Compassionate Medical Professionals Wanted

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Here is another case of stupid toilet humor that occured in Silliman University Medical Center Foundation, Inc. (SUMCFI).

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A grieving mother who has infertility problems lost her second baby by [tag]miscarriage[/tag] last May 9 and lodged a complaint that she was subjected to indignities by a hospital staff who commented that the dead fetus which was to be her second child was to be urinated upon (because the hospital ran out of formalin and or distilled water.)

Read complete news story From the Negros Chronicle in here and here.

Olga Lucia Uy emailed her story to me 3 days ago. Maia, her baby was only 5 to 6 weeks old at the time of her death.

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My husband, my co-homemaker

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My husband is quite a character. I thought I knew him so well. After all, we were steadies for 7 years. Living together revealed an unknown facet of his personality. He likes to market in the palengke (wet market) and do the grocery. Not only that, he is very nurturing and more motherly than me. A fussy father er mother. He loves washing the dishes and even doing the laundry (when the laundrywoman is not available). This was quite a surprise revelation and a minor irritant at first. He can even iron clothes. I can cook, bake, organize and clean the house but I don’t relish the idea of laundry or ironing chores. When the kids were sick with asthma, he stays up all night and monitors their breathing, and give their medication. I grew up in a family where dad was the sole breadwinner and left household chores with the females. My 3 brothers were spoiled by their sisters and my mom.

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Couple Spa

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spa.jpgFriday and saturday were stressful days for us. Butch and I commemorated our son’s 6th death anniversary by embarking on a new mission which will unfold in the days to come. After we had settled with our new mission, we thought of exercising at the gym and then having a massage together at a [tag]couple spa[/tag]. Romantic bonding moment. The couple spa is also a perfect retreat to replenish our body , mind and spirit. The kind manager offered us a complimentary milk bath after the massage.

The masseuse started with our session. Hmm, I loved the citrusy aromatic oils while the chirping bird music in the background lulled me. Butch seemed to be drowsy too. This is relaxing, so I thought. Then I heard a faint “meow” sound interpersed with the tweeting sounds. “GROAN” Stupid message ring tone (the actual meow of our Siamese cat). I forgot to turn the cellphone into silent mode. It “meowed” 4 more times. Never mind the text messages but the meowing sound stuck to my head. Almost throughout the massage session, I imagined a cat meow together with the bird’s chirping noises. So much for relaxing. I forced myself to zone out of the “meow sound” and just let it be.

spa1.jpgThe massage invigorated our bodies but we didn’t have enough time for a milk bath. The tub looked inviting. Maybe some other time, right? We sipped mint tea and just sat together to enjoy the ambience. I always make it a point to have couple time every week whether we’re stressed out or not. It’s not cheap but that’s the price we pay for love.

Life’s simplest pleasures

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I have been tagged by Ajay to describe 10 of life’s simplest pleasures. She said that “The trick is to be original with your answers and not repeat those which have already been written by your circle of friends”. I have more than 10 of course but here’s my original list not found at Ajay’s list:

1. Watching little boys play with their dads or moms in a park. ( Yes I miss my son)

2. Butterflies that suddenly cross my path. (Is that a sign?)

3. Meditating in a Sauna room. (OOh the heat just makes you want to reflect)

4. A random kiss from my husband and not totally expecting it. (Inspite of more than 27 years of togetherness, I still get gooesebumps when Butch does that.)

5. An email from a long lost classmate or friend after finding me through my blog. (Wow, small world they found me)

6. A hug from my daughters. (I am loved!)

7. Laughing together as a family as we watch comedy shows. (Guess who has the loudest laugh?)

8. Staring at my pictures where I look so much slimmer. (I even look so much better now than I was 20 years ago. Narcissistic huh?)

9. Chatting with my siblings who are all based outside the Philippines (boohoo, I’m the only one left here)

10. Holding hands with my husband. (and … 🙂 )

Now tell me what are your life’s simplest pleasures?

