My Socially Constructed Reality

The VJ HUNT 2006 at AUF was a success ! The winners are the VJs from the College of Education and College of Allied Medical Professions. Special award was given to Louie Roque, a second year BS Nursing student. Louie was dubbed as the BREAKTHROUGH VJ in AUF! CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF YOU! And of course, the president of SAMASKOM just did a great job! Megan Leung deserves a thousand smilies and a hug! It's not easy to organize a campus-wide program and a show worthy of national TV exposure. Yep! The VJ HUnt 2006 will be featured at WAZZ UP! WAZZ UP! -- it's a primetime show on Studio 23. The RTV class also worked really hard for this program! Thanks to all! And of course, THANKS to the judges : DJ NIcole of GVFM (the leading FM station in the region), Sheiden of ABS-CBN(Pinoy Big Brother segment producer), and VJ NIcole (a certified VJ and a student coordinator at the Assumption College).

Congratulations to the world boxing guru of the PHILIPPINES ! Pacquiao gave Erik Morales his first TKO! Pacquiao is now a hero in this country! What else can I say? I've read so much about Manny Pacquiao. He has been on the headlines for several days now. But nobody else deserves publicity but a champion who can make this country proud. Hurray for the PACMAN!

I remember, we (Dan, Viv, James, and I) went to KLOWNZ Angeles last January 13. Well, what can I say? Allan K and Ai-ai de las Alas were both good entertainers. They had so many punchlines. I remember Ai-ai making fun of the different compositions of Lito Camo -- the composer of several hit songs in the Philippines. And Lito Camo himself (who was also there) was also making fun of his own masterpieces. I remember Ai-ai making fun of the idea of not having a steady boyfriend or a no-nonsense husband. I remember Allan K making fun of his being gay. Both hosts were making fun of this three-letter word: SEX. Well, what do I expect anyway? That was a comedy bar. And `sex' is a universal topic. After the show at 3:30 a.m., I realized I won't be coming back there. I'm not comfortable with the atmosphere. All the people were laughing and maliciously smiling and talking while looking at the hosts who asked some members of the audience to participate by making themselves funny ...

One of my students came to me this morning to ask if I could possibly change the book I require them to read this midterm period. He said his dad, who is a pastor, doesn't want him to read the book (THE DA VINCI CODE) because he might get brainwashed by the content. His dad said the book was "anti-Christ" and therefore not advisable for students to read. But I didn't buy that idea. We are discussing ASSERTIONS, MANNERS OF VERIFICATION, FALLACIES, and CRITICAL THINKING this semi-final period. Reading the book does not mean believing the author. After all, Dan Brown's book is more of a fiction than reality. The purpose of reading the novel is not just for my students to learn how to read, but for them to learn how to be critical of what they are reading. They have to think that ASSERTIONS made by Dan Brown in his book should, by all means, be verified before accepting them. It is true, though, that THE DA VINCE CODE will test your faith in what you call JESUS CHRIS...

I wish I could blog today. I shouldn't. I need to finish the computation of prelim grades which are due tomorrow. Well,there'ssomethingIrealizedtoday.Ican'tfacethegenius.icouldn'texplainwhy.

My 21-year-old sister will be married to a British young man on January 30! Everyone in the family is excited... The sad thing is, she'll be going to UK after getting married. That's good for her, of course. But I'll surely miss her. Steffi will also miss her because they're actually like sisters. They enjoy each other's company despite age gap. But no worry because we can chat online. What's the broadband for? :)

my SWEET Steffie and my DARLING Charles

I'd like to post this note I read from the front cover of Stradmore notebook owned by my sister: JUST BECAUSE I'M A WOMAN doesn't mean I CAN'T DRIVE A FAST CAR, BE A GOOD BOSS, or SMOKE A CIGAR. BEING STRONG DOESN'T MEAN I'M NOT FEMININE, and it certainly doesn't make me a bitch. (note: photo from www.pixelgirlpresents.com)

I am very young in the teaching profession – I’m only over six years serving as a college instructor here in Central Luzon. Oh well, of course I do love teaching… I love teaching students who love to learn. But I get turned off when I encounter students who, at times, don’t care about what you teach them. There are many of them. And until now, I couldn’t believe what my very own eyes have seen. Well, welcome to reality. I am going to open some world of reality for you. I want to know if you can “chew” it. Reality 1: Teachers can’t please all students. As an instructor, I don’t intend to please students though I realized that a good rapport between the students and the teacher is necessary in creating an atmosphere conducive to learning. So what do I do in order to at least pretend to please them? The best thing I can do, I guess, is to wear a smile upon entering the classroom so that they would think that I woke up on the right side of the bed, only for them to find out that the smile ...

