Serna: Wishing for a healthy music industry

DEC. 25 marked the official opening of the 36th Metro Manila Film Festival. One of the first things I did was to go to SM City Fairview with a cousin while I had my vacation in Manila. Our intention was to be among the first viewers of Ang Tanging Ina Mo (Last Na ‘To) as we felt the need to laugh our hearts out in keeping with the season of joy.

Mamon Tostado: The toasted bread to start the New Year right

WE MAKE pan prinsipi (prince's bread) just in time for the New Year, both as a household delight and as gift to relatives and friends.

Subaru: The only manufacturer with IIHS Top Safety Pick for all models

FUJI Heavy Industries Ltd. (FHI), the manufacturer of Subaru automobiles, announced that Subaru of America, Inc. has been recognized for the second consecutive year as the only automotive manufacturer with a 2011 TOP SAFETY PICK winner in every vehicle class in which it competes by the Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS).

Success through hard work

HARD work coupled with sheer determination and honest service can be a person's door to success.

Feast of Jesus of Nazarene set

THE annual fiesta celebration of Jesus Nazareno Parish is set to be held on Sunday, January 9. It will kick off with the Diana Y Hornada around the Parish at 4 a.m.

Stitching fashion and perspective with C2

THE colorful creations of fashion designer Kate Torralba reflect her vibrant personality and her love for all forms of expression - from fashion, to the arts, to music.

10 budget-friendly destinations for 2011

WORRIED that the economy might put a crimp in your travel plans this year? Never fear: travel doesn’t have to break the bank. Your currency may be depressed, but that doesn’t mean you have to be; there are still many destinations around the world that can be enjoyed on the cheap. If you let the global economic ups-and-downs work to your advantage, adopt some personal austerity measures in pricier destinations, and head towards up-and-coming destinations, you can stay on the road longer for less.

Utzurrum: Gift-giving and queens for a day

WITH service as their cornerstone, the members of the Cebu Sandigan Foundation (CSF) are deeply involved in alleviating the plight of the underprivileged and needy.

This is in response to the call of their spiritual director Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal—that the laity be more aware and responsive to the needs of the destitute and depressed sectors of our society.

Fetalvero: A balancing act

INNOCENCE as seen through the eyes of a child is nothing but a simple cliché. When the Spanish colonizers brought the image of Senor Santo Niño to the shores of Mactan Island, what was the prevailing conditions and situations surrounding the native children then? There is no doubt in my mind that the children were uncorrupted then.

I can bet my life there were no carton girls and rugby boys. Child sex slavery and human trafficking were unknown at that time. Why do you think the Child Jesus chose to make our city his home?

Pets and owners fun run

LAST December 12, a canine fun run was held at The Ark Animal Health Veterinary Clinic. The pets and owners fun run was organized by the Davao Canine Sports Club (DCSC), in cooperation with The Ark Animal Health, and sponsored by Yana's Dog Salon and Spa and Purina Proplan.

New Year's pledge: 8 'must do's'

I KNOW each one of us has some sort of a new year's resolution. As far as I can remember, I tried to make a list but most often, it fell through. Because I probably didn't put much attention to it or either I just kept on postponing it, knowing there will be another year.

'The Dean' exhorts: Go try sports writing

AT A lecture forum he conducted to Mass Communication students in Davao City last December, veteran sports columnist and television commentator Quinito "The Dean" Henson started by asking the participants: "Who among you here are sportswriters?"

Smart cited at 9th Asian CSR Awards

LEADING wireless services provider Smart Communications Inc. (Smart) won an excellence award at Asia's premier awards program on corporate social responsibility for its holistic employee wellness program, Live Smart: Healthy U, Wealthy U, Happy U.

Clock work

THERE are arms that carry; some that embrace. And an uneven couple that never seems to stop pointing to the future. Displaying an intricate rhythm that never goes out of stride, everything else surrounding the dusty clock on the steady wall spins and ripens into the irreversible spell of age.

Literatus: All-time fat burners 2011

Zosimo T. Literatus, R.M.T. Breakthroughs

WITH the holidays behind, and the new year on, it will be a healthy year to go forward when you start it with good trim in your body fat, the natural way, or least a program geared to it. Here’s how:

Rama: Double, double good

THE night was not just all about club-ready cuts and mixes last Dec 18.

