Money, work and everything else that matters

Sometimes, I ask myself: "why do I work so hard?"

Man toils in hard labor to live but life losses its meaning when all one does is just work, work, work; an endless, tiring, meaningless routine of work, work, work.

Don't we all work so we can feed ourselves and have fun? A day job, a night job, weekend part-time job and paid posts assignments in blogging are putting much pressure on my mind.

I am not complaining. I am enjoying my jobs. They make me fulfilled and they have gained me financial independence. I also know that the world is in global financial problem and many people are out of job. I realized I've been burning my candle at both ends though, pushing my limit grabbing all possible opportunities just to have more extra income. It's entirely crazy however, because even if I get more income, I end up spending money on doctors' fees and medicines anyway.

Why do I need much money anyway? How much do I need to be contented?
Financial independence? financial security? needs? wants? savings? charity? vacations? in preparation for retirement? investment for pensions?

I don't need much. There's no such thing as financial security, even if a person has a stable income now, there's no assurance that one will continue to have it until old age. We live because God continues to shower us with blessings, provides our needs and allows us to enjoy what we have worked hard.

As a Christian, I believe God does not leave any room for chance and that everything that happens, happen for a reason and God is in full control of everything. In one of his sermons, our preacher expressed his thoughts why the big economies have "fallen". He said that in the American dollar it is inscribed, "In God we trust." However, because of feelings of greatness and independence from God, God may have caused the US and other biggest economies to stumble. I don't agree or disagree, that's just his opinion anyway, and everyone is entitled to express his own ideas.

Even God rested on the seventh day. Don't we all should do the same?

I thought I needed a break and that's exactly what I did. A time to reconsider, to reflect and to ponder and evaluate how I am managing the time, talent and treasure (money) that God has given me.

Sometimes, the love of money and the desire to acquire more can get in the way and cloud our perspectives to see the things that really matter in life. The Bible reminds us not to store riches in this world where it can just be stolen or destroyed. We have to invest our time on things that matters most, like relationship with our family, or friends and especially for eternity. We have to have a steady, functioning, intimate relationship with God, who has caused all things to work for our good.

Next post: about my retreat, hot spring, swimming, steam bath, gold mining experience and two days stay at a rural community.

De-stressing life

Hi friends!

Thank you for dropping here (especially to those who are very consistent). I have just arrived from my two-day vacation to relax and reduce the stress that have already accumulated in my life these days. I am sorry because I was not able to get back on you because of that.

I will share to you about the details next time. For now, these are some of my newest pictures after a refreshing day away from the hassle and hurry of the busy, modern city life.

I'll be posting soon!

photo: my friend Honey in pink

Email marketing: make it work for you

An email marketing software is very helpful tool for you to fast track online communications with members, clients, potential customers or just your readers so they are always updated with what's new in your web site and services.

If you are looking for an inexpensive but highly reliable email marketing solution, it's best to check out IContact.

IContact as an email software, has a very easy to use interface so you can put sign up form into your site, manage your subscribers and check the number click through of your emails. The professionally designed templates, surveying, autoresponder, blogging and inbox deliverablity capabilities can all be used with prices starting from $9.95/month and up depending on list size.

Make email marketing work for you by investing on a good email software solution.

Getting ready to get married

I've finally decided that she's the girl I hope to spend the rest of my life with, how do I tell her?

I've been asked this question a few times already, that's just in a span of two months. My college buddies treat me as one of the boys and I get along well with male coworkers and churchmates too. Now they need my suggestions on how to make their proposals memorable, meaningful and special. "How did your boyfriend ask you?," caught me pointblank after the initial question.

Some years ago, on our second monthsary (if such a term exists) and having known each other for a decade, my boyfriend asked me to marry him. There were no grand gestures, no ring but not without surprises. He just stated it plainly, "WILL YOU MARRY ME?." It was written on a piece of paper (already disposed) using a black pen. We were brainstorming for my career plans that time. I was graduating from university.

Dumbfounded, I neither said yes nor no. I thought I was too young at that time to be contemplating on marriage, which all I knew was a complicated, till-death-do-us-part journey that many cynics have despised. Some believers however, share that it is also the best form of relationship ordained by God to man. I guess he assumed silence meant 'yes'. Quietly indeed, I was preparing myself for that dreaded path.

What does being engaged means? It means you have decided to go to the next level of your relationship; that you are going to pursue no other relationships with the opposite sex except the one you have highly favored; that you prepare yourself (in all aspects: emotional, social, intellectually, physically, financially and spiritually) for that day when you and that person with whom you've given your heart with will become one flesh in God's sight.

As for proposal ideas, a man is limited only by his creativity. Every person has a unique personality and different way of expressing his love. In my opinion, it does not matter how a man pops out the question but the sincerity of his promise. I didn't mind at all that he didn't do anything crazy for the proposal to be beautiful. I know he's pondered about it for a long time, prayed to God for guidance and asked his parents for their blessings. He asked me to give my heart to him and I did with little hesitation. Now I hope he takes good care of that fragile part of me that's already his'.

P.S. No violent reactions please. It's not going to be so soon... maybe a year or two from now.

Photo credit: here and here

Mission house makeover launched

I love home improvement TV shows and magazines.

Once, Oprah featured a makeover mission on someone's house. The result was amazing! I secretly wished there would be opportunities for our house to be fully furnished for free! It's just a dream, of course.

