Prayers and when they happen

In today’s mass, the second reading said that faith is the realization of things hoped for and evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1).  Those who pray can affirm that this is true. Current situations in my life are I can say, have been the product of my prayers and of those people who have prayed for me. With Mishka (my 1st niece) coming into this world, I have seen hope in what’s in store for my family. Believe me, her birth made me witness  so many possibilities I have never imagined. Work has been extra demanding lately and some situations have been very irritating but then, things are happening in my favor as I have asked Him. The Christian Life Program is happening so smoothly with Jesus inspiring me so much that there are more participants this time and the service team showing amazing commitment! I may not have the most comfortable life but thank God I survive everyday and there are things I am not asking for but will later realize, are huge blessings from above.  On a lighter note, my going to the gym paid off as most people have been noticing how much weight I’ve lost. I can feel it too as I can move more freely as compared to the time I gained, the issue now is maintenance (hehe).

What I am trying to point out is that prayer does not make life perfect but it gives us a better perspective on how we ought to view challenges, how it allows us to reexamine our aspirations, making us appreciate the value of waiting, knowing how we can act upon things, how it will make you more committed with your pact with a personal God, and most importantly, accepting His will for us. It is just a great way to balance human desires and submission to Divine Providence. You may ask for something now but later on, whatever outcome will be, makes you acknowledge why it was answered or not at that time.  

Right now, I still am praying for so many things for my family, that work will not be too demanding but I would easily respond to challenges, how my desires for my future will succeed, and having that special someone. Yup, the latter is such a great concern right now – you know that it is already the right time to act when this is becoming one of the priorities. I am confident that these will happen in His time as He never had a deaf ear with what I asked from Him. Being specific with what you ask for establishes a more cozy relationship with Jesus and it increases the likelihood of having it bound to happen. I guess you can attribute this from believing that He can make each step possible.

And they say, that prayers are more effective when others are praying for you… you’ve read what I am currently praying for.

Up For Another CLP!!!

This upcoming CLP is a gift for me. Due to my night shift schedule, I started to miss SFC activities during weeknights but we have a God that does keep us from being involved with His work. I was again, asked to lead our chapter’s upcoming Christian Life Program. The feeling was kind of weird as I had little doubts about doing it again given that I don’t show up that much anymore but at the same time, I felt excited for the coming things ahead. But what I currently feel right now is that I’m inspired and again, cliche as it may seem, but empowered. Ryan and I are CLP team leads again at the same time, hehe and I hope that this will be a better time for us now.

Anyway, if you happen to have been reading this, and you are a single person 20-40 years of age, you can attend our Christian Life Program at the Cainta Lay Formation Center at Our Lady of Light Parish, every Sunday, 2PM starting June 15.

 Hold the warmth, drink the inspiration…

Lately I…

Oh well, I know I haven’t updated my blog for the longest time. I just didn’t have the time to do so due to the many activities I’ve been doing since I came back. I then opted to make a random list of the recent things that happened:

- Going home after work is now something to look forward to. Third and Trian are now staying at home even during school season as Third is gonna be attending college in UST. Trian is already grown-up (as much as I hate to admit it) and can now manage to stay home by herself occasionally and like Third, will now be studying here in Metro Manila.

- I definitely am missing SFC activities during weeknights. As I am now working on night shift, attending teachings or chapter assemblies is now a luxury for me. There was a time when I took a leave just to attend our chapter assembly. However, the Lord is still giving me opportunities to serve Him no matter what. I still serve on weekends whenever there’s a chance (and knowing how many activities we have in SFC, there are a lot of opportunities). Good thing that I never lost track of what’s going on in the chapter, I have attended some CLP sessions, our chapter outing, and recently, a meeting at the CFC center to establish the SCOM. I’m still working out with my leaders on the schedule of our household meetings. I really miss my household (both upper and lower) in so many ways and for so many reasons. But honestly, I wish that the SFC leadership will start catering to the night shifters as the prevailing reality in the world today is that the number of its members who work on night shift and involved in outsourced work is increasing. This will retain committed members who are willing to serve despite the schedule and evangelize in a larger context. I say this as I I know there will be a lot of ways to work this out, He never loses His plans for the community anyway. On another note, I am really looking forward to the MMC this July…

- I am indeed, finding fulfillment with my new career. Not only that I am able to use what I’ve learned before but everyday is a gift to learn something new. Truly, doing offshore HR work is a new endeavor in this day and age and therefore, ultimately entails lots of challenges for service owners and clients alike. You can’t avoid the fact that some clients are resistant to change but the challenge you have everyday is convincing them how you make their processes better. Right now, I’ve attended 3 major trainings in my new job in less than 4 months. What excites me more with what I currently do is that I get to conduct training sessions once in a while and I can’t believe that I can now make web-based reports (here, users will make a query and in a few seconds, data will be available!) which was something I did not expect doing.

- I know I gained a lot of weight due to the fatty American diet when I was in the States. And boy, the change in my physique was so noticeable when I came back! So, I accepted this as a challenge and humbly responded to it by enrolling myself to the gym. I usually work out before coming to work and I have discovered how good it feels to sweat out everyday. Well, it has just been two weeks and some people say that I am gradually (again, gradually) losing some weight.

