A day at the Museum

Yesterday, I decided to bring my classmates and one of our instructors on a mini-tour around Manila. 

Since our seminar started, all they've seen was their hotel, our school, Harrison Plaza, and the occasional trip to MOA or Roxas Boulevard. So, I promised them that I'd bring them to some of the more interesting historical sites in Manila.

And one of the places where I took them was the National Museum of the Filipino People.

Since I was in High School, I've always enjoyed going to the National Museum. And it provides a good snapshot of our history and culture - which they asked me to explain a lot of. Thank goodness I was attentive during our Kasaysayan 1 and 2 classes.

One of their favorite parts of the museum was the exhibit of the Philippine Art Awards.

They really took the time to study each piece and discuss among themselves. Also, they were impressed at the quality of creativity and the technical skill that went into each piece. 

And that's just the modern art. When I brought them to the National Art Gallery, they were even more impressed.

I should take my classes here next time. 

Soooo good. (Yet Soooo bad.)

If there's one fast food joint that never ceases to amaze me, it's KFC. They have this uncanny knack of turning something ordinary into something sinfully good. And here's their latest creation that fits that bill.

For two days straight, I've been ordering their Cheezy Bacon Bucket of Fries. It's part of their "Cheezy Bacon" series that includes a Twister and a Chicken Filet Burger. I've tried all 3, and the Twister and Burger are epic fails. But the fries... oh the fries!

It has their signature KFC fries, then drizzled with cheese sauce, mayonnaise, then topped with chicken bacon. Gosh, my arteries are clogging just by mentioning the ingredients. Harhar.

After today, I promise not to touch this product for the next week or two. It may be true to KFC's tagline of "Sooooo good," but it's so rich, it has to be "Sooooo bad."

Back to my roots

When I entered college, I had my mind set on becoming a journalist.

Writing was something that I was passionate about. Reading newspapers was my hobby. And I liked the idea of writing for a newspaper. That's why I chose to take up journalism in college, so I could plant my roots in the field I wanted to get into.

But somewhere along the way, I branched out. My creative instinct kicked in, and it kicked in fast.

Unfortunately, Journalism and Creativity don't mix. In our news writing class, our professor Ben Dom told me that I couldn't be a journalist because I was too creative. And because of that creativity, my news items were becoming less factual and more frivolous.

Of course, I tried to prove him wrong. Eventually, I did well in his class, but after that, I decided to uproot myself from Journalism and pursue a more creative field. The field where I am now.

I haven't completely turned my back on that field, though. There are the occasional article writing jobs for magazines, and the journalism courses that I've handled the past year. So, my roots to the journalistic world hasn't been completely cut.

And thanks to the seminar I'm attending, my journalistic roots are further being strengthened.

We had a group assignment: to create a news blog about a topic related to women and sports. Our group - composed of 2 Filipinos, an Indonesian and a Bosnian - was assigned the topic "Women in Boxing." After all the brainstorming, data gathering and interviewing, we divided the work among the 4 of us.

Two members were assigned to the video news presentation, one was assigned to the radio version of the report, and I was assigned to do the website and write all the articles.

In less than 4 hours, we came up with this.

For a journalistic piece that we had less than a day to prepare, our project came out beautifully. The articles were well researched, the videos were interesting and fun, the radio spot was fact filled, and the overall output was clear, concise and creative.

Among the 5 groups who presented, our website was the best received. The instructor said that it was interestingly done, while keeping all the facts and figures, and carrying a strong message.

I'm so glad that the journalist in me is still there. And after this exercise, I feel that I should do this more often.

FMM: Hit me with a rerun

Today's Friday Magic Madness song was inspired by our group work in school. Our TV diva, Dwi, edited a short feature on the subject of boxing, and she was looking for the right mood music for it. So, she comes up to my desk and asked if we could use this Pat Benatar classic from the 80s:



Being a big fan of the 80s, of course I gave her a resounding: "Hell, Yeah!"

