"Every good thing is this world started with a dream; so hold on to yours."

-Wonka

"Even in science, faith plays a role. Each experiment done, each step on the path of knowledge, is achieved by striking out into the darkness. You can't know what you will find, or that you will find anything at all. It is faith that drives us -- faith in answers that must exist."

-Brandon Sanderson. The Sunlit Man.

"We can't fight against evil. That's the most unbearable thing about the world we have built. Evil can't be eradicated, can't be locked up, the more violence we use against it, the stronger it becomes..."

-Fredrik Backman. The Winners.

Caught In A Daze by Side A

About this time last year, I wrote about a song about being ghosted ("Clueless" incidentally just won Best Ballad Recording at the recent Awit Awards!). Now, I’m writing about a song about living the dream. It’s a total 180, I got whiplash.

One day you’re singing the national anthem of the broken-hearted, the next you’re the f’ing king of the land of rainbows and unicorns. 

But such is life, isn’t it? It’s full of ups and downs; it is one roller coaster ride after another; it’s one big jumble of emotions, maybe even sometimes all at the same time. And apparently, so are the fascinating brilliant mind of one Ned Esguerra and the musical genius of Side A. 

“I’m caught in a daze and it’s amazing
I’m lost in your gaze and I’m so crazy about you
And though life’s not the same as before
I wouldn’t want to change it
Coz I’m caught in a daze and I’m so amazed by you.”

It’s the “Happy Ever After” most of us spend our lives yearning for, but only the lucky few actually get. The song makes you appreciate your relationships even more... it makes you realize never to take things or each other for granted. At least I hope it does. 

“You are the air I breathe.
You are the song I sing.”

Lines so incredibly sweet, they should come with a Diabetes warning label. 😆 But music heals the soul, so they say, and with SideA music, you’re especially treated to musical harmony at its best, guaranteed to cure even the most stubborn diseases (FDA approval pending 😅).

It’s funny… for those who are not among the romantically fortunate, “Caught In A Daze” should make you want to hurl things at a wall or at somebody (or at smiling happy couples 😅😂); but the song is just so easy to listen to, it actually somehow soothes you like a warm bath after a long exhausting day or like you’re chilling at home with a good book or like you’re cruising alone on a highway where road rages never ever existed. It is just such a feel good song, you can’t help but smile and just gently sway to the music.

To a point, it offers one a glimmer of hope... something to dream about. After all, surely life is sadder without having dreams to live for.

"It's not really clear how we found each other here; maybe it’s magic."

Well, it’s not really clear how we find ourselves here, listening to another mesmerizing song by Side A. Maybe it’s the band’s chemistry. Maybe it’s pure talent. Maybe it’s resilience and hard work. Maybe it’s because they’re all just really wonderful human beings. Maybe it’s all of those. And yes, maybe it is also magic.

Do yourself a favor and listen to it on Spotify. You’re welcome!

"Never trust people who don't have something in their lives that they love beyond all reason."

-Fredrik Backman. Beartown.

Yumi and Nikaro

Some books just make you go "awww" and leave you completely satisfied once finished, heart perfectly warmed, everything wrapped up and tied with a charmingly delightful bow. Yumi and the Nightmare Painter (aka Secret Project #3) by Brandon Sanderson is exactly that. 

Sanderson says at the end of the book that this is his personal favorite of the Secret Projects. Though I do love Tress also, I would say this is my favorite as well. Of the three so far, at least. Maybe I do like my fantasy stories with a dash (just a dash, please) of romance in them.

 

Anyway here are some quotes from the book.

Yumi: Is sadness realistic?

Painter: I used to think so. And Yumi, many things in life are sad. So it's realistic at least to some experiences. It's good that some stories are happy, some are sad. That part is realistic. Sometimes, the more you think about it, the better an ending like this seems. It can be right, even if it's painful. 

"Yes, a person is more than their experiences, stacked up like stones. But our best moments are the foundations we use to reach for the sky."

"A kiss doesn't need to be good to be valuable. It doesn't serve any real purpose. It's valued solely because of the person you share it with. Things only have the value we give to them. And likewise, actions can be worth whatever we decide them to be worth."

every moment borrowed 

every touch a desperate plea

every kiss a heartbreaking goodbye.

"I let myself want you

I let myself try

I let myself fall back into your eyes 

I let myself want you

I let myself hope

I let myself feel things I know that you don't"

-A Little Bit Yours. JP Saxe.

