The Inevitable Happened

(WARNING: Misspelled words and grammatically erroneous sentences are flooding this post. Wrote this around 1:00 am. I am not in the best condition to blog so forgive my mishap. Will go over this later and edit.)

Yes. Another post. I guess, I'm just in the mood to blog. Hurray! I finally broke free from those lethargic chains (for the mean time hahha).

So yeah! My internship. Last semester, I had my TV/Radio internship at 106.7 Home Radio. I only ventured into radio broadcasting because I shy away from the camera. I just can't imagine myself on television reporting news. This semester, I have the luxury (I thought of it as a luxury before the new policies were introduced) to go into PR, Advertising, and Print. I was really looking forward to working in a PR firm. But due to the new policies of our internship adviser, I have to go with the print industry to ensure myself of having an output to present.

It came as a shocker. I raised the white flag. All the while, I have conditioned myself not to have my PRAC2 in the print media. I wanted to be with a company and do office works because honestly, I want to work in an office rather than go out and gather news by the time I graduate. I might be a Masscom student but I'm not the kind who's really into hardcore journalism (Communication, I can manage but Journalism... man that's too big for me). It's not that the school is insufficient when it comes to training us but it's just my preference. No offense to my school and the faculty.

So there. Days after I resigned from CVG, I was left with no company to work in. Time was fleeting and my plans of finishing my internship by the second week of January isn't possible anymore. I was desperate to start my internship again. I passed my resume and application letter to PR Works and The Freeman.

Three hours passed and I was already home hoping to receive a call from either of the two companies. A call woke me from my sleep and it was from The Freeman. I was scheduled for an orientation in a hour. I was out for words. A part of me wanted to turn it down, but there was also that voice in me saying, "give print media a try."

So I went to the orientation but I had to be honest with sir Joebert, Freeman's Assignment Editor. I told him that news isn't really my thing and I asked whether I could have a chance to be with the lifestyle section instead. It was rather demanding of me, but I had to be honest with myself and with the company.

My first day with The Freeman? That will be on another post.

Will talk to you again sooner,

Franz B.

The Internship that was

(WARNING: There might be misspelled words and grammatically erroneous sentences. Wrote this during the wee hours of November 16 so please, cut me some slack HAHA Will go over this blog again later and edit.)

Yes. I am back with a new blog. Admit it! I know you missed me, Blogspot. HAHA
A lot has transpired lately which I can consider blog-worthy but my laziness got the best of me. However, here I am trying to break myself from Lethargy's bondage. So you better listen up, Blogspot! :))

I already said my goodbyes to our research study during the first semester. It feels good to finally got that over with but GAAAAAAAAHD! The grade I have for such subject was such a disappointment but I don't wanna think about it anymore. Moving on...

Way back first semester of this school year 2012 - 2013, I was really expecting to have a less-hassle second semester but everything is the exact opposite. I already had plans to have my internship at any office who has a Public Relations department. I went online to look for companies that were looking for interns but I happened to know from a friend that Convergys was looking for OJTs. I grabbed the opportunity and after the tassle, I GOT THE POSITION!

During the interview with Miss Janice, one of the HR personnels of CVG Banawa's HR Operations Department, I got to know the activities I am going to do under the department. Although the activities I expected to do with them like helping on job fairs and interviewing applicants thru phone weren't their responsibilities. So I had to compromise. Instead, I accepted the tasks Miss Janice told us.

To name a few, we had to file a lot of 201 Files of active and inactive employees. It was tedious but I was happy doing it. It was challenging to find a person's folder among the thousands of folders inside the file room. I was also expecting to help them during trainings conducted for newly-hires like preparing the kits needed, helping on the registration, and attending the trainings where I guess I could also learn from. I was also hoping to help out on exit interviews for employees who wish to leave the company.

With the short stay I had with CVG, I only got to do the filing part but I understand that the tasks wll progress. If only I got to stay longer with the company, I could have experienced helping out on trainings, conducting exit interviews, and other HR stuff. Sadly, I only had two working days with them. I consumed approximately 18 hours with CVG. Why I left? New Internship Policies. That's why.

It was sad leaving CVG in such a short notice but I had to let go so I won't jeopardize my internship grades. There was a change with internship policies brought about by our new internship adviser. His policies requires us, Masscom students, to be with company where we can practice all the masscom theories we learned. I was with the HR Department, that's why I had to say bye-bye :((

After i rendered my resignation in CVG, I had to think hard where to next. Where can I possibly practice my learnings about PR, Print, and/or Advertising? For Print, no worries. There a lot of newspaper firms needing interns but my only problem was I really am not into news gathering and writing. I have my prejudices about news writing so I opted to apply to any PR firm. BUT IT'S SUCH A SHOCK TO FIND MYSELF WORKING IN A NEWSPAPER FIRM. hahahhaha All the time, I have conditioned myself not to have my Practicum internship in a print media firm. Look where my reservations got me. Will tell you about my first day with my current internship site on my next blog.

