Microsoft-Yahoo Deal: Will it affect my Google Adsense Income?

The news about Microsoft-Yahoo deal was first reported a couple of years ago. I thought it was a dead issue but now it's in the news again. This time, it's official. Microsoft and Yahoo finally reached a deal!

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Microsoft and Yahoo reached a long-awaited partnership Wednesday in a bid to challenge Google's dominance in online search.

Under the 10-year deal, searches on Yahoo.com will be powered by Microsoft's new Bing search engine. Yahoo, in turn, will be responsible for attracting premium advertisers.

Will Microsoft-Yahoo deal hurt Google's advertising income? How will this affect Google's Adsense program? hmmm...

Nestle Fruit Selection Yogurt | Be good to yourself

When I saw the Nestle Fruit Selection Yogurt's Be Good to Yourself campaign over at Nuffnang few weeks ago, the first thing that entered my mind then was Ka Ding Fortuna.

Image from There's Blood in Your Coffee

Ding Fortuna was an active member of KMU National Council and has served the militant labor movement for 29 years as a labor leader of the multinational company Nestle workers' union until he was murdered on Sept 2005.

I've been boycotting Nestle Products since then.

When I realized that the Nuffnang ads running on this blog is that of Nestle Fruit Selection Yogurt's Be Good to Yourself campaign, I immediately requested from Nuffnang to remove the NFSY ads, which they immediately did.

Nestle is active in using blogs to promote their products like in the case of Nestle Pops. But in solidarity with the Nestle Workers union, I never allow Nestle ads on this blog. I have also blocked from my Adsense account all ads from Nestle.

It's good that Nestle promotes good health. Please also be good to your workers.

Goodbye Gloria, Hello Pagbabago!

In solidarity with Pinoy Bloggers Against ConAss, here's my Goodbye, Hello Pledge.



I made this Goodbye, Hello Pledge button from one of those Nuffnang Ads that generates your own pledge button. I think that ads was from Nestle. :-)

July 26 is Blog Action Day vs. ConAss!

2009 WWE Night of Champions | Jeff Hardy is the new World Heavyweight Champion!

I woke up late today and failed to watch the 2009 WWE Night of Champions via Free Live Stream. However, I was able to watch CM Punk vs. Jeff Hardy, singles match for the World Heavyweight Championship, via Jack TV. Jeff Hardy is the new World Heavyweight Champion!


Now I'll be looking for 2009 WWE Night of Champions video replays.

Here's the 2009 WWE Night of Champions matches that I failed to watch live:

Randy Orton vs. Triple H vs. John Cena
Maryse vs. Mickie
CM Punk vs. Jeff Hardy
Chris Jericho and TBA vs. The Legacy (Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase)
Tommy Dreamer vs. Christian
Rey Mysterio vs. Dolph Ziggler

Congratulations to Jeff Hardy for winning the World Heavyweight Championship. Now, I'm off to search for 2009 WWE Night of Champions video replays.

June 2009 NLE Results

The June 2009 Nursing Licensure Examination (NLE) Results is now out! Congrats to 32,617 new registered nurses specially to Golda Manto Yap who topped the exams.

Image from http://www.am.dodea.edu

Click here for the complete list of those who passed the June 2009 Nursing Board Licensure Examination Results

Freelancer Jobs

Making money through adsense or making money through blogging for that matter, I think, is not for everybody. But there are other ways to make money online such as online freelancer jobs.



If you are looking for freelancer jobs, GetAFreeLancer.Com has a lot to offer for you such as encoding jobs, programming, graphic designing, copy writing and the likes. The good thing about is that you can do these jobs while at home as long as you have your internet connection.

I have just signed up and is not yet making money from freelancer jobs, but I know of someone who is making huge amount of money through freelancer jobs and is kind enough to share tips and tutorials. Visit Jonelo's Freelancing Tips and Tutorials - http://freelancersjournal.blogspot.com.

Mission: Increase my Alexa Rank

This blog's current Alexa Rank is 1,169,908. Before the end of this month, I will try to bring it to at least 500,000. I never really paid attention to my Alexa ranking like I did to may Google Page Rank. But I have just learned that a good Aleaxa Rank may give me more income opportunities. Thus, I will now try to increase my Alexa Rank.

How are Alexa's traffic rankings determined?

