Online Articles Directory

I was looking for a good article on customer service and I found one that I needed at Web Articles. They have this category on Business where I found the sub-category "Customer Service." I looked up the article, Focusing on the Customer, because I need some ideas for a talk that I have to deliver.

Then I learned that the site is a free online directory and that I can submit articles that I like in order to be listed there. While navigating through the site, I found another good article that I like, and that is about gardening during the month of November.

This is really a useful site to check regarding online articles.

Temporary Jobs for Flood Victims

The government will be allowing some flood victims to work for a month in order to earn wages and have some money to rebuild their lives.

Is this worth it? With this project, a lot of money will be spent and I am not sure if these jobs are really positions with work to do or just positions created in order for officials to request for more money?

The underlying problem should have been addressed years ago or at least prevented, and that is the solving the problems of garbage, over population and the rehabilitation of forests. As such, it has always been the problem of non-government organizations, and can I say, never the government? I know, that seems too tough a comment, but hey, although the governments, they are mostly self-serving, or at least for those in power.

My only fear is that even in the midst of the crises that we are experiencing, officials will still have the nerve to squander relief funds that are supposed to be for the victims. May God have mercy upon the Philippines and save us from power-hungry officials whose insatiability is abyssmal.

Blog Advertising Store

According to Wikipedia.com, blogs are mostly maintained by individuals or even companies. But I think that people often associate blogging as something very personal.

Although web logging or blogging or maintaining an online journal is mostly personal events and entries, it cannot be denied that it has gone a different route. It has not remained as an avenue where one vents his or her desires, failures, disappointments, joys, sorrows, commentaries and what have yous about the world. Rather, it has become an avenue where people can also earn extra money.

Getting paid to blog has been done for several years now, with the most popular blogs earning the biggest and the greenest bucks. Many people I have known have quit their jobs in order to become full time professional bloggers.

Among the sites that offer compensation for bloggers is BlogAdvertisingStore.com. It provides many good opportunities to earn just by writing reviews or editorials about certain websites, products, or companies. The higher the blog's rating or ranking, the better chances that it will land high paying opportunities.

Aside from paid blogging opportunities, BlogAdvertisingStore.com provides information and instructions on how to maximize earning from one's blogs. They have a blog that has well-written and helpful articles for bloggers. One very helpful article that I found there is entitled "The Probloggers Guide to Effective Advertisement – effective advertising rates". It gave me a clear view of what I should expect when I do some things to my blog. Very informative.

In these difficult times when people are faced with financial difficulties and forced to take on several jobs in order to make both ends meet, it is a very good thing that the internet provides such opportunities to earn while just staying at home. This is especially good for those homemakers who want to help their husbands augment the family treasury and yet have the flexibility to stay at home.

I would say, three claps for BlogAdvertisingStore.com for hitting the mark in these tough times.

Super C by Formor

My baby is sick. She is only 7 months old. Thankfully, she is not a fussy little one. She just sleeps immediately when she feels tired and would still play and smile when greeted. But if anything, her energy has waned a bit.

I am also thankful that her appetite for solid food is still the same. In fact, she has eaten more. Except for milk. I believe this is so because she has difficulty breathing and feeding on her bottle takes much effort. But she chews and swallows on her food like there's no tomorrow. Oh I am so thankful because that means her body has the energy to recuperate.

One of the things I give her is Super C, a form of Vitamin C as sodium ascorbate. It is in granule form and easily dissolved so I just mix a pinch of it in her water, milk, or food. I think I give her Super C up to 6 times a day, after all it is non-acidic. I believe it has helped her a lot, especially that she needs a lot of Vitamin C.

Her recovery is really fast. Thanks to good nutrition, Super C and our 24-hour TLC that my husband and I shower on her.

Getting Listed

When you have set up a website, that means you have a message that you would like to get across to a target audience, or on a bigger scope, the whole world. So the next step after all the content and design have been done is to publicize the website. There is no sense in having a beautiful website with meaningful quality content and no readers. And the best way to promote a website is by submitting the URL to free web-based directories and get links.

There are different web directories available today and they cater to different kinds of sites. There are directories that accept blogs, others accept Filipino only sites, or women's sites only and such. So if you have business website, naturally, you have to look for a business web directory in order to enlist your site. One such respected and popular web directory is DMOZ, with its registered sites listed according to categories. There are also sub-categories for a more organized directory. DMOZ is a very powerful directory because its contents could be translated into the different languages of the world, which after all, is the essence of the world wide web--reaching the entire world by networking.

