That might be an overstatement but no one in the same situation as I am, at least, could deny the truth in it.

I just got my very first F. That’s my advisory grade in Math 11. Sure, I still have a chance to redeem myself but seeing an F (failure) in my advisory grades is such a traumatizing event for my parents. I, on the other hand, am not totally surprised. I could still hope for a D (passing) in the final grade though. That way, I wouldn’t have to repeat hell during the next sem.

Back in high school, English was my best subject. Anything below 95% is already a failure for me. This time around in English 11, a C+ is the best I can do… and that’s just above passing. Also, during high school, getting a line of 8 makes me have sleepless nights just thinking about how I could’ve done better. But after going through the first half of the semester in Ateneo, I realized that getting a B is like getting perfect (and getting a B+ makes you genius; getting an A makes you an alien).

I’m not generalizing though. I already knew the fact that in Ateneo, honor students back in high school are no rare species. In my math class, there are a few who get A’s and B+’s and they’re usually Chinese. So I can’t really say that everyone adheres to the “D is LOVE” principle.

Asking myself and people around me, I got several answers as to why I’ve been getting such grades that I haven’t even gotten since grade school. High school friends say we lacked preparation in high school. Schoolmates say that the Ateneo standards are high. Elders say we’re just adjusting to college life. I say, I haven’t been doing my best.

I just thought about this after watching Haruhi…

Haruhi once watched a baseball game and noticed that there were so many people right in that stadium and she was but a speck compared to the crowd. That stadium was also just a speck compared to the world. How big could the world get? How little could you possibly be?

Not only was I just one little person in that sea of people in that stadium… but that sea of people… was merely a drop in the ocean. -Haruhi

And so while doing a regular check-up on my blog, I noticed that nobody would probably read each and every word of your blog the way you yourself do. There’s nothing one could possibly do unless you’ve got stalkers behind you. I’m not saying this is a bad thing either. It’s just that, I realized that maybe, just maybe, personal blogs are probably more of an emotional outlet than a literary piece for people to read.

Oh, and I’m not emo. ^_^

UP Diliman had its dose of Japanese last month during their Japanese language month: JapFun. The moment I saw the JapFun tarp just along the road to the Sunken Garden - “Ang daya! Bakit sila may gano’n?!” - I immediately regretted not going to UP. What kind of J-addict like me wouldn’t want a month full of Japanese-related events?

But then Kami-sama 神様 might have heard my prayer and so Ateneo would be having its Japanese Studies Program Week 日本フェステイバル　on the first week of September. Yatta~! やった～！　＾＿＾ Maybe a week isn’t anything compared to a month but our student population is too small for such a huge event anyway.

JSP Week is a week filled with Japanese-culture events. I was so excited I dragged my blockmate who likes Shoujo anime with me to sign-up in the JSP Department. Being the J-addict that I am, I joined all the events that I could join. And no, I did not join the Sumo Wrestling competition.

I also signed-up for the Karaoke Contest although I’m feeling quite hopeless with it. I’ve never joined a singing competition before and the only time I sing is when we have practicals in Music class back in high school. The only reason I joined is because I love singing Japanese songs. ^_^ It’s a habit I developed everyday when launching my iTunes.

There’d be preliminary screenings before the actual competition and I’m not expecting much but I’ll still try to sing Life by Yui just for fun. ^_^ It’s the 5th ending of Bleach if you guys don’t recognize it.

For my fellow schoolmates who happen to be J-addicts too, as a member of Toujin (Touhou no Yuujin), it’s practically my responsibility to promote this event because as of now, only members of Toujin and students taking JSP classes know about this. ^_^ So, please participate if you can! ^_^ Onegaishimasu~ お願いします *bows*