The War, Miss Japan, Glenda and DLSP

• The war between Israel and Lebanon is so sad. Once again, lots of innocent people die. Honestly, I dont know at first what's the reason behind the dispute so I began reading about it and discovering a lot. Lebanon's Hezbolah are evil people, terrorists. I somehow see the reason why Israel is attacking Lebanon but for how long will this war go on? Until both of them are wiped out?
  
• Last Monday, out of boredom due to the suspension of classes, I've watched Miss Universe. The last time I watched the competition was wayback in the late 90s when this thing was as big as a Pacquio match. Our representative won Miss Photogenic through online voting (I guess Pinoys did a massive power voting for her to win hehe). My bet was Ms. Japan, too bad she lost, later on I found out that she "walked out" when she was not announced as winner, she really took it hard I guess.
• Last Tuesday the classes was suspended but I strongly suspect that the suspension in Cavite was "accidental". Why? On that day, around 5am, I listened to an AM radio program to monitor announcements [but I was quite confident that the classes will not be suspended since its not raining although its gloomy]. The announcer called a CHED official and he asked " Sir wala na bang klase sa Cavite, Rizal etc..." and the official said "O sige na nga". Huh? The official sounded sleepy.
• The first issue of Heraldo Filipino this school year was released last Wednesday and I'm pleased that my articles did not receive any negative feedback [errors on facts, complaints]. Overall, I believe the first issue was good. However, Pat informed that her classmates thought that the name of the school is changed to De la Salle Philippines, Inc. [DLSP] I guess they did not read the article since on the lead pa lang, it was clearly stated there that the DLSU-System is gone and was replaced by DLSP not DLSU-D. This thing just makes me go...

A Trip to WRocK

July 22,2006. It was an exciting day to me. This is the day of my interview with Ms. Faith Gonzalvo of 96.3 WRocK. Ms. Faith is a friend of a friend of my friend [haha, but that's true, thanks MR. Deen!] and I was glad that she agree to be interviewed. I was really praying the night before that it wont rain [thank God it didn't]. I have no idea where WRocK's office [it's located at Zobel Roxas] is and so do my groupmates, but then my father, who is a driver for nearly three decades, told me that WRocK is not that hard to find, it is just one bus ride [In my place, there's this bus terminal going to Lawton but is only available on mornings], so with that my transportation problem was solved. So on that day I met Jasmin and Aaron to that bus terminal[my other groupmate,Christian who is from Las Pinas, went directly to the place although he has no exact idea where the office really is, but that guy is a lakwatsero so he will find his way, and he did]. We rode the bus at 7:30 am and the bus took off at 8am. My father said to me that we will get to that place early, I was anticipating that there will be traffic but I was wrong, we arrived at 9am, one and half hour early of our appointment! When we texted Christian that we are already at WRocK, he could not believe it since we were so fast. He came in 40 minutes later so we went to the WRocK which is located at the 11th floor of Fems Building. Because it still early and our interviewee hasn't arrived yet we entertained ourselves by taking pictures and ogling at the posters [with authographs] posted on the wall. The hallway of the 11floor is really small, only half of JFH and the elevator is sort of creepy as it opened three times with no people inside it. And then she came, Ms. Faith Gonzalvo step out of the elevator with her two kids and yaya beside her. When she saw us she apologized for making us wait, we said it's okay since we are way early naman talaga. Few minutes later, she let us in to the WRocK studio. It was spacious but dark. We conducted the interview at the recording room and then we found something that shocked us, WRocK is not aired live, its automated/pre taped, Ms. Faith told us that the djs only come to the stations three times a week to record their whole shift for one or two days. While she and the other newscaster [which we saw earlier wearing pambahay clothes only] come everday but record their news one or two hours in advance. The interview went smoothly[although I was the only one asking questions since my groupmates said 'kaya mo na yan, heraldo ka naman'], she gave us nice , poignant answers. After the interview, she took us in a short trip to the whole WRocK office and she even let us stay to see her record the news, her radio voice is so different from her speaking voice, I wonder how people can do that. After a few more photo-ops we said goodbye to Mam Faith.

