Ang Lihim Ni Antonio

Truth be told, I liked the film. It might be your typical gay film but for an indie film, the cinematography - which for me is the most important thing next to the storyline - was great.

You'd think that the title is a giveaway but I like the twist at the end. You know how all those films hype their "stories with a twist", this one was a very subtle yet effective twist. And I loved the subtlety of it more than anything.

The actors were also effective. Shamaine Buencamino delivered well as expected. Josh Ivan Morales can act, surprisingly! And Kenjie Garcia, the teen who played Antonio, was believable in his portrayal. The question that goes on in my head is: How did they convince this kid, and his parents, to play this role which demands such sensitive scenes?

I'm definitely recommending this film, even if I do think that there are too many gay films out there and they keep on rehashing the same stories. But I don't believe that they've exhausted all possible stories and perspective on gay life. I'm watching for the next film that can capture that.

Long Hiatus Again

Dear readers,

Sorry for not posting at all recently.

Jake and I have both been very busy, he with school and I with work. I didn't mind that. At least I know that neither of us is being idle. Despite the tight schedule, we still got to spend time with each other, and that's the only thing I can ask for.

Anyway, i'll be pre-dating my posts so you might wanna scroll down for my new entries...

That Special Day

After spending a weekend in Shanghai without Jake around, I felt guilty that he was sulking here in Manila, with tons of school work and rehearsals to attend. So on our special day of the month (nope, we don't have periods. LOL) I decided to check-in with him at Holiday Inn. It's not the most luxurious of all hotels but at least we get to spend time with each other, just the two of us. Plus, the buffet breakfast is a good deal! (And I also get discounts from the hotel, hihihi.)

The last time we did this, he had rehearsal for most of the day and I ended up window shopping in Galleria waiting for him. This time, we really spent quality time sleeping with each other (in the literal and the naughty sense of the expression). Sometimes you really just need a nice sleep, in a tight embrace, to reconnect. It always works for me.

The next day, we had a really good breakfast, even if we woke up quite late for it (less than 30 minutes before the closed the buffet).

Shanghai Weekend

It was a long weekend and it happened to coincide with my friend P's birthday. She lives in Shanghai and since I've never been there and it's her birthday and I have a long weekend, I decided to go.

It's really easy to jump to another city these days. You just go online and buy a ticket. Sometimes you have to apply for a visa too but getting a Chinese visa doesn't take much of an effort. You just pay for the visa fee and wait for 4 days.

I got an evening flight which was ideal so that I don't have to take a leave on the Friday that I left. I was in Shanghai the same night and P was nice enough to pick me up from the Pudong airport which was 40 minutes from downtown. That's not like an airport-Makati distance although it takes roughly the same time.

My first impression was that it was impressively clean! I had an idea that it would be a bit dirty but it wasn't. I'm not really a fan of urban sightseeing but it helped that I was with a "local" and P took me to some of the best places to hang out in the city.

It was also a good thing that we had a reason to celebrate so I had an excuse for splurging. Aside from the fact that it was P's birthday weekend, it was also my first time ever in China. Never been to Macau nor HK. Those should be next on my travel list.

I won't bore you with the details of my trip. Aside from an afternoon in Yu Garden, it was mostly eating, drinking and shopping. If you need tips on where to go, honestly don't ask me! Because I was just being whisked away from one place to another in a semi-permanent state of drunkenness. Or maybe I can tell you to go to Jean Georges! That place defines posh!

Gay travelers in Shanghai? Don't worry! Your choices will not be limited to the locals. Shanghai is probably one of those cities in the world where ever nationality is well-represented. I for example was moving around with the Filipino posse and the happy people who were lucky enough to be their friends! Pinoys really know how to have fun :)

I was back in Manila Tuesday morning and went straight to work. It was kinda tiring but my weekend felt longer that it actually was and I had a lot of fun! Thanks P for hosting me :)

D.tour Blue Lounge

On a lazy Sunday afternoon, Jake and I decided to head out and have late lunch, merienda and a quick dinner. Sundays in Ortigas are a bore. There's usually nothing open. Even McDonald's is closed sometimes. The only interesting thing that we did that day aside from having sundaes at Icebergs was a trip to D.tour Blue Lounge.

