MASSCOM GRADUATION
Tumulong ako sa CMC graduation noong Sunday bilang usher. Well, actually, I did more of running from the Film Center to Jollibee and back and then to Jollibee again and back to buy spaghetti for the Rayadillo and the UP Singing Ambassadors. After that, I just watched the graduation ceremony from one corner. Didn’t do too much ushering.

Malaki ang naging papel ng mga seniors sa kung paano nangyari ang mga nangyari sa una kong taon sa UP. And for that, I am very grateful. Maninibago ako sa MassCom ngayong wala na sila.

Mabuhay mga 2005 MassCom graduates! Sana hindi mamatay ang pagnanais ninyong baguhin ang sistema ng media sa bansa. Mahirap. Pero kakayanin. Mabuhay ang lahat ng 2005 UP graduates! Mabuhay mga iskolar ng bayan!

VIOLIN LESSONS
Hindi ako nadadalian. It really frustrated me when we were doing the pieces with slurs. Haay. Hirap. It’s not easy taking off from where I left off three years ago. Eventually, nakaya at nakakaya ko naman. Practice lang nang practice. Problem is, nawawalan na ako ng panahon para mag-practice with all the things I’m doing this summer.

Buti na lang mabait si Ka Henry, na kahit mali-mali madalas ang ginaawa ko eh hindi nagagalit.

FOPC
FOPC (Freshmen Orientation Program Committee). Ito ang committee, na kinabibilangan ng mga lumahok na organisasyon sa UP, na mamamahala sa paggabay sa mga freshmen pagdating ng Hunyo. Bago mag-Hunyo, parang contest ang FOPC. Pataasan sa points ang mga orgs para makakuha ng mga freshmen blocks na hahawakan, para maging isa sa committee leaders sa susunod na taon, at para na rin siguro sa “fame” na makakamit ng org. Maraming paraan kung paano makakuha ng points, maaring sa pamamagitan ng pagkolekta ng mga dyaryo, PET bottles, rummage clothes, etcetera. Isa ring paraan para makarami sa points ang pagtambay sa dedignated FOPC tambay/activity room. Kaya bukod sa pagiging mga “basurero” namin ngayong summer, madalas na rin kaming nandoon sa Vinzon’s, tumatambay para magkapoints. Gusto namin sa CAST makuha ang incoming Film freshmen, para rin maka-recruit kami. Ang problema, isa lang ang Film block pero dalawa ang film orgs na kasali sa FOPC. May napagkasunduan naman na ata, kahit papaano. Sa MCO naman, gusto rin namin makakuha ng block para maka-recruit kami. Pero don’t get me wrong. Hindi recruitment and pangunahin naming dahilan para mag-handle ng block (wushoo).

Ang problema ko pa, dalawang orgs ko nga ang kasali sa FOPC, ang CAST (Cinema Arts Society) at MCO (Mass Communicators Organization). Pero mabuti naman at may napagkasunduan na rin.

CONCERNED ARTISTS OF THE PHILIPPINES
For my CWTS (Civic Welfare Training Service), I was assigned to assist CAP (Concerned Artists of the Philippines). Pumunta kami sa Cubao kahapon para makipagkita sa kanila sa kanilang opisina.

Siguro nasanay lang ako sa Ateneo kung saan halos lahat ng ginawa ko sa mga sinalihan naming volunteer/social involvement programs ay pawang pagtuturo lamang sa mga bata. I was not prepared to be placed in a passionate and highly-politicized organization. Although I share the same disgust with how Gloria Arroyo “lead” the country, and I basically sympathize with their basic objectives, they have some views, like some leftist leanings I don’t particularly agree with. I’m reserving a better entry tonight or tomorrow. Mamaya pa lang kami magkakaroon ng “national situationer” meeting at gusto ko rin naman silang makilala pa nang husto.

Hindi rin ako sigurado kung sasama ako sa kanila sa May 1. Ewan. Tingnan na lang natin.

SEX-ED VIDEO?
Some of my CWTS classmates were assigned to do a project headed by the Center for Women’s Studies (CWS). The project is an adolescent reproduction something video that will apparently be shown to thousands of high schoolers around the country. The video will involve the story of three high school choir girls who have reproductive/sexual problems. My role would be the boyfriend of one of those girls. I got her pregnant but apparently I’m not ready to father the child. Haha. I don’t know. It would be kind of awkward, really. Let’s just see how this will push through.

I don’t think I’ve mentioned this but I’m taking CWTS (Civic Welfare Training Service) for the summer. We had A CWTS orientation talk last Monday wherein representatives from the various NGO’s we were going to be assigned talked about their specific NGO’s.

There was one speaker from a feminist NGO who particularly caught my attention because I disagreed with the things she preached for around twenty minutes.

First she was talking about globalization. And how it was a failure, how it continues to impoverish poor countries, etcetera. I’m not going to say she is wrong, because I haven’t read up enough on the subject. But I have strong reservations on believing she is right.