Talk to you later Blogspot,

Franz B.

Swift September

Heyyah Blogspot! :)) This is my only entry for the month of September and I feel this won't make much sense. HAHAHHA

This month was pretty tough for me. Had to lead the CAS Volleyball Men's team during the 28th University days and Intramurals week. Thank God all our efforts and hardwork paid off. We defended our title. It's kinda nostalgic to think about that glorifying week. Oh well, there goes my last playing year (or would I still go for my 5th year of eligibility? Who knows...) I'm going to miss my weekend practices, my tardy and absentee teammates, the rush I feel everytime I'm in the court, and most especially the bond the team has forged. GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHD.

I may have the height disadvantage, but that doesn't mean I CAN'T BLOCK.
When 6'3'' and 5'something go for the double-men block.
Credits to Ms. Mary Junelee Resabal, a Josenian HM Student : ]

Moving on...Today is September 30th. The last day of the month. September has indeed gone so swiftly but all my school projects aren't done yet. (Can somebody just kill me now? HAHA)

October 17 will be our Oral Defense but we haven't moved on with our Chapter 1. We are still in need of TWO KOREANS who have tried online ESL classes with a Filipino English teacher. With the flocking Korean tourists, we can't seem to find any who'll qualify as our respondents. Seems like my dream of graduating with flying colors is getting out of reach. Thanks to you MC Research Topic. X((((

I guess I better be doing my tasks for our research. Talk to you next time, Blogspot! I hope I can make it out alive from this Research subject :)))

Home Radio's Vision and Mission

VISION

An enlightened citizenry exercising their freedom of speech and expression provided by accurate and comprehensive information delivered through a progressive and committed media organization staffed by professionals whose foremost concern is public service

MISSION

Promote teamwork among various departments and personnel involved in the different aspects of production of work and support activities.

Enhance professional growth and development of all employees as befits the company's most important resource

Establish and ensure an efficient and regularly upgraded system of information gathering,processing and delivery that conforms to established standards of media professionalism and existing norms governing freedom of speecha and expression

Gem of a Find

Franz: Aha ka mag-intern Jovan?
Jovan: Home Radio or Wild FM. Kana lang duol sa school oy.
Franz: Laaaaaaaaaa! Ganahan sad bya ko mag-intern sa Home Radio!
Jovan: Adto ta didto na unya after enrolment. Mag-inquire ta if modawat silag intern.
Franz: Sige.
Gem: Kuyog ko ninyo bi.

*********************************************************************************
That conversation. There's nothing interesting with it. But that conversation is the reason why Jovan, Gem, and I found ourselves working at Home Radio for our internship. Gem was a bit undecided where to have her OJT so she went with us. Since then, I always call her "Gem of a find".

That's her. Boyish on the outside, bona fide feline on the inside. HAHAHA Gem is so gonna kill me for blogging about her. But the succeeding details will make her think again. I'm gonna write about all the life lessons I've learned from this chick.

Gem has always been vocal about things. She doesn't feign emotions. She's the real deal. Being true is one thing I have learned from her. If you don't want to do a thing, don't let society force you to engage in such.
Despite being vocal, Gem still remains tact unlike other people who are so over the edge with their being vocal. It might sound contrasting to be vocal yet tact, but that's just how I see Gem. She seems to say the right words in any situation.

Work-wise, she always gets the job done properly. I can attest to that because I've worked with her during our DYAR days and also during our two month stay at Home Radio. To sum up, Gem is the total package
--- she's an epitome of  a lady with a great body, beauty, and brain. Truly, she is a "gem of a find".

Jovan of all Trades

Heeeeeeey blogspot! Just got home from Volleyball practice -_- But that's not why I'm blogging right now. I'm going to write about my internship buddies who have taught me a lot of random things. First off, meet Jovan!

I call him the "Jovan of all trades". During our internship at Home Radio, I noticed that he was the first one who got pretty close to most of the employees. He seemed to be a contagion of happiness and positive vibes that influenced everyone at the office. If it weren't for Jovan, we couldn't haven known Sir Hans, the Sales & Marketing Head, Miss Sarah, the Finance and Administration Officer, and the DJs. One thing I learned from him is to do everything with a smile. 

