NANAY-LESS WEEK

you left before i came home

so the ants claimed the floor

forgot to cook for a while

let the pots gather dust

Manuela's, Matawe, Inihaws

birthdays, fellowship and pizza to-go

the dogs, they ate out too

the fleas, they mopped the walls

spiders adorned the corners

the house so silent and empty

so i took to long bike rides

threw my laptop at GRAISEA

chased the shadows of OHK

and left before you came home

PUTOL-PUTOL NA PANAGINIP

nangawit ang dalaga sa kuwadro

natuyo ang tapayan ng serbesa

ang inilako ba nung miyerkules

ay tunay o mga guniguni lamang?

ang pagdiriwang sa Gran Lohiya
ay tumulay sa alambreng sinulid
nabuhay kaya ang tinaga sa batok 
o alamat itong nung sabado nagtapos?

ang mga hinubarang walang mukha
silang nalunod sa ingay ng kaluskus
matabang katulad ng inulam ni Bulan
nakakaumay na parang hapunan ni Balong.

mabuti pa ang bisikleta't may natutunguhan 
sangandaan, ambon at almusal na bulalo
ang panaginip, tila nagwawakas sa hilik
parang kuwento ng pulis na Probinsiyano

nauulit pero hindi natatapos...

AMAZING CRAZE

bananas, coffee, and maize
the people's choice of value chains 
rice, palm oil, and shrimps
the rich man said we should engage

so I took off with my bike, went to the market, brought all the crops, and dropped these on the pavement  

why don't we just sell rice cakes
paint them in gold and purple
forget all about the vampires
who sucked the ricefields dry

there the farmers whither, people with names like Santiago, who wore hats like Katipuneros, they who don't eat cakes 

better to get lost in Binondo
drown in dimsum and spring rolls
dream of winning the lotto
quit and just go loco

because emperors don't die, they wear new clothes and become angels, winged but nude and neutered  

HAI[na]KU 9 & 10

-9-

1.4.2. K.M. 

calories burned and sweated

12 beers brought it back 

-10-

whiskey on Thursday

guns and booze on Saturday

reset by Sunday

5 DAYS, 3 HOTELS, 5 MEETINGS

the CHATRIUM (Days 1 and 2) 
indeed decadent in buffet and palatial in rooms
pluses of an otherwise boring neighborhood
just Charlie Brown and a beer tower playing pingpong
as the Bhoman-Khunaram Temple whispered echos
while the ASEAN locked with SARC in a tango 

the AMARI WATERGATE (Day 3)
cavernous like the the pomp and g[l]or[y][e] of CSR
four food stations interpellating high-powered forums
like Indian creamed with gender or Thai sauteed value chains
esoteric bit coins strewn along a roadside saloon
where carcasses got hanged, chopped and devoured

the PICNIC HOTEL (Days 4 and 5)
as layman as the chaos of eclectic Pratunam
as cool as the towering elegance of Baiyoke
cold beer, grilled meat and the bounty of the sea
sustenance in between PSC, SIDA and UNDP
a great view overshadowed by a lousy breakfast