Why You Should Raise Rabbits for Meat

Rabbit meat
(Image: Tran's World Productions)

I can almost feel the heat from here. "Raise rabbits for meat?" you say. "What a ghastly idea."

If the thought of raising, processing, and eating rabbits is absolutely unbearable to you, then stop reading this post. It's not for you.

But if the idea intrigues you, read on. If you're interested in providing your kids with healthy, environment-friendly meat, read on. If you want your kids to feel totally at home with the menu of French restaurants, read on. 

Here's why you ought to consider raising rabbits for your family's dinner table:

1. Rabbits are environment-friendly livestock. Unlike large livestock such as cows, rabbits don't release an indecent amount of greenhouse gases into the air. They don't pollute the air as much as beef-producers do. Not by a long shot.

Compared to cows or pigs or even goats, rabbits have a very small carbon footprint. They graze sparingly. They need very little water. And given exactly the same amount of food and water, rabbits can produce six times more meat than cows.

What's more, you could use their poop as organic fertilizer without any sort of processing required whatsoever. They can go straight from rabbit to plant, and they won't burn plant roots at all.

You could hardly have a more environment-friendly protein source than rabbit meat, unless you plan to start getting your protein from plants or insects.

2. Rabbits are also neighbor-friendly livestock. If you live in the city, you can't possibly raise chicken. Even if you're somehow able to keep poultry from stinking, you can't keep them from clucking. Roosters, in particular, can be noisy creatures, especially during mating time. Your night-shift working neighbors will hate you.

Rabbits, on the other hand, are quiet. That's why they're not part of the Old McDonald Had a Farm song: very few people have really heard a rabbit make any sound at all. If you've got good opaque fences, you could be raising rabbits for ten years and your neighbors wouldn't suspect a thing.

How about the smell? Well, rabbits are as clean as cats. You never have to bathe them, and they will still smell better than your dog. Rabbit poop is completely odorless. As for rabbit pee, if it lands on soil and not on concrete, it can be odorless too. (I know; we raise rabbits right beside our bedroom window, and you can't smell a thing.)

3. Rabbit meat is healthier than pork, beef, or even chicken. Rabbit meat is as low-fat as chicken meat (and tastes pretty much like it too). The difference is, with chicken, you've still got to deal with the fat that sticks to the chicken's skin. But with rabbits, you don't ever serve the skin as food, so you have even less fat to deal with.

One 3-oz serving of rabbit meat contains less cholesterol than pork or beef. In fact, doctors in developed countries recommend rabbit meat to their patients who need to lower their cholesterol.

At the same time, rabbit meat provides almost 50% of your daily protein needs and over a 100% of an adult's vitamin B12 RDA. 

4. Rabbits provide ethical and sustainable meat. They're definitely not endangered. (Rabbit meat is far more ethical than yellowfin tuna or shark's fin, I'll tell you that.) 

They're easy to raise and easy to propagate. In one year, you can easily go from two rabbits to 20. 

And rabbits don't compete with humans for food. Some people think rabbits released in a carrot garden would be competing with humans for the carrots, but the truth is, if a rabbit ate a whole carrot in one day, it would likely get diarrhea and die.

The rabbit's real diet is grass: carabao grass, Bermuda grass, peanut grass – all those grasses that humans can't eat, the rabbit takes them and turns them into nutritious meat that humans can eat.

5. Rabbits are cheap to raise. If you live in a place with grass, you've got free rabbit food right there. 

You can also give your rabbits non-animal kitchen scraps, just make sure you don't give them too much of just one thing. They love the non-talbos part of camote vines, kangkong, the green part of lettuce, leftover apples (no seeds!), overripe fruits (but no tomatoes please), and leaves of the mango or guava tree.

If you're a suburbs dweller, you can give your rabbits pellets, which are cheaper than dog food or chicken feed. (The pellets we buy cost P25 per kilo on retail. It costs me P100 a week to feed 13 rabbits.)

But rabbits are pets!

If you want to keep rabbits as pets, that's on your conscience. Personally, I would never recommend rabbits to be kept as pets in a house with small children. Rabbits are far too easy to frighten, and a frightened rabbit can bite. They're also easy to injure. A child can easily kill a rabbit from handling that wouldn't hurt a dog.

Still, if you insist on having a pet rabbit, that's your business. Certainly, you should not eat your pets.

But just because you want to make rabbits pets does not give you the right to insist that we keep our rabbits as pets too. 

Rabbits were food animals before humans ever decided to turn them into pets. In Europe, they are still regular parts of the menu. In the wild, every carnivore that can catch rabbits eats them. In the food chain, these creatures are just one square higher than grass. 

You know what's sad? It's a rabbit that dies of disease or old age, because rabbits were designed by Nature to be eaten, and a rabbit that dies a natural death is a rabbit that did not fulfill its natural purpose.

Would you like more information about raising your own healthy, sustainable meat for your family? Ask your questions and I will answer them as best I can.

The Nanay Notebook is written by Blessie Adlaon, a work-at-home and homeschooling mom of four. Check out our About page to know more about this blog's author and our policies on advertising, press releases, and reposting.

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Where to Find Products for Your Online Business

I just came upon this website that may help jumpstart that online business you've been dreaming of.

Dropery.asia is a clearinghouse of product suppliers that are duly registered in the Philippines. If you're looking for a reputable supplier and drop shipper for products that you would like to sell in your online store, it's worth checking this site out.

How does it work?

Through certification, Dropery.asia ensures that a company is duly registered locally before it is included in the website's database. Then, the website reviews these companies' profiles and provide honest feedback for the users, that is, you!

Once you are in the site, you can find suppliers and apply to them for a reseller account. When your reseller account application is approved, you can search or browse Dropery.asia for the supplier's products that you want to sell under your own account at eBay.ph, Sulit.com.ph, etc.

Then, you can simply copy and paste the product's description into your website. You receive the buyers' orders and payments, and you can forward the order with corresponding payment to your supplier.

The supplier will then ship directly to your buyer. This system is called drop shipping, and it has helped many online sellers put up successful stores even without huge warehouses.

If you want to know more about drop shipping, you can search for it online.

To get access to Dropery.asia, you need to request for an invitation. Just click on the "Request an Invite" button at the bottom of their homepage. There's nothing to lose but a few minutes of your time. Why not check it out and get that online store of your dreams started (before the BIR makes it expensive and complicated to start online businesses as well)? Log on to Dropery.asia now.

