Snogging Pandas

Cuteness!

Veruca's List: Seductively Luscious Lashes

LashFood Eyelash Conditioning Stimulant. Quite pricey for a teensy weensy bit of a tube at $115. But for a gal with short sparse lashes, this is pure magic in a tube. 

"...is a scientifically blended liquid of natural ingredients that you apply like eyeliner, twice a day, at the root of your lashes. The good news is that it doesn't sting -- and itdoesn't melt or otherwise make a mess of your other eye makeup when it is applied over the LashFood.

The mixed news is that, like most products which assist in new growth, it's going to take some time to see the results -- but the terrific news is that you will see them!

My lashes became shinier after just a few weeks (I think they were darker too? but that could have been the shine fooling me...) And then, a few weeks later, I noticed my eyelashes were a bit darker and fuller looking too. And, yes, Virginia, this was before I put on the mascara. 

Once mascara was applied, my lashes almost seemed too-long (if there is such a thing?) and certainly dangerous in a very sexy way...

So yes, LashFood works!

But wait! There's more! Super bonus points for LashFood because is also assists those of us with weak, sparse eyebrows too."

Read the entire review here. 

I violently want this. I violently need $115 too. 

To purchase one for me, click here.

Nakakalason Ang Panis Na Laway

By Aissa Penafiel and Migs Ocampo

To vote, click here. Deadline is on June 15, 2009. 

Houseboys

Bubble wraps.

The Crinoline Girl

My heart is simply melting at the thought of Julian Eltinge;

His alter ego, Vesta Tilley, too.

Since our language is so dexterous, let us call them ambi-sexterous-

Why hasn't this occurred before to you?

-Dorothy Parker

Women went into ecstasies over him. Men went into the smoking room.

-W.C Fields

Sparkling

Japan's most celebrated contemporary author, Haruki Murakami, has yet to release his highly secretive new novel — known only by its title 1Q84, but it has already begun selling out — before it has even hit the shelves.

The book's first-pressing has already been bumped up to an initial print run of 480,000 copiesand the first few bookstores in Tokyo that began carrying it on Wednesday sold out within hours.

1Q84 is Murakami's first novel in over five years. His previous novel was the hugely popular Kafka on the Shore.

Read more here. 

Great. Now I really need to get myself a job. 

Miss Lodge

And Archie chose Veronica.

    Oh Betty Betty Betty, stop gawking at the window. Hit up a bar with Jughead in tow and get yourself stinking drunk so you can have a good excuse when you wake up the following day naked with Jugs in bed. Move on blondie. this dude has been using you as a doormat for sixty four years. Go to a prestigious ivy league university, hit on your hot professor, mull over existentialism while sharing weed with a few strangers, experiment on bisexuality with your roommates, crash some frat parties, ditch the bra, go through a snobby Nietzsche phase, make plaster replicas of your boyfriends' pork swords, go unbathed for a week, dye your hair pink. for the love of all that is holy, STOP BEING A FRIGGIN' DOORMAT!

    Work your way up the corporate ladder. Sleep with a few executives if you must. Fight for what you want with tooth and nail. Be relentless. Never take no for an answer. Be brazen, be bold, paint the town red and leave them mystifed. Leave them breathless.

    Twenty years from now Archie will have gained a pot belly and a shiny bald spot, Veronica will still have those long and shapely legs, a few nips and tucks here and there and a frisky nineteen year old pool boy on the side. This is when you return to Riverdale. Beautiful, elegant, wealthy and successful. Give them something to gawk at. 

Edna's Notes: Sun Kissed

Flutter. Forever 21 floral frill skirt, Costume National Handbag, Givenchy Cutout shoe boots, Forever 21 gold chain necklace with floral pendants, Forever 21 gold and white loop earrings

Flirt. Alice+Olivia tank dress, Report Signature Masonic 2 platform sandals, Forever 21 pearl cuff, Forever 21 gold chain with dove pendant

Cocktails. Anna Sui Rainbow Fields embellished dress, Bijoux Heart Vintage Whiplash ring, Marc Jacobs red oversized sunnies, Miu Miu banana bow grey flats, Marc by Marc Jacobs flap patent clutch

Stroll. Marc by Marc Jacobs Elan denim pants, Bottega Veneta basket bag, Rebecca Taylor cashmere sequin tank top, Marc Jacobs metallic lace up brogues, Forever 21 gold chain necklace with charm pendants

Laze. TIBI silk halter top, Chloe high waisted cotton shorts, Ringseclectic stone embellished ring, Prada butterfly frame sunnies, Miu Miu metallic gladiator sandals, Matthew Williamson brocade embroidered clutch

Lounge. Chloe Saskia oversized round sunnies, Forever 21 gold bangle set, Forever 21 gold owl pendant necklace, Forever 21 white snap cardigan dress, Pedro Garcia Topaz platform, Alexander McQueen Elvie patent leather tote

Cannes'd Heat

Piolo Pascual looks good in the tan colored suit but I think his bottoms fit too snugly. Not a polished look. 

