• Must Watch: Lakbay2Love

    Must Watch: Lakbay2Love

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    Lakbay2Love movie poster: Dennis Trillo, Solenn Heussaff and Kit Thompson
    Biker-actors Dennis Trillo, Solenn Heussaff and Kit Thompson star in environmental advocacy film Lakbay2Love.

    Erasto Films‘ Lakbay2Love is a romantic, coming-of-age, environmental advocacy film by director-producer Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil (Boses) starring actors and real-life bikers Dennis Trillo, Solenn Heusaff (two of my fitspirations!) and Kit Thompson.

    Dennis Trillo, reliable as ever, fits the bill as forest ranger and biker Jay-R. He bikes during his free time based on his social media (I promise I’m not a stalker!) and it shows. He seems to have done all the biking stunts on his own, even climbing up to a high mountain peak. It was a beautiful visual, and it felt like I was transported to the mountains, but I was holding onto my seat for dear life.

    Solenn Heussaff plays half-Filipino half-French photo journalist (or was she a videographer? Not really sure) Lianne. Reeling from her boyfriend Macky, played by Kit Thompson, recently leaving her, Lianne accepts an environment-focused project at Jay-R’s request. She, along with her work companion and friend Monday, played by Patricia Ismael, embarks on this project and immerses herself in the world of biking. There’s a funny bit where Lianne says that growing up as a half-French people asked her weird questions including “what does voulez-vous coucher avec moi really mean?” LOL! IMO, this is Solenn’s best acting piece so far.

    The film features actual biking events and the people involved in these kinds of projects. We get to visit a vintage bike shop, witness a bike race, and see padyakeros on and off the tracks. We even get to travel to different bike trails in and around the metro. The Benguet trail looks so gorgeous and beautifully captured on film. Aside from the beauty, we also briefly see the ugly side of things, poignantly depicted by the felled logs caused by illegal logging. Having seen that Lianne realizes that all of her problems seemed so petty. It also made me realize that the environment is still not a primary concern in our country, and that needs to change. To those running for office this coming elections, please focus on these issues. Include the environment in your platform and you have secured my vote.

    We can’t just stop at watching this beautiful environmental film. “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you have to keep moving.” That also applies to our fight for the environment. Let’s start supporting more environmental advocacy projects. Let’s pick up a bike and ride around the metro to decrease pollution. Let’s spread the message of this film and make this a personal journey for all of us—a journey to love for Mother Nature. 🙂

    If you’re looking for a light feel-good movie that packs a message, I recommend watching Lakbay2Love. Support Philippine indie films. Watch the trailer below:

    When the world is crumbling around you, love may just find you a new trail.
    Starring: Solenn Heussaff, Dennis Trillo, Kit Thompson
    Directed by: Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil
    Screenplay by: Layeta Bucoy & Elle Marfil
    Produced by: Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil 

    Have you watched Lakbay2Love? What did you think of the film? Are you into biking? Do you suddenly want to buy a bike, learn it, and ride all around the country? Sound off in the comments below.

  • The Miss Universe Philippines Candidates Ranked

    The Miss Universe Philippines Candidates Ranked

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    Miss Universe mania is not yet over. The whole nation is still on a high with our latest and third Miss Universe from the Philippines, the #ConfidentlyBeautiful with a heart, Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach. It took us 42 Miss Universe Philippines candidates before we found one that would bring the Miss Universe crown home. Amiciness took a look back at the 10 most recent Philippine representatives to Miss Universe, starting with our 2006 rep. Who reigned supreme and climbed to the top? (Oops sorry! Wrong franchise. 😉 ) Here are the 10 most recent Miss Universe Philippines candidates ranked. Starting with…

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  • Struggles of Having an Office Crush (Part 1)

    Struggles of Having an Office Crush (Part 1)

    “Office Crush”

    Definition: Someone who you find very attractive and extremely special and you have a burning desire to be with at work.
    Used in sentence: Ugh! Can’t concentrate at work when my office crush is around.

    We all have one, at least if you’re from the working class. Sometimes, having an office crush is good. You are inspired to work. You look forward to Mondays and every day of the week (on top of the very few reasons). IKR. On the other hand, like all imaginary relationships, it can become a burden.

    Here are some of the stages struggles of having an office crush. Cheers to incredibly over-taxed fellow employees! It will be better. XX 

    Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. HAHA!

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  • Top 5 Lessons from the Last 5 Years

    Top 5 Lessons from the Last 5 Years

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    Where do you see yourself in five years? This is probably one of the most common and the hardest job interview questions I have encountered ever. Even highly trained Miss Universe candidates will have a hard time answering this. How could I as a young graduate know how I intend to live my life? I earned a degree NOT an Uber ride to my future! For me, you can’t absolutely know that you’re meant for something (or someone for hopeless romantics) until you make that small step forward, and take the risk and jump!

    Earlier this year, I celebrated my fifth year in the “real world.” I have been employed in the same company for FIVE years. Wow! Time flies. The journey has been a hell of a ride. I honestly do not wish to live it all over again. I’m grateful though for having dealt with the highs and the lows of the first chapter of my working life.

    How did I answer the question five years ago?

    In five years, I see myself climbing up the corporate ladder, being an expert in what I do.

    Vague, right? Did I achieve my “vision”? Bluntly, no, I have not been promoted and no, I’m still learning. And you know what, it’s okay. I’ll tell you why.

    JUSKO. Wag naman sana. (The Fault in Our Stars Via Pinterest)
    JUSKO. Wag naman sana. (The Fault in Our Stars Via Pinterest)

    Here are my top five lessons from the last five years of working.

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  • 2015 Year in Review

    2015 Year in Review

    2015 was Amiciness’ debut year after expanding out from Tumblr. Honestly, I didn’t expect the blog to grow as fast as it did. After 525,600 minutes, the blog gained a couple of sponsors, 170 likes in Facebook, over 80,000 page views and almost 40,000 unique visitors. This blog is my “baby” project. Since blogs became a thing, I have always wanted to have my own and I have always been a frustrated writer. For some reason, I forgot to fulfil this dream. Maybe I felt that I was not ready or I could not sustain it because of school and eventually my day job. Finally, I decided to do it and commit. You won’t know if you’re ready for something unless you’d tried. This is Amiciness’ 2015 Year in Review.

    2015 Year in Review
    Amiciness is here to stay!

    2015 Year in Review

    To celebrate 2015, here’s a recap of the posts that went “viral” (in my own definition) and those that were memorable to me as a blogger and pop culture fanatic.

    Let’s go down memory lane!

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