In Lieu Of Gifts, I Accept CASH!

Whats Going On

By : 4 Non Blondes

25 years and my life is still

trying to get up that great big hill of hope

For a destination

I realized quickly when I knew I should

That the world was made up of this

Brotherhood of man

For whatever that means

And so I cry somethimes when I'm lying in bed

Just to get it all out what's in my head

And I'm, I am feeling a little peculiar

So I wake in the morning and I step outside

And I take deep breath and I get real high

And I scream from the top of my lungs

What's goin' on

And I say hey....

And I say hey what's goin' on

And I say hey....

I said hey what's goin' on

Oooh....

Oooh....

And I try, oh my God do I try

I try all the time

In this institution

And I pray, oh my God do I pray

I pray every single day

For a revolution

And so I cry sometimes when I'm lying in bed

Just to get it all out what's in my head

And I'm, I am feeling a little peculiar

So I wake in the morning and I step outside

And I take deep breath and I get real high

And I scream from the top of my lungs

What's goin'on

And I say hey...

And I say hey what's goin' on

And I say hey...

I said hey what's goin' on

And I say hey...

And I say hey what's goin' on

And I say hey...

I said hey what's goin' on

Oooh....

25 years and my life is still

trying to get up that great big hill of hope

For a destination

More free lyrics

Missing High School and All That Jazz

Everyone misses their high school days right? Right. For all the years I've been posting bulletins in Friendster and now in Facebook, I noticed one thing; a nostalgia for the bygone days.

I'm not any different as I really did have a wonderful time in high school. Being in an exclusive for girls school presented a whole new level of adventure. One we gladly treaded on.

This melancholia for high school life did not come all of a sudden. For weeks now I have been missing the life outside of work and family. I am in my early twenties after all.

Then yesterday, in one of the Facebook quizzes, everyone commented that they also missed the chocolate, Violet Crumble.

What's the one underlying factor? Well, we all love eating it during high school.

I remember my first taste of Violet Crumble, one of my classmate stole it from our canteen. I'm not proud but back then it was fun plus chocolate was really expensive for our high school allowance.

And then today we went in Al Manshar and saw this
I remember when KCC Mall in General Santos City opened and hanging out there became all the rage. We spend after school hours and even the weekends ( we told our parents that we're doing projects or group practice ) in KCC's it place, the World of Fun.
Even now, I did not took a penchant in playing in the arcade or dancing my heart out in DDR but I hanged out there and had a blast nevertheless.

I miss GenSan, I miss the life that was and I'm missing my friends a lot.

Days before my 25th, I'm already feeling really ancient.

Merry Go Round

We have to admit it, Kuwait can be a tad boring on weekends. Aside from a occasional house parties on weekends, mall sales, eating out, laying out for some sun tan once the summer comes in beaches, there literally nothing else to do.

Not that I'm complaining. Much.

So for the past couple of weeks, instead of being a couch potato watching reruns on Showtime (which I actually covet doing during work days), we haul our asses up and out to accompany the little guy for some fun.

His favorite hang out place is in Al Manshar riding his kick ass red engine

They have a huge play house in that place. Fit even for the big boys.

Baroue, in the Avenues, also boasts of state of the art play house and arcade for kids.

There's the train that goes round and round and round

And of course the classic, Merry Go Round.

It's every little kids haven but a hole burner in every parents pockets too. For games and rides that ranges from 250 to 500 fils (approx 40 to 80 PHP) it's pretty darn expensive. Although I have to be cliche and say that there's no price for a child's smile/ laughter/ happiness.

As for me, well I ate the darn candies he won plus that candy stall that literally got every imaginable sweets doesn't help either.

So much for lifestyle change.

120 KD For A Filipino Professional Nurse?

You got to be kidding me.