Mercedes Cabral's shoes are dainty.

Mercedes Cabral was labeled the Most Beautiful Asian in Cannes last year.

Our ambassadors at the red carpet. Oh my, how blah. 

We have so many talented Pinoy fashion designers in the country, the Cannes film festival is the perfect opportunity to showcase their pieces in an international arena. How amazing would it be to have paps snap away at your creations? To see our celebs side by side international celebs like Ziyi Zhang and Angie Jolie in a fashion spread? Didn't this idea ever cross their minds? Like what Rachel Zoe says, I would DIE to dress these people. Just DIE. 

Morning Glory

 

Kingdom Come

"We do not inherit the earth

from our ancestors,

we borrow it from

our children."

- native american proverb

Images by Itou Kouichi

The Jetsons

Designed by Jouin Manku, An architecture group based in Paris.

The house is gorgeous. It feels like somewhere in the house George Jetson and his family are chilling out.

Soda Pop Love

I'll take you anywhere in the world as long as...you are mine.

1. bra or no bra? 

2. Couch or Sofa?

3. vaccinate or not?

4. wedding or elope?

5. polyester or wool?

6. Bikini or one piece?

7. Dog or cat?

8. Are you morning person or night?

9. what came first....the chicken or the egg?

10. if you were stranded on and island..which one item would you have to have? Unax Ugalde

11. homeschool or not?

12. Beach or city?

13. is it Grey or Gray?

14. red wine or white wine?

15. caviar or escargot?

16. soda or pop?

The Fashionable Nostradamus

  

Light bulbs as hair accessories? anyone? 

You Are A Murderer of Love!

Dan in Real Life. Directed and written by Peter Hedges and Pierce Gardner. Starring Steve Carell and Juliette Binoche. Funny and endearing. Dan Burns is a lonely widower with three daughters. They drive to the family vacation place on Rhode Island where the Burns clan gather every year. At a bookstore on the first morning of the vacation he chats with a woman who lets him bare his soul. He does and they connect. But the woman is seeing someone, so she gives him her number instead and tells him to call her sometime. They part ways. He goes back to the vacation home and meets his brother's girlfriend Marie, the woman he met previously in the bookstore. 

    1. Steve Carell's performance in this movie is quite good. He swings from frustration to somberness to  enchantment with such ease there is fluidity in each changing scene. You cannot help but root for him throughout the entire movie. 

    2. His lovesick daughter (played by Brittany Robertson) will make you realize how stupid you must have looked at fourteen swearing undying love to another lovesick fourteen year old boy. 

    3. There is great chemistry between Dan and Marie. Some sweet scenes. None too cheesy. 

    4. Dane Cook is chubby in this movie. I missed his abs from good Luck Chuck. 

    5. "Instead of telling our young people to plan ahead, we should tell them to plan to be surprised." Nice line. Another one: "Love isn't a feeling, it's an ability." 

    6. Will convince you to hold back on procreation. 

    7. His daughters look like they could really be siblings.  Good casting. 

    8. "You are a murderer  of love!" I was laughing like a madwoman at four o'clock in the morning. 

     9. Great soundtrack. Note to self: Must download later. 

Vantage Point. Directed by Pete Travis and written by Barry Levy. Starring Dennis Quaid, Forrest Whitaker and Matthew Fox. A fast paced suspenseful puzzle. The President of the United States is in Salamanca, Spain, about to address the city in a public square. We see a plain-clothes cop, his girlfriend with another man, a mother and child, an American tourist with a video camera, and a Secret Service agent newly returned from medical leave. Shots ring out and the President falls; a few minutes later, we hear a distant explosion, then a bomb goes off in the square. Those minutes are retold, several times, emphasizing different characters' actions. 

