World Music, Arts & Dance 2005
Sunday, August 28, 2005
Womad Weekend Revelries
Sunday night...Chugging away in the study with some take home work. Looks like no sleep tonight but Womad was so-oooo worth it! Will report on the weekend's revelries when I can breathe. Have a great week!
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
My Alcohoroscope
| Your Aquarius Drinking Style |
 You have an innate tendency toward know-it-allism, and if you get an idea while sizzled, you're more stubborn than a stain or a stone. If you're throwing a party or organizing an outing, however, you're too preoccupied with their duties to get combative -- and you make perfectly charming drunks in that case. Fortunately, you're usually capital drink-nursers. You also make the best-designated drivers (if people can get you before you start raising your wrist). You are fascinated by drunken people and capable of holding interesting conversations with soused strangers while sober. |
| Your Signature Cocktails |
| Aquarius is likely to order stuff most people have never heard of: a capirinha, Satan's whiskers, a negroni, an Arthur Tompkins. You like to stump the bartender. This sign rules the color electric blue, and you would be pleased by any tipple featuring blue curacao. You also rule the olive tree, so pour the juice into that dirty martini. |
| Your Celebrity Drinking Buddies |
| Paris Hilton, Jennifer Aniston, Ellen DeGeneres, Dr. Dre, Ashton Kutcher, Christina Ricci, Justin Timberlake, and Elijah Wood. |
Sunday, August 14, 2005
Do Not Be Afraid of Time
This is dedicated to a fellow journeymate V.
My darling friend V just came from a lovely Boracay holiday. In reflecting on the beauty and perfection that is Boracay and the inevitable contrast to the imported sands of man-made Sentosa beach, she had this to say, "how vastly superior are those that God had molded in His time than those rushed and created by man" and then the great whopper: "Do not be afraid of time."
I must admit I have always feared the passing of time. I am a woman and in a society that values youth and beauty and which tells me that I have a "shelf life" age seems to be an important number.
But I love being where I am NOW. I love the fact that with the passing of time I have become a better version of me. With the passing of time, I have become more comfortable in my own skin, I have lesser angsts, I have a better understanding of what is important, and a better understanding of myself. I love the fact that time has whittled away my pretensions and prejudices, that in fact, the passing of time itself has taught me to appreciate things I would have otherwise taken for granted. There have been so many beautiful moments in my life and beautiful people I have shared them with: a meaningful late night conversation with a good friend, a chance encounter on a train with an old lady with a lovely spirit, the spontaneous playfulness of the 3-year old girl in my old flat, a beautiful sunset in Batanes (the sun changed colors every few minutes as it dropped into the horizon), waking up in Tagaytay to a beautiful morning fog with the scent of the coffee flowers from the nearby plantation, joining my mom and dad for their almost weekly movie date (I loved walking behind them and watching them hold hands), and lying on the beach while counting the stars. There have been many ugly moments in my life as well: two surprise operations, the usual drama that every family has, betrayal, greed, loneliness, anger, vengefulness, and pain. These have all taken up time. These have added flavor to who I am. I am the adobo that has been put in the freezer and which tastes better than when it was first cooked.
In short, time has improved me. Why then have I been giving it such a bad rap? Youth has its advantages but I would not want to go back in time. I love what I am now. I love who I am now. Time has created a new and improved me. Imagine how much better I'll be given a couple of more years! I even feel so much better now than before. I don't think I've ever looked this good in my life. Dudes, look at how good Brad Pitt looks and he just hit 40!
Time has taught me to value people and experiences. The passing of time has helped me to focus on living in the present. Every day is unique and cannot be replicated. Focusing on the present helps me be a better person because I am accountable for that moment. I make sure that I make the most of that moment, that I give the best that I can to that moment. Then I go home, process it a bit, then let it go. There is a time to walk down memory lane, there is a time to plan for the future, but the way to live life is in the present. Time is the vintage maker, it seeks to turn what it touches eventually into gold. Hmmm, is this why the senior years are called the golden years? Well then, cheers to the golden years and may time turn you into gold!
My darling friend V just came from a lovely Boracay holiday. In reflecting on the beauty and perfection that is Boracay and the inevitable contrast to the imported sands of man-made Sentosa beach, she had this to say, "how vastly superior are those that God had molded in His time than those rushed and created by man" and then the great whopper: "Do not be afraid of time."
I must admit I have always feared the passing of time. I am a woman and in a society that values youth and beauty and which tells me that I have a "shelf life" age seems to be an important number.
