Teacher’s Day

     Teachers are very important especially nowadays when the Internet can provide the wrong information and easily mislead us to different notions and ideas. They are like our second mothers and fathers that we spend a lot of time with them in school. They are the ones who teach us some parents cannot teach in terms of the academic aspect and awkward topics such as sex. They are the ones who also help us mold our future in terms of getting a good college. Teachers are very hardworking and go the extra mile in dealing with students who have a difficulty. As the day of teachers fall on October, this month is indeed a very special one for them.

      Back in high school, the teacher and student relationship is much closer compared to college. It is because our campus is smaller than UP Diliman and our clubs and organizations required a teacher moderator unlike in college. Most of the teachers are very approachable and very friendly in a way that they really spend time to talk with their students during their breaktime. Whenever we had our club meetings, a teacher would also be there to supervise on what is going on and make sure that jobs are really done. Some of the teachers would actually even give birthday presents whenever it was our birthday, but in college, in a way it is different.

      In college, teachers are not very visible that much since they have a separate building and the UP Diliman campus is very huge for teacher and students to meet every so often. Because of their age, some of the professors are very moody and easily get irritated. Some of them can opt to be late in class or even be absent when they do not feel like going to school. There are also some similarities in a way that some college teachers still use the style of high school teaching and treats their student very nicely and childlike. Some professors also give presents or token to the people who have scored high in the test results. I am very thankful that all of my professors this semester is very kind and caring to me. I did not experience any “terror” professors that could bring my down my grade. They are like my high school teachers because some of my professors still treat us like high school students, and I feel that they are more approachable than the other professors.

      Overall, I am thankful for my teachers in general. I am thankful for my high school teachers that they have mold me into a person who thinks critical and a person who has good studying habits. I am thankful for the knowledge that they have impart on me for me to pass UP Diliman. To my current teachers, I am thankful to have been your student as my first semester and that you have made my stay here very welcoming. To my future professors, I hope that you will be good and kind in giving grades and that they will be very friendly and approachable. Thank you to my teachers and professors.

Hell Week

     As students in college or in high school, every student will experience hell week whether they like it or not. Through the nearing of the semestral break, the hell week also starts. Hell week is defined as the the maximum stress level that a student can obtain through his school work load and extra-curricular activities. It is usually found around midterms and finals where it is said that prior to hell week, professors meet & discuss ways to purposefully create schedules with several midterms and papers and group projects due, in addition to the normal homework load & extra-curricular activities. As nearing of semestral break and last few days of classes, professors try to cram all their lesson plans and students try to cram all the requirements into the last few days of submission. UP Diliman also has its hell week and its starts today. 

     Barely a week until the end of classes, professors already have started to schedule long tests and papers one after the other. As a student who is also an active member of UPJMA and PUGAD Sayk, I sometimes have a difficulty in balancing all of the academic work with social events and organization activities. In the subjects that I am taking, thankfully, I have only 1 finals exam which is Math 17. I really find this subject a bit difficult since Math for me is not really very interesting. It requires a very tedious process to follow  every step of the solution is very important to get a partial grade. On the other hand my other subjects such as Geography 1, Spanish 10 and Social Science 2 require different things in replacement of the final exam. The Geography 1 professor requires us to make a film that incorporates one of the big concepts that we have tackled in his class. Our Spanish professor would like us to do a presentation that would involve skills that we have learned in Spanish and can be in the form of role playing, dancing and even singing. While our Social Science 2 professor wants us to write a final paper on the topic that we have chosen. I think these types of final requirements needs to be spent with more time since it involves some other people such as group works and researching that really requires a lot of time. I am happy that my combinations of subjects scheduled their final dates in different dates so that I can prioritize other things that would due first. My subjects alos had a combination of written exam and interactive exams that would balance the stress level and would not wholly use my brain to answer the written exams. 

     Overall, I hope that hell week would be over with me finishing all of my requirements with flying color, but at the same time I am sad that I know that my first semester in UP Diliman is finally over. Hopefully, next semester I would have decent professors and good subjects that will help me achieve the goal of obtaining a magna cum laude when I graduate college. 

09.22.12

     Last Saturday, September 22, really marked a good day for me. There were a lot of things that happened that made this day very special from my high school, Xavier School, and my my current college, UP Diliman. Although there were also some drawbacks to this day, the overall mood of the day was contentment, happiness and excitement. 