It was a memorable day and a fun, enriching experience. To see photos of my trip click here

Lists

Music and Radio

Current Favorite songs:

1. Maneater-Nelly Furtado
2. Promiscuous- Nelly Furtado feat. Timbaland
3. Walang kadala dala-Sandwich
4. Jesus, take the wheel-Carrie Underwood
5. Para sa akin-Sitti
6. Beer-Itchyworms
7. Unfaithful-Rihanna
8. Martyr Nyebera-Kamikazee
9. Buwan-Wickermoss
10 Better Days-Goo Goo Dolls

Recurrent favorites (hits of the not so distant past)

1. Unwritten-Natasha Bedingfield
2. I- 6 Cycle Mind
3. Stick wit u-PCD
4.Sugod-Sandwich
5. Hiling-Paramita
7. Because of you-Kelly Clarkson
8. Heaven Knows-Orange and Lemons
9. First of Summer-Urban Dub
10. I'm feeling you-Santana feat. Michelle Branch

All time favorites:

1. Hanging by a moment-Lifehouse
2. You and Me-Lifehouse
3. Smooth-Santana feat. Rob Thomas
4. Before I let you go-Freestyle
5. Goodbye to you-Michelle Branch

Favorite Radio Stations

1. rx 93.1
2. 99.5 rt
3. magic 89.9
4. campus radio 97.1
5. Bomb Fm (A Cavite based fm station, my art appreciation teacher is a DJ there)

TV:

Regularly watched:

1. Gilmore Girls (season 6)
2. Lost (season 2)
3. Grey's Anatomy (season 1)
4. Survivor (season 12 concluded; season 13 on September)
5. Amazing Race (season 9 concluded,season 10 on September)
6. 7th Heaven (season 9)
7. Will and Grace (season 8)
8. Goin Bulilit
9. Deal or No Deal (*hides*, hehe guilty pleasure)
10. BLOG (Barkada Log) ( a 2-month old show hosted by my favorite Bianca Gonzalez)

Irregularly Watched:

1. Desperate Housewives (season 2, I've watched all episodes of season 1) (Studio 23)
2. 24 (season 4, I've watched all eps from season 1 to 3) (Studio 23)
3. CSI (Studio 23)
4. Alias (Studio 23)
5. Charmed (Studio 23)
6 Smallville (Studio 23)
7. Maalala mo Kaya (ABS-CBN)
8. I witness (GMA)
9. Reporter's notebook (GMA)
10. The Correspondents (ABS-CBN)
11. Probe Team (ABS-CBN)
12. Y Speak (Studio 23)
13. RX men (QTV)
14. Homecoming (MTV)
15. Iron chef (formerly on RPN 9 now gone)
16. Balikbayan (QTV)
17. Wow Mali (ABC 5)
18. Bitag (IBC 13)
19. Spongebob Squarepants (reruns on ABC 5 mondays to fridays 6 am)
20. KNN (ABC 5/NBN ,I actually won a KNN t shirt one year ago, when they read my email on air)

Wanna watch (On dvd, since these shows are not shown on free tv)

1. House, M.D
2. Prison Break
3. Veronica Mars
4. Entourage
5. One Tree Hill
6. Arrested Development

Looking forward:

1. Philippine Idol
2. Pinoy Dream Academy

Shows I miss:

1. Sineskwela
2. Hiraya Manawari
3. Sesame Street
4. As told by Ginger
5. Invader Zim
6. Rugrats
7 Bayani
8. Home Along da Riles (early years)
9. Abangan ang susunod na Kabanata
10. Ispup
11. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
12. Batibot
13. Adventures of Alex Mack
14. Black Hole High
15. 5 and Up

Celebrity Crushes

1. Bianca Gonzalez
2. Kat Alano
3. Natalie Portman
4. Alexis Bledel
5. Michelle Branch

Rainy Thoughts

It's currently raining cats and dogs and I'm quite freezin here at the HF office. There are only three people here at the office and I'll leave once the rain stops since I have already done my task for the HF style/guide book. The rain reminded me of the movie we watched last Monday in my Music Scoring and Audio Design class, "Singing in the rain". It was an entertaining movie and educational in some way because I had a idea how they did movie production during the late 1920s,it was cute actually. The movie is a musical, so there were lots of song and dance numbers which were good especially the tap dance which I watched in awe. What if we all live like in the musicals, instead of the usual conversations we sing and dance. That would be fun but of course weird. Plus who could sing in the rain, baka ma pulmonya ka lang. And you could not dance when it rains its either baha or you could slip. I don't know where this blog entry is heading too, it just random thoughts inspired from the weather. I just hope the rain stops now.

