Sunday, December 31, 2017

Franz Schubert's Impromptu Op.90, No.3 by Carlos Avila

Lets end this year 2017 with some piano Music of Carlos Avila

I received the following e-mail a couple of months ago after I introduce Carlos piano works to Philippine-American Academy of Science & Engineering (PAASE). I hope this will inspire Carlos to continue with vigor his career in classical piano music.

Carlos, your Aunt Macrine and I are proud of your musical accomplishments. Keep up with good work.

(http://davidbkatague.blogspot.com/2017/11/carlos-avila-with-california-symphony.html)

*************************************************************************************************
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=la6fKbTrtLU

Dear David,

I am grateful to you for introducing to us Carlos Avila and a sampling of his superlative work.

I also came across the link below to his interpretation of Franz Schubert's Impromptu Op. 90 No. 3, and the sonorous tone with which he imbued the piece is simply remarkable.

He allows the piece to be tender and tremulous, yet ably controls it so that it remains far from mawkishness.

Carlos Avila is a revelation.

Best regards, Joel

Joel L. Cuello, Ph.D.
Professor of Biosystems Engineering
Director, Global Institute for Strategic Agriculture in Drylands (GISAD)
Department of Agricultural and
Biosystems Engineering
507 Shantz Building
The University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ 85721
U.S.A.

Currently Joel is PAASE ( Philippine- American Academy of Science & Engineering-President-Elect

Friday, December 29, 2017

David III and Dinah Professional Careers-My Other Two Children

David III and Mom, Christmas 2017

I have four adult children. My youngest daughter ( Ditas) and oldest son ( Dodie) careers are well publicized. I have two other professional children whose professional careers are not well-known or are not in the News and/or Television- Dinah ( Banking) and David III( TSA ).

http://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2017/11/dodie-and-ditas-katague-were-in-news.html

Ditas is Director of Census 2020 for the State of California.(https://www.census.gov/newsroom/bios/katague-ditas.html)and
(http://www.governing.com/…/gov-census-2020-population-count…).

Dodie is Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Contra Costa County.(https://www.amazon.com/Dodie-Katague/e/B003HI3GJO)and
http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2017/11/02/24-hour-fitness-hit-with-1-2-million-penalty-over-shady-sales-tactics/

Today, I am posting both Dinah's and David LinkedIn Profiles for your information. I am very, very proud of my four children accomplishments-known or unknown.

The Three David's-Dave my nephew from Australia, Me and David III.

My youngest son David Katague III is a Transportation Security Officer, TSA in Sacramento. He had this job since 2005. His former employment was at PricewaterhouseCoopers as a Senior Information Technology Consultant. Before that he was a Policy Analyst at the Executive Office of the President from Aug 1992 to Sept 1995 (Washington, DC).

He has two degrees as follows: From Carnegie Mellon University with a Masters Degree in Public Policy & Public Management(1986 - 1988) and from University of California, Davis with a Bachelor Science degree in Agricultural & Managerial Economics(1982 - 1986). He does not have a Face Book page.

David is my assistant in the primary care of Macrine ( my spouse) suffering from the ravage of Parkinson Disease. Without David's help my duty as a primary care giver would be unbearable. David, your mother and I love you so much and most grateful for your help.


Experience and Work Profile of Dinah from LinkedIn:

1.
CDD/EDD Manager for the Financial Investigation Department, Umpqua Bank, July 2017 – Present

2. Team Manager of High Risk Customer Unit, Bank of the West December 2014 – June 2017

Responsibilities: Leading a team of Investigators (Full Time Employees & Contract Employees) charged with the responsibility of doing Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) KYA and KYC on the Bank’s High Risk Customers, Subject Matter Expert on AML/BSA questions to Investigators, hiring and training new staff, Internship supervisor, Monitoring and administers the daily and weekly reporting MIS that reflects team and individual performances, Communicating directly with branch personnel, department managers, internal audit, FDIC representatives and Line of Business managers, special projects and other duties as assigned.

