The Philippines Boracay adventure

Here is a little run down of the 2008 Philippines trip for Pamcakes and Grandma Shirley.



1. They took a flight from LA to a short stop over in Guam.
Nothing special, just a "technical stop" assuming to fill up on gas. They didn't even deplane.

2. The same plane flew from Guam to Manila. We picked them up at 6:45am. They did not realize that they were on the same plane as Manny Pacquio. He is a famous boxer all over the world. They are even calling him a "National Hero" in this country. People here know him even better than the president (of the Philippines).

3. We took a short shuttle to the domestic airport.

4. Another short flight using Cebu Pacific (I will be complaining about this airline later in the blog) to my home province Kalibo, Aklan located on the island of Panay.

5. Then we took a 1.5 hour van ride to the end of the island, to Caticlan where there are boat ports to head on over to Boracay.

6. We proceded over to Boracay using a banca. A banca is a narrow motorized boat with outriggers. Makes capsizing nearly impossible.

7. Once on the island we took a short "tricycle" ride to my uncle's beach resort named the White House.




We finally were able to relax. Pamcakes and Grandma Shirley took their first untraveling breath laying down on a big fluffy white bed. We stayed on the island of Boracay for 4 nights and 5 days.

Our main form of transportation were the tricycles. Cars are too big to use all over the island. We tried to condense all of our adventures into this short week, including an hour long nap everyday. Everyone got massages on beach while drinking rum slushies.

We ate dinner in a mountain at a restaurant, one night, named Nami. I was worried about Grandma Shirley because it is quite a climb up a bunch of stairs, but she is a trooper. I'm the one who managed to leave with an injury...a splinter.

We also had dinner in a wonderful Indian restaurant and everyday we had a shake at Jonah's.

The day before we left, we took another banca on the water and went snorkeling. There we saw sea snakes (the guides assured me that they were not poisonous, which I know for a fact they are the most poisonous creatures in the world) and I saw a sea horse. Some of our snorkeling spots even had bats flying looking for insects on the beach.
The last night of our trip, my uncle threw a concert for one of his friends, and we all got drunk (except for Grandma of course). This was the perfect ending to our beach paradise.

So, now on our way to Baguio...the place where everything is completely opposite of our beach paradise.

1. We took a tricycle to the port again.

2. Took a banca back to Caticlan

3. Rented a van to Kalibo.

Now we stopped in Kalibo for a bit to visit my other uncle. Our flight was not scheduled until 8:30pm so we had time to relax...or so we thought.

My uncle decided to call up the airline at the airport (he owns the part of the airport in which our particular airline is renting) because he found it impossible that we had such a late flight. Come to find, he was right and our flight was bumped UP to 4:30pm. The time was now 3:30pm...

So we gathered our things, and got on the next tricycle to the airport to get the heck out of dodge. Once we got at the airport, I threw down a bunch of names and yelled at the airline for not at least getting in contact with us to let us know we were leaving 4 hours in advance..of course I didn't get anywhere.

4. Flight using Cebu Pacific (BOOOOO) to Manila. Then we waiting for about an hour to get a taxi to the bus station.

5. Taxi to bus station.

6. Bus to Baguio...after 7 hours.


We arrived in Baguio at 3 am, and were extremely tired. I got the sniffles from all the changes in climate. Ok, more to come in 5 more days.

Bliss Cafe!!

Ok, I made a Sims 2 movie about my favorite restaurant. Enjoy!

Karen Murry, it's time for a change.

Well school is about as good as it gets. Another year of bullshit just finished, and we still have one more year to go. What can we do. Well, I've been getting back in touch with my artistic self including drawings, paintings and cooking. I've discovered totally new ways to cook and completely vegetarian (but not vegan).

For an appetizer, we've got a Egg Salad Letuce wrap (for the Octo-Lavo in you).

The main course is a Peanut Tofu Soup which happens to be totally vegan...unless someone tells me that you can't use peanut butter...

And for desert, yummy Toasted Coconut Balls (also for the Octo-Lavo)
It's real hard to be completely vegan, especially in this country. I have managed to deal with eating only fish, milk and eggs (as my non vegan diet). When I walk into a party, hate to be the person who couldn't eat and got drunk too fast.
Art wise, I have been been using oil pastels a great deal. The vegetarian restaurant, Bliss Cafe her in Baguio that I go to is willing to put up a few of my pieces. So now it will be displayed there for a while. Joaquin made me a little portfolio which I shall be editing frequently.
The food is so excellent at Bliss, that we go there at least once a week. It has really helped me out a lot during my conversion to vegetarianism.

