Boss Tales #5

Boss returns from a business trip in Tokyo.
Boss: Here you go.... (as he handed me a neatly wrapped rectangular thin box)
Me: What's this? What's this?
Boss: It's food. Something edible.
Me: But what is it?
Boss: I don't know. Open it.
When I opened the box...
Me: What is this?!!
Boss: It's some kind of a pastry. One is green tea, one is peanut.
Me: How does it taste?
Boss: I don't know. That's why I asked you to open it. So that I can get to taste it, too!
Ayus. Yung pasalubong niya eh kakainin din pala niya.

Short-changing

Consumers hardly notice this but ako, hindi ko ito pinapalampas. I'm not a stingy person but what I'm fighting for is the principle of your money's worth. Yesterday, I bought meals at Mexicali. The cashier short-changed me 69 centavos. I called her attention. She re-counted the bills and coins she gave me - wondering what the hell I was talking about. Finally, it dawned upon her that I was waiting for the 69 centavos. She gave me 50 centavos. I insisted that it's still short. And she handed over another 25 centavos. Then, my Gabriela in me took over. I told her that she shouldn't short-change the customers and she doesn't need to be told to provide exact or above the amount. She is short-changing deliberately which pissed me off. Why am I pissed off? Last week, I was in Mexicali for meals. My total bill had a butal of 35 centavos. I gave the cashier an exact amount minus the 35 centavos. She told me, if I had 50 centavos (which made me wonder, bakit 50 centavos ang hinihingi?). So, I gave her 25 centavos. Sabi niya, "Ma'm kulang pa ito." Fine, I handed over 10 centavos. End of transaction.

My point is this - some establishments deliberately short-change the customers BUT customers have no right to do that. Customers must provide exact or a little above the amount. Pero, wala naman silang panukli. You might think that it's only a few centavos. Pabayaan ko na lang. No. At the end of the day, just think of the number of people they have short-changed - it amounts to thousands of pesos. Multiply it by 30 days, then 12 months. Voila! Additional income for them. In accounting terms, miscellaneous income ata yun. Pambili rin yun ng inventory, di ba? At the customer's expense! So, who's the winner here?

This is my personal advocate. I encountered the same with SM grocery stores, Wendy's, and other establishments who do not round off their retail prices to multiples of 25 centavos. That's why I carry a lot of 5 and 10 centavo coins. Nakakapagod din pagsabihan sila e. Kaya, ako na lang ang gumawa ng paraan.

Boss Tales #4

Exchange of text messages with Boss:
Boss: Becky, is my 9am meeting tomorrow or on the 25th?
Me: Is this a trick question???
Boss: No it isn't!!
Me: Relax! It's next week. Jeepers!
Boss: Aye ok :)
Me: :P high blood!

The Alphabet Tag

Long overdue tag from Oh My Captain ...
A- ge: 36
B-and: Maroon 5
C - areer: Making impossible things possible.
D - rink or Smoke: I drink (alcohol) occasionally.
E - asiest Friends To Talk To: Chubby-wan, Amazing Annie, HB circle, Superfriends
G - ummy Bears or Gummy Worms: Gummy bears... the red and green ones
H - Have a Boyfriend: Had a boyfriend
J - unk Food You Like: Oishi Potato Chips and Bench Potato Chips (which I think come from the same manufacturer)
K- ids: None from childbirth... I am not fond of them. The nearest would be Paco, my monster nephew.
L - ongest ride ever: From Manila to Baguio - where I normally puke during the ride.
N - ames For Your Future Kids: For a boy - Antonio Rafael
O - One Wish You Have Now: I wish our house in Bataan gets sold this year.
P - hobias: Undergoing an MRI.
Q - Favorite Quote: Live by your own standards.
R - easons To Smile: Penny Brown cookies, Dong-a gel pens, blog-hopping, pay day
S - leeping Hours: 10:00 pm - 5:59 am
T - ime You Wake Up: This is a tough one... usually, between 6:00 - 7:00 am
U - nknown Fact About You: I used my sister's toothbrush when I was desperate.
V - egetable You Hate: Peas
W- orst Habit: I love to clutter.
X - rays You've Had: Foot and Chest
Y - ummy Foods: Sicilian Salad, Pasta, Pizza, Adobo, Nachos, Gyoza
Z - odiac Sign: Aries

From hero to zero* (disguised as Boss Tales #3)

His flight is 1455. Via PAL. The last flight. Then, the phone rings at 1400.

