16 - 15 Harsh Criticism

I received a great excuse to criticize 15 of my block mates.
Here they are:

1.Andrey Buzon
2.Vincent Huliganga

3.Samantha Munar

4.Martha Angela Salamat

5.Katelyn Calma

6.Justin Parado

7.Julius Claveria

8.Brian Olores

9.Antonio Miguel Lu

10.Eugene Delfin

11.Dartegnian Velarde
12.Jade Ericson Adriano

13.Fevy Espinas

14.John Ryan Pasaoa

15.Nicole Angelyn Lopez

15 - A Modern Filipino

We all take things for granted, some are family, some are knowledge. But what we take for granted most is probably our nationalism. We believe that if we forget our roots, we won’t be left behind by our advancing world. But what does it mean to be a Filipino? Is it supporting your local products? Fighting for peace within our country? Or even something as simple as cheering your country for the Olympics? 

          In the past, a Filipino is someone who fights for their country, by any means possible. Some chose to shed blood for our sacred shores. Others woke our citizens from the Spaniards advances by writing a newspaper. In one way or another they made their efforts in defying a foreign oppressor who deny us our freedom, who endanger our culture, and those who dare lay their hands on our mother land.

          But these were the Filipino’s of old, these were our heroes, who have shed blood and sweat all for the sweet taste of freedom. They understood their duty as a Filipino to not only defend, but to repel any foreign invaders from enslaving our fellow countrymen and our nation. They were the ones who didn’t back-out because the enemy was stronger, they were the ones who doubled their efforts because they knew that deep down in their hearts they were the righteous.

But that’s not the case for today. Now people are starting to reject the old-fashioned Filipino culture, they actually want more foreign influences. We rarely support our heritage. When do we start seeing people who are actually proud to sing our national anthem? During a school program or an international boxing match? Do we only embrace our culture only when we are faced by someone else’s?

Being a Filipino doesn’t start with the country, or the government or anyone who’s in-charge. No, being a Filipino starts from each and every one of us. They are the responsibilities of the country-men. We’ve already been given a glorious past, one of which was born in blood. We already have a righteous reputation given to us by our heroes, our heroes who gave their blood and sweat for our country so that our alien foes would know that we stand in defiance.

          But those are only remnants of the past. We now face our uncertain future. It may not all be blood shedding or the purging of an oppressor. But, I believe that we don’t have to be ultra-nationalistic to become proper Filipinos. We don’t need to follow the footsteps of our heroes but rather make an example of them; that we will not tolerate injustice.

         

If what it takes to be a true Filipino is to die for your country without question or hesitation, then I’m sorry I am not. If being a Filipino means to protect our culture and leave it untouched, then I’m sorry I can not. If what it takes, is a blood compact that, this land, our mother land shall be protected, from a foreign foe, or driving-out anyone who wishes her harm, then I’m sorry, I can’t and would not.

Our modern heroes showed us that, even by just working; your country will benefit from it greatly. By simply honoring your parents by following their orders, we show that we acquired the trait of respect and gratitude.

          Everyone has what it takes to be a Filipino, it’s a matter of doing it. By simply putting your country before another is one of the greatest things that I have done as a Filipino. As our great hero Jose Rizal once said “the youth is our hope.” We don’t need to cling to the past, but rather, we create the future. It doesn’t have to be ultra-nationalistic, you just have to embrace the culture.

From everything that I have just said, How would you judge me, am I a Filipino or did I just inherit the title mindlessly? Most of us would consider ourselves as Filipino’s because we are of its blood.

          Most people wouldn’t realize that being a Filipino isn’t about heritage or blood. It’s also not about bringing up the past as a means of reason to act reckless. No being a Filipino means that you are able to act out what we have learned from it. Being a Filipino isn’t a matter of what you do to them, it’s what you do with us. What it means to be a Filipino is in the heart, not the name.

          I am a Filipino, a product of a glorious past, a hindrance to any foreign oppressor. We are Filipinos, in our hearts courses the same blood of generations of heroes. I am Filipino, awoken at last, freedom from the past. I will inherit this country, and so shall my children’s children.

14 - Internet Censorship

Who here uses the internet? Everyone right? It’s a very essential part of our lives now. Nowadays if the internet were to disappear we can compare that to losing a hand or a leg. You’d have a hard time with your everyday life. But that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to do anything anymore. It’ll only be an inconvenience. Let’s say that you’re eating, would you have trouble doing it with one hand? No, right? It’s not like you’ve been completely disabled and rendered useless. But then again you would rather have the convenience of eating with both hands. It’s easier, and more efficient. That’s what the internet is like, it’s not a vital part of you, but rather an extension of yourself. Let’s say that you’re eating an ice cream.  You would eat it as is because it’s already good, but if you were given a choice to add sprinkles on it you would choose the one with sprinkles every time.

