THIS 011006

Place the same two letters in the exact center of each word so that five longer words are formed.Which two letters should be used?

CARS  EARS  LAST  PANT  WARS

Mensa Brainteaser 01/10/06

Three Hundred Minus Ten and Forty-Two

Nagpapasalamat ako kay Sir Arjay dahil may pinagawa siya sa akin right away. Ang ibig sabihin lang nito ay hindi agad ako na-engage sa Petiks Mode. Medyo naging busy ako for the last two hours, kakabaklas at kakapalit ng mga CPU dahil pinahanap ako ni Sir ng driver para sa computer na iyon dahil nga hindi nila mahanapan ng driver. Hindi ma-activate ang Windows dahil walang internet connection, so nahihirapan akong malaman kung ano nga ba talaga yung model ng computer na ito. More than five pagpapalits na ata ang nagawa ko pero all were for naught. Sabi ni Sir Lloyd (o 'di ba may Sir na kasi close na kami, daw) IBM ThinkCenter M50 raw yung problem unit. M50 nga pero ang problema, maraming klase ng M50. Hindi niya ata mapinpoint kung anong release ng M50 yung unit, pero wala naman atang kaso dahil sa site ng Lenovo/IBM, September 2003 pa ang most recent and official release ng driver para sa onboard ethernet adapter. Sinabihan ko rin kanina na kausapin na nila ni Raf si Ma'am Tina para naman bigyan kami ng project na magagawa namin with minimum supervision. Ngayon kasi para kaming mga hammer-driven nails. De pukpok, hindi babaon hangga't hindi tinatamaan ng martilyo. Gusto ko man magpakita ng initiative on my part, hindi ko magawa talaga kasi parang walang initiative ang mga tao dito sa amin. I mean hindi ko sinasabing maging buhay don kami rito, it's just that sobrang nakakapagod ang pigilan ang inescapable sleepiness for eight hours at nakakaantok ang tumunganga lang sa monitor for four and four hours.

O 'di ba. Wala na ata akong napopost dito sa blog ko na something  about substantially blog-worthy. Puro na lang dahil-walang-ginagawa-sa-office-at-sobrang-inaantok-na-ako ang mga posts ko.

Three Hundred Minus Eight

Hay, ang sarap kumain kapag gutum na gutom ka na, at ang sarap umupo kapag pagud na pagod na ang mga paa mo sa loob ng mainit na sapatos. Ang sarap ng pakiramdam na nakauwi ka na matapos ang isang buong araw nang pagtunganga at paghihintay sa mga ibibigay na trabahong angkop para sa iyong kurso.

Sa totoo lang, hindi ko alam kung matutuwa ba ako o malulungkot, pero kahit papaano ay magagawa kong magpasalamat dahil natapos ang araw na ito nang walang nangyayaring masama sa akin.



Three hundred minus eight equals two hundred ninety two.

Three Hundred Minus Four

Sampung minuto pa lang noong sinamahan ako ni Miss Tina sa aking magiging work area for an indefinite period of time, naramdaman ko nang nag-activate ang Petiks Mode. Tapos na ang pagiging bum. Tapos na ang buhay sa bahay habang ang lahat ng mga kaibigan mo ay nagsisimula na sa kanya-kanyang mga OJT. Oras nang magpapetiks-petiks ulit kaya't muli kong nalasap ang Petiks Mode.

Hanggang ngayon wala pang pinapagawa sa akin si Lloyd, yung person na pinaubaya ni Miss Tina para magbigay sa akin ng trabaho. Mukhang busing-busy kasi siya at ilang beses niya rin nabanggit na wala talaga siyang maibigay na trabaho sa akin, so ito, bagot na bagot na ako at gusto ko nang mag 5:05pm. Medyo nalate kasi kami kanina dahil kailangan ko pang magbihis sa Mcdo sa tabi ng One World Square. So kumusta naman ako? Well ito, buhay pa kahit papaano. Nakakabaliw kung gaano katahimik sa sobrang laking office na ito. Nakakabingi na ang monotonous humming ng sobrang lamig na aircon. Kung hindi iyon ang maririnig mo, paminsan-minsan may mga yabag na lalagpas sa iyo habang may pumipindot ng backspace doon sa kabilang mesa. I looked forward in seeing the long and short hands of the wall clock hanging about 10 meters away from me to align at 12, pero sabi sa akin ni Amboy mga 12:30pm raw sila kumakain kasi masyado raw maraming tao kapag eksaktong 12. Nung mga 12:15pm, inaya ako ni Lloyd kumain pero sabi ko sa kanya thanks, hintayin ko na lang sina Raf at Amboy. Yun ata yung sinasabi nilang "business friendly". The whole time kasi focused na focused si Lloyd sa tables sa kanyang laptop.

