tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77980903175691983382011-08-21T20:24:13.938+08:00BY EXIE ABOLAexie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.comBlogger1491100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-86827232375000376532010-09-12T21:51:00.001+08:002010-09-12T21:54:03.541+08:00

After several months of work on the The POC Review, the literary magazine or channel of Vibal Foundation's Philippine Online Chronicles website, I am no longer the editor of this project. Vibal and I have parted ways because of our differing views on how to go forward.To those who submitted work that I approved for publication, Vibal Foundation will honor the decision. To those who submitted work

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-2857482268223184392010-04-26T11:44:00.009+08:002010-04-26T12:16:05.808+08:00

For the Art & Culture section of the Philippine Star, 12 April 2010. Photos by Hilda Abola.The Gawad Buhay!—buhay for performing arts done live onstage—is alive and kicking. On March 26, the Philippine Legitimate Stage Artists Group, or Philstage, held its 2009 Gawad Buhay! Awards for the Performing Arts at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Last year’s awards show, the first ever, was

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-39123165480408195982010-03-13T21:33:00.006+08:002010-03-14T10:39:05.592+08:00

On Wednesday, March 10, I attended the awarding ceremonies of the Ateneo Loyola Schools Awards for the Arts. The awards, now in their seventeenth year, are given to graduating students who have distinguished themselves in the different fields of artistic endeavor. Typically the recipients represent theater arts, music, dance, visual arts, photography, videomaking, and creative writing. This year

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-67837455823557877052010-03-09T12:07:00.000+08:002010-03-09T12:03:05.952+08:00

When I was still a copyeditor at a business-economics research institute in the mid-1990s, I read an article in The Economist that looked at countries around the world in various stages of development and which asked why they were as developed (or underdeveloped) as they were. I still remember the startling (for me) and startlingly simple path to development the piece found: send your women to

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-41192116705876846002009-09-20T16:50:00.006+08:002009-09-20T20:06:44.811+08:00

For the Sunday Lifestyle section of the Philippine Star, 20 September 2009.This was intended for Art & Culture, but my editors decided to run it today in a section devoted to books and reading. The published version features minor paragraphing and stylistic changes. This article is one in a short series on reading I said I would try to write more than a year ago. I've finally managed to finish

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-72112587192441201712009-09-16T20:50:00.001+08:002009-09-16T20:52:27.707+08:00

For section ‘M’ of the Philippine Star, 16 September 2009.This is how it went: I’m sitting in my cubicle with a senior, a girl of twenty-one years who is two months away from graduation. She’s sitting a few feet in front of me. We are having consultations, and the discussion is going well. I tell her how dramatically she, a creative writing major, has improved throughout the year that I have been

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-52673040870984559252009-08-27T18:58:00.001+08:002009-08-28T07:55:15.750+08:00

Only those who were around in the 1980s when MC Hammer was a star (but not for very long) will get a real kick out of this video. A flash mob of dancers wearing "hammer" pants invades a posh garment store on Sunset Boulevard selling skinny jeans. Hammer time lives!And in case you want more, here are Darth Vader and his stormtroopers grooving to the same tune. (Chicks might dig Han Solo, but tell

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-1090350424133915122009-08-26T20:52:00.003+08:002009-08-26T21:01:59.423+08:00

For section ‘M’ of the Philippine Star, 26 August 2009.My editors changed the title of my piece, but I'm posting it here with the original title, which I much prefer.Last year my fortieth birthday came and went, and just a few weeks ago my forty-first birthday whizzed past too. So far I am happy to report that I have not gone out and bought a shiny new saxophone or an expensive sports car, or

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-82504547367259770512009-08-24T14:00:00.004+08:002009-08-24T20:51:20.885+08:00

Here's a New York Times piece on how Filipinos realize, in the wake of Cory Aquino's death, that little has changed in the country since the People Power revolution of 1986.Filipinos Lament How Far They Haven’t ComeBy Seth MydansThe New York Times / August 20, 2009News AnalysisMANILA — When former President Corazon C. Aquino died this month, Filipinos filled the streets in mourning and in

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-8964222305543635642009-08-22T13:00:00.001+08:002009-08-22T13:00:01.606+08:00

As a followup to that Penguin ad campaign for reading, here's another lovely one, this time a TV commercial. (I'm sure I got this from among one of many online contacts, but I've forgotten who. My apologies.)

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-28815390543778993852009-08-20T13:00:00.001+08:002009-08-20T13:00:01.994+08:00

This article is from four years ago, but I read it just recently. It's from Emerald City, a web site that publishes reviews of fantasy and science fiction. In the piece the author recommends works of literary fiction to readers who don't usually read that kind of fiction (readers of sci-fi and fantasy, to whom the site is targeted). Some of the names are not familiar to me, but the larger points

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-77307103064777601922009-08-19T13:05:00.007+08:002009-08-19T21:55:54.358+08:00

Now here’s an ad campaign for reading I like: “unputdownable” Penguin Classics.More good stuff here.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-26224776183485506852009-08-18T17:01:00.002+08:002009-08-18T17:04:58.154+08:00

It is very painful to become frozen with your poems, to gain too much recognition for a certain set of poems. The real life is in writing, not in reading the same ones over and over again for years. We constantly need new insights, visions. We don't exist in any solid form. There is no permanent truth that you can corner in a poem that will satisfy you forever. Don't identify too strongly with

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-73381357542026128862009-02-23T15:28:00.009+08:002009-02-24T16:59:12.672+08:00

For the Art & Culture section of the Philippine Star, 18 February 2009.Photos by Hilda Abola of the My Manila photoblog.In May last year I wrote about the Philippine Legitimate Stage Artists Group, or Philstage, and its effort to become the first awards-giving body focused solely on the performing arts. Well, these efforts have borne fruit. This past Wednesday, the 18th of February, Philstage

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-21065484758587917062009-02-01T22:25:00.003+08:002009-02-01T22:32:44.512+08:00

On the heels of yesterday's weirdness comes this new discovery, a trailer for an upcoming movie titled Romeo & Juliet vs. the Living Dead.O happy chainsaw!(Hat tip to Yvette.)