DISCLOSURE: This blog and its author received no compensation in cash or in kind from Dropery.asia and its owners/stockholders.

The Nanay Notebook is written by Blessie Adlaon, a work-at-home and homeschooling mom of four. Check out our About page to know more about this blog's author and our policies on advertising, press releases, and reposting.

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How to Apply for an Online Job, Part I

There are plenty of guides out there on how to apply for a job, so we'll try to be more specific. After all, if you're following this blog, you're probably looking for an online homebased job, not a regular one.

So let's start. If you're applying for an online job, it's pretty likely that you won't be getting a face-to-face interview, so your application letter and resume are your first and last chances to impress your employer.

The application letter

As mentioned in the Five Big No-No's When Submitting a Job Application, you should never, never send in your resume without a cover letter, also known as the application letter. It's just plain bad manners. 

Besides, the resume simply lists your credentials. Employers knows (or should know) that they will be working with real people, so they want to see your personality as well. A lot of personality can be seen through the application letter.

Application letters are, in fact, pretty simple. Here's a quick rundown on what you should put in:

• Salutation: As much as possible, find out the name of the person you are applying to and his/her title, if any. Write "Dear Mr. Cruz" or "Dear Ms. Cruz" or "Dear Atty. Cruz" with a colon at the end. Remember, you are writing a business letter, not a personal one.
  
  Do not write "Dear Juan" or "Hi, Mr. Cruz." If you don't know the name of the person, write, "Dear Sir/Madam." Do not write "To whom it may concern"!
• Paragraph 1: Mention what job you are applying for, and when and where you found the job ad. If you have any attachments to your e-mail, list them down here too.
     
• Paragraphs 2 to 3: Explain what makes you a good fit for the job without going into too much detail. You can say, for instance, that you have been designing Web sites for top companies for five years and you've never missed a deadline in your entire career. Let your resume list down the names of the companies for you.
   
  List down, too, what makes you want to work with this company. This is a good way to show off your research skills, which is always a valued thing among online workers. If you know anything good about the company, mention it here in your application letter.
   
  Remember to keep your paragraphs short, three sentences maximum. If you need to use bullet points, do so, but it should be a maximum of five bullet points.
• Paragraph 4: Let them know that you are looking forward to hearing from them. Also give your contact details, in case they would like to interview you via e-mail, IM, or phone even before they open your resume.
  
  Note that a Skype account tends to give a better impression than Yahoo Messenger (YM), as the latter could make your prospective employer wonder how much time you spend chatting with your friends on YM (as if people do not have friends on Skype). Be prepared for a Skype call. For this, you will need a microphone and speakers, or a headset. Video interviews are very seldom done, so you don't need a Web cam.
  
  A word about e-mails: use a professional sounding one. For heaven's sake, do not use your iamsuperman@hotmail.com account. If you're applying as a individual freelances, a Yahoo or Gmail account is fine, but stick to the yourname@gmail.com format.
  
  If you're applying as a company, you'd best have a company domain name in your e-mail. Mycompany@gmail.com simply lacks the credibility (and impressiveness) of j.delacruz@mycompany.com. I mean, really, in this day and age, what kind of company are you if you don't even have a domain name?
  
  A word of caution: use your company e-mail only if you are applying in behalf of your company. If you are applying as an individual, do not use your company email. Your bosses can probably access your work email, and they will not be happy to see that you are applying to other jobs, even part-time ones.
• Closing. I tend to favor "Respectfully yours" and use that closing in all my application letters. It is formal, and it shows proper respect. You can use whatever closing you are comfortable with, as long as you keep it formal and respectful. Write your complete name at the end, not your nickname.
• Attachments. If your prospective employer did not specify a work sample in the job ad, find your best work that you think is closest to the kind of output this job you are applying to might want from you. I repeat: choose your best work, and make sure it is relevant to the job. You may send one or two samples, but make sure they are in just one file. Don't expect the person doing the screening to open two files of sample work. PDF files are great because they ensure that the file looks exactly the same in the receiver's computer as it did in yours.
  
  If the job ad contained instructions on what work you should submit and how many, follow those instructions carefully. If you can't follow instructions during the application process, how much less will you be able to follow instructions afterward?

In part II, we'll talk about how to write a winning resume, what to include, and what to not include.

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Five Big No-No's When Submitting a Job Application

(Image by The Nothing Corporation)

I've recently posted a Writers Wanted ad at Pinoyexchange, and I've received so many unbelievable job applications, I just felt compelled to write this post.

Dear friends, if you're applying for a job, especially for an online job, please do not sabotage your chances of getting the job by making these following mistakes:

1. Not following instructions. It's not just about credentials and work samples. We need to know that you can follow instructions. If you're applying for an online job, most especially, we need to know that you can follow written instructions, since we can't be there watching over your shoulder, making sure you're doing things right.

If the person who posted the ad says "Put 'Peanut Butter Sandwich' on the subject line," do that even if it sounds ridiculous. These instructions are there to help us see early on if we can work with you or not.

If the ad poster asks you to attach your best unedited sample article, do not attach three; frankly, we have better things to do with our time than download and review three sample articles, trying to find the best one for you.

2. Omitting the salutation. It's good practice to find out the name of the person you're sending an application to. Often, companies make this easy by including in the job ad the name of the person you should send the application to. If they did not include it, it is a simple matter of making a pre-application phone call and asking the company directly whom you should send the application to.

If you really can't find the name and title of the person you are applying to, at least write, "Dear Sir/Madam." Do not write "To whom it may concern." And do not omit the salutation entirely and go directly to the body of your letter. That does not only bespeak of rudeness, it also shows you to be ignorant of basic business letter writing rules, which you should have learned in high school.

3. Putting someone else's email address in the "Sent to" field. This practice says, "I sent 200 applications today to random companies, hoping one of them will be stupid enough to hire me. You're one of the companies in my BCC list." E-mails like this are spam, and few self-respecting people read spam. I don't.

4. Attaching a generic resume. If you're applying for a writer position, send a resume that highlights your skills as a writer. Your experience as an English teacher is relevant; your patent in waterproof edible toys isn't, and it simply takes up a valuable line in your resume.

If you have nothing in your resume that is relevant to the job you are applying to, explain in your application letter that you have no relevant experience and why the company you are applying to should consider hiring you anyway.

