Why not Greenhills?

It's been more than a year since I've been to Greenhills. The last time was on impulse. I wanted to get a Converse imitation (sorry Converse - loved the shoes but just can't afford the real deal) ... which was back in 2006.

I've got several reasons why I wouldn't go back to Greenhills. First off ... TRAFFIC. I come from Makati and whichever route you take - EDSA/Wilson/San Juan ... traffic is always bad. Second ... the prices. All those oh so pretty displays ... the wide array of products, both imitations and real alike, can really make a shopaholic drool. But along with those wonderful display comes a price, and sometimes a very hefty price. As i looked around, I saw a LeSport Sac bag similar to the one i already have. Of course, the natural instinct was to ask how much it costs, wanting to know if I got a better deal or not. P600.00?!? WOAH! After much haggling, the saleslady told me the lowest she can give was P400.00. Not even close, as I got mine for P200.00.

But what I really hate about the place is the lack of responsibility amongst their security personnel. As we were heading back to Virra Mall, from the row of fastfoods from the back, I noticed that there wasn't anybody to assist the pedestrians while crossing and with the vehicles with no respect to the people crossing, it seemed like the people would have to cross at their own risk. As we were on our way home, we asked one of their uniformed men where we could get a cab. We were pointed to the taxi stand which really didn't have any use at all. We waited at the queue but noticed that other people get a better chance of getting a cab at the corner and with that, most of the cab drivers opted to go straight to that corner instead of going through their "TAXI STAND". To make matters worst, there weren't any uniformed men. I've been so used to the other malls' system, and even hospitals, that when a taxi stand would guarantee you a ride. I guess that's not the case in Greenhills. All I can say is there is no freaking fucking cab and these people whom they called security guards don't even care.

Their security personnel suck. These guys need to be sent to the commercial area a little bit down south and be trained by the security guards there. Those uniforms they're wearing has a purpose. They're not just a piece of clothing you wear to work. They comand respect and promise peace and order in the area. But then, wasn't it in Greenhills when a man got robbed of his belongings from inside his car while it was parked right in front of the parking lot's security post? Well, I wouldn't be surprised.

dito tayo dito tayo

this is a little too late because it happened last dec. 22, 2007 but i just wantto share the wonderful experience we had at jollibee.

my eldest son CiJ was celebrating his 7th birthday. following the filipino traditions, we've decided to celebrate his birthday in a grand way. our first option for a venue was mcdonald's. my sons had been mcdonald's addict since their first "kanin, chicken, gravy" experience. well, not that they don't like chicken joys but the mcdonald's was the closest fastfood we had in our area and the only one with a play area. CiJ had his first birthday party at mcdonald's and so did Gabe during his 5th birthday. so it was a no brainer for us to celebrate the party at mcdonald's. but we decided to get our CiJ's opinion, after all, it was his party. we got suprised when he said that he wanted to celebrate his birthday at jollibee. i'm not really sure why he thought of that, maybe it's because he's been to mcdonald's so many times that he got sick of it, maybe it's because of the commercial he has seen on tv where jollibee (the mascot) was dancing with the other kids but every time we ask him about the birthday party, he was so firm on his decision that he wanted jollibee.

and so jollibee it was, i had to pull an arm and a leg on the jollibee staff so i could get the schedule that i want ... our target date was dec. 22. now remember, that was like the holiday season already and i wasn't just competing with parents who wanted to have their kid's birthday on that same day but i was also competing against the companies who decided to scrimp on their holiday budgets and have their christmas party there instead of some swanky places like nbc tent or something. i wouldn't tell you how i got the my target date but i did.

now comes the fun part, creating the party. i'm very hands on when it comes to creating parties for my sons. on Gabe's 5th birthday, we were dressed in costumes and had stuffed toys as giveaways. with jollibee, i only had one favor and that was to make sure that jollibee will the the mascot for the party.

on the day itself,i was very edgy. i didn't wanna disappoint CiJ. i called the store in the morning,confirming that they had jollibee for their mascot that afternoon and was assured that jollibee will be there. when i got to the venue, i again confirmed if jollibee was there. yep, jollibee was there (or rather the person who was gonna be inside the mascot's costume) and they even asked if we wanted jollibee to be part of the games as well (for a minimal fee, of course). well, anything for our kids, as we always say.

the party still had the usual games, the minor bloopers from the hosts (their supplier was not able to provide the cake) but it became very special because of jollibee's appearance. he has this certain personality in him, a certain flair, that made you think that you're not interacting with a mascot but with a real character. here are the photo's from the party and i guess, from the looks on our faces, you can't deny that we were having a good time.

thank you, jollibee PRC =)

the celebrant ... CiJ

with dad and gabe ...

party games ...

photo op with jollibee ...

the best holiday season

(Taken during CiJ's birthday party)

the 2007 holiday was a welcome change for our family. believe it or not,we've had our family since 2000 but we never really got to celebrate the holidays the way we're supposed to. prior to last year, we'd always celebrate our holidays with james' family and often end up feeling more stressed and more strain on our marriage.

2007 was a big change for us. we both tried our best to work out our relationship not only as parents to the kids but finally as husband and wife. with a little faith and a lot of patience, we've had minor disagreements that brought tears to both our eyes but never a major issue that made us "bring hell on earth" like before. our relationship with our kids can never be better. both cij and gabe are sensitive on what we're going through and unfortunately, you can also see the stress on their faces whenever they see some tension between me and james. in our efforts to make it work, we became more conscious to their reactions and they even helped us work things out. for those couples who said that their children helped them with their relationship, YOU ARE DEFINITELY RIGHT!

i thought the strain on james' job would make things worst. i remember the first time i got the news that he was gonna lose his job. i kept whining to my friends, letting them know about my fears and anxiety. fortunately, the job loss only put a dent on our holiday plans but never ruined it (screw the people who are responsible for this!). everything went smooth sailing after the initial reaction faded.

so right now, it's goodbye 2007 and hello 2008. we are now looking into a brighter year for our family. =)