Even Mosquitoes Were Turned On By Ms. Norah Jones

Soulful.

If there's one word to describe what last night's show was, it would be --- soulful.

Last night, multi-Grammy winner Norah Jones came and performed for the first time in Manila. The venue was the Araneta Coliseum in remodeled Cubao, Quezon City. I was able to go and watch because of surprise tickets courtesy of my dear soulmate.

The show began when it was nearly 8:30pm, and the VIP and VVIP (that's very, very important people) seats were hardly filled up. 'Talk about Filipinos and their concept of punctuality. The lights were doused off, and only the blue light tone of the stage remained visible.

Norah Jones came out after being introduced and sat on the grand piano to begin.

"Mabuhay!" was her first word of the evening before she began singing her opening song Turn Me On. Her rendition was more beautiful than the one in her CD. Next came Nightingale and What I Am To You from her second album. The applause was profuse and generous making her utter a hesitant "Salamat," (thank you) which further endeared her to the audience.

She was lively and vibrant, although occasionally bothered by the large screen monitor in which she saw herself perform, and was used for the benefit of those seated at the back and the bleachers.

She was so good even the mosquitoes were turned on by her. Flailing her arms to keep buzzing mosquitoes at bay, she played the piano as she sang a very smooth and extended version of The Nearness of You. It was very romantic. Hoagy Carmichael would surely acclaim and want to hear her version of this wonderful song.

All familiar hits in her two CDs were heard: the haunting I've Got To See You Again, the enchanting Come Away With Me, the lively Sunrise, the introspective The Prettiest Thing, and the reflective Humble Me. Her What I Am To You? took me to the first day I fell in love. Each song was an experience. You can almost feel yourself soaring to the seventh heaven as she whisks you away to each song's setting.

I'm been a fan of Norah Jones way, way back when it wasn't even cool to be described as one. One fine lazy Sunday afternoon in September 2002, I was testing new CDs in the QA branch of Tower Records when I chanced upon her Come Away With Me album and that was it. I was stuck with her. When she won multiple Grammys in 2003, I knew that was the end of my unique love affair with her. She is now everyone's favorite singer, and judging from the crowd at the Coliseum last night, I know I'm right.

We were treated to Norah's brand of humor when she talked about her experience with Elmo of Sesame Street.

"Anybody here know what Sesame Street is all about? I was supposed to have a date with the letter Y, but he stood me up. In the show, I sang to Elmo, going Don't Know Why, Y Didn't Come...so every time I perform Don't Know Why, I am terrified that I'd sing the wrong lyrics..."

Her Handsome Band also let its presence felt as we were treated to cool guitar works by Robbie McIntosh and Adam Levy. Her boyfriend bassist Lee Alexander (shown above in the picture with her) was also a revelation. Drummer Andrew Borger was electric as he worked the drums like he was on fire. Norah's long-time friend and vocalist Daru Oda played the flute and was also replendent as she sang and danced with Norah.

Before calling it a night, she also revisited Gram Parson's memory by singing a truly magnificent version of She that was so good it nearly brought me to tears. I've always been a fan of Willie Nelson when it comes to country music, but her rendition made me want to have a second look at Gram Parson's other works.

Her last piece was the bouncy and blithesome Ooh Las Vegas from the Gp/Grievous Angel album of Gram Parsons. It was so good that Norah was able to make some of the high-and-mighty moguls of the VVIP seats stand up and dance to the tune.

There were three encores as Filipinos are not known to leave concerts without extra heapings. Norah was pleasing enough to oblige and the audience wasn't disappointed as she gave a more aperitive version of Come Away With Me and two other sentimental songs.

Norah sounded disappointed when she mentioned that she had only one concert for Manila this year, but she said she'd be very happy to come back.

I can't wait for that day.

My Oscar Bets

It hasn't started yet (at least, here) and I think I still have time to post my bets for the 77th Academy Awards this year...and check out later how right I am or how miserable a guesser I am.

Unlike last year when we all knew that the Lord of the Rings will sweep all the more than ten nominations it got, this year's Oscar's is a tad difficult to guess because almost every nominee is a sure winner.

Complete set of nominations here.

Without further ado, here are my bets:

Best Picture: Million Dollar Baby

Best Actor: Jamie Foxx for Ray

Best Actress: Hilary Swank for Million Dollar Baby

Best Supporting Actor: Morgan Freeman for Million Dollar Baby

Best Supporting Actress: Cate Blanchett for the Aviator

Best Animated Feature Film: Shrek 2

Best Original Screenplay: John Logan for the Aviator

Let's now see how this all works out....


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UPDATE on March 1, 1:15PM, Manila Time:

Hmmmm....not bad.

The results are out. It seems I'm not too bad a predictor. I was right on most of the major awards.

