The Salad Caper

We are just waiting for a big windfall to come our way and we will be buying our much-awaited new (pre-loved) car. It’s going to be a van, we think, based on our first scouting in the market. We need a big car – and we can’t afford SUVs as much as we want to ( we will be paying for it in cash). We won’t be needing those jeep cherokee lift kits since we are not into that kind of sports right now. We just need a comfortable vehicle big enough to house our family whenever we take long rides – and we do that a lot! We are praying it will arrive soon!

I am so happy for my friend! She just got accepted at a good hospital with a lot of benefits – even the nurses uniforms are provided for. The only downside to it is she doesn’t have any leave credits for the whole year so a vacation would be out of the question. But as soon as is regularized next year, she will have at least a month of vacation credits and a salary increase! Not bad for sticking it out in 2012!

I have been using the iPhone since 2010 and I have been lucky enough to us the iphone 3g, iphone 3gs and the iphone4 versions. Now of course I am coveting the iPhone4S – but I need to wait for a little bit longer to be eligible for an upgrade with my current mobile provider. By that time, who knows? iPhone5 might be out already.
Hopefully by then the 4S will be cheaper

A good friend just celebrated her 16th wedding anniversary by checking in at a hotel with her family. The kids were excited to go swimming, even in the middle of winter, since the pool is heated and there are hayward pool pumps on standby. Since her kids are already 13 and 10, they just ordered room service for them so they can enjoy a sit-down dinner alone and truly celebrate 16 years of wedded bliss. A nice celebration, don’t you think so?

We are embarking on a huge project come 2012. Our mission to get our only single friend (left) to date! She is turning 38 next year and her last relationship was over 10 years ago! Imagine that? It’s not that she doesn’t want to date. She just isn’t exposed to single guys since all of our group except her is married and settled down and she works from home. We are encouraging her to check free online dating sites – she has nothing left to lose for trying it out!

We are thinking of getting a reward card at our local auto shop so we can earn points whenever we get something done with the car, like repairs and car washes. We have been putting an extra bit of money towards its maintenance lately and we would grab any chance of anything that will make it less expensive.

Now, if only we can get a new car *wink*…

Our ancestral house badly needs a renovation. And this is why, only a few weeks before Christmas, my Dad decided to replace the kitchen tiles, have a new sink installed and have quick step floors replaced. We will be having our relatives visit us for the holidays and we will be spending Christmas in this house so we need to make it presentable.

Hopefully, it gets finished just in time!

I need a better case for my Panasonic Lumix LX3. I have been looking at different camera cases but there are no one that is as slim and as stylish as I want it to be.

I need to make sure that I have one for the holidays since my LX3 will be with me all the time and I need to have it fit my small purses.

Thanks to Deal Grocer, I was able to get awesome deals to a Vikings buffet for my birthday. I am sure that the receipt printer of Deal Grocer burned a lot during the promo – 800 vouchers were gone in an hour (I am not exaggerating!). I originally planned to get it for my son’s birthday but that would be too close to Christmas so we might use it on my husband’s or my birthday.

Employee turnovers can be expected in any company. Most highly competitive and qualified employees are often offered jobs with better benefits and higher salaries and transfer, which is normal. However, when employee turnovers are getting shorter and are increasing in an alarming rate, it might be a good time to conduct employee surveys to be able to gauge the level of employee engagement within the company. You can look at it as being like a customer satisfaction survey – you get to learn about the trust ratings and your popularity with your employees.

What is Employee Engagement?

AlphaMeasure defines employee engagement as the level of commitment and involvement an employee has towards their organization and its values.
The primary behaviors of engaged employees are speaking positively about the organization to coworkers, potential employees and customers, having a strong desire to be a member of the organization, and exerting extra effort to contribute to the organization’s success. Many smart organizations work to develop and nurture engagement.
What are the factors of having great employee engagement results?

• A culture of respect where outstanding work is valued
• Availability of constructive feedback and mentoring
• Opportunity for advancement and professional development
• Fair and appropriate reward, recognition and incentive systems
• Availability of effective leadership
• Clear job expectations
• Adequate tools to complete work responsibilities
• High levels of motivation