AFF Suzuki Cup Semi Final 1st Leg Philippines vs Indonesia Video Highlights

For those who missed the 1st Leg semi-finals match between the Philippines vs Indonesia last Thursday in the AFF Suzuki Cup, below is the official highlights video. Indonesia scored one goal against the Philippines.

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A Great Canon MX 347 Ink Cartridge Deal

I am so happy with our Canon MX 347 printer which is an all-in-one printer. It works as a black and white and colored printer, a photo and document scanner with a built in document scanning software, and a fax machine. I got it with free ink cartridges and early this month, I bought new FINE ink cartridges. If I buy another two (colored and black ink) before the end of January, I will receive a free Timex watch voucher from the store. That is a great deal from PC Depot for using a great printer.

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My Take on Philippines 0-1 Indonesia First Leg Semi-finals Match

In tonight's first leg of the semi-finals match between Philippines and Indonesia, the latter scored one goal and will enter Sunday's second leg of their semi-finals with a one goal lead. The Philippines needs to lead by two goals on Sunday or lead by one goal to cause a draw and outscore the Indonesians in the penalty kicks. Indonesia held possession of the ball most of the time and I would admit that they played better football than our countrymen in this match.

Nevertheless, the Philippine Football Team still did a great job considering they conceded only one goal against the top scoring team in the group stage - Indonesia scored 5 goals against Malaysia, six agains Laos and two against Thailand. Plus, the Azkals held the Vietnamese, who scored seven goals against Myanmar, goalless in their encounter in the group stage. So, right now, the RP booters' strength is their defense.

With these in mind, I am not writing them off. If they scored 2-0 agains Vietnam then that just shows that they've got scoring capability and they made the goals on counter-attacks. If they remain solid in their defense and aggressive in the counter-attack, they may be able to make it past Indonesia, into the finals. Remember, the Philippine Footbal Team needs to lead by two goals - they've done that against Vietnam, the defending champion. Let's just keep on cheering and hoping for the best - Go Azkals!

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My Take on Philippines 0-1 Indonesia First Leg Semi-finals Match

In tonight's first leg of the semi-finals match between Philippines and Indonesia, the latter scored one goal and will enter Sunday's second leg of their semi-finals with a one goal lead. The Philippines needs to lead by two goals on Sunday or lead by one goal to cause a draw and outscore the Indonesians in the penalty kicks. Indonesia held possession of the ball most of the time and I would admit that they played better football than our countrymen in this match.

Nevertheless, the Philippine Football Team still did a great job considering they conceded only one goal against the top scoring team in the group stage - Indonesia scored 5 goals against Malaysia, six agains Laos and two against Thailand. Plus, the Azkals held the Vietnamese, who scored seven goals against Myanmar, goalless in their encounter in the group stage. So, right now, the RP booters' strength is their defense.

With these in mind, I am not writing them off. If they scored 2-0 agains Vietnam then that just shows that they've got scoring capability and they made the goals on counter-attacks. If they remain solid in their defense and aggressive in the counter-attack, they may be able to make it past Indonesia, into the finals. Remember, the Philippine Footbal Team needs to lead by two goals - they've done that against Vietnam, the defending champion. Let's just keep on cheering and hoping for the best - Go Azkals!

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Support the Philippine Football Team: Wear Our Country's Colors

I encourage Filipino readers and friends who come across this blog post to support the Philippine Football Team tomorrow as they face Indonesia in the first leg of the semi-finals match of the (ASEAN Football Federation) AFF Suzuki Cup. The second leg will be on Sunday and both matches will be played in Indonesia but will be aired live in Studio 23 (as far as I know).

The Official Philippine Football Team Jersey 2010

The RP booters a.k.a. “Azkals” gained the chance to appear in the semi-finals after finishing second in their group with Vietnam, the defending champions, in second after whipping them 2-0. If the Philippines win the semi-finals against Indonesia who scored many goals during the group stage, they may get to face Vietnam in the finals if the latter wins against Malaysia. If our country's football team get into the finals I am treating myself with a new desktop PC from a selection of Ordinateurs.

So, tomorrow, December 16, 2010, I am wearing the official Philippine Football Jersey (thanks to my wife for the anniversary gift) made by Mizuno to show my support. Please spread the word and encourage others to wear the country’s colors in support of the Philippine Football Team’s campaign. Win or lose, they’ve already made history by beating Vietnam in the group stage – we’ve got nothing to lose! Spread the word in Twitter and Facebook.

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Panoramic Photos Using Automatic Panorama for Nokia N8 or Microsoft ICE

I am really enjoying taking 180-degree panoramic pictures using my Nokia N8 and its application Automatic Panorama. With my phone I just need to click once and point my camera smartphone to the desired target and the I won’t have to press again for the succeeding shots until I’ve taken the panoramic shot and want the application to build the panoramic photo.

I have researched before about taking panoramic shots and am thankful for my friend Azrael who introduced me to Microsoft ICE which is a software that stitches photos to create a panoramic effect. The difference with the Automatic Panorama application in my Nokia N8 is, with Microsoft ICE I would need to take multiple photos (multiple clicks), upload the picture to my computer and let the software do the stitching. It does not matter much if the shots taken had exact boundaries because the software is intelligent enough to detect and stitch them together. I did not have to research much about panoramic photography and cut time on working on articles about cheap insurance companies. Below is a photo using a Nikon D40 and the power of Microsoft ICE.



