Damned In Blue

2012 was heaps and bounds better than 2011, for reasons I'll never disclose. Over the past few years, I'll finally given up on expectations and just let things flow, as the Chinese philosophy "wei-wu-wei" would say. It's all about adjusting to the situations you're put into instead of trying to bullishly force and plow your ways to what you want. Because I never get what I want all the time. Compromise is my calling card, as I have to bend front and back to maintain a tenuous balance in between the lives I live (professional, personal, romantic, familial, etc.). It's never easy, but I happen to make it work, just so you know. The band has stagnated throughout the years. I would like to take this opportunity and put some of the blame to myself, as I'd been terribly absent throughout most of our post-gig shenanigans and pre-gig collaborations. Worse of all, I have been awful throughout the entire recording process, I had to get the other guitarist play s

Finish edits on Grade 3 Worksheets I made last year. I only received half of the worksheets fore correction. Maybe I did an unsatisfactory job on the first drafts I wrote so they took it upon themselves to correct the mistakes I made. No matter,  I did get the complete payment for the worksheets, so I guess it's all good. E-mail my English professor and ask for a chance to finish and submit my incomplete final paper a year ago about Umberto Eco's "Baudolino" before the current semester ends. Done. My 28-page paper got a 1.5 (1.0 being the highest). Drop a subject that I have no intention of retaking. Done. Submit request to the Dean to take my foreign language exam in German, hopefully the second semester of next year's school year. Not yet. I have yet to finish a core subject (which also happens to be my last subject for the program) before I submit my intention to take a foreign language exam. (Re)Learn German. Not yet. I'm planning to download an audiobook

Hello, world!

I hated China. 10 years ago during our package trip there, vendors from a black market were cursing us after entering and leaving their stalls. I don't understand why they'd be angry but they just were. Maybe they find it disrespectful that people come and go as they please while ignoring their wares. Strange. Brushes with Chinese literature have doused the "hate" completely and replaced with an admiration that borders on love, especially after reading "Waiting" by Ha Jin . There's something beautiful in the simplicity of the narrative that brings about complexity in how the novel can be interpreted. More importantly, despite the novel being written in the 20th century, it was still able to evoke its culture in a fresh manner through literary devices such as dream sequences and the importance of filial piety, both elements of which are present in the classic "The Dream of the Red Chamber." Such texts were taken up in my Asian Literature class.

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Two weeks ago, the Philippines was hit by an outpour of monsoon rains that ran for two days , causing flash floods in different parts of the country. Some towns were devastated as the flood level rose to almost six feet, destroying houses and forcing people to  relocate. Most of the flooded areas were in a state of calamity as panic buyers ransacked groceries, in particular eggs, when they had the chance. Although this is no Ondoy (at least not in our area), the unfortunate events left another wound in the spirits of Filipinos who must once again scrubs their homes of the mud - if not the memory of the flood - and mourn the death of loved ones who passed away during the rainy days. And then there's a little wedding that simply could. A college classmate of my girlfriend was set to get married during on August 8. No one can foresee the state of the weather when scheduling for his or her wedding date in advance, but the couple happened to be one of the those whose wedding took place

2012 is shaping up to be a fine year in comparison to the debacle that was last year, at least judging from the events that transpired from January to July. Below are some of the milestones achieved early this year: Despite more than a year of putting in extra hours with little compensation, I still love my job . There's something therapeutic about sitting in front a computer, writing and publishing business blog posts at breakneck speed, checking out Analytics for traffic and bounce rate (two of my worst online enemies), downloading different plugins for Wordpress, and finding ways to increase transactions. I think it's a win-win situation for the company and me - they get to draw conversions from my blog posts (assuming that they eventually will) and I get to increase my clout in the online world. I don't want to say that I think I'll be staying at this company indefinitely, but I think I'll be staying at this company indefinitely. I've finished recording my

