Bio 1 kills

This was my first school day as an official app for both PUGAD Sayk and AIESEC. I exhilarated this morning to know that I'd be meeting a lot of new people this semester. A lot of new people because, apart from those 2 orgs I just mentioned, I am an also an official applicant for Babaylan and SIKAT. "Why join 4 orgs in one sem, Ruod?" you might say? I say, because I can, fool.

So my morning went a-okay because I got to see some familiar faces and some new ones, which made me happy, like the kind of happy you feel when somebody gives you ice cream FOR FREE.

Italian was nothing special today except for the fact that I've noticed how some freshies are so indifferent when it comes to national or local issues. It bothers me a lot because they're part of the society and they're in UP, which is totally a big enough reason to care about what happens around them. It frustrates me that they don't because that's part of the UP experience: getting to know the people of the Philippines and how you can make the country better for them. So, yeah, it sucks.

I had Bio 1 after my Italian class so I headed to that building only to find out the second half of this semester will be taught by no other than Dr. Amparado, the (in)famous Bio 1 prof of the university. Sure, I was all calm in the outside when our professor announced it but inside I was like, "DEAR GOD HAVE MERCY ON MY SOUL WTF IS WRONG WITH THE WORLD HOLY SHIT FUUUUUUU" I was starting to be very appreciative of our professor (Enrique Frio) right now and then he was going to be replaced by the devil wears (I don't think she owns) Prada?!

It's either a make or break for me, honestly. I can either take this as a time to raise my white flag and give up or pack up some more ammo and take this as a challenge.As much as I'd like to do the former, I would really want to experience this professor to see if what they say is true. As of now, I'll be enjoying my last few meetings with Mr. "Where, Bro?" I hope this semester won't kill me. SOS

Marcel's "GAAH AMPARADO IS TEACHING US FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE SEM" face

First Semester Subjects

I'd like to share with you guys my first semester subjects and how I liked my professors. I know it might be sort of wrong to judge your teachers on your blog, but it might help them improve, too if ever they see it. I'm not going to include the grade I got for the teacher or tell you if he or she is an "easy uno" because as I have learned from my first semester in college, grades are something but they're not everything; what is the most important thing is that you've learned something from the subject and you had a fun time doing it.

English 10 (College English) - FALGUI, Raymond
A regular person might refer to him as a terror prof, but to me, he is one of THE best teachers I've had this semester. Sure, the papers we write were lambasted by his red pen with remarks and low grades. Sure, he wasn't the nicest person you can talk too but he teaches passionately and because of that, you actually grow to love the lectures he conducts. He has so much conviction in everything that he says that you begin to think of things in a different way if he wants you to think of it in a different way. The only problem with him is that he can be careless with his consultations and paper submissions. It left a lot of us confused but we got used to it. Overall, I think Sir Falgui was a teacher that made me appreciate going into UP and if I had to do Eng 10 again, I would take him.
Rating: 8 out of 10

Spanish 10 (Elementary Course in Spanish) - LUNA, Maria
What can I say,  she's a Spanish person teaching Spanish and she does a darn well good job of teaching. :) She goes through a lesson slowly so that everyone can understand it. She has an exam every after a lesson and that way, it makes it easier to ace the test. She has so much patience for all her students but she no patience at all for those who are always late or absent. She also makes the class close through the activities she made us do. She's the perfect teacher for someone who wants to learn the basics in Spanish and has no background on speaking the language at all.
Rating: 10 out of 10

Social Sciences 3 (Gender and Sexuality) - DALISAY, Soledad Natalia
She's a very busy woman. She's the head of the DGO or the Diliman Gender Office and she also has a PhD in Anthropology and she teaches Gender and Sexuality. Cool, right? Yeah, she is! Her style of teaching reminds me more of a convention or seminar than the ordinary classroom type. She is always out, though, because of her out-of-the-country trips and whatnot but we get to watch documentaries when she's not around and they are pretty interesting topics. Like we had one where they talked about transgenderism in different cultures and how they accept it. The sad thing is she's no teaching next sem (I think) because she's teaching abroad for the second sem. I really enjoyed this class! HAHAHA.
Rating: 9 out of 10

Math 11 (College Algebra) - ARICHETA, Victor Manuel
This is the sort of teacher that should lecture about Math. He's been teaching in UP for only 3 years or so, so he hasn't really forgotten what it's like to be a student which makes him a bit more understanding when it comes to his students. He does things in an organized fashion and he even jokes with the class to make the mood less serious. I wish I could have been more attentive on my part in this class because I think he's very considerate.
Rating: 10 out of 10

Geog 1 (Places and Landscapes in a Changing World) - CRUZ, Jayson
A lot of people have told me to take Geog 1 because they say it's an easy uno or a subject where it's easy to get high grades, but as the sem went along, I didn't really care about getting high grades as much as how I wanted to satiate my thirst for learning different concepts in Geography. All I can say is don't take his lessons lightly because once you get to his long exams, it's armageddon. It's saddening that this is his last sem in UP and that the next batches of UP students won't get to have him as a teacher but I guess it's time for him to move on. The best class in my first semester of college. :)
Rating: 10 out of 10

