GenSan News Online Mag

After weeks of speculating on who are gonna be the winners of the Search for the Big & Small Kids Photo Contest, GenSan News Online is now ready to release the results.

From out of the combination of votes tallied from the Facebook Fan Page of the Big & Small Company, from the comments counted from our blog post featuring the photos of the kids, and the vote coupons received at the Big & Small Company outlet at the KCC Mall of GenSan (for every P100 purchase), the management of the kids apparel store and the contest organizer was able to come up with the winners.

The entries were divided into two – the Toddler Category and the Infant Category.

Much weight and percentage was placed on the votes from the Facebook Fanpage of B&GC.  All the 800++ votes from this blog were also counted but they only comprised 20% of the total scores.  This is due to the fact that there were a lot of bogus voters (with fake names and non-existent email addresses) and spam votes which almost got this blog suspended by the server.  That is also the reason why Bariles had to stop the voting through this blog on July 27, 2010.

Anyhow, here are the charts of the votes for the two categories tallied from the three sources.

The winner of the INFANT CATEGORY which received 17.22% of the votes counted is Photo Entry #20 featuring the cute and chubby cookie-of-a-girl, Beatrice Benedikt M. Dy.

And the winner of the Toddler Category is the jolly and handsome Aethan Troy S. Lazaro, who was featured in photo #23.

The two winners will each receive a gift certificate worth P2,000, gift certificates from Worlds of Fun, 10% discount on any outlet of Big & Small Group and a Gift each on their birthdays.

And with that, in behalf of the management of the Big & Small Company in GenSan, we would like to say “Congratulations to the winners and of course, to their parents as well!”

Robinsons Place General Santos City continues to offer great deals to its shoppers and has started drumbeating the existence of its Robinsons Value Card for its customers.

The Robinsons Value Card is meant for their customers who prefer to shop for their groceries at the Robinsons Supermaket.  They just have to apply for membership of the supermarket’s VALUE PLUS and voila!  They will be given the card for free.

Each time a card-carrying member  makes a purchase, the amount is then encoded into the card to earn a corresponding number of points.

These points may then be redeemed for special gift items in the future.  At times, just by showing to the cashiers will earn one discounts on certain items being sold inside the supermarket.

For the month of July 2010, holders of Robinsons Value Card who purchase at least P2,000 worth of goods at the supermarket are entitled to a FREE Healthy You Orange Juice 1 Liter.

For inquiries, please call Robinsons Place GenSan at Telephone #s (083) 553-3188.

For our first blog entry for this week, we are publishing  the twenty six (26) entries to the “Search for the Kids of Big and Small Photo Contest“.

This contest by the Big & Small Group of baby and kids apparel’s which is for their patrons and clients was announced earlier by GenSan News Online Mag in a post which can be found by CLICKING HERE.

Now all you have to do is CHOOSE WHAT YOU THINK IS THE BEST PHOTOGRAPH AMONG THESE 26 ENTRIES.

Leave a message in the REPLY SECTION below stating your choice of the BEST PHOTO.

You can not vote more than once if you are planning to do so.  Therefoee so give it up because we would know if you are bogus or not.

Good luck on your search for the best “Big & Small Kid photo.”  You may campaign if you want to for others to vote the same way you did.

Voting period is only up to August 15th.  Announcement of winners will be on August 20th!  VOTE NOW!!  BUT YOU CAN VOTE ONLY ONCE.

Due to numerous requests, GenSan News Online Mag is publishing the Inaugural Speech of the new Mayor of General Santos City, the Honorable Darlene Antonino-Custodio here, in verbatim.

GenSan Mayor Darlene Antonino-Custodio is sworn into office while flanked by parents former Congresswoman Lualhati and former Mayor Adelbert Antonino with husband Benjie Custodio.

Mayor Darlene delivered it on the day she took oath together with Representative Pedro B. Acharon,  Vice Mayor Shirlyn Banas and the twelve city councilors on June 28, 2010 at the Oval Plaza Covered Court. Inaugural Address of Mayor Darlene Antonino-Custodio

In another effort to strengthen its consumer base and cement its hold on the retail/wholesale markets, KCC Malls is running two mega-promotions for their branches in South Cotabato and GenSan!

Effective June 18, 2010, the biggest homegrown malls in Soccsksargen are running the following…

First is their annual but much bigger KCC COMPUTER INSTANT PRIZES for KCC Mall of GenSan.  This one is limited to supermarket purchases of participating brands which are given corresponding points.

