Requête

French for "an invitation."

Before anything else, I would like to request you readers to help me earn points by clicking this link. Thank you and enjoy reading my blog!

I have been aware that many readers had been freaked out because of my "weird" post titles. To make it up for those victims, I would like to assure everyone that I would be reverting back to my old, "normal" titles after my 75th post. (That is, two more posts.) I hope everything would be fine by then.

Because of time constaint, I would summarize all the events that had happened by using short essays; thus, my post would be shorter than usual.

First of all, I woke up and attended our church meeting.

When Joanie arrived, the three of us (my mom, I, and Joanie) went to Robinson's Place to have lunch and a little shopping.

We ate lunch at Chowking. After eating, my mom parted ways with the two of us (Joanie and I). We set for AstroVision - I asked if MegaMan Battle Network 6 Cybeast Gregar (original) was already available. Not yet. I became too impatient and so I thought of buying the Class A cartridge instead. (Next time, when the original version becomes available, I would definitely buy it also.) I told the saleslady that I would be back later...

We went to DataBlitz. On the way, I was glad that I didn't see something I wanted (and at the same time didn't want) to see; we arrived at DataBlitz. I bought the MAGIX Video Edit Pro 11 which I had been earning money for. I was entitled to a 7% discount because I frequently buy from that place.

We went to GBox. I bought 10 tokens. Seeing that the queue in front of Dance Maniax was still long, we tried playing a machine which even the rules we didn't know. We played 4 consecutive games of Dance Maniax...

I told Joanie to buy 2 more tokens - we played another game. Seeing that a child was patiently waiting for us to finish our game, we let the kid go first; unfortunately, as soon as we vacated the area, the queue became longer than expected.

We played the DJ whatsoever game and it was quite fun. After that, Joanie bought two more tokens and we (Joanie) overtook some people (who really should have been playing instead of us).

There were mumbles of "ang daya nila" but I told Joanie not to worry because I had already experienced being cheated for more than seven times (the same people, the same day, the same area - click here)

After that, we went back to AstroVision and I bought myself a "temporary" MegaMan Battle Network 6 game cartridge.

We met up with my mom and proceeded to Philippine Plaza...

The magnificent surroundings enticed us and we were drawn to the area. We went and attended the birthday party of Samuel and ate, watched some shows, then left...

We drove Joanie back to her place; we fetched my dad; we returned home.

I did my machine project...

I worte my blog...

And now, I'll sign off and continue working on my scientific calculator...

Ricordare con la Mente

Italian for "to recollect, to remember."

Before anything else, I would like to request you readers to help me earn points by clicking this link. Thank you and enjoy reading my blog!

It was 6:30 AM when I was forcibly woken up by my mom...

Our LASARE1 (Lasallian Recollections 1) would start at 7:30 in the morning and would end at approximately 4:30 in the afternoon...

Lasare... Lasare... Lasare...

I absolutely have no idea of when we would be taking part in an hour ago. (Blame Uno for not having any recollections!) I remember days ago... I was speaking with Rochelle inside a jeepney...

She told me that Mr. Ang, our former trigonometry / calculus teacher, described LASARE1 as "fun and interesting" whereas Mr. Ong, our former economics teacher, depicted the activity as "boring and unworthwhile."

It's hard to understand the "ambience" of LASARE1 especially if there are two opposing opinions... A conclusion I arrived to is that the one and only way I could possibly find more about this event is that I have to, well, participate in it.

My journey of self-reflection starts here...

I quickly packed up my things - Officers' Info File (for La Salle Computer Society), some writing materials, Java programming source codes, my GameBoy Micro, and three game cartridges.

A fragment of my memory...

"La ka na ba ibang laro? Puro MegaMan nalang ba?"
"Nasa bahay e."

Well, I always bring my MegaMan came cartridges (MegaMan Battle Network or MegaMan Zero series) with me. Why?

1. The MegaMan Battle Network (1 - 6) and the MegaMan Zero (1 - 4) series are renowned for being some of the most challenging RPGs (role-playing games) ever produced in GameBoy Advance*.

*Advance? Micro is a limited edition GameBoy after GameBoy Advance SP (SPecial) that also sports some features of the famous Nintendo DS (Dual Screen) and DS Lite.

My mom drove me to Gokongwei Building where I entered. After taking the Agno exit, L'Hermitage (the venue where our LASARE1 would take event) was clearly in sight. I entered the area...

I signed in the attendance log and was handed two sheets of paper and a name tag. After answering the Spiritual Gifts Discovery Test and its Summary Sheet, I met up with my friends and waited for the event to start.

We were given a brief discussion on house rules and other stuff we have to observe inside the area. Not long after, we were told to go inside the prayer room...

In every person's seat (kneeling pad) there can be found a booklet. Nothing was written inside.

Some of my blockmates made a lot of noise upon entering and this greatly upset our facilitator. He wrote something on the board. (If I rememer right, it goes somewhat like this...)

A while ago you were told that L'Hermitage was a place of SILENCE. Now I want you to GO OUT of the room. Come back if you understand what is the meaning of being inside a PRAYER ROOM. I would also rearrange the pillows which have been arranged before you entered.

We left the room. We reentered silently.

A lot of things happened. I couldn't explain the details, but we became too silent that some of us were afraid to partake in the discussions.

I was very relieved when the factilitator said the following:

"Don't worry, this would not be the trend of the day."

Well, some of my blockmates were called up to give a little information about their educational background. I didn't get called.

Well then, before long, we were told to trace our hand (right or left) on the first page of the LASARE1 Booklet. We did so...

In the palm side of our sketch, we were to write down the thing we wanted to say to God.

In the thumb portion of our sketch, we were to write down what we can contribute to make LASARE1 successful.

We had a "song" prayer... After that we were to answer the following questions:

1. What happened to you in the prayer?
2. How did you feel about what went on?
3. What did God tell you?
4. What did you tell God?
What were your insights / realizations gained from the prayer?

I was startled when I was called to answer a question.

"Which question did you have a hard time answering?"

With nothing in mind, I told our facilitator (Mr. Glen) that I had a hard time answering question 1, although question 4 gave me a lot more difficulty...

Morning break...

We had our visualization exercise (guided by our facilitator).

We closed our eyes, observed the symmetric pattern in our breathing, imagined ourselves in a place where we can be ourselves... We were told to imagine God caming to our "paradise," and we talking with God...

At the count of three, you may slowly open your eyes.

One...

Two...

Three...

We were given some questions to answer in groups. (We were grouped individually.)

1. How did you feel during the visualization exercise?
2. What are the images or characteristics of God that came out during the exercise?
3. What was the content of your conversation with God?

We discussed our answers with our group mates. We were told to create a poster after summarizing all our individual answers...

30 minutes after...

We interpreted our posters to the class. After some more time, we had our lunch break.

The food was great.

We went inside the room.

The facilitator told us that we can go home if we wouldn't want to join in the next activity (provided that we face the consequences). Everyone stayed.

We were in for the experience of a lifetime.

The room is set to explode in 8 minutes...

Such and such... The Game of Life. Our block versus our facilitator.

Red area - Danger Zone
Violet spaces - Path to Safety
Blue Area - Safe Zone
Orange Area - Graveyard

We had to cross to the safe zone by going through those purple spaces... Every purple space explodes when previously stepped on and no body weight remains. Anyone caught in the explosion would die and be sent to the graveyard. Anyone leaning against the walls die. Dead people cannot move, stand, and walk on their own. If anyone, even the dead people, weren't able to go to the safe area, the room explodes and we lose the game.

Out of 51 blocks (classrooms) that played the game, only 9 were able to win.

Did we have what it takes to survive?

We were given 3 minutes to strategize. After that, we would be allowed to ask 3 questions, then it's game time...

Game! There were many who crossed and many who died. It was my turn. I managed! The excitement and anxiety got into us, and we tried our best to help.

Your voice, your noise can kill you...

Great. Johann "died." He was so heavy (My other blockmates really had a hard time carrying him...) We lost, by the way. Sigh...

My blockmates blamed Johann for dying...

We were very disappointed. The facilitator asked us why we lost, and we answered him...

He would give us a second chance, that is, if we are able to give him 3 valid reasons...

The first thing we said was invalid. We tried again...

Our three reasons all came from the Bible...

For every person sacrificed, we can ask a question. We sacrificed two blockmates and pushed through with our game.

This room is set to explode in 5 minutes.

5 minutes?!

Now fully strategized, we managed to cross to the safe area with fewer people dead...

In the end...

Sorry guys...

You win!

There was a sudden exclaim of happiness! Alright! We were the 10th block who won the game! We're in the Hall of Fame!

This LASARE1 is fun and interesting after all... (Especially now that we won in this game. Unean-Lasallians, if you still didn't have your LASARE1, better take note of the game...)

The facilitator asked us why we won...

Answers...

We had some more activities...

Final part of the day...

Some went upstairs for confession. (Don't ask me; I don't know these things...) We stayed at the room and wrote some dedications for others... While I was writing, my head suddenly felt warmer than usual. This was followed by a minor headache. I felt that I had a fever...

After the Eucharistic Celebration, we had our snacks...

Afternoon snacks...

