Just got home from iBlog4... Sorta. Actually, I've already taken my shoes off, sighed the Metro Manila pollution out of my lungs, and gobbled up (literally) my dinner. Sorry, but I was hungry. I didn't even know I was that hungry until I noticed that I was stuffing my mouth with food in a really Eun Chan-ish way, which is totally NOT what I normally do.

So, anyway. iBlog4. Good talks. Friendly bloggers. Organized...organizers. Fun event.

When I got to the venue, I scanned the room to look for familiar faces only to find...none. Well, actually, Tess was already there, but I guess I missed her the first time I looked. I got a seat and, while waiting for my friends to arrive, I got my camera out to take photos of the venue.

Except my camera's battery was, as it turns out, empty. Argh # 1.

Read full post...

A little past nine the event began, and still my friends who were supposed to come with me weren't there. Ah, well. The guys beside me (Vincent, Arthur and Josh of ChickenMafia.com) and I talked a couple of times, a couple of sentences a time, anyway, so... Yeah.

In between speakers (the first ones were Charo Nuguid and Brain Gorrell), bloggers were allowed to pitch for their blogs, and one pitch that stood out is a girl (can't remember her name!) who advertised her brother's site, PinoyIdol2008.com and SurvivorPhilippines.com. Haha! The guy is a genius for getting those domain names first before GMA Network did.

By 10 AM, we had a 30-minute break. While I was writing notes for this blog post, this cameraman began taking a video of me. It was hard to pretend not to see the camera when the spotlight was glaring straight into my eyes. Haha!

I went outside to look for people, and saw Tess and AJ, whom I've only talked with on Twitter but never met personally.

The break ends, and we go back in to listen to Pinoyblogero Karlo, who slipped and disclosed his online earnings when his mother was in the audience(Haha! Bye-bye allowance from the parents?) and Juned, who kept fishing camera after camera out of his pockets (how on earth he fit all those in his pockets, I cannot imagine). Juned made me want to buy a fisheye camera. (As If I can afford it.)

Just as Jonas Diego started on web comics, my laptop's battery died. Argh # 2. And then my power cable's adaptor wasn't in my bag. Argh#3!!! And I wanted to read his comics, too! I shall do that after I finish this post.

Beth arrived during lunch break. Strange that she wasn't included in the participants' list, when she was in the list online. Hmmmm. She didn't get an ID. Too bad.

After Marcelle pitched for his blog he did a magic trick (by popular demand). I think this is now a staple in blogger events. Haha!

The afternoon went by pretty quickly: Aileen and Coy's amusing informative video/talk on podcasting and vlogging, the three speakers on Blogging and Elections (Luz Rimban, Manuel Quezon III, and Janette Toral), and Atty. Disini's open forum on legal concerns in blogging. All three talks were interesting and important ones, but I just have to say that Atty Disini's portion got my attention the most. Hehe. Copyright infringement and such.

We had another break (I just stayed in my seat and closed my eyes) before Noemi Dado's talk on blogging for a cause.

The last speaker of the day was Ria Jose from Davao, on the Mindanao Blogging Experience. It was a really fun talk, and it SO made me want to go ahead and try making a blog on Quezon City (or any niche blog, really) like what the Mindanao Bloggers did. Hmmm... I'll think about it and weigh the possibilities. It was a really fun talk, methinks, and the Mindanao people were a fun bunch, even from where they sat.

And, my goodness, the whole of Davao has free WiFi?! ARGH! Why can't it be like that in Quezon City?!

Aaaaanyway. The iBlog4 came to a close with me winning an iBlog4 shirt (along with 50 other people), and all the (remaining) participants climbing on the stage for a group photo. After that photo session, I got to have a picture taken with Arthur in the Chicken costume. Dude, you rock!

I was beside Aileen (in a rocking Pinoy Blogger shirt) and BA during the stage photo... Seeing him now (and comparing how he looks like now to how he did during the last time I saw him, which was in the first Blogger Food Fest in MOA) made me realize how long I was absent from offline blogger events. Yikes. I should go to more events and meet my blogger friends!

...I say that, and yet I didn't go to the after-event party at Katipunan. Haaaay. It's so hard to be in demand and I have to be in several places at once. Hehe.

Wrapping up, again, I say: iBlog4. Good talks. Friendly bloggers. Organized organizers. Fun event!

Labels: blogging, iblog

Posted by sarah at 7:03 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Got this from BlogActionDay. Not exactly 100% accurate, but amusing, nonetheless. :)




Read full post...

Greed: -1

Passion

Profit

You're not in this for the money, for you blogging is all about the passion! Sure you might make a little pocket change now and again, but you know that it's the content, the audience and the people that are what makes blogging great!

Experience: 5

Newbie

Experienced

You've been blogging since Nick Denton was in diapers. When it comes to blogging experience you are the authority on blogging. Heck you probably even have a blog where you give advice about blogging!

Sociability: 7

Hermit

Social

You love web 2.0 stuff like Digg and Delicious and you're involved in more blogging groups, networks and activities than anyone else you know. With all your connections, you make Neil Patel look positively anti-social!

Labels: blogging, meme, quizzes

Posted by sarah at 10:59 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

By popular demand, I'll post something. And that something is... a list. Oh, joy.

Lately: I've been...

