For the love of Books!

I am Manila International Bookfair's frequent visitor.

For two reasons -- I love to be surrounded with books, and second -- it's the time of the year when books are sold for great great discounts!

I first learned about MIBF back in two thousand three. My friends and I attended it at the SM Megatrade Hall where I bought my very first leather-bound NIV Bible, and some books by Max Lucado.

I returned in two thousand seven with a group of faculty members from the academy, that time it was at the World Trade Center where I scoured books about Sciences for our Library... I remember we were all treated for a hearty lunch at KFC courtesy of a book company.

Then again in two thousand eight, and nine, and ten at the SMX Convention Center. I missed last year's MIBF because I was preggers.This year, since we have no classes for two days because of the ingathering and no classes will be disrupted, all faculty members is allowed to go..So at seven-thirty am, a busload of teachers and students <members of the Booklovers club> left for SMX Convention Center. We came to the place about thirty to forty-five minutes earlier than its opening time which is still at ten am... so we took chances for some picture taking...

here's Ma'am Bosito who's as goofy as....

ME!

one click...

isa pa...

isa pa ulit...

isa pa ulit

paulit ulit?!

By ten am, the hall opened, and we each had gone our own ways...Due to a very limited budget <I'm buying for my office' collection>, I had to be very wise in choosing -- reference book materials published abroad costs thousands of peso pesoses! grr. So, I hopped from one booth to another, choose for the ones I like, and then reserve! reserve! reserve!

By noontime, I got into the FULLYBOOKED booth, and found practically most of the things I wanted, which made me realize that this bookstore is better than NBS -- collections wise.. hehe... And then this---

this costs 5K!

this costs five thousand plus, minus twenty percent off, which makes it four thousand plus na lang... I flipped over some pages, read some reviews, browsed some topics, put it back on the shelf, got it back again -- hay, I was in a dilemma. This book would mean everything to the practice of my profession, but then again, if I buy this as a reference material for my office, this would be the only thing I'd be able to buy! I told you I'm on a limited budget. I thought of checking with the University Library if they have a copy of this...but! I don't want to borrow, I want this to become a personal companion...

Just as I was deciding, the husband texted and he said he's coming over so we could have lunch together... I talked to one of the salesladies, and told her to reserve the book for me. Maybe, after lunch I could make up my mind....

The husband came, and we looked for a place to dine, and chose -- Chef de Angelo which offers an Eat All You Can Buffet for only One Hundred and Seventy-Five Pesos! We checked for the menus -- there's two types of pasta, mushrum soup, garden salad, rice, chicken salpicao, and mixed veggies...we thought it's sulit, so we both go for that Eat All You Can!!!

<for the record, Chef de Angelo was the place -- of --- 'the day he met my mother'!> so that's another significant place for us.

Even if I always end up giving mini lectures on dining and eating-out etiquette, I don't mind spending a lifetime dating him.

Obviously delighted! I like Italian dishes!

No sharing na, kung no sharing!

After lunch, we headed to the department -- SM Baby Co to be exact to buy things for our little boy <whom we sorely miss>...At first I thought of buying only a pair of Sabbath clothes for his dedication... but we ended up buying fifteen items!!! I thought my frugal husband would complain... but he was even the one who told me to buy this, and that...

By three pm, I was back at SMX, my husband who also has a forgotten love-affair with books wanted to come in, but he had to be in school for their three pm Week of Prayer session.

I went back to FullyBooked booth... and, I knew it! I will buy the Counseling book, and use my personal money to buy for some other books that I like. Never mind if I go over the budget, I figured out I can have my personal money reimbursed, and justify why I need that book so badly. I bought two other books from Fullybooked which cost seven hundred plus, and four hundred plus respectively.  Then I went to CSM booth <Christian Strengthening Ministry> which is being managed by Baptists. The sell all their books for only a hundred pesos <as in everything 1OO! parang bargain lang>-- including books by foreign authors Smalley, Chapman, La Haye, Sala, and others.. plus other local authors such as Ed Lapiz, and my UP Prof -- Dr Grace Koo. I bought Dr Koo's book entitled "Raising Wise Dads, Moms, and Kids" which now occupies our bedside table.

I spent Five Thousand Eight Hundred Forty -- that's for the school's books, and two hundred ten pesos -- for children's books. All that, for the love of books! And there are some more books which I still hope to buy soon, or sometime... like this one --

this costs around four hundred fifty five

or you <readers!> could probably give that one for me as an early Christmas gift! <wink, wink>

at the end of the day, nothing can be more delightful than coming home and seeing this bundle of cuteness

who is obviously more delighted for the mere fact that mommy splurged for him!!!

By the way, the Manila International Bookfair runs until tomorrow... i have more free tickets, pm me if you like. I don't have pictures inside the hall because I was busy -- reading! hehe

BABY'S DAY OUT

I had to join an ocular tour for our field trip. At first, I was hesitant to come with the group because I am still not comfortable being away from my johann for the whole day.  I was happy my co-adviser understood my dilemma so she arranged for johann, and our student helper to come with me. Yey! Actually, my husband could also come with us, but he was full schedule on Tuesday so he just joined us on our last itinerary.

So packed with 4 six ounces of milk (he could drink straight from me in case that would not be enough), 4 diapers, 1 hood, 1 shirt and shorts (for changing in case he gets sweaty), wipes, alcohol, and teether, plus stroller (which we did not get to use, actually), and my babywearing gears -- we rode the van to Manila!

