the mermaid chair

" i had thought our lives together were vouchsafed. it was of those unpremeditated facts that i'd live with every single day. like the sun going through its motions - coming and going, an automaton. like the stars fixed in the milky way. who questions these things? they just are".

- jessie sullivan in the mermaid chair
by sue monk kidd

kita-kits sa mcdo : )

one night, after the prayer meeting, at mcdo philam. thanks to ate malou for the pics. : )

mabel & i.

with cleo, & some articles from his collection. : )

pinagtinginan kami ng ibang customers. bakit kaya?! hehe!

in the pressure cooker again

i found myself in a messy fix last week. i had information that i thought a new friend needed to know. sadly, "what you don't know can't hurt you" does not apply in this situation. if i don't tell her, she can get hurt. but if i tell her, she will definitely get hurt.

if she finds out from someone else, i'm sure that she will get mad at me for keeping it from her. but if she finds out from me, she could also get mad at me, & even think that i had an ulterior motive in telling her.

thank heavens, there is a pinprick of light shining from the end of the dark tunnel. if i tell her, she might appreciate my honesty. telling her could, in turn, become the start of an open friendship.

in the end, i decided to tell her. & she did appreciate my honesty.

whew. : )

just thinking

in our party last week, i told embryo about some of the decisions that i've made in the past two years. on second thought, it must be more appropriate to say that i told them how i handled the nerve-wracking events of my past two years - my realizations, the things i said, etc.

it's been a long time, & it's very weird that i only told them the story now. after all, we are pretty tight, it's our style to talk things over, & the experiences i went through are not easy to go through alone. but i guess that's just my way of dealing with the cards dealt to me. & i guess i was only able to tell them the story now because i can now do so in a detached manner. because lately, i've started being happy again. it took me a long while to get here, you know.

so i can't help but feel so flattered that they approve of the way i handled things. 'ika nga ni john, "top 1 sa academics, top 1 sa buhay". nakakatawa kasi habang nagkekwento ako, sobrang in-affirm nila yung decisions ko. feeling ko tuloy, asa pedestal ako. sabi kasi ni eloi, tumaas daw ang respeto niya sa 'kin. eloi & je-ann even memorized some of my lines. je-ann went further by saving it on her phone so she won't forget. haha. :)

i don't remember who said it anymore, but i was told that i am proof that intelligent people are not necessarily stupid in affairs of the heart. sabi nga ni kamille, rational daw ako. nagagamit ko yung talino ko sa pagdedesisyon. sabi niya, hindi ako yung tipong matalino pero wala lang.

funny talaga yung reactions nila. looking back, i don't even know how i managed to say the right things in what deirdre has coined, "pressure cooker moments". siguro, pasalamat na lang ako kay Lord kasi binigyan niya ako ng grace under pressure.

because of their questions, i realized one thing: i make decisions on my own. i rarely ask for advice. i don't know if it's a good or bad thing, but that's the way i do it. i only ask for advice after i've made my choice, & i need help in dealing with the aftershocks of that choice.

so far, it has been working for me. i can't recall a decision that i regretted for years & years on end. sure, there were those i cried about for a while. but even when i was crying about those, i knew that i made the right choice, & that things will turn out well in time.

haha, grabeng pagbubuhat na ito ng bangko. but in the end, all i really want to say is, "thank you for the affirmation." i really needed it, you know. ;)

quotable quotes

just got home from bobby's & john's joint birthday celebration. lest i forget these words in my sleep-deprived state, here they are:

"you can't have all the benefits without the responsibility."

"open ka, open din naman ako, eh di i-close na natin."

cryptic as these may seem without the context, i'll leave these as is. good morning, world! :)

grieving

we just came home from the wake of ate belen, a distant cousin. she died of a stroke last monday. she left behind two teenage kids & her husband.

the way it happened was so sad. she was in church last saturday, when she started feeling dizzy. she was brought to the hospital, & was unconscious ever since.

kuya nono, her husband (who is a distant uncle), was at sea in europe. my mom called him to relay the news. i don't know if he was just in denial, but among the first things he said was maybe, ate belen was just stressed out.

the doctors told ate belen's family that an operation had to be done immediately, though performing it was not a guarantee that she will be able to recover. however, they needed my uncle's consent. understandably so, he wasn't able to decide immediately. he only consented to the operation on monday morning. i'm not sure if the operation was done that time. ate belen died on monday night.

