It's a truism not just for social media, but for online journalists as well.
Observe:
The online editor must have clicked "publish" too early. He or she didn't even notice that there's information missing and still pending.
Online proofreader. Please!
I've been watching a number of Patti Labelle videos the past few weeks.
From old concerts to recent interviews, from tributes to surprises. In any form or format, she's really a joy to watch. That's why I've been watching her a lot.
For today's Friday Magic Madness, the Patti Labelle theme continues. But today, we go back, way back to where she started. That is, with the group "Labelle" and their iconic song, "Lady Marmalade."
There's nothing like the original. Especially when it's Patti.
The story of Susan Lucci is the stuff of legends.
She was nominated for Best Actress in the Emmy's for 19 years, but never won. Her losing streak was so legendary that it became a part of American Pop Culture. To be nominated and never win would make you: "The Susan Lucci of _______."
But like the Soap Opera where she appears, her story came with a twist.
On her 20th nomination, she won!
You can tell by her speech that she's a gracious winner. Her speech was so heartfelt, and the part about her kids as part of why she only won now was truly lovely!
Stories like this can't help but make me smile.
Whoa! The Ikea store in MOA is almost complete!
After all that anticipation and the long wait, it's so gratifying to see Ikea finally hitting the local shores!
Question is: will people turn up in throngs when it opens?
We shall see.
Back in the 90s, plaids were a big trend.
From shirts, shorts, jackets, even Tretorn shoes, you can find plaids in different colours.
Since then, the pattern has been finding its way back to fashion in one way or another. In one decade after the other.
Just like right now.
After my plaid outfit post last month, we have another one:
One of my favourite J. Lo songs is a song that wasn't a huge hit. Well. compared to her mega-hits like "Love don't cost a thing," "Jenny from the Block," "Waiting for Tonight," among others, this song was pretty low-key and didn't enjoy as much airtime as I hoped it would.
"Play" is one of those songs that I can listen to 20 times in a row and wouldn't get tired of it. Maybe it's the soothing electronica undertones, or that beat that makes you want to bob your head while listening to it. I'm not sure what it is exactly, but hey, there are some things you can't explain.
In the meantime, in the words of this song: "Let me hear it one more time!"
Today, I taught my class about the proper use of punctuation marks in writing.
In the midst of the lesson, a song suddenly popped in my head. It's a classic song from "The Electric Company" which was dedicated to the apostrophe.
Yesterday until today, The Electric Company is a great way to learn English.
Will probably share this link with my students, too. It's a fun way to learn about the subject.
Yes, today's Friday Magic Madness song is a mega-hit from the 80s that's a long time coming:
And it's also a very apt song in celebration of Biboy's birthday. Sung by his fave British group, no less.
Quoting 2 Spandau Ballet songs: I know this much as true, you are Gold, Bibs!
In more ways than one.
As I mentioned to Mark, seeing this makes me miss our Pancake House dinners at Shang and our random and occasional afternoon merienda at the branch across the office.
I wonder if they’ll have this promo at the nearby Ali Mall Branch.
And wishful thinking: I wonder if they’ll have this on Food Panda. Harhar.
It would be great if we can enjoynthis promo of Pancake House at the house.
When we were kids, Biboy and I were the quintessential "cat and dog."
Our fights back then were very "kiddie," but epic! Usually, it would be about very shallow things - like toys, games, the TV, stuff like that. These would vary from fist fights, hiding each other's toys, chasing each other down Scout Gandia, and other things that - looking back - make be chuckle.
Maybe it was because we were opposites in a lot of ways. He liked Spandau Ballet while I preferred Duran Duran. He listened to Madonna while I'd listen to Cyndi Lauper. When musicians banded together to help the famine in Africa, he was team "Band Aid," while I was team "USA for Africa." Robot-wise, he liked Mazinger Z while I'm a Voltes V fan.
Not that we were complete opposites, though. We both liked BMX biking, Lego, Questor Magazines, and playing out in the street with the rest of the Gandia kids. We'd spend our summers biking around the Scout area, going to Baraquiel's Bike Shop along Morato, and trying out different "exhibitions" on our bikes.
As we grew older, our "cat and dog" slowly became "birds of the same feather." We got along more, and realized that we have a lot more in common. In High School, we both went to LSQC and he was a batch ahead of me. Because of this, he would protect me from bullying and would often have his classmates to help. In college, even if we went to different schools, we helped each other and had each other's back.
