When Ninoy Aquino died in (when was that again?), I remember I was at my grandparents’ house. I was 12? 13? years old and didn’t know any other president except Marcos.
I sat at their table writing to my then penpal from the US when a newsflash about a guy who got shot at the airport. I recall my parents’ and grandparents’ reactions were of total shock. I suppose sort of like the reactions the Americans had when the planes hit the World Trade Center in 2001.
On moving up day in Prep so many years ago, I was asked what I wanted to be when I grew up. Without hesitation, I confidently said I wanted to be a mother. I recall hearing the audience laugh.
Fast forward to 1993–about to graduate from university, I wanted to have a (seemingly) glamorous job, and began working in the field of high finance as a a stockbroker (I was thinking Wall Street, but then, really, the PSE is way far from Wall Street). But because I was a rookie, a lot of the fund managers I was handling, ended up handling me—which made me a glorified order taker. I decided that after two years of working, it was time for me to move on.
Got this from my inbox yesterday. A lot of us are tired, and wanting a change for the better…but we’re not the activist types. So this might interest you—
I read this “ridicurous” (as P would exclaim) story in the papers today: Couple who filed suit over cake lose case.
I don’t know their side of the story (all of us know that when stories like these get into the papers, there is always something that’s *wrong*). But that couple must be hella pissed for their case to go up to the court of appeals! Besides, one of them must be a lawyer. I can’t imagine shelling out money to pay a lawyer for such a case! =p
(this is a x posting from MomEx)
This is *not* going to be a political post. Quite far from it, actually, because I’m not much into politics (but after today, I might have to be).
Recently, my husband and I were talking over dinner about the elections. Our eldest who listens and joins in to our mealtime conversations informed us that he wanted to “help” us vote. (We had to explain what elections are, and what “vote” is.)
On our trip out today with my mom, she mentioned that she wanted to vote for __ who was running for senator. When P mentioned that he wanted to vote too, and we explained that the right to suffrage begins only when he turns 18, he was upset (if he only knew the scoundrels who are running! =p ).
I figured that we could use this as a chance to learn something from! So I said that we can pretend that he can vote. But before he can, he should know the different people who are running, and what positions they’re running for. Also, what kind of people are needed for the positions and what their platforms are (why we should vote for them…can they help make the country a better place?).
I went to the state university for my undergrad and graduate courses. And in most cases, people from there are very idealistic, such as myself. (Of course, several of them have gone “astray”…) But however idealistic one is, you cannot shield yourself from the reality of how politics is (no, don’t worry this isn’t going to be a political bashing thing) in the Philippines.
Times like these remind me to try and do my part in being a good citizen, and to raise good citizens. I hope that the other parents out there are one with me in this, and one day, the Philippines will be great again. (Please vote for me. Hahahahahaha! Kidding!)
We’re in the papers again!!
Check out Maricel L. Pangilinan’s column in Philstar…http://www.philstar.com/philstar/LIFESTYLE200601030604.htm)
Moms can have it all
MOMMY TALK By Maricel Laxa-Pangilinan
The Philippine STAR 01/03/2006
Who says moms have to be stuck in being either a non-revenue-generating, stay-at-home mom or a traditional working mom sacrificing countless hours away from her family? Why can�t moms have a child-friendly working environment right at their own home? Here are two moms who�ve proven that they can mix work and play.
Dear Mrs. Pangilinan,
I�m so happy that there are mothers out there who show that being a mother is a full-time job and that raising children may be the most important and fulfilling job a woman can have (aside from being a wife).
I�m Ella, by the way, mother of a one-year-three-month-old boy who�s now toddling around the house. I�m also a work-at-home mom, so with my boy toddling about and managing my small business, I really have my work cut out for me.
My home business is also an offshoot of my focus on mothering. (I used to be a career woman and law student. But I decided to stay at home with my son and this decision has proven to be the best for my soul). I�m into babywearing, I make ring slings. I�m sure you�ve heard about it in one of your birthing classes since I know you�re into informed parenting. A ring sling is just another type of baby sling. My slings, the R� Jellybean Slings, though are made for the Filipino babywearer because the fabric is light and breathable. But also very sturdy. (My husband even carried me in it for 15 minutes).
The rings I use are made specifically for ring slings so are equally strong. Babywearing is my advocacy. I really believe that if babies form a secure attachment with their parents early on by being carried, hugged, and cuddled when young, they will become secure and independent adults.
Plus being carried in a sling helps a child be incorporated into day-to-day activities, learning from seeing, smelling, touching, hearing, and feeling much like how native Filipino children learn how to fit into society.
I hope that I could share with you this advocacy by talking more about my slings, maybe in person, or you can visit my site at www.rjellybeanslings.com.
