A newswriter's work is never done. Neither is a news editor's, who covers events when she forgets to ask her writers to do it. Gah. So yes, I had to wake up at 8am just so I can hurry to the Uni and cover the groundbreaking of the new Xavier University-Pryce Center for Entrepreneurship.

On any ordinary day, I wouldn't have grumbled about it. I mean, I loooooove covering Uni events. This particular aspect of journalism NEVER gets old or unexciting. You get to witness history unfold, interview key people who hold the answers in their hands, and write write write to let the whole world know what had just occurred. Okay, so it's not as glorified as it sounds, but the excitement always makes me feel like I could do this forever. EXCEPT on that day, when I felt sick and tired and sick all over.

But what could I do? I forgot to text my newspipz to cover. Darn. Besides, since becoming editor, I've rarely done any fieldwork, and I was getting lethargic. It was time I rattle my old bones along and show myself I've still got what it takes to be a journalist.

I'm glad I went, even though I was late. I got to interview three people, among them the chairman for Pryce Gases (interviewing VIPs is one of the perks of this job, yeah?), who partnered with the University to make this building possible. I also got to grab some sweetcorn on a stick, which was one of the refreshments being offered. 'Twas yum!

So I'm glad I went. As a Business Administration student, I've got a stake on this building, so I felt glad I was present to witness its first steps. (Sentimental, much?) Here's to hoping we can make use of it for the implementation of our feasibility study next academic year.

***
In the afternoon, I availed of a free trial account at Luminosity. It's a site filled to the brim with brain games to help improve your flexibility, memory, attention span, speed, and problem solving. Brain games, you ask? Yes. Apparently my latent geekiness is not so latent this summer.

Sadly, only three out of 40 sessions are free in Luminosity. So I'll be there only three days tops. But if you've got the cash to spare, you can avail of the membership fee and 'unlock full access', a.k.a complete all 40 sessions to make your brain sharper.

***
Anyhow (because this is my fave word to write), if you've noticed the current lack of photos in this blog, fear not! I have noticed it too. I'll put my considerable lack of mad graphic skills to work and come up with something to brighten up this page. Hopefully.

I know, I know. I'm two days late with this post. Your mind's probably wondering if I drowned right after jumping down the beach. Well, since there was NO beach, that was most unlikely.

So, yes, there was no beach. When we got to Basamanggas Resort, I found out that (1) we rented an open-air function-room type of thinggummy with a videoke and three long tables, and (2) the beach was far, far away from the open-air function-room type of thinggummy. What we had, however, were three swimming pools just eleven steps away (or more, if your steps are tinny). Hurrah! While the beach would have been real fantastic, I never could swim properly on a beach. And after ten months of pool-deprivation, there was nothing I wanted more than just to lap back and forth for, oh, ninety times or so.

Anyhow, I didn't get my ninety laps, but I did get to laze around the pool 'til my fingers wrinkled. Best. Cure. For. Stress. EVER.

So, that wasn't exactly the only highlight of the whole trip, but the rest are either embarrassing or best left secret. Except for the abundance of food. THAT wasn't a secret. And the fact that I didn't sleep a wink, which made me glassy-eyed and awake for 26 hours straight (yes, I'm proud of it. Pitiful.). And the fact that our EiC wore a cocktail dress and an orange nightgown, making him look like the world's gaudiest grandmother. Now that was one disturbing image.

Anyhow, we headed for home at 8:30am, and nodded off during the entire jeepney trip (which was a loooooong on, going over at least 5 municipalities before we reached our destination).

When I got home, I had this glorious vision of staying up for 30 hours straight. I got as far as opening the laptop, logging on to Facebook, commenting on a few statuses, and...SPLAK. Goodnight, Bianca and her ambitious mind.

I woke up to a dark, dark house because there was no friggin electricity. And it was churlishly hot. But that wasn't enough to deter me. I promptly fell back to sleep.

