and ten years have passed

I remember being glued on the TV screen in anticipation of the worldwide fireworks display of every country to greet the beginning of a new millennium. As far as I can remember, the talk of the town back then was about the millennium bug which is a computer-related issue. It's popularly known as the Y2K bug.

[some images below were hooked from different websites thru google. no copyright infringement intended.]



here is a quick glimpse of my decade highlights:

Y2000 i was at the height of my career as a media practitioner, beat reporter to be exact. i was multi-tasking in my first ever job after college (1998-2000): news writer, newsbreak reader, time checker, production coordinator and beat reporter. two of my most memorable news coverage during my first job were: 1) the execution of Leo Echegaray after the death penalty was reinstated by the Philippine government in 1995; and, 2) the courtesy call of then-President Joseph E. Estrada to then-INC Executive Minister Bro. Erano G. Manalo at the INC Central Office. Year 2000 also marked my shift of career from being a media practitioner to the field of Customer Service. On the 3rd quarter of the year, I got employed by the 2nd largest wired telecommunications company in the country. It was my 2nd job as a yuppie.



Y2001 saw me getting the habit of job-hopping. from handling customer care concerns of the telecom subscribers, I took the shot of working in one of the largest banks in the country back then as a new accounts clerk. this job made me realize how joyful it is to save money using bank savings account. i've learned the basics of banking.
I have started to consume more time on the internet with my discovery of the largest Filipino online community, PinoyExchange dot com.
This year also marked the historical "EDSA DOS" where opposition of the Estrada government marched to EDSA shrine to oust him from the presidency due to the controversial Jose Velarde case. And eventually, then-VP Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was sworn into office as the country's chief executive. I remember my superiors going to EDSA on our lunch break wearing black and they were encouraging us to go there too to protest against PRes. Estrada. Of course I didn't wear black and I stayed put in the office and just had siesta while they were out. :P
And who can forget? This year in September 11th, the (US)World Trade Centers collapsed after being attacked by the terrorists.



Y2002 has got to be the turning point of my nuclear family's life. This year, my sister and her family migrated to Canada. April 2002 when she and my brother in law left for Toronto, leaving their kids with us for the meantime while they seek for a place where they can settle and find jobs initially. 3 months after, my parents & i flew to Toronto to take with us my nephew & niece to be united with their parents and also become immigrants. My personal life took a hundred and eighty degrees turn when i was asked to apply for a US (tourist) Visa and at the same time, Canadian (tourist) VISA. While majority of Filipino applicants were being denied a US visitor VISA back then, I was granted a 5-year multiple entry tourist VISA to the US. Approval of the Canadian VISA wasn't that difficult afterward.
This year I first set foot in the so-called first world country. I got the opportunity to visit some tourist attractions in the United States.
I resigned from my job as a new accounts clerk, worked for a new player in the telecom industry.



Y2003 is the birth year of this blog. this year has been another exciting and busy year for me. i lived my 6 months in the mother country, then tasted how life is in a foreign land where i initially visited a year ago. for the first half of the year, i got busy turning over my work and duties to a colleague and then i resigned from that telecom company (don't count now, hehe). 1st half of the year also shared some good times with close PEx pals in Island Cove. the 2nd half of the year saw me "wandering" around Toronto & Missisauga, trying to live life as it is in that part of the world. Started my first "blue-collar" job as a newspaper delivery boy together with my brother in law (his part time job was my full time source of income), and eventually passed on with my good buddies when my brother in laws schedule couldn't sustain anymore the time consuming part time job. this year was my first ever taste of the season autumn (it eventually became my favorite season) and yep, SNOW! and oh yeah, courtesy of my good buddies, i've experienced my first apple-picking, too!



Y2004 i have started filing my application for an independent immigrant to Canada. sought the help of a consultant then in the course of processing my papers, i was instructed to wait back in my mother country which is Manila. before returning back home, i've experienced two more unforgettable "blue-collar" jobs as I slowly become more familiar with the environment where i am in. too bad, i needed to return to Manila. upon return to Manila, while i wait for my application filed in the Canadian Embassy in Manila, i looked for a job. I went training in a small time call center and didn't like the nature of work so i quit it. i was jobless until a new company has assured me of a job in November but i actually started working for them just April of the following year. (wow, if not for this blog entry, i wouldn't have realized that i was a bum for like, 5 months!)
to end off the year, a strong earthquake hit Indonesia. for others it is simply a natural calamity, for us taught the words of God, it was a warning.



Y2005 when i got employed (as a pioneer employee) in a distribution company. i was delighted to have been a part of the company in its formative years. it worked towards a big goal while we started as a very small unit. from that year forward, it has gone a long way...
my youngest nephew (from my one and only sister) was born this year on the month of September.
this is the year when i set my foot in Tutuban for the first time in my life!
I spearheaded the KADIWA Night project... to God be the glory! on a sadder note, this year i gave my final respect to Bro. Teofilo Ramos.
Politics highlight... Ate Glo says... (hulaan nyo na lang kung ano sinabi nya rito):



Y2006 i met the person who's the answer to the song i used to sing... "Where Are You" by Natalie feat. Justin Roman... *cheesy* this year was more focused on my career, lovelife (wow totoo na ito!), and church duties. i was at the height of my leadership in the KADIWA organization. my girlfriend and i worked in the same workplace but with different companies. that made us not to miss a day of being with each other. i think i had the most traffic violation tickets issued in one year this 2006. mostly, i got caught for petty traffic violations in Pasay. oh well... also this year, as scary as it can be in real life, I felt violated.



Y2007 expanded my social network online where i met a good number of blogger friends. i also met my long-time grade school pal, RAMPS (his initials), after soooo many years. it was my first time to take an up close and personal look at the crater of Taal volcano, horse backriding, ride a jetski through my most memorable company outing in Punta Fuego. this year also marked our (my girlfriend & i) engagement and the "pamamanhikan" was done during her birthday.



Y2008 felt like a "celebrity year" for me and my then-girlfriend-now-wife. we got TV interviews and of course the highlight of this year was our 08.08.08 wedding. early this year, my parents migrated to Canada. i was left home alone. career-wise, i was too busy handling the CS department all by myself. my immediate superior was there, yes, but i do all the "dirty jobs" in the department. so there. this year marked my first ever visit to Mindanao--- Samal Island, Davao to be exact. had a pleasurable three days & two nights stay in a fresh fruit-filled island!
i served as guest speaker in a KADIWA meeting in Coy's locale in Molino.
also this year, Filipino songwriter Ogie Alcasid held a concert in the Big Dome... mom, ayah & i watched it live.



Y2009 another joy brought to us was the birth of our firstborn, little Aya.
this year, calamity visited the country caused by succeeding typhoons that passed by the northern main island of the Philippines. our one and only Apung Tino passed away. this year also, we had our 2nd TV guesting on the same talkshow/lifestyle show that invited us for an interview one year ago. one of the saddest thing that happened for us, INC members, was the passing of our beloved church administrator, Bro. E.G. Manalo. early this year, it's officially "goodbye, Canada"--- well at least for now that the Canadian Immigration disapproved my application to immigrate in that cold country. 2009 was truly a roller coaster ride for me. i've summed it up on my first year-ender video blog post which can be viewed here.

It's 2 days before the start of a new decade. here's to wishing everyone a happy, bountiful, peaceful, blessed new decade ahead!