American Idol

American Idol is currently on their 11th season and based their winners from fan votes.  The shows 3 judges (Randy Jackson, Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez), provide critiques to the contestants and somehow influence a bit of the fan voting.  The show is split into two episodes each week.  After the audition and Hollywood rounds, the first episode for the week will showcase the singers singing based on the theme given to them.  The second episode is the result show where one contestant may be booted out depending if the judges used the judges save or not.

As I’m writing this, they just revealed the last two contestants who will battle it out next week.  They are Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Phillips.  Between the two I’m rooting for Jessica Sanchez.  Philip is a cute guy who will get the votes of the teenie boppers even though he can’t really sing that well.  Jessica, on the other hand, can sing very well but lack the stage presence of a performer.

There are some speculations online that if Philip Phillips will win that American Idol is leaning towards the “white guy with guitar” syndrome.  It’s anybody’s ball game right now.  The teenie boppers will vote for Philip but the mixed race may lean towards Jessica Sanchez.

The Voice

The Voice just ended their second season.  They have four judges (Cee Lo Green, Christian Aguillera, Blake Shelton and Adam Levine) who will choose to mentor and be a part in their group.  The show is divided into three phases:  the blind audition, battle phase and live performance shows.  On the blind audition, the judges are seated facing away from the stage.  The contestant will then sing and the judges will have a minute to decide if they want the singer to be part of their team.  If two or more judges want the same singer, the singer has the option to choose their mentor.

Each team will have 8 (Season 1) or 12 (Season 2) members.  After the blind audition, the battle phase begin with the judges choosing two members of their team to sing the same song.  The judges will decide who will advance to the next round.  After all team members were able to battle it out with each other.  The team members who advanced to the next round will again compete against each other but with the public votes determining who of the two members of each team will proceed to the next round.  The third member of the team who will move to the next round will be determined by the judges.

In the live performance shows, the remaining contestants will compete against each other to get the public votes.  One singer each week will get the chance to be save by their mentor.  For the final four contestants, the television audience and the coaches have equal say 50/50 on who will continue.  From the final four contestants, the winner will be voted by the public.

Opinion

Between the two, I would say the vocal quality of the contestants of The Voice are all very good.  They could really sing and the only way they will continue on will be based on how they perform, make the song their own and win the public & judges’ votes.    For American Idol, the voice quality of the contestants are a bit varied and the only way you will win is to get as much votes as you can.

In any case, both competition has it’s pros and cons, finding talent is not easy.  In the end, I guess a singer should have the looks, the voice and the performance factor to make it ahead in the game.

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If you haven’t read it, I suggest you do.  It’s a book that is easy to understand, a fountain of useful things that you can use on your personal life and a challenge that will make you yearn for more.  This book encouraged me to start my own personal finance blog and share what I’ve learned through my financial journey.

The book is about the author’s two “dads”.  His real dad is poor dad while his friend’s dad is rich dad.  He talked about how the rich and poor think about money and how money works for them.  He talked about how to differentiate between asset and liability.  He also encouraged the readers to take steps on gaining a financial education and challenged them to take action.

For myself, here are some of the things which I learned from the book:

• Work to Learn – Don’t Work for Money:  When I started working, my goal was working my way to the top.  I went for jobs which gives me more money than satisfaction.  I have been working in several fields and mastering none.  It made me realize that I should change my way of thinking and work to learn and not work for the money.  Now I know what to answer the interviewer when they asked why I keep moving from one field to another.  It made me realize to focus on what I’ve learned from the job and not the reason why I moved on to another job.
• Action always beat inaction:  Do you have a lot of ideas?  Are you a thinker?  Stop thinking and start doing.  If you don’t do it, it’s not an idea, it’s just an imagination or daydreaming.  There’s no easy path nor get rich quick schemes.  If you want to be rich, equip yourself and take action.  It’s a challenge that I’m hoping I can sustain and follow through.
• A house is not an asset:  The author didn’t say that you shouldn’t buy house.  He’s just saying that you should first increase your assets before getting a bigger house so that your assets can pay for the expenses to maintain it.  An asset he says is “something that puts money in your pocket”.
• Increase your financial IQ:  Some people like me are afraid of risks.  We are afraid to lose our hard-earned money.  In order for risks to be minimized, we should take time to increase our financial IQ.  Robert suggested that we increased our knowledge in these four areas:  accounting, investing, understanding markets and the law.   I guess I’m still a long way to go but I shouldn’t give up.

