| Friday, May 28, 2004 |
| five days |
It took five days to change my perspective in life.
From May 23 to 27, I was up in Tagaytay, Cavite attending a five-day scriptwriting workshop under the supervision of writer Roi Iglesias (Mano Po, Filipinas, Dahas).
Not knowing what to expect, I arrived at Tagaytay trying to conquer my worst fears: not knowing anyone, not meeting anyone new, being berated by the professor, feeling like a failure, shit like that.
Imagine my surprise when the first person I meet is not only my classmate in the Scriptwriting class (it's a program with different media workshops which includes scriptwriting) but also my quasi-neighbor (she lives in Fairview, I live right before Fairview). We're both film buffs and writers. We sometimes even think alike. Yikes. And the other writer our age in the class (the others were old-er people) turns out to be a friend of friend of mine and we both belonged to a community for Filipino writers. Wow.
The course was great. Yeah we got to learn all the basics and all that about scriptwriting. But I think the most important thing we learned is how everything really works in the film industry. We got to pitch our stories, write our stories, collaborate, write, edit, revise, pitch again and deal with the nicest AND the most arrogant of directors. Lessons in reality? We had lots! And it was good. Because we had to experience that so we could know.
Now my cellphone phonebook is longer because of the added entries and, for sure, my Friendster account will have more friends added to it. It's amazing how life works out in the end. I came there with no expectations and with fear and I left with more friends and more connections and projects. I'll be collaboring some scripts with my coursemate and we've already commissioned a director and editor for it. People we also met there.
The whole experience makes me really want to go back and do it all over again. And maybe I will. Next workshop is on October. Maybe I'll drop by again then.
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posted by Jax @ 11:32:00 PM   |
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| Friday, May 21, 2004 |
| Live the Life |
A few words from Ganns Deen of SuperBlessed:
I recently attended the Asia-Pacific Communication Conference 2004, where the Academy
for Educational Development presented the findings of a study titled "The Social Acceptance Project-Family Planning." The results shocked me: teens today are engaging in premarital sex more often with more partners. They are drinking more alcohol, experimenting with more drugs, & engaging in these vices at an earlier age. Media plays an important role in influencing child and teenage decisions, so much that Oprah Winfrey
labeled the television "the other parent." Meanwhile, parents are separating, leaving trails of emotionally scarred children in their wake, & incestuous rape incidents have gone up. Teen self-esteem is at its lowest, and, if, judging by the diaspora of the youth for greener pastures abroad, many young people are rapidly losing hope and faith in their country.
There is no doubt in my mind that media & the disintegration/ devaluation of the family unit have much to play in the average Filipino teenager's slow descent to moral bankruptcy. These kids are inheriting the nation, & if we don't do something to halt this slide, there's going to be hell to pay, even before Christ returns. These aren't just teens: they're our future leaders. We have got to make moves, as men and women for others, to change the system.
My wife & I have been much in prayer regarding this, & we have decided to take a leap of faith & accept what we believe to be the direction the Lord has laid out for me. I'm leaving my job to put up a Christian magazine for teenagers & young adults.
Live the Life is envisioned as the ultimate interdenomination teen lifestyle magazine for
Filipino-Christians. It seeks to provide uplifting, encouraging content for Philippine
teens and young adults. It will address the issues, & tell it like it is, without the
unnecessary sugarcoating that sometimes pervades other family magazines. Its layout will be radical, its text will be different, it won’t condescend nor underestimate the intelligence of its readers, & it will challenge them to rethink many of the decisions they've made in light of their future & their relationship with God. Most importantly, it will lift up the name of Jesus in ways accessible to teens & young adults.
I've tapped several Fil-Christian teen & young adult bloggers to contribute content to Live the Life, & have received enthusiastic support. We're actively looking for contributors with solid relationships with Jesus Christ to join us
in this ministry. Admittedly, a start-up like this doesn't have a huge amount of financial backing, but we believe in faith that "Live the Life" is guaranteed to succeed - it is God's work.
(If you're interested in helping us market "Live the Life," we'd be more than happy to send you a full magazine profile, including donation & advertising opportunities. Please email livethelifemag@superblessed.net for inquiries; we also own livethelifemag.com, so please expect a companion website up by the launch of the magazine in August 2004.)
Live the Life will spotlight features on, among other things, Spirituality, God in Culture, Teen revolution for Jesus, Career, Relationships, Health, Finance, Choices, Music, Movies, TV, Books & Fashion.
