I had toyed with the idea of doing a post on “33 wishes..” but I reckon, rather than wishing for things, I’d like to start off with an expression of gratitude, highlighting some of the many things that came my way this past year that I’m grateful for.

Friends & Family. Beautiful people I will always treasure and be thankful for.

Old photo of sisters. Circa 2005.

Welcomed by the Coggins at the Adelaide Aiport, Australia 2008 with my sister taking the photo

With my mum, taken last year 2009

Highschool Barkada: (L-R) Candice, Ricky, Mel and myself. Not in photo: Dem, Joanne, Jason, and Jo. Taken December 2009

Cousins, nephews plus my baby bro. Taken December 2009.

CG: (L-R) Me, Raissa, Marivic and Happy. Not in photo: Kanch. Taken December 2009.

Thea, Hannah and myself. Taken December 2009.

There are more folks but I don’t have photos of them. Hehe.

Style Ambassador for Nokia Philippines. I assumed the role late 2009 and expired early this year. Twas the first opportunity that helped me explore and strengthen my support for the efficacy of online media.

Throw in a few other print and TV features that happened last year which I may have failed to mention to you folks (since I, ironically, hardly blogged here last year, heh): Feature on QTV’s Qtube, Interview for QTV’s Fit n Fab and that bit on UNO Magazine.

Work fulfillment. It’s always great that folks recognise the hard work and passion you put in.

MrBoo. Owning a Macbook as been one of my lifelong dreams. Buying an MBP  to reward myself helped in reinforcing the idea of dreams and reaping the fruits of one’s labour.

Mini-feature as a Twitter user on Philippine Star. This sort of thing — regardless of how big or small it is — always put a smile on my face.

Beauty Ambassador for Dove Philippines. Celebrating real beauty and being an acknowledged advocate is an opportunity that I was grateful for. Check out the videos I made for the No Mirror Challenge: A Week With No Mirrors: Day 1 and 2, A Week With No Mirrors: Day 3 and 4, and A Week With No Mirrors: Day 5, 6 and 7.

Getting to experience Mt. Pinatubo. It’s “one place I’d recommend you folks see at least once before you die”. A very humbling, thought-provoking experience.

And the most recent piece of good fortune’s pie that landed on my plate was becoming the Featured Blogger for Fashion & Beauty of Philippine Star’s UNBLOGGED. You can read the first two articles that I contributed: In the name of all things pretty and Wearing the animal print

I can list more things that I’m thankful for and significant events in the past year which will make the festivities complete but the space just might not be enough for them (and I might have a problem remembering them all, gah). For now, I’m content with sharing these few things since it’s just the 1st day of my Birthday Month. I’ve got 30 days left to add on to the list. Besides, once I’ve got my birthday plans set, I’m sure there will definitely be more things to be thankful for.

How about you? What are the things you’re most thankful for so far? And, yea, which of the 12 is your birthday month?

Listening to ♫

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Yonina Chan got in touch with me, requesting an interview cuz she was doing a piece on local fashion blogs. I agreed, so we met and got it over with. She’s a doll. Very down-to-earth.

Here’s a link to an online copy of the article:

Shout outs to style
by Yonina Chan, Manila Bulletin, 06 April 2008

After that, my week was filled with stuff to do. Like gym (aherm, aherm!), work, and events. I was at the NOKIA Soul of the Night event at the Embassy Superclub and the DELL Philippines launch at Prince of Jaipur.

THEN there’s this newspaper feature on my personal style, well, at least the outfit I wore to the Sunsilk Life Can’t Wait Event. I couldn’t really process the news properly cuz I was close to falling asleep when I got an sms from Alexei. I simply dispatched my yaya to go grab me a copy. Heh.

It’s on JR Isaac’s column in The Philippine Star, “Hue still got it”, 11 April 2008.

You can check it out here:

‘Hue still got it’, Ystyle, Philippine Star
StyleManila.com

It’s been a crazy week for me. I’m so glad I’m heading to the beach in a few hours to get some r&r (Zoobik tayo, phare!). What about you guys? How was your week? DO update me. I’d love to hear from you. Anyway, I’ll see you when I get back!

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Aryty Launch and the Use of Blogs as a Marketing Tool
Annalyn Jusay, Manila Bulletin, 11 June 2007

Annalyn Jusay of Manila Bulletin wrote an interesting article on the launch event we attended recently, which lead her to further expound on the use of blogs as a marketing tool. To quote a definitive paragraph,

“Bloggers and their URLs soon found their way into the much-coveted address books of in-demand publicity agents. As PR diva Amor Maclang herself admits in a previous interview with this column: ‘The era of high-profile celebrity endorsements is diminishing its luster. More and more marketing-forward MNCs and communications professionals are looking to smaller, yet more credible niches to tap, with bloggers being the most immediate choice. In PR, we (now) manage and monitor internet perception and reputation as vigorously as we do “traditional” media.’”

