Sweet California Berry

Yesterday was the last day of my officemate Minnie in our group, because tomorrow she will be working for another group in our department. So to send her off, we had a 'fro-yo' session in California Berry in Tomas Morato (herein after known as CB.)

Actually, we've been planning to go there since February. Upon seeing a discount deal for CB in Metrodeal, we immediately bought four vouchers for the deal. However, we have been putting off the plan because we have been assigned to different shifts for the past four months. We finally decided to use these vouchers now, before it loses its validity on... now. *wink wink!*

It was a rain-soaked afternoon when we got there, so much that we have to get a taxi to get there. AS you could see here, it was raining hard outside the CB.

Thank goodness for the quirky and cheery vibe of CB, with its white and mint-green interiors, with a little pop of pink at the counter.

The chair colors looks cute!

Mosaic tiled counter + white countertop = KEWL!

Love the origami lamps!

I sure have a Californiaberry day! :)

Now I know how much they really cost.

Even the utensils and materials lean on the cute and bright side!

How cute these cups are!

Spoons in rainbow colors. If only the spoons at home come in colors like these. Hahahaha!

Now we go to the fro-yos. We each had a large cup of frozen yogurts, topped with different flavors. Unfortunately, because Minnie is still observing Ramadan, she had to give her voucher to our other officemate, Mark. Notwithstanding that fact, she still watched us 'eat with our heart's content.' He he he. Anyways, here are our topping choices:

Choco cereals and mint choco cookies for me.

Cherries, banana chips and marshmallows for Ethel.

Cherries, marshmallows and mint cookies for Krisha.

I personally find the yogurt itself just right for my taste. It's sweet once it touches your tongue, but halfway through you taste the tangy taste inherent to yogurt. I actually winced when I tasted the yogurty tang when I got a big spoonful. (note to self: eat one small scoop at a time) But then, this is better than the other fro-yo that I tried (it's Yoh-Gurt Froz)

But of course, no food trip will be complete without the customary picture-taking!

Ethel while waiting for her turn...

Kuya Mark while surfing the Net via the CB WiFi...

Me and Ethel while looking at the available toppings...

Oh, Minnie. We'll miss you and your (sometimes) covered head. But we still hope to see you around some time. And have another cup of fro-yo. :D

Accept or Reject?

Last Thursday, I received the news from my team leader about a job offer that's really hard to resist. I won't spill further details about that, but basically it's something that will elevate my career in the company I'm working for.

If it's any other person, or if it's any ordinary situation, I would have easily accepted the job offer. But mine is an extremely special case: as my team leader puts it, I have talent that is way beyond what is required of my current job (hindi naman sa nagbubuhat ako ng bangko, yun kasi ang pagkakasabi ng boss ko), that is why I was the first person in mind when the position became available. Problem is, I'm juggling my time between work and school, and... let's just say that the part of the job description in that vacancy is UTMOST DEDICATION towards work. That part, I think, is something that I could not guarantee that I could give once I accept the offer.

You see, I've been juggling my time between work and law school for more than two years now. It wasn't an easy trick to pull off -- you struggle to do your best while at work, and at the same time you are also expected to at least do well in school. Over the course of two years, I have done some sacrifices just to pull it all together -- I have to arrange my school schedule so I have some free days to do my reading, and I have to stick to one work shift (morning shift) throughout the entire semester.

My team leader understood my situation, that is why he allowed me to stick to one work shift for the entire semester, and he would approve my periodic leaves during exam season (so long as I notify him beforehand.) My officemates would roll their eyes in wonder on how I do all these things, and my classmates would encourage me to 'breathe' so I don't burn myself out. Yeah, there are times that I feel extremely burnt out. But some rest and diversionary tactics do the trick for me, even just temporarily.

I'm thinking about these things while thinking about whether or not to accept the job offer. It's a very tough decision to make for me, because while accepting it means career advancement, doing so also would greatly affect my studies. Rejecting the offer would mean more time to focus on law school, but I would be missing out this 'once-in-my-career' opportunity. I sought the advice of those who understood my situation, but I don't seem to solicit a clear answer from any of them. Or maybe I wasn't very attentive, probably because of unorganized thoughts in my head.

Then I suddenly remember something that my college professor told my class during a particular 'awarding ceremony' (awarding ceremony, in beki language, means 'pinagalitan nang bonggang-bongga.') Back then, she told us, 'There's no such thing as time management, there's only such thing as setting priorities.' I can't remember exactly why she said that, or even the reason why we were 'awarded' in the first place.

