Looking Forward To My Myrtle Beach Vacation

We as a family always look forward to our yearly vacation. This is a time wherein we set aside at least five days just to be together and to maintain the close ties within us. This year 2009, we had the pleasure of going to one of the Philippines' (and probably one of the world's) best beaches in Surigao del Sur, Mindanao. Aside from its clear waters and white sand, we had sumptous meals of crabs, shirmps, and fresh fish.

A close family friend based in the US has just come to visit our parents in the Philippines and having known our family tradition, unexpectedly invited us to go visit them in the US and have a vacation at the various Myrtle Beach Resorts near their residence in South Carolina.

We have never been to the United States, so naturally, the invitation gave a lot of excitement to all of us, so we begin to dream of booking into one of the nicest Oceanfront Myrtle Beach Resort there is in the area.

I have made some research in the internet and I found out that the Myrtle Beach Resort in South Carolina has been selected the Best Family Beach by the Travel Channel. This must probably be because there are a whole lot of activities waiting for the whole family to enjoy when you get to go there. The Myrtle Beach Resort is close to Amusement Parks, Water Parks, Museums, Restaurants, and Golf courses.

We're still mapping up our plans, because we have to prepare lots of travel documents, but I am now looking forward to having my vacation in South Carolina. Of course, I am expecting a lot of expenses, so I am now looking for ways to earn extra income. :)

Typhoon Ondoy Videos

Typhoon Ondoy brought much havoc and disaster in the Philippines, especially on the Metro Manila Area where many houses were submerged in water. Hunders of people died, and thousands of families were relocated to various evacuation areas.

As of the moment, there is a continuous search and rescue operations for those victims who are still trapped in their houses, specifically on Marikina, Pasig, and other parts of Rizal.

Kindly click on the link below to show various videos posted in youtube showing how much damage the typhoon brought to the Philippines:

1. Video taken at the UERM showing various vehicles floating on the flood.

2. GMA News' video showing the damages in Marikina and Rizal.

We know that many properties were badly damaged, but thanks be to all our kababayans who continue to help the victims.

All of us can help in our own little ways!

House Made For Wood

House Made For Wood- Is the title incorrect? We oftentimes hear and read the phrase “house made of wood” to refer to those country houses that are made of wood materials. I so love those types of houses which I often see on Hollywood movies whose settings are on the west side of America.

So much for that, because what I am blogging today is not “house made of wood”, but “house made for wood”.

During my most recent trip back to my hometown, I was surprised to see that my father is still using firewood as an alternative for gas in cooking. This is because there are still a couple of big acacia trees surrounding our ancestral house, so naturally we have an ample supply of wood for use.

However, my father is resigned to the fact that it is hard to keep firewood outside the house. The current firewood rack that he himself created about six months ago could not keep the wood from being wet, especially when heavy rains occur in the area. The firewood are being decayed as a result of being wet, especially when rains occur continuously for two to three days.

Also, firewood rack, or log rack, when kept outside the house are prone to bugs and termites; insects that destroy the wood by eating and rigging it. The ideal solution is to keep the firewood inside the house, but this will require a lot of space, and may even make your house to look untidy.

When I reported back for work, a co-employee advised me of what he has just browsed in the internet about a house that is made for wood that could be the answer to my father’s problem. And true enough, as soon as I saw the sample picture, I was awed at how the makers and designers of the firewood rack were able to conceptualize the idea.


The rack is perfect for my father’s need. It can store and endure as much wood because the material is made of metal. Further, it seems that it will not cover much space because of its sleek design. Additionally, there is a good cover that will help keep the wood from being wet.

I am now planning to contact the supplier and ask how about the price, and the shipping terms. This could very well be a very good early Christmas gift for my father. Thanks to my co-employee who let me know about this house made for wood.

Getting Over Postnatal Depression

Postnatal depression, or postpartum depression, is a clinical depression that can affect women after giving birth. Typical symptoms include sadness, insomnia, appetite changes, crying episodes, anxiety, and irritability.

According to recent studies, postpartum depression, it is more likely that it is due to the significant changes in a woman's hormones during pregnancy.

Also, it must be noted that after pregnancy, women typically feel bad about themselves because of the changes in their physical bodies. Thus, a woman who just gave birth tends to be jealous over the fact that her husband might go and look for another woman who looks better than her.

It is therefore, during these times, that a husband should always ensure to his wife that she is still and will always be the love of her life. And to further assure her, why not surprise her with a Mommy Makeover?

Mommy makeover includes special procedures designed to bring back a woman's body just like before pregnancy. Or, in other words, she can have the body just like when her husband fell in love with her. Isn't that nice to hear?

A common problem encountered by women who gave birth are stretches or strechmarks in their midsection, or tummy. This is due to excess fat deposits that are oftentimes not automatically removed after giving birth. A good treatment for this is the California tummy tuck. A tummy tuck (or abdominoplasty) tightens back the muscles in the stomach by removing excess fat and skin.

