Public Servant Blah Blah...

Public Servant...???

You may see this statement being used by politicians. But do you know what this really means?

For me this word is like a drug. Politicians use this to tell to their constituents that they are running for a place in the government because they want to be a PUBLIC SERVANT. Jeez! Don't screw with me. Public servant their face! The name may sound good, public and servant...servant of the public. But this is NOT the case in our country.

Here in the Philippines, those who call themselves "public servants" are those people who have tons of bodyguard, and are very rich. These "public servants" also show the people (aka voters) how they are very willing to help those who are in need...errr, only those who are poor. Yes. Poor. They only cater to the poor. And what's sad about this is that the poor are always the subjects of these "public servants" wannabe. Poor poor people. If being poor wasn't enough, these "public servants" use them for their own gains.

Going back to them being a "public servant", I noticed that they have the "I'm in a high postion and you should respect me!" kind of attitude; which I think is really absurd. Can you find the meaning or "servant" in that? I mean, come on! Why is it that when a "public servant" is seen by a commoner, they go to the "public servant" and make them appear as celebrities. Some praise them (public servant wannabe) and take pictures with them, have autographs, etc. Where is the essence of being a "PUBLIC SERVANT" there? Can someone explain to me what's happening?

In the US of A, the system is not like in our country. The "public servants" there are really public servants. Commoners can talk to them in anyway they want (they can even curse them). There are no autograph signing and etc. But still, the "public servant" there uses the essence of being a public servant.

PUBLIC SERVANT, a statement in which many of our countrymen and politicians don't understand. So what's it going to be?

PUBLIC SERVANT means more like, "THE PUBLIC IS THE SERVANT" in our country. Think about it.

And my advise to those voters, choose well. Know the candidates and know what they are capable of doing. And if they really are a PUBLIC SERVANT!

Maikling Kuwento: Loterya by Jay-r Dalida

LOTERYA
ni Jay-r Dalida

"Sayang! Muntik na!", sigaw ni mang Berto habang nagbabasa ng resulta ng lotto.

Si mang Berto, 45-taong gulang. Nakagawian na niya ang tumaya sa lotto araw-araw.

"Ano na naman ba yang ingay na yan, papa? Nakasigaw ka na naman diyan.", singit ni aling Marta na nagsasampay nung oras na iyon. Si aling Marta ay 43-taong gulang. Kulot ang buhok at medyo may katabaan.

"Hindi. Wala yon.", sagot ni mang Berto. "Dalawa lang kasi ang lumabas sa mga inaalagaan kong numero sa lotto. Sayang nga eh."

"Asus! Akala ko naman kung ano na yan!", tugon ni Aling Martha. "Lagi namang ganyan eh. Kung hindi dalawa eh isa lang ang lumalabas. Aminin mo na kasi na hindi ka talaga suwerte sa sugal. Taya ka ng taya, wala namang nangyayari. Kung inipon mo na lang sana yang mga pinantaya mo." dagdag pa nito.

Sumagot naman si Mang Berto, "Aba, Martha! Hindi mo alam kung kailan ka dadalawin ng suwerte! Malay mo bukas, manalo na ako!", sabay higop sa kanyang kape.

"Ilang taon mo na bang inaalagaay yang mga numero na yan?", usisa ni aling Martha.

"Mga tatlong taon na din. Lagi nga lang isa o dalawa ang lumalabas dito eh. Pero suswertehin din ako.", sagot ni mang Berto na malakas ang kumpiyansa sa kanyang mga alagang numero.

"Sige. Maniwala ka lang. Malay mo manalo ka sa taong 2030!", kantyaw ni aling Martha.

"Makikita mo din, mama.", malambing niyang sagot sa kanyang asawa na nagsasampay.

Lumipas ang isang taon. Patuloy pa rin sa pagtaya si mang Berto sa lotto gamit ang kanyang mga inaalagaang numero. Pero ganoon pa rin. Walang suwerte.

"Ano ba yan! Wala man lang lumabas maski isa!" bungad ni mang Berto habang hawak ang diyaryo papasok sa bahay nila.

