The Bitoon Star

NOTICE: to the reading public

2007-09-11T19:42:00.000-07:00

THAT'S IT. Im moving this blog to multiply. Blogger's been giving me no love lately. Everytime i post something its giving me a whole *&%*& lot of errors. So that's that. Its a lot more fun in multiply anyway. the more the manyier.

Hakot Awards

2007-09-03T17:16:00.000-07:00

In the recent Battle of the Brains Contest held at the West Visayas State University, delegates from our beloved school finished first in all the contests it has entered. All ten representatives made it to the Final round and seven finished in the top three.

Biology:
1st Place - Mel Oliva (Lithium)
2nd Place - Sami Clarisse Juanico (Graviton)

IICT (Kum Say)
1st Place - Paolo Basa (Lithium)
2nd Place - Sofia Contreras (Photon)

Physics
1st Place - Zaldy Bonagua (Graviton)
Finals Qualifier - Marian Solidum (Tau)

Chemistry
1st Place - Jessa Tulio (Graviton)
Finals Qualifier - Irene Lim (Neon)

Math
1st Place - Vennel Lamasan
Finals Qualifier - Jessamine Payba

Muchos Gracias to all the coaches Sir Olvido, Sir Tan, Sir Art, Mam Joy, and Mam Barlas. Of course indi lang na sila nag review. To Mam Ressa also, salamat, Mam Barlas, Sir Tampo, Sir Serrato, Sir Aris. Sa gwapo gwapo na maestro na nagdul - ong sa ila kag nagdistract sa competition... ehrm...

To our contestants, we're proud of ya... We were looking to do good in the event, and we looked good.

National Career Assessment Examination Running Diary. Boy what an ordeal.

2007-09-02T17:08:00.000-07:00

I was tasked to be a proctor for this exam at WVCST. Here's how it went.

7:45 am – entered classroom and made preparations… found out there were only 17 students in my room… whew!

7:55 am – students started entering, Uh-Oh… they’re all girls

8:00 am – started giving instructions… GULP some of them are already giving me meaningful looks and batting eyelashes… this would be a loooong exam…

8:03 am –EDQ… that ought to busy them for a while

8:14 am –READING COMPREHENSION… but how can they comprehend the questions? When the most handsome guy they have ever seen is standing right in front of them? This is unfair for them…. I should have never gone as proctor. Poor girls.

8:46 am – snacks arrived… *may lumay ni ayhan?* no way im gonna eat this

8:50 am – looked hard at the snacks… im starting to get hungry

9:01 am – *stomach grumbling*…. Excruciating hunger pangs…. Or eternal damnation as a love struck fool?

9:03 am – I choose eternal damnation…

9:21 am – some of them are already finished… man this is a smart bunch… and pretty too… (rowr…)

9:25 am – they are already starting to talk to each other… Girls, stop talking with each other about me, I know you haven’t seen someone as handsome as me before but you are disturbing others who are still taking the test

9:30 am – they’re whispering amongst each other and throwing me conspiratorial looks… this is not good. I edge closer to the door. Review your answers girls… Damn when will this end?

9:34 am – They’re getting restless and cant’ stop talking about me. My exhortations to stop talking are not working. IMMINENT DANGER! Screw the rules. Alright girls, we’ll have an early break. Stuff your answer inside your test booklet and eat some snacks.

9:35 am – “Sir would you like some food?” one girl asked so sweetly. “Would I like a drill bored into my head?” I answered just as sweet. Hah! I’m not falling for that one.

10:10 am –MATHEMATICAL ABILITY.

10:40 am – damn, most are already finished… I’m running out of PG expletives here… I’m edging ever closer to the door.

10:45 am – Teacher ka man gid sir? You’re too young (and cute, her doleful eyes said)… wooh boy….

10:46 am – Girls, I’m a teacher, honest! Have I ever lied to you before? Stop fawning… SECURITY!

10:48 am – they settle down after wild threats of tearing up their answer sheets. All is calm, for now.

11:20 am – CLERICAL ABILITY, which they finish in about 7 minutes. “Sir if we find out we can be good clerks can I be your secretary?” one asked. “Ow, that’s nice,” I answered, “just how old are you my dear?” “Sixteen Sir” she said. “He he… No thanks I’m allergic to needles.”

11:21 am – *deep thought* “didn’t they just lifted the death penalty?” Evil thoughts, evil thoughts.

11:30 am – LUNCH BREAK… time to escape the heat…

12:00 pm – SCIENTIFIC ABILITY. No untoward incident so far.

12:40 pm – Verbal ability… sixty minutes is too darn long. Some are finished in only 20 minutes. They are getting impatient for the next part, but the schedule can’t be bent can it? It’s all I can do to stop them from getting restless. I mean they’re just young girls, and I’m the most handsome guy they have ever seen, I’m alone with them in the room, they got nothing to do… I need restraints here. Barricades. HELP!

1:55 pm – Entrepreneurial Skills
Er… would you like to buy some chicken lumpia girls?

2:15 – End. I’m never doing this again.

First Recognition Day 2007 - 2008

2007-08-31T01:43:00.001-07:00

Programme

I. Prayer
By: Setzel Suresca

II. Philippine National Anthem
By: Dennis Pagliawan

III. Opening Remarks
By: Dr. Josette T. Biyo

IV. Awarding of DLs (First year and Second year)
By: Mrs. Arthess Castor

V. Intermission Number
Song N0 : Leonard Tan Maja Sefra Peralta
Poetry in Motion: 3 - Neon

VI. Awarding of DLs (Third year and Fourth year)
By: Mrs. Arthess Castor

VII. Special Awards

VIII. Speech by top DL
By: Marian Rosary Grace Solidum

IX. Closing Remarks
By: Dr. Edgar T. Almero

X. School Hymn
By: Portia May Ladrido

Masters of Ceremony:
Chester Salvaleon and Ivo Monterde

Director’s Listers

FIRST YEAR
Contreras, Andrea T. Jade 1.26
Tamon, Liezel U. Ruby 1.29
Pongan, Dana Angelu C. Ruby 1.37
Reynoso, Ann Marielle Q. Sapphire 1.40
Amit, Sheena Mae N. Sapphire 1.43
Judicpa, Mia Angela N. Ruby 1.43
De Leon, Nathalea V. Ruby 1.47
Marcelino, Faith I. Sapphire 1.47
Sauza, Nadya Patricia E. Sapphire 1.50

