What have I done to deserve this?!

This will be my last post before I transfer school or worse, exile to Timbuktu.
Ok, so it was a little bit exaggerated but that’s exactly how I felt last Tuesday night.
Law Building, 8:50 pm, Remedial Law class…
I was busy memorizing Rule 7 of Civil Procedure because of fear to be haunted by the curse of being the last one to be called in recitations when my professor said “cross-claim”. I don’t know if it was my inattentiveness or due to other insuperable cause but I swear, he said it in a manner wherein one could’ve easily mistaken it as “Rose Lyn”. Looking like a lost and befuddled senior, I stood up and waited for the commencement of my curse. After five seconds of deafening silence and amused stares from my classmates, the class burst into fits of laughter. Of course, I did not end my moment there because I even had the audacity to naively ask why. To make the long story short, I just had the most embarrassing night of my life. Well, if you would exclude the time when our Associate Dean caught me performing like a trying-hard-amateur-theater-actress-in-a-musical-play or the time when I screamed like a big baby after tripping in the middle of a busy street or the time when... Aw, forget it! I guess I must have done a lot of embarrassing-stupid or stupid-embarrassing things in the past to consider Tuesday’s event to be permissible but my last antic will really go down memory lane especially with my ever-so-supportive classmates who recently baptized me as what do you… CROSS-CLAIM!

I guess mine is a Happy Feet...

I watched Happy Feet last saturday with Joevz. Actually, I was supposed to watch Borat with She and Vanj but it did not materialize so I dragged my friend instead after his training with the school rep for the YMCA Congress. Sleazy! haha...

Superficially, it was a nice flick in a kiddy-sissy way. But looking at the story itself, it went beyond cute baby penguins and nice soundtrack. It was an enlightening movie. It was like telling everybody that being different is not a disease and anybody, regardless of one's defiance to norms, is capable of being a catalyst for a bigger change susceptible of affecting the society at large.

Ok, so I'm getting a little emo about a supposedly very juvenile flick when all I wanted to say was it was a nice movie so get your eyes off my post and go catch it! haha

Triple treat

I had the most relaxing day. Hanging out with two of my closest friends in law school (Vanj and Sherwin) was a blast! It was kinda unplanned because the idea was brought up by She after hearing me whine for being so pressured and all- so thoughtful and nice of him to suggest an afternoon swim to unwind and just chill.

I enjoyed it because…
1. Vanj was able to meet my mom for the first time (mom accompanied me to glorietta- our meeting place).
2. She and I had super fun teasing Vanj with------ and ------ (haha) which lasted until our Starbucks break.
3. It was a covered pool so sunburn was not a problem.
4. The slumbookish convo i.e. Do you have any regrets that you’re in law school?
5. According to She it was our first time together that no calamity took place (i.e. earthquake) so I guess we’re not a “disaster in progress”. haha

Time to hit the books… We are excused form attending class tomorrow because of the event in Manila Hotel so it means that I have to read for Wednesday’s class in advance. Bummer!

A heavy heart and an empty stomach...

Ring...Ring...Ring...
Moi: Hello. Good evening!
Adam: Good evening. May I speak with Mr. Dante Rabanera (my father)?
Moi: I'm sorry but he's in the province right now. May I know who's calling please?
Adam: Ay ganon... This is Adam. Do you happen to know when is he coming back to Manila?
Moi: I'm not sure e. Is this Adam as in the son of tito Paul Reyes?
Adam: Yes...
Moi: Hey kuya. This is Rose Lyn. We've heard the news about your dad. Condolence ha?
Adam: Alam nyo na pala... Thanks. It was actually a peaceful death. Liver failure. He said din pala na walag iiyak or else mumultuhin nya. haha
Moi: I see...
Adam: I called just to inform your dad sana. Just tell him that we're having a small gathering with dad's closest friends next saturday night here in our house but it might be a 2-day event coz some of dad's classmates in Beda are coming.
Moi: Yeah. Napanood ni mommy sa tv 'yung news... Sige, I'll just tell him.
Adam: Alright. Thanks Rose Lyn. Goodnight...
Moi: No problem. Goodnight. bye

I got the call a few minutes after I arrived home (while preparing to eat my SUPER late dinner). It was a very depressing call considering that tito paul was very close to our family. Before he died he would often call and ask how's law school and if I happen to be interested in working for GMA 7. We also shared the same interest in paranormals which others may perceive as kinda weird. Well, I have to admit that IT IS weird.Oh well, I guess good guys really die young. I'm just thankful that he died peacefully.

