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ABS-CBN.  SkyCable.  BayanTel.  First Gen.  Energy Development Corporation. Meralco.   These are but some of the companies that the Lopez Group is associated with in the areas of media and communications, utilities, power generation and distribution, property, construction, manufacturing, and stock transfer services.   Though so big and diverse, now you can read up on them easily through their online publication, LopezLink. 

After browsing LopezLink, I realized that beyond the size and diversity of the Lopez Group lies a heart that propels them in the name of service - Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).   

From Bantay Bata 163 to Earth Hour, Sagip Kapamilya, and many others, the Lopez Group has been at the forefront of outreach and environmental programs through their CSR efforts.   You can see its year-long activites as compiled in the LopezLink 2009 Year End Report .   One of the group’s remarkable CSR efforts is the cleaning up of the Pasig River (Kapit Bisig Para Sa Ilog Pasig) wherein they work alongside the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.    I snooped around the LopezLink forum and commented on the thread “Our Own Little Part” which was about curbing the worsening water pollution specifically in Pasig River.

Apart from these, it was also interesting to know that the Lopez Group’s Knowledge Channel and Department of Education renew basic education tools development partnership.  

I’ve been blogging (and earning) for more than a year now but I do believe that I still have a lot to learn about blogging.   So last Sunday, sans the opportunity to watch the world-renowned Cotto-Pacquiao boxing match on TV, I tagged along a friend and went to attend a blogging 101 seminar at the World Trade Center in Pasay City.   And it was a good thing we did.

The iBlog mini summit discussed the basics in blogging for the benefit of those who are yet to start blogging and for the “newbies.”  But as one speaker pointed out, “There’s no such thing as newbies and professional bloggers. Once you blog, you’re a blogger.”  One of the points given emphasis was the blogging mantra “Content is king.” While everybody knows that, not everybody gives their best to provide quality content on their blogs all the time. (Ooops, guilty as charged!)

But the very topic that I went there for was traffic generation.  Surprisingly I’ve been practicing what were mostly discussed there except for one thing: SEO or Search Engine Optimization.

Wikipedia defines SEO as “the process of improving the volume or quality of traffic to a web site from search engines via “natural” or un-paid (”organic” or “algorithmic”) search results as opposed to search engine marketing (SEM) which deals with paid inclusion. Typically, the earlier (or higher) a site appears in the search results list, the more visitors it will receive from the search engine.”

While I’ve known its meaning and importance in traffic generation several months ago, I’ve never given any attention in optimizing my blog through it.   Mainly because I didn’t (and still don’t) know how.  The speaker said she finds out the key words that drive the most traffic to her site and in the process, she was able to come up with several niche blogs that are now generating thousands of traffic daily. Traffic is fundamental in monetizing your blog.  Higher traffic yields higher ad revenues.  And SEO helps bring in traffic.  Sadly, she wasn’t able to discuss the nitty-gritty process of optimizing one’s site.  So let me quote Wikipedia again to supplement some information, “SEO considers how search engines work and what people search for. Optimizing a website primarily involves editing its content and HTML and associated coding to both increase its relevance to specific keywords and to remove barriers to the indexing activities of search engines.”  So since it involves editing HTML, I’m afraid it’ll take me some time to optimize my own blog. Wish me luck! *Wink*

Anyway, here are some photos of the event. My friend, whom I dragged to the event, was lucky to win a Philips Rice Cooker during the raffle.  I, meanwhile, almost had the chance to win a Crocs limited-edition camera if I was just fast enough to run to the stage for the “Bring Me” game.  It broke my heart to see the cute pink camera go to the faster guy. =(

Generally, the iBlog Mini Summit was well-handled.  The program went smoothly, the speakers were knowledgeable and the participants were served with ample snacks while listening to the talks of real bloggers.  Kudos to Ms. Janette Toral and her team!

I’m looking forward to future gatherings like this because I can never say I know enough about blogging. While I enjoy writing down my thoughts online, I also love the financial benefits it brings.  Even though my current  monthly income from blogging is just enough to buy me some groceries, it’s a big help to augment the family income and definitely better than nothing.  Isn’t it just wonderful to get paid for doing something that you love? Hopefully the next seminar I’ll attend to would be about monetizing one’s blog.  And I mean monetizing BIG TIME! Lol!

Being a blogger requires me to have a reliable and fast internet connection that can support my online requirements.   But lately since the onslaught of Typhoon Ondoy, I’ve been having problems with my internet connection at home so I’ve been frequenting a mall with a free Wifi internet access just so I could go online.

The thing is, it’s eating much of my time and effort going to and fro.   Plus the speed (or the lack of it) is such a headache.   Then a friend introduced to me Globe Tattoo Broadband.  I immediately got attracted to the Globe Tattoo Broadband New Skins but I got even more impressed with its performance.  To get the best browsing experience, adjust your settings to “WCDMA only” or “3G only” by double-clicking on the Globe Broadband icon on your desktop.   Click Tools menu, Options, Network, then choose “3G only”  This is best when you’re consistently getting 3G signals in your area.