SECOND YEAR
Jamerlan, Ma.Christina M. Sampaguita 1.17
Sibug, Frederico Jr. Champaca 1.33
Mistio, Reynelyn Lou E. Rosal 1.37
Tupas, Fred Nyll S. Rosal 1.37
Altamera, Shari A. Rosal 1.39
Jaleco, Ricky G. Rosal 1.41
Nalangan, Christabel T. Champaca 1.41
Arroz, Mark Timothy L. Sampaguita 1.44
Doplayna, Bea G. Rosal 1.46
Mellizas, Marian Mae Rosal 1.46
Solacito, Kent Michael C. Sampaguita 1.50
Atas, Celeste B. Champaca 1.50
Azucena, Maryam D. Sampaguita 1.50

THIRD YEAR
Peralta, Maja Sefra M. Lithium 1.32
Dusaban, Gelli Anne N. Beryllium 1.34
Larroza, Therese Yvan G. Lithium 1.34
Subosa, Jobi F. Beryllium 1.35
Arceño, Laurence Ray P. Beryllium 1.37
Lim, Irene Grace M. Neon 1.37
Suyo, Lissa Angela C. Neon 1.41
De la Fuente, Ina June F. Neon 1.42
Silva, Lovely G. Lithium 1.42
Guinanao, Doi Asaph T. Neon 1.43
Abing, Mark Joseph D. Lithium 1.46
Gucor, Isabelle Melinette M. Neon 1.45
Cabrera, John Audie D. Neon 1.46
Basa, Paulo Miguel Lithium 1.50

FOURTH YEAR
Solidum, Marian Rosary Tau 1.20
Cañonero, Katrina Anne Tau 1.33
Olivares, Michele Graviton 1.33
Blanco, Quinn Earl Tau 1.35
Florentino, Kent Tau 1.35
Tulio, Jessa Airiz Graviton 1.39
Manderico, Rommel Tau 1.42
Contreras, Sofia Photon 1.44
Ladrido, Portia May Graviton 1.45
Japitana, Paulene Photon 1.46
Obrero, Jeely Nicole Photon 1.46
Pasquin. Erwin Rommel Graviton 1.47
Zamora, Wayne Steven Graviton 1.47
Pagliawan, Dennis Joy Photon 1.48
Payba, Jessamine Tau 1.5

SPECIAL AWARDS

Nina Ruth Martirez Merit Award
Hongkong Elementary Mathematics International Competition (HEMIC)
August 2, 2007
Hongkong

Roselen Vieja Gold Medal
3rd International Mathematics Competition August 18, 2007 Singapore

Mark Elery de Juan Bronze Medal
3rd International Mathematics Competition August 18, 2007 Singapore

Fred Nyll Tupas Merit Award
3rd International Mathematics Competition August 18, 2007 Singapore

So you think you know your teachers???

2007-08-21T23:33:00.000-07:00

Whew, and i thought i forgot my password na naman... Okay, bullying has worked yet.. so no pix pa, i will try begging and groveling... for the mean time, lets see if you can still remember some of these lines, and there are new lines by the way for you older folks.

Sin-o ni bi?

Dahil sa gravity, nahulog ang tao sa bridge - He’s in Thailand now by the way…

I see dead people… (and then tells you ghost stories)

Wala muna tayong assignment sa ngayon. Paalam Tau.

Oh dear… - (too easy)

Palangga? Lakat di bala anay palangga.

What’s up yo? – His favorite greeting line ever since that darn show last July.

Hey, doc, what’s that gum on your face? Its not gum Edward, its nostalgia! – His parody of that darn show last July.

O di ba…? (say this in an echos way)

Wala ko ya problema sa ila. Sila ya ang may problema sa akon. – Reply of teacher when asked by Sir Almero kung may problema sya sa Ruby last 1st Quarter Scholarship Committee Meeting.

Hindeeeee… Bakit indeterminate ang limit? Hindi limit ang indeterminate!

Pictures, Yey!

2007-07-19T00:21:00.000-07:00

Ey, I have now posted pictures taken during the funday and foundation day. Would like to thank sir One for all of them. Will take more pictures as soon as i can hassle them from my students. Check them out at my multiply site, just click the link, okay?

If you want any specific pic you might want to view, just ask nicely =)

Activities For the Intrams and Alumni Homecoming

2007-07-17T01:30:00.001-07:00

October is just around the corner, and ive been thinking, how could you old guys have some fun during the intrams besides watching games and, well, eating coop food. Oy btw, the coop has a new manager, food tech grad, so we ought to see some improvement in the food being served in the coop. let's just wait for around a month and see okay?

Okay now back to the topic, intrams, makadto kamo sa school right? if you will, what would you like to do? there's gotta be someting for you. Im thinking of having a paintball booth. Its fun, i promise. What do you know, you could go home happy, sweaty and smelly and with a bruise too.

but that's just my idea. if you have, ey, tell me. its about time i give justice to the title of alumni coordinator, whatever that means.

Care to Teach Physics Anyone?

2007-07-12T18:45:00.000-07:00

I hate to start a post like this but here you go...

One of our beloved teachers will soon be leaving, soon creating a vacancy for one physics teacher. Anyone in the alumni community interested to apply for it? Your application will be really welcome.

The minimum requirement is that he/she is a physics grad. well not really. basta ang course makarelate sa physics, like engineering grads, like electronics engineering, e.c.e, materials engineers, the like. i dont know if packing engineers are also qualified, but hey, wala pa na may magrad sa cpu right, so you folks just take your packing time?

