Chowking – Episode 1 – The Manager’s Wrath

My experience with the feedback form of BNH hospital made me reminisce my previous experiences with giving feedback to services and stores.

I had this experience with the fastfood chain in the Philippines, Chowking and their feedback hotline. I had 2 ( or 3) experiences with this chain and here is the first one.

My first experience with their feedback hotline was around 5 years ago at their branch in Robinson’s Pioneer in Mandaluyong City. My husband and I were having dinner when we noticed we were missing some condiments (Filipinos just love condiments!). As a common practice in the Philippines, you can ask a crew or staff for it if in case they have no condiments area, it is already used up or you’re simply lazy to stand-up again once you are already seated. When I said you can ask a crew/staff they usually are the ones who go around the dining area serving the food or cleaning up the tables which oftentimes include the store manager/supervisor.

And so we asked the store supervisor when she passed by our table for condiments. She nodded to acknowledge our request. Since the place was full, we didn’t mind the wait and ignored that she didn’t have our request when she passed by our area again. The second time she passed by (second time after we told her our request), my husband reminded her of our request. And as I remembered, we finished the meal (unsatisfied) without her bringing the condiments we requested even if she has passed 2 or 3 more times .

In the receipt, there is a number there to call or text for your feedback/comments/suggestion (with the note: We value your feedback). So I texted the number, summarized our experience and provided the details (branch, date and time of experience and supervisor name). If I remember correctly, the first SMS I received is to acknowledge first that they received the complaint and informed me that my concern will be forwarded to the store supervisor. A few minutes later, I received an SMS from a different number and the sender introduced herself as the branch supervisor and began badgering me with questions (squeezed in one long SMS, in the old times, you would see 3/3 in your mobile phone):
(These are no longer the exact words but same line of thought)
- When did this happen?
- What exactly happened?
- Have you tried reminding me (store supervisor) again
- Can you give me your full name and address?
- Have you considered that the area is full and not everyone can be accommodated immediately
- Did I (store supervisor) not acknowledge the request?
- Can you describe in detail the incident (yes, she asked twice)

And yes! I did not reply back. I know what they say that you could not truly know a person’s feeling by the way she texts/writes but based on her SMS, I can feel that no apology is in order and instead I might end up being banned from entering her branch instead.

Its more fun in the Philippines

Visit http://itsmorefuninthephilippines.com/

Paid but not received

Last week, I received a call from BNH Hospital to acknowledge that they have read the feedback I wrote on their feedback/suggestion form which I dropped in the box at the reception area. The nice lady apologized for the inconvenience I stated in the form and assured me that they will talk to their staff regarding the issue and advise them to improve their service.

Let me share with you the incident that led me to write in their feedback form and why I left my name and contact number in the form.

After my consultation with my endocrinologist, I was instructed to go to the cashier’s area and wait for my number to be called. I was called, paid the bill and left the hospital. Then after a few hours, I decided to double-check my receipt as I received an email from BUPA, my insurance company that they will not cover any hospital expenses which is related to my thyroid crisis. And then I saw that I paid 234 THB for medication. I hurriedly went back to the hospital and went to the Pharmacy area which is exactly beside the cashier area and asked the nice pharmacist if there is medicine designated for me. She looked through her medicine trays and saw the one that corresponded to mine. I felt my blood rushing. The cashier did not tell me that I have medicine to claim at the pharmacy area. From my previous experiences with the hospital, I was always advised if there is medicine for me to claim.

You have to understand that in the Philippines, hospitals or clinics does not charge you right away with the medicine prescribed by your doctor. You have the option to buy it at the hospital pharmacy or from other pharmacies oustide the hospital. Some clinics especially in the provinces, they would encourage you to buy from them but it was never automatically in your bill if you are an outpatient. If you have been confined at the hospital there are times that the doctor will advise the nurse to give you medicine to take home at the time that you will be discharged and you will also be advised so you know you are expecting something.

So I end up writing the feedback form, as I don’t want all cashiers to be reprimanded with someone’s negligence, I asked the nice pharmacist if she can write for me (in English characters) the cashier’s name that appeared in my receipt. Her name on the form was in Thai character. At first she looked very puzzled on my request so she asked me, “So you like her very much?” and I immediately said “No, she did not tell me that I have medicine and I have to go back here when I checked my bill and saw that I was charged with medication.” I was lucky that the hospital was just 10-15 minutes walk from my office, imagine if I have to take a taxi to get there.

I put on the cashier’s name to indicate that the experience was with her. I also put on my name and contact number because I don’t want them to disregard it and think that it is just a prank or someone jealous of her actually wrote the feedback.

When I went home I had to check all my BNH receipts if any of those has been charged with medication and if it has been stamped with “RECEIVED” on it. Indeed, I saw one receipt with a 22 THB medication charge and with no “RECEIVED” stamp. I no longer went back to the hospital as I felt that it would be not worth the 22THB to complain and/or explain to the pharmacy what I wanted.


I could not imagine if I had been on accident and I had to be transferred immediately to another hospital or I am in a very bad condition and I or my companion has no time to check the receipts. And another “never mind” cashier wouldn’t inform me that I have medicine to claim. Imagine if it was thousands of baht.

Swift Maroon Pink

It's difficult to have a stereotype on a person's music preferences due to each person's uniqueness. Oftentimes, we are surprised with each person's music favorites. You will probably meet someone (or already know one) who listens to Mozart and Avril Lavigne. A quiet student who finds solace in Nickelback songs but parties hard with Pitbull. Or a sweet girl who sings with Taylor Swift, grooves with Maroon 5 and rants with P!nk.To add a twist, artists have begun doing cover songs of other artists and the biggest hits are those that is different from their usual genre. Like for example, Maroon 5 (Maroon 5 Concert) has done Taylor Swift’s “Mine” while Taylor Swift (Taylor Swift Tickets)has done “Who Knew” by P!nk (Pink Concert Tickets). So come on, check these out from my affiliates, I’m sure you like at least one of them or better yet you like all three as you’re a Swift Maroon P!nk fan. For Taylor Swift: Taylor Swift Tickets. For Maroon 5 : Maroon 5 Concert For P!nk: Pink Concert Tickets

Blogoola

Bangkok Post article

I don't know about you but I don't understand what the title in the picture means especially the one in bold.

http://instagr.am/p/RuKRWbnTGS/

Insurance

I am currently covered by BUPA insurance here in Thailand and I am not satisfied.