5. Omitting the application letter. The application letter is your very first chance to plead your case. A well-written application letter tells the hiring company that they are dealing with somebody who is intelligent, educated, pleasant, and polite. At the very least, your application letter can remind the hiring officer that he or she is dealing with a human being who simply wants to live a decent life and is looking for the chance to do that by applying to the company.

A good application letter can improve your chances of getting hired. A missing application letter says you have much better things to think of than this  job. While that is always true, it is foolish to make it so blatantly obvious during the application process.

Having said all these, what makes a good job application? We'll talk about that in the next article.

What about you? Have you ever been tasked to evaluate job applicants? What are your job application pet peeves?

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How to Get Collateral-Free Financing for Your Startup Business

(Photo by iprole)

For a few articles now, we've been talking about businesses you can start right from home. But the big question for a lot of us is, Where do I get the money to start this business?

Often, a compounding problem for a lot of us is that we have no assets we could use for collateral.

Well, this is another reason why I strongly advise everyone to start their businesses while they are still employed. When you are an employee, you have one valuable resource at hand: the salary loan.

SME banks

How much, you may ask, can one get from a salary loan? Well, if we look at the loan offerings of my favorite bank for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), Plantersbank, you can see that you can get as much as P500,000 salary loan (of course, depending on your salary), payable for up to 36 months. And yes, no collateral is needed.

What are the requirements for applying for a salary loan?

• Fixed-salaried individual working in the Philippines’ Top 12,000 Corporation OR  must be a credit card holder with a P50,000 credit limit if not employed in the Top 12,000 Corporations.
• At least 23 years old but not more than 65 years old
• A permanent employee with a length of service in current employer of at least 1 year (if less than 1 year, then total continuous work experience should be at least 2 years)
• Has a gross monthly income of P30,000 for Metro Manila and P20,000 for Provincial Areas
• Not due for retirement within the term of the loan.

Now let me take this opportunity to highlight the usefulness of a credit card. It's true, this little piece of plastic can be detrimental to our financial health when we don't know how to use it properly. But often, our credit card is also our best (sometimes, our only) proof that we are willing and able to pay our debts. When we apply for a loan, our credit card history can be our strongest ally.

Note, also, bulletpoint number 3: permanent employee of at least 1 year with current employer. If you can't keep a job, so much less will you be able to keep a business. Because no matter how difficult it is to work with your boss, trying to be your own boss is even harder.

The SSS loan

But what if your gross monthly income does not reach P30,000 per month? (Mine never did, when I was employed.)

Well, there's SSS too. But to get a one-month SSS salary loan, you need to have paid at least 36 monthly contributions prior to the month of filing the application. For a two-month salary loan, the requirement is 72 posted monthly contributions.

Microfinance institutions

There are also microfinance institutions. Granted that the interest rates of these institutions may be even higher than some banks and are definitely higher than SSS rates, they are still much lower than if you borrow from "five/six," those notorious lenders that charge an astounding 20% monthly interest rate.

If you want to contact a microfinance company near you, here's a list of them. Just click on the links below and find which company is best for you:

Alalay sa Kaunlaran, Inc. (ASKI)

Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD)

Center for Community Transformation (CCT)

Kabalikat para sa Maunlad na Buhay, Inc. (KMBI)

Taytay sa Kauswagan, INC. (TSKI)

Tulay sa Pag-unlad, Inc. (TSPI)

All these companies listed above are partners of the PinoyMe foundation, which was instituted by President Corazon C. Aquino. See the full list of PinoyMe's partner companies here. Or learn more about the PinoyMe foundation by clicking on the link.

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Work-at-Home Jobs and Businesses You Can Do in the Philippines, Part III

(Photo by Images of Money)

Finally, here's our last installment of the Work-at-Home Jobs and Businesses series. Here are five more ways you can make money from the comfort of your own home:

1. Home-service mechanic. Okay, this is not exactly something you can do at home, but it's a service you can manage from home and offer to your neighbors and everyone within a two kilometer radius from your house. Actually, I've always wondered why this service is so seldom offered. If my car is broken, isn't it obvious that I would need somebody to go to my house to fix it? I could hardly drive it to a shop if it won't start, right?

2. Ironing and laundry service. You already wash your own clothes, right? It shouldn't be too hard to put up a sign in front of your house offering to wash your neighbors' clothes as well. Better yet, put the sign up at the village gate. Really, you never know who might need your help. Good target: moms with new babies. (Can you imagine all those diapers to wash? Just make sure to ask them to rinse the diapers out very well first!)

3. Web design. If you're running an online business, you would do well to have a Web site. For some, Multiply works well. But for the more finicky among us (like me), we want our business Web site to carry our own domain name and our own unique template. I'd been forced to design my own site for this blog and for Escrive.com, but it took so much time, I tell you, if I could have found somebody I could afford, I would have enlisted their services.

4. Tailoring. This is so classic, we often overlook it. With a sewing machine and a lot of talent, you could sew up a dozen outfits and sell them online. You could also offer alterations and repairs to your next-door neighbors. There's always a zipper getting broken or a pair of pajamas getting ripped somewhere, and honestly, not all of us have the time to repair them ourselves.

5. Be an Avon lady. If you love lotions and make-up and jewelry and bags and all those kinds of girly stuff, this is one of the easiest and most fun businesses to get into -- and often, all you need to do is to leave a catalog lying around where people can get them! My mother-in-law makes a pretty good living doing this, I tell you, though of course, it took her years to build up her client base.

I've said it before, I will say it again and again: it takes years to build up a client base. You've got to start sometime!

(Ma, I advise this to others, but I can't do it myself because, as you know, I don't use makeup or lotions or even a toner, and I hardly ever buy shoes and bags; I'm in the running for stingiest person on Earth.)

How to get clients

Now the question is, how do you get clients? Here is what you need:

1. Time. I can't emphasize this hard enough. People write and say, I'm giving birth, I want to quit my job, how can I start my own homebased business?

Oh, boy. We are presuming here that you want to start your business so you can replace your job's income? Not going to happen in that time frame! And if you opt to take a shortcut and get a work-at-home job instead, you'll soon find that you'll need to double your office job's hours when you move at home, in order to match your old income. That is, unless you're so lucky that your current office job will allow you to telecommute.

If you want a homebased business, start taking steps toward it as soon as possible. If necessary, offer your work for free just so you can build a reputation and a portfolio.

2. Have an online presence. This means having a shop at Multiply or eBay or Sulit.com.ph. Better yet, have your own Web site. I put up Escrive.com on twenty-four hours of labor and a P500 cashout.

