ICKAGRAPHS' Calligraphy Workshop Schedules

Hello! Listed below are schedules of my upcoming workshops.  If you wish to register, kindly click on the link found below the headings.

Thank you and I hope to see you soon!

NEW!!!
The District (IMUS, CAVITE) Modern Calligraphy Class - Pointed Pen - SEPT 19, 2015 
http://goo.gl/forms/0pMviKnLOL 

(MAKATI) Modern Calligraphy Workshop - Pointed Pen - AUGUST 22, 2015
http://goo.gl/forms/i3dDequz2X

(DAVAO) Modern Calligraphy Workshop - Pointed Pen - JULY 25, 2015
http://goo.gl/forms/WvVQxO8BEj

(ALABANG Modern Calligraphy Workshop - Pointed Pen - JULY 18, 2015
http://goo.gl/forms/kBmZXlzM7c

(ALABANG) Modern Calligraphy Workshop - Pointed Pen - JUNE 20 & 27, 2015
http://goo.gl/forms/yOJNVkVz5n

July and August Workshops

Hello everyone! Here are the links to my July workshops and survey form for my August workshops in Makati, Alabang and Sta.Rosa.

JULY 18, Alabang
http://goo.gl/forms/kBmZXlzM7c

JULY 25, Davao (9AM - 6 slots, 1PM - full)
http://goo.gl/forms/WvVQxO8BEj

AUGUST Workshop Survey Form (Makati, Alabang, Sta. Rosa)
http://goo.gl/forms/pc5D0uDsdo

Thank you and I hope to see you in one of my workshops!


Icka Santos
@ickagraphs
@ickas sapanti ako sa

Modern Calligraphy Workshop - Registration

Hello Everyone!

I am temporarily using my old blog to post links to my workshop schedules. As of today, I have 3 group workshops lined up.  Click on the links below to register.

June 27, 2015(3 slots left) 1PM to 4PM
Gymboree Westgate, Alabang -
http://goo.gl/forms/O840Z2jZ9v

July 25, 2015 9AM - 12PM or 1PM to 4PM (All slots are filled)
Caffe Firenzo Damosa, Davao
http://goo.gl/forms/WvVQxO8BEj

If you have any questions, you may email me at msickasantos@gmail.com 😊

Keeping the Faith

Quiet time reflection from Pastor John Piper’s sermon entitled “I Have Kept the Faith” (http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/i-have-kept-the-faith)

Did I live my life well this 2013?  Will Jesus Christ say “…well done, good and faithful servant”?

Paul’s criterion for success is so different from what I and many people believe to be what true success is.  In 2 Timothy 4:7, he says “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”  Paul’s measure of success in his life was not his accomplishments but on how he had kept his faith.

Pastor John Piper writes that when you have faith in somebody it means that:

1.  You take them at their word

2.  You count on them to live up to what they say

3.  You trust their counsel

4.  You have confidence in their promises.

Faith in Jesus Christ is therefore faith in His word.  We must have confidence in Christ’s death, resurrection and power – that through His death our sins were forgiven; that whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life and; that His grace is sufficient for me.  Most Christians would say this but still act as though much of what Jesus promised us is untrue.  If that is true then we are not trusting Him.

Fighting the good fight and finishing the race is not always easy.  It is not easy because we still have the tendency to trust ourselves and not God.  Instead of trusting Him, we try to lean on our own understanding and to seek our own glory. 

Keeping the faith is a lifelong task.  We can’t expect to run a race halfway or to give up a fight and still think of getting a prize at the end.  Revelation 2:10 says that, “Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life.”

Looking back at 2013, I have come to realized that I wasn’t consistent in keeping my faith.  The latter part of the year, especially the last 4 months, was a very difficult time for me and my family.  I struggled with a lot of things and kept my depression hidden from a lot of people.  But the Lord is good and He didn’t give up on me.  He surrounded me with good people who speak of God’s love for me and I thank God for that every day.

As I start this new year, Lord I pray that I may enter and end this year as a victorious fighter.  Someone who would fight the good fight and finish the race…someone who would trust Jesus Christ for all His word.

#Verse2014 #KeepingtheFaith

My Night As A Basurera

After hearing about the volunteer operations at Villamor Airbase, the teachers and staff at my workplace decided to dedicate one day of this week to sign up as volunteers.  My sister showed me a picture on Facebook about “Nanay Bayanihan” at Villamor and was able to get in touch with one of the organizers of that group.  She was very excited about us being Gymboree teachers because the kids who usually visit or are brought to their station were from 0-2 years of age.  Since space was limited at the base for us, we decided to prepare for activities that can be done in a small area.  We packed up our parachute, bubbles, a few of our musical instruments and a box full of art kits that the older kids can enjoy. 

