway so there's no need to have false anonymity. "Kert" is the nickname given to me by my mom and it's the name I'm most comfortable with.

The essence of this blog (and how I presented myself in here) is and will be the same. It's just that I don't think I embody the name "Geek", as is exemplified nowadays, anymore.

From the World of Genetics: The Case of a New Ancient Human

2010-12-23T13:23:00.003+08:00

This just in:

New Type of Ancient Human Found—Descendants Live Today? from National Geographic

This "new twist" in human evolution adds substantial new evidence that different types of humans—so-called modern humans and Neanderthals, modern humans and Denisovans, and perhaps even Denisovans and Neanderthals—mated and bore offspring, experts say.

I guess Homo Neanderthalensis is going to be Homo Sapiens Neanderthalensis again? And I thought the case had been closed. This is science, I guess. Everything can be opened and re-challenged with better ideas and evidences.

Again, this posts the question, what does it mean to be a human being? What does these findings mean for us?

Different Christmases, Different Meanings

2010-12-21T17:36:00.004+08:00

Image borrowed from here

The Chairperson of my organization described Christmas as laden with different meanings. I couldn't have put it in a more profound way. Different people, different reasons to celebrate the holiday.

Christmas started as a pagan holiday and was called Saturnalia(If I can remember it right) which was celebrated in the Winter Solstice. It was turned into a Christian holiday by Emperor Constantine of Rome as an honor to the birth of Christ and thus its beginning as a Christian holiday. (I'm remembering all these from our Quiz Bee in which I won first place, btw, by guessing the answers.)

An org. mate told me that he couldn't imagine Christmas if you take away Christ. But then again, Christmas is celebrated in different contexts and thus becoming more than a celebration of Christ's birth. Not that I am taking away Christ in the picture -- he is indeed at the center and heart of it all. But then, this center is blurred for some cultures that celebrate Christmas -- like the Muslim countries, for example, and Buddhist countries such as Japan and China.

If you ask a Japanese why he/she is celebrating Christmas, s/he most likely wouldn't say that she's trying to remember Christ's coming-to-being -- except for the Christian Japanese, which is not many in my Japanese friends's opinion. For the Muslims, Christ is not the main part of their faith and so why celebrate his existence? Why do these cultures celebrate Christmas, then?

This is my first Christmas after denouncing Christianity as my faith. And still I had fun celebrating it. For us non-Christians, Christmas has become the time of sharing. It is a time where you get a chance to gather with your family and friends, and just have fun and exchange gifts. The long year has almost ended and another year is coming. Time to close the old one, whether it might have had been a drag, a bitch or epic awesome-ness. And for sure, there is a new one coming and it is sort of a rebirth for us.

For some, however, Christmas time is not all good. Some people think it's is all about Noche Buena -- still a time of gathering, but also a time for extravagance. Thus, it has become a time of utter pressure to acquire money. Thievery and other mischiefs are more rampant in the Christmas season than in any other time. And for others, it is a time to manipulate people's goodwill to earn money. Indeed, Christ is lost in these endeavors.

For Christians, Christmas is all about Christ and other things come secondary. For us non-Christians, it is all about the relationships and the joy of having them. For some, it is all about the money. Indeed, our chairperson is right. Through the years, Christmas has become a box filled with different meanings -- much like a Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans from the Harry Potter Series. We celebrate it in different ways. We understand it in different ways. And thus, how it's celebrated depends on where you are located in the world.

It is good that Christmas brings happiness to many of us. But still, I hope that one day, people will realize that it's not worth doing bad things for.

Ramblings -- Christmas Season, Lantern Parade and the Legendary Oblation Run

2010-12-21T16:43:00.004+08:00

Christmas is once again in the air. Never really realized that the season has come. Been rather busy this semester, trying to juggle 21 units plus 3 units of sit-in subject (just because I really like the subject and felt really sorry for having to drop it for getting an overload). The preparations for our fieldwork also had started. We have more than a hundred thousand pesos to raise before summer and we haven't even reached a fifth of it. We are also tight up in the activities for my organization (and I'm applying for another org. What the hell was I thinking?!) So yeah, busy is sort of an understatement -- more of beating ourselves up for this semester. But hopefully, it will end. Just three months more and the agony will all be over.

Lantern Parade was awesome. I joined 1/3 of it. Was just too tired to finish the entire thing so I decided to join my friends and just watch in the sidelines. It ended with one of the best fireworks display I've seen in my life (fine, I haven't seen that much fireworks display but it was indeed awesome in my opinion.

It was the Oblation Run a day before that. It was my fifth year attending the event. Only the UP system holds the event, but still I don't really see the big fuss about it. Fine, there's a bunch of naked guys running around and bragging their thing for the whole world to see. Interesting for most women. Then again, I'm not like most women. And I'm not really into men. Lol. The funny thing is one of my foreign friends received a rose from a running naked dude. And she got mobbed afterwards by paparazzi people.

Anyway, it feels great to blog again.

The Anthropology Song

2010-11-27T21:47:00.002+08:00

A very interesting song on, err, Anthropology. And she's right, the world increasingly needs Anthropology. Three cheers for Anthropologists and aspiring Anthropologists!

Hey Mom & Dad, I've got to come out and say,
I've got to tell you, it's the only way
Something I've learned about myself since I was away (at college)
I really think that I might be a little bit -- of an Anthropologist

Mom & Dad, I've been led astray,
I've been experimenting with archaeolog(a)y
On an excavation, tried C-14 dating
And ground penetrating radar for the first time -- (if you know what I mean)

I see the visions in your head of me digging up dino bones
Or do I study insects in a laboratory all alone?
But I'm just looking for the story of our people as a whole
Wanting to learn about and understand all cultures as our own ...

[Chorus]
The World seems to increasingly need, Anthropology
Now we're exploring, asking Who Why and How we be People
The difference between us, is not so much
Tell me your story, your piece of what is Humanity.

Mom & Dad, I think you should know,
I do fieldwork, everywhere I go
I want to travel, see Peru and Vietnam
My heroes are Margaret Mead and Barack Obama's mom
-- (did you know she was an Anthropologist?)

If you think of natives on an island painted up singing war songs
It's misleading though historically you're not totally wrong
But you can do Anthropology reading graffitied bathroom stalls
Or in a war zone ... or a December shopping mall.

Then there's Linguistics -- I think that's how we use our tongues;
Physical Anthro says what body parts we all have in common,
You can even study monkeys, I hear that part's really fun
All these fields tell us part of what it means to be human ...

[Chorus]

Hey Mom & Dad, it wasn't how you raised me.
Anthro professors, they're all kinda crazy
Got their agendas, trying to recruit our P-O-Vs
Deep down inside they're all in love with -- Malinowski

At the same time, I think it's what my heart has always known
Do you remember Hallowe'en when I was Indiana Jones?
The other kids they stopped coming around, I had to play alone
I guess they didn't like my kinship charts, of all their homes.

Some cross-cultural connexions might just help us all relate
Misunderstanding's at the root of so much global hate
How many wars, metaphors or literally,
Could be avoided if the world was "us", instead of "you" and "me"?

Goodbye Lolo

2010-11-08T21:16:00.001+08:00

The absence from blogging seems to be taking its toll on me and now I have nothing but craving to pour my incoherent thoughts somewhere.

The passed month had been a rollercoaster ride. There was a peak of happiness as I was able to travel many parts of Mindanao with some Japanese friends (and it was my first time to go to some places such as Camiguin Island and Bukidnon) and a sudden plunge into the pit of sadness with my grandfather’s death.

The word “death” still haunts me. I have sought for it very much but when it came to someone I love very dearly, my heart seems to be crushed. My mother said that he will still live on in our hearts and will always be there to watch over us – well then, I guess my grandpa will see how much a mess I made with my life. I’m not really sure if there’s someplace beyond life, but I sure do wish that he’s somewhere nice and happy. He deserves eternal happiness.

My grandfather is one of the best men I met in the world. Indeed, I want to take up his values. And currently I’m learning interesting and good things about him. My mother told me he used to be a spokesman for the Muslims as he was one of the few Christians of his time whom the Muslims trusted. He was also very good in languages and business even though he never got beyond 4th grade because of some tragic circumstances. I believe he would’ve been a genius if he was given the chance to study. His eyes have the depth of wisdom – much like Einstein’s.

I wish I could’ve talked to him more. My mother said I’m his favorite granddaughter. I don’t know why it’s so, but it makes me feel happy. I was just such a shy kid and my grandfather was a serious man.

He said he could rest because I am about to graduate and have a whole future ahead of me. It makes me feel melancholic in a way. So many “if only’s” rushing in my head – if only I didn’t get sick, if only I pushed harder, if only I’ve been a little stronger, etc, etc. I really did wish my grandfather was able to see me finish my university years and be proud of the good life I’m living.

But of course, I should not be selfish and hold him back. He needs to rest and the 90 years he spent on Earth had bear tons of lush fruits.

I still do hope that I will lead a life that won’t disappoint my grandfather. I know he was happy in his final moments. And we just need to let go.

A Lecture by Prof. Monsod

2010-10-08T20:51:00.001+08:00

The Role of Culture in Policy and the Struggle

2010-09-21T21:48:00.005+08:00

Image from www.japan.indymedia.org

For the monthly Kapihan of the Anthropology Society, Ms. Risa Hontiveros - a former legislator who also ran for senator - was invited to be the speaker. The topic was "The Role of Culture in Policy and the Struggle".

The "Struggle" part is a bit vague but the organizers said it meant "Class Struggle".

She mentioned that culture is not taken seriously within the offices of the policy makers and legislators. However, there has been a move recently to recognize culture as it is a powerful force in the society. As Ms. Hontiveros said, "Culture change is difficult but it is highly prized." And this culture change depends on who wins in the "struggle of/for interpretation". Whoever holds the power to create or recreate meaning has the biggest control on culture change.

However, the voices of the people, the voices of the masses are still hardly heard. There are many conflicting interests (the church, the government, the elites) that make the voices of the people inaudible. As Ms. Hontiveros had said, the people are hardly consulted.

We have learned in our Anthropology classes (especially in Applied Anthropology and Culture Change class) that policies are useless, even worthless, if they are not appropriated in the culture of the people for whom the policies are for. Many livelihood, health, etc. policies have failed to work across the globe just because "culture" is taken for granted. Though Ms. Hontiveros said that culture is difficult to pinpoint, it can be described. And guess what? That's what we anthropologists have been doing since time immemorial.

In fact, many policies and legislations have worked well across the globe because of the anthropologists' help since anthropologists are the most well-equipped to understand and learn about the culture and life-ways of a group of people. Health policies implemented by Paul Farmer (a doctor-anthropologist and one of my favorite anthropologists) have worked well and have persisted because he knew and tapped the importance of culture.

Many of us take "culture" for granted. But as Ms. Hontiveros had said, "culture" is one of the most persistent aspects of a society. I hope that one day, anthropologists are given the chance to help in policy-making in the Philippines.

Other interesting things that came up in the talk was the RH bill and the use of the Mother Language in teaching. I support both of these causes and feel sad that until now, they are not passed or mandated by the government.

Thoughts on the Lecture "Batas Katutubo"

2010-08-28T16:04:00.003+08:00

Yesterday, I attended a lecture sponsored by the Anthropology Society and the Anthropology Core Group (Anthropos) of the University of the Philippines. The lecture was entitled, Batas Katutubo: Learnings from Indigenous Laws in the Philippines. The speakers were Prof. MC Barrameda, a former faculty of the Anthropology Department, and Dr. Owen Lynch, a visiting professor in the UP College of Law. This is in line with the celebration of the Indigenous Peoples' Week this week.

Prof. Barrameda started by defining Western law and how much threats and the like are needed to reinforce it. She then differentiated it with the indigenous laws, which is more communal. She mentioned how Western laws are punitive while indigenous laws focus more on the community and settling conflicts.

