[Success] Claiming my matured MP2 savings online

// Maturity date: July 23, 2026

I followed the steps at the Pag-IBIG website, submitted the application form and uploaded everything they asked, then waited for feedback. 

It's pretty straightforward once you get in the site. Of course, by government standards, the submit button may or may not work, and the page may show some mysterious error message, after which you'll get an SMS notification that you have successfully filed a claim.

// Application date: July 24 (Friday)

// 1st update: July 27 (Monday)

Monday (July 27) afternoon I got a text that my claim was rejected. 

I followed the site to check the details, but as usual, the success rate of interacting with any government site is 50% and I wasn't able to get anywhere with my query. So I submitted another application, not knowing what was wrong.

Then I checked my email and saw my Pag-IBIG branch messaged me with the reason why. I forgot to put in my date of birth, and they do not allow e-signatures. I replied with the updated form because I couldn't resubmit anymore.

SM Aura branch is where I opened my UnionBank Loyalty Card Plus.

// 2nd update: July 29 (Wednesday)

 

They asked me the same thing. As if they didn't see my email reply. To be fair, when I got the disapproval text, I immediately resubmitted, without knowing what I missed; I just added more info. I still forgot to put in my DOB, so they probably responded to that without knowing there's already an existing thread about it. As soon as I read the email about what I missed, I replied with the updated application form. Looks like no one has read it. 

 

Oh well. I had high hopes this will be quick but as usual, our government seems to value inefficiency as a KPI.

 

And as usual, their online claim status tracker isn't working.

 

// PROCESSING: July 30 (Thursday) 

 

SM Aura branch replied that they have received my correct application as has started PROCESSING. Yey! Email also mentioned it could take up to 20 working days and that I should just wait for the money in my bank account. 

 

// CREDITED: August 5 (Wednesday)

 

That was fast! Took 4 days to process. I checked my UB Loyalty balance today and saw that it was credited already.

Good job Pag-IBIG, or more specifically, SM Aura branch! I immediately transferred the proceeds to my new MP2 account.

 

So yeah, the whole claiming process took almost 2 weeks. Not bad! 

On supplements.

I have no idea what I'm deficient at, but here are the ones I started taking daily

Supplement	RDA	What I take
B-Complex	1 tablet (per label)	Stresstabs
Vitamin D3	1,000 IU (25 mcg)	Forti-D
Omega-3 Fish Oil	500-1,000 mg combined EPA+DHA	CardiClear
Vitamin C + Zinc	500 mg Vitamin C + 10-15 mg Zinc	ImmunPro with Zinc
Magnesium Glycinate	200-400 mg elemental magnesium	Swanson Magnesium Glycinate

I added Forti-D just now because I don't see the sun a lot. Let's see if it works. I only take Magnesium Glycinate when I don't have to wake up early the next day. I find that it helps me sleep very well so if I had to wake up early I'm sure to oversleep.

Stresstabs, ImmunPro, and CardiClear all have proven to be good supplements for me. I'm careful not to take too much of anything if I don't need it. Then again, I don't really know what I need. I do feel healthier taking those supplements.  

What a downer. We know Koomi likes to lunge at moving feet, especially those of strangers', which is why it's been hard for us to take him out while we eat. Having him on the floor is a risk for those passing by. And even in the elevator when someone's coming out he would randomly lunge at someone's feet. At first we thought it was cute. We were even joking that he has a type when it comes to slippers. It's usually crocs or something expensive. We laugh it off most of the time. Not realizing it was a growing problem. He's been this way for so long. We couldn't control it, or at least haven't tried seriously looking into correcting it. 

Until today. He lunged at someone's sandals while we're walking out of the elevator. I only saw his mouth graze the woman's footwear. I said sorry then left. Later on, the guards issued us a ticket with a 5000 peso fine. Apparently the woman reported us to PMO because her sandals got bitten through and almost tore the skin under. We were found through the CCTV. We were appalled. I didn't think it was that serious. It happened so fast. We should've checked on her to make sure before exiting the elevator. We got in contact with the neighbor and apologized. We found out through a facebook post in the community. We offered to compensate for whatever medication she may need and replace her slippers too. I'm just glad they were nice and understanding. Everything is fine now, all things considered. But I can't shake this certain feeling off. Is it disappointment? That we have to spend 5k for a lesson learned? That we're such irresponsible owners for letting it happen 3 times***? Fear? That it might happen again, at a worse time, here in the condo, get a second violation, eventually get kicked off the property? Maybe both.

*** First major time it happened was at Longhorn. Dinner with the family. We were seated outside cos we had dogs. Koomi was on the floor. A waitress arrived. He lunged at her jelly shoes. The waitress got scared but brushed it off. We apologized. Later on the guard at Shang came to us with an incident report, asking for vaccination records, showing us he reported a dog bite incident because he witnessed it. We thought the waitress didn't care. Looks like somebody else did. We were bummed out but eventually accepted the situation. He's just doing his job. And between customers like us and mall employees, there should be no discrimination if someone got hurt. 

Next major incident was at Taiwan Kitchen. Same thing. We were eating. Koomi's on the floor. Someone from the other table stood up and immediately Koomi was on his feet. Reached the guy's calves. He wasn't let loose but his leash wasn't short enough. We apologized profusely. Guy seemed to brush it off at first, says it's fine, he has dogs too, but later on inquired about Koomi's vaccination records. We also gave him Koomi's Instagram in case he wanted to reach out for anything. It was a casual conversation. We went home feeling normal. We would always scold Koomi when it happens, but always playfully. We never thought it was a big deal.