Alexa's traffic rankings are based on the usage patterns of Alexa Toolbar users and data collected from other, diverse sources over a rolling 3 month period. A site's ranking is based on a combined measure of reach and pageviews. Reach is determined by the number of unique Alexa users who visit a site on a given day. Pageviews are the total number of Alexa user URL requests for a site. However, multiple requests for the same URL on the same day by the same user are counted as a single pageview. The site with the highest combination of users and pageviews is ranked #1.

Alexa's traffic rankings are for top level domains only (e.g. domain.com). We do not provide separate rankings for subpages within a domain (e.g. http://www.domain.com/subpage.html) or subdomains (e.g. subdomain.domain.com) unless we are able to automatically identify them as personal home pages or blogs, like those hosted on Geocities and Tripod. If a site is identified as a personal home page or blog, its traffic ranking will have an asterisk (*) next to it: Personal Page Avg. Traffic Rank: 3,456*. Personal pages are ranked on the same scale as a regular domain, so a personal page ranked 3,456* is the 3,456th most popular page among Alexa users.[Source]

Here's a couple of helpful source of information on how to increase page rank.

20 Quick ways to Increase Alexa rank from www.doshdosh.com
How to Improve on Alexa Ranking from www.hubpages.com

I have just installed Alexa Toolbar and added Alexa widget on this blog. According to some webmasters, this will help increasy Alexa Ranking. There are Autosurf programs that may help Alexa Rank but I am not inclined to join them. Ive heard Google doesn't like that and I better not mess up with the King. :-)

Let's see how it goes.

Alice in Wonderland Trailer

Have you seen the Alice in Wonderland trailer yet? Alice in Wonderland is one of Pia's favorite movies and I was thrilled to hear that Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland movie will be shown in March 2010.



This early, Alice in Wonderland fans are already looking for trailer. The good thing is that there's a number of Alice in Wonderland teasers are now available in the net.

Alice in Wonderland trailer was made available here. If that link is no longer working, click here to visit the official Alice in Wonderland website. I'll update this later to post the official Alice in Wonderland trailer.

Chocolate Hills - Bohol, Philippines

Chocolate Hills is one of Bohol, Philippines' famous tourist attraction. Cholate hills is an unusual formation of hills, which are covered in green that turns brown during summer. I was able to visit Chocolate Hills Philippines several months ago and during the time, it is just starting to turn brown.

Here's a couple of Pia's pictures at Chocolate Hills Philippines.

Tourist from Magtaking visited Chocolate Hills Phillipines

Stairs leading to the top of a hill.
Planning to visit Chocolate Hills Philippines? Read also my Panglao Island Vacation post for some tips.

A Letter from Sophia

Pia gave me this letter few weeks ago.


Using a bond paper, she improvised a greeting card by folding it and drawing a heart, bird, flower and a tree.

And then she wrote this inside the card:

"Daddy I love you! Mwah!"


Ok, she misspelled the word love . But just the same, I think the message is clear: Pia loves me!

Isn't she sweet?!

Pacquiao-Cotto Showdown in November

For those asking what's next for Manny Pacquiao, here's the answer. Its final, there will be a Pacquiao-Cotto showdown at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on November 14.

LAS VEGAS—Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao and Puerto Rican fighter Miguel Cotto will meet in Las Vegas in November at a catch-weight of 145 pounds, ESPN and Filipino newspapers reported Monday.

The US sports network and Philippines media reported that Pacquiao, considered the pound-for-pound world champion after flattening England's Ricky Hatton in the second round in May, will meet Cotto on November 14.[Source]

I hope some good souls would share Pacquiao-Cotto showdown free live stream. :-)

Crawl error: Not Found - ps/rpc_relay.html

I was trying to figure why one of my blog entry from another blog was suddenly dropped from SERPs, when I found out about this error: /ps/rpc_relay.html. A URL attached to my domain name which I did not create and have no idea where it came from.

Thinking that it's the culprit, I used google serach to look for more information.

There's not much information about in the internet, it must be new. I found an answer from Google Friend Connect-

This file is necessary for your followers widget to work... I wouldn;t be too worried about it though since it won't effect how others interact with your blog.

So it may not be the answer to my problem. But just the same, an error is an error is an error. It needs to be fixed. But how?

Do you have ps/rpc_relay.html error, too? Care to share how you fixed it?

Driving Direction from Google Maps

Here's a YouTube video featuring a cool driving direction from Google Maps.


If you're in Canada, here's MaqQuest Canada Driving Direction.

Roubini Magic

As a result of Nouriel Roubini's comment that the U.S. is no longer in "free fall" and is likely to recover by the end of the year, U.S. stocks jumped yesterday. But Roubini immediately clarified that he was misunderstood and issued a statement.

