SA WAKAS is a new pinoy rock musical love story, directed by andrei nikolai pamintuan and written by him with marianne abuan, featuring songs made famous by Sugarfree, a filipino band that has disbanded a few years back. we watched SA WAKAS on the opening weekend with its first ever show at the PETA Phinma Theater. generally we had mixed feelings about it. carlo was more livid than i was haha

first of all, the songs are all great. credits go to ebe dancel, lead singer of the band, who wrote most, if not all, of the band’s material. he even wrote a gorgeous new song for the musical.

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the performers were actually good. we watched the 3pm show on april 13th. the lead cast were played by the handsome fred lo (playing the lead guy, topper), laura cabochan, and justine pena.  both laura and justine are familiar faces as ive seen them in ateneo stage productions before. act 1 was just confusing. *spoilers* the story flow apparently was running in reverse so we started sa wakas (the end) and ended SA WAKAS dun sa simula (at the beginning) but this was only evident when you get to act 2. in the meantime, you sit through the first act lost and angry. you cant even latch on emotionally to any of the characters because theyre all so bitter and vile at each other and you dont know why there’s too much hate going on. when the first act ended, carlo and i were looking at each other and just going, what was that?! we actually contemplated on leaving right away. eventually we decided to change seats and sat at the balcony and waited to find a clearer perspective on things.

as act 2 progressed, i was telling myself this scene or that song should have been in act 1 so we could understand and appreciate the characters and situation better. it perhaps was only in the middle of the second act that you realize the story was in reverse. you go, oh, so that’s why, except that you’ve already hated the whole thing and are not sure if you’ll still like it.  and the characters turn out to be actually sweet and funny and it’s supposed to be bittersweet knowing in the end they do separate. the only thing bittersweet about it is that this could have been great if the treatment wasnt pretentious and didnt try to copy “The Last Five Years” or something like Nolan’s “Memento.” i dont really see it as “groundbreaking” since the reverse treatment was not really effective.

having said that, i think the last half of act 2 was really great. you finally get a clearer sense of who these characters are, what makes them tick and why you should fall in love with them. that scene with topper and gabbi on the rooftop was fantastic and the anti-hipster hipster lines were great. basha and popoy gets special mention again as lexi plays out a dvd of “one more chance”. you probably would still like to whack the lead guy in the head for cheating on his girlfriend and then you remember it didnt even go very well in the end at the beginning so what’s the point? the play’s treatment will indeed make you forget the bad things that happened in the relationship shown in the beginning but sometimes also, less is more.

im mightily curious though of what victor robinson iii (alternate for topper) would bring to the show, knowing he’s a really good PETA actor.  the reviews during press night on robinson were not very favorable but maybe that’s just first night jitters. most of the reviews on SA WAKAS were positive though, including feedback from friends who’ve watched the show. i thought it was just carlo and me who didnt like it (and few of the people seated behind us in the theater) then i read this review from broadwayworld.com which shares my sentiment.

the cast during curtain call. from left: hans dimayuga, cassie manalastas, laura cabochan, fred lo, justine pena, mikou david, and abi sulit.

my friend, mikou david, is actually in the chorus and i congratulated her after the show, but i knew id be writing a not so great review of the show and i couldnt tell her that at that moment. also, one thing we noticed when we got in was that the set was tightly packed and some elements werent maybe necessary. we’ve seen a lot of productions mounted on the PETA theater stage but this felt too cluttered.

i was actually looking forward to this because im still waiting for the songs of the eraserheads to be made into a musical and this would be a fantastic appetizer. if the creators would explore a different treatment to act 1 maybe id sit again and watch this musical. i really wanted to like this and my reaction was not what i hoped for. here’s wishing for a miracle. in the meantime, im gonna wash off bad vibes with a dose of sugarfree’s dramachine album. cheers!

years before SA WAKAS, a musical featuring the songs of Sugarfree, came into fruition, there was an attempt to do a musical using the songs of the Eraserheads, the greatest band there ever was. and although elements in this pseudo musical were borrowed from Rent and Moulin Rouge with bits of variety show thrown in (obviously this was done haphazardly), the musical showed that the songs had potential to be transformed and woven into a narrative.

here’s the result presented by GMA’s party pilipinas in september 2010 over a three week period, featuring gian magdangal, rachel anne go, lovi poe, mark bautista, jay perillo, geoff taylor, la diva, and ms ayen munji-laurel.  as a fan of the eraserheads and of musicals, i was intrigued by this and i liked it.  it helped that gian magdangal (im a fan) and ayen are musical theater people, plus rachel ann was more than capable of what she had to do with the role (she later played ariel onstage in the local staging of disney’s the little mermaid).

with the APO songs made into a film musical in I Do Bidoo Bidoo and sugarfree songs made into SA WAKAS, i dont see why we cant have a real eraserheads musical any time soon.

please watch it in hd (720). cheers!