The activity ended.

My post should have ended here; unfortunately, this post is going to be longer than expected...

I met Diana outside Gokongwei (Agno). He was waiting for Raymond. Before long, we also saw Richard with his friends, and not long after, Raymond arrived and I went to look for my mom...

She was waiting for me outside. I went inside our car... My head hurts, not because of pain... There was a momentuous pulge of heat surging through my head... I wanted to sleep...

5:58... I went to Gokongwei 2nd floor room G209 and waited for the meeting to start. Only my Publications head was there (and her friend)... After waiting some more, the others arrived.

We had our LSCS Productions meeting. I received my ID - It was beautiful...

The meeting proceeded...

We saw the sample LSCS shirt...

8:00 PM. We were dismissed.

I went downstairs and waited for my mom. I was surprised to see Rochelle. I wonder where she is going...

I went home and discovered that I had a fever, but for the sake of my readers, I started working on this post. Eventually, my post was cut short... I had to sleep earlier than usual (1 AM). Sigh...

Joanie said that she'll join me this Sunday because she had no classes on Monday...

The next day, I wanted to go to CLIP, but my body was weak... I really wanted to see my students and congratulate them for going through this far. Unfortunately...

Well, I've showed them my blog before... So, my good students, if you do read my blog, let me warmly congratulate you. Don't forget everything that you've learned, including those that I've taught you in advance. I'll miss you all! Godspeed!

I spent the whole day working on my machine project. It was tiring and tedious...

Postively speaking, I am making some progress though. I wonder when I would be finished?

Ciao! Got to finish my project!

Rédaction D'un Essai

French for "essay-writing," you'll understand soon.

Today's post is quite different. Since I slept at five o'clock tonight (a while ago), my mind is all mixed up, so I couldn't think properly. To cope up for that, let me share with you instead my PERSEF essay that I wrote yesterday.

Note: I'm sorry if you ever get bored reading these long, wordy paragraphs.

How can we become good citizens? One thing we can do is by changing our country. How can we change our country? The answer is by improving on some things which we may consider as trifle and unimportant in our daily living.

Firstly, we have to follow traffic rules. Traffic rules are the most commonly applied of our laws. We are confronted with them every day – from morning until evening. Thus, whether to follow traffic rules or not is a question that we all face daily. It is a challenge that confronts us every day. We can try today, the next day, the third day, and all subsequent days. And if we succeed today, we may also succeed tomorrow, and on the third day, and the days thereafter.

Someday, our repeated act of following traffic rules could become a habit, and hopefully, a national discipline, Someday, our repeated act of following traffic rules, which are the most ordinary of all laws, can lead us to follow the more difficult and more important of our laws.

Secondly, whenever you buy or pay for anything, always ask for an official receipt. Whenever we buy a product or pay for a service, the price we pay already includes the tax. Under the law, the seller is obligated to remit or forward the tax to the government.

If the seller does not issue an official receipt when you buy a product, the seller may or may not remit the tax to the government. Since you did not ask for an official receipt, there is no record of the sale transaction and therefore the government has no way of knowing it. If the seller chooses not to declare the sale transaction to the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the tax that you already paid for the product will not be collected by the BIR. In short, the tax that you already paid for the product will just be pocketed by the seller.

Thirdly, do not litter. Our human acts affect our environment and nature, although always slowly and imperceptibly, but when nature reacts, it could affect as all in devastating ways, including typhoons, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, fuel shortage, water supply and food chain degradation, skin cancer, and global warming due to the depletion of the ozone layer.

We are part of the environment; the environment is part of us. Whichever way we look at it, the environment and we, human beings, are linked to each other in a powerful sense. That’s why we have to dispose our garbage properly. Segregate. Recycle. Conserve.

Lastly, we have to pay our taxes. Of the many duties of a citizen under our Constitution, paying taxes is one of the most crucial, because taxes are the lifeblood of our government and of our nation. Taxes are what we use to buy the basic textbooks for our millions of children in our country, or to build additional classrooms in public schools nationwide. Taxes are what we use to buy the most basic of medicines, often generic and cheap, that our Department of Health officials distribute to 34 million Filipinos nationwide who live below the poverty line. Taxes are what we use to pay all our government employees nationwide – our soldiers, our policemen, our public school teachers, among many others.

This government, whether we like it or not, is our government – its cost is a burden we must all share. The task of building this nation is a task we must all share. We all must contribute to build the nation we dream for ourselves. Each one of us has a role in it. Each one of us has a responsibility to it.

Well, that was my PERSEF assignment. After the clock struck five, I went to bed.

Had anyone noticed that I have not used elipsis points (three periods) yet in my entry today? Well, you better believe it. Today, I am working on a formal entry - no abbreviations, no elipsis points, et cetera.

Oh yes, this post would be short enough to read in one sitting.

I woke up at eight-forty in the morning and headed to school twenty minutes after. After alighting from Quirino Avenue, I searched for a jeepney to drive me to La Salle, but unfortunately, there was none to be found. Suddenly, a side car driver approached me and offered me his services for ten pesos. Being a quick thinker, I quicky agreed, since side car drivers normally charge at least twenty pesos every time they drive a certain passenger to a specific location.

I arrived at my classroom and waited for our professor. I was quite disappointed when I saw Ms. Shirley coming inside our classroom without bringing anything with her. Rochelle was right again, I thought, for she had told me not to anticipate for anything in INTRPRG.

We ate at La Casita. My order for the fourth consecutive time was sisig with egg and a cup of iced tea. I saw Jillan afterwards, and after I finished eating, I bought three packs of Fruit-Tella Crazy and shared some with my blockmates.

We had our ALGTRIG class. Our professor revealed to us his favorite cartoon character. It was Tweety. Unfortunately, he slashed out the "y," and he would not accept answers other than "Tweet."

We had our SCIENVB class, and it was interesting as usual. We submitted our essays to the professor - I won't post it here to conserve space. Our topic today was about corals, invertebrates, and the other specimens than can be found in the vast realms of the marine society.

We also had our PERSEF class, and we submitted our collages and essays to the professor. We had a lot of verbal-knowledge games, but in the end, Team Two managed to overtake us. We will catch up, somehow.

I met Dianne Tiffany for the first time since we entered college. She wanted to borrow some episodes of Naruto and Bleach from me. She also asked about Fruits Basket and Prince of Tennis, but I told her that she was talking with the wrong person.

My mom met me at the Light Rail Transit station in Bambang and drove me to our store. I met Brother Joevir, Elvin, and Jan Timothy outside, and we chatted for a bit. Afterwards, I checked on my cute little bunny. And, oh, I forgot to tell you readers that my other rabbit (also known as Joanie's rabbit), Congo, passed away two days ago after living a life of vanity and hatred.

Here I am now in front of my computer monitor ending my blog post for today.

Yours truly,

Solomon Lim

Trèfle à Quatre Feuilles

French for "four-leaf clover," a symbol of good luck.

Another weird title...

... this is a short post

Well, since I had to classes this morning, I spent the first few hours of the day doing my Machine Project. (GUI Programming is starting to get really addicting...)

I slept at 4 AM. I woke up at eleven. These retainers are hard to get used to...

I was lucky not to be late for my ALGTRIG class. You see, I left our house (which is at Camba, Lavezares, Binondo, Manila, Philippines, Southeast Asia, Asia, Earth, Solar System, Milky Way... I could go on and on... Google Earth...)

I arrived at the Andrew lobby. I was greeted by multitudes of people campaigning for Tapat (a political organization). Since I was forced to wear Blue (for Santugon) by some of my blockmates... well, I stepped out of the opposition and went to our classroom. Well, my blockmates had been loyal supporters of Eloize, our campaigning batch president for Santugon, so most of them were wearing blue or yellow...

Our professor was late...

We took our test when he arrived... He gave us a bonus question worth 3%...

"What is my favorite cartoon character?"
Clue: Yellow cya, no relation to his name (Christopher Cruz)

There's Tweety, Pikachu, Spongebob Squarepants, Goofy, Big Bird, oh... I can go on and on...

What is the correct answer?
How would I know?

We had our INTRICT class and we listened to four of our blockmates "campaign" for their report. Before that, though, some members of Tapat and Santugon also campaigned. Some people I recognize were Eloize and Gwen (who accompanied me and Shirlina during our Tennis tryouts). It's a good thing I didn't join any of the two organizations, otherwise...

Maybe I'll join next time...

How I was inviting people to join our LSCS First General Assembly this evening. The irresponsible Yna, a newly recruited officer, won't be around for the third time (since she became an officer). In the end, only Cecille was able to join me. (Even Lou and Dianne had to go...)

Talk about time management. From 4:40 - 5:40, we spent our minutes doing our SCIENVB essays inside the computer laboratory G304. After that, we proceeded to the Intellect Seminar Room (ISR) and waited for the program to start (after registering, by the way). I saw Rochelle coming in...

I taught Cecille how to play MegaMan Zero 3 (since I brought my GameBoy Micro with me). I never knew she was hysterical. Some people asked me what device it was. GameBoy Micro, I told them. It's a good this they didn't assume that it was a PlayStation Portable or Nintendo Dual-Screen, unlike some people there...

