Music Monday: Katy Perry

In Continuance of featuring the singles that hit the Top 100 Billboard singles for 2009 (I have started it in 1027 Music Central) Here is Katy Perry with her single Waking up in Vegas that has hit a peak of #9 in the Billboard charts.

Excel Video Tutorial

I know that MS Excel is one of the basic computer applications that a Call Center Employee must have. With the different Operating Systems that have been released plus the difference in terms of the versions of the MS Office Excel software, it has become rather confusing for those that are new to it. So to help those of you who are still puzzled or if you just want a refresher, I have compiled a couple of Youtube video tutorials that will teach you step by step on how to navigate around and use MS Excel.

Billboard's Top 100 Singles for 2009

With the Year Coming to an End Here are the Billboard's TOP 100 Singles for 2009:

Entry Date	Single	Artist	Peak	Peak Reached	Weeks in Top 10
January 24	"Gives You Hell"	The All-American Rejects	4	March 7	14
February 7	"My Life Would Suck Without You"	Kelly Clarkson	1	February 7	10
February 7	"You Found Me"	The Fray	7	February 14	6
February 21	"Dead and Gone"	T.I. featuring Justin Timberlake	2	February 28	13
February 21	"Crack a Bottle"	Eminem, Dr. Dre and 50 Cent	1	February 21	4
February 28	"Right Round"	Flo Rida	1	February 28	13
February 28	"Poker Face"	Lady Gaga	1	April 11	18
March 7	"Kiss Me Thru the Phone"	Soulja Boy Tell 'Em featuring Sammie	3	April 4	13
March 21	"The Climb"	Miley Cyrus	4	May 2	8
March 21	"Blame It"	Jamie Foxx featuring T-Pain	2	May 16	14
April 4	"I Told You So"	Carrie Underwood featuring Randy Travis	9	April 4	1
April 11	"Love Sex Magic"	Ciara featuring Justin Timberlake	10	April 11	1
April 18	"Boom Boom Pow"	Black Eyed Peas	1	April 18	19
April 18	"Day 'n' Nite"	Kid Cudi	3	May 9	9
May 2	"We Made You"	Eminem	9	May 2	1
May 9	"Sugar"	Flo Rida featuring Wynter	5	May 16	4
May 9	"Halo"	Beyoncé	5	May 23	8
May 16	"Don't Trust Me"	3OH!3	7	May 30	3
May 30	"I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)"	Pitbull	2	June 20	10
May 30	"Birthday Sex"	Jeremih	4	June 13	10
June 6	"Don't Stop Believin'"	Glee cast	4	June 6	1
June 6	"New Divide"	Linkin Park	6	June 6	3
June 6	"Waking Up in Vegas"	Katy Perry	9	August 8	4
June 13	"Knock You Down"	Keri Hilson featuring Kanye West and Ne-Yo	3	June 20	14
June 13	"Fire Burning"	Sean Kingston	5	July 25	11
June 13	"LoveGame"	Lady Gaga	5	June 27	10
June 20	"Second Chance"	Shinedown	7	June 20	3
June 27	"I Gotta Feeling"	Black Eyed Peas	1	July 11	20
July 4	"Best I Ever Had"	Drake	2	July 25	12
July 4	"Every Girl"	Young Money Entertainment	10	July 4	1
July 18	"You Belong With Me"	Taylor Swift	2	August 22	16
July 25	"He Could Be the One"	Hannah Montana	10	July 25	1
August 8	"Use Somebody"	Kings of Leon	4	September 12	12
August 8	"Battlefield"	Jordin Sparks	10	August 8	1
August 15	"Down"	Jay Sean featuring Lil Wayne	1	October 17	21+
August 15	"Good Girls Go Bad"	Cobra Starship featuring Leighton Meester	7	August 22	6
August 22	"Hotel Room Service"	Pitbull	8	September 19	6
August 29	"Party in the U.S.A."	Miley Cyrus	2	August 29	14
August 29	"Run This Town"	Jay-Z featuring Rihanna and Kanye West	2	October 3	12
September 19	"Obsessed"	Mariah Carey	7	September 19	4
September 19	"Whatcha Say"	Jason DeRulo	1	November 14	16+
October 3	"Empire State of Mind"	Jay-Z featuring Alicia Keys	1	November 28	11+
October 3	"Paparazzi"	Lady Gaga	6	October 17	10
October 3	"Forever"	Drake featuring Kanye West, Lil Wayne, & Eminem	8	October 3	1
October 24	"3"	Britney Spears	1	October 24	11+
October 24	"Fireflies"	Owl City	1	November 7	11+
October 31	"Meet Me Halfway"	Black Eyed Peas	7	November 7	6+
November 7	"Sweet Dreams"	Beyoncé	10	November 7	2
November 14	"Bad Romance"	Lady Gaga	2	December 5	6+
November 14	"Jump Then Fall"	Taylor Swift	10	November 14	1
November 21	"Replay"	Iyaz	4	November 21	7+
November 21	"Russian Roulette"	Rihanna	9	November 21	1
November 28	"Need You Now"	Lady Antebellum	5	November 28	1
December 5	"Sexy Chick"	David Guetta featuring Akon	6	December 26	5+

