Chum Bucket: On a roll.

The last time I saw my childhood chums as kids, a bunch of the boys were hanging out by the bus stop.  I walked by and they asked me to spend the afternoon with them.  I asked what they were up to.  They said once the next bus leaves, they would climb on the side and ride to the next town.

I asked how they planned to get back.  They said they would wait for another bus to pass or walk.  I said, maybe next time, and I went on my way.  I don't remember where I was headed to.  I regret saying to to them now.  They probably would have jumped off after a couple of blocks anyway.

We were in the sixth grade at the time and I had transferred to a different school.  I was back in town for the weeked.  Apparently that's what they had been up to for a while, and they had done it before.  I never expected that I wouldn't see them again for ten years.

Chum Bucket: Connie Lingus.

I mentioned yesterday that I moved to America in the sixth grade.  I exchanged some letters with my friend Steve Landsteamer, and I think he shared it with some of our chums in class.  One of them decided to write me as well.  That was Connie Lingus, and we actually became pretty good pen pals.

Now since she's female, I'd like to clarify that I never sensed any romantic interest from her.  Either that, or I was just too dense and didn't notice it.  For my part, I never looked at her that way even since grade school.

Connie turned out to be one of those people who kept the friends together.  Some of us moved away or went to different schools, and she pretty much kept in touch with everybody.  If anybody wondered how someone somewhere was doing, the first person you would ask was Connie.

In the Philippines, kids generally don't go to seventh and eighth grade.  They go straight to high school after grade six.  This is mostly due to economics to save parents and schools money.  Kids are given more freedom and more responsibility at an earlier age.

Connie wrote to me about our friends, about projects, classroom antics and everything else.  She shared about all the adventures they would go on, about road trips and spending the night at the beach.  I was very jealous of them.  I wished I could have been there with me.  Meanwhile, they probably thought I was having a great time living in the United States.  But it was very lonely for me.

Chum Bucket: Carmen Getit.

I wrote about my best buddies in grade school yesterday, so today I decided to write about the girls.  What better place to start than my first crush, Carmen Getit.  Carmen was this pretty girl who actually became the school queen or something year after year when we've had those fund-raising things.  She was the Valentine queen or something like that.  She was also always voted the class muse.

We sat at the same table in the first grade, and this really dumb friend of mine, whose name I forget, would tease her from time to time.  In the town where I grew up, kids and teachers are dismissed at noon for the lunch hour, and one day my friend and I followed her home.  After a few blocks, my friend lost heart and we turned back.  But I remember really wanting to keep going.

For years I paid no attention to other girls because I just remember knowing that I wanted Carmen to be my girlfriend.  It was just my idea of love, I guess.  I also thought my older brothers were meant to be with their girlfriends at the time.  So at a very early age, I was already holding a torch for someone.

I never did anything about it.  I mean, I was a kid, you know.  I think if I didn't grow up with two older brothers, I wouldn't have even thought about girls like that.  I think she liked me back, though.  She used to run her fingers through my hair.  Then she would say something like, "I like running my fingers through your hair."  And I would just stand there blushing, but enjoying every moment of it.

I remember for a while, we would be alone at the schoolyard with her cousin and my brother at the end of the day.  My brother would take me on his bike and ride by her and tell her I liked her.  Then she and her cousin would laugh.  One day I was playing around with my brother and as I was running, I fell right in front of her.  I got this big gash on my knee from it.  It was embarrassing and my brother laughed.  I think Carmen was concerned though.

Around the third or fourth grade, there was a time when all the boys acted like jerks to all the girls.  We would run around shouting that they had AIDs and stuff like that.  I remember Carmen getting mad at me and lecturing me while poking me in the chest repeatedly.  I just stood there not saying anything back.  And enjoying every moment of it.  That was the closest I ever got to her.

Kids our age in our town didn't "hook up", as the kids these days would say.  I don't remember anybody being anybody's boyfriend or girlfriend until I left and went to America in the sixth grade.  Then everybody here was watching "Beverly Hills 90210" and talking about dating and stuff.  That change was always confusing for me.  I didn't know whether it was an age thing or a cultural thing.

Chum Bucket: Gordon Schauer.