    1. Note to self: Always keep a double nearby so she can die for me. 

    2. The little girl screaming in the middle of the freeway for her mother while the ambulance was speeding towards her is effing stupid. Why spend what could be the remaining last seconds of your life screaming when you can get out of the way and continue to live?

     3. Terrorists don't care about killing dozens of people in a town square with a bomb but decide to swing off the road so they don't hit a little girl.     

     4. If you happen to be in a hotel where a politician is staying, watch out for very sweaty bellboys clutching a trigger. 

     5. Bomb blasts don't kill Important Characters, regardless of their proximity to them.

     6. Cute helpless spanish little girls are the best way to thwart the plans of a president-kidnapping terrorist group. 

     7. If you catch this midway on HBO, don't bother watching the rest of the movie. You will be bewildered. 

     8. You will wish there is a scene of Matthew Fox undressing. 

     9. We need to teach our presidents self-defense.

One Missed Call. Directed by Eric Valette and written by Andrew Klaven and Yasushi Akimoto. Starring Shannyn Sossamon and Edward Burns. An awful remake of another decent Japanese horror movie. In this remake of the Japanese horror film "Chakushin Ari" (2003), several people start receiving voice-mails from their future selves -- messages which include the date, time, and some of the details of their deaths.

     1. The cat in at the beginning of the movie dies along with her owner. Based on the premise of the story, she apparently received a call too. 

     2.  Nothing much is explained about the girl who cuts her sister and who instigates the so called "curse". You will spend most of the time watching this movie confused or utterly bored. 

    3.  The ring tone is quite creepy.

        

    4. The blonde little girl looks like a young Reese Witherspoon.

 
    5. After the cop dies and Sossamon's character is saved by the evil ghost's mother, the cop's phone magically dials itself and the cycle begins yet again (makes me wonder, is this how the cat was able to receive the call and dial the next victim's number despite opposable thumbs?). Ah, well. Thus we have a sequel. Ewmahgahd. 

Book Eaters

    An update regarding the great book blockade of 2009. Below is an excerpt from Robin Hemley's response to a blogger's post. You can view the entire post here. 

     ...But it IS accurate and no exaggeration when I stated that virtually all AIR shipments of books into the Philippines were stopped between January and March. That doesn’t mean that books were not arriving in the country – ostensibly, books on freighters were still allowed in and you could receive personal books via Amazon during that time. The exact dates were these: air shipments stopped on January 26th and the first shipments were released on March 17th, a day after Undersecretary Sales spoke with importers and book sellers, and storage fees were paid.

I didn’t have simply one source, but a number of sources, all well-placed in the book industry and all quite willing to talk with me as long as I kept them anonymous. It seemed a reasonable request and still seems so.

It’s true that I was not at Undersecretary Sales’ powerpoint presentation, but she made photocopies of the presentation for the booksellers and I was given a copy of this, detailing all of the Department of Finance’s rationalizations. It doesn’t surprise me that she expresses dismay that the booksellers and importers were not in agreement with her. I was told they tried to express their dissatisfaction, saying they would agree, “for now,” but perhaps this point was not made forcefully enough?

Interestingly, the Department of Finance initially told Customs to release the books on January 27th, but their order was ignored by Rene Agulan, and eventually, for reasons I don’t understand, Customs and the Dept. of Finance, found common ground on this issue. But at first, according to a letter (I'm away from home at the moment, so I don't have the letter in front of me, nor the letter's author, only my notes) dated March 5th to Atty Pasion-Flores of the NBDB, the examiner refused to release the books despite the fact that all previous requirements had been met, including a “certificate of membership with NBDB.” Further, it was required that the Dept. of Ed certify the books as educational, but the Dept. of Ed told the book sellers that the NBDB should rightly issue this certification. It was Agulan who apparently decided that these books were not educational, much to the collective dismay of the importers.

It’s Agulan who was the main barrier at first, and a couple of book industry people I spoke with wondered how one examiner would have such power? In any case, as I mentioned the Dept. of Finance soon backed up Agulan.

In my initial piece, I also made mention of Amazon shipments being held up at the post office over the years, and customers made to pay seemingly whimsical amounts for their books to be retrieved. But this part was edited out of the final piece.

