First Phone Ever

Was about to log off but I remembered that I need to blog about my first phone ever. No, I've had a phone since 2nd year high school (Phillips Fizz pa nun!) but that was really a family phone that they let me take to school since they wanted to make sure I was safe each time I had to take the bus alone all the wya home to Laguna. I've also had a few phones since then but they were all hand-me-downs from my sister who happens to like changing phones and getting a newer model every few years. It's not that I've been completely broke for more than a decade to buy a new phone but I've always taken pride in being practical. This time though Silas' phone (3310 pa po), which I've been borrowing for a month now just won''t cooperate with my cheapness anymore "forcing" me to allow Mark to buy me my first ever truly new phone.

I absolutely love my new phone (Nokia 7310). It's pink, has a mirror surface, and has all the basic stuff I need in my phone (text messaging, a calculator, calendar, alarm clock, and notes). It also has some extra stuff but though I like them I just need my basics. The plus factor is the cam since I can now take pics of Sam anytime anywhere. Its also really good for me that its a new model since it can last me another 5 years or maybe more unless Sam manages to learn to start dunking stuff in the toilet bowl (in which case I'd be glad to have a phone messed up just to see my son a big enough boy to get in silly troubles).

Thanks Mark. You do know when to push me to stop being too cheap. Hehe. I love your Crhistmas gift! Tons better than the electronic toothbrush (though I did like that too! Hehe.) ^_^

Thinking about it though I still haven't ever bought my own phone yet. Maybe before I turn 40 I would but myself a new one...or maybe I can just keep on waiting for Mark to get tired of my phones breaking down and letting him buy me one for a gift. That's what husbands are for afterall, right? :p

Social Spark

My sister told me to try SocialSpark and I finally did this morning, while waiting for Mark to get dressed and ready for their trek/swim at Batangas. I had no idea what it was about but since it said "social" then I though it'd be a good opportunity to widen my social network online without resorting to joining/answering endless memes. So far here's what I've found out about it:

1. People there are really active - Someone already messaged me and added me as friend within a few minutes of signing up.
2. I can actually earn money through it - It looks a bit like PPP but with more emphasis on the social aspect.
3. Editing the profile page is both easy and hard - It's really easy to add and crop my pic (unlike lots of websites I've joined before!) but since I am pretty fickle at times (as Mark can attest to) I had a hard time thinking about my blog description so I'll end up with something more than "My personal blog." The good thing about it is that I ended up with something that I could at last replace the depressing sentence at the top of my blog. I don't even remember the negative words there before....a really good thing!
4. The public profile page is nice - In terms of layout it's pretty intuitive. It highlights the basic info about me yet still manages to pack in all the other features (which I need to explore) without making it look messy.
5. I need to wait for the ITK - I have absolutely no idea what it is but I'm sure I chose the code that says claim+ITK. Since it has something to do with my blog stats I'm guessing I didn't do anything wrong but just like when I signed up for Google Analytics I need to wait a bit.

So far my profile page is looking pretty lonesome. If you have a Social Spark account do add me as friend. I just hope I don't get hooked up with it as I did for a few weeks with Facebook...I need to work!

Joining the PPP Bandwagon

After years and years of resisting the PPP (payperpost) pull I have finally joined the bandwagon. Andrea dn my sister are the mainly the ones who've convinced me that it's profitable enough to join. I promise my dear subscribers though that I wouldn't be flooding this blog with pitchy posts. Will of course be posting more frequently though I'll refrain from posting more than once a day. For those who have been blogging long enough to have a pretty decent page rank I suggest that you also take this opportunity to earn more money. Don't worry about getting spammy. If you have a deep aversion for it you'll probably be able to strike the proper balance between earning enough money and the number of posts. Besides with a good page rank you'll get offers to post stuff for even up to $80 or more making too frequent posts unnecessary.

And guys if you catch me becoming too commercial for your taste please do tell me. Don't want my friends to stop reading my blog just to earn stuff! If you're my friend though you wouldn't mind me trying to make an extra buck. :p

Handmade Alpaca Shawl for FPWR

My dear US readers please do check out the handmade alapaca shawl being sold on eBay. Charlene, the seller, is a PWS mom who will be donating the proceeds from this sale to FPWR. If you don't need one you can get is a a gift or at least show the link to your friends. Give to charity and get something unique and beautiful in return! Just two day and a few hours left to bid....

Checkups

Sam's health card is here at last. Now we go to Makati and they'll go bankrupt from all the checkups and tests he'll need. Hehehe.

Family News

Got lots of things going on in our little family once again. The big news is that WE"RE FINALLY MOVING! WE"RE GOING TO GET TO LIVE ON OUR OWN!!! I am obviously totally hyped up about it. We'll be moving to Quezon City just a little distance from SM North Edsa. Mark also want to post about it but he doesn't want to till he has some pics to show. We found the place last Saturday after we didn't find any of the places we found on the newspaper ads to be right for us. Our criteria for moving was:

• It should be really near Sam's therapy center.
• It should fit our very little budget.
• It should have good airflow.
  
• It should be as presentable as possible. In case we couldn't get a nice apartment we wanted one we could fix up.

Here's what we got:

• A 5-10min walk from Sam's therapy center.
• A small 2 bedroom condo for P6500 per month. P175/per person for water. No association dues.
• Not hot at all. With good airflow since the corridors are open at both ends plus we're located on the third floor.
• Spanking brand new place. The visitor's lounge at the ground floor isn't even finished yet. We even got a mini-porch.

All in all we got something that's so much better than we ever hoped for. And here I was determined to find something P6K and below that we can renovate. Oh me of little faith. We got a P6.5K deal, which doesn't need to be renovated at all. I loooove great deals.

What's even better is that Ate Neng, the manager, held the unit for us WITHOUT any downpayment since we didn't have any cash on hand. Mark's paying the required 2mos advance and deposit this Wednesday but the few days hold was really important since the place was selling like donuts. They had a policy that no reservations could be made without the down payment. Well of course we just had to mention our trump card, Sam, and we always get what we want.

More good news that excites me. Since we don't have any furniture or big appliances (except for the bed from Rico - thank ye Rico dear) we're having our table and book shelves and whatever else wood stuff we might need made out of the red lawan wood that washed up during the October storm. My dad had portions of the tree cut into planks and since it's really good wood we get to have quality furniture for a very very low price. I'd hate ...no I love to imagine how much it would have cost us ready made at SM.

And last. Mark has even cut a deal with his officemate (I love you Monics though you might not really know me) for her unused refrigerator. She bought it at 10k and we get it for half the price. She's selling it because her husband also bought a ref from the States and sent it to her just when she bought the one she's selling now . Thank God for other people's mistakes.

So many blessings. As I said this year is just going to get better.