Healthy Obsessions (?) and Other Weird Tales

Just a Quick Update:

2009-06-18T13:06:58Z

I am on Team Mia.

Look, it's not hard to understand. I've known her longer, have never known her to be this low because of a person and I think it's a bit sick how you go around acting all wounded. I think it's particularly disgusting when you're really just a bitter ex who wishes he could be cool.

Well, you're not.

I really think you suck.

Now, on this whole "sharing of friends" thing that I think is ridiculous---clearly, people should feel free to hang out with whomever they want. If they want to hang out with you, great.

BUT.

I think they shouldn't. I think they're enabling an emotional leech who needs other people to make him feel good about himself. I think you treat people like video games---they're there to distract you so that you forget for just a moment that your life sucks.

I think they're there because they feel sorry for you. They shouldn't feel sorry for you, they should be crushing your testes under their collective heel.

It's why I never bothered messaging you after you guys broke up.I guess it's worked, because you've never done the idiotic thing of asking me for my help. And thank God for that.

I also hear you think Mia is a deranged psycho ex.

That's called projecting.

Finally, why do I believe her and not you?

It's simple:

Because even if she's lying, the lies are smart. And I always respect intelligence over stupidity.

Good luck with your life. It really sounds like you'll need it.

Play Attempt

2008-09-15T17:03:20Z

Decided to attempt another play after finishing my play for Play Writing class. It's fun, challenging and it helps discipline me into thinking about scenes in my head. As a director, I think it helps to know how a scene is built so that dissecting it later on is less of a challenge.

So this is my attempt. I hope I can workshop it sometime. In the meantime, this is what I've started with. Here we go!

Breaking Up, Moving On and Other Fairy Tales

Short Scenes in Two Parts

by Mahar Mangahas

Characters:

Amber, 25.

-Petulant, spoiled and willful. A self-described “serious” girl “cursed” by a “dizty” name. Imagines slights far too easily. Secretly fond of being taken for granted early in a relationship if only to gradually demand for more beyond necessary to compensate for early “neglect” from a partner later on. Needy. Hardly admits to weakness. Capable of great acts of generosity. Compassionate, but selfish. Erratic.

Francis, 25.

-Gentlemanly, cultured, well-meaning, but emotionally disturbed and torn by shrewish grandparents and internal drive to succeed. Suffers from low self-esteem. Wishes he could do more for his fellow man but disgusted with existing establishment. Simply trying to get by, but increasingly difficult due to tempestuous relationship with erratic Amber.

Petra, 21.

-Sweet, kind, patient, though sarcastic and caustic to individuals that annoy her. Unconventionally pretty, but suffers low self-esteem due to frequent comparing of self to conventionally spectacular looking siblings. Frighteningly intelligent. Amber's shadow.

Martin, 22.

-Quiet, sarcastic. Immensely talented, but unable to capitalize on his talent due to unfortunate circumstances. Circuitous love life prevents/distracts him from realizing his dreams. Has difficulty sharing emotions. Constantly wheedled by Petra to share said emotions, who he likes, but disapproves of her friendship to Amber. Prone to disappear without notice.

Act 1

Time: Now.

Setting: Here.

Lights up on AMBER. She is reading letters, sifting through photos, cards and other paraphernalia. A dusty object catches her eye---it is a yearbook. She leafs through it, shuts it rather forcefully and sniffs at the cloud of dust that erupted with her shutting of the book. She sighs rather forlornly for a moment, then collects herself. In an instant, her forlorn look is replaced by a mask of cold, indifferent confidence. She holds this mask for a few moments, but soon struggles to keep it. The forlorn look returns. Once again, she opens the yearbook, and takes out a pen and paper, occasionally glancing at the yearbook as she begins to write.

AMBER

(Starting a letter) Dear Francis, I miss you....I was wrong. No, no. (Crumples paper, begins a new letter.) Dear Francis...these things happen you know? No....(Another attempt) Hey Francis, how's it hanging? Ugh, no...(Yet another attempt.) Dear Francis...how do I make this right?

Lights out.

