beating the giants

i've said it many times before - i love josh groban as well as the gregorians who popularized chamber music doing covers of familiar pop tunes. but they’re all unreachable stars in a far, far away galaxy and the only proximity i can afford is by listening to them on the radio or watch them in youtube.

pne however, is a lot more real. with one member a good friend and the group within reach, they are mortals instead of demi-gods. i can see their live performances and email them my unwanted comments (and never get reproached for doing so, hehehe). and best of all, they are world-class celebrities! well, maybe not in the league of josh or the gregorians yet but definitely on the way to being there.

xiamen, china? nancy, france? graz, austria? they’ve done it all with medals to prove their talent. winning the hearts and respect of discriminating music afficionados. earning standing ovations from international audience. hitting headlines on broadsheets and even the internet. proof that they have now gained international celebrity status - anybody who says otherwise must be turning green with envy!.

i’ve written a few posts about pne already. and by now you must’ve figured out i’m a supporter and a believer. but this one’s simply to congratulate them and welcome them back from their austrian trip. a very successful one where they won gold in the elimination round and final silver on male choir chamber category of the 5th choir games in graz.

beating delegations from mostly european countries where chamber music was born, you just can’t help but feel proud of this group whose brown skins, 5-ft frames are but humble disguise of huge, sparkling musical talent.

what’s more to be proud of is the fact that delegations from our very own philippines (3 groups including las pinas boys choir, kilyawan boys choir and the himig singers) were also successful in their respective campaigns bringing home a total of 6 medals (2 golds, 4 silvers). pinoy music power. it rocks and it rules.

but pne holds a special place in my heart coz even if they are flying the saudi colors, they represent the talent of ofws in ksa and the mid-east as a whole. an unquestionable proof and reminder that wherever you put pinoys, no matter how hard and harsh the condition, their talents simply won’t fade. on the contrary, it fluorishes.

to pne – a huge hug to all. and one proud congratulations for a job superbly done.

for full story of the graz competition, visit www.musica-mundi.com

hell... almost

yesterday (wednesday, july 23) was one uncomfortable day for most of the people living in jubail. power failure devoured a huge part of the city bringing down most of the manufacturing plants in the industrial area. thick, dark smokes billowing from flares of numerous industrial plants turned the clouds dark despite the sweltering afternoon sun.

engineers in the plant where i work said it was just a power dip caused by tripping of one or two substations of the government-owned electric company. according to them, this is most likely caused by a very high usage of electricity that breached the maximum capacity of the substations. i remember seeing the same chaos back in the late 90’s when the entire metro manila went dark. it was also summer and i heard the same reasoning.

over here, it is not surprising considering that mid-day temperatures are now reaching 50 deg or more. i can only assume that in one typical household, all air conditioning units will be working full blast to combat the heat. thus causing overloads on the power grids.

luckily, our company wasn’t affected by the power outage. i had to work over time in the comforts of my air conditioned office while my colleagues who went home early had to sit out the searing heat worsened by some unforgiving humidity. there’s nowhere to go coz even the shops and the tiny shopping mall we have had no power.

i had the same harrowing experience last sunday when my 5-year old a/c unit gave up on me. and the two hours i waited for the delivery of my new unit was simply unbearable. it’s the kind of heat that almost strangles you, purges your body with all the fluids it can secrete and can snap the life out of you if you have some heart condition.

that is why i am short of being awed by people working in the open areas directly exposed to the fierce heat of the sun. they must have super-efficient body systems to be able to work 8 or 10 hours in that condition. i don’t think i can last even one full hour if i had to. i am now one of those whose definition of work doesn’t necessarily include perspiration.

so for the families of our kababayans working in the middle east as laborers, pipe fitters, masons and every other menial jobs, one plea from me. be appreciative of the money your husbands, fathers, brothers and uncles are sending. coz that money is literally from their blood, sweat and tears. appreciate it, value it. coz that is money earned just a few steps away from hell.

madam bola

i’m sure marami sa atin ang nakatanggap nong email na umikot na yata sa buong sulok ng cyber world cc pa yata ang mga martians at bcc ang mga taga-pluto. yong tungkol sa hula ng isang brazilian na magkakaroon daw ng malakas na lindol sa pinas nitong july 18. porke marami raw mamamatay and the picture it painted was truly gruesome.

