To The Moon And Back

I learned by visiting Yugateh.com that Globe Telecom will now exclusively offer iPhone in the Philippines. These iPhones are legit unlike those being sold in Virra Mall at around $800.

I got this online from Walt Mossberg’s review.

But the iPhone has a major drawback: the cellphone network it uses. It only works with AT&T (formerly Cingular), won’t come in models that use Verizon or Sprint and can’t use the digital cards (called SIM cards) that would allow it to run on T-Mobile’s network. So, the phone can be a poor choice unless you are in areas where AT&T’s coverage is good. It does work overseas, but only via an AT&T roaming plan.

Since Globe already acquired the rights to offer iPhone here, I bet loads of people will want to switch their providers just to get their hands on it. However, I doubt if they will offer the new 3G iPhone considering how long it took them to bring the famous iPhone here. It’s also possible that the offer will only be extended to high end, Platinum Globe users. Meaning, you’d have to shell out more than Php5000 ($119+) a month for two years when you can get it for about $800. So really, it all boils down whether you want to be legit or not. I personally have been waiting for iPhone to reach the Philippines but after reading tons of reviews, the only advantage that I can see is how sleek it looks. I’m starting to feel like I could benefit from an HTC instead.

A beach resort in Bohol, Philippines.

Check out Wordless Wednesday.

Face it. We’re all busy people and most of the time; we tend to rush things at the very last minute. This usually works fine but when it comes to travel deals and cheap flights, the early birds really catches the worm.

If you’re traveling in Australia, there’s no need to worry about last minute flights. There’s a website called lastminute.com.au that specializes in smart, affordable and inspirational travel packages including last minute deals and promos. You’d never find yourself stranded in a foreign place without accommodation, thanks to their last minute accommodations. They feature hotel deals of the day and Secret Hotels™ deals where you can get up to 75% off on hotel room rates. If you have no idea where you want to stay, you can choose from lastminute.com.au’s top 5 family fun hotels and top 10 hotel hotspots.

Lastminute.com.au offers a wide array of holiday deals in Africa, Asia, Europe, South Pacific and North America. To give you an example of their amazing travel deals, check out the Fiji - Outrigger on the Lagoon package. It’s such a great steal because you’ll only pay three nights for a five-night stay at the Outrigger on the Lagoon, a stunning five-star resort with white sandy beaches.

Aside from cheap flights, hotels, car for rent and other travel deals, lastminute.com.au offers unique gifts and vouches that you won’t find in any shop. From mobile massages in your home to quad bike adventure tours, sky walk experience to Australian Outback adventures, you can bet that your gift will not only be the best present received but also will be the most memorable one.

I’ve been rambling on and on almost all my posts about how I love the Internet. But really, it can’t be all about love right? So I moved away from my computer for a couple of hours and thought about the things that I don’t like about the World Wide Web. It’s hard because I’m so addicted to anything that has to do with online so if you want to add anything to this list, tell me!

1. Perverts. They are all over the Internet disguised in so many ways. They could be a so-called agent who needs your almost nude photos for their website. It could be the 32-year-old sweet man from the chatroom but was actually a 55 something’s who get off from chatting online. Worse, I’ve heard of sick men snagging photos of children from parenting blogs and replacing their bodies with naked pictures so they can sell them to equally sick clients.

2. Spam all year round. Whether it’s through email, blog comments, website contact forms, they will flood you with messages so you can visit their website for much needed hits and sale.

3. Lack of personal connection. As much as I love meeting new friends over the Internet, there’s just something weird about a room full of people who doesn’t even smile or nod at each other because they’re so busy looking at their machines. I’m talking about Internet cafes. Isn’t it supposed to be a place where people can hang out, meet new friends over coffee, etc?

4. Piracy. I don’t really hate this because I can’t say that I haven’t, in my whole life, enjoyed a nice warez or two. Still, software companies are losing money from piracy. I know this for a fact after working for several companies for eight years.

5. Related to above. Plagiarism. Everyone can steal your content, artwork, music, and photo and pass it off as theirs.

6. Identity Theft. Nothing worse than having someone steal your identity just because you used your credit card, etc. Remember the movie THE NET? Everything is so advanced I’m starting to feel that that the movie could happen in real life.

7. Scam artists. It’s so much easier to cheat on people in the virtual world. You don’t have a physical address where people can hunt you and ask for their money back. Whenever you do a transaction online, you are accepting that you can get scammed 50% of the time.

8. Virus, Browser Hijacks, Porn. Visit a not so legit site and voila! You’ll have porn banner ads whenever you load a new browser. Of course, you can always do your best to secure your machine by installing every anti virus, pop up blocker, spyware sweeper, etc. Still, the virus makers are getting smarter each day that as soon as you feel safe, you’ll find new virus names on your computer next month. Thank god for constant software updates!

9. Thanks to email lags or server problems, it’s so much easier to pretend that you didn’t receive an important email or message. Slackers and plain lazy people grab at this opportunity every chance they get. I’ve heard about this conversation many times: “boss - where are the new changes to the website, employee - oh, I didn’t get that email? Can you please re-send?” This will give the slacker another 24 to 48 hours to slack off before he work on the changes.

