All the things I miss during this state of siege

How wonderful to get back to old-fashioned correspondence using pen, carefully selected sheets of paper and stamps! But times dictate against the sanitary aspect of this practice--the handling and delivery of postal mail.

So I will just journal religiously and hope that in this meditative practice, I expunge the anger I feel for the state of siege we find ourselves in. Anger also focused at an inept Leader who's hellbent on locking us down. Are we handing over our basic human rights to movement and peaceful assembly, even to observe one's faith, just like that? I can't even take a leisurely walk in the neighborhood with my walker or cane to flex and un-flex my new knee and breathe fresh air without fear of being accosted for aimless loitering.

Over breakfast, my siblings spoke how we're experiencing World War III but with an invisible enemy. Our grandchildren's formal education has been disrupted. Thank heavens for small graces like Robert Alejandro's almost daily online drawing and crafts sessions. We just pray that each time he goes online, the wifi signal is strong. I tried something different while drawing a unicorn yesterday--I turned the volume of his talking down, then played my YouTube mix featuring pianist Dame Mitsuko Uchida playing a series of Mozart concertos. Pablo Tariman, in an earlier incarnation, has interviewed this exceptional artist, one of the world's best interpreters of Mozart.

Last night, while tossing and turning, I scrolled down my FB feed and found recent videos of tenor Mher U. Nival and pianist Ma Elnora Halili uploaded--in fine performance states, singing and playing their blues away. Mher was scheduled for a song recital near the end of this month at Manila Pianos Makati in Magallanes, but that has been cancelled along with other events there. Elnora, if I'm correct (do correct me), played movie themes, including "Windmills of Your Mind" from The Thomas Crown Affair. For some reason, I can't share the videos of Mher on my wall, but Elnora's is there for your delectation.

I miss the simple act of pushing a grocery cart in the once near-empty aisles of Unimart Estancia. Usually, I just put in a container of Pastelleria de Mallorca's argellanas and barquillos, packets of dried green mangoes or Cebu's rosquillo biscuits. I don't know if these simple pleasures of the tongue are still available. Last time we were at that mall was March 8 when I hosted a gratitude lunch for my siblings who took turns visiting or acting as watchers during my five-day stay at the hospital. We even brought our pug Bruno for the occasion, and he sat in his stroller quietly observing us chewing and talking at the same time.

In a few weeks, my Baguio-based grandchild Kai Mykonos is turning nine, and I won't be by her side as she celebrates, in quiet family fashion, that milestone. Baguio, which was brought nearer by Scitex and Tplex in recent years, has become nearly unreachable with bus lines stopping their North-bound services temporarily during what I call this state of siege.

Unlike Pablo, who has turned to the poetic muse the past weeks, I cannot find it in me to discover morsels of lyricism in the unusual silence we face these days, mine broken by Mitsuko Uchida or Martha Argerich to keep me sane. I keep running my hands through my hair, not touching my face, and wondering if there's still reason to return to article, or what we call livelihood, writing. Like many freelancers, I belong to the "isang kahig, isang tuka" group--no output, no pay. As Pablo said, we don't earn from poetry, and we just must keep moving on no matter the oppressive circumstances.

I brought down from Baguio books to read and review, now piled up beside my bed. Today, I must pull up my large panties, be brave, soldier on and wrestle down the muse of writing. Good luck to us all!

Sunday feels

As soon as I saw the Facebook announcement that Robert Alejandro was going to conduct an online drawing class, I prepared my Mercury Drugstore journal and Pilot Hi-tecpoint V10Grip for the purpose of being a student before the master again.

Our teacher's pacing was just right so this always newbie-at-things was able to catch up. I didn't feel conscious, unlike in Fine Arts school when we would do live drawing in class and I felt the most inferior to classmates who had been doodling since they were in diapers.

Here are the results of my first drawing class with Master Robert. Photos were taken by my sister Ellen Suzy Lolarga, my companion every time I'd go to the Medical City for physical therapy and rehab of my new knee.

Interesting thing about the just concluded class: I didn't notice the pain of my stitches because I was fully concentrated on letting the lines flow.

