Dec 18 - Lantern Parade
The day we've been preparing for the whole semester(We were a bunch of lazy people so we did end up cramming some of the stuff needed for the parade.). We were really excited and hoping that we'd win the first place for our lantern especially after the horrible lost of the previous batch. Actually, my only goal was to place higher than a certain college where most of my uh... friends who love to tease are.

I arrived and saw this weird black thing in front of our college building. Apparently that was supposed to be the stereoscope that will hold the lantern. I'm not the only one who was disappointed; one classmate remarked it looked like a giant faucet. Some even go as far as calling it a huge stapler. It's all right because hand washing is still related to public health.

That wasn't the only disappointment. The ribbon thing and the Filipino child thing I was working on the day before were not included in the final float. Talk about wasted effort, time and materials. The ribbon looked pretty but the child wasn't. We call it Tyanak.

The prejudging was scheduled at noon. We had to deliver our float to the PGH atrium. We cared feared so much for our float's stability that around 10 people accompanied it, me included. The start of the journey was fine but by the time we reached the College of Medicine area, we started becoming crazy.

The reason for the craziness(not the jumping, I couldn't find pics with the real crazy) are the banderitas. Some were really low that our float got stuck(sumabit). Every time this happens we started screaming loudly. Due to the screams and beauty of our lantern, we attracted attention from the med students lounging outside. One of my batchmates heard someone exclaim, "P*ta, ang ganda!"("Shit! That's beautiful.") Hearing that raised my spirit but I tried pushing it down and maintain a neutral not-expecting attitude.

After a longish journey, we finally arrived at PGH. Some confusion ensued and we learned that the prejudging would take place in the atrium and not at the parking lot. So our journey was lengthened a bit. Once we reached the PGH main entrance, we started becoming crazy again as the ceiling seems to low to accomodate our float but our fears were unfounded as the float fit exactly and all the parts survived the journey.

Having done our job, I left with a friend. We went to Robinson's to buy lunch and our gifts for our lucky person then we returned to Lara hall to prepare for the parade.

There was a 1pm call time. All the students from 1st to 4th year, the faculty and staff who will attend should be within Lara hall's vicinity by 1pm. But by 1pm, only our batch(3rd yr) and some sophomores were there. The faculty were having a Christmas party, the senior's and freshies' locations were unknown. Some of us feared that we(the ones there at that time) will be the only people participating in the parade.

Chaos and craziness follow and finally by departure time people started arriving and we breathed more easily.

At the PGH parking lot, merry making began.

The Parade.
I could not possibly use words to describe the parade. Suffice to say, it was full of thrills and extremely satisfying. There was one point when we had to try catching up to the college before us as we were lagging behind. We resorted to pushing the lantern through low banderitas, rough terrain and numerous turns. Some of us even have to run backwards to keep the float on the right track and the lantern hanging on. Too bad I do not have pictures of that(I was supposed to be the picture taker.)

Oh yeah... we WON!
Merriest Crowd...

Best Facade...

and best of all...
Best Lantern!

Note: Images from www.zachriel.multiply.com. I was not the one who captured this images as my camera died on me as the parade was about to start.

I've decided to make a more detailed account of what happened during the last few days instead of being such a lazy ass b*tch who just makes a list. Hopefully, it'll also be more interesting.

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December 14
Last day of classes. I left our house late but I still expected to arrive at UP at around 8:10. Unfortunately, the LRT experienced some technical issues so I ended up arriving at around 8:45. Not bad if my class was 8:30; it isn't. I heard later that our course coordinator said some choice words to the class due to the high number of latecomers. Good thing, he wasn't there any more when I arrived.

The lecture was boring not because the topic was(the immune system is such a fascinating thing) but because we already learned about it last semester in our other courses. Time which should have been spent on taking notes(which I already have thanks to our Microbiology course) was spent on debating whether our teacher is gay. He sounds and acts effeminately but has a weird gold ring on his left ring finger. Then again, some gay men are married.

Afternoon class was very brief. We only had a quiz. I sucked in that quiz. I committed a whole lot of rookie mistakes like not checking if the agar plate used is the correct kind. I didn't fail but I got a grade way below my expectations. So much for the chance to increase by grade in that subject.

Classes end and we go to work on our lantern. We desperately want to win the inter-college annual Lantern making contest. We only had a few more days before the deadline and the lantern still doesn't look like a lantern so we decided to "sleep over" and try to finish it. My classmates who lived nearby planned to sleep over for three nights, I lived further away and have very protective parents so I get to sleep over only for one night and this was the night. But instead of heading straight to the lantern, I had some prior appointments. As it was the last day of classes, my org decided to have our Christmas party on that date. It was fun and the old members came. Our group won the longest vertical line game. I'll try to get a picture of our winning line.

After the party, I returned to the lantern. I put myself on tahong duty. It was a really tedious task, involving lots of wood glue, patience and the skill to find the right piece that would fit. That's me in the blue jacket.



Three hours later and with the help of a few classmates, the arm was ready for the next step. This is my slightly demented at night classmate, Reg.



I was feeling sleepy but I don't want to sleep so I decided to do the next best thing.

No, I wasn't taking a nap under our lantern. I was trimming the excess parchment we've sewn into our lantern.

Anyway, it beats the shit out of the other remaining tasks which involved sticking unwieldy pieces of bamboo, which they are all doing.

And yes, that is a hair dryer.

But it think it was well worth their effort.


By morning, everyone awake was a bit crazy. One classmate cannot stop laughing while I become grumpier and grumpier by the minute(they have to understand, I haven't slept). Some started singing and I barely stop myself from hitting those noisy people. Besides, I was thinking about what to do with another essential part of the lantern.

Yes, it looks like crappy moss with paint on and no, that's not me in the picture.

At around 6am, I left and went home. Saturday was spent sleeping. I did go to SM North Edsa but I think I was still sleeping there. Proof: I bought Smokes and Mirrors in Fully Booked when I could buy the same thing for a lower price in National Bookstore.

December 16
I returned to UP to find out that nobody is left in our workroom. The lantern looks more complete.(Pictures taken on the night of Dec 15, I couldn't find a picture without people in it.)




As I don't know what to do next, I just left. I ate lunch at Jollibee and attempted to steal a fork for our Chris Cringle. I was about to succeed but this lady stood behind me and I couldn't bear to do it so I left the freakin' fork.

I text messaged my classmate and she said that I should do the tahong thing again on the other side of the star. Fine... so I returned and worked on it alone. Alone... alone... Just as I was about to go crazy, a classmate came to help me out. And soon enough, others arrived as well. Night came quickly and I've decided to try asking my parents if I could stay over to work on the lantern. They didn't let me. Oh well, there were only a few things left to do regarding it anyway and we finally decided how to make that crappy green thing above look more acceptable.

My classmates have found out my agnostic and slightly atheistic beliefs(I go to mass because I am forced by my parents). They seem to be really affected by it. Sample reactions:
"Nye, I'm Agnostic too."
"It seems it's true that as a person becomes smarter they become less religious."
"Really!"
"I'll be praying for you! Lord heal our land..."

The last one came from a really childish classmate and he did sing the next sentence. I was busy that time so I told him that it wasn't his mission in life to "save me." He must've thought I was joking because he merely made his singing louder.

In a batch full of very devout believers(mostly, Christians) and a college where the Dean's inauguration ceremony was preceded by a Catholic High Mass, I'm really out of place. At times when religion is discussed, I usually feel compelled to defend my beliefs and "religious stance" but I usually just shut up until a question is directed at me. It's not that I do not think I could defend myself, it's just that I feel that my explanations will fall on deaf ears or worse, I might cause their "conversion." Not that the converting/leaving their religion is such a bad thing, I just don't want to be responsible for their decision. Yes. That does sound stupid. I think it's because I hate playing the role of a teacher with my friends in fields where I know I do not have sufficient information like in religion(I haven't even completed the Bible). And I fear that their parents will go after me once they learn their child's conversion.

Well, I think the worst thing to happen is to lose their friendship. I value friendship above my own comforts and desires most of the time. So much so that I tend to shut up if casual talk goes into talks about sensitive topics like religion, contraceptives, sex education and human sexuality(You won't believe how homophobic, or at the very most, homo-INtolerant my batch mates are!).

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Last test of the year tomorrow. Wait... I have two quizzes on Friday. Nye... those two don't count. = p

My grandfather has learned of my plan to take a one-year break before going to med school. As expected, he isn't such a big fan of my idea. It is a good thing that I have a good boy rep in my family such that the talk didn't need to go to raised voices or threats. Unfortunately, due to my good boy rep the only thing I managed to do was keep quiet and say "opo" occasionally. Then again, it might be a good thing because he thinks I will go straight to med school. Na-ah. I'll only go straight to med school if I don't encounter job opportunities especially if it is in NIH, FNRI or Trop Med. I shouldn't worry much because I still have one year to search for those opportunities and, hopefully, one of my teachers in CPH will know about a program or something that I could join. And when the time comes that they learn about my real plans, I hope they accept it and trust that I will still go to med(unlike my aunt) and understand that I have my own reasons for doing those things(mainly, because I fear that I'll burn out or worse, get bored in Med especially after experiencing how classes are conducted by UPCM teachers).

Trillanes... Makes me remember a saying in Dune: Power attracts the corruptible.

Putek!