Dr. Lynch, on the other hand, called for re-figuring our concept of self and nation, that we should get to know ourselves once again even though the colonial hand forced its way for us to lose our identity. He was very vocal on how he supports the IPRA and the concept of ancestral domains in the country.

Though, I have no qualms against their ideas that indigenous people should never be displaced from their homelands, I am very much wary of the concept of ancestral domains and the victimization of ethnic groups especially the Muslim ethnic groups. Before anything else, I would want to express where my thoughts are coming from.

I am from Mindanao. I am the 3rd generation of Bisayas that migrated from Panay Island during the 1940s. My ancestors were hoping for a better life as they were farmers and there was not much land to till in the Panay Island. They found sanctuary in an area in Mindanao, which was unpopulated during their time of arrival.

Now I would just like to state that the concept of ancestral domains is very much tied to the concept of Western property -- that there is a specific land area owned by specific people. However, this was never the case before the time of colonization, which is perhaps why we are having so much trouble now. Ownership and properties are very difficult, even depressing, concepts for Filipinos. In ancestral domains, you tie people to a piece of land. You fence and lock a land to a specific group of people. Visitors, it seems, are hardly allowed (as is the case in Mindanao).

But, since time immemorial, people were never tied to the land. This is very much evident in the Philippine history in which people are free to move around, to migrate from one place to another. We were more of people of the seas, than we were people of the land, actually -- which is perhaps why you would see ancestors of the Muslim ethnic groups in Manila, or people in Palawan whose some ancestors came from the different islands of Panay and even Southern Luzon. We can also see descendants of common ancestors reaching as far as Madagascar and Eastern Islands. Also, there was much interaction involved. Intermarriages and trade were very much active. People were never locked up in just one area.

Another point I would like to make is that instead of domains or properties, Philippine polities had territories. This, again, is not based on land, but based on people who are loyal to the king or leader (see Laura Junker's Trading, Raiding and Feasting).

So, the claiming of the Muslims that the entire Mindanao is theirs is I think, a little out of the way. They didn't own land, they had accumulation of people loyal to them that might've been spread out in Mindanao, but these people can always change loyalties. Also, there are also the Lumads who have been in Mindanao for centuries.

I think we should also deconstruct the term Ancestral Domain. Dr. Lynch was saying that ancestral domain is applicable when a group of people had stayed in an area for such a long time. But then, again, this is kind of confusing since people did and still are moving around. And how much length of time do you need for a piece of land to be an ancestral domain?

I do recognize that many people were very extravagant in accumulating land. One whole province owned by one man? People being displaced from their homes? Seriously, wtf?! This was pointed out by Prof. Barrameda. But then, we also have to take into account that there were different means of acquiring land.

In our case, my ancestors never displaced anyone. No one was in the area when they started working. And they followed the ancient rule that you will only own as much land as you can work on. And that's how they came to own their farming lands. Some of our lands, on the other hand, was sold to us by my grandfather's Muslim friend.

My grandfather said that the Muslims distrusted the Christians at his time, and it was difficult to move around and get a job. But he was able to learn their language. And he is an honest man, which is why he gained their trust. (I dislike the other-ing here, but this is how my grandpa relayed it to me).

Well it might be true that sometimes the Christian Filipinos have the upper hand, but then I would say, not all the time. In my family's case, other people never complained of us being there until they saw that we were successful in growing different crops. That's the time they started shooting up my grandfather and other members of the family, demanding to have the land and the crops that my family grew. What's the justice in that? And did the fact that my family were Christians help in any way? Heck, no! There was no one to turn to, which is why many Bisayas had to arm themselves during those times.

I really want to study the Mindanao conflict one day and hopefully end all the bloodshed. But until now, I have no choice but to listen to other people ramble about some things in which they don't know anything about or have not experienced it in any way.

I, for one, do not put blame on anyone. I know that there were shortcomings in many parties -- the Muslim ethnic groups, the Lumads, the Christianized groups, and the government. As Sir Arnold Azurin had commented in the forum, there are conflicting interests even within the ethnic groups. And I think, we should do proper understanding and studies to end all the tears and tragedies. Also, more importantly, we should learn to understand each other and compromise.

Anyway, the topic just touched me in different ways -- both good and bad. I do appreciate the knowledge imparted to us by Dr. Lynch and Prof. Barrameda. And I do believe that Dr. Lynch is right in saying that we must learn to know ourselves better.

Fucking Fucked Up Incident

2010-08-23T22:32:00.004+08:00

Just got back from a class field trip in Baguio. I have so much to talk about it because I had so much fun. However, it's just so annoying that the hostage drama gets to be the class's welcome party in Manila.

So much is being said about the hostage incident in Manila. A former police officer taking hostage a bus filled with tourists is something not (and should not be) usual in our daily experiences. My facebook wall is filled with things about it. Bad luck, I don't have a TV, but friends in facebook were kind enough to share details -- supplemented by news on the internet.

Bloody end to Philippines hostage drama

At least seven hostages appear to have survived the 10-hour hijacking of a bus Monday, and the hostage-taker died of a gunshot wound to the head, a CNN producer at the scene said.

Manila hostage-taker killed; 6 hostages taken to hospitals

The dismissed policeman who held more than 20 people hostage inside a tourist bus in Manila Monday for close to 11 hours was killed by SWAT operatives in a daring nighttime assault.

SWAT team members also started carrying bloodied bodies from the bus, a report on GMA News' "24 Oras" said.

Most of the hostages were Chinese tourists.

This is a fucking gruesome incident. Nothing good has come out of it. That police officer, Mendoza, might've had a fucking hard time in his life but that was no way to solve a problem.

God damn, police officers!! It makes me feel disappointed (and scared) to have these incompetent people as supposedly protectors of the country. What the hell are they doing in the police academy? What the fuck are they doing in the police force? The people are not paying for them to fatten up their bellies! They should be ashamed of themselves.

I'm kinda hyped up.It makes me feel sad that the country is the butt of all this crap. And fuck you, foreigners, if you're using this incident to talk shit about my country.

The Awesome Callao Man!

2010-08-04T18:59:00.000+08:00

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Update

2010-07-26T23:03:00.004+08:00

Been rather busy this week. And will still be busy next week so writing on this blog will not be so frequent.

For information, I deleted an entry here because of..well..I really can't disclose the reason, but I wasn't allowed to show part of it. I'm still thinking if I would re-post the part about Domestication of Taro. I'm gonna put off the decision until next week.

I just celebrated my birthday. Wee! Had a red horse. Double wee! And I really had a good time. Gaah! Growing old.. I feel like I'm racing against time.

That's it for now. Can't wait 'til I can post a decent entry.

A Day After the Inauguration

2010-07-01T17:46:00.003+08:00

Yesterday was the inauguration day. Except for the fireworks at around midnight last night, I really didn't feel anything towards the event. Am I being a bad citizen?

I went to the mall, instead. Well it was either the mall or sleeping in. Arriving in Trinoma, I realized I wasn't the only one apathetic about the event. The mall was filled with people. There was more people that day than on Sundays. And on Sundays, the crowd in the mall is already bad.

The fourth floor was packed with people that my friend and I had trouble treading the way in between the packs of human flesh. The mile-long line was for the movies. I guess everyone would rather watch Twilight than attend or follow the happenings in the inauguration of the new president.

Does it even matter anymore? Do people even care? Well I guess anyone's better than Arroyo, but would there be actual change?

Of course, I can't have a final say on this. It's Noynoy Aquino's first day in office and he still has a long way to go. This is no time to judge him. I'm just hoping everything would be much better.

Taking a look at the Philippine's history, there doesn't seem to be a major breakthrough, except perhaps during the time of the Marcos. But all Philippine leaders seem to have the Frodo-syndrome. No one can just handle that much power, which makes me wonder sometimes, should we just had retained the separate polities consisting of what is now Philippines rather than forcing ourselves to be one nation? Same thing with other Southeast Asian countries -- if the British, the Dutch, the French, the Spanish hadn't come, would we have the same political nations that we have now? Will we have the same corrupt people who are in power now?

It's all been done. All we can do is cope.

Grave of the Fireflies (Hotaru no Haka)

2010-06-27T20:24:00.005+08:00

Grave of the Fireflies (Hotaru no Haka) by Isao Takahata. Based from the novel by Akiyuki Nosaka.

Quick Synopsis: The setting is Kobe, Japan during the terrible period of the World War II. We are taken into the lives of the 14-year old Seita and his 4-year old sister, Setsuko in the midst of war and confusion in Japan. We are shown how their world turned into shambles and their youth shattered because of the war.

Quick Review: I have seen a fair amount of anti-war films, and I say Grave of the Fireflies is among the best of them. I don't really cry easily while watching movies, but this one just reached through my heart and squeezed it hard. I was thinking of our family friend, who is Japanese, in the entire time I was watching the film and remembered his words about the war.

I've loved the characters as if they were akin to me. Setsuko-chan is just a sweet child -- her youth, taken away from her. Her smiles moved me as much as her tears did. Seita, on the other hand, is a very strong character. He's very brave for his age and he took care of Setsuko really well. He's a good brother. I don't know what I would've done if I was in his place.

War is the most terrible thing humans have ever created. There's not one good that have resulted from it. In the end, it leaves everyone scarred and hurt. While everyone of us might have already started going forward, wars had stained our histories very badly. Though Japan had scarred my country a long time ago, I cannot deny the fact that they, too, had been badly hurt by the war. None of us can be really blamed for it.

I highly recommend this film to everyone. Only someone who has stone for a heart could remain apathetic and not touched after watching this film.

Other Reviews on the film:
From Hayao Miyazaki Web
From DanielThomas.org
From Akemi's Anime World

Disappointed

2010-06-16T20:33:00.005+08:00

Anthropology of Christianities -- it's the first time I heard about it in my class today. To be honest, I don't know if I could commit my wholehearted interest for this course.

I don't really like talking about Christianity. It's not that I hate Christians to the core. I was born and baptized a Christian. Most of my family are Christians (except in my dad's side where I have Muslim cousins). I don't mind their practice. It's just not for me. I've called myself a non-practicing Catholic for a long time now. It's easier to explain to people. I'm not really atheist (yet..) but y'know, when you're living in a country where the Christian way is the only way, it's difficult to explain your beliefs different from theirs.

When I say that the bible is just mere literature, someone might end up hating me and talk shit about me -- basically telling me I'll go to hell. But no one has ever really done that yet, since I haven't garbled about the bible in front of Christians and being born Christian, perhaps they think I can be saved one day.

Do I dislike Christians? Yes, to a certain degree. It's because I find many of them hypocritical and aren't really good citizens of this country. Believe me, I've met thousands of Christians in my life since I'm living in a predominantly Christian country (or at least a country in which Christians are the only ones considered as people of the country)and I've seen too many bad Christians. Just look at our politicians!

I also couldn't accept how many wars have ensued throughout the world history just because of this one religion. Honestly, no killing is justifiable even in the name of God. I also don't like how discriminating many of them Christians can be.

I am still confused until now as to how many of them can be so cruel when it's against what's supposedly taught in the scriptures. Perhaps living in a more educated society would be much better than to live in a highly religious country.

Do I hate all Christians, then? Of course not. Like in many cases, not all people are the same. Though most of the Christians I met aren't really likable characters, I've also met some good Christians. For example, my mom has been very devout to her God and she's also the sweetest, kindest person I've ever met. Try talking to her and you'll know what I mean. But I still cannot correlate these people being good with their religion. I like them as people and not as Christians.

Maybe you could say I dislike Christianity as an institution. Pedophile priests, corruption, hypocrites, discrimination, racism, homophobia -- what is there to like? So, would all of these things disappear when Christianity is eradicated? Maybe, maybe not. But as I said, it's better to be educated than religious (at least in my opinion). I'm just hoping that Christians stay true to the good in what they preach (at least not the sermons about discrimination).

