DMS Xmas Pajama Party & Dinner w/ GRC Staffs

Dec. 22 2010, 4-9 p.m. PRC Social Hall 4th Floor

Just before the year ends, we were able to celebrate the Holiday Season through this Pajama Party. It's so fun, we had lots of games and raffle prizes for almost all the staffs and I can say that we actually did a swell job. Thanks to Sir Yulz for conceptualizing this event, and for all the volunteers and staffs who helped us set up the venue, and of course our 'sponsors'. Merry Xmas and Happy New Year!

Today, the 23rd is the last working day for this year, and for the first time, I DONATED 350ML BLOOD!

Premonition

Just this afteroon, Sir Emilio talked to me asking if I'd be available next year for some work stuff, and I said I cannot answer for myself, but of course I am willing to be of help. And just last night,I had a dream, I knew it when I woke up this morning with a slight headache, he was talking to me in my dream, offering me some kind of job. Its so weird, is this the result of me being hooked up with X-Files lately?

Xmas Xhilaration

Christmas is coming and I can’t help but look forward to give my gifts to my little goddaughter & nephew, 2 young cousins, my mom and dad, of course, my beloved lola, aunts and uncles. We are not much in the family actually, on my father side, I only have 4 first cousins, born from the families of my father’s 2 siblings. There is no population growth in our family since each family only had 2 kids, like the kids are just replacing the existence of their parents. This thought made me remember the fate of the Buendia Family of G.G. Marquez’ “One Hundred Years of Solitude” – that in the end, all the offspring of the Buendia Family were wiped out from the face of Macondo. J And I plan not to have more than 2 kids, so I guess we’re not contributing to the population problem in the Philippines (if there is).

Science Notes This Week

Season of Birth May Have Long-Term Effects on Personality, Study Suggests
The season in which babies are born can have a dramatic and persistent effect on how their biological clocks function. The new study raises an intriguing but highly speculative possibility: seasonal variations in the day/night cycle that individuals experience as their brains are developing may affect their personality. "We know that the biological clock regulates mood in humans. If an imprinting mechanism similar to the one that we found in mice operates in humans, then it could not only have an effect on a number of behavioral disorders but also have a more general effect on personality," said McMahon.
"It's important to emphasize that, even though this sounds a bit like astrology, it is not: it's seasonal biology!" McMahon added.
+++ Word for the day: Seasonal Biology, I knew its true!
-----
Lower Occurrence of Atopic Dermatitis in Children Whose Mothers Were Exposed to Farm Animals and Cats During Pregnancy
The researchers were able to demonstrate that women who spend their pregnancy in the proximity of farm animals and cats have children with a reduced risk of developing atopic dermatitis in their first two years of life. The research team also identified two genes in these children that are of vital importance for innate immunity and was able to link the expression of these genes to a lower likelihood of a doctor diagnosis of an allergic condition. The findings of the study are not only significant in the face of the frequency of the disease and the suffering it causes: They also support the theory that gene-environment interaction with the developing immune system influences the development of atopic dermatitis in young children.
+++ Now I know why I don’t have allergies.
-----
Electronic Cigarettes Are Unsafe and Pose Health Risks, Study Finds
"Contrary to the claims of the manufacturers and marketers of e-cigarettes being 'safe,' in fact, virtually nothing is known about the toxicity of the vapors generated by these e-cigarettes. Until we know any thing about the potential health risks of the toxins generated upon heating the nicotine-containing content of the e-cigarette cartridges, the 'safety' claims of the manufactureres are dubious at best.
+++ Or is this study a result of the competition between tobacco cigarettes and the e-cigarettes as they are gaining popularity?
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People With a University Degree Fear Death Less Than Those at a Lower Literacy Level, Spanish Study Finds
People with a university degree fear death less than those at a lower literacy level. In addition, fear of death is most common among women than men, which affects their children's perception of death. In fact, 76% of children that report fear of death is due to their mothers avoiding the topic. Additionally, more of these children fear early death and adopt unsuitable approaches when it comes to deal with death.
+++ Yeah, maybe because of apocalyptic images associated with death.
-----
Pregnant Mother's Diet Impacts Infant's Sense of Smell, Alters Brain Development
A major new study shows that a pregnant mother's diet not only sensitizes the fetus to those smells and flavors, but physically changes the brain directly impacting what the infant eats and drinks in the future.
Researchers studying mice found that the pups' sense of smell is changed by what their mothers eat, teaching them to like the flavors in her diet. At the same time, they found significant changes in the structure of the brain's olfactory glomeruli, which processes smells, because odors in the amniotic fluid affect how this system develops. "Exposure to odor or flavor in the womb elicits the preference but also shapes the brain development," said Todrank,
+++ Good, so at least there is a way to direct your child, if you want him/her to eat just fried chicken or be more inclined to eat fruits or vegetables.
-----
A Team With a Shared Lousy Temper Is Better at Mental Tasks
Managers who want their team to perform better should let employees express negative emotions. Teams who share bad feelings solve complicated problems better, share more information with each other and have a greater solidarity, concludes Dutch researcher Annefloor Klep.
Complaining aloud or in silence?
Klep let her test subjects see cheerful films or specifically sad ones, and looked afterwards at how her fictitious employees worked together and how successful they were in performing creative or specifically analytical tasks. Groups who were shown sad films and talked about it before they started their task, performed difficult decision-making tasks the best, also better than groups who had seen a sad movie but hadn't been allowed to discuss it. A team can therefore benefit considerably from expressing negative feelings and sharing these.
+++ Therefore, whining is good. J
-----
Dogs Have Bigger Brains Than Cats Because They Are More Sociable, Research Finds
Over millions of years dogs have developed bigger brains than cats because highly social species of mammals need more brain power than solitary animals, according to a study by Oxford University.
+++ Sociable = Intelligence? Nope. So I still prefer cats. Hehe.
-----