With the Automatic Panorama application (available in Nokia Ovi Store for free), I won’t have to click multiple shots but I would have to align my aim to the box that is indicated in the screen when I take the parts of the whole panoramic photo. Sometimes it is difficult to aim the camera where it should take the photo. An advantage is that I don’t need a laptop or a computer to process the photos but the application will do it for me in my Nokia N8 and if there is internet connection available, share it with my friends in FB and Twitter via Ovi Social. Below is the photo I took using the Automatic Panorama application in my Nokia N8.

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Transition to Passive Income Looks Productive

We are currently expanding our business online and the year 2010 has really been a very blessed and fruitful year for us. The income from regular blogging gigs still continues and affiliate commissions come in once in a while but the most productive online endeavor is our transition from blogging to passive income which is what we were trying to discover earlier this year but probably requires managed hosting service. I am still learning the ropes and I hope the online campaigns we started continue to be successful.

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My Thinking Room

I really appreciate our spacious bathroom so much. It has become a thinking room for me even as I do routine stuff in it. Compared to the really crammed up space of our bathroom when we used to rent in Makati this one has a bathtub in it and just the right space. The bathtub may not be a clawfoot tub but it is simple and does its job. I thank God for these things that He has provided us with and it is by His grace that we are able to enjoy such things.

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The Philippines' Home Football Jersey

Last night, after a long day of doing some shopping for some garland, Christmas decors and other stuff in Divisoria in Manila, I found out about the Philippine Football Team’s 2-0 victory against Vietnam, the defending champion in the Suzuki Cup under the Philippine Football Federation (PFF). Because of this, I am now really wanting so bad to get their home jersey from Mizuno.

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Football Player Penalized For Pointing Towards Heaven After Touchdown

As I was reading about acne rosacea treatment in Yahoo out of curiosity, I encountered this news (with video) about a football player who was penalized making gesture to thank God – his way to celebrate after scoring a touchdown on a 23-yard run

I think the call was too ridiculous to call. I have seen even in the Premier League, soccer player who got penalized for inappropriate gestures after scoring a goal, but I believe that thanking God should not be categorized as excessive celebration or inappropriate gesture.

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Enjoying Playing Chess Online Via Nokia N8

I am enjoying playing chess through a Nokia Ovi application I downloaded for my Nokia N8. I am able to play against players who are online and get the chance to brush up on my chess skills. I can select the number of minutes the match should last (a timed match) and the color I want to play and then find a player online who matches my game preference. I have to md clear the list of players first and then click seek to input my game preferences.

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Christmas Gift Suggestions for Mom and Dad in 2010

What gift suggestions do I have for Christmas? Well that would really depend on who you are going to bless with your gifts. Let's start with parents first. For a dad, men's polo shirts, an electric shaver, a Starbucks coffee mug, a barong or even a neck tie would do. For a mom, something to make her feel better or look better would be great like some perfume, beauty products or a gift certificate for a session in a spa salon. With these suggestions, I now feel responsible to pick from the list my gift for my mama and papa this Christmas.

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Taking Advantage of Black Friday or Cyber Monday

We are considering expanding our online business and need additional gadgets like at least another netbook or laptop. How great it would be if we also had a Black Friday or Cyber Monday sale here in the Philippines where stores really mark down prices. We could really take advantage of the decrease in price of the gadgets for our business expansion.

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Brent the Stunt Guy in Manila | 2008

Here is a video of Brent the Stunt Guy doing some of his stunts to attract attention to students of Pitogo HS and get a chance to share the gospel with them. He is skilled in strength balancing, juggling, unicycling and other acrobatic skills without aid of an Energy diet pill. This was taken June of 2008 during their first visit to the Manila, Philippines. Two years after, Brent and Amanda (www.brentthestuntguy.com)are back in the Philippines for their ministry internship and they are here helping different ministries including our Baptist church in Makati.

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Breaking Point Foundation Philippines to Partner With Brent the Stunt Guy

Our organization, Breaking Point Foundation Philippines, will be proposing to make its violence and substance abuse prevention program available to the public high schools in Makati. As our organization endeavors to educate students holistically and prevent them from trying drugs, alcohol or cigars, we are also hoping to challenge and move students who are already into these substances to stop using them. We are also privileged to be partnering now with Brent the Stunt Guy as he will be sharing his skills to motivate students in terms of self discipline and making good choices.

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Real Warriors Freestyle Martial Arts To Join Its First Tournament

Our freestyle martial arts organization, Real Warriors Freestyle Martial Arts, headed by Pastor Orlando Villaseñor (third degree blackbelt) and myself, will be sending participants to a tournament of Kyokushin Karate on the 27th of November in San Juan for the first time. There will be two participants from Makati and three from Santolan, Pasig of the SBC ministries.

Kyokushin kaikan (極真会館?) is a style of stand-up, full contact karate, founded in 1964 by Korean-Japanese karate master, Masutatsu Oyama. Since our organization is fairly new and we are sending participants who are mostly white belts or beginners and a few green belts, we are really pushing them hard in their training. We did not use fat burners for men to help our students reduce weight but relied on training (karate, kick boxing, aikido, judo) and exercise.

