If my memory serves me correctly...
TH 151 - Catholic Commitment of Today's Filipino (MWF 0930-1030, Rosana)
POS 100 - Politics and Governance (MWF 1130-1230, Oreta)
FA 199 - Practicum II (TTH 0900-1030, Bolipata-Santos)
PH 104 - Foundations of Moral Value (TTH 1030-1200, Hermida)
FA 175.4 - Introduction to Painting (T 1330-1630, Dy)
Despite my random number, I managed to tweak my schedule in order to attain something that I've never or rarely experienced throughout my class.
1. No night class
2. No Saturday class
3. MWF only up to 12:30
And I've managed to avoid the known "leftover teachers". The unknown, I don't know.
Nang Nak
No, I have not watched Nang Nak. However, the title of the movie has become a jargon word amongst us. Nang Nak can mean sppoky, freaky, bad luck or almost anything negative. We then searched for its meaning hoping that it would mean something frightening, but we were disappointed. It turns out that "Nang Nak" was only a name of a person. Nak is the name, Nang is a term used to respect women. Translated to english, the title would be "Miss Nak." It's amazing how the Filipino language could have two similar terms --- Manang & Inang.
Pushyo Pushyo! (Can somebody Korean translate that?)
I played one-on-one basketball with Migs in Ayala Heights. We were surprised that we managed to score almost every single time now compared to the last time we "battled" each other. In his house, we toyed around with their organ, playing Depeche Mode's "Just Can't Get Enough", the Bodies in Motion and Iron Chef theme using similar instruments. Looking back at Migs' creative graduation pic, he does look like a member of H.O.T. (Korean boy group) sans the extreme highlights. Star talk, romance edition.
October 29, 2004
October 28, 2004
To boggle your mind
seeing the two them sitting
on a bench in berchmans,
a ray of sunlight making
them glow, they look like
proud swans, heads up high,
smiles in full display as they wave hi,
then return to their comfortable state
as if nothing happened.
maybe i should start singing this swan song
and end it before cacophonious cries
make everything real.
on a bench in berchmans,
a ray of sunlight making
them glow, they look like
proud swans, heads up high,
smiles in full display as they wave hi,
then return to their comfortable state
as if nothing happened.
maybe i should start singing this swan song
and end it before cacophonious cries
make everything real.
October 27, 2004
October 26, 2004
ACP: The Lack of Concern for the Other
We can forgive the ACP committee for apologizing for the blackout that apparently crashed their systems that disabled students from registering.
ACP Website Downtime
Thu, Sep 30 2004 8:54 AM
Due to technical difficulties beyond our control, the ACP website was offline last night. Currently, reservation is disabled until we receive further notice, but you may log-in to update your profile. We apologize for the inconvenience. Please check back again for further updates.
We can also forgive them for the lost passwords too, since they released a public apology. However, since then, there have been numerous problems that arose especially regarding the thousands of glitches in their system. Yet, they kept "fixing" things undercover and this caused the hundreds of complaints in their inbox to rise to the thousand mark.
Over the Limit
Some classes in the site enabled students to still register for a class even though it says it was already full. This problem caused a lot of venue problems (due to lack of space), and also brought troubles for the speaker, especially those who specifically stated that they only will accept X number of students.
Kickout
To fix the "over the limit" problem, an ACP member confided that to fix this, they removed everyone who registered in that specific class, and opened it up for everyone to register again (this time with the limit enabled). However, they never released an announcement saying that this happened, not on their site, nor through e-mail or through any means known to man. Now, students who registered early to get that class never knew that they did this, and now are facing a problem that they do not have a class now since they were overtaken by other students who were looking for a class.
The Unhelpful Helpdesk
For complaints, students can e-mail acpwebreg@gmail.com. However, many students have complained that they never answer back. Sure, they said on their site that they will get back to the concerned student ASAP. However, this doesn't mean that they could have the freedom to respond in the next century. It is common courtesy to at least reply to an e-mail saying that they couldn't solve the problem right now.
The Downward Slope
This lack of concern for the other has caused the ACP, a helpful program where a student is given the opportunity to take alternative classes to expand their horizons, to fall grace from students' eyes. Many have considered the ACP days as a holiday instead of an opportunity especially since they are now conscious of the empty threats of cuts in their homeroom subjects the past ACP committees have led them to think. ACP is now a laughing matter among many students, and some refuse to sign up because nothing will actually happen if you do. Most classes offered are deemed time-wasters, and some students would rather have a regular class day than take an alternative one.