     It all started 12 midnight as we had our applicants’ party entitled “Playground”. This was sort of the culmination activity of my stay as in applicant in the UP Junior Marketing Association, UPJMA. As part of the marketing committee, I was tasked to call up sponsors to be able to gather funds to create this fund-raising party for our beneficiaries name KIDS (sending 35 elementary and highschool children to different schools in Metro Manila) and 4 UPJMA Scholars (4 college students in UP Diliman). As the culmination activity, I was really proud of our batch as we did a lot of unexpected things and the venue was really jam-packed. At first, I was really scared that people might not go since there was another party held in Eastwood. Also, the tickets that we were required to sell were not immediately sold so I thought that only a few people would go. In the end, there were a lot of people that went. I am not exactly sure about the statistics on the number of people who went, but the head of UPJMA told us that they were proud of us. The drinks also did not run out which was a good thing for the party goers.

     The other activity that really made my day was my UPJMA final interview. After a few hours of partying and sleeping, the applicants had to wake up early to have their interview. In this final interview, this would actually determine if you would be accepted to the organization or not. This was also the final test that we all had to undergo as applicants, and I really wanted to do and give my best. There were 2 parts to this. One was the written exam and the oral exam. I really think that I did well in my written exam as I have already met a lot of members and have gotten to know them throughout my app experience. In my oral exam, I really became honest with the interviewers and with myself on what I did throughout the process. Overall, one of the assistant heads commended my interview and thought that I had a decent interview. 

     The last and final thing that happened on this day was the championship of UP in CDC and that Xavier passed the elimination round in Skechers Dance Competition. In the Mall of Asia Arena, the crowd was very intense as each school performed their routine. Wearing a maroon shirt, I was cheering loudly for the UP PEP Squad. I was also very shocked when they came out when all of the them even the girls had their hair cut short to almost being semi-bald. During the waiting of the results, everyone was loudly cheering for their schools and when UP PEP Squad was called, most of the people were jumping off their seats including myself. It was my first time to be part of a very surreal moment where joy and happiness filled me. On the other hand, my brother who was also part of Dance X, the dance group that competes in Xavier, also got in the eliminations. I was happy for my brother that he got in as it was his last year in Xavier already. I think that Xavier really did a great job in performing the piece and can really have a chance in the finals of the Skechers Dance competition. 

     In conclusion, this day was really meant for a variety of reasons and purposes. There were a lot of excitement and happiness that cannot be contained. It was a success for my applicant batch party, UP PEP Squad and the Xavier Dance X.

The Other Side of Katipunan

As with each university campus in Metro Manila, there are very distinct features that set them apart from one another. The University of the Philippines has its oblation statue that signifies the you are already in the campus. Ateneo de Manila has its blue eagle gym and hundreds of cars almost twice the number in UP parked in their parking lots. While La Salle University has its all air-conditioned classrooms and elevators that are not available in the other mentioned universities. One of my blogs have already discussed what its like to be in UP and the thoughts that came in my mind during my stay here. Now, its time to critique the neighboring school on the other side of Katipunan.

It was not my first time to go to Ateneo. Most of the UPCAT takers also took the Ateneo entrance exams to make sure that they have another school just in case they were not accepted in UP. As I entered the gates of Ateneo, one is able to notice that Ateneo de Manila University implements a strict security in its campus. Unlike in the UP campus, cars are almost passable in all gates, but the gates of Ateneo require drivers to give their license and get a visitor card or simply have an Ateneo sticker. One of the places that is the least strict with ids and most available to the outside visitors is the JSEC (JGSOM Student Enterprise Center). JSEC is one of the canteens in Ateneo that offer students various cuisines and diversity of food selection. These stalls are owned and operated by some of the college students and who have won in the selection process and proved that their products are unique and good tasting. I must say that the food selection in Ateneo is very diverse and really caters to international taste buds of its students. Unlike in UP, most of the food are somewhat similar such as sisig, lechon kawali that some stalls both offer. In Ateneo, they see to it that each stall is different so the potential market is not overlapped with one another. Also, the fashion of the people is very much different in Ateneo. From the simplistic and laid back styles in UP Diliman, Ateneo presents a more sophisticated fashion sense. I also noticed that the language by which the Ateneans use is a combined English and Filipino or just in straight English. While in UP, people sometimes use straight Filipino.