So there, now my tummy's really growling but eating is definitely not in my list at this point. hay...

Outpouring...

Sometimes I feel like I want to streamline my life. If only it's as easy as a snap of a finger...
Sometimes I question why some things don't go my way even if I try really, really hard. It is starting to burn me out...
I can't just make my beliefs take the backseat even in times when I feel that sacrificing them will save my ass. Sign of strong conviction...
I am deeply wounded but I can still manage to smile and console those who can't handle it the way I do. I wish there is someone who can see beneath those smiles...

Argh! Enough with the drama. Moping around and crying over my very own series of unfortunate events won't do me any good. Good thing I know what I want and I know how to get it. No amount of rejection, depression nor fear can block my way in achieving my goal. I may be stripped off of my self confidence, my ego may be crushed and my pride be severely injured but there are two things that I will never lose in my journey... HEART and FAITH.

The 8th National Debate Championship

The 8th National Debate Championship was held last October 22-28, 2006 at the University of Baguio. The theme was “Rational Excellence through Competitive Eloquence”. Pretty big huh! *grin*

I definitely had a FUN time during the duration of the tourney. We stayed at Summer Place hotel (the best hotel in Baguio for 2006... according to them). The place was cool. It was cozy and very modern. I’m sure the guys (Joevz, Justin, William and Gian) had a grand time playing fooze-ball (I settled for billiards :)). The hotel food was blah. Good thing we packed some goodies.

We arrived in Baguio around 1 in the afternoon. We were welcomed by the organizers and were billeted right away. We ate out and got ourselves comfy for the next day’s activity.

Day 2 of the tourney was really exciting. We went to Tam-awan Village for the tour organized by UB and PMA. The afternoon was allotted for tournament briefing and Debate and Adjudication Seminar. Actually, The Mock Debate used for the Adjudication Exam was a taped debate which made it really hard to comprehend. Oh well…
Then the actual tournament…
The motion for Round 1 was “This House celebrates bigotry’s place in mass media”. (soo Isagani Cruz...).I adjudicated the match of UB-D, USI-D, ADMU-C and MMUM-B.
Opening Dinner followed round 1. Yummy food :)

For Day 3, the motions were as follows:
Round 2: “This House would ban 1st World dumping of hazardous materials in the 3rd World”. (I feel that it was a little bit pro-government unless the opposition will give a killer counterprop.) I adjudicated the match of SLU-C, UPD-B, DLSU-B and UST-C.
Round 3: “This House regrets Jose Rizal’s place of pride in the Filipino consciousness”. (The motion was a product of Ateneo Napoleonic Complex. haha) I adjudicated the match of UB-C, DLSU-C, UPB-F and Lyceum-A
Round 4: “This House regrets the role of bilateral aid agencies in the Philippine development”. (I despised this motion for lack of knowledge about the issue. haha) I adjudicated the match of ADMU-F, UB-C, UPLB-A and ADNU-B.

Day 4 was devoted to 3 rounds. One with oral adjudication and 2 silent rounds which made it a little less stressful for the adjudicators. *grin*
Round 5: “ This House believes that religiously-affiliated organizations should be covered by homosexual anti-discrimination laws”. (It was a nice motion. Loved the idea of harmonizing RAO's belief and that of the homos. Interesting.) I adjudicated the match of UPB-E, UPB-C, UPM-B and ADMU-E.
Round 6: “This House would tie development aid to the establishment of microcredit programs”. (Inspired by the news on the Noble prize winner, this motion was a giveaway for the debaters.) I adjudicated ADMU-F, SLU-C, UPM-D and FSSU-A.
Round 7: “This House would mandate permanent peacekeeping for international humanitarian organizations that operate in conflict zones”. (One of my favorites! I just love international/ political debates. I got a really-really nice round.) I adjudicated MMU-A, MMU-C, UPD-F and UPD-B.

