Here, There, Everywhere... Six Months Hence

Six months has passed since I had my last haircut... I had another one last Saturday.

Six months has passed since I took my licensure examination... I am now a licensed non-practicing ECE.

Six months has passed since my first day in HP... I am hoping to be regularized this coming fiscal year.

Six months hence... time indeed flies so quickly.

Idle Here, There, Everywhere

Idle /'I-d&l/ (adjective) 1 : lacking worth or basis : vain ; 2 : not occupied or employed: as a : having no employment : inactive b : not turned to normal or appropriate use c : not scheduled to compete ; 3 a : shiftless, lazy b : having no evident lawful means of support.

Idleness is what we, HP new hires, experience here at the office. Some say it's a usual happening especially when one is in an entry-level position. But somehow, I feel a bit guilty just sitting down, surfing the net, and blogging/chatting to kill time. On Friday, another payday comes. I will once again enjoy a salary for attending trainings once in a while and for bumming around the office halls. To tell you the truth, upon arriving to my cubicle, my batchmates would instantly invite me for a coffee break and after a brief email checking, lunch break na! WTF!?!? Haha.

Anyway, to lessen my guilt, many of my upperclass officemates told me that once I assume the responsibility that I would suppose to takeover and once our assigned project kick-off, I would definitely miss these idle moments of my HP life.

So, Onin, enjoy the moment while it still lasts.

Moolah

I got my first pay from HP yesterday. Unfortunately, it's diminishing in a very fast rate, like an exponential decay...

LGN

I was admitted to HP's Gold's Gym fitness program. The benefit came in perfect timing as the HP SAP-ADSI umbrella group (one of the two HP teams in San Miguel Propeties Center Ortigas) goes to Grande Island Resort in Subic, Zambales on June 1 and 2. I must look good naked (Ige's terminology) before that summer event.

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I watched Spider-Man 3 last night with my fellow new hires at Shangri-La Mall's Cineplex. Like its two prequels, the film is high-budgeted (advertised as the most expensive motion picture of all time) and overflowing with special effects. For me, it is the best of the three Spider-Man movies or even the best superhero movie ever. I admit that I am a huge fan of Spidey and his love story with MJ, that's why I was carried away by the dramas featured in the movie.

The third installment's storyline was the best of the three, not to mention the inclusion of three villains, tag-team fight scenes and unexpected twists. The conclusion was a combination of tragedy and happy-ending and my favorite director, Sam Raimi, lets us imagine our own final scene for the two protagonists.

I guess, it's all I can say so as not to spoil my readers who have not yet seen the movie.

*Do you recall the wrestling ring announcer in Spider-Man 1 and the obnoxious theatre usher in Spider-Man 2? He once again appeared in Spider-Man 3 as the Frenchman waiter/receptionist of Restaurant Constellation. He is none other than Bruce Campbell a.k.a. Ashley Williams of Sam Raimi's Evil Dead trilogy. He also appeared as Liam Neeson's alter-ego in Sam Raimi's Darkman. Haha. I am really a fan of Sam Raimi.

*Stan Lee, one of the two creators of Spider-Man, also had a cameo as the pedestrian who talked to Peter Parker in front of one of New York's theatres.

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On May 7, I, with 888 other ECE board passers, will be officially inducted to the Board of Electronics and Communications Engineers of the Philippines. The oath taking will be held at the Fiesta Pavilion of The Manila Hotel - that is why, the admission tickets are sold at a whopping PhP900 each.

From then on, call me Engineer Eustaquio, ECE # 39710...

...Signing On!!!

Engineer by Title (title courtesy of Dyan)

I registered my name as one of the country's new Electronics and Communications Engineer yesterday morning. I am now officialy ECE # 39***. Don't worry, as soon as I have confirmed that there is no way another person can possibly use my license number to do illegal activities, I will disclose the last three digits right away. Haha. Anyway, I, myself, will not need to use my license in the near future.

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I just started working at Hewlett-Packard Asia-Pacific last April 16. I received my brand new HP laptop yesterday and so far, I am loving my "work", or the lack of it as of the moment. However, many warned me that once my responsibilities start coming in, there's no stopping them. So I am still enjoying my free days while they last. Haha.

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I attended the Batch 2007 Engineering after-party, a privilege I enjoyed for being part of Inhinyero 2007. That the event was a blast is an understatement. Free-flowing bar drinks, LEVI'S® fashion show and crazy (in a positive sense) people were the highlights of the night. That night was indeed one of the best events I have been part of.

