Friday, December 29, 2006

How we spend our time is one the most important investment decisions we ever make. Time is a non-renewable commodity. Once it's gone, it's gone and will never come back. Right now, with the New Year about to emerge, is a great time to think about this. Otherwise, after we've written "2006" a few times instead of "2007" we will fall right back into our old habits.


The bad news is time flies. The good news is you're the pilot.
- Michael Altshuler

Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time,
for that is the stuff life is made of.
- Benjamin Franklin



Every time a New Year rolls around, we think of all kinds of changes we're going to make, whether losing weight, getting in shape, kicking our cigarette habit, or working on our career. But we seldom think of the most important change of all: investing our time more wisely so that we get the most out of it - time that gives us fulfillment, time that improves our personality, times that make us happy, and time that we can use to help others. Time will never come back, but we can decide how to spend it

Thursday, December 28, 2006

Thirteen Things I've Accomplished in 2006 1. Artistic Poets' January Poet of the Month 2. The Creative Pen's February Poet of the Month 3. Wincyclopedia.com's $25 author winner for best article in March 4. New Age Incorporated's April Writer of the Month 5. WSE Self-esteem Contest Winner 6. Received a certificate of recognition from Poetry in a Cup. 7. Featured at Chaotic Dreams Online as September's Dream Weaver. 8. Interviewed by reputable magazines thrice for my poetic works. 9. Two of my stories got accepted in Health and Home and I got paid with a check worth 1010 php for each acceptance and another story made it to a Canadian Family Magazine where I got $75 10. Snagged 32 books from online contests and book giveaways (December alone) 11. Aced the Poetry Contest at Letstalkhonestly.com for 3 consecutive months ($60 prize) 12. Won the Secret Attic Poetry Competition. 13. My poems were publihed in 15 books in 2006. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Labels: Thursday Thirteen

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Times change..and the new year is approaching, so this is always a good time to look back at what you've accomplished over the year, and be proud of it. It's also a time to take note of the things you didn't accomplish, and start setting goals for the new year. Whatever you choose to do, another year is undeniably approaching, and the days of 2006 are withering to an end.

For me, I always look at this time of year as a mark of change. The new year brings new possibilities, and acts as a fresh start; a new beginning. While you can't go back and change the negativities of your past..you can always look forward, and begin to mold and change your future. For the most part, you can count on the new year to bring new aspects into your life.

So..here's to 2007!

Friday, December 22, 2006

Congratulations! Please claim your prize.

It's in today's news.

A certain Minela Dolor from Ilocos/La Union won a whopping 1 million pesos from the government's promo of "Premyo sa Resibo" but almost forfeited her prize because of her reluctance to even admit to herself that she did win. She claimed that all her life she never won anything and only heard of other "chance" winners from televisions and other media means. Add to the fact that hoaxes and scams are very rampant.

It was until a few days before the 60-day claiming period when a long distant relative of her went out of her way to convince her that she did win before she started verifying from the involved agencies and eventually claiming her prize.

It's striking resemblance to our lives is profoundly obvious.

We are all WINNERS already to begin with.
And we don't even have to buy any ticket or follow dizzying game mechanics to win it. We only need to recognize it, accept it and live it so we do not forfeit it anymore.
Isn't that wonderful?

Jesus laid His life as our wager for us to "win" the opening of the gates into Heaven.

Oh, and by the way, we should also become a "distant relative" to others and go out of our way as often as we can to inform our brothers and sisters about their prize waiting to be claimed. Remind them that all they have to do is dial Heaven's toll-free-toil-for-the-kingdom hotline.

Congratulations to all of us!

Merry Christmas to you and to your family.