The highlight of Day 4 was the break night party. It was held at Red Lions. This was a night devoted for booze, celebration and facing defeat (for some). Announcement for the breaking teams and adjudicators was made by the Deputy Chief Adjudicators. We also managed a post-break night party in the hotel. Ian really had it! Haha…

Day 5 was the day of the octofinals and quarterfinals. Motions were:
Octos: “This House would celebrate the wearing of veils by Muslim immigrants in western societies”. (For me it's an old issue but still very much debatable.) This was the match of UPB-D, SBC-A, UPB and UST-B. The chief adjudicator, Leloy from Ateneo, was our chair.
Quarters: “This House believes that international sporting bodies should sanction athletes who use official sporting events to make controversial political statements”. (I just hate sports debate but the addition of political color made it very interesting.) Match of UPD-A, UST-B, ADMU- F and ADMU-A. Duffie from DLSU Chaired the panel.

Day 6 was the semifinals and the championship day. I managed to adjudicate until the grand finals, an overwhelming and stressful experience at the same time.
Semis: “ This House believes that sado-masochism sex is a tool of patriarchy.” (An absolutely favorite motion by the entire debate community! haha. It was the match when all I ever wanted to do was drop my pen and listen to the debate.) ADDU-B, UPM-F, ADMU-C and UPD-B. Duffie was once again the Chair :).
Grand finals: “ This House believes that lobbying the European Union to sanction the Philippines for extra-judicial killings is in the best interest of Filipino activists.” (Very-very apt motion. With all the extra-judicial killings going on, Im sure everybody found the debate socially relevant.) UPM-F, UPD-A, ADDU-A and ADMU-C. Duffie was the Chair.)

Championship dinner followed the grand finals. Initially, I was pissed because Joevz didn’t allow me to go freshen up in the hotel after the semis. If it was the teeny-weeny brat in me or just the sheer thought of unfulfilled promise that made me act that way, I still don’t know… Oh well, friendship prevailed and my seething mode disappeared during the deliberation. Plus, we were able to make a hasty outfit change prior to the dinner.

Dinner was ok but the awarding was FAB! UP Diliman bagged the crown but Mark and I made it to the Top 10 Best Adjudicators. Yay! I guess that concretized the claim that FEU is the home of good adjudicators.*grin*

What I enjoyed the most in the tourney was the post-championship dinner party. Multi Media University of Malaysia hosted it and it was a very nice way to end the Nationals. Popeye invited me to the party which I gladly accepted. I had some nice convos with Baby Blue, Disco Top, Popeye and Licky. Malaysians are nice... So there, while some of the delegates were getting wasted, FEU guys preferred a cool and soo-FRIENDSy way of celebrating…FOOZE-BALL! It was a great balancing act because when Ian and Jox were ultra-wasted (I was wasted but I managed to recover in a couple of hours...on MY own...hehe) these nice guys of ours took care of them. Gian, Joevz, Kevz and I slept around 4 in the morning after feasting on some packed munchies and cup noodles.

Day 7 was the saddest day of the tourney… I don’t wanna elaborate but it was the bye-bye day. sigh :(

*This is just a partial post. Will post all the juicy details (pictures and what-nots) next time.*

yay...

Just got back from the 8th National Debate Championship and it was really fab! Typhoon Paeng failed to dampen my elated spirit. *grin*...

Since I'm still in pangasinan and we're about to take a dip in a few hours with my part of the deal not that "done" yet, I might as well write a decent post when i'm home.

One more sem to go...

It is definitely funny how we love to embrace the inconsistencies present in our daily lives. One moment we are joining the chants against some good for nothing politicians, the next we are lashing out those who advocate truth and fairness in the microcosm of our society- our school.

I am a strong believer of fairness and honesty in all my dealings. Primmish as it may sound, but I never really find the idea of compromising my intergrity in order to advance my interest as something that's invigorating. My non-conventional belief always gets the raised brows from my colleagues who perceive me as manang and so backward-ish (with my regular party mode and fashion-focused attitude, I do get that comment, you know). I guess, this was embeded during my formative years and was reinforced when I had my education in St. Jo. For some, it's too much to handle. But for me, I'd rather get the ire of those who hate boat rockers than not be able to sleep soundly at night because of the continuous bugging of my conscience.

Ok, enough with the rant. I was silent for quite some time due to ubiquitous stuffs that I had to accompish ie. study for finals and cbo- related activities. Nonetheless, the latter part of the sem turned out really great and interesting. Some highlights...

1. Supreme Court Oral Argument. Seeing the gods of our judicial system was fabulous. Of course, watching them excoriate the luminaries in the legal profession during the oral argument in their of-so-cute robes with all the works was purely divine.

