Last weekend, I hosted a belated Christmas lunch for a group of friends from work – we all operate in the HIV and AIDS circuit in the Philippines. Through years of bumping into each other in endless meetings, trainings and consultations and occasionally traveling and working together on some projects and activities, we’ve developed some sort of a bond. It is a bond woven with unflinching (almost) commitment to HIV and AIDS activism, spirited storytelling, and love for good food, quotable quotes and laughter. So, a lunch date was set and I had only one condition for my guests.
The invitation read: “I’m hosting a New Year lunch (should have been for last Christmas) at my house. You don’t have to bring anything but an owl – could be something you made, recycled, bought (doesn’t have to be expensive), but not borrowed or stole.”
As the first gathering I hosted this year, it will be unforgettab-owl! Imagine getting owls from eight friends all at once: a handmade hat, a pair of luggage tags, stickers, wooden figurines, a stuffed toy, a framed photo and a toy. After needless banter that P’s stuffed toy owl looked more like a bear or a tiger or a cat than an owl, we also realized that there is still an abundance of creativity in each of us, especially when required by the occasion.
After feasting on the meal (beef spareribs adobo, native chicken binakol, pako salad, kinilaw na tuna, tofu in pineapple and chili, green mango with bagoong and desserts: moist eggless and butterless chocolate cake for our resident vegetarian; banana chocolate chip cake, fruit salad, and puto brought by C), a plan was hatched. We realized that stress was inherent in our work and that we needed to unwind as frequently as possible. We also found out that at one point in our lives, all of us had collections of some kind. Mine was obvious – I have two cabinets crammed with owl collectibles (with more waiting in line to be shelved). So we made a list of what each one collects:
M1- clowns
M2 – owls (that’s me)
C1- fish and fowl (which also included owls)
C2 - unicorn
R- elephants and owls (as well!)
N- dolls and colored pens
P- masks
J1 – fashion and interior design magazines, GQ with female on the cover; montagut shirts (guess who is the ultimate hoarder)
J2 – initially had no recollection of a collection so we decided for him to start collecting AIDS pins.
So, on January 11, 2009, the Collectors' Support Group (CSG) was formally constituted. After hearing about my Springmaid Owl Saga (see previous blog), my friends also unanimously agreed to launch the Ultimate Quest for the Springmaid Owl. The deal is, anyone who finds it first will receive P500.00 from each of the group members (excluding myself). An added price would be a congratulatory dinner or lunch, which I would be most willing to host for the group.
Wait a minute, what if I find the Springmaid owl myself? Am I entitled to P500 from each of them as well? That, my friends, is the question… Which is life. Abangan!
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Monday, January 5, 2009
The Owl Springmaid Mirror Hunt
The search for the elusive owl Springmaid mirror is alive! My friend Joel and I had an unusual near-find but it fizzled out when the dude who owned it became inaccessible for unknown reasons. Okay, just a background – there is a site called guys4men. If you don’t know what this site is about, you can go check it out yourself (uhhh, it’s possibly limited to those who are 18 years old and older).
One dude posted a photo in his profile wearing nothing but his white underwear. Joel was brimming with excitement when he led me to the site and showed me the dude’s photo and I thought to myself, this is just another one of his virtual manhunt finds. I had to squint my eyes to see beyond the dude’s butt and guess what greeted me – a yellow owl springmaid mirror! So we both screamed in excitement.
One of my iconic memories while growing up in the 70s, was our own owl yellow Springmaid mirror. It had the shape of an owl, with a pair of black and white eyes and curly eyelashes. It came in different colors (yellow, pink, orange) and it seemed that every other household owned one.
So Joel strikes a conversation with dude:
J: Hey there, my friend is interested in your owl Springmaid mirror.
D: In exchange for what?
J: How about we meet for coffee to discuss it?
End of conversation.
Some days later (or was it weeks?), Joel checked the site again to see if dude had responded to his coffeee offer. He clicked on dude’s profile but this was already disabled. Waaaah!! There went my owl Springmaid mirror! Hmmm, did Joel’s offer had anything to do with it? Was he scared to part with his Springmaid mirror? Or was it the coffee invite? Because I know that one rule of thumb in gay cruising for those for are already in relationships, is that sex (with other men) is okay but coffee is not, because the latter means conversation and conversation can lead to an emotional attachment. In other words, a real affair – which, in turn, can threaten one’s existing relationship. You may ask, if he was in a relationship, why would he be posting his provocative photos (with an owl Springmaid mirror, no less) in a gay cruising site? Having so many gay friends, I already know that being in a relationship has never been a deterrent to one’s engagement in manhunts, virtual or other.
In any case, there went my potential owl Springmaid mirror find.
If anybody can lead me to one, I will greatly appreciate it, (and he or she doesn’t have to pose in his/her underwear).
