tiwala

usapang tiwala.

ini-earn nga raw ito.

magiging karapat-dapat ka sa tiwala kung may ipinakitang mabuti.

usapang tiwala.

kinikita ito parang pera.

kailangang pagtrabahuan upang makamit.

usapang tiwala.

di na usapin kung nakamit na.

panghabambuhay pero di pa rin garantisado.

usapang tiwala.

isang wisik lang maaaring maglaho.

lalo na't may naganap na di kaaya-aya.

usapang tiwala.

kailangang palagiang pag-ibayuhin.

karapat-dapat na pag-ibayuhin sa araw-araw.

usapang tiwala.

pinagtitibay ng panahon.

pero di naman nasusukat lamang sa haba ng pinagsamahan.

usapang tiwala.

may tanim na kabutihan.

aani ng tiwalang malaliman ang ugat.    

disconnect

another crash. that's what came to my mind when i read its synopsis. but disconnect proved to be something more timely and engaging than crash. riding on crash-like approach, this film was about three intertwined stories of how people's lives are influenced by modern means of communication, internet and the allied technologies.

there was nina, a go-getting ambitious reporter who got kyle, a minor who strips in video chatrooms to appear in an exclusive exposé on online prostitution. kyle, a runaway, works for harvey who owns the house where kyle stays as well as other minors. FBI picked this story and demands for nina to reveal kyle's identity and determine the brains behind this illegal practice. nina grew fond of kyle wanted to save him from the business, she was eventually forced to reveal kyle's address. kyle was willing to stay with nina but she hesitated to guarantee his safety. kyle then leaves with harvey and the rest of his "true family".

jason and frye invented jessica rhony, a girl who does not exist but befriends ben and soon convinces him to send his nude pictures through facebook messenger. the pictures quickly spreads to the rest of the students, embarrassing ben who eventually committed suicide and ended up in coma. ben's dad, rich (tv station legal counsel where nina works), begins chatting with jessica in order to understand what really happened to his son. meanwhile, jason's father mike, finds out that his son has got something to do with the suicide attempt of another student. he protects his son by erasing all evidence and goes to ben's house, where the confrontation ends with jason being hit by mike.

a married couple, cindy and derek, finds that their identities were stolen online together with all of their credit card numbers and other personal information. their relationship is also being tested by the loss of their child. they hire mike (jason's father) to help them identify the person behind the online theft against them. they zeroed in on schumacher who they follow and even went as far as breaking into his home. but according to mike, it wasn't schumacher who stole cindy and derek's identities. confrontation ensued with derek, a former marine, disarming Schumacher. this ended peacefully with both parties talking about their own losses. 

  

i like that the film was well-paced and well-edited. the cast was also effective, especially andrea riseborough and max thieriot. the three intertwined stories were not resolved ala traditional hollywood fare, which was fine. it could easily became a happy ever after story but it did not. kyle and nina could have become an item but the filmmakers decided not to. so thanks to that. its message of people getting 'connected' more than ever through internet and social media but in the process getting 'disconnected' with each our families and friends was powerful. "wired alienation" is one of grim realities of today's world. it makes you think of the consequences of your online actions and as one of the commenter said, will even make you look at your smartphones, tablets and laptops "with a new distrust". well-timed, modern-day look at modern-day relationships influenced by modern means of communication, disconnect is a compelling ensemble film worth watching.     

panira ng araw

wala ka talagang kupas.
walang kupas ang nag-iisa mong talento... manira ng araw. 

hay naku, isang malaking panira ng araw. 

peste.

coca cafe

"ask what's for lunch." - orson welles. smoked fish fried rice, kale in garlic, pork in honey sauce and thai iced tea at coca cafe. happy friday!