Me: Yes? (I recognized his mobile number kaya astig ang pagsagot ko.)
Boss: Errrr.... can you check my table if my passport and the ticket are there...?
Me: Whaaaat?! You forgot your passport and ticket??!! (O diba, parang echo ang dating at inulit ko pa?)
Boss: Can you check, please?
Me: Okay, I'll call you back.
Click.

I hurried to his room and I realized I forgot the key to his room so I rushed back to my workstation, got his key and ran to his room. Alas! The passport and ticket were on his table! I called him up.

Me: (Shrieking) It's here! What do I do now???
Boss: Well.... I guess I'm going back to the office now. I can't leave without my passport and ticket.
Me: Well, are you still leaving? How about other flights? There are other flights!! (At this point, hindi naman halata na gusto ko siyang paalisin.) Via SQ?
Boss: Errrr.... even though I pursue a flight with another airline at this time... I think I need to have a passport and a ticket to fly out... that's why I'm going back to the office.
Me: (Realizing na tama siya at palpak ang suggestion ko) Hehehehehehe! That's true, boss! Hehehehehhe, okay, see you later.
After I hung up, napagisip-isip ko na paano nga naman siya makakaalis kung walang passport at ticket? Hehehehehe.

*Boss and I had e-mail exchanges about this fiasco. He coined the phrase. I e-mailed back saying that it's a good blog title! And the rest is history.

Boss Tales #2

Boss: Please ask BTI or Amexco for a quotation for Seoul on these days.... And get the cheapest flight, please. The cheapest!
Me: Mumbling to myself, "Yeah, yeah, yeah!"

After getting a quote from Amexco...
Me: Got a quotation from Amexco - it's $650 for Korean Air, including taxes. It's cheaper than Asiana, boss.
Boss: What?! Hmmmmm.... I didn't realize it's that expensive to go to Korea....
Me: Well, how much did you expect it to be??
Boss: Uhmmmm.... about $400?
Me: Heller. Korea is far, you know.
Boss: Better ask BTI... I'm sure they are lower... ok?

After getting a quote from BTI...
Me: BTI is more expensive! $670!
Boss: Whaaat??!!
Me: I guess Amexco gave a better rate, huh? So, I will book you then with Amexco.
Boss: Oh, alright... gee, how expensive.
Me: Well, it was cheaper last June! You should have traveled in June! BTI told me the rate was $475!
The boss just stared at me.
Me: What did I say??!!!
Boss: (his voice ooozing with sarcasm) Gee, I'm so happy to hear that!

I turned around and went back to my work station, mumbling, "Eh di ba naghahanap ka ng $400 na pamasahe......"

Sherwood Johnson and girl bonding

Since childhood, I've only known one pizza flavor at Shakey's - Friday Special. My father always orders this and he proclaimed na yun lang ang masarap na flavor. Since bubwit pa ako noon at ang tatay ko ang laging nagbabayad ng kinakain namin - it became my favorite, too. For me, the anchovies bring the zing in the pizza.

Lumaki na ako't lahat Friday's Special pa rin ang order ko when I eat at Shakey's. Shux, now ko lang na-realize baka ako naging chubby due to the pizzas I ate? Hindi naman siguro. Genetics play a part, too... I think. Until one night, I was introduced to.......Pepperoni Crrrunch!!! Yep, that's a triple r, not a typo error. To emphasize the crrrunchiness, I guess. And indeed, it was crrrunchy due to the fried potato strings as toppings. Masarap nga! No wonder Meyri and Cler were raving about it! Yun naman daw ang all-time favorite nila. It was a double treat of flavors because the other half of the pizza was a new flavor for me, too - Belly Buster!!! It has 11 toppings - beef, italian sausage, pepperoni, salami, mushrooms, green pepper and onion. Yes, I counted them all. Seriously.

Sigh.... two exciting pizza experience in one night! Not only that, the best "topping" of all was the camaraderie. It was a night of raves (about the pizza and the very bibo server) and rants (expectations, disappointments, insecurities). Don't you think pizza tops the list of comfort food? Hehehehe.

By the way, Sherwood Johnson was the founder of Shakey's Pizza. Let's spread the word on the greatest thin crust pizza in the world.

