Marcus Can Blog

24: The Longest DVD Marathon of Our Life

“I’m federal agent Jack Bauer, and today is the longest day of my life.” – Jack Bauer

“Why would I buy a TV series DVD?” was a question once asked myself several times in the past as I tag along with wifey while she checks DVDs on sale in video shops at the mall. I believe then that it is a total waste of money to buy DVDs of series such as Friends, Sex in the City, and even those of Discovery Channel. To me, if there is one thing that makes people buy their own copy of TV series it is just the irrational urge to possess a compilation of shiny CDs that will eventually gather dust in one corner of a CD shelf. A package, however, from abroad changed my perspective.

Among the items stuffed inside the balikabayan box that we received last month are seasons 1-4 of 24 which is a TV series that I was fully aware exists on cable TV but I dismissed it as outright boring—plus the fact that a local channel dubbed it in Filipino made it even less appealing. Yet then again, having recently unsubscribed from our city’s cable company, we were left with no other option other than to load the 1st CD of the series for entertainment’s sake. I waited, anticipated a yawn but it was a yawn that never came. And that was the day when wifey and I started the longest DVD marathon in our entire life.

The crescendo of the digital beep that signals the start each episode became a regular sound inside our room. Jack Bauer commandeered our free time, his 24-hour adventure has kept us glued to the CRT screen. A hero and rogue field agent all at the same time who has the Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU) and its technology at his disposal, Jack Bauer made the 24 hours of his day something that would shame almost any person’s 1-year worth of life’s adventure.

Wifey and I became instant fans that we really didn’t care if there are flaws in 24. I rolled my eyes during Jack’s cheesy moments whenever he shows uber concern on his daughter, Kim, as he is merciless and is unhesitant to pull the trigger on anyone—friend or foe—who stands in the way in his quest to save the day. We kept mum over Chloe’s unrealistic ease of access to any network she chooses to hack just so she can assist Jack find his way in a heavily-guarded building or sneak his way out of a crowded street to trail unsuspecting terrorists.There were also several instances in every season of 24 when we repeatedly ignored characters starting a stolen car just by pulling wires from under the steering wheel and successfully connecting it, even under pressure, as if there are just two wires specially marked “yank and splice in case of emergency.” Call us gullible but yes, even after the first season, we have built a relationship with this Fox series like marriage—for better or for worst.

We already finished watching all 4 seasons but our craving continues. In fact, it is why wifey consequently went online and have gotten hold of used region 2 DVDs from sulit.com—original ones, FYI. In between school duties and playtime with Marcus, we happen to insert watching seasons 5-6. We are now at season 7 and we badly need to find season 8. We’ve also heard that 24 The Movie is in the works. If this is true, we will be there and we won’t mind if it will be the longest movie of our life.

***

Mood: 3/10 Honks! (Anxious to get this day over with.)

Mini-CTU

Our home is now a mini-CTU. Devices humming. And there’s a director, a field agent, and a terrorist: Wifey, me, and kiddo. In no order.

Sad Early Bird

Here’s how this morning’s pep talk went.

Someone please tell me that this is normal phase of childhood. Kids say the darndest things, don’t they?

***

Mood: 2/10 Honks! (He’s now in school. Wifey and I now watching 24’s 5th CD.)

Our House is 24

Our house is now like 24, the leak seems to come from everywhere. And I’m a frantic Jack Bauer.

***

Mood: 4/5 Honks! (Wifey and I still awake, watching 24’s season two.)

Fixie Finally

After several years of being bike-less and then months of planning to get one for the sake of showing Marcus how to bike, I got my first fixie yesterday which I got from sulit.com.ph.

Once again, an adult bike hangs and this time it’s a fixie.

***

Mood: 5/10 Honks! (Rain will last until at least Wednesday. Can’t wait to go biking with Marcus.)

