Amen. 22 May 2008|11:02am Natural By Conrado de Quiros Philippine Daily Inquirer First Posted 00:14:00 05/15/2008 I read with much interest a couple of bishops' take on gays. Their remarks were occasioned by several other Church officials earlier expressing their unhappiness over gays participating in the Santacruzan traditional parade, which they said tarnished the image of the Virgin Mary. It stirred up a minor storm last week. Bishop Jose Oliveros, chair of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Office on Bio-ethics, says that contrary to popular belief, the Catholic Church is not intolerant of gays, it is liberal with gays. The Church, he says, has come to terms with them. 'We try to be compassionate and understand homosexuals and guide them towards the right path where they should not act out on their desires.' By itself, being attracted to the same sex is not a sin. Doing something about that attraction is. Bishop Leonardo Medroso, CBCP Commissioner on Canon Law chair, agrees. He has a rather clever way of proving it. Catholics, he says, are forbidden to have sex outside marriage. That applies to everyone, man or woman. 'Marriage and sex, as the Church views it, are solely for reproduction. That's the nature of marriage, opening up a couple to producing children. We cannot have that in a man-to-man or woman-to-woman relationship. Therefore, sex between persons of the same sex becomes unnatural and offends the Church.' The argument is clever. It says nothing about whether being gay is aberrant or not. It merely says that all sex outside of marriage is a sin. And since gays may not marry (at least each other), then any sex by them is a sin! The easiest course is for gays to just bolt out of Catholicism and shop around for a faith more hospitable to their cause. Though I grant that isn't easy: Islam seems far more forbidding, with its irascible 'May Allah strike down the unclean' attitude toward those who do not fit the mold. I don't know what the Buddhist, Hindu and Confucian positions are. But not all Filipino gays will want to do that, many of them counting themselves lucky to be embracing Christ—in the figurative sense of course. I personally have gay friends who are good and decent—why shouldn't they be, they're no different from the rest of us—who are self-professed Christians, and who have gay relationships. A couple of gay women I know are even planning to have kids by artificial insemination. They cannot imagine a God that is compassionate and merciful who will consign them to hell because of it. But that's the wonder of it, how the Church insists on practicing the religious equivalent of Procrustes' bed: If the person does not fit the bed, cut off or stretch his arms and limbs until he does. The Church's doctrine on marriage in particular should be enough to drive Catholics, straight or gay, into the arms of Hinduism, which extols the virtues of the Kama Sutra, or at least does not frown on it. The idea that marriage and sex exist solely for procreation could only have been invented either by masochists or persons whose nerve endings have been dulled to a state of insensateness. One is tempted to say that this is a case where the sheep should assure the shepherds that sex, or getting laid, or f---ing your brains out—three ways of expressing a miracle of Creation—is one of the most intense, well, religious experiences they can possibly have. But I doubt they need to be assured it at all. If they did, the Pope wouldn't have to publicly apologize to the victims of all sorts of sexual abuse by the clergy. The idea of a couple, married or not, having sex in order to procreate is hilarious. It conjures the image of them hard at it (no pun intended for the male partner), enduring the ordeal, determined only like soldiers pinned down in trenches to persevere out of a sense of duty and finally to break through in one great rush. What a perverse and joyless act that is. I doubt any Christian, short of an ascetic, will fill the bill. Whatever happened to love? Whatever happened to ecstasy? Whatever happened to two people, straight or gay, bonded by feelings that cannot be expressed by words, needing to express themselves to each other by flinging themselves into each other's arms and surrendering themselves into a consummation devoutly to be wished? Surely that is part of the magic of life? Which brings me to the argument that the Church is not proscribing against gays, it is merely proscribing against gays acting as gays, or that it is not demanding that gays do not get attracted to other gays, it is merely demanding that gays do not act on it. I don't know about you but I found Ang Lee's 'Brokeback Mountain' to be an honest-to-goodness love story, ranking up there with 'When Harry Met Sally' and 'Sleepless in Seattle.' Gays do fall in love too, and what I figure is unnatural is to compel them on the ground that it is perverse or that they cannot procreate to abort it. There is nothing more natural than love in whatever form it takes. Sex is not overrated, procreation is. Demanding that gays feel but not fulfill is not Christian, it is sadistic. I don't know the finer points of theology, but I've always had the impression that what distinguished the Old Testament from the New Testament is that the New looks at the world more positively. Where the Old Testament called on fire and brimstone to befall those who failed to obey their ten 'Thou shalt not's,' the New Testament called on God's grace to fall on those who obeyed his son's single commandment of 'Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.' That seems like a pitch for tolerance and largeness of spirit. Last I looked, if Jesus Christ frowned on anything, it was on prissiness and hypocrisy, preferring the company of fishers and a reformed (?) prostitute to those that scorned them. It was so unnatural they nailed him to the cross. 2 milk drops squeeze mah tits

