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Showing posts from April, 2025

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...
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Joining Dia del Libro

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Since 2010, I have been attending the Dia del Libro almost every year. This year, I was invited as an exhibitor by Instituto Cervantes. Dia del Libro is an event sponsored by Instituto Cervantes. During the event, exhibitors give a 20% discount and a rose for every purchase. Perhaps the term "exhibitor" is an overstatement in my case. Frankly, I think I looked pathetic because I was alone in my booth with no staff to count on. I also travelled all the way from Quezon City on the train lugging a bagpack full of books with me so I was very tired and drenched in sweat when I got there. I first asked Instituto Cervantes about selling El Diutay Principe at Dia del Libro in 2019 but the logistics required made it impossible. This year, I told them about my issues such as the roses we were required to give for every purchase. They were very accommodating about the whole thing and accepted my proposal to give a free Little Prince keychain instead. I have always loved attending Dia de...
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Experiencing Landers

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My Landers experience is courtesy of Maya's promotion where you can get a free Landers membership as well as a credit card with no annual fee. Since I went on a Monday after the holy week, the place was not crowded. According to the reviews in Google, it can get very crowded especially on weekends.  Maybe it's because Quezon city does not have a huge number of individuals with high net worth but I found the Landers Balintawak branch not well-maintained and not well-stocked. Although my points of reference are the S&R branches I have been to in Mandaluyong, Makati, and Parañaque so I'm not sure if the Landers in BGC is the same. Still, I imagine it's a nice playground for middle-aged people with disposable incomes. It's also a nice place to look for gifts or pasalubong since they have chocolates, wines, deli products, drinks, biscuits, and coffee that you do not see in other supermarkets. After buying some sugar, I decided to check out their food options. They ha...
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Holy Week and Main Character Syndrome

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Today is Black Saturday and I have been encountering a lot of posts in Facebook about how the "main characters" were returning back to Manila soon. This trend in social media began maybe two or three years ago. Whenever a holiday like All Saints Day or Christmas Day draws near, Facebook will be abound with posts from creators poking fun at people from Manila heading back home to their provinces (or to Manila after the holiday) and feeling like they are celebrities. People from the provinces who study or work in Manila tend to have a main character syndrome and thus feel superior to everyone else whenever they go home. This is also true for people who grew up in Manila but have family in the province who they spend certain holidays with. But what about people who are from Manila with no relatives in the province or those who just visit the provinces for a vacation? Do they also feel superior to the locals? I think it would have something to do with their age. I think if they a...
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Just Finished Reading Sunrise on the Reeping And You Don't Need to Be a Hunger Games Fan to Enjoy It

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I just recently finished reading Sunrise on the Reaping, released in March 2025. It is the latest installment in the Hunger Games books. I read the first three books of the Hunger Games series several years before it was made into a movie so I can only recall the main plot of the trilogy. I'm happy to inform you that even without reading the previous books, readers of Sunrise on the Reaping can still enjoy it. At some point, I thought that the mysterious first winner of the hunger games from District 12 was Katniss. So I became more confused when later on in the book, Katniss appeared when Haymitch was already old. Upon doing some research on the timeline, Katniss apparently came after Haymitch and the first victor from District 12 was a different person altogether. Do you ever recall scenes from a book and think that they were scenes from a movie? That happens to me all the time. Whenever I remember scenes from a book, I always have trouble telling whether they were from a book or...
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