My cousin left me an IM last night asking for my advice regarding a job offer here in Kuwait. She got an email from an Agency in Manila (I'm not naming) and offered her a nursing position in one of the hospitals here in Kuwait with the following package:

• 120 KD salary - Approximately 19,000 pesos.
• Free accomodation
• Free transportation

That's it. Nothing about round trip ticket and get this; she has to pay for her medical, agency and other POEA fees.

Our company tea boy get paid more than that and more.

Com'on Kuwait, if you want grade A, qualified medical professional you gotta PAY UP!

I heard that doctors all over this country is going on strike because of low wages and I have a friend who's wife gave birth but had to endure 5 operations due to one botched job after another.

For a very rich country who can easily afford competent professionals, why do you keep hiring imbeciles? Seriously.

Filipino nurses are widely sought abroad for their professionalism, advance studies and practice in medicine. One's nationality does not really matter in saving lives, does it?.

As for my cousin, I told her not to bother replying to that cheap ass Agency.

Life Style Change - For the Umptenth Time!

That title is not being very Zen to me right now but I digress.

While eating my breakfast and after struggling with my outfit for the day, I decided I have had enough and it's the time of the year again for a "lifestyle change".

Lifestyle change for me would only mean 3 things:

1. Less calorie intake - Yes I used to count my calories. I know carbs are bad and veggies are good.
   
2. Exercise! - I do know how to burn them too but psyching myself up to go and actually do it is a totally different matter.
3. Wake up early- I find that if I wake up early, despite the how late I went to sleep, I still feel rejuvenated and active for the whole day.

Coincidentally enough, I stumbled upon this website on my daily readings. The Beginners Guide to Zen Habits and continue to click another link of the same website 10 benefits of rising early.

For more detailed information please click the link above but below I will summarize what must I do to make this lifestyle change stick this time.

Going from fat to fit for good notes

So how do you stay motivated during the process?

Staying motivated during this process is arguably the most important part of the journey. If you start doubting yourself, you will fall off. So go the other way with it and get yourself pumped up! Here are a couple of tricks that can help you stay motivated:

• Set goals to reach, like being able to do 10 pull ups
• Use your favorite movie quotes to motivate you
• Find a line in a song that sends shivers down your spine when you hear it
• Write down your progress (your weight, body fat percentage, the amount of weight you can lift for a specific exercise) but only compare it on a long timeline
• Pick someone with what you would consider to be an ideal body and aim for that
• Write down the jean size you’re going for
• Create a fitness equation that breaks down, by percentage, what you think it’s going to take to get the job done. Here’s mine (15% Heart, 10% Dedication, 20% Will Power, 5% Luck, 10% Desire, 10% Reflection, 20% Consistency, 10% Humility)

Whatever you chose to motivate yourself, customize it for you and print it up. You can put it around your mirror, computer screen, in a private diary, etc. This is all about what motivates you, so don’t worry about what anyone else would think about your choice or music or movie line, because what they think truly doesn’t matter.

Know Which Whole Foods You Can Stick With

I’m assuming that we all know and accept that eating nutrient dense whole foods, green leafy vegetables for example, is a key factor in weight loss and sound health. But you don’t hear enough people talk about picking the whole foods that you like. In order to consistently eat healthier, you have to enjoy what you are eating.

However, you can’t say that you don’t like vegetables! That one just isn’t in the cards. So if you enjoy Spinach more than Brussels Sprouts, enjoy the Spinach! Look up recipes that you can put your favorite vegetables in. There are tons of great food blogs out there that showcase their healthy recipes.

Know Which Foods To Stay Away From

Everyone has certain foods that seem to do more damage than others when it comes to their fitness. Processed foods, candy bars, jam-packed-with-sugar-Jamba Juices (yeah, I said it) are usually some of the big culprits. So find out what food or foods seem to keep you from losing weight and only have them on the occasional cheat day, if at all.

This list of foods may change as your goals change. If your ideal look is that lean, muscular/toned Hollywood physique, than I will tell you from personal experience that staying away from carbs such as grains, potatoes and pastas may help you out.

