I designed a tank for a Schwinn Cruiser

 I had some budget this year, and decided to bring my uncle's classic schwinn cruiser back to life. 

But not just any restoration. As a cyborg. Yup. Electric. I've been actually wanting to convert my folding bike since I found nero-e's kits. (around 5-6 years ago) But this will do for now. 

90deg Elbow Adapter for Spraybooth

 After all these years of painting indoors without proper ventilation, I finally decided to put myself first and bought a spraybooth. 

I was actually thinking of building one, but I figured the stress and effort it would take is not worth it. And as I grow older, convenience is a luxury. So I said, "to hell with it" and with my eyes closed I placed an order from WGH Hardware from shopee. 

Logitech G304, Itachi Ver.

A friend reached out and asked if I could repaint his mouse. We go way back with a shared office mouse, an old MSI I bought from CD-R King and repainted out of boredom. When the pandemic hit, I left it at the office. He was kind enough to take it home, and returned it to me 2 years later. So naturally, he knew I was the guy to call.. 👻🚫 for painting mice, that is.

he sent me this

i sent him this

Fortunately, I had a couple of G304 shells lying around from my Wireless Viper Mini build. We agreed to swap shells instead - he keeps his mouse while I work on a donor shell, so he has no excuse to lose his games.

Fat Pikachu

Last year, our Director and a VP from our company came to visit us in the Philippines. We had a little a little get-together and a chance to get to know each other. VP learned of my hobby and he said that his favorite pokemon is Pikachu. And I took that personally. 

Decent picture of that fatty ass rodent

Paint Practice on Godzilla

I spent a lot of time last year watching GroundEffected on youtube. I really vibe with his humor in his videos, and of course, his painting style. He makes it look easy. I want to improve my painting, so I printed a godzilla figure from makerworld. 

Looking quite good for a first paint job

Razer Leviathan V2 X – A Quartz Repaint

Hey there!

Here's my first proper entry into the new era — and yes, I'm starting with pink!

Around 5 years ago, my friend sold a modded Razer Leviathan . Someone saw that and they messaged him. He then asked me if I could do the same. 😏 I hesitated at first because of the speaker grills - it could be a bit difficult to do - procure a correct shade of pink mesh, re-apply the mesh, etc. In the end, I didn't bother with it and left the grill/mesh black. 

Looking cute in Quartz

Rebranding? In this economy?

 Hellaur! It's been a while (almost a decade lol) and a LOT has happened since my last update on this blog. I may drop some lore behind some time, but for now I have decided to rebrand this blog from personal ramblings to a more hobby oriented. I may still ramble, but the posts will mainly be focused on a new hobby (again? lol the last post was me finding a new hobby)

My old posts will still be here, and it will feel weird at first. But I hope I can bury them deep enough when I start posting my works - hoping I have a lot of work done when my the new brand is gonna be a sloth. lol 

I have a couple of finished projects from 2024 and I will try to post them here. I actually tried to record some footage of some of my WIP works, but who knows when I will have the time and patience to import, cut, edit, finish, and upload video type content, when images and writing words is easier and relatively quicker. 

Anywho, let's start 2026 with a new post, new (rebranded) blog, and new motivations! (I dont have any motivation as of now, i just had the urge and excuse to use my laptop keyboard to type things hahah)

Cheers! 

Manila Hobbies and Collectibles Convention 2018

Hey, waddup? Here's a quick post. Please follow me on my twitter for more updates (shameless plug lol)

Manila Hobbies and Collectibles Convention Banner

Okay! So we start the year right with a toy convention, the Manila Hobbies and Collectibles Convention 2018! The con took place at SM Megamall Mega Trade Hall 3. To be honest, the con wasn't the primary reason we went there. There was a Gundam Caravan on the event. (If you're not familiar, Gundam Caravan is an event where you register for free and build a gundam kit, then you take your built gundam home) 

Gundam Caravan Mechanics

New Found Hobby - PLAMO

Heyya! So, these past few months have been a little busy due to work - and I'm starting to appreciate my shifting/rotating schedule! I like how we have some day offs during the weekday, and the challenge of commuting. But work is not what we're talking about now, it's about my new found hobby!

Me at Gundam Caravan during GMKC 2017 @ SM North Edsa Annex 

New Year, New Life.

As we go through each phase in our life, there are things we must learn to let go of. In my case, choosing a good start in my career, meant leaving all of my loved ones behind. In as much as I would want to work in the province, I cannot find a good opportunity to start my career in the IT industry, and as any person who desires to be in the industry, I made a decision to move into the Metro.

I started passing resumes after Christmas. I did that in hopes that there will be no scheduled interview during the holiday seasons. And sure enough, after a handful of resumes sent, I was called for an interview at 2 IT companies in Mandaluyong, and Makati, respectively. 

One problem of leaving the comforts of your home is finding a place to stay in an alien environment, so it's always a good idea to contact someone you know from the place you're going to. In my case, it's my cousin. I find their boarded house (I don't how to express it in english, lol) perfect because it lies in the middle of the places I was called for. 