If you know of any way to get us into church youth ministries as supplementary readings,
we'd really appreciate that. We are more than willing to meet up with youth pastors to discuss the content of the magazine. Equally importantly, if you can help set us up meetings with the principals or presidents of parents' associations of high schools & colleges that can subscribe to Live the Life this late in the game, please let
us know. God bless!
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| posted by Jax @ 1:27:00 AM |
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| Wednesday, May 19, 2004 |
| American Idol |
You know who Jasmine reminds me of? Filipino singer Kyla. I swear, when they sing, they really remind me of each other. I was watching Kyla earlier on TV and they sound alike talaga.
But I don't like Jasmine's performance lately. I'm surprised she's still there. Even though she's a Filipina, I'm not rooting for her. I'm rooting for Diana Degarmo. This girl is amazing! And she's only 16 years old! Oh, if I could only sing like that.
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| posted by Jax @ 9:42:00 PM |
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| Tuesday, May 18, 2004 |
| Van Helsing |
How can I say this gently?
Van Helsing was, well, uh, well, Van Helsing sucked. But what do you expect really from the same guy who brought us The Mummy, The Mummy Returns and Deep Rising?
I mean, awful plot development, terrible dialogue and unrealistic backdrops and set designs. But since Hugh Jackman, Kate Beckinsale and David Wenham were all in this movie, I was ready to forgive this guy for ruining, I mean, doing the movie.
But no. He had to ruin it by adding a "love story" to the whole equation. And what was the result? An ending oozing with so much cheese. Omigoodness. I mean, despite all its flaws, I was having a good time. But the ending really ruined it for me. I was so frustrated that when they showed the last part, I just laughed out loud. While everyone else was shedding a tear or two or just silently watching, I was laughing out loud. My sister tried to shush me but it just made me laugh out louder. And pretty soon, my sister and brother (who watched the movie with me) were laughing out loud, too!
But at least the movie had one redeeming factor, the fact that they got Hugh Jackman for the role of Van Helsing because I believe that the role was tailor-made for him. I cannot imagine anyone else playing the part.
I don't really know if I'd recommend the movie because of this. But hey wait a minute! What am I thinking? Wait for the video. Labels: american idol, movies |
| posted by Jax @ 6:07:00 AM |
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| Sunday, May 16, 2004 |
| My Dream House |
Do you have a dream home? I do. I don't really know if I will get to have it but a girl can dream, can't she?
I don't want a big house. I'll only get a big house if I have a big family. But for now, I want a three-storey (including the attic) house with a big yard, giving my kids plenty of room to play in. I'd have around three or four bedrooms on the second floor. Not too big though. Actually I'm not sure if I'm going to have the guest bedroom on the first or the second floor. The master's bedroom has its own bathroom, of course. But the other two will have a connecting bathroom.
On the first floor, I'll have a kitchen, dining room, living room and a mini-library/office. And I want to have a big family room that doubles as our entertainment center. This is where the whole family goes to watch movies with a widescreen TV.
The whole house will have a modern Filipiniana theme to it. Every furniture will be made of native products and wood.
I haven't really fixed all the details yet. Hehe. But this is mostly what I'd like to big picture to be. The small details will follow, like the husband and the kids. Hehe. ;)
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| posted by Jax @ 8:02:00 PM |
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| Friday, May 14, 2004 |
| Book Sale |
Hey guys! If you have time, please drop by 844 S. Laurel St. Mandaluyong City tomorrow, May 15. My sister and I will be selling used books. Actually, it's one big book sale so if you're looking for something new to read, give us a visit. Book sale starts at 10am and ends at 5p. There's also going to be a raffle tomorrow. Prizes include a hardbound copy of Da Vinci Code and Powerbooks gift certificates.
Directions: You can go to the venue from San Juan via Wilson and P. Guevarra Streets. Turn left at Cafe Ysabel, cross to the other side of Mabini St. (one way) until the end of that street, where you are forced to turn right to East St. The venue is at the corner of East St. and S. Laurel which is near the end of East St which hits a dead end.844 S. Laurel St. is near Cherry Foodarama along Shaw Boulevard and across a General Nutrition Center outlet.
Hope I'll see you there!
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| posted by Jax @ 5:04:00 AM |
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| Thursday, May 13, 2004 |
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I don't like the fact that my parents spoiled me while I was growing up and now I'm used to being the center of attention.
What really bugs me about it is that they spoiled me while I was growing up and now they expect me to undo now what they did then. Isn't that a bit unfair?