Last May 2012, I had to go to the emergency room because I was experiencing unbearable chest pains, after several tests, they found no reason to admit me so I was sent home with some medications. My bill was 30k plus baht. I was not wortied because I had my card which says Hos. Service 60,000 Doctor's visit 1,500 per day OPD 1,500 visit per day. I was terribly shocked when the clerk told me that my card will only cover 1,500. I paid via credit card the remaining balance and went home feeling worse.

I checked with the insurance company the following Monday to confirm why i cannot claim under the Hospital Service or the ER coverage and what they said was that my case fall under OPD which means they only pay 1,500.

In the Philippines, my HMO is Maxicare, back then I never had to worry that I need to pay for any excess. I know that the reason is probably because my BUPA insurance here is of lower membership type. But still I feel that the card was next to nothing, because of a second incident.

Probably 2 weeks after that, I went to see an endocrinologist to have my tsh, t3 and t4 levels checked. So he ordered blood tests. After everything was over, at the cashier, I was told that my lab fees will not be covered and only doctor's fee will be paid by BUPA. I was like .. "omg! Are you serious?" But then I had no choice but to pay for the lab fees.

Around last month or so, I received a letter from BUPA that they are investigating the payment they made during that doctor's visit since it might be a pre-existing condition. So they gave me some forms to fill up to authorize them to request for my medical records from the hospital.

Today, I received an invoice from BUPA ordering me to pay back the 1,500 baht they paid for the doctor's visit.

I don't know about you, but I think BUPA sucks!

Wisdom from MJ

I think that it is Michael Jordan who said that if you don’t know anything about something then don’t say anything about it.

I have always been on the other end of false accusations and bad rumors, because I don’t like arguing or defending myself to people who:

- I know have already made their minds up on their judgment
- Are Narrow-minded who wouldn’t take other people’s ideas or explanations
- Doesn’t deserve my attention much more my explanation

In a meeting I had today, an issue was being discussed on what delayed the planned activities of the team Y. It has always been easy to point out to our team as we handle authorizations. So if you can’t access something, our team ( referred here as team X) must have messed up something. In fairness to the person who was presenting the issue, she made a “disclaimer” that she didn’t know much about the issues, all she was informed with was that the analysts had problems with their access. The other people began raising hands and saying that “why did team X messed up the access?”, “it’s a regular activity, why does this issue still come up, haven’t team X know by now the correct access?”. I was so tempted to raise my hand to defend my team but fear that my voice will crack up if I speak which oftentimes happen when I am boiling with anger or with some huddled up emotion. Then the presenter said , “yeah I know, I was thinking the same thing also, I will check with team X offline”.

And so I declared it a useless cause to air my team’s side .Because that presenter asked me some time ago what happened on that issue, and I told her that the team did not mess up the access but team Y has to “turn on” something in the system prior to using the access our team. I told her to check with team Y but instead of following up with team Y, it turn out that she decided to go with her theory to present during the meeting.

I shook my head, if she doesn’t know anything about what exactly happened, she should have hold off her comments about it.

Thanks Asiabooks

Asiabooks is one of the major bookstores in Bangkok. This is also one of the few bookstores that English books are greater in number than those written in Thai.
During my lunch break earlier today, I went to their branch in the newly re-opened Silom complex. I bought a book with price tag as 195 baht. I havr a bad habit of not checking my receipt so it was not until I was about to go back to office that I noticed that the receipt showed 275 baht.
I was thinking over if I should go back and ask the cashier why is the price different from the tag price. In the Philippines, there are a few decent stores or sales clerks who would check for you why there is a discrepancy in the price. Oftentimes they would just tell you that they cannot do anything about it as it is what appears when the barcode is read or that the tag price is incorrectly placed on your item. Nonetheless, I went back and anticipating the worst.
But I was deligted when the sales clerk entertained me with a smile, went to their stockroom (took less than 3 minutes) and said "we're very sorry" a couple of times, before she reprinted a new receipt and gave me the correct change. She also had me fill up small slip to declare that I am "replacing" the item with the lower priced one.

So, I will give where praise is due.. Good job and excellent customer service Asiabooks Silom Complex!

Chinavasion update 2

As I want to be completely fair with Chinavasion, they have now contacted me on how I can return the item and have their own technician check on it.
I am just not sure if they would have answered a quickly if there was no paypal dispute 😁

For a background on this story please check my post last Oct. 23 with title: Chinavasion feedback.

Chinavision update

As expected, they declined my request for refund but "promised" that a customer rep will get back to me in 2 working days to inform me of how to return the item for replacement.

And so the countdown begins...

Misery and black holes

“Being miserable doesn’t make you special”

This is the line that Dr. Wilson said to Dr. House in the TV series House MD. I don’t know if its just me or is it that some people nowadays are acting like Dr. House, “I’m miserable, admire me”, “I’m miserable which makes me interesting which makes me better than you” or the much worse, “ I am miserable, so don’t be happy, join me”. Nowadays I has been a gab fest on who is more miserable, the more miserable the story the more it gets attention. Which makes the miserable person “special” in their own world.

Don’t get me wrong, I too oftentimes bare my grudges to other people (bare not pass on), whether offline or online. But what I hate is when people groan, cry, shout or disturb the universe with their complaints but do not do ( or wouldn’t do) anything about their problem and would rather blame others for their suffering or burst other people’s bubble.