Grabe. Mukhang kailangan talaga noong Scope of Work na binigay ko kay Miss Tina kanina. Sana talaga bigyan kami ng project para naman hindi kami parang mga tuod dito na panakaw-nakaw ng tulog. Patuka-tuka dahil hindi na mapigilan, papikit-pikit sa maliwanag na ilaw at nagluluha nang mga mata sa antok, at pasulyap-sulyap kung may pagkakataon bang matulog kahit 47 seconds lang.

Nag-aaral na lang ako ng basic PHP para naman maging productive kahit papaano ang unang araw ko dito sa 3M. Nakatulog na nga ako actually dahil sa sobrang wala akong ginagawa. Ngayon lang ako nainis na wala akong ginagawa. Bukod sa pag-aaral ng basic PHP (na nag-a-allow pala na makapag-embed ka code and function sa loob ng HTML, sorry naman hindi ko yun alam), ginamit ko ang Blackle upang makapagtipid ng kuryente para kay Mother Earth at inilagay ang "How to gain weight". Mukhang kailangan ko atang mag-resistance training ng at least 30 minutes a day at kumain ng over 2,300 healthy calories para maabot ang ideal weight kong 160 lbs. At wow, ngayon ko lang rin nalaman na hindi pala ako 50 lbs underweight, 30 lbs lang pala. Bigla tuloy akong namotivate ituloy ang workout routine ni Scooby. Pero ang sabi, ang cardio exercises raw ay to lose fat, pero gusto ko siyang gawin para tumaas ang aking stamina at resistensiya. Mukhang wala na nga talaga akong gagawing office-related today kasi may meeting ngayon si Lloyd and guess what, 5:00pm ito matatapos. So, may ipapagawa kaya siya sa akin in 5 minutes? Tingnan natin. Babalik na muna ako sa aking Hyper Petiks Mode Overdrive na nag-activate noong nagsialisan ang mga big boys and girls (literally yung isang girl) dahil may meeting sila na ayon kina Raf at Amboy, halos araw-araw daw.

Victory

JAI HO

Desperate Measures [Act VI]

Oh come on. Over thirty companies na ata ang pinasahan ko ng requirements para sa Internship. God. Last week na ng April next week, and hanggang ngayon, wala pa rin akong trabaho. I need to render 300 hours and less than 7 weeks na lang ang natitira for me to complete it. Impossible? Almost. Kailangan kong mag-overtime everyday, given the fact na pwede sa company ang mag-overtime. Fuck the working world. Hindi ko maintindihan kung bakit lahat ng kablock ko ay nagtatrabaho na somewhere in the Earth, kaya may karapatan silang ipagmayabang ang kanilang first day or ang kanilang pagod sa kani-kaniyang Y!M status. Putang ina niyo, kung hindi niyo alam yun.

At I'm pissed off on the people who would set an appointment and then wouldn't show up. I mean come on! Hindi mo ba alam kung gaano ko kailangan yung interview na yun? At least in some invisible way, gumagaan yung loob ko kasi nakikita kong may ginagawa ako. Damn. Damn it all. Nakakainis si Tina Roxas dahil bukod sa spam napunta ang email niyang sinusummon ako sa 3M kaninang alas-otso ng umaga, hindi siya sumipot. Naghintay ako ng mahigit sa isang oras sa malamig nilang lobby habang pawisan na ang likod ko sa init ng long sleeves ko at sa layo ng nilakad namin dahil napakalost ng McKinley Hill. Nairita rin ako kung bakit nauuna ang one at two sa three dahil kailangan naming daanan ang One World Square at Two World Square dahil sa Three World Square ang office ng 3M. Twice na ito nangyari sa akin ha. Twice considering na tatlo out of the over thirty pa lang ang nagreply sa aking distress calls para sa interview. Leche. Leche flan at pastillas de leche.

