Jul 28
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Register Online |
Eraserheads Concert UPDATE: There is an update that Eraserheads Concert Ticket will be available on August 1, 2008.
What: Ticket’s Availability:
When: August 1, 2008
Where: Marlboro’s website
Jul 27
Eraserheads - one of the most renowned Philippine bands in the 90s, will reunite in a FREE concert (yes, it’s free!) on August 30th at the CCP Complex, Pasay City. Songs like Ang Huling El Bimbo, Pare Ko, With a Smile were some of the hits of this famous band that we can still sing or hum by memory.
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Register Online |
The moment that my Baby learned about this, he invited me to go and he registered online. Yup, that’s how you get a free ticket to Eraserheads Reunion Concert 2008. You can click here to sign up now and don’t miss the chance to watch a free reunion concert!
Jul 19
Boracay Island is a standout in the Philippines being renowned for its magnificent white-sand beaches and crystal-clear waters. For me, I will be missing half of my life if I don’t set foot in Boracay. I’ve always asked my Baby to go there, and at last, his birthday came! Thank God for birthdays! 
Aside from his birthday, one main factor why we pushed through with this Boracay trip is because of the open tickets provided by AsianSpirit airlines. It was compensation for my Baby doing a consultancy job for the said airline company. And hurrah, off we go to the beach capital of the Philippines!
Looking from above (airplane), one would appreciate the beauty of Boracay Island. But when we finally landed, I found that it’s way more awesome than viewing it on TV or pictures! After we have settled in our room, we strolled along the beach, passing through the establishments as well, such as bars, restaurants, hotels, stores, and services being offered like massage, henna/tattoo, hair-braid, island-hopping, and others.
I can say that Bora is an ultimate haven of relaxation and pleasure combined. Its beauty remained even after the storm that passed few weeks ago. I’ve always told my Baby that I want to get tanned because my complexion is getting paler. My wish was granted, after sunbathing for half an hour with my swimming wear on! We ate alot, walked alot, dipped into the waters alot! We even buried each other under the white sand. Baby turned me into a Dyesebel (Filipino fictional character of a mermaid)! Check out the rest of our pictures here. It was one of my most splendid escapades indeed. Happy birthday Baby!
Jul 09
It was one of those not-so-good days. As what I have mentioned in one of my posts, being a Subject Matter Expert (SME) is not easy. In all the training classes I was able to handle, not a single trainee was terminated - until today.
It’s not that I’ve been doing Fishbowling (the term our call center use to refer to the 10-day call monitoring session of trainees with SMEs before they go live in operations) for a while now, so this is the first time I’ve experienced having trainees fail Fishbowling. It saddened my heart seeing the look on the faces of the 2 trainees aspiring to be call center agents in the company.
Just to share how it goes for Fishbowling (or transitioning from training to operations), trainees are required to pass 12 out of 15 calls (80%) to be able to make it to the next level, which is Operations. However, if they get a failed mark along the way of finishing 15 calls, their scores would be reset and they would have to reach 80% again.
Jul 09
Last weekend, my Baby and I were about to go home in Pampanga when he suddenly thought of going to Zambales instead! He wanted to dip into the beaches of Subic! So after eating our lunch in one of the food chains along North Luzon Expressway, we headed to White Rock Beach Resort and Hotel.
Unplanned as it was, we weren’t able to carry with us any bathing attire nor beach food! We bought some swimming wear & fastfood to-go then off to the beach! I’ve always asked my Baby to go to a beach, but I didn’t expect our first one will be this impromptu! He had always wanted to go fishing as he bought fishing equipment from New York last year, however we weren’t able to bring it. 
We enjoyed the sun, the feel of the water, and the general ambience of the beach resort. Our stay was rather short, but it was fun and worthwhile! We’ll update you with our next stop - Bora!
Jul 04
While I’ve been spending my after-college years in an industry which is not in my line of profession, I’ve proven that learning can be worthwhile wherever you are. Being a regular call center agent is one thing, and a Subject Matter Expert another. What does it take to be an SME?
In our company, there is no salary-based advantage to being an SME. It’s a form of recognition, can be considered fame, and time off-the-phones. SMEs are selected group of people who are considered “cream of the crop” among agents on the production floor. They are being shortlisted according to performance metrics, which include Quality Scores (rating of calls being monitored), Handle Time (seconds spent on calls), Productivity (adhering to schedules), and Attendance. The shortlisted people are then interviewed by managers, who then come up with the final list. Another form of selection is when a Supervisory post (Team Lead) is opened–those who are not selected will automatically be joining the SME group.
