MMMiii!

My Zen MicroPhoto was being funky … I couldn’t hear the vocals in songs. LoL. I lived with that for a couple of days, and then I couldn’t hear anything anymore–that is if I’m using earphones. It works like normal if it’s plugged to my stereo or computer speakers. But I don’t fancy the idea of having to lug around speakers just to listen to it decently.I brought it back to DataView (SM North, Cyberzone) because it was still under warranty. They took it and said they’ll have it repaired somewhere and to call back after a week. The next weekend, I called and they said they’re still looking for stocks for it and call back after a few days. I called back after a few days and they said they still couldn’t find any.

And then… the woman asked me that if it was okay and I couldn’t wait anymore, they’ll offer me a model upgrade to Zen Neeon2 2gb, I’ll just add an extra P1000. I said my player is 8Gb and not 2Gb. And then I asked if they had the Zen V Plus, because I knew that one had an 8Gb unit. She told me she’ll get back to me after lunch.

After lunch, I called again and she said they could give me the blue on black model (which I learned later was the only color design for 4gb and 8gb units) Zen V Plus 8Gb but I’d have to add an additional P1,000.

Things ran in my head. I won’t need to sell my MicroPhoto that no one would probably want to buy anyway, at my planned asking price. I won’t need to return the box and the accessories that came with the MicroPhoto (I lost the earphones). But the one that made me take the offer was — I could get a newer, smaller, lighter, cuter, and a more feature-packed model for only P1,000. I know the P1,000 is an illusion. Technically, I’d be acquiring the Zen V Plus for P13,000. But hey, that would be better than selling the MicroPhoto for P8,000 then getting the V Plus for P12,000. Besides, I’ve been eyeing it even before it became available here.
Yesterday, I finally got my baby. I haven’t thought of a name for it yet. The MicroPhoto’s name was Miu (Ichigo Mashimaro’s Miu)

Since I haven’t actually used it for more than a day, this would just be an initial review.

The Good: It’s small, light, cute, the controls are easy to use and figure out, although it took me about 5 tries getting used to holding down one of the buttons for extra options. It’s fast to load. It has a press-to-record button. The volume controls are at the sides, and if you use it as a necklace, you won’t really need to lock it so you could play around with the volume control. It fits nicely in your palm, and you can change the orientation of the screen to match your comfort needs if the default isn’t comfortable enough. I like mine rotated at 180° when I’m just holding it but on default when I’m wearing it as a necklace. It also has a volume restriction so you don’t blow up your ears by maxing the volume(25) all the time. I keep mine at 15. The 5-direction button

The Bad: The included earphones, like with the Zen MicroPhoto, is ugly, uncomfortably big, and … well… it will make you feel kind of cheated. The included neckstrap is ugly too. While I was charging it last night, it suddenly locked up. I panicked and had to look for a needle to push on the reset of the thing. At first it didn’t work at all. I was so ready to return it today, then I wondered if it was common, so I checked forums. Apparently, it was. All I had to do was to upgrade the firmware. It doesn’t have a quick next or previous button, or it’s not integrated in the joystick. You’ll have to go to the Now Playing screen to go forward or back. And a minimal bad thing, it’s too shiny and glossy, like piano key finish. If you keep touching it with smudgy fingers, it gets kinda smudgy, and embarrassing to actually show off. :[ makes me want to get the protector skin thing.

That’s it for now.

I bought new earphones for this baby… GAHHH I paid P450 for it. =/ it sounds good.

a4tech MK-510

The Good: It’s made of metallic materials, so I hope it won’t break easily. :< it’s a neckstrap type with a lanyard so you can hook your mp3 player to it and wear it like a necklace. The earpieces are two-way, meaning you could listen to it through both sides. One is an ear-canal type, and the other one is the conventional type. It’s got the three sizes for silicon ear fitting piece thing for the ear canal thing, and it’s got three pairs of foam for the conventional one. With the ear canal type, noise is canceled because the sound goes directly in your ear. It hits just at the right spot! Orgasmic! (just kidding…) And because it’s two-way, you could stick your ear with someone else’s and you could listen to the same song together. :D

The Bad: Probably just for me, it takes some getting used to for the ear canal thing. At first, the smallest silicon fittings kept falling out my ear, so I tried the largest one and it wouldn’t fit. Then the medium, and then it was kinda in but made my ear holes hurt after a while. I switched back to the smallest ones and now they’re okay. O.O The conventional ear piece is too big for me, and … well.. I just don’t like it. And lastly, because it is two-way, if you’re using the ear-canal type, you’ll look like there’s some black fluffy thing sticking out your ears. If you’re using the conventional type tho, it kind of looks normal.