A day before our scheduled shift, because we signed up via www.villamorvolunteers.eventbrite.com, one of the organizers of “Nanay Bayanihan” informed us that we should contact the main organizers of the relief operations because we’re an organized group volunteering for the event.  I asked her who the main organizers are and she mentioned that it’s one of the army wives. 

Army wives? Huh? I thought this was headed by a private group?

Anyway, I informed her that our group already signed up online and was able to “purchase” our tickets and that we’ll just help out in any way that we can.  We signed up because we wanted to volunteer and not because we wanted recognition for our school.  She thanked me and apologized for the inconvenience and mentioned something about red tape.  At that time, I thought the red tape was concerning our school not being recognized for volunteering.

Our group signed up for two shifts, 8pm to 3am and 2am to 9am.  Yes, we went a little overboard but we all thought that there would be less people who would volunteer for the graveyard shift so we decided to go for it.  I only lasted until 12:30am.  Here’s why:

Our group arrived at Villamor in 3 groups. Group 1 consisted of me, my mom and one of our church friends; Group 2 was Teacher Tet, Teacher Jackie and Ate Suzy (one of our teacher aides); Group 3 was Teacher Pisha (our managing director) and two former teachers (Chrissie and Karmina).  Group 1 arrived at 7:40pm, Group 2 at 8:10pm and Group 3 at 9:00pm.  We all thought that we’d end up in the same place even though we arrived at different times because we all signed up for Nanay Bayanihan (except for my mom and her friend who volunteered as counsellors).  You see there are 10 groups in Oplan Salubong:

• Marshalling – people who welcome the survivors from the plane or bus; they are tasked to form a human barricade and to clap until their hands bleed (because we want the survivors to feel welcomed); they also make sure that the family they assign themselves too get food, clothes, relief goods and a ride home to their relatives or the tent city
• Medical - pwede ka lang dito kung alam mo ang ibig sabihin ng “Trendelenburg Position”
• Registration – their job is to list down the names of the volunteers and assign them to the appropriate groups
• Counselling – headed by the DSWD social workers they train the volunteers to debrief the survivors; they are the only ones who are ALLOWED to talk to the survivors about their ordeal
• Day Care – they prepare activities for the kids and distribute toys to the survivors; Nanay Bayanihan is included in this group and they provide a place where nursing mothers can breastfeed their children in a quiet environment 
• Food – They have no cooking facilities set-up at Villamor so all the food given to the survivors are already packed; this group is assigned to distribute the food packs once the survivors are brought to their block
• The marshalls divided up the grandstand into 8 different blocks so that it’ll be easier to manage the groups of survivors that come in.
• Clothes/Ukay-Ukay – once the survivors are settled in their block, this group goes around with big plastic bags of clothes and they help out the survivors pick out clothes; Talo nila ang salesladies sa SM sa pagpili ng mga damit for them
• Oplan Hatid – the most expensive of all the groups because they drive the survivors right to the doorstep of their relatives
• Relief Packing – I didn’t get to see this group but they’re located in the gymnasium and according to one of my groupmates last Wednesday, that place is ginormous

Last, but not the least, a newly created group

• Clean-up

Guess, where I got assigned? 

CLEAN-UP!

You’re probably wondering why I ended up as a basurera.  You see when we registered at the Registration Area, they didn’t assign people according to the group they signed up for.  “As needed” ang instruction sa kanila.  So, if they needed 10 people to be marshals, they’ll get the 10 names from their file and assign them to be marshals.  I didn’t really mind being part of the clean-up crew, I would’ve been happy to be assigned in any of the groups but I thought it was such a waste that we would not be able to do the activities that we prepared for the kids.  Since our group arrived at different times, we also had different groups.  Group 1 – Clean-up, Group 2 – Marshalling and Group 3 – Registration.

What exactly does the clean-up crew do?  We picked up every piece of trash in and outside the grandstand.  Sounds easy right? HINDI! ANG HIRAP NIYA!  Why?  We didn’t have cleaning supplies with us, had limited trashbags (2 rolls lang), and had to haul each bag of trash to the garbage truck which was 500 meters away from the grandstand.  Imagine my mom doing this!  She was angry because she didn’t have her cleaning materials with her.  My mom and one of my sisters are clean-up freaks.  Kung alam lang naming maglilinis kami eh di dinala na naming si iMop!  We were originally 15 in the group but after 30 minutes, half of our group “escaped” their duties and pretended to be marshalls and food distributors.  Ganun kahirap yung work namin, nag-give up yung mga college students na kasama namin.  Ok lang sana mag-clean up after the survivors pero ang hindi ko na take ay ang pag-utos sa akin nung isang marshall to pick up a yellow plastic bag underneath their table.

