Double-A Magazine

Written by: william Alonzo & Andrew chua

FreshStart: Xavier’s Freshmen

Once I got to high school, everything changed. I once thought that I knew all the little places around the school because iʼve been in Xavier for quite a while now. I realized that I was wrong, I was surprised to see that I donʼt know anything about the high school grounds. The gym and patio were familiar, but everything else was all new to me.

" Another new thing were my new classmates, usually from St. Jude, so many transferees got in our batch, two of them were in my homeroom. Since they were new, I was pretty cautious around them, a little quiet actually. I would try to talk to them every now and then, finding something we have in common. After the first two weeks, the new kid got used to me. I would talk to him more often, and it turns out, they are more hardworking than I had imagined. Its either an A or an A+ for every test they have. By the time it was second quarter, we knew that they were going to be nominated for the Xavier Award.

" Usually, on the first day of school when we were in grade school, we would get tired of the lessons. It would be last yearʼs with something extra. In high school, its completely different. I was excited to learn new things like biology, and quadratic functions. Although Chinese has been the same old routine,(new words then story then test the next day) it is just one out of the seven subjects (not including art, music, PE, and extra-curricular activities). Also, since it was high school, I was expecting a different kind of art and music, like when I was still in grade 5, I was excited to be in grade 6 the next year because we would have carpentry. I still hold my art project in my room like it was a trophy. I actually thought I would be studying about Pablo Picasso and his interesting back story. What I learned is that the new lessons may be hard, but they are interesting and worth learning.

" As always, a new year meant new teachers, we did the old tradition of whenever you meet a new teacher. Keep quiet, observe the teacher, and when youʼre sure heʼs not strict or anything, you can start talking now. I met strict teachers, kind teachers, teachers who didnʼt even care if you were playing soccer at the back of the room, and teachers who were the stuff of nightmares. You always have at least one of those in each school year. At first it felt weird how they called us “gentlemen” instead of “boys”. I was still used to grade school. But then you just get used to it.

" Like every new year, my first year of being a freshman was hard and unfamiliar. You always get used to it, I will never know how, but you just do.

-Andrew Chua

BRAND NEW

"

June 2012, the legendary moment of one finally being part of the High School student body ... well, for the Rouge Stallions that is.

" 9 months ago, I, together with my batch mates, became Freshies. I remember it just like it was yesterday. <--- ahahaha see what I did there? Nah? Hehehehe, but Iʼm not kidding.

" Fresh off summer and being a couch-potato 3 months straight, I did not really look forward going back to school. I woke up, lazy as ever and went through the daily morning routine. I disliked the thought of going back and working my ass off, but then again, I remembered that itʼs quite different this time around. William Alonzo - FRESHMAN ... now doesnʼt that sound great? I hoped on the car and went to school with so much high hopes.

" When I entered the High School building, everything started setting in. All my joys and happiness of now being a freshman, suddenly turned into fear. Starting from the aura of the place, to the classrooms; from the teachers to the building itself, I could tell that being part of High School meant serious business. Before, our building was something lively and jumpy, and when I saw the one we had now, I thought that High School wasnʼt going to be as fun.

" When our teachers came in, most of them really looked serious. Away from the usual teachers that we had back then, I was afraid that they were going to “terrors”. There was this one teacher who spoke so fast in filipino, and said that he disliked noise. I was really frightened at that time! Also, there was this one who also owned one of my classmates when he tried to make a joke and it was just of a different league out there

" Aside from that, I felt like I was a 1st grader all of a sudden once more. Before in Middle School, we were the oldest, but now wherein we are in High School, we are the youngest once more. I felt intimidated to be part of high school on my first day, and all my joys and high hopes faded all of a sudden. My smile turned into a frown and I had goosebumps all over my body

-William Alonzo

START !!!

FEAR. When I first stepped on to the gates of High School, this word suddenly engulfed me.

" Usually, on the first day of school, we had our orientations and we let it be. Our teachers tell us about our curriculum and it sounds more like the curriculum of last year, but with cream, syrup and cherry on top. Same old same old. Unfortunately, that usually was only true for the past years.

" This year, when we had our couple of orientations, the fear that I first felt grew even bigger. I heard of quadratic functions, prologue writing, and lots more that I wasnʼt even aware of before. In addition, I saw how different the assessments were. Aside from the usual quiz, we were suppose to make videos, brochures, 800 word essays, and much much more. Oh oh! Speaking about assessments being harder, talk about not having INCENTIVE!

" Before when we were part of the math advance class, we always had a 10% incentive on every graded assessment given that the lesson we took was harder compared to that of the regular. Now, that incentive only applies to the QT. UNFAIR! I felt the pressure sink in, and that was something not worth looking forward to at all.

