"Street Lamp Moments"

"Street Lamp Moments"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

Under the street lamp , 

Sitting ,  when I found you

What were you thinking I wonder

Is the cold getting to you?

Would you want to stay here?

Closer , so I could tell?

Or do you miss home?

And that person that you probably left there.

I wave at you and you waved back

did I break your thought?

You smiled

and it broke mine.

I like it here , you said

Show me more.

Snapping into the present

I offered my arm

A moment ago you seemed lost

you missed my arm

you went straight to me

I had to smile at that.

Shaw , 09/02/2017

December Avenue - Sa Ngalan ng Pag-ibig mo: "Not as painful as I thought"

December Avenue - Sa Ngalan ng Pag-ibig mo: "Not as painful as I thought"

by:

Virgilio F.De leon Jr.MD

To be honest I have seen the link of this MV floating around in my facebook and youtube feed for weeks now and despite liking the previous MV's that December Avenue made with Tower of Doom and the high quality of their music I was slightly put off by the title of the song. I initially thought that it was an OST for a telenovela or a local movie which I know should not affect what I like but it does now and so I lived with it.

So after Rod Tolentino of Subscapular and a former nurse of mine , Ru Dela Rosa like the link I finally gave it a try. I reasoned how painful sounding could it be if these two gave it a listen and liked it.

From the initial guitar strums I knew that I would already like the song which on the outside speaks of a lost love , a road not taken , a person still hoping and waiting for someone to return. "Willing to wait po." , as the Jollibee cashier would often say , "Sa Ngalan ng Pag-ibig mo."

The MV plays out the first part of the song  of the song on the onset with a girl seemingly reminiscing about a relationship with this one particular guy. How much fun they had. How bonded they were. How things were going oh so well until it ended.

You relate to the girl hoping secretly that by the end of the MV they eventually get back together and then the ball drops.

The transition occurs when the girls mouths this part of the song:

"Hanggang kailan pa ba magtitiis ,  nalunod na sa kakaisip." 

And you realize that the guy he has memories of having had a relationship with was never in a relationship with her at all. The scenes at the earlier part of the song repeats and shows alone in the places that she wants the guy to bring her to or accompany her to.

At this point another set of people also relate to the girl. People who have had imaginary relationships with a famous person or simply people who they feel would be perfect for them if only they would notice that they do exist.

I would have to say that the MV is both effective in toying with the viewers emotions and thoughts as the story unfolds and I am happy to note that I have enjoyed this MV and look forward to December Avenue's next musical offering.

"Midweek Magic September 2017 #30 - Death of the Creatureless"

"Midweek Magic September 2017 #30 - Death of the Creatureless"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

Archenemy fascinates me. It seems to come up with interactions that are interesting , planned or otherwise. While the scheme cards favor certain decks and game play I have often found that certain schemes provide overpowered advantages that could lead to early concessions and outright victories.

One such interaction was when I happened to randomly draw the scheme card , "Dance , Pathetic Marionette". It forces players to to reveal cards from the top of his or her library until they reveal creatures cards. You choose which one of those revealed creatures and put it into play under your control. The rest of the revealed cards are put into those players graveyards.

Great scheme right? I mean you get a creature card and you mill everyone else. Consuming Aberration is happy if you have him in play.

This scheme also resulted in a player kill and that would be Ram who ran a mono white enchantment creatureless deck that milled itself out.That deck was hard to deal with as it spewed out Angels after gaining life.

This scheme made it look like a bad choice in decks.

There were no puppets to pull.Hence Death.

"Doc In , Doc Out September 2017 #1 :Hana...Ana...Shuck!"

"Doc In , Doc Out September 2017 #1 :Hana...Ana...Shuck!"

by:

Virgilio F.De leon Jr.MD

Patient: Madami po akong allergy doc eh.
Me: ano ano po?
Patient: (tells every drug he is allergic too) Muntik na nga po akong mamatay sa hanaplelactic shuck doc?
Me: Saan po?
Patient: Nung nagkallergy po ako ng matindi doc , namantal katawan ko. hanaplelactic shuck daw ako doc.
Me:Ako rin eh.