Until now. 

This is truly a wake up call. To be more responsible. To always check the people he might have hurt. To take accountability and ensure everything's fine. I'd like to think we got off easy, even at this point. And that 5k is a small price to pay for the all the trouble this bad behavior has caused. A behavior we tolerated and normalized and even found cute, at the expense of others. We were lucky none of them got seriously hurt. But what if it gets to that? 

I think I know what I feel now.

Shame. 

// Urgh. My fitbit won't charge and I figured it's probably nearing the the end of its life. Again.

Okay, time jump! It just worked again haha. I remember it dying a year ago so I replaced it with another smart watch then when I got tired of the new one and checked back on my old fitbit, it started working again haha. Looks like I just need to scare it into replacement hehe.

Anyway. Now I could let off buying a new watch. But seriously I've been meaning to find a fitness watch that's small and feminine and charges easily. I only really use the step counter, sleep tracker, HR sensor, and timer. For a while I got my eyes on Garmin Lily 2. It's perfecttt but looking at the charger I know I'd have a problem with that in the future. Problem with smart watches today is they're so biggg. 

Why did they have the discontinue Fitbit Alta? That's the best fitness watch for me. 

// Okay. I really really want to move to a better condo but we can't afford it yet. I'm eyeing  Empress at Capitol Commons once it's turned over because then owners will start leasing them. I'm also looking at Portico by Alveo which is a bit farther but definitely a far cry from a DMCI development.

I don't really have a big issue with our condo yet but our landlord has been very delinquent in paying all the miscellaneous fees that we're always getting disconnection notices and even got disconnected once, while we're on vacation!

// I've realized that condo isn't the way to go long term. It's good for renting cos we can choose the location and as long as we can afford it and we can just keep moving to new developments if our place is starting to go bad. To be honest I can really feel our condo's state deteriorating. 

// Wishful thinking but I hope to move to an Alveo property or the ones at Capitol Commons in the future. That's if we can afford it!

 

// I think I may have a chronic headache. I always seem to have one every single day since last week. I thought it would stop after my period. I tend to have period migraines. But last week was the worst. Three days straight. Switched to Saridon after learning about its fast action properties. But soon realized it's bad for bedtime because it has caffeine. And my migraines just so happen to be worse right before bed. It was torture not being able to sleep through the pain because my medicine has probably ran out its analgesic effect and only the caffeine is left. But to be fair, it really is fast acting, but it's not long lasting.

// I've been having problems focusing at work. I can't seem get my focus on. 

// Dave's Premium Steaks is doing okay. We just got our biggest order (yet) last week. 15 steaks can you believe it? And it was delivered out of town. We were hesitant to take this one but the client suggested bus cargo so we gave it a try. I could only hope we put in enough ice. He doesn't sound too happy when we followed up if he got the steaks already. Oh well. Next time we'll be sure to pack in more ice.

I recently got myself cheap earbuds from Anker. It's like 700 something pesos only. Been hearing lots of good reviews from the brand. I know they make great powerbanks, but I was surprised to see stellar raves for their audio products as well. 

So here's the Anker Soundcore K20i

It looks very much like the apple airpods. Infinitely cheaper too than the 9k I paid for my airpods2 which broke in 4 years. With this I don't mind getting disappointed every year lol. 

It's pretty decent for its price. Since my airpods broke a few years ago I've relied on the wired apple earpods for private listening. And it's been great. It's literally wired airpods. But I can't help note the differences in audio experience coming from an apple product.

Anker's is noticeably lighter, plasticy and less premium to the touch. They boast about the bass but I had better bass on my apple earpods and I didn't need to change any settings. The earpods are also a bit bigger than Apple's so I can't dismiss the feeling in my ear. On the other hand, I tend to forget I have my airpods on. Bluetooth connectivity is fine, but coming from something that switched seamlessly between apple devices, it's quite an adjustment. 

Anyway I do love that there are better tap controls on this one. I don't know if they made these in the newer airpods but I can now tap to control the volume on this thing.

Overall I would say I still prefer the Apple Airpods but no way I'm spending 7k on something thats breaking in 4 years. Mine's battery just got wonky over time. They won't charge equally, the left one dies faster, and the charging case isn't holding juice anymore.

Oh well. Still pretty pleased with this!

Two shoes I blame for my self-diagnosed plantar fascitiis. 

1. The pair of birks I ruined cleaning. It was looking very grim at five years old and I wanted to restore the footbed to its former unsullied glory. So I sanded it. Reddit says it works. Well it did remove the black oil stains from my foot, but it also made the footbed incredibly hard it became painful to walk with. I don't know what I did wrong. Oh well. I just bought a new pair of birks and I'll be more careful with it.  

2. Next is my allbirds flats. I thought I got a good deal with it, it's a bit cheaper than Vivaia sitting around 5k/pair and it's incredibly soft when I tried walking with it. It's like walking barefoot on a carpeted hotel room. I had to be specific with the illustration because no way I'm walking barefoot on a public carpet. I've been wearing it at least once a week every time I go onsite. Which was okay at first but eventually I realized this old and frail body needs its arch support and this pair doesn't offer any. To remedy, I bought insoles for it but I have yet to put it to the test. We'll see.