Find Your Favorite Exercise And Own It

My buddy Rusty talks about this all the time. In the world of fitness, everyone always says you should switch it up, and it does help your progress. But if you like a classic and effective workout, such as pull ups, as much as I do, keep doing them until you are a pro! You will be proud of yourself for getting good at an exercise that you enjoy. If possible, try and chose a good compound exercise like bench press, pull ups, push ups, dead lifts, etc.

This Is A Lifestyle Change, Not A Diet

This is a whole new life, not a month long excursion into healthy eating and/or fitness. It’s not important if you get it all right off the bat or if you do it gradually, but consistency is where the results reside. Counting calories is not a necessity, but understanding the cost of them is paramount. In your former lifestyle, you ate “X” amount of calories. In this new, healthy lifestyle you will be eating “Y” amount of calories. I had to understand that concept before I saw any gains (or losses for that matter). At least at first, writing down what you eat can help you begin to understand how many calories you should be eating (a.k.a. your caloric deficit).

Same goes for exercising. You’ve got to be consistent. I know Leo talks about this in The Power Of Less, and he’s right on point. Its like the tortoise and the hare, slow and steady wins the race. So figure out how many days a week you can go to the gym and stick with it. Then adjust it as your goals change.

Accepting That Your Life Will Change For The Better

Most think that this is an easy part of the journey, but it’s really hard… and scary for that matter. Change is always hard to deal with and transforming your physical appearance is no different. My whole life, I was always the token fat funny guy. That’s who I was, it was a part of me. During my switch to a healthy lifestyle, I had to come to grips with the fact that I would be received differently by others, which brings me to my next point.

You won’t believe the difference in how people listen to you. Before I lost the weight, people would of course hear what I had to say, but they were much more focused on what they were going to say after I was done. Then I lost the weight and I started to notice that people were much more invested in what I had to say. It’s amazing to think that a person’s appearance can change the way people interact with that person, but it’s true.

Never Stop Seeking Out Good Advice

When it comes to the difference between hearing what people say and actually listening to what they’re saying, it goes both ways. Being able to open your ears and listen to what others have to say will help you for the rest of your life, especially in health and fitness. Three of the main tools currently at my disposal are in direct contradiction to how I used to think. If I had shut myself off to others suggestions, I would never have experienced the benefits of Intermittent Fasting, Paleo eating, and High Intensity Interval Training.

Make It Fun!

The best thing about getting into shape is that it opens doors to fun activities. You’ll get better at sports, feel more comfortable in revealing swimwear, be able to hike up higher mountains, the list goes on as high as your imagination wants it to go. I was so happy the first time I got to the top of Half Dome. I was proud when I did the entire hike in 6 and a half hours. So enjoy yourself, cause it’s going to be lots of fun!

Dreaming Awake

Or literally translated - nananaginip ng gising - in tagalog.

One of the major reason why Filipino's spend most of their life working abroad is to build their dream home. It's up there with feeding the family and sending kids to school.

A personalized OFW Hierarchy of needs if you must.

Which I am really determine to achieve this year. As a motivation, I will make it my one year birthday gift for myself. I'm not married and I certainly don't have kids but I do have siblings and a mother who occasionally dips into my pocket as I do into theirs thus my financial status borders into can afford but not really.

What was my first step into this dream of a gift?

• I looked at houses, condos, lots etc from Luzon to Mindanao until my eyes blurred and I gotten good in computing different payment schemes.

• I paid the standard 13 KD for 24 months - well almost - of my Pag-Ibig Overseas Program (POP). I realize that there are other payment schemes such as in house financing and bank financing but I opted for POP as it is the most flexible and well practical seeing that I'll be paying this on my own for years to come.
  

• I hunted and shopped for household items. It's never too early to stock up on little bits and pieces for my dream house.
  

This is where the dreaming awake comes in.

