gregorio-r-j

[gregorio-r-j]

ECQ THROUGH THE LENS OF A STUDENT

Today my tumbler entry will be filled with my insight of the COVID Life from the perspective of a not so privileged student dealing with academics and early twenties life crisis.

That’s it? It’s been a year already? Where have my 2020 gone? – This question summarizes the whole 2020 journey of almost every one of us. Don’t you all agree that this is one of the worst years this generation has faced? I mean, just look at the left and right tragedies, disasters, war, human hostilities, global pandemic, and the number of unfortunate events that 2020 has brought. Could it be worse? Who would’ve thought that we can lose everything we love and enjoy in our daily life in just a blink of an eye? Looking back to March last year, when the first wave of COVID19 hit our country and ECQ was first implemented, we never have imagined that things will only get worse and this ECQ life will continue up to this day.

Honestly, setting aside the fear of facing the unknown virus and uncertain effects it may impose on our lives, I think the first few months of our ECQ and COVID life is so much lighter and better than how it is today. Whether we admit it or not, I think last year we all expect to be freed from ECQ at this point and be back to our normal life but the opposite happened. Back then we don't have many worries and all we are troubled about is not contracting the disease and how to cope up with being stuck at home with nothing to do and away from our normal and daily life. A lot of us discovered our ways to cope with the quarantine life and boredom. Trends are arising successively and people are sharing their love for diverse things such as Korean dramas, plants, American series, and other common interests. In my case, I found my simple joy in cooking and watching dramas too.

For some, it was a good time to reflect on themselves and return to their long-forgotten passion that they set aside to cope up with the busy daily life but for others, this was not the case. Well, if we look at it from a different perspective, these are just things people do to distract themselves from the continuous rise of the daily number of covid cases that leave everyone with fear and anxiety. This phase only lasts for a few months because the succeeding months are just too much to handle. Aside from the actual health crisis and economic problems the world is facing, we also have household matters such as financial issues, bonds, and individuality, and personal concerns such as academics, individual responsibility, etc. And this pandemic has further shown us the true nature of humanity and how it is like to live with privilege.

Most of the measures the government has implemented in its fight against the pandemic can be considered pro-privileged and anti-poor. The ECQ, MECQ, GCQ or whatever type of lockdowns and quarantine they implemented to contain the spread of the virus made the people on the low level of society suffer from financial issues as many have lost their jobs and source of income. Yes, this is with good intention and they give financial support but this is not enough to sustain a family’s needs but this move neglect the life and sufferings of some people. Moreover, not everyone received financial support and some officials even have the audacity to corrupt the money that is intended for the people. Even the government’s solution to the continuance of education and academic are not accessible or affordable by anyone. The online class setup is only effective for those who are privileged and have the means to engage in it. Not everyone has access to the internet, has gadgets they can use to attend their classes, and has a healthy environment at home where they can focus on their academics and education. These kinds of solution that only benefits those who are privileged and are unfair to those who have less in life only widens the gaps in education forcing many to even consider giving up on their education.

On a personal view, upon reflecting on my ECQ experience and journey, I don’t think I will ever be able to describe how the past year has been for me. I think the closest way to describe it is that it was a mixture of anxiousness, anger, loneliness, failures, disappointment, realizations, and a whole lot of mess with tiny dust of sparkles and sunshine. It was so much more than just a roller coaster ride. During lockdown I found myself asking questions about every single thing about life that doesn’t enter my mind and concern me before. As a 3rd-year college student dealing with one of the hardest phases in my life. I'm honestly exhausted with academics and I do no longer love it the same way that I used to. I haven't exactly moved on yet with the implementation of the k-12 program and now we are faced with a global pandemic and are forced to continue our education in a virtual setting.

At first, I thought it was actually for the better since I can save a lot of expenses and time and save myself from the hassle of traveling to university and dealing with traffic as well as other people. But in a bigger picture, I have realized that we students lose so much more than what we gain from this online academic setup. I used to just smirk when people say college is only bearable when you have your circle of people to bear it with and a healthy learning environment otherwise it can eat you up alive but today I'm seeing what they meant by that. College truly is only bearable when you have people to bear it with and I regret taking that for granted.

During my 1st-2nd year in college, I remember how I was always looking forward to going home and waiting for class suspensions because all I care about was to rest in the comfort of our home. I always think that staying extra longer on campus after class is a waste of time if it is not for organization stuff and university events but now I have realized that the simple joy of spending time with your friends in the field after a long tiring day, eating out with them to enjoy their company, classroom jamming, rehearsals and going out on short trips to manila after exams is a big part of our college life and are some of the most memorable and important parts of surviving college. If only I have foreseen this pandemic to last I would have spent more time with them, eat out in different eateries and restaurants near campus, watching movies, or just simply lay in the field side by side with them complaining about how tiring academics was. I would have enjoyed and attended more events from councils and would have been more active in joining organizations. I miss Odiba days, Christmas tree lighting, and concerts, and even outreach programs we used to attend back on our normal student days.