kuya nono arrived only three hours ago. it was so heartbreaking to see him hold his head & hesitate before going inside the room. the room was full, but everyone was quiet as he & his family were gathered around ate belen's casket. i can't even begin to imagine how hard this is for them.

fortune cookie says...

soon, someone will make you very proud.

mangyari lamang ni rico abelardo

mangyari lamang ay tumayo
ang mga nagmamahal
nang makita ng lahat
ang kagandahan ng mukha ng pag-ibig
ipamalas ang tamis
ng malalim na pagkakaunawaan
sa mga malabo ang paningin

mangyari lamang ay tumayo rin
ang mga nagmahal at nasawi
nang makita ng lahat
ang mga sugat ng isang bayani
ipadama ang pait ng kabiguan
habang ipinagbubunyi
ang walang katulad na kagitingan
ng isang nagtataya

mangyari lamang ay tumayo
ang mga nangangambang magmahal
nang makita ng lahat ang kilos ng isang bata
ipamalas ang katapatan ng damdamin
na pilit ikinukubli
ng pusong lumaki sa mga enkanto at diwata

mangyari lamang ay tumayo
ang mga nagmahal, minahal, at iniwan
ngunit handa pa ring magmahal
nang makita ng lahat ang yaman ng karanasan
ipamalas ang mga katotohanang nasaksihan
nang maging makahulugan
ang mga paghahagulgol sa dilim

at sa mga nananatiling nakaupo
mangyari lamang ay dahan-dahang tumalilis
papalabas sa nakangangang pinto
umuwi na kayo
at sumbatan ang mga magulang
na nagpalaki ng isang halimaw

at sa lahat ng naiwang nakatayo
mangyari lamang ay hagkan ang isa't isa
at yakapin ang mga sugatan
mabuhay tayong lahat
na nagsisikap na makabalik
sa ating pinagmulan

manatiling masaya
at higit sa lahat
magpatuloy sa pagmamahal

home from a four-hour conversation

just got home from deirdre's house/cybercafe. miracle of miracles, em went to the prayer meeting tonight! haven't seen her since may. it was great to see her so happy &, as deirdre put it, sparkling.

maybe we really are getting older (or maturing, to put it in a better-sounding way), but i'm finding that i'm enjoying good conversation more & more. there doesn't need to be any special ambiance, just friends who are in the mood to share, laugh with & at each other, & listen.

as an added bonus, i was able to get copies of our pics from the singles discovery weekend 2 (a retreat) last february. hindi nga lang mukhang retreat pictures kasi ang kulit namin. hehe. :)

i miss these girls! that's rocel, rica, jacqui & em. jacqui is still in the states, while the others are usually not able to make it to the saturday prayer meeting. so it's usually just me.

in the morgue slash girls' room. :)

sunflower girls. ay, daisy pala. :)

the monstrosity that is the ateneo diploma

believe it or not, i still have 11.5 days of unavailed vacation leave. sabi nga ng boss ko, mag-leave na lang ako every friday para magamit ko. hmm, tempting. :)

ewan ko, pero parang weird naman kung every friday. kaya nag-sched na lang ako nang paunti-unti. yung consecutive five-day leave ko, sa november pa. pero nag-leave ako ngayon para kunin ang aking long-overdue diploma.

i went to the registrar to apply for it. i was expecting to be advised when i could get it. to my surprise, available na! wow, it took dean cruz only 2 and a half years to sign it this time. dati kasi, 3 years daw. hehe. (but we psych majors are still not the last ones to get our diplomas. sabi ni tenten, hindi pa rin daw nakukuha ni ate maria yung diploma niya, to think that she graduated the same time we did. grabe ang english dept!)

since it was in latin, i requested for an english translation. that cost me 80 bucks. nakakainis! well, medyo. just think, you toiled away for four grueling years only to get a diploma that you don't understand. where's justice in that? i'm being so melodramatic. hehe.

(oo nga pala, pangit din yung papel - parchment lang! buti pa sa uste, colored at makapal.)

nakakatawa kasi nung inaabot sa akin nung guy yung diploma, nag-explain pa siya:

guy: miss, once lang po kami mag-i-issue nito. kaya pag nasunog, nawala o nabasa, hindi ka na pwede mag-request ulit. gusto mo po bang mag-apply for a certified true copy?
me (thinking quietly): pagkatapos mo akong takutin nang ganyan, makaka-hindi pa ba ako?

seriously. tama ba naman yon! hehe. :)

i knew the diploma was big, but i didn't realize how big. just to give you an idea:



grabe. i had trouble taking it home, as it was raining. iniisip ko nga, idiretso ko na sa taga-frame. kaso, wala nga pala akong perang pang-deposit kung sakali. hehe!

finally, masasabi ko nang graduate na talaga ako. :)

grace & papu at work

i am currently handling the development of our annual report, & papu's agency is bidding. here are snippets of our emails:



Hi Grace!