I am so obssessed in finding the perfect decor for my dream house. Being a girl, I considered a pink ceiling, a minimalist look of white and red and of course elegance and homey must mesh.
I love Ikea catalogs as it gives me ideas of affordable yet fashionable designs.
With my budget, I'm looking at 120 SQM to 240 SQM houses because I want to have a small patio for bbq and even gardening if I can convince mama to do the landscaping.
The dream, red and white bedroom.
The minimalist look that I so love. Photos are from Apartmenttherapy.Com

• I realize that I cannot afford to buy everything at one go so what I'm doing is I make a must have list and gradually buy and stock it for shipment to my soon to be house.

• Buying a house is a big step even for those with partners and I realize that. The Secret will help me get through with this and an occasional dip into the old people and my siblings pocket will too. Haha! The Secret says that your thoughts are the magnet for the events in your life, so everyday I send these good vibes to the world.

• Paying my POP and buying stuff doesn't cut half of the actual house buying . I have to save up for the down payment too. For the coming months I am allotting a portion of my salary just for this.

• I never realize how important real estate agents are up until now. One must be very careful in dealing with them though as it being their business, they will push for the high priced ones. High price means bigger commission for them.
  

Not even 25 and I'm already nesting. Some of my peers would deem me bored crazy but I don't. I like having a steady ground and having a place to go home to where I can occasionally shut the world out and curl in my french windows to read a good book.

The Secret, will power to save and alertness at work will give me all these and more.

Boring Is The Word.

Admittedly, I am. I have been and I'm proud to say that I will always be a boring person for my sister and sometimes even for my standard 24 year old self.

I could count the people I will call in an instant if I have news and those are all family. Friends are all from childhood who are all scattered around the world.

Considering that I'm in Kuwait, not having a night life can be excuse and a routine of work-home-online-work-malls-tv series-eat out is actually a lifestyle of majority of OFW's here in Kuwait.

I'll be turning a year old in a weeks time and I swear to high heavens that before I turn 30 I shall try to be a silly person. Sillier than I ever was than I ever will be.

I will have plenty of room for silliness.

Here are my silly list and most of this will include my sister and soon to arrive brother. Even the old people can come too!

• Bowling - It can get any sillier than pirouetting on a lane trying to get that first strike right? Right.


• Take loads of 1 minute photos - In all my 20+ years I've only done this twice and I felt silly doing it. So yeah, more photos coming up!


• Ride a roller coaster - NO! I want to loosen up, not die. Maybe I can watch them take the ride.

Ok. I can't think of anything silly that I can do here in Kuwait without bordering to crazy and dangerous. Pfft. Only 3 silly things. Boring.

Below are not my not so silly things but will really take a lot of pep talk and couch shoving.

• Yoga - It's not silly but I love yoga and it makes me happy and somehow accomplished like i'm doing something to better myself. Might do it with sisteret.


• Run - On the treadmill, boring yes, but still thinking of slimming down and a total life style change. Pfffft. Boring. Whatever, still have to do this.


• NO RICE! - Instead of eating rice I'll replace it with lettuce and if i'm thinking of eating rice, I'll play in rice dot com and think about helping people.


• Detoxify and prep up always - My lazy days overpower my well groomed days. Information overload.


• Be Friendy - Nuf said.

Oh, before I say adieu, allow me to gloat about my latest purchase in Al Ghanim.

I got one for my mother too! Aren't I the best daughter in the world? Teeeeheeee.

Al Ghanim finally called and told me that my name finally got cleared with CI.Net. At long last! I went there like 4 times plus I had to have our company mandoub to check my name in CID ministry.

Why was I blocked at CI net? Well, after I asked them to give me the website and contact number of CI.Net, I figured out that my bank account played a big role in all this.

I was told that an account will freeze after 6 months being out of the country. Since I wasn't planning to use that same bank again for my new job I didn't bother to pick up that new card they've all been handing out and leave it at that. Apparently, not a good idea, so I had to get off work early to go to the city and sort it all out with the bank.

Couple of days later, I got the call.

Happy Easter Kuwait!

It's a good day for Easter.