Some governments around the world today are issuing internet censorships, for example: S.O.P.A. They limit a user’s ability to access certain websites  or withhold certain sensitive information that might lead to compromise. It’s supposed to make the internet a more pleasurable and friendly experience. And yet, why does it feel like they’re violating your freedom. It’s the users choice whether they want to go to a malicious website or just simply flaming with other people in a blog. You shouldn’t stop someone from doing what they want, unless they’re hurting anybody. But who could you possibly hurt on the net, physically atleast.

 They take away the one thing that the internet offers: freedom. You came to the internet to express yourself, and yet why should they stop you. The real reason behind internet censoring is that the government wanted to have control over the internet. I mean what could you possibly gain from hiding information? it’s probably to make their political face more acceptable. But that’s just it, they’re hiding the truth about them and they want to control what you say about them. They’re only sugar coating it with “safety reasons” but the truth is they just want control. You can’t hide a secret by issuing censorships, you only provoke the public about it. If you want your dirty secrets hidden then you shouldn’t trample over someone else’s freedom for it.

13 - Why Gamers Are A Better Problem Solver

Video gaming has been here for more than a decade now. They tend to cause addiction to children which is badly viewed by their parents. Gaming has been treated as a disease because of all the negative effects. But gaming isn’t all that bad, in fact it’s actually quite beneficial.  Here are some of the perks you may obtain from being a gamer; it improves your perception and reaction skills: meaning that with every game you play you’re actually sharpening your memory and improving your perception. It improves visual attention; you can’t put on your “A game” if you’re not 100 focused. With these skills gamers are already considered to be a higher caliber than the average person.

In 2011 there was a game called “fold it”,

 it was an online puzzle game about protein folding. It was created so that regular people with little to no scientific knowledge can also help tackle a scientific problem. Fold it was used to resolved the structure of an enzyme that causes an aids-like disease in monkeys. Researchers had been working on the problem for 13 years. The gamers solved it in 3 weeks. Notice the difference? A year later people were playing an astronomy game called “Planet Hunters” and they found about 40 planets that could potentially support life, all of which had been previously missed by the professional astronomers.

You see our brains are wired up to recognize patterns and gaming helps develop that ability. This is why scientists are now turning to gamers for help. Now next time you see someone playing, think twice before you call what they’re doing useless/waste of time

12 - THAT'S WHAT MY MOM SAID

My mom wrote a letter for me for my graduation. I thought I should share it to you.

My dearest son Nathan,

Your high school graduation is coming near…

You are growing up so fast, I still remember your first day in school, you were so cute then, so excited and full of enthusiasm, you were so “bibo”. Years passed and you finish your elementary school.

After that, we looked for a school for your high school education, and by God’s grace you were accepted in Taguig Science High School. I was so proud of you.

Now, your high school graduation is coming, time passed by unnoticed … You are about to finish another chapter of you’re life and is about to begin a new journey … your college education. 

As a parent, we will do our best to send you to college. In return, I hope that you will study hard; this is for your future, not ours, don’t let things around you distract you.

 You are a grown up kid now, and there were times that I got so worried on how to guide you, but I believe that you grew up in a right manner. 

Anak, I wish that you will grow in a way that is pleasing to God… I always pray that our Lord will always protect you from any harm, and that He will always guide you to the right path.

We may not able to guide you at all times, but please in everything you do, always think if it is good and pleasing to God. In everything you do, always pray. Keep yourself pure, retain your moral standard.

Don’t rush anak, there is always time for everything.

I love you, Nathan… your family will always love you.

With Love,

Mama

11 - Concept of Magic

Do you believe in magic, do you feel like you can shoot fire with your hands or control the wind with the flick of a finger, most people believed that it was real back then in ancient times. Others would think that this ability was lost in time. Some of us would make a fool out of ourselves if we were to try it out. That is true, in fact it’s quite frustrating when nothing happens at all. Well, most of the time atleast.     So we resolved into other methods, such as tricks and illusions. These are now most widely known as magic. They are nothing more than deceptions something that we encounter everyday, when you look at a magic trick you focus on what is being held by the magician, that is when you are looking closely. but what you do not see is the bigger picture. when you look closely you fail to see the sleight of hand the magician used because you were to busy paying attention to the distraction, classic misdirection.