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here’s a behind the scenes video produced to promote the film we are currently working on. we’ve already done about 80% of the movie and we’re down to the last 8 days of shoot by may 2013. here’s the first video released on the making of ABOVE THE CLOUDS.

the next installment to the behind the scenes videos for ABOVE THE CLOUDS was released a few days ago. here it is:

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the 1st video is posted here.

this is honestly the first time ive seen this film in full. i used to be a big spielberg fan until i was exposed to world cinema. my most memorable memories of his movies as a child were with E.T. this was his other take on the genre. and i dont like it.

btw, we watched the special edition director’s cut bluray version. i get what he was trying to say but the direction was dismissing so much plot holes and not smoothening out loose ends. it dragged on in a lot of parts, the domestic drama was irrational and stupid, the shared visions, the abductions, etc. i get it but what’s the deal? at best, it was sloppy and i wonder how this became such a classic. star wars was made that same year and it was clearly fantastic. ridley scott’s alien was made in 79 and that was awesome. kubrick’s 2001 was made even earlier in ’69 and this spielberg movie felt more dated than the former.

ive seen E.T. even as an adult and still loved it. this close encounters, i get it but didnt make much sense at all. might need to rewatch cameron’s aliens to wash off the stale taste from my brain. my brain can taste. haha

this is a repost from my facebook wall

watched this again two days ago with carlo on 720p. still great. i enjoyed watching this in the theaters in 3D and i still enjoyed it at home. that scene with bilbo and gollum is still winner for me even the 2nd time around. it was somewhat how i pictured the scene when i read the book years ago. it’s true that thorin is just a few baths away from aragorn, he’s too beautiful and i loved this casting right away. martin freeman is perfect as bilbo baggins. cant wait for the other two movies.

this is soo awesome! audrey plaza the lead actually reminded me of a friend, Ica Fernandez haha SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED is a small indie movie from the makers of little miss sunshine and is about a journalist and his interns investigating a newspaper ad posted by a guy who claimed to have gone back in time.

the whole thing feels like it used to be graphic novel by daniel clowes or something, the characters are fun and the actors are actually really good. the movie is deceptively simple but funny and lots of heart, there were scenes where i just laughed out loud (LOL would be appropriate pero i like to spell it out). rotten tomatoes actually gave this a 91% rating! the song on the sitar was really nice as well. there might be small details i would have preferred, changed or smoothened out for the ending but still, this movie rocks.

i havent finished posting photos and blogging about our cambodia trip in february actually.  the summer’s almost done!  haha i have a few more and then im done

the day tour for cambodia temple tours continued to the bigger angkor thom area in siem reap. there were really a lot more temples but we got there around lunchtime and that means we’re down to half the day to explore. we asked the tuktuk driver to just bring us to the bigger temples including ta phrom, bayon and angkor thom itself.

found myself a niche

my mom at the temples with all the tree roots eating at it

photobombed!

to look at all the photos i took in angkor thom all the way to dinner, click on this photo:

this is a horror film. no ghosts, no psychopaths. no people wielding knives or chainsaws. no white ladies, no flying creatures in the night. this is a movie where mother nature wreaks havok and thousands die. this is a horror film. now watch this and thank God we live to see another day. naomi watts is fantastic. tom holland, who played her son, lucas, is A. MA.ZING. and i dont know how they shot this, it’s crazy. and amazing.

although the event struck in southeast asia and affected more locals than tourists, this movie centers on this particular english family vacationing khao lak, thailand and not the thousands of people who lost houses, livestock, and family members. the real family that this movie was based on were actually spanish and the wife chose naomi watts to play her in the movie. a documentary about the tsunami in thailand (you can find this in youtube) showed the wave’s approach not as fast nor as crazy as it was in the film but maybe because it’s a movie. but it happened. and either way, you cant turn your head and not look.

