"Love is like a rosary that’s full of mystery."

That is how a 13-year-old highschool girl defines the word LOVE, without any prior knowledge, experience or basis strong enough to back up those words. But little did she know that she would soon understand the whole truth behind that definition — in a bittersweet way.

That’s basically the plot of yesterday’s Maalaala Mo Kaya episode, "Popcorn." I assumed from the trailer that this would be one cute, fluffy, and overwhelmingly sweet episode that every hopeless romantic cannot afford to miss. I should know; I wanted to go home to Cavite ASAP so I could watch the entire thing in the comfort of my own room — which I did not get to do because of the damned headache that made me sleep earlier than I wanted.

But thanks to good ‘ol YouTube, I still managed to catch the MMK episode no sweat!

I guess the fact that two very young children are the protagonists of this story makes everything all the more charming and interesting. Wouldn’t you raise eyebrows upon seeing two kids at the verge of adolescence doing BF-GF stuff like holding hands, exchanging rings, and texting lovey-dovey messages? I know I did, but all has been forgotten as I watched the story with a foolish grin on my face as well as occasional gushes and manifestations of kilig. In short, mukha akong tanga habang nanonood nito.

Eliza Pineda of Maria Flordeluna fame plays Katkat, the 13-year-old highschool girl who fell in love at first sight with Roehl, played by Joshua Dionisio. They first met at the plaza when Roehl helped Katkat up after she stumbled against a bicycle.

It was an inner struggle for Katkat from then on, always wondering whether her feelings can already be called love. Her descriptions were very vivid: "Parang may maliliit na aspileng tumutusok sa puso ko…" "Para akong nakuryente, parang biglang nagliparan ang mga paru-paro sa tiyan ko, bumilis nanaman ang kabog ng heart ko…"

Aside from that, Katkat also underwent major changes while she was seeing Roehl: she dressed up, stood up against her friends, and even lied to her parents on several occasions. She did so much for him that she was devastated upon learning that Roehl had another girlfriend while they parted ways, with the trivial reason that Katkat was makulit and text nang text.

It was refreshing to see a young girl spatting all the things she’s done for the guy rather than the age-old LQs between adult stars in some soap opera or movie. It makes you feel more for them, somehow regretting that someone that young had to learn a serious lesson in such a tender age. It brings you back to those times you’d also do FLAMES on your notebook or the innumerable slumbooks you filled out (and you’d always answer secret everytime you’re being asked who your crush is or judge me when being asked to describe yourself). And admit it that once in your childhood you also did your best to look good so that your crush would notice you, or that you also felt very possessive of him/her.

Ah, young love. Full of innocence, but doesn’t assure permanence. But like what Katkat’s mother told her in the episode, "Minsan, wala talaga sa tamang panahon ang pagtibok ng puso. Wala ding totoong pag-ibig na hindi nakakapaghintay sa tamang panahon." We should enjoy being young while it lasts, for once it passes by, it’s not nice having a lot of what-ifs that we’ll never know how they’ll turn out.

Love has its own mysteries that can only be explained by the person who feels it — sometimes, even those who love greatly cannot accurately explain the feeling, the sensations, and why your thoughts are always about the one you love. Scientists can explain love physiologically as having high levels of certain substances in your brain, but we all know that feelings that intense are more than just hormones and chemistry. But how more it is leaves much to be known; meanwhile, you bask yourself in the bliss, highs, or even the pains of being in love because no matter how things turn out between you two, you know you’ll never prefer loving less than how you already do.

Moral of the story? STUDIES FIRST. Magpakatalino muna bago lumandi. HAHAHAHAHA.

In fairness, the two has very good chemistry. It’s talents like these that ABS-CBN should invest in — they have a lot of potential, if I do say so myself.

Okay, I admit. Fluffy, cheesy, and light-hearted shows are one of my guilty viewing pleasures, especially when it involves kilig ways of showing the magic of loooooove. No matter how cliché the storyline, as long as it isn’t butchered to WTFness like your average chick flick, rest assured that I will be glued to the screen until the credits start to roll.

Funny choice of shows for someone who equally loved Johnny Depp’s Sweeney Todd to bits, huh?

Venting Out Mental and Finger Energies

Awww, shucks. I haven't been able to post even a single entry on August. So much for an unbroken streak of "updates." Hehe.