ma'am berdin

matunog na ang pangalang gng. erlinda berdin pagpasok ko pa lamang sa pablik (mataas na paaralan ng novaliches) bilang freshman. dahil nabibilang kami sa pinakatumpok ng mga tumpok na seksyon, mabagsik daw ang napipinto naming maging tagapayo bilang mga seniors. naging panghaliling guro siya sa filipino nang lumiban si ma'am loida ramirez noong first year kami. dama mo agad ang kanyang presensya habang nagkukumahog pa ang I-1 sa paglilinis ng aming silid kahit nandoon na siya. ibang klase ang atake niya sa pagtatanong at pakiramdam ko ay tila ba mahirap makakuha ng mataas na grado mula sa kanya. pagkatapos nito, ang sumunod kong episodyo kay ma'am berdin ay noong nasa third year ako. halos magkasabay kaming papasok nang tawagin niya ako upang magpatulong pumitas ng sunflower. sa di maipaliwanag na pagkakataon, di ko mapitas nang mahusay ang bulaklak at parang gusto na lang ni ma'am na siya na mismo ang pumitas nito. hahaha! III-1 daw ba ako, tanong ni ma'am. sabi ko'y opo. "magkikita tayo sa susunod na taon", tugon niya. bago kami pormal na maging IV-1, pinatawag kami para maging koro sa lamay para kay gng. valentina ancheta. sa praktis pa lang ng 2 kanta, ibang lebel ang presyur sa amin upang makakanta nang maayos.

at dumating na nga ang fourth year. isa sa mga panimulang salvo ang pag-iyak ni divine dahil pinatayo siya at ilan pang mga kaklase dahil wala silang patch. sa isang lunes na di nadiligan ang mga halaman sa gilid ng platform sa aming silid, isa-isa niyang binuhat ang tatlong mga paso at inihagis ang mga ito mula sa ikatlong palapag ng marcos bldg sa baba nito, harap ng math department. pinagdangkal niya sa third floor ang mga kaklase kong late sa flag ceremony, pagkatapos siyempre ng sarili nilang flag ceremony sa quadrangle. sa isang meeting namin para sa el fili, pinalabas niya ang lahat ng aking mga kaklase sa dahilang di ko na maalala. naiwan lamang ang mga reporter ng araw na 'yun, ang group 1 (kasama ako). marami rin siyang mga parinig tungkol sa mga maagang nagsipagboyprenan o gerlprenan. may episodo ring itinaboy at hinabol niya kami palabas ng campus para magsipag-uwian na. binalak din niyang ilipat ang lahat ng mga kaklase kong babae sa iba't ibang seksyon dahil sa mga grupo-grupo't eksklusibong barkadahang umiiral sa kanila noon. nang manalo siya bilang most outstanding teacher, binigyan namin siya ng bulaklak na di niya nagustuhan at binayaran ang aming pinambili rito.

sa araw-araw, sangkatutak na mga pagalit ang nakukuha namin mula sa kanya. lalo na ako. mula sa kurtinang di nalabhan, sa mesang marumi at laging gutay-gutay ang cover gawa ng ibang seksyon o sa stage na puro alikabok na malinis naman 'pag iniwan namin pero laging sobrang dumi pagpasok namin sa umaga. sa aking unang talumpati bilang pangulo ng klase, ilang minuto rin akong nakatayo sa harap ng klase  dahil di nagustuhan ni ma'am berdin ang pagpapasalamat ko maging sa mga di bumoto sa akin. nakurot niya rin ako dahil sa pag-aalala nang di ako umuwi sa aming bahay at makitulog kina ma'am barawed sa UP campus pagkatapos ng UPCAT. tumawag kasi ang aking ate joy sa kanilang bahay para magtanong tungkol sa akin. nahampas din niya ako dahil sa katuwaang ibinunga ng paglaglag ng mga tigdadalawang piso mula sa payphone na malapit sa faculty room. ikinulong niya sa staff room ang mga kaklase kong sangkot dito. nang kinailangan naming pumunta ni herminia sa UP diliman para asikasuhin ang aming enrolment, pagalit niyang tinanong kung bakit kailangang magkasama kami ni herminia.

di ako gusto ni ma'am. 'yun ang pakiramdam ko noon. di kasi ako malapit sa kanya, di gaya ng iba kong kaklaseng madalas makipaghuntahan sa kanya at tumatambay sa loob ng staff room. 'pag kasi dumating siya, lalabas na ako agad kung wala rin lang namang gagawin sa loob. di kami nagkita sa loob ng maraming taon pagkatapos ng aming closing party. ni hindi kami nagkasumpungan man lang sa bayan o maski sa sm fairview. pero ibang lugod ang aking naramdaman nang magkita kami sa kasal ni christine noong 2011. dama kong wala siyang ninais kundi makitang matagumpay ang kanyang mga naging estudyante, kasama na ako.

