A Tribute to Filipino Bloggers and eCommerce Sites

eCommerce sites and the Internet, in general, have been around for like almost two decades (?) now and there are a lot of such sites in the online world. However, for us Filipinos, we are still playing catch up on the virtual world. I would think in terms of the number of blogs and eCommerce sites, we are still behind those of our Western counterparts.

But that doesn't mean that we aren't catching up fast. In fact, Filipino sites are sprouting up everywhere, from blogs about travel, food, life (in general), motherhood and fatherhood to eCommerce sites on Filipino products, delicacies, clothes, etc., we already have these and more. In fact, the Filipinos are starting to have a major presence in a certain networking site (where we can also find a lot of Filipino entrepreneurs), multiply.com. Filipino users of this site are so many and so active that when we had a holiday, multiply.com's management reported a major drop in the number of its users for the day! Talk about major!

To pay tribute to the Filipinos' ever growing presence in the online world, I have written two hubs. The first one is about the Top 10 Emerging Influential Filipino Blogs for 2009, which is based on a survey conducted last August 2009. The topics written by these bloggers are quite varied - from Filipino food to Filipino travel, to motherhood, fatherhood, to pictures and blogs about these pictures and to life in general.

The second hub features some Filipino eCommerce sites that are making waves in the online world. You have here a site about the Barong Tagalog (the formal attire for Filipino men), a site selling Filipino delicacies (the FilVeggie Online Store), a site modeled after the most famous shopping area in the country (Divisoria.com) and a site selling music, movies, books, personal care and beauty products that are proudly Pinoy (Kabayan Central.com).

So, if you are a Filipino reading this blog, why not go ahead and visit these hubs? If you're not a Filipino, you are also more than welcome to visit and read my hubs. Thank you very much and a Happy New Year to you.

Accounting in My HubPages

Being an Accountant is not an easy job, but after having this career for the last 12 years, I can honestly say that I like what I'm doing. So how else will I show this appreciation but by writing hubs about Accounting.

Let's start with the basics. Why do we need to learn basic accounting? I've seen a lot of people, even businessmen, who prefer to leave the accounting work to their Accountants and do not even bother understanding what is written in their financial statements. But, personally (and not because I am in the profession), I think this is a big mistake. Those who are in business, even if they are not accountants, should take time to learn and understand their numbers. And I mean learn and understand. It's not only merely reading the numbers but actual comprehension of what these numbers mean. If you're a businessman, is not an Accounting graduate, but can read your financial statements, then congratulations! You're definitely reaping the advantages of knowing the basics of accounting.

Or how about a hub of the most busy time of the year for us Accountants? The busy a.k.a. tax season. This is the time when we Accountants work overtime, work during the week-ends and even, sometimes, work overnight.
Sleepless nights, pressure from work, restless energy, quick tempers - these are just some of the things you might see when an Accountant is neck deep in doing the taxes of his or her clients. You will find the descriptions of these things and more when you read the above hub.

As an Accountant, there are really some things that I can't do without. This may be my trusted 5-year old calculator, or my computer or my Excel spreadsheet, or my pencil and ball pen. These are the things that I often use in my profession and the things I can't do without.

Lastly, let's get a little bit serious here. Accounting is a good career, don't get me wrong about this. But then again, there are really things that tend to bring down my profession. I'm talking about scandals, those that rocked the accounting world. In my hub, I outline 10 such scandals (major ones at that) and what the issues really were. These scandals are more than enough to put one on alert and definitely will make one think twice on whether or not this is a good career to be. I'd still say, it is, we (the Accountants) just have to be careful
to ensure that we use our profession in the proper manner. Thanks for reading!

My Christmas Wish List and New Year's Resolutions

Well, it's Christmas time again. This is my favorite holiday of all. For one, Christmas here in my country lasts not only for one month but for more than 3 months. The festive mood actually starts as early as September, which we call the 'ber' months. This makes us one of the few countries (if not the only country) in the world with the longest ever celebration of Christmas. First, we start out with the Christmas songs being played on the radio stations. Then by October, Christmas decors start popping up in a few places. By November, Christmas decorations are all over the place plus people are already starting to do their Christmas shopping. December, well, of course, this is the busiest month of them all with all the parties, food, gifts, etc.