nong matanggap ko yon, i deleted it straight away. unang-una, wala akong panahon sa mga chain mails. in fact i hate it. nakakairita. specially those messages na dadaanin ka sa prayers or bible verses saka ka babanatan ng ‘pass it to 100 people or else blah blah blah’. grrrr! anybody who believes it would have to dig deeper into their faith. o sa katinuan nila.

o kaya yong mga mail na porke test daw ng isang program and if you forward it to 1,000 people eh bibigyan ka ni bill gates ng parte sa milyones nya! teka lang, wag nyong ipamigay yong mamanahin ko pwede????

and of course yong mga kuwentong mushy and heart warming tapos ganon din ang bagsak. tatakutin ka if you break the chain. eh ayaw na ayaw ko pa naman yong tinatakot ako. i don’t take threats very well. retaliatory kasi ako. kaya ang ganti ko is doing exactly the opposite of what is asked of me. kaya diretso sa deleted box yong mail. where it really belongs.

nagpo-forward lang ako ng message, lalo kung maganda, kung walang obligations attached. pero pag may kasamang ‘or else’, hindi na ako nangdadamay sa kalokohan.

sa kaso naman nong mail about the lindol sa pinas, walang or else. hindi ka na binigyan ng chance na bumawi kung ipo-forward mo. dahil the mail itself is telling you that pinas is doomed. diretsahang pananakot. wala nang kundi-kundisyon. marami ang walang bait sa sarili kasi naniwala. pinasa-pasa pa. and because it was talked about by so many, akala mo totoong-totoo nang mangyayari.

kahit ang mga dyaryo at tv programs sa atin, wala na rin yatang katinuan. pinatulan din yong prediction. kaya ang mother dear ko, nag-worry. and i had to spend the next half hour nong conversation namin just trying to reassure her na kalokohan lang yon. sabi ko nga yong nanghula, baka kapatid ni madam auring. kinuwento ko pa at pinatawa ang matanda don sa prediction ni madam auring na 'valenzuela' ang mananalo sa miss univerese some years ago.

nag-worry rin ako para sa mother ko and prayed na hindi mangyari – even by coincidence na lumindol. otherwise talagang maninigas sa takot ang mother ko. even the slightest tremor, sabi ko, wag naman sana. coz it would have lent credibility to what is obviously a bogus prediction. eh kung gumalaw kahit konti yong tectonic plates anywhere in the philippines, di sasabihin totoo na yong prediction. sasambahin na yong pekeng manghuhula.

thank God at wala talagang nangyari.

ewan ko ngayon kung anong masasabi nong mga irresponsableng tabloids and news programs na pumatol don sa balita. wala sigurong masyadong mai-headline, bait-baitan kasi si gretchen at hindi umeeksena sa mga party. nahihilo na siguro ang taong bayan sa pagyo-yoyo ng presyo ng langis. si gloria naman, ayaw na rin sigurong gawing topic ng mga reporters. napagod na siguro sa kakatira eh wala namang nangyayari. kaya lindol na lang ang i-report sa primetime news.

pero sana, kung sino man ang nag-umpisa nong e-mail na yon, ma-konsensya sya. sabi nga ng friend kong si raoul, what you sow is what you reap. you’ve sown fear and terror and that’s what you’re exactly gonna get. maybe not today. but it sure will come your way. coz what goes around comes around.

simply divine

i should have done this a long time ago... naalala ko lang when i found a new posting in youtube of the song my immortal, one of my fave love songs of the recent past. what's cool about it is that it's a cover by my ultimate fave - the gregorian masters of chant!

for two days now it's been playin on and on and on sa pc ko - either at home or at work. sabi ko nga when my pne friends get back from their austrian competition, i'll ask them to include this one in their repertoire. gandang-ganda talaga ako sa song.

then i went back to youtube so i can share the music vid here with you guys. kaso madamot yong nag-upload nong vid, embedding was disabled. hmmmppfftt!

eh marami namang songs na magaganda ang gregorians so i simply wasn't fazed. una kong hinanap yong kyrie eleison and found it. kaya lang mahina yong audio. so i opted for this one na favorite ko rin - losing my religion, a hit by the group r.e.m. na humabol sa tail end ng new wave era noong 1991. new wave music done chamber-style? really cool guys.