If youre interested about the financial compensation part, just send me an email and ill break it down to you. its not too shabby for a wage here in iloilo city i tell you. so, i hope to see you apply?

Foundation Day

2007-07-01T16:33:00.000-07:00

Been a long time. This place is dusty.

This friday and saturday July 6 and 7, the school will hold its 15th Foundation day with the them Pushing Frontiers, Keeping Traditions.

Friday
7:30 - 8:30 Holy Mass (Gym)
8:30 - 10:00 OPening ProgRam (Gym)
10:00 Gallery Exhibit
Open HOuse (Dorms)
Opening of FUn Booths

1:30 PSHSWV-Pfizer Youth Program (Audi)

6:00pm Students' NIght (Gym)
(Alumni are welcome to crash the party)

Saturday
8:00 Field Demo
10:00 REgistration for Family Picnic (Gym)
11:00 - 1:00 Lunch with Entertainment
1:00 - 1:30 Induction of PTA and SA Officers
1:30 - 4:00 DIsco DerBy and Games

7:00pm dinnEr Show (C/o Faculty and Staff)

questions? comments?
By the Way: The GRAND ALUMNI HOMECOMING is moved to October, intrams time.

Houston, we have a problem!

2007-03-21T17:31:00.000-07:00

Seems that i cant figure out why its no longer possible to post comments on my new posts. Must have done something to the settings and im just too dumb to figure out what i did wrong.
Anybody got an idea?

???

2007-03-20T20:04:00.000-07:00

la lang, post ta lang. this is one my favorite poems.

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
or the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann, Desiderata, Copyright 1952.

Advanced Congratulations to Batch 2007

2007-03-20T19:30:00.000-07:00

10 days and all of these 82 pesky kids will go, most especially the two here. Can't count the number of punches and pinches ive received from them, not to mention the ruinous torture they do to my hair.

They may look nice, but my abused skin says otherwise.

They still annoy me even while i write this blog. Bye batch 2007.

Oh by the way, just talked to Mr. John Arnold Siena, the "maintainer" (???) of sci link on line. That blog site i gave you is no longer in favor, it has been "abandoned, fallen from good graces", in the words of its creator.

But don't you worry, he's got another site on. Check out http://scilink.googlepages.com/.

Til the next blog. Go Dallas.

Alumni Homecoming

2007-03-12T18:20:00.000-07:00

It seems that this thing just won't die down.

Thanks to mr niño natividad for asking about this one. People here forget. There will definitely be one and it will be held together with the next foundation day celebrations on July (hope my grammar are right here). This is reliable, promise. I mean i just checked with Sir Lando about, uhm.. five months ago. You think i should ask him again?

Do let us know what you think. If you have any other cool idea on what you would like to do (besides dancing the la combia) or anything you would like to happen (besides just sitting around and doing nothing), do tell us, whether you plan to come or not. At least put in your two cents worth.

ciao.

Sci-Link is Online!

2007-03-10T01:02:00.000-08:00

Good News Pisay Pips!

Sci Link is now on-line. Visit http://Sci-Link2.blogspot.com for news, info and everything you wanna know about pisay that our brethren in the journalism electives have prepared for you.

Aint this just great? I no longer have the pressure to update you on everything (as if im doing that). I will just have to update you whenever i feel like it. Makes my job lazier.

Til next tym (zzzzzzzzz....)

SMT Days

2007-02-12T16:58:00.000-08:00

Hello World!

Lovely day isn't it. I know several people who have been reading this blog have some specific questions, so let's not dilly dally...

1. Dayon man guid ang Alumni Homecoming? (intro Alumni Homecoming song).
Fr: Someone i met sa Sigabong Concert last Saturday. Sorry, lipat ko sin-o ka parts. Dulum to bi and well, uhm, gapalandulum na pananawan ko (read: *hic)

- Yep. Sa foundation day... Hope you old guys come. My sincerest thanks to Ma an Araneta for springing for my ticket and Jani Villaroman for GROing me around. I didn't know there were so many pisaynons in the Hamili Brotherhood and Hamili Sisterhood.

2. Why Lawaan Crawler?
Fr: chemist*three

- Its cause i was made to crawl around the grounds of this here Pisay Lawaan Campus when i was still a snotty nosed COQC applicant by my overly eager (sadistic) officers. Good thing we were not wimps then.

3. What are the recent developments/activities?
Fr: my imaginary friend

- Several Actually. We just finished SMT days last Saturday morning. You know, the usual crap, exhibits, visitors, forums, blah blah... Its been that way since this school rose from the rice fields of Bitoon. But it was a grand time during the Science Camp. Silly kite flying, messy cooking. Hey, dem kids could actually cook something edible. And we had a campfire (ano pa bi?). Some students think the 15 minute silence was kinda corny though. One said that someone was actually hyperventilating even though the instruction was clearly to breathe deeply.

Also, we had no class yesterday. Yey. That qualifies as a major development down here. And again no class on Thursday and Friday. For teachers anyway. Teachers day you know. Ow sorry, Faculty and Staff Day, to be politically correct. But the way i see it, sometimes the Staff on the Faculty and Staff Day was added more as an afterthought. Do kids really give a damn for the staff beyond the monthly queue for their stipends or the occasional visit to the clinic for an imagined bellyache? Heck, when i was a student i didn't.

We have a pair of students going to Manila today for the National Intel Science Fair competition. My bestfriend Harold is going with Christine Marcelino and Glen Dale Fantonalgo as coach. Jessa Tulio is going to represent Western Visayas for a national chemistry quiz something. Sorry, the only announcement i hear right yesterday at the flag ceremony was the suspension of classes. After that i was deaf. Too bad for Jessa though she's going to miss the prom. And she had a nice dress all picked out. What would you do if you were in her shoes? I heard it too is a nice pair. You ask me, I think there are more important things than quizzes, like proms.
But that's just me talking senselessly.