May we go there to present the Annual Report Concept tomorrow at 3pm? Please advise.

Thanks,
Papu



Yes, 3pm is okay with us.

Thanks, Papu.



Oki oki.

Wow we are so formal. Huwaw. Hahahaha. So how are you my darling bee?

= = = = = = = = = =

Hi Grace!

Please see my comments below, in pink. Hope everything is clarified. Please advise if there are other concerns.

Thanks!
Papu


-----Original Message-----
From: Grace Roselle D. Sarmiento
Sent: Wednesday, September 19, 2007 11:04 AM
To: Papu Abjelina
Subject: Re: Annual Report Quote


Good morning, Papu!

Thank you for the quotation. I have to tell you though, that your quote is way above the quote of the other four agencies that presented. I'm afraid that we would not be able to consider your proposal, if the cost remains such. Would it be possible for you to send us a revised quote within the day, so that we could decide? We need it ASAP, as the paper is due tomorrow.

Just some clarifications on the current quote:
1. Photography - Does the P100K already take into consideration that many shots will probably have to be done outdoors? Our assumption here is that we will have photos similar to the one you used for the Financial Scoreboard. How many photos are included in the P100K? Does this already include the make-up artist?

The typical price per set-up is around 8 to 10,000, depending on the shots that we'll be taking. Our photos will mostly be shot indoors, with a few shots outdoors (much like We can factor in the make-up artist with the cost.


2. Final Artwork - How did you arrive at the FA cost computation?

As per our telecon, Final Artwork means the material ready for release. We have a specific rate that is:
a) Size of the file: 100php per megabyte of the file. (in this case it is 20 MB per page, with 90 pages)
b) Computer time: 2700 php per hour (in this case around 22 hours for the entire thing)

Please note that this rate that we are giving is standard supplier rate, as this is done by a third party.


3. Printing - Could you send us a quote for perfect binding instead (the committee was not too keen on the ring bind)? Also, would the unit cost remain the same whether we print 700 or 900 copies?

Re: perfect binding, as per our printer, the cost would still remain the same whether or not we use the ring bind. The unit cost is stilll the same whether we print 700 or 900 php.


As per our conversation, however, we can still package the cost as we can flexible with the package. If possible, let us know how you would like us to package the cost, to fit everything into your budget. We're open to adjustments with regards to the costs. Hope you can advise.


Thanks!
Papu



Hi, Papu.

Explanations noted. I'm afraid that I can't give you a budget or a price range, as that would be unfair to the other agencies. Will just wait for your new quotation.

Thanks. : )



Hi Grace,

Kindly see the attached revised quotation for your perusal. Please note that we've made the printing costs separate from our costs, as that is a third party. We've adjusted the cost items that will be credited to ___ perse. However, please note that we will still look for a printer that will print within the budget. We'll help find suppliers who will give lower quotations.

Please do let us know if the attached is alright with you.

Thanks and we hope to work with you soon!



Good afternoon, Papu!

We appreciate the adjustments you made in the cost. We also appreciate your effort in looking for a cheaper printer. In line with this, could we ask you to quote the printing cost based on the following specs?

Size: A4
Paper Stock: Cover - C2S # 220
Inside - Matte # 120
Color: Full
Cover Finish: Matte lamination with spot UV
Binding: Perfect Binding

We have also asked the other agencies to quote using the above specs, so that we could compare the proposals better.

Hope to hear from you soon. Thank you.



Bago ko sagutin ng seryoso:

Who would have known that we'd go from you consoling me with BTS after theo orals to THIS? kulang nalang gamitan kita ng "AS PER OUR LAST EMAIL"

Hehehe. HEHEHEH!!!

Love,
papu



Oo nga, e. Who would have known? : )

the battle of ateneo (harry potter and the deathly hallows - ateneo version)

got this through email. benta, i swear. lalo na si padre ferriols, father dacanay at dr. rosana (the last two were my teachers). mahaba nga lang, but i encourage you to read on. walang mapipikon, ha. ;)

= = = = = = = = = =

This was written by Miguel Antonio Lizada and was taken from www.animoateneo.com.