Then for KCC Mall of Koronadal is their MILYON MILYON NA CASH!  This time, every P100 purchase from both the supermarket and department store of participating products is eligible to join this promo.

Both mega-promotions of KCC Mall of GenSan and Koronadal run from June 18, 2010 to August 1, 2010.  

In a few weeks time, a whole new adventure awaits YOU in General Santos City!

GenSan, are you ready for the ICE CASTLE Experience?

The ICE CASTLE Experience.

To enchant you.

Soon.

Good news to students who would want to pamper themselves during these hot summer days with a facial!

Jinkee Pacquiao’s FLAWLESS is offering Student Discounts for a month from March 15, 2010 to April 15, 2010.

There is a 15% Discount on Advanced and Regular Facials and there is also a 10% Discount on selected in-house products.  Just show them any valid school I.D. to avail of these discounts.

Check out the product listing below which is part of their Summer Promotions….

Summer Promo

Flawless, a beauty and skin clinic, another one of Jinkee Pacquiao’s business ventures, can be found at the 2nd Floor of the KCC Mall of GenSan.  For more info, you may call them at 0922-5431511 or (083) 554-2422.  Their email address is flawless_gensan (at) yahoo (dot) com.

Ever since Bariles started this blog, he has been religiously putting out the pictures of the calendar posters released by the Local Government of General Santos City.

In 2008, this was the calendar of the GenSan City Hall, designed by BARILES, featuring the city officials beginning with Congresswoman Darlene Custodio, Mayor Jun Acharon and Vice Mayor Flor Congson.

"THE OFFICIAL 2008 GENSAN LGU CALENDAR WITH THE MAYOR JUN ACHARON, VICE MAYOR FLOR CONGSON, AND CONGRESSWOMAN DARLENE CUSTODIO, WITH THE 12 MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL

Early this year, he blogged about the 2009 Kalilangan Calendar, as shown below.  This time, it was designed by RONALD VELASQUEZ.

'THE 2009 CALENDAR RELEASED BY THE KALILANGAN FESTIVAL COUNCIL, FEATURING THE PRESENT AND PAST MAYORS OF THE CITY."

For this year, the faces of all the public officials have been replaced by a breathtaking aerial shot of the Plaza Heneral Santos by Leonard Pe.  He took this picture during the opening of Pasko SA GenSan 2009 last December 4, 2009,  Here it is…

Got an email earlier today from my good friend Pilar Afuang, Executive Director of the General Santos City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. informing me of the upcoming “4th Mindanao Franchise Expo” which GenSan City will be hosting on June 26-28, 2009.  It is an official event of the “Yaman GenSan”, or GenSan Business Month which occurs from the last week of June up to the 3rd week of July annually.

Now, here is their Press Release…

Franchising has evolved through the years to be the most successful way to expand a business or to go into a business by yourself. The fastest way for business owners to grow a business is to franchise it out instead of opening own branches. On the other hand, the safest way to invest money is to get a reputable franchise as franchises offers the advantages of being proven profitable, provide training, opening assistance and operations manual.

The General Santos City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc., Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), SMED Council, Inc., the City Government of General Santos, and RK Franchise Consultancy together with the Filipino International Franchise Association (FIFA), will hold the 4th Mindanao Franchise Expo on June 26-28, 2009 at the Gaisano Mall of GenSan Atrium, General Santos City.

The three-day 4th Mindanao Franchise Expo is one way of bringing franchise opportunities closer to the Mindanao regions where the franchise market is growing stronger. This event is definitely a showcase of successful franchisers from Manila, Cebu, Davao and General Santos City to prospective Franchisees and new and promising concepts in food, retail or services to consider franchising.

The expo timed during the GenSan Business Month (Yaman GenSan) is open to the public and is designed to allow aspiring owners to get a close-up look at a range of different franchises, meet with the company representatives, attend franchise seminars and become familiar with the growing world of franchising.

Interested exhibitors may get the APPLICATION FORM by CLICKING HERE.

This exhibition is managed by the CEO Events and Expos Organizers, Inc. (02) 995.0734 or email to info@ceoexpos.com and sponsored by FranchiseToday for the Yaman GenSan/GenSan Business Month.

This is a personal post, so Bariles is asking for your indulgence, dear readers and subscribers.

The picture you see below features Bariles together with the Day Shift staff of the Emergency Room of the General Santos City Doctor’s Hospital, taken on the afternoon of Sunday, March 8, 2009.

