F.D.I.S.O: From 'D InSide Out

The Very Same Power

2010-04-19T18:49:00.000+07:00

The very same power that raised Christ from the dead is alive in me.

Why do we always forget this fact? Why don't we live in this mindset of victory instead of defeat?

Christ accomplished something tremendous with His death. Satan thought he had defeated God's only sole hope to ever reconcile man to Him. But God had been planning this ever since the Fall of Man. How would a plan formulated for over a hundred thousand years go wrong?

I like how my leader put it when I went to camp this past week: before Christ, everyone had been marked "sinful". Christ's death, however, changed that. It allowed us to be reconciled back to God. When we accept Christ, we have a new mark: "Child of God."

Now the things that most Christians do is this: everytime they sin, they blame Satan. They say the devil made them do it. Now why can't we all, when we sin, admit it was only our own disobedience because the devil has NO POWER OVER US. Christ death has redeemed us and our acceptance of Him as our Savior has brought the power that raised Him within us. Now if that power can raise Christ from death, I'm sure it can help us overcome!

We all need to stop living in the mindset of defeat when we've already won! Sin has NO POWER over us anymore... unless we let it. We fall into sin because we deliberately turn a deaf ear to the Holy SPirit convicting us what we're about to do is wrong.

Live in victory because you've already WON. God bless.

Titans will CLASH - Review of "Clash of the Titans"

2010-04-05T17:32:00.000+07:00

When I heard that the 1981 classic Clash of the Titans was going to be remade, I knew it would be in my "must see in theaters" list. I actually didn't see the original. However, I did hear it was epic. If it was epic back then - and all they had was stop-motion and no CG animation - then I was sure the remake was going to be... how should I say? EPIC-ER.

And it did not disappoint. Clash of the Titans was pure ancient Greek mythology entertainment from start to finish. Angry, jealous, scheming gods, the demi-god Perseus - played by Avatar's Sam Worthington - kicking some Gorgon butt (or should I say decapitating?), the beautiful and sexy Gemma Arterton as the mysterious Io, along with a black Pegasus (Yes black, not white. UBER COOL) and the enormous Kraken, what more could you ask for? Before the movie premiered, people made petty criticisms about Sam's hair, to which he replied "It's a movie!". Another person criticized the movie for using CG and not stop-motion. Uh, hello? We're in the 21st century now!

Anyways, the story is very loosely based on the myth of Perseus (and from what I read, it has significant changes from its 1981 counter-part). The movie opens with an explanation of how the world came about: the Titans were the original rulers of the Earth until their offspring, the Olympians, overthrew them with the help of the Kraken, a vicious beast borne of Hades himself. Zeus became King of the Gods, Poseidon, Lord of the Seas, and Hades, tricked by Zeus, was left to rule the Underworld. Enter Perseus, found by a humble and kind fisherman and his wife (kinda like Superman) who take him in as their own after finding him floating in a coffin in the ocean. Years later, his parents are killed before his very eyes by Hades and he is left in the open sea, only to be found by a group of soldiers who bring him to Argos. Apparently, these people are defiant to the gods and after the Queen compares her daughter, Andromeda, to Aphrodite, the Goddess of love and beauty, Hades appears and tells them that unless they sacrifice Andromeda, the Kraken will once again be unleashed... upon them. Hades also discovers that Perseus is a demi-god and the people of Argos then seek his help to defeat the Kraken. Meanwhile, Hades persuades Zeus and the other Olympians to go ahead with his plan, saying that the chaos would cause the people to worship them once more. However, Hades has his own motives. Perseus, accompanied by Argon soldiers and Io, a woman who has watched him all his life, sets out to try and defeat the Kraken so that he would weaken Hades and get the revenge he seeks for his family's death.

The movie contained great action, with the occasional comedy, along with great performances by all of the cast. Add the spectacular CG effects and Clash of the Titans is a certified great movie. Sam Worthington is a fine choice as Perseus and brings about a great performance. The best part of this movie in my opinion is that it makes the gods look and feel genuine. The way I imagined the Greek gods was captured in this movie. Also, from the pictures I've seen of the original, this has a more authentic feel to it. Perseus and the gods are not wearing cloaks. Armor is more kick-ass.

However, Perseus' transition from fisherman to hero seems to be a bit blurred. I was quite surprised that he could wield a sword so easily despite having no training. The movie seemed to be quite short also. It might have been better if it was longer.

All in all, Clash of the Titans is a movie that MUST be seen in theaters. Do not let it pass. 9/10

Tito Jechrist

2010-03-17T14:57:00.000+07:00

I forget the first time I met Tito Jechrist, or Tito Jeck as many liked to call him. But I do remember him as the always smiling and jolly person and very funny. He was pretty much the life of the crowd, the one who makes us laugh. It would be very rare to see him down and not smiling.

Because of his bright personality I think it was just right he served in the Usher team. He was also the one who always approached me after I've led worship, requesting for songs to be put in my next lineup so that the people would jump and dance more during praise. He would also encourage me, telling me that the worship was very blessed.

I was very glad to see him avail himself for the Lord. I've seen him serve, watched him pray, I've prayed along with him, I've seen him kneel before the Lord during Breakthroughs and Super CGs. It was no surprise that when he was diagnosed with colon cancer, he did not go and question the Lord. He did the complete opposite. Instead of turning from God, he held on to Him more. Instead of leaving the ministry, he availed himself more. Even as he went back to the Philippines he continued to serve.

He was always the kind of guy who admitted his mistakes and admitted his flaws, but he was also the type of guy who was willing to change. And he did. Many people, including myself, are a witness to the transformation he went through as he continued to walk with God. It was truly amazing. He wasn't the same person he was before I first met him.

We said good-bye to him when he went back to the Philippines, but sadly, I am writing this to say my final good-bye. Two nights ago, I was informed Tito Jeck passed away.

I would be a liar to say I'm not sad. I will miss the laughs I shared with him, his witty jokes, his bright personality, and I will miss worshiping alongside him. But it gives me greater joy and greater comfort knowing that he's with the Lord know. He's where he's always wanted to be and he is truly at peace.

I believe this isn't a time of mourning, but actually we should celebrate. Another faithful servant of Christ has gone home and now he is in the arms of the Father - no pain, no suffering.

We love you Tito Jeck. We miss you dearly. Rest in peace and we'll see each other again.

YOU HOLD ME NOW - HILLSONG

On that day when I see
All that You have for me
When I see You face to face
There surrounded by Your grace

All my fears swept away
In the light of your embrace
When Your love is all I need
And forever I am free

Where the streets are made of gold
In Your presence here to hold
Let these songs of heaven rise to you alone

No weeping, no hurt or pain
No suff'ring You hold me now
You hold me now
No darkness no sickening
No hiding You hold me now,
You hold me now

In this life fin'lly stand
Through my joy and my pain
Knowing there's a greater day
There's a hope that never fails

When You're name is lifted high
And forever praises last
For the glory of Your Name
I'll be livin' for the day

When the world has finally cease
All creation rest in peace
Let these songs of heaven rise to you alone

No weepingr, no hurt or pain
No suff'ring You hold me now
You hold me now
No darkness no sickening
No hiding You hold me now,
You hold me now

For eternity
All my heart will give
All the glory to Your name

For eternity
All my heart will give
All the glory to Your name

For eternity
All my heart will give
All the glory to Your name

For eternity
All my heart will give
All the glory to Your name

No weeping, no hurt or pain
No suffering You hold me now
You hold me now
No darkness no sickening
No hiding You hold me now,
You hold me now

No weeping, no hurt or pain
No suffering You hold me now
You hold me now
No darkness no sickening
No hiding You hold me now,
You hold me now

No weeping, no hurt or pain
No suffering You hold me now
You hold me now
No darkness no sickening
No hiding You hold me now,
You hold me now

Don't Stop Believin'

2010-03-11T19:41:00.000+07:00

What do you do when you're bored? Blog... with gloves on. Agh, I'm taking 'em off. Typing's hard with woolen fingertips...

Anyways... what to blog, what to blog?

Well, exams are finally over so that's cool. Today was basically a cool down day for all of us. We spent most of the day just watching movies. I guess we've earned it after the exams.

I've been listening to a lot of Journey again and Huey Lewis this time around too. Kinda makes me have a lot more confidence when I listen to "Power of Love" while walking to the subway. And I imagine myself sometimes as Michael J. Fox on a skateboard lol. Anyways, downloaded Journey's "Revelation" album with frontman Arnel Pineda now on the vocals. He's awesome, but of course, Steve Perry came first. So yeah, my day never ends without listening to "Open Arms" and "Don't Stop Believin'". You know, something about "Don't Stop Believin'" inspires me everytime. I guess it's the chorus that keeps ringing:

Don't stop believin'

Hold on to the feelin'

Streetlight people...

Great lyrics there. I know it's not a Christian song, but everytime I hear the chorus I always interpret it as don't stop believing and having faith in Him, despite hard times and all.

Speaking of hard times, Bangkok is back to tense mode as red shirts start pouring in from all over Thailand to mount up a huge protest that's starting tomorrow. I have no idea when it will end. I might not have school next week. Yay for me, but not so much yay when you face the facts. Feel bad for my friend, Tor, cuz her house is at the very street where the protest is taking place. As she said, if the reds decide to use a bomb, they'll bomb her house too. The reds were also the ones who burned up the buses last year, so I pray that they won't get rowdy and all again. So please, do pray for the situation here in Thailand. Thank God that He's protected my friends and family. I've been here for ten years and experienced a coup d'etat, the closing of the airport, bus burnings, and numerous rallies, but me and my family remain safe.

So all this political unrest along with the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile bring me to another realization as I write this entry: Christ is coming soon. Very soon. I'm still reading Are We Living in the End Times? by the authors of the "Left Behind" series and it really helped me in understanding end time prophecies. All these events are the "birth pains" before the coming of Christ and they are growing very frequent. For example, the earthquake in Chile occurred only months (or weeks, not sure) after Haiti. This just gives me more reason to believe Christ could come in my lifetime and that, I must say, would be a cool thing.

And so, I circle back to the title of this entry. Despite all the happenings in this world: all the war, politics, disease, disasters... Don't stop - never stop - believing. Never stop believing that God ultimately prevails.

Wow, I'm amazed at the range of topics for this entry lol. This just shows how bored you get after exams haha

God bless everybody and enjoy the upcoming weekend!

Reflections: Mark 16 - March 8, 2010

2010-03-08T17:24:00.001+07:00

"1When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body.

2Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb

3and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”

4But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.

5As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.

6“Don't be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.

7But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’”

8Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.

((The most reliable early manuscripts and other ancient witnesses do not have Mark 16:9–20.))

9When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons.

10She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping.

11When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it.

12Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country.

13These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either.

14Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.

15He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.

16Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

17And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

18they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”

19After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.

20Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it." - Mark 16

"Defeat" has never been an attractive word. "Surrender" doesn't really appeal to man either. But this is why God's plan was so wonderful, so beautiful, and so perfect, that when in the eyes of man they thought that Christ is dead once and for all, the truth was, the Lamb wins!

The ultimate sacrifice resulted in the ultimate victory. The torture, agony, and seeming defeat of Christ on the cross actually won our souls from the enemy and reconciled us back to God.

I remember the teaching why we don't believe of an image of Christ in the cross. It's true that it's a reminder of what Jesus had done for us, but it's because that it's the resurrection that proved His power over sin and death. His resurrection rendered Satan powerless and ultimately defeated him.

I believe God is reminding me - and all of us - that the enemy no longer has any hold on us and that by Christ - if we accept and believe in Him - we are set free. Take off the mindset of still being in chains, still being bogged down and tortured by sin. Christ has set you free. Christ has set the chains loose. Live in the freedom, victory, and authority God gave you. You are free and forgiven.

His grace and mercy is forever!

Saturday Evening Blogging

2010-03-06T22:28:00.000+07:00

Hello to all out there :)

It's 10:20 pm over here. I've no idea what I'm doing blogging when I should be asleep since I have to get up early for church tomorrow lol.

Anyways, I suddenly have to worship lead for praise tomorrow cuz Tita Olive isn't feeling too well. I pray she'll be okay for tomorrow. More than pumped to lead for tomorrow! So excited!

On the school front, exams are next week... Still haven't studied haha. Plus, the titration equation in chemistry is freaking me and my classmates out so I have no idea how this is gonna work. By God's grace, I'll see it through.

Dad just got back from China. Literally just came home a few minutes ago with chocolates. Yay! My bro has his traditional stuff toy. This time, it's Eeyore.

And God has still been so faithful to me. As I shared in the last CG, my heart is always in a battle and in a struggle and I look at myself and condemn myself sometimes, asking myself why I can't just get through it and why I make the same mistakes over and over again. And God bombards me not with punishments but LOVE. From my previous Reflections post, you'll see I'm reading Mark and I'm at the crucifixion. God's reminding me how much He loves me. God's so great. His grace and love is truly overwhelming.

Gotta get to bed. But a last note: please pray for Tita Mayette and Mama. Mama's still in the ICU and we need all the prayers we can get. Please also pray for provision since the bills are now up to 50K+.

God bless guys and hope you have a great week ahead of you.

Pranburi '10

2010-03-04T19:56:00.000+07:00

Last weekend, I came back from Pranburi with my schoolmates. It was a really fun time and a nice break from all the hustle and bustle of BKK. There are some times you just need to slow down, take a break, and lie down at the beach...

Anyways, I miss it a lot. Why? THIS is why!

Who wouldn't want to go back there? Away from all the schoolwork, homework, tests, and exams? Oh well, I guess it's back to reality...

Anyways, all we did there was to swim in the pool, then swim in the beach, then eat, shower, then back to the pool. If ever we were in our rooms we were either eating, playing PS2, talking, playing cards, or doing all of them at the same time.

T'was truly fun. Hope I can go back again sometime.

Reflections: Mk. 15:1-15 - March 4, 2010

2010-03-04T19:41:00.000+07:00

"1Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, reached a decision. They bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.

2“Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate.
“Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied.

3The chief priests accused him of many things.

4So again Pilate asked him, “Aren't you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.”

5But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.

6Now it was the custom at the Feast to release a prisoner whom the people requested.

7A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising.

8The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.

9“Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate,

10knowing it was out of envy that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him.

11But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.

12“What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked them.

13“Crucify him!” they shouted.

14“Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”

15Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified." - Mark 15:1-15

The very reason why Pilate did what he did is in verse 15: "Wanting to please the crowd..." Pilate knew Jesus was innocent and that the Pharisees had only captured Him out of jealousy. Yet because he knew he had to satisfy the people, he gave them what they wish.

Think about what Jesus may have been thinking. He is the Son of God, yet He was wrongly accused and condemned unfairly. Surely this wasn't the way you treat the King of Kings! It's ironic to think that these were also the very same people who welcomed Him in with palm leaves a few days ago and now they were accusing Him of false crimes. Yet Christ kept silent, kept His eye on the mission, and every step to His death He accepted. Jesus fully surrendered to God;s will and had faith.

How about us?

Do we fully surrender or do we lack faith?

Do we follow despite the circumstances?

Or do we turn away?

