Help for addicts

I'm glad that nobody in my family has ever been admitted to an alcohol addiction rehab program, or at least none that I know of. This is not to say that members of my family have totally sworn off alcohol. These are mostly celebration drinks for our family, to be enjoyed by sipping, not by gulping or emptying one full bottle of alcohol after another. Which is wise, I would say, because alcohol and drugs mess with the way you think and the way you react to situations. Inhibitions are lowered, so if we indulge in such vices, it's very possible for us to find ourselves in situations that are, at the very least, embarrassing. Tragedies have also been known to happen because of the influence of these substances. How many times have you heard of car accidents resulting from drivers drinking too much alcohol or somebody under the influence of a mind altering drug? How many times have you heard of a crime perpetuated by an individual under the influence of some prohibited drug? And of course, these things are not so easy to get rid of, once you get the "taste" of them. Alcoholics compulsively drink alcohol. Drug addicts do anything -- steal, prostitute themselves, kill -- just to get their next fix. At some point, these become real compulsions, and eventually these compulsion destroys lives -- their own, as well as those of other people, most often their family and other loved ones. It's very difficult for us to force somebody to just quit. It has to be a firm resolve. The people who work in drug rehab centers and those centers that also deal with alcohol addiction rehab, are experts in gradually getting the addict to quit, and to hopefully not go back to these substances for their overall health and to prevent the social harm that these cause. Alcohol and drugs change lives, and in not a good way. However, there's help. Do check it out here! This is a US based site, but I do know there are rehab centers all over the world, including here in the Philippines, albeit not as luxurious as these US centers. An addict can and will recover, as long as he has the willpower to do so. Perhaps you know someone near this center who could greatly benefit from the help they can offer; please let them know, there IS help out there. -- JoeyV 04.25.2013

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Has it been that long already?

It's been so long since I've last posted! So many things have happened in our lives and I have never been busier. Work has now taken a huge chunk of time for both me and the hubby. Also we've finally made the decision to move out from my mom's place and live on our own. My son is now a grade schooler and my daughter's at the end of her toddlerhood. All these have contributed to so many topics I would have wanted to write about, if only I had the time. Although I haven't had the time to write, I was still able to do my other constant -- maintaining my online store. While the income is not really that much, certainly not enough to cover our expenses, it has been helpful as an alternative income. It's also something that my kids can inherit, unlike my professional practice, which they probably can't. Lately, I've been thinking of doing more to promote my store. I was thinking if it would be good to have a custom poster done and display it in the lobby of our condo, so that my neighbors would know where to go if they need diapers or other baby stuff. I know that I could make my own posters easily with the software abounding nowadays, but I'm no graphic artist and professionally made [custom poster frames] look so much better than a DIY project. I've done a google search and I did visit the site where you can have a poster professionally done and delivered to you. You can send them a picture of the poster that you want. They will even tell you if the image size is adequate for the site. I'm thinking that I can actually do a custom poster of my family! Probably put together a collage of our fave times together and hang it in our living room for us to relive over and over again. After all, good memories are made to be cherished forever.

40plus

I've neglected this blog for so long that I'm pleasantly surprised to see that people still follow me. Well, I'm back. I hope I can regularly update as I used to do.

I'm already on my 4th decade of life. I still have 2 young children who I gave birth to in the ages considered to be high risk. I'd love to have another baby, but the fear of having problems due to my advanced maternal age and the fear of not being able to adequately provide for all my children, well, let's just say we're not actively trying. See, a Topamax Birth Defects Lawyer might be able to get you something if your baby turns out to have problems due to the drugs' side effects, but it will never give back totally what has been lost.  Having a baby past 40, while doable, is much more risky than doing so when younger.

Achieving balance, or at least trying to, gets harder and harder everyday. But each day brings along unexpected surprises and unexpected pleasure, sometimes tempered by disappointments and moments of sadness. Well, all the drama makes life interesting. We just have to embrace everything that life gives us.

Car accident

It was only lately (well, less than a year ago) that I finally got to use the comprehensive car insurance that I have been paying for the past few years. Some people may think it's an expense, but, really, if you know what to do, it will save you a lot of money and a lot of stress if you find yourself in an accident. The TPL (third party liability) covers only physical injuries up to a certain amount and does not cover anything else, not the damage to the car/s.