Lights up on PETRA, who is playing a few keys on a luxurious grand piano. The melody is simple and pretty, but she struggles with the tune. She keeps trying and trying but her skill is clearly lacking.

A phone rings. PETRA stops her playing to answer it.

PETRA

Petra speaking. (A garbled voice is heard from the other end.) Oh. Oh. I see. (Stoically.) That's very nice. Thank you. Good-bye.

PETRA continues to play from where she left off, but the errors are coming more rapidly now. She is crying. The melody is barely discernible. Finally, she slams the keys and rests her head on the piano. She wipes her tears, and puts her fingers to the keys, but her hands won't move.

Lights out.

Lights up on FRANCIS, who has a letter in his hand. He snorts as he realizes who sent the letter. He gingerly opens the envelope, takes out the letter and begins to rip the letter slowly into smaller pieces. He stops as he reads the last line, and he looks ashamed. He reassembles the letter, reading aloud as he pieces it back together.

FRANCIS

Dear Francis....I was wrong. I didn't...mean for this to happen. How can I... make things right? Love.. Amber.

Lights out.

Lights up on MARTIN, who is seated before a much humbler piano than PETRA. He plays a much more advanced piece than hers, but it is soon revealed to be a beautiful rendition of PETRA's theme. His face is rapt as he plays the music; he pays attention to nothing else. A phone rings. He doesn't answer. It rings and rings and rings, but MARTIN simply plays louder.

An Open Letter to Sally Kern.

2008-03-26T20:41:52Z

I disagree with you.

I am gay.

I did not choose this. If it is a question of nurture, I did not choose the way I was raised, nor did I choose the environment I was raised in. If am I who I am because of my environment and the way I was raised, and my "choice" was sinful, then you are saying that my parents and the loving education that I received were immoral. I resent the implications of your statement and the the emotion you have behind it, be it well-meaning ignorant pity at best or malicious rancor at worst, for you know nothing of the background that nurtured the person who I am.

I am happy and comfortable in my own skin though I've had to look at the world through the eyes of someone who has suffered for who he is. This is in large part to similar agenda on the part of members of your party and sect who routinely quote scripture and so-called moral law as a reason to punish me for a "crime" that I did not choose to do.

I do not see compassion in the way you act and are afraid to question your faith. Please note that I am not asking you to give up or doubt your faith; I am asking you to question it. The very process of reflection is premised on finding answers to deep questioning.

I doubt your decency as in the discussions I have seen you in show your behavior to be that of a person who literally tries to talk over another person while he is explaining his point. It shows you do not want to listen. Your inability to enter dialogue regarding this issue reveals a weakness as a legislator; I fear for the minority in your constituency.

I am not American, but your words affect me as the world looks to countries like America to set precedents and examples in good governance. I wish the politics of your country would not affect mine, but that is wishing for disappointment. I hope other Americans remember to take up the causes of people outside their borders who depend on them. This means that I wish Americans would not be insular to how the world works, which I sometimes fear is the case whenever I watch you, Ms Sally Kern, on the television.

In truth, I find it very hard to stay calm while I type this. I am livid. I am unhappy that opinions like yours continue, that you have an agenda that deliberately seeks to hurt other people or deny them rights that they are entitled to. I despise your position that the homosexual agenda, whatever you think it is, be it seeking civil unions or marriage or easier adoption of children for gay couples, is that it is worse than terrorism. I believe your idea of the moral fabric of America is a moth-ridden one, for it willingly only covers individuals who do not fall through the holes in your logic or sense of decency.

I am of the opinion that you are a reprehensibly misled human being. But I do not believe you are worse than a terrorist. I believe you are not someone out to kill and murder other people because they have a different world view than yours. I do believe however that you are only but a few steps removed from the kind of extremism that defines those willing to undertake terrorist actions, for your unwillingness to enter dialogue, the lack of compassion and unwillingness to reflect is behavior eerily similar to theirs.

I am sorry that people want to hurt you. Apparently you get many hateful messages. I am sorry. These are message born of anger. I am trying not to be hateful now, but I find that many of things I am saying must sound hurtful. I will leave it you to figure out if these are hurtful simply because they are born of frustration and anger, which I admit to feeling, or because the truth hurts sometimes. I am hoping it is the latter.

