PH Ice Athletes Promise GOLD in Upcoming SEA Games

Spent the afternoon over at the Ice Skating Rink at the SM Megamall Fashion Hall for the promising partnership of SM Lifestyle and Entertainment Inc. and our athletes who are preparing to represent the country in the Southeast Asian Games. During the opening remarks, their executives said "We are delighted and honored to join Ice games in the SEA Games and we are gearing to winning Gold Medals for the country."

During the press conference, Kathryn Magno (for Short Track Speed Skating), Jules Alpe (for Figure Skating), LR Lancero, Julius Santiago, Miguel Relampagos, BJ Imperial, Jorell Crisostomo and Francis Gautier for Hockey wanted to rally for the Philippines. They fervently hope that it won't be just the organizations supporting them, but the whole country. 

Kathryn says "I am the first speed skater and I want to promote the sport even after the games. I hope a lot of people get to see the potential of Filipinos in this sport and hopefully win more medals for the country soon. I started as a figure skater but did it in 2008, to be motivated no matter what age you are is adamant to success. This is a nice place to train, we are able to do this with SM SKATING to perform in well in Southeast Asia." 

Francois adds "We have been preparing and practicing this for a long time. We are also planning to have a short bonding session a few weeks before the games. Some have been playing for a long time but we have new ones so we need to bond so we won't be awkward on ice. There are private companies like SM LEI and some government agencies that help. Our toughest opponent would probably be Division 1 Gold Medalists Thailand but that doesn't mean we can't play toe to toe with them or with any team in the world. We had the liberty of choosing athletes based on the role they play on ice. We practice countless hours and prepare to play for a longer time, we do this three times a week and practice even more with conditioning on our off days. You'll see us perform more in the SEA Games and hopefully win the Gold for the pride of our country. We are not just representing ourselves as individuals here, especially in the SEA Games."

Here's to hoping they bring more Gold medals for the country and hopefully their best performance against our fellow Southeast Asian countries. 

KUMAGCOW
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Big Mouth, Big Heart, Big Night with Martin Nievera

Now I know you and I love Matin Nievera, but this news would make you love him even more. You see, he's been helping a lot of artists start their careers and support them in their concerts by appearing for free. You can ask the greats, and he'll probably be in their Thank You list because he's always been like that. In this concert though, he takes it even further. Outbox Media Powerhouse Corporation and Ka Tunying's Cafe will be producing this concert entitled BIG MOUTH, BIG HEART, BIG NIGHT for the benefit of our brothers and sisters from the Dumagat Tribe from Sitio Apia Barangay Calawis in Antipolo. For those who don't know, these tribes used to live in coastal areas but with the advent of modern living, had been pushed back to live in the mountains of Rizal, Aurora and Quezon. These people live off the land and most of them live below the poverty line. Their resource and means only come from the forest and to say the least, they live very hard lives. This is one of the instances that they knew they had to help. This is why they put up an annual benefit concert. Anthony Tunying Taverna, Ms. Rossel Taberna and Martin Nievera will be entertaining you for a good cause so if you have the time to watch the show, please do! 

Ms. Rossel says "We will try to be there and they mostly need medical assistance. We will go there personally. We will have programs, games for the kids and adults too. It's hard to get there but we will try to do a small activity in the remote school. It's also our first time to hear about them, imagine they are just 2 hours from here, so hopefully we can help them by climbing to their community this August. We want people to also be aware about this cause and we're thankful for Martin who wanted to do this with us."

Ka Tunying said "The truth is Outbox Media has been already there even before Ka Tunying's Cafe came in the picture. They have been doing this for 11 years. We did a similar show in the past but I'm glad that even if he's very busy, he still had us have him for the show."

