Yataaaaaaaaaaa!

Yeah, baby! May grade na ako kay Sir Jose sa 226...and I'm loving it!

Salamat! Salamat! Salamat Sir! Arigato Gozaimas! haha

Isang INC na lang sa Kas 205 kay Sir Jose ulit (hehe), yung paper ko pa kay Ma'am Camagay, atsaka ang Span 11 ko...dito medyo nanganganib ang career natin -- pero carry pa rin yan! Sobrevivire!

Naipasa Na!

Finally! My Kas 226 term paper has found its way into the hallowed hands of Prof Ricardo Jose.

I was anxiously awaiting Prof Jose at the FC around noontime. I knew from an acquaintance that he has a Tuesday class at 1 PM but I was informed through text that they were already on their research break. But still, having waited this long to complete my paper I'd rather spend a few more minutes hanging around the halls than putting off my submission for another day. Ako mismo ang dapat bumigay kay Sir ng paper. Nakakahiya naman sa kanya. hehe

And arrive he did, punctual as always. Sir was all "Oh, kamusta ka na?" as if wala akong utang sa kanya hahaha. I handed my paper to him, apologized for the very long delay, made a short appeal for that other delayed paper ("Baka first sem na po sir, hehe"), and finally closed my case with "Kayo na po ang bahala dyan sir...thanks po" before sauntering off into the corridor.

Making my way outside the FC my inner voice was going like: "Sir Jose is reading my paper...Sir Jose IS reading my paper...oh sh*t, oh sh*t, oh sh*t..." I imagined him poring over the pages of my paper, mercilessly obliterating line after line with corrections, annotations and whatnot...

Or, he could've just set my paper aside. To be read sometime when he's not too busy. When he's no longer busy...then THAT'S the time that he'll obliterate my paper...

...more incoherent thoughts as I walked through Palma Hall...

When I got out of the Palma Hall lobby, I took a deep breath, exhaled, and imagined dropping all my Kas 226 anxieties and "mental baggage" on the AS Steps. That done, I proceeded to the library to continue working on my other term paper.

Doing It Old School

I have to say this again...historical research is not an easy endeavor. Hay naku!

Just this afternoon I met with Dr. Jose to discuss some problems with my data gathering for my 205 paper. One persistent problem I was having is that the online catalog of the main library does not list the annual reports of the united states high commissioners to the president of the united states on the state of the philippine commonwealth, an important document I had to get my hands on. I tried typing variations of the title - even the whole damn thing pero olats pa rin.

Sir Jose told me that the multivolume reports are there in the filipiniana section, just tucked away in an obscure corner. So having received that assurance from a person 'in the know', I marched back to the main lib and requested a staff member to fish out the volume I'm looking for - quietly but firmly insisting na meron po yan dyan, sabi ng Prof namen...(please, para niyo nang awa...)

The student assistant seemed lost and directed me back to the online catalog, then to the printed list of books. Gusto ko nang sabihin na pati card catalog hinalukay ko na pero wala talaga pero mag-iinsist talaga ako na meron diyan...sabi ni Prof Jose nga eh...

Good thing a veteran member of the library staff came to my aid. And so finally, the book I was looking for (1936 report of the US high commissioner) was found but alas, it was already 5 PM (closing time ng filipiniana section) so I just took note of the book's call number for easy reference when I return tomorrow.

Phew! binalhas man ko pangita libro bah...Sir Jose was kind enough to provide some guides as to which libraries or collections I can go to in order to look for sources relevant to my work.

The quest for elusive historical sources shall continue well into the next month, maybe even the semestral break. waaaaaah! I can feel another INC in the making...

Progress Report

1. Book Review for Kas 205 - Done. Yahoooo!

2. Book Review for Kas 226 - I already have my notes, though I have to read the book again to get the 'feel' of the book hehe

3. Term Paper for 205 - konti pa ang sources na nakita. Postponed for a moment because of a 'mishap' hehe I'll explain sometime...

4. Term Paper for 226 - WALA PANG NASIMULAN! baka dito ako ulit ma-INC. well, mabait naman si Sir hehehe

5. PANGGULO! "Take Home" Exam ni Spiderman - Gagawin ko na mamaya...langhiyang Spiderman na 'to, may take-home exam na, meron pang written exam pagbalik nya. Naku! Sana masaya ka ngayon dyan sa Mexico! wahahahaha

Last Meetings (Sort Of)

This week I'll be seeing (most of) my classmates (probably) for the last time (for a while).

Our Kas 205 and 226 classes have officially adjourned for a research break of a few weeks. But we will still be meeting again in October for updates on progress and some finalizations of our papers prior to passing at the end of the semester.

In our Kas 226 class kanina, natuloy na rin ang debate namin ni Mr. Sungit (Chester pala pangalan niya hehe) We were discussing Regina's report on the Vietnam war, when we got entangled in a debate on...basta...nag-debate kami!

He was going on about his "theorizing" on the Vietnam War as seen through elite-peasant interactions in the struggle against the US forces. He reacted to my statement (which was a reaction to his earlier statement - but I forget what the statement was...) in which I commented on the seeming confluence of the nationalist and communist ideologies in the struggle of the Vietnamese during the Vietnam War. The exchange took a while, but in the end I was able to glean the point that he was trying to make:

Me: So, are you therefore saying that the Vietnamese experience could've been the Philippines if we had 'stuck to our guns' against the Americans?

Mr. Sungit: *gave a meaningful smile*

Me: (silently) GOTCHA! hahahahahaha

It was a pleasant surprise that Mr. Sungit became affable and - uh - conversant? (hehe) during our 'last' meeting. And the exchange with him was enlightening, and I found myself agreeing with his point - his seeming juxtaposition of the Vietnamese experience vis-a-vis the Philippine experience was a very interesting viewpoint. But enough with the theorizing, please...hehehe

Tomorrow will also be a 'last' meeting of sorts with Spiderman as he is vas al Mejico en las semanas siguentes. He'll be gone for a while, which will leave me adequate time to start my readings for my term papers for Sir Jose. About time!

Side note: Played DOTA with the kids...este...classmates yesterday and our team got trounced in two straight matches. But I hold the proud distinction of having the record for...most deaths! ten! hahahahaha I also saw a couple of gamers playing the MMORPG "Lineage" which brought me back through memory lane...ah, my former life as a gamer...

Geopolitics, Diplomacy, History....Aaaaaaaaaaaargh!

this is me in the UP Main Lib upon seeing the readings that I would have to go through for my Kas 226 report

Sir Jose wasn't joking when he remarked that my report topic had a lot written about it. As in, a LOT...

These are books that you read IF you want to die!

F*CK

TANGINA

LINTI

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

Timeout muna! Ano ba yan?! Damn the Japanese…why did they have to attack Pearl Harbor and bring the Second World War into the Pacific? Why did they have to engage in imperialistic ventures in the Southeast Asian region in the 1930s? Why invade China and establish the puppet republic of Manchukuo in 1931? Why are diplomats such erudites that they quote the Aeneid with such ease? Why can’t backdoor diplomatic negotiations be based on screenplays of Bond Movies? Or Robert Ludlum novels? Or Tom Clancy novels (only with less talking and exposition)?

I have to take a break just for tonight. I just finished Feis' The Road to Pearl Harbor para akong na-overdose sa historical facts...

In fairness, bilib ako sa diplomat na nag-quote ng Aeneid -- the way to hell is easy...in Latin pa yan. Take that, Virgil! hehehe