Whenever there's a task that needed to be accomplished, Miss Sarah never hesitated to approach Jovan and asked him to do an errand which sometimes made us think "Why do they always approach Jovan and ask him to do this and that? What about us? Don't they have anything for us to do?" Yeah, this thought crossed our (Gem and mine) minds. But it's not that I'm saying Jovan hogged all the paper works. He called on us for help. Because of this, we learned to offer help instead of being asked for help. Do you see the difference between offering for help from asked to help? I bet you do! 

The last thing I learned from him and forever remind myself with is to do ordinary things extraordinarily well. There were times when we were asked to have a lot of documents photocopied. Jovan with his being a neat freak taught me to always keep everything organized. 

I guess those three learnings maybe meager for some, but they had a very great impact on me. I will forever cherish working with Jovan and treasure all the things I learned from him.

Internship Evaluation (Second 100 hours)

I'm already done with my 200 hour internship at Home Radio. It's kinda bittersweet for me. I feel happy to accomplish my tasks there and be able to focus on other academic stuff, but I also feel sad thinking I won't be able to see the people whom I've grown to love working with. Anyways, here are my last set of evaluation from my working supervisors. :]

:]

Sir Julius' feedback:
Very much willing to learn work attitude.

Darwin a.k.a DJ Duwayne's Feedback:
Confidence is a very important factor for future media practitioners.
Innovation (There's no limit to imagination).

Ms. Sarah's feedback:
Excellent in terms of professionalism during internship.
High-standard of servitude.
Able to commit to assigned task.

Internship Evaluation (First 100 Hours)

Here are the stuff my supervisors at Home radio have to say about me. :]

Sir Julius' feedback:
Very willing to learn.

DJ Duwayne's feedback:
Good job! I need to see aggressiveness from Franz.
 Innovative, Curious in an excellent way.

Ms. Sarah's feedback:
Orderly organize paper works.
Able to meet task on a limited time given.
Experience in Home Radio will be a pathway for a future career.

A closer look into the ratings :]

Company Guidelines

Hi Blogspot! Here are the guidelines I have to observe while I was doing my internship at Home Radio. :]

Code of Discipline

Discipline and Definition of Penalties

Discipline means “orderliness”. The term does not only mean strict observance of the company’s regulations but rather “working, cooperating, and behaving” in accordance with said regulations. The primary purpose of disciplinary action is to correct the employee’s shortcomings or excesses more than to inflict punishment. Discipline is enforced in order to make the employee behave in accordance with the company’s norms.

Administration of Disciplinary Action

Procedures:

1. The right to discipline is a line function and as such, should be initiated by the immediate supervisor and/or department head.
2. When an infraction of a company rule has been committed by an employee, the immediate supervisor and/or department head concerned should accomplish a disciplinary report memo stating therein the following pertinent facts:

2.1 name of employee who committed the infraction

2.2 description of the infraction(s) committed, its nature, time,and place, the resultant injury and damage or loss if any.

2.3 recommended disciplinary action/sanction

2.4 with notation and approval by the department head

Title: Office Decorum

Objective: To ensure that all employees shall reflect the good image of the company by maintaining proper conduct, good manners, and pleasant appearance.

Policy Statements:

1. Office Attire
1.1 All employees are required to wear the prescribed uniform or approved dress code from Mondays to Fridays as follows:
1.1.1. Ladies – dress, skirt, slacks, blouse. Sleeveless dress/blouse, tight fitting blouse must be worn under a blazer. Minis, leggings, plunging necklines are not allowed.
1.1.2. Gentlemen – long and short sleeved polo, barong, and slacks. No maong pants, shirts, sandals, and rubber shoes.
1.1.3. Saturdays/Sundays – employees can wear maong pants, shirts, and rubber shoes.

2. identification cards 

2.1 all employees are issued identification cards by the company to be worn by them and to identify them from other people entering the company premises

2.2 all employees must wear identification cards when entering and while inside the company premises

2.3 loss id cards must be replaced immediately. Cost of the new id will be charge to the concerned employee

3. The duty accomplished report is then forwarded to the HRMD for appropriate evaluation or investigation and action.

3.1 disciplinary actions shall be imposed as a result of non compliance of company work rules base on the following

3.1.1 written reprimand- a wriiten notice issued to an employee for an offense commited that would served as a warning. Repitition of similar offense shall be met with stiffer penalty

3.1.2suspension- a temporary physical detachment from teh service without pay. suspended employee shall not earn any benefit during the period of suspension such as V.L S.L and service creditsv holidays, saturday, and sunday sandwiched by suspension days be without pay.