Initially, for this first tournament, we hope for our students to gain exposure in tournaments and that they will be challenged as see how the trainings we are holding fair with the other martial arts organizations.

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Adsense Account Disabled

It has been almost a month since something really big happened with my blogging – I got my Adsense account disabled by Google. The reason they gave is click-fraud and I have tried to think of reasons how that could have happened and explained it to Google but I have not received any reply.

But I am moving on. I am now thinking of new personal online campaigns that are not Adsense dependent. Blogging business is still growing and I am treating this as a phase and I just need to be reminded that nothing is secure and permanent especially when it comes to online campaigns.

The growth of my blogs is just like a person going through some thyroid problems and I just need to consult a Thyroid doctor austin or something. I am not letting this thing get in the way of our online campaigns.

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Arnis Training With a Grand Master

This afternoon, wearing our complete training uniforms and not Fedora Hats, I and many other individuals, were able to attend a martial arts training and seminar where a grandmaster of Arnis taught some basic but powerful techniques on the weapon. I enjoyed his openness to creating variations of his art and mixing them with other arts like karate, aikido, jiu jitsu and many others. I am excited to teach and learn to apply the techniques we learned to our youth who attend the free martial arts training at our church’s youth center.

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Bubble Tea in Tomas Morato, Quezon City

BubbleTea, located in Tomas Morato, Quezon City is a great hangout if you want to enjoy Japanese fusion dishes and great tasting milk tea. Armed with my new Nokia N8, I had dinner with other invited bloggers in this very colorful restaurant that has a wall that displays a collection of Japanese toys.

For starters, I ordered Bubble Tea's gyoza, a classic pan-fried Japanese pork and vegetable dumplings (PHP 125). The 5-piece order of gyoza was enough to get me ready for more taste of modern Japan.



We got to taste a lot of their dishes but what I liked best was their Beef Stew Curry (PHP 265). This one had Japanese style sweet and mild spicy (perfect for Filipinos) sauce topped on sliced beef stew and served with rice and egg. The curry is so tasty I sought for more rice as I finished the whole meal.




According to Bubble Tea's owner, they chose Japanese fusion dishes because they complement the real star of their restaurant - their milk tea drinks. I go for myself the Taro Milk Shake (PHP 135 - medium; PHP 145 - large) and chose the large size which is so worth it for only a ten peso difference with the medium sized milk shake. I was really never a fan of milk tea before, but after tasting the different flavors of milk tea which BubbleTea serves, I fell in love with the Taro and their newest flavor, Honeydew Milk Shake (which I will make sure to order on my next visit).



I was so full after trying those three orders that I did not getanything for dessert which is something I regret because the Taro Milk Shake was already dessert enough for me.

Visit Bubble Tea’s branches (SM North Edsa, SM Megamall, Tomas Morato, Wilson to open this November) and discover which mil tea flavor perfectly fits your taste and join Bubble Tea's Pichur Pichur contest while you're at it and like BubbleTea in Facebook.

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Latest Food Find: Big Daddy's Chicken

Our family loves great food and we recently added another one to our list – Big Daddy’s Chicken. It was our first time to check out their branch in Mall of Asia last week.
Big Daddy’s Chicken may look oh so ordinary, but wait until you try it for yourself to know how flavorful every bite is. We especially love that they offer huge servings. Customers also get to choose what kind of variant they want. They have Original, Chili, Lemon, Nori or Plum.

Chicken chops are said to be the “in thing” in Taiwan and Singapore and it is just great that the people behind Big Daddy’s Chicken brought it to Manila. They currently have two branches. The one at Greenhills Theatre Mall and the newly opened store at the G/F Entertainment Mall of SM MOA.

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Baptism at Church on November 12, 2010

We’re holding a baptism service on the second Friday of November, the 12th. Right now, we are setting up the baptistery of our church which is a metal box that fits one person. It is not as small as a steel drum container but quite larger that a bath tub and about 5 feet in height. We are excited to see the new believers who will be baptized.

Baptism, biblically, is a public profession of a person’s previously made decision to repent and make God first in his or her life. It is also done by immersion – in fact, the word baptism comes from the Greek word “baptizo” which means “to immerse or dip” in water.

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Sign of Aging

There was no other year in my life when I felt old besides this year when I turned 35 – so far. This was the year when I experienced two injuries from my martial arts trainings – one from ground fighting training and one from kick boxing. I am just thankful that the injuries have healed even though the healing process isn’t complete yet. At least I am not having problems with skin yet and won’t need to look for the best anti wrinkle cream. But I am aware that a few years from now, signs that I am getting older will be become more obvious.

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Enjoying Obagi Condition and Enhance Gentle Cleanser

I am enjoying using the Obagi products on my face. My face feels better than it used to every after washing with the Obagi Condition and Enhance Gentle Cleanser. It feels so differently good that I wish they have an anti acne body wash and facial wash that also protects from the sun – lika an all-in-one product. Oh, well. I guess that would make the product less effective.

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So Many Food Events Lately

There have been quite a lot of food events lately and I can’t seem to keep myself from eating a lot, just when I started becoming conscious about my body and more particularly my tummy. I will be posting some of the food places we went to these past few nights where I also used my new Nokia N8 as a camera to take photos of the dishes served.