Reading manga.

Reading books: Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, Persuasion by Jane Austen, and The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay.

Working my butt off. I've been insanely busy the past weeks, but I've actually been having fun. leGASP! Yes. I'm not being sarcastic. I'm actually enjoying my job again. Of course, my schedule still sucks, and my wallet's still in agony, and bills have been screaming at me, but...yeah. I'm smiling again. Tiredly, but smiling nonetheless.

Planning for NaNoWriMo only to scrap all plans, and then replanning, and then scrapping them again, only to end up deciding to say "oh, whatever" and NOT to have any plans at all for it. At first I wanted to have an outline of some sort, or at least a main plot, before diving into this, but since I've ALWAYS planned my stories, I thought I'd try something new. And, hey, top-of-the-head writing is the whole point of NaNoWriMo, anyway. Heeheehee.

Writing Nathaniel and the Orphan. If you're my reader, do not fear. I am writing it. Seriously. I'm just... Having a really really hard time because I'm nearing the end of the book.

Rereading the Blue Star stories. Just for the heck of it. I didn't really plan to: one day I just saw my FPcom profile and saw my old titles. I checked out the first episode I ever wrote, and before I knew it, I was sucked into the Blue Star world all over again.

Trying to pick up The Death and Life of Matsuo Yuuji. Yes, omg, I tried to write a new chapter. I really did. I haven't written a word of it, though, but...I tried. Yes. I think this was brought about by my rereading of Blue Star. Haha!



So...obviously, I've been writing a whole lot of things (or trying, anyway) that if I actually had a writing blog, I would've had a gazillion posts already as I vent out my frustrations and crappy ideas. Heh.

Labels: blogging, books, writing

Posted by sarah at 9:21 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Are there old posts in your archive that you think people should look back on? Are there posts that you think your new readers would thoroughly enjoy reading?

I ask this because something strange is happening to my blog traffic. It's nothing to be alarmed about, of course, but it's definitely interesting.

Somehow, my old posts —like, almost-three-years-ago type of "old post"— are getting attention. I don't really know why... Nobody's noticed them much before (nobody except for my three best friends who were my only readers at the time).

Sure, sure, my newer, more popular posts are still garnering most of the hits, but my eyebrow sort of just rose by itself when I saw really really old posts getting a couple of hits per day.

So, anyway. Since some people seem to find these interesting, I (re-)present to you my Top 5 Oldest Posts. Read full post...

Katamaran (Laziness) - An all-Filipino post, and is currently one of the top 10 most visited posts in my blog. Yes. It's swimming in there, along with the top posts that are listed on the upper right side of this page. This post is actually my reaction paper on Tungkol sa Katamaran ng mga Pilipino a literary work by Dr. Jose Rizal, the Philippine National Hero. I wrote this for a social studies course during my senior year in college. Hm. Maybe students are looking for material for their reaction papers, as well? Haha!

Progression of Memory - Here's a pretty rambly post I wrote to celebrate my promotion into the world of flash drives. Harhar. The first half of the post is funny, methinks. Maybe that's why it's getting hits in the first place.

The Road to Strawberry Jam City - The mountainside view I got while on the way to Baguio City, the "Summer Capital of the Philippines", got me contemplatative, much.

Come to the Garden - Sonya's Garden, to be specific. So I suppose travel posts really do get attention, hm?

one-note samba - I remember that I originally wanted to write a rant that night, but ended up writing something comedic. Or so my friend said.



So...yeah. That's the top 5. There's still, like, a dozen more that get about a hit a day... If anybody's interested to know what those posts are, then gimme a holler.

Ciao!

Labels: blogging, top 5, writing

Posted by sarah at 6:52 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

My friends have hailed my house as "the home of yummy food". (That, and "the house of many many many guitars and percs and other instruments".) Well, with my amazing cooking mentor of a mom, I'm not that surprised.

My eldest brother, Kuya Jabes, specializes in pasta (though whatever he whips up is yummy, pasta or not). My second brother, Ace, makes a killer pizza, as well as awesome Mex-based fusions. As for my third brother, Tim, he cooks up a mean ticnap notnac! I mean, seriously. Somehow, ticnap tastes different when Kuya Tim cooks it. Why that's so boggles my mind.

ticnap notnac - n. Inverted spelling of "pancit canton", a dish made up of cooked noodles and a variety of vegetables and optional meat (or shrimp). The term the Cada kids use when referring to Lucky Me! Instant Pancit Canton.

"What about you, Sarah?" you might ask. Well, although my cooking abilities were limited to boiling water and cooking rice up until high school, I do have my own niche in the kitchen. And it's not the stove top. It's the oven. And, no, despite my love for pasta, it's not baked macaroni or lasagna.

'Tis cookies.
Read full post...
Yep. Although my brothers are, like, awesome in the kitchen, when it comes to baking cookies and cakes, the recipe book is suddenly shoved in my hands. I don't really know why. I think it started when I was really really small, when I got my mom to let me lick the chocolate-covered spoon she used in preparing brownies.

Baking cookies had been one of my favorite things to do ever since I was a kid. First, because it was a time of mentoring from my mom. Secondly, it was because it's something I could do with my older brothers. (Being an only girl in the family, and the youngest child at that, the stuff I got to do with my older brothers was limited.) And thirdly, it was because eating what I baked was (and is) super fun!

