The CSB Experience 2: The Clever Fool and the Task of 5 Froshes (Jamer Connection 2.0)

Update on that previous post about my transccript and the transcripts of my fellow HS batchmates in CSB being needed by the CSB Registrar. I need to have mine submitted as soon as possible since my status in the College of Saint Benilde was listed as "temporarily enrolled". 

That status is also given to not just me and fellow 107 batchmates Maan, Nikko P., Justin, Gelli P., Calayag, Evan-not-my-kuya, Ali and etc. but as well as the fates of 5 108 froshes that also hail from SJA.

So far, I think I'm the only one as of yet who gave the letter from CSB requesting for my transcript to the Registrar's Office in SJA. Louie, thank God, texted me and even YMed me so she could tell me that I can now go there to pick up my transcript.

Since Wednesday is No-Class-Just-Breaktime Day, I went to Malabon to do just that. Around 1 in the afternoon, I was a bit surprised that not only do I get to receive MY transcript of records but also 5 other Forms 137, each in the name of five ID108 Jamers.

Here's the list of those 5 froshes, and I know one of them!:

1. Miko Joseph Bernardo
2. June Kirbie Naval (Another Naval in CSB, probably a relative of Revo's)
3. Diane Trixia Plata (Another Plata too?)
4. Karla Celine Roque (a Roque from Concepcion?)
5. Laine Bernadette Sevilla

The fate of my stay in CSB as well as five others is now in my reliable hands. Pray for me!

Behind-the-Scenes

Raw Footages used for a documentary produced by Marlon, Issi, and I for Philoma last school year.

This video includes funny spoofs, and possibly never before scenes not scene from the documentary.

I'm yet to get a copy of that documentary though :))

They Kiss(ed) Again for the last time (English Version)

Last October 31st, I was tuning in on the TV all-afternoon so I could watch the final episode (or the final 24 minutes of the actual episode) of They Kiss Again, the second season to the Japanese-manga-based Taiwanese drama, It Started With a Kiss.

From what I could assume (since I'm not the type of guy who would watch subbed episodes of a series in advance), Jeanie (I'm going to use their Philippine names so it won't be hard) was diagnosed with a rare genetic disease that could left her blind. What made matters worse that if the possibility of giving birth occurs, she her condition could prove lethal. She was so afraid to die especially when she learned that the old woman-patient she was taking care of, humbly named Granny, died while in her sickbed at the hospital. This made Jeanie all the more dperessed and fearful of dying alone.

Michael, her husband, came to her and assured that as long as they're together, she has nothing to be afraid off (despite the fact that Jeanie's condition is incurable). Michael promised to her that if ever they will have a child, he will take good care of him and tell him that his mother was the nicest person he ever met.

So what was their love story? In season 1 of ISWAK, Jeanie was a high school student who had a crush with the popular genius in school, Michael Jiang. She gave him a love letter but right after their meeting he ignored her. Now Jeanie just moved into a new house that was built by his widower father, but on their first night alone, a weak earthquake quickly collapsed the house. 

With nowhere to go, the best friend of Jeanie's dad, Mr. Jiang, offered his generosity by inviting them to live temporarily at the Jiang household. Unknown to Jeanie, Mr. Jiang is the father of Michael!

To cut the long story short, they became a couple by season's end and the the first series finale was marked by the wedding of the seemingly odd couple (the Boy Genius married the Naive Girl).

Season 2 picks up where the first left off, the newly-wedded Jiang couple had a honeymoon in Hawaii. As the story progresses, Michael decided to study medicine while Jeanie opted to undergo training as a nurse, just so she could be with her husband. Michael's little brother, Junjun grew unrealistically old from a young tweeny-chubby and ugly looking genius at the start of season 2 to a tall eye-glass wearing teen genius.

Season 2 ended with the Jiang couple on their way to the hospital with Jeanie holding a camera for the intention of showing it to their child (A similar thing that was made in Season 1). Despite the wife possessing a potentially fatal disease, the couple took what time was left in Jeanie's life to enjoy every single minute of it.

This was not, however, the intended ending of the author for which the series drew inspiration from. The manga was discontinued because of a tragic accident that caused the death of the author, leaving the manga, as well as all the adapation that was based from it (the 2008 anime version, the 1990's J-dorama, and ISWAK-TKA) "unfinished".

Bittersweet of an ending it is for whatever conclusion that the author may have had in mind at the time of her death, it is only her who knows how the Jiang couple's love story would have ended.

Say that you love me

Say that you care

lawfully

question: can a family sue a hospital if they are denied access to immediate health care (let's say the dad suffered a stroke) because that particular hospital is not covered by the family's health insurance, or something to that extremity?

