Let's Do The News! (February 5, 2018)

- The Department of Health has confirmed that two of the 14 school children administered with the anti-dengue vaccine Dengvaxia are died due to "vaccine failure". based on the findings of experts from the University of the Philippines - Philippine General Hospital.

- Senator Cynthia Villar said the Senate Committee on Agriculture would investigate the reported NFA rice shortage as fear of price hike looms. Earlier in the day, consumers had been complaining about the lack of NFA rice supply in markets in the National Capital Region such as in Malabon, Pasay, Marikina, Las Piñas as well as in Quezon province, Cabanatuan City in Nueva Ecija and in Davao City.

- Amtrak blamed a freight rail operator for causing a Sunday crash that killed two people and hurt over 100 when one of its passenger trains was diverted onto a side track and slammed into a parked, unmanned freight train in South Carolina.

- Ecuadoreans vote in a referendum on whether to prevent unlimited presidential re-election, with polls indicating the motion will likely pass and block former leftist President Rafael Correa from returning to power. President Lenin Moreno proposed the referendum to change the constitution in what was widely seen as a bid to halt Correa, his former mentor, from running for office again amid a bitter political dispute.

- Indianapolis Colts linebacker Edwin Jackson died in a car accident, according to Indiana State Police.

- The fourth-generation Mercedes-Benz A-Class was unveiled ahead of its Geneva debut next month, featuring new design, new interior, new engine choices, and MBUX interface.

2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class

- BMW will remove the F80 M3 from their lineup due to emission regulations.

- The Milky Holmes has announced that their final live event will be next year.

- In case you missed last weekend's AIKATSU☆STARS MUSIC OF DREAM!!! live concert in Fukuoka, it was announced that the groups behind the songs from the Aikatsu franchise, the STAR☆ANIS and the AIKATSU☆STARS, will be retiring from the franchise after their final concert happening at the end of this month. In return, the cast of the brand new Aikatsu Friends anime series have been revealed with Akane Matsunaga in her debut role as series' main character Aine Yuki, Ibuki Kido as Mio Minato, Karen Miyama as Maika Chouno, and Yui Ninomiya, also in her debut role, as Ema Hinata. Franchise familiars Azusa Tadokoro, Ayaka Ohashi, and Sumire Morohoshi return to play the roles of Karen Kamishiro, Mirai Asuka, and Coco. For the first time in Aikatsu history, the voice actresses will do the vocals from the series.

TTFN!!!

Driving Music Vol. 86

So, the Eagles won the Super Bowl for the first time in history against the Patriots but the real stars of the Super Bowl are the commercials themselves. Sure, we get annoyed by the Tide ad most of the time but we were greeted by lots of Game Day ads such as celebrities taking over Amazon Alexa, the Bud Knight, there are different kinds of ads we saw during the Game Day but nothing is more so than the car ads as seen on the Super Bowl. Sadly, there are a few...

Even though there are few car adverts in the middle of the Game Day, I will still jot them down in today's Driving Music playlist so you can bring the Game Day memories on your weekday commute before or after work.

- I Want To Know What Love Is by Foreigner - as heard from the Toyota 2018 Big Game Ad: One Team

- Dream On by Aerosmith - as heard from the 2018 Kia Stinger Steven Tyler Big Game Ad

- Stronger Than I've Ever Been (Piano Edit) by Kaleena Zanders - as heard from the Toyota Good Odds

- Theme From Jurassic Park - as heard from Official Jeep Super Bowl Commercial Jeep Jurassic

Driving Music from Leopaul's Blog is the segment where solves every car enthusiasts' questions about the title of the song of car commercials...with the risk of MATCHED THIRD PARTY CONTENT on their status. It's your jam. Drive to the Music You Love.

Eagles net first Super Bowl title after defeating Patriots

Minneapolis' U.S. Bank Stadium is jam-packed with spectators witnessing the epic match between long-time Super Bowl giant, the New England Patriots and the underdogs they called the Philadelphia Eagles in the 52nd Super Bowl match.