Ipis Killer 20 May 2008|01:38pm music | Ysabellabrave - I've Got You Under My Skin Just a funny story I like to share. I find it repulsive how Sophie, my fat and pretty Persian cat, would stomp on every crawling cockcroach she sees with or without the lights on. So I bought a can spray of Baygon cockcroach killer. I sprayed the insecticide while everybody was asleep and left the cockroaches to die overnight. Pagkagising ko the next day, my mom said to me, "Si Sophie andaming napatay na ipis at ang lalaki!!!" Mwahahhahaaa!!!!! ~m-o-o-o-h~ You've heard of Marie Digby or even Matthew Luke Sandoval (whose version of Regina Spektor's Samson never fails to send chills down my spine), but it's really Ysabella Brave who does it for me. I so love her! I love her eyes and her divaesque aura. I love her all her renditions; she's just so soulful! So yeah, I'm putting my bucks on Ysabella Brave, babeh! 5 milk drops squeeze mah tits

P 20 May 2008|02:23am music | Greenday - Waiting Paghihintay. Pag-ibig. Pag-asa. Funny how I didn't like the film that much but somehow nakakarelate ako ngayon sa paghihintay, pag-ibig, pag-asa shit. And how Mou Sei from the film came from Taiwan couldn't make it any more parralel. Hay, E. Darating ka pa ba? :( 2 milk drops squeeze mah tits

Ploning 20 May 2008|01:51am music | Ploning - A Cuyuno Folk Song This was my reply (and film review) to joeysthing's review of Ploning. Read on: I saw Ploning last Saturday night, and I read this review and discussion thread just now. Very interesting. I don't know Joey or Dante personally, and I have no intention of mingling with their private affairs. I just think that it's a sad thing if Ploning's director or his production team would take criticisms personally. I say be open to one's honest opinions of a film because every opinion is valid just like Joey's review. Ploning is not flawless nor it is a failure, but it is disappointing in some aspects. My biggest issue with the movie is the storytelling. As a viewer, I find the narrative confusing and confused. It's not to say that I didn't get the story because I did. I also didn't like most of the screenplay. It was too talky and in-your-face. I appreciate what the characters have to say, but I'm all for subtlety. I'd rather see and feel than hear. E 'di sana nakinig na lang ako ng pagsasaradyo, di'ba?! It's hard to feel compassion for the characters when the script desperately and obviously asks for it. I wanted to feel for the characters but I felt no connection to any of them. Probably because many characters weren't built-up solidly. Like Alma's and Nieves'. Even Celeste's character is lacking. I don't get her. I don't understand why she had to go away and go back to Cuyo. Because she's supposedly learned from the motherly love of Ploning for Digo but she had to find her self somewhere else first? I didn't feel it. Why did Digo ride the wooden raft? It didn't make much sense. The first half of the movie started building the characters of Digo and Ploning, but when Tessie Tomas entered the scene and her flashbacks began, it started to feel like The Divine Secrets of Yaya Sisterhood, and it went downhill from there. How the last 30 minutes of the film explained why the characters did what they did was underwhelming. I was expecting to get more involved, but it left me asking, "That's it?!" Ploning as the central character didn't work for me. I didn't feel her. I suppose they meant for her to be ethereal (or even saintly to a certain extent), but I didn't feel it. I can imagine maybe Chin-Chin Gutierrez or Angel Aquino (if they were younger) or Iza Calzado leaving that kind of impression without having to do much, because really, Judy Ann Santos didn't do much. Judy Ann is a competent actor, and I like some of her works. I'm all for a subtle performance, but Judy Ann wasn't acting most of the time. She was just standing there smiling or trying to look mysterious. The only time I got affected by her portrayal of emotions was when Ploning cried upon overhearing her dad telling Digo how Ploning and he had a gap. And she's so fair for crying out loud! She's supposed to be a native Cuyonan. But Judy Ann was at her most beautiful in this movie. There were some magical moments; I especially love the scenes of Digo and Veling-- when the former taught the latter how to swim and then Veling said, "Hindi kita lulunurin, kapatid kita.", when Veling punished Digo for asking their mom "Kelan ka mamatay?" and when Juaning was desperately asking Veling to free Digo from the tree. I was teary eyed, and it touched me. For me, the strongest point of the story was the relationship between Digo and Veling. The story could have been so much better if it focused on them. The acting also left me wanting. I hate to say this but most of the veteran actors were overacting. Nangunguna si Tony Mabesa. Even Gina Pareno (who was very good in Kubrador) and Spanky Manikan were hideously over the top here. Tessie Tomas was irritatingly jolly. Mylene Dizon and Ces Quesada were bland. Eugene Domingo had her moments. Meryl Soriano was good, but her character was very short-written. Beth Tamayo and Ketchup's characters were of no importance. Native Cuyonans Ogoy Agustin, Boodge Fernandez and Cedric Amit showed potential; I just wish their parts were well written. I don't watch a movie for its cinematography, but Ploning's cinematography is breathtaking and that is an understatement. Mas na-appreciate ko ang cinematography dito than in, say, Sa Pusod ng Dagat. The film was able to show how amazing a small town like Cuyo is. Parang gusto ko tuloy puntahan at mag-photo op sa lahat ng batuhan hehehe! I also like the musical scoring. I also appreciate how the film showed the culture and traditions of Cuyo. For these reasons alone, Ploning is definitely not a failure, and I'd like to congratulate its director, Dante Nico Garcia, for making a very glossy and artistic film. I salute you for that. But like all films, Ploning has its shortcomings. It's just a pity that Ploning's happened to be the heart and soul of a film, its story and storytelling. But you're a brilliant director, and I'll be supporting your forthcoming films. Mabuhay ang Pelikulang Pilipino! And how ABS-CBN totally snobbed Juday and the promotion of her film is disgusting. Shame on you, ABS-CBN, tsk tsk. squeeze mah tits