Finollow-up ko na yung KFC and Mister Donut Philippines na yan. Pero hay nako walang reply. Nakakaiyak na nakakainis na nakakastress na nakakawalang gana na. What a feeling. Hindi ko na talaga ma-enjoy ang pagka-walang-pasok ko dahil sa kailalim-laliman ng aking cerebral cortex or what's left of it, nananatili pa ring 300 hours ang aking requirement samantalang 260 less na ang sa iba. Huwag mo akong pagalitan na huwag i-compare ang sarili sa iba, fuck you. Hindi ko lang talaga maintindihan kung bakit sa akin kailangan mangyari na dalawang interview ang kailangan kong mamiss dahil hindi sumipot si Mr. X o si Ms. Y, at kung magkakaroon man ako ng trabaho, kailangan kong lunukin ang pride ko big time. Isipin mo na lang na hollow block ang nilulunok ni Narda tuwing tatawagin niya si Darna.

Fuck my life. Taste victory, swallow defeat. Ganyan naman ata ang buhay ko.

41 Questions

Stolen from Jay. (Trend na talaga ang nakawan these days)


Your personality type:

Quietly forceful, original and sensitive. Tend to stick to things until they are done. Extremely intuitive about people and concerned for their feelings. Well-developed value systems which they strictly adhere to. Well-respected for their perserverence in doing the right thing. Likely to be individualistic, rather than leading or following.


Careers that could fit you include:

Counselors, clergy, missionaries, teachers, medical doctors, dentists, chiropractors, psychologists, psychiatrists, writers, musicians, artists, psychics, photographers, child care workers, education consultants, librarians, marketeers, scientists, social workers.

Inggit? Take it here.

Monotony

I have something to say about this, but I'm just not really up to it. I'm tired of all the HR people who schedule you for an interview and not show up on the scheduled date and time.

What a waste of effort.

In Doubt?

Why do I feel that God isn't giving me anything for my practicum? Is it because when I pray, I pray for other people first, and me last? Is it because I specifically pray for other people's needs, and I just say Lord, bahala na kayo sa akin?

I'm just worried about the time I have to complete the 300 hours required for my practicum. Everyone has started their jobs today or even last week, and here I am almost desperate to get a job.

And today, I almost lost my rosary. Almost. It fell out from my pocket as I yanked my hanky to wipe the beads of sweat that were forming on my forehead.

Lord, bahala na kayo sa akin.

Kapuso (Part III? Not Really)

My day became boggled when I learned that I needed to call KFC and Mister Donut Philippines to confirm my interest in continuing my application for internship in their comapany. I did not sleep during the night -- my plan was to call as soon as they were available, 9:00am, set my appointment later that day, then go to sleep and wake up a two hours before my scheduled exam and interview. I groggily dialed their number, and after a few rings, a man answered the phone. A series of questions and answers followed, and after a few redirections of the line, I was left with the hassled feeling of the need to come in business attire and the need to aquire Ma'am Jess' signatures for the documents the company was requesting from me. Half past ten, I suddenly became even more pressured as Ma'am Jess announced that the department was only open up until noon. I rushed to print my resume, endorsement, and recommendation. Time was running short, too short that if I failed to arrive at Katipunan at twelve, not only would I fail to get the signatures, but I will probably bomb my chances of entering the company as I will be coming there with incomplete documents. After barely being touched by my soap in a very crude bath, I searched for my slacks, only to find its pockets still stitched after working in Robinsons Supermarket Marikina as a bagger. Getting a sharp object lying in my parent's bedroom, I passed it through the thread that bound the pockets and set them free again to hold my phone, wallet, handkerchief, and rosary. After getting dressed, I fumbled in opening the box of my leather shoes, the same shoes that I wore the previous day. As I wore the shoes, I remembered how cumbersome my feet felt. But the man said to come in business attire, so I didn't have any other choice.