We woke up at 6 a.m. just in time for the 7 a.m mass at Our Lady of Arabia church in Ahmadi.

Went back home and pop a couple of chick flick movies; Confessions of a Shopaholic and Bride Wars, with sister blister.

Fell asleep on the start of the second movie.

Woke up and got ready for a late brunch at Hilton

I was only able to take photos of my seafood appetizer plate and my dessert plate because I was so hungry I devoured almost everything that they have in their buffet.

BURP!

White Picket Fences - Illegal In Kuwait

Seriously. It is.

Couple of weeks ago, I got a call complete with trembling voice from our maid. She said that there are 2 big police cars with people in dishdasha outside our house and they have road workers with them. Without so much of a knock on our door, the dishdasha clad men told the road workers to knock down our beautiful white picket fence.

They tore down that one protection for our dogs and our little baby from running all the way out the road.

I was told by my officemate and a taxi driver that their neighbours fences were knocked down too.

From what we heard, it was announced that fences are illegal in Kuwait.

Seriously. WHY?
What can a fence do to this country except protect their children and their house from outsiders?

Would they rather have their children ran over by cars, dogs lost, house robbery than have a little protection called a fence?

I understood that the 2 meters space from the road is still government property but our fence was inside our garden. It's actually inside private property and if this happens in another country (which I'm pretty sure doesn't) what they did is illegal and we could sue the heck out of them.

Unfortunately, this is one of the negative side of living here.

Now our dogs are confined in the house and our baby in his crib because they cannot play and enjoy the garden anymore. We cannot eat out under the stars smelling the flowers because well one cannot really eat while cars and pedestrians pass by.

Oh well.

Family Guy In The House!

We were browsing at Virgin Store's boutique section when I saw theseAdorable!

It's Stewie!!! The youngest child on Family Guy cartoon series. That show is not your run on the mill cartoons because... well.. because you wouldn't want your children to watch it. Heck, you won't even want your Grandmother to watch it as they will certainly get offended.

I discovered Family Guy when I was holed up in our apartment in Davao. I can only do so much malling, eating out and going to the beach before my wallet gives up thus staying in and watching tv. I can't stand Wowowee so I went through my brother's dvd's and found Family Guy season 1.

The rest, as they say, is history. From 20 something episodes of season one up to season 7, my brothers and I bonded through this tv series.

By the way, Davao has the best pirated dvd's unlike here in Kuwait where they try to sell you 6 dvds for 1 KD just for one season. In Davao they have the whole 22 episodes or so of 1 season in just 1 dvd and all for 500 fils. Great deal right?
When I got back here in Kuwait I thought it would be awhile before I get to watch the show again but boy was I wrong. Showtime is showing it like 5 times a week! I schedule it for recording and watch it whenever I get the chance.

Anyway, back to the shirt, it's too expensive for 9 KD. I looked it up and found that it only costs 7 $ online. It's too pretty to pass on though but I just can't! Maybe i'll get that keychain that's only 3 KD when I get back there.

Amft. Corporate America.

I love their theme song!

It seems today that all you see
Is violence in movies and sex on TV
But where are those good old-fashioned values
On which we use to rely?

Lucky there's a Family Guy
Lucky there's a man who, positively can do
All the things that make us laugh and cry
He's our Family Guy!

Rain and Flowers in Kuwait

I love love love the weather this week and I hope it stays this way whole year around! Oh, except that may take the whole country under water considering their drainage system.

There are even photos and videos of hail which looked like it snowed in Kuwait I was totally oblivious to that one as I was in the office when it happened.

Yesterday though was a different story. I totally immersed on this beautiful weather while on the way to the Avenues.

I love rain!

Puddles and muds and whimsical dew drops. Sigh.

What I love aside from rain is my mom's flowers in her garden. Mama have a talent when it comes to plants as time and time again she creates this beautiful oasis for all of us.

So today, after the rain, I took these shots for her.

Ever since we were kids our number one chore is to water the plants and that's one thing we don't grumble about.

