RXZ III - Innovations, Intimacy, and Imbeciles

To Write My Life’s Story in Just Eight Pages Would Be Futile, So Just Listen to the Music (Part 6-last)

2009-03-28T16:37:00.000-07:00

Now Playing: “Keeping Me Alive” by The Afters

And so I went to college in a dispirited mood.

But college was my “high school”; college was, for me, what high school was for other people. The music continues and goes on to rock out.

I was ecstatic when I found out that I passed the University of the Philippines College Admission Test. It was an exciting thought to know that I‘ll be going to UP Los Baños. I celebrated a lot when I found out.

College was the birth of my social life. I met new friends, and I hung out with them a lot. I noticed that I had more girl friends than boys. It must be because of my dealings with lots of girls.

I also encountered more positively challenging subjects. I loved the idea of choosing my own subjects.

Now Playing: “Deathbed” by Relient K

At this time, the MP3 player is going on low battery. I’d have to recharge it and upload more songs, but then the last song plays. It is by far the most important song in the playlist. I couldn’t let it pass, since it is really important.

In college, I met my creator and Father, God. I became involved with Campus Crusades for Christ. I’ve questioned my faith before, but meeting Him firsthand has changed me. I now place myself in His control, my MP3 in His hands, so that He could download the songs Himself.

I was lost without Him, and I was scared of the dark. The evil slipping into the dimension of the world gripped me through fear. I tried to make do with other beliefs, but to no avail. Hence, the burst of light that was Him was comforting to me.

As I said, my life is a never-ending playlist, and it is still ongoing. God Himself is playing it, and I just move to the music. Whether it is dance music or a sad love song, I move. As the music plays, I sing the melodies of my life and tap my feet to the tune of humanity. I’m off to the showers to sing aloud the beauty of my life.

Now Playing: “Kay Ganda ng Ating Musika” by Hadji Alejandro

*to be continued......after about 30 more years....depends on the lifespan of my MP3...."

To Write My Life’s Story in Just Eight Pages Would Be Futile, So Just Listen to the Music (Part 5)

2009-03-26T02:15:00.000-07:00

Now Playing: “Girl of the Year” by FM Static

At the dawn of my high school, I met Kiarra, who’s now one of my best buds. But back then, she was my crush. Oh my, I remember the giddy part of this track. There was this event in my first year called “FS Night”, where the freshmen and the sophomores go partying. I asked Kiarra to be my “date” on that event. I never got an answer, because, being the torpe that I am, I withdrew the question just as immediately as I asked her. I walked away shyly, feeling weird and mad at myself.

Second year comes, and so does another crush. Celina. Yeah, as I said, second year was my darkest year, but I didn’t regret meeting her. Second year was the first time I officially courted a girl. But it was also the first time I got “busted”. I’d rather not go into details.

In third year, the most awkward event happened. I had a crush on a girl named Sheila Mae. I guess I was too obvious, since that was the year I wrote my first prose, a short love story, entitled “Deathly Still”, in which I used her name as the female lead. Still, I tried to court her, but she stopped me when I made my move. That’s because she already has a boyfriend. Imagine the mortified look on my face when I found out. I became scared of the boyfriend, Stephen, who happens to be in my class. Still, that didn’t prevent me from being friends with her. However, I knew that if I loved having my neck attached to my body, I won’t pursue this relationship.

The love song on my fourth year was the most life-changing of all. I guess it’s because of my hormones. But I “fell in love” with a lady (she remains unnamed, because she might read this). She’s different from every girl I had a crush on, because she’s the only one who’s rather rude to me. She can be sweet at times, but mostly I got the receiving end of her slapping hand. She can wear a halo and hold an executioner’s axe at the same time. Weirdly, that’s why I fell in love with her. It was all fine before December 2007. We went to our retreat, and that’s where I told her everything. Her reaction changed my life. She became truly mad at me, hurt me inside. She was the one who smashed my heart into a million pieces that look like shards of glass. I never healed completely. However, she and I thought we were being foolish (mostly, I was) and became just friends. She reverted to the usual treatment of sarcasm and slapping.

*to be continued*

To Write My Life's Story in Just Eight Pages Would Be Futile, So Just Listen to the Music (Part 4)

2009-03-23T16:24:00.000-07:00

Now Playing: “Boys Do Fall In Love” by Parokya ni Edgar

In all these tracks, there was almost no mention that I “fell in love”. Well, that part of the playlist has a rather painful edge to it, and so it’s very painful.

When I was a kid, I didn’t believe in cooties. I learned about romantic relationships at an early age. As such, I had crushes even since I was a kid.

My first crush was named Josyne. She is the daughter of one of Dad’s friends. Every time I saw her, I act all goofy and idiotic. Mind you, this was at the age of about 6 or 8. But I guess this was all puppy love, since I was still very young then.

I then encountered a form of confusion. I next had a crush on not one, not two, but three girls at the same time. They were Alyssa, my neighbor and childhood friend, Rochelle, my sister’s childhood best friend, and Em-Em, my prep school seatmate. Again, at a young age, I was confronted with men’s tendency to become unfaithful to just one girl. But being the principle-centered kid that I was, I did not completely befriend them all to avoid the awkwardness. However, in my mind, there was still confusion.

And then I met Angelica in the third grade. When I first saw her, BAM! No more crushes on the other three. I began to imagine a lot of stuff about us. I guess she was my real first love. I was really lucky then, because she was my seatmate. Ah, how I remember her porcelain skin, her cute dimpled smile when she asks me what our teacher said, and her silky black hair that was all I could see when she sleeps on our desk. She was so kind to me. There was one time that she cried in class, and she leaned her head on my shoulder. However, I never told her that I had an intense crush on her, because I thought that we were too young. I never saw her again after the third grade. Up until now, I still dream about her, but as I grew older, her image became more blurred. I still yearn for her, and I still keep wishing I knew where she was.

I still had a hangover from Angelica’s departure when I met Karla in the fifth grade. She was the muse of the class, and she was the girl both Angelo and I had a crush on. Doing a martyr act, I put all my efforts in forgetting about her. It worked. However, she became Angelo’s seatmate, and she was just behind me. That was the time Angelo became obnoxious and rude to me. He also became rather rude to Karla. Since she needed someone to talk to, she talked to me. I took care in talking to her, believing that I would betray my best friend had I ignited my crush for her. I didn’t want to do that even though Angelo’s mean to me. And so passes another girl.

Come the sixth grade, I joined the Division School’s Press Conference and Contest. When I went in training, I met Princess. This was my first “love-at-first-sight”. But this crush was short-lived, because I found out from my friends that Princess wasn’t really good for me. Still, when she became my partner for the graduation cotillion, I was thrilled. But, as I said, short-lived.

*to be continued*

To Write My Life’s Story in Just Eight Pages Would Be Futile, So Just Listen to the Music (Part 3)

2009-03-23T02:04:00.000-07:00

Now Playing: “First Day High”

The tempo rises as I come to high school. I went to Atheneum Amcan School (now Atheneum Amcan Academy) in Noveleta, Cavite.

They say high school is the happiest years of a person. I disagree. My high school years were memorable, yes, but they weren’t generally happy. There was too much bitterness inside me.

So, let’s start with first year.

In high school, I met my “archenemy”. JM Alamar, the pint-sized irritation. I felt like Mr. Krabs when he deals with Plankton. Since I beat him in the eliminations for the Elocution Contest in first year, he harbored a deep grudge against me. He was a Hall of Famer, meaning that he has been winning the Elocution Contest before I came. Since then, he’s opposed me in everything, mostly in academics.

On a lighter side, I also met my two real best friends, Kevon and Brandon Hartwig. They are two American twins who were born and raised here in the Philippines. As such, they can speak Filipino and know about qwek-qwek. They’re also very smart. They’ve been my wingmen in those four sad years where I could have been a lone wolf. Until now, even when they’ve gone back to their mother land, I still contact them through the Internet.

I had a lot of firsts. First classroom in the third floor. First hot teacher. First time to eat alone. First colored uniform (the uniform was colored blue. Before that, I had to wear white polo’s). Amidst those firsts, I grew up much.

Now Playing: “Who I Am Hates Who I’ve Been” by Relient K

Second year was the darkest year of my life. The song goes into a B-E chord pattern.

This was the time I had an identity crisis. I started my search for who I am. The idiot that I was, I looked in the wrong places. I not only failed, but my academics got involved in the downfall as well.

Second year was also the first time my poor heart got broken. I’ll elaborate on a new track later.

Second year was so grim, I’d rather forward the song and hit the “Next” button on the MP3.

Now Playing: “Must Have Done Something Right” by Relient K

In every dark time, there is the turning point and the dawn of light and day. For me, that was third year. Third year was the “feel-good” part of the high school playlist.

It was July. I went to class. I passed by the bulletin board. I kept walking, and then stopped. I backtracked to the bulletin board. I saw my name, right below the label that says “Honor Certificate Awardees”. And then I exploded.

That event was the batting momentum I needed for the rest of high school. After that, I maintained my honor standing. I became a medalist at the end of the year.

It was also in third year that I found myself. I found my identity, and from then on, I stayed true to myself. I gained a new ability: reasoning. I got the skill of explaining why I do the things I do. I also learned to find my true friends: the ones who wouldn’t shirk away from me. It feels good to get a chain of merry stuff happen to me. The lilting chords of the song took me away to paradise.

Now Playing: “Alumni Homecoming” by Parokya ni Edgar

Fourth year was the end of the high school playlist. It was good to have ended with a bang-out fashion. I learned more, and our group got tight-knit.

However, there was a bitter part in my fourth year, and like my second year, I’d rather skip this track. But I think a change in topic is fitting.

*to be continued*

TF: You know me? No? Shame on you...

2009-03-23T01:18:00.000-07:00

This is kinda fun. Got it from Jai.

Please put your answer to the questions below in the comments section, then I will find out if you know me that well :) It's fun!!!, and do remember to be kind. :-D

1. Where did you and I first meet?
2. How long have you known me?
3. The last time we saw each other?
4. Your first impression of me upon meeting/seeing me?
5. Am I funny?
6. What's my favorite music?
7. One word you would use to describe me?
8. Have you ever hugged me?
9. If there was one good nickname for me, what would it be?
10. If you and I were stranded on an island, what would I bring?
11. Where do you think I will be in 25 years?
12: Will you re-post this so I can fill this out for you?

Tamaan ng kidlat and mga di sumagot dito. Haha. Just kidding!

To Write My Life’s Story in Just Eight Pages Would Be Futile, So Just Listen to the Music (Part 2)

2009-03-22T17:31:00.000-07:00

Now Playing: “Mahna Mahna” by the Muppets

When I learned to read, I began to bury myself in books. I recall trying to read and understand Mom’s Physical Therapy textbooks (Mom was then a PT teacher in De La Salle University in Dasmariñas, Cavite) and Dad’s mission logs on his logbook (Dad is a pilot in the Philippine Air Force). I had many coloring pads, story books, and picture books.

I had no sense of balance in my toddler years. I fell down a lot, and when I do, instead of raising my arms to stop my fall, I use my forehead. That’s why I had a signature bump on my forehead. My friends all laughed at me. My lack of balance may have contributed to my indifference to sports.

Growing up, I got to bond with my relatives a lot. I had so many cousins that we call our family a clan now. We had enough to create two basketball teams, a cheering squad, and a rock band.

I was curious how Gary V and Ogie Alcasid made those hypnotic sounds they call “singing”. Whenever I hear those sounds, I try to mimic them. I also imitated them when I’m taking a bath or when in a room where my voice echoes. After some time, I developed a singing voice of my own. I kept it a secret until about the time I went to elementary school.

Now Playing: The first lyrics of “F.U.N. Song” from Spongebob Squarepants

“F is for friends who do stuff together, U is for you and me. N is for anything and anytime at all down here in the deep blue sea…”

The concept of “school” is weird for me. When there are no classes, I want to go to school, but in class, I wish that school was over. I could not make up my mind if I want to go to school or not.

I went to nursery school when I was three years old. It’s weird to be in a place where Mom isn’t, but I kind of liked it anyway. I made friends (although I don’t know them anymore), played with cheap, plastic toys, jumped around in the playground inside the school, and was taught the National Anthem. I was also taught manners and courtesy. It’s too bad I didn’t learn.

And then kindergarten comes. Well, actually, I never went to kindergarten, because I was accelerated. I skipped kindergarten and moved on to prep school. From prep school to the third grade, I attended Pag-Asa Elementary School in Cavite City, Cavite. It’s a private school owned by someone Chinese. As a result, we had “Chinese” as a subject (yes, even prep kids had to learn it). However, I don’t remember anything from it anymore except the numbers 1 to 10 in Chinese. I use them when I want to annoy my classmates when I’m counting.

Now Playing: The second part of “F.U.N. Song” from Spongebob Squarepants

“F if for fire than burns down buildings, U is for uranium rods. N is for no survivors-“

When I stepped up to the fourth grade, I transferred to Pamplona Elementary School Central in Pamplona, Las Piñas City. When you get to public school, you get the feel of being a street-smart kid. You learn the tools of surviving in the jungle we call the urban city.

I had my first best friend in the fifth grade. His name was Angelo. We were inseparable. We also had the same crush back then, but a different track will tell more about it later. He was a good listener, a song-making partner, and a real humble person.

Or so I thought. He began lampooning me when my arms got broken. I still don’t know why or how, but our relationship got ugly. But we made up on the sixth grade.

The song goes on a happier note come sixth grade. I really developed lasting friendships with my classmates, and up until now we still contact each other. I knew that they would always be with me.

*to be continued*

To Write My Life’s Story in Just Eight Pages Would Be Futile, So Just Listen to the Music (Part 1)

2009-03-22T02:03:00.000-07:00

Some people say that life’s a highway, or that love’s what life is made of. Some say that you start living when you start breathing. And there are those that say life is just a stinking pile of crap and that it has no meaning since we’re all going to die anyway. Well, I don’t concur with these people. To compare life with such a mundane thing or to attribute a physical action to the start of life is preposterous. Life is not mundane. It is full of meaning, but no one can completely define life. But for me, life is music. Life is music in so many ways. Music is not mundane; it takes special understanding and emotion to completely appreciate it. It has rhythm. It has meter or beat. It has high and low notes. Its tempo hastens and slows down. As such, my life is a never-ending playlist that sounds on God’s MP3. Let’s look through it, shall we?

Now Playing: Vivaldi’s “Primavera”

The music starts on February 28, 1993, 4:15 PM. My shrill cry was first heard at Trinidad Clinic, Pamplona, Las Piñas City, Metro Manila. I was the first-born of Nestor Florente Rayos and Billma Rayos. They named me Florence Ryan, Florence from my Dad’s name Florente, and Ryan from a kid my parents took care of for a little while before Mom had me. They said I was a rambunctious little baby. I have no memory of bouncing when I was born, so I guess they didn’t say I was a “bouncing little baby.” I had dark skin and pudgy cheeks. When I was born, they all immediately said I looked exactly like Dad when he was still a baby. I retained my similarity to his looks up to now.

When I turned a year old, my parents gave me two gifts. One of them is “Sherman”. He is a brown teddy bear wearing a yellow-and-red striped sleeping gown and a sleeping cap striped likewise. I always had him with me, and up to now, he lies on my bed. He used to sing, but his vocal chords expired a long time ago, so he’s mute now. Another gift (annoyance would be a better name for her) is my younger sister Nessel Cyra. She was born 20 days before my first birthday, so every year, there are 20 days in February when we have the same age. On those days, she doesn’t call me “kuya”. After that year, our youngest sister was born. She’s rather saintly, and so Mom named her Holly Marie, from “Holy Mary”. We used to tease her “kalbo” or “holly-maw” until she gained hair.

*to be continued*

Help, people!!

2009-03-21T15:36:00.000-07:00

If you're reading this on the day I posted this, please, please go online on YM and help! I don't know what to put in my autobiography! How am I gonna make one for HUM1? Urgh.

Mind block + writer's block = career's death

TAO: Bagsakan: A Farewell to the Master Rapper

2009-03-06T06:44:00.000-08:00

I was in the newsroom of the Dept. of DevJourn taking my make-up exam for DEVC11. I was worrying about my pen drying up in the middle of the exam (I was writing all day) when, suddenly, a girl burst into the room and declared to the others there, "Waah, patay na si Francis M.!!!"

I froze, and so did everyone around me. Time stood still as my brain decoded the message. Francis M., The Master Rapper, dead?

At that moment, my brain went on hyperdrive. It was gathering everything it knows about the Master Rapper.

Whoa. What just happened? Why is my brain equating Francis M. with Jose Rizal? Why is it also equating the Master Rapper with the Filipino image?

Jose Rizal is considered the national hero of the Philippines. However, in our history archives, it was never mentioned that he wielded a bolo like Andres Bonifacio. Instead, he wielded a heavier weapon: a pen. Yes, this hero sparred with the Spaniards with strokes of his pen and created a name for himself by writing it in bold letters. Basically, he is a symbol of nationalism for many.

How is Francis M. any different?

In 1990, Francis M. released his first album entitled "Yo!". Included in the album is his groundbreaking song "Mga Kababayan Ko". With this song, he kick-started the genre of Pinoy Hiphop. Moreover, as the song resounded in the air, he exuded the aura of Pinoy pride. As his life and fame progressed, this pride became more pronounced. his songs, look, and words speak "I'm a Pinoy and proud of it". Until his death, he encouraged everyone to be proud of their heritage and their being "kayumanggi".

Francis Magalona is one of my inspirations. i was so moved by his untimely death so much that I stopped writing on my exam paper for 15 solid minutes to contemplate on the fact and utter a short prayer. When I got home, I went to the computer and created an emblem of three stars and the sun (Francis M. is fond of using these symbols from the Philippine flag). The emblem is in my albums. Grab it if you want.

Now, as we listen to his song "Kaleidoscope World", let us say our prayers for him, and let us thank him for forever changing the nature of Filipinos.

Kaleidoscope World - Francis Magalona

"To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure." -Professor Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

AADD/RYAN: I'm now in The Army!

2009-03-01T22:40:00.000-08:00

Well whaddaya know? I fused my fellowship with God with my being a DevCom student. Sweet!

My life never had the sheen of alabaster that I've come to associate with fairy tales. If it were, then I would be some sort of reckless prince who's supposed to slay a dragon and rescue a foolish princess who got herself pricked by some needle which gave her a sleeping pill overdose. The prince (that's me) should make out with the princess to wake her up.

Even in my poetic view, how I said it was disgusting.

But, if you look at it and relate it to the real world, you'll see a rather weird similarity.

Take, for example, child molesters.

Prickers of society. They sneak on ever-so-innocent "sleeping beauties" and take their innocence indirectly. The beauties then go into a lapse, somewhat like a deep sleep,

I wish this was the case of those young girls who got abused, but no. They're in worse condition.

How 'bout that dragon? Oh, right. That could be none other than the evils in this world that drive even the most saintly of us to bend. He actually has a name: Satan. Seriously, he's the root of all this, the one who gave the prickers their poison to make girls sleep and all.

Now, where do I go into the story? As I said, I am the prince, the knight in shining armor. I feel it's my responsibility to get rid of the prickers of society and the dragon that fuels them. I have to battle my way into the scary castle and rescue the princess. According to Ephesians 6, with the armor of God, I can do it even with the simplest stroke of my pen (or, in this case, a clatter on the keyboard).