siguro di pa lang talaga namin siya mauunawaan sa puntong 'yun. bata ka pa kasi. hayskul. daming pagbabago sa iyong buhay. marami ka ring ninanais mangyari sa iyo. gusto mong magsaya at maggalugad. pero sa parehong yugto na ito ng iyong buhay, di ka pa tiyak sa ano talaga ang nais mong mangyari o maaaring gawin pagkatapos mong gumradweyt. pakiramdam ng iba sa amin noon, OA siya sa kanyang teknik at pag-aatang ng napakaraming responsibilidad sa amin. puwede nga rin naman kasing istilo na lang ibang guro, 'yung di masyadong terror, 'yung malagihay at bait-bait na paraan. pero hindi. iba ang istilo ni ma'am berdin. kaya siguro di pa gaanong napahalagahan ang mga sinabi niya noon at kung bakit ganoon na lamang ang kanyang gana't enerji sa pagdidisiplina sa amin at pagtuturo.

pero tumanda kami at dumating na nga sa puntong ito sa aming mga buhay. sa paglipas ng panahon, sampu ng lahat ng indibidwal na dumaan sa kanyang matamang pagbabantay bilang tagapayo, unti-unting naunawaan ang lahat ng aral na nais niyang maikintal sa aming mga dati'y murang isipan. tunay na may saysay kung bakit nais niyang tumayo kami ng tama. magagamit mo nga naman ito dahil kapag mabuway ang iyong tindig, ang tingin ng tao sa iyo ay mabuway din ang iyong pagkatao. di ka igagalang kumbaga. sa pananamit, ayaw ni ma'am berdin ng shabby dahil sinusukat ng maraming tao, lalo sa trabaho, ang kakayahan ng indibidwal na gampanan ang kanyang trabaho sa kanyang pananamit. sa pagsasalita, bawal ang mga "uhmm", "bale" at kung anu-anong pantapal sa mga patlang ng iyong pangungusap. sa aking buhay-UP at trabaho, basiko ang mga ito upang di mabuwisit ang aking mga propesor o mga kliyente sa bawat presentation. di maaaring huli sa mga pagtitipon o sa klase. bahagi ito ng malalimang ugnayang personal o propesyunal. sino nga namang kliyente ang matutuwa kung late ka sa inyong miting? mapapaisip ka rin sa mga tanong ni ma'am berdin tulad ng ano ang kaibahan ng puti sa pula. sa buhay fourth year namin, itinuturo na niya ang kritikal, malalim at masaysay na pag-iisip. lahat ng ito ay may malaking tulong sa aking pagkumpleto ng maraming mahihirap na asignatura sa UP, sa aking karera at sa buhay. siyempre, isa siya sa may malaking impluwensya sa akin kung bakit naisip kong sulatin ang marami kong papel noong kolehiyo at maging ang aking tesis sa wikang filipino.  

huwag daw kaming malunod sa isang basong tubig. madalas na sinasabi ni ma'am ito dati. tama naman. di dapat magbunyi sa maliliit na tagumpay dahil ang tunay na laban ay ang kabuuan ng iyong buhay. maging responsable para sa iyong sarili, sa iyong mga magulang at pamilya at para sa bansa. kailangan mong pagtrabahuan ang bawat punyagi at di umasa sa anumang koneksyon upang makamit ang anumang naisin. higit sa lahat, itinimo ni ma'am berdin sa akin na huwag magmadali. 'wag mong itulak ang panahon upang matawag na adulto. ang lahat ng bagay ay may kaukulang panahon at magaganap ito sa takda ng maykapal.  

                                                                                             

sabi nga ng mga kapwa ko masusuwerteng nagkaroon ng pagkakataong maging inyong estudyante, isa kayong alamat. salamat, ma'am berdin.

tennis 2014

there was no finals showdown between novak djokovic and roger federer. but nole's walkover win officially closed the 2014 season. only the davis cup title has yet to be decided.

what a year it has been. li na won the aussie open over a new member of the runner-up circle, dominika cibulkova. in a heartbreaking loss, rafael nadal lost for the first time to stan wawrinka in the aussie open finals. roland garros was still rafa's turf (his ninth RG title), no question about that. maria sharapova regained the title, beating another first time RU, simona halep. in wimbledon, petra kvitova once again lifted the trophy, overwhelming a hapless eugenie bouchard, the third member of the first time RU circle in 2014. nole won his second wimbledon title over federer. in the US open, marin cilic gate-crashed the grand slam loop and won the title over one of my favorites, kei nishikori. serena williams finally won a grand slam title in 2014, beating 2009 RU, caroline wozniacki.

