Merck remains committed to changing lives of couples with fertility problems
through the Fertility Awareness Campaign, now on its fifth year.
MANILA, Philippines, October 2017- When you think of babies, first thing that come to mind is the feeling of happiness – of blissful parents cuddling their adorable little one – nothing short of perfection.
Unfortunately, not all couples share the same feeling, especially for the 15% of the population who are suffering from fertility problems.
Infertility is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), as “a disease of the reproductive system defined by the failure to achieve a clinical pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse.”
Now I go into the small Municipal Hall of Bustos. It's tight and fully functional. Again with many government offices the restrooms needs a real good clean. It stinks.
The Municipal Hall could also get an overhaul on how it looks and presents itself. True to its history and function.
The insides as I was told is more in keeping to the original look of the Municipal Hall. The grandstaircase with its big painting captures you.
Looking up you see the different leaders of the Municipality til the present.These are the people who helped contribute to the Municipalities history.
Another great town from Bulacan has opened its door to its rich culture, history, heritage and amazing food.
The tour starts at the Plaza Bustos Bulacan.
The Bustos Heritage Park is a nice quaint place where you can experience fun and art in one place. Do not think of anything like the mall. This is the country side. They are not that stupid and gullible with consumerist lifestyle yet.
Registration is straight-forward and easy. And all of the participants are awesome.
I am here to see what Bustos has to offer and the things that might make the place apart from the rest of historically rich Bulacan.
Have you ever stopped to consider why you believe what you believe?
Have you ever thought about why you chose the religion you chose?
Why do you believe in Jesus Christ as the only means to eternal salvation, and not in karma or reincarnation?
Why do you believe that Allah is the one true god and Mohammed is his prophet, and not in the four noble truths of the Buddha?
Why do you hold to the Torah as the only revealed word of God and not the Bhagavad Gita?
Dear Believer,
Do you ever wonder why your heaven resembles a utopian Earth and is composed of the same base elements found right here on this planet?
Do you ever wonder why your deity governs within a power structure that resembles that of the specific time and place in which your holy text was written?
Do you ever wonder why your god looks just like you, or the animals with whom you share the planet?
Dear Believer,
Is the faith you practice the dominant one within your culture?
Do you not find it at least a little suspicious that the overwhelming majority of all religious believers adopt the religion of the society into which they were born, yet remain convinced they’ve lucked out (or been divinely admitted) into the one, true faith?
Does it not make you at least somewhat apprehensive that almost every person of faith chooses belief not because of its virtues, supporting evidence, moral codes or expression of worship, but rather because it was what they were born into?
Why, out of the abundance of faith choices available, does almost every believer on the planet choose the faith that’s within arm’s reach?
Are you a Christian because you were born in America or Europe, a Muslim because you were born in Saudi Arabia or Indonesia, a Buddhist because you were born in Japan or China, a Hindu because you were born in India?
Can it be that faith is, in almost every case, just an accident of geography?
Do you sincerely believe that had you been born in another country, you’d undoubtedly still be practicing the same faith you now embrace?
Dear Believer,
Is the faith you practice that of your parents and their parents before them?
Is it the first to which you were exposed?
Did you know that nearly all religious devotees end up believing what they were taught to believe by their parents?
Why is it that we scoff at the idea of labeling a young person a Republican Child or a Marxist Child or a Keynesian Child, understanding he or she lacks the intellectual discrimination, life experience and wisdom to make such a complicated and nuanced decision, but do not raise so much as an eyebrow when a youngster is referred to as a Christian Child, surely a choice no less complex?
Could it be that there’s no such thing as a Muslim Child, just a child of Muslim parents?
Dear Believer,
You are supremely confident in your faith.
You KNOW it is the right one and all others wrong.
You are literally willing to bet your eternal soul on that fact.
And yet, have you ever stopped to consider that there are two-dozen major religions and literally thousands of different faiths practiced on this planet?
Did you know that within Christianity alone, there are more than 45,000 different denominations, each claiming to understand ultimate truth better than the others?
Do you realize that each member of every faith practiced is just as devout, just as sincere, and their conviction every bit as sure as yours?
Did you know they too read infallible holy texts, have air-tight apologetics, have experienced miracles, feel god’s presence, sense his still small voice, obediently follow his perfect will for their lives, love him indescribably, and can defend their belief with the same fervency as you do yours?
And yet, since every religion is mutually exclusive and contradicts the other in matters both large and small, they cannot all be right…right?
You know—you just KNOW—your faith is the exception—and yet, if every member of every faith feels as you do, what are the odds that you’re right?