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-82843114474342966902009-02-01T22:22:00.002+08:002009-02-01T22:27:50.006+08:00

In previous posts (the abrupt version here and the lengthier explanatory one here) I said that I would stop writing about theater or at least watch less and write less. I also said that I've applied for support from my university, Ateneo de Manila, through the Loyola Schools (formerly the College of Arts and Sciences) grants for research and creative work. I sent two proposals, one to finish

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-82164082991193344422009-01-31T22:22:00.001+08:002009-01-31T22:28:25.741+08:00

I don't usually mind classic works of literature being updated or adapted into new mediums every now and then, but this case is just a little ridiculous: a publisher has come out with a new version of Jane Austen's most famous and well-loved novel and given it a twist. The title of the new work says it all: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. The cover:The plot summary:Pride and Prejudice and

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-20303923796156298062009-01-23T22:23:00.000+08:002009-01-23T22:25:31.152+08:00

Isagani Cruz wrote a short but trenchant post titled "Paradox of Philippine education" a few days ago. It speaks for itself:I have often wondered why Filipinos who speak bad English, who have no doctorates in English language or linguistics, who have never lived or worked in the USA or UK, who have never taught in the public schools, or whose children do not study in public schools are the most

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-61494135667862845452009-01-22T23:24:00.001+08:002009-01-22T23:24:52.506+08:00

John Nery's blog Newsstand, that is. The new site is here. The look is cleaner and better organized, methinks. A recent post is an Inquirer column on the untimely death — is there ever a timely one? — of a Jesuit friend, Joey Fermin. An excerpt from early in his meditation:Too young, much too young, many mourners at the wake murmured.  Maybe. Being in the same age group, I would certainly like to

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-34612215691503961372009-01-19T23:58:00.003+08:002009-01-20T00:10:37.253+08:00

In my previous post I said I was giving up reviewing plays because of a lack of "institutional support." As a way of elaborating on the point, here is an excerpt from an email I wrote to a member of the committee that gives out grants for research and creative work in my university.The context: I submitted two grant proposals in November. Last week this committee member emailed me to ask for

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-48588504144579074122009-01-18T20:11:00.005+08:002009-06-29T22:18:27.438+08:00

For the Art and Culture section of the Philippine Star, 26 January 2009.Update: The article did not come out in the January 19 issue, as I expected it would. Perhaps next week.Update, January 26: The article appears in today's edition of the Star. I made some changes to the announcements in the last four paragraphs, and the title as well.Finally: here is a belated list of what I thought was the

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-7875330041935027502009-01-11T20:42:00.001+08:002009-01-11T20:44:52.130+08:00

See cellist Wells Cunningham play the Handel-Halvorsen Passacaglia for cello and violin with violinist Wells Cunningham. The video is titled, appropriately, "The Impossible Duet." (The violin guy plays his instrument kinda funny, don't you think?)I wonder if these two blokes are related to guitarist Wells Cunningham, here playing Van Halen's "Spanish Fly" on acoustic guitar. He's pretty good, too.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-64996731320060811802009-01-11T20:40:00.000+08:002009-01-11T20:41:32.456+08:00

According to a BBC news report that came out on the eve of the new year, women in Naples threatened to withhold sex from their partners if they refused to forgo setting off illegal fireworks: Naples sex strike over fireworksDecember 31, 2008New Year's Eve could prove to be something of a damp squib for some men in the Italian city of Naples. Hundreds of Neapolitan women have pledged to go without

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-34701618600003318332008-12-03T22:25:00.000+08:002008-12-03T22:27:38.942+08:00

Friend and fellow Ateneo alum John Nery spent a large part of his November 25 column discussing "the most famous manifesto" in Ateneo de Manila's history: "Down from the Hill," a document published in the college paper forty years ago. Much has changed since the five writers put their heads and hands together to write the piece. Faculty members, John notes, often "involve themselves directly with

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-56780056601465054102008-11-27T21:59:00.001+08:002008-11-27T22:01:54.782+08:00

In his essay "Bush's Last Days: The Lamest Duck," Time's Joe Klein bids farewell and good riddance to the current occupant of the White House, the end of whose term can't come soon enough.(Emphasis added.)In the end, though, it will not be the creative paralysis that defines Bush. It will be his intellectual laziness, at home and abroad. Bush never understood, or cared about, the delicate balance

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-37463792010608831762008-11-27T12:30:00.000+08:002008-11-27T12:32:03.575+08:00

After a long pause, here's another installment in this series. To play a jazz solo on a horn, who says you actually need to know how to play one? Here's turntablist (yes, that's a word these days) Kid Koala and his awesome "drunken trumpet": Hat tip to Alex Belth of my favorite baseball blog, Bronx Banter.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-13139626168986577352008-11-26T22:45:00.003+08:002008-11-26T22:52:19.747+08:00