2. Usual dinner with some close friends in the institute. I know, we had a lot dinners this sem but I do consider them as crazy moments in law school. A nice walk in our very own "Central Park" (coined by Piolo) while donning on court attires after pigging out at Estero and raiding Eng Bee Tin is our idea of chilling out.

3. Phone/text marathons. I never thought that I'm still capable of making telebabad after highschool. My 6 hours phone marathon with a classmate was really cool. What started as the usual "Do you have a landline?" question ended with a very long convo. Well, that's the effect of our torture criminal law finals. argh!~

4. Shopping with the girls. It started during our Supreme Court gig. After that, a trip to the mall with Vanj and Reig became a ritual. Haha

5. CLASE common prayer time. I just love the idea of praying with your friends. I still have this belief that god will heed our prayes if there are a lot of us praying for the same thing. I just hope our prayers as regards our taxation law grade will not be left unanswered *sigh*

Dogmas...

What's with the last barops that made me and anoi instant celebs? I guess the idea of some seniors having a fun night was too much for other bummed out singles to bear. As for me, I just don't wanna miss this opportunity to syndicate abbey's blog for fear of letting such cheesy and involuntary-smile-causing post form part of my memoirs :) But before that, I just wanna say that the first Doctrine's (initially for me and another guy) a MISCONCEPTION. If a guy is always with you the entire duration of the activity, so what? Well, ok. I don't want to be estopped or anything so here's the post.

Abbey writes...

Rose Lyn and Annoi, all things being equally jaded, have formulated two bar-month dogmas, FEU Law style.

The Doctrine of Unspoken Language of Love:

Typical FEU-IL set-up, Pseudo-BF-GF. Girl loves boy, boy loves girl. Neither of them is doing anything about it. They're always together and inseparable in such a way that seeing one without the other impairs the essence they represent as a whole. Not a fling, not together, probably not true love, but like I've already said, neither is doing anything about it. The love is so painfully obvious to everybody else but them.

The Doctrine of Deliciously Romantic Evening:

Involves four instances: (1) Boy is taken, girl isn't; (2) Girl is taken, boy isn't; (3) boy and girl are both taken; (4) both are single.

Whichever of the above applies, it can only be reduced to this: whatever magic or spark existed between them, it was only for a particular moment or evening. After that, it's back to reality, life goes on, and it is as if nothing happened. Casual-Casualan lang.

If you've ever crushed on someone from school, or work, or wherever, you know you have fallen prey to either of the two.

I am anxiously waiting next bar Saturday's incidents. Until then!

Three days of fun,fun and lotsa fun

A lot of things happened for the last couple of days.

I attended EA’s despedida last Friday. It was a very rainy evening but the party was uber-fun. Met up with some of my college pals and it was a very memorable night. I’m praying that EA will have a fabulous life in Australia i.e. achieve his dream of becoming an ambassador. Last words/bilin from EA…”Rose Lyn, pagbalik ko, lawyer ka na.”
*********
I definitely enjoyed our hotel ops. My batch mates and I had a lot of bonding moments. New personalities were discovered and new friendships were made. I just love the idea of talks over any kind of drink. It’s very revealing and relaxing at the same time. With a no non-sense chum, you wouldn’t go wrong. I also did some chillaxing with my newly discovered goofy friend. Teehee…

Some witty seniors came up with two Doctrines/Principles considered as apropos for the hotel ops…
a.) Principle of Deliciously Romantic Evening; and
b.) Principle of Unspoken Language of Love
(Oh brother! Haha)

Watching the cheering competition with them was a blast! It was like Janice Dickenson with her gang critiquing some America’s Next Top Model hopefuls. Well, you know what I mean. Haha.
**********
I woke up pretty early last Monday to meet my 9 am call time. I was asked to judge an extemporaneous speech competition together with lucky and mark and it went ok. I also got some nice chats with my friend, lucky. Oh, I saw joeven and he was like…”Friend, I’m very unfortunate…”. His cellphones and digicam were stolen. CRAP! Too bad the only comforting words I was able to utter were… “Joevz, Shit happens.” . That’s double crap for me. BUMMER!

Freaks!

Have you ever had that ultra-weird day that every single thing seemed well, freakish? I just had mine yesterday.

I was so damn tired last sunday so I wasn't able to wait for the Political Law bar questions til evening. So when Ken called me up yesterday and said that there was a freak question, I was kinda disappointed/excited. Disappointed coz I wasn't there to share the bumfest mood of the barristers when they went out of la salle and excited coz no matter how freakish the question was, it's still, you know, a bar question.

