Last Sunday, one of my closest friends from the U.P. College of Law paid me a surprise visit at home. Her brother, a successful businessman, was with her and the conversation veered towards business opportunities in Antipolo and I found myself lamenting over the short-sighted attitude of business developers in the area. Antipolo is largely ... (more)
Tourist prices for a puppet on a string
Posted on April 27, 2009 · 2 Comments
Last Saturday, we were having coffee at the Aristocrat Restaurant on Roxas Boulevard when I saw this puppet peddler through the glass window. Sam loves those puppets. When she and Alex were still little girls, every time we went to Baguio, she always brought home at least one of these puppets on a string. I ... (more)
If you’re very hungry
Posted on October 9, 2008 · 14 Comments
EVEN if you’re very hungry… say, you haven’t eaten in two days… or say that, for medical reasons, you were prohibited from eating red meat for years and you’re just craving… Or, let’s just say you have a huge appetite… Can you finish a sandwich this big?
The photo above was an attachment in an e-mail sent by my brother-in-law, Sonny. It’s real, I tell you. It’s called the Quadruple Bypass Burger and you’ll find it in the menu of a restaurant in Chandler, Arizona, a hospital-themed joint where the waitresses are dressed like nurses. Well, kinda…
Buy Filipino
Posted on October 8, 2008 · 22 Comments
(Yesterday’s column. The photos do not appear on the print and online versions of Manila Standard Today.) Last Sunday, we visited the popular Market at the Hills along Temple Drive in Quezon City. Most of the stalls sold food but there was one, Bambuza, selling products made from bamboo and banana fiber. There were beautiful ... (more)
“Yes, ma’am, I’d like to get the fax number of Mr. Alex Veneracion.” Beware of hard-sell techniques
Posted on July 1, 2008 · 36 Comments
Last month, my husband and I visited a couple of appliance stores for a new cooking range and a new refrigerator. We compared prices, zero-interest installment options and delivery rates. We finally settled on Abenson’s at the Sta. Lucia East Mall in Cainta. Since we were not due to move to our new house for ... (more)
Junk food generation
Posted on May 20, 2008 · 16 Comments
The online version of The Australian recently published a report about a growing movement of parents to ban junk food ads especially on television. The reason? Because “the advertising was undermining their efforts to teach children good eating habits.” Heaven knows I’d like to see something similar in the Philippines, but the question is who ... (more)
Monopoly is power
Posted on May 15, 2008 · 15 Comments
I remember reading news reports a decade or so ago, when unusually high temperatures seared Texas, quoting US government officials’ advise that residents turn their air conditioners on to avoid heat strokes. If I remember correctly, it was the same year when London residents experienced unprecedented high temperatures and commuters complained of perspiring inside the ... (more)
Ethics and product endorsements
Posted on April 16, 2008 · 19 Comments
So you’ve seen Aga Muhlach downing all that Jollibee Chicken Joy. So you’ve seen Sharon Cuneta eating all those McDonald’s burgers. And watching them do it makes you want to run to the nearest Jollibee and McDonald’s outlets to get a bite of what they’re having on the screen of the idiot box. Now try ... (more)
Some thoughts about shrimp crackers and entrepreneurship
Posted on February 2, 2008 · 11 Comments
Speedy, Sam and Alex all love shrimp crackers. Being allergic to shrimps, including shrimp extracts, I stick with the occasional potato and tortilla chips. Speedy often buys the brand of shrimp crackers that you see in the photo. In the supermarket, a bag costs 13 pesos and a few centavos. One time, we were on ... (more)
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