The old man I met at the airport.

It’s been three weeks since my successful US entrance. I am a minor traveling alone, only accompanied by a tiny suitcase, a grey backpack, and an uneasy face. I was too worried about my Mom worrying about me. But then, it wasn’t so scary. It was kind of fun. It’s my first time to travel alone outside the country so it was quite an experience!

So let’s get to the story: I’m turning eighteen on June and I was supposed to have this big party (debut) thrown for me because I’m finally turning into a lady. Pfft. On the contrary, I was informed that my grandma’s ill. Without a second thought, I decided to go the States. But then there were conflicts arising. Dad’s got some issues with me traveling alone. He thinks I won’t be safe and blah blah blah. My mom thinks that I should have my debut instead because it would be a dream come true for her – to present me as a debutante. But I wasn’t into all that shiz, I just wanted to get away and travel and visit my grandma. So then I followed my instincts and left the country.

I was alone at the airport for five hours. An hour before my departure, I waited at our gate. I met an old Filipino man who now resides in the States. He told me stories of his children going to college, of his nieces and nephews graduating from prestigious universities, and of his going back to the Philippines to attend an alumni homecoming. And then he asked me why I am going to the States. I told him I decided to visit my grandma instead of having an extravagant shindig thrown just for me. He smiled at me and told me, “I think that’s a very good and responsible decision.” I smiled back. I’m thankful I met this man. He removed all the regrets and guilts in my mind. When I left, I felt guilty because I didn’t agree with my Mom and Dad’s decision for me. I guess they will eventually get over it and thank God that I just decided to visit my grandma instead of spending loads of money all on just one night.

spreading some coolness + geekiness + rainbows

<p><a href=”http://forge.codedgraphic.com/lakbayan”><img style=”border:0px;” src=”http://forge.codedgraphic.com/lakbayan/map-v1.0?aadkbaaafaaaaakkkfpafckcahafkkckcasfaapdampaatacufaaacckfaacncfbacdkkarchcadmaadaaaaaaaaaa9091″ title=”Lakbayan Visited Map” alt=”" /></a><br /><a href=”http://forge.codedgraphic.com/lakbayan”><img style=”border:0px;margin-top:5px;” src=”http://forge.codedgraphic.com/lakbayan/grade-c+” title=”Lakbayan Grade: C+” alt=”" /></a></p><p><strong>My Lakbayan grade is C+!</strong><p><p>How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at <a href=”http://forge.codedgraphic.com/lakbayan”>Lakbayan</a>!</p><cite style=”font-size:85%”>Created by <a href=”http://vaes9.codedgraphic.com”>Eugene Villar</a>.</cite>

i’m leaving for the states tomorrow.

and right now i’m doing some last minute packing.

joy.

i’ll finally see you lola!:D

Movie List

There are so many great movies coming up early next year and I can’t wait to watch them! I’ve watched a few trailers and I’ve come up with a list of interesting movies. You might find these appealing, too!

• Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
• Revolutionary Road
• Valkyrie
• Zack and Miri Make a Porno
• Cadillac Records
• A Good Day to be Black and Sexy
• Confessions of a Shopaholic

Hopefully I get to make some time for these movies to watch. Next term would be a very busy term. I’d be in school almost the whole day and I’ve classes five days a week now. That kinda sucks, but I’ll live:)

Remnants of the past term..

I really was supposed to include these photos in my previous post, but I thought it would be better if I make an entry with photos taken from last term. Ah, those days. The crazy things we do.

Eating Star Peanuts at Gerald's place.

trying on Gerald's hat

hitting Embassy with Mez

getting ready for the bubble party at Jaipur.

peace out!

UKG party anniversary with Mez.

Panic At The Disco meet and greet at Podium with Trish my loves

sippin' 'em Starbucks coffee with Mark.

dindin at Cafeteria with Marvs and friends.

Cafeteria, dinner with Angel and G, and our other friends.

getting ready for the party with Yna.

with Nico my loves

with G at Hierarchy.

with the most annoying dude in the world - Jules! hahaha!

check out the last frame. Mike's trying to kill me!

me doing my cat face. =3

check it, look who's camwhoring.

with the lovely Lala =]”]

So that’s it, yeah. Some remnants of the past term. I’d be a hypocrite though if I say I didn’t have fun

5th term so far..

my artwork for my JOSERIZ class

So it’s already my fifth term in college, and I am still up and running. Last term was an amalgam of the good and the bad. But there’s more bad than good. The outcome showed it all. A lot of “firsts” happened last term. It was my first time to not ever get a 3.5 (95-97%) grade in any subject. It was the first time I partied so hard, so frequent, and so bad. I was literally out every week. I rarely stayed at the dorm. I think last term was my saddest and most depressing term. I met a lot of people – both the good and the bad, some I kept, and some left. I definitely do not regret anything that happened last term though because it was when I learned the most important lesson – prioritizing, or in layman’s terms, putting first things first. I never really got around to thinking what was important anymore. I was an angry child. I just wanted to get out and go crazy, thinking that would solve my problems. It did nothing good to me though. I almost flunked my subjects, but thank God I didn’t. God still loves me.