So what did I say?

“Ok, bring it here and place it inside the garbage bag.” 

By that time, our shift was about to end and one of my new friends, Chum, and I decided to call in new people to replace us.  We had to extend our shift for a few minutes because nobody wanted to be in the clean-up crew.  They were able to get 11 volunteers after 30 minutes.  Two of them were doctors and 5 of them were nursing students.  Kawawa naman sina doktora at pinagpulot ng mga basura.

We regrouped with our remaining crew and that was the first time I saw my mom in three hours. She got preoccupied with a family of survivors and found out that the mom has a brother who lives near Jollibee Molino.  That’s 10 minutes away from our house!  She was able to talk to the social worker assigned to the family and signed up for Oplan Hatid so we can bring the family home.

Sonny and Kristina are from Tanauan, Leyte and they have a 1.5 year old son and a 2 month old daughter.  Mommy, Ate Grace and I had to fight back tears as we listened to how they got through the typhoon.  I asked them if they were given warnings by the local government and they said yes.  That is why they were at the hospital when the typhoon hit.  Unfortunately, the storm surge was huge and the hospital’s first floor, which everyone thought was safe from it, was swallowed up by seawater.  Kristina said that current was so strong that she lost hold of her daughter and dove underwater to look for her.  Thank God she was able to grab hold of her daughter’s leg!  Their son at that time was with her in-laws and they were so afraid that he perished under the typhoon that they left the hospital in the midst of the storm to look for him.  According to them there were 2-3 waves of the storm surge.

I then asked them if they were able to receive relief bags before landing in Manila.  They said they only got the relief bags from the government 2 days ago.  These relief bags contained 2 kilos of durog-durog NFA rice, 2 packs of noodles and 3 expired cans of sardines.  There were already bubbles when they opened the cans.  The horror doesn’t end here.  They had to pay 5 PESOS for that relief bag!!! Why? According to the people at the municipal hall, that’s to cover for the gas of the relief truck.  HAAAAAH?!  I asked them how they survived: by eating biscuits and drinking water given by the foreigners.  That’s when they decided that they should leave Leyte and go to Manila.

Sonny’s brother still had his motorbike with him so he was able to drive the family to Tacloban airport.  It was an expensive ride because gasoline was priced at Php200 per liter.  Sonny and Kristinaa, together with their two kids, braved the dust and the rain for two days at Tacloban airport.  They had no shelter and you can see the evidence of that on their sunburnt arms and faces.  Kristina had no more breastmilk because they were only eating biscuits and drinking water so the baby’s voice was already hoarse from crying.  She told me that there was still a long line of people at the airport when they left.  She had to cry and beg an American soldier to allow her and her family to ride the plane because the 6pm plane was already full.

I couldn’t recall the questions that I asked both of them but what I do remember was that they said that there were more than 5,000 dead bodies in Tanauan and more than 10,000 in Tacloban.  “Ang dami po talagang patay, kahit saan ka tumingin may patay at mabaho na po talaga.”  Sonny said people were killing each other there because they’re hungry.  “Wala nang gobyerno.  Wala nang batas dun. Nagpupugutan na ng ulo yung iba dun kaya natakot na talaga kami.”

Our conversation ended there because we arrived infront of the house of Kristina’s kuya.  It was a wooden shack and Kristina even apologized to us because there was no electricity.  They were given a lot of relief bags from Oplan Salubong so I helped the men unload the stuff.  I almost cried when I saw the face of Kristina’s kuya because tears were running down his face.

The whole time they were thanking us and apologizing for the inconvenience they caused us.  Actually, all of the survivors we attended to at Villamor Airbase were all thankful for all the help that is being extended to them.  I didn’t see any of them scramble for food, clothing or relief goods.  The children patiently waited for the volunteers to give them toys.  And as I look back at my night as a basurera,  I am ashamed to say that I hesitated when I volunteered to be part of the clean-up crew.

The Lord gave me the humblest job in the volunteer work and now I understand why.  It was by divine appointment that the Lord led us to Sonny and Kristina.  If my mom and I arrived late at Villamor, we would not have been assigned as part of the clean-up crew.  If I insisted in bringing my older sister’s car then we would not have enough room to bring them home to their family.  If my mom was not a “pakielamera”, she would not have met Kristina. 

Listening to Sonny and Kristina’s ordeal made me realize more how blessed I am.  That my family is still complete, I have a bed to sleep in at night, money to spend on food and things that I want… All of these we take for granted and we forget to thank the Lord for. 

