NEW LEADERS.. NEW HOPES..NEW CHALLENGES

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It's now over for a year of long preparations and nuisance on election matters. People cast their votes. New leaders in every part of the country are now taking their oath of office. The power is now vested in them as they were given the right to exercise their elected positions. The responsibilities is now on their hands which is to protect the nation and help support the government to uplift our present standard of living as they promised during election campaign. We all have high hopes to the present leaders, so we expect that you will help us attain what we dream for our beloved country. And rest assured that as citizens of this country, I will oblige and obey with your rules and policy, and hope it is for the common good of every Filipino citizen.

As President Noynoy said in his oath, “I do solemnly swear [or affirm] that I will faithfully and conscientiously fulfill my duties as President of the Philippines, preserve and defend its Constitution, execute its laws, do justice to every man, and consecrate myself to the service of the Nation. So help me God.”

May our present leaders be led by God’s wisdom. May they continue what they promise and become a Law maker of good faith and principles. We’re here to watch and see what the future awaits for our country.

Colonoscopy Experience

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Allow me to share with you my journey regarding my recent Colonoscopy experience on June 25, 2010 at UP-PGH. Why did I have to undergo this kind of medical procedure? In the latter part of  March, I often experienced prolonged constipation and a sudden change in my bowel movement. In mid-May, during the busiest time of my schedule, I saw blood in my stool. When I pressed the lower part of my anus I saw fresh blood on my hand. This was when I tried to check if there’s an open wound in it.



What are the symptoms of  a bowel problem? Symptoms of bowel problems are often very non-specific and the same symptoms can be caused by a number of different conditions, some relatively minor and some potentially life-threatening. And praise God that mine is not the latter. Common symptoms include abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, constipation and diarrhea, a change in bowel habits, bleeding and unexplained weight loss.

I’m a person who would always try to self-medicate first. Like I posted in one of my blog articles here, I prefer vegetarian diet which helps lessen the frequency of my constipation. But as the saying goes, "If problems persist, consult your doctors",  it is still best to consult a specialist if things didn’t work out according to your expectation. I still suffer from bowel problems most of the time. So I had myself checked by a Gastroenterologist at the Philippine General Hospital as this was home to a specialist on gastrointestinal problems. When the doctor heard all my complaints, he advised me to undergo colonoscopy procedure since colon cancer cell is active in our genes. My grandfather died of this disease.



The preparation is the most crucial part in doing this kind of test, not the pain that you will experience during the actual procedure. If you’re working, I suggest you should take a day’s leave prior to the medical test in order to prepare yourself. Make sure that you have family or friends to accompany you in the hospital. This is not a problem for me since my older sister will undergo the same test, too. Lucky enough for me because she’s a nurse and she’s the one asking for all the medical details and I just follow the instructions she has given me. The hardest part of this preparation is the intake of 2 bottles of castor oil and going to the bathroom every hour of the day. On the last day of preparation is the water therapy, no food intake at all, or else all your sacrifices will be wasted.


During procedure, the first dose of anesthesia wasn’t enough as my sister-in law told me that I was shouting in pain and she gave instruction to stop the procedure. So my doctor decided to add another dose of anesthesia. By the way, I have low tolerance for pain. You will probably feel some unpleasantness and your stomach area may be slightly painful so make yourself comfortable. The procedure usually takes 30 minutes. It depends on what they find in your colon that will require further time to study its appearance. But I fell asleep then. It’s true that you can’t remember anything about the procedure and when I woke up I felt like groggy. Remember that your body has had a bit of a shock so you must begin to eat and drink gradually after medical procedure.

The colonoscopy procedure will cost you P8,000-9,000 for Pay Ward at UP-PGH and will only cost you 500-1,000  when you are on Charity ward (exclusive of medicine fee of less than P1,000 on both wards). So you have a choice. Anyway, you will be lying on the same bed and will be assisted by the same group of medical personnel whether you're on Private ward or Charity ward. Everything went well for me as my diagnosis did not result in anything negative. I had redundant colon and anal fissures caused by forced release of stool and a few polyps, but the specialist said there was nothing to worry about it. Need lots of water intake and high-fiber diet, meaning more veggies! God is so good.