Oh Yeah,

I just realized what day I am posting this, hehe.

UB Fire and something to write about.

That's right. In every student's career as a ...student, we all have the same thought that goes through our minds: "What will we do if there is a major calamity?" Then you say, "this will never happen to us." Well, our worst nightmare came true...our school caught on fire. So it is my duty to give all the information that I may have to tell the public.

Joaquin and I woke up on Saturday morning to a beautiful day in Baguio City. The roosters were crowing as usual by our bedside. Life resumed as if it was a normal day. Joaquin was rushing around the room because he had to be at the school for a very important meeting. Today was "tuition increase day" and he had to become the voice of the students. The meeting was actually open to all, but I was feeling under the weather yet again. Quite frankly, I really did not want to go because I knew that the school did not really give two shits if we had a thing or two to say about the increase. The usual scenario would consist of me sitting in the crowd, pouty faced, saying my two cents, and then feeling degraded and unheard by the administration of the whole school. What was the point in stressing myself? Even Joaquin agreed with me, but as a "school leader" it was mandatory for him to attend. Lets just say this is Karma.

Joaquin left for the school and I started cooking. I was in the mood to make hummus. The process of softening up the chickpeas took forever to I surfed the internet and called my parents a few million times. But on the millionth time, they would get a disturbing phone call.

I received a text message close to noon from joaquin. I was sure it was him telling me to meet him at SM for a day at the supermarket because we are in dire need of coffee. Unfortunately it read "UB is on fire". My initial reaction was "yeah, im sure the students are running around freaking out about the tuition increase." Then I stared at my phone for a bit and pondered for a minute. Why would Joaquin text me something like that? He doesnt just make random metaphorical statements through texting. He can't stand texting for fear of improper communication.

I decided to call him to get the story straight, but the lines were down. For a split second I thought the worst and I began to freak out. But wok knows me very well, and he was the one who called me. "the B building is on fire, people are running around. Look outside, you might be able to see it." I just wanted him to come home so I told him to just come home as soon as he can. And no, you can not see the school from my house.

While I waited for him, I went downstairs to visit my Persian friends to tell them the grave news. The B building was mainly the dentistry building, and from what Joaquin was saying, it did not look too good. This quickly became horror day in Baguioland.

What do you do when you find out that your school is on fire? So many things crossed our minds.

• Was anyone hurt?
• Do we have class on monday?
• Do we have class at all?!!!
• Should we visit the site?
• Where do we go now that we don't have two buildings?
• is it arson?

You can't help but think, gee if only we had a few fire drills, or if UB didn't cut corners on construction. How does a fire that starts from one building travel through three buildings and to the roof into a blazing inferno in a span of 10 min?

I just know, my #1 concern was Joaquin. And he came home immediately. Im just happy that we are all safe.

Now here is something interesting. That morning, at about 10AM, I get a text saying "Ma'am so and so says we need to be in school today for class. Sorry that we told you that you did not have class." And I just said to myself "screw them. you can't just tell people that they have class and now they are 2 hours late" Then an hour later there is a fire that people will be talking about for years. It's Karma.

here is a great post on the whole scenerio from someone who can account it better at the Baguio Insider

What do you do when the internet goes down?

Joaquin was freaking out again, because the internet went down. I actually found out today that it was, for once, not the fault of the internet company. Joaquin has been "futzing" around with his new Operating System, and probably screwed up some connection some where...but anyway after all his kicking and screaming I finally fixed it. So I did something that I thought I would never do in my entire life...I organized my pictures on my computer....yes I was as equally shocked as you currently are now.
So since I have not been typing much with hospital duty and stupid group projects, I thought I would share a few things that I found in my Picture folders. Some of these things might be a bit shocking, so brace yourself.

Here is a bat video from when we visited Boracay.




This is what happens when you mix Manila heat with Redhorse... (this is not me, it's my cousin)
Teenage love gone weird...





Who the hell was taking this pic?






To be continued tomorrow, my internet is waaaaay too slow.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!

Hello 2008. It's me, Karen. How will you treat me this year? What New Year's resolution shall I make? Well, I will make my usual "Im going to lose weight down to 120lbs". Last year that did not sound so realistic, but this year I think I can do it. In the past 2 months I already lost 10lbs. Eating during the holidays are not exactly helping me much, but I am only human.