The program started. (Blockmates, eventually you'll regret not going a while ago...) Firstly, there was an early bird awarding... The early bird arrived at 4 o'clock. Haywire! Afterwards, there was an opening ceremony, a showcase of plays and dances. Then there was a raffle...

At the bottom of our seats... Anyway, Cecille won a ticket to a movie! Congratulations Cess!

Today was her lucky day. Initially, she wanted to go home. I told her to stay. Now, she was brimming with happiness. Wish it was me...

Oh, but I was lucky to get a 92% in INTRICT. I thought I messed up...

After having dinner, I went home with Rochelle; her dad drove me home. Now, after a long, tiresome day, it's time for work... Homework. I wonder how long it would take me to do them? What would luck bring to me this time?

My, is my blog lucky to have you readers out there!

Souffrance

French for "severe suffering."

No classes today... Sigh...

And I wanted to go to class today...

Why has this phenomenon occurred?

How would I know?

Anyway, this is going to be a short post...

I woke up today. After brushing my teeth (and cleaning my retainers), my first stop is my computer. Java time. My goals today are as follows:

1. To finish designing the graphical user interface (GUI) of our INTRPRG Machine Project - to make a scientific calculator.
2. To finish modifying the scientific calculator after designing it.
3. To start working on EventHandlers, ActionListeners, and the like.
4. To completely master Java GUI.

Well now... it seems that I had already spent more that two-thirds of today making this machine project of ours...

Whoosh... There goes the wind...

Sigh... and I only rested (played O2 Jam) for less than 15 minutes... (and spent more than 12 hours programming) Tough work...

Oh yes, please help me earn points by clicking this link. (This link leads to a really cool website featuring mp3s from anime and games. Check it out!)

I'm ending this post here to resume my tedious work and suffering.

PS. Now who's working on a boring blog? Definitely not me...

Coupure

French for "power interruption."

No classes today... Gee...

I started my day in a funky beat by summoning hordes of monsters (and killing all those weaklings) in Ragnarok Online. After eating lunch, I started watching Final Fantasy X-2 the movie (that many of my blockmates wanted to borrow from me - Wait a little longer, blockmates...) Unfortunately, my show was interrupted when I finally received a battle invitation from Nikko...

I was surprised to see NIC0L0 (Nicolo) in Thalo Channel 20... We battled... Nikko won... I won... Nicolo never won... *snicker* (You still need a lot of practice, Nicolo.) *kring* A message from Yahoo! Messenger!

Joy asked me some details about the SCIENVB project... (I had been disconnected from my game.) After replying to her message, our battle commenced...

Suddenly, the screen went blank!

Wow, "great" timing for a brownout!

Unfortunately, this brownout turned to be a blackout when electricity didn't reach out homes for more than 15 minutes...

The two of them must have wondered where I went... or maybe there was a power outage at Nicolo's place also... Hmmm... Suspicions, scenarios...

I decided to enhance my Pokemon deck with the powerful cards I had acquired a few weeks ago. I found my deck - it was just inside my drawer. The new cards are at my table. The old cards I needed more than the new ones are missing!

There goes my idea of upgrading my deck...

Well, I had a drawer in my closet which had been locked for more than three months or so. I couldn't find the keys... I figured out that my other deck was stored inside that drawer...

Amidst the dark and eerie clutches of my room (no lights, and it was windy, for there was a typhoon), I tried to sniff out some clues concerning the whereabouts of my coin purse (My wallet was inside the purse.) I arrived at nothing...

My mom called me. I told her about my lost purse... My grandmother heard my call for help...

I realized that I gave her my wallet for safekeeping. Immediately after receiving, my long lost wallet, I made my way to my drawer, and I found these things...

I found my AMC (Australian Mathematics Competition) certificates which I tediously earned in my first to third year of high school.

I found my one hundred 10 peso coin collection (amounting to 1000 pesos).

I found my never-to-be-forgotten Logitech Marble Mouse which served me loyally for 4 years.

I found the freebies I got from last year's Ragnafest held at World Trade Center.

I found the limited edition coins which I had bought sometime last year in our Economics' field trip to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

I found my 2000 peso bill (no kidding) I purchased from Banko Central last year in our field trip. In reality, I purchased 5... 2 for my dad, 2 for my aunt, and one for myself...

If you're interested, browse the pictures I posted below (click to enlarge):

Notice that the width is slightly longer than usual.
Well... that's how they made it...
Even I was surprised...

I didn't find the things I were looking for.

I found them inside my magazine drawer...

And so... I updated my deck... (I found my Digimon cards too... Guess they didn't go that well unlike Pokemon trading cards...)

By the time I was about to go to my math review classes, the electricity returned.

And so... we reviewed for my test (initially today). When I was about to go home, he told me something which... gave me split feelings...

"Baka lumakas daw ang ulan bukas a... Titigil yata yung bagyo sa Thursday pa..."

That means... There is a possibility that there would be no classes tomorrow:

Disadvantages:

1. I would not know how well I did in my INTRPRG Hands-On Examinations.
2. I would not have the opportunity of asking Ms. Shirley about our Machine Project.
3. There is a very big possibility that there would be another blackout tomorrow.

Advantages:

If there were no classes tomorrow, I would have more time to do the things I long to do, like watching television, ending Final Fantasy X-2 the movie, making my Machine Project, and lots, lots more...

I'm cutting this post short to give way to some flashing news...

There was a grave misunderstanding that lasted for quite some time... Are there classes tomorrow or not?

My Unean (high school) friends are rejoicing amidst our confusion, but me, my batchmates, and my blockmates managed to dig out some evidence to prove that...

First of all...

Classes Suspended in Metro and

Other Areas Affected by Storm

INQ7.net
Last updated 09:53pm (Mla time) 07/24/2006

CLASSES are suspended in all elementary and high schools in Metro Manila and in other areas affected by public storm signals, including Batanes, Cagayan, Apayao, Ilocos Norte, Ilcoso Sur, Kalinga, Abra, Mt. Province, Benguet, Ifugao, Isabela, La Union, Pangasinan, Zambales, and Bataan, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita has announced.

Secondly...

No Classes in Metro Manila,

Typhoon-Hit Provinces

The government on Monday night suspended Tuesday's classes in all levels in Metro Manila and typhoon-hit provinces, DZMM reported.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita announced that classes in elementary and high school levels are suspended in Metro Manila and the provinces of Batanes, Cagayan, Apayao, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Kalinga, Abra, Mountain Province, Benguet, Ifugao, Isabela, La Union, Pangasinan, Zambales and Bataan.

Meanwhile, the Commission on Higher Education announced that classes in college level are suspended in Metro Manila.

Weather bureau PAGASA said on its 5 p.m. bulletin that strong winds associated with the southwest monsoon enhanced by typhoon Glenda will continue to affect the western seaboard of southern Luzon.

And finally...

I received a text message from Eloize...

Confirmed! Dlsu announcement no classes tom. Brought to you by koko ortuoste, ccs cap. Pls pass.

Alright then, no classes! Hope there won't be any power outages tomorrow...

It sure is windy out here...

Espérer

French for "to hope." Guess why I used this word as my title...

Nicolo... Would you join us today?

Joanie, how about you?

No reply from both people...

Oh well... It's their loss...

I went to church this morning. Everything went on as usual... until I saw Kevin...

No, nothing bad happened. I just remember Joanie telling me how she met Kevin on the jeep and bla bla bla bla bla... (Stop it!)

Anyway, we went to Robinson's Place today, and boy, was I tired of that place.

If I were to count the number of times I've been to Robinson's Place Ermita, the number would amount to somewhat near 200. Yes, I'm not kidding. You see, we shop almost every Sunday... Before, it's only a choice between Robinson's Place and SM Manila... Oh well...

But now...

SM Department Stores:
1. SM City Hall (Manila)
2. SM San Lazaro
3. SM Mall of Asia
4. SM MegaMall
5. SM North Edsa
6. SM Makati
7. SM Baguio
8. SM Sta. Mesa (CenterPoint) - Oh, how I hate that place!

Robinson's Department Stores:
1. Robinson's Place Ermita
2. Robinson's Galleria
3. Robinson's Pioneer (Oh, how I hope I could get to explore that area...)

Of course, there's also The Podium, as well as Rockwell Power Plant, Greenbelt, Glorietta, and so much more...

My post is not about malls, so let's just move on...

Well, we ate at Tang City... After that, we went to Data Blitz. I wanted to buy the MAGIX Video Edit Pro 11 which costed 2499 at the moment, unfortunately, I didn't have the money to do so... Next week, perhaps. Anyhow, I went to G-Box and serenaded. I tried a couple of new songs, which are in fact, unavailable in Dance Maniax Second Mix... What do you expect?

Oh yes! I also bought myself a Pokemon EX Holon Phantoms booster pack and I got a rare holographic Latios Delta card, as well as a rare Psychic energy card. (Since when did energy cards become rare?) Anyway, I was an avid card battler in my high school days, so I always buy at least a booster pack per series for my collection. (Yes, I know you don't care.) Anyhow, feel free to challenge me to a card duel. I'll take you on anytime!

My post is not about card collections, so let's just move on...