I know someone who would disturb the calmness of your night (and sometimes life) just to tell you how messed up their life is. Then if you give them an advice, they would either strongly disagree with you or insist that they cannot do it or insist that they are doing nothing wrong. What hurts me more is that they don’t believe you when you tell them things about another person that they care about even if the evidence is overwhelming. I feel like talking to my son to stop playing or watching car racing on his iPod or to my 16 year old version, very frustrating. After the monologue with that person, I always end up weary, physically, emotionally and psychologically. They are like black holes that suck everything that pass their way and envelop you with their darkness.


What’s weird for me is that they do this when you are feeling so positive with your life or have just overcame a difficulty in your life. Why can’t it be that when you're miserable too that they talk to you about it. Ironically, when you’re miserable, they share with you how great their life is. Sometimes I just want to smack them hard on their faces until they bleed.

Chinavasion feedback

I have bought an item on this website http://www.chinavasion.com/. They boast of good after-sales service, a one-year warranty and 30 months warranty in the batteries of the electronic devices. I received the item last week ( shipping time is good). Unfortunately, I was able to use the item "extensively" only this weekend so when I tried to charge it, it indicates it is charging, but after 3 hrs it still the same not a single milimeter added to the charge. So I decided to raise a ticket on the website regarding this, if they could have it repaired, replaced or return my money. And below is the response I got:
Dear Xxxxx,

Thanks for your email.

1pc CVVB-4409 1764889
Does it indicate charging?
Please try to turn on while it is connected to the power.
Please check the USB cable with multimeter or with professional.

We are waiting for your reply.
(other info withheld)


I am disturbed by this email. So they are actually advising me to have it checked by a professional? I have to pay another professional to have it checked? Shouldn't it be them who should check if they indeed sent defective item? Then what happens when the professional I hire decides that the only way he could check is to open the item? Then Chinavision will say that the warranty is now void because someone tampered with the item?
I raised a dispute on Paypal regarding this and I will keep you posted on what is the result.

Benefit of the doubt

I hate when people say, “ I would like to give you the benefit of the doubt” because most of the time they are not doing it to prove themselves wrong or give the other party some kind of respect, but they are actually doing it to uplift themselves and make you feel you owe something to them for giving you a benefit of the doubt.


My Yahoo answers account has been recently suspended, reason: for posting a link that is non-Yahoo. Okay, my fault, I should have read the terms and conditions more properly. I only stated my blog as the source which was my exact reply to Yahoo. I did not know that your source should also be a Yahoo site. But based on discussions I have read in Yahoo Answers also, no account suspension has ever been lifted by Yahoo ( well none that they know of). Yahoo will send you an “obligatory” FYI email which tells you that they suspended your account, it’s your choice if you want to appeal, however, if you appeal they will review it but it does not guarantee that your suspension will be lifted.

In short, that’s the Yahoo version of giving their users the benefit of the doubt. We just want to know why you did it period.

What the crab?!

Crab mentality, sometimes referred to as crabs in the bucket, describes a way of thinking best described by the phrase "if I can't have it, neither can you ." The metaphor refers to a pot of crabs. Individually, the crabs could easily escape from the pot, but instead, they grab at each other in a useless "king of the hill" competition which prevents any from escaping and ensures their collective demise.[1][2] The analogy in human behavior is that members of a group will attempt to "pull down" (negate or diminish the importance of) any member who achieves success beyond the others, out of envy,[3] conspiracy or competitive feelings.

- Wikipedia entry

The reason why I am greatly attracted in working abroad other than the higher compensation is I want to get away from some Filipinos who (please note: NOT ALL) have very bad case of crab mentality. Crab mentality is also what some sociologist see as why the Philippines seem not to advance even if they are intelligent, creative, hardworking and resourceful. This sick mentality is everywhere, even if you work for a small company, a global company, in the streets or for the government (where they say it is very rampant).

When I came here in Bangkok, a Filipino helped me to be familiar with the company, the culture and a few other tips and tricks to get around. However, things did not go well as expected.

I became friends with a local who is actually has a high position in our consulting company, she’s nice so I feel comfortable to share my thoughts and opinions just about anything. Thais are very friendly, which is why the country is known as “Land of Smiles”, so this is not new. I did not know that this friend of mine shared our conversations with another Thai, who is the recruiter of our company. This recruiter on the other hand is very close to the Filipino who helped me.

As you might surmise, the recruiter shared the conversations I had with the Filipino. Please note that these conversations (mine with my Thai friend, the Thai recruiter to the Filipino) are done in English. As you know, English is not the native language of either Thais or Filipinos, some words cannot have exact translations and inevitably had the wrong impressions. To cut the long story short, the Filipino confronted me for spreading bad rumors about her. I was very surprised, and I told her straight away that this might be just issues with the translation and I have no reason to badmouth her. She said, “ I don’t know, that’s why I wanted to talk to you. I know there are Filipinos who badmouth other Filipinos and I wanted to know if you are like that”. I told her what the exact conversations I had with my Thai friend. You have to understand, I am not the “cuddly/sweet” type of person so I just said, “It’s up to you who you want to believe, it’s your prerogative, what’s important to me is I told you my side of the story”.

Not surprised, she did not 100% believed me and requested to talk to my Thai friend and confront her if my version is true. My Thai friend obliged with the discussion and she confirmed my version and that the recruiter somehow “twisted” the stories. So the Filipino asked that the recruiter be present in the ongoing conversation. My friend called the recruiter, and she said that the recruiter declined and said she cannot come. You might think that the Filipino will now doubt her friend (the recruiter) but she didn’t. Though she didn’t say it directly, I can tell she still stands by the recruiter’s version.

I talked to my Thai friend and apologized for the Filipino’s actions. I honestly was very embarrassed, I feel that in this incident we showed my Thai friend how Filipinos would not hesitate to “bite at each other”, how far they are willing to do anything just to prove that this other Filipino is wrong. When my Thai friend said that, “ I know you two are friends” and the Filipino said, “we’re not friends, we just know each other from a common friend” , my friend was silent and was lost for words.

