"Miracles"

This mash-up is going viral on Tumblr, and out of curiosity I listened to it. And I have to say, it's an amazing mash-up of the following songs:

1. Bruno Mars — Just The Way You Are
2. B.O.B. feat. Bruno Mars — Nothing On You
3. Gnarls Barkley — Crazy
4. Britney Spears — Hit Me, Baby, One More Time
5. Jason Derulo — In My Head
6. Justin Timberlake — My Love
7. Lady Gaga — Just Dance
8. Leona Lewis — Bleeding Love
9. Ne-Yo — So Sick
10. Michael Jackson — Black Or White
11. Snoop Dogg — Sexual Eruption
12. Survivor — Eye Of The Tiger
13. Taylor Swift — Fifteen
14. Taylor Swift — Fearless
15. Savage Garden — The Animal Song
16. Snoop Dogg feat. Justin Timberlake — Signs

Whoever made this mash-up is nothing short of genius. I applaud that person.

Creativity: Not Meant to be Forced

These past nights I've been forcing myself to get my writing creativity going now that I am working on my essay compilation (watch out, world). 

Well, that turned out to be a bad idea since art mustn't be forced. Besides, if truth be told, I honestly have nothing to write about. On the other hand, I do have a lot to read. A LOT. And so I figured I'd just read and read while I have nothing to write and write. There are only a few days left in my sem break so I may as well spend my free time reading.

Come second semester I'll have plenty to write about. I'm pretty sure there will be plenty for me write about anyway. New, possibly memorable, experiences will inevitably come and I'm going to have to write about them. In the meantime, I'll just read about Robert Langdon, English literature, and whatever tickles my reading fancy.

Giving a Soldier The Finger is NOT Cool

Boys and girls, giving someone the finger is not cool. What's even more uncool is giving the finger to strangers while riding on a moving vehicle... and being caught by an enraged military man.

That's the unfortunate fate of two juvenile boys sitting across each other at the jeepney (one of whom was seated next to me) this afternoon. Like most boys their age, these two felt like fooling around. Their choice of stupid gimmick: giving the finger to while the jeepney strode past La Trinidad. And then unexpectedly, when one of the passengers got off the jeep, an enraged military man confronted the two young boys. He angrily asked the two of they thought it was okay or cool to give the finger as if the act was not going to offend anyone. Did they think that by raising the finger they were above everyone else? 

The wrath of the soldier frightened me a little, I must admit, but I'm on his side. Giving someone the finger is a juvenile, offensive (that goes without saying) act, and those two kids should know just that. I get the solider's point of feeling offended - he even said something about how he came all the way from Mindanao (it's a place in the Philippines where it's almost like Iraq or Afghanistan, i.e. almost a war zone with the clashes of extreme leftists and the army) and then he gets here only to be given the finger to. By the sound of that, the solider (and any soldier for that matter) was not to be messed with. The last thing the soldier said could have made the two young boys wet or crap their pants: that the soldier could easily kill them (savagely) if they ever do again what they were doing.

Personally, I don't blame the soldier for feeling enraged. I mean, here are two young kids giving an obscene gesture to strangers - who are teaching these kids what's right and wrong? It's unbelievable how young kids are exposed to such obscenity and nobody tells them to stop or to not ever do it again.

Stories of The Semester: Being a Part of Something... Doesn't Always Have Feel-Good Times

For the first time since my senior year in high school I am part of a school publication. The only difference is there's a LOT more pressure I feel now than I did three years ago.

The story starts out with a spontaneous idea to try out as a staff writer after I heard about the screening for our college publication. I went in, did some writing, and tried not to keep my hopes up. A few weeks later I received a text message that said I made it as a staff writer. The excitement upon reading the message is one of the highlights of my year. I was excited about the idea of writing articles, getting to work with other talented campus journalists, etc.

