For the love of Mom at Festival Supermall

For the love of Mom at Festival Supermall

It's tough being a mom. First, there's the incomparable act of giving birth, then the endless list of roles such as caretaker, teacher, chauffeur, and cook, among others. It's only right that More »

Iron Man 3

Review: Iron Man 3

In the aftermath of the clash between The Avengers and the alien forces in New York (as seen in last year's blockbuster Avengers), billionaire genius Tony Stark (Downey Jr.) can't sleep and More »

Bimmerfest X

Fasten your seatbelts for Bimmerfest X

Ladies, let’s get on the road to enjoying the fabulous BMW lifestyle! BimmerFest X, an annual all-BMW car show by BMW Car Club of the Philippines is headed our way on May More »

Sa Wakas - A Pinoy Rock Musical.feat

Review: “Sa Wakas – A Pinoy Rock Musical”

Sa Wakas features a bittersweet love story that chronicles the end of one relationship and the beginning of another. It raises the timeless question of why relationships fall apart. Thematically, it also More »

The Sky Over Dimas

Review: The Sky Over Dimas

I had a hard time keeping up with the details of the story in the Harlequin Theater Guild's production of "The Sky Over Dimas", particularly during the first half. Especially since I More »

Sa Wakas the Musical - staged reading

“Sa Wakas”, A New Pinoy Rock Musical

Love is tough. It’s tough because you cannot be sure of it. You can never tell if you’re going to end up with your special someone now. It is possible that one More »

Book Review: Unseen Moon by Eliza Victoria

Unseen Moon

When I was given the assignment to review a book by a local author, the first one that came to mind was Eliza Victoria. A lot of readers from Manila-based book clubs have been raving about her works and I thought it was high time i read one of her stories. Eliza’ new book Unseen Moon,

For the love of Mom at Festival Supermall

For the love of Mom at Festival Supermall

It’s tough being a mom. First, there’s the incomparable act of giving birth, then the endless list of roles such as caretaker, teacher, chauffeur, and cook, among others. It’s only right that we celebrate our mothers and show her our thanks.

Festival Supermall in Alabang, Muntinlupa City throws an all-out appreciation for the family queen with amazing deals at Festival Supermall’s selected stores.

Let Mom feel like a queen too with great deals from Ageless Medical Spa from May 10-12. Mothers get a 40 percent discount on the Purifying Facial with Diamond Peel, any SDS treatment, or the whole body scrub with whitening. Moms can also avail of a 25 percent discount on the RF Viora treatment for the face and medical slimming.

Mommies shopping at Pd&Co. customers will receive a Nail-a-Holics Spa voucher for every P2,500 minimum purchase on regular items from May 1-15; 101 New York gives a 20 percent discount on all regular priced ladies’ apparel and accessories from May 6-12; Terranova Italia’s also gives special offers on selected items until May 31.

Review: Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3

In the aftermath of the clash between The Avengers and the alien forces in New York (as seen in last year’s blockbuster Avengers), billionaire genius Tony Stark (Downey Jr.) can’t sleep and starts getting anxiety attacks. He spends his time creating version after version of the Iron Man suit, much to the dismay of girlfriend Pepper Potts (Paltrow) as their relationship has become fraught with tension because of Stark’s recent time-consuming hobby.

Iron Man 3Amidst the friction in the relationship, Stark Industries security chief and his former Personal Assistant Happy Hogan (Favreau) is caught in a serious bombing incident leaving him severely hurt. Stark is enraged by this and in one interview threatens Mandarin, the person believed to have engineered the bombing, and dares the terrorist to come after him. Which he apparently does, and Potts and unexpected house guest scientist Maya Hansen (Hall) barely escape with with their lives from the ensuing attack. Stark finds himself (with his AI JARVIS) in a small Tennessee town and Latin-flared city Miami. The rest of the storyline is an action-packed madcap adventure which includes a quirky 10-year-old kid, an Air Force One flight gone berserk, a blond hottie assisting Killian (who is equally hot and blond in the film … er, except for the first part), and a substance-dependent British “actor” who is a Liverpool FC fan.