This is going to be about more than one person.  These will be some of the early friends that I can remember from childhood, as well as some who were close friends for a while and then quickly forgotten.  I will share some real names for those whose last names I don't know and overall only vaguely remember.  This is so that I don't confuse myself by giving them aliases.

First off, the title character, Gordon Schauer.  When we were in second grade, the teacher was talking about best friends.  Gordon was sitting next to me, and we said to each other, "Do you want to be best friends?"  And we agreed.  For years after that, I always thought Gordon and I were best friends.  I didn't feel that.  I just thought it.  Now, we never hated each other or anything, but we never became very close either.  It's just that the label always stuck to my head.

When I look back to elementary school, the guy that kind of stands out for me as a best friend type was Steve Landsteamer.  We were in every class from first to fifth grade.  I believe we may have been in kindergarten together as well, but that's too hazy for me now.  We used to ride our bikes everywhere together.  One memory that always stands out is me riding with him on his bike by this store in the marketplace place called The G Spot and he was singing this song about finding an ugly girl to marry you.

Anyways, this was the kid with whom I skipped class together, ventured to the outskirts of town together and even peed outdoors together.  We joined the drum corps and the baseball team also.  I believe he joined the Cub Scouts, too.  I think every kid did.  But I'm pretty sure he wasn't in the folk dancing group with me.

Queue Tips: Hail stones.

Apparently, "Shine A Light" is not the sequel to "Shine".  Or "Little Miss Sunshine".  Or "Sunshine".  Or "Sunshine Cleaning".  Or "Visions of Light".

I don't know what to make of this Martin Scorsese film.  Is it a documentary, or a concert movie?  I don't think the director was sure either.

If it was a concert movie, then why break it up with behind-the-scenes and archival interview footage?  If it's a documentary, then why not explain things whenever possible.  For example, I would have appreciated knowing what songs they're playing.  I mean, I know the Rolling Stone enough to recognize "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "Shattered" and the rest of the popular stuff, but there are lesser known songs that I wouldn't automatically recognize.  "Shine A Light", for example.  Or they may be younger audiences out there who might not know who originated "Just My Imagination".

There was a point in the show when another musician joins them on guitar and vocals.  Obviously, I'm not "hip to the scene" because I had no idea who that guy was.  He must be somebody.  He was worthy enough to share the stage with the Stones.

The target audiences are definitely those who are big fans of the band and don't need anything explained to them, like me.  I like the Rolling Stones, and I like Martin Scorsese.  And I like hearing Stones music in Scorsese pictures, from "Jumpin' Jack Flash" in "Mean Streets" to "Gimme Shelter" in "The Departed".  However, I'm not crazy about him directing their concert movie/documentary.

I admit though, that the first few minutes brought up some not-so-happy experiences for me.  The film opens with the film crew trying to get on the same page with the musical act.  Decisions needed to be made, but didn't get made until the last hour.  Those kinds of memories were brought up, and I don't know whether it affected my enjoyment.  This film is still worth watching though.

IndieVisible: Point of no return.

I once told my film professor that there's not enough Slayer in movies.  He said, "There's a reason for that."  Well, whatever that reason is, it's stupid.

In any case, I decided to bring the movies to Slayer instead.  And then I thought, why not use footage by a great director who almost became a priest?  So here then is "Hallowed Point" cut to the images of Martin Scorsese's films.  Or vice versa.



As usual, I have no express permission to use either the music or movies, so I hope it's all right under fair use.  This is just one of those things that come into my head, and I needed to do it to get some sort of release.  And once I did it, what good is it if I didn't share it?

Commuter Illiterate: Don't hate, motivate.

Here is a case where this post's category actually applies.  There are actually commuters out there who are illiterate.  There are many who don't understand English.  I wonder what those people will think when they see cute little animals all over the PATH train later on this year.

The above are two examples of motivational posters that the Port Authority Trans-Hudson is reportedly planning to unleash on the public.  It is supposed to motivate people to be nice to each other.  Commuters who encounter these pictures will be overcome with warmth and kindness and be inclined to be nice to each other.  I asked Santa for peace on earth, and it looks like he has enlisted the PATH system to make it come true.