Anyway, I stumbled across JasmineDirectory.com and I submitted the website of a pastors' fellowship where our pastor belongs to. The site is called bppf.org.ph, with the site name as the acronym of the name of the organization--Bacolod Pastors Prayer Fellowship, which is based in Bacolod City, Philippines.

I wanted to publicize the site because it is relatively new. But more so because they have launched a citywide devotional campaign series entitled 40 Days of Grace. I wanted people to know that such a campaign exists and that they can still get materials, like devotional books, sermon DVDs, participant's workbook, and scripture memory cards in order to be used in their bible study groups.

At the same time, I wanted to promote BPPF because I believe in their mission and vision as an organization. Their goal is to foster unity among Christian churches in the city and to reach the city of Bacolod with the gospel. Their aim is not to compete but rather help each other and the churches. The pastor-members meet regularly every Thursday in order to minister to one another and pray.

The site is still under construction. They need to put in more information and photos of their activities. But I believe that with the publicity on the net, more people will get to know about BPPF and hopefully follow in their footsteps in the hopes of fostering unity all over the world.

Christmas is Coming!!!

Despite the ravage that the Philippines got from Typhoon Ondoy and Typhoon Pepeng, CHRISTMAS IS COMING!

I am excited because I am thankful to God for all His blessings. We may not have much and just like many others, we are also struggling, nevertheless, His grace is sufficient.

And most of all, this is the first Christmas that we have our baby with us! By that time, she will be 9.5 months old already and I believe she will really enjoy opening gifts under the tree. So by end of November, I will buy some tinsel and create a small makeshift tree where with we can put her presents under. And then on Christmas day, we will open our gifts together with our little girl! I am pretty sure what fun she will have.

But for now, we are taking good care of her because after her colds, now she has cough. Please help pray for the speedy recovery of our baby. Thank you all and God bless you!

God bless us all!

Ha! No More Delinquent Employees

Employers are often wondering if their workers are truly working and are busy or just playing busy. Sometimes, employees are so absorbed in their computers, but since the back of the monitor is what the bosses see, they could not really know for sure.

Thankfully, there is ActivTrak--which is actually a monitoring system specifically designed for the corporate network. It tracks application and web usage within the company's computers and so employees cannot deny what they are actually at a particular period of time.

The site offers Employee monitoring tutorial in order to maximize its usage. It is all for the benefit of the company as the company's asset, namely its worker, can now be monitored regarding performance.

Tiki Tiki for My Baby

In the past, Tiki Tiki was a famous brand as vitamins for infants and toddlers. Perhaps everyone that I knew now, grew up on Tiki Tiki. But then again, many other more expensive and more complicated brands came out and Tiki Tiki became known as the vitamins for those who would rather have a cheap alternative.

In our case, our baby did not like Poly Visol. Our pediatrician told us to shift to Tiki Tiki and since then, she had been taking it along with Ceelin for her Vitamin C. Her health is very good and she is very active.

So I would recommend Tiki Tiki to everyone. It is still a very good brand.

The Watch of My Dreams

Ever since I was a child, I loved to read Reader's Digest. And one of the things most often advertised there was the Rolex. In my young mind, Rolex was already etched in my mind as a premier watch brand for both quality and classic style--something to have and to hold when I grow up. Sadly, up until now, I have not owned my own Rolex watch. For now, it is still beyond my budget.

But I am so happy when I found out that there is such a site called www.bestoftime.com. Mind you, Best of Time does not deal with imitations. They only have genuine Rolex watches but with really big discounts as compared to those displayed in swanky watch stores. The company behind Best of Time is an independent dealer of new and pre-owned Rolex and so they can give the best prices in town.

I already have my pic from their site--the Ladies Rolex Oyster Perpetual DateJust Watch that has an elegant Ruby Mother of Pearl Dial and Ruby and Diamond Bezel set on white gold with the Jubilee Style Stainless Steel bracelet. Please see the picture below. I like this watch because it has both diamonds (my favorite stone) and rubies (my birthstone). It is the perfect combination and one I have always wanted. It is so classic. And I know that with Rolex, craftsmanship is superb, so this is not just another fashionable watch. This is something to keep even for the appreciation of my daughter and maybe even her daughter to come.

The watches of Best of Time come in their own genuine boxes and GIA member appraisal papers. Every piece has a three-year warranty and delivered through Fedex for free.

I don't know about you but I have some budget assessment to make. The beautiful watch that I featured above has a further $1,000 discount and so I can get it for only $3,199. Now, the watch of my dreams is within my reach.