Comedy is natural to both award-winning composer, arranger and musical director Vincent De Jesus and theater director / professor and Manila Times critic Joey Ting. This is the fourth time they will be doing a theater project together since their first Dulaang Talyer project under the artistic directorship of film and theater director Paul Morales in 1997.De Jesus wrote an original script Quinn,

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-13839216159090085652008-11-14T22:40:00.000+08:002008-11-14T22:42:45.266+08:00

The second semester has just begun, which means my firstyear literature classes are starting their foray into the world of poetry. And when I teach poetry, I usually begin by assigning a short essay by Billy Collins, "The Companionship of a Poem," copies of which I give out on the very first day of class. Collins, a former poet laureate of the United States, is also a teacher, and in his essay he

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-55290675673239968422008-11-04T22:36:00.000+08:002008-11-04T22:38:35.383+08:00

Alex Ross posts a short quote from Wallace Stevens about nobility in his blog, The Rest Is Noise. The entire quote is worth reading, but here's a trenchant snippet:[Nobility] is not an artifice that the mind has added to human nature. It is a violence from within that protects us from a violence without.Beautifully phrased. And tellingly, Ross titles the post "For Barack Obama." Amen.Do the right

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-48076958825306755112008-11-04T22:31:00.002+08:002008-11-04T22:36:34.537+08:00

Butch Dalisay's latest column has an interesting snippet about language. As an English teacher, I often hear complaints, most of them well-meaning, about the decline of English among our younger folk. I used to agree, then I became skeptical. This quote, mostly from Philip Howard's State of the Language: English Observed (1985), helps to put into words my own thoughts and feelings about the

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-9106561727978995382008-10-12T12:03:00.003+08:002009-06-29T22:18:35.483+08:00

For the Art and Culture section of the Philippine Star, October 13, 2008.If there’s a successful formula for staging plays for children that don’t talk down to them, that are accessible to the young but that speak to grownups too, the Philippine Educational Theater Association (or PETA) might have found it. Its twin productions of Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang and Batang Rizal, two plays it has

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-24254011192410113482008-10-08T20:06:00.002+08:002008-10-08T20:12:38.748+08:00

The Tuesday, October 7, edition of Newsbreak featured this opinion piece by sociologist Mary Racelis, who is Catholic, on why fellow Catholics should support the reproductive health bill being discussed in Congress. Count me among those who want it passed.Excerpts (with boldface added for emphasis):Can Catholics support the RH bill? Yes! – Mary Racelis [T]here is the deafening silence of the

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-58747675326500445562008-10-07T23:40:00.002+08:002008-10-07T23:42:54.088+08:00

Ateneo Institute of Literary Arts and Practices (AILAP) announces its fellows for its 8th Ateneo National Writers Workshop which will be held on October 19-25 at the campus of Ateneo de Manila University. Twelve applicants were accepted this year: Anna Marie Stephanie S. Cabigao, Bonifacio Alfonso Javier III, Marinne Mixkaela Z. Villalon (Maikling Kuwento); Arlynn Raymundo Despi, Wyatt Caraway

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-89599861682317091822008-10-07T22:54:00.000+08:002008-10-07T22:55:48.105+08:00

American theater critic Robert Brustein on The Drama Is Coming Now, a book by fellow critic Richard Gilman:However brilliant and eloquent on the subject of dramatic literature, Gilman has a curiously limited vocabulary when it comes to describing process and performance. True, he has cogent things to say about the "terrifying righteousness" and "verbal ineptitude" of the Living Theatre upon its

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-4851760834578812532008-09-22T21:56:00.002+08:002008-09-22T21:59:59.577+08:00

For its 41st theater season, PETA is bringing back Christine Bellen's "Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang" directed by Phil Noble) and "Batang Rizal" (directed by Dudz Teraña) on September 19 until October 19, 2008 at the PETA Theater Center."Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang" features three of Severino Reyes' folktales ("Prinsipeng Mahaba ang Ilong," "Ang Prinsesang Tumalo sa Hari," "Ang Prinsipeng Duwag"),

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-81882738526079991152008-09-15T23:01:00.004+08:002008-09-15T23:06:40.320+08:00

In an effort to make opera more accessible to the modern audience while remaining true to the original score, Philippine Opera Company and the Cultural Center of the Philippines have transported Giacomo Pucinni’s “La Boheme” to a modern day gathering of young independent artists in search of their rightful place under the sun. The setting takes place against a vibrant and tempestuous Indie art

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-89203169568008464352008-09-15T22:57:00.004+08:002008-09-15T23:01:08.914+08:00

After two successful devised theater performances of Far Eastern University Art Theatre Clinique (ATC) during its First Theater Season last year via the anti-global warming campaign satirical show ‘Habilin: Ang Simula ng Apocalypsis’ and ‘Visiting Strindberg’, scene excerpts-devised performance of three outstanding works of renown Swedish playwright August Strindberg, ATC once again is at work to

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-74083277967134658002008-09-15T14:48:00.004+08:002009-06-29T22:19:33.005+08:00

For the Art and Culture section of the Philippine Star, September 15, 2008.The first two offerings in the new season of the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) feature familiar stories retold. They differ in how well they do so.Running six weeks in July and August, Noli at Fili Dekada 2000, PETA’s season opener, calls itself a contemporary interpretation of Jose Rizal’s novels.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-70915155983510883772008-09-11T12:13:00.004+08:002008-09-11T12:25:43.050+08:00

