A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste

Have you ever thought of dropping some coins inside a can with the “Panggaa Sab Ko” or “Money for the Poor” written on it? Well, we find this in many places bookstores, counters at the mall, commercial establishments, or even at the sidewalks. But where do these go?

It is not only for children who were abused, not only for children who are ill but it also helps the children who wants to go to school but they can’t because they have already abandoned by their parents who are very irresponsible, I say.

Did you watch the program “Philippine Agenda” last March 25, 2007? It is a very informative program because it features Filipino children who do more than they can normally do to attain good education. We all know that some Filipino children are used to work for a living than attending classes in a school. The “Philippine Agenda” featured this girl who was 12 years of age but she is still in the first grade. She lives in a dilapidated house located in a squatter’s area. Everyday, she goes to the river to look for broken glass that are scattered. Take Note: every kilo of those we call bubog in visaya dialect, cost only a peso and Fifty centavos. Believe it. Everyday, she is only earns Ten pesos and the whole family would budget it and use it very wisely.

There are times that she would not go to school because she has to work for the whole family. With her weight as 25 Kilograms and an average height of 3’9, she is highly malnourished. To think, she would walk from their house to her school which is a kilometer and a half far. And, the whole family only eats 1-2 times a day. Imagine the suffering that they are experiencing.

The other one is a teenage boy who is now at his second year in high school who is a part time student and a part time pandesal seller. Yes, he sells bread everyday at his age. While we are still sleeping at 3:00 in the morning, he is already awake getting ready to sell bread to the entire neighborhood. After two hour of walking around to find buyers, he goes back home binging his price. He is really sacrificing his sleeping hours just to help his parents earn money for his studies so that he can finish studying. He I really dedicated to help the family attain a better life and a better future.

Why would we take them for granted? We should help them in our own little ways because they are poor and deserving. Here in our university (UP), we help people excel in different fields. I hope that some companies are going to build schools for these children who need them.

The gap between poor people and rich people is very far. Imagine this great catastrophe. If only this gap would be near until we reach the point that we are already equal. It is possible. If only SOME PEOPLE THERE would share their blessings. The rich people are not the only ones to blame but also the poor ones because if only they have family planning. And if only people are EDUCATED enough to easily find job. Look at yourself. Do you really deserve to be what you are right now? Let us think of these children who are suffering like mice. Let us unite and let them know that it is never too late to change. Life is short. Let us be industrious enough to sustain our daily needs. Help them. Help them to attain education for a better life, better community and a better future to the whole mankind.

The only thing that I can say is vote for those politicians whom you think that can help develop a country to a better condition. Those who are willing to serve the people with all their hearts and not those who are only thinking of themselves. Let us start today. Study well kid and you will find our prize at the end of the rainbow. Good Day!

Is Love a Fallacy?

The story was really nice because it inspired me. But I tried to ask myself if why is Love a fallacy. What is the connection of the thoughts of fallacy to Love? That is why I'm very excited when I first saw the short story and I was very glad to read it. But after of which I have read, I have many questions to ask.


At the first place, why would Petey Bellows choose the raccoon coat instead of choosing Poly Espy. He might have known at the first lace that Poly likes Big Men and Petey only knew that Big Men in the university wear raccoon coats. I don't agree that Polly Espy is not a smart girl because she already knew about fallacise in a short period of time. She is just pretending. If she really is a dumb girl, she must not be studying in that school. Only that, she likes people who are treated as Big Men than a nerd boy.


I was very well informed by the different fallacies. Those made me very curious on studying Law. The man/narrator was indeed an intelligent one. He was just eighteen but he already knew about these things. Things to be used in reasoning out during court trials. Petey Bellows, for me however, really loves Polly. He wants a raccoon coat because he wants to be with Polly. I think, he already knows about Polly's interests- Big Men in the university so he decided to choose the raccoon coat instead of Polly at the first place because he already knew that time. Poor Man! He didn't know that Petey is wise but Petey did not informed the man.


Let us go to the other point. Is love really a fallacy. Then, which of those fallacies is Love? Why? Why? Why? And What? Maybe, it is the last fallacy which is Poisoning the Well. People tend to do everything for love. They would even love to poison a well in order to attain the one he loves. Maybe the author was trying to inform us the disadvantages and advantages of these fallacies.


The story was very funny but I realized that it was funny when I ended up the story with a cool question. Why would Polly Espy choose Petey Bellows who is a faddist rather than the man/narattor who is very intelligent, keen and better than Petey. Maybe also because of Love. Maybe, Polly realized that he loves Petey because of who he is. Not like the man who only thinks of himself rather than considering the feeling of his friend.


