Facebook down

Do I hear panic in the net? I though it was just my account having a problem so I have to go out and log in again.

October 21- Around 7:50 pm in the Philippines, Facebook users could not update status with the error message:

Millions of user have noticed this problem and already send their concern to Facebook management but no response yet. System outage is a common issue especially to site like Facebook and Twitter. Even with postings using iPhone app, it seems to have no problem but your status actually is not published. 

Twitter users have been clamoring and Facebook down is now trending. See related comments:

Although, I hope this is just temporary, I kinda want to scream and thought of the downfall of Friendster. Waaaaah! Okay, calm down. Facebook will be back in a while, just taking some rest.

Get well soon Faceboook,

Antonia

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4,246 new CPAs

It has been my dream to be a Certified Public Accountant and the way to reaching that dream was so steep. I have tasted the bitterness of life and the sweetness of living. Congratulations to 4,246 fresh licensed accountants who are still in cloud9 at this very moment; sure, I feel you. To those to were not able to make it this time, there is a reason and a season for everything. Strive harder, never give up. After all the struggle, and when you get to hold that most coveted 3-letter suffix, the success is sweeter. 

Every time I scan through the names of the passers, I can't help but feel emotional and proud. I know you gone through all the hardships to make it and you all deserve it. What's more fulfilling? It's when you hastily browse through the pages and you see the name of your student! And you get to see her again, congratulate her and your heart seem to bloat as you hear her say, "Thank you Miss. You taught me how!". Right there and then, you can't explain that rush of emotions and it's overwhelming. Congratulations to Diesy Bail V. Vingno! And to all my other students, I look forward to seeing your names in the next list of passers. We are so proud of you, all of you.

Here is the list of passers who made it to the top 10:

To upload the complete list of October 2013 CPA Board Passers, click here. To see the performance of every schools, download here.

Remember, do not let anyone or any circumstance hold you from reaching your dreams. Study hard, pray harder. God has wonderful plans for you.

Proud to be a CPA teacher,

Antonia

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IMPERFECTIONS 1: Puffy eyes and dark circles

Hello Pretty Ladies! While you dance in the streets of Bacolod City and enjoy colorful parade of costumes in the Masskara Festival, let's start off with our first topic: IMPERFECTIONS 1 Puffy Eye bags and dark circles.

It has been my habit that every time I wake up I immediately rush to the mirror and check my face. It's quite a frustration to see bags forming under my eyes. Do you also notice that? I don't think I'm alone in this beauty issue. And when you step on your workplace, one of your office mates tell you that you looked tired. Together with the puffy eyes, you bring with you those dark circles that would make you look older than your age. And it's not good to start a day, ugly! But hey, don't worry that much, we got here remedies for that. We just have to learn how we develop these under eye bags and then we can prevent them from coming back.

Elegia Cang, got her under eye bags from her genes; but still beautiful.

How did I get these?

UNDER EYE BAGS

Sad to say, the puffiness or mild swelling under your eyes is one of the consequence of aging. As you age, some of the muscles supporting your eyelids and the tissues around your eyes start to weaken. According to mayoclinic.com, your lids appear to be puffy because the normal fat that aid in supporting your eyes can then migrate into the lower eyelids. Remember, the skin around our eyes are the thinnest and more affected with the flow of fluids in your body. 

Osmosis, the movement of water molecules across a membrane, is also the reason. Water tends to travel to more salt-concentrated areas. So, that explains why you got these the morning when you had a dinner rich of salty food or a romantic movie made you cried the night.

Though these can give you a bad day, these are rarely associated to underlying serious medical condition. Some of the factors that contribute to the development of these bags and dark circles are the following:

• Weather changes such as hot or humid days causing fluid retention, hormonal issues or a salty diet
• Not getting a good quality sleep
• Heredity
• Sleeping flat on your back
• Allergies or dermatitis, causing the redness and itching

DARK CIRCLES

Are you tired of hearing comments that you look tired? Then, someone your age will address you like you are older than her. Well, aging is inevitable and the factor that will make you age visibly are dark circles under your eyes. As we age, the skin around our eyes becomes thinner and expose tiny blood vessels below the surface. These dark circles can be something not temporary since most cases these are inherited. Pigmentation in the skin around the eyes are commonly observed among Asians and Africans.