SMEs are mainly tasked to gauge the competency of trainees aspiring to be full-pledged Customer Service Representatives. After weeks of training, trainees undergo a 10-day call-monitoring session with SMEs, wherein they are being rated by SMEs for each call they take. SMEs are responsible for answering questions and giving constructive feedback to trainees to help them graduate from training and prepare for operations. This SME task is highly important and crucial as it determines the future of the trainees in the company in a way. That is why, it is expected that an SME should be competent and knowledgeable on the products and processes himself.
Jul 02
As one of the fastest growing industries in the country at present, call centers attract a great number of Filipino jobhunters ranging from fresh graduates to retirees. Intents may vary, but applicants look for one common denominator - competitiveness of the compensation package. Compared to many regular jobs at present, ones in the call center industry are considered to be more appealing to many Filipinos because of the nature of the job and the salary.
One may say that a call center job is pretty easy, but those who would speak from inside like myself would probably beg to disagree. I believe that each job has its own degree of difficulty. Being a call center employee entails a great deal of patience and hard work, communication and interpersonal skills, and attitude. Dealing with different types of people with different concerns for every minute of every day is not a piece of cake.
Jobs in a call center vary, from being a Customer Service Representative, or what is commonly tagged as “agent,” to the upper management levels. Furthermore on being an agent, services offered may also differ, such as servicing financial institutions, telecommunications and travel companies, and many more. Jobseekers aspiring for a call center post may search for vacancies in several ways, like newspaper ads, flyers/banners, the internet, walking-in to a company’s building, headhunters, referrals from employees, or by word of mouth.
Jun 27
Workaholic? Alcoholic? Sleepaholic? Whatever “holic” you are, or however good your health is, you may want to take note of these tips to prevent brain damage in the future:
1. Don’t skip breakfast > guilty here
Being the most important meal of the day, breakfast, if missed, will cause hypoglycemia. This low blood sugar condition will lead to insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain, causing brain degeneration.
2. Avoid overeating > hmm, not so guilty
As the famous quote say, “too much of anything is no good at all.” In this case, too much feeling of fullness will harden brain arteries causing decline in mental efficiency.
3. Never smoke > not at all guilty
Attention puffers! Do you know that you are a candidate for Alzheimer’s?
4. Minimize the sweets > so guilty
It looks like Diabetes is not the only potential risk of high sugar consumption, but also disturbances in brain development due to malnutrition. This is caused by high levels of sugar interrupting the absorption of proteins and other nutrients. So better take it easy on the chocolates and doughnuts!
5. Get as much sleep as you can > whew, still guilty of this
While sleeping, it’s not just the body that rests, but the brain as well. If we consistently deprive ourselves of sleep, we are just hastening the death of our brain cells due to overactivity.
Apr 20
Before my Baby left for New York (yes, we’re apart right now, but only for 3 months), we talked about our goals in the coming months. One of which is finally practicing my own profession, Nursing! I’ve been out of practice for more than 2 years now due to some circumstances, but I feel the calling now more than ever!
During my college days (which weren’t a really long time ago), Intravenous (IV) Therapy was not part of the Nursing curriculum. Recently, I attended a 3-day IV training at Manila Adventist Medical Center (MAMC), formerly known as Manila Sanitarium and Hospital. Intravenous literally means “into a vein” and is mostly used as a route of administration of medication with the help of an injection directly into a vein. Giving a person fluids through a vein is called Intravenous (IV) Therapy. Several years back, only physicians were authorized to insert intravenously, but then a regulation has allowed nurses to practice this as well! This has continued until the present.
Apr 20
“In comes the winter breeze that chills the air and drifts the snow
And I imagine kissing you under the mistletoe
When springtime makes its way here
Lilac blooms remind me of the scent of your perfume
When summer burns with heat I always get the hots for you
Go skinny dippin’ in the ocean where we used to do
When autumn sheds the leaves the trees are bare
When you’re not here it doesn’t feel the same…”
Four seasons of loneliness have gone by. But thanks to technology we have Internet and Mobile Telecommunications, which bridge miles of distance together. Having your loved one oceans apart from you gives you all the bizaare feelings and thoughts, which are just inevitable and understandable. There are times when you just want to cuddle, to cry, to talk, or to walk with your special someone, but you can’t.
Some of you may share the same sentiment as ours, but it’s always good to count the blessings. He is there for work, making good money, and he will be back in 3 months anyway, unlike other people who won’t be home in years. We get to chat everyday over the phone or web, and even see each other with the web camera & pictures, unlike those who aren’t given the privilege to communication. I want to quote this for inspiration, “Absence diminishes small loves and increases great ones, as the wind blows out the candle and blows up the bonfire.”
This first post is to thank him, Nelson M. Palad, for setting this whole blog system up for me, and for giving me inspiration for everything. I love you Baby! See you in 36 days!
Watch out for our next blogs…
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