This is actually the 2nd time I wrote about this song, which technically makes it a rerun.

But hey, that's what Friday Magic Madness is all about.

Time to be Avenged!

Cool Beans! The Avengers is opening today!

But like what Mark and I usually do, I think I'll wait for a few weeks for the hysteria to die down before I watch this film. I'm sure that it'll be in cinemas for quite a long time.

International School

For the past decade or so, I've been on the teacher's side of the classroom. And I really enjoy imparting knowledge, as well as getting insights from my students.

But this week was different. For the first time in a long time, I find myself sitting on the student's chair, listening to lessons on Gender, Sports and Media.

Because SSC played host to this regional learning event, I was given a slot and will play student for 2 weeks. And it really feels like being back in school. There are recitations, presentations, groupings, deadlines - everything I miss about school. (And I suspect, it's also everything my students dislike!)

What makes this class even more interesting is the fact that more than half of my classmates are foreigners. They come from as near as Indonesia to as far as Bosnia/Herzegovina. It's such a diverse class with different personalities, quirks and experiences.

It's been a while since I was last in a set-up like this, and I must say, I'm enjoying it. Whenever we have lunch or coffee breaks, I try to sit with different classmates so that I can get to know all of them before the 2-week seminar is done. 

Of course, there are some challenges to face while trying to do this task. First, there's the problem of language. Second, there's the problem that's more olfactory in nature. Harhar.

After being in this set-up for a few days, I think I now know how Mark felt in IUJ.  

Vera much

When I passed through Surplus Shop at SM Makati, I saw a couple of  pants on one of the racks. They were these cotton twill pants with a skinny silhouette.

After looking at them closely, I thought to myself: "Didn't I see these on the Kohl's website?"

And when I turned it over to see the brand, my hunch was confirmed.

They were Simply Vera cotton twill pants.

This brand is back in the haunts. And it's back with so, so much more.

Out of the Shadows

While browsing through the imdb site, I chanced upon the trailer of the newest collaboration between Johnny Depp and Tim Burton. It's a Vampire themed comedy film entitled "Dark Shadows."



It has all the elements of a Tim Burton film:

A touch of the macabre - check!
Dark and eerie setting - check!
Witty dialogue - check!
Interesting characters - check!
Helena Bonham Carter - double check!

The trailer alone has me all revved up to watch the film.

I hope the come out with this soon!

Entitled

What's with our obsession with titles?

 It seems like every star has to have a title to become legit. From the early days of "Superstar" and "Star for all Seasons," then we had "Diamond Star" and "Star of the new Decade." In fashion, we have Pitoy Moreno who's "Asia's Fashion Czar," to Ben Farrales as "The Dean of Philippine Fashion," to Inno Sotto's "Manila's Prince of Fashion."

 After hearing mass, I dropped by Robinson's Galleria to buy something at the Supermarket. Nearby, there was a mall concert by an artist named Juris.

When the host introduced her, he shouted:


"Let's all welcome, 'The Soothing Voice of Asia and the Pacific... Juris!'"

 Now that's the strangest title I've heard in a while.

ANTM's baffling bottom three

This may prove to be the biggest shocker of ANTM history. There's a bottom three, and they're no other than the 3 pillars of the show.

Imagine my shock when I read on-line that Nigel Barker, Jay Alexander and Jay Manuel were not only on the bottom three, but they were all eliminated! Yes, the magic triumvirate will not be coming back to ANTM next cycle. Unless they come up with better replacements, (something tells me that Benny Ninja might be the next runway and pose coach) I think i'll give ANTM a rest.

FMM: Turn up the Base!

Ace of Base, that is. Thanks to an on-line exchange I had with Ka Wei, my memories of "The Sign," came flooding back. This was one of those songs that were played non-stop on the radio. So often that it fast became a last song syndrome among the Adformatix folks, including Kuya Ers, of course. (With matching dance moves.) Songs from the 90s have that effect on people. Especially if that song is from Ace of Base! (Could the Vengabus be far behind?)

