Monthly Archives: June 2011

poetry nomination

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My poem, “Variations on the Expulsion from Eden”, is a finalist in this year’s Free Press Awards. The Awards covers poetry and fiction that have appeared in the pages of the magazine from January to December 2010.

Here’s the list and announcement, posted by Lit Ed Joel Toledo:

FICTION:

1. Erscheinung – Michelangelo Samson

2. Panopticon of El Hogar - Russel Stanley Geronimo

3. After The Body Displaces Water – Daryll Jane Delgado

4. When You See A Dog – Jenette Vizcocho

5. Recuerdos de Patay – Caroline Hau

6. Sweet – Marguerite de Leon

7. Spawn - Popi Laudico

8. Desert Winds - Jean Gerald Anuddin

9. Numb - Jenette Vizcocho

10. A Study of Insects -  Irene Carolina Sarmiento

11. Works Cited – U. Eliserio

12. Fade to Red – Twink Macaraig

POETRY:

1. Variations on the Expulsion from Eden – Eliza Victoria

2. The Painted Prince - Frank Penones Jr.

3. Duwende - Myrna Peña-Reyes

4. Love is How We Come Undone -Amado Bajarias

5. How to Kill a Whale Shark – Timi Siytangco

6. Warrior’s Wife (After Li Po) – Ino Habana

7. Weight Without Gravity – Andrea Teran

8. The Widow, Upon Learning That Her Old Lover Had Returned to the Island of San Antonio – Merlie Alunan

9. Zeno’s Paradox – Luisa A. Igloria

10. Weight of the World - Michellan Sarile-Alagao

The 2011 Philippines Free Press Literary Awards covers Fiction and Poetry that have appeared in the pages of the magazine from January to December 2010. 

The Awards Night will be on July 12, 2011 (Tuesday)

6-10 p.m. 

Venue: Club Cafe, Makati Sports Club

formal invitations and detailed poster to follow

IMPORTANT NOTES:

*Finalists are advised to notify me if there are any mistakes in the typing of your names, especially in regard to the possible prize money if you do win and the respective bank account conflict. Anyone who has contacts with some of the finalists that are not on facebook can email me via ramblingsoul@yahoo.com so I can notify them as well.

In any case, all finalists will receive their respective  invitations. This FB post is just to fast-track the info dissemination.

*Finalists are advised to visit the magazine’s website, http://www.freepress.com.ph and read the guidelines, policies, and notes for the annual Literary Awards posted there carefully.

*Congratulations to all the finalists and winners who will only be notified that they’ve won and be informed of their respective six judges (three per category) during the Awards Night.

*Winners must be physically present during the awards night (all the finalists will be formally invited) to claim their prize money and their respective trophies, lest the monetary prize be forfeited (winners can claim the trophy anytime they want to at the Philippines Free Press office). This is as per the magazine’s policy.

meds

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medicol, biogesic, serc, dizitab, kremil-s, no-drowse decolgen

I didn’t notice until last night that I had accumulated so much meds in my bag. There was a day when I took four tablets at the same time. Medicol for my painful foot, Serc for my vertigo, Kremil-S for my tummy, and Decolgen to unclog my right ear. I feel so old.

weekend update

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I wasn’t too fond of this series last year, but later in the season the acting and writing got better, scenes got to that level of dark they needed and deserved, and now Pretty Little Liar‘s among those shows I look forward to seeing every week.

Ezra still bores me though. Jesus.

Ugh. Go away, Ezra.

*

And that’s all I can say about the weekend. Oh wait, I also finished the first season of Justified (very good), and we’re also almost done with the third season of Damages (Patty Hewes is less crazy this time around). With the city flooded, there’s really nothing to do but stay indoors, sleep, read, monitor the flood via Twitter, or watch something entertaining.

I wasn’t able to go home for my mother’s birthday. I am majorly pissed. I monitored the news and made phone calls, hoping I might make it home. But the flood was already thigh-high outside our home on Saturday and there was water inside the house and it won’t stop raining so my mother decided that it’d be better if I just stayed put.

I wish we could move. I wish we could move the river.