Another example would be, the presentation of the magician. Some big-shot performers use the advantage of a grand entrance. Some people are amazed, others well not so much. But the point was none of them realized that they were being tricked already. I mean sure they used it for flare, but do they really know why? Now if you are asking me what magic really is, it’s about broadening your vision to see the bigger picture, to makes sense of it all. Now I’ll ask you again, do you believe in magic?

10 - Smokey Mountains of ash

People think its cool to smoke. I mean sure you'd look like a dragon from your perspective. I mean I would do it if it meant I would be breathing fire, but smoke is the closest thing we'll get.

Banning smoking at APC, not cool because about 25% of them are smokers. Banning smokers inside the APC building; it's a good way to keep the air clean, and keep their rights fair. But, alot of parents complain that: there are alot of smokers outside the APC building. why would you complain about that? Those are a mixture of students and outsiders, they can't intervene on something that they aren't responsible for anymore.

Parents worry that their child might get influenced to smoke because of the wrong crowd outside.
Well first of all if you don't trust your child that they will not stray from the path you thought them then, you already failed your duty as a parent. You can't let anyone take responsibility for your own child and their mistakes.

If you think that using an electric cigarette make you an exemption then think again. Electric cigarettes only eliminates the smoke but still delivers the same amount of nicotine, the deadly nicotine that you were supposed to avoid in the first place.

9 - YOU WERE THE CHOSEN ONE!!!

I was always a fan of the star wars trilogy, but not so much as a hardcore fan, just your regular healthy fanatic.

It started out like any other day except, everyone was awaiting the famous 30 seconds of Fame or Shame.
The task was simple; Create an act/ show of anything you want, and the judges will rate you with either: Fame or Shame. Get famed and you get a shot at winning the grand prize which is cash. However, get shamed and all of your timid breaking and ego altering efforts will be reduced into nothing more than a single cup of defeat(that you'll have to drink in front of everybody). This is how ours started. We got called out second, but it was okay since we we're ready and we wanted to just get it over with. Anakin(justin) and Obi Wan(me) enters the stage, light sabers drawn, I called out to him. He responds, filled with rage he lunges forward. I blocked, my hand charged with the forced, I skillfully repelled his advance. He used the force to take me down then, he leaps. I dodged at the last moment and managed to cut off one of his arms. Filled with anger he uttered 3 words to end my scene: " I HATE YOU!!! " As I exit the stage a distant laugh was heard. It was Palpathine(ryan) he saved anakin. He's gonna turn him into vader. Another hysterical laugh and it marks the end of our play. All in good time.

We claimed 4 Fames. Surprised? no, expected. With a weeks worth of practice, I dared not think what would happen if we were to be shamed. Dishonor was the only thing that would be appropriate if we were to lose. I thought that our early victory was enough to secure as a spot on the top 3. Clearly I was wrong. Nothing hurted more than being defeated by someone who invented their dance for about a minute on-stage. But, I took it as a lesson in arrogance. Those who think nothing but victory without securing it will certainly face an inevitable defeat.

8- What it takes to be a hero

When you ask kids what a hero is, most of them would answer:
someone wearing a cape or a super suit with flashy logos

well if kids consider these heroes, I don't think they get what makes up a real hero. A hero is someone willing to sacrifice something, all for the greater good of the others. They are the ones who know what is the price needed to be paid in order for righteous justice be served.
But that's wrong too. if a hero means you would have to go through extra ordinary lengths just to be recognize as one then, only a special selected few would be called heroes. We all have what it takes  to be a hero. Our OFW's are infact considered heroes. We also have the Police, Firemen, Nurses, and Doctors. they are our average ordinary everyday heroes. They help our world bit by bit in their own special way. They are the ones who protect and serve for our peace.

Few people have passed the trial by fire when the spaniards were here. And fewer still were the ones who have shown their unrelenting desire to turn to the tides of war just to give us back the country that we so undeservingly inherited. They fought for freedom, and if we were asked to do the same now we would simply refuse. So is this what a hero is? to sacrifice without hesitation.

I believe that what a hero is is what the purpose of his deeds were, rather than what deed he performed. If you simply died for the country for a useless and unethical cause, then you would be considered as a heretic. Rather than an actual hero you would be confirmed as a rebel.

A hero as the stories have said:
A hero is kind
A hero is understanding
A hero will punish those who have wronged others
A hero will always prevail( those who do not are called martyrs)
A hero is someone willing to sacrifice anything for the good of the many

If we were to follow these standards as heroes then non of us are worthy to be entitled a true hero.

7 - Cross over

When I enjoy an anime I start crossing them over some things. For example, I was watching

 ATTACK ON TITAN,

and then I thought of something brilliant: WHAT IF THERE WAS A TIME-TRAVELLING ARMADA, AND IT WAS FROM

TITAN FALL.