Those are just some of things I learned from the book.  There are still more but writing it all down is just writing this book all over again.  Each chapter is a fountain of information, your money is well spent buying and reading this book.  Get yours now and start as early as you can!

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Coffee Cupcake

Ingredients: (makes 12-14 cupcakes)

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp iodized salt
• 1/4 tsp vanilla powder
• 2/3 cup evaporated milk, full cream
• 2 tsp coffee powder
• 1/4 tsp coffee oil
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1-1/4 cup all-purpose flour (sifted before measuring)

Directions:

1. Using a Kitchenaid mixer on speed 1, cream butter until soft and add sugar, iodized salt and vanilla powder.
2. Switch mixer speed to speed 2 while adding the eggs one at a time.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the baking powder and all purpose flour
4. In a small cup or bowl, disperse the coffee powder in evaporated milk and add the coffee oil.
5. Pour the coffee milk mixture into butter mixture then add in dry ingredients in two parts.
6. Scoop batter into size 3 (3oz) cupcake tins and bake at 350F or until toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out with a few pieces of crumbs.(This is roughly 18-22 minutes in a gas oven.  Better check 5 minutes before the time.)
7. Cool cupcakes on a wire rack before decorating.

Vanilla Cupcake

Ingredients: (makes 12-14 cupcakes)

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp iodized salt
• 1/4 tsp vanilla powder
• 2/3 cup evaporated milk, full cream
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1-1/4 cup all-purpose flour (sifted before measuring)

Directions:

1. Using a Kitchenaid mixer on speed 1, cream butter until soft and add sugar, iodized salt and vanilla powder.
2. Switch mixer speed to speed 2 while adding the eggs one at a time.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the baking powder and all purpose flour
4. Pour milk into butter mixture then add in dry ingredients in two parts.
5. Scoop batter into size 3 (3oz) cupcake tins and bake at 350F or until toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out with a few pieces of crumbs.  (This is roughly 18-22 minutes in a gas oven.  Better check 5 minutes before the time.)
6. Cool cupcakes on a wire rack before decorating.

Happy baking!

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I am pleased to inform you that I will be branching out to a new blog, Thrifty Pinoy, within the next two weeks.  If you have noticed the different personal finance posts that I’ve been writing in the past month, it made me realize that this is something that I’m passionate about. 

The new blog will focus on personal finance in the Philippines and wherever I am at present.  I will be writing about the different type of investment that I’ve been doing, my journey to learning more about finances and how my passive income building is going on.  I hope that you will join me as I start on this new endeavor.

Don’t worry I won’t neglect my existing blogs.  To my friends and family, that means my free time will be less and my travels will be limited.

Cheers,

Claudine

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If you’re on the giving side of this phrase, think twice before doing it.  Here are some reasons how “Keep The Change” can be used with a positive twist:

1. Piggy Bank or Change Jar.  When you’re trying to save money, keep the change can go towards your piggy bank or change jar.  At the end of each day, empty your pockets of all loose change and put it in a jar or piggy bank.  When the jar or piggy bank is full, remove all the money and deposit it to your emergency fund or something that you are saving up for.
2. Finder’s Keeper:  While walking on the sidewalk, there are times you will notice a 10 cent coin or any other change lying on the road.  The smaller the denomination, the more people tend to ignore it.  If I were you, pick it up and keep the change.  Every little thing counts.
3. Keep Your Change:  People think that loose change are a hassle or something that will clutter on your bag, it may seem so but it’s also a source of a small amount of money.  Carry a coin purse and dump all your loose change there.  Afterwards follow tip #1 and reap the benefits.
4. Keep Their Change:  If your friend doesn’t want their change on the counter, don’t be shy to ask for it.  It’s their loss and your gain.

