Making Your Web Presence Felt

I do have the habit of searching my name on the net, just for the heck of it. Since my surname is uncommon, I am easily lead to sites that have something to do with me and not people with similar names.

While fellow doctors are cited on webs for their exemplary researches and other works, searching for my name leads me to sites that showcase my flair for the brushes as a makeup artist. My medical persona does appear on pages when I passed the physicians’ board exams and my accreditation with philhealth. Other than those, it’s mostly about makeup. But I don’t mind at all coz it's just my passion making its presence felt. That's the other side of me.

If you’re a professional wanting to promote your services, the internet is a good vehicle. Creating a personal web page is the most convenient way for your clients to check on your goods and reputation. That’s how I let them view my portfolio for makeup works.

Start by building your professional online profile thru look up page so you won’t be confused with other people. They would know that you’re the right guy for the job and not some porn star bearing the same name. That’s part of your online reputation management. If someone does a name search on you, it will appear on top position in google and you can also track who your potential clients are.

Double The Dose

Lately, I noticed celebrities have been giving birth to twins. This holds true not only in Hollywood but also locally, here in the Philippines.

Here are some Hollywood couples with twin blessings:

• Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony
• Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt
• Rebecca Romjin and Jerry O'Conell (still expecting come winter)
  
• Julia Roberts and husband Danny Moder
• Marcia Cross and husband Tom Mahoney
• Patrick Dempsey and wife Jillian

On Philippine Shores, we have:

• Charlene Gonzales and Aga Muhlach
• Carmina Villaroel and Zoren Legaspi
• Broadcaster Vicky Morales and husband King Reyno
  

The offsprings of these Filipino celebrities have been making waves in TV commercials because of their natural charms and good looks inherited from their parents.

What's with these celebrities causing this twin boom trend? Fans are wanting to follow suit and have twins for themselves, to the point of considering fertility pills. Well, having twins does sound cute but multifetal pregnancy poses more risks to the mother and the babies.

When I was doing ultrasound during my residency training, I dreaded scanning a twin pregnancy because it was more tricky to trace. But it was exciting to break the news to the mother. The mom would either welcome it gleefully or paint a worried look on her face calculating the double costs later in these kids' life. It's probably why twins are lately given to celebrity couples, because they can afford raising these double bundles of joy with their million dollar incomes, don't you think?

Missing Boy Found Begging

Last week, a blog was circulated regarding a 3 year old boy named Matthew "Chu-chu" David Samudio abducted in Festival mall in Alabang. His aunt asked for the help of fellow bloggers to help find her nephew. It got around fast that the media picked up the story. The surveillance camera showed the boy being escorted by an impoverished looking teenage girl out of the mall.

Last Friday, the kid who was an only son was reported found around Sta. Rosa Commercial Complex in Sta. Rosa, Laguna begging with the girl. The boy who lived a comfortable life was turned into a beggar! He is a sickly kid due for surgery next month for hydrocoele. He was wearing a new set of clean clothes. The girl speeded out upon seeing the security guards who saw them.

There was no ransom asked but people are speculating that it was a syndicate responsible for the abduction. The family of the boy is thankful for their miracle. They have learned a valuable lesson and tells other families to take care of their precious kids. In this day and age, you can't trust public places to be safe.

Thanks to the power of the internet and bloggers who moved heaven and earth to find the boy.

Event Displays

Working on weddings as a make up artist, I can't help but be amazed at how they pull of a grand design for the reception place. My regular events organizer, Jane, is good in that. Even my friend in Manila, Dylan, who organizes weddings and other occasions have a flair for tasteful arrangement of venues.

It's amazing that even with a limited budget, talented people can manage to make an event look prestigious. For those in the US, there's this company in Texas, that can help you with your needs on your special day. They have cute table covers for different occasions. Their trash can cover caught my fancy. I find it amazing to have a utility often ignored like a trash can, dressed up looking so elegant.

If you're a wedding supplier planning on trade show exhibits to showcase different services offered, or if you're looking for fashionable ways for a table top display of your merchandise, check out the designs on their site. You can put your portfolios for potential clients to see.

From banner designs, to flooring and lights for your event, they got you covered. You need not go looking some place else. I wish they had something like that back here in CDO.

My Secretive Phone

My phone is giving me the cold treatment. The N76 lucky phone which I won in last year's nokia passions promo suddenly stopped alerting me for messages. The next thing I knew, my inbox was flooded with messages which I failed to check earlier, including an invitation to a photoshoot.