***

We have this project for Radio/TV Newswriting, we need to interview a real radio or tv news writer.The problem is I don't know how and where to contact a news writer.Could anybody help me where to find one?

Go Figure

let out a sigh of relief when my pending articles for Heraldo Filipino Issue 1 are done already.No more revisions and the articles are already laid out (may term bang ganito, past tense ng lay out hehe). My article on the enrolment rate was fun to do, I even used Mathematics on writing the article. The enrolment statistics really fascinated me. Here is something really got my interest, Business Management is the no.1 course of DLSU-D. It has 1, 300 plus students! And they comprise 43 percent of the whole CBA population. And when you add the population of CLE and COE they will still be outnumbered by Business Management! And the gap between Business Management and the no.2 course [HRM] is as wide as the Mall of Asia. Moreover, Broadcast Journalism have 200 plus students compared to Communication's 500 plus students. Even though CIH and CET had higher TFI among all the colleges their enrolment rate are still up. The number of Accountancy drops so fast as years goes by. In fact the 4th year students have less than 20 students. The females still outnumbered the males, but the males witnessed an increase in number compared to last year. Lastly,the enrolment rate is down slightly compared to last year,it declined by 0.59 percent mainly because DLSU-D had fewer enrolles on the graduate programs. Haha I still have article hang over.

Reasons to sleep a little later

ABS CBN will now have an earlier timeslot for their late night newscast.But it will not be INSIDER anymore, replacing the said show will be BANDILA (which I think is an awkward name for a news program).Personally,I guess it's good to finally move the newscast to a timeslot where most people are still awake plus with the change the current affairs programs will now also be earlier (11pm). I'm a fan of Probe Team and I'm really pleased that I could now watch the show on a better time.I hope GMA7 will follow too because I would prefer watching I witness,Reporter's notebook than their unfunny comedy block.

***

It's only the second week of classes and I'm already starting to feel how heavy my school load will be. I have tougher subjects this time around, so many things to do, so many things to accomplish. I have this bunch o photocopied reference materials to study on for a recitation/quiz on my subhect Electonic Newsroom. I also have this assignment for my Music Scoring and Audio Desgin to burn 5 classical and opera songs with reflection paper. Plus an essay and assigned readings for my Radio/TV newswriting. To top it off, I also have my duties for the school paper. I have seven articles, four are already okay but I still have three that needs revising, and the revision is not just technical errors but I need to input new data on the articles' content.Oh well, it is just the start.

Overdosed

I'm getting sicked with Pacquiao already. I dont really hate him, just annoyed with the overexposure he is receiving. TV Patrol for the past two months or so "stalked" Manny, reporting every move he does even the frivolous ones. And even his opponent Larios gets [over] exposure, and the slant of their news features on him is obviously to make him look like a threat or to ignite the Filipinos to hate that guy coz he is arrogant [well we're not really sure if he really says those arrogant stuff since his interviews are dubbed]. Dyan Castillego is such a lucky person, coz she travels a lot because of her task to follow the every move of the boxers. My brother noticed that pumuti daw si Pacquiao. I said "Baka nag Vicky Belo" . I intended that remark as a joke but when you come to think it is possible. Pacquio is like the no. 1 endorser right now, you see his tv commercials all day[I personally dislike his EXTREME videoke commercial when he sings and dance!], he has also billboards and radio commercials. Heck, he even has a new single playing on the radio [featuring Francis M!]. I just really hope that he wont run in the upcoming elections because if he does I may dislike him, big time!

Back to Uniforms

Classes are here again, Not really back to school since I am always at school just back to uniforms.After two months of wearing civilian clothing, I'm now back wearing my barong and brown pants. I like it this way actually since when you are in uniforms its okay to wear the same stuff everyday (except on wash days of course). I have a limited wardrobe so during the summer months you will see me wearing a shirt that I that I have used so many times. Plus, wearing uniforms is an advantage when riding jeepneys since the moment I step the vehicle its already a given that i'm a student so I should get my discount. Some jeepney drivers are so maarte sometimes but heck the students help them a lot to have a good day in terms of getting their jeepneys full. During the summer months a driver once said to me that passengers are not that many so they don't earn that much. Actually, during the summer months I did not invoke my right of student discount. I believe that's my way of helping them since I also understand that times are hard. But since classes are already resumed, they will have lots of passengers already, so I'm back to my normal commuter state.