Reflections: Mark 14:53-65 - March 2, 2010

2010-03-03T18:15:00.001+07:00

"While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came by.

67When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him.
“You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus,” she said.

68But he denied it. “I don't know or understand what you're talking about,” he said, and went out into the entryway.†

69When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, “This fellow is one of them.”

70Again he denied it.
After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.”

71He began to call down curses on himself, and he swore to them, “I don't know this man you're talking about.”

72Immediately the rooster crowed the second time.† Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows twice† you will disown me three times.” And he broke down and wept" - Mark 14:66-72

The name "Judas" has been synonymous with "betrayer". People usually call the betrayer of a certain character in a movie or book "his Judas". And it's true. Judas did betray Christ and was the very reason why Jesus got into the hands of the Pharisees. But did you ever realize that while there was Judas the betrayer, there was also Peter the betrayer?

Peter betrayed Christ by vehemently denying any involvement with Him.Verse 71 says "... he called down curses on himself and swore to them, "I don't know this man you're talking about." So much for the man who vehemently denied earlier that he would deny Christ.

Yet these two people, though similar in this aspect, ended up very differently. Judas killed himself. Peter went on to fulfill Christ's prophecy of him being the rock on which the church will be built on. How could this be when Peter betrayed Christ too?

The difference is in their responses. Judas, after handing in Jesus, knew had head betrayed innocent blood. He wallowed in his grief, let it consume him, and ultimately it was the driving force of his decision to hang himself. Peter, on the other hand, did grieve, but repented. He grieved he betrayed and denied Christ, but instead of meditating on his grief, he turned back to Jesus and asked forgiveness.

God has reminded that we all sin and that we hurt Him everyday. It may be in what we say, what we do, or what we think, but we sin against Him everyday. But God has reminded me it's what you do after that matters. Will you condemn yourself, wallow in self-pity, and tell yourself you'll always be a sinner? Or will you run back to the arms of God, ask forgiveness, and experience His love and grace? As we can see from Judas and Peter, the response decides where you'll end up.

We Are The World 25 for Haiti

2010-02-28T23:24:00.000+07:00

Twenty-five years ago, Quincy Jones, Lionel Richie, and Michael Jackson teamed up to write a song for the starving people of Africa, especially Ethiopia. The result was "We Are The World", and after collaborating with numerous artists the song became a hit, an anthem for the whole world to sing and a reminder that we being the world, we're all in this together.

Now, twenty-five years later, the world has experienced one devastation after another, starting with the Haiti earthquake, then the Chile earthquake and the tsunamis that are expected to hit numerous countries. "We Are The World 25 for Haiti" was done to raise funds for Haiti, but I believe this is also a great reminder to all of us once again that we cannot just turn a blind eye to our fellow men in need.

I really enjoyed the remake of the song. Doesn't matter if the original one was better or not. I like them both. Both versions were sung by artists who recorded it for a single purpose: to help people in need. Chart ratings and criticism therefore don't matter. Even the original was criticized when it first came out. Now they're criticizing the new one, saying it wasn't as good as the original. So now they think the original is good, eh? But what matters is this: because of the collaboration of so many artists, many people are buying the song and helping the cause. As far as I'm concerned, the artists have done their job well. They have inspired people to unite and help those in need.

So please, let us do all we can to help the people in Haiti and Chile. As the song goes, "We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving." Give generously, whether it be financial or even in prayer.

"Like Katrina, Africa, Indonesia
And now Haiti needs us, the need us, they need us..."

Left 4 Dead: Tips and Tricks

2010-02-21T17:35:00.001+07:00

I haven't played L4D in a while and I really miss it. Me, my best friend Nikka, my cousin JP, and Ymer are experts at kicking zombie butt (well, at least in our standards lol). Anyways, here are some useful tips and tricks you can use to survive the zombie apocalypse. This only applies when you're playing the campaign, not when you're playing one of the zombies. We played the PC version, but these are applicable to any platform.

Turn on the captions in the options menu. This tells you what you're going up against (eg. Boomer gurgle, Witch moan). However, if you want a challenge, turn it off.
It is of vital importance that all characters are controlled by humans. If you want to play for fun and alone, it's okay. But if you want a real gaming experience and set the difficulty higher, it is better to play with no bots. The bots do crazy stuff sometimes (eg. If Zoe is controlled by a bot, she will pick up the sniper everytime which is completely useless against hordes.)
Two people should be carrying shotguns while the other two automatic weapons. This balances your team. Those who carry rifles can shoot farther and with more accuracy while those with shotguns are a great help when hordes are incoming and the zombies are right at your face, due to their ability to blow zombies away especially at close range.
SHARE. You and your team need to decide who need the medkit the most or if you need the medkit you're carrying. You will resupply at the checkpoint, but in the midst of trying to get to the next one there are times you need to heal your fellow teammate. Luckily, the AI, the Director, sometimes supplies the players with the medkit. The team needs to decide who needs it the most (the person with the lowest healt or the person who has already used their medkit).
Team formation: shotguns at front, rifles at back. Shotgunners should always kneel when battling an incoming horde. This is to avoid friendly fire.
Team formation while on the move: One takes point (front). The whole team follows whoever is at the point. Another scans the left, another the right. The last takes the rear. This is important since one of your teammates can suddenly be taken by a Smoker.
If one of your teammates is near death and your team has exhausted its medkits, the rest of the team need to surround the player and protect him/her. The character will start limping once their health is low. If a checkpoint is near, you can choose to tell the player to run fro the checkpoint. Mind you, there are still zombies to be encountered.
AVOID CARS! When shooting, do not shoot cars since this will cause the alarm and OMG, here comes the horde.
Dual pistols are crucial. When you run out of ammo in your shotgun/rifle, the pistols are your best friend. It is best to have two and not just one. For the shotgunners, this is the weapon to use when targeting far away zombies.
It is best to make a run for the checkpoint when you're near it! Unless you want to keep shooting zombies. Sometimes however, a horde and Tank will be pitted against you so it's best to run to the safehouse. Make sure, however, that all of your team is inside. The level won't be over unless everybody is in the safehouse. Plus, you don't want a teammate left outside fending off the Tank himself, right? Okay, maybe you do, but that's just mean.
When going up against a Boomer, be careful if it vomits on you. If it does, a horde will attack automatically. You should melee a Boomer first, run back, then shoot to avoid when it explodes. If the exploding slime reaches you, a horde will also attack.
Pipebombs should be saved for incoming hordes. Also, do not just throw them when you hear the music cue for the horde. Wait for the horde to be visible and of great number, then throw the pipebomb. Don't just waste it on a handful of zombies.
Molotovs should be reserved for Tanks. They're big and hard to bring down. The Molotovs help to lessen their health dramatically. Just make sure you throw it from a safe distance. And if you miss, c'mon! These guys are huge! Molotovs can also be used for hordes, but be careful. These things are unstable. Plus, a zombie on fire will still keep running at you.
LISTEN. Each monster has a music cue (Boomers, Smokers, Hunters), even the hordes. Listen carefully and prepare yourself!
When a teammate is brought down by a Hunter, DO NOT SHOOT. Instead, use your melee attack to knock the Hunter off, THEN SHOOT. Same goes when a teammate is caught by a Smoker. Melee then shoot.
When fighting a Tank, run backwards and keep shooting. Usually, it will go after the player that attacked on it first, so one player can be bait. While this player runs and shoots, the rest should run after it and shoot like there's no tomorrow!
A Witch could be heard from far away. If you hear the Witch moan, turn off your flashlights and kneel. If you see the Witch, DO NOT ATTACK. It is best to sneak your way around her than attack her since she does a great deal of damage. If you do startle her, it is likely that player that startled her will get beat down by the Witch. Unlike the Hunter and Smoker, LET HER EAT LEAD. Shoot her straight away! The more time she is on the player, the more damage she deals.
If you do want to defeat the Witch and get that achievement, you should do this: Turn off your flashlight, kneel and approach her slowly. THIS ONLY WORKS IF YOU HAVE AN AUTOMATIC SHOTGUN. Once you are near her, stand, run, aim at her face, and let her eat lead! This should kill her with one shot. However, it doesn't work sometimes, so be warned.
When you are at the last part and you are getting rescued, it is crucial you position your team. For example, in the Dead Air scenario, one of your teammates can man the machine gun while another guards this teammate. If you are in a house, like Blood Harvest, it is best to take the high ground and fend off the hordes. If a player needs to reload, one player should accompany that player downstairs then run back up. Do be reminded NOT to reload when there's an incoming horde. Reload inbetween horde attacks.
Always be on the lookout for your rescue. You can be too busy fighting hordes and not realize your rescue's already there. Plus, once your rescue comes, the BIGGEST HORDE will arrive and there is NO WAY of defeating them. You need to ESCAPE.
When running to the rescue (chopper, boat, etc.), make sure YOU DO NOT FALL. You might get beaten down by a Hunter or taken by a Smoker. If you do, don't expect to get away. You are already dead. If this happens to your teammate, they're as good as dead. You can either head for the rescue and save yourself or you can retry the level again to try all of you being saved.

It think this is all the tips and tricks I have. I'll add some more if I remember. Hope this helps surviving the zombie attack. Have fun!

Mom and Dad's 19th Year Anniversary

2010-02-15T19:44:00.000+07:00

My mom and dad have four anniversaries to celebrate: one is when my mom agreed to be my dad's girlfriend (God knows when it is). Two is when my parents got renewed their vows here in Thailand on September. Three is their renewal of vows in Malaysia on November.

But today is their "official" anniversary: February 15, the day when they actually got married.

I remember my mom;s story on what the judge told them: "Why didn't you get married yesterday when it was Valentine's Day?"

"Oh, we forgot" was their response.

Sad to say we can't go out 'cause my dad has to go to BSF. However, my mom did cook spaghetti and sandwich pizzas which I am eating while i'm typing this out.

But also thank God for keeping their marriage strong. I've seen them fight, in their ups and downs, and they're still going strong. I love how my parents love each other.

So happy anniversary mommy and daddy. God bless you with more and more years to come. Looking forward to your silver anniversary soon!

Box of Letters

2010-02-10T17:43:00.000+07:00

This is a story originally from the book Boy Meets Girl by Joshua Harris. I just rewrote it in my own words. Some of it may not be as accurate as the one in the book and I may have forgotten some details, but that isn't as important as the message this gives. Advanced happy Valentine's to all!

Rich had been digging in the ground for almost half an hour now. It was surprising that not one of the neighbors had heard him digging and peeked out from their windows. What was more surprising was the fact that Christy and her parents hadn't heard him digging in their own yard. Beside Rich was a box full of letters, a box that chronicled his and Chrity's relationship together. After making a suitable hole, he put the box in the ground and covered it up. Wiping the sweat from how brow, he muttered a prayer. "If You want to dig this up someday, I know you can. But if not, then this is where it'll stay."

Rich and Christy had met when they were fourteen. Rich thought Christy was cute. She thought he was annoying. But like every other love story we know, Christy and Rich soon became close friends and in their senior year, they started dating and had a serious relationship. Their relationship was pretty old-fashioned: both had the habit of sending each other love letters. Not e-mails, but hand-written.

Both of them took their relationship very seriously and were very emotionally involved. Christy's father, Mike, had seen this. It wasn't that he disapproved of Rich. After all, he was his boss at work. It was just that he wasn't so sure it was the right time. At least not yet.

So when Rich was driving Mike one day, Mike brought up the relationship. He didn't give a sermon. He didn't lecture Rich. He didn't tell Rich to stay away from his daughter. He talked to him gently, shared with him his experiences, and how being involved so emotionally has its long-term consequences.

Fortunately, Rich listened. Truth sank in and he realized that he and Christy weren't ready for a real, true relationship. Hard as it may have been, they decided to break up but remain friends. They saw each other at church but saw each other only as brother and sister. They wanted to stick to their promise. But this was easier said than done...

Letting his emotions get the better of him, Rich poured out his heart on a letter to Christy to which she replied. They started dating again, only this time it was behind Christy's parents backs. After a while, they resolved to tell them. It never happened, and soon enough they were caught.

Rich was ashamed and asked for Christy's parents forgiveness. He realized that their relationship had not only been deceiving to Chritsy's parents, but that it was holding them back from serving God. He realized that drastic measures had to be taken for this not to happen. Saddened, Rich asked for all the letters he had sent to Christy, put them in a box, and buried them in their front yard, at which point He said to God "If You want to dig this up someday, I know you can. But if not, then this is where it'll stay."

Christy and Rich left for separate colleges. Mike, Christy's father, was surprised at the fact that Rich had remained faithful to his promise. He called Christy and she said that they hadn't spoken since they broke up. He then asked Rich to drive for him while Rich was back in town. During the drive, Mike gave Rich permission and his blessing to court Christy.

But Rich, now more mature, prayed for this and felt that God was telling he wasn't ready for a relationship yet. When he told this to Mike, he was surprised at how far Rich had grown in maturity.

Rich and Christy soon reconnected and became friends again. After a year, they began a long-distance relationship. Same intensity in romance, but now with purpose, direction, their parent's blessing, and God's. Their confidence for marriage grew everyday.

All this time, the box of letters lay buried in the front yard. Nobody knew except Rich.

On Christmas morning, Rich gave Christy a red box that contained a seed for a maple tree. He convinced her to plant it in her front yard. Along with her family, who by this time were in on the surprise, Rich told her the spot where she should plant it and they began to dig.

Four years after it had been buried, Christy found the box and opened it, revealing all the letters she and Rich had ever written to each other. She smiled. Here eyes brimmed with tears. But Rich pointed something out. There was a red envelope sitting on top of all the old bundled letters. It was a letter that Rich wrote before he buried the letters.

Christy opened it and broke into laughter and crying as she read four words she had no doubt been wanting to hear from Rich: Will you marry me?

All of us may have passionate feelings for someone, but a relationship guided by wisdom and God's guidance and timing is definitely worth the wait. Rich Shipe thought he was burying his dreams in the ground. He thought it was the end of him and Christy, but at the same place he buried his dreams, he saw them come to life. In the same place he knelt to bury the box, he knelt to ask for Christy's hand in marriage.

And as he pulled out the engagement ring, Rich Shipe, who had waited for so long for this moment, heard Christy Farris say "Yes."

CRUCIFIED

2010-02-04T18:54:00.000+07:00

"... to provide a death that was particularly slow, painful (hence the term excruciating, literally "out of crucifying"), gruesome (hence dissuading against the crimes punishable by it), humiliating, and public, using whatever means were most expedient for that goal." - Wikipedia

To be crucified wouldn't be exactly called an execution. A better term for it would be "torture".

Crucifixion was reserved for those who have done a vile crime. Even Roman citizens who were sentenced to death were given an "honorable death" like beheading, for crucifixion was not only excruciating, but humiliating. The Romans considered crucifixion "a most shameful and disgraceful way to die".

