How hard can it be to find the perfect vacation rental for you or your family? Sometimes, it can be really difficult. Of course, you need to look for the perfect place. You also need to deal with the plethora of options you have online. You better watch out though because prices for say California vacation rentals or Lake Tahoe vacation rentals can be quite costly especially if the travel agencies want a big commission out of you.

Good thing there is a site called Vacations By Owners which is a huge online database for people who are looking for vacation rentals online. What’s good about this is you deal directly with the owners of the establishments. This will help save you from some greedy travel agent who will add more dollars into the original price. Moreover, it saves you from getting incorrect description of the place and services available in the facility. They also have links to car rentals and airline reservations which will help you plan your entire vacation!

Have you seen those movies where the mailbox is just too ugly for the house? Well, fortunately you can avoid having that in your own home. There are commercial mailboxes available online which are sure to bring some fashion into the old, rusty mailbox. If you live in a condominium or apartelle, there are also available commercial mail boxes for multiple residents.

Aside from style, you are sure that the commercial mailbox sold are highly secured. Mailboxixchange will help you get that ideal mailbox for your place, and they have almost everything available in the market.

The prices are pretty competitive. If you opt for the more affordable but not very ordinary, there are some choices for you. You can visit their site for more details.

After three weeks, I finally had the courage to go to the dentist and have my problem tooth extracted. It took a while because I wasn't really ready yet. I kept convincing myself that money was actually the problem. The truth is I've been spending more on food that it's costing me more than to have this tooth taken out. I never really had like a family dentist. Most dentists scare the heck out of me so it's important that they look good and they should be able to convince me well that there's going to me little pain only.

YEAH RIGHT.
 
When I was in third grade, I had a horrible experience with the dentist. She was my mom's classmate in grade school so we trusted her so much. I'm not saying she's not good because she was. She was funny and I really liked her. But I didn't like the last memory I had with her. I was having this huge molar extracted because I just had too much teeth at that time. It took us 3 freaking hours to get the thing out and she had to ask help from her sister who is also a dentist. Just imagine me screaming my lungs out while there's this huge pliers on my mouth. SCARY.

Anyway, this new dentist I visited was pretty and she was nice. The only thing I noticed is that she didn't make any attempt to save the tooth. She's the first dentist I talked to who didn't tell me that her mission in life is to save as much teeth as possible. We took an X-ray and she put anesthesia on my gums. Then used some tools which made her look like she's screwing the tooth out of my mouth. Then in just about 15 minutes, she told me we're done.

And here it is:

Most people like playing Bingo because of its social aspect. Being in a room filled with bingo players is pretty exciting. However, some people may not enjoy being around the smokers or very loud people. You just want to get on with your game because after all, you are there not just to play but to ultimately win the pot money. This is why people are now more open to playing Bingo at the comfort of their own homes. Online bingo has many perks, one of which I’ve already said. You can also access the bingo sites 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

Speaking of Bingo Sites, you can just imagine how huge the internet is and how many sites are there. Some mean serious business while others are just there to scam the hungry players. You, as the player have to be careful. This is where Online Bingo Sites some into play. They have gathered the top five Bingo playing sites which makes it easy for the player to choose the legitimate ones. And who says Online Bingo takes away the social aspect of the game? This is the internet baby! You can play with as many players all over the world! How about that!

At first, I didn’t understand what’s all the fuzz about Massively Multiplayer Online games or MMOs. The internet cafes in the city are filled with young blokes screaming and shouting. I then realized hoe exciting games are. For example, World of Warcraft allows you to build empires and conquer other lands and you also get to play with a lot of MMO-addicted players.

Now I am not very familiar with the game. However, I do know that as you get better in the game, you increase the level of your character. With an increased level, you get more perks as a player and your game is much better than others with lower character levels. This is why the best players have thought of building high-level characters on MMOs such as World of Warcraft (WoW). They then sell these accounts to people who aren’t really doing well in the game but are willing to do anything to get on top.

It seems like a grand idea. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with selling a service like this to people who really want them. One caveat though: you ought to check if the accounts are active and not banned. Some people might be a little clever if you know what I am saying. You can Buy WoW Accounts on www.BuyMMOAccounts.com. Their accounts are pretty much safe to purchase and they promise no reclaims and bans.

Looking into buying some new gadgets? Before you jump into the technology pool, you might want to consider reading some technology reviews first. It's important to find out how your choices play against the top contenders in the market. To find out more about functionality, style and most importantly, value, there is only one place in the internet which serves as your ultimate resource for technology items.

Stuff.TV offers a lot of gadget reviews and will help you decide which product suits you. Remember that a gadget may be fancy and loaded with lots of functions but you probably won't use half of it. Times like these, you need something classy and functional and most importantly, something that fits into your budget. It's best to read the gadget news blog to get yourself updated with the latest trends and how each product is competing.

Admit it. You've done it at least once this week. You went to a place: a restaurant, a hotel or your neighbor's place and went to their bathroom. To your amazement, it looked clean and cozy that you stayed for a while to take pictures. I do it all the time especially if there are lots of bathroom furniture lying around as your backdrop.

