musings, travel

cogon market and then some

while dining at my sister’s store, we discussed the much needed redesigning of the shop’s interiors. brainstorming on lighting fixtures, we kinda agreed on utilizing tin cans for lamps and since i supposedly knew what to do i was asked to acquire what was needed for this.

accompanied by my sister (my mother wanted to come along too), off we went to cogon market. walking around we chanced upon this burned down empty lot. it looked interesting enough for a picture so my sister and i trotted through the broken glass and cement debris and had an impromptu pictorial while the ordinary folk of cagayan de oro jeered and cheered as they passed by the street.

we then had some pizzas at giacomino’s, across xavier university (ateneo de cagayan) on corrales street. we dropped off my mom at the hairdresser and then headed to this internet cafe.

perhaps later we’ll be seen at carmen market checking out the ukay ukay, if the rain doesnt stop us from having this afternoon journey through cagayan de oro. three cheers for the restless sojourners.

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movies, musings, travel

lechon galore!

ive been home for about 2 weeks now. and almost every week there will always be a lechon. why is that? 🙂 there always seems to be an abundance and craving for the roasted beast. crispy skin, soft meat, flavorful ribs, creamy brains and luscious legs. if this is heaven then im dead. from high-cholesterol probably.

when i get the pics from siargao scanned ill put them up here. but i havent had time to do that.

ill be in zamboanga next week. coolness! yesterday it was my parent’s anniv (30th) and we spiced up the place by buying a few more flowers than usual and bringing in some candles for the mood. there was wine, which didnt really kick up but we enjoyed it nonetheless. not to be left out was the lechon of course. to counter looming health issues i had a side dish of veggies and a handful of kinilaw (para naa pud fish hehehe).

bought a copy of gus van sant’s “elephant” and paul schrader’s “mishima” yesterday. got my copy of “no man’s land” (ive seen it years ago but always wanted my own copy) and “junk food,” another jap film on violence. was gonna get “ichi the killer” too but i thought ill settle for one violent film at this time. i finally saw “man on the train” two days ago and i liked it. bought the dvd months ago but never had the chance to see it. my dad saw “the princess and the warrior” ahead of me and he liked it. i also introduced him to lars von trier, among others, via nicole kidman’s “dogville.” seen bertollucci’s “the dreamers” and i liked that, it inspired me somehow to get on with my film, whatever that would be. got a few ideas but nothing concrete. im also excited to see if SOM would get off the ground in the summer.

off to cogon for ukay ukay perhaps. i might get myself a new backpack (take a pick, jansport or eastpack for around p350-450) or a pair of jeans. so far i have found any that i liked. might just go for that banana rep surplus at gaisano, which is expensive at 600. i have to look for alternatives. need a pair of shoes too. but with me running low on funds, i might just slippers instead at p150 (can be haggled to p130 i hope or less).

been eating the whole time ive been here. and it’s not very healthy, ive been having Coke again (the drink, silly) and lots of humba (which i have yet to develop resisting). sleep is no problem, im getting a lot of that here. the food’s just crazy. puto everywhere! yum! barbeque and chorizo from the streets. and of course the irresistible (at least for this guy who hasnt had any lechon for the last few months or so) lechon. i gotta go. ciao! maybe on friday there’ll be another of that roasted beast. drool.

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travel

siargao island and being fruitarians for a day

im now on siargao island, two hours off the coast of surigao del norte in mindanao. this is supposedly the surfing capital of the philippines. we’ve yet to see that. gemini and i got to surigao late wednesday night at 10. not knowing where to go we boarded the stationed jeepney that was ready to take off. we craned our necks for lodging houses we might spot on the way but we didnt find any that’d suit our taste or perhaps our budget (what budget? was dada!). finally the jeep ended its route at the pier, got off, and we interviewed the trike driver where good places to stay are located. we also asked on how to get to siargao island. we actually came to the right place coz we were on the pier! 🙂 hehehe anyhu, found a good enough lodging house near the chicken ala cart lined road of that area. had a late dinner then off to bed.

