CC goes Coca-Cola

The Creative Circle or CC never fails to amaze me. From a small group of talented social work students of BUCSSP, CC is continuously evolving into something else and into something better. I believe it also continues to break expectations and go beyond the perception of other people. I guess pushing for the formal creation of this group is one of the best things that I did when I was the president of the Human Welfare Advocates way back 2011.

Just today, they qualified for the Grand Finals of the Coca-Cola Regional Dance Showdown (not really sure though of the name of the competition) and is in fact the official representative of Bicol University (and of Albay as well). I believe that they need to step up their dancing skills and push themselves to the limit in order for them to win. I know they can and I know they will try because that's what they have been doing eversince - improving and becoming better.

But I hope that the university and some Albaypeeps will also give them the support they deserve especially moral and physical support on the day of the competition (September 18, 2013 at JMR Coliseum) considering that if the criteria for judging will not be changed, audience impact amounts to a very big 20%. Kaya sana talaga sumuporta ang mga tao.

Of course, my support to them will not be change. 100% pa rin at dadagdagan ko pa ng dasal para sana mas maging effective!

Go CC! Go CC! Go CC! Kaya Yan! Laban Lang! :)

Proud Bueño!

That proud moment when your university - Bicol University College of Social Sciences and Philosophy, is being given recognition by the Professional Regulations Commission and the Board for Social Workers as the Top Performing Social Work School in the Philippines. :)

FIELD INSTRUCTION 2 DIARIES: 2

A day after (January 16, 2013) I wrote my first entry in my FI 2 Diaries, I wrote the second and the last entry and here is it:

All the while, I thought things will eventually fall in it's proper places. Something like a bad start with a happy ending. But i was wrong. Expectations have been broken. Positivity is winding down and every passing day becomes a struggle to hold on and survive. I thought this journey is something exciting, something genuine, something worth while and something worth remembering. But reality tells me otherwise. I don't and I won't stop the fight but will you blame me if I say that the only reasons why I hold on to this ill-fated journey of mine are my peers, friends, family and my need to get my diploma?

:'(

Field Instruction 2 Diaries: 1

During one of the most trying times that I experienced during Field Instruction (or OJT for other degrees), I tried to pour my emotions out through writing. I entitled it Field Instruction 2 Diaries. Sadly, I only came up with two (2) entries due largely to the never ending requirements that I need to accomplish and comply. Nonetheless, i decided to put the two entries here and so here is my first catharsis dated January 15, 2013.

It's the third week of the year and pretty much, it's my eight week here in the area as a community organizer. Akala ko things would change along the with the change of the year. But since things are not getting any better especially with my community organizing experience (CO), I decided to start writing a series of write-ups. At least, I can devote my free time before going to dreamland in writing something that I can share to my fellow students and would-be FI 2 students and at the same time, in order for me to maintain my sanity. However, this is something I would call as a bitter experience.

Well, my seventh FI week started not good and things and turning to worse and from our supposed transition to CO related work and tasks, we are back as data gatherers or surveyors or interviewers. Akalain mo, pinagalitan kami ng minamahal naming supervisor dahil sa tingin niya ay hindi kami flexible and we lack sense of urgency. Should we be informed earlier na nandito kami sa area as data gatherers or surveyors or interviewers and not as CO workers, eh mas matatanggap ko sana ang mga pangyayari. But last time I checked, we should be here because we need to organize the community. Ano ba talaga?

I never imagined my CO experience to be this worse. Sayang ng opportunity to learn. Wala naman akong magawa dahil nakagapos ako sa isang sistemang pagnagreklamo ka, ikaw ang masama. Napadpad ako sa sitwasyong wala akong magawa kundi lulunin at lumulon.

