good ideas do not have to be yoursa few days ago i came across a book review, which i did not even read entirely. the book was 31 songs by nick hornby.
really bugged about whether to tell that someone how you feel? maybe this is one piece of advice you won't imagine i'll ever tell. maybe.another one of my finds.
keeping close watch on fanfiction.net does have some rewards. everything i had to say in the matter has already been said, and anything i am yet to say is just a rehash. so once again, i'll let someone else speak for me.
thanks to robyn (fanfic addiction) for allowing me to lift her creation from the ff archives, for being such a good sport, and for being a kindred spirit.
Go For It Dear Readers, I think that if you're head over heels for someone and you don't think they'd ever like you, or you're way too shy to tell them how you feel, you're basically slapping life in the face. If you ever want to be happy you have to take a few chances. Secondly, so what if it doesn't end well? So what? Would you rather, honestly, want to be with someone for years and then just give up once you're so sick and tired of feeling incomplete? What kind of life is that? And what if, by some unseen force, that person (even though you think nothing will ever happen) likes you too? Maybe even loves you? Maybe loves you so much that they'd do anything to be with you but doesn't feel like they can tell you? You’d waste years of your life that you could be spending with that person only to find out something could've been that wasn't. And what if they give up before they get the chance with you? Or what if you give up? What if one of you marries someone else and then you realize years later what could have been? How would you feel? I know after reading this you'll still be pessimistic and think like I don't want you to think and feel how you probably shouldn't be feeling, but you need to understand that you will never be happy unless you take the risks that could change your life. If you don't, you will be extremely sorry in the long run. I can promise you that. All I can say is that if someone has a feeling, any feeling, it's valid and worth hearing. I know if I was on the receiving end of one of those crushes or whatever you'd like to call them, no matter who it may be, I will not under any circumstances be one of those people who dismiss others and rejects them without considering how they feel. Any feeling is valid. I hope reading this wasn't a waste of your time, but I just had to get this off my chest. Maybe you'll re-evaluate your life and how much happiness means to you. I know it's hard, I’m not saying it isn't. But I don't think I could ever live with myself if I didn't allow myself to feel something or say something I should have felt or should have said, but never did.
the movie marathon, part deuxpride and prejudice (2005)
this book by jane austen was a breakthrough in english literature, with enviable status as a universally acknowledged classic and permeating influence in pop culture. but in spite of its impressive credentials, it became one of my ultra-favorite books simply because of the story.
fast forward 2005: there's a pretty convoluted back story here. the british broadcasting company produced a television mini-series on this book which was shown in 1995. the lead role of mr darcy was played by pre-shakespeare in love colin firth, which caused all of the female british population to fall in love with him. i'm not sure if this mini-series is still playing on lifestyle network, i was just reminded by my friend so i'll have to check it out. a few years later, helen fielding began writing a newspaper column that told the story of a fictional publishing assistant named bridget. one of her love interests is the reserved barrister named mark darcy. in one interview, helen revealed that mark darcy was actually based on colin firth's portrayal of mr darcy, so when bridget jones's diary was made into film, she didn't want anyone else but colin to play mark. now colin and bridget co-star hugh grant starred in another richard curtis screenplay called love actually, along with many other popular british actors. this included hot young actress keira knightley, who now plays the protagonist elizabeth bennet in the 2005 film adaptation of pride and prejudice.
i didn't see this film in the theatre. i actually bought a dvd copy from my friendly office pirata, something i don't do often (honest!), because i was so excited about this movie. i finally watched it when i was on sick leave. it ran 2 hours but then the book really was long-winding, and considering the previous version was a mini-series this is a pretty good abridgement.
