Is Snowbirding Really Great?

Photo taken at the Balanacan Cove Convention Center with David III and Frank Irlandez, March, 2011
You bet it is! This lifestyle is fantastic if you hate the cold temperatures in the US on winter time. But why are there not too many Filipino-American retirees snowbirding?

My guess is that it just too expensive, maintaining two households. In addition, one must have personal resources to take care of your house in US (abroad) while you are in the Philippines and vice versa. In our case, we are lucky to have a son who is single and has the time to take care of our residence in US while we are in the Philippines. On the other hand, we are spending a lot of money hiring a caretaker/gardener/housekeeper/cook to take care of our second home here in MDQ when we are in US in the spring and summer months.

Just recently, we almost lost our Caretaker/Housekeeper. But after 1 month of vacation and sick leave, they decided to return. It would have been ideal, if we have another relative here in MDQ to take care of our second home when we are in US, but I guess that is asking too much.

I hope that our current arrangement will continue as long as we have the energy( that is healthy enough to travel back and forth) to maintain this snowbird lifestyle.

Here are the highlights of our 2011 Snowbirding Year

1. Catholic Wedding of Elaine Lazarte and Alex Chaplain
2. One week of MI, Inc Medical Mission in Marinduque
3. Valentine Dinner and Dance and an overnight stay at the Bellarocca Resort & Spa
4. Attended several parties including Macrine's 75th birthday, Blessing of Bob and Elisa Howard Cottage in Laylay, Dinner with Rene and Genny Nieva at the Amanah Forest Preserve
5. Dinner with Steve Sosa in his beach house in Quatiz, Gasan and
6. Holy Week and Moriones Festival Celebration

Is snowbirding in your future plans after retirement? If so, please feel free to ask me if you have questions anytime. After all we have been snow birding since 2002 and we have a lot of experience and knowledge on this subject. Cheers!

Note: I believe the word "snowbirding" is not yet listed in the Webster dictionary.

Drug Expiration Dates and Its Efficacy

I have always wanted to write an article in one of my blogs about drug expiration dates for the information of all our MI, Inc missioners as well as to the thousands of patients in Marinduque. The e-mail below of Dr Sulit( One of the Founders of MI, Inc) to Anne Miles (President, MI, Inc-2010) attracted my attention and the following is my response.

Let me emphasized that almost 99% of the drugs we distribute for free during the past seven medical missions in Marinduque are within their expiration dates. My guess is that only 1% that we gave may have expired from 1 to 6 months past the expiration date. These drugs are still good and effected as explained in the e-mail below:

"Dear Annie,
Attached are two of many articles about drug expiration dates
which pharmaceutical companies are required to put on the labels of
medicines which they manufacture. The expiration dates do not mean
that the "expired drugs" immediately become ineffective and harmful
after the expiration dates. Unfortunately, medicines which have
passed that date are perceived as ineffective and harmful and create
an alarming concern among practitioners and the patients. These
articles should help clarify that some expired medicines which were
among the left over drugs from the recent medical mission which
were donated to the Marinduque health system are still good and
safe to dispense to the patients. I thought that it is good to share
these information with other people so that they are also informed in
case that the question is brought up to them, I hope that the 2
attached articles get to you with the letter".
Warm regards,
Hector

As a former FDA employee ( I was Chemistry Team Leader), one of my major responsibilities is to approve expiration dating of all new drugs submitted for approval in the Division Of Anti-Infective Drugs.

In general, tablets and capsules are still good and effective from 1 to 3 years after expiration when stored at room temperature. I have approved an anti-malarial tablet that was stable for 10 years. The stability of the drug is dependent on several factors, three of the important factors are storage temperature, packaging.
and its formulation.

In general, suspensions and syrups, will still be good 1 to 6 months after expiration. Most of these drugs have short expiration dates perhaps not more than 18 months or less.

Educating the general public and our missioners regarding drug expiration dating should be MI, Inc primary goal during our medical mission.

I remember an incident during our mission in Buenavista last February. Macrine and I were working in the pharmacy section one afternoon. Macrine gave a bottle of tablets to an elderly patient. The woman looked at the bottle and she saw that expiration date was December, 2010. She wanted to return it, but I interjected that the tablets are still good. She took the drug back with an attitude that we were giving her a "Poison".

This attitude is not an isolated case. The general public believes that once the drug has past its expiration date, it is no longer good and must be discarded immediately. My rule of thumb is: For capsules and tablets-one year after expiration is still good. For suspensions and syrups, 6 months after expiration should still be OK.

Do you find this article informative. I will appreciate your feedback soon. Cheers!

