the perils of

        I think one lesson I learned today, however oversimplified and cheesy it may be, is that for every miserable moment that med school throws your way, there are little bouts of happiness to be discovered. Today in particular started with a lab exam from hell. And right after that came the lec exam from hell. Both were equally draining and depressing.         BUT after that, Dr. Banzuela treated all of us in the batch to UNLIMITED FISHBALLS!!! This was our batch's reward for having answered a difficult question during class last week (it was Dustin in particular who answered it, and all of us got to reap the benefits of his effort hahaha). The fishballs did wonders to boost our morale. Look at all these smiling faces! (Credits to Kamille from whom I did not ask perimssion to post this [hehe sorry])          Dr. Banzuela is one of my favorite teachers in ASMPH. I'm not just saying this because of the fishballs!...

The day I'd been looking forward to since setting foot in Manila: first day of college! Come to think about it, a college education is actually the whole reason why I'm here. Oh, but not just a college education, but a holistic learning experience and spiritual formation you can only find in the Ateneo. (Shameless school promotion, anyone?) Right. So. I woke up at 6:15, fell asleep, then woke up at 6:30. When I checked my phone after I showered, I panicked because Rap, my blockmate and ally in the war of the races (HALF CHINESE FTW IN YOUR FACE ALBERT YOU KOREAN YOU), was already asking me where I was. I grabbed the nearest pack of Sky Flakes and started dipping the pieces in cheese spread like hell. Breakfast ;) Met up with Andy, Karl, Rap and Kaye at the Gonzaga cafeteria and then caught up with a few more blockmates. We went to our first class of the day, Filipino 11. When we got to the classroom in Berchman's Hall, Room 209, we found most of our other blockmates...