3.1.3 Dismissal- dishonorable separation from the service, discharge for just cause.

4. If the infraction committed only warrants reprimand, the immediate supervisor with the approval of the department head can take immediate action. HRMD shall be provided a copy of the disciplinary action for record and notation in the 201 file.

5. When the infraction committed is punishable by suspension or dismissal, the case shall be referred to HRMD for proper action. HRMD shall inform the employee in writing of the charge against him stating the particular omission constituting the infraction, and shall give him the opportunity to explain and present his side.

BREACH OF DISCIPLINE

·         Tardiness/Absenteeism

·         Abandonment of work

·         Loitering

·         Feigning sickness to avoid assigned task

·         Negligence of duty

·         Gambling

·         Receiving/accepting bribes in exchange of jobs, work assignment or any favor

·         Failure to safeguard company property that resulted to loss/damage

·         Working under the influence of liquor

·         Falsification/tampering of documents

·         Failure to comply instruction prejudicial to the interest of the company

·         Discourtesy from superiors

·         Using Obscene language

·         Rumor mongering

·         Provoking a fight/ inflicting injury/ threats/harass fellow employees

·         Abuse of position to gain personal profit or advantage

·         Criminal acts punishable by law

·         Illegal drugs (using/ pushing)

·         Giving false testimony in a company investigation

·         Sexual harassment/ illicit affairs

·         Theft/ robbery of company property

·         Misappropriation of company funds

·         Capping/ kitting/ delayed deposit of collection

·         Revealing company classified matters/information

·         Participating or undertaking in any trade that is in competition with the company

·         Failure to comply company security measures or established guidelines.

Internship Correspondence

Hey Blogspot! I'm posting the letters and documents needed for my internship website. I'd rather upload them all here than in my web. I don't want to clutter that much. :]

Organizational Chart

Received Endorsement Letter

Resume First Page

Resume Second Page

Application Letter

Received Waiver

In Actuality

   Hi Blogspot! It’s 1:10 AM and I can’t go back to sleep so I thought of visiting you. Now, here I am making my fourth internship blog. Isn’t this great and productive of me? (HAHA)

   
    During our first day of internship last May 28, Sir Hans, the sales and marketing head, asked us to make a radio advertisement for Harold’s Hotel.  A lot of things came into my mind like, “What if we can’t come up with a good script? What would they say about USJ-R Masscom students? How can they trust us with something this big?”

    I doubted myself but I reviewed all my notes about radio script making and consulted my classmates who were good with such stuff.  I remembered that in making a radio/tv ad, one has to divide the page into two columns. The left column is where technical instructions will be written while on the right are the words being voiced over or uttered. This is how I made our first assignment.

   On our second day, Jovan, Gem, and I shared our drafts and edited each other’s works. The group decided to pass my output to Sir Hans. I felt horrible with my draft because my technical column had nothing written on it. I’m not really good with technical stuff so I left it blank thinking the technicians will do the editing and adding of sound effects. I felt bad passing something that was half-baked, but when it got to Sir Hans’ hands he said nothing bad and thanked us. Although, he did ask why I wrote it in such way and I was like, “What? They don’t do it like this here?”  

   I knew that when they make commercials, all they do is compose the scripts and leave the disc jocks with the editing and adding of sound effects. It got me thinking that what we’re taught in school may not necessarily be what is done in the actual field. But I am not complaining. I even think it’s an advantage on my part to learn how to make split page scripts.  My internship site may not be doing it but maybe some radio and tv stations make use of split page scripts.  

Professionalism: A Work in Progress

”A professional is someone who can do his best work when he doesn't feel like it.”

These are the words from British-American journalist, television personality and broadcaster, Alfred Alistair Cooke.  I may not know the reason why this quote came into his mind but I do agree with it.

My internship stint at Home Radio exposed me to the concrete definition of the word PROFESSIONALISM. But the word is better defined in dictionaries (and in the web) than being done. There are really times when our sense of professionalism is put to a test. Our environment, our ego, or our colleagues can sometimes trigger us to do something unprofessional.

As an intern, I’m learning the art of professionalism from professionals both in the academe and at my internship site. During my stay at Home Radio, I got to know about internal conflicts among the employees but one good thing about the employees was how they dealt with their problems. Everyone stayed diplomatic when they resolved the issues. No one got won over by their emotions which can cause jeopardy to one’s professionalism most of the times.

Approximately seven months from now, I will be a professional but I know it won’t be an easy ride. What can harm my hopes of becoming a professional are my days of lethargy which can put a hold on me from doing my best.

