Englcom

     With the help of Englcom, my writing and reading improved. I taught that I already knew everything about English, since I've been studying it for more than 12 years now but I was wrong. I actually lacked in some areas. I learned that word choice is very important when it comes to writing. There are words that could make your essay mediocre and there are some that could make it a college level essay. Making an outline is also essential because it will help make your essay coherent. I was also able to improve on doing the APA style. The areas that improved would be my critical thinking skills and my vocabulary. The expectations of being able to write and read more was met. My expectation of being able to adapt to new people was also met. The course have helped me achieve my goals because it challenged me to always do better. My professors expected a lot from me so I did my best even if I was having a hard time. I could say that it all the stress was worth it because I was able to improve on myself and I proved to myself that I could work well under pressure.

Depressing News :(

     As I was browsing the internet for articles I could read, there was one article that immediately caught my attention. The title was "Toddler's Tragic Washing Machine Accident Sends Warning to Parents." Who would have thought that something seemingly harmless could cause the life of a toddler? It's so sad when I read the part where the mom found her child trapped in the washing machine but it was too late to save him. To think of what the parents are going through is unimaginable. For your child to die and to feel that it was your fault, it must be really killing them. It is a good thing though that they decided to share their story, even if it is breaking their hearts, so that the other parents might be aware of the dangers washing machines could bring.

Social Network

     To be considered part of the in-crowd, a teen today must at least own two social networking account. The top two accounts would be Facebook and Twitter. You are not part of the loop if you don't at least own one of the said accounts. Social networking has its pros and cons. Its pros would be, you'll always be connected with the people who live far away from you, you'll always be updated with what's going on, and you have something to past time. For its cons, it would be; it could be used as a tool for bullying, it distracts you from the work that must be finished, and it could be dangerous especially if you are not cautious with the people you interact with online. I have always been reminded by my parents to always be wary with the things I post online because there might be dangerous people who could have access to it. That is why, all my accounts on the internet are in private and I only add people whom I know. There is nothing wrong with be cautious with the things you do online because these would help keep you safe.

OPM

     Watching the MYX Daily Top Ten, I noticed that there were five entries coming from international artists as well as five entries coming from Filipino artists. During the earlier months of 2012 the daily top ten was mostly composed of international artists at least now the entries from Filipino artists increased. When you think about it it is kind of disappointing how we don't support our local music as much as we support the foreign ones. I guess we never really lost our colonial mentality. Colonial mentality is when we choose foreign products over our own. This is one trait us Filipinos must slowly lose. If we want our nation to improve we must start helping it. I notice that we just complain how it's our President's fault why we are not growing us a nation. Instead of complaining, we must start being proactive. Yes the President does have a big responsibility but we must help him with that so that we could rise faster. That is one quality we Filipinos lack, unity.  

Lady and The Tramp

     I was watching The Lady and the Tramp awhile ago, and I have to say classic Disney movies are forever the best. I don't remember if I was able to watch this back then, but I know I was able to read the story. It was actually my favorite storybook growing up. Whenever I was bored, I would reread it even if I already knew the story. I also own a DVD copy of the sequel, where the protagonist is their son. I never got tired of Lady and the Tramp, probably because I loved their love story. Two completely different dogs, one coming from a well-off family while the other one coming from the streets, meeting each other than falling in love. It is these kinds of stories that teaches kids that what matters is what is in the inside and not their financial status. It also teaches kids to not be prejudiced because if they are, they could be possibly missing out on getting to know great people. It may sound cliche, but it is true. I know I am guilty of having this way of thinking and I regret that because I know I missed the chance of getting to know other people.

Looking Back

     We had our last regular day awhile ago for the third term. I can't believe how time flew by, how we will no no longer be considered froshies after the final exams. I can still clearly remember our LPEP days and now it would be almost a year since that happened. Reminiscing about the LPEP with my block mates is always fun because we'd always talk about how awkward we were with each other, our first impressions about one another, and many more funny stories. I asked them if we were given a chance to relive LPEP and the first few months of college, would they want to? Most of them said not really because it was really hard meeting new people and having to adjust. They are more than happy that the adjustment period is over and that we are all comfortable with each other now. Honestly, adjusting to college life wasn't easy. It was totally different from high school. Lesser subjects yes, but more stress. Now that my frosh year is over, I really need to step up on my sophomore year because for sure it would be a lot harder.