***

This year my block has been "upgraded" form JOU21 to JOU31. Time is flying so fast, I just could not believe that it has already been two years since I first set my foot here at DLSU-D. My third year as Broadcast Journalism student, and base from what I've heard and observed this year will be hard, really hard. 6 out of 8 subjects that I will take this year are major subjects. My schedule is so flexible since all my major subjects are just scheduled in a day for three straight hours. In fact today (Thursday) my first class is on at 2:30PM! And I have no classes on Wednesdays (but I will still go to school). The only subjects in two meetings are the minor ones (Economics and Sociology) and they are scheduled every Tuesday/Thursdays 2:30-4pm and 4-5:30pm. Oh well, I just hope this year will be great.

Tape Recorder, School Supplies and Captain Barbel

I'm here right now at an Internet Cafe here at SM Dasmarinas, I went to school today to interview the CSO secretary for an article, this is her only available date since she has OJT on weekdays. The secretary, Mikki, is actually a close friend of mine so aside from the interview we had lots of kwentuhan. In fact, the interview lasted for just 5 minutes but the kwentuhan for nearly two hours! We talked about her initiation as the new CSO sec (which also happened at Caliraya) which was very memorable, her rants over the how disorganized the OJT system of her department and lots of stuff .However, I found out that I recorded some of our conversations which was not related to the topic for my interview! It turns out, I forgot to turn my recorder off when I finished the interview!

***

Since its too early too go home I decided to go to SM muna , my first stop is National Bookstore to window shop but there were hordes of people in "panic buying" mode. Well, its not surprising since the opening of classes is just a few days away. I kinda felt nostalgic seeing families with tons of notebooks,pens and other school supplies since we were like that before. Since grade 4 until 4th year highschool I had the same brand of notebook, PRO-EARTH, coz its cheap plus I love the cover which are of course centers on environment protection. What's weird though is that those brand is only available during the peak season of May and June only. We would also buy loads of pad paper from 1/4 to 1/2 (crosswise/lengthgwise) to 1 whole. Unlike most of my classmates who only have papers during the first week of classes I have enough that will last or one school year however my packs of pad paper will not reach that long since mauubos agad sa panghihingi ng mga kaklase ko. Still, Most of the time I have a pad of paper so I had of reputation of being the supplier of pad paper. My favorite brand is National's BEST BUY coz I love the texture and it's whiteness, sarap sulatan. I remember a classmate back in elementary who is like a mini national bookstore coz he almost have every needed school supply. He's kinda madamot though.

***

Also while browsing at National I saw this local showbiz magazine with Captain Barbel on the cover. Man! Richard Gutierrez looks so weird wearing that costume! Hindi proportion yung ulo niya dun sa built ng costume, ang awkward tingnan parang pinotoshop yung ulo niya dun sa costume. I've read in press releases and seen in the plugs that costume is expensive and imported abroad well for me the money is not worth it although I must say that the costume looks good it just dont fit the lead they should have used the services of local tailors/designers

A Big Puzzle called LOST

LOST tells the story of plane crash survivors stranded in an island full of mysteries. The show is a must see for people who craves for a show full of excitement, adventure and has intelligent writing. This is not your typical American shows which has stand-alone episodes. The first season, which I have recently finished, chronicles the first 41(?) days of the castways. The story is continous journey so it requires the viewer patience so if you have short attention span I guess you will get tired with the show easily. The show is like a large puzzle with every new episode bringing a new piece to the puzzle. Lots of questions will be raise however those will not be answered immediately. And sometimes when a question is addressed it will bring another one. The characters (well there are about 10 major characters) are not one dimensional, aside from what we see in them in the islands, the show also gives us the preview on how they live before the crash through backstories intertwined with each episode. Each episode (except the pilot and the season finale which have various backstories) focuses on one castaway's backstory. Their stories are so engaging and in some ways interconnected. But LOST is not just pure action as the story has a also a of mix of humor, drama and a little romance on the side.This is the type of show that will make you feel uneasy in your couch,make you cry and will definietly will get you thinkin and evaluate on the situation and the charcters' actions. However, I'm worried on how the show will end, the program set high expectations and hopefully the show's writers will not be "lost" since they have to avoid the story to be too dragging but not completely be revealing since it may generate lost of interest. But as of now I'm enjoying the program since this is truly one amazing show.