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Kenya sets world first with money transfers by mobile 

I got this link from Jessica Zafra’s blog.

I was like .. WTF?

I Googled on mobile money transfers in the Philippines, and I found one in the first page of results news dating back to 2004.

The Philippines has been doing this money transfer through text through Smart Padala. However, with this system, the remitter would have to go to a remittance station and send the money. The receiver, however, would receive the money through text.

Okay, so that’s not quite 2-way text-based money transfer.

But then there’s Globe’s G-Cash which has been around for almost two years, in reference to this blog entry.

So what now? The Philippines is, I believe, one of the innovators in mobile service technologies. I mean, duh, the Philippines is the Texting Capital of the world. We even coined the term “texting” for crying out loud. Mobile text-based banking and money transfer, ads through text, voting through text (not sure about this), and so on.

Perhaps the Philippines really isn’t a part of the world. I mean, we’re so different from Asia, there’s that hate mail about Filipinos not being Asians. And then, there’s the Philippines being left out of everything…

We’re always letting go of our “firsts” … Saa…

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Talk about timing.

Bad Timing #1

I’ve been complaining about my leaking ceiling ever since the day I moved back to this house. The room where I’m staying now wasn’t my original room. I’m now in the West room. I used to be at the Center room. This used to be my aunt’s room. She had the ceiling covered with styrofoam before to keep the cold in, because this room used to always have the air conditioner running. Well, she left now, and the a/c is still in this room, the ceiling still covered in styro. The ironic thing is Papa cut the wire to the a/c so I can’t use it unless I become a wise-ass and get an extension cord and plug it there. They’ll still know if I had used it though, because it leaks outside. Talk about useless.

I have a lot of useless things in my room that I have learned to live with.  My aunt, who probably has no intention of coming back left a lot of crap in this room. There’s this space between the ceiling and the cabinets to put stuff, and she’s got a lot of her stuff there, instead of me being able to use all the closet and cabinet space. But then, I guess I got that from her, being a pack rat. I hate throwing away stuff.

ANYWAY back to my leaking ceiling. Iks and Papa have been trying to find the hole or something but couldn’t. Pop worsened the leak by going up the roof himself. This is no laughing matter. He’s probably around 300 lb. So, the leak had become like a faucet.

Recently, Pop and Ma got a big amount of money, so they decided to have the house to have some long-needed renovations. I complained about my ceiling, and they said they’ll prioritize that. Of course, I was glad.

While Pop was out, he sent me SMS saying that my room’s gonna be fixed TOMORROW. So, instead of saying it over breakfast, he decided to waste phone credit. And then, I realized that I had my CL 121 paper due on Friday. That means I wouldn’t be able to stay in my room and work on my paper when the carpenters are here…

I told Pop I had a paper due, and all he said was “Well you’d better hurry.”  I wanted to say “Fuck that shit.” But of course, they’ve never heard me swear. At least not intentionally. I think Pop heard me swear when I accidentally burned my hand while cooking.

orz.

/o\ Doushiyou… T_T *sigh* I don’t know how long the repairs will take. They might have to tear off the whole roof off my room. I asked Pop what will I need to do. He said that the carpenters will be over and that I might not be able to use the room.

…

YES, that was his answer. =_=

I asked if I need to cover my bed and with a sheet, and he said it’ll be dusty. OK, so Maybe that was a rhetorical answer? =___=

Bad Timing #2

I have this awful headache and my back aches and all I really want to do now is sleep. I napped earlier already, because I couldn’t really take the pain =_=. I woke up and the pain was gone, but now it’s back again.  >___<

I’ll … well, I already got the initial reading materials to work on, so… i’ll read them in a bit and write down notes.

Good Timing #1

The paper for CL 151 was moved from March 30 to April 2. The prof gave me ideas on how I could go about my paper, which was a lifesaver.