FATHER’S DAY SPECIAL

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I’ve been staring at these blank documents for an hour already and I still can’t think of what to write about this particular article. Honestly, I am not a daddy’s girl. Ever since I and my siblings were kids, we can’t remember any instance that would show how loving and caring our father has been. But the hardship he has gone through in order to get us to where we are best describes the things he has done for us. This is simply because he is not that demonstrative in expressing his feelings and affection toward us.


I remember one time, I was so sick and he cooked porridge and brought water to room. Even now at this stage, when I have severe cough he keeps reminding me not to stay late in the evening as I often experience stress cough. He is a great disciplinarian. In my entire life, there is only one situation that reminds me on how strict he is. One time he lost his temper with our childish behavior to the point that we needed to hide for a few hours. Still, he hit our butt in the end. This was his fathering technique to us. We grew up fearful of committing mistakes as it will lead to further punishment. He is a man of few words. We lived by his disciplinary rules as we fondly call him “Judge” because of his rules. He is not only a good disciplinarian, but a good rabbi, too. When i was young, he would always tell us major stories in the bible. That was the time he wanted us to attend  regular Sunday Mass. This is my father, and I really love him so much for that. May God give him more strength and good health for us to repay all his fathering sacrifices for us.We may not have said it often, but how could we let this day go by without saying how much he means to us? We love you,Tatay!

Dr. Jose P. Rizal Jr., on the Repositioning Controversy

Tweet Independence Day Celebration. Let me share with you the nuisance we encountered when we decided to reposition the statue of Dr. Jose P. Rizal. The present administration is currently undertaking Urban Redevelopment on its City Plaza as one of its major landmarks to be called Plaza Mayor de Balanga. The construction, however, will affect the monument of our great national hero, Dr Jose P. Rizal.  As we continue to renovate and do some major infrastructure project in the vicinity of our plaza, the committee-in-charge wrote a letter to the National Historical Institute for permission to reposition the statue. As our request was approved, we assured them due diligence to properly observe the preservation of its historical significance and importance. On our way to it, we found out that the current location of Dr. Jose P. Rizal’s statue wasn’t according to the specifications set by the National Historical Institute. See pictures inside:

 See pictures inside:

2010 Automated Election is a thing of the past...

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WHILE the public’s attention was drawn to the activities that culminated in the May 10 elections, everything around the corner went on as usual. Back to work, another term with new hopes, vast ideas for the country for the next three years. While our city's programs are still anchored to its World-Class University Town vision for the year 2020.

Our incumbent City Mayor laid down his plans for the City in the next three years. One of these plans is the setting-up of Book Corners in each of the business establishments in the City that will serve as a mini-library for students.

At present, there are some big business establishments that have already signified their commitment to support this worthwhile project. The City Mayor also presented the idea of establishing partnership with a private company to conduct a case study relative to the implementation of the University Town Project of the City Government and the creation of a new City Department that will handle University Town-related concerns. He also presented to the same meeting the plan of the current administration to reorganize the City Government’s manpower structure so as to realign and fit it to the needed workforce for the City’s University Town project requirement.

Further, the City Mayor underscored the importance of expanding the City’s social services. On the infrastructure side, he announced that, the City Government plans to build a student Residence or Dormitory, a City Library and a Convention Center in a 3-hectare lot at the Bataan Transport Mall (BTM). He went on to emphasize that the proposed location is considered strategic, especially for the students, since it is nearly located at the heart of the City.


At the Barangay level, aside from the much anticipated resumption of the Barangy Week Program, Mayor Joet also wants to establish a Barangay-based Material Recovery Facility (MRF) for proper waste segregation. Tourism-related activities will also be highlighted and given more priority as they it greatly impact on the economy of the City. 


In his closing statement, the City Mayor stressed that in order to deliver the best public service, service-oriented seminars and refresher courses should be continued in order to raise the standard of delivery of public service to the constituents.

Fight Dengue..Eradicate Deadly Mosquito Disease

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Our City Health authorities are closely conducting their month long Dengue Control Program dubbed as "Puksain ang Kiti-kiti..sugpuin ang Dengue". This program was pushed through to eradicate the possible resurgence of the deadly dengue disease in the City of Balanga.