For Christmas we went to Sagada again. We love it there. We went with a bunch of our Persian friends and my sister, Kate. We had so much fun, and did things that I can honestly say I have never done before. We went caving and trekking. Even though I was scared out of my mind, I still managed to keep my cool. There were several times where I could not keep my composure as a lady. I fell knee deep in mud, and almost lost my shoes while I swore up and down not only in English but Tagalog as well ( you always learn the bad words first). I tried to ignore the fact that there were visible snails in the mud and where there are snails, there are parasites.

I used to think to myself when I was younger that I was not afraid of heights. Then when we came to the Philippines, I realized that I am nautiously afraid of heights. There was a point as I was walking across the rice terraces, I became dizzy. I kept picturing myself sprawled out on top of a bed of cabbage, piercing my sides. Would I sink into the mud? Would the frogs and snakes get me? As I walked a bit faster, trying to maintain my balance, the cabbages became a blur and I started to lose focus. And once you lose focus, there is no "stop one second I need to rest". It was more like "Oh shit, keep going, there is no way back and if I fall that's it for me..." And I didn't exactly like the idea of my death being amongst the cabbage.

Or even when we were in the caves. 1. if i fell, its a VERY long way down 2. It would be so much trouble for everyone to find my limp body and haul it up to the road. So all that I could really do is watch my slippery steps, and ignore the dizziness. I do have to say, for someone who is afraid of heights, I am still up for the challenge.

When I wasn't crying in my head, I enjoyed every minute of it. I had everyone all around me who understood my situation and did not make me feel like the big baby that I really am. I was assured that snakes did not live in the caves and there was nothing to fear in the dark. Supposedly, snakes can not survive in Sagada because of the cold. I wonder if they placed that in the brochures...

I never really believed in ghosts until I moved here. As a child, I am constantly trying to tell myself that there is no such thing. That if I pray to God, then they will not exist and leave me alone. Well let me tell you, they do exist. And all we can do is pray to God...for their souls. But I am not afraid of them. Even if you can not see them 100% of the time, they are there. They might pay you a visit when you are most volnurable. The other night, my sister and I were staying at my cousins house in manila. I've had a few minor encounters so I am thinking Sagada might have opened up my third eye a bit. During our stay there, we shared one room. I was sleeping on the right twin bed and she was sleeping on the left of me. We fell asleep at about 3am because both of us were packing. At about 4 am, I was absolutely startled and awoken. I saw that my sister was tickling my elbow. I said "why are you doing that? you scared me and woke me up." She just shrugged her shoulders. At the time, I had to use the restroom so I went downstairs to relieve myself. By the time I came back up, my sister was fast asleep. So I crawled into bed and drifted away to la la land.

The next morning, I asked her why she would do that? She's 21, and tickling my elbow is something a child would do. She replied "I never did that". Then my cousin began to explain that the house was haunted and that a child ghost lived on the stairs. He just didn't tell us because he thought we would freak out. The child ghost already chased away 3 previous tenants. But since an altar of the Baby Jesus was placed at the stairs, he hasn't appeared.

Like I mentioned earlier, I think Sagada has opened my third eye more. And some people say that if you have one experience, you will forever have many more. Here in baguio, we have a hotel named the Diplomat Hotel. People will go there just for fun...ghost hunting. They think nothing of it. But out of all the people I know who went there, they all continously see ghosts everyday. My friend Carol went there, and now she sees them everywhere. She says that she doesnt like coming to our house because she saw a ghost in the building downstairs, and also at our neighbors house. I believe her too, because I myself have had my own creepy experiences in this house.

Christmas and Hospitals

We are about 2 weeks away from Christmas and my birthday. Im not all that excited about my birthday because I'm not exactly getting any younger, but I am somewhat excited about Christmas. Kate will be here with us for a while and I am real happy about that. I almost had hospital duty on my birthday, but luckily the Clinical Instructors are having their Christmas party that day. So I actually lucked out. I guess there is a benefit for having your birthday during the holidays. So while I was supposed to be studying for my medical surgical exam tomorrow, I made another movie.
Anyone who knows my family will find this funny...but if you don't, then I hope that you enjoy the movie anyway lol