- Now I believe that it really pays off not to have a revengeful heart. I don’t need to say more but I felt vindicated for something. And I am happily whistling, in the distance….

 - I miss so many friends and I absolutely miss my cherifriends like hell. I get to talk and see them separately (except for PA) but we have never been together for almost half a year already! We all owe each other some stories about ourselves as I am aware that there have been a lot of events that happened to each of us. Despite this, I am certain that the brotherly bond is still as strong as ever!

So many things have happened and this is the time that I have a better appreciation of everything that the Lord has been doing for me. We are indeed, not living in a perfect world but I guess being happy is a personal decision, not a simple command of fate. What I mentioned may speak of what happened to me recently and depict the things that I aspire for.

Jesus still rocks!

March 2007 (Last few weeks in the US)

I’m finally home 2 weeks ago and yes, I know it’s been quite a while since I last posted. Things have definitely been getting better but I guess that will be in another post. For the meantime, let me just focus on important things I don’t wanna miss out posting.

So, pardon me for the many pictures since a lot of things happened to me last March and good thing that they were captured.

 Drive to Wisconsin

As half of the team has moved back home, the rest of us were bored and thought of renting a car for the rest of the days that Roel and Yna are still staying. We’ve been taking pictures outside the Allstate office as it’s been getting warmer that week.  One Friday, we decided to drive and shop in Wisconsin, a state that has one of the lowest taxes in the US. The wise thing to do for this pursuit is to go to Kenosha, a compound that has lots of outlet stores.

Off to Wisconsin…

Visit to New York

On the same day (March 9), I was scheduled to fly to New York that evening to visit Tito Danny’s Family.

Evening of March 9

At the La Guardia Airport where Camille and Ate Debra picked me up

Dinner at the Chinese Restaurant with Tito Danny, Tita Au, Ate Debra, and Camille (the Shintao beer was good)

We then had dinner at Cafe’ Lalo, a coffeeshop where some scenes in You’ve Got Mail were shot

Here are some scenes from the movie…

I was then informed that the waitresses in the cafe are aspiring actresses so this picture explains why…

On the way to their house, I caught sight of the IBM headquarters in Manhattan

March 10. This was the busiest day in New York as I went to a lot of places. Ate Deb and Steve toured me to the best places in the city, had dinner in Tito’s house afterwards, and then Camille and I went clubbing. Of course, there were no pictures in the bars we went to.

1st stop was at the Empire State Building, we didn’t stay that long and I just took shot of the 100% swarovski chandelier

We were able to pass by the NBC Studios and Radio City

2nd stop was the Rockefeller Center

Awesome statue at the background, beneath that is an ice skating rink

A few blocks away from the Rockefeller Center is the St. Patrick’s Cathedral

I was able to see the Philippine Embassy in New York after shopping at H&M

Next stop was Times Square

MTV Studios

Lunch at Bubba Gump in Times Square

Fourth Stop was at the World Trade Center

Here’s Ground Zero, kinda spooky on this spot…even at daytime

5th Stop was the free cruise (yup, for tourism purposes) to Ellis Island to see the Statue of Liberty

If you ever go to New York, don’t think that a shot with any of these guys is free… because I was charged $5 after the shot

A view of Manhattan from the cruise ship

A view of Brooklyn

And the bridge that connects them…

In the evening, we had kalderetang kambing and dinuguan for dinner and Camille and I went clubbing after.

March 11

I was able to wake up early despite the fact that we went home really late and was aggravated by the fact that it was the 1st day of DST for the whole US.

DJ and I. He was really small when they left and now, he’s taller than I am

Their cute puppies

After breakfast, we heard mass and drove to New Jersey for some shopping

Manila Avenue in New Jersey

I had a good flight that night going back to Chicago and though I was tired, it gave me so much happiness knowing that I was able to stay with relatives whom I have not seen for quite a long time.

March 11 (Monday), I was able to attend a household meeting and the next day, we had an invite for a dinner at Tuscany with the Allstate Talent Acquisition Team and the IBM bosses in Allstate.

World Premiere of GK The Movie in Chicago & Chapter Assembly

On March 17, I was able to be part of the service team of the Chicago world premiere of Paraiso, a trilogy about Gawad Kalinga. Believe it or not, I was the voice over during the gala presentation. I was deeply moved knowing how Filipinos in the US are so passionate in their intention to alleviate the plight of poverty in their motherland. They may have left the Philippines, some were born in the US, became American citizens, can’t speak Filipino but their commitment to GK is absolutely incomparable and very much Filipino at heart! It was also the 1st time for me to watch a Tagalog film in the US.

Preparation

Chris and I are now ready for the start of the program

Tito Tony and I before his inspiring speech

The movie’s about to start

The gala show was jampacked, with lots of non-Filipinos watching the film, too

Mark and I operating the 1920’s lightboard at the backstage

The next day, Jean, Jeremy, Ana, and I were invited to have lunch at Mang Gani’s house. Mang Gani is a Filipino employee in the hotel who has been so nice to everyone. We ate good Filipino food to our heart’s content due to Mang Gani and Tita Josie’s hospitality.