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Kids are very "creative" now. When they don't want to do something, they will think of every excuse not to do it. Like this morning, we were trying to force my five-year-old nephew to eat his breakfast. He didn't want to do because he said he wasn't hungry. And when we finally got him to sit at the dining table, he would make up all of these really frustrating excuses like the following:
1. He wasn't hungry.
2. He didn't want to eat rice with any kind of sauce mixed with it.
3. He wanted to eat just white rice.
4. He didn't want to eat the meat we mixed with the rice. He wanted mango with it.
5. He didn't want to eat at the dining table, he wanted to watch TV while eating.
6. He didn't want to do it himself, he wanted someone to feed him.
7. He wanted to wait for his mom or dad to arrive so they can eat together.
And the list goes on and on and on. Ack! It can be so frustrating. But as long as he gets to eat...
Will he win?
Partial Unofficial Results from AMA
President (as of 2004-05-11, 09:21 pm)
1. Macapagal-Arroyo, Gloria 553,388
2. Poe, Fernando, Jr. 540,118
3. Lacson, Panfilo 248,425
4. Roco, Raul 145,829
5. Villanueva, Eduardo 129,091
Vice-President (as of 2004-05-11, 08:31 pm)
1. Legarda, Loren 718,353
2. de Castro, Noli 692,166
3. Aquino, Herminio 102,998
4. Pajo, Rodolfo 7,828
Senators (as of 2004-05-11, 08:32 pm)
1. Roxas, Manuel 'Mar' II 1,014,621
2. Gordon, Richard 831,599
3. Cayetano, Pia Juliana 764,203
4. Pimentel, Aquilino Jr. Q. 758,959
5. Enrile, Juan Ponce 755,144
6. Lim, Alfredo S. 739,656
7. Madrigal, Jamby A.S. 728,837
8. Revilla, Ramon (Bong) Jr. 715,333
9. Biazon, Rodolfo 705,597
10. Defensor-Santiago, Miriam 688,281
11. Maceda, Ernesto M. 575,434
12. Lapid, Manuel 568,546
Partial Results by NAMFREL
President (as of 2004-05-13, 06:13 pm)
1. Macapagal-Arroyo, Gloria 912,807
2. Poe, Fernando, Jr. 826,061
3. Lacson, Panfilo 275,850
4. Villanueva, Eduardo 146,310
5. Roco, Raul 125,826
Vice-President (as of 2004-05-13, 06:16 pm)
1. de Castro, Noli 1,092,290
2. Legarda, Loren 996,587
3. Aquino, Herminio 81,011
4. Pajo, Rodolfo 2,394
Senators (as of 2004-05-13, 06:36 pm)
1. Roxas, Manuel 'Mar' II 1,421,449
2. Revilla, Ramon (Bong) Jr. 1,154,257
3. Pimentel, Aquilino Jr. Q. 1,058,327
4. Madrigal, Jamby A.S. 967,847
5. Gordon, Richard 958,862
6. Defensor-Santiago, Miriam 933,867
7. Cayetano, Pia Juliana 922,859
8. Lim, Alfredo S. 887,521
9. Biazon, Rodolfo 827,121
10. Estrada, Jose 'Jinggoy' E. 818,370
11. Enrile, Juan Ponce 803,370
12. Barbers, Robert 795,625
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| posted by Jax @ 7:02:00 AM |
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| Monday, May 10, 2004 |
| Election Updates |
As of May 11, 2004:
President (as of 2004-05-11, 07:00 am)
1. Macapagal-Arroyo, Gloria 478,115
2. Poe, Fernando, Jr. 470,110
3. Lacson, Panfilo 210,074
4. Roco, Raul 113,388
5. Villanueva, Eduardo 109,488
Vice-President (as of 2004-05-11, 07:28 am)
1. Legarda, Loren 619,259
2. de Castro, Noli 558,369
3. Aquino, Herminio 86,265
4. Pajo, Rodolfo 6,970
Senators (as of 2004-05-11, 07:50 am)
1. Roxas, Manuel 'Mar' II 851,044
2. Pimentel, Aquilino Jr. Q. 656,371
3. Lim, Alfredo S. 651,195
4. Gordon, Richard 649,116
5. Madrigal, Jamby A.S. 612,669
6. Revilla, Ramon (Bong) Jr. 599,621
7. Defensor-Santiago, Miriam 578,600
8. Cayetano, Pia Juliana 575,996
9. Enrile, Juan Ponce 551,892
10. Biazon, Rodolfo 543,061
11. Estrada, Jose 'Jinggoy' E. 495,247
12. Barbers, Robert
Updates can be viewed here.
