A Laid-Back Life In Ormond Beach

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Phone Tracer Using Reverse Look Up

Dec 3rd 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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Whenever a home phone number is required, I use my mobile phone number. Apparently, this is common to households who want to cut back on phone bills, aside from the good old trick – buying a plain and basic featured phone (just like what I have). It is deemed unnecessary to have a landline phone at home, when everybody has a mobile phone. Judging from my phone, you can tell that I am (for lack of better term) cheap. My phone is purely for calling. It has no camera and no Internet capability. I could have a free smartphone if I want, but I choose not to. It makes sense though. I have no patience in texting . As for the Internet, I am paying for a cable broadband connection at home where I do my intense Internet usage. So why pay another 30 bucks per month on something, I will not use.

When at work, I do not answer calls in my mobile phone. So most of the time, I get lots of missed calls. The challenging part is receiving it from unknown numbers. Before I return any call, I do make sure that I know the caller. I do not want to waste my time (and minutes) talking to somebody who I do not have business to talk about. If it is from companies that are not familiar with me, I ignore. Most likely, they are telemarketers that want to sell something that I do not need. By using a website that does reverse look up, this task is made easy and possible. There are a lot of phone tracer websites that offer this service. Some are for free, and some requires a little bit of money. But sometimes, it does not hurt to spend a little bit when an important and life-changing call is anticipated.
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Computer & Internet

Phone Number Reverse Look Up
Ending the Year With PageRank 3

Dec 2nd 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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I can not believe it. It is almost the end of the year, but I still feel incomplete. Incomplete in attaining my goals that is. Every year, I set multiple goals – big and small. Some of it became a reality, and some remained a figment of my imagination. One of this unrealized goal is becoming an owner of a PageRank 4 blog. As of today, this blog is still at level 3!

Though I am particular with using Google PageRank, there are many traffic ranking tools out there that are as reliable and credible. Most social media marketing companies use their own tools, just like a Pay Per Click agency called Bizzclick LLP who uses their own ranking system. It is called FiSoAp. This tool aids in managing advertisement offers, in avoiding charge backs and in getting the highest bids. With a 24/7 professional support team, personal managers for each client, a wide array of advertising campaign tools, and one of the fastest XML feed, this company is one to look out for the next few years. Anyway, the world is so many. There is always a room for an opportunity to advertise, a room for another Internet-based marketing companies.
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Computer & Internet

Ending the Year With PageRank3
Introducing My Guest Writer

Dec 1st 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

2 comments
I am happy to announce that, I finally have a guest writer.

She is witty and vibrant. She has an imagination that surpasses my expectations. She is a big book-worm, and reads every night. Her idea of fun is going to the library and doing martial arts. Barnes and Noble is her favorite place to visit. Aside from becoming a good creative writer, she dreams of becoming a chemist or some sort of a scientist in the future. Most importantly, she is my daughter – my little mushroom!

It is actually my idea to feature her writing works in this blog. Her contributions here will be purely (really) short stories and narratives. I will post her work as is. So if there is a grammatical error or a word incorrectly spelled, please bear with her. She is just a 4th grader, trying to hone her writing skills. Take note – when she was 5 years old (the time we came over here in the US), she did not speak English at all. Speaking of grammar, according to the Knight, my entries have some errors. I agree. I guess, I need a proof-reader.

Why am I taking this step? Well, I want my little mushroom to see her writing prowess as it progresses. Years from now when she will visit this blog, she will surely be giggling while reading her works. She will definitely notice the progress. I did the same. I had my first blog using Friendster. The grammar was so bad that I decided to take it down years after. Good times!

I hope, you will enjoy reading my little mushroom’s outrageous imagination! The first feature will be posted tomorrow.
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Literature

Introducing My Guest Writer
Chaos in Spice World

Nov 29th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

2 comments
It has been weeks now since I have been trying to organize our kitchen. There are so many things that I want, but I have limited funds to spend. One item that definitely made my wish list this holiday season is a spice rack. As you can see in the picture, there is chaos in Spice World. The spices that I have are of different sizes and brands, depending on what was on sale when I bought it. To make things a little bit easy to the eyes, I arranged it according to what I use more. As the hierarchy goes up, so as the chance of using it. Besides, our kitchen cabinet is quite high for my 5’2 height. So the higher the location of a spice is, the lesser I use it.