There's one book in our kitchen that brings back old memories every time I look at it. It's Cookies for Kids by Better Homes and Gardens. It's the book we've been using for as long as I can remember. I remember flipping through it when I was a kid, not to read the recipes, but just to happily look at the pictures of yummy cookies that my mom made. My goodness. It still amazes me how we're able to keep it until now.

Aside from that book, some of the other most-used baking books in our kitchen library is Chocolate Lovers' cookbook by The Chocolate Lovers, and Mrs. Fields' Cookies.

And yesterday, I found out that Mrs. Fields is sponsoring a bloggers meet-up! Coolness! It'll be at Mrs. Fields, Manila Pavilion on August 21 (Tuesday), 7:00 PM.

Cookies, cookies, and more cookies! I've already signed up, and if you want to join us, just go on over to Blog and Soul Movement and comment on their post about it, or send an email to movement at blogandsoul dot net.

See you there!

Labels: blogging, food, Mrs. Fields

Posted by sarah at 8:34 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The Philippine Web Awards (PWA) is an award-giving body that annually recognizes the best Filipino-created Web sites and honors the individuals and teams behind them. The PWA continues to attract participants here and abroad and gain support from major industry players.


For years now, the PWA has been giving awards (like, duh) to awesome, awesome sites. I visit the award-winning sites regularly to "study" their designs, and notice things that I didn't notice before so that I could apply those things to my own designs. Learn from the masters, as they say.

I visited the Phil Webbys page today, and, lookit! They changed layouts! And BANNER! It's now the 10th webbys!

The awarding will be on November 29th, still a few months away, but the nomination period is now open!

Er... That's what I think, anyway. I read through the site (for, like, 3 times), but there wasn't any mention of the nomination period. Maybe they forgot to put it up? Or maybe they haven't set the deadline for submissions. My officemate tried looking for the submission period, too, but it really wasn't there.

Hmmm.... But then the nomination form is up already, so... um... yeah.

*ahem*

So, folks, go get your sites on the roster (or convince your friends to join)! Heeheehee.

Labels: 10th PWA, blogging, internet, philippine blog awards, web design

Posted by sarah at 5:33 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Mi posted her top 5 addictions and decided to tag me. So, as if this was a follow-up to a similar previous post, I write.

These are my top 5 addictions at the moment. Some of them may have been addictions for a long time now (and will still be for a very long time), but some of them aren't. So...yeah.

Blogging
As if this isn't obvious.

Even when no one was reading my blog, I wrote almost everyday unless school kept me from it. And at times that schoool did keep me from it, I practically had withdrawal symptoms. Haha! So I snatch my old journal (the old school paper one) and write on there instead.

Hm. But then again, I think I wrote in my old school journal even at times that I do get to blog. Ahehehe. Yeah. Addicted to writing, I am.

Pinoyblogero wrote the other day that, before, there was this mentality that blogging was for people in high society. From the comments on the post, it seemed like a lot of people agreed, saying that rich people were the ones who had the luxury (in terms of time, money, and internet access) to blog. Well, I started blogging right around that time (I think). But I wasn't rich. Ahehe. Either (a) the observations were wrong [which I doubt they were], (b) I'm weird [hm... that's likely], or (c) that just shows how addicted to writing and the Internet—and, therefore, blogging—I was, and still am. ^_^

I think I'll go with (c).

Google
I'm a Google-phile, I think most people know that by now, especially if you read my post on the iGoogle teahouse ghost. Hehe.

When I log on the Internet (which I do everyday), the first thing I do is log in to iGoogle and GTalk. From there, I go and use all the other Google services I've got. GMail (mine and the Google App for PinoyBlogosphere), Analytics, and Blogger. I use Reader and Calendar from iGoogle so I don't go on over to their homes unless I really have to. I use Google Docs and Spreadsheets often, and I occasionally check my AdSense and crawl stats in Webmaster Central. I haven't been uploading photos into my albums recently, but if I did, I'd use Picasa. What else? Oh yeah, I've installed the Notebook on my Firefox, too. Heeheehee.

C2
This began back in 2005, when I was practically melting in the sweltering heat (not to mention classic Los Baños humidity) while waiting for my Speech Communication class to begin. I had wanted to get a Coke, but since the nearest store didn't have cold Cokes—"INJUSTICE!!! They have no honor!!!"—I decided to try whatever cold drink they had, which turned out to be C2. Apparently, not many people were buying it because nobody knew it existed.

And so I tried it. And I got hooked. I turned into an endorser in a matter of seconds.

Thus began the tradition of me always having a C2 in my hand, and/or in the fridge.

Tazo® Green Tea Frappuccino® Blended Crème
I'm not much of a coffee person, even though I LOVE the aroma of coffee. Before Green Tea Frapp, I always went for the mocha Frapp on those rare times I could afford to go to Starbucks. But when Green Tea Frapp came to be, that became my usual. And now that I can afford to go to Starbucks every week... Hehehe. Green Tea Frapp luuuuuuuuv.

It's sad to say that a lot of my friends look at me weirdly whenever I order this. Not many of the people I know enjoy my Frapp. They say it tastes weird. Yeah, well, to each his own, I guess. ^^

Blue + Star
Blue = love.
Stars = love.