You can also subscribe to have election count updates delivered to your mobile inbox by texting:
Eleksyon Count and send to 2344 (Globe) for Presidential and Vice-Presidential Results
and
Eleksyon Sen and send to 2344 (Globe) for Senatorial Elections |
| posted by Jax @ 5:02:00 PM |
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| Election Updates |
As of May 10, 2004, 6:10 pm
President (as of 2004-05-10, 06:10 pm)
1. Poe, Fernando, Jr. 16,739
2. Macapagal-Arroyo, Gloria 16,660
3. Lacson, Panfilo 8,195
4. Roco, Raul 3,997
5. Villanueva, Eduardo 3,905
Vice-President (as of 2004-05-10, 06:11 pm)
1. Legarda, Loren 21,976
2. de Castro, Noli 19,724
3. Aquino, Herminio 2,675
4. Pajo, Rodolfo 356
Senators (as of 2004-05-10, 04:53 pm)
1. Roxas, Manuel 'Mar' II 1,061
2. Lim, Alfredo S. 956
3. Revilla, Ramon (Bong) Jr. 863
4. Enrile, Juan Ponce 859
5. Gordon, Richard 845
6. Pimentel, Aquilino Jr. Q. 807
7. Defensor-Santiago, Miriam 787
8. Madrigal, Jamby A.S. 764
9. Biazon, Rodolfo 699
10. Estrada, Jose 'Jinggoy' E. 667
11. Barbers, Robert 655
12. Cayetano, Pia Juliana 650
Updates here. |
| posted by Jax @ 3:26:00 AM |
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| Election Updates |
As of May 10, 2004, as of 4:42 pm
President (as of 2004-05-10, 04:42 pm)
1. Macapagal-Arroyo, Gloria 2,051
2. Poe, Fernando, Jr. 2,016
3. Lacson, Panfilo 1,102
4. Roco, Raul 617
5. Villanueva, Eduardo 545
Vice-President (as of 2004-05-10, 04:44 pm)
1. Legarda, Loren 2,472
2. de Castro, Noli 2,225
3. Aquino, Herminio 360
4. Pajo, Rodolfo 214
Senators (as of 2004-05-10, 04:53 pm)
1. Roxas, Manuel 'Mar' II 1,061
2. Lim, Alfredo S. 956
3. Revilla, Ramon (Bong) Jr. 863
4. Enrile, Juan Ponce 859
5. Gordon, Richard 845
6. Pimentel, Aquilino Jr. Q. 807
7. Defensor-Santiago, Miriam 787
8. Madrigal, Jamby A.S. 764
9. Biazon, Rodolfo 699
10. Estrada, Jose 'Jinggoy' E. 667
11. Barbers, Robert 655
12. Cayetano, Pia Juliana 650
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| posted by Jax @ 2:52:00 AM |
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| Eleksyon 2004 |
Counting for >Eleksyon 2004 has officially begun.
Partial and unofficial results, as of May 10, 2004, 3:56 pm.
President (as of 2004-05-10, 03:56 pm)
1. Macapagal-Arroyo, Gloria 588
2. Poe, Fernando, Jr. 569
3. Lacson, Panfilo 370
4. Roco, Raul 253
5. Villanueva, Eduardo 171
Vice-President (as of 2004-05-10, 03:56 pm)
1. Legarda, Loren 625
2. de Castro, Noli 568
3. Aquino, Herminio 156
4. Pajo, Rodolfo 135
Senators (as of 2004-05-10, 03:47 pm)
1. Gordon, Richard 60
2. Revilla, Ramon (Bong) Jr. 57
3. Lim, Alfredo S. 55
4. Defensor-Santiago, Miriam 53
5. Aparri, Ismael D. 51
6. Almirante, Alvin G. 50
7. Anson-Roa, Ma. Elisa 'Boots' C. 50
8. Barbers, Robert 50
9. Mercado, Orlando 49
10. Enrile, Juan Ponce 47
11. Pimentel, Aquilino Jr. Q. 45
12. Alvarez, Heherson T. 44
I will be posting daily and hourly updates about the Philippine elections.
In other news, Amber Brkich wins Survivor All-Stars and gets engaged to Rob Mariano all at the same night. Congratulations on the engagement. On winning Survivor though? Hmmm. I beg to differ. I do believe she doesn't deserve it. But better her than Boston Rob.