I only got to truly appreciate the insurance when I had a minor accident. They actually have everything on board to make accidents as worry free as possible for you. They would cover damages to the other vehicle up to a certain point, damages to own car, and damages to the person. If you get sued, they even have a legal team to represent you.

I wonder, though, if a tourist from the Philippines driving a rental car would need more insurance. What if we got involved in an accident? Do we need the services of an Austin personal injury attorney (when in Texas)? Would they even represent us, foreigners?

Anyway, I've found this:
O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath – Personal Injury Lawyers – 808 West Avenue, Austin, TX. 78701 – 512-494-9949
I wonder if they would entertain inquiries from people who come from outside the US and would not really stay permanently.

Investing while working

Sometimes I feel so depressed about HAVING to work. But with a family to support, there is really no way around it. We really need to have money in order to pay for the basic needs of our family as well as self imposed essentials like a good education and good health care. That's why we occasionally also put some bets on the lotto, because we might just get lucky enough to be the recipient of a windfall. But, of course, such luck is "suntok sa buwan" or one in several million chances, which means that it is almost impossible. Almost, because you do have a chance of being lucky. But the really reliable sources of income are either actively working to pursue income, or investing.

Of course, investing entails risk, in a way it's just like gambling. But unlike gambling, it's a calculated risk. You decide on what investment to risk your money based on some available historical data and trending. Whether you buy gold bullions, real estate, stocks, mutual funds, etc., you need to study the investment instrument that you are interested, so that you'll know how much risk you are taking and you can determine how much you can risk for that particular instrument. You'll have to get a reliable agent too, because there are far too many scammers out there. The US Gold Bureau is one online resource for gold which look legit so I'm seriously considering buying from them.

I think the time for us to invest is now, when we still earn actively from our profession, as we can handle some losses for bad investment decisions. Of course for good long term investments, this will sustain us through the years that we would no longer be able to work actively.

Lotto!

This morning, I bet on the lotto. I don't usually put bets, but then the pot money is a whopping 690plus pesos, so I thought, maybe I'd be lucky. Of course I was not lucky enough to get the windfall. Nobody won. So, the pot would even be bigger.

What would I do if I were the lucky winner of such a huge amount of money? First of all, I'd keep quiet about it. I won't tell other people. I'd set aside money to be sent anonymously to charities and foundations I believe in. Any relative who may need financial help may find some anonymous help too. I do believe in sharing blessings but I do not like to announce any sudden wealth to everybody else. It's too dangerous -- I might make my family targets of crimes. For myself and my family, I'd buy a modest house of our own near our current location. I'd set aside money to ensure my children's education. I'd put a certain amount in various investments like real estate, stocks and bonds. I think it would be prudent to buy gold too. And although bank deposits are not high yielding, I'd still put some money into it to ensure liquidity. And I'd still try to have my family live in around the same circumstances as we did before any win. No wasteful spendings just because we can.

Now, will I be lucky enough to win? Abangan!

Taking charge of my retirement

That is really, really sad. A disgruntled police officer holding tourists hostage and eventually killing 8 of them. The reason: his being dismissed from service and not being eligible for his retirement benefits. He was demanding to be reinstated and his benefits assured.

I am no employee, neither a government or private one and certainly no police officer. I cannot relate to retirement benefits aside from what I probably would get from contributing to SSS and Pag-IBIG because I am self employed. But even if I were an employee, I would have made steps to ensure a source of income for my retirement years and not just rely on a pension. It's difficult to be dependent on some other entity to take care of you in the time that you would probably not be able to earn actively.

That's why I'm also trying to educate myself on the various investment instruments. I think that it's a great idea to buy gold bullion and maybe sell them later if the need arises. As we all know, gold prices generally go up in the long term. If I buy now when I have the capacity to earn a little extra for my investments, chances are prices would likely increase by the time I retire, which is a good twenty years from now. I admit I'm a newbie at this, so anybody could correct me if my statement is wrong.

One thing I'm sure of is this: We should take responsibility for our own future. Not depend on something or someone else. Not even our own kids, who will have their own problems and responsibilities in the future. Things change and the only people we can really count upon is ourselves.

Gold

My family has great belief in the intrinsic value of gold. In accordance with Chinese custom, my father's family gave my mother gold jewelry during their engagement ceremony. My mother's family, in turn gave my father a gold watch.