people lambast a movie with an adapted screenplay when it fails at capturing the essence of the original book from which it was based on. some are successful, especially if the screenplay is written by the same author of the book. what happens when the same author not only writes the screenplay but also directs the movie and does a damn good job at it? we get this.

i watched this movie this afternoon and i had to take a break just so i could process my emotions. perhaps the last time i felt this way was when i watched AMERICAN BEAUTY way back in 1999. incidentally, the novel from which this film was based on was published that same year.  PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER is about misfits and wallflowers towards the end of an era in their lives dealing with issues of love, loss, sexuality and relationships. apart from chbosky’s genius, the biggest draw here are the strong performances of the three leads, logan lerman, emma watson, and ezra miller. i especially love lerman’s performance here, it’s rare to see someone so young with that gamut of emotions.

this story was just so beautifully written it hurts. there were moments though where i had to scream, “hipster,” but the movie goes on and these characters just became real to me. love the music too, reminds me of that era when i was in college and we fell in love with everything textured and vintage, except that this movie is set a decade before this.  mixed tapes, typewriters, floral printed blouses and boots, the smiths, rocky horror picture show, slr cameras, and everything made hazy by the mist machine. it’s so gorgeous and heartbreaking and life affirming that i could only express myself by quoting ricky fitts from american beauty:

Sometimes there’s so much beauty in the world, I feel like I can’t take it, and my heart is just going to cave in.

and the only way to celebrate this is to listen to david bowie’s “heroes,” get on somebody’s truck, zip through the mandaluyong tunnel and scream, “im the king of the world.”

Right now we are alive and in this moment I swear we are infinite.

i love browsing through houzz.com and see what’s up in contemporary interiors. im currently on the look out for inspiration pegs for a house i dream to build in the boondocks. the universe always advises me to plan ahead. not in connection to my dream house but inspiring just the same, here are awesome hotels recently featured in the website. wearstler! starck! gehry! get your mind blown away!

had a bit of time for myself. while waiting for carlo have his hair cut, i journey to handiman in trinoma for an rca cord, new deadbolts for the screen door (because pogiboy has yet again destroyed the dead bolts three weeks ago), a new powercord extension and some screws. i eventually decided to buy screw drivers because it’s hard to drive screws in hard to reach areas using a swiss army knife. opted to buy the cheap ones coz i know i lose them fairly easily and there’s no consoling me if i buy then lose the expensive stanley ones. my dad would have rolled his eyes on that decision.

when they announced ABOVE THE CLOUDS was to resume shooting in july i knew i had to go back working in tv commercials right away. and just like that, blessings came in and we were doing shoots one after the other in the last few weeks. thank you Lord for the blessings. i actually missed working in tvcs and ive been enjoying the stress again haha

currently helping out with the stage design for another play for this year’s virgin labfest to be held at the CCP. the play is directed by melvin lee. unfortunately, like last year i wont be able to see the play because im flying to mindanao next week to do location oculars for a new film project shooting in september. i cant divulge details as the project is still confidential but im excited to work for this one with a cool director and reuniting with old friends from the captive group of companies also, the fact we’re shooting in mindanao means ill be right at home speaking with the natives. yey!

also in the works is another jerrold tarog movie i prayed would happen and now it’s happening. im excited not only because carlo and i get to work with jerrold again but the genre is a pretty challenging one and if we have to work on something of this magnitude, we would rather do it with jerrold. preprod for this will be months before we start shooting early next year so im excited and thankful for the long prep time.

last month my mother underwent a cataract removal surgery on her left eye (or was it the right?) pretty standard stuff but you should have seen how excited my mom was after she recovered from the surgery. apparently she’s been practically blind with the cataract and now that she can see so much clearer, she’s been enjoying tv more and facebooking a lot and stuff. she no longer trips coz she can see where she’s going. it’s such a blessing and with all the work projects im currently getting, i can pay for her next set of surgery with her defective tear ducts and the cataract removal of her other eye. ayha na ang boots na gusto nako paliton, unahon ang mata ni madeer!

it’s nearly 5pm and ive finished my coffee. carlo will be here any minute so that’s it for now. cheers and have a happy weekend!