So eto ang matagal ko nang dapat ginawa - share the subliminal music of the gregorians with you. enjoy!

i also linked two songs via the esnips widget at the right pane of this blog from another brilliant voice na product ng american idol - david archuleta and his very own version of two favorite (again) songs of mine - angels by robbie williams and the timeless imagine by john lennon.

advise ko lang, before you play these songs, let go of whatever you're busy with, sit down, relax and savor the moments these wonderful music bring!!!!

what's in a stinking name...

a friend (pampi) sent me this and i thought this is cool so i wanna share it with you. though some things kinda made me go 'huh?', most of the stuff said are actually spot on. here goes....

What Rodante Means

You are wild, crazy, and a huge rebel.

You're always up to something.

You have a ton of energy, and most people can't handle you.

You're very intense.

You definitely are a handful, and you're likely to get in trouble.

But your kind of trouble is a lot of fun.

You are well rounded, with a complete perspective on life.

You are solid and dependable. You are loyal, and people can count on you.

At times, you can be a bit too serious. You tend to put too much pressure on yourself.

You are balanced, orderly, and organized.

You like your ducks in a row.

You are powerful and competent, especially in the workplace.

People can see you as stubborn and headstrong.

You definitely have a dominant personality.

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection.

You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive.

You have the classic "Type A" personality.

You are very intuitive and wise.

You understand the world better than most people.

You also have a very active imagination.

You often get carried away with your thoughts.

You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy.

You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

You are a seeker.

You often find yourself restless - and you have a lot of questions about life.

You tend to travel often, to fairly random locations.

You're most comfortable when you're far away from home.

You are quite passionate and easily tempted.

Your impulses sometimes get you into trouble.

You are friendly, charming, and warm.

You get along with almost everyone.

You work hard not to rock the boat.

Your easy going attitude brings people together.

At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible.

But for the important things, you pull it together.

xxx

missing the winners

so tapos na naman ang miss universe pageant. as usual, we missed again at ‘thank you girl’ ang pilipinas withouth having won any award kahit pa pinuri-puri sya ni jerry springer. may mga press release pang lumabas a few days before the pageant na one of the favourites daw si jennifer barrientos na bet natin. ewan pero siguro paid scribe ng bb pilipinas charities para lang bigyan ng konting credibility yong kanilang organization that has been failing miserably to produce a winner.

so hindi tayo maka-produce ng isang beauty queen in this generation. centuries ago pa ng manalo si margie moran at gloria diaz. of late, si miriam quiambao ang medyo sinuwerte but still fell one step short of the real thing. all the others will leave manila with high hopes (jennifer even had the arrogance of announcing she’ll surely win the crown) pero pagdating sa competition, ginamit lang na pang-background at pangpuno ng malawak na stage. saka uuwi sa pinas na luhaan. and our beloved philippines become ‘just one of those’.

if we can’t compete internationally sa pagandahan, how about sa sports? well, we have manny pacquiao to be proud of. dyan, panalong-panalo tayo. kaso puro mexicano ang pinatumba ni pacman. it would be better if his crown had more international flavour to it. sana may kano, hapon, german or french na pinatumba sya. at least, talagang international ang lawak ng powers nya.

pero okey na rin kasi international recognition naman ang binigay sa kanya. yon nga lang, isa lang sya out of the 84++ million filipinos. ganon ba kadalang ang sporting talents sa ating bansa?

siguro. dahil hindi tayo maka-alagwa sa olympics. eto nga at parating na naman ang olympics sa beijing and we’re sending hundreds of athletes again pero hindi sa nagiging pessimistic ako, ilan ba dyan ang makakasungkit ng brone medals which is more realistic. silver? medyo pangarap ang dating pero achievable. gold? ay yan talaga, malapit na sa hallucination!

ayan nga at from 1 million pesos, ginawa nang 2 m ang premyo sa makakapag-uwi ng gold medal. why? eh kasi nga ganon na ka-tuyot ang pinas sa olympics.

kahit sa ibang field – like arts and sciences, walang pilipinong bumabalandra sa international scene lately. sana man lang may isang scientist, economist or academician na ma-nominate sa nobel. or a literary person na manalo ng pulitzer. sa music, may mga gumuguhit na pangalan like charice pempengco and arnel pineda pero sana may isang leah salonga ulit na magtatagal sa international music scene and win awards like she did.

sa fashion industry, nandyan sana si monique lhuiller but she is no longer a filipina. tru-blue new yorker na sya. buti na lang ang tv industry natin, nakaka-ungos sa mga international tv awards. at least pag nananalo ang kapuso, proud na rin ako. or kahit kapamilya, feel proud na rin ako as pinoy.