But I didn't count on one important variable: the seriousness involved when it comes to business. And business requires a lot of hard work and commitment, a couple of things that aren't exactly my forte. As a result, I was so overwhelmed when I couldn't handle some of the things that were my responsibility. There were even these incidents where I said I would attend an event, but I wouldn't show up because I'm either too lazy or I got something else going on, like school work. Long story short, I probably pissed off some people along the way.

I acknowledge my irresponsibility in both incidents and from now I will avoid a "three-peat" of disappointment and irresponsibility. I now realize that I am an adult whose actions have consequences. In the real world, my actions would have cost me my job so I ought to avoid travelling the road of Laziness.

My future in the publication looks a little bleak, after those incidents. But I shouldn't worry so much about it, though. Whatever happens, happens... and I'll just have to meet with it when it does.

Stories of The Semester: Engl14 - Principles and Procedures of Parliamentary

This subject is quite an interesting one. Prior to the start of the semester I was a bit curious as to what goes on in this subject. I figured a little that some debating is involved, so I was excited at the thought.

But came the actual time of the subject, as the semester started. Yes, Parliamentary Procedure involved debates, but not entirely. Parliamentary Procedure applies to government proceeding, company meetings, etc. It was a technical subject with so much rules that I personally didn't want to keep up with.

Another reason why I probably didn't enjoy the subject that much is the amount of group work that was a "make or break" when it came to my grades. I'm not usually excited when it comes to group work. A group is only as strong as its weakest member and that was a little bit the case in the group I was in. Some members lacked initiative and depended on the people known to be "the responsible ones."

But we managed to pull off some team work when our determination to pass the course kicked in. Eventually I learned to take it easy and keep the faith that I'm going to pass the subject.

As for now, though, I'm glad the semester's over and that I've gotten away from the course.Oh, let's just say that Parliamentary Procedure just isn't my "thing."

Stories of The Semester: Engl12 - English Literature

My passion - well, ardent interest - in literature is one of the reasons I took up English a a course. As a writer, I believe that my knowledge on literature helps me with my craft. I also figure that if I ever end up in the field of education I would educate people with literature. So it's pretty obvious that this is the subject I really cared about. It's the subject I wanted to be the best at. I read most, if not all, the reading assignments; I worked my ass off when it came to group reports as well.

While my prelim and midterm grades were both below my expectations, I didn't let that fact get to me. Even if I didn't have the best marks in class, I didn't lament over it because I was having fun as I learned tons about English Literature (even English History). This semester I learned how to stop being a grade-conscious student. I just wanted to be happy because I was gaining knowledge. Even if the semester is over, I'm actually doing some reading of works of authors we didn't discuss during the fleeting time we had in class.  believe that's a good thing - me doing some reading on my own because I want to satisfy my hunger for learning... and wow, am I nerd!?

But I don't that the time I had in this class is comparable to a trip in Disneyland. I had my fair share of shortcomings, like the time I did a report on the Romantic Period. Prior to my report, I had a bumming day. Before the day of my report I disappointed the people at our college publication because I failed to show up at this important event. They were mad and disappointed at me, and so was I. I was mad and disappointed at myself for the way things turned out. So I was out of my element during the next day - somber mood and a tough time concentrating on what needs my attention.

I ended up lacking information in my report. It was short and as mediocre as Kristen Stewart's acting in the Twilight movies. (Hold your fire. I like K-Stew... not just as Bella. I do despise Twilight, though.) When my classmates or instructor would ask a question, I would give dull, almost incoherent answers. I seriously was on the verge of tears, with the dead air and the look on my instructor's face (she almost looked as if she just wanted to shoot me for looking like a dumbass). As I stood in front of everyone, I waited for a black hole to eat me up. But that didn't happen so I just had to take in the humiliation. I, a supposed 'best' in class, stood there like a blundering idiot. The only thing to do was to just let it be.

After that day I just simply kept moving forward and not let what happened mess with my mind. I kept intact my interest in the subject and my goals in front of me. That's the thing about life - even if you trip and fall or slip and land on your behind, you always have to get back up. 

True grace is not avoiding the fall, it's getting back up after the fall.

