Coming to you live….

Posted on November 10, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

I believe I mentioned in my previous post that I was roped into hosting/anchoring a live talkshow here in Tacloban covering the Haiyan Candlelight Memorial.

I found out on Wednesday I was doing it, and so had very little time to practice for the 5-hour long live event on Saturday!

In spite of the nerves and jitters, we got there in the end, and it was actually really fun! During the rehearsals I had a large rat crawling across the beam in my eyeline, and I got somewhat frustrated by not having enough clear/straight answers to my questions. The producer was a lovely guy, but he has a tendency to sermonise everything and talk in riddles, which is not helpful when you have limited time… I would ask things like “What order will the interviews and reports be in? Can I have a schedule in advance so I know what’s happening before I actually go live on-air?” and he would talk for 30 mins about humanity’s finest hour…. That was very frustrating! He also kept misunderstanding my frustration as nerves, and when I asked him to tell me what I should and shouldn’t do (like sit up, speak loudly, don’t turn your head etc) he asked me if I knew the difference between speaking and talking. I said no, not really, cos they’re synonyms, and he started singing “The Sound of Silence” to me. It was excruciating.

So as a result of that, right up to when we went live on-air, I had no idea what was happening next – there was no schedule to follow, it was more like them just waving bits of paper at me from behind a camera saying things like “Joe on the line” or “Go to Commercial” or “More energy!” Continue reading →

Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda – 1 year on…

Posted on November 7, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

We are building up to the 1-year anniversary of Super-Typhoon Yolanda (also known as Haiyan), so all hands on deck, and a lot of activities going on, candlelight marches, memorial services, exhibitions, and so on.

Everyone is busy putting together summaries of our work in the last year, numbers of beneficiaries reached and support given, and advocacy messages for the coming year.

A few quick figures for you. My organisation has, in the last year, provided support to over 800,000 people, including:

Provided clean water, sanitation, and hygiene kits to over 500,000 people
Provided cash and income support to over 530,000 people
Distributed non-food items such as mosquito nets, tarpaulins, and mother and newborn kits to over 430,000 people
Supported the recovery of over 200 small businesses and micro-enterprises
Distributed over 8,000 sacks of rice seeds to support farmers

and many many more things as well. We’ve given out boats and cleared loads of agricultural land as well, but I don’t have the numbers handy…. Continue reading →

Lake Danao

Gallery

Posted on November 4, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

This gallery contains 17 photos.

This weekend I popped down to Ormoc to visit a couple of friends, and try to say goodbye to as many people as possible before I leave in a couple of weeks’ time. We hired a multicab (mini van/bus type thing) … Continue reading →

Ebola postscript…

Posted on November 3, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

So, after my last rather angry tirade against the media reporting of Ebola, a few things happened that have brightened my world view a bit.

Firstly, a good friend of mine sent me this rather brilliant video which made me laugh and cheered me up no end.

Secondly, I was chatting to C, a Liberian friend of mine over here, who works for FAO, and I mentioned the plight of this unfortunate Liberian woman in America. You could have knocked me down with a feather when C laughed heartily and said “You mean Rose? You know that she’s my half sister?”. Seriously, sometimes the world is just so tiny it boggles my mind.

Then he told me a slightly depressing story about another friend of his, also Liberian, who has been working in Iraq for several months in an emergency response there. This guy flew to Kenya for a holiday (which is understandable after several months working in tough conditions in Iraq). However he was held in the airport for 3 days, before being sent back to Iraq on the grounds that he is Liberian (despite having not been anywhere near Liberia, or any contaminated people, for many months).

Thirdly, I saw this fantastic photostory profiling the brave men and women fighting ebola, and the survivors, which reminds us all where the real story is and should be. The photographs are beautiful and uplifting.

Metamorphosis

Posted on October 31, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

In a brief comedy sidebar, here are some hilarious pictures of me.

The first two, when compared side by side, remind me of a “Where are they now?” type programme on celebrities who have fallen from grace.
Or maybe a poster you’d find in a high school espousing the dangers of meth abuse and what it does to you.

Or possibly a Jekyll and Hyde style metamorphosis from normal to peculiar…

Looking back at other pics, I have decided to compile the following timeline of my slow descent from cute child to total nutter purely for your amusement, dear readers. After all, it is Halloween today, so how better to celebrate than witness one woman’s descent into madness… And also it turns out this is my 250th post! For other hilarious and oddly vain posts, have a look at The Many Comedy Hairstyles of Maya….

