Good Customer Service

If there is an award for being the most pleasant canteen crew at NUS, I will definitely vote for the Middle Eastern stall team at The Terrace (Biz).  More than being efficient, I think their charm lies in their ability to make you feel that you’re not just another customer; rather, you’re THE CUSTOMER when they’re attending to you.  What do I mean?  Now that Im writing about it, I find it difficult to explain...

Maybe it’s the unhurried  way they talk to you?  The way they say Ma’am?  The way they engage in small talks?  The way they politely inform you that heating your bread will make it tough but if you insist, they will heat it for you and remind you to try eating it immediately before it becomes tough? Or the act of giving you a free falafel to try, perhaps?  Or maybe the smile they give you?  I don’t know.  I just know that buying from that stall is always a pleasant experience.

mao cai

So last Tuesday, I prepared this nice sandwich for lunch.  I put salami on a 6-inch baguette, toasted it and dumped brie cheese, mixed greens, tomato and avocado on it.  I also made a decent-tasting honey-mustard dressing to top it off.  It was good!  I was looking forward to having it for lunch.

So lunchtime came and we went to PGP.  My colleague went to one of the stalls to buy food while I went to find a seat.  It took her some time to come back and since I was already hungry, I had a bite or two of my sandwich.

When she came back, this is what she has.  A steaming bowl of noodles! (She said that they dont call it noodles. Ok, my bad.)  She let me try it and it was good!  A bit spicy but good! So, I kept my sandwich for afternoon snack and had this bowl of noodles too :)

mao cai at PGP canteen

Mai cai is a mixture of noodles, tofu, beancurd skin, bean sprouts, potato, seaweed, lotus root, cauliflower and food-whose-names-I-havent-heard-of, in soup.  The taste is a bit spicy and sour, if you put vinegar, which how my colleague does it.  At first, I think the combination of varying taste from the different ingredients makes it a bit confusing but after a few minutes of gulping the soup down, you can appreciate the cacophony of taste in your tongue.

Ely and my friends

Image from web

It started with a simple “Gi!!! J” from whatsapp.

In an instant, I knew there was something big going on in Manila.

This was followed by my friend telling me that I should be there, sharing the moment with them and asking me to sign in at Skype.

With that, the excitement crept in. What could it be?  Is it about lovelife? Did one of my friends decide on a date for her wedding? Did someone get engaged?  Did someone get a promotion? 

Upon seeing three of my friends in Skype, the usual high-pitched greetings came in. Damn, I miss them so much! I didn’t even ask how each one was.  I went straight to “So, what’s up? What’s the big deal?”

And they kind of swayed away and told me short stories about other things.  But I wanted to know what the emergency meeting was for!  They told me to look at the person at the end of the screen – which I thought was the one at the end of the table. But there was none. So I thought that maybe one of them had someone special with them, and she wanted to introduce him to me.  But there was none. 

Then the camera was passed to another friend who told me to look closely at the person sitting at the adjacent table.  But, bummer, the video quality was BAD.  So I couldn’t see who that person was. 

Finally, after many attempts, I learned that the person was Ely Buendia.

Fifteen years ago, I was head over heels in love over Ely Buendia and the Eraserheads.  Until now, I love the band. But I no longer go gaga over them. 

So my friends were surprised that I didn’t jump up and down upon knowing that it was him.  So I told them that I was really touched at their gesture, but I was more excited to see them than Ely.

The preceding days before that call, I was so down.  But that call made such a huge impact.  It highlighted the magic of presence and friends.  Just a simple act of thoughtfulness is heartmelting. And having a (probably) 15-minute chat is enough to refill my love tank.

It’s not Ely who uplifted my spirits. It was my friends.  I love them.

Intricacies

Last Tuesday, I dreamt about my father.  He was in the hospital (like how it is in a lot of me and my siblings' dreams).  He was complaining that he can't breathe so I looked for the doctor.  Two doctors came and explained that his veins in the stomach were intertwined.  The doctors then asked me what my father's name's spelling was.  Was it h-e-r-l-e? To which I replied h-e-r-l-y and suddenly realized that my father's name was neither of them so I looked at the paper they gave me.  And there, typewritten was the name of my mother and herlyn.  Upon seeing that name, it struck me, that it was our half-sister's name  so I looked at him (that was not actually her exact name.  and now i vaguely remember, those names were written under beneficiaries).  And then I saw him sobbing, saying sorry. I hugged him in return, cried with him, saying it's ok.  I woke up very very sad.  I think I was even crying.