*

Before that, Thursday night/Friday morning was a bit crazy. For a while there the office looked like an evacuation center. There were reports of five-foot high floods in the metro, and roads were either unpassable or congested. (When we say “traffic jam” we mean “parking lot-like”.)  Fortunately, I was able to go home to the condo in my jacket and flip-flops because the flood outside the office was only ankle-deep.

Jaykie and I meet up on Thursday nights, and he wanted to go that night, but Chino Roces cor. Vito Cruz Extension looked like this from 9:30 pm to I-don’t-know-what-time-really-because-I-fell-asleep-waiting.

I suddenly woke up at around 2 in the morning and saw from my window that the streets were clear. I texted Jaykie this, as a joke, thinking he was asleep anyway, but he replied and said he’d go pick me up. Before I gave him the go-signal, I called MMDA’s hotline number (136) to check if the roads he would take were flooded. They weren’t, so we met up, had food from Mini-Stop, downed some Gilbey’s, and went to sleep.

That was one unproductive weekend, I have to say.

diaspora ad astra toc and cover

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Guess what: Estranghero Press is set to launch its science fiction e-anthology this month to complete its free fiction trifecta.

Diaspora Ad Astra is edited by Joseph Nacino and UP’s Prof. Emil Flores. Visit this link for more details.

And here’s the TOC. :)

  1. War Zone Angel, Professor Emil Flores
  2. The Day the Sexbomb Dancers Invaded Our Brains, Carljoe Javier
  3. The Malaya, Dean Francis Alfar
  4. The Cost of Living, Vince Torres
  5. Ina Dolor’s Last Stand, Raymond P. Reyes
  6. Oplan Sanction, Alex Osias
  7. The Keeper, Audrey Villacorta
  8. Ashes Ember, Dannah Ruth S. Ballesteros
  9. Rizal, Eliza Victoria
  10. Gene Rx, Katya Oliva-Llego
  11. Robots and a Slice of Pizza, Raydon Reyes
  12. Lucky, Raven Guerrero
  13. A List of Things We Know, Isabel Yap
  14. Taking Gaia, Celestine Trinidad
  15. Space Enough and Time, Anne Lagamayo

Not a spoiler: My story does not feature Jose Rizal, the hero. It’s a place. And I can’t wait for you to read it.

insidious: a film review in chat form

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Here be an online conversation between the blog owner (me) and Lawrence, who has seen the film. Twice.

tl;dr – I start the film in an excited mood, then grow grouchy. Insidious has an excellent first part – great atmosphere, effective score, cute nod to the horror films of the 80′s – but the second act is dragged down by too much exposition and back story. It creates its own myth and thus must anchor the scares on its own myth (instead of on people’s preconceived beliefs, like the Devil and Hell and the afterlife), but the myth is just a handful of words spewed by one of the characters in a single scene. It’s not strong enough to make the horror last.

"Is that so?" Yes, Leigh Whannell, my horror movie crush. I'm sorry. I liked Saw though. Does that make you feel better?

 

(Cut for spoilers.)

Continue reading →

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<just click to enlarge>

Went to Makati Med armed with my healthcard to have my ears checked, thinking they were the culprit for my vertigo. The ENT doctor said my eardrums were clean. I had a hearing exam (pure tone audiometry and PTA with speech, similar to the one I had last year), and the results came and my hearing was fine. So I guess the diagnosis is still BPPV. He handed me a brochure with information about vertigo and how to deal with it (see above photo), and instructed me to keep taking Serc as long as I was “symptomatic” and avoid salty and spicy food.

Crap. I thought I had ear blockage of some sort and the doctor could make my vertigo magically disappear. Oh well. At least my ears are okay.

That night Jaykie and I watched the first two episodes of Justified. I’ll be sure to follow this. I didn’t know it was based on an Elmore Leonard story! Have a read:

“Fire in the Hole” by Elmore Leonard

*

Oh, on Monday night Jaykie dropped by work to pick me up. We had dinner at Mom & Tina‘s before we went to his condo to watch the season finale of Game of Thrones.

mango kani salad (half-order)

fettucine with smoked salmon and capers

fish 'n rice

chocolate fudge cupcake, lemon meringue square

jaykeh!

uncontrollable laughter and the Huge Upper Arm of Doom

Sniff. No more Game of Thrones. I don’t know how long viewers had to wait for Season 2.

