The World of Second Chances

Great Find: Akari 4-1 Emergency Light

January 21, 2012

Career, Finance & Product

My husband bought this Akari 4-1 emergency light last October 2011. It is an emergency lamp, AM/FM radio, electric fan and blinker in one. It became useful to us last Monday night when Meralco had to shut down power on our area due to maintenance.
My toddler couldn’t sleep in a hot environment so the electric fan was a big relief for him. I was trying to save on battery charge so I set the fan at low speed and I just lit a candle instead of using the lamp. Adi was able to sleep soundly while I stayed awake to monitor if the electric fan is still working.

Akari 4-1 emergency light is good for outdoor activities like camping. It is lightweight and the casing seems durable enough. Summertime is coming once again and I hope it’s not a season of brown-outs. Anyways, with Akari 4-1 emergency light, you can have a little convenience despite the irritating brown-out. 😉
Galeria Victoria in Balanga City

January 2, 2012

Travel

May 2, 2018 Update:

BFP has yet to declare a total fire out on Galeria Victoria. This commercial establishment that is located at the heart of Balanga has been on fire since 9AM yesterday (May 1, 2018). Collective efforts from the different fire fighting units are ongoing with firemen helping from as far as SBFZ. My heart goes out to the employees of the mall.

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Picture Reference: http://nsjbi.net/commercial_space.html

I always look forward to visiting Balanga City to check for new or improved establishments. When the old arcade was demolished to give way to Galeria Victoria, I was skeptical about the idea of erecting a new building. First, the old arcade had a lot of sentimental value to me. Second, the old arcade was still functional and erecting a new building seemed capricious to me. Third, how would the architecture of the new building look like? Modern? Gothic? Traditional? Old-fashioned?

Galeria Victoria has this old-fashioned look; you thought you were walking down the streets of old Manila. I cannot comment on what’s inside the mall because I had limited time in Balanga last week. So this post is about my impression on the architecture from the outside of Galeria Victoria.

Whoever is the urban planner of Balanga City must be commended for this nice piece of art. I am interested to know the number of jobs Galeria Victoria has provided for the people of Balanga and its neighboring towns. More jobs mean more employment and more employment means a better quality of life for the people of Balanga City.
Swatch Irony 1999

January 2, 2012

Life & Love

My silver Swatch Irony (1999 collection) stopped working properly last week. I thought it was just the battery so I replaced it twice. I told the watch repair shop that despite the battery replacement, it was still not functioning properly. She said that the crown must be the reason why the watch hands were not moving at times.

This watch has been with me for 11 years. It was a graduation gift from my ex’s mother. More than its current value or price, the sentimental value is still very strong and I have plans of sending it to Gift Gate for a third opinion.
Great Find: Camotes Island

December 27, 2011

Travel

What can be more relaxing than to try vacationing on a minimally-explored island that is one and a half to two hours from mainland Cebu by boat/roro.

If you find other beaches too crowded for comfort yet you’re still looking for clear waters and white sand, then Camotes Island maybe the perfect getaway for you.

The people are friendly and hospitable, the place is not polluted and you can enjoy eating your favorite seafoods without worrying about high prices. Shrimps and lobsters are a rarity though.

Be prepared to conquer its rough seas. Have fun listening to local folklores. Enjoy their culture and way of living. Go and try Camotes Island!
Sometimes, Distance is Good

December 23, 2011

Life & Love

For the first time in three years, my husband and I are not physically together as he needs to accompany a person who is a middleman of a prospective employer of my father-in-law. My father-in-law is retiring next year and my husband thought that should this employment deal pushes through, it would be for the benefit of my father-in-law.

My father-in-law’s assignment is in Camotes Island; the scenic island that is one and a half hours by boat from mainland Cebu. Cellphone signal is not good in his father’s house so my husband needs to go to the beach to text me or call me up. I can sense that he’s missing Adi so much. I can sense that he’s missing home and I can sense that he’s missing me. I miss him, too.

