juanadelacruz.com » Trainspotting

I Know Where the MRT Cards Are

Rona — Fri, 21 May 2010 09:47:48 +0000

This is long overdue. 2 months ago, I was complaining about the unavailability of the MRT stored value cards. It’s frustrating to see in the stations the poorly-made sign boards (more like used papers) that says “Stored value cards temporarily unavailable.” A couple of weeks of MRT cards scarcity, B was lucky enough to buy a few cards when it finally became available and by few, I meant 10:

Yes, we hoarded MRT cards because there is a need to. One station didn’t allow us to buy more than 2 because according to them, the cards should be available to the others. The other station let us buy at least 5. Go figure.

LBC recycles paper and you should too

Rona — Fri, 14 May 2010 03:30:59 +0000

LBC (at least the branch where I pay bills) is making an effort to cut down on the amount of paper they use by recycling the glossy paper thinggies that is separated from the stickers that they put on packages. What they do is print out the receipt of the bills paid at the back of those glossy paper thinggies instead of using a clean or unused blank piece of paper. Nice.

LBC receipt front

LBC receipt back

I Love You MRT!

Rona — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 19:01:14 +0000

I saw something on CNN. It was Christiane Amanpour interviewing somebody about global population. She mentioned China, of course and then Japan. When Japan was brought up, a video clip was shown. I never thought I would say this most especially after months of bitchin’ about the MRT but, after watching that video clip, I really can say that I LOVE OUR MRT! Dug up the vid and then some to better explain a seemingly impossible thing to be uttered by a Metro Manila MRT user:

These guards are craaaazyyyy. One of them said, “Sorry, take the next train please” then they started pushing one student inside. I don’t understand why they wouldn’t just let that one student get off the edge too and take the next train along with the others?

This one’s a killer, literally:

I was laughing when I first saw this one but then I realized that this is similar to what happens in the MRT minus the forced packing. I won’t complain anymore when people behind me would push everyone in front to get in cause honestly, who doesn’t do that anyway? If you’re the one behind, it’s pretty sure you have done a great deal of pushing and feigned innocence at the same time. That’s a tip by the way to not get in trouble if the one in front of you goes ape shit with anger. Less complaints, more gratefulness. I mean, did you see that white coat by the end of the clip? It was draped to the window!

Who’s Storing MRT’s Stored Value Tickets?

Rona — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 03:15:16 +0000

What the hell is going on with the MRT, man?! The stored value tickets haven’t been available for almost 2 weeks! My last card would be exhausted come Monday. I have been worried about it the entire week but fortunately it was finally available in Buendia station this afternoon. I asked for 4 100 pesos-loaded cards but the lady won’t allow me to hoard. She told me that the most that she can sell me is 2. Fine, I said. It’s totally understandable but come on! It’s not my problem if i can afford to buy 5 cards because I do not want to freaking line up all the freaking time! These stored value cards will surely not be available again soon. For a regular MRT rider like me, it is very inconvenient and stressful. I am not saying that the MRT is convenient itself. The speeding can of sardines is far from it. Sure it will take you from north to south and vice-versa in 30 minutes but sometimes, one can only take so much. WHAT’S GOING ON MRT?! Yesterday, an office mate who also takes the MRT told us that there was this guy who got pushed by another guy. One guy punched the other. I do not know the exact details but the important part is that the one who got hit bled all over the train. And then today, a similar incident happened again only this time the fist fest started in Quezon Avenue station and ended in Santolan. A girl cried because she got hit too. How I wish I was there to see it. Maybe they have had enough of the stress that the MRT brings them and they just took it out on the next thing that triggered their last remaining thin nerve. I hope that they felt better after throwing fists at each other. I won’t be surprised if I’d hear a story soon of girls pulling each others hair all the way from North to Taft avenue.

CAT FIGHT!

Heard in the MRT today:

“Pwede ba yung iba pumunta naman sa gitna? Mukha kayong mga pinto eh!”

So What Was It Again?

Rona — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:31:10 +0000

It’s Friday again. Woo. On my way to work yesterday, I saw an old schoolmate in the MRT. During college, she and I used to be gal pals but something happened and we just started ignoring each other until we graduated. We talked and caught up on each others businesses as if our college drama never happened. Most conversations that I have with people that I ran into after not seeing them for a really long time veers towards awkwardville. Surprisingly, ours didn’t go to that direction and I can’t be any more glad and relieved. We were so busy yakking away that we didn’t notice that seats are already available in front of us. Consequently, those who were standing up besides us gave us an annoyed and puzzled look and took over the empty spaces. I told B all about her when she finally got off at Guadalupe station. I was telling the story of our college drama but I can not recall what is the exact reason why we stopped talking. I bet it was so stupid and inane because I really don’t remember. Heh.

Rubbery Tocino

Rona — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 17:33:26 +0000

It’s 1 AM and I’m still wide awake. B brewed barako around 7 after we got home from Pancake House for our 1 major meal for the day — breakfast, lunch and dinner all rolled into one. She had tapa and I had tocino. The tocino was bleh. There was way too many non-chewable portions that ended up in a tissue paper. Gross. Good thing I ordered walnut pancakes. Now that one was yummy. The walnuts were chunky and crunchy and more importantly, EDIBLE. I’ll never order tocino when dining out again, ever. I haven’t eaten a tocino in a restaurant that isn’t rubbery. Another restaurant that serves a rubbery tocino? Heaven and Eggs. That one in Tomas Morato. I think it’s already closed.

