A: No-brainer tips on how to show love when receiving "not-so-nice" gifts

Oookay, days of slacking off are over. We are back, lovelies!

So many things happened during our hiatus. Some of them are “blog-worthy”, and some are just a total waste of my laptop battery. And just to name a few; haze in Singapore, my cousin’s first time in the lion city, the boyfie celebrated his 27th, the second time I donated blood, ala-television-drama-show events in my previous flat (Haha! Ooh those cheap monkeys!).

BUT in line with wanting to start fresh after a 3-months-too-long-pause in wring blog entries, let’s begin with September, shall we?

13 September 2013. Oh sweet Friday the 13th. This day is pretty special to me, oh wait, let me reword that, this day is REALLY SPECIAL to me. Because shawty it's my birthday! I have waited 360+ days for this. Haha! So many things excite me about this day; my small celebration with very special people, my time of relaxation, going out with the boyfie, and of course, GIFTS! There is but one thing about celebrating my birthday that makes me worry: trying to not break the heart of people who give me gifts that I totally do not like.

So yes, this blog, I would say is partly about lying and partly about not wanting to break anyone’s heart. I cannot be the only one who dreads a situation like thi, right? Right? So in order to show that you appreciate the effort that one has exerted to get you something on your special day – may it be something you like or something you just really hate -, here are some tips:

1. Smile and say thank you.

Simple. We are all taught (well at least I hope we all were) that we should always say thank you when someone gives us something, and this kind gesture should not exclude those moments when the item you got is not something you like. No matter how big or small, cheap of expensive, pretty or ugly a gift is, you should smile and say thank you. This is a no-brainer. If you didn’t know this one until now, then there is a nice place for you in somewhere not in heaven. Haha!

2. Try the thing on or show it to someone and brag about it

If you are given something that you can wear, TRY IT ON. It will make the person feel that you are very happy about his/her gift. If the item is not something you can wear, then you can try to show it to someone, try bragging about it. At least make your giver feel that you are proud about the gift.

3. Give that person a hug

Hhmmm maybe this is not too "powerful", but it wouldn’t hurt to show appreciation through hugging. At least I think.

4. Post the item on Facebook/Instagram/Twitter or wherever multimedia site you prefer

For most of us, our lives are almost completely showcased in every social media site there is. And what a pleasant way to say thank you to someone but to have whatever gift you got be posted on your Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or whatever account.

5. Use the item and show the person

I think this really is the best way to say thank you. Okay, you don’t like the item, but it’s not like you would need to wear or use it everyday. One day wouldn’t hurt. If you have plans to see the person who gave you the item you just love to hate, then try USE/WEAR/BRING the item. We all know that we like seeing a gift actually being used by the person we gave it to.

Okay, so these things are the ones that I do (let me be honest) when my love for a person is way greater than my opinion on the item he/she got for me. But do note that these may also be the same things that other people do when they actually GENUINELY like a gift. These are very common steps anyway. So don’t immediately assume that someone is doing all these steps on the item you gave him/her because he/she didn’t like it. There’s a big chance that he/she may really like it. Who would really know, right?

_____

Okay, so let’s look at the other end of the table. What if someone important or special to you is going to celebrate his/her birthday, and you want to give him/her something. How do you make sure that you will buy him/her something she would love?

And no, no, no, don’t think that just because you are very close to a person, you would instantly know what gift to give her. Even my mom, best friend, or boyfriend feel like it’s always a hit or miss when buying gifts for me. And those people KNOW me. Like REALLY KNOW ME. So don’t take that kind of risk.

So what to do?

1-10. ASK

If you are close to the person you plan to give a gift to, then the tendencies are, that person will be honest with you with what he/she wants for his/her special day. And if you are really close, you can even tell him/her how much budget you really have for a gift. Just like how I am with my friends – I ask them how much money they are willing to spend on me before I tell them what gift they can buy for me. Because I am spoiled like that! 

If you plan to surprise someone, then find a “medium”. Find someone who can help you sniff out details. People who can help give answers to questions like: What does this person want for his/her birthday? What would make him/her really happy? What item would ensure that this person wouldn’t lie to my face about liking the gift?

