It's in my Hands

The new 20-peso bill that is! ^_^

I don't know why but I jumped at the sight of the crisp (albeit a little fancy-looking) bill! Maybe because I feel like I'm one of the first few to have it (or not? :P) And it's pretty kaya! Well, at least better looking than the old one. It showcases more of our natural wonders, too! If you haven't seen the entire set of new bank notes, you can check them out here where I saw them first :)

Special thanks to my cubemate (if there is such a term) whose boyfriend's mom works in Bangko Sentral, for being so kind to let me keep it. You made my day, Sarah dear! ^_^ 


Update (March 2011): I have the complete set already! :D

My favorite is the 500-peso bill. Cory and Ninoy look so happy :D

Click the image for a hi-res version.

Bench Poster for Greenday Wednesdays

While I'm still warming up for my posting marathon this weekend, let me share with you this poster that I saw at the Bench store in Cash and Carry Mall, Makati. I thought it's cool =)

 

I love the No Plastic Bag every Wednesday initiative. I saw this first in SM Supermalls and I've read that the DENR is encouraging more establishments to participate. Kudos to the stores and supermarkets taking part in this. And another kudos to Bench for a creative campaign. I hope all shops nationwide follow suit, soon.

Hear, hear to saving the environment, one plastic bag at a time! ^_^

Greenday Wednesdays by Bench
For one day you can help Mother Earth be a better place for future generations by bringing your own bag when purchasing any store item on Wednesdays. Bench Paper and plastic bags requested at the counter will be billed accordingly.

I ♥ Fridays

I adore Fridays. I mean, who doesn’t? It’s a temporary escape from the stressful 9-5. Chances are, there’s a meet-up with friends or a date night with sweetie. Staying up late is legal. And oh, I have the laptop all to myself! *evil laugh* 

Since the desktop PC here at home handed me it’s resignation letter, I have been kindly (ahem!) sharing my laptop with my sisters. Both of them are in high school so every day upon getting home from the office they welcome me with two words: “Ate pa-research” That's why tonight I almost jumped for joy when there is silence in the living room and at the corner my laptop is sitting comfortably, only waiting to be turned on. Eeek, that last part is kinda disturbing.

Going back to how fun Fridays are, I and a couple of friends decided to have coffee after work. We hit Starbucks at The Columns. If you don’t know the place, it’s at the corner of Gil Puyat and Ayala Avenue, which reminds me that in the said area they have three SB stores when there isn’t even one near Headstrong. Yeah, life’s unfair like that.

A frapuccino always always intoxicates me. That and a lot of kwento with my girls made a great impromptu meet-up. Sadly I wasn’t able to put my camera in my bag this morning so I don’t have a picture to share. But in return, I have a story that I got from Nhix, one that really made a mark. Last week, somewhere near her place, a med student was killed. It was supposedly only a hold-up but the girl fought back and ended up getting 4 stabs. And to make it worse, it happened just a few steps away from her house. Really ill fate. However, three days after the crime, 2 of the 3 suspects were in police custody and the other one is found dead. It’s good that justice was served (and served fast) but it’s depressing how it was solved immediately just because she isn’t a nobody. FYI, she happened to be a granddaughter of a general (or sergeant or another high-ranking official, not so sure) and goddaughter of a city mayor. Clearly, something is wrong with the Philippines and it’s system, if there’s a thing as such. So come on P-Noy, show us what you got.

Okay, so much with the gloomy now. I got home a few minutes to 11pm and was surprised when I opened the fridge. I found a bar of Cadbury (you know how it is synonymous to happiness for me) and asked them whose it is. Turns out Faye (the same sibling in this post) bought it for me! :D

I asked her why and she said there isn’t a reason at all. Guess she’s just so thoughtful. Or I must have been a really good ate to deserve it. :)

There you have it, my version of the last day of the work week. I hope you enjoyed Friday as much as I did. Happy weekend everyone! :)

Beware of Metro Care

I don't think my Jhay will ever forget what happened to him yesterday. He called me and he was ranting the whole time. HE WAS VICTIMIZED BY A CREDIT CARD SCAM.

Here’s a quick story of how it happened (errr.. how he narrated it to me)

Around 2:30 pm, someone who introduced himself as a staff of East West Bank called him in the office offering a VIP card. This person knows that his EWB credit card has been with him only for a week or less that’s why he’s given a chance to avail of this sort of upgrade. Jhay was told that with this VIP card comes a lot of perks like discounts in hotels, boutiques and restaurants, thus he was convinced to continue the conversation. It is essential to note that the whole time, the guy was talking too fast and Jhay hardly understood most of what he’s saying. This could be part of the propaganda. He also kept on saying that they are not like credit card companies having annual fees, interest rates, etc.

After all the sales talk, the guy was asking for his credit card number. Jhay was surprised because he knew the first few digits and was just asking him to supply the rest. Unsuspecting, he gave his CC number and all the other information the person from the other line asked for. He didn’t worry much because after all, the guy is from EWB, or at least that what he said.

The “guy from EWB” got all the nitty-gritty. He was even telling Jhay that since his birthday is around the corner (July 27th), they should go on a drinking session. Uh, are they that close already?! Later during the call, the guy transferred the phone to his supposedly manager who enthusiastically told Jhay “Welcome to the club!” Afterwards, the conversation ended. But it was no short call. It actually took 30 to 45 minutes of Jhay’s time.

Jhay had a gut feel that something’s not right with that call so he asked an officemate about it. His officemate said he shouldn’t have given his credit card information because that’s a scam. He immediately called EWB’s customer service hotline and that’s when his hunch was confirmed. He already has a floating charge of PhP 5,850.00 made by METRO CARE SERVICES!!!

Jhay asked the EWB customer service representative what he could do about this. He was told that the only way to remove the floating charge is to have Metro Care cancel the transaction. And that will only happen if he will be able to contact the said effin’ swindlers. We tried searching for contact numbers over the net but what we found were a lot of blogs all the other victims have written. Apparently, this had happened to HSBC, SCB and Citibank credit card holders as well. Click the links if you want to know more about this.

Now the only thing Jhay could do is to wait for the “VIP card” to arrive and make it a point not to sign anything from the courier because the moment he signs it, the PhP5,850 will already be charged to his card. He is also planning to either have his card replaced or totally cancel his EWB card.

I hope this serves as a caution to all card holders out there. Be extra vigilant. Don’t be deceived by promos and amazing offers because they are just too good to be true.

And as for you honey, looks like you learned your lesson the hard way, huh?