The Comfort Rooms

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I feel a little afraid to write this post. I feel that my (political) knowledge about this thing would not even be considered extensive as to become a credible source of information. The past few weeks, major news networks have all been busy covering the recent events that connected the upcoming Beijing Olympics to all sorts of intrigues and controversies. The recent spark of events involving Tibet and Taiwan have all been centerstaged, leaving the whole world on sheer curiousity.
Tibet (here we go...) WAS an independent Buddhist nation until Communist China used will and force to put the nation into submission to its giant neighbor. Until recently, efforts to protest China's "unlawful" rule have been minimal, almost silent.
With the recent turn of events, the Free Tibet demonstrators have been using the upcoming Beijing Olympics as a vehicle to air their frustrations about the unjust colonization to their country. Deaths have also been recorded in the past few weeks. As August 8, 2008 gets nearer and nearer, expect more harsh and violent events to come.
The Tiananmen Square massacre would also be put into discussion. Many human rights victims from China would find a listening ear to all the media focus on China today. How would China react to it? On the weeks that the Olympics will be held, how will China keep all of its victims at bay? Would the government kill these people in a heartbeat? Would athletes use the medal podium to protest against China and its cruelties?
Surely, China will use the Olympics as its official baptism of fire as a World first-rate power. However, all the glitz and glamor does not guarantee China of respect, especially with looking on its human rights records. How will the Beijing Olympics respond to this? Will politics be set aside and let human rights victims tortured to shut the mouths up? What do you think about this?

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It's an American Idol post once more! Well, we're down to our final 10 and the contestants will sing one hit song from the year of their birth. After two weeks of butchering Beatles songs, this week should be a breather of sorts to the contestants.
For a few weeks now, American Idol season 7 turns out to be a Michael Johns-David Cook battle for the top spot. Johns' "We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions" and Cook's "Billie Jean" really were a class of their own. Crowd favorite Archuleta was nowhere to be found with the rendition of a John Fordham song. Others, just paled in comparison to Johns and Cook. I won't be surprised if both guys would be in the finale. And I'd tell you, that will be explosive!
Meanwhile, I thought David Cook made a better performance, so here he is with his rock cover of "Billie Jean". Enjoy!

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While taking my summer reviews for college entrance exams wayyyy back in 2000(ACET was a flunk, UPCAT was a success), Eagle-Eye Cherry was a wonderful excuse not to listen to my teachers, a great accompaniment to mastering mathematic formulas, and a cool way to keep me sane from all the things I needed to study.
His songs "Save Tonight" and "Are You Still Having Fun" were all playing on my head (ear phones were a definite no-no on our classrooms) while the whiteboard has been graffiti-fied with different formulas. Although that summer was half-good for me, I still felt it was a blast since I got to meet new friends. Eagle-Eye's music was a wonderful cure-it-all. Since then, I haven't heard much from Eagle-Eye Cherry.
Fast track to 2008, while I was on the car with my sister, her Sony mp3 played the very same songs I enjoyed some 8 summers ago. "Save Tonight" made me close my eyes as we drove along Manila's most chaotic thoroughfares. Who cares about noisy buses and jeepneys?! It was Eagle-Eye Cherry saving my night (more like early morning)!
Anyways, I'm gonna have you hear the one of my most favorite songs. It's "Save Tonight" by Eagle-Eye Cherry. Thanks!

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Allow me right now to post the most beautiful skylines my eyes have ever laid into. I'm a sucker for drool-worthy photos and when I get to see one, it can pretty much make my day a whole lot nicer.
I love looking at skyline pictures, be it panoramic, on sepia, photoshopped, or just taken from the most ordinary of all cameras. As long as it was taken from a kick-a** angle, I'm fine with it.
However, what makes a great skyline picture? For me, not too many skyscrapers in the picture is one. Night shots are better than day shots. Not too many clusters are perfect. And lastly, an element of water tops it all off! Water for me creates a balance from the glass-and-steel edifices and allows for a sense of calmness and life.
Let's get started? Here are my personal top 5 picks.

Number 5: Seattle, Washington.
It's got to be Starbucks why I put this city on my top 5 list. My eyes don't strain either everytime I look at the Seattle skyline. Elements of green, not much skyscraper clusters, tons of cafes, and the list of nice things about Seattle goes on...

Number 4:Hong Kong. I know I said that too many skyscrapers are an eyesore, but Hong Kong is an exception! The view from Victoria Harbor is just amazing, especially at night! Not to mention that Victoria Peak provides a mountaneous background to it as well!

