The OJT's

For the first time ever, Allied Bank IT-Operations accepted On-the-Job Trainees. 2 Chinese students from Ateneo set foot on IT-Operations and we were like "Whoa, what's going on?" Then I remembered we were told days earlier that OJT's would be coming over to spend 250 hours of training.



Meet Rachel Ann Sze, the bubbly sweet girl of the duo. She may be sweet but she retaliates when you go overboard. She slaps so hard that her hand leaves a mark in your arm even if you wear a jacket. She is Miss Congeniality because she befriends everyone. She laughs even in the corniest jokes I've ever heard in my entire life. I never saw her get mad. Lat and I made her ride a bus and jeepney for the first time.



And this is William King Lim, the second half of the duo. He is a coding freak who takes programing seriously. So seriously that he loses track of time that makes him occasionaly skip lunch. He looks forward for his Cobra break during late afternoons. When he gets mad, he smiles. What's up with that? And when he smiles or laughs we can't find his eyes.




Actually, the first time I saw them made me think how would they blend in with the Mainframe and PC Operators. It may sound childish of me but I always think richie rich kids have the snobbish bratty impression who always talk in English (and/or Chinese). And I worried for them because I thought they would be left alone. That they were there for school business and not to reach out to people.

But lo and behold! I was amazed when they were laughing with the Mainframe Operators. Hmmm. That was not bad. Eventually, they became close with the MF Opers.

Then, it was their turn to mingle with the PC Operators. Instantly, they blended in with the PC Opers. It all started with Lateefa's Cheez Curls, which she shared with them. William said the last time he tasted it was when he was just a kid. He thought Cheez Curls was long gone. Rachel, I believe, never tried it before. They promised to bring snacks the next day. The following day, they brought canisters of Pringles. Then I figured out, we all have one weakness... FOOD!


Lat has a thing for anything Japanese, Korean or Chinese. So, understandably, she became close with William and Rachel. Eventually, I was dragged to have lunch with them (I usually skip lunch. I'd rather sleep during lunch breaks). Then, we had to sneak in snacks into the Quickie Room. Food is forbidden inside IT-Operations. But we have our ways. That's where magic box comes in a handy. Sneaking ice cream during mornings was awesome. Rachel brought Krispy Kreme for everybody. William shared his City Buns burgers. In their last day of duty, they bought an elevator-wide sized pizza. We had our lunch/dinner at A Veneto, Yakimix, Shakey's, Teriyaki Boy, Mom and Tina's, Glorietta Food Choices, Landmark, etc. and all had been a lot of fun. Truly, food is a universal language.

Even if their OJT days are over. We still keep in touch. Texting, bashing each other in Facebook, dinner, movies (ok, just one movie but I'm sure there will be other times). They even visit us every now and then.


We miss the both of you. We are looking forward for our next gimmick. Uy, Let's make a go for Max's chicken-all-you-can.


Photo Credits: Rachel Sze, Anna Liza Yu