This started as three separate entries in my blog I must be honest and say that this was nothing but a mere product of boredom. I wrote this after re-reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and after asking myself "What would Ateneo be like if it was attacked by Voldemort and his dark creatures?"

Friends who read my blog forwarded this to their friends who in turn forwarded it to their friends. At the request of my colleagues here in AnimoAteneo. com and people who have enjoyed this, I have edited and polished this story as well as added a few new elements to it.

Just a few pre-reading reminders:

This, in essence is a parody of Ateneo life. Yes, there are of course anti-school and UAAP-based jokes here and there but this mainly satirizes Ateneo life - the people, the language, the culture etc.

This is also a parody of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Its ending resembles the ending of the Harry Potter book. So if you have not yet read the book and you do not wish to be spoiled, I must warn you to read at your own risk.

My thanks to those who have enjoyed what-used-to- be-just-a-time-filler and to those who contributed several suggestions.

= = = = = = = = = =

Chapter One: Before the Storm
Fr. Bienvenido Nebres SJ was just finishing the day's work when Harry Potter, a senior of the Ateneo de Manila, burst into his office.

"Fr Nebres!" Harry shouted.

"Harry!" a surprised Nebres said. "I thought you were out of school destroying the horcruxes to kill Lord Voldemort."

"That's what I wanted to tell you. I discovered that there are two horcruxes here in Ateneo itself. Voldemort has enlisted the help of the De La Salle University and the University of Santo Tomas. They are coming."

"Don't worry, Harry." Nebres said "You know for a fact that Ateneo -- its teachers and students -- are more than capable of defending our Loyola campus. We will hold them off while you search for the horcruxes and destroy them. You will need this." He waved of his wand and out of the air appeared a sword. "The sword of St. Ignatius." Nebres said. "Powerful enough to destroy the two horcruxes."

"Thank you, Father" Harry said. And with that, he sped off to find the last two things which protect Lord Voldemort.

Nebres then waved his wand once more and this time, four people appeared in his office. "Marlu, Rudy, Toby and Joey. The school is in danger."

Nebres then explained the situation to the four Deans of the Ateneo de Manila University. "I want you to assemble all remaining students in the college covered courts. We must evacuate the freshmen through Marikina. The sophomore, junior and senior students may stay and fight if they want to. Next, I need you to assemble all the teachers, both part-time and full-time."

Without a word, the four deans Disapparated and went on with their tasks. Nebres too Disapparated back to the Jesuit Residence and briefed the Society about the impending attack.

Fr. Adolfo Dacanay was the assigned to lead the Jesuits to battle "My team is ready to fight anytime anywhere. We will crush them!"

"Excellent." Nebres said

After a few minutes, Nebres, the four Deans and some members of the faculty and administration gathered in Xavier Hall to discuss the battle plan.

"The School of Humanities can summon mythical creatures to help defend us," Marlu Vilches said. "The English Department professors are summoning creatures from Dante's Inferno and Greek Mythology as we speak. The Filipino Department is summoning all the manananggals and white ladies from the haunted trees on campus.

"The Philosophy Department," interjected Fr. Ferriols "is summoning creatures from Meron pond right now. Those rascals will soon feel the wrath of Meron! Magiging WALA silang lahat! Konsepto lamang yan sila!"

"Now is the time to test the newest chemicals and inventions from our SEC laboratories. " Toby Dayrit said, "The Department of Environmental Science professors are enchanting the trees to life right now. We will purge them with the help of Mother Nature."

"I have just received a call from MVP," Rudy Ang said. "Reinforcements from Makati are coming soon."

"My apples and sunshine are ready to fight as well," Tim Gabuna said. "Go CERSA!"

"I have just finished briefing my school. The Department of History is ready to fight. The Western history professors led by Dave Lozada and JoEd Tirol are summoning the three hundred Spartans and soldiers from the World War II to fight. Fr Bulatao and the Department of Psychology are locked inside the SocSci Conference room right now. They will use their psychic powers to toy with our enemy's mind," said Fr. Joey Cruz.

"I have roused the athletes also," Norman Black beside Ricky Palou said. "They are ready to put up One Big Fight with their super strength."

A voice interrupted them. "I KNOW YOU ARE PREPARING TO FIGHT! You are no match for us! I have allied myself with the La Salle brothers and the Dominicans of UST. You cannot win against me, Jesuits. Push the limit! Animo Spirit! Give us Harry Potter and the sword of St. Ignatius and we will let you live! We will even let you win some of the games."



