Blogging from my phone

This is so cool! I know this is probably a late, late, laaaaate reaction, but what the hell!!! I'm blogging on my phone! I LOVE IT! :)

Missing Japan...

I've had this obsession with Japan (and basically, anything Japanese) since my pre-adolescent years, when all the local channels started showing animes or japanese animations (cartoons.) Over the years, the stories, the characters, the nostalgia and drama kept a hold on my heart and even led me to study the language. (Hontou ni!) I got so fanatic that I would watch their live action dramas over our telenovelas, listen to and sing their music more than OPM or even MTV (even though I could never understand all the lyrics) and of course, patronize their merchandise (toys, books and whatnot.) Food is a different story, as most people love Japanese food, but yes, that, too, hooked me in.

I found friends who shared my addiction with Japan and our one wish was to actually travel there and experience everything firsthand. I never thought that would actually come true for me, until I found myself on Narita Airport with R and his family on 2008's Christmas week.

It was in December (duh! Christmas! Haha!), so it was really, really cold. Maybe that was just me, since I have absolutely zero tolerance for cold temperatures, but once I stepped out of the airport's glass doors, I had to put on my thick jacket over my sweater (while underneath those I was already wearing a shirt and thermal underwear! Sheesh!) I was FREEZING!!! And the light rain didn't help me feel warmer. It was a good thing the bus that would take us to our hotel was on time (not used to it. Hahaha! I am a true Filipino!) I had a fun bus ride, not only because of the heater, but because of the view. I was finally seeing Japan. And the wave of nostalgia from the memories of my favorite Japanese programs overwhelmed me (not to tears, but to silence.) The roads were clean, and traffic was light. There were naked trees among those in full bloom, but somehow, they were still beautiful to me. I was disappointed not to have glimpsed Sakura trees, but it was winter season, so... *shrug*

The most exciting part of the Japan trip for me was the fact that I was finally in a place where all that I've learned in my Japanese language classes were finally necessary! Of course, my vocabulary sucked big time but it was still so much fun because I actually understood them and they seemed to actually understand me! The outrageous tuition fees finally paid off! :) I got to be the "tour guide" of our group, since no one else knew how to speak Nihonggo, and up to this day, it still amazes me that I got us in and out of the streets and back to our hotel just by asking directions from locals. I even tried my hand at haggling in one of the souvenir stores, though it didn't work out. They were ruthless! Hahaha!

It was an unforgettable, "dream-come-true" experience!!! (And I've got my boyfriend and his family to thank for it!)

Looking back at all the pictures we took made me think of the things I got to do and the things I missed. There's a lot that I forgot to do (like eating tempura) and the list just kept on going the more I reminisced.

Well, hey, reasons to come back, right? Hahahaha! Mwah! :)

Michael

How come I can't feel that he's gone? How come my heart violently refuses to believe that the person I've been watching and singing along with since childhood is now only living through all those videos and songs he's left behind? That nothing more will add to that legacy...that the voice with so much character can no longer be heard coming from his own lips?

I remember those idle summer days of my adolescence spent just glued to the television and watching Michael Jackson's videos. There was one channel that would dedicate the whole afternoon to him and I couldn't resist. I had to watch...over and over and over and over and over...

There was just something in the way he sang, the way he moved...it just amazed me. People called it star quality, but that's just limiting what he had. A lot of other people have star quality. He had something else...but I can't name it. Well, whatever it was, he was bursting with it. He had that ability to stop your heart for an entire concert and electrify your senses.

And even with all those scandals, all those criticisms on his personal life and all those crazy things he did to himself...I never stopped admiring the man on the stage.

But you know...his death didn't shock and numb me as much as the people's reaction, especially the media, who's been the frontliners in exposing his scandals. The media loved him when he as on top (as did the public), stepped and jumped on him when he was down, and now on his death, they love him again. Why can't they have realized his greatness when he was alive? Why now, when we can't ever see him on stage again? Will the jokes, the criticisms, the bashings stop now?

Why are people kinder and more forgiving towards the dead than the living?

If the reason is that it is because the living has the ability to change and remove all the contradictions in the way he lives his life, and that the dead doesn't, then I can accept it. But I sense that that's isn't the reason. I'm afraid to know for certain that it is just because of the sheer enjoyment of torturing another being.

...

I had this dream of seeing him perform live, and with news of the London concerts, I had high hopes that he would plan an Asian tour and come back to Manila. *sigh*

Goodbye, Michael. Moonwalk across the galaxy.

Love,
Niña