Another issue after pregnancy is having overlarge breasts. This can sometimes result to back pains and neck pains, and can make mothers to work and move uncomfortably. A sure way to treat this is by having the Los Angeles breast reduction. Of course, the physicians will see to it that mothers will get the results that will make women work well and feel well about themselves.

Women need not be depressed about how they look after pregnancy. And men need not look for other women, as well. With these new technologies, mothers can always look beautiful and sexy all over again- even after pregnancy.

Silicone Bracelets: More Than A Fashion Statement

Perhaps the use of Silicone Bracelets became most popular when various NBA superstars have started wearing them during their games. Immediately, other players from different leagues, both in the US and in other foreign countries, also wore, and even personalized their own bracelets, or more popularly known as Baller IDs.

After a while, people from all walks of life can be seen wearing silicone bracelets. Thus, from just a mere sports accessory, these bracelets have become a fashion statement to many people, especially the younger generations. And apart from other fads, the use of Silicone Bracelets did not cease immediately, but rather, various companies and organizations have decided to put them for other uses.

As a fine example, when our church conducted its yearly Summer Family Camp, the organizers of the event endorsed each camper with one silicone bracelet which serves as each one's ID.

Even big companies found use of silicone bracelets as a form of giveaway and promotional item during various corporate events. This prove to be a very good advertising material because people tend to see company names and logos printed on the bracelets.

I also witnessed a candidate for a national election in the Philippines who distributed silicone bracelets during his campaigns.

What made Silicone Bracelets click in the market?

First, because they are hip and trendy, so people can create fashion out of them. People can mix and match with the various colors available.

Second, silicone bracelets are a good advertising medium. Companies can put their corporate statements. Sports advertisers can include sports players' numbers. Civic organizations use them to advertise their battlecry.

Third, silicone bracelets are not that expensive.

No wonder why people love them. No wonder why silicone bracelets has become more than a fashion statement.

Only The Best

Our family always looks forward on Sunday evenings because that is the only available time that we are able to gather together as one and eat together for dinner. Oftentimes, we indulge ourselves in sea foods, vegetable salads and barbecues. The kids, well, they just want hotdogs.

Barbecues, of course, are our favorite, the delicious recipe having been passed from our grandmother to our mother, and now, to us. There is actually no fuss with the recipe, because we just marinate the meat with soy sauce and citrus juice for about two hours before putting it on the grill. For an exceptional taste, a little ketchup is added on the marinate sauce.

We use the conventional-type grill, but later on, I noticed that conventional grills have very limited capacities. While browsing thru the internet one time, I was surprised (and delighted) to see a revolutionary-type Big Green Egg Grill that introduces a three-in-one outdoor cooker.

The Big Green Egg is a grill that can be used as a smoker barbecue, a barbecue grill, and an oven. It seems to me that this Big Green Egg Grill is the best choice during family gatherings because we can actually minimize space for three important functions.

Perfect for outdoors, the Big Green Egg will surely deliver the best-tasting fall off the bone, hot off the grill juicy barbecue that the family always loves. The grill can also be used for cooking our side dish vegetables.

As if that’s all, this ceramic-made Big Green Egg Grill also functions as an oven. Thus, you can also try using it in preparing baked pies, breads and even pizzas.

The grills come in different sizes, so you can choose the most suitable for you. Whether you need to cater for a small or large group, there is always a convenient grill package for you.

Indeed, for families such as ours, the Big Green Egg delivers what’s best, because we deserve only the best.

Office Guide To Impressing Auditors

Our group of company's internal audit season began last September 5. The inter-company offices in Vietnam and Singapore both recieved satisfactory marks from our head office-based auditors, so the pressure is really on us this first week of October as we are the next office to be reviewed. We are, of course, aiming to get a very satisfactory rating, so our team have all been working hard these past two weeks in reviewing and polishing every documents and controls.

As the audit will focus more on the financial records of the company, we have met and discussed any possible ways and means wherein we can make a good impression on our auditors for a start.

We have set-up a dedicated convenient office space for the auditors complete with office supplies needed during the audit. Further, we have inquired them if there are any particular documents that they want prepared already when they come and visit us. This works for both us (the auditee) and the auditors because it saves a lot of time, rather than when we only prepare what they need when they come and ask us.

After receiving the long list of documents needed, we have asked a staff to go browse the internet and look for a supplier of cheap binders. We do not have luxury of much time, so we have required a supplier who can deliver the supplies the earliest time possible at a reasonable price. Binders proved to be very useful in compiling volimunous documents, rather than using regular folders and envelopes. Much more, use of binders are more presentable for the review.

Another good product that we found useful are binder sleeves because binder sleeves provide more printing space rather than when we use the common-type binders. To enhance our documentation, we also put in tabs so we can label and segrate files neatly.

Now we are ready for the coming audit. We know we deserve to recieve the "very satisfactory" remark because we are one team doing the jobs effectively, efficiently, and correctly.