They Kiss(ed) Again for the last time

Medyo napaiyak ako nung napanood ko ang final episode ng sinubaybayan kong Taiwanese drama series na “They Kiss Again”. Bittersweet ang ending kasi kaya naiinis ako na ganoon ang magiging kapatpusan ng lovestory ng dalawang bida.

                  Second season ito ng “It Started With a Kiss” na binase naman sa isang sikat na manga na inadapt rin sa paggawa ng isang anime at ng isang J-Drama noong Dekada Nobenta (Itazura na Kiss).

                  Sa unang season, ang kuwento doon ay tungkol sa isang high school girl na may crush sa genius na popular boy ng eskuwela. Gumawa siya ng love letter pero binasted lang siya nito. Ngayon, bagtong lipat ang babae sa isang bahay kasama ang tatay niya. Pero sa unang gabi pa lang, gumiba na ito matapos nagkaroon nang mahinang lindol sa lugar nila.

                  Walang mauuwian ang mag-ama kaya inimbita sila ng matalik na kabigan ng tatay na manirahan pansamantala sa bahay niya at nang pamilya niya. Nagkataon na ang kaibigan ng tatay niya ay ang ama ng crush niya. Naging sila sa katapusan at tinuldok ang first season sa kanilang pagkakasal. Sa second season, nagsimula naman sa pagha-honeymoon ng bagong mag-asawa at ang buhay nila matapos magpakasal.

                  Ang lalake nagdesisyung magdoktor habang ang babae ay nagsanay na maging nars. Maraming mga bagay ang nagpasubok sa katibayan ng kanilang relasyon pero nangibabaw pa rin ang pag-ibig nila sa isa’t isa kahit kung sobra sa iba ang kanilang mga pagkatao (Henyo ang lalaki=tanga naman nang babae). Lumipas ng ilang taon, biglang nagbago itsura nang nakbabatang kapatid ng lalaki (sa unang kalahati, panget na chubby boy na nagsisimula pa lang magbinata ay naging payatot na nakasalamin na henyo sa katapusan).

                  Nalaman sa huli na may nakamamanang sakit ang babae na maaring ikamatay niya’t ikabulag kung sakali magkaroon na siya nang anak ng kanyang asawa. Labis na natakot ang babe dahil ayaw niyang mamatay na mag-isa’t nalulungkot na di kapiling ang mga mahal niya sa buhay. Pero inalalayan siya ng asawa niya’t sinisiguro na magiging okay ang lahat. Kung magkaka-anak man sila, aalagaan ng asawa’t mamahlin ng lubos ang anak nila, dagdag na rin na ikukuwento niya kung gaano kabait ng kanyang ina.

                  Natapos ang palabas nang magpapatingin sa doktor ang babae kasama ang asawa niya. May dala siyang camcorder para maalala siya nang magiging anak nila.

                  Nalulungkot ako sa naging ending nito kasi hindi definite kumabaga ang naging intended na ending ng mga gumawa. Marahil dala na rin ito sa hindi pagtapos ng pinagbasehang manga sa dahilang namatay ang ang awtor nito na hindi pa tapos ang manga.

Tinuring ko na lang itong “bittersweet ending” kasi kahit kung mayroong nakakamamatay na sakit ang babae, nanatili pa rin siyang matatag at makikita rin na nagmamahalan pa rin sila ng kanyang asawa hanggang sa pinaka-katapusan ng kanilang kuwento.

PInakita rin sa last episode ang mga eksena kung kalian sila nagkahalikan mula noong aksidenteng nahalikan ng babae ang crush niya noon habang tinutulungan siya sa kanilang pagsusulit hanggang sa halikan nila bilang mag-asawa.

James and the Nap in Baritan

We had lugaw for breakfast and afterwards I took a shower. We were supposed to leave at ten o’clock for the 10:30am Mass in Maysilo but my dad was taking too long at arranging all the food he bought from the market earlier. Eventually, it was decided that we’re not going to Mass for the time being so we went ahead on going to Novaliches to pay our respects for our dearly departed buried in Eternal Gardens.

                  There were a lot of people inside the cemetery already. Add to that is the mountains of trash accumulated from yesterday’s All Saints’ Day holiday. The cemetery almost looked as if it was more of a mini-Luneta Park, with families setting up tents (and I mean “camping” tents!), setting up barbecue stands and chairs, with people eating right next to the “puntod” of their departed loved ones.

                  Unlike the hide-and-seek we endured from yesterday’s Cavite trip, this one in Novaliches took us no longer than 30 seconds to find my maternal grandparents and great-grandparents’ grave. We stayed there for about an hour before heading off to Malabon for lunch at the Sibucao-Coquia-Vito-Roque Compound in Barangay Baritan (Most often confused as being a “part” of Concepcion). We had kare-kare, menudo, pancit palabok (or pancit Malabon), Boy-Ching-Woo Fried Chicken, among others. Drinks include Coke and water in a pitcher.

