My Autobiography: David Balleza K(C)atague: June 2017

Friday, June 30, 2017

Have You Heard of UMPQUA Bank?-Good Luck Dinah and Elaine

I am sorry to admit that last month was the first time I heard of UMPQUA bank. My oldest daughter, Dinah, had been offered a position she can not refused at UMPQUA Bank in Portland, Oregon. This will be her first time to relocate from California to Oregon. She is very excited since this is a Promotion. The company has offered her a good salary, bonus sign up and help in her relocation expenses as well as a prestigious title of Assistant Vice President. Your Mom and I wish you luck and success in your new position. Elaine is relocating with her. The following three photos were taken during their visit last week. The other photos were taken during the Farewell Party for Dinah by Friends and Relatives in Concord.

The following are some information from Wikipedia about UMPQUA bank.

Umpqua Holdings Corporation, d.b.a. Umpqua Bank, is a financial holding company based in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. Headquarters are in the Umpqua Bank Plaza, formerly the headquarters of Benj. Franklin Savings and Loan. The firm has three principal operating subsidiaries: Umpqua Bank (the Bank), Umpqua Investments (formerly Strand, Atkinson, Williams and York (Investments)), and Pivotus Ventures.

The company’s main operating segments are personal banking and lending, business banking and lending, and wealth management. The bank serves consumers and businesses in the community. As of 2015, Umpqua Bank had $24 billion in assets and $18 billion in deposits and was ranked among the largest 60 banks in the nation. Its parent company, Umpqua Holdings, is publicly traded. As of 2016, Umpqua Bank was the largest Oregon-based bank, and had 350 branches in Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada and Idaho.

Today is moving day for Dinah and Elaine. Have a Safe Relocation to Portland, Oregon!

Monday, June 26, 2017

Not Dependable Service from Clarke and Rush

Two Years ago I purchased a new Carrier Furnace 80% Boost from Clark and Rush for total cost of $4439 including installation. I Have a 10 year warranty for manufacturer parts.

Last week at the middle of the Ten Day Heat Wave here in Northern California, our Air conditioner failed. The AC is humming outside- but no cool air is coming ( appeared the blower is defective). I immediately called my installer Clark and Rush. They answered they are fully booked for three weeks and do not answer emergency calls even from customers. I was so upset, I started calling 10 other cooling and heating service companies in The Sacramento area. Of the ten I called only one( Jaguar) had an opening within the next couple of days. The rest are booked for weeks ahead. While waiting for the service from Jaguar, Macrine and I stayed at the Mall in the afternoon when the temperature outside were over 100 and inside the house was 90. One night we stayed at my daughters house in Mid town Sacramento.

Jaguar diagnosed that the problem was indeed the blower and to replace it will cost $1536. The technician suggested to call our local Carrier Dealers and verify that the part is available locally and if not it has to be ordered from the manufacturer, since we still have the warranty on the parts. The diagnosis cost us $79.

There are several Carrier Furnace Dealers in our Area. The problem is not the part but the time availability for service. Most of the Cooling companies are fully booked. Luckily, I was able to talk to a Carrier Dealer, Comfort Master. I was told the blower is not available locally. It has to be ordered from the manufacturer and a service charge of $65 for a 2-day delivery window is required.

Since Comfort Master did not diagnosed the problem, they are hesitant to order it ahead and wants their own technician to diagnose it for an additional cost of $99. The earliest they can re diagnose the problem is two days from this writing date. I was told it would be the first week of July when we will have central air conditioning again. I hope the weather will cooperate in the next 10 days.

In the meantime, the heat wave is gone. High temperature during the next couple of days are in the low 90's. We have a Wall AC unit in our bedroom, so we can sleep, but the afternoon from 3 to 7PM, the whole house is hot, even though we have electric fans in the Kitchen and Family room, we still have to go to the Mall to cool off.

Lesson Learned: Not all Cooling Service Companies are Dependable, in spite of their Claim of superior Client Service.

New Drug for Parkinson Disease Approved by FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced three months ago that it has approved a new drug, Xadago, for the treatment of Parkinson's disease. This is indeed good news for me and other care givers with their love ones suffering from PD.

Roughly 50,000 Americans are diagnosed with Parkinson's disease each year and about 1 million people have have it, according to the National Institutes of Health. Xadago, or safinamide, is an add-on treatment for patients with Parkinson's disease who are taking levodopa, carbidopa or a combination of both and are experiencing times when their medications are not working well, also known as "off" episodes. For details read:

https://www.michaeljfox.org/foundation/news-detail.php?fda-approves-xadago-for-parkinson-disease&et_cid=842039&et_rid=226045094&et_lid=Read+More+%26gt%3bem_cid=&et_cid=842202&et_rid=224829673&et_lid=Read+More+%26gt%3bem_cid=

Sunday, June 18, 2017

Food for Thought on Father's Day-An Update

The following was my post last year on Father's Day. I am not expecting any of the events described here that happened last year, except for phone calls from my two daughters. I will be happy if my oldest son ( also a father) give me a call today. Here's the article I posted in my blog last year in case you have not read it.

"This year all my four children(The 4 D's) did not forget me today. My oldest son sent me a Fathers' day Card three days ago and will probably call me later this evening for his annual greetings. My other two daughters are here now preparing lunch. My oldest daughter arrived at 10:30AM bringing Italian Pasta and Green Salad. My youngest daughter and grand daughter arrived shortly with appetizers and my favorite dessert-Cheese Cake.