Chapter Two: More Help
The Ateneans ignored the warning and instead began to prepare for the impending battle. A few minutes later, the voice shouted for a second time:

"I can see you are not listening! It is such a pity. What happened to your Prayer for Generosity? Give me Harry Potter and the Sword of St. Ignatius. Give without counting the cost, you always say! You have until midnight. I also call on all students of La Salle Greenhills and La Salle Zobel. It is not too late. Come and join us. Convert! Repent!"

Fr. Dacanay, interrupting his briefing with his exorcists turned and said "The idiot is taking the prayer out of context. Besides, St. Ignatius also said to fight without fear of being wounded. And we will do just that."

Three figures -- two women and a man -- suddenly appeared. "We are from the Department of Sociology and Anthropology," said the man.

"Ricky Abad!" Fr. Nebres exclaimed.

"I brought with me our Department Chair Bopeep Saloma-Akpedonu. And this is Czarina Medina, one of our newest lecturers. We apologize for being late. We were preparing our I-bombs."

"I-bombs? What are I-bombs?" Nebres asked.

"Ideology bombs. Once they detonate, they will spread false consciousness in the area -- the La Salle brothers and the Tomasians will think they are winning. It is all false really. We will use their pride against them."

"Excellent, excellent," Nebres said. "And here comes Andrew Ty and Mark Escaler for the Department of Communication. "

"Yes!" Escaler said. "We will infiltrate their communication processes by adding "noise" and ambiguity between the message relay of the sender and the receiver so orders can be reversed and thwarted!"

"The creatures from my horror films are coming!" Andrew Ty said. "We will use them to our advantage!"

"Father President! Some people are coming!" somebody shouted.

Some five hundred people then Apparated out of nowhere. Wearing either red or white shirts, they marched towards Nebres. A young man then stepped forward.

"We are from the University of the Philippines," said the young man. "For years, our academic communities have built a strong relationship with each other. We have shared professors. We went to rallies together. We have had our differences, yes. But in the end, our similarities and accomplishments outweigh our differences...We are here to help! We are honored to fight with Ateneo once more!"

Cheers and applause errupted from all sides.

"Let's make baka! Don't be takot! Let's make baka! Don't be takot! Let's make baka! Don't be takot! Let's make baba from the hill," the Ateneans cheered.

Five minutes to midnight.

The School of Humanities stood with their mythical creatures summoned from the Classics, and the haunted trees and the gigantic swamp creatures from the Meron pond.

The John Gokongwei School of Management with their reinforcements from Makati, along with Venus Ibarra, Ricky Pilar and other professors.

The School of Science and Engineering with their mysterious inventions and weapons. The gigantic trees in the campus now walking sluggishly by their side.

The School of Social Sciences with their unique yet powerful defensive weapons; the Psychology Department ready for the psy-war.

The Ateneo Professional Schools ready to defend their Loyola-based counterparts; the two fraternities in the Law School forging a temporary alliance.

The Alumni, the D.A. (Dalandan's Army), led by Benjie Laza and Mon Cualoping.

The statues of Thomas More, Horacio dela Costa, and the Blue Eagle come to life.

The students from U.P.

Two horcruxes left.

Now all is still, where Loyola's colors fly.



Chapter Three: One Big Fight
Midnight.

There was a burst of light emanating from the sky, brighter than the moon and the stars. What seemed like a horde of fireflies turned out to be arrows. Thousands of arrows. Tips on fire.

The arrows struck the Blue Eagle Gym. The oldest building in the University. The symbol of their athletic pride. Now aflame.

Toby Dayrit tossed a beaker of water to the burning building. He pointed his wand at the beaker now mid-air and shouted his spell, "magis." The water transformed into a surf huge enough to douse the fire. The Blue Eagle Gym was safe.

The Archers outside roared their disappointment. But they shot again, this time targeting the Erenchun soccer field where some of the Ateneans were camped. Nebres pointed his wand at the arrows raining from the sky and shouted his incantation, "Cura personalis" and the thousand arrows turned into bubbles.

The Ateneans cheered. The first two attacks of the LaSallians and the Tomasians have been thwarted.

"You have had your fun, Ateneans." a voice boomed. "Now it is time to get serious."

Darkness suddenly enveloped the University. The enemy had sabotaged their electricity. Immediately all the Ateneans took out and flickered their wands, "Lux in Domino" they chanted. Light emanated from all the wands.

