Apr 2009

Dear Readers,

While most of my friends and co-workers are frolicking on the beach, andito ako sa office, nag-o-overtime.

Di ba dapat mag-sakripisyo sa Holy Week?

Four straight days of overtime ang gagawin ko. Overtime on a restday, with holiday pay!

Pag dating ng sweldo, magsampalan na lang tayo ng pera, mga dukha.

Hope you're all enjoying your summer vacations, dear readers and friends.

And remember, if you do something naughty this holy week, it doesn't make you evil. It only makes you bloggable in my eyes.

Lust, love, and lechon,

callboi♥

Lev. 18:22, "You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination."

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My gay friend Harlowe and I were having lunch the other day sa isang karinderia. We were also having a somewhat heated argument.

Harlowe looked at me with his puppy-dog eyes, seemingly asking for forgiveness and understanding for what he just said.

"Bookie, alam kong kakaiba yung opinion ko pero that's just it. It's my opinion," Harlowe said, empathically, while spearing a piece of lechon kawali with his fork, "You of all people should know how to respect another person's opinon, di ba?"

Napalunok ako. Oo nga naman, opinion niya yun eh. Ano nga ba ang pakialam ko?

Pero hindi eh, parang may mali.

So I argued again.

"Harlowe, what I just don't get is how a gay guy can be against same sex-marriages?" I asked him for the nth time, "Gay guys are supposed to be about liberty and freedom and all that bohemian shit."

"Hindi mo ba naisip na mali na nga yung ginagawa natin, tapos mamaliin pa natin yung sacred ceremony of marriage?" Harlowe asked.

And I guess yun ang pinakaproblema ko sa argument niya. Mali ang tingin niya sa pagiging bading.

I always thought all gay guys were pro-same sex marriage. Apparently not. Throughout my long stay here in PS, and ever since I came out, I've gotten to know quite a lot of gay guys who aren't into the idea of same sex marriage.

Parang ang iniisip nila, kababuyan na nga ang pagiging bading, bababuyin pa ba namin ang simbahan?

Pero how can love be wrong? How can you qualify two people in love as sacrilegious?

Harlowe is a close and dear friend of mine. He's a smart, intelligent and talented guy (not to mention good-looking). He is also quite a devout born-again christian. Hence, his views on homosexuality are based on what he has learned from the bible.

I want to understand his flow of thoughts pero I'm having a real hard time, as he is with mine.

I've always prided myself in being open to other people's opinions pero I'm having trouble reconciling some gay guys' rejection of same-sex marriage.

I think its the deep-seated belief in most homosexuals na mali talaga maging homosexual.

And I can't accept the fact na mali ang pagiging bading ko. I will not ever. Bakla ako. So fucking what di ba? Does that mean na I can't have the right of heterosexuals to get married?

Centuries ago, people thought the earth was flat. That was proven wrong. Who's to say that in the future, malalaman ng mga tao na ok lang pala maging bading?

"Love is love is love," I told Harlowe, "If God had wanted me otherwise, He would have created me otherwise."

"Why are you so intent on the right to marriage? It's just a piece of paper," Harlowe asked.

What I couldn't explain to him then was the fact that I dream of getting married to Mr. Right in the future. I think marriage is the ultimate display of two people's love towards each other. It signifies more than a religious ceremony, it exhibits society's acceptance of their love.

Tapos gusto ko yung bouquet ko gusto ko isang bungkos na santan na pula tapos ang wedding singer si Jed Maddela (ang song ay "If I Believe" tsaka "Ako ang Nagwagi"). Garden wedding, or maybe beach wedding. Tapos ang food puro isaw at kwekwek (pero according sa menu, canapes and hors' douvres ang handa.)

Sabi ng isang supervisor-friend ko, "Gay guys who aren't ok with same-sex marriages just haven't truly accepted their homosexuality. Issues nila yun."

Or maybe they haven't met the right one. You know what, I read in an article that not all gay guys are happy that they are gay. Isn't that sad? It hurts my heart to hear something like that.