OTJ: Everyone’s Dark Thoughts in a Filipino Film

There have been times when I feel the urge to write something about the criminals in the news. While I neither condone nor even sympathize with fallen menaces of the society, I always have these thoughts that there is an interesting story behind each crime. However dark it may sound but that thought lingers as I sit on our comfy sofa while the TV shows activity inside the yellow ‘Police Do Not Cross’ line.

What sets the precedence behind a hit? What are the motives? Who are these people caught in a blur by CCTV cameras? How do they live their lives? Or do they have one? Are they really as calloused as the media portrays them to be? I have so many questions, everything left unanswered, every bit an element of a good story waiting to be told. But as I strain myself to compose and gather the loose ends, someone has beaten me into it. And I willingly concede, it’s no contest.

Eric Matti had it on film. His latest movie On The Job or simply shortened as OTJ was spot on. It has the plot that I wish in a thousand years I would be able to form myself. Its raw settings and the powerful cast—who played various roles from a lowly jail guard, struggling police officers, gun for hires and intel authorities under a system of deceit and corrupt politics—justified the release of an action film that finally gives everyone a break from the boring Filipino love stories and lousy comedy movies.

The film’s sound reproduction could have been better though. It would have been more striking if the gunshots were as loud and if the other effects sounded clearer. But other than this I have nothing more against it. Eric Matti got my respect. Wifey and I had a great movie date.

OTJ is said to be based on actual events and I bet that nobody who tunes in daily to the news will ever doubt it. The movie fills in the missing pieces of what we already know. OTJ has everyone’s dark thoughts (and paranoia) coming from watching the evening news combined into one great Filipino film. It shows us that in the midst of It’s More Fun In The Philippines campaign and the continuing economic development is an underground world that we all wish does not exist. We can all be in denial and dismiss everything as fiction but until such time corruption in the government prevails and crime rate stays steady, the fact remains that there are protégés out there learning on the job. And no one knows when, where, and who they will hit soon.

***

Mood: 2/10 Honks! (I smell leftover kare-kare.)

Role Modelling ASABuP

The time has come when our child steps up from just silently observing to mimicking things as they happen. I first noticed this a couple of months ago when he got suspended from using the iPad. As if to win back his favorite toy, he would stay beside me near the kitchen sink every time it is my turn to wash the dishes. At first he just stood there, next days he gets to place the utensils on the rack. As days passed, he became more involved than before. His diligence earned him an hour or two of iPad time every after lunch.

He has also begun to follow some other routines. Lately, whenever he sees me preparing for work he would pace back and forth outside the toilet until I have stepped out and he checks what I would do next. When I brush my teeth, he acts it out; I apply deodorant, he raises his arm and rubs his imaginary Speed Stick. Yes, what I do, he does. (Wifey caught him several instances smelling his underarm after using my wax deodorant. She has transferred it to a higher level since then.) So I now wonder if this is the time to show more role modeling. And the answer is becoming apparent.

Yesterday was the first weekend that we got to test his new set of bike wheels. The bike’s original solid tire and five-spoke plastic wheels have finally broken apart weeks ago so I replaced it with inflatable tires with steel hub, spoke and rim. Upon seeing that his bike this time looks like a small scale of my old BMX, I looked forward to watch him pedal it around the village. But the pedalling didn’t happen—the freewheel made him to just coast and be pulled around by me. It made me feel desperate, so we made a u-turn just a few blocks after exiting our gate.

After quickly putting back the fixie cog to his bike I offered him a deal just so he will go biking again—bring his basketball along. It was our first time to bring the small Spalding ball to the village’s outdoor court so he was excited when we reached the place where he usually spends time biking. Me, not as much.

There was another father-and-son tandem when we arrived. They were playing hoops so Marcus parked his bike and started cheering again and again, “Shoot daddy, shoot! Shoot daddy, shoot!” A few awkward pauses later, I approached him and whispered, “Do you know that it’s bad to interrupt somebody’s game?” Yes, it was an alibi to save myself from embarrassment. I ordered him to continue biking. We left the place.

