In My Father's Eyes

Been to the hospital again to visit my father and was greeted with the good news that Papa will now be transferred from the Intensive Care Unit to a regular room due to his continous improvement. Now, the thought of us being able to bring him back home is no longer just wishful thinking!

My visit was also bittersweet as my dad was awake when I got there and not sleeping or drowsy as he usually was for the past 2 weeks. Though he still is not able to talk, I knew looking at his eyes that he was happy to see me.

And when he was trying to get back to sleep again, it was pretty obvious that he wanted me by his side and holding his hand because when I tried to excuse myself for a second, he opened his eyes again looking for me. So I held his hand until I was sure he was sound asleep. What a touching moment!

So, go ahead Papa. Sleep tight and rest. It's going to be a worthwhile fight ahead! And don't you worry, I'll hold your hand till the end . . .



Family

Traffic Rushing By

Since last week, I have subscribed to a number of traffic exchanges in the blogosphere in the hope of bringing in more traffic to my site. Evidently, I have seen a tremendous increase in the number of hits this site has been getting.

I also now have a means to view other people's blogs from all over the world. Though there are a lot of not-so-interesting blogs out there (propaganda sites included), I have to admit that there have been sites that easily grab attention with their funny, heartwarming and/or thought-provoking entries.

What I am surprised about is how these blog exchanges have provided me comfort at a time when I most need it. I have been getting very warm wishes from bloggers for the speedy recovery of my father and I am extremely touched by their messages. I never knew blogging could be this good!

For those who still have not tried these blog traffic exchanges, I suggest you give it a try. It will open up a very interesting blog world out there!



You may also click on the other buttons found in the lower portion of the sidebar for other exchange sites.



Blogging

Breathe New Life

It's been 2 weeks since my father has been hospitalized and this weekend, he has shown some encouraging signs that raised our hopes up that we will be able to bring him home again eventually.

He is beginning to breathe on his own without the aid of a respirator!

On Sunday, the doctor has ordered that the respirator be turned off from time to time to see if Papa could handle it. So far, he's showing good signs and if he'll continue with this, we can expect him to be off the machine in a couple of days!

I know that it's still a long way to full recovery but anything to make my father a little more comfortable is a big deal for now.

We can't wait to have him home again because we know that's where he belongs.

Life

Try To Figure THESE Out...

For fun, I took these two quizzes I found in another blog and was both amused and bothered by the results.

Go figure . . .

I am APOCALYPSE NOW!

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

I am ADOLF HITLER!

What Famous Leader Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Life

And When She Falls...

MADONNA had an accident yesterday while spending her 47th birthday with husband Guy Ritchie and her children, Lourdes and Rocco in their Ashcombe estate.

I learned about this breaking news late during my work shift as I was prepping to go home. I did not think much of it thinking it wasn't that serious. But after watching the news hours later, I realized that it was no laughing matter. Fortunately, Madonna was released from the hospital the same night of the accident and she's now recuperating at home.

Thank GOD she did not do a Christopher Reeve . . .



MADONNA

A Weird Sunday

I've been meaning to write about this at the start of this week. But to give way to a supposedly jolly occassion of my idol's birthday yesterday, I put it off . . . until today.

After a stress-relieving Saturday night with some friends and a whole lot of Madonna music, I spent what's left of my weekend in the hospital attending to my father whose condition has not significantly improved. Luckily, neither has it worsened.

It was a busy time at the hospital with some relatives and friends visiting. One of them is an uncle, Papa's younger brother, who was generous enough to give us a considerable amount of money to help us out with the hospital bill.

Anyway, our uncle discussed with us something that left us speechless and dumbfounded. He asked us if we already have any plans in the possibility that our father will not be able to survive this episode. Particularly, Uncle wanted to know if we already know where we plan to bury him just in case. Apparently, there is a memorial lot originally intended for an aunt who's already in the US, that we could use . . . again, just in case.

Naturally, it was a topic none of us has entertained yet. I guess we're all in our varied states of denial. We were hoping so much for our father to get better that we have forgotten the fact that he is indeed already old and that he may be able to survive this, but his time is already running out.

Upon this realization, we then had a family meeting and made the decision to take our uncle's offer to reserve that space for Papa. Also, we will have to transfer Mama's and Ron John's (my twin brother) remains to this new location since we want them to be together even in death.

It was really weird for us to have that discussion while our father is still alive. But I'm also thankful that someone else made us face the possibilities.

I guess, it is just wise that for every battle, you can only hope for the best but you always have to be prepared for the worst.


Life

HAPPY 47th MADONNA!

Today is a special Holiday
for all Madonniacs
all over the world
as our much beloved Queen,

MADONNA LOUISE VERONICA CICCONE RITCHIE

celebrates her 47th Birthday!





MADONNA

Just One Night Out of Life

It was a kind of night that I very much needed...

After days of restlessness, I decided to temporarily suspend my worries for one night and went out with my friends to the MADONNAthon2 party last Saturday.

I took the opportunity to meet up with fellow Madonniacs whom I have not seen in a while. It was indeed great to see Francis, AJ, Victor and Elg again! Who would've thought I'd miss these BITCHES?!? Hah!

I also saw other Club Madonna Philippines members, some I met for the first time that night, and had a fairly wonderful time!

