on A(N1H1)

Am I the only one who is paranoid of the A(N1H1) virus? I was just reading a post from my yahoo groups and one of my nawie sister shared the story of her friend who has been separated from her baby and her husband right after she gave birth to her baby because she is being quarantined for a possible A(N1H1) infection after attending a party where one of the guests tested positive for the virus.

But I observed that hand sanitizers are everywhere in our building plus our office provided for hand sanitizers too at almost all the corners of the office. Our company doctor always sends us reminders about A(H1N1) and they are always stressing that proper hygiene is the number one way to prevent getting this virus. So our company is really observing proper hygiene in the workplace by encouraging employees to wash their hands often, use hand sanitizers, cover their mouth when coughing or sneezing, using disposable latex gloves, and the other good hygienic practice. I am sure an extra money allocated for purchasing hygienic products from Allegro Medical won’t hurt the pocket of the company because in exchange for this is a little assurance that all their employees will be safe. And I am sure they will not regret shopping at Allegro Medical because it is one stop shop for all medical and health needs. I think they even set up an auto re-order policy so our company will be sure that we will have our regular supply of hand sanitizers.

I wish the vaccine to prevent A(H1N1) will finally be discovered so all of us will have a peace of mind again. But for now, practicing proper hygiene will only be our only hope of prevention.

MOODLE

MOODLE…this is my new Twitter, my new Face Book, even my new Yahoo Groups. MOODLE is the system that is being used by UP-OU as the virtual classroom for all UP-OU students. We have to register (just like in any social networking sites. LOL) and then enroll for each subject that we are taking using the enrollment keys that was given to us upon enrollment.

This is where our Faculty in Charge (FIC) uploads are course guides, Tutor Mark Assignments (TMA), topics for discussion boards, exams and all other requirements that we have to submit to pass the subject.

My classmates in one of my subjects are really very active and even up to 3 or 4 AM they are still online exchanging posts in the discussion board. I am not sure if I can even cope up with them. Our FIC said that we should not be a lurker but an active participant in the discussion board too since it is graded. Anyway, I just hope I can still pass all the subjects that I am taking for this semester. So far I have submitted all the requirements on time and it is still a little manageable although I am a lurker in the discussion boards. I guess I have to change my status mode in MOODLE now from a lurker to an active student. LOL.

Weekend Snapshot # 38 - Her Black Shoes

This is my daughter’s first pair of black school shoes. She did not have any uniform when she went to school last year so she is always wearing civilian clothes. But here in here new school, they have to wear uniform from Monday to Thurdasy and civilian clothes on Friday. Plus they have to wear black shoes with their uniform.

I was scared at first that I might not find black shoes that will fit my daughter she has a small shoe size so I was really happy when I found this and what’s even cute is she likes it too.

My husband was a bit sentimental when she was looking at our daughter’s school uniform and shoes. He can’t believe that time flies by so fast and now we have a preschooler.

Window Shopping

Have you checked the site of Holsted Jewelers? I was doing our itinerary for our August vacation but then my attention was caught when I saw the discount costume jewelry collection that they have on their site. And what interest me more is that they are so fashionable and it is really something that I haven’t seen in retail stores. Plus they are so affordable.

I know I should be prioritizing some other things but how can you resist a nice, beautiful piece of jewelry that won’t even hurt your pocket? I am sure even my hubby would agree if I purchase one because I know she prefers jewelries over bags. LOL.

I am still checking their site and I really found a lot of attractive pieces that I really, really like. Let us see if I can really control myself.

Interesting

I am starting to like my Computer Ethics subject. This is one of my major subjects for this semester and I really find it interesting. One of our first assignments that we have to post in our discussion board is my own definition of Ethics.

I have read our book as well as the additional required readings for Chapter 1 and I can say that I really learn a lot. Here is what I posted in the discussion board for my definition of Ethics:

"Ethics for me is my guiding principle in life. It defines how I see things as either right or wrong thus it guides me in all my decisions and actions. Ethics is not something that I just picked up one day and decided to conform to it, but rather my ethics is something that has grown in me as a product and as influenced by my environment, my upbringing, the people around me or even my education. My ethics defines me as a person because my decisions and my actions define who I am as an individual."