The Very Hot and Humid Weather

The weather has been very hot and humid lately. It is not strange though because of the extent of global warming. And we are feeling it so much because we live in a commercial district where plants and trees are a rarity.

We live on the third floor of a three-storey commercial building and although we have a small garden in one part of the house, that is pretty much the greenery we have here. Additionally, since we are on the third floor, we get the brunt of the heat of the sun hitting the roof. In the afternoon, our bedroom window is in direct view of the glaring afternoon sun. That is why it is so hot in our bedroom.

And because of this, we have the aircon on most of the day. I know it is too much on our electricity but we cannot stand the heat. I get migraines and sometimes fever because of heat. And did I mention that I take a bath about 2-4 times in a day? Yeah, that is how hot it is here. In my parents' home, of course, it is also warm, but because we have trees all around and we have windows all around and there is insulation for our ceiling, it is okay even if I don't turn on the aircon.

Oh well, I am not complaining, just explaining how hot it is here in our bedroom lately.

A Site for Web Site Hostings

If you have your own website and you need to buy a hosting for your site, wouldn't it be nice if there is a site that you can go to that would tell you the best hostings in town? Or in the world wide web, I mean? And this concern would be doubly meaningful if you are maintaining several sites and would like to know of the best deals that you can offer your clients and where you can save on packaged deals.

Thankfully, there is such a site that lists and rates different web site hosting sites and offers. Webhostingrating.com offers detailed information on hostings and their pros and cons, plus their prices. They are like the menu of web hostings. They list the their readers' Top 10 hosting choices and their feedback. There are also links to the hosting sites so that people can just conveniently go there either to browse around or to make a purchase.

Additionally, there are helpful online articles on different topics. I have read the write up, Three Ideas for Multiple Domain Hosting, which I referred to my friend, because she is maintaining several sites and hosting others under her.

The site has also categorized the different hostings discussed online in order to suit their reader's needs, such as Cheap Web Hosting, Colocation Hosting, etc. This is one good site to check out before buying hostings or just to make comparisons online.

dNeero Flash Embed V2 Test

Five Dollar Fridays

It sounds nice, right?

Yep! It is as good as it sounds because tututina is giving away $5 every Friday. And the mechanics are very simple, as follows:

Anyone can enter the contest. But you must follow our giveaway guidelines in order to qualify:
1. Blog about our Five Dollar Fridays Giveaway
2. Select from our buttons (small or large) or our animated banner and post it on your blog/webpage
3. Leave me a comment telling me you've blogged about my giveaway. You MUST include in your comment your blog/webpage URL and your paypal email (sign up for your free personal paypal account if you don't have one!) so we can verify you've blogged about the giveaway and we can give you the prize if you are the winner.
**You only need to blog once and keep our buttons/banners up for the duration of the August long contest and you will automatically be entered in all of our Five Dollar Friday Draws. That means, you have 4 chances to win! Good luck!

Visual Talking

Super Sale last night at Gaisano City

We went to Gaisano City Bacolod last night for their midnight sale and I got really good bargains. I went there in the mood for shopping and I got great finds. Please see my list below:

Shorts for dindin - P15 each
Pajamas for dindin - P24 each
Shirts for dindin - 3 for P100
Dresses for dindin - P39.75 each
Cap for dindin - P49.75
Toys for dindin - P129.75 + P109.75
Headbands for dindin - P10 each
Sandals for hubby - P659

And all of them are 20% off still! What great bargains!

Okay, mommy did get a blouse, a belt, and a hairbrush for herself, all at 20% off too. We bought lots of stuff and paid only P1,900. But of course, we only got needed things. We did not buy any decorative items and stuff we don't need. Hubby needed a sandal replacement and last night was a good time to buy. I needed a new blouse (actually more blouses) but I only got one because I gained weight from my pregnancy.

Anyway, this is one of their sales that I truly appreciated. In the past, we were able to go, but did not get much bargains. Last night was totally different!

Free Phone at Citibank

I still use hotmail for my free web-based mail. When I opened my inbox, I found a very big ad on the right side about the big interest that Citibank is offering. Cool, I thought, so I clicked the ad and was re-directed to the Citibank website. Aside from the announcement about the big interest in e-banking, they are also giving away FREE NOKIA CELLPHONES. Then I read the small print. This offer is for new depositors. A Nokia 2600 will be given to a new depositor with a starting balance of P2 million and a Nokia Supernova 7210 for a depositor with P4 million.

Hahaha Well, I found it funny, I know it is not. But it is a joke for me. I don't have money that much, but I would want to. So for now, it is a joke to deposit 4 million pesos just to get a free cellphone. hehe

Ugly Sweaters, Anyone??