They conduct orientations to local communities and initiate the clean-up of possible sources of the mosquito-borne disease. It is done through their on-going preventive measures-- the larval sampling/indices-- by inspecting a target number of houses (100) per barangay and search and destroy activities of water-holding containers. Larviciding was done by dropping small amount of larvicides to areas assuming to be positive for mosquito larva. In this case, the group can easily determine which areas are most affected by and positive for Dengue for its early detection and application of appropriate control measures. 


The other measure is the residual spraying. 

Though according to some cases spraying with insecticides to kill adult mosquitoes has not been effective and, in fact, has been detrimental to prevention and control efforts by giving citizens of the community a “false sense of security”.

In my opinion the most prudent strategy is to eliminate all possible breeding places which carry the virus and maintain a clean surrounding. These mosquitoes love stagnant water and dark places. In order to eliminate cases of dengue, health officials should intensify their education and information campaign regarding dengue control and prevention measures which focus on proper sanitation and cleanliness.

Campaign should focus on the importance of removing all possible breeding places of mosquitoes.  I still believe that prevention is the best, as far as illnesses are concerned. Do not hesitate to ask for immediate treatment at various rural health stations or hospitals in case you notice the possible symptoms of dengue.

 Dengue, according to medical references, is an acute infectious viral disease which usually affects infants and young children. It is characterized by fever during the initial phase and other symptoms like headache, pain in the eye, joint and muscle pains, followed by signs of bleeding particularly nose and gum-bleeding and appearance of red tiny spots on the skin.


Fellow bloggers, help me disseminate this information. Let’s protect our love ones and act now.

TeAchnology: LAPTOP LOAN SUBSIDY for Elementary and High School Teachers

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Balanga City,Bataan-The City Government of Balanga thru its Local Chief-Executive Jose Enrique S. Garcia III is offering a laptop grant of up to P22, 300.00 for DepEd teachers at the elementary and secondary levels in the City of Balanga.

The grant is aimed at encouraging teachers to purchase and use portable lap top computers as instructional materials. 

With internet connection, it will give opportunity for learners to acquire easy access to  permanent learning at a touch of a finger. 

To expand the awareness of the teachers about the ICT equipment, training is conducted by the Management Information Services Office (MISO) to enhance their knowledge about computers and their components. Comprehensive lessons are prepared to tackle the proper usage of the computer, MS Windows Operation, Web-based application, internet literacy and other current IT information. The training is productive and raises level of enthusiasm for technology. 



However, the dedication and hard work of a teacher can never be replaced by the latest computer innovations. Nevertheless, hard work and dedication coupled with hands-on in modern technology will surely lead learners to great heights of achievement. 

As a result, TEaCHNOLOGY is born. It’s in line with the vision of the City Mayor Jose Enrique S. Garcia to integrate the use of modern technology in education. 



With this initiative, the City Government of Balanga and the DepED Balanga City Division are working hand and hand in view of making each learner in the school computer literate and thus making information dissemination and communication fast and efficient.


All in all, there were 50 recipients of the loan, 50 teachers that will contribute to forming more competitive students. Another more step for the preparation of the City Mission: to be a World- Class University Town.

Who do you think you are?

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In life, we always come to a situation when we need to make a firm decision. A decision where we need to weigh everything in order not to hurt people who might get affected by it. Handling twenty (20) techie office personnel, 85% percent of them are male, a huge responsibility on my part as a leader. A crucial task that transforms a shy and weak woman to become a dominant personality.



There are instances that put me in a situation wherein i need to be tough in my command and approach. No one should be given special favors as doing so will lead to a much deeper office problem. I adopt the "male dominant" style when it comes to dealing with them in order to assert my authority in the situation. But it’s just to assert. 

To complicate things more, i am now in the midst of  making a crucial decision to fire two of my office staff. It’s not an easy decision for me but as i weigh things, it’s the best way to help them develop correct attitude  towards work. Sometimes they need to savor the bittersweet taste of their own work performance. I have no choice but to be tough as i get my strength of character from that kind of self-portrayal.


I think i am starting to develop an unhealthy self-image. But when no one is around and i am all by myself, I'm just a simple woman who has a passion for baking and cooking. Sounds ironic for those who don't know me personally, but this is just the real me.