* Creating Enchantment *

Finally, I was able to hear the new song by Rico Blanco, Yugto. Since I don’t get to listen to the radio that often, I’m very grateful that a lot of other fans asked for him to post the song on the net. I only even knew about it because I visited his site. So in case you haven’t heard it either, it’s in here: http://www.myspace.com/ricoblancomusic

Anyway, I’m not a music critic, so what I say probably won’t matter much, but having been a Rivermaya fan for most of my life (I realize just this instant that I’ve been a Rivermaya fan longer than I haven’t been one, because I became their fan when I was just 10 years old. Hehehe.), I just can’t not say anything about it.

I won’t say too much about Rico Blanco’s having left the band. There’s too much drama in that to combine my opinion on that with my opinion on this new song. Perhaps in another entry. But it is relevant to mention, because this is the first song he’s come out with as a solo performer. (I’m not including the ones he wrote for various artists, i.e. Tayo Tayo Rin and Biyahe Tayo because although he did them independently, he was still a part of Rivermaya when he wrote them.)

What I can say is this: Yugto is definitely different from the ones I’m used to hearing from Rico Blanco. Or, not just him, but anyone really. It’s something I’ve never heard before (at least not in the OPM scene), it’s like a fusion of so many unrelated music influences that it’s really hard to describe. Well, I told you I wasn’t a music critic. But I really want to try to say what I think about it. I like it. I like it better than a lot of the new songs I’ve heard recently. If I heard it on the radio, I’d probably smile because it’s a good song. But here comes the negative part: It’s actually not as good as I expected it to be. And because Rico Blanco has been one of my favorite songwriters in the whole wide world, I guess I’m a bit disappointed. Then again, maybe I expected too much. Or maybe two heads are better than one, even if that one is a genius. So maybe the song would’ve been better if there were other people who contributed to it. But then, it’s just the first song from his new album (No, I won’t talk about the controversy surrounding that either). And maybe I’ll like the other songs that will be released in the future. However at the moment, I’m still not fully satisfied with his “comeback”.

To be completely honest, I liked the Happy New Year composition better. You can hear that in the MySpace music account, too. It’s not an official composition. I think he just did it for fun, and uploaded it in his Multiply, just like anyone else who dabbles in music. Although I think you’ll all agree when I say that he’s not the kind of person who just “dabbles” in music. Wait, I’m losing the focus of this entry again.

I’ll just tell you the reason why I can’t focus: It’s still hard for me to talk about Rico Blanco. I guess it’s because I liked Rivermaya so much. When they were just starting and Bamboo was still their lead singer, I already liked Rico Blanco more than the rest of the members. So unlike most people I know who no longer liked Rivermaya when Bamboo left, my support for the band never wavered. (And I’ve never really warmed up to Bamboo’s new band.) I guess I never thought that I would be torn between Rico Blanco and Rivermaya. I like the present Rivermaya still, but I like Rico Blanco as well. And I feel guilty for liking the other, because I don’t think they’re in good terms. And neither are their fans. Gosh, it’s hard to appreciate art when you’re considering artists’ humanity, isn’t it?

Does that make sense? What I mean is, sometimes, I wish artists weren’t so human. That’s a bit of a cruel thought, but it just makes me a bit sad when personal problems, or reality, I should say, gets in the way of art. For instance, I cannot blame the producers of Harry Potter for changing the actor for Dumbledore because the original actor died. And I cannot blame the new actor for not being exactly like the previous one, because he’s a different person who would of course have a different style. And I can’t blame the world for not having two actors who are exactly alike, because if that happened, then the uniqueness of each actor wouldn’t be anything remarkable (more accurately, the actor wouldn’t be unique at all).

I am confusing myself with all these words. I wish my mind were more orderly. Sorry if this entry confused you as well. If you really want to know, just leave me a set of comments with specific questions so I’ll know which points I need to explain again. Ahehe. See you in the next blog entry!

