Benj’s Busy Blog

At seocontest2008 Yicrosoft Directory 4:00am, at the apartment complex where I live, as I was working on my PC, I hear suddenly hear some sound in the quiet surroundings. At first I was confused if it was the sound of many big drops of water or if it was the sound of the crackling of burning shrubs, bushes and other vegetation.

So I look out the window and there I find Read the rest of this entry �

No this is not about a badsense adsense techhique. And it is also not about being a black hatter and spammer. This is just about Sam Casuncad’s experiment. As he posted on a thread in the SEO Philippines forum, saying that he has finally found some keywords to target to beat the the Blackhats, Matt Cutts and Marc Macalua. Where he showed some SERP results having his pages higher than some other blackhat sites, higher than Matt Cutts and higher than Marc Macalua. He also mentions in the thread: “go and beat me if you can guys.” *LOL* Although he does mention that he is a newbie in SEO according to him and this is just basically for fun. Although I am not a sucker for this challenge as I have a lot more things worthwhile to do. Although, let’s just see how far can a push-button-flip-the-switch-instant-automatic-magic-SEO can do. If it will really make a big difference in SEO or if it will not. But if you seriously want to take Sam Casuncad’s challenge, tell him and target the keywords: Badsense Adsense Technique or Black Hatter and Spammer.

As of this writing, I am mad; the description fuming just could not contain the emotion I was trying to relieve.
Most of you know the type of work I do, my day job, besides the occasional sculpting projects I enjoy. But for others who still haven’t got a clue, I was privileged to be hired as an online comics illustrator at one of the top outsourcing companies of the best web designers, developers, and artists here in the Philippines, bar none. We work according to Philippine laws, pay our taxes. Our company provides work to almost 400 talented Filipinos.

Now granted, some of our clients and some of our works deal with adult materials, but none of them illegal, based on the vague anti-pornography laws we have here. Just how vague? More is explained in this news clip: http://www.gmanews.tv/video/5636/Lack-of-law-hinders-fight-vs-cyberporn USCIS on Global Warming

Now, some unscrupulous people under the guise of Investigative Journalism are trying to destroy the business our good employers and we are trying very hard to establish by taking that vague law and twisting it to serve their selfish evil schemes.

I’m not going to beat around the bush and I’ll come right out: They are extorting money from our company and trying very hard to make our working conditions miserable by disrupting our work schedules, through intimidation and harassment by their paid goons or associates and threatening us through trial by publicity (why else would you have a camera crew in hand?).

Our employers have had enough of this and decided to stand up for it, knowing we are not doing anything illegal. You can read how we scored some points in this news article here: http://uw.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=73466

Now we’re guessing this is something their egos couldn’t take, so they are getting back at us, always some sort of unauthorized raid (no search or arrest warrants) is going on, treating us like we’re effing criminals, treating our female employees with disrespect, disrupting our outsourcing business and scaring off potential clients in the process. Like most of my peers, I’m fed up. I have to take action. What better way could I have done? Who can I turn to? Who can I trust? If some government agents are on the take, if journalists of high regard like the Tulfos can threaten anyone with trial by publicity if they are not happy with the amount of payola they receive, what other options are left at my disposal?

How about trial by exposé? I’m going to expose their wicked ways through blogs, the one media they could not control. To destroy what little credibility they have left, credibility they probably acquired through intimidation, threats and manhandling little folks like us.

So I’m humbly requesting those of you who’ve read this, especially Filipino artists among you, to please repost it in your blogs and other journals. Through this minor effort, I want to show them that not all of us can be intimidated and are willing to stand up to being bullied. If no one else’s going to stand up against these extortionist bullies now, who will? I do have a seething hatred for bullies, don’t you? I’m hopeful too, that this post may reach some of our still honest government agencies and maybe they could take action against these people.

The fate of 400 talented Filipinos, people that are only trying to earn an honest living in their own country, hangs in the balance. Please, we need your support.

Enough is enough. We’re taking the stand.

By an anonymous writer from iweb

I reposted this from another blog, I am not the author of this blog post, pero ito masasabi ko… if there is no law on pornography, then I see nothing wrong in what they do. Next thing na masasabi ko from an Internet marketing point of view, since target market naman nito, hindi naman mga taga Philippines, kadali lang ma-block ang Philippine-based IP addresses. So no one in the Philippines can see the site. So wala nang problem ‘di ba?

Tsikot.com has a new hot babe joining their group. Problem is, we don’t know who she is. Some kind of buzz marketing I guess. Here is my guess who is the tsikot.com babe is.