We went back home after almost an hour and both of us disappointed–me, that I have a son who can’t bike while he, about having a dad who can’t play basketball. So I must do something ASABuP–as soon as budget permits. The plan to get my own bike must be done. Or maybe I could start learning basketball again. Either of the two must happen soon or else we end up with a son who does nothing better than wash the dishes.

***

Mood: 2/10 Honks! (No work, will watch movie with wifey later. Just the two of us.)

The Leaky Roof and I

This must be the worst leak I can recall. Since yesterday afternoon rain continues to pour hard and our roof is taking a beating. If I recall it right, this is the most number of leaks we have seen since we lived in this house. Other than our kitchen’s ceiling where water has been seeping through mysteriously for years already, the drippity drop—thank you Dr. Seuss for the adjective—found its way in more location of our humble place.

Thanks but no thanks to the torrential rain courtesy of typhoon Maring as last night we have to deal with a bad leak on top of our bed. It continued on that it left me and wifey no choice but to wake Marcus up just so we can move the bed away from the spot where water has invaded our comfy sleeping area. Despite the early morning chaos, it’s a consolation that Marcus finds excitement in helping us move things such as his books, stuffed toys, and pillows, while I suppress so much frustration over our predicament. It took him a while to go back to sleep with me telling stories just to steer his attention away from the dripping ceiling.

As of this morning, we have water scoops, basins, and rags in three other places of the house and with rain still pouring, we might need to empty them soon or later. Ti abi.

***

Beside stray cats, I have been a regular visitor of our roof. But the furry felines go there to play and bum around while me, to figure out the sources of the unexplainable leak. In fact, two weeks ago I was there. I hammered loose nails and patched suspected holes. And last night, I learned that I need to be there again.

My handy helper attempting to join me on top of our roof.

***

For the 2^nd Monday in a row, Marcus’ school suspended classes along with other schools as ordered by Cavite governor, Jonvic Remulla. In the past years, there have been proposals from lawmakers and concerned parties about changing the start of school year from June to September to avoid students incurring absences just because of the rainy months. It was a plan I used to believe will work.

The weather, however, has become more unpredictable and I now think that it would take more than just following the same time kids in the US go back to school to properly address the issue of attendance during bleak weather conditions. Education authorities must sit down and get their heads together to integrate in the curriculum contingency measures such as utilizing the internet and social media to compensate anything the students miss whenever classes are suspended.

***

Mood: 6/10 Honks! (House is in disarray.)

Down Pothole Lane

I need Tacrine. Only about a couple of weeks of continuous rain brought about by typhoons Jolina, Kiko, and Labuyo, the once paved roads began—expectedly—to break apart. Roads that I have witnessed being layered with asphalt for months wherein every time I get stuck in traffic as a wait my turn to get past the construction team and their heavy equipment have made me wonder if these DPWH projects are now for real. These past few days I got my answer, a rather sad answer.

And yes, now I think that I need Tacrine. Why? What is Tacrine?

On top of recent controversies in the Formula world like secret Pirelli tire testing, an anti-doping body recently exposes that there are F1 drivers they suspect as taking Tacrine. According to them, Tacrine is a performance-enhancing drug that allows the race drivers to have an almost perfect memory of the twist and turns of any circuit.

Anyone who watches Formula One events would know how precise most drivers maneuver their way through race courses. Their ability to maximize apex speed while avoiding smashing—weather, track, tire, and Romain Grosjean—into barrier walls and utilize chicanes is just remarkable. Interestingly, however, other than days spent on track testing and impeccable driving skill, the anti-doping body thinks that Tacrine is also at work. But whether this suspicion is correct or not, I now find that this must be the solution to my problem—remembering the location of all potholes to and from my way to work like the back of my hand.

Now where can I get one? I badly need some to preserve my sanity and my car’s suspension system.

***

Mood: 4/10 Honks! (Sweaty, sleepy, annoyed.)