Last Friday, Rob and i went to visit a girl friend of mine who is now based in the US and was in town for a visit. we went to the same house where about 10 years ago, we used to play Taboo and other fall-to-the-floor laugh-trip games.
we entered the house and i greeted my friend with a big hug. it was so good to see her. initially i thought that it would be a small get-together with just us girl friends and significant others. i was surprised to see many more familiar faces and voices as we made our way to the dining room.
about 10 years has passed since i've seen, or heard from most of them. some of them were simple acquaintances and drinking buddies. some i became really close to and others i have maintained close friendships with. some i even played basketball with.
after 10 years, here we were, sitting at one table, making jokes, as if we just saw each other yesterday.
and what was it that brought us all together in the first place? being 'hams'.
"Ham" is the term used to describe amateur radio enthusiasts. i consider myself half-a-ham in that i am not a licensed radio operator, but used to talk and hang out with licensed hams.
it all began as a fun thing to do with my neighbors about 15 years ago, much like what chatting on the computer is today. you get to talk to different people whom you've never met, develop new friends and even get help in times of emergency. in hindsight, i can say that a lot of the friends that i still bump into now and then are those i met through the radio.
i used to wander between frequencies. there was one where majority of the users are from the Pasig area (its easier to hear each other if within the same geographic location). most of the people on this frequency were not licensed hams. it became a bit tiring later on as it was frequented by jammers, or those who had nothing better to do than irritate everyone else.
then i stumbled upon a frequency where the conversations, well...made more sense....and was more fun to listen in on. so i politely broke in, and had a very interesting chat with this guy Bernard and his wife Joji, as well as the other people on the frequency, and this lasted till past midnight. i remember i was pretty sleepy and would take micro-sleeps (you know, when the brain goes to sleep involuntarily) when other people would talk. i would only return to full awareness when I'd hear them calling for the "micro-sleeper". this went on for sometime until i began working at the Diamond. i would usually bring my handheld radio and talk to them on my way home. then one night, i remember talking to Joji while i was in the car, and i felt the sudden urge to drop by their house, which i did. and i guess, that's where a big part of my life began. that's when i met some of my most dearest and cherished friends.
from Ramon, Mare, Ston, Laurie, Herbie, Bob, Clifford, Ian, etc. the big group was scaled down to a bunch of 5 women with different ages, maturity levels and experiences. and it was that group (Joji, Virge, Carol, Cecille and myself) which pretty much stuck together for most parts. we each had our own life-altering experiences, and we have gone on to lead our own lives, knowing that each one is just a call, text or email away.
funny how you can sometimes meet people under totally unexpected circumstances and later find out that these are the people that have helped you shape your life. and also in some way, helped you to be a better person.
things have a really weird way of working themselves out.
now, i guess the same things are happening to people just like me, but through chat and text.
and the cycle just goes on and on.
written 7-13-2006
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