Soundtrack of my Life

I've been very busy lately and I welcomed Thor's "exercise." Kala ko madali.... di pala.

If you were to create the sountrack of your life, this would be the song playing when you are...

Lonely Or Down: Magnetic Field’s 100,000 fireflies "I'm afraid of the dark without you close to me." Fleetwood Mac’s Landslide "I'm getting older too." Jackson Browne’s Sky blue and black "I could never see how you doubted me when I’d let go of your hand." Beautiful South’s Hold on to what? Schadenfreude!

In Love: Beth Orton, Someone’s Daughter "I wanna know how it feels to be the sunlight in your hair dancing everywhere." Dido’s White Flag "I will go down with this ship." – a war cry. Heh!

Fighting With Your Significant Other: Aimee Mann’s Momentum. "Even when it’s approaching touture, I’ve got my routine."

Having Sex: Jewel’s Jupiter ALA AKO MAISIP! I don't notice whatever's playing anyway...

Nursing A Broken Heart: Tori Amos’ Hey Jupiter "Nothing's been the same" and Mary Lou Lord’s cover of Magnetic Field’sI don’t want to get over you. Also, Dixie Chick’s Tonight, the heartache’s on me – catty and vindictive yet blue. Pefect for a broken heart.

In Need of Cheering Up: Emm Gryner’s Northern Holiday "I'm gonna drink and forget that you let me go." Kirsty MacColl’s In these shoes? Sugarfree’s Alinlangan – "Huwag ka nang matakot sa lungkot" - sigh.

About To Embark On A Road Trip: I daydream of driving with the The Reivers’ playing - particularly Almost Home. But I don’t know how to drive and no car…

Sunbathing On A Tropical Beach: No Doubt’s Undernearth it all and a healthy dose of Bob Marley’s classics.

Feeling Groggy And Need To Wake Up: Liz Phair’s Big tall man and Extraordinary. Supergodess! Rooney’s I’m Shakin’ and Dubstar’s It’s clear.

Feeling Suicidal: Jose Marie Chan – I would jump off a building than listen to more than one song. My brother and I dumped our mother’s Jose Marie Chan’s Christmas album in the trash – she was looking for it and we innocently said we didn’t know where it was.

Angry, Very Angry: Hole’s Violet. Tori Amos’s Precious things – "I want to smash their faces" very cathartic.

Singing At The Videoke Bar: Madonna’s Crazy for you. Avril Lavigne’s Complicated.

Dancing By Yourself In Your Room: I have to agree with Dodo: "Dancing With Myself. Billy Idol. There can be only one." – Dodo Dayao

Singing, Dancing And Drunk Off Your Ass: The B-52s – anything.

Playing Air Guitar: Nothing ambitious – it was always the Breeder’s Cannonball - I dream of playing the mean rhythm.

Chilling On A Rainy Afternoon: Beth Orton’s I wish I never saw the sunshine. Fleetwood Mac’s Dreams. Ricki Lee Jone’s Beat Angels. Aimee Mann’s High on Sunday 51. Hay.... Lungkot-lungkutan.

Reminiscing About High School: Fra Lipo Lippi’s Everytime I see you, REM’s The one I love, Redrocker’s China, Gene Loves Jezebel’s Desire, The Alarm’s Absolute reality, Duran Duran’s Wild boys, Spandau Ballet’s Gold, and Debbie Gibson’s Electric Youth!

Reminiscing About College: I spent 70% of my free time hanging out at our college student council playing guitar with the gang –our professors often came by to remind us that we have a class… These were our pretty eclectic favorites: Edie Brickell and the New Bohemian’s Ghost of a dog, 10,000 Maniac’s Like the weather, REM’s Stand, America’s Sister golden hair, Neil Young’s Hey, hey, my, my (into the black), Buklod’s Buhay at bukid, Eraserheads’ Pare Ko, Joey Ayala’s Agila and yes, Bon Jovi’s I’ll be there for you.

Getting Married: If ever there’s a change of plans…. The Postal Service’s Brand new colony. Tori Amos’ Sorta Fairy Tale.

