Congratulations Jayson and Jobeth on your Engagement!

Four years ago during my Masters at DLSU, I met a group of beautiful and wonderful people who I'm now proud to call my friends. I started my Masters with no thought of any friendships blossoming but I guess I'm just really lucky to have been there with them - at the same place, at the same time. Serendipity, di ba? 

We've been at it through reports, outings, terror teachers, feeling terror teachers (nyahahaha), boys, love, dreams and yes, even heartaches. It was a sweet spot in our life when we felt we were still so young with so many things to do, goals to be accomplished and at the same time have the license to not really care where we were yet or get a free pass on not figuring out everything at that point...and it is also the cusp of adulthood (gulp!) when in a few itty-bitty years we will be breaching the big 3-0 (oh wait, some of us had already! hahaha!!).

Tuesday Marathon

I'm no track athlete but what happened yesterday truly felt like a marathon to me. I was rushing from one place to another to get things done:

7:45 Mandaluyong City Hall to get my cedula/Community Tax Certificate
I was there early to avoid long queues but I guess I was too early because they start serving only at 8am!! I guess I was lucky / or charming enough to get my cedula even before they started office hours = )
8:00 Seattle's Best Coffee (Tektite, Ortigas) meeting
I already informed Di that I might be a few minutes late cause I had to get my cedula. However, with some luck again, I was able to arrive there on time but I didn't see her so I just proceeded to the 18F and waited for her. Meeting went well but I was very challenged with the feedback she gave.
Reports to Cisco in between
1:00 Funnel Meeting, etc etc
Had to meet up with my girls to check on our funnels, forecasts especially since it's month end and almost quarter end for Cisco. We also had to discuss for our disti planning, their incentives and I had to relay the feedback I got
5:00 Reporting to boss
OMG I kinda wished I didn't get some snacks so that I'd get this done earlier. But I needed the nourishment for another marathon ..I set my sched so that I could leave by 5:15 which would give me ample time to get to school but there were last minute PRs which I still had to sign
5:30 Finally left the building
So absent-minded I clocked out!!grrrr..
Got on an FX to megamall nuninuninu...
But I got off somewhere near EDSA Shang and walked through Shangrila Mall to the MRT station
6:00 Boarded the south-bound train/MRT
Thank God for Stored Value Cards!!! And thank God for the kind man who let me have his seat = )
Been keeping a close eye on my watch as every second every minute counts!!
Walked briskly to the LRT station..
6:20 Boarded the north-bound train/LRT
After a few skip trains, I finally got on a spacious train.
6:30 Vito Cruz Station/DLSU
6:35 Arrived at Doc Nards' IMC Class!
Probably all sweaty (eeewww) and a few minutes late...
Anyway, just made bawi on my recitations, and group presentation for my much needed case points! In fairness, he said I can be a good psychometrician (whatever that is..hehe) = )
9:00 Andrew picked me up
Shared my frustrations and how my day went while on the road
10:00 Arrived home
Played with our puppies, got to talk some more, ordered Tapa King for dinner/breakfast - Tapa Queen for me (I like it a bit spicy) and Longganisa for him

It's nice to know that after a day's worth of marathon, you can slow down a bit in the evening and take stock...or simply spend time with someone very special over Tapa King delicacies = )

happy saturday!

Today I'll be spending much of my time (READ: 8 am - 3pm) at school for my Research Methods and Marketing Strategy classes. Most people would find it very nerd-ly or nerd-some hahaha but I guess I'm enjoying learning new things and getting to know most people. So much so that I'm willing to forego late Friday night outs or over-sleeping on Saturdays...for real!

It wouldn't hurt too if you have great friends at class! = )

Catch ya later!

it pays to ask

omigosh i have literally spent an entire day worrying (again) whether i was doing the right thing or not. you see i have to report on developing marketing strategies tomorrow for my masters (marketing management) class.

i pretty much got everything in the bag except for one sub-topic: types of strategies for primary and selective demand. i kept searching and searching my memory if i have encountered this topic during my college days...hmmm..NOPE! i asked around to check if my friends have tackled this too well it turns out that this is a phantom subject! kidding! hehe..imagine it's written clearly in the syllabus but i can't find it anywhere - not in our book, not in the other books (i borrowed 4 from the library), not in the internet!!

the only thing that stuck to my mind were porter's basic strategies and for a good 4 hours i had decided to bet on that path. yet and still a feeling that something's wrong kept lingering..so i thought that something definitely was wrong.

i was getting frustrated that i can't find the answers in these books little did i realize that maybe i was searching for the wrong things or maybe i was searching the wrong way..guess what, i was doing both!

i researched again on the topic and found a new set of answers..somewhat related to the first but they're still world's apart ---> product life cycle strategies. now it felt wrong-er..which should i choose?

this just made me realize that even in the advent of the internet or of subject indexes at the end of each book, you still have to use that thing between your ears to process the information available to you and make something intelligent out of it. life should not be mechanical or automatic at least in this sense. just because we're having things easy, we should not let go of our human functions of curiosity, analytical thinking and resourcefulness.

just because the topic is written that way doesn't mean that it would also appear that way in the book and in the internet.

of course, if you really can't find the answer within...what are teachers for? so to stop this nagging feeling (you know of doubt, of worry, helplessness) i called up my prof to verify if it was indeed the PLC strategies..bingo! got it!!

felt more like a challenger on survivor or other reality tv shows..you're only given the problem, the riddle and the clues..it's up to you to solve it = )

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Update!! Update!! ---download my presentation below--

The report went okay! Or more than okay I should say = ) I'm glad and proud I was able to do it by myself successfully (while some groups were in 2's or 3's..i did this by myself because my groupmate quit masters this early!!)