Thursday, December 21, 2006

Thirteen Things I Love About Christmas 1. Exchanging gifts - Oh, I just love presents! 2. Christmas dinner: all kinds of hams, at least 12 varieties of fruits, chocolates, cakes, ice cream, lechon, beef steaks, eggs 3. Burning the telephone wires 'til wee hours in the morning 4. Shopping for stocking stuffers and gifts for nieces/nephews and godchildren 5. Seeing old friends 6. Fireworks display 7. Christmas contests and giveaways 8. Invitation to parties from the 17th to the 25th (a good way to lose weight while gaining a little bit more ..hehehe! ) 12. Movie marathon with grapes as popcorn. 13. Curling up on the sofa in a dark room with only the Christmas tree for light with hot chocolate or a glass of wine and Christmas music playing. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)


Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants



Labels: christmas, Thursday Thirteen

Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Yugoslavia

On the second Sunday before Christmas, children creep in and tie their mother's feet to a chair, shouting 'Mother's Day, Mother's Day, what will you pay to get away?' Surprisingly, she then gives them presents. Children play the same trick on their father the following week and the children get more presents. Unfortunately, parents don't get to do the same to their children the week after.

Greenland

Kiviak is a gastronomical Christmas treat from Greenland which, for some reason, hasn't been adopted by many other nations. It's made from the raw flesh of an auk which has been buried under a stone in sealskin for several months until it's achieved an advanced stage of decomposition. Apparently, it smells like old blue cheese and tastes very pungent.

Iraq

In the Christian homes, a child reads the story of the Nativity from an Arabic Bible while other family members hold lighted candles. As soon as the story has been read a bonfire made of dried thorns is lit and the family sing a psalm. If the thorns burn to ashes, the family will have good fortune during the coming year. When the fire has burned down, everyone jumps over the ashes three times and makes a wish.

Wales

Ever wondered where the phrase 'putting the bite on' comes from? At Christmastime, in some rural areas of south Wales, the Mari Llwyd is a person hiding under a horsehair sheet (a brethyn rhawn) whilst carrying a horse's skull on a pike .The Mari Llwyd wanders the streets with a band of mummers and anyone 'given the bite' by the horse's jaws must pay a cash fine.

Lebanon

The Labanese plant chickpeas, wheat grains, beans and lentils in cotton wool, a fortnight before Christmas. They water the seeds every day and at Christmas, the sprouted shoots are used to surround the manger in nativity scenes.

Portugal

In Portugal, the 'consoda' feast takes place on the morning of Christmas Day. Extra places are set at table for the souls of the dead and they are offered food to these souls to bring luck to the family during the forthcoming year.





HED Ebook Banner Exchange

Labels: christmas tradition

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Every year millions of people resolve to change their life on New Years
Eve. Whether they are going to stop smoking, lose weight or get their
dream job, they make a resolution to make that change in their life.

In just a few days all but a small fraction of these people will have
broken their New Years resolutions and be making excuses as to why they
are not changing.

Why?

Firstly, people set themselves unreasonable expectations. We vastly
over-estimate how much we can achieve in a day, a week or even a year, yet
we dramatically under-estimate how much we can achieve in 10 years.

Trying to lose three stone in a month is next to impossible without
losing a limb! If you made a New Years resolution that was actually
achievable you'd have a fighting chance of sticking to it.

New Years Resolutions tend to be "eat better" or "Stop smoking" or
"stop drinking" or something along these lines. Unless you have some
powerful motivation, you may find it difficult to suddenly make these big
changes in your life.

Resolutions like these are vague and not really achievable. When you
say "eat better", what do you actually mean? And more importantly, what
is actually achievable. When you say "stop drinking" or "get fitter",
what is on your mind? Stopping completely or just cutting down to a
couple of drinks a week? Training to run a marathon or just being able to walk
up the stairs without wheezing like a steam train?

Make your resolutions 100% achievable by defining them so you know
exactly when you've achieved them. "Reduce my drinking to 5 units of
alcohol a week". You know exactly what you want to achieve, you have a target
to aim at. "Be fit enough to run a mile in 10 minutes", another precise
target to aim at.

Make sure you know when you want to achieve your resolution. Most
people make these resolutions on New Years Eve and expect some magic to
happen at midnight and their resolution be achieved for them.