Choco Palmier is...

Yes, you're going to love French Baker's Choco Palmier.

I just chanced upon this one time when I was buying panini rolls. The cashier suggested that I try it, and that it's 50% off. I did, and I was delighted at how it tasted.

The pastry reminds me of argellanas - flaky, sweet with caramel undertones. And the chocolate they add is so thick and rich. The combination is light yet sinful.

Good thing they had more Choco Palmiers when I dropped by French Baker a while ago.

Sampler. Sampler.

Having Grandparents who were from the U.S., we grew up with imported chocolates around the house. And back then, imported chocolates weren't that easy to buy. Unlike today when there's imported chocolate in every corner store, way back in our day (Whew! This makes me feel so old!) the only places you could get Crunch, Hershey's and M&Ms were PX stores and high end groceries. (Memories of Hyacinth and Orobelle are starting to flood back. I think only my siblings and I can relate to what these two stores are.)

One of the chocolates that I truly waited for and enjoyed were the sampler boxes. Occasionally, Lolo Doring and Lola Pining would send us chocolate sampler boxes such as See's and Whitman's sampler. These were an assortment of chocolates, usually filled, and all mixed up in a box. Inside the box, you'd find chocolates that were good, (chocolate truffle, caramel), bad (bittersweet chocolate, rum filled chocolate), and the ugly. (coconut. But I really like coconut chocolate, so this was a good thing for me.)

Usually, you don't know which is which in a sampler box. Thus, you have that classic line from Forrest Gump: "Life is like a box of chocolates, you'll never know what you're going to get." So, oftentimes, you take a bite off one, then if you don't like it, you tend to put it back in the box. Or give it to your parents.

Later on, the boxes of chocolates already included catalogues. That way, you can choose which one you'd grab first, and which one you'd stay away from. I remember that as a kid, I just enjoyed reading the catalogue, looking at the photos of the chocolate, and reading the description. This was an early indication that I'd end up in advertising and doing the same thing.

When Mom came home from the U.S. last month, I asked her if she could bring a See's Sampler box. It's been a while since I had See's, and I had a craving for it.

Unfortunately, the See's stores in the nearby mall and airport were apparently closed. So, I just asked her to bring home a box of Whitman's Sampler, which she easily purchased at the nearby WalMart.



It's still the same box that I remember as a child. It has the same catalogue that I remember as a child.

And while I popped the cherry cordial chocolate in my mouth, I was immediately transported back to my childhood.

Missed the Muppets

Some of D' Frendz have been raving about "The Muppet Movie." Reviews were all glowing and stellar. The most common being, it really brings you back to your childhood - in particular, our childhood.

Our childhood that was spent in front of the TV every Saturday night to watch "The Muppet Show." Laughing at "Pigs in Space," cheering on Kermit the Frog, singing along with Rolf and Animal, lauding "The Swedish Chef," and of course, smirking at the wisecracks of Statler and Waldorf.

These characters and sketches defined what "The Muppet Show" was for our generation, and these characters and sketches are all alive in "The Muppet Movie."



I might have missed in on the big screen. But I'm going to find a DVD and watch it soon.

Something this wonderful must not be missed.

LFLTAT: Hiss-terical

This weekend, there was a 3-Day sale at SM Cubao. And as any avid shopper will tell you, SM Department Store is a treasure trove to treats when they're on sale.

I dropped by SM Cubao after lunch, and I had 2 treats. First, I saw my cousin who I haven't seen in almost 20 years. It was such a pleasant surprise to see Ate Mayette and Auntie Coring. We had the requisite hugging and picture taking (inside SM Department Store!) and played catch up even if we only had a few minutes.

The time they saw me, I was actually checking out this interesting piece of clothing. It was a pair of python print leggings. A few months back, this hiss-inducing was all the rage in the U.S. In fact, there were a lot of fast fashion brands who rode on the snake skin trend, and here's one example:



Using this as a peg, I grabbed the python print leggings and made it part of the Look For Less That A Thousand that I found that day.