I've finally activated the "Followers" function of Blogger. (Thanks to Gibbs for showing how it works and that it exists in the first place.) Anyone interested in being a public Follower of mine — if you're not too ashamed to be associated with my blog, that is — just click on the "Follow This Blog" link under the heading "Dogberry's Followers." Then you're done!And now for the small problem of

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-45622267065584343712008-09-07T23:54:00.004+08:002008-09-07T23:59:45.735+08:00

The Philippine Opera Company (POC) will open its second Opera Season in September 2008. For the past nine years, POC has been the only opera company in the Philippines, being the only company to mount an opera season to date. It is now the home of both seasoned and promising opera singers in the country. This year, the Philippine Opera Company celebrates a decade of exquisitely weaving and

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-37316137994224286042008-08-25T23:20:00.003+08:002008-08-26T00:13:11.963+08:00

Not a full review yet, just some thoughts and impressions on TA’s production of Shakespeare’s Othello. (The production is in Filipino and is titled Otelo: Ang Moro ng Venecia.) I caught the gala-night performance (Saturday, August 23, 7 p.m.) starring Nonie Buencamino as Othello, Rody Vera as Iago, Missy Maramara as Desdemona, and Neil Ryan Sese as Cassio.* The translation by Rogelio Sicat and

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-63519825511794714542008-08-19T11:27:00.000+08:002008-08-19T11:28:57.448+08:00

I not only knew precisely what he [Tobias Wolff] meant but I agreed [that the ending of one of my stories was too long], and I knew he would have written the end better, and as a reader I would have enjoyed it more; and I knew that I wouldn't change what I had written, because that was the only way I could write it, and if I changed it, it wouldn't be mine anymore. We can't make them perfectly,

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-12975704077804998552008-08-15T00:05:00.000+08:002008-08-15T00:06:31.791+08:00

Got word from Cris Villonco that the next installment of Aawitan Kita sa Makati will be different from previous ones. Instead of kundimans, the featured singers will perform pop songs (standards, bossa, Broadway, jazz) but in Filipino translation based on Pete Lacaba's Salinawit.Sounds like a great idea to me.Date: August 22, Friday. Same place (the U of Makati), same time (5:30 pm).But again, I

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-69744597262195287772008-07-11T14:55:00.001+08:002008-07-11T14:56:54.202+08:00

This piece from Wired magazine tells us that English is becoming more and more like Chinese, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. (Boldface added for emphasis, as usual.)How English is evolving into a language we may not even understandBy Michael Erard06.23.08The targeted offenses: if you are stolen, call the police at once. please omnivorously put the waste in garbage can. deformed man

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-61080449911815135162008-07-11T14:52:00.001+08:002008-07-11T14:53:36.462+08:00

Here's a witty video on what is currently the nuclear option of online debate, the three words that, when uttered, explode all rational discourse. A nifty tool for us teachers of critical thinking and argumentation.Hat tip to Amy Gahran.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-91916151405664676602008-07-08T22:32:00.004+08:002008-07-08T22:36:34.657+08:00

The International Herald Tribune has an interesting piece on an unlikely new literary star: a Jesuit from Nigeria. Father Uwem Akpan's book of short stories, Say You're One of Them, is characterized by "as translucent a style as I've read in a long while" (so says a critic from The Chicago Tribune). Excerpts from the article (boldface added for emphasis):Each of the book's five stories (some are

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-64512073684116943202008-07-04T17:55:00.002+08:002008-07-04T17:57:39.217+08:00

John Nery spends the closing paragraphs of his latest column for the Inquirer discussing boxing champ Manny Pacquaio's English (boldface added for emphasis):This may be a good time to write about Pacquiao’s English.He is often ridiculed for his use of the language, mainly because of his rigid pronunciation. A teaser for the ANC television channel’s “Korina Today” show, which ran for the longest

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-76025544332501488412008-06-29T21:50:00.002+08:002008-06-29T21:52:51.389+08:00

Andrew Taylor, on his blog The Artful Manager, shares a thought that struck him while attending a conference on the arts: a participant said, "We need to stop making the arts so special."It may seem counter-intuitive, but it's true. Art, the literary arts included, needs to be treated as if it were just like any other thing we do. Because when we give it special treatment, then we create what we

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-83971036058904247182008-06-17T21:11:00.001+08:002008-06-17T21:12:45.120+08:00

Jan, one of our lit majors in the English Department, posted this bit of dialogue [contacts only] she overheard in the Rizal Library (the main library of the Loyola Schools, or college). She found it funny, and so did I (funny in a painful way). With her permission to repost it here, I give you (slightly edited) this whiff of just what we teachers of freshmen (or freshies, as we like to call them

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-82016716683049944922008-06-16T23:03:00.002+08:002008-06-16T23:04:53.516+08:00

National Catholic Reporter correspondent John Allen reports on a conflict in the US bishops current meeting concerning a translation of texts used in the Catholic mass. I'm not aware of the details, but as for the broader concerns I sympathize with both sides.On the one hand, I agree on the need to make the language of the mass more "sacral," more formal, as befits sacred ritual. Reading this I

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-87863408954186584002008-06-16T21:31:00.002+08:002008-06-16T21:33:24.358+08:00