Miko-Our Bilengual Dog, Driving and Snowbirding in Marinduque

Last month-whole month of March, Miko, our pet dog ( see photo above) was our only companion, 24 hours a day except when our laundry lady and two temporary workers are here in Amoingon to do their duties. Our driver/caretaker and cook/housekeeper ( husband and wife team) were on their two weeks paid vacation and two weeks of paid sick leave. Thus, I got to feed Miko every day as well as exercise him in the beach every afternoon 15 minutes before sunset. Miko understands both English and Filipino commands such as sit, move and let's go as well as kain na, alis etc.... Miko loves American food and leftovers. His favorite is Chicken Macaroni salad and Spaghetti.

My other duties was to drive Macrine to the public market in downtown Boac. This is the job, I really do not enjoy, because the public market stinks ( the FISH section) and is always crowded and not many parking spaces. Luckily, I have to do this only once a week.

Speaking of driving in Marinduque: Driving here requires that you toot your horn more often. It also teaches you how to expertly maneuver overtaking the slow tricycle drivers as well as carefully passing jeepney drivers who drop and pick up passengers in the middle of the road. In addition to the inconsiderate jeepney drivers, you have to watch out for pedestrians, small children, dogs and chickens crossing the national road without any warning. However, after driving to downtown Boac ( 10 KM one way) and to downtown Gasan ( 12KM one way) for one month, I feel more at ease, thus, do not need the service of our driver. On the otherhand, Macrine really missed the services of our housekeeper and cook. Macrine does not mind cooking, but hates washing the dishes. We do not have a dishwasher here( we do have a washing machine), so dishwashing have to be done manually. Macrine hates the grease and oil that sticks on the plates, so she has to boil water to rinse and clean the dishes every time.

The other day, our Help returned to their normal duties. We feel we are back in Paradise. But, remember that there is no perfect place on earth. Paradise only exists in your heart and mind. But to my mind, Marinduque is paradise when you have help in your daily activities, such as cooking, cleaning the house, driving, gardening and other errands. This is indeed close to perfect living especially when you compared it to our daily activities in Northern California-our primary residence.

If you have been following my blogs, we are called "snowbirds", or as our new friend from Toronto, Canada commented when he learned of our lifestyle. " So you are "snowbirding" every year" ? Yes, Indeed and we loved it.

Watch out for my next article on "Snowbirding" and Retiring in Marinduque.

Afterglows in the Sunset of our Lives

The other day, I took a photograph of a sunset and its afterglow( see photo above) from the west balcony of our retirement home in Boac, Marinduque, Philippines. Looking at the photo reminded me of both Macrine's and my professional life in the US. Macrine retired as Manager, Quality Assurance Nurse from one of Maryland's Home Health Nursing Company.

I retired from FDA as a chemistry Team Leader in the Center of New Drugs, Silver Spring, MD. Both of us had satisfying careers( I had received several awards, letters of commendation and appreciation, and an EEO award). So when we retired in the early 2000, we often ask ourselves, if this is all that we can contribute to society and the community.

Since retirement is often called " the sunset of your life" stage, are there afterglows in our lives that we can be proud of. Yes, indeed! The following are examples of the afterglows in the sunset of our lives.

Five years ago, Macrine received a letter of Appreciation and Thanks from Governor Carmencita Reyes because of her involvement in MI, Inc Medical Mission Of Love, 2006. Macrine was president and over-all chairperson of the medical mission in Marinduque that year. Here's an excerpt from C Reyes letter of Thanks.

Dear Mrs. Katague,

I would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude for all the assistances extended by MI, Inc. Your association is one of our full-time partners in the delivery of health services particularly in the conduct of medical/surgical missions which benefited hundreds of Marinduquenos. Thank you so much for the support and assistance extended to our administration and to the people of Marinduque. Mabuhay Kayo!

About three years ago, Macrine and I received a Letter of Thanks and Appreciation from then Governor Antonio Carrion in our efforts to promote tourism in the island not only during Easter but also whole year round. The letter mentioned several of my blogs and articles that proclaimed my love for the province and encouraging other Balikbayans to build retirement homes in the island.

In 2009, my dream as a "citizen journalist" was attained when two of my articles was accepted for publication in HULIQ News. The first article was about Marinduque as the Ecotourism capital of the Philippines. The second was on the revival of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in Morong, Bataan.

Last but not least: Just recently two of my thousands of readers of my blogs commented: " I have been reading your various blogspots and websites for about one week now. They are all well written and great reading. What I have been reading and following intently in your blog is your life story, very interesting indeed. Please keep on writing and thanks for opening yourself up in your blogs."

A second reader also commented: I have been following your blog for quite sometime. I learned a lot about Marinduque and the Philippines. I specially enjoyed reading your childhood experiences during the Japanense-American War. Your contribution as an FDA employee to the burnt victims of the bombing in New York and the Pentagon is indeed commendable and worthy of an award. Keep writing !

Will there be afterglows in the future? I hope so. I would like to hear that our oldest grandson ( now 20) got married and gave us a great grandchild.( that Macrine and I can pamper whenever we want to.) In addition, we would like to hear the news that our youngest granddaughter( now 8) had graduated from college and that both Macrine and myself are still healthy to attend her graduation.

