1st Day High.

My very first day in college? Embarassing!

It was July 5, 2004 - Monday - 6:32 AM. I’m at MRT Buendia in Makati and I’m ready for the next level of my education. I’m only 3 kilometers away from Mapùa Makati that morning. A jeepney ride can bring me to that prestigous institution. The thing is, I’m new in Makati! I know that it’s in Malugay street, but i’m still afraid that i might go far off my destination. So what i did is to walk from Buendia to my school. Hehe, That’s to make sure i’ll reach Mapùa Makati.

Call me dumb or whatever, but it’s just me. I remember that day - my first day.

And finally after 25 minutes of walking, i reached Mapùa Makati. Timecheck: 7:00AM - First Class: Algebra and Trigonometry laboratory class at Room 317 on the 3rd floor. I pant while climbing the stairs, thinking what will happen to me on that very day. 310..312..315..320..318 and 317! I arrived early and sweaty on my class (morning exercise?).

Rrrriiiinnggggg!!!!! 7:30 AM.

One by one, we all went inside the classroom as Prof. Vivienne San Juan leads the way. 30 students sat down on their blue stylish desks while looking around their seatmates. Prof. San Juan instruct us to prepare one 1/8 index card with our name, course, section, e-mail address and signature written on it. We passed our index cards and CM’s to the aisle.

“Class dismissed, see you tommorow.”

Today is the start of the school year 2007-2008. 3 years had passed, 3 years i surpassed. I arrived in the campus at 10 AM for my thesis meeting. Because Mark Ylleber was still on his way and Pam has an OJT project defence in Trends Inc, I roam around the lobby to mingle with my friends. Infront of room 105 was Jamz Dela Cruz, my Student Council co-member, along with my friends. After hearing their stories and telling my thesis mischap, i went directly to the library. Mc, Mai, Me-ann, Sugar, Rudulfo, Ate Xerox, Kuya Librarian and my target book was there.

Mc: “Jonjon, hahabol ba kayo sa deadline?”
John: “Yung docu tapos na, pero yung application namin may bugs pa..”

I gaze my peripheral to the stack of books in the shelves. Gottcha! Another CCNA Reviewer.

ADMINISTRATIVE DISTANCE

Directly Connected - 0
Static - 1
iBGP - 20
EIGRP Internal - 90
IGRP - 100
OSPF - 110
ISIS - 115
RIP - 120
EIGRP External - 170
eBGP - 200

Read, read, read, practice exam, practice exam, practice exam. After 1 hour and 45 minutes of reviewing, My CCNA exam passing rate is : 80%. What? After the hours i spent these past few months, only 80%? That’s reality. Indeed, life is unfair. I really don’t know if i’ll gonna pass that exam. And guys, kasama pa ba yung IPX sa CCNA exam ngayon? Oh brother, another topic to memorize. Lord, help me with this exam cram. It’s hard on my part to review the entire CCNA course. Do you know that the CCNA tycoons: Beni, Alvin, Nhiel and Paolo took their exams two months after their Cisco 4. Gian and Lace, the running summa and magna cum laude of our batch took the exam 3 weeks after they finished their Cisco 4. However, I will be taking this exam 1 month after completing my Cisco 4. I’m not as intellegent as Gian and Lace. But i need to pass this exam, 80% status is not bad. But i need more readings,
more simulations and more practice exams. We can do it batchmates!

Rrrriiiinnggggg!!!!! 12:00 NN.

Mark Ylleber was at the ITRD room, but Pam was still on her way. So i took my lunch with my friend Matthew at the canteen. Mai and Me-ann was also there. We talked about thesis, IT week, graduation and the P100,000 cash prize of the Delete-a-file contest. After we ate, i helped Matthew to overcome his anxiety for his upcoming OJT interview. I gave him some advice to make him confident in the interview. We discussed the question: “Tell me something about yourself”. That imperative is usually asked on interviews.

Pam had arrived, Mark went out to have his lunch. * Sigh. As i descend the stairs of the east wing, I saw the whole populace of Mapua Makati crowded on the lobby. That was an unusual sight, so i decide to investigate what happaned. The classrooms in the 3rd floor was blocked. I asked my friends what happened on the third floor and these were their response:

John: “Anong nangyari?”

Maan: “Sumabog yung Fire-extinguisher”
Utility Man: “Bumagsak yung fire-extinguisher”
Camille: “Yung nag-bell, may first year na sumagi sa Fire-extinguisher. Sumabog! Grabe! Hinahabol pa nga kami ng usok eh.”
Jamz: “Mag DOTA na lang tayo, hindi na siguro babalik yung mga professors.”
Prof. Terry: “30 mins. na lang eh, magkaklase pa ba?”

Nice. What a first day. I like the days of humble beginnings. It’s full of energy! So pristine, so serene… then suddenly,
calamity strikes. *Sigh, 3 years in Mapua Makati. Unforgettable moments, Untellable joys. Isn’t funny how time swiftly traverse
our world?

Time, i’ve been passing time. Watching trains go by, all of my life…

Hay buhay wasted. A new beginning, a new source of hope. More than 200 freshmen this term. More than 35 Million Globe Subscribers
and 3 Billion Smart users world wide.

Great things start from small beginnings - Milo Commercial

Enough. let’s begin!