I’ve heard of Criminal Minds before, during one of my shopping jaunts at MCS, but never got around to checking the show out because I thought it was too dark for me. Criminal Minds focus more on the criminal than on the crime itself, relying on their knowledge of human behavior to anticipate the criminal’s next move.

There was one episode last week, about a serial killer using his son to lure his victims to his lair that sent the shivers up my spine… that was the episode that got me hooked to the show. I try to catch the show on Fox when I can but as soon as I’m done with all the work backlog (thanks to my 2 week battle with cough and fatigue) I’m going to watch all 5 seasons of the show. Humanda!

]]> http://tiarara.com/must-watch-criminal-minds/feed/ 0 http://tiarara.com/the-e72s-here/ http://tiarara.com/the-e72s-here/#comments Sat, 06 Feb 2010 19:42:11 +0000 Tiara http://tiarara.com/?p=1997 Despite the sore throat, fever, and grouchy disposition, my eyes lit up when the DHL delivery guy knocked on our door. He was holding a big package, and in it was the e72 box. If I could shout, I would have, but even laughing hurt so I didn’t dare shout in glee. I have the black version and it’s one sweet gadget. I’ve synced my phone already with the unit, thanks to Nokia’s easy sync application. Anyway, here are the specs. More articles and photos to come in the next few days.

Photography

• 5 megapixel camera (2592 x 1944 pixels) with autofocus and flash
• Image formats: JPEG, Exif
• CMOS sensor
• 5x digital zoom
• One-touch autofocus key
• Focal length: 4.7 mm
• Focus range: 10 cm to infinity
• LED flash
• Flash modes: Automatic, On, Off, Red-eye reduction
• Flash operating range: 3 ft.
• Automatic, sunny, cloudy, incandescent, fluorescent
• Automatic, Manual exposure compensation +2,0 ~ -2,0
• Capture modes: Still capture mode, video mode, panorama mode and sequence mode
• Scene modes: Auto, user defined, close-up, portrait, landscape, sport, night mode (w/o flash), night portrait
• Color tone modes: Normal, sepia, black & white, vivid, negative
• Light sensitivity modes: Automatic, low, medium, high
• Show viewfinder grid
• Still image editor

Video

• Main camera
• VGA: 640 x 480 at 15fps
• QVGA: 320 x 240 at 15 fps
• QCIF: 176 x 144 at 15 fps
• Up to 10x digital video zoom
• Front camera:
  - Up to 2x digital video zoom
• Video recording file formats: .mp4 – default (VGA, QVGA) or .3gp (QCIF for MMS)
• Audio recording formats: AMR, AAC stereo
• Automatic, sunny, cloudy, incandescent, fluorescent
• Scene modes: Automatic, night
• Color tone modes: normal, sepia, black & white, vivid, negative
• Clip length (maximum): 90 mins (High or Normal quality) or limited to MMS size approx. 30 seconds (Sharing quality)
  Note: Clip length is dependable on available memory
• Media player
• Real Player
• Video playback file formats: .mp4, AVC/H.264, .wmv, RV, Flash Video, H.263/3GPP
• Video streaming: .mp4, AVC/H.264, .wmv, RV, Flash Video, H.263/3GPP
• Video calling (VGA) 15 fps
• Video ring tones
• Video editor on device
• Ovi Share for sharing your videos and images

Music and audio playback

• Music player
• Media player
  - Equalizer
  - Shuffle
  - Repeat
  - Loudness on/off
  - Stereo widening
  - Selection by artist, album and genre
  - Album graphics display
• Music playback file formats: AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, MP3, AMR-NB, WMA
• Audio streaming
• Dedicated volume keys
• FM radio 87.5-108 MHz with RDS support
• 3.5 mm AV jack
• Nokia Music Store support
• Ring tones: polyphonic (25 built-in tones)

Voice and audio recording

• Voice commands:
  - Media (Camera, Gallery, Music Player, Radio, Real Player, Voice Recorder)
  - Messaging (Messaging, New email, New message, Read emails, Read messages, Read new emails, Read new messages)
  - Organizer (Calculator, Calendar, Clock, Converter, Data Synchronization, File manager, Notepad, What time is it)
  - Profiles (General, Silent, Meeting, Outdoor, Pager, Offline)
  - Tools (Connection manager, Device manager, Help, Landmarks, Personalisation, Profiles, Settings, Speed dialing, Voice commands, Voice mail)
  - Application manager
  - Bluetooth
  - Browser
  - Logs
  - Navigator (= GPS data)
  - Phonebook
• Enhanced voice dialling
• Voice recorder
• Audio recording formats: .mp4
• AMR-NB, GSM EFR, FR & HR, AMR-WB for CS speech call
• Digital microphone
• Text-to-speech message reader