Reading, reading, reading!

Maybe the reason why I have nothing to write about is the fact that I have no personal experience to write about... at least, nothing that's new.

Reading - that's something I've been doing a lot lately.Reading, reading, reading. There's just so much for me to read and I sometimes feel like I don't have enough time in the world (which is completely illogical because the key problem and - ironically - solution is time management).

Maybe one of the reasons why I feel like I don't have adequate time to read is that I put so much on my plate.

Ah, I guess I just have to find fun and happiness in what I do. I suppose I just need to relax - I don't do that enough. Almost everything I do must be planned out, or made into some form of routine, or patterned. I lack a spontaneous element in my personality. Maybe I ought to change that.

Glee and WWE Divas - A Weird Juxtaposition, But Hear Me Out

I'm not usually someone who jumps in the bandwagon of controversies, but I have something to say regarding the Glee/GQ spread controversy. For those that don't know, controversy sparked when concerned parents were outraged by the photos of three cast members of the hit show "Glee" for men's magazine GQ. These parents described the photos as "bordering on pedophilia" and I think I heard somewhere that they called the photos almost pornographic. On their defense, the stars, GQ magazine, and other celebrities say that they're old enough to do the shoot and that parents have the responsibility to shield their children from such "adult" material.

Let me just say: why are parents so shocked at these actors for doing the photoshoot? People like Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, Madonna, Lady Gaga - these are also public figures that children look up to and these women have had their share of pushing the envelope of their creativity, even if that means posing for a magazine in a "racy" shoot.  It's not the first time that something like this has happened. Remember Britney's first cover on Rolling Stone magazine? She was hardly 21 back then, contrary to Lea Michele and Dianna Agron (the "Glee" stars on the mag) who are about 24 or 25.

And some might point out that the shoot is too much because "Glee" is a family show. Kids of all ages watch the show with their parents. Well, the same thing can be said with the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment). Kids of all ages watch it, and from time to time they watch it with their parents. And stars from the WWE, specifically called WWE Divas, do plenty of photoshoots similar to the single photoshoot the "Glee" stars did for GQ. WWE Divas do racy photoshoots in bikinis, lingerie, their in-ring attire. Heck, a few of these Divas have even gone as far posing nude for Playboy magazine.

You might wonder what's the point of my Glee-WWE comparison. Well, the point is that WWE is a show watched by millions of kids maybe as much as Glee is watched by millions of kids. Glee does one sexy photoshoot and immediately a flood of criticism comes through. WWE has done probably hundreds of sexy photoshoots through the years and yet we don't go off about how our children shouldn't see such pictures. 

If you ask me who's side I'm on, I'm not on the parents side. Instead of them putting the blame on GQ and Fox and the actors or whoever, why don't they just focus on teaching their children responsibility on these kinds of things? Why don't they have a talk with their child about how the pictures are not meant for them, but maybe for older people? 

I've seen the other pictures from the said shoot, and it's my honest opinion to say that they're not that racy. And if I were in either Dianna or Lea's place, I would jump at the opportunity to do the shoot. They're young, they're in good shape, and it's not such a bad thing to explore your sexuality a little.

But just like everything else in the world of showbiz, I'm pretty sure this issue will die down the moment another scandal comes along. It's that vicious cycle of building something up and tearing it down once we're bored of it.

Stories of The Semester: Anthro 3 - Cultural Anthropology

The thing that stands out the most from my memories from this class is the almost-12-hours-or-more my group mates and I spent finishing our term paper. We spend almost the entire day at my friend Ruth's boarding house until we had to spend the night at my house. We finished at around 5 or 6 a.m. the following day. During the classes we had for that Monday we were so stressed and sleepily that people were so concerned about us and we could hardly pay attention to what was going on in our classes.

That day - the memory of it - stands out to me because it's the first time I ever worked so hard for something school-related. This experience was a reality check for me that when the time comes I really have to step up my game when it comes to my academics.