For my Christmas hubs, I wanted these to be something personal (other than those I wrote for 'commercial' purposes). So I made my Personal Christmas Wish List. And when I say personal, they are really personal like getting to attend my family's reunion in another place, setting up my own blog, a new office with new clients, new laptop, new printer, new wheels and a new business. Then there's the 12 things that I love about Christmas which basically lists those things that I really cherish during this season - from my wedding anniversary, to one of my niece's birthday, to the parties, the food, the gifts, and just about everything else.

Of course, when you think about Christmas, you can't avoid but think about New Year celebrations too. So in keeping with the traditions, I also wrote about My New Year's Resolutions. But these are not just resolutions, they're my resolutions related to my online writing. So you will find there all my resolutions about HubPages, academic writing, blogging and online earnings.

Hope you enjoy reading the above hubs as much as I loved writing them. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone!

A 2-Part Hub on 10 Things I Hate While Driving

Don't you just hate it when you drive anywhere and you get to encounter drivers with bad attitudes or pedestrians that do not really know how to cross the streets or people who are just uncaring that they are on the side of a busy street and still carry on like they own the whole sidewalk? Well I do. In fact, whenever my husband and I go out for a drive (short or long-distances), we end up ranting against bad drivers, bad traffic situations and bad pedestrians. In fact, some of those situations that we rant about can actually cause serious injuries (or even death) to us and the other people.

To get matters off my chest, I wrote a hub on the 10 Things I Hate while Driving. The top thing in the list? Text - or call - addicts who drive while texting or calling using their cellular phones! When I see a driver texting or calling while driving at the same time, I immediately tell my husband (who's driving by the way, not me) to avoid that vehicle as the driver is not 100% focused on his / her driving. When I published this hub, the comments just kept pouring in. Turned out that a lot of people actually have a lot of peeves when they are driving. Other things that I hate include - pedestrians who cross the streets and act like they're walking on the moon, people who treat the sidewalks as extensions of their living rooms, drivers who overtake even when they are turning a blind curve (we have a really scary experience on this one), slowpokes, intersection maniacs, those who do not want to be overtaken (at all cost) and not-so-early warning devices.

Needless to say, after receiving all those comments, I decided to compile a few more in the list then published the second part of the hub (entitled 10 Things I Hate While Driving...Part II). This hub basically adds to the top 10 things I wrote in my first hub plus inputs from the various commenters from my first hub. The next 10 top things I hate while driving include the following: drivers who stop in the middle of the road, drivers who shop for open lanes, 'race car' drivers, cutting through drivers, butt and side stickers and a personal account of a 'moonwalker'.

If you want to read more, just click on the links to my hubs. Happy reading and hope you leave your comment on what p@sses you off when you are out driving. Cheers!

My Hub on What “The New Way to Work” Means to Me

I have just recently joined a competition sponsored by Elance.Inc. (where I am one of the providers). The contest is called "The New Way to Work" and it basically challenges us to write what the new way to work is for us. In order to join this contest, I have written a hub on what "The New Way to Work" means to me.

Writing this hub put into words what basically I could not really verbalize. Up until now, few people know that I am writing online and for those who do, they can't quite believe what I'm doing. I can hear words like "but you're busy, how can you still do it?" Or "does it really work? will you earn any money from it?". Well, news flash. It does work. I've been writing online for almost one year now and I can honestly say I've enjoyed every minute of it (deadlines, cramming, procrastinating, writing proposals, managing time and all).

The money? Oh let's see. Right now, it's secondary. I mean, don't get me wrong. I do earn money here, not enough to make this a full-time job but enough to say that it is significant, in the sense that I have more financial freedom plus I also have the means to give to other people.

So what does the new way to work means to me? Visit my hub and find out. Oh and don't forget to leave a message while you're at it. Cheers!

Various Traditions in the Philippines

Other than its beautiful islands and friendly people, my country (the Philippines) also has a rich tradition. Some (if not most) of these traditions stem from our more than 300 years of Spanish rule. Others we obtained from our predominantly Catholic traditions. Still others came from our adoption of Western cultures, that we, of course, customized to fit our local culture.