Boss Tales #1

The phone rings. Who could it be? It's him, calling from the land of No Chewing of Gum. "My roaming is not working here. Please call up Globe for me? I don't know what's wrong. Call me if you get to talk to them." Alritey. "Hello, Globe? Yung phone ng boss ko hindi raw gumagana yung roaming. Bakit kaya?" Sige, ma'm, Check ko po..... (a song by Julio Iglesias served as the pipe-in music).... Hello, ma'm. Naka-redirect ang phone niya. Kasi po may outstanding balance." Siyempre, nagmagaling pa ako, "Eh bakit, may credit limit naman siya ng P10,000 ha. I-activate ninyo na yan!". "Eh kasi po, lampas na po yung balance niya sa credit limit..." Oh. I cursed my boss silently. "A ganon ba. E ano ang gagawin niya para ma-activate yung phone (as if I don't know what to do about it - the only way to re-activate the phone is to pay the outstanding balance!)? "I-settle po yung bill agad." Yes, just what I thought. "Pero, wala siya sa Pinas! Walaaaa!". "Ganito na lang po- I will make a request that your boss promises to pay in 7 days. But it is subject to approval/disapproval. If the request gets approved, the line will be activated in an hour or so.". "Yes! He promises to pay! Pramis!" So, I said good-bye to the Globe person and called my boss for the feedback. "Hello, boss? I called up Globe. Your phone is re-directed. That's why you are not getting any. Texts and calls, I mean. Why? Well, errr... uhm....you have not paid your bill." Silence. "Oh. I didn't? Hehehehe..." Hehehehe your nose. In denial pa! "How much is the bill?" And I told him. "Gee, that much? Hahahaha!" So, I laughed, too - Hahahaha! Anyway, I told him about the promise to pay, that it is subject to approval/disapproval and all. "Sure, sure, will pay when I get back. But meantime, can you tell Globe to activate my phone as soon as possible? Thanks!" Weytaminit! Didn't he hear me say to settle the bill first and the request is subject to approval/disapproval? Malabo ba akong kausap?

Downy

The Simpsons plus one

Unplanned. I was too lazy to gym. R's thighs hurt. M had to go to the doctor. The three of us had a conference and brainstormed what to do after office hours. R suggested a movie and we all agreed to watch "In the Land of Women" (good movie, by the way). And before we entered Cinema 1, the Simpsons were there. I volunteered to pose. R & M refused to pose. Ako lang ang naglakas loob magpa-picture. Or was it a case na nauto nila akong dalawa to pose? Darn.

Photo taken by M


Photo taken by R

Happy Feet

I entered the elevator and there were a few people inside. I proceed at the back portion and my head bent down, I looked at my feet. To kill time until I reach my destination. I mused to myself, I really like the color of my toe nails - salmon red! And then, I glanced to the rest of the feet in the elevator. Hmmm... her toenails are polished like mine but her color was more of metallic deep lavender. I glanced to the other set of feet - unpolished, but clean toenails. And the rest... not interesting. They were wearing closed shoes. Hmp.

To move or not to move

Our lease would be up on 15 July. A month ago, I was panicking. Every Sunday, I would buy a newspaper and only read the classified ads. Diyos ko, sana po may for rent na swak sa budget namin. Part of the agenda in Sunday walks with Chubby-wan would be to look around the Kapitolyo area and chance upon a For Rent sign. No luck. Tried San Antonio Village and voila! Ang dami pala doon! While Ate Annie is driving slowly, I was busy scribbling down the contact numbers. Following day, I inquired and had little luck. Either the rent is too high or there's no provision for parking. Haaaaay. Demmit. Think. What to do now? What other options do we have? The last and most dreaded option was asking the landlord for an extension of our lease. I dread this option kasi I had the impression months back that our landlord was not keen on letting us renew our lease. May issue kasi about our water consumption. And we hardly talk to him unless its necessary. Anyways, it was pretty taxing to look for another place, taposo bayad na naman ng deposit (eeeeeeeek!), tapos after 7-8 months, we will be moving to another place.... a more permanent one. Thus, nilunok ko ang aking pride, at kinausap ko ang landlord - to let us extend for about 8 months na lang and I proposed, (not marriage ha), an increase in the rent. Sabi ko, "dadagdagan namin ng 500 pesos per month". Tapos, he counter offered a thousand bucks. HMP. Sige na nga, para matapos na at less hassle on our part, pumayag na rin ako. HMP.

Punchy and Mama

I opened an account for Punchy at www.dogster.com!

Walking on a Sunday morn

Starting point is at Chubby-wan's place in Mandaluyong and we proceed to streets in San Juan until we reach Wilson Street. In the past, we head to Greenhills and make the rounds. For the past two Sundays, we have concentrated on Greenhills West instead. Natakot ako nung una baka sitahin kami nung village security guard but Chubby-wan confidently passed by them and I followed suit. She reasons out that we look Chinese anyway so we look like homeowners na rin. Onga naman.

