How to be Part of Relief Efforts for Typhoon Yolanda Victims

The aftermath of the greatest typhoon in history (Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan), as seen in pictures, videos and reports coming in from social media and the news, are truly saddening.  Many areas in central Philippines, mostly the island-provinces in the Visayas region, suffer from damages to lives and infrastructure.

But in tragedy comes solidarity.  Filipinos are known for resiliency and the "bayanihan" spirit.  Grief need not be a hindrance to giving.  That is why barely had Typhoon Yolanda left the country, and rescue and relief operations are already underway from all sectors of the society -- government, non-government, humanitarian and private organizations.

Volunteers packing relief goods at the DSWD headquarters for distribution

to Typhoon Yolanda victims. (Photo credit: Reuters)

 
By monitoring social media like Twitter and Facebook, and the web in general, here are some of the relief organizations who have already mounted relief operations for Typhoon Yolanda victims.

You can do your share by donating funds, clothes, food, and your time to these organizations.

If you know more organizations with relief operations for Typhoon Yolanda victims, please inform us so we can add them to the list.

A word of caution to good-hearted donors:  It is a reality that there are, sadly, many fly-by-night scamming entities that will stop at nothing to exploit calamities such as these for their personal gain.  Please be careful in sending your donations by knowing the organization well .  Donate only to organizations that you are absolutely sure will send your money and resources to the victims, and not have your aid end up in their own pockets.



List of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) Relief Organizations

GlobalGiving

Gawad Kalinga

Philippine Red Cross

Citizens' Disaster Response Center (CDRC)

ABS-CBN Foundation Sagip-Kapamilya

GMA Kapuso Foundation

Salvation Army

Save the Children Federation

 

More ways to help:

Globe mobile phone users can donate the following amounts (5, 25, 50, 100, 300, 500, 1000) via the Philippine RED CROSS by texting: RED <amount> to 2899

Smart mobile phone users can donate the following amounts (10, 25, 50, 100, 300, 500 or 1000)  via the Philippine RED CROSS by texting: RED <amount> to 4143

The Philippine Daily Inquirer is now accepting cash donations which may be deposited to the Inquirer Help Fund at their following bank accounts:

• Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) current account No. 4951-0067-56, under the name Philippine Daily Inquirer Inc.
• Metrobank current account No. 7286-8109-30, also under the name of Philippine Daily Inquirer Inc.

Caritas Internationalis, the Vatican-based international network of Catholic aid agencies, is accepting donations on its website for Typhoon Yolanda victims as part of relief operations.

Catholic Relief Services, also a Caritas network member in the United States, has activated relief operations for the typhoon victims.  Click on the donate button on their website.

Caritas Philippines is open for donations from Filipinos based in the Philippines.

You can also go directly to or contact DSWD if you want to volunteer in repacking family packs for typhoon victims.  Repacking of goods is at DSWD-NROC, Chapel Road (at the back of Air Transportation Office) Pasay City. You can call 8512681 for schedule of repacking.

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What Can We Do on a Do-Nothing Day?

In these days when multitasking is the norm, how will we survive a do-nothing day?


Well, think about it.  All that juggling of two or more tasks at the same time -- all the time! -- is meant to achieve our goals faster right?  I know, I know, in reality it is very rare that even while running ourselves to the ground multitasking on our jobs and our lives in general, we ever get to feel like we have accomplished a definitive goal.  Life just seems an endless progression of tasks that have to be completed, and the completion of which leads to more tasks that we need to complete, and so on till kingdom come.

But there comes that rare time, indeed, when we manage to finish our tasks and goals and end up with nothing to do one fine day.  No work, no school, nothing.  Can we survive it?  Some say modern men are no longer capable of doing nothing, that it has become part of our psyche that we ought to move and do something.

Photo credit: Well and Good NYC

Is it true that we can no longer tolerate time standing still on us, or having too much of it in our hands?  How about trying these do-nothing activities and find out?