4. uh, im confused as to the identity of the blogger, is this you, sir ed? [since may ej...] or one of the other teachers sa pisay?
Fr: tisnart_irrewt

Is this you my squeaky paolo? I just cant ignore that squeak thing. By the way gingkatay ko na ang ginghatag mo na piggy bank. Netted only 700 bucks. Drat. We all call our piggy banks here paolo and im so sorry, thats one less paolo already. Fallen on hard times you see. I can see your grammar is still good even though you say youve had two sems without english huh? and you have words like albeit, man im proud of you.

5. How goes the world of professional alumni daw?
Fr: Chemengineer

- Hmm... Tough question. I know several handsome teachers, a banker, a diver, several in the tech industry like lexmark, HP, intel, blah blah. Do you really want a list or just some gossip? I heard some are already parents. Sin o pa na batch ang wala pa mga fathers and mothes there? pigaw... hehe, lango2 lang. take your time.

THat's it for now. My stomach is already in a vibrating alert. I would have posted some pictures but my card reader is busted. I will update this post, promise. Some interesting reading for you
by the way.

----------------------------------------------------------
Yell Louder When You're Wrong
Abridged
Bruce Fleming January 17, 2007

Today’s topic is testosterone and its discontents. The notion of "discontents" is taken from Freud. It means weaknesses that are a constituent part of strengths, an Achilles heel that doesn't go away. The strengths of maleness-summarized as testosterone, the magic elixir behind it all-are pretty clear. We men are taught to be scrappers. We take on all comers, establish dominance, keep the dominance for as long as we can, rising to ever higher heights-and then what? That's where the discontents kick in. They make the old guys calling the shots defensive, prone to see enemies in anybody who crosses them, ruthless in dealing with the next generation that doesn't see things their way, and convinced that only massive immediate force can deal with any challenge. I'd say that the fact of waning testosterone just when men reach the pinnacle of their power is the source of many of the world's problems in politics, business, and perhaps most especially, the military, the organization that prizes force and testosterone even more than the others.

In the animal kingdom, we see the same state of affairs, only more clearly. In Jack London's immortal male fable, The Call of the Wild, the lead wolf will of necessity one day be picked off by one of the younger male wolves, and he knows it. The repelling of challenges is a question of literal survival: you fend off younger males in order to live. Might doesn't make right, it just makes life. In our kinder, gentler human world, things aren't so aboveboard. Part of the way we repel challenges is by putting on a show of moral force: the people in power (that's us) are there because we deserve to be in power. Those who challenge the status quo are committing a moral outrage. It's a democratic form of the divine right of kings, asserted most strongly in periods of crisis. How dare they?

What's the alternative? More women in positions of power, perhaps-though the female form of these discontents may be a tendency to produce shrill battle-axes, estrogen no longer kicking in. Younger people of both sexes in leadership positions, perhaps? For mature men, the alternative to this sorry state of affairs is to hold power because you actually deserve to have it. If you deserve to have it, you can explain yourself. You understand that not everyone will agree. You can actually win hearts and minds, not just force people to do things because otherwise it's going to hurt. That kind of tolerance of otherness isn't a sign of weakness, but in fact of strength. Too bad it's in such short supply.

If you want to read the whole article, well, tough luck i forgot which site i found this thing. I have it saved on a word file though so just email me and id be glad to send it to you. If you are a young, single and unattached attractive female, id be happy to provide my cell phone number too. Mea maxima culpa, in vino veritas. *hic

2007-01-11T16:35:00.000-08:00

Greetings Again!

To all of my adoring fans out there, im sorry i havent been as regular as you would like in posting, but you know naman, i have classes, papers to check, autographs to sign, mall tours, tapings... sigh simply takes the life out of you.

Anyway, you'd like to hear about your ol pisay right (im referring to the alumni readers)? The latest hot thing in here, as im sure, also the latest hot thing in here Myx is Michael V's Hindi Ako Bakla video. Believe it or not everytime i play it on my pc at least ten people are watching, students and teachers alike. i swear if i just collected a five peso tong for every person that watches i would have enough money to burn all the cd's the batch 2006 would need. The students are even practicing the dance moves (and me also). You gotta see it to enjoy it.

Another hot topic here, at least to our "senior" teachers here, is the ukay-ukay over jaro plaza where everyday is a SALE day. Jaro fiesta is nearing and as you pass by the plaza you can smell the festive atmostphere and the stink of beer laden urine and fresh drunk-vomit. Yuck. I commute everyday and I avoid the place like a minefield, and occasionally, you could even smell the "mines" too. (Gak!)

By the way, id like to take some space to adress some comments from malicious persons intent in sullying my honorable name...

i_am_the_great_Leo_CVIII said...
Sir Ej, are you the one decking this blog or this is a collaborative effort with the rest of the juvenile faculty...coz it seems to me that there is a distinct writer for every article in this “only-active-during-full-moon” blog… anyway... curiosity will always be that hauling.. forgive me.. gee... who is that freaky guy in numbah four?... don’t tell me it’s you EJ… Celaida will be in paranoia if that’s the case… (and the rest of the concerned few)

How dare you doubt me Leo in more ways that one? Im the sole one writer who is writes this blog. Ako ang kaluluwa ng blog na to. And if you doubt dahil iba-iba ang style ng writing, well CHANGE ME Leo! (Ibahin mo ako) Besides being very handsome, im talented to boots.
And about that sly insinuation sa pagkalalaki ko,
Pag di ka tumitigil ng pagsasalita, hahalikan kita!
Hindi ako baklaaaaaa......

One last thing, to those of you who miss our english lessons, here's a nice letter I got from the web, very touching. Read on.

