I am trying something new..

Yes! I am trying something out... I said to myself, I might just reboot my other blog and have some other use to it  - yes, other than ranting coz I do that here already, right? LOL!

Anyways, if you think you want to be nosy like me. Let's peek into the celebrities' life and all other topics related to them. Join me as I try to rebuild my old blog!

It's still a work in progress but I have been consistent in putting in articles and insights on the blog. I hope you can read through and maybe suggest topics you'd like to read about? Though like I said, it's not always going to be about my nosiness.

There is a possibility that I might inject a few journalism articles that I think needs special attention. You will never know! I might surprise you.

Hope to see you here and on the other side okay? Have a great weekend ahead!

Yeap, ze blog is alive!

 

Where Did Time Go?

I cannot believe it that time literally flies so fast! We have reached a few milestones this month of October. For one, this is our second year anniversary of being former OFWs in Dubai. Can you believe that? It feels like it was just yesterday but we have already survived the smog, the "extrajudicial" killings and more here in the Philippines.

Meanwhile, I also have a personal milestone for me as I have officially completed three months in my online work as a web writer. I have to be honest that I am still at that point where I am relearning the ropes of writing. I know what they say, "once a writer, always a writer" - right? However, I don't think that is the case for me.

It is a good thing that my editors are patient with me with every revision that they need to do with my article.

Right after my shift, my editor and I had a chat and she mentioned that my writing has improved! Finally, all the hard work has paid off. However, not all of it was good news because she also mentioned that based on her edits, my common mistakes are still the same.

I am mindful about it but as I have told her, when you keep on reading your work, you think that everything is right even when some of it is wrong (makes sense?). I am challenging myself to be careful but also be mindful of the deadline. Yes, she has highlighted "time" to be me as well because I have been submitting my work late!

Reading this blog post right now, I think there is a shift on my tone and with how this blog is written. Hopefully, this new "writing" will bring in more viewers for me.

See you soon, okay?
 

Checking In

Hi guys! I know it's been a while since I have posted an entry to this blog. I want to blame my work for it but of course, that is not really true :p Aside from work, I am also busy with my dogs and of course, my husband.

However, I do feel guilty because I manage to focus on work and the dogs but not on the husband. I hope I can think of something to make up for lost time soon because his birthday is coming up. I don't have an idea on how I can surprise him! Yes, me! LOL!

I guess this is because most of my ideas requires me to spend a certain amount of money that we currently don't have. We are saving up so that we can do the finishes for our home. We got this very nice place down South and we want to start living in it! Like right now!

It is not going to be easy but we are determined to relocate some time this year. I hope we will meet our target date. Okay, my time is up to stay in this blog. R has already prepared dinner so I need to say bye for now.

Let me leave you, my viewers, a cute photo of my cute Shih Tzu, Herb. Smile!

Hi to my mom's friends :) 

I skipped a month!

So a lot of things have happened (imagine I skipped a month without blogging).

Some of them were good (like my aunt coming home for a short vacation), some were bad (my puppies died of Parvo) and some were exciting (got a job).

If I have to describe how April and a bit of May went? Wild.

Yes, that is my word.

Hope you can wait up on me while I try to figure out how to blog all about it (mental note to self: I think I still have a few more stories that I wanted to share... Need to get a notebook to list them down).

Also, I am thinking of revamping the look of my blog. A lot of things on my list (that's good) but I hope the weather cooperates because it is way too hot :/

Blogopolis 4D

My name is on the list! My name is on the list! *dancing*

Can you see me? I'm rach_alarcon :) 

I am psyched because I got picked to have a chance to get invites for the upcoming Blogopolis 4D which will be held this Saturday, Feb 27 2016 at Green Sun, Makati.

I am taking the hubby with me... I hope this will also interest him because I think we can pick up a few ideas if we intend to have a business right?