And as for the subject itself, I guess I can say that I liked it. I didn't loathe or dread it, but it's not exactly my absolutely favorite subject. If I were to describe the subject in one word, it would be "interesting." I can definitely say that I know more about culture now than I did back then.

But above all, I now know that every time there's a major requirement to attend to then I always, always need to bring my A game.

Stories of The Semester: Socio4 - Dynamics of Marriage and Family Life

This is a class where I didn't think to myself "how does this apply to my life?" every time I sat down in class. As one can infer from the descriptive title, the subject is absolutely helpful to future parents and spouses.

But throughout the subject I would now and then wonder to myself if the whole "marriage and family" thing is something I see in my future. I thought to myself whether I really want the path almost everybody else takes. Somehow I  don't see myself being someone's wife or mom. Then again, maybe it's too early for me to give up on the idea of marriage and family life. Life has too many tricks up its sleeves.

If ever I do wind up getting married and having children, I'll take what I learned from my Socio4 class, though it doesn't have all the answers.

As a last thought, Socio4 is definitely a helpful class. I had some fun times during my stay, and I must say that it was not a waste of my time.

Stories of The Semester: Engl26 - Teaching English as Second Language

Prior to the start of the semester I didn't quite know what to expect from the subject except that it's leaning more towards Education rather than English. In other words, it's nothing like most of the English subjects I actually enjoy - like literature. 

This subject isn't one of my favorites. Don't get me wrong, though, I didn't loathe it. But I wasn't exactly chuffed to bits whenever I attended classes.

Maybe the reason why I didn't get to appreciate this class very much is my is my lack of passion, or desire, for teaching. I'm not saying I don't ever want to be teacher, but if ever I do take that path I would want to teach literature rather than teach language. I think I'd have more credibility teaching literature because it's something I actually care about.

But I digress.

There's nothing I can think of that is memorable from my time in this class other than my realization that teaching is definitely my last resort as a career.

I'm just glad I got through this class and I won't ever have to go through it again.

Stories of The Semester: Engl17 - Children's Literature and Story Telling

The words "every rose has its thorn" applies to this subject. While I wanted to enjoy a subject that seemed highly interesting, I couldn't do that with an instructor who has awful teaching strategies.

Allow me to paint a picture of how ninety-five percent of the class went this past semester: she (our instructor) required us a book, divided us into groups during prelims, midterms, and finals and asked us to report on a topic found in the book. She would give us quizzes and she wouldn't return our papers as soon as she finished grading them. We would go through each term almost clueless of our academic progress.

By the time midterms came, through the initiative of a brave student, we signed a petition letting the Dean of the School of Humanities become aware of our classroom situation. We had enough of our instructor's absence, unprofessional utterances towards some students, lack of actual teaching, habit of asking our Korean classmates to express themselves in their native tongue and having another Korean student translate for the rest of the class (an insult, I must say, since these Koreans come to the Philippines to learn English), and so much more. There was also this incident where she failed to show up on the scheduled date for the midterm exams.

Thankfully, though, our voices were heard by the Dean and during the last three weeks of the semester, our instructor was replaced by one of the finest teachers in the English Department. For three weeks I didn't find Children's Literature to be wasteland.

While some students were jubilant that our original instructor was asked to step down, some students didn't feel so good, knowing that that instructor was a working mom with two daughters in college and a rumored estranged husband. Now,you may call me mean or heartless, but she had it coming. Her home life does not excuse her lack of professionalism and poor teaching.

I also hear that she's holding a grudge against our class because she think it's our fault she's where she's at right now. But things happen for a reason, even the bad ones. She blames us, but has she blamed herself too? It sucks to be in her place right now, but what she needs to do is rise from her ashes brought by this debacle. Let this experience be a lesson to her.

And let this also be a lesson to any student bullied by a teacher: don't be afraid to stand up against your tyrant. Don't be afraid that standing up for yourself will affect your academics because the teacher might take revenge against you by failing you. It's about standing for what's right. It's about standing up for yourself.

