It has been the custom of St Mary’s Academy Caloocan my kid’s school to hold their family day affair sponsored by the Family Council. I must admit I am not so much in attending school activities, but come to think of it, it might be one of the last family day affairs that I’ll be attending, since Roxanne, my youngest is in third year high school.

I roam around St Mary’s Academy Caloocan and took pictures of students in their various activities with their parents. I felt quite sad though because I miss those times, when my kids were young. I felt I was not able to capture those years in their life, where I was so busy working singlehandedly in order to provide for them.

On one hand I felt proud, my efforts were rewarded for what they are now.

Boysen KNOxOUT, the world’s first air cleaning paint is now available in the market. It boasts of its ability to be an arm to combat nitrogen oxides in the air we breathe.

Metro Manila is considered as the 4th most polluted city in the entire world. Aside from carbon monoxide, Oxides of Nitrogen or Nox, is one of the pollutants in the air we breathe. NOx, or nitrogen oxides, are harmful gases mostly generated from motor vehicle emissions. Trial data indicate that NOx levels in the vicinity of the Guadalupe MRT Station are at times over 200 micrograms per cubic meter — a figure that’s more than 5 times that of the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation of 40 micrograms per cubic meter.

The Guadalupe MRT station as well as the embankment wall opposite the station along EDSA of over 6,200 sq. meters of area was painted with 740 liters Boysen KNOxOUT . Results of the trial indicate that World’s largest air cleaning Boysen KNOxOUT lowerered air pollution .

It takes about 20,000 breaths a day for a person to live. I spent at least 10 hours a day outside our home, breathing the polluted air of Metro manila, Our home is about 150 meters away from EDSA Monumeto. I Passed by the Guadalupe MRT Station at least thrice a week. That a lot of Nox inside of my lungs and body.

Surely Boysen® KNOxOUT®, offers the relief of that as an air pollution solution in a can. How does it work? KNOxOUT looks like an ordinary water based paint, it has a special ingredient – air cleaning titanium dioxide (TiO2), often referred to as a photocatalyst. When activated by light, it speeds up a chemical reaction that turns ordinary water vapor into free radicals that attack NOx and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), the two components of smog; and transform them into harmless substances.

It’s the 10th anniversary of the REPUBLIC ACT No. 8749 AN ACT PROVIDING FOR A COMPREHENSIVE AIR POLLUTION or the Clean Air Act law. The eleventh Congress passed it into law in 1999. The law enforces clean air standards for an improvement in human health and longer life spans

To raise awareness about an alternative way to do our part for the environment, the One Wall One World Campaign is launched. Let us paint the walls around our neighborhood, to help protect our community. If everyone in every community could paint one wall, we can help protect our town, our city and our world. This is the advocacy of “One wall, One world”

To find out more about air Boysen KNOxOUT and to find out which companies and citizens are stepping up to clean our air check out www.onewalloneworld.com.

The Arellano University  Pasay College of Nursing mobilized a relief operation for Typhoon Ondoy victims. Faculty and nursing students of the Arellano University Pasay College of Nursing brought relief goods, used clothing and cash donations. This was spearheaded by our College of Nursing Dean, Arlene Blaise Cortez with the cooperation of nursing faculty and Level II, III , IV nursing students and Arellano University Pasay College of Nursing Society.

Click thumbnails for larger view

Typhoon Ondoy experience

I went to work Saturday (September 26, 2009) I left the house at 8:00 AM looking forward to a day of activities work and fun. It was not raining but dark clouds do abound. I was at work by 8:30 AM , and it started to rain hard, classes were suspended at 9:00 AM. I still stayed at the place of my work ( Gil Puyat St, Taft Avenue Area, Pasay City) hoping for the rains to stop and the floods to recede. By 12:00 PM, I decided to trek the flooded Gil Puyat  St. to be able to ride the LRT train in going to Monumento. My LRT ride saved my day. I was home safe by 1:30 PM.

I was so thankful that:

My place of work is just at across the LRT station; our home is near the LRT Monumento station.

Our home (Morning Breeze  Subdivision) was not flooded, except at the corner street but after sometime, the flood receded. We had electricity and continuous supply of water, the whole time.

My children were all at home during the time.

Food was readily available, because all restaurants were just walking distance from our place.

Our place is Morning Breeze Subdivision, just beside the Manila Central University (MCU). My grandmother and parents has been living here for the last 57 years.