Even God is recruiting me in His peace corps. Makes me want to do it more.

I've only started with my journey. Someday, I'll be able to stare directly at the dragon and slay it.

TAO: Exactly What I Really Want To Be Doing On the First Minutes of My Birthday

2009-02-27T08:03:00.000-08:00

It was 11:59pm, February 27, 2009, when I almost shut down the computer because I was having a bad case of writer's block. Nothing was going in my mind, and my arms are still groaning from the typing I did last Paper Week.

Then, my phone vibrated. It was a message.

It was from one of my best friends, Kay. "Happy birthday, Ryan!" it said. My heart screamed with emotion as my best buddy remembered.

Then, 5 minutes after, my friend Aika texted a long message of reconciliation and greeting me as well. I didn't imagine she would, since we're in a conflict with each other.

That did it.

Writer's block dissipated. Inspiration came to me as I slowly realized the fact.

I'm 16. 16, I tell you.

No more seeing shocked faces when I tell them "I'm only 15." No more feeling younger than everyone else. I'm 16!!!!

Actually, my CCC family already threw me a celebration last Thursday. They put flyers everywhere in the campus (at least the areas where they know I will see them), and when I got to the center, they all sang "Happy Birthday" and presented me with a birthday cake (from Mer-nel's! It's so yummy!).

Still, there's no other day than your birthday.

In celebration of my birthday, I made my own mission statement! I'll share it with you guys next time, 'cause it's in Los Baños, in my dorm.

Ah, blogging. Exactly the thing I want to be doing on the first few minutes of my 16th birthday.

Inspiration!!!

2009-02-27T06:39:00.000-08:00

I hate it when the big buzzing bee known as "Writer'sblockaboogle bug" gets in my ear. And on the eve of my birthday too.

30 minutes 'til I turn 16. 30 minutes until I become legal for a student driver's license!

"Can't talk right now. Gotta finish the song. Ooh, fudgie buddies!!"

TF: Me, stupid? Look who's talking...

2009-02-13T10:45:00.000-08:00

I've read Jai's post on the insane stuff she does, so I decided to do one, too. Fine, then. Call me copycat. =p

10 epitomes of insanity, coming right up!

1. I tend to speak to myself when I'm alone. Or when I feel alone. I dunno, maybe I feel like I'm my own best friend or something. Or maybe the world is just so noisy that I have to speak my thoughts out loud to hear them. Some of my classmates have gone so far as calling me crazy, but that's my own way of intrapersonal communication, so whaddaryehgonnahdoabboudit?

2. I have never consciously made anyone laugh before. If I make a joke which is funny, I didn't really devised it as a joke. It just is funny. When I realize that what I said was funny, I am usually the last one to stop laughing. I even repeat it sometimes, but it ain't funny the second time.

3. Last Song Syndrome (LSS) is fast-acting and extremely common for me. Whenever I hear a tune for about 3 minutes, I'll end up singing or humming it. The bad part is I can't stop as easily. I cannot stop singing when I get hooked by a tune for more than 30 minutes unless some new tune comes by.

4. Every Valentine's day, I spend at least 10 minutes alone in a corner, crying. It's my form of self-control and it makes me feel happy afterwards. Being the masochist that I am, it's easy to think of a reason to cry. The hard part is to actually make the tears fall off my eyelids. If I don't cry on that day, I get so frustrated that I tend to do reckless and stupid things, such as flirting with a girl with a boyfriend and the like. However, this year, I don't feel the need to do this habit. I'm at peace with the world, and I've got God with me this time.

5. I experiment in food mixtures. I've mixed Coke with milk (it actually tastes good), and chocolate with orange juice. I'm curious as to what other tastes I can uncover.

6. I believe that anything with water cannot hurt me. I always say that "the water is my friend" ever since I was a kid. Thus, I'm okay with walking and singing in the rain, water sports are my forte, and I trust sea travel. I've never been hurt at all.

7. Weird. I can only think of 6....

Anyway, that's it. I'm tired. Sleep would come and drift me to a foreign land in a few minutes. Ciao!

WHFE: Poems in Biology?? Good thing there's HUM1...

2009-02-13T10:33:00.000-08:00

WRITERS HAVE FOUR EYES Ep. 1

I've been having really disturbing nightmares these days. Last night, I dreamt that a mutilated eye was all I could see, and it scared the crap out of me. Bloodstained eyes aren't really my fave images.

Anyway, I guess my BioSci professors are trying to revolutionize how we students take exams. In my NASC4 exam, for 10 bonus points, I had to write a love poem for Valentine's Day. It was one of my worst creations ever. And yet...

...my prof gave me a perfect 10 for the poem, totaling my score to 99.5%, making me the third top scorer in the exam.

Freaky, huh?

Well, my NASC5 prof also had a poetry part in his exam, but that one was really compulsory. Luckily, it was supposed to be about environmental problems, not about love. This time, I felt I did better. My poem was rather morbid, gory, and depressing, but that's the point I'm trying to make anyway.

I'll try and post those two poems here next time, when I get my papers back. You can be the judge.

Sorting, Categorizing, and Library-izing of my blog [BS Ep. 5]

2009-01-30T07:05:00.000-08:00

As proven in this series, I've had too much topics in my mind. And unlike any other techie writers, I can't flip out a PDA and jot down my thoughts away immediately. I only blog from Fridays to Mondays. Not really much time to place all the blog posts in my mind that accumulates throughout the rest of the week.

And so, I've adapted Kuya Gian's technique: posting in categories. I'll have titles for each category, and I can write in them a particular type of posts. And so, here are the categories:

Writers Have Four Eyes (WHFE) - about my writing, some stories, book reviews, etc.

Tag Force (TF) - tags, fun lists, surveys, and such stuff that I get from other bloggers.

As A DevCom Dude (AADD) - my thoughts concerning human welfare and development.

Exhilarating or Erroneous Events (EEE) - events, happenings, and the likes.

Revealing Your Awesome Name (RYAN) - my reflections while in my walk with God, and on fulfilling the Great Commission.

The Anonymous Optimist (TAO) - posts concerning my personal life, and the lives of others (featuring other people).

There we are. I sorted out my posts into six fields. Every week, I'll try to post in every one of them. Yes, every one of them.

I think I'll start now.

Saying Goodbye Is Never Easy [BS Series Ep. 4]

2009-01-23T06:24:00.000-08:00

NOTE: This is the second-to-the-last episode for the Brain Siphoning Series. For me, this is by far the saddest post I ever made.

Don't cry, people. No one died, although I feel as if that's true nowadays.

It's an emo thought, I know, but sometimes I don't want to befriend people anymore. I don't want to spend moments with them anymore and create bonds with them. Why? It's because, when they go away, they take a part of me with them. Somehow, I feel empty when they go. That's just makes me more emo than I already am.

I remember my high school graduation. Before that, I always wondered why most people cry in such events. Why shed tears? We should be happy, since we're moving up in the world. Well, now that I've had my share of tears in my own graduation, I answered myself. Separation from familiarity is hard to accept. Nothing is forever, and yet we humans want forever things. I thought that those people I was with would stay with me until the end of time. Such thinking is the result of strong bonds.

Now, why am I talking about goodbyes? Why am I spending time typing when I could just cry out my sadness?

I can't. I have a sore throat. That's why I resort to typing. =p

The reason is that some of my friends in UPLB are not going to be in UPLB anymore next semester. Some are going out of family duty, some are looking for education's "greener pastures", and some just find it difficult.

They are my friends. Friends have special bonds. This is what makes me feel all the farewell attitudes I got from post-graduation again. I find it difficult to let go of people, especially ones who, directly or indirectly, made an impact on me (yeah, I'm talking 'bout you, Jai).

How about me? Why am I packing up my stuff from my dorm and moving out of LB myself? Well, here's a story:

It was my first day of classes in UPLB. I woke up at 5:00 AM just to get ready. My bed was a double-deck bed, and I sleep at the bottom. When I woke up, I bumped my head on the low upper-deck bed. I lay back on my pillows, wincing as my headache slowly subsided. At that point, I remembered the time when I was little, when I had no sense of balance and, when I'm about to fall, I use my forehead instead of my arms to cushion my fall. I stood out from my cousins, since I was the only one with a large bump on my forehead.

I was already readying myself for class when I realized that my schedule and list of classrooms was missing. I searched for it everywhere, and then I found it in my portfolio. Doing so, though, made me late for my first class. Luckily, the professor wasn't there, so there was no class. still, i thought that I can't do such things if I want to last here.

The day before, I already familiarized myself with the surroundings and the buildings where my classes are. Nevertheless, I still got lost in the campus. I ended up in the wrong classrooms, and was mostly late because of it.

Negativity came to me that day. I almost lost hope. But then some of my new friends in UP told me that I was too much of a pessimist. They said that I make others uncomfortable because of my pessimism. So I vowed to myself that, if I last without complaining until the end of the week, I'll never shift courses or leave the campus.

The next days, I found more friends. I took walks in the presence of beautiful sceneries, something I never see in the urbz. My heart longed for trees, and they were sated in UPLB.

I did last.

And so I learned that I must finish what I started. I don't want to be ningas-kugon. Such behavior is not me. And so I will reach my finish line in UPLB.

I digressed a little there.

Still, the prudent writer keeps the reasons of others in mind. I am sad that some of my friends will go away from UPLB, but I will support them still. Distance is but a physical boundary, and such boundaries do little to undermine such bonds as friendship. No matter where my friends are, they are still my friends. Communication these days became easier anyway.

So, to all my friends, no matter how far you are from me, I'll always be here when you need me. I'm just a text, email, or blog comment away. Never hesitate to come to me when you are troubled. RXZ loves his friends, and would do wondrous things for them.

Luckily, R.E.M.S. isn't going to be separated anytime soon. SANDY!!! SELENA!! MIKKI!! Tuloy tayo sa Tuesday ah. Bahala na kayo kung Ristretto or Boston Cafe.

A Wish is a Dream. A Dream of Rebirth [BS Series Ep. 3]

2009-01-17T23:11:00.000-08:00

It's January 17.

"So what?" you may ask.

I ask the same thing to myself.

It's funny. There are times when my subconscious asks questions that I can't understand. Such questions like "Why are you born?" or "Where did you exist before birth?" flap out from the little Jimini Cricket inside my brain.

Existence. It's a subject all of us are familiar with. Questioning it is also common, but questioning your own existence is as rare as a rainbow moon. One of my roommates, Jerome (woo, special mention!), doubt his existence sometimes. Sometimes, he thinks, and I concur, that we might not be who we are right now in the long run. For example, I could be Rowan Zurich right now, but I might be Jerome the next day.

Freaky mind games.

Existence. Sure, we all know of it. We even commemorate it. I call it celebrating "Existence Commemoration"!

Fine, to put it short, to make sense of all those mumbo jumbo I said, I'll cut it straight.

My birthday is less than 50 days away.

Yep, February 28 is about 42 days away. And, as I've been doing for the past 5 years, I constructed a wishlist. (Again with the wishes.)

So, hereth be my wishes for ye new birthday:

10. Yugi-Oh! Chaos Duel Disk

I already have the original Duel Disk, but I want this limited edition version. At least when I duel someone, we can both have Duel Disks.

9. guitar lessons

It's hard to be a self-proclaimed rockstar without knowing how to rock. Simple logic, duh. Ergo, need to learn to play the guitar.

8. Yugi-Oh! Spellcaster's Judgement Structure Deck

I want this deck!! It's been long since I wished for this!

7. Yugi-Oh! Tag Force 2 for PSP

I want to play with Destiny Heroes!!!

6. High School reunion

It's been about more than 5 months since I saw all of my classmates. A reunion would ease up my nostalgia.

5. Guitar Hero for PS3

It would be nice to have an arcade game in my house. Rocking would be easier!!

4. MP3 player

To stop the silence in LB. I get bored there, and listening to music might get the edge off.

3. more REMS time

Eira! Mikki! Sandy! I miss you guys (well, as a group. Individually, not so much.) Mini-Stop looks all the more homey when you guys are with me.

2. Fall Out Boy concert tickets

Even though it's on a Friday the 13th, I still wanna go. FOB is one of my inspirations in rocking out. NOTE: if you are gonna get me this gift, get it before Feb. 13. Advanced Birthday present. =)

1. a laptop

It would be nice to blog everywhere, even in UP. And I want to vlog!!!

So there. Feel free to get me these. =)

Periods suck! (and commas rule!) [BS Series Ep.2]

2009-01-10T21:43:00.000-08:00

For my second episode of the Brain Siphoning Series, watch this video from Smosh. They're my favorite Youtubers. The video, though, is mostly screamo music, but there are subtitles, so no problem identifying what they're saying.

DON'T READ FURTHER UNTIL YOU'VE SEEN THE VIDEO. Or else you wouldn't relate to some of the things I'm telling you.

I found this video while talking to Brandon in YM. He's been worried about the news he found out. He found out that percentage of teen pregnancy in the Philippines is rising. He asked me to confirm, and regrettably, I can't rebuke the info. About 16.5 million people in the Philippines belong to the 15-24 age group, and 30% (!!!) of all births belong to this age (see here for more info). Brandon asked me if virginity is still common in here, and that I can proudly say yes at. However, what we talked about was a really serious problem.

The video, however funny ("Eew, gross! What are you, some kind of sick, werewolf freak?!"), poses a great message. Teens today are too exposed to sex and such stuff, but they are lacking the conscience or mindset that should stop them from taking the path straight to it. That's why Sex Ed, I believe, is very important.

Teens are, as the adults say, fickle-minded, impatient, and rash. Only a select number of people have complete self-control. The unfortunate others without the said control tend to be allured by the concept of doing the act. They are ignorant of the fact that after the act may come the 9 months of agonizing pregnancy (yes, even the guys suffer through it through working and caring for their girlfriend) and then the pain of delivery. If they withstand it, another thing which will meet them is the most challenging phase in a person's life: parenthood.

All of these will really be a part of everyone's life, but having them early is not good. There's a readying stage before you do these things. There's also the matter of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). AIDS is an STD, and you could die from it.

There's no need to hurry, guys. The act is only done because of love and readiness, which are also what your motives should be. As my friends Amiel and Sandy say, "true love waits, no matter how long it takes".

So, here's me saying "WAKE UP, FELLOW TEENS!! Get off your boyfriend's/girlfriend's bed and live a life before making one!"

Tag First! {BS Series Ep. 1]

2009-01-10T03:50:00.000-08:00

I have a lot to say in this post. My creativity is trying to knock down the door of my mind with a battering ram just to get outside. So expect a long post.

Or, at least, a longer-than-my-usual-posts post.

But, my hands are weary, so I'll cut this post into bite-sized pieces. I divided them into "episodes" of a series called Brain Siphoning (BS).

So, I'll start with a TAG.

Joyce tagged me so I'm supposed to do this. Can't say I don't like doing this, though

1. Each blogger starts with 10 random facts/habits about themselves.

2. Bloggers who are tagged need to blog about their own 10 random facts/ habits.
3. At the end of your blog, tag 10 people and list their name.
4. Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them that they've been tagged and to read your blog.

Here are the ten facts (they're kinda silly):

1. I normally throw up after eating oatmeal.

2. My fastest record in solving a Rubik's cube is 1 minute, 43 seconds (yes, I'm slow).

3. Whenever I can, I wear two watches. One is set in Manila time, one is set in California time.

4. I don't make New Year's resolutions. I develop New Year's habits, though, such as devoting to one LSS per week (this past week, it was "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head" because it was rainy).

5. My favorite singer for now is Jason Mraz.

6. Dragonflies fascinate me.

7. It would be a weird sight when you see me walking my dog Murdock. He's a Jack Russell terrier, which means he doesn't grow much. He's only about 2 feet long. And I'm already 5'10. Talk about not matching.

8. It takes me about 25 minutes to think about what to write in my blog. That's just the thinking part. The writing part lasts for about 1 hour.

9. Silence scares and panics me. That's why I surround myself with sounds of songs and harmonies a lot.

10. I don't have tear ducts anymore. Danna removed them.

There. I won't tag anyone since they don't do it anyway.

New Beginning (redundancy intended)

2009-01-02T23:55:00.000-08:00

Start. Go. Initiate. Activate. Engender. Commence. Incite. Launch.

There are really a lot of synonyms for the word "begin". To start off, we have to begin the initiation of engendering the activation of the inciting of the commencement of the launch. See? I can create a nonsensical sentence with those words. They're rather useful, though, since we'll be starting a whole new line of things now, and it's stupid and tiring to use the same word over and over again.

As the dawn of 2009 settles, I would like to share to you not what has happened, as other people and television programs do, but what will happen. I'm not being clairvoyant or anything, but I would like to point out some of the beginnings that is happening in my point of view around the world. I feel it is a better kick-off for 2009.

1. The new administration in USA

-Okay, so maybe it has already started. But then we haven't seen much of President Barrack Obama's work yet. He hasn't laid a foundation yet. So his administration is still in the starting point. Let's hope that we see Pres. Obama's leadership in a better light this year. USA remains as the superpower country today, so anything that may happen to it may affect all of us.

2. Economic crisis coping

-We are facing a crisis here, people. And it's not gonna alleviate itself. This had already started, too, but let's pray that 2009 wouldn't be a hard time for our country and for the whole world. We are humans; we can evolve. And evolution starts now.

3. Environmental problems

-We went to Baguio for New Year (that's why I wasn't able to post for the first two days of 2009). I've been going there since I was a kid, but the cold I experienced there was nothing like I've felt before! The temperature dropped to 10 degrees Celsius, people! My fingers almost became popsicles!! I experienced a solid example of climate change. I don't think of the problem as mythical or hypothetical anymore!!! Please, SAVE THE EARTH AND ALL WHO ARE LIVING IN IT!!!

For now, I'll leave you to ponder on those beginnings. I'll begin my own journey into writing, and I will delve "further into literature than anyone else". My friends, as we begin, let's keep in mind what it took to start, and to be wary of the coming obstacles. Happy New Year, my friends!

Editing and realizations

2008-12-22T09:29:00.000-08:00

I am still adding new stuff to my blog, so it's not permanent yet, but it's going good. If I did it right, you should see the new clock and hear my new playlist (cool, huh?).

I also signed for FeedBurner, to see who's coming in or out my site. Just curious.

Anyways, I've realized a lot of rather silly stuff today. Here's a list.

I've realized that:

1. Mustard does not go well with anything which is very salty.

2. My sister switched her malfunctioning cellphone battery for mine. That's why my phone's crazy.

3. Axe Dark Temptation does smell like chocolate. Doesn't last for long, though.

4. Chiui reeeeaaally looks a lot like Vanessa Anne Hudgens.

5. The Manhattan Transfer is a really good singing group. Their Christmas concert DVD is splendid!

6. Brandon wants me to pursue robotics.

7. I don't like robotics.

8. I'm really good at writing dedications. Mom asked me to write three dedications today for Christmas gifts.

9. No one has texted me for 2 days already!!! Where are you people?!

10. We've spent so much on Christmas gift wrappers.

Oh yeah, Dad also reformatted the computer, and I have a Safari browser already! There's a lot of things new here.

And with a lot of new things, we have to learn and cope with it first. So I'm gonna bloghop and familiarize myself with my new browser. See ya!

Happy birthday, my blog!!!

2008-12-19T06:26:00.000-08:00

Actually, this post is a few days late. About 18 days late, to be exact.

