The World of Second Chances

Are We Done Yet?

January 16, 2014

That’s Entertainment

I was laughing from start to end of the movie, “Are We Done Yet?” It’s a 2007 family comedy film starring Ice Cube. The movie’s message is simple— a house and a home are two different things. A big house does not necessarily translate to the dwellers’ happiness if there are conflicts within them. Some families that live on large houses tend to alienate from each other because of too much space built between them while some families that live on cramped houses tend to complain of lack of privacy from each other.

But what is really a home if a house is not a home? A house is a shelter, our physical protection from sun, wind and rain. A home is where we find emotional protection from the forces outside of our house. Therefore, a home is what every families want to achieve—peace, love and protection.

A house can be a home if every families and even housemates spend some time to bond with each other. There has to be a constant communication to keep that connection. My kids’ yaya noticed that Adi and Robi turn unruly everytime I’m around. In the past, when I was physically and mentally drained due to a day’s hard work, I shunned the kids away but the result was they became more disorderly. When I did the reverse thing like giving them my attention, they behaved.

A house can be a home if husbands and wives love and respect one another. If there is more understanding and acceptance between couples, then there is less to be annoyed about.
Should I Get Worried, Ensogo/Livingsocial?

December 6, 2013

Life & Love

I am not a fan of online shopping because I prefer to look at the item before deciding to buy it. The reason why I bought a single airbed from Livingsocial (formerly known as Ensogo) is to test the waters before taking the plunge. I bought the airbed last November 22 and when the proof of payment was generated, I was surprised to see the delivery date supposedly on December 20. I called up their hotline number at 555-6868 and they assured me that the shipment timeframe was December 6-20; they will deliver the item once it’s available.I asked if they could make it on December 13 so that there would still be enough allowance for delivery should any problem take place. They agreed.

The shipping address is at my office address since our company is well-known in the area. I called up their hotline last Tuesday to inquire if there’s any possibility to expedite the delivery from December 13 to December 6. The lady customer service representative assured me that she would do her best to expedite the delivery on Friday.

I called up their hotline yesterday morning to inquire the delivery status of the airbed and I explained that the reason why I was calling them since Wednesday was because I needed to inform the guards on duty about the package. Our guards are on a shifting schedule and the person who received my instruction might not relay the message to the incoming shift. The male customer service representative suggested that the rider would text me if he is along the way. It was a nice deal.

Early this morning, I told the guard-on-duty that I am expecting a package but she told me that she would leave in a while so I needed to tell the other guard about it. So anyway, I have informed the outgoing and the incoming shift of guards about my package.

Just to make sure that everything will come out as planned, I called up Livingsocial’s hotline to ask about the status of the delivery.

Livingsocial: Your delivery time frame is between December 6-20.

Me: Yeah, right. I know. I’ve talked with two of your customer service representatives and they assured me that they would expedite the delivery to December 6.

Livingsocial: Who among us did you happen to talk with?

Me: I did not get his name but he’s definitely not you!

Livingsocial: Kasi po, the delivery time frame is December 6-20.

Me: Yeah, I know. Is there a way to expedite it? What’s the problem? (beginning to show signs of annoyance)

Livingsocial: The product is not yet with us……

Me: (very pissed off) So sana, you told me from the start that the product is NOT yet available para the customer can better understand WHY you can’t make it on December 6!

Debah? Why would they print out the shipment date as December 6 if the product is not even available on that DAY. Ano to, lokohan? Stop the BS! Just deliver my airbed and we’re done!

Update: I got my airbed last Monday, December 16! Yey!
I would like to commend two of Living Social’s customer service advocate, Cash and Cris. I am not sure if these are real names though. Cash and Cris were polite and knew how to handle an agitated customer. They knew what to do and offerred a solution to my delivery concern.
Yolanda Victims To Relocate In Bataan

November 27, 2013

Life & Love

I found a good blog (http://bataan-prpc.blogspot.com/) about the Bataan Philippine Refugee Processing Center in Morong, Bataan in my effort to get to know about this project that was funded by the UN. I’ve never been to the BPRPC and I regret not being given the chance to go there before it closed in the 90’s.