We don't do this every Sunday but I actually look forwad to it. It's a chance for us to talk about how our week went, share problems, etc. Girl bonding ba. And at times, we just share a comfortable silence. To each her own thoughts. After an hour or so, one of us would bring up this important question, "Where do we eat breakfast?" In the past, we had it at Country Waffles (I insist to go here because the waiter is a cutie and he has excellent PR but unfortunately, it closed down), Bangus, and Tropical Hut (our latest favorite!). Afterwards, we walk back to Chubby-wan's place. To burn the breakfast calories daw. Pero kung inabutan na kami ng kainitan ng araw, we hail a cab and head home. Actually, 90% of the time, nagtataxi na kami pauwi. Mainit na at nakakatamad na maglakad kapag busog ka. Di ba?

Cler tagged me! Cler tagged me!

This is an attempt on the 6 weird things about myself. Here goes...
1. I hit a cockroach several times until all of its parts are dismembered. Sabi ng Ate ko, pwede naman na isang beses ko lang paluin. But I have to make sure it's really dead.... right?
2. I eat pickles with potato chips.
3. When I sleep, I tape my mouth.
4. I eat balut with vinegar and Tabasco sauce.
5. My cellphone is always on silent mode but I always look at it to check for messages, missed calls, and reminders.
6. I'm going to tag my friends who doesn't have blogs.

And now, I tag Meyri, Kerin, Heyzil, Rubee, Chubby-wan, and Ate Annie!

Tag Rules:
Enumerate 6 weird things about thyself. And then, choose six people whom you'd like to tag.

Note(s) to self

1. Learn how to drive (so that I will not be dependent on my sister, Rhea, Reno, Alkotby, etc.).
2. Go to confession this month.
3. Clean my room. Plus my desk at work.
5. Focus on gyming. When I fall into laziness, I should think of my cellulite-filled thighs and Pacquiao-like arms.
6. Find a distraction so that my thoughts will not dwell on past mistakes.
7. I will stop here and work on 1-6.

Just to be sure - make it three!

Flashback: After office, five of us headed to Figaro for coffee and snacks. We were checking out the newly purchased cellphone of a colleague plus and feasted on badminton gossip (plus the pasta and cakes, of course!). I vaguely recall who asked who's cellphone number but the alaskahan went on like this: "Glenn, ano ba spelling ng name mo? Isang n ba o dalawa?" as I was tinkering on my address book to add his name. And before Glenn could answer, Ruby sarcastically said, "Gawin na lang kaya nating tatlo yung n para sigurado." Tawang-tawa ako sa punchline ni Ruby! So, the entry on my phonebook - Glennn. Just to be sure.

Fast forward: One afternoon at the badminton court, I was sitting in the match control table, waiting for my turn to play as I already queued for the next game. The queueing system that time was writing down your name, plus the rest of the quorum. So, while waiting for my turn, I was cheerfully heckling the people who were playing that time - heckle here, heckle there. And then, someone approached the match control. A tall-balding (hindi bading ha, balding)-foreign male specie. Sabi ko, "Naku, mukhang serious player ito a." He got the pencil and started to write his name on the queue paper. Since I didn't know him, I just continued watching the players. He started writing, D-e-n-n, then erased one n, and then, he paused. With his head bent down, he asked to no one in particular, "How do you spell Dennis' name? Is it just one n or two n?" I gleefully replied, "Hmmmm (kunwari malalim ang iniisip)... you know what, just to be sure - make it three!" And he looked up to me. His face expressionless. I had no way of telling if he got my punchline or was pissed off. Oh well. Dalawang "n" na nga baka mahampas pa ako ng raketa.

Vicky

As of this day, I still wonder why many, if not all, misspell my nickname. Walang palya. Every time I order a meal or a drink and I have to give out my name - it's often spelled out as Vicky. But, mind you, they pronounce it correctly! It's true. It has become a challenge to me who'd get my name correctly the first time. It used to irritate me but it has become a source of entertainment. At Starbucks, it was spelled as - Vhecky. Can you believe that? Pinoy na pinoy and dating, no? I'm not kidding. Should have saved that cup for evidence! Often times, I have to spell it out so they get it right. Pero nagkakamali pa rin. I'd say, "B-e-c-k-y." "Ma'm, V po ba?" As politely as possible, I'd say, "Hindi, B as in boy." "Ah, okay. B po. B-i-c-k-y?" Oh well. Anna na nga lang para madali.