1.  Disconnect from the world

Let's turn off our cell phones (all of them), give Facebook a break, take a breather on Twitter, or leave Instagram alone.  Imagine the amount of "something" (time, energy, brain cells) we've been putting just to communicate with our friends online.  If we put up a "gone fishing" sign on our online activities, we'd have more time to "do-nothing", I think.

Photo credit:  The Beauty Bean

2.  Linger on everything

We're so used to doing everything in hyper-speed the minute the alarm goes off that for once, on our do-nothing day, let's slow down.  Let's wake up gracefully, enjoying the comfort of our beds, allowing the sounds of life to awaken us slowly from sleep.

We can eat slow, bathe leisurely, brush our teeth unhurriedly.  Savor every minute, every movement and every activity we do.  Rushing should not be allowed on our do-nothing day.

Photo credit: Hip and Healthy

3.  Relax

When we are on our peak multitasking mode, all parts of our body and our senses are often in their "battle stations".  They all have to come together in a snap, for a common purpose.  They are just tools to accomplish our tasks.  Well, on our do-nothing day, our body and senses should be allowed to have some R&R.  This is the time to spread the mat and watch the clouds roll by.  Feel the breeze on our face.  Allow our hands to touch something nicer for a change, our eyes to drink in something restful for once, our ears to listen to something gentler.  Let's give our hearts some moment to be calm and at peace.  The mind should cease to think, if possible.  Even cars need to be idling from time to time, right?  How much more the human body.

Photo credit: Shutterstock

4.  Explore

Let's face it, multitasking has "regimental" for its middle name.  We make our lives as predictable and compartmentalized as we can, according to some predetermined plan.  Bills here, groceries there, pick up the children at the end of school, go to church on Sunday, and so on, to the beat of our predictable drums.  There are hardly any unknowns left, perhaps maybe the weather.  On our do-nothing day, why not test the boundaries of our comfort zone and see what's on the outer rims?  It's as simple as say, every day we see that flower near the mail box when we leave for work.  Today, why don't we purposely investigate the flower box, inhale the scent, examine the petals like it's the first time we actually saw a flower?

Photo credit: cubscoutcamporee

5.  Dream

Or daydream.  For either is perfect on a do-nothing day.  Our brain will love us for it.  Every day it does nothing but solve problems -- from budget decisions, to office diplomacy, to dealing with family issues.   Let's allow our brain to rest by falling into reverie and musings.  Let our spirit soar as freely as our imagination. 

Photo credit: Google image

 
If our life is Robert Frost's poem, The Road Not Taken, we have already chosen which road to take and had stuck to it.  It is a road well-known to us, and we adhere strictly to all details of it.  But on our do-nothing day, why not wander away from this road for a while.  Deviate a bit from routine?  Try to discover what else is there? 

That way, a do-nothing day can actually become a be-something-more day for us.

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What is Single?

Single is a marital or relationship status.  You know, one of the choices that we need to answer in many forms that we fill-up, like credit cards, censuses, job applications, and the like.   The only possible answers to the question of marital status are really just "single" or "married".  But these days, we tend to complicate this with more options (seeing that the world is not really just black and white, so do "married" or "single" become insufficient).   Enter "divorced", stage right.  Or "widowed", "cohabiting", or even "unmarried partners".

Over at Facebook, there are currently nine(!) marital or relationship statuses, 10 if you count the "--" status which probably means you don't know what state you are in.  Facebook is extra-creative: "in a relationship", "engaged", "in an open relationship" and a big-hit with us: "it's complicated."

Focusing on single, it's the opposite of being unmarried.  It is synonymous to being only one, solitary, alone.  Individualized.

You can either be a happy single or a miserable one.  They say it's a choice of being.

What do you say?

“I like being single, I'm always there when I need me.” ― Art Leo 

 

(Photo credit:  Google image)

 

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Hydroponic Systems: Grow a Garden Without Soil

We all know that most plants need soil to grow.  But did you know that what plants actually need are the nutrients in the soil, not the soil itself, for them to grow?  This has been found out by researchers way back in the 18th century. It's the nutrients carried by water that are absorbed by the plants, and soil is just a rich reservoir of these nutrients.

