I was really looking forward for May 10, 2010. Aside from being a holiday (yipee no work!), this is the day we get to cast our vote. This is not an ordinary election for us, but the first time that we get to have an automated election. The word PCOS (Precinct Count Optical Scanner) became synonymous to election.
A week before the election, I did my homework. I researched on the candidates background, read flyers and watched youtube videos on debates and appearances. I want to make sure who I want to vote. And of course, I was also excited to shade that famous "bilog na hugis itlog".
The day came and I woke up early. My Dad who fell in line at 8:00am was still not back at the house by 10:00am. Upon checking, he said there was a long line and the line was moving slow. He might not be able to come back for lunch. We hurriedly got ready and went to the precinct we were assigned. I even brought with me the small piece of paper from Comelec that they gave when I registered last May 2009. I also have in my mobile phone the precinct number from Comelec's website. I realized that my precinct number on the Comelec paper is not the same as that on the website. At 10:00am, we were armed with umbrella (for the sun), tissue (for the ink) and towel (for the sweat) and proceeded to the polling place. People were swarming. We went to look for the room location of our precinct. But upon arrival, we could not even get near the list. People were all over. There was no line. I finally found my name after about 30 minutes of kneeling down, climbing the chairs just to view the posted voter's names. I have to find my name and give the voter's number to be able to get a priority number. Huh, finally I got one. No. 457. But the number being called was still 74. Hmmm...What should we do? We went home, ate our lunch and slept. Around 2:30pm, we got ready and went back to the place. This time there was a line. But the number being called was still 314. So we went out and ate snacks and went back home again. Around 5:00pm, we checked for the third time. The number being called was 490. We hurriedly fell in line and told the teacher we went out for a snack. Finally, it was our turn. since me and my hubby's name are next to each other, we were processed at the same time. We affixed our signature to the list and had our thumb-mark. Then we had to clean our thumbs before they gave out the ballot, folder and marker. Since I know who I will vote, it was pretty quick for me. I fed the ballot to the PCOS machine and without much wait, Congratulations! Your vote has been counted...I saw the famous line.... Then I had my right index finger inked. The tissue I brought came in handy. At last, I was finally done. I casted my vote and voted for the people I really believe are the best for the positions. Whether they win or not, as long as I voted for them with trust and confidence.
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