Good Morning, Incomplete

I was barely expecting to get a 3 for my QPI following my accursed semester of frustration, which, if I think about it long and hard, could be traced back to my dismal random number (SOAB! >_<). Thanks a lot. Sans the needless trips back and forth from the covered courts to the SOM department, I was looking forward to a day of reunion, considering we didn't go out of town and I practically spent the whole break alone in my room, refusing all human interactions (even online) L-( But fate, in its usual comedic self, didn't give me that break. I looked at my report card to see the usual B's and occasional A's and B+'s but I never counted on seeing this. Not at all. @_@

Beside Theology was the letter "I". :-O

Now, wait a minute. I tried to stop the impending aneurism. For the life of me, I couldn't remember any requirement that I might have missed. Was it because I was always late? No, she should've given me a "W". But an "Incomplete"? This is new. >_<

Needless to say I stormed my way to the Theology department to give Rosanna a piece of my mind. But then I saw a post saying, "All students with Incomplete marks please return at 2pm." The time then was 10:45. Mmffckr! This day can't get any worse. >_<

Between then and 2pm, I killed time just so I could kill Rosanna (in my thoughts, at least). I thought of the different scenarios that could have conjured up such a grade. Maybe it was a mistake on her part. She probably lost our Ecological Footprint. Or she must have a personal dislike for our group, or worse, me. @_@ Now, Ma'am and I never got along, to say the least. Given how I react to negative motivation, I never got myself to taking her class seriously. I just did enough to "pull through". Maybe it backfired. Maybe this time I failed to "pull through". Well, I'm about to finally find out, at least. T_T

And the verdict? Apparently, me and a few other people from our class were fortunate enough to receive some sort of "special" treatment. Since we failed miserably in the finals, she was willing to give us another shot because it killed her to see such consistent students get low grades. @_@ For a moment I felt horrible. Sure, I hated her as a teacher, but as a person, Ma'am isn't half-bad. In a way, she knows that maybe (just maybe) some circumstance, outside of ourselves must have led to our failure and now instead of giving us a final irrevocable "C", she chose to give us an "I" just so we'd have a shot at something more decent. ^_^

So now what? Now I study my thesis statements again, especially thesis 11. Hear that, fate? XP

Just My Luck

This will be my first time to fail finals, ever. It's not that I didn't study. It's *probably* not even Rosanna's fault (which I doubt) >_<. I studied all day today because I kept thinking my orals was due 530-6pm. Later I found out that it was actually 430-5pm. That one hour cost me theses 10 and 11. I managed to cram in thesis 10 right before we were "summoned for our final judgement." @_@ I was thinking, "Yeah, well, what were the odds that I'd pick up thesis 11?" Well, apparently, I beat the odds, in a really bad way. I picked up thesis 11. (SOAB! >_<) I tried everything in my power to talk my way out of it, but apparently, Ma'am wanted something verbatim. She said I was discussing this thesis in relation to all other theses. Doi, I knew all the other theses except this one. @_@

But at least that's the last I'll see of her. Please, sana wag lang F. T_T

. . .

Ma'am said "God is in the details." But if I remember correctly, I believe the original saying was, "The devil is in the details." That's how they get you. You get so tied up with mere trifling, trying to find the exact 2nd hand articulations of these authors that you fail to reflect the main message of the text and what it points out in our particular context. Without cohesion and appropriation, drawing details is a pathetic method of testing more aptly described as the "regurgitation method" - how well can you barf back the text that was force-fed to you. >_< style="font-style: italic;">class*. Don't get me wrong, I am not judging her as a person. As a person, Ma'am is *ok*. But as a teacher, well, let's just say that she's enough to make me question God's plan for humanity because if there was a just and loving God, He'd never allow Ma'am Rosanna to teach theology, ever. >_< But alas, my limited human capacity for understanding simply has no right to question God's omnipotence. He has BIG plans. The details hardly matter. As I said, "The devil is in the details." @_@

