Fighting cancer...

these are the two fruits i make sure and eat everyday. They are very delicious and I can not get them in America. So, i decided to search actual health benefits... I was happily surprised. I thought i would share...





Health Benefits of Mango :
1.Mangoes contain phenols, this phenolic compound have powerful antioxidant and anticancer abilities.
2.Mango is high in iron, pregnant women and people with anemia are advised to eat this fruit regularly.
3.Mango is effective in relieving clogged pores of the skin.
4.It is also valuable to combat acidity and poor digestion.
5.Mango is high in antioxidant and low in carbohydrates.
6.Mango is a rich source of vitamin A(beta-carotene), E and Selenium which help to protect against heart disease and other ailments.



Benefits of the Mangosteen:
1. Anti-fatigue (energy booster)
2. Powerful anti-inflammatory (prevents inflammation)
3. Analgesic (prevents pain)
4. Anti-ulcer (stomach,
mouth and bowel ulcers)
5. Anti-depressant (low to moderate)
6. Anxyolytic (anti-anxiety effect)
7. Anti-Alzheimerian (helps prevent dementia)
8. Anti-tumor and cancer prevention (multiple categories cited)... shown to be capable of killing cancer cells
9. Immunomodulator (multiple categories cited) - helps the immune system
10. Anti-aging
11. Anti-oxidant
12. Anti-viral
13. Anti-biotic (modulates bacterial infections)
14. Anti-fungal (prevents fungal infections)
15. Anti-seborrheaic (prevents skin disorders)
16. Anti-lipidemic (blood fat lowering, LDL)
17. Anti-atherosclerotic (prevents hardening
of arteries)
18. Cardioprotective (protects the heart)
19. Hypotensive (blood pressure lowering)
20. Hypoglycemic (anti-diabetic effect, helps lower blood sugar)
21. Anti-obesity (helps with weight loss)
22. Anti-arthritic (prevention of arthritis)
23. Anti-osteoporosis (helps prevent the loss of bone mass)
24. Anti-periodontic (prevents gum disease)
25. Anti-allergenic (prevents allergic reaction)
26. Anti-calculitic (prevents kidney stones)
27. Anti-pyretic (fever lowering)
28. Anti-Parkinson
29. Anti-diarrheal
30. Anti-neuralgic (reduces nerve pain)
31. Anti-vertigo (prevents dizziness)
32. Anti-glaucomic (prevents glaucoma)
33. Anti-cataract (prevents cataracts)
34. Pansystemic - has a synergistic effect on the whole body

sum up the weekend...

Since the terrible rains the past few days there has been a puppy outside my window at night whining. I luckily was able to find my earplugs to drown out the pathetic cries I could nothing about.

The smog is very evident each morning when I try to clean my ears. I am considering searching for a small shovel and saving my time with the Q-tips that seem to do nothing with the build up.

I have been able to learn a few phrases in Visayan, but not enough to hold a conversation. I can tell people where I am going, ask how to get there, and a few other things.. but I am hoping to be conversational soon.

I was able to climb a mountain that lies behind the school campus. It was actually pretty lame. I hope to find a better one. The only pictures I took were of a cool plant and some of the disgusting millipedes. There was no good place to get a view shot since the rains made the ground very unstable.

I found out yesterday that there is an Assemblies of God church right in town. I have not had time to search it out, but I want to check it out. I found their website and it appears they have a young adults group. I would love to be able to join that. I am still feeling a little lonely. For some reason it has been more difficult here to make friends than it was in Tacloban.

My teeth have not bothered me for quiet sometime. I am thankful every day. Thank you for all who prayed. I know that it is a miracle.

The next few weeks I will be putting together material for an interpreting seminar I will be putting on for the teachers of Bohol Deaf Academy (BDA). This material will also be used when the new teachers from the other island are able to come over for their formal training. I am very excited about this because interpreting is such a passion of mine. Please pray that I will have wisdom to teach these people what they need to know in order to help the Deaf children develop into the people God created them to be.

Please feel free to email with any questions or just to let me know how life at home is going!

Miss you all…

Video of my Bungalow... Finally.

It literally took about 6 and a half hours to upload this on Youtube. But it was the only way it actually would upload. So enjoy. :)

Extra Protien..