I wanted my mom to buy a new shirt for me (especially since I left my money at home). Before that, though, we went to AstroVision and I asked the salespeople if Megaman Battle Network 6 Cybeast Gregar (original) was already available. I expected 'no' for an answer. How rigt I was. Within seconds, my eyes were feasted to another game cartridge in display...

Pokemon Chaos Black?!

Is there even such a thing?

I tried playing it, and my conclusion is that... It was fake! It really was...

I was steaming with anger when my father disapproved of my idea of purchasing clothes (especially since my mother told me that my father already agreed to my plan). He said that I already had lots of clothes. 30? I don't think so...

I was mad the whole afternoon. I received my retainers at last. I won't wear them to school.

I was glad that my 5.70 GB download was already completed. (Joanie, because of you my precious disk spaces were wasted! Grrr...)

Well, I had to download an MKV codec just to watch those files. English?!

I played O2 Jam with some of my friends...

8:00 PM. I went to Benavidez to get some helpful hints in ALGTRIG. (Our professor - I couldn't understand what he is talking about...) And I was aiming for a 4.0 in ALGTRIG... Is it still possible? Yes, it is... It's not like I am failing, you know...

When my tutorial classes were about to end, I received a text message from Eloize:

S15,a10shun: NO CLASSES tomorrow. No stir. Aryt?i'll update you if changes occur. Take care and God bless. _.loizee^U^

It took me some time to "decode" the message... I was never good at text lingo. That is why, if you were wondering why I usually text in pure, fluent English... Well, now you know...

No classes tomorrow? How come? I thought the president already announced that there would be classes on Monday... Or so I thought...

I asked my fellow Uneans and blockmates about the matter. No classes, confirmed.

I arrived home. I remembered my sensei telling me that classes were cancelled because of the so called SONA (State of the Nation's Address), but I found a news article which proved that his hypothesis was wrong:

No Classes in Areas

Affected by 'Glenda'

By Lira Dalangin-Fernandez
INQ7.net
Last updated 10:07pm (Mla time) 07/23/2006

(UPDATE) DUE to typhoon ”Glenda” (international name Kaemi), Malacanang has suspended classes at all levels in affected areas, including the National Capital Region (NCR), on Monday, July 24.

Upon the recommendation of the National Disaster Coordinating Council, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita has authorized the suspension of classes at all levels in the NCR, Pangasinan, Bataan, Zambales, Bulacan, Rizal, and Cavite, according to Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye.

Bunye said work in goverment offices in the NCR was also suspended, except in those offices performing health and protective services.

Yay! Alright! I watched the last episode of Star Ocean EX, and boy, was I really, really disappointed... (to the tone of Mrs. Anastacio)

What's with the ending? What happened afterwards? Oh... Hateful!

Bakit bitin?!

It was also like that in Tales of Eternia... Why didn't the cartoonists place an epilogue of some sort? It makes my mind come up with so many different scenarios... I wish I knew what happened in the end...

Well, I guess that's what anime is known for...

After gulping down my hot and spicy (to the 10th power) noodles, I continued working on this blog... and now, I'm finally finished with it!

See you again soon!

Cauchemardesque

Hmmm... Here goes...

Today... was...

I woke up at 11 AM... Sorry, students... Regrettedly, I would be unable to teach you advanced lessons today...

I had a meeting (LSCS) on 1:30 in the afternoon, so I prepared myself...

Firstly... I was glad that one of my downloads (Zoids) was finally completed.

Secondly, I downloaded DivX Player because some of the files I downloaded are in encoded format...

Lastly, because my Snagit 8 (application software - screen capture program ) Trial Version was going to expire soon, I took some "precautionary measures."

What did I do? I searched for a keygen... /gg
... and I utterly regretted doing so...

I can't believe it! We just took a test about computer security and the like, and still...

After downloading the keygen, I scanned the file and found no viruses, so I opened it...

After double-clicking it, there was a security warning... No viruses... so I ignored the warning...

The file disappeared... suddenly! Trojan horse?

I ran my antivirus and anti-spyware programs... The antivirus did not detect any viruses at drive C (I had 6 disk drives - C being the master drive), but my antispyware detected 26 critical objects...

Inoculatation... Quarantine...

I went to La Salle for the LSCS Officers Mini-Bonding event. Everything went on great:

1. We (who weren't around yesterday) introduced ourselves and told everyone our favorite food (What's the use of knowing anyway?)...

2. We (who weren't around yesterday) were divided into 3 lines and then told about our respective committees...

3. We (all new LSCS AVPs) were given a breif lecture on proactiveness.

4. We (all new LSCS AVPs) played a game called "Amazing Race" wherein our hands are tied to each other... (4 teams - scavenger hunt - Gokongwei)

5. We (all LSCS officers) prepared some short 'skits' and presented them to the whole assembly.

I wouldn't forget ours...

Introduction!

Presenting the newest AVP Publications... (We entered with choreography...)

Publications! (Pose...)

To protect LSCS from devastation,
To unite all peoples within this organization!

(Introduce ourselves, yes, I know 2 lines are missing.)

Publications committee blast off at the speed of light,
Surrender now or prepare to fight;

LSCS, that's right!

Wa ha ha ha ha! And it was our VP (vice president)'s idea...

Our liason officer, as well as some other people, greatly approved of my accent...

"Yay! May announcer na tayo."

(/swt... and I was struggling about using my British accent a while ago... Guess I was quite successful...)

Our surprises... were our officer IDs (not membership cards). Unfortunately, we can't bring them home...

I went home with Rochelle (Yna wasn't able to join us because she had an important family matter to attend to...) via jeep...

On the way, we talked about organizations, teachers, tests, grades, Uneans, and programming...

Soon enough, we arrived at Binondo Circle.

We rode a side car and Rochelle dropped off at her place. I arrived home...

I met my father upon arrival and he bothered me a bit...

Back to my computer...

I thought of using System Restore to give me complete assurance, but I didn't do so...

I turned off my computer and let it rest for a few minutes (after continuously running for 4 consecutive days)...

I went to our living room and watched a little television.

I turned on my computer.

After reaching the operating system selection page, my computer crashes...

Uh oh...

I tried switching disk drives via CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). Nothing happens...

Uh oh... I never anticipated that the virus would be this deadly...

Finally, I decided to get the hard disk from my other computer and attaching it to my other computer, making it the master drive...

It works... However... I could only access two hard disks at a time...

I took this opportunity to write this blog.

Sigh... no Internet connection, 16 color display, no games... everything had already been bad enough for me...

I hope I can fix my computer soon (and if I managed to repair it myself... well, I'll be able to handle those things computer scientists do handle...)

This is Splgum signing off.

PS. This blog was initially written using Notepad.

Present time... Finally... I deserve some certification here, you know!

Otorhinolaryngology

Today's post may be a lot shorted than expected...

I woke up at 11:00 AM... I slept 'yesterday' at 4:00 AM to study for my INTRICT quiz...

I studied again... My eyes suddenly become sore... I inspected them after a few more minutes of irritation. Redness! I won't be able to wear contact lenses today... Of all the days...

We had a 'group study' at Starbucks (Vito Cruz branch), so... I dropped off at Vito Cruz instead of Quirino Avenue... Sigh... Loops...

So far... In my college life... I've rode from...

• Bambang to Quirino Avenue
• Bambang to Vito Cruz
• Carriedo to Quirino Avenue
• Central Terminal to Bambang
• UN Avenue to Quirino
• UN Avenue to Vito Cruz
• Vito Cruz to Bambang

I was late... Lou was waiting... and so was Bea...

I ordered a Vanilla Cream Frappuccino with Mint Syrup at Starbucks. Lou was disgusted because she said that frappuccinos (especially vanilla cream) are too sweet. Well, people have different tastes. He he...

Raisa arrived sips later... Beacuse the place was so cold, we left for school after everyone was finished with their drinks...

The test... was... I hate it! I don't know if I got a high grade or not... And, oh... how I wanted to win... against...

Well anyway, after a few more minutes at school, I went home... In the LRT Station, I met Shirlina...

I went to GUM & MUG... On the way, I saw Kate and Bette... and many others...

Er... these are the Unean batchmates I met with today (in chronologial order)...

1. Shirlina Ang (I met her at Vito Cruz station...)
2. Kate Tung (I saw her riding a tricycle to Uno, eventually, we were able to talk at Uno...)
3. Bette Almorado (Bette was with Kate, so we also chatted upon arrival at Uno...)
4. Gian Chua (Gian went to GUM & MUG in search of her mother...)
5. Austin Pua (Austin was walking with Gian when I saw him outside GUM & MUG...)
6. Princess Dizon (Princess called my attention when I was waiting for my mom... She inquired about video editing and stuff...)
7. Edric Rocafor (Edric was with Princess, and we talked about machine projects and programming...)

Poor Congo... his ears got infected with some sort of disease... Don't contaminate Van alright?!

After that, I arrived home... my nose runs... cough... my allergy attacks once again...

... to figure out that we LSCS officers had an inauguration from 6 to 7 PM. I wasn't able to attend the meeting, but I was sure glad when Rochelle told me that the committee I signed up for was the committee I got accepted into.