I just missed out on the last two. Brad Bird for the Incredibles won the Oscar for best animated feature film and the team of Charlie Kaufman won the original screenplay award for the movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Cool, Clean, and.....how much Caffeine?

This is C2 or Cool and Clean.

If you visit the supermarket regularly (I do my grocering on weekends), I'm sure you have seen this new beverage and its other varieties: lemon, peach, and apple.

This was introduced late last year, around October 2004, if I'm not mistaken, and it is advertised as a "refreshing, non-carbonated and green tea-based beverage," by John Gokongwei's Universal Robina Corporation (URC).

Being half-Chinese, you would understand why Gokongwei would see wisdom in launching this product. Other than the usual teabags you find in the Tea section aisle of supermarkets, I do not know of any locally-produced green tea beverage like C2. Also, with news of health benefits from drinking green tea, the entrepreneur in Mr. John might have seen the great opportunity in launching this product.

And so, when I saw this product, I gave it a try.

I tried the plain green tea version first, followed by peach, lemon tea, lemon iced tea, and apple. I decided that the plain green tea flavor was the best for me.

Everything was going great until one night I noticed that my heart rate was going faster (my usual resting heart rate is in the 70s) everytime I drink a bottle of my favorite C2 plain green tea beverage. I counted and I noticed my heart rate increased to the range of 90 to 100 per minute. That was still within normal limits, but the increase was notable. I was not doing anything exhausting and was not also taking any other caffeinated beverage. Also, I noticed feeling more energetic and lively, much like the feeling I get when I take a cup of coffee or an energy drink.

Curious, I looked at the back of the plastic bottle I was holding to search for the nutritional information of the product. I thought I must know how much caffeine it was pouring in my system. Only caffeine can produce that kind of energy boost I was feeling plus the unusual heart rate increase. I also have a healthy heart according to my friend cardiologist (who monitors my cardiovascular health annually) so you need not suspect that I have some cardiac pathology to begin with.

I found NO nutritional information at the back of the C2 bottle. I looked again and still saw NOTHING.

But it was obvious that CAFFEINE was present in this beverage, and URC didn't think it was important anymore to tell the consumers how much it is.

URC says that C2 is "made with delicately brewed tea leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant" and because of this, consumers are assured that they are "getting the healthy chemicals that make green tea today’s choice drink."

I agree with that. If you still do not know the difference between black tea and green tea, read here.

But what I really would like to know is HOW MUCH CAFFEINE is in this product.

To give you an idea how much caffeine is found in our usual drinks, click on this link.

Bottomline: A good refreshing drink, but take it moderately, and preferably with another food item. NOT RECOMMENDED for people with heart problems.

CROSSING KILL BILL WITH LOST IN TRANSLATION

I encountered this while surfing for films to watch.


Can you imagine what films will come out from this union? For more information about where they were seen last, click on the link below:

THE NEW COUPLE

PETER PARKER, Take 2

This one was bigger and better than the first Spiderman movie.

In this sequel, Spidey comes into terms on the true meaning of a superhero. Is it a blessing or a burden? Here, his personal relationships get into conflict with his super alter-ego, and he must decide whether to just settle for one identity or maintain the hard balancing act of preserving two.

I've been an Amazing Spider-Man comics fan since I was a kid. I collected his comics along that of Thor, Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Superman, Batman, and many others. I know his story pre-clone saga and post-clone saga. I also know how most of Spidey's fans were turned off when they knew that there were two Peter Parkers (Ben Reilly being the clone).

I've always thought that Spidey's coolness stems from his skillful webslinging and his witty remarks that really annoy most of his enemies. Only Johnny Storm (the Human Torch) can match his motormouth talkativeness when in combat. Maybe that's why they're such good friends.

There have been Spider-Man movies in the past but they weren't as spectacular because they failed to mimic Spidey's smooth moves in comics. Every Spidey fan can tell which is a sloppily-done copycat and which isn't. The current Sam Raimi flicks are not a disappointment. Of course, thanks to the marvels of CGI. Way back then, CGI must still be in the drawing boards and just a concept.

While my esteemed friend the Sassy Lawyer found that Spiderman 2 had a thin story line and a "withered" leading lady in Kirsten Dunst, I'm sure many Spidey fans like me will disagree.

Kirsten Dunst was lovelier this time around, and with ol' Doc Ock in the story, how can this sequel be labeled as "thin?" Every character in the sequel had a struggle to contend to:

• Peter Parker choosing between his 2 personas


• Harry Osborn choosing between revenge or friendship


• Aunt May Parker choosing between anger or acceptance


• Mary Jane Watson choosing between Peter and some other guy


• Otto Octavius choosing between being a hero or a villain

This sequel emphasizes the need to decide on a choice and make that decision immediately to minimize hurt to other people --- mostly people they love.

Then again, I do not blame the critics. You have to be a long-time fan to appreciate the beauty of this movie.

I'll get myself a DVD copy once it becomes available.