Just like in any other personal finance blog that you may read, the road to building wealth is not quick and easy.  It takes discipline and determination to achieve your goals.  You have to start somewhere, so maybe you can start by “Keeping your change”.

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Reverse creaming method was pioneered by cake guru, Rose Levy Berenbaum.  This method combines the dry ingredients first then adding the butter bit by bit and then the wet ingredients in 2 to 3 additions.  The result of this method will be a tender, velvety crumb cake.

Green Tea Cupcake

Ingredients: (makes 16 cupcakes)

• 6 egg whites
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cup flour, sifted
• 4 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 oz butter, softened
• 2 tablespoon green tea or matcha powder

White Chocolate Buttercream Frosting (good for 24 cupcakes)

• 3 cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon cream
• 8 oz white chocolate, chopped

Directions for the cupcake:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F or 175C.  Place cupcake liners in the baking tins
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the egg whites, vanilla and 1/4 cup of milk.
3. In a separate large bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Add in the butter bit by bit and beat into a soft paste.  Pour in the remaining milk and stir to combine.
4. In 3 separate batches, add in the egg white mixture, beating for 20 seconds after each addition to fully combine.  Fold in the matcha powder.
5. Fill each cupcake liner halfway with batter and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
6. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

Directions for the frosting:

1. Heat chocolate in a medium bowl set over simmering water (make sure the bowl is big enough so that it doesn’t touch the water).  Stir constantly to ensure the chocolate melts evenly.  Once all the chocolate has melted, set aside to cool.
2. In a separate medium bowl, beat butter until soft and fluffy.
3. Add in the vanilla extract and cream.  Mix to combine.
4. Add in powdered sugar and beat to combine.  Drizzle in chocolate while continuing to stir the frosting.  Mix well.  Add more cream or powdered sugar to reach desired consistency.

Verdict:

The bitterness of the matcha powder offset the sweetness of the sugar.  The reverse creaming method works wonder with the cupcake as it wasn’t crumbly like it’s about to fall off nor too moist like frosting.  Frosting remains sweet as always but there’s nothing you can do with it.

Stay tuned for my next set of recipes from my cupcake decorating with fondant and gumpaste class.

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What is an Overseas Employment Certificate?

An Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) is a document required to Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) who are heading to their workplace abroad either as a new hire or from their vacation.  They usually hold a working visa and not a permanent resident status.  The benefit of having an OEC is being exempt in paying the airport terminal fee and travel tax to head or return to their workplace abroad only.  If an OFW plans to travel to a different location not their workplace abroad, they are required to pay the airport terminal fee and travel tax.

Requirements to get an Overseas Employment Certificate:

• Employment Contract
• Working Visa
• Work Permit
• Valid OWWA Membership with receipt
• Annual payment receipt of Pag-Ibig
• Annual payment receipt of Philhealth
• Filled-up form
• Passport

Fees as of 15 April 2012:

• Overseas Employment Certificate:  Php 100 each
• OWWA Membership (valid for 2 years):  USD 25 or peso equivalent
• Pag-ibig (1 year):  Php 1,200
• Philhealth (1 year):  Php 1,200 (will increase to Php 2,400 by Jan. 1, 2013)

Location of OWWA Desk in NAIA Terminals:

• Terminal 1:  if you’re facing the terminal, the OWWA office is in the right most side of the terminal from the outside.
• Terminal 2:  Inside the terminal, left most side.
• Terminal 3:  Inside the terminal, right most side.

