A.Dios

“Let us have faith that right makes might. And with that faith, let us, until the end, do our duty as we understand it.” – Abraham Lincoln

I held this quote in my heart for almost a year now. I got it from the outskirts of our university library (outskirts talaga yung term? LOL) back in my senior year. Oh well, do I have to mention that I’m a library person? Well, aside from the fact that my crushes love the library, I too, benefit from all latest gossips; both relevant and irrelevant with my studies. HAHA. Anyhow, this quote has inspired me far beyond it could’ve. I wrote it on a piece of cut paper and slipped it in my notebook. It gave me a sense of conviction that I can, and I will succeed in my Accountancy undertaking just as how I understand my purpose to be.

Back in my freshman orientation days, we were once asked to choose an object to exemplify ourselves towards our long journey in surviving Accountancy. I was a brave heart that time and so I raised my hand and chose a pair of slippers. It’s for the simple reason that I want my perseverance to be like a slipper, always attached during the journey. Simple, but never losing grip of it. Come, let’s find out how far that perseverance took me. :’)

The Goal

“If you can’t see the prey, then the chase is just too difficult.”

I forgot the name of the priest who shared that phrase in his homily, but bless him. It was too timely for me to have heard it just as we were beginning our review sessions at the ST. FRANCIS XAVIER ACCOUNTANCY REVIEW AND RESEARCH CENTER (ARRC). I intentionally wrote it all on caps for emphasis. No words can express how thankful I am to the Almighty Father for leading the way. I sure was led to ARRC for a purpose. And my review school has never failed to teach me so much of life, rather that of mere solving and answering arduous questions. I was properly guided to where I should be and I saw it more clearly that my goal really, right at the moment I enrolled in the Accountancy program is to pass the board exam, and there I go, a step closer towards the epic ending of this chapter in my life. That was the goal; to pass, simple, yet very hard to focus on.

The Game Plan

I guess I never failed to mention in one of my blog entries that I am such an action movie maniac :’3 HOHOHOHO! And one thing I am most thankful about that is, I was able to apply it in review school. I took a copy of the board exam syllabus and I made myself a progress table, listing the seven subjects and the CRITICAL topics to die for. From time to time, I also made countless post-it’s “to remember” so I’d never lose track of the tricky questions I encountered along the way. I tried to see to it that I had plan B, just in case things go wrong, and so I always leave a trail in everything I do. So far, it has worked well for me, though it really took me much time and a whole lot of patience in recalling what I meant with my shortcut formulae whatsoever. LOL I also made it a point to make voice recordings in law and taxation since I was quite aware that the six months will turn its back on me and by September I’d be forgetting almost half of the memory bank in dear old brainy, so I had to make sure I had something to listen to when memory gap hits me. Finally, I made a comparison of the progress of my scores for the six pre-boards we had. It was a good way of assessing my performance and it alarmed me well enough as to what subjects to keep up with.

EGG-ZOIT-ED

I am an enthusiastic person. If I find myself in a new undertaking, I always give it 100% at the BEGINNING. Hahahaha! Yea, that’s the sad part, I find it very challenging to be able to sustain the energy inside, because really, I agree that Accounting and the other board exam subjects can be VERY BORING. This is what also Mr. Jessie Salon, CPA, MBA told us at the start of the review session; he said that the journey towards the CPA Board exam is not a speed race, where the first person who actually understands the problems and answers the questions win, rather, it’s a marathon, testing your stamina and your dedication on how far you’d go towards CONSISTENTLY pushing yourself forward and beyond.

The End Begins

By the time I started the review, the first question that hit me was: “how am I going to do about my schedule? Is it going to be studying ahead, or studying after the reviewer’s discussion?” It was a very crucial decision to make and I finally decided to choose the former. Not only will I be able to review the topic ahead of time, I can also ask the reviewer some questions that challenged my coconut during my readings. ^.^ and that system worked for me until the end of the review sessions. Also, it doesn’t give me a time lag until the last topic is discussed so I get to have an extra day to review all the topics already taken up. To equip myself with the know-how’s, I searched the internet for advices form CPA’s who had blogs and I really took heed of their simple yet effective advices. You better hunt for them as well! :D

In preparing for the boards, not only that you have to be quick and careful, you also have to be resourceful. I kept in touch with my IMBA friends who reviewed in CPAR Manila as well as those who enrolled at PRTC here in CDO. I never missed a board exam copy of theirs but I never got the chance to answer them all—for always, you should know what you are able to do. J choose wisely.

The Thing About FOOD

The energy bar. The sunshine. The appetizer. It keeps me going. FOOD.

It’s your study buddy and believe me when I tell you that it’s your “passing ticket” for the boards. Not only does it feed your appetite, it also refuels you. I don’t think this discussion will be necessary. We’ve all had our share of science trivia’s. EERSS.