At the end of the day, I just realized how 'doing what you love' differs from 'doing what you need/forced to do.' Iba talaga kapag gusto mo ang ginagawa mo. Mas masaya ka! Mas productive ka at mas magian ang pakiramdam mo. But things are different if you only do something because you just need to do it. Dun na ako sa puntong ginagawa ko nalang ang mga bagay-bagay dahil kinakailangan at hindi dahil gusto ko. Haaay! I remember dreaming of my CO experience as something worth remembering. Something more real, something good, something funfilled and something which can be called as a lifetime experience. :(

Testi

I had been lucky to be a part of the organizing team of the 3 out of 4 testimonial rites that was conducted by the Social Work Department since 2009. In fact, I acted as the head of the organizing team twice. As always, tasks were arduous and things were being given attention and being checked to the last and smallest details. Yung tipong dapat ay no stones are left unturned. Organizing such activity (which was simultaneously being conducted with the Acquaintance Party of the department) is very much stressful and tiring. And I can say that it's the biggest activity of the department with the end goal of making your guests and honorees feel special.

As years go on, the simple joy of being a part of the organizing team and attending the said event as regular attendee ignited a dream in me and to my classmates as well. That is, to attend the said event not as a student, nor an organizer but as an honoree. I would like to admit that I even dreamed of speaking in front of the department sharing my experiences and my journey towards passing the board exam. Of course, just like how we did it, at first I dreamed of a Testimonial Rite in a comfortable venue with an atmosphere of joy, gladness and appreciation with all the students in the department together. Feeling ko, kaparehas ng ilan (kung hindi man lahat), eto yung isa sa dalawang mga pangyayari na matagal kong (or naming) inantay at inabangan.

Pero siyempre, I know for a fact that dreams do not come true most of the time and as early as March 2013, I laid down my expectations regarding the testimonial in order for me to avoid being disappointed in the end. Okay na ang simple basta masaya at basta sincere ang atmosphere - that's what I said to myself. But as time progresses and the date for the activity is nearing, the information I got regarding the activity made me realized that this dream is now dead. In fact, when my classmates would ask me if I would attend, i would either keep quiet or answer a straight NO. But in the end, I still attended the activity. Not because I really would love and I really want to attend. I attended because of the respect and courtesy that I still have for the department. Come to think of it, last naman na ito. After that, sabihin na nating, I'm through with the department. Tapos na and I'm thankful for that!

Marami pa akong gustong sabihin pero I guess I have to end here to avoid saying things that may put me again in the spotlight. I just hope that the organizers and the department itself will hold an honest-to-goodness evaluation of an activity once fit for professionals and would be professionals (except ata kung barrio meeting or gathering ang theme ng activity). But before others react negatively to my statement, let me validate it. What I am trying to say is that I hope they (the organizing team) will give more effort on the next testimonial rites to come. Simplicity is fine or simplicity is even beauty but simplicity is not the avoidance of things that we think are grandiose, it's about making things comfortably easy for everybody without sacrificing the basics (eg. a truck for passers with simple designs made of recycled materials, proper coordination and information dissemination, a humane venue for all attendees, a nice and better program perhaps and such other things).

Well, yun lang naman ang sa akin. Simple na yan para maintindihan mo/niyo! >.<

Motorcade Truck

Lo and behold, ang pinakamagandang motorcade truck that I've seen in years with matching 'College of Social Services and Philosophy' streamer hanging on the front. This is epic. Just epic!

Operation Initiate

During my whole stint in college, i always wonder when will the alumni (as a group) visit or even give something in return to the department. Of course, since my mother was a alumna herself, i know of some reasons why that's why i understand why in the world would they not want to return especially that i also experience perhaps some of the experiences that brought them to that decision.

But i guess whatever reasons we have, there is still something that binds the generation of graduates that the department produced in its 34 years of existence - it's the department itself, the profession and the memories that we develop as we traverse the sometimes bumpy road of social work education. So, i decided to create a facebook community page dedicated into grouping the graduates of the department. A page which will serve as an online venue for the alumni to share something like their experiences or perhaps adventures and misadventures related to the profession and to their lives. A page which will serve as a virtual world for us to rekindle bonds and build new relationships as products of the department.