My blog turned 1 year old last December 1, 2008. And to think that before, I never stuck to one blog. Now, lookit! It's full of stuff, I have readers, and I've had a journal for at least one year now!

And check out the new title and layout. I adapted the subtitle from the Tyra Banks show beginning (reproach me all you want. This is my blog). I also like the robot layout. Looks childlike and modern. Thanks, Pannasmontata!

My friends, it is time to turn anew. I'll post more in this blog, as I have in this past year. I'm starting the third season (which explains the III) of "A Frustrated Writer + A Blog = Mayhem". (Second season was this past year. The first season was the series of unfinished blogs I never committed to keeping alive.) An all new series of posts coming at you!!

Watch Out, World! Here's Rowan!!!!

Beat It (the playlist started it...)

2008-12-19T05:42:00.000-08:00

If you've noticed, all my fun posts like this come from Ashley. This is yet another one. Thi is cool!

1. Put your music player on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS!

1) IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY...
- "Happy Birthday" (Weird...)

2) WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
- "Ching-A-Ling" (Huh?! a Missy Elliot song?!)

3) WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN A GUY/GIRL?
- "Love Is For Singing" (hahahaha!)

4) HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
- "It Might Be You"

5) WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
- "Ain't No Stressin'" (true that, yo!)

6) WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
- "Bad Day" (emo-ment again? sigh...)

7) WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
- "Sumayaw Ka, Shake It!" (whoa)

8) WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
- "Run It (Remix)"

9) WHAT IS 2+2?
- "Love Will Lead You Back"

10) WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
- "You And Me" (haha. so true, right, Sands?)

11) WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
- "Numb Encore" (another hit! haha. Right, danna?)

12) WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
- "369" (uhh, what?)

13) WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
- "They're Everywhere ft. Timbaland" (I'll be a paranoid?!)

14) WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
- "Teardrops On My Guitar" (omigosh! my playlist knows me...)

15) WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
- "Stangers Like Me" (oookayy...)

16) WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
- "You Got Served mini mix" (Hiphop on my wedding? gotta get a jersey tux, then...)

17) WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
- "I Melt With You" (hmm. nice song choice for my funeral...)

18) WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
- "Church" (mmkay.)

19) WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
- "I'm Still Here" (that's for you deserters!!)

20) WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
- "Shake Your Pom Pom" (?)

21) HOW WILL YOU DIE?
- "In The Ayer" (what's ayer anyway?)

22) WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
- "Superman"

23) WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
- "So This Is Love" (laugh? more like the opposite)

24) WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
- "What I've Done" (it so gets me.)

25) WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
- "I Wanna Be Like You" (that's really unfitting...)

26) WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
- "Pick It Up And Drop It" (another huh?)

27) DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
- "Taht's What You Get" (what's this, a reproaching?)

28) IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
- "Go" (it doesn't fit again...)

29) WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
- "Don't Touch Me" (must be my skin)

30) WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
- "Beat It" (okayyy then...)

My kingdom for a plane ticket to US...

2008-12-14T18:47:00.000-08:00

This is gonna be short, so you don't have to read much.

About two nights ago, I was talking to Brandon over the YM. Brandon and Kevon are currently residing in Merced, California. Before they went there, however, they were my wingmen in high school.

Meanwhile, days ago, I've read in Danna's blog that they're going to the US for Christmas. I'm rather jealous, since it IS abroad, and the farthest I've been away from home is Hongkong. I wanted to go to the US since I was a kid, so of course I wanted to go, too. This Christmas, though, we'll be going to Baguio anyway, so it's almost as cold as it is abroad.

Now, back to me talking to Brandon. We were chatting away about incohesive stuff, and then Brandon said "hey, Rowan, did you know Danna's coming over here?"

That simple statement got me desiring deeply for plane tickets to US.

I'll leave you to ponder those things. I'm going to sleep...

Beedle the Bard is added to my list of favourite authors

2008-12-13T08:23:00.000-08:00

I have been losing my creative juices these days. I need to refresh my mind..

I want to start with a book review...

The Tales of Beedle the Bard is now available to the public!!! And I read it already!!!

Here's a little background on the book. However, I warn you guys that this is a SPOILER ALERT. So, Joyce, don't read the next paragraph.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a children's story compilation book by Beedle the Bard (obviously). In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, as it says on Dumbledore's will, it was Hermione's inheritance from him. It was where the trio found out, through the story "The Tale of Three Brothers", about the Deathly Hallows, three objects that can conquer Death. The Hallows are the following: the Elder Wand, which is the most powerful wand in history, the Resurrection Stone, which, well, speaks for itself, and the Invisibility Cloak which never wore out or faded. Turns out that the Deathly Hallows were real, and Harry's Invisibility Cloak is the third one! And in the end, Harry got hold of the two other Hallows and defeated Voldemort with them (the Resurrection Stone, indirectly).

J.K. Rowling wrote the Tales separately after the Harry Potter series was finished. There were a few copies initially. She auctioned them for a charity, and now more copies were produced! Now, hardcore Harry Potter fans would get to read the enchanting storytime tales that little witches and wizards knew by heart.

I was one of them.

My sister borrowed the book from one of her classmates. She gave it to me to read, since she knows of my addictiveness to anything HP (for example, no one can trump me in a Harry Potter quiz contest yet!). I read it in about 2 hours (it was only a hundred pages long).

My first expression after reading it was "Whoa!". It contained fairy tales unlike ours. I noticed that Beedle used a lot of big words, some too big for children. The morals of the stories are much harder to decode rather than the usual classics. My favourite was "The Warlock's Hairy Heart", because, in all the children's tales I've read, it's the only one that didn't have a happy ending. More like a grim ending. However, it's also the only one whose message really was important to be carried into adulthood. "Love should never be shunned, for demise always tails it, and when love gets out of the way, it strikes." I felt really sad after reading that story.

The stories also bashed some stereotypes we have about fairy tales. The stories, for one thing, had more women characters who stood up for themselves, rather than being damsels in distress. Another thing was the maturity of the stories. I don't really think all the stories there would be easily understood by children. And, as I said about "The Warlock's Hairy Heart", they destroyed the idea that all fairy tales have happy endings.

Here, I want to share the summary of "The Warlock's Hairy Heart", but it's better to read the whole story in the book. I got this from the Harry Potter Wiki site:

"The main character is a handsome, skilled and rich young warlock who sees emotions as a weakness, and decides to prevent himself from ever falling in love by using the Dark Arts. The Warlock is deluded and he believes himself to be envied for his splendid and perfect Solitude. This makes him all the more upset when he over hears two Servants talking about him. One Servant is taking pity on him, and the other Servant is making fun of him for never having a wife. The Warlock decides to find a beautiful, talented and wealthy woman, so that he is envied by all.

The Warlock meets this woman the very next day. The women is fascinated as well as repelled by the Warlock, but agrees to attend a feast at his castle. The Warlock attempts to flatter the young woman, but she confronts him saying that she would only believe these lovely words if she thought he had a heart. So the Warlock takes her down to the dungeon of the castle and shows her a magic crystal casket, within which lies his own beating heart.

Due to the fact that the heart has been parted from its owners body for so long, it has become shriveled and hairy. The women ask him to put the heart back inside his chest and so he does. The women is so pleased that she runs forwards and embraces him. The heart however has become horrible in the long time that it has been separated from the body, and the smell of her hair as well as the beauty of her skin pierced it.

Other guests who had been attending the feast, were beginning to wonder where their host was. So they searched the Castle and eventually found him in the dungeon. The Warlock was sitting crouched over the woman, caressing and licking her heart, while she lay dead with her chest cut open. He was trying to swap her heart with his, however his heart was strong and would not allow it. The Warlock did not want to be controlled by his heart so he cut open his chest and ripped it out.

For a brief moment the Warlock was victorious as he held a heart in each hand, before he fell over the woman and died."

If you like that, then what's wrong with you?! That's a very sad story! And the moral was all too important: never ever shun away love, because you'll end up a dark man. As Dumbledore so rightly says, "to hurt is as human as is to breathe."

Now, if you are fascinated by the story, you can check out the other stories in the "Tales of Beedle the Bard." It's so different from the HP series, but it is a wonderful book.

A word of caution, though: this book is not for the faint-hearted and for the immature.

Twilight survey from Ashley

2008-12-06T04:13:00.000-08:00

I got this survey from Ash.

Team Edward or Jacob?
- Team Edward, of course. Vampiric, I am in nature.

Vampire or Werewolf?
- I just said it. Vampire. I am more cold than hot.

Live forever with the one you love even though its not safe for them, or leave them thinking its for the better?
- I would not leave anyone I love. I'm weak that way, sorry.

Favorite Twilight character(s)?
- Marcus!! He's the best among the Volturi. 'Cause he's inactive most of the times. Plus I like his power.

Least favorite Twilight character?
- Victoria. In the same league as Bellatrix Lestrange. Grr...

Favorite couple?
- Obviously Bella and Edward. 'Nuff Said.

Least favorite couple?
- Amun and Kebi. Bunch of nobodies.

Would you rather have super strength, super speed, or read minds?
- Super speed. I can already read minds.

Favorite Edward "trait"?
- His respect for other people's privacy in their thoughts. Cool.

Who do you like better? Female Twilight characters, or male?
- Why segregate??

Favorite book in the series?
- Eclipse. I especially liked the vampire-werewolf alliance.

Least favorite book in the series?
- New Moon. Not much of Edward.

Do you like the romance or the action better?
- Action. Too much romance.

Favorite line or passage from the books?
- The whole scene in Breaking Dawn where they confront the Volturi.

What do you think of the movie?
- Touching, actually. I love the part where Edward is sucking out the venom from Bella. Heartjumping.

Do you think Edward is dangerous?
- Yeah. Hands down.

Dracula or Edward?
- Dracula is a boob. Edward, of course. Though I would like Carlisle better.

Do you want to kill James?
- He's dead already. What's the point?

Alice or Bella?
- ALICE!! She'd pimp my room for the heck of it!

Who do you think is the sweetest Twilight boy?
- Ben. He didn't care if he's smaller than Angela. He still loves her anyway.

What do you think of Bella?
- Masochist. Like me.

Would you want to be a Vampire?
- I am! Makulit, oh...

Who would be you're sister?
- Alice nga!

Who would be you're brother?
- Emmett. No one will bully me anymore!!!

I come back with a TAG.

2008-12-06T03:25:00.000-08:00

When was the last time I posted??

I dunno, but I'm not concerned bout that anymore. I will just blog...

Gen tagged me, so here goes.
RULES (or, so how I remember them.)

1. Each blogger must post this rules
2. Each blogger starts with ten random facts/habits about themselves
3. Bloggers that are tagged needs to write ten things about their selves and post these rules . you need to choose ten people to get tagged and list their names .
4. Don`t forget to leave them a comment telling them they`ve been tagged and to read your blog .

TEN RANDOM FACTS AND HABITS ABOUT ROWAN ZURICH:
1. I usually sing in echo-ey rooms, such as the bathroom, the speech lab, and cliffsides.
2. I do not eat bagoong, gravy, and patis.
3. Heights creep me, but my dad is a pilot.
4. Dunkin' Donuts over Mister Donuts
5. One of my "before I die" goals is to go to all the Disneylands in the world.
6. I never ever get tired underwater, but when I get out of the water, I go clumsy.
7. I am a sociologist by nature.
8. I am a BS Development Communication student who wants to get Math electives.
9. I will graduate college at 19 years old.
10. I normally lose pens 2 weeks after I aquire them.

I tag CJ, Eira, Mabu, Ms. Anne, Jerome, Danna, Joyce, Cheewee, Donn (if he's still alive in blogspot), and Abby.

Timeline by notes, chords, and compositions

2008-11-22T17:21:00.000-08:00

Music is a very accurate recording of how society changes.

How many times have we heard pop, rock, and R&B music? We grew up listening to Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, and Spice Girls. Now, these musical icons are somehow extinct to a point, replaced by a wider array of music variety, like Busta Rhymes, Vannessa Carlton, Jason Mraz, and, in my case, Miley Cyrus. But did we even listen to older musical groups and singers? Ever heard of Earth, Wind, and Fire, Abba, Toto, BeeGees, and Michael Jackson (with the King of Pop, of course you have)? Have you crooned to the melody of the Swing-Out Sisters, Basia, and The Carpenters?

I'm a newbie musician/songwriter/full time music lover. That's why I could document these things. History is actually unfolded in music. Yesterday, today, and more probably tomorrow is pockmarked with tones and melodies which will actuate each generation.

It's just sad that our taste for music is slowly deteriorating. In the past, songs like "Guilty", "Achy, Breaky Heart", and "Heal the World" amuse, educate, and mobilize people to make a change in positive means and lyrics. Nowadays, hiphop, punk, and dirty rap are genres which invade people's minds and pollute the young ones with nasty words and stupid rhymes. What happened to "Heal the World"?

Good thing some singers are remaking old songs. I applaud the Filipino bands who remade the songs of Apo Hiking Society. They made the vintage songs more understandable by younger people. Now teens like me are jammin' to old tunes while reveling in our own generation environment.

Here's to responsible song composition!!!

3 weeks of Internet deprivation will leave one surprisingly crazy.

2008-11-15T19:45:00.000-08:00

I really don't like Destiny cable anymore.

For 3 straight weeks, smack exact on my sembreak, MY INTERNET PROVIDER SHUT DOWN!!! They had a problem with one of their servers, and, well, that means not having Internet or cable for the whole sembreak!! Talk about rotten luck.

So, a lot of things happened and I guess you'll have to bear with me as this post gets long.

Ok, on second thought, I'll keep this as short as possible. I don't have that much time to write a super-long entry.

I'll just leave you to guess what happened in sembreak.

Another award thingy? Well, thanks!

2008-10-13T01:16:00.000-07:00

Aiee. Another one of these awards. I like it! Merci to Chiui again!! You must really like my blog...

Oh, there are rules in getting this award.

RULES:
Put the logo on your blog. (Already did that.)
Add a link to the person who awarded it to you. (Did that, too)
Link 10 other bloggers whom you wanted to share this award to.
Give a reason why you consider that person’s blog cool. (Okeydokey then)

Ms. Anne - her blog has the possibility of becoming a book!!
Jorge C. - for the extremely honest posts. More honest than mine, right Chiui?
Jerome - for his dedication on the search for truth! Ask on, Master Agnostic!
The JBnoys - because they contaminated me with JB fever. Although I like it. =)
Butch - very amusingly intellectual in a way. Haha!!
Danna - duh! First blogger I've ever met? She made my first blog's layout.
Abby - fellow Twilight fan! NOTE: you get this award if you answer this question on my cbox honestly: Vampire or werewolf?
Mabu - because. That's all. Haha! Intrinsic, people.
Karl - more on the photos than the blog. He's real good.
Donn - for making that simple effort of making a blog, placing one post, and leaving it like that forever! My goodness, Donn! Ba't gumawa ka pa ng blog?

There, my reasons. I'm outta here. Two posts a day is plenty already.

Nationalism, my friends, is a noble effort.

2008-10-13T00:41:00.000-07:00

Yung title lang muna ang Ingles para sa pahayag na ito. MagTaTagalog muna ako ngayon, para sosyal. Kahit nung isang buwan pa ang Linggo ng Wika, may naisip ako na ngayon ko lang natanto (eto ang totoong nosebleed!)

Magkwekwento ako ng isang istorya na nangyari sa klase namin sa SOSC1 nung isang linggo. Kami ay may diskusyon tungkol sa moral na dilihensya (moral dilemma yun, di'ba?). Biglang nagtaas ng kamay ang isa naming kaklase na medyo tambay ang dating. Nagulat kami nung nagdisscuss (Sorry, I really can't keep myself from English. Pardon me for using Taglish) siya sa Ingles! Lahat kami, nagsasabing "Ouch, nosebleed! Grabe, biglang banat si Sega, sosyalero pala 'to eh!" Pero bigla akong napaisip.

Tinanong ko si Sir Mos, ang aming propesor sa takdang iyon, kung bakit ganoon ang mga Pilipino. Bakit kapag nagsasalita ng Ingles ang mga tao, iisipin nating sosyal sila o laking aircon people? Pero 'pag nagtatagalog, parang wala lang?

Nawalan na ba tayo ng puso sa sarili nating wika? Nagpasukob na ba talaga tayo sa kolonyalismo?

Sinabi ni Sir Mos, na kaya ganoon ang Pilipino dahil tayo nga ay sinakop dati ng mga Amerikano, at hanggang sa ngayon, tingin natin ang estado nila ay mas mataas kaysa sa atin (kahit ngayong may recession sa US at humihina ang ekonomiya nito). Kaya kung nagagaya natin ang kanilang mga ginagawa, baka kung sakaling matulad tayo sa kanila. Pero hindi ako at si Sir Mos sang-ayon doon. Sabi ni Sir Mos, dapat makamit natin ang panahon kung saan magiging proud tayo sa sarili nating wika at bansa. Dapt magkaroon ng panahon kung saan kapag ika'y nagtagalog, ika'y sosyal.

Ang sabi ng manunulat na si Bob Ong, sa kanyang librong "Stainless Longganissa" na kakatapos ko lang basahin, tayong mga Pilipino ay may barok English. Mali-mali ang pagkabigkas at parang bulol. Pero ang mga Amerikano daw, may Thig-alog. Kung magsalita, parang ganito: "Eyno bah eytoung geynagahwa ney Rowan? Eyng weird..." Kitams? Pinagtatawanan din pala natin sila dahil ganoon ang pagsalita nila.

Dapat makamit natin ang panahong iyon, na ang mga Amerikano naman ang ma-nosebleed sa pagbigkas ng wikang Pilipino. Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!!

FIRST SEM CAPPER- Part 1

2008-10-10T08:52:00.000-07:00

I'm a real lazy blogger. Too lazy sometimes.

It's been five months since my first step on UPLB. And a lot has changed since then. Yep, a lot.

You guys don't even know what happened! So, as a celebration of the start of sem break, I'll tell you everything that's happened to me since June 15 until now. Or maybe I'll start from the real beginning. I don't know how many installments this blog entry will have, for I cannot finish it now with one measly post. So let's start with the real beginning: the realization.

January 11, 2008. The University of the Philippines College Admission Test (UPCAT) results were released online. I just came home from my usual appointment at the barber's shop, when my sister Holly greeted me with the words "Kuya, pasado ka sa UP!!" She was really ecstatic at that point, to the degree that I was also that excited myself, but then her libido lowered when she continued "pero, sa Los Baños."

Those last words didn't dampen my excitement. Who cares if I go to a farther away university? I PASSED, for goodness sake! They said only 1 out of 10 applicants get in. I'm going to the UNIBERSIDAD NG PILIPINAS, LOS BAÑOS!

I am taking BS Development Communication. At first, Mom and I thought its aim was "to develop how we communicate". After 5 months of intense training in DEVC10, though, I learned that it is the other way around. Development communication is

"...the art and science of human communication applied in the speedy transformation of a country and its mass from a poverty to a dynamic state of economic growth, to make possible greater social equity and the development of human potential" -Nora Quebral, the first professor to coin the term.

In other words, we communicate to produce development. Anyways, that made me psyched up for the years ahead of me.

My happiness intensified when I got another letter from UPLB, saying that I'm qualified to take the Advanced Placement Exam (APE). I guess I've mentioned it here in this very blog already. That means I don't have to define what APE is again.

Too bad, I didn't pass any of my APEs. The'yre too hard.