channeling hannah espia’s awesome best picture at the cinemalaya this year, “transit”

on the flight back to manila after enjoying a 4 day trip to cagayan de oro to celebrate my dad’s first death anniversary. purchased the cebu pacific promo fare ticket months ago with no assurance i would be able to use it. because of a film project and a vacay outside the philippines with the family early this year, i decided to work my ass off after may of 2013. God is indeed on my side as circumstances leaned towards my benefit this month and allowed me to actually fly off to mindanao. my return flight ticket was purchased a few months after, also on promo fare but this time with philippine airlines. it’s been a long while since ive flown with PAL, maybe in the late 90s. infernez to cebu pacific and despite its notorious record of delayed and overbooked flights, ive really had no problem flying with them to and from cdo. and the price of tickets is almost akin to what id spend for food and taxi fare combined as if i were in manila, hence i never think twice of flying every now and then.

my mom with a grand-nephew and the simple buffet spread we are about to partake amen. mind you, that fish fillet is not cream dory (ugh), it’s malasugi (yellowfin tuna)!

the lechon was amazing! everybody raves for cebu lechon but im sure lechons in cagayan de oro are just under the radar but equal, if not, superior in taste to their visayas counterpart. i was going through old picture albums at home and family events are never complete celebrations without a lechon; full, unchopped roasted pork with its crispy skin intact, salted ribs and sumptuous belly floss dripping with oil and fat, beautifully seasoned with lemon grass, peppercorns, laurel leaves and salt, awesome steaming meat that you pick and tear down with your fingers and eat with your hands. the tradition has not changed since we were kids. hence, i always look forward to the lechon whenever i fly back home, this time breaking off from a self-imposed diet of no rice, low sodium, low sugar, fat free meals. i couldnt resist the rice so i cheated with 4 tablespoons haha. kung sa bisaya pa, para dili damguhon.

blowing the candles off my birthday lechon last year 2012

my adult life has been relatively carefree, food-wise, until my metabolism slowed down at 30 and i would easily build up the weight and the extra poundage packs in around the waist. i took the habit of avoiding softdrinks at age 25, then commercial juices and iced teas at age 30. my relationship with rice is an on-off thing, most of the time shifting from white to brown rice, then to black rice then nothing. we also ate pork less, even gave up bagnet, chicharon, and eating at grill queen. i do feel healthier but this last weekend i gave in to tradition and feasted on the main course of party buffets in most pinoy homes. i also gave in to coke, finishing 3 bottles of sakto, and my 4 subo of rice (ate with my hands, diba?)

that’s my childhood tradition right here. this is how you eat lechon, circa june 2013.  serve it whole then watch it zombiefied. this one is stuffed with prawns. once the ribs are ripped out, we see these gorgeous ocean suckers peeking out of the cave within.  im allergic to shrimps so i popped some claritins and im free.

planning my next rendezvous with a lechon. december? october? if God knows, God knows to order this amazing lechon in cagayan de oro, contact coycoy’s lechon at 0917-721-9499, look for au inquire about having your lechons stuffed with whole chickens or shrimps. you could also ask about dinuguan or papaitan prepared with the innards and blood of your piggie. or just ask for it fresh and make you own isaw. ooh.

just finished two shoot projects scheduled one day after the other. thank God i had no scheduled meetings right after so i slept in. also had time to workout at the neighborhood gym (gold’s gym is in my neighborhood).

lunched at st.alps with crusted fried chicken with a lemon aioli decorated on it. the chicken was alright but i liked the rye bread better. washed this down with iced oolong tea (no sugar). carlo had the wild mushroom with cheddar cheese sandwich and we had the chicken tom yam split in two.

it’s the start of a great day. but tomorrow will be the best. day. ever.

sharing a cup of brewed coffee with carlo before stepping into the theater at trinoma to watch OTJ (ON THE JOB). it has become a ritual for us mainly because somewhere between 20mins to 40 minutes into the movie i always doze off. and it’s not because the movie was bad but because im old like that.

ive slept through tons of the greatest movies of this generation. ok, all movies. prometheus, pacific rim, man of steel, snow white and the huntsman, the avengers, superman returns, avatar, harry potter 7.1 and 7.2, the dark knight rises, jerrold tarog’s aswang, alvin yapan’s debosyon and even erik matti’s the arrival.

it’s not the film, it’s me.

hence the coffee. i love you guys. i love you papa p. i love you pelikula.

watch OTJ. out now in cinemas. i think i read on twitter direk erik matti said the screening copy at trinoma is film, not dcp. cant wait!

my father passed away august 23 last year from complications due to prostate cancer and we recently marked his first death anniversary. he was diagnosed stage 4 around 2008 or 2007. there have been photos posted online (mostly in facebook, which im reposting here) but some i didnt or wouldnt have posted until now. some intimate moments with the family. all were taken with a phone camera.

