Thursday, January 26, 2012

Reilly's Milestones - Jan 25 2012

Another good thing about this journal is that I would be able to post Reilly's developments as well. 

When I went to my sister's studio unit two days ago, I brought my super adorable son Reilly. :) He doesnt see my side of the family often bec they live in Las Pinas while we live in Cavite. 

Anyway, as we went inside the elevator to go down and leave the place, my son suddenly blurted out "Where's Tita Vic?".  He said this 3x in the elevator.  I was so surprised and excited not only because he remembered my sister's name but also he connected Tita to the name.  Its the first time I heard this.  Hay naku, proud mom moment talga. haha.

Avida Makati West and condo furniture

One of my sisters bought a studio unit in Avida Makati West Tower 2.   She was going there last Wed, Jan 25 because the cabinet and bed she ordered will be delivered around lunch time.  I want to check out the place for comparison because I also bought a studio unit at nearby Belton Place (which will be turned over next week).  Will post about this after turnover.

About the Avida property at Yakal St.  I like the fact that there's room to walk around because its an enclosed propery with two condo towers and two small swimming pools at ground level.  There's also a small kiddie play area at the back.  There are two elevators at Tower 2..  I assume this is the same with Tower 1.  Medyo matagal ang waiting period (est 5mins) and probably because a lot of repairs/delivery are going on at the time.  So matagal nahihinto ang elevator at one floor. 

So inside the unit, theres a built in kitchen cabinet overhead and under the sink.  This was provided by Avida, maganda ang finish.  Sa CR, as expected, very basic looking ang sink/toilet.  Problem is na cut by about 20% ung shower area bec nadaanan ng wall/structure ng building there.  So just to maximize the space, my Sis would use the 20% as storage.  Kainis talga.  These type of unit 'defects' should be disclosed to the buyers and sold with a discount kahit minimal lang. If she had known, she would have selected another unit. Now Im worried if the unit I bought had those unit defects as well.  What I like about the unit is there's a view. Hindi kulob ang feeling.  Another condo unit Linear will be put up across her unit. Pero may view pa rin na maiwan.

The cabinet and bed she bought were costum made.  We didnt like how the cabinet turned out to be.  The white finish was bad.  Parang minadali kasi hindi pantay ung pagpinta. Hindi madulas ung sliding doors, sumasabit sa pintura.  Hindi rin lapat ung cabinet doors.  This would have been acceptable if they paid a low amount.  Eh for the price of P18k, they could have found a much better one at the mall.  Buti na lang, the twin size or double size bed looked ok.  It had a more natural wood finish. For the cost of P7k, sulit na.  Unfortunately, I forgot to take pics. Haay.

So its really important to canvass and look around malls for comparison of furniture prices.  Because you will find good buys naman.  Advantage din is you already know how the furniture looks.  Now if you really dont find anything you like, then maybe its an option to have things "pasadya".  Just make sure you hire good ones.  I also wanted costum made kasi i had all these ideas for a bed that I couldnt find anywhere.  With my sis experience, ayoko na.  Ready made na lang muna.

Monday, January 9, 2012

Voluntary government payments

I have been a busy bee this morning.  haha.  Went to three government offices (HDMF, Philhealth and SSS) to file and pay as a voluntary member..  Ive been in this road a few years ago but forgot what to do, the requirements, the deadline, etc. so Im keeping a record of  what I did today thru my journal.

I prefer to transact in Makati bec 1) my previous records/employers are in Makati and 2) the 3 offices are conveniently located along Buendia/Gil Puyat Avenue. 

Dont forget to bring ballpen (faster to fill up forms), at least one valid ID and your ID numbers for HDMF, Philhealth &SSS if you dont have the cards. 

