Health gets compromised when a person is busy. You might be busy at home, school or work. The amount of tasks that cloud our day primarily affects how we watch our health. I am guilty of this especially when I have a lot of things to do. When I was still studying, I often skip meals when I need to finish a project or assignment. Time constraint and deadlines make it impossible for me to eat in between tasks. So much focus on finishing the job is my priority.

By nature, I don't like to eat too much. I seldom enjoy a sumptuous meal. I easily feel full and contented by just eating a semi-full cup of rice and a bowl of viand. I prefer little meals rather than heavy ones.

But as I grow older, I noticed that my eating habits are not good for me. Though I didn't get fat like some of my friends, they always tell me that I look sick because of my built. I'm very thin and small. I must admit, my habits are giving me a few health problems. I often feel nausea-tic, Headaches make me unproductive. I am prone to colds, heartburn and skin eruptions.

Having said that, I resorted to having a physical exam. To be sure, aside from blood sugar and cholesterol check, I even requested Creatinine test and ECG.Good thing, I got negative results for  diseases that I might have.

Aside from eating habits, I made sure that an everyday exercise be performed. I do walk either in the morning or afternoon. Drinking fluids and avoiding soda and concentrated juice drinks are one of the basic prevention against diseases prescribed by many health and medical practitioners. Another routine is making sure to have at least 8 hours of sleep in a day.

I'm trying my  best to do all these so I don't have to take medicines and get hospitalized. My health is far more important so I can spend more time with my family and friends.

I seldom get excited about a political event, an election to be exact. But there is something very interesting about the national election that will happen this year 2016. This particular election makes me do a lot of thinking. Weighing every bit of statements, platforms, campaign styles, and most especially, accomplishments. I can't remember how many times I voted. When I was younger, my choices were either based on my parents take on who to vote or what I often saw on ads and campaign jingles. It is hard to decide because I don't know the candidates much. Simply because they are just visible when election time is near. I see posters of some only before election period when a project is on going and purposely tell the public that the mentioned politician is involved with it and takes credit.

I silently watch how campaigns go along thru television, radio, newspapers and even social media. Funny and entertaining it might be to some but the drama and intense involvement of every person I know and those I don't know changed the way I see everything. Before, I only practice my right to vote by having a simple list of who I like then after getting the indelible ink on my finger and making sure that my ballot was received, I go home and just let time pass until I hear the names of the victorious candidates. No major involvement or concern. I'm uninterested because most of the time, those people I voted for local and national posts don't win. They are not popular though very qualified. Dignified yet thrown with unfair and negative publicity. The ones who victoriously get the most votes are those that distributed envelopes with a hundred, two hundred or five hundred peso bill. The first time I received such 'envelopes' was when I'm still in college. I felt very awkward and uneasy. Why do I have to get money in exchange for my vote? It really puzzled me. That first time, my family just signed a list of registered voters presented to us which looks exactly what the COMELEC has when you sign at voting precincts. On the next election period, same envelopes gone loose in our area but required people to go to the headquarters after validating that you are in the list. That second time, I refused to get the envelope and didn't bother to go to the specified place. I just don't feel it was right to be involved in such dirty tactics to get my vote. Then on the succeeding elections, my name cannot be found on their master list, same as other members of our family. Actually, I felt very relieved to be not part of their scheme. At least I can be proud of my vote to people who did and didn't win but played fair and square. I'm sad because until now, the same practice happens. Coordinators still asks about the names and numbers of voters in a household and once verified in the master list, they will soon receive the cash equivalent when you agreed to vote the particular candidate.

Today, something changed. Aside from the fact of the emergence of social media as a platform to generate votes, the atmosphere felt different. I see people now not going gaga over the envelopes release and that almost everyone is vocal of whom they are rooting for. As far as I can remember, this was not the setting a few years back. The preferred candidate is not vocally announced and the inclination of a person to a specific candidate is not very obvious. Though wearing shirts campaigning a certain candidate can be obtained because their public relations and campaign managers distribute funded paraphernalia. Now, people use their own money to produce campaign shirts, stickers, etc. Join political rallies and meetings from their own pockets. I feel that voters fight or argue with opposing friends and even family members to stress their reason for voting their preferred candidates. Disturbing it may seem but I see some light on how things are changing the attitude of everyone towards this election. I now feel a sense of patriotism besides the negative impact of idolatry. The expressed emotion roots from the longing to have a better government and improved lives. The low income and average income voters finally have something to say. Hope, Choice, Unity and Change are now a few days away.