Martin Nievera says "This is my second time to work with them. The past was with Pops and my kids, and I knew we had to help the Dumagats. Somehow I have big dreams, big intentions for the pleasure of where the money is going. It's more of what I think singers should start doing. I am glad to be one of their performers that evening. They don't have to do this but they are giving back. This is substance, I celebrated my 35th year in the industry and this is big for me -and is an achievement. My aim is to be priceless. It's their project and I am helping whatever way we can."

"When I choose songs for events like these it is mostly based on their wishlist, and we dedicate them to the people who will go there. It will be at the Metro Tent Conference Center. It won't be charity if you post about it on social media but if it's to get more fans and people to participate in this program, then we'll do it. I personally have a lot of low moments, there's a new purpose for me now. Hopefully this would be a beginning of something new too. Hopefully to be used for more other than business. There are a lot of singers who can do this, maybe not have the title, maybe better than me, you have to be grounded and humble though because their fame is as fast as the internet. I wanna do more endorsements and shows that last a long time. On September 4, I'll have a show in Hawaii at Blue Room. It would be hard to see that not filled. This concert, I don't have to do this but to set an example and hopefully to follow me with whatever fame I have left, just me doing this is an honor. These two (Ka Tunying and Rossel) don't have to do this either but they do and these are the things we have to emulate because it is selfless, it's a way to help and that's a great thing."

I was surprised Mr. Nievera is very well dressed, even if he told us he didn't have a stylist. He just buys em off the shelf and watches what people would wear. He must have really invested in clothing in the past. I envy him.

For tickets you may contact 7034239 and this concert will happen at the Metro Tent Convention Center. His guests includes Kakai Bautista the dental diva and super power belter KZ Tandingan. Make sure you watch as the Php 5,500 price of the tickets will include a plated dinner and this fantastic show.

KUMAGCOW

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Philippine Franchise Association Honors Toby's Sports

You and I have been able to visit a Toby's Sports store in our lifetime to buy the best supplies, equipment, and just about everything that you would need for sports. It's where I bought weights, shirts, basketball, volleyball, my tennis rackets, ones for badminton, and just about almost every hobby we've done these past few years. You got your stuff in excellent quality, you got it from the people who work tirelessly to get you the best the market could actually afford. Recently,the Franchise Excellence Awards has bestowed a rightful one for them, Toby's Sports is now a proud owner of the Outstanding Filipino Franchise Retail Award for the Large Store Category.

This is the award given to them by the Philippine Franchise Association at the SMX Convention Center last July 19. I deem they rightfully deserve this award for over the top customer experience as I've always had when inside their store. The award is only given to companies that have shown exceptional growth performance, brand value, and does ethical business practices. This definitely brings the value of the franchise business even further as their standards will eventually become higher to achieve these goals. The Department of Trade and Industry is also a partner in this awards show so you are also getting the nod of the government if you win an award of this magnitude.

Mr. Toby Claudio, the President of Quorum International Incorporated says "We have had several successful franchisees in the business since 1988 and the number continues to grow in malls and shops in different parts of the country. We hope to continue to have these qualities that have had us win this award, and pursue excellence as we continue to be the largest sports retailer in the country."

Congratulations to the men and women behind Toby's Sports for winning this award, I wouldn't have had those perfect shoes for workout without one of your people helping me in your store. I'm glad they've gone beyond just selling and asked me what I needed those shoes for and found the perfect one.

KUMAGCOW
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Time for Fun at Timezone AyaLa Malls Vertis North

My kind of gaming spans years of spending it in arcades. My highschool accomplishments include a little byline of championing two of my favorite games Samurai Showdown and Darkstalkers. Although most kids nowadays prefer battling it out on a console, my idea of a battle is totally different and involves fighting in arenas with total strangers thay come from different parts of the city and make them try to beat me. Most often than not, they go home losers but the thrill of actually fighting on screen is an experience I got addicted to, because the whole experience is different. It was something I always wanted to feel, the nervousness of actually punching and knocking out opponents in a game is surreal and can't be duplicated. So this is why up until this day, I still go to arcades like Timezone. Because in the age of console gaming, we still want to experience being in a room full of machines and getting into fights across the screen that couldn't be replicated at home. So when they opened a new branch in Ayala Malls Vertis North, all I could say is "I'm there!".