This is me, after eating. Each of us had this shot, hehe

With Mang Gani and Tita Josie

Angela and Ivy picked me up at Mang Gani’s house so I can attend the chapter assembly. I grabbed the opportunity to share and thank the SFC Illinois chapter for taking care of me in my stay there as it was my last weekend in Chicago. We had a fellowship in Naperville afterwards as my despedida.

IBM Get-Together Cocktail at Cafe Lucci

March 21, all IBM employees who are supporting Allstate were invited for a get together party at Cafe Lucci. I was stunned to see the number of IBMers who are rendering services for Allstate that night.

The same evening, I was able to meet Cholo, the kuya of a college friend, EJ. Cholo gave me some stuff that he wants to give to his brother and he toured me around places in Chicago that I’ve never been to.

Saint Mary of the Angels Cathedral, the biggest Catholic Church in Illinois

March 22, Jig purchased free NBA tickets for the 4 of us. When Kevin heard about this, he rented a car and a driver that will take us to the United Center in downtown Chicago and going back to Glenview. It was a great game between the Bulls and the Nuggets. Although I was rooting for the Bulls, Allen Iverson still never failed to amuse me with his prowess in doing the offense. It was a close match and the Nuggets were celebrating as they gained a 1-point lead on the last 10 seconds of the game. To everyone’s amazement, an easy lay-up paved the way for the Bulls to win by 1 point on the last 2 seconds of the game! This I can say, is one of the best things that I did here in Chicago!

Before the game

JM at the portrait of MJ’s last dunk for the Bulls

And the game’s starting! You could just imagine how excited I was to see this!

After the game…

March 23. It was our last whole day in Chicago. After work, we had a few shots with Sharon, the very warm lady at the Allstate Frontdesk in Building F as our way of bidding her goodbye. When we got to the hotel, Mark (a Filipino employee at Wyndham Hotel) invited us for dinner and we had our appetizers (literally and figuratively) at, ehem, Hooters! After that, we had buffet dinner at Todai, a Jap restaurant in Schaumburg. After the dinner, EJ’s siblings with his nephew visited me at my hotel room. When they left, I received a call from Patrick for an SFC bowling fellowship after their fellowship. I didn’t sleep afterwards so I can finish packing.

Bidding goodbye to Sharon

With the Hooters!

Me, Jeremy, and Mark

At Todai

With EJ’s bro and nephew

SFC Fellowship (Happy way to say goodbye to these brothers and sisters in Christ)

Kim and I thought it was just her and I at the pic until we saw Lloyd at the background

SFC Illinois, they’re now a great part of me

March 24. Finally, it’s the day of my flight going back to Manila! Mang Gani and Tita Josie came to see us at the airport to ensure that the 4 of us are doing fine on our way back home. But on that day, my flight from Chicago to Detroit was delayed and when we reached Detroit, we found out that the plane that will take us to Manila did not wait for us. Northwest booked us for a flight the next day to San Francisco and from there, we’ll board Philippine Airlines going to Manila. They gave us food vouchers and Northwest paid for the hotel for our stay in Detroit last Saturday evening. Sunday, we reached San Francsiso around 2 PM but our flight to Manila was at 10:30 PM.  It was such a hassle but luckily, Anna met his uncle there and he showed us around the city while we were still waiting for our flight. At the bright side of it, I went to California for free and saw some of the nice places in SF. Praise God for still allowing me to arrive safely.

With Mang Gani and Tita Josie at O’Hare Airport

A great reward the day after the unfortunate status of getting stranded in Detroit was a free trip to San Francisco, CA!

First stop was the carenderia named Manila Bay Cuisine

Pics at the historical San Francisco Golden Gate

The Crooked Road

The Posh Sausalito Village

Before heading to the airport, we stopped by the Fisherman’s Wharf and the Alcatraz

The Alcatraz

In summary, I was able to visit 8 states (Minneapolis, Illinois, Wisconsin, New York, New Jersey, Washington, Michigan, and California).

March 26.

MANILA, I’M FINALLY HOME!!!

February 26 – March 4, 2007

February 26, 2007 (Dinner at the Laundry Area and Jacuzzi Night)

It seems like everybody had the belief that Monday has the least number of people doing the laundry. However, Roel, Anna, Jo, and I all met each other at the laundry area and are waiting to take turns. As it will take long for each to finish, Anna decided to get food from her room for us to eat and we had an instant picnic at the laundry area. When I finished, I saw some of my teammates pampering themselves at the jacuzzi and I became really envious. So, after doing the laundry, I immediately went back to my room, dropped the laundry and went to the pool area immediately. I then went to the jacuzzi, sauna, had a few laps at the pool, and went back to the jacuzzi. It was a moment of great relief after feeling some backache the other day. Before going to sleep, I confirmed with Camille that March 9 will be the best time for me to go to New York.