Well, I am aware that people are cracking up because of the massive exchange of Ugly Sweaters during Christmas. I believe that Ugly Christmas Sweaters are returned by the bulk by each person during the New Year. I dunno why give them out, because in the first place, we hate receiving it. But why do we continue to give them anyway? Why can't we follow the Golden Rule in the matter of sweaters, eh?

Anyway, there are women who, for the sake of relationships, would wear these ugly sweaters that were given as gifts. But Mens Ugly Sweaters??? Oh please.

But I guess that is where the fun side of gift-giving lies--giving a really ugly sweater and seeing the reaction on the face of a relative or friend. hehe

Anyway, if the purpose is just pulling a prank on someone else anytime of the year, then buyuglysweaters.com is the place to be. My goodness! They have the most comprehensive collection of the ugliest sweaters I have seen in my whole life! These sweaters are guaranteed to create the most disdained look from the wearer and a smile of satisfaction to the giver.

And the most important thing is, you don't have to wait till Christmas to do it, because they have sweaters for anytime of the year. So what are you waiting for? Go check out the site for the most ridiculous sweaters in the world!

Negros Bloggers Meeting with SM

Sigrid, Dennis, Maricar, Mommy Ruby, E, and Mommy Maricar at the SM Event Centre.

Now we are talking.

What did I tell you, guys? As long as we are organized, more opportunities will come our way and the very first on the list is the SM Wifi Launching on Friday, July 31, 2009. We are inviting all registered members of Negros Bloggers to come and join for free. Registration starts at 12:00nn but activities will start at 1:00PM. At 2pm, there will be a live video streaming of the simultaneous similar events in SM Iloilo and SM Cebu. Mommy Ruby of Pinay Mommy Communities will also give a talk on the very basics of blogging.

If you are interested, just come as you are. SM will be giving away freebies and raffle prizes that include cellphones. They will also ask us to blog about the event and the best blog entry will also get a prize.

Note: SM has offered Negros Bloggers a spot at the food court to meet every Saturday afternoon. We will get discounts from the food court tenants as well as freebies, too. So you better join the community, guys, especially those Negros bloggers in hiding.

Anyway, Mommy Ruby, Maricar, and hubby Dennis, have been talking about a suitable name for us. Shall we be called Negros Bloggers Community (NBC) and be mistaken with the NBC channel? Or Negros Bloggers Society (NBS) and be mistaken for National Bookstore? So, what is it guys? Will you be happy with Negros Bloggers Guild?

Anyway, here is the update to the logo. I had a few revisions as per the instructions of Mommy Ruby. Hopefully, we can have t-shirts by the time the July 31 event is here.

Incidentally, my friend has a contest entitled, “Pink Thoughts’ Pink Contest”, and so I am joining. The concept is actually to sign up for an email account, but honestly, I don't have the time anymore because my deadlines are piling up. But this is my support for my friend. :D

Bloggers Annoucement

Attention Negros Bloggers: We have a meeting on Monday, July 13, 2pm at the SM Admin Office, beside food court regarding the launching of the wifi at the mall. Pls. confirm your attendance. See you!

In another light, I saw this picture of Michael Jackson when he was alive from Wikipedia. The Jacko actually went to Disneyland Paris and brought his kids along. I think that was so sweet. Imagine a world-famous dad bringing his kids to the park. I think that was heart-warming. What is sad though is that his kids had to wear something that would hide their faces. And they had to have bodyguards to keep the crowd several meters away from them.

I have been to s0 many Disneyland parks already. And I tremendously enjoyed each and every visit. I was unknown. But I wonder how would that be for a family as famous as the Jacksons? Well, that is just looking back in the past.

Here is the picture.

1st Negros Bloggers Meet up at Casino Hotel

The Core Group
From left, Dennis, Sigrid, Glady, May, Janette, Maricar, Ruby, PAGCOR rep, and Maymee.

Our very preggy president, Mommy Ruby (Negros Bloggers).

Ms. Janette Toral preparing for her talk.

Fellow bloggers far and wide.

Hubby and me.
Our president Ruby with hubby, Jun. :-)

The band. I like them, but I didn't get their name.

With some of the other bloggers.

The first ever Negros Bloggers Meet-Up was successfully held last July 4, 2009 at the Lobby Lounge of PAGCOR Casino Bacolod, Goldenfields Commercial Complex, Bacolod City. It was sponsored of course by PAGCOR and DigitalFilipino.com.

