SEM Consultant http://www.sem-pros.com/blog Search Engine Marketing SEO SEM PPC AdSense Affiliate Program Sat, 15 May 2010 14:49:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 Rosewood Pointe – Our New Home http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/rosewood-pointe-our-new-home/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/rosewood-pointe-our-new-home/#comments Tue, 20 Apr 2010 02:22:53 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=43 We’re like a nomadic tribe. We move every year or so. :-) Here’s where we are living in right now for at least the next 12 months. LOL

Rosewood Pointe is just right outside The Fort Global City. I like the community vibe to it which is missing in The Columns Ayala Ave where we used to live. Here, you can see families and kids playing around and having fun instead of being just shacked up in their own units. We got a 3 bedroom, 2 toilet/bath unit and a washing/drying area on the Deck floor. The place is about 96 square meters so it’s a huge jump from my 32 square meter unit at The Columns.

Notice how beautiful the pool area is? It’s breath-taking, especially in the early evening when all the lights around the area are lit up. It’s like you’re not even within Metro Manila anymore although you’re only a stone’s throw away from Bonifacio Global City. You can even rent the cabana’s surrounding the pool. There’s 3 of them total and each can fit 10 people inside.

The best part of all is that we’re now all living together including Quan who has grown quite a bit since, compared to his  pictures published here. He’s one uber cute dog who scratches on our room’s door if we don’t wake up and come out of our room 10 minutes after he hears our alarm go off.

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/rosewood-pointe-our-new-home/feed/ 2 Macau Vacation October 2009 http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/macau-vacation-october-2009/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/macau-vacation-october-2009/#comments Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:29:34 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=32 I finally got around to posting some pictures from our Macau vacation last month. We were there for 4 days and 3 nights (minus 1 whole day spent in Hong Kong Disneyland). We stayed at a nice, quaint hotel far enough from the crazier part of Macau where all the big casinos and hotels are but near enough for you to conveniently go there should you want to. One good thing about the Royal Hotel Macau though is that they have a free shuttle bus that goes around the City so you can go around Macau easily. Plus, a lot of their hotel employees are Filipinos so you can always get assistance very easily. The Filipino front desk officer was kind enough to have given us a room with a nice view overlooking the park at Estrada Da Vitoria. We also spent 1 afternoon with a few other hotel guests for a paid tour of Macau including a sumptuous buffet lunch at another hotel.

Lory and I are not big casino fans but you just can’t go to Macau without checking out the casinos so went to The Venetian Macao to play at the casino and watch a truly breath-taking show of Zaia by Cirque Du Soleil. That show was worth the money. Too bad we weren’t allowed to take pictures inside the theater. After the show, we went ahead and played for a few hours in The Venetian casino but only with the slot machines. :-)

The Venetian Macau is an amazing hotel with its own replica of Venice complete with side street shops and gondola rides. You’d never think it’s already 1:00 AM while you’re inside because they’ve made the place look like you’re outdoors in the afternoon.

We also visited Fisherman’s Wharf and the famous Macau Tower where we had another gut-busting lunch buffet. I must have gained at least 5 pounds when we got back to Manila (err… Makati).

No trip to Macau would be complete without visiting Senado Square which is Macao’s version of Tutuban only the shops are nicer. We were shocked to see that the electronics/mobile phones there were actually more expensive knowing that they are so close to China where most of this stuff is made these days.

Well, that’s it. Our next destination would either be Japan or South Korea. :-)

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/macau-vacation-october-2009/feed/ 0 Hong Kong Disneyland October 2009 http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/hong-kong-disneyland-october-2009/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/hong-kong-disneyland-october-2009/#comments Sun, 01 Nov 2009 06:13:56 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=28 We went to Hong Kong via ferry boat the day after arriving in Macau. We spent the entire day in Hong Kong adn stayed in Disneyland to witness the cool fireworks. That’s how we celebrated Lory’s birthday last October 10, 2009.

Here are some pictures we took throughout the day.