3. HRBU Investigator, Bank of the West, July 2013 – November 2014

Responsibilities: Research, review, analyzes and interpret financial data and information to determine risk ranking of potential clients and present clients, individuals as well as businesses; complete Risk Assessments & EDD Reviews; make determinations for the Political Exposed Persons (PEP), Special Interest Persons (SIP), Relatively Close Associates (RCA), Non Resident Aliens (NRA), Money Services Business (MSB), and Third Party Payment Processors (TPPP); daily review of the Customer Due Diligence (CDD) alerts created by IRIS, determine which clients to monitor on a yearly basis; maintaining lists and monitoring spreadsheets of high score CDD form and unusual behavior cased individuals and businesses; create and prepare monthly NRA, MSB, PEP clients for their annual and bi-annual EDD Reviews

4. HRBU Investigations Assistant, Bank of the West, December 2012 – July 2013

5. BSA/AML High Risk Business Unit (HRBU) Investigations Assistant

Responsibilities: Review; assign and distribution of incoming email from the HRBU Inbox; creation of new cases for review; updating, maintaining spreadsheets for TPPP/RCCD clients; analyze and review monthly Potential TPPP BLU Alerts; FACTIVA alerts; triage incoming TPPP/RCCD and MSB alerts; create and prepare monthly NRA, MSB, PEP clients for their annual and bi-annual EDD Reviews

6. Suspicious Activity Analyst, Bank of the West September 2011 – December 2012

7. Compliance Analyst, Irwin Home Equity 2006 – 2007

Education

California State University-Sacramento
Bachelor of Arts, Liberal Studies
1979 – 1984

St Mary's College, Moraga, CA
Paralegal Certificate, Corporate Law/Law Office Management

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Turning 83 Years Old- Thank You, Lord!

My wife for over 60 years, Macrine Nieva Jambalos and I enjoying our Aging years

I will be 83 years old tomorrow, but it is already the 20th in the Philippines so I have been receiving birthday greetings from friends and relatives from the nation of my birth. No big party but just a lobster dinner. Since I am the oldest member of the Katague clan in my generation, I am re posting excerpts from my article "The highlights of my Professional Career in Chemistry". I hope my biography have inspired my younger clan members to the best of their abilities to succeed in their respective lives and career. My Holiday Greetings to all the K(C)atague all over the World!

"In my more than 40 years of professional career, I have experienced both working rank and file, as well as supervising the work of subordinates. I have worked in four private firms and the Federal Government, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), where I retired. I enjoyed the challenges and difficulties of both types of job situations. This is the highlights of my work experience story.

My first job after completing my doctorate degree was a Chemist for Chemagro Corporation in Kansas City, Missouri. It was a subsidiary of Bayer Corporation, a German conglomerate. I worked for the analytical chemistry department comprised of about fifty people; half that number was either chemists or biologists. My specific task was to develop analytical methods for the detection of pesticide residues in plant and animal tissues. I worked on my own, similar to six other bench chemists, and we all reported to the same supervisor.

The firm sponsored my visa conversion from a student to a permanent resident, and I was able to legally work and reside in the United States with my family. The company generously took care of its employees. At the end of each successful year, everyone received a 13th month salary bonus. The employees and their families celebrated wonderful annual Christmas parties in a downtown Kansas City hotel, with dancing and free drinks for the whole night.

As much as I enjoyed and loved working for Chemagro for five years, I found a new job which offered a substantially higher pay. Due to my exemplary work performance, my supervisor lobbied for me to stay with the company. I had to turn him down because they could not match the package presented by my new employer. It was also a chance for me and my family to move and live in the US west coast, where the mild winter climate is bearable compared to the Midwest.

My next job was at the agricultural research division of Shell Development Company in Modesto, California. I was a Research Chemist, and again I worked individually, same as five other chemists who all reported to a supervisor. My specific duty was similar to my previous job. I worked for them for five years, until the company decided to get out of the pesticide business. They closed their research facility affecting the jobs of more than 200 employees.

My third industrial job was with the agricultural research division of Stauffer Chemical Company, located in Richmond, California. I was a Senior Research Chemist doing the same project as my two previous jobs. I worked for twelve continuous years for the company, with outstanding annual job performance. I became a Principal Research Chemist, the highest attainable non-supervisory position.

One day in 1986, my supervisor informed me that my job had been eliminated, and I had one day to vacate the facility. It was the most dreadful lay off experience in my life. I felt anger, sadness and humiliation to be dismissed from work with one day notice, after all the years of hard work invested for the company. This was an unforgettable incident and was the gloomiest point in my professional career.

My supervisor was kind and allowed me to take my time to pack up my belongings. It took me two days to clear up my workplace. I was provided clerical help and office space, in preparation to look for another job, such as updating resumes, and using the computer and copy machine. I did received six weeks of separation pay plus benefits.

Fortunately, with the help of a friend who is a Church parishioner, I found another job thirty days after leaving Stauffer Chemical Company. He hired me as a senior research chemist and as a group leader with two technicians to supervise. It was in the same field as my expertise in my previous three jobs spanning the last twenty one years. My new employer was Chevron Chemical Company, and which was located in the same city as my former employer.