Timezone has been my go to place to play arcade games nowadays and there are several machines in this place that are very new but spit out tickets so you can get the equivalent points exchanged with some fun toys and knick knacks they have on the play area. Let me show you around.

This one is Pac Man Battle Royale. You can drop coins (or swipe your Powercard in this case) and play with 3 other opponents to finish all the stages and try not to get eaten by the ghosts running around pac land.

Timezone is for family entertainment so they built three whole lanes of play bowling so your kids and not so kids at heart would be able to play games bu swiping a few hundred pesos per line. It's pretty cool they were able to fit this in the game area and according to the executives I interviewed later that day, they have something in the pipeline that is not even half of what they put in on this new branch. There will be an even BIGGER one? Are you kidding me? And that's what we should also find out very soon. 

I played on this machine and got several hundred tickeys in one go. I thought I was already good at it but my blogger friend Myke Soon (of mykesoon.net) got even more rolls of tickets than me, no joke!

They have been also holding several events including this one for Tekken 7 which they got the machine in advanced (ahead of any Philippine based entertainment centers) then got them be played by legit arcade enthusiasts like me. Although I'm not quite an expert in Tekken I can put up a fight LOL. 

For race car fans, you don't wanna miss playing on this one that takes photos of your face and includes them in game! Now you can bump the off the course, get ahead of the pack and recognize them while you're running around the track. Isn't that nice? :) 

If you wanna test your eye hand coordination, try this machine for gift certificates, tons of toys, and rolls upon rolls of tickets. This is difficult haha.

For those who want to try their luck, you should always choose your briefcases wisely. The old Deal or No Deal game is a fun way to play with your friends and family. But be sure to back out if you're already being offered a high amount of tickets by the banker. You don't wanna lose all those precious points you know.

They have more interactive games with realy water spitting out of the tubes and hitting monsters on the machines. It would be pretty great for kids.

I know a lot of my friends spent a lot of hours in these cubicles. It's got Laraoke machines in them and each song is cheap, so swipe away and get involved with your inner diva and belt those song numbers like nobody is watching. 

For movie buffs, you can play Transformers. Beat them Decepticons and save the world from powerful evil beings who want them for their own.

Oh and if you can still see this tower at Timezone, take a selfie with it and enter their contest because you'll get a chance to win prizes like MORE load for your Powercards which means more Time for Fun.

I played the Bowling game and got pretty descent scores. It's like Duckpin with digital scoring systems and even kids could play this game because the balls are so light.

For guys who want to play, be in comfy clothes. You may shop next door haha. Again, it was a treat for gamers like me to go back and enjoy Timezone. I went back to this place for 3 straight days because I had so much fun, not to mention the tons of scores and stuffed toys I had, I got to take them all home for my Mom and sister too. :)

They have machines that really clamp on toys, none of those cheating ones you often see in the other arcades. I got to take home tons of dogs and pigs in the process. 

The dance machines were phenomenal. There were tons of dancers waiting for their turn on this 2017 edition of this game and they did it with ease. I couldn't even see the arrows anymore and they were professionals I think. Some of them were probably also talents of Timezon/ might have worked with them as their shirts had all their logos on it. I was at awe!

Congratulations to the men and women who worked hard to put this TIMEZONE Ayala Malls Vertis North branch up at the third floor. I'll be playing here during my free time and will come back to redeem my toys as soon as I get the needed points for that huge stuffed toy I want from your shelves. I promise you I'll get it.

Here's the short interview we had with them, please enjoy and stay tuned for more fun family entertainment centers they are planning to put up in the future! They promised me it's alreade in the pipeline. I can't wait to see that all come true! Please make sure my mid rethro games are included please! Thanks TIMEZONE!