Thoughts of a mid30s from the A-204 morning class

After hiatus of like 3 years was it? I’m here again bleeding my brains out.

For some reason, I just decided to check this website out of the blue and the first thing I did was to check my first and last blog entry.

I checked my first blog and I did it around July of 2009 and my last one was on May of 2020.

And here I go again. I am currently sitting on the 5th row of my Introduction of Nursing Research class. We are doing an activity of 2 research papers, identifying hypothesis, variables and whatnots and instead of doing so, I am blogging right now and not even sure what I should blog about so I’ll just let my fingertips do the talking or was it my brain?

To myself from 2009, not that you know right now but I am studying nursing again in the land of kangaroos and koalas. I’m married with 2 beautiful but with an attitude kids, a daughter who looked like a splitting image of his dad and a son who seems to look like me most of the time except for the eyes I guess. How is it possible that a foetus grows inside you yet they end up not looking like you? How unfair is that?hahaha

I am struggling right now with everything, I mean you know we’ve always struggled. I am just struggling in another land like I how I used to do in the desert. The introvert in us is struggling everyday wishing we could crawl back in my mom’s womb and just dissolve into nothingness most of the time. If it’s hard for you to relate in your own tribe in your own country, imagine how harder it is being in the multicultural mosaic. And nursing? Not really the most introverted profession we could choose right? How am I surviving so far? Not really sure. Just waking up everyday still and showing up even if I don’t feel like it at all.

It’s raining quite a bit outside the building where I am at. It’s gloomy and sums up how I feel inside in some other days. I still feel invisible sometimes. You must know as you are me. I’m still hoping for better days still. I think I still got a long way to go. Not looking for any unsolicited advice though. I’ll ask when I need and want one.

Oh well, I got another class to go. I’ll see you when I look back.

dernier cri

since I already promoted my newest site, allow me to promote my new online shop as well in IG, hahaha,

I introduce you all to Dernier Cri, just search for it’s IG username which is “dernier.cri.ph” and you’ll find preloved/unused/brand new clothes and other stuffs that I’m selling😊

I was hesitant at first to open an online shop because I wasn’t really the business woman type but I decided to still go for it just for the sake of trying. hahaha Dernier Cri is a French word for “the newest fashion”. It’s a little ironic because it says newest when in fact most of the items that I’m selling are preloved but I went for it because I wanted something catchy and unique (only to find out that there are 5-10 more online IG shops with the same name) hahaha so much for uniqueness. Anyway, I launched it a few days ago and I still have a small number of followers the reason I am promoting it here hahaha, my objective so far is to get rid of the items I’ve posted and if everything went well, I might continue selling other pre-order stuffs there. I have a friend from a previous company offering to be my supplier for korean/japanese/chinese stuffs like dresses, beauty products etcetera. Oh well, que sera sera, wish me luck😊

a new blog/site on a roll

so out of antok and boredom, I created a new site www.wahmbam.wordpress.com. It features some of my doodles in my ongoing wahmventure. chos, wala lang libre naman magpromote hahaha

My first payment from my online job

It’s been a while folks!

After countless of online application, I have finally landed myself an online job, I hope this would be “it”. (the online job I can count on and the job perfect for a breastfeeding mom like me.) I’ve been busy lately because I just started my training (paid! :))  as a Dental Biller last January 24 (that would be January 23 in California because that’s where my boss is based from). It looks like I won’t be getting away from the Dental department but it’s nice because at least I have backgrounds regarding Dental terminologies etcetera.

Anyhow, after 6 days of working, I finally got my first payment in Paypal! Yey! It’s not much but I’m ecstatic when I found out my boss already sent my salary just now. Our pay periods are as follow:

Days and hours from 25th – 9th paid on 15th of the month

Days and hours from 10th -24th paid on 30th of the month

So since I started January 24, my salary is only equivalent to 12 hours of my working time but I am not complaining. I think it pays way better than my 51talk tutoring gig. I still find the work a little hard but it’s nice because most of the time (like 85% of the time), it’s non-voice and I only do skype call whenever my boss needs to inform me about something work-related or I have to validate information with my supervisor or with other clinics that we handle.

Tada! that’s the screenshot of the Paypal email I received earlier. I hope to receive more emails like these. hahaha

ooopppp!my kids are awake! gotta go! till next time!

year ender

2017  is a tough year for me. but yes, here I am, still alive and kicking.

Though this year has brought many struggles, I have also been showered with lots of blessings.

This year, we welcomed the new addition to our family, my son Sebastian. Though my pregnancy and delivery had been tough, God has made me even tougher and for that, I am very thankful.

