Noel & Via

Warning: Techspeak Topic :)

Another excuse which I failed to mention in my earlier post was that I was looking for a better blog software. So I would gladly accept any reccomendations you might have. I am currently using Movable Type 2.64, and don't get me wrong I am very happy with it. It is hosted on a server at doteasy with a 1GB of space.

So here is my situation, I want to upgrade or change my current software because I get too much comment spam. The new version of MT seems to have corrected this issue. But aside from being a paid software ($69.00), MT doesn't have a good plug-in that will allow me to easily upload and create photo albums. Right now I do the resizing and HTML creation with iPhoto. Then I manually upload the files to the server. It is okay but I am sure that there is a better way. If you know please enlighten me.

I am considering of moving to WordPress and using PhotoStack as blog and photo album tool respectively. I still have to figure out if this is the best way.

Posted by Noel at 07:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

It has been a little more than a week since we arrived in Manila (which was last Oct 8.) We have been stressed, harrassed and sick these couple of days. I owe it to Jenn to write again since she kept her promise and has started her blog, we on the other hand have been slacking off with ours. So here is a list of my excuses why we haven't had time to write:

1. I just bought a new powerbook 12" (hoowee!) and it took some time for me to set it up.

2. We have been sick. No kidding. First it was me, for about 2-3 days, who caught a cough and a cold. Now it's Via, for almost 4 days now, who has it. Must be the jetlag or the general tiredness of being back.

3. We have been refurnishing and repainting our old flat to make it look new. We sold most of our stuff when we left last year, so just have our bed and our dining table. Soon we can get a new couch and other necessary things. And I must say the new paint is looking pretty good.

4. We have been meeting family and friends. That's Manila for you, people are really close to one another. Yesterday we visited our cute little nieces, Aiyana and Amanda.

5. We are trying to catch some sleep. Not much luck in that department. The painters come at 7:30am. Meeting friends and family take until midnight. Oh well, it's fun anyway.

6. We are on dial-up. :( We just signed up for a new phone line and it's been an erratic connection ever since. One day we have a phone, the next day we don't.

7. We are busy with bazaars. I am playing out the good husband role, helping Via out with her latest project- bags to be sold in Christmas bazaars.

Posted by Noel at 03:29 PM | Permalink

For those of you who've been wondering what we're up to, well, we're back in our BELOVED Manila- trying to make sense of things back home. It's been a flurry of non-stop activity what with having painters over at our home, slowly reuniting with family and sets of friends, battling it out with the flu (yes, Noel and I both had it- probably readjusting to our pollution here and just general strength depletion) and getting ready for my first project of joining the annual Christmas bazaars. We also have a children's party to attend on Saturday and my gradeschool friend's wedding on Sunday.

People have been asking us if we've been able to catch the latest programs on TV and have been able to eat at our favorite food haunts again. And how we came to our decision and did we regret having moved to Italy at all. And we find ourselves always thoughtful when we reply. If we hadn't moved to Italy, we wouldn't have left our comfort zones, we wouldn't have breathed and lived the many parts of Europe we were so lucky to visit, I wouldn't have learned Italian, Noel and I wouldn't have had to rely on each other as much as we had had to and most of all, we would never have known the fantastic people who shared this completely unforgettable ride with us- the wonderful friends we made in Ivrea, Torino and Munich- Friends we'd like to keep. You know who you are. :)

p.s. Jenn, how come we can't post a commetn in your site? :(

Posted by Via at 03:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

I am anxious, every night I think to myself: what now? what next? I can hardly sleep. This is what is occupying my mind now, and why I haven't been writing. Aside from the fact that we have been real busy these days. But I see that things will be settling down soon. Expect changes to this site as we are having some changes of our own.

Posted by Noel at 06:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Unbelievable. UNBELIEVABLE. Simply amazing. I am once again left with no words to express how helplessly one is rendered when one cannot withdraw from the ATM machine overseas! (referred to as Bancomat here in Ivrea, Italy, home to us for a little over a year now) Once again, the Bancomat monster strikes yet again! Greedily devouring our pesos (forgetting to spit out the equivalent 250.00 euros we needed quite badly yesterday, failing also to leave us with at least a receipt as proof that we really did not receive any moolah) And this is the 3rd time this has happened to us!!! (The first time was in Torino and the 2nd time was over the summer in Munich- thankfully we got our money back both times)

We had opted not to open a bank account here to save money. Inane as that sounds, the banks here operate in such a way that, well you pay them to keep your money as they have an annual fee of about 40-50 euros (approximately PhP 3,500.00). And the interest they give in return is a joke. In fact most Italians themselves say that their money is safer in a jar under their beds.

So off we trotted to see San Paolo, which is like our BPI back home, this morning. Thank goodness the man we spoke with was very amicable and told us he'd call us as soon as they did their daily count this afternoon. And so we wait we shall, Signore.

Posted by Via at 02:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

How much do the people who claim to be our friends really know us? Are they willing to scratch more than just the surface? Do they even think we have anything to hide? And when does a secret turn into a lie?

There is truth to the saying that the ones who laugh hardest are also the ones who shed the most tears. Or something like that.

Posted by Via at 09:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)