I think my guess is wrong, but join in the community on Tsikot.com. There are more reasons to go there if you are into cars.

Russian friend of mine Mishon who I also work just randomly asked me one day: Hey dude, can you do this? And he was holding a pen with his thumb and pointer finger slightly off-centered in a horizontal position, moving the pen up and down loosely held giving the illusion of a bending pen.
And I said, yeah, and just did it right away, and then I showed him the illusion of a spinning pen holding a pen between your pointer and middle finger. And then I showed him the spinning pen on your thumb. Which for me were things I did since I was kid.

He asked me where did I learn this and when did I learn it. And I cannot even give a good answer, since from where I came from, everyone seemed to know how to do it. I grew up in another country, in the Philippines and went to school there. And I believe I started spinning pens in 4th grade. Why? Because everyone else was doing it. I guess the first person I have seen it was from my cousin Jong Medrano who showed it to me and my sister started doing it to since everyone in school was doing it. I started doing it and many friends of mine were doing it. It was like a natural thing in school. And it was not only from my school, but all across the country.

Mishon was asking further why do we learn it, and I said, I really don’t know. And I said further, it is also the same reason we do book spinning. And he asked how. I just took any book and started spinning it on my finger. For some crazy reason, many people from school was doing this. And I was doing it too, sometimes you see the whole school spinning books and pens and I remember vividly my teacher Ms. Cherry Desiderio (Whom i believe has a new last name already) hated this spinning movements while in class. And if she saw anyone doing some pen spinning or book spinning, she throw away your pen or book. (But she was still one of the cool teachers I had.)

Now that made me wonder, what is it with the Philippines, that many students know pen spinning and book spinning like it is a default talent?

At the trial of Saddam Hussein, the final verdict was not led to torture but something worse. Saddam Hussein’s hanging. I am not that well versed in my history and current events, and all I knew about Saddam Hussein was his invasion attempt into Kuwait that the UN was against and the US has fought in a was against Saddam because of this invasion.

When I heard about this in the news, Saddam Hussein captured, went to trial, and will hang to death, I really do not know all the details and i checked out his biography, and his profile shows he was found guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death. His half brother and the judge at the trial of the original case in 1982 were also convicted of similar charges.

Below is the video of Saddam Hussein’s hanging.

I still remember vividly 3 people that told me to watch the movie A Beautiful Mind. I do not want to give names but I will tell you some background about them and about the event when they told me to watch the movie.

• A woman who I used to train in programming - Why she thought of recommending me the movie was I guess maybe my teaching reminded her of the movie. Many of things I was teaching her did not come from a book of techniques on how to do certain simple programming algorithms. But I just based everything from the programming language manual or reference book. When encountered with a problem, I just come up with a solution with the known functions I have. And in the middle of teaching her, she tells me: “You know what? If you learn this other language, I think you will do good to. Have you watched A beautiful mind?” I said no and she told me i should watch it.
• A priest who was in a small group of parishioners in a somewhat prayer group - This once a month meeting of this group at church would read the readings and Gospel of the Catholic religion for the week of that meeting and reflect on it giving their own reflections and then do some prayer afterwards. As we were seated in a circle as everyone was sharing their reflections and sometimes the priest would call out someone to share just to make them share when no one else volunteers. When I was called, I simply said, I have nothing to say with a smile. And the members of the group were encouraging me to say something, any reflection I had and maybe they were assuming I was shy. And all I said was everyone said everything already. During that time was also the birthday celebration of some of the members and after the meeting was a mini party just eating some specially prepared food. And while I was sitting and talking with one of the members who was my long time friend, the priest sits near us but no one was talking. And just to break the ice, I told the priest: “Fr., the reason I had no reflection to share to anyone was because my reflection is so different that it might change the minds of many. And I do not want to influence them.” The priest got intrigued and asked more about it, although I made it clear that my reflection is not against any teaching and even augments it better, but many of my reflections involve a lot of science and our conversation went on and on. And the priest was not contradicting my ideas but seemed amazed with what I had to say. But since he was busy and needed to talk to many people, he ended our conversation saying: “Have you watched the movie A Beautiful Mind?” Again I said no and the priest highly recommended it saying: “You should watch it, it is good for analytical thinking, for intellectuals.” And all I said was, ok, I will watch it someday.
• Someone I used to work with in a company - It was lunch time and in this company I used to work straight without breaks and my lunch was only 30 minutes or less. Maybe I was trying to impress the company then since I was still new in the company but as time passed by, I knew I was over working myself and was starting to take my breaks to the maximum possible time. And during lunch, I would eat fast, and after eating, I solve a Sudoku puzzle trying to solve it quickly and was challenging myself every time to finish it within my required break time. And he was watching me solve it just writing numbers and he asked: “Are you solving that?” And I said yes and he says: “But you should not repeat a number on a line…” and continues on telling me about all the rules of the puzzle. And I say, yes, I know, and he says: “And you are not using a pencil? What if the numbers are wrong?” And I say, well they are right. “And if I am not sure with the answer, I do not write it down.” And he asks: “How sure are you that those are right?” And I say: “Where am I wrong?” Looks like he can’t point it out either, but was wondering why I was solving it fast, and he then asks: “Have you finished any of these?” And I said: “Yes, I just finished one here, but this is at level easy.” Then he says: “You should watch A Beautiful Mind.” And I say: “You know what? You are the third person that told me that.” And he says: “You should, if you are solving Sudoku that fast just by looking at it, that movie is for you.”