So eto na yun:

Pero gusto ko din (kung ako lang ang masusunod) na tawagin yun as:

given that the department's domicile is named as Agoho Building. Kaso i think i am right in saying that it was just recently ng napadpad ang department sa Agoho kaya baka hindi rin makarelate ang prior batches. But regardless of the name, i just hope that my initiative will work and eventually, alumni from different batches will be a member of the said page. I have my fingers crossed. :)))

Cheers! :)

I dreamed of reaching the top and i failed. Not only did i dreamed but i also gave my best shot but my efforts were somehow futile. I was disappointed with myself and i have no one and nothing to blame except myself. I was scared about what other people might say. About their expectations that i failed to meet and about what they will be saying. That was my initial reaction.

But now, i'm over it. I accepted things as they were and as they are. Perhaps there's something greater that is waiting to be realized. The horizon is wide and far ranging and instead of flooding myself with disappointment, fear and ill-feelings, there are countless reasons why i need to celebrate what had happened like the fact that BUCSSP remains as the Top Performing School of Social Work in the Philippines and of course, the fact that almost all of my friends (of course including me) passed. 

So sa lahat ng nagturo, gumabay, umagapay, dumamay, tumulong, nagmahal, nagpasaya, nagpangiti, nagbigay ng inspirasyon, naghatid ng motibasyon, umasa, nagdasal, nagpamisa, nagpakain, nagtweet, nagmessage, bumati, nakiramay, nakibahagi at nagpugay sa akin -- SALAMAT at SALAMAT ng marami!

With love na may halong pagmamahal,

Russ Daniel Oliva Baldoza, RSW

Human Welfare Advocates No More.

          I spent almost my whole life in Naga City. Though I was born in Polangui, Albay, I grew up in the Maogmang Lugar which I humbly call as my happy place. Basically, I became conscious and got in touch with reality in Naga. I developed my skills, forged and started relationships, earned life experiences in Naga. Also, the me I am today is the product of my stay in Naga during my developmental years from childhood to adolescence. My happy place is infamous for its Participatory Governance which was started by the late Secretary of Interior and Local Government and my personal idol and inspiration, Sec. Jesse Robredo. It is his leadership style, which is now fondly called as “tsinelas leadership” which I would want to emulate ever since. From my limited comprehension of his leadership style as well as observation during his term as mayor, I guess his “tsinelas leadership” means getting in touch with the people you serve, with the members of your organization and most especially, you walk your talk. Aside from that, tsinelas Leadership for me entails that as a leader, you walk among your people, you guide them but you don’t dictate to them the things that they should do.

                On the other hand, since my first year in college, I was bombarded with the different knowledge and skills expected to a social worker. Aside from that, every now and then, professors would remind us that we have to have the attitude also that social workers are expected to have. I am proud to say that somehow, I learned and I managed to remember some things worth remembering. Among those things is the Principle of Self-Determination. The Principle of Self-Determination is one of the many principles that social workers are expected to adhere. In this principle, social workers are expected to respect the person’s capacity to decide for what is better for himself or to his group. Also, social workers are expected not to dictate or influence the decision-making process of individual unless otherwise the decision of the person is perceived as something that will inflict harm to himself or to other people around him.

                Tsinelas leadership and the Principle of Self-Determination - two different concepts with different origin, one from the public administration perspective while the other from the social work perspective yet they bear the same message: giving the people a chance to raise their voice and determine what is good for them. Throughout my imperfect “career” as a student leader in college (especially when I was the HWA President) and even in high school, the two concepts I mentioned are my top two tenets. The tsinelas leadership which implies simplicity, getting in touch with the member of my organization and walking my talk and the Principle of Self-Determination which gives the members of the organization to opportunity to identify, decide and implement things that they think will be beneficial to the majority of the members. When I was the president of HWA, my battlecry is to empower the members of the organization by reminding them that they are the organization and to involve as many students as possible in the different processes of the organization in such a way to remove the notion that the organization is equal to the officers. Aside from that, some of the important decisions of the organizations were also opened to debate and discussion before finally leaving things to voting. For example, from imposing a theme selected by the officers for a specific event, students were asked to nominate their desired theme, present the idea and most importantly to vote for the theme that they think is the best and beneficial. Good thing that the my fellow officers in the organization shares the same battlecry that I have wherein at the end of our term, we can say that things (though not perfect) have somehow changed such as students’ passivity was transformed to pro-activeness and some became more assertive with regards to their ideas. We tried to institutionalized things by changing the organizational structure of the organization which placed to the top the General Assembly as the highest policy making body of the organizations to make sure that the members (collectively) will still be powerful than the officers and officers will be accountable to the members of the organization and that the decision of the assembly will most of the time (if not always) will be followed or prioritized. My perception then was that we were able to start what I called as “WEvolution” where students became more involved, more empowered and happier of their status as members but I guess that was only a perception – my perception.

