Woot! I am so proud of myself, because I was able to complete all Saturdays of January for COPS! Some of you know how tight my schedule could be, but I’ve been trying to experiment with something that would make me finish with all my article assignments early. I’m doing this so I wouldn’t have to cram after work hours and to have enough time to devote to blogging.

Anyway, I am sharing a photo of the pair of shoes I bought last Sunday when my family and I went to Greenhills.

I got this pair for cheap – buy one, take one for Php550 or around $12.83. I bought it not just because it’s purple but also because it’s super comfy to the feet. I sure could use comfy shoes especially when strolling with the family. I haven’t worn it yet, and I am already excited to use it. But I think I need a new purple shirt to go with it. LOL

Share your purple loot. I’m already excited.

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If you are a BBQ enthusiast you know that charcoal grills have a flavor that is completely different from that of gas grills. The flavor that charcoal gives your food is richer and gives the meat a natural smokiness. For those that truly love to BBQ there is simply nothing better than a summer afternoon spent together with family, friends, your favorite drinks and of course your BBQ grill.

Even though the charcoal grills are the best for Barbeques the techniques of a good BBQ are not easily mastered. Don’t panic if you are a beginner! There will always be several ‘experts’ at any BBQ, and every one of them will be willing to offer advice! Whether you are new to grilling or not, here are a few tips that will make your Barbeque events fun and safe.

* Make sure the grill is placed on a level surface. You definitely do not want your grill to tip over when it is loaded with meat! (If possible locate your grill near a table)

* Have all the tools you will need in one place, close to the grill. Tongs, grill-cleaning brush, basting brush, spatula, lighter fluid (if you use it) and, the charcoal.

* Want to know how many briquettes to use? A good rule of thumb is to measure the amount of food that you will be grilling. Use around thirty briquettes for every pound of meat that you plan to cook.

* Light the charcoal. When the charcoal is gray (usually about 20 min), Using the long tongs, spread the charcoal out evenly on the bottom of the grill. Place the grill over the charcoal; use the grill-cleaning brush to clean it.

* Place your food on the grill. Do not place chicken, hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill and expect them to be done at the same time. Cook the chicken for about 20 minutes prior to placing hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill. Place the hot dogs on the outer edges of the grill.

* When your food is about 5 minutes from being done, start basting the food with the BBQ sauce. Make sure you baste both sides of the food.

* Make sure your charcoal grill is cold prior to moving it. NEVER dump the charcoal ashes out onto the ground – there may still be live coals in the ash, they will start a fire.

Enjoy your charcoal grill BBQ and the food!

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It’s time for Hump Day $50 Giveaway and today’s event is for RSS and Email Subscriptions. But wait, this week, you can win $50 TWICE since there are 2 groups holding the giveaway! Group 2 is composed of the 27 wonderful blogs listed below so feel free to check them out after joining. A link to join Group 1′s giveaway is below the post so make sure you enter that as well when you’re done with Group 2.

There are 2 types of entries this week. You can follow a blog though it’s RSS link, which you can subscribe via a Reader or Email, or a link directly to their Email Subscription. For a short tutorial click here but be sure to come back to enter through this blog.

A note though: You can only join this on one blog/page. There will be a maximum of 33 entries ONLY. If you have more than 33, I reserve the right to delete duplicate or fraudulent entries. May I request that you use only one name and email address for quicker validation of entries.

On the first mandatory entry, please do not forget to write Life and Then Some referred you since it is a mandatory entry. You must complete the first 2 tasks before the others are enabled, and for all your other entries to count.

Thank you very much and good luck. By joining this giveaway, you agree to the Terms and Conditions on the bottom of the form. Contest is open all-day Wednesday, from January 25th, 12:01am EST to January 25th,11:59pm EST (January 25th, 1:01pm Philippine time to January 26th, 12:59pm Philippine time).

==> READ MORE

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It’s time for COPS once again! I almost forgot about it. It’s a Saturday, and I have nothing much to do. Yet, I still forgot to post COPS earlier. So sorry. I didn’t have enough powers to post COPS at exactly 12 midnight, because I was dead tired after we got back from a family dinner last night. The grande-sized coffee I had at Starbucks wasn’t enough to keep me up all night.

Anyway, here’s my share this Saturday:

This is a notebook that my sister sent to me from the USA. She knows how much I love purple, so she always tries to send me lots and lots of purple stuff. I use this to take down notes in church.

What’s your share this week?

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We just got back from church and dinner in one of our fave burger joints. I’m so happy because I was able to satisfy my craving for a double-double cheeseburger and cheese fries.

I often get those. Cravings, I mean. I’d crave for food, which I know my mom won’t be able to prepare at home. That way, I’d have reason to drag thesm out of the house for some serious food tripping. It’s one of my pleasures in life. To eat, eat, and eat and satisfy my cravings.

