PASSERBY: 

"Lavender Fields" star Jodi Sta Maria is making the bold move to temporarily put on hold her acting career by going back to school as a full-time student. She wants to take her master’s degree in clinical psychology this year. Jodi graduated with a Psychology degree in 2021.

Carlo Aquino says he wants a normal life, one that allows him to experience all the pains and joys and laughter of a regular human. He wants to be an actor, not a star.

National celebrities like actors and sportsmen ranked low in voter preference among respondents aged 51 years old and above, according to a recent survey conducted by Tangere research firm. Respondents also considered national security at the bottom of their individual concerns, more focused as they were on food and employment, ranked number one and two, respectively.

Tangere also reported that the top three sources of influence among the respondents are television, Facebook and radio, in that order.

At 70, Senator Lito Lapid takes pride yet amused to be in a loveteam with his ‘Batang Quiapo’ co-star, Lorna Tolentino. While he downplays any claims that their pairing has gone beyond the small screen, Lapid says he has gone as far as explaining to his wife that all that talk is nothing but hot air.

Speaking of Lorna, the veteran actress pulls off a commendable performance as Judy Ann Santos’ hovering mother in ‘Espantaho,’ one of the better films in MMFF 2024. She and Chanda Romero, who herself stands out in the film, are certain to bag acting awards from other bodies in 2025. By the way, Espantaho, by Chito Rono, is wrongly billed as a horror picture; it’s really more of a family drama with shades of the horrific and the gory.

Has Lolita Solis really called it a day? The veteran showbiz columnist-talent manager recently posted on Instagram that she’s retiring for good, preferring to live a more relaxed life with her many dogs.

Did you know that at one time, Lolita cared for 54 dogs in all? The number has gone down to 10 at present. She refuses to take in any more dogs as their passing depresses her. Once, she had her favourite dog cremated, and it cost her 40,000 pesos.

Lolita has asked her niece to care for Jokjok, the love of her life, in case she goes ahead of him. Part of her huling habilin (last wish) is to give him a decent burial.

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This post made me laugh.

Due to the rising costs of medical tests, all you can do is pee under a tree and wait for a bit. If ants gather, you’ve got diabetes.

If the grass dries up, it’s high salts.

If it smells like BBQ, your cholesterol’s high.

And, if you forget to pull up your pants, you’ve got Alzheimer’s.