Well, slowly I've been trying to accentuate my parents' house with some fixtures. The look of the interiors can be greatly improved by investing on elegant and durable designer living room furnitures. I recently bought a small sofa set for our small house and it has worked wonders. Now, I am saving for quality but affordable closets and wardrobes for my mother and me.

I wish we have an entertainment center inside the house too! It would be a great place where we can watch movies, sing Videoke or simply relax while listening to the music.

I need to keep myself reminded not to be too materialistic though.

Photo credit: http://www.nycconceptfurniture.com/

not my valentine blues

I am trying to craft a post
in time for the Valentines date
what it is about
I could not figure out

hold back the tears
I'm not going to tell some drama
Why do I have to strain my head
when I could not find any inspiration?

Why do I have to be romantic
when I am not feeling so?
What is it with the season
that I'm compelled to be so?

A Valentine celebration is just a tradition
Why not just ignore it?
dismiss it as if it's just any other day
love should be celebrated everyday anyway

Probing into files and file extensions

There are times when we get across errors involving files. For instance, we could not open a certain file format after removing a software that was previously associated with it.

Recently, I have uninstalled Adobo Photoshop from my computer after not using it for a long time because I thought it was taking too much space and memory. However, I did not realize that certain file formats have been associated with it, such as picture files in .PNG, PDF documents and others. In effect, opening these files created some errors.

What happens actually, according to the file extension repair service, is that there are inconsistencies in registry that needs to be corrected. Common errors in registry include problems in File Extension DLL.

On the side, it's also rich resource of an exhaustive list of file extension definitions from A to Z, all the numeric numbers and some special characters.

Appreciation not taken for granted

I know this has been long overdue but I would still want to express my gratitude to my friends who have expressed their appreciation of my blog and friendship. What do I need to say to extend my happiness and thankfulness to you?

Obstacles and Glories

A Simple Life

See and Read

Marites and the Islands of the World

P.S. will attach the rules later... gotta sleep first. I am almost bat-empty.

How much is a house?

One of our most basic need is a home; a shelter where we feel safe and secure. A home is of course, a house with your family on it.

I am in the time of my life where I am seeking independence from my parents loving providence. It's not that I am ungrateful, I will always be. My parents have always provided for me, even when I am making more money than they do (they're retired by now that's why). But I guess, everyone comes to a certain point in his life where he wants to live separately (though still emotionally connected) from his roots.

I am not ready but I am preparing myself for it. My parents are quite supported of my plans. I am hoping to buy my own lot and build my own house. But how does a self-employed like me with few financial documents to show to banking institutions gets to buy a lot, much more build a house? What are my options?

I think mortgaging is common. I play monopoly but I could not grasp the meaning of mortgages in real life. I needed some explanations about it. I realized there are different kinds of mortgages from a website. People also need a good credit score for the housing loans to be approved especially that financial institutions are in crises now. There's a company however, that offers services to help people on applying for these loans especially people with bad credit score.

If I apply for one, how long will I be paying for it? Will I live that long to complete it? LOL. How much will it be? Will it cost all my life's work?

Photo credit: here

What makes a good blog post?

Have you asked yourself that question?

After months of trying to come up with good posts, deciding on punchy leads and titles, I still want to know what makes a very good blog post.

How does one make a good blog?

Eight months into blogging, I still consider myself a beginner. There are just to many things to discover, many facets to explore, many ideas to consider, many tricks to uncover and learn.




I think we can learn a lot from the success of bloggers who have made it big. We can do a little bit of research, analyze and read from them. Many of the tips I received I got from the man behind TechnoTechniques and the lady from TheLadyProgrammer.

But what makes a good blog entry?

I just finished reading How to Craft a Blog Post - 10 Crucial Points to Pause. It was quite a good guide.

Now, I've come up with my own list, ideas that popped out of my mind one daybreak, lying idly, trying to make most of my time while waiting for sleepiness to come and night dreams to take over. These are not how to make one good write-up but the qualities that a blog entry must possess so I can consider it good.

"Nice choice of words and phrases, strategically sequenced to capture and maintain readers' interest."

"Sometimes I don't know, I just know when I read one... from the moment I read the first line, I could not help myself from reading until the end of the story or article".

"Short, simple sentences and paragraphs - no more than 300 words"

"Vivid, graphical and colorful descriptions creating some sort of drama, that makes me hooked until the end"

"Best if accompanied with a photo or video that goes well with the theme"

"In-depth - giving rich details, citing reliable sources, uses statistics and valid findings (for news or commentary) "

"Something that inspires, enriches life, offers hopes, gives wisdom, shares uncommon knowledge."

"Good grammar, need I say more?"

"It depends on individual preference. Some posts maybe interesting to some and boring to others"

"Clear, cohesive presentation of facts and details"

"Something that appeals to human emotions that makes people laugh, cry, empathize, have pity or make them angry."

However, if you're like me who's still groping the techniques, learning the skills to make one, don't lose hope. Some things really take time, we need to take simple, careful steps one at a time. One day, we might be able to come up with very interesting ideas.

Let me ask you though, what do you think makes a very good blog post regardless of the topic?

Top Droppers for January 2009

Dropper	No of Drops
My Notes	31
Cheapest Airfare	30
Dunia Soer	30
Picture to People	28
Shih Tsu Gifts	25
Laane on the World	24
Bingo Sites Online for Women	23
Sassy Black Friend	23
Beyond Feron	22
Tiddly Winks	21

Thank you for your consistent support. January had been a good start. Let's keep blogging!