THIS WEEK

Mostly uneventful. The highlight will be tomorrow's event. Millions will be with bated breaths --- Pacquiao taking on a much larger Cotto. Purse is guaranteed. Billions of pesos for Pacquiao whatever the outcome. But Filipino pride is at stake.

I managed to snag a ticket for a live coverage at the newly refurbished Manila Grand Opera Hotel. Okay, that's not quite the feat that it sounds. Anybody can get tickets for P400. There are no scalpers. Different venues across MegaManila will undoubtedly offer widescreen reception for the fight. For free. Elections are upcoming after all.

Hillary Clinton came and left. It would have been exciting to see her reaction to protests against her visit. The protesters have not succeeded. Either they lack diskarte or the U.S. Secret Service (or U.S. State Department security, whatever) is just too good to mess up with.

This is a palipas-oras post. I'm currently waiting for "2012" to start. I'm at SM Cinema in San Lazaro for the 8:15pm showing of the movie. Guaranteed seats. There are no repeats. Hmm, makes me crave for the days of old when you can enter the moviehouse and stay there for as long as you like, for as many film runs as you like. I'm recommending the movie, that's for sure. Disaster movies, anything about humanity's uncertain fate, they gross really big at the box-office.

Which brings me to the middle of the week. A lackluster "Ang Tanging Pamilya." I was excited to watch Aling Dionesia (or Dionisia, whatever) and Aling Dionesia alone. I didn't care about Erap (his age painfully shows in the movie), and for me, Ai-Ai is so-so. What a disappointment! The movie does not live up to the hype. I just thought that maybe there were really very funny footages but that they were part of those film rolls and equipment submerged during the tragic Superferry sinking recently which even killed one of the movie's production crew. Still, I felt cheated by the way they promoted the movie and the way it finally turned out. Aling Dionesia and Toni Gonzaga and Sam Milby are okay. Bitin nga lang ang scenes ni Pacmom. Perhaps it's the director to blame. Wa gyuy lami!

I'm so excited now for "2012." My moviegoing experience will be much better in a few minutes...

PINOY BIG BROTHER: BISAYA RULES!!!

This year's Pinoy Big Brother tagged PBB Double-Up has an unprecedented* number of Bisaya-speaking, Bisaya-bred housemates. Unfortunately, inggit ang mga Tagalog. Apparently, the housemates are not allowed to use their native language inside the house. Pero as this video shows, na-ay nakalusot! Mabuhi si Cathy (Bohol) ug si Paul Jake (Cebu)! Both should make it to the Big Four. Millions of Bisaya will make sure that happens. (Turns out this is the only program of ABS-CBN I'm watching as frequently as I could.)

THE BISAYA HOUSEMATES (*42%):

1. Catherine Remperas (Bohol)
2. Melisa Cantiveros (General Santos City)
3. Marielle Sorino (Davao)
4. Riza Mae Patria (Siquijor)
5. Paul Jake Castillo (Cebu)
6. Princess Lieza Manzon (Cebu/Japan)
7. Richard Paras (Iloilo)
8. Steve Jumalon (Butuan City)
9. Bartolome Alberto Mott (Samar/USA)
10. Yuri Okawa (Davao/Japan)

VIVA PACQUIAO! REDUX

The chutzpa is there. It's unmistakable where Manny came from. LOL. (I'll make it a point to watch Aling Dionesia's movie opening on Wednesday. Everything about the movie pales in comparison to the singular excitement generated by her. Of course, it's reflected glory from Manny. But she deserves it.)

P.S. The part where she innocently asks if Imelda Papin is still alive ("Buhay pa ba siya?") is priceless. Imelda Papin should gamely retort. Such is the price of fame. When you somehow lose it, a new one comes along, takes your place, and worse, asks if you're dead. Double LOL.

VIVA PACQUIAO!

I like the confidence. The dignity. He has come a long way. Truly an inspiration to millions of us Filipinos here and abroad.

Manny Pacquiao handles fame well. He has remained humble and down-to-earth throughout his years of unprecedented personal success.

He has my respect, win or loss in his upcoming fight against Cotto.

HALLOWEEN 2009 - LAST PHOTOS

HALLOWEEN 2009: PHOTO OVERLOAD!

HALLOWEEN 2009 - FIRST PHOTOS

TRICK OR TREAT? Look for paparazzi photo I took of popular PBA hoopster JayJay Helterbrand (Barangay Ginebra).

B.A.I.A.S. RECOMMENDS: THIS IS IT

I swear I think about Michael Jackson very differently now after seeing the film last night.