there were two first grand slam titlists in the men's game. since the 2005 australian open and before 2014, there have only been two GS winners who are not surnamed federer, nadal, djokovic or murray. these were marat safin (2005 australian open) and juan martin del potro (2009 US open). but in 2014, wawrinka put on great 2 weeks and cilic surprised everyone (including himself) when he went home with the title.

while he ended the year at number 2 (with 5 titles), federer was still slam-less in 2014. he lost to rafa in the aussie open semis, to ernests gulbis in RG fourth round, to nole in the wimbledon finals and then to cilic in the US open semis. does he still have a slam in him? to his standards, rafa had a disappointing season. although he won 4 titles, he had unfortunate losses to lower-ranked players and had to skip the rest of the season due to appendicitis. andy murray also had a below par season,  when he won his first title of the year only in late september. of course there were also success stories such as nishikori's. although he didn't bring home asia's first grand slam title, he won 4 titles this year and ended the year at number 5 (finalist at US open and semis at the london season-ender).

in the women's game, all four GS winners were all former slam titleholders. third time in the aussie open finals was lucky for li na who won her second slam. unfortunately, li na retired in september after failing to post good results from the clay season to the hardcourt season. sharapova finally won a second title in a grand slam tournament, while kvitova proved that she's one of the best when her penetrating shots land in to win her second wimbledon title.

good to see young players stepping up and challenging the more fancied players. simona halep is the key player here, with 2 titles, very good results in the slams and runner-up to serena in the singapore season-ender. bouchard had a very good year as well, highlighted by her semis finish in the first two slams and RU at wimbledon. serena had dismal grand slam result until she won the US open in september. she finished the season as the top ranked player (at the age of 33) and won the season-ender. sharapova also had a good year and wozniacki seems to have found her old defensive mojo again. although she didn't figure quite strongly in the slams, ana ivanovic quietly put on a very strong year, finishing at number 5… her highest ranking since 2008. disappointment? agnieszka radwanska. i would have loved to see her contend for the big prizes but she was often overshadowed by the younger pretenders.

i'm so looking forward to the 2015 season. i want to see radwanska win a slam, victoria azarenka's strong comeback (she's very much capable of beating serena), sharapova win another slam, ivanovic win another slam and serena continuing to be the force that she is. i wonder how first time GS winners wawrinka and cilic figure in the mix but i'm hoping that nishikori wins a slam next year… not in rafa's expense of course, other players are fair game! i want to see either rafa, federer or murray take over the top ranking and more slams for rafa!

2015 season starts in december 31.

knaves

Knaves - employees that are so annoying or ill-willed that they drive away the good employees. Too many knaves can cripple a company... so preventing high levels of knave density - the level of bad employees concentrated in any one team - is crucial.

rage

Do not go gentle into that good night but rage, rage against the dying of the light. - Dylan Thomas

 

Let us go forth with fear and courage and rage to save the world. - Grace Paley
 

A fever is an expression of inner rage - Julia Roberts

 

Boredom is rage spread thin. - Paul Tillich

 

Rage - whether in reaction to social injustice, or to our leaders’ insanity, or to those who threaten or harm us - is a powerful energy that, with diligent practice, can be transformed into fierce compassion. - Bonnie Myotai Treace

 

Despite all my rage, I am still a rat in a cage. - Billy Coogan

nada

zero.
zilch.
nada.
purnada.
wala.

helpless kids

Are we raising a generation of helpless kids? A good read.

Where did we go wrong?

• We've told our kids to dream big - and now any small act seems insignificant. In the great scheme of things, kids can't instantly change the world. They have to take small, first steps - which seem like no progress at all to them. Nothing short of instant fame is good enough. "It's time we tell them that doing great things starts with accomplishing small goals," he says.

• We've told our kids that they are special - for no reason, even though they didn't display excellent character or skill, and now they demand special treatment. The problem is that kids assumed they didn't have to do anything special in order to be special.

• We gave our kids every comfort - and now they can't delay gratification. And we heard the message loud and clear. We, too, pace in front of the microwave, become angry when things don't go our way at work, rage at traffic. "Now it's time to relay the importance of waiting for the things we want, deferring to the wishes of others and surrendering personal desires in the pursuit of something bigger than 'me,'" Elmore says.