The process of being crucified starts with the criminal carrying a crossbeam weighing around 35-60 kg to the place of the execution.Once there, the criminal is nailed to the cross and is usually naked. The fact that the criminal would also have to defecate (in modern terms, poo) and urinate in the open makes it all the more shameful for the one on the cross. The death is slow, ranging from hours to days. Romans usually speed the death up by either stabbing the criminal in the heart or side, breaking his knees so that he wouldn't have support, or by lighting a fire below the cross to asphyxiate the criminal. The term "hanging on the cross" is very literal: the fact that the criminal is hanging puts all the weight in the lower part of the body and also causes the criminal to have difficulty breathing. The criminal would have to raise himself up using his arms which are nailed just so that he could breathe. Easier if the feet were nailed to a footrest, but this exhausts the criminal easily. Also, the slightest movement causes great pain.

Imagine what it would've been like to be the one nailed and humiliated on a cross. This is what we deserved! This was supposed to be our punishment! Instead, God sends His only Son for the very reason to step in for our sins and to pay the price and suffer the punishment!

Criminals usually carried the crossbeams. Scripture, however, tells it different from Christ:

"Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha)." - John 19:17

Jesus did not carry just a crossbeam, but His whole cross! The whole cross weighs 135 kilograms! True that the other Gospels record that a man named Simon carried the cross for Him. However, this was probably after Jesus couldn't carry it anymore due to exhaustion. Add to the fact He was whipped before this makes it all the more harder for Him.

Art usually depicts Jesus on the cross with His undergarment on. However, as stated previously, criminals were hung naked, and it was the same case with Christ!

"When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.

24“Let's not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let's decide by lot who will get it.”
This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which said,“They divided my garments among them
and cast lots for my clothing.”†
So this is what the soldiers did." - John 19:23-24

Jesus may have had His undergarments on for sometime, but eventually once the soldiers finished gambling it was removed! Imagine Jesus Christ, an innocent man guilty of nothing, absolutely nothing, hanging on a cross, nailed, naked, cold, and in excruciating pain!

But the reason He did that was for you, me, and the whole world! He could have easily cried out and sent angels to rescue Him and the Jews would also believe He was the Messiah. But no. He knew he had to do this so that once and for all our salvation can be secure. While He was on the cross, while He was being flogged and whipped, He was thinking of you and me! Imagine, He was thinking of me.

Valentines is coming and the world has completely polluted the meaning of love. Love is blurred. The love God wanted for all mankind has been twisted. But look to the Cross and look at what Jesus did. That, right there, is the ultimate expression of love: one Man, who paid the price and took the punishment and the humiliation for each and everyone of us.

Say this to yourself: Christ died because of me.

God bless.

It's Time

2010-01-25T20:21:00.000+07:00

So much stuff is happening right now

I am reminded of what God had strongly impressed upon me in the couple of months leading into 2010. I remembered His promise that 2010 will be awesome and that He would do something big that would undeniably be His work since it would be so huge.

But of course, before God could fix something, something needs to be fixed.

Well, I believe that now is the time. It's time God moves. Yes, we'll have to wait for Him to move, but He is once again reminding us to stay faithful to Him. He's always faithful to his word. Moreover, He's always faithful to us. And He has once again assured me He will move... in His perfect time.

So as God told Joshua as he led the Israelites, "Be strong and courageous." Be strong and take courage, all of us. God will see us through this. With Him on our side, nothing can bring us down.

Reflections: Mark 6:6-13 - January 7, 2010

2010-01-10T19:45:00.000+07:00

"Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village.

7Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil† spirits.

8These were his instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff–no bread, no bag, no money in your belts.

9Wear sandals but not an extra tunic.

10Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town.

11And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them.”

12They went out and preached that people should repent.

13They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them."

- Mark 6:6-13

I can just imagine how excited the disciples were when Jesus gave them authority. Previously, Jesus showed them how He could drive out demons and heal people and now, Jesus was giving them the authority and power to do all these things! They must've been excited as they went around preaching, healing, and casting out demons!

Like the disciples, I believe God is telling me to keep that same zealousness they had. As God has anointed me to serve Him, then like the disciples I should be excited for the authority and anoinitng God gave me! And I should keep that excitement. I believe that God is reminding me to remember my calling and that despite obstacles and trials, I will always be reminded that He has given me authority and anointed me.

And to all of you out there, always remember: In God, you have the victory. In God, you have authority. In God, nothing - nothing - stands against you. Be blessed!

2010

2010-01-01T22:22:00.000+07:00

So I welcomed 2010 the customary Filipino way it should be welcomed: with friends, family, games, fun, and food. But, as a family of God, we also welcomed it with prayer, thanksgiving, and worship. God's given us so much this 2009 and He has assured us that 2010 will be a bigger year. So it's no doubt I'm looking forward to 2010 cuz I'm sure it will totally rock.

And after staying awake for 22 hours for the first time in my whole life, I went to bed at 9 in the morning of January 1 and woke up at 5 in the evening. Indeed, the new year was awesome.

As I said, God has assured me personally that 2010 is the year of bigger things to come. He's really shown me He's gonna do something HUGE, something so great and so big that people who would witness it cannot deny that it's the work of God. So I'm really excited for what God has in store for the church, the Filipino Group, and especially for CRUX, the youth group.

I was very much inspired last night as me, Maica, Jahm, Emil, and Camille gathered together in a circle to pray for 2010 and all our plans for CRUX. I was really glad to see and hear all of them really pray earnestly. It wasn't only me, but they also wanted God to really do something big this 2010. And God is faithful to His people!

Personally, I prayed that God would really help me break free from bondage and that He would help me stand firm against temptation. I also prayed that He would continue to show Himself to me and that I would always have a fresh encounter with Him. The camp in November really taught me a lot about pressing into God's presence and that's what I really strive to do this year: to really be in his presence every single moment of the day. I also offered myself up to Him once again and rededicated myself again, singing from my heart and with all sincerity that I want every breath and every moment of my life to bring Him glory. I also prayed that I would not be lax anymore and that 2010 is the year I really go all out for Him. No holding back!

2010 is gonna be an awesome year, no doubt about it. I have no doubt that God's move is going to be so powerful this year and that he would truly show Himself as a faithful, powerful, and strong God.

Now I'm gonna go to sleep... again.

Christmas Troubles

2009-12-24T13:32:00.000+07:00

We've all heard the Nativity Story many times before. We've seen it reenacted by Kindergartners, read it in children's books and the Bible, and it's been preached countless times in church. Yet somehow, we always just pass by or flip through this part of the Bible because, well, our excuse is we know it all too well already. We don't need to hear it again. We've already heard it countless times. We know it already... or do we?

As I reflect upon how Christ was born and what His parents had to go through before His birth, I am amazed at how God works so miraculously and how He truly guides and provides for His people. If we read the Nativity story from each of the Gospels and carefully understand it and read between the lines, we could easily conclude that Joseph and Mary went through tough times before, during, and after Christ's birth.

First of, never in a million lives has anybody heard of a virgin pregnancy. In modern times, it may seem like just some kind of excuse to get away with something the girl did wrong. I'm pretty sure Mary tried to explain to Joseph why she was pregnant, but of course, this was something pretty hard for Joseph to understand. I'm pretty sure it wasn't only Joseph that questioned Mary, but even his family, her family, and the whole village she stayed in! During these times, a woman who is pregnant before marriage should be stoned. I can honestly say that it is by God's grace Mary wasn't stoned! Also, God revealed His plan to Joseph and Joseph finally accepted Mary once again. Now this might have caused confusion among their people too. One day, Joseph was questioning Mary, the next day he's supporting her. The people might have thought that it was just a ruse or that the both of them were just acting. Maybe Joseph really was the father and he just acted angry for show. If they did tell them about the angels that spoke to them, there's only a small probability anyone would believe them! So even while Christ was in the womb, it was already hard for Mary and Joseph. Yet they were faithful and I believe they put their faith in God. They both knew He wouldn't let them down.

The next thing the couple had to endure was the travel. Mind you, they had no cars, planes, or air-con back then. I'm pretty sure it was blazing hot during the day and freezing cold at night. Imagine what Mary had to go through! Being pregnant and traveling - even in modern times- is hard. What more during those times! And Joseph had no time to take care of himself. Surely, he was always focused for the well-being of his wife and unborn child.

I like the scene in the movie "The Nativity Story" where Joseph and Mary were crossing a river and a snake almost bites Mary. This gives us a realistic picture of the dangers and obstacles the couple had to go through. They could have given up. They could have refused to go to Bethlehem. But by faith, they pressed on.

The couple was surely crushed to reach Bethlehem with no place to stay in. Imagine going through all the troubles and dangers, spending day and night in the blistering sun and the freezing cold, only to find themselves with no place to stay but a smelly stable! They could have been frustrated, they could have gotten angry, but no, they accepted what they had and in that humble stable the Savior of the World was born.

But their troubles didn't end there. Herod tried to kill the Baby and the couple had to make a quick get away. How do you do a quick get away with a new born baby!? In modern times the mother and child stay in the hospital for at least three days before going home. Mary and the baby Jesus had to travel to Egypt less than 24 hours of giving birth! Imagine how hard that is!

And even in the years that passed, I'm sure the family was still persecuted. Their neighbors must have frowned upon Jesus and the couple and might have talked behind their backs, labeling Jesus as a child conceived before wedlock.

And it was surely a hard time for Joseph. After all, he was human and he is a man. He had to wait for nine months, maybe even more, before he could physically show his love to Mary! He had to wait for almost a year!

And yet, even amidst all these troubles, dangers, and obstacles, Joseph and Mary remained faithful to God and in turn, He remained faithful to them and God's plan was fulfilled. This is why God's plan for salvation is so beautiful and awesome: nothing was able to stop it! Nothing was able to stop the humble couple and the baby because there was a big God watching over them!

Now God could've made it easy for Him. Why did He have to go through all this trouble of choosing a couple, traveling, and having a baby born in a manger when He could have just said it and it all came together?

Because in this way, God shows us how much He truly loves us. God went through all the trouble to show Mary, Joseph, and those now reading their story that He is faithful and that He loves us all.God was willing to go through all the trouble because He wants to prove He truly, deeply, cares for us and loves us.

John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only begotten Son..." Usually, we associate this with Jesus on the cross, but this covers His birth too! God gave us His Son, the baby in the manger, so that we will be reconciled with Him and no longer be bound by sin and death. God didn't love the Jews only. He didn't say He only loved Christians either. He loved the world - everybody. And imagine that, all that trouble - the criticism, the danger, the dirty looks shot at the couple - all of that was for you and me! If there is one great proof that God is a personal God, this would be it!

And so, as we celebrate Christ's birth today (or more specifically, at midnight), let us remember how much God loved us and how He showed His love through His Son: the Man that died on the cross and the Baby that lay on the manger. Let us not forget why there is "Christ" in "Christmas" and why that is its true name instead of the abbreviated "X'Mas". Let us remember that we are the reason Christ came to Earth and that He is the reason why we celebrate this holiday.

Have a very merry Christmas everybody. God bless!

HILARIOUS

2009-12-18T16:19:00.001+07:00

Here are some really funny videos I just have to share with you guys.

This first video is a girl winning a competition... she just doesn't seem to realize it. She's still running on Windows 98 and has yet to upgrade to Vista.

The next one is a guy singing. Can't hear him though.

This next person apparently skipped fifth grade. Don't know how she graduated though. Wait, did she even graduate!?

This next vid shows how you celebrate when making a goal.

This guy thinks he's in a videogame. Maybe the comtroller's broken. Or maybe somebody super-glued his shoes.

This guy could've just saved himself the shame and just let the ball go in!

Uhhh... parking brake????

Stupid things happen to stupid people. Remember that.

Now I feel sorry for this kid. She was dead scared.

Now I wonder how they let her keep playing... and I thought only guys play dirty!

And this guy's just too caught up on his break...

Hope you had a laugh!

Love...

2009-12-17T17:14:00.000+07:00

I love you.

Three simple words that mean a whole lot.

Three simple words NOBODY EVER takes lightly.

Three simple words that warm a person's heart, puts a smile on their face, and makes their day.

And this isn't just romantic love. This is love in general: love between friends, family, etc.

I was sitting on my desk after just finishing my Reading exam and I was double checking my answers when I cam across the question asking us about the two Sonnets we just read. Both present love in a different view. Then I began to wonder: what is love? What is it really?

I was brought back to November of this year when I was in Malaysia during the Renewed Experience Camp. Pastor Simon Eng was teaching us about the causes of spiritual dryness and one of the causes he gave was being married to an unbeliever, at which my friend, Jecca, asked "But what if you love the person?"

I answered "That's just your emotion."

As I thought about the word, I began to realize that love is so much more. It's not just emotion. It's not just butterflies in your stomach and a warm fuzzy feeling.

I remembered the meaning of peace. Peace is not the absence of calamity nor danger nor troubles, but it is being calm and collected and having faith that you'll see it through in the midst of calamity, danger, and troubles.

The same goes with love. Love is not just something you feel for a person when he or she does what you want, is pleasing to you, or is beautiful. When you truly love someone, you stick with them whatever their faults. You go through their goods and bads. You forgive them and comfort after they did something bad to you and they apologized. You forget their mistakes and you forget their faults.

4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

5It is not rude, it is not self–seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. - I Corinthians 13:4-8

Nothing else defines love better than the Word. And no act better describes love than God sending His own Son to die for us on the Cross. If you just think for a moment about how awesome God's plan was of redeeming us. Even while God banished Adam and Eve, He already knew what to do. And for the thousands and thousands of years that passed God's plan slowly came into formation. Prophecies came about and talked about it.

And soon, one night, it came. Love, finally, came to us in flesh. In a manger lay the Savior of the world: the perfect expression of God's love for each and every one of us.

The baby on the manger and the man on the cross. Two very different images with only one message: God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.

We may fail at love. We may say 'I love you', but not really mean it. We may get angry, irritated, or annoyed with somebody we promised we loved.

But though we fail, God prevails. And when God said 'I love you' to me, to you, to the whole world, one thing's for sure: He meant it. And He showed it through His Son.

This Christmas, as we celebrate the birth of Christ, let's remember God's love... and let's share it with everyone we meet!

Have a merry Christmas everybody. God bless!

"It's in You" - Original Composition

2009-12-16T18:01:00.000+07:00

An original composition of mine. All glory to God!

Will post lyrics and chords if requested :)

Joy in Persecution

2009-12-16T17:40:00.000+07:00

This is something that's pretty hard to get, even for Christians. I'm pretty sure when Jesus said "Love your enemies. Pray for those who persecute you," He made heads turn and shoulders shrug. However, this is something I finally learned in the past year and something I now truly appreciate.

First thing's first, persecution is NEVER easy nor is it ever fun. Duh. I think that's pretty obvious. And mind you, persecution today can be as light as people mocking you to people physically torturing you. Thank God I haven't experienced the physical yet.

But why is it that we should be HAPPY during persecution? Isn't it obvious we're not supposed to be HAPPY when people are hurting us? I mean, who's happy when they're hurting?

I learned that we need to realize that in fact, when being persecuted, God has found us worthy to be persecuted. Moreover, the Devil has found us a threat, someone to be reckoned with, and is scared, which is why he persecutes us. He's angry at us and that's something we should be awfully happy about! During a time when I was being persecuted, my leaders congratulated me. They said, "You're a certified Christian!"