That would be amazing. also goes for every show and/or anime I've watched. I cross them with the music that I listen to, so I would get an awesome hybrid music video.

This can go the same for your everyday life. Just simply walking on the street imagining yourself wielding a sword or just with a grappling hook and a pair of gliders, and you're already having the time of your life. Now you're basically using your imagination, but you need the exercise though. plus it's way cheaper and no one will judge you cause nobody can see you.

6 - Holding It In

Whatever it is, whether its your bowel, emotion or bladder, they all share the same result, it wont be good for you. I tried on holding in my emotions once, it's hard to believe considering on how straight forward I am with my feelings. but that was the very reason why I became straight forward. I realized that, if I don't express it now, when will they know?

Another thing is the bladder, you trade-off some awesome movie time for a painful kidney stone? Well it did sound like a good idea at the time. Then you start to regret your choices when you're on your bed trying to fight the pain. Again, not good.

Now the bowels, oh come on. Do I really need to tell you why? But anyways, here's the conclusion: If you keep on holding back because of some ego, or emotion then you'll lose every chance you'll get on having a good time. When do you plan on to collect stories for when you grow old, sitting back on your chair, and saying " man I did alot of stupid things when I was young, totally worth" or would you rather like "I could've, but I didn't, I wonder if I did?"

5 - GHOST GIRL AND THE DUDE WHO WAS JUST HIGH

Have you ever felt that you were alone in a room and no one seem to care? I have, and it doesn't feel nice. It happened about a year ago when I was laying down on my bed getting ready to sleep. A thought struck me "What if there really are ghosts and we just can't see them, but they're still there, watching, waiting." I thought it was just some kind of random thought from my head -since I already slept 6 hours in the afternoon, so I'm just staring blankly at the ceiling at 2 A.M.- so I thought I was maybe just "high." But it didn't stop there, I started to mildly hallucinate and thought there was actually a ghost girl sitting at the corner of my bed watching, weeping, silently waiting for someone to notice her. AND THEN IT HIT ME, I was merely remembering an anime that I watched that caused me one hell of an emotional roller coaster. So, you want to know what happened next?
I GOT OVER IT AND WENT TO BED.

4 - Rainy Daydream

Hey guys, apparently it was raining hard and class was suspended just as the storm passed. Anyways everytime it rains I keep thinking deep thoughts. These thoughts aren't just some random trivial things. They're the problems that I used to just shrug off. But when it rains, they suddenly get projected into my mind. They're no longer shrugged off problems, they're analyzed and given meaning to. For example, I was just laying down on my bed and light rain started to pour. I was having trouble trying to sleep because I realized that I was alone. noone was there to accompany me in life. I was starting to act like a broken hearted bum, but I never even had a girlfriend before. I never needed it then, never gonna need it now.

See these thoughts don't just come out willy-nilly. They bring out your fear, if not; creates them. Now I begin to see why have this saying "I wish the rain would wash away all my problems". they don't just wash away your problems, they wash them out of your sub-conscious mind and drives them to your conscious mind. Now that your'e conscious of a problem you start to worry. But it doesn't stop there your mind will continue to fondle on this problem and starts creating ways on how to solve them. Now trying to solve a problem that doesn't even exist would give you a hard time and stress you out.

3 - Introduction to Waifus

Waifus' are every weeaboos' (if you know what it is, you're probably one of them) wet dream that will never become real. Waifus are the female characters that exist in games, anime and manga. They posses different abilities and personalities and will always be lovable.

They range from:

your average high school student
(which is probably the most normal. because of their normality they are one of the less likely to be picked by others. which is good news for you, because you can rest easy knowing that there's only atleast 100 other people after her instead of 1000)

daughter of the demon lord at high school
(let's be real here. As unrealistic as it might be, it's actually true and people are making her their waifus and they number by the thousands. if you still want here to be yours you'll just have to learn to share. reminder: don't sell you're soul just to get her.)