I dont know what to make of that dream.  Initially, I took it as his way of telling me that he wants us to maintain a connection with our sister.  But I honestly am not very comfortable with me making the first move.  So I prayed that if that was what he really wanted, one FB message from her will do.

My family and friends have been helping me process that dream/experience.  One friend thought that it could be a form form of closure.  I agree.  It could be that too.  My family is not the type who openly talks about each other's feelings.  I guess our love language is more of service/presence, not words.  I knew he has been sorry for it.  And I hope that by looking after him, I was able to show that Ive forgiven him.

My mother told me not to feel guilty for not reaching out to our half-sister.  What happened was not my fault.  My sister said that I am entitled to my own feelings. My brother in-law said that we could try writing to the kid, telling her how my father was as a father because that may just be what she wants, to know him more. Meeting him is another story, because she is a kid.  He thinks that it will be better to wait a bit longer until she becomes an adult so that all of us could process this better.  I think I will do that.  I pray that it will help me get off that heavy feeling in my chest.

Another message I think was for me deal with things that I have been putting off for quite some time.

Dreams are really interesting.

Welcoming 2014 as an adult

my $2 notebook for 2013

This year, my plans are pretty personal which makes it awkward for a public platform. But I strongly feel about a few things that so Im writing them down here.

To STOP READING PSYCHOLOGICAL/SELF-HELP articles/blogs/books. Except for Mark Manson’s.  I think a huge part of 2013’s challenges were due to these stuff.  I wanted to become a better person so I read those kinds of literature.  But at the end, I realised that they were not for me.  Sure, I may have picked up a thing or two.  But for the most part, the effect on me was not what I hoped for.  I became cautious and paranoid about some of my interactions because I was always thinking of how my action would impact on other people.  I became more judgmental on myself and other people because I was trying to label people based on those books’ categories.  (this is my biggest problem with self-help books. They put people into boxes and put label as if the personality of an individual can be summed up in just one label.  They tell you to stay away from such and such kind of people and be like this and that that you sometimes tend to forget who you really are).   And I didn’t like that.  I prefer hanging out with people because I genuinely like them and not because I could get something from them or they could help me with something.  And I will still hang out with sad people because if positive/normal people (pun intended) would always avoid them, what good does it do?  Which brings me to the point that Mark Manson’s blog is an exception.  Because he stresses that it’s ok to be sad, and critical, and imperfect, and flawed at times because that’s life. We cant always be happy, and positive, and perfect! And that’s perfectly ok!

Deal with things that I have been putting off for a few years now.  I have to prove to myself that I can deal with life.  Avoiding difficult situations in my 20s can be forgiveable.  But I think that doing the same in my 30s is a bit off. I will forever be stuck in a 20s mind set if I keep on doing such.  And it is a terrible  injustice to the One who has been giving me countless number of chances.

To write something about living abroad/being an OFW.  Not about one of those how-travel-has-changed-my-life stories but about living outside of the country itself.  And have it published in Rappler, or Inquirer, or somewhere where articles are screened by an editor.  I know that I can write decent materials but I never considered myself as a very good writer.  So when I heard straight from my boss’ mouth that I write very good *blush* (I can be gullible about compliments), I thought that hey, I need to be more serious about this skill and improve it J

To publish at least one blog post in a week

Learn something technical that could help me with my job.  Be it in writing, or advanced Excel analysis, or coding, or LaTeX. As long as it is something technical that I can write in my CV.

Build a decent wardrobe.  Since maybe half or 2/3 of what I wear are my sister’s clothes, I think that it is time that I buy my own.

To limit idle weekends to at least once a month.  I have had weekends that didn’t feel like weekends at all because  I was busy.  And I also had those which I cherished because I did nothing but listen to bossa nova-jazz mixes on 8tracks.  But I noticed that if I have the latter in two consecutive weeks, it doesn’t feel so good at all.  So, I better minimize it.