February 27, 2007 (Going to New York & Workout Day)

Upon checking my email first thing in the morning, I already got my eticket for a flight going to New York! It was Tito Danny and Tita Au who bought the ticket for me and I can just feel the excitement to see relatives here in the US and to visit another state. After work, AJ and I went to the gym. We actually used all the facilities in the fitness area, the gym, the sauna, had some laps at the pool, then the final destination was the jacuzzi. After all those activities, Roel, Fatima, and I had adobo for dinner.

 February 28, 2007 (Nothin much)

Really, nothing special happened today…

March 1, 2007 (Last Hoorah at Club 209)

It was just the Taleo and Learning groups that went to the office today as the EA/EAFS and Employee Hiring groups were done with their documentation and will fly back to Manila on Friday and Saturday. While having lunch, we laughed at the idea that only 7 of us were left. Before, 20+ people were having lunch at the cafeteria and the scenario for the next 4 weeks will be that there will only be 7 people having lunch together. At night, we had a sendoff party at Club 209 with some guests like Jason, Mark and Angel (two of our friends from the hotel frontdesk). It was really fun but we know we’ll miss them while we’re still here.

March 2, 2007 (ABT, Transfer to Club 209 and Starbucks Milwaukee)

When we went back to the hotel, Aly, Yna, Jeremy, and I walked going to ABT for us to buy some stuff. Since I already had my AMEX card activated, I now have the guts to check out some gadgets and to my happiness, I was able to buy a 7.2 Megapixel Sony Digital Camera for a very, very low price! Jeremy also bought the same cam, case, and memory stick as mine. When we returned, I asked the Frontdesk to transfer me to Room 210 (Lewis’ former room) or any room at the 2nd floor because most of the people left are there. Betty informed me that Lewis’ former room is under repair and that the only available room is…Room 209, Anna’s former room where we usually held our parties. I was given a cart that I can use to move my stuff. I used the cart twice, the first was for moving all my personal stuff, while the second was for moving all the food! This is because everyone who left gave all their food to me, which is the reason why my room is now the official food station. Funny that they just wanna give it to me while there was no formal agreement about it. We then went to Cathy’s room to bid farewell to those who are leaving on Saturday. Fatima, Yna, Jeremy, Jun, and I went to Starbucks Milwaukee using the car that Jun’s team rented. And of course, Jeremy and I were able to use our cams, hehe. 

March 3, 2007 (CFC Pro-Life Conference & Fellowship Night)

I woke up really early today since Patrick will pick me up at 6AM for the conference. It started with a mass and intense discussions about stopping the proliferation of the culture of death in the US. The first day was a conference of Pro-Life Catholic groups in Illinois and Tito Frank was able to give a talk with Tita Gerry as sharer. The conference ended by having an anticipated mass for CFCs and SFCs. After the mass, all SFC’s (including those from other states) had a fellowship night at Buffalo Wild Wings. Patrick and Cromwell crashed at my suite to save time the next morning. Cromwell is a brother from SFC Orlando who’s now a chaptermate of Michelle (she moved to Orlando after graduating from our chapter’s CLP and it was Ate Jeng who facilitated her).

Before the conference

With Tito Frank

With the brothers from New Jersey

SFC Fellowship at Buffalo Wild Wings

My kuyas, Patrick and Lu

March 4, 2007 (Day 2 of the Conference and Downtown Chicago

After breakfast, Patrick, Cromwell, and I went to Kim’s place to meet up with the sisters.  The 2nd day of the Pro-Life Conference is exclusively for CFC and SFC and ended with a praisefest. Filipino lunch was served after the praisefest (it was my 1st time to eat tinapang bangus and pinakbet after a month). After lunch, we went downtown and was able to pass by the Greek village, got some fruit drinks at Joy Yees (thanks to Michelle), took some shots at the Chicago Lake, and the final destination was the very beautiful Holy Name Cathedral that boasts itself with Gothic architecture. The conference sort of ignited pro-life convictions within me knowing how pro-choice efforts are starting in the Philippines. Seeing the harsh condition of how people in the US are undermining the sanctity of life after all the information I got from the conference, I am deeply disappointed how politicians in the US are condoning efforts of commodifying human lives. However, seeing the accomplishments of the CFC Community here in the US to protect the sanctity of life, I felt pride to have been part of this global Catholic renewal community that does its best to protect God’s design for human life and making a difference in the society. I also felt deep joy for having to bond with the SFC’s from the different parts of the US. The SFC community has never ceased to give me happiness and nourishment; even if I’m away from home. The brothers and sisters from SFC Illinois are really taking care of me here.