One thing I have learned is that Ethics is a broad subject. It has different fields which deals about different ethical issues like Computer Ethics, Business Ethics and the like. The paper that I read mentioned that Computer Ethics came into existence because one philosopher believed that a different set of study has to be created to deal with issues about Information Technology because it has brought about new issues that have not been experienced before and it definitely requires new set of ethics to solve the issue.

One thing that has caught my attention when I was reading about Business Ethics was the term key man insurance. Do you know what type of insurance that one is? From what I understood, companies can get this type of insurance so the company is covered in case a key employee dies. This key employee for example might be the company’s corporate brains which brings to the company the necessary skill or knowledge which can help the company’s profitability. And if this key employee dies, the company might suffer financially because of the lost. And that is what key man insurance is for.

I did not even know that there is a type of insurance like this that exists. I am sure I will find more interesting discoveries as I progress through my Computer Ethics subject.

The Blue Rene Meme

1. What thing is nearest to you ? My laptop and my Iphone.

2. What is your ringtone ? Strawberry Shortcake song.

3. What was the last message in your inbox ? A text message from my colleague asking me about specifications for the laptop that she is eyeing to buy.

4. Who is your best friend ? Peachy, Jacq, Carol

5. What is the brand of your TV ? Sony

6. What schools did you attend? ICAM, PLM

7. Do you own a MP4 ? I have an ipod and an iphone but I don’t have that much music saved in it.

8. What song are you listening to now ? Nothing.

9. Did you kiss anybody in the past 2 days ? My hubby and my daughter

10. Have you ever kissed someone you met in the blogosphere? No.

11. What would you want to call if you weren't your current name ? Alex.

12. Would you be happy if you had everything ? Who wouldn’t be? As long as that everything includes my family, then I would definitely be happy.

13. Are you always thinking of someone special? Yes. Hubby and my daughter are always on my mind.

14. Tell us of your most desperate dream? I can’t recall any right now.

15. When did you last laugh till you cried? Last night. My three year old daughter was singing “Yellow Submarine” by the Beatles on our way home and she was really funny while she was doing it. Imagine, a three year old kid singing Beatles song.

16. If you had a crush, would you tell them you love him/her now ? No. I will never do that.

17. If you could be anywhere in the world now, where would you want to be ? Paris.

18. When was your heart last broken? I can’t remember. My life is so filled with happiness now that I can’t remember things like that.

19. Whose birthday(s) is/are coming up? My brother, my niece, and my grand mother.

20. How many email accounts do you have? 3 (2 in yahoo, 1 in hotmail) and I think I have one gmail account also that I did not even use after signing up.

Drooling

Ok, I am drooling for this:

(Snagged from Glo’s Kalakal page. LOL).

I used to be active in Twitter. But things have been really busy at work and when I reached home, I have a lot of stuff to finish for school so I rarely check my friends’ updates in Twitter. Good thing my good friend Peachy shared with me the good news that Glo and Faye are selling some nice stuffs online like original Coach bags (at very, very good prices), DKNY, Kenneth Cole, Fossil and Anne Klein watches, and a lot of other imported products that is making us (me and my sister) crazy. LOL.

My sister will be buying the Coach Scribble shoulder bag from Faye and she is really convincing me to get one also for myself. But I am having second thoughts really because we are saving up for a lot of things. We need to buy patio furniture for our house in Bulacan because my husband really wanted to push through with the landscaping of the garden. My husband saw this nice Teak Outdoor sofa from Cozy Days website and he really wants to get it so he wants us to save so we can afford to buy it. Then there is a 90% chance now that our Europe tour will push through because hubby received his confirmation for the training last week and he is just waiting for his travel order so he can book his tickets and accommodations.

But I think I really need this swing pack…LOL...Don't you think guys?

Writer’s Block

I posted my first entry that I posted in the discussion board for my Development Communication subject in my previous post. Like what I mentioned, I had a hard time organizing my thoughts. I don’t know but for some reason, I feel that my mind is blank and I can’t start with even just a single word. I was telling my good friend Ems, that maybe, I had used my mind so much with blogging that is why I had nothing left when it is time for me to do some real serious writing. It took me days and a lot of reading before I was finally able to finish my post. And I even postponed posting it and I have to wait for the next day because I am not confident enough with what I have written.