In this epic and grueling finale to this NFL season, the first quarter puts the Eagles off to a slow start at the score of 9-3. In the second quarter, the gap have widened to a ten-point deficit, ending the first half at the score of 22 to 12. By the time the second half came, the Philadelphia Eagles still charging themselves against the Patriots at the score of 29 to 26. On the final quarter, meanwhile, despite the Patriots' shocking comeback, it wasn't enough to put the Eagles off and at the score of 41 to 33, the Eagles snagged their first Super Bowl title in franchise history.

As the Eagles won the match, quarterback Nick Foles is named MVP because of his four-time touchdown that propelled his team to victory.

Hey, did you see the Halftime Show with Justin Timberlake performed onstage? Apart from performing some of his hit songs, he even paid tribute to the legendary performer, the late Prince, as well.

Anyway, congratulations to the Eagles for their historic win at the Super Bowl LII!

NatWest 6 Nations 2018: ROUND 1

This year's 6 Nations Rugby returns with a new title partner and even with the new name, NatWest 6 Nations, the action from Europe's best rugby teams still burns hotter as fans are expecting for.

The WRU of Wales are off to a good start of the match by crushing Scotland at an impressive score of 34-7, in favor of the Welsh. Leigh Halfpenny score scored two tries for a 24-point lead, Gareth Davies done an impressive intercept, Steff Evans secured the bonus, and Aaron Shingler is the Man of the Match. The Welsh really are starting the charge for the title in this season.

After the Welsh's first strike, the IRFU defeated FFR at the score of 13-15 while the England Rugby beats the FIR Italia at the score of 15-46.

Highlights:

The next games will be on the 10th, starting with Ireland vs. Italy, England vs. Wales, and on the next day, Scotland vs. France.

How to dress as Sakura Kinomoto

A lifetime ago, at the corner of our childhood, we watched the original Cardcaptor Sakura and we fell in love in this beautiful magical girl masterpiece by CLAMP about a young girl who accidentally released a mysterious set of Clow Cards everywhere and was destined to seal the cards to avert an impending cataclysm. Yes, we all love that show from the late 90's, even myself, which led me to my wretched childhood because of my show (thank you, my old friends from school for that).

Finally, the arrival of the brand new Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card series signals the triumphant return of our favorite CLAMP masterpiece. In this new show, Sakura is entering middle school with her old friends, even her bestie Tomoyo, and with the return of Syaoran, the Hong Kong chap who was once Sakura's foe in the original series' Clow Card arc and later became (ahem) close to each other in the Sakura Card arc of the series, it should have been the best day of her life. However, a mysterious new threat emerges from her dreams and if that wasn't enough, the cards went blank. In the face of these new threats, the legendary Cardcaptor Sakura steps out from her retirement and she sets off for a brand new adventure uncovering the truth while doing what she does best; sealing cards to stop a major disaster and save the day!

I hope you folks enjoyed watching the new series and in honor of this new show that kicked off the year 2018 with a RELEASE, it's time to tell you how to dress as Sakura as seen in the brand new series!

Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card

First, the hair: Although this is new, her hair is almost as similar from her hairstyle from the original series 20 years ago. Here's one for you; the CLAMP ladies took her hairstyle from that other Sakura from their work, Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, but toned it down a little so the fans can see a much matured look. Yes, her hair is light brown and short but you need to match the details if you want to recreate her hairstyle. Did you know that ACOS can sell you a wig modeled after her for around 9,000 yen (taxes and fees included)? If you got that budget, you can get that wig right away but if not, do a little DIY to recreate her hairstyle.

The outfit: Since she's in middle school, her school uniform is different than the one from the original series but still has that black and white motif to it like the original. The folks from ACOS can sell you an inch replica of the Tomoeda Middle School girls' uniform for 13,000 Yen (plus tax and delivery) but since Sakura's best friend is good at the wardrobe department, she wears different kinds of outfits and it will be all up to you to pick whichever outfit you like for your Sakura Kinomoto cosplay. Either the outfit she wore in the opening sequence, the one when she caught the Siege Card, the other when she caught the Aqua Card, heck, there are different outfits to choose from so don't be shy.