Wow. This is quite an entry for such a tiny topic. But I hope I am not the only one out who feels that these are the steps needed to be done to avoid breaking someone’s heart when you don’t like his/her gift, and making sure you buy someone a gift he/she would like. Some silly tips from a non-expert. :D 

Is this entry plain evil or is it really about trying to be nice. You tell me.

Hope you, lovelies, have a very nice day whichever side of the world you are. And happy birthday to all who are celebrating their birthday today! Mwah!

P.S. This blog entry may need further editing. I will do so later. Right now I have to prep and enjoy my day. J

My super pretty "basket" of flowers from my friends in the US, Qatar, and the Philippines! Oh I looove them so! My first birthday surprise. :) And yes, I genuinely LOVE the gift! :)

Spread the love!

- A!

A: 5 FRIENDSHIP HIGHLIGHTS with BEBI J (more photos to be uploaded on the update) :)

Okay, so the original scheduled topic was for me to write things I know about bebi J that maybe most of you don’t know yet. I think it was a nice idea. But the only problem is I already did that on my blog entry on her birthday week, remember “SHE’S ALL THAT”? I know I can go ahead and just list some other facts about her, but instead, I’d just like to highlight the (currently) top 5 most memorable moments of our friendship. How his crazy friendship started, the most fun moments in between, and how I have come to consider the friendship I share with her as the “best”.

As most of you may already know, bebi J knew each other since we were freshies in college. Well, I can say we were more of acquaintances then than friends. We never really did share any “special moments” during those times. But the things that happened during the latter part of our freshman year and the beginning of our sophomore years led into two crazy unica hijas to become closer than they ever thought they would be! 

1.      Harbour Square

It all started here. A couple of drinks with Jaz (I used to address her with her nickname before I started calling her “Bebi J”) and another friend gave birth to a really special friendship. The things we talked about, the seats we took, even the bar we went to are all very vague to me now, but I do remember how much we laughed, how long we all just sat there and talked, and how much fun we had. And this bonding started the “bebis”. I became bebi A, Jaz became bebi J, and another friend became bebi G. I think it was the work of the jejemon inside all of us! Haha! But I remember these "bebi" names were from me, so does that make me the most jejemon of the three? Hahaha!

It was that night that showed me the crazy, hilarious, and fun side of bebi J, and that makes me so glad I went out with them. I wouldn’t be friends with her if she was dull, or so proper, and all goodgy goody anyway. Haha!

Harbour Square is a compound of bars, restaurants, and coffee shops at Roxas Boulevard, Manila Philippines. It's really relax aura makes it a good place to hang out and chill with friends. If you're lucky, you may also find yourself shopping in the bazaars that from time to time are set up in the area.

2.      Enchanted Kingdom

It’s not only magic that’s here. For me, it’s also fun, friendship, and good memories. I honestly have a smile on my face right now as I type this. So many really funny memories are rushing in. I’ve visited this amusement park 7 times too many, and nothing would compare to the time I visited it with bebi J with our friends from an organization in college.

I am not one you can take to amusement parks and expect to make the most out of the entrance fee. That is simply because I do not really like extreme rides, I’ve never been on one. The most extreme I’ve tried was EK’s Jungle Log Jam and that was with bebi J and another friend. I remember how scared we all were, but I most specially remember how much we laughed while in the ride.

We were all crazy scared about the ride, and we were caught off guard on our first fall. We knew there was going to be a second and bigger one next, so we anticipated and encouraged each other to scream to let out the scary feeling. We did attempt to do it, but we somehow lost our voices and breaths halfway and ended up screaming after our ride has landed. Hahahaha! It’s not as funny when I type it here as it actually is being there, but I guess you'd need to bring a crazy friend with you and ride in an extreme ride for you to find out how it would feel. 

Add caption

Enchanted Kingdom is an amusement park located at Sta. Rosa, Laguna. It has been long considered as the Philippines’ Disneyland. Though it may not have Mickey, Minney, and the rest of the gang, it does have lots of rides you can choose from. They cater to the extreme ride enthusiasts, children, and even those who prefer it "safe" since they are positive they would pee halfway if you put them in any free-falling ride.

