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Saving on Condo Interior Design and Renovations – Part 1

While still looking for a condominium two years ago, I was already thinking of how the interior of my unit would look like. I even contacted my friend, and told him that I’ll be needing his help. He’s an Architect, and he laughed at the idea of designing the unit for me for we were classmates back in college. Yes, I didn’t pursue a career in design and construction despite earning the degree.

After the unit turnover, things didn’t go as planned and I moved in to my new place without doing any interior renovations. I am putting that off until I get to earn enough money to do it.

For a few months, I was thinking of hiring a professional and let them do all the works. I’ve seen several interior designers whose rates are reasonable, and their works are quite impressive. But six months later, it looks like I’d be going back to utilizing whatever is left of what I learned from studying Architecture for over five years.

Yes, hiring an interior designer is definitely advisable especially if you are not too sure about what you want to do with your space. However, I decided that I’ll be my own interior designer in order to save on professional fees. I will then look for a contractor to execute my design, and slowly start decorating and furnishing my unit from there.

Most of these contractors are experts on what they do. You show them the design, and you can be sure that they will be able to give you the finish product. The best part is, they pick and supervise their own workers themselves so that saves you a lot of time and headache too.

Aside from checking their sample works, one tip when looking for a contractor is to see if they have previous projects for spaces which are similar to yours. For me, I started looking for past renovation jobs done in our building, and that led me to finding several of them on Facebook. The fact that they have already experienced dealing with our building management means that I wouldn’t be needing to show or guide them about the process. In short, they’ll do all the paper works too!

I am looking forward to starting this project this year. I may not be able to afford a fully renovated and furnished unit by the end of the year, but I’ll start with the basics:

– I’ll have to design a floor plan of my unit, which I will be discussing with the contractor. I am no longer updated with building materials, so I will rely on their recommendations.
– This renovation will include: partition for one bedroom, ceiling design, customized closet and kitchen cabinets, countertop, kitchen tiles, bathroom renovation.
– Mirrors to create space.
– Lighting.
– Paint jobs.

I figured, it would save me money to settle for a basic finish and continue with the rest later on. I am going for an all-white finish, and work on this color by choosing the right pieces of furniture. If it won’t work, I could easily make changes with the help of wallpapers. There are many types of wallpapers available which anyone could DIY. Instead of the usual framed artworks, I am looking at printing photos from my photography archive and hang them on my walls. I have tons of photographs in my hard drives to choose from.

I wish the first IKEA branch in the Philippines will open this year. But according to the Facebook post by the Philippine Star, it will be opening in 2019. Last year (2017), IKEA announced that its first branch in the Philippines will open soon. News about its location were quick to spread, and lots of netizens were guessing that it will be in Cavite or Laguna. We’ll the first IKEA store will be built right next to the Mall of Asia Arena:
The parking lot between the MOA Arena and SMX Convention center will be developed to be the location of the first IKEA store in the Philippines, and the opening date will be in 2019. The second store is said to open in Fairview to serve #North residents.

How much does this interior renovation cost? I’ll update this post as soon as I have the complete breakdown. I’m excited to see how much I could save by designing the unit myself. I am hopeful that my contractor could execute the job well; I will be posting their contact details here too.

A Parent’s Unconditional Love

Sunday mornings are my favorite. It is always silent and calm, and even a noisy and chaotic place like Metro Manila share a few moments of such stillness. Too bad, I couldn’t wake up early on Sundays anymore. My body clock keeps me asleep until noon that when I am ready to get up, the reality that the weekend is about to end starts sinking in. I will then go back to bed in total surrender of the fact that the dreaded Monday is coming.

That Sunday was different. I was at home and I woke up to the pleasant noises associated to the provinces – dogs, chickens, old songs playing from a neighbor’s transistor radio, and the occasional shouting of kids running around the neighboorhood. I reached for my phone to check the time – it was 30 minutes past 10AM. My mom’s text message popped up on my screen. I can’t help but smile while reading it, it’s in Ilocano:

Roughly translates to “Are you awake? Get up and eat. Your father didn’t come to church for he cooked for you, the food is ready.”

It was lovey and bittersweet. I spent the next ten minutes staring at the ceiling, trying not to feel disappointed of myself for oversleeping. I missed joining my parents at the breakfast table. I was returning back to Manila that afternoon, and thinking that I only have a few hours left made me feel bad.

It was a sudden change of emotion in contrast to what I was feeling before I left Manila. That week, I didn’t really wanna take the long, eight-hour journey home. I use to enjoy it during the first five years, but over a decade later, the thought of it alone is already exhausting.

