Typhoons: More Fun (not!) in the Philippines

The Philippines is visited by almost 26 tropical storms and typhoons in one year. During the rainy season, expect floods in many areas due to clogged canals, drainages and creeks. Flooded streets are a typical eye sore in the country. The thing is, floods greatly affect not only commuters but also us who ride our private vehicles!

Typhoons visit our country as early as the opening of classes in June. They bring strong winds and so much rain, causing floods. Floods now cause worst traffic, inconvenience and health risk to the general public- majority of which are commuters-and suspension of classes, even work especially in government offices.

Water-borne diseases such as leptospirosis (an infectious disease caused by bacteria from animal urine), typhoid fever, and hepatitis A become prevalent during the wet season, especially when streets are flooded for endless days.

Sometimes, even if there is no typhoon, outpour of heavy rain already results to serious flooding in many areas in Metro Manila. Isn’t this situation alarming? Doesn’t it tell us how dangerous our environment has become? Should we just wait for the government to act upon it? What can we do to resolve this crisis?

First of all, we are fully aware that garbage- especially plastic and Styrofoams- clog our canals, drainages, and creeks. Therefore, we should practice proper waste disposal. Let’s reuse and recycle our garbage. The basic process of waste segregation should begin at home.

Currently, there is a good number of municipalities implementing the BYOB (Bring Your Own Bag) order. In my opinion, this should become a law in the country, so that plastic garbage may be lessened to a large extent.
Moreover, we should plant trees and more trees to avoid flash floods and soil erosions and landslides. Be involved in community tree-planting projects. The more trees we plant today, the safer we become in the future.

Another way we can preserve the environment is by discouraging our parents from changing and buying their electronic gadgets often. Did you know that it takes for companies to literally destroy mountains to answer the huge demand for copper which is an essential element in manufacturing iPads, mobile phones and other electronic gadgets?

And yet there is another practical way by which we can help to protect our environment from more ravage- avoid using straws and plastic spoons and forks and cups too next time we eat at our favourite fast food outlets.
I’m sure there are other ways we can think of to save our Mother Earth, but they are no good unless we take part in executing them.

To us Lasallians, caring for the Earth should not be a mere idea. Therefore, we should be actively involved in saving our environment from the worst and serious aftermath of industrialization.

How to get THE PERFECT ESSAY: A quick guide for high school students who hate essays

I should really shorten my essays… 😞
Anyways, thanks to the best english teacher evah! ^.^
I appreciate your thoughts.

cats on the moon

With K-12 and KPUP  comes the relaunching of the dreary essay. Although hated by many, essay writing is  a great way to check thought process, organization, and understanding, so the question most students have would be:

“How do I get a perfect score?”

“Does grammar really matter?”

“How do I get started?”

  

Here are some essay pointers your teachers would probably not tell you:

1. Hindi nakaka impress ang mahahabang essays (at least some)

True, that it is a feat to sustain writing long essays, but I have always been impressed how students can encapsulate a complicated idea into simpler truths. Besides, an average class consists of about 40 students and trimming down the reading marathon IS a big help. Thanks in advance!

2. Isipin mo nalang na love letter mo sa teacher mo ang essays.

You don’t want your beloved agonize in pain as we decipher letters we have…

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Save the Environment!

Okay. So, I found this poem I made awhile back when I was grade 7.

I find it really annoying that people really don’t care about the Earth now, and they wouldn’t even have the responsibility to throw their trash in the proper bins. I mean, we were made stewards of the Earth that God gave us and we would’t have self-discipline to take care of it? It’s our responsibility to protect nature, if we don’t, then future generations wouldn’t even breathe the air we once breathed, the good nature we will live in, if we continue to let this world perish.

So, here is my poem.

Restore God’s Given Gift

by: Desher Empeno

God gave us this lovely planet

A gift of love from above

but why do people never care

to protect the earth, we should dare

Seas and rivers become cradles of trash,

the once blue skies now look like ash,

trees are cut and mountains cry,

i wonder why, i wonder why.

Everywhere i see pollution,

and its filling me with confusion,

Seeing destruction gives me frustration,

Help save the earth now! theres still a solution

Our little act of care and kindness to the environment

Brings so much joy and gladness to Mother Earth

The change that the world wants to see,

Should really start from me.

Let us restore God’s given gift!

Always be ready to give a lift,

save the rivers, plant more trees!

for future generations to live and see.

I really hope you appreciate this poem I made.

Thanks! (/^_^)/

Yours,

Desher (P.S. If you don’t realize te whole poem is shaped like a tree.

The Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Ice Bucket Challenge

Hi everyone!

I have been nominated for this trend called the “ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.”
Judging from my news feed in my sites (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), this is pretty famous. Every single one of my batchmates, friends and relatives have done it and I think I’m the one left out. (hahaha XD)

When I found out about this, also watching some of the videos of my friends, I found it pretty crazy for people to dump ice water on their heads and I said to myself, “They’re crazy and this for crazy people.” But, later on that day, I realized I was wrong.