Put them together and you get a giddy Sarah.

I won't even attempt to explain.

Labels: addiction, blogging, blue, c2, frappuccino, google, green tea, meme, star, starbucks, top 5

Posted by sarah at 9:43 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Me and my big mouth. Or, in this case, my...um...hyperactively typing fingers? Haha!

Got myself hooked on this interview meme from Anka. The rules are at the end.

1.) What’s so special with “random snowflakes” that you have it as your journal’s title? (In short, why “random snowflakes”?)
For, like, the first 2 years of my blog's life, I had the answer to this right smack on the header. But since I don't have it on there anymore, I'll answer the question.

For most of my life, I see that things happen seemingly accidentally, but then I realize later that they're perfectly orchestrated and that they all happen at the perfect time. So, even though things happen to me that look too ordinary, or even unfortunate, they're actually part of a huge, huge and beautiful picture. Sort of like snowflakes, falling to make a gorgeous snowscape.

That's why I've previously had a header that says, "Random Snowflakes: each unique, each special, each falling at the perfect time and place".

Heeheeheee. Maybe I should put that subheader back up.

2.) If given the chance to blog professionally, as in with salary and all, what would it be about?
Ooh-lala! Music, movies, life and blogging. Basically what I'm writing about right now. Hm. But I guess to make it more streamlined (and to make more moolah!), I'd make separate blogs for each category. Right now I'm meshing them together because I don't like it when my blog isn't updated, and I can't update so many blogs at the moment. Ahehehe.

3.) How different are you in person, and from your blog persona?
Not much different, really. Hm. I think I'd go out and say that I'm not different at all. Before, I had several blogs to reflect different sides of me (check out my post on this: diamond). One for my real life friends (this one), one for my anime friends (LJ), one for my church friends (multiply), one solely for craziness (xanga), one solely for my fiction work (agila) and... a handful of other mirror sites. But I eventually gave up on that and focused on 2 blogs.

One is this one, obviously. The other one is on multiply, which is primarily for my friends from church, because nearly everyone in my church has multiply. Hehe. It basically has the same contents as this blog, but I don't cross-post everything because some posts probably won't interest them as others. My multiply blog is linked to this one, though, so it's not like I'm leading a double life or anything.

4.) You love “names”, it’s quite obvious. Have you ever thought of what you’d name your child? (if not, would you give it a try for the sake of this interview? haha!)
I've tried, several times, to be honest. At one point I was fixed on calling them Prince or Princess (based on my own name, of course). But a few years back I decided not to box the possibility.

I've always liked the name Nicola, meaning "victorious people". And, come on, who wouldn't want their kid to be victorious? Another cool, rare name I've liked the sound of is Kezia. She was one of Job's daughters, and she was said to be "most beautiful in the land". How awesome is that?

For boys, one of the names I've loved for a while is Jesse, "the Lord exists". There are a handful of names with that meaning, but methinks that one is the most... um... smexy.

Yes. I wish my kid to be a heartthrob. So sue me.

Nathaniel ("the Lord gives") is great, too, and it's fitting, given my testimony that the Lord always gives me everything I need (and surprises me while He's at it). Hm. Speaking of "surprise" and "wonder", Darien sounds nice, too, and, okay, possibly fitting for my heartthrob son.

On a side note, notice that two of my favorite names happen to be the names of the protagonists in Nicola and the Viscount, a book whose fanfic I'm writing at the moment. Also note that I loved those names even before I read the book. Ain't it cool?

Of course, I might end up not using any of those names. I kind of imagine that I'll be naming my kids depending on what the Lord's doing in my life at that time.

And, no, in case any one of you is wondering: I do not intend to have five kids.

5.) Having your own domain, what plans do you have for it in the future besides having it as a blog? (if you have some?)
I...uh... I plan to update the other sections! Haha!

No, seriously, I really DO plan to update the other sections. I really am going to transfer my photos and sketches. Seriously. You believe me, right?

*tumbleweed*

...

*ahem*

-------------------------

If you have nothing to post in your blog as well, then follow the instructions below to be a part of this interview meme:

1. Leave me a comment saying “Interview me.”

2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.

3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.

4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.

5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.


Heeheehee. Yey!

Labels: blogging, meme

Posted by sarah at 12:20 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Got this from BA.

And I quote from the result page:

This rating was determined based on the presence of the following words:

• shoot (1x)

...Eyng? And what was shot, you ask? A photo.

Mingle² - Free Online Dating

Labels: blogging, meme, quizzes

Posted by sarah at 2:13 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Yep. Thought as much.

84%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Mingle² - Online Dating

Labels: blogging, meme, quizzes

Posted by sarah at 11:18 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Here comes the second batch of submissions for The Name Project.

Entries
The History of My Name by Junelle
What's In A Name? In My Case, Names. by Nicole

Observations
The Name Project has had, according to Google Analytics, exponential increase in pageviews. More links = more viewers, so yey. A lot of people have expressed their interest, but, strangely enough, only two entered for the last two weeks.

Errr... Yeah. Two entries. Oh, joy. But, hey, these two entries are fun to read. And since there's only two of them, I'll review them both! Hehe.

