Sunday, December 13, 2009

METALLICA rocks!!!

For those who think i am wholesome and sweet and mellow and mild, think again. I have a dark side...and i let it all come out last night during the METALLICA concert at the HP Pavilion in San Jose. It was a blast...the ultimate gathering of headbangers! I watched it with Fil who was also celebrating his birthday and three of our die-hard-Metallica-veterans friends. I was literally gritting my teeth, clasping my hands together, on the edge of my seat peering down waiting for James, Kirk, Lars and hmmm Robert (the bass guitarist whose name i found out later...he's the newest member by the way) to come out of the opening below me. Everyone who has been sitting there and patiently waiting for an hour or so was enveloped with renewed enthusiasm. For a moment it felt surreal...like it wasn't really happening, that i wasn't really there. Then the crowd went wild, James and company ran to the stage and started the party. It was a really loud party, similar to being in a cockpit. The crowd sang to every song, threw a fist to every beat and yeah, banged their heads endlessly. I wasn't familiar with their latest album Death Magnetic but the feverish sensation enveloping the pavilion was too contagious for me and Fil to fight...and so we found ourselves also throwing fists in the air and banging our heads...so liberating! yeahhh...! It was the first time for me and Fil to see Metallica - we missed their concert last year 'coz we spent the holidays in the Philippines - so we proudly raised our hands when James scanned the crowd for Metallica virgins!

My love affair with Metallica started in the early 90s, at the height of the success of their Black Album. A college friend introduced me to their songs and i instantly fell in love with them. My favorites are The Unforgiven, Unforgiven II, Low Man's Lyric, Enter Sandman. Back then, we would be jamming to the songs at the rooftop of their house in Caloocan City, Metro Manila. Believe it or not, i can even play the guitar intro of Nothing Else Matters that i wouldn't hesitate to fill in for Kirk in case he succumbs to mental block while performing onstage. hihihi...obviously one of my fantasies...just the thought of it excites me. LOL... nah, i'm not that good hahaha!!! Still, i'm proud of it. One may not notice me at all when i'm playing the guitar but it always surprises everyone when they hear me play Metallica.

Sadly, the concert last night was more about their new album so i was a little disappointed (though i expected it) that they sang more of their new songs rather than be nostalgic about their past hits. I couldn't forgive them for not singing any of the Unforgiven songs but i was thrilled beyond words when they sang Nothing Else Matters and Enter Sandman. Overall the band performance was wild but not as 'wild' as one who has never been to a heavy metal concert before would imagine in a heavy-metal concert e.g. guitar smashing, lots of swearing, burning the stage...stuff like that. I guess age, experience, family life and the variety of their fan base have tamed the band down a bit. After all, they have nothing more to prove: they are already in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame! No more need for drama. The guys on the floor pushing each other and attempting to climb the stage were fun to watch, no marijuana smoker within my 5-feet radius and the lighting effects and laser show were blindingly dazzling. It was a natural high! So happy i was part of the party... It felt for me like a graduation of some sort, the culmination of a life-long dream. Now i can go on with the rest of my life :)

Here's my favorite Metallica song, definitely in my top 5 favorite love songs. Heavy metal band singing a love song with full orchestra, only Metallica can pull of something like that.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Decembrrrrr

not enough to make a snowman but enough to write my name. it doesn't normally snow on the streets of the Bay Area but it did last December 8 and it's not even winter yet. usually, we only see snow-covered hills as we drive along the freeway but not in our driveway!


i sooo hate winter but it isn't that bad in California.

i'm not complaining.




Wednesday, December 9, 2009

what are PARENTS?

There isn't
a better example
of love you can count on,
it seems,
Than the parents
who've always stood by you
to encourage your hopes
and your dreams,
They're still there
whenever you need them
to help with their own
special touch -
Parents are
wonderful people,
and that's why
you love them so much.


Happy, happy birthday to my mom who turned 57 last December 7 and happy 36th Wedding Anniversary to her and my dad.

On December 8, 1973 Mamang and Papang got married via a simple church ceremony somewhere in southern Mindanao. Growing up, i remember looking at their black-and-white wedding pictures every now and then and as soon as i turned 10, i started parading around the house in Mama's wedding gown - a long-sleeved embroidered mini-skirt! so cool!

Their lovestory? I'm not sure...i guess it's something children sometimes ignore or forget. All i know is that mamang, half-ilocano and half-kapampangan but grew up in Tondo, Manila, met papang - a full-blooded bisdak (bisayang dako) from Midsayap, Cotabato - in Manila and had a whirlwind romance. I've asked them many times for the details but i always get different versions - mamang said she didn't know then that papang was taking her to Mindanao (translation: tinanan or forced to elope) but papa claims otherwise...and the story grows more complicated with each telling... ;-)

Anyway, whatever the circumstances that brought them together and however difficult and challenging it has been to keep them together all these years, i am very thankful that we are all still here as a family and we're looking forward to more challenges, experiences and good times ahead. My wish is for mamang and papang to live long and witness Baby Racrac and Baby AJ grow and maybe one or two more grandkids? let's see. :-)

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

November to remember

Went to see the San Francisco 49ers play against the Tennessee Titans at the Candlestick Park last November 8 with Fil and our friends. It was a great day, sunny but cool and we were all wearing RED! :) The 49ers lost but we still had a great time being there in the football stadium and experience the game LIVE! not even a super duper hyperreal oversized-screen LED TV could get you that close to the feeling...

Manny Pacquiao pounded Cotto in a thrilling 12-rounds of boxing last November 14 which we watched on pay-per-view at the Coyoca residence in Milpitas. We had a party, overflowing food and thankfully our kababayan delivered the goods and made us again proud to be Filipino.

Sadly, the whole family was bitten by the flu bug. First it was me a couple of days after Pacquiao's fight (Monday) but i managed to combat it with Tylenol and rest. By Wednesday I got rid of the fever but cough and colds took over at the same time that Fil started feeling sick. That night, Racrac's temperature reached 100. Thursday morning Fil left to see the doctor (and i tell you he's not really the type who would see a doctor immediately so i knew then that he's feeling really bad) and he was prescribed with Tamiflu and something for his cough. After lunch, Racrac's fever still did not subside so we brought him to urgent care clinic (his fever was 103!) and was also prescribed with Tamiflu. For some reason, i forgot about my own illness, started feeling better and took care of my two patients. They were back to normal after a couple of days and that's when i started coughing again. tsk.tsk. because of that, i missed my New Moon movie date with the girls and the deluxe pedi bonding after huhuhu... :(((

Had thanksgiving dinner with friends at the Taladua residence. We pardoned the turkey and instead had lechon and lots of food totally unrelated to the occasion. The only thanksgiving dinner food we had at the table was the pecan pie :) The next day, Black Friday, we stayed home and put up our Christmas tree. Too lazy to go out and join the crazy shopping crowd.

Also this November we repainted Racrac's room and got him a twin-sized bed with a set of Disney's Cars themed bedding. Oh how he loves cars! i never thought those tiny diecast car models could be exciting for boys his age. At 21 months, he now sleeps ALONE on his bed in his room and he likes it. Maybe he is still too young to feel scared about the idea. He's been sleeping there for 2 weeks already although there were some nights he woke up at 4am, hopped into our bed and slept in the middle.

Now that his crib-turned-toddler bed is out of our room, we have reclaimed our own space and have it redecorated. Our bed is now positioned where it should be and we have new curtains and beddings too yey! :) We felt so good about it that we also changed the curtains in our living room...finally!

And now our Christmas tree is all decorated and lighted up. December is here...let the merry holidays begin!

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