Quite frankly, this year's party was not as amazing as I expected (based on last year's success) but it wasn't bad either. At least, we got to see some rare Madonna videos that pretty made up for a generally lame playlist by the club DJ. The crowd also was not as fun as the 1st Madonnathon (except for us definitely!) but I figured, the fact that there was an Early Madonna party the night before kind of cut down the number of people attending the Saturday night party.

It was a smart move by the DJ to eventually play Madonna's classic dance hits from the early part of her career that brought us back to the dancefloor. Clearly, the 80's MADONNA is still the most popular among the crowd since the whole club practically came to life only when the likes of Material Girl and Dress You Up started to play. True blue fans that we are, we had a blast mimicking some of Madonna's trademark moves until our feet gave up from heavy dancing!

As what we did last year, we wound down by having a very early breakfast in a nearby Wendy's with the almost-obligatory chit-chat on anything Madonna even if most our energy was already spent. Upon the strike of dawn, we finally decided to go home.

For what its worth, the Madonnathon party was a refreshing highlight of my weekend. To paraphrase Madge's hit,

"IT FREED MY SOUL!"

The rest of my Sunday was a different story though . . .



MADONNA
Life





P.S. Elg promised to send me the photos he took of us that night and I will post it here as soon as I have them.

All About Survival...

It's been a week since my father was admitted to the hospital and I'm glad that he is showing some improvements, albeit slowly. We're starting to get our hopes up that he'll pull through and will be home anytime soon.

Meanwhile, I have decided to slowly get back to my usual self. I have been gloomy the past few days and although I know it's understandable, I feel that should I go on like this any longer, I'd be insane! As a friend suggested, I also have to look out for myself and guess what, I will!

Call it Self-Preservation if you will . . .

Besides, what I earlier described as the darkest days of my life, seem to see more light as they go by.

I am so looking forward to tomorrow for the much anticipated MADONNAthon party that my Madonniac friends and I have been waiting for. Even if I was not able to have a personalized shirt made with the Material Boy logo (see above) that I was planning to wear for the night, I'm still going anyway. I know that for that party, what I'll wear would not matter as much as having a Madonna attitude. And THAT, I know I have! Hah!



Life

MADONNA

Keeping the FAITH Together

The past few days have been the darkest of my life and I have yet to know how soon it will end.

Last Friday, my father suffered a stroke that landed him at the hospital. He was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit for one day and it was learned that the stroke was just 'mild'. After being transferred to a regular room the next day and just when we were very optimistic that he would be discharged soon, he contracted pneumonia!

He was re-admitted to the ICU for intensive treatment and close monitoring. After another CT scan, it was determined that he had another stroke! And although he has exhibited some improvements lately and his prognosis is somehow encouraging, he is still in the ICU and if my doctor's estimates hold up, he will be there for 3 more days.

Much more than the financial difficulties my siblings and I are facing right now due to the escalating hospital bill, we are crushed by the sight of our father lying helplessly to a bed and dependent almost entirely on medications and some medical machines. We know though that Papa (with GOD's ever-present grace) will find a way to fight back and get well again. We know him all too well to expect otherwise.

If there is any consolation in our current situation, it's the thought that once again, our family has shown that in times of tribulations, we are there for each other and we never let go until we overcome our hardships.

This is not the first time that we have proven that our family may not be tight, but we are never broken.



Life

ALMOST FAMOUS

I had a very interesting weekend!

Saturday morning, I got a call from a woman who introduced herself as a screenwriter. She said that upon a referral from a mutual friend, she wanted to meet with me about my possible involvement in a digital movie. Supposedly, because of my theater background (I performed in a couple of stage productions with UP Repertory way back in college), I would be 'qualified' enough to be considered for a role.

A frustrated actor that I am, I agreed to meet with her along with the film director and the production staff the next day.

The meeting went very well and I had the chance to know what the project is about. Basically, they will be making a short film of about 30-45 minutes and they plan to enter the film in some film festivals here and abroad. It's gay-themed and they aim to tackle gender discrimation. And after a brief discussion between the writer and the director, they have determined that they already have a role for me.

After reading through the script, I realized that the role was a significant one (though not the lead character). And even if I haven't acted in 10 years, I knew that I would be able to do it. But there is a catch. I would be required to kiss not just one guy, but TWO! AND . . . , there will be a SHOWER SCENE! Whoah!

In all fairness, the script was very interesting and the director seems to know what he envisions the film to be. And I initially thought, it is something I would gladly participate in. It has been my dream to be in a movie after all.

However, my 'inner manang' kicked in and I suddenly had qualms about what the role requires me to do. I admit, I wouldn't have any problem kissing a guy or two (I've done that many times in the PAST! He he!) regardless of how they look like. I can easily use the 'for art's sake' argument for that. But disrobing in front of the camera? That's something else! Or is it . . . ?

Well, even if I would be able to somehow muster the guts to do it, the thought of my partner, my friends and (in the remotest of possibility) my family seeing the film is something I am NOT ready to deal with. Not now and not for this movie.

As I have told a friend, had this kind of proposition come 5 or 10 years ago, I would have dropped everything (including my pants) just to do it. But now I feel that I have more to lose than gain from the experience, so I couldn't see myself pushing through with it. After all, I'm way past the EROTICA/SEX phase that I was into for some time. Apparently, I've lost my exhibitionistic tendencies over the years.
As if!

So, with equal amount of disapppointment and pride, I could now say that I HAVE TURNED DOWN A MOVIE ROLE!

And I know somehow, I will also be able to say . . .


ABSOLUTELY NO REGRET!


Life