The main piece, of course, is the python print leggings. It's a bit edgy, but it fits the current trend of printed bottoms. While the print du jour are florals, (I can hear Mark saying: "Florals, for spring. Groundbreaking.") this is a more unconventional choice. The color of the print is black, white, gray and beige, which tones it down considerably. And since it's on sale, this pair was a steal at P275.00



To make it feel more casual and less party, I chose a black top that isn't as form fitting or slinky as the leggings. And it brought me to this oversized black polo. It's long and loose, which provides ample coverage. Also, keeping the top loose makes the whole look more carefree and less slinky. Let's leave that combo for the clubs.



The black polo shirt was P229.75, so when you put these together, you have an on-trend look for only P504.75!

You just gotta love SM Department Store.

Mixing it up

Mom is attending a wedding this April, so she asked me to dig up some fabric from the pile (better known as the archive) to see if there's something that would fit Joseph's brown and green wedding motif. Luckily, I found a vintage looking chiffon with floral prints, and I found beige soft tulle to go with it. Mom looked at the combination, and was very happy with it.

But before I got to that floral chiffon fabric, the first 3 fabrics I pulled out weren't anywhere near what Mom was looking for. Here they are:



They were seemingly different but somewhat related. It was an odd mix of textures of hard and dark fabrics. And they definitely don't have a place in a daytime, summer wedding.

The first one was a jacquard fabric with a linear pattern. It reminds me of Abel Iloko, which gives it an ethnic, tribal vibe.



It's a very stiff fabric, and it can actually be mistaken for upholstery fabric. But the color and pattern is so eye catching, that it deserves to cover more than just a couch.



The second one is a corded lace fabric in black, highlighted with gold thread. At first glance, it was giving me a "santo" vibe, since it looks like something that people would use to dress up saints. But upon closer scrutiny, I find that it's actually a very delicate lace that has a lot of possibilities.



And the last piece was a few yards of black charmeuse silk. And that's pretty uneventful when you look at it alone.

But that's the thing. After looking at these 3 fabrics, I think they're a bit odd when looked at by itself. But if you put together all 3, I think they make an interesting mix and can be combined to come up with a very interesting piece of clothing.



This is a job for Aling Bright. (And the sketchpad, too.)

Stick with you

One of the snacks that has been a favorite from childhood to adulthood is Jack and Jill Chocolate Pretzels. I still remember my childhood days, walking from the house to the store of Aling Ensa and buying a box of Chocolate Pretzels. Then, I'd savor each chocolate covered pretzel stick. Then, I'd play with the box once the pretzels were all eaten.

Up to the present time, I still enjoy Chocolate Pretzels the way I did a few decades back. And even if the product has changed considerably through the years, (the pretzel biscuit isn't as crunchy and the chocolate isn't as creamy,) I still remain a big fan of the product. And I've never really found a brand that can compare to my childhood favorite.

But a week ago, I did!



As much as I'm a big fan of Jack and Jill, these Fun Pretzel L'il Sticks from Knick Knacks are da bomb!

The biscuit has the perfect crunch, and the chocolate cover is so, so, so rich. Actually, it's so thick and rich that it actually melts when exposed to heat. Which goes to show how real the chocolate is.

I think that apart from Jack and Jill's Chocolate Pretzels, I'm going to stick to these Knick Knacks, too.

FMM: In the Zone

Okay. So it's Friday the 13th today.

Because of all those urban legends, movies and all the other scary events that incidentally happened on this date, people are actually freaked out by Friday the 13th. So much so that I feel bad for Friday the 13th. It now has a bad rap, along with November 1.

But that's how culture is, and culture dictates that today is going to be eerie.

So, it's Friday Magic Madness day and Friday the 13th at the same time. This calls for an old song that has an eerie feel to it.

