This is it. Today i received my e-ticket. My flight is scheduled on the 25th of October. I’ll be going to Salt Lake City, Utah for an onshore work assignment for a few months. Well, i’m sad coz i’m surely gonna miss my loved ones. Its gonna be the first time also that i won’t be spending Christmas and New Year with my family. I’m gonna miss the cookings of my Lolo and Lola. Darn… i’m gonna miss a lot of things here. Good thing i’ll be away only for a few months. Some nice things to look forward to and be excited about is my dream come true - White Christmas! yeah, ever since i was a kid i always wanted to experience snow and not its finally gonna happen. hehe. I’ll also be dropping by Tacoma to visit my aunt and my two cousins. Shopping and lotsa chocolates excited me too. hehehe. oh well… only a few days left and for the first i’m step out of the Philippines and i’m gonna be on an airplane…. 
Archive for the 'Me, Myself, and I' Category
Last Oct 14, i had my interview schedule at the US embassy for my L1 visa. Its my first time to go there and though i’m pretty sure i’ll get approved, i still felt really nervous especially when i was in the waiting room listening to how others get interviewed, approved and denied whilei was waiting for my turn. Mine was okay though the consul who interviewed me looked serious and grumpy but i could say he is good looking, hehehe. I was asked around 5 question i think and the one i won’t ever forget was the first question he asked me - “how old are you?” while giving me that serious look. My other officemates who were interviewed wasn’t asked that question so they were teasing me perhaps i looked young. haha. I’d just take that as a compliment then.
I arrived at 7am at the embassy and left there around 11am i think. It was raining and even with my umbrella, i got wet somehow before i was able to take an fx to Lawton where i’msupposed to take another fx to Las Piñas. I was not feeling really well that time so i decided to drop by SM Manila for a while to have lunch, rest a little, and make a call at the payphones there since i didn’thave my cellphones with me as it was restricted at the embassy. So there a big problem came up. My file case which has all my documents and receipts got lost. Well, its not necessarily lost. I guess due to me not feeling well and add up my sore feet and hungry tummy, i forgot that i placed my file case and shoes on top of the phonebooth. I only remembered it after i rested and had my lunch which is like over an hour after i made those calls. I was really worried especially when ideas that someone could have taken it thinking there was money inside it etc. The documents inside are really important to me and losing it is like throwing away my life.. (well that was what i felt that moment…lol). When i got back to the phonebooth, my file case was nowhere to be found and i really panicked especially after asking the guards in the entrance if they saw it or if someone surrendered it to them or what and they sadly said none. And this this one guard told me to try my luck at the security office where lost and found items are stored so i went to the security office as fast as i could. on my way, i tried calling up my sister at home to ask if somebody called up to say they found my file case and thank goodness she said a guy called up and left me a message to pickup my filecase at the SM security office which is where exactly im going to. So i walked faster, i ran actually, and when i got there i was greeted by 5 security guards and there i found my file case. I actually cried upon seeing it, guess those were tears of joy. I was really relieved to have found it, that a good soul has been honest enough to surrender it to the security office. I’d like to thank the lady guard Ms. Calicdan, she is actually the one who saw my file case and surrendered it to the office. I know she’s just doing her job but still i do thank her a lot. She saved me from super duper big problems that could have resulted from losing my file case.
So that’s a big lessons learned to me, no matter how bad i feel, never ever lose track of the things i have….
Finally, after two and a half years, our yearbook is finally released! Whew! actually we though this moment wouldn’t happen anymore after not hearing much news about it after graduation and getting a bad news that some list were lost. So last Saturday, I went to PLM to get my copy. Well, i was excited and it was nice to see good old friends and classmates. There a lot of changes in the university as well but still i’m glad i was able to find my way around - it’s not much of a big change anyway. Our yearbook is kinda heavy but it looks okay. It has the title of “The Pioneer” with an explanation on the first page. Pages are categorized by colors which represent each college and looking on the sides, it would be very easy to know which one is mine - the CET or the College of Engineering and Technology. Pages are colored red and obviously its the thickest. So i flipped the pages and looked up for my name. Good thing the names were listed alphabetically so i easily found myself. It felt funny seeing myself on it, glad that my picture and info didn’t get lost. I gave a quick laugh on the description i had given for myself thinking that time thinking i was so college-ish. Some info are already outdated like my old blog url and my mobile and home numbers. I think the only info that remains to be true is my home address and my email address. hehe
*Too bad the images aren’t that clear, thanks to my good old samsung phone..hehe
It seems that i don’t feel like eating my packed lunch today and i’m craving for something else which i still can’t figure out til now. But anyway, i had my usual rice and hotdogs for breakfast at home and i still have some pringles and cookies left from yesterday here at my desk. I like the taste of this chocolate chunks cookies - milk chocolate macadamia variant i’m munching on right now though i seem to be craving for some oatmeal cookies. I just finished eating a slice of pizza and then Alsie (my officemate and friend) gave me a banana (saba) which really delighted me. I’m so happy to have one coz i already had the last piece we have at home yesterday so i only have a ponkan for my fruit dessert for lunch today. Anyway, that’s it for my food thoughts. I wonder what i’ll have for lunch..hmmm…
Just today, i started using a patience meter in my Windows Live Messenger status message at the office. It will help others to know how to deal with me like when to talk to me normally or when to crack a joke or when to ask stupid questions etc.
