A Brief Visit to UP Mindanao

It's already 10:30 (draft written earlier) and I've just started working! Gah! Electricity has been out daw since 3:00 AM kanina; we found out it affected the whole of Mindanao. Then, it went back at around 6:30. I thought everything's going to be okay na. Suddenly, at 8am, wala na namang electricity. Waaah.

Worse, none of the gadgets were fully charged. Both my phone and my laptop were only halfway charged, while the tablet was not charged at all. I really had no means to work, and I hope my boss understands.

Anyway, I was out yesterday afternoon to return to my Alma Mater, UP Mindanao, to get my diploma after ++ years. The reason is that UP is soooo far away! It's 2 hours away from where I live. I can't go to the nearby mall nga anytime I want, UP pa kaya?

The last time I've been there was during Teena and George's graduation back in 2011. So much has changed! I couldn't believe this was the same UP I entered back in 2006.

I don't have a photo of UP circa 2006, but it's really different from what I saw yesterday. For starters, the CHSS (College of Humanities and Social Sciences) building wasn't painted yet. The floor wasn't tiled and had only gray cement. Plus, there was a huge (and not working) fountain smack in the middle of the admin building. We also had several "abortion" roads which were a real challenge to ride on because they were unpaved. There was also no proper mode of transportation save for the habal-habal.

However, the UP I saw yesterday resembled a private school. Of course, I haven't seen the other UP Campuses, but for me, what I saw already resembles a private school. The road leading to the Oblation Park not only was beautifully paved but also had flower beds. Bongga!

My good friend and former churchmate, Yankee, also accompanied me. I had been craving for some face-to-face human interaction for some time now, and while I do have this at home, I craved for interaction with someone my own age. Yankee's a bit younger than me, but she's way more spiritually mature. Yesterday, God spoke through her (and I hope God spoke through me, too), and I just feel so blessed. It was really nice catching up with her. It was also a very blessed meeting because we are both blessed by each other's stories, which, unexpectedly, were very similar pala. And we didn't know about it!

It was a good opportunity to use my Samsung WB150F camera for the first time. Hihi.

My company for the day. Thank you, Yanx!

And yours truly. (Seeing my photos makes me want to visit a salon ASAP!)

Two-fie? :P

Obligatory Oblation shots below. Thanks, Kuya (or Sir) Jonmarx for taking our photos!

Brazo de Mercedes by yours truly

Naku, hindi na kami ga-graduate. Charot!

Some things never change, though.

UP naming mahal

With my diploma, finally!

My hyper friend :P

Flowers in Oblation Park

I went home to this: leftover pizza! For me, if there's one thing more amazing than pizza, it's leftover pizza! Apparently, they ordered a large Shawarma Pizza (from Dexter's Pizza). Good thing they left a few slices for me.

Papa: Isa lang sayo jan. Yung iba kay Yuri.

Okay, good thing they left one slice for me. Yum!

Okay lang, huge slices naman. You could guess what Yuri ate for breakfast the next day.

Dexter's Pizza has not failed me yet!

PS: Having a good camera marks the end of my poor-photo days. However, they do take longer to upload. Still very grateful, though!

Word of the Day:

Isaiah 55: 10-11
As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.