Manila’s hidden bars
A mild argument broke out between a bouncer and a 7-Eleven cashier. It was too early, the bouncer protested, gesturing to the clock. It opens at eight, he said. The cashier, meanwhile, pointed out that a couple had just come in. The bouncer relents and opens the door to a storeroom. A part of you wonders, as you file past the shelves of instant noodles and ketchup bottles why people would fight to get in here, but you know what you came for: a bar.
From Instagram to exhibit walls
SMARTPHONE CAMERAS nowadays are better than ever. In fact, Samsung Electronics says, they’re so good, they’ve practically rendered standard point-and-shoot cameras obsolete. But, can a phone replace a professional single-lens reflex (SLR) camera?
adidas taps athletes’ creativity for new global campaign
ADIDAS HAS PREMIERED a new series of films kicking off the brand’s Sport16 initiative, “underlining adidas’ leadership and passion for sports,” the brand said in a recent press release.
Better Call Saul Season 2: Jimmy tries to think inside the box, kicks through the box.
The Binge
Jessica Zafra
ONE OF THE THINGS we loved about Breaking Bad was its sheer nerdiness. By nerdiness I mean a laser-focused expertise that manifests itself in problem-solving. What is existence if not a series of problems we are required to find solutions to? The very premise of Breaking Bad was a problem: You’re terminally ill and you want to be able to leave your family some money. Right now you’re a downtrodden high school chemistry teacher, but you were a crystallographer on a Nobel Prize-winning team. What do you do? Use your chemistry knowledge and make a fortune.
Watch out, Nike; China’s sports brands are coming back
NIKE AND ADIDAS, take note. China’s sportswear makers are in their best shape for some time.
Visiting Duterte country
Text and photos by Zsarlene B. Chua
THANKS to Rodrigo Roa Duterte, the Davao City mayor who ran for and won the presidency, the spotlight is now on his city. As news stories abound on how the city’s hotels are now at full capacity thanks to people eager to meet — and perhaps curry favor — with the president-elect, it may be a good idea to hurry through Davao City’s Francisco Bangor International Airport and go directly to the many tourist offerings one can find in the city’s outskirts and the rest of the region.
Calvin Klein underwear ad causes stir
NEW YORK — A new Calvin Klein underwear ad has caused a stir in America because it features a photo taken from underneath a woman’s skirt, focused on her crotch.
Healthy aging has little to do with age: study
MIAMI — When it comes to maintaining health in one’s older years, age means little and obesity may not be so bad after all, according to a US study released on Monday.
At sea, scientists drill into crater for dino clues
MEXICO — Sharks swim around a platform of Mexico’s east coast as scientists drill deep into the ocean floor, extracting the remains of the asteroid widely blamed for the demise of the dinosaurs.
Back to the future
DVD Review
Peppermint Candy
Directed by Lee Chang-dong
By Noel Vera
Lee Chang-dong’s sophomore feature Peppermint Candy (1999) is perhaps his most formally innovative, starting with a man’s suicide going backwards — an idea borrowed from Harold Pinter’s play and later film Betrayal, and executed contemporaneously alongside Christopher Nolan’s Memento.
Can tai chi help relieve knee joint pain?
TAI CHI may work as well as traditional physical therapy for easing pain in people with knee osteoarthritis, a small study suggests.