Basically, it all started when this new hire in our team (well i think he’s more than 3 months now) started asking help from me for a specific product. As always, its my job to help especially if it concerns my products. However, after i gave him the help he needed, it didn’t stop there. He continued asking question on how to and why it is’t working and stuffs like that with another product. I really got pissed off since most of his questions are easy and are available in the published documentations we have and its as if i’m already doing his task step by step. I already told him a lot of times to find what he needs in the documents instead of asking right away. And yet, he still keeps on asking and whenever im explaining something, i had to explain it 3 or more times before he gets it. No offense, but i’m trying to be nice to him and be helpful but why can’t he help himself? Its obvious he isn’t that smart and has low comprehension but i just wish he tries to improve himself. I get pissed easily when someone keeps on asking me about something which can be found in our documents. Why can’t he have the initiave to do some searching before bothering others?(and i’ve been telling him a lot of times before already to “check the documents, its there”). It’s okay for me to help, but for easy stuffs that can be found on the table, please help yourself. I’ts not my job to spoonfeed everything.
Now back to my patience meter, after i had it with that guy and told my co-functional lead about his staff, and shouted silently on my own, my patience meter which dropped to 5% finally came up to 25%. Good thing lunchbreak came and so i was able to relax and my patience meter is starting to rise again.
A summary of how i describe my patience meter:
85-90% I’m cool! everything’s normal
75-84% trying to keep it cool…
50% warning! watch your words!
26%-49% i’m definitely not in the mood! only really important stuffs accepted!
below 25% - don’t bother me at all! (except for my higher ups of course.. lol)
While browsing through my inbox, I came across a forwarded message to me last year. It was one of those short stories that I really like and I can relate to… well, not 100% but the thought it gives, is almost the same as mine. I guess I’m a woman who can be independent but of course it wouldn’t hurt to have that special someone
In a brief conversation, a man asked a woman he was pursuing the question:
“What kind of man are you looking for?”
She sat quietly for a moment before looking him in the eye and asking,
“Do you really want to know?”
Reluctantly, he said “Yes.”
She began to expound…
“As a woman in this day and age,
I am in a position to ask a man what he can do for me that I can’t do for myself.
I pay my own bills. I take care of my household without the help of any man…
or woman for that matter.
I am in the position to ask, “What can you bring to the table?”
The man looked at her. Clearly he thought that she was referring to money.
She quickly corrected his thought and stated,
“I am not referring to money. I need something more.
I need a man who is striving for perfection in every aspect of life.”
He sat back in his chair, folded his arms, and asked her to explain.
She said “I am looking for someone who is striving for excellence mentally because I need conversation and mental stimulation.
I don’t need a simple-minded man.
“I am looking for someone who is striving for excellence spiritually because I don’t need to be unequally yoked… believers mixed with unbelievers is a recipe for disaster.
“I need a man who is striving for excellence financially because I don’t need a financial burden.
“I am looking for someone who I can respect. In order to be submissive, I must respect him.
I cannot be submissive to a man who isn’t taking care of his business.
I have no problem being submissive…he just has to be worthy.
“God made woman to be a help mate for man.
I can’t help a man if he can’t help himself.”
When she finished her spiel, she looked at him.
He sat there with a puzzled look on his face.
He said, “You are asking a lot.”
She replied, “I’m worth a lot”.