Whenever I go to department stores, I always check out for kitchen spice racks. So far, I have no luck. I am looking for something elegant and modern, but reasonably price (read: cheap). I saw some really cool designs, but there are just plain expensive. I guess, the price is of higher significance that of the designs. As for the quality, it is given whether it is cheap or expensive.

I am crossing my fingers. Hopefully, the Knight is reading this entry.
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Home Organization

Chaos in Spice World
Awkward!

Nov 27th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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It is really awkward when you go to a party and majority of the people speak a language that you can not comprehend. It is so awkward that, it is better to crawl into your cocoon and never come out. The “you” that I am referring to is actually me. On a lighter note – the hosts are really nice and cordial. The food was great. Everyone was happy.

I now understand why the Knight do not ever desire of attending a Filipino party with me. He knows that, majority of the people will speak Filipino anyway. He does not want to put himself in an awkward situation. I never understand this, until tonight.
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Celebrations & Occassions

Awkward!
Black Friday Rambling

Nov 25th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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It’s Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year. Last week, junk mails started to file up. I have been receiving “doorbusters” ad from different stores. It is tempting, but anyway, I decided to stay at home, and clean whatever there is left to clean before the weekend hits.

The other night, I went to Best Buy, and some people already started to camped out. There were already tents outside the store. Accordingly, the store is offering limited units of 42” LCD TV’s for $199.00. If this is true, it is indeed a good deal.

During this day, it is usually the tech stores that get most of the shoppers. Too bad though, the Circuit City in Daytona Beach closed its door a year (or two) ago. It gives a limited option for shoppers looking for techie stuff. In fact, the Knight goes to Compumall in Orlando just to get computer parts for his system. By the way, he assembles his own computer. He is not fond of laptop or netbooks. As a designer, he likes his gigantic monitors and high-powered CPUs. A desktop is easy to upgrade and the parts are lesser money than that of a portable system.

Talking about computers right now reminds me of my days working for a computer reseller in the Philippines. It was actually my first job right after college. I first worked as an Accounting Clerk, then six months after as the store’s Admin/Personnel Head. It was a very cool experience for me. My former boss was great, so as my my co-workers. It is one experience that I would not trade for anything else. It was also during this time that I met the Knight. It was technology that bonded us. Our conversation revolved around techie stuff, but now, it has evolved to something else – family stuff. Wow, I just realized it has been 10 years since I met him.

Anyway, I hope that everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving Day. Enjoy the long weekend too! Whether you are going somewhere else or just relaxing at home, take a deep breath and say – what a wonderful life it is!

P.S. I need to get back on surfing the recipes for left-over turkey and ham. The picture in the previous post is basically our left-over.
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Celebrations & Occassions, Computer & Internet

Black Friday Rambling
Thanksgiving Day Is My Birthday!

Nov 24th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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There are so many things that, I am thankful for for this day and for the whole year. Our family has been blessed and showered with many graces that I never expected to happen in so short of time. Today is the culmination of the gratitude we felt towards the Almighty of all.

We planned of having our Thanksgiving meal by 2:00pm. Sad to say, we woke up around 11:00am. Obviously, we could not hit our time line. The turkey and the ham alone would take about 4-5 hours of oven time. Good thing – it is only us. We were not expecting any visitors, so our schedule could be flexed.

Though happy and excited, I was a bit disappointed with the weather. The holiday feel is more intense during cool days. Today is not as cool as last year’s Thanksgiving Day. In fact, I bought an outer wear for my little mushroom the other night. I went around girls clothing stores looking for the perfect get-up. Last year, I did my shopping purely on the Internet. I was lucky enough to get good deals at Aeropostale‘s website. I bought three girl hoodies of the same style, but of different color. The price was that good!

Going back to TODAY, it is also my birthday! I do not know if I should be thankful or be scared. I am scared of getting old, and wrinkly. I missed the days when all I worried about was what bar to hit next with my friends or what place to visit next during long weekends. Anyway, I am not complaining… just reminiscing. Life is still good. Let us put this way – I am not the person I used to be. My priorities have changed, and definitely, family is the first in the list. Aside from them, there are so many things that I am thankful for – my work, my friends, my relatives …and the Internet.