So you know what I did to keep my mind working:

1. I prayed. I asked the big Man up there to help me be inspired and give me a clear mind since I really need to finish my paper because I have a deadline to meet.
2. I relax and played with my daughter first.
3. I also did some exercise. I have been complaining about my weight gain and my KettleWorx is my new best friend nowadays. (And did you know that I even got a Kettlebell for free which makes my purchase extra sweet). And after doing my exercise everyday, I just feel more relax.
4. I sleep. I haven’t been getting enough sleep lately because of my busy schedule but I realize I can’t absorb anything about what I am reading if I am so tired. So I decided to just slow down one night and sleep early instead of forcing myself to stay up late only to find out that I did not understand any single thing that I read the night before.

And I guess, my strategy work since I was able to finish my post for my discussion board and I was even early for the deadline.

Producing a “Can-do “ Society with Science Communication

We have a lot of things lined up for this weekend. Hubby initially planned to drive to Subic to check out Zoobic Safari and Ocean Adventure. But we have been really busy during this weekend with school stuffs and lots of shopping for my daugther’s school stuff that we end up just hitting the mall instead of going out of town.

But I was happy because I was able to finish all my pending tasks for school. Here is my first post on our discussion board for my Development Communication Subject:

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Producing a “Can-do “ Society with Science Communication

Both the paper of Dr. Castillo and the survey done by the Royal Society both recognize the importance of science and how it affects our daily lives. They both recognize that in order for Science to progress, there should be an effort to bring science closer to the society and that is the work of science communicators. Bringing Science closer to society educates the community thus producing a “can-do” society.

In relation to Module 1, Science and Science Communication have something in common in that both should conform to the norms and values of Science like universalism, communalism, disinterestedness, organized skepticism, good work, honesty and simplicity. But I think Science Communicator has a more complex task because aside from adhering to the norms and values of science, they have to simplify these scientific works in order for non-specialist or the public to truly understand it. And once the community understood the value of this scientific work, and then I think it is the only time that they will participate actively and be involved. So this responsibility lies on the hands of science communicators.

Getting the public involve is a win-win scenario for both the scientists and the society. I think all scientific work directly affects humans and to hear the scrutiny of those that will be directly affected by this work will give scientist more knowledge in order to succeed as they will know which directions to take base from the inputs of society. The public on the other hand will be able to voice out their concerns to those dealing with the scientific work.

Dr. Castillo mentioned that Scientist is not highly valued in the Philippines and if we are to go by the content of everyday media, then science is but a tiny blip in our national consciousness. Take for example the global warming issue which is a big global problem. I saw one documentary show where they interviewed a Scientist from UK and he commented that our government is not making that much effort to educate the public on the effects of global warming and on what the people can do to solve the global warming issue. Maybe, our politicians think that common Filipinos don’t even know what global warming means so why would they spend time to educate people if this will not give them votes come election time. But if only our people are well educated about Science, then Global Warming is not that hard a thing to resolve since all we need is to learn how to care for our environment.
==
I was quite happy. I was really having a hard time organizing my thoughts that I have to read the two papers and our module several times and I have to do a little research also before I was able to come up with this answer. But I am glad because my FIC (faculty in charge) said that I was able to raise good points.

So kudos to me. LOL. I better start reading my next module and the additional readings as we have another assignment to answer for this week.

Before going back to reality

My two cousins will be paying us a visit today. Well actually, Joseph, my other cousin needs my husband's help to fix his PC. He is enjoying his new lcd monitor because he says that the resolution is really better compared to his old CRT monitor especially when he is playing his favorite online games, but his PC has been acting up lately. One day it will not detect his second hard disk, and then the next day, it will be the DVD-R and then now it is so slow that it may take him minutes before he can open up a Word document. He has been asking for my husband’s help but hubby has been really busy lately that is why we can’t find the time to drop by their house to check it. So my cousin just decided to bring his PC here at our house so hubby can check it.