So I’m plugging it again. What, it’s not like it’s illegal. (It’s not, right?)

I just found out that Five Days in Palawan by Zara Irigo is now available in Powerbooks Alabang. Finally!! XD I can’t believe it took them 6 months to get it though (FYI, it has been in National Bookstore since January). Anyway, since it’s available there now, hopefully it’s available in all the other Powerbooks Outlets.

What’s interesting though is that I found the copies not just in the Philippine Publication / Chick Lit section, but guess where else?

In the TRAVEL Section as well! Yup, there it was, five copies of it, sitting beside road maps of Tagbilaran City and Cebu. I guess because it has “Palawan” in its title, and it does kind of describe the place accurately, so I guess maybe that promotes tourism as well?

Whatever the reason is, it’s in 2 sections of the Powerbooks store in Alabang. So grab a copy! It’s everywhere now! Hehehe.

See here for the list of stores that I’ve seen the book in: In The Bookstore

Can This Be Love (2005)

Starring: Hero Angeles & Sandara Park
Directed By: Jose Javier Reyes
Nationality: Pinoy!

Masaya rin manood ng mga pelikulang napanood mo na dati. Kasi may dalawang posibleng mangyari: Mas-magugustuhan mo sila kaysa nung una mong napanood, o mas-aayawin mo sila kaysa nung una mo silang napanood. Para sa pelikulang ito, para sa’kin, mas-nagustuhan ko siya.

Akalain mong maganda pala talaga ang pagkagawa nito. Hindi ko naman sinasabing ‘di na’ko sang-ayon sa dati kong isinulat tungkol dito, pero matapos ko ‘tong panoorin ulit, at basahin ulit ‘yung nasulat kong review, sa tingin ko, masyado akong harsh na mag-judge dati. O kaya naman, mas-marami na lang akong napanood na pelikula mula nun kasi, kaya medyo nag-iba na ang opinyon ko ngayon.

Kung dati, sinasabi ko na sayang lang at nagbukas sila ng mga problemang hindi naman nila nabigyan ng resolution sa dulo, tulad ng side-story nila Jed (Joross Gamboa) at Bebs (Roxanne Guinoo) (na sa tingin ko pa rin ‘eh isiningit lang para lang masali sila sa pelikula dahil sila naman talaga ang kasabay nila Hero at Sandara na sumikat). Ang problema kasi nila ‘eh si Jed, gustong magpuntang Japan para magtrabaho, pero siyempre ‘yung girlfriend niyang si Bebs, ayaw siyang paalisin ng Pilipinas. Nung una, nainis pa’ko dahil hindi ko nalaman kung nagpunta pa rin ba si Jed sa Japan matapos ang lahat. Pero ngayon naisip ko, hindi na kailangan ‘yun. Ibig kong sabihin, hindi ko na kailangan malaman kung anong ending ng kwento nila, dahil ang relevant talaga ‘dun sa pangyayaring ‘yon, ‘eh ‘yung pag-uusap ni Ryan (Hero Angeles) at Bebs matapos ang mga kaguluhan:

“Pupunta siya ng Japan hindi pa iwanan ka, kundi para pagandahin ang buhay niya.” - Ryan, Can This Be Love

Kailangan kasi nung pelikula ‘yung linyang ‘yun para ipakita rin na ‘yung mga umaalis ng Pilipinas, hindi naman talaga para iwanan ‘yung mga mahal nila dito, pero para lang magkaroon ng mga ibang opportunities, para malaman na rin kung ano pang mayroon para sa kanila na wala dito sa kinalakhan nila, sa kinasanayan nila.