I believe while I was at my most recent hospital duty, I saved a child from going into convulsions because I was able to catch her fever before it reached a dangerous level. The staff nurses didn't believe me the first time that she had a fever. They claimed that she wasn't even hot. So I went ahead to prove to them that I wasn't an incompetent student nurse. That time, the child's temperature was 39.8C. Im not sure on the conversions, but lets just say that a person may go into convulsions once it reaches 40.
It was a scary moment for me. Not because she could of gotten brain damage. I am usually pretty good at making sure my patients get the care that they need. I was more afraid that I was just about the only person who cared about her. She wasn't even my patient, and I just "felt" like taking her vitals. My clinical instructor was even saying "oh, its the end of our shift, so lets go". I just said "you can go ahead without me. I need to make sure my patient is ok." Then he replies "I thought that you didn't have a patient today." No, I did not have a patient that day, but that doesn't mean that I should not care for the patients in the ward. I was assigned to supervise my group mates, so I did not have a patient assigned to me. I just waved him away, risking the "letter of explanation" for not listening to him.
It is certainly a sad day when a student nurse's teacher tries to make her feel bad for trying to save a life.

A Day with Yavon

It only took me 3 days to put this video up but I finally did it!!!!!!!! Enjoy

Sims Update Already

So far, Yavon's house is almost exactly how I remember. I need to get Sims 2 Pets so that I can add Capone. My friend is teaching me more on photoshop, CorelDraw and a 3D program because I would love to give the girls all new styles. We know that the guys dont really care about style so Jesse will be wearing his New Mexico SHirt for a long time. Maybe one day, he will have his Dr. Pepper shirt...

So Christmas give ideas for Karen: anything Sims 2 =)

Once yavon's house is 100% finished, I will be adding Christmas stuff up (or Thanksgiving if I make it in time)

The Sims 2 YAY

Ok so I finally started to play the Sims 2, and it's actually been taking me about a week to get started because I keep trying to figure out ways to make it better. For example, making new wall colors, creating my own objects, and even creating my own outfits. It's like what Kate is doing at her school (even though she is in way more in depth) except the dummy version.
So I created a bunch of familiar sims...






Look familiar? This is Jesse. When I can figure out how to make a Dr. Pepper Shirt, i will.






Joaquin in my favorite blue shirt


Yavon: being her friendly self


Kate: in the hot tub, showing off her hot bod.











Chris: Kate's bf (even though I haven't him yet. I think this is what he would look like)

And of Course MEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Playing on the computer. I'm thinking about making a new blog with their story. I know it sounds pretty cheesey, but that is what the game is made for. So far they all live in seperate houses. Kate lives with me, Joaquin lives with Jesse, Yavon has her own house (i'm going to build her current townhouse), and Chris lives alone (of course, i haven't even met the guy yet lol). Eventually, Yavon and Jesse will move in together...because that is how the story goes.

They all have neat careers: So far, Im a vet and kate is Tomb Raider lol. Lets see how long I can play this game and build up on their lives. This game creates story boards, so I will be linking those much later...when I start playing.

I have a good excuse!!!!

I know that I have used this one before, but this time I mean it. I was real busy for the past few weeks. I even stopped playing WoW, and canceled my account. Maybe I feel it's time for me to grow up. Or even that the game has become boring. Some people just take the game way too seriously, and I don't have that kind of time or energy.

So now, it is our semester break. I feel a bit cheated because it is the first break that I am not able to go home. My sister will be coming this Christmas so I am exited about that.
We were spending the last few weeks working on "books". We have case presentations at school, and unfortunately they are group projects. We have to present our hospital, community and school nursing outputs to a panelist of 3 clinical instructors (C.I.s). Mainly, these case presentations are used to exhibit the power that the C.I.s have over the students. I know that I am stronger and that I don't take to heart the opinions of these teachers. Most of them are just hungry for attention and have nothing better to do then wait for their confirmation letter to be allowed into the US. But things that they say can be real hurtful, and humiliating just for an attempt to make their lives seem better. For example, in one of our reports we said that a patient was of medium build. It is quite obvious what that means but we were asked to elaborate. Then one of the panelists compares myself, and claims that there is no way I am of medium build. Well, according to all the clothes that I buy in the states, i am still medium build. Maybe in the Philippines I might be large. But it doesn't matter because my size should not be compared to anything. I chose to ignore this, because my size is a common ridicule in this country. But, then I heard that another student was subject to this ridicule during another panel, and he is half my size. So tell me, when does a teacher have a right to subject students to humiliation?