Hunger Gamesss

     I know I said in my previous blog post that I would read the books first before watching the movie, but thanks to my sisters, that didn't happen. We went to SM yesterday to accompany my mom to salon, but knowing that would take a long time, we decided to watch a movie. They suggested to watch Hunger Games because they heard that it was a good movie and it had positive reviews also. I didn't want to be left alone at the salon so I agreed to come. I could say that it wast the best decision ever because I really enjoyed the movie! It was really good, the story was great(maybe because I haven't read the books yet), all in all it was just flawless. After watching the movie, I now am more sure that must read the next two books before they're shown in theaters. Books are still always better, just saying.

Childhood Memories

    My youngest cousin is watching The Lion King as of the moment. It's bittersweet to think that only a couple of years ago I too was doing the same thing. Being a kid was fun. Nothing to stress about, cry about, everything was just so much simpler. Now that I am in my last teen year, I still can't believe how different now is from yesterday. It's not as simpler as before, you have more responsibilities, and you are always accountable for your action. I guess I am just missing my childhood years so forgive me for the melancholic entry.  It's surreal how tomorrow will be the last regular day of the third term then goodbye frosh year. I am not yet ready to become a sophomore, truthfully I'm terrified.

Earth Hour

  

     I guess everyone knows that today is Earth Hour day! From 8:30-9:30 we must turn off all our lights so that we may help in protecting the planet. It's only one hour of no lights, so I guess we could all participate in this, right? It is so adorable how my baby cousin was the one ordering all of us to turn off all the lights because according to him it's already earth hour. It's a good thing that at such a young age, he already cares for the planet. I am proud to say that my family and I took part in this and we on our own way was able to help the planet. 

Best Grandparents

     I could say that I am the luckiest granddaughter ever because I have the best grandparents in the whole world. It may seem I am exaggerating, but that's the truth! My mom would always tell my twin and I how my grandparents would always be the one taking care of us whenever she needs to go out of town for her work. It was not an easy job because when we were younger, my sister and I were really rowdy but she never heard them complain even if she knows they were already having a hard time. She would tell us stories of how my grandpa would be carrying the two of us with both hands while wiping the floor at the same time using his feet. He would be doing all of that but would show no signs of being tired at all. While my grandma would be cooking for us and at the same time cleaning the whole house. That is why when I was younger I've always taught that they had superpowers because they never seem to get tired at all. Until today they would still constantly check on us and still baby us. I love them s much and I am truly grateful for them. I hope that someday I could return the favor by being the one taking care of them. 

Irritating

     I don't get people who shout when giving orders or when they want to express their anger and frustration, I mean seriously it's irritating. Especially when those people have a pitch tone of voice. I mean I get it, you're angry but why do you need to shout? The people whom you are talking to is not deaf, but I bet they will after talking to you. If you are angry or frustrated could you please not vent it out on the people around you because they do not need to suffer. There are other healthier ways for you to vent out your anger and frustrations. Why not sleep, eat, go for a walk, write about it? Anything would do then just shouting and causing a commotion. 

Yum

    I honestly love eating street foods even though my mom says its unsanitary. I actually wasn't a fan of street foods at first because I thought it was disgusting but thanks to my uncle, it is now one of my favorite foods. My all time favorites would be isaw and fishballs! I don't like squidballs that much because it is just not that delicious as fishballs. Haha!

     One of the best isaw I've tasted would be the one sold that is just beside Jollibee. It's not the ordinary isaw that is sold everywhere, it's breaded and the best part about is when you dip it in the vinegar. Best combination ever! It's sold for only 5 pesos per piece so it's definitely worth it. As for the best fishballs, I've got to say the best one would be the one sold along Burgundy. It's so crispy and the sauce is an added bonus. I do know that it is not safe to always eat street foods because as my mom would say, it is unsanitary, so I only eat it occasionally.

:(

     I honestly am having the worst term in my DLSU life. All my grades are low and I am in danger of failing one subject. I know I always said that after every term I will do better in the next term, but I guess I am not doing that because my grades are not improving. I know that I am lucky to be able to study in DLSU and it's saddening to know that my way of thanking my parents for this privilege is giving them unsatisfactory grades. I guess the only solution to this is to improve my study habits. It's so frustrating because I used to be grade conscious that I'd always study every night but once I entered college I became too complacent. I guess if ever I do fail that one subject, it would be a wake-up call for me to do better.