3. Brand your expertise. This is how my friend Tarie gets all her clients. If you want a detailed crash course on how she did it, she's holding a seminar on it this March 2012. Click here to read more. If you want just a brief summary, here it is: she's been blogging on her niche since 2005, and she maintains an active presence on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, etc.!

4. Activate your network. You can't build a client base by being a loner. Solitude can help you be a great philosopher or scientist, but if you're starting a business, you've got to go out and meet people. And you've got to let them know about your business. Have business cards printed out. Have a Facebook page. Have a blog. (If you can't write, find somebody who can. Escrive has written for a lot of blogs.) Join online groups and attend meet-ups. Oh, and be nice! Come on time, keep your promises, do favors, give free advice, etc.

It's hard work, I tell you. If you want something easy and comfortable, you won't find it in a homebased business; you will find it in an office job. But that won't let you watch over the kids and their yaya.

That's as many tips as I can give right now. I hope other successful work-at-home moms out there could add their tips too!

Next up: where to get funding and how to build your own classy Web site!

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How to Gain Fame and Fortune from Your Blog

March 6, 2012

"How do you make money from your blog?" Well, first, you have to write it. Then, you have to get readers -- which you will only get if you write your blog articles well.

But how do you write good blog articles? And after you've written them, how do you really get the readers to come? (No, they won't come flocking simply because you're an excellent writer.)

An old friend of mine, Tarie Sabido, has been writing on her blogs Into the Wardrobe since 2005 and Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind since 2009. She's got more followers and readers than I have Facebook friends.

"And," you ask, "does she earn anything from it?" Oh yes, she does.

You will notice, though, that her blogs don't have ad units on them -- not a single one. And she doesn't do sponsored posts, ever -- never did and probably never will.

But through her blog, she's managed to brand her expertise. Since 2008, she's been getting invitations from all over the globe to speak at conventions and judge book contests. I am bound to suspect she gets some sort of honoraria for it (as it is only fair she should!), not to mention all that glitz and glamour that inevitably comes your way when you're the judge of  a prestigious book contest.

In short, she is living the life. While the rest of us are content with our short-term sponsored-post pennies, Tarie knows how to get real rewards from her blog.

Well, now she's sharing her secrets with the rest of us! On March 14 and 28, 6-9 p.m., at the Filipinas Heritage Library in Makati City, Tarie will be giving a crash course on how to create an attractive and meaningful blog and, more importantly, how to get loyal readers and visitors to your blog!

Here's the text of the event poster:

Learn the basics of starting a blog or website and skills essential for writing effectively in the virtual world. See social media unveiled. Participate in exercises that will work towards the creation of your own Web space.

Tarie Sabido, the facilitator for this workshop, was a writing and literature professor at De La Salle University-Taft and the Ateneo de Manila University. She also edited instructional materials at goFLUENT International. Now, she is an instructor at Obelisk International Learning Hub and the Ateneo Language Learning Center.

A prolific blogger, Tarie writes about children's and young adult literature through her personal blogs, "Into the Wardrobe" and "Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind." Aside from writing personal blogs, Tarie is a staff writer for "Color Online," a website dedicated to women writers of color.

The workshop fee is P2,500 inclusive of handouts, materials, snacks, and certificate.

To register, please contact Joy de Asis-Villaflores at 892-1801 local 27.

Again, if you're serious about getting real rewards from your blog, this is one workshop you should not miss. Go register now.

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Work-at-home Jobs and Businesses You Can Do in the Philippines, Part II

(Photo by Images of Money)

As promised in the first part of this series, here is a continuation of my list of work-at-home jobs and businesses you can do in the Philippines, items 11 to 20:

11. Rentals. There are plenty of things people would do better to rent than buy: formal gowns, maternity clothes, UN Day costumes, Halloween costumes, Linggo ng Wika costumes, non-convertible infant car seats, musical instruments (when you're not yet sure your kid is going to stick with those saxophone lessons), videoke machines, chocolate fountains, LCD projectors, lighting and sound systems, required readings for college general education subjects like Soc Sci II (read them two days, never open them again), vans ... my imagination runs out, but I suppose you get the idea by now.

12. Tour guide. If you live near a tourist area, why not advertise your services as a tour guide? You'll need to learn a lot about the nooks, crannies, and history of the place, but you'll get to go out a lot and meet new people and get paid too!

13. Business card/invitation/letterhead designer. Big companies probably have their own graphics artists to do this for them, but startup homebased businesses often don't. If you've got an eye for design, offer your services online. We homebased businesses who want professional-looking stationery could use your help.

14. Album/scrapbook organizer. Am I the only person in the world who finds it too much trouble to have my digital pictures printed and to put them in an album for posterity? If I could send you my digital files and you can send them back to me as printed pictures arranged chronologically in an album, I'd be willing to pay a reasonable price.

15. Homebased concierge. Mr. X keeps forgetting his wife's birthday; he would love it if somebody would remind him and order flowers for her every year. Ms. Y wants to book a Cebu Pacific flight, but she doesn't know how to use their online portal or she just can't afford to wait two hours waiting for the d*mned pages to load. Mr. J wants to buy gifts for all his godchildren but simply does not have the time; he doesn't mind the purchases being done online as long as somebody else does it for him.

Have you ever been in situations such as these? I know people who have. If there were somebody who could do these things for them, they'll pay. After all, how do you put a price tag on your wife's affection because you remember her birthday and send her flowers unfailingly every year?

16. Project manager. Oh, I personally know three homebased businesspeople who need this (but only two of them realize it. The third is my husband, ha ha ha).

If you know how to manage projects, create timetables, and coerce people into keeping the sched, then this could be the job for you!

17. Pet sitting. This could be a lucrative job if you give your client base time to grow. You don't need a big yard. Most of your prospective clients keep their pets in condo units anyway. If all you have is a condo unit too, but you promise to take good care of their pets, make sure they stay safe, hydrated, walked, and well fed while their masters are gone, your business could be good to go!

18. Marketing/advertising consultant. Have experience in marketing and advertising? Then why not share your skills with the rest of us who need it? We have businesses, we want to grow it, but we don't know how, and we're afraid to approach consultants because we don't think we can afford you, but if it turns out we can, why wouldn't we want to?

19. Public relations agent. My biggest inspiration today, Ms. Nancy G. Pascual of NGP Integrated Marketing Communications, started out as a public relations agent 14 years ago. She had one client. She did all her work from her house.