SM Manila is on a 3 day sale from September 5-7 and like most Saturdays, i found myself walking around the mall doing four things - buying my usual stuffs in Watsons or at the supermarket, paying bills at SM Bills Payment, grabbing some snack from food booths or dining at fastfoods, or window shopping. And since yesterday was part of the 3-day sale, obviously SM Manila was jampacked with people and it was really hard to walk around properly. But anyway, aside from my usual routine, i had to spend around 3 hours in the luggage and bags section just to buy a bag. Yep, since my tentative flight schedule would be on October, one the things in my To Do list is to buy a bag. It was a tough search since most sales personnel try to get my attention since i’m a sure buyer that time. It was quite of a fun experience too since there was this guy from a local brand whom i call Mr. ADHD since he was really like a child with ADHD and he kept on following me around and then trying to prevent me from getting near the sales personnel of another local brand and keep on telling me tips on which kind of bag is better and in the end if i won’t get the local brand he’s insisting me to buy, he suggested to just go for international brands like Samsonite, American Tourister, Delsy, etc. I never thought it would be difficult to find a perfect bag that is within my budget and thank goodness that i found one after more or less 3 hours of searching. Thanks to the sale day that i got my Delsy bag at 30%. I like its look and features and i was pretty sure it will be one good sturdy bag. Plus since its an international brand, it has the warranty of getting repaired/replaced by the airline just in case it gets broken while inside the airline. Delsy is tagged as the number 2 luggage manufacturer in the world and known with its superior quality and its lower price compared with its competitors but its packed with lots of good features. Anyway, I know I made a good choice
Here are some of the highlights that happened to me for the past weeks:
+ Credit Card replacement
After a stupid act of writing down my credit card details and accidentally putting it away I had no choice but to call up my two credit card banks (Citibank and HSBC) to request my cards to be blocked and request a replacement (to prevent it from being used by others online). Basically, i had to pay P400 each for the replacement, thanks to my stupidity. hehe. Well after a few working days, i got my new cards already. Citibank came in a regular long envelope which has a single paper with my account details and my card. HSBC came in a delivery envelope by LBC and includes a booklet type hard paper with my card and lots of brochures with details of my account and some ads. Anyway, i just locked em all up in my pedestal at the office so i can’t use them and they can never tempt me to shop. haha
+Passport and Driver’s License
Finally, i now have my own Philippine passport and a driver’s license. Before i was able to have these, i had a few problems so thanks to some good friends of my grandparents who helped process my papers, everything went smoothly and fairly…
+Reformatting Abit
Due to a virus that slowly destroyed my computer (thanks to my sister..hehe) i had to reformat Abit and yesterday i already reinstalled Windows XP and all the softwares we’re using and scanned and cleaned up Abit. Also i switched to Avast Antivirus after AVG failed me. I’ve been loyal to AVG for a long time but because of a terrible failure, i needed to move on…
+My US Visa
I will be sent to my team’s US office for around 6 months. It will be as an onshore assignment with a few training. Last week, my manager already requested for my documents needed to process my papers and sooner or later i’ll be getting my US L1 Visa. So far, i’m told that i’ll be leaving the country by October. So we’ll see… i’ll be posting about it as soon as i get the exact date and details
+Two long weekends for August
Following our country’s President’s order, August 18 and 25 were made into a holiday. August 18 is in lieu of August 21’s Ninoy Aquino Day and August 25 is for the National Heroes Day. Hmm well its a good thing, coz i love long weekends
+ to stay or go away?
This is probably the biggest and hardest decision i had to make for myself. It was tough for me so my decision was largely influenced by my family. Its all about deciding if i’ll be leaving my current work and find a new company OR just stay where i currently belong to. I have listed all the positive and negative things for both and asked opinions of friends and family. I did have a lot of “buts” and “what ifs”. It was hard to decide and i wished i never had to but i must. In the end, i have chosen to stay.
I haven’t updated for at least a month now (its pretty obvious with my last post..hehe) and no matter how many times i tell myself to update the next coming weekend i always fail to do so. I haven’t updated the pinoytwitters directory and blog either. I haven’t visited my friend’s blogs and haven’t blog hopped and do my usual online stuffs. All i am able to do is update my twitter once in a while. So today while i’m writing this, i enumerated 3 reasons why i wasn’t able to update much:
- During weekdays, i’m in front of the computer 8 hours a day due to my work and when i get home, i didn’t feel like being in front of the computer again. Besides, my eyes are too tired already to even watch tv.
- On weekends, i usually go out and if ever i’m home, its really hot upstairs during the day and i couldn’t stand the heat that me feel like i’m inside an oven (this makes me think of transferring my pc downstairs already….hmmm). And at night, well, i start to feel laziness… Coz being in front of the pc makes me feel like i’m at work and i hate that feeling. Perhaps because lately i’m really troubled at work (and this is different story i have to tell….)
- I’m depressed for two months now and counting - all because of work, family, and some personal stuffs. But i’m trying to regain myself little by little and hope to be back to normal soon.
So there, i had my reasons, but anyway i’ll try to update my blog again and to all my blog friends, i miss you guys! I’ll visit your blogs soon.
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