10. Stalkers. See #1 for related info. People can find you in Friendster, Multiply, MySpace, and Facebook. That’s a good thing. But not if it’s a psycho ex-girlfriend / boyfriend whose main purpose in life is to ruin you by hacking your emails and blogs, join the same community you’re in and spread lies about you, be-friend or steal your online friends, and many more. No, it never happened to me but I know two people who had.

So you see, Internet could be bad. But don’t let these things stop you from enjoying the Internet. Just be informed on what you can do to protect your identity, your kids and your machine from these threats.

I received another call from my friend today and asked if I’ve already decided to pursue overseas work. I haven’t really thought about it even with so many options to choose from. The company where I telecommute just recently opened up a physical office in Chicago, and asked me if I see myself moving there in a year or so. I honestly don’t know. Aside from the fact that I can’t leave my daughter just yet, I’m still happy where I am that I don’t see any reason why I should move. But we’ll see what happens next year.

Just in case I accept the offer and find that I didn’t like it, there are tons of Chicago Web Site Design companies that I could check out. That’s the good thing in finding a job these days. You can spread your resumes all over the web in just a matter of few clicks. In fact, I’ve been receiving lots of design requests from potential clients who “found me” online. I’m starting to think that I can afford to go solo with all the side design projects landing on my lap. I’m just hesitant because nothing beats having a steady job and paycheck even if you don’t have a lot of projects.

If you need sideline projects, do check out: sitepoint.com,getafreelancer.com, guru.com, and the one that started it all, e-lance.com. I honestly believe you’d never run out of job online if you just know where to look.

Appetizer
When someone smiles at you, do you smile back?
>> Yes, unless he looks like a rapist.

Soup
Describe the flooring in your home. Do you have carpet, hardwood, vinyl, a mix?
>> We have hardwood on the second floor rooms and marble downstairs.

Salad
Write a sentence with only 5 words, but all of the words have to start with the first letter of your first name.
>> Wow this is hard. Jumping Jack Jabbed Jill’s Jaw

Main Course
Do you know anyone whose life has been touched by adoption?
>> Yes, my first cousin was adopted.

Dessert
Name 2 blue things.
>> My little girl’s projector and my water bottle.

There’s no better place to shop for window blinds than at the blindsexpress.com. Blinds Express, a division of Window Flair, Inc. has been in the window treatment, carpet and flooring business for over 36 years. With that said, you can be sure that you’ll never go wrong with them when shopping for blinds. This site offers a wide arrange of window blinds from manufacturers like Bali, Comfortex, Grabe, hunter Douglas and many more. Window blinds come in different types. There are the slat blinds that can be rotated to allow light to pass between the slats. The other type is the solid blinds also known as window shades, which you can roll up or fold but cannot be opened to let light through.

Shopping for the right blinds is easy at blindsexpress.com. Make sure to read the article on how to measure your windows properly so you can be sure that you’re getting the right size. The site also sends you free samples plus a quick quote form that will help you compare prices from various products. To save money, don’t forget to grab the coupons codes from their site. You can get as high as 15% discounts from top manufacturers at a limited time offer.

If there’s a handbook, I’d love to have one. We’ve been spending a lot of money for the past two weeks on toys, shoes and laptop add-ons. I know I should be saving some money, not spending them but these are all items from my long list of things-to-buy. At least I can focus on saving again now that I’ve scratched off some items from the list. NOT!

If only things were that simple.

As soon as we got home, we learned that our microwave oven is taking too long to heat the food and our rice cooker, third this year, broke down just like that. What I usually do when things like these happen is head straight to the supermarket to replace the broken appliances. But just to be sure, I told our helper to ask around the neighborhood if there’s someone who knows how to fix appliances. I’m pretty sure some of the appliance parts just needed to be replaced. The problem is there weren’t any one in the village who knows how. Handymen are a thing of the past LOL. Even my husband told me we should just go ahead and buy them to save time. Time, not money is more important to him. I wish I could say the same.

Here’s what I got last Sunday.

Maxtor One Touch III, Mini Edition.

Portable Work and play on the go. This lightweight, portable drive lets you bring important files with you.

Rugged Design Built in shock-resistent design ensures durability

USB Interface Connect using the USB 2.0 cable. The Mini draws power from the computer, to help free you from carrying around an extra power cord.

160 GB Capacity Add capacity quickly. Stores more than 51,200 photos, or 160 hours of DV video, or 2,665 hours of music.

5400 RPM, 8 MB cache buffer For fast drive performance and instant access to your files.

System Rollback Restores your system to a point in time just before your system crashed, while keeping your current data safe and up to date.

Sync your files Automatically synchronize your files between two computers every time you connect or disconnect the drive so you are always working with the most current data.

Easy to Use Interface Get up and running fast. Simplifies drive management, security, and backup scheduling.

Maxtor DriveLock™ Password protect the contents of your drive for an extra measure of security.

Simple set up Plug it in, connect the USB 2.0 cable, and your Maxtor OneTouch III automatically appears on your desktop.

I’m soooo loving this purchase. And it’s cheap too! I only paid a total of $107 with a 0% interest option for six months if I want to. I feel so good and organized now. All my photos worth 45GB and scrapbooking kits worth 28GB are now moved to the new hardisk and they are all labeled and tags accordingly. What’s left for me to do now is to make two backups on DVD just in case my new hardisk fails.