And now, the year hasn't even ended yet and we in CRUX, the youth group, are already experiencing hard times and persecution. And you know what? I'm VERY EXCITED and HAPPY. Why? The very fact persecution is coming before 2010 means that God has something BIG planned for us and the devil is doing his very best to keep us away from it. By faith, I believe God is gearing us up to reach our 100 mark by 2011!

So are you experiencing persecution? SOmeone mocking you and giving you a hard time?

Rejoice! God has found you worthy and Satan isn't happy with you... and he shouldn't be!

Post-Thanksgiving SCG

2009-12-13T20:49:00.000+07:00

I can't let this day pass without blogging about the Thanksgiving night. It was truly a joyous and awesome experience and though tiring, I can truly say it was all worth it.

I'm really glad that everybody coordinated so well and put so much effort in this event. It truly paid off in the end. I'm very much looking forward to the rest of the Thanksgivings we'll have in the next coming years. It was really fun gathering together with the whole Filipino family as well as our "adopted" Filipinos to celebrate what God has done for us in 2009. I also think this event was to declare that by faith, God has something more for us in 2010.

So it's getting kinda late and I have to go to bed, but all I can say is that it has been a truly awesome night. To God be the glory and praise.

2010, here we come!

Pre-Thanksgiving SCG

2009-12-12T22:53:00.002+07:00

Okay, first of, sorry for not updating my blog. I'm busy with church and school and during free times I get too caught up on Facebook. Don't laugh at me, you're the same too...

Anyways, tomorrow is the Filipino Group's last SCG and it will be a Thanksgiving party. After all, God has blessed us so much this year it's just fitting that on our final service, we give Him all the glory and honor and thanks. Moreover, we should give Him our best, thus the semi-formal attire. And yes, this concept was borrowed from the guys over at S'pore. We've borrowed a lot of stuff from S'pore cuz they do stuff so great. Faith believing, we'll be like them someday!

So tomorrow will be like any other Filipino party - music, games, fun, and of course, FOOD! My mom was cooking six leche flans for tomorrow when I left and I'm pretty sure the other CGs have something delicious in store for everybody too.

So as I look back at the year and I look at how much effort we've put in for tomorrow, I think it's just right - and maybe not even enough - that we put all this effort like staying up 'till early morning to attach a video (like i'm doing right now, though it's just 11) for God since He has been so faithful and gracious to us 24/7.

So tomorrow, we do not celebrate the Filipino Group, nor do we celebrate our achievements... but we celebrate God for making Himself so visible to us.

Tomorrow's gonna be a blast!

I'M HOT

2009-03-08T17:44:00.002+07:00

I'm hot. No seriously, I am. What? NO I DIDN'T MEAN THAT!

Anyways, I meant i'm hot as in sweating and not that hot... i prefer to think of myself as cool... lol.

So yes, it is blazing hot over here in Thailand but this "hotness" has allowed me to realize something.

After the Sunday Service today, I had to go home alone which meant I had to take the subway. Now I like to walk whether it be a hot or cool day. So anyways, I had to walk from the hotel where my church is held to the subway which takes about a good 15 minutes I can say.

But it was indeed hot and I was sweating profusely once I got to the station. It's a good think the subway trains here in Thailand have great air-condition! However, once I got off at my stop I still had to walk to my house which takes about 3 minutes.

I found myself a few more - I dunno, feet? maybe inches or meters or kilometers - away from my house and I started running. I couldn't take the heat anymore! I quickly fished out my keys, opened the door, turned the aircon on, changed my sweaty clothes, then sat directly at the aircon savoring the cool air. We usually say 'Home, sweet home'. It couldn't have been any truer.

But as I sat there in front of the air con I finally realized one thing I sometimes forget: I am blessed. I then began to thank God that there are kids out there suffering the same heat I did when I was walking but they don't have a home to shelter them from the heat, let alone and air con or fan to cool them.

This is what I love about God. He's really personal. And He talks to you when you don't expect it... and talks to you in the little things you sometimes take for granted or think don't matter.

I AM BUSY!!!!

2009-02-12T20:27:00.002+07:00

Okay this is gonna be short.

I'm terribly busy for the past few weeks and probably the weeks to come to. Basically, I think February will be a busy time for me... And adding the fact that my exams are coming up on March doesn't make me feel any better :(

So let me narrow down my business:

My school's Science Fair is on February 27 and I have to constantly keep up with due dates.
I have a paper I need to write on Franklin Delano Roosevelt for History. Due on March, but my teacher wants updates every Friday... and March isn't that far away!
My History teacher has given me another project on Darwin's Origin of Species. Another paper to write!
I need to write a script for another "sheananigan" production... And I have to film and direct it too. (This isn't for fun. It's my Computer class project)

And add to all those the regular Math homeworks I get along with some Thai and occasional other subjects!

Anyways, I have to go back to work! GOD GRANT ME STRENGTH!

A Hopeful Romantic

2009-01-25T20:19:00.003+07:00

Here is a cover I did (Albeit not the best one around) of a song entitled "Forevermore". It was composed by the Filipino band, Side A. I really think this song is a really great song. Here are the lyrics.

I may have run out of songs to sing
I may have run out of words to say
But all that I want you to know is what I feel for you
I love you
As endless as forever
Our love will stay together
You're all I need to be with forevermore

There are times when I just want to look at your face
With the stars in the night
There are times when I just want to feel your embrace
On a cold night
I just can't believe that you are mine now

CHORUS:
You were just a dream that I once knew
Never thought I would be right for you
I just can;t compare you with anything in this world
You're all I need to be with forevermore

All those years I've longed to hold you in my arms
I've been dreaming of you
Every night I've been watching all the stars that fall down
Wishing you will be mine
I just can't believe that you are mine now (Chorus)

BRIDGE:
Time and again there are these changes that we cannot end
Sure as time keeps going on and on
My love for you will be forevermore (Chorus)

As endless as forever
Our love will stay together
You're all I need to be with forevermore

This is one great song. The lyrics are really great and it gives you what most people call that "warm fuzzy feeling".

I would say this is the song for me... but not yet.

I do hope to sing this one day to a woman, but not a woman I want to spend my life with. Instead I want to sing this to the woman God wants me to spend my life with.

You see, man is prone to fail. This just gives a clear message that the choices you make by yourself, even though it's with help of friends, can fail. But here's the good part: GOD NEVER FAILS. His plan is perfect.

So what exactly am I saying? Well, I guess what I want to say is this: I am pledging that I will wait for God's perfect time to bring the right woman along.

Sure, it's quite common teenagers the same age as me are in relationships. But they all know that it's just a fling. They all know it won't last forever. Joshua Harris, author of I've Kissed Dating Goodbye, gives us a great view of meaningful, Godly relationships: Intimacy is the reward of commitment. So what does hit mean? To put it in a simple way: Don't get into relationships when you know you can't commit to the person. I mean c'mon, kids my age have to take care of school. We've got our whole lives ahead of us. And we want to waste it on having a relationship? On dating? Okay, you might say it's fun, but that just proves my point: teenagers these days get into relationships for fun and for the heck of it. They all know it's just a game.

So to all my fellow youth/teenagers out there: be patient and wait on God. Of course, most of us do not want to stay single all of our lives (I know I don't!), but let God bring the right person at the right time.

Before you know it, you'll be singing "You're all I need to be with forevermore"

IN MEMORY OF PSTR. NOLI CADELINA

2009-01-15T20:01:00.002+07:00

In all honesty, I didn't know Pastor Noli Cadelina that well. Of course, I knew that he was the pastor of my church in the Philippines, Faith in Jesus Christian Fellowship. But other than that, I knew him simply as the pastor. Back then, I was in the Children's Church which adds to the reason why I didn't know him so well. The only time I got to talk to him personally and meet with him up close was when he came here to Thailand two years ago.

I was very surprised - and excited - to hear that he would come here and share the Word to our Filipino members. Our Filipino caregroups gathered to hear him share and there was no doubt the people were blessed. It was pretty obvious since all the people came to him to thank him. After the sharing, he talked to all the people who were in a ministry and to our leaders and he gave them counsel. Plus, he led a non-believer to salvation too.

And so even though I spent only a night conversing even only a few words with him, I was blessed by his spirit. His vigor. His zeal for God. I admired him ever since then.

I wanted so much to visit them when I went home. However, the church was far away and we were also attending the Hope Church near our place in the Philippines.

I guess God is truly showing me, my family, and all those close to Pastor Noli that life is short. Pastor Noli Cadelina was taken home on January 4.

I was shocked. My family was shocked. And there was no doubt the people at home were shocked too. However, it was his time. He had run the race. He had fought the good fight. He had completed what God wanted him to do and now god wanted him to claim his prize in heaven.

As I though about him in the past few days and as my parents talked about him, I realize that he actually made me what I am today. Before my parents' marriage, it was Pastor Noli who counseled them He was the one who basically guided my dad through the whole thing. Plus, since he was the pastor of the church, the Children's Ministry was obviously under him, and I am truly thankful for my time in the Children's Church since it allowed a firm foundation for my faith.

To sum it all up, even though indriectly, Pastor Noli affected me a lot. So thanks, Pastor Noli. You were and will always remain a great blessing. Thank you for your zeal and your willingness to let God use you. We love you very much. And even though we miss you, we know you're in a better place....

This is to Pastor Noli Cadelina, a true Man of God.

ALL HAIL HIS CHEWINESS, CHEWY JUNIOR!!!

2009-01-08T16:42:00.002+07:00

While I was in Singapore, I came across this delicacy on my first night. Fiona, a friend of Yi Qin's, bought it for us and I completely and utterly loved it.

So what's Chewy Junior? I know there are Singaporeans reading this. If you still don't know what it is, I suggest you get on the MRT, get down on Bugis, and enter the mall that is connected to the exit. You'll see it there. To those who are non-Singaporean, Chewy Junior is a donut like delicacy. It has a soft, outer bread with a cream filling inside. Most of them also have toppings on them.

Anyways, I decided to take a dozen home and my family loved it too - despite the fact that out of the dozen I took home, I probably ate six. A few days later, my mom told me she had a dream that Chewy Junior apparently had an outlet in one of the malls here in Thailand. I prayed that it was a vision!

Imagine my surprise when one night, when my parents and brother came back from the mall, they give me a box of Chewy Junior! Apparently, the nearby mall has a Chewy Junior outlet! god has blessed me with Chewy Junior in Thailand!

Yesterday, I went to that mall and bought another box of Chewy Junior. Here are some photos I took.

This is the Chewy Junior outlet at Central Ladphrao.

This is the box and one of the delicacies.

Now the Thailand version is smaller and not as chewy as the Singaporean Chewy Junior. Nevertheless..... I HAVE CHEWY JUNIOR IN THAILAND!!!! HALLELUJAH!!!

Do Wah Diddy Diddy Dum Diddy Do

2009-01-08T15:25:00.003+07:00

The song "Do Wah Diddy" was originally by Manfred Mann. This basically shows how good the oldies were back then and how they endure until now. Seriously, Leona Lewis' "Bleeding love" or Rihanna's "Umbrella" can't beat this or Frank Sinatra... Well, maybe Michael Buble can. Anyways, here's a video of Manfred Mann's "Do Wah Diddy"

Here's a clip from the movie Stripes which stars Bill Murray and Harold Ramis. If you don't know who these guys are, they're two of the guys from "Ghostbusters" (Venkman and that bespectacled guy whose name escapes me). Anyways, here's them marching and singing "Do Wah Diddy"

And our final video!

You know those days when you're dead bored and it seems that surfing the Net just isn't enough? Apparently, I'm having one of those days.

Here's me lipsinging to "Do Wah Diddy", requested by Andre, a friend of mine from the AFIRE forum.

How Being a Jedi Relates to Being a Christian

2009-01-08T14:07:00.002+07:00

I don't consider myself a Star Wars geek, but I would probably have a wider knowledge of the Star Wars world - or galaxy - than the everyday person. I also RP - or Role Play - in a forum board as a Jedi. Yes, lame I know, whatever. And no, this RPG is not one of those fancy games like DOTA. It's basically just a forum board.

But anyways, I've always related being a Jedi - or the Jedi - to being a Christian. I think their ways and their teachings mirror a lot of Christianity. Yes, I know there are facets of Buddhism in it, but I actually honestly see more Christianity than Buddhism.

Let me explain. I think the basic knowledge of a non-SW fan is that there are two sides: the Jedi and the Sith. There are actually some more in between but they're the general sides. These two sides use the Force, an entity that holds the universe together. Trained Jedi and Sith can use the Force to their own bidding. These two sides serve the Light and the Dark Side of the Force, respectively.

The facets of the Light Side are putting others before yourself, having patience, having no fear... sounds familiar, right? As for the Dark, it's - as you guessed it - the complete opposite: anger, fear and hatred.

Both the Jedi and the Sith meditate, train, and use the Force which enables them with their "powers". As you can see in the movies, these guys can jump real high, control stuff by waving their hands, and can block blaster blasts (something like bullets) with their lightsabers. Many people think that the Jedi and Sith's main weapon is the lightsaber. They are wrong. These two factions heavily rely on the Force. Without it, they are just normal people wielding light-up swords.

Now it always seems that the Dark Side is much more powerful. If you've seen the movies, the Sith have the ability of Force Lightning, where the Sith uses his hands to produce lightning. This ability can be used by a Jedi, but it takes training. Plus, the Dark Side offers an easy road. Face it people: being patient and loving is hard. Letting anger, frustration, and hate take over is much easier. Which explains why some Jedi fall to the Dark Side.

However, this is untrue. The Dark may seem powerful since it offers the easier and faster way. In truth, it is the Light that conquers and the Light that is more powerful. Mastre Yoda himself said so (If you don't know who Yoda is, why the heck are you even reading this?).

Anyways, I've always viewed the Light Side of the Force as the Holy Spirit. It's what empowers us "Jedi" to do God's work. It's what enables us with our "powers. It's what drives us in difficult times.

The Dark Side is, of course, evil, the world, and Satan. It's in the world, it's all around us, and it's taking over people's minds. This is also what empowers the "Sith".

As I've said before, anger is a facet of the Sith. However, this can be turned into a facet for the Light. How? Well, in lightsaber fighting, there are officially seven forms. The seventh form is called Vaapad. It requires great skill, focus, mastery of the Force, and mastery of the previous six forms. Why? this form utilizes the anger in its user and makes it a weapon of the Light.

Back in Singapore, I listened to a great sermon entitled "A Leader's State of Mind". The preacher talks about your holy discontentment. Basically, it's this something that irritates you, something you cannot stand any longer, like poverty, apathy, etc. Anyways, the preacher says that God can trun this anger against these things (for him it was the anger against churches just going down and abandoning its people) and use it for His own purpose. He explains how God used Moses' anger, who killed an Egyptian man beating up a Hebrew, and turned it for His own cause and therefore made Moses the man who led the Israelites to freedom. This, my friends, is our Vaapad.

We Christians are the Jedi of this world, and somewhere there are still those who fall to the Dark. Let's use the "Force" to bring them back. Let's use the "Force" to show the world that Light prevails over darkness. Let's use the "Force" to expand God's Kingdom in this world and conquer the Sith and the Dark Side.

May the Force be with us all.

