Incompetence

I hate Baby Company Rockwell and I hate SM stores in general. Here’s what happened:

My husband and I decided to purchase a crib from Baby Company in Rockwell. We picked the Newport Cuddle Bug Crib because it’s convertible to a toddler bed; therefore what we will pay for will be maximized. We were really convinced because aside from the fact that it’s good investment, they have a 0% installment for 6 months if I use my credit card. I decided to do so because I don’t want to let go of the cash we have given that I’m giving birth in 5 weeks. We purchased the crib and filled out all the forms for delivery and all.

Newport Cuddle Bug Crib

After 4 days, I logged in to my Citibank account and found out that they charged me in full. In short, the payment wasn't deferred. I called Citibank immediately and they told me that it wasn't their call, it was Baby Co’s decision to make it a straight payment not theirs. Citibank said that I should call Baby Co. to clarify the mode of payment.

I called Baby Co. and at first they told me that according to the cashier named BLAER, I told them that it was a straight payment. I told them that I wouldn’t be calling them in the first place if I knew this was a straight payment! They asked me to go to their store so that we can find a remedy. 2 effin hours for them to swipe my credit card again, in short I’m charged twice! Wala man lang pampalubag loob.

It’s been a week and the purchase hasn't been reverted yet. I can’t use my credit card because I’m over the limit. I really hate Baby Co.

Moreover, I hate how SM Companies and subsidiaries handle such cases. It takes too long for them to expedite and they don’t even care if they have troubled a customer.

I am so angry! 

A beautiful accident

It has been months since I last posted on my blog. My last post was around April, so that means I haven’t updated my blog for four months. I’ll tell you why.

April 2012 – I found out I was pregnant.

May 2012 – Paulo and his family went to our house to talk about our plan. It went better than expected.

June 2012 – We were planning our civil wedding, making appointments with the gynaecologist, fixing    

                      our place in Ortigas and all that.

June 29, 2012 – The day we got married (civil)

July 2012 – We started planning on our church wedding. We reserved for the church and we attended

                      a bridal expo in NBC Tent

August 2012 – We found out that our little bundle of joy is a girl. She’s going to be our Olivia Marie. 

The pregnancy was a blessing more than a responsibility. For some strange reason, we both felt that we were prepared for this for a long time. We’re excited. I know that it’s not traditional to get pregnant first before getting married but accidents happen and this one is beautiful. I think what made it easier for the both of us is that both our families are there to support us.

We had our civil wedding to make sure that everything is legitimate. We both don’t want our daughter to have future problems when it comes to her birth certificate. Plus it’s the right thing to do. My mother insisted that we get married in a church and this caused so many fights between the two of us. At the end of the day, I got what I wanted J We got married civil first, and then we’ll get married in a church next year (after I give birth and when I lose weight :p). I am just so glad that I have my Mom and my Aunts to help me out on this one. The civil wedding was intimate, plus the chapel helped us solemnize everything.

On June 29, 2012, I became Mrs. Marianne Marley Torgo-Eugenio

We started planning the church wedding as early as now so that we won’t have to hire a wedding planner to plan the whole thing, plus it’s good to plan a big event in advance. We prepared the initial guest list, primary and secondary sponsors, entourage, church, invitations, etc. The rest will follow.

We reserved San Agustin Church in Intramuros for our church wedding

I feel that my life is going really fast. Right now, I am 6 months pregnant and we found out that it’s a girl. She’s so active at night that we both can’t sleep because we want to feel her kick every time.

Olivia Marie T. Eugenio (5 months)

This beautiful accident brought us closer and made our relationship stronger. For some strange reason, we became more understanding and caring towards each other. It feels great! 

Do not deny where you came from

I am a proud Benildean

I am not from UP, Ateneo, or La Salle. I came from CSB, the school speak for itself in a not so positive light. If the person interviewing you is 40 and above, chances are they see you from the institution you came from. CSB=College of School Bukol, College of Spoiled Brats, “bagsakan ng kick-out from La Salle”, etc. I am sure that if people were proven wrong, this stereotyping will soon be gone.