It's a DIY Mackerel sandwich. NOMNOM.

I forgot the flavor and we rarely buy magnolia products but this one sure is a great deal! :D

It's a crepe. Oh, so creamy in between.

This one's one of my crazy experiments; bread and pistachio ice cream all over <3

HERSHEY'S :*

An old classic, cookies! :')

KK doughnuts from Ira babes. Sweet. ^.*

I forgot where this was, I was with Yang, I and Ira's bf <3

Cereals for breakfast and snack time :3

The best treat Goldilocks has ever had. Monay. Good for the heart <3 LOL

Tea makes me calm :}

When in the mood, I fry chicken and pork chops. HIHI. :D

The figure before the review. Depressing. I'm so not like that anymooooooore! :'(

Just a reminder: don’t be scared to get fat you guys! You won’t like it when you get sick during the board exam weeks. Oh well, I didn’t like it. TRUST ME.

MOVIES (and the things that no one will tell you)

I do believe in the power of BREAKS. Haha. This is also what we call PROCASTINATION. Lol I never deprived myself of it, because really, IT KEEPS YOUR SANITY INTACT. This movie “catch me if you can” starring Leonaro DiCaprio and Tom Hanks, inspired me that if you really want something, there’s no excuse to getting it single-handedly. It will be tough yes, but who knows how worthwhile it would be in the end? It’s about money-making fraud BTW so I found it interesting HAHA. Based on a true story.

I had a nice time in a resort with mom, and I spent the entire evening until around 2 am watching crime movies. HEHE. It was guilty pleasure. Imagine yourself, caught in the middle of choosing between the remote control and the taxation book. O.o

Express yourself

No one will do it for you. You have to make an extra effort to smile, to laugh, to realize that you have to continue doing what you do. What I did was to take pictures every time I feel that my cheeks feel heavy or when my eyes get tired. 

EM SO TIRED HELP MEEEEE >.<

le hair :)

goofy :*

bored :3

dunno how to call this ^&%*

When the pimples start growing all over :"(

Feels like everything's so heavy T.T

Those times when I wear make-up ^.^

Degradation

You can call it my liquidation report. It shows how I actually spent the review days, taking photos of myself, slowly and painfully getting older and uglier. (The photos will tell you as we go along the entire entry.)

Tired eyes EYEBAGS on the loose o.O

The arm problem :O

Countless are the times when I had fatigue and got sick *.*

Even the smile diminishes. :'(

I look like a battered frog >.< HAHAHA

 Inspiration

Aside from the fact that the review fee is expensive and the cost of living in the city is undeniably expensive, I stayed inspired by perpetually seeing the world at its face. Luckily, I live just near the heart of CDO so I always have my daily dose of seeing the inconvenient truth around. It fueled my desire to pass the boards and to someday contribute to the improvement of my city, at least.

Also, I had dinner/snack dates with friends. Here’s daddii karl and mamitta jo <3 aaawww :”>

I can’t get enough of this girl’s company! She’s so annoying to the point that I’d rather tickle her to death than study! 

Look at what she placed on the garbage bin (‘cos she knows I often throw off papers). Sorry for the spelling issues. May pinagmanahan. LOL

She also made attempts to fright me like inserting a plastic cockroach in my journal >.< It worked.

But there are also those times when she does her craft and I am one lucky model! <3

AND BEFORE I FORGET, may I share to you the weirdest thing that happened to me during the boards: during the P2 examination, I suddenly thought of the song “Glory of Love by Chicago” and so it started to play in my head and I found myself smiling. :’> lol it was so odd, and I started thinking of the right guy for me IN THE MIDDLE OF THE EXAMINATION OF THIS MEAN SUBJECT. Haha. K.

Moral Support

During the journey, I had been very moody. I felt how my parents gave their all just to become more patient with me and my mood swings. I slam doors, I easily get mad and shout at my sister, I cry, I hyperventilate (SRSLY) and I break out. During those times, mom and dad never left my side and always gave me comfort and support. I must say that I am one blessed kid to have parents like them; mature, responsible and thoughtful. My dad is already in his 60’s and mom is in her 50’s, but the values they imparted to me will be immortal. Being a CPA, I am proud to say I wouldn’t be where I am right now if it wasn’t for them. <3

Le Diary

There are moments when I wanted to write or let out what I have in mind, but I just don’t feel like logging in to facebook so I wrote it on my phone. I’d like to share them to you. :’)

07.17.13

Those days when no matter how hard you try and no matter how much make-up you put on, you’ll still look as ugly as you can ever be. T.T mercy. This day had been a tough one. :’(