He wants me to work on the gender perspective, which, at the moment, I don’t really understand. It’s not feminist or phallic. Just gender, that’s why I’m kind of unsure. I’ll have to research on that, I guess.

Good Timing #2

I guess… Good timing #2 was Ma and Pa having the house fixed in time for rainy season…. just that the timing to fix it was bad for my sanity. but for the leaks, I guess it’s good. I told them they have to do something about my wall, since water seeps into it whenever it floods outside too. >____>

=========================

That’s it for now. I have to start working on my damned paper. >_<

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Well, Mi sings. Why not podcast?

It’s actually different! I tried… well… leaving an audio comment to myself.

1. I sound stoned.
2. I run out of things to say too fast.
3. I hate talking to voice mail/answering machines.
4. Singing is different.
5. Voice chat is different too.

Meh….

Well… I was just playing with it. I KNOW i have been neglecting my website. I even took down the DL page’s index page because I was too lazy to update it whenever I uploaded a new song. It’ll be back maybe .. NO. DEFINITELY! when vacation starts. Look at the countdown at the right. … 11 sleeps as of today.

I just finished my CL 121 Exam yesterday….
All that’s left now are these papers/projects:

• March 22, Thursday, 16:00 - Educ 101 Learning Module - I can finish this today. Tonight. Well… It’s basically done. I just have to draw a little and rearrange the parts, then it’s good to go. DONE!
• March 23, Friday, 23:59 - CL 121 Paper - I haven’t really started yet… >_______<
• March 31, Saturday, 14:30 - EDFD 120 Take Home Exam and Term Paper - I’ve started on the Term Paper… But … That’s just it. If I wrote the title of the paper and stared at it for 30 minutes, I’ve started, right?
• April 2, Monday, 17:00 - CL 151 Book Report on Jessica Zafra’s Manananggal Terrorizes Manila - I still have no idea. Incidentally, I have to write an outline for the workshop for our book reports later.

I’ll probably post the Q&A portion of my Term Paper here, since it’s kinda interesting. At least for me.

That’s it for now. It’s 4 something in the morning. I’ll probably sleep again, or find someone to chat with until the sun comes up.

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Manlius Severinus Boethius
- Poetry is dangerous because it feeds the passions (According to Plato)
- The Muses were Pagans
- Arts catered to sensuous (worldliness) and earthly interests.
– Arts were considered trivial by comparison to theological pursuits.
– Arts were the lowest of the sciences (Highest is Theology)
- Theoretical interest expressed itself in allegorical interpretation of Scripture.

THE CONSOLATION OF POETRY
- It is only Philosophy that can give you the rest you need in a weary world.
– Must be good Philosophy (Nietzsche, et al, are out)
- PHILOSOPHY = “In her right hand she carried books, in her left she brandished a scepter.”
- Passions/Mummers - They do not free the minds of the men from disease but accustom them thereto.
- Mummers = Actors.
- Boethius suggests that the Muses represent false copying and the making of dangerous delusions.
- Philosophical Counseling

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St Thomas Aquinas - Christianized Aristotle / Aristotelianized Christianity
- wrote a grand synthesis of faith and reason
- Hermeneutics - Theory and Practice of Interpretation.
– Opened many levels or corridors for interpretation
— Literal
— Allegorical
— Moral
— AnagogicalEverything is provided by God according to the capacity of its nature.
All our knowledge originates from sense. Hence, in Holy Scripture truths are fittingly taught under the LIKENESS of material things.
1. The Holy Scripture can use metaphors (representations, the language of poetry), because it is natural for Man to be pleased with representations. It is both necessary and useful.
2. Finding out the truths is an exercise for the mind.
3. It is better for man to find out the truth
–a. men’s minds are therefore better freed from error
–b. this is more befitting the knowledge of Got that we have in this life. it is not clear as to who he is, therefore, similitudes drawn farthest away from God give us a truer estimate that God is above whatsoever we may say or think of Him.
–c. Divine truths are the better hidden from the unworthy. Those who understand the Scriptures even with the metaphors are worthy of its meaning. Certain things are intended to be hidden from the unworthy. “Give not that which is holy to the dogs.” The truth is always there, and if you don’t understand, you probably have not yet reached the capacity to understand.Scripture may have several senses.
While it describes a fact, it reveals a mystery.
1. It can have many layers of meaning or senses. The other senses would only be founded on one — the literal.
2. History, Etiology, Analogy are grouped under the literal sense.
–a. History - whenever anything is simply related
–b. Etiology - when its cause is assigned
–c. Analogy - whenever the truth of one text of Scripture is shown not to contradict the truth of another.
Allegory - Stands for the three spiritual senses
3. The parabolical sense is contained in the literal.