Well, that was over, and I have determined that I am going to try my hardest not to be in the same group as last semester. I discovered, that only 4 people (including myself) did all the work for these books for an entire semester. And I know that I did most of the work, and frankly I am quite used to it. But, the least my group mates could of done was reviewed the cases or used common sense once we were faced with the panelists. Basically, I was the only person who could defend our cases. And it makes me wonder what type of nurses are we trying to send abroad?
The more and more I go through these semesters and strange hard ships, I am more convinced of becoming a veterinarian. During the first semester, I some what doubted myself. I thought that maybe I would just be a nurse forever. Never mind continuing my education. However, I am questioning my knowledge and education here, and I honestly don't think I am fit to be a nurse. Joaquin, on the other hand, will probably be the best nurse that I will ever meet. Nursing is like second knowledge. He studies Med Surg and pharmacology, while I am starting to study on Animal Virology. I am trying to study whatever I can on Veterinarian medicine, but it is not easy considering that the references are scarce.

So, we finally took a mini vacation with Joaquin's nursing student body. We went to Sagada, and I know that Joaquin already made a long blog on coffee. But it's not just the coffee that we indulged ourselves with. We climbed a GIANT mountain. And I thought I was going to die climbing back up. I really questioned my abilities out there. Since I have met Wok, we have been hiking more and more, and climbing this mountain should not have been such an extraneous task. But climbing back up the mountain, I almost fainted several times. So I had to review my pathophysiology to figure out why I could barely make it. My conclusion: Dehydration. I drank the night before, barely had any water, and was constipated for 3 days = dehydration. Then going to an even HIGHER elevation makes less oxygen, which will make you even more dehydrated. In case anyone is wondering, oxygen runs in the blood and makes your brain work and heart beat. Lack of oxygen decreases the level of consciousness hence fainting. The best way to replenish oxygen is by drinking lots of water. If you are creating more work for your body or you are climbing higher elevations, then you need to drink extra amounts of water more than the required amount (at least 3 liters). In conclusion, I looked like an idiot.

But at the bottom of the mountain was a beautiful waterfall, and it was well worth the whole passing out thing.

But we had lots of fun and ate good food. Mostly home cooked because it is definitely cheaper than eating out. Whenever Wok and I were able to escape, we still ate at our favorite place: Yoghurt House.
It is about the only place in the Philippines that makes their own yogurt and serves gormet food. And its usually with a budget of 100 pesos per person.

Once we arrived back home, I finished doing my Christmas cards and should be sending them out within the next few days. I had to give myself ample time because last year, some people received their cards in January. So don't hate me for receiving your card early, I cant do anything about our postal system.

I have also been working on my book about pet advice. At first I was going general with it, and was going to tackle all pets. But Wok thinks I should just write about dogs first, because I know more about that then...fish or birds.

Ok so last, here is a new video from my sister. Enjoy!

Do you want A. Real me B. Show of me C. None of the above?

I thank God everyday that I have Joaquin. He accepts me for who I am and I don't have to change. Its funny how men can make a girl change. Not so much change, but make them blinded to their surroundings. Or make them disagreeable to their real friends. Because men come and go but your friends and family should be there forever. And if a man comes to between a friendship, then who is to say that friendship was real? But Joaquin will never do that. When we first met, I showed him the real me, not the show off me. Because if he could not accept that, then the relationship would not even be worth starting. Ok, maybe a little "show off me". Even though, I just let him beat me in pool...
For those who do not know, Joaquin and I decided not to attend our capping ceremony. And for those of you who are curious as to what that is...nevermind. Both of our families are not able to attend, well my family in manila are willing. But I would rather just my mother could go, and it seems like an awful lot of trouble. I appreciate that they want to come, and I told them that they can just visit if they like. But I will see...
I think I am just tired, and I am trying so hard not to do the whole "I want to go home already" thing. Sometimes I feel so alone out here, and I have Joaquin but its hard when only one person truely understands you. Always have to watch what you say...and that is just not me.

On a lighter note...here is my sister KATE!!!!!!!!!

I AM CHAMPION!!!!!!!

That's right, I finally accomplished something in the close to three years that we have been here. Me and my teamates (2 other girls) just won the Billiard Championship. Who would of thought we would win considering we were going against Engineering students and ICT students. I wonm 6 out of 8 games, and I am quite proud of that. So now I get a cool jacket and an "athlete's scholarship". Woot, go me. Wish I took pics =(

Nurses and Cocktails

Well it's been a while since my last blog, and I will use the usual excuse that I am sooooooooooo busy....playing WoW. Today was another one of our many holidays which are usually not know until the week before...Baguio Day. Last week was Hero's Day, the week before that was Nino Aquino day, and the week before that was the Foundation Day of our school. Convenient for everyone that these fall once a week.
We are finally all finished with our Community and School nursing for the REST of our lives. Last night I had to celebrate so we had our closest friend come by for a few drinks. It was quite fun.

