The Ezekiel Option (2005)

Originally posted on: 22 June 2014

Reposted on: 05 July 2014

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I thought I was already done shedding tears from The Last Jihad and (especially) in The Last Days, but I thought wrong.

I’ve already gone fond of Sa’id, the new Palestinian Administraton Prime Minister. He would make you feel and believe that it’s really possible to have a deal with the Palestinian people. But there’s the visit in Saudi Arabia. It broke my heart like what happened during the Samson Strike.

The Ezekiel Option, based on the book of Prophet Ezekiel, was interesting in a sense that it gives you a picture of what could possibly come. Thank heavens for such [option]. The thought of “The Samson Option” is just unimaginable. Heartbreaking, obviously.

Speaking of such, it started with one because of a visit in Saudi Arabia. A lot of people already knew what happened and who’s involved. Still, it was sad. I think it’s one of those rare experiences in my reading habit years that I got so held captive by a book I’m reading.

Two funny things also happened while reading The Ezekiel Option. One, I drifted to Lalaland while sitting then found myself seeing scenes from the novel. Then there’s the incident when I almost sent Jon Bennett an email with an attachment of proposal for an LGU. No wonder I couldn’t find his email address.

Also, there were things said/written in this novel that really caught my attention. During a UN something session, the Philippines was portrayed as a nation standing for and in a sense also defending Israel. It was fiction but it was a big deal for me. Totally.

There were also statements though referring to Iran have been prophesied about the Philippines, especially the first one:

*A missionary-sending country

*A prosperous and peaceful nation

I may not exactly get the verbatim of the second claim for Iran, but I took the thought as just the same. By the way, we’re actually used to say “nation” instead of a “country” so it goes as “The Philippines will be a missionary-sending nation.” This was said of us after 2010, when we declared our Jubilee of jubilees.

Whether Mr. Rosenberg missed that for the Philippines, which is not a direct participant in the situation leading to the War of Gog and Magog, or what he said of Iran was actually what the country would become, he still hit the prophecy declared.

From the first installment of the The Last Jihad series until this one, I had my entire soul so absorbed. Why not? It was about Israel.

Wicked

Watched Wicked last Friday night at The Theatre at Solaire in Parañaque City. For free. Yeah!

I almost missed the play for some time and economic reasons. Thank You, LORD, for the provision. I made it just fine. I wasn't able to take a lot of photos, though I wish I could, saved for two.

Wicked. Man it was wicked.

Carly Anderson played Glinda Upland. She was fun to watch. The range of voices she sang was very entertaining. Of course it is given that her voice is good. But how she showcased them was just amazing. I loved her performance.

Jacqueline Hughes played Elphaba Thropp. She's amazing! I was moved to tears in one or two of her solo singing acts, if that's how it's called.

The musical part of Wicked was awesome. I don't think I am in the position to speak anything about that.

There was one song - Defying Gravity - that was familiar to me. Since hearing it last Friday night, I've been wondering where I first heard it. I still don't know where. Anyway, hearing it sang by Elphaba was so poignant it just really put tears to my eyes. It still moves me to tears now as I listen to Hughes singing it (on YouTube).

Fiyero, played by Bradley Jaden, reminded me of those Disney princes singing. It was fun and enchanting in its own way.

I would love to watch Wicked again. It'd be nice to do so in another country, whether with the same actors or not. I just want to have a different experience with something similar. That'd be fun.

PEPE the lost years of Rizal

It’s nice to have found fiction based from history and our national heroes. We should explore this crossover.

PEPE the lost years of Rizal

Written by: Ron Mendoza

Illustrated by: Arnold Renia Cruz

This comic book was among the New Books I’ve bought yesterday at Greenbelt. It always feels great to hoard books, massive thanks to bookstores on sales.

It was written in English, which was perfectly fine with me. However, I am very much bothered by the misuse of punctuation. I almost had headache. I should tell the writer or the editor about this. It’s bothersome. I’m not claiming to be a grammar expert but I kind of got lost while reading because of the punctuation. There were a lot of comma in the first conversations. So bothersome.

As for the story, I’d say it brings back childhood memories of reading the old school komiks. I like it. I have to buy book 2 because I got ‘bitin‘ with the story.

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Originally posted on: 05 August 2013

Reposted on: 17 August 2013

Looking Back

Originally posted on: 29 July 2013

Reposted on: 7 August 2013

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Looking Back by Ambeth Ocampo is a collection of his column articles at the Philippine Daily Inquirer. I think I should buy the broadsheet again. Looking Back  was fun to read. I actually thought, had I known Mr. Ocampo back in high school I might’ve chosen to become a Historian too.

It’s annoying how they teach History in school when it’s actually and supposed to be fun. I loved History when I was still a student, but I didn’t like how it was taught.

So here are my thoughts about this nice and fun History booklet:

*I had a lot of “Woah!” and LOLs while reading Looking Back. I didn’t know Gen. Del Pilar was such a heart-throb. And it was fun how Antonio Luna was just being himself and threatened a foreigner for bashing the Philippines. Even President Manuel Quezon was amusing. Wouldn’t it nice to know ‘personal’ stuff about our historical figures? Who they were in private definitely affected who they had been in public.

*Knowing that Pepe (Jose Rizal) and friends were such well-rounded men made me feel quite embarrassed. Compared to them, when they were at my age, they were already accomplished guys and obviously blessing our beloved country.

*I’m definitely going to buy another Ambeth Ocampo book. I might even read Rizal Without the Overcoat again. I actually used it as a reference back in college for our P.I 100 class.

*I bet anyone who has read Looking Back will never say/buy/eat “mamon” the same way again.