Naisip ko rin dati na hindi malinaw kung ang mensahe ba nung storya ‘eh kung mas-mabuti bang umalis ng Pilipinas ang mga Pilipino, o kung mas-okey na manatili na lang rito. Pero matapos ko siyang panoorin ulit ngayon, parang mas-okey nga na hindi malinaw ‘yung ganung mensahe, kasi nasa tao na lang talaga ‘yun kung anong gusto niyang gawin sa buhay niya. Ang ginawa lang ng pelikula ay ipinakita kung anong kalagayan ng Pilipinas sa ganitong panahon na halos lahat ay nagpupumilit nang umalis para makapagtrabaho sa ibang bansa. Ang totoo, medyo mas-nagutsuhan ko pa nga na walang kumbaga “thesis statement” ‘yung pelikula kung alin ang mas-maganda, dahil minsan nakakainis rin kapag halata mong ang isang kwento ay may ipinipilit na ideya o kaya “mentality” sa audience nito.

Ang isang hindi nagbago para sa’kin, ay ‘yung kagustuhan ko sa pagkaka-ayos nung kwento– ‘yung flashback lang ang lahat at sa gitna ng mga eksena ‘eh may ipapakita silang isang bagay (kunwari, salamin, o kaya plane ticket) para masimulan ang sunod na yugto ng kwento. At sobrang gusto ko pa rin kung paano nila tinapos ang kwento nila Ryan at Daisy (Sandara Park)– ‘yun bang, hindi na masyadong explicit, walang arte-arte. At *SPOILER ALERT* bagama’t nauwi pa rin sa kasalan pagdating sa huli (dahil halos lahat ng pelikulang Tagalog na may love story ay ‘yun ang ending), masaya ako na hindi na nagkaroon pa ng eksenang nasa simbahan ang dalawang bida at ang buong cast ay naka-formal attire. Nagustuhan ko talaga ang ending nito. Masasabi ko sa ngayon na ito na ‘yung pinaka-gusto kong “style” ng ending sa lahat ng mga Tagalog movies na napanood ko na love story.

Medyo nalulungkot lang akong isipin na ang tambalang Hero-Sandara ay hindi na mauulit. Hindi naman ako sobrang fan na fan nila, pero tuwing nakakarinig ako ng mga kwentong hiwalayan (kahit as friends, or as co-workers), at lalo na sa buhay ng mga artista, nalulungkot ako. Dahil alam kong ang pinakamalaking dahilan ay ang media. (Hindi lang naman kasi dito nangyayari ‘yan, pati sa Hollywood grabe kumilatis ng mga tao ang media ‘dun kaya naaawa ako minsan para sa mga artista.) At hindi rin ako naniniwala ‘dun sa sinasabi nilang dapat alam na ng mga artista na iintrigahin at iintrigahin sila dahil sikat sila kaya dapat alam na nila ‘yun. Para sa’kin, dapat alam din ng tao kung kailan dapat tumigil sa pag-iintriga, kasi minsan nakakasira na talaga sila ng buhay ng ibang tao, tapos para lang naman sa mataas na ratings sa isang gabi ‘yun. Ewan, ayoko nang pag-usapan ‘yan dahil feeling ko ‘eh wala na ‘yang katapusan. So, balik na lang ako sa pelikula…

Can This Be Love. Kahit pa masyadong maraming parang “social commentary” na mga linya at eksena, para sa isang pelikula na tungkol dapat sa pag-ibig, sa tingin ko ‘eh okay pa rin siya, dahil maganda rin naman pala ang pagka-pakita nila sa kung anong maaaring mangyari sa dalawang tao na mula sa magkaibang bansa, kultura, atbp. pero nagkataong ipinagkilala ng tadhana.

Kung napanood n’yo na ‘to dati, panoorin n’yo ulit. Masaya rin siyang balikan. At kung ‘di n’yo pa napanood, sana magustuhan n’yo.

*Movie Recall - Ito na pala ang itatawang ko sa mga “second reviews” o kaya ‘yung mga reviews ng pelikulang luma na pero kamakailan ko lang napanood.

It occurs to me only now that I haven’t yet plugged this book here, when this is supposed to be my main blog. So, I’m posting this again, in case you missed it in the other blogs I posted it in.

BUY THIS BOOK!

Ignore the fact that I am a biased plugger as the author of this book is my sister.