All topics above are excerpts from ScienceDaily.Com. Check out their website on www.sciencedaily.com.

"So if we choose to eradicate ourselves from this Earth, by whatever means, the Earth goes nowhere... and in time it will regenerate... all the lakes will be pristine, the rivers, the waters, the mountains, everything will be green again, and be peaceful... there may not be people, the Earth will regenerate, and you know why, because the Earth has all the time in the world... and we dont." - 11th Hour

Pasig River Ferry Service

I think a lot of people dont know that this service exists, way back then, before joining RC, I never wanted to go through the hassles of riding the mrt and then lrt to go to work, but when I discovered that a ferry station is located very near my place, I finally decided that I can work this way. And it's really the most comfortable ride in the city..

It is romantic for first timers, and some tourists board it to have a rear view of Malacanang Palace, which for me actually looks glamorous from the river. Hope a lot of people would come to use it as their main means of transportation in the city, for more possibilities of improvement of their facilities.

Daghang Salamat Pagadian!

Nov. 22 – 28, 2010: They say Pagadian is the Little Hong Kong of the South, for me, it’s a place which smells of watermelon, grass and the sea. I was greeted with rain when I arrived on the 22nd – Monday and my memories of Pagadian revolved around circling the city on board Sir Danny and Nat’s motorcycle, of course with Fred and Hicut’s motorcycles as well, with the beautiful volunteers of Pagadian City chapter, it really made me wonder, there seems to be a lot of beautiful girls in this city. :-)

And there’s also the weird tricycle, where its sidecar is tilted for about 30-45 degrees, it’s a bit hard to board it, but they say, that’s how they cope with the slopes of the city – it reminds me of Benguet actually. I had the chance to roam around the city on Friday, after a few days of helping Danny during the training, and with Nat’s help, we circled 3 municipalities of Zamboanga Sur, and then on Sunday, had a feastful breakfast at Kumalarang – another municipality.

