Blue is My Color: An Autobiography

“Life is a canvas, God is the artist, and every one of us are different colors of paint that He blends together to create a Masterpiece.” – Tricia Cacho

I actually believe the quote that I made. Each one of us have a unique color in us, that really describes our personality, which will God use to mix with other colors, other personalities. For me, when I was born on the night of September 5, 1991, I came out with the hues of blue illuminated on me. Calm and steady like the ocean, hushing me to sleep. Basically I was a good baby. I didn’t give my parents trouble.

Oceans have times when the waves are strong, which indicate chaos. When I grew up into a little kid, I was such a war freak. I even start fights with boys, always making them cry and run to their mommies begging for help. I got it from the province when I stayed there for a year, when my parents weren’t able to find a nanny for me and decided to send me to my grandparents. After that phase, I managed to recuperate. I returned to my polite and well-mannered self when I returned to our home in Cavite.

On the first day of my first year in high school, the waves started again. I was in a new school—O.B. Montessori, where most of the people already knew each other, except for me. I terribly missed my old school and my old friends, but eventually I felt like I was a surfer just following the waves, and not actually fighting it, and I learned to overcome my fear of transferring to a new school and meeting new friends. I experienced a lot of firsts in that school, and it definitely showed my talents and honed it.

My talents were shown during my high school days. I saw how I could sing, draw and even lead people. I joined the choir and had a lot of chances to be in front during our performances. I even hosted for children’s parties held in our school. My creativity wasn’t wasted as well, a lot of activities were held that challenged my art skills. My friends were on the same road as I was; we were at the peak of showing our talents.

But high school had to end. We have to move forward for our future. Now, we are on our second year of college, struggling but still managing to survive. I enjoy my courses in De La Salle University, which are AB Communication Arts and BS Accountancy. They’re not really a good match, but I think they could compensate each other my love for math and the arts. Someday I plan to have my own Events Company and be a Certified Public Accountant at the same time.

I feel like I’m in a colorful world, meeting people with different colors and blending with them. I can’t say that the Masterpiece of my life is done, but God is going to make it better and better. :)

The Perks of an E-Passport

By Tricia Cacho

Beat: Government
Category: Unpublished
Type: Column

Photo from cccbatch75

The Department of Foreign Affairs released the new and improved passports this year, also known as the “E-Passport,” with its enhanced features: “An IC chip storing passport holder's photograph and personal information; an Automated Fingerprint Identification System which guards against identity theft and fraud; overt security features such as invisible personal information, letter-screen, microprinting, and UV reactive ink; and enhanced Machine Readable Passport using biometric technology.” (from www.dfa.gov.ph)

This technology has not been warmly welcomed by some of the Filipino people, especially the Anakpawis partylist, who claims that the release of the E-Passports was just a cover-up to the corruption of the government. Truth be told, the E-Passport Project used up a large sum of money amounting to PHP2 Billion, and one could really doubt if all of it really went to the E-Passport Project. Plus, this big change on the passport system might be a hassle for those who are illiterate with the advanced technologies that we have today.

Let’s try to think where the PHP2 Billion went. The Department of Foreign Affairs just built their new building at Parañaque, and built other offices in 10 different regions. They also had their system transferred online, so that everyone would be able to access and schedule for an appointment with the DFA, which means that one doesn’t have to go to the DFA and line up for a long time just to get a passport application. The PHP2 Billion sacrifice has its fruits, after all.

One could say that E-Passport costs a fortune. Yes, it’s true, but the benefits that one could get are worth the additional payment. This E-Passport is an improved version of an old passport, and it doesn’t need to be replaced after a couple of years, unlike the old ones, in which we need to renew every now and then. The stalls at Recto that make passports could be at risk too, but can you risk your identity being copied or stolen? With the E-Passport, one’s identity is secured and less prone to theft and fraud.

This E-Passport thing sounds cool, but will it easy to implement to our country? A lot of people prefer the old passports because we are already used to it. However, if we are satisfied with our old policies with the old passports, we’ll never grow—in terms of technology and in terms of coping up with the world.

Whether the whole PHP2 Billion was or was not wholly spent on the E-Passport Project, I’m very sure that a lot of changes had happened. If we don’t cooperate with what the government has made for us, the harder it will be to implement that system, which means that the PHP2 Billion might be put to waste. Let’s think of this as baby steps to improving our country, and little by little we’ll go up to the top.