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On June 1 and 2, the SAP-ADSI umbrella group of HP Ortigas will have an off-site event in Subic, Zambales (at the Grande Resort). I am now very excited and looking forward to that date. Subic will finally beat Clark Field, Pampanga as the northernmost place I have been to (so pathetic, ain't I?),

OWWS?

One Week and counting down...

Six more days to go before the board exam. Too many materials to read and study, too little time...

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Wondrin'?

I went to UP Church of the Holy Sacrifice with May and Carlo this evening for a Holy Week confession. When I told the priest (who I personally know because of Kaps) that my last confession was four years ago, he was shocked and awed! He also said that maybe I have mistaken of the fact that confessions must be done at least once in four years and not once a year. Haha. Anyway, I cannot tell much more than that or else, I would break the vow of secrecy, so let's just stop there.

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With Glenn's permission.

I'll be spending about three days and two nights at May's house so that we can study together and solve problems together. We also invited other co-reviewees so that we can share notes with each other and ask each other questions regarding the board exam topics. Tomorrow is a hectic day for review.

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Should be studying!!!

Hey Mister! You should be studying!

Turbulence

That's what my mind is experiencing right now. Two weeks before the dreaded board exam, TrendMicro handed me in a counter-offer that is so hard to turn down. A tender contract worth around PhP400,000 a year (or approximately PhP29,000 monthly) to match with HewlettPackard's PhP***** deal. Lord, help me make up my mind before the decision time a week from now.

May this recent "development" not affect my concentration towards the licensure test that will take place a couple of weeks from now.

And so be it...

Haay...

Finally, after 5 Ayala interviews and 2 Ortigas, I finally received a job offer from Ms. Mylene Aquino of HP SMPC Implementation Group earlier this evening. I will start working on April 16, right after the board exam.

A lot of thanks to everyone who helped me with my application and to those who prayed for my success.

I hope this commences a string of good luck for me. License, here I come. HP, here I come as well!!!

The Number 23... Nah, just "number".

300

I and my co-reviewees watched 300 last Sunday when Excel Review Center experienced power interruption and classes were cancelled. As I see it, the movie based on Frank Miller's graphic novel about the Battle of Thermopylae Pass has storyline more or less faithful to historical facts and the movie The 300 Spartans except of course in the aspect of portraying the Persians and the addition of mythical beings. It has a similar cinematography and editing to that of Apocalypto, Passion of the Christ and Gladiator. Its stunts resemble those in Troy, or better. The special effects, though most of the time are unbelievable, are comparable to the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The thrill of watching it matches the one I felt when I saw V for Vendetta for the first time. Overall, the movie is not just good but great as well and I sure will buy a copy of it when VCD/DVD versions are released.


13

Last Tuesday, my cousin Roma and her boyfriend Frederick migrated to the US for good. Our family accompanied her to the Centennial Terminal where they had their non-stop flight to Los Angeles's LAX. They are the second couple of home-friends I somehow lost in a matter of year. A pair of siblings, Israel and Almira, also left the country last September to pursue their studies and join their dad who is based in London for almost a decade. The farewells and goodbyes were tearful, all of them are part of a bigger barkada we have back home. We have a very tight extended family and parting indeed leaves us with sweet sorrow. We promised one another that someday, we will all be present in a clan reunion showcasing our individual successes and triumphs in life. On that very special day, we are all already BIG TIME people!


26

This number represents the number of days before the much anticipated April 2007 ECE Licensure Examination. All good souls out there, please pray for all the examinees.


X

I received a call from Globe last night regarding a scheduled exam I have to take tomorrow morning. The HR person sounded familiar on the phone. She told me that her name is REGH (pronounced as "rej"), which is also a familiar nickname to me. I sensed something I can't explain. A few moments after our conversation, my phone once again rang. Now, it was just a text message that read, "Musta? Regina 2. Rmbr? Bhay k b? Pd tau usap?" My intinct was right, the lady I was talking to a while ago was indeed my ex-girlfriend. What a moment!

Anyway, she's now married to a wealthy civil engineer from La Salle and they now have a baby girl named Rianne Carla.

Okay, that's it!

Mixilog

Have you ever received a very good news but you felt a certain guilt and sorrow after receiving the said news? Well, this week, a mix of different emotions fell unto me after passing the second examination at TREND MICRO.

To further elaborate, I really did not give my full heart when I took the exams at TREND during the past two weekends. I have even missed a couple of days of my usual shift in the office. In short, TREND is not on top of my preferred companies. I find it unfair to those who really want to work at TREND and yet did not make it all the way to week three. Nevertheless, since I made it this far, I will give my best shot this week. Gordon, anyway, has just started week one yesterday and soon, EJ, Ivy and Paul will also enter TREND next week or so. I hope they will eventually join me after their own apprenticeship program.

