Was quite productive this weekend. I finished 2 books. First on the list is Dave Egger's You Shall Know Our Velocity! It's pretty clever and all knowing, and also has something on pain. Yes, it rules our lives. The most addicting and debilitating kind of pain is loss, I think. So many novels and films and artworks dedicated to the analysis of pain, of losing something, someone and trying to bring it back but can't. Picked this up early last week and finished it Sunday.

Then there's Last Order Sa Penguin, which Dennis lent me, and which I read in a single sitting Saturday lunchtime. Tama si Dennis, plays are a good way of racking up bookpoints, because they're very easy and quick to read.

These are my measures of a good book, (1) if you can't put it down, as if you're seized by an urge and a fever to leaf through it the fastest way possible and (2) if you can relate to it. I'd say more, but am quite beat. PS, I also don't know what # those books are supposed to be. Oh well.

"It's pain that changes our lives."
Just finished Steve Martin's Shopgirl. A little novella about the search of two people for love. very economical yung language ni steve martin. me konting humor pa. Well, i've been hurt so many times to know that yup, what steve martin says is true. I forgot na rin what book # ito.

I also finished before this Up the Down Staircase. kwento tungkol sa isang guro sa public high school sa america mga around 60's yata. katawa siya. nabasa ko na ito before and funny pa rin siya. bigay ko sa iyo jessel extra copy ko kasi public school teacher ka din. baka makarelate ka.

hay, hindi ko matapos tapos ang summerland. kapal na libro for a ya novel!

Well, a t, puwede naman siguro kahit na super tipid meeting na lang. I don't have that much moolah myself, and btw I *hate* PLDT kasi sa kanila lang napunta ang lecheng midyear money ko. Hay.

The rainy season is here na nga, and it's making me tamad and want to stay indoors na lang and bury myself under blankets, but we've got to do something. If not, baka silaban ko na lang lahat ng student papers dito just to get warm.

Dennis, hindi gaano visible yung pang-ookray mo sa essay ko. Be more ruthless, please? Nananawagan din ako kina a t, tita arlyn at jol. I know I sounded a bit whiny last week regarding that essay, but I really need to work my butt off para naman kunyari may nasulat akong medyo may sense kahit na nonsense lang siya. Puwede naman iyon di ba?

I don't think there is a ny hope of getting out of the city dahil #1 tag-ulan na #2. lapit na enrollment. #3 la na kami pera. Just talked to Jol through YM and kahit get together lang ay pass siya dahil he is saving up for god knows what. SO, i told him we'll get together without him. hahahahaha. Was thinking of dropping by conspiracy one of these nights na meron silang poetry reading dahil laging nagpu-plug si kris to watch. mapaunlakan naman natin minsan. super excited na ako to give jessel the next book that i've finished (actually reread) and bibigyan ko rin si dennis ng copy kapag may nahalukay ako sa book sale someday. hiraman na lang kayo.

Tag-ulan na at di pa rin ako nakakalakwatsa.

So I sat down yesterday and ploughed through the class paperwork. It seems like I put in too many girly texts in class, and none of the macho ones. Oh I have Joaquin and Villa and Murakami and them old (read: canonical) and new poets, but almost nobody said that they liked poetry, even with the fun ones I threw in. And almost everyone hated Villa's invisible poems. As one kid put it: There is no text, even if you insist that there is. Really. Why is that?

But they liked the stories. The hands down winners are Skin Art, White Boy, Portents and 100% Perfect Girl. They liked that last one the best, kasi daw lighter than everything we've taken up, tapos it's by a guy pero it's mushy. Same reaction with Trip to Tagaytay. They liked that one kasi may pictures, a guy wrote it, pero mushy. What is it with mushy guys? Saka bakit daw Hyacynth ang pangalan nung girl sa story, sabi ko kung pangalanan kaya kayong Ilang-Ilang, ano ang mas gugustuhin mo? Shyempre Hyacynth na lang di ba? Hehehe.

Saka they almost nobody said they liked Fahrenheit 451. I suppose I won't be doing SF in the next few terms a lot. But damn it, I don't have a lit class next sem. I'll be drowning in term papers and grammar and peelingera writers. Give me back my Eng11. Promise wala na SF, saka lalagyan ko ng mas maraming bata-batang lalaking fictionists.

Habol sa tally-ing pang-50 books: Book # x Trip to Tagaytay, Book # y Fahrenheit 451. Puwede naman ang re-readings di ba? Sorry wala pang number pero tinatamad na kasi akong maghalukay kung pang-ilan na ba talaga yan. Update ko na lang next time I blog.

Wala ba tayong puwedeng puntahan later this week? Nababagot na ako.

I just came in from LB. Sans the buco pie, still. I'm about to read your essay xkg. Mas late ako sa'yo kaya sori. Anyway, to make it up to you and to soothe your frayed nerves, I'll go to Diliman on Monday with Last Order sa Penguin which I promised back when we were young.

Still tentative if you guys want to adjust the sched. How's that at? Feasible? I think I need to go to Aeon to pick up a copy of Gadamer. Well, if anybody's tagging along, just say so. Actually I can go on Sunday but it's probably closed on Sundays right?

clf, if you're coming, I'll bring your signed Puppy Love along.

Hope you guys are well. I think I am. I think therefore I'm well.

Uy guess who's in the papers today? It really is Baguio season. Hehehe. Although our own plans didn't fall through, is all good. Spent the weekend mostly checking papers.

There's a new suggestion though: Go to HK. So coming soon:

Angas in HK

Keep me posted, alrighty?

Hello people. I finally finished Choke by Palahniuk. I kinda lost count kung pang-ilan ko na siya. But definitely di pa yata ako abot sa sang dosena.

Nga pala, di ko rin naabutan yung coverage ng LOTR wedding. I tuned in and found Victim, found it difficult to sit through it. Figured it might have a rerun or whatever.

Hoy, bibilin ba natin yung bean bag o hindi? Wanna go bean bag shopping on Tuesday? I'll be free by then.

Sana may block get together ulit, preferably yung medyo kumpleto though I'm not counting on the groom to be there. Kwentong workshop na lang ulit kayo para aliw. Paging Pareng Dennis. Are you back?

okay para naman dumami ang aking mga books for the 50 book list. Nag book sale hunting kami ni Pepper nung bumalik ako from Baguio and found some cheapy books sa National Cubao. Maganda itong Shakespeare book na ito kasi may mga quotes from his plays and made me want to read the plays uli kasi yung placing nung mga quotes in context with what happened sa buhay ni Shakespeare. Ganda pa yung illustrations. Parang yung mga Usborne books na binabasa ko dati nung grade school ako. So Book #7 ko yan. Book # 8 ko ay Half a Moon and A whole Star na isa ring children's book. Una kong nakita ito sa collection ng kid's books ni Carla kaya binili ko. Narrative poem siya tungkol sa pagtulog at iba't ibang mga tunog na maririnig tuwing gabi. Medyo hindi ako impressed.

book# 6
grabe slooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooow reader ako!
Medyo hindi ko type yung book kasi kala ko tungkol ke Da Vinci hindi pala. Naging Holy Grail hunt siya with a twist. pero mabilis kong natapos yung book kasi ang iikli ng mga chapters. as in one page lang minsan.