Yolanda

Last week I was so dispirited. I was looking at my face in the mirror and scattered everywhere where pimples, huge, hard-to-get-rid-of cystic acne. I felt utterly depressed wtf like there was no light at the end of the tunnel. A few months ago they weren't there, and now, they just won't budge.

Nope, the title is not wrong: Friday evening, finally, I watched the news. Shame on me! What a sheltered, spoiled brat again I was to have worried over shallow facial problems, when people from Leyte and other parts of the country suffered unedurably, horribly, from the devastating Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda. I knew they said it was the worst storm to ever hit but I guess no one dared to imagine how horrifying things would turn out...

I must admit, things like this have happened several times in the PH, I was horrified, yes, it was heartbreaking to see others suffer so much, but before, I was detached from it, it happened to other people, not me. Till I saw on facebook that a good college friend had moved to Tacloban months before and didn't survive the vicious storm. I was stunned. Totally stunned. I couldn't believe it, that it could happen to someone I know. She was a wonderful woman, I looked up to her in school, and I remember how I would go to her design class and chat for hours; apart from that, she was someone who believed in me and inspired me to do my best. Just last week I was chatting with her on fb, it was her birthday and then now, she's gone... Suddenly I was struck with fear, what if that happened to my mom and dad? Together with this was an overwhelming sense of gratitude that they weren't, it was a confusing convolution of feelings altogether. Until now I couldn't stop thinking about all the lives that were affected...

On top of these, came across a forum shared on fb:

You can also see comments like these on Yahoo! (though I think Yahoo moderates them). I know, I know I shouldn't even be posting this here. I don't want to spark a debate, I don't want everyone to fight! When I first read the above I was dumbfounded, how can anyone be so mean? No matter what evil, what incompetence anyone has ever done to you, nothing, NOTHING warrants this kind of reaction... it is purely inhuman and vile. How can you say that people deserve that kind of misery? You mean to say that my friend, who was kind and loving and was one of the most wonderful person I've known, deserved to die in such a way?

I myself have chastised Filipinos for our wrong attitudes and irresponsible ways, but I don't think now is the right time to point that out.

The best thing to do, however, is to NOT REPLY and just IGNORE all these nasty comments. I don't want to share the link to the forum. It won't do any good to answer back, as their minds are already closed to their own opinions, in part I also know why they have borne such hatred, but I repeat--there's not enough reason to say such comments. Besides, every nationality has their own "cockroaches"--accdg to their terms, that much I admit--as these few are to their own country. Yes, "few". I know majority are nice and truly kindhearted, it is just unfortunate that the above are more free to post such things. There are still a lot of good in humanity and I choose to believe in them instead, and I urge everyone to feel the same. I am posting the above image so we may learn from it: do not be like them.

Speaking of good in humanity, I am truly grateful for the rest of the world who have aided the Philippines in this time of need. These are the countries that have helped so far, thank you so so very much~ and I hope all these will be utilized and allocated to effectively help those who were affected:

AUSTRALIA - US$10 million package
BELGIUM - medical and search and rescue personnel
CANADA - C$5 million
DENMARK - KR 10 million
EUROPEAN UNION - EUR 3 million
GERMANY - 23 tons of relief goods
HUNGARY - search and rescue personnel and rapid response team
INDONESIA - in-kind donations
ISRAEL- team of medical, trauma and relief professionals
JAPAN - emergency relief medical team
MALAYSIA - medical and search and rescue teams
THE NETHERLANDS - undisclosed financial aid
NEW ZEALAND - NZ $2.15 million
NORWAY - KR 20 million
RUSSIA - rapid response team
SAUDI ARABIA through Prince Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud - US$100,000 + reliefs goods
SINGAPORE - $200,000
South Korea government - 5 million USD, Samsung - 1 million USD, Korea NGOOCD - 1 million USD
SPAIN - in-kind donations
SWEDEN- emergency communications equipment
TAIWAN - $200,000
VATICAN CITY - $150,000
TURKEY - medics, rapid response team, search and rescue personnel
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Dhs 36 million
UNITED KINGDOM - £6 million and $9.6 million worth of emergency support package
UNITED NATIONS Children's Fund - $1.3 million worth of supplies
UNITED STATES - initial $100,000 for water and sanitation; Troops, emergency respondents, transportation and equipment

(Note: These information were taken online and are updated as of 13 November 2013. Please feel free to correct any inaccuracy.)