an obsessed psycho killer
(This category falls under yandere, which means a person that loves you so much that they would kill just for you, or atleast anyone trying to steal you from her. This is for those who want more than just a cute face and a nice personality. This is for those who want the feeling of security that their waifu wouldn't just randomly go with someone else, rather they'd murder the first girl that looks at you)

mythological creatures
( now this, this right here is an exotic creature. they are rarely picked because of their competition Ex.The demon lords daughter, angels sent to accompany you
this is actually one of my favorites because their love is something else. I MEAN LOOK AT THEM A HARPY, A LAMIA, AND A CENTAUR, THEY EVEN HAVE FOX AND CAT GIRLS. WHO DOESN'T WANT THOSE KIND OF WAIFUS. Look I maybe speaking from a biased point of view, but one thing I know: dudes cannot resist the fox girl)

to the most bizarre; your very own tape worm
(at this point I'm not even surprised anymore. It is said that the human imagination knows no limits, that or I wasn't desperate enough to think something like this. Anyways if you want to be connected with a deep bond with your waifu, something more than just love, something so deep that your mere separation would be life threatening. Then this is for you, I guess...
look man I we have our own tastes and I respect that, but don't try to get infested with a tapeworm just to see if you'll actually get a waifu. keep healthy and safe. )

even your own daughter from an alternate dimension
(well if you incest, no no please I incest. Enough with the puns, in the actual game they don't really tell you anything until the end. But they don't just tell you, they're gonna show you and they'll blow your mind while they're at it. See they make you fall in love with her for like 3/4 of the entire game and then they'll tell you that you're her dad, like seriously why? so if you're the one who's into this kind of waifu relationship then go ahead. You're not alone you're never alone)

they all come on different shapes and sizes. but all share 1 common trait; they have an unwavering devotion to the protagonist.

lets start of by choosing which waifu suites your needs, remember some waifus are open to polygamy others(I don't even know why I'm warning you its gonna be your fantasy anyway).
picking your waifu is the easy part. defending her honor online, now that's the real challenge you'll face.

 People will always try to steal your waifu or bash on her, but remember that's part of your devotion to your waifu.
  Good luck and remember.

2 - BEST DAY EVAH!!!

      Hey guys, have you ever woke up one day and felt that its gonna be the best day ever?
well that's exactly what happened to me this morning. I woke up feeling a bit lazy. I reached for my phone so that I could spin my chance at GAS(its an app for L.O.L.) and I won the D.J. Sona skin (it's expensive). I was so hyped about it, not just because it was LEGENDARY but because I've been dreaming about this moment since high school. You cant take these kind of things for granted.

Soon I make my way to school. It went easier that what I normally face. Instead of battling my way to a jeepny seat, we were all civilized enough to wait for our turn. Arriving at school wasn't that special, save for the fact that it was orgfair and people were preparing for the upcoming festivities.
You could feel all the clubs excitement as they for their presentation. Alot of acting was done I really enjoyed their presentation. It was about their experiences at APC. then there was also the gaming club which I automatically joined just from hearing the name. The dance club also presented with a breath taking performance. But there was this one club that I cant remember. They played classical music, it was very refreshing from all the electronic music the others were playing. Blu was the orgfair's official sponsor. so basically you fill out the form, write your message on the wall, and you get a free Blu drink. It was so cool, but the free Blu drinks were even cooler.

Classes started, but they never dwindled my spirit. I was actually quite surprised that I was having fun during the lessons (even in math; amazing right?) usually I'd slack off the first half and just slug through the whole day, but not today. The day ended in high spirits, nothing embarrassing was done(or I just didn't consider it to be embarrassing for me). Now the what happens when the best day ever reaches dusk? THE BEST DAYS EVER'S GONNA LAST ALL NIGHT. You started the day right might as well end it with a blast? or better yet don't end it. As sad as it might sound all good things come to and end. So the best day ever cant last forever, but you'll still get more days in the future. So don't give up. Keep moving on.

1 - Play to win vs. Play to learn...

Hey guys, I'm pretty sure most of you have/had played games. 

Some of you might have played multiplayers (ie, clash of clans, league of legends, dota, etc.). 

These kind of games demand alot of cooperation and teamwork, but of course you'd encounter a douche who doesn't care about you or the team, leading to your lost(most of the time atleast).

You see, when you play these games would teach you 

how to:

1. talk to people

2. work as a team

3. time management

4. learn to accept flaws and compensate for it 

5. accept defeat with grace

6. become humble in victory

this is how people play, but some are blinded by victory so hard, that they forget these fundamentals, and instead

they become:

1. douchebags

2. bashing teammates instead of helping them

3. crucifying grammatical errors (I don't even know why)

People think that exploiting your mistakes and publicizing it would make you play better, but you end up doing worst. They think that if you don't stick to the meta(mainstream play style) you forfeited your right to defend yourself and considered to be retarded by default. These kind of beliefs is the reason why the whole team gets dragged down with a minimal chance of recovery. "Pride" is the #1 reason why people do not get to enjoy the game.

But if you're like me, you keep the bashing into a fun minimum level. Provide your team with direct answers instead of being sarcastic. Its okay to have pride but keep it to yourself, everyone could 

careless about all the negative commenting you do.

That's all I got for today, I'll make more next time.
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