This is not a fault of theirs, obviously. Again, it all boils down to people's own opinions.

Pero nalulungkot talaga ako. Kung hindi matanggap ng mga bading ang sarili nila, paano pa kami matatanggap ng iba?

Mali ba talaga maging bading? Naguguluhan na ako.

I do have friends from outside of work, you know.

In fact, last April 1, I had dinner with them. My housemate, Julienne, and I decided to invite them for dinner sa Luk Yuen sa may Glorietta 5. Not a posh resto, I know, pero during our college days, Luk Yuen was where we almost always had lunch. We love their congee and wanton chips.

Di ba nabanggit ko na dati na ang housemate ko sa apartment ay college friend ko na babae?

Ito si Julienne, college friend, and housemate:

She was the smartest girl in my batch. She is still the smartest, most intelligent girl I know. She works with Landbank Foundation.

They send her everywhere around the country.

As in EVERYWHERE. All expenses paid. Sigh.

We rarely see each other anymore, even though we live in the same two-storey apartment.

And on the rare occasions that we do bump into each other, we're too tired from work to even muster up the energy to strike a conversation. We call each other "Sunshine."

And then there's Ayin:

One of my favorite people. EVER. How do I describe Ayin? Well... ito ang Friendster testimonial niya sa akin noon:

OOOOHHH!!! AHHH!!! I'M COOMMINNGG!!!!
those are the only words I utter
whenever I am with Ryan. We usually
hang-out inside Toffer's car,
specially pag naka-park ito sa harap
ng College Bldg. ng Bene. We LOOOVVE
PDA!!! so usually mas preferred namin
pag mejo malapit na kami mahuli.... ni
Dean Obispo!!! bwahahahahaha!!!!

Haaay. She hasn't changed one bit. She was still just as kalog as ever during our dinner. She mentioned that she thought Julienne and I were playing a practical joke, scheduling our dinner on April Fool's Day.

Right now, Ayin is a teacher. She mentioned to me kung saan siya nagtuturo pero nakalimutan ko kung saan kasi I couldn't get over the fact that she really was married. Ang weird pala ng feeling na malaman mo na ang kabarkada mo years ago ay may asawa na and life moved on dramatically for them and yet, ako, wala. Walang nangyari.

This is her with her husband.

And this is her with her American Idol, Danny Gokey.

During our college days, Ayin auditioned for Miss Saigon when it was staged here in Manila. She got invited for a second audition kaso she chickened out and never returned. Sayang.

The guy next to Ayin is John Joe. He was the theater-guy in our group. Grade school teacher sa Paranaque. He teaches Christian Living. Pero nung college kami, nagbabasa yan nang mga libro na pangkulam. Weird how things turn out, ano?

Does this guy look familiar to you? He should be. I know him as Nikolo Baua, a Communications grad of San Beda Alabang and a good friend of mine. Pero nowadays, Niko Baua na ang name niya, at siya ay isang news correspondent ng TV Patrol World.

Astig, di ba? Sabi ko sa kaniya during dinner, "Batiin mo naman ako sa TV!"

He just laughed, thinking I was joking. Seryoso kaya ako. So kinulit ko siya sa Facebook account niya. Sabi niya, he would just name a victim after me.

Ok na sa akin yun.

There was supposed to be one more college friend who would join us. Kaso dehins siya dumating.

Si JP Abellera.

Ang super-super-super busy na si JP Abellera.

Ang super-talented, award-winning writer ng Star Cinema na si JP Abellera.

Sorry, do I sound bitter? Inggit kasi ako sa kaniya eh. Prodigy siya ni Jose Javier Reyes.

He's won multiple awards for his writing. I think he was the head writer of Juday's "Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo" and some of John Lloyd's movies.

Namumula ako sa bitterness.

Hindi siya nakarating nung dinner kasi may storyboards daw siya na kelangan tapusin.

Tignan niyo naman kasi kung sino mga katrabaho niya:

Eh ako?

Si Manong John Lloyd lang. I have to get out of this place.