Welcome to the wild, wicked, and wonderful world of theSiege. Please leave your good taste at the door, and prepare yourself for the worst kind of abusive behavior ever written.

Mabuhay! Maligayang pagdating sa malikot, mahiwaga, at maligalig na mundo ni Siege. Marapat po lamang na kalimutan ninyo ang inyong mga kabutihang asal, at ihanda ang mga sarili laban sa mga mapang-abusong pag-uugali nang may akda.

Soulmate, Where Art Thou?

Siege. 20. Hopeless Romantic. Writer. Lost Soul. Lost Soulmate.

Dear <i>FRIENDS</i>,

Season's greetings!

Do you guys know about the GRAPHIC 100 list? Turns out, GRAPHIC magazine is compiling a list of youth leaders from different fields. Now, it would really mean a lot to me if you guys would go and nominate me by sending Associate Editor Weng Paraan an email @ rccparaan [@] gmail.com.

<i>Why should you nominate me?</i> Because, I know you believe in everything that I stand for. Because I believe you wouldn't like a respectable magazine like GRAPHIC listing A HUNDRED CELEBRITIES as the youth's leaders and representatives. Because there's more to the youth than screaming I-LOVE-CHAMP and I-LOVE-YOU-RICO-PINOY-BIG-BROTHER. Because there's more to culture than ORANGE N LEMONS. Because I believe <i>my friends</i> know that it would be a tragedy to represent our generation with a hundred people with less of my brilliance, less of my spunk, less of my ambition. Because there's a FUCKIN HUNDRED SLOTS available, and if you can think of a hundred people better than I am (all in all) then either you don't know me or you have a seriously, clinically screwed-up system of values.

Think about it. Would you really want that list of A HUNDRED leaders to represent the youth include Tim Yap, Celine Lopez, and other models-slash-writers-slash-product-endorsers without proper representation from the class that makes up the majority, by definition, the masa? How would a generation represented by the elite scions of celebrities look like?

What would it imply? The perpetuation of the hegemony of turning a blind eye. We will have a list of youth leaders who have made a mark in fields like kart racing, polo, modelling, fashion(!). Elitist, capitalist fields of interests that have TOTALLY NOTHING TO DO WITH MOST OF OUR REPUBLIC'S POPULATION. Who cares if Nicole Anderson never goes out of the house dressed-to-pose? How do their achievements in kart racing affect the lives of the majority?

Kaya ang lakas ng loob ng government to cut UP'S BUDGET eh. The youth is represented by kids who have gotten their education from schools that charge in foreign currency. The youth is represented by kids who own ponies to ride, who wear $300 denim pants, who model for fun. They are the kids you see in the society pages. They are <i>the society</i>, they are happy, and they represent <i>our aspirations</i>. 

STOP SUBSCRIBING TO THE HEGEMONY THAT VALUES WESTERN BONE STRUCTURE OVER IQ, STYLE OVER EDUCATION, ORANGE AND LEMONS OVER POETRY. Don't let the youth be misrepresented by kids who thinks that not knowing proper conversational Filipino is not a loss.

Not only that. Nominate me because of what I have been doing. I have been giving free poetry lessons to various schools. I have been giving talks about the importance of literacy.

Plus, it might sound funny to you, but nominate me for Jhunalyn.

If you have noticed, Jhunalyn now comes loaded with messages on how to help people. I'm encouraging my readers to be more charitable in the face of the society's (the choice of word is not without deliberation) apathy. I've been using humor to reach out to an audience that is untapped: the outsourced work force staring at their computer monitor all day. Not for any financial compensation do I provide them with a mean to take a breather and laugh, and with the same project, appeal to their hearts to be more charitable. I know for a fact that I have convinced an entire office to sponsor a child, and to provide for that child's family a noche buena. That is the power of a writer's writing that no one has considered before.

<i>Why do I need to be in that list?</i> I'll be honest: I want the attention. I'll be sincere: I want the attention so that more people would know about my ideas. So that more people would hear my voice. So that more people would take a critical look at their life and see the reason in my arguments. So that with my small voice, the government would hear the whimpering call for better literacy programs. So that the hegemony of the white boy would be shaken. So that people would value the process of thinking and creativity over political lineage and celluloid popularity.

So that the people would get its own voice, its own face with its own heart.

So that kids would say "Cool!" when asked to do a book report, and not think "I don't read books" is one way to boost your popularity. So that kids would rather write poems than go to the gym and drink protein laced fruit shakes.