To start with, we have our Halloween traditions. These traditions are based on our Catholic / Christian beliefs. It is during the Halloween (Nov. 1 and 2 actually) where we get to visit our dead loved ones in the cemetery, meet with our living relatives and friends and generally, have a great time remembering and reminiscing those times when our loved ones were still alive. Candles, flowers, food, drinks, shelters - all these are just some of the staples found during this time.

Then we have our Christmas celebrations. We, Filipinos, are said to have one of the longest Christmas celebrations in the world. I mean, as early as September, we are already hearing Christmas songs on TV and radio programs. By October, the Christmas decors are already up (yes, even before the Halloween). During this time, Filipinos are already starting to buy Christmas gifts in anticipation of the rising prices of these gifts. By November, almost everything is in full swing. When it comes to Christmas traditions, there's no beating our 9-day dawn mass (called Simbang Gabi) and our Christmas foods. The Christmas atmosphere is so festive that a lot of our countrymen who are working in other countries make it a point to go home during Christmas, braving the airport crowd and the traffic in our metropolis.

Lastly, let's not forget our New Year traditions. On the heels of our Christmas celebrations, our New Year is characterized by noise-making (through fireworks and firecrackers), lots of food (including our tradition of having 12 round fruits for good luck) and New Year beliefs (i.e., polka-dot dress, money in the pockets / wallets, open doors, windows and lights). This is truly a most exciting time for us and something that we really look forward to during the year.

A Hub About Freelance Writing and Working at Home

I've been writing various articles and papers for one year now and I can honestly say I haven't regretted any single moment I spent writing. With over 70 papers behind me and a couple of thousand dollars in revenue, I can also say that this has been a really worthwhile experience for me monetarily / financially.

What do I write? Well, mostly about accounting (including financial statements, IFRS, US GAAP, and disclosures) and auditing stuff. Since this is my profession, this is where my knowledge lies. Other than this, I also write about business and marketing, teaching and fraud. I've even started blogging about my experiences in an auditing firm.

What else? I've also done some research assignments - one for trivia facts and the other for wedding ideas! All in all, I'd say I've researched about 1,000 items for these two assignments. Not bad considering I'm doing this all on my own.

So if you want to read more, why not visit my hub here? I'm sure you can find something that will relate to you. The hub also discusses my plans for the future. Of course I'll continue with my freelance jobs. Plus a new blog entirely on my own. So go ahead and read it. Just don't forget to leave me a comment after reading the hub! Cheers!

Domestic Violence...Not Against Women but against MEN!

When we think about domestic violence or abuse, we often picture a battered woman or a battered child, with black eyes or bruises in various parts of their body (and even the face). But there's another victim not commonly talked about - the men.

This week, Hubpages featured hubs about domestic violence. Looking through the new hubs nearly broke my heart. They told of sufferings, of personal experiences, of crying out for help and of recovery. Some hubs talked about what to do when faced with domestic violence. It seemed everything were being written about, everything, that is, except for domestic violence against men.

And that gave me an idea. I decided to go against mainstream and write about domestic violence against men. I know a lot of people may not agree to what I wrote. Some of them may have a violent reaction. Still others might deny that men are really victims of domestic violence. But the statistics that I researched and the articles I've read prove otherwise.

So if you have time, why not visit my hub, read it and tell me what you think? I'll definitely appreciate it.

Gifts for this Christmas Season

Christmas is my favorite time of the year. From the songs, to the food, to the decors, to the festive atmosphere all around, this is surely one holiday season I will not miss.

One of my favorite activity during the Christmas season is gift-giving. I don't think I've seen any other time when gifts are so in abundance, whether these are in kind or in cash. I love this activity so much that I've already written a blog for toys for Christmas.

Other hubs I have written about gifts and gift giving are giving Christmas gift baskets (bought from Amazon.com). Or if you are stumped with what to give to your boss during this Christmas (just your luck that you got your boss to be your gift-partner in the exchanging gifts activity in your office), why not consider my hub in the top 10 Christmas gifts for your boss? It will give you an easier time in choosing the right gift for your boss.

Another alternative is to give the gift of music during this wonderful season. Amazon.com listed a great list of music CDs that were in their top ten (as of the writing of my hub). From Michael Jackson's latest CD, to famous Christmas carols revived by Bob Dylan and Andrea Boccelli, to new albums from Susan Boyle and Adam Lambert, you can find the music that you are looking for here. Check out this list here.