With Michelle and Kim

Ronnie and I were wearing the 2006 GLF shirt! His shirt was given by a friend of his

Michelle, Twinkle (from SFC Texas), Kim, Patrick, and I after the conference

At Joy Yee’s with Twinkle, Henry, and Leah

At the Chicago Lake

Holy Name Cathedral

February 19-25, 2007

February 19, 2007 (Homesickness 101) 

Being in a foreign land and away from your family and friends and being alone in one room every night makes you think about so many things and think about what you usually do each day. I specifically point out the things that can be done in the environment that you’re so used to. Thinking about it all, I guess it is a universal truth that everything has its own tradeoff. Feeling like this was aggravated by the fact that all of us here are in the same condition of homesickness. What made it worse is that more than half of my officemates are going back to Manila by the 1st week of March as they came here ahead of us and when I counted the days that I’m supposed to stay here, I still have a month to stay as we’re supposed to leave on March 24 (the original plan was March 11 and I was told that my training was extended). By 1st week of March, only 6 from our team will be at the hotel  where we’re staying at.  So, when you feel like this, what do you do then? You force yourself to keep busy and connect with the people at home. After training, I fixed my stuff in the room (even the groceries inside my ref that don’t need fixing), did the laundry, chatted with Ate Jhett and all my close friends while doing the laundry, fixed all my clothes in the cabinet, called Ate Jeng, and pampered myself in the hot tub. Also, I was able to decide to go to
New York on March 9-11 and I hope that this will happen as planned this time. I’m just hoping that the problem with my AMEX card gets fixed ASAP. I was also able to plot the dates on when I’ll be calling up Mama and the kids.

February 20, 2007 (Miracles)

Because of the homesickness I was feeling the previous day, I just did my daily routine and my silence was palpable. To keep myself busy, I told myself to spend hours at the gym upon arriving at the hotel. But when I came back by 6PM, I kept on reading stuff from the net and it was past 7 when I looked at my watch. I then received a call from Patrick inviting me to deliver Talk 4 (Our Culture in SFC)  in their covenant orientation this Saturday and I humbly accepted the invitation. After receiving the email from Eva (a sister from SFC Chicago) that contains the talk outline, we had a phone conversation and we talked about homesickness and was successful in her attempt to comfort me since she’s been here for years without her family and experienced worse case of homesickness than mine. Really, people in the community, no matter which area you belong to, are angels to me. After that phonecall, somebody called me to go to Anna’s room because she brought her Magic Sing. There were only 4 of us (Anna A., Annie, Dianne, and me) who were there but it was absolutely fun because of Dianne who has her own version of each of the songs she sang.

February 21, 2007 (Ash Wednesday, Dinner with IBM US, and Club 209)

There was no shuttle available to take us to the church so we took a cab instead. The 4 people who slept very late were the people who woke up really early and went to mass to have ashes imposed on our foreheads. We came back to the hotel by 7 AM,  had breakfast, and went to work. After work, I was introduced to Jeremy, my immediate supervisor, who just arrived since his resignation process was delayed a bit. We then went to Tuscany, an Italian restaurant in Wheeling, for a dinner hosted by IBM US for us. After dinner, the whole team went to Anna’s room (room 209, our official tambayan) for some chilling. When we decided to return to our rooms, Luis endorsed Mang Gani’s rice cooker to me as he will be going back to Manila the next day.

Dinner at Tuscany

Club 209 (Anna’s room), after the dinner

February 22, 2007 (Haircut)

Our updates and all our pending tasks were finished early today. We were back at the hotel as early as 3 PM and that day, I was in dire need of a haircut. Avic and I were supposed to go to Golf Mills so I can get a haircut while she’ll go to the Disney store. Sadly, there was no shuttle available to take us there and I was then informed by the hotel personnel that there’s a nearby salon that I can go to. Since it wasn’t snowing and the temperature yesterday was just the same as the lowest temperature in Baguio, I decided to take a walk and go to Studiano’s salon by myself. I walked for 10 minutes along the Northern Milwaukee Avenue and I was surprised to realize that the place is near contrary to what I initially thought. The lady who will do my haircut was sporting a hairstyle not people her age would but kinda looked good on her. She did her best to give me the haircut that I wanted but in the end, my satisfaction was just at a minimum level. It wasn’t bad but I can’t help but compare it from the usual haircut I get from any stylist at Fix. Now, the idea that I gained weight was affirmed by my new haircut as my cheeks were emphasized strongly.We chilled at Anna’s room for a while since Jason, one of our trainers from Allstate who happens to be Filipino would like to spend some good time with his kababayans. Although he can’t speak Filipino (but can understand), he’s still Pinoy with the way he carries himself. I slept for a while and then  Jean called me up to have dinner at my room so she and Jeremy came to my room after a few minutes. I finally had a complete sleep.

February 23, 2007 (Shuttle Came Late and CLP) 

We didn’t have the daily meeting with Kellie today so we were at the hotel by 4PM. Bad thing though was that the shuttle came late so we decided to take some pics while waiting. I immediately took a nap since it’s still early before going to the CLP. Patrick came to the hotel early to pick me up. Funny that he was complaining about the traffic in the expressway but it’s just similar to the traffic situation in Manila at 5AM. I was a bit surprised though as it was one of the common Friday night rush hours in Chicago when everybody’s heading towards the city’s fab bars. It was Talk 2 of the CLP and Manny was able to deliver the talk in a light manner yet gave a deep introduction of Jesus to the participants. I was home by 11 AM. 