JLA: the TRUTH shall make you FRET

JLA: Golden Perfect
writer Joe Kelly and artists Doug Mahnke and Tom Nguyen

I don't usually read JLA - I don't know - maybe because I grew up with Xmen. A friend lent me some of his JLA comics and graphic novels. I read Golden Perfect first. The JLA found a woman who was from a "hidden" city - the city "held" her son hostage. He was chosen as the next successor to being the king of the land, the king directly gets power from the earth and maintains the splendor of their city and way of life.

The JLA rushed to the city to rescue the child and they were faced with a dilemma - it was true that the boy's fate was tied to the land - the city would be destroyed if the true ruler renounced his calling but then again a mother and a child must never be separated. Wonder Woman believed that the the former was a lie - even after she used the lasso (which was supposed to force whoever is tied down by it to tell the truth) to determine the truth. This broke the lasso (which was supposed to be unbreakable). Wonder Woman was supposed to be the guardian of Truth and because she denied the truth and the lasso broken, reality began to unravel - truth became relative to the perception of the people. Thus, the Earth became the center of the Universe, it became flat, Superman because very buff, Batman began to disappear because most people thought he was an urban legend, and so on...

I was always irritated when the JLA mentions they uphold truth, freedom, and the American way. ARGH! It's like they're the only ones who believe in that! But in Golden Perfect, the writers explored the possibility that the League became imperialistic when they forced their beliefs and principles, their standards of what is right and wrong on a culture and independent and free country. I expected that Wonder Woman would be the one to be all high and mighty and init ulo - and to see her fall from her high horse, admit she was wrong and was open to compromise was good to see.

I was surprized to find that I liked Plastic Man - yes, he was a welcome comic relief!

A war story

Christopher Golden
Strangewood

Christopher Golden wrote a few of the best Buffy the Vampire Slayer books: Wisdom of War, Monster Island, Spike and Dru, etc. Writing novels based on TV shows with cult and rabid following is hard because the target audience knows the characters by heart, they know how they talk, think, move, decide, hate, and love. This is doubly hard with Buffy - a series where each character has a different way of speaking, of using words and inventing words. Golden got all of the characters in Buffy in most of his books. Though after reading "Wisdom of War" a friend said that she never thought that Buffy was so cynical. He also wrote for Star Trek, Xmen, Hellboy, and Battlestar Gallactica. My kinda geek writer!

I didn't have high expectations for Strangewood - I bought it because it was only P50 at National Cubao. I read it immediately because it was the only book I had with me on the ride home. As with the Buffy novels, I couldn't put it down - unless I had to - which was often because of what people tell me is important to do - work. I also thought that this was a fantasy novel for young adults because most of his books were for kids or teen-agers.

Anyway, Strangewood is an alternate dimension/reality that Thomas and his son Nathan could go too - like Oz, Narnia and Stephen King and Peter Straub's Talisman and Black House. Strangewood's more like the latter - when in the fantasy world, Thomas and Nathan are catatonic or comatose in our world. Though the creatures in Strangewood are as fantastical and weird as in Oz (like Peanut Butter General - a man covered in - well, yes, peanut butter and Jackal Lantern, a jackal with a pumpkin head) they swear like characters in a Tarantino movie. Wow, a no holds barred fantasy novel! No goodie-goodie character who was forced by circumstances to do evil. The kontrabidas just found a excuse to hurt, maim, and murder. The creatures in Strangewood kidnapped Thomas' son because they blamed him for the ruin and destruction of Strangewood - a world that Thomas partially created. Not everyone in Strangewood agreed with this, those who thought it was wrong to kidnap, threaten, hurt, and kill waited for Thomas to return so that they could help him rescue his son. It was war and Golden told a perfect war story.

Endsong

X-men Phoenix - Endsong
Greg Pak and Greg Land

One of the earliest memories I have with my brother and father is reading X-men comics – particularly how Jean Grey transformed into the Phoenix. I remember having a big box in which I would pretend to be my space ship and I’d imagine I was Jean Grey trying to pilot the shuttle back to the Earth’s atmosphere while being bombarded by radiation. Then I would emerge from the box as --- it would have been cool if I continued to pretend that I was Phoenix but by then I got bored and probably played another game.