XCEMER: DLSU’s Own David Blaine

By Tricia Cacho

Beat: People
Category: Unpublished
Type: Feature Article

“The magician and the politician have much in common: they both have to draw our attention away from what they are really doing.” – Ben Okri

When people say the word “magician,” what comes into mind first? Clowns and performers that can be found at the fair are the usual answers. But who knew that you could find one of them inside your own university campus?

Emerson Ong, a.k.a. XCEMER, is a professional magician at the age of 18 and currently studying at De La Salle University-Manila taking up Computer Programming Engineering. He performs for several school events, namely for ENGLICOM, a Chinese-Filipino organization, and events outside the campus as well. What’s fascinating about this guy is that he started his passion for magic at an early age—9 years old—in which he traded his toy robots for magic paraphernalia.

This guy loves performing card magic tricks to his audience. Not only it is handy for on-the-spot performances, but also with this kind of magic he could perform a lot of tricks. He does close-up magic, or one-on-one magic, wherein he would roam around in every table at the venue of the event and entertain every guest. He also does stage performances, which last 20 minutes to an hour—depending if he’s the main act, or not.

“My family’s very supportive of my passion,” Emerson says. When he was a kid, at around 9 years old, his parents bought him equipment for magicians when they found out Emerson’s fascination for magic. Ever since then, his talent in magic improved and he was invited in small events and gatherings and it slowly evolved to bigger occasions.

When asked about the challenges he encounters as a young magician, he says, “People usually think that magic is Satanic, which is not true. Magic is about deceiving, and not using ghosts for the act.” But his age also has its perks. He easily gets opportunities to perform because a lot of his friends and acquaintances in school refer him.

“If you have the passion, its easy to start,” he says to the aspiring magicians. “And don’t let your age stop you from doing it.”

When a student cheats: Know their techniques

By Tricia Cacho

Beat: Teachers
Category: Unpublished
Type: Service Article

Photo from seminarysurvivalguide.com

Have you ever wondered why your students get a high grade in their exams, yet they slack off in your classes? Well, your students might be cheating! Here’s a guide on how to know if they’re cheating in their exams:

When one’s eyes wander around

When a student acts a little too normal in your exam, rather than looking depressed because the questions in the test are hard, you should start to observe this student. He or she might be confident with this exam because he has “sources” to the test answers—in short, his seatmates. Try to follow his eyes…are they looking at his own paper? Or at his neighbor’s? Some try to hide their eyes by covering it with their hands, which makes them look like they’re thinking hard, but actually, it makes peeking easier.

Actions speak louder than words

If your student’s not using the peeking method, then he might be using the gesture method. Instead of looking at his eyes, observe his actions once in a while. This method works if the teacher dictates the questions in the test. For example, if the answer is letter A, then one will tap his foot twice, if B, then one will tap his pen on the table twice. In order to know if those actions indicate cheating, look at your students after doing those gestures—they quietly smile or laugh to themselves. This means that they already got the answer.

Unnecessary things are necessary

If the peeking or gesture method doesn’t work, one could use other paraphernalia for cheating. Correction pens, the box of their coloring pens, and small pieces of papers are usually the medium they use to hide their cheat sheets. A sure way to know if these things contain cheat sheets is when it is passed around to the whole class. A number of students would be asking if they could borrow a certain student’s correction pen even if their seatmate has one.
Now that you know when your students are in the act of cheating, how do you approach them?

Caught in the act

If you are absolutely sure that your student is cheating, you could approach him after class; or if you’re brave enough, approach him during the exam. The latter is better because your other students could think that they could not fool you, and they’ll know that you take these matters seriously. A teacher must approach the student in an assertive manner, so that the students will less likely do the act again.

Cheating is an act done by desperate (or just lazy) students. Wouldn’t it be unfair to those who studied well for the test to have them around?

And Man Created Plastic

By Tricia Cacho and Charito Chua

Beat: Business
Category: Unpublished
Type: News Feature

"And man created the plastic bag..and soon the earth was covered with plastic bags and aluminum cans and paper plates and disposable bottles and there was nowhere to sit down or walk, and Man shook his head and cried: "Look at this Godawful mess." -Art Buchwald

The eco-friendly product or packaging is the new business trend for the year 2010. It is time for the business world to not just think about the global economy, but to also ponder upon the best interests in terms of the global environment. More and more companies are using biodegradable packaging in order to do their part and encourage consumers to also do their role for Mother Earth; to reuse, reduce and recycle.