Tomorrow, there is another food event but I am not sure if I will be able to go to that. Not because I am becoming too conscious of my tummy getting bigger or because I am preferring taking some fat burners but because I will be preparing with my wife for a medical procedure to be done on her for Saturday morning.

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We Are the Electrolux Wash-a-Palooza Amazing Race Champions!

Last weekend, I was at the Electrolux Wash-a-Palooza Amazing Race that was held at the Eastwood City in Libis, Quezon City. I was teamed up with three other bloggers (Jonel, Jayson and Jeff S.) and so we called ourselves "Team Jacob" because our names all started with "J".



There were at least 20 teams of four who participated in the Electrolux Wash-a-Palooza Amazing Race composed of teams from the print, broadcast and online media and our team was fortunate enough to be crowned Champions of the race.

Below is the official press release of the event:

Fun, music and excitement await consumers at the Electrolux Wash-a-Palooza

Electrolux gave its customers, trade partners, and the public a fun-filled, action-packed afternoon as it continues its Wash-a-Palooza campaign, a fun-filled series of activities that celebrates Electrolux innovative washer and dryer lines through exciting promos and fun surprises and activities.

Teams had an amazing afternoon as they raced around Eastwood completing a variety of challenges, which required a combination of brains and brawn.

These included searching for stores around Eastwood with only cryptic clues, traversing through a clothesline, rappelling and answering trivia questions about Electrolux’s innovative washer and dryer lines and an exciting sprint to the finish line along the jogging paths of Eastwood.

The winning team was awarded gift certificates. Yet all the participants also emerged as winners as they received their choice of an Electrolux Pop-Up Toaster, Steam Iron, Rice Cooker and Coffee Maker.

And the fun wasn’t over after the race was won as teams relaxed at a concert party with hits from popular Filipino band True Faith.

“The Wash-a-Palooza campaign is like throwing our customers a party in the stores with freebies and discounts, and showing them how our washers and dryers have been designed to help them do their laundry more conveniently to give them time to celebrate more in life,” said Terry Sales, Marketing Manager of Electrolux Philippines.

Earlier in the campaign, Electrolux held a washing marathon in Cebu City where 5,000 kilograms of freshly laundered and ironed clothes were donated to the charity institution Tabang Patrol.

The event also showcased the Electrolux T-Drive Washers and the Electrolux Front Load Washers.

T-Drive technology promises a +35% Cleaner Washing Performance – it uses a paddle to replicate the thorough yet gentle action of hand-washing, giving you washing performance that’s 35% better than conventional pulsator topload washers.

It also comes with a uniform washing system, which delivers constant cleaning from the top to the bottom of the drum, regardless of the load size – so that all pieces of clothing are thoroughly washed.

The T-Drive technology also comes with an Anti-Tangle and Anti-Residue system. It cycles water uniformly throughout the drum and gently separates clothes for a tangle-free wash, while its unique agitating action delivers better detergent dilution than other top load washers to prevent unseemly detergent residues appearing on dried clothes.

Plus, it’s an eco-friendly appliance as it has an Eco Rinse Program that saves up to 50% of the water used on extra rinse cycles. It works by spraying water only in small pulses. After each pulse, the drum spins to remove the dirty water from the clothes.

The Electrolux T-Drive Top Load Washers come in two models – the EWT 705 with a 7 kg. loading capacity and the EWT 905 with 9 kg. loading capacity.

EWT 705

EWT 905

Electrolux’ Front Load Washers EWF 10741 and 1282 both have the Time Manager Function, which lets you choose how long your laundry should take.

For superior cleaning, they have the Jetspray feature, which showers water and detergent at a constant rate through your clothes and directly onto dirt for a more thorough wash, and special wash programs to clean different fabric times.

EWF 10741

Meanwhile, the EWF 85561 and EWF 85761 both have the Super Quick Wash function that reduces washing time by almost half.

The EWF 85561 has a 6.5 kg. loading capacity, a size ideal for singles and small families, while the larger EWF 85761 has a 7 kg. loading capacity perfect for growing families.

Both washers also have a wider drum for even better circulation and cleaning. They also work more quietly so you can relax in your room while doing the laundry – it has a Coin Trap feature that eliminates noise coming from coins and other objects left in clothes during the wash and Active Balance Control, which distributes the load evenly in the washing machine to lessen noise and vibration.

EWF 85661

EWF 85761

For more information on Electrolux’s Front Load Washers and Electrolux's T-Drive Washers, call Electrolux’s customer care trunk line at 845-CARE (2273) or domestic toll-free number 1-800-10-845-CARE (2273) or visit their website at www.electrolux.com.ph

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Mango Tree Bistro Now Open in Trinoma, Quezon City

Mango Tree Bistro is one of the newest restaurants to open in Manila. They feature high quality Thai cuisine in an atmosphere that is simple and lively but with modern interiors and decorations with service that continually "exceeds customers' expectations".

Mango Tree Bistro opening

Mango Tree has recently made debuts in Dubai, Macao, Tokyo, London, Kuching and Busan. Manila's Mango Tree Bistro is their newest location internationally. The first Mango Tree Restaurant opened in 1994 in the heart of Bangkok in a beautiful Thai house built during the reign King Rama VI almost 100 years ago. The name Mango Tree was used because of the mango tree planted in the courtyard area.