Tips & Tricks:

1. Apply in provincial offices instead of heading to the main office in Ortigas.  The lines are shorter and less stressful.
2. If you think that you’ll be returning to the country several times a year, get  multiple OEC’s at the POEA offices.
3. Bring extra money as you might be surprised of required extra fees.
4. If you are vacationing for 5 days, you may apply directly at the airport.
5. If you get your OEC at the airport, they do not normally collect the Pag-ibig & Philhealth fees.
6. You must have your OEC validated before checking-in your luggage.
7. Ignorance or failure to get an OEC will only make you suffer and miss your flight.
8. Even if you pay the airport terminal fee and travel tax, immigration officials will not allow you to exit the country if you don’t have an OEC.
9. There’s a delivery service at the POEA office in Ortigas.
10. The POEA office in Ortigas will no longer distribute forms after 4pm.
11. As much as possible, avoid getting your OECs during the Christmas season as there will be too many people queuing.
12. If the country you’re working for has a POEA/OWWA office, try to get your OEC there than back home.  The only downside is the cost which is usually higher than back in Manila.

I hope this will help you in getting your OECs processed.  Please don’t ignore tip #7 as I’ve experienced people left behind at NAIA Terminal 1 as the POEA officer asked them to go to Ortigas to get an OEC.  They were also rebuffed with their offer to pay the airport terminal fee and travel tax.

To the government, please stop thinking that OFWs are your milking cows and scam us for money.  Please be considerate when you think of new fees for us to pay and our plight in working abroad, not all of us are fortunate to earn a very decent living.

The Philhealth payment is a ripped-off and you’re planning to increase it by 100% next year.  For a single individual with non-retired parents, the benefit that you say we will receive is useless and negligible.  It cannot even cover the entire hospital bill in another country nor our country.  I also hope that you could at least allow us to assign a beneficiary of our choosing who we think could benefit on our behalf.

For the Pag-ibig payment, do you know what they told me last year when I asked what it is for?  They said “Isipin niyo na lang as investment mo siya ma’am pang-retire niyo.”  I do hope I will see this money when I do retire in the future.  Moreover, I hope I can get a card or something to say that I’m a member and not just a receipt of payment.

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Since I have friends who enjoy hard drinks and drinking green tea, I thought why not attend this class and whipped them up afterwards.  It was a fun learning experience especially as the whipped cream mixture require a different preparation method.

Chocolate Guinness Cupcake

Ingredients: (makes 18 cupcakes)

• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter (4oz), melted
• 1 bottle Guinness (11.2 oz)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup sour cream

Bailey’s Whipped Cream (good for 24 cupcakes)

• 1 cup heavy cream, chilled (preferably Nestle)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon Bailey’s
• 1 pound ice cubes
• 1 cup cold water

Directions for the cupcake:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 F (175C).  Place cupcake liners in the baking tins.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
3. In a separate medium bowl, stir together the melted butter, Guinness and vanilla.
4. Beat in eggs one at a time.  Mix in the sour cream until thoroughly combined
5. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients.  Mix until just combined.
6. Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 full with batter and bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
7. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

Directions for the whipped cream:

1. In a medium bowl, mix together the whipped cream, vanilla, powdered sugar and Bailey’s.
2. In a separate large bowl, pour the water over the ice cubes.
3. Place the medium bowl inside the large bowl. The bottom of the medium bowl should be touching the ice water, but the water in the large bowl should not reach more than halfway up the outside of the medium bowl.
4. Whip the cream mixture until stiff peaks form.  Cover and place in refrigerator for 1 hour before use.

Verdict:

The following are the comments from an engineer:

• The texture of the cupcake is still a bit wet and moist.  Perhaps you need to bake a bit more or bake in higher temperature.
• The ratio between the cupcake and icing must be 75:25, +/- 5.
• The flavor:  Cupcake + green tea is a travesty,  cupcake + liquor is a sacrilege.  Never put these ingredients together in making cupcake.