Thank you, Robert, for sharing your enormous gifts. God continue to bless you more! And yes, anyone can draw.

Meanwhile, tada!!!

Tuldok the dinosaur

Patty the Pangolin. I failed to add the baby pangolin on its back because I had to go to the toilet mid-lesson.

Pablo Tariman, Joseph Uy, here we are all dressed for the audience-less opera veerus.

Martin Masadao knits, among his many talents

One of the first knitted accessories that Martin made. I was its proud owner after I received it from Rolly Fernandez's Express Service.

I write this as Typhoon Glenda is swirling above the sea/ocean and readying to hit land. So before the power goes down, I'd just like to give Brookside Baby's space to independent scriptwriter-director Martin Masadao who is adding another hyphen to his description soon, and that is indie film producer. He wrote and directed Anac Ti Pating which won for best film and best actor awards in the 2012 Sineng Pambansa festival.

He recently sent an email to select friends about his innovative way of raising funds for his next film project. The big-hearted Martin is also setting aside an amount for the super-typhoon Yolanda rehabilitation cause.

Like I always say in past blogs, artists are great philanthropists. They will respond with a generosity that no Henry Sy or John Gokongwei or coño millionaire or society matrons with Botoxed faces can ever match. And artists do so without strings (or in this case, yarn) attached. The good artists can be counted upon to sacrifice their total beings for a heavenly cause.

He knitted me a cobalt, or is it electric, blue accessory that I wore around my throat on two consecutive occasions: the opening of Gilda Cordero Fernando's painting exhibit at Silverlens Galleries last week and the Mostly Mozart 2014 Festival at the Philippine Stock Exchange auditorium (renamed Lanuza Hall) just this past Friday. Enough people saw it--the kind of crowd Martin wanted to catch.


With Jacqui Magno, who sang "Hindi Kita Malimot" and "Bridges" at GCF's opening program, manager Anna Ylagan and writer and editors' editor Lorna Kalaw Tirol

Karla Delgado (right), my former editor and a Baguio resident in her childhood, points to a Martina Knittera creation. Photo by Rolly Fernandez

One of my fave shots from that Silverlens evening. This one's with artist Robert Alejandro, all covered in black, his "daring" costume. Photo by Wendy Regalado


Arthur Espiritu holds up his hand-me-down "throat protector" given by the self-proclaimed presidentita of the Arthur Espiritu Fan Club of the Philippines, Northern Luzon chapter. Note his wedding band. Photo by Rolly Fernandez

I told Martin that I couldn't resist bequeathing the piece to Arthur Espiritu who leaves the country again for a six-month engagement in European opera houses (he's on contract there). He has always protected his throat from the cold, whether the cold of faulty air-conditioning or the bitter cold of winter. His soaring tenor is his means of livelihood, after all.

Once he got hold of the neck piece, he called his wife Christine from below the stage to safe-keep it. Arthur also emailed, thankful for the accessory.

He wrote:

Thanks so much again for that memento. I hope that Martin reaches his goals in raising funds. Please extend my warmest thanks and regards.

All the best,
Arthur

I promptly forwarded the note to Martin. See? That's what I like about our cultural ambassadors of goodwill. May breeding sila. The great ones never ever exhibit a sense of entitlement.

Mabuhay ka, Martin! Long may Martina Knittera live!

For orders of knitwear or knitted accessories, please look for Mr. Masadao in Google+, the more subdued social media platform (no offense to Facebookers).

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Dear Friends!

Greetings! Hope all is well with all of you! :-)

I am going to write a script come September, full-length feature film, which means I will be holed up in Baguio City come July.

While writing, I am planning to use the time as well to knit. I figured I will have all the 'free' time and knitting will help me while thinking in front of the pc.

Here's the deal, if you guys have any old sweaters/knit wear (crocheted items will also do) that somehow you can't seem to get let go of or perhaps are attached to but no longer use because probably they're out of style? Send them to me and I will make tastas the yarn and fashion something 'new' out of it! :-)

Perhaps a cowl, shawl, vest, muffler, scarf, purse, bag, whatever!? Design will depend on color and type of yarn. I will personally hand knit the item. I'm thinking of charging 750 pesos, 500 to cover my labor and 250 to be donated to 'Threads For Life'*.