07.20.13

That moment when your after-shower refreshing feeling takes you to cloud 9 BUT when you’re about to reach out for your towel, you realize NGA WALA MAN DIAY KA NAGDALA UG TOWEL ASDFGHJKL T.T

08.01.13

Kanang every other month, maka-abay ka ug gwapo in a super close level “good for two people” na seat AND  always jud na paired with an iphone5 ang ilang ka-gwapo! HAHA. Is this a sign? LOL

08.21.13

He talked to me and made my day. <3

08.29.13

That mini-heart attack you get when you see a piece of paper with Carly Ray Jepsen’s “call me maybe” lyrics, hand-written by your 9yrold sissy AND she misspelled the word “pennies” to something biologically humane! XD

09.10.13

“Kindergarten, grade school, high school, college, I found myself pushing my limits just to make sure I’ll pass. I grew up in the public school system and high school prepared me in dealing with the scholarship demands in college. From time to time, there has to be something to push me. I occasionally found myself inside a classroom, at the mercy of a terror-ist, who, at an instant, is capable of swallowing the entirety of my being human at a single mood swing. But now, that I am in review school, EVERYTHING CHANGED. Nobody is there to freak me out. I suddenly found myself at the mercy of my own shadow. I can opt to wake up anytime, anywhere, anyhow for as long as I will be able to find my name in the most important roster of examination passers in my lifetime. The most difficult part is, I am continually at a battle against my hardest opponent; my very own identity. And yes, she’s just so hard to defeat. She knows my strength and worse, she has taken control of my weaknesses.”

09.22.13

“Kay tarantitit kau ko sa pre-board kay ma-late na, sa kadali-dali, instead of putting a hankie in my bag, I brought with me my sister’s underwear. Ana najud ko ka-stressed! Pati panty, panyo na! XD

10.04.13

HAHAHAHAHA JOKER BA ANI OI! Ga-look forward baya ku ani nga day kay magtuluga raku! Ug sa dihang gapukawun ko ni mommy kay bawal daw matulog kay basin di nako katulog unyang gabii! Lol asa na ang rest day? Uhuuuuu! >.< at the end of the day, I attempted to sleep at 8pm but slept around 10pm in the living room. See the photo. :3

MEET THE BABIES <3

Babies are such adorable creatures! But come to think of it, taking care of them could be a disaster! Inasmuchas I consider them adorable, I might as well go for the “D” word to describe them. I think it’s about time for you guys to meet the seven babies that made me cry, laugh, sick, grumpy, moody and whole.

Theory of Accounts (The Dry Cough)

The preparation- read.read.read. But if there’s no more time, ANSER.ANSWER.ANSWER.ANSWER. Like really, if you’re in the point of chasing time, do your best to answer as many review materials as you can because that’s your only hope. This is the soul of Accounting and this is the framework of P1 and P2, so you better do good with this subject.

The boards- it was the first subject on the first day so it was a lot of pressure. It cost me much of my common sense (if there was any) and courage to decide which is which, because really, by the time you’re on your chair looking at your answer sheet beside the questionnaire, surrounded by people in their BUWIS-BUHAY state, you just have to decide right there and then. It was tough for me ‘cos I experienced cough and colds and it really was too itchy to handle that I WAS DEAD GUILTY about making such loud-perpetual-irritating coughing noises during this subject! T T I hope I didn’t disturb my roomies. :”>

Audit Theory (The Wet Underarms)

The preparation- Die.

The boards- I died. Good thing there’s such thing as resurrection. Thank God! :’) I had the WETTEST underarms in my life after AT! LOL

Management Advisory Services (The Bladder Problem)

The preparation- if you’ve had a very good foundation during the undergrad, the review in this subject is just a piece of cake baby! HAHA. Jk. It’s hard. But this is the kind of subject which only requires practicality and the inner finance officer in you! BUT when it comes to the theory part, you really have to fly and search for the best source possible to attain that level of confidence to make it in MAS! They’re like so hard to handle! Try to answer as many tricky questions as you can, and never forget; sometimes it’s just the carelessness that draws the line between a perfect score and a zero.

The boards- well, modesty aside, this is my FAVORITE SUBJECT ASDFGHJKL HAHAHAHA! <3 Like seriously, everything went well in my case. I counted my possible mistakes and oh man, they were 25 over 70 in all (super many), but I just can’t explain why I felt so confident with this subject HOHOHOHO! I tried my best to reduce those 25 items during my remaining time but the BLADDER PROBLEM got in the way and the comfort room was WANMELYOOOOOON KILOMETERS AWAAAYY! :’( kidding. Well, time is a luxury when you’re taking the boards, and I just didn’t get to enjoy that during MAS. But well, I was satisfied with the outcome. MAS, boy, you are still my favorite though you’re not my highest rating! <3

Practical Accounting Problems I (The Deceiver)

The preparation- I was in ARRC so I was quite confident that the hand-outs of Mr. Jessie Salon, CPA, MBA was enough for me to handle P1. It’s one of those subjects that will really drive the importance of the basics. TRUST ME.