"Drown"

"Drown"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

The whisper of the heart is just that

A whisper that drowns all else

A form of madness taking hold

A cautionary tale you were told

In the throes of these

You hear or see nothing else

Except that unmeasureable beat

The rhythm you dance in this heat

You say each others name

like a chant to an eldritch god

So that by bestowing the blessings of the flesh

All will be one at your behest.

MVR , TM Kalaw. 07/22/2017

"Carnage Tyrant: Dino Assaulter."

"Carnage Tyrant: Dino Assaulter."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

I have always been a fan of big monsters. One of the early decks that I made was made up of Red/Green Beast decks. I just enjoyed having one of those great big things on your side of the battlefield ready to snap up an opponents head or just deal so much damage in one swing.

While the monsters I have had are not perfect and are easily dispatched with a well timed spot removal or an annoying counter I still loved playing them. I was thankful when they printed cards like Surrak , Dragonclaw or The Simic Sky Swallower or the Mistcutter Hydra. Strong cards that still had weaknesses in them but enough to annoy that blue player in your playgroup.

I have an existing Temur deck that is the current home of these cards and soon it will be the home of this Ixilan Card.

Yup. This is shaping up to be one of my most anticipated cards because it can  be such a powerhouse in the kind of decks that I usually build.

For a mere 6 mana , 4 colorless and 2 green you have a 7/6 non-legendary dinosaur that can't be countered and when it lands on the battlefield is Hexproof as well. Having trample is just gravy at this point but heck this is just the exact thing you need for an assaulter/finisher. It works well on it's own and can even be pumped with an aura or spell to make it even more massive.

Short of board wiping you can be sure that Carnage Tyrant can get the job done for you. Unless there is a bigger dino out there that hasn't been spoiled from Ixalan.Or another creature that is bigger on the other side of the board.

Carnage Tyrant I await four copies you. Looking forward to the time that we bite some of our opponents heads off. You do the biting. I do the casting though.

"The 3 things that I have seen this week September 2017 #1 : Zombies"

"The 3 things that I have seen this week September 2017  #1 : Zombies"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

"I have seen the Zombie apocalypse and it is real."

This is what Cersei Lannister from the popular GOT series would say in a tabloid somewhere and this is what of much what I have seen this week in both fictional and real life.

1) The Zark's Burger Apocalypse.

Reminiscent of scenes from The Walking Dead swarming unto an enclave of humans and 28 days later where the Undead are running toward some fresh meat. People who were after the 8 peso burger from Zarks turned into zombies that cared neither for their neighbors or their dignity all for the chance of eating a burger that usually costs 149 pesos. 

Are the scenes shameful? Yes. Am I glad that I took no part in it? Yes. Does it speak to a social inequality problem that we all have in this country? Yes.

All it takes is an 8 peso burger and all hell breaks lose. I would say that is a problem.

2) The White Walkers Breaks the Wall.

We all knew it was coming from the trailers of Season 7. The White Walkers would now command an undead Viserion and break part of Eastwatch by the sea to set up the Undead Vs. The Living match up that has been hinted at since season 1.

A funny thought occurred to me as I watched Viserion scour the wall with what looks like an ice blast. Doesn't more ice make the wall stronger? but then again it seemed like a different kind of flame altogether. It might be a rotting kind of breath.

3) Zombies on both Sides.

The drug war is a polarizing issue for our country and sadly despite both sides having valid points of contention no one seems to be a moderate to take all the conflicting views and arrive at a solution that could at least keep people from forming zombie masses on both sides where they pick a color and just stick with it because they are all in. No gray party to just come up with something simple and maybe there isn't one because the issues are complex cannot be solved by something simple. And being a mindless zombie is preferable than to not have a side.