PE 2 Social Dance - SANGALANG, Michiko
You learn how to dance, basically. She's not a very strict teacher when it comes to the techniques and whatever else you need to know about dancing or maybe it's because my class was full of fast learners, but either way, she's pretty good in teaching and she's a nice person too! She makes you write into a journal every after meeting about your experiences and learning during the day and whatever else you want to express. A great and enjoyable experience.
Rating: 10 out of 10

I'm scared because half of the subjects I got from CRS have concealed profs and I just hope they teach well. Hope this helps some people pick out their subjects! :)

Random Thoughts

This day just officially ended my first semester in college and I had a blast! But before anything else, I would like to congratulate my bestestbestbestfriend for getting into the University Scholars list in the University of the Philippines-Visayas! I am so proud of you, Lesh (if you wanna see her blog, it's in my sidebar under the button "friends")! I know you can keep this up until you become the first ever Summa cum Laude of UPV! :) I am so excited to see you in a few days! I love you!

Anyway, I went to school this morning to help Sir Jayson, our Geography professor, set up for the film awarding we were going to have in the afternoon (and by help I mean watching the films beside him and talking with him until the other people from the other teams arrived).

I've been thinking how this would be the last thing that I would do that's part of my first semester in college. Time flies so fast, right? I feel like I just graduated and now the first half of my freshman year in college is already done. Or maybe I'm just a sentimental bitch, take your pick. Either way, my sem was going to end.

During the awarding, I saw almost all the people I've spent time with during the Geography camp and the whole semester. I feel sad knowing that I've created strong bonds with some of these people and just like that we're not going to see each other as often anymore. Regardless of that happening, I am pretty grateful that I have spent a whole semester with the funnest people and, of course, the funnest teacher.

To my teammates, the Blue-tangina (WALA NA. LADLARAN NA. =))) ) team, thank you so so much for making my first sem in UP feel special and welcome. You guys will never be forgotten. All the memories and jokes and laughs we have shared with each other will remain in me until we go into our own separate lives after college. I just hope that whatever we had as a group will never be lost and that we keep our closeness as a class (even if we can't be called a class anymore. HUHUHUHUHU).

To the most wonderful and the best Geography professor ever, Sir Jayson, I am very grateful that I have taken your subject. You made me learn about geography concepts but more than that, you made me meet people who are now special to me plus we also met you not just as our teacher, but as our friend. Thank you so much for telling us to be ourselves and never give in to social constructions. I don't think my UP life would have been complete if I didn't meet you. Rest assured that wherever you may be in this world, I will always remember you for your jokes and fun times. I will miss you!

I will never ever forget Geog 1 with Jayson Cruz and the funnest classmates/semmates ever! I love you all!

Moreover, on a very positive, I am done with anything that has to do with the words "school", "readings", "studying", and "professors" for two whole weeks which I will be spending in Iloilo! TIME TO LOUNGE AROUND AND HANG WITH FRIENDS! SEM BREAK COMMENCING!

BLAH

I just really needed a break. All this college stuff has come and gone so fast that I felt like I had no time to really think through the choices I've made. Unfortunately, those choices HAVE been made so no use in regretting them now.

I HAVE MISSED WRITING ABOUT MY FEELINGS. It's been months now and I feel like I have so much to say but have little to write because I have no idea how to put into words these feelings of mine. It's frustrating for someone like me to talk about feelings yet not have the right words to say how I feel.

Well, firstly, I believe my first semester in college went rather smoothly; I met friends, got to know some professors, and I learned how to strive in a different way. Please trust me when I say that college is WAY WAY WAY different from high school and what you're used to. It's not as tasking as High School but unlike the other levels of education, college is all about time management. Time can literally pass you by without you noticing and then shit, tomorrow's the deadline of a paper (speaking of which, I have a geog reflection paper to write but MY FEELINGS COME FIRST, OKAY?). 

I can testify to the time management thing considering that I finish at 11:30 every other day and I don't have classes on Monday (Ah, UP life). I remember this one time that I finished at 11:30 and I went to see my friends and hung out with them and I promised one of them I would go on home by about 2:30 then the next thing I knew it was 5:30. Time flies when you're an ignorant bastard who gets distracted. But sometimes, it's all good; everybody needs de-stressing, although don't make it an everyday thing unless you want to flunk out of college at your first semester or you have super speed and can get everything done by an hour, be my guest.

I think what college teaches us first and foremost (apart from classroom lessons) is to manage our time well. I mean, in the real world, you're in control of your time. No one really tells you when to do something. Apparently, I am still trying to learn that skill. 

College has also been very free for me. I might be away from home but I feel freer now. Don't get me wrong I miss everyone in my province but not having someone to always watch over you in everything you do feels great. 

Tomorrow's going to be the last event related to my first sem life in UP. It's an awarding for our Geography class. I have to help our professor tomorrow morning to set up and stuff so I have to finish my paper tonight and sleep.

I'll continue rambling about my feelings in some other post. 

Here's a picture of lil' ol' me with a green mustache to keep you company. 

Adios!

P.S. Don't be afraid to hit me up through the comments! I don't bite. RAWR.