A Facebook friend posted, "It feels so first world..." with the Philippine election results ready in just two days. I agree. And it somehow gives me a sense of pride that I was part of history. Last Monday, my husband I trooped to the public school nearby to cast our vote. Armed with a fan and a bottle of cold water, I prepared myself for the long queue to the PCOS machine. It was 2 in the afternoon and the heat was unbearable outside.
Surprisingly, what my Plurk and Twitter friends ranted about in their respective areas were not applicable in my place. The teachers in Marick Elementary School in our barangay were accommodating and were very organized. We were done in less than a quarter of an hour - from finding our precint number down to the application of the indelible ink on our fingers. I was so relieved that I didn't get to have problems feeding my ballot into the PCOS machine. I even stayed for a little while to see how my husband and the other voters inserted their ballots into the machine. Hahaha, I was like a tot who's amazed with a supermarket barcode scanner!
My president did not win and he conceded to the new president the following day. Then again, I am still proud that it is the oval beside his name that I shaded. He dreamed to transform the country and I believe that he can still do so even without being president.
How was your first automated voting experience?
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Binalot and I go a long way back. I remember, the first time I had a banana-wrapped meal from this popular food chain was more than a decade ago. My dad was admitted at the old Medical City and he hated hospital food so we always had Binalot food delivered. It was unique, ingenious, and very Pinoy. Last February 10, 2010, I witnessed the other side of this "truly Pinoy" fast food restaurant as I was introduced to the company's DAHON Program.
Binalot started in 1996 as a small food delivery service. In a more than a decade of serving binalot (wrapped) meals, the small enterprise has already grown into a full-fledged fastfood restaurant and a Pinoy household name. Binalot also showcases Filipino creativity with its environmental-friendly and innovative banana leaf-wrapped meals and wittingly named menu. For instance, the ordinary-sounding fried tilapia and boneless bangus are called Pride Tilapia and No Bones Daing na Bangus respectively.
Binalot Fiesta Foods has also devoted itself in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) which entails giving back something to the community. While most CSR endeavors focused in providing short-term community programs, Binalot took the giant leap (or Leaf of Faith as they say) and developed a highly sustainable program that provided benefits for both the company and the community as well. The said program is now known as DAHON (Dangal at Kabuhayan para sa Nayon) Program.
I was a part of a group of bloggers who were brought to Brgy. Buhanginan in Nagcarlan, Laguna where the DAHON Program started. Honestly, of all the blogger events I have attended, what I saw upon arriving at the site was so far the warmest welcome I have ever received. Kids from the Daycare Center, which is also supported by the program, greeted us with banners and wide smiles.
We were then introduced to the humble beginnings of the DAHON Program which started in 2007. After the country suffered from Bagyong Milenyo (Typhoon Xangsane) in 2006, Binalot found it hard to find inexpensive, yet, high quality sources of banana leaves which they formerly acquired from public markets and traders in Metro Manila. They decided to travel south and found Rodney in Brgy. Buhanginan.
Rodney is a former tambay (jobless) and it was pure luck on his part that he was sitting by the roadside when the Binalot team asked for a banana leaf supplier in the area. He did not think twice unlike the other two persons which the Binalot team has spoken to prior to their meeting. Rodney led them to his grandmother who was already selling banana leaves but at limited quantities. He related his surprise and excitement when Binalot placed a large order of banana leaves from them.
At present, Rodney serves as the coordinator of the program in their community. Together with Binalot, the DAHON Program provides regular jobs to the farmers in Brgy. Buhanginan who were then earning a living only from harvesting and selling fruits to Manila traders. The women and the elderly of the community are also given a chance to earn by being part of the production process.
Even the children of the community benefit from the program in terms of education. The DAHON program has helped renovate the community's daycare center and has introduced benefactors who regularly give financial support to the institution.
Aside from these efforts, the program has helped renovate the community chapel and has helped introduce livelihood skills like banana chip and banana ketchup production. The DAHON composting project is also underway which will maximize the use of the banana leaf trimmings.
