Someone nosy once told me to listen only to uplifting songs. While I believe that anyone is free to listen to whatever music he or she likes without being judged for it, this person's pseudo-advice still got me thinking: how does one determine if a song is uplifting or not?

So I combed through my song collection and realized that I've been listening to some of the most uplifting songs ever, all along.

1. Precious Things - Tori Amos

Tori Amos's song "Precious Things" off the album Little Earthquakes is as strong live as it is on the record, with angst-filled lines that talk of moving on from painful experiences that come up regularly when the mind is idle.

2. Fuck the People - The Kills

There's something cathartic about singing this song by The Kills, particularly when shouting the title again and again in the chorus. You may be doing things that other people may not approve of, but fuck the people--just keep going.

3. We Can't Stop - Miley Cyrus

It may have the worst lines in a song (the whole second verse is a mess), but it's message that we can do whatever we want without worrying whatever people may think is what everyone should follow. "We run things, things don't run we." Indeed, Miley.

4. Catch My Breath - Kelly Clarkson

There will always be people who oppose you anywhere you go, so don't mind them. The only reason to stop is to catch your breath, so you can keep moving.

5. Brave - Sara Bareilles

This song is inspirational without being gratingly schmaltzy. The lyrics cut deep, and the story behind the song should be enough for it to be a mainstay on anyone's playlist.

6. Carry On - fun.

This song is a suicide anthem that talks about living even if there is nothing much to live for. It is amazingly constructed, with the bleak and hopeless line "You swore and said we are not/we are not shining stars" inverted and sang triumphantly towards the song's end. Nate Ruess sings "We are shining stars" with so much conviction that we have no choice but to believe.

7. Iridescent - Linkin Park

I think Linkin Park's A Thousand Suns, a concept album about nuclear fallout, is their best album to date. All the tracks in the album are solid, including "Iridescent", which appears towards the end as a breather after such frenetic and nuclear songs as "Wretches and Kings" and "Wisdom, Justice, and Love". "Iridescent" is a positive song that indicates that there may be hope in the middle of the death and destruction that just happened.

BONUS: Next to the Last Song - Bjork

Bjork's "Next to the Last Song" is a a heart-breaking masterpiece, best experienced not as a song but a performance. It can be seen on Danish director Lars Von Trier's outstanding film Dancer in the Dark, as the last song that Selma (Bjork) sings before her execution. Singing that her song is not the last song gives hope to her character and the viewers. Selma may die, but her memory will always live on.

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I still think of suicide. There's almost zero chance that I'll off myself anytime soon, but I still think of it. At least the option is there.

Suicide is a selfish act. I don't blame anyone who has done it, and I sympathize with them when they think that they are alone and that their lives don't matter to anyone. But no one is really alone, and killing thyself will hurt those who care about you. Partaking in suicide, therefore, is a cop out--you only make yourself happy, but destroy the lives of the people who love you.

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I have stopped praying. It never does anything, really. The mistake most religious people make about prayer is that they think it is a proactive action, that God will give them anything as long as they pray hard for it. That is not the case.

Everything is predetermined; God is all-knowing and exists through time and space. Therefore, he knows what will happen to any individual at any time. Every life story is already written long before it is started.

Prayer, then, is nothing but a way to see God's will. God's will is whatever your life story leads to. If you really want that car, any amount of prayer asking for that car won't result in you getting it, if it is not in your story, i.e., not in God's will. What you should be praying for instead is to ask God if the car is in your life story.

Prayer is not proactive, but a way to be calm and a way to be ready. Forewarned is forearmed.

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There was a time in my life when I thought I could see what God wills for me, but people who are purportedly closer to him said what I see is wrong. This broke me, and I feel like I've been lied to.

So: I have stopped praying. It never does anything, really. Or maybe it does something, like give you hope that will prove to be false, and will hurt so much it will render you motionless for months.

from Radiohead's Just

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First comes hurt, then comes anger. Burning anger.

I feel betrayed. I feel let down. I feel like the people I have trusted have turned their backs on me. I now see them as hypocrites, people who say the holiest thing and do the opposite.

At this stage, the only thing I watch out for is to not be a hypocrite. I don't hold any pretense that I am a good person, or that I going to church automatically makes me holy. I try to be truthful to myself, and that is the only thing I can do.

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Not being a hypocrite only means this: I don't do or say anything that can be contradictory to my standards or moral code. I don't say I love my work then commit only halfway. I don't say I'm a fitness buff and deliberately miss going to the gym, or break my diet due to a flimsy reason.

More importantly, I don't claim to be a good Christian then be the first to judge people for their actions, however immoral it can be, because they might have committed the act due to reasons beyond their control.

I think it is always unbecoming to judge without knowing all the facts. I'm not that self-righteous bitch who calls the people involved in the latest sex scandal immoral and hell-bound.

