In a Happy Place

May 7th, 2009.

I have a lot of reasons to be annoyed today. For one, my baby Chiquito is limping with a sprained right leg. My boyfriend just took him to the vet for check up, and he spent around 1200 pesos for Chiquito’s x-ray and joint vitamins. Another thing I should be annoyed at is the weather. It’s raining real hard and a typhoon is set to hit the country before the week ends. We’ll be flying to Cebu early tomorrow morning for a trip to Kota Beach Resort, so any sign of bad weather is highly unwelcome. And lastly, I’m about to take a very important exam on Sunday, but I feel like I’ve neglected reviewing for it (though I’ve been attending summer classes for it). I’m excited and I feel quite ready, but I know I haven’t given my best in studying for this exam.

On the bright side, there are things that make me happy about today. Not even the bad weather nor Chiquito’s limping leg can dampen my mood about these things.

Today, May 7th, is my boyfriend’s 20Nth birthday. Heh. Today is also our 21st month together. He’s been through a lot in his life, and the same goes for our relationship. I don’t have profound words to explain how much he means to me, and how much being with him has helped me grow. All I know is that I love him. With that, I want to shout this out:

Happy birthday, hon.

I’m thankful, because with you, I’m in a happy place.

I love you.

The Philippines is NOT a ‘Nation of Servants’

Chip Tsao failed to exercise tact, respect, and clear thinking when he wrote the controversial article, The War At Home, in his column in HK Magazine on March 27th. Considering he is a writer by profession, he should have consulted the ethics book before even thinking of writing, even more so submitting the article to be published in his column.

I do believe in freedom of speech, but with this freedom comes responsibilities that cannot be neglected in any way. Mr. Tsao may have tremendously enjoyed his freedom, but he has failed to recognize his responsibilities.

The Philippines is NOT a nation of servants. He may have concluded it from the 100-plus thousand Filipino domestic helpers employed by middle-class Hong Kong people, but it will never be enough factual basis to arrive upon this conclusion. However way the facts are twisted, Mr. Tsao’s conclusion is purely that: his conclusion.

Pity those who are educated but refuse to see the truth, and resort instead to creating their own ‘truths’ which are haphazardly concluded. I wish Mr. Tsao peace of mind and pureness of heart, as he goes through every day of his life in comfort, thanks to the excellent service provided by his underpaid, over-worked, loyal Filipino domestic helper.

And bless those who toil and labor with goals of providing only the best for their families back home, hoping that one day, they will break free from a cycle that has fostered discrimination and created imagined supremacy.

God bless Filipinos. God bless us all.

Chiquito’s Growing Up Fast

Earlier today, my boyfriend and I took Chiquito to his vet in Carveldon Clinic at Cartimar, the biggest place to shop for pets and pet accessories in Manila. It was his fifth visit, and he had his second 6-in-1 shot. It was also his last visit to the vet, although by April, we’ll need to bring him back for his heart worm prevention shot.

This afternoon, like in any vet visit, Chiquito was weighed by the vet’s assistant. For the past few visits, he consistently weighed between 1.2 to 1.4 kilograms. This afternoon, however, we were surprised by the obvious increase in his weight: he now weighs 2 kilograms! When we visited a friend last Friday night, with Chiquito in tow, my friend pointed out that Chiquito has grown longer and taller. I just shrugged it off and told her that they just haven’t seen each other for a long time, which was why the changes were that obvious. Apparently, my boyfriend and I really haven’t noticed that Chiquito had grown up over the course of the weeks he’s been with us.

And boy, had he grown up. From being a cute, little lap puppy, Chiquito has now become a cute, super playful little doggie in a span of less than a month. He has changed taste preferences too, and now favors flavored foods. We started feeding him High-Energy Super Premium Natural Balance, as he has learned to totally ignore his old, über-commercialized dog food, Alpo Puppy (I know, bad choice). We bought him new treats too, as he now dislikes his old Pedigree Milky Bone biscuit treats (yeah, another bad choice). He absolutely loves the Sleeky Beef and Cheese flavored treats we bought him this afternoon.