It doesn't work like that!

"Reduce my drinking to 5 units of alcohol a week by the end of January"
- precise target and a deadline. You know exactly what you have to
achieve and when you need to achieve it by. It's also realistically
achievable.

The majority of people will make resolutions because they feel they
ought to. It's the end of the year and everyone does it, so they should
really make some resolutions. Unfortunately, this results in wishy washy
resolutions that you don't really want to achieve.

Don't just make resolutions at New Years, set goals all year around
when you feel the need and when you want to achieve something. Every
single successful person in the world has a set of goals they are working
towards.

Make sure you have powerful reasons why you absolutely must achieve
your resolution. Don't make a resolution because your friend Bob has -
make it because you want it to happen. Otherwise you're not going to
achieve it without a visit from the good luck fairy.

Your reasons why you have to achieve your resolution (and why you
cannot achieve it) are your rocket fuel for achieving your resolution.
Your reasons provide you with motivation and propel you towards you
resolution, hence you need powerful, motivating reasons.

A lot of resolutions will fail because they are made on a conscious
level without the agreement or participation of your sub-conscious. If
sub-consciously you do not want to achieve a resolution then you are going
to sabotage your efforts. It is vital you get the buy-in of your
sub-conscious mind. Without it, you are much more likely to fail.

This means listening to yourself when you make a resolution. You will
know immediately yourself if it is achievable and if your sub-conscious
is behind you. Hypnosis and hypnosis CD's are an excellent way to get
the conscious and sub-conscious minds to work together to success.

Basically, make sure you actually want to achieve your resolution. If
you don't, either don't set it or find some motivating reasons why you
must achieve it.

In summary, make your resolutions MAPPED:

Motivational
Achievable
Practical
Precisely timed
Exact
Desirable

Resolutions are great to set at New Years, but why wait to New Years to
make those changes in your life that you've been waiting to change. Now
is a great time to start so you can beat the rush.

Over the Christmas holiday you normally get some quiet time. Instead of
lounging in front of the television, spend this time deciding what you
want from life. Do you realise people spend more time planning their
summer vacation than they spend planning the rest of their lives?

Take the opportunity to give yourself a gift this Christmas; the gift
of mapping out your life and creating the life of your dreams.

Labels: new year resolution

Sunday, December 17, 2006

Tawny Taylor is proud to announce the launch of a new vampire series titled TWILIGHT’S POSSESSION in 2007. With it comes a new website, http://www.twilightspossession.com/, and a new myspace, www.myspace.com/twilightspossession.



To celebrate the new series, and a second piece of good news--the official acceptance of Real Vampires Don’t Drink O-Neg by Kensington (Sept. 2007)--Tawny is holding a contest.



The prize: A Vampire Lover’s gift basket full of terrific paranormal romance novels, a tote to carry them, and (not shown) a few necessities to help the winner score a sexy alpha vampire of her own.

To enter: email tawny at tawnytaylor@sbcglobal.net with the name for the secret brotherhood of warriors AND their creed copied and pasted into the body of an email (no attachments will be opened). To assure your entry in the contest, please put the words Vampire Lover Contest in the subject line. And please, don’t forget to include your name and contact information.

No purchase necessary.

A BONUS: Extra chances will be awarded to anyone who posts this announcement (including the live links below for Tawny’s websites) on his/her blog and/or myspace. One extra chance per post, up to a maximum of five extra chances per person. So post away! Please! To receive the extra chances, please send a link of the live post in the body of your email, along with your contact information.

Entries accepted Dec. 1 through Dec. 31 (11:59pm, Eastern US Time) The drawing will be held on New Year’s Day and the winner will be announced on Twilights Possession by 5:00 PM Jan. 1, 2007.

Finally, Tawny would like to wish everyone a blessed Christmas and New Year.