I shall be featuring each one on my other blog 1027 Music Central. See you there :) xoxo

Relaxation tips for the Interview

I have been interviewing a lot of people for call center posts for a long time now. One thing that I have noticed is that the people that make it most of the time are the people who are calm and composed during their interview session. People that are too shy, or over confident get booted out immediately. Those that show a bit of humor and is quick to think out of the box get the best deals in terms of pay and job opportunity. So one of my readers have asked me what can I do to relax during an interview.

Here is what I found from Health Writer Gavin Evans:

1. Have a good night's sleep:
If you arrive exhausted your eyes and body language will probably show it. You won't be quite as sharp as you could be and you may well compensate by coming across as over-anxious.

2. Dress right:
Not the same thing as dressing smart or dressing to kill, but more a case of dressing in a way that is consistent with the impression you want to create. This will not only aid your self-presentation directly but may also make you more relaxed - knowing that you've hit the sartorial mark.

3. Eat right:
Particularly if like most of us your tummy goes funny before the big event. It's usually worth avoiding too much high fibre food (like bran and other cereals and most fruits and vegetables), and to think in terms of binding, starchy carbohydrates like pasta, which will store up your energy reserves. Also think carefully before snacking on a Mars Bar and gulping down a Caffe latte because the "rush" from sugar and caffeine might speed you up too much, too quickly.

4. Make the interview your day's sole priority:
This doesn't mean getting over-excited or obsessed about it, but rather preparing properly. Think about your diet that day, your relaxation techniques, your departure time, the possible questions, how you will present yourself, the small talk even.

5. Chill out:
The ideal is to feel at one with your interviewers and comfortable in your own skin. My own favourite is to go for a half hour morning run which puts me in the right frame of mind, but anything that works for you is worth the effort: A few minutes of quiet, eyes-closed, vacant-minded meditation; two or three deep yoga stretches; a long, hot bath, whatever it takes.

6. Go with the music:
It doesn't work for the tone deaf, but the running Ally McBeal office joke on the relation between mood and music is more ancient wisdom than contemporary American fad. But before bunging in that CD and clapping on those headphones make sure you choose something that fits your needs: soothing, abstract, Simply the Best, whatever.

7. Arrive in good time:
There's nothing more agitating than finding yourself in a tailback with five minutes to go. So plan your route and give yourself at least half an hour's leeway. If you get there too early, have a glass of water, settle yourself and get used to the environment.

8. Watch your bowels:
Think about it - the worst thing that could happen is a sudden urge to empty them two minutes before you're called to account for yourself. So try to "factor-in" a relaxed toilet break, with plenty of room for slack, so to speak.

9. Don't take them too seriously:
Your interviewers may hold your future in their palms, but deep down they're probably just as insecure and hung-up as you, and remember, they also had to sit there once upon a time. The point is they're just ordinary human beings and often the best way to get through is to relate to their humanity.