So that the youth would rather curl up with a good book than line up to audition for the next reality-based artista search. So that the youth would care--and this time, not because Marxism is rebellious--, really care for once, about their less fortunate brothers rather than problematize how they would own a car before they're 17 years old. So that the youth would know that there's more to life than fashion, there's also compassion.

 

May nagbabasa pa ba sa akin dito? Heheheh... anyway, just to let you guys know, sa livejournal na po ako nagsusulat, sa http://www.livejournal.com/users/thesiegeison  just in case you'd care for some quality reading. hehehe. Quality daw o.

 

Oh, and I wrote a Darna fanfic piece, I'd like to share.. hindi pa siya tapos, so you'd have to stay tuned:

 

Darna Versus The Cowboys!

[tentative title]

 

<a href="http://www.livejournal.com/users/thesiegeison">Sino si Jhunalyn?</a>

Ang bagong sigaw nang bayan!!! Bola o Bakla!!!!

This is how I say goodbye. With a last, lingering look to let you think about what you're going to miss. Hehehe. Just Click On The Photo To Get You There. (Mag-livejournal na kayo!! Ang walang livejournal, would miss out on all the fun!!! Mas masaya dun!!!!!!)

 

 

 

 

By the way,  Litera Tour: The UP Institute of Creative Writing Travelling Workshop would be on De La Salle University next Wednesday, March 23. All La Salistas are welcome to join and learn. DLSU would be the second stop of Litera Tour, coming just a few days after our first stop in FEU. Head lecturer and workshop facilitator would be Vim Nadera, distinguished director of the University of the Philippines Institute of Creative Writing. With him are the bands Ka-Tribu an ethnic wind and percussion band who, in their own words, "are not here to entertain but to raise awareness in our ethnic culture's richness", and THE 420 BOYS CHOIR, a hip blues band that isn't afraid to have fun. The workshop would also feature performances from The SUS'N ROSES, the badass performance poetry group of GP Abrajano and Siege Malvar, both of whom will also facilitate the workshop, inspire poets with their good looks, and patronize stupid questions if asked. They also both believe in love.

I was enjoying my wonderful sabbatical from Tabulas when I just found out that THE ARCHIVES SECTION is no longer availble to free users.

Some points I would like to raise:

1. We signed up for a TABULAS account WITH THAT FEATURE ALREADY GIVEN AS PART OF THE TYPE OF ACCOUNT THAT WE SIGNED UP FOR.

2. Tabulas earns money not just from users who are STUPID enough to pay, but also from companies that are more than willing to have their advertisements be a part of our daily lives.

3. OUR ENTRIES ARE OURS. They belong to US. Those entries, those thoughts, feelings, journal entries BELONG TO US. NOT TO ROY.

Having raised these issues, I would now like to announce my active campaign for people to PLEASE LEAVE TABULAS DUE TO THE WEBMASTER'S PREDATORY TACTICS.

Good thing I'M KEEPING MY LIVEJOURNAL ACCOUNT. I backed up everything in my LIVEJOURNAL and my BLURTY accounts.

People, if you believe and feel that you have been cheated by this new "improvement" that YOUR dear ROY has recently implemented, then pass this message:

LEAVE TABULAS.



JOIN THE TABU-LOST CAMPAIGN!!!!

I wrote a farewell letter earlier today, but there was a power failure when I was about to post it. Hehehe. AS usual. Murphy's Law.

Anyway some last "blog" entries before I bid adieu.

Lately, I've been tending our garden. My uncle John bought a new pair of garden shears, and I've been shears-happy every morning after my daily (not quite daily, ok) jog.

Also, I've been to Boracay. Had the best vacation in my life. Then went to Puerto Gallera a few days after, just to have lunch. Yes, we went to puerto gallero just to have lunch. We spent 5 hours going to Batangas Pier, then 2 hours on the ferry to Calapan Pier (Mindoro), then to the village of Naujan where my father grew up (5 hours, including travel time), then to Puerto Gallera for lunch (another 3 hours including travel time and eating period), then back to Calapan Pier (3 hours) where we got into a ferry back to Batangas (2 hours) and then back to Manila (6 hours, including dinner time). Wala lang.

Also, my Uncle John and Cousin Andrew introduced me to the wonderful world of Cryptic Crosswords. It's the toughest crossword in the English language. Doubly hard for me because they're using BRITISH english, and not the American english I grew up to. They got impressed with me because I managed to crack a couple of clues. They left me with one of their oxford electronic dictionaries to play with. hehehe.

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Seeing LIFE OR SOMETHING LIKE IT on cable brings back some unexpected memories.

