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Showing posts from June, 2020

14 Call Center Interview Questions & Answers

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The call center industry is one of the fastest growing in the country these days. As recently as ten years ago, there were only a few call center agents and the word call center was hardly ever used in the country. Today, almost every family has at least one member working in the call center industry. The reason for this boom is partly economics. In the Philippines, low paying jobs are very notorious and while call centers set up shop here because of the low labor costs, Filipinos decide to work for the call center industry because it pays higher than average wages. Consider this: if you are an average worker with an entry level position, you probably are getting paid seven to ten thousand a month; meanwhile, an average employee in the call center industry with an entry level position will get around fifteen thousand pesos a month, plus free dental and health benefits (HMO). Call centers also will pay your SSS (Social Security), PAGIBIG (home building fund), and PhilHealth (health ins...

How to Use Cebu Pacific Travel Fund with Senior Citizen Discount

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My mom who is a senior citizen was affected by the lock down imposed recently due to the pandemic so she found herself having to cancel several flights. since she needed to book some flights at a later date in order for her to go home, we decided to convert her flights into travel fund.  if you are wondering whether you can still get the senior citizen discount when using travel fund, the answer is yes! Just simply follow this step by step guide on how to get the senior citizen rate when booking a Cebu Pacific flight using your travel fund. 1. Using any browser, go to www.cebupacificair.com . 2. Search for a flight and select your desired flight schedule. 3. Choose between GO Basic, GO Easy, and GO Flexi. Then click on 'continue'. 4. At this point, you click on 'Continue as Guest'. If you have an account, log in to your account. I was told that if your flight is connected with your account, the travel fund will be associated wit...

A Crisis Like No Other: 100 Days In Quarantine

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The economic divide in our society can be observed between people who currently don't have jobs or food and people who are getting fat, bored, anxious, and sad. When some of my friends told me that they were fine with the quarantine because it allows them to work from home, I felt like they were very disconnected from from what is happening to people like food peddlers and  jeep  drivers. People who work for the government (perhaps because they are the least financially affected by the quarantine) also do not show empathy with their new and hastily-crafted policies like distance learning. But to be fair, this is a crisis like no other and there simply are no precedents for us to say that this or that was what should have been done. However, I am pretty sure that our government officials (from their gilded cages) do have our well-being in mind. They only have to look at the French revolution to know what is in store for them if they do not act quickly. When the ne...

Two Cows Full Cream Milk Powder

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Ever since I discovered Milk Magic Full Cream Milk, I had been a fan of it. In fact, I had been using it for the past seven years to make milk chocolate drinks, cappuccino, and as a substitute for fresh milk and evaporated milk. Full cream milk is basically fresh milk that has been made into powder and according to this article , is better than toddler formulas (which is full of sweeteners). I think Anchor and Birch Tree's full cream milk are better than Milk Magic's but they are more expensive. However, the past few months, I have noticed that the price of Milk Magic's full cream milk had been going up steadily. Currently, it is almost 150 pesos for 350 grams or 0.43 pesos per gram in most supermarkets. I tried searching for a lower price online and found an online shop selling it at a lower price. However, the online shop soon increased its prices and is now selling Milk Magic full cream milk at the same price as the supermarket. After doing a lot of resea...

Malling During Coronavirus

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After not having visited any of the big malls along the highway since quarantine began, I decided to finally visit one which is the closest to where I live. What I found was not very encouraging. I went there during lunch hour so it normally would be packed with people who work in the nearby offices. I could hear many employees complaining about the lack of public transportation to bring them to work. Things were quiet at the supermarket as well. Shelves that carry products like powdered milk and instant noodles have a sign on them that you can only buy so much. I asked the lady at the checkout counter how she would go to work and she said that when there were zero public transport, she would walk since she lived about 2 kilometres away. I asked her if there were any shuttles provided by the company but she said there were none. Very sad. I think it really helps their morale when people ask them how they are, though. Look at what ...

Bartering: The New Normal?

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In dystopian movies, in the immediate aftermath of a crisis we usually see people bartering things: food for medicine, medicine for clothes, etc. Recently, I have been seeing barter/swap groups mushroom in Facebook and gain thousands of members in just a few days! Is the barter system making a comeback due to the pandemic? According to the recent unemployment report of the Philippine Statistics Authority, unemployment has gone up by 17.7% which translates to 7.3 million Filipinos unemployed. If you live in the city with no job, it probably makes sense for you to barter a doodad (like a flat screen TV) for a basic necessity such as food. The barter system is the most basic form of trading. In our history, we were taught that our ancestors bartered goods with other civilizations like the Chinese and Indian civilizations. Of course, once a culture becomes more prosperous and sophisticated, they start to use money. So let's look at what barter trades looked like in the...

A Love Affair With The Government Under Quarantine

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Here's something I did not expect from this whole thing: feeling loved by the government. Whenever I hear the megaphone crackling outside of the house I would rush to the gate with a goofy grin on my face. During the next few minutes, I would not be able to wipe the smile off my face and I would feel so giddy. Yes, such is the effect of the rice and sardines (and sometimes vegetables) from the government on me. Is this how it feels like to be in love? One of the batches of relief from the government included a few kilos of frozen chicken which I made into Chicken Adobo. Relief Gulay (onions, squash, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, aubergines, and okras) The other day, I went to the talipapa and found it closed. The store next to it only had pork. Since everything is now being ordered online and delivered, I tried researching on chicken prices online. What I found was very revealing. While a kilogram of chicken is usually sold at 180 pesos, you can buy it online for ...