So there, may 2014 be a productive, happy, sad, big, and perfectly ok year!

2013: The year that was

This post was inspired by a video that teaches bullet journaling.  It’s a mundane one but it had a profound effect on me because it helped me look at last year with fresher eyes and plan concrete actions on what to do for this year.

So what happened last year?  Well, except for the lovelife part, I managed to cross out a lot of items on my list. And realised a lot of things about life.

I deliberately chose to do more activities.  I volunteered to teach – something which I have long been wanting to do even when I was still in Manila but wasn’t able to do since I didn’t have time.  I did pilates, kickboxing, pilates again and continued swimming.

I started building up my emergency fund.  And I even placed a decent amount in my investment portfolio even if my plan was just to read about it.  This is one of my main achievements for the past year because this event did not just teach me about money but also taught me about empowerment, helping out, giving back, and faith.

I underwent an executive medical check and found out that Im in pretty good shape.  Aside from the occasional fevers, I have never been sick in my entire life so the idea of going through a comprehensive medical screening sometimes freaks me out.  So when some people were telling me that I was losing weight, I became anxious and thought that I may be sick.  And then I started to feel things and became anxious about dying (yeah, the brain is a really powerful tool).  And then I realised that I don’t wanna die just yet and prayed really hard that if Im healthy, Ill get rid of all my useless anxiety and be more useful to the world instead.  So to get rid of my anxiety, I closed my eyes and called up St. Lukes. One week later, I found out that there was nothing to worry about.

I went to Australia!  Actually, the Aussie trip was not just a travel feat for me.  In fact, I went not primarily for traveling but to take a break and refill my ‘love tank’.  Two weeks of being with family and nature, and having had daily doses of hugs and kisses from my niece and nephew, and the feeling of being taken care of as a younger sister again, provided that much needed boost of energy.  Being in a new environment also made me refocus on what really matters in the long run.  Furthermore, the trip made me realise that traveling is a way for me to relax, but will never be my life goal.  Yes, I would still like to see new places, meet new people, explore new cultures and food but that would be ON THE SIDE and will not be my sole purpose in life.

On relationships, I realised that one really needs to be strong as a person to start and to maintain one. I think. (Im such a late bloomer) One has to decide and choose to do it, otherwise, it will never happen.  Sometimes the magic moment doesn’t present itself in an obvious manner but cloaks itself with ‘ordinariness’.   It doesn’t matter if you have full knowledge of all the pros and cons – cos you’ll never reach that stage anyway.  Difficult, awkward situations are abound.  And they’re perfectly ok.

Professionally, I think that I became more serious in what I do because I wanted to become a better researcher.  There was no pressure from someone else.  Or on a second thought, I think it’s the idea that I could lose my job anytime which drove me to do better in what I do.  And after I made that decision, I noticed that my job was better than what I thought it to be at first.  The professional growth is still in question but knowing the social significance of my work helped me a lot in doing my everyday tasks.  Looking at the same data over and over again also taught me to be more patient and responsible. Because that’s life anyway, we can run away from difficult and boring things in the short-term but they will always come back to haunt us and we will have no other recourse but to face them.  So it’s better to face them head on when they come the first time.  So that you’ll get used to them and become better the next time you have those encounters.  I think Im becoming a bit cryptic here but I hope you get what I want to say.

We can always plan our lives but let’s also welcome surprises.  I read this from Conrado de Quiros and I think it makes a lot of sense.  He wrote about it in a political aspect but I think it’s very helpful in shaping the way we approach the uncertainty of life.  He recalled that before the 2010 presidential election, Filipinos thought that the future of the nation was hopeless because we were certain that either Villar or Estrada will win.  But Aquino announced his bid and the rest was history.  (I voted for Gordon. I still wished that he won.  But seeing that Aquino’s victory brought a renewed sense of hope among Filipinos compelled me to agree with De Quiros’ point.  Although now, everything is debatable).  So lets plan but let’s also remember the fact that life and God has a lot of surprises for us.  If we feel down, let’s bank on those surprises.  If we feel that we are up there, let us wish for those surprises.  Certainly, they will help us keep our balance.