Roughly an hour ago, I put Whiskey, our beloved Labrador for seven years, inside three plastic bags I bought at a convenient store earlier before heading home from my girlfriend's house. Since he's a large dog, I had to buy a bag that 's around 18" in length and height to make sure he fits. A couple of minutes before that, I watched Whiskey from our groto as he struggled to stand up, walked a couple of steps with his legs wobbly, urinated while standing, and walked a couple more to the corner until his legs finally gave out. I patted and caressed his head  while saying things like "I'm sorry" and "It's all right" because there is nothing more I could do. Facing the wall, Whiskey stared to burn a hole through it, struggling to make his breaths count. Finally, he exhaled long enough for me to see his soul pass through his nose and rise up just to disperse in the air. I just looked on as he wheezed seven more short breathes before he finally ca

It tried to be funny and scary, but achieved neither laughs nor shrieks. It failed to hide the fact that the film is cashing in to the success of the first film. The jokes felt contrived, forced, and dumbed down. Ryan Bang was in it. Well, that's not really a viable reason. But, ah well. If you think this isn't a credible review of the film (is really isn't, to be honest), let this guy convince you instead.

It was the first pay-per-view boxing match I've seen. In true Filipino fashion, one of our neighbors - an Indian, no less - bought and hosted  the PPV in front of his convenient store along the street. Almost 80% of the neighborhood went out of their homes to tune in. Everybody gasped and writhed in agony with every back-and-forth slugfests between  Manny Pacquaio and Timothy Bradley  in every round, only to erupt into cheers later on whenever Manny slips in significant blows during the tussle. For the first time, the street felt like one of those large baranggay halls that host Pacquaio fights for the community to see. It was awesome. I only started watching the match on the sixth round, so I can't really say about what happened before that. But when I was viewing what remained of hte fight, I really felt Manny will be hard-pressed to win because every time when he was about to go into hyperdrive, Bradley matched Pacquaio's offense with a flurry of his own, coupled by his

1. I get to tap into a different "tribe" that's unlike those in my Facebook account 2. #Hashtags 3. Spreads your message effectively, especially for online marketing use Follow me @christopherjanb .

1. I'm writing here . 2. And here . 3. I'm currently digging Tumblr than Blogger right now. 4. So little time, so much to do. Cliche answer, I know, but I'm just finding it more and more difficult to sleep for less than 4 hours everyday. Hopefully, I'll get out from this creative funk and get back to writing nonsense soon.

It's been almost a week since I saw The Avengers  (thanks to Mina , my fuzzy co-worker who gave me an extra pair of tickets she won from 7-11). I planned to write about the movie immediately after seeing it, but I decided to wait for the dust to settle and attain a better perspective of the film, which I think I have right now. For those who haven't seen the film, I urge you to give in to your geeky side and see the damn thing. Granted, it's not going to win an Oscar, but I never thought "bad-ass" could actually be reinvented. I wasn't a huge fan of the comic book, but I have always loved the Captain America mythology, sans the patriotism. Therefore, being one of the first people to see the movie come to life brought out the fanboy in me - seeing all the cast members from the different Marvel films throughout the years equally sharing the spotlight was a visual orgasm (no homo). Not to mention, all of the action-packed scenes got me giggling like a Japanese sc

Haven't updated this blog for quite some time, and for a good reason. Writing on your personal blog, although it lets you clear out thoughts in your plate, is not really a profitable endeavor. I don't receive money writing about poorly thought-out music and movie reviews, as well as other brainless things on my mind. (I mean, who would?) Which is why I turned the corner by taking a part-time job that pays me to go crazy on the keyboard about various topics. Aside from the extra dough I receive, the purpose of taking a part-time work goes back to being a writer by profession, which happens to be a constant struggle. Opportunities to make more money through writing have increased throughout the years, thanks to the rise of online content solutions. However, for six years, I still don't think we get the credit we deserve for our efforts. Which is why we are forced to go out of our way to find ways of breaking bank and improve our skills to receive an even higher salary. I'