Summer Term Wrap Up

Today is the distribution of summer term grades and I'm very please with the results.
I have obtain 4.00 for both subjects (Newswriting & Editing and Newspaper Management & Production). I'm really ecstatic to get the highest grade since I rarely get that kind of grade and it I'm makes me more happy since these are the subjects that I really love and enjoy. It's a great feeling to end summer classes in a very high note.

Remembering Funny Komiks

The topic of reminiscing my favorite comics FUNNY KOMIKS [FK] came up when I read a friend's blog. I really love funny komiks,I have collected it for a decade. I started when I was 4, the age when I don't even know how to read yet, my brother just read that to me. Actually, my family is a huge fan of komiks, my siblings were the initial people who collected funny komiks, namana ko lang. Too bad their collection was burned when we had a fire in the place we use to live in (Sta. Ana Manila). When we moved here in Cavite the first thing I looked for is their is someone selling funny komiks, luckily I found not just one but two magazine stalls selling FK. My real motivation to learn how to read is FUNNY KOMIKS, I dont want to depend on my siblings anymore. I want to experience it. I continued my funny komiks for a long time. I even send my drawings (na binakat ko lang naman) and my works were published. That's my first experience in seeing my name on print. It happened twice, the first one though my name was misspelled [Jecusp Asombruelo] I guess that happened because of my awful penmanship that why I made it sure the next time that my handwriting is legible already. I witness how the price of the comics became higher as years goes by.It started at 3.50 then 5 then 7 then 9 until it reached 17.50! I stopped buying FK when I was in 3rd year highschool because I just find not entertaining anymore,it lost it charm,its becoming anime-ish. But my 7 years worth of collection is still with me (too bad I had lots of issues that got lost), and I will never throw it away nor sell it to the junkshop. It's a part of my life already. I dont know if FK is still in circulation but the stall I used to buy it does not sell anymore. Sad.

And now I present to you

Broadcast Journalism 2-1's [SY 05-06] Class Publication for Newspaper Management "The Cavite Voyager"



This is the frontpage of our paper




This is the opinion page, I wrote the editorial ["Where are they going"] and a column [ "Message Sent"] which I both posted here earlier.

If you want to see the other 14 pages just

click here

Kudos to my classmate, Gerard Atienza, who designed the layout. I feel so proud to see the fruit of our hardwork. Well, I believe I did a good job in handling our class publication. Afterall, this is the first [and probably the only] time I became an Editor in Chief.

Goodbye

Our dog, Kevin, died yesterday. I could not believe it. I did not saw it coming although he has not been his usual energetic self I did not think that he is really ill. We were shocked, it was early afternoon, my father tought Kevin was just sleeping and when he called him he did not respond. Then when my father came closer he notice that he is not breathing anymore. Our dog left us already. My father and brother buried him in our garden like what we always do when a pet dies. Our family was sad but we are all good in concealing it. I know my mother was the one who is most affected, she remarked "Okay lang yan, mahirap na rin naman alagaan yan" but I knew she meant the opposite. She treated our dog like her own child and although she is always tired due to household chores she never fails to attend to our dog's needs. Today, as I left for school, I glanced at our porch and it was empty. Kevin is no longer sitting there sleeping or eating or barking. It was so sad. It was like loosing a family member. I know when I go home I will even feel more sad since there will be no more Kevin barking as I open the gate

Finding Your Niche

Its already May and its almost a year when I took the HF exam. I so remember that day,it was the last day of the summer term and also the day of the enrolment for the 1st semester then I saw the poster screaming that HF is now open for applicants I immediately dragged one classmate to persuade to take the exam with me.When I found someone we immediately went to the HF office and took the exam, but my classmate did not finish the exam because of some emergency.So I was left alone and ,boy, the exam was hard it took me three hours to finish it.I only answered the features and literary exam since I've realized that the guy is just waiting for me to finish so he could go home, I did not answer the news exam anymore.

When I left school,I thought I will not make it. The features exam was hard, some questions were hard to understand while the literature I just dont have "it".After one month,I did not hear anything from HF so I just concluded that I failed. But on July 5,I received the text I've been waiting for a long time.