As for the class, might as well hear out what the professor has to say. Though I'd rather talk about other religions too since we're always talking about Christianity. It's always Christianity this, Christianity that. Gosh! Christianity is NOT the only religion in the world, not even in the Philippines. There are Buddhists here, Hindus, Muslims, etc. We even have archaeological evidence that Hinduism came in the Philippines before Catholicism did.

But, oh well!

Celebrity Crush #1

2010-06-12T22:22:00.004+08:00

Son Ye-Jin

Nationality: South Korean
Profession: Actress and model
First Saw Her at: the film, A Moment to Remember
She's famous for: her roles in drama films such as The Classic
Other projects: Movies: The Classic, April Snow, Lover's Concerto, etc. Endorsements: Pocari Sweat, Ohui, etc.
What caught my eye: Her sparkling eyes that also smile when she smiles.
She also: sings (it's cute how she gets so nervous while singing on stage)
Birth date: January 11, 1982

The Karate Kid 2010

2010-06-12T11:07:00.004+08:00

The Karate Kid

Quick Synopsis: This is a remake of the 1984 film of the same title directed by John G. Avildsen.

Dre and his mom moves to China to start a new life. He meets new friends as well as new enemies. Due to some circumstances, he enters a Kung Fu tournament. And only one man can train him -- Mr. Han, the maintenance man.

Quick Review: Now I think Jaden Smith has a bright future as an actor. I can see him doing drama movies. He's good at it.

But, the movie itself isn't very amazing. Though they did choose beautiful settings, the movie just fell short to excite its audience. It's become just your generic underdog story. Nothing really special about it. Too much drama, less action.

Probably I'm just comparing it too much with the original film. The original Karate Kid is one of my favorite films and I think the 2010 attempt to remake it didn't do the original one some justice.

Oh, and it's culturally incorrect to put Karate Kid as title when they're doing Kung Fu. Obviously, Karate and Kung Fu are two different types of martial art. The first one is of Japanese origin and the latter is Chinese. It just shows how insensitive people can really be, and they're making people idiots thinking Japan and China are the same.

The Karate Kid 2010:

The Original Karate Kid 1984:

Love My Life

2010-06-07T19:23:00.008+08:00

Love My Life

Quick Synopsis: The film is basically about realizing one's identity, coming out, the happiness it brings to be with someone you love and just loving your life. (No spoilers this time).

Quick Review:

I absolutely love this film. The relationship between Eri and Ichiko is just beautiful. I can even taste the sweetness between them as I watch the film. And the sweet taste lingers on long after the movie has ended. Watching it is just like eating ice cream. And to top it off, the story isn't superficial at all and the girl ends up with the girl in the end. No one dies. No one gets married to a man.

I'm still in the middle of reading the manga written by Ebine Yamaji (she has a lot of good works aside from Love My Life) but I've already noticed that there are slight differences between the manga and the film. Even the characters are a bit different. Eri is less arrogant and Ichiko is more giddy in the film. But I think both Asami Imajuku (Eri) and Yoshii Rei (Ichiko) did well in the film. (Plus both of them are super hot!)

The soundtrack is also really, really good. To get a glimpse of the film and listen to the soundtrack (by noodles ), watch this clip:

This film really made me smile.

Other Review on the film:
from Mary Warren Foulk

Just Because It's Funny...

2010-06-05T00:08:00.001+08:00

Aya Matsuura and Mai Satoda

Diploma

2010-06-04T22:18:00.005+08:00

What does it mean to have a diploma? I ask this now probably because of the fact that my ex-roommate who didn't really work and just watched anime all day had already graduated. While I am still stuck here when I worked twice as hard as she did and actually had good grades.

How many graduates every year are actually competent enough? Is competency during graduation really relevant? Do we, students, actually apply what we have learned in real life? Or would we even remember all of the things we learn in college?

A hundred people would take Math 1 -- General Knowledge on Mathematics -- but how many of them would actually remember Boolean Math? Or that Descartes thought of the Cartesian plane while staring at a fly on the ceiling?

Now that I think about it, I can't even remember a thing from my Geology classes. I don't even know if I can still derive some equations. It's been a long time since I opened a Math book.

But society requires people to have a diploma, especially here in the Philippines. Without a diploma, you can never have at least a fairly well kind of life. To get a good job, you must have a college degree. Many of the people that go to college aren't there to learn, but to get a good-paying job.

What does this mean for education? Of people not really learning and schools not really imparting knowledge? Many of the universities here in the country have been reduced to just diploma mills.

What has become the essence of tertiary education? And why aren't people alarmed with this?

Whining

2010-06-01T22:32:00.004+08:00

Finally in Manila now. Not very happy about it but it's not like I have any choice. And I think I'm going to have to extend my stay in school for more than 2 friggin' semesters because of those damned general electives. C'mon, if the entire university have to take the damned subjects, they should at least increase the number of classes.

I should be used to it by now. Nothing's ever easy in UP. They changed the registration system this semester, so I think I'll be as lost as a freshman tomorrow.

I don't really have anything interesting to say as of this moment so I'll just post a video by Metallica. Hopefully I'll be less whine-y once classes start.

Sad But True by Metallica

Quote Me!

2010-05-14T15:43:00.005+08:00

Mountains Beyond Mountains, Tracy Kidder

"If you're making sacrifices, unless you're automatically following some rule, it stands to reason that you're trying to lessen some psychic discomfort. So, for example, if I took steps to be a doctor for those who don't have medical care, it could be regarded as a sacrifice, but it also could be regarded as a way to deal with ambivalence. I feel ambivalent about selling my services in a world where some can't buy them. You can feel ambivalent about that, because you should feel ambivalent."
- Dr. Paul Farmer; Mountains Beyond Mountains, Tracy Kidder

"We should all be criticising the excess of the powerful, if we can demonstrate so readily that these excesses hurt the poor and the vulnerable."
- Dr. Paul Farmer; Mountains Beyond Mountrains, Tracy Kidder

"the only real nation is humanity"
- Dr. Paul Farmer; Mountains Beyond Mountains, Tracy Kidder

Pathetic

2010-05-14T14:57:00.002+08:00

What is life? What a corny introduction. What significance would it make to know the meaning of life? – not biological life, but just the essence of human life.

I’m one of those people who think so much about life and end up getting left behind. Always longing for something until it’s too late to realize that time has gone by and I’m still stuck in the same spot still longing, still daydreaming, still aching for something that would make life maybe not complete but at least bearable.

Here I am again talking about my hollowness, my emptiness. This is why I can’t write fiction. I’ve always wanted to be a writer but I can’t seem to escape from the box that’s caging me in. Call me egocentric – bound by my own self and my own miseries.

That’s it! Maybe that’s what I’m looking for! A key – a key to release me from my box. A key to freedom from myself, from these despicable things incessantly haunting me.

Sometimes I feel like my brain’s having short circuits; wiring and cable messing up. Horrible memories, mistakes flashing uncontrollably in my head that I have to scream to make them stop just for a little while so I could rest until they start again.

They say when you’re depressed you’re prone to thinking about death. Suicidal ideations – that’s the term doctors write on their pads. I should know. I saw my doctor writing it on her pad in one of our seemingly never-ending, dragging sessions.

But for me, it’s not really that. I don’t really want to die. What I want is to disappear; to cease to exist. I usually think it’s because I can’t bear this world and all the acrimonious things in it. But really it’s because I can’t bear myself. I hate myself. There’s a small cry deep within the bowels of my soul as I write this – I hate myself. It’s a tiny voice saying “Why? Why should you hate me so?” How should I know? I just do. And I don’t know if I can ever forgive myself (the voice sobs again).

Sometimes I feel myself fighting – putting the demons at bay. But today’s not one of those days. The demons always come back.

I’m a fly trapped in a spider’s web. The spider of sorrows is closing in; about to eat me whole, about to devour every inch of my essence. Would I ever escape?

I’m pathetic. My whole life is pathetic.

Just Another Update

2010-05-03T20:53:00.003+08:00

It's been a topsy turvy time. Well mainly because it had been my period and periods aren't good for me. But I've been fighting my depression lately. I try not to get swept by it. And my friend, L, had been really good at helping me keep my depression at bay. I just feel sad that I've been such a bother to her 'cause she has tons of work to do here in the Philippines before she gets back to her country.

I met so many interesting people lately from different parts of the world. I just realized how much I like meeting new people and knowing their experiences from the places they were from. It's something new for me since I'm usually shy, but I guess alcohol gives me a push to actually talk to people. It's fun to hear about their perspectives and how different their histories are from mine.

I still feel sad that I didn't get to spend ample time with these people, or go to the field site they were in here in the Philippines. That field site is my dream site. But there's also a part of me that is happy I didn't go since I got to spend some time with a really good friend. Friends come first -- that's one of the policies I live by. Friends and family are the only precious things I have in this world.

Oh and I got to handle bones. Though identifying bones still baffle me. Maybe I need time to appreciate it. Well as for now I'm still in the process of taking a taste of every field Archaeology and Anthropology could offer and find out what I really want to do after I've done so.

That's it for now. Feeling a bit dizzy. I'm trying to do an experiment of how long I could go on without my medication. The withdrawal's not good, but there's not much difference in the emotional/psychological part. I really am wondering if the medicine really is doing anything for me.

Just recently....

2010-04-25T00:23:00.003+08:00

I'm almost done reading the book Mountains Beyond Mountains. I really shouldn't be reading leisurely. I have tons of books to read for the RRL of a paper I'm writing. So far, though, I could imagine the flow of the paper -- which is a good thing since if I can't imagine it, I wouldn't be able to write no matter how much I wish it. I've gotten two books recently for the paper and I just thought about expanding the subject matter of the paper. I might go postmodern with this one -- not that it's the ideology I ascribe to, but it's the framework I could use to explain my point.

I'm very excited for this paper I'm working on since it might get published. According to a professor, if I do really well then it might be published in a journal. How awesome is that?

Should I just do Folklore instead of Archaeology, then?

I've had another breakdown recently. It wasn't good. It might, or more appropriately, it was because of the alcohol. I did feel bad all day that day, but I was able to control and suppress it. Alcohol makes me feel incredibly high. It feels so good. But it also leaves me out of control. It sucks, yeah. But my body seems to be yearning for alcohol all the time.

I don't like to bother my friends, really. But it seems like they're the ones who want to be bothered. It's nice. I mean, it always feels nice that someone cares for you. This should give me enough strength to get better, and it does. But I'm just a really crazy girl. I could never lock out the demons in my head. Sucks to be me.

When is everything ever going to end?

Comments on the film My Fair Lady

2010-04-21T17:44:00.003+08:00

Note: This is a requirement I submitted for my Introduction to Linguistics class.

My Fair Lady, directed by George Cukor, tells the story of Prof. Henry Higgins, a phonetician, who took in a young flower girl, Eliza Doolittle and taught her proper English. With this, he helped the boisterous, un-ladylike Eliza in becoming an elegant lady, well-respected by the society.

The first scene lets us show how improper Eliza’s speech is to Prof. Higgins. Eliza is too annoyingly loud, and her words are hardly understandable that you would just want her to shut up. This is where Prof. Higgins introduces phonetics as the “science of speech”.

I was rather interested how Prof. Higgins placed the hometown of some people outside the music hall just by hearing them speak. To some extent in real life, it might be possible to tell where a person came from just by hearing him/her speak. For example, one might tell that a person is from Cebu because of his/her accent and way of speaking, which is very different from that of a Tagalog.
Prof. Higgins also talks about how a person’s way of speaking can show his/her status and classification in society. “An Englishman’s way of speaking absolutely classifies him. The moment he talks he makes some other Englishman despise him”. One can tell if a person is educated or not, elite or not just by hearing her/him speak. Prof. Higgins also lamented the distortion of English among the underprivileged community. He was complaining how there are a lot of different kinds of talking for just one language when there is just one correct way of speaking English. Prof. Higgins even threatened Eliza that she “should be hung for the cold-blooded murder of the English tongue”.