This job gave me the introduction and basic knowledge of managing the work of subordinates. I worked for Chevron Company for four and a half years. The company decided to consolidate their research facilities in Texas, and lay off all its research employees. This time I had enough distress and agony from working, and eventually getting laid off from several private companies. To avoid going through any more miserable layoffs, I made a vow that I would never again work for a private company.

In the three private companies I worked for, I was able to publish scientific journals for some of the research studies and analytical methods which I developed for the respective companies of Chemagro, Shell Development and Stauffer Chemical Company.

After deciding and making a vow to avoid working in the private sector, I made my new goal which was either to work for the state of California, or the Federal government in Washington, D.C. Four months after I lost my job in Chevron, I was lucky and joyful to be hired by the Food and Drug Administration as a review chemist in the fall of 1990.

In 1994 I was promoted as an Expert Research Chemist with a GS-14 rating. My expertise was on Anti-malarial and Anti-parasitic drug products. In 1997, I was again promoted to Chemistry team leader, supervising the work of six Chemistry reviewers including five with doctorate degrees.

As team leader, I was responsible for prioritizing, assigning, and assuring the technical accuracy of all chemistry, manufacturing and control issues for all new drug applications submitted to the Division of Anti-Infective Drug Products, Center of New Drugs.

In 1998, I won the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Award. The citation reads, “For outstanding accomplishments in fostering the objectives of the EEO Program by hiring minorities and encouraging their professional growth while providing excellent leadership.” I have received numerous certificates of appreciation, awards in leadership and communications, commendation for teamwork and excellence in the accomplishment of the FDA mission. I have also received several letters of appreciation from private industry for my review work.

Managing the work of others has its challenges. Moreover, it develops one’s skill in handling and developing people, and the compensation rewards and benefits are better. Due to additional duties, responsibilities and leadership, supervisory work can be more stressful than working as a subordinate. However, supervisory jobs give one more personal growth and satisfaction, based on my personal experience. My work in FDA as a team leader managing the work of six scientists had been the happiest and rewarding work experience in my career in Chemistry ".

While looking at my old files, I found a copy of the nomination package( over 50 pages of documentation) that was sent by the Philippine Embassy, Washington, D.C. to Office of the President of the Philippines in 2002 for the Presidential Awards for Filipino Individuals and Organization Overseas. I was nominated for the Pamana Award in Chemistry. My package was approved and endorsed by the Philippine Embassy but was denied by Office of the President, Malacanang Palace in 2002. I was disappointed and irked because I was never given a formal letter of its denial, thus it reminded me of the above selfie photo that self destruct.
I have completely forgotten the above event in my professional life until today. I am comparing this event in my professional career as a selfie that self destruct or a pregnancy that was conceived ( endorsed by the Philippine embassy in Washington DC) but was aborted ( denial by the Powers in Malacanang in 2002).

In the above nomination package I have also listed several awards that I have received during my professional career from 1957 to 2002. My four most memorable, prestigious and non-aborted awards with no monetary value are as follows:

1. In 1990 I donated books and technical journals worth more than $1500 to the University of the Philippines Library. This donation was facilitated by the Commission of Filipino Overseas and accepted by the Executive Director, Alfredo Perdon. Perdon wrote me a Thank You letter as follows: " Your donation is a manifestation of the willingness of Filipino overseas to be actively involved in the development efforts of the country. Such participation through the commission's " Lingkod Sa Kapwa Pilipino or Linkapil serves to strengthen the linkages between Filipino overseas and their countrymen. Attached is the Linkapil Certificate of Acceptance along with the picture of the turnover ceremony at the UP library on May 23, 1990.

2. In 1998, I won the Equal Employment Opportunity Award (EEO) at the Food and Drug Administration. I received a plaque with the following citation: It reads, " For outstanding accomplishments in fostering the objectives of the Equal Employment Opportunity Program by hiring minorities and encouraging their professional growth while providing excellent leadership".

3. In 1995, I was elected (to a 5-year term) to the United States Pharmacopeia(USP) Council of Experts in the Standards, Antibiotics and Natural Products Divisions. As an elected member, I was responsible for establishing standards of identity, safety, quality, purity of drug substances and drug products as well as in-vitro and diagnostic products, dietary supplements and related articles used in health care. In March 2000, I was reelected to another 5 year term to the USP Council of Experts.

