MSU Travelbugs

Our travel barkada just got more awesome with the addition of three new members. Trips have never been so much fun and exciting but this post is not about another getaway. This is a photo diary of that one random night of craziness and seriousness caught on cam. Enjoy!

P.S. Say hello to my short hair, the shortest I've ever gone. :)

Frozen Blue Birthday

Some people are worth melting for.  Olaf is definitely right! I'm melting for the ever sweetest Math and IT people who put up a Frozen-themed party for Laiza and me! The floating snowflakes, the flying Olaf, the Elsa and Anna cake topper, the colorful balloons! Wow!

It is a usual phenomenon in the office to create something for the celebrators. Thus, I was not supposed to be surprised anymore. Although I did not have expectations, I still felt that they surpassed my expectations. That feeling!!! 

Ems as Elsa and Laiza as Anna :)

Frozen birthday party

Everyday, I am grateful for this job and the people who surround me in it. It is not always a perfect working relationship, like any other relationship but we manage to grow together through love and respect. You are all so special to me!!! Thank you for your creative minds and hands. It was another sweet surprise!

For the record, Laiza and I did not talk about our color of the day. It's just that great minds think alike. :) We were feeling extra playful that day so we thought of having an impromptu photo shoot. Coordinated dresses, birthday balloons, a scarf turned table cloth turned picnic mat, a natural  green backdrop, a willing photographer, and we were good to go!

 

It was too much fun for a first time!!! Birthdays are the second most wonderful time of the year!

The Semi Surprise Birthday Party

I am such an occasion person. I love celebrating little milestones especially the big ones. I am not used to throwing huge parties though. Intimate dinners with family and close friends are my kind of thing - nothing grand. So imagine my joy when the whole gang in the office poured out their creative ideas to pull off a beautiful surprise for my birthday and Laiza's. Altogether now! Awwwwwwww!!!!!!! :)

Here's the story. Warning: This is a kinda long post but I know you understand. It's my birthday! *wink *wink. Laiza's birthday and mine were just two days apart so the gang said that we could celebrate it on the same day, which was the sandwich day so noone would appear to be more favored. Haha! Weeks before the day, they were already "secretly" discussing plans during lunches, whispering to each other this plan and that, asking us what we want to receive or what we want them to do for us. But as the day neared, the details were revealed little by little because of a few who couldn't contain their excitement. Mas excited pa yata sila. So I had the whole idea pictured in my mind. It wouldn't be such a surprise to me anymore. That's what I thought! 

Surprise No. 1 The party was postponed! Taddahhh! Thanks to an airline which cancelled Laiza's flight. She was supposed to come home on her birthday so we could celebrate the next day but she arrived late at night on the supposedly big day. What a surprise to the organizers. Thus, the party was held on my birthday.

Surprise No.2 It was graduation day in our school. Laiza and I had special tasks in the ceremony. We served for the Reception and Protocol Committees, respectively. Thus, the outfits. I thought we were the last ones to enter the office so I was imagining everyone already inside, waiting for us to open the door and they'd scream, "Surprise!!!" Whewww! My thoughts were overrated. We came into an almost empty office.  They were still in the venue. Okay, I was surprised by my over imagination. 

Surprise No.3 When I entered, I saw nothing on our usual dining area so again my thoughts played, "Maybe they had not really prepared." But when I turned to the other side, there was the surprise! Omg!!! The tarp, the bunting, the balloons, the table setting, the party hats, the juice fountain and everything else! Bongga! Boy, was I surprised! I wanted to cry but I did not want to ruin my make up. Oopps, I did not have one. It's just that I did not want to have puffy eyes. But really, I did not want to appear funny because I look weird when I cry coz of overjoy. I laugh then shed tears then more laughs then less tears then lesser laughs but more tears. Haha! I swallowed the joy instead and let it fill my heart :)

Laiza only asked for flowers. I only asked to be serenaded. You gave us everything we wanted and so much more!!! Altogether again, awwwwwwwwwww!!! Thank you so much, you guys! Love nyo talaga kami! :) Bravo! *Slow clap * Slow clap :)

The beauty of having this blog is I get to thank every person I want without worrying about an airtime. :) On behalf of Laiza, let me thank the following people who made us feel special and loved:

Ate Patty. The Mastermind. You make everything beautiful with your hands. The flowers, the table setting,  the party hats, especially the juice fountain were the stars! Thank you Ate Patty for inspiring everyone to be creative on that day :) And thank you for your motherly hugs on random days :)

Maam Berl. The Wonder Woman. You do so many things. You have transactions left and right but you still remember doing this for us. We are grateful for a kind and down to earth leader like you. Thank you also to your equally kind husband and lovely daughters. :) And thanks for the gifts and the biko and the buko pandan without the buko. Hehe.

