The things I love & would love to do

Today is the day of love and I would like to share with you a list of the things I love, love to do and would love to do. Here it is below:

I love my loved ones. You know who you are.

I love Filipino movies more than foreign films and I get turned off with people who look down on Tagalog pictures – although I can’t blame them completely.

I love even more old Tagalog movies and last December I saw once more on Cinema One Manuel Silos’ Biyaya ng Lupa and realized that it had stood the test of time – with its story, direction and the performances of the cast members, among them, Rosa Rosal, Marita Zobel and the late Tony Santos and Leroy Salvador.

I love American sitcoms though and I have a complete DVD collection of the comedy series Friends and I used to tape ALF and Perfect Strangers and watch these over and over again. Now, I try to catch on late weeknights reruns of Just Shoot Me on Studio 23.

I love hearing stories from the past (but not living in the past), which is why I love talking to our veteran stars who have so many colorful anecdotes about co-workers in Sampaguita, Premiere and LVN Pictures.

I love this age of digital films because filmmakers are able to experiment with stories that are too risky to do on 35mm.

I love Richard Gutierrez (my nephew by affiliation) to win an acting award soon because I see a lot of potential in him as a great actor even this early in his career. Previously, this was my wish for Judy Ann Santos and last year she won Urian Best Actress for Sabel. Wish granted. My wish for Judy Ann now is to have a happy life with Ryan Agoncillo because they look good together.

I love attending our Cinema Evaluation Board Screenings – never mind even if it’s such a hassle driving to Makati (we watch at My Cinema in Greenbelt). The company is worth it anyway because my co-members are all fun people, especially our new chairman, Christine Dayrit.

I love to see a third Golden Age in Philippine cinema more than anything else.

I love and look forward to working on Saturdays on Startalk because I get to chat with my friends and co-hosts Joey de Leon, Lorna Tolentino and Lolit Solis. Saturday is also the only day when I get to eat my favorite cheese pimiento sandwich (I can never do the show without eating one), which they make best at the old GMA 7 canteen.

I love sitting down in front of the computer and churning out my thrice a week column – although writing can be such a lonely job at times because you work alone.

I love staying home and this is where you can find me most of the time – although I also love turning off my cell phone and unplugging the landline so I am not bothered by calls.

I love the mountains more than the sea – even if I love to swim and cannot imagine myself as a mountain-climber (as a social climber, perhaps).

I love Baguio – always have. When I was young I kept pleading to my parents for us to buy a vacation house in the City of Pines. Dad said it was impractical. When I began to earn on my own, I really saved up to buy one for myself – which I did four years ago. Guess what? My dad was right.

I love staying up late at night – even if I have no commitments outside – because you feel like you have the world to yourself.

I love having my haircut at Symmetria Salon in Connecticut, Greenhills – especially if Vidal Sassoon-trained Celeste Tuviera is there. If she’s not, Susan Aquino also does a good job.

I love working out at Gold’s Gym because the trainers are so attentive.

I love having treatments at Belo Medical Center because the people there really know what they are doing – and you really see results.

I love the cakes and pastries at Conti’s bakeshop in Connecticut, Greenhills. It’s right beside Belo Medical and from there, I proceed to Conti’s – hoping and praying that on my way out I don’t bump into Dr. Rea Flores-Trinidad, who is currently doing a series of weight loss procedure on me.

I love tokwa (bean curd) in anything – in ukoy, in ginisang beansprouts – or even in soup (using steamed tofu though. I love eating it just fried to a crisp and dipped in vinegar, soy sauce and garlic. Strangely enough, when I order tokwa’t baboy in restaurants, I have the pork removed – and that’s supposed to be the perfect match of tokwa.

I love the vegetables (eggplant, okra and string beans) in sinigang. I prefer these to the boring greens in salads.

I love to twist those rusty mufflers round the necks of driver of smoke-belching vehicles – if ever I get the chance.

I love to believe that the E-VAT and R-VAT are doing wonders to the economy, but I don’t.

I love to pour boiling oil on the executives of oil companies that keep raising the price of gasoline, but that’s too violent.

I love to see the ULTRA tragedy case resolved so we can all learn from it.

I love to find out who spread that stupid rumor about how Joey de Leon supposedly (it’s not true!) said something nasty on the air about Wowowee at the height of the ULTRA tragedy. If and when I find out, I may finally show the violent side of me.