Good thing Mamie was supportive enough that she all the way to Leong Hall, a few meters away where Ma'am Jess was waiting. And the heat started to make my back trickle with beads of sweat as soon as I left the cold air-conditioning provided by our car.

Putang ina naman ang init na 'to. 'Tang ina talaga.

Half past eleven, I was done with my documents. But my schedule was not until three in the afternoon. I went to Gateway and decided to kill time there by spending what was left of my load in Timezone. It was weird to see myself go there and play the games I usually play dressed in my favorite (but I'm not saying I wear this often, it's just that its the best looking one I have) striped long-sleeved polo, black slacks, and leather shoes. I sensed a hidden curiosity in them on why I was dressed like that. I could tell by the way they looked at me the first time they saw me wearing get-up. I can't blame them since not many people come there in sleeves and slacks, let alone someone they are used to seeing wearing just casual clothes and sneakers or canvases. Time moved on quickly, and soon, I was eating a hurried fifty-peso lunch in McDonalds Panay Avenue. It was almost two in the afternoon, and I had to leave as soon as possible since I still had to navigate along uncharted roads in seach for the place of my exam. I tried to fix my appearance and look fresh, but I can't say I managed to do so. The intense heat that bore on me as I travelled has worn me out. Good thing there were cabs waiting outside, and the one I hopped into knew where RAMCOR Building along Roces Avenue was.

The driver had such a pleasing personality. We clicked instantly as soon as he said he knew the place. Each one of us threw half-jokes and kept each other entertained, in some way or the other. He was worried that he might not make the boundary since there wasn't much people on the streets, and I was worried on what was to take place and what I involved myself to.

I arrived at the place half past two. Sir Carl approached me a few minutes after I arrived and said that I was early, and that we had to wait for the other applicant to arrive. The other applicant, a girl whose first impression on me was she was a rich kid, arrived quarter to three. There was a clear separation of people in that hall: the ones dressed in business attire, and the ones who were dressed casually. I don't want to jump into conclusions, but I did not like that division at all.

Nothing happened even an hour after I arrived. My lack of sleep heavily invited my eyes to close and sleep, but before I fell to sleep, Sir Carl gathered the two of us into a room at the end of the reception hall. Inside, we were asked to fill up forms, and it was there that I learned that the other applicant, Geoanna, was also an Atenean. But Sir Carl gave me no time to chat with Geoanna as he administered the test right away. It was difficult, especially the Verbal part.

After squeezing my brains out for over an hour, I was able to chat with Geoanna. I initiated a small talk about her also hailing from Ateneo, which in turn became a long conversation about how difficult it was for us to find a job, when our own friends had their respective job sites already. I forgot how sleepy I was until she was called to another room where Sir Jim was to interview her.

As I sat in the now empty reception hall, I stared to feel anxious. I didn't know what I would tell the good-looking man with a nice smile. I didn't know if I should brag about my achievements or if I would remain true to my humility of heart. Unable to anticipate what his questions were, I started to feel afraid. It was during that moment that a Kuya mopped the floor. Employees did not take notice of what he was doing, and left the mopped tiles printed with dirt again. Kuya, with patience, mopped the floor clean anew. Seeing his tired arms, shoulders, and eyes, I lifted my feet up and stepped on the dark tiles of the floor's simple design.

Kuya, nadudumihan, eh.

Ayos lang yan!

As I looked on my leather shoes, I remembered how uncomfortable it was wearing that pair of shoes. However, during that moment, I felt different. My feet felt light that I was able to move them so that a persevering man's efforts wouldn't be wasted. Fourteen past six, Geoanna came out of the room, which unveiled my moment of truth. Like a thunderbolt in a cloudy but silent night sky, the tall man's voice tore the silence that embraced and protected me. My feet, lifting my small frame, slowly led me inside the room where my prior anxieties would be realized or dispelled.

