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This policy is valid from 29 November 2007


This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. For questions about this blog, please contact isleng17@yahoo.com.


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This blog does contain content which might present a conflict of interest. This content may not always be identified.

The Mystery of my Now Non-Existent Appendix

I was reading about appendicitis and the effects (if any) of not having an appendix. I don't know why, but I had this sudden urge to read up on it after my previous post about it. I found an article in The Newsroom that honestly got me a bit worried. I think I'll be giving my doctor a visit as soon as I get off from work tomorrow morning.

Appendicitis 101

All my three blogs are updated on a regular basis, and by regular I mean almost daily. More than twice a week would also be a good description, but if you've noticed, it's been almost weeks before I actually made any posts on all three blogs. If you're wondering why, the title of this post should already give you an idea.

Yup, I recently had appendicitis and got a minor surgery for it. I honestly wasn't that knowledgeable about appendicitis before I had it, like its symptoms, any preventive measures or whatever. All I remember is that I was having stomach aches which I dismissed due to missed meals, and that I thought I was going to have a fever or something. Later in the day, I was peeing unusually less than what I always do, and the stomachaches were more intense. I was breaking out in sweat and when I couldn't stand up anymore, Henry lifted me and we rode the first cab to the nearest hospital that was affiliated with my work's HMO.

So there, that was my appendicitis experience. I am one organ less than what I had before, although I don't feel anything different (lol). I'm just glad it's over and I can resume my one of my favorite activities without the discomfort - sitting in front of the PC.

I signed up for PPP!

Yipee!

After waiting for several weeks for my blog to meet the requirements for PayPerPost, I submitted my blog and it finally got approved! Hurray!

I've been really looking forward to blogging with payperpost as there are a lot of opportunities available for bloggers and I've read so many good words from the blogosphere about it. The approval of my blog is timing in itself; as one of my regular blogging gigs has ended, I was looking for an alternative blogging job to supplement the income I've lost. And PPP couldn't have come at a better time.

Whenever I surf the Internet for "paid to blog" or "paid to post" websites, PayPerPost is sure to be on the list. I am a registered member for several sites that are similar to PPP, but what I like most about this is that the opportunities are there, waiting for you. Unlike other sites wherein you have to wait for weeks before you get an assignment, at PPP the opportunities you can take are there, you can choose which to complete, and what's even better is that some opportunities give you the liberty of setting your own tone for the post.

Well, better get busy blogging!

With and Without a Job

Oh well, I'm really confused as to how I should be feeling. I'm happy that after several months (or almost a year) of staying at home, I'm back to the daily grind of working and commuting for yet another contact center. This time around, it's eTelecare. What saddens me on the other hand is the fact that I don't have a travel blogging job anymore as the site owner decided to put a close to it by the end of November.

One of the reasons why I chose to apply for a job at eTelecare is the company's compensation and benefits package. Imagine this, I have both life and health and as morbid as it sounds, we also have death insurance benefits, I can enroll two dependents (which of course will be Keisha and Simone) for health benefits, and the salary I currently have is only Php150 less than my current salary from my previous employer, after staying with them for 17 months. And get this - they also have a scholarship package that regular employees can avail of, something around Php18,000 a year if my memory serves me well. If I can manage my schedule, I just might be able to get a Master's Degree using the scholarship program of the company.

On the other hand, I'm a bit sad as my months of travel blogging has come to an end. The site owner had changed the terms in which we blog for him, and November will be our last month of work, and I'll be one blogging job less than what I currently have. Although I still have my video music blogs, I'm just sad since I really have a passion for writing and traveling and through this site, I was able to sort of virtually travel to places that I write about. I remember how excited I was when I first got published, and how I landed the job with three other bloggers after several of us were on the "trial phase."

I guess I'll just have to busy myself again with searching for other blogging jobs that'll be as fun as the ones I currently have, since I really don't want to give up writing for money. With the holidays just around the corner and two kids of my own, I want this holiday to be as fun as it can be.