"Sabi sa'yo eh!" Palitan mo na kasi yan!" kantiyaw ni aling Martha habang kumakain ng tasty.

"Pag-iispan ko yan. Tutal apat na taon ko nang inaalagaan ito at matumal namang lumabas ang mga numero. Siguro pangit nga ang mga kombinasyon ng numero.", malungkot na sagot ni mang Berto.

Kinabukasan, ganoon pa rin. Isa lang ang lumabas sa inaalagaan niyang mga numero. Kinahapunan, pumunta si mang Berto sa tayaan ng lotto upang tumaya. Pagdating sa kanilang bahay ay nakita siya ni aling Martha na masaya.

"Oh! Nakangiti ka yata?" usisa nito.

"Wala lang. Kutob ko kasi mananalo ako ngayon sa lotto.", masayang sagot nito sa kanyang asawa.

Kinabukasan, si aling Martha ang nakakuha ng diyaryo.

"Aaaaaay! Papa! Papa! Daliiiii!", sigaw ni aling Martha habang tumatakbong pumasok sa loob ng kanilang bahay.

"Ano ba yun? Para ka naman nakakita ng taong nasagasaan sa tapat ng bahay.", sagot ni mang Berto na kagigising-gising lang.

"Bakit hindi? Tignan mo itong diyaryo!", excited na ibinigay ni aling Martha ang diyaryo sa kanyang asawa. "Di ba yan yung mga numero na ilang taon mo nang inaalagaan? MAYAMAN NA TAYO!!!"

Nang makita ni mang Berto ang resulta ng lotto sa diyaryo, ayun nga ang mga numero na inaalagaan niya.

"Akala ko hindi na tatamaya yan! Mali pala ako, papa! Tiyaga lang pala dapat!", masayang sabi ni aling Martha sa kanyang asawa.

Hindi makagalaw si mang Berto. Hindi siya makapaniwala sa nakikita niya.

"Oh? Di ba dapat ay masaya ka? Mayaman na tayo!" sambit ni aling Martha sabay yakap sa kanyang asawa.

Napaupo si mang Berto sa upuan at namumutla.

"Mama, hindi. Pinalitan ko na ang mga numero na yan...

===========================

Orihinal na gawa ni Jay-r Dalida (http://jhaymagician.multiply.com)
Ika-20 ng Pebrero, 2010
1:50 pm

CODE GEASS: Shikkoku no Renya info

Repost from maria's blog:

Some info that raulrgreydon gathered from the cyberworld XP

-the series is supposed to take place during Edo Period of Japan, so sadly we MIGHT never
know if Lelouch is still alive :3
-the titular character Renya, uses his mechanical arm to launch rapid-fire shurikens
-like the the previous story, Lelouch of the Rebellion, it will also have a manga adaptation
-of course C.C. will be included in the story :3
-it will be directed by Goro Taniguchi which is also the director of both seasons of
Lelouch of the Rebellion.

Also Lelouch of the Rebellion has 2 OVAs entitled Special Edition "Black Rebellion" and
"Zero Requiem"... which are basically the compressed-into-117-minutes-version of the each seasons :3

More info to come soon! :3
Informations are from wikipedia and wiki.answers.com

original post by: raulrgreydon

JS Prom

Ahh, just got home from the JS Prom. No, it's not mine, but the students.

Okay, first I just want to say thank you to those who trusted me to become one of the hosts. Good thing is that I only have few lines. LOL!

Anyway, the prom was fun! I enjoyed it a lot. As I have said earlier, I was one of the hosts. So how did it go? Well, I was kind of nervous at first but I got the hang of it later on. I instantly learned the do's and don't's of hosting. Experience can really give a person an instant lesson. :D

I got to dance two of my co-teachers and 4 students. I didn't get to dance the other sections because it was their night, not mine, not the teachers.

Anyway, looking forward to the JS Prom next year. I have to keep a lot of promises.

Random na Joke

February 12, Friday. Sa isang fastfood chain. Nag-uusap si Juan at Pedro sa lakad nila bukas.

Juan: Pare, hindi tuloy yung lakad natin bukas.