According to New York ophthalmic plastic surgeon, Dr. Joseph Eviatar, you can check if the darkness is caused by pigmentation. Try to pull the skin sideways and if the darkness looks spotted or blotchy, then it is indeed caused by excess pigment in the skin.

But pigmentation is not the only cause, it is also known that these can develop if there is a loss of volume in the area around the eye. The loss then expose the orbital bone in your face thus creating a hollow that looks like a dark circle. This is often experienced in the late 30s or 40s of your age.

Most common causes of dark circles  are (www.mayoclinic.com):

• Allergies
• Atopic dermatitis (eczema)
• Heredity
• Lifestyle- smoking, excessive drinking, physical or emotional stress
• Nasal congestion; this is known to dilate and darken the veins that drain from your eyes to your nasal cavities
• Pigmentation irregularities
• Rubbing or scratching of your eyes
• Sun exposure; prompting your body to produce more melanin
• Thinning of skin and loss of fat and collagen- exposing the reddish-blue blood vessels under your eyes.

What can I do?

Guys, there are a lot of things that we can do to banish these dark circles and eyes bags and look young again. Although these are commonly not signs of serious diseases, we should not take it for granted. Stop looking tired and older than your age, you have to regain confidence and look/feel pretty again. Here are some tips:

1. Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water to flush the area and make the puffiness go down. Avoid substances with alcohol and caffeine-- these can dehydrate you.

2. Apply cold compress. Since these are mild swelling, you can reduce the puffiness by applying cool compress of some kind. Here's what you can do:

• Chill cucumber slices; place them over your closed eyes and lie back for 15 minutes until they feel warm. 
• Instead of cucumbers, you use tea bags. Wet a pair of tea bags and place them in your fridge for 15 minutes. Then, lie back and apply them in your eyes for 15 minutes.
• Another easier alternative is placing spoons in your fridge and place them in your eyes. You can do this daily.

3. Change your sleeping position. Sleeping on your side or stomach can encourage fluids to collect and stay under your eyes. You can add extra pillow to elevate your head and minimize puffiness in the morning.

4. Be gentle with your face. You got the thinnest skin under your eyes so be careful not to damage it or stretched out through exposure to chemicals or harsh habits. You need to prevent it from becoming sagged, loose or filled with fluids. 

• Use a gentle cleanser in washing you face.
• Using a makeup remover can help you easily take off make up in your eyes rather than wiping or rubbing it.
• In washing your face, splash water gently and pat it dry without scrubbing your eyes with towel.
• You can keep the area from drying by using moisturizer on your eyelids and the skin surrounding your eyes.

5. Attend to your allergies. You need to reduce the symptoms of your allergies and it's a must that you avoid allergens. Discuss with your doctor some over-the-counter medications or prescription for allergies. Also, ask for prevention strategies on how to deal with under-eye reactions due to cosmetics, soaps, hair dyes or other allergens.

6. Consider extra hours of sleeping. Although work and lifestyle can deprive you from taking 7-8 hours of sleep, you need to pamper yourself with extra sleep. Lacking a good sleep can make you look paler with hollow-eyed thus making shadows more visible and dark circles are made obvious.

7. Change your diet. If you frequently eat salty food, you might be going to be bed with a lot of salt in your system. You can reduce this chance by:

• Using less salt in cooking. Gradually, reduce it by half and try to go lower.
• You can't control the content of salt in your meal especially if you eat in a restaurant. So, reduce eating out.
• To alleviate fluid retention, eat more bananas and raisins for snacks instead.
• You can turn to diuretics which can help you reduce some excess fluid; examples are cabbage and cranberry juice.

8. Take science as a refuge. A number of skin creams can be applied to reduce or prevent eye bags and dark circles. One study discovered that a serum with plant-based compounds can improve appearance these impurities.

9. Cover up. For the meantime, you can just hide these dark circles by using the right concealers. It is advised that you use peach-colored concealer if the skin is bluish, instead of going for the white or gray. Scented products especially those containing salicylic acid should be avoided since these can irritate delicate eye tissues and can contribute to swelling and redness.  

10. Consider permanent solutions. You can decide taking eyelid surgery or Blepharoplasty, in which the surgeon remove eye bags by cutting just below the lashes and removing excess fat and sagging skin. After the operation, a laser treatment will follow.