Tradition aside, gold is really a good investment. It's a finite material, but it does not easily break down or lose its value. There is no special care needed to store gold, unlike, say, paintings. It is not destroyed by Ondoy-like floods (you could lose them though, if you haven't kept them carefully).

That is why I am strongly considering investing in certified gold coins. While jewelry does contain gold, I have no idea how much of the compound is gold and, heaven forbid, if I get a less-than-honest vendor, I might be fooled into getting something useless. Which is a waste of my money.

There was a time when it was difficult to look for such coins. I still don't know if there's a source right here in the Philippines, but at least now there are online sites where you can make a purchase. Do check out usgoldbureau.com if you're going to make an investment in gold. It looks like a reliable site.

One!

My little girl just turned one yesterday!

We had a very simple celebration at home. I had Manang Conching cook traditional Chinese birthday misua. I also ordered some food from Mr. Sun Moon and a cake for Conti's for dinner. We sang the birthday song and her Kuya E "helped" in blowing out her first birthday candle.

My mother gave her an "ang pao" (red envelope with money inside). There were no other guests and no other gifts yet, because the "real" party would be tomorrow. It's a McDonald's party. We've decided to hold it in the morning, which is different from the usual afternoon children's party.

I would have loved to a buy gold bullion coin for her today and for each of my children's birthday. That was what my father started to do when he realized that we have outgrown the desire for toys. He thought that it was a very practical gift -- and it was. It was a very good investment. While the toys we received as kids were already gone, the gold coins are still very much around. We have the assurance that if we need money, these can be easily exchanged for cash. Their value is also very stable. I haven't gone around to restarting this tradition because of budget constraints, but I have done some research on it. The US Gold Bureau seems to be a good source. Still, I do need more research -- and more money.

While I can't give much by way of material things, I do try to be the best mom that I could be. I do hope that she will grow up to be a decent person with all the right values. I know that her dad and I have the big responsibility of seeing that that happens. For now, we are cherishing the moments that we have with her.

Happy Birthday, my little baby!

My yayas are leaving....

Yayas (nannies) are essential for a working mom like me. I have a very active four year old boy and a 9 month old baby girl who is starting to stand up and try to walk. I try to attend to their needs as much as possible, but I do need help because I have to work too, both outside the home and in the home.

However, they have both expressed their desire to leave. My boy's yaya of more than 2 years said that she wants to take a breather from yaya duties and wants to go home to her hometown. My little girl's yaya for the past 9 months said she wants to go back to school.

It's certainly a pity, as I have gotten used to them. I was even thinking of inquiring about night classes for them so that they can have another career outside of domestic help when they leave us. Something they want, like maybe a secretarial or IT course or maybe a beauty course (of course, nothing as sosyal as a cosmetology school in Minnesota coz I can't afford that for them), something basic that they can use for furthering their own lives. Now the cosmetology course would be very useful if they want to set up a business in the near future. Persons wanting to have a haircut/hairstyle change or manicure/pedicure or makeup would always be around, whether it's in the countryside, the big city, or even if they decide to go abroad.

But for my yayas, that's all moot because they are already leaving.

Keeping Fingers Crossed

Pardon my lack of posts.

I've been very busy lately.

The good: new clinic hours, new freelancing job. I wish I had enough money after these to buy gold bars. US dollar is weak, so I don't really get a lot from my "rakets". I know I have to invest, and now is a good time for us to do so with gold, since these are really more stable investments. I've heard that the gold prices have actually increased over the past two weeks! And there are predictions that prices will be going up even higher! Too bad we weren't able to invest in it because of...

The bad: kids getting sick, me getting sick, hubby getting sick :(

My baby was also hospitalized hence our savings were again decreased. Which highlighted even more the fact that we need to save for that rainy day and invest for the future.

I will just as soon as we get enough money for investing! Keeping our fingers crossed.

Playing Catch Up

7 blogs to update (what did I get myself into...:P), kiddos and hubby getting sick (daughter was admitted last week), clinic, tons of photos to download -- I think I need a 1tb hard drive to store them. I also got a new writing gig, which I'm excited about. Oh, and new orders for my small biz.

