Posts

Showing posts from June, 2013

[Throwback Thursday 06.27.2013] Little sister

Image
That's me and my little sister in this water-damaged photo from 1985, taken outside our house when we were still living in Paranaque. There's a huge seven-year gap between us and I think it's pretty obvious from the photo. Now she's little sister no more as she finally ties the knot tomorrow in Cebu City.

(Little) Man of Style: Alonso Mateo

Image
I haven't featured a style icon for almost a year now but after stumbling upon this little fella on the web yesterday, I was so inspired to do one again. Yes, I'm talking about a kid and I'm pretty sure you'll agree with me in declaring him a man of style. Introducing: five-year old Alonso Mateo...

[Throwback Thursday 06.20.2013] Flood-tastic in black and white

Image
It's that time of year again here in the Philippines when rains come pouring, typhoons wreak havoc, areas are flooded, classes (and sometimes, work) are suspended, and traffic comes to a standstill. Frustratingly enough, this is also the time when government officials talk of flood control projects and whatnot--right when the monsoon season is in full swing! Of course everyone forgets about them when it's all sunny. Me, several years ago and several pounds lighter. That said, I've unearthed some black and white photos of me wading in floodwaters right here in Makati, which were taken sometime in 2003 or 2004. Yes, they're all in black and white because I used a black and white film.

Be super with Penshoppe x Man of Steel gear

Image
The movie Man of Steel is clearly white-hot right now, at least based on box office receipts (critics are divided). And in case you haven't heard, top Philippine retailer Penshoppe has a movie tie-in, so there's everything Man of Steel in their stores at the moment. General Zod and Man of Steel caps, Php 279 apiece. Of course I'm gonna choose Zod. Since late May, Penshoppe has unleashed a barrage of t-shirts, tank tops, accessories, and other items, with designs ranging from the expected Superman logo to cartoon illustrations of familiar elements in the Superman universe. Men's tees are priced at Php 549, tank tops at Php 499, while hoodies go for Php 1,399.

TRAVEL | It's always summer in Pansol

Image
Mr Bear seems to be enjoying the pool. Oh yes, that's me donning that bear head we made for Halloween last year. Last month our team decided to have a little get-together before summer ended -- and the bears tagged along. Because Laiya in Batangas seemed too far, we settled for Pansol in Laguna. We decided it was the next best thing considering the Friday rush hour traffic and all. Pansol is that area in nearby Laguna where private pools for rent are just everywhere, many of which are adjacent to each other. These gated properties can be booked for anywhere from 8 to 24 hours. The facilities vary but there always seems to be a kitchen and a videoke machine. None of these places are designed for relaxation as noise is expected and tolerated no matter how horrendous the voice blaring from the videoke machine nearby.

'Ugly' Drake covers GQ's July issue

Image
Canadian rapper Drake--who Amanda Bynes notoriously called ugly on Twitter--graces the cover of GQ Magazine's July 2013 issue. Shot by Mario Sorrenti, Drake is wearing a silvery gray shirt and what the mag calls summer's biggest hit--white jeans.

[Lookbook 06.07.2013] One last shot at summer

Image
This post is a week late. By this time the local weather bureau had already announced the official start of the rainy season, a typhoon had already whizzed by the archipelago, and parts of Metro Manila have already fallen victim to flooding.

Trailer for '300: Rise of an Empire' rises

Image
I think I've been living under a rock since I've never heard that there would be a sequel to that abs-baring, testosterone overflow of a movie that was 300. At first I thought it was just one of those faux movie trailers but lo and behold, it is true! And here is our first glimpse of 300: Rise of an Empire :

[Throwback Thursday 06.13.2013] An old men's magazine named Manual

Image
Once upon a time in the early 2000s, there was a local men's magazine called Manual. It was one of those mags I regularly bought along with FHM, Uno, and later on, Metro Him, Men's Health Philippines, and Garage.