But if you are really, really, really stumped for what to give, why not just give the gift of your time and love this Christmas? Make it a point to be there for your family or to volunteer for work. Or you can always cook for your family. Whatever you decide to give, if it's from the heart, your intended recipient will surely appreciate it. Merry Christmas to you!

Note: Just to give you a heads-up on the contents of my hubs, here are some of the gifts I recommended in my hubs.

My Political Hubs

Another reason why I like Hubpages is the fact that I can write about what I feel and what I think without fear of getting edited or sniped. One of the things I write are related to the politics here in my country. There's this hub that I wrote as a tribute to the first ever lady president of my country, Ms. Cory Aquino, who died in August 2009. She was mourned by hundreds of thousands of Filipinos as we all remembered her contribution to the restoration of democracy in our country.

Then there's the hub on the effects of the financial recession in the Philippines. The effects may not be as bad as those in the U. S. and in the other countries, but we also felt (and are still feeling) its negative effects. As of the time of the writing of this blog, little by little we are seeing some improvements in terms of the slow increase in the stock market, the appreciation of our peso versus the dollar and the continuous generation of new jobs within the country.

Or how about the upcoming Philippine elections, which will happen on May 10, 2010. This is a very hot topic right now with various politicians declaring their intent to run for various positions in the government. The most interesting thing is that we're seeing a presidential candidate who is the son of our former lady president and who's vice-presidential candidate is a grandson of another former president of the country. I sincerely hope that next year's election will be peaceful and whoever will win really deserve to win.

My Travel Hubs

One of the things I'm really interested in is traveling, to other places both here and abroad. I would love to travel to other cities here in the Philippines such as Zamboanga, Davao, Tagaytay, Baguio, etc. In fact, I wrote about the my top 10 preferred cities in the Philippines.

Of course, if I hub about other cities in my country, I also hub about my own city, Butuan. This is definitely home for me.

And let's not forget my favorite resort in my country. Personally, I don't think any other resort in the whole world will be able to compare with it. I'm talking about Amanpulo. I consider myself lucky because I was able to go to this island resort not once, not twice, but three times! And all for free (uhm, not because I'm rich but because they used to be my client). Every time I go there, I have to catch my breath because of the sheer beauty of this island. For me, nothing really beats this paradise on earth.

But my most favorite city of them all - Davao City! A very progressive city with lots to offer in terms of sights, sounds and people. It is a fast rising city here in my country. I love this city so much that I often visit it. In fact, the second hub I wrote about this city is all about my latest visit to Davao City. In fact, the picture on this blog was taken during our visit in the Philippine Eagle Park found in this city.

So those are my hubs about my country. What about other countries? Well, I wrote just one hub but I included my top ten cities that I want to visit before I die.  Located in various countries in the world, these are the cities that I dream of visiting someday (if I ever get enough money, that is). I don't know if this is a dream that I will not be able to achieve, but at least, researching and writing this hub made me see beautiful sights here on the Internet.

Well those are my travel hubs. Hope you click on these links to view these hubs and leave me a comment. Bye.

Telling It Straight in Hubpages

One of the things I like about Hubpages is that it lets me write anything I want (within reason of course). I write in Hubpages things about my country (mostly about places, sights to see and the food), the latest news here (the recent typhoons or the upcoming 2010 elections), my favorite cities in the world (Athens, Greece and Sydney, Australia are just some of them) and other stuff.

But what I really love the most is that I can write what we call 'ranting' hubs. These are basically hubs that show our pet peeves, our complaints, etc. How about this - a hub which lists the 10 things that I hate while driving. I thought what I wrote was already very bad. Turned out that they are pretty mild for some people as evidenced by  the comments I received.

Or how about my rant on being a boss? You can find here just what it is I hate in being my own boss and handling my own people. Believe me, when I wrote this hub, steam was literally rising from my ears. Good thing I have hubpages. If not, I would very well blow my top.

Lastly, I wrote a 'ranting' hub about making up  my mind. I'm almost in my mid-30s and yet, I find it hard to make up my mind on what I really want. I'm not bragging when I say I have a few pretty good choices and these are what makes me crazy in deciding for my future.

So there you have it. My 'ranting' hubs (with a little mention on the side about my other hubs). Believe me, it really feels good when I just write what I want and just let everything flow. Thank you for reading my 'rants' errrr hubs. Till next time, ciao!