While my multitasking is difficult, I'd like to think that I actually thrive under pressure. More often than not, I do surprise myself to what I can accomplish under pressure. I am also grateful for opportunities that come my way. So here I am, trying to play catch up online once again!

Where To, The Working Mom?

I'm afraid this particular blog of mine has suffered a PR beating. It's my fault really. I have been quite remiss in doing personal, non-earning posts. But I guess I have benefited from it, so I'm not really complaining (not that much, anyway!).

I'm thinking of migrating to my own domain, but I'm having a lot of second thoughts. I've thought of this several times in the past but I've always been hesitant. That's because this blog has been so much a part of my life for the past few years. Also, I haven't determined whether to stick with blogger or to shift to wordpress. And, of course, since the PR then was good, I am aware that moving would actually put me back in PR zero status. The last reason is now moot, so I'm actually seriously giving a lot of thought to this.

I have another blog in wordpress and I like the platform, but, honestly, it does cost just a little bit more since I do need to pay for the webhosting aside from the domain name. Fortunately, the search for the best host is now quite easy, as sites like webhostinggeeks give a comparative side-by-side analysis of the different web hosts available. Comparisons are made for their performance as well as their price. As I am on a budget, I am leaning towards the lower-priced services, although I have to make sure that they perform just as well, if not better, than the higher priced ones.

I really do need time to think about it.

Time To Invest

The recent events, both good (giving birth, christening, big boy going to school and applying to big school) and bad (the flood brought by Typhoon Ondoy, kids getting sick) have almost wiped out our savings. Unfortunately, this is also the time of the year when the number of patients start to dwindle.

Now, more than ever, we are feeling the need to put aside money in investments. Since we do not have a very big amount to invest and to risk, we are better off putting our small extra cash in gold coins by a reputable coin dealer like Monaco Rare Coin. After all, precious metals usually appreciate in value. They may depreciate once in a while but usually it goes up over the long term. It's also easier to store. And if, heaven forbid, it gets flooded, it does not lose its value at all and you can still sell it at market price (except, of course, if you lose it).

My father used to give me gold coins as gifts for my birthdays. I think I will do the same for my kids when they are older and know the value of such.

But the reason why I want a tried-and-tested dealer is that, as with everything, there are scammers out there who will leach your hard earned money. In such cases, instead of earning or at least saving your money, you lose it.

Early Christmas Shopping

The past few months have been a blur of spending -- not on wants and luxuries but on definite needs. While it hasn't been easy, we're grateful that we were able to go through this difficult time, at least on the financial front.

This means, however, that we do not have a lot of money left in savings. We're taking it one day at a time. But since it's less than 100 days till Christmas, we do need to look for a way to save AND for affordable gifts for people on our (very) long Christmas list.

I found some online coupons that could be used to purchase some great gifts online, at a discount, of course. There are plenty of choices online. I'd love to get my son some Lego toys (which could be had for 50% off with coupons) since they encourage creativity. My daughter...hmmm, perhaps Stuffed Animals would be appreciated? I'm still looking around for the best choices and the best deals, not just for my kids, but also for my husband and the rest of my family. And our inaanaks too. Quality gifts at great deals, that would be such a treat for me!

Checking Our Credit Score

My husband and I always dream of getting our own place someday, but we've realized that it would be close to impossible to actually be "saving up" to get a house. We'd probably be saving all our lives and in the end not get any house because by then the prices would have been way, way higher than they are right now.

So we're trying to see if it would be possible for us to get a housing loan and if we could afford to pay the installments. We're checking if our credit score would entitle us to get a big enough loan for the house that we want. It's a pretty new concept for me -- credit score, that is. What is a credit score? That is what I am studying right now. What I basically know for now is that if you do not have a good payment history, your credit score goes down. Also, having no credit at all is not necessarily good because lending companies do not know anything about your paying capacity and how good you are with your payments. And, that there are ways to improve your credit score so that you will have a better chance of getting the loan that you want.

I would have to study more about it. I'm actually wary of getting into debt but sometimes debt is good -- if we can afford to pay it off.

I Love Scrubs, But....

I used to be so proud when I finally got to wear my first set of hospital scrubs. It's standard uniform inside the operating room, the delivery room, the nursery and all the other places that required a very clean environment. Changing into scrubs (from street clothes) is a precaution against bringing in microbes that would infect the patients that are particularly susceptible. Now only people who are already given the go signal to enter those areas that were considered off limits to many get to wear scrubs. So just imagine how I felt wearing scrubs and entering those "hallowed" areas.

