The World of Second Chances

My Namesake, Tet

June 16, 2016

Life & Love

I was called “Tet” by my family. I hated that pet name, it sounded absurd. Then sometime in the 80’s, somebody named Tet Garcia became Bataan’s second district congressman. My “kababata” and even my younger brother would tease me for that similarity in pet name. It was a harmless joke but it got into my nerves; I just hated that pet name then a popular public figure had the same pet name and there was a lot of recall about it.

Before the Garcias came into the political picture in Bataan, there was the Romans. I grew up with Ding Roman as the governor and as a child, I believed in his capabilities though I had no exact idea how he worked as a public official. Tet Garcia was a newbie then in the world of politics; my parents adored him especially my mother. Then sometime in the late 90’s, his eldest son Abet became the mayor of Balanga while Tet became the governor. Years later, Gila and Joet became politicians as well and opponents said that this family started a political dynasty in Bataan. Garcia family’s supporters retorted that it was the end of the Roman dynasty. Whichever side of the political fence a person was into, the tension to the rising popularity of the Garcias could never be stopped. Their supporters loved them and were loyal to them. Their political opponents calculated and magnified their every moves.

I personally do not have a recollection about the late Tet Garcia except for the shared pet name. What I know is, he was well-loved by most of the people in Bataan. His family had something to do with the people’s affection because they knew when to mingle with the common tao. Our family was once a recipient of their “pakikiramay” when Abet, Joet and Mrs. Garcia went to my mother’s wake. Abet was in his usual friendly mood. Joet, though a little shy, let us feel his sincerity. I was at first intimidated at Mrs. Garcia but felt comfortable later on when she asked about how my mother succumbed to cancer.

I’ve always said that I would never forget the people who were with me and my family during our darkest times. The Garcias were with us then. Now, it is my turn to return the affection and concern.

Rest in peace, Congressman Tet and condolences to the whole family!
The Achiever

June 13, 2016

Poems & Stories

The worst feeling is to be taken for granted.

To be regarded as a substitute.

To be remembered only when needed.

To be one’s second choice.

To fill in whatever is missing.

To suppress your growth and potential.

To give way for the favored ones.

To pretend as if you’re okay.

But this worst feeling is a preparation for my future.

My own battles and sacrifices.

My commitment to a better me.

My road to full recovery.

Surely, a good soldier bounces back from defeat.

Because a good soldier never accepts defeat.

We fight even when the chances are slim.

We fight with honor, equality and dignity.

When someone treats you unfairly.

Consider it as a preparation for a better you.

Nobody becomes successful by spoon-feeding.

The more hurt a person is, the more he becomes an achiever.
Thoughts

June 10, 2016

Poems & Stories

Have you ever felt something so strong to resist?

A monster in the making, an ogre or a beast?

Have you ever looked at the stars in the sky?

And wish to touch them right before your eyes.

Have you ever wished to be a different you?

Do some crazy things out of the blue.

Have you ever done anything unacceptable?

Against the norms of society where we’re expected to be impeccable

Have you ever wanted to be lazy all day?

Pretend to be a puppet, a doll or a clay.

Have you ever felt weariness from life’s roller coaster?

Then find another place that can make you feel better.

Have you ever thought how strong a person you are?

A survivor, a winner, a champion, a star.
Shakey’s Supercard is NOT for Us

May 28, 2016

Career, Finance & Product
We just had dinner at home but decided to park at Shakey’s and order something for the kids while waiting for my daughter who’s on the way . Since all of us were still full, we just decided to take out 1 order of pizza. My husband and the server were the ones discussing. One order of pizza would cost us PhP430.00. Then the confusing part came when the server asked us if we were interested to avail of the buy one-take one + free 1.5 liters of Coke promo at a price of PhP 469.00. Of course, it sounded like a great deal so we said, it was okay. Then the server came back with an application form and hurriedly left. I asked my husband what was that form for and he said that I just had to fill it up.