Unang pagsusulit na namin sa 152(Med and PH microbiology) bukas!

Ano nga ba namang buhay ito?!

Nakakatawa kasi parang wala ka na talagang pwedeng kainin o inumin na ligtas sa mga microbyo at mga bulate pero ayos lang kasi ang galing-galing naman ng katawan(at ng mga kaibigang mikrobyo) natin makipaglaban sa kanila... ay sa bulate pala hindi. = p

I just had a fight with my mother. Well, it's not so much a fight as she was the only one who blew her head off. In the end, I was the one who had to say sorry. I hate apologizing when I know I am the one who is right. Maybe, I shouldn't have said that last thing but that was also her chance to accept that she was wrong and end the argument. But I did end up apologizing to her, partly because I still live under her roof and plan to do so for many more years to come and mostly, because she is my mother who still can't accept that her child has managed to show her one of her flaws. In addition to this, she still can't accept that I have already learned many of the things that she wants me to learn from her. Hay...

Nearing the end of our fight, she implied that she's afraid that when we grow up we're just going to dump her and mistreat her. That's not going to happen unless this one big thing turns to a mess. Any way, barring any major disagreements, I'll probably not be able to leave my parents. Relatives? maybe. Brother? Why not? With my career plans, I'll probably won't be able to support them or take them to big trips and vacations or hold big parties for them but I won't leave them. They're my parents. As much as it sounds illogical, irrational and stupid. That's the argument I'm using. Hm...

Unfortunately, my mother seems to have this idea that once I become a doctor, I'll go to the specialist route(ex. cardiothoracic surgeon specializing on post-op care) and end up becoming rich. Nyeh! I won't become those (mostly) overpaid people. I hate it that a patient have to pay tons of doctors who in the end just gave her a referral and not a proper diagnosis(and treatment or management plan). Herbert(Frank not Brian) is slightly right to dislike specialists. I want to become a MD(probably a Family doctor) and a DrPH and a researcher and a professor. Those are not exactly the most lucrative careers available to a person who is going to have higher education. I don't even know how I'm going to support my future child/-ren and my mother have to learn to accept this. I guess they deserve big trips, vacations and parties especially my mother because she is a self-made woman and a person who managed to harness her resources to gain wealth but I won't be able to provide those for them. Then again, maybe I will become rich.

Tapos na ang unang linggo ng pangalawang sem pero pakiramdam ko isang buwan na ang nagdaan Gusto ko na ata mag-sem break uli lalo na nang hindi ko naman nasulit ang sem break ko. Hindi tulad ng CAS kung saan hindi nagpapakita ang mga prof at instructor sa unang linggo, sa CPH unang araw lecture agad. Ano ba naman iyan?! At dahil nakita ko na ang mga schedule ng exams, activities at class lectures, na-to-toxic na ako. Idagdag mo pa ang lantern parade at ang sayaw manila. Buhay talaga...

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Nasasabik na ako dahil mag-lalaro(nyek! mag-e-eksamin) na kami ng tae. Kaninong tae? Uhm... sa akin. Sana lang wala akong makitang bulate.

Great! I have a cold(sipon). It started with a slightly annoying sore throat, progressed to a very painful one then some random bouts of heavy mucus secretions then finally a full blown cold with a matching headache. Thank the heavens(Did I just say that?) for Strepsils, Suka+Tubig+Asin gargle and Cynosal(my preferred drug for colds and headaches). I also had a slight fever before the final stage. Hopefully, it'll only last for a few days but knowing my lousy(but not compromised) immune system, it'll probably end next week.

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I've just learned that Book3 of Avatar: The Legend of Aang can now be viewed. Yey! I've just seen the first episode, it seems it's going to be a darker moodier final season.

Day 2 and 3... day 2 morning spent on the sea(in a boat, of course) and on the beach, afternoon for sleep and night for swimming and more sleep. day3 morning, we went to the airport and flew to home.

Me and my Dad(It's morning; I'm still grumpy.)


Different shots of the sea(and sky) from the boat. Notice the beautiful cloud formations and, on the last two, some dolphins.











A starfish, unfortunately, it's not orange so it can't be called Patrick.





Random self pics, enjoy(?)

















On the boat with my family



Dinner


The end of Day 2

Day 3

At the hotel


At the airport

All the Pictures, Thanks for to Sony Cybershot.

Here are the pictures (finally!)...

Day 1:

Landing in(on?) Bohol. I hate these kinds of pictures but my parents always insist that we take them.



First stop is the Blood Compact site. I actually saw the bronze version of this sculpture in the Manila Metropolitan Museum. This one is made of stone I think but it boggles me how they made the raised arms.


Here are the Chocolate Hills. They're huge! And some vanity pics, I obviously need to sleep some more.











Now on to this rickety bamboo bridge. It is relatively safe as there are steel(?) cables supporting the structure but the bamboo still bears the brunt of the weight.


I just can't resist. The nuns look so cute.


It was so slippery, I lost my balance and dropped my book. Fortunately, it just suffered the mud and not the water.


Next is lunch in the floating restaurant. It was nice and even beautiful, after you accept the fact that the river will never be blue as the sky because of the silt, sand and mud. The food was not THAT delicious but I like the langka dish and their pansit.












Of course, how could we forget the Tarsier. We didn't go to the reserve. We went to this shop where they show the tarsiers to tourists. It's really an ugly place and I can't believe the DoT, DENR and the LGU of Bohol allows it.


Inside a nice cave. There is a deep pool of water; it's just too bad I do not have my shorts with me.

In the hotel(Bohol Diver's Club), after a long long day.

End of day 1

Day 2 and 3 will be on the next post. I'm tired of this very slow internet connection and I hate crappy blogger upload tool(I used photobucket instead).

Some things I've pondered on over the sem break and I think are true. I'm too lazy and incompetent to make a critical and beautiful discussion of these things I'll just list them down(in no particular order):

1. Being boring is a sin to mankind. Boring meaning becoming content, stagnant, unchanging, not developing, not helping or being a commensal(parasites are actually good since they provide adversity resulting in innovations).

2. The Homosexuals should not believe that they need to work hard or get rich or do something noteworthy before they gain the respect and/or tolerance of society. Many heterosexuals do not even deserve to be tolerated yet they are(ex. politicians).

3. Related to 2, the Filipino society is hopelessly homophobic and will remain this way for at least 2 more generations(unless the Martin Luther King of the Filipino homosexuals will appear).

4. Proper sex education for all is a good tool for population control and in prevention of STI's, however; for practical purposes, use of contraception and condoms is currently the best method to achieve lower growth in population and infected people. Related to this, many have a point that sex education may be better taught by parents but they always fail to remember that these parents are usually as ignorant as the kids they're supposed to be teaching regarding reproductive health.

5. Use of condoms should be encouraged. I have now 2 nephews concieved(but not born) out of wedlock. To the Church: They already performed premarital sex, do you really want them to commit more sins by bringing to this world an unwanted child? No, adoption won't do for Filipino society. It's either marriage or abortion, usually. And about STI's, they already have eternal hellfire waiting for them after this life(at least, according to you), why not allow them to be safe from HIV, Hepatitis, Herpes and some other icky diseases and live a relatively happy life here. What is 60 years compared to eternity any way?

6. Religion is indeed the opium of the masses.

Forgive me if I'll be sounding very grade conscious in this post.

So sad... I'm not recieving the University Scholar award this semester. I have to settle for the lower but still respectable, College Scholar award. Tsk... Goodbye consistent US achievement. At least, I still haven't received any grade higher than 1.75(2.00, 3.00, etc). I hope I can focus next semester and regain my US title and be one step closer to the magna award(I've computed my grades, I'll never become a summa.).

I'm back from Bohol. Skin-color still the same; didn't go swimming when the sun was out. It was nice. Expensive but nice. Story with pics later this week; I need to transfer it to my PC first. Man, my internet connection is so slow...

Bakit nila pinalaya si Erap? Hindi ko malubos maisip kung ano ang pumasok sa ulo ni pGMA at ibinigay niya ang pardon; pati nga si FVR, na isa sa pinaka-maipluwensiya niyang kakampi, ay tumututol dito eh. Lalo tuloy nadadagdagan ng ebidensya ang isang hypothesis na isa lang siyang presidenteng papet(pasista? hindi pa ata. pahirap sa masa? ewan ko, magulo ang masa, hindi nila maintindihan kung nahihirapan ba sila o hindi.) lalo na nang binanggit pa ito ng isang abogado na taga-usig sa kay Erap na malamang isang malakas na grupong politikal o/at relihiyoso ang pumilit kay pGMA na bigyan si Erap ng pardon.

Ang sakit kasi ng pakiramdam. Para kang ginahasa, sinaktan tapos sinabi na kasalanan mo at ginahasa ka. Hindi man lang nilagay si Erap sa totoong kulungan ni hindi nga siya nakatapak sa Bilibid. Pagpapahirap ba ang house arrest kung saan ang dami-daming luho; mga luho na hindi man lang nararanasan ng karamihan sa bansa. Bukod pa roon, parang malaya na rin siya dahil karamihan ng mga kahilingan niya na bumisita kay ganoon o ganyan dahil Pasko o kaarawan ay natutupad.