Whether or not taxes are imposed consistently or not, it seems to me that any tax or duty, whether 1%, 5%, or 50%, whether imposed by one clerk at the post office or by the Dept. of Finance as a whole, clearly goes against the very straightforward language of the Florence Agreement. Bottom line – duties are not to be levied on imported books. If the Philippines wants to withdraw from this treaty, then that’s its right. I’m not a lawyer, and I couldn’t go into all the details in my short article, but I believe that international law trumps national and municipal law.

As one blogger eloquently puts it: 

“A few thoughts on the DOF response. International treaties such as the Florence Agreement have the force of law in the Philippines, and are of co-equal status with the Tariff and Customs Code. Congress could not by law repeal commitments made via treaties, you need to withdraw from the treaty. So I disagree with her claim that Congress needs to pass a law amending the TCC to impose the 0% duty on books, that law already exists and is called the Florence Agreement.”

As far as corruption goes, there's individual corruption and then there's institutionalized corruption. 

But I think it’s the red tape as much as anything that has/had book importers so frustrated, the notion that their books might be held up for months while it was judged what was educational and what wasn’t, and by whom.

I also agree that people are focusing too much on TWILIGHT. 

When I wrote the piece, I wasn’t sure how much attention, if any, it would receive. I wrote it because it seemed to be an issue of importance that book lovers in the Philippines should be aware of, and it was right there under the radar. I’m glad that people are now discussing it, and I hope that some good will come of this in the long run.

Thanks!

Robin Hemley

The Department of Finance issues Department Order No. 17-09, published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Easter Sunday, April 12:

The Department Order institutes a regime in which all books brought into the country are deemed subject to Customs duties until or unless a complicated process of obtaining dispensations from the authorities are resorted to; and which further assumes that titles must be in small quantities and not for sale, barter, or trade to qualify for any Customs duty exemption.

The Order furthermore institutes an elaborate series of definitions for books covered by existing Duty-free importation privileges, which are definitions different from the broad classifications in the Florence Agreement; and furthermore, restricts the interpretation of the National Book Development Act to apply only to the duty-free importation of books “used for book publishing.”

The duties imposed are 1% for “educational, technical, scientific, historical or cultural books” and 5% for all other books, according to the Department of Finance’s new definitions.

Below is the letter the National Book Development Board sent to the Secretary of Justice in response to the provisons given by the DOF.

April 30, 2009

HONORABLE RAUL M. GONZALEZ

SecretaryDepartment of Justice

Padre Faura St., Manila

Dear Secretary Gonzalez:

The book reading public in the country is suddenly jolted when the Department of Finance (DOF) imposed duty on the importation of books through Department Order No. 17-09: Guidelines of Duty-Free Importation of Books, issued on 24 March 2009 by Secretary Margarito B. Teves, published on 12 April 2009 at the Phil. Daily Inquirer and is now being implemented.

We earnestly seek your opinion on said Guidelines because they run counter to Sec. 12 of RA 8047, which provides that “In case of tax and duty-free importation of books or raw materials to be used in book publishing, the Board and its duly authorized representatives shall strictly monitor the quality and volume of imported books and material as well as their distribution and the utilization of the said imported materials.”

It is interesting to note that RA 8047 or the Book Publishing Industry Development Act of 1995 was co-authored by Secretary Teves when he was a member of the House of Representatives.

Your immediate rendering of opinion on this matter will greatly benefit our reading public and the book industry.

Please find attached a copy of the DOF Guidelines and the position paper of the Book Development Association of the Philippines.

Respectfully yours,

LIRIO P. SANDOVAL

President

    

    The people at customs and the DOF seem to be operating on the assumption that we are idiots or the irrefutable belief that we will be as a consequence of this taxing matter. It is unbelievably absurd to assume that their book taxing will not encounter public friction since it will only affect a small select segment of the population purchase and read books imported to the country. This is not and cannot be a valid argument to support their motives to tax books. First reason is this, this argument further strengthens the significant need of the government to encourage the filipinos to read more. The fact that only a miniscule percentage of the population reads is a very strong motivation to push forward our right for affordable books and the county's commitment to the florence agreement. In Malaysia, books are tax deductibles because they want their people to invest in reading and education. Our government on the other hand, is making the cost of education expensive for its people. If this pushes forward, books will become luxury items and reading will become a leisurely activity reserved for the wealthy. Second reason is because we deserve to have access to educational materials. It is the right of every filipino, not a mere privilege for the wealthy. People who could not afford such reading materials will either avoid them entirely or succumb to illegal means to have copies of their own. E-books will proliferate. The problem with this is that books are copyrighted material. It will be very easy to sell and download bootlegged E-books in the internet. I think most people also will agree with me that reading five hundred pages of literature on a computer screen is not exactly appealing.The country will become a haven for piracy. 