The illumination came just in time as suddenly a stampede crushed the fences between Gate 2 and Gate 2.5. The Ateneans have realized the magnitude of their danger: it was not just the LaSallians or even just the Tomasians they were confronting; the other schools were there as well. A thousand Green Archers were riding the backs of the giant tigers of UST. Charging with them were the giant tamaraws and a hundred warriors whose bodies were painted red war paint. Above, falcons were soaring in the sky.

"YOU FOUL THINGS, noh?" somebody from the Ateneo crowd shouted, charging at the stampede; it was Tessa Rosana. "How dare you attack us, noh? You don't know who you are dealing with, noh? TAKE THIS, noh?" She hit her gong with all her might. A powerful sound wave spread throughout the area knocking a hundred Archers and animals out.

"HA! noh?" she triumphantly yelled.

And so the other Ateneans started counterattacking as well. David Lozada and his 300 Spartans. The ROTC cadets. The mythical creatures of the School of Humanities. Dalandan's Army.

Ricky Abad and the Department of Sociology soon deployed their Ideology Bombs prompting some of the LaSallians to cheer instead of fighting. "Strawberry shortcake nananananana. " "Recticano! Recticano", allowing some of the Ateneans to easily knock the LaSallians out.

Somewhere near the Covered Courts, Norman Black was briefing his team, "Nonoy. I want you here. Chris, here. Jai, there. Alright? Any questions?"

"Aaaaah! GOD DAMN IT!" a raspy voice screamed. It was Joe Lipa, former coach of the Blue Eagles, who arrived with the contingent from UP. "Just charge! Attack them! Now!" And so they did.

The LaSalle brothers and Francisco of UST were outside, watching the battle, waiting for their turn to strike.

A handful of LaSallians were found trotting back to their base.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?" Francisco yelled.

"You told us to retreat!" the Archer said.

"You idiot! That's just Escaler and Bulatao toying with your minds! Go back! That's it! I am joining the battle!"

She then stepped forward lifted her two arms and shouted "Tiger Power! Raar! Tiger Power! Raar!" The LaSalle brothers thought she had lost her mind. But then she suddenly transformed into a giant tigress, twice larger and fiercer than the ordinary tigers. Seeing their comrade ready and willing to fight, the LaSallians cheered.

"HOY!" Goldie the Tiger roared. "NO CHEERING DURING BATTLE! NO CHEERING!" Then she advanced.

Her first target was Fr. Dacanay who was busy exorcising some of the Archers and paralyzing them.

"FATHER! Behind you!"

Quickly, Dacanay whirled and performed his own counterattack "Expellus Inferius" blasting her into the middle of the Erenchun field, knocking her out.

"NOOOOOOOOOO!" The La Salle brothers shouted upon seeing their comrade down. "It is time we even the score."

The earth began to quake. And out of the night came a gigantic robot. It was DLRT; the LaSallians had transformed and brought the LRT-1 which passed Taft Avenue into a robot.

DLRT was making quick work of the Ateneans and their creatures, crushing the mythical creatures here and there, tossing the trees brought to life by the Department of Environmental Science.

"Let us not lose hope!" Nebres said. "We are after all committed to hope."

"Now is not the time to talk about GK, Father!" somebody said.

"I am not talking about GK. I am talking about SECtor."

He pointed his wand the Science Education Complex. The building shook and assembled itself into a robot. SEC A was the head and the torso. SEC B became the left arm and leg and SEC C became the right.

"Mang Freddie!" Nebres called.

"I am ready, Father!" shouted Freddie, the man in charge of Escaler Hall which has now become the control room SECtor.

"Attack, Freddie! One Big Fight."

DLRT was no match and quickly collapsed under the strength of SECtor.

"Fr Nebres!" Harry Potter appeared. "Two horcruxes have been destroyed and..."

"Animo La Salle!" "Animo La Salle!" "Animo La Salle!"

There were screams of terror. The LaSalle brothers had entered the battle. They were using their most dangerous spell: The Animo LaSalle -- the Killing Curse!



Finale: The Animo Wand
Ateneans were dropping dead left and right. The Animo La Salle curse was unblockable. Some of the more veteran teachers provided extra defense and protection to the students but most of their efforts were futile. Dacanay and his Jesuit team however managed to stun a few Archers.

Victory however seemed far-fetched. Francisco had been revived from the Stunning Spell. Back in human form, she was battling Jai Reyes, Kirk Long and Chris Tiu at the same time. While the players were certainly skillful, Francisco was able to block all spells launched by the Blue Eagles.

Francisco pointed her wand at Chris Tiu and shouted "Animo La Salle!" But the curse missed him by an inch.

