Wacky Weekend

.:Saturday Mayhem: Pre-Party:.

So anyways, it was the second leg of my grandfather's birthday celebration. What I found particularly interesting about it was this time, the party was being organized by Channel 7 and Channel 2, which makes for an interesting dynamic.

My grandfather is very well-known in the media industry because he is the owner of the media planning company for Unilever, technically becoming one of the biggest “sponsors” of any media outfit. Companies can thrive or die by the presence or absence of robust media buying from Unilever, and because of that, my grandfather is definitely someone you have to be grateful for if you somehow find your media outfit successful. Mang Bert, as he is known in the industry, is a force to be reckoned with, quite obviously.

Aside from that, during his long stint working for Unilever, Lolo Nor was one of the biggest pillars of media research, which has set the tone for the industry in the succeeding decades.

When I got there, Ogie, Zsa-Zsa, and Sharon were practicing. Janno wasn't there yet, but they were singing “Impossible Dream”. After the practice, Sharon continued talking on the mic, taking humorous shots at Channel 7, including this killer line:

“Okay naman sigurong maging number two, since eighteen years namang number one, eh!”

Later on, she even wondered aloud how it'd be if she moved to Channel 7 for just a year, and the people laughing at her jokes from Channel 2 started laughing very nervously... it took her a while to realize that she didn't need to be talking into a mic anymore, to begin with... like about five minutes into her talking. Heh.

.:Saturday Mayhem: When Everything Comes Together:.

The party really came together well, and this is considering that it was me and my mom hosting the whole thing. People from Channel 2 and Channel 7, as well as some stalwarts from the radio industry like the Barreiros of RX, did a great job to really keep everyone on their toes.

So the party started with an AVP from the family, which was the video of us singing a song composed by Uncle Raymund, Auntie Elaine, Auntie Evelyn, my mom, and my dad. Of course, the music came from uncle Raymund, but the words came from everyone else. While our family was anything but the most musically gifted around, the song definitely served its purpose, as people were very appreciative of the effort, regardless of the not-so-melodic voices, and of course, my mom and my aunt had lots of “fans” cheering them on during their parts.

I was fairly amused when Ogie Alcasid was quipping while my part was on, though...

So after our presentation, Channel 7 came first, and their turn to present was done fairly well. Kyla sang, and the audio-visual presentation was fairly amusing as they followed the cowboy motif that my grandfather was famous for. However, the kicker was from Direk Cosme, from Bubble Gang. E then went off on an amazing standup routine where he showed off how well he researched Lolo Nor's life as he included in his comedy routine the exact names of Lolo's seven grandchildren, his flight habits, his tv viewing habits, his high school, his extended stay in grade school, and the ever-famous Dating Doon analysis of his name.

I would've given a transcript of the whole routine, but it was a “you had to be there” moment, so I'll leave it at that...

Anyways, his final words?

“I have one wish for you. Iyan ay, na balang araw, ibenta sa iyo ang Unilever, at from there on, tawagin na siyang 'UnileBert'. Tapos, yung slogan niya? Diba 'Adds Vitality To Your Life'? Sana, palitan mo at gawin mong 'UnileBert: Adds Vitality To Your Sex Life.'”

One tangent, by the way... guess the table number of the top GMA people? Yep. 2. Haha!

Afterwards, it was Channel 2's turn. Their presentation was pretty okay, and Zsa-Zsa Padilla hosted. It wasn't anywhere nearly as funny as Channel 7's, but with Sarah Geronimo, Jed Madela, and Erik Santos (With Ruffa Mae backstage holding his hand a lot, thereby confirming that rumor.), they didn't need to.

The finale then came, as a surprise, we had Sharon Cuneta, Janno Gibbs, Ogie Alcasid, and Zsa-Zsa Padilla come together to perform. Network wars were completely ignored for a day, all for Lolo Nor's birthday celebration...

I don't know with you, but that was an awesome party, to say the least. I'm very happy how it turned out, and I'm glad my grandfather's speech at the end of the program was short, unlike most other times. =P

.:Sunday Matrimony: The Wedding:.

And so it finally happened that Hrbs and Krisette finally got married. After all the preparations, after all the blood, sweat, and tears...

In any case, the wedding happened in Don Bosco Makati, and the couple got amused the first time they saw me because I went up and exclaimed “Itigil ang kasal!” knowing full well that they already exchanged vows. I pretended to be too late to stop the wedding and claim what was rightfully mine (Hrbs. Nyahahahahahaha!!!). It was a good laugh, and after a few moments, Clair finally arrived, which meant the JGL was represented by myself and her.

So we hitched a ride with Tito John, and because the reception wasn't until 5:00 in the afternoon and it was only 3:30, we drove through McDonald's for a bit before heading off to Aberdeen. Clair gave me the present for the newlyweds along the way, and it was going to be fairly amusing what would happen when Hrbs and Krisette got the present...

.:Sunday Matrimony: The Reception:.

I was hosting the reception, but I didn't realize I'd almost be organizing it myself. It wasn't so bad, although it certainly took me aback for a while. The reception program itself was okay, but the facilities, particularly the sound system was... urrkk. The songs were bad, the mic was sputtering, but thankfully, the guests weren't so difficult to deal with, though none of them liked participating in the garter and the bouquet.

So while the well-wishers and pictures and other similar stuff were uneventful (Except for the tinkling glass tradition.), the garter and bouquet was definitely something else.

I was organizing the garter ceremony via a game of hot potato. Next thing I knew, Tito John insisted that I join the whole thing, and he deliberately set it up for me to end up with the garter, since he was the one who had control of the music. I casually went to the bouquet segment while the guests were laughing their heads off, and when the bouquet was “caught”, I then moved onto the next parts of the ceremony.

But Tito John could not be sated. He insisted on having me put the garter on the girl, and he even got some of the guests to chant for it. Of course, it wasn't really a garter, but a ribbon, but in any case... errggghhh...

I swear to Gawd, I owe Tito John one for that, big time.

Gahh... thinking about it really just makes me stop... =P

.:Sunday Matrimony: The After-Party:.

After the reception, we headed off to Hrbs' house for an after-party. It was fairly cool, as I got to know Holaina and her brother, and there were loads of quips left and right. The event was enhanced by the present, chocolate syrup. When Hrbs and Krisette saw the gift, they glowed... until they realized what we got them that present for... heh.

So anyways, after hanging out there and talking to some of Hrbs' longtime friends, we finally decided to have a nightcap at Aberdeen again. Conversations really had a wide range, although what really stood out was how most of these guys seemed to be able to hold their alcohol, although one of them was clearly pushing his luck with Holaina, and Holaina wasn't biting. Smart girl.

Ah, well. Congratulations to Hrbs and Krisette!