Summer 2013

Hello again blog!

It's been a long time. Apparently, I was on a hiatus for the past weeks because of the deluge of school requirements that kept me from posting some of my musings here. Fortunately, I unbelievably survived the three-week-straight hell week and passed my courses, thus letting myself enroll for the next semester.

This week is my rest week. I finally am able to breathe. I just chatted with friends, scrolled down through Facebook statuses, watched my two favorite shows (The Voice and the koreanovela The Greatest Love) and thought of things that I want to do for the rest of the summer. How I wish to get in touch with friends and travel to different summer destinations!

I relish this summer so much. Maybe because I was so tired during the last semester that I feel like I really deserve this rest. Yet, it always seems to me that I need to do something productive, like read something relevant to my studies, to improve my Spanish/French, to scout for houses for sale. Whew! I just don't want to miss the fun this summer has, but I don't want to be too complacent by wasting away time rather than developing myself for future endeavors. Well, maybe I just have to enjoy more time for writing on this blog.

Leisurely things

In the near future, I hope to have the luxury of time and the abundance of money to do these things:

* Practice piano pieces
*Read on the Citisec Online website and invest
*Write a PDI-worthy article
*Draw/paint
*Write a poem
*Develop a product for business
*Read "Norwegian Wood" by Haruki Murakami

When will I have the time?

The successes and failures of 2012

I find it funny that people divide their lives by years when life is a continuum that is divided only by day and night. Nevertheless, I do the same.hehe To cap the year, I looked at my Wishlist for 2012 and see if I achieved some. Here's the list:


To conquer the 2012 FSO Exams – I am very glad to have taken the FSO exam this year. Although I did not pass the entire exam and only reached the Written Part of the test, I take pride in having the guts to take on the challenge. It was an exhilarating experience. For now, I will not take the 2013 FSO exams. I am also still not sure if I will continue the journey towards becoming a diplomat, but we will see.

    
   To have my Master’s degree abroad – I know that I will not achieve this wish within 2012, even in 2013 probably since I recently did not apply for any scholarship abroad due to various commitments that made me very busy. But this will remain a goal for the coming years and I pray that the universe will collide to help me attain this aim soon.

To have the house of our own – My family and I are still on the process of looking for a different place, a new home. I know that this search should be given a lot of effort and time, which I failed to provide. But this coming year will be different. I know that we will be on our way to find a house that fits our income and our dreams.hehe 

To invest – I am very proud to have invested my money this past year. Well, technically it was not a mutual fund or a UITF. I invested it in our store which participated in the Bahay ng Alumni Christmas bazaar for 2012. From just a concept in our minds, my sister and I concretized our plan to join a Christmas bazaar. Unfortunately, we were not able to watch the Lantern Parade and did not reach our target profit but still, it was a learning risk. We discovered that we need some product development because selling the products that we ourselves made is more profitable than just purchasing from wholesale sellers.

To learn the piano or the violin – The summer of 2012 was the time to learn the piano. As stated in a blog post before, I enrolled in a piano class. However, I haven’t practiced the instrument for some months. I need to refresh my knowledge and skills in the piano and learn more complex pieces so I can really say that I know how to play the piano.

To have a photo published in a magazine or a periodical – It is sad that the camera that I plan to use to produce quality photos had its LCD destroyed. I know it was an excuse but of course I would not like to submit low-quality photos for contests. I hope to have that camera fixed I can achieve this wish by 2013.

To have my written article be published – I do not know if there’s something wrong with me because I can’t seem to think of topics that I would really like to write on or that are publication-worthy. I shy away from writing something about myself or my life experiences but I also think that I am not the authority on writing on other topics. But someday, maybe I am knowledgeable enough on a topic that I will be asked to write something about it. For now, I will just practice, practice and practice.

To travel – I had the fortunate chance to travel to Burot beach and Calaruega Church in Batangas last August. It was just a single travel but I enjoyed it very much. I hope to have more travels and to give more time for travels this 2013.

To read at least 30 books – This year, I only finished two books (“Who moved my cheese?” and “Flipped”) because my time was spent on academic readings, which I do not count as books since they are only journal pieces. I already miss Murakami, Coelho and Lewis. But every time I start to read a novel, I feel guilty because I should be reading assigned articles for school. Well, that’s what you call prioritization.

To lose at least 5 kilos – This one is really a WISH. hehe I sort of monitored my weight the entire year and it did not change. At least it did not increase thanks to my decreased food intake. I should exercise more to be fit and have a healthier body not just diet on food.

Be more generous, helpful and loving as a person – I do not know if I have achieved this goal. It depends on the persons that know me and that I encounter frequently. Maybe I should ask them.hehe

Have a more personal relationship with God – I know I failed in this one. What a shame. I long for the days that I can feel like I can hear Him talking to me. I must also give Him more time and effort.

 Looks like there are more failures than successes. But I know I should not be disheartened. After all, there's still 2013. :)

A celestial dream

Last night, I dreamed of stars on the sky. It was more than a dream. It felt real and seemed like I was very near them, that I can touch them and hold them in my hands. I hope that dream signifies that I will soon reach the stars, that I will soon achieve my dreams. Soon.

Another semester, another chance

The first two weeks of November signaled the start of the second semester. I was glad that the first sem was over and I unbelievably got through it with flying colors. I hope that that achievement will repeat this current sem.

I am satisfied with the courses I took, though they look more demanding (knock on wood). But I know that I can do it (think positive!). I'll just have to reduce the amount of time I spend lingering in Facebook and Twitter. As my theory professor said, "Facebook is dangerous for graduate students."