Number 3: Chicago, Illinois. It looks so peaceful compared to its more famous brother in the East Coast. The Lake Illinois provides a peaceful touch to the Midwest skyline. And oh, the John Hancock (which is not seen here) happens to be one of my most favorite skyscrapers!

Number 2: Singapore. Lee Kuan Yew's showcase city is the definitely my top Asian skyline. It has a wonderful coordination of skycrapers, everywhere is sanitary, everything is organized, it just doesn't make me feel dizzy. Even just by looking at the skyline, I can feel even my asthma stopping.

My number one pick has got to be Sydney, Australia. Actually, everything else about the Sydney skyline is common and ordinary except for three major things. One is the Sydney Harbor. Second is the Sydney Harbor Bridge, and the lastly is the magnificent Opera House. Those three things make this skyline magical. I can spend the whole night looking at it.

Hope you liked my post. Bye!

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I will expect that in a matter of months, the tennis world will be seeing a changing of guards as to who will sit on top of the men's singles ranking. No, its not Rafael Nadal who will be replacing the Fedex, but its Novak "Nole" Djokovic of Serbia who will be replacing the legend, Roger Federer.
The man-god Federer has considerably shown a vulnerability to his game, something we have not seen since he won Wimbledon 2003, wherein his reign "virtually" started. Novak in the meanwhile, has shown so much promise, it will be hard to see him NOT get another grandslam before the year ends!
Roger is only 26. It is not that he will retire soon, I think it is time for him to lose the top ranking, something he was so good in doing for the past 5 years. It does not mean he will stop winning grand slams! Since I believe Novak is FAR from the Roger who dominated tennis from 2004 to 2007. I believe Fedex will still win one to two more Wimbledons, and at least a French Open.
I'm a big Roger Federer fan. But I think it is high time to see a changing of guards and see other men contend for tennis' highest honors!

Have a great day!

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The Top 11 finalists have performed last week on the second Beatles night of this year's American Idol. Its the first time that American Idol had the same theme in two successive nights. However, this was pretty much a continuation of what happened the past week. The finalists performed below par again.
However there were only a few performances that I managed to like. Dabid Archuleta was good, and so was my favorite David Cook. However, I felt the night belonged to Syesha Mercado. Her rendition of "Yesterday" was so vulnerable and strong. Enjoy the video!

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The whole Philippine nation would be under a spell for the next three days. We are commemorating the
Semana Santa or the Holy Week. This is a remembrance of Christ's final seven days as a mortal. Starting tomorrow (Maundy Thursday) until Saturday (Black Saturday), all the pious of the Philippines would gather together, in remembrance of the Christ's final hours.
The Good Friday has got to be the most important one, since Christ died on the cross on that day. Especially on this particular day, everyone is on a sense of reverence.
However, the coming of the Easter Sunday brings in a renewed sense of faith. Of course, Christ does not die again every Good Friday, Easter Sunday brings to everyone a remembrance that Christ is alive and can make wonders on everyone's lives.
Non-Christians could be reading my blog and I would not want to talk religion here.
May all of us Christians spend the Holy Week on the most reverent of all manners!

God bless!

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So, it can now be bragged again that the heavens smiled on Philippines once more after Pacquiao clinched the world title at the expense of another Mexican, this time Juan Manuel Marquez. I was speaking to a Mexican friend yesterday and boldly predicted that Pacquiao would win, and thank heavens, I was right.
The win was just a split decision. Meaning two of the three judges favored Manny on their scorecards. It was a very close decision! Too close to call, if I may add.
However, the way Pacquiao managed to win was far from convincing. He was a "7 out of 10" according to his mentor Freddie Roach. A few things were off coming from him. He kept on attacking Marquez's right side, which was actually a stupid decision from Pacquiao.
What happened to the boxing Boy Wonder?! He won, yeah, but there was something unimpressive with his bout. He was plain overconfident. For the first time, I thought the heavens really smiled so hard on me. You know why? The invincible demigod Pacquiao admitted it himself.
Here's the quotation from the Philippine Star:

"I became too over-confident,” Pacquiao was quoted by one of those who stayed up in the suite which had been packed by family members and friends.

“I felt I could handle his punches but I became too confident,” he added.

Reading that from the broadsheet, I thought he finally learned what keeping the feet firmly grounded really meant. Arrogance could never be mistaken for confidence! It was like comparing Andy Roddick to the Roger Federer! Great champions does not rely on excuses. They know their mistakes. They know they're not vulnerable from defeat and will someday lose. I guess Pacquiao's learning something so invaluable here. Just hoping he won't foray anymore to politics and show business!

