Tuesday, November 18, 2014

November 18th

Time flies so fast. November's about to end in less than two weeks. Things have been great for the past weeks. I get the chance to travel with my mom and godmother in Saigon, Vietnam last month. That trip, despite being a short one and some bloopers, was rather awesome. It's great to be back in Saigon and just stroll around the city. I had the chance to spend millions of dongs at Saigon Square. Yep, they had great stuff there. I never thought that I'd enjoy shopping THAT much, even if my feet became sore due to over walking, if there's such a thing as over walking.


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Work is so far good. I've never complained about my job. It's my lifelong dream to become an air traffic controller and I wouldn't trade it for any other jobs, even if the compensation is higher. Well, working on your dream job is supposed to be a dream come true... until you meet some people who would talk behind your back, and try to pull you down. I've kept on whining about it for the past few months but I've come to realize that there's no personal growth if people around you aren't diverse. Forgive me, it is my first time to experience working on the 'real' world. Being a slave of the government has its own perks, in all fairness, but being a slave to one's butt is another thing. I owe them to my personal growth, honestly speaking. Without them, I wouldn't be this strong and independent. Without them, I would probably be still immature. They have brought me to a world wherein I should try to fit in, not THEM trying to fit in MY world. It's a case-to-case basis. Well, it's all about being nice to everyone, NO MATTER WHAT. It's really hard at first, but you'll get used to it. I still consider these as blessings from God.


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I'm now a rated Aerodrome Controller, which means, I AM ON MY OWN when it comes to deciding on what to do with my traffic scenario. You know, there's this excitement and anxiety at the same time whenever when I'm on duty. I won't deny that I'd get nervous whenever there's too much traffic in the air, and I need to sequence them right away and make at least seven to ten plans prior executing my clearances and instructions so as to avoid chaos in the air. It's our job to deliver all aircraft flying in our jurisdiction to their final destination in a safe, orderly, and expeditious way. When I was still a non-rated air traffic controller, I'd solely depend on my supervisor's decision, although I had the chance to decide on my scenario, but my supervisor has the final say. Should an accident occur within our jurisdiction (God forbid), I wouldn't be liable for it but my supervisor. Now, that I'm a rated atc, the responsibility of bringing those aircraft to safety is so big. But then again, I have to get used to it.


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A day before the first year anniversary of Yolanda, I had the chance to travel all the way to Guiuan, Eastern Samar. I went there for a special mission - to handle air traffic at Guiuan Airport. There are no air traffic controllers assigned on that airport due to an almost nonexistent air traffic. Together with my senior, we went there and had the chance to meet the big names in the Philippine politics, including the President. Oh wait, it's my second time to handle the Presidential flight in just a year! Yey, another badge in my ATC career. It was fun, and the sceneries going to Guiuan were really stunning. That's what I really love about road trips. You get the chance to see the beauty of mother nature. I never thought I'd see a LOT of mangrove forests, estuaries, and limestone and rock formations dwarfing the quaint coastal towns of Eastern Samar.




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I have finally seen myself on TV... on my favorite science channel since childhood - Discovery Channel! It was just a 3-seconds to fame, but I was so thankful that they didn't include my interview because I was so nervous during that time! Trey told me that they should've aired my interview about what air traffic control is all about, and my experiences working as an ATC, but due to airtime limitation, they decided to cut it. But hey, I still saw my own self on TV! And I ain't telegenic. LOL

Well, this pretty sums up about my life for the past few months. I miss blogging about anything under the sun. Like this. I should do this more often.

Yep, I keep on breaking this promise. Sheesh.

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