Finally, a load taken off from my back. Anyone care for a little O2 Jam? If none I would just take my time to enjoy the anime that I've downloaded...

Download in progress:

1. Zoids Chaotic Century 37 - 48 2.058 GB 80.19 % complete
2. Star Ocean EX (Joanie kasi!) 5.724 GB 68.21 % complete

Faster... I'm waiting...

This is the reason I hate DSL connections... So slow... especially for gigabyte downloads...

If in case you were wondering, my computer has 360 GB of disk space.

That's all. Short post (for real) isn't it...

PS. Read my title... and check the number of times you attempted to read...

Recapitulation

Today's post is short. I mean it... (especially the introductory part)

I woke up, did my things, and was driven to UN Avenue Station by my mom.

I rode the LRT and alighted at Quirino Avenue, where I dropped off.

Arriving at Gokongwei Hall, I saw that I was still 5 minutes early for my class. I bought 2 sheets of bond paper, and, arriving at my classroom, I gave one to Vero.

We had our INTRPRG Exam 1 - Part 2. We swapped classrooms because our room was too hot. Don't ask me any more details...

My friends accompanied me and I bought clothes for PERSEF. We went to the bookstore and bought test booklets for Monday's ALGTRIG examination. We then ate at La Casita...

(I'll start being more detailed now; anyway, this would still be a short post...)

I met Rominick for the second time at the same location...

My record on how many times I ate at La Casita (consecutively) was already broken, but now I am starting a new record... This is my third consecutive time to eat Sisig with Egg at La Casita...

I joined the others in watching Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, well, even after watching it for a few times already...

We had our ALGTRIG class. We submitted our test booklets... Next...

Our SCIENVB class today was pretty much interesting. I learned the answers to the following today...

• In what direction does the earth rotate? Why?
• What is the English translation for 'mamon?'
• How do marine organisms often reproduce?
• How do ocean currents form?

One thing I've remembered is EAC (East Australian Current)... Sounds familiar? Our professor then showed us two clips of Finding Nemo...

Sir Rene was absent... A substitute professor served as his proxy...

I went to GUM & MUG... I was surprised to see Pitto gone again. Now where did he run off to again?

I went home, ate dinner, watched a little television, and worked on my blog.

My post ends here. S-15, Good luck on our INTRICT test tomorrow!

Aujourd'hui

The nasty Shirlina forced me to accompany her in trying out for the tennis varsity at La Salle...

Well, yesterday, I should have warmed-up a little in Reina Regente Tennis Club; however, things didn't turn out my way...

I planned to practice this morning at the same location. Unfortunately, I woke up late and was unable to do so...

Sigh, what kind of massacre would happen later on?

My tennis racquet was at GUM & MUG, so I decided to go there... I thought my mom was going to drive me to La Salle... She won't... Then I thought that it would be a hassle if I brought along my tennis racket with me. Oh well...

Shirlina called up my mom (or it may be the other way around)... I asked her if she can lend me her racket. She agreed...

(Read Shirlina's blog for more information...)

I rode the LRT and dropped off at Vito Cruz, because it is nearer to our designated meeting place (McDonald's). I entered the place, hoping that Shirlina was just sitting in a place where I can easily find her. One more thing, I found out that my sim card has malfunctioned (and to think I left my other one at home). Anxiously, I joined the queue and lined up to order food.

I was deliberately discombobulated. With Shirlina nowhere in sight, I wondered how we would ever meet. Well, perhaps she had already left several minutes ago. No, she just won't. Oh, I was so confused that time...

In the nick of time, Raisa arrived. A light buld (idea) flashed inside my head. I thought of borrowing Raisa's cell phone to contact my mom. She could then contact Shirlina. No, exclude that idea. I'm not a pachiderm...

Finally, I got to 'enjoy' my lunch - french fries. I still couldn't find Shirlina...

After eating, I thought of going to EGI Taft Tower to buy a functional SIM card for myself to contact my mom... Still, EGI was far from McDonald's... Anyway, I left...

*knock* *knock*

There she is!

Let's skip the conversation part...

We went to Rizal Memorial Sports Plaza to try out. The coach told us to warm-up... and so we did...

"Ha ha. Kapal ng mukha natin. Beginners nagtratryout para sa varsity."

We (many of us) looked like amateurs. Some were pretty good though...

We didn't expect that the warm-ups were already being judged by the coach...

Results next week. I don't care if I got accepted or not... but if in case... like Dtiff... maybe I'll be lucky and get exempted from my CWTS class (and maybe, our FWDANCE PE) next term...

It was 2:40... and we (Shirlina and I) were already late for our next class.

It was 3:15 when I arrived at my classroom...

"Nag-dota ka noh?"
"Addict!"
"First time!"
"Mon, bakit ka late?"

Our professor, who never cared at our class attendance, only chuckled...

Eventually, Lou and Dianne were the only ones who knew that I went to try out for the tennis team...

15 minutes of ALGTRIG - I quickly copied eerything on the board... After some time, we were dismissed... Blockmates, I wouldn't be late without a valid reason.

I was the first to arrive at our classroom for INTRICT again. We listened to a group reporting and was dismissed.

I met Shirlina at the LRT Station... We rode the train and went to Bambang Station, where we alighted. I invited her to join me but she declined my offer...

On the way to GUM & MUG... I was finally able to meet my favorite Chinese teacher in elementary - 張老師, who was accompanied by 劉老師... They asked me where I am studying and what course I was taking up...

I told them I was studying at La Salle and I was studing ICTM (Information and Communications Technology - somewhat related to computer science). After some more chit-chats, we parted ways...

My, am I glad that Pitto was back in his home again. The furry creature needed some consoling. I also took pictures of Van, and I'm going to post them here on one of my next posts, hopefully...

Lisa arrived and asked me if *ahem* Shirlina had left a few things with me...

I told her that *ahem* I invited Shirlina to come over, but she refused...

"Sayang pagod ko," she said.

Well... I went home, had my flute lessons, and worked on my blog.

That's all. "Short" post, isn't it?

Scintillation

Anyone ever noticed how weird my blog titles are? Well...

My post today hopes eradicate all those sceptic typecasts you may (or may not) have made about my blog...

Firstly, I plan to keep this post short by using bulleted lists instead of those circumloquacious paragraphs to decribe what happened today.

Well, let me start...

I woke up and was driven by my mom today to La Salle. Since we had an exam in INTRPRG today, I felt quite nervous... The test will occupy 20% of our final grade... Separated into two parts... One today... One on Thursday...

There I go again... Oh well...

• I was almost late today because of my mom; I was just in time for my exam...
• Our INTRPRG exam (Part One) consisted of 4 numbers... Number 1 and 2 was about flowcharting... 1 - Fibonacci Sequence... 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34

Guess I'll insert a paragraph at this point... When I was in fourth year high school, our computer teacher gave us an extra work... If anyone could submit to him a C program of the Fibonacci Sequence (from 1 to 20), he'll give him or her the higest possible score in that particular grading period.

Well, I was the first (maybe even the only one) to submit my work to my teacher... Here's my program...

#include
main()
{
int i;
int f[7];
f[0]=1;
f[1]=1;
printf("These are the elements of the Fibonacci sequence from the numbers 1 to 20: \n");
for(i=2;i<=6;i+=1)
{
f[i]=f[i-1]+f[i-2];
}
for(i=0;i<=6;i+=1)
{
printf("The %d element",i+1);
printf(" is %d. \n",f[i]);
}
}

Mr. V asked me if I used arrays... Yes, I told him... Guess there were more solutions to this program...

Well, a few weeks ago, I was practicing Java programming at home. With nothing in mind, I decided to convert this C program into Java code. Unfortunately, I was unable to do so...

The moment I saw Number 1, I was struck with a sudden tinge of fear. Uh oh...

"I've practiced this before... I've done this before in C... It shouldn't be difficult..."

Unfortunately, our professor didn't teach us about arrays yet, so I tried to think of another formula...

It wasn't as difficult as I thought, well... It was pretty challenging for a fact, that was why I did all the other numbers first before moving to this one...

My program, when converted to Java code, looks like this...

public class Fibonacci
{
public static void main (String[] args)
{
int N1 = 1, N2 = 1;
System.out.print (N1 + " " + N2 + " ");
while (N1 != 34)
{
N1 = N1 + N2;
System.out.print (N1 + " ");
if (N1 != 34)
{
N2 = N1 + N2;
System.out.print (N2 + " ");
}
}
}
}

Screen output: 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34

Sigh... this is turning out to be a long post again...

• Number 3 was the only programming problem in our quiz. It looked rather easy, but it caused me and many of my blockmates a lot of trouble...
• Number 4 was tracing. Acceptable enough...

Lunchtime...

• I invited my friends to Yuchengco Hall first to get our MooMedia Track Cards, but Ms. Cell Phone Addict was demanding enough to send us to the ranks of La Casita in Andrew Hall.
• I ordered Sisig with Egg (like what I ordered yesterday) and a cup of iced tea.
• The service of La Casita today was remarkably fast; the queue was quite the cause of upheaval though.
• I met Shirlina and Joyce for the second time at the exact place where they were seated yesterday. Rominick came into the scene afterwards.
• We did our ALGTRIG homeworks.