in case you're unaware of the story, here it is in a nutshell. elizabeth is the second of five daughters of a not-so-rich family in victorian england. one of the peculiar customs of the time (also a pivotal theme in jane austen's sense and sensibility) is that a family's titles and estate can only be passed down to a male descendant. in absence of a male son, it goes entirely to the nearest male relative. because of this law, none of mr bennet's five daughters will receive any income when mr bennet dies, so the mother is hard pressed to contract advantageous marriages for her daughters so that they (especially the mother) will live comfortably without the bennet estate. enter mr bingley, the new kid in town, nice and genial and moneyed to boot. so mother bennet schemes to get him paired with eldest daughter jane, the beauty of the family. meanwhile, bookworm lizzie had a few verbal tussles with bingley's friend, the older and more remote (but also tons richer) mr darcy. despite all appearances, nothing was settled between jane and bingley, and lizzie discovers afterward that darcy was the culprit. but surprise, surprise! darcy declares love (albeit unwilling) for our heroine, which she did not accept (hello! like, where in hell did that come from?).
a few months later, lizzie went on a sightseeing trip with her favorite aunt and uncle, and they ended up in mr darcy's home town. they inevitably crossed paths with darcy, and lizzie discovered a different side to her erstwhile nemesis. however the idyllic reunion was cut short when lizzie's ditzy sister (in other words, talandi) ran off with a british officer, remotely related to darcy. because of the scandal, the family had to come after the lovers so lizzie had to go home. it was all settled eventually, but lizzie learned later that mr darcy had plenty to do with it -- again, surprise, surprise. is this the straw that broke the camel's back... err, that finally turned lizzie around? it's not that hard to guess how it ended, especially if you know that this is a romance story. extra snaps for guessing who between lizzie and jane got her happy ending first. (whew! nutshell, huh?)
so, besides keira's academy award nomination, what makes this film special? first off, two names: donald sutherland and dame judi dench. i was like, whoa. dame judi's take on lady catherine de bourgh is quite reminiscent of her queen elizabeth I on shakespeare in love (geez, another connection! the british film industry is starting to look like an advert for 6 degrees). except that lady catherine is a selfish snob, so expect a darker portrayal here. meanwhile, i loved donald as the absentminded (spaced out and deadma comes to mind) patriarch. compared to the straight-out snobbish lady catherine or the materialistic and social climbing mrs bennet, his character is actually a complex one: he is a caring father but rather self-absorbed. while he doesn't care much for social niceties, to the endless frustration of his wife, he prefers to leave the parenting to his wife's suspect capabilities. his hands-off policy is partly to blame for some of his girls' mishaps, but he can be roused from apathy when his favorite daughter lizzie is concerned. donald managed to pull off an endearing performance, and he hit on the right amount of humor at the final scene.
i also liked how the movie provided visual narration for the period. most films and tv series set in the regency or victorian period depicted either a rigid formality or, on the opposite end of the spectrum, a brazen wantonness of behavior, which often turns the viewers off. this movie offered a more relaxed and laid-back visual, from the costumes to the furniture. even shakespeare in love, with the ruffled shirts and so much bling, seemed too stiff in comparison. maybe there really is a difference in the era, or the locale, but the setting of pride and prejudice was easier to relate to.
most of all, the movie remained faithful to the material. there are some minor variations, in order to retain its brevity, because jane austen has the tendency to describe in minute detail. some changes were made for more visual impact, but this is minimal. as a concise version of the novel, the movie was a success. in fact, it succeeded in creating more interest to the novel, because it showcased the beauty of the plot that made it a classic. being a fan of the novel, i loved it even more because of the movie. and in that respect, it is a winner in its own right.