Reviews!
Junelle, as it turns out, got her name because her parents wanted to merge their names into one word. Her post is short and simple, and has a comical feel to it. Nice! ^_^

Nicole's entry, on the other hand, is long. Don't be fooled, though: it's not at all a tiring read! The girl with a "beautiful smile" covers all grounds, including her Chinese name, English name, nicknames, and other names. She even mentions her brother's name! (Which is cool, by the way.)

As I said, I enjoyed both posts, and, when I got them, I thought, "Gosh, it'll be hard to pick from this batch!" But then I needn't have worried, since there's only two of them. So I can honor them both! ^_^

Join it!
If you wrote an entry, but have not notified me (and you want to be linked), just post a comment on the project mechanics page (or here), or email me... or something. Hehe. Just contact me so I can check your post. ^_^

Labels: blogging, group writing project, link love, name project, names

Posted by sarah at 12:46 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Okay, so the news got to me late. But, I'm not too late yet, so that's a good thing, yeah? Aileen told me that Janette Toral of DigitalFilipino was having a group writing project called The Top 10 Emerging Influential Blogs in 2007. Click the link to see the mechanics.

It's a nice idea, I think... Aside from giving linklove (actually, even more important than being linkloved), it encourages community spirit in the blogosphere. Also, readers of the participating blogs are pointed towards other blogs that are readworthy and linkworthy. (Yes. Those words don't actually exist. I know.)

Being an avid blogger (and blog reader), I have a LONG list of blogs that I frequent. But these are the top blogs that (1) I would recommend to the world to read, and (2) are started after August 2006, as the rules require.

By no particular order...

1. Stitching - One of Aileen Apolo's numerous blogs, this one is maintained to let people know new things (and even not so new things) by Google. Google-things that people will find practical, interesting, or just plain funny. ^_^

2. Make Money Online with a 13-year-old (now 14!) - Ah, yes. The kid blogging prodigy, hailed by some to be the next dot Com mogul. If you want blogging tips, go on over to his site. You won't regret it! Read my full review of Carl Ocab's blog here.


3. CultureShiok - A Filipino OFW in Singapore blogging about the Singapore, the Philippines, cultural learnings, and everything in between.

4. Hardcore strategies to Make Money Online - Another make money online blog. If I'm right, it's made by Carl Ocab's dad. ^_^

5. What's UP LB - News, recommended sights, and other stuff about the University of the Philippines in Los Baños. Whether you're an alumnus or not, this blog is worth checking, every now and then.

6. Random Vandal - I already blogged about this: art out on the streets. It's a blog about vandalism that actually have meaning. Each post is interesting, thought-provoking, and/or great to share with friends.



7. Nelchee's sketchblog - I think it's actually called "cwtam" but I'm not sure. Nelchee is a talented artist, and just looking at her sketches make my eyes go @_@. Check it out!


8. The D Spot - What I love about this blog is not the wholesome posts, heartwarming stories, homekeeping tips and amusing adventures. Nope. As good as all of that is, what's so cool about this blog is this: it's by a mom. A Filipino mom. Sexymom Dine Racoma writes about family values and other practical things, and shows the world that NO, the internet is not just for techie kids... Haven't visited the The D Spot yet? Go. Now.

9. PinoyBlogero - Pinoy. Blogero. That says it all, really. But since I'm giving paragraph-long descriptions, let's add a couple more sentences: A blog on blogging by a Filipino blogger. Blog news. Blog tips. Cute illustrations by Karlo on almost every post. Need I say more? Add PinoyBlogero to your feed reader!

10. Blog and Soul Movement - is "a three year movement that aims to establish blogging as a relevant part of Philippine media... a venue for bloggers to hone their craft in becoming credible sources of information on the web...a group of people who believe that blogging can be a powerful tool to dedicate convictions, spread goodness, and build community". Let's spread the goodness! I only heard of Blog and Soul Movement this month, and, although I personally haven't been to their events, the impact they're making to the participants is awesome. And, as for us reading from afar, I've picked up a lesson or two, too! This blog definitely, definitely deserves to be in the winning 10.

* Blog of Note: originally included in my list, but, my bad, it was started before August 2006, so...yeah.
MacGuyver's Kitchen - A cooking blog of a techie turned chef who's loved tinkering with things even before he began to walk. He doesn't update everyday, but his posts are always amusing, not to mention appetizing!

Labels: blogging, group writing project

Posted by sarah at 9:59 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Labels: blogging, internet

Posted by sarah at 10:11 PM | Permalink | Comments

Yey! Here's the first batch of submissions for The Name Project.

Entries
The Name Project Submission by Valdz
What's in a Miii by michan
My Names by Renee
Name Project by Daisy
What's in a Name? by juzblue

The Name Project: Sarah Pauline by me!

Observations
All the entries for this batch are really good reads, in my opinion. Valdz went deep into the meaning of his names. (I also would like to mention that he's the first to join!) Michan shared all her web nicks, all similar yet unique at the same time. Renee blogged about all her names in the known universe. Daisy told us how she became the girl who is "twice a princess". And juzblue narrated how her web nick was formed.

There's another entry that I especially liked, but one of the rules was not followed, so I'll save that cool post for a later batch.

Heeheeehee. Entries came in slower than I expected, but that's fine. I found that a lot of my friends wanted to try it, but either (a) are shy that they don't know the origin of their name, (b) are shy about their name, (c) don't want to disclose their name, or the history of it, or (d) just tired or lazy to make the post. Hehe. As I said, though, there's no deadline to this. So if you're inclined to join, you can do so anytime.