Maam Nimfa. The Food Supervisor. You see the little things we don't. You attend to the things we can't. You have a wonderful way of seeing to it that everything is complete and in order. Thank you for taking care of the stuff which we would have missed out. :)

Ate Doli. The Happy Soul. You're always happy and willing Ate Doli! No wonder you're always on call. Hihi. You wanted this day to be so special for me and Laiza and you did it! I know you were waiting for me to cry so you could get a revenge. Hehe. I'm sorry but you failed. You failed to make me cry in front of you. I hid all the tears until the night. I am so overly grateful to be loved by you! :) 

Jose and Rommel. The Singing Husband and Husband-To-Be. As I've mentioned, my only request was a harana because music is soothing to the soul. Hehe. I love listening to songs played on a guitar. Since they were very persistent in asking me what I wanted and since birthday ko naman, nilubos ko na! Nagpaharana talaga ako! They even brought a song book with 1001 songs. I was impressed! Career! Thank you for singing my favorite songs guys. Nakailang set din kayo. :)

Rendon and Jypzie. The Sought-After Bachelors. The tarp was the biggest surprise! We did not expect the party would be summer-themed. And the photo was a little inappropriate for the venue. We were in a university remember? Dapat sana wholesome. The pink bunting and pink balloons with the twirling paper effects, how creative! Parang mas magaling pa kayo gumawa kaysa sa akin. Kalurky kayo!  

Allow me to build you up for the benefit of all the single ladies out there. Girls, here are two good gentlemen, a great catch, that is. Rendon holds a Masters in Math while Jypzie will soon finish his Masters in I.T. Both are 25 years old, helpful, courteous, kind, responsible, funny, single and ready to mingle. If you're interested, PM me or better yet, send them some subtle signals, ey? ;) (Manager or matchmaker lang ang peg!)

To the rest of the office gang.  Thank you for wearing the very girly party hats. For a very manly reputation, I know it was too much to ask. But you gamely and proudly paraded with those smiling fairy tale princesses on your heads. Thank you for inspiring us, the young ones, with your elderly wisdom *cough *cough. :)

It was truly a very pleasant surprise! To more birthday surprises and beyond!!!

Teaching Is Not Checking

Yeah! Definitely not! I do not become a teacher just to check! I dont want to spend my nights and my weekends bringing all my students' papers and checking them all at home. I dont want to watch my favorite tv shows with bunch of papers by my side and some on my lap using the commercial breaks to attend to the papers. I dont want to skip from my girlfriends' dates just to check papers. No! I dont ever want to make checking an excuse to attend to more important things. No!!!!! (Omg! Excuse me.I was sleep talking! I had this dream when I was still a thread away of being a teacher.)

That was such a nightmare! But hey, that's part of my life as a teacher. A Math teacher! And sad to say, my biggest nightmare is happening. Checking! Checking! Checking! When will I ever be spared of checking? I only wanted to teach! I never wanted to check! Huhu!

But that was when I haven't figured out the beauty in checking. Ahuh! It does have a beauty. ( Just agree with me, ok. I'm also trying to convince myself here. :P) Seriously, as years went by, I had learned to appreciate checking. It's just a matter of acceptance. It's part of the profession that I'd chosen and so I had learned to embrace checking whole-heartedly. Hmmmmmmmm... Ahhhh.... Checking! I love checking! More papers there? Let me have them. :P

I have learned some strategies to lighten up things for me. And I'm so loving every bit of learning I gain.

1. If possible, give short quizzes and assignments - just enough to evaluate the learning.
2. Seatworks can be done in pairs or small groups. This also promotes cooperative learning. (This was what I discovered in my classes - When students do things in group, they learn more because they discuss answers and solicit ideas. Sometimes, when they do things alone, it's either they depend solely on themselves or on others if they don't know the answers.) Cooperative learning works!
3. Give other forms of evaluation instead of just in writing. Try individual recitation or group reporting. It not only makes them express everything they know, it also develops their confidence.
4. Give multiple choice questions during exams. It can serve as a training ground. Board exams are given in multiple choice. Train them early.

