Do you still remember the tragedy that happened 8 years ago in the dumpsite of Payatas, Manila famously known as the Smokey Mountains?  It shocked us when we heard about a massive 50ft wall of solid wastes slid down over hundreds of shanties and undermined number of people.  Many lives were taken and many who are left behind still lives in terror of what happened.

Payatas is a mirror of extreme poverty since most of these people who live near the dumpsite share the same story.  They came from the provinces to the capital city with the hope to better their lives.  Even children at a tender age of 4 years joined in the hunt for food.  They look for scrap metals and plastics so they can sell them in exchange for some change to attempt to help feed their family.  Some children however are determined to go to school even with an empty stomach.

Layaway has been popular for the past decades and was put into hold and was erased by the rise of credit cards.  However, this program which lets the customer put a purchase aside without having to pay it in full upfront has come to a minor come back.  Thanks to the credit crunch, layaway has been resurrected just in time for the holidays.

I have started purchasing Christmas gifts for my siblings.  I didn’t get to buy much as the prices of gift items have gone up which is not surprising with our ailing economy.  Luckily, I didn’t buy all the stuff that I need because Kmart Layaway will come to the rescue of being able to put aside (or reserve) your purchase without spending a lump sum of money.  You can pay it every two weeks and when you paid it in full, you can take it home with you.  Now, I can continue shopping for the holiday especially that it is coming right up so soon.  A 1080p LCD HDTV will be just right for me and Travis to have a nice start of the year with a new Home Theatre system.

The Kmart Layaway program is a better alternative to the credit card to avoid the sky-rocketing interest rates.  This is very ideal for those who are in pinch. I say this come back of the Layaway was definitely right on time!

Layaway became popular by allowing shoppers to make incremental payments for larger purchases and gift items. “This holiday we know that savvy consumers want to hold onto their ready cash and don’t want to tie up their credit or incur interest charges on the cost of a purchase. Yet, they still want to make Christmas happen for their families,” said Susan Ehrlich, head of Financial Services, Kmart.

This sad love song has been playing in my mind since yesterday.  This song was from a Filipino Band called Zoo from their Album Zoology.  It was sung by Arnel Pineda their lead vocalist now Journey’s lead singer replacing the original lead Steve Perry.  Arnel Pineda’s life story is very colorful and if one would take the time to read his biography, you will definitely be inspired and be proud of him for having made it this far.

The song is filled with meaning that it brings back all the good times and bad that Travis and I have been through.  The song has brought me back to those years and it has filled me now with so much joy that I have made a good decision of taking the journey of life with him.

Hubby,

I will continue to love you and support you whatever trials we have to face.  We have weathered storms and it has made us closer and our love stronger.  I am always here by your side.  Whether we made good or bad decisions, the important thing is we are together.  There’s nothing we cannot do if we are together side by side holding each others hands.

I love you, My Travis… forevermore!

Hello Everyone!

Once you read this post, you may have already noticed the changes that multiply has. Below are some of the things we noticed that has changed and it is for the better. Recipes and Marketplace options are back… so get those ingredients ready coz we’re gonna rock the kitchen!!!

Here are just short list of them:

• Re-arrangement of global navigation
• New default theme for newly created user (also available for old users)
• Additional themes for selection (polled from group)
• Recipes and Market are back!
• New default posting option (Everyone, Network, etc.)
• More options on Custom Filter
• Some hardcoded styles in HTML are removed (good news for theme designers)
• Multimedia reply, WOW!!! (look at the right hand of comment entry)
• more, later…

Some glitches (or unwanted changes) though,

• Mini-profile hover is not an option anymore, its a default (I don’t like this)
• more, later…

Enjoy, go forth and Multiply!

We all knew that it’s gonna be a girl and we have been waiting for her arrival. Finally, Melody gave birth to her baby girl – KAITLYN HOPE SCHIFANO. Congratulations to you and Ralph! We are filled with joy. Now, we got an addition to the FilHaven Family!
Momita made another one just for Kaitlyn.