So psyched! I hope that I will be able to document and blog about the event tomorrow! :)


**photo grabbed from Nuffnang (http://blog.nuffnang.com.ph/2016/02/19/blogopolis4d-ticket-giveaway-winners/)

No movements at all

I think ever since I have started with this blog, I have linked it to my Google Adsense account. I remember when I was personalising the blog, I was asked if I want to have it linked so that I can earn a profit by blogging (why not right? It felt like hitting two birds with one stone at that time).

Completely ignored the fact that the blog was not earning because I wasn't writing then. Work took over and of course the "intend move" also preoccupied my time so I was not that bothered about it. Last year, I made a conscious effort to keep on checking my Adsense account so that I can make sense if I was earning anything or not.

Checked it out and I think from $0.03 it went up to $1.00. I gave myself a pat on the shoulder and said that this might be a good sign because it also means, I will slowly gain revenue with the blog. I also changed the layout so that whenever I end a post, an ad will be there for people who visits my blog to click and explore.

Since I was not that busy, I kept checking my Adsense account. Lo and behold, the earnings were as slow as the turtle (or even more). I have earned $2.57 for two years!

Not that I am super proud of it but just to give you an idea :p 

This cannot be true....!

I was searching and checking online on how to boost my Adsense earnings but some articles were a bit technical for me that I dropped the idea of looking. One night, I stumbled upon the Freelance Blend Facebook page and joined the group. They had a webinar last week and I joined them (first because it was free of charge - Thanks Marv! and secondly, I want to understand the online world when it comes to earning).

During the webinar, one of the insights provided by Marv de Leon was that Google Adsense does not do a website any good. There's no benefit to it anymore and at times, can be the cause of distraction on your blog or website.

With this information at hand, I am now considering to remove Google Adsense on my blog... though I am challenged if I can make it reach $100 so as to be able to cash out. Also, this kind of challenges me to push myself more to write and see which topics of mine click with Adsense.

My fellow bloggers, do you have Adsense too? Any tips for me? :p

I'm back online... I think

So! The laptop was visited by my Apple doctor / friend and now, it's fixed! No pinwheel seen for the past few hours :) :D :)  ====> can you see the smileys? Yes, that is me smiling incessantly because of this very, very good news!

I hope this remains because I am waaaaaayyyy delayed for the things that I want to accomplish with the laptop. Yep, that would be:-

• reading / catching up on friend's / people's blogs
• do our expense tracker 
• update my blog 
• start working on an ebook 

... to name a few ;) 

This is a great Thursday!!!! :P 

Back to Blogging (I Hope)

Remember when I wrote about this a few weeks ago?

Well, aside from the fact that we were out of connection for four days (good thing SkyBroadband assured me that I will get an adjustment kundi major rant ito :p) due to some maintenance issues, I was only able to download and update my Operating System.

After all the tinkering and playing around, I can safely say that it seems to be working its magic on this laptop but I also had to remove some files in my computer because it might be "feeling heavy" (like a Facebook feeling noh?!) from all those photos that I have stored over the years.

So, we are still on that 'honeymoon' stage but we seem to be getting along well. I am just so happy that I get to read what I type rather than wait for it to appear. It feels good :)

Though I got a quick question, where do you usually store your photos? Is it on a hard drive or do you do half-half like store the recent ones in your laptop's hard drive and then the 'younger' days are left to rot in your external drive LOL!

Hope I can see some comments about this to guide me or at least give me suggestions on what needs to be done because I am still contemplating on investing / buying a new external drive (I currently have the following: 2 1TB drives that houses my TV series and movies and 1 500GB that has my books, magazines and other stuff that I have yet to delete / read, etc).

See you in the next few weeks because I will definitely be bugging the online world again.

:D

Slow Machine

means no blog post from me.

I have tried to make do with the slowness of my laptop but it has taken its toll on my writing. I find it difficult to write about my thoughts or blog about something when it actually takes about three to four minutes before the actually words will appear on the screen.

I have mastered the art of "typing ahead" (meaning I type even if I don't see if my spelling is right or not. I end up doing my proofreading later on when I have all the thoughts typed up). Doing this also means, I wait for the words to appear and then if I want to change or alter a phrase, I have to wait for a few minutes for it to be done.