A Light Bulb Moment

This discovery led researchers into thinking that there are more ways to grow plants other than in the soil.  The idea gave birth to the concept of hydroponics.  Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil.  Almost any plant that grows in soil can grow in hydroponic systems.

The introduction of hydroponics flung wide open the doors for more opportunities in food production.

Benefits of Hydroponics Systems

With global food scarcity always part of every doomsday scenario, hydroponic systems provide better odds in favor of food production, for the following reasons:

• No soil is needed.  Therefore no need for acres of real estate to grow food.
• Less water is needed.  The water in the hydroponic system is reusable.
• Can be grown in small spaces.  Imagine a condo unit with thriving lettuces!
• Healthier plants, higher yields.  Since the environment is controlled, plants are less prone to pests and diseases.
• Less pollution! 

Start Your Own Hydroponic System Now

Here are some ways you can start a hydroponic system in your home.

1. Vertical Hydroponics  

Vertical hydroponic systems solve the problem of space.  Using frame towers or hanging baskets, more plants can be grown per square area.  The plants in the vertical hydroponic system look like pillars of green and provide a decorative appeal to any home.  One limitation of this system is that the towers can tip over when the plants become overgrown.

Below are some examples of vertical hydroponic systems.  Click on the links for more details about each.

Hydrofarm GCTB Tomato Barrel with 4-Foot Tower

Stackable Vertical Hydroponic Pots Tower

2.   Passive Hydroponics 

An inexpensive type of hydroponic system is the passive system.  Nutrients are fed to the plants through a cloth wick that draws water and endlessly flows to the root.   A medium of sand and vermiculite anchors the plant.  A limitation of this system is that the roots may starve due to lack of oxygen, or become over-exposed to water.

3.  Ebb and Flow Hydroponics

Regular flooding and draining of water to and from plants is called ebb and flow hydroponics.  Kind of like the Nile River inundating Egypt's flood plains to make for fertile grounds perfect for planting.  The plants grow in a medium of either rock, wool or gravel.  There is a time interval for flooding the plants, allowing the roots to dry in between the flooding.

Below is an example of an ebb and flow hydroponic system.

Hydrofarm Grow Flow 7-Gallon Controller & 12-Bucket Hydroponic Kit

4.   Aeroponics 

Aeroponic systems allow for nutrient water to drain completely from the roots at certain intervals.  There is no medium that anchors the roots.  An open aeroponic setup exposes the roots to air and light after draining the water, while an enclosed system provides a container that shields the roots from light, keeping them humid and protected.

Here is an example of an aeroponic system.

AeroGarden with Gourmet Herb Seed Kit

5.   NFT Hydroponics 

The Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) hydroponic method suspends the plants over a container of nutrient water, while a small pump controls water circulation to keep the plants fed.  The roots get much-needed oxygen from the space between the suspended container and the water.

With this type of system, there is minimal work to be done after the initial setup, and the energy cost is small and owed only to the energy needed by the pump to work.

So there you have it.  You can grow your own food easily and with little expense through the help of hydroponic systems.  You can either purchase from stores or build your own hydroponic system.  Either way, you are assured of an environment-friendly and space-saving way to create your own garden.

Happy gardening!


(Photo credit:  Google and Amazon images)


 

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Hello, Environment!

Kids will be kids, and they often ask questions that leave adults stumped. While watching a rerun of Wall-E not so recently, they expectedly stayed glued to the screen all throughout the movie, laughed at the funny antics of the characters, and jumped up and down  in delight at every good part. They enjoyed it immensely and at the end of it, asked this question: "Why did the Earth become like that, you know, like, all covered in garbage?"