Bathrooms, just like any room in the house, deserves a much-needed pimping through several pieces like bathroom cabinets. I saw some beautiful choices online. They don't have to be pretty. What you should be looking for is functional. Like these piece I found below. It can be a stool or a mini table but it's also a cabinet where you can put your towels and other stuff. There are also a few choices which you can hang on the wall. They're stylish and very useful especially in your own homes.

If this was Project Runway, our task today is to create something 'couture' for the eight-time gold medalist in the Beijing Olympics Mr. Michael Phelps. It has to be innovative, wearable and something he will really like. The materials? His 8 Olympic medals but you have an option to add more materials so long as the eight will be used as the primary materials for this task. The winner's look will be featured on Sports Illustrated Magazine.

Now help me decide which one is the winner.... this:


Or this:

What's the worst pick-up line you've heard so far? Have you been told this: 'Did you fall? I thought you were an angel...' Or how about this: 'Am I dead? Because I just saw heaven..'? Luckily, you won’t have to say all these silly things anymore. Flirting can be as easy as wearing Victory Hair through Extreme Style by VO5 – hair so glammed and zhushed up you won’t have to say a word to attract some wandering eyes. Now, if you think you are flirt enough and does not need to style yourself then take the Ultimate Flirting Championship! We’ll see if you are all set to flirt your way to the top!

About three years ago, I got hooked on mixed martial arts. I've never really been the type that would get easily excited with anything as violent as this sport. However, the strategies involved in the sport is intoxicating, you can easily get into it without knowing. That is why I decided to take on an assignment for the sports section of a college magazine. I wrote about MMA and Ultimate Fighting. My resource person was an MMA trainer and part owner of a popular gym. My editors liked the story and they decided to do a follow-up the next month.


If you're so much into MMA or Ultimate Fighting Championship that you want to write about it, you don't have to send out query letters to sports magazines to reach your desired audience. There's this site called Bleacher Report where you can take part in doing sports analysis. You can:

-write own articles
-edit and rate other writers' works
-Create a fanbase and interact with the community

The best writers get the best rankings. This means your articles get featured on the first page of the site ensuring better visibility of your articles. This site is not just for mixed martial arts though. You may write about other sports like NFL, NBA, NHL, FIFA, Auto Racing, Tennis, Golf, and many more.

There is an existing law in the same state that charges $24 a month to someone who smokes and it helped decrease the number of smokers. This means if you are obese and you smoke, you pay more! Both fees!

A lot of employees nowadays look for companies with good health plan or insurance coverage. It's a good investment considering that part of the fees will be shouldered by the company. Moreover, you'll never know when an accident can happen or an illness can hit you hard. Health insurance helps you prepare for such unpredictable circumstances.

I remember there was this employee, from another department who was rushed to the hospital because he had some throat irritation. The doctors told him it could get worse. The medication, hospital expenses, doctors' fees and surgery added up to a staggering amount. Good thing he filled up his medical insurance papers and he didn't have to pay for a single centavo. Health insurance is very important. You might want to shop around for the best one now.

Sad news carb-loving boinkers! Mrs. Fields, the cookie monster who brought us so much goodies will be filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. According to Perez Hilton, Wall street Journal has reported that they struggled with debt and has racked up losses. Blame it on the rising gas prices? Poor economy?

Damn! We're gonna miss a lot of cookies! And Muffins! And cookie muffins!

I hope they won't close down the Cookie Cafes in Manila!

You know you're getting old when you begin to get tired. People around you get sick or worse some die due to many illnesses which you fear you might get someday. I know a few people close to me who suffered from heart attacks. Apparently, it's one -- if not the top causes of death today. So if you experience unusual sensations of feeling the heartbeat, chest pain,  difficulty breathing, fatigue and shortness of breath when lying flat, you might want to consider getting checked as you don't want it to result to stenosis.

Stenosis is caused by the narrowing mitral valve. This valve is the inflow valve for the left side of the heart. When blood picks up ovygen from the lungs through the pulmonary veins, it fills the left atrium of the heart with blood. The mitral valve allows the blood to travel from the left atrium to the heart's left ventricle. Due to wear and tear, this valve gets damaged resulting to possible heart failure.

There are some mitral valve surgeries done to cure this. There is the mitral valve replacement. Some cardiologists however prefer mitral valve repair because it's always better to repair it than replace the valve. According to the research I've done on this, the mortality rate of people who have undergone this treatment is considerably low.

However, it's always better to prevent this from happening. Love your heart and stay healthy!

I just read somewhere that Michael Phelps incurred the ire of nutritionists (and others of course) when he decided to endorse Kellogg's Corn Flakes. Apparently, corn flakes brings more harm to one's health. Moreover, he chose to endorse Kellogg's over Wheaties which is the official breakfast of the Olympians. All I can say is, when people start fighting over who deserves to get your photo land on their product's packaging, it means you've become more famous than Britney Spears.