Thanks to everyone – the participants who were able to bear with me despite the language differences, the staffs of PRC Pagadian, the beautiful and handsome volunteers of PRC, and the rest of the madlang tao who have given their kindness in any form. Daghang Salamat, hope to see you again!

"The nicest thing for me is sleep, then at least I can dream." — Marilyn Monroe

Today's poverty is yesterday's unaddressed vulnerability. - DMC Antique, Aug. 2010

Midnight Musings

What to do on a sleepless midnight? Write down your thoughts...

2010 is going to end very soon, as each day passes very quickly. I have been preparing for the trip to Pagadian City this coming Monday and I am so preoccupied and excited about this new place to visit. I’m going to Mindanao, a beautiful place masked by a dark facade of religious controversy and civil strife, where the family of my Father came from – Sultan Kudarat – his stories revolves around images of poverty, conflict with Muslim people, land grabbing, and militarism. That is why in the later part of his youth, they transferred here to Luzon, despite meagre income opportunities, and they survived, that is why I’m here.

The training in Pagadian City is Community Based Disaster Management Training. I guess it should have been easier have I not watched 11th Hour nor The Inconvenient Truth. Watching these films gave me the burden of always linking DM with Climate Change – which should always be the case, actually. I remember JP during the last time we met (on his birthday), he mentioned that their organization is dealing with Climate Change politics, not really Disaster Management, and I was then asking ‘Why not?’ – his organization saw the links, have weighed, and lead them to deal with CC politics – which I think in ‘our’ organization, what can we actually do, or what have we been doing so far? In the local arena, how are our chapters capacitated to deal with Climate Change issue, or shall we deal with this issue knowing that no matter how we change our lifestyle into loving Mother Earth, we still cannot do so much unless the US signs and ratifies the agreements?

With all these questions, looking back at the last 10 months of experience with the organization, I’m thrilled that at last, at least, I will have the chance to share the lessons I have learned and practised – in Pangasinan, Benguet and most especially, in Zambales.

Danny Cabalyero will be my best friend in Pagadian. It’s going to be one week of stay, and I guess I’m ready for it.

Christmas is near, and still, we haven’t put up some decorations. Things are going smoothly in the house, and I’m looking forward to go home by Christmas in Aurora, hope there’s no disaster at that time, so we’ll all have a disaster-free Xmas. I really wanted to go home, and just relax, my Mom said the cat – Sascha is big already – that’s one of the things to motivate me to go home.

The 11th Hour

Rating:	★★★★★
Category:	Movies
Genre:	Documentary

See below selected and compiled reviews about this film, a must-see!
...
Salon.com

A haunting, elegiac history of how human beings have brought the planet to the edge of a precipice, and call upon an impressive array of thinkers to discuss how, and whether, we can avoid the abyss that waits below.
...
New York Times
Manohla Dargis

An unnerving, surprisingly affecting documentary about our environmental calamity [that] is such essential viewing.
...
Richard Roeper
Ebert and Roeper

A sobering look at the astounding changes in our planet over the last generation -- and the bleak future that awaits us if we don’t get our act together.
...
San Francisco Chronicle
Joe Garofoli

Best put by Bay Area entrepreneur and environmentalist Paul Hawken: "The best thing about the dilemma we're in is that we get to reimagine every single thing we do. And so there are two ways of looking at that: Oh, my gosh, what a big burden. The other way to look at it, which is the way I prefer, is: "What a great time to be born! What a great time to be alive! Because this generation gets to essentially completely change the world."
...
Detroit Full Press
Terry Lawson

It benefits the most by providing good advice and an abundance of well-considered ideas from forward thinkers of all stripes and persuasions who refuse to give up hope.
...
TreeHugger

The 11th Hour examines the human relationship with earth from its earliest glimmers of innovation, to the challenges humanity faces in the present, to the possibilities of the future.”
...
Variety

