MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza In another 41 days there will be another New Year to celebrate. Yes, the Chinese or Lunar New Year beginning Feb. 12. The Year of the Metal Ox, hopefully and grit-your-teeth-ly a better and kinder one than the last. Everyone’s second chance to do their spring cleaning,...
MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza What a year it has been – sorry, guys, no firecrackers tonight to send 2020 off to the wild blue yonder! It has been a wild ride, a year when we lost so many friends, acquaintances, and strangers, not all of them to the pandemic. While the virus has killed thousands of...
It wasn't a peaceful Christmas celebration for expectant mom Isabelle Daza. She shared a photo of her two-year-old son Baltie's hand and his Christmas illustration on her Instagram stories, but one of her followers didn't think twice to share his sentiments on the photo. "He's gay? What a...
MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza Why did the second day of Christmas, Saturday, emit a Black Saturday vibe? The somber mood was almost Holy Week-like, traffic being remarkably light, parks and streets emptied of strollers. Annus horribilis , much the worse for children suffering from the unexpected...
A big congratulations to all of them! Photos of baby bumps seem to be everywhere on social media this quarantine period, including of celebrities who have shared gender reveal photos to their followers. Here are some blooming celebrity moms who are expecting their little bundles of joy. Andi...
MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza It’s the day after Christmas but I beg the reader’s indulgence, for I will not be writing as a Christian. I’m not entertaining any sympathy for that Tarlac policeman who killed at close range and in cold blood a mother and her son during an argument over a land...
MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza When it comes to giving gifts, we are proud to err on the side of excess. Look at those thick crowds shopping in Divisoria. How can you stop a people overflowing with love for parents, parents-in-law, children, grandchildren, godchildren, neighbors, officemates,...
MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza The next pandemic is knocking at our stomachs. Hunger. While those of us who can afford to buy a newspaper will be waiting to be “surprised” by what the lady of the house has prepared for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, millions of poor people all over the world will...
Scaling down on celebrations doesn’t mean your spread is less meaningful We asked our favorite foodies: How are you planning to celebrate Christmas in the light of the pandemic and recent calamities? Are you thinking of scaling down and simplifying your usual holiday spread? What are you planning...
MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza One year and after two events were dropped by the lockdown, Benjie thought it was time to “show confidence” in the gradual opening up of the economy. Forthwith, he invited his comrades to a reunion lunch, “just to see how everybody is doing in challenging times.”...
MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza The Holy Trinity. Heaven Man Earth. The Holy Family, Joseph, Mary, Baby Jesus. The Three Kings. Three groups of witnesses: Angels . . . Shepherds . . . Beasts. A trio of stars. The Star of Bethlehem. The star topping the twinkling tree in the living room. The...
MEDIUM RARE Jullie Y. Daza Or, as former colleagues in TV used to say, “in the time of Nick.” The more you think about it – nine months after the first ECQ – the more you realize we need Christmas now, in the year of Our Lord 2020. St. Nick couldn’t be coming at a better, more aptly...