That is all, Ms Kern. I hope we find something to agree about, for as much as I would like to totally dislike you I still think you are a well-meaning human being. On this issue though, we are most definitely on opposite sides of the fence.

An Attempt at a Story

2007-11-05T06:03:17Z

He looked at him angrily, but unable to glare. It was his fatal weakness, that inability to squint. He hated himself that he could not narrow his eyes with the promise of wrath, that he had to settle with a grave expression of such seriousness that it could only at best be described as a pug trying to form a stiff upper lip..

His inexpressiveness did not end with his face, it touched his voice as well; there was no music in it, just a half-strangled warble, the sound of half-baked pubescence. His manner was ineffectual in conveying what he felt. It was generally agreed by those who knew him that he was poor in communication.

He could not even communicate this truth to himself. He felt he was a genius untapped, for he knew many words, several words, beautiful and effective ones that captured the movement of the dragonfly's wing. He did not know that being a dictionary does not a poet make, which only served to frustrate him more. He was a sad man, a lonely man. In some circles, he was not a man.

His name was Snufflapagus. He lived on Sesame Street.

~

Everyday he was ignored by the people around him. It was the elephant in the room, his existence. His only advocate was a half-grown child with the amusing name of Big Bird. His name was a phallic insult to the nomenclature, but that was to be expected on Sesame Street.

Big Bird was a large child, the anecdotal big kid in school who would have made a fine bully had he not the spirit of a pansy. Truth be told, Big Bird was something of a drag queen, fond of yellow feather boas and pink ringlets around his orange-tanned legs. In a way, he was responsible for the deliberate shunning of Mr "Snuffy" Snufflapagus, for which self-respecting parent of Sesame Street wanted their children to associate with a transvestite and his inexpressive best friend? Unfortunately for Snuffy, it was easier for the parents to accept Big Bird than him for Big Bird was wealthy---endowed with a trust fund at his tender age, he already had his own real estate, a nest that more than compensated for the weirdness that he could inflict on their children. With wealth like that, which parent didn't want their child to have Big Bird in their network?

Thus Snuffy only had Big Bird to talk to, and though he slogged through the inane offerings that Big Bird considered conversation, he was grateful to have a friend.

"Snuffy, why are you always hiding?"
"I'm right here, Big Bird."
"So why can't people see you?"
"I don't know why, Big Bird."
"But I can see you."
"Yes you can, Big Bird."
"I guess this makes our friendship special."
"Yes it does, Big Bird."

And so on. Snuffy's secret dread was for Big Bird to go away for boarding school, for that was what the children of the rich did when they came of age. It was to Snuffy's good fortune that Big Bird's sartorial excesses discouraged the high brow private academies' admissions officers to seriously consider Big Bird as a potential asset to their institution, and while Big Bird was wealthy, he was not uniquely wealthy. That meant that the private schools had no problems denying him entry, for they catered to a broad clientele of the rich and fabulous, just not the effetely rich or the ghetto fabulous.

Reconnecting

2007-10-19T15:50:12Z

It's a good thing.

Good luck you guys. You know who you are, as always.

To the others: I'm still sorry.

And that is that.

Interesting (Tonys) Trivia

2007-06-07T16:22:35Z

Gilmore Girls fans...

Kelly Bishop (the mother/grandmother) is the SAME Kelly Bishop from the original cast of A Chorus Line. She played Sheila.("Daddy always thought that he married beneath him, that's what he said, that's what he said") She has a Tony award for Featured Actress in a Musical, as a Drama Desk award for the same character.

Amazing how some of my favorite performers have something to do with Broadway (particularly Tony Awards), and I didn't know it...

Other shout outs:

Sara Ramirez of Grey's Anatomy fame won a Tony as the Lady of the Lake from Spamalot.

Bert Lahr (the Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz, one of my all-time fave movies) won a Tony in 1964 for Foxy.

Kevin Kline (of In & Out) won a Tony for The Pirates of Penzance in 1981.