This would really inspire you especially if you are heartbroken. I recommend this story to you because it is really fascinating. From the title, to the body and to your reactions. I hope you will find time on reading this and hope that you will be inspired by the thoughts given by the story itself. What more if you end up the story by wondering. Good Day!

" A Summary of Max Schulman's "Love is a Fallacy""

A young man at age eighteen who was very smart, keen, logical, perspicacious, acute, and astute. Name some and he is that one. He is studying at a law school and he is living with this room mate of his, named Petey Bellows. They are quite the same in their lives with their family, has the same age but Petey is quite opposite as he is when it comes to his inner characteristics. He is as dumb as an ok and a faddist.

He found Petey, with a distress look on his face that the he suspected him to have an appendicitis. He told Petey to stay put and he will call a doctor. Then he heard Petey mumble. Petey wants a “Raccoon Coat”. He then asked why Petey wanted a raccoon coat. Then Petey said that he wanted a raccoon coat because all the big men on campus wear raccoon coats. He exaggeratedly said that he really have to have a raccoon coat. The man/narrator said that raccoon coats are heavy and smell bad but Petey didn't listen to what he said instead, he kept on saying that he has to have one. He'll do anything for it, anything even if it is imortnat to him. An idea came to the man's mind and decded to go home because he remembered that his father has a raccoon coat and this would help him in his plans.He surprised Petey when he came back. But they have agreed that the man would give Petey the coat with a condition. Petey must give Polly Espy to him because he really wants Polly because Polly is best fit for a lawyer's wife but she has a lack even if she is beautiful, and not disgrace. That gave the man a reason to date her. He must fill Polly with her lacks. They had an agreement that the man would date Polly as soon as possible but it is only a date and they are not gong to be as serious as a married couple. After all, he and Polly aren't going steady yet .He then gave Petey the coat and Petey cannot wait to wear it so he did wear it.


When the first date was held with Polly, he first wanted to teach her about a Law Topic which is all about Logic. For five nights of studying and exploring the beauty of Logics,Polly actually enjoyed the disscussions about the different fallacies which one can use to reason out. When he tried to ask Polly about it, Polly then did a big difference. She then knew about fallacies in a short period of time.


When the man finally told Polly her feelings,he was shocked to the way Polly replied to his words, that is, in a way that she make use of the fallacies. The man told her that he doesn't have to apply the fallacies all the time in because these fallacies are only taught inside the a four-walled room. Polly still didn't rather listened and continued to reply with the use of fallacies. Then Polly told the man that she is going to get steady but with whom? Petey Bellows.Yes, with Petey Bellows. Then, the man wondered why of all the people in the campus, she would get steady with his room mate who is a faddist. Why? It is because of his raccoon coat.

Out of this World...

Engkantos and Engkantadas are an integral part of Philippines folklore, mythology and superstition.


Rare is the Filipino child who has not been chided for staying out after dark, for wandering into areas overgrown with old trees and tall weeds, or for not being careful while playing near mounds of earth ( punso ), which are believed to be inhabited by spirits ( nuno ) or gnomes ( duwendes ).


For sure, it probably would be easier to instill an appreciation for, or even serious belief in engkantos and engkantadas in rural children who live closer to nature. In children's closest encounter with these beings would probably be on on line games and in fantaseryes such as Encantadia and Etheria. What exactly are these beings?


Engkantos and Engkantadas are collectively considered as elementals or nature spirits. They are classified according to the elements they inhabit- air, water, earth and fire. Air elements are called sylphs, water elementals are nymphs, fire elementals are salamanders while earth elementals are called dwarves or gnomes.


Some people believe that engkantos are male fairies that live in the sea. While an engkantada or a diwata is also a fairy, a female one that is believed to safeguard mountains and forests. Some people do not distinguish diwatas with their genders as either male or female and instead just what it is an engkantada or engkantado. These engkantos are seemed to be concerned with protecting the environment and ensuring the abundance of harvests from the land and the sea.


Some stories say that when people abuse their generosity, they fight back. They lessen their visiting times to the fields to bless the plants, to teach the people to be independent. When the time comes that these people would be hungry enough, they ask the engkantos to forgive them and help them by giving the people another chance. These elementals would help them but sometimes, they agree with a condition, It is either to sacrifice themselves or just to curse them.


