Go USTe!

UAAP Update: Upset-Minded: UST Halts Ateneo's Bid For Sweep.

What a thrilling 88-80 overtime victory for the UST Tigers this afternoon! Indeed a sweet revenge for the humiliating first round loss. Go Uste!

Surprises.

Lucky me..I got 3 great surprises this weekend. Oh well, I'm indeed a sucker for surprises and I just love being astonished once in a while especially when life seems to be monotonous and boring.

Surprise #1:

Kristen, the moderator of DSP's New Kids 5, announced Round 3's Top 10 yesterday and surprisingly, for the second time I made it to the list...Hurray! This will earn me my second prize which is a freebie kit. I haven't received the prize yet for my first week win but the organizers informed us they will be sending it in the next few days since the NKOTB5 has just wrapped up. Though my entry Dream Come True was one of my favorites so far and felt pretty confident with it, I didn't expect it'd be one of the Top 10 among 79 amazing entries. Take a peek in the gallery just to have an idea how the judges could've knacked their heads in choosing the best among the best layouts out there.

Surprise #2:

As the 3-week-contest New Kids 5 has been wrapped up, they held a chat this morning (US night time) to announce the Overall Top 10 after rounding up and averaging the scores from each of the 3 rounds. What a morning gift...I place 9th overall! With this I'll be expecting another prize coming my way. I can't believe I'll be earning 3 prizes from the very first digiscrapping contest I joined. But more notable is that I'm quite amazed on how my skills improved through their CCs and suggestions. It's just sad New Kids has ended..no more weekly pressure..no more tireless revisions..no more challenges...but these got to be paused momentarily only as Kristen announced they'll be organizing in the coming months another contest for the "not so New Kids". It's something between New Kids and the Digital Elite Team (DET Booth Camp)...that's got to be something to look forward to.

Surprise #3:

Finally, after a month of waiting and persistent follow-ups from the cargo company, the package my dad has sent us from Saudi arrived this morning. I excitedly opened it up and savored the waft of balikbayan box..I just love how the scent of the items lingered my nostrils. Well, it must have been the bath soaps, toothpastes, detergents, fabric softeners that mostly filled the box. Other stuffs include clothes, toothpastes, coffee, bed linens, some canned goods, tissues and even a carpet! Enough to scratch those things from the weekly grocery list for several months. Also, I got a navy blue Mango XS shirt while hubby got a Quarter Deck White t-shirt. So to my dad and my stepmom who are avid readers of my blog...thanks so much for the package you sent. Mmwah!

Patience.

Our everyday lives get us to be customers in various necessities and services we need. I'm pretty sure the "Customer is Always Right" thing is stuck in our heads as we demand nothing but the best customer service we deserve. And customer service starts in the queuing line. Studies have it that the Average Patience Time of customers (the time a customer is willing to wait) is 15 minutes.

Customer side in me:

1.) I usually pay our bills through online banking to save time, effort and transportation fare. But the procrastination queen in me got me again last week. I totally forgot that our electricity bill is already due kaya ayun I found myself yesterday hurrying to the Meralco Office near our place. Upon reaching their office, I wanted to backout upon seeing the various snaking lines on the payment counters. Sobrang daming tao! But then, I got no choice..I have to pay our overdue bill. So I stood and queued behind the shortest line (among 6) I saw and looked at my watch...1:30. Slowly I noticed that the line has moved a bit...time check: 1:40. I glanced towards the beginning of the line and attempted to count the heads in front of me, there were about 15. Great, my heels and legs were starting to ache and from where I was standing I wondered what time will I be finally served. To entertain me and eased my boredom, I brought out my mobile phone and played Christmas Trouble. Inch by inch, I felt moving closer until I finally saw the cashier and handed my bill. I wanted to check the cashier's exhaustion after serving a long line but he seemed okay naman. Well, I'm just not sure kasi medyo aged na mga cashiers sa Meralco..siguro sanay na. The processing was fairly fast naman though the cashier wasn't courteous. Final time check: 1:55. Whoaa...25 minutes of waiting time. They failed the Average Patience Time by 10 minutes.