Then again, I had a three-day preview of what's it like in the campus. I saw the buildings, the fields, and those all-important bulletin boards (they're almost always full). I felt a weird sensation, somewhat a kick in the stomach, although it wasn't painful. It's maybe a concrete manifestation of being "blown away." Right then and there, I knew, I was stepping into a higher level in my life.

Before I get to the soft, tasty marshmallow center of the choco-mallow named "college", I had to go through the aluminum foil package known as "registration and enrollment". Yup, it's the nightmare of every student and parent alike. Going to and from the university registrar and the admin building under the hot sun, while trying to squeeze through people cutting in lines and stuff is very very frustrating. Good thing we didn't take long, since we moved fast (there's no stopping Mom from getting out of the heat. Haha!)

I'll continue in another part. It's too long to fit in just one entry. You'll get tired of reading. So, anyway, just keep tuning in for the rest of the story.

Rowan out.

Lookit! My sched for next sem!!

2008-10-04T02:43:00.000-07:00

Whoa. First semester's almost over. One (or one and a half) week to go!

I was bloghopping, and I saw in one post in Danna's blog mentioning that their sembreak's almost come. Well, our last day of classes is scheduled on Oct. 10, which is incidentally UPLB Loyalty Day, so I guess there's not much classes then. Still, prefinals are coming!

In UPLB, there's an online registration system called SystemOne. It's where you register for your subjects for next semester. I've been warned that, in SystemOne, there's a race in getting slots for each subject. So it's a good thing I got complete subjects already. Here's my tentative sched:

MONDAY
NO CLASSES!!! I LOOOVE MONDAYS!!

TUESDAY
7:00AM - 8:30AM SPCM 1 - Speech Communication
10:00AM - 11:00 AM ECON 11 - General Economics
2:30PM - 4:00PM NASC 7 - Animals in Human Society
4:00PM - 5:00PM ECON 11 - General Economics (recitation class)

WEDNESDAY
8:30AM -10:00AM HUM 1 - Literature, Man, and Society
10:00AM - 11:00AM DEVC11 - Introduction to Mass Media Writing
11:30AM - 1:00PM NASC 5 - Environmental Biology
4:00PM - 7:00PM DEVC 11 - Introduction to Mass Media Writing (recitation class)

THURSDAY
same as Tuesday, but without the 4pm recitation class on ECON 11

FRIDAY
same as Wednesday, but witout the grueling 3-hour recitation class on DEVC 11

I really don't like Wednesdays. My classes last until 7pm! Oh come on!! DEVC 11 recitation class goes fo0r 3 hours straight!! It's a good thing my dorm is just a minute's walk from CDC...

On the other hand, I like the distribution of breaks. Ample 3 hours everyday, and I get to go home earlier on Fridays. Whoopee!!

Ah, sembreak, when art thou cometh?

The 2008 Christmas Wishlist is here!!!

2008-09-28T11:20:00.000-07:00

Yeah, it's almost that time of the year again. Christmas is the merriest time of the year. That's why I put the countdown in already.

As I told you last year, I create a wishlist to get me clear on what I want to get for Christmas. It also comes as a shoutout to you guys so that if you ever will give me a present, you might as well give me one of these. I've also experienced that when i actually list something in a wishlist, it's bound to come to me. As an example, last year, I put in my wishlist these things. They actually came to me or happened!

1. a reunion for my Grade 6 class

- happened last summer, twice! My classmates were actually planning for it for ages! we went swimming in the second reunion, just before college classes start.

2. Marvel Ultimate Alliance for PSP

- got it on my Memory Card. It's actually that easy to download games! Much cheaper, too.

3. PS3

- Dad had the initiative to buy one when he went to China. Of course, I was flippin' out! We use it to watch movies (Blu-Ray DVDS!), play games (my games for now are Grand Theft auto IV and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare).

4. new shoes

- I did get new shoes, a pair good for badminton, and a cool one for walking.

5. Memory Stick Pro Duo 4GB

- Actually, Dad gave me his, so that I can download games. I got Tekken: Dark Ressurection, Marvel Ultimate Alliance, Yugi-Oh GX: Tag Team Battle, and Traxxpad on it. I also have tons of cool songs and three movies (Ghost Rider, Alvin and the Chipmunks, and The Simpsons Movie) in it.

6. new glasses

- I actually wore contact lenses for a while, but it was only for three months.

7. to see ALL my cousins again

- I got to see them in our house blessing! After that, we saw more of them. This Christmas, my cusins from the US are also coming home, so there's gonna be more partying and such!!

8. the third book of the Inheritance Trilogy, Brisingr

- I don't have the book yet, but if you actually read my wishlist last year, you'd see that I wished for Christopher Paolini to finish it. Well, he did! I'm still saving up for it.

9. superpowers

- well, I only found out about this recently. Actually, it's not really what the norm of a superpower is. I gained the ability to see auras on people, depending on what mood or psychological temperament they're in. I'll blog about it more next time. Note: I am not kidding, folks.

10. the love of my life to love me as well

- not exactly what I had in mind, because I realized I was aiming for the wrong girl. There's a new one right now, and I'm rather positive that she slightly likes me (RAI - Ignore Rowan. He's just flattering himself. Caught up in his daydreams again, I guess).

Well, I'm making a new wishlist right now! Here's the top ten for my Christmas wishlist for 2008:

10. rolls of aluminum foil

For the record, I'm not doing drugs. As most of you know, I make foil figures, right? Maybe this is the cheapest gift I ever wanted.

9. MP3 Player

I don't want to continue borrowing Cyra's MP4. Get's me under her thumb.

8. Iron Man game for PS3

Since Tekken 6 for PS3 isn't out yet, I would want this one.

7. a chance to meet Will Smith

I turned into a big fan of Will Smith over the years. Loved his movies: Hitch (still remains as my favourite movie EVER), Pursuit of Happyness, I Robot, and his latest ones The Legend and Hancock. I would want to interview him... "Sir, what's it like to be a deranged superhero?"

6. WX1 Bloc Outing

Hey, we've been a tight-knit group since the start of classes. Let's not stop on bloc parties! Let's go out the boundaries of UPLB and get some ocean on us!! Or maybe we'll try climbing up Mt. Makiling again...

5. The whole Twilight series

I don't care what haters say. I love Twilight! Got New Moon? Eclipse? Breaking Dawn? I need to read them!! And please no spoilers (this means you, Eira and Ashley).

4. Brisingr

This ain't really a wish, since I'm already saving for it, but on the off chance I choose to buy the Twilight series first, this would be a wonderful gift for me. I waited for a whole year for this book to come out, you know!

3. my own camcorder

Camera/videocam, please!! I want to pursue vlogging! Besides, I'm getting tired of just typing. I want pictures on my blog!!

2. my own laptop

So that I can blog in UPLB! Plus, I won't have to go to computer shops to use the Internet.

1. a girlfriend

Duh! Everyone wants one! Sheesh, you have to ask why?

For now, that is all I'm wishing for. Maybe in the coming days, the list might be altered. Still, feel free to get me one of these.

"I'm dreamin' of a white Christmas..."

I'd like to thank the Academy!

2008-09-28T10:58:00.000-07:00

Wow, an award? For me? For my blogging? Well, that's new. Thanks, Chiui!

Why do I feel I should make such a big deal out of this? I dunno, maybe it's because my blog's birthday's coming up. Or maybe because this blog's been helping me vent out all (okay, just some) of my troubles that can't fit in my head (yeah, three brain entities mean more space, but we can't cooperate with each other! Rai and Ryan are hoggin all the space!!). So, to Chiui, and to whom this award passing thing started, I thank you.

Now, I gotta pass this to 8 more bloggers, but since I don't know tha t many bloggers, I've included fansite modulators (yes, I know, it's obvious).

The Blog Awards go to....
Ms. Anne
Chicca
Danna
The JBnoys
Abby
Genissa
Butch
Jerome

I'll put a new post in, say, an hour.

Rowan on dancing, blog layouts, and updates on Farrellion

2008-09-21T07:35:00.000-07:00

Ah, Sunday evening. Again, I'm squeezing every possible time I can have before I go back to Los Baños tomorrow. And what better way to get a sense of fulfillment than to blog on my almost-one-year-old blog!

Speaking of blog birthdays, a very happy birthday to Notes of An Abrupt Mental Diarrhea, Ms. Anne's blog!

Anyways, remember one of my first posts? The one where I seeked for help in getting a layout for this wordbattle arena? Well, I'm raising that alert again. Please, if anyone can make me a layout for this blog, please contact me through the chatbox or email me. Need serious and professional help here, people. I want to treat this blog on its first birthday, since it's the only one that lasted for more than a month!

Ever since I saw the movie Step Up 2: The Streets,

Where'd Jenna Dewan go? Sure, Channing Tatum had a cameo, but why didn't he stay for the whole movie?

and the videos of ACDC versus M&M Cru With a U,

I've been dancing a lot. Yeah, I've tried to breakdance as well, but I fear that I might break my neck. Still, my sisters are really noticing that everytime I play upbeat tunes on the computer, they would see me poppin', lockin', and droppin' (Normally, it's Kuya TeeJay's thing, but I wanna do it, too!). Even in my dorm, when Betong isn't home (which is, well, almost all the time) and Amiel and Kuya TeeJay aren't in the room, I go dancing. And it doesn't stop there! Sometimes, my blockmates and DEVC10 classmates would catch me freestyling in class, sometimes even without music. Yup, too much sugar (and too much of The Streets) can do this to you.

Next, Farrellion is improving greatly! I've created three new c0ncepts: the Nazhering, the Dragumanes, and the Spirit Minotaurs.

The Nazherings are gigantic dragonflies. They are mostly pets of the Irmvazhen. I've noticed that dragonflies appear everytime it's gonna rain (thanks to Mikki!). They act as weathermen to the Irmvazhen. When there's rain, there's heavy clouds. Heavy clouds mean not much moon exposure. No moon means no strength to the Irmvazhen. The Irmvazhen use these gigantic creatures as steeds when they need to conserve their strength or when they need to fly. That's why the D'Goustax Empire does its best to destroy them, since the Irmvazhen would be disabled without them.

The Dragumanes are extremely rare people (yes, they're humaniod sometimes). They are actually a subrace to the Irmvazhen. They cannot go through lycanthropy until they're 25 years old. On their 25th birthday, they immediately transform not into werewolves, but into weredragons. They're really rare for three reasons: some Irmvazhen cults kill them because they are deemed as curses to the clan, they have very weak biological resistance to diseases, and they are well-hidden. One of the main characters (I'm not gonna say if he's on the good or bad side) is a Dragumane.

The Spirit Minotaurs are rare beings. One Spirit Minotaur lives in extremely hard-to-reach places (most likely a dangerous place). When you do find one, he will become your personal servant, and he will grant you three wishes (yes, like genies). A word of caution, though: once you reveal to others that you found a Minotaur, you'll become a minotaur yourself, and you have to live in a place harder to reach than the place where you found your Minotaur. Minotaurs are also sneaky; they actually will try to kill you, had it not been for their incapability of free will. Still, they have to do your every bidding.

I'll provide scans of Mikki's sketches of these characters next time. Right now, I have to sleep. Au revoir, arrivedencci, auf wiedershen. Rowan Out.

You have got a lot to explain, mister.

2008-09-16T22:43:00.000-07:00

Hey, I just realized something. My blog is almost one year old!! Can you believe that? On December 1, it will exactly be one year old.

In the period of two weeks, a lot has happened. Why is that??

First of all, I qualified for the finals of Magniloquence: the Iskolar ng Bayan Speaks! It's an impromptu speaking competition held by the UP Rhetoricians. I passed the elimination (big whoop), but now, I'm going to the big event!! Scary, actually, when I stop and think about it.

Second, we went on a fieldtrip to, well, Bay, Los Baños for DEVC10. We got to experience being rice farmers (thanks to Tatay Doro!), we trekked Mt. Makiling barefooted (the mud was unbelievably slippery on our feet!), and we DEVC10-Y people bonded a lot on the whole trip (killer killer!!). Here are some pics:

Here's the rice field we went to. Butch, may ahas dyan!!!

Kuya Linus, me, and Joseph. Three of the rare guys in DEVC10!! Karl, where you??

Listening to Tatay Doro. Did you know that farmers like them only earn Php 30 a day? That was shocking.

Sandy, Ynik, wait up!! I wanna go there too!!

You can check out the other pics in my Friendster profile.

Third, we got a new episode of R.E.M.S.!! It's still in Mini-Stop, though. We weren't able to go to the Layb. But still, we got a glimpse at the new dance craze: the Sandy Dance!! I'll create another post for that.

For now, this is all I'm saying. I'll create new posts maybe next week, or possibly tomorrow night. Rowan out.

R.E.M.S. episode: Mini Stop! The Math11 aftermath...

2008-09-06T06:04:00.000-07:00

Wow. In less than one month, I got to post! My mojo's coming back!! Hooray!!

Actually, this ain't a real post. This is just

EPISODE 1: Mini-Stop! Math11 Aftermath(?)

I promised you more pics of Eira, Sandy, and, more importantly, Mikki, here. So there you go!

Eira, Sandy, Mikki, and me!

Scribbles we did in Mini-Stop. Hey, that's my Math11 paper!!

First off, Mikki! Kasi wala kang main pic sa friendster eh...
MIKKI: "D'oh! Wrong flavor of ice cream!"

Here's Mabu, lookin' all bored and stuff.
SANDY: "My ice cream's getting boring."

And Eira! Really, it's a habit of hers to raise one side of her shoulder when she's photographed.
EIRA: "Hey, I'm not gonna give you my ice cream! Make me!"

and of course, me. No ice cream.
RYAN: "Hey, where's MY ice cream?!"

Yeah, we were just foolin' around at Mini-Stop, because it was after the Math11 mock exam. As usual, we all had ice cream.

NEXT EPISODE: The Layb!

Updates on Farrellion and The Tuesday and Friday Quartet

2008-08-25T06:23:00.000-07:00

How 'bout a round of applause, first?

NOTE: To all you haters out there, who just disrespect my blog, STOP PUTTING STUPID COMMENTS ON MY CBOX!

Yeah, a new post at last. Never have I spent more time away from my precious blog. I dunno, my mind is so preoccuped with other mundane things in college, so the good ideas get jammed among them. It's comparable to the hustle of trying to exi from an MRT station.

So, how did an idea get out? Well, an inside force pushed the blockage out, like a cork flying off a wine bottle. That, my friends, will not be mentioned yet in this blog (because I'm unsure of this feeling, and nothing can be set as stone. Confusing?).

Anyway, to the topic.

I can't believe my good fortune here in UPLB. I now have an illustrator for my book, Farrellion: Legacy! Mikki so kindly volunteered to transform my ideas into pictures. So far, he's updated the logos for the D'Goustax and the Irmvazhen. He also visualized the final look for Kiarra and Oscar!! For those of you who don't understand anything I'm saying, boohoo. You'll have to wait until I finish the book if you want a full understanding of my babbling.

Another nice thing is, well, the friends I've been making in here. They say that no man is an island, no matter how big they are. Every sponge needs a star (most likely, a pink one). Check out my three pink stars right now. We're virtually inseparable on Tuesdays between 2:00 to 4:00 pm and on Fridays between 8:00 to 11:00 am (haha, we have schedules. That's why we sometimes call the others "scheduled friends")

Seriously, did she just wake up in this picture?

Eira, the Twilight girl who bit me, so that's why I'm hooked too. She's the first one of the three who I met. Oh yeah, and she's the Jonas fan. That's why we get along so easily. It's really funny how we met. I was lined up in the Freshman convocation parade, singing a Hannah Montana song to cheer myself up, then suddenly she started singing with me. Believe me, I was dumbstruck. I wanted to know her more, 'cause she's the first one I met who understands my "star crush" (no, not Patrick. Oh you know what I mean!) Turns out she's a blockmate of mine. She even gave me Hannah Montana 3D glasses, the one I searched for to watch the 3D concert. Trouble is, when she gave it to me, the screening is over. Aww...

As I said, she's a TRUE BLUE (even if it's in red font) JONAS FAN. Check out this website, which she co-owns: www.jonasbrothers.ph. That's why she has many connections...

Emo hair? But even though the pic is inverted, she still looks cute.

Sandy, whom I sometimes call Mabu (short for mabuhangin), a fellow happy-go-lucky weirdo (and I mean that in the best way). She's kinda like Kiarra, even with the hair. See, she also inverted this pic. She's one of the nicest people I've met here. I don't really remember how we met. But then, we ARE blockmates, too, so I guess it was in our first block meeting... Oh yeah, and her signature clothing? Yellow pants. She was the first one I saw who wore it, though now many girls in UPLB wear the same yellow pants. Yeah, she's a trend setter.

One thing which she said which disarmed me, she said once when we were hanging out in Mini-Stop. She said, "Ui, ang galing, ang ganda pala ng eyes ni Ryan." I was like, "Really? Thanks." I was surprised someone would even notice my "beautiful" eyes...

Hey, I know what you're thinking. Don't think like that. She has a boyfriend.

Hey, this ain't him! If only he had a real picture in his Friendster profile...

Mikki, my illustrator and brainstorm partner. He draws real good, speaks real good English (like me), and argues real good. He's like Vincent, only older. He's a graduate of UP Rural High School, so expect him to be really smart. We have so many things in common, such as a like for playing Battle Realms, storymaking, storytelling, and drawing (obviously, he's better. I draw like a dope.) I spend a lot of time with him, since, of the three, his schedule is most likely to agree with mine.

These four are real good friends of mine. We hang out a lot in Mini-Stop, the 24-hour sanctuary of UPLB students. We all love ice cream, love the Twilight series, are BS DevCom students (we are in the same block. Duh.), and share some other traits that are too numerous to enumerate (okay, that was confusing).

So, for now, I'll leave it here. I'll post new, decent pictures of these three (especially Mikki, since he's the only one without a pic here...) next time, whenever that is. For now, chow!

A survey (at least for the sake of something to post). Enjoy.

2008-08-10T09:53:00.000-07:00

I can't organize my thoughts clearly right now, so I can't create a decent paragraphic post, so here's a survey I fetched in Friendster from my great ex-adviser, Ms. Anne.

--LAST--

1. Book you read?
- Twilight by Stephenie Mayer

2. Song you listened to?
- (oddly) Burnin' Up by the Jonas Bros.

3. Person that texted you?
- Tita Maricar, with her usual quotes of inspiration

4. Person that you texted?
- Aika. Is there anybody else?

5. Person that called you?
- Mom (wow. surprising..)

6. Last thing you said out loud?
- KAINIS! (nakopya ko na yata kay Danna..)

7. People you were in the car with?
- Dad, when he was driving me to LB.

8. Thing you regret you did?
- Not regretting that I did not do what I wanted to do when I was almost doing it. Gets?

9. Happy thought?
- that no one can read my mind. bwahahahaha!!
10. Thing thatupset you?
- Math. No offense, and I don't intend to brag, but can't it be a lot more complicated?! It's too easy, to the point that it's boring.