Cut to 27 years later – more or less – and here I am still fixated on comics. I do not have an extensive collection because there were times when I didn’t have the money to buy any or my interests were on something else. But I now have the re-issue of the Dark Phoenix Saga and I was looking for X-men desktop wallpapers. I came across wallpapers about the Pheonix Endsong – it was a 5-part X-men saga by Greg Pak and illustrated by Greg Land released early this year. I bought the hardbound premiere edition two weeks ago and I just finished reading it. The illustrations were awesome – they were “realistic” enough to make you feel that you’re watching a movie. The story drew heavily from the events of the Dark Phoenix Saga – how the Phoenix (a force of nature that brings life and death – its power come from stars) took over Jean Grey and she caused the death of 5 billion people and she had to die or cause more deaths.

In Endsong, the Phoenix was brought back by the survivors of the people the Dark Phoenix destroyed to exact revenge. The force came back to Earth trying to find something that it couldn’t name and homed in to the Scott Summers of the X-men who was already in a relationship with Emma Frost (the White Queen – a former villain). The Phoenix resurrected Jean Grey (the panels on the resurrection was reminiscent of Buffy being resurrected by Willow and the rest of the Scobbies) – then the drama began. There’s were two love triangles: Jean-Scott-Emma and Logan-Jean-Scott - a perfect mix for a cry-fest for me. Yes, iyakin ako - at the last 6 pages I was really trying hard to keep my tears from falling into the comic book and messing it up! A yosi-break and a drink of water helped.

Though it was supposed to be the Phoenix’s Endsong – the writer left hints of a “sequel.” Some people have problems with the seemingly endless sequels but I personally would don’t mind – the possibility of another good story will keep me happy.

Sweet Dreams from the Dream King

I know.... this post is late...



Happy. I was thinking of what to write for this blog ever since my Marvel 1602 and Sandman: Endless Nights was signed by Neil Gaiman but I could only come up with one word: Happy. But I’ll try a bit harder…

When it was my turn I told him his books and graphic novels helped me cope with my work as a social worker. They saved me from possible breakdowns due to stress. He smiled and told me it was great for a writer to hear that and he said he wished me “sweet dreams.” And that’s what he wrote in his dedication on my Marvel 1602.

Neil was amazed at the “mad enthusiasm” of Pinoys. The crowd of course shouted louder and became as rowdy as geeks could be. Yes, Pinoys who read Gaiman are madly enthusiastic about him being here – we hung on to his every word; took pictures from all angles; laughed at his jokes (which were funny, mind you) – because we couldn’t believe that HE WAS HERE! In the midst of economic problems and political upheavals HE IS THERE RIGHT IN FRONT OF US! Have you ever heard of a multi-awarded author visiting the Philippines for a book-signing event? NO! It’s so unbelievable that we might as well be trapped in one of the realms in the Dreaming. But I wouldn’t mind …. This is a sweet dream.

*****

Also an added bonus during the Gathering - while Neil was signing, music was blaring on the speakers. Suddenly the Magnetic Fields were on - if memory serves me right - it was "When you were my baby" from the Wayward Bus/Distant Plastic Trees CD. Thor told me Neil listens to the Magnetic Fields so that organizers must have done their research. I love this album - it's so sad and full of drama but so low fi that in a way it was funny - like in Candy, Merrit wrote "I'll just go away somewhere and slowly loose my mind." Hehe!

Send in the Clone

House of the Scorpion
Nancy Farmer

When I bought House of the Scorpion, it wasn't because I knew it was good or that I read a review about it - I bought it because it was red. I didn't read any reviews before I read it I just hoped that my p300++ wasn't wasted. I wasn't disappointed. When I started reading it I ended up forcing myself to sleep at 3am.