I went to another elementary school that has a Deaf progam here in Bohol. The town is Sagbayan. I left on Wednesday early morning and was able to spend the night in the dorms with the Deaf children I was able to evaluate a couple of the teachers as well as observing the school and the program they have for the Deaf children. It was an amazing experience. The elementary kids range So much in age that it is difficult to teach them all in the level they are at. Some who are 17 years old are only in second grade. This is difficult because their brains are not yet caught up with their bodies sexually so they have run into some problems along those lines. I was able to participate in a meeting dealing with many issues such as this at the elementary school.

I went into town to buy some more groceries. I decided to try brown rice. Rice is easy enough to make at home. So i went back and put three ladle scoops into boiling water. About ten minutes into it i started to stir the rice and here is what I found...

small black rocks
a tequila worm(i don't remember the real name)
and a small beetle.

i about gagged... actually i did. I tried hard to sort through it and find everything. I proceeded to find small chunks of dirt that i assure you were probably cockroach poop. I could not get myself to take more than one bite. I felt really bad wasting all that rice... maybe I will save the other Kilo for when I have quests over. I just can not get myself to imagine what is in the rest of that bag if I found all of that in just three scoops.

the weekend... and an amazing bday

Last Saturday I became a tour guide. When i was in the PHilppines last time I took a weekend trip to the island i am staying on this time. We had hired a van driver to take us to all the tourist spots. This morning at 8am I left with one of the teachers and two of his friends from Manila on our motorcycles all around Bohol. I had one Filipino guy on the back of my bike and Keats (the teacher) had the Filipino girl on his. This was about a 10 hour day with a passenger.

About an hour into our day it started to pour! We pulled over many times as it was unsafe to continue on the curvy roads with our small bikes. However, Keats wanted to stop so our electronics did not get wet. After the rain was a little lighter we kept on our way. We were able to stop and see the Tarsier monkey (smallest in the world), the Chocolate hills, the Python, the hanging bridge made from bamboo shoots, and take a ride on the Luboc floating restaurant. I was able to point out other roads that Keats had not been on before. I can not believe i remembered these stops from 2 years ago, in a different country, AND a place i was only at one time. This is a miracle if any of you know how good my directional skills are. However, here... there seems to be not too may turns. Bohol is only about 70 miles wide. So there isn't too many places you can not visit in one day. And the map i have is pretty clear as to where i would need to go if i took a wrong turn.

I am also going to try harder this week to pick up the local dialect. I found myself answering in Visayan a couple times today. But only when the answer was Yes. haha. this will be quiet a challenge... but i know that i will be able to at least speak conversationally in one month if i try really hard.

when on the motorcycle today many people would turn their head or yell. Everything was wrong with the picture.
I was wearing a helmet (very uncommon)
I am a girl driving a motorcycle with a man on the back (usually the other way around)
I am a White girl driving a motorcycle
I am a white girl driving a motorcycle with a Filipino man on the back.

I also experienced some high school boys wanting to take their picture with me so they can go back to school on monday and tell everyone that I am their girlfriend. Haha. of course i let them.... it is not so uncommon to see someone with Blonde hair in Bohol because it is a tourist island. However, it is not as common to see blonde hair and blue eyes.

In bohol the people have a little more personal space then in Tacloban. However, they all respect each other in different ways than in America. Several times I have come back to my bike to find some guy sitting on it just chatting. All I have to say is Excuse… then he will move. No big deal. I just found that interesting. I have had three different high school boys ask for a picture with me. I think maybe I should start charging 5Pesos a picture in order to keep up with my finances. Haha.
Yesterday was an amazing day. I thought my bday may have been boring this year since I was in a different country. However, a lot happened. I was able to sleep in a little bit and then I was invited to a waterfall. It took about an hour to get there on our bikes. It was THE WORST roads I have ever been on. We were pretty much off roading the whole time. Very steep hills and giants rocks to watch out for. Once we finally made it to a point of grass we had to park and walk the rest of the way. It was slippery and all down hill. At some spots I had to sit and slide a little in order to make it down with out tumbling. But it was worth it! There were three caves with in the water fall that we were able to swim into and sit on a nature created ledge. It was so beautiful. I also was able to jump off a couple of the cliffs. One spot was about 25 feet high. It seemed a lot higher when I was waiting to hit the water. We were able to climb up over the top of one cave’s mouth and jump off. That was so exciting. After we returned from the cave Dennis and his wife Marilou took me and two other teachers out to a resort restaurant on the island of Panglao. It was right next to the ocean and very beautiful. Looking at the menu I noticed they served pork belly. Almost gagging I went on to look at the other selections. One of the teachers ordered pork belly and or course offered me to try it. So I did. It actually was very good. It just tasted like a big slice of bacon. All in all.. a great birthday!

