I first encountered Teddy Pendergrass with his video 'In My Time'. I had no idea what he meant to American culture back then, as it was slowly seeping into me. But his video was one of the most memorable to me. While everybody was singing about loneliness and passion, this song evoked a strong reminiscence and loving gratitude. And when it finally showed him in his wheelchair, it etched itself into memory.

I re-discovered Teddy later on in my 60s-70s R&B phase. If Marvin Gaye was the silk of romance, Teddy Pendergrass was its velvet. And that's what many will remember him for, being R. Kelly before R. Kelly. I recall Eddie Murphy's joke about his sexy ferociousness, "He would scare the bitches into liking him!"

But I will remember that loving and heartbreaking video of Teddy looking back at his life, even more so now. God bless you Teddy.

Before I started my stint in Saudi Arabia, I had lived and worked in Malaysia for 4 years as an I.T. Consultant. When I first arrived there, I didn't make too much of it at first. I had just gotten married for a little less than a year, with the intention to save up my family life later on.

After 3 months, my wife came to visit me. The company I was working for was willing to hire her since she had skill-sets which suited them. We had our first child here, and in that time, Malaysia had transformed from a strange place to a comfortable home.

Malaysia is a wonderful country. It's not as cosmopolitan or flashy as New York, not as sprawling as Los Angeles, and not as urban as Singapore, and not as vibrant or bustling as Manila. But it has a very distinct Asian character, a laid back melting pot where everyone seems welcome (and where the food is great!). Malaysians aren't very outgoing or demonstrative, but they aren't judgmental or cynical. Some foreigners find them plain, I find them pleasant.

My first experiences with Malaysians were when I was studying in Australia. During University life, I stayed in a dorm filled with Malaysians, and they welcomed me with open arms, which was so reassuring since I was the only Filipino there at that time. They spoke in English whenever I was around and never teased me behind my back (as far as I could tell). They would invite me out and have my back if things got nasty. They were my Asian family away from family.

I could feel this acceptance and multiculturalism during my working days. The country is comprised of three major groups, the Malays (the Muslim majority), the Chinese, and the Indians. Any foreigner visiting for the first time will always note how remarkable the country seems to be with all of these people truly living side by side without much fuss. I go to Malay restaurants and see everybody, even Westerners eating by hand. I eat at Curry houses and see Chinese ordering enthusiastically. I go to Chinese markets and see Indians among the first there. There were no cliques (at least where I went). Everybody did seem to get along.

Now of course not everything is perfect. Many non-Malaysians do not know of the May 13 incident and its resulting laws which enforce affirmative action policies that favor the Malay majority. I have many Malay and non-Malay friends who have criticized this issue, citing that it is the source of friction against the government which is still overwhelmingly Malay (though not as much as before). I really can't cite any form of discrimination that I've seen against anybody in Malaysia, but again, I haven't lived here long enough. Plus I am an expatriate, and the government encourages foreign workers to come and help build the economy, as long as times are good. From the minority's standpoint, Malays and foreigners get special treatment because of these policies, and it really is unfair.

But this inequality hasn't caused any major disruption in the Malaysian way of life, unless you count the complacency in government. The last major elections held here resulted in major losses for Barisan Nasional (BN), the country's largest political coalition, which is dominated mostly by the United Malays National Organization (UMNO). From more than 80%, its constituency has shrunk to between 60%-65%, giving the opposition more power in opposing legislation the Malay government wishes to implement.

With the latest furor in Malaysia now, against complaints of using the word 'Allah' by a Catholic newspaper, and accusations of trying to convert muslims by confusing them, I find it absolutely heartbreaking to see this rending of cultural and religious harmony. The use of 'Allah' has been used by Christians in Malaysia for over half a century, and now it's an issue? Conversion from Islam is considered an insult to the religion, a criminal offense in several states, and gravely looked down upon. From what I've known, it very rarely happens. If people for more than 50 years have known about the gravity of conversions, how could they be possibly confused over this word now as compared to back then?

Everybody who has lived in Malaysia knows that this is being done for political gains (it's been done in every country where religion is culturally ingrained). The majority has to hold on tight to whoever they can. That's why Anwar Ibrahim, the charismatic, outspoken, and Western leaning opposition leader, is in the trouble he's in (but that's another story). I never thought I'd see the day where Malay extremists would start burning churches, an image unimaginable during my stay.

