rjramones. keep it cool.

Clowns. Kids Love Them.

2008-05-07T16:54:00.000+08:00

Clowns rock.

Ohai.

2008-04-11T16:52:00.001+08:00

This blog has been dormant for 8 months now. I have been meaning to post ever since... really. Here are things that I should have blogged about, but didn't, or couldn't. Or wouldn't?

New job position (IT something).
The Rancid B Sides and C SIdes CD, Dropkick Murphy's The Meanest of Times, and The Aggrolites Reggae Hit LA album.
Our Bora trip.
My xmas wishlist.
The fall of our call center company.
New job. Again.
The latest Pacquiao fight.
My stolen cellphone.
Our Baguio trip.
Our new dog, Queenie.
My new DS Lite. (Thanks Aimee!)

And a handful more. Anyways, I'll be posting more soon, I hope. And I'll be cleaning this blog up. See y'all.

When you have nothing to say, say nothing.

2007-08-09T02:31:00.000+08:00

Hola. I'm still here. It's been an age since I last posted a post. What was I up to?

Let me see. I have been working. I've been re-learning HTML. I've been teaching myself CSS. And I've been tinkering with Flash. Visit Flashed Mobile for free downloads of Flash Lite Wallpapers and Screensavers for cellphones.

I promised myself to post more. Se y'all in the pit.

The Hunt for Tim Armstrong's "A Poet's Life" MP3 and Videos

2007-04-26T06:09:00.000+08:00

05/17/07 UPDATE!!! - Oh No! Found Oh No, Cold Blooded, and Among the Dead today. And if I'm not mistaken, the hunt is over. Be sure to check out 'A Poet's Life" in stores on May 22. See ya'll in the pit, bastards.

05/03/07 UPDATE!!! - Added Translator. I thought it's one song a week?!?! Or did I miss this from before? Anyways, The Aggrolites kicked ass with this one.

05/02/07 UPDATE!!! - Added Lady Demeter. Another reggae tune with a country feel. Maybe it's just me. Maybe because of the harmonica. Lady Demeter video is set in Japan. So japaniice!

2nd 04/27/07 UPDATE!!! - The sites I've found are all bastards. I went ahead and worked the internets' magic using vixy. All available mp3s and videos can be downloaded through RapidShare now. Tim, I hope you don't mind this great service I am providing to all your fans...

1st 04/27/07 UPDATE!!! - It looks like the hunt will be much easier than expected. Tim Armstrong's myspace posted all the songs and videos currently available. Found Take This City today.

Epitaph recently announced that starting April 17, new songs for Tim Armstrong's solo album, A Poet's Life, will be available every Tuesday. Fans (ehem!) are to hunt down the songs and videos on various blogs, sites and social networks. All songs for A Poet's Life will be downloadable for free as a token of Tim's appreciation to his fans.

A Poet's Life started out August last year with the release of Hold On, followed by Wake Up. Last March, the third track Into Action, was first heard on KROQ-FM. All songs featured The Aggrolites as Armstrong's back-up band. Into Action also features sweet vocals from Skye Sweetnam.

On May 22 the whole album will be available for sale and will come with a bonus DVD with 10 new videos.

Here's a list of mp3s and videos that I've found so far. I'll try to update as soon as I find new releases.

You will need to install DivX Codec to play videos found here.

Wake Up [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Hold On [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Into Action [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Translator [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Take This City [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Inner City Violence [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Oh No [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Lady Demeter [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Among The Dead [ mp3 ] [ avi ]
Cold Blooded [ mp3 ] [ avi ]

If you find something not here, be a good boy and drop me a comment. Keep comin' back, I'll soon have this completed!

NOFX in Manila PICS!!!

2007-04-25T18:19:00.000+08:00

My apologies to my good friend Muddy Ramones for not being able to come. My Corporate Overlords needed me... Anyways, I bet they had fun.

NOFX played in Amoranto Theatre last April 18. Yes, that was a Wednesday. Frontacts were Fastpitch, The Ambassadors, Urban Dub, and Hong Kong hardcore imports King Ly Chee.

Here are some cool shots from other cool people who made it.

These are from adrian. Check his site for more...

nofx bai!

Fat Mike either rocking out or getting a diarrhea attack.

Melvin hypnotized by an audience's finger.

These are from noreen. More on his site...

King Ly Chee looks like fun.

Erik.

Fat Mike enjoying a glass of tuba.

I found my happy thought! Weee!

Blogger Beta Templates and Widgets

2007-04-25T06:16:00.000+08:00

I swear this would be the last time I change my blog's theme. I might change the header and colors a little bit, but this new blogger template would be my last.