Instead, please note that I’ve also been following the Chick Lit scene in the Philippines and have so far not read anything that is remotely close to the kind of writing this book has. Meaning, so far, this is the best local Chick Lit book ever published in the Philippines, so you have to buy it and read it.

And no, that’s not my biased opinion (although you would probably think that it is no matter what I say). Just see for yourself.

It’s available in National Bookstores (hopefully nationwide), and I also found out recently (just today, in fact) that it’s available in Filbars too. (And if you know any other bookstore that carries it, I hope you let me know so I can plug it some more hehehe. ) Enjoy!!

Summary: How long is five days? Sometimes longer. Especially when you’ve been conned into being someone’s boyfriend, like Chris. He has never really been one for spontaneity. Managing his father’s resort in the remote outskirts of Puerto Princesa is not exactly the most eventful job in the world.
Until Mia Garcia checks in. Mia is from Manila - impulsive, unstable, mildly neurotic-hardly Chris’ type. But when she asks him to pretend to be her boyfriend for exactly five days - no more, no less, no strings attached - Chris rationalizes… Five days. What’s the worst thing that can happen, right?

It’s also available online via the publisher: PSICOM Publishing

In case you were wondering, the answer is yes, I’ll be posting my Movie Reviews here as well, instead of my Movie Review Blog, because, well, because WordPress has Categories. (That is, the reason I’m here after all, instead of other blog hosts.) It’s just so hard to maintain several blogs, yeah? So now I’m trying to maintain just this one, even if it is on a variety of topics. Besides, I didn’t think it was fair if my reviews on other Asian stuff are here, but the Filipino stuff and Hollywood stuff are in a different blog. I should treat all works equally, right?

Yeah, yeah, there’s no need for justification… Just get on with the review already! (Wait–why am I talking to myself!?)

****

When Love Begins ( 2008 )

So sometimes it’s a good thing when a movie is realistic. Because audiences will be able to relate to the characters easier, right? But there are also times, wherein a story (or dialogue) is too realistic, that it makes for a very boring film. Such is the case for When Love Begins.

The story goes like this–An environmentalist lawyer named Ben (played by Aga Mulach) meets the rich daughter of a land developer, Mich (played by the beautiful Anne Curtis) in one of the loveliest islands of the Philippines–Boracay. They go out, they like each other, but there are two things that’s holding them back from the grandeur of love: 1) They’re both tired of commitments and don’t like taking relationships too seriously; and 2) The company (which plans to cut trees and destory a river in a provincial town) Ben’s environmentalist group is protesting against is owned by Mich’s father

I’ll admit it. What got me interested in this movie, is reason no.2 (Hey, we should all care about the environment!), which is why I was disappointed when it didn’t happen to be the focus of the story. Okay okay, we all have different tastes, and since this was marketed as love story, then it was well and good that it focused on the “romance” aspect, but that’s exactly why I think it doesn’t work for me.

The relationship between Ben and Mich is too real– from the way they met, to the dialogue they spoke, the activities they did, the places they went to. Nothing was larger than life, nothing very dramatic. I know it was probably meant to be that way, but set against the somewhat unrealistic backdrop of “rich girl, poor guy” (although Ben wasn’t exactly poor– his family’s house is huge, but I say “poor” because there was a part in which it was implied that he wasn’t sosyal (Um, I think that’s “high class” in English, I’m not so sure), with the ‘too coincidental to be true’ idea of having rich girl’s father be the one poor guy’s protesting against, well, it just makes me confused on what to think of the movie.

Is it one of those movies wherein you condition yourself to take all things as fiction, and so it’s just fun to watch all the “what if” scenarios, or a movie wherein you’re supposed to believe that the events really happen in real life, and so the issues are real, and that you should reflect more on its message? (Yes, I believe romantic comedies have “messages”, too.)