Dear Believer,
I’ve often been told that my unbelief is a guarantee of missing out on heaven an ending up in hell.
But whose heaven?
Whose hell?
I’ve often been told that I should, just to be safe, accept god—after all, what have I to lose?
But whose god?
Given so many options, aren’t I more likely to chose incorrectly?
Might not I be better off wagering on no god rather than on the wrong god?
You put it to me, “What if you’re wrong?” But what if you’re wrong?
What if, rather than Jehovah, Allah is the one true God? Or Shiva? Or Wooten? Or some god you’ve never even heard of?
The truth is, you already know what it’s like to be an atheist in regard to every other faith but your own.
It’s clear to you that adherents to other faiths are mistaken, deluded or deceived.
But they think the same of you.
The way you view them is exactly the way they view you.
Every devout Hindu has embraced his faith for the exact same reasons you have embraced yours, yet you do not find his reasons compelling, nor do you lose sleep at night fearing that if you die you’ll wake up in his hell.
Given this, is it so hard to see why some of us just take our atheism one god further?
Dear Believer,
I wonder if religions just aren’t ancient constructs in which early humans attempted to both explain and control the chaotic world around them.
Though irrational in content, their emergence certainly isn’t.
We do not blame our ancestors for inventing religion.
There is no shame in stumbling when you are blind, or failing to properly construct a puzzle in the dark.
But we no longer live in the dark.
Science is ablaze in our world and illuminates our way, dissipating shadows and exposing even the deepest of crevices.
We no longer live in the cave.
We have crossed the valley, scaled the mountains and have begun to make out the magnificent vista on the other side.
We no longer require comforting stories to make us feel safe or valued.
Is it not time that our beliefs match our discoveries?
Is it not time that our ideas reflect our new perspective?
There is equal, if not greater, awe in reality than there is in fantasy.
Perhaps it is time to stop telling ourselves that we are the reason the universe was made;that our culture is somehow better than other cultures; that our tribe was chose over all other tribes.
It is time to learn how the universe really is, even if that deflates our conceits, wounds our pride, humbles our point of view, and forces us to admit that we do not have all the answers.
Believer, if you honestly value the truth above all things—as you claim—as I truly know you do—you must confront these fundamental questions.
Far better, Carl Sagan said, to embrace a hard truth, than a reassuring fable.
This is the newly build Quezon City experience or QCEX for short. It's an interactive and new way at looking into the rich history of the former capital city of the Philippines.
Here is a rock that starts it all. Manuel Quezon tried to dream of a new capital city of the country and it all started when he was sitting on a rock.
Without any sleep just to wake up early and on the first day. I was a bit worried about going there too early since I really don't have money to things with. And I usually do my buying quick.
I arrived at the Warehouse at around 9:30 and it was shocking that its already packed and full of people. So far this is one of the best sales they have because they have good titles for everyone. Of course the books and other stuff was just priced right.
Luneta as people know it more has been a place where many people find refuge in the City of Manila. It's a home for those people who cannot find space and the money to spend on the ever growing number of malls we have. It's a public park and has served even as home to so many people and even transient housing for those who cannot afford. Sometimes they don't even have any serious housing problem, they just need a place to hangout and waste their time and Luneta or Rizal Park has been that for many years.
The trees there have seen many things happen but for many people it holds a special memory. We don't have malls that are open after 10 PM. Where do people go to? Again Luneta is an open refuge.
Despite the problems of homeless people staying there, the many drunkards who spend their time there as well as those drug addicts I don't see that as a good reason even to keep the park closed
At around past 12 am June 1, 2015 people within or near the part where the Rizal monument is, people were shooed out and told the park will close. The people whom I join were a bit shocked and retaliated. Yes, those noisy fuckers and idiots who debate every weekend.
The National Museum of the Philippines goes FREE for this month of May 2015 in celebration of National Heritage Month.
You can visit the two Museums for FREE and its waiving its normal free of Php 150.00. That is a lot of savings and at the same time you learn more and be closer to the once rich Philippine culture that has obviously decayed.
See the great Masters of painting, architecture, sculpture and their works on display and marvel how Manila was and what we can do to save it from our jejemon culture, capitalistic mindset of throw away this and that, and the idea that art is for the rich alone.
So instead of wasting your money and time at the mall. Just go to the National Museum and update yourself with so much culture and beauty. BTW the two Museums are fully air-conditioned.
The National Museum of the Philippines
Tuesday-Sunday, 11am-5pm.
