PEN & INK EXHIBIT

I will never make a good photojournalist.

Reason?

I don't have a camera.

When I had one, I would either lose it, drop it, forget the batteries, talk too much on occasions when I had to take pictures and forget that I am supposed to do that; and worse, totally neglect the darned contraption. The only camera I had was only around for a few weeks until I lost it, and that was years ago before the advent of digital technology.

So, every time there's some sort of happening where I am involved, I tap someone's shoulder and ask for his email with the gentle reminder, "Can I steal some of your photos for my blog?"

Now THAT is what I just did. I have stolen somebody else's photos and pasted them here on my blog with some annotations.

Here goes...

This is BIG. Yeah, his name is BIG - just finished from La Salle Benilde and hopes to enroll in art school. He helped Simon put up my works on Halo's walls.

They call him that because a few years ago, he resembled a barge and I kid you not. He's lost a lot of weight since turning vegan and now he's cool enough to wear those pj's that can house a family of pigeons if he'd stand still and spread his legs.
















This is SIMON - the friend of BIG.

He took the pains of planning how to hang my works on the wall and doing it with his friend BIG. I owe him big time. He too was huge in a former life. If BIG was a barge, Simon was a walrus. He also turned vegan and has been wearing his size 38 pants on a waifish frame.























...and this is Halo Restaurant. It's like a little secret that you eventually tell all your friends who are into organic food. No frills. No pinky finger flying off from every lift of a glass. And nothing matches. Everything's on a budget and yet came out pretty hip. And yes, you can put your feet up while eating on unmatched chairs.

When I first saw the place from the outside, it reminded me of the window displays of Barney's Department store in NYC. It's hippie without the peace signs and pretty local. Compare...
Here's a picture of Halo's young entrepreneurial owner HALMEN (the one in yellow). She's 25, taking up a law degree (she aims to become a criminal lawyer someday) AND she runs the restaurant. (and I am trying to convince her to pose for my painting of Eve.) Right beside her in the picture is Sandy and her husband Benjie. They run that cool place called Reading Room.

This is Simon and some of his friends doing a gig on the second floor where people sat on the floor as they do their guitar rifts. They did some fusion jazz rock tunes and... sigh, the only thing missing is some sticks of weed. Not that I am encouraging but it sure felt like it that night. :-)

... though I don't remember this guitarist's name, I like him. He's got four big earrings on each ear and reminds me of those head-hunting tribes in Papua New Guinea. I was glued to watching his fingers caressing the guitar strings. He was practically making love to his instrument.
That's me clinging to a bottle of Aussie merlot given by BooJim (did I spell this right Sandy?) the kind and wonderful overlord of the whole Cubao X.

And the child asked,"Auntie Sandy, will you ever be cutting up a pig's head soon?"


This is again me seated at the best place at ANY buffet party. Yeah, beside the food. Notice the almost empty containers beside me. Hehehehe...

... and of course, Sheila's kids - Patrick and Paolo sitting at the best place where kids could sit when they're bored in adult parties; at a bench outside with their ears plugged on to their PSP's.

Oh, and notice that small gallery behind them? That's MONUMENTO (beside HALO Restaurant) owned and run by the sculptor Sajid Imao and his wife. Pass by there during the day and you'll their resident artist of the month making his/her work inside that space. You could actually stand there and just watch. Pretty cool concept for a gallery.

There are a lot of people I'd like to thank - the CANVAS people- Gigo, his wife Alyssa and their kids and friends Aurora and husband. There's Adib who owns Chicken Bacolod in Greenbelt. There's Clarice who came despite a bad cold (get well soon!), Sandy and Benjie, Gene of Poland Hopia (note: DROP BY his hopia shop in CUBAO X. It's the FUNKIEST Hopia Shop in the whole country), Mark of BPI who came with a friend, Sheila and her kids (who's always there when needs be), Abet (the production designer of the movie BALER. Watch it! Though, I have to admit, I'm more predisposed to watch ISKUL BUKOL) and his friends, Rome and his beautiful wife Jing, Simon, Big and of course... Halmen.

Thanks!

Note: I stole these photos from THE READING ROOM, HALO RESTAURANT and RAFE'S blogs.
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And before I forget, I'd like to make a shoutout....


MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!


For the DADDIES OF THE WORLD... Rock on with these caroling fathers.
(dang! my fingers can't stop snapping to that Toto tune)