Pedro: Huh?! Bakit naman?

Juan: Friday the 13th bukas eh. Malas daw umalis pag ganun.

Pedro: Oo nga noh! Sige sa Linggo na lang.

:D :D :D :D

Rant#2: Am I Just Stressed or Am I Just Being Really Frustrated?

I've been keeping this to myself. My first rant was just the initial release of my frustrations. Why am I frustrated? The answer is very simple, BECAUSE I CARE.

Just after one grading period of teaching, I've measured my students according to their English proficiency and understanding and my golly, if you are the teacher of these kids, your head is gonna hurt big time.

I know that when I was at the same level as them (3rd year high school), my English wasn't better. But heck not as the same level as them. It's so shameful that even the simplest "May I go to the comfort room?" can't be said correctly. "Can I go to the CR?" won't suffice because it's wrong. Most of them can't tell the difference between "can" and "may", when in fact, this was taught when they were in elementary. How worse can it get? It can get really worse!

I am not kidding on what I'm going to say, but when I read most of their theme writings, they use future tense when they talk about the past! OMG! Why would someone use "will" when talking about the past? I mean, duh, simple tenses were taught when they were in elementary. It's obvious that a lot of them were not listening. Tssss....

Did I mention that their hobby is to complain? When I ask them to get intermediate pad, they're gonna complain to the high heavens...then ask paper from their classmates. Shame on them. In the first place, they don't have the right to complain because they are students. Can you imagine the scene? Here's how it is.

Me: Okay, get one whole sheet of paper, write your name blah blah blah...
Students: (will just stare at me as if they didn't understand a single word that I said)
Me: (repeats what I say in Filipino for them to understand)
Students: 1 whole pa?! (yes, they STILL speak in Filipino even if my subject is freakin' English!)
Me: Of course! Copy and answer!
Students: Eeehhh! Sir answer only!
Me: NO!
Students: "Ay. Pahinging papel oh...Sino may papel diyan?"
Me: (what the heck!)

That's how it is whenever I ask them to get an intermediate pad for their quiz or theme writing. So imagine my struggles everyday! The star section is exempted here because they all participate and do what I ask them to do.

But, one good thing about this is that in every section, there are bright students! And they are the ones who can tone down my frustrations to the whole section...but not totally. Those bright ones can be counted on my 2 hands.

I'm tired of caring. That's all I can say. How frustrated am I? You can tell because I made a blog/rant like this.

Rant: Bakit Ba Sobrang Tamad Ninyo?

Bakit nga kaya?



Minsan nakakatamad na magturo...



Dahil sa katamaran ninyo...


Kahit anong ipagawa ko, ayaw gumawa....


At nagrereklamo pa kayo...



Nag-aral pa kayo....


Sana nagdaldal na lang kayo...



Sayang ang tuition fee na ipinambabayad sa inyo...



Ang dami kong strategies na hindi ko magamit...



Dahil ang tatamad ninyo...


Pasensyahan na lang....


Sa clearance ninyo...


Dahil ang katamaran ninyo...


Ang magpapahamak sa inyo.

Titser Lang?

I want to share with you guys about an article that I have read in a magazine called Quality Teacher. It is such a good article that I have to re-type it and share it here. It's entitled "Titser Lang?" by Maycee G. Mercado

Just so you know, I am also a teacher that's why I posted an article like this.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Titser Lang?
by Maycee G. Mercado

"Paano kung bigyan ka ng magandang offer ng isang kumpanya, pipiliin mo pa rin bang maging isang titser lang?"

That's the reaction of a friend when I told her that I plan to teach in ther future. It seemed an innocent question at first. When I thought about it, I figured a hint of apprehension, a tinge of remorse about the idea that I want to teach. She must've thought it was absurd, abominable even, that I wanted to be a teacher. I don't blame her though for feeling that way. It is true that teachers today do not enjoy the same esteem as what professionals like engineers or doctors or lawyers enjoy. Titser nga lang eh.

The phrase teacher nga lang is "just a teacher" when transleted to English. It connotes a deprecated image of the teacher, a slave of the educational system who toils to earn but a measly remuneration. True?

