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!

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.