"There is no only when it comes to goodness and joy. The smallest amount is as large as the universe..."

-Brandon Sanderson. The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England.

Dalawang kisapmata

Dalawang buwan.

Kasing haba ng dalawang taon sa dami ng kaganapan.

Kasing ikli ng dalawang kisap-mata sa kabilisan.

Dalawang buwan.

Kay tagal hinintay,

Kay tulin naman kung dumaan.

Sa lahat ng nakilala, nakitang muli, pati na din sa mga na-stalk ng bahagya,

Sa lahat ng nakapiling, mabilis man o matagal,

Sa lahat ng pinlanong pagtatagpo, natuloy man o hanggang drawing lamang,

Lumipas man ang dalawang kisap-mata, buwan, o taon,

Sana’y di maging kasing lamig ng aircon

Ang kasing init ng Pilipinas na pagsasamahan.

Hanggang sa muli.

"out of the embers, we'll rise from the ashes. and write in the stars with our names. that we are here, we are bruised, we are damaged. but the joy was worth the pain. oh, life is a beautiful game."

-Ed Sheeran. A Beautiful Game.

"I hope that either all of us or none of us are judged by the actions of our weakest moments, but rather by the strength we show when and if we're ever given a second chance."

-Ted. Ted Lasso 3x11 - Mom City.

"You need to stop letting yesterday get in the way of today."

-Ted Lasso 3x8

"Enjoy memories, yes, but don't be a slave to who you wish you once had been. Those memories aren't alive. You are."

-Brandon Sanderson. Tress of the Emerald Sea.

the other side of A

They tune the instruments, make sure everything sounds perfect, write the set list, bring coffee and food, and generally just help lighten the load (quite literally sometimes, in fact). They are the men in black, dressed as such so you don't notice them and distract you from the main attraction. They are the men working behind the scenes; without them, the show would probably not go on. 

They are Dennis,  Tonton, and Carlo, the unsung heroes behind one of the country's greatest bands, Side A. Dennis joined SideA back in 1994, making him one of the longest tenured in the band, third only behind Naldy and Ernie. Tonton and Carlo joined a few years later.

I have been a fan of SideA's since the early 90s and for as long as I can remember, Dennis has always been a part of the band. Even then and until now, like any other member of SideA, he has never treated me and my friends other than as his peeps. And despite sometimes (or maybe because of) inappropriate comments and questions, he has made this very socially awkward person somehow comfortable chatting with him about life and everything else under the sun. haha! 

And because of him, I got to experience a once in a lifetime, dream come true, bucket list item moment -- to be a SideA PA for a day. Or probably closer to a very low level apprentice because I don't actually have a clue about any of the technical stuff associated to that role.

As I hovered between feeling uneasy intruding on what should have been their private band time AND feeling extremely grateful to be allowed (or at least tolerated) to intrude, I tried to make myself useful or at the very least, not be a nuisance. Meanwhile, all of them, being the wonderful human beings that they are, tried to make me, someone who's rarely at ease in social situations, comfortable and welcome. 😅🥰

I will not go into details because quite frankly, I feel I've imposed on them more than enough. But it was everything I could have ever hoped for, perhaps a lot more. I know it was and is a great privilege I will never take for granted. And I am wholeheartedly appreciative of them putting up with me.

To Ned, Leevon, Yubs, Ernie, Naldy, and especially Dennis, Tonton, and Carlo -- thank you forevermore!!! I have no words enough to express my gratitude. I will die on this hill... ipaglalaban ko kayo hanggang uugod ugod na ako. 😆🤗🥰

"So if this isn't really what it seems,

please don't ever wake me from this dream."

-Until You. Side A.

"never stop, no matter how many failures. when you know you're doing what you're meant to do, you have to try."

-Ted Lasso. Sunflowers (s3e6).

"mercy buckets." 😂

"We live in a world where exceptional women have to sit around waiting for mediocre men."

-Taylor Jenkins Reid. Carrie Soto Is Back.

Happy International Women's Day! 😜😊

"Just as people have a bad habit of dismissing others' problems and tragedies, so too did they have a bad habit of not appreciating what they have. Or had."

-Bonnie Garmus. Lessons In Chemistry.

"...because it is enough to exist in the world and marvel at it. You don't need to justify that, or earn it. You are allowed to just live."

-Becky Chambers. A Psalm For The Wild-Built.