Based of the 5% Across the Board Salary Scale Schedule of the Department of Education (DepEd), the Public School Teacher I rank receives a basic salary of PhP 9,939. Teacher II and Teacher III ranks receive PhP 10,535 and PhP 11, 446 resepectively. And despite the regular increase in the prices of commodities, public school teachers have had no salary increase since 2001. An article about the situation of education from ther website www.bulatlat.com cited the result of a DepEd study during the time of ther late secretary Raul Roco which said that a teacher "has about 16 non-statutory deductions, including payments for insurance premiums and loans." Here is the clincher: according to the Department of Labor and Employment, a family of six needs PhP 17, 820 a month of PhP 594 daily to live decently as of February 2004. It is true, then. Teachers work very hard and get paid very little. Titser nga lang eh.

Titser nga lang ba?
In reality, teachers are not just teachers. They are classroom managers. They are chief operating officers of cramped classrooms with some of the most rowdy and academically challenged students. They manage class discipline, maximize the scarce resources, act as counselors to students, and, as if all those tasks are not enough, they take home a mountain of paper works at the end of the day. And to top that, teachers are second parents, they are confidants, they are mentors, they are friends.

The result of a research made by the International Labor Organization (ILO) and United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) reveals how overworked Filipino teachers are. The study shows that Filipino teachers work for an average of 1,176 hours a year, attending to several classes of over 50 students each.

According to Antonio Tinio, president of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), the standard number of students per class is 25. But here in the Philippines, the average class size is double and sometimes triple the standard. "The Philippines has the worst pupil-teacher ratio in Asia." Tinio said. Further, he cited an assessment report made by Education for All in 2000, "Japan has the lowest pupil-teacher ratio at less than 20:1, followed by Malaysia and Thailand, at 21:1 and 21.5:1 respectively. The closest to the Philippines is Laos (31:1) and Vietnam (31:1)."

But here's what's puzzling. There are teachers that last 25, 30, or even more years in the profession despite being overworked and underpaid. That's a big deal - an incomprehensible sacrifice of putting all the best years of their lives as educators. Titser lang?

Titser lang ah?
Since the early years of Filipino migration jobs overseas, teachers have been on of the country's most popular exports. An article from the University of the Philippines Forum shows that the number of teachers deployed overseas increased five times from 1992 to 2002. And judging from the enormous demand for teachers especially in the United States, the number could be higher today. The same article reports that 45.2% of migrant teachers were deployed in the US, while 18.2% and 5.9% went to teach in Saudi Arabia and Brunei respectively.

The depressing side of teacher overseas migration is that some teachers choose to work abroad as domestic helpers. www.bulatlat.com reported in 2005 that some teachers work as house maids in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Middle East to escape the toil of teaching in the country. Who can blame them?

Notwithstanding the close to unbearable disposition of teachers in the country and the promise of the greenest pastures abroad, there are those that choose to stay to teach the Filipino students. No corporate bigwig, lawyer, politician, or hotshot professional can make the sacrifices that a teacher does. Titser lang! And there would be no corporate bigwig, lawyer, politician, or hotshot professional if not for the teacher.

It is hard to dig gold. That's what regular professinals do. But it's harder to develop potentials and mold minds and hearts to make men and women from boys and girls. Only teachers can do that. Titser lang!

----------------------------------------------------------------

Source: Quality Teacher Vol. 10. Number 2. Teacher Lang? by Maycee G. Mercado. Page 6-8.

Guardian Angel

It's been a long time since I haven't blog about things like this. I've been blogging about cosplay in the past few months so I just thought of blogging about another topic.

Anyway, do you believe that we have a guardian angel? I do.

Two or three years ago, I talked to my cousin who's God-given gifts has been developed. He told me that every person has a guardian angel and he/she can talk to him/her (guardian angel).

Anyway, I have many experiences that made me believe that they do really exist, although I can't see them personally.