                Sadly, things changed and some are continuously changing. I guess I have to remind myself that change is the only constant thing in the world. But what is sadder is that the gains that we have a year ago was slowly being erased and that we are slowly sliding back to where we begin. The existence of the organization and the purposes for which it was established is not anymore being respected. Today, all decisions regarding the organization, crucial or not so crucial, fall into the hands of the omnipotent beings in the department who can simply overturn the decisions of the General Assembly for whatever reason or reasons (mostly subjective, baseless and biased) without lifting a finger. The guidance and supervisory function of the faculty was elevated to decision-making while the members of the organization have no choice but to accept the decision of the faculty regardless of its fairness to the members. The fate of the organization is now rested upon what the faculty dictates which destroys the concept of STUDENT organization. I am not questioning the capability of the faculty to decide for the organization dahil naniniwala naman ako na walang magulang ang gugustuhing mapasama ang kanyang mga anak. But at the end of the day, it is the students who lost their chance to develop better decision-making skills, better assertiveness and better identity as an essential part of the organization and of the department. It is the students who lost their chance to enjoy the privilege that the principle of self-determination offers and it is the students who lost their chance to be heard.

                Gone are the days when the organization can determine the concept of the activities that it wants to implement freely. Gone are the days when members of the organization could vote, suggest and comment on what they want freely. Gone are the days of empowered students. Gone are the days of students’ self-determination. Gone are the days of the Human Welfare Advocates that was established for the students, by the students and of the students. Gone are the days that the Human Welfare Advocates can be branded as a student organization. Self-determination and Participative Governance in the Human Welfare Advocates died and along with it, the very essence and the very reason of existence of the Human Welfare Advocates died. Until the important people in and out of the organization will not redefine their roles in the organization, nothing will change and the Human Welfare Advocates will forever be dead.

#mmk

i wasn't able to watch the mmk episode today but i was able to see it's ending. timely with the agency visit we had at Holy Face Rehabilitation Center for Mental Health in Tabiguian, Tabaco City, the episode was about a girl suffering from mental illness specifically with schizophrenia and was being accused by the people as being the 'aswang.' i took the courage of posting a simple and similar message both in facebook and in twitter. the one i posted in fb is below and i was amazed by the 24 likes it received after two hours.

i displayed the same message in twitter and after two hours, my tweet was retwitted by resaabigail who happens to be a producer of the show. anyway, natuwa lang ako. haha.

anyway, i hope that those people who had retwitted and liked the post will do their own little way of promoting the stoppage of stigmatizing persons who are mentally ill because they also have their worth and dignity and that they are also persons. no more, no less.

umpisa ng laban?

MY FIRST "HOMEWORK" FOR THE SECOND SEMESTER!

but not technically though, it's somehow a requirement for an extra-curricular undertaking i had way back July. haha. anyway, good thing i was able to produce a 25 pages reflection/insight paper for my art therapy experience. haha. well, joking aside, 3 pages lang ho. at nilabas ko na ang saloobin ko!

second semester schedule

second semester is up and running. this time, all my subjects are MAJOR! first week of classes, pagod na ako sa list of requirements! haha. anyway, i'm up for the challenge. i know i can do this! haha. ALL WILL BE WELL FOR SECOND SEMESTER!