Links for contest:
Tawny Taylor’s Erotic Romance with Sassitude
Tawny Taylor’s Twilight’s Possession

Labels: contest, tawny taylor, twilight's possession

I got tagged for this a while back. So here are the significant FOURS in my life:

Four most important people in my life:
1. my mom
2. my dad
3. my fiance
4. my youngest brother

Four things I can't live without:

1. my pc
2. cash (must be at least 1500 php per day)
3. my meds
4. fruits

Four weird things about me:

1. I can't sleep without reading my mails.
2. I can't eat on time.
3. I write when I like to. No one can force me to write when I don't feel like scribbling. (I'm quite impulsive..hehehe..even editors can't move me)
4. I'm a shopaholic (I can spend as much as 8000-10 000 php in a normal day)

Four kinds of people I hate most:

1. those who doesn't admit defeat
2. hypocrites
3. arrogant fools
4. envious jerks

Four adjectives that best describes me:

1. carefree
2. playful
3. sophisticated
4. rational/logical

Four favorite foods:

1. pasta
2. tiramisu
3. fruit decadence
4. ice cream

Four movies I could watch over and over:

1. A Beautiful Mind
2. Secret Window
3. Legally Blonde 1
4. The Notebook

Four TV shows I enjoy:

1. The Tyra Banks Show
2. Merge
3. Myx's Daily Hit Chart
4. Ambush Makeover

Four places I'd like to visit:
1. France
2. Utah
3. Iceland
4. Hawaii

Four websites I go to daily:
1. My homepage
2. Stifled Squeal
3. Kenfone.com
4. Friendster.com


Yesterday, my site was picked Blog of the Day by 2006 Weblog Awards - Blog Of The Day Awards - Top Blog Awards. Thanks a lot to those who nominated me. I'm so pleased to post the award button here:

Labels: 4 things, memes

Saturday, December 16, 2006

Labels: morning, poem, poetry, saturday poetry

Thursday, December 14, 2006

Thirteen Things about RACHELLE 1. I was born a frail child (with an eye defect and a low immune system) 2. I had fever on and off until I was 5 years old. (The doctors predicted I'd be epileptic if the chills continued 'til I reach 7) 3. My birthday is June 22 while my brother's (next to me) bday is June 23. 4. I'm 22 years old now. 5. I'm engaged. 6. I have 2 brothers and a half-sis. 7. I gained 13 kilograms since I got sick 2 years ago. 8. I thrashed my wardrobe because all my clothes won't fit me anymore. 9. I never finished school because after I was diagnosed with lupus, I became housebound. 10. I'm only taking online classes now. 11. In just one year, my poems have been published in fifteen anthology books (paperback). 12. I was the Secret Attic Poetry Competition winner last November. 13. I won Letstalkhonestly.com's poetry contest from Sept-Nov. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)


Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants



Labels: about me, lists, Thursday Thirteen

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Bridesmaids


• Don't tell everyone within ear shot how much you loathe the revolting peach froth that you are wearing. The quickest and most to the point disclaimer is 'the bride chose it!' usually with a high pitched voice and a poorly disguised grimace.
  
  
• Don't throw a tantrum at the bride's requests, even if she is being Bridezilla. She's stressed, she's feeling the pressure, she's relying on you.
  
  Children
  
  
• Guests should never flout the 'no kids' rule or be offended by it. Enjoy your night out without The Precious.
  
  
• On the other hand, if you have been invited to bring a bambino or two, don't be inconsiderate to the couple. Seat yourself near an exit at the ceremony in case of bawling or bad behaviour and remove said infant immediately. Yes, you'll miss the vows but it's not about you, is it?
  
  Gifts
  
  
• Just because it's your wedding and you registered somewhere horribly chic, doesn't mean that Aunt Mildred won't still insist on knitting you both nasty his'n'hers jumpers. Don't shake, feel or demand to know what is in the box like it's Christmas. Save your disapointment for another day.
  
  
• And if you are the gifter, never turn up with an empty but beautifully wrapped box ala The Wedding Crashers. You'll get found out, the scary bridesmaid will find you and then you'll be for it.
  