I think Prof. Higgins is being egocentric with this. For one thing, people receive different kinds of education. What is taught to one may not be taught to others. Also, being a phonetician himself, he should have understood that people tend to speak in various ways and that some sounds are not phonemic to all people. He was imposing what the correct way of speaking should be as if his knowledge is law. Maybe Prof. Higgins’ character is indeed an expert in the field of phonetics. But, I think how one speaks is relative in a way. Prof. Higgins was making all sorts of complaints about the way people speak when he himself pronounces some words differently from the words’ original phonetic transcription. For example, the phonetic transcription of the word “people” in the dictionary is “[pipəl]”, whereas Prof. Higgins pronounces it as “[pipUl]”.

I think, it is kind of discriminatory for him to isolate a person in one category just because of his/her accent or way of speaking. Stereotypes are not correct most of the time. There is indeed more from a person than his/her way of talking. Prof. Higgins was imprisoning people because of how he/she speaks. What he’s doing in the film is just like shunning Bisaya people and ridiculing them here in Manila since they can’t speak the Tagalog language as the native Tagalogs do.

In the middle part of the film we see Prof. Higgins “working” on Eliza – working on her as if she’s some kind of guinea pig in an experiment. Most of the time, the two are arguing. It’s not difficult to see that Eliza is having troubles learning a new way of speaking – a way different from hers – as she keeps dropping all her “h” and saying “[tajk]” instead of “[tek]”. I can relate pretty much to how Eliza feels since it took some time for me to blend in with how the native Tagalog people speak and hide my Bisaya/Karay-a ethnicity. I just find it strange that Eliza was able to overhaul her way of speaking in a snap. I am not really sure if it is indeed possible to change one’s way of speaking in an instant like that.
Like Prof. Higgins, all the British socialites in the film are very ethnocentric in my personal opinion. They pay much attention on a person’s physical appearance, how a person speaks, and even to the smallest detail like the words he/she uses when he/she speaks. The way one speaks is like a medal worn that classifies one’s status. Even common people have a high regard on the use of “proper” English. Jobs are opened only to those who can speak the language “properly”. In present day culture, I think it is not reliable to base someone’s proficiency in a given field through his/her way of speaking. Maybe during those times, speaking “proper” English is equated with proficiency and intelligence since only those educated people can speak “proper” English. But still, I think this is a very unjust basis on choosing who gets hired and who doesn’t.

I think the film shows how people can be so discriminating with only a few bases. They see the person’s way of speaking as the person’s embodiment – which is, I think, kind of shallow. At the end, Eliza was passed off as a member of the royal blood, even though she was born and raised in the slums – all of it because of her elegant way of speaking in English. Because of her gentle and articulate way of speaking, Eliza received respect she never had before. She even found a suitor to match her luck. I think this film shows how people put much preference on articulate speech and put much importance on the way people speak or talk.

In connection to the present context of the Philippines, the way Prof. Higgins shuns people who can’t reach his standards in speaking English can also be seen here in the country. People who cannot speak Tagalog properly, such as the Bisaya who have their own set of phonemes apart from the Tagalog, are ridiculed or made fun of. Like the people in the movie, the way of speaking is connected to the status of the person here in the country as the people with a Bisaya accent are usually branded and stereotyped as nannies or house-helper. I find this kind of sad. As I said, there is more to a person than how he/she speaks. I think what is in a person’s head is more important than how he/she speaks.

What Makes Us Human?

2010-04-20T23:50:00.000+08:00

Digging Through the Internet

2010-04-20T14:36:00.004+08:00

1. In DNA Era, New Worries About Prejudice by Amy Harmon

genetic information is slipping out of the laboratory and into everyday life, carrying with it the inescapable message that people of different races have different DNA.

2. The Science and Myth of Race by Michelle Chen (2nd posting in this blog)

Science matters, just as race and culture matter. But whatever the studies and statistics tell us, our destiny, biological or otherwise, is still what we make of it.

3. Noses, brains, race by Michael Tan

Race is an artificial label that we create and tack on people different from ourselves, often accompanied by notions of superiority and inferiority.

I am not a very big fan of the idea of "race" and the baggage that comes with it. Too much suffering, brutality and heartlessness have been produced just because of that one idea. The hellish World War II -- which, I'm sure, is in everyone's history and in the memories of many -- was built up from the foundation of racism, of the idea of inferiority and superiority.

In fact, I really hate the idea of it. Yeah, all of us are unique from each other, but it doesn't mean we're not equal. Difference is not the same as inequality. We're all humans, period. People should understand that.

Recently, scientists are beginning to open Pandora's Box. We have so much problem of racism as it is. Scientists should probably re-think the interpretations of their data. I have nothing to say about their data. For all I know, their data are almost accurate. I would never argue against the difference among people. Hell, I'd even say I'm as unique as can be from the rest of the Filipinos. All I'm saying is they should look at it maybe in a different perspective. We don't need another World War II. Whatever science would say, racism and discrimination are still not justifiable and should be eradicated (it's the only humane thing to do).

Friends

2010-04-20T00:46:00.002+08:00

I'm starting to feel I have to reconnect with some of my friends. Recently, I've figured out who my true friends really are -- the ones who really care for me and would stick out for me. I know I'm not the most amazing person or even the wealthiest person on the face of the earth, but I just feel so lucky to have the friends I have now.

I have a bit of trust issues, which is why it's hard for me to have really close friends. My trust can be acquired easily but once betrayed, it seldom returns. See I don't know what the hell my brain's problem is, but I tend not to forget the bad things that happen to me no matter how minuscule they are -- which is weird because I hardly remember happy moments.

I also found out that aside from the trust issues, I tend to challenge my friends -- which is bad, as I have learned recently. Maybe the challenge thing is connected to my trust issues -- because I could never believe that anyone would want to be my friend.

But I am slowly learning. Though I still have trust issues, I now understand that people have their own reasons to lie or not say the truth -- and some of the time, the reason isn't bad at all and sometimes, they just can't help it. As for challenging my friends, it doesn't seem to work and things get much worse.

But it truly is much easier to live life with friends. They make me love humanity just more.

Leaving for Manila

2010-04-18T17:04:00.002+08:00

Tomorrow, I'll be leaving for Manila to meet one of my friends who's doing her research here in the country. I shall be a helper. It's always good to learn new things. In time, I'm hoping my fear of experiencing new things and taking risks would be gone.

I just posted some of the photos of the last fieldwork I joined in. The photos can be found in my DeviantArt account. Just click here.

From the Trenches!

2010-04-17T19:33:00.002+08:00

It's a given, but I just wanna say that Eliza Dushku is so popular. I even get people around the world visiting my blog on some shit post in which I described a dream with her in it. I don't even get much visitors on posts about more intellectual topics, but some strange dream about a hot actress, I get a dozen visitors.

I just got back from a field work somewhere in Mindanao. My tummy hurts like hell right now. 9 hours of travel by land is not good for my tummy.

The field work was rather insightful since it was my first time to work in a historical site. We excavated church ruins in Northern Mindanao. It was just difficult for me since I don't know anything about structures and so I felt stupid most of the time.

The view from the site, however, was breathtaking. We had to climb steep steps to the hill where the site is located. What an early exercise. I think I lost some pounds. But when we arrived at the top and looked at the picturesque view of the sea, the tiredness and body aches all disappear. The sky's so blue, the sea's so clear. I really wish I could've taken a dip in the sea, but we didn't have time.

The rest of the team is going to the beach tomorrow but I couldn't come with them. I've already booked a flight for Manila on the 19th and I couldn't afford to do the 9-hour travel tomorrow. But it's okay.

It was my first time in Northern Mindanao and I enjoyed the scenery very much. Even along the way, I was already appreciating the beautiful hills filled with lush green trees. It's certainly a sight to look at after being in the city for so long. This is why I couldn't understand why people like the polluted city so much. I feel light in the province. It certainly feels heavenly to look at the sights and smell the fresh air. No speck of smoke.. God!

Will Be Gone for a Couple of Weeks!!

2010-04-11T17:09:00.003+08:00

I'll be gone for a couple of days to visit a field site in the southern part of the Philippines. Then I'm off to the North to be of service to a friend who's doing her thesis here in the country. This is the adventure I'm waiting for all summer, but this also means a hiatus from blogging, which I love dearly. Hopefully, I'll be back on the second week of May. As for the moment, I'd like to leave two videos of two amazing anthropologists who have successfully applied anthropology to society -- especially to the most needy ones.

Nancy Scheper-Hughes' Interview:

A lecture from Dr. Paul Farmer:

Prozac Nation and Me

2010-04-09T10:53:00.005+08:00

Usually I write brief descriptions when I talk about the film. It’s different, this time, with Prozac Nation – a true story about a girl with clinical depression. Watching it made me feel like my story is being shown to me, only that the characters are very different.

Elizabeth is very different from me. She’s too much arrogant and strong-headed for her own good. I, on the other hand, am so much of a wimp. However easy it is for “Lizzie” to hurt people, it would be so hard for me to do so. I never like being a burden to other people. Once, when I was in 4th grade, an insect had gotten into my eye during the night. I endured it the whole time, not wanting to wake up my schoolmates and adviser. In the morning, I didn’t say a word ‘til someone noticed I never opened my eyes anymore. Then, my adviser had to bring me to a clinic.

Aside from that, though, Lizzie and I have so many similarities. I, too, wanted to be a writer. I was checking my high school year book and the dream I wrote in there was “Simply to be a writer and to be happy” – both turned out unattainable. Lizzie was a journalism student. I wanted to be in journalism, but my mother never let me. It’s dangerous to be a journalist here in the Philippines. Strangely enough, I used to write like Elizabeth, back when I was in high school. But I’ve given up on writing. I know I’m not cut out for it. I’m just not talented enough.

Like Lizzie, I never did fit in since I was a kid. Everyone thought I was so weird -- weird enough that they couldn’t understand me. Her mother set her up for Harvard. My mom also set me up for UP. Like Liz’s mother, my mom also told me that everything would be different and better once I enter UP. I have set my minds for UP ever since I was 5. But I don’t dislike my mother for that. I kind of appreciated it that she wanted the best for me. But as Lizzie said, “You want me to be everything in this world. But I just can’t be.” Though my mom never said she expected much from me, I’ve taken the burden to do so. I just think it’s the right thing to do.

“ ‘Gradually, then suddenly’ – that’s how depression hits. You wake up one morning afraid that you’re going to live.”
- Lizzie, Prozac Nation

I have depression. It’s been a year last March since I was diagnosed with it. Before that, people thought supernatural beings were messing with me. Before that, my family and I were silent with our problems, or rather my problems.

I know I’ve hurt people around me. It’s just that, I’m more subtle than Lizzie in a way. Though unintentional, it pains me to have had done so. I’ve made walls to separate myself from friends. My closest friend, the one who saved me from utter depression in high school, I know I’ve hurt her in more ways than one. I can see it in her eyes when I’m with her these days and the way she speaks of me sometimes. She said she couldn’t understand me. I couldn’t even understand myself. My brother was always the butt of my emotional lashes. When I asked him before if he loves me, he told me “I don’t know”. I was mean to him before and I’m making up for it now. And I’m happy that we’re getting along well. And the one I’ve hurt the most is my mother.

Like Lizzie’s mother, my mom had done everything for me. I remember one very emotional conversation when I was in high school in which I found out how much she had sacrificed for me and our family. She was crying hard then. Though my mom cries easily for movies, she always tries to be strong when it comes to family matters. She doesn’t usually show her pain to us which is why seeing her cry was such a huge shock for me.

Both Lizzie and I are waiting for someone to rescue us – someone to understand us. Time and time again, we push that “someone” away from us. The only difference is, she found love and it was returned. I did find love, more than once, but it was never returned.

In the end, Elizabeth got better. I’m not sure if it’s true, though. She twisted the ending of her article for “Seventeen” and it’s possible she twisted the ending for this one. It’s because everybody just wants happy endings.