Kapuso (Part II)

I approached the security guard and told him that I had an appointment with Miss Ali Dedicatoria on the seventh floor. He was unsure whether Miss Ali was already upstairs, so he asked for identification and dialed the local of the seventh floor. As soon as he read my last name, he asked whether Miss Ali and I are related in any way.

Ah, pinsan ko po.

Pareho kasi kayong Nokom, eh.

He told me that she was still not in her office, and asked me to wait in the waiting lounge. I entered the small, air-conditioned room that was almost full of people from different walks of life. The television tuned into channel seven (of course) distracted them from looking at each other, questioning themselves the different reasons why the people waiting in there met in that small, cramped, window-lit room. My eyes tried to wander around and look at the people around me, but the discomfort my feet which have only worn sneakers for the past three years felt in wearing leather shoes stopped me from my attempts. I ended up watching Gelli, Janice, and Carmina cook different sorts of food for almost twenty minutes. But from time to time, people who looked like social workers came in and questioned people sitting beside me and behind me. As it turns out, those people where there because of their lost children, siblings, or relatives. They brought along pictures of their missing loved ones, and all the poeple attending to them could do was to tell them they would do their best to air their grief. What relief would that do, I thought.

I went outside and asked Kuya if Miss Ali is already upstairs. After a few minutes, he gave me a visitor's ID and directed me to the building where all the important people of the Kapuso network is. After almost getting lost several times, I managed to arrive at the lobby and press the call button of the three elevators. An elevator soon opened, and after the surge of people rushing out, I stepped in, along with several other people.

As the elevator paneled with three mirrors hummed and climbed its vertical corridor, I thought how fast life is. As I looked at the man in the mirror staring directly at me, I realized that I'm no longer a kid. In less than a year or so, I will be the ones walking all over the metro for a well-paying job, or at least a job one likes to have. Well, my search for a company for internship is not different, I guess.

As the elevator produced its familiar ding-dong on the seventh floor, I prepared myself for what was to come. As the doors slid open, I was fascinated by what greeted me: there inside glass cabinets were the armors of Danaya, Alena, Pirena, and Amihan; the four Sang'gres of Encantadia, a show which I avidly watched during the time it was aired in the station. That made me build my courage and as I turned and entered the entertainment division, I saw Miss Ali and addressed her that way, even if we were cousins.

I brought my documents, but apparently, they needed the letters from the school. She directed me to Miss Princess, who would forward my application directly to the HR department. Before I left the floor, Miss Ali wrote her number in a small pink piece of Post-it, and handed it to me as she said to update her on my progress. I thanked her plenty, and without further delay, headed to Ateneo and acquired Sir Agloro's signatures for both Endorsement and Recommendation letters. Rushing back to the GMA Complex, I handed over my complete documents to Miss Princess and texted Miss Ali about it.

"Ok, tnx!: )"

For some reason, my size thirteen feet kept bugging me. It kept irritating me that I missed the chance to casually talk to people sitting next beside me. Everyone knows the feeling of everyone looking at you when you enter a room, but not everyone knows the weird atmosphere of people still looking at you fifteen minutes after you have entered the same room.

Kapuso (Part I)

I am writing this in the morning of the day I am to meet with Ali Marie N. Dedicatoria, Executive Producer of GMA 7. I will be meeting her later at 11:00am in the Entertainment Division, 7/F GMA Building, Edsa corner Timog Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City. I have revised my resume and my objective now reads as follows:


Use and apply my skills in programming as an Intern to gain working experience in the field of Interactive Multimedia


which directly applies to my chosen course


Bachelor of Science in Computer Science
Specialization in Interactive Multimedia


I hate to admit it but, I am heavily banking in meeting Miss Ali for internship. I have inquired and applied for so many companies, but none of them replied.



I think the contact details in my resume are wrong? Nah.

Trust Issues

I have said this before: I easily trust people.