 This was my undershirt that day… (ala Clark Kent transformation), my officemates were shocked to see me wearing the Bagets shirt

 

 

 

February 24, 2007 (SFC Fellowship, Snowstorm, & Bonding at the Sassy Room)

I immediately worked out at the gym upon waking up since it was the best time for me to do it. After having breakfast, I took the time to read some literature which I haven’t done for quite a long time. Chris was the one who picked me up at the hotel since Patrick had music min practice for the upcoming conference next week. When we arrived at the St. Viator’s Church, we found out that no participants arrived for the CO plus the fact that there’s an upcoming snowstorm that day. We did not waste time so we decided to have a vibrant worship and some reflection. After that, we went to this Thai restaurant in
Chicago and feasted over some spicy meals. When Chris and I were on our way back to the hotel, the snowflakes were falling and the vehicles were starting to move slowly. After having dinner in my room, I went to Yna’s room and finished some of my pending tasks and then came AJ. After awhile, we then went to Lewis’ room and Jeremy followed. Funny thing was when we asked the shuttle driver to take us to 711 so we can buy more drinks when it was 2AM, when there was a snowstorm. The 4 of us were able to share some stories about ourselves that made us knew each other better knowing that it has just been weeks since we were introduced to one another. 

February 25, 2007 (Mass, Filipino Lunch at My Room, Tambay at Starbucks Milwaukee)  

Even if I slept really late, I was able to wake up early for the 11 AM mass at St. Catherine’s. Although it was snowing hard, it wasn’t as cold as yesterday. After the mass, we went to the Filipino store and I bought kare-kare while the others craved for sinigang  I talked to JB to greet him on his birthday when it was already February 26, 7AM in Manila. After talking to him, I cooked rice since I have the rice cooker and everybody gathered in my suite and we shared the Filipino viand that each of us bought. It was really fun talking about nonsense stuff and our abs hurt since we laughed for hours after eating. At night, Yna, Jeremy, Roel, Fatima, and I went to Walmart to buy some groceries and planned to go to Starbucks after. We decided to leave at grocery first since Walmart is open until 10 PM.  After buying stuff, we forgot where Starbucks was and all we knew was that it was walking distance from Walmart. So we asked a lot of people and they also don’t know where it was and finally, we saw a Filipino couple and gave us directions. When they saw that we were just gonna walk and knowing how terribly cold it was, they offered a ride and Roel had the guts to ask if it’s fine that we get our groceries first. While we were at their wagon, they asked so many things about the Philippines as the last time they were there was 1987 and haven’t gone home since then. But they were excited because they’ll be home next week after 20 years. But still, it was nice to know that they have remained Filipino in their values, in fact, they have a Philippine flag inside their car. And so after the 5-minute ride, we bid them goodbye and we again, talked about funny things at Starbucks.

 After the mass… 

 

 

 

 

Filipino lunch at my room

 

 

 

Madame President was beside me when I was booking the shuttle, hehe

 

 

 

February 13 – 18, 2007

February 13, 2007 (Snowstorm Day) 

While I was ironing my clothes yesterday morning, Jean called me up in my room and informed me that our training got called off due to the snowstorm. Indeed, the snowflakes falling are bigger than yesterday’s and what’s worse is that it’s accompanied by strong winds as I can see from the window. It actually sounded like a restday for us but to our disappointment, we were then informed after almost an hour that training will still push through. It wasn’t bad at all since it’s supposed to be the start of my training for my field of specialization. We were able to meet with the vendor who flew from Toronto just to ensure that we run the system scripts and enable us to familiarize ourselves with the recruitment tool that we will use and will have the whole team train on. Good thing that it was the only agenda we had yesterday since everyone in the building was asked to leave before 4PM due to the worsening weather condition and the fact that I even forgot to wear my thermal clothes as I was rushing things after breakfast. It was my first time to experience traffic here since it usually takes us only 15 minutes going back to the hotel. That afternoon, it took us around 45 minutes since there’s like 5 inches of snow from the ground and the city administration deployed people to plough snow in the streets. When we arrived in the hotel, Anna, Jean, Kiko, Luis, Aly, and I decided to just leave our stuff in our rooms and play snow at the veranda and take some pics. We had our own snowangels, had snowfight, and some random pics of everyone. It was terribly freezing but absolutely fun! After that, I rested for a few minutes and did my laundry. Doing laundry is not actually new to me since I do it way back home. What made it different is the fact that you’ll drop coins into the machine and do nothing. Good thing that I brought my laptop and was able to watch episodes of Preacher in Blue Jeans that I missed. Jo and Aly were also doing the laundry so there were people who were talking to me while I was at the laundry area.

Freezing outside the Allstate office

Snowfight!

My Snowangel

 February 14, 2007 (Snowy Valentine’s Day)

The snowstorm already subsided so weather’s a lot better than yesterday. Oh yeah, love is in the cold air… as if this occasion affects me today (hopefully next year, hehe). As mentioned, we have now started training for our specialization today and we were able to view how our HR system operates. At night, we all had our team’s Valentine dinner at PJ Moondoggies and they serve slabs, great chicken sandwich, and huge burgers - hot off the grill! They also served some beer that made the night a good one.

