Ria Jose, Hair and Make Up by Envy Me Salon, Photography by Eight Espino

My 29th Year

It's May 6, more than 2 weeks after I turned 29. Yes, I'm that old. And it's time to recap the journey that was my 29th year as a Diyosa. :) As I turned 28, going into the 29th year of my life, my heart was broken but my career was going great. Right after my birthday, the Avatar Media team held the 3rd Davao Food Appreciation Tour. And what an event it was. In 4 days, 19 bloggers ate at 7 restaurants and enjoyed 4 adventures. All in one city, Davao City. Around the same time, I embarked on a creative journey as I joined both an Advanced Make Up Workshop and a Beads Jewelry Design Seminar. The first one with Maybelline Philippines' Chief Color Artist Archie Tolentino, and the second one with renowned jewelry designer Em Mariano. Both seminas have molded me into a better kikay. I went to Cebu for the 1st Cebu Blog Camp, where a lot of Mindanao New Media members also joined. I delivered a talk on "Blogging in the Community, for the Community." I'd like to think it was a well-received talk. Kudos to Winston, Vanjahnn, and the rest of the organizers! I…

State of the Philippine Blogosphere

The last of the major blogging events for this year was the BlogFest Soccsksargen held at General Santos City on December 11, 2010. It was successfully organized by the Sox Bloggers in only 3 weeks. Avel Manansala gave me the task of opening the BlogFest with a talk on the "State of the Philippine Blogosphere." I had a hard time gathering my thoughts and inputs while I made my presentation. I depended on Ratified data and the input of many Filipino bloggers before I finalized my talk. Here is the slide show presentation that accompanied my talk: State of the Philippine BlogosphereView more presentations from Avatar Media. I divided my talk into three parts focusing on current trends, the development of blogging communities, and the landmark blogging events of 2010. 30 minutes is definitely not enough to summarize how vibrant and controversial the Philippine Blogosphere has been in 2010. I refused to focus on the controversies and divisive issues and highlighted the best moments of the Filipino bloggers and Philippine blogs. Surprisingly, the theme of my talk coincided with the theme of the Philippine Blog Awards 2010, which is "Beyond Blogging." Most of the other speakers during BlogFest also emphasized…