Here is me in my FULL on community get up...Vest worn a total of 7 times (no it did not escape the early 90s), and the blouse worn 7 times. The pants and black shoes are about the only things that I have that I wore for 3 semesters. Usually with a Tshirt. Makes me feel great that I wasted 2k pesos on the blouse and shirt, and now I will NEVER wear again...

And here is the uniform that you ALL have been waiting for. Our first hospital duty was a few weeks ago. My 3rd real patient EVER passed on me. Not for things that I could not do, but for other reasons that I would rather not say. For the first few days I was a bit traumatized. I had nightmares, but eventually I got over it. It's life, and as a future nurse, I should be getting used to this sort of thing...but I think nurses never get used to it.
And here is a video on what we do with our spare time....

Blog Time

I finally made it into something....the Nursing Billiards Team. Ah my favorite sport. We start our opening on Aug 7, then compete in intramurals. Its good to finally get my mind off of my nursing crap.
I finally got one of my hospital uniforms yesterday, and I look like a giant marshmallow puff with red and gray stripes. I hate it. Good thing my hospital doesnt start until Aug 6, because it gives me time to have it taken in.
In case anyone is wondering, I have 3 different sets of uniforms. 1. Community uniform: UB Blouse, Gray Vest (nope it did not escape the 90s), Gray slacks, WHITE socks, and black shoes. 2. Skills Lab: UB Tshirt, Grey Slacks, WHITE socks, and black shoes. 3. Hospital uniform: A GIANT TENT DRESS, WHITE STOCKINGS, and white shoes. Oh and OR Scrubs, which i really regret not getting from my dad. Each uniform I basically need 3 sets, because we get dirty very fast.
The clinical instructors seem to be a touch better than the ones from last year. But a lot of them need work. The school still wastes a lot of time, and money.
Ive got 2 hated subjects this sem. 1. Intro to research: My teacher has no idea how to research, and thinks a hypothesis is not an educated guess or answer. She says that if we already answered the question, then you can not do research. HELLO!!!!! A research paper is to prove that your answer is correct. And yes, I beleive amongst other people that she really doesnt like me. Maybe even Joaquin. She doesnt like any of our suggestions. Maybe she just doesn't like Americans... 2. Community Health Nursing CLass: The teacher has shown up to class 4 times, correction 5 times. So far we had 15 classes. And the whole thing is Healthcare 2 all over again. I dont know why we are taking the class AGAIN. It was painful the first time around, and still nothing new.
Well, thats about it...until next time.

Why I hate politics, and yet I am always in it.

I tried to ease my mind with all that happened in the past couple of weeks, and I ran in the same election as Joaquin (which he failed to mention). Except I lost. Of course he would win. Who wouldn't want to vote for the only white guy who ever ran for office in our school? Oh and "my friends voted for him because he is their crush". I feel so great that we came all the way to the Philippines so that other women can have crushes on him...
I guess its nice to know that he is definitely fitting well within his environment. And what about me? Same ol, same ol...just like everyone else.
For me, they put my mother's maiden last name down as my last name on the ballots, so most of my friends thought that I dropped out of the election. The people who really knew me, just looked for my first name. I believe that it was quite an unfair election, because the comelec was told in the very beginning of the major mistake, and they failed to properly correct it.
At least, I still must of been very popular because I only lost by 15 votes. My position was only auditor, and I guess it would be too much work for me anyway. I just wanted to win so bad because I don't remember winning anything. And I keep telling my parents that I am doing this and running for that, but I always lose. I feel like I am just disappointing them more and more. Its kinda to the point that I don't even tell them that I am doing anything. I swore to myself that I am never running for anything again. It's way too much work to lose.
Except....I am trying out for the Billiards team for our school. Not too many women play pool here, so I am sure I will at least make it on a TEAM...maybe.

Some things just shouldnt happen

A lot of things have happened since we came home. So far, none has been good, so I did not feel the need to relate in my blog. I really need a semester off....I am so tired, and feel used up. Stress is coming at me in large portions, and I do not understand how people here can function with their frame of mind.
I really hate (yes absolutely hate) the way that people here see death. They see it so casually. The other day, in class, a girl stood up in class and used her father's death as an example in developmental stages. Her father died last week. She told us so casually and with no emotion what so ever, that it shocked me. I felt that if I showed her any sign of sympathy, I would be laughed at because they are not afraid of laughing at people.