Personalization: profiles, themes, ring tones

• Customisable profiles
• Ring tones: polyphonic (25 built-in tones) HH: US ring tone, ROW ringing tone
• Video ring tones (3 built-in tones)
• User-defined themes
• Home screen modes: Business and personal

A few days later I saw another email from the guys at WomWorld saying they have an E72 unit I could play with. The unit is on it’s way already…and I just can’t wait!

The first Filipino indie film I remember watching is Kubrador, back when I was in college. I liked the documentary, realistic feel and the stark difference it showed from the usual pinoy movie fare (think john Lloyd-bea).

Access to pinoy indie films in Davao is a bit limited, I would often get my copy from an artsy friend or watch it online. Unlike here where indie films are shown in Cinemas like Robinsons Galleria, in UP Dil, Cubao Expo, malls,  and you’ll even find pirated copies of indie films in Quiapo and Makati Cinema Square.

Of the indie movies I watched, two stood out. Both are very different, with the other tackling life in the slums of Quiapo and the other one a glimpse into the life of a successful woman with less than a hundred days to live.

Tirador by Brilliante Mendoza

Set in Quiapo, you get hooked in by the lives of people living in the slums of this popular place in Manila. There is no object or person that connects the characters, only the fact that they all reside in Quiapo. It’s a brilliant depiction of the day to day life in Quiapo, from a young lady losing her dentures to snatchers returning a necklace because it was fake, to young boys starting out as robbers.

Watching this film left me in awe. I grew up in a middle class environment with a short stint in student activism in college so I had my own share of exposures and mind opening trips. And yet what Mendoza showed in his film is so crass, so different, and it’s definitely on a higher level than the kind of slums we had in Davao. Either that or I just wasn’t observant enough. I think comparing the two would be like pitting a toddler against a fully grown man.

Jaclyn Jose and Coco Martin, were as always, brilliant in playing their roles. Jiro Manio was in the film as well, and played the son of a seemingly cunning thief who gets duped by his own cohorts.

I have to admit though, this film scared me from going to Quiapo, even though I really really love the ukay-ukay in Carriedo.

100 by Chris Martinez

Top billed by Mylene Dizon, 100 is not your usual pinoy indie fare of life in the slums, blatant sex scenes, and violence. Here, Mylene is a successful corporate executive – bossy, in charge of her life,  lives in a spacious condo, has a laptop, car and all the works. Problem is she just found out she had cancer and has barely 3 months to live.

100 details how she chose to live the rest of her days and gives an insight at how a dying person would want to spend the rest of her days. The plot is almost predictable- you’re dying so you try to atone for your mistakes, do stuff you haven’t done yet (e.g. travel).

Mylene writes the things she needs and wants to do on yellow post it notes and sticks them on her bedroom wall. Her mom, played by Tessie Tomas, and best friend, played by Eugene Domingo, posts their own lists as well on Mylene’s wall. It’s a pretty interesting list—from choosing her own casket to skinny dipping, to making peace with her failed relationship with Emil.

I guess what I love about this movie is that makes you feel good. There is also a sense of closure, so unlike Brilliante Mendoza’s Tirador, which leaves you reeling and a bit lost.

Anyhow, Cinemalaya is ongoing at The Fort and I’m hoping and crossing my fingers I could catch at least one movie before it ends. :p

Neutrogena Wave is a nifty little gadget that cleans the face thoroughly, removing deep seated dirt, oil, and makeup (not that I wear make-up, I’m too lazy). The package contains the gadget, 2 packs of cleanser pads (14 in all), and a double A battery. At P575 I balked at buying the product, thinking I could spend the gc on something I could enjoy, like a buffet or a handful of chocolate bars. Then again I wanted something tangible to mark the first time I landed in the top ten list at the office so I handed over my gc, my sm advantage card and hoped it was worth it.

To use you need only to plug the battery in and place the cleansing pad on the wave’s head, switch it on, and let it vibrate away. The paranoid in me imagined myself being electrocuted despite the package’s assurance that it’s waterproof so it took a few seconds before I felt comfortable rubbing it all over my face. Hehehe.

