Dispatches by Adrian Conoza

In these times where the the World Wide Web—particularly the social media—is the main medium, Facebook's news feed is our most accessible newspaper. The News Feed has become one of our windows to what's happening or has happened within our circles (family and relatives, friends, communities) and around the world. Image credit: personneltoday.com With our scrolling ( which often becomes too tedious ), we see a plethora of posts, either they may be statuses, photos, or links. And along with these posts, Facebook introduced us to three functions we could use to respond to posts and to reactions to those posts, as well as to see whether our posts are well-received or not. These are the like , the comment , and the share . Among these three, the like is what Facebook is mostly known for; it even has taken its place on contemporary language and culture. But what does a like mean these days? As I have observed in my daily practice of logging on to Facebook,  that blue "thumbs-up&

Source: oi.uchicago.edu One of the privileges I had when I started going to college was a vast library. I only had little experiences regarding libraries when I was in elementary and high school; but when I entered UST I've been so amazed with the campus' big and wide UST Miguel de Benavides Library, just a few walks away from St. Raymund's Building, where my classes have taken place. Whenever there's schoolwork that involves research, or whenever I just wanted to pass time and dwell in coldness, the library is the place to go. Usually upon entering that library I go right into the elevator and head to fifth floor. I would then go to my left, opening a glass door to a cold hallway to my favorite hangout—the Humanities section. A particular place Inside Humanities there's a portion among the rows of desks, tables, and shelves that uniquely stands out. It's actually a corner of the room, situated at the upper-left side. This box-like 'nest' has two arches,

It’s been a long time since I returned here in this blog. While I was in the campus, I didn't have the time to write here, even to keep a journal. Many things have happened in these last months that comprised the second semester of my first year in college. Finally, I'm done with first year. I miss a bit doing the things that kept me moving previously, though. I've missed writing here, and I believe there's much to tell about out of all I've been through while the Dispatch was left dormant. This time I start with this question: how were these past days and months? The answer: not easy, but great.   Not easy . It's not supposed to be, anyway. The first semester of first year was uneasy as well at several, unforgettable points. Yet, the second half of the game was more burdensome. My classmates and I saw the bulk of schoolwork we have had to overcome—from readings, projects, presentations, even an event and a research! An ordeal it was—an ordeal that consisted of

Last year, in my final year in high school, I successfully became a part of our school paper, being a contributor. I wrote much pieces enough for the people in-charge to include or exclude. The next year, I finally had a copy of the paper in my hands, and I found my name on print on the features section. That was already a success to me. And in this blessed day the Lord gave to me, and to my family in year 1997, let the following piece be my offering to you, dear reader. Compared to the piece on print, this is an updated edition. —◘— Picture credit: www.cartoonaday.com Models aren't only the ones with lots of pictures. Even the youth of today, especially our modern-day Filipinas, have lots of them, even tons and tons of them. They're lucky they don't have to use film after film. Thanks to digital camera—no, wait—to touchscreen cellphones, anyone can picture anything, anytime, and anywhere more efficiently. And what do we get? Multitudes of photos uploaded in social media an

When before I've been into 80's music and present alternative music, now I've included 2 different genres. Thanks to 2 different radio stations I've been listening to recently. 98.7 DZFE : The Master's Touch dzfe.febc.ph Last year, I started frequently listening to 98.7 DZFE, making it my background music while doing schoolwork, especially when I stayed wide-awake until dawn and when I took a week-long semestral break. Before, I didn't listen much to classical. But with 98.7, I listen more and more. Before, I thought I wouldn't get to listen to this station, though I know it already as a child. Now, I got myself to listen. DZFE helped me to further appreciate this kind of music, as well as jazz (initially) and church music (e.g.: "A Mighty Fortress"). The difficult thing, I guess, is knowing the titles. Unlike modern music, you may listen and take note of the lyrics, then search it on the Net. In classical, you have to pay attention whenever an ann

I've been into constant reading since second year, thanks to my so-called sanctuary—a secondhand bookstore with branches at a mall near my house and a mall near my high school campus. My interest for books and literature greatly increased throughout high school. I've discovered prominent authors and brilliant works. I unearthed old books that I consider as treasures. This great inclination made me hunt for more books. I became attracted by the stories and ideas inside the thick and thin stacks of print, bounded by either a thick material or a thin carton. I've been amused whenever I saw a good book that I thought interesting or essential to read. So from time to time, I have purchased many books. These books formed a small library in my room. I've even counted them before, and they amounted to around hundreds. The books I've bought stacked up, and, overtime, are left unread. I've realized lately that I've collected a lot of books, and for years, I haven'