Masakit rin sa ulo ang mga katwirang ibinigay ni pGMA at ng mga sumusuporta kay Erap. Nakakawa?! Patawa ka! Matapos niyang magnakaw sa bayan, gastahin ito para sa mga luho niya at hindi man lang aminin na siya ay may kasalanan, patatawarin siya bigla? Matapos niya sabihin na ayaw niya ng pardon, bibigyan mo siya niyon? Ano naman kung matanda na siya? Ibig sabihin ba noon kapag matanda ka na pwede ka na gumawa ng krimen? Ang dami nga diyang mga lolo na nasa kulungan dahil ginahasa ang apo. Hindi ba't para niya na ring ginahasa ang bayan sa mga pinaggagagawa niya? Marunong naman kami maawa pero hindi naman nahirapan si Erap. Inuulit ko, hindi siya tumanda sa totoong prisinto at matanda na siya noong kinulong siya. At paano ngayon ang mga matatanda na nasa prisinto, iyong mga tumanda doon hindi iyong mga bagong pasok, ano na ang gagawin sa kanila? Buti sana kung bibigyan rin sila ng pardon eh. Pakiramdam ko hindi. At para lang maging makatarungan dapat matapos bigyan ng pardon ang matatandang iyon, dapat bigyan rin sila ng house and lot at kabuhayan showcase para lang matumbasan ang halaga ng pardon ni Erap.

Isa pang masakit sa ulo. Bakit nawawala ang mga demonstrasyon, mobilisasyon at mga protesta? Nasaan na ang mga balita ng malawakang pagkilos ng mga "kilusang makabayan?" Wala ata akong narinig at kapag hindi ko nakita sa TV, narinig sa radyo o nabasa sa dyaryo, hindi siya naganap. Ano naawa na rin ba sila? Nasaan na ba ang mga maboboka na tibak ng UPM? Bakit walang statement ang USC o ang Karatula o A-K? O baka dahil nasa Pedro Gil ako at wala sa CAS kaya wala akong naririnig pero parang malabo kasi kapag may walk-out kadalasan dadaan pa rin sila sa malapit sa amin at iikot ng UP-PGH. Baka naman nag-aaral? Kung may makakabasa nito at maiinsulto, patawad na lang. Bato-bato sa langit ang tamaan huwag magagalit.

I haven't been getting good and restful sleep these past days. I don't have troubling going to sleep, I just resume to constructing my fantasy world and before I know it I'm asleep. The problem is at around 4am I wake up or have these really fancy dreams. Usually, I like having dreams but these dreams do not let me rest. I now know how Egwene(the Dreamer in Wheel of Time) feels after Dreaming(prescient dreams).

Last night was especially tiresome(actually, it wasn't really night as it happened at around 5am), I actually dreamed that I was taking a very important test. The test itself wasn't hard; it was surprising that I know all of the answers. However, I wasn't taking the test seriously but I know it's a very important test. And I was yawning and taking my time for every question while all of my seatmates are trying to create fire using their pens and papers. Another funny detail is that I literally saw the clock moving at a very rapid rate and before I knew it, the end of the exam was near and I haven't answered anything yet! I then experienced astral projection(in the dream) wherein my awake self was screaming at my dream self to fucking hurry up. I didn't get to finish the dream because my alarm went off. It's a good thing though because I couldn't imagine what I'll feel after submitting those incomplete answers.

I know that I get these really fancy dreams when I'm feeling stressed but it is the sem break! It's supposed to be my rest and relax time. How can I get stressed out? Why am I stressed out? Argh...

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From jesusandmo...


From explosm.net...


Have fun!

It's rainy today. Cloudy, dark, cold and gloomy too. It's the kind of weather that you wish you had a cigarette with one hand and a bottle of strong alcohol in the other, then again, I don't smoke and I can't drink so I'll settle for a jacket. And smoking is bad bad bad for your health(and mine).

Any way, since we're mentioning smoking. At the jeepney stop and loading area, an old lady almost rode our jeepney. The problem is she just lit her cigarette. How stupid can you be? Lighting a cigarette then riding a jeepney. Granted many do it and they probably do not know it is illegal and downright annoying to the other passengers. They probably never heard of the saying, "One's freedom ends where the freedom of another begins." At that time, I was seriously contemplating whacking her with my umbrella if she even lands one foot inside the vehicle.

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I've been thinking how crappy sex education in the Philippines is. No wait, it's non-existent. I blame the Catholic Church. I guess it's the time for non-government groups to start acting(UP hello!!!!) on the problem. Even if its effect on population growth is negligible, its effect on the number of unwanted pregnancies(and abortion) and sexually-transmitted diseases would be more than enough reason to push it through. Still, the Church doesn't want it and believe that the modules tend to be pornographic and immoral. Yes and their anuses are sewn shut.

Maybe I should be more active in HySoc and try to make it as one of the organization's programs.

(edited, damn! I made some very stupid grammatical errors.)

Ang dami nangyari noong mga nakaraang linggo. Nanalo ng Nobel Peace Prize si Al Gore, nawindang ang medical community sa linya ni Teri Hatcher sa Desperate Housewives, tinawag na slut si Cory(good job! Daily Show), may sumabog na bomba sa Glorietta(9 ang patay ayon sa huling balita pero malamang alam mo na iyon), natapos na ang 1st sem(grades na lang), naayos ko na ang bagong itsura ng aking munting blog(na iilan lang ang nagbabasa) at marami pang ibang bagay. So? Wala lang. Gusto ko lang i-recap ang mga pangyayari.

Bakasyon na pero babalik pa rin ako ng UPM bukas. May training kasi kami sa StDC buong linggo at gagawa pa kami ng mga ka-tsenesan na gagamitin sa nalalapit na lantern parade. Sh*t! wala ako maisip na bagong steps, walang inspiration, nasaan na ba ang aking muse?

I tried disciplining my 2 year old godchild. Oh, I didn't spank him. I think hitting a child is the worst thing in the world, unfortunately, his parents seem to think otherwise. Anyway, so I tried the firm voice thing. No good, the only voice he's scared of is my father(come to think of it, all of my smaller cousins and relatives seem to be afraid of him. too bad, I haven't learned his technique... yet.). I tried showing him the the mess and telling him in a firmer voice to pick it up. Still no good. SO I used the stand-in-the-corner method. It seems to work but I think he thought it was a new game we were playing, too bad. Soon enough he started crying and calling for his mother. Yeah whatever, firm and strong discipline. No good. I returned him to the scene of the crime(the mess he made), still crying and not listening to my pleas but finally he did. Good kid but he still didn't stop crying. I just know he is going to hate me for that episode. Heh!

Lagpas 200 na pala ang posts ko... 203rd ko na ito. Ang galing tumagal ako hanggang 200+.

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Langya! Nababaliw na ako. Kasi kani-kanina lang, naisip ko, suot ko ba iyong relos ko at singsing? Tapos, tinignan ko kamay ko. Ala ako nakita at naalala ko na kakagaling ko lang sa banyo, baka naiwan ko. Kaya bumaba ako at pagdating ko sa huling step(ano ba Filipino nito?) ng hagdan, napansin ko na suot ko na pala ang relos at singsing ko. PI! Ano ba ang nangyayari sa akin?

Dagdag pa, kahapon napaghalo ko na ang binabasa kong nobela at ang aking buhay. Noong nagising ako mula sa aking siesta, naisip ko na ang mga "followers" ko inaantay ata ako gawin ang ritual na panggabi. Tapos naisip ko bigla, anong followers? Anong ritual? Ah... iyong sa Children of Dune! Syete!

Yey! New images! Good-bye crappy pseudo-pop art banner! Hello yellow dude in a white uniform!

It's still black. I'd want a green one but the win of La Salle is still too fresh in the minds of many people. Stupid UE...

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They stopped airing the Cinemalaya films on ABC 5. Drats! Last thing I caught was Mudraks. It seems like a modern take on the Mrs. Dalloway story(haven't finished the novel but heard about the plot), a good one and the acting was superb(I'm not an expert but I know really good acting when I see it). I just hope they're busy working out on the next season/crop of films they're gonna be showing next. I never manage to catch the films during the festival period and it really is a hassle to go to Diliman to catch only one film.

I really like this:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.(strike through's mine)

Except for the child of God and glory of God part, it is a really good thing to remember, especially during exam week. I first heard it in the movie, Akeelah and the Bee(nice feel-good flick) and was supposedly from Nelson Mandela who got it from Marianne Williamson.

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To anonymous: Mess = my grades. They're not so bad(at least, I'm not failing), just well below what I am aiming for.

I think I need a new color scheme and header. I really like this layout but the colors seem to depressing for my already depressed state. End of the sem blues...

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Aaaaargh!!! I wish I could make a time go a little faster. Then again, if I am able to make time go faster I wouldn't notice because I'm stuck in it. Or if I do step out of it, I'm gonna miss out on the experience I would have had going from time A to time B(also, means missing the important long exams and lectures). And do I really want it to be 2nd sem already? I haven't even finished cleaning up my mess from the 1st sem.

I'm getting grade-conscious again. It is not a bad thing in itself since students should really be conscious of their grades because it is somewhat a good measure if you are learning something or not. It is the ultra-competitive/every-one-is-my-enemy attitude that is bad. I've somehow learned to control it in high school and I wasn't really aiming for anything high during that time, I was happy to land any where but this time it's different.