--CURRENTLY--
1. Listening to?
- That Green Gentleman by Panic! At the Disco

2. Mood?
- ecstatic, malevolent, willful, and amazingly INSPIRED. (yet I can't do a simple blog entry.)

3. Thought?
- I should tell her. She asked.

4. Doing?
- Stuff. Lots of stuff. Don't ask me to enumerate.

5. Anything you want to do?
- Go to Men's Dorm (intentions cannot be stated here.)

6. Something you want to say to someone?
- Yes, but I want her to be the first to hear it.

7. Looking forward to anything?
- NASC3 tomorrow. Oh wait, I don't have Nasc3 tomorrow. D'oh!

--Have You Ever--

1. Googled somebody?
- Yup.

2. Who?
- Danna, then myself.

3. Been stung by a wasp?
- Not that I remember.

4. Purposely hurt yourself?
- Haha. Of course. I'm masochistic.

5. Loved 2 people at one time?
- It depends on what the definition of "love" is.

6. Pretended to be someone you're not?
- Sadly, yes. Originality did not strike me that day.

7. Danced around naked?
- Why in the innocent, all-seeing, and all-critical eye of the world will I do that?!

8. Done illicit things in a movie theather?
- what's illicit first?

--Would You--
1. Shave your head?
- I have. It's acceptable naman, since I am a guy.

2. Write your own song and sing it on stage?
- I have, but I never got to the singing part.

3. Travel across the world to be with your loved one for one day?
- Of course. It's automatic.

4. Rather be someone's hero or have a hero of your own?
- Be someone's hero, but I want to be a vampire werewolf (dang, Twilight has really got to me.).

5. Rather lead or follow?
- Lead if no one is idiotic enough to do it.

6. Rather be the brain or the brawn?
- No contest. Brain!

7. Rather be single and alone or in a relationship with someone?
- Be single for a while. There are benefits I can't have without my single status...

Be still, friends. A post will come, when I'm ready. 'Til then, we part!

I'm not holding up these days...but I'm still alive.

2008-08-01T20:01:00.000-07:00

I"m so not keeping up with my blog posts....

For the past three weeks, I've tried composing new posts, but something comes up, so I stop and the ideas I wanted to post fade away into the back of my mind. It will be a miracle if I finish this one.

As you have guessed, college has kept me busy. Real busy. A lot has happened since my last post. You can imagine how much I wanted to say. How much I wanted all of you to know. How much I wanted to brag about UP (yes, my head has swollen a bit).

So, I'll try and keep my ideas flowing this time, and I'll have to cram them all in this single post. I hope you won't get bored, but I'll keep it concise.

First, I'd like to tell all of you that the WRITING OF MY BOOK "FARRELLION" IS NOW OUT OF HIATUS!! I dunno, some giant blockage from my mind got out and my mind is working properly again. There's a negative outcome though....

...I think I'm no longer in love with Miley (GASP!). Everyday, I grow more and more of a fan, that's true, but I am also growing less and less of a lover. As Fermina Daza said in the book "Love in the Time of Cholera", "when i saw you today, I realized that my love for you is only an illusion." I hate to say it, but I was wrong and my friends were right. I am just delusional because of my extreme breakdown when someone hurt me sooo bad.

But then, what made me realize this? Well, I've dropped into an arcane abyss where my fantasy has come true. My eyes saw the epitome of beauty, and my ears heard the sound of galeful laughter, which is music to my ears. I reveled in the presence of a goddess.

Why did I go poetic there? Well, see for yourself. Click here if you want to see what Rowan now regards as beauty.

Oh man, mind blockage. My ideas are too many, they all jammed on the door out!! Continue this, I will, next time.

Evolution: going U.P.!

2008-07-11T10:09:00.000-07:00

Wait, I've used this header before. I dunno where, but I have. Ah, well, with deja vu, nothing is ever sure.

Here's a scary but slightly funny, weirdly cheering, and totally unexpected thought: I'M EVOLVING.

Oh great. Butterflies on my blog. Stupid evolution. Next thing you know, there'll be girls' songs in the background (*winkwink*).

Yeah, I'm going out of my "primitive" self (which, when I think about it, is not really th "metamorphosis" concept) and becoming a new person. My transformation at UPLB is still ongoing, but you can clearly see the changes already.

For example, in the past, you'll never see me in the park chatting with a girl. Well, that's what I did yesterday. I was at the Carabao Park (the park in front of the College of Devcom in UPLB) with Eira and Mikki (he's a guy, though) talking about Disney Channel stuff and Harry Potter. But then Mikki left, so I talked with Eira for a long time alone. She's a Jonas fan, and I'm a Miley fan (hey, I already said this in one of my posts), so we get along well. Then Rut and her blockmate came as well, so intros were done. After that, I had to go to class.

Another example is my time awareness. Before college, I never really pay attention to time, because I do not have to change classrooms between subjects anyway. Now, I have to rise extremely early and walk to my first class, then I have to be conscious about the time so that I could estimate whether I'm running late or not. Attendance and tardiness is such a big thing to these people. Sigh, I just wish I could go back to the time when punctuality is nothing but an aspiration for me.

Yet another change is my "social life". Before, my social life consisted of only Kevon and Brandon, my two bestfriends. Sure, my classmates also became my friends, but I felt uneasy with them (just a little bit). But I never hanged out with most of them frequently. Not like today, for instance. I have a lot of new friends in UPLB now, and I mostly hang out with them during breaks or after school. My blockmates are all friendly, and my classmates from different subjects aren't bad as well.

There's so much that has changed in me since I got into UP. So, the philosophical question for this post:

Am I still Rowan?

From a long hiatus.....

2008-06-28T08:05:00.000-07:00

Whoa, I'm really glad to be blogging again. UP classes, while being fun and interesting, demand lots of my time and work. And what better way to unwind my full-to-brim brain than blogging.

So, here's a summary of what happened to me these past three weeks:

1. I've been formally studying in UPLB for the past three weeks already,

2. I've met new friends (Betong, Dane, Nikos, Butch, Ynic, Eira, Amiel, Kuya Teejay, Kuya Pepito, Lyka, Mariel, Kevin, Joseph, Kuya Dan, Allan, Christian, Jai, Mon, Divine, Pam, Keean (i don't know if that's really how you spell it), Anton, Marc, Aika, Elizelle- should I go on?),

3. I've been to new college classes (MATH 11, NASC 3 (my favourite one so far), HUM 2, PHLO 1, SOSC 1, DEVC10, PE1, LTS 1)

4. I've been living in a dorm in Los Baños for two weeks now.

5. I've seen Miley's "Best of Both Worlds Concert in 3D" without 3D glasses, and seen it in 2D about four times already.

6. I've developed a liking for Jason Mraz's songs.

Dang. I've had such a huge culture shock there. Everything about me really was shaken. My manners, my beliefs, my fandom (Eira is a Jonas fan, and I'm a Miley fan. Go figure), and my reality were tested on the cold, hard conditions of college.

And yet I can't expound on my ideas right now. It's so hard to let them all out. There's so many of them that the way out of my brain is jammed with them. Maybe listening to Miley's songs will loosen my noodle up...

Four Walls

2008-06-16T01:10:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm real bored.

Do you know that I'm now in UP Los Banos? Yeah, but it's pretty boring, because I still hve no classes, and there's nothing to do in my dorm. So I decided to go to an Internet shop and blog.

I downloaded one of Miley's songs on my computer. It's titled "These Four Walls" and I really liked it. Try to hear it (yes, just hear, even though it's on Youtube) here in this link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9bktMJR7rc

Here are the lyrics:

These Four Walls

These four walls

They whisper to me

They know a secret

I knew they would not keep

Didn't take long for the room to fill with dust

And these four walls came down around us

CHORUS:

It must have been something sent me out of my head

With the words so radical

Not what i meant

Now I'll wait for a break in the silence

'Cause it's all that you left

Just me and these four walls again

It's hard now to let you be

I won't make excuses

I've made my peace

Didn't take long for me to lose the trust

'Cause these four walls were not strong enough

(Repeat Chorus)

BRIDGE:

Yeah, it's difficult

Watching us fade

Knowing it's all my fault

My mistake

Yeah, and it's difficult

Letting you down

Knowing it's all my fault

You're not around

(Repeat Chorus)

Mmooohh me and these four walls again

Yeah, it's a sad song. It's dripping with emotion. I can't help but sing along, because the feel is really contagious. It's a lamentation of a girl who was left by her boyfriend because she did something wrong. You can really imagine the pain of the girl. Miley's really revealed the extent of her voice, because I don't know any song of hers where she really belted out like that. Just hearing it makes me want to go to her.

It's amazing how Miley's songs move me. That's one of the reasons I love her. Oh no, I'm getting dramatic again...

I'd better stop now. I'll try to post on weekends, 'cause I'm poofed here in UP.

A stream of unconscious happiness on Friday the 13th...

2008-06-13T04:13:00.000-07:00

A stream of good things kept going on inside my mind. Here are the most significant:

1. I woke up this morning feeling very elated.

2. I did my chores while dancing to the tune of my sister's songs on her MP3.

3. I got inspired to make a song.

4. I thought of continuing to write my long-forgotten love story novel, The Reddest Rose (I said in one post long ago that I wasn't going to continue because of an emotionally lethal thing that happened to me. I'm still not revealing as to why).

5. I felt that I can do anything today.

6. I am just extremely, generally happy.

There's only one reason I could find. Tell me what it is when you hear the details why I felt like this.

REASONS

1. I woke up this morning feeling rather elated (a weirdness in itself, because I normally hate waking up in general) because I had a beautiful dream. I dreamt that Miley was telling me that she's going on a concert tour and has to leave me in California. Yes, it looks bad, but it got even worse when she continued that she's going on February 28, which is my birthday (she doesn't know it yet). Well, I was really sad until my birthday came, because I woke up (in the dream) to find Miley coming into my bedroom with a breakfast tray and singing "Happy Birthday". She then told me that I could come with her on her tour. We kissed before I woke up into reality. Yes, I know, I have an overly active imagination even in my sleep.

2. I did my chores while dancing because I just saw the M&M (MileZ and ManderZ) Cru's new dance battle video that they're putting up against the ACDC. They're AWESOME!!! To check out what I'm talking about, go to http://www.mmcru.com/ or http://www.youtube.com/user/mileymandy?ob=4.

3. I got inspired to compose a song because I've been singing "If We Were A Movie" (a Hanna Montana song) a lot, and I want to make a song as good as that one. "If we were a movie, you'd be the right girl, and I'll be your bestfriend that you'll fall in love with. In the end, we go laughing, watching the sunset. Things go black, show the names, play the happy song..." I'm also downloading Miley's new songs on her new album "Breakout" coming out on July 22.

4. I thought of continuing The Reddest Rose because I wanted my daydreams of Miley to be of some use. How can I brainstorm for a novel if all I could think about is Miley? Put her and all your ideas into a book, then! So, continued it I did.

5. I feel like I can do anything because I just listened to "Life's What You Make It" (another Hanna Montana song) 5 times.

6. I am generally happy because of, well, Miley! She's now my happy and good luck charm. Oh man, my love for her is doing wonders to my life. I can't wait for her to meet me.

..and to think that it's all because of Friday the 13th. It's superstition that this day is supposed to be the unluckiest day of the year, but to our family, it's our luckiest day! We earned money today (from recycling stuff), we had a good time, and Dad just put an Ares Ultra on the computer! Now I can download songs easily!

I can't remember another day when I've been smiling all the time!!!!

If only she knew and appreciated that she's changing my life gradually.... then my happiness would be complete.

So, I'm off to play Super Crazy Guitar Maniac Deluxe 3 on notdopppler.com. It's like Guitar Hero, but it's online.

"You know, there's more to life than watching other people live it."

GGGRRRRAAAAAAWWWRRR!! ("Aslan!! This is my blog! Go back to Narnia with all your monkey shines!!")

2008-06-11T05:41:00.000-07:00

Weeeellll... I'm alone. Hmmmm....

When I was at high school, I used to complain to myself that my classmates were a bungch of bumbling idiots. I really didn't want to be in their company. That changed in fourth year, though. But still, I wanted to get away from them because I feel like an alien among them...

Well, look at me now. I crave for their company. It's horrible knowing that your lifelong friends have started a great climb (college) in their life without you.... and you yourself haven't even started yet. Seriously, how long is my summer going to be?

Anyways, last Saturday, I went to Alabang Town Center and watched The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Boy, it was AWESOME!! Aslan is so awesome, Anna Poppewell (the girl who plays Susan) looks cute (hey, it's just a crush. I'm still in love with Miley and I will always and forever will be!), and the epic war at the end was so grand and fantastic! "I'd give it a two-thumbs up, but I don't wannna let go of my bucket [of popcorn]." -Roxy, Hanna Montana.

SPOILER ALERT!!

Anyways, I couldn't help but notice some aspects in the movie that seems to have come from the Bible. For example, when Aslan breathes life into people. Sounds the sort of thing you would read in Genesis. And the part in the war scenes where that giant water form drowned the Telmarine soldiers. Kinda similar to when Moses led the Hebrews away from Egypt by crossing the Red Sea. The sea parted and made way for Moses and the Hebrews, but they closed on the Egyptians, drowning them. And the water figure seemed to look like Jesus...

Contrary to the Biblical inclinations, the movie is darker and more mature than the last one. The Telmarine invasion, which has great action, is a very intense scene. Taking over Miraz's stronghold was, I can see, hard work. The part where the minotaur fell down while he was opening the gates open was very dramatic. Those poor Narnians....

Now, one character really stood out to me: Susan. I dunno, she makes me feel the same way I feel when I look at Miley's pictures, but at a lower scale. There's a certain yearning inside me that day to skip the scenes where she's not present. It's like I have a crush on her. I even got jealous when Caspian kissed her (scumbag!). Hang on, it's just a crush. I still want MILEY!!!

So, all in all a great movie. Now, I gotta go to bed. Still have stuff to do.

I declare my own future!

2008-05-30T05:08:00.000-07:00

It's really rewarding and nostalgic when I go through the mess in my drawers and cabinets. All those pieces of paper give me memories to treasure, ideas to cultivate, and works of literature that makes me hug them all like a paper puppy--

Wait, what am I saying?! I'm getting mushy from all this paper. Would somebody get me a shredder?

Whoa, Rai just woke up. Sorry 'bout that rude interval (and that stupid, gayish garbage of a starting phrase, thanks to YoGabba Gabba). Now, back to Rowan style....

As I was saying before I was unceremoniously interrupted ("you deserve it, you idiot, you!"), I went through my bookshelves and drawers in an attempt to search for lost ideas that I had when I was creating variuos write-ups for various stories. And whaddaya know? I found this essay wedged inside my copy of 7 Essentials to Highly Effective Teens. (I might have edited some parts of it to include my wants right now.)

Everybody knows Florence Ryan Rayos, or more known as Rowan Xavier Zurich. Ryan has won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2019 for "exuding an entirely different outlook for fantasy fiction", and his famous works, the "Farrelion: A Legacy" series,"Lycanthropy", "The Reddest Rose", "Deathly Still", and " When Sleighs Break Down" are always bestsellers. He is dubbed as the "Modern Mark Twain" and "Prince of Fantasy Novels". He did all this before he even reached 40.

Ryan was born in February 28, 1993, in Trinidad, Las Pinas, Philippines. His parents are Nestor Florente and Billma Rayos. He is the first-born of the three children. His two sisters are Nessel Cyra and Holly Marie.

Ryan showed signs of maturity even at a young age. He was, according to his parents, a very voracious reader. Ryan was always trying to read his mother's Physical Therapy books. This later contributed to his perfection of speech.

Ryan started school at 3 years old. He was accelerated to prep school, skipping kindergarten. At Grade 4, he transferred schools. He had a lot of trouble in Math. Ryan then went to Atheneum Amcan Academy for high school.

It was here where he met his two co-authors and bestfriends, Kevon and Brandon Hartwig. They helped him become who he is today. They also were the first ones to read the poem "Lunar Wolf". He also met Kiarra Vallido, whom he based Kiarra, one of the protagonists in "Farrellion: A Legacy", on.

After graduation in high school, Ryan had to say goodbye to Kevon and Brandon, because they were going to the US. Ryan enrolled in the University of the Philippines in Los Banos, where he took up BS Development Communication.

In college, he wrote the first book of "Farrellion: A Legacy", "First Formation" . It was, as he said, a grueling feat, as he had to balance schoolwork and writing the novel. Surprised his friends were when he graduated Summa Cumlaude of their batch, and managed to get "Farrellion: A Legacy" published.

After college, he moved to the US and got a job at Fox News as a field reporter. His career as a writer, though, blossomed sooner than his career as a reporter. "First Formation" became a bestseller in the US and the Philippines and was awarded a Palanca.

In the US, he got to meet Miley Ray Cyrus, the famous musical and acting prodigy. The two became very close, and Ryan began to write "The Reddest Rose" for her. He recalls that those periods, the ones when he was writing the book with her, were "the most wonderfully magical and most magically wonderful times of his young life". He also got back with the Hartwig Brothers and created the Hartwig-Rayos Association for the Most Creatively Intelligent People (HRAMCIP).

He realized then that being a writer is what he meant to do. He returned to the Philippines and took a teaching job in Ateneo de Manila University. In this period, he was able to write the second book of "Farrellion: A Legacy", "Farrellian Genealogy".

He was able to finish writing the whole "Farrellion: A Legacy" series in 10 years. By that time, he was 30 and already famous. Scholastic Inc. offered to publish the "Farrellion: A Legacy" series.

He contributes his success to his positive thinking. He claims that he visualized himself like this when he was younger, and embedded the image in himself, believing that it will come true. Well, what do you know? It did!

Well, what do you think? I did this essay in 4th year English class, when Ms. D introduced us to "The Secret" (you might be familiar with the book by Rhonda Byrnes). She wanted us to visualize ourselves in the future and create an autobiography.

It's weird how we can really mold our destiny. Like what Virgil from the movie "Minutemen" said, "we live in a world where every minute can make or break a person's future." Imagine what possibilities can happen...

Anyway, I guess I'll stop here. I gotta brainstorm on my Farrellion novel if I want to finish it in college.

COMING UP IN MY NEXT POST: A pseudo-movie review on "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian"!

Rowan in the House! -take 2

2008-05-20T23:30:00.000-07:00

About that last post...

I was about to write about what happened to me last Friday, but I went to play badminton. I rather regretted it, because I had an idea outburst then, and I was eager to post. Ideas rarely flow readily from my mind to be typed. It's amazing what a continuous stream of Hanna Montana and Disney songs do to me...

Speaking of Disney, I guess you're all familiar with Cory in the House?

The Disney channel original series, Cory In The House!

I watch that on Fridays, but I didn't see it last Friday because...

...I was in The Philippine's House myself.

Well, okay, I was in the Philippine President's House, the Malacanang (I can't find the enye character here..).

Here I am, in President Quezon's old chair, which President Marcos also used when he declared martial law. Wow, I look good as a dictator. MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

My dad's office had an idea of going on tour on the Malacanang Palace. We did go around the place, led by our tour guide. The Palace, actually, is not only the home of the President (in fact, I learned that not all Presidents lived there. The law says that Presidents can live there if they wanted to. There are only three Presidents I know so far who didn't live here: Aquino, Ramos, and Estrada) but also a museum, a monument filled with memoirs left by past presidents and our history's prominent figures. Here, fill your curiosity with these pics.

Does this window look familiar? Maybe to the young 'uns, not so much, but this window was where the Marcos family was last seen before they left for the US in the aftermath of People Power 1. Mind you, it looked creepy in real life.