In conclusion, no matter how nice the facilities and what food they over in their canteens, I believe that I still chose the right school to be a part in my life. UP Diliman has more other things to offer more than the facilities and food but most importantly the diversity and stories of other peoples’ lives that really cannot match the Atenean crowd.

UPJMA ADHOC

     AD HOC is a Latin phrase meaning “for this”. It generally signifies a solution designed for a specific problem or task. Every organization in UP Diliman has their own AD HOC, but the most famous organization associated with this term is the UPJMA ADHOC, UP Junior Marketing Association. It is the largest income generating project for its beneficiaries the Kids Integrated Development Through School (K.I.D.S.) and the UP JMA Scholarship Fund. Every semester, each ADHOC team is tasked to create a party with an innovate concept to gather funds for corporate sponsors, media partners, organizations and individuals. 

     For this semester the title of the fund-raising project was ADHOC: Unbound Legacy still in the World Trade Center held last September 1, 2012. As an applicant for the UPJMA, I joined the committee of ADHOC and would act as an “intern” to do my best in help raising funds for the beneficiaries and give a hand in helping the committee to achieve its goals. One of the main tasks that were assigned to us was to sell different merchandises to name a few were UP hoodies, UP baseball tees, drink vouchers etc. As a very persuasive and determined person to try and reach to become the best intern for ADHOC, I started to sell the UP hoodies and baseball tees to my block mates, classmates and even to people who were not part of the UP. At the start, I somehow thought that the other people might do better than me, but when the tally of the merchandise came out, I was shocked that I was the number one intern to sell the most merchandise. This really gave a new inspiration and drive to my goal of achieving the best intern so I decided to exert more effort in selling drink vouchers and ADHOC tickets that the team maybe see me noteworthy person as part of the UPJMA and the ADHOC team in the future. A lot of the officers commended me in doing a great job and told me to keep it up until the event itself. 

     On the ADHOC day itself, I was excited and nervous at the same time because it was my first college party in UP and nervous that I might be able to fulfill my duties very well. I focused on my work and my goal and did everything that they told me. I went beyond my shift in the lines and manning the beer booths. I had to go the extra mile taking care of people and making sure that riots did not break out. Although there were a lot of things that I did, to some extent I also enjoyed my time in ADHOC in being one of the people who made the event possible. 

     In conclusion, there are a lot of skills and learnings that I have come upon. I have realized that my selling skills were a lot stronger than I thought. Through perseverance and exerting effort, anything is impossible. Now as I look back at  my ADHOC experience with the award or not, I am sure that I can tell myself that I have grown to a better person realizing my potentials and capabilities to greater heig

Geog-Geogan

     This year I enrolled in the class of Sir Jayson Cruz in Geography 1. Upon enlisting myself in this class, I immediately saw the high demand to be part of his class so I took my chances to join this class. Luckily, I was chosen to be part of this class. One of the highlights of taking Geography 1 is the much awaited Geography camp. There was a lot of things special in the camp. First of all, this would be the last Geography camp of Sir Jayson Cruz since he would not teach anymore GEs (General Education) but instead only teach major subjects. Secondly, this camp would be a 3 day and 3 nights field trip instead of the overnight camp that they had before. 

     Before the daybreak of Saturday, I already started to prepare my things and things that I still have to buy in the convenience store before leaving the house. It was around 4:45am, and I was in Palma Hall, UP Diliman. The environment had an eerie feeling and silence and darkness surrounded the area. I was not used to seeing the busy school without any people walking or even jogging. I was hoping that I could see the sunrise but there were so many trees that blocked the sun rays. After a few minutes, a lot of people arrived already wearing their respective colors to differentiate the teams. As we rode the bus on our way to Zambales, there were a lot of things that came through my head. First of all was what if the place was not civilized enough and had no air-conditioning and was mostly nature and insects. Second was the problem of having no signal in area which would make contacting loved ones back in Manila harder to do. Aside from these, the questions on food, who were my roommates, would I actually have fun with my group etc. 

     When we got there we immediately started our activities with simple team building activities to warm up to the more intense games such as the obstacle course. During the first day, we lost to many of the physical games because our group was not simply equipped enough to handle these kinds of games but on the second day we caught up. We beat the other team in the intellectual games of Geography and wont in 4 out 5 games. In the end our team and the team that won most of the physical games were tied at the end. 