Also, 2017 brought me my first online job and that is my being an ESL online tutor. In addition, I got my one-time project based job in Upwork (kahit 1 week lang at maliit ang bayad atleast may trabaho at dagdag sa experience at portfolio)

Another thing, I got myself enrolled in 2 online courses which I have yet to finish, hoping I’d be able to finish it in time before I attended my Freelancer online training next year. ooppps that’s like in 1 day? good luck to me, hahaha

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So yeah, 2017 had not been bad as I had expected it to be. I’m a bit doubtful whether 2018 would be a good year for me but as the saying goes, habang may buhay may pag-asa (as long as you are alive, you have hope, tama ba? hahaha)

So before 2017 ends, let me greet everyone a HAPPY NEW YEAR! good luck to us all! 😛

 

Teaching IELTS Speaking

Last night I opened 3 slots for today’s morning tutorial class. When I checked it around 9am, those slots were still empty so I figure, I’ll be free for the whole morning. Suddenly, I received an SMS at 9:20 that my 10am slot was booked so I cram to my workplace to read what I’ll be teaching today and my lesson material took me by surprise. The lesson title is “IELTS Speaking”.

I was like WTF! I haven’t even taken IELTS exam yet and here I am trying to compose myself and reading through the teaching guide to somehow pull this tutorial class of mine. so wish me luck! (scratch head)

BF mom

Sabi nila breast milk is best for babies up to 2 years and beyond. At dahil naniniwala ako dun pero mas lamang ung nagtitipid kami, isa na akong padede mom. hahahaha. Ang isang benefit ng padede mom ay yung wala kang aalalahaning bote na makakalimutan pag lalabas kayo ng baby mo, yung ikaw lang sapat na (banat ba un?haha) ay meron pala kong aalalahaning bote kasi si unicahija sa bote na dumedede, pero atleast bawas sa bote na iisipin. 😛

anyways, simula nung naging padede-mom ako, basta abutan ng gutom ang unicohijo ko basta may upuan at nursing cover gorabels lang. kanina, nagpunta kaming SM, nag-ikot kami ng department store eh si Baste biglang pumalahaw ng iyak, gutom na pala edi hanap kami ng upuan, nagcover na ako at sisimulan ko na dapat ang session namin ng junakis ko nang biglang nilapitan ako ng sales lady.

sales lady: ma’am, gusto niyo po sa fitting room na lang kayo para mas kumportable?

ako: ay pwede ba ko dun?

saleslady: oo naman po ma’am! (na may kasamang friendly smile)

ako: okay! thank you!

First time kong maofferan ng fitting room for breastfeeding purposes kaya tuwang-tuwa talaga ako, not only because it is indeed more comfortable, but because it is more private, chos. haha, at dahil perstaym, allow me to take a picture as a souvenir. haha

lakas talaga makaganda ng ilaw sa fitting room. sa susunod ulit na breastfeeding session! hahaha

 

online tutor feels

So apparently, hindi porket pumasa ka na sa final demo, pagtututor na lang ang pagkakaabalahan mo dahil may mga scheduled training ka pang dapat attendan.

So I attended my day 2 BK12 training yesterday afternoon. This BK12 training is for us to get tagged or certified as BK12 instructor. They said if you got tagged, you’ll get more bookings. (I believe that this BK12 is like the K-12 program here in the Philippines.) It was fun though antok galore talaga ako nun. It took 3.5 hours to finish and after this BK12 training, I’m going to have a demo again which is scheduled on Wednesday. (ilan kayang demo pa ang dapat kong gawin, hahaha wish me luck :P)

We were given 2 lesson materials to choose from and I have yet to choose which material I’m going to use. One is for a very young learner, the preschool type of students and the other one is for grade school type of students. If it was my choice, I’d go for an adult student, not only they are easy to talk to, you won’t have to go the extra mile just to catch their attention. I have a 7 year old student from last week, he was cooperative enough but he was dancing the entire duration of our class it makes me dizzy. Good thing is that I was able to finish my class without scolding the student (pat my back) hahaha. The other day, I have a 4-year-old student who just keeps on repeating everything I say. I honestly don’t know how I was able to finish that lesson, hahaha, I just realized that in this line of homebased job, patience is definitely a virtue. 😛

On the other hand, it’s nice meeting some folks who are very dedicated to what they do, (I’m talking about our trainers) Even if some of us who attended the training looks so damn sleepy and bored, they were able to conduct the session in a fun way. We even played games and sing some nursery rhymes to our embarrassment (hahaha because we had to make it look like we are singing with a kid with all the paraphernalia and gestures and facial expressions, it’s hard to do that when you’re with an adult at least for me, hehe)  By the way, after each training session, we also do a group picture. You can see our pictures from the BK training day 1 & 2 below. 😀

medyo green na hindi

Int: sa loob ng health center sa may amin

bida: tatlong nanay na may kargang bata edad 6 months -1.2 years

Nanay 1: Amputla ng anak mo!

Nanay 2: Maputi talaga lahi namin, pake mo ba,

Nanay 3: Napadede mo ba yan sayo? (sabay padede sa ngumawa nyang junakis)

Nanay 2: ahm, (tingin sa dibdib), mga 5 days.