Stories of The Semester: Engl15a - Fundamentals of Journalism/Newswriting

This past semester was one hell of a ride, and I don't think one blog post is enough for me to tell it all. Every subject I took had its unique stories, so I'm writing stories from each subject, and I'll then write "miscellaneous" stories from the semester. During school days I didn't get to blog much, and to be quite honest I wasn't quite feeling the motivation to blog because of how busy I was. So here it is, a sort of summary of my thoughts and experiences in my Journalism/Newswriting class.

Prior to the start of the semester, I was looking forward to this subject. Finally, a subject that could sharpen my harpoon of writing. I thought that with this subject I could break out of my box as a features writer and try out other forms of writing. Through this subject my skills could be enhanced so that I could consider a career in journalism. And maybe I could also apply in my blogging what I learn from this subject .

The semester is over and I can now honestly say that MY EXPECTATIONS WERE NOT MET. I'm a little bit disappointed (an understatement) at how things turned out.

I wish we did more application of newswriting and less discussions for a whole period (an hour). But what's done is done, and that wish  is far from being granted. All I can do now is take what I did learn and apply that to my writing. And maybe there are some things I have to learn myself.

GLEE Hits a Serious Note with "Grilled Cheesus"

The "Grilled Cheesus" episode of Glee got me to reflect on life and the concept of God and faith. Most people know me as an agnostic, but lately I've warmed up to the idea of there being a higher power, one that is too great for me to fathom. I realized that life has too many ineffable events and us human beings will not always be able explain them. I acknowledge the existence of a being that is too great for any one of us to describe with certainty.

I no longer object to the concept of a deity. I am just appalled by the self-righteous organized system of belief and its double standards, their "you're with us or against us" mindset. If my disgust towards religion is arrogant, then that's fine by me. I'm as arrogant as the people who condemn those who don't believe in God the way the former do. They're the same people who refuse to meet reality halfway with their outdated - not to mention narrow-minded - way of thinking, the same people who say you are doomed for eternity if you don't conform to what they say.

Should I believe in a God whose followers insist on discriminating against people because of their sexuality or their way of thinking that leans a little more towards science? I would rather believe in a God that knows no sexuality and forgives all sins. I would rather believe in a God who is more pleased when his followers help the poor or take care of the Earth and the ones that live in it rather than spending an hour in a scripted ritual that has been done for millenia.

I may not believe in the God that Catholics talk about, but I believe in the goodness of man. I believe in love. And maybe these things came from a being greater than all of us.

Now, if you haven't scene the episode I am referring to in this blog, check out this YouTube video I found. Maybe after watching these scenes, Christians will be more respectful towards atheists and agnostics.



IMAGE SOURCE

Hey, must be the money!

I believe in positive thinking and focusing on the things that make you feel good. Today, Nelly's 2001 song "Ride Wit Me" is a song I'm listening to on repeat because somehow it's getting me in a giddy mood. A little embarrassing as it is to admit, I even danced along to the song tonight when no one's watching. The lyrics aren't exactly what I can relate to, although there is a verse that I find cool:

Check, check -- yo, I know somethin you don't know

And I got somethin to tell ya

You won't believe how many people, straight doubted the flow

Most said that I was a failure

But now the same motherfuckers askin me fo' dough

And I'm yellin, "I can't help ya"

"But Nelly can we get tickets to the next show?"

Hell no (what's witchu?!) you for real?!

Anyway, my point here is that every one of should look more in the positive more often. No matter how crappy your day went, think of something - no matter what it is - that made you smile, laugh, or simply made you feel good. Whether it's a song, a joke someone told you, or a smile a stranger gave you, think of whatever it is that made you happy before you go to bed at night.

And to keep up with the nostalgia of the song, or if you've never "Ride Wit Me" before, watch its video below:

Back Online!

Yes, yes. I am back online at Blogspot, but it doesn't mean I have completely abandoned Tumblr. I just figured that by re-opening Blogspot, I can expand my audience.