It’s Pride Month, and that only means one thing: the White Party in Malate! No matter how much huffing and puffing is done by other bars in QC and Ortigas, Malate remains the pink capital of Manila. And every year, one of the biggest, gayest celebration happens along the streets of Orosa and Nakpil, when pink turns white at the annual White Party.
This year Bed Manila hosts Temptation: The Bed Manila Ultimate White Party, featuring selected cast members of the remake of Temptation Island: Rufa Mae Quinto, Solenn Heussaff and John “Sweet” Lapus! Plus they have other surprise guests and performers. Bitchin’ music will be provided by 4-play DJs: Toy Armada, Brian Cua, Ohm-R and Arrjae Puno; visuals by VJ Dan L.
For a preview of the fun to come, watch their teaser video, featuring a special Temptation Island Remix by DJ Brian Cua :
Be proud, be safe, be white!
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
NPH FTW!
Since June is Pride Month, here’s someone whom I’m so proud to be on our team. Neil Patrick Harris famously came out in a 2006 People Magazine interview, saying, “Rather than ignore those who choose to publish their opinions without actually talking to me, I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest and feel most fortunate to be working with wonderful people in the business I love.”
Although he was also quoted as saying that he’s more interested in being an entertainer than an example, his excellence as a performer is a shining testament that a person’s sexual orientation shouldn’t even matter when it comes to doing good work. What’s more, I find his example more subversive because he doesn’t make such a big deal out of it; in fact, he actually delights in poking fun at it.
Case in point, the video below. It is his opening performance to this year’s Tony Awards, and NPH nails it. (By the way, Brooke Shield’s flub was painful to watch; NPH saved her in the end, turning an embarrassing moment into a funny one.)
Being proud doesn’t mean we must always shove our rainbow flags onto other people’s faces. Neil Patrick Harris is lucky that in his line of work his being gay is a non-issue. I hope that one day we may all get to be as lucky as him.
Although he was also quoted as saying that he’s more interested in being an entertainer than an example, his excellence as a performer is a shining testament that a person’s sexual orientation shouldn’t even matter when it comes to doing good work. What’s more, I find his example more subversive because he doesn’t make such a big deal out of it; in fact, he actually delights in poking fun at it.
Case in point, the video below. It is his opening performance to this year’s Tony Awards, and NPH nails it. (By the way, Brooke Shield’s flub was painful to watch; NPH saved her in the end, turning an embarrassing moment into a funny one.)
Being proud doesn’t mean we must always shove our rainbow flags onto other people’s faces. Neil Patrick Harris is lucky that in his line of work his being gay is a non-issue. I hope that one day we may all get to be as lucky as him.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Top & Bottom
Okay, okay, I don’t care if Hugh Jackman is straight and married, he’s the gayest straight man I’ve ever laid eyes on. And here in the following video he goes head-to-head (insert giggling here) with Neil Patrick Harris. To see two wonderfully talented song-and-dance men do what they do best (and with the gayest “top and bottom” reference there is) is one of the best reasons to watch the Tony Awards.
* * * * *
And of course I wanna watch The Book Of Mormon!
* * * * *
And of course I wanna watch The Book Of Mormon!
Thursday, June 09, 2011
Relatively Speaking
There’s always one in every office; a guy or girl who comes around selling food. In our office he’s called Boy Box, because he puts his wares inside a big carton box. I often buy sweet corn on the cob or turon from him for afternoon merienda.
One time Boy Box overheard that I came from a visit to Bohol. “Taga-Bohol po kayo, sir?” he asked. I answered yes.
“Boholano din po ako!” he said. But he was from Batuan; both my parents came from Bilar, so that was that.
Yesterday as Boy Box was leaving our office (he didn’t have any sweet corn that day, so I didn’t buy anything from him), I saw the copy printed on the backside of his t-shirt: Decasa Grand Reunion 2010.
OMG!
My dad’s middle name, which is my paternal grandmother’s maiden name, is Decasa.
I texted my mom: Was Lola C from Bilar? Because I met a Decasa, but he’s from Batuan.
She replied: Taga-Bilar. The Decasas in Batuan are their relatives.
Oh. My. Gawd!
So I texted her: Oh my, I think I found us a distant relative!
She texted back: I only know a Gustavo Decasa from Batuan who usually stays at Tia Dolly’s whenever he comes to Manila. Sumalangit na yata.