If you're like me, meaning you've spent about a week searching, you probably know that there's not enough Blogger Beta templates around. The good ones are few and far in between. So here's a list of sites with templates that doesn't suck.

Gecko & Fly - They have some of the most decent Blogger Beta templates out. I'm using their Andreas08.
Blogcrowds - Worth the sign-up. A number of famous Old Blogger templates converted to Beta.
Final Sense - Not really my kind of templates, but I'm sure one could work something out of these.

And that's it. Now if you want to go DIY, you can find some help here:

But I'm guessing you already know that...

For useful beta blogger widgets:

Beautiful Beta Widgets - This should be your first stop. Just a few but almost all are must-have's.
Blogger Templates -Templates suck, Widgets cool. I'm using their Recent Comments and Search widgets.
phydeaux3 - Just found one from this dude, but he did a good job. Tag Cloud/Label Cloud.
WebWeaver's World - This guy's got a step-by-step on how to add a Most Popular Posts widget.

Cheers.

Happy Birthday Aimee!!!

2007-04-20T07:33:00.000+08:00

Hola! Today is April 20 and it's my jellyacey's birthday. Happy 2_th birthday Aimee! See you later. Give her some love and greet her you bastards...

And a happy birthday as well to the following people:

1972 - Carmen Electra, American actress, best known from Baywatch.
1964 - Crispin Glover, actor, best known for Willard and Back to the Future.
1964 - Andy Serkis, Gollum! Gollum!
1905 - Colin L. Powell, former United States Secretary of State.
1889 - Adolf Hitler, a gay bunny wabbit.
570 - Muhammed, founder of Islam.

Happy birthday boys and gals!!!

Jollibee in the City: Ep01

2007-04-14T02:42:00.000+08:00

One sunny day Jollibee decided to take a stroll along the streets of Manila. To his surprise, when he checked his pockets, his Jolli-wallet was gone!!!

He braved the early morning traffic on his Jolli-scooter looking for signs of his Jolli-money.

Finally, on an intersection, he found his suspects. He asked them nicely to return his Jolli-wallet...

Seeing that they won't return the stolen goods, Jollibee peed on their car.

THE END.

Thanks to marlvinlao.

...and I will blind the world...

2007-03-30T20:00:00.000+08:00

This post is what you get when (i) one of your best friends leaves the country for work, (ii) have a Red Horse induced debate about the future, and (iii) read The Alchemist the following days.

I always dreamed of being a musician. The first time I picked up a guitar, I knew I was destined for greatness. I've been through a lot of bands, and none of them made shit...

12th Rib/Ashe's Blue Sun - Highschool. Me on guitars, Joel, Jester and Atan. We played covers, mostly what's popular on the radio. My most memorable gig ever. Me wearing a over-sized Bench shirt and a red baseball cap pulled down low while playing Machine Head by Bush. The most embarrassing song I've ever played. Where's the Love by Hansons. We broke up after high-school, but we all remain the best of friends.

Super Combo 2000 Experience - Yea the name suxxaxx. Highschool side band. Me on guitars and backing vocals, Rom, Ramon and Ubi Jan. We played Weezer covers and some Goldfinger. Just for fun, but we did play at some private parties. We never really broke up. We are all still friends.

Pasig Punks/DIY - Please don't ask about the band name. Me on vocals and guitars, Muddy, Bangky and Baby. Formed around 2000 AD, we played Rancid, Operation Ivy, Ramones etc. We also have some songs of our own. We don't go live unless we are (or at least I am) drunk. Fiestas, parties, contests, bars, name it, we were there. I've learned that gin tastes much better when sipped through a plastic straw. They booted me out because I was always late. No hard feelings, we're still friends.

Guy and Pip Experience - A one practice session affair, around DIY period. Me on bass, Ubi Jan and Kuya Kim. We played Kim's originals. The plan was to go to Quezon for a Battle of the Bands. I backed out. Still good friends, though.

The Outsiders - After DIY. Me on bass, Jun Veggies and Mang Lars. No gigs, just practice sessions playing mostly Ramones and Clash covers. I left them. They continued and are doing well now, so I've heard. Still friends.

Girlfriend - Around 2003 or 2004. Me on bass, Flormar, Francis and Ubi Jan. Strictly originals. Yes, we played once (or twice??) at Mayrics, thanks for asking. We agreed to boot me out after I went AWOL one practice. They did well after I left, an album under Monopond and an NU spot. Oh well... still friends.

Casillas/No Problem! - My good friends from DIY gave me another chance to shine. Me on guitars, Muddy, Bangky, Russel and EJ. When I joined, they mostly played oi and oldschool punk covers at undergorund gigs. Several arguments later, Russel and EJ were out, and Maki came in. We played several originals plus some good old ska and punk. On our last gig, a half-naked man with a bottle in his hands pulled the plugs of our amps and told us to go home. We did. We are all still best of friends.

