I am originally from the Philippines but never heard of Mount Bulusan until today. My hubby was reading news online and asked me if I knew where Mount Bulusan was. I asked him why and he said that it had recently erupted. It is located in the province of Sorsogon, about 250 miles southeast of Manila. According to the report that I read online, Mount Bulusan erupted on Monday morning at 9:15 a.m. local time. Ash and steam of the eruption reached as high as two kilometers. Thousands of residents fled their homes as the volcano spewed ash and thick smoke.

I thought that the flooding disaster in the Philippines was already over. I spoke with my family in the Philippines last night because I started to worry about their situation there, especially after my uncle posted some pictures online about the recent flooding in Butuan. I also chatted with him and found out that the rain had stopped for a while and then it started raining again heavily for several days. My mother told me that the lake behind our house has risen and it is now just a few feet away from the house. My cousin’s house is already in the water and she has been evacuated to higher ground. I hope that the rain will stop very soon.

I just found out this news this morning. Kristine Hermosa and Oyo Boy Sotto tied the knot in a sunset wedding on the 12th of January, 2011 at the Club Balai Isabel in Talisay, Batangas. As reported by SNN, the wedding happened at 5PM and there were around 150 guests invited. ABS-CBN network president, Charo Santos-Concio and Star Magic head Johnny Manahan were among the Principal Sponsors. The couple’s wedding date also happens to be the groom’s birthday.

It is already Kristine’s 2nd marriage. The actress was previously married to actor Diether Ocampo but got annulled. Oyo has never been married but was in previous relationships with Alessandra De Rossi, Anne Curtis and Angel Locsin. Best wishes to both of you!

The town where my folks and siblings live is one of the towns in the Philippines that has been affected by floods. Earlier this week, my mother told me that the lake behind them is swollen and it is now near our backyard. It was not alarming for me because this had happened many times when I was still living there in the Philippines. What did worry me a lot was when I read the news advisory online about the rise of the river in Butuan where some members of my family are living. Because of that advisory, I made phone calls and sent text messages to them during the early morning hours.

Continuing heavy rainfalls in Davao will cause the rise of the water level in the Agusan River. It was advised that people living near mountain slopes and in low-lying areas should be alert & take appropriate actions to protect themselves against possible flash floods and landslides. The advisory prompted people to take proactive actions and evacuations.

Last night, I chatted with my mother and she told that the rain had finally stopped. The weather is improving but has left damage to crops, infrastructure and property. Some provinces are still under a state of alert. Even though the weather is improving, everyone should still be leery of flooding and mudslide possibilities over the next few weeks.

I watch The Buzz, a TV program on ABS-CBN, from time to time. I want to keep updated with the latest on the show business in the Philippines. This week’s Angelica Panganiban’s revelations on The Buzz was really shocking. I never thought that she was an adopted child because her life seemed so perfect. I did not expect that the angelic and cheerful young lady had been through so many things.

I still remember the time when she was on the same TV show and asked for a favor from her talent agency. She said that she needed a short vacation. I thought that the vacation she was asking for was to make preparations for her wedding. I did not expect that the vacation would be for her to meet her long lost father. Everything from being an adopted child to meeting her father were all shocking revelations to me.

Angelica was a child star. I had watched most of her shows when I was still in the Philippines. That is why all of these revelations were shocking because we thought we knew her as she was growing up right before our very eyes.

I admire her for being so forgiving, understanding and loving. Despite what happened, she accepted the facts openly. If I were in her shoes, I don’t know if I could have handled it all by myself. The story of her life is one for the books. I thought this kind of life story only happened in soap operas. I would like to watch a movie about her life story. She serves as an inspiration to kids who are also looking for their biological parents.

I read about typhoon Megi a few days ago. Megi was a super typhoon and was reported as the most powerful typhoon that had hit the Philippines this year. It was heading towards southern China after killing thirteen people in the northern Philippines. I feel sorry for those who were affected by this typhoon. This recent calamity puts many people’s lives in a very difficult situation. Amidst the global economic crisis, things have gotten even worse for those who rely on agriculture in the affected area.

I was worried when I read about this typhoon heading toward the Philippines. My family in Mindanao was in the middle of harvesting rice. The typhoon did not pass directly through our area but they still had to stop harvesting because of the heavy rains when the typhoon passed. Had the typhoon hit our region directly, my family would have lost the entire rice crop because the nearby lake would have swollen and flooded the entire area of their rice fields.

I am originally from the Philippines but my hubby who is not a native of that country is always the first to find out the latest of what’s going on there. He reads a lot of news online as part of his daily routine. Even though I got up early before him this morning, I was working on my blogs and hadn’t read any news. He asked me if I knew where the Moro Gulf is in the Philippines. I had never heard of it before so we looked it up on Google Earth. He said that several 7+ magnitude earthquakes struck that area on Friday & Saturday. I found out that the Moro Gulf is located southwest of Cotabato, Mindanao. According to what I read online, a destructive tsunami was not generated. I am thankful that there was no tsunami because that could have caused great devastation to the island that I am from.