S'pore Craziness

2009-01-07T14:01:00.003+07:00

I've recently just returned from Singapore and I it was everything I hoped it would be and more. Well, first of before I left i've heard stuff about Singapore: a) It was very clean and they're very strict about it b) Stuff is expensive..... that's basically it :D

Anyways, yes, it was clean and I was careful not to drop anything on the sidewalk or else I'll get arrested for obstruction of cleanliness and what-not. Nevertheless, I had no trouble because frankly, I didn't see that much cops around. According to a friend of mine over there, if you see cops on the street it porbably means something bad has happenned within a 20-block radius. The only time I saw cops was when they came whooshing past on their patrol car.

And yes, stuff was expensive, at least much more expensive than stuff here in Thailand. My friends bought McDonalds one night and told me that it costs around $6 and they only bought the McChicken Sandiwch. In Thai Baht, that would be 240 Baht! I then proceeded to tell them that here in Thailand, you pay 150 Baht for a Double Big Mac... SET, with the fries and Coke. Anyways, even though I only had $100 in my pocket when I went there, I survived, thanks to the genorosity of my friends over there.

Anyways, here are some videos that I took while was there. The first one was taken at the Mind Cafe, an interesting cafe where they have tons of board games. My friend, Alfonso, can apparently do what I'd like to call the "Jenga Flick Trick", which is basically him flicking the last block on the very bottom of the Jenga tower. He did this a couple of times and I told him I wanted to video it. Unfortunately, everytime I did try to video him he failed. My other friend, Rasheed, also tried it but failed. When I did video him (which is this video), he apparently succeeded and Alfonso - you guessed it - failed again.

This next video was taken on the bus with Rasheed, Yi Qin, and Rei Zhong aka "Jerry" (His CG consists of Cartoon Network characters. His CL, Alvin, is apparently Buttercup from the Powerpuff Girls). This is just random craziness.

This last video was taken during my trip to Sentosa. Rei Zhong "Jerry" and my other friend, Wilfred (who is Blossom) are riding the Skyride. Once we got to the top, we rode the Luge, a bike like contraption, to the bottom of the mountain. Alfonso was with us, but he didn't go since he said he was afraid of heights. It was actually good he didn't go. As you can see in this video, I was dead scared too.

Anyways, i've got more pix and vids but I haven;t uploaded them yet. I actually captured a lot of craziness from the Mind Cafe where Winstar, Prana, and Mandon among others go crazy in one board game. Unfortunately, I still haven't uploaded 'em to my YouTube yet. Will try to, though! ~ E

The Heartbreak Kid

2009-01-06T14:49:00.002+07:00

First of, I know this is my first post in a very long time, so hello once again. It's good to be back.

I recently borrowed "The Heartbreak Kid" from a friend of mine and watched it yesterday. It stars Ben Stiller as Edward Cantrow, a man who is constantly pressured by his father and best friend to get a girl and finally get married or, in his father's opinion, at least enjoy being single and sleep with numerous women. Anyways, the movie has a lot of crude humor and scenes in it and is quite funny, but it gives a clear view of the world's perspective on what they call "love".

In the movie, Eddie meets a gorgeous woman after she gets mugged. They eventually start seeing each other and six weeks later, the woman says she has to leave for Germany. After pressure from his father and best friend - who are, in my opinion, the most knuckle headed guys you'll ever see - Eddie decides to marry her (I'm sorry, her name escapes me). However, in their honeymoon, Eddie realizes how much he doesn't know about his new wife (Like her past cocaine addiction and her irritating singing while he's driving) and meets another woman, Miranda, who is apparently the love of his life.

Well, hilarity ensues, Eddie lies, two - or should I say three - people collide and in the end, it seemed that Eddie and Miranda would be together after all.

But what does this show? Is this how dating or "falling in love" is like today? You date for less than two months and bang, get married?

I've recently been reading the book "I've Kissed Dating Goodbye" by Joshua Harris and apparently, all the wrongs and faults that he mentioned about dating completely show in "The Heartbreak Kid". Eddie was not ready for a committed relationship and so was the woman, and they just jumped at it when they didn't even know each other. Dating, as referred to in the book, skips the "friendship" stage of a relationship and jumps into the intimacy stage, usually. No, intimacy doesn't necessarily mean sleeping together, though in the movie, they do. Joshua Harris explains it clearly: The joy of intimacy is the reward of commitment. If you cannot match your intimacy with commitment, don't even bother getting into a romantic relationship.

In the end of the movie, Miranda goes to Eddie and tells him she's still in love with him and they decide to meet for drinks. Apparently, Eddie has another girl. He lies to her, and tells her the same line he said to his ex-wife when he wanted to divorce her. The very last line he says has profanity in it, but it basically condemns himself on his sheer stupidity.

So what makes Miranda different? I mean, Eddie got married to his wife and put her aside because of Miranda. But once Miranda got married, he went to get another girl. Miranda comes back, and he's splitting with his new girlfriend or wife. In other words, if another woman comes to his life, Eddie could just throw Miranda aside too. Intimacy that doesn't match commitment.

I hope all of us think first beofre getting into a relationship. Don't listen to your heart. Don't listen to you brain. Listen to God, that's what. You do it your way, I can assure you in 75 years you'll be 45 break-ups and 6 divorces down the road.

"If" ~ Rudyard Kipling

2008-04-10T14:03:00.002+07:00

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son! --- Rudyard Kipling

I've actually heard this poem before on "The Simpsons" (and yes, I know it's very peculiar) with Homer's dad quoting the last verses while Homer tries to stop him from betting all his inherited money. But anyways, to the poem. There is only one word to describe it.....

Beautiful.

There is no words to describe how Kipling described life spot on, how he describes the people around us despising us and hating us while we are here all alone and we have the choice to either freak out or keep our cool. But the most important thing about this poem is this: it's really asking you a question. What will you do when everybody around you leaves you? What will you do if you lose everything dear to you and start all over again? What do you do when everybody around you blames you for the bad stuff in their life? It just makes you think about what you will do, or maybe what you did.

I think the best par of this poem that I like is the first part (Dunno what you call it. Is it verse? Stanza?)

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

The way Kipling says it is just beautiful. Can we really keep our cool when everybody around us are blaming their troubles on us? Can we still keep our dignity and have faith in ourselves while others condemn us? But this is the sentence that caught me: If you can wait and not be tired by waiting. Now this one really caught my attention.

Many times I have heard how Christians fall back to their old ways and how some claim they are Christians and live like one too, only to be humiliated when their darkest and deepest secrets are revealed. Many times, the excuse for back sliding is impatience. "God told us His Son's coming back, but when!?" Now comes the sentence - or rather the question - the Kipling gives his readers: Can we wait...... and not be tired of waiting?

Can we really? Can I really? Can I wait for God's return and not complain like others do? Can I do His work faithfully and not complain about the people around me mocking me? Can I still love Him even though my closes friends despise me because of Him?

These questions came into my mind when reading this..... and it sure is important, even for a fourteen year old.

I've got my whole life ahead of me with God having big plans for me, filled with blessings. Question is: do I walk the way He chose for me, or do I turn away...... and miss His plan for me?

Can I not lie when everybody lies? Can I not hate when the whole world hates? Can I not be prideful in everything I do and, instead, be humble and have a contrite heart?

Can I?
Can I?

Can I?

It is beyond man's limit to be perfect.... But I'm not leaving this world without trying. I would strive to do the things said in the Bible, and even follow the examples this poem has given: to stay collected and cool while everybody hates you. To be patient. To be humble. Etc. Etc.....

Can I patiently wait for the train to come in the subway? Can I not lie when my closest friends do? Can I, when rebuked, be humble and receive it gladly? Can I, when my home and PS2 (boo hoo!) is taken away, hold on and have faith in the Father? Can I, if put in a high position, still be humble?

And so, I can apply this poem to the different aspects of my life, but a question still remains.....

Can I?

Spring Break.....

2008-03-03T08:57:00.003+07:00

Well, after our very enjoyable retreat to the beach, we now have to face studies again. In the past week, we have been bombarded with tests and mountainous amounts of homework. But things seem to get from bad to worse: in the following week, we have our Third Quarter exams. After that, we have to suffer the tension of our parents talking to our teachers and at the same time suffer the sweaty tensions of waiting for our report cards aka GRADES.

So is there anything in this friggin' depressin' world that can make me and my fellow classmates who feel as depressed and glum feel so much better.

Indeed there is.

SPRING BREAK!

After our very depressing and troublesome week, the school has been gracious, needless to say kind, enough to give us a ten-day break from the homework, exams and quizzes teenagers dread the most. But what will I do over Spring Break?

Well, there is absolutely no doubt I will be trying my best to complete a numerous amount of games on my PS2. I will probably be on the computer every afternoon and will always be on Facebook, RPing (Roleplaying) as my alter Jedi-self on the Star Wars Facebook universe and as my very own Autobot, Avenger, on the Transformers RP, also on Facebook.

And I must say that is all I would probably do.

My parents aren't rich enough that we could go to another country or possibly go home for at least ten days which I would love, nor do we have anything interesting planned for the break.

What's for sure is that my mom would probably bombard me chores and I will play with my brother as he drums away over our Hillsong DVD. Will be occupied with the said things above and I will probably attend numerous CareGroups , or Bible Studies, and I will probably visit my church friends over in Bangna. In the weekends, I would be away practicing for worship on Sunday and on Sunday I would be at Church.

If there is anything else that's interesting I could think of, I would probably go to IMDB to check out what new movies are out and I would maybe go and watch them. And maybe - just maybe - I'll go Central alone to play Guitar Hero and just walk around and what not.

In addition to my speculation of what I'll be doing, I would do my best to finish the books "Rift in Time" and "Captured by Grace". Good books, I must say.

Well, I think that's what I'll do for spring break. Nothing much, nothing fancy. Just a good ol' holiday with me in front of a TV or computer screen.

Biscuits, Chuck Norris, Beach, and Cockroaches....

2008-02-26T17:37:00.002+07:00

Last week, Grades 4 to 9 went on our long awaited trip to Pattaya, where we stayed for two days. Apparently, nobody knew what the place we were staying at looked like (well, one person did, but never mind). However, this did not suppress our excitement. As far as we're concerned, if we were going for two days outside the walls of the BGIS campus with no studying, no quizzes, and no homework whatsoever, we were very very EXTREMELY happy.

So we hop on a large bus that will take us to our destination. We store our bags in a "baggage room" below where the seats were and we went up to take our seats and brace ourselves for - possibly - the best trip we will ever have this year, and the best trip ever planned since the existence of our school.

My friends quickly spotted TVs on the bus and - since I was assigned to bring in DVDs - asked me to put one on. They decided to watch "Game Plan", and we did during the trip.
Almost halfway, we made a stop at one of those rest places found on highways. What was so good about this stop? Well, Starbucks, KFC, and McDonalds to name a few. Almost everyone - except the teachers who headed for Starbucks to get iced coffe, or at least Ms. Lauren - entered McDonalds screaming out "Double Cheeseburger! Fries! SUNDAE!". However, our very stict and stern Pstr. Hong who was in charge to set us "naughty" and "unreliable" and "un-trustworthy" kids straight blurted out in his heavy Korean accent "No! No hamburgers!".

We stare at him in disbelief. Cries of "WHAT?" suddenly erupt. I myself was going to order a double big mac (which is not that huge here) and was looking forward to the cheese and beef patties. Downcast, I ordered a taro pie and a sundae...... Only to find out that Pstr. Hong was fooling around and we can buy a double big mac.

WHAT? I wasted my money for the order I didn't want and now we can eat burgers?

After minutes of pondering, I ordered a double big mac and got on the bus again. I was annoyed..... very.

Around 30 mins. later, we finally reach our destination and we find out that the beach - although not one of the most beautiful beaches here in Thailand - is right across where we were staying. Everybody cheered. Yes! With the ocean so near, we can swim!

Then, once again, the ever so strict Pstr. Hong tells us we're not going to go to the beach. We weren't going to get sand on our feet whatsoever and nobody - absolutely nobody - was going to get wet with ocean water while were there.

Everybody retorted, revolted, and sounded out their disbelief and strong rejection against this motion. If we were sent to Pattaya (which, if said here in Thailand, will mean BEACH), why weren't we going to the beach? And why are we staying at a place right across the beach? IS this some kind of an insult? Are we just supposed to stare at the beach from the front gate?

The trip was going bad to worse every minute.

After about twenty minutes of being locked up in our bus because of room inspections and room assignments and because Dr. Steve was the one who assigned the rooms and only Pstr. Hong came here so Dr. Steve has no idea what the place looked like, we finally got down, unloaded our bags, and went to our specified rooms. My roommates quickly dropped their bags on the bed and we turned our aircon on and left.

After this we ate lunch and we started games. By the way, we were divided into two teams: the Black Biscuits and the Blue Chuck Norris.....

You probably won't even hear teams named like this in the future.....

So we played games and we, the blue Chuck Norris, honestly beat the heck outta the Biscuits.
Look here:

1.) Basketball: After halftime, the score was around 22 - 2 with us leading.
2.) Soccer: this was quite close though. We got goals in on first half, one more on second, but they got one on second too.
3.) Volleyball: We bet them through serves. I think the final score was 7-21.

After that, we got the chance to go back to our rooms to shower and relax. Before this, however, Pstr. Hong shouted at us boys about not helping to pack up and that was supposed to be our duty as men. For goodness sake.... He could've just asked! Nicely!
Anyways, our room was freezing cold and we absolutely loved it. Our friends even came to our room and expressed their jealousy. I only heard this because at this time, I was showering.

After this we had a night of chapel, prayer, Coke and Sprite along with cookies and ice-cream and the movie premier (at least in our school) of Alvin and the Chipmunks.

After this, we were sent back to our rooms to sleep..... But no one did. Everybody partied in their rooms. We invited other boys to our room and we drank Coke and told and did crazy stuff. However, we did go to bed.

In the morning, the Korean kids were forced to go to Chapel and for what reason I do not know. The rest of us who were left behind then went to Dr. Steve and pleaded him to take us to the beach, and we once again reasoned out we should go to the beach cuz we're in Pattaya! Unlke Pastor Hong, Dr. Steve is an easy going guy and he agreed. So , with seven or so people, we crossed the road..... to the beach.

For a few minutes we dipped our feet in the water. We had no intent of swimming unless we were allowed by "THE HONG". A few minutes after that, the Korean kids came out of chapel and saw us there on the beach. Pastor Hong talked with Dr. Steve then said we will go to the beach after breakfast. Personally, I think he was forced to let us go to the beach cuz we were there and the other kids would be so disappointed if he didn't let them go to the beach too.

So after breakfast we went to the beach. Everybody dipped their feet. Minutes later, everybody was knee-high in the water. Pstr. Hong probably realized there was no way he could stop us from swimming, so he finally gave the go.

So we swam for a few minutes. After the swim, me and Mr. Brian pushed Mr. Mike in, which resulted in me getting dragged back to the ocean and swallowing ocean water.

After this, we had indoor games. Fortunately for the biscuits, they won the Bible Quiz and musical chairs, but that's all.