And that is just a portion of it. Let me share a few tidbits from my own experience:

Over time, I’ve managed to accumulate quite a number of PR invites (shows, private launches, other press events), got sent stuff to review (or simply as a ‘token’ of goodwill), and offer to interview people, i.e. Playboy bunnies who wrote a book, from various companies and/or PR agencies. Note that these are usually US-based and proved to be slightly difficult to avail of or participate in but some still do send stuff over and I appreciate it cuz it means they value my opinion and reach (and links and keywords ).

These things have oriented me in the whole concept. That it can happen if it hasn’t. eCommerce sites will indeed use blogs since they can tap into a ready-made market, esp if you have a niche blog. Other companies with websites will follow suit, looking to promote their own. Advertisers see blogs as a click-rich online estate and a great conversion resource. Yes. I started to see blogs in a different light.

In addition, I reckon these things — using blogs as a marketing tool, in particular — certainly presents and necessitates a different standard in blogging now.

You can look at it in two ways, one is the typical and most obvious answer, which is using blogs as a medium to promote a product or a service. It will certainly help create the necessary awareness you may need to jump start a launch, feed the hype or build a lasting impression on your customers.

Another is to use the blogs (and bloggers) as a form of market research. As what I’ve observed during the event mentioned in the article. It was not only for Aryty to introduce their services to us bloggers, but also for them to initiate a discussion, which they can generate feedback that somehow resembles a focus group discussion. There was actually a period wherein they nitpicked the translation on a marketing material. Hehe.

It’s quite interesting, really. Blogging (and bloggers) has been around long enough to witness how it has evolved into something more organised and less personal. It has kept its opinionated nature and raw-ness, which a lot of patrons appreciate. The influx of traditional media into the ‘sphere is welcomed with mixed emotions that can be seen in the usual territorial debates, the want of a proper definition and what-not’s. Heh. Anyway, bloggers know what bloggers do and the whole cyberculture that makes it rich and diverse is what these companies and PR agencies see.

Blogs don’t seek to be the voice but simply to have one. Bloggers recognise the fact that their voices are part of a multitude and will merely seek to add onto the conversation and also, hopefully, to start one. Blogging is New Media. Bloggers are writers of ideas and opinions. But let’s not forget that they can also be entrepreneurs, consultants, copywriters and yes, marketers. I’ve always believed that there’s strength in numbers and value in conversation.

Incidentally, I got quoted in the article so do check it out. Hehe.

Photo courtesy of Annalyn Jusay
*You can click it for a larger view.

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What started as something informal, just a small group of people with common interests (travel, tech, internet, photography and blogging), had turned into an organization of sorts that even Mobile Philippines, a local gadget magazine, had recognized its existence.

I had to do a double take when I saw it on the cover of the mag’s May-June 2007 issue (the one with Priscilla Meirelles on the cover). I quickly scanned the table of contents to locate the page where I can read more about it. Under Tech Tribes, the BoB was listed together with more known orgs like MaPalad and PhilMUG. Markku Seguerra wrote a short and was recognized as one of the BoB. Twas so cool! So, yea, I reckon the Band of Bloggers is now official, eh? Coolness.

And on the same page, I spotted the photo on Rico‘s short article regarding the Treo 750 launch. It’s one of my photos! Take a look.

I have to admit that I was informed of the possibility that the magazine will use my photos but knowing ahead of time didn’t diminish the excitement I felt when I saw it with my own eyes. I felt so giddy! I wouldn’t be surprised if people in Seattle’s GB3 saw me grinning from ear-to-ear like this! —> LOL.

For all you people who want to see how the original photo looked like, I thought I’d include it on the post. It’s not much but, hey, I’m relatively new at this sort of thing (just bought my camera last February! )

Funny thing, actually. I took that photo when I was already inside Rico’s CRV. I didn’t even think that it would amount to much, much less be published in a magazine! Hahaha. Imagine that.

Well, anyway, it really felt good seeing that photo by-line, “Photos courtesy of Sasha Manuel..”

Oh, dear.

Now, they’ve put these dreams of getting more of my photos published in my head! Well, I reckon you guys should just wish me luck, eh? Dear me. I can be such a dreamer sometimes. Tsk tsk tsk.

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2006 was the year I celebrated my first year as a problogger (though technically the official date is January 2007 but I’ve been blogging pro for the entire 2006!).

I celebrated my fashion blog‘s 1st year anniversary, same with my blogging as “The Parodist”.

Brings me to the next important thing, I moved from a wordpress.com hosted blog to my own domain.

Then before the year ended, I was presented with the opportunity to be a corporate blogger (check out the press release) — a rare opportunity for business bloggers in this country, in particular.

However, with all these things that happened, I value the bloggers I met that year the most. These are the people that made blogging a whole lot interesting and meaningful.

Get to know them the way I did, er, sort of.

Abe Olandres. Meeting him can be best described this way — it’s an acquired taste. LOL. I already told him what my initial impressions were when I first tried talking to him. Good thing I trusted the guy who vouched for Abe, so, I would try hanging out with him again and I did. Now, I would’ve kicked myself if I listened to the voices in my head. Pah. He’s one of the people I’m glad I met. Abe with his admirable dreams backed up with efforts that can put ants to shame. One of the bloggers I can now call a friend.

