housewarming during storm

 in this uber - stressful life, nothing beats seeing good old friends (as those your high school schoolmates) for a good chit-chat over good food (as in fried chicken, spaghetti and pomelo juice), despite the storm...

coz the storm megi (local name juan) really came...but fritzie's housewarming is still a go...braving the rain and flood, we came since there's no better time to warm a new house but during a storm when it is uber-cold...

back @ la nana - alone again

so im back at la nana...alone again, naturally...i always go there when i needed a taste of home cooking...i go there too for the fun of overhearing familiar conversations...now i have another reason to go there--- the TV hahaha. when i wanted to have series of moments with the idiot box (which is sadly very seldom), i go there. save from the TV and the new goto cart near the entrance, the resto hasnt change much. still the homey-freewifi-spot no-nonsense resto along espana, few walks away from my cell.
that evening, i had a variety of viands to choose from--- pork adobo, beef and mushrooms, caldereta, and some i-dont-know-how-they-are-called dishes. but since, im not a fan of pork and beef- i got me plain rice and chicken soup and  fried fish dipped in soysauce-vinegar mix...had my free glass of iced tea too. i was alone...but...i didnt feel that way...coz...somehow...i felt at home.

kaeskwela hurray!!!

i have decided to join KaEskwela after my dissertation proposal defense in august. i needed some fresh air after the event so i went to visit my dear friend kate in makati. we had brunch then. she didn't know i just came from a big academic event of my life that time and i'm glad because what we talked about is a better breather :)

KaEskwela is katie's lovegroup and i immediately realized why it is so. kaeskwela (in filipino) means "schoolmate". and you know how schoolmates and classmates are- no matter where they go or what happened to them years after, they always feel they belong (to the school, to each other) and that's the spirit we're banking on... Kaeskwela (http://www.kaeskwela.org/) is a group of volunteers who help public schools in the Philippines. being a volunteer (and a teacher too), i share the belief that education is a foundation for building better lives and nations.

school kids must at least have or enjoy their journey towards that...this is the call of the group (might as well be a challenge to all): Think of the many ways you can help beyond just giving money: understand what a school needs, coordinate donations to respond to these needs, hold training sessions for teachers, assist in fund-raising events, help feed undernourished children -- you may have ideas, too, that could help your local school. soon, one school at a time, we can make dreams come true!

one dream shared by members since last year was to build a library for Lara Integrated School in San Fernando, Pampanga. the parents of the students have volunteered their labor to help build the library. the teachers have committed to help organize and run it. KaEskwela, have found book donors for the library---all's that missing is this ceratin sum of money to buy the building materials. one of the few plans to earn such is the rummage sale...we had it in katipunan (unit 313 near teriyaki boy) on september 24th and 25th. preparations and pricing is not easy but when you think of the possibility of earning for a cause, nothing's difficult :) we got us more that 11000 php in 2 days...that's a woot! (far from what we need though but still enough to keep our spirits high)... part2 of the rummage sale will be november 12th and 13th, anything you can do to help (donate goods for the sale, buy goods during the sale, volunteer your time, share to others what our activity is about), please do. together let's help make dreams come true.

3 economists bagged 2010 nobel

in 2009, the prize for economic sciences was awarded to two american economists: Professor Elinor Ostrom (Indiana University), the first woman to receive the prize; and Oliver Williamson, (retired professor from the University of California). this year, three economists will share the 2010 Nobel Prize for their work on how government policy affects unemployment

the nobel goes to Peter Diamond of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge; Dale Mortensen of Northwestern University in Evanston.; and Christopher Pissarides of the London School of Economics and Political Sciences. this is for their research on how economic policy affects the job market. their theories offered help in understanding the ways in which unemployment, job vacancies, and wages are affected by regulation and economic policy as the research focused on so-called "frictions," or impediments to trade, such as misinformation, cost of transportation or the disparity between companies' and employees' needs.

see full story here ---money.cnn.com/2010/10/11/news/economy/nobel_prize_economics/index.htm?hpt=T2

10.10.10 run for pasig - success!

hundreds of thousands of runners, celebrities,  contingents from schools, religious groups, the police and military, government agencies, non-government organizations (NGOs), business sector, and private institutions and fun-run-loving families joined hands (feet?) in “10.10.10 A Run for the Pasig River.” the event (organized by the Kapit Bisig Para sa Ilog Pasig ) is touted as the largest footrace in the country (the run’s 3 starting points in SM Mall of Asia (MOA)--for 3k, CCP Complex--for 5k, and Ayala Avenue in Makati--for 10k). chief executive officer of ABS CBN Eugenio Lopez III showed his usual deep commitment to the Pasig River cause by joining the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) in the ceremonial 21k run (which kicked off from Marikina City). the fun run aimed to create awareness and raise funds for the massive Pasig River clean-up campaign. it eyed (too) the Guinness World Record for most participants in a footrace. the record of most runners has been held by San Francisco’s 1988 “Bay to Breakers” race til now...yes yes yes!!! it did (break the record)!!! with a more than 150,000 registered participants (more or less the same number for 'starters')--- 116, 086 made it to the 'finish'!

sharing the same hope and knowing that we can contribute in our own little ways, I and some old and new friends have decided to volunteer (answering friend benjo sandoval's call) to help steer the event as it starts. armed with enthusiasm, willingness to sacrifice hours of sleep et.cet, we were assigned to the information booth (we were so excited we arrived so early- at half-past midnight) and did the best we could given the eleventh hour orientation. concerns and worries from participants cropped up but we were able to somehow pull it through. my warmest thank you to paul (of abs cbn foundation) and my workmates marlyn and ian (from padilla cogeo), teng (from tandang sora), fritzie (from caloocan), connie (from balicbalic), irene (from paco), ernan (from bulacan) and emgy (from fairview) for the tiring yet worthwhile series of moments then.

here's the official story --> http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/10/11/10/pinoys-set-world-record-pasig-run

the battle continues

i have yet to find the bestest way to ward of mosquitoes. my 9-year old son has had a bad case of dengue fever about a year ago and there's no stopping me from wanting to get rid of them (those mosquitoes) for good, not only for me but for my family and friends as well.

here's what i did (and have been doing) so far:

1. i learned that mosquitoes are attracted to certain body smells. i learned  that eating more veggies than meat makes one less smelly hence, i am at an advantage since i don't eat meat that much. i drink lotsa water too. i have reason to believe this game plan works.

2. i have tried lotions too. i send my boys (the father and the son) sachets of off lotion or nosquito or whatever is available to protect their skin from becoming targets. i heard that the DEET in those does not repel mosquito, it sorts of  block the receptors of the mosquitoes, whatever will do. for me, i use Skin So Soft of Avon (i am not an avon lady, i just speak from experience) the scent (the odor) is so replusive (teeheehee), it drives those bugs away!

3. and lastly (oh, i think this would not be the last and least), i bring along a bottle sprayer with listerine on it [just because it's my other (stingy) brand aside from betadine]. it started out as an experiment (coz i dont like chemical anti-bug spray) and i was surprised it works. i just sprayed 'it' in my working area and mosquitoes bug me no more. hmmmm

which of the 3 really worked? beats me! maybe all!