Awesome in Manila

2012 reading list

2012-01-28T09:22:00.001+08:00

I don't really reserve a particular time each day for reading, except the early morning commute to work. And even that is dependent on my mood. So even though I can read faster than most, with the little time I allocate for reading, I take long finishing a book from cover to cover. (Fastest would be three days each for Nicholas Spark's Dear John, Greg Cox' Infinite Crisis and six volumes of the

Grab a copy of Saved Newsmagazine's 8th issue!

2012-01-23T06:35:00.001+08:00

The eighth issue of Saved Newsmagazine is now up for download (free)! The theme is in line with the BMI-organized Saved Festival (the cover story), which was held November 26, 2011 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Inside the issue are more articles on "no compromise", a special guest contribution by Hillsong Publishing head manager Steve McPherson, an exclusive interview with James Mead of

California Pizza Kitchen

2012-01-08T21:13:00.000+08:00

I haven't done a serious food post in a few months. My appetite (and my curiosity and energy -or whatever is the direct opposite of laziness) has shrunk from a construction worker's to an average Joe's. That and I've also chosen to spend most of my weekends at home trying to complete this list. But yay, now that it has been accomplished, maybe my social life could go back to regular programming..

January 2012: Building habits

2012-01-05T08:04:00.000+08:00

I consciously chose not to write another year-ender post because as immensely grateful as I am of everything that has happened and everything I was blessed with, recalling the past in detail will make it extra harder for me to let go of things/people/memories better left in 2011. Sure I can also consciously choose to just share the happy stuff but that would also mean consciously saving the

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T08:03:00.000+08:00

You can make it about kids. You can make it about Santa Claus. You can make it about the happily wrapped gifts under your Christmas tree. You can make it about Noche Buena. You can make it about rave parties on your streets. You can even make it about friends. You can even make it about family. You can make it about whatever it is that's most important to you but you can never shake the fact

El Pollo Loco

2011-12-16T07:40:00.001+08:00

I'm inclined to write a comprehensive review of Immortals (2011) after seeing it last night but two things prevent me. One, I have a few errands to run on this very sabaw Friday morning. Two, I'm not sure my idea of a comprehensive review (hint: lotsa half-nekkid photos of Henry Cavill) would help anybody who hasn't seen it understand the story. So I'll just give it to ya in two words: OH

Awesome Picks for December: Recommended Books

2011-12-11T13:25:00.001+08:00

I only got into reading near the end of college. I hated it back in high school. I was so much into TV then, I didn't want anything else eating up my time. I try but really can't remember what is it that finally got me into books, but I believe the first one I ever did read willingly was Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist. That was, in many ways, life-changing. Unlike with movies, I don't have a

Saved Festival

2011-12-10T12:59:00.002+08:00

"I've sung for You all my life but where are You?" were the words of Parachute Band front man Omega Levine, as he shared about reaching out to God in his darkest hour. Like me, Omega grew up in a Christian home, raised by Christian parents, surrounded by Christian friends. Like me, he attended Sunday school and served in church–and probably for a good few years failed to understand what the

Awesome Picks for December: Wishlist

2011-12-04T20:28:00.000+08:00

1. MAC Wonderwoman: Obey Me and Spirit of Truth nail lacquer 2. Wonder Woman Makeup Bag in Bulletproof Blue 3. "Girl Power" Marvel tee 4. A Nicholas Sparks that isn't Dear John or Nights in Rodanthe 5. Neil Gaiman's The Sandman series 6. A Chuck Palahniuk that isn't Pygmy or Tell All 7. Kikomachine Komiks nos 3, 4, 5 and 7 8. Marvel 1602 9. Lord of the Flies by William Golding 10. Zombies vs

Awesome in Manila in The PBA!

2011-12-01T07:58:00.002+08:00

Awesome in Manila is a finalist at The 2011 Philippine Blog Awards! How awesome is that?! And what's even more surprising is that this blog has been nominated in not just one, but two categories: Personal/Diary and Lifestyle on National Level! That is just beyond cool! Now I don't know (yet) who sent in the nominations but whoever you are, you should come clean so I can give you a hug! This is

Playlist: Breakfast music

2011-11-22T08:24:00.003+08:00

Early in the morning and Grooveshark is being a pain in the ass. That and the gloomy weather is trying to damp on the happy, sunshiny vibe I was looking forward to last night. It was supposed to be bright and happy and the sun is supposed to be up and I was supposed to make bright, happy, sunshiny breakfast and be all smiles and inspired listening to a playlist I made last night. But I wake up

Tiger Translate Manila

2011-11-20T22:34:00.001+08:00

Honestly I felt really iffy about attending Tiger Translate Manila. I am not a beer person and believe me, I tried but I couldn't muster even the littlest excitement for the launch of another beer brand, even if it really is world-acclaimed. But I did look forward to the live graffiti battle and was a bit curious about Turbo Goth's music. I don't know about you guys but I feel that the

Awesome Picks for November: 2012 movies to get excited about

2011-11-13T07:58:00.001+08:00

I feel the need to get defensive. I do not mean for everything in this list to be comic-book based. Last year's, sure. But with all the rumors and actual plans laid out for 2012, these are the movies that peaked my interest most. #1 - The Avengers I have been waiting for this since last year. Honestly I don't know a shit about The Avengers except that it's a group of super hot superheroes

Snapshots: Tagaytay

2011-11-06T16:38:00.000+08:00

While Metro Manila experienced a very wet Saturday, the heat in Tagaytay was almost unbearable. Of course, we're thankful it didn't rain in the city, but the humidity did make any physical movement feel a bit more tedious. And what is a teambuilding trip without games to get you moving not just your brain but every muscle in your body? Lagare indeed. We left Manila at around 7 am, a wee bit

Playlist: Hello Tagaytay!