  Etiquette and the groom
  
  
• Under no circumstances may you - the groom - ever be late. If Stag night antics look like they could delay the wedding day, hold it two weeks prior to your wedding day allowing you enough time to return from Siberia and have hospital treatment for the tape marks on your wrists.
  
  
• No matter what your bride wears or how repulsive you may find her dress sense, remember this, she's done her best and you should be suitably enamoured. Never tell her she looks like the dog's dinner or your Gran's tablecloth. 'Darling, you have a wonderful sense of fashion' is ambiguous and polite enough.
  
  The Bride
  
  
• Less is more indeed, however, you should cover your assets appropriately and consider your choice of underwear. No one wants to see your boobs at all. At all.
  
  
• Never get drunk. You don't want to be the bride remembered amongt your friends as the one who spent the evening hurling, with the bridesmaids holding her hair back. It'll take at least a decade before that seems even remotely funny.
  
  Guest Apparel
  
  
• Of course you want to look great at the wedding, just in case you bump into your ex and all those mean old school friends, but that doesn't mean you should ever try and upstage the bride ala JLo, Victoria Beckham and Liz Hurley.
  
  
• Take note of the wedding invitation - if it says black tie, that's how you dress. Smart/ casual, however, is such a loose term but you should never translate that as a sweatsuit/ jeans/ filthy trainers or anything of that ilk or you'll find yourself airbrushed from pictures pronto!
  
  Alcohol and guests
  
  
• If the wedding couple have dug deep into their pockets to extend their generosity to an open bar, that does not mean you have a licence to order triple whiskeys and take as many drinks as you can carry. Drink in moderation, not to the couple's bankruptcy.
  
  
• And once you've consumed all that alcohol, tempers may flare but don't be drawn into a fight - fisticuffs, food or otherwise. That's just plain common and you'll probably never be welcome to another event again.
  
  Making speeches and best man myths
  
  
• If you've been invited to make a speech, now is not the time to reveal that the bride has copped off with all the guys at table eight. Or that the groom once had the hots for all the bridesmaids. Unless you really want to ruin the wedding night, in which case, what is wrong with you?
  
  
• Should you be the - single - best man entertaining the fantasy that it is your duty to 'make special friends' with the - single - bridesmaid(s), please note this is not a required part of your obligations and refusal can cause offence. And vice versa.
  
  
• Never wear your own wedding dress... when it's not your own wedding. That's just rude and you'll forever be known as the crazy lady.
  
  
• Don't put you bridesmaids in horrid dresses just to make you look better/ skinnier/ more glam. You'll just look like you have no taste and one day, that favour will be returned and then you'll be in peach puffball hell!
  

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

From the back cover:

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

A - Available/Single? Engaged..
B - Best Friend? My fiance
C - Cake or Pie? Cake
D - Drink Of Choice? Green Tea or Iced Tea
E - Essential Item You Use Everyday? my pc
F - Favorite Color? Shades of red (pink and purple)
G - Gummy Bears Or Worms? Gummy Bears
H - Hometown? (born in ) Cebu, Philippines
I - Indulgence? Tiramisu and creme brulees
J - January Or February? January (my bf's birth month)
K - Kids & Their Names? not yet..but I already have names in mind
L - Life Is Incomplete Without? my pc
M - Marriage Date? undecided yet but hopefully next year
N - Number Of Siblings? 2 (3 including my half-sis)
O - Oranges Or Apples? Oranges, definitely
P - Phobias/Fears? getting pregnant (lol) before my lupus stabilizes, psychosis, losing the love of my life
Q - Favorite Quote? Never look down on anybody unless you're helping him.
R - Reason to Smile - having found the love of my life who loves me more than life itself
S - Season? Summer (no choice, we got only 2 seasons)
T - Tag Four People? not yet...
U - Unknown Fact About Me? I can get obsessive and compulsive
V - Vegetable you don’t like? Broccoli, asparagus
W - Worst Habit? late meals (i just can't eat on time, no matter what i do! arghh!)
X - X-rays You’ve Had? on my nose and lungs
Y - Your Favorite Food? desserts...(i'm a sweet tooth)
Z - Zodiac Sign? Cancer