I was really happy when I made it even though I did not take the NEWS exam I was still accepted as a news staff. I've learned a lot of things about HF like really discovering what niche really is, NEWSWRITING, before I just wanted to write but I don't know exactly what to write but when I became an HF staff I found out that my writing style is really suited for news writing and I enjoy it. Being part of a school publication has been a dream for me for such a long time and when I became a part of it I could not complain less. Being with HF, I've learned a lot of stuff even more than what I could learn in school Mam Brenda, my newswriting and newspaper management prof and former HF editor, told me that she learned more about journalism with HF than the subjects she took up in the ABCOM course. It makes sense being with HF I am continously learning compared to an academic subject which is just limited to classworks and it is just only for a semester.

I'm so glad being a part of Heraldo Filipino.

(By the way until now I haven't erased the text message telling that I passed HF,I'm such a sentimental dude)

Boobtube Battle Boo Boos

the Philippines is not only divided on whether you are rich or poor, pro life or pro death penalty, ChaCha lovers or haters, liberals and conservatives but whether you are kapuso or kapamilya. Yes, you heard it right! Our country is also divided on their television preferences. The question “Kapuso ka ba o kapamilya?” has already become a staple query with your friends or even acquaintances (this question has become an effective tool for starting up a conversation). But incase you have live in television solitude and is totally clueless with the aforementioned monikers let’s make it clear that kapuso means a GMA 7 viewer while a kapamilya is an ABS CBN 2 viewer. These tags are the networks ploy to promote loyalty among the audience. However, the competition between ABS CBN 2 and GMA 7 has become more intense than ever. The last five years a couch potato witnessed the clashing of these television giants as they battle for ratings supremacy. But is the competition still healthy? And does this rivalry equate quality programming? Lets’ enumerate the effects of this network war

Pagkatapos ng…

Today’s TV schedule there is no more definite time schedule especially the primetime slot. The networks schedule their programs as one package deal for ABS CBN Primetime Bida and Telebabad for GMA 7. And when you see plugs the ads will say “Gulong ng Palad pagkatapos ng PBB Teen Edition” and “Majika pagkatapos ng Extra Challenge (EC)” and what is the schedule of PBB and EC? “Pagkatapos ng (*insert news program here*)”. The reason for this absurd scheduling? The networks hope that a viewer will stay in tuned not just for one but a series of show Walang Lipatan. But this type of scheduling there lays the problem; the essence of time is diminished among the viewers. Hey how can we know the real time if the schedule is that, tantyahan?

You are nothing but a second rate trying hard copycat!

The two networks rip each other off, that’s a fact, but they deny it adamantly. They are both guilty of copying each other’s ideas. ABS CBN produced their own “Starstruck” in the form of “Star Circle Quest”, GMA tried to produce a children’s gag show ala Goin Bulilit in the form of Bubble Gang Jr. But whenever a network launches a show with similar concept of the other network, the latter will result to parinigan (more of about this later) and will boast as being the original. But they forgot one thing being the first or original does not mean being the best. But blatant copying of another show’s concept but poorly executed there’s the viewers off. Sometimes they just produce “a similar show” for the sake of giving a “pantapat” to the other, and not to entertain the audience.

The network war even reached the highest mountain in the world. The Everest Expedition has also become an issue among the networks; “Sino ang nauna sa pag cover at nang gaya?” is what is implied with the networks’ plugs. The expedition instead of being a moment for triumph has become another venue for the bantering and showing off; the networks’ intention of covering the historical event is clearly seen and it’s not good. It is as if they cover the said event just to compete with each other and not to inform the Filipino people. Because of the networks’ coverage, the event is now inserted in the society’s consciousness, but the attention of the viewers is whether which channel will beat the other in the coverage and the actual expedition took the backseat.

Migration

“Si (*insert name here*) kapuso/kapamilya na!” this is usually the headline of showbiz talk shows (and showbiz segments of news programs as well) when a ward from the rival network transfers to their own respective station. This transferee will now be given plenty of exposure of his/her new network sometimes even more compared to the networks homegrown talents. An artist seems to be more viable if s/he “migrates” to the other network. When someone transfers, the showbiz writers always make it to the point to make a big deal out of it. The network grooms the transferee with a reason to slap the rival’s face, which may say “Hey, in your care this talent’s career is dead but when s/he transferred to us it bloomed, we are better in handling talents than you!” The setback, the network sometimes give an unworthy attention to the transferee whose only “appeal” is that s/he came from the other network and neglects their own talents. And what happened to these neglected talents? When they are fed up they will seek opportunities with the rival network and the cycle begins…