You can also choose to configure your SIM to either time-based or KB-based charging depending on your online requirements.  If you want to get the most value from your prepaid or postpaid Globe Tattoo service, just text TIME to 1111 using your Globe Tattoo SIM.  But if you’re only into quick browsing, you may find it more prudent to switch to KB-based charging.  Check your SIM’s status by texting STATUS to 1111.

I also got a little too nosy to browse the Globe Tattoo Broadband Gallery online.  If you have what it takes to create a cool skin design for Globe Tattoo USB stick, head on to the gallery link for more information.  Globe not only gives me the convenience in blogging and surfing anywhere I go but surely they got me under their skins.

Three weeks after the devastation of Ondoy, the people of Marikina are still trying to get up. Basic services like water and power supplies are slowly going back to normal although there are still areas without electricity until now. Businesses are gradually coming around again after what seemed like a bad dream.

The clean-up drive done by the MMDA with the help of the flooded residents ourselves, helped a lot in ridding the city of the piles of garbage. Cleaning our respective homes, meanwhile, was a challenge because it was only last week that we had clean water supply again. With the mess that Typhoon Ondoy left in our humble abode, I had to buy new cleaning materials like pails, rags and rugs, disinfectants, brushes, and a highly efficient mop, among others. We also needed to buy other items like bedsheets and pillows, and some hardware stuff to repair our cabinets and chairs. Yes, it’s that costly when you’ve been flooded. If I only have discount coupons for all these, it would be a lot of help to ease the budget. One of the stores that people went to after the flood was ACE Hardware in SM Marikina. I noticed that most people flocked there to buy airbeds, mops, flashlights and emergency lights. And I was one of them.

Photo courtesy of AP and BBC News

When it rains, it pours and when it pours, it floods.  That’s how it is in flood-prone areas in and out of Metro Manila during rainy seasons especially in the CAMANAVA area (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, Valenzuela) where some streets are submerged in waist-deep water in worst days.

Students and workers need to waddle through the floods to get to school and to their workplaces as shown in the picture.  Yes, it’s that bad.  When there’s a storm, the Department of Education (DepEd) suspends classes but if it’s just heavy rains and flooding, they leave it to the school officials and the parents.

Below is DepEd’s set of guidelines on the suspension of classes:

• Storm Signal # 1 - Classes in pre-school level in all public and private schools will be automatically suspended.

• Storm Signal # 2 - Classes in pre-school, elementary and high school in all public and private schools will be automatically suspended.

• Storm Signal # 3 - Classes in all levels are automatically suspended.

• Storm Signal # 4 - All travel and outdoor activities are cancelled.

• In the absence of typhoon signal warnings from PAGASA, localized suspension or cancellation of classes in both public and private elementary and secondary schools may be implemented by the school principal. Likewise, the schools division superintendent shall decide on the suspension of classes if such covers the entire division.

• Parents wishing to ascertain whether or not to send their children to school should check for media advisories coming from PAGASA, DepED, Calamity, Disaster and Fire Control (CDFC) groups, Local Disaster Coordinating Council (LDCC) and the Local Governments Units (LGUs).

• In the absence of official storm warnings, parents have the ultimate responsibility for determining whether their children should go to school.

• The required number of school days for the school year shall be considered especially in holding make-up classes to offset the days when classes are suspended.   Make up classes shall be held on Saturdays or on weekdays beyond the originally-set school calendar in both public and private schools. (Source: http://www.deped.gov.ph/e_posts.asp?id=475)
  

Last week it rained so bad that my daughter’s books and everything in her trolley bag got wet.   If their school only had lockers so the students could leave their books during rainy days, it would have been helpful.  With the absence of school lockers, my daughter has to carry all seven textbooks and seven notebooks everyday, even on rainy days when the possibility of her things getting wet is as clear as crystal. My hubby, meanwhile, is lucky to have a wood locker in the office where he can leave his important papers and books. In our office, we’re starting to look for lockers for sale so we can finally have one too.

If there’s one thing I’m thankful of, it’s that our place of residence is not flood-prone.  It may rain hard for a freaking number of days but our neighborhood remains flood-free in this part of Marikina.  But as to my daughter’s drenched books, I’ll have to deal with them every time it rains.

…But this time, there was no protest. Hundreds of thousands of Filipinos trooped to the streets yesterday despite the heavy rain and sudden changes of weather conditions to pay their last respects for the late former President Corazon Aquino. People from all walks of life chanted her name, flashed the L (laban) sign, wore yellow, and threw yellow confetti and flowers as Cory’s funeral convoy passed by from the Manila Cathedral to the Manila Memorial Park.

No further words are needed to describe the strong emotions that moved the throngs of people during the funeral procession.

These pictures that I got from GMA TV’s live stream could tell how much the Filipinos love the late President Cory, our national icon and mother of democracy.