In my opinion, the cause of this ease of trust is the way I look at people. I instinctively brand the people I meet and have conversations with as good and incapable of doing any kind of harm out of pure malice. Blindly looking at people's true motives and intentions, I seek the small refuge they might offer in their sharing or "sharing" of their self. Things happen over and over again; people enter and leave my life as if it was untouched, unmarred, or without any kind of scars. And the end of each farewell, my tears roll down my cheeks no matter how hard I try to muster everything inside. I readily open my palms in preparation to gently catch and fondly caress what they will throw to me as their own being, but in doing so, they cover a hidden desire which remains cloaked in mystery until the damage is done and the pain is felt.

No matter how heinous or atavistic a person looks, deep inside me a voice lingers saying words that mark the belief that a good person resides inside that appearance. Deception is at work: either me deceiving myself into feel-good and heroic structures, or them putting up a concrete barrier to make the visible be invisible to the eyes of someone gullible like me. It is just that seldom do I interact with people outside my zones, and in that seldom occasion that someone steps into my circle, my hunger for closely-knit ties rumbles my senses and opens my whole in their mercy. But that does not justify everything. It does not support anything.



I have trouble trusting myself, but I have no problem trusting other people.



I guess this is one of my obvious weaknesses,
but I hope someone could look into it as a strength,

so that I may start believing in myself in a way that can ratify my sense of self-perception.

Si Nicole

Maganda si Nicole. Maputi, matangos ang ilong, mahaba at mabango ang buhok, mahinhin ngunit paminsan-minsan, napapausal ng mura. Kaklase ko si Nicole sa Ph101 at Ph102 ni Mariano. Ikinuwento ko kay Lucky na crush ko si Nicole, at sa ikinagulat ko, kilala pala niya si Nico. Hindi naman ako kilig to the bones. Hindi ko rin hiningi ang ID niya sa Y!M o kaya ang number niya mula kay Lucky. Hindi ko alam. Siguro hindi ko pa siya sobrang crush noon, o kung crush na crush ko na talaga siya, baka dahil gusto ko na ako ang humingi ng contacts niya mula sa kanya mismo. Parang bang walang nilaga kung walang tiyaga. Type ko si Nicole, pero dahil sa napakagaling kong ugali, lumipas ang isang semestre na wala akong ginagawa. Nakuntento na lang ako sa mga nakaw na silip sa kanyang magandang mukha sa sulok ng aking paningin na si Mariano ang bida. Wala akong magagawa, alangan namang titigan ko siya palagi. Dalawa ang tiyak kong mangyayari: una, pagagalitan ako ni Mike (close kami, kayo hindi) at pagmumukhaing isang malaking hunghang ang kanyang estudyanteng gusto ata tanungin kung available ba ang isa pa niyang estudyante, at pangalawa, matatakot si Nicole sa akin katulad na lang ng pagkatakot ng isang mayuming dalaga sa isang lumilipad na ipis. Hindi halaman si Nicole kaya wala siyang stalk-er. Wehe ang korni.

Kaya nagulat na lang ako sa pagkakataon noong nakalipas na semestre dahil inilapit ni Mike ang upuan ko sa upuan ni Nicole. Sabi nga ni Garde, chance ko na ito para mas makilala si Nicole. Ngunit ang problema, may nakaupo sa gitna namin ni Nicole, si Paolo Duay, at sa kasamaan o kabutihang palad, siya ang mas nakilala ko. Transferee student siya mula sa Ateneo de Davao, at graduating na siya ngayong taon na ito. Kalbo at balbas sarado, magkaibang-magkaiba sila ni Nicole na maganda at mabango sa aking mga mata at ilong. Si Paolo kasi, sobrang maton ang itsura at palaging amoy yosi na pilit itinatago sa Clorets ang amoy. Buti pa si Nicole, amoy pabango ng babae at Doublemint. Pero hindi ko sinasabi na ayaw ko kay Paolo. Ayos nga siyang kausap eh. Hanga rin ako sa mga suot ni Paolo. Lagi siyang naka tight-fit shirt at tight jeans. Kaya tuloy, laging bakat ang kanyang tiyan at ang kanyang kuwan, hita. Ang bastos mo naman.