Hmmm. I wonder what I’ll crave for next time?

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I’m trying my best to stay true to my promise, so even if I’m feeling under the weather, I am posting my entry for COPS. This should have been up since 12A.M.; however, I had to get up early this morning to partake in a rich spiritual activity. Yep, even though I’m sick, I had to put that activity first in my list of to-dos for today.

Anyway, I still feel sick. My head’s throbbing, and my throat is hoarse from all the sneezing and coughing. Nevertheless, these won’t stop me from sharing this photo, which I have already used in my fashion blog. I fell in love with this the moment I saw the pair. Truly, this is . Lookey:

Steve Madden Wimzikul Wedge

Lovely, don’t you think? How about you? Got anything purple to share? Link up your entries now.

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To what? Well, I finally gave in to colds, cough, and slight flu. I mentioned a couple of days ago that I think I was going to get sick, and now, I really am sick. My throat’s been itchy for the past couple of days, it’s too strained from too much coughing, I’ve got colds, and my head feels like it’s going to explode.

I hate the feeling, but I’m still blogging. LOL I just want to vent my frustrations out. I hate being sick. I felt so unproductive the other day because of it. Good thing I was able to write all the articles assigned to me or I would’ve been doomed.

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The weather was off yesterday morning when we went to church, and just when we were leaving to go to our car in the parking lot, it started to rain. I was drenched by the time I got to our car. I took a shower as soon as I got home and rested. That same evening, we went to a small party, and I had one, too many caffeinated soda that night. As a result, I was up until 4 o’clock the following morning.

I think staying up too late weakened my immune system that day. Add to it the fact that I got wet in the rain. So now, I’m starting to feel something. I think I’m going to get sick. I hate the feeling, and I don’t want to get sick. I hope I’d be able to do something about this.

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Gosh. It has been so long that I think I’ve forgotten how to host a meme already. I know I’ve neglected this meme for the longest time, and there is no excuse for it other than the fact that I’ve been busy with work. Lately though, I’ve found a way to manage my time wisely, and I’m able to turn in my work earlier than the supposed 3:30PM. Hence, I figured I’d breathe life back into my blogs starting with COPS.

For this Saturday, I’m sharing a photo taken just last Sunday, 1st January, when the whole family went to Star City for a spur-of-the-moment night of fun.

That’s part of the gang (minus 1 my brother who took the photo) as we were waiting in line for one of the roller-coasters.  That’s me in one of my favorite purple shirts and my purple bag, of course.

This was the Pirate Adventure ride, the last we went on before we headed to the massage chairs near the entrance to have our feet and our backs massaged.   See my bulging tummy? All in all, it was a fun, fun night. I hope the family would get more nights like that.

What have you got to share? We’re all waiting. I hope you’d support this second coming (or is it third?) of COPS.

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Writing is one way to stay connected with our personal desires for the future. Reaching goals and specific accomplishments requires consistent action. Not feeling physically well may change the intensity of how a certain tasks are completed. Listening to negative relatives or friends about how they view the situation can cause depression or self-doubt. Choosing who to listen to and how to finding ways to participate in positive forms of expression can improve quality of life. Here are some ways to reach goals through during an illness and stated prognosis.

It is easy to go through life and not share important information with anyone. It is easy to overlook the most important person in the equation. Writing down thoughts, goals, and plans is like having an intimate conversation with self. Feeling worthy, deserving, and capable of obtaining health, desires, or future wishesare important.

Writing in a journal, making list or even bloggingregularly about small steps taken towards each goal can help improve mood and outlook on life. Even if the actions taken don’t seem like anything to broadcast to the world, each action is bringing the desired thing closer.

Blogging is one way to share thoughts through an online journal. The journal can be published with a pseudonym to not disclose personal information. Privacy can be purchased if a website is being used to host the blog. Knowing that someone has found the blog, and read the entries can help bring about a sense of connection with other people. Extremely sensitive or hot topics may bring about comments and interesting beneficial conversation and perspective.

Traditional treatments for illnesses like mesothelioma or autoimmune disorders can be emotionally and physically draining. Choosing to focus on goals outside of the treatment can help with managing stress and anxiety—such as maintaining a healthy diet and doing light exercise is the best way to stay mentally and physically fit. Creating a bucket list of things to do and working out how and when those events will occur is freeing. Fulfilling the list may demand that new friendships are made and travel arrangements are made.

It is okay to have more than one type of journal. There may be a handwritten journal for expressing personal thoughts and goals that are not up for discussion with anyone else. A public blog is a great opportunity to express areas where additional support is needed, or the dialogue may help someone else suffering with some of the same challenges. Reading over past entries is one way to see personal progress.

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