Rest assured that whatever I make for you will not be replicated for others. Sana you can take a 'before' pic of the item you will give me then we take another 'after' pic of whatever I will knit. I will maximize yarn of your pre-loved sweaters, ergo, you will not get only one item. (I can knit coasters, placemats, iphone case, etc. from leftover yarn).

Payment will be asked on delivery of knitted product. Let me know if you guys are game! Tulong nyo na yan sa akin. (500 will most probably go to cigarettes and beer! While writing manuscript! Haha!)

For those in Baguio, you may drop off your sweaters at Rm. 209 Laperal Bldg. Session Rd. Mon - Fri from 9am to 5pm and Sat fr 9am to 11am. For those in Manila, let me know via text or email when and where to pick up your sweaters.

Thanks very much. If you'd be satisfied with end product I would appreciate endorsement to your friends via word-of-mouth.

I think they would make personalized Xmas gifts, dont you think so?! :-)

Best Regards,

Martina Knittera!

P.S.

Threads For Life is a fund-raising initiative of our dear friend Marta for Yolanda effort. TFL sells pre-loved clothes, shoes, bags etc and all proceeds go to Yolanda. The 250 from the knitting project I will donate to Yolanda as well. :-)

Not for grandma and grandpa only

Announcement from the excellent brewer of ideas herself who loves a jam of creative people, Gilda Cordero Fernando, in her Inquirer column today:

Parade of grandmas and grandpas
The Grandma and Grandpa Club of the Geriatric Center and the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation of St. Luke’s Medical Center, Global City will hold a parade of the art wheelchairs with Grandmas and Grandpas riding them. This will be on Tuesday, Aug. 6, at 10 a.m., and will be followed immediately after by the raffle of wheelchairs to its donors. Everyone is warmly invited.

The art wheelchairs will be on display at the lobby of the St. Luke’s Medical Center, Global City until Aug. 6. (If you ask me, I sincerely like all the chairs. All are equally beautiful, and I wouldn’t mind getting any of them as one of the sponsors.)
The remaining chairs will be on auction at a date to be later announced.

Read more: http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/117929/the-revolt-of-the-cheese-curls#ixzz2axHRW4x6

Robert Alejandro's "The Silver Chariot"

Birds and other fauna on a wheel

Mr. Alejandro signs the work that resulted in bleeding hands.

"Citigram," a collaboration of students from the Philippine High School for the Arts

Lower half of Gerry Leonardo's "Therapeutic Rolling Vehicle"

That's the chair's back plus other colorful details put together by Leonardo.

Imagine hanging your caps or hats or chokers or necklaces on Leeroy New's "Temple of Healing."

You can sit on everyone else's wheelchair, but Aba Dalena installed this mortally hurt but still peaceful-looking angel on hers. It's pure sculpture.

These rubber silicon protrusions on Agnes Arellano's "Anti-Stress Wheelchair" work like a shiatsu massage.

Noel Cuizon and Karen Flores's "Primera, Segunda, Tercera" is guaranteed to make a seated couple feel like a king and a queen "in sickness and in health."

Cat clinging on the wheel of Wendy Regalado's "Beast Friends Forever"

Io Regalado's "Ibong Malaya" gives a wheelchair-bound patient the illusion of freedom.

Io's wheels even has claws to protect the rider.

Nona Garcia's "Dextrose Art" looks simply elegant in an exhibition setting.

A rare occasion it is when Gilda grants an interview to broadcast media (Associated Press). Here she throws her arms high to show what a high she got when three hunks from Palma Hall at UP Diliman carried her on her wheelchair to a theater. That was how the idea of an art wheelchair clicked in her mind. Dr. Joven Cuanang got into the picture along with Gilda's BFF Manuel Chaves as production manager, and the public enjoyed another good ride!                               Photos by Babeth Lolarga