Gokusen 3

My sister and I finished this series last Saturday. It was 11 episodes long, starring Yukie Nakama as Yamaguchi Kumiko, the energetic teacher.

In this series, she is once more assigned to Class 3-D in Akadou Academy. Here she meets the two ring leaders, Kazama Ren (Miura Haruma) and Ogata Yamato (Takaki Yuya). In spite of all the trouble and sadness, Yankumi (as her class lovingly calls her) and the class overcome different obstacles regarding their lives and loves. Also, the class starts to see and believe in each other, forming a friendship each one of them will remember all through their lives.

Yes, it is quite repetitive but the Gokusen series never fails to inspire.

Frankly, I liked this series better than the others.

1 Litre of Tears

It is said in various websites that this particular story is a true tear-jerker. And that holds true. This drama is based on the diary written by Kito Aya as long as she was able to write. So what exactly is the content?

In the drama, Ikeuchi Aya is a 15 year old with many possibilities in life. She is an upcoming highschool student, a basketball player, and a smart girl. However, life is cruel. She is diagnosed with spinocerebellar degeneration disease, a rare disorder wherein one's cerebellum slowly shrinks. Little by little, the patient will not be able to stand, speak, or even write freely. The drama is all about Aya's life from this diagnosis until her death.

This drama is highly recommended. It will be shown on GMA-7 on April 27, 2009 (I think...).

Finished!

I've finally finished Silver on the Tree by Susan Cooper. It's bye bye Bran, I guess. Boohoo. But I was sort of disappointed in our raven boy because he didn't go to where his great father, King Arthur, was going. He stayed on Earth. And Jane. Grrr. Throw that girl away! Yeah, I know she played some big part in the series but she's just... Aah. I don't know. I just don't like her character. Poor John Rowlands. He lost his Blodwen.

I'll surely miss Bran, Cafal, and Will.

Vacation Day 2: Baguio

I awoke with a pain on my lower right jaw. On instinct, I reached up to touch it and found a bump. Ooh. Just like what my sister had weeks ago. I also had an ache in my head which spelled fever. I was sick, that's what.

After some breakfast, I swallowed one Biogesic and Centrum. I felt quite better and changed my clothes. A few minutes later, we started for Baguio.

The journey was pretty short. We took the Naguilian Road which seemed pretty scary to me. It felt like I wanted to throw up, but I didn't. The view was terrific but the curves were horrible. Short and sharp they were. Ugh.

We reached Baguio at about 9 or 10 in the morning. We ate at a nearby eatery and went on our own ways. My family and I went to the skating rink where my sister and cousin tried some roller-skating. It was pretty hard and we were laughing all the time they were skating. It was a nice experience.

Next, we went to the public market and bought some pasalubong, brooms, and vegetables. It started raining by the time we were leaving the market and soon enough, we were soaked when we arrived at the car. My fever was heightened by this incident and I felt more sickly.

When everyone was present, we started to depart from Baguio. We took the Marcos Highway. The road was wide but long. There weren't many vehicles which was great.

We reached Dagupan and some relatives decided to buy bagoong. For some weird reason, I started crying... Boohoo. I felt like a sucker there.

The ride home was pretty looooooooooooooong. It was kinda boring. Gah. But overall, it was nice.

Vacation Day 1: La Union

April 9, 2009

It was almost 6AM when we left Pampanga. The travelling was pretty long since we had to pass several provinces just to get to La Union. It was fun, though. The scenery outside the windows were nice and breath-taking. We passed by some farms which were filled with rice, corn, and tobacco plants. It was really pretty.

It was 12PM when we reached Branz Cottages, where we stayed for the night. My cousins, siblings, and I checked out the beach. The shore was kinda short, at least a meter or two from the sea. The sand was dark and so was the water. It looked pretty discouraging to me so I wasn't that excited on taking a swim. My sister, on the other hand, was purely ecstatic.

After some delicious lunch, I retired to our room and took up Susan Cooper's Silver on the Tree. I finished only one chapter, though, for I was too tired to read. (We had slept only for an hour or two.) I went to sleep after that.

When I woke up, I found out that my uncles had hired a boat and we were to go to the other side of the beach where the sand was white and the water clear. Frankly, I was happy. I quickly changed into my swimming clothes and joined them on the shore where we waited for the boat. Luckily, I was part of the first batch of "pilgrims" to ride the boat.

Upon arriving at the beach, I noticed that it looked like something you would see underwater. The rocks looked as if they were made of bones of corals. They were big and horribly uneven. Small snails and barnacles stuck to the rocks everywhere. It was pretty creepy. The sea here, however, was pretty clear, though, it reallly looked as if it belonged underwater. There were seaweeds everywhere and different kinds they were. Some even looked like the grasses we have here on land. My sister and I immediately explored the rocks. We found some pretty shells but I don't think we brought some home. Ehe.

We took a lot of pictures there. I especially liked the pictures I took of the setting sun. It was really pretty.

We went back to the cottages when the sun was just about to set. We had dinner and soon went to sleep. We'll be going to Baguio the next day.

Graduation was...

One great memory!

I did quite well in my speech (I think). Some people say they were crying while I was speaking (:P)... The singing part was fun too. However, the thing I liked most was the Honoring of Parents. Almost all of us were crying. I started crying when I saw Cassie's mom's eyes. She was very teary-eyed.

Before my turn came to speak, I told myself that I wouldn't cry. But, when the microphone was given to me and I said, "Mommy, Daddy...", the tears just started to flow and I wallowed like a baby. It was kinda embarassing because almost every word I said has a *sniff* in the middle. My nose was running badly and my face was hidden because I bowed my head (ehe...). Altogether, though, it was a nice experience because we got to express our feelings well.

The parents were also crying (even the parents of undergraduates).

All seventeen of us graduated. Yay!

This is surely one event I would never forget. I'll post my valedictorian speech next time. And the list of awards... Ehe.

By the way, I got 3,100 pesos. Ehe...

Graduation

'Tis graduation tomorrow.

I should be revising my speech now but what am I doing?

*sigh*

*looks for more Akito pictures*

Cutie Alert - Kiriyama Akito

Aww... Isn't that cute?

This is Kiriyama Akito. He plays the role of Satoru Kuraki in Gokusen 3. He's a member of the J-Pop group B.A.D., with Nakama Junta (who is a fellow actor in Gokusen 3). Akito has starred in only one JDrama as of now, but I'm quite positive that he'll get into more dramas soon... Heh heh.

That's all. See ya!

Finished!

Woohoo! I've finally bought all the books in the "Dark is rising" series. I've spent roughly 150 pesos in all five books. Quite a nifty price for good reads, right? Booksale rocks!

Mom arrives

She arrived from Qatar last March 31. :D

What else? We're very happy! :D