2.) I proceeded right away to a nearby bank to deposit some savings. There were only two tellers as it is a relatively small branch. Again, I felt backing out upon seeing the line perhaps, this was due to the declared Special Non-Working Holiday last Monday. I quickly glanced on the depositors' documents on their hands. As I had worked as a teller for the same bank (but different branch) before, I was quite familiar with the nature of transaction they'd be having basing on their documents. There were mostly deposit single transactions and a few bill payments that would only take a few minutes to process. I decided to wait at the end of the line thinking it'd be fast naman. I glanced on their wall clock...it was 2:05. I counted the persons before me on the line and there were about 15 again. Oh great...bakit lagi akong pang-16th? As using mobile phones are prohibited inside banks, I just observed the people inside especially the bank's employees. I wallowed myself in thinking of and recalled my teller life before. I noticed they are now using a different tellering system...gone are ancient ABS system and green-colored uni-functioned monitor..as well as the noisy dot matrix printers. I was that buried in deep thoughts perhaps that I noticed na 20 minutes have passed but I only moved about 5 steps forward lang pala and there was a still long queue in front of me. Oh crap..still, I waited. I was distracted by one of the teller's powerful voice asking for the officer's override password. Then I laid my eyes on the other teller..they weren't smiling and worse, their eyebrows were meeting in the middle and their foreheads wrinkled seemingly pissed or angry. Whoa...that's a big no-no based on the Customer Service code. The code also states to observe the GMTY rule. This stands for the mandatory greeting a teller should do.."Good Morning/afternoon and Thank You". 2:40...I noticed my co-depositors were breathing out heavy sighs, stomping their feet on the floor obviously pissed off while letting out impatient remarks and were cursing the poor tellers. At 2:50, there were only 2 in front of me...but just the bad luck we needed, the teller's printer screwed up prolonging the waiting time even more. When it was my turn, the clock's hands were on 3:05....whoa! exactly one hour of waiting time...and guess what time was the teller finished my transaction? 3:06! I waited an hour for a minute transaction. Obviously, they failed the Average Patience Time.

The frontliner side in me:

As I had engaged with the customer service industry for the past four years (3 years being a frontliner), I feel for these cashiers who were doing their best, speeding up transactions, barely having time for a "wee-wee" break and shortened breaks and yet they are the ones absorbing all of the irate customers' rantings and curses. Physically exhausted na nga, emotionally stressed pa. But then, that's a frontliner's life. We get to meet different types of customers..from the most humble and considerate ones to the most conceited, mean and arrogant ones. No matter how hard you try to shrug it off, lagi kang talo..your pride always being stepped on and as a person nakakababa ng self-esteem talaga. You have to give in...as they say..customer service kasi eh. We need to treat these customers as if they are the kings and us, servants. They are the ones giving us business...in the first place, we exist because of them. In the end, tama nga naman, di ba?

Coming from these two POVs (being a customer and had been a frontliner myself), it has taught me to be considerate and value the virtue of patience. As a customer, it's okay for our patience to be tested once in a while. Also, I have to remember that the cashier or the frontliner is not a robot..we need to be considerate din naman dahil limited nga din naman ang powers nila. As a frontliner naman, one needs to be considerate din of the customer's waiting time. By nature, madali naman talaga tayong mainip. And yun nga, we get to be customers din naman on other services kaya the more na we should understand and empathize with them. Most importantly, if the customer has waited for so long na, dapat bumawi na lang by giving exceptional accommodation and service para mapawi yung inis at galit ng client.

Tin.

Credits: Country Grunge Kit by Marcee Dugar, A Time to Remember Elements by Kim Liddiard..both from DSP.

Software: Adobe Photoshop CS2

TIN:

- doesn't want to announce her birth date on her blog.

- becoming a nun once crossed her mind.

- thought of flying to Cebu asap when she was in the lowest point of her life.

- Bubba Gump model.

- loves eating..eating..and eating.

- had a Princess themed Mcdonald's Birthday Party last year.

- the eldest among her siblings but pictures with them don't say so.

- she's feeling better with her Dad right now.

- having second thoughts of offering her seat in MRT to pregnant passengers as she's having trouble distinguishing a pregnant lady from a big-bellied one. Kinda torn between offering an unselfish act or rendering an offense.

**There goes my random thoughts and recollection about Tin while I was digiscrapping her pic.

I met this pretty lass in the blogosphere world. I can no longer recall who tagged first, it's just that the next thing I know..her blog is one of those I frequently round, tag and her entries being commented on. Her entries would always be short but precise and straight to the point. What I love about her blogging is how she imparts her random ramblings, her thoughts, wit and even frustrations in life...the way she shares her life to her blogger friends...the way she sees her own, according to her, Pretty Life. Though we haven't met personally yet, I'm sure her positive outlook and bubbly personality shines through even more in person..even better the way she is in her blogging world. I couldn't think of a better caption than her own personal quote on her blog...am I not right? "short but precise and meaningful".

