Archive for the ‘At work’ Category

Another Busy Week

Posted by shiera on Aug-30-2008

I’ve been absent from blogging world these past few days.  I didn’t have time to watch my favorite animes because my hands were full (and still is) configuring a Joomla-powered website.   Joomla is way more difficult to configure than Wordpress but it’s really good.   Enough of geeky stuffs…

I was on my way home yesterday when my flatmate called.  I was a bit alarmed when she told me that there was a fire in our apartment building!  But I calmed down when she said that she couldn’t see smoke coming out.  I rushed home and still saw the building surrounded with firetrucks and firemen.  Maybe it was just a false alarm, or was it because the firemen were too quick to respond to the emergency? With our limited Japanese, we couldn’t ask anybody about it, so until now, it remains a mystery.  :D

How was my week?

Posted by shiera on Aug-22-2008

Two major events happened to me this week: it was my first day of work at another company and the panic upon hearing my family’s evacuation due to MILF’s attack near my hometown. Most of the people have gone back to their homes but they’re still afraid of MILF’s possible attack especially at night. I just hope there’d be no more bloodshed over this centuries of disagreement in Mindanao.So, how was my first week at work? The office is just small and there are only 10 us at the office. So far, I love it there! Here are the reasons why:

  • We’re allowed to dress casually,
  • We can eat at our tables
  • Work time’s from 9:30AM-6:30PM. Most of the companies here have 9:00-6:00PM working time.
  • The office is only about 7 minutes by bicycle from my apartment. I don’t have to wake up early to catch the train!
  • Because it’s near, I can go home during lunch break which is at 12:30-1:30PM
  • I can use NetBeans, SQL Admin and dozens of other applications at the same time! Unlike my beloved laptop that’s already too slow…
  • Yep, finally after two years of bugging my boss for a Java project, I’m doing Java right now!
  • There’s a surround sound system for music!  Though most of the songs I hear are Japanese.

I still can’t remember everyone’s name but I hope they’ll remain as kind as they are now.

First Day Jitters?

Posted by shiera on Aug-15-2008

Since that April 1st incident, I’ve never worked in an office. I’ve spent a month in the Philippines, and the other 3 months, I’ve spent here in the apartment! It was only around June when our boss gave us some in-house (or should I say, in-apartment) projects.  It was very convenient as I didn’t have to wake up early and I could take breaks as often as I wanted.

Unfortunately, those carefree days are over.   I finally got in a small company and we are starting on Monday!  Since the confirmation, I couldn’t help but be nervous on my first day at the company.  4 1/2 months is a long time, after all.  Do I still know how to program? It is a common custom to say a short “speech” to your teammates on your first day. What will I say, then? Will our boss be as kind as the previous ones? Can I eat at my desk? Will there be unfiltered internet connection? Ok, I should stop listing all those questions because I’m getting more anxious. I guess I’ll have to prepare my little speech, then. :D

Waiting Game

Posted by shiera on Apr-17-2008

I’ve been out of work since April 1st. So far, together with other colleagues, I’ve been to 4 interviews. So far, no feedback from those companies. I would have cared less if the interviews were in a language that I could easily and totally comprehend. But no, I’m in my dumbest state during interviews because everything is in Japanese! Thanks to my colleagues who step up as my interpreter at times.

This afternoon, we had another interview and so another waiting game began. Of course, I still want my “forced leave” to continue for a few more days but I don’t like to be subjected again to another language barrier torture.

Well, I have to admit, my Japanese skill still needs a lot of work. :D

Extreme Politeness?

Posted by shiera on Apr-1-2008

Extreme politeness or just plain rudeness?

Yesterday, our leader informed us that our project’s over. So, when I was heading to work this morning, I was (a little bit) looking forward to a new task. When I reached the office, I was rendered speechless when Idel told me that our contract with the company was over. It felt like being told: “Oh, I forgot to tell you that you’re fired.

It was really embarrassing. I could feel everyone’s eyes on us while we emptied our lockers, shred the documents, and returned our locker keys. I was fuming that it was very difficult to say my thanks.  How could they not tell us? Was it because they’re so polite that they went around the bush? Were they so polite that they avoided telling us that they haven’t renewed the contract?

I really love working in that company. It’s near my apartment and the place is really awesome. I think everyone was nice.  I’m still a bit upset, but then unpleasant things happen. :)

Right now, we’re waiting for the next assignment. The good thing about this incident is that this gives me enough time to have my fill of Sakura.  No work for the next few days! yipeee!