last hurrah: the end credits of the film mentioned emma thompson, who actually had a hand in revising the screenplay. a few years back, she won the oscar for her screenplay adaptation of jane austen's second most popular novel (at least in my opinion), sense and sensibility. this is also one of my favorite films, and i could see that the stories were similar which necessitated the similar storytelling. now this is where it gets freaky. the heroine elinor was played by emma, her beau edward by hugh grant, and her future brother-in-law colonel brandon by alan rickman. the three were also directly related in love actually, though this time emma and hugh played siblings while alan was the straying husband. the role of elinor's mother went to gemma jones, who also played bridget jones' mum! and here's more: dame judi dench, colin firth and tom wilkinson were in both shakespeare in love and the importance of being earnest; tom wilkinson played mr dashwood (elinor's father) in sense and sensibility; rosamund pike, who played jane bennet, is the traitorous mi6 agent (and m's pet) on die another day; tom hollander (mr collins on pride) is keira's co-star in the pirates of the carribean sequels; and emma, colin and thomas sangster (the orphaned son in love actually) are all in emma's movie nanny mcphee. if i get all the six-degrees stuff in here (and there’s more, which i’ll spare you from) i'll never get done.
(next: big momma is resurrected)
three in a week ain't badafter a few months of acting the social recluse, i managed to see a whopping 3 films in a span of one week. that's what you get when you find you're suddenly free one afternoon, kesehodang state of emergency pa yan.
syriana
as rumors of coup d' etat flourish that friday morning, so did these two magic words: "half day". finally, by virtue of the celebration disguised as rally (or is it the other way around?) on ayala scheduled at 3 pm, my boss finally made the much awaited announcement right after lunch. i was constantly on the phone with an old work colleague that morning, keeping tabs on the situation, and she called me back asking if i wanted to hang out that afternoon. i wasn't much worried about getting stuck at glorietta so we agreed to kill time at the cinema. because of time constraints, we narrowed down our choices to brokeback mountain and syriana -- ruby didn't seem to care for comedy that day.
we got in the theater only a bit late, so the movie was already starting. as it progressed, the confusion only increased. it became apparent that a) there were many stories going on, b) they were connected somewhat, and c) it was not pretty. since we won't understand the whole picture right there and then, we concerned ourselves with the trivial details instead. like, 1) george clooney really looked old; 2) oh, so there's the missing missile; 3) who the hell is that auditor conniving with now?; 4) galeng naman mag-target nung stealth missile.
i was happy when george clooney won the best supporting oscar. it's probably just makeup, but it took a second look for me to recognize him. but more than that, there was no sign of the swagger indicative of his early acting -- if you remember him as doug ross on er, you’ll know what i'm talking about. in that respect, he was bob, not george clooney playing bob. but i gotta tell you, i can't vouch for his acting in the torture scene because i refused to watch it.
in the same way, i also liked matt damon. i always think of him as a young man, like in the talented mr. ripley, so when i see him playing more mature roles i'm always surprised. but he was credible as a married man in this film, so kudos to him.
the story (or stories) is interesting, though a bit difficult to comprehend entirely. it's scary how one company's influence reaches far and wide, with drastic impact on so many people. now i realize that some groups can't be blamed for being suspicious of trade policies and political lobbies, if the effect is this widespread and detrimental. it makes me wonder if the filmmakers are activists or anti-capitalists, because they presented a very unflattering view of uncle sam’s corporate practices and covert government operations. i was left with a better understanding of conspiracy than all the spy movies i've ever seen.
the following week, i read a review of the film and found i wasn't alone in being messed up with the story. however, the review did shed some light on most of the movie. like, why in hell was the film named syriana, when it wasn't set in syria? i guess i missed the part where they explained that bit, or as the review intimated, the information wasn't in there to begin with. so, in other words, this is a film that you can't understand completely on first try. but i'm not really sure if i wanted to see it again, because the bad guys won this time round. much like how it happens in real life.