5 minutes later I emerged out of the bathroom feeling like I just had a facial. My skin indeed felt so smooth and the pores (oh the pores) looked smaller. The vibrating action felt soothing, just like a facial massage and though I’m not sure yet if it will clash with the tretinoin I got from the doc’s office, I am one happy user. And yes, I’m thinking of getting my sisters a Neutrogena Wave too.

Neutrogena Wave is available in all Watson Stores at P575. Refill packs (with 30 pads) are sold at P400.

I on the other hand had the singing voice of a crock. My ex even cringed when he first heard me sing. Lol. So I kept my singing voice to myself, letting it out only when I’m in the bathroom or if you’re really lucky, when I’m drunk as a skunk.

But nowadays I’m feeling a little brazen, letting the voice belt out to the tune of Lily Allen’s songs. D. says I’ve been humming and singing Lily Allen’s it’s not fair for three weeks now and asked why I loved the song so much. Had to assure him it’s not about him or any other guy, I just effin love the lyrics! Haha.

Oh he treats me with respect
He says he loves me all the time
He calls me 15 times a day
He likes to make sure that I’m fine
You know I’ve never met a man who’s made me feel quite so secure
He’s not like all them other boys
They’re all so dumb and immature

There’s just one thing that’s getting in the way
When we go up to bed you’re just no good
Its such a shame
I look into your eyes I want to get to know you
And then you make this noise and its apparent it’s all over

It’s not fair
And I think you’re really mean
I think you’re really mean
I think you’re really mean
Oh you’re supposed to care
But you never make me scream
You never make me scream

Oh it’s not fair
And it’s really not ok
It’s really not ok
It’s really not ok
Oh you’re supposed to care
But all you do is take
Yeah all you do is take

Oh I lie here in the wet patch
In the middle of the bed
I’m feeling pretty damn hard done by
I’ve spent ages giving head

Then I remember all the nice things that you ever said to me
Maybe I’m just overreacting maybe you’re the one for me

There’s just one thing that’s getting in the way
When we go up to bed you’re just no good
It’s such a shame
I look into your eyes I want to get to know you
And then you make this noise and it’s apparent it’s all over

It’s not fair
And I think you’re really mean
I think you’re really mean
I think you’re really mean
Oh you’re supposed to care
But you never make me scream
You never make me scream

Oh it’s not fair
And it’s really not ok
It’s really not ok
It’s really not ok
Oh you’re supposed to care
But all you do is take
Yeah all you do is take

There’s just one thing that’s getting in the way
When we go up to bed you’re just no good
It’s such a shame
I look into your eyes I want to get to know you
And then you make this noise and its apparent it’s all over

It’s not fair
And I think you’re really mean
I think you’re really mean
I think you’re really mean
Oh you’re supposed to care
But you never make me scream
You never make me scream

Oh it’s not fair
And it’s really not ok
It’s really not ok
It’s really not ok
Oh you’re supposed to care
But all you do is take
Yeah all you do is take

Oh he treats me with respect…lalalala… hehe. Check out more of Lily Allen’s songs on her website.

While surfing the net I noticed the name Susan Boyle being bandied about. Finally giving in, I went to youtube and watched a few of her videos. My golly. She has the voice of an angel indeed. Haha! I never thought she’d sound that good.

And what makes her even more unusual is that she’s not the pretty or handsome young thing from next door.  No doubts about it, I absolutely love her voice. I have 3 of her songs on my playlist now.

For this post, here’s a video of Susan Boyle singing I Dreamed a Dream.

Image credit: Dwayne Powell

Looking for an apartment in Makati?

You won’t be the first one. By now I’m so used to people talking about moving out that I’ve created my own spiel for that. Here goes:

“Have you tried looking for one online? No? You should, maybe you’d get lucky like me. And besides the tools are right in front of you–pc, internet, and a phone at the lobby. Try it.”

Soft and positive right? The actual spiel actually goes like this (or at least in my mind it is)

“Mars, pc and internet (pointing to station), phone at the lobby, and you have a mobile phone, ayt? Don’t you think it’s time to utilize them instead of pestering me with endless yada yada about looking for a place?”