Eventually, we graduated and started working. He worked in Laguna, Bulacan, and eventually moved to Davao City. We would always look forward to his visits to Manila because it was the first time one of our siblings moved away. But it's true that distance makes the heart grow fonder, because we felt closer even if we were islands apart.
In 1996, he got married and made me his Best Man. That was really an honour! I also helped out in organizing his wedding, which was what inspired me to eventually be a part-time wedding planner.
Then, in 2002, he moved with his whole family to GA, which was way, way farther than Davao.
Just like when he moved to Davao, his move to the US kept us closer. After all, we had Ooma and the Internet. We also looked forward to our trips to GA to visit him, and his trips to MNL to visit us.
Despite the many visits, one stood out the most. In 2019, when I got sick, he dropped everything and flew to Manila to check-up on me. And that meant the world - and the universe - to me. It was one of the reasons why I got better as fast as I did, seeing Biboy and having him around for weeks.
As Biboy celebrates his Golden year today, it makes me break out in a big smile while remembering all these moments shared together. From our "cat and dog" childhood to our "birds of the same feather, flock together" adulthood.
These moments make me extremely grateful to have a brother who's worth his weight in Gold!
Happy Golden Birthday, Biboy! Let's celebrate soon!
Effervescence and Joy are 2 things that best describe Kate Hudson.
From her personality to her roles in a lot of her films, she's always that bubbly, joyful gal who lights up the room with her smile and demeanour. Thinking of her in "How to Lose a Guy in 10 days" and "Bride Wars" still brings happy memories until now.
That's why she's an apt cover girl for InStyle's March 2021 issue which banners Joyful Optimism.
We all know, of course, that there's almost no way to get this new issue here in Manila. *sigh*
Then again, seeing her on the cover is already something to be joyful about.
P.S. Gosh! She looks like she doesn't age!
Another day, another yummy discovery.
After the Fiorella wafer bar from a few weeks back, I became interested in the brand and researched what other yummy offerings they have.
That led to the discovery of this Fiorella Crunch White!
It’s been almost a year since i’ve Last stepped into an H&M store. And for me, a year with no H&M is equivalent to 5 years! Harhar.
My promise was once things ease up, i’ll visit the one nearest the house - either Gateway or UP Town Center and buy something. Let’s show H&M some support!
But it turns out the promise would be kept at a nearer branch - their online store at Zalora!
What made it more interesting? The fact that it was on sale. And really cheap!
And with this online purchase, part of my promise was kept.
After almost a year, Becky convinced me (very easily) to go back to teaching.
But of course, the "new normal" mode of teaching is on Zoom!
I missed teaching. And while I miss teaching face-to-face in a classroom more, this is one step to doing that.
Let's zoom into the semester!
Debbie Harry and Blondie has a special place in my memory and my heart.
This is the cassette tape we'd usually listen to when we'd take a long road trip from Manila to Albay as kids. Sometimes, I'd be the one sitting in front of the car and it would be my job to flip the tape when Side A was done and we'd listen to Side B.
Yup, we were old school that way.
From then on, I had an affinity both for Blondie (the group) and Debbie Harry (the lead singer.) It was an affinity that continued even when Debbie Harry went solo and churned out hits on her own.
Now, yesterday was the Feast of our Lady of Lourdes. I've said this many times that I have an affinity to Our Lady because I'm a Lourdesian and we studied her life in our CL classes every year. Mama Mary has also been a huge part of our lives - from childhood to present.
So, today's Friday Magic Madness song is a combination of these two women:
Let's make Thursday a Throwback Thursday!
Mom showed me this very, very, very old photo that made me smile. And laugh!
It's a photo of Dad, Mom and me on a trip to Baguio. With us during our trip is my honorary Ninong, the laugh-master himself, Tito Bert "Tawa" Marcelo!
From what I remember of Tito Bert, he lived up to his name. He was always jolly, joyful and laughing. And he made sure that everyone around him would do the same.
He was also a very generous Ninong. Generous materially, generous with stories, generous with his time, and generous with his laughter.
That's why his name is perfect. Really perfect.
While I've been able to avoid the "Plantito" trend during the past few months, it doesn't mean that plants don't thrive at home.
Last Christmas, I received 2 plant gifts, and they're growing pretty well.
This week, we have a new "plant baby" at home. It's Mamu's gift and he actually arrived last week. And he came in a really cool and monogrammed pot. Nifty!
Our house, and my day, just got a bit greener.
My fascination with avian prints date way, way back to my childhood. Back then, I'd pore through encyclopedia just to learn about different members of the avian family.
