My enduring romance with Mongol

I learned how to write my name using Mongol pencil. It was the only pencil I knew and until today, I still use Mongol. A true-blue Mongol pencil user, I am one of the advocates of the campaign, Isang Milyong Mongol Para Sa Isang Milyong Pangarap.

The campaign which was launched last year seeks to promote literacy and encourage Filipino school children to express themselves through writing and art, with the pencil as an important tool for capturing life and imagining the future. The campaign is gaining ground towards attaining its goal of inspiring a million dreams of public school children all over the country.

Isang Milyong Mongol Para Sa Isang Milyong Pangarap has an impressive roster of advocacy ambassadors that include National Bookstore, Inc.’s dynamic matriarch, Socorro Ramos; TV personality, socialite and columnist, Tessa Prieto-Valdes; Diether Ocampo, actor, model and founder of K.I.D.S. Foundation, Inc.; JC Buendia, one of the country’s top fashion designers; professional model Joey Mead; renowned celebrity photographer Raymund Isaac; and eventologist and columnist Tim Yap.

My good friend Kris Aquino will endorse the Limited Edition of iamninoyiamcory Mongol Pencils. The commemorative Mongol Pencil is a project of Star Paper Corp. in cooperation with the Benigno S. Aquino Jr. The Limited Edition Mongol Pencils honor the legacy of Ninoy Aquino and beloved democracy icon, former president Cory Aquino.

The Mongol brand for many generations of Filipinos has been synonymous with the pencil and has given birth to many great ideas, creations and dreams. Originally developed by the Eberhard Faber Company in the early 1800s, Mongol Pencil has retained its essence and quality through the years as one of the world’s most recognizable brands under the Newell Rubbermaid family of products.

Star Paper Corp., Mongol Pencil’s exclusive Philippine distributor for its part has been a key supplier for the printing industry by providing high-quality paper products since 1974, and has grown to be an industry leader with an extensive distribution network offering a diverse selection of product lines that include some of the world’s most respected brands of school and office supplies, art supplies and writing instruments.

D Survivors

On April 28, be one of the first to watch D Survivors, the much-awaited take on the classic tales Swiss Family Robinson, Lord of the Flies, Cast Away and TV series Survivors and Lost.

Stage-movie-TV-comedy bar funny men and women — K Brosas, Divine Tetay (a.k.a. Kenneth Ocampo), Marife Necesito and veteran Evelyn Vargas-Kanabel will provide the hearty laughter, while heartthrobs Akihiro Sato, Daniel Matsunaga, Fabio Ide, Rocky Salumbides, Lemuel Pelayo, Don Mendoza and Mercator models/cuties Aaron Tuiza and Kerbie Zamora will keep the young, giggly crowd swooning for the entire screening.

K Brosas plays the obsessive-compulsive flight stewardess who hasn’t gotten over her love for jologs ex-boyfriend (Rocky Salumbides) despite his smelly job in the septic tanks and sewerage. Divine Tetay is predicted to become a household by-word after D’Survivors because of his infectious comedic timing and talent.

Marife Necesito who has honed her thespic talent on legit stage and has the singular honor of co-starring with international iconic indie actor Gael Bernal in Mammoth, goes-gaga as a personal aide to a clueless fashion stylist.

Veteran film comedienne-turned-foreign filmfest programmer, Evelyn Vargas-Kanabel stages a comeback as a sex-starved clairvoyant/wardrobe mistress who pursues the pack of survivor hunks.

The younger set of girls and gays is vocal in saying that the fresh faces of Daniel, Akihiro, Fabio, Rocky, Lemuel, Don, Aaron and Kerbie are more than their ticket’s worth.

Be among the early birds to watch Astral Productions initial presentation of D Survivors at selected cinemas in Metro-Manila and key cities in the country.