"The Gentlemen: Ozarks in a well-tailored suit."

"The Gentlemen: Ozarks in a well-tailored suit."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

The Gentlemen on Netflix has the same spirit as Ozark in a refined suit of elegance. At least it has a better looking cast. It features a Duke who inherits land with a bit of trouble attached to it. 

My wife and I enjoy a lot of problem solving when we watch  and while violence is always imminent in this series , I find myself happy that they tend to resolve and avoid messes with words and back dealings. In my book if you can convince the other person to a resolution without resorting to violence , all the better. 

For the most part the series hooks you with several mysteries and the question of "so what are you going to do now?" dangling at every end so what it amounts to is an enjoyable 8 episode experience.

It offers a strong and smart female lead as well that has her own aspirations and approach to things , the dialogue is fun for me because I think I am learning something. (Or so I think hahahahah)

After smashing on Damsel the last couple of weeks I am glad that I found something to really enjoy and forget about that horrible thing hahahaha.

"5 minutes"

 "5 minutes"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. 

Every time my family and I would go on a trip I think about my Dad. So picture this, as a Ship Captain he is always conscious of time. Growing up we would all try to be in the car by his appointed time. If he said 7am, we were all there by 6:50am. Mom would be at the front , Aj and me would be at the back of our Classic Blue Volkswagon. We would all wait for him. Excited. All ready to go.

The funny thing is my Dad would always have an upset stomach just before we leave. He would first poke his head in the car. "Oh andito na ba lahat?". We would all respond with a yes. And then he would say , "Sandali lang. 5 minutes." Holding on to his stomach. We would all groan collectively as that meant that we would be waiting for at least 10 minutes and our effort to be in the car early was all for nothing hahahah.

"5 minutes lang ha." That line would stick with us forever. We got so used to it that we would factor that in our preparations all the time. May oras pa. Wala pa si Daddy. 

And now that I have my own family , I would still be early to the car and in those moments that I would wait for my Wife and Aven to join me , I would still think of my dad poking his head into the car and saying those words like it was yesterday. "5 minutes lang anak."

I would smile and it made the wait much easier. 

"Our First Jjang Kkae Run"

"Our First Jjang Kkae Run"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

So after a lazy Sunday morning on the 14th of April , we decided to go out and buy Jjang myun at this place called Jjang Kkae in Kalayaan Avenue. According to some of the reels we have watched this was a source of authentic Korean dishes.We have been misled by some of those reels before so when they said that this place had the most authentic Jjang myun I was a bit skeptical. But as a policy within our family we would at least try it once.

Though it was a Sunday where you expect the place to be relatively empty we found ourselves in the parking and it was horrifying as it seemed that cars were just parked haphazardly outside and there was no one assisting potential diners. The facade of the place looked old and place was at the end of a long corridor. It did not even look like a restaurant from the outside. Just a door.

Upon entering there were quite a few people already there. Notable were some Koreans who occupied 2 of the big tables who were enjoying their food. It looked like one of those old Chinese restaurants that served good food but might have an insect problem somewhere. (More to add to the taste then). The place was a bit enclosed and you just know that when you get out of here , you would carry all the smells of the place with you. So on to ordering.

The cashier was so busy but still promptly got my order. At this point the place was almost full on a Sunday afternoon. We took our take out of Steam Mandu , Pork Tangsuyuk and the famed Jjang myun and had them at home. Mostly. 

The Tangsuyuk was great even without the sauce and sa sasakyan pa lang nalantakan na, At home the Mandu was also great and my wife gave her stamp of approval to the Jjang myun. I was silently thankful as Kalayaan was a mere 30 minutes away from our house instead of the old place that she liked which was in Okada! If she ever got the craving I could just drive by here from my duty as well which is a good 10 or 15 minutes drive. 

I have not seen the parking area on Weekdays but I expect that it is more organized but that area aside the food was amazingly good and we would probably go back here again. 

"The Deaf Heart"

 "The Deaf Heart"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Words are never easy.

It takes courage to say what you need to say.

Or to clearly state what you mean.

Or to make the boring interesting.

Or to paint a light on a darkness.

Even if you are able to muster the courage.

Or clearly say the things from your heart.

They can still reach deaf ears or worse a deaf heart.

"On Love Expressions"

 

"On Love Expressions"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

If you ever decide to date someone in the future. One of the things that you should know about them is how they show love and affection. 

Some can be silent but are protective of you. Some might not be good with dates but remember a random food you craved or song that you liked.

Some are great at saying what they mean or know how to soothe you with a word or two. Some say nothing. 

Some are great at showing physical affection. Like a cute tug at your shirt or the way that they hold your hand or how they would hug you randomly for no reason at all. 

Some are great at surprising you and some surprise you that they are not good at surprises. But just because they do not express love in the way that you feel that you should be loved does not mean that they love you less. 

People just express themselves differently and problems arise when we do not recognize this. 

"The Real Side Chick."

"The Real Side Chick."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.

Recently I have been listening to a lot of Pinoy rappers. Mainly Hev Abi and Nateman. I have been listening to some other acts over the years and there seems to be a theme of one guy( I assume the rapper) getting into a sexual relationship with a girl/woman who seems to be in another or sometimes implied several relationships.

I then get to ask the question , if you are the best or number one then why are you acting like you are second best or number two or if some body count is to be believed number 8 or 13 down the hole?

I mean surely a rapper with so much swagger and much proclaimed  , gifted in the sex department should be able to hold down a steady, stable girl friend right? Right?

Instead what is conveyed through these songs is that these guys are the actual side chicks , waiting for girls to call them , dito lang ako kapag kailangan mo , kapag wala kang kasama , kalandian. Huh? Tawagan mo ako kapag di na kayo magkasama. etc. etc.

I don't know when that ever became cool. Being a side guy. Rappers always say that they are the main man but I think very few get to really say that they are in real life.