I wanted to make a list of things that I want to do on this trip. I added a few things I have already done since I should have put this up here before the first week.
1. jump off a cliff
2. climb a mountain
3. learn the local dialect conversationally
4. approve 1 Pag-IBIG loan
5. eat what ever is offered to me
6. visit friends from other islands
7. go snorkeling
8. get a massage on the beach.
9.perpare my own fish
10. watch the sun rise/set at the pier.
11. listen intently to why God has brought me here
12. explore every moment I can.
13. find a waterfall
14. ride with a passenger on my bike.

I am sure I will add more down the road.

facelift...

i was annoyed that the blog was kind of hard to read so I asked Josh(my boyfriend) to fix it for me. He did a pretty good job. :)

This morning i woke up about 3am (2pm for you) because my electricity went out and my fan stopped. It got very hot. I got up about 5:30am to get ready for the day and it was still out. This meant i could not shower, brush my teeth, and most importantly, i could not have my coffee.

Today was a very important meeting between all the principals of the elementary schools and IDEA. There have many controversies that needed to be cleared up. I knew i would not be able to function with out my coffee. I left early and went to the mall but it does not open until 8am. So i went to Dennis' home and suggested that he make me a cup of coffee. He kindly let me in and i was able to drink my coffee before the meeting.

It was very stressful. When the tension began to thicken they would start speaking sternly in Visayan and I had no idea what was happening. But the meeting was very productive and I think a lot of things were cleared up and it was a good idea to have so many of them together to meet each other and understand the purpose of IDEA. They were able to tour the Deaf high school (where i live) and see where their Deaf elementary students will continue on to. It all worked out very nicely.

I was supposed to have my first meeting today for the Pag-IBIG loans. I read a lot about it and have a pretty good understanding. The meeting got pushed until the 28th of September as Monday here is a holiday and I will be going to another city for three days next week to visit another elementary school.

Last night i went out with three of the teachers and we sang Kareoke. It is big here. I also found out there is a BINGO room upstairs in the mall. people play all day long. i rode with my first passenger last night too. It wasn't too bad.

Things are going well. thank you for the encouraging emails and please continue to pray. I am feeling well and have great people around me taking care of me.

finally some pictures.

The projects within this organization are endless. Dennis has an amazing imagination and brings many of his brilliant ideas to life to better the Deaf community on this island. It is impossible for me to even describe it.

The Deaf kids have been working on a dictionary of Filipino Sign Language (FSL). It should be complete by October. This is to help generate some funds for the kids as they are all sponsored in order to stay in school. I believe this is going to be available for any one around the world to buy. (so, Christy, you may want to invest before you come over) It is all by pictures. The graphics these kids are capable of is amazing. Some of the classes I have been able to visit have caught me off guard. This school looks a lot like an American school with the level of things these Deaf kids are learning. The hearing students in Tacloban were not as advanced as many of these Deaf kids.

Last night I was able to hang out with some of the kids on campus as I live right on campus. It was so wonderful to be able to chat and catch on to their signs. I have caught on pretty quick.

Tomorrow I will be interpreting for a meeting between IDEA staff and the elementary principals around the Island. There has been an issue with having the Deaf elementary students in the hearing classroom because the principals have seen this amazing private Deaf High School, they want the elementary kids to be out of their classroom. It is interesting that they have taken it as far as to call all the Deaf students a responsibility of IDEA. The staff at IDEA have written up a Memorandum of Agreement to be discussed at the meeting tomorrow. Many of the staff at IDEA are Deaf so I will be interpreting with Lee. Lee is an American who has a four year contract with IDEA that expires in April. So he has been a big help to me here.

Dennis gave me a huge task to pioneer during my stay. There are six Deaf families who have not been able to find land and build homes. Part of this has to do with the mindset that they are possibly unable. Dennis has given me the responsibility to figure out a way to get these Deaf families loans called Pag-IBIG loans. I will be working with the Social worker of IDEA and reading through the rules and regulations for these loans. Dennis has created a low budget but high quality home out of Styrofoam and Hardy-flex. This will not be eaten by the termites yet will uphold during the Filipino weather. He will be able to produce these homes at cost for these Deaf families if I am able to help them get loans for the land as well as the cost for the house.