I so do not want to go back to work yet. Where did the weekend go? All that I can remember is that it was too damn hot outside. And that I watched a Tim Burtonized Alice In Wonderland with B. It was a much better 3D experience than Avatar. Avatar was too long and our head hurt because the glasses were sort of heavy and that we were seating on the far left side of the movie house. We watched it in Greenhills were there was a free popcorn and a not so iced iced tea.

More weekends, please. I am so tempted to not go to work so I can watch the Oscars live. Go Sandra!

Freaky Friday

Rona — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 06:21:00 +0000

I get a little giddy everytime its already Friday. I always scream “Friiiiiddaaaayyyy!!!” at home and when I finally enter the hell hole of an office that I work in. I have a ritual as soon as I sit down in front of my CRT monitor. I change my screensaver with the words “FRRIIIDDAAYYY!!!” and make it flash every 1 minute. Some of my co-zombie drones have noticed it and they make a little chuckle everytime they see it. Most of them are not as excited as I am. I think they have been working in that office way too long and that they have finally succumbed to feeling blah when Friday comes. Maybe because they know too well that the weekends are nothing but a short and bittersweet time warp that would only bring you back to Monday, the start of zombieness for the zombie drones.

Yesterday, the MRT was pure torture, as per usual. I am actually getting tired of hearing people complain how crazy it is riding the supposedly fast and efficient mass transportation. I mean, what’s the point? The situation won’t change so why keep yakking about it? Unless you do something to try to change the sorry state, just shut up and quit complaining. Speaking of complaining, 4, not just 3 or 2, 4 freaking cabs, rejected to drive me home. What pisses me off is that it’s so near, like 10 minutes near to get to my place and the first 2 drivers were asking for 70 pesos! Usually it would take only 50 pesos or less so I said no to them. The 20 pesos difference can buy me 2 servings of that yummy fishballs in Gil Puyat Avenue, hello! While waiting for the next cab, my head was filled with this thought that I am Batman and that if the next cab driver would refuse to drive me home, I’d beat him up and make him piss on his pants and make him swear to me not to do it again, ever. Lo and behold, the next cab driver told me that he was going in a different direction — when I was already inside! I felt something explode inside my head. As soon as the car went to a full stop, I opened the door on my left and left the one where I got off to wide open. That’s the most that I can do to stir that a$$hole up but man, it felt so good that at least I was able to do something.

I Hate My Office Space!

Rona — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 14:55:16 +0000

The man who gives me money in exchange for the work that he asks me to do is Chinese so when their New Year came, they had their workplace Feng Shui’d. Last week, the office that I work in was somewhat rearranged and all the boxes inside the storage room was taken out. I was told that it’s been 10 years since that storage room was last opened. I didn’t believe it at first but the dust that flew all over the office proved me wrong. I am a zombie drone of high-rise Makati City so most people would think that I go in everyday in a big nice building, sit on a soft swivel chair and walk on carpeted floors. Eh well, I thought I would be working in that kind of place too. I had no idea that the people I will work for are stingy. Too ducking stingy. I get off work at 6 PM but the building that I work in shuts down the air-conditioning of our office unit at exactly 5 PM. I was also told that the man who gives me money in exchange for the work that he asks me to do, have told the building administrator to shut down the air-conditioning by 5 PM for cost-cutting reasons. The air-conditioning isn’t exactly efficient. We have to use an electric fan to supplement a comfortable temperature inside our office so when the AC gets turned off, it’s already too hot to do any work. So back to last week — dusts flying about plus El Nino and stuffy office = major flu. I didn’t go to work from Thursday until today Monday. Honestly, I am scared to go back in that office tomorrow because of the condition of the workplace. I do not want to be sick again. I hate it there.

Taxi Driver, Plugged

Rona — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 14:46:16 +0000

Starting this year, I was either late for work everyday or absent. Yesterday, the HR person called my attention for all the absences and tardiness that I have accumulated. She says that the Management is going ape-sh!t because of the number of hours that was wasted because of my ~~rebellion~~ self-imposed schedule. Now I will have to make an effort AGAIN to wake up at 6 freaking AM from Monday to Friday to be able to make it to the MRT before 7:30 and be at work by 8. I really am hoping that I can do this even for just 1 week straight.

On our way to work this morning, B and I flagged a cab on the other side of a narrow road while we were walking towards the busy street ahead. This conversation transpired while negotiating for a ride:

This taxi picture is not mine. Just took it off somewhere in the 'net.

Cab driver rolled down his window.

Cab Driver: Saan kayo?

Doesn’t it piss you off when a cab driver has to ask first where you are headed to BEFORE they let you in in their cab?

Me: MRT!

At this point, B and I were already slowly walking away because we’ve had enough of these kind of cab drivers to know that this one isn’t any different.

Cab Driver: Camachile?
Me: MRT!
Cab Driver: Pasig?

We are totally losing interest and started ignoring him.

Cab Driver: Ah ewan!

WTF? Like it’s our fault that he can’t either understand or hear us. Maybe he needs some serious ear cleaning. He’s a cab driver so I’m pretty sure “MRT” has been uttered to him one too many times. I wonder how many passengers he has taken to the wrong place. This reminds me of this cab driver who took me to Aberdeen Court when I know that I said “MRT Quezon Avenue”. That was pure bloody horror.

Subtle Knife in the Grocery Cart

Rona — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 04:30:15 +0000

This is rebellion! So I didn’t go to work again yesterday. Instead, I went to the grocery with B. We were making a beeline towards the chips aisle when I saw this cart full of grocery stuff with a note taped on it:

The note says:

If I were Sir Albert, I’d throw this cart to whoever wrote this then quit.