Anti-Smoking Seminar

Ah yes, good 'ol anti-smoking campaigns.

October 21, 2015, 1:30pm-3:30pm at the Multi Purpose Hall 2, a seminar on anti-smoking was held in which we were required to attend for our blog post in Ma'am Eliz's EEP class. I was also quite intrigued as to what might it have that I haven't heard or seen before. Indeed, I was not disappointed. 

The poster for the seminar just outside of MPH2

The first speaker is Sir Emer Rojas. He is a larynx cancer survivor who used to smoke and has undergone laryngectomee- the process in which an idividual's larynx in surgically removed.

he mentioned that he used to smoke a lot, like 3 packs a day. Here I was, thinking that my friends who smoke thrice a day was already too much of a bad habit. His is not a habit, it's an addiction! 

He was open to admitting how bad his addiction was and how bad the addiction itself already is. He included in his speech very important health issues which included his personal experience in which he has had his larynx removed due to the cancer. He told us of the horrors of losing our larynx. Aside from the obvious hole in your throat to which you breathe in and out of, you are no longer able to smell and taste because no air passes through your nasal passages anymore. We are also no longer allowed to take a shower and swim because the water would enter that annoying gigantic hole in our necks. Aside from that, we would be physically handicapped for we would not be able to speak anymore and the electrolarynx- the device used to vibrate sound waves to convert them into audible speech for people of his condition- would do the talking for us. Even within this, it has its own limitations! There'd be no more whispering, no more shouting or yelling, and definitely no more singing. I commend him and people like him for continuing to live on despite their condition, and not feeling ashamed of it, help fight for the prevention of others of their mistakes. But as for me, I cannot have this condition because speaking is what's left of me. I have a body built to fight, but none to fight. This is what I have now, and this is what I am, a speaker. I want nothing more than to be heard of my struggles, my ideas, my thoughts, my emotions, my victories, my glories, and my failures. How could you deliver all that in a speech in which you speak in a monotonous automated voice? That would be my greatest fear, but hey, I don't smoke to begin with, so the probability of that is close to not at all.

Sir Emer Rojas talks about his life experiences and different kinds and brands of cigarettes.

I have never had any vices and probably never will. Since high school, most of my friends have been bragging around school of all types and kinds of smokes and alcohol they have in their system, parties they've gone to, girls they've hooked up with, and all the sort. They saw these things as "cool" things. I won't act naive, I do drink, but I do occasional drinking. I rarely drink beer, usually it's either red wine, Spanish wine, sparkling wine, champagne, spirits, whiskey, and those of the sort. I drink when there is a formal gathering or meeting among family members and relatives. But when asked to smoke, I simply say "No thanks. I never had, and never will." They tell me that it's bitterly minty and would help me relax, and one of them said once is enough to make me hate it, I should just try it. But I guess I just hate it so much that that in itself is enough to make me not try it at all.

There was this one time when I was in the Academy when one of my upperclassmen instructed me to smoke as he forcefully tried to shove the cigarette to my lips. I was afraid of insubordination but I told myself that losing my pride was one thing I have given up the moment I entered, but I will not let anybody screw up my principles, so I gently shrugged the butt out, and started doing squat thrusts or burpees. By the time I had done 563, they made me take a break and instructed me to head to my bunks and sleep. I couldn't feel my legs and the cold Baguio wind that brushed by my sweating torso froze me like a popsicle but I was able to sleep soundly that night knowing that I have not yet placed a price on the value of my principles.

Different types of smokes as presented by Sir Emer Rojas.

Turn Left, Turn Right

Turn Left, Turn Right is a Chinese film that has been adpated from a Chinese book depicting two main characters, the unbelievable coincidences between them, and their struggles to overcome those that hamper them from meeting each other again.

Turn Left, Turn Right movie poster, as simple as it is, represents the coincidences in which the two characters have been travelling parallel paths in which would soon intercept.

What strikes me the most about the film is all the coincidences that have occurred. They live in the same apartment where they are literally a wall apart, once off to work, the man goes left while the woman goes right, the paths and places they have passed eachother by, and many other times. 

Aside from this, my interest have also been piqued when the movie showed both protagonists as their own struggling artists. The man plays a violin and is clearly a musician yet he works in a restaurant in which his musicality is barely appreciated, the girl on the other hand, works in an office in which her boss does not acknowledge and appreciate her talent of translating Polish poems to Cantonese and English. Later as the story develops, they have both succeeded in their struggle of identity and recognition for their art as they are given the opportunity to work in a distant place. Both, still keeping in mind and heart the desire to see eachother again, but at the same time being greatly demoralized. This in itself, is probably the biggest coincidence of all. Because this represents the characters' individual personality and identity, this of which contributed to the general idea and emotion of the story especially when the two have "coincidentially" met.

The general thought of the story is to differentiate "destiny" from "choice" yet at the same time, making the audience perceive them as one. You see, in the movie, when the two characters have been separated with no possibilities of communication, they have tried so hard from beginning till end to see eachother again, yet everything they do seems to be futile. But, they haven't noticed that everything they did do lead them to meeting each other again! You see? Don't be confused with the common misconception that just because you believe in "destiny", you would do nothing but "let the current take you there", and that just because you believe that there is nothing such as "destiny" but only individual choices, you would do nothing but reject the thought of destiny and manipulate your life and everything that happens around it through choice. That is pretty unanalogous. The message that I have received from the film is that, "One should believe in destiny, and through choices, strive to get there and attain his happiness". I mean, why not both, right?