Here I am looking adorably cute and normal, aged 5 or 6 I think…

Note the trendy velour tracksuit top, and the jeans with a 6-inch hem of “growing room”

Of course, even at that age I was showing signs of being a bit peculiar… Continue reading →

Ebola Rights and Ebola Wrongs…

Posted on October 30, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

As the news cycles move on and things change very quickly in this context, I initially starting adding postscripts to my original post on the Ebola crisis. However I decided to add a part 2 to this post, as I’m feeling self-righteous and angry about some of the news coverage, and it’s my blog, so I’ll just keep on shouting my opinions out into the ether….

I can’t help noticing that, having been consciously looking for news and updates every day, the Ebola crisis slipped out of the news for several days, and off the front pages and websites, only to be brought back into focus when once again, a case appeared in the US (this time in New York).

Subsequently, the quarantine measures being imposed on returning staff and health workers is now at the front of the news cycle, rather than the crisis itself. News that the number of new cases in Liberia is dropping steadily, or signs that the massive public health and education campaigns on Ebola prevention might be working seem to be secondary to the question of whether or not one American citizen has had her rights violated.

I’m not saying her quarantine was warranted or fair, and I am all about human rights for all, but it seems a teeny bit of an over-reaction and a distraction from the real story – whether or not the fight to control Ebola in West Africa is succeeding. Don’t get me wrong, this type of unnecessary reaction can damage the responses that NGOs are working on in the region and should not be tolerated, but does it have to be the story that dominates the media? Continue reading →

Cats

Posted on October 30, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

For various reasons I’ve been thinking about my cats a lot this week, and how excited I am to get home and see them! Obviously I’m looking forward to seeing my family and friends too, but I do miss my gorgeous kitties too when I’m away.

I’m very lucky to have such great lodgers looking after them while I’ve been away, and poor Tiggy has been a bit poorly in the last few months, resulting in x-rays, MRIs, and pain medication, though thankfully not surgery. We’re still not really sure what’s wrong, but the poor thing had a lot of pain at the base of her tail. The vet initially thought someone had dislocated her tail, but after ruling it out, along with infected bites and other options, he thought it might be some sort of rare genetic disorder where the bones of the spine and tail don’t fuse together properly and trap some nerves. However the MRI ruled that out as well, so we don’t really know what’s wrong…

FYI though, thank god for pet insurance! It turns out, Cat x-rays = £600, Cat MRI = £1800, (Cat Scan = priceless)

Ho Ho Ho 🙂

Anyhoo, I’m looking forward to seeing these two adorable nutters and having some cuddles very soon….

Here’s a little trip down memory lane for those of you who’ve forgotten how cute and lovable they are…

Winding Down…

Posted on October 27, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

Wow, after over 11 months here, I suddenly only have 3 weeks to go!
It seems to have snuck up on me somehow, and now that it’s looming I’ve realised how much I have to do!

In addition to all of the handover of the work here, and supporting the teams through what is turning out to be a tough transition, there are a million and one other things to do in the next three weeks…

As I don’t know how long I’ll be at home for, I need to start planning to see my family and friends, as there is never enough time to see everyone, and I won’t have time to get around the UK much. If I don’t start organising things in advance, people will be busy and before you know it I might be off somewhere else!

Then there is all the life admin that builds up and needs attending to, like Dr’s appointments, renewing prescriptions, seeing the dentist (and getting my teeth cleaned) and the optician (getting new glasses), taking the cats to the vet for their check-ups and vaccinations, and so on.

Oh, and at some point I have to find another job too!

So much to do, and so little time. Continue reading →

Empowering Women

Posted on October 23, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

Last week was a real rollercoaster for me. I had some serious ups and downs.

There was the usual internal bickering and politics and bureaucracy that makes me want to tear my hair out several times a week. Plus a bit of a bollocking which I feel was slightly undeserved, so that never puts one in a good mood.

Then we had an unexpected donor visit – we found out at 4pm on Wednesday that they were coming at 9am the next morning, so we had to scramble to come up with some activities we could take them around and see. Luckily we pulled it all together (on account of having such an awesome team) and they absolutely loved it, so we ended the day on a massive high.

🙂

However, at 5pm on Friday, my lovely colleague P made my day – no, he made my week. Continue reading →

Ebola, Ebola

Posted on October 15, 2014 by worldenoughandtimeblog

In a short break away from the Philippines, I feel compelled to throw my two cent’s into the ring on the Ebola outbreak. This is mainly because it’s dominating the news, and also because I’m nearing the end of my contract here in the Philippines and wondering where I might end up next. South Sudan, Iraq and Liberia/Sierra Leone are all possibilities on the table right now, so I’ve been doing a bit of reading trying to keep up with my international affairs….

On the subject of Ebola, there are many many articles floating about, and I have pulled out the bits that interested me most to ponder and reflect on (I can do that, cos it’s my blog, so there). 😛