Props: In the Clear Card TV series, Sakura now wields the power of the Dream Wand to seal the newest threats called the Clear Cards and then use them in case of an emergency. Takara Tomy will sell you replicas of Sakura's new Dream Wand or even the Dream Key necklace this April with the Dream Wand toy starting at 18,000 Yen (plus tax and delivery) and the Dream Key necklace starting at 3,500 Yen (plus tax and delivery). Sadly, it will be too late to don one of these items if you're in the rush of donning that new Sakura cosplay in case of Spring anime and comic book conventions (better be creative, ladies. A little DIY won't hurt) but in case of Summer or Fall conventions, these items will put a shine to your Sakura cosplay. The Dream Key necklace looks beautiful with your Sakura cosplay when you tuck it out like what Sakura does but holding the Dream Wand replica, that's the real cherry of the cake.

...and there you have it, ladies. Tips on how to dress as Sakura Kinomoto as seen in the brand new Clear Card series. It's incredibly beautiful, incredibly cute, and sadly, a drastic bust in the wallet because I did some calculation, of course. 

Overall, it will set you around 28,000 Yen (around $255 or Php 13,100) for the Sakura wig, the uniform, and the Dream Key necklace or 43,400 Yen (around $400 or Php 20,300) for the wig, the uniform, and the Dream Wand replica. Add a little shipping fee to it and that bumps to around 30,000 to 45,000 Yen (or more). Ouch, or in Sakura's words, HOEEEEEEEEE!!!!! Still, for big-spending cosplayers who think "cosplay time is money", it's money well spent on these items to recreate the new look of everyone's favorite magical girl who's always have a card for every dangerous situation she come across.

Good luck recreating the new Sakura cosplay!

FIA Formula E S4: Santiago

The ABB FIA Fomrula E Championship heads to Santiago, Chile in the brand new Parque Forestal, Ciudad De Santiago, where once hosted a Grand Prix in the 1950's, the whole crowd will witness electric racing for the first time and it became one of the most enjoyable races in Formula E history.

Before and during the race, it has been one heck of a crash fest and even in the early stages of the race, it's collisions ahoy out there, meaning drivers are having a hard time coping up with this new layout of the Santiago ePrix race. Still, there has been some big highlights on this race such as Panasonic Jaguar's Mitch Evans who emerged from last to 7th, even with a penalty, and Andre Lotterer from TECHEETAH who's done an amazing turnaround to finish 2nd place.

Yes, the TECHEETAH team, teammates crashing, title wide open, and their first 1-2 finish in Formula E history. Jean Eric Vergne is named the winner of the Santiago ePrix while Sebastien Buemi from Renault e.dams tasted a podium finish with a 3rd place.

HIGHLIGHTS:



The next race of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship is on Mexico this March 4th.

Driving Music Vol. 85

How's the weekend drive been progressing? Well, most of you stuck at traffic at the dead of the night while others made it to their points of interest in the metro like for instance, the Dampa or the City of Dreams. Anyway, as your weekend drive continues, enjoy some more ten songs that will fit to your "Driving Music" playlist.

1) With A Little Help From My Friends by Joe Cocker- from the VW USA People First Warranty commercial

2) Welcome to your Life by Grouplove - from the VW USA "That Feeling" commercial

3) Go by The Chemical Brothers  - from the GMC Terrain commercial

4) Les Bicyclettes De Belsize by Englebert Humperdinck - From the Toyota Taiwan '93 Camry commercial

5) Here Comes The King by X-Ray Dog - From the Mitsubishi Motors Taiwan Lancer Fortis commercial

6) Straight From Your Heart by Sandra Schwarzhaupt - from the Yulon Nissan Cefiro V6 commercial

7) Uptown Girl by Billy Joel - from the Suzuki Spacia commercial

8) Kimitoiunano Tsubasa by Kobukuro - from the Subaru Levorg commercial

9) Omajinai 1・2・3 by ユハラユキ - from a Subaru Impreza 1.5i Special commercial

10) Ecstasy by Strawberry Switchblade - from a Subaru Rex commercial

Driving Music from Leopaul's Blog is the segment where solves every car enthusiasts' questions about the title of the song of car commercials...with the risk of MATCHED THIRD PARTY CONTENT on their status. It's your jam. Drive to the Music You Love.