Mango Tree Bistro's menu includes authentic Thai salads, over four pages of delicious Thai entrees and flavorful curries, famous grilled items from Thailand with unique taste from marinate and dipping sauce, and vegetarian dishes.

Below are some of favorites from Mango Tree Bistro:

Lemon Grass Soup

Pomelo Salad

Phad Thai Goong

Mango Tree Bistro is located at the Third Level of Trinoma Mall in Quezon City.

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Trying Skin Care Products

I have been reading some reviews about Obagi, a high-end brand that has skin care product systems and have rad good reviews. I am using three products from this company and I have been seeing good results on my face.

It was my wife who encouraged me to take care of my face that's why I started reading skin care and acne treatment reviews. And since Obagi's launch, I have tried their products (cleanser, toner and exfoliating products) and, so far, have been satisfied.

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Obagi Medical Product Systems are Now Available in the Philippines

Obagi Medical Products,a high-end brand and one of the most recognized names globally in skin health care and the preferred choice of Physicians around the world for prescription-strength product lines that transform skin, recently launched in the Philippines. Last week, together with other female bloggers, the company introduced their product for the Philippine market and I was fortunate enough to be one of the few to hear and learn about their company and products.



Obagi has its headquarters in Long Beach, California, and Obagi Medical Products is a pharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures, markets and sells proprietary prescription skin care Systems. The Systems are designed to prevent and improve the most common and visible skin disorders in adult skin and helps in acne skincare. The Obagi Nu-Derm System products were created in 1988 by Dr. Zein E. Obagi and other leading experts.



The most popular among the system products of Obagi is the Obagi Nu-Derm System which is a physician-prescribed skin care system launched in 1988. This product system accelerates the cellular turnover. This System penetrates deep to improve damage in layers of the skin and boosts functions of the skin at the cellular level to improve skin's cellular function to help it look and act younger and healthier.



The other product systems of Obagi are the C-Rx, Professional-C Serums, Condition and Enhance, ELASTIderm Eye Treatment, CLENZIderm M.D. Systems and the latest is the ELASTIderm Decolletage System. You can visit the Obagi Medical Clinic at Trinoma, Quezon City and their website at www.obagi.com.ph.

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6 Days Before My Christmas?: I Pre-Ordered a Nokia N8

Yaay, it's six days before Christmas! Well, at least in my mind it would be a celebration when I get the Nokia N8 I pre-ordered. I chose to wait for this touch-screen unit from Nokia which also has a 12 MP camera, an HDMI output for TV and shoots HD videos.


I did not bother to purchase a new unit like the iPhones, ipods or the Samsung Galaxy S which was my second choice but waited for this baby. The Nokia N8 I pre-ordered will be available on Saturday, October 23, 2010. You can still pre-order a Nokia N8 untilOctober 19, 2010 for PHP 23,699 or get it with a Smart Unlimited Data Plan for PHP 2,000 a month.

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No Regrets with the Great Wall Peri

Our Great Wall Peri car will be due for its scheduled maintenance at 10,000 km. I am really glad that we bought this 1.3-liter car, which has almost the same maximum power with the Toyota Vios, except that the Peri is lighter in weight.

Video of international stunt drivers taking the Great Wall Peri for a spin (no modifications were made to the GW Peri)

The GW Peri is truly very easy to handle and maneuver. My wife and I have no regrets that we chose to buy a brand new China-branded vehicle that came with 3 years LTO registration and the standard car insurance with comprehensive coverage and not just some cheap auto insurance, especially now that Great Wall Motors Philippines has established a factory somewhere South of Metro Manila.

We haven't had any problems with the Great Wall brand and the service they provide is really great! The Great Wall Peri is already EURO 4 compliant, by the way, so it is very environment-friendly.

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Training Young Men in the Church

In our young men’s weekly cell group, we have been going through some lessons on the different methods of bible study. We started with the most basic way which is the devotional study method and our goal is to be able to help each other establish the habit of doing personal bible study weekly.

We know that we can learn more from each other’s insights that’s why we encourage sharing the things we learned and discovered from our personal study. I how to eventually train the young men to share the lessons or principles they learned from their devotions among the youth during our youth services.

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One of My Sites was Hacked by Mega-Scorpion

Two nights ago, one of my sites was hacked by Mega-Scorpion, at least that's how he identified himself. He left a trail and a link to a forum (Alboraaq Hackers) where he is a part of - a forum of hackers.

If you have been hacked by Mega-Scorpion or Rat.Techie (this other name also showed up on my other site's homepage at one moment), you would have probably seen something like this image above.

It was quite scary that it prompted me to change my other passwords to a more difficult combination of alpha-numeric characters, case-sensitive and including other characters allowed for use. I would advise that you do the same thing so you could lessen the chance of getting hacked by someone like Mega-Scorpion because hackers do exist!

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Investments, Investing Money and Returns

When it comes on investing money, our options for ou family have broadened now that we're almost nine years into our marriage. We used to think only of a savings account when we thought about growing and/or keeping our money.

We have tried different investments some of them on a small business, buy and sell of a used car, mutual funds but we can't compare life insurance with pension to the other investments because it has the biggest amount of return. But going into trying to make money online we are now learning to invest money on profitable stuff online. We just hope and pray that returns will be high and be quicker that the other investments we've tried.

