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Okay folks. We know that most of us use Credit Cards. We usually use it for major purchases and sometimes we use it for groceries as well. We know how important it is to have a credit card. The thing is, we don’t normally get the interest rates that we were used to back eight or ten years ago. The interest rates per credit card can now vary between 17.99% to 35%. If you haven’t checked your credit card statements lately, you may be in for a surprise. Interest can add up and interest on interest can make it harder for you to pay off your debt.

They say that if you borrow one thousand dollars and pay only the minimum each month, you will end up paying more than twice that amount in interest if you ever pay it off. That’s not quite clever if you are trying to break free from debt. What you have to do is to re-assess your finances, pull out all your credit card statements and perform a quarterly review. Then, pick the one with the highest interest rate and pay that off first. Better yet, try to find another credit card that charges the least interest rate (zero interest if you have them) and transfer the high-interest debt into it. (Make sure you read the fine print as sometimes they can charge you for the transfer as well) Visit Card Hub and compare credit cards. Choose the one that is best for you and apply for it. Sometimes, transferring a debt from one card to another – even with the associated fees – could still save you money in the long run.

Card Hub is a search tool that allows you to customize your search for a credit card by inputting a few criteria and getting the result real time.  The greatest benefit one would find is the easy way to search for a card that meets your needs.  I did a search myself – I looked for Personal and/or Business credit card where I care about Balance Transfers that has an introductory interest rate of 0% for more than 13 months.  I received ten cards to choose from where I can immediately apply for.  The card will allow me to have an introductory rate of 0% for 15 months on balance transfers, no annual fee, with a cash back feature on gas purchases, 3% cash back for all business purchases on certain stores and 1% on others. How could I resist that?  Weigh your options and always perform this practice at least twice a year if not quarterly and you’ll find savings that are out of this world.

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I was with my colleagues tonight at the hotel lobby watching the game between Germany and Turkey semi-finals for Euro 2008.  Germany scored first, then Turkey.  In a bit, Germany scored again leaving the score 2-1 for a bit until Turkey scored another point making it even!  The telecast was interrupted a couple of times due to bad weather that possibly affected the TV tower and it was very suspenseful.  We can only listen to the sound of what’s going on.

When the  last few minutes of the game started, Germany scored another one with 9 minutes left.  The whole lobby was  cheering and we were hoping they could make it last.  It went down to 3 minutes, then 1 minute, 30 seconds and it was done!  GERMANY WON!!!

I’m not even a big fan of football (soccer) but you get carried away with the excitement of the people everywhere.  It was infectious.  Too bad I’m going to miss the finals on Sunday as I head back home on Friday morning!  There has to be a telecast somewhere!  If I have to watch it over the internet – I will!  I can’t miss this game.

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Many of us work for companies. Some good, some bad. But we have to work for someone to earn a living and bring home the bacon. It has worked for many of us and as I understand, we have cousins who have climbed to the top of the corporate ladder. It’s well and good and some people agree that working for someone is just fine because they don’t have to worry about the business when they leave the office. They can just leave everything behind as the step out of the workplace. For some, it works well but not for others.

Since I started working, I have always wanted to own my business. I started a Balikbayan box business back in 1992 but the hardwork lies in picking up the boxes and filling a 20 foot container with boxes. It’s a hard task to fill because it requires a lot of boxes in order to fill a 20 foot container. That is unless we co-load our boxes which would be priced a lot higher than shipping our own container. I dabbled into other things like Balik Regalo and eBay. But now, I really want to put up a business that the family can share.

Small Business Financing isn’t hard to obtain most specially for minorities like us and most specially for women. Women owning their own business has increased dramatically within the last twenty years. They practically run a lot of small businesses these days.

Does anyone have any good ideas? Please comment and let us know – we may just take up your ideas.

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I was speaking with Ate Vina yesterday and we decided that we will have a reunion in Maryland, Christmas 2008.  Whoever can make it will be more than welcome to join and be a part of the fun.  It’s not mandatory and we’re not making it mandatory.  We are just providing information way ahead of time so you can prepare and take the days off that you need or even prepare for transport and sleeping arrangements before it happens.

Organizing a reunion is not easy after all.  There are a lot of scheduling conflicts, driving and sleeping arrangements.  But if we are to come as one and discuss this – we can straighten every issue up before the big day.  Just let us know and we will be glad to provide the details.

We will be announcing thee reunion schedule soon.  So please come back and check out the blog often.

Cheers!!

Family Reunion Organizers

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Do we have lawyers in our family? We seem to have a lot of doctors, nurses, medical technologists and accountants in our family but I am not aware of anyone who is a lawyer. I believe that Nanay and Tatay studied law but never practiced. I am not sure if Tito Naning was a lawyer. Going to law school is a big deal here in the U.S. and it takes a lot of years before you can graduate. I had a friend in Baltimore who started law school at a very young age. I think by the time he was able to practice as a public defender, he was already thirty-two years old.