Same goes with people asking if I know a good dance gym or establishment in the area. Like duh, watcha think of me, the yellow pages? What’s ironic is that we work for a company that provides website packages and stuff. We get calls from business owners with their own websites, like 5 days a week. Isn’t that a clue already that everything, almost everything can be found online? They say I’m really good at doing internet research, yeah yeah, whatever. That is a no-brainer, I have the tools in front of me, I just decided to make good use of it.  Why can’t you?

Was that mean? Maybe. I’ve been mean, sarcastic, and bitchy the whole week, probably an aftereffect of working for 10 days straight.

Landed on this page while looking for an apartment? Congratulations! You’re almost done reading about my pet peeves in life. But, so as not to waste your time, below are some tips you could use while looking for a place to rent online.

1. Check out Move in the City and Olx Makati. The former is a site dedicated to accommodations and real estate in the country. Here you can find properties for sale, rooms and houses for rent and even transient houses just in case you want to stay for a few days only. Move in the City is keyword intuitive and also it lists the features of the place such as if the place has a dining room, cr, phone, etc. Olx Makati works pretty much like craigslist, only this one’s in tagalog. Even the categories are the same down to the casual encounters section.

2. Take note of the date the ad was posted. Recent ads should come first but just in case do check the dates out. No use wasting 1 peso for a useless inquiry.

3. If it starts with ‘I am looking for…”’ skip it, fast! Men and women looking for a place apparently thought it would be a good idea if they posted an “I’m looking for house” sign on the net. They’re really annoying and I’m wondering if they managed to get decent replies to their ads. Methinks if I were the landlord I wouldn’t bother replying to these ads. Why seek the chicken when you could wait for them to seek for shelter right? And Makati it seems never runs out of chickens looking for shelter.

4. Bookmark and organize everything by name, date, price, and location. I made the mistake of sending out as many inquiries as I could by sms and email that when they started replying I was in shambles and was frantically trying to remember which was which.

5. Lastly, check the place out so you could ask if it’s prone to floods, noise control, and how the bills are collected. If it’s a condo unit check how much the association fees are and draw a mock up of the possible expenses you’ll have each month. Don’t have a car? Stay away from places with parking spaces. Home owners charge premium for the parking space here. Case in point: 2 bedroom apartment, no parking = P10, 000 and 2 bedroom apartment, with garage = P17, 000.

Questions? Violent reactions? Leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.

photo grabbed from www.mymedicalsuppliers.com

A week after signing up, Donna from Wom Nokia sent me an email asking if I wanted to test a Nokia E71 phone. I was stumped. That was fast, as in super fast, considering the fact that I’m not a tech blogger or a problogger. 

Still, why refuse right? The phone was supposed to arrive last week but since I recently moved to Makati, I had to change the forms which took me quite a while to do. It was only the other day when I finally sent them my new address and ta-da… the E71 arrived this morning, right on my doorstep. Cool.

Too bad I don’t have a camera here, I had to leave the Powershot A610 at home lest my siblings murder me. The E71 looks posh and I couldn’t help but gush over its sleek black form. It looks like a lighter version of the blackberry, and yes, it really is light!

The camera however is another story. It’s a complete FAILURE if you ask me. The label on the back says it’s a 3.2 megapixel camera, but the test shots looked more like they were taken using a VGA camera.

Camera aside, the E71 is great. It’s simple, easy to use, and so sleek. More reviews coming up in the next few days. Ciao!

Ethnography, Film, and Capital

A Reflection Paper on the film Nanook of the North

The film Nanook of the North starts with a preface, an explanation of the author, or in this case the film maker, informing the audience his intent and the context of the film. Created by Robert Flaherty in 1960, the film showcases the everyday life of an Inuit family in the Arctic North with most of the scenes showing how Nanook and his people hunt for food in the Arctic wilderness. As a documentary it has earned both accolades and scathing criticisms- especially with the ‘staged feeling’ of the whole film which I’ll discuss towards the end of this paper.

The Big Aggie

Nanook of the North is now regarded as a classic. The film has been crowned as a pioneer of ethnographic film. Given the context of the film industry back in the 1960s, the accolades and the crown is well deserved by Nanook of the North. Flaherty’s methods, specifically the use of narratives in his film spurred revolutionary changes in the film. He lent his voice to the film and introduced the use of narratives in documentary making. This is something that most producers now use and something that we viewers tend to take for granted. Admittedly, I’ve been so used to hearing film makers use narratives in telling their stories that when I first saw Flaherty’s film I focused on how basic and sparse it was. Reading more about the background of the film however enabled me to appreciate Flaherty’s use of narratives and can only flinch at the thought of what Flaherty’s contemporaries presented to their audience.