Today, she has enough clients that she can afford an office in Shaw Blvd. Some of her clients are household names in banking, cookware, baby products, softdrinks, fuel, and transportation. The first time I heard who her clients were, I exclaimed, "Talaga? Kliyente n'yo 'yun? (Really? They're your client?)"

But let me highlight one fact: it took her 14 years to get to where she is now. There are no shortcuts to starting a homebased business.

20. Private investigator. Honestly, missus, have you never wondered if your husband was really going to so many meetings or if he was meeting somebody else all that time? If you have the wits to find people's secrets out, we who are less skilled but just as suspicious may find use for your services. (But don't offer it to me; I know where my husband is all the time.)

Okay, just one more list to go. After that, we'll talk about how to find clients and funding! Stay tuned for next!

Are you already doing any of these businesses? Let us know and we'll post a free blog article to let the world know about you and the services/products you are offering!

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Work-at-Home Jobs and Businesses You Can Do in the Philippines, Part I

(Photo by Images of Money)

"I want to work at home -- but what can I do?" Very common question. Here are some answers:

1. Accounting

If you have accounting background and experience, you can offer your services on the Internet (or you can advertise it here on the Nanay Notebook). A lot of people, including myself, hate to do their own paperwork, so if we can get somebody to handle our BIR registrations; tax computations; monthly, quarterly, and annual filing; financial statement preparation; SSS, HDMF, and Philhealth payments and record-keeping, why we would be willing to pay you a reasonable retainer's fee!

2. Human resources consultant

One of my clients operates a business with two employees, but he still gets a human resources consultant. Why? Maybe he realizes that an expert can judge character better than he can. Maybe he has more profitable things to do than sort through resumes and conduct preliminary interviews. Maybe he wants to make sure that all contracts and paperwork are done right -- with the way the laws of this country are communicated and implemented among the public, you could be doing something illegal without ever knowing it, believe me, I know! Maybe he wants somebody else to do the dirty job of sacking a person who has been found incompetent (or just lazy) with his work.

The point is, there are people who are willing to hire human resources consultants in the Philippines.

3. Photographers and videographers

Wedding photographers, pet photographers, baptismal photographers, party photographers -- the fact is, photography and videography are hard, and if you know how to do it, then you have a saleable skill right there. You'll probably need equipment, though.

If all you have is a digital camera and a printer, set up a stand for ID picture photography.

4. Art/music/sports/dance instruction

Oh, this one's great, because your target market is children, and parents tend to spend more easily for their children than for themselves. Come summertime, or even during school weekends, offer to teach kids a skill you know, be it

• drawing
• painting
• singing
• street dancing
• ballet
• martial arts
• piano
• violin
• guitar
• etc. 

You don't need a big fancy studio or even super-great skills. If a parent just wants to know if her kid has some gift in a certain field, she'll be perfectly willing to enroll her kid in your ballet class, even if you just hold it in your backyard, if the price is right, and especially if you just live in the same village!

Once she knows her kid has a gift and will stay with the sport or art, then she can opt to enroll the child in one of those fancier, more distant, more expensive schools.

5. Jewelry designer

If you know how to make jewelry, you can sell them on eBay. Jewelry are great eBay items because they are small, often non-fragile, and cost little to ship.

6. Event organizer

If you enjoy organizing parties for your children, why not level up and start organizing parties for other people too? By now, you've probably met a lot of caterers, balloon sculpture makers, cake makers, clowns, event hosts, dressmakers, and whatever else parties need, to offer a good variety of choices for your clients.

7. Event hosting

If you've been asked to emcee a lot of events for free before, you could probably start emceeing for strangers and charging them for it too!

8. Freelance musician

Who would need this? Well, weddings, for one. A violinist or flute player would provide a good touch at a wedding ceremony. Some people may want a musician at their parties. You'll probably need to have a good barong or tuxedo, though.

9. Language tutor

You can do this online. Lots of parents would love for their kids to learn a second language. Some people may just want somebody to practice with.

10. Subject tutor

If you're good at science or math or English or Filipino (you'd be surprised at how many kids need Filipino tutors), offer tutorial services, even via Skype.

Okay, I gotta go back to my own work now. Please wait for the next items on this list (oh, there are many) and for advice on how to get clients for these jobs. Till next time!

Are you already doing any of these businesses? Let us know and we'll post a free blog article to let the world know about you and the services/products you are offering!

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Work-at-Home Job vs. Homebased Business

Recently, I've been receiving a lot of emailed queries from mothers asking how they could start working from home. Often, the hope is to quit the regular office-based job and replace the office-based income with homebased income.

I'll say this straight: If you're looking to replace your office income with your work-at-home income, you should not be looking for a work-at-home job. You need to start your own homebased business. And it is something you should begin to do while you are still in your office job.

Why?

Because often, work-at-home jobs pay much less than a homebased business will. After all, with a work-at-home job, you are just getting a percentage of what your employer gets from the client. If you own the business, you get 100% of what the client pays.

In fact, from my experience, the only way a work-at-home job can equal an office income is if you double your office hours, which means you work 80 hours a week instead of 40.

The downside, of course, is that with a homebased business, you will need to search for clients yourself. But let me tell you this: the process for finding your own business clients is almost the same as the process for finding a work-at-home job you can live with. In both cases, you need to 

• search online, 
• send a lot of application letters and work samples, and 
• activate your social network.

That is why you need to start your search for a work-at-home job or business many months before you quit your office work. It's no overnight deal.

Perhaps, the reason why a lot of people shrink from starting their own business and look for jobs instead is the fact that a business promises less financial security than a job. It's true. Client payments get delayed. Clients themselves are seasonal. You need to learn to manage your finances. But whether you have a business or a job, that is a skill you need to learn anyway.

And though a job offers more financial security in terms of regular payments, a business offers more financial rewards in terms of payment volume.

Another problem with having your own business is that your amount of accountability gets magnified. In the case of a writing company, for instance, the writer's work gets edited and fact checked and proofread before it is sent to the client. If the writer contacted the client directly, the writer would need to be able to edit and proofread his own work and make sure his facts are correct.

If you feel that your skills are not sufficient for you to contact clients directly, then yes, you may need to get a work-at-home job instead of start your own business ... but do the job part time, while you are employed, so that your skills can be honed to the point where you can eventually stand on your own. 

Then, when you quit your office job, you won't need to look for a work-at-home job anymore. You can start your own business.

Next post: A list of homebased businesses you can start. Watch out for it.