When the bill came, we were charged with PhP1,089. I asked him the breakdown of the PhP1.089 because from what I remember, the pizza was only PhP469.00. He said that the supercard costed around PhP400+ so I answered that if that was the case, then we should be charged with less than PhP1,000. I probably missed something when we were taking our order earlier but had it was clear what a supercard was, I wouldn’t think twice of not accepting his offer for the following reasons:
1. Since October 2015, I decided to remove pizza on my diet. The last time I tasted a pizza was during an officemate’s birthday last March.
2. Our kids would pick Jollibee, McDo and KFC over pizza so getting a supercard would not be advantageous.
3. I am not a fan of cards except the Mercury Drug card and SM Advantage Card.
The server left and talked with his manager. I followed him and demanded an explanation why the whole thing was never explained to my husband and I thoroughly. PhP1,089 maybe a small amount but what angered me was the way this whole promo thing was not properly explained to us. I demanded to cancel that card and just revert to our original order (1 pizza for take out) then I went back to the waiting area.

The manager probably thought that we were after the free pizza and Coke so he approached me to remind me that what we ordered was the 1 pizza+ free pizza + free Coke to which I clarified that “No! Just refer to our original order!”

To cut the long and stressful situation short, they cancelled the supercard and we got our original order. In all fairness, the manager was cool and professional. He apologized and I did the same thing.

Lesson Learned:
1. To the customers like my husband and I, if you are not familiar with the promo, ASK MORE questions. Don’t assume that you have understood everything because getting a card might not be advantageous to you if you are like us who are not frequent pizza eaters. ASK if the card is free. (Example: SM offers a free advantage card for a minimum worth of initial purchase.)
2. To the management team of any business establishments, GIVE your customers time to ASK questions. Clarify if the customer understands what he’s getting into. ALWAYS give the breakdown of charges during the sales talking so that the customer can be made aware of what he needs to pay.
For Us, Industrial Engineers

May 20, 2016

Career, Finance & Product

Industrial Engineers are trained to be non-resistant to change. We expect change. We welcome change. At some point, we are the reason for the change. As an IE, we need to have a healthy balance between being a management person and operations person. We should act as the arbiter between the management and its people so we need to be fair and just.

The common characteristics of an IE are the following:

1. We are hardworking. Yes, there are times when we feel like being lazy the whole day but those days are rare as compared to the number of times that we need to render long working hours just to get the job done. Since the organization relies to our data or our study for their decision-making, we tend to walk an extra mile just to submit a comprehensive report.

2. We promote a healthy culture at work. Since we are the catalyst for change in an organization, we are aware that a harmonious work environment is more receptive to change than one that is chaotic. We are the ones who promote change but do not appear to be intimidating. We are the ones who justify the change but do not act as a know-it-all because we prefer to be low-key.

3. We don’t stop asking questions until we find the acceptable answer. We are trained to ask, to investigate, to be thorough so some people might find us annoying but they end up appreciating our insistence because they know that we have the best intentions for them.

4. We are competitive without really trying hard. Competitiveness is in our culture from the moment we step into junior college. But our kind of competitiveness is a friendly one because we want continual improvement on the existing systems or processes. Seldom does an IE compete with another group in an organization because it contradicts with our culture of being the internal consultant of the organization.

5. We are well-groomed, or at least, the majority of us. We know that personality matters if we want people to listen to us. While working, an IE may look messy because we are too busy but when presenting, an IE makes herself presentable.

6. We value teamwork very much. Even the loner types of IE are forced to embrace the concept of teamwork simply because the nature of our job requires us to mingle with people from the other departments or section.
The Unfriend Button

May 19, 2016

Life & Love
There are three reasons why I clicked the unfriend button last night:
1. Unfamiliar names/usernames- Okay, I was lenient in accepting some friend request. In fact, there’s a 60% chance that if somebody sends me a friend request, I will accept that even if we’re not acquainted in real life. I give the person the benefit of the doubt and the chance to be friends. I have this assumption that if somebody frequently changes his username, then he must be trying to conceal his identity for malicious reasons.
2. If my FB friend and I have not been in touch either online or offline for a minimum of six months. I would assume that his account is already inactive so I will give my page the favor of cleaning up some “unwanted” spaces. If we are no longer in touch offline for six months or more, I would assume that he has other interests in life and for me, that’s no big deal; I would let him go.
3. If my friend has a second account that I accepted but failed to inform me about it, then I would unfriend because that could be a bogus account or an impostor. Trust me, there are a lot of bogus accounts on the net.
2016 is Liberation Year

May 18, 2016

Life & Love

I therefore declare that 2016 is my liberation year from people or events that made me unhappy in the past.

🙂