Film and Capital

After several screens flashing Flaherty’s preface came quite an amusing if not surprising introduction to the main character of the film: Nanook. It was quite typical at first, Nanook landing his canoe, unloading his family. It was hilarious, because for the first 10 frames or so, Nanook’s family came out of the small boat, which amazing as it may be could surely not hold more than two individuals, how much more a wife, two kids, one infant, and a pet dog. This could only mean that camera tricks were used and that the homecoming was staged to a hilt. Flaherty might have sought to impress, to amuse, or exoticize life in the Arctic, but all he achieved in doing was cast a doubt on the integrity of the film.

This plot suggests of a need to make the film entertaining, unique, and exotic. The use of the camera fueled colonial expeditions, making the elites and conquistadors sit up and take notice of the other islands. How much more with moving pictures whose success could mean money in return? The equipment must have been horribly expensive which meant Flaherty had connections with big media outfits like Motion Pictures. Nothing comes for free which could only mean one thing: Flaherty had to think afterwards of the market value of his piece. To gain and please, the film must prove to be unique, entertaining, never mind if he had to disregard the practices of the people he claims to have a ‘deep regard’ for.

Most frames showed how Nanook hunted for game and what they do for a living—hunting fish, walruses, and trading at the “white man’s post”. What I noticed though is how the film managed to edit out the gory details involved in butchering the game, such as with the walrus and the fox pelts, presumably to avoid scaring the women back at his home. Women who would be ‘affronted’ at seeing how those damningly expensive furs they wear elegantly are obtained. Flaherty however does not shirk from showing how Nanook and his people eat aggressively after the hunt, saying, “They do not wait until the kill is transported, for they cannot restrain the pangs of hunger”.

The Uncle Sam syndrome

Throughout the film, I could see a recurring pattern of how Flaherty must have thought of Nanook and his people. I call it the Uncle Sam syndrome, reminiscent of that editorial cartoon showing a big white man changing the diapers of two small dark children.

Several frames showed Flaherty or another white man sitting next to Nanook or in between his family, as if to emphasize the difference, and quite similar to the way colonizers had their photos taken with indigenous people. In one particular scene, Uncle Sam points how ignorant Nanook was of the phonograph and its records, showing Nanook biting the disk. The whole scene reeks of the staged feeling however and one could only ask if the scene was borne out of Flaherty’s script or if it was the real thing.

Nanook and his people could have been ignorant of the phonograph record, yes, but the white man is also ignorant of the Inuit’s practices, so it can work both ways, right? Only difference is that the upper hand here belongs to Flaherty and he calls the shots, this after all is his film, as he so claims. No hint of partnership or recognition of Nanook, he saw them clearly as a bunch of people living an uncivilized life with Flaherty alluding at the start of the film that he finally came to civilized land after wintering in the Belcher Islands. If that is not a clear allusion to what he thought of Nanook’s people, I don’t know what is.

Another Uncle Sam moment is when one of Nanook’s kids overate and the white man supplied castor oil, a white man’s remedy to an upset stomach in those days. The scene started with a very upset child, holding his stomach followed by a white man offering the oil, and ends with a child grinning widely with no hint of paint. From a viewer’s point of view the white man did Nanook’s child a big favor and to a large extent needs Uncle Sam’s help to get civilized.

Conclusion

Like essays and photographs, film too, reflects the author’s biases and context. In Flaherty’s case it was reminiscent of salvage anthropology and at the same time is reflective of the colonial roots of anthropology. Nevertheless, I understand where Flaherty was coming from. He saw a community that only a few people knew about, an opportunity to show the world of their life, and make a name for himself and a few coins along the way. He was a victim of circumstances and the environment he was in, just as we are today. Projects are capital driven nowadays, even noble or pro-bono researches need funds to work on, and we sometimes succumb to accepting funds from the very people who could use the material to exploit the people whose stories we tell.

Flaherty, despite the criticisms, did revolutionize the methods used in documentary making. But the heavier lesson we should remember is to treat the community we study as more than mere subjects. They are our partners in creating knowledge and unlike lab rats; our partners can speak of their feelings, of what they want, just as we can.

*This essay was written for my Visual Anthropology Class. Read more about Nanook of the North here.