(next: six degrees below zero, or just how many good british actors are there?)
i was having a bad day and this came out. maybe i just needed to get it out of my system. or maybe i needed to see how petty i am about this.
last month, inaya ko yung lunchmate ko sa office na mag-starbucks sa kabilang building. meron kasi akong coupon noon ng "treat-a-friend to a marshmallow mocha" eh sayang naman kung di ko magagamit di ba? kaya ayun, after namin kainin yung mga baon naming lunch eh lumabas kami para makapag-lakad-lakad naman.
nung nakahanap na kami ng upuan (office building yon kaya mabenta sya pag lunch break), shempre kuwentuhan muna. ewan ko ba pano napunta yung usapan sa mga lakad, basta nagkagulatan na lang kami na halos pareho pala kami ng sitwasyon. yup, bukod sa pareho kaming 27 at never pang nagka-boyfriend (hah kala ko ako lang), nai-ugat namin ito dahil sa ugali ng pamilya namin. yup, pareho kaming ulirang anak na takusa.
hindi ko naman sinasabi na bahay lang kami. hindi naman kami pinagbabawalan talaga lumabas, na parang si rapunzel na nakakulong lang sa tore. tulad nya, me kotse naman sya at ok lang magpagabi sya ng uwi. ako naman, nung dito pa ako nakatira sa manila pinapayagan naman akong magpalipas dito ng friday at sa sabado na lang uuwi. o kaya kung me tatagpuin akong kaibigan after office, ok rin lang. pero sa kabila nito, parang hirap na hirap kami (for lack of a better description) na magpaalam pag me lakad.
kunyari nung high school. isa sa mga tandang-tanda ko noon eh yung para akong nagtatago at nakikipagsapalaran pag kasama ko yung mga kabarkada ko. kahit ginagabi akong umuwi dahil sa glee club, pag inabot ako ng 5.45 na nakikipagkwentuhan lang sa grounds eh kung anu-ano na ang naiisip kong sermon sa kin. ewan ko nga kung bakit nagagawa nung ibang bata non na mag-overnight eh, samantalang ako sobrang kinukonsyensya.
at hindi natapos sa high school yon. lalo na po nung college, para tuloy lagi akong labas sa mga usapan dahil hindi ako basta makagimik. inggit na inggit ako sa mga ka-org ko na sobrang mag-bonding, palibhasa malayo sila sa magulang nila. buti nga pinayagan pa kong mag-org eh. pero nung minsang mag-sem ender kami sa calatagan, may narinig ako later on na na-realize ko hindi pala sila whole-hearted na payag. hah! non ko nga lang ginawa yon eh, me kasama pa nga kaming mga prof at pamilyadong brod at sis. tapos na nga exams ko non, looking forward to summer practicum na. kainis di ba.
maalala ko yang practicum na yan. nong nag-fill out ako ng UPCAT form, tinanong ko yung nanay ko kung ano'ng first choice ko, kung diliman tapos lb, or lb tapos visayas. although nung time na yon, desidido talaga ako na mag-lb kasi desidido na rin ako sa applied math. hindi naman sa pagmamayabang, pero kung pinili ko siguro mag ECE sa diliman noon eh papasa rin pala ang UPG ko. shempre gusto ko rin maniguro di ba, me mga batchmate nga ako nag-visayas ng 1 year tapos tsaka bumalik ng lb. sabi ba naman sakin, wag na daw ako mag-2nd choice! at eto pa, papayagan lang daw nila ako mag-diliman kunyari kung 1-2 sems lang or summer. ayun, nangyari nga practicum lang ako nakaranas mag-boarding house. dun pa sa kaopisina ng nanay ko.
naalala ko yung laging tanong sa kin nung isang bestfriend ko nung di pa kami madalas magkita. pag kinakamusta nya yung lovelife ko at sasabihin kong "ganun pa rin," aba, mega react sha. bakit? wala ka bang nakikilala? wala ba sa opisina nyo? ok ka naman ah, blah blah blah. haaaay, sa totoo lang nakakarindi! e pano ba ako magkaka-love life, opisina-bahay lang ako nun. hindi ako niyayaya gumimik ng mga kaopisina ko dahil mahirap umuwi, malayo. yung mga barkada ko rin, kailangan planado kung kanino ako makikitulog. pano ka naman magiging close sa mga tao nyan, o kaya makakilala ng ibang tao? kaya tuloy nung nag-dorm ako dito sa manila, hanap ako ng hanap ng gimik.