“Kampihan”

The “parinigan” between ABS CBN and GMA has become so normal with their plugs. The network’s rivalry has become similar to a fraternity feud. A viewer sometimes wonders if ever the people of these networks see each other will they engage in a catfight? The tabloid makes the competition even more. Writers who are taking the side of one network write more (destructive) articles criticizing the other network’s shows and stars. Showbiz talk shows are also guilty with that they sometimes devote a segment bashing the other network. The (unfunny) sitcoms also commit that especially when a “transferee” is a guest, the series regulars will often threw lines that tackles why s/he left the other station. The plugs especially ratings related are so filled with pun intended statements. The mudslinging between the TV stations has become a tool to gain sympathy among the viewers to take their side and loathe the rival.

These “parinigan” has gravely affected the audience. Internet forums such as PinoyExchange house the “kapamilya vs. kapuso” bickering. Reading how the forum members defend their favorite channel and scrutinize the rival you will see how influential the network has been. The viewers has been so attached with the stations that they seem to get hurt too when bad statements are being thrown to their beloved network. Its quite queer to see that networks created a cult following and it manifested how influential the medium (television) has been.

Maturity

It is said that a competition brings out the best among the one involve it. They try to top what their opponent had done by giving the best efforts. In the case of the Kapuso vs. Kapamilya, their rivalry instead of improving the quality of programming has resulted to making their competition a form of entertainment. Yes, the network war spices up the otherwise bland local TV scene but is that what the stations could only offer? The television is a powerful medium and must be used in the proper way and not just a vehicle to boost egos.

Ironic, isn't it?

1. When you are in a hurry, there will be a lot of things/occurences that will delay you. But if you have lots of time and even if you still intentionally want to be late you will still arrive on time.

2. When you are looking for something you could not find it but when you dont need it anymore thus you stop hunting for it out of the blue that thing will pop up to you

3. You bring an umbrella everyday but it does not rain but the one time you will forget it, it will rain.

Where are they going?

A new school year is nearing; by this time several high school graduates had already made their choice of what course to take and what school to attend. And recently, the most popular course is Nursing.

Slots for the said course in some schools have been close as early as March due to an overwhelming number of applicants. Since there is a large demand, schools offering Nursing sprouted like mushrooms in the metropolis.

If you would ask those students why they have chosen to be a future nurse, the answers may vary but it is not surprising if they believe that nursing is the channel for them to land a good-paying job abroad.

The sudden influx of job opportunities abroad for nurses has resulted for more students to aspire to work abroad. According to an article published at Manila Standard Today the United States alone needs one million nurses by 2010, while in Europe, about 20,000 nursing slots are available.

The nursing phenomenon does not limit to undergraduate students but college graduates as well. News of doctors and other professionals studying nursing is not new anymore. From 2000-2004 around 6,000 Filipino doctors were reported to be taking up Nursing.

Statistics from Philippine Overseas Employment Administration stated that from 1996 to 2002, 16, 124 nurses were deployed abroad. But other countries’ gain is our country’s big loss. The exodus of nurses and doctors resulted to the shortage of nurses and doctors especially in the rural areas. An alarming statistical figure stated that there is only one government nurse per nine barangays and ,worse, one nurse per 16, 723 Filipinos

How could we expect for this country to be “cured” from its “illness” if the people will leave it unaided? Who will take care of the Filipinos if almost all capable health workers have flown out to somewhere but here?

But can we really blame them if they seek greener pastures? What they earn abroad pales in comparison to what they receive here in the country. These people also have their own families to support and, unfortunately, the prospect of having a stable life in the Philippines is bleak. To be idealistic in this country is one tough road to take. Sad but true.

Message Sent

Ten years ago the cell phone was something for the rich and well off only. Back then beepers were the “in” thing, along with tamagotchis. Mobile phones were so large that its only difference with a landline phone is that a cell phone is handy but still bulky (it’s like bringing a landline with you). And as far as I remember, cell phones back then were all on post-paid basis so owners expect bills as expensive as their electric bills arriving in their doorstep every month.
Five years ago, the cell phone phenomenon started to take over the country. I remember during my early days in high school when a classmate showed his cell phone. (I can’t remember exactly whether it was Nokia 5110 or 3310 but what I’m sure is that it was the model that was then considered “sosyal.”) We were quite amazed, and soon enough some classmates jumped the bandwagon and started buying their own cell phones. There were “competitions” as to who will get the higher score in Snake and debates on how the game Logic is played (up to now I still don’t know how to play that game). I did not have a cell phone until I entered college but I was not out of the loop back then since I always borrowed the “family cell phone”, which I just use at home. Forwarding jokes and quotations was very predominant and of course I had my share of “text mates” (which today I think is just a waste of load).

