Blog Posts by Maridol Rañoa-Bismark

How do you make a well-loved story and superhero as relevant to today’s generation as they were years back?

For “The Amazing Spider-Man” director  Marc Webb, it’s a matter of guts and heart.

Guts, because you have to put the hero back in a superhero that has become a franchise spawning two and a half billion dollars and which features a legendary, beloved comic book character that’s been around for 50 years.

Heart, because this latest installment tweaks the webslinger’s story. It shows Spider-Man’s alter ego, Peter Parker, struggling to investigate why his parents disappeared and coming to grips with his newfound, arachnid-style abilities.

That’s because there’s a Peter Parker in Webb, and he’s only too glad to bring it out in the open. Webb thinks he’s not alone.  There’s a Peter Parker in everyone. And that’s where he thinks the magic comes from.

“There is an incredibly innocent and tender quality to Peter Parker. He's not a billionaire, he's not an alien, he's a kid. He has trouble with

Justa G. Hernandez (Contributed photo)While everyone was celebrating Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 13, Cavite Second District Rep. Lani Mercado was mourning the death of her mother, Justa G. Hernandez , from cerebral hemorrhage. 
 
Lani says that her mother, who passed away at 87, taught her six children to “always love your family and put God above all things.” Thus, she was always present at all the important family gatherings.
 
Cremation is set on Wednesday, May 16 at the Heritage Memorial Park, Taguig after the 10 a.m Mass.

Instead letting new singers faze him, Jed Madela would rather take their presence as a challenge, a wake-up call for him to improve his craft.

He knows that “anytime soon, somebody better can come and take your place.”

Jed knows that even if he holds the distinction of being “the only guy na bumibirit,” somebody else can take his place in an instance. But  instead of losing sleep and seeing this as a threat, Jed prefers to look at it as a wake-up call, a reason to keep on being a better performer.

“I use it to my advantage instead of letting me feel nervous,” he relates.

Besides, what’s another potential obstacle when Jed has gone through a lot worst as a struggling performer?

“Wala kaming pahinga noon. Minsan, wala pang tao. Nag-perform na ako na one table lang ang nanonood, musical arranger ko pa ang nandon. Nadaanan ko na ang lahat ng pambabastos.May nagsabing huwag na kaming tumugtog,” he recalls.

Positive thinking

He felt bad and embarrassed. But the optimist knew there are always people