More of Mudra's flowers here.

She even planted tomatoes!
Love it!

Gelaskins in Kuwait?

Eversince I scratch my very first laptop, I've been drooling on Gelaskins protective skins for laptop's, Iphones etc. I read all about it from Chuvaness blog and I haven't stopped wanting them since.




Aren't they cute? *sending good vibes to the world for the up and coming birthday - me wants this world!*

I even tried ordering from Sultan's ask and they ship center but the shipping charge was just, if I remember correctly, more than the orginal price of the product. Too much.

It seems that the world felt the good vibes and sent the answer through facebook! You know those ads on the right side of your screen? Well I just saw this one .

Dear Customer ,
This is our “soft opening” for the website
where you can see our upcoming products and can order our special KOUT design
for 13” laptops and other international skins, and hopefully you will join us in
the official opening by the end of April.
Thank you for your support,
Omar
Alothman & Fahad alEbrahim

I browsed through their site and I saw some of the exact same designs from Gelaskins. For 10 KD a piece plus 1.5 KD charge, if delivered by ARAMEX, I might just get myself a birthday gift.

That is of course, if I can get that laptop I so covet in Al Ghanim.

Talk About Being Impulsive

I booked a flight to Dubai for the Eid! Yes I know it's still 5 months away but I wanted to take advantage of Jazeera Airways summer promo.
The whole thing costs me 24 KD round trip as it's only 9 KD per trip + 2 KD Credit Charge + 4 KD AIG insurance.

It's a good deal considering the marked up prices afterwards. Offer ends on April 4.

I've always wanted to go to Dubai during Eid and spend it with friends but one thing or another always comes up whenever it's time to book for it.

Now, how do I apply for a vacation when I'm still on probation? Hhhhmmm. Ha! Just kidding, I won't apply until August that way I would've accrued the number days for paid leave and there'll be no problem.

Yey!

P.S: I have to think about going to other places than Dubai, Thailand, Philippines. It's getting kind of boring. HHhhhmmmm. Sending good vibes to The Secret!

Pay It Forward Today dot Org

BE THE CHANGE YOU HOPE TO SEE IN OTHERS.

Says the slogan in their website Pay It Forward Today

This is an organization that distributes these Pay It Forward Bracelets

Here’s how it works. You, your company, your community, your family &
friends can make the world a better place with a simple PAY IT FORWARD bracelet.
Contact us at pif@payitforwardtoday.org and we'll set you up with some.

They also feature stories of people who are Paying It Forward and visit schools

Drop us a line and let us know how you're Paying it
Forward and we'll add it
to the blog. Life is Short and the Days are Long
so start paying it
forward now...

pif@payitforwardtoday.org

"Schools Visited by PIF"
West Boca Raton High, FL
- Nov 08'
Knowlton Elementary, UT - Jan 09'
William Rall Elementary,
NY
- March 09'
Pequea Elementary, PA - Feb 09'
"Would you like PIF to
visit
your School?
Drop us a line and we'll arrange to make it
happen." We
won't physically be able to visit every school but we can
"Skype" in on your
next Assembly via video conference. It's free and
very simple to use, once
you use it you'll wonder how you ever lived without
it.
pif@payitforwardtoday.org

Already Paying it Forward
Catherine Ryan Hyde
Memory of Jenny Anderson
Experience Project
Pay it Forward Foundation
Pay it Forward Festival
Kids Defense Team
ePIFanynow
Pay it Forward Family Festival
Donovan Nichols
Pay it Forward Movement
Once Upon a Lemon Tree
Battle Front
U.K.
14 Degrees
Give The Joy
A United World
Mama Care Card
netWeaving
Santa's Pantry
The Angel and Me
Wings Canada
Woodley Pays it Forward
Ring BoyZ
Karma Foundation
Knowledge Empowerment
New York Says Thank You
ZAC Malta
Golden Seal The Band

and I am so glad to know that these countries are already Paying It Forward

Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belgium, Brazil, Canada,
Chile, China, Denmark, Ecuador, England, Fiji, Finland, France, Gambia,
Greece,
Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland,
Israel, Italy,
Jamaica, Japan, Kuwait, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway,
Philippines, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Sierra,
Singapore, Sweden, Leone, South Africa, Spain, Sultanate of
Oman,
Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Ukraine, United Kingdom,
United States

Visit their site Pay It Forward Today get inspired and Pay It Forward TODAY!