For a few seconds I stared at my cellphone’s screen. Gustavo?! Jeez, how did they come up with those names?
Tomorrow I will ask Boy Box if he knows of a Gustavo Decasa. If he does, I will ask for a major discount to all my purchases henceforth.
* * * * *
P.S. -- (June 10, 2011; 4:13pm) I asked Boy Box, “May kilala ka bang Gustavo Decasa?” His face lit up and he said, “Ay sus, lolo ko yun!” So it’s CONFEEEARMED, we’re related.
One time Boy Box overheard that I came from a visit to Bohol. “Taga-Bohol po kayo, sir?” he asked. I answered yes.
“Boholano din po ako!” he said. But he was from Batuan; both my parents came from Bilar, so that was that.
Yesterday as Boy Box was leaving our office (he didn’t have any sweet corn that day, so I didn’t buy anything from him), I saw the copy printed on the backside of his t-shirt: Decasa Grand Reunion 2010.
OMG!
My dad’s middle name, which is my paternal grandmother’s maiden name, is Decasa.
I texted my mom: Was Lola C from Bilar? Because I met a Decasa, but he’s from Batuan.
She replied: Taga-Bilar. The Decasas in Batuan are their relatives.
Oh. My. Gawd!
So I texted her: Oh my, I think I found us a distant relative!
She texted back: I only know a Gustavo Decasa from Batuan who usually stays at Tia Dolly’s whenever he comes to Manila. Sumalangit na yata.
For a few seconds I stared at my cellphone’s screen. Gustavo?! Jeez, how did they come up with those names?
Tomorrow I will ask Boy Box if he knows of a Gustavo Decasa. If he does, I will ask for a major discount to all my purchases henceforth.
* * * * *
P.S. -- (June 10, 2011; 4:13pm) I asked Boy Box, “May kilala ka bang Gustavo Decasa?” His face lit up and he said, “Ay sus, lolo ko yun!” So it’s CONFEEEARMED, we’re related.
Wednesday, June 08, 2011
But What About Safe Sex?
With all of this HIV and “take the test” talk, I feel that there is now too much emphasis on knowing the status of gay men. I mean, it’s actually good and I’m all for people knowing their status now, not later. But what I feel is being neglected is the other side of the coin in the fight against HIV: promoting safe sex.
In marketing terms, the biggest problem is how to make safe sex desirable to the target audience. In other words, make safe sex both sexy and fun. One of the biggest hurdles for most people to adapt to the safe sex routine is the use of the condom. First there’s the “I don’t like the loss-of-sensation when covering my d**k with rubber” excuse. There’s also the “screech-to-a-halt” factor when, in the heat of things, one kinda pauses while putting on a condom.
Regarding the first hurdle, the only solution is for one to get used to wearing a condom. My suggestion is to use ultra-thin condoms, which allow for maximum sensation.
As for the second hurdle, the trick is to be able to put on the condom in a quick, easy and non-disruptive-of-the-moment movement. To do that, one must already be familiar with how to put a condom on. Practice. I remember one afternoon when I was in high school, I stumbled upon my dad’s stash in their bedroom dresser. I got one and played with it. I jacked off with a condom on; afterwards I thought, oh, so that’s how it worked!
Another cause of delay is determining which way the condom unfurls. To avoid that, I suggest you already take out the condom from its container at the start of foreplay. Make sure that when you place it beside you, you know which direction it unfurls.
Incorporating the condom into the foreplay. You can ask your partner to slip it on for you while stimulating you further.
I’m sure there are other useful tips. Can you guys suggest other ways?
In marketing terms, the biggest problem is how to make safe sex desirable to the target audience. In other words, make safe sex both sexy and fun. One of the biggest hurdles for most people to adapt to the safe sex routine is the use of the condom. First there’s the “I don’t like the loss-of-sensation when covering my d**k with rubber” excuse. There’s also the “screech-to-a-halt” factor when, in the heat of things, one kinda pauses while putting on a condom.
Regarding the first hurdle, the only solution is for one to get used to wearing a condom. My suggestion is to use ultra-thin condoms, which allow for maximum sensation.