Lumipas ang semestre, at naunang natapos sa kurso si Paolo. Bakante na ang kanyang upuan ng isang buwan. Lumipat ako sa upuan niya para makatabi si Nicole, at sa malaking ikinagulat ko, kebs si Mike na sobrang maarte sa kanyang seat plan. Siguro dahil nakita niyang wala na akong katabi, at siguro dahil nakita niyang type ko si Nicole. Well siguro yung nauna kasi hindi ko naman ipinapakitang type ko si Nicole. Torpe ako eh. Siguro psychic si Mike dahil sa isang group activity, magkasama kami ni Nicole sa isang grupo. At doon ko nalaman ang Y!M ID ni Nicole, at noong lumaon, ang kanyang numero sa selepono. Pero gaya ng inaasahan sa lahat ng relasyong classmate-classmate, school lang ang silbi ng pagpapalitang iyon.

Pero ayos lang sa akin, dahil naging kaibigan ko na si Nicole. Sa hindi malamang dahilan, nawala na ang pagnanais kong makilala siya sa isang napakalalim na nibel.



Nicole rin ang pangalan ng aso nina EJ. Nakakatuwa ang aso nila na iyon kasi ang hilig matulog sa hita ng tao. Nung minsan na nagpunta ako kina EJ para gumawa ng project sa CS110, tumalon sa hita ko si Nicole at doon pumuwesto ng tulog. Nakakatuwa. Ang init ng katawan niya kaya ang sarap niyang kalungin. Nawawala ang pagod at ang pagkasabaw ng utak ko sa bawat paghipo at paghimas ko sa amoy asong katawan ni Nicole. Ang cute cute niya kasi, at ang init pa niya. Naaalala ko pa ang longganisa factory ni Nicole na bigla na lang gagawa ng isang mahabang-mahabang longganisang dyebs na iiwan niya sa sahig ng bahay nina EJ. Nakakatuwang panoorin siyang pumupu habang pinagagalitan ni EJ dahil kalilinis lang niya ng sahig nila.

IV BS Computer Science

Ayan na ang nakalagay sa aking AISIS account.

Nakakagulat. Parang kahapon lang ang unang araw ng Viaje, ang Freshmen Orientation Seminar ko mga tatlong taon na ang nakalilipas. Naalala ko pa ang pakiramdam ng pawisan kong damit na kulay berde; ang amoy ng pawis na may kasamang pagod, saya, at pananabik; ang pakiramdam ng init ng araw habang iniisip kung anong klaseng mga tao ang aking mga makakasama sa loob ng apat na taon; at ang magkasamang takot at pangungulila sa isang lugar na pamilyar ang tao at ang pakiramdam.

Pero sadyang napakabilis talaga ng panahon. Hindi mo namamalayan ang paglipas ng tatlong taon. Malalaman mo lang na tapos na ito kapag tapos na nga talaga ito. Hindi mo maramdaman ang isang uri ng pananatili sa isang punto ng oras. Hindi mo maramdaman ang oras na umaagos sa iyong mga palad, na parang tubig na umaagos sa isang taimtim na ilog. Hindi mo ito kayang ipunin gamit ang iyong mga palad. Lagi lang itong dadaloy sa isang walang katapusang paraan na kung saan ang magagawa mo na lamang ay panoorin at pakinggan ito. Hindi ko lang talaga lubusang maintindihan kung bakit mabilis ang oras sa mga panahong masaya ka, ngunit tila tumitigil ito sa isang nakakapagod na pag-usad kapag tila madilim ang panahong umiikot sa iyong pagkatao.

Tatlong taon na ang nakalipas noong kulay berde pa ang bahagi ng aking ID na kung saan nakasulat ang 062486.

Dalawang taon na ang lumipas noong pula ang bahaging iyon ng aking ID.

Noong isang taon, kulay langit ito,

at sa pasukan, asul na ito - simbolo ng pagtatapos; at sana simbolo ng aking matagumpay na pakikipaglaban sa isa sa mga biyaya ng buhay bilang isang Atenista, anak, kapatid, at kaibigan.