I guess it had to do with being exposed to the ice cold water I brought in my bag. The phone accidentally laid near it. It probably got a frost bite or something. I tried to make it work by checking on the profile settings, volume, etc. Nada. Calls still make sound but it doesn't alert me for messages received. Other than that, it's still fully functional. I just have to keep checking it every now and then for important sms. I have to trust my gut feelings to sense a message worth checking.

I hope I could get it working again. It's a very special phone to me. Sentimental values and all, despite that it's a little heavy and the camera isn't that fab. For some reason, I loved the pictures produced by my Nokia 6600 before, even if it had a lower resolution than the 2 megapixels in nokia N76.

Looking at the positive side, I used to complain about text messages sent by morning people. It woked me up before my usual waking hours. Now I don't have to deal with that. I just hope I don't miss out on work opportunities texted to me.

Doc Frankie

Today is the 2nd death anniversary of my favorite doctor, Dr. Frances Dizon. We lost her to breast cancer. With new lumps surfacing on my affected breast, these are the times I wish she was still alive. She was the most compassionate and understanding doctor I knew, not to mention intelligent and beautiful. Probably too good for this world. Unlike other doctors who scold and alienate their patients for not doing as told, Doc Frankie respects the decisions you make but patiently waits for you to come to your senses.

Today I included Doc Frankie in prayers during the mass I attended. When the light strangely lit up the other night, I don't know why Doc Frankie came into my mind. I searched my previous entry of her and realized it was almost her 2nd death anniversary. What I did not mention in my blog about the mysterious light switching was that I palpated another lump in my left breast minutes before the strange occurrence. An unwelcome reprise to the saga I thought was long over.

Strange Night

I slept late last night like I usually do. Past 2 am, I went to the living room to switch off the internet connection after surfing the net thru wifi in my room. Normally, I leave it open when I doze off to sleep. I don’t know what entered my mind to suddenly be conscious of energy conservation. On my way, I turned on the light in the kitchen. Switching off the internet modem, I prepped myself to sleep and turned off the kitchen light on my way back. Just after stepping inside my room, I heard a click and the kitchen lit up again! I thought it was either my mom or dad who woke up to get something in the kitchen. I turned around, took a peek and noticed there wasn’t anyone around. Instead of heading to the CR, I rushed towards my husband sleeping.

I told him my story and being the ever loving hubby, he escorted his terrified wife to the CR. I kept convincing myself that it must have been a lizard which crawled over the switch but then it has to be very precise not to tap the other light switches proximal to it. And the click was too loud.

If it were some strange creature, it was probably warning me to sleep earlier. My alternative medicine doctor has been constantly urging me to sleep during 9 to 2 AM because those are the hours when the body repairs its cells. I’ve been trying to, only to keep tossing in bed unable to sleep. My creative juices pour in usually in the wee hours of the morning, hence I take this time to write and plan my next move. Back when I was still a medical student, I chose these hours to study because my brain tends to be more receptive to voluminous information at these times.

With my diagnosis of cancer, I am compelled to employ a healthier lifestyle but some habits are harder to break. It takes a strange circumstance to prompt me to sleep earlier. That should do make me sleep earlier tonight. Don’t want to mess up with lights that have a mind of its own. On second thought, it probably irked the mysterious creature that his internet connection was suddenly cut off. He must have been in a middle of a chat when I turned it off. Geez.. I'm creeping myself out.

European Tour

If given the chance, I would want travel with my husband to Europe. Who knows? I'm excited just browsing over the possible places to visit. It must be difficult booking a decent, affordable place to stay. I've been told by my friend Isobelle that in case I'd plan to travel abroad, to search and make my reservations months before the travel date. I was wondering, what if suddenly decide to travel, would it be impossible to find a decent place to stay abroad?

When it comes to traveling, I usually search the net for information on the place I'll be visiting. I know most of you do, so this might be of help the next time you pack your bags on a grand vacation. Perhaps you're considering a honeymoon in the romantic city of Paris, a visit to the hometown of The Beatles in Liverpool, a pilgrimage to the Our Lady of Lourdes in or a tour just about anywhere in the world. You can check for Paris hotel and travels to book online. Whether you prefer luxury or budget rooms, you can choose from a variety of hotels to stay. France travels and hotels need not be expensive. They offer the lowest rates that if you ever find a cheaper alternative, you can always contact their customer service so they can adjust their rate! So is true if you're likewise hunting for a Liverpool accommodation.