Thursday Thirteen #16

Posted by shiera on Mar-27-2008

Despite the deadline to catch, I sometimes feel so bored and sleepy. How do I usually overcome this? I either drink tons of coffee or observe the people around me. There’s no partition between the desks so it’s very tempting to do this. ;)

Here’s a list of people who sometimes entertain me pique my interest.

1. He’s seated 2 rows away from me. I’m always sleepy in the office, and I’m pretty sure that some people notice my eyes drooping, but this guy makes me less guilty. Why? He’s always extremely sleepy that he looks like he’s drunk. Thus, we gave him the code name “hubog”, the Bisaya word for “drunk”.

2. He’s probably the only (a little bit) irritating person in the office. He’s seated across Idel, the only Filipino officemate I have in the office. When Idel and I start talking, even if it’s entirely work-related, he gives us this “stop-talking-look”. He’s nice at times but prone to mood swings. He’s my team leader (sort of) and not only does he give me tasks, he corrects my Japanese grammar, too (which is OK for me).

3. He was once our team leader. At first, he seemed scared to approach us. His face always turns red when talking, so we call him “pula”, the Bisaya word for “red”. The most distinct behavior of this guy is that he can’t stay in his desk for too long. He keeps on walking around the office, just like a supervisor. :D

4. He’s uncommonly very short even for a Japanese guy (about 4′5″), but he has a booming voice. I think he’s already a team leader. When he talks to his team, everybody could hear him. He seems to drag his feet when walking and the sound of it sometimes gets on my nerves. We call him “putot”, the Bisaya word for “short”.

5. We call him “phone guy”. The reason is obvious: when I see him in the corridor, he’s always talking to somebody in his cellphone.

6. His code name is “densha guy”. Another obvious reason: he closely resembles the lead actor of the famous Japanese drama series “Densha Otoku”.

7. He’s very tall and very slim. His hairstyle is so anime-like and he has this habit of plucking off some hair strands. We call him “kuhit”, the Bisaya word for a “stick” or “pole”.

8. I don’t really know why many of the Japanese lady try to “soften” their voice. The effect sometimes is far from being a music to my ears. There’s this lady from another team who makes me feel like banging my head on the desk when she speaks.

9. She’s an HR personnel and I sometimes wish I have her height and charm. She’s exceptionally tall for a Japanese lady, at about 5′6″.

10. She’s seated a row away from me. I sometimes wonder how she feels being different from most of the Japanese ladies. Japanese ladies are usually petite and she’s far from it. She’s very nice, though.

11. He’s a few rows from where I’m seated. While everyone is very serious with the work at hand, this guy seems to be always in a good mood. He’s grinning all the time!

12. Just like me, this guy always arrives past 9:00AM. But when he says his “Ohayou gozaimasu” (”good morning”), everyone could hear him. For me, this is a good thing. I wish I could muster confidence and enthusiasm just like him, to say my greetings out loud.

13. He’s seated a few rows in front of me so he looks familiar already. One time, we went out of the office at the same time and after a few agonizing moments of trying to communicate in Japanese, I found out that he speaks English! He’s a Korean and I’m just glad he’s an addition to the people I could say “hi” to in the corridor.

That’s it! Mmmm, I wonder how my officemates see me. Am I irritating or another source of entertainment?

Defective faucet?

Posted by shiera on Mar-7-2008

Just like many things here, the faucets in our office’s toilet are sensor-activated. Once you move your hands away from it, the water immediately stops flowing. For my 3-month stay with the current company, never did one of them failed until that weird incident.

I’ve been busy at work lately that I need to stay in the office beyond my normal schedule. I was alone in the toilet at that time. When I moved my hands away from the faucet, the water still kept on flowing. I waited for a few more seconds, while deliberating whether I report it to I don’t know whom, or just leave it flowing like that. For about a minute it kept on flowing and to my relief it finally stopped. The weird thing is that it stopped as soon as an officemate entered the toilet. Only then did I get scared.

I usually stay longer in the toilet to do some stretching every time I feel sleepy. Plus, we could see the Osaka Castle and the castle grounds from there, so just staring out the window is really refreshing. But after that incident, eerie thoughts come to mind everytime I enter the toilet. I want to think of it as a technical glitch but…