Sometimes, distance is good in a relationship. When we were together 7 days a week, we took each other for granted. We became very comfortable with each other. We tended to unappreciate each other. I realize that we can make a better loving home by just filling the home with love and laughter. Yes, sometimes, distance is good for us to see what we are overseeing.
Yaya’s Addiction To Unli Call

December 19, 2011

Life & Love

Adi’s now former yaya from the Camotes Island left last Saturday. She stayed with us for four months. She had her first cellphone last October, followed by a second one on the same month.

It is but normal to have disagreements on how to run the household or how to effectively take care of a toddler but in the end, it will always be the parents who have the last say. Adi’s yaya got addicted to unlimitted call; I wouldn’t mind it had I noticed the big difference in her performance.

1. Hiding the mess- Our place is not difficult to maintain as it is just a small apartment with basic furnitures and appliances so I don’t get it why dirt should be hidden below the rug or furniture. The kitchen area was more messy with splatters around the stove, fruit and vegetable peelings that were hidden at the mini-pantry.
2. Staying up late at night- Our house rule is simple; get up at 5AM and go to bed on or before 9PM. The yaya can take a catnap after lunch if she wanted to. Some yayas are on duty 24 hours a day especially if the child’s parents are busy or out of town so it’s safe to say that Adi’s yaya’s workload is lighter as compared to the others that I know. Our yaya’s compensation is even higher than those with a heavier workload. Her addiction to telebabad worsened from middle of November to 2nd week of December. Her work performance got affected, the house was a mess, Adi got painful diaper rashes.

It was last December 15 when my husband finally talked to her about how we felt about her vice. To make the matters worse, she told my husband that she had the intention of leaving the house the following day to go back to the province with her cousin who happened to be her unli callmate. My husband did not tell me about it but I sensed it the moment I saw the new backpack stuffed with her clothes. Still, I gave her the benefit of the doubt that maybe, it was just my intuition.

The following day, while I was having breakfast, she told me that she would be leaving soon. When asked how soon, she told me that she would leave on that same day. Surprised and mad, I talked to her in a high tone stressing how inconsiderate she was for not telling us her plan ahead of time. Whether she would really go back to her province or just find a job in her cousing’s place (Pampanga) is none of my business. It’s even none of my business if she would really go home with her cousin or she would run away with her unli callmate lover. I informed her mother about it but I didn’t get a reply.

I hope to get a better yaya in January. For the meantime, somebody is babysitting Adi while we’re finding a stay-in yaya.
Surviving Organizational Changes

December 7, 2011

Career, Finance & Product

In today’s organization, change is part of management prerogative and economic move. Business survival depends not only on cash flow but its most important asset as well; its workforce. Downsizing happens for cost-cutting reasons so that only the jobs with the major impact on the organization is retained. If the organization needs to keep the current activities or jobs of the laid-off employees, they have the option to hire contractual employees to do these non-core activities.

Reorganization happens when the top management sees that merging two departments or sections would benefit the whole organization. Transferring of people from one department to another is also reorganization and even the dissolution of a department or section. The bottomline for all of these is profit; the organization must increase its labor productivity without sacrificing the quality of output.
When Department Heads are transferred to another department or are faced to welcome additional load due to department merging, it’s normal to get upset about it. After all, change, no matter how constant and inevitable it is, is not always welcomed by those affected by it.

How Do We Survive Organizational Change?
1. Always be humble- you’ll never know what you’ll be or the people you’re working with tomorrow. It’s important to create rapport to your co-employees because you’ll never know that the person you loathed so much in the office will be your boss tomorrow. Keep a low profile at the office. Do not abuse your privilege.
2. Be an asset- nobody wants to work with a liability. An asset employee is one who is reliable and open to new jobs or responsibilities.
3. Be positive- reorganization is not a personal attack against you. Remember that the company’s objective is to make profit.
4. Do not badmouth the company-you’ll only appear bitter and bitter people are perceived to be losers.
5. Take advantage of the reorganization to sharpen your saw, assess your skill set and career plans.