A Philippine Air Force aerial shot shows floodwaters caused by continuous rains brought by Typhoon Ondoy in Cainta Rizal, east of Manila September 27, 2009             (REUTERS/Rey Bruna/Philippines Airforce/Handout)

Residents wade in floodwaters caused by Typhoon Ondoy in Cainta Rizal east of Manila September 27, 2009.
REUTERS/Erik de Castro

My other experience on safety:

Our safety was threatened in June 1991, it was the Mount Pinatubo eruption. We were staying at Floridablanca Pampanga then, when the eruption happened. My kids , Dianne was 3 years and Jeric was barely 2 weeks old. I thought we were all going to die during that time. There was earthquake every 10-20 minutes, our roof was heavy with sand and were so afraid our roof would crash on us. There was no electricity, no communications; there were no cell phones during the time. We had to evacuate to the church. Good thing I was breastfeeding my kid. It was so depressing, I had nightmares about it for a long time.

I thought of leaving the country for greener pasture but with this happening around us and around the world. I am taking my time… Its better here at Morning Breeze…

Prayer for protection against INFLUENZA A H1N1 VIRUS 

Let us turn to our Father Almighty for his protection and guidance of our family and community.

God, Our loving Father we come to you in our need to ask your protection against the INFLUENZA A H1NI virus that has claimed the lives of people in some parts of the world and has afflicted a number here in our country.

We ask you to continue to guide the hands and minds of the people who are studying the nature and cause of this disease and who are working hard to prevent its spread to more areas in the world. Grant all those in the medical profession who must treat and care for those who contract the disease, the grace and determination to minister to the sick with competence and compassion. Grant those in the health agencies of the government a sense of responsibility to act with only the good and the well-being of the people in mind.  May their expert advice on proper health practices be heeded and followed.

We pray for those who are still suffering from the disease in our country and in other parts of the world, may they all be restored to health soon.  We earnestly pray that the virus may be finally contained and its harmful spread be prevented.

Grant us the grace always to be filled with hope that you watch over us with love and providence and that your will for us is always good.

We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ your son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us.
San Lorenzo Ruiz, pray for us.
San Roque, pray for us.

Note:  Oratio Imperata  (revised June 5, 2009) was issued by the Archdiocese of Manila  to be prayed at each Mass, kneeling down,  after Holy Communion, at every Mass.   

AS of JUNE 4, 2009

For two weeks now, there have been 29 confirmed cases of the H1N1 Influenza A in the Philippines. Mostly the persons afflicted with H1N1 virus had a history of traveling abroad. Cases have been increasing in number and the countries involved are increasing. It’s fortunate that no deaths has occurred and cases in the Philippines has the milder symptoms of the H1N1 influenza.

Source : DOH H1N1 Updates 2009

On the forefront of informing, the public is Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III, he said “With further characterization of the virus in our local cases, if we see that A (H1N1) poses no severe threat and is self-limited in most cases. We may be seeing a shift in our control strategy to outpatient and home management of patients showing only mild symptoms.  This is already being done in countries like Mexico and the US which already have sustained community transmission.”

Department of Health issued several Technical Guidelines to the public for the prevention and control of H1N1 virus:

Guideline No. 12 – Response Level Guide for Schools to Control Novel Influenza A (H1N1)

Guideline No. 9 – Safety Precautions to Avoid Influenza A (H1N1) Infection on the Job for Health Care Workers 

Guideline No. 6 – For Hotels and other Similar Establishments in Response to the Influenza A (H1N1) Virus Threat

I will be a voter in May 2010, including my two children aged 18 and 19 y/o. They will be first time voters and this is significant since it is a presidential election and at the same time if it will push through, the first national automated election.

One of the legacies my Dad left us was the importance of voting. He would be at the election precinct by 6:30 AM to cast his vote. Months before election time, he would buy all the newspapers everyday to read about candidates and politics. I remember politicians going house to house to shake hands with the tenants. It was the time of Marcos, Osmena, the Plaza Miranda bombings, Ninoy Aquino and Jovito Salonga. He had conversations with my uncles while I was at his side, and they would talk about politics every night and would listen to them.

Being educated at UP kept me abreast with politics and that I need to be involved on how this government will be for me and my children, The basic involvement I think that one needs to do to help the government is to pay our taxes and vote in elections.

Let us be involved, cast our vote, and vote wisely in May 2010!

Visit Bagong Botante, a COMELEC sponsored site for your questions about the 2010 elections.