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The Baby Hair-Accessories Maker: Interview with Ethel Bernales

It’s been quite some time since we’ve interviewed a true-to-life nanay entrepreneur here at the Nanay Notebook, so I’m very happy to introduce to you today a childhood friend, Ethel Bernales.

I first met Ethel and her family when I was just five years old, not very long ago. Since then, this mom and I have been choirmates (oh yes, there was a time when this nanay sang in public, albeit with a group), schoolmates, school bus mates, and clubmates! (She and I used to be part of St. Scholastica’s Homemakers Club – not a very surprising fact, is it?) 

Of course, at that time (despite the club membership), I never imagined she would grow up to become the babywearing, breastfeeding super mommy that she is right now!

Anyway, I’m sure you’re more interested in hearing how Ethel started and grew her business than in listening to the reminisces of this nanay, so let’s get on with the interview! I emailed the questions to Ethel and am posting the answers here:

Nanay Notebook: What made you decide to do hair accessories instead of, say, baby clothes or baby jewelry or mommy accessories?

Ethel Bernales: I went into baby hair accessories because it became a need for me at some point. You see, I am a choosy-but-practical mom. As long my kids’ outfits are well made, I don’t mind if they are not branded and expensive. Same goes for hair accessories. I really went around boutiques and department stores trying to find good quality, affordable hair accessories for my daughter, but I couldn't find what I was looking for – so I decided to make them myself!

NN: How did you find your source for materials?

EB: Most of my supplies come from the U.S. I purchase them online. Google is my number one source for suppliers! But I also go around local craft stores, fabric stores, and Divisoria for supplies. That's how I create unique pieces – by combining different materials from different sources.

NN: How did you learn to create these pieces? Do you still make them all by yourself?

EB: I actually didn't know I had the ability to make things like these until I had children. I used to make hair accessories for my daughter by taking apart the accessories I bought from the department stores and use the materials to make her something unique. The couture headbands are still handmade by me.

I learn by observation and practice and a few tips I pick up from YouTube. There are a lot of helpful fellow moms out there who are quite good with handicraft.

I also carry a line of accessories by other fellow moms who craft the pieces for me. I would love to expand in that direction and, hopefully, be able to train and hire fellow nanays in our hometown to help me create these unique pieces too. (Great idea, Ethel! Go for it!!! You truly are your parents’ daughter.)

NN: How long have you been doing this business? What preparations did you make before you started selling?

EB: I only started last February 2011. It took me around 2 to 3 months just to do my research, find suppliers, and have the Web site designed before I started officially accepting orders.

NN: How did you find your first buyers? How did you expand your market?

EB: It is true what they say, that when you are starting a small business, your first customers are really your relatives and friends.

Although I shopped online regularly, selling online was very new to me. I was also not very techie, so I had to learn little by little as I went along. When I felt confident enough that I could handle more orders, that’s when I began promoting my Web site and products by doing tie-ups and cross-promotion with other online businesses.

If you are selling online, you really need to take advantage of the Internet and the power of social networking to market your products.

NN: What are the biggest challenges you meet in your business? How do you overcome them?

EB: I believe that most of the challenges I encounter are blessings in disguise. For instance, there was this one time when I couldn't find the materials I needed locally, so I searched online and wrote to several potential suppliers. By doing that, I was able to find a reliable supplier, and today, we have established a good business relationship with them.

I really just try to persevere when faced with challenges or obstacles.

NN: What advice would you give other mothers who wish to start a business in baby accessories?

EB: Do your research. Be inspired by other people’s work, but don't copy them. Most handicraft-oriented moms are already inherently creative anyway, so you just need to find the style that you are comfortable with and which you want to be recognized for. Also remember that when you are making products for babies, comfort and wearability are very important.

You also need to decide early on if you would like this to be a hobby or a business. For me, this is a business that I love doing because I love the designing part. However, I believe that running a small business is the same as running a corporation – the same principles apply – but in a small business, you have to do everything yourself.

If you have no idea about running a business, then you need to research and learn more about it too. 

NN: Your product pages say you accept Paypal, but your order form does not include it among the payment options. Just to confirm: do you accept Paypal payments?

EB: Yes, we do. Our Web site needs a bit of an update. I hope we’ll be able to have it updated before the holiday rush.

So there you have it, dear mommies. If there’s one thing I think we can all learn from Mommy Ethel’s story, it is this: don’t be afraid to start, even if you have to start small. The lack of expertise can be easily remedied for somebody who is willing to learn. A lot of us learn as we go, and once you begin, you will be surprised to discover that you actually know much more than you ever imagined you did. 

To see Ethel Bernales’ adorable, well-made, comfortable, and affordable hair accessories, please log on to celestinaandco.multiply.com or Like them on Facebook, at facebook.com/celestinaandco. 

Until next!

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How Much Should You Charge for Writing?

This is a short post to answer a question I get asked very frequently: how much do you charge for writing?

Answer: It depends on what you’re writing and where your work will be published. Articles that are published online are generally cheaper than articles that are published in print.

Keyword articles: For online articles where you are given a keyword and are allowed to write anything, as long as the keyword is incorporated into the title and body of the article, the going rate is about 20 to 30 centavos per word. You must be a very skilled writer to get something at 40 centavos per word, and you have to show off that level of skill in your portfolio.

However, be aware that many people who buy keyword articles may be unwilling to pay a higher price for better quality articles, because they just need your articles to put the keywords in, for search engine ranking purposes. Some of them don’t expect that the articles will actually get read. Therefore, readability and impeccable writing are less important in keyword articles compared to the other article types.

Personally, I would not recommend keyword-article writing to anybody but the newest writers who are just practicing and looking for something to put in their portfolio. If you are a good writer who crafts each piece lovingly and with good research, keyword writing is hardly ever worth your while.

Blog/online magazine/e-book articles: These sometimes ask for keywords too, but not to the same degree as keyword articles. The buyers of these articles do expect the articles to be read, so they want good quality writing. For articles such as these, you can charge between 50 centavos to 1 peso per word.

Since editing is seldom practiced in online articles, you must be able to self-edit, which is never an easy thing to do. What I do is I write the article, forget about it for at least an hour (sometimes a whole day), then go back on it. I keep doing that until I run out of things that I feel needs to be changed.

Print articles: Print media usually have their own set rates for article submissions, so you simply have to follow their set rates. Regular magazine articles often go for at least 2 pesos per published word. That means, if you submit 1000 words but the magazine only finds room in its layout for 500 words, you get paid for 500 words, not 1000.