second semester worries

the second semester for this academic year is dawning. new set of classmates, new professor, new and harder course or subjects to attend to, same old notebooks, new schedule that i personally don't like so far and i guess a different me. i don't know but i guess i should step up my game in academics thinking that mama personally said that she wants me to graduate with a laude honors. sabi ko, ayos lang yan ma miski mayo basta maggraduate but she insisted. i said i am worrying because i think my grades for the first semester are low and thus, i will not be eligible for academic scholarship. worse, if i have a grade below 2.4, my and my mother's laude dreams will be forever gone. personally, i told myself that whatever happens, it's okay with me. pero ibang kaso kasi kung nagsabi na ang magulang mo na sa graduation day mo ay may laude honors ka. this is the first time my parents demanded such things. noon wala naman, saan at anong kaya namin, okay na sila. things change nga naman talaga. rock on! pero ang sa akin, i'll do my best that's to achieve a laude honor. pero ngayon pa lang ay tanggap ko na kung wala. pero habang may pag-asa pa, the flame of optimism still burns inside me.

moreover, with the advent of the second semester, i'm preparing myself for lonesome times. i mean, having breakfast and lunch alone which though i personally dislike, the new schedule and the situation will compel me to do so. inaasahan ko na ang mga oras ng kalungkutan lalo na at hindi ko kaklase ang mga kaibigan kong madalas kong kasama. pero classmate ko ngayon sina angelo and melvz. we were supposedly the los lakwatchero brothers because of what we did last summer (if my memory serves me right) which was to have movie marathon, and lakwatcha of course! pero things changed. hindi man nila alam or hindi man nila napapansin, i feel aloof when i'm with them. ni hindi ako minsan nakakasakay sa kanila dahil may mga bagay na alam nilang dalawa na hindi ko alam. tipong, magkasama nga kami pero parang hindi rin. perhaps, masyado lang silang nagcclick at napag-iwanan ako. haha. actually, i would have wanted to ask angelo kung bakit hindi na kami ganun ka-close ngayon kumpara nung dati pero i don't have the guts and i can't find the right timing. aaminin ko, nalungkot ako at first pero natanggap ko na. ewan. wala na akong masabi. yun lang naman ang naisip ko ngayon. ACCEPTANCE and good thing that hindi ako yung taong sinisiksik ang sarili. haha.

moving on, what i am actually worried about this new semester is the prospect of me having many lonesome times. yun lang naman. pero still just like what i had mentioned a while ago, i am still optimistic that there are ways to reduce that lonesome times of mine. tingnan natin. maaga pa para magsalita ng tapos. GOOD LUCK FOR ME THIS SECOND SEMESTER! >.<

realization 4

interviewing is never easy. right question should be asked, good follow-ups should be raised and non-verbal should always be guarded.

this photo on the left are some of the moments captured while we are interviewing in line of a requirement in Communication in Social Work course. i interviewed an alumna of the department while melvz interviewed street children who sells sampaguita in front of Pacific Mall. share lang. :D

justice for laesybil

a news reached me through sms that a schoolmate was found dead after being raped in an area near their house in bascaran, a rural community in daraga, albay. actually, she is from our neighbor college, the college of business, economics and management (cbem). she is also a third year student who is taking BS Accountancy, a valedictorian when she graduated in high school and a consistent dean's lister of cbem. what could have been a bright future for her and her family was crashed by an immoral person.

yes, perhaps, i don't know her personally but i don't think personally knowing the victim is a requirement for a person to stand-up against rape, violence and other kinds of inhumane acts. that's why when prof. mirabueno (bu cal) encourage the used of black ribbons as DP in fb, i changed my fb profile picture and when i was asked by laisa to make a lay-out of the tarp to be displayed infront of the department, i immediately did it. just like what i mentioned in the bu-cssp social work fb page, our silence is not needed at these times. we need to stand up. we need to condemn all acts of violence committed against any person. we need to join the call for justice for laesybil so that her death will not go in vain. come to think of it, i would not want it to happen to my friends and family members. JUSTICE!

justice!