Maybe this is an effect of taking Economics 11. There used to be a time when I easily sympathized with leftist propaganda and all that. After Economics 11, I don’t know, I guess it taught me to be more critical of their anti-globalization rhetorics. Sure, I despise the Arroyo administration and all their failures as much as militant groups do. But when it comes to globalization, I don’t believe globalization is a failure. The failure I see is the failure of our government and our people to adapt to the challanges posed by globalization. It’s our failure to use globalization to our advantage. It’s about efficiency in productions, comparative advantages etcetera. Protectionist economic policies will just do us more harm than good in present times. Hay, this debate can go on but let me leave it at that for a while.

So anyway, after she talked against globalization, she invited everyone to join some women-power rally on Wednesday (today). I was about to ask if the boys in CWTS could join the rally when she answered the question herself without being asked. She said, “At ang mga lalake, p’wede rin kayong sumali sa aming mga babae. Pero ngayon, kayo naman ang magluluto at mag-aalaga ng mga bata, kayo naman ang blah blah… habang kaming mga babae naman ang sumisigaw.”

Um. Okay. What the hell?

Let me share with you this. Because this is a personal irritant on my part which never fails to pull some strings of emotions and memories. Okay, you can say that girls “bullied” me and the other boys in our class when we were in grade school. We were around 40 in class (honors section). Only ten (10) were boys, the rest (30) were girls. Yes, tyranny of the majority. I really fucking hated how they always ganged up on boys every time one of us got into a petty argument with one of them. I swear, they were so effing dumb ang annoying. And what’s worse, every time a case gets to the teacher, the girls always win because the female teacher always sympathizes with them. The girls, when the advantage calls for it, always, always, always project themselves as the pitifully oppressed, even though they are the ones who often initiate the hateful exchange of physical and emotional hits. And when we boys strike back as a form of retaliation, they always invoke that bakla ang pumamapatol sa babae rhetoric. Ugh! It really infuritates me, ‘tang ina. Mean girls!! Nako, this is retarded, nag-iinit dugo ko by just typing this up. Call this trauma.

This is why I can not make myself fully sympathize with women-empowerment protests. Because women are sometimes guilty of the same gender-stereotyping they are fighting against, and most of all, some of them can be as mean as hell.

Anyway, I was assigned to CAP (Concerened Artists of the Philippines). Let’s see what work I’m up to.

The problem is not just increasing oil prices. We can’t avoid that. I, and other people insist — Manila’s bus and jeepney transport system is widely unregulated, uncompetitive and largely inefficient. This inefficiency is one of the reasons why they don’t make enough money for themselves. It’s not just increasing oil prices. They should fix their system first, do away with their inefficient means by reducing their number in the streets and following traffic rules para mas dumami ang biyahe nila and if their revenues don’t improve after doing so, then demand for higher fares. Bakit sa commuter agad ipapasa ang hirap? Eh sila-sila rin mismo ang kadalasang dahilan kung bakit kulang ang kinikita nila sa araw-araw.

If I may be permitted, let me compare this to the proposed increase in Value Added Tax. The problem is not just that our obligatory payment of debt. We can’t avoid that, like the increase in oil prices. Inefficiency (which, in a way includes corruption) is one reason why our government keeps incurring its large budget deficit. Instead of reforming the system by like, shaving off redundant offices, and being more efficient with civil service duties, improving present tax collections etcetera, they immediately pass on this cost of inefficiency to the people with an increase in VAT, similar to an increase in public transport fares. Bakit mamamayan kaagad ang papasan sa cost of inefficiency ng gobyerno? Eh sila rin ang pangunahing dahilan kung bakit kinakapos ang pamahalaan sa pera.

Para sa ‘kin parehas lang ‘yang dalawa.

This may sound insensitive to some people, but I’m really disappointed with my grades. My grades are worse than first sem’s.

Ten UP students are graduating with summa cum laude honors this year. Pinangarap ko rin mag-summa cum laude, sino ba naman ang hindi. Pero I’ve computed it now, and I am going to need a 1.11 GWA each year, at worst, in order to finish off with summa honors. Impossible. Sana ma-maintain ko na lang ang magna standing ko.

The Chorus (Les Choristes). A frustrated music composer/teacher accepts a job as a supervisor in a school for delinquent and orphaned boys. Much to his authoritarian headmaster’s annoyance, he begins experimenting against the action-reaction punishment rules of the school and starts teaching and inspiring the troubled kids to form their own choir.

I don’t know why numerous online film reviewers look down often on sentimental, “unrealistic” movies like this. The story may not be exceptional, it can even be considered formulaic. We’ve certainly seen many other movies within the teacher inspiring seemingly hopeless kids genre. But The Chorus still does pull heartstrings in its own fashion. And it was not lacking in depth and profoundness, with its brushing up on say, the clash of teaching and child psychology ideologies.

Anyway, the film also had a very beautiful, sentimental and enchanting soundtrack. I’m a sucker for films with beautiful music, and this was one such film. Nominated various times for its achievement in music, including a 2004 Oscar nomination for the main theme/song.