Monday, December 04, 2006

I was at Gina C.'s website (Portrait of a Writer) when I came across a list of things that she possesses or has done in her life (Nov 27 post). The post was called "Have You Ever..." and I just thought it was a fun thing to do. It's like counting sheeps, ah, I mean memories, mishaps and other things in between, in broad daylight. Now, that's something exciting to start a day with. Here's my take on it:

• Born in the 80s
  
• My favorite color is red (and other shades of red like pink and purple)
  
• I'm a shopaholic and a savvy net surfer
  
• Got one younger sister
  
• Two younger brothers
  
• My younger brother, Francis is my polar opposite
  
• My youngest brother, Michael is a darling but is too innocent (He always switches the TV channel when there's a kissing scene )
  
• I have a half sister
  
• Never met my younger sister
  
• I beat up a boy when I was in gradeschool, actually 2 of them
  
• My friends were all boys when I was 5-8
  
• I was always involved in childish gang wars
  
• I once went home with a black eye and went back to school the next day to give the bully a dose of his own medicine
  
• My first suitor was a 12-yr old son of the school principal and I was yet 6 (He once bribed my brother just to pass through our gate but never made it to the living room because I locked the door
  
• I cried when Frosty the Snow man died when I was little
  
• I sold books door to door
  
• I sold candies door to door
  
• Our tricycle was named Arlin, after me
  
• I wrote poetry in history class, and science, english and P.E. class
  
• I was in the volleyball team in elementary and highschool
  
• I wrote for my highschool and college paper
  
• I was the feature editor of my highschool paper
  
• I was the assistant of the Guidance Counselor in highschool
  
• I found out later that the counselor had a crush on my boyfriend
  
• I tried out for cheerleading
  
• I made it to the cheerleading squad
  
• I played the flute in gradeschool and highschool
  
• I learned to play the guitar when I was 14
  
• I played the digital keyboard when I was 19
  
• I won a logo contest with a cash prize in junior high
  
• My English teacher reserved me a spot for my high school play after she heard me sing in class (without my knowledge and without auditions - to the dismay of my batchmates)
  
• I declined to participate in the play because my parents won't allow me to go home late everyday
  
• I'm a sucker for a good musical
  
• I turned 18 in college
  
• I wrote for my college paper
  
• I wrote for the yearbook
  
• My parents separated when I was 19
  
• My father had 3 mistresses to date
  
• Several Africans proposed marriage, I refused,, (Africans I met online)
  
• Now, the Persians are flooding my inbox and my YM offline message box
  
• I can speak a little Japanese
  
• I was diagnosed with lupus at the age of 20
  
• I love the ocean/beach
  
• I can only go to the beach after 3:00 pm (without the sun) because I get rashes when I'm exposed to UV rays (blame it on lupus)
  
• I got to meet my penpal in real life
  
• I have brown eyes (dark brown is more like it )
  
• I scrapbook
  
• I am way behind in scrapbooking (I haven't scrapbooked for months)
  
• I paint
  
• I've only rode on a ship once (enroute to Dumaguete)
  
• I get motion sickness easily
  
• I performed health care services to 7 families of 15-24 members per family during college
  
• I've worked with troubled kids in a residential treatment center
  
• My fiance is into music and is the lead guitarist of their band
  
• He works as a computer graphic artist (specializing in 3D and animation)
  
• I hate sales! (my mom is in sales)
  
• I'm reading Web of Lies by Brandilyn Collins
  
• I'm an (impulsive) blogger!
  

Friday, December 01, 2006

It is December 1st, time for the FIRST Day Blog Tour! (Join our alliance! Click the button!) The FIRST day of every month we will feature an author and their latest book's FIRST chapter!

Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 609 pages
Publisher: AMG Publishers (September 25, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN: 0899578705