Winner
Although I liked all of them (I'm being honest here, I swear), I have to pick a winner, as I had promised so in the contest rules. Hehe.

My personal favorite is Renee's post. Here's an excerpt:

Renee: Internet po.
Someone: Name mo?
Renee: Renee po.
Someone: Jenny?
Renee: Renee.

After I go the PC I’ll be using, it would either have Leny or Reny as the logged in user. Mali pa rin.

What I loved about her entry is that, for each and every name and nickname she disclosed, there came a funny anecdote connected to it. It's such a fun read! Read it, read it. It's amusing, even if you don't know her. Heck, I know her personally, yet I didn't know any of the stories she shared. Thanks, Renee!

Join it!
If you wrote an entry, but have not notified me (and you want to be linked), just post a comment on the project mechanics page (or here), or email me... or something. Hehe. Just contact me so I can check your post. ^_^

Labels: blogging, group writing project, link love, name project, names

Posted by sarah at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments

These things remind me of those chain letters that always get popular with grade schoolers. But as opposed to the old-school chain letters, we can actually get something from this. It's fun, it promotes community spirit, and it's effective. So why stop it?

I got this one from Culture Shiok, who got it from Anito Kid Chronikos, who...probably got it from somebody else. Hehe. The Viralink was started by Andy Coates. Visit his blog to see how it works.

Rules

No Porn Sites
Only 1 link per person (i.e. Dont' hog the Viralink!)
Please don't tamper with other people's URLs
Enjoy!

———copy and paste the Viralink and instructions below this line———

Below is a matrix of 120 stars, I have already added a link to my blog onto one of the stars, all you need to do is copy and paste the grid into your blog and add your own link to one of the other spare stars, and tell others to do the same!

Viralink

********************
********************
********************
********************
********************
********************

New Addition: When I receive a ping back once you have added the Viralink to your site I will add your link to this grid, and each person who copies the grid from here will also link to your site!

———copy and paste the Viralink and instructions above this line———

Labels: blogging, link love, viral links

Posted by sarah at 5:21 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

When I started blogging, I did it simply because I typed faster than I did writing (and because my typewriting is more legible than my handwriting). If you told me three years ago that I'd be making money out of blogging, I'd probably laugh at you and say "Yeah, right! I wish."

Actually, I think I did that when I did a quiz a couple of years ago and got this result:

You Are a Blogging Expert

You got 8/8 correct! You know so much about blogging, you should blog for a living.

Yeah. I think I pretty much laughed at the screen, even as I posted it in my blog.

Ha. Lookit. I am making money out of blogging now! Yeyness. I'm not making enough to say that I do it for a living, but it does add a little extra to my wallet. I've been reading on blogging and problogging and SEO for a couple of months now, trying to see how I can shift my blogging to pro.

One of the blogs I've been following is Just Make Money Online by Shai Coggins, and, a couple of days ago, I saw an old post on there about the $100 challenge. Shai challenges bloggers (especially those who aren't making much) to make at least $100 by the end of the year, starting at $0 from January 2007. Yeah, well, I didn't even begin to try to make money online until March 2007. I SO qualified for this.

I think it's a nice challenge, since it applies to a multitude of people. Newbies to making money online (blogging or not) are encouraged to try to venture into it, and those already making money online can be challenged to make even more money. Shai keeps and posts a list of participants and their blogs, so we can all visit the participants' blogs and see how they're doing. Since this isn't a contest or anything, we can share experiences freely, and give tips and what-not-to-dos to other people. Cool, eh?

If you're like me three years ago, who thought that making money online wasn't for me, then I encourage you: take up the $100 challenge, just for fun. Who knows, maybe you've got an online entrepreneur in you and you just didn't know it!

Labels: $100 challenge, blogging, make money online

Posted by sarah at 3:19 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

This is my post for The Name Project. I know I said I'd give my own post after I give out the first prize, but I changed my mind. Hehehe.

My name is Sarah Pauline. Let's dissect it, shall we?

The meanings
The Hebrew word Sarah is sometimes translated as "goddess", or "high holy one". In the Bible, Sarah is the beautiful wife of Abraham. Her original name is Sarai, which means "princess". Later, though, God changed her name to Sarah, which means "princess of all".

My second name, Pauline is the female form of Paul, derived from the Roman name that means "small" or "humble". In the Bible, Paul is an apostle who preached to the Gentiles.

Ayt. Enough of world history.

Why they named me so
There are four children in our family. My three older brothers and me. I'm the youngest and I'm also the only girl. Thus, I am my parents' "little princess". Thus, I am "Sarah Pauline".

Aside from the "little" and "princess" meanings of my name, there are also other reasons for my parents' choice. I was born about 11 months and something-something days after my older brother, whose name is Jules Timothy Paul. I look a LOT like him, moreso than my other brothers. I look so much like him, it seemed like we were twins. That's another reason they called me "Pauline". The female version of "Paul".

What they call me
I have been called "Sarah", "Pauline", and even "Cada" by the different groups of people in my life. Close friends call me Sâ for short, though. I have another nickname at home: Dnx. It's from my original nickname Dinky, which, most English-speaking people would know to be slang for "small" or "tiny". My godmother named me that. Hehe.