e ngayon. matapos kong mag-enjoy ng tatlong taon dito sa manila, balik na naman ako sa bahay namin. pahirapan na naman. buti nga ngayon 9 na ang last trip sa landmark, at least pwede naman akong mag-dinner man lang. pag nahuli pa rin, antayin ko na yung 10.30 galing sa cubao. pero sa totoo lang, nakakapagod rin yon. at shempre, nakakatakot. kung kasabay ko naman yung tita ko, mamadaliin naman akong umuwi kasi nakikisabay lang ako. kaya nga madalas nagpapaiwan na lang ako kasi nakakasawa rin masermunan pag napag-aantay ko sila.
so ano bang point nito? wala, nagrereklamo lang ako. kung tutuusin, napaka-petty lang naman ng reklamo ko eh. hindi naman talaga tayo nabuhay para gumimik araw-araw di ba. kaya lang shempre, kung ano yung wala sa yo yun ang lagi mong hinahanap. eh ako pa naman, parang sobrang sensitive ako pag pinag-usapan yung pagkakaroon ng barkada. basta maramdaman ko na hindi ako "in", sobrang apektado ako. kaya tuloy pag di ako nakakasama sa mga lakad, or pipiliin ko na lang na huwag sumama, umaabot talaga sa point na masama ang loob ko.
minsan tuloy naiisip ko hanggang kailan ako susunod sa pamilya ko. sa ngayon, me katwiran naman talaga kasi dependent pa rin ako sa kanila. tsaka dahil na rin sa pagmamahal ko sa kanila, hinahayaan ko rin na masunod ko ang gusto nila. lalo na ngayon, ginusto ko rin na umuwi na sa bahay kasi ayoko dumating yung araw na magsisisi ako na hindi ko napagsilbihan yung lola ko. marami na akong naging desisyon na dahil sa pamilya. ganon naman talaga di ba? madalas nga, yung mga simpleng bagay di ko na pinaaabot pa sa kanila. ako na mismo ang nagse-censor ng ano pa ang makakarating sa kanila.
pero sa totoo lang, ang hirap matutong maging independent pag lahat ng tao me pakialam sa yo.
i'm not taking credit for the following entry... a friend of mine who mass-emails all his friends at least 5 times every morning passed it on to me. if you happen to know the author, i'd be happy to acknowledge him. i've read so many horror stories about intellectual property rights being violated, i don't want to be a party to it.
the reason i'm posting this is because i'm dreadfully apathetic. i can't even write about this subject on my own steam. besides, this piece actually speaks approximately 95% of what i'm feeling, so i'll spare the world 500+ words of garbage.
Open Letter To Our Leaders
Dear Tita Cory, Senators, Congressmen, Businessmen, Media people, Leftists, and all Bleeding Hearts Out There:
I am angry. And I know that there are many out there who are angrier than I am for the same reason. And that reason is simple. I am sick and tired of all you guys claiming to speak for me and many Filipinos. I feel like screaming every time you mouth words about fighting for my freedom and my rights, when you obviously are just thinking about yours. You tell me that the essence of democracy is providing every citizen the right to speak his or her mind and make his or her own informed judgments, but you yourselves do not respect my silence and the choices I and many others have made. In other words, your concept of democracy is limited to having your rights and your freedoms respected, at the expense of ours.
I am utterly flabbergasted that you still do not get it: we already responded to your calls, and our response has been very clear - we chose not to heed your calls to go to EDSA or to Fort Bonifacio not because we do not love our country or our freedoms or our rights, but precisely because we love our country even more. Because quite frankly, we are prepared to lose our freedoms and our rights just to move this country forward. You may think that is not correct, you can tell me all the dire warnings about the evils of authoritarian rule, but quite frankly all we see is your pathetic efforts to prop up your cause. You tell me that you are simply protecting my freedoms and my rights, but who told you to do that? I assure you that when I feel that my rights and my freedoms are at a peril, I will stand up and fight for them myself.