This fascination was also buoyed by the fact that the family had a pet Eagle. His name was "Freedom" and I'd go inside his cage everyday to feed him fish and chicken. As a kid, I'd marvel at watching Freedom take flight, and how majestic his wings were while flying.
When I was asked to lead our Boy Scout Troop in grade school, I named our troop the "Osprey Falcons." In high school, we had a group project for the Music subject and we became known as "The Mallard Ducks."
As an adult, whenever there's a clothing item with an avian print or design or embroidery, consider it sold!
Even if you look at the history of my Christmas wrapping themes, there were 2 years that my choice was a design with birds as part of the pattern.
Plains & Prints has had a lot of themes and designs with avian patterns. You'll find these items in my sister's closets, of course. Upon seeing how their "Euphoric Hope" collection had 2 dresses with different birds, fly to their store, I did.
Why? Because of these 2 spectacularly beautiful dresses from that collection:
A shift dress with a pleated skirt and an ornate print of exotic birds.
Thanks to Plains & Prints, my sister's closet will once again soar in style.
That's one big taho!
Not just big, it's a Giant!
Thanks again, Mamu! Now, my long-standing taho cravings were satisfied.
In a big way!
Magnolia Bakery came into my consciousness due to 2 things:
1. It's Julia Roberts' favourite bakery. And given how much I'm a big fan of hers, anything that the Jules loves is a huge hit for me.
2. The owner of Sonja's cupcakes worked at THE Magnolia Bakery in NYC. And in my mind, if her cupcakes are SO good, what more the original?
Since then, it was a goal to try their cupcakes. Even if I had to go to NYC to try it.
Luckily, though, they opened a branch in Omotesando in Tokyo. It quickly became one of the go-to places that Mark and I frequented when we were there.
Memories of relaxed afternoons, sitting in Magnolia with Mark, enjoying 2 or 3 types of cupcakes, a slice of cake, and beverages still make me smile. To. This. Date.
Eventually, Magnolia Bakery opened in the Philippines in 2018, in BGC. But due to the crazy lines and crowds, there was no rush to go there. After all, I've already had my Magnolia fix several times in JPN, and that was enough to keep the sweet cravings at bay.
While we had plans to try it out, it never really happened. Then, of course, 2020 happened, and that quashed the chances of trying Magnolia Bakery even more.
Until yesterday!
Thanks to Mamu Cecile who gave me this:
Yup, she got Raspberry Lemon Cupcakes and Muffins from M Bakery. (I'm assuming they couldn't use Magnolia here because of Magnolia Ice Cream.)
Biting into those heavenly cupcakes brought me back to those relaxed weekends in Omotesando with Mark. So, yes, it's as good as the one in JPN. Whether it's as good as the OG in NYC, that remains to be seen.
Now, I'm looking forward and excited to actually going there and trying out more cupcakes with Mark.
I've discovered a new youtube black hole!
Watching "Plead the Fifth" on Andy Cohen's show, "Watch What Happens Live."
I can watch this all day! (And I've been doing that on weekends. Sporadically. But the whole day. Harhar.)
After watching this video, I'm even more interested to see the Simone Rocha x H&M collaboration!
A few more weeks...
A few more weeks...
A few more weeks...
Since Hokkaido Cheese is a "thing," I couldn't resist buying this:
Now that I've got the "buying" thing done, it's the "trying" thing that I have to do next. And no, I haven't gotten around to opening the pack and actually tasting this interesting wafer flavour. There are still too many unopened snacks that were bought earlier, and I've got to try those first.
One of the places I've been frequenting the past few months - albeit online - is Bench.
With their presence both in Shopee and Lazada, it's akin to "visiting several branches" of this local fast fashion giant. But instead of hopping from mall to mall and branch to branch, I just hop from website to website, from the comforts of home and my ad hoc workstation. Before, visiting a Bench website or online store wasn't really appealing, but now, I've been warming up to the concept more and more.
As always, Bench doesn't disappoint in terms of fashionable clothing at reasonable price points. Back in 2019 and early 2020, I'd very regularly drop by Bench stores in Megamall, Galleria, Glorietta, UP Town Center, The 30th, and Shangrila, almost on a weekly basis. (Daily, in some cases.) And more often than not, I'd walk away with a bag of goodies which are usually LFLTATs.
The past months, I've also had a lot of LFLTAT purchases online, but never got around to documenting them. But as they say, better late than never, so let me start February with my first Bench LFLTAT.
P.S. Yes, that top is the same top from my proofreading post. Yes, it might have lacked an "h", but it didn't lack style. Harhar.