The boards- I just had enough time to answer and review some items in this subject. Among all the board subjects, it’s the one I can’t remember well enough about the condition I had while answering. Oh well. :3

Audit Problems (Do or Die)

 The preparation- don’t waste your time reading the basics anymore ‘cos it’s already in Audit theory. Go ahead and answer as many reviewers as you can and secure your future! XD

The boards- AP is the longer version of P1, so one of the important things you’d have to bear in mind for AP is just PURE PLAIN SIMPLE FOCUS. Never panic when you see a very lengthy problem. Tell yourself that you can do it! :’) AGAIN, the review center where I enrolled just gave me what I needed for the boards. During pre-boards, this one was my lowest scores together with BLT, and it sure was a threat ‘cos it’s a do or die situation in that perplexing 3-hour exam. It’s either you perfect the 5-10 consecutive questions in a problem, or you miss them all. My highest. :’)

Practical Accounting Problems II (The Estopped Killer)

The preparation- PARTY HARD when you’re with Mr. Herminio Salon, CPA, PhD in this journey! All the freakin’ shortcuts I could have known to be a good Advanced accounting student were all revealed to us! Uhuuuuu!! Why just now?! T T He really meant it well when he said that all we have to do is to trust his hand-outs and passing P2 in the boards will be as sure as the word “sure” :D

The boards- HAHAHAHA. You better ask my co-CPA’s. It’s better left unsaid here.

Business Law and Taxation (The Kryptonite)

The preparation- as I’ve said, I find this duo very hard! Imagine?! Law and Taxation in one? Could you just please consider internal hemorrhage and emotional instability as I tried to overcome this subject?! Well, what I did during the review was to answer as many law questions as I can and I went back to reading taxation theories from cover to cover! I also had voice recordings when I encounter very tricky questions in law. I also took pictures of taxations multiple choice questions in my phone so if I have free time, I could just look at them and remember how mean it was! :’(

The boards- My lowest rating. :)

Veritas Liberabit Vos

It was the 21^st of October- the day we’ve all been waiting for. I got myself busy early this day. I felt a “pooping” sensation and the call of nature tortured me so I went to the restroom. I felt success. LOL I got upstairs and grabbed my phone. (Man, it was like I’ve been so attached to my phone, waiting for a text message by whoever, that the results are already in.) and then I saw Dianne Maurine Neri Garces’ message stating and I quote: “Jha, I saw your names congrats to us! CPA” HOHOHO, I never thought I have so many names! LOL I felt a sudden shift of my heartbeat form fast to turbo fast and I hurried to turn on the laptop >.< and the agony began. I CAN’T OPEN THE SITE BECAUSE OF ASDFGHJKL ERRORS I CAN’T EVEN MANAGE TO UNDERSTAND READING! I opened my facebook account and the news feed was so full of people congratulating each other! OMG. I wanna see my name! Not that I don’t trust Dianne, but I just wanna see my name! Finally, Dianne posted the pdf copy online and I saw the 425^th name in the roster: Bahian Jhala Grace BOOM!

The reaction >.< LIGID sa floor teerrrr! :')

Mom was on the phone and it was only then that I cried. Hard. Dad was smiling as if he already had it coming. Mom’s officemates where making some noises and I was just crying and saying “thank you” all over again. That moment I felt so validated. That moment, I felt that God wanted me to do many things through being a CPA. It was indescribable.

If you’d care to scroll own, my very first entry in this blog was about the October 2012 CPA board exam passers. Back then I felt so inspired and I genuinely felt happy for my ate’s and kuya’s. This time, I would be very happy and grateful to inform you that this would be my last entry for the Autumn Solstice. I am concluding this blog that had been a witness to my journey as a CPA aspirant. (I shall be making another one, DON’TCHACRY)

To those who supported me, my family, my friends, my fans (lol) and most importantly to daddy Lord, I offer my heartfelt thanks and gratitude. They said, what you’ll need the most during the boards is confidence; the ability to not panic and to believe that you can. I prayed hard for that, really. And looking back, I must say that confidence, there wasn’t any. There was just You, Lord. :”> Salamat.

October 21^st, 2013, PRC confirmed that a total of 4,246 examinees passed out of 10,396 who took the exam. The results were posted six working days after the conclusion of the exam given by the Board of Accountancy in Manila, Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Davao, Iloiolo and Legazpi. And with God's grace, I am proud to say, I am one of them. :’)

To Him be all glory.