Here is a piece by poet and essayist Larry Ypil. He grew up in Cebu but teaches with us at the Ateneo's English Department where he is getting his MA. An excerpt from his poignant piece on coming going:Only this time around, it seems to take longer than usual. And one realizes that the Manila one left a few months ago is no longer the Manila that one has just returned to. A housemate’s gone. A

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-39476110895982562392008-06-09T17:58:00.001+08:002008-06-09T18:00:15.567+08:00

Here's a good piece from Zen Habits, a blog that I follow. Blog owner Leo explains how to turn goals into habits, a method he has put into use when he prepared for his first marathon, cut down on his debt, and wrote a book. It sounds like a good way to make changes to your life without being overwhelmed by them:I try to turn my goals into habits, and in doing so, I put my goals on autopilot.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-15061776150160309332008-06-09T17:07:00.000+08:002008-06-09T17:07:25.235+08:00

Here's another hilarious video from the same guys who gave us the Spanish love song. This is "Ooh Girl," an "honest R&B song." Coz, like, no one really makes love all night long. (It's impossible.)

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-16686904358659471832008-06-09T16:14:00.003+08:002008-12-09T07:00:38.923+08:00

Tanghalang Ateneo jumpstarts its 30th Season, Echoes, this July with two modern classics by Eugène Ionesco — Ang Sopranong Kalbo (translated by Rolando S. Tinio) and The Lesson. The double bill of absurd plays, wildly funny on the surface but sinister in its implications, comes together under the name “?” Two by Ionesco, with the question mark representing the reaction of people who cannot

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-42773690845094810072008-06-03T21:20:00.002+08:002008-06-03T21:25:42.150+08:00

From June 12 to 15, Wifi Body Festival 3, an annual independent contemporary dance festival now on its third year at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, will celebrate Independence Day with its main performance showcase “IndepenDance.”With the theme “Dance in Revolution: Revolution in Dance,” IndepenDance will feature “Indios Bravos” in the choreography of Dwight Rodrigazo, to be performed by

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-8086971468055607892008-05-27T22:33:00.003+08:002009-06-29T22:19:53.040+08:00

For the Art & Culture section of the Philippine Star, May 26, 2008.I posted the Philstage press release here on this blog already, but since the paper didn't run it, I thought I'd get it printed by using it in an article. I just added a short introduction.I’ve been writing about theater for this paper for a short while, less than a year in fact, but in this brief time I’ve discovered what a

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-22945672280045473412008-05-27T22:19:00.002+08:002008-05-27T22:23:32.241+08:00

It's taken me a while to write this, largely because it took me a while to figure that it was worth acknowledging. Of course I'm talking about Connie Veneracion (aka The Sassy Lawyer) and her response to my piece ("Preying on Ignorance") criticizing her earlier column denigrating Amado Hernandez's Ibong Mandaragit. It seems she got a lot of flak from plenty of people. Predictably, her response

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-1608438824063163042008-05-27T14:23:00.003+08:002008-05-27T18:25:21.523+08:00

As a response to a previous post on the possibility that texting might actually harm one's mastery of language, here is RayVi Sunico, manager of Cacho Publishing House as well as a teacher, poet, and writer of children's books, arguing that the connection isn't as simple as that. In this piece written a year ago for the PCIJ web site, Sunico says context counts for a lot -- which is why he

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-1249887999370843042008-05-27T01:15:00.001+08:002008-05-27T01:18:45.831+08:00

This comes via John Nery: web guru Paul Graham names seven different kinds of disagreement. Why the need to classify? He says:The result [of all the conversation on the web] is there's a lot more disagreeing going on, especially measured by the word. That doesn't mean people are getting angrier. The structural change in the way we communicate is enough to account for it. But though it's not anger

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-27978458552539847722008-05-27T00:50:00.001+08:002008-05-27T00:52:33.127+08:00

The Philippine Educational Theater Association presents 5 exciting new plays in its 41st Theater Season.Opening the season in July, Soxie Topacio directs Nic Tiongson's NOLI AT FILI DEKADA 2000 (DOS MIL). The play is set in a small town in the Quezon province where the small town politics and social mores become the backdrop of Rizal's novels. Performances are slated for July 18 to August 24,

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-86343095004335197102008-05-27T00:40:00.001+08:002008-05-27T00:44:43.836+08:00

DULAANG UPUniversity of the Philippines DilimanAUDITION CALL FOR A NEW WORKwritten and directed by Anton Juan, Ph.D.Description of the Play:A dialogic and liminal voyage to the other world of victimized, abused children crying out to be heard. Physical theatre, sound-sense, and vintage Anton Juan, in tribute to Rene Villanueva.WANTED:15-actor ensembleYou must bring a resume of theatre experience

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-81146344253459041232008-05-25T16:02:00.000+08:002008-05-25T16:02:24.693+08:00

Those of you who ever took Spanish class but never became very good at the language (like me) should get a kick out of this video. The song is called "The One Semester of Spanish Love Song." I've chosen the video with subtitles.Muchos gracias y de nada. Me gusta la biblioteca. Que hora es, que hora es.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-24355015743429823692008-05-25T15:54:00.000+08:002008-05-25T15:57:05.086+08:00

I discovered the blog of Greg Sandow, a musician and teacher at Juilliard, only recently, but so far it's been a wonderful and insightful read. In this post (titled "Heresy -- Shostakovich, Handel, High Art, Peter Grimes") he talks about the value of mixing classical music with pop in his syllabus. The point? Even in "low brow" art forms like pop music, we still make distinctions between good and