PJ Moondoggies – IBM Allstate Valentine’s Dinner

 February 15, 2006 (1st Household)

We just uploaded templates into the system today and ran some test scripts of our HR system. We finished early and went back to the hotel before 4 PM. Luckily, I was able to have my traveller’s check encashed since most establishments do not accept it because of its value. I called up Patrick to ask for some SFC activities and I was told that there’s a household meeting tonight. He picked me up at the hotel by 7 PM and we went to a house in downtown Chicago right across the St. Viator’s church. It was a joint household meeting of 4 units (exclusively for unit and household heads) so there were a lot of people who came in. I was amazed with the idea that they’re using projectors to display the lyrics of the songs instead of having everyone refer to their Glory songbooks. I’m excited for next week because Tito Frank Padilla will be the one to give a talk in the household meeting. Patrick showed me the adoration chapel at St. Catherine’s church and we were there for like 15 minutes. It really feels good knowing that I am still in touch with my community even in a foreign land – makes me know that God is really everywhere.

Before the start of the household meeting…

Lea and Eva

February 16, 2007 (No Training Day)

Anna, Ima, Edcel, and I went back to the hotel after lunch since we don’t have appointments for the day and just finished some updates in the morning. Since Aly allowed us to leave early, we decided to just go back and take a rest. Ima, Edcel, and I went to Best Buy since Edcel needs to get a new camera. After that, we went to Sears and JC Penney for some window shopping. Both stores are on sale and I was able to buy my first set of pasalubong for my sisters and Mama since I already bought something for Third when I shopped for the stuff I need.

 February 17, 2007 (Downtown Chicago!)

Yna, Avic, AJ, Lino, Geoff, Luis, Edcel, Thea, and I met at the hotel lobby at 10:30 AM to go to Downtown Chicago. Since Downtown is far from Glenview, the hotel shuttle took us to the Glenview train station instead and from there, we headed to the Michigan Station. The city’s really nice and prides itself with very clean streets and imposing buildings. From Michigan Avenue, we went to the United Center and took some shots at the athletes’ monuments (Chicago Blackhawks’ and Michael Jordan’s). After some shots, we walked a few blocks until we reach the John Hancock Center to have lunch. This building used to be the world’s tallest building and we had lunch at the 95th Floor. After lunch, we went to the Mc Cormick Center to watch the car show. There are booths that take free pictures which you can download online. The passwords are indicated in the cards they give out and of course we went to each booth that offers one. After the carshow, we went to the Millennium Park and took some shots at the Chicago bean  and the ice sculptures. We saw the ice skating rink but never had the time to skate as we were catching the 10:30 PM train going back to Glenview and it was already almost 9:30 then. We were at the hotel past 11 and had dinner at Luis’ room.

Glenview Train station going to Downtown Chicago!

At Michigan Avenue

United Center, Home of the Chicago Bulls

With Pareng Mike, hehe

Puck it off, Chicago Blackhawks!

View from the 95th Floor of the John Hancock Center

The Chicago Autoshow

Below are some endorsements….

Chicago Millennium Park

February 18, 2007 (Gym, Mass at St. Catherine’s, and Golf Mills)

I immediately went to the gym upon waking up to compensate for the extremely cold temperature at downtown yesterday and for the huge amount of food I’ve been eating . Even if I haven’t gone to a weighing scale yet, I can feel that I already gained weight. I had breakfast after lunch and prepared for the 11 AM mass that we’re hearing at St. Catherine’s. This is the same church in Glenview that Patrick and I went to last Thursday night after the household meeting. So by 10:15, Yna, Roel, Cha, Reg, and I met at the hotel lobby where the shuttle will be picking us up. We heard the mass and the priest delivered a homily intended for kids which looked kinda cute. All kids were asked to sit in front of the altar for the homily. After the mass, I rested for a while then Yna called me up to have lunch at Golf Mills with Luis. We had lunch  and I was able to buy a few stuff for Trian and Kokoy. I guess this will be the last round of pasalubong buying for now until I have my AMEX card delivered. Since we’re all terribly missing Filipino food like hell, we bought some viand at the Filipino store, cooked rice and had dinner at Luis’ room. To my surprise, Aaron, Fatima, Yna, AJ, Geoff, and Avic were also there and we were all in great amazement as we ate caldereta, binagoongan, and steamed crab.

February 12, 2007 (Gloomy Day)

I woke up seeing snowflakes from the window and 3-5 inches of snow can be seen from the ground. When we were heading towards the Allstate office, I saw the result of what I saw first thing in the morning. Vehicles trying to move slowly, houses looking like giant igloos, and the town looks like a modern-day eskimo village. I was not surprised to hear the weather advisory that they’re expecting a snow storm tonight that resulted in the delay of some flights. What’s ironic though is that it’s warmer today than those days when there are only a few snow. The training today was very interesting but it finished as early as 11 AM and did nothing until 4:30 PM for the daily meeting. Upon getting home, Mark, Dianne, Cha, Reg, and I went to Walmart to buy some groceries.