I remembered almost the same thing happened to me when I had Typhoid Fever. I was absent from school for 2 weeks, and on the borderline death. When I told my classmates that I was in the hospital, and almost died, it was like I just told them that I like to eat cake.

When I was first told, that the only deaths that are excused from school are your mother, father, sister or brother, I just could not believe it. But I can definitely believe it now. I am not sure if it’s the thought that your loved ones are in heaven that overwhelms them so much to cause them not to care. Or that death happens so often here, that people are starting not to care.

If I ever felt so alone before, it is nothing compared to how I feel now. I just want this whole deal to be over with because it seems that I am missing out on a whole lot.

I miss her and I couldn't even hold her one last time...

Hospital Duty

I guess you can say that we had a real taste of nursing over the past weekend. I know it did not last long, and the next time we will have hospital exposure will be in a few months. It was still exciting even for me. I got to work in the OB ward, and I think if I became a future nurse i would like to work there. Or just work with babies. They are so cute and don't complain hehe. But even in the OB ward I got to help the patients with their babies, and teach them how to do things that they might not even know yet.
Even though, of course, I have a bit of "required" useless paperwork to turn in. And I put it like that, because it would seem I am apart of the only group that has to do this. Sometimes I am not that sure what I am doing, because the teachers don't tell us anything. It would seem that the school just hires nurses to teach us, but they have absolutely no teaching skills whatsoever. So every time I walk into one of their classrooms, I am walking in blind and just expecting a quiz.
But in the ward, it is different. We deal with real people and its like I am back at work again. Having to think logically and critically, instead of worrying about spelling. Even though I had the graveyard shift, I still was excited to go to my next shift.
Oh, and those of you who are reading this, pls dont comment on my spelling >.< You know who you are.

I know everyone has been waiting for this blog

WE are back! Actually we came back last week from Boracay. I thought it was a blast. I was contemplating whether or not I should write in my blog about it because Joaquin had written an epic about it. The question is who reads who's blog more? So anyway, first we of course took the bus to Manila and its a long ride (about 6 hours). We spent the night at my Uncle Mike's then we flew to Caticlan the next day. We had a bit of a delay (about an hour) but supposedly that is normal. I do remember as a kid, the delays would be hours long. So this time, it wasn't so bad.

March 28: We stayed in this place in the beginning named Orchids Resort and I actually HIGHLY recommend it. It is extremely affordable, clean, great atmosphere with complimentary FULL breakfast every morning. We were greeted in the Caticlan airport by a representative of the resort. Without him, I do not know how the other tourists can figure out what to do. You gotta take a tricycle to the boat port, pay all these fees (port fees, boat fees, environmental fees, etc), get on a banca, be let off at the port in boracay, take another tricycle and walk along the beach to the resort. And in my experience, this is actually the least hassle. But normally, tourists travel with someone, and they are too busy checking out the scenery that they don't realize how much of a hassle this is. When all is said and done, the hassle is totally worth it.
The Orchids had the friendliest people, and our check in was so simple. The guy who took us to the resort led us right to our room, and i signed a paper saying that I arrived. period. So simple that it was a bit scarey. We were hungry so we got a bite to eat, bought new sunglasses (two for $10), and went back to the room to take a nap. When we woke up, we ate dinner and had a few drinks to start off our vacation. When we came back to the hotel, we were greeted by the owner of the Resort and showed us true Boracay hospitality.

March 29: I find out from my Uncle that he has a place for me to stay. Joaquin and I decided that we loved the Orchids so much that we would transfer the next day instead of right away. This day was a good relaxing beach day. After breakfast, we walked around so that I can of course spend more money. Went to the shopping area and got real hot. So we had to take a few swim breaks. We ate Mexican for lunch, then I got a massage on the beach while Joaquin swam some more . Then we went back to the hotel, and proceded to our daily nap. When we woke up, Joaquin had sunburn. We ate dinner at a wonderful Indian resteraunt, and a few drinks again, then went back to the hotel.
Keep in mind, we are doing a TON of walking. Especially along the beach. Getting from one place to another takes at least 15-20 min walking. So even though we are eating a lot, and sleeping a lot, we still are getting plenty of exercise.