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More good news...

HP Ortigas told me earlier during my first interview there that they will possibly hand me a separate offer apart from HP Ayala's future offer. It's all up to me, according to my interviewer, which department I would like to be part of.

Sounds cool, eh?!

Demolition

Serena crushes Sharapova to take her 3rd Aussie Trophy

Serena Williams, recovering from her injuries and the death of one of her siblings during the 2006 seasons, smashed her way towards winning her third Australian Open Women's Singles title and eighth Grand Slam trophy overall by routing World #1 and topseed Maria Sharapova in the finals, 6-1 6-2.

Sharapova had no answer to Williams' booming serve and blistering returns as the American completed a fairytale return from injury with a third Australian title to join her 2003 and 2005 trophies.

Coming into the final as the underdog, the 25-year-old made a mockery of her world ranking of 81 to humiliate Sharapova and become the first unseeded player since 1978 to claim the Australian title. She finished the match in just an hour and three minutes.

Williams won the tournament in 2003 and 2005; in 2005 she defeated Sharapova in the semifinals with a score of 2-6 7-5 8-6.

FEDERER-Express soars anew in Melbourne

World #1 Roger Federer also had his demolition job in Melbourne Park done after an emphatic 6-4 6-0 6-2 semifinal win over sixth-seed Andy Roddick. He will face tenth-ranked Fernando Gonzales in the finals where he will target his third Australian Open Men's Singles title.

Gonzales also trashed another semifinalist Tommy Haas 6-1 6-3 6-1 in the other semis duel.


Within every PATTERN, there is a TREND

You got it right! I am currently on a job-training stint at TREND MICRO in IBM Plaza Eastwood City. These coming weeks will determine the career path that I will take for the next couple of weeks.

By the way, I and Jeff are on the same level of apprenticeship at TREND MICRO. Gordon will also be with us soon.

New Beginning

The year has just started. It's high time for trying new things and doing everything twice as well as I used to.

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Bad Habit

While waiting for the job offers from HP and NEC (I already got one from Accenture), I usually stay at home every single day of the week. It's only at review classes during Saturdays and Sundays that I have the chance to go out. Unfortunately, instead of studying at home, I usually can't help but spend precious hours in front of the TV watching almost all of the programs and movies shown on Animax, Cinemax, ESPN, ETC, HBO, JackTV, and StarNetworks.

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'Good' Friday

Meanwhile, last Friday, I and Clarwin accomplished a multitude of tasks plus more. We already got the official copies (in NSO SecPa paper) of our birth certificates. We also toured Ayala to hunt for job vacancies late in the morning; he was interviewed on-the-spot at NEC Philippines. We. then, visited Lizelle at Safeway in RCBC Plaza. Early in the afternoon, CL obtained his SSS number. Late in the afternoon, we dropped by EEE building and pretended to be MS students. (That was fun!!!) ... And the greatest part of the day - we went to Kapuluan to renew our faith that we somehow neglected for the past year(s). Later in the evening, we parted ways - he went to meet a batchmate for business reasons and I went to May's house to meet some 01s (Danes, Dyan, Fil, Ghe, Liz, and May) for a videoke night. I ended the night at home playing with my very cute 6-year-old niece and 8-month-old nephew.

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Smart Start

Hopefully, before the month ends, I may eventually start working in and working with a company where I can apply all the knowledge I learned from UP and enhance my skills that will surely make my market value soar higher.

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Cheers!!! :)

Invent

An additional option to my on-going dilemma: Hewlett-Packard Philippines scheduled me for a job interview tomorrow afternoon at the Robinson's Tower in Ayala Avenue. As of now, I am more inclined to the idea of accepting NEC's future offer which involves technopreneurial line of work.

Still, wish me good luck!!!

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I can already see a prosperous new year for me and my family.

What Nature Destroys Man Rebuilds

"I lost my daughter 36 hours ago, what's so natural about a natural disaster?"
--- IAN CARTER, Tsunami: The Aftermath

The highly-anticipated docu-drama in memory of the 2004 Asian Tsunami premiered on HBO (in partnership with BBC Networks) last night, exactly two years after a deadly tidal wave hit 11 countries across Indian Ocean that killed more than 200,000 people, a third of which were children. It was loosely based on the accounts and interviews conducted on several survivors from Khao Lak Fishing Village and Khao Lak Resort in Phuket, Thailand.

The two-part made-for-TV-movie is one of the best of its kind because it delivered clear, unadulterated, and well-written script. The actors are also commendable considering no one among the cast is an A-list celebrity except Academy Award^® nominees Tim Roth and Toni Colette.