" In addition to these, we learned on how easy it was to get a green slip as well. From leaving simple wallets and watches in your room, to leaving your gadgets, getting a sanction seemed easier to get now. I mean ... a wallet?

" First day has gone, and I saw how difficult High School can be. Maybe itʼs all on getting used to it.

-William

DARK DAYS

OF PROBLEMS There were difficulties in the start of the school year. Getting used to the 7 day cycle took a while for me to get used to, I often confused what subject to which day, finding out that it was actually another day. Sometimes I go to school with day 1 supplies on day 4. That was not the worst of my problems, since the teachers expect us to be more behaved, I see greenslips flying here and there. School just got scarier, I would be careful of my surroundings, stay five clicks away from any teacher, or thatʼs what my inner radar would tell me.

There would be more annoying teachers. Back then, annoying would mean Chinese teachers who wouldnʼt give you a good grade, or teachers that are really specific and takes your essay too seriously, scrutinizing every word. This year, not even the occasional grammar nazi english teacher would compare to the “I will postpone todayʼs test, but I will give you different test today” kind. (which is usually the Chinese teachers who clearly donʼt know half of what we are saying) Reasoning with them would be a useless cause. It seemed that going to high school was a big mistake.

But, as always, every problem has a solution. I would stick around the quiet guys (usually the transferees) because I know they wonʼt attract attention, and also because I could make a new friend. You could always be with your old barkada, but just make sure that your group is not the rowdy or noisy one or else you could be visiting the ODS more often.

Along with hard lessons come hard tests. How will you keep up your honor you got back in grade 7? Try asking your classmates for help, or even asking the teacher. I actually have a hard time asking the teacher at the start of the school year,(I thought there was a criteria on how you use the intercom on the teacherʼs workroom) donʼt worry, you will get used to everything.

No matter how hard it is to tell your teacher that you donʼt understand the lesson or that there are already five assessments due on that day, donʼt be annoyed, thereʼs always a reason behind that. Iʼve noticed that many people donʼt take their work seriously when they donʼt like the teacher, it is not worth it. They think that they are messing around with the teacher but they are actually messing around with their grade. Everytime I get tired, I would usually get a drink or eat some chips to get my mind off things, then continue where I left off, more energized. This also works when you are writing some story for English and you have a mind block.

-Andrew

MAN FOR

Funny, I thought high school would be another four years of hell for me, but its a pretty fun ride so far. It is scary, but you will have a good time. It reminded me of the first time I rode space mountain in DisneyLand, I thought it was some scary rollercoaster like Spaceshuttle in EK, but it was fast and I loved it the whole way. Like high school, there will be many things that will scare you, you will feel the rush, and forget almost all the troubles,(until one hour before the deadline of a 20% assessment) but you will have the time of your life.

-Andrew

BROTHERSA month has gone since I became part of High School, and still not much of an improvement. I have gone through HELL WEEKS in grade school terms , and everyday in high school terms. HOW GREAT THE DIFFERENCE!

" After a month, I still did not get used to being part of the High School. Although I have tried coping up, there were still some subjects I was trying to catch up on. I was still having a hard time, and some simple things like a check-up quiz, I have stayed up for all night already. I was worried how itʼs gonna be when the actual assessments come and when the HELL WEEKS do come. Because of this, I started seeking help from my friends who got used to High School already.

" Given the fact that I was only a freshie and the youngest among 4 High School batches, I was the one least experience of being part of that kind of student body. Because of my want to cope up, I asked help from my older brothers and give me tips. I asked people like Patrick Castillo on how to cope up with High School and they have given me such great tips that did work out well.

" One of the most useful tips given to me, was to just go with the flow. Donʼt be worried or donʼt fret on what may happen, cus your biggest enemy is yourself. If you create problems that do not exist, you will have a hard time. Go with the flow, chill, get used to the rhythm of things and youʼll get there. The more you force it, the earlier youʼll get worn out.Take it step by step and then you will get there.

" A month after than month after the start of school, I started getting the hang of things. I figured that if I panicked, I wouldnʼt be productive at all. In addition to that, I realized that if you can give up watching TV, playing any playing console, or using any kind of thing that you really donʼt need, refrain from it and be productive.

" - William

  Months  have  gone,  and  I  started  enjoying  High  School.  The  first  impression  of  it  being  really  serious  vanished,  as  I  was  able  to  experience  what  High  School  truly  meant.  

