Rant & Rave @ NSG

So finally, Lou and I used the 2 cashcashpinoy vouchers we got last last month, for the 50% OFF on Food & Drinks at National Sports Grill. We got two P250 vouchers, or P500 for meals worth P1000! It sounded really good ...at first. Then we realized, it just means -- on the average -- 3 meals. Not that we can finish 3 meals, but isn't it too little for 1k? (Okay, maybe it's been a really really long time since I last visited NSG)

Anyway, we ordered Chicken Breast Platter -- YUMMY!, Fore Cheese Pizza -- PWEDE NA, and yes it's really "FORE" not "FOUR", and All-Star Patty Melt Burger! Just a bit of history: Lou has been looking forward to this "Burger", because it's worth P360, quite expensive compared to the average price of burgers here in the Metro -- "WHY IS THIS BURGER P360?!?!", "IT MUST BE REALLY GOOD!". What we both overlooked though is that it's "a half pound burger with national sauce, onions and cheese all grilled on rye bread". RYE BREAD. Poor boy, I saw his frustration when our "sandwich" was served! haha! Oh, another thing, the munchpunch menu we've been checking out is a 'lil outdated... Price now is P375!


All-Star Patty Melt (poor quality pic, I just used my phone!)

Though, honestly (not being biased on pricey burgers), I loved the patty. It's tasty, and perhaps one of the thickest and juiciest I've tasted. Maybe it's their cheese and sauce too! And their fries, I LOOOVE their fries - Thick, pure potato, and seasoned with cheese flavoring!

The foodtrip ended with around P70 in our bill, for the service charge (so we gave P100), and half of the pizza we decided to take out for Transformers. We concluded that the ambiance and service justifies everything.

But hey there was one time when a waitress attempted to clean our table by removing one of our plates, which still had some fries (OH MY MAJOR PET PEEVE). but it's okay, it's an honest mistake. Oh, they forgot to return our change, which was okay, P30 goes to the tip anyway. Everything was okay in spite of booboos, until a waiter ran after Lou claiming we haven't paid our bill yet. Ooooh. That's it. Furious Lou said we already paid, in fact they did not return our change! Thus, Lou demanded our change in return. haha! Sorry, tip na naging bato pa! tsk tsk tsk.

All in all, food was good, service was not. Up till now I'm feeling a bit bad for not making that date perfect. Just FYI, it was my super belated "birthday gift" for Lou, which we have been postponing since April. Hahahaha! Anyway, after having all those good and bad stuff in NSG... Am I still willing to eat there again?

Answer is yes, but only through cashcashpinoy or similar promos. Because NSG's worth is just 50% of their customers' bills. Watchathink? It's my time of the month soon by the way, so... yes, I may be overreacting as well. =)
 

just coffee, i guess.

I am bored at work, at home, in life generally. While I've been pondering on what exactly can solve this boredom, sometimes deep down I feel like I just need caffeine again to cheer myself up.

It's been 41 days since my last coffee (before Ash Wednesday!) -- it's the longest coffee abstinence I made ever! I'm really hoping that's just it. After Easter, I'll grab a VENTI and see if things will be better from there. haha!

food rants

Bon Chon: Finally I was able to try Bon Chon Chicken - It's yummy as it looks, but not really sulit. Their chicken wings are not so meaty, I guess I'd still go for Papa J's or Chickenjoy next time. It's just good that I no longer have to wonder next time how Bon Chon tastes like, and why people are so into it lately. hehe.

Starbucks - free upsize: Because of the referral fee I got from my new officemate, I owed him a drink from Starbs. Today is our lucky day because they're giving a free upsize to ANY drink (yey!). The sad part's they have that promo because of their recent price increase :|

(Hurry, free upsize ends TODAY!!!)

Still on caffeine: Since my last Baguio trip, I've been having 2 cups of coffee per day, giving me leg cramps in the morning lately. Yeah I really think it's the coffee, I read from somewhere that caffeine causes our bones to excrete calcium, flushing out the calcium that our body needs, which is a major cause of cramps. I had this same problem way back in college (having cramps, not really over-caffeine) so I had to take calcium tabs. So, since friday I've been taking this same calcium tablets again, and been cutting the coffee intake as well. enough of being a coffeeholic, I guess ...and so far, so good! :)

What to cook next? I brought home an excess 1L bottle of Red Horse beer from that same Baguio trip, so Lou and I have been planning to drink it up on a "home date" sometime this week. While the idea doesn't really sound romantic, it somehow excites me, having an excuse again to cook something new. I'm thinking of onion rings or fried mozarella. hmmmm.

Interview, noon at ngayon.