For me, the future is still dark and bleak. Getting better still seems a long way to go. Everyday, I still feel myself in the deep muck of depression, of sadness, of hopelessness. But there have been some changes, however microscopic they are. I don’t know if it’s the antidepressant and the antipsychotic, or some other things that made the changes. Frankly, I don’t know if the meds are really working. But I have come to understand some things around me – why people are the way they are, why I can’t have everything I want (I mean this in a non-bratty way). Still, I can’t stop hating myself for every mistake and every wrong I’ve done. I can’t take them off my head and it keeps playing like a broken record player.

As Lizzie had asked, I, too, am asking, “How can I escape from the demons of my head?”

Quote Me!

2010-04-05T20:51:00.003+08:00

Tipping the Velvet, Sarah Waters

"I know that this ain't wrong, what we do. Only that the world says it is."
- Nancy Astley (a.k.a. Nan King) speaking of her love to Kitty Butler

"Being in love, you know, it's not like having a canary in a cage. When you lose one sweetheart, you can't just go out and get another to replace her.
- Florence Banner

"Reflections on LGBT/Sexuality Studies and Advocacies in the University of the Philippines" by Abaya and Dacanay

2010-04-05T20:44:00.006+08:00

Note: So I was searching for the article online, but it seems that it has been taken down. Sorry..

Reading Abaya and Dacanay’s essay entitled Reflections on LGBT/Sexuality Studies and Advocacies in the University of the Philippines, I felt a sense of pride for my university. One of the things I really like about UP (yes, I do have some things I like about UP) is the academic freedom within its premises. Different kinds of knowledge, thoughts and debates are welcomed with open arms. Students are discouraged to be passive, but instead are pushed to be inquisitive and formulate their own ideas. In this aspect, UP is a good university.

The UP community certainly has helped in the progress of LGBTQ studies through the years. Advocacies, publications, symposiums, lectures, discussions – students and professors alike have done all these to broaden our knowledge on everything about LGBTQ. But of course, there is still much, much more to learn about the subject.

I had the honor to be in Sir Boy Abaya’s class before. That time, he taught Medical Anthropology. He’s a good prof and he knows his stuff. I really liked his class, even though I wasn’t able to finish it.

Anyway, observing him before, it doesn’t seem impossible for him to be so passionate about the subject. He is also himself openly gay (or rather “bakla”, as he would say it) and was eternally curious about our gay classmate.

It’s good to see that many people in UP could be true and open to who they are. However, I’m not sure if others are just as lucky.

When I came out as a lesbian to some of my friends, it was unexpectedly easy. In fact, they said they were just waiting for me to out myself as they’ve already noticed I’m gay eons ago. It felt good to have friends like them around me – to have friends who accepted me and didn’t push me away.

But I’m not as lucky with my other friends. Even now, I’m still careful not to let them know. See I like to give tests and observe people. Yeah, it’s not good. But these little experiments amuse me. Plus, it’s one of the few ways that help me understand the people around me. Once, I asked my friends to watch a movie about women lovers during my birthday. To those who squirmed while watching the movie, I still can’t bear to out myself to them and see their disgusted faces.

I could also say as much that not everyone in UP are open-minded about the different sexualities as I would expect them to be. Once I got into a conversation with people from my course on being bisexual. Aside from me and my friend, everyone thought that being bisexual is unnatural and disgusting. And you would think, studying in our course would help them understand these things. It was disappointing.

But I guess the works being done in UP is already one big step. However, there is considerable disparity between the number of studies made on male gays and female gays. The reason for this is still quite unknown to me. Probably it’s because there are not as many out female gays as male gays? Or Philippines can be said to be a society in which males are taken of more importance? Or would this do with the global situation in which there are not really much studies on female gays? Whatever it is, it still saddens me.

Daybreakers

2010-04-01T00:41:00.004+08:00

Daybreakers

Quick Synopsis: Vampires have ruled the world and they farm humans for blood. There is one problem, however. Humans are decreasing in number and the vampires’ source o f blood is diminishing.

Quick Review: The concept of this film is rather cool. It reminds me a lot of Malthus and economics. Though I don't like economics that much, I do believe that vampires could never thrive in this world. They’ll run out of supply – the main theme in which the whole story revolves.

The main story is a bit different from your usual vampire story -- so one merit to the film. Plus it has a good theme in which the movie revolves in!

The ending falls a bit short for me. But I did love the goriness! Not really something to match the blood and gore in The Machine Girl and Tokyo Gore Police, but it was fun.

The rides are effin’ cool too! I’m not really into wheels (still learning how to drive a car) but the cars in the film are just remarkably beautiful.

It’s certainly worth a watch.

Other Reviews:
from Filmofilia
from Screen Rant
from Den of Geek

More on Graduation.. Just Because It's That Time of Year

2010-04-01T00:07:00.003+08:00

Three of my cousins have graduated this year -- two from high school and one from college. I attended two of the three graduations. It was a good excuse to finally get my butt out of the house.

Part I:

I find it interesting how people would cry on their graduation day. Perhaps, I think, there is a sense among people that graduation is the end to many things -- friendship, struggles, sorrows, student life, etcetera, etcetera. The list could be endless.

I never did cry on graduation. In elementary, I didn't get to attend my graduation. I was in Japan and I think it was better that way. That moment was the beginning of my life breaking into pieces. I didn't cry even in my high school graduation. Though I was a bit sad to be leaving off to college, I wasn't at all sad to be leaving high school. And I don't think I would cry on my college graduation (if I graduate, that is).

I don't see graduation as an end at all. Yeah, it might be the last of a student's college difficulties but then, it's also the start of a much more hardcore difficulties and struggles. There won't be the professors who could keep failing you, but then there would be the bosses who might fire you or not give you your salary.

I see life outside school as more horrible and terrifying -- more failures, more disappointments, more heartbreaks.

Part II:

One of the graduations I attended was that of my cousin's graduation in my old school. Again, it was amusing.

People everywhere just keeps talking about that school's excellence and good performance. I just can't help but burst into laughter (of course I kept it inside).

That school used to have its glorious days. But its golden age had long been over. When I was there as a student, I only felt a hint of it. And observing it now, not even a hint of the golden age is there. So I think it's kind of stupid and arrogant for them to be talking about their excellence and superiority above other schools.

I think they really need a wake up call.

I approached some of my favorite high school professors and I felt sad. The number of good,competent professors in that school is dwindling and the newly-hired, well, they're not very reliable.

I just feel sad for the school and its students. Though high school wasn't the happiest in my life, it wasn't the most horrible either. I still feel some concern for that school and worry on how its students are being honed.

Well, as I said, I guess this is life.

Venus Versus Virus

2010-03-27T16:43:00.004+08:00

Venus Versus Virus

Quick Synopsis: Viruses are attacking special people who have the ability to see them. Viruses are former human entities that have lost their souls. There are only two people who can stop them – Lucia and Sumire.

Lucia has a special shop, Venus Vangard, that is disguised as an antique's shop but its main aim is to eradicate all viruses that take the souls of humans turning them into viruses. With the help of Sumire-chan, a girl with incredible powers when she turns berserk, they find out the root of all these viruses, turning up Lucia’s tragic past along the way.

Quick Review: I was expecting more Lucia x Sumire sweetness and I was kinda annoyed that there’s a boy in Sumire’s life. But hey! The anime is entertaining, nonetheless.

The main story – well, it really isn’t something new. One enemy, one goal, defeat evil, true friendship – all that jazz. It reminds me a lot of My Hime. And both series -- Venus Versus Virus and My Hime -- get to show friends fighting with each other. But Venus Versus Virus has its charm. It has a lot of really interesting episodes and side stories.

Another good thing is the main characters aren’t annoying at all. Lucia is very headstrong and confident. She’s cool. Sumire, on the other hand, is a bit weak on the first half of the series but she picks up on the next half and shows the audience what she’s got. She’s also really cute.

The villain, Lucif, reminds me a lot of Light (aka Kira) from Deathnote. They have the same views and dreams. Both of them sets up a good stage for their schemes and both of them can’t do anything by themselves. Sheesh!

The art in the anime isn’t the best I’ve seen so far. It’s not bad. I say it’s average-ish. Also I’m not a very big fan of how characters are drawn, except maybe for Lucia when her hair’s loose and Sumire. But I do like the gothic feeling in the art and the scenes.

All in all, it’s okay as an anime. Maybe it wouldn’t garner the top spot for my “re-watch list” but there were no regrets that I spent time watching it.

Other reviews on Venus Versus Virus:
from The Anime Almanac
from The Escapist
from DVD Verdict
from The Anime Blog

Graduation...psssh!

2010-03-27T15:36:00.003+08:00

Found an interesting article posted on Facebook. Gaah! I'm always on Facebook, it's depressing. Well this is what happens when you don't have a social life.

Anyway, the title of the article is Graduation Day. It's written by a UP student about her struggles to graduate and figuring out what to do after college. If you check the Philippine Daily Inquirer, it's right there in the Young Blood section.

The topic is very timely since it's March and graduating students will be marching their way out of college. Congratulations to them.

Graduation...

When I was in first year I heard my friends say that when a student enters UP, his/her goal is to graduate with "flying" honors (I've always wondered why honors need to fly). Later on the college life, the goal is reduced to just graduating on time. Much later on, the goal is basically just to graduate.

Pretty much, my goal for the past year has been the last one. I'm in my 4th year, turning 21 years old this year and has no direction whatsoever. Am I even going to graduate?

You could say I could just snap out of whatever that that thing that's pulling me behind. I'd say, it's not that easy.

You can say that UP is a difficult school. I'd be arrogant if I say that studying in UP has been easy. It certainly is not (and the author of Graduation Day says so too). But after four years in UP, I've come to prioritize meaning than just finishing college to get a job.

What is it that I'm trying to do? And why am I doing this? These questions are more difficult to answer than any midterm or final exams.

I'm pretty much like the author of Graduation Day. I entered UP hopeful that I get to taste every kind of knowledge there is. I went in with a specific goal. To finish Physics, apply for a masters on Medical Physics abroad. Take a Ph.D. after that and maybe get a degree on Complex Physics. Come home to the Philippines and do my duty as a Filipino citizen. Everyone happy, I've done what is expected of me. But no. All of it went crashing down. And the little confidence left in me burnt and dissipated into the thin air.

Two years after entering college, some signs have told me that maybe I'm not meant to be in Physics. Everyone's always asking me, "Why did you shifted out of Physics? It's a really good course." I always answer with a smile and say, "I didn't have friends there" or "I didn't really like it." Well it's true that I didn't have friends in Physics but I really did like it. It's just that I got scared halfway down the road.

It started with me failing my first major Math, Math 17 -- Algebra and Trigonometry. This came as a total shock for me and everyone around me. It's because I studied well. I understood the concepts and I was really good at Algebra when I was in high school. I didn't know what happened. I think I was too scared of failing that I ended up failing anyway. People around me were like "I can't believe you failed Math 17! Isn't your mom a Math professor? Aren't you supposed to be a Math Whiz in high school?" Blah blah blah. Over and over again.

I did well in the succeeding Maths. Another surprise for me was getting highest scores in Calculus, when I really didn't like it in high school (because I really didn't understand how my high school prof taught it). But still, the fear of getting another failing grade lingered in me. I wouldn't be able to bear another one. I thought that if I failed in the most basic major subject, then it is also possible that I'd fail in higher subjects.

Failing Math 17, for me, was a sign to get out.

At that time, I was falling in love with Anthropology. I was very much fascinated with the topics it encompasses. The world is colorful again.

I crossed out my first plan and made another one. I wanted to get a masters and Ph.D. in medical anthropology. Go to my hometown, teach and contribute in researches. After being down for so long, I found happiness once again.

But as I always think, happiness never lasts. I lost hope in people. I lost sight of what I wanted to do. I lost meaning.

I found love in Archaeology. But even so, it's not the same anymore when I lost every essence of my soul.

Like the author of Graduation Day, I found myself stuck in my room and just lost in my own world. The only difference is her room has air-conditioning. My room is like an oven.