Books vs. Movies

     Many of us must already know that Hunger Games is out in theaters and it seems that all the people who have seen it can't seem to stop talking about it while those who haven't seen it yet can't wait to watch it. Honestly I don't get the hype Hunger Games is creating. Don't go hating on me okay, it's just that I haven't read the book so I might not understand the movie. I have always liked reading over watching the movie because in the books, everything is there while in the movies almost half of the book's content has been cut. I get that it concerns the budget and no one would stay in the theaters for more than three hours just to watch a movie, right? I guess when it comes to reading, your imagination is fully exercised and no one dictates to you their own preference for this character or how that scene should look like, everything is completely under your control. In the end, I might just wait for the Hunger Games to be shown on cable because I would definitely read the books first before going to watch the movie.

It has been exactly one year

     March 26, 2011 the day my high school batch mates and I bid goodbye to our high school lives together and I can't believe that it has been exactly one year since that happened. Time flew by so fast, we all can't believe that some of us have already finished our first year in college already, while others, like us who are in DLSU are almost done. I may have already adjusted to college life but there are times that I would miss my high school life. I miss wearing my plaid uniform, the cafeteria, our classrooms, the many animals roaming around the school, the fresh air, and many more. I remember that we were so scared that we wouldn't be able to adjust to college life that we won't adjust to new people since it has always been us for almost thirteen years, but now we each have our own group of college friends. I'm seriously proud of my batch mates because they are still the same people that I knew. At first, I was scared that once we become college students, many would become rebels, drunkard, or worst get pregnant at a young age but luckily those things didn't happen at all. I know that we may have new friends but that doesn't mean we would forget about each other. I know that the friendships we built in high school would last as a lifetime.

 

 

 

I hope now that there is a new batch of new graduates coming in, we could be good role models for them. Now that we are through with our first year of college, I hope that we could do better in our sophomore year. Good luck AA Batch 2011! I miss you guys! ♥

PE Culminating Activity

     Today, March 24, 2012 was a busy day. It was the final meeting of our CWTS and it was also our FWDANCE culminating activity. With it being our final meeting for CWTS it honestly gave me mixed emotions because at least I won't be waking up early on a Saturday anymore but it also means saying goodbye to the one and only class where I could be with almost all my block mates. We said our goodbyes to Sir Ron and as a gift he dismissed us early, that is why we love Sir Ron. We had lunch at Jollibee then went to Ted's condo to past the time and to get ready for our culminating activity there as well. As we finished getting ready, when we looked outside lo and behold it was raining really hard! We didn't know how to get to the Razon building without getting drenched. It was a good thing Gel Cinco offered to pass by Ted's condo so us, the girls, could hitch a ride going to Razon's while the guys being the gentlemen they were passed the offer so that we wouldn't be crowded. 

    After the stressful journey going to Razon the culminating activity finally started where we were able to watch the dances the different classes prepared. I was so nervous when it was my section's turn to perform but thanks to my very supportive block mates, my nervousness lessened instead it was replaced by me being embarrassed. It was a relief that we got through the dance with only one mistake, whew! When the program ended, the open dance floor came after to which my block mates and I took advantage of by dancing to every move we know. We ended the night by going back to Ted's condo to change and finally went home. 

40 Days

     At the start of the Lenten season I decided to give up eating french fries for forty days. I decided to do it because I can't fast since I'm still a student and I'll need all the energy I could get so I decided not eating fries would be my sacrifice. Anyone who knows me knows that my all-time favorite food would be french fries so when they found out what I wanted to do many didn't believe that I could actually do it. Now that  It's been four weeks since I've been fries free, many of my friends can't actually believe it, but let me tell you it has not been easy especially if your friends love eating at McDonald's. My sister asked me why still continue doing it if it was giving me a hard time. I guess the answer to that would be I made a promise not only to myself but also to Him and I want to honor that promise. It may be a simple promise but at least I'm doing something meaningful for the Lenten season.

Ella's 18th ♥

     Last March 10, 2012 one of my barkada celebrated her debut. It was supposed to be on September of last year but due to personal issues her family decided to have it this year which for me was a better idea. The debutante's name is Ella Guevarra and I consider her as one of my really closest friends. She's generous, funny, smart, enough with the compliments she might think I'm making her bola. 