Man of Steel: Good but still felt wanting

Image
Superman may be the granddaddy of all superheroes but I've always felt this disconnect from him. Maybe it's because he's an alien. He's also just so... super. Yet he can also be so lame. Nonetheless, I was excited for Man of Steel . After Superman Returns failed to reignite the franchise, a reboot seemed like the most logical way to go for Warner Bros. In Man of Steel, director Zack Snyder takes us back to Superman's origins in Krypton. He sure didn't rush his introduction and he really took his time on the dying planet, which had me thinking how long before this film gains traction. Following his lengthy prologue, Snyder avoids a linear storytelling approach by cutting straight to a scruffy Clark Kent at sea, very much like one of those men from Deadliest Catch on Discovery but very timid, and where the audience gets its first glimpse at Kal-El's heroic deeds. From here on we are taken on a journey, however abrupt, of a man trying to fit in, intersp

"We're rock stars!" | Davao-based developers win first-ever AngelHack Manila

Image
Close to 300 developers, 24 hours of marathon coding, and a couple more hours of pitching -- but in the end, it was a group from Davao that bested 50 other teams to win more than Php 2 million worth of prizes in the first-ever AngelHack Manila over the weekend. They've successfully hacked their way to Silicon Valley. Team Pagesnapp with Smart DevNet guys Jim Ayson and Paul Pajo (the bespectacled guys on the leftmost), IdeaSpace President Earl Valencia (2nd from the right), and AngelHack founder Greg Gopman (rightmost). The team of Rolly Rulete, Marvin Consuegra, Raymund Delfin, Mio Galang, and Jay Albano, who all work for Davao-based startup Lifebit, developed Pagesnapp , a service that would enable businesses to easily create mobile apps based on their official Facebook pages. In short, it's like an app that allows you to create an app. The world's biggest hackathon Dubbed as the world's biggest hackathon, AngelHack is expected to bring in more than 10,000 de

Running shoes: The other half of the battle?

Image
I seriously need to get into some physical activity and whip myself into shape for I am so FAT right now. And then I remembered our boss talking about asking someone how he did it, get into running. That guy said first, you have to imagine that you're already running, which means half the battle is already won. Now if half the battle is already won by constantly thinking you're already running (mind conditioning, I guess), the other half must be the shoes. But that's just me. Photo from the Smart Live More Run Facebook page . So with a myriad of men's running shoes in the market, just how does one settle for a pair? Should the uninitiated like me just go for style? I guess it won't hurt to go that route given that brands like Nike and Asics don't just make shoes that look good, they're fully functional and well-engineered as well.

[Throwback Thursday 06.06.2013] Leo Oracion: The Philippine eagle has landed but paid us a visit first

Image
That's me and My Bibe back in 2005, July 12 to be exact. It was the first session of our club's Basic Mountaineering Course for a fresh batch of recruits to join the Smart Mountaineering Club. We've been lucky to have invited Leo Oracion and Janet Belarmino of the First Philippine Mount Everest Expedition (FPMEE) to talk about their many experiences and share some words of mountaineering wisdom in hopes of inspiring our trainees and fellow club members.

Le Monet Hotel: A modern contrast amid the pine trees of Baguio

Image
Who knew you could enjoy a wonderful sunset in Baguio City! Sure there's the cool breeze and the pine trees but I haven't heard of the city being associated with sunsets at all. The photo above was taken from the balcony of our room at Le Monet Hotel in Camp John Hay just recently. We stayed there for just one night and this post is about our experience with the hotel. Architecture and ambiance Le Monet stands in stark contrast to the warm and cozy feel of nearby The Manor and The Forest Lodge, also inside Camp John Hay. Its modern design, characterized by concrete, glass, hues of black, gray, white, and dark brown, and further accentuated by changing colored lights, tries very little to conform to that "old Baguio" feel of wooden cabins of yore. While such designs are no longer stranger to other areas in the city, inside John Hay it's still something relatively new. Well, at least it conforms to the color scheme of the other buildings there.

Chalet Baguio Hotel is no chalet but is nice nonetheless

Image
So let's get this straight right from the start: Chalet Baguio is no chalet. It's made of concrete and has absolutely none of that Swiss Alps feel associated with cottages. It's just how they wanted to name their hotel, that's all. However, despite the misnomer and the constricted space, it proved to be a nice place to stay in Baguio. Lovely wall decor at Chalet Baguio. This was by the staircase right next to the elevator. Architecture and ambiance Chalet Baguio is located along the Upper Military Cutoff Road and is just a short cab ride from the Victory Liner bus terminal. From the street, the hotel looks like a two-storey structure but because this is Baguio, the building actually extends a few more levels down below.