Sad to say those days have all gone by and we're never really sure if we can go back to how it was before we leave the university a year from now. Everything I have mentioned so far is just a glimpse of our college life that we cannot enjoy in today's online classes but aside from losing all these fun and bright side of being college students, we are also struggling with a lot of setbacks and challenges dealing with the new normal not so friendly and pro-privileged online classes. Honestly, at this point, I don’t know anymore if I have learned from the past semesters we spent through the online setup and if it’s all worth it. The online class is so much more demanding than face-to-face setups in terms of workloads and stress. It’s like a constant chase of deadlines, procrastination, submissions, exams, and nothing else but a survival game that we need to finish to reach our goal and graduate. I have never feared Mondays and 11:59 p.m as much as I do now. Exhausting and draining are not enough to describe how online classes are for students and professors especially if you are enrolled in a university wherein wishing for an academic break to breathe a little from all the stress and hardship of online classes is considered as an excused for laziness. Seems like even university administrators forgot that we are humans and not machines or robot, but even these things malfunction and fail if it’s overused.

This online academic setup has taken its toll on me both in physical and mental aspects. I used to sacrifice sleep, family time, going out, self-enjoyment and my health for the sake of academics but today I cannot afford to sacrifice these because I’m barely making it through and now all I care and focus about is passing and getting works done, I’m no longer thriving but surviving instead. I cannot even bother to break down and crumble when I receive low scores even though I’m used to receiving competent grades because I would rather finish another work that has been piling up on canvas instead of crying over what can’t be changed. It is true when they say that the line between academic and personal time is becoming blurred. In the online class setup, we are no longer students for 6-8 hours like in face-to-face classes but we are becoming 24 hours available students who need to cope up with all the works in every hour of our day available, it is so serious that even sleeping made us feel guilty most of the time. I’m at this point where I’m wondering if all of these sacrifices are worth it.

My quarantine life revolves mostly around fighting my demons. It's like a constant fight against monsters my mind has created. Aside from the constant stress and pressure on my academics, I have also been dealing with life pressures. As a woman in her early twenties stuck in college and juggling academics, family responsibilities, and life progress, and personal growth, I have faced challenges and problems that I have never imagined would cross my path and I had to deal with the consequences of my past decisions and the responsibilities that comes with it. What keeps me going throughout these hard times are my family and friends. Honestly, I would have gone insane or depressed if it's not for them. The academic pressure and all the problems arising in our society is just too much to handle on one’s own and I’m happy that I am blessed enough to be surrounded by people who supports me and believes in me so much sometimes even more than I believe in myself knowing that it is not the case for everyone.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the real meaning of life and how I choose to live it. What’s there to value and give importance to and how we are so blinded and focus on living the life that society tells us to live instead of making a life of our own? Honestly, I just can’t see what comes next after all of this because as of today all I care about is to survive. I am anxious about what the future will hold and where life will lead me someday. Dealing with the pandemic which forced me to stop working towards my goals and plans and losing almost one and a half year of my life that I could have used to focus on my goals and achieving my dreams is truly regretful and depressing. It’s like I’m getting older and older and I haven’t achieved much which makes me think that I am taking longer in life than my peers. Some of them are getting married and having families, some are already working, some are building their own business, and here I am in my room dealing with deadlines and looking forward to an uncertain future. I wish I will soon figure things out and find motivation again, or at least know where it is that I want to go and what is it really that I wanted to achieve.

@bertongbigtime

[gregorio-r-j]

First of all, let's talk about the man caught sleeping in Super Bowl. Super Bowl is the National Football League championship game held yearly in America and is a very popular event most especially for sports and football enthusiasts. The event is so popular that it is broadcasted in almost all of America and other countries. The immense popularity and prevalence of the event/game is also the reason why Super Bowl tickets for live viewing are so expensive amounting to approximately $8,649 and still goes sold out despite the cost.  Knowing all this, it is not surprising that a man sleeping throughout this popular event that is annually anticipated will go viral for no one would imagine and expect this kind of phenomenon to happen. It was also visible in the video how intense is the game and how enthusiastic the audience was, so imagine just how this one particular man in the video manage to sleep through all this fun and excitement. It is a very interesting situation that rarely happens so it receives so much attention plus it is funny and entertaining on top of all that. As for the cases of men earning money while live-streaming their sleep (links posted below). Although some originally discover this idea accidentally by passing out during their streams and receiving sudden popularity and attention it was a brilliant idea. I mean who wouldn't want to earn money and gain followers almost effortlessly just by simply sleeping and practically doing nothing at all? I bet no one. The reason these sleeping trends have become popular in my opinion is that it engages the audience and is interactive at some point. Most people who do sleep live-streaming usually use text-to-speech settings and encourage audiences to disturb them or wake them up. This somehow becomes entertaining as it urges the audience to feel as if it was a goal or task they need to achieve and brings out their interactive nature. In our previous lesson about engaging your audience, one of the key factors is that you need to learn how to make your content interactive because it attracts more people. Interactive contents are more well-loved by the audience as they play a role or take part in the content. It is also notable how these live streams and videos are uploaded on popular social media platforms that cater to a wide range of audiences which contributed a lot to their popularity. Some of the key lessons from these stories are how choosing a platform for your content plays a crucial role in how well they will do, it is important to select a platform wherein people or audiences can engage themselves. With this, engaging your audience and making them take part in your content will be helpful and beneficial for you. To conclude, we have to put in mind that your knowledge about your audience, choice of platform and the quality of your contents are some of the most important things to consider in digital publishing alongside adapting to trends and changes. It is also notable to mention that your content and topic don't always have to be extravagant and outrageous because sometimes simpler and mediocre contents are more relatable for the audience and are more accepted and well-loved.