2011-11-04T00:00:00.007+08:00

This is probably one of the most cliched OPM playlists you will ever come across. The actual thing includes other songs I could not be hassled to upload to Grooveshark. Those would be more Rivermaya and Eraserheads classics, December and Moving by Pochoy Labog's new band Malay, more Urbandub, more UDD, Nasaan Ka, a few Sandwich circa Marc Abaya songs, Julianne, Fuseboxx, and Paramita. And

Happening soon: Tiger Translate Manila

2011-11-01T22:19:00.002+08:00

Tiger Translate is a global campaign promoting Asia Pacific Breweries' Tiger Beer, Singapore's first locally brewed beer launched in the early 1930s. Tiger Beer takes pride in the title "World Acclaimed Lager Beer" - so much so that you would find it imprinted on the label. And according to several blog reviews I have read, Tiger Beer gives a good fight on the Asian ring. (I did say several,

Happening soon: Saved Festival 2011

2011-10-22T09:09:00.002+08:00

Becca Music, the group that brought Hillsong back here in Manila with the 2011 Aftermath tour and the Conference with Steve McPherson, is rounding up Jodi King, Citipointe Live, Starfield, Parachute Band, Delirious front man Martin Smith, and local artists Gary Valenciano, Quest and Sideshow on November 26, 6PM at the Araneta Coliseum for a night of praise and worship, dubbed as SAVED Festival

Awesome Picks for October: Sabaw playlist

2011-10-16T14:04:00.000+08:00

So...the past week has been uh well, sabaw. It was survivable though. There were highlights (friends, food, surprises, mother-daughter messages) in between the bad vibes, the missing someone terribly, the too lazy to work, the frustrating weather, the trying to be patient with some people and the trying for the nth time to quit some habits. And I have a feeling the coming week isn't going to be

Ogre Burger

2011-10-15T09:04:00.000+08:00

Thursday night marked the official launch of BAGA Manila, abbreviation for the newly formed BBQ and Grillers Association, at the Salamanca Nightmarket & Food Hawkers, in A Venue parking, Makati Avenue. BAGA is organized by the lovely Ms Dawn Mawis. (So nice this lady, so warm and welcoming even though every little detail of the event seemed to be screaming for her attention.) GMA7's Hanep Buhay

A happy first step into October

2011-10-02T10:40:00.000+08:00

This lovely pair of chocolate-colored flats is from Sole Sister's Solemates collection. Many thanks to Ella for introducing me to Sole Sister, I am now a big fan. Honestly I didn't feel too confident ordering from a catalogue (and a bit pricey at that) but lookit, it turned out to be a match made in shoe heaven. I love it! It's so cute and comfortable. Originally I had wanted to order a jean

How fast, September

2011-09-25T12:33:00.173+08:00

Short commercial break: I made tiny changes to the blog's layout. It was, as with most decisions I make in life, done on impulse. I got bored with the grey (surprising since I loooove 'grey areas', lol) and switched to white since it allows more colors to pop out. Minimalist design, as with all the other layouts I've ever used. I wanted to change the color theme to blue, but I realised how

Awesome Picks for September: Good vibes music

2011-09-22T22:31:00.002+08:00

#1 - Hey Hey Hey by Michael Franti & Spearheads Singing hey, hey, hey No matter how life is today There's just one thing that I got to say I won't let another moment slip away But wait, before anything else, you guys should totally catch the Bethany Hamilton-biographical Soul Surfer. Truly inspiring story. I don't know if it justifies Bethany's story to a hundred percent but the film is good.

Budget Manila: ChickChat, Chicago Pizza Factory

2011-09-18T06:00:00.001+08:00

SM City Manila has opened its spaces to a few new establishments over the past year. The list includes master rapper Francis Magalona's clothing brand 3 Stars & a Sun, Korean cosmetic shop Etude House and a number of fast food stores and restaurants like Krispy Kreme, The Old Spaghetti House, World Chicken and Singaporean brand ChickChat. I'm not absolutely sure as to whether ChickChat really is

Inspiring days

2011-09-10T13:36:00.003+08:00

I promised myself that I'd watch the sun rise today. But it's jolly hard to wake up at 5-freaking-30 A.M.-ish on a no-work day. I'll get to it on a weekday na lang so I could start work with good vibes. Buuuut here, I share these very awesome sunrise videos from some other parts of the world: Twin Peaks San Francisco Sunrise (HDR time-lapse) from Chad Richard on Vimeo. 5am50d Sunrise over

The First Globe Tattoo Awards

2011-09-01T02:55:00.002+08:00

But while one person can start something, you need a whole group to actually achieve [your goals]. Maria Ressa Netizens convened at the Manila Peninsula's Burgundy Hall, Friday night (August 26), to celebrate the local social media scene and recognize a few who have made strong and positive impact on the society through this platform. Indie Rocker nominee Giniling Festival opened the night with