Moving on, Ken called to discuss some stuffs regarding our gradpics. The convo was like that for a couple of minutes when he asked me if I was able to read the bar freak question. I said no but naturally, I also asked what it was. Here's the question. Who is the current head of the International Court of Justice and what is his/her nationality (well, to that effect). When I heard the question, I nearly screamed " she's a girl from europe! Rosalyn Higgins!!!!!". He was like, how the hell did you happen to know her?! I just said that I love international law and fond of international relations cum current events. Pretty freakish of me huh?! *grin*

The second freaky thing was the news on the death of a famous crocodile hunter because he was stung by a stingray. What the... Now that's freakish. In the first place, what the hell was he doing underwater when he was supposed to be in a swamp dealing with some crocodiles? Secondly, well a crocodile hunter dying because of a sting ray's just plain... strange!

Oh well, I hope i'll have a more normal day with equally normal news to listen to.

1st weekend of bar season

12:00-12:30 pm (saturday)
* had a quick lunch with vanj, james and andy
* bought some stuffs for the hotel operations ie. chocolates for my buddy (beryl) and the latest copy of cosmo mag (ok, it's definitely not part of the barops but i need it to destress)

12:30-1:15 (saturday)
* checked on the things that we're bringing to the hotel
* tried to talk to some barristers

1:15-2:00 (saturday)
* motorpool committee started decorating the cars while the barristers had their peptalk with Dr. Echauz, Dean Bautista, Associate Dean Paguirigan and Ate Rica err Atty. Rica :p

2:00- 3:00 (saturday)
* mass for the barristers
* organized peeps for the send-off
* introduced kuya sonny (atty. santiago) to the "haggads"

3:00-3:15 (saturday)
* school send-off
* accompanied kuya sonny and vanj in seeing to it that the motorpool was ok (total of 20 cars plus the barrister bus)

3:15- 3:50 (saturday)
* travel to century park hotel

3:50-5:00 (saturday)
* arranged the room assignments and CBO room at Banahaw function room

5:00- 8:00 (saturday)
* arranged the volunteers' dinner
* acads got comfy in the CBO room
* went to shopwise with JM and Louie for some styro cups (coffee)
* dinner

8:00- 10:30 (saturday)
* Atty. Pagui's room rounds
* freshmen inflated some balloons for the sunday send-off
* acads started sweating for the last minute tips.
* had a chat with my buddy
* went to ate joan and kid's room twice for ate joan's stuffs
* saw the result of our zone 5 test shots
* saw john fajardo (former ads debater at the lobby). he's a brod of kulas in UP. he's now very active in law school (frat and student government)

10:30- 3:00 (saturday-sunday)
* saw judge paras and atty. gatcho at the hotel lobby
* went out with andy, kulas and loiue to get some band goodies
* greeted sherwin (it's his b-day)
* freaked out for lack of send-off site
* got pissed with some volunteers
* announced that not one will drink (liquor, i mean)
* went to our send-off site with the troop
* saw my former co-apprentice from UST
* almost had an altercation with a much older and much bigger guy from god-knows-where law school

3:00- 4:00 (sunday)
* went back to the hotel
* harrassed acads to deliver the last minute tips
* asked some seniors to go to the send-off site to change duties with the freshmen
* bastardized some tv shows

4:00-5:00 (sunday)
* had another shower
* mobilized everybody for the send-off
* had my first coffee
* ate some junkies

5:00- 7:00 (sunday)
* organized site send-off
* fun, fun, fun
* send-off
* saw franco larsina (he's now taking the bar)

7:00- 8:00 (sunday)
* practiced some songs for the mass

8:00- 9:00 (sunday)
* mass at the bar site

9:00- 11:00
* talked to the band leader
* saw ate- atty. des :p
* went back to the hotel
* had some breakfast

11:00-2:30 (sunday)
* played crimsonland
* hotel check-out
* had some food
* went to the bar site
* met atty. garing (one of the founders of my org)
* had a chat with kuya-atty. cyrus and kuya-atty. jet (my sibs)
* went home with darlene and gian

Riders...

Five days left before the start of the annual bar operations and I'm suffering from pre-week jitters. This is like the culmination of a year long preparation. This was realized when we had our briefing/seminar last week at Century Park Hotel (FEU-CBO's official hotel). Damn!

