#up mco

[anniicckk]

Family! - Posted using Mobypicture.com

[anniicckk]

Things I Love Thursday

I love my UP Family. Seriously.

We've worked hard to make it all happen, so I hope you'll come and celebrate MCO Month with us :)

I love Thursday nights and dinners with Maui and Yanna (and sometimes with Joser.) Because we eat a lot (and oftentimes, together), Thursday dinners are the perfect way to unwind after a long and hectic day (and week, because "Thursday is the new Friday." (Francisco, 2012.)) and a rather petrifying class before.

I love this song. It's been on my repeat playlist since June.

Nerd Alert: I love my CommRes 175 the most! Ma'am Enton is hilarious! And I'm learning a lot from her, not just about management (which would ordinarily bore me) but also about... well, a lot of tips, tricks and the truth and lies about the corporate world.

 And lastly, I love waking up after 7AM. /bow.

[anniicckk]

Novel moments

Novel moments are those spent living, away from the internet, resisting impulses to update Twitter or Facebook where you are and what you're doing, because you're too busy living. Novel moments are what you read in books, sort of. Not as dramatic but a hundred times more real. Novel moments are what we usually lack nowadays, with the age of the internet, because what we have now are online moments that take us away from the outside world. Novel moments are documented, usually, with ourselves - not with a tweet, a status update, or an instagram photo. There a pictures, yes. And narratives such as this blog post. But that's when after everything is done, and all is well. :)

The last two weeks were a roller coaster ride. Enrollment, first day/week of classes, planning for org events, spending nights at the hospital, attending a funeral, etcetera. To distress, I go online at night, but partly because I have to settle some things. It was stressful, exhilarating, fun, and all together crazy. But all that, for a lack of a better word, madness, was worth it in the end.

Enrollment was a blur. I got 12 units, all my Majors, and I was pretty lucky to have gotten 18 units by the end of the day. I spent my nights of the two days of enrollment at MakatiMed, where I watched over my Tita. For about 3 days or so, I hadn't eaten a home-cooked meal and went home only for a bath and a change of clothes. And I realized, I hadn't minded it a bit. It was a new experience, my days spent waiting in line for free slots, and evenings spent lounging on the couch/makeshift bed, coordinating online with my orgmates and different media companies and CMC organizations.

After enrollment was the Freshie, Shiftee, and Transferee Welcome Assembly of the College of Mass Communication. I was happy to have had, once again, a chance to meet the FSTs in during our block handling. It was my second time (excluding my own) to attend the event and help my UP family welcome the newest masscomm students.

Independence Day was spent with the family. We looked for venues for my Bro's 7th birthday and passed by random shops along Ortigas. My Tita bought me an antique Chinese Chest that I absolutely adored. From then on, I plan to collect many vintage items to adorn my bookshelf.

The first three days of school was a stress-fest, with organizing the upcoming Media Tour and handling my own, messed-up class schedule. Thankfully, it all turned out well. The power of prayer and hard work :)

Friday was the sem-opener of UP MCO. I was so happy to spend that last day of school (for the week) bonding with my orgmates. Stress relievers!

Most of my afternoons/lunch breaks were also spent with Yanna and Maui. We eat a lot. Haha. And I had 3 consecutive days of sisig! (Sisig Hooray, Mom's Sisig and Ate Fe's) No complaints, though.

Last Saturday, the family and I went to a funeral. It was of a relatives of ours, though I can't remember if I've ever met her. It was a small but meaningful ceremony. That night, I received a text from my friend saying a friend of our's Dad just passed away. A chill shot up my spine upon hearing it because it was so short, and I was paranoid for being confronted by 2 deaths in just one day. It reminded me how short life is, and how we should make every moment count because we are not promised tomorrow, only today.

Father's Day was a happy affair, even though Dad was at Dubai. My Lolo treated us to lunch at Mr. Choi, and it was pretty special since my Lola, who rarely leaves the house except for therapy, came with us. (And it's been a while since we all ate out together.)

Finally, the culmination of this stressful-but-fulfilling week was the FST Media Tour organized by UP MCO, CMCSC and BroadAss. We took the Freshies to Philstar and Monster Radio and they seemed to have a pretty good time. (I know I did, and I'm supposed to be a chaperon!) The media companies gave us a lot of freebies, which is cool, but I'm just really relieved that this event is over, since we've been planning it since May! :)

So those were my novel moments. I expect more to come this semester, this year to be exact. And though some of them can really suck, I know it'll all turn out great in the end, especially if I have my family, friends and God to support me. #Blessed

[thebespectacledspectacle-blog]

Yep, this is not a very flattering photo of yours truly. But this was taken during an event that I will never, ever forget, so it deserves a spot in here.

It was very sweet of my orgmates (from the UP Mass Communicators Organization) to come together and prepare a celebration in honor of us - the graduating members. I am really grateful to them for exerting effort just to ensure that we would have a memorable send-off party. I had a great time watching Texas Chainsaw Massacre playing variety-show games and picking sheets of paper which are crazy attempts at fortune-telling.

But nothing beats the sash-giving portion of the event. I got "Mountain Dew" because it seems my habit of buying the soda is the one thing that they'll remember about me. I can't blame them - Mountain Dew has been a thirst and temper quencher. That must make sense at some levels.

[thebespectacledspectacle-blog]

UP MCO's Batch TBA ('11-A). 2nd row, left to right: Junaers Flores, Rio Abonalla, Maica Martinez, Patricia Echague, Tommy Doncila, and Ian Estares. 1std row, left to right: Tine Argante, Tricia Villaluz, Jane Dasal, Kharina Mostales, and Chelsea Dauz.

Looking at this photo never fails to make me smile.

I have watched these kids (it's sort of painful to refer to them as such) grow over the course of the application process, each blinding us with their unique talents and personalities. I cannot express how proud I am of each one of them for having risen as victors over the challenging period that is the application process.

Now that they are "officially" part of the family, I can't wait to share with them the happiness that can only be found in an organization where everyone loves everyone. Without pretensions.

Congratulations, Batch TBA! You truly are the best batch around!