For months, I've been viewing movies from yesteryears I've always wanted to see but just didn't had the chance. Below are some of my thoughts about them: I felt like kicking myself in the head for not having seen Pulp Fiction for the past 18 years. A precursor to postmodern cinema, this movie made me appreciate Quentin Tarantino more than ever. Although the Kill Bill movies were solid affairs, Pulp Fiction  towers most of its contemporaries during its 1994 release. Just great storytelling and cinematic style ripe for critical study, by which there already have been essays about . Do yourself a favor and see this film, pronto! I don't understand how The Shawshank Redemption gets the nod as the top-rated movie in the Internet Movie Database . (And yes, I downloaded the film for the same reason). There is a deep and inspired beauty that slowly creeps and hugs you until the climactic end, but as far as style, performance, and direction are concerned, there's a lot mor

I laugh about the fact that this blog gets hits for the wrong reasons. Not because of the 100% unique and awesome content (which I assure you is not the case) nor the SEO-friendly pages (Blogger is NOT at the very least SEO-friendly). Rather, this blog gets traffic because of a goddamned jockstrap image. As Sweet as Used Jockstrap really has nothing to do with the ball sack supporter. It's just a stupid post about something trivial and forgettable I can't even remember. Anyway, this post has received over a thousand hits which I assumed is caused by the image of a standard stain-colored jockstrap. In comparison, the next highest post I've made has barely reached 50 hits. I have recently removed the jockstrap photo from the page, which would definitely drop down the blog traffic. But at least the data won't be padded by something that has nothing to do with magic and tumbong .

I can't remember wanting to listen to an Anthrax song since I've worn out The Best of the Killer A's during my high school years. That changed when I heard Worship Music. Backtracking a little bit, I've come to enjoy Anthrax's body of work in its entirety despite having two distinct eras dividing their discography - the Belladonna and the Bush eras. Although John Bush is a far more talented vocalist than Joey Belladonna ever will be, '80s 'Thrax always did it for me. The urgency was tangible in the sound, something that the band can't conjure even with Bush around. The precise speed picking and downstroke demon that Scott Ian has been and the underrated skin work of Charlie Benante always clicked when Joey gloriously wailed through the songs. Along the way, however, they lost my interest. They seem to be always a step behind Slayer , Megadeth , and Metallica (in that particular order). Much of it may be caused by the Bush albums, at least for me. Th

Love is... ...a keepsake book and a chocolate cake with dedications... ...a dressing room door filled with sticky notes... ...a magnificent view at Potter's Ridge Hotel, Tagaytay (awesome hotel, by the way)... ...bulalo for dinner... ...vegetable omelette for breakfast... ...lechon kawali and pork sisig rice toppings, as well as an unlimited order of house blend coffee, at Bag of Beans for lunch... ...and the mandatory couple shot. I love you!

Just saw "High Fidelity" a couple of days ago and it just hit me - I remembered actually wanting to pattern my blog over how John Cusack brings up his personal top fives throughout the film. I'd always had this idea of writing something like "Top Five Songs to Listen to When Drunk," "Top Five Things to Do When I'm Alone," "Top Five Biggest Mistake I've Done," and a whole lot more of crappy top five stuffs that I've suppressed throughout the years. The concept is ripe with new things to talk about, but more importantly, it would have allowed me to stay in touch with what I believe is the Self. Although time has passed and I've clearly outgrown the idea of doing a regular Top Five, I'll do myself a favor by doing the one and, arguably, only Top Five about whatever that pops in my mind at the moment. I've started digging into books lately. After  having read Murakami's Oedipal coming-of-age story "Kafka on the Sh

I consider Haruki Muramaki as my favorite author that's not named F. Sionil Jose . I felt that Norwegian Wood  is his Catcher in the Rye , West of the Border, South of the Sun is a guiltless pleasure, and The Wind Up Bird Chronicle is a sprawling epic of abstract and tangible experiences that all wounded up in text by design. However, if you ask me to recall any of the scenes in the books mentioned, I can honestly say that I can't remember anything at all. I do have fond memories of the sex scenes, but I can't answer why or how the sex happened. Not surprisingly, the carnal pleasure is the one that leaves an indelible mark in the mind. After having drifted apart from his work for about four years, my co-worker lent me Kafka on the Shore , a book that I wanted to purchase for a long time, but just didn't for reasons unknown. I'm on the verge of finishing the novel, but I can't wait to weigh in my thoughts as to what I've read so far. If I were to suggest a

