Bonifacio On His Birthday

Among our heroes, no one is more tragic than Andres Bonifacio, whose birthday we remember today. He was a man who overcame his working-class roots by educating himself. Inspired by Rizal’s novels, he founded the Katipunan and became its Supremo. But certain ilustrados in the movement, refusing to accept a man beneath their class as their leader, conspired against him. Several unfortunate events followed, leading to Bonifacio’s execution by his own followers one May day in Maragondon, Cavite. His bones have yet to be found.

Even today, Bonifacio’s memory continues to haunt history-conscious Filipinos. Local creative writers and filmmakers are also haunted by his memory, and responded by using him—and the tragedy that is the Philippine Revolution—as material. In poetry, we have Jaime An Lim’s “On the Eve of the Execution” and Ronald Atilano’s unpublished “Ang Awit ni Lazaro Makapagal.” In drama, there’s Rene Villanueva’s Huling Gabi sa Maragondon and the late Carlos dela Paz Jr.’s 1896. In film, we have Raymond Red’s Bayani (in which Julio Diaz delivered a lackluster portrayal of the title character) and, to a much lesser degree, Marilou Diaz-Abaya’s Jose Rizal (in which she and a miscast Gardo Versoza presented the Supremo as a buffoon).

Bonifacio’s valuable role in our history cannot be denied, and the same can be said for the issues that arose from the troubling circumstances surrounding his death. These issues have yet to be resolved, but the chances of that happening are as slim as finding his bones. That says a lot about a country that constantly fails to find final resolution to the issues and problems it faces. Isn’t it any wonder why we’re not moving on properly? Isn’t in any wonder why Bonifacio’s memory is like a phantom, persisting to make its presence felt despite our collective denial?

Then and now, the self-centered interests of a privileged few rule the day.

And the Award goes to...

AND THE WINNERS (AND SOME OF THE JUDGES) ARE: (from left to right) Neal H. Cruz, Cecile Guidote Alvarez, Janet Villa, Exie Abola, NVM Gonzalez (Ü), Narita Gonzalez, Greg Brillantes, Frankie Jose, and Jimmy Abad.

Broadcaster Caroline Howard hosted. Jimmy Abad led the guests in prayer. PDI columnist Neal H. Cruz gave a backgrounder on the Awards. Menchu Aquino Sarmiento, the first NVM Award winner, spoke about the value of the Awards. Narita Gonzalez (who's remarkably holding up very well) introduced the guest speaker. Guest speaker Frankie Jose reminisced about NVM. Greg Brillantes announced the winners—Alexis A.L. Abola for At the Ends of the Hyphen (published last April in the Philippines Free Press), first prize; Janet Villa for Closopen (published last August in the Philippine Graphic), runner-up prize—and explained the jury’s choices. Cecile Guidote Alvarez reiterated the NCCA’s support for NVM, Inc. Michael Gonzalez gave the closing remarks. Reception followed.

To Exie and (most especially) Janet, as well as the other finalists, CONGRATULATIONS!

Paraisong Pamilihan

168 SHOPPING MALL: Palaki nang palaki ang gusaling ito sa Divisoria.

Eksaktong isang buwan na lang bago mag-Pasko, at kahit ganitong kaaga'y marami nang tao ang bumibili ng mga regalo. Kasama na rito ang nanay at ate ko, kaya kaninang umaga kinaladkad nila ako sa Divisoria, ang paraisong pamilihan ng Maynila. Nang umuwi na kami, ako’y naging isa pang pares ng mga kamay, karga-karga ang kanilang mga bilihin. Wala akong binili ngayon, at hindi na ako nagugulat doon; kailangan ko ng dalawa o tatlo pang pagluwas sa Divisoria—sa 168 Shopping Mall—para makumpleto ang aking pagsha-shopping. Ganyan ako kabusisi (o kabagal) bumili ng mga regalo. Ganyan ang nangyari sa akin noong huling taon.

Marami kang makikitang mga interesanteng bagay sa Divisoria. Doon sa bagong bukas na Meisic Mall, may nakita akong dalawang bagay na 'di ko matiis na hindi kumuha ng mga litrato.

COUGHING AND SCREAMING ASHTRAY: Pang-asar sa mga mahilig manigarilyo.

MOSQUITO NET: O, ano'ng masasabi niyo sa sosing kulambo ng bagong milenyo?

Razed By A Blaze

While surfing the Web this evening, I checked out the Manila Times website and this headline—“Literary giant’s legacy survives fire”—quickly captured my interest; I promptly clicked on it. Not only did I feel terrible for the widow, but also for all the memorabilia that got burned. OUCH!

I hope the UP—especially the ICW—and the local literocracy will take appropriate action on this incident, and soon. Something should be done.

UPDATE (Tuesday, November 22, 2005):

I went to UP this afternoon to borrow a Mojares book from the Main Library, and before I went home I dropped by the Gonzalez house—or what was left of it. Garbage men were hauling some of its, um, remains (“trash” seems so inappropriate to use in this situation) and tossing them into their truck when I arrived. I didn’t see Mrs. Gonzalez. It was very bad. The roof and walls are totally gone. What remained of the house is, for lack of a better term, its charred “skeleton.” So sad, so sad.

UPDATE (Saturday, November 26, 2005):

The picture above, which I took last Tuesday, is what remained of the Gonzalez house. Chitty Cortes, one of NVM's granddaughters, gave me permission to upload it here. Those interested to help may send donations, in cash or kind, to the UP Institute of Creative Writing or bring these at the UP Faculty Center's Hardin ng mga Diwata on Writers' Night, to be held on December 7.