Whenever I get attacked by my laziness, insecurities, or other negative vibes, I will think of Cooke’s quote. It will serve as my reminder. If I want to belong to the professional and corporate world, I have to perform at my best even if the odds are not in my favor. This may be easier said than done, but I know I will make it. I will not fail myself. 

Quickie

            What's up, Blogspot?! You might find it unusual for me to blog without a month passing by. Well, I'd say I'm a changed person now or am I? HAHA

             Our internship requirement of having three blogs for prelim is a beautiful coercion. At first, I really felt forced to blog solely for compliance' sake, but I have realized how fulfilling it is to write about how my day went. 

              Last Wednesday (July 18, 2012), I had my first quickie session with Home Radio. Darwin, our supervisor, calls it "quickie" because we, interns, get a chance to report our soft news on air. Randomly, Darwin asked us questions. I was able to prepare and practice my phrasing and articulation but my nervousness was very evident. Darwin and Dj Robyn advised me to relax because the tension I felt held me from doing my best. 

             After my first practice, I got good comments from them. They said that I could speak English better than a disc jock they know. That compliment really lifted my spirits up.After my quickie, DJ Robyn said that she's so proud of her Alma Mater because Gem and I could really speak well compared to their last interns (I'm not telling you from what school those interns were :D ). BTW, DJ Robyn is an AB-English alumna of USJ-R.

             Aside from me, Gem also went on her first quickie. One thing I'd like about Gem is her spontaneity. She can always keep up with Darwin's random questions. During my quickie, there were moments of dead air. HAHA Well, I guess those were just first time jitters. I can't wait for my next quickie. This will do it for now. Talk to you soon, Blogspot!

-pRaNs B.  

Orientation of Some Sort

                            Hey Blogspot! Yea I know, I know. I've been a lazy bum for more than a month now but here I am with a new blog! (This calls for a celebration! :D )

                        It has been more than a month since I’ve started my internship at Home Radio. I could say things are going okay. The “okay” status can sometimes be vague, right?.

                          What I, along with Jovan and Gem, have been doing since were verifying the advertisement logs, observing the operations inside the booth, and sharing-slash-sitting on two chairs doing nothing. I have to admit that there were times I really felt sleepy and bored. I began thinking that there isn’t much to do in a radio station.

                         What made every duty day exciting was the crash course we had on voice coaching. Darwin Tamosa, our supervisor, called those sessions “Orientation”. I got curious why he always called them orientations when in school, we only have orientations for the first few meetings then start with actual classes. Wouldn’t he want to call those sessions as classes, instead? Well, he made his point clear when he said that orientations are given to people who still need to learn things they don’t know yet. Some of the tips we learned were indeed new to us (while the others acted as refreshers of what we're taught in school) , so I understood why  he called them orientations.

                           Moving on, we listened to ten audio clips per day although it wasn’t on a regular basis. I’d like to recall some of the tips that really stayed in my mind:

                  

1.)    Kill the DJ – gone are the days when people who had deep bass voices were in demand in the radio broadcasting industry. In the U.S., most of the disc jocks there go on air with their normal speaking voices. There’s no need to sound so manly with that deep and husky voice. Today’s listeners are more into jocks who sound natural and different from every other DJ.

2.)    Microphone as the Listener – another tip was to speak as if the microphone is the listener. It’s close to you so there’s no need to amplify or shout every word you utter. Try to speak to the mic as you would to a person. If there’s a need to sound intimate, be intimate…with the mic.

3.)    Here from There – this tip talked about how to localize news and issues from far places. Remember, proximity is one factor that makes an article newsworthy. What I learned from this tip is that we have to relate foreign issues by stating how it would affect us here in Cebu. Say for example, the issue about the Philippine Peso gaining momentum against the U.S Dollar. As a radio broadcaster, one must be able to relay this by how some Filipinos are affected. The Philippine government celebrates economic gains while those families having relatives working abroad have to suffer the effect of low dollar exchange rate.

4.)    Observation and Conversation – this tip talked about observing the surroundings while you’re on your way to work. One incident may spark your fancy and you can use that as a topic when you go on air. You make a conversation out from what you've observe may it be from the news or from anything.

5.)    Know When to Stop – You don’t want to bore your listeners, do you? Out from what you've observed and talked about, you should put limits on the air time you consume for talking. Remember that in the radio station, you don’t talk as you please but you cater to your listeners. Play songs they’d probably want to hear and don’t forget to thank your sponsors by promptly playing their radio ads.