Apl.De.Ap kicked off a benefit club tour at Lx (Luxx) at Vudu, Crossroads Banilad, Cebu City, where the most hardcore party people were made to reach into their pockets for P600. That amount allowed entry into the most talked-about venue in the city and a really good time (boy, what an understatement!) with pumped up cool beats of the most wanted disc jockeys: DJ Joker, DJ Buddha, DJ Ammo and rapper Apl.De.Ap with MC Richi Rich.

A Canine Christmas

"SIP a Martini and Save a Mutt." That was the theme of the recently concluded event "MUTTINI" A Christmas Cocktail Party to help rescue dogs in Davao City.

Pneumonia: What you should know about it

MIKE woke up one sunny morning with typical flu symptoms: slight headache, dry cough, and chills. His wife, Sarah, put her hand on his forehead. "Darling, you feel warm. Better stay home."

The 'Year of the Rabbit'

ANOTHER year is here again. Some of us would surely welcome the year with a big bang.

Holidays in the Latin City of Asia (First of two parts)

IN OUR country's tradition, Christmas and New Year celebrations have always been a time for family gatherings. As such, I spent my recent Christmas holidays in Zamboanga City and it was the second time -- the first was in 1997-- I spent it with relatives.

Street kids' Santa Claus for all seasons

WORDS cannot describe this exceptionally kindhearted woman who made an enormous impact on the lives of the street children in the city.

Inspired by nature

MAN'S immediate environment has always been an influential factor on how he lived. Way back to the Stone Age, people made whatever available materials within their convenient reach, like stones and even volcanic glass found from nature to make their tools, which they eventually used to construct their dwellings.

Espina: Light up the sky

FANTABULOUS! That was how Cathay Pacific launched its new Business Class and fashionably designed uniforms, (designed by Eddie Lau), one starry evening, Dec. 7, at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center before some 2,000 or more Marco Polo Diamond holders, valuable guests, media and staff. A service innovation par excellence! Mayen Tan, Nelia Neri of Sun.Star Cebu, Katsy Borromeo of Zee and I were there! Connie Cimafranca was our gracious host and she really made us feel “special!”

The Golden Girl

ELNA May Burgos Cummins marked her 50th birthday last December 11 with her family and friends in their residence at Burgos Compound in Los Amigos, Mintal.

The man, the music, the legend

WITH music becoming more and more mainstream by the minute, it is important to be reminded of it, as being one of the world’s greatest art forms. A man who holds this idea dear to his heart would be Gilopez Kabayao.

Costanilla: A New Year’s wish

SINCE this is my very first article for 2011, the Year of the Rabbit, allow me to open it with a wish that I’ve been dreaming of: The revival of the Cebuano/Visayan movie industry. We Cebuanos have been praying hard that this industry will be resurrected but we need well-meaning and moneyed individuals to start the ball rolling by producing local films.

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Delicious new treats from Julie’s Bakeshop

IN CELEBRATION of 30 years of providing the Filipinos with the best neighborhood bakeshop experience, Julie’s Bakeshop broadens its scope to include Premium Loaves in a variety of exciting new flavors at very affordable prices.

Now, one can have more than the usual every time one visits Julie’s Bakeshop for everyday fare of baked goodness.

Bunny bites

A “plateful of rabbit” may be normal for some, but a “hare-raiser” for others.

It just depends on what you’ve been trying, or where you’ve been dining. In many parts of the world, rabbit is considered to be a delicacy, perfect for stew.

Sira-sira store: Carbonara con utan Bisaya

THE flavors of the holidays, starting on Dec. 24 to the wee hours of Jan. 3 notoriously linger in the coolest section in our refrigerator. Yes, Virginia, there’s such a thing as a post-holiday recycled food.

That’s the thing with leftovers. From Christmas week to the week before New Year, and maybe three days after the dawn of the new year, the refrigerator becomes the repository of unconsumed food.

Ageless beauty within your reach

"LOVE at first treatment."

This was what businesswoman, mother of three, and former model Carmen Cabiles-Go experienced when she visited Dermaline Facial and Skin Care Center in Manila.