     Overall, this Geography camp was an event not to forget. I met a lot of new people and interacted with classmates that I have never talked with. I have learned to be more considerate to other and be more of a team player. I know now that it is also good to let go of using technology once in a while and to be more sociable and interact face to face. The previous thoughts that I had did not actually bother me in the camp and I just tried to be a sport and not be a KJ (killjoy) in the games. If I were given the chance to repeat this experience, I would definitely grab the opportunity.  

Prioritize Twister Fries

In a world where sometimes, eating is already a luxury with the busy schedules of the people and soaring prices of food nowadays, the gold arches or more commonly known as Mc Donalds puts a solution to this problem by providing fast and cheap fast food. Mc Donald’s Philippines opened its first doors to the public in 1981 with its first branch in Morayta, Manila and has grown into having 300 branches in the Philippine archipelago serving products ranging from burgers to fries to chicken etc. One of its most awaited and publicized product is the twister fries. 

The twister fries is somewhat like a regular fries that uses potato and is shaped like a curly regular fries. The breading or the coating of the fries is also different to that of the regular fries. It has a golden brown color and crispier when eaten compared to the yellow regular fries. This season is the season of twister fries. Mc Donald’s Philippines has been putting twister fries for about 1 to 2 months only to preserve its “limited edition” feeling and to make the people binge eat when the product comes out. I think that this kind of marketing strategy is good because it makes the customer wanting for more but does not put the product so long that it losses its value of being limited. By doing this, Mc Donald’s Philippines creates the hype and people would buy more of the product since they know that it is only good for a certain period of time.

Personally, I really like the twister fries better than the regular fries because first of all, I am not really a fan of fries but since the notion that the twister fries is only temporary then I might as well grab the opportunity of eating twister fries. Also, the taste of twister fries is also different to that of the regular fries since I felt that twister fries was more juicy and crispy. In reality, I haven’t had any regular fries in a while. Every year, I look forward to the start of the comeback of the twister fries so that I can be one of the first people to have taste the twister fries again. On the first day that it came back, I immediately asked my mom to go to the nearest drive thru of Mc Donald’s and buy me 2 orders of twister fries. I really felt happy and contented that the twister fries still had the same taste even though the price went up a bit. 

Overall, we should prioritize twister fries and get it while its hot. Twister fries only for 3 weeks left. 

Typhoon Ondoy Part 2

     As the rain waters savaged and flooded the streets of Metro Manila, I really felt a mixed emotions of sadness, anger and feelings of anxiety and worry. Although there was no typhoon declared, the monsoon rains brought by the tail wind of the typhoon really did bring a lot of water that was already tantamount to the rains from typhoon Ondoy which also greatly flooded Metro Manila and traumatized people. I really felt sad because histroy was repeating itself again after 3 years after Ondoy. I was already at the momentum of being serious with my academic work but it had to be stopped because of the suspensions and relief operations of the different schools. At the same time, I also felt angry because the government did not yet find the remedy to the problem, and the areas which were affected during typhoon Ondoy were still the same regions. The feelings of anxiety and worry that some of my cousins and even the houses of my friends might be submerged in flood waters again came to my mind again. I really would not like to have the same situation again because it really had its toll on the efforts and stress on us and the Filipino people. 

      After the hours of non-stop raining starting from the night of Monday to the night of Wednesday, there was really a blanket of fear among the Filipinos. Despite the tragedy and calamity that struck Metro Manila, the Filipino spirit does not wither in these times. Through the gloominess of the weather, the Filipino spirit of heroism, compassion and teamwork does shine. Immediately after the rains have died down, many relief centers and schools have started to organize their own relief operations. Being the compassionate man I am, I also did my part in giving donations to the victims of the calamities by donating some canned goods, instant noodles and collecting my old clothes to be given. It started as early as Thursday morning after the sun have finally shown up. As I joined the relief operations of Xavier School, I was really astonished by the amount of donations that were given by the parents, students and even the alumni of Xavier. There were countless sacks of rice, bottled waters, instant noodles and biscuits ready to be segregated and distributed to the families of affected areas such as Pasig, Cavite, Bulacan etc. There was even a surplus of volunteers which really showed how Xavier taught us to be men for others. 