Celebrity Death List 23 Apr 2008|04:32pm music | Chris Brown and Jordin Sparks - No Air The series of deaths of prominent celebrities in the A list is alarming. Alarming because they're not only famous, but they are also talented. First it was Heath Ledger. And just last month it was the brilliant director of Cold Mountain, The Talented Mr. Ripley and The English Patient--- Anthony Minghella. And just a few weeks ago it was the iconic Charlton Heston, star of movies like Planet of the Apes, The Ten Commandments and Ben Hur. Who's next? Britney Spears? Oh and God forbid, Amy Winehouse?!?! Nooooo! 7 milk drops squeeze mah tits

Rice and Lettuce 19 Apr 2008|09:42pm music | Keane - Everybody's Changing The urge to blog is here so might as well take advantage of it. ~m-o-o-o-h~ Today is my dad’s death anniversary. It’s been 8 years. We have survived 8 years without him. I miss him terribly at times. There are times I desperately need and want a father figure. Today is one of them. ~m-o-o-o-h~ I find the reasoning that Filipinos shouldn’t worry about the possibility of rice shortage because we can always eat camote stupid. I don’t know about you, but I highly appreciate the Filipino cuisine. I love Japanese, Italian, Thai and even Indian, but nothing beats Filipino food. It is home. Wherever you may be, basta may Sinigang, Mechado, Menudo, Afritada, Bicol Express at kung ano ano pa, you will still feel at home. Can you honestly pair any of those viands with camote? C’mon. And don’t give me the shit that you can eat pasta all your life because I’ve tried eating only pasta for the whole week, promise nakakasuka. Well, it doesn’t work for me, at least. Rice is staple not only in the Filipino dining table. Imagine sushi without rice. First off, I believe that the issue of rice shortage is overkill. The government would rather import rice from the US than sell its own rice to its very people. It’s all about money. Maybe it isn’t really a shortage, but the production of rice has dramatically decreased for reasons like global warming, corruption in the national budget for agriculture and even land conversions. Something should be done now. You know what, I really don’t know. I’m no expert in this issue. Ang point ko lang is ayoko ng camote. Period. Nyahahahah! Parang sinabi mo lang sa Italiano na isubstitute ang Pancit Bihon noodles sa pasta. Stupid di’ba?! And the lettuce girls of PETA can rally all they want in Quaipo, but I just don’t think that the vegetarian diet is for Filipinos. Poor fishermen. It’s a brave thing what those girls did though. They wanted attention, and attention is what they got. I just don’t think their act was classy. Rallying clad in lettuce undies and in Quaipo of all places?!? For crying out loud hehehehe! You want class? This is class. 2 milk drops squeeze mah tits