Upgrading Techniques in Ran Online Part 2

RAN Online is an MMORPG locally released in the Philippines by IP E-Games, and is just one of the MMORPG we play on a regular basis. Our characters are primarily in the servers Tala and Havoc, and we have almost every character type but with different builds, most of which are dexterity types. Unfortunately, as IP E-Games is currently having some technical difficulties with their website and the game RAN Online, I wanted to show further in detail how our successful characters managed to upgrade their armor in RAN Online. However, as I have the company of my husband while I am making this post, this will technically be a collective effort and we will be doing our best to both share our successful techniques and methods in upgrading weapons and armor in the said game.

For first-time visitors, please read my previous posts about Ran Online and Upgrading Techniques in RAN Online Part 1 so that you'd be able to understand what I'm going to discuss in this post better.

For starters, I would first like to state that these are the tricks that worked best for us and what I am going to share are not absolute; meaning, it may work for some or not at all as there really is no 100% sure way to upgrade items in RAN Online in the first place. But for information purposes, I am going to state what was worked for us best, and you are free to try these at your own risk. Lol. And without further ado, here are the upgrading techniques in RAN Online based from our experiences:

1. We only upgrade during odd hours of the night.
Since we mostly play at night, we also upgrade during odd hours as well, like from 2am onwards. I don't know the logic behind this, but I guess it's because there are a fewer number of people playing the game during these hours and upgrading at these times as well, so the ratio of success could probably be higher when there are fewer of you doing the same thing at the same time.

2. We have our secret spot during upgrading.
I won't divulge where exactly though, but to give you and idea, it's somewhere in the marketplace. The spot I'm talking about is not that well-known, and only a few people frequent that said spot. As this spot is almost secluded, we have the luxury of doing our drop and pick technique, which I will discuss in detail below. But of course, you never know if someone has followed you or anything, so we advice to proceed with the technique below in great caution.

3. Drop and Pick.
For this technique, what we normally do is that we first drop the item we are going to upgrade to the ground, then count five seconds before picking it up. Same for the refining item (protection potion, luxury protection potion, burr and fine burr), we drop it and pick it up after 5 seconds. This is why it is very important that you make sure there is no one following you, since you need to make sure no one will pick up your items for you (hahaha). After you've picked up the refining item, you upgrade it and keep your fingers crossed. Whether it's successful or not, we do it every time we upgrade.

4. Turn the monitor off.
Just when you are about to right-click the refining item towards your armor or weapon, what we normally do is turn the monitor (and the speaker or we take off our headsets) off and keep our fingers crossed. Aside from adding the element of surprise, it also works for us, the reason behind is still something I don't know why.

5. We upgrade only in Channel 0 (the PK channel).
In a way, this is similar to tip number 2. As there are usually fewer people in the said channel, we find that our upgrading chances are higher and usually more successful whenever we upgrade in Channel 0 or the PK channel.

Some of our friends have informed us that there are greater chances of upgrading success whenever there are GM initiated events like Suryuns, or even upgrading during Club Wars, but we have yet to try it as we are usually active participants in Suryuns and Club Wars in particular. Again and just as a reminder, these techniques I just shared are not absolute and although they may work for us, it may not work for you. If it does, I wouldn't mind if you shoot me an email telling me about your success (or failure). In any case, we wish you all the best in upgrading!

Idol Exclusive - The Site for Everything Idol!

Today has to be a pretty good day for me, as I am able to expand my virtual knowledge with websites over the internet. Just today, I've discovered several new websites brimming with tons of potential and being a member of these websites is something certainly enjoyable. Another site I discovered today is called Idol Exclusive, which is basically a site for American Idol fans like myself. This has been one of my favorite reality tv shows that I certainly make it a point to not miss a single episode of.

Members of the website can get together in various ways - through blogs, forums, pictures, and groups. Members all have their own personal profile where they can add almost anything they want about themselves and their idols. Video uploading is also available to make your Idol experience worthwhile.

What's even good about this site is that members can read the latest news on their Idols right off the site, and even have the option to receive these news on your mobile phone.