But after graduation, I bet that it could be a cake job. He will go into work at 8:00 a.m. and be home by 12:00 p.m. every day! I would ask him how he gets to leave early for work every day and still receive a full-time pay? He would tell me that although there are many documentation required of lawyers to finish, legal documents, and the like are created in templates. All they do is follow the templates and fill in the information needed for their cases and their done! Isn’t that amazing?

Websites are popping up everywhere providing lawyers access to legal documents. Actually, they provide lawyers with extraordinary access to hundreds of thousands of corporate/transactional documents and millions of deal clauses, created by attorneys from leading U.S. firms. It’s a database filled with necessary documents needed for cases and what a breeze it is for lawyers these days huh? And these are not just any documents – they were “prepared” by actual attorneys from leading U.S. firms. SO, it’s definitely something you can trust and use.  Well, I guess lawyers already went through the hard work of studying all those years – - the last thing they need is to create legal documents from scratch every time they have a case.  It’s a good break.  Any lawyers in our family in the future?  This is one facet of being a lawyer you don’t have to worry about – - just remember, it’s available.

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Manny Pacquiao is set to fight the World Boxing Council lightweight, David Diaz at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. I’m sure Pay Per View will be raking in some big bucks for this fight. Many Filipinos across the globe would like to see the fight and sure enough, this will be another one that could top all records.

According to Jim Strickland, David Diaz’s trainer – Manny Pacquiao is up against a big hitter. This could be an interesting fight. Anybody watching? Call us, so we can watch the game at your house.

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I think teens should go to camp and experience what it has to offer. Experiencing camp is the best. You get to meet friends, earn lasting friendships and form bonds that you wouldn’t usually get anywhere else. It’s not easy being a teenager. There needs to be a connection with someone when you’re going through your teenage years. It’s hard enough that your body is going through all the changes, it’s even harder if there is no one you can connect with. That’s why I highly recommend it.

I remember while growing up, Kuya Rommel used to head a “Boy Scout Club” within our neighborhood in Baclaran. The kids gather as if they are boy scouts, we follow rules, learn how to do knots, and even camp at the “bodega” above Tita Conching’s store. It was filled with lasting memories of friends having fun and enjoying each other’s company. My friendships with the neighborhood kids are still intact. We haven’t lost touch that much. I still keep in touch with Boogie, Bobby, Toto and Eric. I still believe that we experienced something together that kept that bond.

Here in the U.S., there is also what they call a teen boy weight loss camp. If you’re a teen and if you’re a bit overweight – you suffer the same stigma. You feel insecure, you don’t really feel like associating with the “popular kids” with fear of being ridiculed. Going to a weight loss camp can help your teen lose the weight and feel more confident about himself. He will gain the friendships that could last a lifetime in the process as well. If you have a teenager going through a rough time because of weight issues – you may want to send him through the weight loss camp. It will be an experience of a lifetime.

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There have been 70 official death toll announced from the ferry liner that sank during the storm.  More bodies were found just recently and has not been added to the total count.  There are 48 known survivors but the rest look bleak.  The Philippine Coast Guard continues  to search for more bodies with the help of an American reconnaissance aircraft who joined the search.

This is such sad news and we pray with the families whose loss is immense because of this tragedy.   Let’s hope and pray that there would be more survivors found although it is highly unlikely.

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The younger generations are apt to the rigors of email and internet surfing. You can utter the word SPAM and Email Hoax as well as Snopes and they will know what we mean. They even know what phishing means. These are words that have evolved through time over the internet. Kids are more used to using the net than most baby boomers do and of course, the baby boomers do try their best to adjust to the technology. They try to use email and the web and they are becoming very good at it.

However, not a lot of people from that age group are aware of email scams and fraudulent activities. Ate Agnes told me a story about a friend of hers who became a victim of email fraud. He was promised a large amount of inheritance from a man in Nigeria (any kid would know exactly that Nigeria has been used a million times for fraud and are aware to delete these types of email), and sent $1,250.00 of his money over to a bank he doesn’t even know so that he could claim a huge amount of inheritance. The person corresponding with him was sending him totally fraudulent documents that appear authentic to a newbie but not to a savvy internet user.

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I’ve been in Germany almost a month this week.  The three weeks that passed seemed like yesterday.  The last week however, is dragging like molasses.  Only a few more days and I get to go home and sleep on my own bed.  It’s been a good month here – the people are very nice and they have taken care of me so well I must have gained 20 pounds.

Same time next week, I will be blogging from my bedroom at home in New Jersey.  It would be refreshing.

How’s everyone been?  I hope all is well and that everyone is enjoying the east coast heatwave. 

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