Kids Summer Job

Kids can actually earn some money during their break. My daughter has bugged me for some time about how to earn this summer. With the use of our DSLR, tripod, some lights, some hats and a blanket, she and her bestfriend Ena are now earning some dough by putting up a photo station. Of course, with some help from mom.


The first customer she had was my friend's daughter. It was during their exams week and so I didn't allow her to go with me. Instead, I made a deal with my friend that I'd take the pictures for free but that she would have to pay a small amount to cover for the layouts that my daughter will do. Also, that she will have to have the pictures printed since that time Ikee hadn't bought her printer yet. My friend agreed and thus my daughter had her first customer.

Their next customers were those from her school. They invited them over to our house where they had set up a pseudo-studio, had them don some hats and took their pics. After that, my girls had made the borders and printed the pics. Really cute.



Apart from these, the girls earned some money too from helping me during my stint at the Lipa Swimming Competition. We sold some yogurt smoothie. The sale was good - very good as a matter of fact that we had to turn down some customers because we had absolutely nothing more to sell.


They're still waiting for other jobs to do. We've put up an ad on the net and hopefully they'll find more people to avail of their services. You may view their work at C'est Beau on facebook.

A Business Trip to DOST

Yesterday was a good day. I was at the ITDI of the Department of Science and Techonology at lower Bicutan only because my daughter needed some research material for her thesis. DOST is only open from Mondays to Fridays that it would be almost impossible for Ikee to go there. So, off I went.

It was a so nice that both Mam Andy and Mam Jane (my namessake) of the ITDI Library were very helpful that they took out several materials related to what my daughter needed. After I had gotten the material Ikee needed, I inquired about sardine making and there they were - my eye openers. They not only the material I needed, they also had the suppliers listed on the same handout. What a pleasant surprise eh? After all, I had been scouring through several materials both printed and on the internet but none offered such an extensive resource. Not only did I learn about the sardines, I also found out that I can actually have my goods packed, canned or bottled by them at a cost that I can afford. Could you imagine being able to start my business with just 10 thousand or so? Yup. No kidding. Did I mention they have hundreds of business opportunities there? Food, industrial, livelihood, etc. It's just great!

Here's a list of the trainings and techonology you can find there:
1. Meat processing
2. Fish processing,
3. Biogas
4. Jatropha Biofuel
5. Mushroom farming
6. Wine Making
7. Bagoong production
8. Packaging
9. Market linkages/marketing

The one sad thing is that the DOST does not have a central library where anything and everything can be found. I had to be transferred a number of times to get to the right person.

For those who are interested to check out DOST, you can find them at www.dost.gov.ph. Alternatively, you may call them at (63) 8372071 to 82 local 2265 or 2270. Their email address is rtid@dost.gov.ph.

Tourism Can Pay

I've always believed that tourism is a very good source of income. Recently, we were able to join a trip to Anawangin, Zambales, organized by a bunch of mountaineers. Apparently, they loved going to the place that they were there often and were able to set up some network in the area. The really nice thing about it is that they not only earn for themselves, they've also been able to give jobs to the people they work with.

Have you discovered a hidden place yet? There's so much in the Philippines that we can actually live on just tourism.