Almost every one now owns a cell phone. Every week, a new model is released making your cell phone look so obsolete. Now, a cell phone is not just for calls and text messages but you can now use it to take pictures, listen to music, record voice or video clips, and many more. The ring tones were upgraded from monotones to polytones and now real music. Ring tones are not limited to music only, since I’ve also heard a Mike Enriquez and an “I see dead people” ring tone. Cell phone crimes have climbed the ladder too. Theft cases have risen from snatchings to hold ups. There was even a report that a student was killed because he refused to give his cell phone to a robber. There is also what you call “text scams” where someone will text you saying that you have won a huge amount of money, the catch being, you have to pay first before you receive and a lot of people have fallen to that ploy. And of course, there are the “sex scandals” being passed from phone to phone. From college students to celebrities the choices are endless. No wonder the bold film industry is already dead here because why pay if you could have your pornography right in your hands?

There are about 30 million phone users in the Philippines, and they send an average of 400 million text messages a day (and that figure was before the “unlimited texting”). Well, China sends more text messages than us, but you have to consider their population. No wonder the telecom companies are one of the richest corporations in the country. I’ve read in Philippine Daily Inquirer that Smart has 20.8 million subscribers, Globe has 13.62 subscribers and the newbie Sun has about 2 million. The total is 36.42 million subscribers or 42.8 percent of the country’s 85 million population. According also to a Philippine Daily Inquirer article, in the first half of 2005 Filipinos spent 165.8 billion pesos for telecommunication services. Ironically, we are a country that is having an economic crisis.

Many explanations were made why we Filipinos are cell phone-crazy people but it all boils down to the fact that we love staying connected in an instant. If you’re alone and bored, just text someone and you will not feel alone anymore. Text messages became so popular because most of us are shy and is have troubles expressing ourselves. With text messaging, we are more comfortable speaking out what’s on our mind.

The mobile phone business is still not showing signs of waning. The cell phone is now a part of our lives. The competition between the telecom companies is stiffer than ever. Mobile phone services has became more affordable especially with the introduction of “loads in sachet”, that is electronic loading which has became a common fixture in sari-sari stores, canteens and even the sidewalks. While almost everything has become more expensive, the prices of telecom services have been dropping. In these trying times where the country is in an economic turmoil, an affordable way of getting connected is what we need since a cell phone is no longer considered a luxury but a necessity.

How I spent the Holy Week Break

Excuse the lack of creativity of my title, just could not think of a "catchy" one.It actually reminds me of my elementary days where the first activity every first day of class (and after the Christmas break too) is "My Summer (Christmas) Vacation". Actually this is the first time I had a class after the lenten season (my first summer class was after the lenten season) so this is something new to me, but I'm not complaining, because I love being at school this summer than bore myself at home. Basically,I spent more time on tv even if there is no regular programming because well I had a great time following the marathon of Gilmore Girls and 7th heaven.Yup.I stay tuned from start to finish (on thursday 9 ep marathon of gilmore girls then 6 ep and 12 ep marathon for 7th heaven). Even though, I've already seen the episodes shown I still watched because well its FUN to relieve those episodes.I also watched Maalala Mo Kaya on ABS CBN,I love the story of the girl (fatima) who is sick yet her faith unwaivered and the young actress who played Fatima was excellent.I also watched the "tagalized" tv special on St. Rita, I thought I will get bored watching it but I was wrong,the show was engaging. My parents also listened to Radio Veritas, a Catholic radio station, it the programs were very sacred then I heard MIKE ENRIQUEZ! I dont really like Mike and was annoyed with what he is saying because he was too preachy (plus keeps saying kapuso every start of a sentence which was really annoying and my brother even commented "paano na yung mga kapamilya, hindi na niya pagdadasal" wow,network war on holy week). I attended one mass only and had a first rosary with all 6 of us present. I also ate a lot but there were no meat although I did have lots of chichirias. To sum it up, it was uneventful break but definitely not boring.