I guess I should remember that my only competition is myself. As crappy and cliche as it is, it is true especially with the grading system of my school. I've decided way back that getting a grade of 2.0 and higher(meaning 2.25, 3, etc) is bad since it means I learned and mastered only 80%(or less) of the subject matter or at the very least, it will be perceived that way. The real reasons why I took the final exam in Chem 31 because I feel that I should test my true knowledge in Organic Chemistry and really get the grade I feel I truly deserve.

The point is this week I'm getting annoyed by the grades of other people and have begun monitoring the grades of other people as well. Why the fuck should I care if other people get higher grades than I do?! Based on my philosophy, I shouldn't , right? But I am caring and it really sucks. I guess it is the just end of the semester jitters because everybody is able to and computing their grades already. And if I want this to stop, I just have to will it to stop.

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Happy Banned Books Week Everybody! Too bad I'm stuck with the textbooks for this week(and the next one) so I'd probably not be able to join the uh... festivities.

I just read this really stupid(illogical, fallacious, etc.) e-mail(emphases in the original):

DID YOU KNOW THESE FACTS?

Death is certain but the Bible speaks about untimely death!

Make a personal reflection about this. Very interesting, so read on...

It is written in the Bible (Galatians 6:7):
"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap".

Here are some men and women who mocked God:

1.John Lennon (singer, composer, member of the former Beatles).

Some years back , in one of his interviews with a leading American Magazine, he categorically said:

"Christianity will end, and it will disappear. And I do not have to argue about that. I'm certain, Jesus was OK but his subjects were too simple. Today, we're more famous than him" (1966).
Lennon, after saying that the Beatles were more famous than Jesus Christ, was shot six times.

2. Tancredo Neves (President of Brazil):
During the Presidential campaign, he said if he got 500,000 votes from his party, not even God would remove him from Presidency.
Sure he got the votes, but he got sick a day before being made President, then he died.

2. Cazuza (Bi-sexual Brazilian composer, singer and a poet)
During A show in Canecio (Rio de Janeiro), while smoking his cigarette, he puffed out some smoke into the air and said: "God, that's for you."

Then he died of AIDS in a horrible manner at the prime age of 32 .

4. The man who built the Titanic
After the construction of Titanic, a reporter asked him how safe the Titanic would be.
With an ironic tone he said: "Not even God can sink it..."
The result:Of course, we all know what happened to the Titanic.

5. Marilyn Monroe (Famous & Controversial Hollywood Actress)
She was visited by an equally famous US evangelist Billy Graham during a presentation of a show. And he said to her that the Spirit of God had sent him to preach to her.

After hearing what the Preacher had to say, she said to him:
"...I don't need your Jesus".
A week later, she was found dead in her apartment.

6. Bon Scott (Singer)
The ex-vocalist of the AC/DC. On one of his 1979 songs, he sang:
"Don't stop me, I'm going down all the way, down the highway to hell".
On the 19th of February 1980, Bon Scott was found dead, he had been choked by his own vomit.

7.Campinas, Brazil (A freak vehicular accident in 2005)
A group of drunk young guys, went to pick up a lady friend...

The mother accompanied her daughter to the car and was so worried about the drunkenness of her friends and she said to her daughter while holding her one hand, who was already seated in the car:
"My daughter, go with God and may He protect you..."

She responded:
"Only If He (God) travels in the trunk, 'coz inside here... it's already full."

Hours later, news came by that they had been involved in a fatal accident, everyone had died,
the car could not be recognized what type of car it had been, but surprisingly, the trunk was intact.
The police said there was no way the trunk could have remained intact. To their surprise, inside the trunk was a crate of eggs, none were broken.

8. Christine Hewitt (a Jamaican journalist and entertainer)
She said that the Bible (Word of God) was the worst book ever written.
In June 2006, she was found burnt beyond recognition in her motor vehicle.

Many more important people have forgotten that there is no other name that was given so much authority as the name of Jesus. Many have died, but only Jesus died for our sins, rose again... and remains ALIVE until now.

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Fine! But I thought the Christian God was supposed to be a forgiving being and is reserving judgement for uh... Judgement Day. This is so like the fundamentalists, using faulty logic and contradicting themselves. Any way, if all those who "insult" God die a horrible horrible death, there should be no atheists and agnostics nowadays and I should be dead a month ago.

And is this really a good way to convince people to convert? Making them fearful of punishment and untimely death! That's stupid! Why should I worship a God who revels in making his or her followers stupid and afraid, assuming he or she is real?

New link... good thing I decided to visit the peyups forum.

www.atheista.net

Not that I'm really sure I'm atheist. I am agnostic and kinda leaning to the atheism side but I'm still very open to change.

Still, it's not just about atheism. Sometimes it is about education and life in general, the comments are fun to read except for the occasional hardcore fundie theist or intolerant Christian. It is slightly refreshing because the people here are generally more polite and tamer than the ones in scienceblogs.com.

FUCK!

Robert Jordan is dead!

This is so sad.

It feels as if the wheel of time has encountered a bump on the road, no a pot hole.

And the really big question: What will happen to the WoT series?

Apparently, like what happened to the Dune series; it'll get published, co-authored. Still as one commenter said, "I know I'm being selfish but it won't be the same." Damn right! Damn right...

If there is such a thing as an afterlife, I hope RJ is happy there.

If there isn't, I don't know what to wish for.

Too late to say goodbye, too early to say hi.

Hey! I'm nearing my 200th post or may be I have reached it already, when I moved from bravenet to blogger I left some of my 1st posts behind. Too lazy and most of the stuff I wrote were very crappy. Anyway, this'll be quick, I have to study for a test tomorrow and I need to know by heart a lot of stuff in order to pass.

We went to Mall of Asia yesterday. I spent most of the time in the skating rink. I'm not good but at least I know now how to skate backwards. Not very fast, mind you, more like baby steps really. It's really fun watching the good skaters practice. I really liked watching this lady do practice her spins and stuff. Also, I stayed close to skater and her coach hoping to get some tips for free, too bad that she's many levels above me. Not that I want to become a real ice skater but learning how to dance on ice would be nice. During the course of my ice skating, I realized that skates really need to fit properly. Too bad that I have a very unique pair of feet, not the normal narrow one but with a bony protrusion(I forgot what it's really called) near the big toe. In the end I wore skates about a half larger than my foot length is and it really didn't help me balance better. Then again, during my first try I wore the "right" size and it really hurt. I couldn't stand skating for more than 1 hour.

UAAP cheering competition is today, at around 2 pm. I hope UP would win, it'd be a consolation for not winning any basketball matches this season.

Bakit ba ang bobo ng aking kapatid at ama? Teka, dapat siguro Ingles na lang ginamit ko, hindi ganoon kasakit marining. Hindi, ibang salita na lang. Bakit ba ang bagal at ang tigas ng ulo ng kapatid at ama ko? Ayaw nila gayahin ang ina ko, madali makaintindi. Paulit-ulit nang ipapaliwanag hindi pa rin maintindihan. Tsk tsk... Ayaw nila maniwala na walang patutunguhan ang "research project" ng kapatid ko. Paki alam ko ba kung in-approve ng research teacher nila, obviously walang alam sa analytical chem, physiology at simple biology ang teacher nila kasi kung meron sasabihin ng teacher nila na hindi kakayanin ng mga HS students isagawa ang project na iyon sa ikli nang panahon na ibinigay sa kanila.

Ganito kasi, itong kapatid ko may Research na subject sa school at isang req't ang gumawa ng isang research paper. Syempre, natural science kasi hindi naman sila tinuruan pa tungkol sa paggawa ng Sociological at Behavioral research tsaka mas mabenta iyon sa Intel-ISEF. Anyhoo, ito namang ama ko sinabi na subukan nila pag-aralan itong isang halamang gamot. Ayos lang naman sana pero sinabi niya subukan nila alamin kung gagana ba ito sa bato sa bato(as in kidney stones). Grabe!

Ayos lang naman ang topic pero ang daming problemang kailangang harapin na hindi kakayanin ng iilang HS students lalo na ang sa lebel nila(nabasa ko ang proposal nila, joke talaga!). Hindi man lang ata nila binasa kung paano gumagana ang mga bato(kidneys hindi stones), kung paano nabubuo ang bato sa bato(kidney stones) at kung anong dating research o anecdote na sumusuporta kahit kakaunti sa kanilang binabalak tapos gusto pa nila ito subukan sa tao kaagad! Sabi ko nga sa kanila ipapakulong ko sila(kasama ang guro nila) kapag tinuloy nila ang balak nila.

Tapos matapos ang ilang linggo, sabi nila hindi na sa tao. Ilulublob na lang nila ang isang kidney stone sa crude extract. Joke ba yun! Malamang mawawala iyon. Ilublob ko sa kumukulong tubig, baka malusaw(dissolve) iyon pero hindi ko naman pwede sabihin na dapat uminom ng kumukulong tubig ang isang tao para mawala ang mga kidney stones niya.

Okay fine, tinigil na nila ata iyon, gusto naman nila ipa-analyze na lang ang halaman at ang crude extract mula dito. Okay, sabi ko para saan? Ano gusto nila makita? Sabi nila iyong makikita? PI! Tubig makikita nila, okay ba iyon? Malamang hindi. Siguro kulang pa ang nababasa nila dahil walang lab sa mundo ang papayag sa ipagagawa nila o kung meron man tiyak na milyon ang ibabayad nila tapos hindi pa nila masasabi na research paper nila iyon kasi ala naman silang ginawa bukod sa magpakulo ng tubig at maglublob ng dahon doon.

hay... ayos! Aral na uli!