The Five people you meet in heaven - my take

The Five People You Meet in Heaven is a novel by Mitch Albom. It recounts the life and death of a maintenance man named Eddie. After dying while trying to save a little girl from a falling amusement park ride, Eddie finds himself in the afterlife where he encounters five people who significantly affected his life.

- Wikipedia entry

My version:

1) My high school Filipino teacher who announced in class one day that the teachers were talking about me being “maarte” (tagalog word which the closest english translation would be a mix of a prima donna and drama queen). She said this is what she told her co-teachers “ Maarte nga siya pro yung maarte na hindi nkakasakit ng ibang tao ( she is indeed a prima donna/drama queen but the kind that doesn’t hurt other people)”.

- Don’t get me wrong, I am not offended. Rather, I take it as a compliment.

2) A good friend who told me while we were exchanging stories on ex and current boyfriends – “You tend to love more the people who don’t love you back as much as you do and worse, those who don’t deserve it”.

- What can I say? Story of my life.

3) College classmate when talking about what we think an ideal boyfriend should be –“ We don’t get everything we want”.

- Need I say more?

4) Former manager – “You write very good emails but when you talk it’s as if you are different person, you lack the confidence”

- Yeah, I know 😰

5) Most people when I was young – “Maganda ka sana kaya lang maitim ka (you could be pretty if you have not been dark skinned)”

- Go to hell!😖

Hyperthyroidism in The Big Bang Theory

A scene from my fave sitcom " The Big Bang Theory", Sheldon diagnosing Amy as possible having hyperthyroidism http://t.co/MSKJRrJ3

Ironies of life

- Why does time fly fast when you don't want a moment to end? And it moves so slow when you want a moment to end?

- Why do you always see a"useless" thing lying around but cannot find it when you need it?

- Why you saved up for so long to buy an expensive item for yourself then it goes on 50% off the week after you bought it

- Why does it rain the only time you forget to bring your umbrella?

- Why do teachers forget to check the homework that you finished close to dawn

- why do we remember the face/name of a person introduced to us while they cannot remember us. While on the other hand, we end up spending hours trying to remember how you knew the person who greeted you with your first name

And there's more to come...

Hyperthyroidism

Its now official, I have hyperthyroidism. For more than a year now, I have been subject to blood tests every 3 months to check my TSH, T3 and T4 levels. In the simplest terms, thyroid tests. Before I left the Philippines, my endocrinologist was very worried about my very low TSH, I could not explain very much in scientific terms, but what I do understand is that my thyroid glands is producing too much hormones ( thus hyperthyroidism) which causes my TSH level to drop. My thyroid glands is not working properly(obviously) because at some point it has to stop producing the hormones when it has detected that I already have enough in my system. In my case, it doesnt seem to stop. The effect is too much adrenaline on my body, I easily get tired (the irony of the adrenaline), sweat a lot ( including sweaty palms), heart palpitations, chest pains, bulgy eyes and losing weight.
You might wonder, how did it occur to me to check with an endocrinologist? Actually, I first checked with a cardiologist. It was April 2011 when I had my yearly annual physical exam from my previous employer. The nurse who took my vital signs told me " you're heartbeat is so fast, are you nervous ma'am?" that time, I was catching my breath because I had to run to get to the clinic ( you cannot miss your appointment or else they might schedule your new appointment at an inconvenient time for you). So I just said, " oh maybe it was because I came here running" and we both laughed. Then after a few days after, I suddenly experienced a very painful chest pain. It was very new to me since I have no heart condition. So I went to the office clinic and the nurse told me that I have normal blood pressure but very fast heartbeat. Since she does not have medication for palpitations, she advised me to just stay calm and relax. I know!!!! How can you relax if you have chest pain and has difficulty breathing. That weekend, I went to a cardiologist, she ordered ecg, and 2D echo. Before she could see my results, she said," do you have goiter or had it before?" To some who may not be familiar, goiter is the bulging in the neck area caused by a problem in the thyroid glands too. So I said, "no", quite offended because i grew up in an environment that if you had it, people stay away from you. She checked the results and what caught her attention was the note " palpitations" so she immediately told me that I have to refer you to an endocrinologist."

My endocrinologist told me that I might have been suffering from the symptoms way, way before but was not very noticeable. I remember in highschool I was sweaty. I am a girl so you could imagine how embrassing that is for me. People always assume it as poor hygiene. I was lucky my high school friends are very nice and did not bully me over it, but of course i inevitably hear occasional whispers how I have pit stains.
In college, I remembered my accounting teacher ( who also is a friend) told me one time, "cold hands,means warm heart". So to this day, I feel better when I say it to myself when I can feel my palms getting sweaty for no reason.

At almost the same time, I was losing weight despite me eating a lot. We have a little store back then and I am attending to it most of the time, so you could imagine how I pass the time. And then, one of nephew ( with a cousin) got primary complex ( as what they say child tuberculosis). His pediatrician could not point from whom he got it so she asked the mother to check the people who spends time with her son. That nephews usually stays with us while her mother goes to work. I was very thin then so I became a very good suspect. My (foster) mother cried when my nephew's nanny revealed that they were told not to come near me or let his son use the same utensils I used.We had to go the an expensive lung specialist to prove that I did not have any communicable lung disease.

What am I getting to with this? Sometimes the worn out saying " don't judge a book by its cover" still holds true. So the next time you meet someone or simply get across someone with a physical appearance not within standards, I advise you to hold your judgment first until you got a chance to know him/her better.

Eating alone

I know some people who "would never be caught dead" eating alone. Even if they have to share a seat with someone they "met" at the cashier.

Sometimes you would think they are more pathetic than the people who has the confidence or guts to eat alone.