Sonny, Kristina and all the other evacuees still need our help.  I encourage you to volunteer at Villamor Airbase not only because it’s the right thing to do or because your friends are doing it but because it is not an outflow of love that you have for our Lord. 

God bless you and I hope to see you at Villamor!


* If you would like to help out Sonny and Kristina's family.  You may reply to this post or text me at 09178681693.  Any help would be appreciated. :)

A Love Letter to My Mom

Dear Mom,

I praise God that He has given me and my siblings the best kind of mother a person could ever have.  You have always been my inspiration and I cannot imagine going through all the good and bad times without you. 

Whenever I’m sick, you would do everything to make me feel better. Even if that means rushing to the drugstore in your pajamas, feeding me with the use of a medicine dropper or stocking up our pantry with cans of SPAM.

If I have a competition in school, a stage performance or a swim meet, you would make sure that I would be able to do my best.  Even if that means sitting through hours of training, spending thousands of money on equipment, driving the whole day or creating last minute costumes in the wee hours of the morning.

When I was so tired and depressed because of my work, you were always there to listen to me, to offer words of encouragement and to pray for me. 

There are so many more things I can think of to describe you as the best mom (ever) but I think Proverbs 31:10,25-31 says it all:

10 A wife of noble character who can find? 

She is worth far more than rubies

25 She is clothed with strength and dignity;

she can laugh at the days to come.

26 She speaks with wisdom, 

and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

27 She watches over the affairs of her household 

and does not eat the bread of idleness.

28 Her children arise and call her blessed;

her husband also, and he praises her:

29 “Many women do noble things,but you surpass them all.”

30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; 

but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

31 Honor her for all that her hands have done,

and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

You always tell me and my siblings that you are our worst critic but our biggest fan.  I want you to know that WE are also YOUR biggest and die-hard fans.

Happy birthday, Mommy!

Love,
Icka

Better to Give than To Receive

ACTS 20:35 "In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"

Dear Family and Friends, 


I was fortunate enough to visit Saint Rita Orphanage in Sucat, Paranaque today. Sir Dennis, one of my colleagues at work, and I met with the sisters who ran the orphanage and I think it was really the Lord who led us to that place. 


The orphanage used to be financed by Saint Rita College but the school fell on hard times and had to file for bankruptcy. Without any steady income, the orphanage is finding it hard to provide for the 30 abandoned children (ages 1 month to 4 years old) who are now in their custody. Sr.Gwen, one of the three nuns left to run the orphanage, told us that Sir Dennis' phone call to her this morning was Godsent. The orphanage relies mainly on donors and they were running low already on diapers. They are extremely happy that we're bringing 106 of our students there on August 7 to spread a little bit of cheer to these kids. 


Sir Dennis and I also got to see the rooms where the children slept and ate. It was very clean and the kids were well-groomed. It was so obvious that they really took care of the children. But what made me really emotional was seeing the kids in the nursery room. There were around 15 of them. I entered the room with Sister Gwen and we went to each crib to greet the kids. They were all smiling at me and a lot of them smiled even more when I reached out to stroke their head. It was a very emotional moment for me because I kept thinking, "What if this was Ethan or Tabby?" 


I've had so many life-changing moments in my life but this really affected me. It made me realize how lucky I am that I have parents and siblings who care for me. It made me realize that I don't need to buy a P28,000+ gadget when these kids only want the basics in life. It made me realize that God truly bless all those who have faith in Him. 


I was telling all this to my mom and nephew, Ethan, on the way home from work. I'm really so blessed to have a compassionate family. Ethan and my mom decided to spend his birthday there at the orphanage and he said that he'll tell his friends to just buy gifts for the kids instead of buying gifts for him. My two sisters, who are doctors, immediately called me up when I texted them that I needed medicine to bring to an orphanage. Their first words to me were "When are you going? I want to make myself available." (Sorry Yum, di pa kita natatawagan. Financer ka nalang). 


I am so excited to share this experience with my students this August 7. I hope that they will be able to see how lucky they are that they have a family to go home to everyday; that they go to a good school; that they don't have to worry where they will get their next meal. 


If you are willing to be part of this experience, below are a list of things the orphanage needs for the kids:
MILK 
Nido Fortified 
Nido Fortified Jr. 
Nestogen 
Nestogen 2 
Nestogen low lactose 


VITAMINS 
Ascorbic Acid (drops & syrup) 
Tiki-Tiki (drops & syrup) 
Polyvisol 
Enervon 


OTHER MEDICINES 
Tempra 
Drapolene Cream 
Asmalin/Bronco 
Bactroban Cream
Elica Cream 

OTHER NEEDS 
Diapers (L and XL) 
Cologne 
Alcohol 
Cotton buds 
Baby soap 
Johnson Milk Lotion 
Johnson Milk Bath 
Johnson Top to Toe Wash 
Laundry Soap (Powder and Bar) 
Dishwashing Liquid 
Rice 
Biscuits
Juice 


My family and I plan to visit the orphanage after my students and I go on the 7th. If you would like to come with us and/or contribute to our donations. Just text, message, or call me, my mom or sisters.