Not only that attaching photos or posting links are becoming a pain too that at times I end up not posting photos because it takes a helluva time before it gets uploaded.

I am not sure if this is the laptop or the internet or a ghost playing around my device that is causing havoc to me, wanting to write about what's in my head.

So, now you know why I am not writing that often these days (and you thought it was the weather!! Wrong! :p)... Hopefully with the release of the new software next week, my problems will be solved but for now, I am negotiating for this laptop to stay well so that I can post this!

If this gets posted, it means we have made a deal (for now).

Do you...

use your blog to gain revenue?

I do... or I think it's better to say that I try.

Yeap, I have linked my blog to generate revenue via Google Adsense and Nuffnang. It must be me... because when I have checked both accounts, I do not have enough to celebrate with a Mcdo meal (yes, even with the cheapest one or the kiddie meal).

Another reason can probably be because I am not that familiar with SEO writing. Yes, I should read more about it but I haven't done that yet - why? I don't know... (saying that makes me feel I am not really that productive)... wait! I know!! It's because I am being called by my oven to bake! I will try and post my products soon!

So, it's my fault.

I hope... I hope I can turn things around ;-)

Mobile-Friendly

A few weeks back (I think), I got an email from Google to check if my site is mobile-friendly. It seems a lot of people now are opting to own a smartphone rather than a laptop. With almost everyone wanting to be on the go, a smartphone is your best fit.

Like always, I tend to forget this kind of alert (yeah, I am super busy right now being a mom to two puppies and one dog takes much of my time these days) and it is only now that I got prompted to check if my blog is mobile-friendly by taking their test.

yehey! would that mean more readers for this blog?

And I passed (yey!).

So, if you are constantly reading my blog, I am pleased to let you know that it is mobile-friendly! :) No hassles of not getting to read my blog properly. However, if in case this is not true, please let me know so that I can at least inform Google (naks!) about it and let them have a look.

What's in the BLOG?

A month back, I was invited to a press launch (which I will blog about in the coming days) and met a new friend (Hi Ara!). As usual, initial talks were about personal information which we both gladly divulged. With all that behind us, Ara asked me what my blog is about. She gave different styles like lifestyle, fashion, food and more. I immediately said lifestyle because I think that is what I want my blog to focus on.

Though it's actually more of my personal thoughts/ opinions about everything that is happening to me, to us (R &I) in general.

Over the past years, what I have noticed is that the personal blog has turned into a mini-info pamphlet. The writer or writers will be blogging about various events or products either as a review or as a product launch. Yes, people still associate it with their personal stories like what do they perceive of the product or the event that took place however it seems like it's a news feature.

I guess blogging has really evolved now because online readers also get their product knowledge or information from the blog sites that they read. Example, I now know more about different hacks and ways to take over my kitchen through Fat Kid Inside's blog. For fashion and home inspiration, I check on Daphne's blog site. I read Frugal Honey or Pinas for Good's posts to give me an idea on how I can invest our money or the lessons they have learned by doing so.

If I want to read about a personal view on gadgets, food and beauty reviews, I go to Animetric's World and sift through the restaurants that she has given her seal of approval. For high style fashion and endless travel to Hongkong and Japan, I lounge at CVS' blog site for days until my travel desires waned a bit.

Oh! My recent find is Ruthilicious for her witty posts about the product she reviews or the events that she has attended. 

As for my blog, if I were to put a category to it, it's still what you call a personal blog. Yes, I do rave or rant about restaurants or services but I still incorporate a lot of my day to day activities in the blog - like how I documented our plan to go home for good up until to date - while we search for that business venture.

I will be a hypocrite if I don't admit that I do want this blog to be noticed.... soon I hope! Why? Because I also want to start earning through my blog and be an online sensation (not that one-hit wonder kind huh!).

I guess I want to also have a voice in this type of medium. I know in time, someone will notice but for now, I shall continue with what I am doing :)

Oh! Of course when my blog starts earning, that means I will have new online friends to talk to (cool!).

