The Hour After Earth Hour 2009

I know, I know... sheesh! I should have posted this "an hour after the Earth Hour event" but I got tied up with many other things so I missed to. Anyway, I all I can say is that we participated in the event again this year and never regret doing so. Some of the famous landmarks here in Dubai also participated but i don't have any photos of those. I'll show you how we went through the Earth Hour 2009. I will definitely do this again next year and the years to come! Mother Earth is soooooo getting my vote!!!

Well, you won't see much on the video except for the flicker of my mouse's light and the one from the laptop screen and a lit candle on the altar. That was the point of Earth Hour anyway, switch the lights off ;) ... and so we all did! And below are few snaps taken before the event and during the Earth Hour.

My note reminding everyone at home to support the cause.

I used my small reading lamp which is battery operated to illuminate the room.

Monday Party Games - Great Basement Escape

My daughter and I love playing escape games. It makes us use our minds solving puzzles and figuring out what the clues meant. Here's a cute escape game which I know you'll enjoy. Have fun!

Great Basement Escape



Click here to play this game

Health Nut - Brain Power with Beans

Black beans contain antioxidants called anthocyanins that improve brain function. One 1/2 cup daily serving of black beans provides 8 grams of protein and 7 1/2 grams of fiber. These beans are low-cal and free of saturated fat which causes heart problems.

Today is Earth Hour 2009

Hey, don't forget to participate on this worthy cause. If your location is still few hours before night time, please do not forget to switch off your lights and any appliance you can do without for an hour at 8:30 p.m. local time.

Early Bird

My body clock went off much early than the alarm clock I set in the room. I was supposed to be up by 9 a.m., instead, woke up at 7:30 a.m.

I am busy as a bee today because I have to do a lot of errands before we leave for our family annual vacation to the US this year. I already listed all the things I need to buy for our families and friends there. I have also planned the routes I will take so I don't burn up a lot of fuel. I will go to the exchange centre as well to pay my bills and exchange my local money to some US notes (which I pray I won't spend to the last dime...).

We are almost ready, just waiting for the travel date on 3 April. Well, I have to go because I want to catch some worms! *wink*

Women's Leadership Program

Gone are the days when women's roles are mainly doing household chores and seeing to it that their husbands and families are well looked after. Time evolved and so are the roles of women.

When I was in my university days in the Philippines, I didn't hear much about leadership program focused on women. There were seminars about strengthening the roles of women in the public sector but not much about a program that will enhance the power of women. I am so relieved to learn that a program as such exists nowadays.

The Elizabeth J. Somers Women's Leadership Program further strengthen the role of women in the present time. This program is geared to delve on issues about women's leadership and its impact on the intellectual, social/political aspect and the arts which are centered on the women of today. WLP or Women's Leadership Program is a y ear-long program where students engage in classroom activities learning the theories of leadership and participate in seminars. The students are housed together in dormitories located at Mount Vernon Campus in George Washington University. The place boasts of green scenery, federal style academic buildings, sports fields, libraries and housing units and support facilities needed.

I salute WLP for paving the way to recognize women's worth and their roles in the society.

Rainy March

I have never experienced rain in March here in Dubai. We've been here for almost 10 years and this is the first time I saw rain during the month of March. Weird weather shifts happen when the season is to change just like now - the end of winter and the dawn of spring. However, it was scary yesterday with matching gray clouds, thunder and great electrical show in the sky! We had hail some years back prior to the winter season but yesterday we had hail storm in some parts of UAE. I find that rather strange. I guess this is the cause of global warming.

Here are pictures taken yesterday here in Dubai. I credit the photographer who took these shots. They are amazing.


I love this picture above. It's like "Twister Part 3" the Dubai version. It is not common in this part of the world to have this kind of weather phenomenon. Few days before we had this hail, there were several sandstorms signaling the change of the weather but we didn't expect chunks of snow as seen below.

Do Not Hurt

I think, some women out there must wear a sign that says "Do Not Touch." Better yet, they should indicate on the sign, "DO NOT HURT" in bold letters so men out there would be warned accordingly.

I cannot help but wonder why Rihanna ever let Chris Brown hurt her (IF the reports are true). What did they fight about which led to violence? And after that, Rihanna would still run back to Chris. Isn't that very weird?

I have read a lot of reports of abused and battered women and it breaks my heart to learn that somehow, some women contribute to their violent and sad fate because they allow their men to hurt them. I am glad that there are sites out there which support the safety of women in or out of relationships.

Founder and Dating expert Stephany Alexander established the site to promote free date screening service since 2002. The site list cheating men, networking to foster dating with the help of dating expert, free resources for women, free medical advise from a volunteer doctor and so much more.

Sites like www.womansavers.com is a great site to protect women. I hope ladies out there with bad and painful experience in their relationships with abusive and cheating men will come out and join so they can share their experience to warn and educate other women.