Jason Alexander from Seinfeld won a Tony for Jerome Robbins' Broadway in 1989. He also originated the character of Joe in Merrily We Roll Along.

Harvey Fierstein, who I've loved since the movie Torch Song Trilogy (which showed on the i Channel all those years ago) won 4 Tonys in different categories.

Movie actors with Tonys: Al Pacino won the Tony in 1977, while Ian McKellen did in 1981. Jeremy Irons won his Tony in 1984. James Earl Jones has 2 Tonys! Ralph Fiennes won his in 1995.

I know it's mostly men, but I only got so far before getting timed out from the Internet Broadway Data Base (www.idbd.com).

Yay!

The Wedding Singer

2007-05-07T07:11:08Z

Please watch, my friends!

http://i16.tinypic.com/6417ofs.gif">


I play George, tambourine wonder.

Every so often

2007-04-07T16:31:39Z

I am reminded why people are good.

Thank you. You know who you are. Good luck.

Brothers & Sisters

2007-04-05T08:29:15Z

I've been watching this show and it's only been 3 episodes, but I'm already in love with it.

Quotable quotes:

On relationships: "You can't be faithful until you know what you're faithful for."
On seeing people you like: "Whenever I see you, I drop ten stories inside."
On responding to the statement about seeing people you like: "It won't work, we're not a Julia Robert's movie."

Hahaha. :P

Wheeeeeeeeeeeee!

2006-12-15T06:48:41Z

The truth shall set you free!

~

So there. :P

~

Suddenly, I feel 25 pounds lighter. Nothing like realizing that the instinct was correct.

I Give Up.

2006-12-14T15:03:33Z

I give up.

~

I'm doing my best to move of Barangay One Big Fighit, if only because having a crush shouldn't mean that you become a meaner, nastier person.

~

I just wish it could've been different.

Updates and Other Oddities

2006-12-10T03:21:27Z

Well, that was merrily idiotic. Good party until event of titanic buzzkill had to occur.

~

On an unrelated topic to parties and what happen in them, really am hating someone right now who doesn't know who the fuck (insert pronoun)'s messing with. This is unfortunate, because I'm ordinarily one for self-expression and am against self-censorship, but really, some things go to far.

~

So back off.

~

Other news:

Crush is impenetrable but am slowly on the road to recovery. As I told one of my friends, sometimes crushing on someone is like being on a sprint race that you didn't even know you'd entered until you see a lot of people all running towards the same person.

Pathetic.

~

Other friend told me that he was rooting for me with regards to crush. Sorry friend, but I think you've bet on the losing horse. What can I say, my chief asset is a brain that looks at beauty, music and art, not a body that inspires or aspires for it.

Must quote other friend's quip that if poetry were an asset, I'd have perfect vitalstatistics.

~

Thanks.

Okay. Suuuuure.

2006-12-08T02:48:14Z

Bandwagon

2006-12-07T16:32:32Z

Am now on Multiply, with the same userID there as here.

~

One Poem

I need to look at you
More often
Than I've been doing
Seeing you
Lets me
Catch my breath.

Okay.

2006-11-23T05:39:35Z

What I really dislike: anonymous posters who don't even bother identify who they are.

Grow a pair of balls, idiots.

Gadzooks!

2006-11-23T01:29:44Z

Druid

29% Combativeness, 53% Sneakiness, 79% Intellect, 66% Spirituality

Sneaky, cunning, and spiritual: You are a Druid!

Druids work with nature to cast their spells and favor balance over extremes. They're shapeshifters, capable of taking the forms of natural creatures. While they don't always deal well with people, they do have animal companions to come to their aid.

You are probably intelligent, spiritual, and more than a little deceptive. Fortunately, your lack of violent tendencies means you are also likely to be level-headed.

My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 99% on Combativeness
You scored higher than 99% on Sneakiness
You scored higher than 99% on Intellect
You scored higher than 99% on Spirituality

Link: The RPG Class Test written by MFlowers on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Accurate?

2006-11-20T05:38:29Z

You are The Devil

Materiality. Material Force. Material temptation; sometimes obsession

The Devil is often a great card for business success; hard work and ambition.

