In Search of a Good Web Directory

Don’t you sometimes hate how you get results from web directories? You’d have to go through a lot of different results that are not even close to your search criteria that by the time you’re on the 3rd page, you’d rather give up. I just hate it. It would be easier to have a directory where sites are placed in categories. It’s easier to search for relevant web sites.

I found such a site in Big Web Links Bid Directory. This baby is a search engine friendly web directory where sites are listed by category and by contribution amount. This is a major plus for webmasters too because your site could get a chance to be on the front of the page of the category by adjusting the amount needed to achieve the goal. This would give you a greater chance to increase your ranking. Quite a deal if you ask me. Okay, enough posting, I’d better head there and enlist my blog to increase my ranking! Ciao!

Still Here. Still Sane.

I'm still here and I'm still sane. I'm so sorry if my blog seems to be like a Peek-A-Boo game of posts. The past week went by in a blur. I had to help my parents with the move. Yes, it finally happened. It was a bittersweet moment. Sad about leaving and yet excited about their new life. They're all settled now. Things out of the boxes and placed in proper places. I didn't know we had so much stuff! My parents are sentimental folks for sure. I now know where I got my sentimental streak! lol! Our beloved dogs are now in a farm in Batangas, enjoying, I might add. They're romping around the farm like crazy. God is truly good and I thank all of you who prayed with me. Special thank-you shout out to Mia for her help! An old friend of my dad had a farm in Batangas and being a dog-lover himself, took in our pets. I am staying with them right now so I don't have access to the World Wide Web, thus the MIA on posts and on my CTs too! :( I feel bad. But hopefully this weekend I'd be able to post my layouts. Oh and don't get me started on my job, lol! It's been pretty crazy this week. Will tell you about it on my next post. I am actually here in the office so, gotta get back to working mode. Ciao!

New Products

Check out the new products from Karen Lewis! Love all the colors on her Kits! Go and have a look at her shop at One of A Kind Scrapz

Here are a few of my layouts using her Illusion Kit and Go Go Go! kit:

A Wonderful Solution to Addiction

While I am on the topic of drug treatment, I found another facility that I like as well – Stone Hawk. What I like about this place is that they do not use any drugs or medication to resolve the issues but instead, use proper nutrition and nutritional supplements to help eliminate the addiction. They do not treat clients as patients but instead treat them as students as they are learning to take back control of their lives. Isn’t that wonderful? I think that’s the best way to deal with these issues, to not treat it as a disease but rather as an opportunity to learn.

It is also noteworthy to mention that 70% of their Rehab Graduates were able to beat drug addiction successfully! Wow! I am off to tell my friend more about this wonderful facility!

Another Woot!

I got into Danielle Young's CT! Woot! I love her products too and I can't wait to start! She sells her woderful digi products at OScraps so drop by there and have a look-see! :)

Oh and while you're there, check out the Mouse Hunt that OScraps is having on honor of their 1st Birthday! Fabulous freebies await those who find the hidden treat! :) This only runs this week so don't delay!

Dealing With Addiction

All of us have a certain kind of addiction. Right now, I can say my addiction is Digital Scrapping! lol! But for some people, addcition takes another face.

One of the major addiction that I am most afraid to is addtiction to illegal drugs. I can never imagine myself getting mixed up with that stuff. Not that I am condemning those who do, It's just that I've seen too much of how it can destroy one's life and even the life of your family. That is why I never ever stepped an inch close to taking them.

Right now, someone I know is into this and it has affected his entire family. It's really sad how things turned out. True to the addicts symptoms, this guy would often ask his parents money, even if he knew his parents were having a hard time as it is to make ends meet. He's also beginning to steal stuff. i just feel bad for my friend. It's really hard to deal with this and although I pity him, I also strongly believe that he needs a lot and lot of help.