10. Prepare for surprises:
Interviewers tend to slot into roles, often without realising it. You get your devil's advocate, your inquisitor, your soul searcher, good cop, bad cop. It's easy to prepare for their standard questions - "why do you think we should employ you?" "describe your strengths/weaknesses?" "why do you want to be an investment banker/rocket scientist/secret agent?" , "why do you want to work here?"

You may also be judged more on how you deal with the loose ball. I was once thrown by: "So tell me, do you think we're a sexy company?" Often it's not so much what you say but how you respond. A smile, a chuckle and then a moment's thought can go a long way.

Hope this helps you guys out. Till the next time. :) xoxo

Food Friday: Korean Kimchi

I know this article may be a bit delayed but I was so caught up watching this Korean show called Shining Inheritance. In the show they featured a lot of Korean Kimchi. It was included in most the meals that they ate on the show so I guess you can say I was compelled to figure out how to make the stuff. Apparently a lot of variations can be made for this particular delicacy so to help you get started I found an actual site that has the basic ingredients plus the video in making the Korean Dish.

Here is the Traditional Kim Chi Recipe

I also found a cool tutorial on how to make your own kimchi at home if you are the type who likes to watch how things are done:

Travel Thursday: Elicon House Cebu

I was asked by a friend to look around the internet for a nice and comfortable place to stay in while they will be Cebu City, Philippines. So I let my fingers do the walking and I found this rather cool place called Elicon House.

I would love to talk more about it but I would rather that you read it from the source of someone that has stayed in the house and tried their services.

But for quick reference here are their contact details:
Elicon House
P. Del Rosario Street, Cebu City, 6000 Cebu, Philippines
Phone: (032) 255-0300
(032) 255-0400
(032) 253-9189
Sun: 0922-8228644
Globe: 0916-4263443
Fax: (032) 253-0367
E-mail: elicon@mayflowerhotelsandproperties.com

To view the review of this rest house in Cebu simply click this link: Elicon House

As a special treat for those that are planning to visit this Island in the South of Luzon here are some quick facts:

Often called the Queen City of the South and the Seat of Christianity in the Philippines , Cebu is the country's oldest city. Exploring Cebu City , one encounters a rich historic past. Cebuanos are extremely proud of their cultural and historical heritage, a legacy which has endured through the centuries from the time the great explorer Ferdinand Magellan first planted the cross on Cebu 's shore. Time has been kind to Cebu . From Zubu, the busy trading port in 1521, it has evolved into a highly urbanized metropolitan center which now serves as focal point of growth and development in Southern Philippines.

Cebu has at least nine economic zones that offer to cut bureaucratic red tape by providing a much easier system for investors, plus incentives.

Cebu is number one because of good fiscal management: it ranks highest among the countrys provinces in terms of assets and cash in bank.

Most importantly, Cebu ranks number one because of the current unity that has never before been seen in any province: unity among elected officials, unity among business groups, unity among its people, and unity between the private and public sectors.

There are many universities and other educational institutions that serve as magnet to students from other provinces, a major factor of a highly skilled and efficient workforce in Cebu.

Overall, Cebu continues to excel and investors are drawn to Cebu because of the culture of professionalism and craftsmanship among its people, the vast highly skilled manpower resources resilient amid trying times, its fair weather, relative peace and business-friendly atmosphere.

Here is a video that I found on Youtube that talks more about the Exotic Island of the Philippines:

Wellness Wed: Eating Vegetables can be Sexy

Kim has definitely put the sizzle into eating healthy salads. It is true that eating salads is the best way to loose weight and stay fit. It helps us stay young with all the anti-oxidants it contains and much more. So here is Kim to show you just how it should be done :)

Tech Tuesday: Sony Vaio X Series

While going through the mall the other week I got wind of and was able to try out Sony Vaio's hot new gadget. A bit pricey though but a definite eye candy. Though I have to say without a Disc Drive and it being wafer thin at 11 inches this is probably the netbook(mini-notebook) for those with the guts or the money to extravagantly splurge on it.