Why I Teach

I had no clue what I wanted to take up in college. I received all my application forms from UP, Ateneo and DLSU but I didn't know what course to pick. I wanted to go into theater. I wanted to sing, dance and become an "artista." I loved the excitement of performing in front of other people. Stage fright was something that I rarely experienced. I was really hoping that the universities that I was applying to had a bachelor's degree on entertainment major in noontime shows.

Anyway, it was a good thing my mom was there to get me out of my fantasy world of make-believe and nonsense. So I told her all of the above and she said, "Bakit ayaw mo mag-teacher nalang?" My first reaction was, "Teacher?! Ewww! Ang pangit nang uniforms nila!" Mom rolls her eyes and says, "Bahala ka!"

Uh-oh...Mom's "bahala ka" is dreaded in our household.

After giving her stupid and flimsy excuses on why I didn't want to take up education, she then told me why teaching would be okay for me. She said, "Think of it this way Icka, teaching is like performing. At least you have an audience everyday." So, with no other option I chose to pursue education in college. DLSU offered double-degree courses in education so that was my first choice.

I'm sorry if my initial interest in education was not completely noble but that soon changed when I started taking up my major subjects in school. I met so many great and inspiring people in college. One of them would be my "bestest" friend, Welly. We were both education majors but she was specializing on early childhood education. Young kids really irritated me when I was younger so ECEd was not for me.

What really turned me around was my last term in school. We had to do our practicum in our chosen field in one of the designated praticum schools of La Salle. I got assigned to LSGH and taught 6th grade English. I was really nervous on my first day in school but my mentor was really nice and helpful so I was able to survive on my first day. I was so impressed with my students in LSGH, especially the "A" class. I didn't expect boys to behave so well in class. I don't think I ever got mad in my one month stay with them. (Galing talaga ng mga Lasallista or baka dahil wala na akong mga pinsan na natira doon :P) It was such a great experience for me that I couldn't wait to graduate and start my professional career as a teacher.

I've been teaching for more than 5 years now and I've had my share of ups and downs. I've met all kinds of students and parents. Some who are nice and some...not so nice :) I now realize why my teachers don't like checking papers and why writing on the chalkboard is not as exciting as it looks.

Lately, I've been having lots of "down" moments. I love teaching my students but the stress of the job has been giving me second thoughts. I've been working non-stop ever since I started teaching. It's a 24/7 type of job. I can't go and say, "Oh! It's 4:30 pm! I should stop thinking about work now. I'll just continue tomorrow!" If you're a teacher and you work like that then you're...weird. (I don't want to say anything really negative,haha)

I'd be so cranky, irritated, angry and depressed when I would come home from work that at one time I cried in front of my mom 'cause I was so fed up. I felt that I needed to get away from anything related to work. I felt a little bit better after talking to my mom, but there was still a little bit of that feeling left in me.

My sister, Ate Twinx, posted something on my Facebook wall a couple of days ago that reminded me of why I'm in this profession.


The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.--- William Arthur Ward

That led me to think what kind of teacher I am. Have I ever really inspired any of my students?

I just recently got back from a batch retreat with my 6th grade classes and I think I now have the answer to that question. Here is one of the many letters that I received from my students during the retreat. This is just one of the many reasons why I teach (and why I bawled my eyes out last night!).

Dear Ms. Icka,

Thank you for everything that you gave us and done for us. For me, you are a really special teacher. Not only did you teach us lessons in history, you also taught us values that we will cherish our whole life. You have been so patient with us and you were very kind to us. I really like the stories that you tell us. Some are funny, scary and different sorts of stuff. You made my grade 6 year very memorable. We are really blessed to have you as our teacher. You are somebody we surely won't forget. I hope that you would always remember the good times our class had together. We had so much fun with you. We laughed a lot, got touched with your stories and insights and so much more. You are really someone that we will remember as we go on through life and experience some more things in this world that we have not seen yet. We would always remember you wherever we may be. We love you so much! We are truly blessed to have you as our teacher, adviser, second mother and our motivation to go through life knowing that we should make each day count.

F.C.