But the author is just 19. She's still young. She only has 3 units left to graduate. I'm turning 21 this year. I'm supposed to be an adult. And I still have three semesters left. A complete bummer since I really wanna disconnect myself from our department as much as possible.

Yeah, well, I guess this is life.

Aoi Hana

2010-03-26T04:48:00.002+08:00

Aoi Hana

Quick Synopsis: Fumi, a shy bookish girl, returns to her hometown with her family. She’s then reunited with her childhood friend, Aa-chan and their strong bond is tied once again. Here she also meets a beautiful senpai, Sugimoto, who turns her life upside down after just being heartbroken. This is the story of the everyday lives of Fumi and Aa-chan, and how precious their friendship is.

Quick Review: Art is almost perfect. Though I’ve always had a problem with too bright coloring, it wasn’t much of a problem in this anime because it suits the theme perfectly well. In fact, it’s pretty lush and it gives you a sense of warmth in the scenes.

The OST matches the anime perfectly well. I loved every melody of the opening and ending. It brings sunshine to my day.

The main characters are loveable. Fumi is a really adorable character. I always have a soft spot for timid characters. And I just love Aa-chan’s energy. Also, their friendship is just, well, beautiful and lovely. I mean it’s a perfect (not in every sense of the word, but I’m sure y’know what I mean) friendship and a lot of us have been longing for that kind of relationship.
The secondary characters are so-and-so -- kinda annoying at times (especially Sugimoto’s smug and arrogant demeanor) but then they highlight the best qualities of the main characters.

This is a very slow-paced series, which adds to the charm of the anime because it lets you feel every moment in the scenes. I also love the fact that this is really not exaggerated. Purely realistic slice of life, as if it can just happen in your neighborhood (well not really, but I assure you, this is no Sailor Moon).

This is really shoujo-ai at its best. Sweetness is written all over it (not in a mushy icky way, but in an “awwh” kind of way). Every episode would just leave you feeling as if your heart is going to burst.

Other Reviews on Aoi Hana:
from Listless Ink
from AfterEllen
from The Nihon Review
from UK Anime Network

Jigoku Shoujo Futakomori

2010-03-13T09:54:00.004+08:00

Jigoku Shoujo Futakomori

Quick Synopsis: The story of Enma Ai(Hell Girl) and the Hotline to Hell continues in Futakomori. All sorts of different personalities are introduced. We are also shown how Hell Girl's assistants -- Ren, Wanyuudou and Honne-Onna, first met her.

Quick Review: Jigoku Shoujo is one of the best-drawn animes I've ever seen. And the art gets better in Futakomori. Story-wise, however, I really liked the first one better probably because there are tons of annoying things and situations in Futakomori -- one of them is Kikuri, the evil brat. Also, the creators were no longer as creative as before in punishing the ones sent to hell.

But everything gets better towards the end, even if the most innocent one gets to have all the suffering. But the pandemonium is just exciting! Just like in Death Note, the last few episodes show how complex humans can be -- well complex and stupid.

Enma Ai is as charming as ever. I just can't help but love her, which is why I wanted to cry in the last episode (so watch it!)

For a Good Cause

2010-03-11T20:47:00.004+08:00

A friend's sister is going to shave her head for leukemia patients. Her name is Rosa Newton-Walters. If anyone happens to pass by this entry, I hope you would check this profile in World's Greatest Shave, and sponsor her. It would be for a great cause.

Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust

2010-03-09T01:09:00.004+08:00

Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust

Quick Synopsis: Meier Link, a vampire kidnaps a girl named Charlotte. Charlotte's father then pays a big sum to the Hunter D, a "Dunpeal" (half human, half vampire) to get Charlotte back.

Quick Review: I didn't like it that Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is very much like the film Van Helsing. Hunter D even looks a lot like Van Helsing except that he's a half-vampire and he needs to be buried after long exposure under the sun.

The story isn't very thrilling as I expected it to be when I saw the front cover of the DVD. There are, however, tons of really cool characters such as the Barbarois (a clan of monsters) and the Markus Brothers -- most notably, the kick-ass chick, Leila. I also love the allusion to Carmilla -- the best vampire ever, in my opinion.

The art is really good. The characters are beautifully drawn especially Charlotte, D and Meier. Even the machines and materials used by the characters are all wonderfully drawn.

This is a 7 out of 10 for me since I didn't like the story very much, but I was very impressed with the animation.

Other Reviews:

from Akemi's Anime World
from www.scifimoviepage.com
from Anime News Network
from Animefringe

Tonight's A Good Night

2010-03-06T03:26:00.005+08:00

*image borrowed from Red Horse Beer: Official Website

Had really wonderful conversation this night. Everything was very unexpected since I wasn't planning to come to a "drinking session" hosted by an organization from my university. I went to the event anyway, since it was just 95 Pesos (US$2) for overflowing drinks and food.

I had this very magical (and educational) conversation with Tony. He taught us tons of lessons in life. The things he was saying makes me feel he knew me all my life.

1. First of all, he said you should do whatever you want to do in school. The important thing is not to learn every theory and fact, but to learn how to teach yourself to learn.

2. It's okay to take a time-off. Get a job. Do internships. Get yourself in the field. Try out things in the real life. Most of the things you get in school are not exactly what you need in real life. Plus, what you take up in school might not be what you really wanna do in real life. Taking a time-off would save you all the energy and time by figuring out what you really wanna do before taking tons of diplomas on a discipline.

3. Try to be different from others. (At least in US grad schools) People would be looking for students who are different and who have the edge among the others. So getting yourself in projects and orgs is always good.

Also, he's the first non-Filipino to fully understand the meaning of "bakla". He's a really swell guy and interesting to talk with.

This night truly sparked my interest and hopes for Anthropology again. Not only did I see people who are very passionate about the field, but I also met people who are actively practicing the field. It was an awesome night. Hope something like that would happen again (though some problems in RSVP and location would hopefully be fixed next time around).

My-Hime

2010-03-05T01:26:00.003+08:00

My-Hime

Quick Synopsis: Mai transfers to Fuka Gakuen (Fuka Academy) with her sickly brother, Takumi. When in Fuka Academy, she discovers that she's a HiME (Highly-advanced Materializing Equipment) and she has incredible powers. Also, Fuka Gakuen is a place where all the HiMEs are being assembled.

Quick Review: Gaah! Watching this is one hell of a roller coaster ride. I never had this feeling since the last time I went to an amusement park.

The story is pretty predictable on the first half 'til you get to the middle and it would just blow your mind. But wait! There's more! Everything in the second half is one heck of a "carnival" and then the ending blows your mind again.

The situations are kinda annoying at times, but all the suffering would be paid off. It's a really good anime. Though I really wish there's more shoujo-ai in it. Not enough Shizuru-Natsuki. I was even wishing for some Mai-Mikoto, but nooooooooo! Even though I was fooled with My-Hime being tagged as a shoujo-ai, it's still an interesting anime.

Blind Melon - No Rain

2010-03-04T03:31:00.007+08:00

Seems like I can't sleep again. Geez! Good thing music exists in this world

Atashinchi no Danshi

2010-03-02T02:58:00.002+08:00

Atashinchi no Danshi

Quick Synopsis: Chisato has been homeless most of her life. She kept herself that way to run away from the yakuza collecting his dad's debts -- in which she was made a co-signer without her knowledge. Her father, on the other hand, had ran away after her mother died. She meets Ohkura Shinzo, one day, when running away from the yakuza. Shinzo-shi pays her debts with the following conditions: for Chisato to become his wife for a month and after that, to live as his six sons' mother for three months and follow the "mother's goals" he had written.

Quick Review: This is kinda obvious, but Maki Horikita is just so cute (super Kawaii, as the Japanese would say)! I feel like melting every time I see her smile.

Anyway, like many other Jdorama, Atashinchi no Danshi tends to be overly dramatic. And the acting falls a bit short. But putting these things aside, this Jdorama series is really heaps of fun (honto!)! There are a lot of weird things going on such as seven people trying to jump rope all-together and a villain dressed up like one of the three musketeers (and in red!). And the best thing about Jdoramas is that the actors and actresses seem to be enjoying everything in the set. It's just like their playing around and the audience is invited to join in. And the series certainly has that!

One thing has been bugging me, though. There seems to be a reoccuring topic in many Jdoramas and romance anime/mangas I've encountered. It seems like the characters inhibit their true feelings and keep them bottled up so as not to hurt others. However, this is usually the cause of many troubles. But this is usually the characteristic of many Asians I have met: keeping their true feelings so as not to hurt others.

I surely had some tears and chuckles while watching this drama. It's not the best out there, but it's not that bad. It's enough to bring a smile to a sad soul.

In The News: Pharao's Head Found in Egypt!

2010-03-01T21:56:00.003+08:00

This just in! A wonderful artifact had been excavated in Egypt -- a fully intact statue head of Amenhotep III, grandfather to King Tutankhamun.

Massive Head of Pharaoh Unearthed in Egypt
By Hadeel Al-Shalchi

The head of Amenhotep III, which alone is about the height of a person, was dug out of the ruins of the pharaoh's mortuary temple in the southern city of Luxor.

King Tut's grandfather's statue head surfaces in Luxor
by Marwa Awad

Scientists conducting DNA tests and CT scans on a number of mummies have identified Amenhotep III as the grandfather of Tutakhamun, the teenage-king who was born of an incestuous marriage between Akhenaten and his sister, both the offspring of Amenhotep III.

Statue head of King Tut's grandfather found in Luxor
in AFP

The artefact belongs to a large statue of the king standing with his hands crossed over his chest and holding the royal insignia, said Hourig Sourouzian who headed the team of archaeologists that made the find.

xxxHolic Kei

2010-03-01T02:11:00.002+08:00

xxxHolic Kei

Quick Synopsis: The story of Watanuki, Yuuko and her shop, and adventures in between is continued in xxxHolic Kei. Watanuki also learns facts of life in this season. There are some new characters too: Haruka (Doumeki-kun's grandfather), Kohane-chan (a girl with a similar ability as Watanuki) and the cat-woman. Of course, our beloved cast from xxxHolic are still here.

Quick Review: First of all, I just wanna say that the OST is still as wonderful as the first xxxHolic. Also, Zashiki Warashi has captured my heart. Could Ame Warashi have some feelings for Zashiki Warashi that's why she always gives in to the wishes of the latter? Am I sensing yuri here?

xxxHolic Kei, however, is not as thrilling as the first one. It's still quite enjoyabe but it lacks that "something" the first one had -- something to keep you on your seat and pull you right in its world.

Watanuki is still as stubborn as usual. But one can't help but love his golden heart (mushy 101). Also, I learned to like Himawari-chan in this season, though I still wish Watanuki would just go for Zashiki Warashi (or maybe not; she has Ame Warashi after all).

In general, the anime is beyond average and quite enjoyable to watch in a lazy Sunday.

Other reviews:
from T.H.E.M.
from Minotaur.cc
from Star Crossed Anime Blog

xxxHolic

2010-02-25T15:07:00.003+08:00

xxxHolic
by CLAMP

Quick Synopsis: Watanuki Kimihiro has a strange power. He can see spirits and ghosts. They have been tormenting him ever since he was young. One day, he happened to enter a shop owned by Yuuko-san. Yuuko-san grants Watanuki's wish to be rid of ghosts and spirits as long as he works for her part-time as compensation. And that's where all the adventure starts.

Quick Review: xxxHolic is a very eery anime broken only by Watanuki's crazy antics (and also, maybe, by the cute Mokona). Don't be fooled by the light first episode. The next episodes would leave you hugging your pillow all through out the last episode of the season.

What I like most about xxxHolic is the moral it gives to the audience at every episode (hidden away in a veil of dark creepiness). Lies, doubt in one's self, deceit, murder -- these are all metaphorically shown to ruin a person's spirit. After watching each episode I can't help but just say, "hmm, that makes sense."