I'm hoping for a nice weather this saturday for our send-off and a hell lot easier bar exams for a higher passing rate this year. To personally condition myself for the barops, I'm trying to hit the sack earlier than usual for a couple of days now (I know I won't be getting any sleep for four weekends). I'm also taking vitamins in a popcorn basis hehe.
************

Our ultra-fabulous-escada-wearing Associate Dean gave me some bar pointers. She said that I have a very good writing style but sorta literary for the bar. I have to make my answers shorter for those bummed out examiners that will check my booklet. I also have to refrain from using complex terms.
Her concern made me feel important and well-taken care off.
*************

I have to have my derma treatment this week and mom was kind enough to have it set tomorrow (tuesday). That way, I won't be having plastic-like face on Saturday. *grin*. I also have to prepare my defense for Dr. Leuenberger's sermon. The last time, she picked on my bad sleeping habit and helluva of stress as the causes of my skin break-outs. I can't blame her though.
My parents have been very generous with my treatments. I tried to save some moolah for my next treatment but I only managed to save more than 2 grand (approximately half of the treatment cost). So I guess, I'll be depending on my mom's wallet for my next treatment. Bummer!

Rant

I just feel sad because instead of coming up with something really nice to write in my blog (part of my belief that anything positive invites positive vibes), I have to rant on what one of the best legal minds in the country said in his PDI column.

I have high respect and adulation to former Justice Cruz for his great contributions in our legal system. As a matter of fact, I never missed any of his articles in the Philippine Daily Inquirer. I even lauded his strong conviction against the Law system of a particular school. However, he went overboard with his article about queerness. This is a clear manifestation of bigotry against those queers. At the onset, I was outranged because he particularly singled out fab 5 that my sister and I super adore. I mean, what is so damn wrong with using “queerness” as one’s tagline? What the group did is not mutually exclusive with the concept of stereotyped gays. They made a significant mark in the food business, grooming section, interior design industry and fashion world that everyone surely benefited from. They’re not just some good-for-nothing screaming fags. They made a difference.

Yes, we are all entitled to our own opinions. We have the right to express such which the fundamental law of the land strictly protects. But let us also be wary of the things that we say. For no amount of individual rights is more supreme than the basic virtue of respect. Respect that encompasses everybody guys, girls, queers and what-not.

Midterm hiatus...

We're having our midterms this week so there is a pretty high chance of icebucks taking a hiatus from blogging. I'll start my "incommunicado" status tomorrow, err, later (i forgot it's almost 1:30 am).

I've been reading for like majority of the day so I'm taking a break from Reyes, Pronove and Nachura. Argh! Well if there's something positive brought about by my forced geekiness, i'd say it's being appreciative of small things. My 30 mins. nap was the best, an hour of TV break-fabulous and my own pseudo coffee concoction- the most sophisticated cup of coffee for my fancy-schmaltzy taste (a clear oxymoron for someone who delights in everything pedestrian. haha).

I don't feel good. My sis took my BP and it's way too low. 85/55.
I have to do something about it. I can't afford to pass-out in the middle of a grueling exam or do a repeat of my criminal law review recitation (the one where I had to clutch the end of the whiteboard for dear life while having an asthma attack).

My break is almost over. Hitting the sack is not an option considering the piles of reading materials waiting for me. *bumfest mode*
Au Revoir!

The classy way of handling an awful day

I had a suckish day.
I woke up around 8 am so I had this darn-I’m-an-hour-late attitude. I guess staying in front of my pc ‘til 3 in the morning screwed my schedule for the day (no thanks to constitutional law review cases). So there, I went to school feeling and looking wasted. It was ok though coz I know that I was able to study for our subject. Then I heard the bomb. According to some not very reliable sources, we have to extend our reading ‘til Bill of Rights. I instantaneously freaked out! That’s way over my perceived assignment. Moreover, I didn’t bring my part of the digest covered by the rumored readings. That was the time that I really felt like crying (but I didn't 'coz it's not so classy:p). I extremely hate freeloaders and here I am not doing my part of the deal. I contemplated on going home to get my digest but I’ve decided to do the saner one. I rushed to the library and typed like a maniac. Two hours before our class, I finished my digest. I still have to do some barops stuffs so I wasn’t able to extend my reading.
Three things that made my day less suckish:
1. I wasn’t called to recite.
2. I was able to prove to myself that I’m not a scrounger hence, I can still hate freeloaders.
3. My father opened the door for me :)

No matter how awful my day went I should never have let go of the C'est la vie-attitude.