Theo Test of Horror

This is going down in history as one of the worst moments in my college life. I took an exam that was intensely objective - I mean INTENSE - as in nose-bleed-inducing, cardiac-arresting, makapigil-hiningang intensity. >_< Rosanna sure knows how to do it right. Last night I read the whole Gospel of John (all 21 chapters) in one sitting. I felt a little momentum going so I also went ahead and read halfway of chapter 2 in the book (pp. 30-64). At around 330am, I called it a night. I knew I couldn't read anymore because I was starting to spend 20 minutes on just 1 paragraph. @_@ You know that feeling when you can understand the sentences line per line but can't seem to remember what the whole point of the paragraph was? I was starting to feel that. So by the law of diminishing returns, I quit. X-(

I had to wake up at 7am because we had to go back to GSK for a meeting. I spent any idle time studying or sleeping. I was feeling more and more hopeless but I guess you'll get used to that in ME. @_@

Before LS I went to the lib in a futile attempt to study. I saw Magno and he was kind enough to give out a few pointers. "Focus on chapter 2," he said. I went back to SEC to tell everyone else.

I never got to read chapter 5 nor the two crucial chapter 7 articles. That proved to be my undoing as 90% of the 35 modified true or false items were based on chapter 5 and 7. Chapter 2 was useless. I can't help but laugh knowing that there were at least 6 people in the room who are just as stumped as I was, Magno included. @_@

The coup de grace (ku/de/graw) was the matching type (I just remembered. We used to joke around in high school, whenever there was a matching type exam we'd point to some random guy and say, "Ikaw matsing type. ^_^ Hahahaha" Matsing, as in Kiko Matsing of Batibot. Well anyway back to the story.) The matching type doused the last ember of hope that I had left. It was supposed to test our knowledge of the the Johannine literature by making us match some phrases to the chapter where it belonged. These phrases were not the famous ones either. It was nowhere near "In the beginning was the Word." It was more like "When you were young, others fastened your belt for you." I mean, WTF? >_< Well of course now I've memorized it since I spent a good 10 minutes trying to remember what chapter it came from. I swear, never again.

PS.

I was trying to be eloquent enough to inject the Martial Law anniversary in my last sentence. But in case you failed to notice, "Never again" is the popular tag line of this year's Martial Law anniversary. ^_^

Answered Prayers

It's not about women. @_@ It's more along the lines of my recent orals in Theology. Rosanna was notorious for giving Fs and ludicrously objective questions. >_< Duenas didn't prolong the inevitable and said, "Sorry Ma'am, I haven't read that." Coming from a sucky group orals, I wasn't looking too sharp in the individuals. @_@

I no longer saw the point of studying. Muri and I would rather talk about how Dacanay is much better and how Rosanna gives tests that don't measure what we've learned. I was beginning to feel like flunking this Theology class just to prove a point that it sucked. >_< style="font-style: italic;">B+ in Dacanay and Jimeneeb *ahem* ^_^ ). We didn't want to face the fact that in the here and now, all we have is Rosanna and a copy of Nati's notes. It was so futile that we'd rather lose ourselves in painting and useless banter. @_@

But I had to at least try. Who knows I might get lucky? :-|

The tension increased tenfolds as we heard the first bell. Ten minutes. All we had was ten minutes. We raced upstairs in false alarm and the tension made me forget some of the finer points of the latter parts. It was a losing battle to say the least. I should be either really good or really lucky in this one. @_@

Nati drew first blood. Ma'am commented and it wasn't reassuring. I felt, "Crap. Even Nati can't please Rosanna. Eh aral na aral na nga 'yan." I bowed my head and prayed that prayer. :-|<

Lord, it is as if our lives are one test after another,
weighing us in somebody's balance.
Please save us from taking the coming test too seriously
or too lightly but grant that we reflect the best work
we've done and the best teaching we've received.

This we ask through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

"Maron. Why is the ambivalence of the Theological teaching the ambivalence of the soul?" >:-|

I knew this one! This was Mark Uy's question. I had this one in the bag. ^_^

"Ok, why is theological thinking the grammar of the heart?" >:-|

It was getting more difficult but I had read the article and committed it to heart.

"Ok, what is substance of this grammar?" >>:-|

Huh? What substance? I didn't know that one... (Wait, why is she asking me THREE questions??) :-O

"I think Maron is done now. That is enough." :-|

"Thank you!" was all I could say. ^_^ It was over for me. I might have missed some details but at least I didn't do a Duenas. It was easier to just quit but I know that would be an unacceptable option. Even though this was nothing short of a divine intervention, it just goes to show that there will always be hope. *ahem* Muri *ahem* ^_^