We should always give second chances. To durian. To indian food. And most importantly to ourselves and to other people because, well, we don’t always get it right the first time.

Ok. So my thoughts were pretty scattered in summing up last year’s events.  Maybe because 2013 was also complicated.  But maybe, my biggest realization is that, I should pat myself on the back because 2013 didn’t go to waste.  But it also showed me that the things that I have been busy with are the things that I imagined of doing ON THE SIDE.  I am not working on what I should have been FOCUSING ON. So, this year, I’ll work on that. And I hope that, I’ll have the courage, wisdom, right attitude, and faith to do that.

Thanks 2013.  It’s been fun.

Thinking of granting someone's wish for Christmas?

Here are some ways on how to do just that:

1.  Pray for those affected by Typhoon Yolanda.

 

FINANCIAL

 

2.  Go to any remittance counter in Lucky Plaza and tell them that you want to send donations for Typhoon Yolanda victims.  They have the account numbers of major organizations in the Philippines who provide relief operations.  As part of their public service, they will waive the remittance fee for you.  Don't know which one to pick?  I usually go to iRemit at the third floor (03-69) and donate to Red Cross.  Other credible organizations are the GMA Kapuso Foundation and ABS-CBN Sagip Kapamilya.  These are foundations of two big networks in the Philippines so you can be assured that your money will go to the right beneficiaries.

 

3.  A bit cash-strapped? Hmmm...it wouldn't hurt to skip that cup of starbucks/coffee bean/more-expensive-than-average coffee that you usually have, wouldn't it?  Or maybe drop that one cute blouse or dress that you're getting to reward yourself for a hard day's work. Or maybe delay buying that high-tech gadget that you have been saving up for. Buy it one month later and use a portion of the money instead to give hope.  Dilly-dallying whether to go for that vacation?  Dilly-dally no more...go some other time.  Go to Lucky Plaza instead and refer to #1 :)

 

4. Help is underway for people in areas where there has been a lot of coverage like Samar, particularly Tacloban. Video footages will scare you, tear your heart apart, and make you cry. But there are also some areas, especially far-flung, where help couldn't go as fast as they should. One example is Coron in Palawan. If you want to help them, coordinate with CoronWonders on Facebook. My sister also saw that SavePhilipineSeas is focusing their efforts on Malapascua in Cebu.

 

IN KIND

 

5.  You have a lot of old clothes that you want to give away?  The people of Samar, Leyte, Cebu, Palawan (and other provinces that were hit by the typhoon) would be more than happy to have some of yours. Send them to these people.  Ask LBC, Jolly-box, A-freight (and other shipment companies) if they could ship them for you for free.  LBC did it last time.  Some friends, McRhon Banderlipe and Bubbles Asor, are organizing an in-kind donation activity so you could also drop your clothes and blankets at their place. Please call them and Im sure they would be happy for your call.

 

6. (Manila-based) How many mobile phones have you had?  A lot, im sure.  If they are no longer working and you dont know what to do with your chargers, head over to the National Institute of Physics at UP Diliman at room F105 and donate your old, broken chargers to our guys at the UP Physics Association.  They will convert these to portable chargers which they will send to the victims.

 

TIME AND SERVICES

 

7.  Counselling.  I was watching a You Tube clip of news report from Love Anover and Jiggy Manigad who were hiding at a Cathedral when the storm struck.  Love was crying when she was recounting her experience. And she is a journalist who is used to extra-ordinary situations.  So imagine the trauma that ordinary people went through after that 300kph storm (the fastest that F1 racers can go here in Singapore is 200+kph so imagine the kind of wind brought by the typhoon was).  Now, i dont know how could this be organized.  But if you are a psychologist or you know a group of psychologists or counsellors who provide post-traumatic counselling, maybe you could get in touch with Red Cross and ask how you can offer your services to them for a couple of days or weeks? 