I've heard about this for quite some time and Jake was kinda curious about the place. Since we didn't have anything better to do, we just decided to go and check it out.

It's right along Shaw Boulevard near JRU. The place looks more like a house than a lounge. But someone opened the gates for us. We were then escorted to the lobby where they gave us membership forms - the lounge is for members only - and then we had to pay our membership fees. Another guy then gave us a tour of the lounge. It's actually a big property and they created "themed" rooms for "certain" activities. One fine example is the "viewing room". I had a different idea when I heard the name of the room being said. But it's still not as innocent as you'd think it is.

For a lounge, having an orientation on the house rules is a bit weird and unnerving. But that's exactly what they did. They're actually a lot of common sense but maybe they just need to repeat it in case people are too stupid to know.

After that orientation, we explored the lounge on our own. There was pretty much no one indoors except for a couple or three guys. Many were in the outdoor area, smoking. The "viewing room" had an immediate effect on us and since the coast was clear, Jake and I had a go at it. Ha Ha Ha. That was fun!

The place feels homey and is quite different from the usual haunts in the Metro which are either noisy or sleazy. This place is very discreet. And it feels very exclusive. I wouldn't going back here. With Jake of course. And I don't mind having a go with him here either. He He he.

Let's just say that there's a thrill in the possibility of getting caught.

Thanks Tiggah for Dropping by :)

I couldn't believe it myself but Tiggah visited Life with Boyd and Jake. And he left a footprint in the comments section :)

TiggahTigz.blogspot.com is one of the few gay blogs that Jake and I really follow. It's sort of because we can kind of relate to Tiggah and his boyfriend Pooh a lot. Especially when it comes to food!!! We're big foodies, too. I think that one of the things that keep Jake and I together is food. We just eat a lot. We can share a large pizza between us. But it's taking its toll on me. Gotta exercise more.

Anyway, thanks again Tiggah!

California's top court legalizes gay marriage

California's top court legalizes gay marriage
By LISA LEFF, Associated Press Writer Thu May 15, 7:45 PM ET
SAN FRANCISCO - California's Supreme Court declared gay couples in the nation's biggest state can marry — a monumental but perhaps short-lived victory for the gay rights movement Thursday that was greeted with tears, hugs, kisses and at least one instant proposal of matrimony.

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Same-sex couples could tie the knot in as little as a month. But the window could close soon after — religious and social conservatives are pressing to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot in November that would undo the Supreme Court ruling and ban gay marriage.

"Essentially, this boils down to love. We love each other. We now have equal rights under the law," declared a jubilant Robin Tyler, a plaintiff in the case along with her partner. She added: "We're going to get married. No Tupperware, please."

A crowd of people raised their fists in triumph inside City Hall, and people wrapped themselves in the rainbow-colored gay-pride flag outside the courthouse. In the Castro, the historic center of the gay community in San Francisco, Tim Oviatt wept as he watched the news on TV.

"I've been waiting for this all my life. This is a life-affirming moment," he said.

By the afternoon, gay and lesbian couples had already started lining up at San Francisco City Hall to make appointments to get marriage licenses. In West Hollywood, supporters were planning to serve "wedding cake" at an evening celebration.

James Dobson, chairman of the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family, called the ruling an "outrage."

"It will be up to the people of California to preserve traditional marriage by passing a constitutional amendment. ... Only then can they protect themselves from this latest example of judicial tyranny," he said in an e-mail statement.

In its 4-3 ruling, the Republican-dominated high court struck down state laws against same-sex marriage and said domestic partnerships that provide many of the rights and benefits of matrimony are not enough.

"In contrast to earlier times, our state now recognizes that an individual's capacity to establish a loving and long-term committed relationship with another person and responsibly to care for and raise children does not depend upon the individual's sexual orientation," Chief Justice Ronald George wrote for the majority in ringing language that delighted gay rights activists.

Massachusetts is the only other state to legalize gay marriage, something it did in 2004. The California ruling is considered monumental by virtue of the state's size — 38 million out of a U.S. population of 302 million — and its historic role in the vanguard of the many social and cultural changes that have swept the country since World War II.

California has an estimated 92,000 same-sex couples.