As for the second hurdle, the trick is to be able to put on the condom in a quick, easy and non-disruptive-of-the-moment movement. To do that, one must already be familiar with how to put a condom on. Practice. I remember one afternoon when I was in high school, I stumbled upon my dad’s stash in their bedroom dresser. I got one and played with it. I jacked off with a condom on; afterwards I thought, oh, so that’s how it worked!
Another cause of delay is determining which way the condom unfurls. To avoid that, I suggest you already take out the condom from its container at the start of foreplay. Make sure that when you place it beside you, you know which direction it unfurls.
Incorporating the condom into the foreplay. You can ask your partner to slip it on for you while stimulating you further.
I’m sure there are other useful tips. Can you guys suggest other ways?
Monday, June 06, 2011
Stroke Of Fate
My cellphone rang as I was driving around the streets of Makati. It was my mom. She rarely texts, much less call. I parked at the curb and answered my phone.
“Si Auntie, na-stroke,” she said.
* * * * *
She’s my mom’s older sister. She’s the only one among her brothers and sisters who retired single. Although she’s always stayed with us, she’s lived a very independent life. She grew hard-headed and strong-willed, made of sterner stuff. We thought she’d be a spinster for life, but one day she surprised us all by getting married to her childhood crush from Bohol. His first wife had died a couple of years ago; they met up when he flew back to the country for a vacation. He brought her back to Canada where he had migrated; the marriage lasted for only a year. She flew back here because she couldn’t stand the cold of the climate and of her husband’s eventual treatment of her. She came back to our house as if nothing had happened. She rarely spoke, and sparingly when she did.
Last month my mom and her went back to Bohol to celebrate the annual May fiesta. They only accompanied another relative, a cousin of theirs, who had a doctor’s appointment; upon her prodding, my mom and aunt also had themselves a check-up. That’s when the doctor noticed how slurred my aunt’s speech was. Apparently she had suffered more than one stroke.
She is now confined in a provincial hospital. It’s painful for her to swallow because of a cyst in her throat, but she refuses a biopsy. She wants to go home to Marikina because she already has no more money to pay for her hospital bills.
I listened closely to my mom, checking to hear in her voice and in between her words what is perhaps an unspoken request: “Can you help, anak?” But she talked about calling their eldest, my uncle who’s a retired priest in the U.S. She also has another brother working in Saudi Arabia, and another brother who has two children earning dollars in the U.S. I breathed a sigh of relief. As much as I want to, and will, help her financially, I’m also glad that she has many siblings she can count on.
But it also gave me pause. Years from now I may be in my aunt’s shoes. Even now I need to make arrangements to ensure that I am able to take care of myself if, knock on wood, in case something happens.
Thank god I have many siblings I can turn to.
“Si Auntie, na-stroke,” she said.
* * * * *
She’s my mom’s older sister. She’s the only one among her brothers and sisters who retired single. Although she’s always stayed with us, she’s lived a very independent life. She grew hard-headed and strong-willed, made of sterner stuff. We thought she’d be a spinster for life, but one day she surprised us all by getting married to her childhood crush from Bohol. His first wife had died a couple of years ago; they met up when he flew back to the country for a vacation. He brought her back to Canada where he had migrated; the marriage lasted for only a year. She flew back here because she couldn’t stand the cold of the climate and of her husband’s eventual treatment of her. She came back to our house as if nothing had happened. She rarely spoke, and sparingly when she did.
Last month my mom and her went back to Bohol to celebrate the annual May fiesta. They only accompanied another relative, a cousin of theirs, who had a doctor’s appointment; upon her prodding, my mom and aunt also had themselves a check-up. That’s when the doctor noticed how slurred my aunt’s speech was. Apparently she had suffered more than one stroke.
She is now confined in a provincial hospital. It’s painful for her to swallow because of a cyst in her throat, but she refuses a biopsy. She wants to go home to Marikina because she already has no more money to pay for her hospital bills.
I listened closely to my mom, checking to hear in her voice and in between her words what is perhaps an unspoken request: “Can you help, anak?” But she talked about calling their eldest, my uncle who’s a retired priest in the U.S. She also has another brother working in Saudi Arabia, and another brother who has two children earning dollars in the U.S. I breathed a sigh of relief. As much as I want to, and will, help her financially, I’m also glad that she has many siblings she can count on.
But it also gave me pause. Years from now I may be in my aunt’s shoes. Even now I need to make arrangements to ensure that I am able to take care of myself if, knock on wood, in case something happens.