There’s a suggestion to relocate the Yolanda victims to the BPRPC while the government is busy with rebuilding the affected parts of Leyte like Tanauan, Palo and Tacloban. Personally, I have no problem with that; if my province was able to accommodate foreign nationals in BPRCP, then it is more logical and moral to do the same with our kababayan.

The mayor of Hermosa, Mr. Danny Malana, expressed his intention to welcome the Yolanda victims as soon as the PNP gives their nod to lend the still uninhabited housing community there.

We are talking about an interim solution here. The real challenge that the government and the Yolanda victims must face is how to rebuild that part of Leyte. Architect Palafox guested on a morning show last week discussing about what kind of building and house design is suitable for coastal areas. What about the livelihood of the people? I heard from the news that the government will stop its relief operations by December. Isn’t it too soon? I hope I just got it wrong. I have no problem with stopping the relief operations as SOON as the people are financially, physically and emotionally capable.
Stop The Negativity!

November 11, 2013

Life & Love

Source: GMA News

Sharon Cuneta and Congresswoman Lucy Gomez’ plea for help for the victims of supertyphoon Yolanda in Samar and Leyte received bashing and bickering from some netizens whose motive is to obviously annoy these two personalities. These netizens question Sharon and Lucy’s sincerity and even ask them why giving of donations must be passed to the common people when celebrities and rich people can donate a portion of their wealth to help the victims.

How sure are they that Sharon, Lucy and some of the rich people DID not donate? Kung sino pa ang walang naiambag, sila pa itong malalakas ang loob mangutya at magsalita!Have they seen the aftermath of typhoon Yolanda in Samar and Leyte? If no, they better watch the news for their information and if yes, OMG, what kind of people are they? Where is their EMPATHY?

It’s true, people who do not contribute are the ones who whine and bash. They are the types who would shout at a beggar but would not dare to give even a centavo for them. What is wrong if Sharon and Lucy call for a donation? They are famous personalities with followers that they can influence. It’s human nature to give especially if we’re living a more comfortable life than the others.
A Change of Style, Perhaps?

November 6, 2013

Life & Love

Oh, this link (http://www.zeibiz.com/2013/11/arnold-clavio-rude-interview-atty-alfredo-villamor-video/) reminds me of rude interviewers that I came across in the past. Good thing, the interview was just done in the privacy of the interviewer’s cubicle where nobody could see or witness how I cringed in disbelief that even professionals could be so unwelcoming and rude!

Arnold Clavio just hit the fan with his sarcastic and rude interview with one of Janet Lim Napoles’ lawyers. No, I have no sympathy for Janet and the rest of those involved in the PDAF scam but I feel for Atty. Villamor in the way that the interview was mishandled by Arnold Clavio.

In the first place, it was a case of mistakingly asking a lawyer who’s handling another case (serious illegal detention). Arnold, in his best effort, probably tried to squeeze info about the PDAF case but failed big time because the lawyer wouldn’t speak about a case that he does not handle. This probably triggered Arnold’s rude remarks towards the “tatawa-tawang” lawyer.

If Arnold thinks that he can get away with his “pa-astig” style just because the majority of us hate Janet Napoles, well, the viewers are intelligent to discern what is respectful from what is rude. Arnold, you are a respected public figure. You should at least act like one to continue to earn the trust and viewership of the people supporting the station that you are working for.
Season of Split Up

October 25, 2013

That’s Entertainment

Ouch! That hurts!

What do Angel Locsin and Philyounghusband, Miranda Kerr and Orlando Bloom, Jennylyn Mercado and Luis Manzano, Cristine Reyes and Derek Ramsey, Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth, Sheree and Gian Magdangal, LJ Reyes and Paulo Avelino, Sunshine Cruz and Cesar Montano, Claudine Baretto and Raymart Santiago and Nikki Gil and Billy Crawford have in common? Yeah right, these couples are no longer together. What’s with 2013? This year must be a year of split ups.