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-35746725345541687742008-05-23T23:48:00.001+08:002008-05-23T23:49:21.621+08:00

Bach on a double-neck electric guitar by Polish "tapper" Adam Fulara. Jaw-dropping.He's pretty good on a single-neck guitar, too.My fingers ache.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-69343914032174863622008-05-23T00:40:00.000+08:002008-05-23T00:46:14.621+08:00

This comes by way of Cynthia, a friend of mine and Hilda's. She used to be an ad agency slave, now she's a slave to the ad industry trade magazine Adobo. (And of course I mean "slave" in the nicest possible way.) This lovely little ad has already won some prizes and looks like it will win some more. Cyn's comments: Another great ad from Leo Burnett KL and Petronas. Why can't our child actors be

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-21122452091920026672008-05-23T00:07:00.005+08:002008-05-23T00:16:31.517+08:00

As writers know, finding the time to write can be the most difficult problem. Especially for those who are busy with other things — like making a living, which means most of us — finding space within a busy life in order to just sit down and put words down on paper (or into your laptop) is a real challenge.Enter Rachel Toors, writing for the Chronicle of Higher Education, with this great advice:

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-83700670933117616512008-05-21T22:27:00.004+08:002009-06-29T22:21:23.570+08:00

For section ‘M’ of the Philippine Star, May 21, 2008.A friend whom I’ll call Lynn just came back from the beach a few weeks ago and wrote in her blog that, far from being refreshed by the weekend in sun and spray, was driven to a fit of anxiety. The reason? Far away from her computer and TV, she felt cut off from the world and wondered, as she sat on the beach with the water lapping her toes,

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-15147179072647343912008-05-20T21:15:00.002+08:002008-05-20T21:20:33.324+08:00

Inspired by the recent online discussion on reading (including my response to you-know-who), some folks have decided to read Mga Ibong Mandaragit by Amado Hernandez and write about it. They will post summaries of the chapters and their own thoughts on their blog as they go along. I hope to join in, once I've bought a copy of the book.A group-read like this is a great idea, I think, and something

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-49488756139870883812008-05-19T11:21:00.006+08:002009-06-29T22:20:09.135+08:00

For the Art & Culture section of the Philippine Star, May 19, 2008.Last week’s column (“Preying on Ignorance”) generated a strong and largely positive response that surprised me. I was stunned by how strongly people felt about what I wrote: a defense of literature, and Philippine literature especially, against a recent column by The Manila Standard Today’s Connie Veneracion in which she dissed

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-80568374765179103042008-05-18T03:04:00.008+08:002008-05-23T00:24:08.446+08:00

Ralph Peña, artistic director of New York-based Ma-Yi Theater Company, writes about memorable experiences of his as an actor going through the often-harrowing experience of auditioning for parts. He devotes most of his funny post to describing one time when he was given particularly bizarre instructions. It begins thus:Another time, I auditioned for a reputable professional company in Washington

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-78582589801139337642008-05-18T02:28:00.004+08:002008-05-18T02:43:31.446+08:00

Marriage is on my mind. I just came from a friend's wedding in which I served as ninong for the first time. One of the ninangs, a friend and writer about my age, said it was the sixth time for her. I suppose I should get used to being called "Ninong Exie." (It will take a while, though.)Here is an interesting reflection on marriage from the Archibishop of Atlanta by way of Whispers in the Loggia.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-70507286312222531142008-05-17T10:20:00.003+08:002008-05-17T10:25:40.139+08:00

This is a call for submissions of creative nonfiction for an anthology tentatively titled FINDING GOD. The book will be co-edited by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard and Marily Ysip Orosa and published in the Philippines by Anvil. Contributors will receive copies of the book as compensation for the use of their work.The manuscript should be approximately 7-10 pages long, typed, double-spaced (

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-60680585282146130062008-05-16T21:29:00.001+08:002008-05-16T21:32:40.151+08:00

From the International Herald Tribune: texting can hurt your command of English. (Thanks to Kenneth for the link.) The revenge of e.e. cummings Monday, May 12, 2008 Item: A new study warns that writing text messages could hurt a writer's command of standardized English. We had to LOL when we read how txt-msg lingo is replacing stndrd english in student academic pprs. 1 casualty of

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-51531915260448957382008-05-16T17:12:00.002+08:002008-05-16T17:16:45.775+08:00

The English proficiency of Filipinos has improved, or so we are told by a recent survey by the SWS. It's good news, but there is reason to be wary. Ruanni Tupas raises four points that should give us pause; his third and fourth ones, quoted below, are particularly incisive:Third, an improvement in the way we speak, write, and so on (granted that this is empirically true) does not translate to an

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-87549139930134309852008-05-14T15:08:00.002+08:002008-05-14T15:10:07.058+08:00

About three years ago the wife and I went over to the Riverbanks in Marikina to catch this group perform. They were billed as "Wadaiko Yamato, the Drummers of Japan." We had no idea what Japanese drumming was. All we knew was that it would be a new experience, and that it was free. Well, I'd never seen anything like it. They were awesome, and the crowd that assembled was very appreciative.The

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-24402864805013291622008-05-14T14:58:00.003+08:002008-05-14T15:07:54.441+08:00

The shortlist for the best Booker ever is out. Byatt's Possession and Ishiguro's Remains of the Day are not on the list. Hmm. And the winner will be chosen by . . . a public vote.Descriptions of each title are available at the end of the article.(Boldface added for emphasis.)Sun never sets on Booker's six bestCharlotte Higgins, arts correspondentMonday May 12, 2008The GuardianFrom the

