WHITE NIGHT PARTY

On 27 March 2010, Saturday, wear WHITE and party all night at JCI Macajalar 24k's WHITE NIGHT party!  

See you there!

PAGLANTAW: Visions of the Past and of the Future

PAGLANTAW
Visions of the Past and of the Future

"You cannot change the past or the future. Instead of changing the past and future, what you do is create them."

The past and the future cannot be changed, yet they can be created and re-created in various ways through a person’s imagination and they can be manifested in various forms whether through literature, the performing arts, or the visual arts.

Memories and dreams help a person create or re-create a distant past or a forthcoming future. With visual art, these visions can be exhibited through paintings and works of various media that is why Circulo de Arte and the Circulo de Arte Alumni have come together to look back on the past and look forward to the future through PAGLANTAW: Visions of the Past and of the Future, a collaborative group art exhibit.

A vision of the past: In 1995, students of Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan who were art enthusiasts gathered together and formed the Ateneo Art Society and looked forward to create an established art organization in the campus.

In 1996, the core group of students through the help of the organization moderator Mr. Pennessencio “Nonoy” Estarte, renamed the group into Circulo de Arte, and aimed to gather more art enthusiasts in Xavier University in order to share, develop, and exhibit various art ideas and techniques. From then on, generations of young artists and their art have graced the halls and walls of Xavier University and other establishments through Circulo de Arte group art exhibits.

Now celebrating its 14th year as a school-based art organization, Circulo de Arte looks forward to creating a flourishing future in art by creating visions that are never impossible to attain, always within reach through art and imagination.

We invite you to view PAGLANTAW and have the opportunity to see different visions of the past and of the future through colorful works by young artists.

The Philippines: Man Loses His Own Life After Saving Dozens From Floods

I stumbled upon this story from The Age and I want to share it with all of you... Thanks to The Age...

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Philippine man loses own life after saving dozens from floods
September 28, 2009 - 2:28 PM

An 18-year-old construction worker braved rampaging floods in the Philippines to save more than 30 people, but ended up sacrificing his life in a last trip to rescue a baby girl and her mother who were being swept away on a styrofoam box.

Family members and people who Muelmar Magallanes saved have hailed the young man a hero, as his body lay in a coffin at a makeshift evacuation centre near their destroyed Manila riverside village.

"I am going to be forever grateful to Muelmar," said Menchie Penalosa, the mother of the six-month-old girl whom he carried to safety before being swept away himself. "He gave his life for my baby. I will never forget his sacrifice."

Mr Magallanes was at home on Saturday with his family when tropical storm Ketsana unleashed the heaviest rains in more than 40 years on the Philippine capital and surrounding areas.

At first the family, long used to heavy rains, paid little attention to the storm.

But Mr Magallanes and his father quickly decided to evacuate the family once they realised the river 800 metres away had burst its banks.

With the help of an older brother, Mr Magallanes tied a string around his waist and attached it one-by-one to his three younger siblings, whom he took to higher ground. Then he came back for his parents.

But Mr Magallanes, a strong swimmer, decided to go back for neighbours trapped on rooftops.

He ended up making many trips, and eventually saved more than 30 people from drowning, witnesses and survivors said.

Tired and shivering, Mr Magallanes was back on higher ground with his family when he heard Ms Penalosa screaming as she and her baby were being swept away on the polystyrene box they were using in an attempt to cross the swift currents.

He dived back in after the mother and daughter, who were already a few metres away and bobbing precariously among the debris floating on the brown water.

"I didn't know that the current was so strong. In an instant, I was under water. We were going to die," said Ms Penalosa, her eyes welling with tears and voice choking with emotion.

"Then this man came from nowhere and grabbed us. He took us to where the other neighbours were, and then he was gone," Ms Penalosa said.

Ms Penalosa and other witnesses said an exhausted Mr Magallanes was simply washed away amid the torrent of water.

Neighbours found his body on Sunday, along with 28 others who perished amid Manila's epic flooding. The official death toll stands at 100 with 32 missing.

Standing next to his coffin, Mr Magallanes' parents paid tribute to their son.

"He always had a good heart," said his father, Samuel.

"We had already been saved. But he decided to go back one last time for the girl."

His mother, Maria Luz, wept as she described her son as incredibly brave.

"He saved so many people, but ended up not being able to save himself."

AFP

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Now that's a real hero! Helping others without expecting anything in return! Mr Magallanes was just one of the many simple folk who risked their lives just to save others from the great deluge this country has experienced in the past few days. It's so sad yet inspiring to read this story. He will be remembered by the lives he saved and by everyone who views him as a hero myself included.

Now now... What have I got to say to those people who are taking advantage of the situation and are "helping" the flood victims by giving out food and clothing with their names emblazoned on those stuff? Shame on you... If you really want to help, you don't need to advertise your names to further your political ambitions. Just HELP...

To those who would like to help victims of typhoon Ondoy, you can help by donating to the Red Cross Rescue and Relief Operations.

Text: Red AMOUNT to 2899 (Globe) or 4483 (Smart).

The AMOUNT can be 10, 25, 50 or 100.

You can also help the flood victims through the details in this Google page.

Prayers will also do. In times like these, we need FAITH...

CDO Bloggers Blogging 101 Workshop A Success!

Last Saturday, 23 May 2009, CDOBloggers conducted a workshop on the basics of blogging. The event was held in Sentro 1850's conference room and it was attended by more than seventy people. I was one of them!

The following were discussed in the workshop:

• Setting Up a Blog (Blogger, WordPress, LiveJournal, etc.)
• Blog Writing (Types of Blogs, Niche Blogging, Blog Ethics)
• Blog Promotion and Marketing (Driving Traffic and Search Engine Optimization)
• Monetizing (Paid Posts, Advertisements)

Due to time constraints, there were some points not discussed but the organizers pledged to send additional tips to the participants via email.

A mini-contest was part of the workshop to check out if the participants really understood what were discussed and the prizes included free website domains and hosting, and ILOVECDO t-shirts.

I pretended that I was a bit thick-faced (hahaha! just a bit) and stood up to answer one of the questions asked by one of the speakers. I won a free domain and hosting too! I wanted it badly so I grabbed the opportunity! Hahahaha!

The event was CDOBloggers' first baby and the org vows to learn a lot from it for improvements in the future. I'm looking forward to future events with CDOBloggers and I hope the org will become more successful!