I cannot completely say that I enjoy eating alone, but sometimes I would rather eat alone than be pestered with gossip or questions about my personal life. To some I may not seem to be a private person but actually I am. I cannot and do not freely share to anyone personal details about my life.
I remember eating at a restaurant in Kapitolyo, Pasig (in the Philippines) where a group of what seems to be officemates are having their lunch. Initially I did not mind the loud laughters and giggling. Then the talk seemed serious but took a very uncomfortable turn ( well, at least for me). Two married women are talking very loudly of their sex life. I am not one of those who despite being married does not want to hear sex talk. More disturbing more for me is when I learned that one (or two) girl in the group is actually single and a virgin. Probably they were trying to "educate" her because one said, "kaya ikaw pag nag-asawa ka ( that's why when you get married..).
You might I am a hypocrite because I feel uncomfortable yet I listen to them. The restaurant is quite small and empty except for their group and me (and my son) and of course the restaurant staff. In fact, I had to stop my son who is enjoying his meal so we could go out from there. The staff was actually surprised when I asked if I could have all our food for "take-out" (take away).

Sometimes, they are really people like them who are inconsiderate of others. But would run amok if you offended them. Such are the ironies of life.

Scene at BTS Saphan taksin

Two Americans were looking around and confused if the train that is currently on the platform is the one they should take. They seem very nice so I did not hesitate to approach them and help.
To cut the long story short, one of them commented " your english is good"
For a quick second I was juggling with two responses:
A) I'm not Thai
B) I'm Filipino

I opted to respond with B). And I hope you know why.

Article: Vegetarian Festival: a guide to Thailand’s self-mortification processions

Vegetarian Festival: a guide to Thailand's self-mortification processions
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thailand/andaman-coast/phuket-town/travel-tips-and-articles/77412

Sent via Flipboard

Coffee anyone?

Here in Bangkok, there are coffeeshops and coffee stands everywhere. From Starbucks to the humble coffee stand in the corner, they are often crowded with customers.
I am not a big coffee fan, I just drink coffee if I badly need an energy boost ( but chocolate is always my first option) or I need to stay awake. But here I began frequenting the coffee shops, and ironically not because of their coffee. Here are the reasons why:
- most of the crew can speak good English or at least knows the english name of their products.
- most of them have free wifi, Coffee World in Patpong has the wifi password posted in each of the tables. Doi Tung also has free wifi but you have to request password from the cashier and lasts for an hour.
- give you some kind of "peace" away from the bustle of the city

However, I feel uneasy when I become regular costumers. Why?
- in Coffeeworld, the manager has become comfortable in seeing me everyday that she doesn't give me the obligatory warm greeting or kop kun kaa when I leave. Oftentimes, she is smirking at me.
- in Doi Tung, when the crew sees me at the cashier, they have the weird smile and oftentimes exchange looks as if to say " here is the foreigner again who looks like a local"
- in Swiss cafe, I don't like the constant small talks of the manager/ supervisor. Sometimes I am tempted to say, I came here for the food not the talk. I also wonder if she just uses me to practice her English.

Of course, I am different from other people, there are those who love the attention when they come to a place, or the small talks offered to them. But what can I say, I am not like most people.

Insight from the Dalai Lama

From the book of the same title as above:

[ABS-CBN News] Scientists discover planet made of diamond

This handout illustration obtained by Reuters October 11, 2012, shows the interior of the planet 55 Cancri e - an extremely hot planet with a surface of mostly graphite surrounding a thick layer of diamond, below which is a layer of silicon-based minerals and a molten iron core at the center. Photo by Reuters/Haven Giguere/Yale University







LONDON, United Kingdom - Forget the diamond as big as the Ritz. This one's bigger than planet Earth.



Orbiting a star that is visible to the naked eye, astronomers have discovered a planet twice the size of our own made largely out of diamond.



The rocky planet, called '55 Cancri e', orbits a sun-like star in the constellation of Cancer and is moving so fast that a year there lasts a mere 18 hours.



Discovered by a US-Franco research team, its radius is twice that of Earth's but it is much more dense with a mass eight times greater. It is also incredibly hot, with temperatures on its surface reaching 3,900 degrees Fahrenheit (1,648 Celsius).



"The surface of this planet is likely covered in graphite and diamond rather than water and granite," said Nikku Madhusudhan, the Yale researcher whose findings are due to be published in the journal Astrophysical Journal Letters.



The study - with Olivier Mousis at the Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planetologie in Toulose, France - estimates that at least a third of the planet's mass, the equivalent of about three Earth masses, could be diamond.



Diamond planets have been spotted before but this is the first time one has been seen orbiting a sun-like star and studied in such detail.



"This is our first glimpse of a rocky world with a fundamentally different chemistry from Earth," Madhusudhan said, adding that the discovery of the carbon-rich planet meant distant rocky planets could no longer be assumed to have chemical constituents, interiors, atmospheres, or biologies similar to Earth.



David Spergel, an astronomer at Princeton University, said it was relatively simple to work out the basic structure and history of a star once you know its mass and age.



"Planets are much more complex. This 'diamond-rich super-Earth' is likely just one example of the rich sets of discoveries that await us as we begin to explore planets around nearby stars."



"Nearby" is a relative concept in astronomy. Any fortune-hunter not dissuaded by "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz", F.Scott Fitzgerald's jazz age morality tale of thwarted greed, will find Cancri e about 40 light years, or 230 trillion miles, from Park Avenue.

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Hakuna Matata

I remembered this one time while we were in Kenya I was singing "hakuna matata, it means no worries for the rest of the day, its a problem free philosophy. Hakuna matata." My daughter was having her tantrums so I was somehow trying to cheer her up with the Disney song. I have not actually seen "The Lion King" but got that song from the animated series " Timon an Pumba" which I used to watch when I was young.
Then suddenly our driver who is a local said, "that's our national anthem". I was embarrased because I was singing it very playfully. You could imagine how pale my face turned when he suddenly blurted that out. To ease up the tension, my husband asked him cheerfully, "oh that's nice so what does hakuna matata actually mean?" and our driver said "it means you don't have to worry too much because things will be OK".

I was very surpised to know and observe how kenyans and probably africans in general are carefree in life. Actually they also have the saying, "there's no hurry in africa". They smile a lot and when they laugh, you can't help but laugh too and throw your worries away even for a while.