Around 7pm, I woke up to a noisy room. My sister was dashing around with her swimwear and all. It took me a hazy five minutes to remember we were gonna go swimming tonight with the cousins to celebrate two birthdays and two graduations. At the Sagatech Resort, which was pretty much like Basamanggas--a little far from the beach, but with awesome pools. Overnight #2. Except when I asked my mom what I should bring for breakfast, she gave me The Look and said, "You're not going on overnight." BUMMER.

Still, 'twas fun. Food was, as always, in abundance. It made me cringe, seeing all the food crammed into two tables, when I remembered my World Food Programme (WFP) newsletter on a child who was "so hungry, I could hardly think." So I drowned my guilt with a large slice of pizza, and the promise of a larger donation soon.

We played pool volleyball, then pool futsal, then pool dodgeball, then we played a combination of all three depending on what you want to do with the ball you're holding.

Then, after almost four hours on that awesome pool, we had to go back home.

And then I went SPLAK for the second time that day. God, I love my pillow.

__________________
Anyhow, the WFP has this new, nifty way of donating. It's called WeFeedback. I won't tell you more, just click on this link--WeFeedback--and find out for yourself. I hope you'll donate. :)

It's that time again, when we have to look back on our past misdeeds and triumphs and all. Only, we (the official student publication of Xavier University, which I shan't name) do it in style. Or in style as cheaply as possible, since we're under a tight budget. Tonight, we're heading off to a beach resort to ruminate on our sins. And take a swim. And sing some sad, sad songs to while away our sorrows. Okay, maybe not that part. We'll sing "Friday" instead.

And so, this is my au revoir. Goodbye, Facebook. Goodbye, unfinished Greek lessons. Goodbye, internet connection.

Instead,
HELLO, BEACH!!

I've started my basic Greek lessons over at Livemocha. I'm still in Lesson 1 out of six, and so far I've muddled up my mind with Greek greetings and basic questions. "Kalimera" - Good morning; "Kalo apoyevma" - Good afternoon; "Kalispera" - Good evening; and a hoard of other stuff on Unit 1 Lesson 1. So far, it's awesome, especially since I'm still in the Learn part. Wait 'til I get to the Speak part of the exercises, where I shall then attempt to speak in Greek, which is probably enough to send Aristotle's bones clattering in his grave.

On another cheerful thought, I find I like graduation parties when it's not my graduation. My cousin graduated from high school today and held a grad party at his house for the whole extended family. Lechon (stuffed pig to those not from the Philippines) and lasagna, I found out, are awesome together. That, plus an ultra-cute, black-brown-and-white shih tzu puppy put me on hyperactive mode. Then I got to play Starcraft II, which had epic graphics, and my day was made.

The only thing that sucked about today was my non-Earth Hour. I wasn't at home to enjoy the total darkness of the house coz the grad party lasted 'til 9pm. We got home with only five minutes to spare before Earth Hour officially ended. Darn.

Oh well, there's always next year's.

See that white hammock hanging between two coconut trees? That's where I am right now--in my dreams. I want to be there so badly right now, with the breeze billowing around me while my pen stands poised above my notebook, ready to transfer my thoughts into scribbles.

Since the NaNoWriMo 2010 ended, I have not sat down to write a single word to add to my novel. Instead, on January, I thought up another one. Such is life. I've never finished writing a novel. Never. Instead, I have written chapters and snippets on so many unfinished ones, only to abandon them for another, and return to them only when I browse through my files. So it should come as no surprise that I've just had another plot for another novel even though I haven't completed the one I was working on two months ago. Sigh. Is this a writer-related disease or am I just showing an admirable lack of willpower?

Anyhow, for The Novel (that shall probably go the way all my previous novels did),I'm thinking of something summer-y. In Boracay? Barbados? California? How will it end? Of course, I'm partial to happy endings like majority of the world, but it wouldn't hurt to end with a hint of regret. Something new, something realistic, something that would challenge my brain cells. How will it begin? (Yeah, I think of the ending first before the intro. I'm weird like that.) In a quaint cafe? In a minimalistic bedroom within a condominium? Where where where?