A day after the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight the president despite fears of taking the blame for the loss declared May 4, 2015 as a National Day of Mourning.
Many were heartbroken because they lost their bets on the fight. As well as their so called National Pride (aka #PinoyFried) over the loss of the so called Pambansang Kamao (National Fist) over to a black person called Mayweather.
Mommy D. will lead the mourning to commemorate the death of the so called Pride. For those who feel really lost they can just throw themselves at the funeral pyres that will be made during the finals and glory days of another event called UAAP.
There was also news that the fight was not judged properly because that at time the Pride of the Philippines have a shoulder injury.
Soon the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, just to sound nice, will be issuing a meaningless oratio imperata for the sake of butthurt Philippines.
Di ko na maalala kung kailan. Pero sabi sa balita bababa daw ang pamasahe. Ako noung araw na yon nagbayad pa rin ng Php 8.50. Di naman binalik yung piso ko.
Pero di naman totoo na ang bayad sa jip eh Php 7.50. Maraming driver di ka naman talaga susuklian. Di mo rin naman hihingin pa yung 30 sentimos mo kasi parang mukha ka naman masyadong pera kahit karapatan mo rin na hingin yon. Bad trip di ba?
Sinubukan kong gamitin yung mga 5 setimo at 10 sentimo sa jip pero may mga driver na nagagalit pa kung bakit ka nagbayad ng ganun? As if naman nakukusensiya sila sa bawat sobra na 50 sentimo na di nila binabalik. Lubha atang magulo ang tao para maintidihan. At di naman makikinig ang driver kahit litanyahan ko pa siya ng dokumento mula sa Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
Ayon sa mga driver sa Pinas di pera ang 5 sentimo at 10 sentimo.
Kaya ayun naiipon yung mga copper colored na sentimos ko kasi ang utak ng mga driver eh hanggang 25 sentimos lang. Ihuhulog sa mga munting lata na donasyon para sa mga taong may sakit. Napansin ko lang bakit parang hanggan ngayon pareho lang yung picture na nanduon sa mga lata. Wala atang masyadong may malasakit sa may karamdamang mahihirap. Pero gagastos ng bongga ang gobyerno ng milyon para sa kalusugan ng mga magnanakaw na senador at congressman.
Kaya ayun palagi kong sinisiguro na palagi akong may saktong Php 7.50 para maging patas ang laban. Problema, kadalasan lang talaga, Php 8 lang ang meron ako. Mas mawserte ka pa kung sampu ang pera mo kasi mas mataas ang chance na kumpleto and sukli mo.
Ano man ang dahilan sa pangyayaring ito. Di ko alam.
Lakad pa more?
Kulang pa rin ng 25 sentimos. Sana suklian ako ng tama.
Now we are stuffed with food from Ramada hotel we go to the next part of the tour.
We head for the San Nicholas district.
At the Plaza we meet the on going street parade. There are dragons, establishments and lions. It's true Chinese New Year in Binondo is still about business.
It's the Year of the Ram or the Goat. Whatever you like. China town once again is alive with superstition and culture. There are lots of reds and mythical creatures.
There is also food and things to see.
I was early at the meeting place - Sta. Cruz Church. Many people have already gathered because I have seen many people also use this area as a meeting place for the Chinese New Year.
This is the only Church that I have seen that allows dogs to go up the altar. That is just cute and at the same time interesting. I know there are protocols that allow them not.
The Church is covered in red and Chinese decorations despite that it was Ash Wednesday yesterday. The community was allowed by the Church to use red for the Churches in the area instead of purple.
So its the last tour of the year and I am with good friends and on familiar grounds.
Going to the Post Office I pass the Metropolitan Theater now inaccessible because of something we don't even understand. I can only now view it from the outside. And now I tell myself I should have taken more pictures. But that is that.
Despite the decay of life in the theater itself around it people try to live and survive and its nice to see them live life with their pet cats and dogs.
So people have gone crazy over the coming Christmas party at work. It is scheduled on December 13, 2014 on a Saturday. Prior to this the AM people have been busy preparing themselves days ahead on their presentation. We were only officially told just last night of the confirmation of the event.
We would have a presentation for the event. That is just fucking interesting for me.
I am an introvert and this is once again stressful for me. I needed a good excuse and saying I cannot go because blah blah blah will not work. I need a really good excuse. I asked a group of smart people and I basically got nothing.
I have to pretend now that I am going to the party by joining fucking practices.
I rather stay away on that with a good friend. Then the scary part is that I have to spend time with people I don't even like and pretend I like it. Of course there are some people and how they fucking dress.