The Debutante

I love going to debuts especially that of my high school friends because this is the time we actually are able to bond after not seeing each other for months. Her debut gave my barkada and I the chance to finally reunite after five months, because the last time we were complete was on the debut of our other kabarkada. Going to debuts also meant eating scrumptious food, I could honestly say that that part was also one of the reason I was excited to go. The most touching part of her debut would be the father-daughter dance. I saw her immediately cry the moment her father held her hand and they started dancing. It was truly touching because I felt that her dad loved her so much and she loved him as well. The debut ended with an open dance floor which my friends and I immediately invaded. Parties are really so much more fun when you love the company, the only thing I disliked would have to be wearing high heels because they caused my feet to ache terribly. 

Only few pictures because my friends were either part of the program or were exploring the hotel. Haha. Truly one fun night, too bad pictures with the debutante have not been uploaded yet. Boo. 

Procrastination

     It's every students disease and even though we always try to not do it, alas we fail. If we know this will cause us stress then why we do it? I guess when we are bombarded with too much things we do we tend to put these aside and not think about it by doing something else. I think there's comfort with pretending we don't have important things to actually do. By doing so we only pile up the things that are need to be finished and in the end we'll get more stressed and will produce mediocre outputs. This is not an advisable trait in college because mediocre outputs are not wanted by professors. I know, how could I advise when I myself do it as well. Well, I am trying not to procrastinate anymore but I still fail. Maybe when I see others being productive instead of procrastinating, I would be inspired to be productive as well.

TRUST

     Trust for me is a very big deal that's why I don't easily trust people. I see first if they are worthy and if I am sure they are, I trust them completely. It just breaks my heart that the person whom you chose to trust completely, in the end didn't care at all. After promising that she/he would keep your promise, he/she wasn't able to keep it until the end. It was not your secret to tell so why blab about it? Learn to please shut your mouth. What made me more mad was that after asking you many times if you blabbed, you still managed to lie to my face. Could you at least have the balls to admit it when you had the balls to blab about it in the first place? It may seem like a shallow thing to get mad about, but like what I said I seldom trust people so if you choose to betray me I can forgive you, but I'm sorry I can't forget. I'll need to think twice before trusting you again. 

Thoughts

     It's hard when you have these many emotions that you want to share with people but you choose not to because you feel that they wouldn't care and you would only just annoy them, so you choose to keep all of  these bottled up inside and let them build up until there is only sadness. This sadness that you feel may come from you only dwelling on the bad things that happened, from constantly comparing yourself with others, from not being content with what you have and you feeling that you are all alone in this world. With these constant thoughts, it will surely equate to you constantly being sad. It's okay to feel down once in a while, but if you do this constantly it could be destructive for yourself. So choose to always look on the bright side, it may sound cliche but it is true. When you choose to look on the bright side you can't help but to feel relieved for a moment of all your problems, and most importantly, you feel happy despite all the problems.

Vday 2012

     Feb. 14 2011, for others it would be another Tuesday but for some it's the time to be all lovey-dovey because it's Valentine's day! Well, this would be true for those who have their special someones, but not so much for the single ones. Many say that if couples call Feb. 14 Valentine's day, the single ones call it S.A.D or Single Awareness Day. I found this funny but at the same time sad that people have made Valentine's day only for couples, how about those who were single? Are they not suppose to enjoy this day because they have no special someone to make it special for them? I actually thought that that was going to happen to me, that I would be spending Valentine's day alone and bitter. Well, thanks to my friends, that didn't happen at all.
 
     The day began with me, Bianca, Ross, and Kelly attending our LEAP. Our LEAP was to watch a bollywood movie, which I surprisingly enjoyed. After that Kelly and I met up with Dazo, Matthew, Ed, Carlo, and Czar so that we would all go to MOA to meet up with the Betts, Julia, Liezel, and Khala to watch The Vow. Even though the boys wanted to watch something else, they still watched with us which I found sweet. During the middle of the movie, the boys started disappearing one by one and by the end of the movie, all of them were gone. We thought that they ditched us because they got bored but to our surprise, they were outside waiting for us to give each one of us roses. I was honestly touched and surprised by this gesture of theirs because I didn't expect something like that from them. I was used to them teasing us and being naughty but I never really knew that they had such a side to them. We all appreciated the effort they placed to surprise us and through this we now know that we are truly blessed to have these boys have friends because even if they constantly tease us, make fun of us, and could sometimes be immature they are truly the sweetest, most loving, caring, thoughtful and the best boy friends we could ever have.

