Taon ng Bagong Pag-asa

by Sanny David Lumayno


Napakubuti ng Panginoon,
Tayo’y nakaabot ng Bagong Taon.
Halina’t pasalamatan Siya,
Ipakita natin kung ga’no tayo kasaya.

Salamat sa talino’t lakas,
At sa pag-ibig Niyang wagas.
‘sang taong puno ng biyaya,
Binigay ng Diyos na dakila.

Sa mga nagdaang kabiguan,
Pagsubok at kapighatian,
Ating Ama ang tanging dahilan,
Kung ba’t natin ito nalampasan.

Bagong Taon ay bagong pag-asa,
Nais ng Maykapal,tayo’y magbago na.
Dilim ng kahapo’y wag nang balikan,
Harapin ang liwanag ng kinabukasan.

Kung kayo’y nawala sa kanyang presensya,
Di pa huli,magbalik loob sa Kanya.
Mahal Niya tayo kaibigan,
At sana sa kanya’y atin ding iparamdam.t

Di pa ba sapat ang buhay Niya?
Ba’t ka pa nawalay sa landas Niya?
Aking kaibigan, panahon na
Upang tayo'y gumawa naman para sa'ting Ama.


Binabati ko kayong lahat mga lampirities ng masayang Bagong taon sa piling ng ating Panginoon!!!
Mahal na mahal ko kayong lahat.... kitakitz :=)

Happy New Year

by Azin Libanan

2007 is just a few hours away...
When the clock strikes 12,
Fireworks will crackle,
Horns will blast,
Fingers will bleed,
Casualties'll come fast.
The tables will plenty,
with food abounds,
filled with lots of people,
rejoicing aroun.
As 2006 finally bids us goodbye,
remember every person who made us laugh and cry.
And when year '07 says hello,
welcome it with a heartfelt glow...
As I end this poem in a yuletide cheer,
from the bottom of my heart:
MERRY CHRISTMAS & A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!

I really hope you are enjoying your short but memorable vacation. Christmas, as all of us know, is the time full of sharing, loving and reminiscing. We share what we have, regardless of the fact that we even lack such resources, we never count what we give, all we want is to make the people we have shared with to be happy. Their happiness can never be bought by any amount, it can never be bargained by any thing; simply, it’s priceless. Christmas time is the peak of the loving season. We give love to our loved ones and even to those who we don’t know. Loving is not only done through kissing or saying “I love you” to someone. It can be expressed through many and various ways; through charity for example. As we share our blessings we also give love to the needy people, we show them that we care for them, and we show them that we also love them. And last but no the least, the true essence of Christmas is by reminiscing the birth of our savior, the one who sacrificed for us to be free from the sins of the world; Jesus Christ. In our hearts, in our souls, we should never forget the wondrous gift God gave us, the gift of living. Let us give honor and glory to the one who sacrificed himself for our salvation, let us celebrate Christmas with all that we have, let’s make it special.

Xerxes Seposo, House Council President

Merry Christmas from the Boys' Wing

Merry Christmas from the Boys' Wing!

Alaala sa Hall 1

by Anonymous (Magpakilala ka nga)

Habang ako’y nakaupo sa kubeta,
naisipan kong sumulat ng tula.
Tulang tungkol sa pamamalagi ko,
ng 6 na buwan sa dorm ni madam Tronco.

Ako’y napaisip, ako ay nalito,
kung pano ko dudugtungan tula kong ito.
Hanggang umabot sa puntong.. “aha!”
Sisimulan ko ito sa dal’wang letra…

SA dormitoryong ito, ako’y nakatagpo,
ng samu’t samong klase ng tao.
Mabait, mabibig, matahimik, magulo,
kahit ano, kumpleto ang Hall 1 nito.

Nakilala ko rin ang mga upperclassmen,
na handang mag alay ng kamay sa freshmen.
Maliit, malaki kayang solusyunan
Pwera 'guro kung pera'y pag-uusapan.

Ang gustong magrosaryo, DASOC ang lapitan,
ang mahilig sa cards PUSOC ang kailangan.
Kung kumukulo ang tiyan si ate Fel ang puntahan,
Kung wala kang load, kay Kuya Rex ka umutang.

Sino ba ang makakalimot sa ube jammers,
O di kaya sa broderhud ng mga dormers.
Idagdag mo pa sina tiyay tuting,
at ang alagang aso kuno ng boys wing.

Pagkatapos ng nakakabinat na klase,
mga lalake’y raragasa sa room 23.
Dito naglalaro ng pokemon sina JC,
Rez, Jayson, kuya Mon at Anthony.

Salamat sa PC ni Kuya Rexy,
at ang mga Adan ay naging happy.
Sa digicam din n’yang walang kasawa-sawa,
magtake ng pictures sa gaya kong feeling artista.

Sari-saring pakulo hatid ng dormitoryo,
upang bigyang ngiti ang mga tulad ko.
Binugoy, high school day o kaya’y huego,
ito’y karanasang tatatak sa puso ko

At sa natitirang tatlong buwan,
na pamamalagi ko sa Hall 1.
Ako’y lugod na nagpapasalamat(sa Diyos)
Kayo'y natagpua't nakilala ko Lahat!