This dude looks rather insignificant at first, but wait 'till you read the name of this bearded Portuguese. Can ya read it? It's on the top left. Oh, alright, it says Hernando De Magallanes. That was his Spanish name, I think. He's known to us Filipinos as the famous expeditioner Ferdinand Magellan, the guy who discovered the Philippines. He also proved that the world is round.

Now, who's that handsome dude (I mean't the picture, dolt)? If you really tried to see that name on the picture, you'll read Cristoval Colon. Yeah, you'll be asking "who's this fruitcake?" Well, the world better knows him as Christopher Columbus, the dude who discovered part of America. He actually landed in America when he thought he was in India. Weird, huh?

Here you see me sitting on a 100-year old chair. There are four of these chairs in this room. Actually, it doesn't look old at all.

Check out these old pieces of paper. These are the first blueprints of the Malacanang. Too bad they're inside a glass case facing the sunlight, 'cause I can't take a pic clearly. See the Spanish design in it, though? Oh, and inside the Malacanang complex, all the houses look Spanish-made. It's like stepping into a portal back to the past (wow, it sounds like a movie promotion).

Lookin' for old books? Well, you can't find these old books in Recto. They are the first-ever printed copies of Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. I assume you know their story? Jose Rizal's masterpieces have their own place in the Malacanang museum. The third picture shows me chillin' with a popular character from Noli Me Tangere, Pilosopo Tasyo. He's obviously smart, but I'm smarter (hey, I ain't the one who's fictional!).

Check out this bust of former Prez Fidel V. Ramos. Looks lifelike, eh? My sisters think it's freaky. I think it's an amazingly brilliant piece of sculpture (it's just a piece, since it's not whole).

Those pics were inside the museum. Now check out the formal halls inside the residencial area itself.

Wait, here is a picture of us in front of the legendary Pasig River. It looks normal in this picture, but if you see it in real life, it's depressing. I mean, we've had about 11 presidents live in the Malacanang, but no one has ordered to clean it up. The smell was unbelievable. Our tour guide said that this part, to smell the unbeareable stench of the Pasig River, was the highlight of our tour. And to think that it's happening in the President's backyard.

This is us in the Heroes Hall. It's below the Rizal Hall, where the big occasions happens. This hall was for semi-formal events. Can't really say much about it, 'cause there's nothing much to say about it.

Now here's me, standing on the stage in the Rizal Hall. It's really cold in there, because the President was there at that moment, having a meeting with the press or something. We actually just sneaked in to get the best of the tour.

So that's my Malacanang escapade. I can now say that I've been in the Malacanang.

Whoa! That was long. It's awesome what a stream of Hanna Montana songs can do to me and my creativity and desire to post.

And now my fingers hurt.

Rowan in the House!

2008-05-20T01:26:00.001-07:00

Wow, I'm so inspired to make a post!

....too bad I can't even start. I'll update this when I'm done with my doings.

Children are the most logical people in the world

2008-05-11T07:19:00.000-07:00

Whoa. What just happened? I think some wizard used a Time-Turner, and that's the reason I feel I'm experiencing deja-vu.

Well, whaddaya know? I'm officially a UP Maroon now! I just enrolled last Friday. I got my class cards, my schedule, and I have my own block now (whatever a block really is, 'cause I can't understand what it really is).

So, I'm all set for my first day in college. Just have to go to the campus tour on June 15. I don't want to get lost over there. The campus is BIG.

Now, on to the topic.

I was watching an episode of Hanna Montana the other day (I keep missing most episodes these days because of my hectic schedule) about Miley trying to keep her secret from her new boyfriend, Jake Ryan, even though the dude's so honest with her. So she's so guilty, that when she read to a class of 2nd graders a story about honesty, she got ambushed by the children's questions.

Children. They are so innocent (well, at least most are) and carefree. They're young, so no one expects so much from them. Technically, under these conditions, they think more of solving problems than complaining about it. They can give you the most obvious answer to a simple question. They're so obvious and simple that we tend to overlook it.

Take the 2nd graders in the Hanna Montana episode I discussed. They asked Hanna if she ever lied, and she was trying to explain how she's put into pressure and is forced to tell lies, so the children deduced that she lies willingly. That's the only answer there is, but Hanna's just making it more complicated. See?

Do you know the story about the Gordian knot? It's about a king named Gordius. He is king of a part of Asia. He tied an intricate knot and declared that the one who could untie it would be the ruler of the whole Asian territory. As it is, Alexander the Great found out about this and went to Gordius. He attempted to untie it, but when he thought that it was impossible to untie it, he cut it with his sword. Gordius and the other people were shocked, because it was so simple, and yet it seemed like Alexander cheated. However, Alexander had too many soldiers for Gordius to argue. Take note that Alexander was younger than 30, which can rather be considered young!

Why is it that older people are less logical than toddlers and kids? It's unfeasible that the weight of their responsibilities is making them throw reason to the winds. That's just scary. That just means that the more responsibilities, the less ability to analyze critically. It just doesn't add up.

I think that children seem to have more logic because they are presented with less things to ake into consideration. Like in algebra, the more variables you consider, the harder it is to solve things. If you work only with x, chances are you will be able to solve the problem easily. But if you solve an algebraic equation with variables x, y, z, a, b, c, or more.

Okay, so maybe the "more responsibility" theory is rather similar, but in essence, they are entirely different things.

I think I've written enough for one night.

Of schedules and Malkou The Dreadmaster

2008-05-07T04:19:00.000-07:00

Whoo! I just came home from badminton. I must say, I'm getting better.

...I think...

I was bloghopping just now when, while looking around her blog, I read Danna's post about how fast summer is flying and how her days seem to follow a certain schedule. She seems bored by how time flies so fast.

Well, whaddaya know? I feel the same way about my days. I really do follow a schedule. It's very easy to follow it. Before this week, here's my sked:

WEEKDAYS (i don't have a schedule for weekends):
some early time in the morning - Waking Up, take a bath, and other morning rituals
8 or 9 am - breakfast
9 to 12 am - I do something (mostly cleaning my room or the house)
12 (sometimes earlier) - lunch
afternoon until 4 or 5 pm - playing PS2 with miggy and nikkoli
4 or 5 pm - we all go to play badminton with Tchako at the nearby badmin court
late (sometimes early) in the evening - come home, take a bath, and go to sleep

I usually try to get home before 9 pm because I want to watch Hanna Montana, but sometimes I lose track of time.

Now, Nikkoli had me update my schedule. He and Tchakosky wanted me to play basketball in the morning (veeeeeeerrrryyyy early, to be almost exact) every M-W-F.

Yep, pretty repetitive. So it's no surprise that summer is speedy.

Oh yeah, writing Farrellion: A Legacy! is still kind of in hiatus. I just can't seem to get myself to write fantasy when I myself am fantasizing (it's obvious what I'm fantasizing about). However, there's an update.

I created a new character, Malkou. He's supposed to be an upset soul (he's not necessarily bad, but I can't say he's good either) who sided with the D'Goustax Empire in the story. He was summoned by Liduen Ersatz to be his "helper". He took the form of a stone (stone, not rock) giant. He's just like a chief evil minion, but we'll (and, by we, I mean you) find out if there's a heart in that soul.

Well, what a sneak peek. I think that's all for now I gonna go sleep...

Elementary reunion! Awesome it was!

2008-05-04T07:12:00.000-07:00

I'm getting less sleep these days. Maybe it's too much sugar. SUGAR RUSH!!!!

Well, I'm an insomniac now. I can't (actually, I won't) sleep much because I'm too busy dwelling on daydreams again. "When will our eyes meet? When can I touch you? When will this strong yearning end? And when will I hold you again?" (that's a line from Barry Manilow's song "Weekend in New England", one of my favorite songs)

Oh, and because of those daydreams, I psyched myself (Kiarra said it's really faith) that I would meet Miley, she would fall in love with me, and we'll live happily ever after(yeah, Rowan, you are sooooo much of a realist)... what a very cheesy and cliche' storybook ending. Why don't princessesin storybooks lose all their riches and become beggars instead?

Anyway, last Friday, I went to my Grade 6 class reunion. I admit, I was really nervous to see my former classmates. Have you ever been real close to a group of people, then be separated from them for 4 years, then meet them once more? It's awkward, really.

[Actually, I've felt worse. Years ago (I can't remember how long it has been)I had a childhood bestfriend named Punggay (For the record, I didn't give her that nickname). We talked a lot, and I was her escort when she won the Little Miss La Naval pageant years ago. I'd say we were very close, but then she and her family moved to Bulacan. Now, after so many years, she moves here in Pasay, where I'm at. It's like she changed or I altered my perception. Imagine seeing a part of your entire childhood in front of you and not even being able to talk to her after a long time. I'll try and make a post about this another day]

So, I got to Las Pinas and went to my old school, Pamplona Elementary School Central. It's a public school, so that's why there are almost 70 students in one section. I used to know all of them, but 4 years can do a lot on your mind. Now, meeting them again, I felt alienated. Scared I was because I might not be able to remember their names.

Well, what was I scared about?! The party was awesome!!! We talked a lot, and we caught on each other. Too bad we were only about 21 (wait, Malaya came late, so we became 22). Here are some of them:

Leah (she's our class valedictorian. the party was at her house. I admit, she lost weight.)

Rachel (salutatorian in our batch. still spunky and really fierce (by fierce, I'm using fashion talk)

Reyanne (she's the one who told me where the party was. i almost didn't recognize her, had it not been for her friendster.)

Angelo (he is my bestfriend in elementary. we even had pet names for each other. I was Owl, he was Snake. Get It? Pet names?? Aww, forget it.)

Angelique (my crush in grade 6. she almost hadn't changed. parang si danna pa rin...pero she still talks to me naman.)

Rodney and Michael (my seatmates, which is unnatural, because there are supposed to be only two people per seat, and we were the only seatmate trio in class)

Ahh, I can't go on. MIND BLOCK!!!! Maybe it's due to that sugar rush...

Anyway, I guess I'll just continue the list in another time. When I remember how to get rid of mind block...

So, we had a blast. We really did miss each other. "To go back into one's past is shocking and unnerving, but for good or for bad matters on the nature of the memory." Weird. We actually wanted to have another reunion, but finding the place to party is so hard. I think we'll postpone this one...

---=^^=--

Darth Amelie tagged me.

So.......should I be scared?? I mean, she is a Sith Lord.

Just kidding, folks. Sheesh, what's a writer to do to get amusement these days?

So, 10 facts about me. Well, I'll put in these:

1. I'm dead afraid of heights, but I like depths (swimming pool deepness, ok?).

2. I think Trigonometry and Calculus are really easy (thanks to Sir Emboy!).

3. I like eating ampalaya.

4. The only online game I've really taken seriously is Neopets.

5. In my 5th grade, I fainted when I saw that my arm was broken.

6. I only watch scary movies in the morning. (actually, I avoid scary movies as much as possible)

7. My favourite movie is "Hitch".

8. I've never seen a ghost in person ever.

9. I am Rowan right now. I am Ryan's alter-ego. I do this blog, while Ryan takes a break in being the main consciousness of my body. While I and Ryan are good, we also have an evil alter-ego, Drakmun. He rarely shows up, but he does when I or Ryan feels frustrated or angry. You wouldn't wanna see him.

10. I LOVE (as in, you know, that love) Miley Cyrus. (hey, everyone knows that)

Well, there it is. Oh, and I tag Kuya Paul, Ket, Danna, oh, what the heck, all the people whose blog is on my linkages.

SpongeBob, Yugi-Oh, and Arctangents

2008-04-27T03:04:00.000-07:00

I've been bored this week. I haven't seen Hanna Montana four times this week. It's lucky I saw it today. And it was my favorite episode (except for Jesse McCartney being all mushy with Miley).

I've been seeing a lot of SpongeBob Squarepants lately. And I never get tired of it! I especially loved one episode where SpongeBob pretended to be dumb for Patrick's parents to appreciate their son...but the parents were fake! Well, what do you expect from Patrick's parents?

Well, I've been

I'm now watching Yugi-Oh GX online. It's the episode "I've Seen The Light". It's where Chazz gets zombified by a guy named Sartorius after he got beaten. Jaden still can't see his cards, and Winged Kuriboh can't reach him.

Since I was in Grade 6, I've been loving Yugi-Oh! Right now, my addictiveness has spread so much. I have the cards, I watch the episodes (I even completed the Capsule Monsters mini series), I play the game (even DungeonDice Monsters and Capsule Monsters), and I even have my own Duel Disk (version 2, as seen in Yugi-Oh season 2, Battle City). My friends share my interest, and we have different Deck strategies. We share knowledges to boost our skills.

I believe that Yugi-Oh is a very educating game. It teaches strategic planning, tactics, and math (we calculate Life Points mentally now). I don't really get why schools ban playing card games in school. Maybe that's why there's a Duel Academy.

I keep thinking about trigonometry. Maybe I'm just missing Sir Emboy and his lessons.....

Well, I have to go somewhere. And GX isn't over yet.

Who wants to be a Superhero?

2008-04-19T05:40:00.000-07:00

Whoopee. An idea. Now that's a first.

I've been in limbo these days. But I found a new way to vent all my frustration. It's called badminton. Every afternoon, Tchako, Nikkoli, Miggy, and I go to the badminton court and play until night.

There's one bad part, though. I suck at it.

Ah, well. That's an idea for another post. Maybe tomorrow.

So, about superheroes. They are fictional characters that have amazing unnatural powers. Here's some of my favourites:

My ultimate favourite ever since I was a kid, Spiderman!! He looks better in the black suit, though.

Ghost Rider, the scariest superhero ever!! "Your soul has been stained by the blood of the innocent. Feel their pain...."

Iron Man! Brandon's favourite superhero, because, as he said, he's the only Marvel Super without real powers!

and Doctor Strange, my fifth favourite sorcerer, behind (in order of rank from highest) Harry Potter, Albus Dumbledore, Gandalf, and Eragon

I was watching "Who wants to be a Superhero?" on Jack TV yesterday, so I got inspired. Stan Lee, the famous narrator of Marvel Comics, is the host.

Hmmm.....

Superheroes. They are, according to Wikipedia, fictional characters "of unprecedented physical prowess dedicated to acts of derring-do in the public interest." The first popular supers were Superman (obviously, because that's where the term superhero may have originated) and Batman from DC Comics. Then Marvel introduced us to other supers, like Spiderman, the Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, and Thor. There are also superhero groups, like the X-Men, Fantastic Four, Avengers, and the Justice League.

Now, my favourite question regarding superheroes: If I were a superhero, what would my name be and what powers would I want to have?

Well, my superhero name is Mage Arcane. I can control the elements of fire, water, earth, wind, and lightning, and I have psychic powers, like telekinesis, mind reading, and invisibility. My real name is, obviously, Rowan Zurich. I'm a foreign exchange student from Philippines, and was transferred to A.C.C.R.O. (it's a school I invented for the purpose of my novel. I won't reveal what the acronym stands for yet). Then one day, a meteor crashed in the school gym while I was in there with my bestfriend, Kyle. The meteor was supposed to have killed us, but we survived. We were hospitalized, and when we woke up, we discovered our powers. I was totally excited about it, but Kyle wasn't. he thought it was a sickness, and cursed the meteor for giving that ailment to him. One day, when we were walking by a bank, it got robbed by masked men. I realized that my powers were meant to save people, so I caught the culprits and put them in jail. Kyle, however, swore that it was his destiny to cure his sickness, and he got to the point where he thought he needed to exploit the sciences to find a cure. He then aspired to rule the world, for only then would the cure come to him: if the world doesn't move without his knowledge. So, he declared himself a villain, and gave himself the name Destructo Mage. I, however, got my Superhero name from my mentor, Dr. Stephen Strange. He taught me how to manipulate my powers to save mankind from evil.

This is all fictional, eh.

Well, whether supers are true or not, we all are, in one way or another. Maybe you've done something noble. That's technically what superheroing is all about.

Anyways, my creativity has drained again, so I'm off to watch Kyle XY on Youtube.

blah blah blah yada yada yada

2008-04-14T21:44:00.000-07:00

blah blah blah blah blah.

Man, I'm bored. Wish Miley was here.

....what a waste of internet cookies and blog writing space.

And so ends another one of Rowan's lamo posts.

That is very spooky...

2008-04-12T08:08:00.000-07:00

WEEEE!! Sir Nicholas de Mimsy Porpington is here!!!

He looks better with the head on...

...and so is Casper!!

Who was Casper when he was alive?

...and the Flying Dutchman!! (hey, why's he not haunting Bikini Bottom?)

"I'll scare Spongebob first, then I'll steal your soul. Wahahaha."

...and Danny Phantom (well, he doesn't really qualify as a ghost since he's part human)!!

Full-time student, part-time ghost hunter!!

Ghosts. People say that the dearly departed haven't really departed yet. Some of them have, but the others have, as live 'uns say, unfinished business on Earth. They cannot rest before all their accounts are in order.

Now, why did I make a post 'bout ghosts? Because I played the Ouija Board last night. Okay, so it was a computer program Ouija board on www.agame.com, but it was fascinating enough to be quite spooky.

So I was playing again just now (actually, I don't know if that was playing) and I was asking a ghost the time she died. She said she died in year 1128 and she died by battle.

It just roused my curiosity of the paranormal world. How did the idea of ghosts come into being? How do ghosts communicate with humans if they're dead? And my main question, which has remained unanswered since I was 5 years old: ARE GHOSTS REAL??

I found this article about how science proves that ghosts are real:

Science and Ghost Hunting

When scientists debunk ghosts their first statement is usually, “there is no scientific proof of the existence of ghosts.” This is wrong. There is scientific proof. Science even has theories that explain something must be happening beyond what we know and what we can see.

Albert Einstein (1879-1955), Time Magazine's Man of the Century and one of the greatest minds the world has known, taught us that energy cannot be created or destroyed. It can only be changed from one form of energy into another form of energy. This means that no matter what is done energy cannot be destroyed.

Human beings have both electrical and chemical energy in our bodies. We are organically designed to carry our electrically charged brain and nervous systems. When we die our chemical bodies begin to break down and decompose. The organic side returns to where it came from - energy changing into a different form of energy as Einstein's law says. So what happens to the electrical energy that flows through our brain? It can't simply disappear or fade away out of existence. That would break the laws of science. That energy has to still be somewhere only now it has changed into a different form of energy. What happens to the energy is really determined by personal faith. No one knows exactly what waits beyond this life. What we do know, thanks to science, is that the electrical pulse energy in each human being will always exist because as a rule it “cannot be destroyed.”

Another great scientist who believed in life after death was Thomas Edison, (1847-1931). Edison was a genius ahead of his time. He invented the light bulb, phonograph, typewriter, electric motor, stock ticker, and 1093 other patented inventions. One of the inventions that he worked on at the end of his career was a secret project, a machine that would let the living see and communicate with the souls of the dead.

Edison believed that that the soul was made up of what he referred to as “life units.” These microscopic particles of life units could rearrange into any form. They retained full memory, personality and were indestructible. Edison's machine would detect these life units in the environment and allow living individual to communicate with the dead. He put many years of hard work into his new creation, but sadly, he died before it was finished. Some called Edison crazy. Others thought that he was onto something bigger than the idea of the light bulb. They believed that if he would have had a little more time, we might all today be living in a very different world.

