Maroon to the Core

My alma mater is celebrating its 100th year in 2008, and while I missed the kick-off festivities, I join in the revelry of the University of the Philippines' centennial. I'm a full-blooded Maroon, literally having spent almost the entirety of my academic life in the sprawling campus of UP Diliman (elementary, high school, college, law school - plus a stint doing my Masters' at UP Clark Air Base). It's therefore not surprising that I can sing U.P. Naming Mahal (U.P. Beloved) backwards, in both languages, in my sleep. My entire family is Maroon, and so are most of my oldest and dearest friends, as well as all the named partners of our law firm. Over the years, I've developed a magnanimous tolerance peaceful co-existence with non-UP grads, yet in my heart, U.P., for all its faults, will always be number one. Di rin magbabago ang damdamin, baby.

So as a personal tribute to the 100 years of the country's premiere institution of learning, I offer this...meme. He he. It's a little self-indulgent, but a nostalgic trip down 17 years in the State U is worth the time and the blogspace. Nicked this off Clairebear's space:

mga isko at iska, sagot na!

To commemorate our centennial year...
University of the Philippines

1. Student number? 85-14360. Yes, I was a 14-year old freshman (freak).

2. College? College of Arts and Letters, College of Mass Communication, College of Law, Diliman. UP College at Clark Air Base in between CMC and law school.

3. Ano ang course mo? (What did you Major in?) BS Humanities, BA Communication (Broadcasting), Bachelor of Laws, Masters in Public Administration and Asian Studies.

4. Nag-shift ka ba o na-kick out? (Did you shift majors/Courses or were you a kicked out of your College)? Shifted from a then pre-med BS Hum to BA Comm. One of the best decisions of my life!

5. Saan ka kumuha ng UPCAT? (Where did you take your entrance examination?) The big CS auditorium in Palma Hall (what used to be the Arts and Sciences Building)

6. Favorite GE subject? (General Education classes) Spanish with Senor Maranan. Vamos a la playa! Besame mucho...

7. Favorite PE? Swimming

8. Saan ka nag-aabang ng hot guys/girls sa UP? (Where did you hang out to check out the hot babes/dudes?) Definitely not at the UP CMC. Not that there weren't any hot guys - the men were hot all right, but they weren't exactly my idea of, er, guys. The College of Engineering was always a good place for sightseeing...

9. Favorite profs? (Favorite Professors?) Diane Teotico (RIP, Broad. 100 and Radio Production), Evelyn David (TV Production), Malu de Guzman (TV Performance), Tony La Vina (Criminal Law 1), Arno Sanidad (Criminal Procedure).

10. Pinaka-ayaw na GE subject (least favorite General Education class)? Nat. Sci 2 - Physics! Eeegh. And Math 11, my one and only Math class. Thank God for the EDSA I Revolution and mass promotion!

11. Kumuha ka ba ng Saturday classes? (Did you sign up for Saturday classes?) Involuntarily, and I cut through almost all of them.

12. Nakapag-field trip ka ba? (Did you join any field trips?) If I remember right, only once to Batangas to shoot our TV Performance finals.

13. Naging CS ka na ba or US sa UP? (Were you ever a College Scholar and or a University Scholar) Yes, before all the extra-curriculars. He he.

14. Ano ang Org/Frat/Soro mo? (What Organization/Fraternity/Sorority were you a member of?) This is why I didn't make CS or US ever again: UP Samaskom, Interschool Business Association, UP CMC Student Council, UP Law Portia Sorority, Paralegal Volunteers' Organization, Society of Law Students, UP Law Debate Team, Philippine Law Journal, UP Law Student Government, UP Inter-sorority Council, STRAW Alliance.

15. Dorm, Boarding house, o Bahay? (Did you stay at a dorm, boarding house or did you live at home during college?) Home, which is 15 minutes away from UP Dil, but I always slummed at my friends' dorm during law school.

16. Kung walang UPCAT test at malaya kang nakapili ng kurso mo sa UP, ano yun? (If you had your way, what was your dream course/major?) Marine Biology, which wasn't offered in Diliman at the time (and which involved a lot more math units), or Hotel and Restaurant Management (hmmm...which involved a lot more math units too. Mabuhay ang Mass Comm!!)

17. Sino ang pinaka-una mong nakilala sa UP?(Who did you first meet at UP?) Her name was Christie, she was from Mountain Province...and I don't know whatever happened to her.

18. First play na napanood mo sa UP? (First play you watched in UP) Should have been Isko, the definitive play (musical) about life in UP, which happened to star someone who would be (and still is) my best friend of the last 22 years as Isko himself. But I think it was Tennesee William's Camino Real at Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero. Remembered it just now (many hours after posting the original of this entry).

19. Saan ka madalas mag-lunch? (Where did you usually eat lunch?) First two years of college, at CASAA (Sizzler and Gloria's) - ooh, refer back to #8 - where I would ogle future Senator Francis Pangilinan (he would later be a law school classmate, friend and boss) as he ordered his meatballs and chocolate milk. I could die... In Mass Comm, at Pampaguena's and a variety of drinking places - Goldmine, Mister Steak, Tia Maria's - on Katipunan (liquid diet! Huwhaay not??). In law school, at Da Wall (MWSS jeepney turo-turo), Mommy Thai's at IC, and all those non-drinking establishments along Katipunan (we finally learned to drink AFTER school hours).

20. Masaya ba sa UP? (Was it fun in UP?) DA BEST.

21. Nakasama ka na ba sa rally? (Did you ever get to go to a rally?) Many times after I quit being so apathetic (ironically, in law school): the warrantless arrest of my classmate, the anti-US Bases rally, STFAP, among others...I think I was in a rally every year. Good old days.

22. Ilang beses ka bumoto sa Student Council? (How many times did you vote for Student Council elections?) I should know this. In law school, every year; in undergrad I think I only voted when I ran. Haha! Oh wait, I voted for Francis Pangilinan pala. Yahoo!

23. Pinangarap mo rin bang mag-laude nung freshman ka? (Did you ever aspire to graduate with honors when you were a freshman?) My Mom sure did.

24. Kung di ka UP, anong school ka? (If you didn't go to UP, what school would you have gone?) I would be an out-of-school youth. You see, I didn't apply to any other school. UP or nothing! (Tigas...)

Man, that was fun...I could use a PhP7 bottle of Pale Pilsen right about now.