You tell us that GMA is not the right person to lead this country because she has done immoral acts. As someone who sees immorality being committed wantonly in many ways every day and by everyone (yes, including the ones you do), I may have become jaded. But you have not been able to offer me any viable alternative, while GMA has bent over backwards many times to accommodate you while continuing to work hard despite all the obstacles and the brickbats you have thrown her way. From where I sit, she is the one who has been working really hard to move this country forward while all of you have been so busy with one and only one thing: to make sure she does not succeed. So forgive me if I do not want to join you in your moral pissing contest. Forgive me if I have chosen to see things from another perspective. You say she is the problem. I say, we are the problem, more to the point, I think you are a bigger problem than she is. Taking her out may solve part of the problem, but that leaves us with a bigger problem: you. That is right, YOU!
While I felt outraged that she called a Comelec official during the elections and that she may have rigged the elections, I have since then taken the higher moral ground and forgiven her. Yes my dear bishops, I have done what you have told me to do since I was a child, which you say is the Christian and moral thing to do: forgive. Especially since she has asked for forgiveness and has tried to make amends for it. Erap certainly has not apologized and continues to be defiant, continuing to insult us everyday with his protestations. Cory has not apologized for her incompetence but we have forgiven her just the same because like GMA, she has worked hard after all.
I know you do not think that GMA's apology was not enough, or that she was insincere, or that that apology should not be the end of it, but please spare me the hypocrisy of telling me that you do so for the sake of protecting the moral fibre of society. The real reason is because you smell blood and wants to go for the kill.
Well, I have news for you. I do not like her too. I did not even vote for her. I voted for Raul Roco. But as much as I do not like her, I do not like you even more. I may not trust her, but guess what, I do not trust you even more.
You know why? Because all you do is whine and sabotage this country. You belittle every little progress we make, conveniently forgetting that it is not just GMA who has been working so hard to achieve them. Every single day, we keep the faith burning in our hearts that this country will finally pull itself out of the mess and we work so hard to do that. Every little progress is the result of our collective effort, we who toil hard everyday in our jobs. Yet, you persist in one and only thing: making GMA look bad in the eyes of the world and making sure that this country continues to suffer to prove your sorry point. In the process, you continue to destroy what we painstakinly try to built. So please do not be surprised that I do not share your cause. Do not be surprised that we have become contemptuous of your antics. You have moved heaven and earth to destroy her credibility, you have convened all kinds of fora and hearings and all you have done is test our patience to the core. For all your effort, you have only succeeded in dragging us further down. I say enough.
Don't get me wrong. I am not asking that we take immorality lying down, or that we let the President get away with anything illegal. But you have tried to prove your accusations all these time and you have not succeeded, so it is time to let things be. Besides, you are doing something immoral as well if not utterly unforgivable. The Magdalo soldiers are consorting with the communists - the same people who have been trying to kill democracy for years. Cory has been consorting with Erap and the Marcoses.
So please wake up and take a reality check. In the absence of true and genuine moral leadership, many of us have decided to cast our lot with the President, even if we do not like her. A flawed leader is better than scheming power hungry fools who can not even stand up for their convictions in the face of an impending arrest.
Your coup attempts and the denials that you have consequently made only underscore what we think is true: you are spineless and unreliable people whose only defense is to cry suppression when your ruse do not work. You are like bullies who taunt and provoke, but cry oppression when taken to task for your cruelty.
I would have respected you if you took the consequences of your actions like real heroes: calmly and responsibly instead of kicking and screaming and making lame excuses. You say you are willing to die for us, that you do all these things for the country and the Filipino, but you are not even willing to go to jail for us.
Come on, you really think we believe that you did not want to bring down the government when that is the one and only thing you have been trying to do in the last many months?