I like Yuuko-san's mysterious personality. As for Watanuki, he's a pretty likeable person except when he doesn't stop clinging to Himawara-chan (who is obviously not good for him because she attracts bad luck and misfortune). Doumeki, the other main character, is also a cool guy who just keeps annoying the heck out of Watanuki.

I gave it a 9 out of 10, which means "Great!". I didn't give it a 10 since I didn't think it could match up with Death Note (my gauge for every anime).

Other reviews on xxxHolic:
from T.H.E.M.
from The Escapist magazine

Digging Through the Internet #2

2010-02-24T21:25:00.005+08:00

This edition would be on: den den den (*drum roll, please*) BAD TEACHERS! I like many of my professors. I look up to them and respect them a lot if they imparted great knowledge to me. But I just really find it annoying to have crappy teachers. Probably it's because I think there is big responsibility in teaching. A teacher has a duty to his/her students and the country. If s/he fails in training his/her students well, then that wouldn't be good not only for the students' future but for the entire humankind. Right? Right!

1. Teacher Forces Student to Smoke 42 Cigarettes in 2 Hours --

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A Malaysian teacher forced a student to smoke 42 cigarettes in two hours as punishment after finding the boy had a cigarette and lighter, a news report said Thursday.

2. Hayan na naman... -- A graduate talks about a teacher not doing his duties and how it was handled by the people with authority.

3. A Thought on Bad Teaching -- the author talks about the role of teachers on students' performance.

Poorly performing teachers don’t fail students because they aren’t hustling. They fail students because they are unintelligent, and not competent to teach.

Old File -- Residue

2010-02-24T20:52:00.004+08:00

I found a write-up in my files that I was supposed to post a year ago. I read it again this afternoon. Well maybe it's time I post it here now.

In archaeology, studying about the residues in artifacts can be very important. In pottery, for example, one gets to learn what sorts of things people used to place in the pots or what kind of food they cooked in the past by studying the residues one can find inside. By studying residues in stone tools, one can find out how and for what purpose people used them. Residues on artifacts can be significantly numerous or few as not to have any use depending on how well they are preserved or how long ago they've been waiting under the ground.

As I read the write-up, I thought about the past. The residues of a strong emotion was more numerous then than they are now. Just like in archaeology, the residues then are still significant to look at how I used to feel. Now, there are still residual particles tucked away in the deepest part of my brain and my memories. But unlike before, it would now take a high-res microscope to use those residues to piece out the past.
*********************************************************************************************************

Residue
The memories of her still linger with me - memories, which drove me to write this after reading the last page of Ketchup.

All my friends have already given up listening to me, ‘cause all that ever come in my mouth is about her. I guess I just need release because as much as I try, I still can’t forget her. Her beautiful face, her energetic demeanor, her amazing passion for her field, how smart she is, how talkative she is, the way her nose crinkles when she laughs, the way she touches me when I say a funny remark or when I tease her – everything still well preserved in my brain.

I’ve always felt curiosity towards her ever since the first time I saw her. I remember it vividly. We were introduced to her as we were required to help her with her dissertation – like being an intern of some sort. In turn, she would impart all her valuable knowledge about her field to us. She was like our master, and us her disciples. We were her team.

She struck me as someone out of the ordinary – more than her striking Filipina beauty. There was just something - an air of confidence perhaps - that set her apart from the crowd in the department.

Her parents are Filipinos but she was born and raised in Europe. I asked her once why she decided to do her dissertation here in the Philippines, and she said that she wants to know more about her heritage (a very obvious answer, if you ask me). Also, she feels that it’s high time that Philippines should be recognized in the map. Philippines has been, as she said, always the underdog and people like us in the academe should help in raising it on its pillars. That has been one of her life missions (the other one being to always challenge the authority – which always put her in quarrels with the most distinguished person in her field).

It started as an admiration really. And before I could do anything about it, I was falling for her. Every time her face got close to mine, I felt an urge to kiss her – but I just stepped away and kept my distance.

Before long, I was giving her all sorts of gifts. I felt a kind of high when I saw her smile or when I found out how much she liked the gift I gave her. I was attentive every time she spoke and ever-prepared to do whatever she wanted to be done. I tried as much as I could, to be more “bibo” and helpful than everyone else in the team. I always found an excuse to work with her or visit her. I was always the earliest to come, and the last one to leave the work-area.

I argued with myself if I was pursuing her or not. Odd, isn’t it? I was doing all these things, yet I kept my mouth shut. At some point, I realized how much I like her. She was the first girl that I really definitely said I was pursuing. It was the first time I admitted to myself that I have feelings for. I stopped caring to what others might say.

I was determined to pursue her, but kept my mouth shut still. I didn’t want to frighten her or confuse her. For one, there’s a bit, but informal, teacher-student relationship between us. Also, I didn’t know what she thought of lesbians – much more, a lesbian trying to pursue her.

In one of those December parties, where everyone was getting drunk – she suddenly popped a question to the team. She asked us if there was someone we liked. I stopped short when it was my turn to answer. I told her I did like someone, but I couldn’t tell them who it was. She told me she respects my privacy but when there was only the two of us talking (as the others have joined the other circles), she asked me to tell her any of my secrets. I told her about the fracture in my innominate bone just to give her something, but she pushed on further. Suddenly, she asked me what has been happening to me for the last three months. I was dumbfounded. In my mind I was saying, “For the last three months I met you, and fell hard for you”.

I found out she has a boyfriend. They’ve been together for two years. He’s smart and funny. I was getting dizzy as she spoke. I wasn’t sure if it was from the alcohol or the mixed emotions I was feeling. She seemed so happy, but I was and wouldn’t be the reason of that happiness.

Later that night I told her I was making the same mistakes – getting myself hurt and letting my guard down again. I said I should just lock up my heart. In her reply, she gave me something she read from Paulo Coelho – that the reason I kept making the same mistakes is that maybe I hadn’t really learned the lesson yet. I would keep making the same mistakes ‘til I finally truly learn what I have to learn. She said I shouldn’t close my heart. How ironic it is that she’s the one giving me an advice at this moment.

She’s back in Europe now – probably back in the arms of her smart and funny boyfriend. But I think she was wrong when she said I hadn’t learned my lesson.

On her going away party, I confessed my feelings for her. Damn, it was hard! It was my first time to do it. I prepared a speech the night before. But it disappeared when she was already there in front of me – waiting, with her “daemon” doll (as she called the doll we made for her), for me to open my mouth and utter some words. I told her I was closing the book as someone pursuing her and opening another with us being good friends. I tried explaining everything to her.

We talked a lot that night. Sometimes I’d tease her, and she would softly slap my leg. She said that the team is the highlight of her trip here in the Philippines and she would surely have a lot to tell when she goes back to Europe. At the end of the night, she gave me a hug and told me to keep in touch. Before she left the country, she thanked me for everything and told me that I was very special. It made me cry.

What I learned wasn’t really ethereal or massive as the Big Bang. But I guess it is something that a lot of us can relate to. In the end, she taught me to be more mature and be true to myself – that it’s okay to fall and love someone no matter who you are.

I can’t say that I’ve completely gotten over her. I usually tell my friends that I’m consciously over her, but not yet in the subconscious. I can’t say I wasn’t hurt either. She would always remain in my heart, and will always be part of me (mushy as it is, it’s the truth). But then, what’s important is what we learn from experiences, not how much pain we felt. In this case, I’d say this experience has given me more understanding and in some way, helped me become better than I was before.

Candy Boy

2010-02-21T23:28:00.002+08:00

Candy Boy
by Takafumi Hoshikawa

Quick Synopsis: The story is about the everyday life of the twins, Yukino and Kanade. They live with each other and go to high school in Tokyo. They have a very intimate relationship that transcends the fact that their sisters.

Quick Review: This anime is popularly labelled as yuri incest. It's not really an inaccurate label. However, watching how close and intimate Yukino and Kanade are with each other, you just forget the whole taboo thing.

Yukino and Kanade are just sweet together. They're really the best of friends -- and that's what matters. They hold on together and complete one another (sounds cheesy, but watching the anime would just make you go "awwwh"). And it feels great to have someone that you can just talk to, hang around with and just always be there for you (I shall stop reminiscing here).

Though Yukino and Kanade are awesome characters, I feel my heart reaching out to their younger sister, Shi-chan. It's probably because I can totally relate to her (yes, here I am again with the whole "I can relate" thing). It's awfully painful to be left out by the ones you love.

The art is really good too. I love how the characters are drawn. The art kinda reminds me of Sweet Little Devil.

Sasameki Koto

2010-02-17T23:44:00.003+08:00

Sasameki Koto
By: Ikeda Takashi

"My love is a flower on a solitary island. It's not going to bloom."
-Sumika

Quick Synopsis: The anime revolves around the close friends, Ushio and Sumika. Ushio is a lesbian who likes cute girls. Sumika, though not open about her gender preference (at least she's not vocal about it), has feelings for Ushio. However, as she's not considered cute in society's standards (she's very tall, she's a blackbelter in karate and she's tough plus she's really, really smart), she loses hope in winning Ushio's heart. Ushio, on the other hand, tends not to notice Sumika's feelings -- she continues checking out every cute girl she sees. But the bond between them seems to pull them closer.

Quick Review: This is the 3rd yuri I've watched. Actually, 2 1/2 since I haven't finished Strawberry Panic yet (effin' DVD player!).

Sasameki Koto (Whispered Words) is fun to watch, probably since I can relate a bit to Sumika's character. The characters are fun. You just can't help but love them -- especially Tomoe since she's very cool.

The story, though a bit slow-paced at times, is pretty entertaining. At times you just want to pat Sumika on the head, other times you just can't help but laugh at her being nervous and awkward aroung Ushio.

The ending came a bit short for me, though. It's not that bad, but I was kinda expecting a bit more after all of the hoops and thorns that Sumiko had gone through.

I gave it an 8 out of 10 in myanimelist.net.

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

2010-02-13T01:39:00.003+08:00

Percy Jackson and the Lighting ThiefDirected by: Chris Colombus
Cast Includes: Logan Lerman, Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Uma Thurman, Rosario Dawson, Catherine Keener

Quick Synopsis: Percy Jackson is just a teenage high school student until he's accused of stealing the thunderbolt of the mighty Zeus. He finds out he is a demigod and a son of Poseidon, God of the sea. He learns the ways of the Gods and tries to apeace Zeus and preventing war among the Gods of Olympus.

Quick Movie Review: The storytelling falls a bit short, which is sad because I really love Chris Colombus's Bicentennial Man. Not enough thrill, maybe. The young actors seem a bit awkward in their acting -- bad timing, not very good throwing of lines, etc, etc. But despite these flaws, the movie is still entertaining if you're looking for something to watch with your family. And the concept of the film is really good.

Reviews on the Film:
From Rotten Tomatoes

Back From the Salt Mines!

2010-02-09T21:42:00.003+08:00

I just arrived last Thursday from a two-and-a-half week long excavation in the southern part of Luzon.

The fieldwork was tons of fun. I absolutely loved it -- especially since I had a bit of a chance to excavate burial jars with human remains. The archaeology of the area is very exciting and I am looking forward to do a proper write-up on the ethnography of the place.

Aside from the awesome academic shenanigans, I also had the chance of seeing old and new faces from the Australian National University. The project was a joint project between Archaeological Studies Program - University of the Philippines, National Museum of the Filipino People and Australian National University.

I had tons of fun and hilarious moments with the Australian students. We had drunken conversations, anime conversations, culture conversations, heart-to-heart conversations, weird conversations, hilarious conversations and tons of conversation topics you could imagine. And yes, we even talked about homosexuality and they told me about this awesome gay bar in Canberra.

Sadly, the Australian students left the country today to go back to Australia. I'm already missing them. And some of them I've only gotten close with in their last few days here in the country.