 

8. Volunteer.

• Singapore Red Cross . They need people to man donation booths and call center.  Call them at 6664 0539 or 6664 0500.
• GK Singapore They cant handle the volume of calls.  Contact Claire Pascua at 9179 8603 or cpascua@gk1world.com

9.  Other ways of helping can be found here:

•  Rappler
•       Singapore Red Cross
•       Habitat for Humanity - for home building. There is also a link where you can create your own fund-raising page in support for the Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) vitctims.

 

10.  Pat yourself on the back for giving concrete help and sowing seeds of hope to those who are in need.

May you have a good Christmas! J

 

 

 

 

To document

collection of writing pads

I dont remember how many journals I have had.  These are my collections so far, all gifts from my friends.  They know me so well. 

The first one is a gift from a colleague who became one of my closest friends.  She gave it to me when I left work.

The second to the left is the latest, a gift for my birthday. 

The red one is a present from Japan.

The fourth one, with the love and peace writings is the thickest and the one im currently using.  It's been with me for 2 years now but Ive written on barely half of its pages.  It's a gift from my best friend when I decided to leave the country for good. 

The fifth one has been with me for two years too. A Christmas gift from a special person. It's supposed to be a planner but I've turned it into a journal as well.

One day, Im gonna fill all your pages with stories. Someday...

Pagdiriwang

I had a long day yesterday so I woke up today still a bit sleepy.  But it’s my birthday so I was psyche-ing myself to be up and about because this is a special day.  Surprisingly, this year, I didn’t have birthday blues to speak of.  Despite the lack in some aspects,  I have reached this age (I sound like a middle-aged person) without experiencing any major setback in life and for that, I am utterly grateful. 

Birthday greetings came in via email, whatsapp, facebook and yes, text message which was quite nostalgic J

At work, the two guys asked me if we could have lunch early today and since I was hungry, I said yes.  So we had lunch at 11am.  We sat at the staff area, chatting while eating.  After finishing our meal, they brought out what was in the plastic bag that they were carrying: a bottle of wine and a cake!  And since there was no knife in the canteen, I used Jakob’s “balisong” to cut my cake! Hilarious! 

So we stayed at the canteen until about 1230, drinking wine and eating cake. I don’t know if alcohol consumption is allowed in the university but we didn’t mind.  Some people who were passing by were smiling at the sight of the wine on the table but I guess the cake obviously explained what was happening. 

In the afternoon, I had my greetings from Kulasa and Bugoy.  Kulasa sang so softly in contrast to Bugoy’s screaming singing. 

At about 4, we went to the staff lounge to chill.  Theresa wasn’t able to join us for lunch so we had coffee with her instead. 

Went home before 6 to prepare the lumpia for dinner.

Dinner was spent with sister and some friends. My sister organized games to complete the fun.   The last of the guests left at 12. And we stayed up for tea and cake.

It was a looong and happy day. 

What's for coffee break today?

noodles and crystal dumplings

 I missed out on a lot of coffee breaks because I was out for a couple of weeks and for the past two Fridays that Im here, it's either I was busy or still full from the fruits that I usually eat in the morning.  Today, I just went out of curiosity.  Yes, I was curious about what they are going to serve today

Thankful

Today, I vow to become more thankful to God because indeed, there is a lot to be thankful for.

Lake Mountain

This is Lake Mountain Day.

I woke up early today at 3am and wasn't able to go back to sleep peacefully.  As I have written in my previous post, the heater was very noisy.

So at 7, I said my morning prayers, turned on the TV and had a shower.  After dressing up, I checked out.  It turned out, there were a lot of campers who stayed overnight in the area.  And that includes children.  It might have been a very cold night for them.

Ang sarap picturan ng mga bagay-bagay.  Jologs na jologs lang ang peg ko.

As I was heading down to the nearby grocery to buy some bread for breakfast, I passed by the community area where the farmers were setting up their stalls.  I chatted a bit with the old lady who was selling plants and flowers.  She comes here almost every Sunday.  I said hi and good morning to the other stall owners.  It feels great to be greeted back with enthusiasm! One of the things I like about Australians is how they easily say thank you and how are you.  It seems so natural for them.  No awkward moment at all.

