A trashbin of memories....

Spent half the night looking for, of all things, a copy of my Civil Service Exam results. The document is at least ten years old and I can't even remember if I still have it with me or if I filed it with my office's HR department.

Well, suffice it to say that no...I didn't find it. But in my quest to locate it, I must have unearthed a dozen or so old and dusty brown envelopes filled with various odds and ends from my past. For example:

1. A certificate of distinction for having joined a college spelling bee dated February 17, 1994. If I remember correctly...I lost. Hahahahaha....:-)

2. A letter from the Dean of Student Affairs from my college appointing me as a member of the student body COMELEC dated July 26, 1993...incidentally, a fellow member was my ex-wife...;

3. Receipts from some computer parts I bought way back in 1993 and 1991. I purchased a 40 megabyte hard disk for P2,400.00 way back in January, 1993. Also bought an EGA card (anyone remember those?) for P2,500.00 and a 1.2 megabyte 5'1/4" floppy disk drive for P2,400.00 in 1991. It proves that I am not only a geek, but also an old geek at that...:-)

4. A manual for a 3dfx Voodoo II...which I purchased sometime in 1998. It was the most powerful 3D video card in it's day. Now it's not even powerful enough to run the 3D screen saver in Windows XP;

5. Copies of my old school paper dated June-August 1992. It was my first stint as a newspaper correspondent. I thought I was a good writer then. But when I read the articles I wrote then...damn. I sucked...but still better than most...:-)

6. A certificate of completion from the Manila Secretarial Center for finishing an accelerated course in typewriting dated April 1 - June 11, 1986. Hmmm. Just after the 1st EDSA revolution. I wonder, would it make a difference if I added this to my resume'? :-)

7. A photocopied document entitled "Lessons from the Satanic Scare and Rumors". It isn't dated, but I presume its from the early '90s. I guess I must have been into the occult even then. I believe it was during those times that "Satanists" were having their heyday. For the record, I only read about this stuff, and am not one myself....

8. Half finished poems with unadjusted syllabications. Must have never gotten around to finishing it. Here are a few lines, in all it's rough and unfinished glory:

Sitting on a wall by the bay
Thinking, wondering about events past
Figuring out what to say
And living each day is if it were my last

A cool breeze blows against my face
It silent whispers your name
Thoughts of you have put me in a daze
And since then things have never been the same

Damn! Must have been in love then. It's actually three pages long, but I think you get the picture;

9. Some scribbled notes from my ex-wife who was my girlfriend at the time. Found some of her college notes, nursing lectures, old magazines, airline safety instructions, among other things as well, which promptly ended up in the trash. Kept the notes though, for sentimental reasons I guess;

10. A copy of my NCEE results...circa 1988. My score? 98%. Looks impressive, but me and my classmates at the time were gunning for 99+%.

11. Letters and cards from an old girlfriend, after my marriage ended. Relatively new, dated 2000. *sigh*;

12. My confirmation cerficate, dated June 29, 1986, and my baptismal certificate date February 21, 1973...forgot all about these papers...glad I found them;

13. A box for a Nokia 2110i, circa 1996? One of Nokia's first GSM phones if I'm not mistaken. Standby time is 24 hours, talk time is 90 minutes. Phone is missing though. Must have sold it. Into the trash can it goes....

14. A bunch of Official Business/Travel Authority forms signed by my old boss dated 1996. Also found my old appointment papers. Somehow, I was only earning P5,552.00 a month in 1996. I wonder how I managed to get by...?

And a lot more. Ah, memories....

What was I looking for again? ;-)