For those who would need a reference material, here's the copy of my Keynote presentation (in pdf version). Please click on the link to go to the download page:

>>Developing Marketing Strategies

i can cook pala!

I spent most of my morning worrying on things I should do and things I should have done concerning my masters and my other extra-curricular activities. I know it's a bad thing to do to keep on worrying but sometimes it's the first thing one does upon realizing that your pending tasks are indeed worrisome. = )

For starters I was supposed to go the whole nine yards to survey (the S word!) moms from all over the Metro. It's good that I have 2 other very efficient and reliable groupmates (Hi Crissy and Don!!) but this task (survery close to 300 people) we had to divide among us three. I know I should have started the past weekend but physically, I just couldn't. But I'm all better now and am really raring to tick this off my to-do list - only to realize that I might have started too late. Looking at my assigned areas is enough to make one's head go loco loco!! Add to that the sheer number of respondents I have to accomplish!

1. Mandaluyong - got this covered since I'm from here
   
2. Manila - bf got this covered (thanks so much baby!! super life-saver..more on that later)
   
3. San Juan
4. Las Pinas
5. Muntinlupa
6. Pasig
7. Pateros
8. Quezon City

It was just so overwhelming for me, I guess that my mind went to panic mode!! In times like this, who ya gonna call?? I'm so glad that there are very generous and gracious friends who were more than willing to help a crazed and dazed girl!

Really it felt more like a test on how well you'll be able to manage logistics, time and your network. So instead of me having to go around like a headless chicken, thinking how to juggle all these activities, I stopped my panicked self, sat myself down and just really fixed my gameplan. So since photocopying is much cheaper in the UST area, bf got on to it. He'll take 20 and distribute to his classmates. My brother (also studying in UST) will bring home the rest for me and will also distribute some to his friends. Internet power was also maximized as I sent copies to my former officemates and classmates. As Bo Sanchez said, if you just bite-size things and plan ahead, everything seems more manageable - indeed I agree!

But before I calmed down to that level, I paced the house like crazy thinking and worrying of all those to-do list that I simply had to go out and do something! And then I remembered the episode on Quickfire (a QTV-11 production) where they made a simple (read: easy to cook like I can make this on my own) and seemingly delectable dish (EVOO fried chicken breast fillet, with taco salsa, cheddar cheese, buttered corn) which I intended to make this weekend. But it can't wait anymore so off I went to Pure Gold (just a Php 8.00 jeepney ride away) and bought the stuff needed. Despite the possibility of rain, I went anyway.

Not a pro in the kitchen department but I think I did a pretty good job cooking it. The second version tasted better - and everyone in the household gave a thumbs up! I'm so happy! = ) This is the first time I realized that cooking has its calming, soothing effect too! And the happiness grows once you see everyone enjoy the food!

THE VERDICT:
1. Mom: Do this again on saturday and I'll give some to Tita Rica for her to try
2. Dad: Uno!

With a fuller tummy, and a less-tense me..now I can concentrate on my next immediate task:

preparing for my pathology presentation for sunday!!
will write more about this by sunday! gosh i'm excited! (wheee!!)

and my second immediate task:

my (masters) presentation on developing marketing strat!

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so no to panic-stricken, downtrodden, tense spirits and YES to cooking, eating and enjoying!

how tech savvy are you?

Two years into my corporate life (oh what a jungle it was!), I decided to go back to school and take up Masters in Marketing..primarily to develop myself and my potential and partly to get a much needed respite from all the hulabaloos of work.

As a part-time student, I only took 2 classes this term, and one of them is Statistics. Though not really my favorite subject in the world, it's something that I have a background on as a Management student, something I can be average or excellent in..depending on which side of the boat I wish to sit.

Classes and lessons started slow because as expected, there would be some sort of introductions among the 21 or so students in that class; which by the way my professor is disappointed in as she had wished that it would be a smaller class size so she can manage to teach us one by one. One by one?? Are we not masters students?? Or does she think of us as some grade schoolers?

I was actually shocked that she may be thinking lowly of us. Not that I'm a computer genius or a statistics whiz but I guess her expectations were really that low.

Imagine my surprise when at the end of the introductions, I found out that there were some classmates who did not even own a computer - even a desktop computer at that! Luckily, the school is able to provide students with fully-functioning computer labs. But how would they get by knowing they do not even know the basics of using a computer or its applications?

My hunch proved true that come laboratory time, there'd be disturbing buzzes among those who did not even know the following:

• Log in to the computer
• Save the downloaded file as an Excel file
• Copy and Paste an entire column
• Create new worksheets

My professor's perception of her students are REAL now! The need for a smaller and more manageable class size is real too!

On my part, I do not fault my classmates because they do not own a computer nor because they do not know how to use the applications. I just wish that there would be a desire on an effort on their part to learn. As it is, most of the oldies are just complainers at this point. Well, they have to start somewhere before they gain that proficiency. In the long run, it would really be annoying if all they ask the professor is how to save or how to copy this and that...I would appreciate it more if there would be more insightful questions and analytical discussions on STATISTICS!

Maybe DLSU should look into this too when screening their potential students. Not really to reject those who are not tech savvy but to help those deserving students use technology better as a tool, as an aid to their learning and development process.