Apple Mateo Tan

I’m currently GlamAsia.com’s Features Editor: http://www.glamasia.com/

From: 

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/08/22/what-italian-suits-will-be-like-in-2154/

More similar stories:

http://www.glamasia.com/2011/11/09/burberry-plays-host-to-vfno-in-tokyo/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/10/28/new-store-openings-near-emporio-armani-michael-kors/

From: http://www.glamasia.com/2013/10/09/peak-sneak-goldhearts-jewelry-start-sjf13/

More similar stories: 

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/11/12/luxury-find-chopard-l-u-c-xps-watches/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/10/29/gilty-pleasure/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/09/30/mikimoto-opens-flagship-store-launches-new-pearly-pieces/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/09/25/the-engagement-rings-to-say-yes-to/

From: http://www.glamasia.com/2013/09/18/feather-frenzy-the-shanghai-tang-bags-to-show-off/

More similar stories: 

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/11/08/beauty-culture-christmas/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/09/20/christmas-comes-early-with-dior-beauty/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/08/07/new-beauty-gadget-olay-regenerist-advanced-cleansing-system/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/05/13/sunnies-celebrities-are-wearing-right-now/

From: http://www.glamasia.com/2013/08/27/couture-feather-fight-ciara-vs-rita-ora-at-the-2013-mtv-video-music-awards/

More similar stories:

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/09/04/style-face-off-in-cut-out-lwd-emma-roberts-vs-lily-collins/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/05/08/emma-watsons-battle-of-the-graphic-print-dresses/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/04/24/the-battle-of-the-bare-midriffs-selena-gomez-vs-diane-kruger/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/04/16/what-looks-hotter-on-miranda-kerr-all-black-or-colours/

From: http://www.glamasia.com/2013/05/07/spotted-van-cleef-arpels-rose-de-noel-flower-earrings-on-drew-barrymore/

More similar stories:

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/09/12/1-host-5-looks/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/09/10/lotd-naomie-harris-in-burberry-at-the-2013-toronto-international-film-fest/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/06/10/what-blake-lively-is-wearing-lately/

http://www.glamasia.com/2013/06/13/look-of-the-day-cara-delevigne-at-the-glamour-women-of-the-year-awards-2013/

*Published in Chalk Magazine (Dec 2010 - Jan 2011). All sidebars are writer's own.

*Published in Chalk Magazine (October 2010). Sidebar is writer's own.

*Published in Chalk Magazine (August 2010). All sidebars are writer's own.

By Karen Tan, as told to Apple Mateo

*Published in Chalk Magazine (April 2010)

*Published in Chalk Magazine (February 2010)

*PR for STIR.ph website and magazine launch party (January 26, 2010)

Weeks after the autonomo us showbiz website went live in the World Wide Web on February 2009, STIR.ph has stirred the local entertainment-loving online community by bringing first dibs on shocking issues, intriguing proofs and photos, and full coverage of exclusive occasions. Fast-forward to present, STIR.ph continues to report exciting turn of events in the local showbiz scene and becomes the favorite online read of many. It is visited by more than 150,000 new users every month and receives a monthly page view of more than two (2) million. With such success, STIR.ph officially inaugurates the website and reveals its print magazine version to the media and its thousands of readers here and abroad.

STIR.ph kicks off the year in full blast as it treats media and friends to a spanking party, themed Pink Carpet STIR Awards to celebrate its first year anniversary in the trade. The stirring Awards are given to artists and personalities who indeed created a stir in the last year. Awardees are: Christian Bautista - Stirring Artist of the Decade, Dr. Victoria Belo - Stirring Producer of the Year, Ryan Agoncillo - Stirring Host of the Year, Karylle - Stirring Star of the Year, and Juicy! - Stirring Showbiz Talk Show of the Year.

Having a print version is STIR.ph’s another reason to celebrate! Young publishing company October Eighty Publications, Inc. teamed up with Yehey! to make the weekly magazine possible. The first two issues of the mag are free and will be distributed in MRT and LRT stations, coffee shops, salons and TV stations.

STIR.ph website and magazine are prepared for publication by editors Edgar Cruz and Maryo Labad, respectively.

About STIR.ph

STIR.ph (Showbiz Talk + Intriguing Reports) is a local Philippine entertainment gossip site that dishes out off-the-grill showbiz reports, star sightings, blind items, and user-generated contents such as candid celebrity photos and videos.