For their efforts in initiating the DAHON Program, Binalot Fiesta Foods was awarded the 2007 UPS Centennial Award for Out of the Box Small Business Solutions. It also achieved the Anvil Merit Award in 2008.
Indeed, Binalot Fiesta Foods has touched more lives through the DAHON Program. The incredible "Leaf of Faith" is now reaping rewards not only for the company but for the community as well.
The Philippines is rich in artistic treasures. All of these we have acquired not only because of our rich cultural heritage but also because of the artistic talents that are innate in our Filipino artists. Don Eugenio Lopez, Sr., was not only a successful and astute businessman, he was also an avid supporter of Philippine art and culture.
Fifty years ago, on 13 February 1960, the founder of the Lopez Group of Companies built the Lopez Museum in honor of his parents, Benito Lopez and Presentacion Holifena. The aim was to share his personal collection of rare Filipiniana materials, maps, and archeological artifacts to all Filipinos especially students and scholars.
To celebrate the day, the Lopez Museum celebrates 50th anniversary on February 18, 2010. Unfolding book launch and opening of Threads exhibit are the highlights of the celebration. "Threads: The Museum as Site for the Weaving of Tales" will showcase the works of contemporary artists Jean Marie Syjuco, Ann Wizer, Myra Beltran, Jef Carnay, Ann Pamintuan, Leo Abaya and Kiri Dalena. Collectively, their works illustrate the museum as a place of that tells stories of historic and social significance. The pieces will be exhibited at the North Court of the Rockwell Power Plant Mall from February 19 to 25, 2010.
Aside from these highlights, the Lopez Museum in Ortigas Center Pasig will also open the "After the Fact" exhibit to the public. The exhibit will show Don Eugenio's personal collection as well as the works of artists Gaston Damag, Antipas Delotavo, Imelda Cajipe-Endaya and Keith Sicat. The exhibit will also launch the Lopez Museum's new website www.lopez-museum.org which will give visitors a chance to view their searchable and indexed archive of around 1,000 images.
My cousin and I were chatting a few days ago about the possibility of her going abroad after availing an early retirement package. I'm happy that somehow, she has plans of spreading her wings and trying her luck abroad. She asked me if I want to join here when she applies for a job abroad but I declined. I choose to stay here.
As much as possible, I would like us to stay and work here in the Philippines. I am thankful that the Lord blessed us with everything we need to be able sustain our life here in the country. I know it's a big sacrifice for OFWs to leave their roots behind because there really is not much opportunity here. I think I'd also look for a job abroad when the time comes that I will need to help augment our family's income. I'd probably join my cousin in California and just sell Oakland real estate properties. But as long my husband and I are earning modestly here in the country, we are going to stay.
I hope that the time for us to leave and work abroad will not come. I am fervently praying that the next leader of our country can make things better for all of us. Not just for the poor, but for everyone.
Metro Manila and the entire Philippines were caught off guard last September 26, 2009 when Typhoon Ondoy suddenly struck. It was recorded to be the Tropical Depression with the worst rainfall to hit Manila, leaving hundreds and thousands of people without shelter, food, and clothing.
Right after Ondoy & Pepeng, thousands of volunteers from all walks of life gathered together to aid and assist those in need. Women were first to respond. Evacuation centers, packing centers and soup kitchens quickly filled with women who were armed and ready to help in every which way they can. It was their love, care and kindness that inspired more people to come out and help too.
But despite this initial outpour of concern, 57,000 families are still living in evacuation centers scattered all throughout Luzon. More than 30,000 of the displaced are women. Christmas and New Year have come and gone, and life in the evacuation centers have worsened. Their health and well-being have suffered tremendously, having poor and limited access to water, shelter, health care and clothing.
Inspired by that first wave of women volunteers, Modess is taking up the challenge for continued care for our displaced sisters in need. 30,000 comfort kits – much needed packets of feminine care - will be distributed across the 220 evacuation centers still in operation.
Modess has set up a Facebook group where female volunteers can sign up for a comfort kit to be given in their name. Every sign up means one more comfort kit donated.