"Not Chris Tiu, you BIATCH!" somebody shouted; it was Achoot Cuyegkeng. "Out of my way! Out of my way! SHE's MINE!"

Francisco laughed. "You are no match for me! I am the greatest servant of the Dominicans! What's gonna happen to your Loyola Schools after I kill you?! What's gonna happen to your Blue Eagles after I kill Chrissy?"

"You will never touch any of our students again!!" Cuyegkeng said.

Francisco laughed. And with her unerring skill as jack-of-all-trades Professor Cuygekeng sent a Stunning Curse at her opponent. The curse hit her squarely on the chest, knocking her out once more.

"Enough!" Harry shouted. "Voldemort! Where are you? You have been using the LaSallians and the other schools to come after me. Where are you?"

"I am here, Potter," a voice hissed. The voice came from Bro. Armin.

"Brother Armin?"

"No! I am Voldemort! Armind is my past, present and future. See?" he wrote the word Armind then with a flicker of his wand the word became Voldemort.

"I don't get it." Harry said

"Ako rin!" an Atenean said.

"Ha? Can you make ulit?" another one shouted.

"How did Armind become Voldemort?"

"Bai, nalibog na ko!" A Cebuano Atenean shouted.

"Bah! Never mind! Anyone knows the LaSallians can't spell. So anyway, I stunned Armind a few days ago and using his name and face I used the school and all the other schools to come and find you!"

"But you are too late. I destroyed all the horcruxes!"

"No, Potter. I win. You see, while I was Bro. Armind. I was able to find the long lost and most powerful wand in the entire world -- the Animo Wand! And you will be its first victim!"

"Are you kidding me, Tom?" Harry said. "Don't you get it? The wand chooses the school. The Animo wand does not belong to La Salle! It belongs to the Ateneo."

"No! You are the fool! The LaSallians have been cheering Animo La Salle for such a long time. The LaSallians truly own the wand and since I am a LaSallian for now, I own it. Die Potter die!"

"But you see, Riddle, you did not review University histories. If you did, you would know that the Ateneans used AnimoAteneo first. And they still use it now. There is even a website right now named AnimoAteneo.com. The Ateneans have reclaimed Animo Ateneo!"

Silence.

"So. It comes down to this, doesn't it?" Harry whispered. "Does your wand know that its original owner still values it? If it does, I AM THE TRUE MASTER OF THE ANIMO WAND!"

Voldemort points his wand at Harry who in turn has prepared for the final duel.

"ANIMO LA SALLE!" Voldemort shouted.

"OH! GET. THAT.WAND!" Harry shouted.

The curse rebounded and hit Voldemort instead of Harry who caught the Animo Wand with his other hand. Cheers from the Ateneans and even some La Sallians, who realized that they were duped were all around.

That morning both Ateneo and La Salle forged a cease fire -- temporary because the next day was the Ateneo-La Salle basketball championship. Francisco, who was revived after hours of being stunned by Dacanay and Cuyegkeng, decided to lift the "No Cheering!" rule during time out. However, she still flinches whenever Dacanay (or any Jesuit for that matter) would approach her.

There were however, a group of La Sallians who disagreed with having a cease fire. They believed that the death and defeat of Voldemort was unfair so they decided to file a protest. This was later junked due to lack of merit.



Epilogue. Nineteen Years Later.
It was the day of the ACET. Harry Potter was accompanying his son Ben.

"Dad! What if I fail the ACET and end up in DLSU?"

Harry looked at his son and said "Bienvenido Adolfo! You were named after two of the most powerful Jesuits in the country. One of them is a good friend of ours. In fact he was the one who officiated our marriage."

"But... but... so what if I DO fail the ACET and end up in DLSU?"

Eh di bobo ka talaga! Harry thought. But he didn't say that. "But we will still love you as our son!" Harry said. "Alright. Your test starts in a few minutes. Make us proud. One Big Fight."

and i thought panties with pockets are weird

coffee @ LP, breakfast @ tagaytay

saturday, at mocha blends along gloria diaz









yesterday morning in front of mile hi, in tagaytay (sayang, closed na! hindi nga pala planado ang lakad na ito. basta, hinila lang ako ni dianne sa bahay ni judy. the next thing i knew, we were on our way to tagaytay.)















in casino filipino







rotonda



sa 7-11 (na katapat ng rotonda)



sa sanctuario (na malapit lang din sa rotonda)

= = = = = = = = = =

grabe ang araw na 'to. pero thankful ako, kasi okay kaming lahat.