ALGTRIG class...

• Nothing commendable... as a matter of fact...

SCIENVB class...

• We listened to the report of the last group.
• Philip was so funny. He had to take over three (or was it four - Tricycle Driver, Teacher, Doctor, Reporter) roles... Impressive job!
• We evaluated our group members.

Dismissal time...

• We went to Yuchengco Lobby and got our track cards for MooMedia.
• I was sure glad that I got into the Media Productions committee! I slept at 5:00 AM the day when I was working on my submission.
• I went to the LRT Station and rode the train to Bambang.

Inside the train...

• House of Praise
• "Hi SM... Bye SM..."
• Lawton Park and Ride
• "Hi NBS-A; bye NBS-A. Hi NBS-B; bye NBS-B."
• Crazy me...

Outside Uno High School...

• I met Eunice along the way to GUM & MUG - fourth Unean classmate I met today.
• I saw many friends from Uno...

Speaking of Uno... Every time I see elementary students of Uno...

I may be the reason why they are wearing the uniforms they are wearing today...

Ha ha. Before, Uneans in elementary wore the usual white polo shirt and khaki shorts... Well, my mom (or I) requested that I be allowed to wear long pants because I have skin allergy...

(Understand now, blockmates?)

The school administration permitted me to wear my proposed attire, but it unexpectedly brought about a lot of drawbacks...

1. Many people mocked and ridiculed me because I looked like a high school repeater.
2. It took my classmates some time to understand, for a fact, that I was wearing my clothes for a special reason.
3. Within the span of adaption, I felt left out.

Realizing the problem, the school administration executed some major changes. The next year, the elementary uniform was changed to what it is today - Polo shirt and navy blue pants.

That was the history of Uno High School's Elementary uniform revamp.

At GUM & MUG...

• I tended my rabbits.
• I provoked my father's pet snake.
• I observed my pet turtle as he merrily waded his feet along the crystal clear waters.
• I played the piano.

On the way home...

• I slept the whole journey.

Evening...

• I ate dinner.
• I went to my resident hair salon and had a haircut.
• I worked on my blog.

Presently...

• Time to say goodbye!

Hope you've enjoyed reading today's post!

Sesquipidalian Verbosity

Well, this is my second post for today...

Today is, in fact, Monday. July 17 in the year two thousand and six.

Ha ha! What am I saying? Oh anyway... I'm quite in a good mood...

Morning... My mom drove me to UN Avenue Station... After alighting at Quirino Station, I walked my way to La Salle...

Again... The same things over and over again... You must be bored... I'll try keep this post short... I'll try not to lose control...

We had our PE classes... We were taught Formation Form 2 and Self Defense 4 and 5. Since Lou was absent, I lost my training partner... (Treisha became Dianne's partner) The coach / professor became my partner. It seemed like I was still had many flaws in my defensive movements. I'm glad our professor corrected me... If not...

Joy and I went to Speed Bytes in EGI Taft Tower to make some improvisations in our INTRICT reaction paper. While she was not yet around, I was infuriated by the person beside me and those behind my back. They were playing Neopets, and they think they're so good. If I had the chance, I'll show them. I'll beat them to a pulp. Do not mess with me and my Kiko!

I texted Dianne and asked her where she was eating. (Lou went home... so I didn't bother texting her...) No reply. I fell into a state of confusion...

I decided to enter Andrew. I was greeted with a "Hello!" by Karl. What a coincidence.

Someone who looked familiar was sitting at the bench talking to another person. It was Richard! My! The second Unean whom I met...

I decided to go upstairs to visit our classroom. It was still occupied. Oh well, guess I have to eat lunch by myself again...

That's when Dianne replied.

Tp0s n po kme kmain...D2 la casita

I wonder how people get used to text lingo...

I arrived at La Casita, and I saw my blockmates fleeting from their seats... Nooo... Off they went. Some volunteered to accompany me. I declined their offer.

"Thanks but no thanks."

I ordered Sisig with Egg. While waiting for the queue, Bea and some others returned and offered their services again...

"Kinokonsensiya kami ni Dianne..."
"Di na bale. Ako na mag-isa."
"Sure mo a?"
"Sure!"

I ate... by myself...

After eating, someone suddenly stood in front of me. It was Joyce.

"Shirlina, nasa likod mo lang si Solomon o!"
"Shirlina?!"

Oh, hi! I met the third and fourth Uneans of the day. We went up the stairs to the eighth floor... Their classes start at one. Mine starts at 2:30... Oh well...

I went beck to my classroom. It was already vacated. Totally dark and empty, I waited outside to see who would be the second to arrive...

Yna... I told her totay was the 'feared day.' The day when the results of the LSCS officer recruitment would be announced...

"Judgement day!"
"Natatakot ako..."
"Sa tingin ko di ako mapapasok. Di ko na papaakyatin expectations ko..."

Cecille arrived...

As time passed by... a few more entered...

It was strange for our classroom... It was 2:00 and our classroom wasn't even a quarter full...

"Probably doing their reaction papers," I said.

ALGTRIG - Our dreaded test papers were given, and I got this drastically low score of 89%. Overall, that's (91% + 89%) / 2 = 90%...

And I was hoping for a grade of 4.0...

Still, plenty of time to catch up...

Anyway, I was surprised to see Lou again...

INTRICT - I was the first one in class, and my professor commended me for that. The groups who would be reporting today were quite unprepared... and since most of my classmates arrived late today, our professor lost her cool...

It began raining... and I was forced to stick with my friends. Lou explained that she went home to get her left ID... She skipped ALGTRIG classes (Our professor never cared about class attendance.) just to validate her ID today. Very wise decision...

I met Raymond and Diana at Bambang Station... the fifth and sixth Uneans I've met today...

I went to GUM & MUG, took care of my pets, did some programming exercises, and went home with my mom (and our helpers)...

I was waiting for the 'message.'

My Yahoo! Messenger developed some sort of problems because of memory overload...

I received a Friendster testimonial from Joanie...

I worked on my post meant for yesterday...

After closing some programs, I tried opening Yahoo! Messenger again...

It finally worked.

I saw Yna's status message and was a little bit assured of a good outcome...

All's well that ends well. I was accepted as one of the Assistant Vice Presidents of La Salle Computer Society. All right! My hard work and efforts finally paid off!

Ciao!

Syzygy

Sigh... It looks like I wasn't able to post again yesterday...

Well anyway, I was in a deep slumber just before Nicolo called up one of our housemaids at home to wake me up. Geez...

I was pretty surprised when Nicolo voluntarily wanted to go to church today; I was even more astonished when Nicolo said Nikko was also going to attend our church meeting...

We were quite late when we arrived at CGC (Christian Gospel Center). Nikko was waiting for us at the fifth floor. The mass commenced...

It was not a common sight to see Nikko and Nicolo continually "insulting" each other all the time. They say they do it every time they meet just for fun. Weird...

After the church meeting ended, I told them about my undecided schedule for today. Well, it was Eric's birthday and he invited me and my mom for lunch. Initially, they thought of returning home, but I was able to turn the table and change their minds when my mom strategically decided to leave the two in Robinson's Place Ermita while we partake on our sumptuous lunches...

Nicolo and Nikko dropped off at Robinson's Place and designated Mercury Drug as our meeting place later on. We went to Emerald Garden...

The moment we arrived, I was pretty amazed and at the same time shocked when I saw my former teachers - Eric had invited them to his party. Oh wow! I never thought about inviting teachers before...

Let's see... There was Mr. Herman Ong, Ms. Anneline Ang, Mr. Joey Villarinte, Mrs. Polly Rivera, 楊老師 (aka Soriano), 吳老師 (aka Baba), and 黃老師 (aka Uling). I also saw some of my former classmated there... Tara, William...

There was also Jamie, Kenneth, Stephanie, and the rest...

I talked with Mr. Ong for a short while...

黃老師跟我說, "阿呀!你為什麼遲到？＂
我想回答，但因為時間的關係，我無法做這回事．．．

You may be wondering what that means...

My Chinese history teacher asked me why I was late...
I wanted to reply, but because of time constraint, I was unable to do so...

Finally, we went back to our car... (And I was hoping to ask Mrs. Rivera about part-time teaching in Uno...)

We went to Robinson's Place and reunited with the two...

(Now... Thomasians... don't be offended... We do this for fun...)

Our group was complete: Atenean, Lasallian, and the other school. Nicolo ought to visit the 99 peso shop; he can only afford to buy the things there. Nikko said that Nicolo would melt if he entered those classy stalls like Lacoste, and continually tells Nicolo...

"Excuse me please..."
"You're such a whore."

He says that was the most common 'insult' in Ateneo...

Eventually, he changed the word 'hore' into two different translations. One for UST, and the other I don't really know...

Well, after visiting AstroVision (looking for Megaman Battle Network 6 original version), National Book Store (shopping for a pRO Lighthalzen installer), Octagon (browsing for television tuners), Data Blitz (viewing original MAGIX Video Edit Pro software), and Nokia (to be hypnotized by all those expensive cell phones), we arrived at G-Box, the one and only amusement center in Robinson's Place Ermita, as well as the home of Dance Maniax First Mix...