I was talking to someone from his family and they were asking me if I knew any drug treatment they could put him into. I led them to 4rehabilitation.com, a rehabilitation service that offers treatments for drug and alcohol addiction. I learned so much from the site as they had different articles about addiction, how it affects a person, the intervention needed and they even have aftercare programs! Another nice thing about this site is that they have a free assesment tool you could use. Your privacy is protected as well as they are very committed to keeping your privacy - private! Isnt't that great?

I told my friends that 4rehabilitation.com is the best way to go! They said they will call the facility and if things go well, will put their family member there. It was the only solution they could think of to help him get over his addiction. Of course prayers and lots and lots of love couldn't hurt.

Help Our Pets Please!

We need immediate help.

Does anyone know of any local animal shelter here in the Philippines aside from PAWS?

You see, my family is moving this week and we don't know where we would put our pet dogs since the owner of the house does not allow pets. (he only allowed our shih tzu's since they're small). :( We have several dogs. Not that my dad is irresponsible. It's just that he loves them so much that when a few relatives and friends would want to kill ( >:( ) them because they have so many already, my dad would rather keep them and raise them. Our house had a big backyard so the dogs were really comfy. My dad made sure they were well fed and cared for. The dogs aren't really pure bred nor are they "askal" (street dogs). They're actually of mix breeds. But they're really really nice and protective of us and I don't want them to be put to sleep. :(

My dad already went to PAWS and he was advised that they do not accept and they would still put the dogs to sleep anyway. My dad would not hear of it and is exhausting all efforts in looking for a place for our dear pets. If all efforts fail, then my dad will be forced to have them put to sleep.

I just feel so bad about this. Them dogs have protected our family from robbers, rat infestation (yes they chase rats away from our house), and have given us so much joy and love that having to give them away or putting them to sleep breaks our hearts.

It's kind of a rush since the developer who bought the lot would be demolishing next week. (Thank God My mom and dad was able to find a 4 bedroom house to rent somewhere nearby. Story about the move here.)

So please, if you know of someone or any organization that would accept our pets, or any suggestions for that matter, we would really really appreciate it. Leave me a comment or send me a private mail at nyree.belen@gmail.com.

Still Alive..

Hi all! Just wanted to say that I'm still alive! LOL!

It's just been a hectic week what with all the changes in the company, my parents moving houses, issues here at home. I'll be posting about these soon!

Oh, and I just wanted to announce that I got into several Creative Teams! I'm excited to start!

At a loss..

..for words. The other day, I found out that fellow Bebot, Diane lost her child. I just went over to her blog (prior to receiving the news) and learned that Huey is sick with tonsilitis. When I went over to the Bebots forum, I learned that Huey was gone already. I feel for Diane. I could not even begin to imagine the pain she is going through. No words would ever suffice. Diane, you and your family are in our prayers. May God embrace you and shower you with His comfort.

Meeting your Mate Over the Net? Is this Possible?

Raised in a culture where meeting someone is not done over the World Wide Web, my curiosity was tickled when I heard about online dating. Meeting someone over the net and dating them, some eventually leading to marriage, is all new to me. I see it in movies, I hear it from acquaintances but I just couldn’t picture it. How does it work anyway?

A high school classmate recently got married to someone she met from a free dating services site. My curiosity (didn’t kill me – thank you! LOL) resurfaced and I went and hopped on over the site. I was surprised how easy it was. You just indicate your age, what you are looking for, their qualities and that’s it! You can even search by state which is really cool. That way you won’t be liking someone only to find out they’re miles away from you. The best thing about this is that you get everything that a paid dating service offers 100% free through this site.

Hmm… come to think of it, this free dating service could work. After all, meeting someone is just the beginning. Both would have to make the relationship work – if it was meant to be. They can not just blame the site if things don’t pan out. It all still boils down to meeting the right someone at the right time. But who knows, the right someone could be online right now. ;-) Me? Nah. I’m already married to Mr. Right. ;-)

Great Coupon Deals!

It was during my almost 1 year stint as a customer service representative for Expedia.com that my love for traveling blossomed. I traveled locally before but going to places internationally is my dream. I imagine myself walking Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris, France. Or visit the St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, Italy. I would often share the excitement of my customers when they book for their travel to these places for the first time.