I Wish I could have a Normal Work Day

Lately I've been feeling the stress of my job. The meetings, the paperwork, the extra work...the extra extra work. I didn't mind doing it before, but now, I'm starting to resent it. Sounds really bad but trust me you'll feel the same way if you were in my shoes.

Sunday nights are always a struggle for me because I know I have work the following morning. Sometimes I would find myself wishing, in the middle of the workday, that I was somewhere else.

Before, I used to think that it was enough that I love my profession. That I love working with my co-teachers. And that I have students who respect me. The sense of fulfillment is still there but I'm just too tired to recognize it.

I wish I could have a "normal" workday. A day wherein I can leave work to have lunch out for a full hour at any place I want to. A day wherein my job expectations are given to me in black and white. A day wherein I can work uninterrupted. A day wherein I can forget and leave my work behind after 8 hours working.

PAL-pak

I was lucky enough to book 4 tickets to Palawan in October before everyone else knew about their 788 promo. Our internet connection at work is slower than a sloth so I decided to call their booking office. It took me 20 to 30 minutes to connect to an operator. It was so long I was able to memorize their packages for Hawaii, Ho Chi Minh and Sydney.

I bought tickets for my mom, sister #2 (Kookee) and nephew (Ethan) for Php1592 each…not bad! They gave me my confirmation code and told me to pay at the nearest PAL office. I was a little bit surprised ‘cause in Cebu Pacific you can pay direct even through phone bookings. Anyway, I asked for their nearest office because I live in Cavite. The operator told me the nearest one was in Padre Faura cor. Adriatico. Padre Faura? Nearest ba yun? So I asked, “Don’t you have an office at NAIA 2?” Operator replied, “Meron po ma’am pero pinaka malapit po yng sa Padre Faura.”

Ummm…hello? Mas malayo kaya ang Padre Faura. It was “Nice-To-Be-Everyone Day” that day so I just “Okay.” But on normal circumstances, I would have said…

“Excuse me iha. May map ka ba jan ng Luzon? Hanapin mo yung Cavite. Tapos hanapin mo kung nasaan yng NAIA 2 and Padre Faura St. Using your finger, trace the way going to NAIA 2 from Bacoor and Padre Faura St. from Bacoor. Anong mas malapit?”

Moving on, our deadline for payment is tomorrow April 30, 2009. So I told my mom yesterday that I have to pay for our tickets today.

We left the house before 10:00am for NAIA 2. After meeting a lot of idiotic people on the road, we finally reached the PAL office.
The guard asked me, “Ma’am ano po yung business nila?”

I replied, “Magbabayad lang ng ticket.” He then gave me a pink stub. The stub said I was number 39. I glanced towards the counter meter and it said that it was serving no. 2.

WHAT THE HECK?! Number 2 palang?! Nagugutom na ako!

We had no choice but to wait. Mom and I went to look for vacant seats. Malas! We sat beside an Ilocana who just came from “ELAY.”

I wish I brought ear plugs with me.

She was carrying on and on about PAL being delayed (I agree)…her dauter (daughter)…roundtrip ticket…the weather…Pangasinan…waking up early…the ants who bit her. Ah basta! Nakwento na nya buong buhay niya. I glanced sideways to see how my mom was reacting to this lady…she also had her fingers pressed to her ears.

I almost jumped when Ilocana Lady suddenly asked me my number. I said, “Thirty-nine po.” She replied, “Oh may, your eeben purder dan me. I’m number chirty-tree.” The Chinese dude beside me suddenly stood up…and transferred seats. Crap! Naunahan niya kami!

After two hours…

We were still there. Waiting…with fingers pressed to our ears. ANU BAZ?! Ang tagal tagal! My mom was super irritated she went up to one of the counters already. They were getting the numbers mixed up. Some people were already making “singit.” Some customers were just booking the flights there. Hello?! MAGBABAYAD LANG KAMI. The LV lady beside me also went there just to pay for her tickets. She was on the phone from 9:30 PM to 12:00AM to confirm her flights. Bwiset talaga!

Finally, my number was called. Guess how long it took them to process my payment…

10 MINUTES.

TEN MINUTES LANG! I firmly suggested, after I paid for my tickets, that they should have had a separate counter to deal with those who have confirmed flights already. Of course the PAL attendant didn’t reply.

Ang galing galing talaga.

What-a-day!

It's December 24 and I needed a manicure and pedicure.

I decided to brave the sea of people at SM Bacoor. I went to 3 different salons and they all said I had to wait for an hour before they can accommodate me...HELLO!?! One hour...no way man! It's a good thing I saw this aromatherapy salon and there were a few people inside.

The receptionist was very accommodating and managed to convince me to get a manicure, pedicure, foot spa treatment and a foot & leg massage. (galing mag sales talk) It was worth it! They have this big Lazy-Boy type chairs and they give you two fluffy pillows. Sarap! I could stay there the whole afternoon.