These people, especially attending physician Dr. Joy Flores (in white), nurses Anne Hazel Posadas (sitting, grand daughter of Bariles’ Godparents, Dr. Gervacio and Alice Posadas), John Pascua and Robert Romero attended to him when he showed up at their E.R., complaining of something.  They gave him all the assistance he needed, making him as comfortable as possible despite the pain he was feeling that time.

He also had no problem applying for a room and having his x-ray taken.  All the ladies he encountered were accommodating, friendly and cheerful, which was surprising considering the stressful field they were in.

At some point when it was clear that he does not need to be admitted (thank God) and was to be sent home, Nurse Anne, John and Robert even helped him with the process of reimbursing the money he paid for some medicines at the pharmacy which he did not need after all.

Bariles has always dreaded hospitals and emergency rooms for that matter but with the kind of service that the E.R. staff and other personnel of GSC Doctors Hospital showered him with, that feeling was erased from him, hopefully forever.

Thank you guys!

To my partner, my sister Maravel and her husband, Alan together with my nieces, who kept me company all throughout what could have been a painful and costly ordeal, no words can express how grateful I am even just with your presence. God is so good for giving you to me. 

In General Santos City, one wouldn’t miss the sight of a “lechon manok” cart or “grilled whole chicken” stall standing on almost every corner, especially on the roads leading to the city’s suburbs where most of the subdivisions are situated.

Sporting names as only the Pinoys can cook up such as Sanok’s, Banok’s, Kini Rogers, Kurdapoy’s, King Jan’s (!?), Tikboy, BJ’s, Jo’s Manokan, etc., they all offer the “generals” the most convenient and inexpensive “take-out” dinner for the family – roasted or grilled chicken.   Basically, all these offer the same thing, chicken cooked evenly in a rotisserie, rotating them over live coals.

If you are tired of chicken cooked this way, and are wary of the views of many experts who say that grilling over high temperatures over charcoal creates chemicals linked to cancer (like carcinogens), then ROASTERS ABLAZE is for you.

Roasters Ablaze which offers oven-roasted chicken in a rotisserie is owned by cousins Ronald and Arlan Velasquez.  Its first outlet can be found near the entrance of the Arnevel’s Restaurant, the first and only “eat-all-you-can” diner in the city.

The cousins have adopted the slogan “healthier, tastier even” because aside from cooking inside an oven where it is not exposed to any contaminants, they do not use MSG or vetsin in their Roaster Ablaze chickens.

Cousins Arlan and Ronald Velasquez at their 1st Roasters Ablaze stall

I had the chance to taste one yesterday and I must say that at only P130 per whole piece, you get your money’s worth.  Not only does its meat’s aroma smell good but but it also tastes good.

Bariles swears that he could actually savor the distinct taste of the chicken’s juicy meat, which he opines was tenderized overnight in a gracious mixture of the Velaszquez’s very own herbs and spices. And of course, it doesn’t have the burnt charcoal or “uling” smell in it.

And one last thing – here’s a tip for the budget-conscious general – Roasters Ablaze Chicken can be bought at half its size at only P70.

That is more than enough reason to go and visit them at Arnevel’s National Highway and find out why Bariles is drooling all over while writing this post. 

Roasters Ablaze Oven-Roasted Chicken can be found at the Arnevel’s Restaurant entrance, along the National Highway across the Philhealth Office. For orders, please call them at telephone # (083)304-8125.

Yes, you read it right!

Bariles just got married.

The place: KL Tower in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The bride: Ms. Marilen Zabala, my Notre Dame of Dadiangas highschool batchmate.

The date: September 31, 2008.

Here is the photo to show for it.

My Internet Yahoo Group ICON (International Circle of Online Noranians), with GANAP (The Grand Alliance for Nora Aunor Philippines) and the Federation of Nora Aunor Followers, Inc., is proudly announcing the celebration of GUY an PIP DAY (in honor of Superstar Nora Aunor & her former screen partner Tirso Cruz III) slated on Monday, February 25, 2008 as part of the opening of STARS CONVERGE: The Stellar Art and Career of Elwood Perez, a film retrospective of the University of the Philippines Film Institute.

This film retrospective will also give recognition to two movie production outfits who were instrumental in the evolution of the craft of director Elwood Perez, the Sampaguita-VP Pictures and Regal Films.

GUY AND PIP LOVETEAM DAY

During the Guy and Pip Day , two movies of the greatest Filipino loveteam of all time will be screened at the UP Film Institute in Diliman, Quezon City. First to be shown at 5:00pm is “Till We Meet Again“, their “comeback movie” which destroyed all cinema box-office records in 1985.