If asked what I want to be called, I'd say "Sarah" or "Sâ".


So yey. I think that's it for my name's story. Little princess, signing out. ^_^

Labels: blogging, group writing project, names

Posted by sarah at 7:32 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

I've always been fascinated with names. Whenever I meet someone for the first time, one of the first things I ask is: "What does your name mean?" A lot of people find this weird because (a) they don't know what their name means, (b) they don't care what their name means, or (c) they just think it's weird of me to ask what their name means.

I think it's sad when someone doesn't know what their name means, and I think it's just tragic when they don't care. Names are names for a reason. They have meanings, and I think that it makes a difference in who we are.

Don't believe me? I'll give you an example. Have you ever been called something "beautiful", "gorgeous" or "handsome"? How about "stupid" or "useless" or "idiot"? "Geek"? "Genius"? I've been called one or more of those one or more times in my life, and they had an effect on me. If I was called positively, I felt great. If it was an insult, I felt angry, and sometimes even rejected. Now, think about this: what if you were called something repeatedly? Back in college, when my friends and I began calling each other "gorgeous" as we would call each other "friend", we all felt gorgeous after a while! I mean, if someone said you were something everyday, wouldn't you begin to believe it?

The same applies to given names. Names have meanings, and they affect us, one way or another. I think our name tells us what our parents wanted us to be when we grew up. Sometimes, it can affect the way we see ourselves. That's why I think it's cool if we know our names. Although it does not dictate our identity, it helps a whole lot to know what you've been "branded".

Hmm...

I've always wanted to do a group writing project like Darren Rowse usually does. I think I'll start right now. Let's call it the Name Project because that's exactly what it is.

So here's what we'll do:

1. Write a post in your blog about your name. You can write about what it means, how you feel about it, or how you parents named you. You can write about your web nick if you would like, in case you don't want to share your real name, for some reason. In case you want to write about both, that's fine, too!

2. After you've written about your post, link back to this post, and invite your friends to participate, as well. Actually, my original intention for this post is to get my friends to write about their names. Then, I thought, "What the hell, why not try to get the rest of my blogosphere into this, too?"

3. Submit your link URL as a comment on this post, or through email (sarahcada@gmail.com) so I can link to you, too. I'll post a list of every 5 entries. Linklove~ yey!

4. Read other people's posts when the list gets started. I think a lot of interesting stories will come up... And not only that, we'll get to learn what names mean! ^____^

I think I'll sort of make this into a contest/raffle... Every month, I'll select a post, and I'll make a blog review for the author. As for MY post about my name, I'll write it along with the first winner. Ayt? Ayt! Heeeheee.

And, oh yeah: you can submit your post here, too. Remember to include your URL (of course), your name, and the anchor text you would like me to use when I link you.

Labels: blogging, group writing project, names

Posted by sarah at 12:05 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

When I first saw the title of Carl Ocab's website, my first thought was "Now way, he's just thirteen?!"

My second thought was: "I wonder what he'll do when he turns 14..." Hehe. Now, the day has come. Happy birthday, Carl! He's now 14 years old! And, to celebrate it, he's even holding a contest with $220 worth of prizes!

I still wonder what he'll do with his site name, though. I mean, he's got links all over the net (probably a hundred gazillion of them) that says "Make Money Online With a 13-year-old" So what now will he keep that and just explain that he was 13 when he started, thus the name? Or will he change the name every year?

This got me thinking about my journal. I'm anticipating that, one day, I'll change the purpose of this journal when I finally decide on my niche. What happens then? Will I change my blog's name? Hm. Then again, maybe I should just make a new blog altogether. Hehe.

Labels: blogging, internet, make money online

Posted by sarah at 11:00 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Ladies and gentlemen, I introduce the TriNoMa, or the Triangle Mall of North Manila. It's a HUGE newly-opened shopping center near our house, built right across SM North Edsa, another mall that's had "mall monopoly" over that area for the longest time.



I went to Trinoma today, and, believe it or not, the mall showed me what to do (and what not to do) in blogging...

1. Don't serve a half-baked cake. You know what Trinoma did? They opened their doors to people before they've made sure that their airconditioning works. My goodness, the place was so friggin' hot. And I mean melt-an-icecube, sweat-like-a-pig kind of hot. What's more, something was wrong with the piping, so some stores don't have water. And some of the lights don't work yet, so some of the halls were dim.

I compare this with the mall across the street. They had recently opened a new building they called "The Block". At the time of opening, there were only a handful of stores, but the lights were bright, giving the halls a clean, sophisticated look. Also, the airconditioning was awesome, and I remember that my friends and I stayed there just for the cool air.

Now, I know that websites are rarely "finished". In cyberspace, nearly everything is updated daily, and even "finished" websites are still updated every once in a while. But remember that we have to make sure that everything is running smoothly before we put a website up. Organize. Plan your content. Make sure the design works. Check alignments. Check links. When a website looks like it's finished even though you've only got teeny tiny content at the moment, it's more likely that people will come back later to check what you've come up with.

2. Do what you can to make people stay and look around. Okay. I'm not claiming that I have a huge reader database. As a matter of fact, I have a very small one. But hey, we can all use this tip.