Seeing the boxes containing thousands of registration CDs remaining in the ACP operations room is a sign that the ACP is really on the way down.
ACP Website Downtime
Thu, Sep 30 2004 8:54 AM
Due to technical difficulties beyond our control, the ACP website was offline last night. Currently, reservation is disabled until we receive further notice, but you may log-in to update your profile. We apologize for the inconvenience. Please check back again for further updates.
We can also forgive them for the lost passwords too, since they released a public apology. However, since then, there have been numerous problems that arose especially regarding the thousands of glitches in their system. Yet, they kept "fixing" things undercover and this caused the hundreds of complaints in their inbox to rise to the thousand mark.
Over the Limit
Some classes in the site enabled students to still register for a class even though it says it was already full. This problem caused a lot of venue problems (due to lack of space), and also brought troubles for the speaker, especially those who specifically stated that they only will accept X number of students.
Kickout
To fix the "over the limit" problem, an ACP member confided that to fix this, they removed everyone who registered in that specific class, and opened it up for everyone to register again (this time with the limit enabled). However, they never released an announcement saying that this happened, not on their site, nor through e-mail or through any means known to man. Now, students who registered early to get that class never knew that they did this, and now are facing a problem that they do not have a class now since they were overtaken by other students who were looking for a class.
The Unhelpful Helpdesk
For complaints, students can e-mail acpwebreg@gmail.com. However, many students have complained that they never answer back. Sure, they said on their site that they will get back to the concerned student ASAP. However, this doesn't mean that they could have the freedom to respond in the next century. It is common courtesy to at least reply to an e-mail saying that they couldn't solve the problem right now.
The Downward Slope
This lack of concern for the other has caused the ACP, a helpful program where a student is given the opportunity to take alternative classes to expand their horizons, to fall grace from students' eyes. Many have considered the ACP days as a holiday instead of an opportunity especially since they are now conscious of the empty threats of cuts in their homeroom subjects the past ACP committees have led them to think. ACP is now a laughing matter among many students, and some refuse to sign up because nothing will actually happen if you do. Most classes offered are deemed time-wasters, and some students would rather have a regular class day than take an alternative one.
Seeing the boxes containing thousands of registration CDs remaining in the ACP operations room is a sign that the ACP is really on the way down.
October 25, 2004
Just an ordinary boy
I'm no Jimmy Neutron
Back then in second year, Denise Roco usually called me "Boy Genius." Maybe so, since everytime we checked who were the top students in Fine Arts, I always placed second, behind Mine Chavez (We miss you!).
I got my grades earlier and it wasn't up to par with my previous grades. It got hit with my first semester syndrome, one I've seemingly developed since second year. The first semester will always be lower than my second one.
Malikhaing Pagsulat sa Filipino: *
Seems like Sir Yapan wasn't able to submit our grades in time. Oh well. Hopefully, I'll get a B so my over-all QPI for this semester would be 3 flat.
Practicum I: A
I didn't expect this... oh wait, I did! :)
Theology 141: B
Seems like I did pretty well in my orals. My class standing before the orals was C+.
Philo 103: B
I was a bit surprised with this one. The "midterm" orals and paper probably helped a lot since we (Ella Chua & I) got B+/A for the paper.
History 166: C
My weakness in History rears its ugly head again. I hated that right-minus wrong long test (Inhuman to finish)
I'm no Earl Strickland
I went mall-hopping (Megamall, Shangri-La, Star Mall) with Migs & Christian afterwards. After eating and sight-seeing, we played billiards and got defeated 4-3. I couldn't change to Earl form, think I was too sick. I was having a hard time breathing. Pasaway lang ako. :)
Back then in second year, Denise Roco usually called me "Boy Genius." Maybe so, since everytime we checked who were the top students in Fine Arts, I always placed second, behind Mine Chavez (We miss you!).
I got my grades earlier and it wasn't up to par with my previous grades. It got hit with my first semester syndrome, one I've seemingly developed since second year. The first semester will always be lower than my second one.
Malikhaing Pagsulat sa Filipino: *
Seems like Sir Yapan wasn't able to submit our grades in time. Oh well. Hopefully, I'll get a B so my over-all QPI for this semester would be 3 flat.
Practicum I: A
I didn't expect this... oh wait, I did! :)
Theology 141: B
Seems like I did pretty well in my orals. My class standing before the orals was C+.
Philo 103: B
I was a bit surprised with this one. The "midterm" orals and paper probably helped a lot since we (Ella Chua & I) got B+/A for the paper.
