37 not-quite love stories in film

I don't know about you, but I'm sick of hugot. Those trite movie lines, song lyrics, and social media posts, supposedly capturing the many hues of love and despair, have devolved into saccharine ramblings, terrible attempts at wordplay, and superficial sales hooks catering to the Wattpad teen demographic. Instead of expressing profound emotions and deep reflections, hugot now trivializes them. Annoyingly.

So with Valentine's Day now rearing its bright red head, I'm bracing myself for the onslaught of pandering hugot flicks as well as the subsequent Facebook posts quoting lines from such flicks ad nauseam. Or, more likely, I'll be holed up at home with the boyfriend, watching a non-romantic film as our form of protest to the culture of mush.

You with me? Here's my list of films that look like romantic love stories but aren't really. At first glance, they may seem like the usual boy-meets-girl BS, but then they take you somewhere else. They pan out to be masterful works of art, beautiful explorations of the human condition, colored by the many hues of love and despair.

5 Myths About Zero-Waste Living, Debunked

I recently saw a Facebook album showing tips for a zero-waste or low-waste lifestyle. It had a lot of really good ideas, but there were also suggestions in there that didn’t quite sit well with some people.

For instance, the post suggested that to lessen your buying of hygiene products with wasteful packaging, you could make your own toothpaste and deodorant(!). I know a few friends who cringed at that. It’s not that do-it-yourself toothpaste is completely gross; it’s that some of us have non-negotiable hygiene requisites that just can’t be sensibly replaced by homemade stuff.

Ideas like these, while doable for some, are a turn-off for others. They’re misconceptions that prevent people from even considering any waste-reducing change in their lives.

Let’s take a realistic look at some common myths about zero-waste living. Hopefully, the truth behind these misconceptions will change a few minds. :)

Days Like This: scramble some eggs and listen to a song

There are Days Like This: You wake up and the weight of the day rushes on top of you like a flash-flood. The anxieties you've been pushing to the back of your mind, the rent, the bills, the love lost, the pains you thought you've left behind. Sometimes, it's not even that -- sometimes, it's just a heavy nothingness. You wake up and you can't get your body to move.

I've struggled with Days Like This for years, and while they still incapacitate me every now and then, I've learned two important things.

One, I can outlast them. They're just days. Sometimes, just hours. Over and over, I've found that if I hang on, if I let myself survive for just a little longer, I'll open my eyes after a while and the weight will have lifted. I just need to outlast it -- perhaps with a friend, with a book, or yes, with a song.

Two, I can scramble some eggs.

Let me explain the eggs.

70+ movies that messed with my head (or at least made me think)

I absolutely love films that offer some mental exercise. I also love lists. So here, a list of films that offer some mental exercise -- whether they're mystery, sci-fi, romance, or even comedy; whether they're good or bad or ugly. I've added my own amateur comments for fellow amateur viewers. :) Also, despite its length, this list is far from definitive -- Shutter Island isn't even on it. With your recommendations, who knows, I might make a Part 2.

Here goes. My top three:

1. Coherence
• Quick synopsis: A dinner party takes a turn for the bizarre when a comet passes close to Earth.
• Keywords: Schrodinger's Theory, doppelgangers
• Quick review: This neat little low-budget gem is easily one of my favorites in the mind-fuck category. In turns cool and claustrophobic, chilling and exciting, it poses both mind-boggling questions and moral dilemmas that last long after viewing. Supreme goosebumps delivered.
2. Primer
• Quick synopsis: A group of friends invent a time machine but soon face consequences that change their friendship and their lives.
• Keywords: time travel, friendship, secrets
• Quick review: Another low-budget film that has become a personal favorite, mostly for the sweet, sweet complexity of it. I really have a thing for movies that make me want to view it a second or third time (with pen and paper in handy just to make a chart of the plot) – and with this one, a second viewing is definitely required.
3. The Prestige
• Quick synopsis: Two competing magicians try to beat each other with escalating tricks that affect their personal lives.
• Keywords: magic, rivals, love
• Quick review: This is my favorite plot-twist movie so far. Sleek, simple, yet effective story-telling, great acting from a great cast, and refreshing plot devices that are far from overused.
  The rest of these titles are in no particular order.
  

quick getaway: Sagpulon Falls

One of the best things about living in the Philippines is that you're never far from places that take your breath away. You get spectacular sunsets right outside your window, inviting beaches by the side of the road, and rivers and lakes and waterfalls just waiting after a little hike.

Knowing that, we often skip the more tourist-ready destinations and explore a place we've never even heard of before. We like to get a little lost.

Thankfully, we don't have to be so far away from home (nor break our budgets) to wander. From our city hideouts in Cagayan de Oro, we can just hop on a bus to somewhere like Sagpulon Falls in Jasaan, Misamis Oriental.

the quiet side of Cebu

Like thousands of other travelers, we went one summer to the province of Cebu expecting to bask on white beaches and sip chic little cocktails. Okay, we didn't exactly plan that, but at least one beach trip to the island of Mactan -- which is crawling with hotels, resorts, and foreign tourists -- was on the itinerary.

Let's just say that "beach trip" didn't go so well. In summary: We got kinda lost and spent the whole afternoon commuting through half the island. Getting lost like that was actually nice, but we wanted to be somewhere more... chilled.

And we found the perfect chill. Not at the beach, not at a resort, and definitely not in an urbanized area like Mactan.

South was the way to go.

city on the verge

There is something fascinating about living in a city that is just on the verge of growing up. You get to watch the buildings grow taller than the trees, the night lights grow brighter than those from the fireflies you used to watch as a kid.

The river that runs through Cagayan de Oro has always throbbed with the promise of the city's booming, but now, it glows, too, with the lights of the young bridges and the new parks. The soil that flanks it has turned to concrete -- an urban jungle where old meets new: motorelas sharing the road with SUVs, typewriter services at the street corner just across the computer store.