A one-time four-month summer break! For some students of the University of the Philippines, the unexpected long vacation was the biggest boon resulting from the sudden change in the school calendar, from June to March of previous years, to this schoolyear’s August to May time frame.
Living in Australia for a few years left a lasting imprint in me. I still find myself craving certain aspects of the land Down Under: its vast expanse of space, the clearest blue skies, its laid-back attitude, the abundance of huge vegetables and fresh produce, and its idyllic wine regions.
In the age of the selfie, pictures are cheap. This is the age of visual overload.
Tablet computing had plenty of false starts before it became the ubiquitous device it is now. A few decades ago, cellular phones were capable of merely making calls and sending primitive text messages, while companies still had to imagine tablets. Today, smartphones and tablets have turned into sophisticated pocket computers, making the personal computer superfluous for casual consumers.
It seems the Koreans have discovered the formula for world domination: Beat the Americans at their own game. Every game. First, technology. Samsung has proven to be a worthy adversary of Apple. Next, entertainment. Psy conquered the entertainment world with his YouTube hit and in no time had no less than the legendary Madonna gyrating with him onstage to Gangnam Style. And finally, food. Koreans are conquering the world one fried chicken franchise at a time with “the other KFC,” as in Korean Fried Chicken.
Robert De Niro was merely the opening salvo. Throughout the years, the legendary Hollywood actor has been reported at various times to have visited the Philippines, notably the exclusive resort of Amanpulo in Palawan, but De Niro never deigned to face the local media cameras.
It was the video that got everyone talking. Running less than three minutes and uploaded on Vimeo on November 26, 2010, the controversial clip turned Jason Magbanua into the bad boy of prenuptial videos.
Tired of being corporate stiffs, Pete and Cathy Delantar started their own business in the 1990s, using a cheap and accessible material they had developed from local sources.
Build a business around seemingly useless but abundant materials. Look around for things that may no longer serve any significant purpose. The Delantars got lucky with botanical scraps and paper; maybe you can find something to do with plastic, electronic scraps, bottles, and so on.
Two women, a Filipino and an American, will legally marry each other this month before an American judge in Illinois. Or, should circumstances allow, before a willing Catholic priest licensed to officiate civil weddings.
The latest in global fashion, beauty, and culture through a contemporary Filipino perspective.