I am not saying that all of them are wrong. There are some Benildeans out there who just really puts shame to our alma mater. It’s like they’re not even trying to be better, like they’re spoiled to begin with and there is nothing that they’d do to change. Those super duper rich kids who need a diploma just for the sake of having one. It also baffles me that there are some Benildeans who'd lie about their school, they'd be like "I'm from La Salle". Jeez. 

Back in frosh, I was so defensive about my institution. I don’t like it when people judge it because of what it was 10 years ago. It’s like they disregard the fact that the school is starting to gain momentum. There were professors in CSB who would actually tell us straight to our faces that we’re lucky enough that they’re teaching in CSB, they’re there because of the pay, that they could be teaching in Ateneo or something.

We all felt rejected at some point. Like no one really wanted us. I was lucky to be in the right crowd in CSB. We studied, partied, had a social life, hung-out in the LRC, and all the other things that college people do. I think some of us shared a dream of being a notable person one day, and that we’ll give our speech on how we owe it to our alma mater.

I am thankful for the professors who instead of teaching in an established school, opted to teach in CSB. I am sure that aside from the salary, they saw potential. They saw students willing to learn and strive. I am thankful that I’ve met my closest friends in college. We all helped each other realize our dreams, constructively criticized one another, and served as a support group. I am proud of CSB, and I am proud that I graduated there. 

My forever friends

These are the things that I learned in CSB:

Ø  Doing ordinary things extraordinarily well

Ø  Be honest

Ø  Always work twice as hard

Ø  Always be willing to learn

Ø  Don’t take advantage of the weak

Ø  Be a leader, not a boss

Ø  Share your knowledge

Ø  Be a team player

Ø  Be humble

Ø  Learn to work under pressure

Ø  Assume the worst case scenario

Ø  Be socially responsible 

Polish Lover

I think everyone who reads my blogs is aware that I’m a late bloomer and I just got into this “kikay” thing recently. I’ve been addicted to nail-polish and I keep on purchasing. I had pictures uploaded on my Instagram account with the purchases I made. I am not really a manicure pro but recently, I’ve decided that I should be the one doing my manicure and pedicure. From time to time(at least once a month), I go to nail pros to take care of the occasional in-grown and stuff(gross). Anyway, here are some pictures of my work J

The yellow nail polish is from A'postrophe (120 for 3 colors) and the blue one is from Faceshop (Php 95)

This dark purple shade is from Faceshop (Php95)

Red Nail Polish is from A'postrophe (Php120 for 3 colors)

Effie Trinket inspired manicure 

Red Nail Polish is from A'postrophe (Php120 for 3 colors) and the gold one is from Caronia (Pho34)

So what does this blog entry tell you? I am no mani-pedi pro but I love coloring my nails. If you want quality nail-polish with unique colors, I suggest you go for Faceshop. They have a variety to chose from plus their prices are reasonable, prices start at Php95.00

I hope you had fun :) 

Reinventing myself

I am stressed. I travel a total of 3-4 hours every day going to work and going home. I hate it. I hate that I don’t see my friends that often, I hate that there’s no convenient alternative.

Since there is not convenient alternative, I’ve decided to shower myself with nice things because I deserve it. No one in this planet have the right to tell me how to handle my money because no one in this planet knows how hard I work to earn it. I have every right to spend it the way I want to. I don’t owe anyone any explanation.


Anyway, these are the things that made me happy for the month of March :)

These items are from SM. If you're patient and you really try hard, there are a lot of good finds in SM.

I've been trying the feminine thingy. I think I want to be feminine for a change. I like this whole color blocking thing. I want to play with prints next time. I think I've been reading too much itscamilleco.com. Hahaha. 