History 166: C
My weakness in History rears its ugly head again. I hated that right-minus wrong long test (Inhuman to finish)
I'm no Earl Strickland
I went mall-hopping (Megamall, Shangri-La, Star Mall) with Migs & Christian afterwards. After eating and sight-seeing, we played billiards and got defeated 4-3. I couldn't change to Earl form, think I was too sick. I was having a hard time breathing. Pasaway lang ako. :)
October 24, 2004
How random is random?
The Ateneo has employed the random number system since 2003. It is a system where a computer randomly generates a number that determines the "place in line" of a student. It replaces the deemed inefficient, first-come, first-served system that has been used for several years already.
Improvements
Gone are the days when a student will go to school at four o' clock in the morning and start to line up for registration at eight. There are no more complaints regarding people cutting in line, and claiming that lines get thicker, not longer. If they unfortunately get a high number, students can now still sleep and arrive during their expected time of arrival. No one has to go to different departments and sign up for their class. Everything is concentrated in one computer room per school. Nitski* of AB COM attests to this, "I could finish the entire registration in under twenty minutes without any trouble at all."
What it does not solve
Random is defined as lacking any definite plan or order or purpose; governed by or depending on chance. However, there are a lot of instances where students observe that the random numbers seem repetitive, or floating around the same range. Some boast that they never got a high random number in their entire stay. Others, like Wallace* of BS MCT complains, "I never got a good number ever. This forces me to take the well-known terror teachers or the avoided ones every semester. Would a student like to have Arcilla, Calasanz, and Parco at one time?"
There are also "couplings", two or more students who seemingly are always "paired" during registrations. Some even noted that well-known students are seemingly "prioritized" and usually have a lower number compared to the average student.
It also does not solve the perennial problem of majors conflicting with the core subjects due to students' high numbers. This usually affects the Science students who only have one schedule for their majors. High numbers usually spell doom to the students that some opt to do late registration in order to avoid waiting for hours and the teachers that are left by that time. Students are willing to sacrifice a little bit of cash to prevent falling into a class where they'll abhor for the entire semester, a moneymaking scheme deemed by some.
No one knows
The registration committee only knows one thing about the random numbers, that they are generated by a computer. Beyond that, no one knows exactly how random numbers are picked, the process it undergoes. No one could explain why there are instances where the same students get the lower numbers more than the others.
Refinement
Despite its improvements, the random number system still has its flaws and needs to be further refined. A student's suggestion brings up the idea of a circular random number system where it takes advantage of the four divisions created by the expected time of arrival. For example, a school is divided by fifties. A student, in the first semester of his third year, his number falls in between 50-99. In the next semester, his number can fall in between 1-49, 100-149 or 150-200, never again 50-99. If he gets 1-49, then in his fourth year, he could only have a random number in the range of 100-200. Using this process, every student will have the experience of having a low and a high number throughout his third and fourth years where random numbers play a vital part in their registration since they usually do not have predetermined subjects. This suggestion removes the "unfairness" the random numbers seem to bring.
* Names have been changed to protect the people involved
Improvements
Gone are the days when a student will go to school at four o' clock in the morning and start to line up for registration at eight. There are no more complaints regarding people cutting in line, and claiming that lines get thicker, not longer. If they unfortunately get a high number, students can now still sleep and arrive during their expected time of arrival. No one has to go to different departments and sign up for their class. Everything is concentrated in one computer room per school. Nitski* of AB COM attests to this, "I could finish the entire registration in under twenty minutes without any trouble at all."
What it does not solve
Random is defined as lacking any definite plan or order or purpose; governed by or depending on chance. However, there are a lot of instances where students observe that the random numbers seem repetitive, or floating around the same range. Some boast that they never got a high random number in their entire stay. Others, like Wallace* of BS MCT complains, "I never got a good number ever. This forces me to take the well-known terror teachers or the avoided ones every semester. Would a student like to have Arcilla, Calasanz, and Parco at one time?"
There are also "couplings", two or more students who seemingly are always "paired" during registrations. Some even noted that well-known students are seemingly "prioritized" and usually have a lower number compared to the average student.
It also does not solve the perennial problem of majors conflicting with the core subjects due to students' high numbers. This usually affects the Science students who only have one schedule for their majors. High numbers usually spell doom to the students that some opt to do late registration in order to avoid waiting for hours and the teachers that are left by that time. Students are willing to sacrifice a little bit of cash to prevent falling into a class where they'll abhor for the entire semester, a moneymaking scheme deemed by some.
