Stumble Upon!!

Have you stumbled upon “stumble upon” lately? I have heard of this site three months ago, but I never did realize how useful it is. I guess that is the price of just signing up and not being cognizant of what a site could really offer. If you are the type who takes browsing the web as a pleasure, then you should take a little of your time to register yourself for stumble upon.

Stumble Upon can help you discover websites that are new to you. With just one click, you'll find yourself in a new world that exactly suits your interests. Just download the toolbar which you can find in their site for easy access in your browser. It works with Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and Flock.

You will save a lot of your time when you use this instead of using search engines. All you have to do is set your personal preferences then stumble upon will deliver to you high-quality websites that are actually recommended by fellow stumblers and websurfers from all over the world. Stumble Upon will also bring you up-to-date websites which means old ones are filtered by them.

Different options are made available for you at Stumble Upon. You can post a new blog, import your contacts and find out who among your friends have been using this, you can browse people and make friends with those nearest to your location and from other countries as well.

If you are into the internet marketing biz, Stumble Upon can give you effective results in terms of search engine optimization. It is a unique social bookmarking site that drives good traffic.

But if you're just interested surfing the net, you can enjoy popular websites that are recommended recently which are easily accessible upon signing in. What's even hotter are the newest videos that they feature.

So, go ahead and take a look at Stumble Upon. Do it now! Don't waste your time.

Stumble It!

CIAO FOODIES !!

By merely looking at the photos of this post, you might think that I am one of the food bloggers constantly hunting for good food in the city and writing about it afterwards. Nope, I am no connoisseur of fine food. I just want to write something about this.

My good friends meme and pompom usually share a delightful birthday celebration with me each year since our natal days fall on the same month,June that is. Traditionally, we dine at our favorite Italian restaurant, Picobello. But this year, we thought of making a change to the usual and so we decided to have dinner at Salutti. The name itself suggests that this would again be another Italian restaurant. Not that i didn't like Italian anymore, but I was thinking then that perhaps we could try Thai, Mediterranean or Vietnamese food .

The place was really good because it is located right at the heart of the city. You can find Salutti just behind Claude’s Le Café de Ville at the Habana Compound, Rizal Street. They have simple yet elegant interiors which gave me a cozy feel. The crowd was great of course which is totally opposite to the other side of the street's party place. Salutti is definitely one perfect place for intimate dinners with family and friends.

me, meme & pompom

I was glad being with my close friends because it is not typical for us to go out and see each other every month. Despite our hectic and clashing schedules, we managed to set a date to do some catching up. Also with us is meme's hubby, Dean who spiced up our conversation with his very striking remarks (oh well, as usual! ; ] )

After some serious and the “not so serious” chit-chats with them, Taa-Daa! The moment we've been waiting for! The food came just right in time. Here are the captured photos of the choices we made:

Alfredo with Bacon

Beef Salpicao(Spicy)

Chicken in Mushroom Cream Sauce

Beef Stew w/ Asparagus and Mashed Potatoes

The verdict??

Alfredo with Bacon was pasta al dente! The sauce was just too creamy though, but it was really delicious.

Beef Salpicao was tasty. I liked it because it was spicy and was sprinkled with lots of garlic. Ours was done medium well and I was bit disappointed since we told them to have it well-done.

Chicken in Mushroom Cream Sauce was smashing! The chicken was cooked well. Mushroom sauce was so delightful to the taste.

Beef Stew was so-so. I guess the beef was overcooked. The sauce was just complimented by the asparagus and the mashed potatoes.


In general, their food was absolutely delectable. With few bottles of beer and the exchange of thoughts to match with, our birthday bash turned out great.

I couldn't ask for more. Good food + Good friends = Perfect Evening indeed!

SIGNS OF A CHEATING BOYFRIEND

Do you feel that your relationship has turned sour? You noticed sudden changes in your boyfriend's behavior but you couldn't just figure out what seems to be wrong. Your gutfeel may be intense, but it's not enough to rely on it. So here are 10 Signs to know if you are being cheated by your boyfriend.