This is how I wore it. The top and shorts are both from SM, the shoes are from Janylin, I bought the Longchamp Le Pliage online, the accessories are from my grandmother :)

Since I've been so kikay lately, I've been addicted to nail polish. Moreover, I've been addicted to Face Shop! I bought my BB Cream for Php1,495.00 and boy it was awesome. I also buy my nail polish from Face Shop. It's not as expensive as OPI or Sally Hansen, but the quality isn't bad. The Php95.00 nail polish will last you 3 days without chipping. Not bad huh? 

This is what I bought yesterday. I forgot to add the eyebrow liner in this picture. All of it cost me Php2005.00 only. Very reasonable :) Plus there's free lip gloss and soaps :) 

I am very proud that I do my own nails now :)

I think this is the only relevant thing I can share to you right now. Hahaha. 

Till next post :)

The Hunger Games

I have nothing really to write about. I think it’s more of I haven’t updated my blog in weeks that I feel the urgency to write something. I don’t have much to share really except for the fact that I finished reading The Hunger Games trilogy last week and I think it is awesome.

The tributes from the 12 districts of Panem for the 74th Annual Hunger Games

photo courtesy of http://collider.com/the-hunger-games-tributes-cast/90436/

I liked the trilogy very much. I think it’s the fact that I like Katniss (protagonist/lead female) because I want to be like her. I want to be that person whose actions can make a difference. It’s a revolution. It’s dystopian fiction. It’s sorta bloody. Not really romantic.

I like how the story ended in the third book that even if they sort of lived happily ever after, the aftermath of being tributes during the 74^th and 75^th Hunger Games still hunted them. Peeta (protagonist/lead male) still gets aftershock from the hijacking that was done to him at the Capitol, Katniss still afraid that their kids might have to go through it as well. It strikes fear because history repeats itself. It goes to show that even if everything turned out fine, there is no way anyone can forget a traumatic experience like that.

What’s my point? My point is no one lives happily ever after. My point is don’t give unsolicited advice telling people that it’s going to be over soon or move-on, what’s traumatic for them might be tolerable for you and you don’t know that because you didn’t experience it firsthand.

Anyway, after reading The Hunger Games trilogy, I feel like starting a rebellion. The question to ponder though is (1) who am I going to rebel against?; and (2) who is my enemy? I think the Philippine politics has been a circus you don’t really know anymore.

These characters play a crucial role in the lives of Katniss and Peeta

photo courtesy of http://popspoken.com/2012/02/22/movies-were-piped-up-for-the-hunger-games/

The first installment of the movie will be shown on the 23^rd of March here in the Philippines. I hope it will be good and I hope that there wouldn’t be much alterations just to make it marketable because it’s already as good as it is. I don’t mind if they don’t focus on some characters anymore like the Avoxes or the prep team. I also hope that they don't turn it into a sappy overly romantic film because the book wasn't even like that.

Twilight was excruciating to watch because Kristin Stewart was a horrible actress. Jennifer Lawrence on the other hand is a good actress, you can watch the trailer and feel her emotions during the reaping. The academy awards would agree with me on this opinion because she wouldn’t be nominated for best actress if she wasn’t good. 

Pet = family

I still can’t get over the fact that our house pet passed away. I thought it would be easy because you know, she’s a dog. I just feel so depressed over it. I bathe her the other day, fed her and gave her water to drink yesterday morning before going to work. She was fine. I know she was. She gave me that teary-eyed look, the one that you give when you don’t want other people to leave.

This was taken Christmas of 2011. My youngest sister Marj was holding her. 

It makes me really sad. Duchess is our house pet. She’s sweet and she’s part of the family. I still can’t comprehend the sudden turn of events. Now there will be no one to welcome me home with a bark when I arrive. No one to feed in the morning. It was really quite this morning. I feel really depressed.

A pet is someone who makes you smile when you get home, a responsibility you wanted to have. A pet relieves your daily stress. Duchess cheers me up when I am annoyed with the world. She always give me that eye to eye contact whenever I talk to her, like she understands.