Our scrubs used to be boring -- just one color, with a generic design. My first pair of scrubs was white, because it was the required color for medical clerks (4th year of medical school). Later on, though, some enterprising individuals made scrubs out of printed fabric. With more designs to choose from, it became sort of like a fashion statement. I remember that I bought quite a few.

I don't know when the trend started, but when cheap nursing scrubs with cartoon characters became available, some mommies snapped them up as uniforms for their kids' nannies. Protest is futile. They will never understand what those scrubs meant to us. It's like uniforms for soldiers. Or even uniforms for students in a certain school. Nobody else gets to wear them except those who earn it by being qualified.

Now I only wear the hospital issued, boring scrubs inside the operating room. Never outside the OR. While I still love the designs (and prices) of the discount nursing scrubs now widely found, I am aware that people no longer associate them with my profession, but instead think of them as uniforms for nannies.

But there's hope, I've found that there are actually more elegant versions of this hospital staple. I just don't know if the hospitals here would accept a design like this, for example...

Hmmmm.....I'd probably get something like that for myself!

New York, New York

Although I've been to the United States, I've never been to New York yet. I'd like to go there someday as it's one of the cities that I've heard so much of. I have a cousin who lives there and works there as a private tutor. I haven't seen her in a long time, maybe more than a decade already. Her job entails her to go to her tutees' homes. I don't even know if she commutes or drives. I'm guessing she drives (if so, she needs new york car insurance for her vehicle -- one can never be too careful!)

New York also a place where a lot of Pinoy MD's go to for further training. My friend told me that when she was just starting to apply for training in New York, she had absolutely no idea on how to get around and was getting around in taxis! I didn't ask her for details but I'm guessing that she soon got a car with ny auto insurance when she got accepted and eventually spent a few years of her life there.

New York also has Broadway, which I (and maybe most people on the planet) have only heard about. It also has the Empire State Building. It used to have the World Trade Center before that infamous event almost 1 year ago. There's also the Statue of Liberty among others. One thing I'm sure of...I won't run out of things to see if I go there.

Blog SEO?

Everybody and his mother has a blog nowadays, some more than 1 blog. Heck, I have FOUR active blogs! That's because not only has blogging been an avenue for sharing one's thoughts and emotions with the entire world, it's also a way to make some extra money, mainly through selling adspace or promoting products through the web. However, it's no secret that the higher ranked blogs and the blogs which get the most traffic get the most opportunities. That's where Search Engine Optimization comes in. In a nutshell, it simply means that you try to make your website or blog more search engine friendly, hence making your site appear whenever people use certain search terms. For example, if your blog's topic is about cosmetics, you'd want your site to come up when people search on Google or Yahoo for "cosmetics" or "make-up".

For the life of me, I do not really know how to really do that myself. Maybe I should consult an SEO Firm to improve my site's rankings? I'm thinking about it, actually. As a blogger, I want my blog to be popular (who doesn't) but I do not really have the time to learn SEO myself. All I want to do with my blogs is to write content.

Your Own Home, Your Own Rules

The advantage of living with parents or in-laws even after getting married and having children (which is a common practice with some Asian nationalities like Chinese (which I am, by ancestry), is that you have a built in support system to take care of your kids when you are busy with work. It's also more practical, money-wise, as you only need to purchase, say, 1 washing machine, 1 sofa set...you get my drift.

The problem of this arrangement is not having your own rules. Since you are living with the senior members of the family and the house is theirs, it's a given that they set the rules and you have to follow them.

I guess most couples dream of setting their rules and their way of doing things when they have their own families, but this is limited in a setting wherein there are more senior members of the family. We are not exceptions. We dream of the day when we can afford to have a place on our own, look into some home plans, and generally envision life as we want it to be, with our own rules.

As early as now, we are looking over some house plans even if our dream seems to be far from foreseeable at the present. While luxury dream home plans like those found in www.HousePlansandMore.com of HDA, Inc. seem to be too out of reach for us, it's fun to look over them and see what we really, really like about them. After all, a dream home is a composite of all the things that you want in your home, and it usually is not found in just one plan.