Individually, we all can help as well. General advice is that now, Cash is better than in kind, because logistics can prove to be a problem; however, please make sure that you are donating to the right charities and organizations. You can also still donate used items but please ensure that they can be used, such as blankets, tents, clothes like sweaters (and not ballgowns, stilettos  and the like), easily opened canned goods, biscuits. Noodles are also not advised because of the difficulty of heating water given the current situation. Bottled water are also appreciated.

For those residing in Singapore, you can help through Red Cross:

To donate
Please visit the Red Cross House at 15 Penang Lane Singapore 238486, from 9am to
7pm (Mon-Fri) 9am to Noon (Sat-Sun), or post your cheque to ‘Singapore Red Cross Society’ at the above address. 

Please indicate ‘Red Cross Haiyan Relief’ on the back of the cheque, along with your name, contact no. and address.

Note: In-kind donations (food, clothes, etc) are not accepted due to logistical considerations. Tax deduction is not applicable for overseas giving.

To volunteer
The Singapore Red Cross welcomes volunteers to man its hotlines and fund collection booths. Please register with the volunteer team at 6664 0500.


For a more comprehensive list of ways to help, visit:
http://www.rappler.com/move-ph/issues/disasters/43300-reliefph-victims-typhoon-yolanda-help#overseasonline

Photos grabbed from CNN, New York Times, Reuters &The Australian.

Some facts regarding Super Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan and its devastating effects in the Philippines:

• It made its first landfall in the Philippines on the morning of Nov. 8, 2013.
• It made a total of five landfalls: first in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, then Bantayan Island, Daanbantayan, Panay, and Busuanga Island.
• It is one of the strongest cyclone ever recorded; 3.5 times more ferocious than Hurricane Katrina and enough to span from Spain to Sweden.
• Before the storm, 700,000 were evacuated to Red Cross Shelters. The shelters themselves didn't survive the storm and people died there as well.
• The winds reached as strong as 235 mph but it was the 5-meter tall wall of Ocean water that killed and swept away homes and lives together.
• The storm lasted for a day and when it reached Vietnam on Nov. 9, 2013, wind gusts quieted down to up to 115 mph.

There have been a lot of finger-pointing and criticisms, saying that the Philippines never prepared despite being forewarned of this monstrous storm. It may be right in that more comprehensive preventive measures could have been implemented. But then again, I guess the storm really was too strong; as it destroyed even the shelters where the people were evacuated. The storm surge was unexpected and this is what killed thousands. It is also hard to move every single person off the island as the Philippines is divided into small islands and travel is very difficult for such a population. There have been suggestions to be build more storm-resistant shelters such as underground ones (but could this prevent people from drowning?).

Bottom line is, this is not the time to blame anyone and talk a lot about could haves and should haves. It's done. It's over. People died. People suffered. They still are. What we should do is not only help, but LEARN. Learn from this tragedy. Seriously, this happens almost every year. How many thousands of people have to die before we device ways to minimize (completely eliminate is impossible) the fatalities?

After a while, we will all go back to our mundane lives, I would probably go back to thinking of ways to clear my breakouts, and everyone will continue posting their selfies and live on. That's how life is. But let's not forget. Please, let us all learn from this tragedy so that in the future, less lives will be lost.

たまや (Tamaya Dining + First dinner date with TBM!)

The following was when Alene, Gwen and I decided to meet for dinner and have Jap food; it was also the first time they introduced me to their new idea-- which has materialized already if you can see from my previous post!

The choice of place was up to me since I was the first to arrive.. which was probably a bad choice. Haha! Firstly, it is an Izakaya, which is a place for after-work drinking, and we had no intentions of drinking at all, and I think it wasn't also a good place for three girls to just gossip. Secondly, it was quite expensive! I mean, the food is okay but not exceptional, so I consider it expensive at around $50+/pax for the amount of food that we ordered (which is very little, as you will see from photos below).