One day you see these couple acting sweet and the next day, their love for each other is gone. I don’t believe in the “it’s a mutual decision to end our relationship” press release. In the first place, I never believed that love stands on a fulcrum; one of the couple will love more and give more while the other will love less and receive more. In ending a relationship, one will definitely do the first move and the other one will just agree but ending the relationship does not necessarily mean that it is a mutual decision. From the point of view of the initiator, declaring it as a mutual decision will probably ease all guilt feelings while from the receiver’s perspective, it’s like putting on a brave front.

In the case of Paulo and LJ, Orlando and Miranda, Raymart and Claudine and Cesar and Sunshine, the split up becomes complicated when there are children involved. Maybe the separation will not be traumatic to first two pairs’ children mentioned because they seem to be working on being civil with each other but the last two pairs look like they need to raise the white flag, if only for the sake of their offsprings.

Ah, love is really magical. Just when you thought that you have found the right partner and live with him/her, love slips away the moment you realize that there’s nothing really special about your other half. Love is magical and blinding in the sense that you need to dissect it a little deeper for you to take hold of it once more. That is why love is said to be accepting, hence, learning to love a person at his worst.

Love is about loyalty, very simple. There would be a thousand colors in the spectrum but I would always choose celadon green to be my favorite color, yeah, the most special one. The problem with committed couples is, they can’t decide which color to pick on.
Memories of Bohol and the 1990 Killer Quake

October 19, 2013

Life & Love

Who ate my chocolate hill?

It was one of those unplanned trips in 2011 when me and family went to Bohol for a visit. We stayed in my husband’s grandfather’s house in Getafe which is one and a half hours from Tagbilaran City.

My husband’s grandfather’s house is big and is located in a family compound. The source of water is limited to a well that is at least one kilometer from the old man’s house so water is a luxury in that area. Cellphone signal for Smart subscriber is poor and most of the people at the compound is using Globe. The air is so fresh and clean but humidity is high so my hair easily gets sticky. The beaches in Talibon are not yet well-developed but the place is well-maintained so I have no problem with that. The biggest bonus is the luxury of eating fresh prawns everyday at half the price in Manila!

Oh, Bohol, I fell in love with you the moment I set foot on you on February 2011! Everybody seemed to be happy and welcoming. It would break my heart to see you ruined if we happen to be given a chance to be back there in 2014. Last Tuesday, an officemate informed me about the earthquake and when I saw the damage through the internet, I checked on my sister-in-law in Cebu if they were safe. (Yes, they were!)

So far, the earthquake that traumatized me was the 1990 killer quake that hit Central and Northen Luzon. I was alone in the house when I felt the tremor. The first thing that came to my mind was my parents and my brother’s safety. The two-week class suspension then gave me the opportunity to watch all kinds of news about the damage in Baguio, Cabanatuan and Dagupan.

I can still remember how a young teenage student, whose lower body was trapped under the rubbles, died two days after a brief TV interview. (Talk about the LIVE coverage, huh!) Baguio, a famous tourist destination in the Philippines, was a total wreck! (They managed to bounce back fast; there little traces of the earthquake when I went there in 1994)

The earthquakes that I experienced in Baguio where more of vertical movements so I didn’t find it alarming at all. But experts said that a vertical movement is more damaging than a horizontal one just like what happened in 1990.

It’s saddening to lose the centuries-old churches in Bohol which are considered to be tourist attraction because of their historical value. There are roads to repair and citizens to be financially assisted, too. Sagbayan and Carmen, two of Bohol’s tourist destinations are affected so income from tourism is not reliable at this point.

Baguio was quick to recover because tourism was not just its main source of income. They have well-established universities like University of Baguio, Baguio Colleges Foundation (University of the Cordillera) and Saint Louis University so the place is highly commercial with the influx of students from local and abroad. They have large companies like Texas Instruments and Moog. Aside from the city government’s budget, the likelihood of faster restoration is high for high-profile places.

The same cannot be said about Bohol where tourism, fishing and agriculture is the main source of livelihood. I hope that donations will reach the affected citizens on time. Yes, Bohol and Cebu can rise again.