And I gotta agree with Jerri Manthey and Lex Van der Bergh. What kind of show has Survivor become if it teaches its viewers that its okay to sacrifice values and principles for the sake of having money? Yes, it's $1M but when it's all gone, what then do you have? Is money all that important that you will sacrifice everything just to have it? |
| posted by Jax @ 1:43:00 AM |
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| Saturday, May 08, 2004 |
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Happy Mom's Day to you and your mumsies!
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| posted by Jax @ 6:18:00 PM |
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| Thursday, May 06, 2004 |
| FRIENDS |
*sniff sniff*
My favorite friends are leaving for good. And it's just so sad. I've been with them for almost ten years and now they're leaving forever.
At least I have my memories with them to keep me company.
You can say goodbye to them here. |
| posted by Jax @ 7:34:00 PM |
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| Wednesday, May 05, 2004 |
| Bro. EDDIE for PRESIDENT! |
I am all for Bro. EDDIE for President. And I'm not just saying that because I'm Catholic.
Professor Gabby Mendoza agrees with me.
Dear colleague
I will vote for Bro. Eddie Villanueva because:
1. He is the only presidential candidate who by his words and deeds stands for principled honest government;
2. He believes in freedom of conscience and of religion;
3. He has shown himself knowledgeable and competent in management, economics and politics;
4. He has proven himself willing and able to explain and defend his plans for the presidency in open, free-wheeling debate.
5. He is the only candidate not weighed down by commitments to and contributions from old-time corrupt politicians and politically motivated financiers and businessmen.
All the presidential aspirants promise change and preach a message of hope for our people. It makes me puke sometimes how some presidential aspirants claim
they are for change, but would have mostly the old traditional politicians in their senatorial slate.
Also, Bro. Eddie's platform stands out because it focuses on moral Reformation above everything else. I sincerely believe this is what we need the most
for our country today. His program for Muslims, women, children, the eldery and the indigenous people are also worthy of consideration. There is hardly anything about these important sectors of our society in the platform of the other presidentiables, when for instance women and children comprise more than 50% of our population.
His program of governance makes a lot of sense, too - comparable, if not better, than the other candidates' programs. He takes strong positions on issues that
other candidates would shy away from, based on his strong moral convictions.
I was also pleasantly surprised to discover that he is more than just a
religious leader. He was a political activist - incarcerated during martial law, a law student, and a professor of Economics at PUP. And the way he has
grown the JIL movement is testimony to his leadership capability.
I believe he is the right person to lead this nation to economic recovery founded on moral reforms. And I have decided, not just to vote for him, but also to vigorously campaign for him.
But does he have a fighting chance? He's not even in the radar screen when it comes to surveys. This is where you and I can make a difference.
Even his rivals would concede that he has millions of supporters to start with. And, unlike the supporters of the other candidates, his followers are more
committed and more passionate to convince others (at least 7 other people, according to their 7x7 strategy) to vote for Bro. Eddie. It is also striking that his supporters, mostly volunteers, actively involve themselves in the campaign process,
braving the heat and the fumes from passing vehicles, and take pains educating the public why a vote for Bro. eddie makes a lot of sense for us Filipinos at
this point in time.
The radio SMS-based surveys and other online surveys where he topped the list with significant margin are proof to this commitment. If you will also visit the
site at this point (April 19, 2:15 pm), there are already 2,070,850 sure votes from registered voters when the on-line campaign was only launched fairly
recently, April 1.
But we need to let the rest of the nation know that there are enough Filipinos who will vote and who will campaign for Bro. Eddie. We need to counter the cynical and skeptical nation that Bro.Eddie does not have a fighting chance and that their votes will not go to naught. We have to be vigilant and passionate in our campaign because the media and various propaganda do not show a true picture of the majority of the populace committed to support Brother Eddie!
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Read more here.
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| posted by Jax @ 5:23:00 PM |
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| Monday, May 03, 2004 |
| Secrets |
Secrets.
Everyone's got them. Including me.
And sometimes I get tired of having them. Sometimes I'd like to shout out to the whole world everything I know and everything I hide. Take stuff out of my chest.
But sometimes, a little mystery is good. Sometimes, it's fun to keep people guessing. And sometimes it's fun to keep something just for you. Let the people guessing and never finding out.
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| posted by Jax @ 7:27:00 PM |
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| Sunday, May 02, 2004 |
| Movie Aficionado |
My video shop has closed! Forever!
I just found out last Wednesday, when I got back from Cebu. Where will I rent videos now?!Labels: american idol, movies |
| posted by Jax @ 6:40:00 AM |
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