Scholasticism is Aristotelian in a more engaging way.

Albertus Magnus - Teacher of Aquinas.

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Dante Alighieri - Lay/Secularized Aquinas.
- Applied Aquinas’s principles onto secular works.
- Polysemous - of more senses than one.
- 4 senses.
–a. literal - must not go beyond the strict limits of the letter
–b. allegorical - disguised under the cloak of such stories, and is a truth hidden under a beautiful fiction
–c. moral - teachers ought to go through writings intently to watch for their own profit and that of their hearers.
–d. anagogical - above the senses; spiritually expounded which even in the literal sense by the things signified likewiseThings that should be inquired into at the beginning of of any work of instruction.
1. Subject
2. Agent
3. Form
4. End
5. Title of the work
6. branch of philosophy it concernsallegory < - alleon (other’s property) <- alienum/diversum (different)
Subject of his work must be Literally Understood
Its subject Allegorically Intended

The form of method of treatment is poetic, fictive, descriptive, digressive, transumptive.Comedy <- comus (a village) + oda (song) -> rustic song
Tragedy < - tragus (goat) + oda -> goat-song >__>;;Comic -> miserable start, happy end.
Tragic -> happy start, miserable end.

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Giovanni Boccaccio – Tuscan — First Modern Man
- became a poet because of separation with Maria de Conti d’Aquino
- Met Petrarch, started writing in Latin and Italian.
- Poetry makes fictions, whereas theology always tells the truth. < - disagreed
- Meaning acquired by toil should ultimately be more pleasurable and better retained (Aquinas)
- A hidden moral meaning redeemed poetry’s “lies” —> “Thus [poetry] is like a river, wherein the little lamb may wade, and the great elephant freely swim.” –> Take whatever meaning you can glean from it.
- The subject of sacred theology is divine truth, while that of ancient poetry is the men and gods of pagans.
- Theology and poetry can be considered as almost one and the same thing when their subject is the same. だから Theology is simply the poetry of God. Not only is poetry theology, but also that theology is poetry.- Poetry is a sort of fervid and exquisite invention, with fervid expression, in speech or writing, of that which the mind has invented. だから poetry must be sublime. — can only be called a laudable poet if the functions are perfectly fulfilled
— craft tools = grammar + rhetoric- It is rather useful than damnable to compose stories
— fabula - conversation- Poets are not liars
– Kinds of liars
—1. Willful deceivers
—2. tell falsehoods without knowing it.– In defense of Virgil, Virgil’s purpose.
—1. to follow the practice of earlier poets.
——— Poets are not historians, who begin their account at some convenient beginning and describe events in the unbroken order of their occurrence to the end.
—2. was to show what passions
—3. extol (praise enthusiastically)
—4. exalt the glory and name of Rome.
だから Virgil is not a Liar.- Poets are merely apes of the Philosophers.
– The philosopher as a rule employs an unadorned prose style, with something of scorn for literary embellishment.
——–Apes of Christ.- The pagan poets of Mythology are theologians (Aquinas)

- Practice restraint from overreading.

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Lodovico Castelvetro
-commentary on Aristotle’s Poetics.
- Curious literal minded utilitarianism (simplistic)
- Hardened Aristotle’s principles into rigid precepts.
- verisimilitude or closeness to reality.History and poetry
- poetry is a likeness of or resemblance to history. (Take not… NOT history)
- history does not have a subject matter provided by the talent of the historian. the subject matter of poetry is discovered and imagined by the talent of the poet
- Historians must not be called poets
- pleasure, the purgation and expulsion of fear and pity from the human soul by means of the operation of the same passions– hedone (Pleasure or delight), utility (Happiness), for it is the health of mind gotten through bitter medicine.oblique pleasure - derived from pity and fear. it occurs when feeling pain from misery which comes unjustly to another, we recognize that we are good, since injustice displeases us.