When should I see my doctor?

Eye bags and dark circles are common and usual cosmetic concern requiring no serious medical treatment. Nonetheless, you should be observant enough and see if discoloration and swelling seem to be severe and persistent, itchy or painful with redness and affects other parts of your body. Then, you should visit your doctor.

Well, there we have it ladies. The way we look matters and our confidence depends on it. Let us exude that inner glow and let that reflect to create a pleasant aura around us. Yes, we know we are not perfect but we can do something about it.

Stay beautiful,

Antonia

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Girls and our beautiful imperfections

Ola senoritas! This first week of my blog will be filled with all about us-- girls, ladies and women to-die-for. And when I think about the feminine beauty, Katy Perry's words would echo in my head.

"Us girls are so magical, soft skin, red lips, 

  so kissable; hard to resist so touchable, 

too good to deny it, ain't no big deal its innocent.."

But this time, we will not dwell talking all night with the alluring charms in us but let's share some of the physical imperfections that surely give us troubles. This will be a learning experience as we dig on the causes so we can avoid them recurring and know some symptoms so we can be alerted. There will be Do-It-Yourself portion, home remedies, diet treatments and deciding when to seek professional help.  One by one, we'll pinpoint those imperfections- the obvious ones that are not so pretty and we will learn stuff to turn them into a sight of beauty.

        Here's the run-down:

          Imperfections 1  Banishing Puffy eyebags and Dark Circles

       
       Imperfections 2  Giving life and shine to dull, lifeless hair

           
  Imperfections 3  Finding beauty in moles and freckles

                    

                   Imperfections 4  Dealing with Bad Teeth and gaps

                Imperfections 5  Treating Pimples and acne marks 

And we are ready to take on five common physical imperfections that we acquired from puberty, hormonal imbalance, working late and others. It will be an educational chit-chat for us girls. Next post, we'll start with the eyes! Watch out for it.

See ya!

ANTONIA

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Adopt a tree for a greener workplace..

I work in a manufacturing company and the management has always been upholding our ideals of preserving nature and attending to our corporate social responsibility. Let me share to you how we care for the environment while we sweeten your lives. Take a glimpse on how our Gadabadaba concern for Mother Nature guide us to choose an idle piece of land in the millsite and turn it into a hopeful haven of soon-to-rise fruit-bearing trees.

Everyone is bringing a seedling to plant. Guess what makes it exciting? One snack coupon for every seedling. So tag with you as many seedlings as you can!

Ready. Get Set. Plant!

Potholes are already in place and moisten with the evening rain. The weather is fine, Mr. Sun is up and it's friendly today. It's great time to plant. We have sticks to aid in planting but we let our hands get dirty. It's a lot more fun! See that smile?

Let me introduce to you the group together with our enthusiastic Department Managers and supportive Operations Manager, Ma'am Lanie Cerbo and Factory Manager, Mr. Jose Buenconsejo.

From left: Mr. Reynaldo Ponce; Robelinda Sabanal-Mr. Mark Llauder; Ms. Lanie Cerbo; Mr. Jose Buenconsejo; Mr. Manuel Aquino Jr; Mr. Andre Cerbo; Mrs. Cora Aquino; Meredian Judilla; Antonia Gorneo (me).

Meet the URC-Accounting Team; Starting from left- Christie Myrrh Malala, Elegia Cang, Mary Grace Biadora, Antonia Gorneo (me), Jeorge Gayoso.

I bet we can be Ms Earth beauties with a purpose. Who wouldn't agree on that? (*wink)

After a fun-filled planting experience, here are our reward! Quake cakes and Refresh Juice- URC products. For sure, a greater reward is ahead of us-- a fresher air to breathe, sweet fruits to eat and shade to share with the rest.

 green-thumb wanna-be,

 antonia



P.S. Visit this album to view more pictures of URC- Sonedco tree-planting event.

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Ugly when sleepy!

I always thought I might have been stung or infected by a tsetse fly every time I feel so sleepy in class or at work. (tsetse fly? Yay!) No. no. There are days when I felt so sleepy at work that I’m having hard time concentrating. I had this just today. Perhaps, I have deprived myself again with a good night sleep when I stayed alert counting aftershocks and listening to the fast-paced beat of my heart every time I can feel the sway. 