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-82854906386039753302008-05-12T01:45:00.002+08:002009-06-29T22:20:19.688+08:00

For the Art & Culture section of the Philippine Star, May 12, 2008.After I submitted this for publication, I made slight changes to the fifth and sixth paragraphs to make the point about the Hemingway novella easier to follow.For another, more trenchant, critique of the article in question, see Angela Stuart-Santiago.In a recent column in The Manila Standard Today, Connie Veneracion wrote about

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-31230668335689656792008-05-11T00:12:00.002+08:002008-05-11T00:25:29.602+08:00

Here is "Wronging English" by Ruanni Tupas. Ruanni, or "Tops," graciously gave his permission to have it posted here in its entirety. I've also included much of his lengthy introduction to the essay, which helps to provide some context.My thanks to Tops!* * * * *. . . Instead [of working on something else], I have found myself working on a short essay I wrote many years ago. The title is "

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-69541205169058520462008-05-08T22:37:00.001+08:002008-05-08T22:39:29.993+08:00

On the occasion of the feastday of St Joseph the Worker (May 1, our own Labor Day), Whispers in the Loggia posted a portion of this 2005 talk of Pope Benedict XVI in which he thanks the laborers who renovated his apartment. Whispers says this talk, on the value and dignity of human labor, has come to be known as "one of his most endearing." I've copied the paragraph that contains the essence of

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-9638766615617204192008-05-08T13:46:00.000+08:002008-05-08T13:47:38.200+08:00

Someone left this in his comment to a blog post of one of my contacts. I have no idea who did this version of Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds," but it's unbearably cute. Enjoy.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-69744821956886473002008-05-07T22:36:00.001+08:002008-05-07T22:39:29.280+08:00

Congratulations to the winners!* * * * *Productions by Tanghalang Pilipino (TP), Repertory Philippines (Rep), Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) and Ballet Philippines (BP) dominated the first and second quarterly citations of Gawad BUHAY!, the performing arts awards program organized by the Philippine Legitimate Stage Artists Group (PHILSTAGE). Tanghalang Pilipino's Kudeta romped

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-58764843951203129172008-05-07T22:18:00.003+08:002008-05-14T15:06:01.934+08:00

“Mirror, mirror, show to me him whose woman I will be.”Tanghalang Ateneo opens its 30th season with a splash by mounting a stage version of Nick Joaquin's May Day Eve, a tragic tale of love found and love forgotten in the patriarchal 19th century Philippines.Adapted for the stage by Alberto S. Florentino, May Day Eve moves from the blissful light of young love to the dark shadows of

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-82456961854908756052008-05-07T21:52:00.002+08:002008-12-09T07:00:39.566+08:00

In February this year I went to my optical shop in Trinoma and had my annual checkup. The grade of my glasses hadn't changed over the year, but I told the optometrist that I was starting to have some difficulty reading. She did a little more testing, and said that I would be due for reading glasses in one or two years.Reading glasses — one of those indisputable signs of the passing of the

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-52465004632108948392008-05-07T09:41:00.002+08:002008-05-07T09:46:16.949+08:00

You've heard the Whitney version of this tune. (Apparently it's a Dolly Parton original.) Now listen to this version by Balkan Music Idol winner Nevena Coneva. You ain't heard nothin' like this before. As composer and arranger Vince de Jesus (on whose blog I first saw this video) says, "Now this is what I call owning a song!" Damn right it's hers.Enjoy.As a bonus, here's Coneva again with a much

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-29268297802190005002008-05-06T22:15:00.001+08:002008-05-06T22:43:32.131+08:00

I've tried to keep this blog focused on serious topics (mostly arts and culture), but perhaps it's time to loosen things up a bit. So I'll inaugurate a series I will title, with apologies to Monty Python, "And now for something completely different." (That line brings back the memory of seeing John Cleese in a bikini. Explains a lot about the Python, and about me.)Thanks to Anna G for posting

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-88470494805249527822008-05-05T23:52:00.003+08:002008-05-07T09:45:36.252+08:00

This is a followup post of sorts to the one on Isabel Martin's essay "Myths About Languages in the Philippines" which spawned quite a bit of commentary. Here I've put together bits of several posts I've seen over the past week on the same issues. (Boldface added for emphasis.)The first is from Ruanni Tupas, a language expert I met a year ago when he came over to Ateneo to deliver a set of

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-59509893407756006262008-05-02T15:29:00.002+08:002008-05-02T15:34:26.154+08:00

Surprising news from the BBC. Time to stop eating in front of the computer. (Hmm, I wonder how clean our cellphone keypads are.)Keyboards ‘dirtier than a toilet’ Some computer keyboards harbour more harmful bacteria than a toilet seat, research has suggested. Consumer group Which? said

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-67438787750649143622008-04-30T01:48:00.000+08:002008-04-30T01:50:26.623+08:00

John Nery, editor and columnist over at the Inquirer, spent the second half of his column yesterday ("Blogs to Read," Tuesday, April 29) talking about blogs. For some reason he felt that mine was worth mentioning in the same breath as clearly loftier ones. Maybe that's because John and I are good friends who go back sixteen years, when we used to edit copy for a business-economics

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-42939232114541588352008-04-30T01:03:00.001+08:002009-06-29T22:21:32.204+08:00