Just see the movie documentary. It washes away allegations, if there were ever, that Michael Jackson was suicidal. He was so full of life and inspiration during rehearsals for the supposed series of concerts at the UK's O2 Arena. The movie is mostly composed of footages of the rehearsals --- raw and unembellished. Except that Michael Jackson was naturally complex and certainly not plain.

Death indeed comes like a thief in the night.

CHRISTMASTIME IN MANILA

You know it's Christmastime in Manila when all of a sudden a roving police patrol pick-up truck barges through a crowd in a run-down corner and starts collaring surprised denizens.

I was not among those surprised when it did happen.

I calmly followed instructions for me to present an ID. In fact, two IDs. What? He's not satisfied with my SSS ID? Well, he's three years late when I would have shown a fake one (I had since disposed of that ID which only brought me trouble, something I have regretted and blogged about in the past). So I showed my company ID. He muttered about me being a Muslim. Hmm, he must have easily and so wrongly concluded that I am one just because (let's face it) my name is not exactly commonplace and I happened to wear a Muslim-inspired shirt I bought a long time ago at the Davao airport.

An unprofessional, uncouth police officer, to say the least. If he is even a policeman. They did not wear uniform, their only claim to legitimacy was the official police vehicle. I inquired meekly, though I completely understood the ongoing situation, why they were requiring to identify me. The "policeman" said haphazardly "Marami kasing holdapan ngayon." I nearly throwed up in disgust but only in imagination. What? Ako ba mukhang holdaper? And the other people being accosted did not look like criminals either. Yet, some of them did not have IDs and others briefly eluded arrest (yung mga medyo nerbyoso) that all the more they were being pursued.

A total of six to eight people ang dinampot. As for myself, I had my time when I was once briefly detained for smoking inside a public utility vehicle which is prohibited under a city ordinance. I raised hell over my blog then (sort of). But I was clearly at fault. This time, after showing the two IDs, I gave the "police officer" a look-over as if to say "Satisfied?" And I slowly moved away as if nothing happened. A little fear did grip me, tentatively waiting for him to call on me, but it never was. My lucky day!

A few minutes later after walking away a few meters, I came back to see that they have left with their quarry. Nag-usyoso ako sa tindera ng sigarilyo sa tabi-tabi na nakakita sa lahat. We have the same conclusion. It's Christmastime! P500 per person would not be bad for a night's work.

Perhaps the only admitted error those people committed (including myself) is that they chose to make tambay in an area that is in fact notorious for criminal activity. Still, it can be argued that the place has always been teeming with people. If indeed they were police officers, shouldn't they just stake it out for real criminals instead of harassing hapless passersby?

But then again, who are we kidding? Magpa-Pasko na nga!


P.S. I have a suspicion that a deeper reason is behind the incident. I'm keeping the yarn to myself until I will have confirmed it and have the courage to be pro-active about it. That or Mirinae, Lupit's successor, intervenes.

B.A.I.A.S. RECOMMENDS: THE ECHO

Okay, I didn't watch the original Filipino version, Sigaw. And I am not too enthusiastic about Filipino movies in general. But the fact that The Echo is a Hollywood remake of a local movie was enough to get my attention.

In the spirit of the upcoming Undas, I tried concentrating on the merits of the movie and stopped looking for things to criticize. It's actually fun watching a film without the excess baggage that comes with an attitude of dissent.

It is worth recommending but only because I felt fear in some scenes due to the uncanny resemblance of the lead character's "situation" living alone in an old apartment building to moi. Although my building is not old, the set-up of the residents in the movie is eerily comparable.

Now, a little narcissism. This is me inside my pad. I live alone and I sometimes hear weird noises too! A couple of times, I also had nightmares. But unlike the movie, everything is not explained in the end; I just wake up to a peaceful morning and start the daily grind anew.

Do I look scary? LOL.

BACK TO NORMAL?

The storm fizzles out. It seems that even Lupit, the eponymous typhoon of potential harshness and cruelty, is reluctant to make landfall. But another kind of storm is brewing. READ THIS. WTF!

Strong winds especially at night are still blowing here in Manila but everything is all set to go back to what was normal --- including government corruption. (The story in that link I posted above is fast gaining traction and will soon blow out of proportion if the DSWD does not handle the situation well.)

The weather is kind enough for my brother and sister-in-law who are visiting the city for a business seminar. We had a little gathering last night with a cousin and some relatives of the sister-in-law.