We love this country and we want peace and progress. Many among us do not give a f*&k who sits at Malacanang because we will work hard and do our share to make things work. If you only do your jobs, the ones that we elected you to do, things would be a lot simpler and easier for every one.
The events during the weekend only proved one thing. You are more dangerous and a serious threat to this country than GMA is. We have seen what you are capable of doing - you are ready to burn this country and reduce everything to ashes just to prove your point. If there is something that we need protection from, it is protection from you.
ps. in case you were wondering, i voted for roco too. though i was almost swayed by eddie v's spin doctors.
yeah i'm fadin'
and i call out
no one hears me
never been, never felt, never thought i'd say a word
weighed down
safe now
you're naked inside your fear
you can't take back all those years
the shots in the dark from empty guns
are never heard by anyone-- goo goo dolls, naked
what's the biggest news to hit the metro this week? no, it's not 1017 (that is sooo last week). it's not the crying marines, either. the biggest hype this week is the revelation made by rustom padilla on national tv. erm, what's so new about that?
much as i am reluctant to admit, i've been watching pbb celebrity for more than a week now. i guess seeing artistas behave like normal human beings holds much more entertainment value than juan (and juana) dela cruz acting like wannabes. and strangely enough, keanna at her worst palengkera mode seemed to me a breath of fresh air from the deluge of cutesy-patootsies seen in shampoo commercials.
going back to rustom. as we all know, rumors about his sexuality have been flying around probably ever since he entered showbiz and worsened after the breakup of his marriage to carmina. nevertheless, i, together with my bored house-bound lola, waited with bated breath as gossip became truth. not that it was a big surprise, especially with all those hints leading up to the actual words of confirmation. i actually think the bigger surprise would be if he did not say those words. so he's gay. so he finally came out. so what?
what struck me more about this whole episode was his struggle. if what he said was accurate, he had been struggling with the idea for almost his whole life. that's so sad -- that there was no one among his own that he felt comfortable enough with to confide in, to ask, even. sad that he felt he had to repress an innate characteristic to belong. how sad that he only learned to accept his nature in a more progressive society, where being gay did not mean being a screaming faggot or a beautician. no matter how many times we watch brokeback mountain or get tickled pink by the fab 5, there is still some social stigma attached to homosexuality, especially in a patriarchal society like ours. its very existence raises several social, psychological, and religious issues that will not be resolved in our lifetime.
i congratulate rustom for taking advantage of a perfect opportunity. not that i'm accusing him for being so calculated about it, but i don't see any other way for him to come out with this much positivity going his way. actually saying the words in public, notwithstanding the contrived setting, must have been a difficult decision to make. i won't pretend to know how much courage it must have taken for him to go through with it.
i also congratulate him for choosing keanna for his confidante. no other female housemate would have done. she who has been the subject of intriga, who told a baldfaced lie on tv and lived, who tells it like it is but has a past that allows her to empathize. her brand of maturity and crassness was the perfect foil, her "may i go out" moment prevented the episode from turning into dramatic farce. she did not give advice, she did not talk him out of it, she only listened and affirmed. best of all, we can all see that she was perfectly comfortable to be at the receiving end. a less mature woman (someone like me, for instance) might have some misgivings or feel discomfort from such a naked confession. or can you just imagine rustom on private conversations with tito boy and his (in)famous salamin. oh the horror!
i commend the producers for milking it for all it's worth... on second thought, that's debateable. but from where i'm standing, it could have been worse: they could have dragged it till friday, they could have shown rustom crying for the whole 30 minutes, or (gasp!) they could have put on the theme from lovingly yours, helen during the climax. there are so many ways it could have been worse, and so many ways it could have been better. right now i can't get past toni in all seriousness channeling mike enriquez. ugh.
i’m not giving up, giving up, not giving up now.
i’m not giving up, giving up, not backing down.
more than fine, more than bent on getting by.
more than fine, more than just ok.-- switchfoot, more than fine
