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.