After having breakfast, we checked out of the resort and our host brought us to Katibawasan Falls, still in Camiguin.

We were to leave back for Manila that same day with an afternoon flight from Cagayan de Oro–so as much as I wanted to take a dip in the cold crystal clear pool at the bottom of the falls, I couldn’t. The falls itself was a tall one, 70+ feet.

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We woke up early the next day to be able to catch White Island at low tide. The island, which is actually a white sandbar, can shrink or disappear depending on the tide. It was just a ten minute banca ride from our resort.

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Since we wanted to get to Camiguin before it got dark, we sped off through Misamis Oriental from Cagayan de Oro to the town of Balingoan, where our vehicle boarded a ferry on route to the island province.

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We left Manila by plane at around a quarter past 5 AM. We arrived at Cagayan de Oro’s Lumbia Airport a little more than an hour after. It was my first time in Cagayan de Oro–actually, only my second time in Mindanao, the first being in Davao four years ago.

Our host picked us up from the airport and took us to a hotel on top of a hill overlooking the city for breakfast.

The original plan of the host was to take us straight to Camiguin, but since we were in Cagayan de Oro already, we suggested that we do the white water rafting CdO has recently been famous for.

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I accidentally bit my lip a few days ago. So I’ve had a lip wound the past days. The thing is eating nowadays have become really painful. I can’t chew properly, I can’t enjoy my food as much as I want to. That’s not the worst part. The worst part is that kissing has become painful too! Kidding. Hehe.

Nanggigigil ako sa ‘yo. At, nagiging “Tisay” ka na talaga.

Tags: family, home, Tisay

How to successfully implement higher fees on students with minimal opposition:

1. Talk about it during the students’ summer vacation, so there will be minimal opposition at so-called ‘consultations’. And if there are going to be pickets or protests, there will be minimal attendance.

2. Tell them you’re going to impose the fees on incoming freshmen only, so present students won’t care. Incoming freshmen on the other hand, can’t oppose anyway.

3. Abruptly reschedule the board meeting two hours earlier so students who are planning to picket will picket for nothing when they get to the venue at the supposed meeting time.

The former University Student Council, with the help of organizations and local student councils, fought and rallied at BOR meets for the late registration fee to be scrapped. Their efforts have paid off. For three consecutive semesters, it did not see its way through our Form 5’s.

But, it may soon be on our Form 5’s again. The Board of Regents will again convene on May 25, and decide on the implementation of the late registration fee. In this light, the College of Mass Communication Student Council (CMC-SC) joins the USC, local SCs and student orgs in their call for the permanent removal of the late registration fee.

CMC-SC believes that a 50-peso punishment is not the answer to stop late enrollees. We do see the importance of inculcating punctuality in students, but we believe this can be done in ways other than collecting a late reg fee.

Also, tardiness is not the only reason for late registration. Many iskolars ng bayan still have to generate funds to pay for their tuition fees. Others need to wait to get in required classes. Nobody wants to undergo these kinds of circumstances. So, we see no need to burden them with a fee that could only intensify their problems.

The student council believes that transparency and accountability are essential(s) in any organization. And, the university is no exception. Until now, iskolars ng bayan have not heard a clear explanation on the purpose of the collected late reg fees. CMC-SC believes that a clear and concise explanation on where this fee goes should be properly formulated and disseminated before its implementation.

CMC-SC respects the move of UP administration to generate its own fund because of the meager subsidy it receives from the government. But to diminish the accessibility and affordability of UP education in pursuit of additional funding is unacceptable. And, CMC-SC sees this unexplained fee an inconvenience for many iskolars ng bayan.

CMC- SC calls on iskolars ng bayan to move now and stop the late reg fee from becoming a burden to us again.

I was able to ask my mom to permit me not to go to Bulacan anymore for the next few days before the first semester begins.

I went to UP yesterday to bring some old clothes and contribute to the FOPC (Freshmen Orientation Program Committee) effort of my two orgs, UP CAST and UP MCO.

I spent hours with my orgmates in front of Vinzons waiting for our turns to be able to submit our rummages for FOPC points. I missed that. Just bumming around with my college friends.

FOPC for me was actually more lively and competitive last year. Particularly in UP CAST when we were really determined to earn higher points than UP Cineastes’ so we could bid for the lone film freshmen block. Our efforts actually paid off because we finished off with almost 2,000 points ahead. But then, for some reason, another Mass Comm org bid for the freshmen block before we had the chance to. Ah, nakalimutan na rin naman ‘yon, so let’s not revive the angst.