I had my first experience driving in the rain. It was pouring out, yet I was more wet from the big trucks driving by me.  I still have not seen a cockroach.

I made one mistake yesterday. I put chapstick on before heading to the office. I felt like I had an inch of smog and dust particles stuck to my lips by the time I arrived at the office. So I went to the mall and bought a mask that covers my mouth and nose. This way I will be able to breathe while I drive as well. I have been just closing my nose, however this means I have been eating all the smog… yuck.

The intramurals are today. The kids started with a parade and then a few games. It was quiet an experience. Tomorrow afternoon I get to be a judge for some of the games.




Well, I am off to work with the kids in the high school today. Hope you are all well. Keep me in your prayers. Especially about the Pag-IBIG loans. I have no idea where to start with that.

Thanks!!

The third update....

I realize that by updating so often it is going to make it hard for whoever is giving the updates at church. But I guess you can choose the most interesting sections and comments. Also, please use some of my direct quotes to help me feel important. JK… but seriously, if you want to.  I will try to remember and add my email address at the end of this update so people can email me. I would love emails especially right now. I am very homesick and have had quiet a few arguments with God already. Any news from what you are doing at home would be helpful and encouragement would be appreciated.
I discussed with Dennis a little more in detail the things I will be a part of:
1. training High School Deaf students to go to the elementary schools and do outreach
2. teach interpreter training for hearing people in government, legal settings, and hospital situations. This will really just be teaching a hearing person of the company’s choice and teaching them signs and explaining the culture more in detail so when Deaf people come into their offices they will have a specific person to contact. This is as close to an interpreter they are going to have in the near future.
3. Take pictures and write personal experiences for the IDEA website: www.ideadeaf.org I will make sure and let you know when the first update takes place.
4. October 1st 5 teachers from the new Deaf school in Ormoc City, Leyte (the same island I was on before) will be coming to Bohol and I will be working with them on teaching the Deaf students. They will be in Bohol for 2 months (oct and nov) training then they will be observing in the elementary schools for another 2 months (Dec and Jan) and then the last two months (Feb and March) they will be immersed into teaching ‘practice’ lessons in Ormoc. They should be ready to start teaching at the new Deaf school by next school year with a full 6 month immersion like this. All of these teachers already have their teaching license through the Philippines.
5. I may be assisting with teaching some volleyball. This is not a strong area of mine as many of you may know, however those 8th grade lessons may come in handy.
There are a few other things that I can not remember right now. I know I will be busy. I am excited to be busy and meet new people. I know there is much more in store.
Last night my water was turned off because the city will shut of certain sections at certain times. I will never know cause I do not have a tv and I don’t understand the radio. I will be taking some Visayan language lessons soon though, so I can be up to speed with the spoken language of Bohol. Please also pray for a quick and fun experience in learning the local dialect.
Thanks so much for following.
I miss you all.

Signing off with my email address…

Toni.ripplinger@gmail.com

A bit of a step down.

For those of you who do not know, I drive a 600cc CBR Honda Crotch Rocket when I am in the states. This is just to give some reassurance to the stories below…
I have been provided with a 100cc Honda automatic motorcycle for the time I am here. It has been a little difficult getting used to the fact that there is no clutch and all four gears you have to shift down instead of up… Several times today I would go to down shift and actually end up in third or fourth gear, making me bogg down and not actually move anywhere… I understood very fast each time and was able to correct my mistakes. Most of the roads here are that I have been driving on are kind of gravel… not so much gravel as small boulders. I run into a lot sandy spots or roads that are covered in limestone. I have been warned that Limestone feels like ice once it gets really wet. It hasn’t been raining here at all yet. In Manila they are experiencing issues with flooding.
The first thing I did on my new ride is head to the market. I was able to purchase some more fruits and veggies. However, I still get pretty nauseous from the smell of the different kinds of meat. I really appreciate the women who stand by and shoo the flies… yet I am still not so sure I will buying my own meats.
I did get lost for about 20 minutes. I thought certain places were familiar, but a lot of the things look the same. There are many churches, basketball courts, pot holes… it is hard to tell if you are on the right track. I did eventually find my way.
I met many new Deaf today at the Deaf church. It was quiet an experience and I am excited to attend each Sunday. Also there is a staff bible study here that I have been invited to join. I am very excited to be involved in all of this.
Dennis asked me if would like to have a spot on the website writing about my experiences and taking pictures to go along with it. So I am preparing for what to write that will help better the organization as a whole. They have had some bad experiences with volunteers in the past and they are no longer to willing to accept volunteers. He said I was pretty lucky because they haven’t been accepting anyone recently. I hope to change that perspective.
I will be paying for the bungalow I am staying in as well as the gas for my motorcycle and all the food I will eat. I am not so sure I have enough to cover my finances but I will continue to be faithful. If any of you are able or feel like you may be able to help support me I would greatly appreciate it. I will be updating often as well so you know what to pray for me about.
Speaking of prayer requests…
I had some work done on my teeth right before I left and my dentist reassured me that it would be fine. Several times already I have had some severe pain in the teeth he worked on. I have been just praying and the pain goes away. Please pray that this will subside all together.
When I am on this mortorcycle (pictures to come) I do not have a very good helmet( it is a bicycle helmet) I wear my flip flops, shorts and probably my tank top. I will also be expected to ride in the rainy Filipino wheather… this I am not used to. The license test I will be taking seems to be pretty easy. In the states it took me a year and a half before I would take the test. However, here you have to pee in a cup and take a blood pressure test. That is it. I am not sure what they would do if you don’t pass the blood pressure test… Anyway… I should be able to pass my license test no problem. The prayer is mainly for safety on these roads. Anyone who has ever been in a third world country knows how they drive here. There are only two rules, Don’t hit any one and Don’t get hit. Seem pretty easy to follow.
And of course, for finances.