Chinese food!

     I was never a fan of Chinese food. I would always prefer eating Japanese over Chinese food, any day. Well, my taste changed when my Chinese friends, (yes, I have to say Chinese because I feel so proud to actually have Chinese friends. Haha) Louie, Kelly, and Sanmae brought me to Fuo Sheng Restaurant. I didn't really want to at first because I have eaten at other Chinese restaurants and didn't actually like the food, but since there were no other choices and Kelly was already so hungry I agreed to eat there. I ordered fried squid balls because I didn't know the other choices. I just realized now that my choice sucked. I mean, ordering Filipino food at a Chinese restaurant, what was I thinking? Anyway, since Kelly and Sanmae was still not full, they decided to order again. This time, Sanmae ordered Xiao long bao and offered to share it with me and I agreed because I wanted to taste something new.

Eating Xiao long bao was a challenge at first because there was soup inside of it and if you bite it at a wrong angle, all the delicious soup would spill and it would be a waste if the soup would not be eaten. Kelly, Louie, and Sanmae were like experts when they ate theirs while me on the other hand was so awkward because when I bit into the Xiao long bao, its soup dripped down to the plate. Though eating it was a challenge, I had to say that it was one of the most delicious Chinese food I ever tasted and has now became my all time favorite. It's so delicious that I keep on pestering my friends to bring me back to Fuo Sheng so that I can eat it again. 

BLOCK14

"It's like sila yung family mo dito sa DLSU"

  

     I couldn't agree more with what my block mate had to say. Spending my first two terms with my block, I could honestly say, had been the main reason I so far have enjoyed my stay in DLSU. It's like I have known them for all my life when in all honestly it has only been less than a year. I don't know why I am beginning to sound cheesy probably because I miss Block 14 so much. How about a look back on how we formed our bond, yes?

     Our life as a block officially began on May 25, 2011, the first day of our lives as college students. We were able to meet beforehand, during the LPEP to be exact, so that when the first day comes we wouldn't be that awkward with each other. I for one was so scared and nervous because it would be my first time ever to have guy classmates and I didn't know how I should react around them.  I thought that I might not get along with them and thus be an outcast in my own block. I know, I had a wild imagination. Thankfully my block was so friendly that within two months we weren't that awkward anymore with each other.

      We knew that it would be your block who would go through everything with you so you might as well bond with them so that you wouldn't have to face the challenges of being a college student alone. I remember that whenever we would have quizzes, midterms and finals, we would study together as a block on the 4th floor of the library. Well, the correct term would be to try to study, because it would often lead to just us sharing stories and telling jokes. Whenever there our important announcements or home works ⎯ our block president, Ron Tan, would not forget to post everything on our FB group. It was because of that that almost all my block mates never forgot to do our home works and to pass everything on time. Whenever there are birthday celebrants in our block, Yellow Cab would never be out of the picture because this is where the block would be made libre by the celebrant. Our favorite mall would be MOA because this would be the to-go-place whenever we feel like having a spontaneous lakad. The greatest trial my block had to go through would be Mady, one of my blockmates, being seriously ill. When we heard about her condition we felt heartbroken and wanted to help her with whatever way we could. We would often visit her in her house in Carriedo when we had the time just to make her feel that we would always be there for her no matter what. Seven months flew by so fast and now we are de-blocked. Even though this might be the case, we are closer than ever and I hope that this would go on till we are on our last year in DLSU. 

Our fist block picture ♥

MOA

The girls of Block14

The boys of Block14

LASARE 

Last block bonding </3

      It is with my block, that I could truly be myself.  I don't pretend when I am with them because I know that they have already accepted me for what I truly am, and for that I am truly thankful. I have been blessed to have them for block mates and for making my first few months in college truly fun and memorable. I can truly say that I have found my second family in them. 


*credits to Bettina Siochi for the pictures. 

Getting Started

     To be honest, I don't really know what to put in here. Ms. Ingrid told us that having a blog was similar to owning a diary. Upon hearing this, I was not exactly excited because I once tried having a diary but ultimately failed at it. It was time consuming and I ran out of things to write about.
     With this new endeavor, I promise to keep an open mind about this and to really try my best to produce quality blogs or at least something that would be interesting. There is no harm in trying, right? What would I've got to lose?