Monthly Archives: August 2008

This morning, the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) turned out to be an extension of the Aliwan Festival. Several Philippine Festivals from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao were presented by Freshmen students from the College of Liberal Arts (CLA). My section, Block Four, decided to present the combination of “Ati-atihan Festival” from the Visayan Provinces and “Dinagyang Festival” which originated in Ilo-ilo.

Anxiety crept into us the moment we woke up. We are not prepared. Unlike other blocks, we decided to focus on this activity after the Midterm Examinations. So we decided to come to school as early as 5:00 AM.

Our costume consists of the following:

• Black Face Paint
• Charcoal, uling, to color our body black
• Girls: wooden bead necklace, feathered arm bracelet, feathered anklet, plain feathers (for the hair) with a pony tie, leotards, and tights
• Boys: wooden bead belt, cycling shorts, bahag-like cover, and a decorated broomstick with feathers

Our presentation did not seem to be OK. In a scale of 1-10, we probably scored 5. This served as a lesson to us – to spend time wisely and divide it equally. We promised ourselves to do better in the “Sabayang Pag-awit” contest in the end of August.

We enjoyed the experience and we never regretted our decision to focus on our examinations.

P.S. I’m in the school library right at this very moment! Friendster and other social network sites are not allowed so I just decided to blog. I will post some of the pictures next time I go online. To keep track of our block/section, click here.

Nirvana is the blowing out or extirpation of all desires. In other words, Nirvana is the end of all kinds of sufferings.

It’s over. We attained Nirvana. The stress of late night review sessions, cramming before the tests, torture during the examinations, and worrying over the results are now over – for a while. Our block’s Midterm Examinations for the First Semester of our first year turned out to be OK, thank God.

At the end of our last examination, we bid the classroom good bye, got out, and shouted “Nirvana!”. This term gained its popularity in our block for a variety of reasons. It started during the discussion of the word in our Introduction to Philosophy and Ethics class with Prof. Deray. After that meeting, the term became the favorite of our mouths. We say “Nirvana” after facing and succeding in whatever kind of obstacle that blocks our way, be it a personal or a group matter.

But Nirvana is only temporary. Life is characterized by suffering, as Buddha says. We have not yet attained Post-Nirvana (ultimate Nirvana) because we are not still ready to face it. This is because of the “Filipino Festivals and Foods” contest, which is a part of the celebration of “Linggo ng Wika”.

We are not expecting to win but if God will permit, we’ll gladly accept it.

I got busy reviewing for my midterm exminations. As a result, I didn’t become active these days. I’ll try to be back later, as soon as the examinations are over. Below is the complete schedule of my examination. I just decided to share it with you.

Wednesday

• 07:00 – 09:00  AM – Introduction to Philosophy and Ethics
• 11:00 – 01:00 PM – Sining ng Komunikasyon

Thursday

• 07:00 – 09:00 AM – College Algebra
• 11:00 – 01:00 PM – Philippine History and Government

Friday

• 07:00 – 09:00 AM – Foundations of Behavioral Sciences
• 11:00 – 01:00 PM – English Proficiency Instruction I

Saturday

• 07:00 – 09:00 AM – Fundamentals of Science I

Fortunately, I won’t be having my tests in Foundations of Physical Activities and Foundations of Civic Welfare Training Service. The examinations in these subject areas are only given during the finals. Wish me luck!