Maja 29 Mar 2008|01:33pm Maja Salvador has been around for some time now, but I really don't care much about her. I've seen her in Sukob and One More Chance; I know that she can act pero ampanget lang ng accent and intonation niya sa One More Chance hahahaha! I don't find her appealing, too. She's replaced Ate Clau-Clau in the print ads for Folded and Hung, but they aren't really as catchy as Claudine's. I wouldn't give her a second look. But I saw her in the Jeffrey Jeturian directed episode of Maala-ala Mo Kaya last night, and I was impressed. May depth umarte si bakla. She was sexually abused by 3 of her cousins when she was a kid. She never fought back because she was just adopted, and in her mind she was being treated kindly by her cousins and their parents so the sexual abuses may not be totally wrong. She just kept it to herself so that when she became a young adult, she became obsessive in her relationships with men thinking that she can only prove her worth through sex. Mahusay talaga ang pagkakaganap niya, nabilib ako. She wasn't too melodramatic and she knows kung kelan lalagyan ng libog ang kanyang acting. She was surprisingly very pretty in last night's episode, too. I have to say Maja's a competent actress, and I expect more compelling performances from her in the future. Kudos to Jeffrey Jeturian, too. It was a very well directed episode as should be expected from someone of his caliber. 12 milk drops squeeze mah tits

The Bovine Diva recommends:


Rarely would you find an artist who plays the piano and writes her own songs, and Regina Spektor does so beautifully. Her music is both poetic and poignant and sometimes vague. I love that her style is raw and most of her songs sound happy and her lyrics are free flowing but the storytelling is intact. Begin to Hope offers 12 tracks, all beautiful and eccentric.



The Last Song Syndrome:

I've been learning to live without you now
But I miss you sometimes-
The more I know, the less I understand
All the things I thought I knew, I'm learning them again
I've been tryin' to get down to the Heart of the Matter
But my will gets weak
And my thoughts seem to scatter
But I think it's about forgiveness, forgiveness
Even if, even if you don't love me anymore.


The Heart of the Matter

India.Arie


Even if I stop wanting you
A perspective pushes true,
I'll be some next man's other woman soon.
I couldn't play myself again,
I should just be my own best friend,
Not fuck myself in the head with stupid men.


Tears Dry on Their Own

Amy Winehouse


My Personal Icons
Elizabeth I
Eva Peron
Jesus Christ
Jose Rizal
Karol Joseph Wojtyla
Khalil Gibran
Mahatma Gandhi
Mary Magdalene
Ramon Magsaysay



My Favorite Artists
Alanis Morisette
Amy Winehouse
Bette Davis
Bjork
Bob Dylan
Bob Ong
Carlo Vergara
Chin-Chin Gutierrez
Cynthia Alexander
Coldplay
Deathcab for Cutie
Edward Norton
Fiona Apple
Gael Garcia Bernal
Gong Li
India.Arie
Julia Fordham
Lea Salonga
Lino Brocka
Madonna
Pablo Neruda
Radiohead
Regina Spektor
Regine Velasquez
REM
Renee Zellweger
Sarah Brightman
Sugarfree
Tennessee Williams
The Wallflowers
Tony Leung
Tori Amos
U2
Vivien Leigh
Walt Disney
Wolfgang Puck



My Favorite Reads
Ang Kagilagilalas na Pakikipagsapalaran ni Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah
Catcher in the Rye
Flowers for Algernon
Jeffrey
Like Water for Chocolate
M. Butterfly
The Color Purple
The Hours
The House of the Spirits
The Last Temptation of Christ
The Little Prince
The World According to Garp
Tuesdays with Morrie
Supertoys Last All Summer Long



Boob Tube Favorites
American Idol
Encantadia
Food Network
Nip/Tuck
Popular
Queer Eye For the Straight Guy
Sex and the City
She-ra: Princess of Pwoer
The Brini Maxwell Show
The Osbournes
The Simple Life
Survivor 2: The Australian Outback
Yo Soy, Betty La Fea








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