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Mines View Park Hotel in Baguio City: A Cozy and Classy Baguio Accommodation

Mines View Park Hotel, located on the road to Mines View Park in Baguio City is a great option for accommodations in city of pines. Many of the hotels in the city are situated in busy streets while this hotel is right next to two of the popular destinations in Baguio – the shopping area and the view at Mines View Park; and just a few meters further, the Good Shepherd Convent where many go to purchase “pasalubong” from this city in Benguet. The Mansion house and Wright Park are also very near this place.





If you are looking for cozy and classy bedrooms for accommodations, Mines View Park Hotel has them. Their four-level hotel can hold up to 120 guests all at the same time. The most basic room has two single beds (that are each big enough to accommodate two people), one toilet and bath room, an LCD TV, and a veranda which provides a good view and free wi-fi. They do have a few rooms that have more than two beds and these need to be reserved earlier because they are not as plenty as the other rooms.




For special events or corporate gatherings, Mines View Park Hotel offers a function hall that can accommodate 100 to 150 people. They also have a New Board room that can accommodate smaller groups of 15 to 20 people. In the same building where this room is located can be found different amenities or services like a spa, gym and salon.







When checking-in or visiting this hotel, make sure to try their specialties, the Bibingcrepe and the Bibingcrisp. This is available at their HalfMoon Asian Café.



At the hotel’s main dining area known as Zenz Restaurant, you should try their Strawberry Sinigang, where freshly picked strawberries are added to the broth of pork, beef, shrimps or fish sinigang.



Mines View Park’s contact information:

Baguio office
Telefax: (6374) 442-1559
Telephone : (6374) 424-1088
Mobile Number: +63922 888-6392
Email: info@minesviewparkhotel.com
Website: www. minesviewparkhotel.com

Manila office
Telefax: (632) 372-3984 to 89 local 133



Mines View Park Hotel is located at 1 Apostol St. corner Outlook Drive, Mines View Park, Baguio City.

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Thank God for PayU2Blog!

Last week, PayU2Blog sent in many jobs and I was glad that I was able to finish all the tasks they sent. Working as one of the bloggers of PayU2Blog really is great because they have two paydays.

On those days when they give out plenty of assignments we expect a lot of blessings two weeks after that we can pay off a big part of payday loans we got. Thank God for PayU2Blog!

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Relaxing at Mines View Park Hotel

It is my first time to stay here in Mines View Park Hotel in Baguio City and I would say that I find their rooms impressive. Their most basic room has two beds, a bathroom and an LCD television. Beds have three pillows and are big enough for twin sharing so a room with two beds can actually accommodate four.

This hotel is right in the area of Mines View Park. I’m not sure why this area was called that. Maybe because there used to be some mining gold or loose diamonds going on in the area, I’m not really sure. The area here is peaceful and quiet – a good place to relax. Tomorrow I’ll be sharing more about Mines View Park Hotel.

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The Jobs I Have Tried

It's getting to know me time and in this entry, you will find out the different jobs I have been in. These are jobs wherein I worked and had a boss. But basically, I'll write down every work I did that earned me money. I'll try to put all of them in chronological order but that would be depending on how much I remember them.



1. Donut vendor - I used to walk around the streets of Project 2 & 3, Quezon City selling donuts which my father made. I can't remember when I did this but it was one of the summers during my 2nd to 5th grade years.

2. Children's party crew - I worked on weekends at Kids at Work at SM Megamall (when it was still there). Weekends were the busiest because all time slots for the parties would usually be filled. I helped prepare the party rooms every after another party and received good tips aside from our basic pay. I did this during the mid 90s.

3. Church Music Team Coordinator - I was hired by our pastor to help build our church's music ministry. After seeing that my weekend job as a children's party crew lessened my music ministry involvement, I was given a job offer to drop my weekend job and work for the church instead and help build the music team (recruit and train band members) and I received a weekly allowance for it.

4. Peidcab Driver - I remember one summer during my college years (I think I was in my third year as a BS Mechanical Engineering student), I rented a pedicab from a friend in our subdivision (Marikina Greenheights in Nangka, Marikina) and paid a boundary of PHP 15 to its owner and the money I earned above that, I used for my allowance for my evening classes.

5. Academic and Drums Tutor - During the regular semester, I took part-time jobs either as an academic tutor (for Math subjects) or as a drums tutor (I taught basic drum lessons and notation).

6. Part-time Bank Teller - I applied as a part-time teller for Bank of the Philippine Islands. I went through the same application procedure as the graduates and passed. As a part-time teller, I worked under a year's contract and was allowed to renew but the only limitation was I could only stay in one branch for each one-year contract. So, even though I could have been absorbed automatically as a probationary employee and eventually be regularized if I graduated before my contract expired, I resigned because I was going to be assigned, for the contract renewal, to a branch that was quite far from where I studied. I studied near SM Centerpoint back then and was assigned to BPI Wilson branch during my first contract.

7. Forex Trader - During college, I had to work to support my studies and sometimes had to stop from school to work when I couldn't find a part-time job. I worked as a full-time forex trader in Makati. We sought out individuals who wanted to try forex trading and I learned about the company's Forex trading software, fundamental and technical analysis. It was a financially fulfilling job because we earned in USD. But, marketing wasn't that easy especially after the Asian crisis hit in late 1997 and early 1998. I remember trading in the USD-JPY and my client lost so much money after the JPY fell.