“True to its doom-laden title, global-warming doc "The 11th Hour" presents the viewer with reams of depressing data, loads of hand-wringing about the woeful state of humanity and, finally, some altogether fascinating ideas about how to go about solving the climate crisis.”
...
Chicago Reader

The filmmakers take pains not to foster fatalistic gloom, concentrating on some of the progressive solutions still available to us.
...
Toronto Star

If Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth was a warning, The 11th Hour is the red alert.
...
Killer Movie Reviews

Nothing less than a complete rethinking of the relationship between humankind and the planet on which it lives. Complex, challenging, mind-expanding, and sometimes mind-blowing
...
About.com

Among recent documentaries questioning the status quo, The 11th Hour takes the most far-reaching point of view and connects issues into larger patterns, culminating in a truly global call for change.
...
Metromix.com

Manages to be serious without being extreme in its message that global warming is no longer something to be debated but addressed and fought NOW.
...
Montreal Gazette

“Leonardo DiCaprio's environmental film presents a concept of frugality that doesn't preach living cheaply.”
...

I promise myself I'm going to have a healthy (but not the so-ideal type) lifestyle starting this week. No more occassional cigarettes, not so much alcohols during sessions, and eat healthy stuffs in moderate amounts. Its not a promise that is meant to be broken (for the meantime). :-)

The First Time I Loved Forever

I was checking the list of songs that I’ve been listening to back in 2006 and one was this song by Melanie Safka. I remember it was also one of the theme songs for Beauty and the Beast – my favourite fairy tale. The song was derived from a poem by EE Cummings “Somewhere I have Never Traveled, Gladly Beyond”. I like it so much, it keeps on ringing on my head.

The First Time I Loved Forever
Poem:
 
“Somewhere I have never traveled
Gladly beyond any experience
Your eyes have their silence
And your most frail gesture of things
Which enclose me
But which I cannot touch
Because they are too near.”
The first time I loved forever
Was when you whispered my name
And I knew at once you loved me
For the me of who I am

The first time I loved forever
I cast all else aside
And I bid my heart to follow
Be there no more need to hide

And if wishes and dreams
Are merely for children
And if love's a tale for fools
I'll live the dream with you

Poem:
“oh, if your words be to close me
I, my life will shut, very beautifully
Suddenly, as when the heart of this flower
Imagines the snow carefully, everywhere
descending”.

For all my life and forever
There's a truth I will always know
When my world divides and shatters
Your love is where I'll go

Poem:
“I do not know what it is about you that closes
and opens. Only something in me understands
the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses.
Nobody, not even the rain has such small hands.”

DMC San Jose, Antique - Aug 15-30 2010

San Jose, Antique: August 2010

Undas @ Aliaga, N. E.

It was more than a year that I wasn't able to visit the hometown of my mother, and since then, a lot of things have changed. Thanks to the long weekend, and to the fact that my grandmother started undergoing dialysis - my 'always cancelled' plan to go there was now fulfilled, and I hope to visit her as often as I could. My cousins (just a few years older than me) have babies already, one of them "Shane' looks just like me when I was an infant.

I miss my grandfather, and being in their house once again brought back lots of his memory. He fought very hard way back then against diabetes and all its complications. And he left us unwillingly. He was strong, and gentle, and he had a good and happy life.

"True humanity lies not so much in protecting myself and my own from others, as in protecting others from myself." - Got this from one Red Cross reading..

Post 25th Bday Nyt @ Mugen

Thanks so much for everyone who greeted me on my 25th birthday. Salamat talaga. My whole year of being 24 was spectacular. With all the new people I’ve met, and everyone who inspired me and changed me into a better person, I guess there’s more to come in the coming years! Cheers everyone!

Pictures below: me and Willy at Mugen (Metrowalk) the night after my birthday. Great RnB club, great band playing (of course) RnB songs. Nice crowd as well. We didn’t stay long though, kase may liquor ban starting 12mn.

Additonal pix: flowers from Willy (for the first and last time, hehe, choclates na lang!)

