Journey to the Heart of Fabulous

"Puts the Glory into Gloria and the Gay into Gaynor.”

Michael Coveney - The Independent

I love musicals.

During my two-year stint in London, the West End was my playground. It was a fabulous piece of gay heaven. I only watched one non-musical, but Josh Hartnett's half naked body (about 2 meters away from where I was seated) was more than enough to compensate for the lack of songs.

Out of all the musicals I've seen, there is only one that I watched 4 times, it's the gayest musical in the West End, "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert". (the stage version of the camp classic movie "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert")





With songs such as "Downtown, I've Never Been To Me, Venus, Go West, I Say a Little Prayer, and I Will Survive", how gayer can it get? See this for the complete list of musical numbers.

I first watched the show with a gay friend I met in London, I can still remember how ecstatic I felt after, I exclaimed "Ang sarap maging bakla". The musical was set in the mid-90s, a time when homosexuality was not as socially acceptable as it is now, so it was empowering to see 3 drag queens motoring their way throughout Australia (from Sydney to Alice Springs), facing discrimination, racism and bigotry, and overcoming them. I distinctly remember what Bernadette said to Tick and Felicia after seeing their vandalized bus: "Never apologize for our choices my friends." (I later found out that this line was updated to reflect current sentiments, the line used to be "Never forget the cost of our choices my friends", good thing the creators decided to do this as the original line would have been too depressing)


Another reason (well, the bigger reason =) ) why I watched the show over and over was the actor who played Felicia, Oliver Thornton. Felicia Jollygoodfellow is the most flambouyant one out of the 3 drag queens, and the hottest one as well (Guy Pearce, another hottie, played the part in the film). See for yourselves.


Too bad I can't find a photo of him doing the "Hot Stuff" number where he was just wearing a red thong ;)

On my 4th time, I was finally able to see him up-close at the stage door, kilig!

Here are my favorite scenes in the musical:

Felicia singing an aria on top of Priscilla

"MacArthur's Park" with the human cupcakes

"Go West"

"I Will Survive"

"I Love the Nightlife" with Jason Donovan (right) wearing the Oscar award winning "flip-flop" costume

The funniest funeral scene ever ("Don't Leave Me This Way")


Three Cocks in a frock on a rock singing "We Belong" after Felicia's "Kylie Medley"

Where can you find a disco ball inside a theater? Yup, Priscilla has one!


And this is the fabulous shirt I bought from the gift shop, can't wait to wear it!


So to every gay guy out there who's visiting London, don't forget to watch and enjoy Priscilla! - "Colour your world!"

You'll never see a dark cloud hanging round me.
Now there is only blue skies to surround me.
There's never been a gray day since you found me.
Everything I touch is turning to gold.

Oh, you can colour my world with sunshine yellow each day!
Oh, you can colour my world with happiness all the way!
Just take the green from the grass and the blue from the sky up above!
And if you colour my world just paint it with your love!
Just colour my world.

Just as long as I know you're thinking of me,
there'll be a rainbow always up above me.
Since I found the one who really loves me,
everything I touch is turning to gold.

So you can colour my world with sunshine yellow each day!
Oh, you can colour my world with happiness all the way!
Just take the green from the grass and the blue from the sky up above!
And if you colour my world just paint it with your love!
Just colour my world.
Um.

Sunshine yellow.
Orange blossums.
Laughing faces
everywhere!
Yeah!

Oh, you can colour my world with sunshine yellow each day!
Oh, you can colour my world with happiness all the way!
Just take the green from the grass and the blue from the sky up above!
And if you colour my world just paint it with your love.
Just colour my world.
Colour my world.
Oh, colour my world.
Colour my world!

The Power of Two

"You're bitter!"

"Get over it!"

These are just two of the comments I get whenever I take potshots at them.

Don't get me wrong, I loved them, and both of them still hold a special place in my heart.

I don't have even one bit of bitterness towards both of them. I can never hate them because they've taught me so much.