It's a real problem for me because I am really honest and not a good liar and for making excuses. I would rather scream I fucking hate Christmas parties!
OK its November and while people started their days at the cemetery. Some people wake-up to the taste of over-priced coffee that many so called Pinoy love so dearly. And since its the first day of the introduction of the so called holy grail of coffee idiots, many of them would actually try to be the first one to have their very own over-rated planner that most probably would just be a symbol that I am such a fucking idiot.
Then again the Starbucks apologists would argue for the true value of the coffee they drink and how much pleasure they get from it. Maybe its the same pleasure they get when they get fucked in the ass. I am not sure what.
Another argument is that having and joining this useless activity would be helping the charity of Starbucks who has many programs for this and that. Or its just one way of making their tax minimal by just giving a few once in a while. Some even used that such is the same with ALS bucket challenge and I said yes its true. The deal is if they really want to help they just need to fucking help. No shit dramas like this and all.
Anyways, we know the deal. People really don't give a fuck about what I said earlier. What they want is to have the planner as soon as possible, like that stupid woman who tried to have it in just one day. People want to have the planner as a status symbol and again I bet many people will not even really use them as planner. The same way that people use their so called Bibles at home. It's all just a show. A farce.
Now Starbucks is happy. Thanks for drinking mother fuckers!
I am glad to see people visit museum last Sunday. I was able to see one building. The Finance Building where the Museum of the Filipino people can be seen. I will try to visit the other side before the month ends.
Photography is allowed as long as there is no flash.
Do bring your friends and learn something.
Here is a sneak preview!
The National Museum of the Philippines is FREE this October 2014
Many Pinoys often complain about the government or seem not to understand how come idiots are in office.
So I am ranting again here. Maybe I just had a bad day or its just that I want to feel good about something that is scary true in my country.
Dumb ways to vote comes both English and Filipino attacks on how smart the Filipino voters are. (If you are dumb that is just sarcasm. Pinoy voters are stupid.) And because only smart people will vote for smarter government.
I like the Tagalog version of the song but both songs are powerful!
So this coming elections I am voting for Dingdong Dantes and Nancy Binay.
Oh my it's October already and I have been lazy again with things like updating this blog. I have tons of things to upload but for some recent reason this one seems more urgent than the others.
This edition of bekitaktakan tackled the issue of the Deaf community when it comes to government services. I feel the need for them for more easy access and even awareness for DOH people. Of all the people in the government not to understand the disabled.
This time its not from the so called ESL tutors of our company. A few months ago we were asked to correct some short compositions of some Koreans students.
According to the little research I did. This is an app for Koreans to practice their English. I am sure Koreans pay for it. We were paid with Php 5 for each corrections. I was not that stupid to believe that they really pay just that amount for each composition they do.
Anyways it was an interesting thing to do. It's hard at times especially when the student just makes up stuff or just uses translate on computers.
Here are just a few of the funny ones I was able to save.
It has been raining like a lot these September 14, 2014. I just came from a meetup in Makati and decided to go to Cubao to buy some knitting looms. I thought after my short trip to that place I will be going home without rain. I was with a friend and I decided that he take the umbrella that was given to us by a good hearted Freethinker.
Now as I write this and dry myself at home because apparently the rains have no qualms on stopping. It just rains and then drizzles and rains again.
Students are on their knees and their prayers were answered. They don't need to go to work. (Suspension of classes can be read here.) But I don't study anymore and as a worker I am no longer human. I have accepted that fact a long time ago.
Then again I hear the people rant on Facebook about how bad the system is on the slow announcement of school suspension. Now they have the news they should be happy. But not me.
As a non-human worker in a company, I need to go to work. I don't want to miss work just because of water even as high as me. I need to work. I don't want to be out of work because I fear for my students if they have to deal with other English teachers in my company. I fear for them.
There are pictures on Facebook that refer to students as waterproof and workers are immortals. I hate the sound of immortals. It sounds like a stupid show you would watch on primetime at ABS-CBN starring the latest abomination in acting with a cast of roles that should have died a long time ago.
I would rather use the term non-human because it sounds nicer and smarter. We may not be humans anymore but at least we still deserve some respects.
Pag may bagyo Pre-school =Tao
Elementary = Tao
High School = Tao
College = Isda
Worker = Non-human
Now I can also use non-living because robots are non-living things as well. Good luck to me on my work and hope it doesn't really flood and the MRT has no fucking excuse to cut suspend operations.