ANG TATAY KONG KALBO

ANG TATAY KONG KALBO

 Last October 9, BM 151 and other blocks that are under Ms. Eliz's EEP classes gathered at MPH 1 to watch a play entitled "Ang Tatay kong Kalbo" translated in English would mean "My Bald Father". It is a play in which the type would be considered as an absurd one. Absurd plays are plays that are of no story flow, scenes are often random and incoherent, but made for made for the purpose of entertaining the avid audience with slap stick jokes and in this case, adult humor. It was ridiculously hilarious, I would say. The randomness of the story isn't what entertained me, but the depiction and representation of each character's emotion, thinking, and reactions are what got me. Some how, the transvestite maid had me the most. He/she (he-the actor, she-the character) had a direct line to my funny bone. He/she was so funny that  even Mason, who barely understood half of the dialogues, cracked up like a walnut's nutshell with his/her performance. I did my best to translate the dialogues to Mason as I sat beside him to assist him to understand the "story". Though, I don't know how much of help I was since most of the time I was bursting into laughter and there were quite a few dialogues which was difficult for me to hear. The block had so much fun, well at least Mason and I did.

Now to comment on the overall presentation of the block. I think that the actors undoubtedly prepared well to play their part. Like I have said earlier, the characters were perfectly represented in all their aspects. Nobody forgot their lines, nor did anyone laugh on stage unless of course they were supposed to. The props and the setting were superb. I can only imagine how much effort and man hours were put into making them. It helped in the overall presentation of the idea of the "story". Overall, the presentation exceeded my expectation, and I don't usually watch plays or any of the sort. (I'll post the pictures later once I get home. I have no FB access here in the library's comp. I'll just update it as soon as I get home.)

The board presented the characters of the play and the students who will be portraying them.

The MPH1 stage- the setting for the absurd play. Poorly detailed due to a low def cam, but one can clearly see how much work had to be done to accomplish the props. It also contributes to the overall success of the play.

As we wait by the hallway to enter MPH1 surrounded by a crowd of people, heat, and various odors, Mason composes himself due to the probability of one distinct odor entering his nasal passages which he finds rather repulsive. A loud thought of "Why am I here? I wanna go home." resonates in the walls of his mind made clear by his facial expressions. It's probably that or I just luckily got a candid photo of Mason.

HENERAL ARTIKULO UNO

HENERAL ARTIKULO UNO

What's cooking guys? Here I am on my second blog post, and I am going to talk and discuss with you the indie film "Heneral Luna". I know that most of you have already watched this but I'm going to give you an overview anyway. Heneral Antonio Luna was a Philippine general during the late 1800s. He led the Philippine forces against the American forces in the infamous Philippine-American war where there was a lot of internal conflicts which have risen from our country, a division between two Filipinos- those that want peace and economic stability, and those that want freedom and independence at any cost. Being known as an arrogant, prideful, and "self righteous", and a "war junkie" of a general, as most people say, Heneral Luna depicts the struggles, victories, defeats, and the life and death of General Antonio Luna- The only real general that the nation ever had.

John Arcilla, left, playing the role of General Antonio Luna, right.

The movie represented the actual historical events as accurately as possible with the resources that they have gathered. From the acting of each and every member of the cast from the antagonist, to the protagonist, to the supporting actors, and even the extras, they all did a very good job in playing their part. The setting and theme of each scene were detailed very well and the background music and effects were perfectly timed. But what piqued my interest and attention the most were the puns, humorous remarks, and statements/quotations that were a big part of the script of the movie. There was this one scene where there was a quarrel in the cabinet meeting and Gen. Luna said the following: "Ano gagawin ko, kakagatin ko sila?", "Para kayong mga birheng umaasa sa pagibig ng isang puta.", "Mga kapatid, meron tayong mas malaking kalaban bukod sa mga Amerikano- and ating sarili.", and the famous "Negosyo o kalayaan? Bayan o sarili? Pumili ka!" It is dialogues like these that attract viewers from the trailers and continue to entertain them in the theater itself. The scripwriting was definitely top notched. 

Now let's talk about certain idealisms and concepts here. So again, the movie depicts two kinds of Filipinos then and most probably you could still see now. We've got the Filipino who wants his country to "follow the leader" in order for her to evolve with the world so that she could attain economic stability, peace, and protection with and from other countries. After all, there is nothing constant but change. On the other hand, we have the Filipino who screams NATIONALISM and perceives that freedom and independence shall be gained through force, blood, sweat, gunpowder, and lead is the best way to show this. Who is wrong and who is right when in fact both of which LOVE their country and look forward to its general welfare? You see, what you don't know won't hurt you. When our ancestors knew nothing of the west, they lived simple, happy, and productive lives. They were not burdened by the evolution of technology, economy, trade, industry, religion or whatsoever. But when the first colonizers came, everything changed. We were given machines that simplified our work, money that acted out as our currency for purchasing things to avoid value inequality in straight trades, education in many forms from textbooks to classrooms, and one of the most important one of all- religion. But not all went well as promised. For years we have been abused by our colonizers as they played the role of master and us slave. They were "civilized" and we were "savages". Throughout the years, many Filipinos were greatly oppressed and many heroes have fallen just to be heard. It is good that some Filipinos do want foreign feet on Philippine soil because they want progress and development for our country since we are actually lagging behind. They seek help and knowing that these foreigners can, they take it. After all, the world does not revolve around the Philippines, it revolves around the progressing countries. It is literally survival of the fittest. But all this has a price. We do not have an assurance that we will be actually safe this time around in the "helping hands" of our "helpers". And we fear that we may lose our culture or what's left of it since over the the years, we have succumbed to the culture of the west and adapted them as ours. Some Filipinos see this as a threat to our nationalism and pride which makes them resent the idea of being under a foreign government or administration. These are the things that we all must ponder on. But let me ask you this. Do you think that choosing change over independence betray our motherland when your intention is to develop our country at the cost of national pride and culture? This might have been one thing that "nationalistic" Filipinos such as Gen. Antonio Luna might have overlooked.