Working online never crossed my mind while I was in college. After graduation I enrolled in a Postgraduate School far from home. My mindset is to establish a teaching career for the rest of my life. But, that was then. I was able to teach high school and college students. I also managed to handle one-on-one tutorials for aspiring honor students of elementary schools near our place. But at some point, I started thinking of trying out different fields. I practiced my finished course in college. As a business management graduate, I handled bookkeeping, accounting, marketing and management tasks and jobs. I found myself applying for customer service positions in big BPO companies in Manila. My struggles to fit in made me stronger to adjust in all types of working environment or setting. But time and health issues made me quit though those jobs gave me better living capacity. I have to leave two of the best companies I worked for and gave me an opportunity to learn new skills and compensated all my efforts.

After more than 4 years of being unemployed and taking care of my only child, I decided to try freelancing. Though I heard a lot of negative feedback, I still pursued the track of becoming an online entrepreneur. I tried my best to learn new skills and tricks of the trade. I joined groups who continuously encourages and assists fellow budding and veteran freelancers. I attend seminar and workshops to hone my skills even more. I asked questions and tried to fill in my hungry soul for knowledge.

There is no definite formula in making it big in this business as I go through everything. I just follow some tips given by my fellow virtual entrepreneurs. Focus, eagerness and risk management are some of the key things I learned to develop over time. I’m glad that after all this years, I was able to master the art of getting the positive side of everything that happens, especially the failures that keep crossing my path. I fully understand now that more pitfalls are available than glory. It may not be pleasant at first because of the frustrations but as I go along, I feel the wonder of a single triumph over thousands of obstacles.

I invited my nephew Marwell to write an article for me. He is a grade 7 student who really surprises me with his ideas. At a very young age, he often contemplates and asks about things I never thought he will be interested in.

I encouraged him to have his own blog so he could write and express himself more. Without further ado, I would like to share his piece. Read on.

A True Leader

by: Marwell July Moreno

The people of the Republic of the Philippines have been waiting for too long for a leader to achieve our expectations. We need a leader who has the characteristics that our future leaders should have. But what are those characteristics that a leader should have to be considered as a ‘True Leader’? Those are for you to choose.

May 9, 2016 is the date when the election will start. It’s when we will judge and choose which of the candidates we will elect to their rightful position. But are they rightful for being the president? Do they have what it takes to be a leader? Can they be A ‘True Leader’? Can they make a solution for the problems of The Philippines? You see politics isn’t just about your wealth, your dynasty, and other things. it is also about how you handle things and how you make solutions without affecting anyone negatively. We need a rightful Leader to of course lead us to a better life. As a blogger I am not allowed to say names of the aspirants of being the president of the Philippines. There is a Vice president; there is a son of an action star, a senator, a secretary, and a mayor. Many memes has appeared in every corner of social media. Some makes fun of it and some appeals against it and say that it is an example of bullying which is true. There are already two debates launched by the two of the biggest networks in Philippine television. They launched their debates. One for each of them. Many people enjoyed watching it, liked how they discoursed the problems of the Philippines, and how some of them almost fought with each other. What I want for a Leader is wise, trustworthy and of course honest. A leader who can easily make solutions, a leader we can trust, and a leader who will not steal from the funds of our country. A leader with an iron fist isn’t that bad. I would really like to see the Philippines without criminals and other problems. And speaking of problems I would also like to see the Philippines without traffic. Traffic is not really a big problem if there is no corrupt in the government, if the money is used only for the good of the public. I believe that the problems of the Philippines can be resolved in a month or so if we only have a good leader. We can rise through the help of a ‘True Leader’.

This coming election be sure to choose only the best of the candidates for the future of the Philippines. Let us prove that the economy of our home country can rise up to its highest. We shall choose the president who can achieve our expectations. Let us choose a leader who can do more things than our previous leaders. A leader who has the characteristics we want. A ‘True Leader’ for me to be short. This is me signing out.

I used to be a teacher. Enjoyed the fulfillment of imparting knowledge to my students. Been able to handle high school and college classes. Diverse subjects like Physical Education, English, Mathematics, Management, and Accounting were handled by yours truly.

When I was younger, I felt the calling to this field. I enjoyed playing as a teacher. Instructing and giving assignments to my playmates are my favorites. Though I am a shy person, when I play the role, it boosts my confidence and set aside my inferiority.

While in college, some of my professors often asked me to conduct special classes or you can call it tutorials. I just obeyed and taught my classmates who are interested to learn more. At first, I was unsure to accept the task because I felt inadequate and inferior. Plus the fact that I am scared to be looked down and scorned by fellow students. But as days passed by, my audience grew bigger and my classmates were thankful enough to appreciate my effort and told me that they learned thru my instruction and approach. I was happy to know that I didn't taught in vain and reaped positive results. My classmates said that they were able to understand the lessons (especially in Accounting).