To show you what a pricey netbook from Sony can give you, here are the specs:
- 2GHz Intel Atom Processor
- 533Mhz Front Side Bus Speed
- Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 500 dengan Intel® System Controller Hub US15W Chipset
- Up to 128GB Solid State Drive
- 2GB DDR2 SDRAM
- QWERTY keyboard, 82 kyes with 1.2mm stroke and 17mm pitch
- Display 11.1 inci x-black widescreen LCD dengan teknologi backlight LED 1366 x 768 Resolution
- Intel High Definition Audio
- WiFi Atheros 802.11b/g/n
- Bluetooth
- VGA Port
- Verizon Wireless Mobile Broadband Built-In (3G Modem)
- 10Base-T/100Base-TX/1000Base-T
- 2 x USB port
- microphone
- headphone jack
- Memory stick dan sdcard slot
- Webcam Motion EYE
- Windows 7 professional
- Electro-Static touch pad
- Durable Battery: Up to 3.5 hours
- Power Requirements: 38 watts or less

here is a commercial from youtube that I found about the x series:

Music Monday: Sade Adu

I was browsing through youtube today in search of new songs to download and I chanced upon this former grammy award winner Sade(pronounce as Shah Day) and was completely entranced by her. It was no doubt that she deserved the award. Her real name is Helen Folasade Adu,OBE, born 16 January 1959, better known as Sade, is a British Nigerian singer-songwriter, composer, and record producer. She first achieved success in the 1980s as the frontwoman and lead vocalist of the popular Brit and Grammy Award winning English group Sade.

Here is her single for you to enjoy:

Featured Employer: ExcelAsia Training and Development Inc

I am sure that a lot of you that have sought a career in the Call Center Industry, has probably bumped into a lot of the job ads that Excel Asia has been posting across the world wide web and are a bit confused as to the nature of this company. There are several other companies just like Excel Asia out there and many of them as well have been confused with agencies that ask their applicants for either a placement fees or a certain percentage from their salary. Excel Asia does not do that. Excel Asia's nature of business is the Sourcing side of HR with the Specialization of Executive Search, Training and Development.

Now to help you understand this a little further, let us break it down to it's simplified version - Head Hunting. Head Hunters are people that source talents and potential applicants screening them to see if they qualify the needs of their partners, which in this case are Call Centers. The Clients provide the profile and requirements of the type of applicants that they need and these head hunters seek them out. They get a fee from the said Client whenever they find a match. The fee is paid once the conditions set between the head hunter and clients are met. This is never to be taken at the cost of the applicant. Now expand that into a full blown company and you have the HR Recruitment team of Excel Asia.

Excel Asia however isn't just a Sourcing company, it also understands that there are applicants that somehow have potential to become a match and we find ways to train and coach these people to meet the client specifications. That is where the training comes in. We take a lot of pride in this, as we believe that there are people that just need a little bit of tweaking to reach their aspired goal and to of course meet and exceed Client expectations. Best of all we do this for free.

One thing that sets this company apart from all the rest is the environment that we place both our Applicants and Clients in. When one sets foot in the company, you will instantly feel the reason why a lot of people say that all of the employees are "SO EXCEL ASIA". Everyone in the company is not only exceptional as individuals, we take everyone to heart. To sum this up I guess one can say that in Excel Asia, everyone shows that we CARE. Helping people is our primary objective and ensuring that we have aided in reducing the unemployment rate in the Philippines one person at a time is its greatest fulfillment.

Best thing that you can do for now is not to simply take my word for it. I say experience it. So if you want a one stop shop for all your job seeking needs, drop by and say hi. I can guarantee that you shall receive much more than just a welcome smile in return.