Whether you take a side trip to the place where Dao Ming Si lost his precious memories of San Chai, in Barcelona, Spain or watch the famous bullfighting in Madrid, no worries on the last minute booking. For your travel to Barcelona and hotels, all you have to do is to let your fingers do the talking. Browse and reserve online. In searching for Madrid hotels and accomodations, there are apartments for family travelers and hotels that include free breakfasts or hotel parking. They instantly confirm your reservation, providing a whole more convenient option for you.

Hmm.. if I wish hard enough, my dreams of a Eurpean tour could actually come true. Eiffel tower, here we come!

The Lone Picture Of My Dearest Puppy

I regret not being able to take pictures of my puppy when she was still alive. My hubby warned me not to take pictures of her because of superstitious beliefs. I wanted her badly to live so I obeyed. She left us a month ago due to parvo. Luckily, I found a picture of her on my nieces' camera. She just took a bath in this photo that's why her hair's still a little wet.

This is my chinky-eyed puppy. I miss you, Kimrox! Darn, I still get teary eyed typing this.

Hana Kimi Hearthrob Visits The Philippines

Wu Chun, of Hana Kimi Taiwanese version and Romantic Princess fame, is in our country right now together with his co- Fahrenheit member Calvin Chen.

The two are visiting in promotion of their television series, "Romantic Princess" which currently airs at ABS-CBN. They are the half of the 4 member band Fahrenheit. The others being Jiro Wang (who reminds me of Mark Bautista) and Aaron Yan.

Wu Chun and Calvin Chen guested earlier this evening at the Pinoy Dream Academy season 2 performance night. It was refreshing to know that they can speak good english and learned a few Filipino phrases like "mahal ko kayo". They sang "Xin Wo", the theme from Romantic Princess.

The first time I saw him was in Hana Kimi where he was perfect for his role as the hearthrob/ athlete who inspired a girl (Ella Chen) to go great lengths just to be close to him, including enroling in an all boys' school. I was laughing my gut out while watching the series. Jiro Wang was in it, as the funny guy who suffered identity crisis by falling in love with Ella Chen's character. The ending left us all hanging and wondering if there would be a sequel to the hit series.

Wu Chun will also be starring with Meteor Garden's Dao Ming Si, Jerry Yan in the most awaited asian TV series called "Hotshots", a basketball drama which will soon be aired through ABS CBN as well.

Beauty Blog

I'm currently working on a beauty blog called Make Up Artist In Scrubs, taking after my winning entry to the nokia N76 passions contest last year.

It will contain tidbits about beauty and fashion. I've been thinking of putting up a make up tutorial here in cdo but considering how stingy people can get, I decided to work on my tutorial little by little for free via that blog.

If you have any questions you've been dying to ask about beauty, don't hesitate to ask me. I'll try to offer some help and feature it in my website. Check it out soon!

Freelance Writing

I've been considering freelance writing as a possible full time career option in the event that my hubby decides to start his residency training somewhere outside Cagayan. That means I'd have to resign from my current work as a school physician and lose reliever stints as a company doctor, to accompany him wherever he plans to train. I thought, online jobs might save me from possible joblessness because it would be difficult to find work for doctors like the ones I have now, that wouldn't entail 24 hrs duty. I definitely have no plans of going back to the zombie life once more.

When I browsed around for freelance outsourcing websites, I noticed there were a lot of open projects for writers but the pay can get as low as $1 an article, with expected turn around of 5-10 articles of 200-500 words per day. And these are not mere rewriting jobs but works containing original contents. Its not like you can write whatever's on your mind, right? It's not even a personal blog. You have to carefully study the topic assigned, process your thoughts before hitting the keyboards with words that actually make sense. Since I'm relatively new to this field, I'm not sure if it's easier for seasoned writers to effortlessly produce multiple articles like living factories.

Since most freelance websites hire their employees by bidding, the one who bids the lowest pay gets the job. Amazingly, there are people who can bid as low as .50 cents per article just to land the job. Are times really this hard up? Are they worth that low? This situation tolerates buyers/employers into offering jobs with very meager pay. The provider comes across as a beggar who will take anything, just to survive. Heck, beggars in our streets even require a minimum of one peso from willing donors. But these writers are supposedly professionals who spent years on education to be able to pull off a sensible article.

Maybe if I don't have the convenience I am presently enjoying in my current jobs, I might actually give in to the pressure of taking whatever is there. But good Lord, I hope it doesn't come to that point. That would probably be the time when I'd rather go full time into make up artistry, or whatever job that respects my skills and knowledge.