Anyway, I find it surprising that my hit counter still goes up even though I haven't been working on this blog too much — not because I don't want to keep it, but because I don't  want this to end up mainstream like my Blogger, Multiply, or LJ. I want this to be like a bin of random spurts of mental energies wherein I could enjoy the luxury of typing non-stop without really thinking too much of some concrete story to blog about, so I don't really publicize this thing. So I'm wondering where the hits are coming from. Care to enlighten me? Lol.

Ah whatever. I've wanted to study for my Pathophysiology exam since Friday, but my eyes and brain power were too stubborn to even let me start. There's just no point in going through and finishing those jargons and gobbledygook if I'm not in the right condition — I might just end up tiring myself unreasonably. What I dislike even more is that I get to retain stuff when I read materials that aren't required for study, while those I need to review for usually slip from my mind come exam time. It sucks big time.

Wheeee. Type type type. Sorry for the nonsense, I'm just venting out mental and finger energies that's been plaguing me for quite a while. It's cool to let loose once in a while, just go crazy and become plain random.  

The Most Beautiful Day On Earth

This is something I wrote for that opinion paper required from us by our Divination History II prof about current social changes. Supposedly the immediate thing that would come into our minds would be that of issues regarding the homosexuals and their kind, but I knew that most of the people in our class would be using that already.

I apologize for the crappy form, grammatical errors, and the lack of articulation of ideas. I crammed this paper yesterday evening in between typing my physical assessment findings for our N10 lab tomorrow while worrying about how I could finish more than 300 pages in Pathophysiology for our exam, which would also be tomorrow.

The Most Beautiful Day on Earth

Many say that the essence of being a woman is having children to complete her own family. Others are more career-oriented, saying that women are powerful and capable of taking the lead. So many definitions and so many perspectives yet one thing never fails to come up in what people think a woman is: A woman is beautiful.

The common notion of a beautiful woman is someone who's capable of turning heads with her pleasant facial features and body contours, one who can easily earn a slot in big time beauty contests. It is believed that these slender women parading onstage in their most glamorous gowns embody the "ideal" beauty that almost every woman could only dream of having.

However, in the long-concluded Ms. Universe 2007, which television commercials dubbed as the "most beautiful day on earth," several Mexican citizens held their own rally simultaneously with the pageant in order to show their dismay over what they call "exploitation of the female kind." Ms. Switzerland has also withdrawn from the said pageant due to her country's same belief. Several similar instances have occurred in past major pageants due to the same reason until such time that some countries and feminist groups actually proposed banning beauty contests once and for all, like what Kenya did back in 2003. The country believes that its women should be used for the enrichment of their culture and not for such "exploitative activities."

I've always believed that beauty pageants are nothing more than a waste of money that otherwise would have been put to more reasonable use. They are mere reinforcements to society's superficial concept of beauty—that a woman has to have a curvy body, big breasts, a towering height, fair complexion, and a face that's easy on the eyes in order to be called beautiful. No matter how these pageants try projecting their contestants as well-rounded beauties with brains, it's still highly ironic how their question and answer portion seems to be a big, dumb joke where the women say anything but the answer to their question. It's no wonder then why so many women aspire to become one of those ladies whose idea of achieving world peace is through wearing their crowns and waving at cameras whenever they can—because that is the kind of woman they were made to believe in, the one being portrayed time and again.

I personally support the movement for banning beauty pageants not because it is an act of exploitation, but because no significance could be acquired from holding, joining, and winning one. One does not have to be a beauty queen in order to be a role model. One does not have to have a beauty title in order to help Africa's children. One does not have to wear crowns and sashes to save the environment. One does not have to learn to catwalk for someone to fall in love with her. What then is the importance of beauty pageants? Those competitions aren’t the ultimate determinant of who is beautiful and who is not, for beauty is such an abstract concept unfit to be limited to what the eyes can see and to be subjected into something as impartial as a contest.

Beauty pageants do more harm than good, and although established social beliefs are very hard to repeal, it is very satisfying to know that there is an increasing number of people who are now seeing the more practical and important side of beauty and women that needs more attention.

Embarking Ahead

Something that Gwen drew before the N3 finals started last April (just click the picture to see a larger version):

It's her first time to draw our block. Hehe. And as you can see, that's the wacky representation of some of the batch 2006 graduates from all over the Philippines who got to spend one academic year together in the country's most prestigious university.

Entering college was a fresh start and a welcome relief from the high school angst I was consumed with. You see, even though I had a positive reputation with a few minor mishaps back in high school, I felt like a doormat. I couldn't very well speak up or express anything because some people were constantly taking over and deciding things by themselves. Plus, I wanted to get away from the many memories I'd love to forget — in which I've succeeded, if I say so myself.