So there goes the RAK I'm blabbing about last week.

This is Tin, the younger sister I never had..the sole "kind-hearted" challenger among my oh-so-many blogger friends out there who bravely took my dare. (hehe! nagparinig na naman).

So Tin, I just want to affirm that you have indeed a pretty life with a pretty face. Keep on shining with your positive aura. God Bless!

RAK.

This week's the 3rd and last round for DSP's New Kids on The Block 5 Contest and I'm really having a blast. Aside from the excitement I feel making it on the first round (still patiently waiting for my prize which is a new kit), I'm surprised on how I am improving each week. Got tons of helpful comments, suggestions, new techniques..I just love hearing other peeps' comments my LOs are getting better and better each week...and I'm yearning to learn much more!

I know, i've been raving about this digiscrap thing in my blog..well, honestly, it has been taking up so much of my time these days and there's not much I can share about me lately except this one...(so bear with it, ok? lolz)

The results for Round 2 won't be announced until Thursday night (US EST time) so that's Friday morning here in the Philippines. Oh yeah, I'm now even into calculating and converting US and Phil time zones every now and then to anticipate and join the scheduled chats where they give out freebies.

Here's my first version for Round 3 using the Ceylonese Sapphire Page Kit by Lauren Bavin and Sweethearts Brush Set by Suzanne Walker (DSP Designers). We are instructed to use Lauren's kit, another kit and the layout has to be about one's self. I don't have recent decent photos worth digiscrapping of so for the nth time, I resorted to doing my bridal pic.

Journalling reads:

A moment of calm soothes my heart as I hear the harmony in the music that signals my entrance. I feel as though I am embarking on a journey that I have envisioned all my life.

Today, on our wedding day, I see you standing waiting for me by the altar, about to grasp my hand as we begin to speak utterances of our love and commitment.

As I walk down the aisle, I look forward to raising our family and buildingour relationship under the care and guidance of God.

As I walk down the aisle, I look forward to sharing with you more of life's ups and downs.

As I walk down the aisle, I look forward to spending the rest of my lifewith you, my best friend, my soul mate..my love. From this day forward our lives will be intertwined forever.

As I walk down the aisle, I suddenly realize the dream I envisioned long ago is now magically unfolding...

Again your CCs (constructive criticisms) are welcome and feel free to comment. I got a suggestion from the forum to do something with the silver border of my pic..I'm still thinking how to go about it.

Here's another technique I just learned using Photoshop...

Photo Tinting! I just love how the yellow hue soothes the eyes!

I got quite engrossed with this technique that I even "borrowed" bridal shots of my CWL online kada (fellow former brides-'05-'06): Wella, Mec and Yna to practice with.

***********************

Now, what's with the title?

Though I didn't win in fellow wawie & digiscrapper Aggie's RAK (Random Act of Kindness) raffle, I'm inspired of her mala-Pay It Forward thoughts that I decided to go with the rippling effect. Since I'm into digiscrapping lately, my simple RAK would be I'll digiscrap blogger friends' pics. It may sound easy for a sacrifice but it's not. Sometimes it takes hours working on a layout before satisfaction sets in with your final product. And of course, what's sweeter about it is somebody's thinking of you.. Yes promise, I'll be thinking and offering a prayer for you while I'd be doing it. hehe! O di ba ok yun? Please post a comment if you'd like your pic* to be digiscrapped BUT remember I'll be waiting for your own RAK, too. It's mandatory that you have to blog about it and make sure your RAK will continue to set a ripple effect. It doesn't matter how big or small a favor you'll do. Basta importante, it's something that you'd do sincerely and with all your heart. A little act of kindness, pag marami ang gumawa, brings a big impact and makes the world a better place to live in (hmmm..parang kanta ah). It's also one way of repaying God for all the blessings He's been showering on us. So come on, join me here, ok?

* Note: Any hi-resolution picture will do..your pic, your bf's& and gf's pics, your family's, a friend's pic, a scenery..kahit sino at ano basta siyempre wag lang vulgar and obscene. You may print it and give it as a gift or pwedeng i-post niyo ito as a friendster testimonial like what I do...please wag niyo lang po ibenta as the freebie kits I'll be using are covered with TOUs (Terms of Use). Please post a comment and leave your email addresses and I will send you further details (pic requirements).