Ok, all of those were some number of years ago already. And here comes the opportunity to watch it. I finally decided to watch the movie. I just finished watching the movie and is making this blog post right after watching it. All I can say is, these three people that were very enthusiastic in telling me to watch the movie, like there was some great mission to watch it, for me is just a so-so movie. Not really a big deal. It had nothing to do with thinking, it had nothing to do with analyzing things in the movie which I was expecting this movie to be a thinking movie. Something that was like solving a puzzle or something. It is nothing but a drama movie of the life of Dr. John Nash.

Now before I continue, do not get me wrong that I am saying this movie is not a good movie. It is in fact a great movie with 4 Academy Awards, and Dr. John Nash is one of the greatest mathematicians also. But all I am saying is this movie had nothing to do with the reason I was told to watch it.

• Do they think I am a great thinker, some analyst like John Nash? I believe not, I am just Benj Arriola. Although I may like the sciences, my knowledge is no where close to anyone with a PhD in Math or any natural science. None of my college professors nor classmates would say that. But these people that told me to watch it had no science degree background as well. Although these things may seem simple to many people that do the same things I do, but for the unknowledgeable, they think I am doing something great already. It is just like an ordinary person that finds a medical doctor smart simply because they are not knowledgeable, but among the peers of doctors, some doctors are just simple doctors like any other doctor. Let’s say Pacquiao is admired by many boxers, but Pacquiao admires Efren Bata Reyes’ billiard skills because he is less skill than Efren Bata is. These people that told me to watch the movie maybe thought that I should watch the movie because I am smart or something, I think not. I am just the ordinary Benj that just knew a little extra of what they did not know and I am sure they also know something I don’t.
• Do they think I have the potential to think of something great? Well I think yes in small stuff, but not as the magnitude as shown in the movie. A total disconnect, but for the people that may have thought of it that way, well all I can say is thanks. But I am sure they themselves have their own great potentials in themselves that maybe they just haven’t seen yet.
• Do they think I am thinking too much that I am going nuts? Hahaha maybe. Nyhahahahaha. Well many great thinkers really go nuts sometimes. When I was in college, I can think of 2 professors that were nearly by the borderline of going nuts. One of them reads NMR spectra as if she was reading a book of fairly tails and gives the summary already looking at these 2D graphs in crazy lines. The other was an excellent physicist, that at the end of every class, her clothes look like it was used to erase the whole blackboard. I have heard about another professor that I was not a student of and was in another neighboring school that dragged his chalk box on a string and would walk backwards on stairs. But all of them had this incredible mathematical ability.

To me the movie is nothing but a feel good movie of triumph. It is not different from a sports oriented movie when someone starts out losing in the beginning and starts working on their weaknesses and becomes triumphant in the end. And along the way, the movie highlights all the drama involved in this quest for success. In some movies it can be a game of basketball, football, karate match, whatever, but in this case, it was with one’s own mind in dealing with schizophrenia. Generally, I like the movie. It is good. I loved watching it because of the drama of success, and overcoming weaknesses, but I would not say I would love the movie because it is for thinkers and analytical thinking. The movie does not go into that details. It is not about the specific computations John Nash had in his life. It was all about John Nash’s life, his personal life and problems and how he dealt with it.

You still have time for your last minute holiday shopping. If you think that will just make you spend some more money, check some online discounts you can get with coupons. Me being an electronics/computer guy, I think I will use one of the Best Buy coupons myself at www.couponchief.com. It’s still not too late for your holiday shopping!

