TOPAZ HORIZON

So did ya get your customized pair of Havaianas flip-flops at the Rockwell Tent? Today was the last day and I hear the entire promo was a hit. The media and special VIPs got to attend the launch party last week and we each got a free pair. Mine is a brown and pink pair (the colors of my wedding!) with a clover leaf, a flower and the Philippine archipelago pins.


There was a fashion show, musical numbers and lots of yummy hors d'oeuvres. And tons of happy flipflopped people! Congratulations to Havaianas, to Terry SA and to Amor Maclang for such a fab event!

TV commercials these days are just crap. They're mostly inane and stupid and just assume the viewer is just as stupid and inane. Remember when it was actually a joy to sit for the commercial breaks? These days, I use those breaks to surf other channels, go to the loo, check the ref for food, or write Colonix reviews in my new beauty blog.

There are a few good ones that I do enjoy. Like this one from Close Up:


And this one from Sony Bravia three years ago:


And the "First Time, First Love" commercial of Coke! So '80s! (Yes, I was born in the '70s so I have a pretty good memory of this ad):


The '80s were the golden age for Coke ads but my favorite was the Pepsi commercial starring Fred Savage where he was writing a love letter to a girl and he was inspired by the drink, prompting the girl to realize, "I feel like... a Pepsi." So sad I can't find it on YouTube!

But the ad I truly truly love is this vintage Apple TVC that my husband tells me brings back memories of another age.


We feel every word because Vince and I have always been the misfits, the rebels and troublemakers that people never really understood. I know my parents always worried about me, afraid I'd end up dead because I always stirred up trouble but, hey, I turned out okay! The funny thing is, as media people, Vince and I are both in positions where we can actually mold the minds of our readers. It's crazy that we are where we are. We have dangerous thoughts and someone is actually paying us to spread them!

By the way, I found this vid through the utterly wonderful poet Susannah-Cole. She inspires me with her words and her images, and we are both "secret keepers of hope," believers in moving the world forward one blog post at a time.

I know I said I didn't like Twilight the movie but after seeing this video, I'm willing to watch New Moon. Oh my, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart are so hot! Did they paint on Kristen's clothes? And Rob's abs--are they for real??? And that kiss! I literally felt my cheeks go warm when I saw these stills!

SPOILER ALERT! If you want the movie to be a surprise, do not watch!


Swoon! Now let me look for my own vampire and beg for a bite...

I know this news is a week late but Chuck is back for a third season! After all the emails and petitions of fans, the beloved spy comedy romance is returning to our TV screens on March 2010. I am so happy! Thanks, NBC!

2010 is many months away so I'm glad I still have The Tudors to keep me riveted. This is one of the best shows ever! It's history, politics, sex, scandal, religion, lavish excess, intrigue, style, love and passion all rolled into one! Right now, King Henry is disenchanted with his new wife, Anne of Cleves. Anne is played by Joss Stone and she's actually good--who knew that singer can be a good actress, too?

Showtime really has fantastic shows; aside from The Tudors, they also have Dexter--the serial murderer series. I love this one! It's funny, dark and bloody, and just chilling! I love the marketing promo, too (see above)--very clever, very sophisticated, very Dexter. The fourth season is set to debut this fall in the US so I have that to watch when The Tudors is done. I think I mentioned this somewhere in my blog before but I must confess that of all the fictional characters I've ever met (in a book, a story, a movie, etc), I relate to Dexter Morgan the most. Now that's something that scares even me...

Fringe is another show I love. It's all about the supernatural and mysterious, kinda like The X-Files but I kinda like Fringe better. I adore Olivia Dunham so much I want to name my daughter after her character! The no-nonsense Olivia is played by Aussie actress Anna Torv--that's her floating up there. She is unconventionally beautiful and she gets lovelier with each episode. The first season just ended and there's no word from Fox yet when the second season will be but I'm happy to note that there will most definitely be a new season!

Well, judging from the shows I watch, you can tell I'm not a fan of the silly, fluffy and frivolous. Yeah, I like my entertainment raw, strange, mind-boggling, bizarre, even frightening. Then the delightful Chuck (and the sadly discontinued Pushing Daisies) happened and I have never been more in love with such a sunny, happy character! And despite Chuck's sunniness, the show ain't dumb and silly at all!

My blogger friends Zemirah, Sippinslow and JenAspacio have alerted me to what is possibly the most wonderful news this summer! The Great Book Blockade, which levied taxes and other duties on imported books, is now over!

Just this morning, newspapers happily reported that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo ordered the Department of Finance to immediately lift "the customs duty on book importation," Press secretary Serge Remonde said. “The President wants books to be within reach of the common man. She believes reading as an important value for intellectual formation, which is the foundation of a healthy public opinion necessary for a vibrant democracy,” he added.

Well, thank you very much, Madame President! And thank you, too, to Robin Hemley, who made us all aware of this distressing fact (and who mentioned my post about this issue on his blog. Yey!).

Thank you to all the Filipinos who stormed the government with their protests, done intelligently, I'd like to add.

Thanks to the media for giving this issue proper attention.

And thank you to the international communities led by UNESCO who helped trash this law in such a short time!

For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV

Democracy is well and alive in the Philippines. I now know this and my heart lifts with fierce pride and glorious hope! We didn't even need to stage rallies and violent protests. No one died, no blood was shed. The strength of bloggers amazes me. I didn't know we were this influential! As Oasis sang, "I'll start a revolution from my bed." We started it and now we won. What else can we achieve?

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!


Read my blog post on the issue here.
Read more about the developments, as reported by Robin Hemley, here.