But my father would ask me the same thing when he calls: when are you coming home? I would often make excuses, and I must have ran out of alibis one day that I answered “this weekend”. He got excited and quickly requested me to buy a new stove (of all things) to bring home. I didn’t want to break his heart so I reluctantly packed my bag that Friday, bought a stove, and took the early morning bus bound for the North.

I went downstairs, and was greeted by the nostalgic smell of home-cooked food. My father was already busy preparing our ulam for lunch. I made my coffee, and munched on the fried fish and egg that he served for breakfast.

A moment that’s so simple but so precious.

It was over ten years ago when I moved to Manila. I would go home at least once every two months, or during especial occasions. And some things never change. My parents still cook for me. When I arrive, I’d leave my shoes and socks outside by the door. My mom would later pick them up and neatly place them on a shoe rack, then bring them out under the sun the next day. In my room, my bed is always carefully made. That distinct smell of freshly laundered, dried in the sun sheets, still gets me.

They would ask me what I want for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They make sure that I get enough sleep and rest knowing how long I have travelled.

That day, something dawned at me that I made the decision to visit them more often.

My parents are old, and now that their children have lives of their own and are oceans apart, their joy every time they see us is overflowing. They still look forward to our gathering together in the living room for our customary long talks. They still ask me the same questions – how’s my job, my health, do I experience flooding in my area, is my commute to work safe, when is my next holiday. My answers are always, I’m fine and I’m safe, and I’ll be home when I can. But they never get tired listening to my rather short stories.

Late afternoon conversations, over coffee.

That day, I was suddenly consciously present. I treasured every moment with them knowing that those simple times would make great memories. Indeed, we are too busy growing up that sometimes, we forget that our parents are getting old too. Looking back, life hasn’t also been very easy for us, but we’ve had countless memorable experiences together which are all priceless.

A selfie with (from L-R) my niece, aunt, mom, dad, and nephew.

Leaving is always the saddest part. They still wave and say their goodbyes as they did long time ago when I first left home for high school, when I moved even farther for college, and when I eventually decided to make Manila my second home. They still even ask me if I have enough money for my fare, believe it or not. They still give me the same last minute advices that they’ve been giving me ever since – stay safe, be careful when crossing the streets!

I see it now. In their eyes, I am still their child, and they will never get tired looking after me, guiding and helping me along the way in every way they can.

I see it now.

I see that unconditional love from parents that I am so blessed to experience. I am really glad that I get to recognize that today and not when it’s already too late. It’s true, life’s most beautiful moments could happen even in the most mundane situations. For someone who tends to overthink and over analyze, God sent me home that day and made me perceive above my thinking mind. He made me recognize, understand, and appreciate the simplicity of that which we often find too deep to define: unconditional love.

A faint reminder of our humble beginnings. I was the baby in this photo, and the bahay-kubo behind the bushes at the back is where I was born.

#OPPOF5 #CaptureTheRealYou

How to Save Money on Your Phone Plan Subscription

Can you save money on your phone bill without totally cutting your plan subscription? I was asking my self the same question while reviewing my payment history with Globe. I can’t believe I’ve been paying P3,000-P4,000 for my phone plan in the past eleven months:

A quick throwback to almost a year ago when I decided to extend my 30-month phone plan subscription with Globe. I was originally subscribed to Plan999, and I upgraded to Plan1799 with an iPhone7 Plus handset (for P800 a month). That turns my total monthly bill to P2,599 for 24 months. Where does the additional P1,500 coming from? Excess usage!

What is the Excess Usage for?

Basically, the Plan1799 includes unlimited call to Globe and TM numbers, unlimited text to all networks, and a 10GB worth of data. I only call Globe and TM numbers, so I know right away that these charges are from my excessive data usage. We are all aware about the data capping that Globe and Smart are imposing. Well, because I do not allow myself to be limited by this data cap, I made the decision to pay the price. How much? P1,500 it is.

So if your plan offers a 10GB data for a month, every KB of data in excess to that is automatically worth P1,500. You’ll be paying for the excess charge anyway, so why not go unli with it? Here’s how my recent data excess charge was computed:

P1,339.29+%VAT equals P1,500 excess usage.

I understand that data is expensive so I feel that the excess charge is reasonable for a 55.6GB volume. This is the reason why I do not want to get cable as I could watch everything online. I am still hesitant to make that move to DSL or Fibr as I am more mobile as I thought; I can’t be without data when I step out of the house.

Now, how can we save on our phone plans???