And while hubby and my cousin is busy checking the PC, I with my other cousin and my sister will be watching Transformers I so we can catch up with the first release before we watch the new Transformers II movie. I am so excited. We might have a poker game too and a little drinking session….At least we can have fun before we go back to reality tomorrow and be slaves again….

Long Weekend? Still not that long...

I know it is a long weekend and we should be able to finish a lot of our tasks but just like any other weekend, this is still a short weekend for us. Just like last Friday, I woke up early so I can finish my readings for one of my subjects and finally post my answers in the discussion board. Then after lunch we decided to go Robinsons Place to do some shopping for my daughter’s school stuff and then have our grocery afterwards. Hubby and my daughter went straight to Toys R’ Us while I went around the Children’s Section to buy some clothes for my daughter (I thought that they will be wearing their uniform for the whole week, but I only found out last week they will be wearing civilian on Fridays. LOL). Then I went to the department store to buy more school stuff for my daughter.

When I went back to Toys R’ Us, they are already hungry so we decided to have an early dinner. Since my daughter did not take a nap, she dozes off to sleep while we are eating. Hubby suggested that we just go home and have our grocery the next day since we don’t want to disturb our daughter’s sleep. On our way home, we remembered that we have to buy food four our pet Labrador so we decided to pass by SM San Lazaro. It was already 8:30 PM when we arrived and I decided to have a quick grocery shopping. It is a good thing that department stores now use barcode scanner so we were out of the cashier in no time. Weeh, that was my quickest grocery trip ever. LOL. We still have a lot of things line up for the next day so I am really glad that we were able to strike one off from our list by finishing our groceries.

New Moon

Have you see the movie trailer of New Moon?

I just saw it this week. I saw the poster for the movie a couple of weeks ago and it made me feel the pain again that Bela went through when Edward left him.

I am so excited and I can’t wait to watch the second installment of the Twilight Saga. I miss Edward!! But have you seen how they transformed Jacob for this movie? Jacob was my least favorite on the Twilight movie but when I saw him now, I think there is no doubt that I will fall in love with him, the same way as I fell in love with Edward. LOL. (I hope hubby doesn’t read this as he might think that his wife is going crazy. LOL.)

I am sure my girl friends will have another reason to meet up in November to watch this movie together. I was not able to join them when they watched the Twilight movie so I am hoping I will be able to watch New Moon with them this time.

Susan's Destiny

So Susan Boyle, did not win first place for the show “Britain’s Got Talent” after she got defeated by the dance group Diversity. Reports say that she was rushed to the hospital after she experienced some panic attack after losing the contest.

But looks like she is back in her feet now as she is already spotted shopping after she got out of the hospital. Her brother said that she looks happier now and is back to being her old self.

I read from the Internet a few weeks back that one of the judges is asking the media to back off a little bit as the media is really putting so much pressure on Susan Boyle. After hundreds of people saw her performance, she became an instant celebrity that the press is almost following her everywhere she goes. And since she is not used to this kind of treatment, it took a toll on Susan and one of the judges confirmed that Susan was already ready to give up and leave the show.

But good thing she decided to stay and she even win second place. Of course, I wanted her to win first place because I was really in awe after hearing her sing. I feel like an angel was singing for me. Susan was disappointed at first (and maybe that is why she had a panic attack) but her brother confirmed that she is doing okay now because she realized that even though she did not win, there is still a bright future ahead of her.

I heard that a very lucrative contract is already waiting for her. I am sure that she will be a superstar. She just needs a little make over , maybe weight loss pills to give her a body beautiful figure and armed with a great talent, I am sure she will really go places.

I can’t wait to see her perform again and I am sure hundreds of Susan’s fans are already waiting for her next big performance. I heard before that she Simon Cowell’s BMG label met up with Susan for a possible project. Could it be the lucrative deal that is waiting for Susan? I can’t wait to find out.

Photo snagged here.

Weekly Roundup: June 1 - 7, 2009

It was a very busy week for us:

Monday, hubby and I started participating in the discussion boards for one of our subjects we are enrolled in for this semester. It was interesting to see that we all came from different backgrounds and from different countries too so I guess it will really be an interesting (or challenging) semester.