So in the end, blue Chuck Norris won and it was altogether a fun trip. We packed up, went on the bus again, and headed back to school. We stopped by at the same place we stopped the last tim once again.

This time, nobody stopped me from getting a Double Big Mac......

Interview....

2008-02-20T08:58:00.002+07:00

So our blog assignment for today.....

If we were able to interview a famous person, who would it be? Why that speicific person and why would you want to interview him/her?

So as I sit down here in front of the computer here at the computer room with my fellow Eighth Graders and Ms. Lauren, I began pondering who should I choose to intreview.

Geroge Washington slipped into my mind. "Why'd you lose all your teeth?" I also thought of Hitler. "Why the heck did you hate the Jews?" George Bush. "Were you really friends with the bin Ladens?" Napoleon. "Were you poisoned?" Britney Spears. "What's up with the bald hair?" Harrison Ford. "Even though you're 60, how come you still do your own stunts?" And numerous other people came to my mind, living or dead.

But I began thinking.....

Who was the person who knew the answer to EVERYTHING Someone who was really powerful. Someone who knows all the answers to the mysteries of this world and this life?

Who better to interview than God Himself?

So it is obviously impossible for me to sit down and interview God over a cup of coffee (Milo maybe, or hot cocoa. I'm sure He drinks everything) because if I did, I would drop down dead. However, a writer is not limited by the world's standards because writers use their imagination.

So why would I want to interview God? Like I said, He has all the answers. He knows everything. He knows what, why, when, where, and how. He's been here since the beginning of the world. In short, He knows absolutely everything a man wants to know.

So what questions do I ask Him? Well, we should only give five questions, so here they are, but I'm sure these are only five out of a hundred queries.

1.) Where is Eden located?
2.) Where is the Ark of the Covenant?
3.) Where is Noah's Ark?
4.) Where is the grave of Moses?
5.) Where are Joseph's bones located?

I know my questions are archeological. Spiritual answers can be found in the Bible anyway, so I'm just going to ask God the locations of Biblical antiquities. Hehehe.... It would be really exciting if these things were found. It would probably cause quite a stir in other religions.

Anyways, it would be a great honor to meet God face to face..... and not die, that is. But as it said in the Bible, ALL (emphasize on ALL) have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

I guess I just have to wait 'till I go to heaven to see God..... and interview Him over a cup of coffee (Wait, do they have Strbucks in heaven?)........

The Oval Theory

2008-02-11T16:40:00.000+07:00

History has always been a big interest to me. From Julius Caesar to the Holocaust, I've always had a keen interest for the past.

And since history jives with it, I also love archeology. Or at least anything about it. Tomb Raider in games, Indiana Jones in movies, books about archeology.... Somehow, I share the same joy of the character who discovers something amazing.

But could this be the same case in the Bible? Could science possibly prove the Bible true?

Indeed, yes.

Numerous times has there been proof supporting the Bible. Kingdoms and kings mentioned in the Bible jive with historical records. Places mentioned still exist today. Plants only found in the deepest of oceans were found on mountaintops. And numerous archaeologists - Christian and not - agree that the Bible gives definite records and is used for research.

Yet people believe the world was formed by an explosion of atoms which - by sheer coincidence - fell into place just like that. They believe that men came from apes. However, in truth some planets are older than the theorized date of the Big Bang, and none of the apes today seem to be evolving to become humans.
So I began thinking, what discovery could prove the Bible true? What discovery could prove scientists' belief wrong? What discovery could possibly and finally prove that God truly does exist?

How about the place where all things were created?

In Genesis, God created the first living beings in Eden with the Tree of Knowledge and Life. After the fall of man, God cast out Adam and Eve from Eden and placed a cherubim and a flaming sword to guard its entrance.

So did God destroy Eden?

Throughout the process of creation in Genesis, it is always mentioned after every creation that God saw it was good.

Would God destroy something He saw that was good?

Definitely not.

So if Eden still exists, where is it today?

Geographically speaking, the Bible only tells us the four rivers that run through the garden: Pishon, Gihon, Tigris, and Euphrates. The Pishon and Gihon are unidentified today, but the Tigris and Euphrates means that Eden was somewhere in Mesopotamia. Modern-day Mesopotamia still exists today, only with a different name: Iraq.

So could Iraq be Eden? Could the present-day battleground be the place where God walked and dwelt?

I say no.

In Genesis 3:22, God made it clear He doesn't want man near Eden. Therefore, no man has seen or walked in the Garden for centuries.

So where is it? The Bible doesn't mention Eden after Genesis.

Alas, my friends.... this might not be so.

Michael Phillips, author of Rift in Time gives a compelling theory on Eden's location. And guess what.... we look toward Exodus for answers.

When Moses was in Midian, he went to Horeb, the mountain of God, where he talked to God through a burning bush. He was instructed to removes his sandals, since it was holy ground.

Also, after freeing the Israelites, he received the Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai.

Sinai.... Horeb.... both mountains. God talking to Moses.... God giving the Commandments to Moses....

According to Phillips, they are one and the same place.

But what significance does this hold with eden?

In Phillips' research, there are only two places in which God dwelt and walked for a brief period of time: Horeb and Eden.

They are, therefore, the same place.

Moses was told it was holy ground. Maybe because God walked and dwelt there? God talked through the burning bush. What better tree to talk from than the Tree of Life? The Ten Commandments. He gave at the same place He issued his first commandment.

With the theory of Horeb and Sinai being one, the burning bush being the Tree of Life, and the Tree of Life being in the center of Eden, there is only one conclusion....

The center of Eden is a mountain, and there rests the Tree of Life and Knowledge.

The second I read this theory, I was amazed how parallel all the information were. Could it be? If Mt. Sinai is discovered, could it lead to the discovery of the garden where life began?

Like Phillips, I believe that Eden is somewhere here on Earth, guarded by the cherubim and sword. But only in god's perfect time will it be revealed. Fin

I LOOOOOOOOVE PLAYSTATION!

2008-02-11T09:01:00.000+07:00

I've been an avid gamer since that fateful day when my dad came back from Thailand (I think) and brought home our very own PlayStation One. Of course, at this time it was still those big, square, grey ones and not those tiny travel-size mutations they now call PS1. Before PlayStation me and my dad only had the ol' Family Computer and we spent our days playing Mario and that old tank game (the name escapes me). Actually, I could say that only my dad played because I was just two or three that time and my interests at that time were coloring blank pieces of paper and scribbling nonsense, acting as if I knew how to write and I had my own sign. However, the arrival of the PlayStation changed everything.

Until that time, I actually never heard of PlayStation. My dad, apprently, has been playing Tekken 2 with his friends on PS (Tekken is now a big fighting game on PS console). My dad brought it home and he showed this big grey square thingimajiggy and even in the eyes of a three year old I knew that it was something.... cool. So my dad then started to play Tekken 2, pushing away on the controller as I sat there beside him, my jaw hanging and my eyes bulging with amazement. How in the world did they create something this magnificent? So it was only a few minutes before I asked my dad to let me have a go and - the innocent three year old I was - I started puching on the controller with absolutely no idea what I was doing.

Years passed and my minded started to mature and mesh and I began playing my own games, but they were still kiddy games like Toy Story 2 and Crash Bandicoot Racing. I occasionally watched my dad play his games which were too scary for me to play at the time. He would dive into places unvisited for centuries in Tomb Raider (and what makes this game creepier is the theme songs that appear now and then when there's an enemy or you find yourself in a huge place loaded with traps) and blow away zombies in Resident Evil (the first one. Definitely scary!). So I marveled at his agmes and sometimes even tried to help him if he's stuck. I wasn't that great a help back then, but now I have a wider knowledge in gaming than my old man.

And once again, years passed once more and I finally got my PS2. Not only did I upgrade my gaming status, I also got tp play DVDs on it! So I started gaming away and - me being almost eleven - I started to play more games that challeneged me. I don't remember much of the games. I do remember Enter the Matrix which I finished. I still played Tekken, the fourth one, and eventually unlocked all the caharcters. I tried playing GTA: Vice City. Unfortunately, my dad caught me hacking a guy with a chiansaw and he never let me play it again.

And now, I am still an avid gamer. I finsihed Metal gear: Snake Eater which I love. I completed God of War II and I'm certainly looking forward to the third installment. I loved Hitman: Bloodmoney. Currently, my fancy is Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent. Games I'm looking forward to are The Force Unleashed, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and Mercinaries 2.

I love gaming, though I haven't had the luxury of trying online gaming on my PS2. However, I have my sights set on buying PS3, but I'm not sure when I'll get it. I think I'll just have to wait and see. ~ Fin

Where Will I Go???

2008-01-24T13:58:00.000+07:00

So today's assignment for Blog Day....

If I can go anywhere, where will I go?

Hmmm....

Numerous choices.....

Tons of interesting stuff in each country....

Where to start?

Well, I'd probably go to California first to visit my aunt, uncle, and my new cousin at Azusa. After that I would go to San Francisco and see the Golden gate and probably go and see Alcatraz. Then, while still in California, I will go to Hollywood to... I dunno, audition, maybe (in my dreams)??? Then I would take a stroll down Universal CityWalk. Probably grab a bite at Subways and other restaurants and see interesting stuff. After that I'll go to Universal Studios and ride all the rides there (too many rides to mention specifically). Then I'll go to Six Flags at Vallejo and Six Flags Valencia.
After that I would head to Florida and go to the Universal Studios there. After that, I'll finally go to the theme park I've been dying to go to: Islands of Adventure. I would spend probably one whole day there, riding rides, taking pics, walking around, and eating!
I would then head to Georgia just to visit Six Flags White Water park then immediately leave!
After that I would head to Anaheim to look around the home of the legendary Mighty Ducks. Then I'd go to Disneyland!
After Anaheim, I would go to D.C to see historical monuments such as the Lincoln memorial. Then I would gaze at the Declaration with my own two eyes. Plus, I'd probably go and tour the White House all the while reciting the "Bushy Pledge of Allegiance" and probably get kicked out.
After D.C, I would probably spend a day just lying down at my hotel.
Then after that I will leave America....

AND HEAD FOR EUROPE!

First stop is England. I'll go around historical sights, take pics at the Big Ben, and tour Buckingham palace. While here, I'll probably attend Hillsong London.
After England, I'll go to France and finally see the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe. Next, I will spend two days just going to the Louvre or maybe even three days. After that, I'll go to the beautiful church of Notre Dame.
Next I'll head to Italy and go to Rome to see the Coliseum and that big famous fountain. After Rome I'll go to Venice and enjoy the beauty of the famous canal city.
After that, I'll go to Greece to admire its culture and its past. Dunno much about it, so I'll just go around!
And then I would leave Europe to go back to Asia...

AND HEAD FOR JAPAN!

I will probably spend a week there, sightseeing and visiting my dad's friends and mine too. I'll go and buy tons of high-tech stuff. Plus, I'll spend some time on one of the beaches there!

And after all those tiring travels, I would go home.... TO THE PHILIPPINES!

I'll visit my family there and I will finally - FINALLY - be back here in Thailand.

If only I had the money to do all this stuff..... : (

Resolutions.....

2008-01-18T09:07:00.000+07:00

Okay, first of, many of you may be asking "Why the heck is he writing his resolution when January is almost over?". Answer: This is my blog classwork for English class, the very first of this year. The other previous ones were just me writing, but this for English class.

Anyway, a new year's come and what am I gonna do about it? Do I just sit here and do nothing? Do I party? Or.... do I change?

Everybody can do better. There's always room for improvement. And so that's what I'm going to do in 2008.... Improve. Change. Do better. Right my wrongs.

So where do I start? I have lots of personal stuff to change, that's for sure. And I fully admit it, though I may not specify it because it is personal. (Stop your groaning, cut me some slack! Your reading my blog, you're not gonna get in my personal life!)

Okay, first thing I want to do is to BREAK FREE....

From what????

Well, the big S-I-N.

Everybody sins, so i just want to break free from its bondage. I want me to have control over it and not have it control me. I want to have the power to say no. I want to have the power to resist temptation.But how do I dot his? With help from God and tons of trials. I don't care. Bring it on! I just wanna break free.

The next thing is the way I speak. I'm talkative no doubt, but I want to change the way i speak. I sometimes may say things that hurt other people or go way too far with jokes. Therefore, I want to be more careful with my words.

Another thing is this: my complete wholesome devotion to God. I want to live everyday - and I mean every second, minute and hour - for God. I want everything that I do to honor Him.

Here's another thing, but this is rather like a goal: the salvation of at least one relative. My relatives are Catholics, so I want them to be saved.

Plus, the verse in the Bible about walking blameless has been coming back to me every time. And yes, it did say blameless. So though it may seem hard, I will do my best.

Oh, and here's another resolution: get abs. Yup, I vow to do sit-ups every time I get home with a couple of those elbow push ups that Ms. Lauren taught me yesterday. By the end of the year, I may have a flat stomach. Mwahahaha!

As for relationships, I want to love my friends as much as I love myself and it's really hard, I admit. But what can I do? I might as well love 'em since they're my friends.

And oh yeah, about relationships...

Many people have been asking me if I have a girlfriend so some might be asking that now it's a new year, I might get one this year.

Well friends, the answer is no, I have absolutely no plans to get a girlfriend this year or the next year or the year after that. When the real girl for me comes along, then maybe I will. But for now....

Anyways, I think I wrote way too much and I therefore must end here. God bless and claim to be blessed.

The Most Ridiculous Rules Handed Down by a School

2008-01-16T18:08:00.000+07:00

These rules are real, factual rules handed down by my school. They are ridiculous, and I have absolutely no idea what their significance is.

First, here are the OK rules.

All boys need to have hair that don't cover the eyes, the back of their neck, or their ears.
Okay, this one's in the handbook, so I'm cool with that.

All girls need to have their hair tied.
Yeah, that's a'ight too.

But then they go overboard...

Girls are NOT allowed to wear earrings.
Wait a sec! That ain't right, becasue here's what's written on the handbook...

"Earrings are acceptable on girls' earlobes only"
A bit contradicting, is it?

But there's more!

Students should wear the normal uniform (which is a polo and PJ-like pants) even on days when there's P.E. Students should change to their P.E when it's P.E class.
Whoa! What the heck? Is this right? Is this even legal?

Students should walk along the corridors with their HANDS OFF THE WALLS.
What's the matter? The walls sticky with super glue or somethin'?

Students should try to sing in tune when in Chapel Service.
Now what? We get detention if we don't sing it right?

Students should sit with hands near or on the floor during Chapel.
Oh okay. So if my feet are on the table, that's only a few feet off the ground so I'm assuming that's alright?

So you see, my school passes down weird rules. What's more is that sometimes they try and mess with our pockets too. So not only are they messing with my intelligence, the money gets affected too!

Oh well, what the heck... Guess I have no choice but to abide eh?

PEOPLE, THIS IS THE GOD I SERVE

2008-01-16T17:26:00.000+07:00

People, this is the God I serve...

A few days ago my family went out to see a house since we're looking for one. My dad had a company car he usually borrows and he sometimes can take it home if nobody is going to use it. We then used this car to get to our destination.
We neared the house and my dad then got into a position to park the car. He drove the car near the sidewalk where in front of us another car was parked. The parking process was almost finished...