Have a nice day!

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Call this the gayest post that I'd be making. Anyhoo, Manila has been given some hefty doses of endorphins, thanks to the newest Binibing Pilipinas winner, Janina San Miguel.
The 17 year old girl will be the country's bet for the Miss World later this year. What's the big fuss about her anyways? Apparantly, she made quite a fool of herself after creating some major suicide during the question and answer portion last Saturday. Her english and the way she answered has been repeated over and over again on Youtube and other such websites.
I watched her infamous answer only a few minutes ago and boy, I was so entertained! Watch it. Enjoy!

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I made mention a few months ago about how I hated Pacquiao and his extra-curicullar activities. His movies, congressional bid and the groupie/sl*t he rendezvoused with at the Embassy, a posh club here in Manila.
He has an upcoming fight with Juan Manuel Marquez, a Mexican (again) at the Mandalay Bay at the greatest city in the world, Las Vegas (really!). I noticed that he looks so determined to win right now. His confidence is not that over-the-top, his face looks so razor-sharp and it seems that he doesn't rush to get into the 130 lb limit.
This is the Manny Pacquiao i liked, the killer athlete who would almost always punch his way to victories (and millions). It has really been a while since he was that determined to train and prepare for a fight. I think he knows what's at stake here, a WORLD TITLE for Heaven's sake! Odds are overwhelmingly on his favor. I guess Filipinos and Americans know that Pacquiao is the better boxer between the two. And the age difference! Pacquiao's 29 while Marquez is 34.
I seriously hope he'd win this one. He's on an amazing streak against Mexicans since 2005 and it would be heartbreaking to have him lose this time. He should have noticed that more Filipinos have been turned off by his arrogance and his gullibility, if he really fights for Filipino pride, I think he should learn to be grounded. Stick to sports. Why not lobby for more millions to help the Philippine delegation for the coming Olympics of you really want to help the country?! I think you have the title on the bag already. God bless!

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Crunch time has just started on the 7th season of American Idol as the 12 remaining aspirants sang Lennon-McCartney songs a few moons ago. David Hernandez was the 13th person to go and the first to go from the top 12. All in all, it was a decent choice. He butchered I Saw Her Standing There.
There were a couple of forgettable performance, notably those from perennial favorites Mormon David Archuleta and Fil-Am Ramiel Malubay. However, there were those contestants that did justice to old Beatles favorites: like those of Brooke White (her Let It Be was amazing), Carly Smithson and Jason Castro.
How about my favorite David Cook (in picture)? His "Elanor Rigby" was great, however, I felt the night belonged to Aussie Michael Johns. His rendition of "Across the Universe" was amazing. He really didn't change things a bit and it was really good. So here's my favorite performance of the week from Michael Johns, Across the Universe. Enjoy!

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I will be writing right now just for the sake of writing.
I've been home-bound (uhm, not really) the past couple of days. its has been ten days to be exact since I started my sabbatical. I've been developing quite a green thumb the past couple of days. And I started to discover parts of our house that I never thought was there in the first place.
No, I haven't cleaned my bathroom and the tub as I have previously bragged! But I have cleaned my room already, i think twice already and by myself.
I've been exercising and all that. Mixed martial arts is what I've been doing! Although my heart skips faster whenever the thought of doing Capoeira comes into mind, I haven't done it. I'm such a loser.
I haven't let Philippine politics interfere my being. I'd let them do their own thang, although I would forever be keeping alert about the oil price, the peso-dollar rate and the stock exchange index. I just find everything in the Senate even funnier!

I'm not exactly healthy today. My stomach's been bum the past couple of hours and my abs (yeah) have been aching after a gazillion of crunches, high kicks, and turnings. The only probable culprit would be overly sweet mint chocolates an aunt recently sent us from Utah. I think I gotta go! You wouldn't wanna know what I'd be doing after writing this post!

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Check this ad on Facebook. Watch the second coming happen at the Alchemy Activities Center in Frontera Verde in Pasig City!!!!!!

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Since I started this darn thing a few weeks ago, I might as well continue doing it. The top 16 performances are crucial since they pretty much determine who's making it as one of the top 12 finalists. I still thought the girls still didn't sing that well, so I'd be having two guys again.
Starting next week, I'd be featuring the best performance of the week for me. So here are the two guy performances I liked this week. I hope you would like both performances as well.