The above not only makes things easier for me, it also improves students' learning and classroom experience is more enjoyable.

And another tip, by the way... Check with a group of checkers. I mean, group of teachers. :) That's what we do in the office every after final exam. We stay in the office for a day to check! It may be impossible to finish everything but as the day ends, we'll be more than half way of all the papers. Because, we motivate each other. We laugh together, we eat together, we tease each other, we compete playfully. And everything would just seem to be a play!

I never imagined checking could be so fun after all. Thank God! I would have quitted teaching. Hehe..

Final exams for this semester were done. Here's a view of a busy checking office :)

MSU Intrams 2010

It was my most loved intramurals ever! :)

When I was in college, which was not really that long ago, I never enjoyed intrams. It was a vacation week for me. After the parade, I kept myself at home watching so much TV, eating a lot, and sleeping a lot. When everyone else was having a good time, doing what they do best (sports), I was also doing what I do best (studying). Ahuh! The nerdy-geeky that I was. Even during intrams, I read my notes and prepare for exams which were usually given after the intrams week.

When I got to work in MSU, I had the same attitude towards the "sports week". I took a leave from the dust and heat of our beloved university and dug myself into the ocean of my paperworks. I only attended the parade and the Faculty and Staff Night which, if not required, I never would have involved myself with. When I got back to work, my students were exhausted from all the showcasing of their talents while I was so refreshed and renewed from a week long vacation.

But this year was different. I had the time of my life! :) Even before the grand week came, I really felt the excitement of being involved this time. One significant reason which gave me an excuse to be always in school was that I was a member of the tabulation committee in which Laiza was the chairperson. I gladly volunteered for the service. The first days were kinda boring because final results were still few so we had to entertain ourselves with lots of movies and ZAGU!!!

Laiza stayed in BQ for a week so it gave us a chance to get to know each other better. :) (Missing Ate My during girl bonding moments.)


I also got to know Kuya Ipe from the College of Engineering and his so adorable son Angelo.
This is the tabulation committee with Kuya Ipe at the leftmost and Julius at the rightmost. Good job guys! It was a success!

The Faculty and Staff Palaro was the best ever also! (I had lots of bests this year! Yey!)





Playing, dancing, laughing, mingling with the other hard-workeks of the university.

The Faculty and Staff Night was extra special. Ma'am Nimfa, our beloved Nanay-nanayan in the office was given a special award for a dedicated 25 years of service.


Ever since I became a teacher, I had a better view of all the activities especially during the opening ceremonies compared to the half-eyed views when I was still a student. Imagine being on a bench in the middle of five thousand people in an over-crowded gymnasium. (Calling all alumni of MSU-Gensan. Please help build us a wider and better gym .. :) There really is a need to extend or rebuild with our growing population every year.)

Going back to my better view. :) I'll beg again some other time. :P I was cheering for our cheerdancers the whole time they were performing. The College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics Cheerdancers have been undefeated for 3 straight years. Yeah! Go Wizards! The first day has always been for the wizards. The next days, let other colleges rejoice! We come back on the last day for the dancesports competition. And there was a new event this year. The field demonstration. Whew! A lot of other things to mention but I would be biased for the wizards! :)


But as much as I desired, I simply couldn't exclusively clap for the wizards. Teacher as I was and with a proud heart like a mother to my students, I found myself clapping for my every student whom I saw performing. This was the greatest gift that the intramurals had brought me - to be able to witness the talents of my beloved students. I realized that some of my students may not excel in Mathematics but they could be excellent in a number of ways.

I was proud like a momma, like I was the one who carried them in my womb and brought them into the world. I was really that proud. I had students in the chorale, in the university cheerdancers, many joined the musical and dance contest. As they were dancing and singing, my heart was bragging. "These are my students." It was so surprising to see them so alive on stage and being at their best. Ahhh... Those were beautiful moments.



(I wish I had a better camera. :P)

I never appreciated students being indulged with non-academic activities before. I was only focused on their academic achievements because all I knew was the importance of the grades for an impressive record. That when you enter the real world, one of the passports would be an excellent performance in school. I almost forgot about the total development. I forgot about the multiple intelligences. Maybe I haven't understand because I never experienced the same joy. And at some points, I refused to understand. The intramurals reminded me of the other aspects of life which make a happy and fulfilled individual.

I have always known that success doesn't only mean being good in the classroom but it's just now that I've truly believed it :)