For section ‘M’ of the Philippine Star, April 30, 2008.When I was in high school I reached what I consider the low point in my sanitary life: some time during those four terror-filled years I bathed about twice a week. It didn’t seem like a big deal then. I got up early, spent most of the day in school, including two hours in the early evening because of my involvement in the theater group, then

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-39575143967862496292008-04-24T23:40:00.004+08:002008-04-24T23:50:59.094+08:00

American poet John Ashbery, in this excerpt from a February 2008 Guernica magazine interview, gives his take on political poetry. (Boldface added for emphasis.)Guernica : Some of your early critics complained about your lack of political writing. John Ashbery : My feeling is that most political poetry is preaching to the choir, and that the people who are going to make the political changes in

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-78011648273840328662008-04-24T23:22:00.000+08:002008-04-24T23:26:24.169+08:00

Got the invite from Cris Villonco, so I'm passing the word along:Aawitan Kita, Armida Siguion Reyna's long-running TV show (if you caught it on TV, I know how old you are) is now a stage show! A project of the Office of the City Mayor, the show -- titled Aawitan Kita sa Makati ... Live -- goes on once a month and is aimed primarily at senior citizens (but don't let that discourage you).Cris

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-90341343743635621422008-04-23T22:21:00.001+08:002008-04-23T22:23:16.269+08:00

An art exhibit gets the thumbs-down not for the art itself, strangely enough, but for the text that accompanies the pieces. "Unalloyed gibberish," the Wall Street Journal calls it in this piece.Perhaps this article will reactivate latent meanings you have failed to problematize in your mind by realigning old adjacencies, or inverting others into a new transgressive congruence. Me, I'm still

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-39010828431510260602008-04-22T22:20:00.004+08:002009-06-29T22:20:30.007+08:00

For the Art & Culture section of the Philippine Star, 21 April 2008.Repertory Philippines’s Altar Boyz begins to wink at us from the get-go: the lights go down, the stage is enveloped in fog, then a man carrying a fog machine walks across the stage in full view of the audience. The story’s conceit: a boy band arrives in Manila, the last leg of its world tour. Except that it’s a Christian band on

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-33678308686866470142008-03-28T01:54:00.001+08:002008-03-28T01:57:44.965+08:00

This editorial of the National Catholic Reporter came out almost two months ago, but it's still worth reading especially if you care about the life of the Church. Written when top Jesuit officials (including Philippine provincial Daniel Huang) were in Rome during their General Congregation (they had just selected a new father general, Adolfo Nicolas), the NCR acknowledges the great contribution

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-5358155033889160502008-03-26T20:25:00.001+08:002008-03-26T20:28:13.787+08:00

I once surprised younger friends, in one of those heart-to-heart discussions we sometimes have about finding what we want to do with our lives and wondering what will make us happy, by saying, rather tartly, "Happiness is overrated." They looked at me funny.Turns out I may have been on to something.This piece from the Los Angeles Times tells us that cheerfulness isn't all it's cracked up to be,

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-39193789213608133812008-03-24T22:44:00.001+08:002008-03-24T22:49:16.359+08:00

That article on the joy of boredom reminded me of this Mary Oliver poem. By the measure of our utilitarian world, the persona in this poem wastes her day. But she asks, "Tell me, what else should I have done? / Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?" Questions frame the poem, and the ones that end it are a sharp summons to the reader to truly live.The poem can be found at Poetry 180.* * *

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-53256223373131188222008-03-23T18:40:00.000+08:002008-03-23T18:44:12.197+08:00

So are you glad that the long Holy Week weekend is ending, and your boredom will be relieved? Don't be. This article from The Boston Globe tells us that boredom might actually be good for you.(Boldface added for emphasis.)The joy of boredomBy Carolyn Y. Johnson | March 9, 2008A DECADE AGO, those monotonous minutes were just a fact of life: time ticking away, as you gazed idly into space, stood

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-3730637809097883552008-03-17T00:40:00.002+08:002009-06-29T22:22:36.839+08:00

My review of Tanghalang Pilipino's EJ. For the Art & Culture section of the Philippine Star.Update: This piece was published Monday, 24 March 2008.Tanghalang Pilipino’s EJ: Ang Pinagdaanang Buhay nina Evelio Javier at Edgar Jopson starts from a promising conceit: what if the two political martyrs were together in heaven observing the Philippines below? By all accounts they never met in real life.

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-6139022739078819182008-03-16T23:24:00.000+08:002008-03-16T23:25:05.142+08:00

It is our pleasure to send you this invitation to a celebration of our People's Creativity through the angelic music of the LOBOC CHILDREN'S CHOIR in concert at the PETA THEATER CENTER, New Manila, QC!Enjoy a wonderful night of music and help us restore the Loboc Church (a National Heritage Site) and generate scholarship funds for these talended young children of Bohol. Music from 19th Century

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7798090317569198338.post-72527369561249796422008-03-16T23:14:00.001+08:002008-03-16T23:16:56.838+08:00

CLARION CHAMBER ENSEMBLE AND PHILAMLIFE INSURANCE CO. PRESENTSLEAVE IT TO THE VIRTUOSOS Sunday March 30th 6:30 P.M.Philamlife Theatre, Ermita, Manila Mr. Russell Brandon, Concert Moderator Virtuosity is a quality musicians aspire to possess and virtuosity thrills audiences hearing the musicians who have it. Musical virtuosity dazzles the ear and eye with seemingly effortless

exie abolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364538169186540208noreply@blogger.com0