Kenya is actually a poor country that is why many would probably say " they can't be carefree, that's foolish". But sometimes you could not help but think about the cliche that money is not everything. Developed countries are actually the ones with the highest suicide rates and it is not the poor in those countries that are suicidal some are actually rich ( and famous?). They are also the ones who try different alternative ways to relieve their stress, sports, yoga, meditation etc.

We have something to learn from Africans ( or specifically Kenyans) after all, Hakuna Matata.

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Trying hard

In the Philippines, we have a colloquial term for people who tries hard to fit to a certain group or project a certain personality but miserably fails. We call them T.H. ( trying hard).
Before having a chance to work with people of different cultures, I have always thought that Filipinos are the most T.H. culture. But then I met several people of different cultures and learn to understand that Filipinos are not the worst of the T.H. kind.
I had a manager who was very demanding and most see it as because he is an achiever that is why he expects the same from his subordinates. A colleague of mine said "he's racist". "Really?" was all I can say because I have not observed anything from him to conclude like that. And my colleague said, just observe how he treats other employees of different nationality than him.
Racism has been associated with "white" people because it was perceived that they think of themselves as the superior race. But it has never been widely associated with "colored" people.

As our project progresses, I have observed my manager's extra closeness to employees of the same nationality as his. I thought, that's okay. Filipinos do that. They actually say that Filipinos are very group oriented, always wants to join his own people. But then I noticed how he favors these employees, lenient on their deadlines, laughing with then if they mistakes, allowing them to take leaves (wherein you cannot reach them). No one complained because these people are actually nice. But when he openly embrasses other employees with the slightest mistake while he covers the mistakes of his favored people. The racist tag becomes a little true. But then you her that he makes fun of other cultures sometimes not even behind their backs or call other nationalities as a "different ethnic group". So I was left to wonder if his nationality is "superior" as he project them to be.
With some twist of fate, I ended up working at the country of that manager. And this is what I found, they speak very terrible english (even managers of MNCs, or even those who supposedly studied in the US or UK), most of their training are in their dialect because no one attends if done in English. I am not intelligent but I met some who leave me at my wits end because of their difficulty in understanding the simplest instructions but they would laugh at you when you inform them you dont understand. They eat in places flocked by flies without any hesitation. In one restaurant, we actually saw a cockroach crawling near the customer tables but all they give you is a smile if you bring it to their attention. And they make fun of other people's culture, belief and country openly as if theirs are perfect.

So, I began to appreciate Filipinos more as they are more sensitive to the feelings of other people, friendlyand helpful not only to "whites" but to almost if not everyone they met. So yes, Filipinos are T.H., trying hard to please others, to make friends, to communicate or help. But now, I realized, I will take that anytime.

Sale!!!

Everyone loves shopping sale or promotions. Especially women, sometimes we even end up buying things we don't need just because its on sale. Oftentimes too, we no longer evaluate if the product is worth the price and become completely blinded by the note in the tag price which says "70% off".
I had an economics teacher in college who told us once in our class not to be fooled by "sale"or "promotion" items. She said that most of the items that are on sale with tags as high as 70-80% off are actually being sold at the same price during off sale season and sometimes higher than its regular price. She knows this because she once worked for a department store and know the said practice. At that time that she revealed this to us, although I believed her, I did not take it very seriously thinking to myself "maybe because that department store is not upscale and barely anyone notices their regular prices so they try to resort to such dirty tactics".
In the Philippines, I have not personally observed or noticed such tactic. But sometimes and when I say sometimes it means 2 out of 10 instances, I evaluate the items if they are worth the price or the sale price is suspicious. I was reading the blog Fashion Pulis, and one of his readers shared an incident in a popular mall when she noticed that the sale price is higher than the regular price. Yes, she noticed because she tried to peel off the sale price to see what was the tag price before it supposedly went on sale. When she confronted the saleslady and eventually the store supervisor explained to her that it was just a case of mistagging. Hmmm.. Okay...
Here in Bangkok, sales or as they promotions are overflowing which is obviously why many tourists consider the city a shopping haven. Of course there is always the inevitable different price if you're a foreigner which admittedly happens in other countries too. But there's something strange that I observe when checking out items on sale. One time, I was checking items that are being sold in the streets, the sign says" Buy 1 29 baht, buy 2 59 baht. I had to read the sign more than twice to check if I was reading it correctly, then I have to check my math 29x2 = 58. Okay, so instead of getting a bigger discount for buyinh more you actually get robbed of an extra 1 baht. At least the vendor did not try to hide her tactic, its just for you to detect it.

At the grocery in a shopping mall in siam, I once saw dishwashing liquids grouped into 3. The marks are in thai ( so I maybe wrong here) but I assumed it says buy the 3 items to save. So I checked the price of a single item, 28 baht and the bundled items 84 baht. I had to call my husband to check my math and we eventually ended up doing math in the air. And yes, 28x3=84.

Moral lesson: Dont be an impulse buyer, check the price and not how much "discount" you're supposedly getting. Because you might actually be robbing yourself instead of saving.

Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult - a review

I have read 3 other Jodi Picoult's books (Sing you home, House Rules and Picture Perfect). And this is the one I disliked the most.
Its a story of a man who was wrongly accused of statutory rape and because he was ill advised by his lawyer, pleaded guilty to avoid the gruelling court proceedings and long jail term. When his prison sentence ended and went to Salem Falls to start a new life, he did not expect that his past will haunt him and quite predictably been accused once again with rape.
The plot for me is too common nowadays. Maybe that is why Jodi chose this storyline for its social relevance. When a teenage girl got attracted to him, I sighed because i knew what the next events will be. He will try his best to avoid the girl while the girl on the other hand will do anything and everything to catch his attention. And eventually an accident/incident will happen between them and because of possible humiliation and yes, fear of the parents' wrath, the girl accuses him of rape. And the all too familiar issues on:
- should you trust a man who once been convicted of a crime?
- that a girl would never lie being raped
- that a girl gets raped because she's a slut
- that teenagers always hide something from his/her parents

I am also discontented on how she did not tell on what or how the jury members discussed before coming up with their decision. The surprising no further discussion on "witch craft" in the end when it has been discussed quite extensively in the previous parts of the story. Which reminds me of how somehow I felt left hanging in "Picture Perfect" what Flying horse's dream or visions are all about.