Was I Busy?

Yes, I was and still is.

I feel bad that I have neglected my blog because I have been a bit busy online and offline. Well, to start off the festivities really was like a bug. People have been trooping to the mall to buy groceries for the upcoming noche buena and media noche. Apart from that, we had to brave the crazy, crazy traffic to do some errands.

In the end, I had to park my blogging skills a bit and enjoy the season.

Now, that it's over and almost everything is back to normal, I am hoping that I can also go back to blogging about stuff.

I still have a long list of things to do and errands to attend to but with R sleeping at this time, I am having a bit of "me" time and decided to just say HI to my readers, if there is any. This is also to let you know that the author of this blog is now back from her hiatus and will be giving you post after post of things that have been happening around her and in their life (well, not all hahahah!).

***

2015. A fresh year to start anew. I have listed out the things that I have been thankful for 2014 and what I expect to accomplish and take place for 2015. According to our pastor in church, Pastor Joshua Galaraga, this 2015, we should go forward and expect more because greater things are about to happen.

I claim that declaration because I know that new beginnings will happen this year.

***

Are you also ready to declare 2015 as your year?

***

Sorry for the bursts of thoughts, it is just that I am so excited writing my first blog post for the year that everything is beginning to be like a blabber. Don't worry, I know I will be able to explain more about this in the coming days.

***

Till my next blog post!

Life in the Blogging World

I usually go through my blog every week (when I say "go through", I check who my audiences are, where do I get link back, my top posts, etc).

What I do notice whenever I check my blog is that I never have any comments in. From the time I have started this blog, I only have two comments - one from a friend and the other one from me (because I answered her query).

I am not sure if this is because most of my posts are personal and not a lot are into reading what I have to say or it could be because there is not a lot of substance?

Years back, blogging was all about personal things. Most of my friends saw this as a venue where they can vent out, tell a story about their relationships and more. After reading the posts, we would comment endlessly about it until we forgot what the topic was really all about. I wasn't sure if this was because we were all just starting out and everyone needed all the support you can have. Fresh out of college, the real world is sometimes not kind to newbies.

The blogging world was a friend - a network of friends for that matter. It can be someone you know or someone you just met through a friend or a total stranger.

I guess this platform was left behind due to a more advanced way of socialising - Facebook and Twitter.

from www.topnews.ae

It has kind of put blogging behind, same as what I did. I got myself busy with Facebook and Twitter too. It must be the hype but still it led me back to blogging.

from http://technorati.com/social-media/article/twitter-fakes-tweets-to-promote-twitter/

After coming back, I noticed that blogging has transformed itself. From being personal, it became commercial. It has become an avenue for PR practitioners to use blogging in promoting their show, restaurants, etc.

Blogging has become the new "word of mouth" 

Instead of talking about it, they blog it with pictures as testimony to prove what they say. Again, bloggers decided also to group themselves - mommies together, blogging fashionistas and more.

Still, I am waiting for posts that have emotion on them. Sharing a piece of their life that is not due to a product or a restaurant experience but more of about them - what was their day like, what influenced them to write about it today.

I hope I see some of you behind your mask.

=)

Local Ads and Recipes

I was just browsing through my blog and re-reading my old posts when I noticed that my blog now has local adverts (naks!) :)

Does this mean people notice my blog? or it was just because of the fact that I live in this region hence the advertisements. Well, whatever that means, I thank people who find time to read my blog (and you are one of them, Stubbsy!)... I am hoping to see some comments though :)

I know I don't write much and I really think I have found the source, it's because I am always pre-occupied with doing a lot of stuff! There was even a tweet not so long ago about this type of disorder that I have!!

RT @UberFacts: "Busy Life Syndrome" is a real disorder causing forgetfulness and lack of concentration in people who take in too much information daily.

(tweet taken from twitter) 

Ha! I need to do something about this and create a routine (possibly) so that I don't fall into this... Focus is the word (which I can hopefully blog in another time -- eep! another promise that I intend to keep)