I have reviewed all four books (so far) of A Song of Ice and Fire series, but I haven’t reviewed the TV adaptation. I only have this to say: it’s good TV. Good production values, rich scenic detail, spot-on casting.

(Cut for possible spoilers.)

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twenty months

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It’s fun to count the months. Just four more and it’s the second anniversary. :)

It began to rain, so instead of going out, we just had Amici (gelato cakes!!!) delivered for dinner. We watched some episodes of Top Chef Canada while eating.

prosciutto e funghi (pizza), cannelloni agli spinaci (pasta)

spumoni surprise, mango sans rival

Jaykie had class on Saturday, so he went to UP, and I went to Trinoma to shop for gifts for my parents (my mother’s birthday is on the 25th, my father’s in July). This despite the fact that I woke up suddenly at 5 am, broke out in sweats, and felt as though I were falling. Vertigo once more, with feelings. I popped a Serc (24 mg.) and hoped this would pass soon and not come back to bother me again.

I wanted to buy a bag for myself, but couldn’t find anything that I liked, so I ended up buying costume jewelry.

TV necklace, pink rose ring, black rose ring

I know I have way too many rings, but I’m on the lookout for more plastic rings. And that TV necklace was just cute. (I’m wearing it today at work, and I broke one of the antennas. :( But it’s still cute. I’ll just cover the broken antenna nub with my hair.)

We had late lunch at Mango Tree Bistro. It’s our second time at this Thai restaurant. We love their food.

Photo source.

Thai iced tea

We had honey-glazed pork ribs, rice with vegetables, and of course -

pad thai goong!

Photo source.

Just writing about it is making me crave for it. So delicious.

We got home before the rain fell. And how it fell. I was amazed it didn’t flood the streets. Early dinner was a tuna sandwich. Jaykie made the tuna spread (mayo + celery + apples = delicious). Later, when we got hungry again, I poured us some cereal and cold milk.

We finished Damages Season 2 and watched Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe, a TV movie that is basically an extended episode of Burn Notice with Sam Axe and a pinch of Michael Westen. It’s hilarious.

Jaykie’s little walk-in closet’s roof was leaking, so we left a plastic bucket there overnight. Look how much water we got.

"What are you doing?" "Taking a picture." "Why?" "I'll blog about it." "But they'll find out I have a leaky roof!" Haha.

This morning we woke up and Jaykie said he wished he could just stay under the sheets and read. I’d love that too, but alas, work.

* * *

Happy Father’s Day to my Tatay! :D I’m coming home next week with the gifts. I hope it doesn’t rain.

the paperless route

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1. First of all, avoid buying another book, not even one.

2. Read what’s left on my reading list.

Feast for Crows

The Kobayashi Maru of Love

Showbiz Lengua

PGS Horror issue

Floating Dragon

El Bimbo Variations

The Tesseract

Faithful Place

Moxyland

Zoo City

Our Story Begins

Glass Soup

Here on Earth

The Pull of the Moon

Little Bee

Story Quarterly Issue 44

The Bell Jar

Philippine Speculative Fiction 6

Pacific Rims

The Name of the Wind

Ang Mga Kaibigan ni Mama Susan

2. Sell the books I can bring myself to sell; and

3. Buy an iPad, Galaxy Tab, Kindle, Nook, something that will allow me to read books conveniently without paper because I have too many books and most of them are in garbage bags on top of my cabinet because I have no shelves and they are DRIVING ME CRAZY.


Any opinions/tips from current users? Which gadget is best?

I can also rent/buy my own place with a gazillion shelves, but I think the gadget’s more affordable.
Hay Lord gusto ko na ng sariling bahay.

ang mga kaibigan ni mama susan

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Tuesday, March 2, 1999

8:58 am. Kagigising ko lang. May mga ginupit sa ‘king buhok na ipinatong sa kama ko at pinalibutan ng mga butil ng asin. Hindi magbibiro ng ganito sila Niko.

