To Jerico...RIP
In my moments of boredom at the Cenlec, my brain wanders away to either daydream or observe people, using my peripheral vision. Yes, I am really good at this. I notice neckline hairs, teeth, ankles, you name it... different parts depending on the subject.
In my moments of boredom at the Cenlec, my brain wanders away to either daydream or observe people, using my peripheral vision. Yes, I am really good at this. I notice neckline hairs, teeth, ankles, you name it... different parts depending on the subject.
Of course, who wouldn't miss the youngish MISO guys, always on guard for tech problems. One guy in a lavender shirt managed to hide behind me despite his height, the other guy must be somewhere in the hallway (as I've crossed paths with him there a few times in my mam-may-i-go-out-moments), and the third guy looked like a snobbish Vietnamese.
The third guy was at the right place and the right time. He must be Jerico whom a colleague of mine described to have perfect grammar. From my seat, I couldn't help but notice his pair of neat looking leather shoes, enough to snap me out of my boredom. Like wow, much neater than mine. He must be really single to afford such a pair or perhaps, his mom loves him so.
When I asked around, I learned that Jerico is the youngest among the MISO staff and maybe even the youngest faculty member at UPOU. Check out his Google Apps site and find out why I took an interest in him.
Here, Jerico has a funny story to tell, with his perfect grammar and wit. (i just don't know if he's wearing his pair of black shoes while doing this over email).
Here, Jerico has a funny story to tell, with his perfect grammar and wit. (i just don't know if he's wearing his pair of black shoes while doing this over email).
1. How did you end up working here at UPOU?
Well, it's a long story. Back in my college days (2000-2004), I had developed good connections with the faculty of the College of Devcom (UPLB), so the Dean became my first boss. In one of her projects, Mam Jean Saludadez was one of project team members. After I finished the project, Mam Jean took me as a graduate assistant since I just enrolled in UPOU.
Enrolling in UPOU was another story though. I enrolled for the degree. Most of what the program taught I already knew, so it was just a matter of finishing it. I wanted to go to Australian Nat'l Univ. and take their MS Comsci program kasi. The prerequisite was a BS or diploma in comsci. So DCS would fit the bill.
Anyway, back to UPOU. After 9 months of being a GA, the MISO head (Franjel) took me as an IT Researcher. I worked on that for six months as an NGW (Non-govt worker: may tax deduction but walang benefits whatsoever). Then when a casual position for an ISR III opened up in March 2007, I applied for it. That's my current job.
2. why would a young person choose to get tied down to government work...?
It's not really the prospect of being in the government that drew me here. Actually, I wanted to go to the private sector. But given the choice to take the lead in how one programs vs. the huge salaries, high profiles and the probability to get trained in foreign countries, I'd go for the former.
The fresh air of Los Baños, the proximity of the office and lower overall living costs are merely perks.
But for most, it's for the experience. Using the government as a stepping stone to develop skills is pretty common for programmers who want to be in the private sector sometime in their life.
3. Tell me more about your work here in MISO. When I see MISO, I just equate it w/ Moodles.
Anyway, my main job is to develop web applications -- websites and similar scripts that you open in a browser. Google Apps and the Online Bookstore were some of my pet projects that went into production. It's not the physical appearance I work on though; it's the scripts running in the background. This consumes most of my time and is the hardest thing to do. Programming is basically telling something that isn't very smart what to do.
Another thing I'm expected to do is build servers -- web servers, databases, mail servers, etc. After I've built them, I have to maintain them -- regular updates, security audits. That sort of stuff. Unfortunately, these are things I can't learn in the classroom. I have my own "consultants" for this.
Still, I have more to do. I also keep the network at headquarters up. There's a cabling room near the Accounting Office that looks like two small refrigerators with 5000 snakes crawling around. They're cables for Internet, telephone and power. Seeing it for the first time is overwhelming.
Of course, I'm also teaching this semester. CMSC D (Data Structures and Algorithms) and CMSC I (Software Engineering).
Finally, yes, we do have to answer the phone. From the basic "I lost my Internet connection" to the personal "Can you help me with my wireless home network?" to the odd "Do you know how much it costs to place a call to the Michigan?"
Well, that's a normal day at the office.
4. what's the dirtiest job you've done for UPOU? (I've cleaned toilets and scrubbed floors, slept overnight in my work places before, literally crossed the seas with a storm right behind me...it's even unpaid work!!! like what's a "dirty job" in a MISO/ IT workplace like)
The worst, although not really dirty, job experience I had here was when I was still an IT Researcher...
It was during some conference back in February 2007. It was a three-day event. The first would be spent at HQ, then the next two days at Trader's Hotel.
The first day (Thursday), was a regular day for me, with some AV Room duties (setup the microphones and sound system). At the end of the day, I was informed that we still had to set up a computer network at Trader's Hotel. It was already 5pm, so I was like "WTF?"
Anyway, I thought "Okay, maybe I'll just have to put a switch, hook up the wires, then I can go home." I was so wrong.
We got to the hotel around 7:00 pm. Believe it or not, we didn't have dinner. It was every man for himself. Luckily, the drivers found a small carinderia at the back and we had the only thing on the menu: tortang talong.
After dinner, I was anxious to set everything up. It was still early, so I thought that after hooking up everything, I'd stop by Starbucks and grab an iced mocha drink before heading to the bus station. (The drivers looked like they'd be going home really late so I thought that I'd just reimburse my expenses).
However, the night was just getting started. They informed us that we needed to go to UP Diliman and get 15 (yes 15!) computers. To make it short, we were really annoyed and I slept all the way to NCC. When we got there, we grabbed the computers and loaded them in the vehicles.