Food Friday: Apple Tart Recipe

A friend of mine has shared with me an apple tart recipe that she has been following for over three years now. She mentioned that she found it somewhere in the internet three years ago and completely forgot where. However, the reason why she wanted to share this recipe to us is because she found it rather easy to follow and the tarts come out pretty well. I myself have yet to try it out and bake it but I trust her word for it. Besides, I think this would be a fun pre-christmas bonding session with the family. Hopefully there would be some left for the actual xmas date. :)

Apple Tart
For the pastry

* plain flour 6oz
* unsalted butter 75g
* caster sugar 25g
* 1 medium egg yolk
* ice cold water 2tbsp

For the filling

* 8 large eating apples
* lemon juice 3tbsp
* caster sugar 75g
* A small knob of butter

Procedure:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F, Gas 6. To make the pastry, sift the flour into a bowl and rub in the butter, chilled and diced, to make fine breadcrumbs. Stir in 25g (1oz) caster sugar, then add the egg yolk blended with the ice-cold water and mix to a soft dough. Knead lightly on a floured surface, then wrap in foil and leave in the fridge for 30 mins. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface and use to line a 23cm (9in) loose-based fluted flan tin. Chill for a further 20 mins.

2. Prick the base all over with a fork. Line the pastry case with greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans. Bake blind in the oven for 10 mins. Remove the paper and beans and cook for a further 5 mins until the pastry is just crisp and golden. Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C, 350°F, Gas 4.

3. For the filling, peel, core and chop five of the apples and place in a pan with 22ml (11/2tbsp) of the lemon juice, 50g (2oz) of the caster sugar and 30ml (2tbsp) water. Cover and cook over a low heat for 15-20 mins, stirring occasionally until apples are soft. Add a small knob of butter and mash the apples with a fork until they make a thick pulp. Leave to cool.

4. Peel, core and thinly slice the three remaining apples and toss in the rest of the lemon juice. Spread the apple pulp around the pastry case and arrange the apple slices on top. Sprinkle over the rest of the caster sugar and return to the oven for 25-30 mins until the apple slices are tender. For a really golden topping, sprinkle with a little more sugar and place under a hot grill for 2-3 mins. Can be served warm or cold.

Tech Topic: Extending Laptop battery Life

I just bought a new Compaq Presario CQ35 -109Tu(that was a mouthful) which came with the standard 6 cell battery. So far it has been able to give me an average of 1.5 to 2 hour usage time. That is pretty decent enough but it would still be great if it could last a little bit longer than that. I tried looking around ofr 9 cell and 12 cell replacements for it and found that they could cost between $56 to $149 shipping cost not included. That is quite a hefty sum to pay for extra juice. So for the meantime while I am saving up for the battery upgrade I looked around for the best way to maximize Mr. Q's Battery life. :) Cool thing is I really didn't have to go far to do this. HP had a lot of the answers that I needed.

Here is what they had:

Steps to maximize the life of your battery

There are actions you can take to make your battery last longer during each charge cycle and live longer over many cycles. HP always recommends following the instructions for charging and storage that came with the battery or notebook.

Manage battery power more effectively in Windows Make sure your battery gives the power you need, when you need it. Power Options in Windows XP/Vista/7 allow you to control the power management features of your notebook PC.

Tips for conserving battery power on notebook PCs

You can manually change the power consumption of your notebook PC and conserve battery power.

Reduce the brightness of the screen to the minimum readable level. Use the Fn and F7 or F8 keys to adjust the brightness.

Remove peripherals when not in use. External hard drives, CD-ROMs, Zip drives, PC cards, and other peripheral devices can draw power from your battery even when they are not in active use. Disconnect them when you have finished using them.

Reduce the speed of your processor. The faster your computer works, the more quickly it uses up the supply of power. By cutting down on processor speed, you can extend the charge of your battery. Methods to reduce processor speed vary from model to model, and your manual should provide instructions for doing so.

Turn off the Wireless On-Off button when it is not in use. If your notebook has one, press the Wireless On-Off button so that the light turns off.

Battery care practices
Battery cells suffer gradual, irreversible capacity loss over time. Such aging occurs more rapidly as temperature and discharge loads increase. Here are some suggested ways to minimize the capacity loss for your battery.

Store Li-Ion batteries between 20°C and 25°C (68°F and 77°F) with 30% to 50% charge. Do not leave batteries exposed to high temperatures for extended periods. Prolonged exposure to heat (for example, inside a hot car) will accelerate the deterioration of Li-Ion cells.