A little update...

My plan was to update before I left the states… however, time escaped me. Two of my best friends got married last Saturday and that helped me take my mind of leaving the country. My flights went very well. I had a personal TV located on the back of the seat in front of me. I was able to play about an hour of Tetris and watch FIVE movies. Staying up most of the 32 hour flight helped with the jet lag. I am doing pretty good. Last night I did go to sleep about 7:30pm and woke up this morning at 5am. So, I am still a little off. But feeling much better than the first time I arrived.
Upon arriving in Manila I took a taxi to a nearby Hostel where I spent the night in the home of a Japanese couple. This experience made me remember much of the TagLag(Tah-Gah Log) I had previously learned as they did not know how to communicate with my taxi driver. I was nervous staying with a couple who did not know the local dialect as this usually indicates no cultural sensitivity. However, they were very nice and I had a pretty warm shower. By that, I mean… it was not freezing cold and it came from a shower head rather than a spicket from the wall. All in all.. a good experience.
My last flight was domestic. It took about an hour to arrive in my destination city, Tagbilaran. On the airplane ride they played a game. The flight attendant would say an item and whoever raised said item the fastest won a prize. I wasn’t too excited about digging through my bag after the long haul I had been on already. However, the first item was, “Your Five Fingers” …. I won.  I got a little notebook and pen. It came in handy as I had to fill out some more paperwork and didn’t have a writing utensil. So, it is going well so far. Haha.
The president of the organization I will be working with is Dennis and his wife Marilou. Keep this in mind as from here on out I will only reference them by name and not title.
Dennis and Marilou picked me up in Tagbilaran and we went on a tour of the city. The first stop was the Café were many of the Deaf students work. It was really neat. The food was amazing and I guarantee I will eat there often. I have to confess though, my first meal here was a cheeseburger with onion rings. But in my defense, it doesn’t taste the same. 
Marilou went through the grocery store with me and helped me pick out some items I will be needing. And… There are many veggies to choose from! I am pretty excited as last time I was here there were no vegetables except egg plant. I purchased many fruits I have never tried. And they have mangosteens here for 90 pesos/kilo… so about $2 for about 10. I am not sure how to eat them yet; but I will figure it out. If you are unsure about what a mangosteen is, take the time to look up the amazing benefits of this fruit. This was also not available where I was last time.
My bungalow is amazing! I will be taking some pictures and possibly a video and putting up on here so you can see it. I am very blessed. I have been in the bungalow for about 13 hours and the only thing I have really had to deal with is ants. I do have a Gecko that I am not sure how to get out… cause my windows are enclosed. And they are SO quick. I don’t mind them though… they can eat the ants. Believe it or not, I have yet to see a cockroach… but I am sure I will. However, I am convinced they won’t be living with me this time. I know this is my home already though, since I have already spilt my coffee.
I am going to Deaf church this morning. I have much more to say, but I need to get going. OH… and I DON”T have internet in my bungalow… but it is not too far away… so I should be able to update often.


Ready to start a 6 month journey,

Toni