This is followed by “I Can’t Stop Loving You” at 7:30pm. This movie is one of the top-grossing movies during the 1985 Metro Manila Film Festival. Incidentally, an exhibit of Guy & Pip memorabilia will be conducted at the lobby of the UP Film Institute.

Another Guy & Pip movie showing on February 26, Tuesday at 7:30pm is the classic “Bilangin ang Bituin sa Langit” which was shown on 1989 and reaped a lot of trophies from award-giving bodies the following year.

On February 27, Wednesday, as a finale to the retrospective, the movie, “Ang Totoong Buhay ni Pacita M.“, another multi-award winner for Nora Aunor will be shown.

Tickets for all the screenings cost only P80.00. Student discounts will be available as part of ICON’s objective to inform and enlighten the new generation on the remarkable body of work of Nora Aunor.
GABI NG PARANGAL (AWARDS NIGHT)

The night of February 25 is also the “Awards Night” for the the 2nd ICON Awards which are given to showbiz personalities who have contributed a lot to the growth of the Pinoy movie industry. Some of the recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award for the year 2008 are Director Elwood Perez (film directing), Ricardo Lee (Screenwriting), Tirso Cruz, III (Film Acting), Nestor Torre (Film Journalism) and Ronald Constantino (Film Journalism).

Expected to grace this event are the children of the Superstar, Lotlot de Leon, Matet, Kiko and Kenneth and other close friends of the Noranians. The trophies are donated by Antonio Flores of ICON-Canada.

Note: As far as I can recall, I have been a Noranian since I was 8 years old when the Superstar first came into the consciousness of the Filipinos after winning the then #1 Singing Competition in the land, “Tawag ng Tanghalan”. My mom used to feed us with local showbiz magazines Kislap, Liwayway and the pre-Martial Law tabloids The Sun and similar print materials with her on the covers and since there was nothing else to read, that got me and my younger siblings hooked.

For his part, my Dad bought all the long-play vinyl records of the young Bicolano he could find. These made us fanatics of the diminutive singer-actress that I remember joining a local “Guy and Pip Forever” Fans Club with my brother, Orman which was organized by Ate Linda, who was a box-office ticket seller at the Capitol Theater along Pioneer Avenue, just beside the Arenas Building where we were renting a unit for my Dad’s tailoring shop.

Makeshift stalls at the Oval Plaza Roadside selling all sorts of fireworks and noisemakers enjoy brisk sales less than 7 hours before midnite today Jan 31st

. Best-sellers are the baby rockets, trumpillo, kwitis, roman candles and the torotot. Gone are the triangles, super lolos, sawa, judas belt and thelike due to the FIRECRACKERS BAN of the mayor.

It is our first Christmas as full-fledged orphans. Mommy died in April 26 of this year while Daddy passed away in 2004. It was but fitting that we spend Christmas Eve at their resting place at the Forest Lake San Carlos Memorial Park.  So for just this one time, I want to veer away from the usual pictorial “reports” I feed in this blog and instead, post this one picture I took that night… hoping that it relays to the reader the emotions of spending Christmas when some loved one is not there anymore to spend it with.
Merry Christmas Daddy and Mommy. Don’t worry about us anymore. The kids are fine. God is good to us. We just miss you so much. But other than that, we’re great! Always remember that we love you.

A carpenter rushing work on the coco lumber flooring of the tents to be used for the

flea market section of the main christmas festival area of the oval plaza.

Coconut Shell Charcoal or “ULING” from
sArAnGaNi island
unloaded at the old pier at the Lion’s Beach or what is now Queen Tuna Park.
The trip from the island to GenSan normally takes 5-6 hours.
90% of the needs of the islanders there and nearby Balut Island are sourced from the
Tuna Capital
and most of their agricultural produce are also being sold here.

Folk dancers from a local high school in GenSan smile for my camera in this shot taken after their performance during a competition at the Oval Plaza stage. Despite the searing heat, their troupe managed to perform beautifully to take home the Grand Prize.

This boy must have been sooo tired helping out his family prepare
flower arrangements for their clients on hAlloWeeN or Kalag-kalag.
Their flower stall at the Gen. Paulino Santos Park in front of the
Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage Parish Church is one of the many who made a killing with their overpriced MuMs, rOsEs, oRcHiDs, and dAiSiEs
harvested from the plantations at the balmy hills of
Tupi, South Cotabato.