i was tasked by laisa to help her in the lay-out and in the messaging of a tarp that will be displayed infront of the department in connection to what happened to a student of bicol university and this is what i made:

well, i know its just normal but i'm just happy that our condemnation and message was spread directly to 35 persons and was shared with 20 other more persons. calling for justice is not easy, but together, we can make our voices heard. :)

rush

i just got home from Albay, specifically from BU though our semestral break actually started a week before or on the 18th to be particular. i can't blame anybody because the delay in my sought after semestral break is the product of undone academic requirements, heavy load of extra-curricular commitments and personal urges for me to stay in legazpi and have some bonding time with friends which fortunately pushed through in a from of a swimming/excursion in the resort town of Sto. Domingo in Albay.

well, i don't have any motivation in writing this post. haha. i just wanted to post for the sake of self-fulfillment or satisfaction amidst the ordinary stressful days that i have in legazpi coupled with cough, headache and colds thus, making me not so feeling well. and though i'm not that feeling well, i can say that i'm proud of myself because at least, i have performed what was expected of me as the president of the human welfare advocates. though i'm usually late in the morning, at least i was able to help in the facilitation of the community first aid training for the senior social work students plus self defense and i was able to share what i know about Art Therapy as speaker-facilitator during a re-echo seminar workshop.  but then again, i think that's not the reason why i wanted to post here.

hmmm. i remember! we, in bicol university still have our clearances to finished every after semester so that we can enroll for the next sem. something that doesn't exist in the most universities in manila and even in Naga as far as i know. it's as if, only in BU thing. and since i'm the president of all social work students of BUCSSP, i am one of the signatories for the clearance. feeling ko sikat ako dahil maraming humihingi ng autograph ko. come to think of it, i am the self-proclaimed john lloyd cruz of the social work department. haha. moving on, sympre sa pagpirma dapat responsible that's why i signed with vigilance at walang makakontra sa akin dahil takot sila sa akin lalo na ang mga lower years na come to think of it ay hindi pa naman ako nangangain and the last time i checked, i think i am approachable. nagkwento kasi si margie (a friend and the org's treasurer) na nagpumilit daw ang ibang lower years na magpapirma sa kanya at kahit sinabihan na niya na hindi siya pipirma dahil walang resibo (one of the requirements and resibo of payment sa org dues and the other ay ang legibly printed na pangalan ko sa tamang lugar. share lang) eh nagpumilit pa rin kaya pinirmahan niya na. samantalang ako, eh isang sabi ko lang na hindi ako pipirma, walang kumontra at nagmatigas ng ulo. bad trip! takot sila! masama ito! tsktsk. anyway...

ANG KASO:

alam ko nabinyagan na ako ng pangalan of all sorts. both yung medyo realistic na malapit sa pangalan ko at meron din namang halos walang konek na parang nakuha lang sa kanto ng leon sa aureus corner magsaysay ave, going somewhere down the road. ewan. pero isa sa pinakamalapit ay ang RUSH. the good ma'am chavez ang naalala ko sa rush, ngayon pati si madam france din rush ang tawag sa akin minsan at may isang ate na bininyagan na ako ng bagong pangalan, RUSH. haha. ewan. mahirap ba talaga ang four letter name ko? alam ko hindi na bago, pero this is the first time na written kaya sabi ko pagkakita ko, IBBLOG KO TO! kaya ni-blog ko na siya ngayon. haha. :D

groupdy

one of the most challenging requirements that we had for first semester of our junior college life is the practicum in facilitation under the subject, Group Dynamics. well, honestly, i thought that Group Dy will be an easy subject for us to conquer and that only group dynamics activities will be done during the final period at first and I WAS WRONG.

we went out of the four corners of AH ICTC and went to what i consider as public secondary schools in located in rural Daraga (in our group's case). Banadero, Anislag and Bascaran National High Schools.

my group decided to conduct self-awareness activities, something that our public secondary high school system don't mind because values education is by the books which is something i deem improper. we choose self-awareness because adolescents in high school are experiencing identity vs role confusion (according to Erikson's Psychosocial Stages of Development). through the activities we had conducted, we want high school students to get to know more about themselves because in knowing more about themselves, they can become better persons and that's what we would want them to become - a better person in relation to others but more importantly to themselves.