3.      David’s Salon (ExcelLANCE 2008)

Now, had today been 2008, I wouldn’t even think about including this in my entry. And since it's already 2013, I don’t think bebi J would hate me anymore if I share this to the world. And to her mom, tita Ning, bebi J didn’t mean to do it. She was a good student. :D

Bebi J and I were too concerned about our look for this annually-held awards night of our department in college that we went to a Salon to have our hair and make up done on EXAMS WEEK. I wasn't worried at all because I already took all my examinations then, she, however, still had one left; English. We both thought that since the people who would attend to us are pros, we’d be done in no time. We have not been so wrong. Well, the person who attended to me was quite fast, but it was a different story for bebi J. It took her I think about an hour and a half longer for the person who attended to her finish her loose curls. I can remember the look on her face as she almost every minute checked her phone for the time. She was going to be late for exam, she was positive about that. But she still hoped that she will be able to take the examination.

We rushed back to campus right after we paid for the rather disappointing service we had been offered, and yes, she was 30 minutes too late for her exams. And yes, she didn’t get to take it. So after a few minutes of breaking down and wondering how the future would look like for her now that she missed to take one exam because of some lousy locks, she decided she's just going to make the most out of her pretty hair. We then prepped and enjoyed the night.

Disclaimer: This is my opinion about the service given to us. I’m sure some other people would love to go back to David’s Salon for their service. Just not us.

Note: And also, bebi J was allowed to take special examinations! Yaaay!

4.      The filming of Lihim ng Dapit Hapon

Now I think it’s not just our friendship that grew stronger during this period. We made really good friends with many other people while filming this short film. I see this as one of the highlights of my friendship with bebi J because making an indie film is not at all easy, but getting to work with a friend who also is very responsible and hard working lessens the pressure and stress on the set. She was tasked to handle the wardrobe, hair and make-up of our stars and she did just that flawlessly. She was very coordinated and was always on time. She made sure she kept track of what was going on and was aware of what was needed to be done next. I guess, I can say, I saw the grown up and professional side of my best friend during the 3 days of filming.

Can you spot bebi J?

Lihim ng Dapit Hapon is a short film written and filmed by 4th year AB Communication Arts students of Colegio De San Juan De Letran Manila (Philippines) as part of their final examination for film class. The story is about a guy who has deep affection for a woman who can never look at him the same way. Their love story will shock anyone who will watch the film.

5.      The making of BLAAAH

I have always wanted to start my own blog account, but never really tried to create one. Until one afternoon, I told bebi J that I think it’s a cool idea if we can start a joint blog account. And she agreed! It was a really funny, creative-juice-draining, and even scary month of preparation we had. We would talk almost for an entire day just to try to come up with a name to call our account. And just for you to have an idea what kind of crazy stupid ideas we came up with, here are some of the names I can still recall:

>     Pizzaz gurlz (from bebi J’s mom)

>     The bestfriends code

>     She said she said

>     What best friends know

>     Autonomous Region

>     Our autonomous region

>     Our autonomous region of Muslim Mindanao (Hahahahahaha! If you don’t get it, then you’re probably not from the Philippines. But just FYI not trying to make fun of any group of provinces nor religion. )

>     BLAAAAAAH

Now after I think two weeks of trying to figure out what we will call ourselves, we went into planning what topics to write. What is the tone of our blog entries, which topics we can and cannot discuss. And now, you are reading mine! :)

I have not yet even included that time when bebi J had too much to drink on a night out with girl friends that when we got back to our dormitory, she wouldn’t stop talking about this particular guy. And she really hated that guy! Well, at least when she's sober. Haha! Or that time when we skipped classes just to well, slack around and do nothing. Or that time when I flooded our entire dormitory with water. Well, not so much fun, but still, an experience. 

I guess what I am trying to say is that I am really happy and blessed that I have spent all my years in college with her. All the trials, the hardships, the happy times, the i-am-so-near-to-selling-my-roommate moments, and all the crazy times. She has made me the crazier person I am now. Haha! And I thank her for that.

And I do agree with what she wrote about me not being her best friend. That bitch isn’t my best friend too! Haha! She really is my sister. We may argue, bitch out on each other, disagree strongly on so many things, but in the end, we still love each other.

- Spread the love! - A!