From Jessica Zafra's blog:

Want to have the Phelps body? Try his diet. Just be sure to hit the pool every hour.

Breakfast
3 fried-egg sandwiches with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions, lots of mayonnaise
2 cups of coffee
5-egg omelet
Bowl of grits
3 slices French toast with powdered sugar
3 chocolate-chip pancakes

Lunch
1 pound enriched pasta
2 big ham and cheese sandwiches with mayo on white bread
Energy drinks, 1,000 calories each

Dinner
1 pound pasta
An entire pizza
More energy drinks

ScreenLife Games is at it again. They launched a new Banzai game. Check it out:

People seem to be so engrossed with games nowadays. Just a few hours ago, I passed by a group of teens talking about a certain online game they enjoy playing. Well, there’s another game everyone will be crazy about. It’s called Banzai a DVD-based betting game for 16 years old and above. Aside from the cute characters, it’s pretty exciting! It’s designed to be used with your TV and DVD. There are several scenarios in the DVD wherein the player will bet and guess what happens to the sushi and chopsticks. The game is from a tv show of the same name. Whoever wins the most sushi wins the game.

You can visit their site at http://www.banzai.com/howtoplay.php to find out what the mechanics of this ScreenLife Game. And while you are at it, you can explore their site by going to the ‘downloads’ section. You can download free wallpapers of the Tako-Gotchi which is the main Banzai character.You can also download the game and try it by going to http://www.banzai.com/downloads.php .  If you like it, you may purchase the game on their site or by going to their official MySpace profile www.myspace.com/takotheocto. Banzai is sure to entertain you .. they are just too cute to resist! Here's the wallpaper I got from their site:

Everyone seems to be doing something with their hair! I initially wanted to shave my head (again) but then I decided to be a little bit adventurous and had my hair coloured. I was so freaking scared of what the outcome would be. Plus I never really seemed to care about anything but my tummy. I am too lazy to even zhush it (as what the fab five would say) but here it is.... nothing fancy and I don't think you can see the color in this picture. But this is the styled version:

Times are hard. Gas prices are high and people rely on credit cards and loans. When times get tougher and they couldn't pay their dues, they get bad credit and everything pretty much goes down the drain. Fortunately, this is not how we should think of bad credit. There are some companies like who are willing to help you repair credit and solve your problems in no time.

I think the main problem is that people do not know how to handle things properly. Like in my case, I was in so debt for 3 years. I tried to just throw away the bills and forget them. Unfortunately, when reality in the form of demand letters came through the door I had an epiphany. I did this and I need to do some bad credit repairs. I got up, called the right people and now, I can say I am done with plastics.

Credit repair services don't really have to be for people who are drowning in debt. It's also for those who are about to sink in bills and loans. It's time to get smarter, face your debts and repaid your credit and be financially healthy!

I got a text from one of my former agents, Asher. I can't believe how time flies so quickly! If I didn't move back to Manila, it would have been my 2nd anniversary in Clark. I was invited once again to party plus Jason celebrated his birthday so he cooked pasta for us.




After having some moments at our old place in Crisot, we went to Whyt Haus grill for videoke. Marjay, a former bartender and always the one who orders drinks for us, tried to get me drunk! He kept ordering margaritas until I lost count! Surprisingly, my tolerance for alcohol has increased. We then went to this new coffee shop called The Coffee Academy -- probably the only coffee place I know that serves both coffee and cocktails. Perhaps it's the perfect combination -- Coffee after getting blasted?

Had so much fun and I can't believe they still call themselves as Team Pika after 2 years. I love these kids =)

Don't you just love this? They're bringing back 90210! And some of the cast will be back. Remember Brenda and Kelly? I don't exactly remember what their feud was about but I'm sure they also had a real feud behind the camera. Here's the latest clip CW released. I think this will be hotter than Gossip Girl!

I've written about how I got into debt a few years ago.They were all because of my credit cards. When an agent first handed me that application form on the street I was excited. It was a formal declaration that I am now a member of the workforce and that I also 'need' a credit card. I jumped right in without researching about credit cards, interest rates, annual fees, etc.

As a result, I was in debt for five years. I was only able to pay my very last credit card debt last month. The bills were piling up and so are the interest rates. That is why people I think it is my duty to inform people on how to educate themselves first before getting their own credit card. First, know what you need. It is quite true that they come in handy when you are short in cash but if it's just purely for emergencies, then I suggest that you get a low interest credit card. It's supposed to give you the best deal and the lowest fees as supposed to a business credit card which is more ideal for (yes you guessed it right) businesses and people who need to spend but will be surely reimbursed by their company. Most of these have bigger credit limit but the fees might be higher too.

There are also people who just need the plastic to make purchases online or just enjoy the convenience of swiping without having to go to the machine to get cash. Then why not get a prepaid debit card? It works just like a credit card but the big difference is that you put cash in it. No money, no spending but no debt.

There's more professional advice for the credit card shopper on CompareCards.com.