I must admit though that one of them may misconstrue my remarks to be an attack on his person (I sent him an apology this morning). But I'm sure that the other one knows in his heart that I mean no harm and that I harbor no ill feelings towards him.

Thank you for being part of my life my dear power of two :)

26 - 29

Turning 26 was sort of a milestone in my life.

I was 26 (still discreet) and was dating a guy for the first time (I met him through g4m, he turned out to be an office mate).

I was 26 when I almost had my first boyfriend.

I was 26 when I decided to accept the international assignment to London.

I was 26 and was living independently for the first time.

I was 26 and was finally secure about who I was (and so I thought).


Fast-forward to age 29, a few months after finally embracing my queerness, old feelings of insecurity, inadequacy and wanting social acceptance are resurfacing.

Yeah, I know I've been trying too hard at times. Forgive me.

I tried to be a "mean girl" to feel accepted. Sorry.

I'm not that girl.

I might fall for the same trap again, but I'll climb back out.

I will be true to my spirit.

I am what I am.



I am what I am.
I am my own special creation.
So, come take a look,
give me the hook
or the ovation.
It's my world, that I want to take a little pride in.
My world, and It's not a place I have to hide in.
Life's not worth, a damn
Till you can say,
Hey world, I am what I am.

I am what I am
I don't want praise, I don't want pity.
I bang my own drum, something gets noise,
I think It's pretty.
And so what if I love each feather and each bangle.
Why not try to see thing from a different angle
Your life is a shame,
til you can shout out loud, I am what I am.

I am what I am
And what I am, needs no excuses.
I deal my own deck, Sometimes the ace, sometimes the duces.
There's one life, and there's no return and no deposit.
One life, so It's time to open up your closet.

Life's not worth a damn till you can say.
Hey world, I am What I am.

Relieved

So after four tests, namely:

1. Urinalysis
2. Ultra-sound
3. CT Scan
4. X-ray of the spine

the doctor finally gave me a clean bill of health.

Sorry if I was whining in twitter about it, I was really scared. At first they thought it was kidney stones, then an enlarged prostate, then an injury to the spine.

In fairness to me, this was the first time I was subjected to this many tests in diagnosing just one illness. But I've learned a valuable lesson, don't stress too much until you've actually found out that something is wrong.

And so the doctor's final conclusion was: it's stress-related and I need some exercise. Great!!!

Blast from the not so distant past

I was going through the notes in my iphone and stumbled upon a note I wrote a few months ago. Can't remember anymore why I wrote it.

"I want to make a good man out of you, but im just not sure if my heart can take all the pain. "

My 1st Pride Parade

On August 1, 2009, London Boy ceased to be a Pride virgin.

I've always been very curious about the annual Pride march in Manila. Every year, I see the hot guys, drag queens and religious hypocrites in the news, and wondered how it felt to be there.

During my last few months in London, I had a sudden change of heart and decided to enjoy the London gay lifestyle. So off I went to Soho, gay porn shops, gay porn theaters, watched gay plays, went to a bathhouse and the best part, I attended my first Pride parade.

If in Manila PLUs get harassed by religious hypocrites, in Brighton we are welcomed with open arms. The Pride parade is a family event, just look at the grandparents, moms and dads, and little kids. There is no need to justify your lifestyle, no need to be ashamed, no need to hide in your closet.

Grannies, Grandpas, Moms and Dads

Kids and Moms

The proud members of the Gay Police Association

A gay-friendly church ...

... with an interesting question to ask. "Would Jesus Discriminate?"

"The Oldest Gay in the Village"


A gay minister

Gay rights activists

OUR LESBIAN SISTERS

THE QUEENS

THE CUTIES
I love sailors!

Vintage-look cute guy matching the Victorian windows

He was so cute, so I looked for him after the parade and had this picture taken ;)

AND MY FAVORITE PART, THE HOTTIES
This guy looks Pinoy

Yup, I know what you're looking at!

I don't know

When I first read about how you planned to handle your situation, I totally disagreed. I've been in a similar situation, and I handled it differently. Time has passed and I don't regret anything I have done.

