Error message

  • Deprecated function: Return type of DatabaseStatementBase::execute($args = [], $options = []) should either be compatible with PDOStatement::execute(?array $params = null): bool, or the #[\ReturnTypeWillChange] attribute should be used to temporarily suppress the notice in require_once() (line 2244 of /home2/renealte/public_html/includes/database/database.inc).
  • Deprecated function: Return type of DatabaseStatementEmpty::current() should either be compatible with Iterator::current(): mixed, or the #[\ReturnTypeWillChange] attribute should be used to temporarily suppress the notice in require_once() (line 2346 of /home2/renealte/public_html/includes/database/database.inc).
  • Deprecated function: Return type of DatabaseStatementEmpty::next() should either be compatible with Iterator::next(): void, or the #[\ReturnTypeWillChange] attribute should be used to temporarily suppress the notice in require_once() (line 2346 of /home2/renealte/public_html/includes/database/database.inc).
  • Deprecated function: Return type of DatabaseStatementEmpty::key() should either be compatible with Iterator::key(): mixed, or the #[\ReturnTypeWillChange] attribute should be used to temporarily suppress the notice in require_once() (line 2346 of /home2/renealte/public_html/includes/database/database.inc).
  • Deprecated function: Return type of DatabaseStatementEmpty::valid() should either be compatible with Iterator::valid(): bool, or the #[\ReturnTypeWillChange] attribute should be used to temporarily suppress the notice in require_once() (line 2346 of /home2/renealte/public_html/includes/database/database.inc).
  • Deprecated function: Return type of DatabaseStatementEmpty::rewind() should either be compatible with Iterator::rewind(): void, or the #[\ReturnTypeWillChange] attribute should be used to temporarily suppress the notice in require_once() (line 2346 of /home2/renealte/public_html/includes/database/database.inc).

Pohon time [2016-03-08]

Suddenly the end of this trip is near, and we’re in “pohon time”.  “Pohon” is a word in the local Cebuano dialect that doesn’t have an exact English translation, but captures so well the multitude of emotions we are feeling right now: a sense of melancholy that we’ll be leaving soon, a joyful hope that we will return, and a deep gratitude for the experiences we’ve had these last 8 weeks.  At each parting, we say “kita ta sa September pohon” – although we know that nothing in life is certain, we will hopefully see each other again in September.

Our school visits have continued since my last post, and we are down to one last visit on Thursday.  Last week’s visits to Tayud NHS, Labogon NHS, and Carmen NHS were magical – we only wish we could find more computers for the students and teachers at those schools!  Neal made minor updates, and we fixed a mysterious problem at Tayud.  Well, “fix” is perhaps too kind of a word; it ended up being a brute force “copy over the top of the OS” after he failed to find the source of the problem.  Cosmic rays?  Flaky memory?  Ghosts in the machine?  At any rate, it seems that the fix has worked so far.

Today’s highlight was visiting the new Cebu Province Division Superintendent, Dr. Rhea Mar Angtud.  We actually first met Dr. Angtud back in 2006 when we were new US Peace Corps Volunteers here in Cebu and she was an assistant superintendent.  She has recently returned to Cebu Province Division following a long stint of leading the Cebu City Division office.  It was a very joyful reunion and we are excited about the opportunities in the future to support Dr. Angtud in her vision for Cebu Province Division.

The reorganization of the Audio-Visual Room (AVR) at Compostela National High School is almost complete.  It’s exciting to see the computers ready and waiting for use!  We have also tidied up the computers in other locations on campus, adding memory so units have the minimum desired 512Mb; this should help improve performance.

Tomorrow we’ll divert from our IT focus to celebrate the partial solar eclipse from 7:45 to 10:10 tomorrow morning.  Neal has done quite a bit of googling to prepare activities for the students, so it should be a fun day!