And I thought, maybe she was right. Time management can only go so far, because after all, doing many things all at once results to a half-baked work. And when you prioritize something, you will go out of your way to get it done, even if that means dismissing every other opportunity over that you prioritize.

So I ask, what is something in the offer that you consider? 'That's career advancement! Higher pay! Superiority! Bragging rights! (charot!)' Another question, more study time or higher pay? 'More study time!' Another question, if ever you are offered to extend your term in the workplace, would you accept it? 'Maybe yes, maybe no.' Another question, would you give up law school in favor of the job offer? 'Hell to the no!' Final question, what is your priority, law school or work? 'Law school!'

...

...

...

...

So that gives you a clue on what's my decision over the offer. :)

Lessons of 2010

I was about to start an entry just like what I did two years ago: a rundown of the events that happened in the year that has passed. But as I was organizing my thoughts about it, something came into my mind...

The year has been nice to me, so nice that it's so 'blog-worthy'; but at the same time it was so mean that I won't even dare to share to the entire world, even after many years.

Perhaps it would be better if I share the lessons that I have learned during the year 2010...

• Trust means virtually everything to any relationship. Lose it, and you also lose everything. And even if you do start again, you will never gain that same level of trust ever again.

• There is nothing quite like a strong support system. They are called such for a reason: they are meant to hold you up when you're about to fall at your back.

• They say, 'Love yourself first before loving others.' But sometimes, you can only learn loving yourself through those people who knew very well that you're worth loving.

• What you are in the past does not dictate your future. So stop wallowing at your past mistakes: learn your lessons and move forward to the future.

• But stay the same. It's good when you meet the expectations of yourself and of other people. However, it's also easy to get caught up with them, so much that you begin to lose those things that make you stand out from the rest. What I'm trying to say is this: go meet those expectations without losing your identity. Besides, people love your for what you are, not for what they want you to be.

• When the opportunity comes, go grab it. You'll never know when luck will smile at you.

• You don't always get it right the first time. Doing so means you learn quickly, but doing it right, even after many attempts, means you learn thoroughly enough to be able to share that talent or lesson to others. In other words, practice makes perfect.

• Take a few bites, and chew it very well. Never take everything in your mouth and swallow at the same time; lest you'll risk of throwing up.

• My college professor once told us, 'There is no such thing as time management; but there is such thing as setting priorities.' So true, especially now.

• But what if both are too important to let loose? Solution? Prioritize on what will benefit you in the long run.

• I mentioned earlier that there is nothing quite like a strong support system. And I repeat it again - in a world where everything is a test and you're always swamped with tons of to-do's, it's good to have a companion - someone who will remind you of the perks that you will gain after all that brouhaha.

• Take time to take care of yourself. Hectic schedules and a long to-do list is not a reason not to squeeze in some rituals to do so. In fact, these simple routines help ease stress.

• Love comes when you least expect it. I think this is self-explanatory.

• But don't be afraid to take chances. Go show and tell him/her what you really feel. Who knows, he/she may also feels the same way with you. And never, ever wait 'till it's too late.

• Never, ever push yourself to someone. 'He's just not that into you.'

• Similarities bring you closer, but differences make your bond grow stronger. A word of caution, though: quoting Tim Gunn, 'Make it work.'

• Absence makes the heart go fonder, but not too long to make it wander away and look for another.

• When the going gets tough, hold on tight. That's when the tough gets going.



And the most important lesson that I learned this year is this:

There are those times in your life that you're being swamped with all those bad things, and you find yourself uttering, 'I just wanna die.' But it is also in these times that someone or something comes into your life and change everything for good. Then you begin to appreciate all the things that you have and suddenly, you wish to live longer so you see more of these.

Bottom line?

Go on living your life. Have all the reasons to live, and keep them.

Blast From the Past

By this time you guys already know that I am a writer. But here's the thing: whenever I tell people where I work, they would just gasp, say great things (or diss them or whatever), and then ask me, 'Saang program ka?'

Sure, I work for a media network, but for crying out loud, I don't belong to any program whatsoever! Law school and working extended hours just to satisfy your executive producer (or at times, your b!+@#y boss also known as the host) will never ever mix. At least in my book.

If that is the case, where the hell am I working?

I am working for the company's Media Assets Management Department.

'Where the hell is that?" you might ask, I know. To make things simpler, I'll put it this way: 'I work for the company's Central Archives.