Disclaimer: This is just an exercise for our Digital Publishing class. Thanks for your understanding.

Links for the articles:

https://kr-asia.com/under-quarantine-18-million-chinese-watch-this-man-sleep-at-night-and-pay-him-too

https://www.businessinsider.com/influencer-instagram-youtube-twitch-alexa-recognition-speech-disturb-money-subscribe-donate-view

[gregorio-r-j]

My insight on YTL’s Pilot Episode on Spotify

Listening to the "Yung totoo lang" (YTL) Podcast, at first I don't know how to react since I'm not familiar with the concept of the podcast. However, as I continue listening to it I feel like I discovered a gem hidden somewhere deep in the digital platform. The TYL Podcast was informative and enlightening, from the way it was programmed and presented up to the actual purpose of the program and format of execution, everything fits perfectly. I love how the speaker discusses each topic lightly and in a very conversational manner. The pilot episode is also very informational and up to date or relevant in today's society. They also see to it that every information shared by the speaker/host is backed up by facts from reliable sources and not just mere assumptions and opinions of the host. This podcast is not just simply about discussing relevant topics and truthful information but it also raises awareness and gives lessons to its listeners. I, personally think that this podcast will sell and will be enjoyed and accepted by the public. Among the variety of ways of discussion about different life relevant topics available today, I believe this format of using podcast will be one of the most striking and promising ones. The use of Spotify as a platform for this kind of discussion and podcast will be effective because it is not simply convenient but it is also very popular and up to date, it makes even deep and heavy topics feel lighter by its nature of the discussion. Many people today enjoy Spotify and it is an emerging platform used by an extensive audience almost amounting similar to some social media sites and is nearly globally available for the public. This wide platform will also help the podcast reach a broader range of audiences and listeners to which they can dedicate each episode and lesson for. All in all, I believe that the use of Spotify as a platform for podcasts will be well recognized and embrace by the public.

Disclaimer: This is just an exercise for our Digital Publishing class. Thanks for your understanding.

[gregorio-r-j]

A take on Digital Publishing Trends

The article in our assigned reading is truly engaging and interesting, the way it focuses on the trends in digital publishing which is not always given much importance and recognition in today’s society despite playing a big role in our daily lives is commendable. Also, it was amazing how digital publishing companies successfully innovate their works and put the effort in developing new ways to engage their readers during these challenging times and even nailing it. I was a communication major who deemed news and new information and content important in my daily life so I find it convenient that these digital publishing companies exerted more effort to develop their service and reach their audience or readers.  That being said, among all the digital publishing trends included in the article what struck me the most are mobile-optimization on the Rise of Mobile devices and Google news and social media, honestly among the others, I think these are the most accessible yet trustworthy ones. In addition, I think email and SMS-based content may be accessible but they can easily be buried as SMS and email tend to be piled-up and flooded.  

Moreover, in my viewpoint, upon reviewing the trends included in the article Mobile-optimization, interactive content and audiobooks are most likely to fit the Filipino’s taste and will be more preferred by them among others. Following, audiobooks will be the most convenient for elders who love reading content and news but are having struggles in reading; also it may be fit for people with a busy schedule who have little to no time to read as they may listen to audiobooks while working or doing other things. When it comes to Interactive content, on the other hand, I think it will be suitable for younger readers or audience because it will be more practical and favorable than carrying books and other printed materials around -, eBooks, Wattpad and other interactive contents are already famous among youth in the Philippines. Lastly, I think the Mobile-optimization which caters to the use of mobile devices as platforms will be convenient for almost everyone; aside from the fact that most people own a mobile device, it is simple, uncomplicated, and accessible. Well, I agree that all these trends are really helpful and are accessible and convenient, in the end, it is a matter that will largely be based on what fits an individual’s a lifestyle/ taste the most.

Disclaimer: This is just an exercise for our Digital Publishing class. Thanks for your understanding.

@bertongbigtime