But I love being where I am NOW. I love the fact that with the passing of time I have become a better version of me. With the passing of time, I have become more comfortable in my own skin, I have lesser angsts, I have a better understanding of what is important, and a better understanding of myself. I love the fact that time has whittled away my pretensions and prejudices, that in fact, the passing of time itself has taught me to appreciate things I would have otherwise taken for granted. There have been so many beautiful moments in my life and beautiful people I have shared them with: a meaningful late night conversation with a good friend, a chance encounter on a train with an old lady with a lovely spirit, the spontaneous playfulness of the 3-year old girl in my old flat, a beautiful sunset in Batanes (the sun changed colors every few minutes as it dropped into the horizon), waking up in Tagaytay to a beautiful morning fog with the scent of the coffee flowers from the nearby plantation, joining my mom and dad for their almost weekly movie date (I loved walking behind them and watching them hold hands), and lying on the beach while counting the stars. There have been many ugly moments in my life as well: two surprise operations, the usual drama that every family has, betrayal, greed, loneliness, anger, vengefulness, and pain. These have all taken up time. These have added flavor to who I am. I am the adobo that has been put in the freezer and which tastes better than when it was first cooked.
In short, time has improved me. Why then have I been giving it such a bad rap? Youth has its advantages but I would not want to go back in time. I love what I am now. I love who I am now. Time has created a new and improved me. Imagine how much better I'll be given a couple of more years! I even feel so much better now than before. I don't think I've ever looked this good in my life. Dudes, look at how good Brad Pitt looks and he just hit 40!
Time has taught me to value people and experiences. The passing of time has helped me to focus on living in the present. Every day is unique and cannot be replicated. Focusing on the present helps me be a better person because I am accountable for that moment. I make sure that I make the most of that moment, that I give the best that I can to that moment. Then I go home, process it a bit, then let it go. There is a time to walk down memory lane, there is a time to plan for the future, but the way to live life is in the present. Time is the vintage maker, it seeks to turn what it touches eventually into gold. Hmmm, is this why the senior years are called the golden years? Well then, cheers to the golden years and may time turn you into gold!
Sunday, August 07, 2005
A Letter of Hope
I received two lovely letters over the weekend. Okay, I will admit they were emails but calling them letters just sounds so poetic. Both were from people I consider to be dear friends. One was a letter thanking me for my friendship. The other one is a bit harder to classify. You could call it a love letter or a letter of admiration. I call it a letter of hope and for that I admire the honesty and courage of the person who wrote it.
I prefer to think of it as a letter of hope because of the lovely words that were used to convey the hope that the sense of "belonging" that this person felt was shared.
Most of us go through life with an innate yearning for another, a special someone, a person we have hand-picked from the mass of humanity whom we choose to belong to. In the movie, Shall We Dance, in response to a question about why people get married, Susan Sarandon's character says: "Because we need a witness to our lives. There's a billion people on the planet. What does any one life really mean? In a marriage, you're promising to care about everything. The good things. The bad things. The terrible things. The mundane things. All of it. All the time. Every day. You're saying your life will not go unnoticed, because I will notice it. Your life will not go unwitnessed, because I will be your witness."
I was touched by the words of my friend's letter - by the yearning to belong to something and someone, as opposed to "belonging to nothing and nobody." I have known this yearning. I claim this yearning. The honesty with which it was conveyed moved me beyond words. Here was someone who was laying his feelings on the line at the risk of rejection. Here was someone hoping that the sense of belonging was shared. I was touched by the courage with which these words were written. The courage is not so much in the risk of rejection (although I'm sure many will disagree with me). The courage is in sharing with me how the mere fact of my presence beside him made him feel like he belonged. The vulnerability of sharing this commands nothing but my highest respect. It is not the faint of heart who will admit to these feelings which are hard to pin down in the real world.
It is with an ache in my heart that I read these words. The tragedy is that there are degrees of connections and layers of belongingness. What if your mind is miles away? What if your heart has not thawed? What if the chemistry of a previous relationship has left you extremely cautious about jumping into another one? What if the sense of connection and belongingness that you feel is not quite the same as his? What if...you just love this person as a (gasp, do I really have to use "F" word) friend?
I am praying that I will be able to act with honor, that I will be able to do whatever I have to do in a loving way. We who have known pain, do not want to cause it unnecessarily. I know I will have to accept that, regardless of anything I do, I will cause this person some hurt. I hope that belonging to the circle of people I call friends will be enough. That is all I can share for now. That is all I can give. But I give it fully, sincerely, lovingly and honestly. I hope my counter-offer of true friendship will be accepted.
I believe the most important decision in life is a person's choice of God. The next most important, is the choice of a partner in life. I pray, dear reader, that you will be led to God's Perfect Choice (GPC) for you. I still believe in this. I pray that He will lead my GPC to me. In the meantime, I am trying to live with kindness. In all that I do, I try to choose the loving way.
