Work Stresses

Sometimes I think my work will be my death wish.  There are times that I become so stressed with work that my blood pressure becomes unmanageable, my migraines so painful and my heart beats so fast in time to the pressure of performing like a trained monkey.

I thought I'd get a reprieved after the MRDP PO Congress but unfortunately work comes piling up again when I came back from my sick leave. Work had to take a back seat when my eldest, Leilalia was admitted at the Madonna and Child Hospital for gastroenteritis and mild dehydration.  Good care, medicines and prayers healed my baby.

I hope to take things easy until the end of the year so that I'll be physically able to roar into the new year with PRDP.  I guess another year means another year of coping with work and life stresses.

I Survived the LEA

The results of the Licensure Exam for Agriculturist came out last week.  Guess what?I passed!!! Not bad for someone who graduated 13 years ago.  Though it took me 6 years to have the guts to take it.  I would have not passed if not for all the prayers and support from friends and family.  Hurdling and passing the LEA felt  very good.  I had doubts of passing it after the exams because I find 3 of the 6 disciplines hard.  I had an 80.71% passing average with (surprise! surprise!) Soils Science as my highest at 84%.  I expected a high average for my Animal Science but it was only 79%.

Now, I'm license-equipped for the Rationalization next year.

I will be taking the Licensure Exam for Agriculturists on July 19-21, 2011.  I went through an intensive review for 2 months on Saturdays and Sundays.  My pre-test were encouraging but the post test was a complete opposite.  I still got good scores on the post test but I did not pass the 75% per subject.  In the LEA, one need to get a 75% average score of the 6 disciplines-crop science, crop protection, animal science, agri economics, agri extension and soil science.  Hya and Jenny will also be taking the exam. 

The exam is only 2 weeks away and I have not studied in depth for it.  I decided to take an 11 days leave from work so that I can concentrate.  I've already invested so much in this.  I sacrificed weekends with my family just to attend the review classes.  I had to take out a loan to pay for the review classes.  The P8,000 that I paid Xavier University did not include the money I spent for meals and snacks.  A lot is relying on my passing the LEA.  I cannot apply for a higher position if I do not pass the LEA since the license is required for applying.  If I get a higher position, the additional income will help us a lot in making ends meet.

I need all the prayers and I need to put in a lot of effort to make it.  God help me.

Wanting To Earn Extra Income

Trying to make ends meet on a daily basis is like running a 100 meter dash.  It's nerve wracking.  It's exhausting.  It's a reality.  I chance upon my sister's online ad on earning part time jobs at home.  I registered hoping to earn extra income to make ends meet.

My referral link is http://www.earnparttimejobs.com/index.php?id=3520528.  I hope those who read this piece also check out this link so that other mothers like me have extra income.

Writing Again

I seem to have developed a trend in my blog.  I rest for a few months from writing and go at it again when I feel like it.  My hiatus usually lasts from 2 months to a year.  So, whats new?

Gabrielle, or Gabby  for short, just turned one year old last March 5.  Gabby may have been unplanned because Edwin and I have already decided after Jianna not to have another baby.  But God sprung a miracle on us last year and after going through the basic motions of infancy, is now a healthy, albeit quiet strong willed, tot.  Her yaya, Gagang, calls Gabby her "Mutya" from the ABS-CBN fantaserye.  Gabby is adorable when shes not hungry or wanting to go out.  She was used to Grace bringing her outdoors even at 6am in the morning that when she does not get her morning "laag", beware!

Leilalia harvested K1's medals and more last March 26, 2011.  Edwin and I were proudly surprised when her name was called after the teacher caught her breath from enumerating all her medals.  Of course, the proud Lola announced that Ate got her brains from her.  No contest or else.

Jianna may have not gotten a medal that day but she got 3 ribbons that also made us very proud.  Jianna has improved so much since starting school last September that her finishing the school year even without any ribbon would have been okay with us .  The therapy helped her but the socialization and love of teachers at the Mindanao Christ Gospel Academy was even better than any therapy.

Rebond. Bongga

I'm sporting a new hair cut and style and the worls courtesy of Ate Llani.  Last Saturday, Sandra from a salon in CDO came to the house to fix my hair.  My curls were straightened out rebond way and got waxed and colored.  When I came to the office this morning, people commented on my new hair.  I look younger they say.  Unfortunately, I do't get nice comments on my figure because of my excess weight.  May be my new hair will inspire me more to trim down to complement my hair.

Missing Home

I'll be leaving for Davao in a few minutes to attend an MRDP activity.  I will be away for 3 long nights and 4 long days from my 3 chikiting patrol.  I was close to tears when I left the house this morning.  Diday and Jianna may be old enough to understand that I sometimes have to go travels for work but it does not make my leaving any easier.  Gabby was content to play with her toys in her cbrib and rolling around the space with her hotdog pillows.  I'll miss my daughters while I'm in Davao.  Edwin is also on travel.  He left yesterday for Bukidnon and won't be back until Thursday night.  I already informed my mom that Edwin and I are both away and she promised to drop by the house to check on the kids.  I'm confident Grace can take care of the children but there are times that Gabby can be cranky and be a handful.  Edwin's relatives are also around to help and when I called Grace, she told me that Auntie Edna was the one who bought Gabby's cerelac for her.  Thanks God for family.

Pinays Work Longer Hours Than Pinoys - ILO

I got this article from the Department of Budget and Management.  This is so true!  We women are masters in multi-tasking.

This role reversal - Filipino women working longer than their male counterparts - showed that two of three Filipino women workers are more likely to work over 64 hours per week. The phenomena is driven largely by the expansion of the services sector which tends to employ more women than men.

Impact on Women. While longer working hours mean being able to help make ends meet, it has a considerable effect on women's health and on time spent with the family. A major concern relative to the situation is that women, in addition to their paid work, also engage in unpaid domestic tasks such as taking care of the children and of sick members of the family.

Work-Family Equilibrium.Attaining a balance between career and family and alleviating women's 'multiple burden' need to be confronted at all levels. The study provides certain policy points to vance decent work/ working time which include the reduction of long working hours to lessen the risk of occupational injuries and illnesses; the adoption of family-friendly working time measures, i.e., flexi-time, emergency family leave, part-time work, etc.; and the adoption of reasonable statutory hours, among others.

While these measures may help workers devote more time for their families, these do not provide answers to women's multiple burden.This is a more difficult challenge that could be adressed at the cultural/ societal level.

A Shared Responsibility. Promotion of shared responsibility ( between men and women) in the household and family care could greatly alleviate women's load in the household. However, this is easier said than done. Cultural biases and the stereotyped role of women as homemakers somehow impede men's greater participation in domestic work ( such as caring for children, housekeeping, etc.)

To help break the cultural biases and traditional gender division of labor, and ensure men's equal share in household responsibilities, both men and women should be made aware of the unequal relationship between them through gender awareness and sensitivity.

Institutions of mass socialization such as media and formal education, if used well, can be agents of societal, cultural change. As a start, books depicting women as homemakers and men as income-earners should be revised to avoid sexism.

Though it may take some time to attain gender equality, efforts to eliminate the gender gap have been provided in the government's national budget to address gender issues and concerns. Non-government organizations and other civic groups are also vigorously pursuing gender-related initiatives.