Christmas Break! Uwian Na!

Uwian na!

Most of us will be at home for the two weeks of Christmas vacation. Yeah, two weeks lang! Before we know it, we'll be back January 2, 2007 for our classes. So some will be spending New Year at sea... oh dear.....

Look on the bright side. You can stay at home all you want after college, but you can only experience the best dorm in the entire universe. Balay Lampirong, for one year! So make the most of it. Haha!

Hey! There are so many of you visiting this blog without even leaving a trace! Tell us how your Christmas vacation is going. Please post a comment. What'ya doin? Musta naman d'yan?

Wanted! Articles!

PAGING! Hall 1 Residents! Please contribute your thoughts by either writing a full-length article or simply by commenting on the already-posted-articles. You can write ANYTHING about Hall 1. Yes! ANYTHING! The more the merrier.

At this point, we still have a few things missing:

1. Christmas Party
2. Sportfest (thanks Noel!)
   
3. High School Day
   
4. Bangaanay
5. Hanutay
   
6. um... if you could still recall, Acquaintance Party
7. what else? Anything nga ehh..

If you're too busy to make a full length article, just comment! And comment on others' comments!

Just click on this to post your comment. Easy!
AND, if you really like an article and you feel like the rest of your friends have got to read it too, just click on the envelope icon and email it to them!

Simbang Gabi

Mass was at 4AM and 5 minutes before that, tricycles packed with Hall 1 residents were roaring uphill towards the Miagao Church. It is the first of the nine days of masses held before Christmas. The church was packed and overflowing with people, some coming from as far away as Iloilo City. Finding a seat was not easy and some just had to stand. The mass was long - about 2 hours with Latin hymns dominating the time. Yes! In Iloilo, Simbang Gabi is still sung in Latin. The choir was great. Their soprano reverberated across the plaza and across the town.

The mass started when it was still dark. When it ended, people were greeted with the golden sunrise that illuminated the yellow-sandstone facade of the church. Even if some of us had zero-hours of sleep, it was a refreshing experience seeing the pigeons gliding from the trees to the belfries.

After this mass, the dorm will pretty much be empty. Each one to their home among the many islands of the Philippines. But before they part for Christmas break, the dormers who managed to get up for this early morning mass had their photo shoot (as usual!) in front of the World-heritage Miagao Church.

Hall 1 Invades Lantern Parade

Quite literally, Hall 1 invaded the Lantern Parade of UPV. Pakapalan ng mukha! While UP Diliman cancelled their Lantern Parade, Hall 1 residents were busy having their picture taken in front of the grandstand. That, in front of hundreds who attended this year's parade that marks the beginning of Christmas vacation. Sir Bob, Hall 1's assistant dorm manager who also happened to be the program's emcee, gave special mention to "the Hall 1" dormers who were brave enough to sit right in front of the stage to watch the performances of several groups that included the Campus Bible Fellowship, Hublag, the College of Management, barangay representatives, and some university administrators.










We might not have our own lantern, but the Hall people surely enjoyed every bit of the program, right in front of the stage.

The winners for this year's Lantern Parade:

Big lantern: College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences
Actually a sea urchin-inspired lantern, this hairy, glowing ball was mistaken for a coral.

Hand-held lantern: School of Technology
Little houses lit up from the inside portray the colorful spirit of Filipino Christmas.

Other scenes from the Lantern Parade:



















After the Lantern Parade, some guys took a walk towards the town-center. They took a stop at the New Admin. Bldg. to have their picture taken beneath the oblation. YIKES! Could they graduate on time???

Slipper Game

The poor Balay Lampirong residents were overcome with boredom. Then the paging system went blaring "Paging all Hall 1 residents... let us play the SLIPPER GAME!" In no time, those who weren't too busy sleeping were out and ready to play. However, there was some confusion as to what 'slipper game' actually meant. Some argued it was tumbang preso, but it turned out that it was the slipper game derived from baseball. Okay. So there's a pitcher who throws a slipper, then someone kicks the slipper, then the short-stop (?) tries to catch it while the kicker runs across the bases and tries to score a home run. Easy? NO!

Some knew the rules, and most didn't. Despite the chaos, those who were watching couldn't help but laugh at the players who were arguing. Apparently, the players were also laughing at themselves.

The game and the arguments might have been a lot less fun if nobody scored a home-run. A home-run in the inner court meant that the slipper would end up on the roof. And it did!

It took a while before they agreed on how to retrieve the slipper. While Xerxes fetched the ladder, Dave and Rommel combined their heights and with the aid of a bamboo pole, successfully retrieved the slipper. Then they played again. Then somebody scored a home-run AGAIN! So this time, Xerxes could try out the ladder. Poor slipper.

Christmas Party

Text is waiting for Xerxes to be in the mood to write.