early morning, we got up, got in the boat and by 7.30 we were in siargao island. still having no idea where to turn, we had breakfast at a nearby eatery and asked the lady cook for information on how to get to the beaches. so then, here we are. and what used to be a halfday side trip will now become an overnight stay on some resort.

gemini in surigao

gemini and i just finished washing the ukay2 items we bought so we’d have clothes and now we’ll be off to check out the surfing scene at cloud 9. asteg! 🙂 talk about adventures and yeah, we decided to be fruitarians for a day (coz we might run out of money for the trip back). good luck to us! 🙂

this is benjamin padero, reporting live from siargao island, surigao del norte, mindanao, philippines, world, universe, blah blah blah

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travel

san francisco

im now in san francisco. agusan del sur, that is. decided to accompany gemini who’s out on research and a meeting at this side of mindanao. since i still had a meeting with father paolo tiangco in the morning, had to take the 2pm bus to butuan then another bus to san francisco at 7.30 before i met up with gem here at 9pm. it’s been a rather uneventful ride. it only got a little interesting when i took the deluxe bus to san fran (deluxe means no airconditioning).

it was already dark and you see houses on the side of the road, with their lights on from the inside. then you get a glimpse of the lives of the families who have gathered in their homes. to take a peek, you share in that moment of their lives, them oblivious of the fact that they are being watched.will soon find myself in zamboanga on october and then general santos in the middle of that month. ive a lot going on for me, hope i can save up and buy myself a videocam and pc notebook (a mac might be too expensive for me at this point).

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musings

try to remember the time in september

it’s already middle of the month and i havent updated anything. my comp at home is having problems and i dont have time to do any major update. what-more, do an overhaul on my design template. so the easiest for me to go back to my trusty temporary blogger page until i get back home. would that be fine you?

im in mindanao right now, cagayan de oro to be exact. in a few days i might be enjoying the sun down south in zamboanga. by october id be in general santos. this is work, by the way, so dont get me wrong. i will get details later when gemini and i will meet.

ive been sleeping since i got here friday noontime. ive been so tired from work that all id want to do is shut out the world and drift in peaceful slumber. and yes, that’s what ive been doing. ill update you with the projects ive worked on. work’s been real swell, i love the feeling at the end of each shoot, yes, natapos din! that’s the greatest feeling ever. sometimes, the shooting in development is fun, like the recent one we worked on, with dyan castillejo, or a few months ago, with kc conception. there were other horrifying ones and really stressful projects. thank God i survived! 🙂

enough of that, im just killing time and using up my cousin’s internet card. anyway, when i get back home in manila or when i get to use some computer for the whole day ill probably give you a real design update. for now, you will have to contend with blogger 😀 ciao and God bless!

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travel

some old blog i wasnt able to post

the escalator to the mrt wasnt working this afternoon. it’ s hard going up that because the escalator steps were not designed for climbing, theyre too high and far in-between steps. this caused a lot of passengers, myself included, to lose a few minutes of our precious time in getting to our destination. such are quibbles of a system left for dead, run by government officials who read their lines like bad actors in a play, they dont know they shouldnt be there in the first place.was able to take a small trip to UP this morning. it’s been a while since i took that leisurely journey to my alma mater on some ordinary day. to eat at rodic’s is pure bliss (despite the absence of baconsi on today’s menu). to walk through SC with friends is pure sensation.

slept in late this morning. i had to catch up on the zzz’s as im still virtually tired. now i need coffee to fire up my brain and get inspired again. perhaps ill hang out at glorietta later in the evening and browse through books, maybe even watch a movie. hopefully i can invite my friends in makati to join me for caffeine-induced conversations about life, the future and why shrek never runs out of earwax.

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we did a pictorial at that new mall in C5, shooting isabel roces, ogie alcasid, and tina maristella for a series of ads. had our pictures taken with the miniscule kuya ogie, who was friendly enough to say hi to the construction workers watching the shoot on their lunchbreak. tina maristella simply looked amazing even at her age. our day started at around 3am and though the shoot packed up at 4pm it took us until 8pm to bring our things back to mandaluyong.

last weekend we were shooting maureen larrazabal for a liquor brand. it was kinda fun and kinda not. anyway, the last setup we did involved painting and constructing a whole set, including filling up a tub of water (tagal mapuno kasi ang laki ng tub). anyway, of all the sets we did, that last one was my favorite. maureen looked great in it and actually resembled one of my fav actresses, monica bellucci. and yes, we got our pictures taken with her again.