Nanay 1: Ay ano ba yan, ung anak kong to (sabay patingin sa anak kala mo trophy), gang ngayon dumedede sakin. Yung panganay ko nga hanggang 2 years old dumede sakin eh. Hindi sakitin ang mga anak ko!

Nanay 3: ahhh (sabay tingin sa hinaharap ni nanay 2) kaya pala, flat eh, walang paglalagyan ng gatas! hahahaha

Nanay 2: sige ganyan kayo sakin! wag ka nga! (sabay tapik sa katabing nanay 1 & 2)

Nanay 2: eh yung asawa mo nga nagagawa mong pasusuhin bakit hindi ang anak mo? (sabay tawang malandi, hindi ko alam idescribe basta tawang may halong kalanturan)

Nanay 3: tama ka dyan mare! hahahahaha

Ako: (sa gilid nilang tatlo, natawa na lang sa usapan nila, isip ko buti na lang ako breastfeeding din sa anak ko hahaha)

 

cinco uno chika

on my previous post, I mentioned that I was applying for home-based jobs online and voila! I was lucky to have landed an online tutor job at 51Talk(though I’m not sure kung magkakasundo kami, haha).

Teach, learn and earn at the comfort of your home. This was the ad that enticed me to apply. Anyway, tutorial jobs are rampant nowadays here in the Philippines, it just so happen that this was the company that I decided to try first.

Let me share my personal experience on the recruitment process.

1. Interview – someone from the recruitment team will call you either on the phone or via Skype to assess your communication skills, job qualifications and home-office requirements. In my case, I think my interview took 15-20 minutes and the lady I spoke with told me that I passed the assessment immediately before ending the call. She also sent me an email and a text message confirming that I passed and how to proceed with the next stage.
2. Technical Check – a technical facilitator will call you via Skype to conduct this check. The facilitator will send you a program to download and run on your PC. It took less than an hour in my case. I actually thought I’ll fail this step because on the program that I run in the computer, there are items that my computer did not meet the system requirements. (I think I failed 2-3 out of the 15 items there) but nonetheless, the tech person told me I passed.
3. Pre-Service Orientation – this was done via Skype that took around 2 hours. They’ll check the following: web-cam, noise cancelling headset, teaching environment (plain white background, quiet, well-lit), proper attire (I wore collared blouse on top and pyjamas down, hahaha) and teacher’s data sheet (excel sheet that where you need to fill in personal information) They will also give your system-generated teacher name (my name’s Bree Lewis). They’ll also give you introductory scripts to choose from and then you’ll have to record it on your end then send the mp3 recording via email. They’ll also ask you to submit a soft-copy of your 2×2 picture and 1 valid ID, to be sent via email as well.
4. NTT – stands for New Teacher’s Training. It took us 6-7 hours including 1 hour break). A trainer from the company will do a group call via Skype. He/she will orient you guys the what and how’s of online ESL tutorial. He/She will go through phonology, engagement, TPR (total physical response) usage, giving instructions and feedback effectively and lesson planning. After the training, each participant will have to do a 5-10 minutes mock demo lesson where the trainer will pretend as a Chinese student. If you passed the mock demo, you’re good to go for the next step which is the teaching demo with a Chinese evaluator.
5. Teaching Demo – a Chinese facilitator will call you via Skype to do your 15 minute demo. You will present a 10-page PowerPoint-like lesson in 15 minutes. In my case, I was not able to finish the 10 slides, I only get to finish 7 so I my application was deemed pending by the Chinese evaluator. After my demo, she gave me points for improvement and then I was scheduled for a re-demo the next day. Fortunately, I was able to ace my redemo class. Thank God.
6. Onboarding – this was done through Skype again. It took around 2-3 hours. Shift management, rules and regulations, training and promotion are some of the topics which were discussed during this step.
7. Launching – you’re officially an online ESL tutor! Congratulations! well, before you get to be launched, someone from the launching team will send you an email confirming you’re a launched teacher. You can start managing your schedules and start teaching (if a student booked you that is).

I have just started teaching last Wednesday. I did 3 consecutive classes and it was nerve-wracking for a first-timer like me. I’m supposed to do 2 more but I decided I’m done for the evening so I just closed my slot for 2 classes before someone booked them. hahaha. I don’t have an idea yet whether I’ll actually earn decently on this online job since I just started. (haha, feeling ko kasi marereklamo ako (kasi mabilis ako magsalita?), nakakahaggard ding tumitig sa PC screen para magantay kung may magbubook sayo, kasi ba naman the students can book your opened slots 1 minute before the class itself starts, kumusta naman un so dapat nakatutok ka talaga, if may magbook sayo at hindi mo naattendan, good luck sa penalty which is higher than how much you earn per class.)

so there, I hope I’ll do well in my classes. gotta go. I have a booked class at 9. hahaha