Ask first if you really need the plan. Maybe consider cutting it after the contract expires, and go for prepaid. Nonetheless, if you feel that you are better off with a plan, decide on which plan is the best for you. Globe and Smart are quite flexible with their offerings, so determine which inclusions you would really want to spend on:

Data

If you have DSL at home, you definitely won’t need a high volume of data. Unless you travel all the time or you cannot live without streaming videos wherever you are, maybe it’s time to get a lower data plan. I would say 3GB is recommended for a month of regular mobile surfing:

Call and Text

Are you actually calling and texting all the time? If yes, the unli-text and call is perfect for you. Otherwise, get rid of it and look for a plan that includes a consumable option. Make sure to stick within that limit to avoid extra charges.

Other Inclusions!

Do you actually want all those inclusions? Perhaps your data allowance is already enough to cover everything, so check your bill for any unused inclusions. Ask your service provider to remove them if there are any.

Free Subscription that Auto-renews

Your plan may include free subscriptions to Spotify, Netflix, etc. They are free for a certain period, normally around 3-6 months and will auto-renew after that. If you do not want to keep the paid subscription for the succeeding months, contact your network and unsubscribe before it starts appearing on your bill.

Paper Bills

Do you really need the paper bill? Banks and other networks accept soft copies and print outs of your bill as a proof of billing. I don’t know which other purpose would you be needing the paper bill for. With Globe, that is P50 a month and they actually encourage their users to go paperless. Subscribe to paperless billing and save that 50 pesos (P600 per year)!

Lastly, get a cheaper handset.

I want to keep my number so I am extending my plan with this as the major reason. I realized, I may not be wanting an iPhone again in the near future. I will also be going back to my old Plan999 after my current subscription expires, and will downgrade to a cheaper phone, most probably an Android. The expensive, new phones this year will surely get cheaper next year!

I get a lot of calls from Globe offering me additional lines, and I am always firm at declining them. Which reminds me – do not get an additional line! Unless you need them for business purposes, you do not want to pay for more than one phone bill a month.

How are you saving on your phone bills? Have you experienced switching from postpaid back to prepaid?

How to Find a Niche for Your Blog

If you asked me this when I started blogging ten years ago, I wouldn’t know the answer. My blogs have always been categorized as “personal”, and having a niche never crossed my mind.

I started to consider putting up a niche blog when I learned about monetization. After all, who wouldn’t want to earn some extra cash from blogging? Everyone would be creating a blog and are making money out of it, if only the ways are easy! However, it requires a lot more than just a skill in writing and website developing.

Having a niche is one of the ways to attract an audience to your blog. An audience translates to traffic, and traffic (if high enough) may translate to profit. But with thousands or probably millions of blogs out there, finding a niche has become so difficult. All the major themes are taken and mostly so saturated.

Hence, this is an opportunity to get creative. In short, stop finding that niche, create it!

Enjoy the things you love, write about them later.

Start with your hobbies.

Avoid going “general”, break it down and go deeper to a more specific topic. I first decided to take photography as a niche. I was actively doing portrait and wedding photography at that time so I thought I should focus on those. However, I came across a major obstacle and that is not being able to translate my works into words. I ended up building an online photography portfolio and not a blog. So make sure that you decide on a topic which you know you could go on talking about for a long time, articles after articles.

Patronize your local businesses. They are always unique, literally makes for a unique content.

Go local.

My old blogspot blog is still up and although I don’t update it anymore, I still get views on posts where I talked about something local, like local resorts and transient houses (back when Airbnb is probably not even an idea yet). So in connection to your topic, you can share activities that are being held around your area which are related to it. If your theme is food, talk about the delicacies and the best restaurants in your town or city. Do not aspire to go national (or global) just yet. Focus on what you have around you, and be the online expert about them.

Beyond the horizon, are new beginnings, and endless possibilities.

Share your passion.

Some bloggers were just sharing their experiences when they started, and their blogs took off without even them knowing it. There’s just so much love and dedication when the subject is something you are very passionate about, and sharing it could be as rewarding. Talk about your passion, spread that positive energy, you will never know how much people you could inspire.

The big question now is, do you actually need a niche?

The answer depends on why you want to have one in the first place. If you want to make money blogging, then having a niche would be a great idea.

However, is the niche you are chosing profitable?

Not all blog niches are profitable. Profitable niches need traffic, and if in order to get traffic, your topics should revolve around things that people are Googling for.

In general, a good niche is that which provides solution. If people need something and they’re able to find that in your page, they will keep coming. And the chances for them to share your content is high.

So, go create your niche. Do not overthink. Keep it simple. Ask yourself why. Why this topic? Why do I want to do it? The answer to the “why?’ is the real intention behind your blogging. Make sure that that intention is positive and filled with love. That is the secret.

How to be a Part-Time Blogger?