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Speaking of my husband, I got the surprise of my life when I saw his name in my googletalk a couple of days ago. I sent my first message. Butch replied with “we save on text messaging cost this way.” Apparently, his secretary installed it for him so it is easier to communicate. Yesterday, he sent me a rant:

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Haha, Butch hates crowds. He probably ended up at the crowded Skating rink.

As you might all know, I use the computer a lot for my business so I am pretty much online. Now it feels strange seeing his name highlighted in my desktop and seeing if he’s available or idle. One time he sent me a message and when I didn’t reply , he called me instead. “You’re not replying“. He probably thinks I sit all day in the computer chair or perhaps he can’t tell when my computer is idle.

What is even weirder is knowing he left the office already when his name is not on Gtalk. I feel like I’m snooping around or something. I have to get used to this [tag]Googletalk[/tag] business.

SM Mall of Asia (page 2)

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Continued from SM MALL OF ASIA PAGE ONE

The FOOT FOR THE GODS caught our attention or was it the 50% OFF special treat.
foot for the godsThe foot and back massage cost only 250 pesos ($4.80) and foot reflexology and foot spa for only 190 pesos ($3.70). WHY NOT? screams my daughter. I then called Lauren and Pat to join her sister. Merrily, they scampered inside the darkened room with soothing aroma in the air. That left me alone so I decided to explore the rest of the mall.

It’s a blessing for senior citizens or the elderly to stroll in the [tag[SM Mall of Asia[/tag]. They provide a cart for their use. Uhh, I wonder if overweight persons are also included here because she didn’t look elderly to me.
sm mall of asiasm mall of asia

Even kids won’t whine from the long walk. They have fun cars to take them around. How adorable these children are. They seem to be having fun.
sm mall of asiasm mall of asia

One of its unique features is a 20-seater tram to make it easier for shoppers to go around.
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Visit my Pinoy Travel Booking Engine and take that romantic vacation to the Islands of the Philippines. Book your airplane tickets here.

The mall attracts all sorts of shoppers that delight in just watching the fountains, the globe, the band or throwing coins at the fountain.
sm mall of asiamall
sm mall of asiasm mall of asia

After an hour’s stroll, I met up with my daughter at FULLY BOOKED who shows me a book on cats. They only had one book on cats but dog books lined up the shelves. Unfair.
sm mall of asiasm mall of asia

Tired feet and an empty wallet later, we headed for home promising to come back because some stores were offering discounts . Take advantage of opening sales.

Malca Villanueva, Marketing Manager at Mall of Asia says

Malca urges everyone to tour the Mall of Asia extensively, and to give themselves about 1.5-2 days to explore every shop and corner of the 381,075 square meters space. “It’s okay to get lost. There are plenty of signs and you can always ask for maps at the concierge desk (located in the Main Mall and the Entertainment Mall).”

But like I mentioned earlier, their maps are useless. Needs Improvement.

SM IMAX schedule
Get this theater’s movie sched via SMS, send CTC MOV SMIMAX
To: 2333 (Globe) | 2250 (Smart) | 2355 (Sun)

or click here to get the current movie schedule at the IMAX theater.

Visit my Pinoy Travel Booking Engine and take that romantic vacation to the Islands of the Philippines. Buy Cheap Travel Tickets here.

SM Mall of Asia Photos
View Christmas in SM Mall of AsiaView the SM Mall of Asia photo gallery in full sized images. (taken May 24, 2006 using a NOKIA N70 cellphone so pardon the 2 megapixel image quality)
View the photos of SM Mall of Asia (taken June 7, 2006 using Canon Powershot A350) and more SM Mall of Asia Photos
– Food stalls in SM Mall of Asia (taken June 7, 2006 using Canon Powershot A350)
– Manila Bay Sunset as seen from SM Mall of Asia
– The Manila Bay in SM Mall of Asia

SM Mall of Asia Address

SM Mall of Asia
Central Business Park
Bay Blvd., Bay City
Pasay City

Phone: 556-0104 to 06

Directions to go to [tag]SM Mall of Asia[/tag]

If coming from Quezon City (going south), drive or take a ride towards the end of Epifanio del Los Santos Avenue or EDSA crossing Taft Avenue then Roxas Boulevard. After crossing Roxas Boulevard, the road is now called Macapagal Blvd. You won’t miss it because you will see the globe at the end of the boulevard.

sm mall of asia globe

To contact SM Mall of Asia

Go to their SM Prime Holdings website and Click here to contact them for leasing or other concerns or Phone: 556-0104 to 06

P.S. I am not connected with the SM Mall of Asia so please don’t email me for information.