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Sir Philip Sidney
An Apology for Poetry - Answers Puritan Stephen Gosson’s School of Abuse
– called poets pipers and clownsHis views on the divine origin of poetry and utility of poetry.
Praises poetry:
1. for being the cradle of civilization
— Plato was a poetry
— Poetry makes the mind receptive to learning. it prepares the mind to learning.
2. for being a channel of divine power.
— The power and craft of poetry are of the same essence as the Divine.
— The poet is a maker.
— The mimesis of the poet is a higher kind of imitation.
— What the poet imitates is not nature herself but a more perfect idea in the mind to which the poet gives shape
3. for teaching and delighting
— inspires the soul to scorn vices and admire virtues
4. for combining and surpassing the virtues of history and philosophy
— unites the universal truths (abstractions) of philosophy with the concrete examples of history

Criticized past and present attacks on poetry

He was a good synthesizer. His “Apology” is more synthetic than original.
Christian critic - his defense of the moral nature of poetry answers both Platonic philosophy and Biblical theology.

four arguments against poetry
1. poetry is unprofitable
— it inspires, encourages
2. poetry is the mother of lies
— poets never claim their poems to be the truth
— poetry offers an illusion. only fools confuse illusion with reality.
3. poetry entices and leads to sinful behavior
— abuse of poetry leads to sin
— Bible
4. Plato banished the poets from his Republic
— Anxiety on influence

Curse on all poet-haters. “May they never win love for want of a sonnet; may they be forgotten for want of an epitaph.”

vates = poets = diviner, foreseer, prophet

sortes Virgilianae - The words of Virgil are Sacred.

poiein - to make

Examples he used:
Cyrus in Xenophon > Cyrus in Justin
Aeneas in Virgil > Aeneas in Dares Phrygius
~~~> Sublimity

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Jacobo Mazzoni
- credible impossible vs incredible possible
Poetry admits of 3 definitions
1. Poetry is imitation
2. To delight
3. Pragmatic - Civil faculty, delight usefully.

Credible impossible - fantastic imitation - Aristotelian
incredible possible - - Believe it or not

** icastic imitation - imitation of things that exist
fantastic imitation - things that don’t exist. Freedom of the writer

verisimilitude - integrity

Idol and Imitation
- The poet imitates, and he makes an idol.
- idol is particular, credible, verisimilar, but not necessarily true.
——What’s important is the illusion that has been created.
——Feigned by poets according to their own will.

*Peripatetics - Aristotle’s disciples, walking while discussing/conversing.

Idea - Object of ruling/governing arts
Work - object of fabricating arts
Idol - object of the imitative arts

The false is not always the subject of poetry
The subject of poetry is sometimes true and sometimes false, it is therefore necessary to establish a poetic subject that in itself can be sometimes true and sometimes false.

Choose the credible over the true. (Recall: verisimilitude)

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:D

I dreamed we were together. The traffic was so heavy at school that i said I give up and i didn’t want to walk to my classroom so he said let’s go take a detour. i protested but he drove on. And then there was this wide staircase going down and he DROVE down the staircase. We got out and there was the sea outside the place. I asked him how will he get the car back up and a guy came out and said the same way we got in, the same way we’ll get out. He compared it to something. But lol it was NOT the same way. A huge chain came down and wrapped itself around the car and turned it around and around then lifted it up back on the surface of the building.

I think we played in the sea or the sand or something, because the next scene we were dirty. I asked him if he wanted to take a picture, but all I had was my camera phone. Then he brought out a flash drive! he said there’s a photographer over there. I looked and behind the glass door, there WAS a cameraman… with a camera. He called the cameraman and the man plugged the flash drive to his camera and we had our picture taken. I was doing the V-sign while he hugged me and kissed me on the cheek and I had a surprised look.

We entered a door and I see Liz with a ton of photo albums…. different designs. All handicrafts. and I asked for one… to put memories in.

My mama arrived to go home with me and matt. then i woke up

i woke up with a smile, and I heard Matt snoring. lol… i felt like I wasn’t alone. It was a peaceful feeling.

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