I drove over an MMDA officer’s foot on my birthday
I just had to share this… not all traffic enforcers are after your money, and not all grad students are smart. 
I expected nothing outside the ordinary for Jan 28 (since I kept my birthday low-profile) but life is full of surprises. After attending the Philosophy Department’s Forum on A Love Story, instead of going home via C5, I passed in EDSA so that I could drop off Vanessa, who was my resource person in our English class.
I missed the turn going to Ortigas so I went straight until the stoplight at the corner of Meralco Avenue and EDSA. The MMDA officer was walking towards the car. “Fantastic,†I thought, “I’m unfamiliar with this area so I need to ask him if I can turn left.†It was not what I thought it was– he was there to catch me! Apparently there was a sign which said that private vehicles were not allowed in that area, we should have taken the U-turn a few meters back.
Darn! I had to get fined on my birthday. I didn’t want to bribe him so I tried to beg him to let me go since it is my birthday. He examined my driver’s license closely to find out if I’m not lying, and guess what? That made things worse: my license expired that very day! So instead of being fined 500, I’d be fined 900! Then I thought things couldn’t get worse than this, until…
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Heath Ledger is dead
I read the AFP news via Inquirer that Australian actor Heath Ledger is dead.
He was found dead at around 3 in the afternoon at his New York apartment. Although there are no conclusive reports on the cause of death, there is suspicion that it may be drug-related since pills were found by the bed where his corpse laid.
The young Oscar-nominated actor is famous for his role as a gay cowboy in Brokeback Mountain, a role that contrasts from his teen heartthrob character in the 10 Things I Hate About You, where he first gained Hollywood attention. Other memorable roles include playing Mel Gibson’s son in the Patriot. He will be seen in The Dark Knight (mid 2008) playing what might be the scariest Joker ever.
It’s a pity that talents like him have to die tragically at such a young age. This whole event reminds me of the late River Phoenix.
Heath Ledger, 28, left a daughter with former girlfriend Michelle Williams.
read more:
Pond’s Flawless White Finale
What happens to Jack and Carrie?
It’s a Pond’s commercial. The product works. And they live happily ever after.
Video: We are Brothers Forever – The best song on American Idol 7!
A modern day Quixote. Naive but sincere. I love it!
Who will replace Dubya?
I thought that The Amazing Race Asia Season 2 would be the most exciting thing I’d catch on television these days, but I find the US presidential presidential primaries more thrilling. That’s odd because I’m not even an American citizen. What kept me hooked to CNN is the battle for the democratic nomination. Why oh why do Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton have to run at the same year?
The Dark Knight Trailer …starring Adam West!?!
Ever watched the trailer of the upcoming Batman movie, The Dark Knight? Step aside Christian, the original Batman is taking over!
Next is the spoof starring our familiar (POW! and kaBLAM!) Batman. It gets funnier as it reaches the end! 
Quotes from the Filipino Blogosphere 2007
I don’t have time to quote all the quotable quotes surrounding issues of common concern in the pinoy blogging community during 2007, but here are some that I personally find memorable.
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Buhay Pa Tayo
…
(Title of the last entry on Julia’s blog dated January 13 this year. The American peace corps volunteer was killed last April.)
Benj:
…the last time I checked, the Philippine Blog Awards was an event that was supposed to champion Filipino bloggers regardless of creed, affiliation or niche. How it transformed to an exercise to remind bloggers to be steadfast in [our] Christian commitment and help bloggers lead us closer to You [the you being their god] is totally beyond me.
Decent Mother:
You [Sexy Mom] are a disgrace to the Filipino women. We have been trying to change the image of the Filipino women in the internet. Foreigners type “filipina†to search for women to have sex. The same kind of people (pedophiles and perverts) type “sexy mom†and it points to You . You are an embarassment to our country. Stop using SEXY MOM. Filipino mothers are loving caring mothers. Leave the SEX part in your bedroom . Mommy bloggers laugh behind your back because of your pseudonym. Filipino women are too polite to tell you to say that using sexy mom is killing the filipino women. (Posted in Sexy Mom’s blog)
Absolut Geek
The meaning of the word, “geek,†has evolved over time. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, it originates from an old term in the English dialect, “geck,†which refers to a fool. The classic definition would actually fit the word “freak†because geek referred to carnival performers who eat live chickens and bite snake heads!
But geeks are not freaks. I’d like to think that geeks have a sense of style. Unlike nerds who know it all, geeks have specific areas of concentration. With the new meanings of geek, perhaps Wikipedia would provide contemporary definitions of the word:
(1) A person who is interested in technology, especially computing and new media.
(2) A person who relates academic subjects to the real world outside of academic studies; for example, using multivariate calculus to determine how they should correctly optimize the dimensions of a pan to bake a cake.
(3) A person who has chosen concentration rather than conformity; one who pursues skill (especially technical skill) and imagination, not mainstream social acceptance.
(4) A person with a devotion to something in a way that places him or her outside the mainstream. This could be due to the intensity, depth, or subject of their interest.
Christmas Commercials on Philippine TV
Again, something to share with fellow Pinoys who are not in the Philippines.
Here are some Christmas-themed commercials that are currently being shown on local TV. I hope you like them.
This is the Smart TVC that’s tied up with the Department of Tourism’s campaign for “you” to come home to the Philippines:
Continue viewing more Christmas Commercials on Philippine TV >>
Philippine Universities Score Higher at 2007 THES QS
Three out of the top four Philippine universities dropped ranks at the 2007 Times Higher Education Supplement-Quacquarelli Symonds (THES-QS) World University Rankings. Compared to last year’s rankings UP slid from 299 to 398 (-99), La Salle weakened its rank from 392 to 519 (-127), and UST descended from 500 to 535 (-35). Indeed, those statistics can be disappointing.
However, I saw a glimmer of light as I read the VP for Loyola School’s comments on Ateneo’s performance in the 2007 THES-QS. The good news is that all top four universities garnered higher scores this year. Compare the percentage points and rankings in the tables below:
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