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/hong-kong-disneyland-october-2009/feed/ 0 Family Weekend Gathering http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/family-weekend-gathering/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/family-weekend-gathering/#comments Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:24:47 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=22 We usually host our family weekend gatherings here at The Columns. This happens about once every 2 months. We have my entire family come over and we’d have lunch together by the poolside and let all my cute nephews and nieces play around and swim to their hearts content. You can see by the expressions on their cute little faces how much then enjoy our family weekend gatherings here.

This was the weekend before Lory and I flew to Macao to spend a few days there celebrating her 27th birthday.

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/family-weekend-gathering/feed/ 0 The Columns Ayala Avenue Makati http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/the-columns-ayala-avenue-makati/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/the-columns-ayala-avenue-makati/#comments Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:36:10 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=17 Early this year, we decided to get a new place near Lory’s work (RCBC Plaza in Ayala Avenue) so we wouldn’t have to drive all the way to and from San Pedro, Laguna. We wanted a place that would be most convenient for her so we got a place that’s just right across RCBC Plaza.

The Columns Ayala Avenue is a nice place to live in. Unlike our first condo (Raya Gardens), I found living here most invigorating. I can walk around the Makati CBD in my cargo shorts, a t-shirt and flip-flops while the yuppies scurry about in a futile attempt to get ahead in the rat race.

We sometimes invite our family over here during weekends for lunch and small talk. Lory took a few pictures of the 7th floor where all the amenities are. Take a look.

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/the-columns-ayala-avenue-makati/feed/ 4 What If… http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/what-if/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/what-if/#comments Sat, 29 Nov 2008 02:38:57 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=14 I’d like to thank everybody here tonight for choosing to be a part of this special day.

I cannot imagine how this day would have been like if nobody came. What if nobody came? What if the weather didn’t cooperate? What if… What if?

We all have that tendency to ask “What if?”. It’s our nature to second-guess the wisdom of the universe. To wonder… What if we’re not really meant to be together? What if there’s someone waiting for me over at the next corner? The next stop? What if I had already met the one for me but was too stupid to even recognize her? What if??? We just can’t seem to “trust” enough.

We have many crossroads in our lifetime. Those turningpoints that demand a moment of clarity to help us make the right decision. In my life, I’ve been lucky enough to have always met people who taught me or helped me learn a lesson at every crossroad. Just in time for me to be sure that I’m always making the right decision and spare me from asking that dreadful question of “What if?”.

Lory has helped me learn to stop asking “What if?”. Having her in my life pushes away all uncertainties and help me focus not on “What if?” but on “What Is”. No second-guessing, no regrets. No “What ifs?”. Just “What is” and that’s “Us”.

From now on, we’ll be facing crossroads and turningpoints in our life trusting that we’re going to make the right decisions together and not doubt each other. No room for doubts. Where there is love, there can be no doubt.

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/what-if/feed/ 1 Finding Charley Barretto http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/yoda-speak/finding-charley-barretto/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/yoda-speak/finding-charley-barretto/#comments Tue, 19 Aug 2008 04:10:19 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=13 A huge part of who (or how) I am today is because of Charley Barretto. She helped me learn (err… discover?) the lessons I needed to progress.

I believe I have discovered that which you wanted me to learn so many years ago. That which you could not even begin to explain to me. That which you could not teach for to do so would guarantee my failure.

For most of my life I have relied on my intellect and it has served me well. It has also been my greatest downfall for I could not see the ultimate lesson I needed to “learn” (learning is again nothing more than a conditioned, mechanical way of the intellect to grasp an idea which would forever fall short if you want to transcend. But words begin to become insufficient when I start to talk about these things so just bear with it please).

It didn’t make sense to me that day you asked me if I would accept you as my teacher. I understand it now that for me to learn, I have to be ready to learn and ready to have you teach me. That’s why I can’t be the one to ask you if you would accept me as your student.

I’ve been witness to the greatness and the divinity that is man. I’ve finally come full circle. Now I am longing to be back in the presence of the one who helped me see that I did not need anybody nor anything outside of me.