First of all, I didn’t even know what ALS meant. I searched it up and it stood for “Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis” or it’s shorter name “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.” This was pretty familiar to me because it was shown in the movie “Ted” (you know, with the talking bear alcholic and drug addict) when the maun character John wished for his rival to have Lou Gehrig’s disease (eventually he did.) I didn’t take it seriously and I thought Lou Gehrig’s was just a sickness that was dense like fever or something like dengue or malaria. It wasn’t. It was something much much more worse than that. ALS would make all your muscles paralyzed. It would prohibit first the movement of your legs, hands, bones, neck until you could not eat, drink or breathe anymore. And the worst part is, people don’t even know thst there is such thing as ALS. It is really scary to have this disease, and people who would be diagnosed with this disease would might as well kill themselves than experience this kind of pain. As I said before, people lack awareness of this disease and thus, it doesn’t have a cure and they just let people who have ALS die.

Technically that’s our biggest problem so far, people don’t even know why we do it and sometimes they do it for other reasons i.e. For being cool

So why do we even have to do this challenge?

Because by recreating that feeling of ice everywhere in your body, that’s how it feels like to have ALS. Every aching painful second of it. It will paralyze you, it will prohibit your voice, your eating, and eventually your breathing until you die.

And that is why we do the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. To share that we actually know what’s going on. ALS is not at all treated or cared for by USA. No one cares about people who have ALS. We do it to show that we know and we care about them.

Even though we’re not in direct contact, we still show them, and if everyone works hand in hand, we will find a cure for that wretched disease.

Now, after I made you read this, I challenge you to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.

Please let me know your thoughts about this in the comments below.
Thanks a lot! Don’t forget to like and share this among your peers!

Yours,
Desher

Fact: Ever since the Ice Bucket Challenge became viral, over a million dollars were spread and given to the ALS foundation.

Thank you for reading my thoughts and appreciating this article.

Visit www.als.org for more info about this disease. Please, I encourage you guys to donate also!

Watch this video to watch and experience ALS first-hand from this man.
http://www.upworthy.com/the-last-ice-bucket-challenge-you-need-to-see-and-you-really-should-see-it

WARNING: MILD CONTENT IN THE VIDEO ABOVE

Note: I did the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and I donated $10 to the said organization.

Talking Back

Okay. So, I’m Desher, a twelve-year old. I’m from the Philippines.

I really don’t know how to express how happy I am exploring the blogging world, mainly because I’m not so good at that. Or maybe because I love gadgets and the internet and everything that makes me so perky.

I created this blog because I have nothing to pour out all my thoughts, my anger, my emotions and I’m always so misunderstood by everyone. In the Philippines, apparently, talking back at older people is bad, and I just don’t get it, honestly. Parents in the Philippines would complain later on in their lives of how their children would end up being psychos, would go crazy, suicide, be super introverted (shy) and other things. I would think this is because in their children’s childhood, their emotions would always be suppressed because they aren’t allowed to talk back. They aren’t allowed to explain at all of what happens and when they do explain what happens, even if they do it in a gentle manner, parents in the PH be getting mad at them, guilt-tripping them, pointing out all their flaws as if they don’t have a good side and most of all, they would say it is a “super disrespectful” thing to do.

I mean, how is that even disrespectful? Seriously? This is a free country for God sake. Parents, your children just want to say something and you don’t even allow them to? You don’t have to make them feel guilty because they are totally aware of their actions. You would do that only if the child does that too far. I, personally, would be happy if my parents would allow me to explain than getting mad if my thoughts aren’t said out.

Parents, please, if any of you are reading my thoughts, I have one thing to say:

Please allow your children to say their thoughts.

I know the reason of why Filipino parents say talking back is disrespectful, and so that your children would not end up as spoiled brats, but please, it doesn’t have to be like this.

As Joseph Allen said,

“We tell parents to think of those arguments not as nuisance but as a critical training ground,” he says. Such arguments, he says, are actually mini life lessons in how to disagree — a necessary skill later on in life with partners, friends and colleagues on the job.”

Fact: People who tend to explain more and talk back or reply to people become more confident individuals as they grow.

I’m really sorry for ranting. This is apparently a blog, so I would share my thoughts with it. I hope you would understand.

Please let me know your thoughts about this in the comments below.
Thanks a lot! Don’t forget to like and share this among your peers!

Yours,
Desher

Note: These are my thoughts about “Talking Back.” I haven’t put into consideration other parents or children, these are just my thoughts. I do not hate being a Filipino.

P.S. May I also recommend this link I have just found.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/01/03/144495483/why-a-teen-who-talks-back-may-have-a-bright-future

Note: I also did not copy anything at all in the link above, everything is original, I have just found out about the link after I posted it. Promise.