One of the things I noticed though was most of the customers use Expedia coupons for their travel needs. Don’t get me wrong, Expedia has great travel deals but sometimes one only has a certain budget in mind. This stirred my curiosity and I immediately went and searched for sites that could offer great coupons. One of my favorite coupon website is Coupon Chief. They have a wide variety of coupons available from clothes, travel, gifts, health, you name it, and they’ve got it! I even went ahead and suggested this site to my customers and they found this website really useful too! Now, I’m off to dreaming about traveling again. Maybe someday I’d get to realize that dream, and when I do, you’d be sure that coupons are on top of my list of travel buddies.

Overwhelmed

Last week was the most overwhelming week ever! I won't bore you with the details as you might get bored with all the workforce lingo but to make the long story short, I spent more than 12 hours everyday in the office the whole week. I tell you, making schedules for 400 plus agents is no easy task! ;-) But inspite of the lack of sleep, I enjoyed scheduling and given the "issue" here at home, working late didn't bother me at all. ;-)

The one thing I did miss was scrapping! So, yesterday, with eyes drooping, I finished yet another LO. Plus, I got into 2 Creative Teams! Karen Lewis and Stephanie Ogren! Yey! Check out my Blinkie for Creations by Karen:

Let me share with you the layouts I finished last week! We brought my Godchild, Emman to Manila Zoo for his birthday. I promise to tell you all bout it next time. For now, here are the layouts. Leave me some love okay? :)

CREDITS HERE

Can't Wait for Summer!

Summer's near! :) I can't wait to hit the beach and get some sun! Oh the joy of being near the sea, feeling the sand on my feet and seeing the throng of people just having fun. I think the last time Hubby and I went to the beach was March of last year. A year is a long time to be away from the beach!

Anyway, due to some financial issues, we won't be able to hit the beach this month, but that didn't stop me from searching for my beach outfit lol! I stumbled upon Active Online and they have a variety of sandals in their online store. I have taken a liking to their rainbow sandals brand and will be getting me a pair of these

Oooh! I love the simplicity and flexibility of this design! It's not a flip flop but it's still gonna be perfect for the beach! Plus, I could also use this for casual walks in the mall. I am not too keen on the $45 price tag though, but Active online has a reliable shipping history, I'd rather buy my pair than anywhere else.

Oops, hubby caught me browsing through the different sandals on Active online and gave me the "you-better-get-ahold-of-yourself" stare so I better pick just one. LOL! He wants to get a pair of these though:

Peek-a-Boo!

A little peek to say hello! Sorry I've been MIA for a while. I'm on the Mid-shift again (1PM 'til 10PM) and it sucks! I feel like I couldn't do anything when I'm on this shift. Sigh! Oh well, I guess that's how it is.

I am actually at work right now, just taking a break and saying hello to all of you from our office pantry, LOL!

Oh and before I forget, I just want to say Hi to an angel. You know who you are ;-). Thank you so much for your kindness and generosity. You don't know how much your kind deed meant to me. Rest assured that an act of kindness on my part will be passed along to another person in honor of you! God bless you a thousandfold!

WiFi My World

One of the best things about technology nowadays is that you can connect to the world anytime anywhere. Compared to the way it was back then, when you have a stationary desktop and connect with slow connections, today you have the flexibility of connecting to the World Wide Web anytime, anywhere, and may I say with mind boggling connection speeds.

My husband and I are currently using DSL. It’s fast but we can only connect through the cable attached. We want to have the flexibility of connecting to the internet anywhere in the house so we are now on the lookout on great wifi deals.

Having that thought in mind, I wondered if our company had wifi connection and if they got the best of the best in secure wifi connection. After all, this is a must for big businesses like them. Since I was looking over the net for wifi deals, I was able to find Cisco’s Unified Wireless Network. Perfect for our office! I am definitely making a suggestion to our IT head to contact Cisco's data centre

If they get Cisco’s wifi system, then client meetings at the downstairs coffee shop would be a breeze.