First stop was the MIND MUSEUM in BGC -- that's short for Bonifacio Global City. The Mind Museum is the new educational field trip facility which opened only last March 2012.  I saw it featured in Kris' last April.  I must say it is the biggest, and most hi-tech science museums I've ever visited here in the Philippines... way way better than Life Museum, and NSDC.  It's quite spacious, too.  It is subdivided into five galleries -- Atom, Life, Earth, Universe, Technology. It's not a guided tour (I'm not sure if it's a good thing, or a bad thing) which means you are free to move around, read, observe, play, watch, and do whatever you want to do with more than 250 plus exhibits in three hours.  It's very interactive -- it's like getting into timezone arcade, except that it's educational and scientific.
 

baby wearing my little johann at the mind museum's lobby

with SG co adviser ma'am Nera and cute monrei :)

the ocular tour group from L-R: Matt, tedd, april, ciara, me and johann, kim, bianca, ma'am nera and monrei

my little bodyguard :)

mind museum's youngest and cutest visitor

Listening to robot aedi (that's idea read backwards) for her introduction of mind museum

The Donsol and Buntanding exhibit at the earth gallery

going up the technology gallery

The Kaleidoscope exhibit: amazing color,eh?

very observant naman ang baby ko....  The galleon trade exhibit in the technology gallery

Johann trying out the barong tagalog...

the dinosaur exhibit

that's johann's ates and kuyas

ooops! he pooped... hehe

Fascinated with the Newton's Balls at the Atom Gallery

Inside the light tunnel

Mind Museum's floor plan

Caught in the breastfeeding act! Mommy and baby both tired.

Johann was sleepy... nine to eleven am was his regular morning nap, i mean sleep... but during that time, he was awake...or he tried to be awake. He was just so fascinated with anything colorful, moving, and shadowy.

(stay tuned for baby's day out part two) meanwhile, I have to go. hehe.

Missing UP

While on search for a relevant issue to share to my PST class, I found these --

-http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/205957/why-students-need-to-learn-about-the-arts and http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/97499/you-can%E2%80%99t-improve-what-you-can%E2%80%99t-measure

These articles are significant not only because I find them worth sharing to my students, but also because the author happens to be my professor in UP -- the only one I've had during my meaningful stint as a student in the country's one of the best, if not the best universities.

Yep, I took all my twelve units under her class (6 per semester), and if you're from UP College of Education, you would know that Dr Koo is toxic -- requirements wise....  four reaction papers (5 pages the least), 1 research paper, 1 oral and written report, 1 narrative are not easy tasks to juggle with -- that's more than fifty pages all in all! and since I was taking two classes under her -- that's just twice as hard! Whenever my classmates learn that i'm taking two classes with her, they would tell me -- "what?!", I will just respond with a smile...and tell them... yeah..

But it was fun. Really. Modesty aside, I think I aced all my classes... and I shall give due credits to her... clearly, the educational psychology expert has really stretched out the motivational fibers in me...Her classes were a mental feasts--in a light, smooth sailing way...it was like conversing and sharing with each other about technical terms on educational psychology, and before I knew it...classes were over...when I do a mental rundown on what transpired... I would realize there's so much I had learned..... Basically, I have learned to like reading journals, and critiquing, and analyzing researches... I was always on the lookout for free downloadable entries or articles from sage, eric, and ebsco.. I would download all of them like panic-buying before the duration expires, and thinking  that one or most of them might land on my future "RRL". The habit of reading research articles, and searching for what could be its "research gap" may sound geeky to some, but I enjoyed it like eating ice cream.  The way my professor handled all our classes totally invalidate all the scary, crazy stuffs I heard about UP before.  She was very professional, too! In the beginning of the semester, she gives you an idea of what to expect for the coming days -- the lessons, the dates when requirements are due, the "no-classes" day within the semester -- and they were followed strictly.  She returns papers right on time, complete with notations, commendations, and recommendations!

That's why, even if studying on my own expense, and on top of my work load was a bit difficult -- schedule and tasks wise, it was fine with me, I was having fun, and I know it was worth my every penny.

And so there are times when I tend to miss Thursdays -- when I will have to ride a bus going to Magallanes, have a quick grab of something to eat before riding the MRT going to Quezon Ave, ride a jeepney to UP, or when I'm already late, take a taxi which would cost me around seventy to 100 Php. Room 205, Benitez Hall -- that's where I'd be from two thirty pm to eight thirty pm...while I enjoy the mental feast, I was also hoping every time that the class would  end rather early.... by eight or eight thirty, I'd be hurrying down the stairs, ride the jeepney to Philcoa, ride a bus to Kamuning, and if i'm lucky I will be able to catch the nine pm bus just about to leave to balibago... but some nights, I'd be so unlucky, I will have to wait till the ten pm bus gathers enough passengers before it leaves. That means, I'd be in AUP by twelve midnight.

When I recall about it now, I cannot imagine how I endured, and survived everything.

Unfortunately <but not bitterly>... my pursuit for post graduate studies had to be postponed indefinitely...I am still hoping I will finish what I had started, I don't know when... but some dreams have to be put to the side lines to focus on more important things... things I cannot afford to give up...things I will not dare miss!