Social media and our waning attention span have taught us that the length of a story, a film, or a play doesn’t necessarily guarantee quality. This month, Short+Sweet Theatre is returning to Manila for a collection of 10-minute plays, proving that big things indeed come from small packages.

Short+Sweet Theatre is known around the world as the festival of 10-minute plays and the biggest little play festival. It showcases bite-sized stories handpicked from submissions, and covers a wide breadth of genres from comedy to drama, romance, and tragedy.

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It’s already September and while I’m writing this in my room past 6PM, I’m actually sweating. I just got out of the shower, the windows are open, and the fan is facing me, but I can feel beads of sweat forming on my forehead and my chest. Whoever said that summer-oriented drinks would be out of place during the -ber months probably hasn’t experienced the heat pressing down on the city.

It’s okay. I’d rather sweat than deal with torrential rain and besides, I’ve found a new remedy: Starbucks just launched two new Teavana variants and it comes in frozen format! The new frozen teas are the Chamomile Tea with Kyoho Grape and Aloe, and the Hibiscus Tea with Pomegranate Pearls.

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When we were kids, we considered ourselves grown-up when we started reading books without pictures. Strangely, it’s now that I’m entering my late twenties that I’m beginning to appreciate illustrated books and graphic novels. I rediscovered my passion for comics when I found my high school X-Men collection, and I’m branching out to reading local materials, manga, and children’s books.

My latest discoveries in children’s books are the works of Mike Curato and Isabel Roxas, two Filipino illustrators who are now based in the US. National Book Store invited the two to meet friends and fans, and I was lucky enough to meet them when they were here.

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This year is a good year for theater. Apart from the countless quality local shows we have, more and more international productions are coming to the Philippines to show us a good time. This year alone, we saw Wicked, Sister Act, and West Side Story. Now, it’s The Sound of Music‘s turn to wow us as the West End production opens this month in Manila!

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One of my greatest luxuries is going on a hotel staycation. It’s like leaving your ordinary life behind and stepping into a world where you can walk to your favorite shopping destinations, order room service, have a great view of the city, and have a heater in the shower. Some of my favorite assignments are staycations (travel, too, because it means holing up in a five star hotel), and I go on my own dime every now and then.

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I’m losing quite a bit of weight so I thought it was time to update my wardrobe. Luckily, Forever 21 is holding a Mega Sale this weekend, where guests can shop for classic and trendy clothes with discounts of up to 70%! I went to the sale on its VIP Day and was overwhelmed with the number of options at incredible prices.

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Many of us grew up with the story of Ibong Adarna, an epic poem we read in school. Later, we watched the film adaptation starring Jolina Magdangal as the legendary bird. It’s a timeless story that has become part of the tapestry of Filipino culture and Ballet Manila is reintroducing the story with the world premiere of a breathtaking ballet rendition.

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I love to eat and one of my favorite things to nibble on are fries. It’s such a portable snack that you can eat it anywhere and while doing anything like working,  reading, or even walking. And when it comes to fries, one of the best (at least for me), is Jollibee’s.

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