Going back to my cousin, he told me that if I have a wish, I can tell it to my guardian angel. How? Just talk. But my wishes weren't big. Like for example, earlier this day. I can't ride a jeep because most of them are full. So after 15 mins. I asked my guardian angel to send me a jeep which has a vacant seat, at least 1, so that I can sit down. This is what I said:

"Guardian angel, padalahan mo naman ako ng jeep na kahit isa lang ang bakanteng upuan."

Then 5 minutes later, a jeep with 3 vacant seats came in and stopped in front of me. So there, before I boarded the jeep, I thanked my guardian angel.

This is not just a one-time experience. I've been doing this since my cousin told me about that. But I'm not abusing it. For me, I think that our guardian angel grants us simple wishes that isn't greedy, and those that won't hurt other people.

I have many stories to tell about this but that would be too long.

Try talking to your guardian angel. Just believe in him and he's always there, always ready to help you out.

Just believe that you have one. Just believe and pray to God and to Jesus Christ.

2009, A Roller Coaster Ride For Me

2009 has been a roller coaster ride for me. There were a lot of things that happened which is worth looking back. Let's start from the first month of the year. Read on...
(This is a very long post. I hope you won't get tired reading it.)


JANUARY

My 6th month being a bum. After resigning in a call center in 2008, I didn't apply for a job until January. For me, January is a month in which I can call the month of application. That whole month I tried applying to different online English tutorial (for Koreans) and I didn't have even a single bit of luck. So I was hopeless and stopped applying until late February.


FEBRUARY

Ah! The love month! Well, nothing much happened on that month. So let's move on.


MARCH

March is a very memorable month for me because that was my first time cosplaying in an event called TAGCOM which was held at Robinson's Place Manila. We were just costrippers at that time because we didn't bring a picture of the characters we cosplayed. I cosplayed Android 17 because his costume was very easy, although I had to run to Divisoria the day before the event to buy a couple of things; a plain black t-shirt, one yard of orange cloth (for 17's scarf), and blue semi-high cut Chucks. So here is one of my picture in that event.

Android 17 (Me) and Zero

Also, in that event, I first saw Alodia Gosiengfiao personally and Oh!, she was pretty! She's like a doll. I was like looking at her for a couple of minutes. We even tried to take some stolen shots of her which was a failure...not until she passed by infront of me! So here's my shot of her:



My stolen shot of Alodia. What a smile!
And lucky that I was, I even got a picture of Ashley, whom I just known at that event. I didn't even know that Alodia had a sister. Is she pretty? Of course she is! I asked her if I could take a picture of her but I won't post it here. LOL! Just wait for her picture below. XD

Still in March, I had my first cosplay catwalk in an event in PUP which was called PUP Pinoy A*ko. I cospalyed Android 17 again for the second time. I didn't won the event but that was fun eventhough there were only few people who attended that event. It was also memorable because the venue was so darn hot! We were like sweating like crazy! But it was still fun. ^_^


APRIL

Two memorable things happened to me in this month. First was I commissioned 10K from our company (just by typing legal documents ang scolded 1,000,000 times because of typos), and OZINE FEST, the biggest anime/manga event of the year! Let's talk about Ozine Fest. So there, as I have said, it's the biggest anime/manga event of the year, which was held at SM Megamall, and it was 3 days! On the first day of the event, I went there as, again, Android 17. I will never forget that event because it was my first time I joined a cosplay catwalk with such a humongous crowd. I was nervous before I went at the stage to pose but I overcame it. I just did what I have to, and that was to pose. Harhar! It was also fun because there were lots of people who took a picture of me. Some even called me, "Uy, Android 17, pa-picture!)" That was really fun! I also met a couple of new friends because of the cosplay catwalk.

Annie and I

After the first day, King and I had to sleep over at one of our friend's house. The next day, our group, SKM, had a group cosplay. We cosplayed Genei Ryodan. I was Hisoka at that time. I don't want to post a pic of me wearing Hisoka's costume because it was such an epic fail. So 2 months after the event. I sold my costume to Francis aka poklet13 (which was more suited for him). In the third day of the event, I was only a con-goer. I was still with my cosgroup at that time, taking pictures of cosplayers. :)


STILL IN APRIL (whew!) was another event called Shizen Orchestra. It was held at SMX Function Hall (beside SM MOA). This was the event in which I got a picture with Alodia and Ashley! Of course, I told my friend to take some photos of Ashley. When he came back, she had lots of Ashley pictures...AND ALODIA'S! Here are some sample shots!