To Marjie,
· I am not surprise or wander why Dennis leave you.
Why?·
· What reason you can think about but you're very fat body. I thought before that Dennis only use me to his toy but sooner and later I'm realize that he really can't not beared or stomached to be with you anymore because at first,Dennis say he could not stand you're habit of making pakialam all his walks [lakad] and always calling to their house what he go home or this or that and then he say he get ashame to met iether in school or in his family and then asking you to exercise you're very very ,very fat body but you hate it thoughth your the most preetiest girls he knows about what do you think you are "Beautiful Girl " of Jose Marie Chan even you are beautiful face to your think) you do not have the right to called me whatsoever or else different name one time or the other for the real purposed to insults my personality because I'm never call you names iether in the front of Dennis or in the backs of Dennis, but if you start already to calling me different name, I don't have any other choice but to call you other different name to like you are a PIG, FAT, OBESSED, OVERWIGHT, AND UGLY SHAPE girl.· Shame to you're body that is to a BUDING. You can't not blame Dennis for exchanging you to me because I am the more sexier than you when you look to us in the mirror. I'm repeat again that you are like Ike Lozada when she is a girl.· ·

FROM: THE SEXIEST GIRL OF D.M.·
· P.S. You say that I'm the bad breathe but who is Dennis want to kissed. Me or you? You or me? And the final is me.
· There you go.

Hahaha.... I always get a kick out of that one. til next time....

2006-12-19T22:51:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas....

Five days to go and we'd be opening our gifts. And its been a month since i last opened up this site for updates...

First a Christmas list...

1. to all batch 2006 graduates. How r ya all? saw Daryl yesterday at SM, same ol Daryl... Saw also Mae Ann, and nagtambok sta... hehe... btw.. to all of you asking about the graduation cd, here's the scoop.
You paid something like 20-50 pesos right? the money was spent to buy the cd case and to print the cd cover. that left about 700 pesos left. now here's the problem. the gradutation ceremony is about 3 cds long. 700 bucks wont cut it to buy, say, 90x3 = 240 cds. and im not equipped to burn that many cd's with my pc. so what do we do? here are several options.
A. we could get outside help to burn the cd's for us, but then you'd have to pay extra too.
B. i burn a limited amount of copies and send them to class repersentatives to copy them for you. clearly i cant do it all alone.
C. we burn it on dvd but since i dont have a dvd burner we have to let somebody burn it for us and then we pay the fee too.
so what do you think?
(i think nobody's reading this site, but then, its part of covering up my ass... hehe)

2. Went to our guimaras campus last weekend for III-Be's retreat. Got to chat for a while with our lone guard there. seems that, according to him, he has not spent a night at home for the last three years, if you would believe this guy... why so? its been three years that the school have reduced the guard on duty in our guimaras campus from three to two then to one. his duty starts from 6:00pm to 2:00am and he goes home somewhere near Ortiz in Iloilo. so he goes home every other day in the morning but spends the night, most of the time alone, in our beloved Mosqueda Campus. i asked him how about he takes a leave of absence but then he jsut said "no work no pay". Now isn't that sad? He'll be spending Christmas this year, and spent it the last three years, all alone oe'r there. All of us have gone there at least once during our stay in pisay. you could just imagine how'd it be like.

3. INTEL INSIDE: i know its old news but pisay again gets to represent the region in the national intel science fair in the life science category. Glen Dale Fantonalgo and Christine Marcelino of IV-Graviton smashed all opposition (and that includes the hefty group of classmate Bemboy Subosa) in the team category with their study entitled in vitro propagation of mangroves. it was such a wonderful experience, that intel fair, especially for my colleague Mr. Olvido who found a lovely acquaintance in the two day affair. You had to see the look in his face =)

4. GOSSIP-SIP: some juicy tidbits of information for everybody. i heard some persons in the faculty center has changed civil status, from male to female!!! more later.

5. Merry Christmas everyday. Happy New Year.

2006-11-05T22:26:00.000-08:00

Hi everybody...

Been a long time, i know. Finally, I have a copy of Varsolo's speech. He's here visiting the school. I found out that he's on his second course, computer engineering, after finishing his BS Physics course. Man this guy is so smart i feel my job is threatened. I just wish i get a permanent employment status before this guy graduates. Anyway, enough about me already...

The Rewards of Excellence
Varsolo C. Sunio

(This is a modified version of the speech I delivered last July 7, 2006 in PSHSWVC during its Foundation Day.)

Having graduated last March with the highest Latin honors is truly rewarding. It made my graduation day extra-special.

By this, I do not mean the reward of personal satisfaction that I felt during graduation for having done a job well done, though that of course in itself is already rewarding. To graduate summa cum laude is truly a reason to be proud of oneself, to be humbly boastful of oneself for having accomplished a feat only a few mortals could do. Graduating with the highest Latin honors is a recognition of my efforts, a vindication of my four years of hard work, the fruit of my labor, and surely I can’t help but feel so much fulfilled.

By this, I also do not mean the reward of popularity that I earned for myself because of my award, though that too feels even more rewarding. I do not deny that to be one of the top graduates of my batch has made me popular among my batch mates. Many of them know me or at least my name.

By it, I do not also mean the reward of having one’s market value increased tremendously, though that also is rewarding. Most especially nowadays that the corporate world has become more flat, where everyone has an equal fighting chance to compete and to climb up the corporate ladder, a summa cum laude title will at least give one a good competitive edge over others. To graduate with highest honors can be one’s passport to land to a high-paying job.

No, I do not mean any of these when I say that to graduate with the highest Latin honors conferred upon me is truly rewarding.

Having graduated summa cum laude is rewarding because I know I was able to meet the highest standards in my academic life. I was able to do my work well as a student according to the highest standards of academic evaluation, and to have done my job with utmost human perfection.

Excellence for the sake of service

This is important to me not because I love excellence per se. No, I don’t. Personally, I do not believe pursuing excellence merely for its own sake is ever worthwhile. Excellence, unlike truth, is by itself nothing and worth nothing. It is not an end in itself, but only a means for something else. The raison d’etre of excellence is not in itself, but in something outside of itself. But what is this something else for which we must strive to excel? What makes the pursuit for excellence something worthwhile, and so precious that makes it worth pursuing for a lifetime?