This is a job for The Manhattan Transfer.


(video courtesy of youtube)

"Twilight Zone" has come to symbolize all things eerie, scary and amusing. And since these words also describe Friday the 13th, it's a perfect match.

Errors elsewhere in the world

As one of my former students' thesis pointed out, it's the speed of on-line journalism that makes it prone to errors. In their rush to have something posted, they often don't proofread carefully, thus the abundance of spelling, grammar and factual errors.

I've pointed out a couple of them, particularly from spot.ph and some other on-line news sources in the Philippines. But it turns out that even prestigious global on-line publications fall in the same trap.



Take this Huffington Post article, for example. Unless there's a "me-too" designer who's aping the queen of jersey and soft draping, I would think that Donna Karan made this dress worn by Emmy Rossum. Now the question is, who is Donna Karen?

On-line publications should really hire more proofreaders. At least it'll help them commit less mistakes.

Beasts and Beauty

It's funny when you have 5 guys from advertising who are all big and burly, and one of them is both blunt and boorish. And while we're all gathered around a conference room table, there's just one thing we're discussing:

Creating a campaign for a beauty product brand.

If a female client saw this scene, I'm sure she'd be scratching her head in confusion.

Hangovers and Herod

It's a few days after Easter Sunday and I still have a bit of a hangover from Holy Week. And it turns out that I'm not the only one. The other folks here at the office were all saying that they're not ready to work yet and they hope that the holidays were extended.

But my hangover isn't manifested by being too lazy to work. Heck, I've been churning out project after project.

My hangover led me to youtube where I watch snippets from the film "Jesus Christ Superstar." This is a film based on a musical, and it's a contemporary take on the Passion of Christ. I have 2 favorite songs from this play/movie. The first one is Mary Magdalene's song "I don't know how to love Him." And the second is the clever take on the first meeting of Jesus Christ and King Herod:


(video courtesy of youtube)

This is such a catchy tune.

So catchy, I'm now on Last Song Syndrome mode.

Salute to Fashionalism

Coming from a family of patriots, I admire people or organizations who have an outward appreciation of all things Filipino. Because in reality, there is so much to be appreciated in the Philippines, and the Filipinos. We are a talented people and we manifest this talent in more ways than one. Yes, apart from singing and boxing.

Fashion is one of these manifestations, and I admire people who highlight and celebrate Filipino fashion and Filipino brands. I remember writing about Plains and Prints and Bayo, and how these two brands really walk the talk in terms of fashionalism because their items aren't just designed in the Philippines, they're also made in the Philippines.

Today, I found another site that celebrates Philippine fashion in a youthful and creative way. It's a website called "The Postura Project" and it challenged 4 participants to wear Filipino made clothing for 30 days.

Although I've only looked at 4 days, you can easily see the craftsmanship and creativity of Philippine fashion. And 120 distinct and diverse looks is testament to how creative we can be in this respect.

I salute brands like Plains and Prints and Bayo, and projects like "The Postura Project."

Hallelujah!

Ever since we were kids, Easter has always been celebrated with much aplomb. There's the Easter Mass, the jumping up and down, the Easter brunches, and of course, the Easter Egg hunts. So, it was really a celebration.

But even if you strip it to the barest minimum, (read: no parties or Easter egg hunts,) Easter is definitely worth celebrating. After all, this is the day that Our Lord and savior was resurrected.

And no other hymn captures this thought and lesson like Handel's Hallelujah Chorus.

For the lord God omnipotent reigneth.

The kingdom of this world;
is become
the kingdom of our Lord,
and of His Christ.

And He shall reign forever and ever.

Hallelujah.


(video courtesy of youtube)

With a promise like this, how can one not rejoice?

Work in progress

I'd like to say that I'm a pretty dynamic person. In most aspects at least.

Even as a student, I'd be excited by new things and would welcome change with open arms. In fact, when I was with the yearbook committee in college, our yearbook was called "Transitions." Our batch had one thing in common, we embraced change and we made it a point to constantly update ourselves.