I’m proud to say that Chiquito has learned new tricks: sit, shake paw, and lie down. He has yet to learn how to properly obey stay, because he always always pauses only for a mere few seconds before jumping up and down again. Most importantly, Chiquito needs to learn where to properly pee and poo. He’s been driving me nuts by pooping in various places around our house! For peeing though, he has successfully learned to look for newspaper sheets placed in a corner of my boyfriend’s room, or on the rugs in front of bathroom doors.

I’m hoping too, that Chiquito will already outgrow his gnawing and floor-licking habit. He’s been gnawing and chewing on anything interesting that comes his way. He has already gnawed out the straps of my favorite pastel pink Havaianas and rendered it useless. He has also chewed on my boyfriend’s new leather shoes when it has just been worn once. Thankfully, his teeth marks were not too obvious on the black leather (hehe). My sister’s house too, has had it share of Chiquito’s teeth marks: the corner of their sofa, her kid’s books and papers in a rack, and countless toys and plushies (ok, I maybe exaggerating on the ‘countless’ part, but still).

Chiquito’s floor-licking habit has also been a constant source of (slight) annoyance. He’ll lick up anything he smells interesting on tile, linoleum, wooden, concrete (you name it!) floors. This licking habit also extends to various surfaces, including (but not limited to), chairs, cabinets, tables, beds, and faces (haha)! It really baffles me as to why he keeps on doing it. Anyway, he would need to outgrow this habit the soonest, so we’d be able to take him out for walks.

Speaking of, I was so happy to find out that we can already let Chiquito walk outside (yay) by next week! I told my sister Abi and my friend Kimi about this, and we have already started making plans to go to Serendra, Boni High Street, Eastwood, Tiendesitas, Market Market, or any other place/mall that allows pets. I can’t wait. Heee.

* More photos of Chiquito here.

Beware of SCAMMERS!

Bored to death in the office, I was just browsing through blogs, looking at new shoes, celebrity photos, and ramp models du jour, when I got a call from this certain company. My cube mate who answered the phone informed me that it was one Hector Abaya (or Avaya) calling me on my local. I took the call and asked who was on the line, as I don’t remember anyone by that name. He reintroduced himself and then informed me that he is from Citylimits (or Citilimits), and that they are giving me a free VIP/discount card that I will surely love.

The guy was notably talking very fast (one common tactic of scammers!). He was giving me all the benefits and perks that I can get from this ‘discount card’ that his company promises will arrive in my office either through DHL or LBC, or some other shipping company. Not remembering to have signed up for such discount or privilege cards, I was already suspicious. Aside from that, I have never read or heard from Citibank about a ‘Citylimits’ branch, so I was doubly suspicious. The guy just kept talking and asking me questions. He then asked me if I have credit cards already, and my suspicion alert just turned to the highest level. I tried to test him, so I told him that yes, I already have two. If he is affiliated with Citibank, he should know this already. But no, he asked me from what card companies did I get them (and when), so I told him: Citibank (with emphasis), and HSBC, both of which I got last year.

On a roll now, he kept on asking me more questions: like, if I go on out of town trips, have dinner outs, and go on gimiks with friends. He even managed to comment on my voice by saying that I need to speak louder, cause I am very soft spoken. I was already getting irritated, so I kept asking if this is going to take longer. My patience just dried up when he asked me if I am still young, cause I apparently sound like one. Then he expertly diverted the topic by telling me more about the ‘benefits’ I will get from this card, when I finally said, ‘Will this take longer? Cause I am pretty busy with my work right now.” He said sorry, they’ll just call me up again, and then hung up.

Little did he know that I already searched Citylimits online, and stumbled upon websites that refer to Citylimits as SCAMMERS. He may be cunning, but I am smarter than he is.

Everyone, please beware of the companies who call you up in the office through your local or through the floor phone, or through your mobile number. I have suspicions that this Hector Abaya (I doubt that that is his real name), using the land line number (02) 728-7359, was referred by someone from a company I applied for a credit card at recently.