I know not everyone will share my opinion on this, but for me, I just wished there was more drama. I mean, I go into the cinema to escape from real life. If I watch something that’s as normal as one of the stories my friend (who just got back from her summer vacation) would tell me, then I might as well just have talked to my friend and not see the movie. I expected fireworks, laugh-out-loud moments, witty quotable quotes, and cheesy-disgustingly-sweet moments, big romantic gestures (like Mich taking a stand, and defying her father for being so careless about the environment), but unfortunately, the movie has none of it. It didn’t even have enough wide-angle shots of Boracay, which makes the place seem like just another beach in the Philippines instead of “The” Boracay.

The only quotable quote I got was Mich’s line: “It’s not enough that you accept me for who I am. But you also have to accept me for who I’m not.” (Or something like that, again, I’m quoting this from memory so it’s not exact.) Other than that, there was nothing that made too much of an impact to remember. Or, wait, Anne Curtis’ performance was actually great. She was really believable as a character. It’s a shame the other elements are so boring, I think her growth as an actress seems wasted.

So, in my list of summer movies (and when I say “summer movies” I mean those movies that have beach settings, and not necessarily the movies that open during the summer), I think I’d much prefer Summer Holiday over this. Mostly because that was more entertaining. For some reason, this one made me feel like I was watching someone’s home video. But I don’t know, I think with all the reality shows nowadays, people like things like these better now. Oh well.

Thanks to my brother who’s home from Japan, for the summer, the gadgets in our house (my computer included) didn’t just (finally) work the way they’re supposed to, but I had a pretty eventful week/weekend as well. So, this will probably be a long post.

Short background: My brother works for a Japanese Company, so that’s (Japan) where he’s been living for the past year or so. He gets to come back home sometimes, but it’s usually just for a week, which is why a lot of stuff happens within the week he’s around.

(Note: It’s the same case with my sister who’s currently living in New Zealand, and gets to visit us only once or twice a year, and also only for a short period of time.)

Let’s start at the beginning then, shall we?

Nintendo DS Lite

My brother bought me one from Japan! (This has a somewhat funny background story on it, click here to find out.) He already installed the Japanese-English Dictionary I wanted (Wahoo! I actually have a denshi jishou (電子辞書)! I’ve always wanted one of these.) and some other cool games (e.g. Elite Beat Agents). I’m really enjoying myself, even if the games are still few. One problem though: I said before that I didn’t want to buy any game consoles because I wanted to spend my free time reading books (because that’s the way to improve one’s writing!), but weh, I guess my geeky side got the better of me. Besides (and yes, this is my excuse, which I consider to be valid) it’s not just a game console, it’s a dictionary, too! It’s educational!

The best part really, is the fact that it’s the Crimson & Black Model, which I just really really love! Mostly because I love red and black, but also because I don’t see many DS Lites that are of that color here in the Philippines. That does pose a bit of a problem though–I can’t find a nice case for it! All the ones I see are light blue, silver or pink. I can’t find any red ones, and I really really want one right away because I’m afraid it’ll have scratch marks on it (and I hate scratch marks ). I know, I can always choose a black cover, or a white one, but… but… Black and white are boring. I want red! XD

Summer Outing #2

Me and My Family (sans sister) at the Patapat Bridge, Ilocos Norte

This summer, my mom wanted to go see the Blue Lagoon (in Maira-Ira, near Pagudpud in Ilocos Norte), so she booked us some rooms in Fort Ilocandia Hotel in Laoag City. We were there from April 30 until May 3, and it was great!

What I like most about taking trips/vacations with my parents is that they can plan a really balanced vacation–what I mean is, they plan the itinerary such that there’s enough time to see the sights, and relax, I mean, really relax, as in, the type of relaxation that borders on boredom. Hehehe. No, seriously, what we did was to stay at the hotel for the entire first day that we were there. We did nothing but sit at the cafe, and stare at the beach. And then on the next day, we hired a van to take us to the Blue Lagoon and some other famous tourist spots in the area (e.g. Bangui Windmills, Patapat Bridge, etc.). By the 3rd day, we again, had nothing planned but the flight back to Manila later in the evening, so we were able to rest from the tiring trip of the day before, and do whatever else we wanted to do again, i.e. swim in the beach/pool of the resort, order more room service, etc.

