Last week, my org, the UP Ibalon, had its annual Padunungan. This is a high school competition wherein different schools battle each other out in a variety of events - from poster making to t-shirt printing to essay writing to cultural competition to rawit-dawit to impromptu speaking to the quiz bee. I don't know if I left anything out.

Just like all other Padunungans, it was something that you have to do to get the real deal. You'll feel all the tiredness like all the energy was taken out of you but you feel good that you knew you were able to successfully complete a three-day event.

I was able to meet new members and bond with the older ones. It was also fun spending time with some UP Ibalon alumni. I took tons of pictures and they just might be available one of these days in my photoblog.

Ever since I became a member of this org, I have wanted to own the UP Ibalon keychain which only can be seen in the flesh during the Padunungan. And I am so happy that I now have one after I was one of the judges during the Impromtu Speaking competition.

Congrats Ibaloneys!

And as of hospitals, my friend has just become a perennial suki of hospitals. She suffers from nervousness and ulcer and she throws up and she just doesn't feel at ease when she is at home. I sometimes pity her for she decided not to work after 6 months of working at Mercury Drug here in Legazpi. Now, she's become a plain house"wife" and almost does nothing whole day that when the night comes, she just couldn't fall peacefully asleep.

I have been accompanying her to various hospitals to take on various tests to check out whatever's working in her. And I have also been with her to some faith healers (though I honestly just am a skeptic somehow when it comes to these). I dunno what to do with her now. I'm just happy now that she's staying with her mom. At least I know her worries are somewhat lessened. (Now maybe this is the real why I still stay at home despite my really early curfews.)

Hope you get well soon friendship.

And as of the liquor ban, this one has gotta be a pretty scary (and funny experience). The day of the election, Raziel and I went to this pretty popular bar. The guy outside told us that it was okay as long as we have already voted. It was already past 7 in the evening when we went there. At first the bar had only a handful of customers. But as the night went on, it suddenly seemed filled with alcohol-craving individuals.

So there we were drinking. Raziel was having her bottles of San Mig Light while I had a glass of iced tea, some Kamikaze, a Margarita, and a Blowjob (spelled on the receipt as Blue Job). Then two policemen came. They talked to the manager and it was settled that whatever's on the table would just be finished and there would be no more orders. Fine. They left and we finished whatever was on the table.

Just when we were about to go, a pack of policemen came with their guns and everything. With them was this chief and a Comelec official. Whoever they were, I didn't know. My heart was already beating and I mean beating. Who would ever have thought that I would experience being told "You have the right to remain silent blah blah blah." I was calling a friend to at least tell her where I was (in case we did go to prison or something) but she ain't answering.

Some guy talked to the police saying they were high school kids and stuff. We asked if we could go to the CR. The Comelec guy said it was okay and so we went. And we never did go back. We found safety somewhere within the walls of the bar and we had some people who helped us. Now I see just how helpful people could be. Thanks to them or else I would have been signing my name right there.

We stayed there for around an hour I guess. And when all were gone, everybody was gone except for the few employees of the bar. We took off and were speeding home. Goodluck di ba?

This is one experience I'll never forget and one experience I may not do again. Well, not until the next liquor ban maybe. Lesson learned.