"I have said on numerous occasions that the recession would last roughly 24 months," Mr. Roubini said. "Therefore, we are 19 months into that recession. If as I predicted the recession is over by year end, it will have lasted 24 months with a recovery only beginning in 2010. Simply put I am not forecasting economic growth before year's end."[Source]

Who is Nouriel Roubini?

Here are some information bout Nouriel Roubini from Wikipedia:

Nouriel Roubini (born on March 29, 1959) is a professor of economics at the Stern School of Business, New York University and chairman of RGE Monitor, an economic consultancy firm. After receiving his B.A. in Political Economics from Bocconi University and his doctorate in international economics from Harvard University, he began academic research and policy-making by teaching at Yale while also spending time at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Federal Reserve, World Bank and Bank of Israel. Much of his early studies were focused on emerging-market countries. During President Bill Clinton’s administration he was a senior economist for the Council of Economic Advisers later moving to the United States Treasury Department as a senior adviser to Timothy Geithner who is now Treasury Secretary.

Nouriel Roubini is also referred to as Dr. Doom because of his economic predictions. Roubini is one of the few economists who predicted the current global financial turmoil.

How to increase your adsense income

If you are looking for ways on how to increase adsense income, this video presentation from Google Adsense Team will be of great help.

Simply put, here are the 5 steps to increase your adsense income from Inside Adsense Blog:

Step 1: Analyze your webpages - Identify where your visitors would likely be focused and place your ads there.

Step 2: Set up custom channels - Use the custom channel to know which ads are performing well.

Step 3: Optimize your ad unit design and placement - Medium rectangle works best. Use colors effectively. Blend ads in, but not too much that users don't see them.

Step 4: Maximize revenue from multiple units - Google Adsense team recommends it. But based on my experience, the more ads I have on a page, the lower the cost per click was. So try experimenting, too.

Step 5: Track and measure results - Of course, try to understand whether your optimizations have made a difference. Implement what works best for you.

Now, having an optimized adsense ads would mean nothing if you don't have the traffic. I'm not earning that much from Adsense. The highest I've earned in a day is just US 20.07. That was yesterday.



So how do I get traffic to my blog? This Guerilla Blogger E-Book is the trick.

I am no Adsense Guru, this How to increase adsense income entry is just to share my experience especially for those who are just starting to make money with adsense.

Michael Jackson Pepsi Video

Here's the Michael Jackson Pepsi commercial video wherein he was reported to have a pyrotechnic accident. Some say this is where he started to develop painkiller addiction.



Some fans, however, don't have nice words for Pepsi. "Pepsi turned against MJ at a time when he needed them", said one of he fans.

And here's an interview where Michael Jackson where he talked about the Pepsi Commercial Accident.

INTC trumps forecasts

Are you into stock trading? If you currently have INTC stocks, you will love this news.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Intel Corp's (NasdaqGS:INTC - News) quarterly results and outlook blew past Wall Street forecasts on better-than-expected consumer demand for PCs, especially in Asia, setting an auspicious tone for the technology sector.

Shares of Intel, the world's largest chipmaker, jumped 8 percent on the report, driving Standard & Poor's 500 stock index futures sharply higher and bolstering technology shares such as arch rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NYSE:AMD - News).

Intel projected third-quarter revenue at $8.1 billion to $8.9 billion, compared with analysts' average forecast of $7.8 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.[Source]

But not everything about INTC is good news - INTC Example

Talambuhay ni Manny Paquiao

Isa ka rin ba sa naghahanap ng talambuhay ni Manny Pacquio? Kapag sikat ka talaga, maraming gustong malaman ang tambuhay mo.

Pero kung estudyante ka naman na naghahanap ng talambuhay ni Manny Pacquio dahil sa ito ay assignment mo, huwag basta kopyahin ang makikitang Talambuhay ni Manny Pacquiao na makikita mo sa internet. Bagkus, pwede mong gamiting ang mga sumusunod na impormasyon para bumuo ng sariling bersyon ng Talambuhay ni Manny Paquiao.

