My sharpener just died on me today. Can you believe that?! Coz I can't! I was just, as usual, trying so very hard to sharpen my pencil this morning and then suddenly - a crack! The sharpener broke. What a sad, sad day. It's Halloween, too.
It's now time to face the truth that I really do need to buy a new one. I've been putting up with my defective sharpener for four months already because...well, I don't know! I guess I was just hoping that I'd find a way to make it work better, or better yet, that it would miraculously fix itself!
Ok, here's the story. I bought my Staedtler sharpener around July, along with the other materials I needed for design school. When I started using it, it was ok, if a little bit hard to turn. But the more I used it, the more it got harder for me to sharpen my pencil. It felt like the lead on my pencil would break every time I tried to sharpen it. And the lead did break quite a few times, frustratingly. It got so difficult to sharpen my pencil that my hands hurt from gripping the thing so hard and at the same time trying not to break the lead.
Ignorant me, I thought this was all normal. It was my first time to use that sort of contraption, so how would I know, right? Also, I didn't want to believe that such a small thing that I paid so much for would be defective. But I soon got a wake-up call when I left my sharpener at home and so had to borrow from a classmate while doing a seatwork in class. Lo and behold! It was sooo much more easier to sharpen my pencil on my classmate's sharpener which was the same brand and model as mine.
I got kind of depressed when I realized this. That meant I had to buy a new one, or have it fixed or whatever. But I had another idea! Risking high blood pressure, I went to the Staedtler office just near my house to talk to the people there and try to have them replace my sharpener. In the back of my mind though, I was already expecting that they wouldn't since I didn't have the receipt anymore and since this is the Philippines! There is no customer service to speak of in this country!!! What kind of manager would say 'Ay, sorry Miss, hindi ko kasi alam kung paano gamitin 'yan eh'? Apparently, she was that kind of manager. It was so ironic that right at the front of their office was a huge sign that said: Let's talk about quality. Duh! I don't have to tell you that they didn't replace it.
So now we come to today. Today, today, today! I broke my sharpener!!! Haha! Fine, I'm buying a new one. I'm giving up and letting go. Goodbye old sharpener!!! Rest in peace!
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
An Accomplishment
One thing I love about studying Interior Design and being in a school such as the one I’m attending is that I get to meet a lot of new people. In terms of age, for example, the range is pretty wide with the oldest being around 50 and the youngest being around 17. Even if we’re mostly women and gay guys, pick one out of the bunch and you’d still get a pretty unique person with an interesting story or two to tell.
On the other hand, it’s also very challenging to be around people who are not on the same wavelength as you are. This past week, for example, I’ve been working on a group project that required us to report to the class on different types of flooring. It just so happens that half of my group are all busy Moms who have so much more responsibilities other than academic ones. Funny isn’t it, that me, Misty, the least Mommy-est of all, would be grouped with the Mommies of the class! It was definitely interesting. Being out of school for so long, I could sense that they were not sure where to start and how to go about the presentation. So being the recent college graduate, I tried to act as the ‘steerer of topic’ back to what needed to be done as well as the all-around organizer of the group. Here, my patience was really put into practice, especially when they would show signs of being flustered or bogged down with all the to-do lists. I would often tell them to relax because it wasn’t really that much to do and that we could in fact get things done. Other than that though, they were so much fun to be groupmates with! We spent quite a few hours of our meetings eating cake and chit-chatting about random stuff like living wills and the importance of having a bank account that your husband/partner doesn’t know about. Haha!
Although our presentation this morning wasn’t as seamless as I would have liked it to be, I was in a way satisfied because it was really a learning experience for me. This time, it isn’t about the grade. It’s about getting along with other people and doing it well. I would definitely consider that an accomplishment!
On the other hand, it’s also very challenging to be around people who are not on the same wavelength as you are. This past week, for example, I’ve been working on a group project that required us to report to the class on different types of flooring. It just so happens that half of my group are all busy Moms who have so much more responsibilities other than academic ones. Funny isn’t it, that me, Misty, the least Mommy-est of all, would be grouped with the Mommies of the class! It was definitely interesting. Being out of school for so long, I could sense that they were not sure where to start and how to go about the presentation. So being the recent college graduate, I tried to act as the ‘steerer of topic’ back to what needed to be done as well as the all-around organizer of the group. Here, my patience was really put into practice, especially when they would show signs of being flustered or bogged down with all the to-do lists. I would often tell them to relax because it wasn’t really that much to do and that we could in fact get things done. Other than that though, they were so much fun to be groupmates with! We spent quite a few hours of our meetings eating cake and chit-chatting about random stuff like living wills and the importance of having a bank account that your husband/partner doesn’t know about. Haha!
Although our presentation this morning wasn’t as seamless as I would have liked it to be, I was in a way satisfied because it was really a learning experience for me. This time, it isn’t about the grade. It’s about getting along with other people and doing it well. I would definitely consider that an accomplishment!
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