I cannot reiterate this enough, but please remember:

1. Do not give out any information regarding your credit cards. Never disclose the last four digits of your card number, and never ever the three digit security code on the back of your credit cards. (For ATMs, never ever give out your pin code.)
2. Do not give out any other personal details. Remember not to give out your birthday or permanent home address, and most especially never your Mother’s maiden name.
3. Always ask for the full name and credentials of the person on the other line and list it down. By doing so, you will be able to tell if they come from a credible company or are just scammers with evil motives.

I Felt Harassed :|

Earlier today, I went to Medicard Makati to have my mandatory pre-employment physical examination. I was expecting the worst, as I thought prior to getting the exam that I had to undergo a FECAL analysis. Much to my dismay, I did get the worst—and it’s not the fecal thingy.

I walked to the reception area of the HMO company bracing myself for thoughts of fecal matter. (Eww gross, haha). I haven’t undergone a thorough physical examination since a few years back (yeah, not a good thing), and much has changed since then. For one, I am smoking quite regularly now (since early last year), and drinking (when there are occasions? haha), so I am perfectly aware that I can’t be as healthy as I was before. Anyway, to cut the long story short, I filled up the out-patient form, waited to be called for examination, and then tried my hardest to ‘look’ healthy.

First thing I had to undergo was the blood pressure (BP) test. As expected (or not), my BP was below the normal range: it was 90/60. I reasoned to the nurse who took my BP that I haven’t had enough sleep for the past few days, which was probably why. He just gave me a curt smile. Hmph. Then he asked me to proceed to the weighing scale. The weighing scale was really old, it wouldn’t even point to the middle for crying out loud. The nurse moved the gauges a bit and took note of my weight. I swear it was wrong, cause I was instantly seven pounds heavier! Hahaha.

After that, he handed my form to another nurse. I waited for a while, and then a MALE doctor called me and asked me to follow him to his room. Ehem. I thought to myself then that that would be the first time a MALE doctor would physically examine me, which was why I was quite apprehensive. I sat down on the chair, answered a few questions he asked me, and tried my best to keep calm. I kept repeating to myself that this guy is a doctor, so he MUST be professional and ethical. (To make it easier, we’ll refer to him as Dr. Do-Nothing in this post.)

As the minutes dragged on, I noticed that Dr. Do-Nothing was trying hard to put me at ease. He must have noticed my apprehension. He was also trying his best to crack jokes that were not funny at all. He even noticed the skin peeling off my shoulders, so he said something like, “Galing po yata kayo sa beach, ma’am. Sa Boracay ba?” (It seems like you went to the beach, ma’am. Did you go to Boracay?). I gave him a polite laugh, and said NO. He followed it up by suggesting Puerto Galera, perhaps. I gave him a more stern NO. (Man, can’t Dr. Do-Nothing take a hint?)

After that, Dr. Do-Nothing proceeded to asking me more health-related questions (thank goodness). He asked me if I was smoking. I answered him yes, since January last year, and that I quit (at an average of) every two months. He asked me if I drink, I said yes, occasionally. He asked me how occasional is occasional, and I told him twice a month. He then commented, “Ah, pag gimik lang.” (Ah, only when you go out.) Aw, c’mon, doc, you have got to be kidding me. Was that absolutely necessary?

Running out of questions to ask, he then proceeded to actually physically examining me. He checked my breathing using a stethoscope, all the while asking me silly questions. Convinced that I was breathing healthily, he then took a penlight and examined my nostrils, then my mouth. He asked me if I had some difficulty swallowing recently, as he saw that my tonsils were a bit irritated. I told him that yeah, I had an allergy this morning when we sprayed Lysol all over my boyfriend’s room. Crappy excuse, but hey! He bought it. Hahaha.

Dr. Do-Nothing now told me it’s time for my breast examination. (My whaaat?) He explained to me that the female doctor has just left, so he had to do the examination. (ZOMG. Are you kidding me?) He also asked me if I want him to call the female nurse instead. I said yes, please by all means. He disappeared for a while then came back with the female nurse. The female nurse asked me to lie down on the bed, take off my bra and expose my breast for all the world to see. (Nyaah.)

Anyway, you can imagine the rest. (Gawd, I hate physical examinations.)