We had interesting night of networking, great food, live music, and some booze. We were able to meet up with people whom we just otherwise know as personalities on blogs or merely usernames. It was nice to finally connect blogs to a face and to a person. :-)

We also got freebies from Pagcor as well as gift certificates. My sister in law Maricar played the table for all of us and she won P2,000. Beginner's luck? Her only regret was we could not take pictures inside the gaming area, as she wanted a memento of her first casino visit. lol

Anyway, this is just the first event. Many more will be coming. So I encourage my blogger visitors here from all over the Negros Island to show yourselves up and be known. Visit our official site, which is still under construction, at negrosbloggers.com. We need to get started, we need to be united. Let us actively pursue our cause as bloggers. Bug-at no? haha Well, at least if we are united, we will have more activities. After all, these will be for our benefit. Fear not fellow Negros bloggers! :D

P.S. Sorry for the delay in uploading the photos, guys. I am probably the last one to do so. After the event, we had a long weekend at my parents where there was no internet connection. When we went back, I got swamped with work as I realized that the 40 Days of Grace event for our church is fast approaching and I still have to edit and layout the devotional book that comes with it. Hope my apologies are accepted.

Visit Vietnam Soon!

Grand Mercure
Novotel

I love to travel. It is my desire to see the whole world. However, I would want to focus my traveling on the region where I am currently in--Asia. This continent is very rich in culture and boasts of warm and friendly people. And of course, since the areas are closer to home, I would like to explore them first.

So far, I have been to Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and China, but I have yet to visit Vietnam. I am aware that different kinds of travelers can have their fancy in Nam, such as trekkers, bikers, surfers, and shoppers. But I am neither of those groups. When I travel, I want to visit historical and cultural places and I know that Vietnam has lots of them. I would rather take photos and bring home mementos of my trip.

And of course, with every trip, we need to stay somewhere. With the global economic crises, even the premier travelers would like to cut down on cost wherever they can. And thank goodness, there is the Vietnam Hotel Super sale!

When I first heard about it, I was ecstatic. This promo is brought by AccorHotels.com in cooperation with Novotel and Grand Mercure. There are really big discounts for such great, comfortable hotels. But of course, not all good things are meant to last. We have to hurry in our bookings because only reservations made from July 7 to 13, 2009 will avail of their tempting offers. Travel dates should be between July 17 to September 30, 2009 only.

Now that I have told you the good news, I will busy myself looking into my schedule and talking my husband into taking a vacation in Vietnam.

See you all!

Very Beautiful Transvestites

My sister-in-law Maricar, shared this to me. If men would like to have a serious and long-term relationship with a woman, then they should really pray hard that God will lead them to the right person. From the looks of things, appearances can be deceiving, to say the least.

They are far prettier than most women, more gorgeous, more stunning, and all the nice superlatives that one can think of. Except that, they are not women! But look at them!

Bacolod and Negros Bloggers Meet Up

The Bloggers of Bacolod City and Negros Island will hold their very first Meet-Up on July 4, 2009 at the Lobby Lounge of the Casino Filipino Hotel, Bacolod City. All bloggers residing in Negros are invited to join.

Bloggers, or web loggers in Bacolod City had been around for several years already. However, this is the first time that an effort has been made to mobilize them and form a community. On Saturday, Manila’s blogging guru, Janette Toral, will hold a talk on how to monetize blogs. The event will hold the networking of bloggers not only in Negros but around the country as well. There will also be raffles and games.

All bloggers, whether personal or pro-bloggers, are welcome. Different platforms (e.g. blogspot, wordpress, livejournal, xanga, myspace, friendster, etc.) are welcome. The registration will start at 6:00PM and is absolutely free.

Logo of Negros Bloggers

The Negros Bloggers logo...for revision.

Web Hosting Awards

My sister-in-law got interested in web hosting because of her blogs. She wanted to make her blogs credible, as she wanted to make business out of them. So she bought a hosting package with unlimited usage for two years so that she can host her three blogs as well as sell the space to others who might be interested.

But before she did any purchase, she scouted around for the best deals. And of course, she read the reviews, too. For what it is worth, she wanted a good buy.

Because of this, she sought the information offered by WebHostingGeeks.com. The site is a sight to behold behold it offers a plethora of information about web hostings. They detail price, features, and comparisons. There are also suggestions about the best hosting offers.

The most useful feature of the site are their Top 10 recommendations. They also have a blog that further offers useful articles especially for newbies.

Additionally, they have added the web hosting awards where they choose the best hosting in a certain category, such as budget hosting, blog hosting, forum hosting, unix hosting, and the like.

My sister-in-law is so thankful that she visited this site before making any purchase because she got the best deal for her purposes.