My own awesome recap of Iron Man 3 ends there because you should see it yourself. On IMAX. With large Coke and burger … or popcorn … or potato chips.

[ RDJ=awesome ]

No to XL discrimination!

No to XL discrimination! -- Cotton On

Is it just me or does there seem to be a ban on XL-sized clothing among high-street retailers?

I fit a size L dress in Forever 21, but if I want to go up a couple of inches in the bust, I’m directed to the plus size section — where clothes seem to start at XXL (major fabric swimming!)

I went to the Cotton On at Bonifacio High Street and asked for a dress in XL. “We only carry up to size L,” says the sales associate, despite the fact that the tag clearly stated that sizes go up to XL. You could also say the same thing for the Uniqlo at SM Mall of Asia.

And last weekend — horror of horrors! — I wanted to pick up a sweet pair of khaki shorts from former favorite TerraNova, but suddenly no XL ones were to be found. I looked around the store: indeed, there seemed to be an XL sweep, because that size was suddenly gone.

What’s going on? Do the companies that bring in these retailers to the country believe that no Pinay is over US size 10, or that those who are don’t shop? Is it more cost-effective to stock XS-L items and neglect the next size? Do they think it’s a great marketing strategy to separate larger shoppers from the “normal” and give them a smaller selection?

Fasten your seatbelts for Bimmerfest X

Bimmerfest X

Ladies, let’s get on the road to enjoying the fabulous BMW lifestyle! BimmerFest X, an annual all-BMW car show by BMW Car Club of the Philippines is headed our way on May 4, Saturday, from 10 am to 9 pm at The Filinvest Tent, Filinvest City in Alabang, Muntinlupa City.

Edwin Reyes, President of the BMW Car Club of the Philippines excitedly talked about this year’s BimmerFest X being one of the largest BMW collections they ever had. “It’s a total BMW experience”, he added.

Bimmerfest X
Here are the reasons why you should gear up for BMW Bimmerfest X:

  1. Experience a stunning BMW lifestyle with fellow BMW Lovers! Bimmerfest X aims to gather around all BMW owners and enthusiasts. This event will be the best time for BMW lovers to showcase, share, appreciate, and experience the fun of BMW. And if that’s not enough, visitors attending this event will be able to test drive different BMW models for an unforgettable all-day-all-out BMW experience.
  2. Take pride in being one of the first to see and experience the sleekest, cutting-edge designs and technology of the latest BMW models.

Review: “Sa Wakas – A Pinoy Rock Musical”

Sa Wakas - A Pinoy Rock Musical.feat

Sa Wakas features a bittersweet love story that chronicles the end of one relationship and the beginning of another. It raises the timeless question of why relationships fall apart. Thematically, it also explores the concept of how the choices we make in life define who we are as a person.

534966_568575526510637_703786234_nSa Wakas certainly blew the audience away on its preview night. It was impeccable, in my opinion. The musical brought out all the emotions in me and I think it did the same for most of the audience too. It wasn’t just me crying in the tear-jerker scenes but also caught others wiping tears off their faces. I laughed with the audience at the unexpected banat amidst the somber feel of a scene. The musical was a whole package that was able to bring all genres (comedy, drama, and romance) together.

Swimsuits for keeps

Marilyn - Anemone halter

Do you ever get swimsuit anxiety every time summer rolls around? I do — and not just finding suits that fit and flatter, but are stylish and will remain so even next summer!

Plus, every person has their own swimsuit issues: What parts do you want to cover? What do you want to show off? What needs support (cough cough)? All these conspire to make swimsuit shopping majorly stressful!

But maybe these tips can point you in the right direction:

  1. I consider swimsuits a “splurge” item. Spend a bit to get suit that provide good support and won’t go all loose and bacon-y after a few washes.
    Mystras

The Wattpad author interview series: Soju

Do Not Disturb by Soju

If you’re up for a darker and spine-chilling kind of a story, then check out Soju’s “Do Not Disturb”, winner of the 2012 Watty Awards Philippines for Best Horror/Thriller story, which takes horror to whole new level as the story excludes actual supernatural interference. Where’s the horror there, you ask? Well, the horror element in the story resides deep in the minds of the characters.