Before 2007

• Finish all client projects - Probably one of the toughest, but I will push through with it.
• Answer client calls - I still have many pending issues, either by email, voicemail, or our support ticket system. Projects are overwhelming and just taking over the time of everything.
• Fix up room - Due to all client projects, this is what is also delaying everything else in my life.
• Greet everyone - I am not done with all my Christmas greetings. It is still a long way to go but I have partially sent all my ecards already.

In 2007

• Get back in shape - Especially in cardiovascular endurance. It is more of a psychological war to me than a physical limitation since I tend to compare myself to my physical abilities in the past when I was competitive in various sports and I tend to compare what I can do before and what can I do today and this has depleted over time. Which sets frustrations in. Unlike if I was just starting and was unaware of my past, it would be easier.
• Concentrate on customer support - I am considering on adding a good CRM system, and concentrate more of the production processes than doing production itself.
• Develop production teams - And since I am not going to concentrate on production, I will develop production teams of my own. Sometimes I can never be contented with the code and I am strict with the code. So hopefully, I get to find the right people to do it that has nice and clean code.
• Fix computers - Basically my workstations, I have 1 windows PC running and 1 laptop, both on dual monitors. My Mac is temporarily not used because of the convenience I get with dual monitors on my PC and I have no monitor for the Mac. I have 2 more PCs that are not running that I will fix where one will be my Linux workstation and the other I will give away or sell.
• Sell printers, scanners and photocopier and maybe my fax machine too - I will buy a 4-in-1 color laser printer, copier, scanner fax machine probably, it will be a space saver in my small office-home office setup.
• File management - if my room is a mess, so are some of my files. And have a better organized backup system.
• Watch more movies - Mainly not for recreation, but awareness of trends. Awareness of the market. I will just probably sign up with Netflicks and watch at home.
• Attend tradeshows - This can be expensive, so I will probably just attend 2 or 3. I am targeting Search Engine Strategies, Search Marketing Expo and maybe Webmaster World’s Pubcon.
• Go to church more often - Although I have my own meaning of the church, my own definitions, my own belief, I believe I am not in conflict with the teachings. I may even augment and strengthen my faith, but if I share it with others, it might just confuse other people and they will say I am weird or something. So i do not share my belief, but my belief is basically having my religion entangled with science and they are actually united in a way and are not divided as some people may think.
• Get a new video camera - The Internet is all about video next year. More Internet marketing activities will involve a lot of rich media, so I need a video camera, and will start working on some video editing skills, and if time permits it, try working with some animations as well.
• Get a new lens for my digital camera - Maybe a lens with a better aperture and some F-stops and will try to do some magic with my amateur photography skills.
• Speaking engagements - Will probably talk more in mini shows, mini conventions, small training seminars I can arrange. Probably both in the US and in the Philippines.
• Buy some VOIP hardware setup - This is for better customer support as I will have someone dedicated to work for me on the other end of the world for my US customers, who can also immediately implement some technical help needed. With this setup, which I do not plan to abuse also, but I can use after office hours for cheaper calls to my family by installing a VOIP gateway as well on the other end.

So far I only have those to do. Maybe even more but I haven’t planned it out that well yet. Let’s see.

Actually Santa Clause did not wear red and had no specific color and was often dressed up in red, blue, green, or purple. Until a Boston printer named Louis Prang introduced the English custom of Christmas cards to America, and in 1885 he issued a card featuring a red-suited Santa. This version of Santa was then starting to replace all other colored Santa Clauses.

Although some people believe the red Santa Clause was made by the Coca Cola Corporation, this is not true, although Coke helped in making the red Santa Clause the more ubiquitous as they used the red Santa Clause in their marketing campaigns as early as the 1930s. And that kind of closed the choices of colors and red is already like the uninanimous known color of Santa Clause.

I wonder what would have happened if an artist kept using other colors and Pepsi would be the first one to use Santa Clause massively in their marketing campaigns? A blue Santa would emerge?

Here is a video greeting by people I used to work with. I guess all we need is a blue Santa to brighten up our day.

Coke and Pepsi are registered trademarks of their respective companies. Benj Arriola thinks the people working at Geary Interactive are cool. Benj Arriola is no longer connected in anyway to Geary Interactive except for maintaining friendship with the people that work there.

Colors on Santa Clause if Pepsi was first to use Santa Clause in their marketing campaigns is just my personal opinion and do not reflect the opinions of any company mentioned, nor their management, staff and employees.

If you are ever going to go to Scottsdale Arizona, I recommended you checking out the Rawhide theme park that gives you are feel of the 1880’s. If you like this area, maybe it would even be great to live in Scottsdale too! I believe Scottsdale Realtors would agree that the real estate there is not as crazy as San Diego.