Then I ended in the same situation as yours, I handled it similarly to how I did before. But this time it's different, it's been difficult. Maybe I need more time, or maybe I need to do something else. Could your plan be better than mine? Should I do anything differently?

I don't know.

New York, Washington and Edinburgh Cuties

This is a very long overdue post.

I'm sure you have noticed by now how much I love taking pictures of cute guys whenever I travel. Thanks to the superb zoom function of my digital camera!

So I bring you the cuties and hotties of New York, Washington and Edinburgh!

Model at the A&F store in 5th Ave. (He said "Maraming Salamat" when I left, and yes that's me on the right)


The Naked Cowboy in Times Square

Curious guy inside the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MoMA)

Family Guy outside MoMA (he was with his parents :) )


Guy in line at the "Top of the Rock" ticket office


Eastern European Guy in front of Capitol Hill


DILFy guy near the Reflecting Pool


Middle-eastern guy at the Lincoln Memorial


Soccer player at a Washington Park


Friendly guy at the Scottish Parliament (he smiled at me!)

Short guy chillin' outside an Edinburgh church

Coming Soon: Pics from the Brighton Pride March

Unfinished Post

I started writing this entry while riding an FX taxi on my way to work. It was triggered by a text message I received that morning. But I've completely lost my line of thought, so I'll just give up and leave this post as it is.


Love - ain't it a bitch?

Why does it have to be too complicated?

You need to find the right person - physical, emotional, maturity levels, etc. 

It's hard to enough to find the right person, but he has to come at the right time. Not when one has just broken up. Not when one is in a "playful" stage. Not when one is about to leave the country. 

I've been hurt before, and I still believe that it hasn't scarred my emotions that bad ..... 

Salamat!

Life has been good to me, not only this year, but for the most part of my life.

But as mentioned in my last post, I’ve reached a milestone in my life, I now embrace the person that I am. I guess it’s just proper that I thank the people who have helped me get to this point.

To the author of the first gay blog I have ever read. Thank you for opening this new world to me, especially to the elite circle of gay bloggers that I admire. Despite us meeting in person only a few times, you were warm, genuinely interested and caring. Oh, and you bitch-slapped me once over the phone, which I badly needed at that time.

To you who I met in a dance floor. Thank you for being friendly that night even if you were feeling awkward and vulnerable. Thank you for sharing my blog to the rest of my idols. If not for you, I would have remained a distant fan and would have missed all the fun times and new friends.

To the one who sent me a message in Multiply. Imagine how thrilled I was to get a message from you. You kindly said hello to just one of the fans. We’ve spent so many hours chatting about so many things, we even had some “Sister Aloysius” moments. I value your thoughts and opinions. I respect your point of view. Thank you for listening and not getting tired of my issues.

To the guy beside me on that round table. Thanks for the nudge! Or as you say a “shove”. I can be dense at times so the shove was highly necessary. Thank you for waking my sleeping heart. It was nice to find out that my heart was still in perfect working condition. You have taught my heart lessons which will help me become a better person.

To the umbrella-breaker. We haven’t spent a lot of time together. We barely chatted when I was still far away. But I feel a strong bond with you. I intend to nurture our friendship in the coming years.

To my former online chat buddy. Thank you for spending time chatting with me. It was fun to discover things about you. Thank you for confiding in me.

To the bitch. Thank you for bringing me back to my senses. You’ve done this a few times already without you knowing it. I’m not even sure if you consider me your friend, but to me you are one.

To my British blogger friend. You are such a friendly guy, thank you for agreeing to meet me despite my difficult schedule. It was an honor to meet you in person. I admire your writing skills and wish you all the best in life. I’ll keep my promise to keep in touch.

To the shy guy beneath the surface. I was caught off-guard (in a good way) by a lot of things about you. Thank you for trusting me with details of your love life. I discovered a lot about you in just a short time. Thank you for teaching me the benefit of having no expectations. Hope to see more of you this coming year.

To the silent followers of this blog, thank you for taking time to visit my site. Wishing you a happy and prosperous new year!!