I really hate going to the dentist. One of my most fervent wishes is that I have perfect teeth and gums that will never rot and decay and stay perfectly white, strong, and healthy forever, even after I’m dead so when they exhume my body they can go “Wow those teeth are bright.” But there’s no avoiding it; we are human and so we must disintegrate slowly.

Sitting in that chair with your mouth open, not knowing what evil-shaped instrument he’ll reach for next, is a special, unique kind of torture. A very specific feeling of vulnerability and helplessness and near-panic that normal people can relate with. I hate it because there’s no fighting it (Bleeding Gums Murphy tried and look what happened to him). There’s nothing you can do! NOTHING!

However I am thankful that I have a cool dentist. He plays music on the radio to distract you, there’s a stuffed koala gripping the blinding light in case you need something to focus on with your eyes, he hums, and he explains every single thing he’s doing to you, which, for me, puts me at ease. Sometimes he even shows me what he’s going to do by using the mirror (other times I hold the mirror myself while watching him drill holes). I told Neva to go to him and she liked him a lot; he’s now her dentist as well. So if you need a good dentist tell me, I’ll hook you up.

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I like Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets more than the first film. It’s the first time I’ve actually wanted to READ the books, which may be the best thing I can say about the film. It didn’t feel dragging at all for a 2 hour 41 minute film. I loved Kenneth Branagh; he was such a gas. Alan Rickman’s Snape, though sporting a diminished role, was still a memorable presence due to that perfect delivery of dialogue and the flourish that Rickman brings to the character. I liked the Whomping Willow, too. I’m now excited to see the third movie, and it frustrates me that they’re not going to release it next year. They’re only going to start shooting in Spring of next year, so Prisoner of Azkaban will come out in Summer 2004. Damn. Since they’re changing directors anyway (Alfonso Cuaron steps in as Chris Columbus steps out) I don’t see why they have to take a break. Why spoil the momentum? I hope they don’t do any more breaks, because I don’t want Daniel Radcliffe playing a 17 year old wizard when he’s already obviously 25. Part of the cool aspect of having it come out on a yearly basis is actually watching the actors grow up. That and you make it into an annual event that you anticipate.

On a sadder note, it’s strange to watch Richard Harris as Dumbledore when you know this actor’s already dead. And that, before the movie even came out, people were already considering who will best replace him (forerunners include Christopher Lee). Now I’m worried about Maggie Smith. See? There’s another reason to keep up the pace!

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So on Friday Neva and I went out with Dos and Duckee. Actually what happened is I was in PowerBooks waiting for Neva, who was going to be late, and bumped into Carlo, quite alive. He was wearing a sweater and shades inside the mall. I asked him if he had any plans and since he didn’t, invited him to join us and he did. Dos and Duckee later introduced us (Neva included) to Richie and Ella, also models. Dos, to remind you, is a classmate of mine from high school. Duckee used to be Neva’s officemate. All of them were in the recent Best Model Search (Ella was one of the people wearing Mich’s clothes). Here’s Dos in action, and here’s Duckee. We had a bite to eat at Tequila Joe’s, where I basically caught up with Dos and gave him a good teasing, and he showed Neva his wealth of corny jokes cultivated since high school. There were some cool stories from the modeling world, who hates who’s guts, who’s always high, who’s tactless, etc. Afterward we went to Xamayca in Timog, a reggae bar. It would only occur to me the morning after that Xamayca is supposed to be a clever turn on Jamaica. Alright, I’m dense. So anyway, I’m not really a reggae man, but I was completely taken by surprise. Brown Man Revival were playing and the place was packed. People standing dancing sweating moving to the beat. I didn’t know there was even a reggae scene. I asked Carlo if this was a Brown Man thing or a Reggae thing and he said Reggae. It was just ridiculous. Everyone was dancing, singing along (they played almost nothing but covers), some with eyes closed. Some of the girls were really into it, too. There was this couple to our right, the girl was dancing while standing on a chair (quite a common thing, actually), swinging her hip and gyrating while her guy had his hands on her waist. Seemed kinda brazen but they didn’t care. This girl to our left was also doing her best try-out for pole dancing, and kept clinking her beer bottle with us as if we knew who she was.

Dos and Ella were the first runner-ups at the model search, by the way. Here are four pics: 1 2 3 4

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Saturday was a tropa session at Mich's. Neva had a sleepover with her high school buddies so after I dropped her off I went over and said hi. They were burning holes in cloth so I thought they were done working and was just reading a book. Mostly shot the shit, telling tales, updating chismis, the usual. Lia and Chris joined us later. Ended up talking about different things: bonding over dental histories, the difficulty of getting Quark a gift (since he has everything), puppets over CG effects, etc.

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Yesterday was Alan Moore’s birthday. He’s 49. He’s also my favorite writer. Amazing: he’s recognized as one of the best writers of an entire medium (comics) and he’s still alive, still putting out great work. It’s been an honor to get friends of mine reading him and buying his books. I’m glad I’ve gotten several people to buy his From Hell, which is a $35 book but worth it ten times over. Any more money I can send his way is always a good thing. This man showed me that there’s so much more you can do with comics than what most people are doing, which is always a good thing. It made me realize the potential of comics as an art, as a medium, as a storytelling device. With all its magic and splendor and monstrousness, literally your only limit is your imagination. If there’s any book of his you’d like to try, maybe I have it, you’re more than welcome to borrow it from me.

And today one of my favorite bands, Ciudad, turns 8. :)