I am an agnostic. I believe in God but not in religion. But that doesn't mean I don't believe in the essence of Malaysia. It is still a rarity in South East Asia, how it can accept others. It mustn't accept this.

Several years ago, when I started contributing reviews for the Manila Times, I thought of starting a Philippine version of Rotten Tomatoes, that famed movie review aggregation site. I bought a domain and tried to map out how to get it done.

Through my editor (Dennis Ladaw), I had gotten in touch with several film critics from established broadsheets (e.g. Malaya, Manila Standard, Manila Bulletin, etc.) trying to establish relationships, with the intent of having their views eventually shared on that website. I had no idea of what considerations to take, especially in dealing with major newspapers. But because of budget restraints at the Times, I lost the opportunity to further this enterprise and my writing.

Things have changed since then. Any serious Filipino movie lover knows that the best film critique doesn't lie in broadsheets anymore. There have been several wonderful film blogs/sites which have enlightened those who have found them, that dwarf most (if not all) discourse from the dailies. Some eloquent examples are Francis 'Oggs' Cruz, Noel Vera, Eboy Donato, the fellows at Pelikula Tumblr and Criticine, and many many others. The decline in the balanced substance of newspaper reviews is sad but understandable, since most of them (like The Inquirer) are owned by the same conglomerates that are involved in the entertainment industry, not to mention rife with debilitating internal politics, not limited to the Entertainment section.

The amount of bribery in printed film reviews is astounding. Many (not all) of the film critics I knew back then were inclined to give favorable reviews. If they didn't "mail them in," film studios would no longer give them free invites to major local releases (heck, even the US releases which local film distributors were handling), along with other perks. As I've said before, film journalism in the Philippines is not something that will feed your family, so anything that helps cut costs, or creates networking access, is something film journalists will take just to survive.

For all the fellow Filipino film bloggers out there: We keep on complaining about the quality churned out by our film studios, decrying the lack and hypocrisy of coverage when it comes our independent scene. We need to stop bitching and do something about it.

So I propose this: to setup an aggregate film review website to make our thoughts known on particular films. That way, we can do something no daily can do. If we were able to reach each other through our writings on the web, doing this will reach others who are hungry for something better (I can help with the technical setup). Let's do it for Alexis Tioseco, whose love for movies went without question. Get the ball rolling and see how it goes!

Now. What do we call it?

Is the Philippines the last country in the world which gives a damn about New Year firecracker injuries?

I was pondering this when I came upon a report in the New York Times about New Year celebrations in Times Square and around the world. When it came to reporting injuries, the Philippines was the only nation mentioned. Surely there could have been others.

Then I entered the two words "firecracker" and "injuries" at Google News. Try it out, we're pretty much the only country other than a small region in Indonesia with a high turnout of people getting maimed.

I understand the tradition behind it, involving the Chinese belief that it drives bad spirits away. And yet common sense dictates otherwise. They cause pain, pollution, and nowadays hit you square in the pocket as well. I was watching a report on GMA News, focusing on firecracker vendors in Bocaue, Bulacan. Business was brisk on New Year's Eve. One guy spent 15,000 PHP on fireworks because his relatives had come back from abroad to celebrate.

I can understand celebrating new times in old-school ways. But 15,000? Imagine the food you could have prepared with that money. Interviews with the impoverished in Metro Manila kept on saying that they were saving money because of tough times, and yet there they were letting their children blow stuff up good.

Sure they don't know any better, but the rest of us do and aren't doing anything about it. There are other traditions during new year that are practiced for good luck. Like eating 12 grapes with each one representing a month of the new year. I personally like the practice in Buddhist temples in Japan, where they release thousands of balloons into the air. No fireworks, just joy with simple prayers for better times.

I'm not saying that fireworks should be outlawed completely. They're used for celebration. But let the pros do it. If someone can spend 15K on fireworks, they certainly can afford to drive their family to the nearest fireworks display and enjoy the show with everyone else. Then perhaps we won't have to see news of people losing digits over new calendar numbers.