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musings

ok now let’s take a look at the world news. seventy-nine people drowned and two-hundred others were injured when a place crashed just off the coast of rescuers could only hear the desperate screams of the victims as the plane burst into flames… that’s from truth about cats and dogs with dr. abby.

now here’s steve kmetko for news at the local front. it has been confirmed that jacklyn jose will not be appearing in benjamin padero’s film. sources have said she found it too violent and that she doesnt see herself in the role. however, she has recommended another colleague of hers, who in turn is right for the role. susan , the actress who plays the poor mother of mara in the former hit soap opera, mara clara, has agreed to play the role of mother to anton, SALAMIN’s quasi-protagonist. although she has expressed interest, the filmmaker however will only meet her on the actual shooting date.

in other news, benjamin padero has also issued a statement that his webpage is now featuring new photographs of his nephew, lucas maximus, born to his sister tina and her husband clapton. lucas maximus was born july 13 and will be turning 3 months in two weeks time. you may check out his pictures at our website, http://www.geocities.com/paderewski and click on mi familia.

now, we take a look at the weather. today, the sun is brightly shining, moving around it are the planets. it is a medium-sized star and presently, because of the sun, the day is very hot. good time to do your month-long overdue laundry. thus, some people out there, of which i have confirmed with, are in fact doing just that. professional student and wannabe film maker benjamin diaz padero is currently rinsing his whites and blacks afterwhich he’ll do his denims and khakis, then his underwear. he confessed he had no choice but to do his laundry today on the account that despite his numerous pairs of underwear he is actually running out of clean ones. he says that he might have to do his browns, blues, reds and greens in another session since it might not be possible to finish everything today, he’s got a party to go to later, he says. for the record, benjamin uses pride laundry soap, which will keep his clothes smelling fresh even in rainy conditions. currently the sky has darkened and the prevailing clouds spell another storm coming. it is too early to tell and our lines with the pag-asa has just been cut off. we are now relying on lick-finger-stick-up-to-the-air method of checking wind traffic and speed. an ocular inspection of the stratosphere coincide with the wind report and indeed, it might actually rain today. if my knees start to get painful, youll definitely be seeing some cats and dogs. if you dont want to get wet and multiply, dont risk going out to quezon circle today.

and that’s the news for you at this hour. stay tuned for more news on studio 23 primetime. im benjamin padero.

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filmmaking, food trip, musings

it’s very late now, it’s almost morning (that makes it very early also) and im still up and about. i was just working on the revisions in the screenplay of the short film my group and i are doing. it’s been a pretty exciting weekend. i remember when i was just whining to my friend ces about pen medina not being able to text back. by friday last week, i received a text from my professor that ricky davao has called him to say that yes, he’d like to work in our film! i was alone in the jeepney that afternoon and so i let out a huge hurrah (more of a wooh!). unfortunately chaka kaayu akong fone na gigamit wala koy text out capabilities (i could only receive text). so i couldnt share the news, and not until i got to the college of mass communications where i met old classmate berns that i could relieve myself of this news. we believe it’s a great opportunity to be working with a real actor, and it’s such a blessing that we actually got him (or he got us). God is good. a few hours later i was texting my friends gem ron macb ces and faisal, and my family tatay, mamati, ta an, toots, ta tems. it’s just fun, and i was so excited about it that i almost got into a fever! talk about pure excitement! anyhow im fine now, and quite adjusted. im actually tense that im still dealing with jaclyn jose’s manager. she has yet to read the script and make a decision. i will be contacting the manager again later at noon. i hope and pray she says yes too. that would be really really incredible.