Our Thanksgiving Dinner
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Celebrations & Occassions

Thanksgiving Day Is My Birthday!
Learning Using Scholastic Printables

Nov 22nd 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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Educators nowadays are very fortunate to have many tools and resources that are available for them to use in teaching their students in school. In fact, some Central Florida high schools gave away an iPad to each student at the start of the school year. The said school traded textbooks for iPads. If you ask me, it is a money-saver and convenient. But of course, these students need to know the value of responsibility. They are expected to take care of it, as if it comes from their own pocket. As for the teachers, they were not forgotten at all. They also got an iPad and a MacBook laptop. Well, these gadgets are only good for the tech-savvy students. What about the kindergarten and grade schoolers? Another learning tool is already hot in the market right now. It is called Scholastic Printables. If you are a parent, you must be familiar with the company Scholastic. This company is renowned in selling children books and other school reading materials.

Scholastic developed an award-winning teaching resources designed for pre-K to 8th grade. One of these interesting resources is the Kindergarten Worksheets. It is presented in a playful manner in order to capture the attention of the young minds. To retain their attention is probably the most challenging part. In essence, it is playing while learning. It also has different themes which covers the whole year. So aside from learning academically, the pupils will learn about the culture and the surroundings.

In Volusia County, I am contented with the learning materials that they use. Since my daughter is in the gifted program, their class uses quite a number of online learning tools. Oh yes, having a speedy Internet connection at home is a must. As for her teachers, they are the best! In fact, one of her teacher is a Presidential Awardee for Excellence in Mathematics and Science.
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Education
Free Magazine Subscriptions!

Nov 21st 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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I just got these from the mail today! A free 1-year subscription of Time and People magazines courtesy of Continental Airlines OnePass! I have about 15,000 OnePass miles. Each mag 1-year subscription is only about 3,000 miles (at most). So, I still have more left for the years to come.

I gave the Time mag to my little mushroom, and surprisingly, she liked it.

Time Mag & People Mag
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Freebies!, Reviews

Continental Airlines OnePass, Free Magazines Subscription from Continental Airlines OnePass Miles
Cosmetics Tips for the Busy Working Moms

Nov 18th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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Youtube is perhaps the most widely used website for women who are seeking for Make Up Tutorials videos. It is probably because, it is the only website we know at the top of our head. We never bother to search for other alternative websites that have more resources and Cosmetics Tips to offer. Most working moms fall for this mistake. We are so busy with our lives that seeking for the right site is not even part of the to-do list. The truth of the matter is – even if how busy we are at home and at work, we have to look good. We have to maintain a professional look. Whether we are a pro in applying Make Up or not, let us face it – we learn continually. Cosmetics is part of fashion. What do we do to keep abreast with the latest looks? Well, learning from the expert is one. Second, learning at phase that is convenient with our time. What else? The Internet - with a website like Cosmohut.Com!
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Fashion & Lifestyle

Cosmetics Tips for the Busy Working Moms
Ikea Orlando: Eat For Free!

Nov 15th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

2 comments
Consider us lucky…

We went to Ikea Orlando last Sunday, and did not know that the store was running a promotion – Eat for free! Whatever we spent on their restaurant was deducted towards our total home furnishing purchase. It meant a $60.00 savings for us. The catch – the total home furnishing purchase must be more than $100.00, which is considerably easy to attain. Finally, I got to taste the ever-famous Swedish meatballs. Well, it did taste like a regular meatball for me though. I have yet to taste a really good one - homemade perhaps.

If you are around the Orlando area, here are some dates to note if you plan of shopping in Ikea Orlando.

January 14 – 16
April 6 – 9
May 26 – 28
July 13 – 15

Ikea Orlando

Enjoy shopping!
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Shopping

Ikea Orlando, Ikea Orlando: Eat For Free!
Don’t Go Monk On Me!

Nov 13th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

No comments
I dig the TV show “Monk”. The show is about Adrian Monk, a former Police detective. He is serving as a consultant to the San Francisco Police, after being removed from the force due to his psychiatric problem – a severe case of OCD. In his quest for the reinstatement of his badge, he helps the police in solving a lot of crimes. The key to his success – his OCD disorder. He notices every minute details in a crime scene that an ordinary detective can not see. As he always says, his disorder is both a gift and a curse.

