FiSH Project

the great ely buendia plays so differently nowadays. i was flipping through the tv channels this morning and spotted him inviting a welcome performance for sm’s newly-opened mall of asia in roxas boulevard. the eraserhead legend is all business i tell you, clad in black long sleeves with matching tie. while his new band pupil is performing their new single--in the middle of the song, ely went mute--allowing dennis trillo to carry on the vocal chores. it’s one of those mandatory band-and-teen idol collaboration number. the camera glanced on ely’s face and i’m quite sure i saw him biting his upper lip, the look as if he’s trying to conform to the set-up. like i’ve said, it’s all business baby. i just hope his TF is worth the compromise. fortunately, dennis has the right voice for the song number. there is justice after all in noontime shows. 

the last time i saw the erasherheads play live was during the up fair in 2002. a few months later, they installed fatal posporos’ lead singer (also my former grade school seatmate), kris gorra as their lead vocalist. the new eheads didn’t seem to fit--and a few months later they decided to change their name to cambio. like the beatles, everyone went on their separate ways. raymund marasigan seemed to be the most accomplished if not the most renowned of the eheads legacy. he now fronts a band--that for me--is one of OPM’s greatest. sandwich is all about music in a business-sense. as much as i like marc abaya’s tone better than lemon’s--raymund sure know how to work out a crowd, like going down the stage and clashing with bodies in the mosh during the recent pulp summer slam. i simply admire his strategy. 

there will come a time wherein you have to learn how to shortcut things and allow compromise to take over and bring you to the next level. it is also important to maintain your dignity while wallowing in the weasel ways of the corporate world. you just have to play your cards right. you can’t go “all in” all the time. in the end, the eheads tells us that it’s all about business. sure the music is still there and the passion that landed them their first album is still apparent. still, it’s not only about principles or doing what you like best--it’s also about survival. of course it’s important to experience the rough road to success. you have to learn to sing your songs first before letting others sing it with you. if you don’t like it, well, you just have to shake yer head and walk away.

a few years ago, my officemates in sykes decided to watch a stand-up comedy show in marikina. my officemate rented a van and i have to sit in front as i was the tallest guy in the bunch. on our way to markina, the driver started talking to me. “ang galing ng mojofly noh?” while inserting a mojofly cassette in the panel player, i wittingly said “oo naman!” i do like the band. in fact i was currently working on an article about them together with a co-writer for pulp at the time. i’ve seen mojofly play in malate in front of uhm, nothing--just a couple of tables filled with friends and family. for some strange reason the driver started talking about his life, how he use his van as a sideline to earn extra income, how he plans to go back to the states and such. anyway, a few weeks later during our last visit to mojofly’s gig, i spotted the driver again in the same gig spot in malate. wow! this is one die hard mojofly fan! after mojofly’s set, kitchie started thanking everyone, thanked us, thanked her friends, thanked her parents--and my god, the driver turned out to be kitchie’s dad. the bastard! i approached him after the gig and told him “kaw hah, di ka nagsasalita!” he just grinned. “sa uulitin hah!” we shook hands then he went out and smiled. on our way home i kept thinking about if i said something stupid or derogatory about kitchie while i was in the van with her driver dad. my conscience is clean.

several years later, kitchie launched her solo career. business as usual.

photo caption: (1) eheads last live performance, up fair 2002 (2) kitchie nadal, up fair 2006

i use to have a teacher who calls everyone in our class "creature." all his sentences would end up with the word "creature." "are you sure, creature?" what's the answer to this, creature?" yadda yadda yadda. a few years later we wound up on the same family summer outing (2000) in a resort near novaliches sponsored by benilde. this time we are co-teachers from the same college. mr. lopez teaches english, while i had my hands full teaching photography. and yes, he no longer calls me creature (maybe out of respect). it feels odd sometimes talking to your co-teachers who use to be your professors in undergrad school. so there we were, under a cottage eating pancit and barbecue watching all the kids of other co-faculty members swim and bask in the heat of the sun. 

mr. lopez lives a simple life. i don't remember the other details of our chat that day, but it sure made a good impression of him. i'll never forget what he told me, the way he described his semi-content life. he all just have a small room for a home. lying in  bed--he would reach a book from his make-shift shelf with his right hand--then opens the fridge and easily grab a can of coke using his left hand. then he exclaimed , "ang sarap ng buhay, ano pa hahanapin mo?" i have to confess, i'm not fond of reading books, you've probably guessed it by now from the way i write. normally, good writing is a result of religious reading. but then again, maybe i just try hard. anyway, the way mr. lopez described reading is like it's the ultimate bliss, reading relaxes him and provides a certain level of comfort. to be honest i just couldn't relate. 

five years later, i find myself reading several books--as in religiously. not for leisure mind you, its more of a requirement. i never realized it until midway of the first semester that studying phd communication requires a lot of reading and research. all the more, i need to prepare for the upcoming semester. i have to read babbie and littlejoin and absorb all the communication theories i can muster. never again will i be humiliated in class when asked about the cognitive theories and such. seriously. i really have to read. during my masteral studies i'm used to reading books containing company cases--now most of the books i read are related to communication theories. i'm just not prepared for this. 

after going thru the words of malcolm gladwell, steven levitt, rigoberta menchu, virgilio enriquez, and even my prof lourdes portus' published research study, i've actually started enjoying to read. funny, i think i'm spending more time in starbucks sm fairview than i use to--of course with my usual venti cafe latte and puffs of tabacalera. i'll spend several hours... just reading. maybe i'm getting old. maybe it's the topic of the books i'm reading that sparked my interest. i think i'm starting to love reading communication books. maybe i should try reading the cliche book "7 habits of good leadership?" as well so i'll be "in" with the successful weasels in the office.

in the past, i have a wide collection of filipiniana short stories compilation with the best ones penned by my idols pantoja-hidalgo, butch dalisay, and other writers from the youngblood series, etc. i guess i never had the patience to read novels thats why i opted for short stories. i would finish a compilation of short stories in a month's time. and oh yeah, i also have the hardbound copy of da vinci code and the left alone series. and oh yeah (again), i have yet to finish them all. 

i'm turning 30 in a few weeks--and the joy of reading, could just be the best gift of all--next to learning how to blog.