Earth Hour Day 2009

I participated in this event last year by enlisting my family and friends to support the cause. We switched the lights off at home for an hour in observance of the "objective" Earth Hour is promoting. Again, I have enlisted myself in this worthy cause. I am inviting everyone to please participate in this noble task. It won't hurt to switch off the lights for an hour amongst the days in a year. It's just an hour...

Don't forget, on 28 March 2009, 8:30 p.m. local time. Commit.

Earth Hour 2009 by WWF - Sign up for Earth Hour!

Monday Party Games - Tutti Cuti: Ice Cream Parlour 2

The temperature is rising and what better way to keep cool is to eat ice cream. Get your coins ready and buy some ice cream now. Yummy!

Y3.com - 9500+ Free Games


Y3.com - 9500+ Free Games

The Mom Song

I love this so much so I am sharing it to all moms and their kids. Some countries are celebrating Mother's Day on 22 March and others on 10 May. Regardless of when you celebrate it, this one's for you.

The lines are very familiar... I heard them from my mom! hahaha...

Silly Drivers!

I really don't get it when drivers here in Dubai just park relentlessly in the middle of the road and when asked to move or be honked, they get mad at you. I had a spat few days ago with a young "bleep" driver who was stupid enough to park his car in the middle of the road when it was the only main road available to get through. Speaking of right of way, I had (and by all means) the right of way. He should have parked on the side and turned his hazards on if he was waiting for someone.

Grrr...I wonder how he got his driver's licence when clearly he was ignorant of the traffic rules and right of way principle. This place is really a haven for manic drivers lacking the right mind-set and experience to be a responsible driver.

Getting Excited

I cannot contain my excitement about our upcoming trip to the US of A. I have written our itinerary several times already just to be sure we would not waste precious time. 10 days is to short to be able to state-hop so I want to make sure that we visit great places as much as possible.

I am so glad we have relatives and friends who are kind enough to offer their homes for us to stay in. Imagine if we didn't know anybody there, we would be wasting so much money on accommodation alone. Thank goodness for them!

Our trip will be very lengthy. The longest we have travelled is 8 and 1/2 hours going home to Manila. This trip will total 14 plus hours direct flight to New York from Dubai and from JFK International Airport, another 6 plus hours connecting flight to Los Angeles. I can imagine the mega jet lag already. I hope we get upgraded to business class....wishful thinking!

Monday Party Games - Bratz Babyz: Mall Crawl

Time to find the puppy and your other Bratz Babyz pals. Time is running out so hurry!

Y3.com - 9500+ Free Games


Y3.com - 9500+ Free Games

Officially 37!

I almost went cuckoo last night thinking about how I would be putting 37 on the space next to the age when I fill up the forms next time. I cannot fathom the depth of turning 37! I know, I am being a drama queen, well, that's me! The numbers are getting high (except my height!), the waistband is expanding (I hope it's my bank account!) and the gray hair is multiplying (again, I hope my money in the bank does...) and now, I am officially 37!

37...hmmmm, it's just like 36, 35, 34 and so forth. I guess, being 37 brings extra mileage on my wisdom bank. The older I get, the wiser I become (or is it the older I get, the more senile I become? nyahaha!). Well, I am just a little freaked out today because I am another year older. Next year I am 38 and few years shy of the big 4-0.

I hope that this year will be a good year for me coupled with the wisdom I have acquired through the years. I pray for good health as well because I have improved a lot in that aspect. and will like to maintain the improvement. I also pray for the silent "longing" of my heart. The Lord knows, I just hope He grants me my wishes because He knows they are for the best...

I am thankful to all my family and friends who remembered to pop in, called, sent text messages and e-cards, emailed me and left gazillions of lovely birthday greetings in my Friendster and Facebook accounts. I cannot believe I am getting calls as far as Australia, email and e-cards as far as Scandinavia and I am so overwhelmed with the thoughtfulness each and everyone has shown me and for those who went out of their way to make my day special. I love you all!!!

So, what is in store for me on my next birthday???

Health Nut - Rubbing Your Blood Pressure Out

We can eat as much as we want but we cannot eat food that shouts bloody bad cholesterol, right? However, this is one indulgence we can bask ourselves in without having to feel guilt and that is having a long and deep massage.

According to RealAge.com, when people have deep massages, their systolic and diastolic pressure drops and that is a good sign. Study showed that there was a brief drop in the BP (blood pressure) of those who had their deep-tissue work from a licenced bodyworker for 45 to 60 minutes. It also induced a 10-point drop in heart rate. Oh, that is so relieving.....

Done with Basic HTML

Our team had presentation in our basic HTML class under the auspice of the Filipino Computer Club this morning. I am kind of relieved because I need not wake up early next Friday onwards. I am a bit sad because I will miss my classmates and I feel that there is more in HTML to explore. I am sure I will meet my classmates again if they will sign up for basic Photoshop on April.