It's a mindset that I carried with me in my first job. Advertising is a very dynamic industry, and more so if you're in the creative department. That's why we were always encouraged to watch reels of award winning ads, year after year after year. Not to mention poring through different awards annuals - all in the sake of dynamic thinking and creative progress.

And while I carried that dynamism with me up until now, there's one thing that I wasn't able to update for 6 years.

The look of this blog.

I guess it's mainly because my blog is more a repository of thoughts and experiences. And because there's something new almost everyday, I'd like something to remain constant all throughout. And that's the blog's template. That green and orange template that I chose when I first opened this blog in 2005. (Well, it's the 3rd, if I'll be technical about it.)

But today, almost 7 years since I wrote my first entry, I'm changing this blogs template. Honestly, I wasn't planning on doing it, but since blogger had this bulletin that they'll be changing the templates anyway, I thought, "Heck, let's go with it!"

In 30 minutes, I actually changed the look about 6 times. Part of me was still looking for the look and feel of the old template. And part of me wanted to try something totally new.

This is what I've settled for at the moment. But this isn't where the process will stop. I'm happy with some portions of the blog (the font, basically), but I'm still looking for the overall look that'll suit my personality. The way the first template did.

And until I find that overall look, this is going to be a work in progress.

FMM: Good songs

Today is Good Friday, and it's actually one of my favorite times of the year. The city seems so peaceful, and everything feels as if the world is paused for a moment. No malls, no restaurants, no worldly distractions. There should be more days like this.

I went to Our Lady of Perpetual Help for the commemoration of Good Friday, and it was such a solemn mass. Well, except during the sermon when there was so much clapping as prodded by the Officiating Priest. (Who, by the way, I fondly call "Father Clapper" because he asks us to clap for everything.)

Whenever I hear mass, I miss the "old songs" that are sun in the church. When I say "old songs," I mean the church songs that they used to sing when I was in Elementary and High School. A few weeks ago, they sang "Pananagutan" at EDSA Shrine, and that was such a thrill since it's been ages since they last sang that song in Church.

Today, another old song was sung by the choir. It's a song entitled "Hesus na aking kapatid." Ever since elementary school, I've enjoyed listening to this song. Mainly because it has a beautiful message, and that is "Jesus is in all of us." In the lyrics, it states that Jesus can be seen in a farmer, in a person with tattered clothes, or those with muddy garments, and more importantly, in people who are humble in their service to the Lord. As the verse goes: "Ikaw Poon makikilala, sa taong mapagkumbaba."

(this very nice video courtesy of youtube. Credits go to the owners.)

Maybe there should be a revival of songs like these in masses. I mean, if there's Friday Magic Madness on radio where they play the best of the 80s, maybe they can do the same for masses. Sunday Magic Masses, perhaps?

Splendor of Summer

As an avid supermarket goer, I always keep an eye on new items on the shelves. Especially the candy and chocolate shelf!

The past year, I've noticed that Goya is definitely upping its ante and introducing a lot of new and interesting chocolate variants. I'm particularly taken by their raisins covered in milk chocolate and dark chocolate, and they can definitely give Raisinets a good fight. Now if they'd come up with cranberries covered in chocolate. (drool)

Another new product they have that I've taken to is their white chocolate line aptly called "Splendor."


It's definitely splendor in the mouth! The white chocolate is thick and rich, without being too sweet. And the added ingredients of their two variants add the right texture to the chocolate.

The caramel crunch has these little bits of caramel that tastes like toffee. It's like having ground Toffifee in your chocolate, which is always a good combination.



Being a big fan of peppermint, I absolutely adore their red peppermint variant. It's like White Christmas was jammed into a chocolate! Awesomeness!



I wish they sold them in bigger packs because these small packs are gone in a few minutes. Yes, they're that good.