                      These tips will do for now. I am looking forward for more of Darwin's orientations in the coming days! :D 

-pRaNs B.

Found a new HOME - Day 1

Hello blogspot! I finally broke out from my lethargy and made another entry. Well, something is finally up with my life again. I have broken free from the boring and monotonous life at home (now that summer classes are over) because today was my first day of internship at 106 dot 7 Home Radio  - Today's Hit Music!

You might ask me, why I chose Home Radio. Actually, I had four choices:

1.) Home Radio - I love how their DJs speak English fluently and their playlist is composed of modern songs. I'd love to learn from them.

2.) Wild FM 103.5 - This station speaks CebLish and because of the medium they use, I think they don't alienate other people who are not really into the very high-end English language.

3.) Y101 - This station also has articulate English speakers for their disc jocks but I didn't apply because of its location. Home Radio was closer to my school.

4.) Killerbee 92.3 - Same is true with Killerbee. I have been listening to their station since 6th grade because I knew one of my uncles was a DJ there. But, I also didn't apply for the same reason. I need to ride a "habal-habal" to get to their station which is in Boys Scouts Camp, Capitol Hills, Lahug. I am not up to those "habal-habal' rides day in and day out.

So, how was my first day? Well, Gem, Jovan, and I agreed to meet in school before 10 am because we had to pay for our nameplates. But thanks to traffic, I arrived in school late. Luckily, Mr. Julius Manahan, the station manager, really didn't give us a specific time to report. Our official log in time was 10:55 am. I have experienced how it is to have my DTR punched in the bundy clock (although I made a slight mistake during my lunch time out :]] )

We had a little chitchat with the SM and we eventually knew that he was the father of Janelle Manahan, the girlfriend of the late Ramgen Revilla (may his soul rests in peace). That's why Mr. Manahan was very familiar. I already saw him once in TV Patrol World during those days when the Ramgen Controversy was the talk of the nation.

Flashforward to what happen this afternoon! We'll we had a short orientation with one of the full-time DJs, DJ Darwin who is going to be our mentor for our 200 hour internship. The way he speaks made me ask, "How can someone talk so articulately without opening his mouth that much?" He's one big funny guy.

We got to share our expectations and agreed on some things. Later, we went to do what Ms. Sarah, who was in charge with the finance stuff of the station.  We verified the advertisement logs if a certain product's ad was really played for a specific time. It was tedious but it was also fun at the same time. We went home around 6 after the rain had stopped.

We went home with an assignment. We were tasked to make a Radio Ad Script for a hotel. This is pressuring me of some sorts because I have to recall what I've learned about making scripts. With my notes missing, I have to resort to the internet. I guess, this is the best time for me to stop and do my assignment.

Talk to you again, next time Blogger. : ]

-pRaNs B.

Visit Home Radio's Facebook account:

https://www.facebook.com/homeradio106dot7cebufanpage 

or visit their website:

http://www.homeradio1067.net/

Food for Thought

            How to spend the Holy Wednesday? Well, I asked money from my mother  so I could buy the Rizal Textbook and do some advance reading. I thought I was going alone but my Mother told me she needs to buy something, too. So we went to SM together. ^__________^
            Fast-forward to the great part! We went to BreadTalk and filled ourselves with heavenly goodies. Just by the smell of the store, I was lured to buy one out of every bread they had. But due to financial circumstances (I'm no rich kid), I had to satisfy myself with less bread T_T. Here were the goodies we bought from BreadTalk :

Mango Pleasure Cup (P68), Bacon N' Cheeze (P39),
Chocolate Mousse (P68),  and upfront is Choco Cream Cheeze (P47). 

My Mom chose this Mango Pleasure Cup because she saw one
family eating the whole cake version of this when we
dined out last Sunday. :)))

I took this Choco Mousse because I'm
a fan of Mousses. :)

         I wasn't able to take a pic of the Choco Smart Aleck because I ate it before arriving home. It was delicious because the bread was crisp and the choco filling was not that sweet which I loved! :]]
         I didn't expect that we had spent P347 only for the seven goodies. I say "only" because if it were from other pastry stores, we could have spent more. This just indicates that BreadTalk goodies are affordable! So what are you guys waiting for? Visit BreadTalk now! Branches are at SM City Cebu and Ayala Center Cebu.

Breaking the silence: Summer Classes and Thrift Shops

         Heeeeeeeeeey Blogspot! It has been an epoch since the last time I blogged (I deserve some spanking for being such a delinquent blogger XD).

          A lot has happened the past few days which were worth blogging but lethargy got the best of me. Yesterday (April 3,2012) was our 2nd day of summer classes. I already knew who my professors were and GOD, they weren't the ones I was expecting but I guess everything will go fine with them.