8. Account Manager - The next job I landed was an account manager for a supplier of office supplies. This was in the middle of 1998.

9. Sales Executive - In the latter part of 1998, I worked in sales and earned only by commission, selling the Encyclopaedia Britannica. In this job, I learned how to go from house-to-house to sell the product. It was not a financially fulfilling job but I learned a lot from it.

10. Church Youth Director - After my job as a sales executive, I volunteered for Breaking Point Foundation and helped the youth organization, that hosted the team from the US in 1999, follow up the young people in schools of Marikina, through campus ministries. I was given a weekly allowance doing this.

11. Breaking Point Foundations Philippines Director - In January of 2001, on the third missions trip of the Breaking Point Foundation in the US, I was chosen to be the director of the Philippines office. This was my entry to full-time ministry.

12. Youth Pastor - Since I was working with young people, it was just natural that the youth ministry of the church be entrusted to me as well. I wore two hats - one as the director of Breaking Point and another as the youth pastor of Sumulong Baptist Church in Masinag.

13. Missions Pastor/ Church Planter - After working full-time for two years, in May 2003, me and my whole family were sent out by our mother church to start the church in Makati which I pastor until now.

14. Call center agent - When my wife became pregnant with our son in 2004, I worked in two call centers (JP Morgan Chase and Sykes) to save some money in preparation for our son's birth.

15. Part-time Blogger/Web-content Writer/Internet Marketer - At present, I work full-time as the pastor of Sumulong Baptist Church Makati and the director of Breaking Point Foundation Philippines, but, part-time, earning from blogging and internet marketing. This has helped provide for our son's education, our family's growing needs and the ministry as well.

For both professions, my wife and I have gained exposure in print media: as bloggers in Good Housekeeping Magazine last March 2010 in an article entitled "Blogging For a Living", and as ministers, also in Good Housekeeping, September 2010 issue, in an article entitled "Make Your Marriage Work" (see the pictures here).





In all these jobs, I have seen how God has molded me into the person I am right now and I know that He is not finished me yet. I have followed His calling; doing, what I believe, He has called me to do. Knowing that I am not perfect, I strive to reach the ultimate goal of my life - to give glory to God our Creator with my whole being and to let others know about the saving relationship with God.

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A Sponsored Trip to Baguio City

In a few hours my wife and I will be traveling to Baguio City with other bloggers. This trip is sponsored by Mines View Park Hotel and they will be providing transportation and accommodation to this city in Benguet.

I should actually be sleeping already but my wife and I still have online tasks to do. As I write this entry, she is doing some research on 3 insomnia treatment reviews. But, we do need to rest, even for just a few hours. It would be a nap time before our trip and we’ll just sleep on our way to Baguio City.

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Yoga in Baguio

I'm going to try yoga exercises for the second time. The first time was in Power Plant mall and the second time will be in MinesView Park Hotel in Baguio City. The yoga exercises are part of our itinerary for the visit to the hotel which they also sponsored. I will surely try yoga out which I’m sure beats even the best weight loss supplement available.

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Add a Venue in Foursquare!

I just became the mayor of YSA Skin Center (in Foursquare)! If you have no idea what I'm talking about then I guess you don’t have an account with Foursquare yet. If you own or manage a restaurant, a shop or any place you want found, foursquare can help you find new ways to connect with people who visit your venue. Visitors can check in to your venue and regular visitors have the opportunity to become its mayor.

According to foursquare...

A mayor in foursquare is the user with the most number of *days* with check-ins at a specific place within the past 60 days. Only one check-in per day counts towards your mayorship tally. If you have a lot of check-ins that seem fake or consistently far away from where you are checking in, these check-ins will not count towards the mayorship total.

As a member, you can also add venue s. You can also integrate foursquare into Facebook and Twitter.

I became a mayor of YSA when I visited the venue with my wife when she availed of a deep peel treatment. Now that she’s done she is just waiting for her face to peel. After the peeling, she will be seeing good results on her face and she may look like she used an anti wrinkle serum.

So, create a foursquare account now and add your new venue.

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Adding Sit-ups to My Exercise Routine

Lately, I have added crunches and sit-ups to my regular daily exercise routine. Since joining the Nike contest I have been doing regular push-ups – at least 40 straight push-ups, sometimes even up to 60. Most days, I easily do 40 but sometimes I stop at 35. This type of exercise is not comparable to using the p90x equipment but it helps tone my muscles and build some definition. Right now, I am targeting my abs and I’m hoping that in a few weeks I will be seeing some results.

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Watch out for My Book Review of "Outlive Your Life" by Max Lucado

I received another book from BookSneeze (Thomas Nelson) and it is Max Lucado's new book entitled Outlive Your Life. This is the fourth book I have received and will be reviewing for them. Becoming a book reviewer for BookSneeze has helped facilitate my one-book-a-month reading goal. I haven't actually read 8 books yet, maybe about 5 books but at least I am able to read some books this year. Last year, I can't even recall having finished a book (for personal reading).

Outlive Your Life by Max Lucado (Thomas Nelson)

I do read for studying for the things that I preach and teach, but I do not count those readings as part of my mental growth plan. I am so thankful for this opportunity that BookSneeze is giving for bloggers like me because now I am able to read new stuff, for free! Watch out for my review of "Outlive Your Life" by Max Lucado.