I knew there was something familiar with Angelina Jolie's (oh, heavens!) golden tresses that was oddly unsettling. I realized, I have seen that movie before but I have forgotten that I have had. I racked my brain to remember when I saw it, and then I remembered who I was with when I saw the movie.

La lang. Past is past na nga eh. Bwisit.

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Dear Friends,

This is, inevitably, goodbye.

I would have faded off into nothingness, but good sense tells me you deserve more than that. You deserve an explanation. And more.

You deserve my sincerest gratitude. Thank you for all the support. You treated me like a god. And like a god, I was both hated and loved. You inspired me into writing countless words and into thinking innumerable ideas, encouraged me into bashing more celebrities than Joey De Leon can, flattered me into posting an average of a hundred photos a month (no exaggeration). Thank you.

Thank you, Tabulas.com for the space I have shamelessly exploited. You have given me a friend customized for my nuisances. It listens but does not judge (unless I activate the ALLOW COMMENTING option) and does not tire of listening. It does not talk back, or try to one-up you with its own sob story. Tabulas is a wonderful friend. It does not call you in the middle of the night to gush about its new found crush. You can listen to its stories in your own sweet time. The choice of when to read other people's entries is really up to you. You may do it daily (like masturbating), or just whenever you feel like killing yourself (like everytime Kris Aquino is on tv).

But even so, there are circumstances leading to my decision.

First, Tabulas 2.0. The new version of tabulas is an improvement, they claim. But it was implemented without prior notification to users, and even at an early stage of debugging it. I do not care if it is an improvement, an upgrading if you will, of the older version, but I think, to implement changes without prior notification is BAD BUSINESS PRACTICE. It's rude, unethical, and downright arrogant. It is insulting. When this site went PUBLIC, this site no longer belongs to ROY. That means, we deserve to know beforehand the changes that he's going to implement. It is very unprofessional to surprise people.

Second, my website. It's as yet unfinished and its links heading nowhere. It's taking too long, and I've posted too many publicity post-its too soon. I have decided to channel most of my 'blogging' energies into this project for the mean time.

Third, my writing. There was a time when I used to write just to amuse myself. It was an outlet, a hobby, a toy. I've honed it and turned it into a craft. Now, it's a part of who I am. The thing is, I haven't done any writing lately. Not a single story. Not a single poem. I hate it.

I have decided to hone my craft and do it right this time. I'm going old school. I'm going to stop writing like most "writers" my age do, and start writing the way writing should be. I'm going to read books, study styles, and do my research this time. I'm going to do it right this time.

Fourth, Other Matters which must remain, as of yet, undisclosed.

Last, and most importantly, because of a New Year's Resolution I made.

This year, I have resolved to fall in love.

And I'm going Old School on that one too. No shortcuts, no Safety Zones.


That's it. That's my goodbye. I'm not going to ruin it with a promise of a comeback.



Yours,
Siege.

Bayani Fernando earns the distinction of being the last person to get bashed in my blog.

Human Rights are rights that are vested on every person, regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, nationality and such, simply by virtue of being human. These rights can not be waived nor revoked.

Subjecting a person to cruel and degrading treatment is a violation of these rights.

The MMDA's wetrag gimmick is a blatant and openly arrogant violation of Filipinos human rights. The scheme works by EMBARASSING erring pedestians into following the law.

It is a wonder how Joy Viado and Manny Castaneda, both guests in DEBATE, could have sided with BF. Oh, wait. I remember. They're stupid.

The public humiliation of erring pedestrians as punishment for the violation of the jaywalking law is not humanely proportional. Only idiots would think it is.

Bayani Fernando has the mentality of a highschool prefect of discipline on a power trip. His tricks are sophomoric and belittles the Filipino intelligentsia.

I once saw an MMDA personnel grab an old lady's bilao (a mat shaped like a disk) and throw it on the sidewalk. Had I not been on a moving vehicle, I would have hurled all the civil laws he had broken in his face.


Where is social justice in making the little people suffer?















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and what pisses me more is reading some comments texted in by viewers:

"Tama lang yun. Walang disiplina ang mga pinoy. Dapat lang gawin yun."

Stupid ass. What do you mean "ang mga pinoy"? Hindi ka ba pinoy? Kung hindi ka pinoy, wala kang karapatang magsalita nang ganyan PUTANGINA MO. at kung pinoy ka naman, PUTANGINA MO, nakukuha mong magsalita nang ganyan?

Manny Castaneda and Joy Viado are stupid. Throw something at them when you see them on the streets. Please. You're not violating their human rights when you do that. The Animal Protection Act allows such actions to discipline domestic pets, so I guess it's ok.

Details Soon.