The House of Scorpion is not the usual sci-fi with spaceships, dimensions, and temporal fluxes. It's a story about a part of Mexico's society in a possible future: between the US border and Mexico a new country has arisen. It was called "Opium" because it was literally an Opium farm. The drug dealers offered a deal with the US and Mexico - that they would plant opium farms in between them, not sell drugs to both countries, and be unmolested by both governments. In return, the opium farmers will police the borders and prevent anyone from crossing.

In the midst of this context, Matt was raised by the household cook of the most powerful farmer in Opium - El Patron. Matt was El Patron's clone. Generally, clones are considered to be animals at that time. The book is a narrative that follows Matt's developmental stages from early childhood to teen-age years. It's an interesting study of childhood that can be paralled to today's children in need of special protection or special circumstances. So maybe that's why I loved it so much.

Important

After making plans for Neil Gaiman's book signing tour on the 9th to the 11th of July, I just got told that I have to be in Bangkok for a conference on Violence Against Children and the particpation of children in the recovery and rehabilitation efforts of tsunami affected areas. I reacted with disbelief, they knew that Neil Gaiman was coming and that I made plans! But well, these are not people who read sci-fi, fantasy or graphic novels - they have no idea who Neil Gaiman is.

Other officemates were volunteering to go in my place but I'm the only one who has had experience in the field. Fuck. Boss told me that the conference was important and what was a book signing anyway. Well, it is important to me.

From one plane to another

Changing Planes
Ursula Le Guin

Ursula Le Guin amazed me when I read Dispossed and the Left Hand of Darkness. I like sci-fi stories with an anthropological, political, and sociological slant like OS Cards’ Ender series (particularly Speaker for the Dead) and Herbert’s Dune. It’s fascinating that they painstakingly imagined what societies would be like if --- there was no male and female, if there was no government, if humans settled on a planet with a developing specie and civilization, if the economy, society, civilization depended on only one resource – wow.

What was very interesting with Changing Planes was that it was based on the premise that people can change planes (dimensional) while waiting for a plane (airplane) – the combination of stress, anxiety, and frustration enables humans to slide to other planes where they can go on a holiday and relax. There’s a “time difference” – days in one plane is only equivalent to maybe an hour in the airport. (For someone who travels often - GOD, I wish this was really possible!) The chapters were observations and stories about different planes – they’re short anthropological or sociological papers about a culture! Well, you can also see it as a travelogue. Either way, it was a very great read.

Fight the Night

A wrinkle in time
Madeleine L’Engle

My brother has been telling me to read this book for years, I finally got around it. I expected a sci-fi story for young people and I found it very philosophical – well, make that spiritual. It was a classic story of good vs. evil but there was a spiritual element on it. The kids were fighting an on coming darkness that controls lives – it deprives people of freedom, forcing them to be the “same” to the extreme – same thoughts, body rhythm, and activities. The controllers (or IT) saw the arrangement as a nirvana – no crime, no sickness, no poverty. One of the children, Meg, fought the darkness with love with the support of beings from other planets/dimensions who believe in good – in the light and in God.

A Wrinkle in Time reminded me of Sci-Fi books where religion and belief in God were central such as Orson Scott Card in his Memory of Earth series and Stephen King’s the Stand. It was amazing that L’Engle wrote the philosophical conflict for young people. The book also implied that “conformity” is an instrument of evil – the Borg of Star Trek also embodied this point of view. We can see this idea in a lot of books and films but isn’t it funny that our society encourages individuals to conform and frowns upon anyone different?

The calm before the storm

April and June were slow months for me - no trips to disaster areas or war-torn communities. Yes, my work does require me to go to buwis buhay trips in order to help out - in our own way. So staying home for two months meant I had time to buy books and graphic novels! Reading my hoard will take a bit longer but July and August schedules will be devastating - to my social life and so-called life.

Wish I could stay home longer.

