More often, dedication to work means having to set aside your social life.
Palibhasa nataon nitong Biyernes, kasagsagan ng pagkukumahog sa pagsusulat ng scripts for the next day’s live episode of Startalk ay hindi ako nakapunta, much of my regret, sa idinaos na party ni Laarni Enriquez for her college friends.
One year ahead ako kay Laarni sa FEU masscomm, pero iisa ang iniikutan naming tropa mostly active in theatre. Around 80’s ‘yon, nagsilbing showbiz entry ni Laarni ang kanyang pagkakapanalo sa Ms. Tondo Girl search. The rest is history.
Back then, we would spend overnight at every friend’s house rehearsing for school plays. At noon pa man, Laarni had shown promise in acting, kaya hindi na nakapagtataka if she ended up embarking on a showbiz career years later.
Came Laarni’s invitation nitong December 26, agad na akong nag-abiso sa aming common college friend that I would not make it much as I eagerly wanted to see her. Year 1982 ko pa huling nakita si Laarni, she even graced the stage play I wrote and directed myself, 26 years ago na ‘yon!
‘Yun ‘yong panahon na hindi pa nagkukrus ang landas nila ng noo’y mayor pang si Joseph Estrada, who later became a senator. That was way ahead of their first screen team-up kung kailan du’n na rin umusbong ang kanilang relasyon.
Knowing that Laarni’s party that night was in progress, tinext ko ang aming common friend as my potential source of news na puwede kong isulat. Replay ni Joey Atienza, na tropa rin namin ni AiAi de las Alas: “Nakakatakot.” Ewan ko if Joey was scared for me dahil biniro ko pa nga, dahil ba uso ang journalist killings?
Hirit ko, pahingi na lang ng reaksyon ni Laarni tungkol sa paghingi ng sorry ni dating President Cory Aquino kay Erap for joining the Edsa revolt to oust him. I thought that even from a different angle, makaka-scoop ako. After all, very surely, Laarni had a say to it.
No reply.
I never gave up. Baka sa susunod kong tanong address to Laarni ay may makuha na akong sagot. Ano na lang ang kanyang message of hope for a beleaguered nation in 2009 as it gears up for the coming elections? Hindi nga ba’t balitang tatakbong pangulong muli si Erap, pero tinabla na siya ni Senator Loren Legarda as his runningmate dahil meron din itong presidental ambition?
Still no reply.
Hindi ko alam if I posed harsh questions, baka kasi walang-bahid pulitika ang party na ‘yon ni Laarni for her college friends, kundi isang simpleng social gathering lang.
Hindi pa rin ako sumuko, stupidity got the better of me. Ang tanong ko: bakit wala nang Ms. Tondo Girl search, mabuti pa ang Ms. Gay Tondo, sandamakmak! Wala pa ring sagot.
Last try: Ano ba si Laarni—Vilmanian o Noranian? Just when I thought na pag-aaksayahan na ako ni Laarni sa kanyang pagsagot to my fan-based question, nawala at nagkaroon ng signal uli ang cellphone ko, nalaglag na’t lahat mula sa bulsa ko, there was hardly any reply.