“Don’t go Monk on me!”

This is a new expression based on the said show that we use in our household whenever we see a minor hint of untidiness inside our home and we want it clean immediately.

To document this quest for being a “Monk”, I will be sharing before-and-after pictures of things that I clean or organize at home. Do note – these are little things that we tend to neglect and do not bother to look into.

Let me start with the wires of my desktop computer and its attached equipment. With the use of a little bit of Post-It and a scotch tape, I marked all wires and plug according to what equipment it is for. This will be it easier for me to determine, which is which, if I need to unplug an equipment in my desktop system and my local network in the future.

BEFORE

AFTER
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Home Organization

Don't Go Monk On Me!, Home Organization
A D-I-Y Project: Interior Wall Painting

Nov 11th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

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When we moved in to our home, the walls were all painted in white. It was neat, but too boring. It lacked personality. It reminded us of a typical clean room. So the knight and I decided to give a little zest and color to the interior walls. A color that would reflect our personalities.

The firs step is finding the right paint. For us, there is only one place to go – Lowe’s Ormond Beach. Boy, we were so glad when we found a certified asthma-and-allergy-friendly paint. The brand is called Valspar Paint. I swear, there is no smell at all. Also, it is a one-coat paint. There is no need for double-coating. For about $40.00 a gallon, it was worth it! It was originally sold for about $60.00 a gallon, but we were lucky to buy it at the right time. They had just decreased the retail price two hours before we went to the store. Well, this was according to the Sales Associate who assisted us. Find out more about this paint, visit their website.
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Home Improvement, Reviews

A D-I-Y Project: Interior Wall Painting, Lowe's Ormond Beach, Valspar Paint Lowes
Ten Years & Counting

Nov 9th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

No comments
Happy 10th birthday, my little mushroom! I am now officially a mom to a tween. This is the part wherein I need to start staying in the sideline, and watch her evolves. Many changes are expected to happen – her body, her style and her mind. Am I scared? I am. I wish, I can wrap her around my little fingers all her life, but obviously, it is not going to happen. As early last year, she started voicing her opinion on whatever I tell her to do, especially on clothing. Don’t get me wrong. She is a very good and obedient child. I even wonder on why I have such a child, because I am totally the opposite.

I admit when it comes to throwing a party, I am not an organizer. Since living here in the US, I have not thrown one for her (or anybody in the household). It’s just – I am too scared to disappoint people. This is something that I need to work on. Hopefully, next year is the start.

Here’s how our day went –

Today’s just like any other busy day. The knight and I went to work. My little mushroom went to school. I planned of bringing cupcakes to her tae kwon do class, but I forgot. When at work, I tend to forget everything outside my workplace. My bad. So I took the quickest and easiest way – I ordered pizza and drinks on the phone and had it delivered to the tae kwon do school. From what I heard, all twenty-five kids (and the instructors) were happy to have pizza late afternoon. It hit a spot. As for the family, I cooked a special dinner partnered with red wine and a sparkling cider for my little mushroom. We finished the meal with a German chocolate cake. Our celebration is very simple, but the important thing – my little mushroom is happy. Also, she got a gift (something for entertainment) that she hoped for too.

As for my little mushroom’s elementary class, the celebration will be on the 17th of this month. Her class has a monthly birthday bash celebration. For this month, there are only 2 of them celebrating. I need to be ready this time. Wish me luck!
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Food & Gourmet, Parenting

Ten Years & Counting
Trick-or-Treat?

Nov 8th 2011

By: Tingting Rimart

1 comment
Definitely, a treat! Thanks to Matthew and Daniel, my little mushroom got candies and chocolates for Halloween even if she did not go trick-or-treating this year. It is really nice to have kind and generous kids in the neighborhood. They gave her a share to their loot.

Obviously, it is a treat for me too. Sweets are not part of our regular groceries, so this gives me the alibi to activate my sweet tooth. It has been eight days now, and I still have these in my pantry. Every day, I grab two or three pieces on the way to work. At times, it is all I have for breakfast. Hello, diabetes! (knock on wood)

My favorite? Reeses, of course! I love the taste of peanut butter!
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Regional

Trick-or-Treat?
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