    When I was in college it was fairly difficult for me to indulge myself in leisurely reading. My allowance per day was fifty pesos, three hundred pesos in a week. I'd consider myself lucky to save even a hundred pesos by the end of the week. A hundred pesos is not enough to cover the costs of a paperback novel. The best I will be able to purchase with my hundred pesos will be a teen glossy magazine. And since teen glossy magazines were not really my thing, I'd spend my savings on necessities instead. If a secondhand book sale happened to drop by my city, I'd purchase a couple of paperbacks at fifty to seventy pesos a piece. In the small sleepy town I live in, there is only one decent bookstore that sells popular books. No Murakami for me. Meyer, Kinsella, Roberts and Coelho are aplenty. Sometimes we'd drive to Cagayan de Oro and shop for a whole day. I'd spend most of my money on a few new books. That was indulgence for me. I know how difficult it is to scavenge for loose change at the bottom of a tattered bag in order to buy that Murakami smiling from the showcase window. That was my lowest point. 

    For the college students making ends meet with a very strict budget I know what a big strain this will be. I would rather spend two hundred fifty pesos for three kilos of rice, a few canned products and some packets of instant noodles than a two hundred seventy three page paperback novel that I will devour in a span of two days. In these hard times where people are losing their jobs, costs are rising and needs must be met, reading for pleasure will be the last thing on everyone's mind. This matter will further the gap between the rich and the poor and perpetuate illiteracy in the country. Expensive books, this is the best way to alienate the youth from reading. We have a right to accessible and affordable books. We need to defend this right now more than ever. 

     Trace the timeline for the Great Book Blockade of 2009 here. 

     Say NO to the Philippine Book Blockade. Click here.

Update: Finally. 

MANILA, Philippines - President Arroyo on Sunday ordered the Department of Finance to scrap the taxes imposed on imported books and reading material.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said the directive was prompted by a torrent of criticism on the move of the Bureau of Customs (BOC), which is under the supervision of the finance department, to impose the duties.

“President Arroyo ordered the immediate lifting of the customs duty on book importation,” Remonde said in a text message to The STAR.

“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 said.

Remonde said Mrs. Arroyo directed Finance Secretary Margarito Teves to revoke Finance Department Order 17-09 which imposes duty on book importation.

“Secretary Teves said he will comply immediately,” he said.

Teves earlier said the BoC has yet to compute the revenues to be generated by the taxes.

Teves, however, said that revenue generation was not the main reason for the import duties but to clarify regulations on book imports as provided by the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines.

The UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines (UNACOM), led by secretary-general Ambassador Preciosa Soliven, said the imposition of taxes on books runs contrary to government efforts to promote reading among children and the youth.

“Taxing imported books is tantamount to taxing reading habits. At a time when parents and educators worldwide have expressed alarm on the continuing steep decline in the reading habits and practices especially among the young, the tax measure is counterproductive to current initiatives to rekindle a reading culture,” UNACOM said in a statement.

“The measure would surely further discourage young and even old minds from appreciating, recognizing and rediscovering the value of reading,” UNACOM said.

UNESCO in Paris, France was reportedly already aware of the controversy over the BoC’s imposing duties on imported books, a clear violation of a United Nations world pact forged in 1950 where countries agreed to exempt reading and cultural materials from import duties.

John Donaldson, UNESCO senior legal officer based in Paris, said the Philippines, as a party to the Florence Agreement, must respect the principle “Pacta sunt servanda (Pacts must be respected).”

“This fundamental principle of the law of treaties, enshrined in the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties of 1969, provides that treaties in force are binding upon the parties and must be performed in good faith,” Donaldson said.

“It follows that if the Philippines decides to apply custom duties or other charges on the importation of materials coming from another State Party, and for which the Florence Agreement foresees an exemption, it will be in breach of its obligations under this Agreement,” he said.

UNACOM said the Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs-Office of Legal Affairs submitted that DO No. 17-09 issued by the Department of Finance was “contrary to the Philippines’ obligations under the UNESCO Florence Agreement and is inconsistent with its principle of free exchange of ideas and knowledge.”

It took you long enough, you beastly extortionists.