Another abuse that people do to them is by damaging their habitats like that of the gnomes that are seen in forests or even on soiled areas. This would look like a hill but it is smaller than the Chocolate Hills. Well, whenever people see these hills, they try to give a sign to the gnomes that they would pass cause they might step in them. This is an indeed a good thing that people do.


Let us go to elementals in the sea. They say that once you put yourself into the ocean waters, thou shall not make any loud noise because you might disturb these creatures and in exchange, they would do something to harm you and those that are with you can also be harmed.


I have a story that my teacher shared to us when I was in the fifth grade. This teacher of mine told us that she has friends that are unnatural. They are gnomes that lived beside their house. When she was still young, these gnomes would like to play with her so she cannot resist the offer. They always play in a beautiful place which is a garden full of flowers. But my teacher said that the garden was really in a dark place near their house and the time in that garden is not running so if she goes there at 6:00 in the evening, she would be also back at 6:00 in the evening. It is really magical, isn't it? But when my teacher got sick, the gnomes are really pushing her to go with them to play for a long time but she cannot because her mother would be very angry to her. Days passed by but the illness didn't disappear. So they decided to go to a quack doctor to ask for help. The quack doctor said that they have to give a gift of pardon to the gnomes to help Ms. Evelyn to be well so they gave many food to the gnomes and after a day, my teacher got well. Isn't it mysterious? I do not believe to out of the world creatures but I have to because I have to keep myself very safe. And so do my family members.


I hope that your being informed by your parents about these creatures. Beware! They might be behind you right now...

What Happens When You Get Mad

Anger, whether uncontrolled or bottled up can be a dangerous emotion. You've heard the familiar phrase, “He was so mad he didn't know what he was doing.” Flying off the handle has caused countless highway accidents, injuries on the job, marital burst-ups, and homicides. Repressed anger has brought on psychosomatic asthma attacks, hypertension, migraine, colitis and a host of other real and imaginary illnesses. Studies conducted recently about anger have led to a number of provocative concepts. A bad temper is contagious. If a man has a hot-head, his children probably will be, too-in unconscious imitation or self-defense. Between the ages of 10 and 25, your irritability is at its lowest. Then, it steadily increases until from 40-60 your rage capacity is highest.


If you were to look into a mirror when you lose your temper, you would see yourself redden. The veins in your face, and temple swell. Instinctively your fists clench and you may be speechless. The toll of unmanageable anger is incalculable. Accidents are very often the result of individuals pouring out their hostility on their environment. Emotional causes of accidents are often deeply hidden in the private lives of workers.


That hidden ager creates or contributes to physical ailments. What sort of people tend to be hot-tampered? The higher up you go in the social scale, the greater the tendency to turn anger inward and become depressed instead of furious. A highly educated man may retain his anger but a truck driver may punch someone's nose.


Women fly into a rage about half as often as men do. That may be because men are more constantly exposed to situations and people likely to irritate them. This is due to the fact that women as a group are usually further up in the social scale than men. They are more civilized. They don't go out and fight wars.


Are redheads hot-tempered? Evidently that is a myth. Maybe they tend to live up to what the public believes about them. It is true, however that people in certain jobs- watchmakers, artists, opera stars-whose work requires utmost precision or whose egotism is easily wounded seem likely to have explosive tempers.


What is the safe way to treat your anger? Generally, it is best to blow off stream rather than keep it bottled up too long. Temper is an outlet to rid your systems of hates, grudges, and envy. Suppressed anger only builds up health-sapping tensions. But, while it is good to valve off pressure, you obviously should not go around displaying senseless rages.


Anger can also be a healthy emotion. The additional adrenalin released into your bloodstream almost triples your energy, which can be used as reserve power to jar you out of inertia. It is our fighting instinct, a wellspring of action. Anger is normal and we should expect it as part of reality.


When and how to bottle it up or discharge it is the dilemma of modern times. We should feel free to have emotions. And we should learn to understand and control them. Good Day!

Home Technology...

Livelihood awareness has become significantly important in the Philippines due to our present economic difficulties. The high price of commodities has made life difficult for consumers. I learned to be productive by utilizing inexpensive and locally available materials.


When I was in the sixth grade, my teacher in Home Economics taught us on how to make candles. I am here to teach you on how to do this because this can help you come up with a project that can benefit you. We go to the Candle Making process.


First, we have to prepare the ingredients. These are the following: Paraffin wax which are available at chemical companies or from petroleum refining companies. The paraffin wax which is consists of seven parts of the total candle. Another is the dye. This is used for making different color; two parts of micro wax which are available at chemical or pharmaceutical outlets; one part of crystal wax which are also available at chemical or pharmaceutical outlets and the essential oil which can give you candles that are smooth and hard.