February 11, 2007 (First Sunday)

My day started by going to the gym and had breakfast. Patrick (an SFC here) was supposed to accompany me to the church  but I didn’t receive a call from him. I called him but was only able to leave a message in his voicemail, maybe he’s busy today. Good thing that Vanjo sent me a YM and invited me to attend mass and have lunch after. Vanjo was a former colleague and a good friend of mine from the IS Department in Sykes. He resigned in Sykes a year ago and was based here in Chicago afterwards. We’ve handled so many projects together for some HRIS pursuits during our stints in Sykes and have called each other so many names (wahaha).  Anyway, he got here at the hotel around 10:30 AM and we went to the St. Alphonsus Parish in Wheeling which is a 15 minute drive from Glenview where I’m currently staying. There’s no really difference with the way mass is conducted here and contrary to what we usually hear, it’s interesting to know that there are a lot of Catholic Americans. After hearing mass, we had lunch somewhere in Wheeling and checked out some factory stores within the area. It was fun that we were able to recall the usual things we both laughed about and updated each other about the things that happened the past year. It was nice to know that the bastard is enjoying the fruits of his hardwork here. I got back at the hotel by 4 PM and accompanied some officemates at the warehouse store beside the hotel.

St. Alphonsus Parish before the Mass

February 8-10, 2007 (Chicago, IL)

My body clock easily adjusted to the local time here and it wasn’t difficult for me to get a sleep during my first night. Perhaps this could have been the positive result of my countless sleepless nights prior to leaving the Philippines when I was bothered by the delay in the release of my US visa and the stress from turning over my work when I resigned from Sykes. Because of these, I had my first stress-free sleep after two weeks.

February 8, 2007 (First Training Day, Winter Pix, and Golf Mills)

My first morning was a great one. I just discovered that we’re being served buffet breakfast everyday and boy, I’m freakin serious to say that there are tons of food every morning! After breakfast, I was surprised to see Marie, a former teammate in Sykes HR at the hotel lobby, and found out that she is, once again, a colleague here in IBM! I was really happy to see her as she was close to me when she was in Sykes. And so I attended the training and I was amazed by the various facets of HR being discussed in the sessions. Being in this training makes me recall the key HR concepts I learned in college and what made it better is the way the trainers point out industry practices in relation to the concepts they discuss. My appreciation of the discussions enticed me to go back to the academe soon (hmmm, still a plan, though). After training, Mark, Jean, Dianne, and I decided to take our individual shots at the hotel garden to enjoy winter. At night, we went to Golf Mills to buy some grocery, to my disappointment, none of the groceries they have made me want to buy them and the result was that I was able to buy a very cheap backpack for my laptop.

Excited to experience snow

February 9, 2007 (Survival Tricks, 2nd Set of Winter Pix, Hitting the Gym, and Introduction to SFC Chicago)

In the morning, I realized that despite the wide array of food they serve during breakfast, they served the same food as they did the previous day. I was told by those who arrived prior to me that they serve the same breakfast everyday so I have to get used to it. What can I do? This is complimentary breakfast and that would be better than buy breakfast everyday and have myself get easily emptyhanded. And as Filipinos have an impressive track record of  handling uncertainties, those who have stayed longer taught me tricks to save my per diem: that is, get 2-3 pieces of the complimentary fruit jams or cream cheese and fruits during breakfast, pretend that I didn’t finish them, and bring them to my hotel room. Hehe, I eat these fruits for dinner and good thing I don’t get to spend anything since I don’t really eat much during dinner. Training ended at 2 PM since we were able to finish fast and headed immediately towards the hotel. Upon getting at the hotel, I showed the frontdesk the address where the CLP will be held and they told me it’s far from the hotel and it would cost me $55 going there. I immediately told Mark (my contact from SFC Chicago) about my problem with the distance of the CLP venue from the hotel and he told me he’ll find a way. While waiting for his call, I worked out at the gym since I felt I was getting bloated with the large serving of food here. After spending an hour at the gym and spending a few moments outside the hotel, Patrick (a brother from SFC here) left a voice message and asked me to call him. After talking to him, he told me that he can give me a ride since he lives nearby. He was at the hotel at exactly 6 PM and I found out that he’s an American, I just thought that the one I talked to was a Filipino who had an American accent and can’t speak Tagalog. We fetched Faye, one of the sisters, and finally arrived at the CLP venue after 30 minutes (if this is the travelling time, it means that it’s a bit far since the venue is at downtown Chicago). It was Talk 1 and their chapter is quite huge and they had roughly 20 participants with a few non-Filipinos. Before the CLP started, I was introduced to the chapter and they were warm in welcoming me. After the talk, there was a group discussion and members also grouped themselves to discuss the topics in the participants’ guide questions. Food was served too, after the CLP, and while having some chat with their members, I was also given my temporary household for my entire stay here in Chicago. I’ll be attending household meetings here every Wednesday night. Being with the SFC community here makes me feel like home and reminded me of my chaptermates. Thank God that the community is global!

Here’s the 2nd set of my OFW pics, hehe…

Not wearing bonnet in the cold so as not to mess my hair (so cheri, hehe)

Snacks after the CLP, very SFC… These are the only pics I have as I spent most of the time speaking with the brothers and sisters

February 10, 2007 (Shopping at Gurnee Mills)

The whole team met at the lobby at 9AM and headed to Gurnee Mills near downtown Chicago. It’s a great place to shop and all of us were just smiling at the end of the day…