Tuesday and Wednesday was just an ordinary day at work: busy.

Thursday, I have to take a leave from work as I have to take another MCTS exam in Mandaluyong (I will make a separate post about this). Hubby was also able to get his Iphone during this day and he is one happy camper. LOL.

Friday, I was catching up with all the pending tasks at work since I was off for a day. But I can say that I was productive that day since I was able to finish all my pending tasks listed on my BDJ planner. I was also able to accompany my aunt in inspecting the steel buildings that she is considering as the warehouse for her business.

Saturday, my daughter and I just stayed at home since hubby has a business appointment to attend to.

Tomorrow, we might visit my in laws since it is also their wedding anniversary. I am just not sure if hubby is still up for it was really a very busy weekend him (only two hours of sleep since Saturday) so I am not sure if he still has energy to drive and go out tomorrow.

Saturday 9: It's My Party

1. Do you prefer to host or be a guest at a party? A guest because this means I can mingle more, chat with friends, eat anything that I like and just have a great time. Being a host means I have to take care of everything and see to it that everybody is having a great and I find it more stressful than just being a guest

2. Would you rather go to a large party or a small dinner party? Large party because I have a lot of options on who to talk to and in case I want to leave the party early, no one will even notice that I am gone already.

3. What is you worst flaw? I am not good in dealing with stress.

4. What is you best character trait? I think my best character is I am a people person, I am good with people and I don’t have problems dealing with all kinds of people from all walks of life.

5. What habit in others annoys you? When people talk non stop about nonsense things.

6. What qualities in others do you admire? Being responsible and organize.

7. If you could change something about yourself, what would it be? My being pessimistic.

8. Do you tend to be shy with strangers? No, I can even make a conversation easily with strangers. LOL.

9. Do you prefer to lead or follow in a group of people? Follow. I am not an adventurous type and I prefer to follow than take the lead and be the first to get on the adventure.

Stressful Semester

Last week, I downloaded like a dozen files from the UP OU portal for the readings that I need to finish in order to answer our assignments, case studies and to be able to participate in the discussion board. And I was like, did I made the right choice in going back to school again?

I know it is just the start of the semester and I just made a post here a few weeks ago that I am really excited for this new adventure that hubby and I are getting into but after reading the course outline and checking out the readings that I have to accomplish, it made me really think if I should really be doing this. LOL. I miss my carefree life. Imagine before, I just have to go to work, play with my daughter, work a little extra hours for my sideline so I have money left for my vices like my addiction to shopping and that was it. But now I have to make a schedule so I can manage my time well since I have a dozen of things on my list to finish like case studies, assignments, projects, exams. Ahh, it is really stressing me out.

The stress level for me is so high that I haven’t find the energy to start with the readings that our professors required for the coming week in order to participate in the discussion board.

Looks like I will be needing the following in order to survive this semester:

1. Inspiration – I really need all the inspiration that I can get to help me get through this semester.
2. Strong cup of coffee everyday to keep me awake since I am sure that I need to sleep late to finish all my tasks. Imagine, I have a full time job, an obligation with my husband and daughter, a sideline and then I have tasks for my masteral degree. I am sure all of you will agree that the 24 hours a day that I have is not enough to finish all of this.
3. Effective hair loss treatment since I am sure I will experience hair loss because this is what I normally experience if I am really stress out.
4. Motivation to help me finish all my tasks even if I already feel so tired doing all of this.

Wish me luck. It will be a very busy and stressful three months for me….I hope I am just feeling this way because it is my first semester so I still don't know what to expect and hopefully I will be able to get all the inspiration that I can get to finally finish my graduate course.

Cecilio Abad & my Brother's Wedding

So I referred my future sister-in-law to Cecilio Abad, my couturier/designer during my wedding a few years ago. My future sister in law was one of my entourage during my wedding and she loves her gown and the service that she got from Cecile. So when it is her time to be the bride, she did not think twice and she did not even look for other designers who will do her wedding gown.