March 30: We transfered to my Tito Leonard's place the White House. We had our own corner room. By the time we got there and checked in, it was already lunch time. Also we went to the airline ticketing office to extend our vacation. Originally we were suppose to leave April 2, but we changed it to April 4 since my uncle graciously gave us the room.
We ate leftover Indian food for lunch (by this time we are becoming more warey about money), and then we met my Uncle at the Manoc-Manoc to watch some good ole fashion cock fighting. I am totally against this, but I was sure that this would be interesting for Joaquin to see. He loved it (I think anyway). We saw roosters kill each other for over 2 hours. Not exactly my cup of tea. I had tears in my eyes at the first fight.

March 31: We decided that today would be a good day to do "island hopping" with some snorkeling. We didn't exactly go from island to island since we were either in the boat or in the water. We did have so much fun. It lasted for about 3 hours. I didn't realize until we were done for the day, and we were eating lunch at Jonah's Fruitshakes that I had the worst sunburn. Here is a pic of our guid hehe
I realized at that moment two thing: #1 Dont buy Beach Hut SPF 36, because the minute you touch water it is NOT waterproof. I never heard of SPF 36 anyway, so I dont know what the hell I was thinking. #2 We will now eat Jonah's Fruitshakes everyday for Breakfast.
Joaquin discovered an Andok's Manoc, his favorite fastfood chicken place. Since I was dying in bed with sunburn unable to roll onto my back, he went and got that for dinner.

April 1: April FOOLS! I have the WORST sunburn and want to die hehe. I think it was pay back for all the april fool jokes. So we pretty much lazed around in the hotel room the whole day, watching animal planet and CSI. Of course, we left the room for breakfast. Had Andok's breakfast, and Jonah's shake for a chaser.
I was interested in going to a cave or something fun for the next day, so we looked around the shopping area for some ideas. I was told to take a tricycle there and walk to the caves.

April 2: We discovered that my uncle has a DUNE BUGGY! So much fun. We thought we should be a bit adventurous. So we took the dune buggy for a spin, and discovered that we were able to take it to the bat caves.
It was so much fun, but so scarey for me. I am in a bit of denial about my fear of heights. But when we got there and realized that we had to ROCK CLIMB down into the cave, which was slippery and wet. And I could fall to my death on top of a bunch of bat crap, I grew very nervous. If it wasn't for our guide, I dont think I would be writing in this blog right now.
Finally at the bottom, in pitch blackness, and only one flashlight we made it. The guide pointed his flashlight at the ceiling of the cave only to discover thousands and thousands of bats. Wet stuff was dripping on my arms, and I had an idea of what it was. I just kept my mouth closed.
He took us to the underwater water hole, and it looked clear and fresh. I wanted to swim in it, and was so ready to because i was sweating profusly from the horrific climb down. Joaquin went closer to touch the water. Suddenly the guide says "Sir, are you afraid of snakes?" We both looked at him, and I thought he would tell us a story or something. Joaquin replies "Um...No" Then the guide flashes his light onto a LONG snake. I gasped, because it was so close and it was so dark. The guide then says "Don't worry sir, its only a water CORAL SNAKE. It wont bite you" I don't care if there is a "chance" that it won't bite me, but from what I know about coral snakes, they are poisonous and deadly. Plus I didn't want to stick around if it bites or not. When he turns off the flashlight, there is nothing but darkness. Who knows how close those snakes were to my ankles. I just wanted out. The guide procedes to show us an even bigger one, and my heart is just pounding in my chest.
Finally, we left, and had to climb up the mountainous rocks. I did climb them much faster then when I went down. I am not sure if it was knowing my footing this time around, or the fear of snakes. My mother would of buckled and cried hehe.
April 3: We decided to rent some snorkels, go around on the Dune buggy, and make it an ultimate beach day. Of course after breakfast and shakes at Jonah's. We received more massages and finally got the sunset picture that we were procastinating to take.

April 4: Boo, we finally went home. The only thing that I could say about this day, is that we turned almost Filipino. There was a huge line to go back to Baguio at the bus station. Several hours long. As I waited in line, Joaquin waited in front of the bus because we know a secret. The buses stop accepting tickets at a certain number of seats because they pick up people along the way. But if we just get on, we can pay for the bus on it as if we were just picked up. It saved us at least 2 more hours in line, and 4 more hours until the next available bus. Only a Filipino could of pulled off a stunt like that. Being American/Filipino, only makes us more pros and more of a threat to everyone else hehe.

So, that's about it on our vacation, we go back to on Tuesday =(

HAPPY EASTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!