I have found Lory. Another soul who has helped me learn another lesson… Love. Not the kind of love that Mother Theresa had for the whole of humanity. That kind of love although most noble, does not help a person transcend because it cannot threaten the individual. Love that helps you break free from the bondage of the self. Love that helps you loose yourself only to find more of you in the end. A beautiful cycle of finding and loosing that can only be had when you fully lay yourself on the table, defenseless.

You have helped me transcend my intellect so I can see my soul. You have helped me see my place in the great equation of life, reality and the universe. Oh, I have stories of magic that could rival the myths of old. But there is danger there. Danger in knowing that I am the very life, the very universe, the very power, the very God that I am seeing, seeking, experiencing could trap me into being “my self”.

Lory has helped me loosen my hold on my self. By loving her, I have given her the power to threaten me and shake the very foundation of my being, my beliefs… myself. With her, I have found the ultimate freedom every soul knows it should be. She has given me the chance to transcend that which I have spent my lifetime to find… Myself. How many times she’s cried because I could not see beyond myself. But she’s there with me still and I love her even more (if that is even possible at all) for that.

Charley Barretto, I want you to meet Lory Ambayec. She is me and I am her. We’re getting married this November 29 and I want you to be there in the ceremony. We want you to be what you have always been to us. Our Godmother. :-)

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/yoda-speak/finding-charley-barretto/feed/ 6 Quan – Our Pug Puppy http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/quan-our-pug-puppy/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/quan-our-pug-puppy/#comments Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:33:08 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=11 Here he is. We got him about 2 weeks ago. He’s a pug and we’ve named him Quan which means soldier in Chinese.

Here he is with his Soldier Boy outfit.

Quan our Pug

Here he is on his new Sponge Bob Square Pants mini sofa.

Quan our Pug

We just absolutely adore him even if he pees and poops in the living room sometimes.

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/quan-our-pug-puppy/feed/ 0 Remus – Our New Car http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/remus-our-new-car/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/remus-our-new-car/#comments Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:23:08 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/?p=10 We’ve had Z (our Chevrolet Optra Wagon) for about a year and a half now so we’ve decided to give it up and get a new car. This time, I wanted to get a car that somehow reflects my fiancee’s personality so I got her Remus – our new Toyota Yaris. That’s what Lory named her new car and she absolutely loves it. It’s also quite a gas saver too, compared to our Chevrolet. With the recent increases in gas prices, this car really rocks. :-)

Remus - Our new Toyota Yaris

]]> http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/personal/remus-our-new-car/feed/ 0 Google Does Not Rank Web Pages It Passes Moral Judgment http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/seo/google-does-not-rank-web-pages-it-passes-moral-judgment/ http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/seo/google-does-not-rank-web-pages-it-passes-moral-judgment/#comments Tue, 17 Jun 2008 02:30:44 +0000 Makapangyarihan http://www.sem-pros.com/blog/seo/google-does-not-rank-web-pages-it-passes-moral-judgment/ I read a very disturbing entry on John Andrews’ blog entitled “Google is not an Algorithm: Google Imparts Intent”. Google is starting to become megalomaniacal now. How could Google’s quality team have the insight and moral ascendancy over other people (webmasters) and have the right (they do have the power to do so, I know) to pass judgment on others? Much worse, not give them due process and the proper forum to defend themselves (or their websites)?

Google is a search engine that is supposed to “rank webpages” and not “pass moral judgment on actual people”. What if I’m a webmaster that has multiple, unrelated websites simply because I want to make as much money as possible? What’s so “evil” about that? C’mon! Google makes billions of dollars per month. What if the reason I’m doing it is because I have a very sick daughter who’s dying of some weird disease that’s very expensive to treat? Would Google’s quality team think of me and my websites differently?

I think their credo of “Don’t be evil” would ultimately cause their downfall because they’re starting to think that they can go beyond algorithms and mathematical formulas. I think they’re starting to realize that they can’t fulfill their creed of “Don’t be evil” unless they transcend algorithms and mathematical formulas that can only go as far as knowing what’s “correct and incorrect” (1 + 1 = 2 is correct while 1 + 3 = 8 is incorrect) but would forever fail to discern what’s “Good” or “Evil” (having 1 website chock full of quality content is “good” while having multiple websites with mediocre content is “evil”).

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