Thursdays with Chari

If you’re a creative writer and you haven’t written anything literary for some time, it’s time to let some outside force push you to do so. For some, it’s joining NaNoWriMo and try to finish a novel in a month’s time. I, on the other hand, enrolled in another fiction-writing class (and Ph.D.-level, no less!), this time under the always-interesting Rosario Cruz Lucero, this semester.

I have to: not only did I fail to complete an earlier penalty course (American Literature: 1900-1943) in a year’s time, I also need to come up with new stories to include in my masteral thesis, which I’m currently working on. And if yesterday—my first day of class—was any indication, I’m sure I’ll come up with one or two, but it’s not going to be easy. Then again, who says creative writing is easy?

Still, I think I’m going to have a good time in this class, even with all the readings and requirements. After all, Chari can be quite entertaining (and she was, yesterday) and I have good friends (and Dumaguete co-fellows) like Janet Villa and BJ Patiño for classmates.

All in all, so far so good. Next week, Janet and I (plus another classmate) will be offering our stories for discussion. That’ll be something to be excited (or, gulp, nervous) about.

UPDATE (Friday, November 18, 2005):

Janet and I finally had our stories workshopped in class yesterday. The way Chari read them with a very sharp critical eye, the way she candidly commented on them without sounding like a mean bitch--it was a very humbling, very ego-deflating, but very enlightening experience. We were way too busy writing notes to pay attention to what we were feeling. And when we did, on the way home, we actually felt grateful, but decided not to touch our stories for a while, perhaps for a month.

This is going to be a looooong semester.

What Classic Movie Are You?

Being a film freak (and for lack of something better to post), I took this test from similarminds.com. Hm, intriguing results. Now I really have to watch this film.

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Troublemaker in My Tagboard

A few days ago, someone started posting distasteful messages in my Tagboard, hard-bent on labelling me (or, in his mind, outing me) as gay. As Banzai Cat had pointed out, it seemed he was offended by what I said in a paragraph in a recent post (“A Playwright’s Pet Peeve”):

"… Putangina. Binaboy talaga. And the lowest point in it? The uber-effeminate guy who played the heroine’s gay best friend in my play—and who, incidentally, was also the director—lectured to two female characters (who were not in the play at all) while wearing a Darna bustier (!)…"

There’s nothing false or malicious about the abovementioned passage; that’s the way it actually happened. Still, my Tagboard troublemaker apparently read it differently. I have my suspicions as to who it is, but it’s hard to tell if your only clue is a face made up of brackets and colons. I just wish he would diss me in my face—that is, if he knows me personally.

He posted again in my Tagboard earlier this morning. Not only did he call me gay, he also “advised” me to come out of the closet. He also dissed my writings, which is all right with me; I don’t expect everyone to like what I write. But it’s clear to me that as long as I have a Tagboard, he won’t stop being a nuisance. So I decided to remove it. No big deal.

This was not the first time someone has called me gay, and I’m sure I’m not the only playwright who has experienced this. Those who previously did for one reason or another ended up disap­pointed or embarrassed by or regretful about it. Really, I don’t have any real reason to react violently when someone calls me gay. Why should I? And, for the sake of argument, if I were gay, shouldn’t I be the one to decide whether to out myself or not? But it appears the troublemaker wants to relieve me of that decision and take it upon himself on my behalf, or so he believes.

I just turned a year older, and at my age I already know who I am, what I’m capable of, and what I want out of life. I’m comfortable with the decisions I have made in my life, and I feel I don’t have to explain or justify them to everyone, particularly to people I don’t know. And I confront whatever the consequences my decisions reap. At my age I let other people think what they want to think. Some of the most fascinating people around are those who are hard to read, hard to figure out.

What bothers me about the whole situation is the troublemaker’s lack of identity. There’s really nothing more cowardly—at least, as far as blogging is concerned—than dissing someone anony­mously. That speaks volumes about the kind of person that he is. And if he’s expecting me to diss him back, I’m sorry but I’m afraid I won’t stoop that low. That’s not the way I was raised.

So, to the troublemaking bee-yotch: Get some real balls. You clearly need them.

Game for a Game-Show Channel

If you’re a (Manila-based) Sky Cable subscriber, you probably know by now that there are at least two new channels in the lineup, albeit currently in the test-broadcasting stage: the animé-oriented Hero Channel and the unimaginatively named Crime/Suspense Channel. Not that I’m actually complaining, but I really think Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Animax, and the Disney Channel are more than enough to keep the kiddies happy. And don’t we have HBO, Cinemax, and Star Movies to keep the grown-ups entertained, especially since a good number of the films they show actually belong to the crime/mystery/suspense genre?

If you ask me, what Sky Cable needs to add is a game-show channel. I’ve always loved game shows since I was a kid, thanks to The Price is Right and Family Feud. Then my fondness for them grew when the old Far East Network (FEN) started showing Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! Whenever these two were on, my family and I would glue ourselves in front of the TV, entranced, oooh-ing and aaah-ing at the neat prizes, or groaning or squealing with delight at a contestant’s turn at the glittering wheel or at a contestant’s answer, phrased in the form of a question.

Jeopardy! remains to be my all-time favorite game show, even if I haven’t watched a single episode for many years now. Maybe it’s because of the refreshingly smart format, or maybe because one can actually learn at least an interesting thing or two from the answers. It helped that host Alex Trebek projected an aura of intelligence that’s both charming and credible, even if we’re aware that he’s just reading what’s written on the cue cards or in the teleprompter. Between Jeopardy! and Pilipinas, Game Ka Na Ba? (which I very rarely watch) I’ll pick the former any day.

Other game shows that I also like: Name That Tune (which RPN-9 used to show during weekday mornings many years ago), Star World’s Hollywood Squares (which I watch for the celebrities’ one-liners more than anything else), and MTV’s Singled Out, the American version (the one co-hosted by former Playmate of the Year Jenny McCarthy).

How about you, what are your favorite game shows?