Source unknown

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These days all I really do is wait. I'm a hard worker, and I earn money that's rightfully mine through working, but I am not delusional that I can be rich quickly.

So all I can do is wait--wait for my savings to be large enough for me to buy a car, or to get a condo. Or for that raise. Or for that luck to work, in that raffle that's impossible to win. Or wait for that love that I never seek, but may just be lurking around the corner. Or just wait for death.

There are times when I am caught off-guard and start praying. In those moments, the top prayer I say is for God to strike me dead instantly. I'm a coward and I don't want to suffer.

These days all I really do is wait.

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Note: I started writing 80% of this post more than a month ago, and abandoned it because I thought it was too true. I reread it today and I liked the honesty in my voice that I had to publish it.

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You might not know this, but you may be a bigot. An unfair, judgmental, ignorant bigot.

It might not be your fault. See, you might have been raised in a community that thrives on a fairly rigid belief system, where right and wrong are defined in a cultish manner, and there is no room given for compassion and understanding.

The challenge now is for you to recognize your bigotry, and rise above these unreasonable beliefs so you can change into a better person.

You are not alone. These past few weeks, people like you have made headlines in the United States. Most recently, contestants of the reality show Big Brother have been exposed to be massive bigots. Two houseguests in particular have been shown to be abrasive racists: Ginamarie Zimmerman and Aaryn Gries. There was no day in the house when the two have not mocked fellow contestants for their race.

The video below shows the latest incident instigated by the two, where they mock the behavior of African-American contestants.

Aaryn had also been confronted about her actions but she refuses to acknowledge the criticism. Her answer to the criticism? "I'm not even gonna acknowledge it, because it's the biggest joke."

This shows that people can be massive bigots, but still fail to acknowledge that they are in the wrong.

So how can you avoid being a bigot?

First, you need to know what constitutes this unfair behavior. Here's a list.

1. You cannot point out and mock characteristics that come with circumstances that people cannot control. For instance, you cannot laugh at a Chinese woman's eyes, an African-American's skin color, that a crippled man moves slowly, or that a poor mother has to rely on food stamps to feed her children.

2. More on those circumstances that people cannot control: they can be circumstances that people can be born to: race, sex, gender preference, disability, socioeconomic status, and at times, religion. They can also be circumstances that people are forced to be in, like disability and socioeconomic status. They have no choice on this matter, so they should not be mocked for it.

3. You can point out these characteristics and circumstances if and only if you are very close to the person you are talking about it with. Do not talk about these to strangers or mere acquaintances, like colleagues or passing friends. And do it nicely in front of the person, not behind their backs.

4. You cannot also talk about stereotypes. Like Aaryn up there, you cannot typecast African-American people as uneducated, because not all of them are. The other day, someone at work called me "gay" just because I go to the gym often, and because I always tease her for her long frizzy hair. First off, it is a harming stereotype to say that all men who go to the gym are homosexuals; I personally go there because it helps me focus and beat my BPD and clinical depression by giving me goals to look forward to. And that statement about long hair? WTF, that does not even make sense.

5. There is also the issue of reverse racism, or misplaced nationalism. This is most apparent in the Philippines from the way the media promotes contestants of foreign reality shows just because they have Filipino blood, even if its only a sliver of it, or that person has not acknowledged the Philippine heritage before joining the contest. In this case, Filipinos are encouraged to support that contestant, and supporting the opponents are called anti-nationalistic. [See: TV: On Jessica Sanchez and Pinoy cheating]

6. When can you criticize other people? Topics outside the "circumstances that people cannot control" are fair game, like fake tans, hair length, fashion choices, weird diets, and even weight and bad health, if that weight and bad health are due to consciously bad eating habits, and not because of an illness, mental or otherwise. Of course, this also includes criminal activity and other cruel behavior.

In this day and age when convergence is only a click away, there is no excuse for insensitivity. Being connected to each other 24/7 just means that there are more ways to share kindness to other people. Using these channels as an opportunity to spew hate should be frowned upon. Be a better person and stop bigotry now.

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Juana C. The Movie is an admirable effort. It has equal parts comedy and political commentary, both of which are excellent.

Juana C. The Movie tells the story of Juana, a young girl from the province who gets get an education in a top private university in Manila, to save her district from the ravages of mining. Because she’s ignorant of the ways of the city, she falls prey to bad influence, who gets her neck deep in debt.

To save herself, she agrees to immerse herself in prostitution, with the help of Yani (John James Uy), who poses as her love interest. Later on, Juana becomes society’s top escort, providing her services to the government’s highest figures. But living the good life isn’t easy. When she encounters secrets that may change the nation, she is forced to make a choice.