1.What's With His Cellphone?

• When you're together, he turns his phone into discreet or silent mode

• In his cellphone, you'll find his Inbox, Sent Items and registered calls all gone.
  Bonus Tip! If he got it all erased,there's a mobile phone of a particular brand that has messages and calls log. There you could find the recent activity of his cellphone.

• You'll find unnamed numbers in his contacts or in his registered calls; you'll see contacts named as one of his buddies or named as **, ??, !! ( very suspicious)

• He gets upset when you borrow his phone. He'd blatantly tell you to “respect his privacy”.

• Watch out for suspicious calls- when you get to answer his call, the “other” girl on the line introduces herself as a “classmate” or “colleague”.

• When he makes a phone call or receives a call and you're around, he tones down his voice or makes an effort to stay someplace for you not to hear their conversation.

• He keeps another SIM! And he didn't tell you about it.

2. He's Addicted to Internet ( He wasn't before!)

• You will notice something fishy in his IM contacts.
  Bonus Tip! Secretly set-up his message archive

• He won't give you his password for friendster, facebook, myspace or email accounts. (even if it's urgent)

3. He's Having an Instant Amnesia

• He forgets special occasions like your monthsaries and anniversary. The worst is- He forgot to even just greet you on your birthday.

4. He Turned Into a Fault Finder

• He always find faults in you. He begins to notice how fat you look, how odd your zits are and even how your shirt looked so bad on you. He argues with you and picks a fight most of the time you're together, though there's really nothing to argue about.

• He tells you that your opinions are shallow.

• If you ask him if there's another girl, he begins to accuse you that you're cheating on him.
  ( This happens because of his guilt feelings.)

5. He's Too Jealous (or NOT)

• He becomes too jealous over your guy friends OR He doesn't mind if you're out most of the time hanging with the boys.

6. He is so vain ! (More than twice as you are)

• He gets too conscious with the way he look.

• He suddenly needs a facial treatment, a new haircut and out of nowhere, he's a gym buff!

• He buys new clothes, cologne and underwear.

7. He Became Less Intimate

• He dislikes holding your hand in public places and even when there's just the two of you.

• When you tell him that you need a “love nudge”, he'll make excuses like he's having a headache.

• He doesn't tell you “I Love You” anymore

• He doesn't bother to check out on you in the middle of the day or ask you if you had your lunch.

8. He Can't Commit His Time with You

• He doesn't find time to spend with you like going to the movies, dining out or going to the beach. (Which he usually does)

• His schedule changes all the time. Like he has a new class schedule or his boss is asking him for an overtime everyday.

• He always has reasons not to see you. Like he is so tired from schoolwork or stressed from work.

• He spends time with his friends longer than the usual.

9. He Has This Weird Bruise in His Body

• You noticed a bruise like mark in his body and your boyfriend can't give a concrete explanation how it got there. (Silly! That's a hickey !)
  Bonus Tip ! You can usually find it right behind his ears, chest or thighs. The usual lie is:
  " Something bit me, I scratched it then."
  

10. He Doesn't Invite You to Join Him

• You don't get invited to their school gatherings or office parties. He tells you that there's no need for you to go since “girlfriends” are not allowed ( That is so lame for an excuse!).. Now, if he doesn't let you come with him, there must be somebody else he's bringing with him.

If these warning signs are present, you will just have to prove whether your intuition is true or not. But if you can't see any of these signs in your relationship, maybe then your boyfriend is absolutely faithful or perhaps he is too good in keeping his "love affair" with the other girl.