Anatomy Of A Writer

I am grateful that through this blog, I was able to land a writing gig at odesk.com. Although the entries here are not that polished and contain more of my rants than intellectually-stimulating pieces, it was a wise decision to keep it. This served as my portfolio.

I signed up for odesk last December just for the heck of it. Upon searching the open jobs available, I couldn't find anything suitable for me. In every job posting, there were a lot of applicants gunning for the respective positions. I didn't bother applying to any of slots because I didn't feel I had the edge over the others. Not until I got the invitation to work for a website for doctors in UK.

My present boss, who is likewise a doctor, contacted me to have an interview for a project they were working on. He browsed through my profile and this blog. The tasks included article/ blog writing and forum postings. This was just the job that I had in mind. This must be the "law of attraction" working.

With my assignments, I get to learn the latest news in the medical field, research about diseases and awaken my neurons which I haven't done for a while, after quitting residency. This work makes me think! Just when I thought I was ready to trade my career as a doctor to become a full time makeup artist, I realized I still crave for mental calisthenics. Don't get me wrong, make up artistry takes a lot of creativity, but it is in writing where I get to quench my brain the knowledge it has been thirsting for. I get to employ my medical education, the use of which I have been questioning for quite some time now.

I am thankful to God that now I am putting my skills to use. From make up to writing to music (I went back to playing the piano) to practicing as a physician, I am enjoying His blessings for me and the time that allows me to do all this. This makes my life a lot lovelier.

Oh yeah, I just got my first pay from odesk yesterday. Here's hoping for a lot more gigs to come. Thanks a lot to Matt, my boss for trusting me on this job.

I'll Miss You, Lil Pup

We always had puppies but this one I recently adopted is different. My mom told me it was my canine counterpart. She was chinky eyed, liked to isolate herself from the other puppies and loved sleeping. She had this funny habit of getting in the way when my car arrived. She would stretch out her tiny body just a few inches where the wheel was about to halt. They call her suicidal. I thought to myself, she's just like me: self- destructive.

Like me, she ate very little but her favorite food was sushi. She'd wiggle her tail when she is served her fave dish. She can get moody too. Ignoring her when she wants to play with you will send her to some corner and starve herself. She had always been a weakling. Maybe that's why I adopted her. My heart went out for her. She was the tiniest in the brood of puppies that our dog gave birth to. However, she was the cutest, prettiest and meekest one. She had curly hair and looked like a toy.

While her siblings were all playful, they annoyed her a lot. She would sleep in a corner away from them. It bothered me that there were times when she refused to eat. Once, it rained hard and we found her on the ground after falling off from the terrace. She was shaking so bad I wrapped her in a piece of cloth to warm her up. I even blow dried her hair. I thought she was gonna die then. Thankfully, she survived. Next thing we knew, she was beating her siblings off to their meal. That's how I knew she was getting better.

The next few days she was her usual weak self again. I suspected she needed deworming. Her tummy was distended. My mom brought her to a vet clinic where she was confined for 5 days. They said her intestines were probably obstructed by a ball of worms. I was willing to spend just for her to get well. I prayed for her everyday. I saw myself in her. A weakling but a survivor. I wanted her to be healthy once again because seeing her well means there's hope, there's miracle. She went home improved but I sensed there could still be something wrong inside her.

These past few days, she only drank milk and milktea through a dropper. She lost her appetite once again. We changed her name a couple of times thinking that a particular name made her more prone to sickness. From Jeprox (my nick when I was a kid) to kim rox , finally to kim shoe (because she liked curling next to my hubby's shoes). It didn't work. She was getting sicker by the day.

Yesterday, she puked. I didn't realize there was blood in her vomitus until my mom told me this morning. This noon, it was my first time to hear her cry. She hardly made a noise before. My mom said she was passing out bloody stools. I could only run my fingers through her hair wishing i could do something for her. She was already on antibiotics. Then she wailed again. I knew she was in pain. I was hoping she could get over this one like she did a couple of times before. After all, she was my tiny survivor. A few minutes later, my mom called out "she's dying". I rushed out finding her nonresponsive yet heavily breathing. I tapped her over and over again hoping to get a response. She was after all, still breathing. She was in shock.Like the many terminal patients I witnessed dying before me, I knew she was about to go. It was frustrating to be a doctor yet helpless as to saving my little pet's life.

I went inside my room to hide my tears, leaving her to my mom's care. I wept my heart out afterwards. I couldn't stand the sight of her struggling to live. I thought we'd survive our sickness together. I thought we'd prove that miracles can happen. But there she was, holding on to her life by a thread. Any minute, I knew she was about to leave me. When I went out to work, she was still breathing . I shed tears while driving. When I was in the clinic, thinking of her crushed my heart. I found out later, that she gave out her final breath minutes later after I went out of the house.