Do Not Disturb by Soju

  1. Basic information
    • Name and Age: Soju (pen name), 22
    • Interests: Writing stories, watching Asian horror, daydreaming
    • Reading List (not necessarily from wattpad): Bob Ong books (I have six of his books.)
    • Works: There are many of them, in fact. “Almost A Cinderella Story”, “Inggit”, “My Scary Girl”, “Price Tag Lover”, “Ganti”, “Pristine Academy”, “Repleksiyon”, “Girl, Boy, Bakla, Tomboy”, “Dara Kara”, “I Heart U, Panget!”, “School Trip”, “Breathe To Life”, among others.
    • Preferred genre, “specialty” (in reading and/or writing): Horror and humor.
  2. What motivated/inspired you to pursue writing? What motivated me is my dream to be a writer with published books. For me, you can’t call yourself a writer if you don’t have any published works. Inspiration for me is my family, my dream to be published, and of course my followers in Wattpad.
  3. In what ways did social media help you in this path? It became easier for me to share my stories. In other words, “just a click away”.

Review: The Sky Over Dimas

The Sky Over Dimas

I had a hard time keeping up with the details of the story in the Harlequin Theater Guild’s production of “The Sky Over Dimas”, particularly during the first half. Especially since I hadn’t read the book (by Vicente Garcia Groyon) the play was adapted from. All I had to go on was a series of flashbacks from the characters’ points of view.

In the heart of Bacolod’s high society dwells the Torrecarions, a notorious hacienda family with dark secrets involving greed, deceit, and betrayal from which no one in the family can escape. Amidst all the secrets, there is but one person who will do anything and everything to end the cycle that continuously haunts his family: George Torrecarion, who is fed up with the lies. As his great grandfather Faustino’s memoirs reveal more lies regarding the origin of the Torrecarions, George exiles himself to Hacienda Dimas where it all began and exposes the darkest skeletons of his family’s past.

There were a number of times that the characters from the present got to talk to the characters from the past, as a means present the thoughts of George Torrecarion, who was on the verge of lunacy. What could have been a confusing mess was a expertly presented dramatic presentation of the story. The play required the audience’s full attention, as they had to switch their attention from one part of the stage to another. But it made for a more engaging performance, and made the resolutions all the more satisfying.

The Sky Over Dimas The Sky Over Dimas


The Wattpad author interview series: Abigaile Losantas

The Wedding Day by Abigaile Losantas

Abigaile Losantas is an awardee of the 2012 Watty Awards for Short Story, for her tale “The Wedding Day”. In an event that entangles four different people, with four different stories to tell, the Wedding Day may seem like an ordinary love story at first but the unique voice makes the tale stand out.

  1. Basic information
    • Name and Age: Maria Lourdes Abigaile Losantas, 19
    • School: Lyceum of the Philippines University- Cavite
    • Interests: Music, law and politics related stuff, culture, reading and writing and having a pet baby tiger and baby panda.
    • Reading List (not necessarily from wattpad): Nicholas Sparks novels, Veronica Roth’s Divergent Trilogy, Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis, Extravagant Worship by Darlene Zschech and From This Day Forward by Marla Miniano
    • Works:”Til I Found You”, “The Wedding Day”, “HAPLY: By Chance”, “Just a Little Longer”, “The Perfect Fairytale Moment”
    • Preferred genre, “specialty” (in reading and/or writing): Teen Fiction, Romance, Action
  2. What motivated/inspired you to pursue writing?
    I’ve always been an excellent daydreamer, since I was a kid. I love to waste time just doing nothing but think of happy things, the what ifs, the what could be, and stuff like those. Then I heard about Wattpad from my friend, Louisse, and thought: “Why not share my thoughts with others? Who knows? People might like it.” All I ever thought that time was to give it a shot, but when I saw the positive feedback from the readers, that’s when I decided: “I’m doing this.”