Juana C. The Movie was borne of the viral videos of the Juana Change movement, a group that comments on political issues through social media, and other publicity-indusing actions. Some of their popular campaigns are for the passage of the RH Bill, and the anti-EPAL movement in the last national elections.

It is not surprising, therefore, that the movie has tinges of politics, despite being promoted as a sex comedy. There may be well-shot scenes of playful bed scenes and laugh-out-loud comedy, but the movie still manages to comment on corruption and the ever-widening poverty gap. It is hard to balance the movie’s two components, but Jade Castro’s masterful direction makes it possible.

The movie also succeeds because of the seasoned performance of Mae Paner, the theater actress who plays the title character. Mae may not have Eugene Domingo’s great comedic chops, but she carries enough hubris and self-knowledge to carry the movie’s hardest scenes.

The rest of the cast also fare as well. Despite problems in speaking Filipino, John James Uy aces his role as a likable love interest . Annika Dolonius shines in a small role as Juana’s kolehiyala rival. Indie actress Angeli Kanapi makes a mark as the movie’s over-the-top villain.

In spite of the movie’s high quality, it still remains to be seen if it will be an effective tool for change. Juana C. The Movie is billed as a sex comedy, so viewers may not be able to catch on to its more serious message because of this.

Then again, there have already been countless documentaries that tackle the same problem, and they do not work in rousing the public. Maybe this time, Juana Change’s brand of comedy will work.

 

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I voted for Santa Claus, and I am not ashamed to say it. So what? This Santa is awesome.

I grew up in Montalban, and registered there as a voter in 2009. Since then, I have lived in Metro Manila, and have no inkling of what is happening in its local politics.

My barebones knowledge goes like this: the previous mayor, Ping Cuerpo, is a corrupt individual who enriched himself using the town's landfill business. This is why the current mayor Elyong Hernandez replaced him with a landslide vote in 2010.

So in this year's elections, Hernandez went against Roy Cuerpo, Ping's son, who was probably out to gain back what his father had lost.

But there was another candidate that caught my eye, one who had white hair, glasses, and a portly belly. 

Santa Claus. 

His campaign style was eclectic. Months before the elections, a stencil of a Santa-like image began appearing everywhere. Then an accompanying mascot appeared to spread happiness everywhere.

Are you not entertained?

He's definitely not boring. While traditional politicians trumpet boring slogans about poverty reduction or job creation, Santa Claus just wants to spread cheer.

Mustaches. What's less cheerful than that?

Even his second tagline makes everyone gleeful.

Montalban, Ibaglaban. IBAGLABAN.

Because when you're printing posters, you should make sure that there are no shameful typos.

Unless, of course, if you want the typo to be intentional, because you're Santa, and what matters to you is that people are laughing ho-ho-ho every time they see your poster.

Okay, the typo is definitely not intentional.

Come election day, I was so convinced that Santa is what my town needs, so that I threw him one vote. I also voted his helper elves, because he needs them to keep his mustache straight.

Sadly, St. Nick still lost.

Source

Who cares, though? What matters is that he's Santa, and he made me (as do 10,269 others) believe that he is real.

If only he brought his reindeer around, then he could have been a shoo-in.

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I have no beef with Migz Villafuerte, who has recently been elected as the governor of Camarines Sur. Somehow, I believe that this 24-year-old guy is well-meaning and naive, like most people his age.

My issue though is that he's freaking 24 years old. What does someone his age know about managing a province? Sure, he comes from a political clan, but knowledge of leadership does not come through genes or osmosis. It comes from experience. Before running from office, he should have worked as his dad LRay's personal assistant, like that senator we shall never speak of.

But what do I know? Perhaps being a governor is noble because it is a great sacrifice for him, as that would curtail him from the fun he could have as a young man. No more parties for you, Mr. Governor, you have a people to lead. No, you can't go to Manila now, even though you've lived your teen and post-teen days there--you have papers to sign.

Naturally, many of the voting public are surprised at this development. Some of them are discussing his qualifications, which are close to zilch, while some are discussing how hot he is, because hotness wins you an election.

Exhibit A

So instead of discussing how qualified he is for office, let's just go with the flow and look at his abs.

Look at it some more:

LOOK AT IT!

While hot (pun intended) on the campaign trail, he posted this photo on Instagram:

See that? His abs are so majestic, they can stun haters and drown them in the water.

Migz Villafuerte may not be the politician we deserve, but his abs are what we need right now.

P.S.: Read another take of this issue here.

P.S.2: Thanks Cosmopolitan magazine for the photos.

* Corrected: He's 24 now, not 23. read more

So Nancy Binay is winning, according to the recent tally by the PPCRV. As expected, the bright minds over at Twitter are protesting this debate-avoider's victory. 

What they should accept instead is that Binay is absolutely valuable in the Senate. Here's why:

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