I just got another proof that kids these days want to be spoon fed. Or at least the students who interviewed me earlier - There was this group of students that came in our office to interview some Java developers. I was picked by "inimaynimo" by my team, thus I gave 20 mins of my time.

Basically the [comp sci] students wanted to know what kind of systems I'm working with, when or where or why I would recommend Java, etc. I have no idea what this is for, but I assume it's the school's way to prepare them for the industry or maybe just to let them appreciate Java in a different way. I really dunno. ANYWAY.

The main interviewer wasn't prepared, she didn't have a script of questions. good if she memorized, but no, she was stuttering, changing words time to time to correct her grammar, stopping the video taker too sometimes when she feels like she asked the wrong questions, etc. her groupmates on the other hand, weren't so helpful as they also can't remember the questions they needed. Then after the interviewer's "last" question (If I remember correctly, that was, what PL would I recommend, and what advice can I give to comp sci students like them) ...she then jumped back to which part of Java I like least and what IDE I'm using. gaaah. Before leaving they discussed too, IN FRONT OF ME, if they overlooked something, if the questions are "pwede na", if that interview would be enough for their project, etc.

They were obviously not prepared. The whole thing was really messy, they were putting themselves (and their school) in shame. tsk tsk kids. That was really far from the interviews I (or we) did back in college! otherwise I could've gotten a 0.0 in FILIPI (oh, how fun and fulfilling those days were... hehe)

At least I got a box of krispy kreme - token of appreciation. :)
Sorry, I'm such a bitch for posting this, but you kids should learn!

half down, lots to go (NBI CLEARANCE!)

Now this isn't house-related: I went to NBI's satellite office in Tunasan Muntinlupa to renew my NBI clearance (beside SM Muntinlupa). After falling in line at window 3 (renewal) for almost 2 hours, and after waiting for my name to be called for window 6 (releasing) for another 2 hours — no kidding!!! — I finally gave up and asked if I could go back some other day.

Good that they were friendly and not masungit, it was easy to get info on how to follow-up through phone and what information to give, etc... so there, I decided to just leave and go back when my clearance's ready for pick-up, it's just near our village anyway (yeah yeah, I should have waited OR left as soon as I was done with window 3 right? ugh.)

I wish I followed my officemate's advice — to get the renewal in Quiapo since it's faster there, and more systematic. I just thought it would not be practical if my name has a "HIT" then I have to go back after one week right? but at least, if I went to Quiapo, I should've avoided lots of hassles!

As my mom would say, "ano pa nga ba aasahan mo? ahensya ng gobyerno yan e!". Though I now defend *some* government agencies coz of the projects I'm handling, there's always some truth to her line! ANYWAY. At least, I'm done with one superdooper long line! I don't want to rant more... as tomorrow I can say "one down" again. hopefully.
 

Yet another FRO YO.

I thought I'd introduce White Hat to a balikbayan friend, but we ended up eating in Misato (Madrigal, not in ATC) so I just told him there's a fro-yo/frozen yogurt I really like lately, which I want him to try, but unfortunately it's 5-10 mins walk from where we were.

He then says "What's up with frozen yogurts?! they're everywhere, like Zagu during 90s!!!" ... "Is it coz everyone's becoming health conscious lately?" ... "and what's so special about it? it's just ice cream!" Ok, apparently he already had a dose, in White Hat. or Red Mango. or Golden Spoon. or [froyo parlor that you know]. then found nothing special in it. haha!

Well, as for me, I just love it. For one, I love yogurt. not frozen yogurt, but yogurt itself. it just feels so light compared to milk. Two, it's like a replacement for my usual unhealthy cravings — like starbs, dairy queen, etc. — for the same price range. Three, it means I don't have to go all the way to Sagada just for Yogurt House's yogurt topped with oats, bananas and strawberry preserves (Don't get me wrong though. Yogurt House's classic, home-made yogurt IS STILL THE BEST! hehe).

SO there. it could be the same for everyone else who's loving froyo now. Or maybe, simply, they just found something new and healthy at the same time. That's how in the Phils -a new interesting biz comes up, everyone wants to check it out. But hmmm, I don't think froyos are like pearl shakes in the 90s, when you can get one literally ANYWHERE, even within residential areas. LOL.

-----

My friend treated me for lunch so I insisted to treat him in return - Starbs this time, also along Madrigal. So we had our lattes, bid our goodbyes, THEN suddenly noticed a new tarp on the glass window of PANCAKE HOUSE, just a few steps away from us.

GUESS WHAT IT SAYS. Uh-huh — "NOW AVAILABLE! FROZEN YOGURT!!!"