The answer should be clear: Service. The quest for excellence becomes worthwhile only if it is pursued for the sake of service. Service, and nothing else, is the only objective of excellence. To be of best service to others, because one is excellent: this is the only authentic reward of excellence.

I’ve already said this before in the talks I gave, but I do not mind repeating this idea again. Excellence assumes the stature of excellence only when it becomes a service for others. Service is the one thing that makes excellence worth pursuing. We strive for excellence because we want to serve others in a best way possible. Unless we are excellent, we can never serve others with utmost perfection.

“Truth was first in us before it was reflected,” says Ralph Waldo Emerson. In the same way, excellence was first in the person before it was reflected in any of his work. The grandeur of Mona Lisa and The Last Supper are simply transcripts of excellence already within Leonardo da Vinci; what they do is simply reflect the excellence already within the man himself. All excellence we impress upon the world is first in ourselves: where no excellence is, no excellence can be called forth. No hollow man, therefore, can render an excellent service, for he does not possess a well of excellence where he can draw forth the water of excellence from. Only a man of excellence can serve his fellowmen with utmost perfection. The quality of what one gives flows from within.

All this helps us understand why we have bad politics. The reason why we have bad politics is because we don’t have excellent politicians. For how can we expect our politicians to excel in politics if they are not excellent to begin with?

It’s the same thing when we speak of science. The reason we are backward in science is that we have backward men of science. That’s why, one time, when someone asked me how to advance science, I said to him without hesitation: We can only advance science if we advance ourselves. We can only make science go forward if we go forward ourselves.

Time and again, I remember that episode in my favorite anime Naruto. One of the ninjas in the village of Konoha, like Naruto, also dreamt of becoming the Hokage, the strongest of all the ninjas and the leader of the village, not because of any desire for power, but because he wanted to protect everybody, the people he loved. He wanted to be the Hokage because as the Hokage he could best protect everybody. “I want to be the Hokage,” he says, “because I want to protect everyone.”
This should also be our reason for pursuing excellence: We have to strive for excellence because if we are excellent then we are most effective, and hence we can serve others and God in the best way possible. Only excellent people can offer excellent service: The quality of what one gives flows from within.

Excellence and Love

In the end, I think, what should animate us to excel is not simply service, but love, loving service for others and for God.

Excellence doesn’t simply mean meeting the highest standards in whatever you do, it also means putting utmost love to it. Excellence is not simply doing things with utmost human perfection, it also means doing things with greatest love.

No event in my life drives this point more clearly than the time when I worked for a hospital in Marikina as part of my immersion in my theology class. In that experience, I saw how the sick, especially those who are poor, are treated in a less human way.

This does not mean of course that the doctors don’t attend to the needs of the patients nor does it mean that they were not treated as a patient should be treated. But that’s the point: the delivery of medicine to these patients was merely a professional and technical activity. There was no touch of human love to it.

Someone once said that “the work of health care persons should be carried out not only as a technical activity, but also as a dedication and love of neighbor.” Excellence in health care delivery is therefore not simply a matter of doing it with utmost professional competence, it also is a matter of pouring so much love to it.

In the same way, when we deliver our service to a classmate who needs it most, to a friend who finds something hard, we not only help him in a best human way possible, we also help him in the most loving way possible.

Mother Teresa, in one of her speeches, shared an experience she had with a man whom she picked up from a drain, half eaten by worms and, after being cared for, the man only said to Mother Teresa, "I have lived like an animal in the street, but I am going to die as an angel, loved and cared for." Then, after all the worms were removed from his body, all he said, with a big smile, was: "Sister, I am going home to God" - and he died.

In that simple episode, Mother Teresa did not merely extend her professional competence, her service, to the man; she also poured out her love for him. She did not merely do things with highest human perfection possible; she also did them with the greatest love possible. And that is excellence.

Pursue excellence, not for its own sake, for excellence, by itself, is worth nothing, nor for the sake of popularity or increasing your market value, but for the sake of serving those important to you, to God, out of love.

Life’s Center

During one gathering with some young freshman fellows from UP Diliman, where I was the speaker, someone from the audience asked me to give them a few tips on how to excel in the academics. I told him if you want to excel, you have to find a center outside of yourself, a center bigger, higher and larger than yourself.

This was my advice to them, this is my advice to all of you now, especially to the young scholars present here today. Find a center bigger than yourself. This is the essence of living life epically, generously and excellently.

If your life’s center is in yourself, you strive to excel only because you want to glorify yourself. And I tell you, with this mindset, you won’t get any far in this life. But if you put your center to something bigger than yourself and commit your entire being to it, you yourself will become a person larger than life, a person of excellence.

Some time ago, I read a book entitled “Great Men and Women of Asia: Ramon Magsaysay Awardees 1958-1967”. It is a book which chronicles the tales of 15 Ramon Magsaysay laureates. The names of some of them are familiar to us: Mother Teresa, Akira Kurosawa and Dalai Lama. These are the people whose names command power, greatness of spirit, moral courage and service of society. These are the people who are larger than life. And what made them larger than life is precisely the fact that they have stood for something larger than themselves, they have committed their whole life to something beyond themselves.

I do hope that you will soon find your life’s center, as I have found mine. I have put my life’s center in God, and this has changed a lot in me. I’ve tried to do whatever I do, even the most mundane of things, with utmost human perfection, because only a work done perfectly can be made into a real offering to God. I’ve also tried my best to be perfect so I can better respond to the demands of love that God asks from me.

Thank you.

2006-08-22T22:53:00.000-07:00

Hi folks. I’m going to tell you about our recent weekend trip to Tando, Nueva Valencia Guimaras, one of the coastal areas affected by the spilt bunker fuel from the tanker that sunk off the coast. I’m going to show you some pictures that we took. They are not what you would call pretty, but I think it is something that you ought to see.

