separate from the normal group of filipino students who would automatically raise their voices in exaltation and jump for blessed joy whenever the three greatest words in scholastic history are announced via radio, tv, or whatever forms of media have you, we would rather feign sulkiness and regret when the phrase "classes are suspended" is declared in our context.

as a result of the yet-experimental organ systems integration curriculum, our schedule is even more jam-packed than a jeepney with everyone sitting half-a-pwet, more rigid than the ten commandments set in stone. the slightest delay, the smallest aberration in our timetable can send ripples of chaos to a week later or beyond. a chaos we have already experienced due to the postponed exam the other thursday, a chaos i believe none of us would rather have to experience again.

the popular adage "there's no such thing as a free lunch" never rang so true. as all our doctors say, lost lectures will always be to our disadvantage. not only do we possibly lose the benefit of hearing the lesson and all necessary explanations come straight out of the horse's mouth (or rather, the two-hour unadulterated nap time brought about by the soporific effects of the professor's voice), but if we decide to have a make-up class, the stress will then fall upon trying to find the time to fit it all in. this gets even worse if exams are the unfortunate target of premature vacations; they might get moved to an inconvenient time, or worse, moved alongside other exams already set by the schedule. and being the good, ideal students that we are, we would much rather have our plenaries on time than suffer the consequences of a missed day of med school. but alas, weather concerns and the chancellor's prerogative come before the students' collective will, and suspensions will still occur.

but of course, i would be lying if i said that all i feel during these times are the disappointment of lost lectures and the burden of catching up with teachers and exams. i am still a student after all, albeit being a mature, responsible one. while i still feel the negative effects of the crippled schedule, my inner child just can't help but rejoice at the prospect of catching up with missed sleep, exclusive internet and chat time, or just the blissful feeling that there's nothing that needs to be done. or rather, that there's studying to be done, but at least the extra hours really come in handy. and if we're really lucky (or really, really lazy) there'd be somewhere to fit in a movie or two, arcade games at g-box, or just lollygagging around rob, looking around for prospective buys.

in fact, that's what just happened to me today. and with a new moss-green-with-blue- piping-and-red-orange-accent-stripe jacket added to my wardrobe (i am totally hooked on jackets right now; they're the indispensable touch of fashion to go along with the all-white look), today wasn't such a bad day after all.

**edit: yet another day of classes has been foregone in fear of deluges that never deliver. but now the histology deities have spoken, the tides of tests have shifted. there will be hell to pay upon our return. God help us.**