What caught my attention was how traditional the place looked, and to see almost all Japanese clients really made me think that it was good.

The appetizer was really nice, it was pork in some kind of vinegar sauce (sorry i forgot to ask what it was called!)

It says Osake but really it's just like soda, like no alcohol content at all.

California Rolls

Sushi tasted okay, but nothing really exceptional.

The salmon was very fresh, although, we were surprised that it wasn't cold.

I must admit that this was really good! The beef was really very soft, with that almost melt-in-your-mouth feeling. 

Some yakitori because I was still hungry. LOL

Lovely girls!

Wouldn't actually recommend the place unless you're out for drinking and chilling with your buddies, as it's quite expensive and the food is average.

"Think About Our Boys!": A MINDEF Event

To be honest, it took me a long time before I was able to sit down and continue writing this post. Mainly because this event is to encourage stronger support for NS men from the women in their lives, be it girlfriend, mother or sister. But you see the thing is, I don't have a brother nor boyfriend who is part of the Army/NS. 

Dog tag with our preferred name on it!

Cupcakes and mementos for  the bloggers!

We got to speak to the officers and they were very accomodating in telling us stories. Apparently, although it is tough, army life can be fun and fulfilling too. Imagine, if you are part of the navy, then you can have free shipping if you buy stuff from other countries! LOL

Thank you Janice for being patient with us and all our silly questions!

I've got to say, I really admire the women who are part of the army. There's something really amazing about a woman being able to do a tough man's job! 

We toured around the army museum after chatting with the officers. It was interesting, and quite new to me, as I've never been in an army museum before. You should visit and see how well equipped Singapore's army is, and you can sleep soundly at night, knowing that you are safely protected.

This now looks like a painting but this is actually a life size diorama of an upturned bus. What it stands for, well, I forgot to ask. haha

Okay! So after touring around it was our turn to have our nails done! They had army-themed choices for our nail art which is pretty cool! I had mine in the classic camouflage, and it was so good, afterwards all my friends kept asking if it was just sticker. Nope, they were all painted!

Lovely, lovely, lovely!

Then this little girl also wanted to have her nails done. So cute!

We were late because the nail art session took quite a while, so we weren't able to see the officers in training!:( So we just walked around and had a feel of the surroundings where they train. I found it beautiful, actually, and a good place to teach young soldiers. Although, from our guide's stories, training is really really tough and tedious!

View from the tower!

See how green Singapore is from above ^^

I can understand why everyone would not want the army life. It is hard, and requires a lot, a lot of discipline. And this is exactly why I admire them; and thankful that they are dedicated in protecting Singapore. 

Last time I was also speaking to my friends who are PRs and who have a one-year old son. We all agreed that NS is a good thing, it really does help to instill discipline and values in young men, and turn them from boys to adults (ah, boys to men. lol), and if time comes, they would wholeheartedly let their child join NS. It's also their way to give back and to be thankful to Singapore for being a wonderful home to their family.

I heard there are also instances of girlfriends leaving their boyfriends because of NS. I find this quite sad. It's common not only in Singapore but in other countries as well where young boys are required to be trained, like S.Korea. If you watched Sassy Girl, you might remember the scene where they went to the carnival to surprise the girl but ended up being held hostage by an army guy who escaped his service because he was left by his girlfriend for another man.

I know it's hard since girls require a lot of care and attention. But I also know a lot of relationships that don't get affected by such circumstances, and these are by couples who have grown together and matured to be more understanding to not let such small things affect them. So, although it's difficult, it's also a way for both the guy and girl to mature together.

Much respect for this lady!:)

Visiting the OCS really made me appreciate the army more, and I think every Singaporean is really lucky to have such admirable men among them, not as strangers, but as their own sons, brothers, boyfriends, husbands.

Thank you to OCS, Ministry of Defence and all the coordinators who invited us to this enlightening event!

Continue to support!

You can visit their facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/OCS.SAFTI 

and if you want to visit the Army Museum, too, it's at:
520 Upper Jurong Road
Singapore