When my dad, instead of hitting the brakes, hit the gas pedal full on.

As I have said, a car was in front of us. So scientifically speaking, calculating the speed of our car and the distance of the car in front of us (which was not so great), our car hit its bumper real hard that it left a real HUGE dent.

What's more is this: my brother was standing up viewing the cars from the back window. At the collision, he was thrown off and when we saw him he was on the floor, his head underneath the front seat. My mom began praying fervently.

I quickly got out of the car, inspected the damage done not to our car car, but to the other. Seeing the humongous dent, I slowly walked away.

My mom and dad began frantically looking back and forth at our car and the other. We asked help form the Thai agent who was in charge of selling the house to call the owner of the car and he quickly did. I, meanwhile, went into the garage with my MP3 still playing.

I sat down, shaken. I quickly went into quick prayer and didn't even mind if my MP3 was still on. I asked God for guidance and for help, and I told Him he was the only one who could help us effectively.

After I finished my prayer, my ear caught the attention of the song that was playing, which was "Little Wonders" OST Meet the Robinsons, sung by Rob Thomas. The moment I finished my prayer, these lines were sung:

And I don't mind
If it's me you need to turn to
We'll get by
It's the heart that really matters in the end

At that very moment I felt complete peace and I grinned broadly. God has given me His answer, and I knew all I need to do is trust and have faith in Him. Like the song said, It's the heart that really matters in the end. If I trusted Him, then He is sure to save us from this trouble.

And that's what He did. The owner of the car could apparently speak English and we were able to communicate easily. Each of the cars had insurances, so they were all taken care of. In the end, we didn't pay (but we did admit it was our fault) and the owner of the car wasn't angry at all. However, the agent fro the house was like "I helped you! Pay me 4,000!" so we did. In return, we decided not to take the house.

Though it seems like this is all misfortune and mishap, it's actually loaded with blessings. First of, there were people beside the car we hit that were playing. What if my dad did miss the car then instead hit them? A human life is priceless compared to a car! Plus, the cars had insurances, so nobody on either side paid. The woman who owned the car could speak communicate easily because of her knowledge of English. And they weren't angry either.

So during the paperwork, I had a smile as i carried my brother because I knew God was there with us and He proved Himself once again an almighty and loving Father.

People......

This is the God I serve.

The Last Legion

2008-01-10T17:47:00.000+07:00

There be spoilers ahead, matey. Beware....

"The Last Legion" was a movie I saw yesterday and i must say it was quite good. Not very good and not that good, but good nonetheless. Good story, good acting, and this is one of those rare movies in which there's romance but without kissing whatsoever.
The movie starts out being narrated by a man named Ambrosinus, a Britain, who knows and searches for a legendary sword hidden from the world. Year ago, the boy king Romulus is crowned Caesar of the great empire of Rome. Ambrosinus is his tutor, who sometimes does "magic" which actually are only tricks. Odoacer, commander of the Goths allied to Rome, demmanded land form Romulus's father but he refuses. Romulus also meets Aurelius, a general.
That same night, Rome is conquered by the Goths. Aurelius's men are killed except for him and Romulus is taken prisoner.
Odoacer plans to kill Romulus, but Ambrosinus convinces him to keep him alive and Amborsinus and the boy are taken to an island as prisoners. On the island, Ambrosinus realizes that the place might be where the sword is hidden and he - being tied up - leads Romulus to find the sword, the sword for the one "destined to rule."
Ambrisinus and Romulus are rescued by the loyal Aurelius along with three of his men and an Indian female warrior, Mira. They then take the boy-king to a port where he would be transported to Constantinople. However, the Eastern Empire has betrayed them and sent men to kill Romulus. They are, however, unsuccessful. The group then travels to Britain to seek help from the Ninth Legion, or the "Dragon Legion", to see if they remain loyal to the emperor.
Traveling to Hadrian's wall, they realize that the legion has abandoned their posts to become farmers because of fear that the ruler of Anglia, Vortgyn, would attack them.
Ironically enough, Vortgyn wants the sword for his own. He sends the men of Odacer who he has teamed up with to kill the sons of the Blacksmith of the town Romulus was staying in. The people then find out Romulus is the king and they banish him and those with him.
Aurelius and some of his gathered men then take a stand from an attack from Vortgyn. The battle seemed hopeless, until the Ninth Legion took up their arms again and helped them. The battle is won when Ambrosinus kills Vortgyn and Romulus kills the henchman of Odacer who killed his parents.
In the end, Romulus tells the soldiers that there will be no more wars and he throws away the sword, which amazingly pierces a rock and gets lodged in it.
Years later, we see Ambrosinus telling the whole tale to a young boy. Amborsinus then says the Aurelius and Mira married and took Romulus as their own son. Romulus took a Celtic name, meaning son of the dragon: Pendragon. He married the girl he met at the town, Ygraine, and had a son: the boy Ambrosinus was talking to right now, Arthur. Ambrosinus also changed his name to Merlin and now served as Arthur's tutor.
At the ending, the camera pans to the rock with the sword lodged in it. Partially covered by moss, we see the blade with the words "ESCALIBVR" engraved upon it. We then discover that this is the legendary Excalibur, the sword of King Arthur.
Great movie, watch it!

The Great Van Ride

2008-01-09T18:18:00.000+07:00

"The Great Van Ride"....
It wasn't actually so great....
The only thing great about it was the hours it took me to get home.
Anyways, here's the story of "The Great Van Ride".

It was Monday, Jan. 7th, and I was half-happy half-bummed that it the holidays are over and that school was calling me back once more. As I hopped into the van I realized that I had a new van driver. What this usually means is this: new driver, new route. And as I presumed, he did take a new route which got us to school almost the same time like my previous van driver but he was only a few minutes late.
And so I spend eight hours in school, conversing with my teachers and friends on how their holiday went and told them about mine (how delicious the food was at a party and what a big pile of games DG gave me). After school, it was finally time to go home.
I hope into the van and reach for my MP3 as I always do when going back home (and coming to school) and plug it into my ear. I realize that the battery has run out, so with nothing interesting to do - in this case, listen to - I lazily went to sleep and waited for my turn to be sent home.
Now before we move on, let me just tell you some facts you'll be needing to understand this story of mine: the streets here in Bangkok have names (like any other country), numbers, and are referred to as sois in plural, soi in singular. My school is located in Ladphrao road Soi 112. Another thing is that I finish school at 3:00 and get home at around 4:00.
Anyways, continuing on. So I dozed off to sleep, occasionally peeking around to see where we were. When I finally rested fully and felt that my energy bar was completely filled (talking like i'm some kind of character in a game) i opened my eyes and assumed that I was finally on my way home.
I was correct, it was my turn to go home.
However, I rubbed my eyes and looked to my right and do you know what I found?

THE WORDS "LADPHRAO SOI 112" STARING RIGHT BACK AT FRIGGIN' FACE!

I couldn't believe it.
I could NOT conceive it.
How the HECK did I get back here?
I realized that the driver didn't know - or simply ignored - the shortcuts my previous driver took.
I sighed in anger, irritation, and disbelief.
It therefore took another hour to get me home, so I got home at 5.

The next day i dreaded the ride back home once more but luckily, the school found out how late we got sent home so they sent me and some other kids to another driver and I got home at an amazing record of 3:45.

Whew, thank God for ex-underground racer van drivers and shortcuts!

THE BEST NEW YEAR I COULD EVER WISH FOR

2007-12-07T09:17:00.000+07:00

THE BEST NEW YEAR I COULD WISH FOR

So Christmas is fast approaching along with the big 2-0-0-8. Although it seemed like only yesterday when we celebrated the coming of 2007, we just can’t deny the fact that another year has passed. You may be saying “Great, the New Year’s is just another reminder I’m getting older,” but as I always say, do not count the age but count your blessings! Looking back, God has blessed me tremendously through out the whole year and I really am very thankful.
Since New Year’s is almost here, this also means one thing: PAR-TY! I love celebrating Christmas and New Year with friends and family. I love eating at midnight and talking and chatting with friends. And I most certainly love going to bed at almost three in the morning. But sadly enough, the thing I cherish to do the most on New Year’s, I can’t do this year (and I haven’t for the past five years): and that is to be in my hometown with my family and relatives to celebrate Christmas and New Year.
And so I come to the topic of the best New Year I could ever wish for and this is the first one: to celebrate the New Year with family and relatives. The second would be to be in the Philippines. I gotta tell you, the Christmas and New Year here in Thailand is “Pffffffftttt!” *makes boo sign*. It’s plain boring and you just can’t feel the spirit of Christmas or New Year. In the Philippines, we go crazy! Fireworks explode in every (and I mean EVERY) corner of the country. The table of each house is filled with food! Children go outside the house and play with cotton balls in their ears to keep the noise out. Friends and family laugh and sing and light fireworks in the street! *Tear rolls down my eye* Oh man, I miss it! Anyways, another thing I would like for my really perfect New Year ’s Eve is the hamonado and Queso de Bola. Okay, these things are eaten in Christmas, but what the heck? How many days are CHhristmas and New Year apart anyway? So what are these things? Well, hamonado is, as you may have already guessed, ham. It’s sweet, juicy, and each family has one during the end of the year. Queso de Bola is this big humongous piece of cheese that is in the shape of a big humongous ball. Those are the food I want on New Year’s. *Thinking* What other things could make up my perfect New Year? Aha! Though it may be impossible, I want this most precious teeniest tiniest thing that I’ve wanted since I was a kid: snow. Yes, snow. I want to ski on it, ride a sleigh on it, wrestle in it, dance on it, walk on it, run on it, lie on it, slide on it naked (okay, maybe not the last one). It’s been my dream since I was a kid and I really really REALLY want to experience it. Oh yeah, there’s one last thing that would make up a perfect new year’s celebration: A LAPTOP AS A GIFT! Mwahahaha! I hope my mom buys it for me.
Well, that’s the New Year I could wish for, but I can’t have. There is a choice for me to go home during Christmas but I prefer to go home during summer vacation because it’s longer. Anyways, gotta go. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

THE DISCOURAGER OF HESITANCY ~ By Frank Stockton

2007-11-20T17:20:00.000+07:00

So this is the sequel of "The Lady of the Tiger" and all I could say is... Wow.
I'M NOT SAYING ANYTHING! I'M NO SQUEALER!
Anyways, here is the whole story:

THE DISCOURAGER OF HESITANCY
written by Frank R. Stockton

It was nearly a year after the occurrence of that event in the arena of the semi-barbaric king known as the incident of the lady or the tiger, that there came to the palace of this monarch a deputation of five strangers from a far country. These men, of venerable and dignified aspect and demeanour, were received by a high officer of the court, and to him they made known their errand.

"Most noble officer," said the speaker of the deputation, "it so happened that one of our countrymen was present here, in your capital city, on that momentous occasion when a young man who had dared to aspire to the hand of your king's daughter had been placed in the arena, in the midst of the assembled multitude, and ordered to open one of two doors, not knowing whether a ferocious tiger would spring out upon him, or a beauteous lady would advance, ready to become his bride. Our fellow citizen who was then present was a man of supersensitive feelings, and at the moment when the youth was about to open the door he was so fearful lest he should behold a horrible spectacle that his nerves failed him, and he fled precipitately from the arena, and, mounting his camel, rode homeward as fast as he could go."

"We were all very much interested in the story which our countrymen told us, and we were extremely sorry that he did not wait to see the end of the affair. We hoped, however, that in a few weeks some traveller from your city would come among us and bring us further news, but up to that day when we left our country no such traveller had arrived. As last it was determined that the only thing to be done was to send a deputation to this country, and to ask the question: 'Which came out of the open door, the lady or the tiger?'"

When the high officer had heard the mission of this most respectable deputation, he led the five strangers into an inner room, where they were seated upon soft cushions, and where he ordered coffee, pipes, sherbet, and other semibarbaric refreshments to be served to them. Then, taking his seat before them, he thus addressed the visitors.

"Most noble strangers, before answering the question you have come so far to ask, I will relate to you an incident which occurred not very long after that to which you have referred. It is well known in all regions hereabout that our great king is very fond of the presence of beautiful women about his court. All the ladies in waiting upon the queen and royal family are most lovely maidens, brought here from every part of the kingdom. The fame of this concourse of beauty, unequalled in any other royal court, has spread far and wide, and had it not been for the equally wide spread fame of the systems of impetuous justice adopted by our king, many foreigners would doubtless have visited our court."

"But not very long ago there arrived here from a distant land a prince of distinguished appearance and undoubted rank. To such a one, of course, a royal audience was granted, and our king met him very graciously, and begged him to make known the object of his visit. Thereupon the prince informed his Royal Highness that, having heard of the superior beauty of the ladies of his court, he had come to ask permission to make one of them his wife."

"When our king heard this bold announcement, his face reddened, he turned uneasily on his throne, and we were all in dread lest some quick words of furious condemnation should leap from out his quivering lips. But by a mighty effort he controlled himself, and after a moment's silence he turned to the prince and said: 'Your request is granted. Tomorrow at noon you shall wed one of the fairest damsels of our court.' Then turning to his officers he said: 'Give orders that everything be prepared for a wedding in the palace at high noon tomorrow. Convey this royal prince to suitable apartments. Send to him tailors, bootmakers, hatters, jewellers, armorers, men of every craft whose services he may need. Whatever he asks, provide. And let all be ready for the ceremony tomorrow.'"

" 'But, your Majesty,' exclaimed the prince, 'before we make these preparations, I would like -'

" 'Say no more!' roared the king. 'My royal orders have been given, and nothing more is needed to be said. You asked a boon. I granted it, and I will hear no more on the subject. Farewell, my prince, until tomorrow noon.'"

"At this the king arose and left the audience chamber, while the prince was hurried away to the apartments selected for him. Here came to him tailors, hatters, jewellers, and every one who was needed to fit him out in grand attire for the wedding. But the mind of the prince was much troubled and perplexed."

" 'I do nut understand,' he said to his attendants, 'this precipitancy of action. When am I to see the ladies, that I may choose among them? I wish opportunity, not only to gaze upon their forms and faces, but to become acquainted with their relative intellectual development.'"

" 'We can tell you nothing,' was the answer. 'What our king thinks right, that will he do. More than this we know not.'"

" 'His Majesty's notions seem to be very peculiar,' said the prince, 'and, so far as I can see, they do not at all agree with mine.'"

"At that moment an attendant whom the prince had not noticed came and stood beside him. This was a broad shouldered man of cheery aspect, who carried, its hilt in his right hand, and its broad back resting on his broad arm, an enormous cimeter, the upturned edge of which was keen and bright as any razor. Holding this formidable weapon as tenderly as though it had been a sleeping infant, this man drew closer to the prince and bowed."

" 'Who are you?' exclaimed his Highness, starting back at the sight of the frightful weapon.'"

" 'I,' said the other, with a courteous smile, 'am the Discourager of Hesitancy. When the king makes known his wishes to any one, a subject or visitor, whose disposition in some little points may be supposed not wholly to coincide with that of his Majesty, I am appointed to attend him closely, that, should he think of pausing in the path of obedience to the royal will, he may look at me, and proceed.'"