So we went back to Trader's Hotel. It was around 10pm. When I got there, one of MC's computers had a problem. It couldn't pick up any audio. Judith (MC staff) and I had to pay up a ridiculous 55 pesos from our own pockets for a measly 10 minutes of Internet access just to get the device driver from the manufacturer's website. Whatever. I was already in a foul mood and in such times, I really couldn't care any less.
So that was fixed. Then it took me about 10 minutes to hook up the 4 computers for public display. The other guys who helped carry all those 15 computers from NCC were outraged at the decision to put up only 4. As for me, I didn't care. I just wanted to go home. I was deprived of my iced mocha drink and every minute I spent there shaved time off my sleeping pattern.
My mood lifted when Franjel had his backpack on (that meant we had a ride), so I got ready as well. While scratching at an itch on my right cheek though, they surprised me with a horrified look. It was late, I was tired, so maybe that's why I didn't feel anything. My hand was bleeding profusely. It had gotten cut from the side of a computer case.
Oh well, at least there's a sink here. On my way to the washroom though, I met a security guard who gave me a look that said "I wonder who this bastard stabbed..." Anyway, I washed my wound and returned to the lobby.
Before leaving, one thing I remember was Mam Vicky telling us she felt sorry that while we had to do all the work (everyone else was just chattering and sitting comfy-comfy in the lounge), we still had to go home and return early the next day. Those who really didn't have to work were the ones given hotel rooms. Anyway, we finally got on the vehicle that would take us back to Los Banos. No iced mocha for me. It was 1:30am by the time I got back to HQ. Oh, did I mention that I still had to drive home?
Not yet done though. To get back by 6:00am (oh yeah!), we'd have to leave HQ at 4:00am. So that leaves me less than 2 hours to sleep. Wow. Tough week.
So I slept at 2:00 and woke up at 3:30. I got to the bathroom and turned on the light. I pushed the switch and the light was like the Milky Way shining in all its brilliance. Moments later, I heard a sea of urgent, but calm voices. I couldn't comprehend what they were saying though.
Then a loud voice. Something understandable. "Pahinga ka muna. Last stitch."
Huh? Stitch?
Finally the light died and I found myself lying in a hospital bed. The light was the emergency room light. The incomprehensible voices were those of the nurses. The loud voice was the doctor's.
My mom was beside me, so I asked what happened. She told me that I had a seizure attack, which basically zapped my vision and froze my limbs, causing me to hit my head somewhere. Hit it hard too. Four stitches. There is a scar, although very faint, on my right eyebrow. Doctor did a good job stitching it.
I had to wait until the afternoon to be released from the hospital, so in the meantime I enjoyed having someone push me on a wheelchair for the first time. I had a bump on my head, but the experience was exhilarating. The guy pushing you follows your every word as if their life depended on it.
Go left. Go right. Stop here. Get me that. Wait here while I take a leak.
As for the epilogue, the saddest things were:
1. The computers were never used. They didn't even turn one unit for the public to use.
2. The audio driver we got from the Internet (which we spent 55 pesos on) was never used. They decided on another means of audio recording, instead of the problematic computer.
However, for the record, if I had I known I'd be going home at 2:00pm instead of 9:00pm, I would've never gone. So I've learned my lesson here. Don't join activities that are vague about the details unless you're prepared to wake up in the hospital the next day with four stitches on your forehead.
5. what are your other options out there?
I'm open to work in web development and network administration. There are places I can work in the country and outside of it.
6. but why choose to do this kind of work now?
The University aims pretty high when it comes to envisioning where it wants to go. I think it's awesome to be part of the team that will make that reality. While I don't agree with everything UP wants to be, it's better than nothing. I think it looks good on paper, but in some areas, the University is "settling for what it can get". I like that it's aiming high, but sometimes, I don't think it's high enough. Besides, I also want to be in a high performance environment.
7. How else can MISO be a better MISO in the future? What will it take for that to happen?
8. Does your work in MISO in a way contribute to your being a better teacher at DCS? In what ways?
9. So what do you do when you're not busy w/ MISO work?
2. I go hiking. Usually sa Mt. Makiling. I just walk a couple of meters from our door and I'm already in the forest. I've been exploring one side of one of Mt. Makiling's valleys lately. No trails, just my markers. It's fun to go out and just get lost in the woods. Occasionally there are snakes, but if you live in a forest, snakes aren't exactly strangers. Of course, there's the usual owls, hawks, racoons and fish. I saw a rabbit once, but I don't know if it was domesticated or not.
3. I shoot. Family trips, reunions, public events, UPOU events. My recent obsession is macro photography (shooting up close). I've used a point and shoot camera for some time now, but I think it's time to upgrade to a DSLR. I'm going to get one this month.
4. I buy something. Usually I buy computer parts, price be damned. Thankfully, the other thing I splurge on is cheaper: food. My friends say I can eat like a pig. What annoys them is that it does not reflect on my body mass. Whatever I gain during dinner is gone by breakfast.
5. I play with my dogs. I have three dogs. One is a 6-year-old pit bull. Very smart, very loyal and pulls like tugboat. Her name's Mitch. The two other dogs aren't pits, but at least they're smart enough to escape from anything save for a welded cage. The older one (about 14 months old) is named Yanna and the younger one, my mom named Buboy (after the character in the Dyesebel TV series). They each have their own dog house which I either built or bought. I hate it when we have to go on vacation though, since we're gone for like 4-5 days and nobody's home to take care of them. Although at the last minute, we always find someone who can go over, feed them and clean up their mess.
There you go. Had fun? Now if only I can ask him to show me his shoes for one last time so I can smell it, a habit of mine whenever I window shop for expensive shoes. By the way, his pair is a Rockport!
Reposted from: UPOU Community Site, Nov 2008