One of the pioneers of this trend, SM Supermalls, turned to using biodegradable plastic bags in their Department Stores and Supermarkets in 2008. And ever since then, more and more companies are utilizing biodegradable plastic bags for packaging their products. However, this does not necessarily mean these companies have the desire to make the world a greener place. Using eco-friendly packaging is one way to simply attract customers and keep up with the competition in the business world. "Some companies are actually doing it just because SM is doing it. They don't really understand how it is biodegradable," said Mr. John Clifford Tan, Executive Vice President of JTA Packaging Corp, a large national provider of plastic and polyester bags.

He shared to us that most companies do not understand that the biodegradable plastic bags are not more environment-friendly than the usual plastic bags being used before. Apparently, the only difference between the two plastic bags is the added material for the biodegradable plastics to make it faster to decompose. This particular additive to the biodegradable plastics creates the effect that makes the plastics easier to deteriorate more easily than ordinary plastic, with it having a life span of six months compared to the 100 - year life span of nonbiodegradable ones. This is what makes majority of the society believe that such kind of plastics make it healthier for our environment. However, this makes the plastic more brittle, making it easier to be destroyed, therefore less chances to be used. "If the normal plastic bags were only taught to be properly used and disposed, everyone would realize that it's even more eco-friendly than the biodegradable ones. Consumers should use these bags more than once, which make it more recyclable than the biodegradable plastics since it last longer," shared Mr. Tan.

Aside from the fact that these supposedly eco-friendly plastics are not eco-friendly after all, it does not actually benefit the company with regards to its cost production. It was also explained that biodegradables actually costs 12 percent more than the normal plastic bags used before, due to the additive to make it faster to decompose in land. Melbert Villanueva, assistant store manager of SM Supermakret stated in defense, "This additional cost does not affect the customers, but instead shouldered by the company itself."

Plastic, whether biodegradable or not, does not have a good effect to our environment. The 'biodegradable' plastics could only lessen the guilt that the shoppers might have, but it return it could make them think that it is tolerable to shop for more things from such stores that are now using 'eco-friendly' plastic bags. It is time that consumers should also stop and look at everything else around in their house and realize that majority of our products today are also made of plastic. As how Mr. Tan explained, "I don't get why everyone is attacking just the plastic bags, when actually, everything is already made out of plastic. The TV frames, PSP's, even the cellphones are made out of plastic. Why aren't they doing anything to prevent these kinds of products to destroy the world?" Not only are the plastic bags pose the only dangerous threat to the environment - it is basically all plastic products.

So before you leave a store with a biodegradable plastic bag in your hands, imagine if God were to take a look of what is inside your bag. Would He evaluate man's creation and say, "And it was good"?

JICC Organizes First Youth Fellowship

By Tricia Cacho

Beat: Community
Category: Unpublished
Type: News Article

February 7, 2010—50 teenagers attended the fellowship at the Joy in Christ Church Worship Hall held by the JICC leaders who aim to encourage them to attend services and grow in their spiritual lives. The young people are composed of three age groups, namely the Junior and Senior Teens, and the Singles. The Junior Teens are composed of young people aged 12 to 15 years old, while the Senior Teens were aged 16 to 20 years old, and the Singles were aged 21 years old and above.

JICC's very first youth interfellowship started at around 1:00pm, right after the church's Sunday Worship Service. Lunch, prepared by the older women or WMU, was served before the event to give the attendees more energy for the program proper. t

The program started with a Praise and Worship, wherein modern Christian songs were played. The youth sang and danced to the upbeat music that was performed by the church band also composed of young people.

Games, played in groups, like Samson and Delilah, Brain Teasers and May Nag-Text! were held right after. The winners were given prizes that were sponsored by the church leaders. The elders also sponsored the raffle, with backpacks as the main prizes.

After the games, Ariel Cacho, the youth officer-in-charge, gave a short message for the young people about handling the troubles that one encounters today. He ended the program with another Praise and Worship.