I don't know if I have been watching too much Law & Order SVU or Criminal minds epsiodes which made this novel too bland for my reading taste.

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Gone Girl - a review

I don’t like when critics or book reviewer’s give spoliers on the plot or sometimes the climax or even the conclusion of the book. I feel like, “yeah I know that the correct way of doing a movie/book review” but those things are appreciated by your teacher/professor when grading your paper. Not for enthusiasts who just wanted to check how others liked the movie/book before actually spending a dime for it. So I will try to review a book without giving out the entire plot, climax and conclusion of the book.


When I registered for an audible account, I saw this book – Gone Girl in New York Times bestseller. In terms of books, I am a “fashionista” in a sense that I want to see what’s hot and try it. This is one of the few things that I am not ashamed to go with the what’s “in”. So okay, its not a book, an audiobook that I bought, initially I got bored (yes, bored listening) because the structure of the book is that the two main (Amy and Nick) characters alternate presenting their own versions of what happened. But when I got to Part 2 (of the audiobook) it got interesting. I loved the suspense rising up minute after minute. I began to anticipate what Amy has to say on the version of what happened. The story became very real to me, because as they say there are always two sides of a coin. I loved how Nick got caught up on his wife’s (Amy) web of lies and there seems to be no hope of him being vindicated or the truth coming out. I began to hate the lawyer who wasn’t of no help at all, of the policemen/detectives who thinks its good police work to find obvious evidence. And most of all, I hated Amy, I felt the hurt and frustration that Nick felt when Amy seemed to be winning most of the time.

However, I didn’t like the ending of the book it was very anticlimactic, it was a letdown for me. Its like lining up for free ice cream and when its your turn the only flavor left is vanilla. I feel that the book is begging to have a sequel. I don’t know if the author has that plan all along or Book 2 is already in the works.

I would love to see this made into a movie. However, as I am not a big Hollywood fan I am struggling to think of the perfect actors to play Amy and Nick. Well, these are the qualities I think the actors should have:

Amy – someone beautiful but still has the homely charisma.
Nick – someone proud/strong looking with a slight “player” aura


I know it didn’t said much but I highly recommend the book, it is literally something that you would find difficult to put down.

So what do you want to do? Read, listen or watch?

I can’t remember where I once saw this question “ Can listening to audiobooks be considered as reading?” Sorry as much as I want to quote the source, I really can’t remember which website I came across. Anyway, I did not read the responses or discussion so there’s not much use quoting it.
Lately, I have enjoyed listening to audiobooks rather than reading the book or novel itself. The reasons are I am among those people who:
- Falls asleep when reading for a long time
- Wants to do something at the same time (ex. Working while listening)
- has short attention span, that when I don’t understand or get bored for more than 5 minutes, you would lose me
- don’t want to carry a bulky book everywhere

This reason which I try to convince myself is the primary reason is: it makes me feel more connected to the story thus enjoying it more.

I don’t think there’s nothing wrong with listening than reading the book as much as there is nothing wrong if you rather want to read at your own pace. But obviously that question was posted or raised by someone who would rather read the book than listen to it. I cannot understand why it would be an issue if you would listen to the audiobook. When we were young, most if not all of us grew up with someone ( mother/father, nanny, granny, sister, sitter etc) reading a story or simply listening to a fascinating story being told to us.

However, I believe watching the film version of a novel is a different thing. Since movies are usually around 1.5-2.5 hrs long only, it just shows the most important parts missing all the details and oftentimes present a different ending. That is why most novel readers get disappointed when they watch the film version.
The only advantage of film versions is that you see in your eyes the scenes, characters or settings that you have only imagined while you were reading. But unfortunately, sometimes some of this details are also not included in the movie. I remembered a friend who once told me that the reason why she is excited to see this specific film is she wanted to see the dress being described as the one worn by the female character. And yes, she was disappointed, because in the film, it was not the cutesy dress she imagined. Probably because who would think that someone will watch the movie just to check out the character’s costumes.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t totally dislike film versions. I am also like many others who get excited to see the novel I once read/listened to being unraveled before my eyes. Although of course, I sometimes end up disappointed or feel that something is lacking from the movie.

There is one film version that I liked although many of the reviews are not so positive because they said the film lack the elegance and beauty of the novel itself. This film is “ Love in the time of cholera”. This novel I have read and because Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel are so beautiful that I get lost with the words. Maybe that’s the reason I liked it *smiles*. It helps me understand the “big words” and yes I read the translated (English) version. I read this entry from Wikipedia : “His works have achieved significant critical acclaim and widespread commercial success, most notably for popularizing a literary style labeled as magic realism, which uses magical elements and events in otherwise ordinary and realistic situations.” That I guess is the beauty that is lost in the film, you can barely feel it there. But the movie made me appreciate the novel even more as the characters and the expression of their love for each other unraveled before me.

I guess since each one of us has different tastes and let’s admit, different levels of intelligence which is why we have different preferences on how to enjoy a story, some want to read it on their own at their own pace, some want to listen, hearing the words as if just eavesdropping on a conversation and some wants just to see the important events and don’t mind missing the details.

But one thing I know is for sure, we are all interested with stories other than our own. Again for reasons that are entirely different for each person.

The calling

I have read and heard from others that if you do something you want or enjoy what you are doing, you never have to work for single day of your life. Hmmm.. sounds reasonable. So what I have to find out now is what I want to do.
As a kid, I have always loved reading and writing. I can’t remember exactly remember at what age I have started on writing a personal diary but it sure was before my teens.