I bought 4 tokens for us to play... Eventually, I purchased 6 more.

"Ayaw ko maglaro dito... bubulok ako." Nikko complained.

He played eventually. And really, our skills deteriorated... a bit. We lost once... There are many reasons why:

1. The laser sensors were not functioning at 100% potential.
2. The first and second player screen was attached to each other, unlike in Dance Maniax Second Mix.
3. I hate Dance Maniax First Mix! It had a totally different GUI (graphical user interface).

After waiting some more, we met my mom at The Handyman, anf after claiming the bulky table at Blims, we set for a new exciting journey...

NQ: "Pauwi na tayo diba?"

SL: "Nope. Papunta tayo sa favorite mall ni Atenean."

NQ: "Oh no! Gusto ko na umuwi!"

NT: "Di pwede. Sasama ka!"

NT: "Ay alam mo ba, yung mga blockmates ko, di nila alam yung SM Mall of Asia. May nagtanong nga sa akin e: "

'Bukas na ba yan?'
Huh? Tagal na...
'Ilang beses ka na nakapunta?'
Mga 6 times na.
'OMG!'

SL: Ako nga nung half day lang kami dapat pupunta kami sa SM Mall of Asia e, kaso lang... Anyway, napansin ko na mas common sa kanila ang SM kaysa Robinsons..."

NT: "Yuck!"

NQ: "Yabang!"

NT: "Excuse me please..."

SL: "Pero syempre you can't exclude Glorietta, Greenbelt, et cetera..."

We arrived at SM Mall of Asia Entertainment Mall. My mom volunteered to wait at the car for us. We told her to come with us, but she insisted that we go on without her... Oh well...

We entered Q Power Station...

NT: "Hay salamat, may matinong Dance Maniax na rin."

I loaded my VIP Card with 200 pesos and ended up regretting...

SL: "Marami pa palang natira sa card ko!"

There was a short queue at the machine... We waited, then the first match commenced...

Was it Nicolo and me or Nicolo and Nikko?

Anyway, who cares? The best match would be mine and Nikko's.

When we played, the evil Nikko deceived Nicolo into choosing Quickening Wild mode as a song. We both lost...

When the two of them were playing, I taunted Nicolo...

SL: "Ay, matatalo na si taga-other school..."

NT: "Aba, nagsisimula na rin a."

We played with Nikko... Well, I guess he was practicing too...

We went to TimeZone and I treated them to the Mad Wave Motion Simulator. Woohoo! It was quite expensive, though...

I bought a Lychee Ice at Quickly; Nicolo and Nikko went to Giordano...

We went to Lacoste. The poor person from the other school was raving about Nikko's 'counterfeit' Lacoste shirt...

NT: "Excuse me please..."

Then we saw Nikko's shirt...

NT: "Yan yun sa akin o!"

NQ: "O sukat mo. Fake yun sa 'yo! Minighty bond mo lang yung crocodile."

NT: "Excuse me please. Nakakahiya ka. At di tumunog yung alarm, kaya original ito."

SL: "Sasabihin ng tao magnanakaw ka. He he!"

We looked for the 'zippered clothing,' but was unable to find one...

We returned to Q Power Station and played our final few games of Dance Maniax. Rank S!

Would you look at the time. It was late already, and my mom was telling me to return as soon as possible.

That was my eighth time to visit SM Mall of Asia...

We drove home...

After a series of school jokes and Nicolo puns, we arrived at Nicolo's place.
Goodbye Nicolo...

Nikko went to my house... After eating dinner, he downloaded and installed Google Earth onto my workstation, and after showing me the different notable locations in Metro Manila, he said farewell and left for home...

See you soon, I hope.

PS. Afterwards, my mom went to Eric's place and delivered the table we bought for him... Hope he appreciates it! Homework coming up!

Zugzwang

Another Saturday...

I have to wake up early for Clip 2006. This time, the topic was about Microsoft Excel, and boy, I'm bad at it...

Microsoft Excel... dates back to Year 2 in high school. (Imagine, we were just studying Microsoft Excel in Year 2, whereas students from other schools are already discussing about Flash and others...) I hated MS Excel because of the many formulas one is required to memorize (know to heart). Anyway...

I arrived at Gokongwei after a series of LRT and jeep rides. I looked around but nobody was around... I texted Rochelle and Yna...

"Where are you?"

No reply. Trying to look natural, I went up the stairs as calmly as I could...

I saw Apollo.

"Ummm..."
"Prospect ka diba?"
"Umakyat na ba sila?"
"Di pa. Nasa baba lang sila o nandito sa second floor."

I was relieved. I went down and occupied an empty bench near the Gokongwei lobby. I saw Rochelle approaching...

"Kanina ka pa lumilibot a. Alam ko itetext mo na ako nung linabas mo cell phone mo."
"Ha ha."
"Dadating ba kasama mo?"
"Baka malate daw, pero dadating siya."

She excused herself and went to sit with her friends.

I waited for the students to arrive as I mesmerized upon a notebook computer with a sketch of Kon (Bleach - the cute yellow doll) as desktop wallpaper. It took me some time to realize that Rochelle and the others are gone.

The students arrived at last. (They were 27 minutes late.) I escorted them to their respective classrooms and afterwards entered Gokongwei 302...

I seated beside Rochelle. Yna wasn't around yet. I received a message from her asking my whereabouts and such. I told her I was in the mentioned room and told her to come quickly. The discussion started...

This kid I was tending to didn't look like he needed my elp so I just remained silent and watch him do his stuff... I guess I enjoyed teaching my former student more than today's...

Yna arrived. When I mentioned about the RagnaReunion happenning in Portal today, my student reacted positively.

"Kuya, nagraragnarok ka rin?"

I chuckled when Yna exclaimed, "Nagraragnarok ka?! O?"

The server race began. I was in Chaos. Edmer was in Sarah, while Yna was in Loki...

We took our lunch break... We couldn't find Rochelle anywhere...

I expressed to Yna how I wanted to go to Portal for the RagnaReunion. We had lunch at Tapa King because it was located near Portal. And so... we ate...

We rushed to Portal afterwards. Wow! The place was full of posters and ads of Ragnarok and RagnaReunion. We rushed upstairs...

There was a booth in front. Sign ups for Ragna Quest and BTAX (whatever that is)... Many people were signing up for Ragna Quest, so my curiosity raged...

I asked the personnel (the GMs) about the Ragna Quest...

"Kailangan magform kayo ng team of 3 members. Tapos magpapakita kayo sa amin ng isang unused 50 peso level-up card. Pagkatapos bibigyan namin kayo ng map at 500 (imitation) zeny. Papalibutin nyo ang buong Vito Cruz..."

Wow! And I thought the quest would be done online...

How I wanted to join... I asked her...

"Kailan ho simula 'tong Ragna Quest?"
"Ngayon nagsisimula na..."

Oh no. It was 15 minutes to one, and only Yna was with me. There were in-game prizes and cash prizes at stake, and they made me want to participate more; however, we had our priorities...

Oh, how I hoped Rochelle was with us... Joining may be impossible, but getting the map (for remembrance) would be nice... Sadly, there was person we can rely upon, and I went back brokenheartedly...

10 more minutes. Nikko wants me to buy him 100 e-points. Maybe later...

My mind went berserk. Ask Yna about it. Period.

Anyway, we went back to teaching. This time, we went to room 304 and met my former students. Hello again!

"Kuya! Kayo ulit!"

From that on, I enjoyed teaching again. My students were very smart, so I taught them advanced lessons again... Ha ha!

Formulas like MIN and MAX and RAND() and RANK and so on and so forth...

Then the test... again. My students were given the test a little later than usual because of the lack of writing materials, but in the end, they did a good job. One got 21 and the other got 17 (over 26)...

Well, we were dismissed. Yna was compassionate enough to accompany me to Portal again, preferably not to suffer another round of sorrow. (Well, I believe she was anticipating for band to play...) Suddenly, I saw Cecille...

My face brightened. This may be the answer to my prayers.

"Pwede ka sumama?"
"Sumama saan?"
"Sa Portal."
"Saan yun?"
"Sa tabi ng Yellow Cab; sa harap ng La Salle."
"Bakit? Ano gagawin mo doon."
"May RagnaReunion."
"Ano naman yun?"

Sigh, explaining the details were harder than I thought...

Fortunately, Yna came out of the rest room.

"Gusto ni Mon na sumama ka sa Portal kasi kailangan ng tatlong tao para sa gustong saliin niya para makakuha siya ng map."

"A ok. Di pa naman ako uuwi..."
"So sasama ka?"
"Ok lang."

All right! Our team was formed.

I told them to wait for me as I went to EGI Taft Tower to buy my 50 level-up card and Nikko's e-points... There were also signs posted around EGI...

We headed to Portal. The place was jammed. The booth was more organized. The food was served and the crowds were increasing in number...

"May freebies kayong makukuha kapag nag-sign kayo ng survey..."

How can I resist. I told my two blockmates to sign too...

We arrived at a point where you are required to write your username, guild, and highest level character... It was not a problem with me. Hissi was my strongest character since vaudeville (or rather, since I started playing Ragnarok)... Yna and Cecille had problems...