HAHAHA! He laughed boisterously -"KITA MO NAAAAA!?",
while my reaction was   :-|  ... WTF?!
 

[Noise] Polluted no more!

Finally, after days of postponing, I bought myself a pair of... EARPLUGS. Now all I could hear is my own breathing and swallowing, the loud music's beat at a reeeally low volume (someone's music here is REALLY loud without the plugs, I tell you. hence I bought these), AND the servers' sound, which is waaaay softer this time! Then I can't hear keyboards, mouseclicks nor ring tones!

Oh, and there seem to be no one around! well, almost. some are like whispering, while some from afar are like lip sync-ing! LOL! hahaha!

I can't believe I just freed myself from the (obscure) noise pollution here! This is a very very very good stress reliever! Try it!!! Only for P13!!! Thanks Abby for the idea btw. This is fun fun fun. hehe!

Ingat sa Mandurukot!

This morning I saw an actual "snatching", right before my very eyes! I was on the jeepney when the guy infront of me grabbed the bag of a student beside him (victim is a guy, about 17 yrs old). But before the snatcher could get off the jeep, WHICH WAS MOVING FAST BY THE WAY, the student was able to pull back his bag. The snatcher kept on pulling too, but the student never gave in. till finally the snatcher decided to get off and run quickly (at that point, the driver already stopped, maybe figured out what was happening!)

It turns out that the bag was the snatcher's bag! the student just pulled it because he believes that it has his stuff which the snatcher has been stealing the whole ride (hindi pala siya snatcher, mandurukot siya!). The student figured that out perhaps because the side pocket of his bag (a different bag, his real bag this time) had lots of cuts already. smart one! anyway, he scrutinized that snatcher's bag (dunno if he found any of his stuff) then threw it on the face of "guy B" beside him -and who's this guy? the snatcher's friend. yeah, I remember, guy B and the snatcher knew each other! They were talking to each other when I got in! So, as everyone was watching the entire commotion, guy B eventually got off too. I dunno if he was embarrassed or not, but either way he showed no remorse. nor fear. kapal! I wonder how many times they do it everyday?!

There, whew. I'm glad nothing really violent happened. I'm glad too I wasn't the victim, I could have freaked out. OR I would never notice the cuts on my bag till all the bad guys left. Though... on 2nd thought, if it was me, nothing bad could've happened... I learned from experience (I think! though, I believe anyone can be stupid anytime still!): When I was in college my cellphone was stolen, from that same style -I rode a jeep in buendia, then came 2 guys -one sat on my left, then the other on my right. the one on my left kept on moving towards me, but I thought it was because there are too many passengers on our row. Well, admittedly, I was a bit absent minded too that time. The next thing I knew the guys were gone, along with my cellphone. My bag had a tiny cut too -about the size of the phone's width. pro!

Since then, I've been so extra conscious of guys sitting too close (aka nanggigitgit). There was a time actually when I rode a jeepney somewhere in Susana then noticed that 3-4 guy passengers were already there. They seemed to know each other, BUT they let me sit between them. After sitting down for about 3 seconds, I stopped the jeep then transferred to a different one. I just can't trust that setup again.

So there, I just want to share that: it's christmas season once again, pickpockets are everywhere, so please be extra careful with your belongings, whether it's morning or afternoon or night, they choose no specific time during this season! Do not sit between two people if you think they know each other. Especially on jeepneys.

(and what's the relation between christmas and need for money btw? For the family's keso de bola or hamonado? Really, I don't understand why some has to do such grave thing to celebrate Jesus' birthday. HELLO!?)
 

"Nag blog na me here, basa u ha?"

A friend and I got to talk about trends in text, chat and microblogging, thus I concluded that technology has indeed changed this generation's definition of "sharing" or "responding" or even "cute". How?

EXTRA TRIMMED DOWN TEXT SHORTCUTS. we shortcut a term so we could type fast, but there are just some who cut too much till a word's no longer understandable. Like: aq for AKO, xe for KASI, etc. Those are just the tolerable few. What I can't tolerate is THE FAMOUS YOU AND ME: kain na me! (to shorcut ako), punta na u? (to shortcut ka na). So, do you really have to mix english pronouns with tagalog sentences? I don't like it. and I know a lot who don't like it too. It's not cute, I tell you. while I know some can understand me, I CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHY SOME PEOPLE HAVEN'T FIGURED OUT YET THAT IT IS SERIOUSLY ANNOYING.