“Cupcakes are cupcakes.  Green tea and liquor are something else.  They are for alcoholics and people who don’t drink coffee.”  — Words from an engineer.

Let me know if you share his words or how to improve the recipe.  The green tea cupcake with white chocolate buttercream frosting recipe and directions will be shared in my future posts.

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After 3 years of blogging with my own private domain and hosting, my google adsense is only $13 and analytics is recording traffic number to less than 10k a year.  I’m a bit frustrated and down that it’s been giving me some stress.  My goal right now is to get the numbers up to at least an average of 100 visitors a day.  That translates to seeing more posts from me in the future.  (Wouldn’t you just like that?  Like my page on Facebook!)

My 5 day holiday in Manila was fun, short and hectic.  It wasn’t at all relaxing and the heat prohibited me from going around more than I want to.  My 10k steps a day challenge suffered while on a holiday and I need to catch up on it.  I’m having mixed feeling at work and I need to get out of this funk. 

Hopefully, the 3 day holiday this coming Sunday will get me out of this funk, make me clean my room, bake cookies, bank the money on my piggy bank and help me catch up writing on my blogs.  If I can’t finish any of those, I hope that it will just keep me relax and be bored out of my mind.

Thanks so much for your continuous support on my blog and I hope that you share it with your family and friends. 

Now back to regular programming.. Claudine

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What are SDAs?

Special deposit accounts are good alternative to regular savings account and time deposits.  They are managed by the trust department of the bank and considered as safe investments.  These accounts are not insured with PDIC but are guaranteed by BSP.   SDAs are short term investments, usually 14-day or 30 days and cannot be pre-terminated.  Your investment is subject to 20% witholding tax and trust fee.  Trust fees varies depending on the bank and investment amount.  Interest rates may vary monthly depending on the rate issued by BSP.

How to Invest in SDAs?

Depending on how much you want to invest, approach the trust department of any of these banks (BDO, BPI , Security Bank, HSBC, China Bank, Union Bank) and inquire about SDA placement.  The minimum investment amount varies for each bank.  The lowest required investment amount is with BPI (Php 50,000).  You will need to have a settlement account with the bank to tie-in with your SDA.

Opening a special deposit account is similar to opening a savings account.  You will need two valid ID with photo, two 1×1 pictures and photocopy of your valid IDs.  You have the option to automatically re-roll the principal, principal + interest or principal + interest + additional investment amount.

To terminate your investment in full, you must inform the bank one day before maturity date of your intent.  To partially terminate your investment, you must inform the bank one day before maturity of your intent as well as ensure that you have the minimum required amount left to continue your SDA (e.g.  BPI’s minimum is Php 50,000.  You currently have Php 100,000.  One day before maturity date, inform the bank that you would like to withdraw a minimum of P1 to a maximum of Php 50,000).

How to Compute Your Interest Earnings on your SDA?

Here’s a way to figure out your interest on your SDA investment: (This is just an example)

• Investment Amount:  Php 100,000
• SDA Interest Rate :  4.00% per annum
• Witholding Tax : 20%
• Trust Fee : 0.50% per annum
• No. of Days:  30 days

Formula for net interest rate:   SDA Interest Rate * 0.8 – Trust Fee

• In our example above:  (4 *0.8 – 0.5 = 2.7% per annum)

Formula for interest earnings:  Investment Amount * Net Interest Rate * (No. of Days / 360)

• In our example above:  Php 100,000 * 2.7% * (30/360) = Php 225

Note: The number of days in the year is 365.  However, some banks compute it as 360.  The number of days varies if the maturity date falls on a weekend or a holiday.

Final Thoughts

I have been using this product with BPI since May last year.  I only found out about the interest computation last week.  In any case, this is better for me compared to time deposits.  However, I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to get a higher rate if I ask my aunt to place it on her time deposit account.

In any case, always remember, never put all your eggs in one basket.

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