Pokémon Moon 🌙 + Nearing Alola Pokedex Completion!

Hey guys! So after the board exam, one of the things I bought was a Nintendo 2DS. I initially planned on buying a new phone, but I said to myself, "since the new Pokemon Games will be released a month after the review, why not invest on a game console instead? My phone is still fully functioning." So yeah, that's it. 

Poke-Moon

Assembling the Thousand Sunny Kit

Hey guys! So after the board exam, I went and treated my self to a couple of things. One of them was this model Thousand Sunny kit I bought from Bestoys in Greenhills. When I enter toy stores like these, the kid inside me glows with joy! I like toys, I mean, who doesn't? Miniatures makes my eyes go pop and my heart, lub. 

They have a huge collection of toys, and some model kits too. I personally like the Going Merry, but sadly, they had no stock so I went for the Thousand Sunny instead. Something about creating and building things make me so happy, so when I see one of these, I got excited. With stuff like these, waiting for the results of the board exam should be easy. 

Tips for Taking the Board Exams

Hi there! I recently passed my licensure exam last October 15-17, and I'm going to share my tips and experiences during our review and the examination period. Do take note that while these activities worked for me, it might not work for others. Read my other post for my "Journey" of becoming an engineer.

1. KNOW and UNDERSTAND YOUR SELF.

This is probably one of the most important tip, because it will be a factor in making your review routine. "Knowing oneself is basic to knowing others." haha. But seriously, you have to know your self, and know yourself well. What is your most efficient time to review? How do you review efficiently? Are you a fast learner or a slow learner? Do you prefer noisy or silent places? It all starts with knowing yourself. 

The Journey

Hey! I took a short vacay just after the exam because,

IT FEELS SO GOOD TO BE HOME! 😌 

So, let me tell you what I had to go through during the 5-month reviewing spree. It was May and I had no freaking idea what was going on with me. I was excited and anxious at the same time. I am about to embark on a journey that will potentially change my future.
WARNING: Long Post 😀

All of us in 1 photo. Yes, we did not have beds. We slept on the floor. Sad lyf. 😢

The Journey. It wasn't easy. It wasn't hard either. It just depends on yourself. It's whether you make it hard, or easy. LOL I don't know what I'm saying. Okay, so there were 5 of us in our dorm. 3 of us went to the same review center, while the other 2 went to another review center. This allowed us to share our materials and knowledge, and "tricks" learned from each respective review centers. Another advantage of sharing the room with friends is the teaching and learning process. Of course, no one person can know it all. There were times when one of us, at random, just begin shouting questions and the others, sometimes, will respond. It was fun, spontaneously answering questions. 

The Review Starts!

Hi guys! I apologize for the lack of content the past few months. I just graduated college. Yes! And not yes. Yes, because I am finally a degree holder. Not yes, because I think the knowledge and experience I gained in 5, 17 years of education is not yet enough to prepare me for the real life. 

My girlfriend is already preparing for her life as a professional, and it makes me think of mine. I will still be taking my licensure exam, so I will have to review for about 5 months. By then, Andrea will already have a career. 5 months is a long time to think for my career, because as of now, I am still wondering what field am I going to specialize in. 

As an ECE graduate, there are a couple of fields of specialization to choose from: telecommuncations, semicon industry, aviation, medicine, navigation, broadcasting, audio, and networking, among other fields. 

I am personally interested in computers, so I am thinking of joining the IT bandwagon. Specifically the in the Networking field. I have little to no experience about networking though, as we barely scratched the surface in our lectures and limited lab equipments. I am planning on taking a cadetship or any job that has a training before employment. I also plan on becoming a CCNA. (Cisco Certified Network Associate) And continue that path.

The ECE board exam has a lot of pressure in it. Our school had passing rates below the national passing rate I think for the last 3 years. I hope this batch will break this rating. In the previous April ECE Board Exam, only 2 out of 12 first timers passed. (8 failed, 2 conditional) 6 out of 14 repeaters passed. (7 failed, 1 conditional) with an overall performance of 8 out of 15 passed and 3 are conditional. Wow. Our board exam is dubbed as "One of the hardest board exams." and I accept this challenge!

Anyhow, I apologize for the lack of posts for the next few months. We will undergo rigorous training (loljk) to finally become a registered ECE.

To my friends who's also reviewing for their board, good luck to us and may God help us!

To my readers, thank you for understanding!

And to everyone else, cheers!

Arduino Robot Part 1: Wall Follower

Hey guys! It's been a really long while since my last post. And trust me, a lot has happened. Well, as promised, this is the "making" of our 'bot. It's a partial requirement for the subject Embedded Systems. 