  When  I  heard  the  orientaBon,  and  heard  advice  from  my  friends  of  giving  up  watching  TV  and  such,  I  hated  the  thought  of  High  School  and  missed  Grade  School  all  of  a  sudden.  But  when  I  realized  that  all  it  took  was  Bme  management  and  doing  your  prioriBes  first,  it  all  changed.  

  I  figured  that  High  School  gave  so  much  different  opportuniBes.  If  you  were  too  concentrated  on  grades  or  too  concentrated  on  ECA  before,  High  School  helps  you  refrain  to  that  and  gives  you  both.  They  offer  clubs  and  so  much  commiLees  wherein  you  could  learn  a  lot  and  good  grades,  and  most  of  all  have  fun.  One  club  I  joined  this  year  that  I  believed  offer  both  was  Debate  Club  and  Xsports.  Debate  was  fun  simply  because  you  can  argue  and  get  mad  without  even  anyone  gePng  mad  at  you.  In  fact,  they  even  encourage  you  as  long  as  you  sBll  make  sense.  Also,  you  not  only  get  to  be  “badass”,  but  you  also  get  to  learn  so  much  things  about  current  events,  and  perceive  things  in  a  deeper  sense  than  the  old  way  of  looking  at  things.  Now  for  XSports,  it  was  fun  because  you  play  sports  ...  correcBon  ...  compeBBve  sports.  In  addiBon,  you  also  get  to  learn  how  to  play  parkour,  karate,  and  other  sports  that  aren’t  mainstream.  Best  part,  you  don’t  have  to  get  out  of  your  way  to  be  part  of  these  clubs,  all  you  have  to  do  is  fill  in  a  slip  and  drop  it!

  One  commiLee  that  is  legen-­‐wait  for  it-­‐dary  is  the  A-­‐Day  commiLee.  Aside  from  you  being  able  to  do  something  for  the  appreciaBon  of  people,  you  get  to  do  it  with  style.  Have  you  ever  wondered  how  good  it  feels  to  keep  a  secret  for  months  away  from  those  you  see  everyday,  well  ADComm  allows  you  to  feel  just  like  that!  Aside  from  keeping  secrets  and  feeling  like  spies,  you  feel  like  a  ninja  too  as  you  try  to  prepare  and  surprise  your  teachers  without  them  even  knowing  it.  Oh  oh!  Sleepless  nights  with  MCDO  all  the  Bme???  Yeah  that’s  ADCOMM  for  you!

  Before  I  thought  having  different  kinds  of  assessments  rather  than  just  quizzes  was  something  stupid,  but  I  realized  it  could  be  fun.  A  quick  example  of  this  was  the  first  assessment  I  had  which  was  a  mythbusters-­‐themed  report.  We  took  a  classic  boring  unwanted  awful  same  old  mind-­‐bugging  unappeBzing  bad  adjecBving  kind  of  science  experiment,  and  turned  it  into  a  funny  video.  By  having  this  rather  than  just  a  quiz,  we  were  able  to  exercise  our  other  talents  with  gadgets  and  hone  our  skills  too.  

  To  be  part  of  the  High  School  student  body  is  hard  at  first,  but  once  you  get  the  hang  of  it,  you’ll  love  every  single  of  it.

 -­‐William

IT’S MORE FUN

IN XAVIER ;)Aside from having fun, there are many good things that come with being a freshman. You are a kuya to the younger batches. You would be looked up by the younger batches and would be a great leader to them. This would help you in the long run as it can do wonders for getting children to go to your booth, or supporting you in running for office, or even supporting you in your committeeʼs projects. Either way, you will get little minions to do your bidding.(but not in an evil way wherein you abuse your powers, use it to help the school). Another good thing is that you can join committees. You can work on school projects like the Fair or Variety show. Not only will you be given credit, you will also be happier because you know you did something for your school. People will not only know you as the kuya who had the awesome booth at the fair, but will know you as the kuya who planned the awesome “Vari”.

" One of the perks I enjoy the most is the fact that you can go around the school without being held back by the “high school only” signs. It makes you feel like a VIP and really helps on the days where I need a long power-walk around the school to take my mind off things or help me on my next test. The most evident good thing about being in high school is that they have letter grades. It is now easier to get As (which is required in first honor), but is harder to get A+. Now it is easier for me not to be scared of bringing home low grades. Because of the new grading system, even if your answers are all wrong, you have a chance of getting that C or higher in Math(actually depends on your mistakes).

-Andrew

IT’S MORE FUNSo far my first year in high school was a blast. Iʼm pretty sure it will for

the future batches. No matter how high or how low, you will never run out of fun. Whether you are having your daily study time or cramming for a science project, there is always that moment where you see that High 1 is not that bad. Even if you are having trouble with your friends or just having a good time, youʼll notice that school is not all work, there is still room to play. When I look back at the previous years, I wonder how I could have not seen any of these. It just seems that High 1 has this special something that lets you see the real good side of school.