No one knows
The registration committee only knows one thing about the random numbers, that they are generated by a computer. Beyond that, no one knows exactly how random numbers are picked, the process it undergoes. No one could explain why there are instances where the same students get the lower numbers more than the others.
Refinement
Despite its improvements, the random number system still has its flaws and needs to be further refined. A student's suggestion brings up the idea of a circular random number system where it takes advantage of the four divisions created by the expected time of arrival. For example, a school is divided by fifties. A student, in the first semester of his third year, his number falls in between 50-99. In the next semester, his number can fall in between 1-49, 100-149 or 150-200, never again 50-99. If he gets 1-49, then in his fourth year, he could only have a random number in the range of 100-200. Using this process, every student will have the experience of having a low and a high number throughout his third and fourth years where random numbers play a vital part in their registration since they usually do not have predetermined subjects. This suggestion removes the "unfairness" the random numbers seem to bring.
* Names have been changed to protect the people involved
I miss my Placement Family!
Dear Ateneo Placement Office,
I am obsessed with you.
1. My Insaniquarium Virtual Tank backdrop/screensaver sports a photograph of the Placement Reps.
2. My Puzzle Express game has photographs of the Placement people.
3. My blog has a photograph of the Placement Reps.
4. I spend most of my free time there, eating, studying, working, playing, or hanging out there even without any reason.
5. My Friendster list is full of Placement Reps, and most of them know my secrets.
6. My laptop is full of Placement photographs.
7. I've spent time knowing every function the Placement Office does, especially in the Office Assistant position.
8. I do stuff for the Placement Office without anyone telling me to do it.
9. Nanlilibre ako! (Shock!)
10. If there was one thing I regret in my entire stay in the Ateneo de Manila College, it would be, "I didn't join the Ateneo Placement Office earlier."
Probably, you helped me grow so much. You've created an atmosphere where we love everyone there, and cater to each individual's strengths and weaknesses, no faceless individuals who just work for a project, something that no organization ever offered me.
Looking forward to being there once again next semester, and sadly, the last semester,
SAVP-IT
Milo
I am obsessed with you.
1. My Insaniquarium Virtual Tank backdrop/screensaver sports a photograph of the Placement Reps.
2. My Puzzle Express game has photographs of the Placement people.
3. My blog has a photograph of the Placement Reps.
4. I spend most of my free time there, eating, studying, working, playing, or hanging out there even without any reason.
5. My Friendster list is full of Placement Reps, and most of them know my secrets.
6. My laptop is full of Placement photographs.
7. I've spent time knowing every function the Placement Office does, especially in the Office Assistant position.
8. I do stuff for the Placement Office without anyone telling me to do it.
9. Nanlilibre ako! (Shock!)
10. If there was one thing I regret in my entire stay in the Ateneo de Manila College, it would be, "I didn't join the Ateneo Placement Office earlier."
Probably, you helped me grow so much. You've created an atmosphere where we love everyone there, and cater to each individual's strengths and weaknesses, no faceless individuals who just work for a project, something that no organization ever offered me.
Looking forward to being there once again next semester, and sadly, the last semester,
SAVP-IT
Milo
October 23, 2004
The House of Flying Reality
Warning: Will Contain Spoilers
When I watched "The House of Flying Daggers", I do not understand why most reviews found in the internet hated it. Although I admit that Hero was the better movie, HoFD doesn't deserve the raps it got from them.
I got excerpts [shown in italics] from a review in http://www.imdb.com (The International Movie Database) and will place my comments afterwards.
Unfortunately, the story doesn't work. The action scenes and the character drama have been given unequal time; something like 25/75, percentage-wise. Obviously, the plot and characterizations are important to the director. Regrettably, the plot is enormously protracted, and about two thirds into the movie we get extreme twists that turn everything around and completely undermine the premise of all the earlier key scenes. If Mei and Leo knew each other, what was the point of the initial fight in the pavilion? To what purpose were all the pretending, when everyone involved were in on it?! Also, many of the fight scenes from the first half of the movie (esp. in the forest) where Mei is supposedly blind are made meaningless once we know that she was never blind. That's not clever storytelling; that's cheating!