The subject mainly focused on Arduino, which is an open source microcontroller. The first project was kind of a Maze Solver type robot, in which the robot needs to find it's way out of a maze. While searching for possible inspirations, I came across this little robot called a 'micromouse', which does the same thing, only better. The micromouse maps the maze until it reaches it's end point, which is usually the center of the maze. It then goes back to the starting point, and finds the shortest path to the center. The process of using the shortened path from the starting point to the center takes more or less 5 seconds. My jaw just dropped and I spent the next seconds pulling it back up. But that's a different story. The micromouse is a special robot. It uses complex algorithms to solve the maze.

I thought we didn't have enough time to study the algorithms and figure it out. So we just resorted to the wall follower algorithm, which is really really simple. It follows either the right wall, or the left wall. In real life, if you raise one of your arms: the left or the right, and touch a wall, eventually you will reach the end. That's the process of this algorithm, hence the name.

On-The-Job Training at RPN 9

Hey guys! Yes, it's been a while. Really. This first semester of AY 2015-2016 is our OJT, ECE200B. They recently moved it from 2nd semester, to the 1st semester. According to the department, placing the OJT in the 5th yr 2nd semester (final semester for graduating students) breaks their concentration on academics. I agree. I can attest to that. Going to OJT really breaks the academic concentration of a student. Mainly because he/she is now focusing on his/her work rather than his/her studies. And there is A LOT of leisure time which made the focus (on studies) really difficult. They did this because the passing rate of our licensure exam is quite low, and inter changing the 1st and 2nd semester subjects, hopefully, will help the students focus. 

Okay. We did our OJT at Radio Philippines Network Inc., Manila. We didn't really decide, though. A friend asked us if we want to hold our OJT at CNN Philippines. Since it's new, (it only came to the Philippines last March 2015) we said, "Yeah, why not?". I was really excited, to be working in CNN. But unfortunately, we were assigned to its transmitter in mega Manila, RPN. If you must know, working in an STL (Studio/Transmitter Link) or in a transmitter in general, is not really exciting. And as a young, future engineer, I would like to make the most of my OJT. The hunger for action, adventure, and excitement. The only action we get during our stay there was during emergencies: power interruptions and fluctuations, and signal losses. 

RPN Tower.
"Tower of Ispleketengteng"
-Jonathan Mina

Anti Virus?

Hi guys. I'm going to share why I stopped using Anti Virus softwares. We recently concluded our PIIC (Philippine Institute of Integrated Circuits) training, and just this afternoon I felt the urge to share to you why I stopped using AV (Antivirus) softwares. Earlier, when they inserted a flashdrive to the PC, the contents were all shortcut files (*.lnk), and I thought I saw the user clicked on it. :O He had quite a struggle restoring the files. I know because it was projected on a projection screen using a projector. Haha.

Okay, so first, where do viruses (mostly) come from? The number one culprit (according to my experiences) are flashdrives. Flashdrives carry CTD's (Computer Transmitted Diseases, lol) since they get inserted into so many PCs. Who knows what kind of malwares (malicious softwares), worms, and other creepy diseases it might have come into contact to? The second cause of viruses are from the internet - downloaded applications. I'm going to share some tips to you to avoid getting viruses and malwares.

Tip 1.

Familiarize yourself with file extensions of your files. For example, executable files has an extension of *.exe or *.msi. Video files have an extension of *.avi, *.flv, *.mp4, *.mkv, and so on and so forth.

Go here and here for a list of file extensions.

To show file extensions, open an explorer (Windows key + 'e', or just open My Computer), click Organize>Folder and Search Options and go to the View tab and uncheck Hide extension for known file types. Now you will be able to see what are the file extensions of your files.

For example, if you are downloading a video from the internet, and the download window shows an extension that is different from what you are downloading, cancel that immediately. It may contain malwares, PUP (Potentially Unwanted Programs), or worse, may infect your computer with viruses. Be vigilant.

Rejected!

Hey guys. A lot has happened since my last post. This one will specifically talk about the experience about creating our regulated power supply (Because I forgot some of the things that occurred so, blame my memory). So it has been two weeks. Two weeks that we didn't have class for ECE 136. The instructor discussed a regulated and an unregulated power supply before giving us the instructions of computing, designing, and building our own power supply. We had to gather and compile all our knowledge of electronics to analyze and compute for the resistance values. 

Schematic Diagram of the Split Power Supply
Note: The values in the diagram are different
from the values computed. However,
the same transistors and rectifier diodes were used.

Capturing the Milky Way

Photo Credits: YANXIN WANG

Hey guys! Next week will be our Finals, and our schedule is very hectic. So I'm going to post now before I forget, again. Last October 8, the "Blood Moon" phenomena occurred. I went outside to check it out. Ilocos Norte was one of the places that was lucky enough to have an unobstructed view of the celestial phenomenon. What I saw was more beautiful. The Moon was in the East (from where we are). I went outside to the west first. I noticed that there weren't any clouds present, and I could see more stars than I could see before. Then I went to look for the moon. There it was, in all of it's glory, disproving that it's made of cheese. Then I went back to look at the stars instead. I took time to just stare at the sky, because it's so beautiful. I can't help to think that I'm actually looking at the past!