Unang beses ko mag-turo kahapon. Hindi naman sa totoong klase, limang tao lang naman ang tinuruan ko. Tungkol sa Chem ang aking tinuro, ang pinaka-ayaw ko pa ang topic: Thermodynamics. Napatunayan ko pa lalo na upang malaman mo kung gaano ka kagaling sa isang bagay, dapat subukan mo itong ituro sa ibang tao.

Kumusta naman? Maayos naman. Naliwanagan naman ata sila tungkol sa kanilang inaaral. Tinanong pa ako kung pwede raw akong pumalit sa teacher nila. Aw... shucks... willikers... Na-plattned naman ako. At, malaki-laki rin ang bayad sa akin. Hehe, pwedeng-pwede na gawing raket ito!

Pero next time aayusin ko na talaga, tsaka nakalimutan ko sagutin iyong tanong ng isa kong tinuturuan sa 1st batch(dalawang batch ang tinuruan ko). Natulog naman siya sa akin kaya ayos lang. Hindi ko naman kasalanan na makatulog siya; lima na lang sila tapos natulog pa siya. Tsk tsk... any way. Ayos naman. Kaya lang, babay Sabado na ata ito.

Ano ang nangyari sa aking unang "sweldo"? Pinambili ko nang Havianas para kay Madie! Ang aking birthday at going-away gift para sa kanya. Ayos lang naman na naubos ito kasi madali ko namang mababawi iyong nawala sa susunod ko na sesyon.

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Parang gusto ko panoorin ang Avenue Q kaya lang wala akong libreng oras. Malapit na matapos ang sem at naiipon na ang mga gawain. Naglalabasan na nga muli ang mga exam eh pero ang pinakaproblema ko lang ngayon ay kung paano ko papalitan ang nawala naming susi ng locker sa micro lab. Kailangan i-interrogate pa si Mang Lab tech kung saan talaga napapa-duplicate ang susi na iyon.

Denialists... They come in many forms: HIV-AIDS deniers, Global Warming deniers, Germ Theory deniers, Gravity deniers, Evolution deniers(usu called I[ntelligent]D[esign]iots or Creationists), name any scientific concept and you'll find one who doubts its validity.

It's a wonder why, despite overwhelming contrary evidence, that they manage to hold on to their beliefs. I blame the neglect of history. These denialists usually claim that this certain study done before gave results that are contrary to mainstream belief or that in the past, this theory was believed to be true and the reason we don't consider it now is because of politics. They also believe in things that were already disproved and seem to be really ignorant about the fact that is was disproved already. Atleast, nobody denies that we have hearts...

I think if they just studied their history and read about all those experiments that scientists performed to prove or disprove something, maybe, they'll be a bit more quiet. IF they really read about how scientists(especially during the late 1800's and early 1900's) are trying very hard to not lose face and gain eternal glory just to prove their hypothesis and how heated these series of debates and experiments became, they'd probably understand why the scientific method works and why we have these facts and scientific truths. Maybe they'll even pick up why they are wrong in believing these forgotten theories and realize that politics played a very small role in science.

Then again, a huge part is their distrust of people or at least those in/with power or the knowledge. Not that it's such a bad thing, many important scientific discoveries were made due to this distrust(Galileo for instance) but it distrust can only be up to a certain degree. Distrust of something many have proved to be true and trustworthy without explaining why you distrust it(like those who distrust the scientific method) is crazy. Many of these denialists like to think themselves as those who branch off from the thought of the mainstream, as a certain kind of noble rebel and probably aspire to be the next Galileo, unfortunately, most of them are just full of hot air and are miseducated about the things they "rebel" against.

Nawawala na ang aking barbero. Naaasar ako sa gupit ko. Ginawa ba naman akong HS student uli? Tsk tsk... Sumpa ata talagang maging maliit at payat sa mundong ito. At least napigilian ko siya gawing "white-side wall" ang gupit. Kaya lang dahil atat siyang matapos nasagad na niya ang razor sa aking anit kaya ayun, mukha na naman akong kabute: Ahit ang gilid tapos may masa ng buhok sa tuktok. Hmp!

Kunwari na lang new punk ang trip ko. Bala na, buhok lang iyan, tutubo rin. Nakakaasar nga lang dahil ang pangit ng gupit pero babalik pa rin ako doon. As if naman may choice ako; dun lang ang mura sa amin na malapit. Karamihan kasi parlour shop, wala naman akong galit sa mga parlour shop(o sa mga bading) pero ang mahal kasi ng singil nila at hindi ko gusto ang gupit nila. Kasi naman lumayas-layas pa ang dati kong barbero na may fungal infection sa braso(so talagang, napansin ko iyon!)! Hay... lalo akong nagmukhang mataray at parang humababa lalo ang mukha ko.

Pero medyo nag-o-oa lang ako, maayos naman itsura niya kapag mamasa-masa ang buhok ko problema lang hindi ako nag-ge-gel(isang luhong sumisira ng maraming gubat) at lalong hindi ako magpupunta sa CR para basain ang buhok ko oras na matuyo ito(sayang ang tubig!)! Tsaka at least, kakaiba ang gupit ko(mabuti ba iyon?).

You Are 96% Feminist

You are a total feminist. This doesn't mean you're a man hater (in fact, you may be a man). You just think that men and women should be treated equally. It's a simple idea but is somehow too complicated for the world to put into action.

Are You a Feminist?

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What do you do when you feel like you're outgrowing your old friends? Do you become some kind of preacher and tell them that the things they believe in are wrong? How can you teach something to them without losing their friendship? I guess, if the thing to be learned is easy, it's okay but what if it is something more serious? And what do you do if they think you're just joking? Example, I always say to my friends that in the LRT(anywhere and in any situation actually) there are only two kinds of passengers(people) able and unable(elderly, disabled, pregnant and, obviously sick) but they seem to think I'm just joking and seem to think I'm going bonkers again.

Related to this, I hate that the LRT management allows female passengers have first dibs on seats(of an empty train). It'd be alright if they have stored value tickets but no, even those who buy single ride tickets can avail of this advantage. As if they pay double the amount we pay! And the argument that female have a disadvantage because they're physically weaker than males is just wrong. I'm physically weaker than most males(due to my small build) but I manage to get a seat most of the time, it's not brawn, it's brains!

Then again most male passengers have the wrong attitude also. They give their seats to female passengers for no apparent reason except maybe chivalry. Pfft! I actually took advantage of this. Last night, I was riding the LRT with a female friend. She gets off at Doroteo Jose Station. One station before that(Carriedo), a seat became available. Usually, I'd take the seat(since my friend is getting off anyway) but a man was standing in front of it and seems to be offering it to my friend. Cunningly, I let her have the seat to avoid any conflict(hey, I'll even appear like a gentleman, hah!). At the next station, she stands up and I take the seat before the man recovers his senses(and inside, I was laughing). A previous incident with the same female friend is even funnier. A man offered his seat(he stood up) to my friend. Instead of sitting down, she gave it to me and I took it(she's getting off at the next station). We ended up clutching our stomachs and biting our lips. We couldn't bear to look at the man's face, I just sensed that he moved to another part of the train, far away from the two of us. Hah!

Stupid! I lost the key to our locker in microbiology and biochemistry. Good thing that the lab tech has a spare key but I need to have it duplicated. It seems it's not a big problem but the key is a weird one and I do not think they make keys that are like it any more. Still, I could comfort myself with the fact that they'd probably stop using those locks if they do not know any one who could make a duplicate of it. Actually, there is a place, somewhere in Buendia. I do not know where exactly but what I do know is that Buendia is a big place. Hufff... I just hope I didn't really lose the key and it's just hiding somewhere in one of my classmates bags.

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I've just learned that there was a contest about the Filipino language. It said that the entries were supposed to be blog entries on the theme of Filipino Month(Buwan ng Wika). Well, the contest has ended and the winners will be announced next week. Too bad since I have so many things to say(rant...) about the Filipino language and the language situation, I think I have made a post about it in the past, I just don't know when and where it is(I'm too lazy to look for it).

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Somenone's been pestering me about my past crushes. Oh please! Like I'll ever tell! It's my BIG secret who those(plural?!) are. Besides, I've decided to not fall in love with anybody(as if I could stop that from happening... well, I could... I'd just have to surround myself with academics and friends... then again, I get a bit lonely sometimes...) and focus on my studies, I have yet to make a scientific breakthrough or uplift the lives of people in a certain community. Love can wait.