One dude posted a photo in his profile wearing nothing but his white underwear. Joel was brimming with excitement when he led me to the site and showed me the dude’s photo and I thought to myself, this is just another one of his virtual manhunt finds. I had to squint my eyes to see beyond the dude’s butt and guess what greeted me – a yellow owl springmaid mirror! So we both screamed in excitement.
One of my iconic memories while growing up in the 70s, was our own owl yellow Springmaid mirror. It had the shape of an owl, with a pair of black and white eyes and curly eyelashes. It came in different colors (yellow, pink, orange) and it seemed that every other household owned one.
So Joel strikes a conversation with dude:
J: Hey there, my friend is interested in your owl Springmaid mirror.
D: In exchange for what?
J: How about we meet for coffee to discuss it?
End of conversation.
Some days later (or was it weeks?), Joel checked the site again to see if dude had responded to his coffeee offer. He clicked on dude’s profile but this was already disabled. Waaaah!! There went my owl Springmaid mirror! Hmmm, did Joel’s offer had anything to do with it? Was he scared to part with his Springmaid mirror? Or was it the coffee invite? Because I know that one rule of thumb in gay cruising for those for are already in relationships, is that sex (with other men) is okay but coffee is not, because the latter means conversation and conversation can lead to an emotional attachment. In other words, a real affair – which, in turn, can threaten one’s existing relationship. You may ask, if he was in a relationship, why would he be posting his provocative photos (with an owl Springmaid mirror, no less) in a gay cruising site? Having so many gay friends, I already know that being in a relationship has never been a deterrent to one’s engagement in manhunts, virtual or other.
In any case, there went my potential owl Springmaid mirror find.
If anybody can lead me to one, I will greatly appreciate it, (and he or she doesn’t have to pose in his/her underwear).
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Of emasculation and Colt 45 Beer
“Men should act like men”. “Strong beer should really be strong”.
Stupid ads should really be stupid.
The recent Colt 45 Ad series is a joke. It looks like a desperate attempt at valorizing masculinity, to render toughness as an essential attribute as opposed to tenderness, an ascribed feminine characteristic or trait.
While the previous ad, which Bamboo (the band) endorsed, portrayed him (Bamboo, the vocalist) exterminating an aggressive thug to smithereens (though in a twisted fashion it kinda makes him one as well), the new ads resurrect that thug in a rather ridiculous way.
One ad shows a group of men rowdily watching sports on TV. One of them leaves the group to take a phonecall from someone – doesn’t show if it’s from a woman or a man. He furtively makes sweet utterances to that person and a giant beer bottle falls on him.
Another ad shows a group of men ogling (or drooling is more like it) at a girl wearing a swimsuit. One of them comments that stripes does not suit her and in true stupid fashion, a beer bottle squashes him as well.
And then the tagline: “Men should act like men”. “Strong beer should really be strong”.
This ad caused an uproar within the gay community – with my friend, gay activist Danton Remoto, going as far as writing to Asia Brewery to pull out the ads.
While I do think the ads do not explicitly indicate that both dudes were gay, and thus, cannot be immediately construed as anti-gay, one can glean the desperation in its attempt at resurrecting and privileging outdated and rigid notions of masculinity.
It also seems like a reaction to the archetypal modern metrosexual man, who can also be sensitive, caring, and affectionate. But, isn’t this the kind of man that most heterosexual women and gay men now prefer?
Will drinking Colt 45 make one a “real” man? It’s a no-brainer.
Besides, does anybody ever drink this beer, anyway?
Stupid ads should really be stupid.
The recent Colt 45 Ad series is a joke. It looks like a desperate attempt at valorizing masculinity, to render toughness as an essential attribute as opposed to tenderness, an ascribed feminine characteristic or trait.
While the previous ad, which Bamboo (the band) endorsed, portrayed him (Bamboo, the vocalist) exterminating an aggressive thug to smithereens (though in a twisted fashion it kinda makes him one as well), the new ads resurrect that thug in a rather ridiculous way.
One ad shows a group of men rowdily watching sports on TV. One of them leaves the group to take a phonecall from someone – doesn’t show if it’s from a woman or a man. He furtively makes sweet utterances to that person and a giant beer bottle falls on him.
Another ad shows a group of men ogling (or drooling is more like it) at a girl wearing a swimsuit. One of them comments that stripes does not suit her and in true stupid fashion, a beer bottle squashes him as well.
And then the tagline: “Men should act like men”. “Strong beer should really be strong”.
This ad caused an uproar within the gay community – with my friend, gay activist Danton Remoto, going as far as writing to Asia Brewery to pull out the ads.
While I do think the ads do not explicitly indicate that both dudes were gay, and thus, cannot be immediately construed as anti-gay, one can glean the desperation in its attempt at resurrecting and privileging outdated and rigid notions of masculinity.
It also seems like a reaction to the archetypal modern metrosexual man, who can also be sensitive, caring, and affectionate. But, isn’t this the kind of man that most heterosexual women and gay men now prefer?
Will drinking Colt 45 make one a “real” man? It’s a no-brainer.
Besides, does anybody ever drink this beer, anyway?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