With only its first month in operation, the Modess Angels group page has already reached more than 30,000 Angels, and will continue to grow in the next days. The Facebook group has also become a hub for more information on the evacuation centers, a support system for women volunteers and an all-around community of of sisterhood, sharing, fun and love. After all, the need for female empowerment & volunteering never ends. The Modess Angels are women who make a difference, not only during these troubled times, but with her self, her family and her community as well.
It doesn’t take an army to rebuild a nation. It takes Angels.
This has been a laughing matter between my husband and I over the week. We're celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary today, you see. But really, the proposed 10-year expiry on marriage contracts is not funny.
The proposed bill was put forward by women's party list group Isa-Ako Babaeng Astig Aasenso (1-ABAA). Several lawmakers have already expressed disapproval upon the proposal and among them are House Speaker Prospero Nograles and Rep. Ruffy Biazon.
I am also expressing my sincere disapproval on this proposal. I am concerned about how it will affect families and our society itself should this be passed. The sanctity of marriage is bypassed. I think that there are better ways on how 1-ABAA can help women in empowering themselves and this is not one of them.
It's just five months and a couple of days away from the May 2010 elections here in the country. Have you already made up your mind on the candidate that you will support? Honestly, I've been fickle-minded lately especially now that there are more debates being televised. This is my first election-related post and I am not writing about my candidate yet. I will still need more time to think about who to root for this coming elections.
In the process of discernment, I discovered a site that helped me know the candidates more. This site is Politicalarena.com. Together with PPCRV, COMELEC, and Youth Vote Philippines, it aims to promote voter education through online social interaction. Politicalarena.com operates under the network of 88db.com, the Philippines’ first rich media service portal.
In this site, members can browse through each candidate's profile and scrutinize their platform of governance. They can also post questions regarding political issues and other concerns. They can also interact with other users in the political forum. In fact, I got too engaged in an infrastructure thread that I immediately wrote what I felt about the issue.
I think I'll be frequenting the site more as election day gets nearer. I already have a candidate in mind and I already pledged my support for him by clicking the I SUPPORT YOU BUTTON. Should I change my mind as the days go by, I can always click the WITHDRAW SUPPORT button. Voting for our next leader is a big responsibility so it is always helpful to have an open-mind and a listening ear to what others have to offer.
Ang Pinoy nga naman. Saan ka pa makakakita ng ganitong sign kundi dito lang. Nakakatawang nakakaloko! Ito ang bumulaga sa amin sa aming pagdating galing sa Subic. Palibahasa'y hindi naman kami madalas magbiyahe pa-Norte kaya first time ko lang talaga makita ito. Mas madali nga namang matatak sa isipin ang mensahe ng isang hudyat kung may dating ito. Sa pagkakataong ito, maliwanag na ginamit nila ang humor. Natawa ka ba? Sana ay mabisita mo rin ang ibang hudyat na kasali ngayong Hwebes sa Litratong Pinoy.
Filipinos are known to be happy people. Probably this is why we can come up with funny signs like this one. We saw this along EDSA on our way home from Subic. I think that for signs to be really effective, the message has to be written with something that can attract attention. In this case, they used humor. Do you find it funny? I hope you can also view the other Litratong Pinoy entries.
I know I should have done this back in 2006 when I stopped teaching. I planned to do so immediately after we moved here in Cainta with the SSS branch just a 5-minute drive away. I suddenly realized the need to update my membership status and start paying my monthly dues when my father's disability claim was approved a month ago. Having an updated social security membership status does have its perks.
I am planning to update my membership status from Employed to Non-Working Spouse. I think that this type of voluntary membership suits me well since I am not really self-employed. There's no difference in the benefits and monthly contributions anyway. By being a Non-Working Spouse SSS member, all I need to do is fill up the NW-1 Form and submit it with a copy of my SSS identification card and our marriage certificate. The form has to be signed by my husband, too. I hope I can have enough time to do this next week.
When my father received his social security disability claim, I realized that the system does work for us. I guess we all need to put a little faith in our government agencies once in a while.