Ang ganda ng kantang Wag Ka Na Umiyak ng Sugarfree(well, the best pa rin ang Mariposa) at maganda rin ang music video pero may panira sa dulo. Smoking! Ano ba? Smoking? Paninigarilyo ba ang solusyon sa mga problema sa buhay? Tsk. Sinisisi ko ang direktor, marami namang pwedeng ibigay sa isang nalulungkot(kung ako tatanungin mas ok sa akin ang chocolate) pero bakit kailangan sigarilyo? Bakit kaya pumayag ang banda na ilagay ito? Siguro naninigarilyo sila pero kailangan ba nila ipalandakan at ipilit sa kanilang mga tagakinig(at taganood) na ayos lang ang manigarilyo lalo na kung ikaw ay nalulungkot? Siguro OA lang ako at ang pagbigay ng sigarilyo at isang paraan ng direktor ipakita ang pagusbong ng pagkakaibigan ng dalawang tauhan sa video PERO sana naman pinagiisipan ng mga bandang ito ang mga bagay na idinidikit sa kanilang pangalan. Para tuloy silang Foo Fighters, mga itinatanggi na HIV virus ang sanhi ng sakit na AIDS at sinuportahan pa ang isang may pagkabaliw(hindi naman siya baliw, matino naman ang kanyang isip) na babae at ang kanyang organisasyon. Ang yayabang pa nilang magkalat ng mga impormasyong hindi naman nila naiintindihan ni kaunti.

Balik sa paninigarilyo, kapansin-pansin na maraming palabas ang nagpapakita ng paninigarilyo pero hindi naman ang galit sa lahat ng mga iyon (minsan kailangan talaga na naninigarilyo ang isang tauhan) medyo galit lang pero may iilan na tama ang paggamit ng paninigarilyo at sa sugarfree video, pakiramdam ko mali talaga.

Naalala ko tuloy nung nakita kong ginagawang smoking area ang aming nirerenovate na student's lounge ng mga trabahador! Aba! Ano pakiramdam nila nasa Pilipinas sila? Bawal kaya manigarilyo sa campus; napaka-big deal kaya niyon kasi Health Science center ang aming unibersidad tapos binabastos-bastos mo lang! Kaya lang, ako naman tanga, hindi nagsumbong. Tsk tsk. Sa susunod talaga... At naalala ko tuloy iyong mga guwardiya ng MRT na naninigarilyo sa MRT station tapos nasa likod nila isang napakalaking sign na nagsasabing BAWAL MANIGARILYO SA LOOB NG TREN O ISTASYON. Sayang hindi ko nakuhanan ng litrato.

It's getting crazy in here. Our class schedules all jumbled up. I feel that this semester will be made one week longer. It's not that bad but it's weird when there comes a time(usually early to mid-October) the only students that seem to be stressing out in Manila are the students from UPM. On the plus side, our test for Anatomy and Physiology was postponed. Unfortunately, they're all dumped into next week. So for next week, Tuesday will be for Micro and Biostat, Wednesday for Anatomy and Thursday for Physiology, Friday will be free but we have a scheduled dance for that date. Ugh... And I have test tomorrow.

Tests... I seem to be talking about tests all of the time right now. Sorry. I have very few adventures(as if I have adventures...) these days since ALL of my time is spent on studying or taking a break(usually reading something else or sleeping or eating) from studying. No time to go outside then again I rarely do go out. I prefer the comfort of our couch from the thrills of the outdoors(urban or real). Heh!

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Sino kaya nakaisip na i-suspend ang classes ngayong araw na ito. Ang liwa-liwanag nga sa amin at wala pang baha. Tutal, hindi ko naman dapat gamitin na basehan ang aming lugar para gumawa ng mga konklusyon tungol sa panahon at kalagayan sa ibang bahagi ng NCR kasi kadalasan ay naliligtas ang lugar namin sa mga bagyo at baha. Matagal-tagal na nga nang huling nagka-blackout sa amin dahil sa bagyo o malakas na ulan. At hindi ko pa nararanasan na lumangoy sa baha o maglipat ng gamit dahil pinasok na kami ng baha(Kaya siguro ayaw ko lumipat ng bahay o kaya tumira sa Maynila, ew... baha... yuck!).

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Epal talaga ang mga politiko sinisisi ba naman ang PAG-ASA(meteorology center, hindi ang abstract na object o iyong ibong namatay na). Kailangan ba nila talaga ng gabay mula sa PAG-ASA para sa lahat ng gagawin nila? Helo! At hindi nila kailangan maging tama palagi! Hindi sila Diyos! Hindi sila Kalikasan! Hindi nila kaya utusan ang mga bagyo na lumitaw bigla! Kaya lang nila ay gumawa ng "educated guess." At least, sinabi nila(mga politiko) na baka kailangan nang palitan ng PAG-ASA ang kanilang mga gamit. Ewan ko kung kailangan nila, baka hindi, wala kasi akong balita tungkol sa kalagayan ng mga gamit sa PAG-ASA(pero pakiramdam ko medyo naghihirap na rin sila). Parang ewan nga lang sila kasi ininsulto muna nila ang mga taong nagtratrabaho sa PAG-ASA tapos tsaka sinabi na baka ang equipment ang may kasalanan.

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Ang racist talaga ng mga Pilipino. Tignan niyo na lang ang mga jokes ng Pinoy(iyong mga tipong may Pilipino, may Hapon at may Amerikano...). Iyon nga lang jokes lang iyon. Kaya lang parang pag ininsulto ang lahing Pilipino ang bilis natin magalit(joke man o seryoso tulad ng ginawa noon ni Jay Leno). Ano ba talaga? Huwag nga gawin sa iba ang ayaw mong gawin nila sa iyo eh.

That's it! I've wasted my youth(well, a good part of it).

Meet Eva Vartes. It's a bit long a little less than 20 minutes but I promise you will learn something. She could have done a better job(she keeps walking and saying um... and pausing and um...) but it's good enough to get the message across. Take note, she's only 17 in that video. I'm 18! What have I done with my life? Nothing! Nothing!

I blame the lack of opportunities here in the Philippines and my laziness and lack of initiative. But really, I shouldn't be too hard on myself since science is not about how young you start(or how long you've been working), it's not even about the greatest discoveries, it's on how good(reliable, repeatable, unbiased) your work is, even though you end up having proven the null hypothesis(no correlation). Still, I wish I had done/experienced some real research.

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Napanood ko kahapon iyong pelikulang Batad. Hindi ko natapos kasi may kailangan pa akong gawin pero gusto ko ang napanood ko. Sayang talaga at hindi ko natapos. Nakakaaliw pa naman. Uulitin naman siguro iyon sa Channel 5 o kapag swinerte, magkaka-commercial release pa(pirata kaya meron?).

Maganda ang isyu na tinalakay ng pelikula. Isa na ang Tradisyon o Pag-asenso? Ano nga ba ang dapat mangyari sa mga IP(tulad ng mga nakatira sa Batad, hindi ko alam kung Ifugao, Ibaloy o Kankanay sila eh) group sa Pilipinas? Hindi ba't dapat makapag-aral sila? Pero paano na ang kanilang mga tradisyon at kultura? Hindi ba't maaaring mawala ito lalo na't kung lahat sila ay titigil na sa kanilang tradisyonal na pamumuhay? Sa kaso nila, paano na ang mga rice terraces? Magagaya na ba sila sa Native Americans, magiging karaniwang tao o mananatiling nakaugat sa kanilang tradisyon? Pero, sino nga naman ang nagsabi na dapat mawala ang tradisyon kapag umasenso. Magulong usapan... hindi kasya sa post na ito. Kailangang mag-isip.

Pero tungkol talaga ito sa sapatos. Hindi! Seryoso! Kailangan ko makita ang huling bahagi, makahanap nga ng pirata... joke! ng legal na kopya.

Another day wasted...
Instead of studying(which I seem to be doing all the time nowadays), I spent the whole day playing Lineage II. I blame the heavy rains caused by Chedeng and Dodong. If it weren't for the suspension of classes last Wednesday and Thursday, I wouldn't have installed L2 in my PC. And if I didn't have L2 in my PC, I wouldn't be able to play whenever I feel to do so. I really should stop playing and should refrain from it for this week but I'll probably give in and play... I hope open beta ends soon...

More complaints: If classes weren't suspended, I wouldn't have such a heavy workload for this week. If classes weren't suspended, the biochem exam would have been over. Then again, I wasn't totally prepared for the test so I guess I should be happy about it. And all this suspended classes really wrecked our class schedules(and our org schedules).

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I saw this Global Warming ad in MTV. Stupid really! Full of false information(GW is caused by water vapor...yadda...yadda...we can't do anything about it... it is a part of a natural cycle...blah blah). They even used children to spread the word. If I were someone who is confused about Global Warming(which I slightly am but enough to know that it is real and is most probably caused by us humans), he or she would become even more confused. Tsk. Even their solutions are stupid. Recycling? Sure it'll help but saving electricity would be better. Playing outdoor games rather than computer games would be better. Still, they had some things right like those about the Hummer and other big vehicles. Then again, maybe they like to show(via this ad) how confused the topic of GW is and how it affects even the children. I dunno... if it is about how we should care more about the Earth and how GW is a threat, the message didn't reach me.

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Fun link... a bit long but it's really good:
http://celobox.googlepages.com/god.html

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Ang saya noong nakaraang Wednesday. Malakas ang ulan pero may test kami kaya kailangan pumasok. Go! Sumabay pa ako sa kapatid ko para maaga ako sa PH at makapag-aral pa. Sa LRT, imbes na matulog ay nagbasa ako hanggang sa may Tayuman nang biglang hinabol na ako ng antok. Babay aral! Heheh.