Gail Dela Cruz-Villanueva. After a few meet ups but failed to actually talk, we finally had the chance to mingle at one of the coffee get togethers set up outside the *big* EBs. She’s one of the people who fueled the rumors! Weh. But I know she only means well and yea, the shabu-shabu that made me spend an hour eating helped redeem you! LOL.

Luis Cruz. If it weren’t for this guy, I wouldn’t have lusted for a Canon DSLR. Luis (I opted to call by that name) let me use his 350D on that same night I met him. I think I got to use his camera first before I learned his real name — er, I forget. Gah. Meeting Luis, rekindled my interest in Photography (and actually taking it to the next level) and Flickr. Hehe.

Gloria Gamat. Like Abe, I had pegged Glo wrong. I thought she was intimidating, well, judging from the photos I’ve seen of her anyway. Hehe. But seeing her smile the way she did melted the fear I had of a possible rejection. Glo’s uber-friendly! I loved the fact that I’ve found a Super Dry fan in her and the idea that we can last all night just talking. Can’t wait to more get togethers — in Bicol even! Heehee.

Markku Seguerra. Gah. I hate this guy’s guts! JUST KIDDING. It’s a real hoot talking to Markku. Armed with wisecracks and seemingly serious and yet… not. Heh. He inspires my writing in Dating Dames — he’s a great fodder for tips on what NOT to look for in a guy! Kidding! Kidding! I say, let him down two bottles of beer and you’ll get a philosophical Markku. Hehe. No, seriously, he’s a great guy to hang out with. You’ll have access to the sought-after video scandal! He’s a real character.

Bimbo Isidro. That first meeting was notable since he’s warm and funny. His over-all personality created a comfortable atmosphere when he’s present in a gimmick. I always look forward to get togethers with him in it. Like Markku, he’s fun to be around! I can’t wait to see his Vespa.

Melissa Atienza-Petri. Twas a real treat to meet AnP in person. I’ve only heard stories of her from my sister and the bloggers who knew her. Can you imagine how I must have felt meeting her for the first time in her home? Gah. But she was very warm and accommodating. She’s sooo nice and supportive, seemingly like a big sister of some sort. She’s kind enough to help out as I explore options to further my “career” in blogging. I also admire her desire to contribute in acts to better our country. I’m looking forward to her coming back to Manila!

Connie Veneracion. How can you describe the Connie experience?! LOL. Jagermeister! Honestly, I’m quite surprised with how she’s so candid and straight-forward, all done without fear or remorse. She’s strong-willed and a real ass-kicking blogger (yea, not just kick-ass!) Meeting her in person, it suddenly clicked on why she’s the “sassy” lawyer. LOL. Being around Connie is addictive. If you want to hang out with her make sure to read the map, otherwise, you’ll get lost like we did. Pffft. Hahaha.

Did I forget anyone? Oh, yes… how could I? (I’m such a meanie, aren’t I? LOL.)

Rico Mossesgeld. I’d like to narrate all the things I’ve kept in my head about meeting Rico. But I really don’t want to bore you. I’ll do my best to tone down the mushy stuff. Why? Oh, you already know why. Pah. Rico is my hang out buddy online (YM, Skype, Blogs) and off. On the onset, he didn’t mind keeping me company whenever I wanted and needed to get out of the house. From that first time we hung out with just the two of us (I wonder if he remembers), we’d go out for beer, coffee and WiFi or hold iced tea drinking sessions while hanging out at my friend’s lawn, I knew I had found a good friend in him. Rico is one guy I’m glad I’ve met. He makes me see the positive side when I’m being negative about things. He supports my decisions and understands my faults. He tolerates my mood swings. He makes me laugh out loud! (Yea, that’s a big deal for me!) I always have fun when I hang out with him. Rico helps me see the world in a different light. He inspires me. Having Rico around made blogging more special. What can I say? I got lucky. LOL.

P.S. I have Jayvee Fernandez to thank. I met this guy back in 2005 and discovered just how small our world is. I didn’t think it can get anymore smaller than it already was but it did. Had he not invited me to go to the Blogger meet at Italianni’s, I wouldn’t have met all these people — My 2006 wouldn’t have turned out the way it did. So, thanks.

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I’m still a little giddy and a lot dazed even when it’s been two days since I stumbled upon the interview article over at Manila Bulletin. Gah.

YES! I was interviewed! Can you believe it?!

The link to the article is a bit wonky so I still might update the link (to refresh) since they’ve been changing it the past couple of days. Heh. (If it’s not working, just leave a comment and I’ll search high and low so I can find it or you can just leave your mailing address and I’ll send you a copy. Wehehehe.)

Go on — CHECK!

• Interview With A Lifestyle (Pro) Blogger
  by Annalyn S. Jusay, Blog-O-Rama, Manila Bulletin

Thanks, Annalyn!

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