TO DIE IS TO LIVE It was exactly 12 midnight. I was wearing my favorite pajamas . Beside me were a mug of coffee, a steno pad, and my favorite purple Pilot ballpoint. My left hand was still holding the book which I just borrowed from a colleague. I didn’t notice the tears rolling down my chee ks. I was staring at my husband who was playing computer games. I couldn’t help thinking: “I should treasure every minute of my life with my family.” Then I closed my eyes and when I opened them again, I looked at the pocketbook I was holding with my left hand: Tuesdays with MORRIE. I couldn’t believe it. I needed to read such a great book f or me to be reminded of life’s greatest lessons. I was really moved by this novel written by Mitch Albo m. There were points in the story where I laughed, but in most parts, I was trying to absorb what he was saying. I could imagine myself being there in the room where Mitch was interviewing Morrie. (image placeholder) pix from http://www.albom.com/ Once in...

Sometimes, losing something means getting a better and more fulfilling alternative. I just lost my weblog. I started my first blog in June 2005 and ended its life in December. It was my personal decision to delete my entire blog. It was infected not by virus but by people who don’t have any idea what my first blog meant to me. What is a blog for me? My blog is my outlet. I don’t talk too much in public. I reserve the right to keep quiet especially if I am not comfortable talking with the people in front of me. My blog is the place where I am able to freely express what I feel and share how things are going on in my life. There is just no substitute for a blog like this. Not even a face-to-face communication can be more fulfilling than blogging. My first blog… …became my witness in almost all my struggles for the second half of the year. …contained the most inspiring reflection papers I wrote for my Philosophy courses. … knew how hardly I worked for the institution I am a par...

This Filipino rock star who was raised in Sydney, Australia, and now living in London really rocks! MIg Ayesa made it to the final three! Actually, he deserves to be the new lead singer of INXS. He is a great performer, yet he has a humble heart. Well, he was the only one who has never been a part of the bottom three until there were only four contestants left. I'm sure he'll rock the whole world with his kind of music and with the kind of energy he has onstage. Learn more about this irresistible rock star at www.rockband.com .

This is my first time to handle a PR class. And hey, I wasn't disappointed. I was glad because I was able to challenge all my students to read and think critically. At least for this day, I can actually say I was quite successful in doing that. Another thing, our dean came to the classroom to observe. Thank God i am always prepared. I think I will enjoy handling this course especially with the kind of students I have this semester. They are also my students in Advertising. I'm glad they are a bunch of thinking individuals who also manifest creativity and who are all respectful. By the way, now that I am handling a PR class, a major subject, I am going to give up one English class. I'm giving up my English 2A class with BSN 1-5. I don't really hate that class but I couldn't concentrate in their class because most of them are noisy. I think I failed to establish "fear" on the first day of class so they think they can just do anything in my class. Okay, my fa...

Last weekend, I had time to watch several films. My sister, Vivien, bought DVD copies of The Chronicles of NARNIA and CRY_WO LF . The n I rented tw o VCDs at Video City-- DEAD POETS SOCIETY and Jacky Chan's BLADE IN A ROSE (not sure with the title). My family enjoyed watching NARNIA. It's ama zing how kids can b ecome kings and queens in another world upon travelling through a wardrobe. Well, the movie has several lessons to impart -- that kid s do fight with each other, but deep inside, they really have authentic love for their family. And just like in real life, the black sheep can sometimes make the family unite. Without parents, kids cannot afford to become kids. They are compelled to act like BIG BOYS and BIG GIRLS. The best part of the movie that I like was when the four k ids were shown to have grown -- they grew up at Narnia -- and when they finally returned to the land of the mortals, they became kids again. By the way, the computer-generate...

Hello. I'm starting to blog again after I deleted my previous blog. I couldn't believe I did that. Well, it's a long and complicated story. My blog fell into the wrong hands. And I never want that to happen. No way. Anyway, I hope I would be able to update my blog more often.