I started writing when I was 8. My mom got me a journal where I could rant (prob so I won't be an annoying brat). I stopped writing for 8 years until the pen and then later on the keyboard called on me again. I blog because I like writing and that's just about it. Hope you get inspired though... Bite the apple!
It's been 15 years since typhoon Ondoy. It also means that it will soon be our 15th wedding anniversary. Moving on from a disaster is hard. Sweetie and I thought about delaying our wedding, but both our parents insisted to go on with the wedding. Our relatives had also booked their flights already and a week after our wedding was my parents' 50th wedding anniversary. It was also set to be celebrated.
Both our homes were severely affected. A few days after I had to fly to Iloilo for an event. It was a good respite since we learned from the Ilonggo people how they moved on from disaster. They also had severe flooding before typhoon Ondoy happened. It was also warm and sunny when we went, so it served as a reminder that things will go back to normal eventually.
With my friend Mabel. Her baby is all grown up now :)
Since typhoon Ondoy (and Pepeng), we made sure we would take precautions so we don't experience it again. We made sure to avoid living in flood prone areas. We learned recently that it's not really fool-proof. Even areas that don't flood may get flooded too. It really depends on the rainfall and the tide. So, we've been taking a lot of precautions.
The best way to move on from a disaster is to learn from it. Always expect the unexpected and live your life the best way you can. I always think about the things I lost. The only thing I really regret is losing irreplaceable valuable photos. I'm just grateful I had some that were saved.
I joined Home Buddies FB group a few months ago to learn from other homeowners. Lately, a lot of homeowners have been complaining about water pouring in from their ceiling and walls. We experienced the same a few months after we moved. It started in trickles and eventually water started pouring from the kitchen lights!
The contractor who renovated the house just kept putting sealant on the roof. It would work for one to two downpours, but obviously it needed more work. The crew of the contractor knew what was wrong, butt the contractor didn't bother to work on it. We decided to get another contractor when the kitchen lights became compromised. Well, it opened pandora's box of house issues.
Issue happened because roof flashing wasn't installed by the contractor.
Here's a list of what we learned from architect's and the master plumber's team:
1. Make sure your roof is installed properly. Have proper roof flashing and gutters. Part of our roof did not have flashing and that's why water was pouring in the kitchen ceiling. Sealant really won't resolve the issue.
2. Make sure downspouts go to a proper drain. Water would pool in our back garden. The flood posed a risk to our family room. The master plumber's team re-worked our drainage and made sure the downspouts pointed to the drainage.
This happened during the pandemic.
3. Water can also pour through your sliding doors. We experience this whenever it rains sideways. Aside from making sure your sliding doors are properly installed (no holes and with rubber), make sure that there is a cut on the bottom track to allow water to pour out of. Also useful to have an awning to prevent water and rain to come in.
4. Avoid tall windows because water can come in from the bottom track when it rains sideways.
5. In my Mom's house, water comes in from the drain and toilet in the basement. This happens when water from the road slides down. We're having it investigated to understand why the pipes are compromised. I saw a comment from Home Buddies on how to cover bathroom drains, not sure though what he does with their toilet.
6. One of the most common complaints in Home Buddies are walls that go moist. This is an issue with water proofing. Watched a video Architect Ed recently posted on how to resolve this issue. Make sure to scrutinize your contractor contracts if you're building a house.
7. Avoid installing polycarbonate or plastic roofs if you can. We have two areas where we have both. One come with the house when we bought it and then we recently had a polycarbonate roof installed in our laundry area. Both drip. They placed sealant on the plastic roof sheet multiple times already and it always drips. Maybe we'll have more luck on the polycarbonate roof. Also make sure to have downspouts for extra roofs.
So far unsealable, probably need to find a better solution.
8. You can also install flood gates if you live in a flood prone area.
A friend who owns a construction business told us that your roof gets compromised months before your ceiling starts dripping. It is hard to know if things have been done properly if your house was built during the summer (as with Architect Ed's experience). I learned from Home Buddies that you should withhold 5 to 10% of the full payment for a year to make sure the contractor will fix issues.
We always have typhoons and it's one thing we didn't miss when we lived in Singapore, but we're here permanently and as much as I keep complaining about our home, I'm grateful we are able to keep warm and dry. We have fixed most of the issues and I'm moving on to loving our home. I realized I had held off from doing that because of the issues, but it's our home and it's where Papa God led us. Bahala na si karma sa unscrupulous contractor. What's important for me is my family is safe now.
“God uses ordinary people to carry out His extraordinary plan.” (Unknown)
The alerts sent by NDRMCC has been making me anxious. PAGASA-DOST has announced signal #5 in some areas and Metro Manila has been under signal #3 and #4 in the past few hours. I'm anxious because #KardingPH was originally not expected to make landfall. It intensified though and moved further in. The previous typhoons did not make landfall, so I was hoping it would stay that way.
Well, we've all so far been able to cope with typhoons. The worst for me was typhoon Ondoy. We almost postponed our wedding because both our homes were severely affected. After #OndoyPH happened I volunteered to help with crisis response. I did that for almost a decade. It helped me deal with the trauma and getting anxious during typhoons.
I woke up today with pain in my lower back. The pain has been growing in the past two weeks. I suspect it may be because my doctor adjusted my medication. It's also been exacerbated by anxiety. I told myself last night it's funny how I never really had debilitating anxiety when I was younger. I was always able to cope. It's been found though that it comes together with having pulmonary embolism.
Watched Doc Willie's video on dealing with anxiety yesterday. He enumerated several ways on how to cope with it and said, "No one dies from anxiety." That made me look back on how I've always been able to cope. After the flood put everything I owned under water during typhoon Ondoy, Dad scolded me because I started to cry. He told me, "Para yan lang iyak iyak ka na."
He taught me an important lesson that day. Don't dwell on the bad situation, get moving and do something. It's probably been hard for me to cope lately because I've been feeling unwell. I need to focus though on the future so I don't get stuck in a rut. And, of course, pray.