Ella Ampongan
* * *
Dear Maricel,
My husband and I have two kids, one a precocious 4.7-year-old and a younger one who�s turning one in a few weeks. We practice attachment parenting, breastfeeding, co-sleeping, non-violent communication (sigh, but sometimes, if my voice isn�t loud enough, our elder boy doesn�t hear me).
Recently, a friend, who parents the same way we do, and I got together to look into producing better cloth diapers. We�ve found the right fabric and design. The cloth diapers are leakproof and stay dry. We call them Tushy Wushy. They come in different sizes and are available in red, yellow, blue and army green.
We feel it�s better to use cloth diapers because:
1) It�s economical.
2) It�s healthier. According to the Journal of Pediatrics, 54 percent of one-month-old babies using disposable diapers had rashes. Plus cloth diapers don�t contain toxic chemicals like sodium polyacrylate (the chemical added in powder form to the inner pad of a disposable, that makes it super-absorbent), dioxin (the chemical by-product of the paper-bleaching process, using chlorine gas, in the manufacture of diapers), tributyl tin (an environmental pollutant, considered highly toxic, that spreads through the skin and has a hormone-like effect in the smallest concentrations).
3) It�s better for the environment. Disposable diapers promote aggressive consumption of both renewable and non-renewable resources and overburden landfills. Do you know that it takes 550 years for disposable diapers to decompose?
Check out our site: tushywushy.blogspot.com (or call Jen at 0917-5325643 or e-mail at jencctan@gmail.com; or call my partner Ella at 0917-8433891 or e-mail at ryankachupi@gmail.com.)
I thought that you (or your readers) might be interested to know that there are alternatives out there.
Jen
* * *
E-mail author at mommytalk@businessworks.com.ph
(http://news.inq7.net/lifestyle/index.php?index=2&story_id=60691&col=10)
The Consumer : Leak-proof cloth diapers
First posted 09:01pm (Mla time)
Dec 21, 2005
By Marietta Velasco Giron
Inquirer
Editor’s Note: Published on Page D3 of the December 22, 2005 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
WE received this interesting e-mail from two enterprising friends, Jen CC Tan and Ella Ampongan, who are engaged in the sale and production of cloth diapers.
They announced they had come up with a new line of fabric diapers which, unlike traditional ones, were leak-proof and dry. The main objection to cloth diaper is that it gets easily saturated with liquid. It also leaks and gets the baby and crib all wet.
“My friend and I are now producing better cloth diapers here in the Philippines,” Tan explained in her e-mail. The new diapers, according to her, were lined with fleece, which absorb all the liquid. Called Tushy Wushy, the diapers come in different sizes and colors such as red, yellow, blue and army green.
Tan said cloth diapers were more economical, healthier for the baby and better for the environment.
She added, “We believe we should all do our share in [protecting the] environment for the sake of our children… we’d [also] like our babies’ [skin] to touch materials that are chemical-free.”
Readers who want to know more about cloth diapers can e-mail Tan at jencctan@gmail.com, or call business partner Ella at 0917-5325643.
Maynilad responds
Dulce M., a resident of Gamban Street, Pasay City, sent us this desperate plea: “Please call the attention of Maynilad regarding the [dark-colored and smelly] water coming out of our faucets. We have repeatedly called Maynilad. The repairmen who came here didn’t fix the problem.
“Please help us [get] Maynilad [to look at the problem in] our neighborhood in Barangay 138, Zone 15. We hope they will not use the holidays as an excuse not to solve our water problem.”
(We talked to Maynilad’s customer service officer who asked for a copy of the complaint. The officer said he would personally call the attention of the officer-in-charge of Maynilad’s Pasay branch.)
SSS bonus
Social Security System chief executive officer Corazon de la Paz assured SSS pensioners recently that their 13th month pension, or Christmas bonus, would be released in time for Christmas.
De la Paz also reminded pensioners about the need to confirm annually their eligibility for benefits. “Avoid temporary suspension of your pension by confirming your entitlements once you receive an official notice from SSS,” she said.
There are several ways to reconfirm eligibility. A handicapped pensioner can request for a home visit by an SSS representative. Or a pensioner can simply respond to the SSS letter, or send a certification that he/she is alive and eligible to receive pension.
The certification can be endorsed by: a regular SSS employee who has been with the institution for at least five years; a teller in the bank where pensioner has an account; the local postman or a barangay chair.
De la Paz said the procedure was part of the Annual Confirmation of Pensioners program to delete from the roster of beneficiaries those who have died, remarried or recovered from their disabilities.
We wish our fellow consumers a Merry Christmas!
E-mail the author at mvgiron07@yahoo.com
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