From now on, I'll do the classier way of handling it. I'll commit to memory that every sixty seconds I spend upset is a minute of happiness that i'd never get back.

MVP Cup 2 signing off...

The battle for continental pride is officially over.
Europe made a good comeback. They now have the bragging rights after winning the MVP Cup 2. Vic and Kennie did a wonderful job but it wasn’t enough to clobber the Europeans. Nonetheless, kudos to Team Asia for putting up a good fight.

Right now, I’m feigning happiness. But WTH?! I saw Vic and it made losing less painful :p

From MVP Cup to entry by laches :)

I woke up with a big headache. I guess it's the price that I have to pay for sluggishly watching the MVP Cup primer last night. Being a loyal and disillusioned Mrs. Kennevic Asuncion, I ignored the temptation of hitting the sack early just to get a glimpse of the famous Asuncion sibs.

MVP Cup is like the biggest Badminton tourney here in the Philippines. Team Asia made a sweeping win last MVP Cup and they’re hoping for a second trophy this year. This year, they'll be battling for 60 grand. Ten grand higher from the last MVP prize. For those who think that it was so damn cheap, you just have to convert it in peso (the moolah's in dollars). Team Asia will be having the same line up but Europe will be sending some newbies. With any luck, Team Europe will be experiencing the newbie jitters. Of course, when you get to play against Kennie and Vic, even veteran players will get the butterflies considering the combination of home court advantage, Kennie’s grace under pressure and Vic’s strong smash. For the record, Kennie and Vic’s ranking for mixed doubles zoomed to number 20 (I’m talking worldwide). With Dan Lim ranking 1st in the men's singles also playing for Team Asia, I believe it’s safe to say that Europeans are up to a very good game. But then again with Gaile Emms playing for Team Europe, I can’t say that it’ll be an easy win.

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I found this unpublished entry stored in my pc. To give credit to the apprenticeship program, I’ve decided to post it.

I got my grades last Monday. A few weeks back, my psyche’s more of “Hell, they’re prolonging my agony! I hope they’ll release it soon enough for me to be able to condition my parents’ minds that I’m just human and I do commit failures.” When I got the chance to set my eyes on my grade slip, it was more of “Yay! They just delayed my joy!”… Honestly, I expected the worst with regard to my QPI. I feel that I really blew it off for my Special Proceeding class. My grade in Corporation Law was truly unexpected and overwhelming. I guess Atty. Laserna wasn’t over with my “pa-bibo” image in International Law. Making a good first impression really works!

I just couldn’t thank God enough for His ubiquitous blessings. On the same day, I received an insider report. This time, Reig was the herald of the good news. I was one of the few lucky law students chosen for the apprenticeship program of the Office of the Ombudsman. Six weeks of integration and involvement in the drafting of decisions and orders and perhaps attending hearings (if the circumstances warrant) in the Preliminary Investigation, Administrative Adjudication and Monitoring Office (PAMO). It may sound like a whole lot of work but I’m quite positive that it’ll be all worth it.

The idea of working in a government agency is really scary. More so, the idea of working in a government agency mandated to ensure public accountability on government officials and employees is terrifying!

The Office of the Ombudsman was created under Article XI of the 1987 Philippine Constitution. It’s an office, which can act in a quick, inexpensive and effective manner on complaints against administrative inaction, abuse and arbitrariness of government officials and employees in dealing with people. It has basically the power to look into every form of malfeasance, misfeasance and non-feasance of public officers and can investigate any illegal act or omission of any public official even if the offense committed is not related to the performance of his functions.

As the Office of the Ombudsman strives and advances to perform its constitutional mandate to vigorously address the problem of corruption, it likewise operates to contribute in the alleviation of poverty (but with such indirect benefits, I’m not sure if it’ll happen soon). Sadly, the massive task of ridding the bureaucracy of erring public officers is aggravated by severe lack of resources, notably, personnel.

In this regard, the Student Apprenticeship Program hopes to augment the personnel in the Office of the Ombudsman. Students shall be assigned in the participating departments of the OMB and shall assist in the investigation and prosecution of cases assigned to these departments. These law students (moi included…hehe) shall be trained in preparing pleadings, cross-examination questions, and witnesses for trial as well as drafting complaints, orders and decisions. Moreover, students shall be exposed on the extent of corruption existing in the status quo with the end view of inculcating in their minds and conscience NOT to engage in corruption when they are already members of the bar and/or public service.