I take refuge in the thought that she is over her suffering. No more pain. No more agony. She's a happy pup wherever she may be now. But still, I couldn't help myself from missing her.

Night Of The Davids

The most awaited finale of the American Idol season 7 has ended with David coming home with the crown.

David Cook, that is. My heart was torn between him, the Big David and the little one, David Archuleta. They were both awesome. Though I find myself listening more to David Cook's songs, Archey is truly a force to reckon with.Both with different styles, Archey the Josh Groban-nish crooner and Cook, the rocker/ Daughtry kind of singer. But both can hit the high notes right and give you goosebumps.

Cook kinda gained a following after he sang Mariah's " Always be my Baby" and blew everyone away with his own rendition of the otherwise girly song. But I was most impressed with him singing "The Music of the Night". A rocker who can croon to Broadway songs, at such high notes truly made my jaw drop. He is merited for his originality and versatility. He was laid back last night with his song choices but he already won the hearts of the voting audience even before the finale.

Archuleta, the front runner of the show early on, is an inspiring performer who awakened my love for music once again. For that, I'll always be thankful to him. He has such charismatic effect that even babies stop crying when he starts singing (check out youtube). I always feel like squishing him because he's just so cute. To back up the cuteness is a powerful, mesmerizing voice leaving you awestruck every time. He gave such amazing, flawless performances in the finale that whatever the result was, he came home with his head held up high. He gave a good fight. He bowed to the king, David Cook, but he, David Archuleta, is the prince.

Congratulations to both Davids. They made American Idol a whole lot more exciting. For the first time, they made me vote (through gizmo5). Rock on.

Little Archey

I find this boy so adorable. He's David Archuleta of AI Season 7 when he was younger. Until now, I can't help myself from wanting to squish him whenever he sings at AI because he's so cute. He's talent amazes me too. He strikes me as a good boy that anyone would want for a son. I'd rather not go into controversies regarding his dad because I don't really dig negative issues. What matters is that this boy could sing and I love him to bits. He's my hubby's bet for the big win. I go for David Cook, however. :) But I'll have no hard feelings if Archey snags the title. Both of them are awesome and are bound to sell millions of records. I can't wait for the finale.

Fashion Photoshoot

With no less than Ms. Kagay-an Runner up, Ms. Natasha Mills. I have nothing but praises for her. Despite the lack of sleep, she was very professional. For someone exceptionally beautiful as she is, she had no qualms about getting herself dirty from the charred woods, being bathed by the scorching heat of the sun for long periods of time, pinning up oversized gowns, her feet hurting from her 4 inches high stilletos and people flocking around the site in Agora market. The shoot started at about 10 AM til 5 Pm yet her energy was up til the end, making fabulous poses and flashing expressive emotions that are marks of a supermodel.

She may look intimidating at first, with her british descent but in reality, she was very warm and down-to-earth. She was joking around and making goofy faces in between takes. Her amazing professionalism stems from her experience as a model in England before she moved here to the Philippines 2 years ago. Her projections will blow you away, as her eyes are naturally expressive and dramatic. She's a chameleon, too. Her looks can transform into different facets. She leaves you astounded as if you're looking at Angelina Jolie, Kristine Hermosa, Donita Rose, Yayo Aguila and the rest of the beautiful celebrities rolled into one. I am counting months or years before a major modeling agency in the country eyes her. It will be a loss for us, but we will be more than ecstatic to see her make it big. We will just forever grateful to her that once, she was our model, our prized jewel.

All shots in this album are taken through my digicam. Professional shots from "The Dustein Sibug" will be released soon after his solo exhibit during the Xavier days. Do watch out for it. With a model like Natasha and Photographer like Dustein, expect no less than breathtaking photos. It was sure exciting to be able to work with a powerhouse team for this shoot. Noteworthy to thank are the ff:


.. dustein's project 8 team members Richard who's likewise a top-caliber photographer and Mai2x, their manager..
.. Benjie Manuel and Moda de Oro for the dresses used in this shoot
.. my dearest husband Chris for his assistance in this shoot. the one who truly understands my passions and pushes me to be the best i can be..
.. Natasha's cool friends who like her, were very pleasant to deal with..
..Dr Cherryl Billena for lending me her clinic space for the makeup preparation..


For more pics, visit http://leggylass.multiply.com

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The Blessed Season