                  I also visited my lovely cousin, Louie. I shared to her my pre-enrollment nightmare with the rest of our batchmates in CSB while she shared her supposedly relaxing sembreak by staying at home and being a bum throughout the rest of the break.

                  I got bored because the 14-year old TV is, well, kinda old. And my pranets had it fixed on C/S 9 where it was airing a live Wizards NBA game against the Pinstons, followed by a boxing show sponsored by White Castle, then later came another set of PBA games for that day. I took this as an opportunity to take a nap at my lola’s old air-conditioned room. I was awaken sometime around 3:30pm because someone texted my cellphone asking me if we have class tomorrow. I didn’t reply because I’m too sleepy plus even if I could, I wouldn’t know because our phone line is still down=our DSL connection is also down.

                  By 4pm, we left Baritan to attend the 5pm Mass in Maysilo. Despite the heat of the afternoon, we really didn’t mind because the choir there was a cooling relief compared to the not-so-synchronizing choir we always hear during the morning Mass.

                  So that’s how I spent the holidays, visiting our dear loved living peacefully beyond the grave and our loved ones living alive and well and still kicking it.

James and the Escape to Bacoor

I actually woke up way, way early. At 3am in the morning, daylight’s yet to come out so I checked myself phone on what time it is and saw that I have one new message that came the day before. I slept way too early last night, around 8pm because I was already feeling drowsy since yesterday afternoon. I was only waiting for the final airing of one of my favorite shows, a bittersweet ending in fact (I’ll talk about that on a later post).

                  I finally got up at around 7 in the morning, my parents were already awake. My mom’s fixing herself up for today’s Saturday morning Mass while my dad (who’s going to drive my mom to Maysilo) somehow washing our Revo using the hose attached to a water-pumping water which pumps clean water to our two large water tanks found in the kitchen.

                  After they left, I ate breakfast having to feast upon that big chunk of chocolate cake they brought home last night. I took a slice and a half on a small plate and consumed it. Later, I also reheated last night’s dinner which is soured pork (sinigang na baboy).  When my dad came home he also cooked some fried squid, and opened a can of spicy tuna.

                  Eventually me and my brothers left with my dad to pick up my mom and Ate (who was in a sleepover the other night at a friend’s house) and went on a trip going down south, to Cavite.

Upon entry from Coastal Road, we turned right to Aguinaldo Highway and turned left towards this side road which would have led us to Molino, a barangay within Bacoor. Unfortunately, the road was closed for rehabilitation (Well at least Strike Revilla realized that this rugged and potholed road need to be paved sooner or later!) so we were directed to use an alternate road. This road was recently put up but up till now it has yet to be fully completed as its entrance coming from St. Dominic College has yet to be cemented (for the apparent loss of a right term).

Once in Molino, my dad had the Revo parked at the RFL Molino Mall and walked our towards my old lolo’s house in nearby Kalayaan Homes. It is still what it is years ago except potholes are starting to appear at the older roads. You could say that Kalayaan is one of those ill-planned subdivisions and villages which were put up in haste in place of once-abundant rice fields. Why ill-planned? The streets there are confusingly one way and can be openly mistaken as either a walkway or a grassy rural field.

At Lolo’s house, we finally met after a long time our relatives from my paternal side, my Tita Janet, Tito Manny H., Tito Sandy, and Tita Ana as well as my two loving cousins. We had lunch there and because since last Friday, we don’t have any phone nor internet connection, took advantage of using my uncle’s internet-connected PC to check on my email, Multiply, and Facebook.

After leaving Kalayaan, we went towards Heavenly Memorial Gardens, a relatively new cemetery where my Lolo Peter was buried seven years ago. The remains of my Lola Adelfa who died 20 years ago, was placed there from where she was buried in Manila South Cemetery in Makati City.

The problem though is that my dad had a wrong sense of direction as to where my grandparents’ grave are located, this had happened before but it took no longer than 10 minutes before we finally found where their grave is. We offered flowers and recited the Rosary before eventually leaving Cavite.

The radio since earlier that morning was set at RJ 100.3 where, for the occasion, have been playing songs from British artists and musicians nonstop at “three songs-in-a-row”.  RJ dubbed this special, “The British Invasion” that’s why I’ve been hearing nothing but British artists ranging from as young as Leona Lewis to as middle aged as Craig David (although he’s yet to turn 30 years old) to as old as the Beatles totally nonstop. I’m not sure if they would count Welsh singer Duffy as “British” right?