Press releases: A press release is a special type of article, because it have an advertising nature, and it is often published in print media. Press releases are usually 400 to 800 words long, and you can charge anywhere between 2,000 and 3,000 pesos for writing services only.

This means you’re not responsible for pictures or for submitting the article to newspapers and magazines, but you may be asked to go on site to cover a live event or do a face-to-face interview.

Copy writing: This is another article with a strongly promotional angle and needs more than the average writing skill. You should never take on a copy writing assignment for less than 2,000 pesos regardless of word count, because these assignments often require the use of the least number of words to impart a very powerful message—a difficult feat to achieve.

Technical articles: If the article is so technical that it can only be written by a professional such as a doctor, lawyer, or engineer, it would be best to charge by the hour. Take your hourly rate as a professional, multiply it by two, then charge for the number of hours it takes you to work on the article.

These prices are just suggestions based on my own pricing policy. If you feel you can get away with charging more, hurrah for you! But if you charge any less than these, you would be cheating yourself, and you would find it difficult to increase your prices later on.

For tips on how to write good articles, check out www.Escrive.com.

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FREE E-book Download: How to Make Money from Your Blog

For all my readers who've been asking me how one can make money from one's blog, here's an e-book that will answer your questions much better than I can: Six Figure Affiliate Blogging by Zac Johnson.

To download it, just go to www.BloggingTips.com. A pop-up will show that will offer you a free download of the e-book. You just need to leave your name and e-mail and subscribe to the blog.

I've read it and it's chockful of useful information. I must tell you, though, that if you follow it, you'll need to do a LOT of work on your blog. If you don't have a lot of free time, you'll have to do it little by little, as I intend to do. The important thing is to start.

So what are you still here for? Go download, and happy reading.

Disclosure: This site and author are receiving no compensation or rewards for promoting this e-book. We are not affiliated with BloggingTips.com.

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Is Civimom a Scam?

UPDATE: More than two years after I posted the article below, I received the email below from a concerned mom. I have her personal details but am not divulging them here for obvious reasons.

Here is the email:

I can definitely say that they're not a scam as I worked with them for a few months before moving on. It was one of the first online websites I came across starting out and yes, it did take some time before they responded to my application, probably a month if i'm not mistaken. Their rates are relatively low for a seasoned transcriptionist but for moms or others just starting out, I believe it's a good place to start.
--------

A reader asked me about Civimom today, asking if the company was a scam because "one of the requirements for this job is to pass a 10-document test," and I had mentioned in How to Find Work-at-Home Jobs and Not Get Scammed that you should not send the client free sample work other than what you already have in your portfolio.

The company certainly may ask you to do an assigned work, but it should be minimally compensated.

Now one thing I keep telling moms before they try out an online opportunity is

Always Google the name of the company and the word "scam" so that you can see if there are any scam reports on the company.

So that's what I did for Civimom.

What I found is that there are no explicit reports that Civimom is a scam. But I also found that of those that did apply, either they were still waiting for the results of their application or they were told that they did not pass the application.

So am I saying that Civimom is a scam?

I am saying that I have found no proof that it is not.

If any of you know of anybody who has worked for and has been paid by Civimom, do leave a comment, then e-mail me your full name and contact number at NanayNotebook@gmail.com so that I can confirm that you are making the testimonial of your own free will, without any material or non-material coercion from the company.

Testimonials without the required details will be deleted.

Other comments are welcome.

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How to Earn Money from Your Blog

To tell the truth, I have not earned enough money from this blog to actually write a post on how to earn from it, but two friends cajoled me into writing this.

Anyway, I'm also writing this post anyway to share my experiences, and also to answer a question once asked once by one of my readers: Do you actually earn money from Google ads and Nuffnang ads?


Google and Nuffnang

One of the reasons I started this blog was to have a place to put Google ads in. These are a good way of earning passive income while you do something you enjoy -- blogging.

Now I started this blog in January 2010, and as of last checking two seconds ago, I've earned $18.95 (about Php821.00) from Google ads, which I had added to my blog soon after I put the blog up. As for Nuffnang ads, which I added to my blog in November 2010, I've so far earned Php133.

If you want to earn from ads:

You need readers. You need blog traffic. You need reader-friendly layout. And you need time.

There are plenty of Internet resources that will tell you how to get blog traffic, but one thing they will all tell you is (1) you need to post quality content regularly and (2) build a network by commenting on other blogs.

One thing that has helped me promote my blog too is by building a Facebook page for it. If you have Facebook or Twitter, leverage those to promote your blog.

Now when people reach your blog, don't drive them away with a cluttered layout. (Somebody please tell me, by the way, if you find my layout cluttered.) Keep your sidebar as simple as possible without sacrificing functionality.

And make it easy for people to subscribe to your blog by giving them an e-mail subscription option. If you don't know how, read my previous post, How to Add E-mail Subscription to Your Blog.

Now the hardest part is to wait. As time passes by, you will get more readers and your ads will get more clicks. Just wait, and while you're waiting, keep writing.

(To all you wonderful people who have been clicking on my ads, thank you!)

Paid links and paid posts

I must admit I've tried a few of these, but since my blog targets Philippine readers, there are just not enough opportunities for me to earn money from these.

If your blog targets an international audience or at least North America and Europe, you may have better luck with paid posts.

Direct advertising

A blog can be a great marketing tool. You want to sell something? Tell your readers about your wares! I've had a pretty good stint with selling G-Cash and Globe Autoload, and my buyers all found me through my blog!

(I've discontinued the service though. Some PayPal trouble. Click here to see how the story starts, and here to see how it ended.)

If you're more comfortable selling through Multiply or eBay, you can link to your store sites from your blogs. We will be happier to buy from people whom we know and trust through their blogs rather than from somebody completely anonymous.

If you have questions or suggestions on how other moms (and dads) can also earn through their blogs, please let us know!

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WANTED: Cooking Blogs

A friend of mine who works at a PR company is looking for bloggers she could invite to cover a special cookware event. Do you have a cooking blog or a mommy blog where you could post an article on cookware? Do send me your link via the comments box so that my friend can check out your blog!


(Please make sure there is contact information on your blog too. If not, please email it to NanayNotebook@gmail.com. But leave your link on the comments box first.)

