10 things I love about my dorm

1. It gets better by the year. Regularly, it’s refurnished and refurbished. (Regularly, the rent is also increased.)

2. I’m the elected prince. That means I don’t have to worry about organizing activities. I’m just so burnt out with my duties in school as president of the graduating class and Political Science Society.

Vertex Dormitory, Pantua Village, Koronadal City

3. I get to share my dormmates properties such as Marlon’s gadgets and groceries; Eric Van’s mint-green, plastic laundry basin; Ron’s scissors and scotch tape; and Bryan’s 100 phone sex videos.

4. The bickerings are endless. I’ve learned so much about human relationship.

5. It has Time magazine. The office of Vertex Dormitory subscribes to it. Our landlord gets the newsweekly from the office and lends it to me first.

In my crib, er, bed

6. We have no TV at the boys quarters, in the ground floor. I hate watching TV—or, I hate watching what other people watch on TV.

7. I get to play Detective Conan, because something is stolen almost every fortnight.

8. It’s very near the school. No worries when LBM strikes in class.

Receiving area. Wi-fi zone

9. I’m the kuya. The younger boarders believe everything I say, including the “curse” in Rm. 88. Eric sleeps on the floor because I told them that all occupants of the upper bunk of the bed in the room, as I’ve observed, suffer mishaps and stay in the dorm for one week to one semester only.

10. I have funny dormmates willing to make fun of themselves such as 89-kg Don, who would playfully cry Eeeeek-eeeek, and Ron, who would do just anything anyone suggests.

Private videoke at EMR

Koronadal City--My friend Debbie is going back to Cebu, in her work as a call girl, er, call center agent.

In usual Debbie fashion, she bid farewell by inviting us to a hush-hush night-out (and I'm blabbering about it). Six of us had quiet fun in a videoke room at EMR Center.

Inside the Chinese Red room. A giant bagua mirror adorns the ceiling.

Left to right: The Rolly, Ryan C., Debbie, Royal

I’m the official “killjoy.” The microphone never even brushed my fingers.

The price of VIP rooms at EMR starts at a thousand bucks for three hours, inclusive of food and drinks.

EMR has the best french fries I ever tasted. The place and my dorm have the same owner.

Mr. University 2007 belting out “Somewhere down the road”—and countless other songs.

We couldn’t stop him from singing. When our time was up, three waiters had to practically pry the mic from his hands and carry him to the door. (I'm exaggerating, of course.)

Left to right: Royal, Debbie, Ryan A., Mark Anthony

The loo

Please call me stupid

Tacurong City, Sultan Kudarat
December 26, 2007

The short story: I have a brain the size of a tilapia’s! I fell on a fish pond.

The long story (Or what was going on in my mind): This pond is so small, the water so murky. Are there really fishes here?

Ah so, Uncle’s taking his eldest grandson fishing. But something seems to smell fishy. The kid keeps scratching his head, saying, “Wala man!”

Sweat is starting to form on grandpa’s forehead. He can’t spoil this grandpa-grandson day out! He is taking the line with a do-or-die mien.

At last, a tilapia is biting the bait. The size is disappointing—It’s not yet of cooking age. Nevermind. Just look how happy grandpa and grandson are.

Wait, Uncle’s moving the line toward me. Am I supposed to get the catch off the hook? Okay, my honor.

My, my, the fish is putting up such a fierce fight. It might fa—it fell on the ground! I must catch it. I can’t ruin their grandpa-grandson day out. Oops, the tiny scaly devil keeps on wriggling, toward the water! I have to lean some more—

Splaaaash!

Is this really happening to me? Look at grandpa and grandson. What a joy, what a joy they feel! They’ve caught one very big, very stupid tilapia.

My Arabic name

Jomar

JOMAR, my Maguindanaoan dormmate, lent me a few books on Islam. While I was leafing through them, I came across the 99 names of Allah.

As I was also on the hunt for a good pen name, I asked Jomar to read to me the Arabic translations. We then invented English spellings for the names that I liked.

One of these could be my nom de plume someday:

• Raouf - "Compassionate"
• Quddus- "Pure" (Don't react!)
• Shakur- "Appreciative"
• Khalil- "Majestic"

How does Raouf Ortega sound?

NDEA 2007 in Cotabato City

The bote-bakal-plastik buyer has just arrived.
For our items, she offerred P2 per kilo.

LAST Dec. 4, 2007, Leni, a Chemical Engineering student, and I represented our school in the NDEA (Notre Dame Educational Association) Academic Contest.

We emerged the champion, defending our trophy last year. It was also Leni and I NDMU sent to the 2006 meet.

Eight (8) Notre Dame tertiary schools took part. ND Kidapawan College was the 1st runner-up and ND Midsayap College, the 2nd runner-up.

Socio-cultural competitions were also conducted. ND Dadiangas University got the golds in Talumpati and Vocal Solo. ND University (Cotabato) was hailed the champion in Impromptu Speaking, and ND Kidapawan bested all the other schools in Pop Dance.