...but I did take home some good stories to tell my grandchildren.

8 Albums That Changed My Life

2007-03-07T07:41:00.000+08:00

Use Your Illusion II (Guns N' Roses)

The year was 1992 and I was in fifth grade when my brother joined the 7 million who bought the second part of the Use Your Illusion double album. My young and impressionable mind stood no chance. Upto this day I could still whistle along "Civil War."

In Utero (Nirvana)

In Utero was a welcome change after numbing my brains with Bon Jovi, Extreme, White Lion and the likes, even though I understood just a tenth of what Kurt was singing about back then (come to think of it, until now). I'm afraid and ashamed to say that I may be one of the reasons Kurt burnt out.

Blue Album (Weezer)

I was sold after hearing him say his name is Jonas and he's carrying the wheel. A bandmate lent me the album, and it took me a year to give it back. Rivers Cuomo is still one of my favorite singer/songwriters.

...And Out Come the Wolves (Rancid)

The year was 1996 and I just came home from school with a copy of The Presidents of the United States of America's self-titled album. As I ran up I could hear a hoarse voice fighting its way out of our karaoke's speakers... "Took the 60 bus..." My brother told me it was Rancid, and I should wait for my turn until he's finished. I sat down cross-legged to keep my feet from involuntarily kicking. I would've danced if I could. I never imagined you could make music this good. After finishing Side B I flipped the cassette around to give it another go. If you still can't tell by now, ...And Out Come the Wolves shares the top spot of my favorite albums of all time.

Singles (The Specials)

I truly think this album was crap when I first listened to it. After finding out that they were one of Tim Armstrong's influences, I immediately went record bar hopping to find any Specials' album. It wasn't until years later that I started to realize the genius of Jerry Dammers.

Energy (Operation Ivy)

Their drums sound like aluminum basins. Their guitars sound like my acoustic after it fell down the fourteen steps of our staircase. The vocals is barely comprehensible. Still, I was (again) left staring at our karaoke, smiling from time to time as I comprehend a line or two of lyrics. My favorite album, barnone.

The Harder They Come Soundtrack (Various Artists)

This album came to me at a time when I was tired of hearing my friends' oi/street records. Aside from leading me to dig old-school Jamaican music, it also made me realize that I am indeed getting old. My favorite pick-me-up song, "Sitting in Limbo", can be found here.

Dirty Reggae/The Aggrolites (The Aggrolites)

The Aggrolites' authentic reggae beats and the gruff, slightly angry voice of Jesse Wagner gave me exactly what I am looking. A perfect mix of aggression and cool.

If you bastards would like to discover new music, I would suggest the following sites:

Pandora
RegnYouth Archives
MobTownSKASounds

El Labirinto del Fauno: He ate the f*ckin fairies!!

2007-02-26T02:16:00.000+08:00

About a week ago, I described El Labirinto del Fauno to my girlfriend as an alice-in-wonderland-like film, thinking it was a fairy tale of sorts. After watching it Friday morning, I realized I couldn't be more farther from the truth.

El Labirinto del Fauno is not for kids. It's Rated R, I believe, because of the gruesome violence. It's grim and it's depressing. Faces will be bashed mercilessly, guerrillas will be tortured, cheeks will be ripped open, and fairies will be eaten alive. Definitely not Wonderland material.

Spoiler starts here.

A few minutes into the movie, I knew something was wrong. A girl is bloody and is definitely dead. Her name is Ofelia and the movie tells her last days. She's a fairy-tale stricken kid whose mother is pregnant with her new stepfather, Captain Vidal. He's one eeeeeeeevil dude.

The night they moved in with him, she was led by a mantis-turned-fairy into an intricate garden where she was met by a faun. There, the faun told Ofelia that she was a princess, daughter of the King of the Underworld. but before she could enter her kingdom, she must successfully fulfill three tasks.

Suffice to say, Ofelia finished two of her tasks. For the final one, she was asked to "spill the blood" of an innocent, which was her newborn brother. She refused and in return she was abandoned by the faun, left to be shot by her stepfather. During her final seconds, we are shown a scene of her entering her father's throne room, wearing a beautiful gown fit for the grand castle. The faun declared that by saving her brother, she has proven herself to be the true Princess. After some applause from the creatures of the Underworld, the scene winked out. Ofelia was shown dead, with Mercedes (their resident maid) weeping over her limp body.