Karaoke Night w/ Colleagues 16Sept2010

Lymphatic Filariasis

Its one of the good things why I'm starting to enjoy being assigned at OpCen, is that we receive different reports from Chapters regarding certain incidents/ accidents/ floods/ earthquake and even health bulletins from Chapters all over the country. And today, one thing that strikes me is a report from Sultan Kudarat province about a stakeholder's meeting regarding National Filariasis Elimination Program. They have 8 suspected cases of Lymphatic Filariasis plus 35 cases still to be validated in Palimbang, Sultan Kudarat.

 

Ate Jenny and I started googling about this disease, and here comes the unpleasant photos of this disfiguring disease. 76% of the population of affected individuals live in 4th - 6th class municipalities, which I believe are the most far-off and hardly inaccessible, poorest of the poor communities in the Philippines. Health personnel have high hopes, given that they will devote the whole month of November for the mass treatment of heavily affected communities, it is said that the main strategy to eliminate Filariasis is through Mass Drug Administration once a year for five years. The photos are awful, how much more the ostracism and psychological burdens these people suffer from?

 

On the lighter side, last week was good. Stayed again at my favorite hostel c/o Mam Ging together with my colleagues while Andy treated us for Dinner and some drinks at the pool after 3 days in the field. Friday night is Sergi's Farewell Party, and it's good that I got acquainted to some confederates, that before, they were just faces without names, or names without faces.

 

Also, I got my own camera last Saturday! Not too fancy though. I named him "Boris". It's the result of an advance cash bday gift from Willy and my Dad - the 2 most loved men of my life. Hehe. Ciao!

Bad Times, Good Times

For the last two weeks, I’ve been suffering again, as always every year, clogged nostrils and sticky phlegm, coupled with pre-menstrual syndrome, annoying headache and a thing that comes out of the lid of my right eye due to over smoking and unhealthy lifestyle, I guess. I decided not to take medication (aside from the Vitamin C) since it’s not getting worse anyway and that I know drinking water and eating the right things would be sufficient to make it go away. But it’s not, unfortunately. The aircon and the fan pisses me off, I go to bed as early as possible and then in the morning, its takes a lot of effort to move my ass and go to work. These, I believe are the bad times.. Bad days, when you need passion for work, but you fake the smile, and you do your best knowing that hell, it was just your problem.. Blah blah.

Good thing, after months of not-seeing-each other, I met my friend last Thursday, who turned a year older last Sept 25. It feels good in a way to have someone hear (not listen) to my rants knowing he’s not capable of giving empathy. But it was the same pleasant feeling way back in college that I talk most of the time, and he gives me that mocking grin, and off we go, knowing that we will meet again after some time.

For this week, I should say, after all the physical inconveniences, the new demands from people I’m working with, I wanted to stay positive and to free myself from the unnecessary distractions.

Parting Poem

Yesterday, my Boss (who is about to leave the country in a few days time) gave me a book, handwritten on the title page is this poem by Rainer Maria Rilke, he said that it suits me somehow. It’s true. I was teary eyed when I finished reading it the first time.

At first, I thought I was cynical because of the title , with the word ‘God’ – which is commonly interpreted as a Supreme Being overseeing and watching us all, checking if we are either doing good or bad, but in this poem, it shows the ‘God’ that is not placed in religions.

God Speaks To Each Of Us

God speaks to each of us before we are,
Before he's formed us — then, in cloudy speech,
But only then, he speaks these words to each
And silently walks with us from the dark:

Driven by your senses, dare
To the edge of longing. Grow
Like a fire's shadow casting glare
Behind assembled things, so you can spread
Their shapes on me as clothes.
Don't leave me bare.

Let it all happen to you: beauty and dread.
Simply go — no feeling is too much —
And only this way can we stay in touch.

Near here is the land
That they call Life.
You'll know when you arrive
By how real it is.

Give me your hand.

And today, 17^th September, is my Boss’ birthday.