So I grabbed some roll and meat pie from the grocery and had a bite while sitting on a bench outside, watching the farmers.  I wouldn't have mind staying there for an hour but after just a few minutes of waiting, Ate and Andrew arrived.

The drive up to the mountain was quick.  Maybe just about 30 minutes.  The road was winding so it kind of made me feel nauseous. But the scenery was amazing!

We knew we were near the place when we saw patches of snow along the road.  I kinda had an idea that the snow in Lake Mountain was machine-made after I checked out their website but I didn't expect that everything was like that.  So when we reached the area, voila! It's a snow-covered slope!  Kung ang mga tiga-rito nagsisiksikan sa Siloso beach for a bit of swimming and sunbathing, kami naman nakikipagsiksikan sa isang maliit na lugar para makapaglaro sa snow.  Kanya-kanyang kaignorantehan lang talaga :D

Preparation for playing in the snow was not very fun. We had to wear snow boots and layers of clothing.  I had thermal underpants, jeans and snow pants.  And I had thermal long sleeves, plus my jacket, and the parka.  Plus the boots were heavy.  And with the snow gloves on, it was difficult to move my fingers for my camera's shutter.

But tobogganing was fun!  All of the kids in the area were having fun!  Eric and Gabby were enjoying it too! After playing for about an hour or more, we headed back to the cafe to grab some snacks.  And then another session of tobogganing again.

Eric was the first to give up.  Gabby was crying because she didn't want to leave yet.

On our way back, Ate and I went to the farmer's market where I bought lemongrass soap.  We also grabbed something for dinner.  We bought meat for steak which we thought was beef but turned out to be pork.  So we had pan-grilled pork chop instead.  This time I stayed with them at Maryton B&B.

My pagsisiga  ng kahoy skills were put to test. 

In the afternoon, we had a walk in the area.  They had fat chicken, just like what we had before in the province.  They also had a fish pond and different sorts of lovely plants and trees.  And the cafeteria was very nice!  I just could't stop myself from taking so many photos.  Everything was sooo beautiful!

The restaurant that I fell in love with :) sigh...

I can stay here for the entire afternoon :)

 After dinner, we went to the other cottage to have a chat with Andrew's friends and their families.  The two couples both had a daughter each, about the same age as Eric.  They seem nice.  Both mums have stopped working too.  Seems like it's the practice here.  Mums usually sacrifice their careers to look after the kids.  They just go back once the kids go to school.  Seems like a good plan.

This holiday is making me appreciate that life is good and there is a lot to be thankful for.  The beauty of nature.  The serenity that nature brings.  The warmth of friends and families.  A lot of things to be thankful to God for :)

Marysville, Victoria

Today, we drove an hour to Marysville, sort of a base town for Lake Mountain which we are going to visit tomorrow.

I enjoyed the drive, seeing a bit of the Australian countryside.  It looks a bit similar to New Zealand.  The cows are healthy and sheeps have thick wool. We saw a lot of wineries too! I learned that one of them was was the famous Yarra Valley.

Marysville is a small and sleepy town.  Almost similar to Devonport except that it is not an island.  The town proper itself has just a few shops!  I saw two shops that rents out/sells snow clothings and accessories, and toboggan and ski equipment.  We rented our stuff at Crosscountry Ski Hire.  The adult package which consists of overpants, boots and toboggan costs $21.  We bought snow gloves for $5 a pair.  We also bought an entry ticket for $41 per car (max of 8 passengers), which is cheaper since the ticket at the entrance costs $51 and way way cheaper if you compare it to the snow bus which costs about $30 per passenger.

I stayed at Marysville Caravan and Holiday park for tonight.  For $60, I had my own room, toilet, fridge, TV, microwave and tea and toast making facilities.  And the bed had a bed warmer.  There's a few family cabin in the area.  Some families even opted to stay in their tents.   It might have been a cold night for them.

The warmer worked. I was sweating by the middle of the night.  But the air conditioner/heater was noisy!  It automatically shuts down and turns on when it reaches a certain temperature.  And the noise that it makes would really wake you up!  In the end, I just switched it off to and I was glad that this tropical kid survived the cold night with just a bed warmer.