popcorn at last!

i haven't been in a movie theater for about 8 months. now, before you get all weepy for poor, pathetic me, let me explain. there's actually a very good reason for it.

i started preparing for the comprehensive exams for my master's degree towards the end of last year. truth is, i only SERIOUSLY prepared for it about a month before. i know that i had no excuse for not studying but i easily made one up (hehe). somehow, though, i would feel guilty exchanging time in a movie house for time with my books. so hit the books i did.

after february, i borrowed dvds of the movies i missed, guiltlessly staying up til 4 a.m. watching them. after that, well, there wasn't much to be seen in the movies. every time i'd gear up to watch a flick, someone would say that it wouldn't be worth the money to see it. so i'd go somewhere else, or stay home, or be in one of my endless meetings *sigh*.

the dry spell was broken last week, two days after camp ended. not only did it, the dry spell, end, but i ended it in style! a cisv mom invited the jcs and whoever else was free to brave the rains to see superman... in the mall of asia... in the i-max theater... for free! plus popcorn... plus a late lunch after... and i didn't have to drive! later for dinner, the italian jc cooked pasta and the brazilian jc prepared a cocoa dessert (i got the recipe!). how could i complain? then again... ok, there is no accounting for style when it comes to those 3D glasses. thank God they're worn in the dark! and the popcorn at moa isn't great.

which only means that i have to redeem myself! quick! what do we see next?! :)

CD notes

relief. that's the first word that comes to my mind at the end of the 21-day international village. to have managed to run the village on a non-existent budget not only takes skill and cunning; it also takes a lot of patience and a lot of coffee.

the kids have boarded their planes (and buses) and are safe in their homes, in their respective countries. no more 8 a.m. wake up calls via whistles, gongs and what-have-yous. no more "can i talk with you?" tete-a-tetes with leaders too. i'm so relieved that other than bites, rashes, constipation, lice (yes, lice... but they were imported!), and the occasional leader throwing-up here and there, we did not have any major medical emergencies. growing up in a family of doctors paid off in camp. i think that dad would have been proud of me with my calmness and diagnoses :)

to my think, 21-days is too short for an international camp. although sometimes, having an all-girls leaders' pool made me think that 21 days was too long! hahaha! estrogen level was way too high!

on the good side... camp always makes me feel proud of my being filipino. the staff and i put on a great staff day dancing the tinikling, serving fishballs, kikiam, squid balls, ice candy, fresh buko (fresh coconut), eating lunch on banana leaves with our hands, and giving out free tricycle rides. we also made the kids play simple street games (the one where you put a Php 1 coin on your forehead and contort your facial muscles til it gets to your chin) and had the kids cover their faces in flour and water. for what reason? absolutely nothing! fun without a PS2... priceless!

snaps too for philippine hospitality! we had a great kitchen staff, an "abuseable" resort staff, and generous homestay hosts. like i said in open day, "to run a village, it takes a village."

i love, i love, i love my chapter board! they trusted me to make the decisions in camp and backed them up all the way. i applaud their dedication, working "behind the behind the scenes," always available for consultation, shopping for us, driving for us... and these are moms! they deserve much, much more than a camp shirt!

i loved the delegation the baguio chapter sent over... and so did everyone else! they were REAL people - 3 of the 4 kids were "scholars" (a child of a taxi driver, a child of an OCW - overseas contract worker, a child of a machine operator). now THAT is for whom i truly would like CISV to be. i know that for them, 21 days was way too short. i know that it'll make such an impact on their lives and hopefully give them a boost of confidence and aspire them to be and do better.

directing a camp can be stressful - i got the white hair (6!) to prove it - and rewarding. as camp director, it sucked that i wasn't around all the time. no wonder they call it "running" a camp. i miss being with kids. being a leader is way easier. so, what do you get from being camp director? gifts, a lot more paper and paperwork than i left with, new friendships - i now have friends in luxembourg and guatemala! how cool is that?! - laundry, a sense of relief, and yes, fulfillment.

will i staff again? hmmm... what country are we talkling about? :)