Typhoon Aftermath

It's been a while since I last posted anything on my blog. My internet connection crashed 'cause of typhoon "Ondoy". Anyway, I think that it's about time to tell you guys my own flood story.

I guess I was fortunate. While everyone was seeking higher ground, I managed to keep myself a bit dry. It was not because I live in the hills but because I already got stranded in the ortigas area where flooding was at a minimum. I ended up spending a couple of nights there until the flooding subsided.

My wife and I, together with our friends, ended up sharing a room in one of the hotels in Robinson's Galleria since we had nowhere else to go. Everyone was so busy on their respective mobile phones trying to get information on their families and loved ones. All we heard were terrible news. It was flooding just about everywhere. In my in-law's place (where my wife and I live), the garage was flooded, most of the cars parked were submerged, the basement was more of a pond according to my sister-in-law, and there was a shortage of water and food. Nobody expected that our place would become sort of a prison.

I thought we were unlucky. However, I felt that we were more blessed than the majority. I felt a sense of helplessness while watching the coverage on TV where most of our countrymen lost not just a car, not just their furniture, not just their appliances, but their homes and, to a certain extent, even their lives. I wanted to help yet I did nothing. I was not in a position to mobilize a rescue since I had no resources. All I had were the clothes that I was wearing that day. Eventually, I started to pray that the suffering would stop and the rebuilding would start.

It was an experience that I will never forget. All I see as I pass through Marcos Hiway are remnants of a horrible past. You can see, feel and even breathe that bad experience. Yet, in times of tragedy, you can also witness people's resilience. I salute all those who contributed, volunteered and sacrificed in order to help out. I wished that I could have done something too. Tsk tsk tsk.

Season Ender Yet A New Beginning...

We did our last two seasons for our season-ender (Sabado Boys) last Tuesday in an undisclosed location. Fortunately, it was a pretty fast one. I think we are all getting the hang of it. The atmosphere was pretty much the same. Everyone looked like they just got out of bed, in a good way though. Most of the boys including myself started learning our lines, the music and prepared our own make up. Sounds gay right? (we truly have our own!)

It's already been over 20 weeks and we were already anticipating what's ahead for our not so structured but fun little TV program. I was telling Jimmy that I can't believe that we have reached this far since in the beginning, not too many people believed that it will work. This was actually just a temp job for me, to be honest. However, i was definitely mistaken. This has now been a big part of my career. The money is good, the work is manageable, the exposure is great, it's a lot of fun and most importantly, i've gained great friends who are so close to being called "BESTEST". I remember last Christmas, I told Jimmy Bondoc to continue to have the vigor and faith to bring the Sabado Boys to every household. In less than a year, turned out that we were a lot of people's guilty pleasure. Not bad huh?

Through the course of our shoot, we were actually brainstorming on what to do next. Our next move is not as clear as we want it to be since our contract with Studio 23 will expire after October 4 this year. Thanks to ELLIPS, our major sponsor, we were able to execute 26 distinct episodes, from music, drama, action , horror, comedy and even dance. If you're reading this Johnny, i am most grateful. Now, we are torn between stucturing or otherwise.

I am a bit worried on how things are going to be after we finish the season. Yet I know for sure that we will find a way to get ourselves aired in one way or another. Not so surprisingly though, we ended up being in a business meeting presenting a pitch in one of the up and coming TV stations this morning. To me it was half the battle won already. They liked what we had to offer and it definitely looks promising. I don't really wanna go beyond my head but I kinda feel that we have found a new home. I'm just gonna keep my fingers crossed this time.

The Sabado Boys has been my extended family now. We've been through about 5 seasons in three years. We battled a court case, made some money, received good and bad reviews, made a great album, danced the porker face, conquered the rapids, laughed and cried ( I cried only once by the way but it was MAJOR!), partied like hell, found love, lost it, got a manager to the tune of "One Moment In Time" and lived through music. I'd be so stupid enough for me to let it go.

Penafrancia, Naga City

This is the first time that I am doing this, blogging. My wife and I were recently in Naga City and we were playing around with ideas on how to get more of my music out there. Fortunately, we were able to see an episode of Discovery Travel and Living which featured food blogging. My wife said that it would be a good idea to put up a blog site like that so that more people would know about my music on a personal view.

I was in Naga City to do a series of shows. For me it was just another stage. Yet don't get me wrong. Each and every show that i do is of great importance to me. I've always told myself that I will only be as good as my last performance. It was basically the same. A big stage and nothing on it but myself and my guitar.

I played three consecutive nights and it was great. It was a bit difficult at first since it was an outdoor gig and it's very difficult to have an intimate set when people around you were ordering their pizza and beer. Nonetheless, it was a blast. I haven't really been playing as often as i wanted to and those consecutive nights seemed to have satisfied my hunger for music. It was truly a business and pleasure trip. I got to work, enjoy Bicolano cuisine and got to experience wake boarding before going home.