The plot was very heart-touching and the effects were breath-taking. For the synopsis of the said film visit its website.

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Detour

Earlier this day, I recieved a job contract from Accenture. They gave me until the first week of January to accept or turn down the offer.

That gives me enough time to weigh my options as I undergo a final interview at NEC tomorrow morning.

Christmas Gift(s)

My long-time hunt for a decent job that is somehow related to my course in college will hopefully end before the year ends as I undergo a medical examination tomorrow for Accenture before a contract signing later in the afternoon. However, NEC also scheduled me for a final interview Wednesday next week. (See previous posts regarding my job applications.)

Here's my dilemma: which one will I have to pick over the other? It's like I'm about to choose a DETOUR option in one of the legs of The Amazing Race.

<< HIGH-END or HIGH-VALUE >>

In HIGH-END, I can apply everything I learned in college plus more - I can acquire many other things while working - because I will deal with various hardware devices and software applications in NEC. By the way, NEC specializes in network and technology solutions.

In HIGH-VALUE, I will be a junior software engineer with a not-so-lucrative starting salary in Accenture but many experts told me that fiscal and personal growth in Accenture is considerably rapid and high market value is assured once I leave the company.

So, pick one!

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SEASON'S GREETINGS EVERYONE!!!

DOLPHY-nal

Mabilis lang ito!

I'll be taking an examination at Accenture Philippines this afternoon. I'll be also taking my chances at Hewlett-Packard Philippines and Procter & Gamble Philippines by being a walk-in applicant. They are all somehow located along a common road in Makati - Ayala Avenue. Wish me good luck guys!

Hopefully, before the year ends, I am a job-seeker - and a BUM - no more!

Ye! Ye!

My interview at NEC Philippines was a short and easy one. Aside from the usual "why-I-want-to-work-there-Q&A", the HR head only threw personal questions and questions concerning my educational and family background. After that, she promised to transmit my resume to the executives and asked me to wait for their call some time in January 2007 for a series of interviews with the bosses. She informed me that they will be needing more engineers next year and assured me that my name will be endorsed to higher authorities. :) I have her word but I don't know if she has mine. While waiting for their call, I'll take chances at my other prospect companies like HP, San Miguel, Globe and Accenture.

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UP EEE alumni who are reviewing at EXCEL are really enjoying our weekly sessions especially at times when some of us meet at McDo Recto to copy each other's answers to our homeworks, eat at carinderias and food establishments with incredibly low-low-priced student meals, strolling around the U-Belt during breaks, and right after making-"takas" before the third and last session starts during Sundays. We might end up as a bonded barkada by the time we take the Licensure Exam next year. We even have our own Yahoo! group, too!

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The Amazing Race 10: The Barbies are Phil-iminated this morning (Manila time) and the Sistas became the first all-female team to qualify for a slot in the Final Three (Season Finale) of this hit reality competition alongside engaged Rob and Kimberly and models Tyler and James.

Doha Asian Games 2006: Have you watched the Opening Ceremonies last December 1st? The enkindling of the torch and cauldron was, for me, the most spectacular sporting event ceremony I have seen so far. However, has anyone heard about the Filipino athletes' rain-soaking-incident after the opening rites? Amidst a 30-minute downpour, many participants from the Philippines, Malaysia and Japan were barred from re-entering the stadium while waiting for their delayed transport buses that would take them to their villages. Anyway, four days has passed and our country has yet to win a single medal. Let's continue to pray for our fellowmen's success in Qatar.

PBA: Barangay Ginebra is now solo #1 in the team standings after a come-from-behind-win over Air21 last night with a score 116-105.

Philippine Idol: It all comes down to the ultimate showdown among Gian, Jan and Mau at the Big Dome. Final Performance Night will be held on the 8th while the Grand Results Night will be held on the 9th. I am rooting for either Gian or Mau to win. Jan is always off-key whenever he sings.

Survivor: Cook Islands: Candice was voted out last Friday afternoon (Manila time) via a 5-3 vote and became the fifth member of a 10-man jury. Seven castaways are left in dispute of the $1-million prize.

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Christmas breeze is in the air. Carols are playing on radio stations and music players, cool winter wind from the north is already felt especially before daybreak, bargains/sales and shopping sprees happen almost everywhere and the workforce is already looking forward to large bonuses and holiday pays.

Sana magkatrabaho na ko. Andami ko pa namang inaanak na papamaskuhan. Haha...

aSIMeco

Mabilis lang ito!

I have an interview tomorrow at Nippon Electric Company (NEC) - Rufino Tower, Makati. Wish me good luck guys!