Toys for Christmas

It's that time of the year again when my nephews, nieces, godchildren line up in front of me to receive their gifts (locally called "aginaldo"). In the past few years, I've been kind of lazy (and kind of busy), I just end up giving them money (around $5 to $6 each child). But now I'm kind of thinking, why not just give them toys? They're still too young to appreciate the value of money. But toys, they will appreciate. On the other hand, they so appreciate toys that the toys end up being scattered or damaged a few hours after receiving them! Oh well, those are kids!

So, this year, I'm trying to come up with a Christmas list of toys I will give to the children in December. The list is found in my hub on The Top 10 Children's Toys in My Christmas List. The number one in the list? Dolls, or more precisely, the world-famous Barbie Dolls. So why not click on these links to read my hubs? Whatever your age is, you will surely enjoy looking at these toys. Thanks and advance Merry Christmas!

Here are some of the toys featured in my two hubs:

I Love Food!

I can't help it, I really love to eat. I love food - local ones, chocolates, desserts, Chinese food, Italian food (especially pasta), seafoods, chicken, and my favorite of them all, sashimi! In fact, my weight, not to mention my waistline, are all proof of my love for food.

In honor of the foods that I love =), I wrote some hubs for them.

The first hub is about Filipino desserts. It gives a brief description of 8 desserts prepared and served in my country. You can see the related pictures for these desserts plus several videos on how to prepare some of them.

The second hub is about sashimi. Obviously, I'm a big fan of this food (sushi as well) and can eat a whole plateful of sashimi in one sitting. No kidding. If my siblings and I go to a buffet restaurant serving sashimi and sushi, we tend to consume lots of these (hope management did not mind). Buffet restaurants can charge a high rate but believe me, the price is well worth it to eat all these food.

The third hub is all about unique foods from the Philippines. It describes 10 kinds of food unique to my country, plus delicious pictures to get your mouth watering. Don't forget to click on the pictures!

Lastly, I wrote about the ways to cook goat meat. Okay, don't give me that 'eeeewwww' look. Goat meat is actually delicious and more tender than beef. Just make sure you cook it slow and at low temperaturs and you're good to go.

By the way, the picture above is not from any of these hub. This is a picture of cooked crocodile meat with Dragonfruit shake :). But the picture below is seen in one of my hubs.

Okay that's it. More hubs about food to come out in the future. Hope you like these food hubs. Cheers!

Why I Love Hubpages

I've started in Hubpages about four months ago and I can honestly I've enjoyed every minute of my time there. This site has a great platform and system for writers, both new and old. You get to read (and comment) on hubs written by Hubpages' resident 'experts'. It has a forum where writers can (1) unwind and talk about anything under the sun, (2) ask for help / comments on their hubs (Hubpages' term for articles) or (3) get tips, advices, etc. Plus (and this is a big draw for a lot of people) you get to earn on the site through Google Adsense, eBay or Amazon affiliates. However, please note that this site will not make you instant millionaires or will not give you instant earnings. As most things in life, you have to sweat it and stick it out to see the earnings. Some get their first adsense payout after six months, some shorter than that and some receive theirs after a year. The key, according to some long-time hubbers, is to write more hubs (quality ones at that), promote the hubs and research, research, research on how to monetize their hubs.

If you want to know more, visit my profile below:

http://hubpages.com/profile/emievil

You can also view my hubs that I wrote in celebration of my first, second and third months (respectively) in Hubpages:

A hub on my first month in Hubpages

Why I love Hubpages

My Hubpages Resolution

Or you can visit my latest hub on the 8 things I have learned from and learned to appreciate in HubPages. This one features a lot of my hubs (though I can't include all of them because this is actually my 90th hub) plus a lot of the hubbers who I am 'following'.
Hope you enjoy the above and leave a comment or two either here in my blog or in the hub itself. Thanks and enjoy!

What This Blog is About

Hi everyone. This new blog of mine is solely dedicated to my hubpages hubs. Please note that these are my own hubs and thus, they are copyrighted to my name. You are free to promote these hubs in your own sites (provided you email me in advance about your intentions) but do not copy them nor paste them without my prior knowledge. Thank you and happy reading!