Some revamp!

My 1st blog birthday came and went and I had no surprise or whatsoever. Blame it on the recession and lack of time on my part! hehehehe... Well, the real reason was, I really had no time to prepare and given my inability to create an Entrecard account is also one of the reasons. It's just more fun to give out Entrecard points apart from the money as prize. Anyway, it's over so maybe I'll just prepare for my 2nd blog birthday many months in advance.

I am going to introduce new topics in my blog. I know I normally talk about anything I fancy about at the moment but now, I'll be putting more direction to what I will write. I'll still delve on issues close to my heart which is my family and TRAVEL!!! I'll be writing weekly segments of health matters beneficial to all and I'll be calling it my Health Nut portion. I'll be putting up trivias on parties and feasts all over the world. My Monday Party Games will be a regular feature. Arts and crafts will still be in the line. Lastly, I just feel that it's high time to pass the kleigh lights to other bloggers as well so I will be interviewing and featuring other VIPs of my blogs once in a while.

This is going to be so much fun!!! I can't wait to get started...

Monday Party Games - Word Search

Let's use our eyes for this game. It's very easy, just look for the words and there you have it! Have fun and make use of those new words you've learned in your everyday sentences...

Y3.com - 9500+ Free Games

Y3.com - 9500+ Free Games

Super, Super, Super-Sized Meals

There are times when our hunger pangs knock the living daylights out of us especially when we just came from work or were out gallivanting or touring. This happens to me especially when I am on tour because my seeing sense gets fed and the overwhelming excitement to see beautiful places pushes back the desire to eat. So, when I am done with my day tour, I normally end up buying super-sized meals which I will not recommend to all because it's not healthy. Remember that controversial "super-size meal" man who ate McDonald meals in large portions for a period of time? Well, I don't want you to end up like that.

There is this restaurant in Germany (we were not able to go to this place because it's not in the city where we stayed) called The Waldgeist in Hofheim. It serves humongous portions of the famous schnitzels and frankfurters, even the burgers. Not only that, you can gush those epic proportion of a meal with a titanic size of a pint of German beer! They even offer spare aluminum foil for left-overs! Seeing those photos make me not want to eat for a week. If you plan to eat there while in Germany, might as well bring your cholesterol medication.

(Photos taken from trendhunter.com)

Ending Recession

Can someone please tell me when this recession is going to end? Reason why I asked is that, it has made people feel gloomy, plans are shelved, no moving around the work-force, no resignations, no temporary jobs available, no promotions, BUT same old honchos who bring misery to some people's work life.

Can someone please tell me that this recession will end very, very soon???

The Disappearing "Places"

Being a travel bug, I have already made my own list of places to see before I reach 60 or before that place totally disappear from the face of the earth, which ever comes first... Kidding aside, these places are not going to disappear but may be closed for public due to erosion, wear and tear condition, pollution, development in infrastructure, exploitation of the place by not providing sanctioned tourist guidelines to follow when visiting these places and neglect from humanity. These places are taken from Frommers' 500 Places To See Before They Disappear.

1. Taj Mahal
2. Lord Howe Island
3. Pyramids of Giza
4. Gu Gong, China
5. Little Green Street in England
6. Hill of Tara, Ireland

These are just few in the list. To know more, you have the get the book ;)

Unfair, Unfair, Unfair

Work-life is unfair! Some people just keep dumping work on someone's head without realizing the current work load on hand. Some people just have the nerve to rattle someone's cage and that cage is about to collapse.

Here's hoping things will get better very soon so some people need not put up with all these crap! heheheeee..... Can you relate?

Dirtiest Hotels of 2009

Got the list from TripAdvisor so patrons out there, don't blame me ;)

• 1.Hotel Carter, New York City, New York
• 2.Continental Bayside Hotel, Miami Beach, Florida
• 3.New York Inn, New York City, New York
• 4.Eden Roc Motel, Wildwood, New Jersey
• 5.Days Inn Cleveland Airport, Brook Park, Ohio
• 6.Days Inn Airport / Stadium Tampa, Tampa, Florida
• 7.Travelodge Bangor, Bangor, Maine
• 8.Velda Rose Resort Hotel, Hot Springs, Arkansas
• 9.Ramada Plaza Hotel JFK International Airport, Jamaica, New York
• 10.Days Inn & Suites Gatlinburg, Gatlinburg, Tennessee

These are from TripAdvisors' travelers reviews. I will check out some of them on my visit to the US but will remind myself to mind the "bed bugs."

Monday Party Games - Sara's Super Spa

Spa these days are quite costly especially when you are on a tight budget! So, I guess I'll just have my spa "virtually" here:

Saras Super Spa



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