Ilang impormasyon tugkol kay Manny Pacquiao:

Tunay na pangalan: Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao
Araw ng kapangnakan: December 17, 1978
Lugar ng kapanganakan: Bukidnon, Mindanao
Propesyon: Boksingero
Pangalan ng asawa:Jinky Pacquio
Bilang ng anak: 3 (Jemuel, Michael at Princess)

Boxing Titles ni Manny Pacquiao:

Major:
WBC world flyweight champion
IBF world super bantamweight champion
WBC world super featherweight champion
WBC world lightweight champion

Minor:
OPBF flyweight champion
WBC international super bantamweight champion
WBC international super featherweight champion
IBO world light welterweight champion

The Ring Magazine titles:

World featherweight champion
World super featherweight champion
World light welterweight champion

Lineal Championship titles:

World flyweight champion
World featherweight champion
World junior lightweight champion
World junior welterweight champion

Ilang blog entries tungkol kay Manny Paquiao

What's next for Manny Pacquiao
Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Haton
Pacquiao vs Dela Hoya

Ayan. Sa palagay ko naman ay makakabuo na kayo ng talambuhay ni Manny Pacquiao gamit ang mga impormasyong ito.

Cheaper Sensai Cleanser from Amazon

If you want to buy sensai cleanser at a cheaper price, you'll find one from Amazon.com


Product Features
* Kanebo Sensai Lotion I ( Oily To Combination Skin )--/4.2OZ
* All our fragrances are 100% originals by their original designers. We do not sell any knockoffs or immitations.
* No Worry 15 days return policy (See policy pages for details).
* All vail comes in sample size.

For more information about Sensai Cleanser from Amazon, visit Amazon.com

Sensai cleanser

After Miley Cyrus, a teen idol, recommended the use sensai cleanser through her twitter update, many fans are now using the internet to search for sensai cleansers.

Here's a Miley Cyrus' tweet about sensai cleanser:

Gave sensai cleanser to a friend on Friday. They were really broken out, just saw em and the skin is clear and so beautiful! @Mileycyrus

Sensai cleanser costs $100 for a bottle (about 100 milliliters).


Sensai cleanser image from http://www.peoplestylewatch.com

Some say it's too much for a face cleaner. While some others ask, was Miley Cyrus paid to promote Sensai Cleanser?

Michael Jackson was Murdered - LaToya Jackson

Image from www.absolutenow.com

Michael Jackson was murdered. This is the belief of Michael Jackson's Sister, LaToya Jackson. She said there's a conspiracy involving Micheal Jackson's death.

LaToya Jackson said she suspects her brother Michael Jackson was murdered. She said,

"I believe Michael was murdered. I felt that from the start. Not just one person was involved; rather it was a conspiracy of people. He was surrounded by a bad circle. Michael was a very meek, quiet, loving person. People took advantage of that. People fought to be close to him, people who weren’t always on his side."

LaToya also claims that Michael's staff members isolated him from his family, and did not tell him when his family tried to reach him. Is she kidding? Michael Jackson could do whatever he wanted, and he usually did, even if it stirred up a lot of public controversy.[Source]

Micheal Jackson's death remain a mystery. First, there's the lupus disease. Then there's this news about Xanax drug side effects. And now Micheal Jackson was murdered?

UFC 100 Video Replay: Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir

Here's a UFC 100 video reply of the Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir match in case you failed to watch UFC 100 Live Stream.

UFC 100 Video Replay - Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir Video – Round One



UFC 100 Video Replay - Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir Video – Round Two



UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar defeeated Frank Mir in just two rounds!

Enjoy watching UFC 100 Video Replay!

Coming up next: UFC 101 Fight:Declaration

Watch UFC 100 Live Stream

Rumor has it that you will be able to watch UFC 100 Free Live Stream through UFC 100 official website.

If you want to watch UFC 100 live, then visit http://100.ufc.com/

Here's an ESPN Primer for UFC 100.



Enjoy watching live UFC 100 fights!

UFC 100 Free Live Stream, Fight Cards and Results

If you are looking for UFC 100 Free Live Stream, you are not alone. UFC fans around the world who can't watch the fight live at Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas are now looking for UFC 100 free live stream.

Including me.

UFC 100 Free Live stream will most likely be made by available through www.justin.tv my UFC 100 fans. So if you want to watch the UFC 100 live tream for free, just go to the site and make a search. Use the following words to get the best result: ufc 100, ufc 100 live stream, ufc 100 stream, ufc 100 results, ufc fight cards, ufc live.

