i guess, i’ve done it again. last year, i remember griping about the hot, steamy days that never seemed to end (yes, it’s a yearly thing for me), wishing fervently for the rains to come — and got more than i bargained for.

well… this time, i basically went through the same rigmarole and got the same results, albeit at a milder dose. barely a few days after i had posted a couple of entries about the weather — it actually rained!

the first couple of days, things were fine. we heaved a sigh of relief (and i did a couple of celebratory cheers when no one was looking). then an office mate started to complain, because apparently the sudden and unexpected change in the weather was literally making her sick. not that it bothered me, that is, until somebody pointed out that our summer outing was only two days away.

and like a well-timed ironic turn of events, it rained hard during the day of our company outing! we assembled around 5:30am, and as luck would have it, our bus arrived late because the driver had apparently misinterpreted our instructions — he actually waited for us at a different place!

as we headed towards Subic (By the Sea beach resort), the sky darkened although it was still hot at this time. to top it all, i had a hard time keeping myself awake because i hadn’t slept the night before. by the time we reached our destination we were all tired, hungry and a bit cranky. things felt better after we caught a glimpse of the water, though.

so, there we were, basically swimming, eating, and taking respite from the rain by turns. talk about a real damper! finally around 12:30pm, i could hardly keep my eyes open so i excused myself to sleep in one of the rooms that had been rented for our use. Two hours later, i headed back to the cluster of cottages that been assigned to us (it was raining again). the games were over, and everybody decided to ignore the rain and bathed to their hearts’ content.

we left around 6:30pm. *sigh* this was supposed to be a fun day at the beach. instead, i spent it sleeping, taking shelter from the rain, eating, and getting stuck in the traffic (on our way back). a nice way to learn a lesson about being careful what to wish for…

one movie that has slowly trickled into public consciousness this past week is Two Lovers, which opened in US theaters last Feb. 13th. Two Lovers, which topbills joaquin phoenix and gwyneth paltrow, is actually too bleak or somber to qualify as one your usual valentine flicks, but it’s been getting a lot of favorable notice from various critics.

incidentally, Two Lovers (directed by james gray) made its debut in the Cannes Film Festival in 2008, and was actually one of the few notable films that stirred some noise in the said event. many critics (then and now) noted the fine performance of the cast, particularly joaquin phoenix — notwithstanding his bizarre stint (unkempt beard and all) in David Letterman’s show just a few days ago — along with gwyneth paltrow, vinessa shaw, isabelli rossellini, moni moshonov, etc.

many are hoping that joaquin phoenix won’t make good on his threat to quit acting altogether in order to embark on a new career direction as a rap artist (umm, say what? what is going on here?).

at any rate, Two Lovers also marks the third time that james gray and joaquin phoenix have collaborated on a film (the other two being The Yards and We Own the Night).

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i just couldn’t resist… that weird Letterman episode keeps popping up in my mind at odd moments so i’m posting it here via this ‘Tube vid.

if this doesn’t ring any alarm bells in your mind, maybe you should also consider the fact that during his first public performance as a hip-hop artist, joaquin phoenix reportedly didn’t make much sense (he made the same ‘mumbling’ delivery apparently) — on top of which he fell off the stage! uggh! *nervous laughter* whatever his point is, i hope that joaquin phoenix will wake up soon and get his act together.

what do you guys think?

the latest book on michael phelps — No Limits: The Will to Succeed — is already available in bookstores and other outlets.

the book, which the swimmer co-writes with alan abrahamson, details his struggles, triumphs and defeats over the years, and unmatched feat as the most bemedalled Olympian ever (in a single Olympics; in terms of gold medals won, that is).

the book (240 pp., Free Press), which attracted its share of fan lines in NY, has even inched its way slowly in the bestsellers’ list. incidentally, michael phelps, 23, was recently named by Sports Illustrated as “Sportsman of the Year” (2008) and was also voted by the Associated Press as the top sports story for 2008.

and the word is out that there is also a michael phelps video game (505 Games), whose title is still unknown, on the way (release is set for spring 2010). hmmm….

i was all set to write a finale on michael phelps‘ splendid performance in beijing — extolling his unprecedented feat of winning the highest number of gold medals in a single olympics, among other things — but after reading countless of articles and posts from reporters, bloggers, sports writers, etc., i decided to hold off.

it’s not that i find it overwhelming (i could go on for hours gabbing away about his pool exploits), mind you. it’s just that after reading so many things about him, i realized i didn’t have anything new to add. i don’t think i’d need to, anyway. it’s all there: the TV, newspapers, magazines, the Internet, on people’s lips.

so i’m just going to focus on a couple of things.

first of all, i want to say thank you, michael (and all the people who have contributed to your success) for an amazing weeklong show. and for giving us a compelling reason to watch the Olympics.

and good luck to whatever it is you plan to do next. until 2012 in london then. or maybe even long before that.