The morning after the contest, at Lourdes Grotto, Cotabato City. From right to left: The Rolly, jovial Sir Mark, Pretty Rulli, Two-Time NDEA Singing Champ Sheryl, an Iguana that broke free from its cage. Oops, sorry, the last one is named Wilter.

ACADEMIC CONTEST QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

(This is the best my memory and answer sheet can serve me.)

EASY ROUND (10 seconds to answer; 5 points each)

1. Spelling: “curvaceous”; We got it.
2. Vocabulary: “pecuniary; Anwer: (a) pertaining to money; We’re the only team that got it.
3. Math: Mary walked 3/7 of the distance jade traveled. Jade walked 21 km. How many kilometers did Mary travel?
a. 9 km
b. 24 km
c. 42 km
d. 49 km
Correct Answer: A
Our Answer: A
4. Science: What virus causes hemorrhagic fever?
a. paravirus (according to Leni. It sounded like “pyrovirus” to me.)
b. ebola virus
c. hanka virus (or something sounding like that)
d. papilloma virus
Our Answer: A
Correct Answer: B
5. Religion: Who replaced Judas as apostle?
a. Esther (not sure about this)
b. Matthias
c. Barnabas
d. Demas
Correct Answer: B
Our Answer: B
6. General Information: What country has the smallest population?
a. San Marino
b. Tuvanic
c. Vatican City
d. Monaco
Correct Answer: C
Our Answer: C

Perfect Score: 30 points
Our Score: 25 points

AVERAGE ROUND
We got a perfect score in this round!
(10 seconds to answer, 10 points each)

1. Spelling: “encomium”
2. Vocabulary: “mollify”
a. mechanism for inhibited action
b. prototype or primitive pattern
c. unoriginal
d. soothe
Answer: D
3. Math: One of the complementary angles is twice the size of another. What is the smaller angle?
a. 25 degrees
b. 30 degrees
c. 902x degrees
d. cannot be determined
Answer: B
4. Science: The surgical cutting of [some unintelligible word, whith “chr”, “ium” and all] is performed in which body part?
a. salivary gland
b. esophagus
c. nasal cavity
d. tongue
Answer: D
5. Religion: What emperor made Christianity the official religion of the Holy Roman Empire?
a. Nero
b. Herod
c. pilate
d. Constantine
Answer: D
6. General Information: What Philippine president transferred the date of the Philippine Independence from July 4 to June 12
a. Ferdinand Marcos
b. Diosdado Macapagal
c. Manuel L. Quezon
d. Carlos P. Garcia
Answer: B

The earliest surviving daguerreotype, a photographic process.
It pays to read the World Book Encyclopedia

DIFFICULT ROUND
(20 second to answer, 15 points each)

1. Spelling: “daguerreotype”; We’re the only team that got it!
2. Vocabulary: “askance”
a. requite (pronounced rekweet by the emcee, instead of rekwyt)
b. indirect look
c. prototype
d. indemnify
Our answer: A
Correct Answer: B
3. Math: Three times a number diminished by sixteen equals five. What is the number?
a. 21
b. 8
c. 7
d. 9
Correct Answer: C
Our answer: C
4. Science: (I'm not sure if I got this question right.) A woman's father bears an x recessive gene that causes color blindness. what is the probability of her son being color blind?
a. 100%
b. 75%
c. 50%
d. 25%
Correct answer: C
Our answer: B
5. Religion: Who succeeded St. Peter as pope?
a. Alexander I
b. Linus
c. Sixtus I
d. Pius I
Correct answer: B
Our answer: B
6. General Information: What is the largest encyclopedia in recent news, with 200 volumes and weighing 420 kg?
a. Encyclopedia Britannica
b. Encyclopedia of Human Knowledge
c. Encyclopedia Americana
d. Arabic Legislative Encyclopedia
Correct answer: D
Our answer: D

Perfect score: 90 points
Our score: 60 points

Perfect Total Score: 180 points
Our Total Score: 145 points
1st Runner-up's Score: 115 points

Cheap great books from Fit Mart Mall

I’m starting to rebuild my private library!

The choicest books are wrapped in plastic and bearing my book plate (it’s just actually a pale-yellow post-it note with my name on it).

The most precious of my finds by far:

• American Pastoral by Philip Roth


• A Man in Full by Tom Wolfe


• The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel (Borrowed and in danger of not being returned)


• Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt


• The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe


• My American Journey by Colin Powell (Current reading project. Stuck at page 131.)

I bought all of them at less than P100 each at Fit Mart Mall.

Sorry, you may only borrow them at very rare circumstances. But I have several other good books that I’m willing to lend anytime.

How to have cheerier chows

Day in day out, the carinderias near the dorm serve the same food. I can’t, however, let that ruin my appetite.

If what I eat is not new, the way I eat can be new. Last sem break, I bought myself a plastic bowl (P47.50 at KCC) and bamboo chop sticks (P46.50 for 10 pairs at Ace Centerpoint)

Now I eat a la-Jet Li, minus the kung-fu.