I woke up at 7 AM today. Amazing ha!!! Considering I was deadtired the day before. I turned on my phone and greeted Regina a happy birthday. Surprise, I got a text from her telling me that we should meet on that day around 9 AM to see the M.A.Ed program head. Hmm...I didn't know if I could make 9 AM so she said 10 would be fine. I was worried that my sister was still going to take her shower but she was already getting ready to leave for her job interview in Makati. I rushed to take a shower, eat a biscuit, brush my teeth, dress up and prepare the papers that I would need. I had already set aside possible papers I would need like my Certification for grad school and the receipt for the NSO. Since I would be in school early, I figured that I would be done after lunch and can go to the NSO to pick my birth certicate.
I think I left the house around 8 AM and took a bus til Baclaran. I was going to take the MRT jeep from Baclaran and take the MRT til Shaw. It was the fastest way compared to taking the bus. Unfortunately, the bus driver was so swapang. He kept on making stops and picking up passengers. I guess he had to earn a living too. I think I got to Baclaran quarter to 9 and there was no traffic. Took that jeep and got off before at the intersection. I knew there were traffic enforcers after the intersection and didn't want to end up getting off farther from the MRT station.
Usually, I buy a one hundred pesos prepaid card since I frequently use the MRT when I was attending regular classes in grad school. But since they are valid for only six months, I didn't want to was the card. I had already wasted 3 cards previously. Sayang din the one hundred cards althought it is really convenient since you don't have to line up, especially when you're in a hurry and the lines are long. I decided to use the other entrance since the neareast entrance was just swamped with people. I got my one way ticket to Shaw for fourteen pesos I think, or was it twelve? Now I can't remember. I was a little worried that it would be crowded but realized that since it was vacation, not a lot students would be using it and it wasn't rush hour anymore.
I finally got off the MRT around 9:30 AM and I was starting to feel hungry. I went by McDonald's and had a Longganisa breakfast. By the time I was done eating, it was a quarter to 10. I was crossing my fingers that there wouldn't be any traffic. Shaw Boulevard is a very street and sometimes traffic can be horrible. Again, it wasn't so I was lucky. Yahoo!!!
I left my ID at the guard area and wore my visitor's ID. Since I wasn't enrolled, my ID doesn't work anymore. Their ID system is computerized so they'd know. I went to the restroom to freshen up and texted Regina that I was in school already. I saw the grad school librarian and we chatted for a few minutes. When I was done, I waited outside in the lobby.
As I was sitting, the elevator operator came over and we chatted. Its pretty much a small world in grad school so she knows most of us by face, not really by name. She even knows if the professors are there or not. She mentioned that the M.A.Ed head was there so I was texting Regina to hurry up.
Finally, Regina arrived. Wow, she looked like she had grown taller. Or maybe I just grew smaller? Hehehehe. We gathered our courage and went to her office. What transpired there, I won't write about anymore. That's that.
After our meeting with the head, we returned to the lobby and chatted again. It has been awhile since we got to talk. One of the things that I really treasure in my years in grad school is the friendship that Regina and I have. She told about some of the things, mostly sad, that has happened to her in last couple of months. She's a very brave girl and it was her birthday too. I know, she can handle those things and with the help of her family, she will remain strong. She's quite a fighter.
It was almost lunch but we had to pass by the HR department. Her mom is resigning after many years of service as a librarian. Unfortunately, the person we were looking for wasn't there so we went to the library to return the book her mom had borrowed.
We were supposed to eat at a Chinese restaurant al fresco but for some strange reason, they were closed at that day. Reggie said that they usually open at 10 AM and she has brought several people there and this was the first time that they were closed. Oh well.
We ended up at Jollibee. I wanted to try out the Jolly Beef Rice. She was taken aback and thought I just wanted to order "fries." For dessert, a chocolate sundae and a very large Coke. She ordered the same thing too.
While waiting for the food, we continued our conversation. She told me that she always ended up feeling "bwisit" on her birthday. And it looked like the same thing was happening again. Anyways, we still had a great lunch. I was very very full after that and wondered how I could get to NSO with such a big stomach...hehehe. It was really gluttony. We also agreed on when we'd meet again for the comprehensive exam.
I passed by the drugstore to pick up Vitamin C tablets. I haven't been taking Vitamin C for several days since I ran out. As usual, took the MRT and when I got off the last station which is Taft. I had observed that there was a jeep going to the DFA so I chose that. There were several people there too who were going to the DFA. Finally, I saw AIMS and the driver was quite helpful and said that was where we were supposed to get off and take the side street and to the right to that street was DFA. You really wouldn't miss it since there are also a lot of people going there too. But that wasn't where I was going. I was going to the NSO. I finally ended up at Roxas Boulevard and crossed the pedestrian. There were several people crossing too so I wasn't worried about getting run over.
When I arrived at the NSO, it was almost 2 PM, the line for releasing was very very very long. Super duper extra challenge. What was worse was that it started raining. We were under a roof yes but we were getting drenched despite that. Probably, the security guards received a lot of complaints so they fixed the lines and we ended up inside the building. People were also very vigilant and did not allow anyone to just line up indiscriminately. As usual, I tried to pass the time by either watching TV (which I couldn't hear since it was probably mute) or staring into space. After 2 hours, it was finally my turn. I presented my ID (SSS ID or other IDs are just as
useful, probably preferable are the ones with photos) and I got my birth certificate. Now its just my NBI clearance and I can start working on my passport application.
I boarded a bus as usual to go home and I just relaxed. There wasn't traffic so I arrived home around 5:30. My sister had already prepared dinner and I was really hungry. But I think Almost Doggie or Doggie (my mom likes to call her Bengbeng) was banging at the door so we obliged her and fed her.
I finally got around to checking my email (which I didn't do the previous day) and I felt better.
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