• We made our kid's happiness a central goal - and now it's difficult for them to generate happiness -- the by-product of living a meaningful life. "It's time we tell them that our goal is to enable them to discover their gifts, passions and purposes in life so they can help others. Happiness comes as a result."

amazing race

what a day it was.. another one of the many travel mementos that i would look back to with a smile. not that i would recommend such experience to any traveller but it was one of those that i was really grateful to have came through and was able to go back home on schedule.

all along i was pretty confident that i'd have enough time to be in the airport and board my flight going back to manila. from wendy house, i walked to pratunam. although i didn't get a lot, i leisurely sauntered around pratunam to look for small presents. from there, i walked again to go to central world to buy naraya bags. i spent a lot of time there, choosing which items to pay for. from there, i crossed the road to go to big c where i bought food items (spicy tamarind, tom yum noodles and nestea iced tea) that i wanted to bring home. and as if i didn't have a flight to catch at 6:50 pm, i again walked from big c to go to chit lom bts station. from there, i alighted at national stadium station. i went for a quick late lunch of deep fried pork and kale before stopping by the nearest fruit stand to buy fresh guapple (best served with sweet and spicy dip). and then that was the only time i went back to wendy house to re-unpack, re-packed my luggage to get all the new stuff in, re-organized the bags and finally left wendy house way past 5 pm.

i've been to bangkok many times and should have been more conscious that it was rush hour already. but no, i was probably deep in vacation mode and got loads of heavy baggage that i hopped on a taxi. of course it was more practical to have taken the bts and airport rail link to avoid the rush. but i didn't. so there i was, stuck in the traffic jam somewhere in phetchaburi road. after 40 minutes or so, i asked the driver to bring me to the nearest airport rail link station instead of driving all the way to the airport. makkasan was the nearest so i alighted and immediately went up. jampacked train but it was made fun with little chitchat with a uber nice retired thai lady about thailand travel and why my 2 days stay in chiang mai was not enough. when i told her that my flight was at 6:50 pm, she immediately told me to hurry up… my oh my, it was about 6:20 pm already when i reached the airport.

the elevators did not help at all so i had to wriggle my way from basement 2 where the rail link is located, all the way to the 4^th floor, the airport's departure hall. i could not see where philippine airlines is located so i needed to ask the information counter. when i got to row n, there were no pal counters! all i saw was myanmar air. pakingsyet! i finally saw 2 ladies in the middle counters and they said that pal checkin is already closed. what?!!

i of course know the drill already. in these kinds of situation, one needs to put on that kawawa puppy eyed look, forget about demanding anything at all and start begging for huge favour from the more senior counter staff. all you need is to say yes and hope that they would pull some strings to get you in. the key? one has to say, "i already checked in online", which of course i already did in the morning. the senior (senior i'd say because she looked older than the other lady) said some lines in thai expressing exasperation and asked me, "why you late?" all i can utter was "the traffic was so bad, i came from don mueang (the other airport in bangkok)". what i appreciate the most is while saying all these frustrated lines, she was already on the phone talking to the other half of her team who are in the gates and already boarding the on-time passengers. "i can get you in but if you have 100 ml or more liquid here (in my luggage), you throw them out. your luggage will be boarded in the gate." ok, that's fine… i only had my cologne anyway. she then printed my boarding pass and said without looking at me, "go to security check and immigration and run!"

and run i did. i got through the first hurdle, the security check with no issue. i immediately went down to the immigration counters and to my expected horror, the queue snaked like there was no end. i already expected this given the normally high tourist traffic in thailand and i've never had a trip here without having to deal with long immigration lines… oh except for those 2 times that i was on business class! anyway, i again know the drill and straight away looked for the immigration officer tasked on organizing the lines. she was upset that according to her, i opened the line to get to her and asked me to close it but honestly i didn't open it. she asked for my departure card, which of course got lost somewhere during this travel, then she irritatedly handed me a blank departure card to fill out. i filled it as fast as i could and asked her again. she then said to fall in line "in any line". the shortest line that i could find had at least 20 people in front of me. armed with puppy eyes, begging disposition and sweating all over the place, i asked the indian family in front of me if i can go ahead of them as my flight is at 6:50 pm and the father kindly said "no problem." i then asked a group of tourists (4 americans i guess) if i can jump over the line and they graciously said yes. the major hassle? a singaporean or malaysian chinese lady (i think singaporean or malaysian because of the lah) in front of the american tourists who arrogantly said, "no! mah flight 6:30 and still in line so no!"