Alodia and I

Ashley Gosiengfiao


Alodia and Ashley Gosiengfiao


Ashley and I


MAY

Nothing much happened in this month except that I went to apply for another company...and still didn't get in. ;(


JUNE

TOYCON! Nothing much happened at the event. I was just there as a con-goer. And again, still on the quest of finding a job...but then again didn't make it.


JULY

Agian, nothing much happened at this month. It's just the same as the month of JUNE, except that there were no conventions (or there is? I forgot). So let's move on.


AUGUST

My birthmonth! Also Manila Comic Convention was held at SM Megamall. I almost did not attend this convention because of my personal reasons...but I'm glad I did! I got to know my long-time crush (whom I was looking at in Ozine Fest Day 1. XD). She's nice! She's cool! So there. I won't say anymore. LOL!

This was also the month were my mom gave me her Nokia 6120 cellphone as a birthday present. I was so happy because I liked that phone so much! :D

I was still on my quest to find a job, but again, same old sh*t. Nothing happened. LOL!


SEPTEMBER

The month that many of the Filipinos will remember for all of their lives. But before we talk about that depressing event, let's talk about CosplayMania '09! This event was amazing! I went there as Feitan, a character from Hunter X Hunter, with my friend Francis, who cosplayed as Hisoka.




Again, I met a couple of friends at this event. Yey! Lots of friends!

Still in September, typhoon Ondoy struck Luzon and left an unforgettable mark in the history of the Philippines. Luckily, our village wasn't that much affected although it flooded outside the house. I have a blog about that so I won't put anymore of that here. :)

Oh, this was also the month that I got addicted to Kamen Rider Decade! And the rest is history!


OCTOBER

I didn't know that this month would be a blessing because at last, I got a job! I didn't really plan on teaching yet but as what Eminem said in his song Lose Yourself, "You better lose yourself the moment you own it...blah blah.. 'cause opportunity comes once in a life time YO!" So I tried applying. Lucky me, I got in!

A typical day... (III-A 12/10/09)

NOVEMBER

A month which was filled with big events, Anime Overload Festival, Mangaholix Mangamania, and Hero Nation. Two of the events, which was AOF and HN, I cosplayed Feitan again. In Hero Nation, we joined the cosplay group competition for the first time. Our skit was Kuroro's Fall, Hisoka's Triumph. We didn't win the event but that was quite an experience! It was fun. I also met a couple of new friends at those events. Happy! :D


DECEMBER

Oh, December, the last last! One of my happiest month of 2009! Also, there was the last convention for 2009 which was Christmas ToyCon. I went there as Moonlight Knight from Sailormoon Sailorstars. It was fun event. Some of the people there still recognized who I was cosplaying. T'was really fun!

Moonlight Knight

Also, our school had a club fair. It was my first time attending such event...AS A TEACHER! Also, as a club moderator, we had this booth called the Wedding Booth. That event was really fun. After manning the booth, I did a couple of magic for my students. Happy, happy, happy! :D

The newly weds!

III-E making their HUGE lantern!

What else? I got a bonus! Oh yeah! :D I ate a lot. So much that I felt like I got tired of eating! LOL!


So there you go! I would just like to say thank you for the friends whom I met this year.

Annie
Akira
Mia
Ashley
FJ
Marky
Derrel
Xheng
Tomomi
Ralph
Deej-man
Ralph Ichigo
Taki
Midori
Kuya Denggoy
Sheila
J-As people
Mayuko
Minami Kotaro (I forgot his name)
RB
Rommel

and many more! Sorry if I forgot to mention your name. Just comment here! LOL!

Whew! What a looooong post! :D

Anyway, I hope that 2010 for me will also be a blast! :D


(Time to make my visual aids for tomorrow! Oh! It's already 9 PM!) LOLZ!!!!


01/04/10
9:25 PM
via Multiply