I. First stop:  HDMF / Pag ibig

My husband dropped me off  at 9am.  I asked the lobby guard where to go if I'll file and pay as voluntary member.. He said 2nd floor so went to 2nd floor and queud up for the 'membership' desk.  After 15 mins (3 people), it was my turn to talk to the female employee. I was told I need to bring latest ITR and 2 valid IDs.  I didnt have my ITR with me so I said I'll go back.  And then she told me to go to 4th floor 'membership' desk for Makati 2 members (per their system, Makati 2 is the group where my most recent employer is included based on its address).

So I went to 4th floor, no queu (yehey!) and the guy told me I didnt need to bring latest ITR since Im just reactivating my membership as a voluntary member.  He requested for my ID, searched for my name, asked how many months I'll be paying.  Then he printed one page "Payment Order Form" indicating the months I'll be paying.   Since its time consuming to go back, I always pay a few months in advance.  HDMF contribution is just P100 a month.  You also have an option to pay P200 instead of P100.  I should bring this POF when I pay at ground floor, photocopy the form and receipt before going back to him for filing.  It was still quite early not yet 9:45 am so there was no queu (yehey again!) at the payment counter.  But when I left, I noticed more people are now sitting on the chairs.  After paying, I went to the nearest photocopying service which is at Star Centrum building, the 2nd building next to HDMF.  ONce done, I went back to 4th floor, membership desk and submitted the copy of the POF and official receipt.  He stamped received the orig POF and thats it! Filed and Paid as Voluntary Member at HDMF. Success!


II. Second stop:  Philhealth

After HDMF office, I walked to Philhealth (ground floor) which is beside BPI Reposo and PS Bank. I like walking and it wasnt too far.  1st step, get the form at the desk near the guard.  Once completed, get a number from the guard to queu at Counter/Desk 1.  This process didnt take long, around 10 minutes only.  Unfortunately, since its January already, the Desk 1 guy told me I can only pay January onwards and not December 2011. I said isnt the deadline one month after.  He said yes for employed members but no for voluntary members. BUT I can back pay as long as I can confirm from another window/office if the latest month of payment per their records is November.  So I went to a different room in the same floor. Their records show my latest contribution posted is August.  What??!!! I was so surprised... So I went back to the Desk 1 guy and told him this info, he said probably the contributions have not been posted yet.  So, I need to get a Certificate of Contribution from my recent employer before I can pay.  I should do this by March 2012 if I want to backpay December 2011.  But to be sure, once I get the Cert of Contribution, I'll head back to Philhealth ASAP!

III. Last stop:  SSS

After my unsuccessful stint at Philhealth, I'm hoping it will go well at SSS.  So then I walked to their Makati branch near Petron gas station corner Makati and Buendia Ave.  Did I say I like walking? haha.  Its not that far and the weather was good (sunny but not humid).

At SSS, I went to Counter 10 for inquiry then Counter 3 to get the RS-5 form.  There's a queu, around 5 people but quick lang bec general inquiry lang naman ung counter 10. I also got the SSS contribution table which shows the payment deadline depending on the last number of your SSS #. After I got the form, I just need to complete it and pay at any of the authorized payment centers (ie. banks, SM). But I wanted to know what month was my last contribution before i pay. For my info. So I got the number 1186 for the "Generalist" counters.  I think there were four counters but unfortunately the number being served at that time is 1126.  I was hoping the line will be fast but I waited for 10 minutes before the number changed to 1127 and 1128.  There were a lot of people there before me unlike HDMF and Philhealth.  With the rate the line was moving, I will be there forever! haha.  I was getting hungry and thirsty so I decided to leave and just pay at the nearest bank. Fortunately, there's a bank near SSS, (Bank of Commerce at the Petron station) which accepts SSS remittance payments. I went inside, no queu and paid December 2011 to March 2012. Yes, success!

And you guessed right, I walked to the nearest resto. haha.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

First Post!

Yehey! Finally got around to typing something on my online journal.  I created this account sometime in March 2011. After 10 months of complete silence, today, January 5, 2012 is my first official post!  Congratulations and Best Wishes to me! haha.   Hope I can keep this up. :)