             During my three-hour-and-20-minute break, I had to meet up with my Mom at Robinson's to do some thrift shopping at nearby thrift shops. I was never into pre-loved clothes but when I got to see how my classmates strut their fifty peso outfits, I said to myself that I could also do with "ukay-ukay".

             So yeah, I went to some thrift shops across Robinsons and there were really great finds there. I bought two shirts; One was a Giordano polo shirt and it was only 84 pesos! I also bought a pair of shortpants worth 66pesos. I was in awe at how affordable the clothes were and I see myself going back to those stores in the future. Will be posting those items soon. This will be for now! Toodles!

Pet Must-Haves

A year or so from now, I'll be graduating college (hopefully). This early, I have thought many times of having pets and I just can't wait to have one ^__________^

I have always loved Labrador Retrievers (also GoldenRets,too)
and I can't wait to have one of this breed. I'm gonna call her "Summa".
You might ask why Summa. Uhm, people always pressure me of becoming
a Summa Cumm Laude by the time I graduate. It's just too impossible
that's why I'll just satisfy them by having a dog named Summa.

Just finished watching 101 Dalmatians (again!)
and I badly want one. Imma call her "Dallas".

I don't want to believe that cats are the number one enemy of dogs.
I want to have a Siamese cat, sometime. Isn't he cute?

Actually, these are only a few of my must-haves after graduation  :)) SAVE SAVE SAVE MONEY MODE IS ON. Yes, I am such a dreamer and I always will be :p

P.S. I don't own the pics :]

GrandMama's 70th

Hello Blogger!
Sorry for being a delinquent blogger. Been very busy with school, but I'm glad to blog again after an epoch has passed since my last post :)))

Here, I made an invitation for my grandmother's upcoming 70th birthday. She doesn't know that we're throwing her a party. I'm pretty confident that she won't know anything despite me posting this online (unless you'll tell her about this which I beg you won't HAHA)

Did this with Adobe Photoshop CS3 :]
The design is inspired from www.invitationconsultants.com

Can't wait for March 3, 2012 weeeeeeeeeeeee

Wake Up

February 6, 2012 is one historic day. 

After taking a special midterm exam around 11:30am, I shared my first hand experience of witnessing a "snatch-ing" event last January 31, 2012. After that conversation I had with Mariz and Reina, our SoAn teacher dismissed us when all of a sudden I felt the Earth move and we were on the 4th floor of USJ-R. Our teacher instructed us to go under the chairs and I didn't have second thoughts while Mariz was appalled about the incident and just sat on her chair. 

When the shaking resided, everyone was going down to the quadrangle and my fingers kept dialing my friends and family. Sun Cellular wasn't even helping; my text messages just can't be sent. After minutes of staying at the quadrangle, classes were suspended. 

Fortunately, Auntie Rodeth and our househelpers were ok so were my baby cousins. My mother and grandmother wasn't around which got me worried but praise God they were ok. Everything was like "ok this strong earthquake passed Cebu and blablablabla" when all of the sudden the phone rang and my grandmother was on the line telling my mother that she's all alone and a tsunami hit Punta-Tisa-SRP ( confusing much?). I hurriedly went to her house and the people filled the streets. Habal-habal drivers were speeding as usual acting as it there really was a calamity (or are they just umi-eksena?? )

Rumors spread about a Tsunami hitting Cebu, more earthquakes to come, and the Buhisan dam cracking. I was like, "OH EM. What's happening?" My fingers did their thing with GMs only to find out that it was only a tsunami scare. Damn those who started this hullaballo. As of this moment, I'm kinda sleepy already but I don't wanna sleep after all those aftershocks that occurred.

This experience has been such an awakening. I know  I haven't been the best example of how a Roman Catholic should live a holy life but I'm thankful that God made me realize how life can be taken with just a snap and how He has kept my family and friends safe. I pray everyone will stay safe all throughout the rumors of more tremors to come.

Bogus Email

Subject: CAN I TRUST YOU 
Thursday, February 2, 2012 1:01 AM

From:"Mr.Chikabale Mohammed" <mr.chikable_mohammed32></mr.chikable_mohammed32>

Greetings!.

I appeal to you to exercise a little patient (laysho. himoon ko'g pasyente) and read through my letter, I wish to contact you personally for a long term relationship and investment assistance in your Country, i will really like to have a good relationship with you and I have a special reason why I decided to contact you.