What do I usually do when I get so sleepy? I stand up, walk around the office and back to my station. I go the CR and see an ugly Angie at staring the mirror with heavy eyelids and dark circles. Well, that’s the worst that you can get- sleepiness will exhaust the glow in you. Aside from this, the feeling is kind of frustrating because it’s interfering in my performance at work and slowed my responses. That’s bad. 

Here, I’ll share to you the things that we need to learn about daytime sleepiness. 

Why do you feel so sleepy? 

That so-hard to fight feeling of eye-lid meeting the other has becoming more a legitimate complaint according to National Sleep Foundation’s Dr. David G. Davila. You may have worked too hard that you purposely limit yourself to enjoy an eight-hour sound sleep. Perhaps you were assigned in a graveyard or rotating shifts that could affect your sleeping habits. Some may really have sleep disorders that disrupts sleep like sleep apnea or insomnia. In my case, I may got stuck with FB, blogging or chatting in the net to get latest updates on the recent quake. Actually, I slept 4am today. Who would not be drowsy in that case? 

So what if I don’t sleep? 

Oops! Don’t be stubborn dear. Mind you, not getting good night sleep can cause a number of health problems. Do you think it can help you with your dieting? Think again. Skipping a good quality sleep can cause stroke, diabetes, heart disease and hypertension among others. I’m sure you won’t like this- -- with lack of enough, you can develop odd behaviors like uncontrollably falling asleep during day and sleepwalking! I bet you won’t. So, after reading my blog, prepare to bed. (*sweet smile)

How do you know you have Sleep Problem?   

I got these symptoms from www.webmd.com. Check these out and evaluate your signs:

① It usually take you more than 30 minutes to fall asleep

② You wake up frequently in the middle of sleep and having hard time falling asleep again

③ You feel so sleepy during the day or you fall asleep unintentionally in inappropriate times during the day.

④ Your partner or spouse complained for your loud snoring, choking sounds and gasping while asleep; or that your legs or arms jerk often during sleep.

⑤ You feel a creeping, tingling or crawling feelings in your legs or arms while you sleep.

⑥  Sleepwalking and other unusual behaviors.

⑦ You feel like you can’t move your body when you first wake up.

If you have experienced any of the above symptoms, don’t take it for granted. Seek medical assistance. If you continue to be that “yawn-er” in the office, you may lose character and good standing. They might associate your yawning to signs of laziness and lack of motivation. Do you want that? So, cheer up! Exude that confident glow and stay alert and enthusiastic any time of the day.

Yawning prettily, 

Angie 

 

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Sharing Crispyred with you

I got this blog way back in college but sadly I can't access this now.

So, I just want to share to you the contents. :)

www.crispyred.blogspot.com

 Bais City United Methodist Church post:
http://crispyred.blogspot.com/2009/04/bais-city-united-methodist-church.html


Thanks,


ANTONIA

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Shaken but not moved

After February 6, 2012's 6.9 quake that hit some parts of Visayas, another horrifying earthquake shook Bohol, Cebu and Negros yesterday, October 15, 2013. Aftershocks are still causing trauma.

'twas a holiday, no work and no school; still blessed because if it wasn't a rest day, there will be more casualties. We are again tested. But why? No one knows. All we know is that our life is full of uncertainties. Only God's grace of salvation is certain. :)

These past few months, I can see how I indulge myself closer to worldly stuff and somehow forget to focus more on that feed the spirit. I have been overwhelmed with my desire to reach my dreams and aspirations especially for my family. I have fewer hours meditating and praying seem to be a routine. And I can feel my heart getting heavy on that thought.

When I come realize all of these, I got the answers to my questions: Why am I still struggling at work? Where is my peace of mind? What happened to my relationship to the people around me? Now I know, because I left Jesus in the corner of my room. I can never have peace of mind, good relationships and contentment if  I don't keep Jesus in my heart.

Thank you Lord for embracing me over and over again though at times I tried to let go. Thank you for lifting me up even if I can't even fight for you in front of non-believers. Thank you staying faithful in your promises of a good future and a wonderful life.

With all these calamities, thank you Lord for You did not forsake us nor leave. Cover us with the blood of our savior and keep us safe all the time. Help us to glorify your name in everything that we do.

In Jesus Name, Amen.

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