A: How I dealt with some office "characters"

Hello to all the happy employees who are at home today, relaxing… like me! I am not sure if there is a greeting for the holiday we are celebrating today, but what the heck, HAPPY LABOUR DAY –to all those who do hard and fair work, and those about to give birth! J

 I was thinking of a topic related to work or employment for my blog entry today. I chose between sharing the fun memories I had in my previous companies or the lessons I learned when I needed to deal with some rather different “characters” at work. The latter idea won.

Today, I’d like to focus on the things that taught me some of the coping “talents” I possess now. I used to need to paste fake smiles on my face and really control my temper just to not get into any kind of conflict with some rather unprofessional workmates. Now this entry will not be me telling you how you can cope with the “characters” at work, I’m sharing with you how I dealt with the ones I used to know and work with.

I think each of us would have our personal list of people we would rather not share an office floor with, and these so far are my top three:

1.         THE KNOW-IT-ALL

Who are they: No, they don’t know everything; they just like to pretend as if they do. They stick to what was first taught to them and refuse changes in processes, and raise their eyebrows on employees that get promoted, especially if the ones who get recognized are new employees. Most of the time, they are full of BS. When you try to correct them, they attack back with more BS. They refuse training, and they shut down suggestions for improvement, and these people just don’t to shut up. Most of the time, these are the tenured people.

How I coped: If there is one thing I learned from all my previous work places, it is that an employee’s tenure in the company does not reflect his/her expertise on what he/she does. I know so many people who have been with a company for a really long time, but still know so little about their work. And the only way I coped with this kind of character was I let them pretend to be the expert that they are not, and let them show what they “know”. Basically, let them make fools out of themselves. During those times when I was sure I was right, I (professionally) fought back, I made sure I prove my point. It felt nice to know that I was right and to get to prove it not only to my colleagues, not only to my superiors, but more importantly to that one person who refused to believe I was.

2.         THE GREAT PRETENDER

Who are they: These are the ones with scattered papers all over their desks, work email maximized on their computer screen, they are quiet and look as if they are focused on the task they are doing, they may even run to the printer from time to time, but all these are parts of their act. And when you ask them to finish things that they should finish, they ask you if you can handle those for them because they are “swamped” with so many things. Oh the great pretenders.

How I coped: We all have moments when we just wanted to slack off at work, only a hypocrite will say that never was there a time he/she felt too lazy to work. But there is a huge difference between wanting to just slack off at work and actually doing so. And unfortunately, I have worked with some people who did just that. And how did I handle that? Well, as long as their laziness didn’t affect my work, then I let them be the inefficient and unproductive employee they wanted to be. But when things got worse, I made sure I let them know that I know how lazy they were.

There was one instance before when the person who needed to confirm something to me for a client slept like Snorlax (a Pokemon) at her desk, and needless to say, waiting for an email that I thought she found quite difficult to compose delayed my work. After I found out that she was busy sleeping and that was why she couldn’t respond right away, I immediately went to her desk to remind her about the email. I did that politely. After waiting 30 minutes too long, and still no response, I visited her again at her desk, only to find out she was, yet again, catching some Z’s. That time, I didn’t bother waking her up again. I went straight to our manager, and let him do what needed to be done.  

When things with these great pretenders go beyond what is considered professional, let alone tolerable, then sometimes, the only way to handle it is to raise it to your superiors. If you are not afraid to start cold war with some officemates, then go for the bosses.

3.         THE WRITER

Who are they: Oh these are the most creative kind. They like to spread stories that have no basis at all. They hear a small part of a big story, and they use that to craft a story of their own. They smile at you, but they spread rumors the minute you turn your back.

How I coped: I didn’t give a single F. It’s true that it is painful when you learn that some people are trying to start rumors about you, but what can you do, really? I believe in the phrase that I should never explain anything to anybody, my friends don’t need them and my enemies won’t believe them. And believe it or not, sometimes, it’s through rumors in the office that you can know who your real friends are. It can and will surprise you in so many ways.

Well, I must say, I didn’t expect for this entry to be this difficult to write. Although I have made some – for the lack of a better word – enemies in my previous companies for doing the things above, I also made some good friends, who, like me, like to act professionally in the office.

I wish all the newly grads and the current job-seekers good luck. May you all find your dream jobs and a perfect work environment!

Spread the love! –A! :)