After graduation, my brother enrolled me in a graduate school in Rizal province. I took a few units for Masters in Public Administration. I met different people with different occupations and college degrees. My journey to become a teacher continued and even planned to take up additional units in Education but didn't materialize. But even if I lacked formal education requirements, I was given a chance to become a reliever of a vacationing professor in the same school in Rizal after 3 years. With no expertise or specialization, I was assigned to facilitate all year levels with different subject matters. I even tagged myself as "international" because I taught first year English, first year Mathematics, second year English, second year Social Studies, third year Management, and fourth year Accounting.

I survived college instruction and then was called to become a Physical education teacher from first year to fourth year class. The job was hard and became my last teaching stint in a formal school setting. My throat is not suited to talk for hours in a large room with bountiful students.

To continue my craft, I accepted one-on-one tutorials to elementary students. Until I found myself deviating from the profession to different career paths like marketing, inventory, customer service, etc.

Recently, I bumped to a former classmate of mine in college who happened to finish education units that entitled her to take and pass the Licensure Examination for Teachers. In her quest to land a teaching job, she applied to different schools (private and government). She waited to be called for demonstration and interviews and asked for my help in creating presentations and technical teaching strategies based on my experience because she lacked the actual training and just attended school to complete her 18 Education units. I helped her with the PowerPoint presentations and gave her tips to have her students' attention and involvement. We meet every now and then after she consults some teacher friends and former professors to make her future demonstration more effective.

Even if I didn't pursue the teaching path I tracked before, I am happy to share my experiences and talents to a budding and very eager mentor-to-be. I am still willing to impart knowledge to those who wanted to learn, though it will not be in a classroom setup, but in other forms.

We seldom go out and bond as a group. My siblings and I live in different locations. Having our own families and priorities made it difficult to schedule meet ups. Fortunately last Friday, our kids got a chance to go out, dine together and celebrate my nephew's birthday. It was so fun because their lolo and lola joined their grandchildren. Since it was Jaja's birthday, he requested to dine at Jollibee (a local fast food chain popular to kids here in the Philippines). The usual kiddie meal was ordered for the 3 young ones, chicken bucket meal and burger steak for the older ones.

While eating, we talk about adventures and escapades that we just had. My nieces, nephews and son seemed to enjoy the moment and requested another stop to a coffe shop near the area. My father and mother agreed to go to "The Beanery" and have coffee (with snacks of course).

A one-hour dinner plan turned out to be a four-hour eating spree. Before going home, we set to repeat the bond next month for my mother's birthday in a different restaurant. Happiness filled our hearts as we went home. We even enjoyed the walk from the town plaza to our house which took us 10 minutes. It was almost midnight and we are the only ones crossing the road. The air was cold and breezy, our laughter blended with the atmosphere. Never felt good for a long time and been very thankful that I spent time with my family even for a few hours.

After that, went back to reality and rushed to my laptop, logged in and worked to complete my tasks for the week. Time well-spent indeed.

While browsing the internet two weeks ago, I thought of finding a 2016 calendar that I can print. Having a calendar allows me to schedule activities for myself. I have read and believed that writing down the things to do and setting the lists according to importance makes your day fully productive. Aside from doing my usual routine, I try to do at least two or more tasks that I can in my to-do-list calendar. I know this is something a lot of people struggle to put into action. I had a hard time doing this but starting little by little will show progress and allows us to get the hang of it.

I remember someone suggested to use a personalized calendar. A design that catches your attention and stimulates your mind to follow what is written on it. This is very helpful especially for children if we want to train them on being organized and having focus. But this is not only effective to children and is also viable to adults like me. I love looking at my calendar with images and colors that invites me to be productive. Post-it’s are good, but if you want to personalize and add a twist on your to-do-list, try the personalized calendar. It’s worth it.

My search for the best calendar started with a few planners that I received as souvenirs from different establishments. I even tried the usual calendar given out by banks, drugstores and stores but defeated the purpose of customization (not to mention, boring). Another option is creating my own calendar since I have a software for making calendars, posters, cards and stickers.  I tried making my own but it seems that every day, I have different designs in my mind. Putting a lot of pressure just to come up with the perfect one.

Until the day that I came across a blog telling about the Disney Calendar. I’m a big fan of Disney; be it cartoons, movies and items. It showed the link where I can download the calendar. It jolted me much when I saw that the download is free. I was so happy that I clicked the link and searched for the calendar download. The design was appealing to me and I printed out my own and used it right away. My niece even requested her own copy using colored papers.

I hope Year 2016, is not just having a colorful calendar but a productive year for me.

P.S. You can download the calendar here - Disney Calendar 2016