My name is Mr.Chikabale Mohammed Office of Auditing and Accounting File Manager with African development bank Ouagadougou Burkina Faso. In my department i discovered an abandoned sum of (US$8.6M DOLLARS) in an account that belongs to one of our foreign customer (MR. RICHARD BURSON from Florida, U.S.A) who died along with his entire family on November 1999 in a plane crash.

I need your urgent assistance in transferring the sum of ($8.6M USD) to your account within 7 banking days, while every necessary arrangement should commence after I have hear from you.

This money has been dormant for years (let it stay dormant for another year. the world will end on december anyways HAHA)  in our Bank without claim, and I don't want the money to go into the Reserve Bank of Burkina Faso (RBBF), as an abandoned fund (Why not?). So this is the reason why I contacted you so that the bank can release the money to you as the next of kin to the deceased customer (Oh c'mon. That's just bad to claim someone else's money especially when that someone is dead).

Please I would like you to keep this transfer as a top secret between me and you alone ok. (of all people, WHY ME? I can't even loot a 20 peso bill from my parents).

I promise you that i will direct you on how this transfer will go successfully if only you can abide to my instruction. Upon receipt of your reply i will give you full details on how the business will be executed.

Kindly send me this information below to have trust in you that you would betray me. (Uhm... i guess you missed typing "not" after "would")

(1) Your full name...

(2) Your address...

(3) Country.. WHY ASK ME MY INFORMATION when in the first place

(4) Age... you've chosen me to work with you?

(5) Occupation....... You should have known me that much already

(6) Private telephone number

(7) Sex. (No thanks. I'm practicing celibacy)

l will send you my details of this transaction as soon as I hear from you thanks, trusting to hear from you immediately with your contact information (you heard, a'ryt)

Best Regards.

Mr.Chikabale Mohammed

LIKE OH-EM. Thank you for choosing me to do such thing but I'm not up to it. Easy money is an easy access to a miserable life. Not to say that my life is not miserable now, but the degree of it being miserable is STILL TOLERABLE. If ever you find this libelous or defaming, Mr. Chikabale Mohammed, do whatever you want on me. As long as I am not involve with hogging someone else's money, I'll stay happy. 

Kids say the Darnest Things :]

Last Sunday, my cute little cousin Ryann passed by our gate and called me. He gave me this cute Spongebob neckie that lights up. He said this is his gift to me because I asked him for one couple of days ago. :))))))))))))

A Spongebob Neckie from Ryann. Thaaanks bebe boy
for this gift! <3

Earlier this evening...

Mama: Aligre kays Ryann ganina. Nangasaba ni Mica.

Ryann: Nganung gi kuha mana nimo akong gift ni Kuya Franz?! I-uli na niya ha! I-uli gyod na!

Mama: Mura gyo'g korek ang insik.

Hey bebe boy!

My project, my bebe gerl!

Kids are <3 <3 <3. Aren't they adorable?

Among the Chosen Few

It was this time of day last year - the same busy climate due to preparations for the ABET Awards and the upcoming Midterm exams - that I received this RYLA letter.

Last year, I had to decline because of how busy I was and how I lacked the credentials. This year I'm planning to decline again BUT! there's this little voice urging me to give this a try. A part of me wants to do the interview and see what comes from there.  I don't have flowery credentials and numerous awards to wow RYLA's Panel but having been chosen to represent my department is just like getting a slushie on my face to tell me "Hey! We see leadership potential in you."

 Geeeez. This is hard. I'm flattered in some way but hesitant. I have always hated to be the leader because of how some lazy people benefit from my toil and how some always depend on me in decision-making instances which makes me think how people don't exercise their initiative. Lastly, there are really people who can't reciprocate the sacrifices I do for the group.

GAAAAAAAAHD. This is difficult. The interview will be this Friday but I'm booked this week. God, do Your Will on me.



*Definition of terms:
ABET - Amateur Broadcasters' Experimental Production for Television; USJR MassCom Coordinates' Film Festival
RYLA - Rotary Youth Leadership Awards

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards Letter

Red and Green Day Two

After eating out with my college buddies, my folks prepared a little feast for me the day after.
Thaaaaaaanks bloodline! Love love love!

Welcome to my Halloween-slash-Children's Party! LOL.

The balloons I bought coincides with the celebration of  DLSU Lady Spiker's
11W-0L record in UAAP S74 Women's Volleyball

A year older. I hope I could be a year wiser and better, too.

Thaaaaaaaaaaaaanks for satisfying my choco cravings!

Hello Children! Dig in!

Ryann's busy making his halo-halo.

He gets what he worked for.

Hello Helo-helo! :]