I started to own a transmitter/receiver last 1997 and made a hobby out of it. It was the Radio Amateur Volunteer Network,145.160 Mhz,DX1RVN that I first discovered, then I met Joey,4F1KLZ(though, he cannot remember me when I asked him!). The amateur band is too tough for me, so,  I left the amateur band to make fun of my equipment and was engaged in a "kyawkyawan (illegal) frequency". Not until 2000 when I met Gerald, DU1UCJ (DX1KA) and inspired me to take an amateur radio seminar in order to comply in the National Telecommunications Commission regulations to get an exam.
      Luckily during that time, the Filipino League of Amateur Radio Enthusiasts, Inc., 144.400 Mhz (DX1FLR), is set to conduct a seminar. I met Ed Ilagan, DU1DPE, the club president and helped me to sort things out, and I took the seminar last April 09, 2000 (that day was my ex-girlfriend's birthday but I decided to go to the seminar, rather than to be in her swimming-birthday celebration, so, we broke up).
       In the seminar, I met Boy Gudgad, 4F3OM (DX3H), who taught us everything we need to know to pass the exam. Ten persons, including me, participated in the seminar. All of them have been nice to me, but Jess DY1RMJ seems a lot nicer. I took the exam two weeks after the seminar, and incidentally, Jess saw me in the NTC information board looking for my exam schedule. We found out that we have the same time schedule, and after the exam, I asked him to "hop in" to my owner-type jeep to go home. Jess went to the NTC for the result, and luckily, we both passed the exam. I became a KALIKASAN Amateur Radio and Mountaineers, Inc. member and the rest is history!