She was our baby

I will surely miss you Duchess :'(

Updated birthday wish list

I've already announced in my Facebook account and twitter that I've already received my iPhone 4S from Globe. I will now officially take it off my birthday wish list.

Waiting and boredom

I don't like waiting. I hate it. I'm blogging about it.

The art of procrastinating

Procrastination is an art. Yes it is. It is the art of not boring yourself when you're at work. It is the art of not stressing yourself out over something really important and due soon. Like right now, I am procrastinating and it's a masterpiece. 

Been a while since I updated my blog and I feel like the last time I updated it was last year. Oh well. I am so annoyed that I don’t put pictures in my blog entry, it looks dead and boring. My Blackberry is not really a device that takes good picture and there’s no point in uploading ugly pictures. I want and Iphone4S and I really do hope that my application does not get rejected.

Anyway, have you ever felt that you have so many things to do, deadlines to meet, and at the end of the day you weren’t able to anything because you were contemplating on how you’re going to do all those things? So at the end of the day, you end up doing nothing, and your work just keeps on piling up. I’ve been in that situation since last week. I have 8 industries to study, 2 weeks to do it, and I haven’t really started yet.

To cheer me up, I am making a birthday wish list even if my birthday is 3 months from now. It doesn’t even belong the 1^st quarter of the year.

Wish list:

Savings

Engagement Ring (because I want to be a fiancee) 

LV NeverFull PM (because every woman needs a big and signature bag)

Iphone 4S (The perfect gadget. Plus it's the last product that Steve Jobs laid his hands on)

Elizabeth Arden Green Tea

Estee Lauder Pleasures (My favorite scent)

Sephora Deluxe Anti-Bacterial Brush Set

Ok. This wish list is not yet final. I might add something but it is also likely that this is the priority list. 

Oh well, I need to get back to work now. 

Till next post :)

To a better year :)

I am sure that I started the year right. I welcomed 2012 with Paulo, then after that we went to Leigh’s place with Allan and welcomed the first sunrise of the year. We did the traditional predictions activity and I think this time we got confused between predictions and goals. Hahaha. I and my friends shared our first meal of the year together at Pancake House.

The barkada goals for 2012 are kinda expensive. Here’s a list:

Ø  Go to the following places:

o   Anawangin, Boracay, Palawan, or Cebu

o   Bangkok or HongKong

o   Hangout with the rest of the friends that we haven’t communicated for a while

o   Do sports activities (competitive badminton, competitive Frisbee, etc.)

o   Join a fun run

o   Re-instate the rotating monthly restaurant thing

There are also individual predictions. I will edit the stuff that I will be listing because some of it are inside jokes and it’s not meant to be seen by others. Hahaha

Predictions 2012:

Allan:

Ø  Pass the CFA

Ø  Will go clubbing once a month

Ø  Will be drunk on his sister’s wedding

Ø  Win in the casino

Ø  Buy stocks in mining (Philex or Lepanto)

Leigh:

Ø  Will be a guest in Showtime

Ø  Will have a full time work by February

Ø  Will achieve her weight loss goal by April (150lbs)

Ø  Will have significant savings by the end of 2012. (50K)

Paulo:

Ø  Will propose by 2012

Ø  Will have a car by 2012

Ø  Will continue studies

Ø  Will gain muscles

Ø  Will hug Leo while drunk

Ø  Get drunk and dance bad romance or hairspray

Marianne:

Ø  Invest in the stock market

Ø  Stay in First Philec

Ø  Participate in a CosPlay

Ø  Start planning for a wedding

I find it quite funny that all our individual predictions/goals consist of us investing or saving up while our barkada goal is kinda costly. Haha.

Let us see what 2012 has in store for all of us.

“I see a star, you see a dot in the sky” – Torgo 2012

It is all about perspective.

Happy New Year everyone!