In Multiples of 3

I’m getting addicted with blogging. This week you get a threat! This is my second post in just a week. (Not that much for some but considering my blogging history, this is already twice my target speed ^^)

I was browsing through my friend’s blogsite yesterday and I found this picture.

It’s a picture taken 3 years ago. My friends, the epinoys (colleagues when I worked in Japan), and I were summoned to gather in Tokyo that day for an important announcement. It was the day that our employer announced that they were establishing a branch in the Philippines. In line with this, they said that we were to be sent back to start up this branch.

I forgot what that thing in the picture is called. On the right side is written in japanese “Gan-i”, which means “wish” or “request”. You can find these in shrines. Japanese buy them, write their personal wishes/requests, and then hang them on designated red posts in the shrine. It’s one of their ways of asking the gods a favor. Since we had time and money to spare, we bought one (to accommodate the wishes of around 10 people hehehe).

Here’s what we wrote on ours:

1.> ESD Phils. dame-dame!
(No to ESD Philippines!)
2.> Dako sweldo (------.00)
(Big salary offer! Preferably around 6 digits.)
3.> Sana 3 years Pa!
(Give us another 3 years (in Japan)!)
4.> Maraming-maraming sexy na secretary
(Lots of beautiful secretaries in the office)
5.> Ilipat sa Makati City, Phils.
(The branch to be transferred to Makati City (instead of Cebu City))
6.> Si T sana ma-in love kay R (Kago)
(For T to be in love with R (Kagoshima))
7.> Girlfriends para sa amin
(Girlfriends (with an emphasis on the ‘s’) for us!)
8.> WORLD PEACE, LOVE, HAPPINESS

After 8 months from that day, Cebu branch was established. Here I am now working in that branch. Of the original group, only 2 of us are left here. Most of the group looked for another employer and stayed in Japan. Some found girlfriends and some even married. Atleast some of our prayers were answered.

3 years before that day, as young and eager fresh graduates, we set foot for the 1st time in Japan.

3 years after, here I am at crossroads again. Could this be a sign for me to move on? Yesterday, my boss called me for an interview. As they were interviewing people nominated for promotion yesterday, some of my officemates may have thought that I was one of those nominated*. Na~ah! As I always hear from my teammates and friends, my salary’s way up there already (No 6-digit though! Only a fraction. Won’t say what exactly! hehehe) and my ranks way above the rest of the group as well. It would be impossible for me to get any promotion anytime soon (bummer!). My boss simply wanted to now more about the recommendation I was asking for the scholarship. Here’s what he said …

- You don’t need an MBA. I don’t have an MBA, nor does our President have one.
- Rather than good education, Japanese employers value work experience more.
- Curriculum in Japanese universities aren’t very dependable
- If you decide to resign now, as courtesy for your contribution to the company, I will give you a recommendation.
- If you don’t resign, choose to wait for the result of the scholarship and decide to resign if accepted, I won’t give you a recommendation.
- If you get accepted, study in Japan, and guarantee that you will be back, I can give you a recommendation. And then he added that my MBA wouldn’t necessarily mean that I get an increase or a promotion or anything of that sort, when I come back.

When I explained to him that the scholarship is one of those grants were in the grantee is required to come back to his/her home country after graduation, we somehow agreed on his last condition. So it looks like I’ll be getting my recommendation after all! Yipee! Considering that my company doesn’t offer study leaves to its employees, I guess I should rejoice and celebrate. ^^

If this pattern of 3’s continue (spoken like a true Baccarat fanatic), I would be off to Japan in no time! Well, I guess, the right expression would actually be, “I would be off to some place new in no time!”. Hihihi (--,)

ciao ciao! I'm off to Bohol!

*Promotions are confidential matters that need to be kept a secret in our company. A system which I find weird.

Photo is courtesy of Enrico Pangan, one of my epinoy friends and arguably the first ever filipino blogger. ^^

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