Lost in Space: Me according to Aimee Mann

Choose a band/artist and answer only in song TITLES by that band:
Aimee Mann

Are you male or female: "Susan"
Describe yourself: "I know there’s a word"
How do some people feel about you: "Say anything"
How do you feel about yourself: "Stupid thing"
Describe your ex girlfriend/boyfriend: "Real bad news"
Describe your current girlfriend/boyfriend: "Deathly"
Describe where you want to be: "Put me on top"
Describe what you want to be: "Driving with one hand on the wheel"
Describe how you live: "High on Sunday 51"
Describe how you love: "Nothing is good enough"
Share a few words of wisdom: "This is how it goes…"

Trekkie Talk: Trouble in Paradise

The UNITED FEDERATION of PLANETS was Gene Roddenberry’s vision of the future. In the Star Trek Universe, the United Federation of Planets was founded as a peaceful collaboration of many planetary governments, dedicated to peaceful acquisition of knowledge, technologies, and better living. The Federation seeks out new civilizations, in hopes of establishing peaceful contact, and developing a relationship which is prosperous to both. (http://www.lbow.com/ufp.htm)

It was a vision of Utopia, Earth on which UFP and Starfleet Headquarters are found, maintains a "moneyless" society. In "Star Trek: First Contact," when asked by a woman from the "past" how much the ship had cost, Captain Picard tells her: "The economics of the future is somewhat different. You see, money doesn't exist in the 24th century... The acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives. We work to better ourselves and the rest of humanity."

But as the different series progressed, we saw the flaws in vision of utopia. “The Federation is just like the Borg.” Starfleet officer turned Maquis Lt. Com. Eddington said to Capt. Sisko. The Commander said that the Federation “forced” it’s people to follow its beliefs and principles and if you do not abide by these, you are isolated or they send Starfleet after you. In Encounter at Farpoint, Picard proudly defended humanity saying that discrimination, war, and greed were in the past. But as the story of Star Trek unfolded we began to see that maybe the intolerance and discrimination and greed –the most common root causes of conflict – are just laying dormant.

We have seen intolerance and discrimination in the Star Trek – Worf and B’elanna both experienced cruel teasing from human children because of how they looked. In the first episode of ST VOYAGER, Quark hinted that Ferengis are discriminated against by Federation people. In “Let the one without sin” in Deep Space 9 where Worf and Dax encountered “Federation Fundamentalists” who condemned the culture and lifestyle of Risa and any being who come to enjoy the culture and lifestyle of Risa.

In Paradise, is discrimination only lying dormant or is it just a pink elephant in the room that no one wants to acknowledge? Is the fault in human (or any other species) nature?

“You lack harmony, cohesion, greatness. It will be your undoing.”
- Seven of Nine, Scorpion Part 2

Seven, or the Borg’s analysis of the human condition was unforgivably blunt. An analysis that would trigger a reaction to any humanoid specie with a society based on individual thinking. But is it not strange that “harmony, cohesion, greatness” are what humanity strives for? Isn’t “harmony, cohesion, greatness” words that would describe peace and progress?

Seen from a different point of view, Borg society is a form of “utopia” – there is no disease, hunger, greed, poverty – all of which are causes of great wars, deaths, and social problems. Moreover, in the Borg, there is no loneliness or depression – for some individuals being alone is the worst fate there is. When Seven of Nine was initially disconnected from the Collective she almost lost her sanity because she felt so alone – one voice, one mind. In the episode “Survival Instinct” she did what she could in order to maintain a Collective because she could not stand to be alone. In “Homecoming” – the novel about Voyager’s well, homecoming, a human attempted to start a new collective because she felt abused and alone. The Queen found comfort among her drones who loved her back.

Star Trek was hailed by many because of it's belief in humanity's goodness and potential in the midst of science fiction that focuses on how foolish and selfish we are- and how these would lead to our ultimate distruction. But now Star Trek brings up the question that no matter how bright the dream of utopia is, how well planned and organized - human nature is still the biggest obstacle.

First Contact

"Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals." (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science_fiction)

Orson Scott Card said in one of his essays that science fiction and fantasy do more that speculating about what the future might be - like contemporary literature, sci-fi and fantasy reflect "real-time" contexts, issues, and culture. A story about a current and controversial issue set in a galaxy far, far away makes it easier for the reader to be open to other views - even to ones that are contrary. It distracts you from the pain and frustration of confronting an issue or a reality head on.

Welcome to my distractions.