It's been found that in almost every ghost haunting and poltergeist that there are certain electrical elements at work. Using EMF detectors, ghost hunters can monitor these electrical forces. These devices can examine and record even the smallest fluctuation in the surrounding electromagnetic field. Everything gives off some kind of electromagnetic field, even our own bodies. Electrical appliances, like television sets and computers give off higher distortions than a lamp or a toaster would. When ghosts are present there are higher levels of electromagnetic distortions. Many times the distortions are so high that they interfere with the working abilities of computers systems and audio/video equipment. High levels of static electricity are also detectable.

Recording temperature changes is another scientific way of detecting the presence of ghosts. Fluctuations of more than 10 degrees have been recorded in small areas of rooms with constant temperatures. It's a scientific fact that there has to be some form of energy present to alter the temperature. Temperature does not change unless "something" is affecting it one way or the other. In many ghost sightings witnesses report feeling a cold spot. This could be caused by the fact that light does not seem to reflect correctly off of most ghosts, which also gives them a dark form. The light seems to be absorbed into the ghost. The theory is that ghosts absorb both light and heat energy causing the general area around that ghost to be several degrees cooler. There are also hot spots recorded, which could be just the reverse affect occurring. Instead of soaking up the light and heat the ghost is reflecting it back, causing the area to be warmer.

These unexplainable electromagnetic fluctuations and temperature changes are scientific evidence that something is happening. Ghosts are real.

Freaky. Abnormality is often ignored, frowned upon, and feared today, the era of knowledge and fact. We think we know everything, but this is just inexplicable.

Here's another article I found. But this time, it's disproving the existence of ghosts.

Ghosts are part of the traditions and folklore of all cultures and countries in the world. Most towns (old ones more frequently) own at least one haunted house or ghostly area.

Many scientists who are trained in paranormal phenomena have tried to prove or at least explain in part the reason for the presence of what affected people call "poltergeist" (noisy spirits) and ghosts.

Skeptics basically use the principle of Occam's razor, which states that the simplest adequate explanation for any event is the most likely explanation.

For instance:

-The typical haunted house is an old place with many years out of maintenance, this create creaking sounds, howling noises created by the wind thru open / broken windows, hollow spaces generate eco sounds, deformed shapes or ragged curtains create spectral shadows or shapes, rats can make scary noises.

-A person or group of persons under a stressful situation (i.e. visiting a place where a murder has been commited) can become easily panicked (and panic can be very contagious). When you are in a creepy place, in the darkness and you are stressed your senses (mainly vision and hearing) can be very deceptive.

-If you are in a forest on a Camp, and somebody tells stories about something creepy that happened in that forest, chances are if you stay awake (and if you are alone is worst) you will transform every tree branch on arms and legs, and the wind will be much more like a howl or haunting scream.

Finally, again this question has no answer, BUT I can say that ghost or no ghosts being real, our imagination can be very tricky and can play games with us. If you don't believe this try staying alone at home one night and rent 2 or 3 good horror/suspense movies (i.e. The Sixth Sense, The Changeling and Stir of Echoes), and let me know if you don't start feeling that someone is looking behind you, or something moves in the shadows in the corner of your eye, or something like that. Most of the people I have challenge to do this, do not even finish the first movie and end up knocking my door to stay overnight. And this doesn't mean that they have ghosts at their homes :)

Whether ghosts are real or not, let's just respect the dead. They were alive then, like us now. Who knows? When we die, we'll know.

a blog post title

2008-04-11T05:19:00.000-07:00

That's an example of a working title.

A working title is a temporary title which is used when you're shooting a film. When you're done shooting, you can either retain the title or change it. "High School Musical" was a working title, but it was sooo catchy that they stuck with it.

Anyway, I still don't know what to call this blog post, so I put a working title. Bit silly, really.

So, the APE is over. I scrimped over three days to take that pesky test. Now, IT'S OVER!!! YAYYY!!!

I'm over it. I'm over it. I'm over it.

Sigh. When can I hold you in my arms, Miley? When?? It will happen, right?.It will, if I really think that it will, according to The Secret. All I need is time, hope, patience, and a positive outlook. I have the power to sculpt my destiny. And I want and will have Destiny. Destiny Hope Cyrus. Get it?

Which hair color is best on her: brown, like in this pic, Blonde, when she's Hanna Montana, or red, in the picture in my last post? Well, I pick all of 'em, 'cause she looks best in anything!

Thanks o the Law of Attraction, she'll be mine. But then Brandon told me it only works in logically possible situations...but this IS logically possible.

Thanks to Ms. D, Ms. Del, Kevon, and Brandon for introducing me to The Secret.

Speaking of Kevon and Brandon, they haven't emailed me yet since they went to America. Dudes, don't you want your Parokya Ni Edgar CD back? I can't mail it to you if I don't know your address. Duh. Oh, and Jeanelle misses you, Kevon.

I feel like I'm talking to air.

To all those people who are anticipating the coming of "Farrellion: A Legacy", the writing process is currently on hiatus. Sorry, but my central functioning unit (my brain) is full of romance and love and all those things which will make anyone giddy. I am currently trying to empy it and psych myself into fantasy fiction mode. I'm trying to read as much fantasy fiction as I can, so if you have some, may I please borrow them? It's amazing how a simple daydream and a celebrity crush ruin your way of thinking. And to think it was my way of getting over-- okay, too much info.

According to sattelite and weather stations, temperature in Manila will increase to 37 degrees Celsius on Monday. Talk about a hot start. First weekday, and we're getting sizzling weather. Hey, it's summer!! But then this is also an effect of global warming. People, please be environment-friendly, or we'll never have frozen goods, such as ice cream, anymore. Can you imagine Earth without ice cream?!?!

Arrgh. I can't make a decent blog post again. I can't think of an idea on which my blog entry will revolve. All I could think of is Miley, and I already did a post about her.

One of these days, I'm seeing a shrink.

Now I see why I put a working title.

Aping on APE, smiling on Miley.

2008-04-09T05:10:00.000-07:00

Whooh. Time to take a breather.

This week's been pressured on me. This week is when I take the Advanced Placement Exam in UP Los Banos.

Yeah, I'm going to UP Los Banos. College life, here I come!!

Well, as I said, I'm taking the Advanced Placement Exam (APE). I don't mean to brag, but it's an invitational exam which only accepts students who scored 90% or more in the UPCAT. When I score high in it, I can skip subjects. I get credits on subjects I take the test on and skip it. Awesome, right?

So far, I only finished English 1. I took the English test this morning. Tomorrow, I'll do a full day in UPLB to take Mathematics 11, Natural Science 1, and History 1. On Friday, I'll take History 11 and Humanities 1.

I've been studying a lot. This is one of the things I hate, studying things I already know. Reviewing is not working on me. Usually, I just read on the day of the exam (of course, when the lessons are taught to me, I listen. That's the key on my technique.). I usually forget things I review if I read them the night before the exam. It's how I am.

______________________________________________

One thing has happened to me. One thing that just altered my life. Really, really BIG impact.

I fell in love. Yes, I'm lovestruck again. Who's the girl??

Destiny Hope Cyrus. Yes, I know.

Also known as Miley Cyrus. My Miley!!

Mostly known as Hanna Montana!!! The normal girl/pop star!!

See? Here's a picture of us!! I met her at Disneyland!

Ok, I confess. That pic with me in it is edited. I spent some time (long time, to be specific) putting Miley into a picture of mine. So sue me.

Wait, don't sue me. It's a blog anyway. I can freely express here.

Yeah. I've been struck by Cupid even though it's not Valentine's Day (hey, that's an unusualness in itself) just as I was watching Hanna Montana on Disney Channel. Darn you, Cupid!!

I dunno. I just had this condition (I would normally call it a sickness when I refer to other people having this, but since it's me, I won't) last Monday. It actually started with a daydream that played in my mind when my mom asked me what I think I would be after 10 years or so.

Maybe it's my subconscious mind again.... Ryan, don't come out when I'm (Rowan) blogging!! It's my turn!!

Hehe. That was my other self, Ryan. I'm Rowan. Ryan's my alter-ego.... Well, I'm his alter-ego, but he's boring, so I went outside and took over his consciousness for a while. This is my blog, not Ryan's. Everything written here is a product of (although we share one brain) my mind, not his.

Anyway, I think this is my subconscious mind's method of trying to move on and forget D-- whoops! Can't tell you who she is. Not without Ryan's permission.

So, I've had a few celebrity crushes in the past, like:

Danielle Panabaker, when she played "Leila", the nature girl on the movie "Sky High"

Hilary Duff, since her Lizzie Maguire days

And Angel Locsin, BEFORE she went to the other station.

Ok, that was totally unexpected...

But Miley just hit me like a giant, yellow, overspeeding schoolbus. She's all I could think of. Something's wrong with me....

Jeanelle, paano 'to ayusin? It's driving me crazy!!!!

I need a psychologist....

Rowanology-The Science of Rowan

2008-04-07T08:36:00.000-07:00

I got this survey from Friendster, posted by Josyne.

TECHNOLOGY
What is your wallpaper on your computer?
**the dragon Thorn, from Chris Paolini's book Eldest

How many televisions you have in your house?
**3

BIOLOGY.
Are you right-handed or left-handed?
**when writing, righty, but when doing something else, I'm ambidextrous

What is the last heavy item you lifted?
**my desk. we're moving...

Have you ever been knocked out?
**No. I knock out others, though.

BULLSHITOLOGY
If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?
** why bother? I know it already...

If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
** John Ronald Reuel Tolkien

What color do you think looks best on you?
**I like black. Black looks good.

DAREOLOGYQ.
Would you allow one of your little fingers to be cut off for $200,000?
**my pinkie is worth more than that!!!!

Would you never blog again for$50,000
**and abandon this blog forever?? not a chance.

Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000?
**just one?? konti naman. would you pay me $1000 for every hot sauce bottle I down?

Q. Would you, without fear of punishment, take a human life for $1,000,000?
**Why would I?? I could just go Ghost Rider on bad pople and take their souls. haha. There's no need for lives to be lost just for a measly $1000000.

DUMBOLOGYQ:
What is in your left pocket?
**a screw.

Q: Do you have hardwood or carpet inyour house?
** carpet

Q: How many pairs of flip flops do youown?
** 2

Lastology

Q: Last person who texted you?
** Joyce

Q: Last person who called u?
**. Kevon, before they departed for the US.

Q: Person you hugged?
**Mom

FAVORITOLOGY
Q: Number?
**. any number divisible by 2. especially 626

Q: Color?
** (according to preference) black, blue, white, yellow

CURRENTOLOGY
Q: Missing someone?
** YES

Q: Mood?
**nostalgic

Q: Listening to?
** "True Friend" from Hanna Montana OST

Q: Worrying about?
**Advanced Placement Exams!!! It's this Wednesday!!

RANDOMOLOGY
Q: First place you went this morning?
**Greenhills

Q: What can you not wait to do?
**Hook up my TV on cable.

Q: Do you smile often?
**What's there to smile about?? (aww, emo...)

Q: Are you a friendly person?
**Define friendly.

endless memories 'bout my advisers

2008-04-03T03:16:00.000-07:00

Thank God the computer accessed the Internet! Finally!!!

I've been waiting for hours trying to get to connect, but it wouldn't budge. Well, my patience was rewarded with a big serving of Net Surfing!!!

So, on to the post.

I've been nostalgic again. Very sentimental I can get when I think about Atheneum. Not that I absolutely love the facilities and management, but the experiences that I got from it. I miss it already. It's really hard to let go of something that's been part of you for so long, like an organ or innard that you've had since birth until you get sick or kidnapped and that certain organ would be removed.

My senseis (what's plural for sensei?), or teachers, have taught me a lot, especially the ones I have in my fourth year. I'll count them off one by one.

Let's start with my very own class adviser, Darth Amelie Poulain, m.k.a (more known as) Ms. Anne M. (there's a lot of Ms. Annes in Atheneum, so I refer to them with their surname in initial). She's a Lit graduate, but she taught CL in my senior year. Weird, huh? Now, Darth is, well, not like your regular teacher (but, then again, all teachers in Atheneum aren't like regular teachers). She's a self-proclaimed weird person, just like me! That's maybe why I relate to her so greatly.

I remember the first time we saw her, when she was first introducing herself and the subject of Logic in our first day in 3rd year. Here's what I can still remember 'bout it:

Darth: "Hello. I am Ms. Anne Mallari. I will be your teacher in Logic this year."

Class: [silent (we're always like this with new teachers)]

Darth: "I've read your textbook and it seems so complicated, so I will provide notes for you to copy in my next classes."

RXZ: *thinking* "Why teach it then if it's so hard?"

Yeah, that seems rude. But then I didn't mean to be. We all mess around with new teachers. And I found out that I was wrong. Darth is really just like us (with little differences).

Then, there's Sir Emboy! He also has a codename: Lord Matute III. He's our Physics and Calculus teacher. He makes those subjects seem easy (and they are!). He's wacky and fun. He's also our CAT adviser, so we also see him on Saturdays.

Here's a dialog:

Emboy: "O, ang simple simple na nyan ha. Baka magbagsakan na naman kayo."

Classmate:"Tser, ang hirap naman nyan."

Emboy:"I can't make it any easier. It's not one plus one. It's calculus."

Classmate:"Eh may shortcut ba yan?"

Emboy:"Oo."

Classmate:"Eh bakit hindi na lang yung shortcut yung ituro nyo?"

Emboy:"Bakit, matututo ka bang magbisikleta nang hindi hinahawakan yung handles kung hindi ka naman marunong magbisikleta? Basics first!"

My goodness. My creativity dissappeared again. I'll stop here for a while and then continue in another post. Bye for now!

Memoirs of A Graduated Warrior (wow, see how I refer to myself!)

2008-03-31T08:20:00.000-07:00

Graduation Day was yesterday.

Yeah, I know. I'm going nostalgic again. Atheneum has been my home for, like, 4 solid years. Freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior years.

So, maybe I'll just tell you what happened last night in detail.

This last week, we did practice the graduation entrance and processes. The program was kinda flawed. I don't like the marching entrance. We were supposed to go through the crossed swords one pair by one pair. The swords should be lowered everytime someone passes, then raised again for the next pair. I just plain didn't like it.

Well, Attorney gave his usual end-of-the-year congratulations speech again. He kinda scolded us guys there, because there was only one male medalist in fourth year (*cough cough*me*cough cough"). I dunno, Attorney seems like a gender racist. Haha.

Then the valedictorians gave their speeches. Joyce was overly thorough with hers (way to go, Joyce!). Nice, emotional, and with special mention to CMG and TJ. Wahahaha!!! If ever you're reading this, JD, congratulations! You're worthy of being the valedictorian!!

Then, medalists of the nongraduating years got their time in the spotlight and received their medals. This was long, and we guys spent the time heckling the medalists as they go up the stage. We were like "yiii", and they were like, "Yehey!" and we reply "(insert someone's name here)!!".

Then, we got declared as graduates by Ms. Vidal and Ms. Del. Whoopee we go. Then the graduates are called one by one to the stage. The grade 6 pupils came first, so we had to wait more. I waited longer than the other guys, since the medalists go to the stage last. Of course, we also catcalled in these periods. Most of us did the "Bhebie" pose, but we all envied JM1. Details are confidential.

Then we sang our goodbye song. Well, actually, we didn't sing anymore. It was too emo (emo as in emotional, not emo as in suicidal). Most girls cried, and the guys and I just played the song. We didn't even know the lyrics!! We just hummed and let the six g's sing. Tears were shed, sweat beads were shed more, and feelings in proportions that could make Ron Weasley explode were everywhere.

Yup, there goes 4 years of memories flashing through our eyes. And so ends a chapter in the History Of The Warrior Of Farrellion. Now, my friends, I'm going to step into the yet unknown realm that highschoolers are wary of known as "college". The relationships we built will remain in our next step to greatness. CONGRATULATIONS, MY FELLOW GRADUATES OF ATHENEUM SENIOR CLASS OF S.Y. 2007-08. WE ROCK!!!!!!!

If you want to see the pictures, go to my Friendster profile and check the "graduation day" photo album.

Rowan, you're graduating! Congratulations!!

2008-03-20T08:26:00.000-07:00

I'm congratulating myself already? Wow, I'm too sure...

I've downloaded three movies on my PSP: Alvin and the Chipmunks, The Simpsons Movie, and Ghost Rider. I watched them all already. I did that last Sunday. We went to Greenhills to celebrate my mom's birthday. Here's a pic:

At T.G.I. Friday's. See that cute little bear Cy's holding?

So, I've been ridin' the rollercoaster of life (what a cliche' metaphor) repeatedly these days. There has been a lot goin' on. This rollercoaster ride is looping too much, I think I'm gonna be sick.

Due to some circumstances, I wasn't able to blog. Here are the circumstances:

! - I've been busy moving our stuff from old house to new house

@ - I get to surf the net mostly at night

# - My sisters use the computer almost constantly (almost)

$ - Cyra's bestfriend, Annabelle, went to our house for a sleepover

% -the computer had viruses, so it's kinda hard to open them

^ - and my creativity pool is drying up frequently (maybe it's because of summer)

So, Joyce, hindi ako lagi makapost. You must understand the measures. Don't worry, I'll try to post more often. Especially since our graduation is near...

Here we go. Graduation.

Now, before I get sentimental, I'm warning you now

If ever you just don't like teenagers whining and going senti over things, please stop reading. But, remember, Rowan Zurich (wow, third person speak)rarely goes emotional over simple matters such as school.'Tis a one in a million chance, folks.

Graduation. Commencement Exercises (why is it an exercise? It's not remotely tiring, except of course for the teachers. Why not "ceremony" or "ritual" or "program"?). It's a way of saying, "It was nice teaching you. Now leave!" Lol. Kidding!

High school has done wonders on me. I've done a lot in my four years of high school. And I mean A LOT. From freshman to senior year, I've developed powers unknown to "those whose soul is stained by the blood of the innocent" (from the movie Ghost Rider. When Ghost Rider does the Penance Stare, he refers to his victims as this).

What is that power? Well, I'll tell you later. I want to build up the suspense. But first,

First year- The Creation:

As the name implies, first year is a year of firsts. I first learned Algebra. I first met Kevon and Brandon. I first had bestfriends who are loyal. I first had an archenemy. I first discovered THE POWER.

Freshman year was hard. I had to cope with a new school, a new surrounding, a new academic system, and a set of new principles. Fitting in was all I could think of. It was a breakthrough back then.

The Cheering competition was the first test of our (before, I only used "I". Now I use "our". Get the point?) skills and unity. Naturally, we won. Hahahahaha!!

Second year - The Downfall:

The Sophomore year was my worst year. The worst. The WORST. THE WORST!! Have I made my point?

I didn't only suffer in academics (that Statistics class is hell in school, but it's not because of my teacher, cool Sir Peter! He's great. The subject itself is what I hate) but also in relationships and spirituality. I'm in breakdown mode then.

I wanted the year to end so as to start again. And so it did end...

Third year - The Enlightenment:

Oh yeah!! This was my FUNKIEST YEAR EVER!! It's my best ("...so far.."- Homer Simpson) year in high school. I learned how to relate better. I learned to say sorry and also to forgive. and best of all, I LEARNED. Awesome!

So of course, I excelled this junior year. I became a constant medalist from beginning to end of the school year. I developed the skill of UNDERSTANDING. Yeah!

Fourth year- The Epilogue:

As high school ends (hey, high school never ends!), we get mature. We transform from bumbling teenagers to model men and women. Of course, we learned more, thanks to Sir Emboy and Ms. Anne.