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Youth Center Opening

On September 28, 2010, Tuesday, we will be opening JIVE Youth Center, our youth ministry’s venue for members and interested young people. We will be offering activities like free drums and guitar lessons, free tutorials, and students are free to bring their peers and play bard games, chess, etc.

The youth center will be open every Tuesday and Thursday from 1:30 to 6:30 pm. Right now we are investing on equipment and game materials, office furniture, long tables and rebuilding our table tennis sports equipment to provide interested students in the area of Kalayaan Ave. near barangays Guadalupe Nuevo, Pitogo, Cembo and South Cembo in Makati.

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Our Low Cost Travel to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I celebrated my 35th birthday at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last week and I never thought I could travel to Kuala Lumpur at a relatively low cost! It was a great experience especially because it was our first time to travel together as a family out of the country.


We booked our flight via Air Asia last November 2009 and got two-way plane tickets for PHP 3,376.68. Nope, that's not per person but that's total for 2 adults and 1 child - cheaper than Wicked tickets. Me, my wife and 5-year-old son traveled to Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) in Clark early Monday last week (my birthday) and parked our car for three days. Park and fly service is available in DMIA for only PHP 90 per day and regular parking is PHP 35 only, so we spent a total of PHP 215 for the three-day parking (2 days overnight and one day regular parking).



Our flight to the LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal) in Malaysia took almost four hours. There are two airports in Kuala Lumpur and they are the LCCT and the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). Airlines like Air Asia which are categorized as low cost carriers use the LCCT. Anyway, from LCCT, we took a bus to the nearest train station that will take us to KL Sentral station. KL Sentral is 45 to 60 minutes from LCCT via a short bus ride to the nearest station (Salak Tinggi) and train from Salak Tinggi to KL Sentral. I thought that taking these two rides was faster than taking a direct bus ride from LCCT to KL Sentral because of traffic and stops at bus stops and toll plazas.




We were advised against taking a cab by friends who have been to Kuala Lumpur because they said it could be very expensive. But a significant impression I had about Kuala Lumpur is that they had a very reliable and efficient transport system (bus or train). So in our three days and two nights stay in the city, we went around using the train and the bus which my son really enjoyed.

We stayed at the Holiday Villa (that's how it is popularly known in KL) which has a new name - D' Villa Residence. We booked this nice hotel which also has apartment-type hotel rooms (with a refrigerator, kitchen, living room, dining area, toilet and bath room and bedroom) via Agoda and it cost us only USD $120 for the 3D/2N accommodation. This hotel is located along Jalan Ampang about 2 km from is on the same street as the Petronas Towers.

Holiday Villa

Our first destination was no other than the Petronas Twin Towers. Visiting the Sky Bridge (the bridge that connects the twin towers) is free but you would have to line up early morning to secure your time slot for the visit. Visit time slots are every 15 minutes starting at 9:00 am. We arrived around 8:15 am and the line was already very long but it was a good thing we were still able to secure 3:15 pm for our Sky Bridge visit.



After getting our tickets, we took photos outside the majestic structure and then spent some time in Suria KLCC, the mall right below the Petronas Twin Towers. We then walked to Temple Kun Yam Thong which is a nearby Buddhist Temple and took photos.







From there, we traveled by train to Chinatown and went first to Sri Maha Mariamman Temple a Hindu temple founded in 1873. It is the oldest and richest Hindu temple in Kuala Lumpur and is situated at edge of Chinatown in Jalan Bandar.





After taking photos, we walked around Chinatown and did a few shopping. The tip that I read about shopping in Chinatown was that you must bargain about 50% than what was first given by the seller and this worked for us.

Jalan Petaling in Chinatown

Our next destination was back to Suria KLCC. We rested our feet and our tummies at the A&W restaurant in that mall and we each enjoyed a mug of A&W rootbeer float. Around 3:00 pm we walked to the Sky Bridge visit reception area for our 3:15 pm schedule.



We were showed an introductory video about Petronas and their mega structure and then were ushered to the high-speed elevator which took us to the 41st floor (where the Sky Bridge is located) in less than one-minute. Our batch of visitors was given about 10-15 minutes on the Sky Bridge which allowed us enough time to enjoy the view of Kuala Lumpur and to take photos.

View of Kuala Lumpur from the Sky Bridge

We then proceeded to Pavilion, a big mall in Bukit Bintang, via train from KLCC to Dang Wangi the transfered to the mono rail and traveled from Bukit Nanas station to Bukit Bintang station. We had dinner at the Food Republic, a place in the mall where they sold Penang street food. My wife tried the Prawn Mee and I tried the Pan Mee Curry Chicken. Each meal cost only MYR 8.50 and MYR 9.90 (around PHP 117 and PHP 140), respectively.

Prawn Mee

Pan Mee Curry Chicken

A mono-rail ride, a train ride and a bus ride were what it took for us to get back to our hotel,but not before taking some more photos of the Petronas Towers. It is quite a sight at night.






This was not a very expensive trip at all. In fact, it cost us a little more than PHP 20,000 (USD $465) for this whole trip to Kuala Lumpur inclusive of airfare, travel tax, terminal fee, hotel accommodation, city travel and food. Over all, it was a great birthday getaway with my family and a real budget travel to Kuala Lumpur. You can view our other photos here and here.

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