It was 5 pm when I left the salon.

I stopped by SM Department store to buy a table for my room. Nothing fancy. Just a square monobloc beige table.

I was suppose to meet my older sister in SM but I forgot to bring my phone so I didn't know how I was going to bring the table home. Riding a jeepney with a 30 x 30 inch table is not easy so I decided to just ride a taxi going home.

After passing through a maze of people on the ground floor of SM, the attendant and I arrived at the taxi lane.


I told the driver my address (2-3 kilometers away from SM). He nodded, moved closer to me and said "Ma'am minimum po namin 300 Php."

THREE HUNDRED PESOS! WHAAAAAT!?!

You have got to be kidding me! With three hundred bucks I could have rented a coaster going to my house!

After recovering from my shock, I immediately told the driver "Bawal yan ah!" He just kept smiling and shrugging his shoulders. Argggggh! AZAR! I would have wanted to give him a piece of my mind but I told myself that it's Christmas...I'll just hunt him down after tomorrow. *snicker*snicker *

So how did I go home?



I rode a jeepney carrying my 30 x 30 inch beige monobloc table, only to find out that my older was in SM waiting for me to text her.

what a day...

Doing Something Because You WANT To NOT Because You HAVE to

I just recently had an exposure trip with a couple (there were 40+ of them!) of students from school and I realized how different our views were when it comes to community service.

I remember doing community service back in high school. It was so much fun not because we got to get out of school but because we got to experience something unique and very humbling.

During my first year in high school, we had a market exposure. We had to buy ingredients in a wet public market for our cooking class. We were suppose to make pancit canton. The school made us ride a jeep...take note...no security guards. When we got there, our teacher instructed us on where we were suppose to meet and then set us loose at the market. It was funny at first because most of my group mates have never been to a public market. I think the tinderas were secretly laughing at us because whenever we would ask for the price of the ingredients they would answer in Spanish (e.g. kinse, kwarenta, singkwenta). We'd look at each other and say "Ahhhh kinse" and then someone would whisper "What in the world is kinse? How much is that?" Some of us would mimic the other buyers and start sniffing at the vegetables so that we wouldn't look stupid. That really was a great experience. Even though we smelled bad and the place was really hot.

On my second year, our exposure trip was cancelled due to the lahar flow in Central Luzon. Sophomores would always go to San Simon, Pampanga to meet with our sister school there and interact with the farmers. It was a bit disappointing but we got to go to San Simon on our junior year. It was a short exposure but meaningful. We ate with the family that we were assigned to and brought them lunch. One of my groupmates, Sasha, brought Jollibee hamburgers and fries with her and for them eating Jollibee was already a feast. They could only eat at Jollibee once a year because they couldn't afford it. Some of my classmates went home muddy that day because they actually walked the rice fields with the farmers!

But nothing could beat my senior year in high school. For fourth year, we were to spend 3 days with a family who lived along Boni Avenue. We didn't sleep there but we got to spend 8 hours a day with our foster family. We accompanied our foster moms and dads (and even siblings) to their daily activities. My foster dad was a tricycle driver so I spent one morning riding at the back of his tricycle waiting for passengers. My foster mom was a stay-at-home mom so I did chores with her around the house. I ironed clothes, cooked Adobo, swept the floor, washed the dishes, solicited money for a funeral, etc. As we went around the barangay, I would see some of my classmates chatting and working with their foster parents. One was even washing clothes because her foster mom was a labandera. At three o'clock we would hang-out at the nearby sari-sari store and drink Coke from a plastic bag and play watusi with the kids in the barangay.
I am so proud and thankful that I was able to go to a school who had a heart for service and was able to instill in their students the value of humanity. In all our exposure trips, no one ever complained of the heat, the smell, and how tired we all were. That was all part of the experience. I have batch mates who were the daughters of politicians and business tycoons but you would never hear them complain during our exposure trips.

No one complained at all.

You're probably wondering why I wrote this blog...I'm just frustrated. Frustrated because some of my students chose to complain when we went to "camp." They complained so much they were not able to appreciate what was right in front of them. They complained so much they lost the essence of what the activities were all about. They complained so much that I was ashamed to be their teacher for that day.

You Think You're So Cool...

I was surfing the net and going through the profiles and pictures of some of my students in school and to say that I'm disappointed is an understatement.

They post pictures of themselves drinking alcoholic beverages...smoking in public...partying at places where they're not even legally allowed to go inside...kissing and smooching each other...calling each other foul names.