As for the most important part--yes, silly, The Plot--I'll dredge that up tomorrow. Because sometimes, it just pops up from nowhere. And that's what makes it interesting.


Photo credits: Summer Beach (free-extras.com)

I woke up at 11:38am. Yes, I was awesome, now, wasn't I? I then proceeded to have a headache of epic proportions, the kind that makes you want to split your head just so it'll stop the pounding. On a gross afterthought, splitting my head will probably make it hurt like crazy, not to mention kill me...so it's a no-go. So much for hyperbolism.

At any rate, I just recently dropped by Livemocha, this social networking site for people who want to learn foreign languages and connect with foreign people while learning foreign languages, to enroll in more language courses. So far, they've got 8.6 million users and 38 languages offered. Frankly, I don't have much use for the social networking aspect of the site, but the language lessons are great. I learned French sentence constructions from them, despite trying to learn it from different websites. What makes Livemacha unique is the different approaches they use to teach the language.

• First, they show you a slideshow (with audio) for each lesson. They start with words, then phrases, then sentences. There are pictures that help you visualize the word's meaning, and an audio of the correct pronunciation of the word. There are also tips from other learners, which is one of the only reasons I like the social-media aspect of LM. They give you some cheats on how to pronounce it by syllables, thank God.
• Second, they make you pronounce certain words, phrases, and sentences into your headphone's mic. They record it, and you can now play it back to hear how awful you sounded. People can comment on it, pointing out which words you pronounced right and which words failed to roll right off your tongue.
• For third, LM gives you writing exercises to practice your vocabulary, grammar, and sentence construction. Like the audio recording, Livemocha members can see it and read your words. Which scared me at first, except most comments were kind and constructive--if sometimes condescending.

Anyhow, I decided to learn two more languages this summer. On top of my French classes which go off and on and hibernate for months. Yeah, I'm crazy. But I just really want to finish two more languages in seventy days. It's like a sort of challenge to see how far I can discipline myself to stop procrastinating and start learning. SO I'm doing this. First language will be basic Greek, because I'll be writing something Greece-related for a novel sometime in the near future. Second will be something useless to my daily life but fun to add to my list of nonsensical knowledge. Right now, it's a toss up between Urdu, Esperanto, or Catalan. I'd probably pick Urdu, but I'll sleep first and make my decision tomorrow.

So after all that rambling and blatant advertising, have I convinced you to learn a new language? Yeah? Cool. Drop by Livemocha.com and enroll now!

Au revoir!

I spent the day at a seaside retreat house, facilitating ASUL's graduation camp for this year's batch of Asulites. I can't find the right words to piece together the right sentences to describe what I felt, seeing these 15 (more or less) leaders-in-training grow from individualistic individuals into one strong team that has learned to work together to achieve their goals. There are just really times when my mind is lost for words, and all I can do is feel, corny as that may sound.

Hence, since that's how the world turns at the moment, think I'd rather contemplate about the seaside retreat house than force myself to dredge up words that won't come out right. So...the seaside retreat house was like a slice of paradise. It was my first there, and I felt like I could have stayed forever. The breeze blowing in from the sea. The sand that got inside my Crocs. The dogs that followed us around. The laughter of the Asulites. The wooden open-air cottage that was great for sitting down. The place...the entire amazing place that made me feel like all my problems have slipped away. These are the things I'll remember when I look back on this day. This and the indescribable feeling inside me that I could not express.

There was this swing that we (that's me and my fellow ASUL Core) sat it, facing the beach, and it was there that I breathed a prayer of thanks  that He brought me here for my first day of summer.

Classes are over; summer's begun. (Or it has if you're in the Philippines.) To celebrate the last summer break of my life--if I get to graduate next March, that is--I'm going to immortalize every single day of it in this blog. That'll be from March 23 to June 5. What with feasibility study implementation, publication work, freelance work, and everything else, it's looking to be a tough summer to get through, but hopefully it will be, in Rebecca Black's profound words, FUN FUN FUN FUN!

And since I'm highly bad at first posts, I'd end it here before I make an absolute fool of myself.

See ya around!