At one point in your life, you'll soon regret them. In 1999, I watched on television as Roberto Benigni's name was announced as the winner for the Best Actor category in the Academy Awards for "Life is Beautiful." There was a huge applause from the crowd and with great reason; the film came out of nowhere and received glowing reviews from critics worldwide. His performance was what breathed life into the film and made it into a media darling leading to this event. I guess knowing all this, Mr. Benigni was unable to contain himself from the exuberance and excitement of winning an Academy. From what I remembered, he uncontrollably waved to the esteemed guests in the building with a big smile on his face and started walking along the headrests of the chairs like a trapeze act. You know, just because he can. After seeing all this, I told to myself, "What a jackass. What if he fell from the headrests and land on someone, say Dame Judy Dench and injure her in the proce

For those who don't give a damn: Metallica - Blackened (6:41) Arch Enemy - Silverwing (4:08) Sigur Ros - Goobledigook (3:08) Symphony X - of Sins and Shadows Testament - Dog-Faced Dogs (4:02) Iron Maiden - The Wickerman (4:35) Broken Social Scene - Shoreline 7/4 (4:53) Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - Janglin' (3:50) Lil Rob - Summer Nights (4:27) The Roots - No Alibi (5.21) Infectious Grooves - Violent and Funky (3:49) Cody Chestnutt - Serve This Royalty (5:43) Overkill - Give a Little (4:42) Metric - Help, I'm Alive (4:45) The Haunted - Choke Hold (3:43)

Reading a novel you don't like is similar to unnecessary pain - it's painful and not necessary. Okay, that was a stupid opening sentence. Bear with me on this one, folks. After a semester-long hiatus from school, I began the second semester this school year with axes to grind - or to be more accurate, final papers to submit - with my former professors. One of the aforementioned professors, whose class I took two years ago, required us to review a book without reference to any secondary text. The paper, then, must be grounded on our experience as a reader of books. This forced me to dust off one of my books that, for almost four years, I have refused to touch from my bookshelf because it bored the living shit out of me after a couple of chapters. The reason why I forced myself into reading something that I find a pain in the ass to read is to hopefully get the book off my list. Working on a deadline should have instilled a sense of urgency in me to run through the pages of the b

Broken Social Scene is one of the few bands that I adored after college, the time when I sort of stopped rummaging through the Internet for new music. Back story: I voraciously downloaded MP3 songs from obscure bands using my 56.6k modem a full decade ago. Doing the math, it took me to download two songs within an hour, a terrible rate compared to how we can download an entire album in a matter of minutes this day and age. Anyway, where was I? Ah yes, BSS. I was completely blown away by "7/4 Shoreline" and "Fire Eye'd Boy". The intense passion for music wrapped in indie aesthetics was perversely present in their songs. After procuring their album late that year, I was a full convert of the Scene. The compelling energy and organic song arrangements was truly refreshing that I can't help tap my foot just thinking about the songs playing in my head. With Forgiveness Rock Record , the energy is a bit hushed, in my humble opinion. The album is not as upfront with

Two ads about the same product (one for women, the other for men), but their respective messages are radically different upon using said product. This ad is about keeping your private part clean and fresh. Nothing more. This ad is about hooking up with hot chicks with the hope of engaging in a menage a quarto later that evening (or morning if he works at night).

1. Comedian 2. Professional Wrestler 3. Porn Star

No offense to ChicBoy, which serves tasty food at affordable prices, but their logo looks terrible. I'm no vegetarian, but I find it disturbing that some restaurant logos glorify their meat products - may they be chicken, beef, and pork -  by portraying them as happy and glad to be served in cutlets on the dining table. First, why would they be happy? Why would people assume that animals are willing to offer their body to satiate the appetites of many? I honestly don't think that the squealing pigs and wiggling chickens, once their throats are slit for the blood to pour, are expressions of  exultation. It is merely their way of saying, "get me the fuck out of here." Put the situation the other way around: If cannibalism is legal and people are slaughtered and made into  bulalo  or  giniling , I don't think using this image as a restaurant logo would make for a great company branding, either.