The materials needed are the following: Containers for mixing colors and melting wax, molds (Plaster of Paris or Aluminum) , double boiler, water heater, wick which is made of bleached cotton yarn available at the market and a ladle for pouring the liquid wax into the mold and a basin.


Let us go to the procedures. You may take note of these because these are quite many. First, cut the paraffin wax into pieces. Put in a container and heat it in a double boiler until the wax is completely melted. This can also be done by utilizing a cooking stove and heating pieces of wax in a cooking pan. Second, add dye to the melted paraffin wax and mix until the micro wax is completely melted. Next is heat the crystal wax in a separate container and add it to the paraffin wax-micro wax mixture. Then, add 1 teaspoon of essential oil per liter of wax solution to make the candles smooth and hard. Stearic acid may be used instead. Then, prepare molds ( in two parts) on which to pour wax by taking out clamps to separate the mold. Apply oil into the mold cavities to separate the candle easily. Insert the wick into the mold and bring both parts of mold together and clip. Using a big ladle, pour melted wax in mold, filling it up to top.


For solidifying, put the mold into a basin of cold water for a few minutes to solidify wax. Take out the mold from water, open, and remove the candles. Lastly, cut off the excess wick.


This can also be a way to earn money. You can sell this together with your friends to your neighbors. These are the ways to pack your candles. Pack candles in strong paper or cardboard to avoid moisture. Label each packet and you may put ribbons around it to make it nice. And Presto! It is ready to be sold.


I hope that you learned something from this experience in making candles I hope that it can help you in a way that you do not have to waste a lot of money in buying expensive candles for such occasions. Good Day!

A Family Affair

One of the most awaited event in the whole campus- the Family Day. This is the day wherein the whole family gather and enjoy the activities awaiting. First,a mass was held lead by a priest from the Cenacle. The singing of the praise songs was lead by the Glee Club's master which is Ms. Catherine Rodel together with the club's members.


After the mass, a field demonstration was held. The faculty gave us a thirty-minute break to prepare for our dances. We, the second years are assigned to dance the “Japanese Parasol Dance”. After we prepared, from costumes to props, we then stepped on the open court to get ready to groove but when the song started, it sounds like a mess so we also danced like mentally retarded people so we have to stop and request the operator to play it again. It was so embarrassing! The people were laughing but I said ti myself, “ Just enjoy the show and go with the flow.” I shared this thought to my batch mates and they followed what I said so we happily danced and danced until we are through.


After we danced, we laughed and laughed. We then went to our respective classrooms to change our clothes. Then, the people are now ready to watch our exhibits from the Science Week Celebration. The “Science Fair” wherein the students showed their investigative projects, The Open House” in the Home Technology Room wherein the students showed their creativity in making designs, house tools, decoration and many more.


But the parents did not know that we have an affair of our own- The Football Challenge. We went to the open field beside the Arts and Science Building known as the A.S Building. Sophomores, our team versus the Freshmen. We enjoyed the game but our team lost. Well, there are more chances await for us so we are not disappointed.


After the game, we ate our lunch together with other year levels. We ate a sumptuous meal with Buttered Fried Chicken, Chicken Fillet, Lumpia Shanghai, Lechon Baboy and most especially, the Fresh Fruits. We ate and ate until we are full.


We then had the games. First is the game wherein the players must wear the clothes situated on the chairs one by one. I played with the others and enjoyed it and the people kept on laughing because of the big clothes. We won!

Many games followed. After the games, the most awaited part of the affair started- the Raffle Draw wherein they were giving lots of lots of prizes. Consolation Prizes worth a Hundred Pesos plus a half gallon of Ice Cream, a Third Prize worth Seven Hundred Pesos, a Second Prize worth Five Hundred Pesos and the First Prize worth a Thousand Pesos. Who would not long for it?

We really enjoyed the Family Day even if I did not win in the Raffle Draw. Nevertheless, the food was good, the games, the exhibits were worth seeing, the presentation and most especially, the fun and excitement. We cleaned the whole campus and after that, few of my classmates and I went to Fuente Osmeña Circle where a program was held. The “GAWAD KALINGA ISANG MILYONG BAYANI” and I am one of them. They are searching for a million people who are willing to help the poor people that lost their homes. I really enjoyed the program and I am glad to help these people. Good Day!