"What's so great about going to a cookware event?" you may ask. Well, there are three things I can think of:

First, you get freebies. Oh yes, this is by far the best thing about joining an event as a member of the press/publicity team. You get far better freebies than if you just attended the launch as a potential buyer.

Second, you get to network. You meet people that could open surprising new opportunities for you to work at home. One of my fellow mommy bloggers got a new writing assignment when she attended the Aprica media launch.

And third, you get something new to write about. It opens up your world and rewards your loyal readers with something interesting and new to read about.

So send us your bloglink now!

UPDATE: The event will be on March 25, 2011. I'm not sure up to when the organizer is accepting applicant blogs, though.

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Paid Ads vs. Paid Links: The Important Difference

In Passive Income Tip: Advertise on Your Blog, I talked about adding paid ads on your sidebar. The question is, what is the difference between a paid ad and a paid link?

Why is this a relevant question? Well, you see, Google hates paid links. It penalizes sites who have paid links by lowering those sites' Google ranks.

But a paid ad and a paid link look very similar: they are both paid, and they both contain links. So what's the difference?

Ads vs. links

With a paid ad, the advertiser is paying to display the ad on your site so that your readers could be enticed to visit the advertiser's site.

With a paid link, the "advertiser" is paying you to simply put a link on your site towards the advertiser's site, not to invite people to visit their site, but simply to gain backlinks.

If you own a blog, you are probably familiar with what backlinks are and why they are important. Backlinks are links from other sites that lead to your blog, and they are important because the more backlinks you have, the higher you rank in Google.

The downside of paid links

If you put paid links in your blog and Google discovers it, then they will penalize you on their search ranks.

So how do you avoid getting penalized if you put in paid ads? You need to modify your link. Instead of simply putting in A HREF=" " around your paid ad, you put in A REL="NOFOLLOW" HREF=" ".

The nofollow tag prevents your link from being counted as a backlink and will therefore not affect the target site's Google ranking.

When to put in paid links

This is not to say that we should avoid paid links altogether. After all, what do we want Google rankings for, if not to attract Web traffic, hoping those readers would click on our Google ads?

If your earnings from Google ads are less than what the link buyer is willing to pay you, there is no good short-term reason why you should shun the paid link.

After all, Google search is not the only way to invite traffic to your blog. There is also Facebook, Twitter, and your friends' blogs!

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What’s Wrong with Paid-to-Click Schemes?

One of my writers asked me if I had ever written about paid-to-click work opportunities, because he was interested in trying one out. “Maybe some people would be interested too,” he said.

Well, I have never written about paid-to-click schemes, but I will now—not to talk about how you can sign up for one but to say why you should not. (The writer backed out of his plan to sign up for one too, by the way.)

Short background on Web ads

Web advertisements often work this way: the ad is displayed on a site, and the advertiser pays the site a certain amount every time somebody clicks on the advertiser’s ad on that site.

The presumption is that when somebody clicks on an ad, that person is interested in the product and has the potential to become a buyer.

But in a paid-to-click site, it doesn’t work that way.

How paid-to-click sites work

At a paid-to-click site, people don’t click ads because they are interested in what the ad offers. They click on the ads because they are paid for every ad they click.

Mind you, they are not paid to view the ads; they are paid to just click. And since they want to earn as much money as they can in the shortest time possible, why bother to view anything, right?

So the people who are paid to click never view. Which means they will never buy either.

What's wrong with this picture?

Now, at the risk of being redundant, let’s go back to why advertisers are paying for clicks: they hope people would view their site and become buyers, of course!

And what happens to advertisers who become victims of pay-to-click schemes?

Why then, they are charged for clicks that have little or no chance of getting converted. The advertiser’s money is wasted, the site earns money without giving any real service, and the person clicking but never really viewing the ads gets paid for not doing any real work.

I don’t know about you, but I find something terribly wrong with this picture.

Whose problem is it?

A very few of you may think, “That’s the advertiser’s problem, not mine. I have a family to feed.”

Well, think about this: if a site has no qualms about cheating its clients on the left (the advertisers), what makes you think it would have any qualms about cheating its clients on the right (you)?

Paid-to-click schemes often turn out to be paid-to-click scams. A quick Internet search will reveal that.

And even if they do turn out to be paying, remember where the money they’re paying with comes from. What goes around comes around.

The gist: stay away from pay-to-click schemes. Your time and self-respect is worth more than the peanuts they pay you for every second it takes you to click those ads.

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Passive Income Tip: Advertise on Your Blog

Wondering how to monetize your blog? Here's one thing you can do: advertise!

If you look at the Nanay Notebook's sidebar, you will see I have a few advertisements there myself. One of the advertisements is for The Country Living Grain Mill.

Now to make things clear, I have not purchased any products from the Country Living Grain Mill. This post is not a review. I am simply alloting space on my sidebar for them, for a corresponding ad fee.

And if you wish to do the same on your blog, well, here's good news: the Country Living Grain Mill is accepting applications from other mommy bloggers who also want to post the Country Living Grain Mill's ad on their blog sidebar or footer.

All you need to do is e-mail a link to your blog to harveyscoffee@gmail.com, along with your proposed price for posting their ad for six months on your blog.

They pay via PayPal but may be open to other payment options as well.

And that's all there is to it. Now go send that e-mail!

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The PayPal Saga: Payment Refunded to Buyer!

So the nightmare has culminated. After all the documents I sent PayPal to prove that the buyer had indeed received the almost-6,000-pesos worth of GCash he had paid for via PayPal, PayPal still decided to refund the money to him. (The document was an e-mail from Globe itself indicating that the amounts had been received by the party in question.)


That was in December 31, 2010—almost two weeks ago.

And despite the buyer's assurance that he would simply refund via bank deposit, his previously accessible phone has gone permanently unavailable. And three e-mails from a week ago have gone unanswered. What's a girl to think?

My mistake was this: I should have required a scanned ID and not just relied on the PayPal verification process. (To all you online sellers, let this be a lesson to you too.) The scanned ID would have proven to PayPal that the PayPal transactions were indeed done by the PayPal owner and not some hacker.

But lesson learned. I am truly thankful to God that, at this point, six thousand pesos is no longer very painful to me. There was a time it would have killed me. Now, the only difference it makes is that the kids will have to wait longer for that bike and sidecar that we could have used to enjoy the sunny afternoons around the village.

UPDATE: To date (March 4, 2011), the buyer has not communicated with us. But thank you, God. The children have their bikes, and we are able to enjoy the sunny afternoons around the village!

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