Before anything else by the way, the Research Team.
sans me because i took the picture...

The sun was bright and the sea was choppy on the Iloilo straight as we crossed it on our way to Guimaras. It was like a roller coaster ride (though I’ve never had a ride on a roller coaster before, poetic license, mea culpa mea culpa) with intermittent sprays of sea water. But it was okay. The land trip had us all feeling like popcorns. Baking, stifling heat all the way in a crowded rigged up truck disguising as a passenger jeepney. And just when we thought we’d have some relative comfort when most of the passengers disembarked the road turned so bad we were bouncing off in all directions inside like so many newly popped oily corns juggling inside a shaker bag filled with cheese powder, only that it was sweaty human oil and powdered lime dust clinging on our bodies. Something ought to be done about the roads there and I ought to say something, but I’m digressing.

When we arrived at the place the first thing that greeted us was the sight of mangrove trees covered in bunker fuel.
As you can see the trees are covered from the roots all the way up to part of the trunk.

I don’t know whether these trees will have a chance to survive.

These mangrove saplings however will never make it, its roots and leaves covered in fuel, unable to breathe.

The oil was on rocks

and trees.

Despite the sad sight it was cool wind and cool sun all the way. Perfect weather for sampling sea grasses. That was what we did by the way, sampling sea grasses. Tando is where Dr. Josette T. Biyo did her study for her doctoral degree. For two years she monitored the growth of sea grasses in that area. (BTW: sea grasses are an important source of food for marine animals in tropical sea waters. Sea grasses then are good bio indicators of the health of tropical seas.)

I’m not an expert of sea grasses and all we did was count them. I think they are still in good shape but some of the sea grass beds are not when we looked around for an ocular inspection of the study site.

We saw people of the community cleaning up,digging up the oil soaked sand,
wiping the oil covered rocks and cutting down the oil covered trees.

These men and women in blue are being paid by Petron,
the oil company that contracted the sunken tanker to take 2 million liters of bunker oil to Mindanao. I’m hazy on the facts here so you could check the websites of national dailies for solid ones.

We tried our hands on the absorbent paper Petron provided to wipe the rocks with. It’s a sticky and grimy business and all it did was take away the fuel that has not seeped into the rocks and soil my sarong. After that, the rock is still covered in a thin layer of fuel that won’t go away even if you wiped away into eternity. Lousy job for 200 bucks a day, but if its your livelihood on the line... We talked to one of the residents engaged in this clean up, Mr. Bolina (sorry sir I forgot your first name), and he said that after wiping the rocks they are going to spray it with a chemical to dissolve the fuel, said chemical to be provided by Petron. (I’m no chemist either to provide you with much insight on this one, but won’t this chemical and the fuel contaminate the water after spraying?)

This picture here shows Dr. Biyo talking to one of the Petron representatives of the area.
About 500 meters down the shore “Surprise! Surprise! Isn’t that a media crew I see yonder?” So that’s why there so many people milling around. It turns out to be an ABS-CBN crew and Karen Davila (hey, did spell this right? Sorry, haven’t watched television lately after so many of the mindless shows dominating the airwaves) of the correspondents. Doc Biyo is getting some serious national exposure here. So Karen interviews Doc Biyo and hmm… looks scripted to me, but then that’s how they probably do it anyway. You could watch next Tuesday for the episode of The Correspondents and that interview. We did not dare show our handsome faces to the camera (sigh... it’s too bad they can’t afford our talent fees) so we had to contend ourselves with interviewing the local folks. One of our sainted teachers, Mrs. Virna Navarro, did a pretty number on the barangay captain.

“Why is it that it is only these (blue shirted) people are doing the clean up?” she asked with the indignant air of a government inquisitor out for blood. Kapitana answers that “Gingbayran ni sila ya sang Petron mo.” Now seething inside Maestra asked “ti ano plano sang barangay?” “Gahulat kami sang bulig sa Petron kag sa Sunshine agency,” Kapitana answers. What do you think? I’ll just keep my opinions to myself.

We did our samplings at around 3 pm after the interviews were over. We gathered water temperature readings, dissolved oxygen and salinity and collected sea grasses.
Not being a bio major with limited (read, zero) knowledge in field work, it was a good experience for me. The core sampler was a particular bi**h but Mr. Harold Mediodia says were lucky the sand is soft.
I wonder what I’ll do if some of my research students want to go boring for samples in hard sand.
There were many sea stars and sea urchins around, so one has to be careful where you put your feet on. It’s either “Awww, poor starfish” if you step on it or “Owww! my poor foot” if you step on a sea urchin.
aint they cute?
acupuncture anyone?

these are brittle stars
hand friendly red sea urchins

Not growing up beside the sea, it was the first time for me to see a carpet of seagrasses literally grow out of the low tide. Its like a green field suddenly emerged from the blue sea as the tide receded.

I havent seen this in the beaches of Iloilo. I wonder if it will be around to last forever with this oil spill.

The job was done at around five thirty and these guys are just posing for the camera.

Some of the local folks were spear fishing by then in the low tide. I don’t know if the fishes are still safe to eat. The folks here are mostly fishermen. They depend on the sea for their livelihood. They could still catch fish but no one is buying. So they are forced to eat their fresh and maybe contaminated catch when what they’d rather do is eat fish out of tin cans. But there's no money to buy for tinned fish. The irony is as thick as the bunker fuel the covers the place.

I’m still new to this marine bio research business. But I know that the shores of Nueva Valencia are way out of order. And if that sunken tanker with still most of its fuel cargo still in its holds is not taken care of soon, much of the shores of Guimaras, and then maybe (I’m no weatherman and expert of sea currents either) the shores of Iloilo and Negros islands will suffer too.

Will these beautiful gals still have a beautiful sea to come back to?