We sealed our bond this year. We also started becoming role models. Duh. We're seniors. We TAKE THE LEAD. (so, we dance?)

Badaboom, baby! Senior year is almost over! It's just like yesterday that I got early in Atheneum for my first senior day. I guess time flies when you're having fun. and what fun it has been!

So I guess that's it. I think I should end this now...

Oh yeah, the power I nurtured these years. I forgot. Well, it's really simple, yet powerful. I don't know why tyrants and villains are not trying to acquire this power, since this is the power that gives us the strength generated by the will of many.

It is UNITY. The center of our self-esteem and comfort. Our batch has been bonded together in the name of success, peace, and the want to have someone to lean on. When one falls, everyone makes the fallen get up. We are an army. We are INVINCIBLE!!! As the Three Musketeers put it, "all for one, one for all!" That's what drives us to do better. That's what makes us strong. Because if you're all out of power, you can be sure that others will support you. And best of all, we made great relationships these years that can make our unity everlasting.

Well, I think that's already good. I gotta end this. It's late in the evening already. Yawn...

Rowan out.

My Bestfriend's Girlfriend (parang movie lang ah)

2008-03-08T17:16:00.000-08:00

WHOOHOOO!! I'm almost a graduate!! Only three weeks to go!!

Wow. It's been a long time since I've posted. It's been, what? A month (my goodness, so much for promises)! Ah, well. Can't do everything always, eh?

Anyways, forward to the post itself.

Of course you've heard Richard Guttierrez and Marian Rivera's Valentine movie, "My Bestfriend's Girlfriend." When I first found out 'bout it, I was not really (read: very very very) interested, but interested nevertheless. After all, I AM in a similar situation (minus me loving the girl, of course. that's unfeasible!). Well, here you go, Jeanelle. A post 'bout you, you, and the main topic, YOU!

Wait, pictures muna....

Ba, senti. What'choo lookin at?

Naks! Kahit naman di nakagown, pang prom princess ang looks! sayang di nagkatotoo...

My bestfriend Kevon is Jeanelle's boyfriend, so that completes the movie connection.

See, that's them in prom.

At school. Iisa lang ang nakita kong solo pic niya sa school..

There. That's a lot of pics. The easy part is uploading, but to fix it on the blog? Very Hard.

Haha. My creativity is slowly ebbing away from me again....

Well, her name is Jeanelle Sardido. She's my bestfriend Kevon's girlfriend. Very similar to the movie, but we didn't meet in a stag party (I haven't been into one yet. wahahaaa) and she didn't come out of a big cardboard cake. No, of course not! I first saw her in my second year (I think) in Atheneum. It was the first Angles staff meeting then. I just saw her, that's all. Next thing I knew, Kevon was head over heels for her. I dunno, it was really sudden. I can't remember how Kevon told me 'bout this. I just remembered that Kevon introduced me to her (or was it Vincent? AArgh!! Two years since that event anyway).

Yup, she and Kevon were close back then. I was on the sidelines, mentoring Kevon how best to do what he's doing in the "courting" part of the relationship. Ah, Kevon said it was the "agony" in their relationship. Yup, I also did my best to bring them together, for their sake. My role is similar to Date Dr. Alex Hitchens', Will Smith's role in the movie (one of my favourites) "Hitch".

February 14, 2006. I got to school. I went in the classroom. It was almost class time that morning. Suddenly, Kevon thrusted a small bottle to my hand. He said, "Open it." Obviously, I did. I saw a small letter inside. I read it. It said, "Sinasagot na kita. I love you. -Jeanelle".
I looked back to Kevon and said "No way" in an awed voice. Then, he exploded with happiness.

Of course, that was past. Now, as everybody in Atheneum knows, their relationship is on hinges. Actually, there's a switch in their relationship. One moment, they're "on". Next, they're "off". Then, "on" again, then "off", "on","off"-you get the point. But then I swore that I would do my best to keep them together.

Well, it just goes to show that sometimes your best isn't enough.

Ever since senior year started, though, Jeanelle and I've become close friends. When Kevon and Jeanelle are in "off" mode, I'm always comforting her and stuff. In turn, she helps me cope with D'problem (you know what I mean, Jeanelle).

Now, we're, I say, very close. I regard her as my girl bestfriend now. Wow, that fits. My two besties are in a relationship. But now she's closer to me than Kevon, because Kevon's in the other section now, and he's having a little change of heart these days. Man...

Oh, yan na, Jeanelle. May post na ko 'bout you. Sana naman di ka na magalit ngayon. Hahahaa....

Feeble laughs. A classic. Rowan out.

weirdness factors..

2008-02-04T02:45:00.000-08:00

School is getting demanding, but not in Physics and Calculus! Just in other subjects...

I keep failing to grasp academic ideas instantly. I have to ask my teachers to repeat.

These days, I noticed that I'm more than normal. Some people think I'm weird, and some think I'm abnormal, but I want to think of it as "different".

here are some things I find "different" about me:

>> When I get the chance, I mix Coke and milk. Tastes like Vanilla Coke.

>> I've always wanted a pet lion.

>> Favourite pastime: daydreaming.

>> I still play with my toys. (That doesn't sound weird.... but I'm almost 15)

>> I can sometimes sense what would happen when I witness certain events (kinda like Spiderman's spidey sense).

>> I never put gravy with chicken. I never put gravy on anything except mashed potatoes.

>> When I applied for piano lessons, I didn't attend three-fourths of it. Talk 'bout a waste of money.

>> In all my dreams (or, at least the ones I can remember), I am always able to levitate.

>> I can finish the whole Harry Potter series in less than one week. That's thousands of pages!!

>> No one visits my blog (well, that's a'given)

Yep. Weird, huh? Mind you, I still appear as a normal person, or at least I try to. Ah well, that's life. Rowan out.

Rubber bands: 101 uses!!

2008-01-23T04:21:00.000-08:00

I'm tired.

Wow, I didn't realize I've been saying that a lot. School is a thing which saps every normal teenager's strength. It will leave most of them crawling on the ground, too tired to carry on...

We had a staff meeting in The Angles. We have to release a new issue by February!! We have little time in front of us, but I guess we'll manage... or we'll suffer the consequences.

You might be thinking, "rubber bands? Rowan's losing it.."

I might be, but that is a topic for another day..

I've just dicovered an outlet for my creativity. I recently watched "Spy Kids 2". A guy named Machete told the main characters, Carmen and Juni, that the rubber band is the most useful gadget in the world. 101 uses, limited only by your ingenuinity and imagination.

It is true, actually. I did list 101 uses, and here are some of them:

1.) a stylish bracelet (that was actually stated in the movie)

2.) a means to hurt somebody physically (that was mentioned in the movie too)

3.) a catapult

4.) an addicting substance (they have a certain smell that may be used as drug substitutes... not that I'm doing that, I'm just saying the potential of the thing)

5.) something to entertain yourself (like what SpongeBob does with the rubber band that comes with the newspaper. I like that episode "Rock-A-Bye, Bivalve".)

6.) a means to create a star ( you know, the old star and double star rubber band trick?)

7.) a means of creating a Batmobile (another old ruber band trick that my cousins taught me)

8.) something to hold stuff together (for chargers, wires, and other fiddly things like that)

9.) a weapon (flick it on your enemies' eyes and they will go blind or something. Don't try it willy-nilly. Use only when needed.)

10.) a decoration (what a nice substitute for Christmas baubles!)

Those are just 10 of them. I listed 91 more, but each of them are stranger, crazier, and all are altogether stupid. Weirdness in its prominence....

As I said, I'm tired. I'll sign out for now. Rowan out.

Yes, I'm a critic....

2008-01-08T23:29:00.000-08:00

Today is a real downer. Math was HELL. I haven't even finished the first page, but there were only 15 minutes left!! Talk about a long test, and it was reeeeeeeeeeeaaaaally long!!! Can't wait graduation day...

Anyway, back to the topic on the title. I'm a very hard critic. I criticize almost everything, from those commercials which show the remarks of other people about a particular movie (number one, number one, number one!!) to the diction of other people's english (I hate wrong grammar AND bad pronunciation, and that's why I became a copyreader). Watch out, Simon Cowell!!

Most of my criticisms are about people's grammar and pronunciation. I even criticize the Prsident's English!! I don't mean to brag, but I am naturally born with good diction and superior English skills. I don't know, maybe I got it from reading my mom's books since I was 3 or something. They were college books, for Pete's sake. Now that I'm older, I have extended my prowess in English to a level my other classmates can only dream to have (bragging!! stop it, Rowan!!). My mom also let me edit her writings and stuff. Dad does the same thing.

Right now, I'm criticizing nothing. No, really, I'm criticizing NOTHING. As in nothingness, emptyness, voids. Why do some people become top guns in the world while I'm stuck here with nothing but my fantasies?

Wait, that's not really criticism. That's more of jealousy..... When it comes to feelings, I'm stumped. Rowan out.

another long post....

2008-01-07T22:09:00.000-08:00

finally!!!

I've been having a hard time trying to post on my blog. Everytime I try to log in, the page cannot be found. Darn it.....

Well, I'm back in school. Hooray.....

....and it's exam week. Another hooray.....

Have I mentioned that I got contact lens already? It's rather irritating at first, but, well, it has its rewards. For one thing, I don't have to bother cleaning my glasses. My eyesight won't be obscured by scratches on the lens anymore. On the other hand, it takes longer to put my contacts on, and when I do it wrong, it irritates my eyes. ffff....

Oh yeah, and I got waitlisted in Ateneo. Danna got in, but my application is still on the danger zone. What is stopping them to accept me? I got good grades, I think I did well on the ACET. Maybe it's because I applied for the full scholarship.......well, anyway, Dad wants me to go to UP, and I agree with him. It's just rather downing and insulting that I got waitlisted....

Going to another topic, the cheering competition is near! It's the time of the year again for practices under the blazing sun, issues about choreographers, costume payment tantrums, and that all-important year-level rivalry!!

Our batch, Seniors 2007-08, is the DEFENDING CHAMPION of the cheering competition. We wowed the crowd (wow, it rhymes) even since we were in first year. We were the first to do so in Atheneum. We lost in second year, but that was due to some complications. We snatched the crown back anyway last year. Now, we want to graduate with three wins in our record, so the pressure is set so high. To graduate undefeated (virtually) is our goal.

Of course, coming with the cheering is the big Atheneum sportsfest! Our batch is REALLY undefeated in the sportsfest, and our basketball team is the most revered and feared team in the school, having won EVERY GAME they played. I guess one secret to our batch's success is our stong unity and support to each other. This year is no different. As I said, to graduate undefeated is our goal, and we will achieve it.

This post ain't as long as the other one, but I guess it'll do. Rowan out.

topics piling uP!!! This is one long post!

2007-12-29T09:11:00.000-08:00

whoa!! deja vu!

i've used this post title before. I think it's in my older blog. I just can't help using it again, 'cause stuff keeps coming in my mind these days, and iy's been long since I've posted. Well, here it is.

TOPIC 1:
Christmas

Yup, Christmas. It was all over us last December 25, and now, I'm not feeling it anymore. Maybe it was because of the absence of big gifs to open and a huge Noche Buena. we can't afford to do that this year because we're not done moving yet....

Or maybe (and I think this is the real reason) we were all feeling rather lonely. We haven't had the chance to meet with my grandparents and uncles and aunts and cousins. It's so diminishing when you're "busy, busy, busy".

On Christmas Eve, we only went to the Christmas Eve mass, then went home to wait for 12:00 midnight to come. On 12:00, we went to the table and had some pasta, ham, and queso de bola. It was actually rather solemn.

TOPIC 2:
Moving...

You might be wondering whatI mean by moving in the above topic. Well, we're moving from Cavite. Dad didn't allow me to say where we're moving yet until we've settled. Ok, it's just a place near where Dad works. That way, he'll no longer need to go from Metro Manila to Cavite everyday.

Anyway, I'm tired from moving. I've never appreciated how many stuff we have since I was 3. A lot of things had to be disconnected, dissasembled, packed, and brought to the new house. Whoo, I'm poofed.

TOPIC 3:
Story Progressions

What is wrong with me?!

I didn't manage to finish "When Sleighs Break Down" in time for Christmas. I had trouble with possible copyright issues (is Frosty the Snowman copyrighted or what?!). Hence, can't finish it. Christmas is over, so there's no point in continuing it......'till next Christmas, that is.

"Farrellion" is still not on my mind. I dunno, I think my plot ain't good enough. Still making it more complicated.....

TOPIC 4:
Wishlist

"Another wishlist?!"

Well, yeah. As you can see, it's 60 days 'till my birthday. Countdown should have started 40 days ago, but I was late. So there. I'm making another wishlist, this time for my birthday.

So:
10. new earphones
My current earphones suck. They deliver the sound too softly. I want noisy!!!

9. new shoes
My other shoes either are worn out, have holes, or look stupid. I prefer Converse, original, and particularly the black denim ones.

8. lycanthropy
You read right. I want to be a full-fledged werewolf, except that I do not want to be bloodthirsty and maniacal and all that, and I also want complete control of my actions.

Don't you think that overrides the "werewolf" concept?

7. a PESC Class 2004 reunion
I miss my Grade 6 classmates. They were the people I felt comfy with when I was at a young age. I just want to see and talk to them again.

6. Memory Stick 4 GB
*refer to previous post "wishlist"

5. The third Book of "Inheritance" trilogy
The trilogy consists of the books "Eragon" and "Eldest" as of now. I dunno the title of the new book, but I don't think it has been released yet. C'mon, Christopher Paolini!

4. Marvel Ultimate Alliance UMD
*refer to previous post "wishlist"

3. superpowers
Oh, come on. All of us want superpowers, right? I would prefer psychic abilities such as telekinesis, mind reading, and mind control, invisibility, and forcefield making. Just like Violet from "The Incredibles".

2. Time travel machine
I've always wished I could turn back time to fix wrong stuff I did. I could also warn myself when I want something changed.

And the number one wish for my birthday is....
well, refer to number one wish in my Christmas wishlist....

Maybe that's enough topics for tonight. Rowan out.

last day of school for 2007......

2007-12-19T06:01:00.000-08:00

haay...... today is the last official school day for the year 2007...

This day had rather been half boring, half yielding, and entirely pointless. When I got to school, it's "free time" all day!!! From CL to Filipino class, we did NOTHING. Really......

Well, in all that free time, I got to start on my Christmas story "When Sleighs Break Down". I'm having some trouble with the continuation, 'cause I can't think of any event to put next. It's the "writer's block" again.....

I'm sleepy.....

..... NOT!!

well, i see Christmas spirit everywhere..... but i just can't feel it!!! What is the matter with me???

wish list...... pff...

2007-12-18T06:08:00.001-08:00

haay, nako..... kelan pa ba???

We've started moving. Because of that, we didn't decorate our house here in cavite. Maybe that's why i can't feel it......

So i've decided to make my wish list this Christmas....

It's tradition in our family to make wishlists before Christmas.... as if it gets granted every year. We have to put it by what we want the most.

So, here's mine top 10:
10. Obi-Wan's blue lightsaber
i wanted one since i was a child. I have one, but it's fake. I want the real toy, with matching sound effects and light!! I've seen one in Toy Kingdom.....

9. Marvel Ultimate Alliance game for PSP
when i first played it in my cousin's PSP, i never stopped until they left! now that i have my own PSP, i want one, too, although i might also get this when i get a new Memory stick.

8. another retreat
I guess my classmates will agree, right?! Another retreat, preferably with Fr. Anton again, would be nice.

7. vacation abroad
taking time off with my family would also be nice..... one of my life goals are actually to visit every Disneyland in the world... haha, fat chance. I've only been to Hongkong disneyland, so that's only one in a lot.....

6. PS3
everyone wants one. This wish is impossible, though, since dad alread bought me my PSP, so nada.

5. Yugi-Oh! Structure Deck: Spellcaster's Judgement
yeah, i'm a collector and player. Everyone says laos na yun, but i don't exactly go with the flow anyway.... this specific deck would make my deck invincible!!!! MUHAHAHAHA!! Take that, Vincent!!

4. Memory Stick Pro Duo (4GB)
need it for my PSP to download games!!!! Marvel Ultimate Alliance, Tekken Dark Ressurrection, and other games will be mine!!!

3. new glasses
my current one is defective..... and my eyesight is getting worse...... damn myself!!

2. to see ALL my cousins again
we really haven't seen each other since the family feud started, and that was a long time ago, and some of my cousins are abroad...... a reunion would make my Christmas very merry.....

AND THE NUMBER ONE GIFT I WANT THIS CHRISTMAS
1. the love of my life to love me as well
I love her, but she hates me. 'Nuff said.

....... whining again.......

I really hope wish #1 comes true....... but it seems so unlikely....

Ah well. That's life.....

can't make a decent blog post.....

2007-12-18T04:50:00.000-08:00

AAARRRRGHH!!!!!!

what is up with me??!?!?!

I'm suffering from what my teacher calls "writer's block". I can't even finish my stories, which have piled up in my mind and on my desk.....

And here are their titles (I'm not even sure I'll keep these titles the way they are....):
1. Farrellion - a fantasy novel...... this story has been on my mind since fourth year started.... my "indecision" in the characters and plot is holding me back.... i've only written a prologue... damn..

2. The Reddest Rose - a story for my special someone...obviously it's about a rose..... and some people, actually lovers..... it's a short story....but it looks like i'm not gonna be able to finish it because of an emotionally lethal incident which happened to me....

3. "Sayang naman ang Pag-ibig" rap remix - this ain't a story..... it's actually a remix of a song i keep on hearing in my dad's car. I put my lyric-making ang rhyming to the test..... but this writer/rapper can't bear finish it because of the "emotional murder" i mentioned....

4. When Sleighs Brake Down - my attempt at a Christmas story...... I only thought of this story this morning, actually... just can't start it because i don't know the names of all 12 of Santa Claus's reindeers....."Oh, Dahser, oh Dancer, oh Prancer and Vixen, what should i do to ge this story a'fixin'"

Well, i think that's it....

There are only a few stories and literary works i have finished.... And they are:
1. Deathly Still - oh, boy..... my "tragedy".... and i mean it.... it's the only short story i've finished and got published in the Angles.... would you believe that i created this story by accident? this is the result of doodling absent-mindedly in the computer room when you're supposed to type the articles..... haay.... and thinking of M- wait, not gonna reveal!!

2. Lunar Wolf - a poem i made in one of the DSPC training sessions this year..... it's here on the computer.... i'm thinking of putting it in the next Angles issue..... this is the result of being lonely in the library..... muhaha...

3. Free - the poem i co-wrote with Kevon!! It was also published in the Angles...... this is the result of thinking that "death is the ultimate freedom, but you cannot experience it because, well, you're dead". Ironic, isn't it?

ffffff........ i should get out of hiatus.....

tryin'.......to.......improve......blog.....

2007-12-01T07:26:00.000-08:00

uhh, can somebody help me with my blog designing? im not that familiar with HTML, you see...
I just program with Foxpro, TurboPascal, TurboC, and Visual Basic, so, help?

first post, maybe....

2007-12-01T06:07:00.000-08:00

hffff...... I just don't get satisfied easily these days......

new post on new blog..... hooray.....(note sarcasm)

just hope some people actually visit......

well, there....

i just did this 'cause im rather bored..... and i hate my last blog.....
it had a nonexistent email anyway..... i thought i still had that email, so there...

ah well, that's it. Rowan out.