kita-kits sa gateway : )

matagal ko nang kinukulit ang thesis mate kong si badz, bago pa ang aug.28 niyang birthday: kailan ka manlilibre? siyempre, ang kapal ko! to think na hindi ako nanlibre nung may. hehe! ; ) well, kumagat siya. september raw. nung tuesday, actually. eto nga lang ang masaya: sa gateway raw. GATEWAY?! sa tingin niya, yun daw kasi ang gitna naming tatlo nina candy. teka, paano naging gitna ng malabon, manila at cavite ang cubao? oh, well. libre naman. : )

so straight from my roxas boulevard office, i took a jeep, LRT & MRT to get to gateway. when i got there already, grabe, memories. hindi naman ako malimit doon nung college kasi third or fourth year na ako nung natapos yun pero familiar pa rin. tanda ko kasi na palatandaan na turo sa akin ni guiller yung mga watson's. wala lang.

sa food court kami, para maraming choices. nauna na si candy, kaya hinanap ko siya. but before i saw her, look who i saw:



si de-anne, friend from gabay & the SOA EB!

siyempre, tuloy ang paghahanap kay candy. nagulat ako nung nakita ko siya kasi:



nagpakulay siya ng buhok! in fairness, bagay sa kanya kasi maputi naman siya. dahil forever na late si badz, chika muna kami. wala na pala siya sa st. bridget - sa ateneo na siya, formator sa office of social concern & involvement. right now, she's organizing the outreach program to the introduction to ateneo culture class. mentor din siya sa eliazo hall (the dorm for females). cool! pag nag-aral na siya ulit next ng counseling next sem, hindi na siya mahihirapan pumasok. hehe. naikwento ko naman na wala na ako sa HR. there were also the usual love life-related questions. wala naman akong bagong maikwento. hehe! ayun.

past 8 na ata dumating yung manlilibre, grabe! nagtago kami ni candy para hindi niya kami makita agad. hehe! tawa kami nang tawa kasi kitang-kita namin si badz, pero hindi niya kami makita. hehe, para kaming bata. : D

well, nakita rin niya kami kasi naka-pink si candy. buo na uli ang HAS (hernandez, abad, sarmiento - the name of our thesis group)! at kainan na!

food from jumbo japs.

crunchy tuna maki. even after this variation on the ever-popular maki, i don't think i'm ever going to like maki/sushi.

habang kumakain, kwentuhan to the max. badz told us about his work. siyempre, inevitable na balikan naming tatlo yung college days namin. after all, lagi kaming magkasama sa group work. binalikan namin yung father dacanay/theology 131 days namin - mga panahong sobrang tense kami pag malapit na ang 9 ng gabi, kasi deadline yun ng pagpasa ng group reflection paper. grabeng stress yun, to think na 5% lang yun ng final grade. nakakaloka pa kasi inuna pa namin yung reflection paper kaysa report namin sa cognitive psych, to think na 20% yun ng grade. grabe.

badz & i even reminisced on our eddie boy calasanz/philo 103 days. candy took another teacher, kaya kinuwentuhan na lang namin siya. kung terror si dacanay, mas terror si calasanz. grabe, to the nth level. but on second thought, terror ba si calasanz mismo, o yung mga grades lang na binibigay niya? hehe! kasi naman, highest grade sa ateneo ang 4, passing ay 1. alam mo ba kung ano ang nakuha ko sa first long test namin kay calasanz? 0.5! o di ba, half lang ng passing grade. but it's not too bad when you consider that other people got 0.1 or 0.2 or plain zero. to think na open book ang exam, pwede kang mag-discuss with classmates, umuwi sa bahay, gumamit ng computer at kung ano-ano pa, basta maipasa mo yung essay mo by 12 midnight. amazing.

at some point, i asked for dessert. ayaw na manlibre ni badz, kaya ako na lang para hindi na ako manlibre next time. hehe! i got three servings of halo-halo from razon's (grabe ang patong. 68 sa gateway, to think na aroung 40-50 lang sa guagua. hehe.).





ayun, kuwentuhan pa ulit nang todo. november last year pa kasi kaming huling nagkita. past 10 na nung umalis kami. kung hindi lang malayo ang bundok ko, hindi ako magyayayang umalis.

past 12 na ako nakarating sa bahay. nakakatawa kasi hindi pala nila alam na wala pa ako. wehehe.

nakakapagod, grabe. it took tremendous effort to keep my eyes open during the whole trip. but it was worth it. sa uulitin, friends. : )