2006-08-16T21:49:00.000-07:00

Hello again pisaynons...

Sorry I haven't posted much lately... You see we have to pass the grades this friday and i gotta finish em or else my boss Ah-nold's gonna raise a ruckus. Haven't thought there's so much hassle to being a teacher. But we get our fair share of lazy days.

For recent developments, last tuesday, aug 15, 2006, a segment producer of GMA 7's Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho came over to school and did an interview of Dr. Biyo. You guys watch out for that, dont know when though. And on sunday, the research team composed of the research teachers (there are six now, yours truly incldued) and Dr. Biyo will go to Guimaras and do some water quality blah blah.. seaweed blah. Sorry guys, but dont know what its exactly about since im not a bio major. Ill find out soon though and will tell you what well do, thats assuming youre interested, and assuming someone's reading this blog anyway since its been dead for days.

For a featured picture of pisay, well faculty center lang anay... Who do you think these guys are... teachers or call center agents?

well thats it for now.. gotta go back to checking papers..

2006-08-03T18:40:00.000-07:00

Good day Peeps.

This from the hallowed halls of PSHSWV.

Im sorry wala nadayon ang Alumni Homecoming the last time. Seemed that most people said sorry they cant come and the school did not push through na lang.

Good news though. There will be a surefire Grand Alumni Homecoming that is going to happen, “bisan tatlo lang ka alumni ang mag-abot”, according to Sir Lando Libutaque, and that will be set with the 15th Foundation Day next year, July 2007.

“Bisan ako lang (B99), si Majal (B01) kag si john T (B99) ang mag attend?”, I asked. Well he said yes, so I guess this one is going to push through. Btw, Mr. Lando Libutaque is the new Humanities Department Head.

Hope to see you guys. Mark it on your calendars.

Dont he look good?

2006-07-14T02:46:00.000-07:00

Hello world...
Here are some more photos from the 14th FD.

The first one is medical intern evangeline barbara go (batch 99) checking up on her patients...

Remember nong Junior??? I think this is his grandkid to see the doctor...

Mam Hijasmin Sinfuego sings her heart out with the (new) librarian (for those of you who only knows Mr. Tumalay) Mr. Dennis Joseph Garrido.

Know these gals? For the ancients these are (left to right) Ms. Cristia Magsipoc (Filipino), Ms. Thirza Ojas (Guidance Counselor) & Ms. Lea Salinel (Filipino, Soc Sci.)

Anybody saw Mam Tess dancing before?
For the ancients (again) The one in black is Mrs. Anicita Altis (English)and the one in brown is Mrs. Rowena Labrador (Biology). Must i do this all the time?
Btw, right behind Mam Annie is Mam Coo.

That's all for now folks. Good bye... I hate to see you, man i look good...

2006-07-11T20:22:00.000-07:00

As per your request... here are the pics. I cant post much... i will have to create a myspace account for that and put a link here... patience... but for now...

This according to Sir Harold is the preregistratrion... You see here Bemboy Subosa (IV GRAV) interviewing the residents of brgy Bitoon.

the student volounteers and the faculty and staff behind the medical mission

Mr. Varsolo Sunio Giving "the Speech"

MOA signing between PSHSWV and Philippine College of Physicians...

psssst... Carl... maano ako?

Ahnie: Ano sulat ko di? Hmmmm.. Deed of sale of PSHSWV to PCP...

And the field demos... whites are freshies and sophies, black are juniors and seniors... I know the lay out's sh*@#y but im hungry...

Hope you like em... i'll have more posted of course. Do tell me what you want to see... For now, im eating lunch.

14th FD: Opening Program

2006-07-06T22:58:00.000-07:00

As all programs go around here, this one started with the entrance of colors, and an apocalyptic fit from Commandant Duarte. It is quite entertaining to watch Generallismo Cerla stomp her foot in vexation as her Cadet/Cadette Officers stomped their way into the stage. "They are not supposed to make a sound when they march, AY AMBOT NA LANG AH!!!... Sa imo bi to?" she asked. Uh-huh.

It turns out that this was just the calm before the storm. For the recent years past the Student Alliance has invited several food concessionaires (is this the correct spelling?, whatever) to sell doughnuts, junkfood (chicken, fries, burgers etc.) and drinks and these food stalls are right behind the audience in our partially covered gym. Nothing wrong with this since the SA gets a cut of the profits but imagine you're Varsolo giving your speech and you could clearly see your audience lining up for jollibee, dunkin donuts and thirsty. Good thing it didn't happen since it was Mr Cerbo's turn to blow a fuse. It was a terrifying sight to see his brows could actually darken than his very dark complexion, but darken it did and boy was it darker than the dark storm the humans unleashed against the machines that forever blighted out the sun in the animatrix. "Ginghambalan na gid sila na hindi anay magbilagya samtang may program pa pro. GAHULAT SILA SIGURO NA MASING-ALAN AY!!!
**%$@# *&#$*$ ..." Well, that straightened them out. I've never seen students control their appetites with so much determination while the aroma of chicken joy wafts in their noses. But then again, one look at Mr. Cerbo's glowering face and its enough to ruin your appetite.

Now to Varsolo's speech... Wait, i dont think this is the proper post to print his inspiring speech since this is clearly an uninspired work. til next time then, those were the highlights of the program. If you missed them, you clearly missed one half of your life, like the half you missed when you were not able to watch the titanic, and then that other half you missed when you missed superman returns, and then that half you missed... boy you're so dead!

14th Foundation Day

2006-07-06T20:57:00.000-07:00

Good morning PSHSWV scholars and past scholars... Today is the 14th Foundation Day of our beloved alma matter, and the third (attempt at the) first posting of the Bitoon Star. The theme is Spreading the Wings of Excellence and Service. The guest speaker, Mr. Varsolo C. Sunio gave a very heart rending tear jerking speech. More on this later. We'll be giving you a rundown of the activities later since there is still this matter of a free lunch...