TOO SUPERFICIAL (OR TOO MUCH) MICROBLOGGING. people write almost everything about their day through microblogging (twitter, FB wall post, etc) when in fact there are just a few things in your day that's worth sharing. unless you're watching a 24-hour live hostage-drama. You know what I mean? I know someone who posts "Today I had mocha frap. yummm!" in that exact wording and casing. EVERY SINGLE DAY. I also know someone who religiously posts his whereabouts, to the point I know his every furniture at home, the Jollibee branch where he eats breakfast daily, bar he's visiting tonight, and so on. it's totally fine with me, it's none of my business. but just a thought: microblogging shouldn't be a means for you to flaunt every atom of your life nor for you to be stalked right?

UNCUTE CUTE CHAT RESPONSES. H-syndrome is really popular -the adding of letter H after some letters to make words cute: koh, akoh, ditoh. and even bad words. like potah, pohtek, etc. Or the Z-syndrome for lolz, anywayz, etc. There's the sms-trend too in chats, like the famous you and me: "nag email me, nareceive na u?". They're all not cute! Oh, this one is quite famous too (around here at least. and yes I don't find this cute either): When I have a question answerable by yes or no, the response I get is either "uu", or "uu" with the "^^" after, or just "^^" for maybe or no or yes -figuring out entailed. Do you know that letter O is just an inch away from letter U?! haha!

I've been just rolling my eyes, now I'm glad I was able to blog this too. I don't mean to offend anyone okay, I'm just sharing here what annoys me. I'm sure everyone is annoyed of something. or maybe I make annoying remarks too. Anyway, write your own, I'm totally cool with it. Now would you like to add something? please friends, tell me I'm just being normal here!
 

Phil Post mini rant

yesterday I saw a Phil Post "claim stub" with my name on it, inserted through our closed door. Apparently someone sent me a parcel which can't be delivered straight to our house (is that the normal process?), or which was sent while I was sleeping and no one else was at home. Anyway, I know I'll go through some hassles knowing past testimonies about post offices and customs, so I promised myself not to blog anything about it. I'll get the parcel. period.

BUT I CAN'T HELP IT: So there was I at 2nd floor of Alabang Public Market to get my parcel. I went to window 7 with my ID and Php 35 (oh btw, what was the fee for???), then an old lady processed my parcel. thank God there was no queue! but it took 5 minutes for her to read my stub, 5 minutes to give the change, 5 minutes to give the receipt. That was all tolerable, until she got back after another 5 minutes from the shelves area, holding nothing, then said "miss may nag claim na pala nung package, ibabalik ko nalang yung bayad nyo na P35".

(MY JAW DROPPED. I can't believe it, the hassle I've dreaded started to creep in! and in my head: "GANON LANG? AREN'T YOU GOING TO INVESTIGATE AT LEAST WHY I HAVE A CLAIM STUB AND WHY SOMEONE ELSE CLAIMED MY PACKAGE?") So, I said "Miss, panu nangyari yun, may claim stub ako e." she said nothing and continued re-gathering P5 coins for my refund. So I interrupted "Miss, paki double check. ang recipient e LEDA CABRERA. shelf #385. baka ibang shelf tiningnan mo". (ayos ba, I knew which shelf! that wasn't my job! good I read that before giving the stub! haha!)

Thank God she listened this time, then realized "ay oo nga, AILEEN [somethingsomething] pala tong tinitingnan ko... sorry a, kukunin ko ulit. ito ngapala yung receiving logs (hands me a thick log book), paki sign nalang". Annoyed, I replied "PAG NAKUHA KO NA YUNG PACKAGE, SAKA KO PIPIRMAHAN YAN." waaah! sorry umakyat na bitchness level ko!

Then finally, she handed me my parcel. I signed the log book, then left. WHEW I'm glad everything's done! but really, that kind of service still frustrates me a bit (a bit. kase nag sorry naman sha. hehe). Yeah, in the end I got what I wanted but WHAT IF someone else experiences the same thing? someone not too vocal I mean. the customer will be shooed away with no logical explanation? the parcel will be there for 30 days and will be sent back to the sender? just because some disorganized lady can't double check her work? because "someone else already claimed the parcel even though someone here HAS the claim stub"? UGH.

I won't write more on how one should deal with this or how Phil Post can improve. These stuff happen in the Phils EVERYDAY, it's been like this since 19-kopong kopong, till forever. In fact I anticipated it, right? I just have to rant and let things out. There, I'm soooo done with my negative morning aura!

-----

Anyway, I'm now holding my parcel. FINALLY! and it turns out to be an early birthday gift from someone. woooooowwww super pampalubag loob! and this deserves a separate "positive" post :)

 

Flickr vs Multiply

I'm looking for a place where I could back up my photos, specifically my most loved non-vain travel photos, as my laptop's HD space is small now and I don't want to solely rely on one HD which I'm planning to buy soon. It just sounds too scary to keep everything in one tangible thing and it's not that convenient when it comes to searching-and-sharing.