Pedro Gil. Baba ng LRT. Baba sa hagdanan. Inaantok pa ako pero pagdating ko sa baba...wah! Nasa Manila pa ba ako? Ang baha! Ang baha! Ang ihi! Ang baha! Napatigil pa ako. Paano naman ako papasok nito eh hindi pa ako nakakatungtong ng UP eh hindi na ako mukhang estudyante. Sa huli sabi ko na lang, "Ah basta! May tsinelas akong baon." Naghubad ako ng sapatos at sinuot si Hawianas(remember?). Tinupi ko ang aking pantalon(wala rin kwenta kasi nahuhulog bawat hakbang ko), nilabas ang payong at binuksan. Habang hawak ko sa isang kamay ko ang sapatos, sa isa ng payong at nakaipit sa aking braso ang aking libro(mga kalahating-dangkal lang naman ang kapal niyon), ako'y naglakad na papuntang CPH. Sabihin na lang natin na puti pa naman ang uniform ko pagdating ko sa CPH. Nakakaaliw sa bandang Taft, para kang nasa beach, may alon pa bawat daan ng sasakyan.

Sa CPH, walang tao maliban sa staff(guard, janitor). Diretso agad ako sa CR at hinugasan ang aking paa. Lahat ata ng ihi ng mga tao, hayop at kung anu pang nabubuhay sa mga kanal ng Taft at P.Gil ay nadikit sa paa ko. Kadiri! Wala akong sabon kaya dinaan ko na lang sa alkohol(buti na lang ang boy scout ko nung araw na iyon). Paglabas ko, naupo ako at nagsimula na mag-aral. Kaya lang medyo na-di-disturb ako sa aking pantalon. Naalala ko na may dala akong training attire(tennis/short shorts). Bahay na ito! T-shirt, shorts at tsinelas. Kung may dumating na mga prof(at may dumating nga), napaisip sila siguro kung bakit may batang nawawala sa CPH. Heheheh.

Syempre, nasayang lang ang pagpasok ko ng maaga(at paglusong sa baha) dahil na-suspend nga ang klase at ang aming exam.

I think I will take a break from studying after I receive my BSPH. I think it will help me get excited for medical school because right now, I'm getting annoyed at how my classes are going. It's not the subject or the instructor's problem, it's just me. I'm getting tired and I feel my mind is wandering too much that it hinders my learning.

SO what will I do during that one year break? I don't know. I'm looking for summer learning programs(abroad), internship/externship programs or something where I'll be studying but not in the usual lecture-test method. Unfortunately, my search has produced no suitable programs. I guess I could apply as a research assistant in NIH or beg to be a part-time TA or RA in CPH.

I could get a job. I don't know if QCSHS still accept teachers that do not have a BSSEd. If they do, that'll be something I'd like to do.

I'll definitely take the board exam. I will definitely take a 1 week vacation somewhere away from home(Europe?).

I guess if I want to do something productive for that year, I could ask my professors(or relatives) if they know some programs that I could apply to.

BUT I really shouldn't worry about it too much since I still have about 2 academic years before I graduate AND I could still change my mind and go to med school.

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It seems I was wrong when I said RBC's don't produce ATP. They do. Apparently, the reason of the RBC's real death(not the one resulting from nucleus expulsion) is the loss of their ability to produce ATP. They do not have mitochondria but their cell membrane and cellular enzymes still produce ATP. Read physio books for more details.

BUT, NOT-doctor Tam Mateo is still a quack. And I still wouldn't trust him for medical and scientific advice since he is still wrong when he said RBC's are the one that produce the ATP for the body. RBC's couldn't possibly supply all the ATP needed for biochemical processes. The ATP they produce is for maintaining their structural integrity and plays a part in their transport functions.

Another entity becomes part of my blacklisted pseudoscience health practitioners, this time it's not just one person but an organization: PITAHC or Philippines Institute for Traditional and Alternative Health Care. They seem harmless and many of their advice ARE harmless and some are quite helpful(three of the 10 featured herbs were proven to be effective in curing certain diseases) BUT they are a anti-vaccination group and currently recruiting an army of ND's(not doctors) and OD's(oo! hindi doktor) to initiate the "Natural Method of Treating Disease" takeover program.

Also, they spout the nonsense about natural products are better at curing disease just because they're NATURAL. ugh! An atom is an atom and an drug extracted from a plant is as effective as the same drug synthesized from the lab. Unless of course, the extraction procedure was not completely effective in purification which caused a helpful substance to be extracted also(note: usually the contaminants[those that should have been removed in the purification process] are toxic and not very helpful).

Grabe ang ulan kanina nung pauwi na ako. Bigla ba namang bumuhos ng kanda lakas-lakas! Sa ikli ng lalakarin ko papuntang LRT station, nagawa pa niyang gumawa ng baha sa Pedro Gil. Hindi pa naman super baha pero sapat na para mabasa ang loob ng aking sapatos. Kadiri! Napabili tuloy ako bigla ng Hawianas(pekeng Haviannas; mas matigas ng onte kaysa sa isa pang peke, Havannas).

Sana lang hindi ako nangangamoy sa LRT kanina. Hindi ko naman naamoy kung mabaho ako pero siguro iyong may mga sensitibong ilong naamoy ang aking kinakalat. Heh! Ikaw kaya subukan mong magalakad buong araw, magsayaw tapos ilublob ang paa sa baha ng Pedro Gil.

Ayun. Ayos lang naman na nabasa ang paa ko kanina. Hindi ko lang matanggap na nabasa lahat ng laman ng bag ko. Eh ang tanging laman ng bag ko ay mga photox; puro mga papel! Kaya ngayon nakalatag sila sa may sala namin para matuyo sila. Dahil nabasa sila, hindi ako tuloy makapag-aral ng biochem. Pati nga iyong isang libro ko hindi pinatawad ng ulan eh. Biruin mo mas matanda pa sa akin at glossy paper, nabasa ba naman!

Pero sige, ayos lang naman ang ulan. Dapat na matigil na ang dry spell. Wish ko nga lang sa may bandang North ang ulan hindi sa may South.

Okay. So, I'm now an unofficial member(I haven't paid the membership fee of $79) of the International High IQ Society. Not that I'm very proud of it. How can you be very proud of something you were probably born with?(Man, that is so Aiel.) Besides, IQ can be so overrated and I think luck played a huge part in some of the tests. I doubt that the reason I qualified is solely because of me having an above average IQ; I think it was because I know many problem solving strategies.

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Our 1st exam for Biochem Lab was postponed. It was because pGMA made yesterday a special holiday. It was good because I haven't studied enough yet. Unfortunately, the test was moved on Aug 15, the day of our 2nd Anatomy exam. Anatomy is an okay subject but the 1st test was hard and studying for it is very tiresome as the reference book seem to cast a sleeping spell on those who want to read it. I guess the best thing to do is to start studying. Actually, I am going to study after blogging but not anatomy or biochem but microbiology; I find that subject more interesting than the other two.

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Two more holidays this month. Yey! Both on Mondays. I wonder what would happen to our Anatomy and Physiology schedules...

Tao: Anong year mo na?
Ako: Third year na po.
Tao: Ano course mo?
Ako: Public Health po
Tao: Ah... Public Ad... so pagkatapos mo iyan mag-lo-law ka?
Ako: Hindi po public ad, Public HEALTH.
Tao: Ah... so pagkatapos mo iyan mag-me-med ka?
Ako: Um... opo.

Sige na... hindi mo na alam kung ano ang Public Health. Kasi naman eh napaka-low profile ng degree program ko. Ayan tuloy hindi alam ng tao kung ano ba ang inaaral namin. Siguro mabuti na rin iyon para masiguro namin na ang tanging nasa field ay ang mga desidong isulong ang mga layunin ng Public Health pero parang ang kaawa-awa naman namin 50 lang kaming BS Public Health at mga 200 lang ang grad students, eh ilan na ba ang tao sa Pilipinas? Paano naman namin magagawa ng maayos ang(magiging) trabaho namin eh ang walang pake alam ata kahit ang mga health professionals(tulad ng mga nars at doktor) sa Public Health? O baka nag-i-ilusyon lang ako.

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Dapat tigilan na ng DOH ang pagsuporta sa STAR margarine. Alam naman nila siguro ang mga health risks ng pagkaing may trans-fat eh(malamang, trabaho kaya nila iyon). Isa nga ako sa mga nabiktima ng margarine craze noong bata ako. Wala naman siguro masyadong malaking effect iyon sa akin kasi hindi naman ako na-adik sa margarine pero paano na ang ibang tao? Mahirap na nga sa Pilipinas, ang dami na ngang nagkalat na infectious diseases, kung anu-anong parasites at mga pulmo-respiratory diseases dadagdagan mo pa ng Cardiovascular diseases? Paano na ang mga Pilipino?

Siguro, ang bilang pampalubag loob, iisipin ko na lang na ka-kaunti lang ang may kayang bumili ng margarine dahil kailangan pa nila bumili ng ibang pagkain. Pero parang mapupunta naman ako sa ibang problema, noodles. Noodles! Noodles! Adik ako sa noodles pero nabasa ko na ayos lang kumain niyon basta may pagitan na tatlong araw para naman maalis ng katawan mo ang ilang undigestable na components nito. Karamihan ata ng mahihirap ito ang pagkain kapag kinakapos at malamang hindi na nila iintayin pa ang tatlong araw kasi gutom na nga sila. Hinde pwede ito!

Syempre lahat ng problemang nabanggit ko problemang nauugat sa Public Health. Mukhang tatanda at mamatay nga ako ng maaga. Joke lang! Magiging mahaba ang buhay ko.