Powered by the top Filipino online portal Yehey!, STIR.ph prides its speed in delivering entertainment tidbits to its readers online. STIR reveals local entertainment news as they unfold.

KANKAN RAMOS HEINZ NGO

Channels Manager                                                     Media Director

Yehey! Digital Group October 80 Publications, Inc.

*Unpublished article (September 18, 2009)

For sure, the audience in last week’s Vivienne Tam’s Spring 2010 fashion show at New York Fashion Week is not looking on the model’s clothes, but at the shiny, champagne thing peeking inside her bag. I, for one, forgot about the clothes – my eyes are glued on that shiny little netbook! And I watched it on Youtube.

Uh-oh, gadget crush alert! The new Vivienne Tam x HP netbook is just pure love! Its design is fashioned from Tam’s spring 2010 collection, inspired by a Chinese (Tam’s heritage) tale, “Butterfly Lovers,” a classic love story of freedom, transformation and inspiration featuring butterflies.

I give credit to the Vivienne Tam and HP netbook team for creating such an amazingly striking design and I even love it more than the designer and tech giant’s first collaboration which has a cult following of its own. The champagne background looks more sophisticated and grounded than the first one’s carnival-ish red. And if my spatial skills are accurate, it’s actually a bit narrower than the previous. That spells portability power to me.

*Unpublished gadget review (September 8, 2009)

The Sony Ericsson’s z750i flip phone’s glossy, mirror-like top shell will woo any lady with Becky Bloomwood tendencies. It did to me. Shelling out P11, 900 after examining its long list of specs online (and with no available reviews yet, it was a new release then), I knew the purple hue, the external OLED display that lights up when in use and other fun features will make up for the fancy price.

Teens and girly girls would give me long, envious looks when texting in malls or coffeeshops, so I also know that z750i’s shiny plate also attracts unwanted attention from cellphone snatchers. I vow never to text or take calls while in transit.

So in the comforts of a secured four-corner room, z750i will keep me entertained with its radio, mp3 player, games, and PicStory, an application that enables one to view pictures with music and various transitions according to a theme. Built-in memory is 32MB, plus a 128MB micro-SD card is included. This can already hold an album’s worth of tracks and some occasional snapshots. Texting is effortless when the tall screen boasts of 262 thousand colors and the keys are made big and soft. I also like that it has this shortcut button for alerts, running apps and customized shortcuts. Battery life is good at 10 hours when used continuously. 

Thank God, VGA camera era is over! Z750i now enjoys a 2.0 megapixel digital snappy mounted dorsal of the unit. Works well on daylight - lines are clear and colors, vivid. But it can only do so much because it has no flash and autofocus, and for some reason, my zoom function is not working, so I always have to shoot at an arm’s length max. Photographs turn grainy at nighttime even if Night Mode is on.

This purple gizmo still never ceases to amaze me as I still learn new things from it now and then. I know what you’re thinking; didn’t I read the user’s manual? Who has time to read it, that’s like learning the parts and functions of a shoe when you can strut in one already? It was very recent when I discovered the Mark As Unread function for text messages, very important when I am in a middle of something but don’t want to forget about that important text. The Message Sort is also a great time-saver – which has options sort by date, name or topic. Now I don’t have to read the texts one by one, I just have to select one folder and there go all the texts sent in by the same person. The mobile Internet, RSS and blogging functions are virtually of no use to me, as I turn to Mr. Laptop for these.

*Unpublished work

Good job on this one! - Wanggo Gallaga, Lifestyle Editor, Chalk Magazine

Profile by Apple Mateo

For the first time ever, Jan Sy* agreed to have someone ask him more than two personal questions in one sitting! He reveals his insightful and caring persona as he opens up about med school, family and the love of his life.

The well-dressed guy sitting very upright at the back table of Friday’s Grill and Restaurant was not hard to miss. As I glided myself in a seat across him, I admired his nicely-rolled up button downs and couldn’t help but feel underdressed with my tee and jeans ensemble. His warm smile was returned with a big one and a peck on the cheek, he is just too hard to resist.  Heck, give him a pale, glistening complexion and he could pass for Edward Cullen’s twin brother!

