Windows of Batanes
I am back from a week of hibernation and I am coming back from Batanes with some great photos to share!
For a start, let us peep through the windows of Batanes houses.
Saramago’s latest book: why it won’t happen in the Philippines
The book started by narrating the circumstances of the elections in the capital of an unknown (It’s Portugal) “democratic but right-wing state.” “Terrible voting conditions,” remarked a polling station official as really heavy rain in the morning of Election day seemed to have discouraged the populace from coming out and vote.
But surprisingly, a deluge of voters all went to the polling stations late in the afternoon leading the Ministry in charge of elections to extend the hours given for voting. However, after the counting (which was amazingly done in the dawn after the polling day) it was found out that 70% of the ballots are blank!
All Roads Led to Naga
All roads led to Naga City last September 15. As expected, the traditional annual Peñafrancia fiesta has attracted people of all walks of life to converge in the little city of Naga. You could almost mistake downtown Naga as Divisoria or Baclaran. The crowds could hardly move. Vendors are everywhere, occupying even the sidewalks. Consequently, the pedestrians occupied the streets. You could easily get lost among the sea of people. Plaza Rizal became a camp for all sorts of traders. The products that are being sold range from imitation watches to abaca handicrafts. Most of these ambulant entrepreneurs have been occupying their respected tents and booths for at least a week. Some even made reservations months ahead.
Peñafrancia fiesta is supposed to be a religious festivity, but like Christmas and other Christian festivities, the commercial aspect was more emphasized. The religious ceremonies and traditions just became the excuses for merry-making and over-eating. Peñafrancia fiesta is a colonial heritage of the former Spanish masters. The celebration might be religiously shallow but it is culturally rich.
shelfari website review
Read.Share.Explore. That’s what Shelfari is all about. I learned about this relatively new Social Networking website for book lovers through an email. To be honest, the only reason why I bothered to open the website was the unique and intriguing name: Shelfari.
Blog Gets Ad Clicks Through Friendster!
It seems like people are getting more and more “creative” (or sneaky) in getting visitors to click on their ads. It could be as blatant as what Karlo posted. Or. It could be as subtle as this…
Filteany Does a Documentary about the life of an OFW in NYC
A student from De La Salle University requested that I make a documentary on living and working in another country. Now, upon hearing this….www.filteany.com
*** I am one of the OFWs whom George and his groupmates interviewed for their project. They have sent me the final cut and when I viewed it, my eyes turn watery as I gaze upon the countless faces of FIlipinos yearning for a better life. To my fellow Pinoys in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, you have my utmost respect and together; we wait for the day that the next generation would have better opportunities in our own country.
Enjoy and share these videos. Cut copy and paste the links or visit www.youtube.com/filteany.
Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VjQrSri2gw
Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvMNfZ_7eAE
Salamat.
Visit www.karitoon.com , www.ofw-connect.com
Take Photography to a New Level – Philippine Launch of Canon EOS 40D and Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III
Take Photography to a New Level
The Blue Leaf (Jade Pavillion)
McKinley Hill Village
Fort Bonifacio Taguig
Join Canon Philippines on Thursday, September 20, 2007 for a night of cocktails, entertainment, prizes and special promos as they introduce the newest additios to Canon’s renowned line of Digital SLR Cameras.
The Canon EOS 40D and the Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III.
More info on Take Photography to a New Level – Philippine Launch of Canon EOS 40D and Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III at Shutter Box Philippines.
Daddy is Such a Stud
I don’t know if I should be ashamed or proud of my Dad. Rumor has it that he’s getting it on with a booby 18-year-old Nursing student (Dad’s 45 btw).
The Taxi Driver
* A dream I had during my afternoon nap today. Hmmm…maybe I’m a little bit stressed that’s why I’m having dreams like these again.
Cruising down a familiar local road, I’m inside a taxi, seated behind the driver and beside me, a woman, her face hidden in the shadows. I could hear the brisk coughing of the driver. In time, though, the coughing came in fits and I could feel he’s already having trouble driving and dealing with his coughing fits at the same time.
He turned to a smaller road and told the woman beside me that he couldn’t take her to her destination anymore. The woman, in haste, stepped out of the taxi and slammed the door close.
The driver continued to have more terrible coughing fits. He was already bent over the wheel. I got out and looked at him.
“Are you all right?” I asked him.
He continued coughing and I noticed that there were already specks of blood on the wheel and the dashboard. He gave another wretch and he spewed a glob of clotted blood the size of a small frog.
Forgetting to Breathe: Ondine’s Curse
Remember those jokes about people who died because they “forgot to breathe”? It seemed funny because who need to be reminded about breathing? Isn’t it automatic? If only perhaps to force ourselves to breathe in slowly or deeply, yes, it could be controlled but not to forget to initiating it. But “forgetting to breathe” does happen. That is, if you have Ondine’s curse. It is a very rare disease and affects about 300 children worldwide (though it can happen in adults too, especially those who are victims of automobile accidents).
Today I came across a blog which tells of a baby who could be the first case of Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome (CCHS) or, also known as Ondine’s curse, in the Philippines*.
Janis wrote about baby Hannah, daughter of her friend and former colleague. When Hannah was born via cesarean section, she was diagnosed to have pneumonia and doctors also thought she may have a congenital heart disease. However, Hannah still had difficulty breathing even after the pneumonia was treated. She has to be kept on mechanical ventilator all the time. Tests were done, congenital heart disease ruled out, and she was diagnosed to have CCHS. The baby needs some help right now, as treating CCHS is quite expensive, being that Hannah needs to be on ventilator all the time. If you are willing to help, just go to Janis’ blog for the contact info and other details.
What is CCHS?
Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome is a failure of the autonomic control of breathing.
The syndrome is attributed to dysregulation of Autonomic Nervous System (ANS), which controls, among other things, breathing, temperature regulation, sweating, blood pressure regulation, and even motility of esophagus. These are bodily functions of which we do not have voluntary control of, which means patients with CCHS do not actually “forget” to breathe. Rather, patients do not have the rebreathing ventilatory response to changes in the amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen in the body. Patients fail to have the appropriate response in states of hypercapnia (excess of carbon dioxide in the blood) and hypoxia (deficiency of oxygen in the body tissues), which is to breathe. Patients who can maintain spontaneous breathing when awake probably rely on residual peripheral chemoreceptor function.
Most patients breathe normally when awake but hypoventilate during sleep. If the disease is severe, the infant has difficulty breathing in both wakeful and sleep states.