4 WAYS TO SAY NO !!

Are you going through a lot of pressures lately from colleagues, friends or from random people you know? Do you find it difficult to say no? People around you may at times be way too pushy. May it be a high school reunion, a networking seminar or just a drinking spree, there are times when you're not just in the mood to rub elbows with people. You prefer to stay at home, read a book and have a good rest because you feel that you deserve the luxury of doing these things after a week of working hard. You may probably feel that you are tired from getting boozed up that's why you opt to be in the comfort of your home. There are people you want to avoid because they're just too insensitive not to feel that you are not interested with what they offer. There's no need being rude to refuse nor let them hope that one day you are going to say yes. But in the meantime, you are certain not to be rubbing shoulders with a few people. So here are my surefire ways on how to say no without being too nasty:

1. KNOW WHAT YOU REALLY WANT- Make sure of what you really want at this point in your life. Is there a need to go out and socialize? If you honestly believe that the desire to mingle with others can help you reduce stress, then go ahead. But if you don't think that it's necessary for you to do such things, you surely have your options. Do not force yourself just to maintain being fab and famous. Take heed of the pros and cons. You can always be yourself and know what you think is best for you.

2. BE FIRM- If by now you already know what you really wanted for yourself, just stick to your guts. Be firm enough to stand by what you feel and think is right . Do not be mindful of what others will think about you. For a fact that you recognize your needs and wants, is sufficient reason to decline.

3. BE HONEST- Do not make others hope by telling them that you'd think about it first. It may be a safe excuse of not being too harsh, but it's not a good idea to keep a person hanging on. Simply tell them that you need a time for yourself or for your family. Just be honest as possible. Don't dare think of lame excuses that could hurt their feelings.

4. JUST SAY NO!- People may become aggressive, but they can't do anything if you decided not to buy their idea. You have the final say, anyway it's your life we're talking about not theirs.

25 WAYS TO SAY "I LOVE YOU"

How you express your love to someone depends on how creative you are. "I love you" could have been the most common words to express how you feel for a person. Although you can spice up your relationship by showing your love through flowers, chocolates, and valuable gifts that could make your better half joyful, the words "I love you" could never be as much as meaningful if uttered with sincerity. If you want a little zest to say "I love you", here are few languages that translate the most heartwarming words of all times.

1.) Albanian - Te dua

2.) Bisaya - Nahigugma ko kanimo

3.) Bulgarian - Obicham te

4.) Croatian - Volim te

5.) Czech - Miluji te

6.) Danish - Jeg Elsker Dig

7.) Dutch - Ik hou van jou

8.) Finnish - Mina rakastan sinua

9.) French - Je t'aime, Je t'adore

10.) German - Ich liebe dich

11.) Greek - S'agapo

12.) Hawaiian - Aloha Au Ia`oe

13.) Ilonggo - Palangga ko ikaw

14.) Indonesian - Saya cinta padamu

15.) Irish - Taim i' ngra leat

16.) Japanese - Aishiteru

17.) Korean - Sarang Heyo

18.) Malay - Saya cintakan mu

19.) Norwegian - Jeg Elsker Deg

20.) Russian - Ya tebya liubliu

22.) Spanish - Te quiero

23.) Tagalog - Mahal kita

24.) Taiwanese - Wa ga ei li

25.) Turkish - Seni Seviyorum

tax exemption

I never fail to watch the evening news on local T.V. because it's always been easy for me to catch up with the current events and updates on the foreign currency rates through the boob tube. Although browsing though the pages of a newspaper or surfing Internet news sites are the other options for me, I still go for the goggle box for my convenience. More often than not, I get an odd feeling after watching the news because as usual, most of the information that broadcast journalists bring us is about the unstoppable weekly oil price hike, scarcity of rice production, price increase of commodities and numerous killings all over the world. Although the kind of news that they feed us is not something new, the fact that our country is faced with so many perplexities, what I grasp everyday troubles me.

But I was astonished as I was watching closely earlier to the news on T.V. I thought that I was only dreaming or merely having a difficulty in hearing. But yes, it's true! President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo already signed the law on tax exemption for minimum wage earners. The law which was ratified is called the Republic Act 9504 which is an amendment of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997.


I applaud Senator Manuel Roxas II, who is one of the principal authors of the law for pursuing this measure as this would help the employed individuals cope with the economic crisis of our country. According to Senator Roxas, the law would enable employees to have an increase in their take home pay for as much as P750 in a month or P34 in a day. The law will not only benefit the minimum wage earners, but all taxpayers who will be granted an increase in the personal exemption. Senator Roxas said that the exemption will be at a fixed amount of P50,000 from the current P20,000 for personal exemption of single individuals, P25,000 for head of the family and P32,000 for married taxpayers.


