Saturday, April 28, 2007

road blues

I love long drives. Been that way long before I read Kerouac's On the Road.

I love watching hills and towns and faces zoom by. Sometimes I see a beautiful face belonging to a young barrio girl, and my heart aches at the thought that I'll never see her again.

Am I the only one who thinks that sometimes -- no, most of the times -- the destination is not half as fun as the trip?

Eating cold doughnuts on lonely gasoline stations. Drinking beer. Smoking.

I prefer it when the window's down. That way I feel like I'm part of the landscape, not someone just passing by. I like the wind to whip my hair. Unlike those handsome TV models in vanity adverts, I've no problem with messy hair.

Driving at 90: speeding cars on one side, sunset on the other. Pearl Jam's Nothingman on the radio. This is how I picture myself on MTV.

On the radio, it could also be Tom Waits' Ol' 55 or Savatage's Sleep, where the sad singer sings, "I pray that I don't care... I don't care..."

Leaving everything behind. My middle finger on the air, man.

Friday, April 13, 2007

back

Long time no blog. No excuses. I just didn't feel like writing anything, here and on Multiply.

Well, not really. For one week the phone lines in our neighborhood were busted. Screw Manila Water, the culprit, for their endless diggings. Ruining our streets and causing traffic, driving us nuts with that godawful noise they're making - you'd think these bastards will at least be careful not to cause any more inconvenience. But hey, there's a whole world of creeps and cretins out there.

And then there was the Holy Week, which I spent with my wife in Zaragosa, Nueva Ecija. Away from the madding crowd, to quote that Hardy guy. No phone lines, no Internet, no 7-Eleven around the corner; just me and my wife and our books. Priceless moments.

And then of course there was my laziness.

Things aren't falling on the right places for me. Just yesterday I blew up another job opportunity. It was depressing. It drove me back to drinking. Now, more than 24 hours later, my stomach is still queasy. Sick and jobless, how fucking miserable.

More sad news: Kurt Vonnegut died yesterday. Sniff. Perfect time to check out Breakfast of Champions and Cat's Cradle, I guess.

On the bright side: I've a book coming out. Yey!