It isn't always this serious. Life has actually been hilarious lately. But this strange turn of events in my personal life was just too close to my heart to be left unexamined. Have a lovely week my dears. May you view chance encounters as an opportunity to do something totally fantastic and unexpected for someone. I truly believe we should not wait for miracles to happen, but be miracle workers and angels for other people. My next entry (unless something weird happens in the meantime) will be a hodge-podge: office printers which have names, pantry ladies who talk in half-Chinese and half-English, cab drivers who play matchmaker (a.k.a. pimp), clubs that get busted by the authorities after midnight while you are having a night on the town with friends, guys who want to take your picture while you're chilling in Indochine, and whether a gecko is the same as a lizard. 'Til the next adventure!
I prefer to think of it as a letter of hope because of the lovely words that were used to convey the hope that the sense of "belonging" that this person felt was shared.
Most of us go through life with an innate yearning for another, a special someone, a person we have hand-picked from the mass of humanity whom we choose to belong to. In the movie, Shall We Dance, in response to a question about why people get married, Susan Sarandon's character says: "Because we need a witness to our lives. There's a billion people on the planet. What does any one life really mean? In a marriage, you're promising to care about everything. The good things. The bad things. The terrible things. The mundane things. All of it. All the time. Every day. You're saying your life will not go unnoticed, because I will notice it. Your life will not go unwitnessed, because I will be your witness."
I was touched by the words of my friend's letter - by the yearning to belong to something and someone, as opposed to "belonging to nothing and nobody." I have known this yearning. I claim this yearning. The honesty with which it was conveyed moved me beyond words. Here was someone who was laying his feelings on the line at the risk of rejection. Here was someone hoping that the sense of belonging was shared. I was touched by the courage with which these words were written. The courage is not so much in the risk of rejection (although I'm sure many will disagree with me). The courage is in sharing with me how the mere fact of my presence beside him made him feel like he belonged. The vulnerability of sharing this commands nothing but my highest respect. It is not the faint of heart who will admit to these feelings which are hard to pin down in the real world.
It is with an ache in my heart that I read these words. The tragedy is that there are degrees of connections and layers of belongingness. What if your mind is miles away? What if your heart has not thawed? What if the chemistry of a previous relationship has left you extremely cautious about jumping into another one? What if the sense of connection and belongingness that you feel is not quite the same as his? What if...you just love this person as a (gasp, do I really have to use "F" word) friend?
I am praying that I will be able to act with honor, that I will be able to do whatever I have to do in a loving way. We who have known pain, do not want to cause it unnecessarily. I know I will have to accept that, regardless of anything I do, I will cause this person some hurt. I hope that belonging to the circle of people I call friends will be enough. That is all I can share for now. That is all I can give. But I give it fully, sincerely, lovingly and honestly. I hope my counter-offer of true friendship will be accepted.
I believe the most important decision in life is a person's choice of God. The next most important, is the choice of a partner in life. I pray, dear reader, that you will be led to God's Perfect Choice (GPC) for you. I still believe in this. I pray that He will lead my GPC to me. In the meantime, I am trying to live with kindness. In all that I do, I try to choose the loving way.
It isn't always this serious. Life has actually been hilarious lately. But this strange turn of events in my personal life was just too close to my heart to be left unexamined. Have a lovely week my dears. May you view chance encounters as an opportunity to do something totally fantastic and unexpected for someone. I truly believe we should not wait for miracles to happen, but be miracle workers and angels for other people. My next entry (unless something weird happens in the meantime) will be a hodge-podge: office printers which have names, pantry ladies who talk in half-Chinese and half-English, cab drivers who play matchmaker (a.k.a. pimp), clubs that get busted by the authorities after midnight while you are having a night on the town with friends, guys who want to take your picture while you're chilling in Indochine, and whether a gecko is the same as a lizard. 'Til the next adventure!
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
I've been tagged!
Three names you go by:
Ahem, trying to maintain my semi-anonymity here.
Three screen names you have had:
1. prata princess
2. ________bear (my real name in blank)
3. kris aquino
Three physical things you like about yourself:
1. eyes - they sparkle
2. legs - because they take me where I want to go
3. boobs - sobrang asset to sa Singapore!
Three physical things you don't like about yourself:
1. nose - because I lost in the gene pool and my glasses keep sliding off
2. tummy - i will always have love handles
3. thighs - enuff said
Three parts of your heritage: (Aside from the obvious Filipino bloodline?)