honestly, the whole of it (at least 21 hours of exposure) was very, very, very tiring but at the end, the smiles of the participants, their exhibit of appreciation and positive feedback made everything (effort, financial expenses and others) worth it and even worth repeating for. more so, perhaps my dream of becoming a values education teacher someday in my alma mater ncshs provided motivation. haha. ewan. pero parang ganun yun. i'm happy that we were able to experienced this facilitation thing and i'll be glad to repeat it, if given the opportunity. i just hope that the kids we facilitated will become successful in knowing themselves more. :)

(ewan ko lang kung tama ang sentences ko dito but i hope the thought is correct and can be understood well)

agony amidst the darkness

Today is the 5^th day of October, 2011. WORLD TEACHERS’ DAY! Kaya HAPPY TEACHERS’ DAY sa past and present mentors and professors ko simula pa noong isang hamak na bata pa lang ako. Well, the day started just right. Just right pero late pa rin ako sa aking 8:00 am appointment with Laisa. Sabi na nga ba at wag dapat magpapaniwala sa mga oras na sine-set ng College Student Council because the Surprise Tribute Program for the faculty members started at 9:15 am, 1 hour and 15 minutes late. Kakahiya sa faculty and nakakasayang ng effort. Well, maayos naman ang program and I did my part habang humihingal. As the president of HWA (organization of all social work students), I was asked to give a testimonial to our faculty members. English! Wohooo! Pero feeling ko mas benta kung Filipino or even Bicol pero at the back of my mind kahit anong language naman kasi what matters most is the content of the message. So yun, everything just turned out well with my personal favorite mentor winning the Female Fashionista Award for Faculty Members! Rock on si madam vidz!

In the afternoon, basag-ulo, bukas utak, pagod katawan at gutom tiyan ang epekto ng findings, diagnosis at findings and diagnosis sa paggawa ng case study. ANG HIRAP! After the subject, Sir Guab (ethics professor) meet us and naglabas ng hinanakit. Tsktsk. Anyway, pagkatapos ay nag-asikaso para sa group dynamics field exposure naming sa Friday kung saan magfafacilitate kami for the third and last time sa Bascaran National High School, which can be found in the upland Daraga. Ang topic: SELF-AWARENESS. Isa namang nakakapagod pero masaya at fulfilling na araw ang magaganap by helping the students become better individuals through knowing more about themselves.

Ngayon, sa baba ay mababasa ang blow-by-blow account ng pangyayaring hindi ko inaasahang mangyayari. BAD TRIP! Haha. Pero ayos lang.

5:30 PM – Pumunta sa LCC Daraga para magpaprint ng certificates para sa Friday.

6:00 PM – Hindi pa rin kami nakakapaprint  dahil sa technical error at madaming customers.

6:30 PM – Sa wakas ay piniprint na ang aming certificates.

6:35 PM – Binigyan ako ni angel ng pudding pie at nanlibre din si diane ng banana cake at pudding pie habang hinihintay ang certificates.

6:40 PM – Nag-shopping kami ni Diane (aka Ms. Beautiful) ng prizes for the Saturday activity.

6:50 PM – Sinabihan namin si kuya sa paprintan na icut ang certificates namin and he generously did.

6:52 PM – Pumunta si Diane sa department store para tumingin at bumili ng notebook na pandagdag sa prize.

6:54 PM – Bumalik siya at tinawag niya akong MAHAL <3 (pero actually, she was referring to the notebook na mahal daw at sa kabilang store na lang siya bibili)

6:57 PM – Natapos si kuya sa pag-cut at nagbayad kami ng bayad.

6:58 PM – Pumunta kami ng JY Department Store at bumili ng notebook.

7:00 PM – Pabalik na kami ng department para sa dagdag preparation at iba pang bagay.

