My Ciao'ing

When coming up with something to write for my 250th review I was stumped, even with the help of some brilliant friends on the site, I still had no idea what to write. I even started to write a review for the Product of the Month and call this my 250th review, as this is the best summer I’ve ever had, however it just didn’t seem to work. That review was written and discarded to the side. I then began to think, I have never written a review about my time on the site. With it being my 2nd year anniversary on the site recently, why haven’t I done this review before I kept on asking myself? I hope ... more

CIAO PET HATES "Writing is a form of therapy; sometimes I wonder how all those who do not write, compose or paint can manage to escape the madness, melancholia, the panic and fear which is inherent in a human situation." - Graham Greene I was mildly surprised to find that Friday 12th March will mark my first anniversary here on Ciao (it feels like I’ve been here longer LOL). It’s been an eventful time. Since my first tentative steps as a “white dot” member I’ve written in excess of 100 reviews, made some brilliant on-line friends, and even managed to earn a couple of elusive diamonds. The site ... more

Introduction I first joined Ciao in May of 2007. I had just had an operation to repair my knee after a bad footballing injury and needed something occupy my time during my month off work. I had previously done some Ciao surveys and after completing one of these, I found myself browsing the Ciao site in some detail. I wasn’t originally aware that you could write reviews, I had always assumed Ciao was just a survey site. I had always fancied myself as a writer so I thought ‘Perfect’ this will keep me entertained whilst off my feet. Without giving it a second thought, or reading any of the ... more

Er, I started on Ciao 2678 days ago on a Wednesday - Since then I’ve posted up 1.05 reviews a week. I was urged into writing for the online consumer while in ‘The Quad Bar’ by a skeletal Audrey Hepburn look-a-like; Miss Lendenbloom was her name (not a pseudo one), she did daily chores at Christies in London for a mere pittance. Naturally she found me ‘amusing’ and ‘bemusing’ and enjoyed getting free coffees’ from me – on meeting she’ll without fail gasp: “I’ll kill for a coffee!” Falling for the urgency, I was ‘first to the bar’; (you can see where this is going now) – amazingly, after just ... more

My Ciao'ing so far Introduction Well members of Ciao, we are half way through 2006, and I don't know about you, but I am certainly looking forward to the summer. As of tomorrow, I am off too sunny Spain to work for the summer, modelling for various holiday brochures for 2007 catalogues. I don't often talk about my work, and I don't intend to now, maybe for a later review perhaps? What I will tell you is that I won't be on this site until the middle of September, and whilst I won't be able to read or rate reviews in that time, I will do my best to catch up when I return. So I thought what ... more