I’ve turned down almost every invite I got for the past four weeks since school started. Whenever I felt like going to any them, I just look back to what I did last term. I know I only went out whenever there’s no school the next day, but I was overly stressed. That’s what got me all messed up. I started to skip classes just to catch up on resting. But I’m glad I passed through that stage. At least I learned from my mistakes, and once again proved to myself that experience is the best teacher.

So now I am more focused. I am now taking my core subjects and these subjects need more of my attention. I cannot mess up. So far, I’m really loving my PRINMGT (Principles of Management) class. Obviously it’s all about Management in general. It could be managing a business, an organization, or yourself. I find this subject very helpful because it does not only give me an idea on how to run a business, but it also gives me the chance to evaluate myself whether I have good managerial skills. And based on my postulation, I am not yet a good manager since I can barely manage my own time. But in due time, I’m sure that I will learn. Or else all these years of studying and spending money on my education would be futile.

I think this term would be a very good term and it’s a time to redeem myself! My mom has no idea about this, but it’s good that I’m having my own realizations. I don’t want her reminding me all the time. I want her to know that I realize what I’m doing and I know what is right and wrong. Now I really could say that you can’t say anything unless you’ve been there.

It’s been a while..

But I have not forgotten about my WordPress blog. It has been a while since I last updated this. I just thought that putting something random here would be nonsense. Anyway, in the past few months, I have managed to: (not in any particular order)

-be hired as Mary Emme’s photographer

-pass all my subjects

-meet new people, and eventually became friends with them

-find who my real friends are

-download new music

-get a hold of copies of different movies I like

-buy new corporate stuff for school

-make my Mom mad

-get my hair done

-take better pictures

-update my Flickr and DeviantArt account and I uploaded a few photos

-write a poem about my youth, present life, and vision

-have coffee with a friend

-talk about my problems

-get my mobile phone smashed

-change my Livejournal blog’s layout

-have a decent conversation with my father

-get my Thailand trip cancelled

-wrote an “about me” essay

So that’s what I could remember. My fifth term in college just started and I am aiming to be on the Dean’s List. I have also applied for the scholarship to help my Mom with all the expenses. I have been reading Stephen R. Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People as a requirement for a class. I was really supposed to buy that book a long time ago but something always comes up. The first week of classes are almost over and I managed to go through all my classes without any difficulties. I am excited and nervous for this term. I think it’s about time I get serious and aim for something big.

Which Reminds Me…

I haven’t gotten around to updating this domain. I’ve realized how much time I’ve spent on going out and how much I’ve been missing “me time”. I’ve been spending a little time alone and have not been pondering too much for a while. I haven’t had a self-check on what’s up and what’s been bothering me.

I’ve been staying over at Mary’s place a lot and have been trying to forget all the problems I have. My room’s so messy. Which reminds me, I have to clean it.

This post is rubbish. Blah.

Stick To What You Know, Please

People should really stop comparing. Things would always vary and will always be different from each other. Thing could be similar, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re of the same kind, or they’re identical. Comparing won’t get you anywhere.

Earlier today, we had a long discussion (or should I say sermon?) from our professor who thinks that students from the other side have a different culture from our school. That students from Main take down notes and carry bags and actually care about school. Does that mean we Benildeans don’t? This really made me upset earlier. Our school’s system is patterned from that of Main and our school is made from special and non-traditional courses, while the Main campus is for all the traditional courses.

DLS-CSB was made for those who want to excel in the field of arts. We are more into hands on stuff. I admit that the school have some rascals here and there but please do not stereotype us into brats, rich kids who don’t give a shhhh whether we go to class or not. That we don’t really care about what our professors say and we don’t take notes.

This discussion only started when my professor noticed us murmuring to each other. He said he just came from his class from a different school and said that he didn’t have to reprimand them for being noisy or whatever. Because they’re not and they’re busy taking down notes. I looked around the class and nobody was actually taking down notes. Mental note: why the hell did I not pull out my notebook? I take notes.