Yna told me to lend her "my other account" (Shirlina's). Cess, in turn borrowed Yna's account... Hmmm... I wonder...

"Pili kayo kung ano dito gusto nyo..."
"Kasali ba ito sa freebies?"
"Oo."

I can't believe it. I asked Yna's and Cess's opinions...

"Syempre kukunin ko yung CD."

What a choice! Stationery and Licenced CD. Which one would you choose?

I asked the GMs, if the Ragna Quest was still ongoing yet...

"Meron pa, pero bilisan nyo na dapat."

We signed the form...

"May 50-peso card na ho kayo?"

I gave her the card which I just bought...

She stamped my hand, handed me an envelope, and "rolled" a strip of authentication paper onto my wrist...

I completed my mission successfully.

Aside from the Ragna Quest and the BTAX, there were also other activities in store... There was this 'Beat the LU RokStar' challenge... and many more...

I opened the envelope and found these things inside...

A Ragna Quest Map - for a larger version, click here...

Ragna Quest Rules - click to see...

and 500 zeny!

We were also given a name tag each...

Suddenly, my eyes feasted upon what was written on the Ragna Quest Rules page. The Lighthalzen CD was for sale...

I asked the GMs where this CD (or rather the Mastersmith's Kariton) can be found... Long story...

"Adik ka talaga." Yna told me.
"Nah... Isang character lang malakas sa akin."

The moment I came down, a GM was announcing about joining an activity (I wasn't able to hear clearly what it was...)... Visit Tristan III... receive a card which not a single pRO player has ever acquired yet... worth more than 7.5 billion zennies!

"Oo! Ganyan talaga yan kamahal! Kaya pumunta na kayo sa kabila..."

WOW! 7.5 BILLION ZENNIES! That's a lot of money! (Converted to Philippine peso... er... count that for yourselves... Before, my friends sell me 40 pesos per million zeny... The price dropped to 20 per M... compute for that...)

20 pesos* (7,500,000,000 zennies /per 1,000,000 zennies) = 150,000 pesos

Wow! Rich!

Just by looking at my blockmates, I could see that they really wanted to go home... Sigh... Broken dreams...

It started raining. I did my best to protect my Ragna Quest Kit from the ferocious drops of rainwater as I rushed to the LRT station reluctantly... I wanted to return; however, with only one person (which is myself), what can I do? I went to GUM & MUG painstakingly...

... and then arrived home... Shirlina was online, and I told her about my day. Too depressing. I'm glad Joanie was there to alleviate asome of my hard feelings by playing O2 Jam with me...

I played with her until she reached level 3; I reached level 18. She had to go afterwards...

My second aunt (father's side) visited us this evening and showed us some pictures of their glorious peregrinations. I burned them onto a blank compact disc...

Even until now... one question remains in my mind...

What if I tried going there by myself... Would I be able to attain that which I am aspiring for? Perhaps... Maybe... Hopefully...

Nonetheless...

If I went there and tried my best... I would instead say...

If only I had said this or that instead of just...

(derived from a text message I had received a few weeks ago)

Anyway, if you were able to reach this point, (of course, reading from the top), then let me thank you for being patient with me. People say that my posts are too long, but what can I do? This is all for you readers out there!

By the way, I have short term memeoy loss... It's really surprising how I can get to remember all those minute details happening in my daily life...

So, thank you for viewing my first pictopost (picture post) and have a nice day!

PS. Be sure to come back tomorrow!

Wild Goose Chase

It was 11 in the morning when I woke up because of the beckonings of my father. Our classes (or orientation) starts at 2:30 PM.

"I mustn't be late." I told myself.

After eating breakfast, I took the time and enjoyed playing a little Ragnarok Online and some O2 Jam. I was to take lunch at our store, but circumstances compelled me to eat at home...

I proceeded to GUM & MUG. Suddenly, someone came from behind and grabbed hold of the side car. My heart pounded ferociously. A holdup!

The side car driver scolded the prankster. I was still in a state of shock so I listened to my iPod. Was the person following us? Guess not. What a hoax!

I arrived at our store 8 minutes and 36 seconds after. My 'second lunch' was in front of me. Xiao Lum Pao, my favorite chinese dimsum! All right!

We headed to the LRT station munches after...

Zoom! Off to La Salle. I looked at my watch. I was almost late. I thought of riding a jeepney from Quirino to Andrew; however, there was no jeep to be found... Briskwalking time...

I met Raisa at the queue in front of the elevator. We chatted. I wondered why she wasn't in a hurry. My question was answered when I saw the time - 10 minutes 'till class. She told me that our orientation would only take 10 minutes.

"What?!"
"Oo nga e. Tapos late yung orientor o..."

How right she was!

While the orientors haven't arrived at the classroom yet, I played "Jack-Palo" with some of my friends (as well as some unfair ones... guess who I am talking aboout...) I terribly regretted not bringing my german-english list of words to class...

Anyway, I saw some blockmates who had already acquired their LSCS IDs already... I wanna get mine too...

The orientors arrived 30 minutes late. After letting us cut (or fill up) some papers, we were dismissed.

Upon entering Gokongwei, I grabbed four (I thought I got only three...) copies of The Lasallian and then went to the ID claiming station. Louise (from Uno batch dunno) was there and she said hi to me. I waited for my ID. It wasn't with her nor her peers. I told them to check once agin. Again, it was nowhere to be found. Waaa...

I went up to my classroom and asked Yna if she had already gotten hold of her ID. She said we would get our IDs after July 17 (depends if we become officers or not). Sheesh, all my futile efforts. A chasing after the wind...

We listened to the report of Group 5...

We were dismissed. I gave Yna a copy of the newspaper and grabbed another one for myself. After meeting with Joy in front of the Student's Nook, I set for our store...

Now a miraculous thing happened. I rushed to the LRT station and was sad that the train doors were already closing and I couldn't enter. After a few seconds, the doors slid open. I took the chance and entered the narrow passageway, and boy I succeded. (If I even paused for a second, I would have been crushed to death by now...)

That was my first time to ride in the backmost compartment of the train. I looked outside and lo beyond... the world beyond human perception... (I didn't know what I had been writing at this point.)

I arrived at GUM & MUG. Uno (while the other schools had) didn't have classes today, as expected of my alma mater! I heard a kid whistling, and in front of him was my turtle. His eyes were feasted at another direction... A white mouse. Pitto! There you are!

I tried to catch him but he was unexpectedly faster than usual. I informed my mom...

I saw Pitto once again and I had him trapped in four directions. He jumped and rushed out for refuge. Not again!

By the time we were about to go home, I took a "cage" (the electric fan's head) and waited for him to come out. I waited and waited but there was no responce from my pet. Sadly we had to go home...

I wasn't able to retrieve back my pet but I was sure glad that he was safe and sound. I believe that Bitto is currently somewhere in our store merrily scampering around and enjoying himself.

I'll definitely get you back, Bitto. Until then!

Force Majeure

Sigh, it's really saddening...

Just now, another breaking news flashed out of nowhere...

Palace Suspends Classes, Number-

Coding in Metro Manila

The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Department of Education (DepEd) on Friday suspended classes in all levels in Metro Manila due to security reasons.

The Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) also suspended the number-coding scheme in Metro Manila.

DepEd Secretary Fe Hidalgo over an interview with ABS-CBN's Magandang Umaga Pilipinas said classes were suspended both in private and public schools in Metro Manila.

CHED Representative Amelia Diglete announced the suspension of classes both in state and private colleges and universities over an interview with DZMM.

Diglete said CHED Secretary Carlito Puno has yet to announce if Saturday classes would also be suspended.

Suspension of classes in the tertiary level is also restricted to the National Capital Region, she said.

The Philippine National Police raised the red alert over Metro Manila on Thursday in anticipation of demonstrations for the next two days.

The PNP said that the National Capital Region Police Office has deployed more than 1,000 officers to monitor rallies and implement security guidelines to ensure peace and order.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), meanwhile, gathered an additional 300 soldiers to augment crowd-control units for the 20th anniversary of the EDSA People Power Revolution.

The report said that the augmentation force was pulled out from the Air Force, Army and Navy. The soldiers arrived at the AFP headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo Thursday afternoon.

Hmmm... so it wasn't the typhoon that's causing all these problems...

So... does that mean there will be no classes again tomorrow?

It doesn't! Within a few hours, another news broke out...

Arroyo: Classes resume in all

levels in Metro, Regions 3, 4

Still suspended in Regions 1, 2, and CAR

By Joel Guinto
INQ7.net
Last updated 04:09pm (Mla time) 07/13/2006

PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has announced the resumption of classes at all levels in Metro Manila, and in Regions 3 and 4 on Friday but said those in Regions 1 and 2 and at the Cordillera Administrative Region would remain suspended.

The President made the announcement Thursday during her visit at the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) in Camp Aguinaldo.

Classes in all levels were suspended in these areas following heavy rains caused by Tropical Storm “Florita.”

“Florita,” which became a typhoon as it headed towards Taiwan, left at least seven people dead and three missing.

Worthless newcasters! Don't they know how to do their jobs properly?

PS. I just hope nothing bad would happen on Saturday...