4. Last but not least, in l998, I received an Outstanding Filipino-American Senior Citizen Award in Chemistry, Science and Research. The medal and plaque was presented by Philippine Centennial Festival Committee of the Philippine American Foundation of Charities in Washington D.C.

5. My last award had monetary value: In 1986, I was awarded a grant to participate in the Transfer of Knowledge through Expatriate Nationals (TOKTEN) program for two weeks at the University of the Philippines Natural Science Research Institute, Diliman, Q.C. The program provided for free round trip transportation from US to the Philippines and back plus a generous per diem in dollars for two weeks. The program was coordinated by the United Nations Development Program in New York and in Manila. Today the program is now known as the Balik-Scientist Program.

The summary of my Pamana Award in Chemistry nomination package reads:

"Dr Katague is a trailblazer in the field of Chemistry and Drug Regulation. He is the first Filipino American to attain the position of Team Leader and Expert in the Center of New Drugs, Food and Drug Administration. He is also the first Filipino-American to be elected for two 5 year terms( 1995-2005) to the United States Pharmacopeia Council of Experts since its inception in 1820. Dr Katague's drive and energy to succeed is a representation of the Filipino people's talent and passion for excellence. He has shown that Filipinos can contribute significantly to the advancement of science, therefore help the world a better and safer place by insuring that only safe and better quality drugs are approved and marketed."

* For details of my accomplishments and my complete autobiography please visit: http://davidbkatague.blogspot.com

Sunday, December 17, 2017

Our White House Christmas Tree Ornaments this Year


For the past decade the major décor of our Christmas tree are the White House Ornaments that Macrine and I have collected since 1993 (http://davidbkatague.blogspot.com/2016/12/our-white-house-christmas-tree.html).

Attached are some of our favorite ornaments. You can purchase these on line or in the post office for some editions.




In case you are not familiar with these ornaments please visit the sites below:
https://shop.whitehousehistory.org/
https://www.whitehousegiftshop.com/category-s/2278.htm

Friday, December 15, 2017

My Fifteen Favorite Quotes on Leadership-Is Trump a Good Leader?


Is our current POTUS a good Leader? My opinion is a resounding NO! This week POTUS approval rating is at its lowest for only 32%. If he does not stop tweeting showing his arrogance and stupidity, I have a feeling it will go down a couple of percentage lower.

1. A good leader must first be a good follower-David B. Katague

2. "The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things." Ronald Reagan

3. "Power isn't control at all--power is strength, and giving that strength to others. A leader isn't someone who forces others to make him stronger; a leader is someone willing to give his strength to others that they may have the strength to stand on their own." Beth Revis

4. "I have three precious things which I hold fast and prize. The first is gentleness; the second is frugality; the third is humility, which keeps me from putting myself before others. Be gentle and you can be bold; be frugal and you can be liberal; avoid putting yourself before others and you can become a leader among men." Lao Tzu

5. "Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it." Dwight D. Eisenhower

6. "Leaders must be close enough to relate to others, but far enough ahead to motivate them." John C. Maxwell

7. "Leadership is not about titles, positions, or flow charts. It is about one life influencing another." John C. Maxwell

8. "A leader is a dealer in hope." Napoleon

9. "I cannot trust a man to control others who cannot control himself." Robert E. Lee

10. "There is a difference between being a leader and being a boss. Both are based on authority. A boss demands blind obedience; a leader earns his authority through understanding and trust." Klaus Balkenhol

11. "The art of leadership is saying no, not yes. It is very easy to say yes." Tony Blair

12. "Wisdom equals knowledge plus courage. You have to not only know what to do and when to do it, but you have to also be brave enough to follow through." Jarod Kintz

13."Remember, teamwork begins by building trust. And the only way to do that is to overcome our need for invulnerability." Patrick Lencioni

14. "Surround yourself with great people; delegate authority; get out of the way" Ronald Reagan

15. "The challenge of leadership is to be strong but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not a bully; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly." Jim Rohn

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2012/10/16/quotes-on-leadership/#3b228c492feb

Tuesday, December 12, 2017

The Healing Power of Music for Our Mental Health


The power of music for our mental health and for uplifting our spirits( souls) are well documented(A). For example when my wife (Macrine) and I feel depressed or lonely we play our favorite songs. In the case of my wife, she would play her favorite Julio Iglesias Sr songs.

(https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/latin-notas/5719517/julio-iglesias-turns-70-celebrate-with-some-of-his-best-loved)

In my case I listened to my favorite piano or violin concertos(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXYtJB7Qslk).

Our favorite music are either vocal, instrumental or choral music.