Meanwhile, here are the fight cards we all are waiting for:



UFC 100 Fight Cards
Heavyweight Championship: Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir
Welterweight Championship: Georges St-Pierre vs Thiago Alves
Welterweight: Jon Fitch vs Paulo Thiago
Middleweight: Dan Henderson vs Michael Bisping
Middleweight: Yoshihiro Akiyama vs Alan Belcher

UFC 100 Preliminary Fight Cards
Light Heavyweight: Mark Coleman vs Stephan Bonnar
Lightweight: Mac Danzig vs Jim Miller
Light Heavyweight: Jon Jones vs Jake O'Brien
Welterweight: Dong Hyun Kim vs TJ Grant
Middleweight: C.B. Dollaway vs Tom Lawlor
Lightweight: Matt Grice vs Shannon Gugerty

If I find a link to UFC 100 Live Stream, I'll update this later. I will also update this to post the UFC 100 results and possibly UFC 100 fight videos.

Update: Here's a link to Watch UFC 100 live Stream

What's next for Manny Pacquiao?

Manny Pacquiao is no doubt a great boxer. Some even say he is the best fighter ever. Manny Pacquio is so famous that lots of fans are excited to know what's next for Manny Pacquiao.



After Pacquiao vs Dela Hoya Match and making Ricky Hatton sleep peacefully, who will be Manny Pacquiao's next match?

Will it be Manny Pacquiao against Floyd Mayweather Jr.? Or will it be Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto? Either way, Manny Paquiao's next fight will definitely be an exciting match!.

While negotiations are still ongoing for Manny's next match, he is busy shooting for his commercials left and right. His latest? Endorsement of Nike with Kobe Bryant!

Manny Pacquiao also plans to run for Congress. Will he win this time? I hope not.

What's next for Manny Pacquiao Updates:

July21,2009 - Pacquiao-Cotto showdown in November.

Oct 21, 2010 - Watch Pacquiao vs. Margarito live on November 13, 2010

King Kung Fu Movie Review

King Kung Fu is a 1976 movie about a gorilla that knows Kung Fu.



After three decades, King Kung Fu is in the spot light again after this interesting Kung Kung Fu Review:


This King Kung Fu movie review made me laugh. But no, I'm not watching this King Kung Fu movie. :-)

Xanax Drug: Side Effects and Michael Jackson

Xanax drug is now in the spot light as a result of Micheal Jackson's death. Based on a confidential document from 2004 that CNN obtained recently, it was reported that Michael Jackson took more than 10 Xanax pills a night.

What is Xanax Pill?

From the Wikepedia:

Alprazolam, also known under the trade names Xanax, Xanor and Niravam, is a short-acting drug of the benzodiazepine class used to treat moderate to severe anxiety disorders, panic attacks, and is used as an adjunctive treatment for anxiety associated with moderate depression. It is also available in an extended-release form, Xanax XR, both of which now available in generic form. Alprazolam possesses anxiolytic, sedative, hypnotic, anticonvulsant, and muscle relaxant properties.

From Xanax Official Site:

XANAX XR is a prescription medication for the treatment of patients with panic disorder, with or without agoraphobia. XANAX XR belongs to a group of medicines called benzodiazepines, which have helped many people feel better.

Some benzodiazepines have to be taken 2 to 4 times a day. You may feel calm after you take the medicine, but then feel anxious before it’s time to take the next dose. That's because the medicine's effects can wear off between doses if not taken as directed by your doctor.

The are various speculations as to what really caused the death of Michael Jackson. There are who say that a Lupus disease may cause his death, while some others say its the drug abuse and side effects of Xanax overdose.

The toxicology reports, which is yet to be finalized, will determine the exact cause of Micheal Jackson's death.

Bill Clinton to Join Phi Beta Sigma?

According to some reports and updates from twitterland, it looks like Phi Beta Sigma fraternity is making former US President Bill Clinton an honorary member.

Image from http://ebonytucson.ning.com/group/phibetasigmafraternityinc

So what's the big deal if Bill Clinton is joining Phi Beta Sigma fraternity?

An Overview of Phi Beta Sigma

Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Incorporated was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C., January 9, 1914, by three young African-American male students. The founders, Honorable A. Langston Taylor, Honorable Leonard F. Morse, and Honorable Charles I. Brown, wanted to organize a Greek letter fraternity that would truly exemplify the ideals of brotherhood, scholarship, and service. [Source]

I have just just checked the Phi Beta Sigma website and can't find confirmation. But if the reports were true, then Bill Clinton will be the first former President of the United States to become a member of historically African-American brotherhood.

Michael Jackson's Memorial Service Full Video

Michael Jackson's memorial service was covered and aired live by CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. I wasn't able to watched it the memorial service live but thanks to the internet, as there are lots of Michael Jackson's Memorial Service Full Video uploaded by fans in youtube and many blogs.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Michael Jackson memorial service video provided by MSNBC

Toys R Us vs Massage R Us

Toys R Us (toysrus.com) has threatened to take a legal action against a local home service massage and beauty treatment business, Massage R Us.