Well, I think the sem break got me enough Facebook rush that I need, that's why I was not able to do the tasks that I should have done during the break.Ha ha! First of all, I was not able to finish that Marvin Perry book, though I finished "Flipped". I'll write a review on that later. I failed to do the other sem break tasks that involved reading. Ok, so what does that say?

Nevertheless, it seemed to me that my experience during the first semester of grad school changed me in a way that is very much helpful in the future. In work, I now try to finish a task as early as possible so that I can have more available time to read. I also read faster now. haha

Let's see what this second semester will bring. I know it will be a better one. :)

Of bloggers and readers

         Enrollment in UP has always been a "wonderful" experience. Aside from getting sunbathed for hours, I get to meet and talk to different people of various backgrounds and interests. Oftentimes, I would able to talk with those people during the enrollment for the first and the last time. Of course, they belong to different courses or specializations, thus I would not be able to get past the first meeting with them. 

          This morning, when I was waiting for a professor to advise me on the courses that I enlisted to, a different case happened. Although it is more likely that I do not to get past the first meeting with this person, this encounter is a remarkable one. This morning, I met the author of a blog I've been following for quite sometime. At first, I was hesitant to talk to him. I was like a fan - but not so much of a fan. I just like his blog and follow it because it gives me a perspective of what's it like to be working in a larger-than-life institution, and I am at awe at how he writes. I admire how he seamlessly flow into thoughts without losing coherence, style and creativity.

             We were then introduced to one another by a mutual classmate. When I said that I read his blog, he did not seem to be pleased about it. He did not talk to me for the rest of the time I was with their company. I am not mad nor annoyed at him for doing that. I don't even know if that would be a natural response if you knew that someone is reading your personal-thoughts blog. Wasn't he proud of his writing? Would it be a shame to know that someone else is aware of your rants? I don't really know.

              This led me to wonder on how would I react if I met someone for the first time and got to know that he/she is reading and following this blog. I am sure that I would be delighted deep inside. On the outside, maybe I would say, "Oh you read that trash!", and then follow it with a laugh or a bright smile. But seriously, I would be very much grateful, and maybe I could ask that reader to critique my writing too. Well, I hope to meet that person someday. As for that blogger I just personally met, maybe I would not strike a talk with him again and I'll just wait for him to talk to me. For the meantime, I will still follow his blog.

UP

"Never think that you don't deserve to be here. Only those who doesn't deserve to be here are those who doesn't understand what it means to be in UP.

Being in UP means having to become extraordinary... And by extraordinary, we mean not having a GWA of 1. We do not mean perfecting your exams... By extraordinary, we mean, never giving up.

There will come a time that there will be walls against you and your dreams... Climb on it! Dig underneath it! Walk around it! Push through it!

Lastly, I know in a few years, you will forget to solve for parabolas or functions... But I will be proud as a teacher... When you walk out from this class at least you have learned to have courage, persistence, and strength to never giving up and keep fighting.

Grades are just numbers.

If it is worth dreaming of, then it is worth fighting for, and when it is worth fighting for, it is worth suffering through."

Sembreak

I have never been this excited for sembreak to come. The stress of working while studying makes me tired and long for some time-off. I have missed a lot of night-outs, concerts, movies and reunions because of my work and study load. Unfortunately, the coming sembreak will only be for two weeks. I have thought of a multitude of things to do while on a break. I do not know if I can do all of them since they are a lot. Nevertheless, I decided to list them so that I won't forget:

• Finish "A History of the World" by Marvin Perry.
• Read more on investing and mutual funds.
• Read on International Law and IR theories (assuming that I will pass this semester).
• Update wardrobe! (^_^)
• Research about Methods of Research.
• Declutter my closets, cabinets and e-mail. 
• Do a movie marathon.
• Exercise!
• Make the most out of the sembreak! Haha

I hope I can accomplish them all. :)

Hounded

Recently, I am having problems with my mouth. I have a big mouth, figuratively speaking. It gets me into trouble for the past few days. I don't know why. I'm not like this before. I don't know why I got into this state. Is it really in my character? Am I really a blabber? Shouldn't I have more sense? Or recently, I just don't think before I speak? Am I too confident that everything I say will have sense?

I need to change myself. Should I be quieter? Maybe I need to be really pensive before opening my mouth unless I want to suffer misjudgements from people.    

Another distraction

https://twitter.com/ichaninja

I am now on twitter! :)

Hello July!

We are already at the second half of 2012. This is an opportune time to reflect on what I have achieved for the previous half of the year and how much time I still have to attain my wishes (refer to Wishlist for 2012). So far, I am proud to say that I managed to make one "wish" come true, which is Wish # 5 - to learn to play the piano/violin.

Last May, I enrolled in Yamaha's piano lessons so that I can pursue my affinity to playing musical instruments and grant my childhood wish of learning how to play the piano. I am delighted that Yamaha doesn't have a recital after every end of the session because if it has, I'm already dead. hehe Likewise, I am glad that my piano teacher and I get along well since he is also a student of French and a fellow iskolar ng bayan.

I already have completed two piano pieces - "Melody" by Schumann and "Minuet" by Bach. I am on the process of completing the piece entitled "Sonatina" by Muzio Clement.

Although I practice only with a keyboard, I hope to be able to buy a piano someday and have a space for it. Playing the piano is very relaxing and relieves me from stress. I now understand what music does to people.