Matagal-tagal na rin noong huli akong magbasa ng libro ni Bob Ong (isang manunulat na hanggang ngayon ay nananatili pa ring misteryoso: walang pangalan, walang picture, walang interview). Tuwang-tuwa ako sa una niyang akda, ABNKKBSNPLAko?! Non-fiction daw, pero dahil nga hindi pa rin siya nagpapakilala, maaaring kathang-isip lang rin lahat iyon. Alam ko nabasa ko rin yung (ilang) mga sumunod, pero wala silang naging impact sa akin. Siguro natawa rin ako, na-touch, etc. pero mukhang hindi sila kasing-memorable noong unang libro, na walang kaere-ere at gusto lamang mag-kwento at hindi mangaral. Sabi ng kapatid ko maganda rin daw ang McArthur, pero wala akong ganang basahin yun, maski na may kopya sa bahay.

Noong inanunsyo na horror o katatakutan ang susunod na libro ni Bob Ong, nagka-interes ako, pero nagduda rin. Kaya ba niya? Matatakot ba ako? Baka kung anong ka-cliche-han na naman ito, baka mangangaral lang tungkol sa Diyos at Simbahan.

Wala akong nabasang rebyu ng Ang Mga Kaibigan ni Mama Susan kahit saan, print man or online. Kaya’t nagulat ako nang makita ko na diary-style pala ang nobela, at naka-set sa 1998-99. Binata ang narrator, college student. Kuhang-kuha naman ni Bob Ong ang paraan ng pagsasalita (at pagsulat marahil) ng isang lalaki sa ganoong age range. Gaya nga ng sabi ko sa Facebook, nakakatakot na, dahil ka-boses niya ang mga kapatid kong lalaki. Haha.

Subtle lang ang katatakutan sa simula: nanaginip siya ng babaeng itim, nagigising ng alas-tres ng umaga, naririnig ang phone na nagri-ring pero pagsagot niya, wala namang tao sa kabilang linya. Mababaon ang katatakutan sa simula ng kwento sa mga kalokohan. Nagsusulat siya ng rap lyrics, nagrereklamo sa pag-ibig, sa mga utos ng tiyahin niya, sa kabagutan, sa kawalan ng pera. Maganda ang pacing. Kahit nung nakarating na siya sa bahay ni Lola (Mama Susan), hindi pa rin nagmamadali si Bob Ong. Unti-unti, hanggang sa paglabas ng mga sikreto, hindi ka na bibitiwan ng nobela.

Buo naman ang karakter ng bidang lalaki. Masasabi ko iyon dahil nagawa kong maawa sa kanya, lalo na nung pumatak na ang Marso 1999 sa kwento at naisip niyang sem-break na! Naalala niya ang mga kaibigan niya at mga pinsan na naiwan sa siyudad. Ang bababaw ng mga problema nila! At nagsimula siyang lumuha at magsisi.

Dapat nga ay hindi na siya umalis ng Maynila.

The Mighty Reading List!

Feast for Crows

The Kobayashi Maru of Love

Showbiz Lengua

PGS Horror issue

Floating Dragon

El Bimbo Variations

The Tesseract

Faithful Place

Moxyland

Zoo City

The Dispossessed

Our Story Begins

Glass Soup

Here on Earth

The Pull of the Moon

Little Bee

Story Quarterly Issue 44

The Bell Jar

Philippine Speculative Fiction 6

Pacific Rims

Ang Mga Kaibigan ni Mama Susan

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A couple of quick plugs:

- My poem, “Sadness: A Catalogue“, is now live on the Philippines Free Press website. Comments are welcome, and feel free to share the link.

- April Yap’s book, Stressed in the City, can now be downloaded for free! Visit her. Thanks to Luis K. for sharing it on Twitter.

I have also just found out that I am in the initial shortlist (50 poets, 50 poems) for inclusion in Under the Storm: An Anthology of Contemporary Philippine Poetry.

We’ve received over 290 submissions for the anthology. Our sincerest thanks to everyone who has submitted. We are choosing 113 poems from 113 of the poets who’ve submitted. This is in commemoration of our 113 years of Independence, of being Filipinos, of being Filipino writers.

4th .MOV International Film, Music, & Literature Festival

September 1 to 3, 2011

www.facebook.com/movfest

www.movfest.org

I recognize most of the names in the shortlist. Most of them are writers I admire. :)

*

Had my second shot today. Isa na lang!

I can haz cute pink bandage!