SO, I made little research about Flickr ($24) vs Multiply ($17). In most forums, people testified that Multiply does so much with the photos' quality, making them more dull when displayed. Some made remarks on the color rather than the clarity, but either way, more votes went to Flickr. SO, I made a comparison myself (I took screenshots!):


left: multiply (actual pic here)
right: flickr (actual pic here)

AND they're right! now this explains why there were times when, after seeing really clear food pics from some friends using flickr, I've always asked "Why can't I show off such pics in my multiply site?!" Gee, all along I thought it's because they're using SLR, while I'm using point-and-shoot, or because they know more about taking macro shots (which is the case sometimes, actually. hehe. but, get my point?!)

MULTIPLY BETRAYED ME! and it insulted my cameras so deeply! I'm hating you from now on, multiply! I will use you just to share my non-travel photos! and to some of my photographer friends (I hope you can read me): Why are you settling in multiply? don't waste the beauty of your shots!

So there, I'm choosing Flickr ...then I'll think about Flick Pro later on (so I could display more than 200 pics) because for now I still have to buy a new HD, which will cost a lot. hehe.

click here for my Flickr photostream. It's still quite bare though, as I've used it so far for comparison. hehe.
 

WOW. pang FML.

most illogical line I heard today: "I assumed na thursday and friday inasikaso mo na!" HELLO I received the instructions JUST YESTERDAY. WOW. pang FML ito! oh, and now I remember why I hate the corporate world.
 

SNAAAAAKE!!!

a SNAKE fell from our ceiling's tiny hole. perhaps it went up there and stayed for N days now due to the continuous rain. My mom attempted to catch it (since she said it's just 1 foot long, and it didn't look poisonous. she's soooo brave!) but she said it was so fast, it went to the nearest darkest area, WHICH WAS MY ROOM. because my light was turned off that time.

SO I evacuated to my sister's house. :-|
(the term just so fits! "IN" na ako. hahaha!)

I won't sleep there till the helper finds it.
 

still living but expired

yesterday was such an awful day, as I realized that my remaining copy of birth certificate at home is old (yes, it's NSO authenticated but delivered years ago) and that according to Japan's embassy site, they require birth certificates issued within one year (same as when I got my passport last year). so at 2pm, I ordered a copy of my birth certificate through e-census then rushed to unionbank atc to pay for it. which means I'll get it sometime next week -tues or wed. which means andie and I should postpone the application for the 2nd time!
:(

I feel bad knowing that I should have checked this days ago. I feel worse thinking that really, this birth certificate "issued within one year" thing is ridiculous... birth certificates shouldn't expire till you die right!?

unfair no more!

was just announced from the main office: half day kami ngayoooooon! :) yeyyy!

unfair

our main office is open only till 12 noon today, but ppl from our department should work till 6pm. because "there are many projects at the moment". how uhhhnnnnfffair.

yey, end of work week! but...

I'm starting to hate fridays...

Project Leaderleaderan

WORK. WORK. WORK. It's what I've been up to lately ...and I can't believe I survived the past weeks with that. Imagine, I've been juggling 5 different tasks from 5 different projects! documentation in proj A, programming in proj B, supervising in proj C, discussing matters to client in project D, and reviewing client requirements in project E. aaaaaargh!

Ok, I guess it's manageable ...I just wish I have a whole day to re-organize my priorities, and to analyze who in the team does which. Especially now that my team's growing big, I need to assess their skills and to assign them in tasks where they should specialize to. Projects just keep on popping out one after the other that I tend to plunge into them right away, without doing the very very very basic pre-requisite, which is PLANNING.

oh, and I need a serious training on how to be a project leader ...I feel like I'm overdoing things, just because I don't know yet how to delegate tasks. I'm not used to it, you know. I still feel like I should be responsible even up to the smallest detail. like I should code code code like I'm cramming for some student project when in fact the youngsters should be the ones doing that. my boss is right... I should get away with that, and stop worrying too much if it's fair for my team mates or not, because leaders are already done with that stage. tama diba?

hayyy. STRESS. wake up leda, things are different now!

The only thing I love in this season is that I barely notice the time. Fridays now seem to come so quickly! SO... I shall continue the ranting on monday ...pause muna. hehe. all I want to do now is to sleep, till my eyes are sore of sleeping. mwehe. :D
 

people power daw?

80,000 rallyists? oh c'mon, it's not even half of that in EDSA 1 & 2! There will never be another people power... filipinos are tired of it.