It was a really fun trip, never mind that it wasn’t exactly a new and exotic place (We went to Ilocos in 2000 too.), I don’t think there’s anything wrong with repeating going to a place anyway, especially when your main objective is to relax.

Party! Party!

My aunt, nephew and brother, tossing around a balloon outside our house.
(I’m somewhere in the background, eating cake. Ahehe.)

Although my mom and brother’s birthday’s been long past, we celebrated it anyway yesterday (because that’s just how we are–we celebrated New Year on January 15 this year even, because we were in Japan on January 1), by having our relatives visit our house for dinner.

No, I didn’t help that much with the preparation, but I was the one who bought the gifts for my nephews (It’s their birthdays too–there’s 2 of ‘em), and the dessert (Braso de Mercedes galore!).

The food was great (as always–my aunts love to cook), and it was actually quite fun. Don’t tell my relatives, but I like it better when we’re the ones who host the get-togethers, because 1) there’s a bigger chance that the relatives I don’t like won’t be there, and 2) if there are people who I don’t like who come, my room where I can hide out in is nearby :P.

It’s kind of funny how my brother was really the “life of the party”, though. Everyone wanted to talk to him, and they asked him about a variety of stuff too–his life in Japan, his work, his new hobby of photography, his experience in the Tokyo marathon, his recent snowboarding injury, etc. I mean, it’s supposed to be natural since he is the birthday celebrant (and a “balikabayan” at that), but I can’t help but remember that when my sister was home last January and we were also celebrating her birthday (this time, it was an advance celebration because her birthday is technically during February), our relatives didn’t ask her that many questions. Sure, they asked her how she likes New Zealand, but other than that and a couple basic of questions about work, the only other thing they asked about was if she had a boyfriend already.

Personally, I think it’s unfair, and I’m beginning to think that maybe people have double-standards about migration too. Of course it could be that it’s only applicable to my family (although I’ve observed this from some other families as well), but it seems that if a single woman migrates to another country, people assume that she’s there to find herself a husband. But if a single man goes to another country, they think he’s there for fun, or for work.

Then again, it could also be that because my brother’s always been more friendly than my sister, maybe my relatives just feel more comfortable asking my brother about various things. I really don’t know since I’m their sibling, and since I get to talk to them more often than our other relatives, I don’t ask so many questions myself.

(Note: I do like something other than the food whenever our family has get-togethers though, when we sing Happy Birthday, we’re always in tune! Hooray for not having anyone tone-deaf in the family! Hehehe. )

Back to the Routine

What I hate most about vacations really, is how it’s so hard to go back to the routine you had before you took your vacation. I go back to work tomorrow (technically later but I haven’t slept yet, so it’s still tomorrow to me), and as excited as I am to see my officemates again and find out what’s happened in the days that I was gone, I can’t help but think that I’d still prefer a nice lazy day to a busy work day any day. (This is a sign that I’m getting tired, I just used the word “day” 3 times in the same sentence.)

One thing I do like about my old routine though, is that I’ll get to watch J-Dramas again! Yes, I’m aware that this isn’t work-related, but I don’t really like watching TV during vacations because to me, TV is the way to unwind after a hard day at work. If I’m watching TV while I’m on vacation, then instead of feeling like it’s a vacation, I’d feel more like I’m just killing time ’til I have to go to work again the next day.

I’ve just finished watching Dragon Zakura, actually. (I finished it just when my cousins arrived at our house for the birthday party. Okay, no, that’s a lie. They got here before I finished it, but I didn’t leave my room until the last episode finished. Yeah, I’m a lousy host. XP) I might post something about it later on. In case you’re curious, the next drama in line is Orange Days. Another old one, but it’s also another one that I’ve had many friends recommend to me, so… I do feel a bit sad that it’s not a Yamapi drama, but it does star Tsumabaki Satoshi–another face I miss, so it shouldn’t be too bad.