above was my dad’s cocktail of meds. before the end of my birthday vacation in 2012, i saw my dad come in and out of the hospital once. he would eventually check in again around the time of the sisters’ birthday around the end of july.

this was in july. he was still up and about and in this photo below, the kids have invaded the hospital bed while my dad sat and watched the national geographic channel.

my dad was confined again at the end of july and then in august. this time, my sister tearfully called me up while i was in the middle of meetings for a shoot project. they have already cut into my dad’s bladder to insert a tube to drain it but the fluids havent cleared up and proceeded to grow darker in color. that very night i packed up my bag to leave for CDO and took the 1st flight out the next morning.

my dad was in high spirits when i arrived from the airport, not expecting me to be back in mindanao so soon. i stayed with him in the hospital for maybe 2 days before he checked out and rested for his last weekend at home. i took a photo of him basking in the morning sun in our living room and coaxed him to eat a bit more oatmeal for breakfast. after this, he never got out of bed.

at the end of the weekend, he would have gone through crazy chills every 6 hours. his temperature would shoot up and he’d be freezing like crazy so i had to cover him with blankets and heaters until his temperature normalized only then would he be able to sleep. the doctor explained they were caused by his body’s infections and also his cancer pains. by monday we brought him back to the hospital and went straight to the ICU. this was monday.

early visitors were my dad’s sisters, who also helped bring him in. that’s my mom in blue.

my nephew lucas stands watch looking at the machines monitoring my dad’s vital signs.

the youngest of dad’s siblings adjusts his oxygen mask.

a cousin nurse comes over to visit. also in the photo is my godmother and aunt.

although i am the youngest of 3 kids, i am also the only male child, hence i get paternal duties since my dad is currently incapable of such. one of the hardest things i had to do was sign the DNR (do not resuscitate) form. my dad has already gone through a lot and his trusted doctor already warned us that things are looking bleak and my dad this time would really not make it. my mom, sisters and i have already decided that if my dad passed on, then that would be it. but still i had to do the signing.

after signing the DNR, i called up my dad’s sister in manila at 1AM, informing her of dad’s condition and the DNR.  she decides to also pack up and fly to CDO on the next available flight.  she arrived on the morning of my dad’s last day on earth. here she shares a light moment with my mom and an uncle.

the day before this, his heart rate was pretty fast. in the morning it normalized. i feared that his heart rate was already slowing down. our church’s pastor was still able to visit and pray over him in the afternoon. when they left, my dad’s heart slowly stopped.

in the DNR, there were instructions for nurses to do CPR first. if the patient wont be revived, then he would be declared dead. i was in the pharmacy buying meds when this was happening. they called me up and we started to contact nearby family members to rush to the hospital. my sisters and close relatives already made it to the ICU room by then and we waited until my dad’s vital signs finally flatlined.

we said our final goodbyes. in moments like this, families take comfort with last moments with the deceased. above, my niece holds on to my father until he turned cold. each of us in the room took time to acknowledge his passing and help comfort each other.

arrangements had to be made with the funeral home and the cemetery. my cousins and some friends accompanied us to the morgue where my dad was cleaned and dressed. we first picked out a nice coffin and the chapel before signing the deal. while i tended to my dad’s embalming, my cousins look on from the other room.

i prodded to give my dad a haircut when he was still alive. this time i finally got to do it.

my dad’s passing was free of any cinematic melodrama. no wailing or bawling. it was very quiet, and everyone was at peace. the events that followed were relaxed, and i suppose that would be how my father would have preferred. he hated loud noises when he was asleep.

smile, chi.

a short rosary prayer before people headed for home.

my mom also went through a long ordeal, taking care of my dad throughout his sickness and seeing him in pain and all.  tears may have been shed but my mom need not cry a river.  she’s been strong for dad and for us and now my mom finally got to let go as well. here she sits with my cousins an hour after my dad’s body was wheeled into the chapel.

here’s a photo taken by cuzin ej of me resting on the last night before my father’s burial.

the temporary grave marker at the cemetery with the mispelled family name. but that’s how my grandmother would sometimes joke about pronouncing our name. padiro. my dad had a sense of humor.