And then, U.P. My present alma mater's name gives melodious ringing in my ears and shivers down my spine. I was "programmed" by my parents ever since I was a kid to aim for this university. I still don't know how I managed to pass the UPCAT up until now, but being privileged enough to become Maroon among thousands of hopefuls all over the country (and even abroad) is a very big blessing in itself. But as they say, with great power comes great toxicity responsibility — something I finally digested here in college.

I never dreaded college. Nervous, yes, but never terrified. I never wanted to turn back. It wasn't like I'm gonna be eaten alive or something. Change is an inevitable thing in life and I welcomed it with open arms.

It turned out to be one of the wisest actions I ever did.

It felt good to be part not just of a mere college, but a family at that. The UP College of Nursing family, composed of people who were either forced by their family in order to earn big bucks abroad, are planning to go to med school after graduation, or simply those who still didn't know what they want to be in life. Nevertheless, the tight camaraderie is unparalleled. Astounding. Everyone just feels welcome and that they belong. Not to mention the fulfillment of having successfully gone through a needle's eye in order to enter this college.

And of course, there's UPCN Batch 2010. The batch that rocks! Where else could you find a crop of hyperactive, cheerful, talented, and INTELLIGENT people? I've seen enough exams and unbelievable classcards for me to conclude that their superhuman intellect has been tainted with the presence of a pea-brain that is I. Such a sharp blow to my self-esteem, that has been. Nevertheless, even though I won't be able to recover much, I'm still happy and proud to belong in this batch. I love them to pieces — even though they could be such crabs sometimes. Hehe.

My first year in college wasn't really bad at all. It was a great start, actually.

A few days more and I'll be embarking ahead on my sophomore year. It seemed just like yesterday when I was merely a gullible and idealistic freshie walking around and familiarizing myself with the new environment I'll be calling home for the next four years (and an additional five, hopefully). More toxicity awaits me, and all I have to do is cope. Cope with the pressure, the difficulties, and the frustrations that will surely make me want to give up at some point or another. Yet with intense motivation and a great support group, I'll be able to get out of my succeeding years alive, even with a ton of scratches here and there.

Great people, great friends, interesting stuff to learn. What more could I ask for? Except for good grades, of course. That's always a damn given.

One thing's for sure: I couldn't see myself studying in another university.

Handwriting Analysis

I smell nothing,
Eat nothing,
Hear nothing…
WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME MY FRIENDS?!

Apparently this is more than just nasal congestion that Ariel and Maverick can easily cure with the capsule they endorse. I was down with the flu since yesterday when I woke up feeling groggy and my head, my head feeling like it was made from a ton of bricks. But all's umm, quite okay now. No more fever and dazed eyesight. Only less severe headaches and occasional joint pains bother me now. Don't worry, I won't die.

I felt like blogging so I could at least have something to do. Usually I get better when I move around the house rather than sleep in my room all day. But since my brain is just as congested and weak as my whole body, I'd rather just show the results of one of the quizzes I took this Monday.

Handwriting Analysis

You are enthusiastic when you begin with a venture or task but lose heart and hope even before the task is accomplished.

You are an independent person with fine disposition and no prejudices. Negatively, however, upright writing signifies self-centeredness and rigidity. Your head rules over your heart.

You are an easygoing kind of person, but that does not mean that you are least concerned. You seek recreation and work on equal scales.

You maintain stability while handling money.

You do not give much thought or are impetuous while taking a decision or starting a new venture.

You want the world to see the best of you. And hence you try to project the same.

You are painstaking and believe in completing one thing flawlessly rather than taking up several standard jobs.

You are a dependable and trustworthy person.

You maintain balance between your capability and ambition which helps you to shun difficulties in achieving your goal.

You handle criticism with your cool temperament and dignity.

You have reasonable keenness in the task you undertake.

You like to remain secluded and do not enjoy limelight.

You want to project the best of you to the world and hence, you strive to make an impression on the world. You want to get noticed.

You have a distracted and unfocused mind.

You are a reserved person and do not like to socialize. You rather like to stay aloof.

You show keen interest in learning new things. You love to explore the ever-changing world.

You believe in living life to the fullest and consider amusement and bliss as very important.

You lack vital strength of mind and will to accomplish you work.

You are modest and pensive. You do not believe in seeking attention.

Get yours here.

The analysis is eerily accurate, except for the aloofness part. I want to have my occasional alone time but that doesn't automatically mean I'm already a loner.

Now excuse me as I enjoy a bowl of hot, steaming arrozcaldo. Yum yum.