Just in case though, here’s something that’ll help me remember Yamapi, and it’s quite timely for us in the Philippines, too.

Summer Time by NewS

Nais kong masanay magsulat gamit ang dalawang wikang naniniwala akong pareho ko nang alam na alam. Ang isa, dahil nagagamit sa pang araw-araw na usapan (ito ‘yun), at ang isa naman, dahil nagsososyal-sosyalan ako ‘pag may kasamang ibang tao (No, that’s not true, I’m only making biro you know). Kung kaya’t napag-desisyunan ko na ang susunod kong mga isusulat dito ay gagamit ng parehong wika. Hindi ko na lalagyan ng pagsasalin ang mga ito. Malaki kasi ang posibilidad na ang mga isusulat ko sa wikang Filipino ay tungkol sa mga bagay na ‘di naman nakaka-interes sa mga hindi nagsasalita ng Filipino. Pero kung ang gusto mong paniwalaan ‘eh tamad ako, kaya ayokong magsalin ng mga isinulat ko, pwede rin naman. Hehe.

Kung nagtataka ka kung bakit ko ito naisipan, ‘yun naman ay dahil ayaw kong mawala ang mga bagay na natutunan ko. Oo, ibig kong sabihin na madalas ako nagsusulat gamit ang Filipino dati. Nung hayskul (at oo, Filipino ang salitang “hayskul”, itanong mo pa sa kahit sinong guro sa Filipino).

Nagsusulat ako noon para sa pahayagang Filipino ng eskwelahan ko. Mas-masaya kasi magsulat ng Filipino nun ‘eh, lalo ‘yung mga maikling kwento at tula. Simple lang ang mga salita. Halos lahat magka-sukat at magkta-tugma. At mas-makatotohanan ang dayalogo ng mga tauhan sa maikling kwento. At sa Filipino, pwede kang mag-English paminsan-minsan. Pero sa English, ‘di ka pwede mag-Filipino. Kasi kung gawin mo ‘yun, it’d sound so kakaiba like this, right? ‘Di kagaya ng kung sabihin kong “Hindi naman gaano weird ‘yung ganitong sentence, diba?”

Medyo naging mahirap din dahil aminin na natin, mas-nirerespeto sa Pilipinas ang mga pahayagang Ingles kaysa Filipino (kaya mas-malaki ‘yung budget nila para sa English newspaper. Totoo ‘yan, kasi kung ‘di totoo, bakit sila may scanner, kami wala? At saka bakit nung nasira ‘yung mouse nila, napalitan agad? ‘Yung sa’min hindi?! (wahaha lumang isyu :P)). Pero masaya pa rin kasi naramdaman ko na dahil nga hindi masyadong nakatutok sa’min ang administrasyon ay naging mas-malaya kami para gawin ang mga nais namin.

Kaya naman, titignan ko ngayon kung ganun pa rin ang mangyayari. Magiging mas-malaya rin kaya ang pakiramdam ko sa tuwing susulat ako gamit ang Filipino?

Did anyone know that there was such a thing? I sure didn’t. Not until earlier this morning when I looked around the Office of the Press Secretary’s Website to see if May 1 (Labor Day) was indeed kept as a holiday (and not moved around, like all the other holidays in the Philippines). Ironically, I didn’t see anything about May 1 in the site, but I did see something interesting:

(Click on the pic to enlarge.)

Turns out, this week (April 21-27, 200 is Hog Farmers Week! And since “it is necessary to focus attention on the role the hog-farming sector plays in accelerating the development of the livestock industry;” and I like pigs (and pork), I’m letting everyone (who reads my blog) know.

So if you see a hog farmer along the way then don’t forget to greet him/her! And in case you happen to be one, then I hope you’re smiling, because it’s your week this week!

Let’s all get into the Hog Farmers Week spirit!