The not-so simple life: Living with Jan

Jan began the chat with disclosing his morning rituals. Besides the usual cleaning and grooming, people will be surprised that he also knows how to blow-dry, iron his hair straight and expertly use spider wax. “All these can take me an hour or so…” Indeed, Jan scores higher than the average guy in grooming 101. “So you’re metrosexual?” I asked. He answered with a chuckle, “No, we all know everyone just wants to look good. But yes… I guess I want to look and smell better than most guys.”

But there’s more to Jan than his vanity and hair tools. God, his family and close friends are his source of inspiration. He also likes lending a hand to those in need. “Spiritual help is the most important thing we can extend to someone. Like if they’re dying, at least I can help his soul gain eternal life.”

While he admits that he love his family, he can’t say they are close with his parents and three younger sisters for three reasons. One, because he is quiet and doesn’t interact with his family much. “We’re somewhere between chummy and civil. I’m not a verbal person but we have our share of laughter.” Two, he can be a bully sometimes. “As the eldest and only son, I can let my younger siblings do the work for me. I’m treated differently because I’m unique.” And three, “I’m not a fan of nagging and incessant questions and I get that a lot from them,” he kids.

Excited to be back

The 23-year old University of Santo Tomas medical student believes medicine is the most logical marriage of all his interests: information, science and dealing with people. He states, “I like knowing stuff and I see myself as a doctor with his own hospital in the future.”

Jan is one of those who don’t have to study much as knowledge and information come to his head easily, yet there’s still a downside to it. “I wish I didn’t achieve things as easily as I did. It made me lazy, complacent and oblivious with the value of hard work.” Jan, unfortunately, had to file a leave of absence on medical school this school year due to burnout and loss of interest. Good thing, Jan still values education and shares he can’t wait to come back and hit the books come next school year. “I want to take a break from my long vacation! I just need to be more diligent.” Hopefully, he will be on his way to success.

Devoted boyfriend

As a man of few words; Jan rarely speaks about his feelings. But what he lacks in the speech department, he makes up for his thoughtful actions. Back in college, he surprised his girlfriend Georgina* with a bouquet of pink roses. On her Psychology and Emotions class. On Valentine’s Day.

When asked what he would like to buy if someone gives him P25, 000, his quick answer was a laptop for his girlfriend as she badly needs it. Jan wants to put his girlfriend’s needs first before his, but is glum with the fact that reality prevents him to do so. “I don’t have much to give to her right now as I don’t work yet, but I always make it a point to help her out and make her feel loved.” He reveals how Georgina makes his heart flutter with just her simplest attributes, “I like how round her eyes are and how her hair still looks nice even if a lot of strands are not in place.” On a deeper note, he said that George is the only right thing in his life right now. “She makes me happy; she supports me and helps me out when I’m in trouble.” Now isn’t he a sweetheart?

*Unpublished work

I like it! - Wanggo Gallaga, Lifestyle Editor, Chalk Magazine

Essay by Apple Mateo

I hate wet feet. I shudder with the thought of damp, pruny feet inside squishy wet shoes. The feeling is like feet enveloped on thick wet blanket. How icky. I also have this fear that sewer rats’ pee will seep into my feet killing me of leptospirosis. My whole body aches when raindrops touch me, as if the cold droplets pierce my skin and make me bleed. My most salient ‘rain memories’ include walking alone on the street on a cold night welling up or catching fever. These are why I never like rainy days.

Today is one of those days. Dark, gloomy, cold. What’s worse, it’s Monday morning. With depleted energy and escalating laziness creeping in, it took me twenty minutes to get off the bed.  I pick a dark shirt and a baggy windbreaker. When you’re a hardcore commuter, rainy days never give you room to be fashionable! As I put on my purple rubber boots (best buy I ever had), I knew it could only protect so much. I would still have to endure soaking clothes and dripping hair on my way to the office. The air condition will blow me dry but will leave me like frozen meat!

Then all these would make me feel guilty. As I struggle to keep myself dry with my rain gears and get annoyed when I fail, many have no choice but to bear the freezing rain simply because they are out in the streets with no proper clothing to protect them. Victims of floods and landslides certainly do not share my sentiments of getting wet feet. In fact, I don’t think they feel anything; they are numb from the cold and too many worries of saving their family from the torrent and putting food on the table for the next day. That is if they still have a dining table to eat on. I agonize about my little peeves when helpless people are in deep trouble, literally.  Now rainy days make me a bad person, too.