According to senator Roxas, in addition to what is included in the law is the increase in the additional exemption for dependents from P8,000 to P25,000 for every dependent. What awed me more is that the night differential, holiday, hazard and overtime pay are all tax exempt as per Senator Roxas.


This is one great news which made me really happy today. We can enjoy the value of the aforementioned pays in more ways than one without having to feel like someone's taking something from what we are working hard for. This would mean that there is an additional amount in our earnings that can aid us in our daily expenses. With the upsurge of the prices of consumer needs, the newly signed legislation is unquestionably a big help for every employed Filipino. This news will uplift millions of Filipinos amidst the depressing state of our country today.

source: abs-cbnnews.com
inquirer.net

new season is coming

I have been a huge fan of Grey's Anatomy since its debut in 2005. I was lured to watch the controversial series of ABC because I felt the need to learn more about emergency situations and a bit of surgery. I never thought that it could be very exciting that once I start watching, i could not take my eyes off from my portable DVD. I am just so glued to each episode that I watch because aside from the life and death situations they present that energizes me continuously , the series provides a great feel for their viewers that could somehow make me connect with the lives of the cast. The series gives me the brighter perspective of life- that in this kind of world we live , things may get crazy and weird but so long as we have our family and friends, everything will turn out right at the end of the day.

A friend told me that she is not impressed by the storyline of Grey's Anatomy and said that it is a no-brainer. After she blurted that out, I made an instantaneous reply that I don't agree with her. But at that moment, I was not in the mood for any argument and so I thought of the cliché ” everyone is entitled to his own opinion.” The series had shown several episodes with infidelity issues which gave authority to righteous individuals to despise the show. I do not conform with the idea of having an illicit affair, but I'd rather think that every human being is free to decide on his own and is bound to face the consequences afterwards.

The season finale took place last month which left me with a happy feeling because of Meredith and Derek's reconsideration of their once broken relationship. I am pretty sure that like me, all the other Grey's Anatomy enthusiasts are looking forward to the new season (Season 5) which will be aired on September of this year..

I have gathered several quotes from random episodes of Grey's Anatomy for your musings:

"We like to think that we are rational beings: humane, conscientious, civilized, thoughtful. But when things fall apart, even just a little, it becomes clear we are not better than animals. We have opposable thumbs, we think, we walk erect, we speak, we dream, but deep down we are still routing around in the primordial ooze; biting, clawing, scratching out an existence in the cold, dark world like the rest of the tree-toads and sloths."

-----meredith


"There’s a little animal in all of us and maybe that’s something to celebrate. Our animal instinct is what makes us seek comfort, warmth, a pack to run with. We may feel caged, we may feel trapped, but still as humans we can find ways to feel free. We are each other’s keepers, we are the guardians of our own humanity and even though there’s a beast inside all of us, what sets us apart from the animals is that we can think, feel, dream and love. And against all odds, against all instinct, we evolve."

-----meredith


"Giving birth may be all intense and magical and stuff, but the act itself: it's not exactly pleasant. But it's also a beginning... of something incredible. Something new. Something unpredictable. Something true. Something worth loving. Something worth missing. Something that will change your life... forever."

-----meredith


"You know, whenever anyone says something really funny and I laugh I always look around to see if you think it's funny too. Even when you are not there, I look around."

-----george

I don't want you to date other people. It may not be enough for you, but I'm trying here so I don't want you to date anybody but me. That's it. Except, I'm scared as hell to want you, but here I am, wanting you anyway. And fear means I have something to lose, right? And I don't want to lose you.

-----meredith

"I think it's better to have someone, even if it hurts, even if it is the most painful thing you have done, even if it's the most painful thing you've ever had to do. I think it's better to have someone."

-----meredith


"I'm rising above... I'm rising above and do not want to be crossed while I'm busy rising."

-----miranda