Go back to SM MALL OF ASIA PAGE ONE

Condominium Shopping

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porch.jpgThis beautiful ancestral house is inhabited by ghosts. No kidding! I’ve been ignoring the footsteps, the weird sounds, odors and the cat getting spooked for the past 8 years. We moved to Makati in 1998 and thought it was the best decision we ever made. Sure, it took only 15 minutes to my husband’s office. Luijoe was only 4 years old. He cried every night the first few weeks because he wanted to go back to our cute bungalow in Pasig City. He often said that “This house is not beautiful. Let’s go back“. He’d stare forlornly by the window sill.

In early 2000 we already knew that this house didn’t bring in good vibes. This led us to purchase a house and lot somewhere in Sta. Rosa , Laguna and thought of moving the whole family to the south. That meant looking for a new school for the girls and Luijoe. Unfortunately, Luijoe died May 27, 2000 and our plans got shelved aside. Moving out took a backseat because we were too stressed out in our bereavement. The house is being rented out to a Japanese family who want to hold on to the house because it gave them “good luck”. We can’t move in there yet. So I don’t know. Can a house affect good or bad vibes? I think so.

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Before and After : Weight Loss Photos

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It’s inspiring to see before and after photos of people who have lost weight. Take for instance Five stars who went to fat and back like Janet Jackson, Oprah Winfrey, Anna Nicole Smith, Nicole Richie and Jared Leto. Janet lost a whopping 70 pounds:

Janet’s secret is not lipo, not starvation, not gastric bypass. A few months back, Janet signed up for a healthy gourmet delivery service called Fresh Dining, a company that is becoming Hollywood’s new thing.

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There’s a similar service in Makati that prepares the [tag]Southbeach diet[/tag] and delivers it to your house. I know of a couple who ordered this diet plan. It cost them 20,000 pesos (roughly $400) every 15 days. God, it’s way too expensive. The result. They didn’t lose weight and I think even gained some poundage. So much for Southbeach diet.

My weight management plan was based on South Beach diet which I prepared by myself. Nothing fancy or expensive. It worked combined with daily exercise at the gym. At the age of 48 years old and afflicted with diabetes, I ‘ve achieved a [tag]weight loss[/tag] of of 30 pounds over a period of 4 to 5 months. I have 10 more pounds to lose.

So here’s my before and after pic:

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Ali Sotto’s Special Mother’s Day Feature

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alishow.jpgI was quite apprehensive over the production of Ali’s Sotto Mother’s Day Feature. Ali’s talk show was launched late last year and I had never watched a single episode. What will be the focus? Will it sound sensational aka Oprah Show style? Or will they show some heart breaking dramatic effect? I was prepared for the worst.

ali show

Surprisingly, the episode was nice, touching and inspiring. The Ali Show featured mothers who have moved on towards a positive resolution of their grief. It’s not easy to narrate my grief and the events surrounding Luijoe’s death in public but I needed to share , if only to give hope to other bereaved parents. Most importantly, my son’s memory is kept alive through The Compassionate Friends which I co-founded with two other parents. (View Screencaps of the show)

* * *

When I woke up this morning, I received a few text messages about the show. The funniest of them all was a text message forwarded by my husband.

Hi Butch . Is Noemi a movie celebrity? I keep seeing her picture on TV. what show does she come out in?

haha, I don’t know if our new friend was kidding or not but I think he was referring to the preview of the show.