Lighting Ceremony

Christmas is coming... very, very soon. Ten, nine, eight, seven... one... And lo and behold! Brightness came upon Balay Lampirong. With the help of Manong Larry who installed the lights on the covered canopy, the House Council formally lit up the Christmas lights that made Hall 1 the first dormitory to light up for the Christmas season.

Of course, the Christmas tree was also heavily adorned with lights. Some dormers even started hanging their Christmas tree decors already. Wait! It can't be as simple as that....

The next night, there was the solemn ceremony of hanging Christmas decors. Each room sent a representative to explain the symbolism behind the decor their room was hanging. Many rooms included their own pictures on their decor. There also dangled some stuffed toys, good-luck charms, and a lot of other special things. What did you hang upon that Christmas tree of ours?

Then Joefer took over and with music in the background, explained why we should say sorry and thank you to our fellow dormers. Everyone was in a circle holding candles. Soon the hall 1 family was hugging each other and saying thank you and sorry to anyone they felt they must. It has been six months that they were in this dorm together. A lot has been left unsaid.

It was not only the lights on the tree and outside the dorm that was lit. More importantly, it was the light inside each one that glowed with warmth as a member of the Hall 1 family. Then they sat together outside the dorm looking up to the lights. It makes one happy in a special and mysterious way.

Brgy. Mat-y Sings Carols to Balay Lampirong

One evening, officials of Brgy. Mat-y shared the Christmas experience with Balay Lampirong. At first the dormers were pushing each other as to who should fill the envelope, but eventually ,the envelope was fat and heavy. Yes, coins... but there were bills too. Soon the dormers were actually dancing together with the carolers who may have been a little surprised.

Their carols were in the local dialect which brought challenge to comprehension, but Christmas in any language is still Christmas. Balay Lampirong House Council President Xerxes Seopso, with the assistance of Finance Officer RC Moreno, handed the envelope to the Barangay Captain.

Sportsfest - Huego '06

By Noel Ferriols

It’s not over ‘til the fat lady sings…I guess that could more or less sum up the intense competition between the Odd and Even teams in Hall 1’s sports fest this year. Entitled Huego! 06, this year’s sports fest was packed with fun, flare, and…um…ferfection!

Preparations for the sports fest started days before, with both teams painting their banners and practicing their cheers. The atmosphere became tenser with each passing day.

The day of reckoning came on December 4, 2006…The dormers were roused from their beds by the House Council on the PA system at 4:30 in the morning. They immediately started dawning their colors – Red for the Odd team, White for the Even team – while other residents helped in dressing up their respective muses and escorts.










After suiting up, the dormers assembled in front of the Infirmary for the ceremonial fun run. The pack was led by the House Council with HC President Xerxes Seposo carrying the torch. Following behind, each team started cheering at the top of their lungs nearly waking the whole dorm area. The fun run ended at the Covered Court where a brief opening ceremony and oath taking took place.

After having their breakfast and a little more beauty sleep, the dormers started marching to the Tennis Court and Grandstand for the first games of the day, Tennis and Football! The Odd team dominated the first two events with Burn and IC winning it for tennis and the Odd girls outscoring the Even girls in the penalty shoot-out that followed the 2-2 draw for the Football match.












The Even team did not take this lightly and came back with louder cheers and yells during the Basketball game. The Odd boys gained the lead at the end of the first quarter but the Even girls played a solid game during the second, earning them the lead. The Even team maintained and stretched their advantage way into the dying seconds of the game until they emerged as this year’s Basketball champions!












After lunch, the Even team continued their winning streak by dominating both Volleyball games for men and women. The Table Tennis matches took place simultaneously with Bryan winning it for the Even team and Jolly winning it for the Odd team. The Badminton event was also won by the Odd team making it a really close fight for overall supremacy.















Late in the afternoon, the dormers went back to the grandstand for the Larong Pinoy. Again, the competition was pretty tight with the Odd team clinching the Chinese Garter and Tug of War events. The Even team came back by winning Sikyu. It was anyone’s game by the time all the Pinoy games ended and it was left to the Nature Trek event to decide who would emerge as this year’s champions.



This year’s Nature Trek was a grueling combination to test each team’s cohesiveness, stamina, and perseverance. The Trek was organized by the Hall 1 Upperclassmen and it consisted of 8 stations starting from the Covered Court and ending at the Ocean Weather Laboratory (OWL). Both teams were neck-in-neck up to the final station where the Odd team finished just a few minutes before the even team.






















The sports fest ended with the Odd team being crowned as champions for the second year in a row. Although the competition was tough and tensions ran high, at the end of the day all the residents were back to their fun-loving selves, congratulating and comforting one another in a true show of sportsmanship that only Balay Lampirong can foster. Everyone enjoyed every minute of the day but exhaustion finally settled in. The dormers trooped back to their home away from home for much needed rest.

The next day, most of the residents were doing the Hall 1 walk…that was, limping up and down the AS stairs…scratches, bruises, aching muscles and all…at the end of everything no one cared…as cliché as it may sound, pain was temporary, glory is forever…BALAY LAMPIRONG ROCKS!!! 