siguro hindi dahil sa kulang tayo sa talents. be it in sports or magagandang babae na makakalaban ng sabayan sa miss universe. ang kulang sa atin, ang pondo para mag-develop ng mga talagang winners. kasi ‘ginagawa’ ang mga winners. they don’t just grow from trees.

at para ka makagawa ng isang winner, you have to hone him/her from a very early age and develop him/her to maturity. all along, dapat suportado sya ng lahat ng bagay – material, financial and even psychological – para doon lang sya naka-focus sa dapat nyang gawin. eh paano mo mai-expect na maging isang magaling na athlete ang isang may potential kung ni pambili ng track shoes eh wala sya? paano mo madevelop ang isang potential andy warhol kung pambili man ng lang paintbrush ay wala? or isang magaling na computer kid na hindi ma-afford ang mahal na computers and gadgets? you wouldn’t expect these people to be able to finance their dreams. doon dapat papasok ang gobyerno. para tulungan ang mga talents na ito.

kaso, saan ba nanggaling ang ginamit ni leah para ma-pursue yong talent nya sa theatre? sa sariling pera nila (at least may kaya sila) plus the tulong ng peta ni zenaida amador. si manny, tinulungan ni chavit (?) at lito atienza. pero walang legitimate government program na tumulong sa kanila.

with that reality, talagang hindi tayo makaka-produce ng winners. kung walang backing ang gobyerno and the people/organizations behind, ano man ang potential na meron ang isang talent, matatabunan ng mga araw-araw na problema which is mostly rooted from the lack of funds.

at sa pinas na puro economic struggle ang inaabot, uunahin pa ba namang pondohan ang pagsali sa isang beauty contest o kaya ang training and development ng isang tennis player? syempre uunahing pondohan yong nfa rice program. o kaya yong calamity fund para sa mga nasalanta ng bagyo. at syempre, wag kalimutan ang mga bulsa ng mga opisyales na humahawak ng pera.

so you see, hindi tayo kinukulang sa talents. hindi tayo ‘lesser race’ when it comes to international competitions. ang kulang sa atin, ang pag-unlad ng economy that can support other projects that are usually relegated to the background. projects like developing talents that bring pride and joy to the country. para hindi naman puro top spot sa graft and corruption ang inaani natin.

the attack of tornadoes

half of my body is still aching from last night's adiks bowling tournament. masakit ang right hip bone ko down to my leg and my right shoulder is still passing most of the work to my left hand. buti nga hindi tumuloy yong blisters sa right thumb ko.

yan ba namang walang exercise at biglang sumabak sa two-game, twenty frames na labanan. minsan ko nga lang sinubukan yong heavier (was it 9-kg?) ball pero na-realize ko hanggang don lang ako sa lighter. and it allowed me to do a whole variety of stunts from a strike to spare, ma-kanal ang bola ko at humagis sa likod and almost hit one of the guys!

but it was one tremendously enjoyable afternoon with the adiks. thanks to orlee for sponsoring it "in honor" of his brother samuel roy (na ka-team mate ko together with raoul) and in the process blowing some serious cash from the intercon bill (for the bowling alley plus some refreshments na hindi makatarungan ang presyo) hanggang sa applebees where the awarding took place.

team tornado of ren, jun and irwin won. tinawag na tornado ni raoul dahil a week before the tourney eh panay na ang press release na super gagaling daw nila even quoting bowling greats paeng nepomuceno and bong coo as their supporters. eh sa totoo lang eh hindi pa naman nakakahawak ng bowling ball!!! true-blue adik talaga! hehehe...

but the psyching up paid off. nanalo nga sila, even beating ega's team who was leading after the first game. at kinopo pa lahat ng awards with jun winning the highest individual scorer. irwin who was getting frustrated from his many misses suddenly bounced back and even scored more than a hundred points on the second game after rolling a few strikes. ren also did a few tricks na nakaka-surprise para sa isang ngayon lang nakahawak ng bola. si ariel din was rolling a whole lot of strikes as well as ricky, matt, tito bong and rommel.

yong team namin ni raoul at roy? ah well, wala lang, basta nag-enjoy kami lahat sana maulit. but i doubt it if intercon will be happy if we'll be back for another tourney. eh halos mayanig ang buong hotel sa ingay ng mga adik!

here's a few pix from my cam and more of matt's shots on addicquotes na palagay ko eh ako pa rin ang mag-a-update!