Perhaps the most misunderstood of all the major arcana, the Devil is not really "Satan" at all, but Pan the half-goat nature god and/or Dionysius. These are gods of pleasure and abandon, of wild behavior and unbridled desires. This is a card about ambitions; it is also synonymous with temptation and addiction. On the flip side, however, the card can be a warning to someone who is too restrained, someone who never allows themselves to get passionate or messy or wild - or ambitious. This, too, is a form of enslavement. As a person, the Devil can stand for a man of money or erotic power, aggressive, controlling, or just persuasive. This is not to say a bad man, but certainly a powerful man who is hard to resist. The important thing is to remember that any chain is freely worn. In most cases, you are enslaved only because you allow it.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Plugging for author

2006-11-15T12:36:35Z

The author in question is Paul S Kemp. I think he's written 7 books to date, the majority of which feature a dark gritty protagonist named Erevis Cale. The genre is fantasy.

The books are good, and satisfy many geeks. This is not to say that his work is meant for geeks alone, but he gets endorsed by fantasy geeks, who are notoriously difficult to satisfy. (I, former Literature major and now Theater major geek would like to act out one of his characters if anyone can faithfully capture the spirit of the book and adapt it for the stage---a personal standard of whether I like a book or not.)

Personally think his characters are more multi-dimensional than several creations out there. His novels are written like tightly coiled cats: you don't know when it's going to spring, but when it lands expect something sharp.

So pick up one of his Erevis books (Shadow's Witness, Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, Midnight's Mask and if you can, his latest book Shadowbred) and read it.

Adding Six Word Short Story

2006-11-14T14:51:01Z

Forgot who mentioned this on LJ, but trying it out for the fun of it.

~A Six Word Short Story~

"Father" title aged him. Ironically, childless.

~A Six Word Fairy Tale~

Lost weight, lived happily ever after.

Retro

2006-11-14T14:44:08Z

For some reason, felt compelled to listen to the Dawson's Creek OST. The first one.

Songs still good. For a few moments, was transported back to high school, when it meant to be in the closet, hadn't had a first kiss yet and was pretty much was a dumb fool.

Am assuming was compelled to do this after being asked, in the ground floor of MVP:

"Uh, Father, where is the CMO?"

Holy crap.

Just a few updates

2006-11-11T04:33:07Z

The High School Musical auditions are now on NOVEMBER 25, 2006. Same times and venue.

~

Congratulations to my younger sister for winning IISDC. Sigh. Now I am the only Mangahas not to win a national championship. Waaah. Unless you count a public speaking championship. But it's just not the same. Oh well.

Gica was co-best speaker in the tournament with Peterson Poon.

~

That's about it. I feel

OPEN AUDITIONS: High School Musical

2006-11-03T15:17:42Z

Blue Repertory and Little Boy Productions

present

HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL
Live!

OPEN AUDITIONS

November 12, 2006
SUNDAY
10 a.m.

3rd floor Gonzaga Fine Arts Theatre (G306), Gonzaga Building,
Ateneo de Manila University

Please prepare two Broadway songs
(songs from High School Musical are highly discouraged)
and a 2x2 photo

Rehearsals will start November 22 4:30-9:00 p.m. in Ateneo
Show dates will be on the first and second week of February 2007 outside Ateneo

For questions, contact 0919-3608974

Quick Entry

2006-10-23T09:24:36Z

Okay, am in Baguio now, debates will be in 30 minutes, wish me luck.

My cousin Robin is here right now, first time in 15 years. Hope to have a party for him (and me, all the best hoping) when I get back.

Time to get over last minute jitters. I love the of debate tournaments.

Late but still proud

2006-10-04T13:53:03Z

Hehehe. This should've been uploaded weeks ago, but thanks to the storm, I couldn't. That and we were playing Dungeons and Dragons like anything. Heh.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=nMd6FtaFKHQ&mode=related&search=

Just posting this since someone asked: what does your org do? Here's an example. (But we sing and act, mostly.)

I've said it once and I'll say it again

2006-09-25T02:08:03Z

What you call porn, I call instructional video.

Heh.