I keep asking myself "Why?! Why do they have to do these things?" I've gone through high school and college and never did I allow myself to be so reckless and stupid. I guess it was because my mom's sense of values was deeply rooted in me and my siblings.

I don't smoke 'cause I'm asthmatic and it's a nasty habit. I don't drink alcoholic beverages 'cause they taste bad to me and I'm allergic to it. I don't go to noisy clubs because I'm not a fan of chaos. To say that I have not used foul words is a big lie so I'll just say that I use some discreetly. Some of you might probably think that I'm some weirdo nerd who has no life at all. Maybe I am. SO WHAT? I'd like to think that I just made the right choices for myself and I don't regret any of it.

I just don't see any reason why these kids have to do it. And then it hit me...they think it makes them look cool.

All these things done for the sake of "coolness." Being "cool" won't get you accolades (worth getting). Being "cool" won't get you a fulfilling job. Being "cool" won't get you real friends. Being "cool" won't set you as good example for your kids in the future. Being "cool" is not cool at all.

Someday some of you are going to look back at the things that you did and grimace at the fact that you were so ignorant...that you wasted your time doing nonsense...that you hurt a lot of people... and that you thought that THAT WAS COOL.

Diner Mania

Woohoo! Classroom decoration time! I don't know about the other teachers in school but I love it when it's time to decorate our classroom.

I originally thought of going with an Underwater theme because my class's country assignment is the Solomon Islands but I wanted something different this year. So, I spent a whole weekend looking for inspiration...and all I got were orange stars dancing in front of my eyes. Orange stars because I spent too much time on the computer. (heehee)

It's weird when you sometimes find what you were looking for when you're NOT looking for it. There was nothing good on the TV that night so I got into my rare "I've-got-to-organize-my-things" mood. I started with my digital pictures. I was going through my recent family pictures at Gram's Diner when it hit me. WHAM!(Ouch!) 1950s Diner theme!

Check it out!

What's a diner without the "Welcome" sign?

My mom, Kookee and Ethan helped me out (again) with decorating.
Here you can see my homework board labeled "Take-Out Counter."




Today's Specials = Diary Entries
What's Cooking = Subject Teacher's Workplan



Some institutional icons that all of the classrooms have to have.



I'm not too fond of cutting so I painted these on the wall with the help of an overhead projector.



House Specialties = Best Works of my advisory class

I was hoping to take more pics...but I was super tired. I spent three whole days making sure that my classroom was ready for the first day of school.

Every day...Every day...Every day...the Magic is here

For our annual faculty outing, the school decided to have us wreak havoc at Enchanted Kingdom.

I've been to Enchanted so many times so I wasn't really excited to go. There was nothing new so how could I have possibly have fun?

Yup...it sure looks like I didn't have fun...;-)

New School Year...New Post...New Challenge

I was vacationing with my sisters and relatives in Boracay when I received a text from Sir AC (Upper School Deputy Principal).

Gud pm Icka. We have decided to make you SLT of Grades 6 & 7 for this coming school year. Please join the planning tomorrow and on Friday from 8am to 5pm.

My first reaction was...

SLT (Senior Level Teacher)?! Oh man! Graduating class! Graduation practices! PASS! More work!!! Can I really do this? Did they really pick the right person? Is it possible for me to say, "Hi Sir AC! I'm sorry but I've decided not to accept the position because I'm afraid."

But then...I thought about it...

and thought about it some more...

and realized that...I WAS STILL IN BORACAY! How will I go to the meeting/planning?! This is just great! My first assignment as an SLT and I can't make it.

Anyway, I sent a text message that confirmed my fate for the next school year.

Hi Sir AC! I'm sorry but I will not be able to make it to tomorrow's planning because I'm still in Boracay. My plane leaves for Manila tomorrow afternoon so I will be in school on Friday.

I never thought I could be a senior level teacher in school. My former SLT, Grace, texted me and congratulated me for the new appointment. She even said that she was happy for me and that I deserved the position.

I deserve to be worked to death this year? to have sleepless nights? to have endless meetings with teachers, school heads and parents? Wait a minute...I've been doing exactly that the past years!

Don't get me wrong, being a senior level teacher is not a walk in the park. It's SUPER hard. Imagine supervising all the kids and teachers in grades 6 & 7. (Did I mention that I'm in charge of 7 sections?) My fats are shaking just thinking about all the responsibilities that I have for this school year. And I have a lot of it (responsibilities and fats :-P).

So why did I accept the position?

Money, of course! (hee...hee) No, just kidding.

Kidding aside, I decided to accept the position because it's something new and challenging to me. You have to challenge yourself once in a while. To go beyond of what you think you can only do.

A Chinese proverb once said,

"Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still."