David Cook, Hello


Michael Johns, Don't Forget About Me

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You might be wondering what the heck this is. My blog is in no freaking way a humor blog (it really is not), and that fact won't entail me from featuring this. Blogospehere is playing host to a gazillion different kinds of blogs. Some of them were entirely personal blogs (who cares if you had a Choco Mint Frappe last night?!), political blogs, parenting blogs, student blogs, travelling blogs, entertainment blogs, adult blogs, car and gadget blogs, LGBT blogs (go figure that abreviation out!), music blogs, and others, like mine, are just couldn't be put in just one category. It's like a magazine blog, a mixture of everything, except it being pornographic (puhleez).
Humor blogs are well, humorous (Now that's what I call a retarded statement). If you want something light and keep you entertained, you gotta read blogs like these.
Since the Filipino blogosphere has come up with a 10 Best Humor Blogs-thingy, I will be posting here my nominations. And oh, some of these blogs are in Filipino by the way. So here goes my nominations for Project Lafftrip Laffapalooza 2008.

My number one pick would be Fer Bert's Blog (tanginang-alien.blogspot.com). This one's outright funny yet not even pretending to be one. Why I made this my number pick is because he knows what right timing is and you know it is a person's blog. He writes of his heartbreaks and experiences yet he finds humor in them. Check the blog and you'd instanly fall in love with the critter, I mean the person!

Number two pick would be Blog ni Inday (blogniinday.com). Inday is the common term used for the Filipino househelp. We see them on Filipino houses, taking care of the house and the employer's house. She is the ultimate asking machine and knows where did you put that darn USB when you arrived home last night. On this blog, the common househelp is given a new, sophisticated character that will sure put you in amazement!

Number three pick would be Green Pinoy (greenpinoy.com). He's a classic. I love his blog. Very entertaining. Has got lots of things going on in his blog. He has the potential to go mainstream though.

I hope you find the time you visit these three blogs!

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Man, I just couldn't think of a better way to previewing my latest post by saying that this is an important one.
You see, everyone comes to a point when you wanna break free from the things you deem so normal, you get burdened by it the more you see or do it. You see, I have just put myself in a predicament wherein I would be stuck in the house for at least a month. It was not a house arrest of sorts or whatever, it was a choice.
If I could describe my present situation right now, I'm in a Personal Detoxification process. I'm breaking free from my day-to-day activities (except from school and church), and just focus on the serenity and calmness of the world around me.
Here would be a list of things that I will be doing for at least a month:
1. Practice Bikram Yoga at home.
2. Eat vegetables only from Mondays till Fridays.
3. Go sparring.
4. Blog much more minimally this time, only for a month.
5. Finish off at least 2 books.
6. Daily clean my room and my bathroom (especially the tub!).
7. Regularly visit the Manila Temple for my rejuvenation.
8. Play the piano as a means of cleansing.
9. Minimal Internet use (hmmm, lemme think about that one more time!).
10. Go with the flow of the elements around me.

And oh, please do visit my blog regularly even if I'd be on a month-long sabbatical. Maybe I'd be posting only 3 times a week this time. And oh, I'm NEVER online on Sundays.

Peace out and much love, i really do!

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A friend of mine from the only girl's school within the Quezon City university belt invited me over to their little Fete dela musique. No, it was not THE fete dela musique that everybody knows of, it was just a small party wherein unknown bands get to show their wares to music aficionados and to screaming ladies as well.
There was this particular start-up band called Right Foot and they were playing a punk/ska fusion and I was all dancing to the music. Out of all the bands that played, I thought they stood out! They weren't pop-ish! I thought I was listening to Arctic Monkeys. I know they were playing the music of a startup punk Pinoy band that I got to listen to a few weeks ago. I knew the name of the original band had something to do with heroes, and I just can't get the song out of my head right that moment Right Foot played it.
I was telling another friend (I had like 20 or so friends in that li'l fete dela musique) that I liked the band so much. She knew some of the members of the band. She even told me that the drummer was the little brother of a friend of mine I got to know during our art activities within the Katipunan area. Anyways, to make the long and boring story short, I got to chat with the band and told them they were amazing. They even added that they were supposed to add my favorite Santeria on their playlist but they were only allowed to play only a few number of songs. Hearing them play Santeria could have made my whole week much better!

Here's the song (too bad, I was too engrossed with their song that I forgot to video the first half of it! So i just pasted in here the original version of this song that was originally sung by Nameless Heroes called Room 306).