2008 Narrative - Getting Terminated, Visa Woes in Kuwait and the Kick Ass Jobs That Came With It

Its funny how I get messages and emails with questions about visa processes, job compensations, benefits, living situations and salary ranges here in Kuwait.

I find it funny because, honestly, no one is the wiser about the visa processes, about anything here for that matter. The Ministry changes the rulings and clauses, as they say – almost every week, that one can’t be sure about the validity of the information.

Case in point, me. I’ve been living here in Kuwait for almost 5 years, worked for government contracts and private institutions, got aunts and uncles who works in different sectors, cousins who goes to PIES(?) and a sister who’s training to be a flight stewardess someday.

So I should know all about, Working Visa (Article 18), Family Visa (Article 22), Kadama Visa (Article 20) right?

Partly right but half of the knowledge wouldn’t cut it when you’re actually processing the visa. In come the Mandoobs and the wasta’s.

When I got laid off during the onset of the recession due to government projects being over, I found myself not worrying much about a new job but much more about transferring my visa from the old company. My residency visa here in Kuwait is only as good as my work retention. No work means no visa which means go home to your country of birth.

I got laid off on January 2008, applied to a dozen of job; got 3 temporary stints until I found this one that offered me a little cubicle to call my office spot, a year later.

Being out of work in Kuwait, no matter how big your support system is like bungee jumping and free falling is just not my thing.

All companies gives their ex employees a chance to transfer their visa to a new sponsor although the number of days given varies on the company. Normally, they would only give a maximum of 2 months but I was lucky to be given extensions until 9 months! Even after my visa expires they extended the validity for 1 more month just so my new company will have time to transfer my residency. How cool is that.

Since applying for work here in Kuwait through the classified ads isn’t really much, we had to resort to wasta. Now, wasta isn’t such a bad thing if it doesn’t hurt other people and it’s not only confined to this country as it happens around the world.

My different wasta’s gave me 3 jobs, one of which I never imagined I will ever do.

I climbed, rappelled, bouldered and made friends.

Knowing my disdain of heights and everything not in my control, I only lasted for a month before I looked for the comfort and solidity of the office chair. I had to quit as my mother feared for my life and the visa status does not look promising. This is, by the way, my first resignation.

I became an assistant to the assistant.

This also lasted only for a month as the company that provides provisions to Iraq is experiencing internal power war. The office feels like you're working at home complete with maids and a huge kitchen where by the way the morning meeting is held. Since it provides food and other materials to different bases in Iraq, we are always eating the samples.

I sat in the middle of the desert and counted trucks.

My very first 2 story high trailer office. My skin did not appreciate the harsh winds and sand storms that much but being the only female in the whole camp I was pretty much left alone to do my work. How long did this last? Well you guessed it! A month! Mainly because when the HR Controller interviewed me, he specifically requested to have me transferred in the head office.

Sadly though, being in a government project did not give me much of a leeway when it was time to transfer my visa. Government project visa is only transferable after 5 years and I’ve only worked with them for 3. There was nothing I could do but go back to the Philippines and go through the whole ordeal of Manpower Agencies, POEA and medical.

Before I can fly out of the country though I had to do appear at the Ministry official where he asks me if I have any problems with my ex-company which I have to say the standard reply is no if you want your visa to be cancelled fast. I was issued a government letter together with a ticket for Kuwait Airways, the official airline for repatriated government project employees.

Armed with a promise that I will have a new visa within a month, I flew to home sweet home.