In an interview with INQUIRER.net, Massage 'R' Us owners said that Geoffrey Inc., through its legal counsel, sent a notice Tuesday, claiming that the foreign enterprise has a copyright for the phrase "'R' Us."

The owners said that the Geoffrey Inc. has asked them to drop the "'R' Us" from the name of their business and stop its use in advertising materials. [Source]

Hmmm... So we can't use 'R' Us for our business name?

God Bless America Lawsuit

US Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney appreciated very much the way the students from the Sisters of Mary welcomed her during her visit by singing God Bless America. Since nobody went to the bathroom while God Bless America is being sang, no lawsuit was made like in the case of a NY baseball fan.

NEW YORK (AP) – A baseball fan has settled a lawsuit that claimed he was kicked out of Yankee Stadium by a police officer because he left his seat to use the bathroom during the playing of "God Bless America."

Bradford Campeau-Laurion had named the Yankees and New York City in his federal lawsuit, which argued that he was a victim of political and religious discrimination and that his rights were violated at the August 2008 game.[Source]

The baseball fan behind the said God Bless America Lawsuit, is getting himself a nice settlement.

US Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney Visited The Sisters of Mary School

I first learned about US Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney visit to The Sisters of Mary School Silang Campus last month through World Villages for Children website.



Ms. Marixi Prieto's Philippine Daily Inquirer published a story about it yesterday (page G4).

The day they sang ‘God Bless America’

By Chelo Banal-Formoso
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Posted date: July 05, 2009

FROM the where the guests have been invited to stand, one can see the perfect lines formed by the girls, perhaps over 3,000 of them. Only discipline can make lines like these.

And then – their voices strong, their hand movements synchronized, looking like they are lit from within – they sing. God bless America, land that I love. Stand beside her and guide her, through the night with the light from above. From the mountains to the prairies, to the ocean white with foam, God bless America, my home sweet home.

A choreography of emotions and amazing grace, the rendition moves Kristie Anne Kenney to tears. Even the non-Americans among the guests are misty-eyed.

“That you chose to welcome me today by learning a special song that honors my country and my heritage, and to do it so brilliantly, is a very wonderful treat,” responds Ms Kenney upon being handed the microphone. “And I know of no other nation in the world that has that kind of kindness and welcoming spirit.”

It isn’t every day that the US ambassador to the Philippines comes a-calling on the Sisters of Mary (SOM) and their wards at the Girlstown complex in Silang, Cavite. And this afternoon, she comes bearing gifts.

“I brought you some books because if you’re like me and you dream of what else is out there, you can do a lot of that through books,” she says to thunderous applause.

The girls are all in uniforms of blue and white. Marian colors. In this live-in high school founded in 1985 by Msgr. Aloysius Schwartz, reading is highly valued, but so is moral and spiritual formation. The girls are taught to live a life of simplicity, charity, gratitude and joy. Marian virtues.

None of these kids is holding an iPod or a Sony Ericsson phone or any such cool gadget for teens these days. That’s because these girls, and their fellow scholars at SOM Boystown (not to be confused with the facility for juvenile delinquents), come from dirt-poor families of Luzon and Palawan (Visayas and Mindanao are served by the SOM schools in Cebu).

At Girlstown and Boystown, they are given free education, room and board, medical and dental services, not to mention heaps of hope.

Read the full story - The day they sang ‘God Bless America’

This is the part of Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney's speech that I liked most:

“You should be very proud of the great opportunity you’re being given here"

I am a proud graduate of the Sisters of Mary School and I'll be forever grateful for everything that I've learned and received from the school, from Fr. Al. Without the Sisters of Mary School, I can't imagine what my life would be like now.

Thank you to all the the benefactors of The Sisters of Mary School!

Meralco Electric Service Concerns

Four years ago, I blogged about my experience with Meralco Customer Service. Back then, I don't have any idea about Search Engine Optimization (SEO). But to my surprise, it is actually bringing traffic to this blog. What's even funnier is that some of those who stumble upon my Meralco Customer Service post are actually posting comments to report their problems with Meralco.

This is the most recent comment.

Hi good day! i rereport ko lang po ang pumutok na transformer knina mga around 6am sa Walastik St. Clemente Compound Dulongbayan 2, San Mateo, Rizal.PLEASE pa ki aksyonan po agad.Thanks

Some people don't know what a blog is, apparently. And what does that tell about Meralco? Hmm...