-Andrew

IN H1F For  me,  aside  from  all  the  ECA  and  interesBng  assessments,  the  most  important  part  of  High  School  is  my  epic  bond  with  all  my  classmates.  

  Without  my  classmates,  I  do  not  believe  that  I  could  have  gone  through  the  9  months  of  my  freshman  year  without  them.  From  smart  people  to  athleBc  people,  from  silent  people  to  troublemakers,  they  all  allowed  me  to  be  a  beLer  person  that  I  was  before  and  I  cherish  every  moment  I  had  with  them.     Karl  Go  and  Louie  Lagon  and  William  Alonzo-­‐  the  troublesome  trio.  When  I  am  with  Karl  and  Lagon,  there  is  always  this  destrucBve  force  that  defies  all  odds.  What  do  I  mean?  Simple.  When  we  are  groupmates  in  anything,  we  fool  around  first  and  become  a  destrucBve  force,  but  all  of  a  sudden  in  the  last  minute  we  all  just  come  together  and  create  something  epic.  Weird  huh?  Maybe  that’s  why  we’re  troublesome  ...  we  create  trouble  ...  but  just  some  ;)  

  During  the  1st  quarter,  the  sly  SEBASTIAN  WILLIAM  DI  allowed  me  to  further  develop  my  creaBvity.  Since  he  was  my  partner  during  the  Mythbusters  project  I  was  talking  about,  we  had  to  pour  all  our  creaBve  juices  out.  Him  being  one  of  the  most  creaBve  people  I  know,  has  driven  me  to  go  beyond  what  I  usually  do  for  projects.  We  created  storyboards,  characters,  edited  music,  looked  for  things  that  were  fit  for  the  projects  and  really  worked  our  ass  off.  Months  away  from  the  1st  quarter,  the  both  of  us  together  with  some  other  people  like  Javi  Sabarre  created  other  

videos  for  our  A-­‐day  Video,  Christmas  Video,  Fair  Video,  and  much  much  more.  

  Speaking  about  the  Fair,  our  President  ChrisBan  Ng,    allowed  me  to  further  develop  my  leadership  skills.  On  ever  single  compeBBon  and  such,  ChrisBan  and  I  always  teamed  up  as  the  leaders  of  such  things.  From  the  Filipino  Oral  CompeBBon,  Fair,  Service  InteracBon  PresentaBon  and  such,  I  think  I  owe  ChrisBan  for  driving  the  leader  and  the  iniBaBve  within  of  me  out.  Can  you  believe,  that  due  to  our  endless  revisions  and  last-­‐minute  changes,  we  won  the  Filipino  Oral  compeBBon?  FIRST  PLACE!  Also,  due  to  all  our  efforts  in  our  planning  for  the  fair,  we  were  able  to  gain  so  much  funds.  Oh  oh  yeah...  due  to  the  endless  night  that  we  pracBced  our  PresentaBon  for  Service  InteracBon,  we  were  able  to  put  smiles  on  the  face  of  the  imprisoned?  How  cool  is  that?  

  Yes  super  cool,  but  you  know  what  is  cooler???  My  seatmates!  The  troublesome  quad  of  SebasBan  Di,  Francis  Leung,  MarBn  Guevarra,  Javi  Sabarre  +  the  forever  alone  Louie  Lagon  +  the  ever  awesome  Karl  Go  +  Chinese  class  partners  Gab  Santos,  ChrisBan  Dy,  Nikson  Kho,  Elijah  Chua,  Kurt  Tan  +  the  math  pakwan  Nathan  Oranga  +  ever-­‐creaBve  choreographer  Nathan  Chua  +  Jai-­‐ho  neighbor  Vince  Nioko  and  I  can  go  on  and  on  and  on  ...  they  all  made  my  darn  awesome  year.  Yes  that’s  right  I  have  a  lot  of  seatmates  problem?    Each  and  every  person  in  my  class,  with  their  weird  and  different  personaliBes,  made  me  a  person  beLer  today,  one  who  seeks  magis.  

 -­‐  William  Alonzo

DOUBLE A- MAGAZINE WRITTEN

BY ALONZO AND ANDREW.

DISCLAIMER: ALL PICTURES CAME

FROM XAVIER SCHOOL’S FB PAGE, MEME GENERATOR

AND MR. HOFILENA’S

PHOTOS.

#ITSMOREFUNINXAVIER #ITSMORFUNINH1F