Monday, September 27, 2004

Friendster Works!

Okay, so I'm now a believer. When I signed up at Friendster (I forgot how many months ago that was) I was doubtful if I would be able to really find and reconnect with old friends I've lost contact with.

When two former dormmates in college sent me messages and added me to their list of friends a couple of months ago, I was happily surprised. Last week, it was with joy when one of my best buddies in fifth grade "found" me through Friendster too!

So now I got to exchange mails with them again. And my life got richer ...

Thursday, September 23, 2004

Robert Downey Jr. is Launching a Music Album!

Oh My, Oh My, Am I Excited or What?!

Yahooo! At last! At long last! Robert Downey Jr. is soon to launch his debut album. Finally, after all these years of waiting (read: members of the RDJ mailing list, The Last Party, have been wishing for this to happen for so long) we will have a compilation of his songs! Excuse my exuberance (oops did I hit you with the cartwheel?) but I really love this guy’s voice. He’s also a talented composer if you don’t know yet. Just listen to the instrumental called Snakes in Downey Unlimited, go to the music page or just click on the background music link on the home page and you’ll know what I mean.

Hey fellow fans, here are the links about this great news:










Now this is a happy day! Can’t wait for that solo recording to come out. I do hope it’ll be the success we RDJ fans have been dreaming of.

Good luck Robert! And don't mind those sour-graping critics who don't even know one end of the musical scale from the other. Hmp!


Wednesday, September 22, 2004

Interesting …

I was assigned an article about Internet Advertising a week ago. As I was browsing the net for commonly used terms, I searched for the correct meaning of spam. Guess where my search led me … correct! The Hormel website.

I found this paragraph funny but a little sad too:

“We coined this term [SPAM] in 1937 and it has become a famous trademark. Thus, we don't appreciate it when someone else tries to make money on the goodwill that we created in our trademark or product image, or takes away from the unique and distinctive nature of our famous trademark SPAM. Let's face it. Today's teens and young adults are more computer savvy than ever, and the next generations will be even more so. Children will be exposed to the slang term "spam" to describe UCE [unsolicited commercial email] well before being exposed to our famous product SPAM. Ultimately, we are trying to avoid the day when the consuming public asks, "Why would Hormel Foods name its product after junk e-mail?"

Read the whole article here.
Bored or Too Busy? Either Way ...

Whenever I'm in toxic mode, having to write several article drafts all at once and needing to beat simultaneous deadlines, I try to take a break once in a while and breathe ... it helps if I play a game or two just to clear my mind of all the words dancing inside my brain. Come take a breather, enjoy these games, puzzles and escape rooms:

The Crimson Room [I was able to get out of this one!]

Mystery of Time and Space (MOTAS) [Drat, I always get stuck in the third room! Any clues out there? Anybody?]

The Da Vinci Code Game [Didn't have the patience to see this through since I haven't read the book yet, but hey, I'm putting it here for you guys who have :)]

Orisinal Games [A motley selection of "childish" games which I still enjoy playing once in a while. The game Pocketful of Stars is my favorite because I love the serenity the background music gives me. I also find the sight of a little girl in her nightgown trying to catch stars, cute.]

Extreme Game [I won here and guess what the prize is! Play the game and find out!]

Ok that's it, I'm going back to my articles. *Sniff*




Sunday, September 19, 2004

Seven and Counting ...

Oooh so tired but happy! Yesterday, we celebrated James’ 7th birthday. Just family. My in-laws came from Manila and we spent the day simply exchanging stories. I cooked several dishes for lunch and spaghetti in the afternoon. My sister-in-law brought a bagful of tortillas with yummy salsa and mom-in-law prepared chicken for barbequing. They also brought a big bowlful of macaroni salad and several kinds of fruits. While hubby roasted the chicken outside, the kids and their cousin played most of the day away. James was happy enough to watch and smile.

We are just thankful to the Lord that although James still has physical and mental challenges to conquer, he gives us so much joy just by being here with us. If you want to know more about him, our special child, perhaps you’d like to visit my other blog and see the article Very Special Indeed! where I wrote something about him last year on his 6th birthday.

Let’s all focus on thanking God for the blessings we have in our lives instead of being consumed with annoying things that will surely pass. And that reminder goes for me too.

Wednesday, September 15, 2004

TAR in the Philippines

I guess most Filipinos (who are aware of the show) were eagerly awaiting yesterday’s episode of The Amazing Race coz the next pit stop is the Philippines. Even my Filipino friends from other countries said they’re excited to see their homeland through TAR.

I felt a twinge of disappointment when Nikki said “I don’t know anything about the Philippines!” For those of you who saw it and missed out on some things, let me share with you some info about my country:

-- The “ox” the contestants used for plowing the field is called a carabao or “kalabaw” in our native language. It’s a very strong animal indispensable to most farmers.

-- The jeepney they placed trimmings on is one of the forms of public transportation here.

-- The Coconut Palace where the pit stop is, is made almost entirely by materials from the coconut tree. It is an extravagant structure made during the reign of former President Ferdinand Marcos, which they spent so much money on while most of the rest of the country languished in poverty.

-- The girl dressed in the Philippines’ national costume who welcomed the contestants is no other than Luli Arroyo, daughter of the current President, Her Excellency Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

So there, at least you now have some idea about the Philippines.

Thursday, September 09, 2004

Finally! ....

...I got the comment tags now under each post. Don't ask me how it got there though coz I have no idea. After a few weeks of trying to get the comments to appear, I finally gave up and emailed Blogger support. Someone (thank you Kimmy!) emailed me back and said she added some codes necessary to make the comments work. Much as I tried to read and understand the help section about the dang thing, my brain can't seem to absorb all the complex details (see, I really am a techie ignoramus!).

It would be interesting to find out what you visitors really think about my posts. Do feel free to click comments and enter a message there. Thanks!

Thursday, September 02, 2004

Awesome!

Wheee, I'm finally getting the hang of this photo insert thingy. Ugh, I'm such a techie ignoramus. Imagine being in blogger for a year and a half already and it's only now that I got to show off (indulge this affliction that all moms have)the photos of my wonderful kids!

I got myself a Zeitgeist (whatever the origin of this word is, the real thing is great!) today which made me very happy. Happy viewing!

Wednesday, September 01, 2004

Testing ...



Testing ...

I signed up at flickr.com yesterday. I was having a difficult time discovering how to use photos for my blogs coz I don't understand much of the html schmoolah of using source from a folder I'm supposed to have in my computer. See? Just trying to explain it makes it more complicated!

Anyway, when I found out that flickr makes it easier to upload pictures in blogs, I signed up. Now, I'll try to do my very first photo upload (Exclude the Robert Downey Jr one. The html code came from Downey Unlimited and it was fairly easy to add to my template.) and see if it works.

Would like to share with you a shot I took of Daniel a couple of years back when he got a black eye after falling down while running. I love this picture -- with his pensive expression, adorable cheeks and the brilliant colors that came out in print. One of the best pictures I've taken with my Rolleiflex SLR camera. Enjoy!