7:10 PM – Nasa department na kami at nadatnan na nagpapraktis ang second year na magkakaroon ng showcase of talents sa Friday na hindi ko mapapanood. SAYANG!

7:15 PM – Nasa HWA kami at nagtatambay habang busy si MAHAL (diane).

7:17 PM – Drinamahan ko si triina dahil pinagpalit niya na ako kay sime gamit ang mga linya sa No Other Woman.

7:20 PM – Hinanap ko si Renna sa practice ng second year dahil gusto ko siyang makitang sumayaw pero hindi ko nahanap

7:25 PM – Naghahanap na ako ng ibang kabubusyhan at wala si renna.

7:30 PM – Dumating si madam vidz at sumugod kami sa kanya para sa pagpapirm ng certificates, nagkwentuhan, nagcopy ng mga movies, kumain ng biscocho, iminom ng tubig, pinanood si renna ng advocacy video na gawa ko para sa deviant psychology naming at kung anu-ano pang kalokohan kasama na ang kokology ni friend.

8:30 PM – Hinatid namin si madam vidz sa sakayan.

9:00 PM – Papunta na kaming FCG (First Colonial Grill) para kumain ng dinner.

9:40 PM – Tapos ang dinner. Home bound.

****DITO NA ANG MAINSTREAM AGONY******

9:50 PM – dumating ako at laking gulat ko ng sarado na ang gate ng nadatnan ko. Agad akong nagtanong sa mga tao sa baba kung sino ang may hawak ng susi pero wala pa daw. Send ako agad ng *808 kay ate Dianne at sa pinsan ko para sa tulong.

10:30 PM – zzzzzzz. Inaantok na ako habang nagpaplano ng over the bakod ko.

10:45 PM – may lumilipad na ipis na dumiretso sa mukha ko. Buti nakasara ang bibig ko. Madilim pero alam kong ipis yun. At nag-umpisag katihin ang bibig ko.

10:50 PM – sinilip ako ni bhem mula sa terrace after one hour pagkatapos kong mag *808, binaba niya ako at tinulungan ako sa pamamagitan ng pagkuha ng bag ko.

10:59 PM – desperado na ako at gustong-gusto ko ng umakyat. Maraming gagawin. Kung walang tambay, nag-over the bakod na ako.

11:00 PM – inaantok na ako habang naghihintay. Zzzzzzz

11:11 PM – Nagwish ako na sana makapasok na ako agad.

11:19 PM – dumating ang may hawak ng susi at presto, nakapasok din ako. Hugas bibig, sipilyo, blog at manonood ng movie na ako.

Well, ang bottomline lang ata ng walang kwentang post na ito ay naumpisahan ang araw ko sa paghihintay kaya natapos din siya sa pamamagitan ng pagpapahintay sa akon ng 1 hour and 20 minutes kung hindi ako nagkakamali. Aba! Ayos! Grabe ang patience ko. Haha. Pasensya! Pasensya! Pasensya! Speaking of pasensya, I was reminded of Mavic. Sino siya? Malalaman mo din sa takdang panahon. Good night! :)

art therapy

Last September 24, i had the opportunity to share before my batchmates the things i learned during our Art Therapy Seminar-Workshop in Manila (and attend princess Zarah's debut celebration as well). This time, i was one of the resource speakers and facilitators. As usual, masaya pero nakakapagod pero masaya naman talaga pag-Art Therapy. You'll get to know other persons like you've never known them before using colors, shapes coupled with their own interpretation pa. Happiness, ika nga. moreover, i am excited in sharing the knowledge about Art Therapy again to our BU Tabaco counterparts (social work students) before or during the semestral break, i guess.

well, naalala ko lang at natuwa lang ako sa mga pangyayari. a friend asked me kung ano ang mga issues ko sa buhay dala na rin siguro na hindi nila ako kasabay sa Art Therapy and the usual notion with me goes on, na walang problema si russ, na maligaya si russ, at si russ ay SuperRuss. pero sinagot ko siya ng diretso, sabi ko issues ko sa buhay? APPRECIATION and Love (ata), friend. haha. :D