My rating: 8.5/10

Nag-strike ang mga jeepney drivers noong Lunes. That encouraged me all the more to take my bike to school. So for the first day of summer classes, I rode the bicycle to school.

Siguro nga totoong kakarampot na lang ang kinikita ng mga driver. Pero hindi ako naniniwala na ang pagtataas ng pamasahe ang dapat na tahaking solusyon. Hindi commuter ang dapat pumasan sa pagiging inefficient ng jeepney transport system.

Bakit nga ba hindi sumasapat ang kita ng mga tsuper at operator ng jeep? Siguro kung hindi sila ganito karami sa kalsada, mas malaki ang kikitain nila. Eh tumingin ka nga sa kahit anong terminal ng jeep, mag-obserba ka lang sa kalsada, ang hahaba ng pila ng mga jeep na walang laman! Ang daming jeep na nag-aagawan sa pasahero. Sa patuloy na pagdami ng mga jeepney drivers at operators, sa dami nilang nag-aagawan sa pasahero, kinakapos ang kita ng bawat isa.

Dahil sa maliit na kita, napipilitang maging ganid, kaskasero at mga bwisit sa kalsada ang mga driver ng jeep. Para lang makakuha ng pasahero. Sila-sila rin ang cause of traffic. Hindi ba nila naiisip na sa pagbabara nila ng traffic kumokonti ang biyaheng nagagawa nila? Sila rin ang napeperwisyo sa kawalan nila ng disiplina sa daan.

Tapos sasabihin nila na tumataas ang presyo ng gasolina at spare parts. Given, tumataas nga ang presyo ng gasolina, pero spare parts? Do jeepney drivers actually maintain their jeepneys well? Spare parts my ass! Kung pinapaayos nila talaga ang mga jeep nila matagal nang luminis ang hangin sa Maynila!

Tapos ang kapal ng mukha nilang ilipat ang cost of inefficiency sa commuter?! Sistema kaya nila ang ayusin nila! Totoong nakakaawa sila, pero hindi rin ba nakakaawa ang ordinaryong mga mananakay na napipilitang makuntento sa bagal, dumi at discomfort ng pagsakay sa jeep? Tapos sisingilin mo pa sila nang mas mataas na pamasahe? It’s not worth it! Nagiging kasing-ganid sila ng mga oil companies. Hindi commuter ang dapat pumasan sa inefficiency nila.

All these coming from a jeepney driver’s grandson.

click here for exercise bikes

The deterioration of Sino-Japanese relations has been bothering me, with all these recent diplomatic clashes between China and Japan. If images on TV are to be an indication, it looks like the Chinese are practically clamoring in the streets for their government to wage ‘war’ on Japan. Okay, with their country’s quick ascent in the world’s heirarchy of political and economic superpowers, I’m not wondering why the Chinese are brimming with confidence. I just hope they can rechannel their nationalistic sentiments into more productive and peaceful initiatives. Same goes for the Japanese. We certainly don’t want a war nextdoor.

First time kong hindi makakuha ng subject sa Computerized Registration System (CRS). Tapos na ang mga araw kung saan priority ang mga tulad kong freshmen sa CRS. Dahil hindi na ako freshman.

THURSDAY
I had to manually enlist for one subject. I got to school early, even before the offices opened up. I didn’t know what to do kaya noong una paikot-ikot lang ako sa Mass Comm trying to observe people and how they were going about their own registrations. Eventually, I found myself waiting in front of the Broadcast Communication department for the manual enlistment of the one subject I still needed. It was such a noisy, uncomfortable three hours of waiting. Ang ingay-ingay ng mga tao. Noong una, walang pila kaya umupo muna ako sa may tabi. Nang biglang buksan ang pinto, hala, nag-unahan na ang mga tao sa pagpasok. Nainis ako kasi mas nauna kaya ako sa kanila. At takot akong maubusan ng slots. Buti na lang may nagalit na isang prof doon at pinalayas ang mga sumingit sa loob. Eventually, I ended up in front of the official line. After three hours of waiting, I got my slot.

Pipila na sana ako para sa assessment pero sobrang haba na ng pila nang magtatanghali na. Kaya ipinagpabukas ko na ang enrollent ko.

FRIDAY
I got to school early again. Even before the offices in Mass Comm opened up. I queued up for my assessment just to realize that I needed an advisory signature before I can be assessed. So I went to the Film department and waited for a prof to sign my paper. Buti na lang kasama ko ang ilan kong blockmates sa paghihintay. For how long? Three hours. Yes, three hours of waiting for any professor to arrive para mapaprimahan ko ‘yung enrollment paper ko. Three hours for just one signature!

Anyway, after going through the assessment procedure in Mass Comm, pumunta ako ng AS para sa pagbabayad. Wow, unang beses ko na namang pumila sa ganoon kahabang pila sa UP. Buti na lang at mabilis namang umandar ang pila. Natapos rin ako sa pagbabayad ng tuition in under an hour.

There. Seven hours enrolling myself.