"It's about human dignity. It's about human rights. It's about time in California," San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, pumping his fist in the air, told a roaring crowd at City Hall. "As California goes, so goes the rest of the nation. It's inevitable. This door's wide open now. It's going to happen, whether you like it or not."

Unlike Massachusetts, California has no residency requirement for obtaining a marriage license, meaning gays from around the country are likely to flock to the state to be wed, said Jennifer Pizer, a gay-rights attorney who worked on the case.

The ultimate reach of the ruling could be limited, however, since most states do not recognize gay marriages performed elsewhere. Nor does the federal government.

The conservative Alliance Defense Fund said it would ask the justices for a stay of the decision until after the fall election in hopes of adding California to the list of 26 states that have approved constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage.

"We're obviously very disappointed in the decision. The remedy is a constitutional amendment. The constitution defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman," said Glen Lavy, senior counsel for the organization.

Randy Thomasson of VoteYesMarriage.com, a campaign to amend the California Constitution to ban gay marriage, said the decision was in effect telling children that they have a "new role model — homosexual marriage, aspire to it.

"This is a disaster," he said.

Opponents of gay marriage could also ask the high court to reconsider. If the court rejects such a request, same-sex couples could start getting married in 30 days, the time it typically takes for the justices' opinions to become final.

The justices said they would direct state officials "to take all actions necessary to effectuate our ruling," including requiring county marriage clerks to carry out their duties "in a manner consistent with" the court's decision.

James Vaughn, director of the California Log Cabin Republicans, called the ruling a "conservative one."

"The justices have ensured that the law treats all Californians fairly and equally. This decision is a good one for all families, gay and non-gay," Vaughn said.

The case was set in motion in 2004 when the mayor of San Francisco — the unofficial capital of gay America — threw City Hall open to gay couples to get married in a calculated challenge to California law. Four-thousand gay couples wed before the Supreme Court put a halt to the practice after a month.

Two dozen gay couples then sued, along with the city and gay rights organizations.

Thursday's ruling could alter the dynamics of the presidential race and state and congressional contests in California and beyond by causing a backlash among conservatives and drawing them to the polls in large numbers.

A spokesman for Republican John McCain, who opposes gay marriage, said the Arizona senator "doesn't believe judges should be making these decisions." The campaigns of Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton said they believe that the issue of marriage should be left to the states.

Ten states now offer some form of legal recognition to same-sex couples — in most cases, domestic partnerships or civil unions. In the past few years, the courts in New York, New Jersey and Washington state have refused to allow gay marriage.

Outside the San Francisco courthouse, gay marriage supporters cried and cheered as news spread of the decision. Jeanie Rizzo, one of the plaintiffs, called Pali Cooper, her partner of 19 years, via cell phone and asked, "Pali, will you marry me?"

Shannon Minter of the National Center for Lesbian Rights said same-sex marriage advocates could not have hoped for a more favorable ruling by the Republican-dominated court. "It's a total victory," Minter said.

California already offers same-sex couples who register as domestic partners many of the legal rights and responsibilities afforded to married couples, including the right to divorce and to sue for child support.

Citing a 1948 California Supreme Court decision that overturned a ban on interracial marriages, the justices struck down the state's 1977 one-man, one-woman marriage law, as well as a similar, voter-approved law that passed with 61 percent in 2000.

The chief justice was joined by Justices Joyce Kennard and Kathryn Werdegar, all three of whom were appointed by Republican governors, and Justice Carlos Moreno, the only member of the court appointed by a Democrat.

In a dissent, Justice Marvin Baxter agreed with many arguments of the majority but said that the court overstepped its authority and that changes to marriage laws should be decided by the voters. Justices Ming Chin and Carol Corrigan also dissented.

California's secretary of state is expected to rule by the end of June whether the sponsors gathered enough signatures to put the gay-marriage amendment on the ballot.

Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has twice vetoed legislation that would have granted marriage to same-sex couples, said in a statement that he respected the court's decision and "will not support an amendment to the constitution that would overturn this state Supreme Court ruling."

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Associated Press writers Terence Chea, Jason Dearen, Juliana Barbassa and Evelyn Nieves in San Francisco and Liz Sidoti in Washington contributed to this report.