I just finished reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Yey! I got my copy 10 minutes earlier than expected. The book store was supposed to open by 7 am but they didn't, they were open by 6:45am! Yey! I didn't start reading there anyway. I started reading at around 7:30am and finished at around 3:15pm. It was good. The Mugglenet people did a very good job predicting some of the things that would appear in this book like the psyche of Snape and the plans of Dumbledore but the novel contains much more that I didn't encounter in the essays that I have read and I do not think any thought of it. Any way, I was not entirely happy with the romantic pairings at the end and JKR forgot to mention Luna in the last chapter. Maybe we could ask her to post the story of Luna in her website or blog.

As for my future reading material, I just hope the last Wheel of Time book gets finished before Robert Jordan dies. In the mean time, I'll be sinking my nose into my textbooks. This sem has really been harsh on my reading time.

I want it to be Saturday tomorrow. The primary reason would be it is because Saturday is the release date of HP 7: HP and the Deathly Hallows(yeah!). Other reasons are three things that are going to happen on Thursday and Friday. Tomorrow: 1st test in Microbiology Friday: Handog sa Freshie + another dance immediately after. Both very important performances and I'm still not confident we'd do it as properly as we could and should. Still, I must fight and move forward! I can do this! We can do this! Aja!

Please beware of Tam Mateo, ND(not doctor) and his proposed "cures" for diseases.

I know if his curse oops... cures don't work, then why does the ABS-CBN let him talk to the public in many of their shows? Well, I don't know exactly but you might notice that many of their sponsors are Alternative Medicine/Food Supplement companies. Anyway, please beware of him. Do not trust his medical and scientific claims. They are mostly lies or half-truths.

RBC's don't produce the ATP supply of the whole body(each cell usually produces ATP for its own use). Enzymes from veggies are mostly enzymes for veggies not for humans. And they most probably end up as amino acids(the building blocks of enzymes) and not absorbed as the the intact veggie enzymes. A vegan diet would probably help your bowel movement(all those fiber) but it is not a cure for any disease much less breast cancer. Cancer is not a disease that can be cured by strengthening the immune system(except maybe Cervical, I'm not sure). Tumors are cells of your own body therefore the WBC's wouldn't destroy them because they recognize them a as part of your own body. Fine, follow the fucking diet regimen but do not stop taking the chemo.

I first encountered him on the radio. He was in a show with a licensed MD. The MD was stupid, really! I think her license should be revoked and she be forced to take basic biology again. And he, he was just unbearable. True, most of his cures will probably be harmless but he seems to like saying to people to stop using conventional(proven) cures like chemo for cancer and instead use his naturopathic herbs. Then, I saw him again this morning on Salamat Dok. I feared for the worst since he was talking about Breast Cancer cures. HE had the audacity to say that his all-veggie diet can cure breast cancer. Shame on ABS for not researching properly! A simple google search on naturopathy will lead them to quackwatch and other sites that will provide them sufficient knowledge on the quackery that is naturopathy.

Okay. I sucked at my physio exam. Oh well. I guess I shouldn't have spent the exam time doodling. Yes! I actually spent exam time doodling. Heck! I couldn't answer some of those questions even if I think until my brain explodes. In any case, I would try to perform better at the others tests at least I now know that many of the questions they ask are trivial in nature. I know I should have mastered anatomy before studying physiology(and it cost me at least two questions) but why should I remember the surface area of the lungs? Why? Why? Shouldn't they have asked more questions about the control and process of respiration, digestion and circulation? Why! Still, I have 2 exams(I think) to look forward to and I could always take the final exam to try to increase my grade. I know grades aren't that important but I want to go to med school and grad school and good grades is a must to get into those schools.

I guess, I should just comfort myself with the fact that physio is only 2.5 units and I could still focus more on anatomy, biostatistics and microbiology. Well, we had the 1st exam in biostat and next week, we'll have the other two. I should try to do really well on those two subjects. Besides, I want to do well since it would test my mastery over those subjects. And mastery is important.

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HP movie is out and I haven't seen it. Maybe next week after I'm not so busy. I know I will probably hate it but I saw one clip and it seems to be more promising than the other previous movies. I hope I wouldn't be too disappointed. HP4 movie still seems to be the worst since the only scene I remember clearly is the entrance of the Beauxbatons students with the blue uniforms and "ah..." dance. I still hate the director for putting a sexist twist on that with Beauxbatons being an all-(pretty)girls school and Durmstrang an all-(jock)boys school. They weren't!

Additionally, all the actors(male and female, in case you'd be confused) were too pretty. Hermione was to be geeky looking and look stunning(not that Emma is stunning) only on the Yule Ball. Exceptions include Rubeus who I find to be satisfactory, Malfoy who is a bit too ugly and Sirius who was disappointing at best. JK wrote that Sirius is a handsome man, even after escaping jail. When I saw him, I went! WTF? Who put a Pirate(of the Carribean) in here and its not even Johnny Depp. And after seeing the posters of HP5, I judged that cleaned up Sirius is still too ugly.

Oh yeah and the ending of HP3 was crap. Much of the story revolved around the Firebolt broom stick and they fucked it up big time with that one.

Sleep is such a nice thing. I know scientists are learning that it is possible that we really do not need the recommended 8 hours every night but I still think(and findings agree) that people perform better when they get their complete sleep(which depending on the individual can be range from 6 to 10 hours a night). Naps are very very helpful for most. For me, I find the best time to take naps is in the afternoon. Taking naps in between writing papers at night do not help much.

I guess I need to show some evidence. Take Marion Bartoli. Who? Well, she's only one of the finalists in the Women's Wimbledon 07. She was a set down(in a best out of 3 match) during the her quarterfinal match against Krajicek. She was playing poorly then the rain came. After the delay, she returned to court and dispatched of Krajicek with minimal fuss. In her after-game interview, she explained
“I was short of sleep so I slept for an hour during the rain delay. After that I was feeling much better so it was good for me to have rain today."
Wow! And that's just with a nap. With the complete sleep she had last night(and some very good tennis), she managed to defeat Henin(world no.1) and reach the finals. Okay! So it's an anecdote, so suit me! = )

But really,if all of us just get enough sleep every night(or day) and sacrificing our night habits(surfing the web, clubbing, drinking) the world'll be a slightly better place to live in.

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Speaking of sleep. It seems my attempts at trying to control my Dreams is working. Just kidding! In our microbio class, I was trying very hard not to fall asleep but the prof is just so boring so I failed. Every time I close my eyes I zoom right into dream mode but I quickly realize that it's a dream and I wake up. This repeats about 50 times. Every time I close my eyes, I fall asleep and dream for a second then I wake up. I do not know if those are really dreams but it somehow always ends with some loud noise like someone shouting or an object falling. I guess, I should be happy those ended like that because if it didn't I had probably fallen asleep in class.

And just this afternoon, this happened. I took a nap(after reading my microbio book). I set my alarm to 1:40. I fall asleep. Soon enough I started dreaming. It was a nice dream. It was like a movie, with a great plot and many many characters. It was really nice and enjoyable. It was nearing the climax(I don't now why I knew it was nearing the climax) when the alarm went off. Blast it! So I reached for the alarm and turned it off. I thought may be I should wake and stand up now since my dream is probably gone but I didn't. I went back to sleep and somehow I managed to continue my dream and find out the ending. Unfortunately, I forgot what it was about. I think there was a dragon in it and we were in this big house but I can't remember clearly. Any way. Maybe I should really try working on remembering those dreams so I can put the good ones in here.

I'm so drained... I feel a cold coming up. = (

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Rain hasn't come yet. I want it to rain. I know it'll be really hard to keep my uniform clean when it rains and the streets become flooded but I still want for the rain to come. Besides, those poor farmers who cannot afford irrigation need the rain and the Angat Dam seems to be near-critical water level again. Coincidentally, the last place where they want rain is very wet right now. Where? Wimbledon of course! The tournament's schedule(pronounced: schedyul not skedyul) is whacked and the top players are relegated to smaller courts rather than on Court 1 or on Center Court.

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Those blasted trainees! They didn't come to practice even though I told them to come! Blast it! They better be prepared for Tuesday. *evil grin*

Fuck! It's only 9 and I really want to sleep already. Maybe I should, I have a nasty test coming up next week.

Guess what! I probably had a twin. He(or maybe, she) vanished in the womb(either I ate him/her or my mother did... okay! so ate may not be the most appropriate word).

Just learned about Vanishing Twin syndrome from the In the Womb documentary by NGC. They said left-handed people are probably the surviving members of once twins. It's all related about how twins are sometimes mirror images of each other(ex. one is left-handed while the other is right-handed). I wouldn't be able to confirm it right now(maybe in the future) because my mother did not undergo the normal laboratory and scanning tests while I was inside her. Something about how she and her doctor believes the scanning device could harm me(the embryo/fetus/baby).
It is seems possible that the surviving "twin" could be the right-handed one but according to their logic, left-handed are more probable to have vanished twins because the human species seem to be more(selectively?) right-handed(more right-handed people than left-handed ones and more left-handed people than twins). However, modern research does not support the (very old, 1928)hypothesis. I guess NGC should have read more or if they did should have mentioned that the hypothesis is still a hypothesis and one that is probably wrong.

Still, I wonder what would it be like if I had a twin. We'd probably end up killing each other... well... maybe not.