She and my brother visited Cecile a few weeks ago. Cecile is fully booked already and is no longer accepting weddings for April 2010. Wow, he is so in demand already (and I am so happy for him). Imagine it is only June and he is already fully booked until April 2010. But my brother mentioned my name to Cecile and so Cecile wholeheartedly accepted them as one of his clients.

Cecile will be doing the bride’s gown as well as the gown for the two mothers. And since I have referred a number of clients to Cecile already, Cecile told my brother that he will be doing my gown for free. (Thanks Cecile! I really love you!) Cecile knows my style and for sure he will be doing something sexy for me so I better start taking the best diet pills if I really want to look sexy on my brother’s wedding. LOL. I am excited already because I know that all of Cecile’s creations is nothing but stunning so I am sure the gown that I will be wearing on my brother’s wedding will be spectacular.

To Cecile, I heard that you are w@w’s Wedding Supplier of the Year. Congratulations. You really deserve this award!!

Friday Question #68

If you had the time and resources, what kind of volunteer work would you like to do?

I like to work as a volunteer in one of the orphanage near our place named Hospicio de San Jose. It is an orphanage where they give shelter to homeless and abandoned kids and street children.

For two consecutive years now, my daughter always celebrate her birthday there and I am always touched every time we are with the kids. They are so sweet and they are really very appreciative of the little things that we do for them. And you can really see that they long for attention because every time we are there, they doesn’t want to let go of us and they doesn’t want us to go home. We always see to it that we get to spend at least one charitable work for them every year. And every time we go home, we are always filled with so much joy, happiness and fulfillment that at least, in our own little way, we were able to make the kids happy even just for a day.

So if I have all the time and resources, I would really love to volunteer for Hospicio de San Jose.

Venetian Macao Tennis Showdown 2009

My good friend just got back from her five days vacation with her family in Hong Kong and Macau. And guess what, she brought with her very good (and tempting) news that I am sure tennis fan (like my hubby) will really love.

The two tennis legend, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi, will have a tennis showdown at the Cotai Arena in Venetian Macao. I am now tennis fan and I don’t even know Pete Sampras. All I know is I love Andre Agassi because he is so good looking. But hubby is a tennis fan and so is my best friend Dennis and my friend Timmy just loves Pete. So yesterday, we have been talking about going to Macau this October to watch the game.

.: Photo snagged from Cotai Ticketing website :.

Hubby is really up for it and he was really excited when I told him about it. My friends plan to purchase the ticket this Monday so we have the weekend to think about it. Ticket prices are steep (MOP$980, MOP$780, MOP$480, MOP$280) and you can only purchase a maximum of 6 tickets per person and my friends are saying that tickets are selling out fast so they say that we really have to make a decision soon.

I told them that I will have to make a budget sheet first to check if we can have another out of he country travel this year. But if ever we will go, I will definitely get travel insurance. With the AH1N1 scare, I am really thinking twice of traveling out of the country but at least with a travel insurance, I will have more peace of mind.

I am excited already as I am sure it will be a total riot since I will be traveling with my best buddies. You see, all of us loves to travel, but ironically we always travel separately. If ever this will only be my second time to go out of the country with them so I am really excited. I have to make a budget sheet soon and present it to hubby so we can make our final decision if we will be going with them or not.

Power of DNA

My daughter was watching one of her favorite movies, Ice Age and there was a part there where Manny (the Mammoth), Sid (the Slot) and Diego (the saber tooth lion) went inside some cave and there they saw drawings which tells the story of Manny’s lineage and history. This made me think on how cool it is to trace my ancestral roots.

So out of curiosity, I made some readings and read about ancestry dna. I am a fan of all series of CSI (from Las Vegas, Miami and New York) and I have always been fascinated at how DNA works. With just a swab of saliva, the CSIs can get a lot of information about a particular person. With ancestry DNA, they can trace my lineage and ancestor’s history. Wouldn’t it be so cool if I will discover that my ancestors or my roots have been a part of history? LOL. I know that the brother of my grandmother was one of the Filipinos who participated in the Death March and so I am really interested to know more information about my ancestral past.

I showed it to hubby and he got excited too. I only spent a short span of my life with my father’s parents and so I am excited to get to know them more with the help of ancestry DNA. Cool!!