After watching I immediately went online to see what others are saying about the ending (I even found this creepy site). None of what other people wrote worked for me. The way I see it, El Labirinto has two endings, depending on who is watching. One is a dead Ofelia, for those who doesn't believe, who got tired of believing, and who refuse to believe. The other is a happy Ofelia living with her true parents, for those of us that are kids at heart, never failing to wonder and question what's real and not.

Spoiler ends here.

Blog Attack: Ronapotski

2007-02-21T21:22:00.000+08:00

My friend Ronapot owes me a shower of Boy Bawang for mangling her blog. She writes good stuff. Be nice, head over there and be her friend. Hope this will be your last blog Rona.

Blog Attack: Rats in the Hallway

2007-02-18T03:25:00.000+08:00

It's been a while since I last visited Rancid's Official Website. They have a new welcome image now and their Spring 2007 album is still a go. One thing they've added is the Rancid Live! page where bastards with enough cash can buy recordings of their previous live shows.

Buy?? Not free?? Yup. Apparently they can't get enough cash. To all of Rancid's crew: STOP DOING THAT! Cut us some slack dudes. Set your music free DAMN IT!!!

Anyways, also visited Tim Armstrong's blog, Rats in the Hallway. It's a photoblog of some sorts with a couple of videos and liner notes. Good stuff.

Saturday Night

2007-02-17T23:21:00.000+08:00

Aimee - ballroom dancing with her mom
Kim - on a date
Rona - probably sleeping
Muddy - movie house (daw)
Rom - no reply
Uncle Harold - no reply
Atan - no reply
Me - blogging

Solidarity, love and unity

2007-02-15T20:52:00.000+08:00

An old acquaintance asked me last night if I had news on the Sagada 11. Like the first time I've heard of them, I can't help but feel I should've done more. I should do more.

About the same time a year ago...

From the Autonomous Media:

On Feb. 14, 2006, a group of 11 anarcho-punks from across the Philippines set out on a trip to Sagada... The punks, who were 15-24 years old and knew each other through groups like Food not Bombs and Earth First, were anticipating a nature trip in one of the most beautiful and remote parts of the Philippines. They never arrived.

Instead, Police stopped the truck they were hitching a ride on, and ordered the group to get down at gunpoint. Without any explanation, the police detained the 11 travelers, kicked, beat, manacled and blindfolded them, and confiscated their belongings – including a camera with photos of their activities over the course of their trip, and cell phones which would have allowed them to alert friends and family of the situation.

The prisoners are: Darwin Alagar (age 21, Urdaneta Pangasinan), Rundren Lao (age 24, Davao City), Jefferson Dela Rosa (age 22, Pasig City), Metro Villegracia (age 24, Davao City), Neil Russell Balajadia (age 25, Pasig City), Ronron Pandino (age 23, Laguna), Arvie Nunez (age 23, Lucena City), Aldous Christian Mañosa (age 19, Pasig City), Anderson Alonzo (age 18, Davao City)

Neil Russel Balajadia. Russel. I can't exactly point when, maybe around 2002-2003. Muds and I was outside comedydotcom, a little-known bar in Pasig. A lean guy approached us selling bootleg tapes and cds. Said he noticed Muds' leather jacket and thought we might be interested. We were but we didn't have any money so he excused himself. When he came back he had two plastics with straw filled with beer. We knew we made a new friend.

I was sure I knew the others as well, or at least seen them before. Parts of me were struggling to get involved, but I didn't. I did sign the petition though.

I searched around this morning and found this.

From Inquirer.net:

The nine backpackers who were arrested in February for their supposed involvement in a communist raid on a military detachment in Mankayan town would spend Christmas with their families after a local court ordered their release on Wednesday.

What happened to these guys are just plain wrong. I hope they don't let it end like this. Anyways, hope to see guys again soon.

About Me

2007-02-15T11:18:00.001+08:00

my name is rjramones. a recovering punk. a mediocre artist. an aspiring writer. a frustrated singer. an alcoholic poser. a never-was. not even a has-been.

i'm rjramones and i'm a corporate sell-out. a capitalist's whore. a willing victim. something i swore years ago i would never be.

my name is rjramones and i can't help but sing along whenever i hear an air supply song playing. i love introvoys therefore i hate afterimage. one song i'll take with me until i die is roots radicals. i wish operation ivy is still around. my favorite line? if that's what they call normal then i'd rather be insane...

my name is rjramones. from the streets of pasig. as of this writing, still living with my mom and brother. out of my 20 something childhood and highschool friends, only eight remain. i've been loving my jellyace for 10 years now. she's my life.

my name is rjramones. this is my blog.

Go Away.

2007-01-21T23:56:00.000+08:00

My blog sucks right now. Come back later.