I'm wishing I could do some study about something on the site. I'm thinking pottery. We had awesome pottery sherds excavated from the site. Most, if not all, of the designs of the pots are incised. It would be interesting to know why they only had that way of decorating. The site is guessed to be 1,300 years old and the area is one of the trading routes in the past. Surely this could have an effect on the designs of the pottery. We're thinking most of them are votive pots rather than domestic pots, but we need a complete study on the pottery. Anyway, we'll see how things turn out.

I'm gonna sulk in my separation anxiety mode now......

Second Hiatus

2010-01-19T00:58:00.002+08:00

I'll be gone for a few weeks. I'll be participating an excavation of a burial site in the Quezon Province and I'm leaving in two hours. I'm hoping to dig a burial jar this time. I'll be back in three weeks.

Forgotten Parts of the Philippines

2010-01-14T20:09:00.002+08:00

It's interesting how many Filipinos only think about Mindanao when many people are killed. By then, other Filipinos can call the Mindanao "a place where a culture of brutality is fostered" (an activist from my university said this). Some would even call Mindanao people as savages (read this somewhere in youtube and it was a Filipino who said this.)

When "Filipino-ness" or Pagka-Pinoy is televised or mentioned, only the Luzon area is ever included. In classes, there would always be discussions on the Filipinos and the Philippine society. Students and even teachers would always assume that what happens in Manila is also of concern to the other parts of the Philippines -- but this is not the case at all.

It makes me feel how uncaring many Filipinos are -- which kinda contradicts how we are more communal than individualistic in nature.

Nihon Madness!

2010-01-12T01:56:00.007+08:00

*Why are the artists we like so hard to reach? Fine, I'm being such a fan girl but y'know, it would just be awesome to talk to them. I'm not a very big fan of the whole concept of celebrities being gods and goddesses on earth. I want to know they're real and are also like us -- able to feel, get hurt and talk about their hopes and dreams. I get drawn to artists who seem human enough and real enough. Yeah, maybe I just lack friends.

*I find Japanese artists very endearing. Unlike the prima donna-type or wasted-type celebrities of the west, it's nice to see Jap. artists as dorks and just being themselves (or are they?).

Some Jap artists I like (in random order):

1. SnOw Yukie

I discovered sNow/Yukie in the anime Jigoku Shoujo (Hell Girl). She sang the opening songs for the first Jigoku Shoujo and Jigoku Shoujo Futakomori (Season 2) -- Sakasama No Chou and Nightmare.

I love sNow for her soothing voice. It's cool and smooth. Somehow, I feel cold when listening to her songs (it's a blessing when you're from a tropical country). It feels good listening to her songs, though I don't understand half of what she's saying. I'm glad for her song I'm No 'cause I could understand it. I was like, "Huzzah! An English song!" when I discovered it.

Her voice has that Jason Mraz effect -- that feel-good type and the type in which the singer doesn't have to try hard to achieve good vocals. sNow is way better than Taylor Swift, I swear! And Taylor has won a Grammy? It's unfair, in my opinion.

2. Utada Hikaru

Who doesn't love Utada Hikaru? The most memorable Japanese song for me would always be Utada's Hikari. I kept hearing it on the radio when I went to Japan for a visit. And I think it's in one of my father's recorded tapes.

Now Utada Hikaru opens up an international market. She recently released the English song Come Back to Me and she has been touring in the States.

I guess Utada has established herself well internationally. She has a lot of good songs, probably considered classics in Japan. And she had come a long way after 10 years in the business. She's really doing well.

3. Aya Ueto

Well, Aya Ueto is pretty...and she's pretty...and she's very very pretty. Seeing her brings sunshine to my day. She also sings but not as great as the other Japanese singers I've heard. Her singing is pretty okay -- well, way better than Miley Cyrus's singing anyway.

What Aya Ueto is known for is her acting. I have yet to see Kinpachi Sensei, which boosted Aya Ueto's career and in which she received good comments and praises, but I've watched her in Azumi. Since then, I've been so taken by her.

Oh, she's so famous that she even got to have commercials with Bae Young-Joon and Jackie Chan and even the Masked Rider, I think (or any of those riders. Haven't watched those since I was a kid).

4. Maki Horikita

Maki Horikita is the only one among the bunch who doesn't sing. She has been in several movies and most, if not all of them, are horror movies. I remember her in One Missed Call 2. I'm not sure but I think it's her first movie. Many directors cast her in horror movies because (I just read this somewhere) of her big round eyes. And she can act creepy pretty well.

I first saw her in Hanazakari no Kimitachie in which she plays Ashiya Mizuki -- a girl who enters an all-boys school. It's a fun JDorama. You can see her mishaps in trying to act as a boy and not getting caught. I also watched her other drama, Teppan Shoujo Akane, but I liked Hana Kimi better.

5. Aya Matsuura

I first saw Aya Matsuura (also known as Ayaya) in the movie Sukeban Deka: Code Name Asamiya Saki. The movie is in one of my DVDs. I didn't exactly watch the movie because the subtitles were bad. I tried looking for a good copy of the movie on the internet. It was then I discovered that Aya Matsuura is a famous singer in Japan from Hello!Project.

Although Ayaya's sales are dwindling, she still has a good number of fans. Many of those who used to like her no longer liked the ballad songs she sings recently. But her ballad songs are actually good. My favorite Ayaya song is Kizuna. Her vocals in this song is golden.

Honestly, she's very cute. And it's fun watching her trips. You can't help but just laugh at and love her silliness. She recently has a mature image though since she's already in her 20s. Her voice has sounded more mature too.

She has recently graduated from Hello!Project and is not preparing for a tour. After that, she says she would take a rest from her singing career. But I hope she won't totally vanish. She has a lot of potential. Her rendition of Norah Jones' Don't Know Why is just beautiful.

*There are a lot of perverted sites in which these girls are featured. Well they do have good photos of the mentioned artists, but I don't really like the content. I mean, yeah, they are very pretty but they are more than just their waistlines. Ugh, men!

*I sure do hope I could learn Japanese soon so I could at least read their blogs. Oh well. I'm being such a wota. Crap!

Top 10 Music '09

2010-01-10T00:04:00.003+08:00

Since I still can't think of an interesting topic to write about, I thought of doing some Top 10s for 2009. They're all gonna be my Top 10s -- sorry about that. I'm not trying to be narcissistic but I have no way of surveying things and, well, I kinda live in my own world.

The first Top 10 I'm making is on Music. Those on the list aren't necessary released on 2009 since I don't know much of the 2009 music. I'm stuck in the 90s and the years before that. Well I kinda know a lot of music in the early 2000s. So the songs in the list are the ones I mostly play throughout the year. I'm not into a particular genre. I can listen to all types of music. Depends on the mood, I guess.

10. Tegan and Sara - Nineteen - Tegan and Sara are twins from Calgary, Canada. There are some songs in which they tend to sound flat but most of their songs are cool!

They have really good blending in the song Nineteen. The lyrics also remind me of first love and all that junk. "Love me. I was yours, right?"

9. Aizo - Nababaliw na ang Payaso - I've seen Aizo perform live several times and they have a very energetic presence on stage. Their lead vocalist also has amazing vocals.

The music video for Nababaliw na ang Payaso was set in UP and it's fun to watch. I also kinda relate to this particular song which is why I chose it rather than Pahina, which is also good.

8. Canary Club - Hitomi Ga Kirakirara - Although I cannot understand Japanese (I'm still trying to learn), Japanese songs are very entertaining. I'm not very big on American Pop but JPop isn't difficult to like (depends on you 'cause some people, i.e. Simon Cowell, might find it horrible).

Canary Club has a set of fresh faces as the members range from 14 to early 20s. The members are also very energetic and it's fun to watch their promotional videos.

Hitomi Ga Kirakirara is very upbeat. It's fun listening to it.

7. Barbie's Cradle - Belinda Bye Bye - I was addicted to this song some time last year. Barbie Almalbis has a very sweet voice which is nice to listen to. The lyrics of the song is depressing - a girl who had to leave the one she loves because she's still unsure of herself. There are just moments in which it feels nice to listen to depressing songs. Foolish heart, anyone?

6. Lily Allen - Fuck You (Very Much) - This song is purely fun! It's great to have songs that are pro-homosexuality since we're not getting much love from this world. Lily Allen's thick British accent while singing the song is really cool. As Lily Allen says, "Fuck you" homophobes!

5. Modern Science - I'm the One (Pick Me) - Can't say much about Modern Science because I've only listened to two of their songs, but I like what I've heard so far. I particularly like I'm the One because it has a cool beat and it feels good listening to it.

4. Linkin Park - Leave Out All the Rest - I've been a big fan of Linkin Park since high school. My friend and I used to sing their songs on our way home from school. Their latest album, Minutes to Midnight, is my least favorite, though, since they mellowed down from their usual genre. I was still taken with the third track from the album which is Leave Out All the Rest. I love the part, "Forgetting all the hurt inside you’ve learned to hide so well. Pretending someone else can come and save me from myself. I can’t be who you are." Somehow it reminds me of my mother.

3. Freestyle - So slow - The lyrics of this song has been my best friend's mantra. I like the song not for the lyrics but for the melody. It's nice to listen to and it feels good playing it in guitar (but I can't remember the tabs for it).

2. SnOw Yukie - Sakasama no Chou - I love SnOw's voice. It's very soothing. The song Sakasama no Chou, which means Inverted Butterfly, is very beautiful. I think I kept replaying this song five times a day last year.

1. Kansas - Dust in the Wind - Who doesn't like the Classics? For me, nothing can beat the classics. Why do kids these days keep listening to the Jonas Brothers?

I just love Dust in the Wind. It's on my playlist and my mp3. "All we are is dust in the wind". How true.

*Ah! And a video from the singer I'm currently addicted to - Aya Matsuura.

This song is so beautiful. It warms my heart with happiness.

Movies Galore! Part 1

2010-01-08T19:48:00.007+08:00

Aside from gathering data, I took some time watching interesting films during the break. I was planning to write about a recap of 2009 and some new year's resolution. But I really can't remember much of 2009 (my memory doesn't seem to be as intact as before) and I'm bad at keeping new year's resolution. So why bother? As my mom had said, I should stop being too hard on myself and start going with the flow of life (whatever that is).

On to the movies!

I mostly watched Asian movies last December. I got reconnected with my old love for martial arts. You gotta admit, Asians are pretty hot. And the Kung Fu techniques make them even hotter.

1. Chocolate
*image borrowed from www.impawards.com

The movie centers on Zen, an autistic young woman who has a special inclination to martial arts. She fights off several bosses who owe her mom money to pay for her mom's medical needs. In the end, the worst enemy is her mom's former gangster boss who banished her mom for having an affair with a Yakuza guy. Read the rest of the plot here.

The plot's not that great but the fight scenes are very entertaining. The newcomer actress playing Zen, Jeeja Yanin still has a lot to learn on acting, but her presence in the battle stage and her martial arts skills are so amazing that the audience would feel nothing but awe for her. She does all of her stunts and with only few harnesses -- which is really cool. While the credits are rolling, clips of their injuries are shown. I hope she lives through to match Jackie Chan 'cause the first time I saw the movie I thought she was something like a female version of Jackie Chan -- and much much cuter too!

2. The Machine Girl
*image borrowed from www.allmovieposters.blogspot.com

Ami Hyuga is a regular high school student. Her parents killed themselves when they were accused of being murderers and so she only lives with her brother, Yu. When Yu gets killed by the Yakuza son and his gang, she felt an overwhelming desire and rage to get revenge. Read the rest of the plot here.

Aside from Battle Royale, this film is one of the goriest films I've seen! A drill bra, flying guillotine, hand turning into tempura, and blood, blood, blood everywhere. If you think Ninja Assassin is too bloody, you haven't seen anything yet.

Though the dialogues are crappy, this film doesn't seem to fail to entertain. Drill bra, come on! It's not your usual movie, and that adds to its charm.

This is Minase Yashiro's first movie and she's still rough around the edges on the whole acting thing. But she's charming and it's fun to watch her lash out all her rage to everyone who stands in her way.

All I can say is, the Japanese are truly interesting. Honto!

....to be continued...