We all started reasoning out and giving our opinions about note taking. We had very good points, actually. Only he made it worse when he mentioned that Main students take notes and actually carry a bag to school. He said he met some students in CSB who used to go to Main and he said that they are jotting down notes. He asked them why they do it. They said they got used to it because that’s how things go around Main. So what is he trying to say? That we Benildeans have a less better environment than Main?

When he said that we did not like taking down notes, I immediately said that I take down notes. Then he said something like it was not about me. It was just a mere observation. Blah. Whatever. He’s not supposed to let us feel down. He’s supposed to boost up our confidence since the school’s reputation has always been the tapunan for Main students or stepping-stone for those people who can’t get in Main.

He could reprimand us for not observing proper decorum, but he should have done it in a proactive way. Not in a belittling and insulting manner. It seriously got down to my nerves. I wanted to bash him right then and there. He said he just had to say it since he’s part of the faculty and he’s supposed to enrich the environment of the school. FYI, you are not enriching or encouraging us to do better. You’re putting us down. Just like how those other people do it.

I know we are not stupid students. We are way better than that and we deserve to be called Benildeans because we are artistic, professionally competent, unique, and persevering students.

My life’s soundtrack

So, here’s how it works:
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc).
2. Put it on shuffle.
3. Press play.
4. For every question, type the song that’s playing.
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button.
6. Don’t lie and try to pretend you’re cool.

Opening Credits:
Waking Up: “Every you, every me” by Placebo – =/
First Day of School: “Oh My God” by Kaiser Chiefs – haha this is so true. guess it’s because i’ve been living in the dorm ever since the first day of college )
Falling in Love: “Saturday” by Fall Out Boy – OMG! This is like, a huge neon sign now!!!! Aly! Nics! You know what this means!
Fight Song: “Karma Police” by Radiohead – hahaha so don’t mess with me, homies!:))
Breaking Up: “St. Jimmy” by Green Day – ehh?
Prom: “Not Big” by Lily Allen – hahaha hey my prom night didn’t get to that!
Life’s just ok: “So happy together” (punk covers) – haha just right
Mental Breakdown: “Romance” by My Chemical Romance – haha deranged!
Driving: “Na Na Na Na Naa” by Kaiser Chiefs – haha grooveh
Flashback: “First of Summer” by Urbandub – perfect!!!! Just perfect!:)
Getting Back Together: “Wherry: Red Hot” by Vanessa Mae – uhm it’s classical-instrumental. hahaha
Birth of Child: “Circles” by Drake Bell – going in circles? malikot na bata? )
Wedding: “Mama” by My Chemical Romance – ehhh?
Finale Battle: “Fix You” by Coldplay – I sound defeated. )
Death Scene: “The Way I Are” by Timbaland – hahahhaha i SERIOUSLY have this song in my iTunes! ) not fit for a funeraaal
Funeral Song: “Astro Zombies” by My Chemical Romance – i’m turning into a zombie? AWESOME!
End Credits: “Ooh Wee” by Mark Ronson – LOVELYYYY!

It’s 2:07 am. See how bored I get in the wee hours of morning. )

Worry-free and Wacky Wednesdays

Today is such a GREAT day and I have so much to be grateful for. So today was our planned and scheduled interview with Intercon Makati and Water Front (Manila Pavillion) hotel. First thing to be grateful for: my Economics professor did not come to class. It’s not exactly a good thing, but I really have a feeling that I passed her midterms! Second, we were able to get statements from Intercon, despite not having proper arrangements with them. Only bad thing was, when we were on our way there, it was scorching hot outside, we were all sweaty and we were all wearing our corporate attire. When we got there, the security guards thought we were applicants! I wanted to hit them because they were also hitting on my friend! So we ended up telling them what institution we are from and they finally let us in. Thanks for having a prestigious school, I guess. When we were there, we freshened up a bit in the powder room then I went incognito and started to inquire about their room rates (but we actually do have plans in staying in a hotel room for a debutant’s party). And then I followed up with questions regarding our project. The lady behind the reception desk look uncomfortable and nervous when I started talking to her. And what’s with her eyebrows? Then off we went to Water Front and there, the staff were very accommodating! And it’s not that surprising because they’re also graduates from our school. They were a bit lenient with us because we have the same alma mater, though they still kept their high sense of professionalism. Mark Anthony even let us take pictures of the lobby and pictures with them with my professional still camera (which I think would not be allowed in any other hotels unless you have connections). And we had a very great conversation with him regarding the hotel and he was so generous with all the important details and information. So I took like, 200 photos today. Which I think is still few. Oh! I also passed the Food Hazards and Philosophy midterm exams without studying! Haha! Aly and I had a deal. She said if I passed the exams without studying, then me and that guy are meant to be. Haha! Then blah blah blah. Many thanks for this day. It was so much fun!