1. Chinese
2. Spanish
3. God knows what else
Three things that scare you:
1. Failure
2. Falling in love
3. Death in the family
Three of your everyday essentials:
1. Makeup
2. Eye drops
3. Ear plugs so I can work without distractions
Three of your favorite musical artists:
1. U2
2. The Broadway cast of Rent
3. Jobim
Three of your favorite songs:
1. Stuck in a Moment - U2
2. Seasons of Love - from Rent
3. Agua di Beber - Jobim
Three things you want in a relationship:
1. Trust
2. Maturity
3. Independence
Three lies and truths in no particular order:
[LIES]
1. Everybody loves you.
2. Life is fair.
3. You complete me.
[TRUTH]
1. Only half the people you love, love you back.
2. Life is what you make of it.
3. God completes us.
Three physical things about the opposite sex that appeals to you:
1. Must smell yummy.
2. Abs.
3. Broad shoulders.
Three of your favorite hobbies:
1. Dancing
2. Singing
3. Biblia
Three things you want to do really badly now:
1. go to Europe
2. learn a magic trick
3. build a house for a needy but deserving family in the Philippines
Three careers you're considering/you've considered:
1. Singer
2. Photojournalist
3. Tai-tai
Three places you want to go on vacation:
1. Spain
2. France
3. US
Three kid's names you like:
1. Nina Patricia
2. Martin
3. Azure
Three things you want to do before you die:
1. Be found by and fall in love with my GPC (God's Perfect Choice)
2. Build a house for a needy but deserving family in the Philippines.
3. Discern and fulfill my God-given mission.
Three ways that you are stereotypically a boy (if I were a boy):
1. I can be retarded and clueless sometimes.
2. I am insensitive.
3. Physical attraction is very important to me.
Three ways that you are stereotypically a girl:
1. I'm addicted to cosmetics
2. I'm touchy-feely, verging on being a group-hug type.
3. I'm very, very forgiving.
Three celeb crushes:
1. David Beckham
2. Brad Pitt
3. Pierce Brosnan
Three people I'm Tagging:
1. Party Princess
2. Nakanamamboogie
3. Litotes
Ahem, trying to maintain my semi-anonymity here.
Three screen names you have had:
1. prata princess
2. ________bear (my real name in blank)
3. kris aquino
Three physical things you like about yourself:
1. eyes - they sparkle
2. legs - because they take me where I want to go
3. boobs - sobrang asset to sa Singapore!
Three physical things you don't like about yourself:
1. nose - because I lost in the gene pool and my glasses keep sliding off
2. tummy - i will always have love handles
3. thighs - enuff said
Three parts of your heritage: (Aside from the obvious Filipino bloodline?)
1. Chinese
2. Spanish
3. God knows what else
Three things that scare you:
1. Failure
2. Falling in love
3. Death in the family
Three of your everyday essentials:
1. Makeup
2. Eye drops
3. Ear plugs so I can work without distractions
Three of your favorite musical artists:
1. U2
2. The Broadway cast of Rent
3. Jobim
Three of your favorite songs:
1. Stuck in a Moment - U2
2. Seasons of Love - from Rent
3. Agua di Beber - Jobim
Three things you want in a relationship:
1. Trust
2. Maturity
3. Independence
Three lies and truths in no particular order:
[LIES]
1. Everybody loves you.
2. Life is fair.
3. You complete me.
[TRUTH]
1. Only half the people you love, love you back.
2. Life is what you make of it.
3. God completes us.
Three physical things about the opposite sex that appeals to you:
1. Must smell yummy.
2. Abs.
3. Broad shoulders.
Three of your favorite hobbies:
1. Dancing
2. Singing
3. Biblia
Three things you want to do really badly now:
1. go to Europe
2. learn a magic trick
3. build a house for a needy but deserving family in the Philippines
Three careers you're considering/you've considered:
1. Singer
2. Photojournalist
3. Tai-tai
Three places you want to go on vacation:
1. Spain
2. France
3. US
Three kid's names you like:
1. Nina Patricia
2. Martin
3. Azure
Three things you want to do before you die:
1. Be found by and fall in love with my GPC (God's Perfect Choice)
2. Build a house for a needy but deserving family in the Philippines.
3. Discern and fulfill my God-given mission.
Three ways that you are stereotypically a boy (if I were a boy):
1. I can be retarded and clueless sometimes.
2. I am insensitive.
3. Physical attraction is very important to me.
Three ways that you are stereotypically a girl:
1. I'm addicted to cosmetics
2. I'm touchy-feely, verging on being a group-hug type.
3. I'm very, very forgiving.
Three celeb crushes:
1. David Beckham
2. Brad Pitt
3. Pierce Brosnan
Three people I'm Tagging:
1. Party Princess
2. Nakanamamboogie
3. Litotes
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