The Trinoma has an awesome driveway in the front, with towering palm trees and a nice garden to freshen things up. It's a good move, I think, since it made a lot of people visit them and see what the buzz is about.

If you want people to visit your website often, put things that they might be interested in. (Of course, it goes without saying that you ought to be interested about what you blog or make a website about!) Although my primary content is my journal, I also put in art, photos, and my fiction. I'm sure you've got something interesting up your sleeve. So flaunt it! ^____^

3. Try not to do anything that will make people leave. Not being interesting is slightly different from shooing away people altogether. Now, I know that the Trinoma did not intend to shoo us away, but, seriously. Not turning the airconditioning on?! I'm sure they've got great stuff in there, but my friends and I didn't survive long. Although we tried to ignore the heat for the sake of "adventure", we gave up eventually and crossed the street for brighter, cooler SM.

In blogging, I suppose this will be equivalent to bad design and clashing colors. Yeesh. It's a viewer's nightmare. If you're not sure with making your own website design, there are a lot of templates and examples online. Learn from them and apply them. You won't regret it, I swear.

4. Take risks. As I mentioned earlier in this post, Trinoma was built right across a giant. It was like going to Olympus and challenging Zeus. Although I'm not sure if Trinoma will succeed in its attempt to dethrone the mall king of that area, the effort is not ignored. Unlike putting up a mall, though, you don't have to be a Zobel-Ayala, a George Lindermann Jr, or a Donald Trump to put up a blog. It takes time and effort, yes, but time and effort that is capital for improving your webmaster skills. If a blog or website doesn't sell, well, then, just go and make a better one!

5. Don't be afraid to revamp. Who cares if you have a blog/website that totally failed its purpose before? Who cares if nobody cared about the vacant lot that you had? Once you have a vision for your website or blog, don't hesitate to make it into reality. That's what Trinoma did: they built over a property that had been vacant for the last 15 years I've lived in that area. I would never have imagined that an impressive-looking mall was going to stand there any time soon! Now that it is, people head on over there to see what's up. The same can be said about our blogs. Redesign or restructure every once in a while to attract attention. A new banner, or simply new colors (even if you keep the template) gives your website a new feel. A fresh design always strikes the curiosity, so use that to your advantage!

---------------

Ahaha. I had originally intended to write about my frustrating time at the mall... But instead of doing that, I thought I'd just transform it into something we (including myself) can learn from. Hope you picked something up!

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photo by Sara.

Labels: blogging, malls, trinoma mall, web design

Posted by sarah at 12:36 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

I think it's already common knowledge that kids are more tech-savvy than adults, probably because they adjust more than oldies, and mostly because they're the ones growing up with computers around them.

Carl Ocab is no exception.

I already mentioned him in my Technorati train post, but I think he definitely deserves a full review.

This here is a 13-year-old kid who is on a quest to make money online. If I understand correctly, he only started blogging in February 2007, and yet he is, at the time of writing, Technorati's top 8,953 blog. Oh. My. God. Little ol' me has been online since 1997, and has been blogging since 2005, but I'm lightyears away from that. (I suppose there's also the factor that, up until recently, I didn't want my sites and blog to be popular because they're for personal use.)

But, hey, popularity isn't his goal. His goal is (1) to write articles and stuff that can help fellow bloggers, and (2) make money online. Obviously. And, also as obviously, he's doing a fine job at it. And he did it in such a short time.

This begs the question: How the hell did he do that?!

The first thing, probably, is that he's got background. Apparently, his dad is also into making moolah in the net, and has taught him about Google Adwords and SEO and such. Ah, yes. We all need mentors.

The second thing he did right is that he acknowledged that he writes well, and used that to help people. Not to brag, but I know I write well, too. The only difference is --- and I think I mentioned this before --- it was only recently that I decided to write reviews and other not-quite-about-me things. Carl's writing are always very helpful and humorous at the same time. I stumbled on his blog only recently, and I had a hard time stopping myself from reading his whole archive because his articles are so cool to read. (If anybody's asking, I had to stop because my lunchbreak was over.)

Third, he's got design skills. Yes, we all know that we shouldn't judge a book (or a website) by its cover. However, the cover IS a mighty help if it's attractive. Carl uses sleek, smooth, minimalistic designs that are easy on the eyes, and at the same time functional and not at all boring to look at. I mean, just look at that! As of writing, his template uses good ol' black on white Arial font... Red links for variety, and a catchy header for attention, which, most conveniently, has a banner ad right smack on it... But, lookit! The banner doesn't look annoying where it is! He uses gradients sparingly and wisely. The sidebar is filled to the brim with links and ads, and yet it's not cluttered.

This kid is so talented on so many levels, it's almost unfair. But, hey, that's life. Different people are given different gifts so we can help each other. And Carl just proved that you ain't never too young to make use of your talents to make a dent (and a pretty big dent at that) in your sphere of influence.

So yeah. If you want to learn how to make a good website (even if you don't want to make money online or increase your pagerank), head on over to carlocab.com, study his site, and try to apply his techniques in yours. And if you DO want to increase your pagerank, go and review his blog so you can get a backlink.

Who knows, maybe you'll be the next blogger I'll be blogging about. ^_^

Labels: blogging, internet, make money online, web design

Posted by sarah at 2:33 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post