"A Midsummer Night's Dream..."
That was the theme of International Christian Academy's JS-Prom for the year 2001. Held on the 10th of February, 2001 at the Philippine Westin Plaza, it was prepared by some of my batchmates like Karla, Ila, and others in honor of the seniors to be graduating. To those who have actually been there, forgive me for not including highlights which you feel were important, I made this according to my persoective.(so sorry na lang kayo.)[Other important notes: I used nicknames/first names and drawings instead of pictures and whole names to respect the privacy and anonymity of those who don't want to be known on the net. Also, you can stop the music if you think it's too annoying or cheesy (how? by pressing the stop button on your browser). But I hope that those who know FFVIII will recognize the waltzy tune.]
Pre-prom problemsMonths before the prom happened, my major concern was getting a date. My dad told me to list my top 5 considerations and ask them right away. The problems were that I really only had one consideration and that I waited til December to ask her. Actually, Carla and I agreed that we could be each other's backup dates if no other date would be obtained. But it was inevitable that Carlo would ask her. Anyway, it took me about a month (or two) to finally find the guts to ask the only girl I had in mind of asking. It was out side the canteen's exit and she agreed to go but would have to ask her parents... but they didn't allow her. Well, I guess I don't blame them, I was a junior and she was freshman and her parents have never even heard about me before. So that made it final: I was going to go stag that night.
And into the night we stride...At the time, our family driver was still Benjie. For the few of the browsers reading this who know him, you may remember him as the really tall guy who liked his hair unobviously long and wear shades and carry a gun. Yeah, he was a real fun loon to be around, flirting with all the salesladies at the stores I'd go to. Anyway, he was the one who drove me to the prom. And though the travelling wasn't really a big part of the day, I just somehow remembered it. Along the highway, it was pretty open so Benjie, as usual, would go all Nascar and terrify me into applying the seatbelt policy. Around Buendia road though, things got a little slow and we almost got lost if it weren't for the nigh-decipherable map on the invitation. After passing Boom na Boom and Star City, Iwas relieved to finally know where I was again, so I took in all the sights: the tradecenter, the theme parks, and even the El Shaddai mass that was gathering. Until there it was... The Philippine Westin Plaza, at last.
So this is the plaza...dang! It's big!Oh, the entrance was simple enough... As we approached the front driveway, I put on my coat and fixed my tie and then quickly got out of the FX so that no one would see. Our prom was simultanious to another school's and so the lobby was bustling with enthusiastic teenagers and annoyed registered guests. I met up with some guys and we checked out how cool we looked seeing each other in formal attire for the first time. It was overwhelming for me at the time, a night to remember in an upper-crust place such as this.It was still a bit early, so Meds (with his Mike Velarde outfit) and I decided to explore this huge place before the prom started since we wouldn't be able to after the program starts. We checked the dining area, the bathroom (where Raffy and Hendrick were tidying up,. Hendrick didn't have his blazer since Obet said he'd bring it. But that's him.), and the rooms. We visited the hotel room where sila Milcah, Karla, etc. had set up camp. The ladies (teachers and prom commitee included) were putting the finishing touches on their get up, but allowed us to stay for a while anyway. After some more exploring, we eventually went back to our reserved prom area to register.
Ngee! Ako ang date niya!...But, it was still early since alot of people (expectedly) weren't there yet. That's when I met up with Biboy and Daniella. Bibs is an old friend of mine and so is Dan'. Bibs and Dan' were my churchmates and Dan' is my neighbor who I have known since the third grade. Much to my surprise, she asked me to escort her to the ladies' room. It was even more surprising when she did that arm-clinging thing, which she said was to help her not stumble. You see, I was very naive then, but that's a different story... So I did, hoping not to offend Biboy in the process. Don't get me wrong, neither Dan' nor I meant anything by doing so (i think), I was just surprised. So after we came from our respective comfort rooms, we went back and I brought her back to Bibs. (You should seen the way all these boys were waiting outside the ladies' room for their dates, it was... weird looking). And just in time, we all registered and entered the ballroom.
The Program finally startsOh man, the program happened as smooth as a breeze. No interruptions, no hinderances, many teachers called it the best prom ICA ever had. Special numbers were held: Rosheena and Rebecca had a vocal duet and, if I'm not mistaken, senior Da Jeong did a number on the violin. Not even that had any mess ups. The prom king and queen were Paolo and Jin Lee respectively. And the prom prince and princess were Bernard and Bianca of the juniors. Some accused Bernard of setting the whole thing up, but he denied it all the way. Other highlights of the program were the class prophecies (where I stepped-in for Andrew as batch artist with Maxi since he was out at the time), Cotillion, and some speeches. The best dressed were Karla (for the girls) and Andy (for the...guys), most originally dressed was Noelle (thanks Kris). The picture to the right shows the passing of the torch (as I called it), where the seniors would have a lighted candle and light the candles of the juniors, representing the passing of rites of seniorhood to the batch before them. David (another really good friend since grade 3 who skipped grade 7 and became a senior sooner) and I planned to have him light my candle, but the crowd was so large that someone lit my candle before I even found him. Darn, so much for the sentimental moment between parting best friends...
The eating finally beginsAfter the formal events, we finally got to dig our paws into the seductive buffet. Alot of us were happy to finally eat. Not much really happened during the dinner, the selection was actually the standard cater fare. But it was still nice to get to chat with other people while eating and being taken pictures of.
Picture takingThe package that we paid for included two free "studio" shots. I got one with Daniella, and one with Kris. The one with Daniella had no problems since I had a chance to prepare myself. But when I asked Kris to take a pic with me, she grabbed me from my chair and I only had enough time to grab my coat and throw it on. After a couple of shots, I went to the comfort room and saw that MY COLLAR WAS STANDING UP!!! AAAAAAH!!! Luckliy, though, I was able to get the only copy of the picture and prevent anyone else from seeing how jologs I looked. Si Kris kasi e.
Uh oh, the lights have gone low and a beat is rising...Soon, the music began and people started heading to the dance floor. It actually started with the fast, dance songs. So I decided to swallow my pride and enjoy making a fool of myself for a few minutes! I don't really remember the songs, but they must've been good since people who I had no expectation to dance did! The floor was divided into 4 or 5 main groups: Teachers, Junior boys, Junior Girls, a few mixed, and think a few senior groups. I was shifting between the mixed groups. Man, the dancing was great! We looked like complete weirdos and nobody minded!!! (especially si Meds with his coat-waving, body-gyrating, 70's routine...ok, so I did it too.) There was the basic bouncing, the arm-movements, the teachers' ball-rooming, the junior guys' crazy turn-taking in the circle *lol*, then Soo Young's Breakdancing! (yes, in his prom outfit) Everyone left the floor though when a dumb song by 5ive started. But most came back for the slow dances soon afterward (the DJ obviously learned from his horrid mistake). I sat in one of the dining chairs, observing how they could pull off public displays of affection so shamelessly (kinda gross actually). Then Dan' came up to me after she had danced with Martin and Biboy and asked if I wanted to dance, I was like, "to a slow song? me?" to myself, but I agreed anyway. At first, it was really hard for me to, you know, place my hand on her waist... Hey, I've never slow danced before ok?! Anyway, it was just one song (So Slow by Freestyle). Then she went back to her date. It was the very last slow dance played that night, so I went home after that (but not before nabbing one of the many littered invitations). Others went to clubs and other places pa, but I was already satisfied that night... great place, lots of food, and my first dance... it was fun. 'Can't wait for the next prom...
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