"The prince looked at him, and proceeded to be measured for a coat."

"The tailors and shoemakers and hatters worked all night, and the next morning, when everything was ready, and the hour of noon was drawing nigh, the prince again anxiously inquired of his attendants when he might expect to be introduced to the ladies."

" 'The king will attend to that,' they said. 'We know nothing of the matter.'"

" 'Your Highness,' aid the Discourager of Hesitancy, approaching with a courtly bow, 'will observe the excellent quality of this edge.' And drawing a hair from his head, he dropped it upon the upturned edge of his cimeter, upon which it was cut in two at the moment of touching."

"The prince glanced, and turned upon his heel."

"Now came officers to conduct him to the grand hall of the palace, in which the ceremony was to be performed. Here the prince found the king seated upon his throne, with his nobles, his courtiers, and his officers standing about him in magnificent array. The prince was led to a position in front of the king, to whom he made obeisance, and then said:

" 'Your majesty, before I proceed further -'

"At this moment an attendant, who had approached with a long scarf of delicate silk, wound it about the lower part of the prince's face so quickly and adroitly that he was obliged to cease speaking. Then, with wonderful dexterity, the rest of the scarf was wound around the prince's head, so that he was completely blindfolded. Thereupon the attendant quickly made openings in the scarf over the mouth and ears, so that the prince might breathe and hear, and fastening the ends of the scarf securely, he retired."

"The first impulse of the prince was to snatch the silken folds from his head and face, but, as he raised his hands to do so, he heard beside him the voice of the Discourager of Hesitancy, who gently whispered: 'I am here your Highness.' And, with a shudder, the arms of the prince fell down by his side."

"Now before him he heard the voice of a priest, who had begun the marriage service in use in that semi-barbaric country. At his side he could hear a delicate rustle, which seemed to proceed from fabrics of soft silk. Gently putting forth his hand, he felt folds of such silk close behind him. Then came the voice of the priest requesting him to take the hand of the lady by his side; and reaching forth his right hand, the prince received within it another hand, so small, so soft, so delicately fashioned, and so delightful to the touch, that a thrill went through his being. Then, as was the custom of the country, the priest first asked the lady would she have this man to be her husband; to which the answer gently came, in the sweetest voice he had ever heard: 'I will."'

"Then ran raptures rampant through the prince's blood. The touch, the tone, enchanted him. All the ladies of that court were beautiful, the Discourager was behind him, and through his parted scarf he boldly answered: 'Yes, I will.'"

"Whereupon the priest pronounced them man and wife."

"Now the prince heard a little bustle about him, the long scarf was rapidly unrolled from his head, and he turned, with a start, to gaze upon his bride. To his utter amazement, there was no one there. He stood alone. Unable on the instant to ask a question or say a word, he gazed blankly about him."

"Then the king arose from his throne, and came down, and took him by the hand."

" 'Where is my wife gasped the prince.'"

" 'She is here,' said the king, leading him to a curtained doorway at the side of the hall."

" 'The curtains were drawn aside, and the prince, entering, found himself in a long apartment, near the opposite wall of which stood a line of forty ladies, all dressed in rich attire, and each one apparently more beautiful than the rest.'"

"Waving his hand toward the line, the king said to the prince: "There is your bride! Approach, and lead her forth! But, remember this: that if you attempt to take away one of the unmarried damsels of our court, your execution will be instantaneous. Now, delay no longer. Step up and take your bride.'"

"The prince, as in a dream, walked slowly along the line of ladies, and then walked slowly back again. Nothing could he see about any one of them to indicate that she was more of a bride than the others. Their dresses were all similar, they all blushed, they all looked up and then looked down. They all had charming little hands. Not one spoke a word. Not one lifted a finger to make a sign. It was evident that the orders given them had been very strict."

" 'Why this delay?' roared the king. 'If I had been married this day to one so fair as the lady who wedded you, I should not wait one second to claim her.'"

"The bewildered prince walked again up and down the line. And this time there was a slight change in the countenances of two of the ladies. One of the fairest gently smiled as he passed her. Another, just as beautiful, slightly frowned."

" 'Now,' said the prince to himself, 'I am sure that it is one of those two ladies whom I have married. But which? One smiled. And would not any woman smile when she saw in such a case, her husband coming toward her? Then again, on the other hand, would not any woman from when she saw her husband come toward her and fail to claim her? Would she not knit her lovely brows? Would she not inwardly say 'It is I! Don't you know it? Don't you feel it? Come!' But if this woman had not been married, would she not frown when she saw the man looking at her? Would she not say inwardly, "Don't stop at me! It is the next but one It is two ladies above. Go on!" Then again, the one who married me did not see my face. Would she not now smile if she thought me comely? But if I wedded the one who frowned, she could restrain her disapprobation if she did not like me? Smiles invite the approach of true love. A frown is a reproach to a tardy advance. A smile -"

" 'Now, hear me!' loudly cried the king. 'In ten seconds, if you do not take the lady we have given you, she who has just been made your bride shall be made your widow.'"

"And, as the last word was uttered, the Discourager of? Hesitancy stepped close behind the prince and whispered: 'I am here!'"

"Now the prince could not hesitate an instant; he stepped forward and took one of the two ladies by the hand."

"Loud rang the bells, loud cheered the people, and the king came forward to congratulate the prince. He had taken his lawful bride."

" 'Now, then," said the officer to the deputation of five strangers from a far country, "when you can decide among yourselves which lady the prince chose, the one who smiled or the one who frowned, then I will tell you which came out of the open door, the lady or the tiger!"

At the latest accounts the five strangers had not yet decided.

Cool ain't it??? Hahaha!!!!

THE LADY OR THE TIGER? ~ By Frank Stockton

2007-11-20T16:42:00.000+07:00

So we read another story today entitled "The Lady, or the Tiger?". It's a very wordy story and it's pretty obvious that the author's vocabulary is really good. Anyways, don't know the story? Here's the low-down...

In olden days, there lived a "semi-barbaric king" who was just so full of himself. He liked things done his way, and if they weren't... use your imagination. Anyway, the king had a special way of judging someone who committed a crime in his kingdom. That person would have a trial before the citizens of the land and before the king and his officials in an amphitheater. When the accused was there, his life is not in the king's, the people's, or the officials' hands, but in his hands. Why? Well, in the amphitheater there were two doors. Behind one door is a ferocious tiger waiting to devour the accused, guilty or not. Behind the other is a fair and beautiful maiden. If the accused chose the door of the maiden, they will immediately marry on the spot, regardless of the accused feelings or if he has twelve kids and a loving wife. So either way, the king pretty much affects the accused guy's life.
But something special came up: the king found out his daughter was in love with a boy, a servant. The king quickly put this man into prison and set up a date for his trial. The officials searched for the most beautiful maiden and the most ferocious tiger in the land. Finally, the man's day of trial came.
But before all this, the princess herself was busy. She had found out the secret of the doors and at the day of the trial she knew what lay behind the doors. In the days before the trial, she also pondered what door she would give her beloved, for she was sure he would ask. She couldn't bear see him get eaten by a tiger, nor could she bear her loved one get married with another girl. Plus, the princess loathed this girl because she had spotted her beloved and this girl talking and exchanging looks. So she was filled with pity which had toppings of fresh hot jealousy on it.
So on the day of the trial, the man quickly met the eyes of the princess and said one word: "Which?"
The princess knew that he would ask, and in a flash she pointed to the right.
And so the guy opened the door and....
THE END.
No seriously, the end...
Yes, I am not joking, that is THE END.

Cool story huh? You read it you want to know what's gonna happen, then suddenly the author leaves you there to ponder what came out, a girl or a tiger? It's as if you went mountain climbing with a good friend and he left you hanging a thousand feet above the ground.
Anyways, this is about what I think came out. It's a pretty hard decision.
The princess is described also like her father, semi-barbaric. She may be a brat, which means she wants everything for herself. Okay, I'm not implying that she chose the door of the tiger. First of, she's jealous. She loathes the girl behind one door and she just can't stand seeing her man married with a girl she hates right in front of her eyes. On the other hand, she also can't stand seeing her man get eaten by a ferocious tiger, get ripped to shreds, and she finally hears the tiger go *BURP*.
So in my opinion, I think that the princess chose... *DRUMROLL*
*TA-DA!* The Tiger's door.
Why? Well, a thought crossed her mind and she said that "What if he dies and he just waits for me in the afterlife?" As I said, this princess might be a brat, but she knows there is no escaping the clutches of her semi-barbaric father. So how does he get the guy for herself? Kill him, and as she said, they'll be together in the afterlife.
Now, you might say that she could've let the guy marry the girl but the guy will leave the girl for the princess. But I'm pretty sure the king would've found this out and probably killed the guy.

Anyways, that's just my opinion.
But guess what?

I JUST FOUND THE REAL FINISH OF THE STORY!!!!
Yes, I AM NOT LYING. The author wrote a sequel which reveals the ending.
Don't worry, Ms. Lauren, I wrote this without reading the end yet.
I'll post the sequel after I'm done reading it!

Almost feels like home...

2007-11-19T17:08:00.000+07:00

On Saturday, me and my mom went to the market to buy supplies for our home. I didn't know my mom rode the tuk-tuk (if you don't know what that is, go and search it on Google Images) since it was my first time accompanying her to this certain market (I've been with her to a different market). So while I was on the tuk-tuk, I stared down the street and just saw the houses flying by and suddenly, I thought I was in a tricycle (don't know what that is, Google Image search it, but add Philippines) and I was riding it to my home. I felt that I was in a street in the Philippines. Everything looked the same! The streets looked exactly the same as they did at home! However, the feeling went away once we left the streets and got back to the main road. Here the main roads are clean and quiet. In the Phils., it's noisy, polluted, and congested with traffic.
Anyways, I just felt that I should share.

THE TELL TALE HEART ~ By Edgar Allan Poe

2007-11-19T16:27:00.001+07:00

So me and my friends read this story by Edgar Allan Poe called the Tell Tale Heart. It's basically about this guy who is bragging to the reader about how he killed an old guy because of the old guy's vulture-like eye. Occasionally, he would tell the reader that he is NOT a madman because of how he executed his plan so well with patience. Anyways, after many nights of waiting, the guy finally has the chance to kill the old dude by suffocating him with a mattress (that was before he got irritated with the old dude's heart beating like a drum). To hide the body, the guy hacks the old dude's limbs (simply GROSS) and hides them in the floorboards. Then out of nowhere, the police comes and says the neighbors heard a scream. The guy welcomes the police in to investigate, knowing that they won't be able to find the body (the blood was caught in a tub while he hacked the guy up). However, this guy still hears the beating of the old dude's heart. He couldn't take it anymore, so he admits the murder he committed and pointed to the policemen where the pieces of the old dude's body was in the floorboards.

Describing this whole thing in one sentence is easy: CREEPY. ABSOLUTELY, HORRIFYINGLY, CREEPY. Especially the cartoon short we watched... yes, it's a cartoon, but trust me, it's creepy. It'll make the hair on the back of your neck stand. There are some differences from the original manuscript (I normally would've said book, but manuscript sound cooler) and the cartoon. For example: the guy always lights a lantern and points it at the eye of the old dude in the book but not in the cartoon. The cartoon also doesn't show the guy hacking up the old dude (probably too graphic to be shown). Plus, this cartoon adds a scene of the guy in prison. In the book, it only ends with the guy confessing to the policemen in the house what he's done. However, both the book and the cartoon are really creepy and really scary. Edgar Allan Poe is a great writer, though I'm a bit convinced he's also a bit "cuckoo" after reading the Raven (another hair raiser).

The Tell Tale Heart is just a one creepy-kind-of-a story. You should read it... IF YOU DARE...

P.S I suggest you read "The Raven" too.... And go to YouTube and search it and choose the one which says Christopher Walken is reading it (DO NOT READ AT MIDNIGHT!)

THANKFUL... (For what, exactly???)

2007-11-14T09:29:00.000+07:00

So Thanksgiving's nearing with each day the passes... To tell you the truth, we don't exactly celebrate Thanksgiving in this part of Asia, but hey, there are a lots of things to be thankful for, right? However, I'm pretty bummed that we aren't eating turkey here. Man, why does America get all the good stuff?

So what should I be thankful for anyway? I figure this is going to be quite long, so here I go. I'm thankful for: a roof above my head, food on the table, a bed to sleep in, a PS2 to entertain me, tons of games that go along with that PS2 (half of which don't work anymore), a TV to watch movies in, a DVD player to play DVDs in (wait a sec, my DVD player is broken!), and tons of appliances that cook my food and make my chores easier. I'm thankful for my lil' bro who i waited and prayed for for ten years. I'm thankful for my parents who teach me, guide me, and bug me. I'm thankful for my relatives, who love me each and everyday because apparently they don't suffer me like my parents suffer me. I'm thankful for my two best friends, John Paul my cousin and Nikka my neighbor, who are always there for me when I need them and are really fun to be with. Let's see, what else? I'm thankful for friends at school, who constantly bug me (Hye Min) annoy me (probably John and Minha) and buy me ice cream (Win). No, really, they're just fun to be around with. I'm also thankful for my teachers, who even though they don't want to, got to school and teach me. I'm thankful also for the people who guide me at my church. they're a great help in my spiritual growth. I'm also thankful for my shepherd, Tito Del, who is fun to be with, really kind, and offers great guidance to me. I'm also thankful for my pastors at church: Pastor David, Isaac, and Chris. They're great men of God and they're so great at preaching.

And last, but not the least, I am thankful for a Savior who paid my debt and loved me no matter what, and I am thankful that I believe in a God who hears my prayers and loves me everyday, provides for me, and blesses me even if I don't deserve it.

Don't tell yourself "Life sucks" and you've got nothing to be thankful for. even the simplest things are a blessing.

God bless everyone and happy Thanksgiving!

~ Eric E.

MY FIRST ENTRY!!!

2007-11-14T09:05:00.000+07:00

Hey wazzup!!

Okay, so this is my blog for English class and Ms. Lauren's gonna check it every week and she says we're supposed to have one entry per week....

But what the heck, I'm gonna write as many as I want cuz I luv BLOGGING!!!

Oh yeah, by the way, I'm Eric. Eric Emmanuel S. Surbano. I'm 14, in Grade 8, and I'm currently studying in BGIS. Ms. Lauren Campbell is my English teacher (Okay, I think that Ms. Lauren is gonna let her friends look at this so the people reading this would probably know who Ms. Lauren is), with Mr. Michael Hoyt being my Social Studies and homeroom teacher (Okay, you may not know him), Mr. Brian Burkey being my Science teacher (you probably DON'T know him) and Dr. Steve McKee being my Math teacher and principal (okay, I am positively sure you DON'T him, but in a few months you may).

Anyways, yes, I love blogging. I love writing. I love surfing the net. I love RPG games (currently playing Star Wars on Facebook) and I love games on PS2 (currently finished Hitman: Blood Money). I love watching movies (looking forward to watchin National Treasure 2 and Hitman), and I love having lots of friends (currently having around 150 including online friends).

So... I think I've written enough for today... So I'm gonna stop here... I may write another one when I get home... Peace out dudes! ~ Eric E.