Family News

Lolo is still running a low grade fever, but his energy level is better.

It's the end of the month, and my check hasn't cleared, so we took Lolo to the bank where his Veteran's pension is, and withdrew a small amount. The pension is enough to cover his medicines, but we usually don't touch it. Last month, we removed enough to cover his hearing aide, and before then, we took small amounts out to cover the flood emergency.

He also gets a pension in the US which since they typhoon destroyed the last crop has been used by Chano for daily expenses, and since the typhoon, my pension is being used for food for everyone here (about twenty dollars a day) and other home expenses. It adds up.

What we really need is a new pickup truck, since ours was under six feet of water. But it does run after being fixed, so we are again using it for deliveries. But Lolo's beloved BMW is now being used more for other things, like going to Manila...

A few days ago, Chano and Joy (and Ruby) were interviewed by a local Christian oriented radio station about organic food.

Joy listens to that station all the time, now that I gave her my old powerful Siemen's AmFmShortwave radio...I used to use it in northern Minnesota because we were too far for good reception, and here we are just far enough from Manila that the ordinary radios won't get the Manila stations (although the car radios can). For that reason, I usually use an MP3 player: I brought my collection of "elevator music" from the USA, and found out that there is a lot on youtube which I download and rip.

For TV, we use cable (which we have had since the early 1990's.) We also now have broadband with our landline phone (but mainly use texts via Joy's three cellphones, which she carries with her all the time). They now have satellite for cable TV, and now you can even get satellite internet: something we used also used in the states since I worked in isolated rural areas where reception is poor.

The problem with satellite TV is that the dish gets covered with snow and ice (but you can buy or make a cover for it) and of course in Oklahoma, we didn't get the tornado watch bulletins on it. For that you need a weather radio....even the local stations usually only warn you AFTER a funnel cloud is sighted, which means the sirens go off a few minutes after the tornado has passed by...which is why the local joke is that you can identify an Okie because he is the one who goes outside on the porch when the thunderstorms start.(to watch for a funnel cloud)...