Lastly, Macrine and I thanks the Lord for the past, present and future afterglows in the sunset of our lives.

Macrine's Birthday at the Don Emilio's Restaurant in Boac

Macrine and I in front of the Balanacan Cove Convention Center, March, 2011

Yesterday was Macrine's 75th birthday. She did not want a big party, so I just treated her to lunch at Barbarosa in Gasan. She did received a gift from Dr. Cely Roque and Mrs. Auring Pitero. Auring is the founder and co-owner of Kusina Sa Plaza Restaurant. Auring and Macrine were classmates during their elementary school days.

In the evening a birthday dinner was hosted by Mrs. Pitero in her new fine dining restaurant, Don Emilio's Place. It was also attended by Mrs. Lita Hidalgo and her two sons. The Hidalgo's were in Boac to observe 9th day prayers and mass for the late Ton Hidalgo. Again, our sincere and deepest sympathy for the Hidalgo's loss.

The Don Emilio Restaurant is located on the second floor of the Kusina sa Plaza Building. This building is one of the many antique houses in downtown Boac and was the ancestral home of Don Emilio Lardizabal and family. The house has been renovated and refurnished with antique light fixtures and furnishings. This restaurant reminded me of a restaurant in an antique house located in Old Sacramento, California.

Again, thank you Auring for the delicious dinner. It consisted of corn soup, beef steak, tiger prawns and sweet and sour lapu-lapu. It was served with steamed rice and potato salad with fresh mangoes for dessert.

Don Emilio's fine dining restaurant will served authentic Marinduque dishes such as kare-kare, ulang-ulang, fresh fish and other Filipino traditional dishes. Watch out for the Grand opening next month.

Finally, Macrine also received birthday greetings from Dinah, Ditas and Carenna. We received a video message with Carenna singing Happy Birthday via FaceBook. Dinah and Ditas are our two daughters residing in US. Carenna is our youngest grand daughter- the only child of Ditas.

Dreams and Goals of Childhood-Fulfilled and Unfulfilled

The Japanese Bridge of Chateau Du Mer Beach Resort on Sunset, Boac, Marinduque, PHL
When I was growing up in the small town of Barotac Viejo, Iloilo, Philippines in the mid 1940's, I had several dreams and goals in life. One of my first dream after seeing a movie made in US was to see and visit( not reside) US and play in the snow. This dream was attained in 1960. My other dream was to live in a house surrounded by fruit trees, flowers and orchids. This dream was realized in 1996 when we built our retirement home in Boac, Marinduque. Another dream I had was to build a Japanese bridge across a creek( see photo above) populated by tilapias and other fishes. This was attained when we constructed the beach house in 1998.

As a child I never dreamed to be rich in money, but just earned enough to live comfortably. This was fulfilled when we immigrated to US and after I completed my Ph.D degree in 1964. Completion of this graduate degree was the most important goal in my life.

My last dream in my childhood years was to have a residence with a circular driveway with a fountain in the center. This dream was never attained completely. However, this dream, was partially fulfilled when we built the conference Hall in 2000. The Hall had a circular driveway but no fountain. Building a fountain in the center was planned before construction. However, for practical reasons and lack of funds, this dream will probably not be realized unless I win a lot of $$ in the Lotto or in the Casinos.

Today, my goal in life is see my youngest grand daughter graduate in college.

Finally, I thank God for all his blessings for helping me attained most of my dreams and goals in life. Lord with out YOU, I am nothing.

For additional details of my childhood memories during the Japanese-American War in the Philippines (1941-1945), visit http://theintellectualmigrant.blogspot.com `

Diabetes, High Blood Pressure and Cholesterol

Coconut lobster, Cucumber and Tomatoes are Good For You

The above three ailments are the most common age-related diseases all over the world particularly in the US. A person who is now 70 years old and is not suffering from one of the above ailments should feel lucky. He or she must have lived a healthy lifestyle including good diet, exercise and an outlook in life.

In my case, I was diagnosed with HBP when I turned 40. My adult-on-set Diabetes and High Cholesterol were diagnosed when I turned 65. I feel lucky that under routine medications, the above three ailments are currently under control.

The lessons I want to impart to the younger generation as well as senior citizens like me is to watch out your diet and keep busy in both mind and body. Sometimes, we are so busy with earning a living, we neglect our bodies and spirit. Even after your retirement, you must have goals that are attainable. You must maintain family relationships and get involved with humanitarian projects if at all possible. In this way, it will keep you young in spirit if not in body.

For a list of diabetic, anti hypertensive and cholesterol lowering drugs, read my articles in my blog http://marinduqueawaitsyou.blogspot.com dated August 20, 2010.

Latest Photos of Orchids and Flowers in the Gardens of Chateau Du Mer

I hope you enjoy the above pictures! I had fun taking them! Good Day to All!