Three days before Typhoon Ketsana (Ondoy) hit the country and devastated our beloved town of Cainta, my son spoke about protecting the environment in their school's Young Environmentalists program. I am glad that, for two successive years now, the school has been teaching environmental protection to the boys through this program. Let me share to you what he wrote and spoke about that day.
Protecting the Environment, Protecting Our Health by: Ralph Alexander Flores, 3-Kindness
Protecting the environment does not only make our Earth healthy, it makes our bodies healthy as well.
As we know, everything we take in is provided by nature. We get our food from the various plants and animals that nature gives us. We get water from the reservoirs that are connected to the lakes and seas. We breathe precious oxygen from the air in our atmosphere. Everything we need, we get from the environment.
If our environment is unhealthy, everything we get from it becomes toxic and unhealthy, too. When farmers use pesticides and other harmful chemicals on plants, there may be a possibility that we will get sick from eating them. The abundance of processed foods has made our tummies weak.
When rivers and seas are polluted with garbage, the fishes tend to eat the garbage and we may end up eating them, too. Our drinking water also becomes polluted with all these garbage.
The air that we breathe becomes polluted with the smoke coming from factories and automobiles. This polluted air has made most of us asthmatic and less resistant to diseases.
Don't you notice how children living in city are more prone to sickness than children living in the provinces? Children living in healthier environments are luckier that they get to enjoy cleaner air and water and more organic food.
If you think that protecting the environment only means saving our Earth, think again. The truth is, by doing so, we are also saving ourselves.
Every word in this 1-minute speech is true, don't you think? It's unfortunate that, although young children are becoming aware of our current environmental situation, some adults don't give much thought about it.
And as if Mother Earth wanted so much to remind us how pressing the matter is, she sends in Typhoon Ketsana to the Philippines three days after and Typhoon Parma that almost didn't want to leave. Not to mention that a week before that, I received news from friends in Australia about a dust storm. (Hail rained down from the sky a week after, by the way.) Then, simultaneous to our typhoons, Indonesia was hit by a strong earthquake and Samoa with a tsunami. "Is the world coming to an end?" I was thinking about this while listening to my transistor radio and lying down on my bed in our candle-lit bedroom during the post typhoon blackout.
Do we really need to be reminded this way? Do you want to suffer as much as we did? While there's no more time to point fingers on who's to blame, I think there's still time to reverse climate change. It can be as simple as waste management and supporting eco-friendly materials to as bold as lobbying for strong climate change legislation. Bloggers like me, on the other hand, take action by participating in today's Blog Action Day.
Thank God, I was able to deliver groceries to my parents' home today! My mom has been calling about how hard it is for them to buy food inside the village. We were finally able to get in the village through the Taytay gate. I wasn't able to get out of the car though. We had to park near the clubhouse along Tulip St. because the water is still high along Chestnut Street.
Going inside the village through the Pasig gate is almost impossible. As of today, I have received reports that the flood water in Mercedes Avenue and Sandoval Avenue can reach up to his waist. The village offers free rides to its residents going out of the village to Pasig. My brother tells me that for a few days now, he rides a truck from Greenwoods to Rotonda, Pasig.
Here are some photos I took while we were inside Greenwoods:
Sandalwood Street
Tulip Street. This road leads to my parents' home, the one at the end of this street.
My sister and I were talking about my dad's SUV that was parked in her place in Vista Verde when the great flood happened. As it turned out, the SUV would have been submerged deeper in the flood if it was parked in Greenwoods. This is also one of our big problems after the flood. The SUV needs to be repaired and some of the truck accessories need to be replaced. Not to mention that we need to pay my youngest brother's tuition fee next week as it is already their final examinations for this semester. The flood really came in a bad timing but we're hanging on. I believe that all of this shall pass and the Lord will give us more blessings to replace what we have lost.
Hair woes
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I badly need a hair rebond. Nowadays, I keep my hair neatly tucked in a bun
not because it's hot but because it's all wavy and uncooperative. I want my
hai...
Project 365: #10 Tong-its
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[image: JAN 10: Tong-its]
My husband's family is almost complete. His mom and sister is with us
tonight. This is just one of their bonding moments.