      Amidst the feelings of sadness, anger and anxiety, I also felt fulfilled and happy because I was able to have the chance to experience and be once again be a change to in people’s lives. I really felt fulfilled that I was able to help and spend my free time in to doing something beneficial for the community. Although I was not able to personally meet the beneficiaries of the relief goods that we packed, I am sure that it has really been a great help and comfort for them even at least for the short term. Overall, this has been a learning experience for the government and a test of the Filipino spirit of heroism and compassion that will prevail. 

The Act of Grocerying

The act of grocerying or the more correct term is the act of grocery shopping. Nowadays, with the busy schedules of many people, only housewives or maids are the ones who do the grocery shopping. People bring their grocery lists to make sure that they only buy what they need and stay on budget. With so many choices and brands available in the market now, no wonder that people really spend a lot of time in the grocery comparing quality ingredients, to canvassing costs of the products etc. Some kids really do not have the time to stay with their parents or they’d rather do something of more importance than look at food items. However, as an avid fan of food, I am one of the less typical guys who really wants to do the grocery shopping and is willing to spend time doing it. 

I think that doing the grocery shopping really relaxes me. A person has to slow down his fast paced life in order to look at the different products on the shelves. I am a very brand conscious and a loyal customer. I stick to the brands that I am accustomed with and make sure that the products I buy is of the utmost quality. I am a person who is also a risk-taker when it comes to trying new products in the market. I like trying new food and hoping that I would like the new product and continue to buy it next time. By doing the grocery shopping with my mom, I want to make sure that the things that I want, I also get. I also think that I am a family person who always wants his family to have the best tasting and healthy food. As the representative to my siblings, I want to make sure that what my siblings want, I also buy for them. 

Through the act of grocery shopping, I realized a lot of things about myself. First, I am a person who once in a while wants to relax even the smallest of things and occasions. Secondly, I am person who is very appreciative of the spare time that God has given me in order to do grocery. It is in my attitude that I am a loyal person be it to food brands or to greater aspects in life such as friendships. I am a risk-taker and an adventure enthusiast who wants to seek new and exciting things in life. I do not want my life to be monotonous but be filled with good surprises in life. I also realized that I have the potential to be a good providing father and who will be a hands-on dad in the future to my kids. I am also a person who is goal-oriented and purpose driven. I will try to do my best in whatever I can to achieve what I want. 

Ultimately, I believe that grocery shopping should also be a part of a family’s life. It can be a venue for bonding and spending time with each other. By being part of actually doing grocery, every member of the family gets exactly what he/she wants. The act of grocery shopping does not only reflect on the food choices but can also reflect on a characteristic of a person. 

8 minutes to Live.

Source Code starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan and Vera Farmiga and directed by Duncan Jones is an action thriller centered on a soldier who wakes up in the body of an unknown man and discovers he’s part of a mission to find the bomber of a Chicago commuter train.

At first, I got confused on what the story was really trying to say. It kept on repeating the same events in a train over and over again, but soon after I got the message that Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) had only 8 minutes to live in the source code which was a past alternative universe. It was a venue wherein a person can relive the last 8 minutes of his life, and the mission of Colter Stevens was to try to find the bomber who attacked the commuter train and had plans to create more damage in the city. I really found the plot of the story to be very interesting because the idea of ‘source code’ was a technological and military breakthrough. People can now go back to the last 8 minutes of their lives and try to figure out what really went wrong to solve the problem. Although it was a very good invention, it also presented its drawbacks such as violating the human rights and human dignity etc. It is because the person is forced to finish the mission before his ‘real life’ is terminated. This may cause some problems with some people because others would not want their minds to be still active and letting the person suffer when the body is really no longer capable of supporting it. The idea of source code intrigues the mind whether this kind of technology is possible in the future and with its technology, how will man be able to overcome its shortcomings and use it to the benefit of the public.

This movie teaches us a lot about morality such as cherishing life to the fullest and living each day as if it were your last. It teaches us that life should be enjoyed with the people who love us the most such as our parents, friends. It is also important for us to be affectionate every chance we could be and really say what we feel inside so that we do not regret anything in the end. In the story when Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) was trying to find out what happened to him and found out that when he died, he really did not have a good conclusion to his life with his father. In life, there are many unexpected things that may happen for no reason and for this we should be thankful for each day that we get to live.

In conclusion, I really found this movie to be very nice and fascinating. It teaches people that life should not be taken for granted and to cherish it.