The late Walter Cronkite (1916-2009), former newscaster of CBS Evening News in the US. Before I gained desire for literature, I was inclined to journalism. Being a television enthusiast helped me to get myself closer to the field, watching newscasts, unearthing clips, and observing the styles of anchors and reporters. I remember frequently watching CBS Evening News and NBC Nightly News during my elementary days, since I was less busy at those times. However, the flair shifted at 2nd year, from this field to another, and that field is literature. I became more fond of fiction and poetry, instead of news and its associates. There is this show, however, which I discovered maybe when I was at 2nd year, and which I think will be the program I would work for if I were a journalist. It's a very old show from the 80's in USA which was well-known for its unique style of news delivery, as well as for airing in the wee hours of early morning when TV stations were then supposed to be of

Being a radio enthusiast, I found out a radio station in New York, U.S.A. which is one of the pioneers of the all-news format since 1965. It is 1010 WINS in the amplitude modulation (AM). Unlike stations here in the Philippines where news and talk combine, 1010 WINS delivers news non-stop, dividing an hour into three 20-minute newscasts. In each slot almost everything is filled in: national and world items, sports, business, weather and traffic. It almost "give[s] you the world" through those broadcasts. When you need the news or other information, just turn your radio on, then go to 1010 AM, and there's the information. You don't have to stay long, I assume. You can simply consume and digest information in 20 minutes or less than that, and also listen to it "2, 3, 4 times a day" . With that, I see some similarity with Internet.  From: http://s1.ibtimes.com/sites/www.ibtimes.com/ files/styles/picture_this/public/2011/06/21/ 117486-charlie-loves-his-pc.jpg In

Source: http://www.katarinaforss.com/img/silence.jpg I know it in myself. I cannot deny it. Many people, especially very close friends in high school, see me as a talkative (at the least) and engaging guy. By timing and exposure, I get to speak and talk and converse among people. Yet, many still have an impression of me as the opposite, and I don't deny that. At many circumstances, I'm silent. Quiet. Static. Loner. But, silent is the best term I'll accept. Perhaps this is one of my marks of being a writer; a mark making my desire for writing really fit to me; perhaps the reason why I'm inclined to make my voice heard through written words rather than spoken ones. But, believe me, I want to break that silence. I've already did that before, but I want to do it again. I seek to break the barriers that are still there, and have more connections while still being myself. I've recently heard and learned that it is said that there are 4 personalities in general: sangui

Last year, I won 3rd place in field reporting in the radio broadcasting competition of the District School Press Conference, and the school our whole team were representing won 3rd place in the competition proper. I did the script of a 5-minute (at the least) newscast, and played a role on one of the 4 field reporters. I was urged by my English teacher and some fellow seniors to join the team for the competition. I decided to go since it sounded interesting. At first, it was sort of uncomfortable for me to do, but as I went on knowing the basics and practicing and preparing for the contest, I began learning a lot and enjoying the experience with my teammates. Picture from: http://charlieagatep.wordpress.com/2012/02/10/lights-camera-how-philippine-tv-began/ Signing-on Ever since as a child I gained interest in media, from television to print; yet what seems to be not much appreciated by teenagers is still my unfading interest. As an elementary student, I would turn that circular part of

One pounding beat. Then another. And another. And one last more. A brass fanfare follows, alongside a snare, slowly going crescendo, then blasting before it pauses. Alongside this sound is a capture of a long, black, swivel chair that seems to be a kind executives sit on. The atmosphere around the studio is black and serious. Spotlights show up, shining at the chair, then to four people sitting on one side. This is how every Mastermind episode begins. This is what the game show is known for—its seriousness, shown in the dark studio and in the theme music entitled "Approaching Menace". This is a game show where intellect counts a lot. This is not aired in the Philippines, but it is very popular in United Kingdom, where it aired since 1972, and stopped at around 1997, then came back at 2003. Mechanics There are 2 rounds in Mastermind. In the first round, the four people are going to be asked, one by one, by the game master about a specialist subject each of these contestants h