Just recently Macrine first cousin in the Philippines ( Rene Nieva) tagged me in Facebook with his piano playing of Some Enchanting Evening from South Pacific. He wrote that this piece has lifted Macrine's feeling of being lonely because of her Parkinson Disease.


Here's a short reprint from Rene Nieva FB page.

"I recall one time when we -- Yong, Oskie, Genny and I -- visited Manong Dave and Manang Macrine in their beautiful Chateau du Mer Resort in Marinduque some years back. Manang Macrine was not feeling well at the time and was quiet at first. But when we serenaded her with "Some Enchanted Evening", which happened to be a favorite of hers, she perked up and ended up singing along with us. We were so happy to hear her doing so that we were on the verge of tears. Such was the power of music to drive suffering and loneliness away, and would always be so ".
(A) https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/brick-brick/201402/does-music-have-healing-powers

Friday, December 8, 2017

76th Anniversary of the Bombing of Pearl Harbor


Yesterday was the 76th Anniversary of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor that started the Japanese-American War of World War II. The History TV channel had a 2-hour special documentary featuring a few survivors of that historic event that changed the US and made it the most powerful military nation of the world. The documentary also discussed the similarities ( poor intelligence gathering and communication) of the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the World Trade Center.

If you are a history enthusiast the above documentary is a must see. The above documentary reminded me of my award winning trilogy on my childhood memories of the Japanese-American war in the Philippines published in my Hubpages.com account as follows:

https://hubpages.com/literature/my-childhood-memories-of-world-war-2

For details on the 76th Anniversary celebration of the Bombing of Pearl Harbor read:

http://pearlharborevents.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIqfHav5P71wIVhuNkCh1k-gpTEAAYASAAEgKn4_D_BwE

Thursday, December 7, 2017

Three Ways of Retarding Progression of Parkinson Disease


Macrine(a) Nieva Jambalos, my spouse of 60 years has Parkinson since 2013. There is no cure for Parkinson's as of this writing date. However to retard the progression of her neurological disorder- her neurologist recommends her therapy be attack in three ways-medication, diet and exercise. So far this three way regimen appear to be retarding the progression of her Parkinson's.

First is Medication: Currently Macrine takes 3 tablets of carbido levodopa. 25/100mg, 4 times during the day in the following regimem-one tablet in the morning, then one-half tablet after 5 hours, then another whole tablet for the next 4 hours and one-half tablet before bed time. She is also taking a stool softener( constipation as side effect of medication), mirtazapine (15 mg) and metformin ( 500mg) for her diabetes. She drinks a lot of fluids also. For side effects of Carbido levodopa read :http://davidbkatague.blogspot.com/2017/07/side-effects-of-carbo-levo-dopa-sinemet.html

Second is Exercise: Occasional swimming( summer time), sitting exercises and playing the piano.

Third is diet( nutrition):
Macrine eat a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables and seafood products. She drinks lots of water for her constipation- a side effect of her medications.

For more information about nutrition recommended for Parkinson Disease patients read the following:



https://www.michaeljfox.org/understanding-parkinsons/living-with-pd/topic.php?nutrition

Saturday, December 2, 2017

All You Want to Know About Skin Cancer but were Afraid to Ask

My mole/wart on my face looks like the one above but slightly bigger

Yesterday I went to see a Dermatologist at the urgings of my son and spouse worried of my mole/wart under my eyes that appeared to be growing might be cancerous. So two weeks ago, I went to the Urgent Care Center near us. The Center sent me home since they do not do dermatology and advised me to see my physician or a dermatologist. I immediately called my family physician and was able to make an appointment two days ago. She advised me to see a dermatologist. The dermatologist she referred me can not see me until February, so I googled a list of Dermatologist in our area. I was able to find one who saw me yesterday.

The last time I saw a dermatologist was about 5 years ago for a mole on my neck. It took me a 3-months wait to see him and I have to drive all the way to mid town Sacramento. The dermatologist I saw yesterday was only a 15 minute drive from our house. The charming dermatologist has also good bedside manners and his nurse is originally from the Philippines. He took the mole/wart under my eyes in less than one minute. It felt like a bee sting and it bleed for more than five minutes, but it is not cancerous after a biopsy. I felt relieved. Here's a video of symptoms whether a mole is cancerous or not.

https://www.webmd.com/melanoma-skin-cancer/video/mole-or-skin-cancer

For All you want to Know about Skin Cancer but were afraid to ask, read the following:

https://www.cancer.org/cancer/skin-cancer.html

Linkwithin

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