This year doesn’t feel as competitive. Well, I actually can’t be too sure since I haven’t been around to help much in my orgs. For one thing, I wish we finally get to facilitate the blocks we intend to bid for.

While we were lazing around in front of Vinzons, a group of kids from KNN approached us and got us for some interviews. Their segment revolved around the question, “Dapat bang ipagbawal ang bubble gum (tulad ng sa Singapore)?” I forget what I said, I’m not so sure if that will deserve some air time.

Anyway, after hours of waiting, UP CAST was finally called in to weigh in our rummages by almost 3 PM. Shortly after, UP MCO was called in.

My MCO friends and I went to Gateway to watch The Da Vinci Code afterwards. Days after opening, and the lines at the box office were still very long. Imagine the frustration when we got at the counter and we were asked for ID’s, which we didn’t have at that time. We couldn’t watch The Da Vinci Code because we couldn’t prove we were 18! I actually wasn’t as frustrated as the rest of my friends, but still, that was pretty annoying.

I proposed that we walk to to Alimall, where the cinemas were also showing the movie. Fortunately for us, there were no lines, and the box office sold us tickets without asking for ID’s. They even didn’t mind checking our bags and they didn’t even bother that I had a camera dangling with me. How’s that for being lenient. That was, by the way, everyone’s first time at Alimall’s cinema.

After the movie, we trooped to a pizza restaurant for dinner.

It’s fashionable to bash The Da Vinci Code movie nowadays, but what do you know, I actually enjoyed watching it. Nothing exceptionally spectacular, but it was fun to watch.

This was last Friday, May 19, 2006. A lot of people were waiting all night in front of our store since the procession would pass by the grocery. Actually, it was a frenzy. Tens of people lined up the streets. They were most eager to see Katrina Halili, whom the Sangguniang Kabataan hired to walk as Reina Elena. I don’t have any decent photo of her since it was too crowded.

I get really annoyed (as a driver) when an approaching vehicle has its bright fog lights turned on. The right thing to do is to squint a little and stay focused on your way, look a little to the right to avoid looking directly at the bright lights. But I don’t do that. I have a bad habit of turning my fog lights on too to get back at the driver of the approaching car.

Anyway, this week will hopefully be the last week I’m going to have to accompany my mom to our grocery in Bulacan. I’ve been spending almost all my summer vacation days there and it has gotten really boring. I just sit there and do practically nothing. No computer, no internet, and what’s the point of cleaning the shelves or cashier-ing if she already has people to do those. Aside from the ocassional helping hand that I can offer, all I can do there is sleep or drive around town, and she gets annoyed pa when I do those. My mom does not want me to stay at home (where at least I can sit in front of the computer, do stuff more productive than doing nothing) because I think she expects that summer time is a time where I can stop being a university student that I am, or stop being a friend to all my college friends, and simply become her possession/slave–which shouldn’t be the case.

Last Monday, I asked her if I could miss the Bulacan routine and she allowed me to, fortunately. I recognize that my mom tries to understand me too.

I told her I would have to attend a League of College Councils meeting. Which is true, but I actually spent most of Monday catching up with my college friends.

I had lunch with Tupe and Kid. I missed them both. They also accompanied me to my errands (which was one of the conditions my mom set for her to allow me to miss Bulacan). Went to Cello’s to buy donuts for someone, then to National Bookstore to look at some books. I bumped into Kenji in National. We were close friends back in elementary, but we lost touch after grade school even though we both went to Ateneo High. He stayed in Ateneo for college. We chatted for a while until I had to leave to go back to UP with Kid and Tupe.

I spent the rest of the afternoon at Vinzons Hall rooftop, where FOPC tambay was. Spent some time with my MCO orgmates too. I missed them. I was actually hopping back and forth from the CAST tambayan (where Kid and Tupe were) and the MCO tambayan every half-hour or so. Monday was the last tambay day, and if I’m not mistaken, MCO has the highest number of tambay points among the Mass Comm orgs. Great! Though, I regret that I’m not a very big, if at all, part of that feat.

This is how the rooftop hall looks like with all the orgs doing their tambay. I assume this is not even close to how crowded it got the past days.

At 5 in the afternoon, Ayeen and I attended the League of College Councils meeting also in Vinzons, as representatives from the Mass Comm council. The meeting ended at around 7 PM. We stayed at the Vinzons lobby for a while, she accompanied me while I was waiting for my mom to pick me up. We ate the donuts I bought earlier.

Later that night, I met with Stan to give him a CD which he needed.

Ended the day with a sad phone conversation with someone…