No, no, I'm not into the librarian kind of thingy in my work description. That's why I'm here to explain things out.


You see, after each program tape has been aired or after each unedited tapes has been used for a certain program, these tapes are kept for archiving and organized according to program, airing date (or capture date), or genre, just like what librarians do with books.

Just like with libraries, each tape comes with a 'catalog file,' where all the information about the tape are indicated. This is done so that researchers (the ones who usually use these tapes) could easily find these tapes according to the topic that they will be covering. These files are placed in a special media archiving program where all these tapes are consolidated and organized.

We, the writers, are the ones who are responsible for making the catalog files. In my case, I belong to the team that handles the Current Affairs program tapes (think: documentaries and magazine shows).

It was a pretty easy job, but not totally. Because the most important part of my job is to write the gists for each episode of a program and each segment of an episode. Think of the summary of a novel that you read at the back of the book - that's exactly what we are doing.

So where's the hard part there? You see, there are many things to consider when doing summaries. First and foremost is grammar (no doubt about that). Second, the K.I.S.S. rule, because primarily, the 'audience' of our writings is the researchers, and they don't have much time to watch the whole segment just to find that particular scene that they are looking for, let alone read the whole story of a segment. And there are some episodes and segments that are so info-packed that it is quite tempting to put all that info in one summary. But of course, that won't work if you want to keep your summary short and simple.

Yeah, basically we just sit in front of a PC, watch programs, and then write their summary.

The upside? I get to go back in the past through these programs. I get to view some of the issues in the past, in the perspective of the time that it was aired. It's like having a time machine in your PC screen.

Sounds fun after all, right? :)








Oh, by the way, my favorite story that I've encountered was that of Vizconde massacre. Gross, I know, but when I saw the archives of the programs where the said case was featured, you'll know the reason why that case is so controversial. Hehehe.

Graveyard Ladies, Listen Up! You Won't Believe What I Just Read...

I was browsing the latest issue of FHM (that's November 2010) that my brother bought just a few days ago (he bought that just because of his celeb crush, Ehra Madrigal, but that's another story). Then I stumbled upon an article about graveyard shift employees.

I could pretty much relate to this article. You see, I'm at the graveyard shift for the past month (I'm in the morning shift next week! Yay!), and I know pretty well the perks (night differential!) and bums (sleepless days) of being assigned to that shift.

But I gasped loudly upon reading a side article related to the main article. I have to quote parts of that article, just so I could share to you guys what I'm talking about.


Women can't work at night


Article 130 of the Labor Code prohibits a woman 'regardless of age' to work between 10pm to 6am the following day. Given, there are exceptions. But nowhere in those exceptions do call center agents actually fit (except if they are managers). So how did all the women comprising 60 percent of the entire Philippine call center industry according to a recent study* working the nightshift? That is still up for debate in Congress, some arguing that the law does not address the modern times. All the call centers can do right now is ask for exemptions. And they get them.

*Night Work Prohibition of Women Workers in the Philippine Call Center Industry by Dr. Robert Keitel, Ms. Melissa Dorothy Ledesma, 2009.


Whoa.

I can't believe that there is such thing as women-not-allowed-to-do-graveyard-shifts.And that it is actually provided in the law. I better look this provision up when I get to take Labor Law in the coming semesters.

But what the hell am I doing in the night shift for the past month and last August? Not that I'm complaining, but do we have the appropriate exemptions, if the law provides for such?

And the thing is, I'm not even a call center agent. I'm a catalog writer, but given my situation, I'm pretty much like working in one. Sometimes, I can't help but agree with my mom when she told me that I better work at a call center, since I have the same work skeds as that of a call center agent. But I resist the urge, because of my own reasons, and that's another story.

I do agree that the law 'does not address the modern times' anymore. Let's face it: amidst the economic crunch, people would do everything just to earn extra dough, even going as far as turning night into day. This is true especially to those who are the breadwinners of their respective families. And with the rise of call centers catering to international clients, graveyard shift employees are fast becoming a fact in the country's local labor sector. What the government should provide, in my opinion, is more protection to these kind of employees, especially in terms of health (lack of sleep alone poses numerous health risks) and safety (nighttime is notorious for crimes). Employers should also look after these factors among their graveyard shift employees, and I mean not just by giving them huge compensations. After all, what's the use of a big compensation for their work if their workers do not feel healthy and secure to continue working?

Right?