‘De Mi Jardin’ By Jose Palma (1876-1903)

I came across this poem while being irritated that the last trip of the ferry boat going to Hulo Station left already, I had no choice but to take the LRT and MRT, and suffer from the buzzing crowd. And there, inside the train, I saw it, haunting and sad..

Me pide sampaguitas, no te envio

Porque al ir a cortarlas de la rama,

Senti temblar mis manos y mi pecho

       prensado por la lastima.

No quiero que padezcan esas flores,

Como padece, lejos de ti, mi alma;

No quiero que al contacto de mis manos,

          perezcan marachitadas.

Translation in Tagalog:

Humingi ka ng mga sampaguita...Di kita bibigyan,
Dahil nang puputulin ko na sa mga sanga'y
Nanginig ang aking kamay at ang dibdib ko'y
Nanikip dahil sa awa.

Ayokong magdusa ang mga bulaklak na iyon,
Gaya ng pagdurusa ng puso kong malayo sa iyo;
Ayokong sa sandaling hawakan ng aking kamay,

Iya'y malanta at mamatay.

Some Thoughts

Just started a new responsibility in the department I'm in, but I still cant feel the extreme excitement I have been waiting for. To kill time, I have read some articles about the previous disasters that happened in the US, Aceh of Indonesia (Tsunami), etc. Its not too much, I need more information. My assignment in Operations Center last Tuesday was great, in a way, it's always exciting the first time. But when calls come in about some emergency, there goes the rush of the blood, and the sense of urgency to decide on what to do next.

Things are still slow..

 

Puerto Galera July 16-18, 2010

Philippine/German Red Cross Pix

Getting emotional over Edward Bellamy's 'Looking Backward'. Huhuhuhuh..

ECHO Ladies' Visit Feb16-19, 2010

Music 21 Nite Out

Right after the ECHO Ladies' Visit. Fun! Date: Feb. 19, 2010. And then Marky's Bday the night after.

GRC Field Visit

Spent the whole week going around four provinces of Luzon - Pangasinan, Zambales, La Union and Benguet. We were with GRC delegates, Sir Mark Hofmann and Sir Joerg Fischer (they prefer to be called only by their first names), Sir Miguel from Spanish Red Cross and Sir Hans from Swiss Red Cross. At first, well, some of us, since it's a whole new experience for us, quoting Joerg's description - we were like chickens, running after whatever the Chapter people want us to see, and then finally, we got the whole picture of it.

For the three of us, Marion, Ana and me, we had a great time, the Chapter people are very welcoming, although in some instances, we wanted to know more, but I guess the information given is sufficient enough for us.

Had some few drinks, and clumsy Ana rolled in the beach of Zambales, after spilling about five glasses of her punch. Marion, had enough beer, and still careful about things. For me, I just maximized the time having chat with my new Boss - Joerg, and Sir Mark as well. This is the start of a whole new batch of 'workloads' (haha..), a united team, and most importantly, a successful project for the beneficiaries.

First week of February - seems like the first day of the rest of my life.. Whew!

CNS Homecoming

Held last January 30, 2010 - Saturday night. Its good to see old comrades, people I havent seen for a long time.. I was expecting more would come. Anyways, it feels good to remember how we once loved this org during college days, and how we still appreciate CNS up to now (like a cult.. haha). Despite time, we are still what we are, friends and orgmates, we will always be.

Sensya kase antagal bago ko na-upload lahat ng pix, original resolutions kase tong mga to, hindi ko na naresize. Bagal pa ng broadband, kainis. Well, enjoy the pix!

Holiday Season Vacation Shots

Baguio New Year

The first month of the year is almost over and its just now that I had the time to post these pix. It was a cold new year for our family. What's memorable for me during our stay in Baguio is that we were able to watch from the balcony of the house that we rented the spectacular fireworks of the residents of Baguio. It was like a Star Wars film, it's amazing...

DMS - GRC Xmas Shots

My new family at PNRC, shots taken during Xmas Party