last saturday ta tems, toots, ej and i met up in megamall to dine with tito momie who is about to leave for indonesia later in the morning (this 4am thing is confusing, it’s already the next day but im still last night mode, you get me?). we ate at saisaki, a japanese restaurant and our first time to deal with quasi-authentic japanese cuisine. my first run down the eat-all-you-can banquet was pretty safe, i took breaded meat and some fried rice. later i tried the raw fish and wasabe, sushi, maki, etc. it was pretty good and deceiving as well. i never though fish could get that heavy! after dinner we walked (thank God) out of megamall and had coffee at seattle’s best. after a really heavy dinner, it’s such a nice feeling to cap everything off with coffee (although im not a coffee drinker). then it’s walking time again to tito momie’s hotel where we checked out his new laptop (ibm thinkpad). had some pics taken and then it was homeward bound for us. God bless, tito moms on your trip! and yes, ill do your laundry. give me two days, three perhaps to do everything. ciao! =)

ps. got news pics of lucas maximus but i will be posting them as soon as i can afford the time. peace! in the meantime check out the old pics again, click mi familia!

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musings

gigi (joni gale, toots’ friend) just called to tell toots she’s about to go on as phone operator for real tonight. since toots isnt here yet i stood in to assure her of her capabilities. kaya mo yan, kid! anyway, through the conversation she asked me what i was doing and that’s when i realized i wasnt myself tonight. i was defrosting the ref, preparing dinner, updating my website and singing out “once on this island” and charlie brown.” talk about multi-tasking, that’s not the real me. the real me cant read the newspaper while chitchating with tootsie. the real me cant watch tv while reading sophie’s world. the real me cant listen to kathy and jm at the same time. the moon must be out tonight. “…you are why we tell the story/ why we tell the story/ so i hope that you will tell this tale tomorrow/ it will help your heart remember and relive/ it will help you feel the anger and the sorrow/ and forgive…./”

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filmmaking, movies, musings

it’s 3:49 in the morning and i couldnt sleep. i was in bed since 12 and ive been turning and twisting all night. i eventually decided to come downstairs and surf. i think i had too much Coke tonight, although that never happened before (not being able to sleep, i mean). then again, it’s been a long time since i had that much coke. and i mean, the softdrink kind!

perhaps ive just been too preoccupied with the developments of our class film project. suddenly we’re contacting real film actors and the whole shenanigan just got complex and challenging. not that we’re backing down, but we really dont have much experience for this. if we actually got ricky davao and jaclyn jose it would be a really great learning opportunity for us. it’s scary in a way, and exciting on the other hand. we still have other things to plan out though, one would be logistics. the other and most important of them all deciding factors, the finances. im losing sleep over all these details and we actually have to start doing studies for the film! we’re shooting stills here at home later in the afternoon so i might have to get back in bed in a few more minutes. at least we’re mighty serious about this film project. all im asking from you are prayers. =) and if you spare alms (we’re talking thousands here), that would be much appreciated. =)

my org in fine arts, cinema as art movement (or CAM) recently screened darren aronofsky’s “requiem for a dream.” ive seen the film before, i was able to find a pirated copy in philcoa sold for only PhP40. i was watching it off a computer monitor and, though it lessened the possible effect the film would have on me, i nevertheless enjoyed it. it was a painful movie about 4 people on a downward spiral to self-destruction (how else would you explain the downward spiralling effect anyway?). the imagery was indeed haunting and very, very interesting. what i didnt realize until now was that viewing it on the computer hindered what could have possibly been such a heart-wrenching experience.

yesterday afternoon as i watched the film again on a huge tv, in a dark auditorium, and playing off a DVD player i was transported to brooklyn and into the very lives of those 4 people. i could have died in that screening, i wanted to cry. this powerful film was just so painful to watch (i cant find any other word to describe it). i suffered, looking at them succumb to horrible ends and terminating what could have been a beautiful life. they had dreams and they lost it. the score, led by a string quartet, kept beating and torturing us viewers as it played endlessly to the deaths of their dreams. requiem for a dream. aagghhhh! jared leto and the luminescent jennifer connelly played lovers who wanted the perfect american life. ellen burstyn, if i am correct, was nominated in the oscars for this performance as a supporting actress. she’s jared leto’s lonely mother whose wish to be on television was really all about being remembered and loved. damon wayans is the fourth player in this quartet of doom. painful and hauntingly beautiful, this is one film you should not miss.

“harry, will you come home today?” – marian, “requiem for a dream”

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