The Workplace

Contrary to the preview of my next blog series, I diverted it due to the Halloween season ng katatakutan!

There are now a lot of movies & TV shows featuring scary urban legends like sightings of ghosts and dark creatures on the streets.  One of the favorite stories is the white lady sightings.

Picture taken in Bonifacio St., Caloocan with a white lady's apparition on the background.

But come to think of it, mas nakakatakot ang mga taong buhay na may masamang balak as you commute to your work places, lalaki ka man o babae.  We are all always in danger!

I have a friend who was held-up in the taxi that he hired to go to his office.  Immediately after he rode the taxi another guy jumped into the backseat and pointed a knife on his neck asking for money, he honestly said his only money was for the fare, but the hold-upper told him to take out his ATM card and withdraw from the ATM machine along the way.  While he was withdrawing, fortunately, he was a martial art student, he thought of a  technique pinning down the hold-upper to sleep. Which the driver who was an accomplish drove away fast!

What should you do to protect yourself to become a victim of such dark actions?  Here are some suggestions:

1.  Be vigilant always.  Do not wear expensive looking jewelry, you don’t need them in your work place, anyway, your crush won’t be impressed by it. Do not bring valuables, except cellphones, siempre.  As much as possible bring few cash, pamasahe na lang, meron namang malapit na ATM sa trabaho mo or most probably in your office building.

2.  If you have the finance and time, learn self-defense techniques, like what my friend did, it will be a big help!  Or you can carry pepper spray always as form of protection and learn how to use your bags or anything you are carrying to protect yourself.

3.  In riding taxi, sit on the back seats if you don’t have a company and immediately lock the doors. In a bus, choose a seat near the door and the driver, than in the middle or the back seats where the conductors seldom see.  In the jeepney, if the seat in front near the driver is available prefer that, or near the entrance-exit door (for hold-up matters, but not necessarily for accident concerns). Do not sleep as much as possible while commuting, kung kakayanin mo.  In the MRT and LRT cover the sensitive parts of your body to protect it from the mga mananamantala, unless you like it to be touched.  Also put your wallet, cellphone, ipod or iphone and psp inside your bags, don’t brag that you have those nanakawin lang nila yong mga yon. Remember that pockets are easy targets of the mandurukots.

4.  You need to bring your common sense always and be calm. If you did all the precausions and still you were caught in a hold-up incident give what they are asking for and do not fight.  You still can buy or have those things, than fight them and become a ghost yourself, which the only thing you can do is visit these bad people and scare them.

Be a responsible commuter!

Next post is about Multos in the offices!