And what happens if you eat these chocolates while in the garden or park?

It's called: "Splendor in the Grass." Harhar!

Spot the mistakes

Frankly, I don't get to read spot.ph that often. But it seems like in the few times I do, I find several errors in their websites. It can be spelling errors, or mislabeled photos, or grammatical lapses.

Today was one of those days when I visited, and as usual, I found errors. And as Ate Vi says in her commercial:

"Not just one, but two!"

Here's the first:

I wonder what "jin forces" means? Does that mean they'll use the force of the Jins of Japan?

And here's the other:

They had a feature on seedy Filipino films, and one of the featured films was "Diligin ng Suka ang Uhaw na Lumpia." (Yes kids, there was such a movie a long, long time ago.)

The title on the poster was correct, but the movie attribution was not. It identified it as "Tuyo na Lumpia" instead of "Uhaw na Lumpia." Come on people! You just needed to read the poster to get the correct title.

Considering it's a company that has so many magazine titles, editors, writers and staff members, you'd think that Summit would be more vigilant in spotting errors in their publications - both print and on-line.

Well, they should.

LFLTAT: Color Blocking

A lot of fashion magazine editors swear by the adage: "Splurge on classics. Save on trends." Wise words, that's for sure. But why not "Save on classics" as well?

Color Blocking - or the mixing of clashing colors in one outfit - is supposedly a trend. But since it keeps on reappearing every year, I'd say it's on the verge of being a staple in fashion. And if you know where to look, you can build a nifty, color blocked outfit for less than a thousand.

And here's the Look For Less Than A Thousand. (Aka LFLTAT)



This ensemble plays with 3 colors: 2 saturated hues, and 1 neutral tone. And together, this color combination works nicely.



The top is made up of two jewel tones - emerald green and amethyst. This top is from The Landmark, and is ridiculously cheap!



The skirt is made of nude tulle, and has the right amount of fullness without resorting to fluff. It comes with a belt which echoes the tone of the skirt itself. And the best part is, its just P229.00!



And finally, we have a beige version of the ballet flats, also from The Landmark. The black version of these was in a previous LFLTAT.



This all-Landmark ensemble rings up to P949.25. Not bad for an outfit that you can wear for years. Indeed, The Landmark is a trove for those who believe in the fashion-for-less mantra.

So, who says you can't save on classics?

Sergio-so!

Right on the heels of Olivia Newton-John's concert, (which I missed, of course, thereby missing Olivia's performance of "Physical" and "Xanadu.") another favorite - and old - singing group is coming to Manila for a concert.

I've been blogging about this man's work for quite sometime. And I've also singled out some of his songs that have been embedded in my mind's playlist. And I've also collected some of his CDs, and sang some of his songs during videoke sessions with D' Frendz and the SSC faculty.

He is no other than Sergio Mendes and Brasil (insert year here.)



The concert is on April 24, which is the same date of a seminar I'm attending.

So, should I skip (or cut short) the seminar in favor of Sergio and his group.

I'm seriously thinking about it.

Minnie and Maya

Minnie Ripperton is one of my favorite singers. She's reponsible for one of the biggest hits of the 80s that everyone loved and sang along with -- "Loving You." Actually, that song is still popular until now, with everyone from Karaoke fanatics and stand-up comics doing their take on this iconic song. She also sang "Never Existed Before," which is also on top of my favorite songs list, and something I listen to whenever I want to just chill out. Whatever song she sings, Minnie has the ability to sing it beautifully.

Maya Rudolph is one of my favorite actresses. From the moment I saw her on SNL, and after seeing her in so many great comedy movies, including "Bridesmaids," I became a big fan of her comic timing. She has that good balance of physical comedy and wit, which is a delicate thing to balance. But Maya does it beautifully.

Imagine my surprise when I found out that one of my favorite singers and favorite actresses are linked together. It turns out that Minnie Ripperton is Maya Rudolph's mom!



I see beautiful talent runs in the family.