i didn't want to push my luck anymore because of the big-headed but empty brained lady. i stepped back and the indian father said, "don't mind her, go to the start of the line. we won't mind and we can manage here." thanking them profusely, i walked past the line again. upon passing through, i overheard the american tourists saying to the arrogant lady, "your flight is at 6:30, you should be in front of the line as well, go there now." not minding the arrogant lady, i then asked another group of indians if i can take their place and be in front of the line. the mom said "no problem, go ahead." what's even nicer, the grandmother even helped with my luggage and 2 ecobags. i know they are indians but i still managed to say khawp kun naa khrap. finally, it was my turn and because of smiling and puppy eyed look, i even went first before the arrogant lady got her turn. one more but minor hassle? i forgot to sign the departure card.

    

what a relief! i got through the immigration line and was thanking the high heavens for those indian families and american tourists. but my amazing race journey has yet to stop. i still needed to run to gate g1 from the immigration area. and this was not an easy breezy affair. suvarnabhumi airport is one big airport and in the departure hall, one needs to pass through a long series of duty free shops before reaching the gates where walkalators are only found. running with 4 heavy baggages, i felt that in no time my feet would probably fall off (if that's the right term!) and give in. i finally reached gate g1 and run through it. i got in, handed my passport and boarding pass and the ground crew greeted me and said, "you got here. you are here. don't worry and let me handle your luggage." i so wanted to give her a big hug because of the huge relief but there were only about 7 or so passengers left in the gate that  i was immediately ushered in.

i got to seat 7f! i can finally breathe and relax. i made it! i felt that i deserved a huge tap on my shoulder. moreover, the american guy on 7d was such a nice fella to have allowed me to bother him 3 times as i needed to check my luggages and after the x-men days of the future past screening, my toilet break. i had 2 glasses of red wine! to top it all off, despite all the frantic running and trotting that i did, there were no misplaced or lost items. my belongings and limbs were intact.

 

all this time, i was thanking the good lord for all the nice people that made this happen. had i missed the flight, i'd need to stay another night in bangkok and would probably have to shoulder the would-be rebooking fee. again, i won't advice anyone to push the limit and hope that your photo finish scheme would work all the time. it's still better to be not hurried, having the opportunity to observe people and look at some things the departure hall has to offer. while beating all the odds would give one a good feeling, nothing beats having not to be on an unnecessary adrenaline overdrive or being under intense pressure just to catch a flight. 

        

what a journey it has been! wahahaha! till our next date, bangkok!

don jon

according to relativity media, don jon is about jon martello (joseph gordon-levitt) is a strong, handsome, good old fashioned guy. his buddies call him don jon due to his ability to "pull" a different woman every weekend, but even the finest fling doesn't compare to the bliss he finds alone in front of the computer watching pornography. barbara sugarman (scarlett johansson) is a bright, beautiful, good old fashioned girl. raised on romantic hollywood movies, she's determined to find her prince charming and ride off into the sunset. wrestling with good old fashioned expectations of the opposite sex, jon and barbara struggle against a media culture full of false fantasies to try and find true intimacy in this unexpected comedy written and directed by joseph gordon-levitt.

ever since i've seen him in mysterious skin, i know that there will be a series of outstanding flicks that would feature his immense talent. true enough, joseph gordon-levitt featured in some of my recent favorites such as 50-50, inception and 500 days of summer. but what better way to showcase this talent than to come up with his own handsomely written and directed movie! it was a successful directorial debut and he even got nods for his first screenplay. the man's a genius!  

i absolutely enjoyed the film. at first, i thought that it'd be like another pedestrian romcom where jgl's character, a ladies man, would finally find his dreamgirl and settle the way a traditional fairytale would be resolved. but it was far from that. i liked that jon did not end up with the perfect girl and was not "dramatically changed" in the process. it also unabashedly went into an unlikely pairing between jon, a super confident man and esther (the great julianne moore), a grieving middle-aged woman. it was also a satirical take on catholicism and how grave sins don't differ with not-so-grave ones when doing penance. moreover, it effectively discussed porn addiction without toilet humor or unwarranted kitsch.
   

i liked the way it did not have a happy ending. it's definitely not a date movie anyway. but one can sense that there's a world out there to be discovered by jon as he continues to explore other facets of his relationship with esther.

one good flick and i'm looking forward to jgl's next project.   

cough