Or how to earn from blogging part-time, you may ask. After all, who wouldn’t want to make money out of their favorite past time? A lot of bloggers are doing it as a hobby. Those who do it full-time make it as an income-generating activity. And a lot of them started doing it part-time, like me.

I still am a part-time blogger. I have a day job and I write and publish articles during my free time, which is often illusive. I can’t even blog full time during weekends because I am likely to spend Saturdays and Sundays in bed! But I still get to publish posts at least three times a week. How do I stay motivated? I follow a few rules. Read on.

There’s something about cafes. Why not coffee for a topic?

Blog when you can. For me, a lot of topics and ideas normally come when I am about to go to bed, so whenever my brain brings me an interesting topic, I would turn my laptop on and start writing. I don’t necessarily have to finish the article in that moment. I would just keep writing until I run out of words and stop right there. Instead of getting frustrated from being unable to finish the article, I would simply stop and spend my time proofreading my work, and publish when it is ready. It may take days or weeks, it doesn’t matter. What is important is that these topics are not forgotten.

It is a hobby. At least at first, while you are not yet decided or ready to turn it into a full time business. Treat it as it is – just a hobby. This way, you only do it when you really want to. But just like any hobby, it doesn’t mean that you don’t take it seriously. You set aside time and effort for it. After all, hobbies are suppose to keep you entertained and happy. Your blog should give you that same vibe.

Make it a passion and keep it that way, you should be passionate at what you are doing. When you are, it will reflect on your content and your readers could see and feel that. Your posts are your investments and the higher the quality, the higher the returns. Cliche as it is, focus on the quality of your content. Good things will follow.

These are not only applicable to part-time bloggers, but to everyone who wants to join the Blogosphere. I would say, begin with a clear purpose. If you are serious about monetizing your blog or make money out of it, you should know why you are doing it. Start by knowing your purpose as a blogger and how you are going to use this platform. Unfortunately, making money is not a purpose I would advise anyone to start from. Go deeper. Ask yourself – what kind of energy are you going to put out there in the world wide web through your blog? Are you going to spread love and positivity? What would you contribute? What is your message?

If you are a new blogger or if you have been here for awhile and want to start over, coming up with a clear purpose could be a very good way to start, again. Happy blogging!

Top 5 Best Food Delivery Services in Metro Manila

I still remember the first time I ordered food from the internet. It was late 2010 and McDonald’s online delivery site has just been launched in the Philippines. One time, I decided to give it a try out of curiosity and I was quite amazed that my food actually arrived. Since then, I have been a regular customer to fastfoods which have online ordering sites. I find this a lot more convenient compared to placing orders over the phone.

A few years later, we are now able to order through their apps. Here are my favorite online food delivery services here in Metro Manila.

5. Jollibee
Web: Yes
App: No

Jollibee followed McDo’s example later in 2011. My first try with them was not successful. I waited for almost an hour and when no one was calling to confirm my order, I decided to go to the nearest branch instead. You could tell I was craving for a Chicken Joy at that time. I was already at the store by the counter when a representative called me. Of course, I had to cancel my “online” order. To my surprised, they blocked my email address so I never get to order from them again until a few years later using a new email.

Nonetheless, I am still giving Jollibee a spot on my best list due to recent positive experiences.

4. Shakey’s
Web: Yes
App: Yes

I never had an issue with Shakey’s deliveries whether I am at home or at the office. I am giving them a higher rating than Jollibee because they have an app, and it is working. I still wonder why I never got myself a Shakey’s card though.

3. Pizza Hut
Web: Yes
App: No

For some reason, Pizza Hut doesn’t have an app yet. But their service is quite impressive. A few months ago, my co-worker pre-ordered a pizza for his birthday. It didn’t arrive as scheduled so he called their hotline to follow up. They admitted it was their fault and had the food delivered for free!

2. Yellow CabWeb: Yes
App: No

While the waiting time is close to an hour, I like the fact that my pizza is always fresh and hot! I’ve had my orders delivered to different locations without problems – home, office, hotels. I can’t get enough of their Manhattan Meatlovers!

1. McDonald’sWeb: Yes
App: Yes

So what sets McDonald’s apart from the others? I’d say they have a seamless ordering process. First they confirm your order in a very timely manner, via sms and email. Second, they call you right away if say the store serving your area has ran out of cheese powders for your Shake-Shake fries, and then offer alternatives. Third, orders always arrive no longer than 30 minutes. Lastly, they respond to comments or complaints via emails sent through their online contact form. I have been their regular “online” customer since 2010!

And I am not surprised these are all fast foods! I tried those “healthy meal” delivery restaurants two years ago but their service is terrible, not to mention too expensive. Leave a comment if you share the same sentiments. Cheers!