My youngest son who lives with us and helped me take care of his Mom enhanced/fixed my computer ( faster with more memory and-Windows 10) charging me only $250 for the parts. His labor for fours hours was free and told me it is his Fathers Day Gift to me. My oldest daughter also gave me a Red Lobster gift card, I can use any time. Thanks to all of You my 4 D's. To my oldest son, Happy Fathers Day to you also.

I am attaching a video ( Daddy Day Trio)for your enjoyment. Two other videos that I loved in this set are Katherine McPhee and Chris Mann's duet of the Prayer and the Three Tenors of Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras singing "I Did it My Way" with Frank Sinatra in the audience ".

Fathers' Day reminds me of the responsibility of Parenthood. I found the following quotes timeless and applicable to all Fathers and Mothers of Today and of the future.

1. Marriage is an institution, but who wants to live in an institution.

2. The trouble with most average American is that they expect their children to be above average.

3. The best inheritance a parent can give his children is a few minutes of his time each day.

4. A mother of 13 children was asked "how in the world can you have time for 13 children" she replied, "when I had only one child, it took all my time, what more can 13 do?

5. A Chicago psychologist lists these rules for parents to insure their child happiness
Avoid favoritism, do not compare one child to another
Don't be too dominating; don't impose your own ambitions or hobbies
Don't be upset at what your neighbor's children accomplish
Don't remind yourself constantly that you worked harder or had fewer privileges.

6. The fear of depriving our children has produced the most "gifted" generation of children in our history. We shower them with gifts to prove our love, with the inevitable result that the gift of love has degenerated into a love of gifts. Are we offering things as parent substitutes? Are we offering presents instead of our presence? Are we giving things because we are reluctant to give time or self or our heart?

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Philippines Love Songs and Tourist Spots

Do you love Kundiman and Pinoy love songs? Here's one of my favorite video.

Wednesday, June 7, 2017

Arthritis of the Knee and Me

About 6 months ago, I was diagnosed with arthritis of the knee based on the X'ray taken of my left knee. My physician prescribed an anti-inflammatory/analgesic-Naprosin. Relatives and friends recommended I take Turmeric Capsults -a dietary supplement. The pain ranged from 3-4 to a tolerable 1-2 from a Pain scale of 1 to 10. My experience showed that turmeric helps but the pain is not completely gone and often times I am still limping and my activities are limited. I have a hard time bending, so my gardening activities are limited also. Here's some information about knee arthritis from the Internet.

Arthritis is inflammation of one or more of your joints. Pain, swelling, and stiffness are the primary symptoms of arthritis. Any joint in the body may be affected by the disease, but it is particularly common in the knee. Knee arthritis can make it hard to do many everyday activities, such as walking or climbing stairs. It is a major cause of lost work time and a serious disability for many people.

The most common types of arthritis are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, but there are more than 100 different forms. In 2012, more than 51 million people reported that they had been diagnosed with some form of arthritis, according to the National Health Interview Survey. While arthritis is mainly an adult disease, some forms affect children.

Although there is no cure for arthritis, there are many treatment options available to help manage pain and keep people staying active.

For more details read the following:

http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=a00212

If you know of any dietary supplement good for arthritis besides turmeric, please let me know!

Highlights of My Professional Career

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.

Inasmuch 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 preferred and 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.
The company terminated sixty research employees, who were upset of the bad news.

One of the chemists was distressed and expressed his outrageous anger by threatening the company and its workers. He told his supervisor of his intention to bomb and burn down the laboratory. He was immediately escorted by the security staff out of the building and into his car. He was informed to leave behind his personal belongings; they will be mailed to his residence. He was warned never to show up again near the company premises or risk getting arrested.

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, after toiling for a long period in the same jobsite. We were provided clerical help and office space, in preparation to look for another job, such as updating our resumes, and using the computer and copy machine. We were given 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 area 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 my work experiences, there were noticeable and unavoidable jobsite occurrences. One can never miss the office romantic relationships between co-workers, both illicit and permitted. Though it was frowned upon, there was a boss and staff relationship, which was used as a ploy to get ahead in the company. Some relationships had chemistry, no pun intended, but some never worked out. Oftentimes, there was a sense of distrust among bench chemists for some workers who unjustly obtained preferred work assignments.

Some employees resorted to bribing superiors to get special privileges, such as being able to attend choice conferences and meetings in exciting venues or locations. Likewise, politics was always present at the worksites. It was during an era when various forms of harassment, equal opportunity and discrimination laws were not yet enforced in the workplace. Occasionally, an unexpected chemical explosion happens in a laboratory setting, where luckily no one got seriously hurt.

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.

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 deservingly 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.

It was part of my responsibility to give advice, instruct and promote high morale and teamwork in my group. My work in the FDA is confidential, until the drug patent on the products I worked on has expired. There are manufacturing supplements that I have approved that are now open for the public in the Internet.

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.

There are many good things working as rank and file while enjoying doing one’s job individually. It is a humbling, satisfying and productive experience, if one can work in harmony with one’s immediate supervisor. Working individually develops one’s skills in goal setting and scheduling. But in general, the financial rewards are less than a person who has supervisory responsibilities.

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. You might also like: