It's fun to be Tyra Banks (or Janice Dickinson) for a day

I had the day off work today to attend the auditions for the ICA Fair fashion show. Ep Espada is sponsoring the show, providing all the outfits for the models, so I got to be part of the panel of judges who screened the girls who tried out. About 100 students strutted their stuff in front of me and some other ICA teachers, and it felt like a comical high school version of America's Next Top Model. Some kids were dolled up in really cool, classy outfits, some were wearing scandalously skanky short skirts, some were ridiculously overdressed; some walked like pros, some moved stiffly, some were over the top with their poses; some showed great stage presence, some refused to smile, some were awkward and lacked confidence. In the end though, we were more concerned with the character and personality of a girl rather than her appearance, sense of style, or catwalk coordination (although those were still factors, of course).

After an hour or so of deliberating, the panel eventually trimmed down the list of hopefuls to the 25 we needed. As a sponsor, I'm pretty satisfied with our final choices. They're all pretty, energetic youngsters with good academic records and wholesome personal qualities, and I think they will represent Ep Espada well. We're also giving each of them a P1,000 gift certificate, so I hope we really did pick the deserving girls.

I enjoyed the day I spent in ICA. Not only did I get to judge the fashion show auditions, I also got to visit the new faculty room and say hi to my former co-teachers, spend 2 hours chatting with Fara in her domain (the IT office), have coffee with Maddy and Kat, accompany them to the Days with the Lord welcoming rites for Kat's advisory class, and have dinner with Maddy, Kat and Joy Lo. It got me all sentimental and longing for the good ol' days when I was still a teacher. But at the same time, seeing the teachers checking PTs and reflection papers, I feel a sense of relief that I no longer have to deal with such pains in the neck, among other things. :p Besides, all my kids have graduated from ICA, and I barely know any of the students left, so the school felt a little... emptier.

However, I am still looking forward to my next visit, for one of the fashion show rehearsals. Then I'll get to see whether the 25 models we selected can work the runway decked out in Ep Espada. All in a day's work. ;)