The extreme twists weren't really exteme, if one is observant during the film. We were given hints, a lot of them in fact, during the earlier scenes that the captain was also part of the Flying Daggers. The echo game, the singling out of Mei, the one-day "break" from the torture and Mei's smile during the echo game were just some of the hints given. The initial fight served as a way to make everyone think that they were on opposite sides. Her planned escape later would then draw out the general and his troops to where the house of flying daggers were waiting to ambush the government (who killed the old leader of the house of FD). Mei acted blind so Jin, as well as the government, would believe that she was the daughter of the old leader out to take revenge on her father's death. There was a story floating around in the government that the old leader had a blind daughter who left the group. She was a "big fish" in the eyes of the corrupt government, and would surely be an asset to lead them to the hideout of the HoFD. There were also subtle hints that the movie gave out to say that she wasn't blind.
The love story was too silly and preposterous to be believable, and all the worse for being so long-winded. And we never did see very much of the skill (or the members) of the Flying Daggers, which I thought was a great shame. Nor did we see the outcome of the final fight between the Daggers and the government soldiers! From starting out as an action movie, the film descends more and more into a bad love story, even to the point of supplying hardly any resolution to the action part of the story.
One wouldn't know this if he hasn't experienced loving two people at the same time --- his ex, and his "moved on" love. The love story was exactly like that, and even Mei couldn't choose until the end. (grabe... parang tunay na buhay.) Although it would be nice to see the skill of the Flying Daggers in the battle with the government, it would just add glamour to the film, nothing else. The flying daggers throughout the movie were enough to showcase this skill. The outcome of the final fight was implied in the final scene, as well as in the song that recurred twice in the movie. Watch it again, and "see".
The taste in movies nowadays have shifted back to the spoonfed era, but with a technological taste in it. "I must see high flying breathtaking action like the Matrix, and see a clear-cut in-your-face ending (with a strong theological or philosophical background)." Implied stories are sadly, not sufficient once more.
When I watched "The House of Flying Daggers", I do not understand why most reviews found in the internet hated it. Although I admit that Hero was the better movie, HoFD doesn't deserve the raps it got from them.
I got excerpts [shown in italics] from a review in http://www.imdb.com (The International Movie Database) and will place my comments afterwards.
Unfortunately, the story doesn't work. The action scenes and the character drama have been given unequal time; something like 25/75, percentage-wise. Obviously, the plot and characterizations are important to the director. Regrettably, the plot is enormously protracted, and about two thirds into the movie we get extreme twists that turn everything around and completely undermine the premise of all the earlier key scenes. If Mei and Leo knew each other, what was the point of the initial fight in the pavilion? To what purpose were all the pretending, when everyone involved were in on it?! Also, many of the fight scenes from the first half of the movie (esp. in the forest) where Mei is supposedly blind are made meaningless once we know that she was never blind. That's not clever storytelling; that's cheating!
The extreme twists weren't really exteme, if one is observant during the film. We were given hints, a lot of them in fact, during the earlier scenes that the captain was also part of the Flying Daggers. The echo game, the singling out of Mei, the one-day "break" from the torture and Mei's smile during the echo game were just some of the hints given. The initial fight served as a way to make everyone think that they were on opposite sides. Her planned escape later would then draw out the general and his troops to where the house of flying daggers were waiting to ambush the government (who killed the old leader of the house of FD). Mei acted blind so Jin, as well as the government, would believe that she was the daughter of the old leader out to take revenge on her father's death. There was a story floating around in the government that the old leader had a blind daughter who left the group. She was a "big fish" in the eyes of the corrupt government, and would surely be an asset to lead them to the hideout of the HoFD. There were also subtle hints that the movie gave out to say that she wasn't blind.
The love story was too silly and preposterous to be believable, and all the worse for being so long-winded. And we never did see very much of the skill (or the members) of the Flying Daggers, which I thought was a great shame. Nor did we see the outcome of the final fight between the Daggers and the government soldiers! From starting out as an action movie, the film descends more and more into a bad love story, even to the point of supplying hardly any resolution to the action part of the story.
One wouldn't know this if he hasn't experienced loving two people at the same time --- his ex, and his "moved on" love. The love story was exactly like that, and even Mei couldn't choose until the end. (grabe... parang tunay na buhay.) Although it would be nice to see the skill of the Flying Daggers in the battle with the government, it would just add glamour to the film, nothing else. The flying daggers throughout the movie were enough to showcase this skill. The outcome of the final fight was implied in the final scene, as well as in the song that recurred twice in the movie. Watch it again, and "see".
The taste in movies nowadays have shifted back to the spoonfed era, but with a technological taste in it. "I must see high flying breathtaking action like the Matrix, and see a clear-cut in-your-face ending (with a strong theological or philosophical background)." Implied stories are sadly, not sufficient once more.