Thank god I have many siblings I can turn to.
Saturday, June 04, 2011
Questions For McVie
Question: You’re a player, but you got serious with someone for five years. Then you find out that your partner cheated on you, so you decide to break up with him. Do you go back to being a player?
Well, they say that a leopard doesn’t change its spots. Or was that a cheetah? Anyway, it seems that the person asking the question has this idea that “once a player, always a player,” which carries the same sentiment as that “once an waiter, always a waiter” line in Joey Gosengfiao’s camp classic Temptation Island. But can a player become a waiter, and vice versa? Can a leopard turn into a cheetah? Or are we all doomed to be players, waiters, leopards and cheetahs until we die?
Dude, you’ve proven that you can decide to not be a player; you were serious for five years. And you’ve proven that you can decide whether to stay with him or not; you chose to break it off with him.
So go ahead, decide if you wanna go back to being a player or not.
Mee-yawr!
Question: Is anybody capable of never falling for anyone? Can one really control one’s feelings?
Controlling one’s feelings is a bit tricky. Feelings are feelings; some people may experience intense feelings, but others may be more sanguine in their outlook. But regardless of how much or how little you feel, feelings are neither right nor wrong; they just are. Forcing oneself to suppress feelings, especially intense ones, have been known to be psychologically unhealthy.
I personally find comfort in the wise lyrics of a particular song: “Feelings, nothing more than feelings; trying to forget my feelings of love.”
For your emotional health, I suggest you allow yourself to feel. As I’ve said, feelings are just feelings. But what’s more important is: Control your actions.
So you get angry at the driver of the car that suddenly cut in front of you. But do you floor the accelerator and smash your car against his bumper? No, because you took control of your actions, and smashing cars is not an act of a responsible, mature driver who’s on EDSA. Because you’re in control of your actions, you yell in anger inside the privacy of your airconditioned car, because you need to let off some steam. You mentally flip him the bird; you imaging overtaking then cutting him off as revenge. But do you do any of that? No. Because you are in control of your actions, and you choose to act responsibly.
Can you control falling for someone? Maybe you can’t stop yourself from being attracted to someone, but you can definitely choose to stay or, if necessary, move away from him. In which case, I have another appropriate song for you: “O tukso, layuan mo akoooo!”
Well, they say that a leopard doesn’t change its spots. Or was that a cheetah? Anyway, it seems that the person asking the question has this idea that “once a player, always a player,” which carries the same sentiment as that “once an waiter, always a waiter” line in Joey Gosengfiao’s camp classic Temptation Island. But can a player become a waiter, and vice versa? Can a leopard turn into a cheetah? Or are we all doomed to be players, waiters, leopards and cheetahs until we die?
Dude, you’ve proven that you can decide to not be a player; you were serious for five years. And you’ve proven that you can decide whether to stay with him or not; you chose to break it off with him.
So go ahead, decide if you wanna go back to being a player or not.
Mee-yawr!
Question: Is anybody capable of never falling for anyone? Can one really control one’s feelings?
Controlling one’s feelings is a bit tricky. Feelings are feelings; some people may experience intense feelings, but others may be more sanguine in their outlook. But regardless of how much or how little you feel, feelings are neither right nor wrong; they just are. Forcing oneself to suppress feelings, especially intense ones, have been known to be psychologically unhealthy.
I personally find comfort in the wise lyrics of a particular song: “Feelings, nothing more than feelings; trying to forget my feelings of love.”
For your emotional health, I suggest you allow yourself to feel. As I’ve said, feelings are just feelings. But what’s more important is: Control your actions.
So you get angry at the driver of the car that suddenly cut in front of you. But do you floor the accelerator and smash your car against his bumper? No, because you took control of your actions, and smashing cars is not an act of a responsible, mature driver who’s on EDSA. Because you’re in control of your actions, you yell in anger inside the privacy of your airconditioned car, because you need to let off some steam. You mentally flip him the bird; you imaging overtaking then cutting him off as revenge. But do you do any of that? No. Because you are in control of your actions, and you choose to act responsibly.
Can you control falling for someone? Maybe you can’t stop yourself from being attracted to someone, but you can definitely choose to stay or, if necessary, move away from him. In which case, I have another appropriate song for you: “O tukso, layuan mo akoooo!”
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