Remove the battery if the notebook will be stored (turned off and not plugged into AC power) for more than 2 weeks.

Remove the battery if the notebook will be plugged into AC power continuously (via a wall adapter or docking station) for more than 2 weeks.


Note: Recommendations for battery use and storage are covered in the HP User Guides for each model.

Calibrate the notebook PC battery
Short discharges and recharges do not fully synchronize the battery's fuel gauge with the battery's state-of-charge. This can result in the amount of power available in one cycle being less than expected or the battery meter being inaccurate.

Under normal usage, batteries should be calibrated a minimum of once every 3 months. Your battery can be calibrated by following these steps:

Step 1 - Disable the Windows Power Management
In Windows, right-click the Desktop and select Properties in the menu list.
Click the Screen Saver tab and then click the Power button.
Under Power schemes, select Always On in the drop down menu.
Under Settings for Always On power scheme, select Never in each of the drop down menus.
Click OK on the Power Options Properties window and then click OK on the Display Properties window.

Step 2 - Fully charge the battery
Connect the AC adapter to the notebook.
Charge the battery until the Windows battery meter is at 100%.

Step 3 - Fully discharge the battery
Remove the AC adapter.Keep the
notebook on until the battery has completely drained and the notebook
automatically turns off.
Connect the AC adapter to the notebook.
Keep the AC adapter connected to the notebook until the battery has completely
charged.

Step 4 - Enable the Windows Power Management
In Windows, right-click the Desktop and select Properties in the menu list.
Click the Screen Saver tab and then click the Power button.
Under Power schemes, select Portable/Laptop in the drop down menu.
Click OK on the Power Options Properties window and then click OK on the Display Properties window.

Note: After completing the steps above, your notebook PC battery will be calibrated.

Following this actually helped me out a lot but if you really want to get the best battery life for your laptop and you have money to shell out, getting a battery upgrade either 9cells or 12cells would be the best. I also would have bought the ACER timeline series, since they last for 8hours, but they were Php5,000 beyond my budget and I really needed the 2.0Ghz processor power for the amount of multitasking that I had to do for work and blogging. :) The Acer timeline that was at 13.3 inches only had 1.33Ghz and no DVD player. Mr. Q had that and even lightscribe (this is used for labeling Dvds). Since the only issue I have is that Mr. Q can't last for long I just have to make sure that I get to work in places where an outlet is readily available :)

If you have any laptop battery tips to share please do share it over here. I would love to hear some more and am sure others will too. :)

Here are the links to some articles that I have found you useful as well.
9Hour battery Setting
Extending Laptop battery life - yugatech

Hope that this helps you guys out with your laptop battery concerns :) Till the next time. xoxo

Wellness Wed: Stressed?

It has been a couple of days into the holidays and yet a lot of people around me have been complaining that they aren't really feeling the holiday spirit as of yet. They talk about all the things that they still have to do. From work to shopping and even the parties that they all have to attend to. I have to admit that these are things that we cannot avoid during this particularly festive season but it is still important for people to take a bit of time to breathe and let loose from all that. One has to remember that Christmas is a time of happiness, sharing, and love. Otherwise if you had been looking at the stress wheel above and you see it moving quickly indicates that you need to turn around from the computer and close your eyes for just a bit and take deep breaths as you count from backwards from ten :).

I even recommend that you take time out from the real world and enjoy a little bit of fun outside with family and loved ones. You can even watch anime online like what me and my sister on animeultima.com while enjoying your favorite snacks and drinks. Enjoy some wine and some pastries. Most importantly - SMILE - this will turn a hectic and stressful day around better than any medication that you can probably think of. :) It has been known that facial expressions show the world how we feel no matter how hard we try to hide it, but amazingly enough it also works the other way around. The expressions on our face can also change and affect how we feel inside. That is why when we see someone that smiles at us and we smile back we get that warm fuzzy feeling ;)

So I guess the moral of this story is - Learn to chill :) and learn to have fun. Christmas wasn't meant to make people feel stressed :) xoxo