one of my favorite photos with my dad taken years back. in the same cemetery. now we visit his remains there. but the Lord has been kind and my dad’s passing just made the universe a lot bigger. nothing like the death of a loved one to make us realize everything is on borrowed time. everything is fleeting and temporary. and we should always make the most of it. cheers and Godbless you all.

we were ordering a burger at brothers burger for carlo’s brother (see what i did there?) when a heavy downpour of grey matter occurred. we decided to stay and wait for the rain to stop. hence, lunch will be burgers. with blue cheese. winner.

the last stash of our 4-week organic vegetable and salad pack subscription from the good food community arrived yesterday. their bayong packs consist of organic produce in season or whichever is ripe for the picking on that particular week. this week’s batch included creamy avocadoes, some chilis, lots of malunggay and camote tops. the salad pack of lettuce, arugula and some basil came wrapped in banana leaves.

fresh kung fresh talaga. they also easily wilt, showing it is grown without artificial fertilizers or insecticides. here’s proof of that:

a little praying mantis was found packed in with the goodies ahlovet!

the 4-week subscription is Php 1,600 (or 400 per week) and their 12-week subscription is Php 4,200 (or 350 per week). every tuesday you get one bayong of veggies good enough for a week (or less). there are different other packs available. if you want more info on the packs and on how to order, check out their website and start eating healthy

it’s laundry time. tambak na da labada. wait, what’s dot?

early tuesday morning my alarm goes off, breaking the silence at 2 in the morning. i open my eyes to check on the emaciated figure lying on the floor at the foot of our bed. normally i would hear snoring from the 6-year-old canine. this time i hear heavy breaths. my pogiboy is terribly fatigued and i feared his difficulty in breathing spelled more trouble.

we were supposed to leave the house by 3:15am for a shoot we were to do in the boondocks. i rolled over carlo and tapped his shoulder, rousing him up from his 2-hour rest. “bhe,” i said. “i think we have to bring pogi to the vet today. it can’t wait till tomorrow.”

pogi’s been going through another bout of diarrhea and vomiting since friday when he found the stash of colorful plastic clothesline pins my aunt forgot on the dining table. it’s been months since his last episode but this time, the poor dog has been forcing out the bits he’s ingested to no avail. he’s lost his appetite and his stool ranged from watery to globs of slime the consistency of eggwhites (but in poop colors). he’s also vomiting his dinner and has thus turned back to skin and bones, an unfortunate condition he would often be in.

“what happens to the shoot,” asked carlo.

“i was thinking you stay and tend to pogi and bring him to the vet in the morning while i join the pullout of the crew now. besides, we’re only shooting the falls scene and there’s very little prop requirements to look after. we’re also supposed to be done shooting by sundown. see if pogi needs to be confined. when you’re done, you can try to follow and commute to los baños.”

“what about the cloud rat mockup? that’s supposed to be today.” carlo created a mockup of the endemic creature from mt pulag out of stuffed puppies. it was scheduled to be shot for the 2nd sequence of the day.

“oh.” i almost forgot about that. i wouldn’t be able to work out puppeteering that mockup. “well, then you go and i’ll stay and bring pogi to the vet.” there really was no choice in my head. one had to stay, the life of our four-legged child depended on it. carlo grunted then rolled out of bed and headed to the bathroom. i knelt down where pogi was curled up. yesterday he woke up in the middle of the night and pooped in my aunt’s room because he didnt have the energy to go down the stairs and do his business in the kitchen like he always does (he never poops or pees where he sleeps). this morning my pogiboy never got up. it seemed he was all worn out, empty and drained.

i kissed him on the head and uttered a prayer of healing. his eyes were full of rheum all the time now and i needed to wipe it often. he continued to breathe heavily. there have been many times i thought i would lose this beautiful creature and i said to myself once more, not today.

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pogi’s regular doctor at pendragon veterinary clinic in kalayaan ave, qc, ruled out his condition was due to the chewing of the plastic clothespin this time. his X-ray showed his gastric passages were empty in fact. however, his white blood cells were low, indicating an infection. the doctor’s diagnosis was ehrlichiosis, the blood parasite contracted from ticks, stage 1. pogi didn’t need to be hooked up to an IV drip, dra vallera said, so after he was given a shot i brought pogi back home with some more meds and a prescription. my pogi is a stubborn dog and we’ve been through vet emergencies several times but he never learned not to chew on hard plastic. tomorrow im throwing out all the plastic pins in the house.

pogi selfie before we left the vet for home. btw, his appetite and energy’s back. yey!