You see, public office is a public trust and the notion of public trust connotes public accountability. Holders of public offices are mere agents; mind you, agents not rulers of the people. Government officials and employees are elected or appointed to public office to serve and not to be served, hence, the title “public servants”. They are duty-bound to always uphold the public interest over and above their own personal interests.

Unfortunately, there are government officials and employees who forget this constitutional mandate and these “public servants” become the rulers of the people and enrich themselves in office, to the prejudice of both the government and the people. Tsk,tsk…

Enough with my blabbering on Political Law and my bigoted idea of what a perfect bureaucracy is all about. My point is, I’m IN and I’m so psyched about it. YAY!!!

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While I’m at it, allow me to thank some of my OMB “officemates” who made my apprenticeship worthwhile.

a.) Director Amante- Atty. Amante showed me the essence of public service. She may appear as a driven-traditionalist leader but with the strong grip of corruption in our society, one Dir. Amante is not enough. What can I say, she’s a fellow tamaraw :)

b.) Atty. Golez- As my immediate supervisor, she was really supportive. A very compassionate Graft Investigator Officer who taught me everything... from formulating statement of acts to drafting a decision. Oh, she also gave me this ultra chic cup and an OMB memorabilia.

c.) The other GIPOs (lawyers assigned to JR, Tin, Cres and Yeng)- For orienting us to the “real deal” in the outside world. Super thanks also to the great Sing pasalubongs and those pm snacks.

d.) Seph, Andy and Eric- My OMB buds! Thank you for the laughters and tear-jerking moments (remember our pact as "official" friends? hehe). Not to mention those gigs outside the OMB (loved that badminton game with Atty. Parayno’s team and our nice Dampa Chat).

e.) PIAB- C staffs- Anna, for those nice chikas and for those downloadable games (I still have them with me. hehe). Ate Rona, for that uber nice dance party complete with good food and superb wine. Kuya Carlo, for telling me to calm down when I was about to cry after losing all my office files. Ernel, for all the assistance and nice sms.

f.) PIAB-C tyros- Thank you for the friendship. I hope to see you soon (this time as compaňeros and compaňeras in the open court).

Viva Italia!

For the past couple of weeks, I've been engaging into a hell lot of sports watching. Got bitten by the World Cup bug and the upcoming MVP Badminton (Europe vs Asia). I forced myself to stay awake just to watch the World Cup's finals. My classmates prefer watching at Friday's, Malate together with all the World Cup smitten law students and loads of beer at 3 am. But I favor the idea of silently cheering on my team surrounded with cases and law books right in the privacy of our home.

I was never a big fan of Zidane but I believe that he deserved the award that he got. Of course, without prejudice to the hottie from Italy who was the victim of Zidane's heat-butt. ha,ha... But I just can't help but feel sorry for the guy. He ended his FIFA career with bad publicity and a no-show of sportsmanship. tsk,tsk..

The Italians were all so steamed when they made those awesome penalty kicks! Too bad for France, Buffon is so intimidating, one guy even missed the shot without any defensive strike from Royal Buffon! Of course, I would've been mighty thrilled if England a.ka. team Beakham played in the finals... sighed

After feasting my eyes on those european hunks, I'm now set to watch a game or two of my favorite badminton duo. Kennie and Vic Asuncion. I'm not yet sure of their play-offs but I'm just so psyched to know that I get to see Vic once again after the Asia meet. I really have this thing with chinito, boy-next-door type of guys. He's really a hottie. I will trade a good grade in tax review just to see him play. But then again, I have to reconsider... hehe :P

Sports downer...

Things are really getting out of hand! Brazil lost to France. It was kinda ok looking at the world's perspective because it's finally the end of Brazilian hegemony in World Cup. But for Brazil lovers, we were definitely crushed! As if such disappontment was not enough, Beckham announced that he's stepping down from his current position (England's captain). That's double bummer! I watch England's game because of him so I got really crushed when I found out that he's not "captain" Beckham anymore. Oh well...

I'm psyched about the Badminton MVP Cup here in PI. Kennevic will be playing with his sis Kennie. I hope I have the time to watch them.

My future hubby... haha