I was nonplussed, needless to say. Wall-E was just another animated movie for children. It's an offering from Pixar about a robot that inhabited the Earth after it was covered in tons of garbage and man no longer lives in it.  The location in the movie is a future Earth that is not a good environment for children.  The movie had all the goods -- good graphics animation, great characters, fascinating dialogues, and a very interesting plot -- but it had something more: a message to kids about the perils of not taking care of the planet.  And more than that, it also carried a warning to parents that, if we don't take care of it ourselves today, there won't be much of an environment for children in the future.

I did quick parent duty and answered the question as best as I could, but at the back of my mind something nagged. Fact: children nowadays are TV-bound but are still clearly analytical. Fact: the world they live in now is a far cry from the world we parents knew when we were still children. Fact: We parents should really do something about it.

So when two other movies made it through our rerun agenda -- Madagascar and The Wild -- and both of them about the environment too, it's time to hit the trails and have a little meet-and-greet with nature.

With a promise to show them a little bit of the "wilds" that Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Gloria the Hippo, and Melman the Giraffe encountered in the island of Madagascar, we took off to nearby Mount Makiling. 

Wearing jogging pants and sturdy rubber shoes, we drove past the entrance to the National Arts Center and took the road going towards the Pook ni Mariang Makiling site. We left our vehicle at the entrance to the Jamboree site camp grounds and began walking.  Beyond is the waiting environment for children to explore.

The lush rainforest enclosed us immediately. The silence was deafening but pleasant, broken only by the wind rustling through tree leaves and the excited chatter of our children. Ohs, and ahs, and wows!  As if in welcome, the trees stood proudly, gigantic and conveying their antiquity -- regal beings in this environment for children to marvel upon.  And the children were indeed appropriately awed. They haven't seen the likes of such vast works of nature until then.

It seemed Mother Nature had prepared an extravagant show of the environment for children to enjoy.  We saw a lot of unique plants, strange rocks, and interesting structures as we continued our unhurried walk. There were tiny streams of water running through cracks on the earth. The children saw large spider webs and started at the sound of birds and crickets chirping nearby. They were disappointed not to meet a single lion, however, despite explaining to them that no lion lives in this mountain. 

It was a pleasant sojourn. Everything was new to them, but they took to it like ducks to water. We did not preach about the environment (they were too young for it), but instead just allowed them to soak it in, to be in communion with nature by themselves, and allow them to process the experiences they had that afternoon on their own.  

We picked that site for its relative safety particularly to children. It was still part of the Makiling Forest Reserve and very close to "civilization". Yet it has all the elements for a quick study of the environment -- a perfect environment for children.

As long as we feel a wave of pity for children who may no longer have the privilege to experience many of nature's gifts -- walk on rainforests, fish on pristine rivers, inhale fresh air and the like -- let us not stop bringing them closer to the environment.  For it may be gone before we know it.

But as long as we parents work on protecting our natural resources today, we are assured that there will certainly be an environment for children in the future.

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Joy of Writing = Joy of Reading

Got the first comment from my first-ever reader, Sheena, and I'm ecstatic! Sheena read my first-ever post What's in a blog name? and posted a nice comment.

Albeit, Sheena is an online marketer doing SEO work for a client, but it's still nice of her to leave a nice message and say hi for stopping by. I consider it good luck that the first reader liked the first post of this blog. Thank you, Sheena!

Many people don't realize it, but writing can be a difficult task. There is a side of the brain that works to fuse together words and thoughts. There's the added struggle to make the words flow like music or water or something harmonic and beautiful. Even the most gifted of writers undergo this process, I think. It's not on the side of easy, mind. The point is that writing can be a humbling experience for any writer. It is a struggle, and often a wish that the struggle is appreciated by even even one reader. Even the proudest and most successful of writers beg.

So when readers appreciate and take delight in what they read, the writer is happy. Well-worth the effort, as they say. The deepest wish of a writer is to channel his or her joy when he or she was doing the writing into the reader's joy when he or she is doing the reading.

Otherwise, what would be the point of even lifting a finger to type the first letter?

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