I can vaguely remember what I used as a diary, is it an old school notebook, yellow ruled paper or unused pads of receipts. What I do remember is I have always loved writing my thoughts down. It’s as if I would forgot them as they pass through my mind. It hasn’t always been a day-to-day journal. I usually right on it when I was scolded and feel that I was done injustice. You know how kids are, every little thing that happens against their wishes is an injustice for them. I also write my dreams and aspirations. I remembered one time, I was preparing a layout for my own newspaper. Of course I was the writer of every article, news or opinion column.

When I was in high school, I remembered trying to write a romance “novel” about my infatuation for a boy band that was extremely popular during my teens. I couldn’t imagine what my mother thought about what’s happening to me when she read it. She always reads what I write even if I try to hide them. I am have never been proud of my writing and oftentimes I am not comfortable when others read it. I feel like the reader is looking into my soul through my written words. Because every time I write anything even if it is a business email reply to a user, I always feel that I put a part of my personality in it. A part of my soul.

I always have an opinion of other’s writing style, even of how good the author is, I always have a different twist or ending of the story of my own. Which leads me to wonder.. will I ever be a writer? Or an author of something so beautiful that other’s would say “I like how she writes”.


But I am a great fan of authors who have great imagination and who takes time to do research on the settings of their story, either that or they have lived in that setting for quite some time to remember it quite vividly. That’s why I have great respect for J.K. Rowling on how amazingly good the Harry Potter series is. Truth of the matter is I have never literally read her books, except for ironically, the first and the last one. The others I “heard” the audiobooks or just watched the film version istead but I don’t think that would disqualify me as a fan. Because although I have only read 2 of her books, I can get totally “lost” in her imagination. She makes you really feel that you are there and everything she is saying is real. That I do not need a feel good love or romantic subplot to get my readers hooked.

That is why I am not confident of how I write even if its fictional, I feel that I still could not make the reader “lost” in my story, it’s if the story is their own, as if they are my characters. And when that happens, is when I could say I found my very own "the calling".

Boredom

I admire people who can simply stare in space and spend hours doing it. I could not do it. I have to at least think about something ( if not do something). Even long daydreams bore me, even if how sweet, funny, exciting the thoughts are. If I spend more than 15 minutes, I become bored of own thoughts.
That is why I hate attending seminars, trainings, workshops where the speaker/trainer talks and/or reads from a powerpoint presentation. I think I have adult ADHD. But I don’t want to get tested and waste money on a shrink. First and foremost because I don’t have the money to throw away and secondly, that is why I write, to put all my thoughts in words that I and others can read. That is why even as a child I keep a personal diary, which because of my clumsiness, my (foster) mother reads every now and then. And she would boast that she knows everything because she is old and wise (would not admit she reads my diary even if caught in the act). If she is still alive and would read this, I am sure she would be very furious that I put “(foster)“ before the word “mother”. She would scream and say, ”So now I am not a mother!”


In my previous work, I am being teased as being a loud mouth, which I am not, I just love talking :P Well, that is to people I feel comfortable with. My current boss and officemates tell me I am so quiet and sometimes they barely notice I am at my desk. That is because as talkative person I am, I am not exactly a friendly person. I am not like some people who smiles and chats to everyone they meet at a training, event or sometimes even at the line in the supermarket. I have nothing against people like that, in fact, I admire them for their confidence. I think that is what I lack. I remembered what a former supervisor of mine told me, “ you write such very good emails but when I talk to you, I do not hear that.” Another former colleague who I always chat with online, also told me, “ You seem very funny but when we met in person, you barely talked.” I think I am like that because I am always confronted with thoughts like, “ what if I say the wrong words”, “what if they don’t like me”. Hmmm or is it just fear of rejection? Or insecurity? But it’s the same, it’s because I am not confident.

Another reason why I am not your next door friendly girl is I don’t easily trust people. I choose the people I make friends with but oftentimes not good choices. A friend once told me, “you have a tendency to care for the wrong people”. Yes, I observed that. It’s always me with the 100% while the other one barely 50% and yes this is not with friendships only in ALL sorts of “- ships”. But wait before I divulge too much or burst into tears…..

See, I told you.. I have ADHD, I always stray from my original topic and now I am getting bored again.

Being a foreigner

I have been in a foreign country for more than 6 months now. At first, I was excited as I have always thought that this country is far better than my home country. Then I realized that the cliche is true. There's no place like home.
I have been warned before by a manager from my previous company that it's a little difficult to live here. "it's easy to get lost there" I just smiled but he continued, their street signs or store signs are in their local language script and they could barely understand and speak English. Honestly, I did not believe him. I said to myself, it couldn't be that bad, I have been to Kenya and they speak good English. And kenya is a poor african country, this one is one of the most developed countries in the region.And besides he gave a disclaimer that maybe it had improved recently, it has been a few years ago when he was here.
And when I arrived here, I almost want to give him a call and tell him that I should have listened to him.

It was like a nightmare communicating in English here, it wouldn't help if you present a nicely computer printed document unless its in their local script. You might say, probably not in the hotels, international hospitals, high end shopping centers or multi national companies. Well maybe not that bad. But still bad. You have to talk in broken English to have your message get through easily. Or you would waste a lot of time if you talk in your perfect English grammar or accent. I was once smirked at a copy center when I keep saying.. "scan" pointing at my document that needs to be scanned. And the lady told me in her irritated voice "is-skan".
It also doesn't help that I look a little like the locals. They tend to be more friendly to caucasians. I could no longer keep count of the times when I tell a saleslady, fast food attendant or bank teller "sorry, I don't understand " and they would either frown or roll their eyes as if I am pretending to be a foreigner.

Many times we also get stared in public when my kids ( 3 and 5 yrs old) speak in english. Some smile while others roll their eyes as if we are some kind of trying hard social climber.

Oftentimes we want to complain with the wrong order given, being cut in line, being pushed in the train or for bad service. But we end up just shrugging it off since it wouldn't be worth the time (1) they wouldn't understand (2) they would just smile at you even if you are already fuming red with anger.

It all comes down to tolerance and patience. And always bearing in mind that this is not your country. And like a guest in somebody's house, instead of complaining you just be thankful that they accepted you in their home.