Presentation of Shirts to the CSSP Week Planning Committee

Jaristi, our group leader asked me to represent the class to the CSSP Week Planning Committee. My task was to ask the professors present in the committee hearing for help with the selling of the centennial shirts. But lack of sleep and coffee or something must have gotten in the way of usually logical thinking, I got things mixed up. In the end I made the committee members think that the projects being done by the CWTS teams are for the CSSP Week celebration. I realized this when I talked to Patriz that night through YM and she told me that I made the committee confused. She said that Prof. Deocariza had to explain to the committee that what we are doing in class doesn’t have anything to do with the CSSP celebration. It was funny now, but I think our dear professor deserved an apology. Sorry Sir!

Centennial Shirts For Sale!

Part of the publicity team's project is to sell t-shirts especially designed for UP's 100th year celebration. The team started erecting a booth along AS walk on the last week of January. The team offered two shirt designs available in female and male sizes.

As my schedule this semester is unpredictable due to my thesis data gathering, I was able to help with the booth only once. It was a whole new experience - tiring yet satisfying. This activity also tested my patience as I had to deal with different types of people. There were those who are friendly, timid, indifferent, and bitchy. Luckily, the sales on the day I helped was good so I didn’t bore myself to death. I would have liked to help again but my schedule forbade me to. But all in all, it was a happy experience.

Publicity Team Online - Part 2

I wasn’t able to join my team on the second YM meeting due to a last minute interview with a key informant for my thesis. Luckily, Jaristi and Patriz were still online, so I was kept updated on the projects’ progress. The team talked about the details of the plans for the publicity campaign – posters and fliers are definitely on the list. I suggested placing tarpaulins instead in conspicuous areas in AS. Prof. Deocariza, on the group’s first meeting, suggested selling shirts especially designed for UP’s centennial as a form of fund raising for the class’ projects, and the team decided to give it a shot. We could erect a booth along AS walk during our free time. The team later settled also for a mini-concert to be held at a bar in Katipunan.

Publicity Team Online - Part 1

The publicity team went hi-tech! Another useful online tool for our team is the YM (Yahoo Messenger), where we can talk in real time about our publicity campaign plans. The first time we used this Yahoo feature, the group discussed about possible ways to let the public know about the projects of the CWTS-Geography for UP’s 100^th celebration. For the time being, we settled for posters and other usual publicity stuff. In our next meeting – I think online again – we will start planning the details.

Yahoo! We Have A Group!

Thank goodness for Yahoo! Groups! With each of the publicity team members’ busy schedule (especially for thesis writing students like me) online meeting places like Yahoo Groups are a big help. I have invited my groupmates to join so we can "meet" and plan our campaigns without actually seeing each other. Almost half of them have already accepted my invitation and we are starting to build an online database of our contact information.

CWTS Publicity Team Preparation

The publicity team was tasked to conceptualize and create campaign materials for the CWTS-Geography’s celebration of the UP centennial. From the very first of the team’s many meetings, ideas to publicize the film tribute, exhibit and website to be launched at the end of the semester started pouring in: there were the standard posters and flyers, but someone also suggested the unconventional human billboards.

Even though composed of students from different departments (and even colleges; I for one, came from the College of Mass Communication), and from different year levels, each member of the publicity team is looking forward to an enjoyable semester.

Reflection 5: Community Profiling

My Kapampangan neighbour and I have different opinions on who the better actor is, Jinggoy Estrada or Mikey Arroyo.

My childhood friend and I who lives next door to the right are poles apart when it comes to the issue of whether Manny Pacquiao should have or should not have won the congressional seat from Darlene Custodio.

The “lutong ulam” vendor and I cannot agree on whether pork sinigang should have ginger as an ingredient.

We may all differ in opinions, perspectives, cultures, etc., but at the end of the day we all worry about if the next tide will be high or low, since our place is within the boundary of Caloocan, Navotas and Malabon. I, my Kapampangan neighbour, my childhood friend and the “lutong ulam” vendor are all members of Barangay 12 community in Caloocan City.

Knowing the common concerns and problems in our community (flood for instance), helps in the planning of the programs and projects that will improve our lives. Once or twice every year, usually during the rainy months, the local government of Caloocan dispatches anti-dengue teams to our community. They conduct lectures on how to avoid the disease caused by mosquito bites, as well as how to spot a person with dengue.

Another project by the Caloocan local government was the free anti-rabies injection for the residents’ pet dogs. This was carried-out a few years ago, at a time when the number of cases of rabid dog bite victims was high. I remember it, since my most favourite pet of all time Archie (RIP) benefitted from the project.

Before they went on with the project, the people from the local government cooperated with our barangay officials who gathered all the residents and dog owners. They explained to us the importance of the project and went to interview each of the dog owners about the dogs. Among the things I remember the representative asked me were how old was my dog, what breed, if my dog has ever bitten someone, etc.

It proved successful because the incidence of rabies victims in my community went down. And when Archie had bitten my bestfriend in the shin, he only suffered from shock and became much wary of approaching any dog.