Burger Obsession

My sister and I were in Greenhills this afternoon and we decided to eat in Tropical Hut Hamburger (the food chain) for snacks. I think the last time I ate in that fastfood chain was over 10 years ago so I was really curious about how their burgers taste now. I ordered the classic burger, and oh boy, it was huge! I only managed to finish half of the burger. Not that it was bad, it was actually good. The patty was very juicy and tender, and has a very homemade taste and feel about it. The only thing I didn't like was that it left me burping it hours after I have consumed it.

I was thinking about lingering flavors and odors of food when I remembered a news article I read about a meat scented cologne for men. Just last Christmas, Burger King released its men's spray line called Flame. As the name suggests, it is a flame-broiled burger scented cologne. Photo courtesy of 411chatter.com

I just find that really odd. For the sake of argument, I will be going by stereotypes. Men like meat generally more than women. Women love sweets generally more than men. If colognes or perfumes are used for seduction, then what would a meat-scented cologne for men attract? More men? I think women will be more turned on by sweet-smelling scents like chocolate, cinnamon or vanilla. Perhaps men will have more success in attracting a partner (granting they are men seeking women, not men seeking men) if they smell sugary sweet? Maybe men should seriously consider wearing a sweet scent instead. It's not always about machismo. It's about being "man" enough to wear what may be labeled as a "girly" scent in order to be attractive to the female set. Now, if men still want to smell like burgers, maybe they should go all the way and throw in an onion ring scented hair spray and french fries flavored mouth spray.

More on burgers, I saw a feature in CNN this evening about cheeseburgers in a can. Believe it or not, Swiss company Katadyn has either invented the biggest success or the worst blunder in the canned food business history.

After seeing a video of how the burger looks like in youtube, I am led to believe it is the latter. I would imagine that the bread is soggy, and I just hate burgers with a soggy bread. What's worse, you would have to heat it first, and by heating, the manufacturers mean submerging the entire can in boiling water for 10 minutes. So, soggy, tin-flavored burgers anyone? Definitely not for me.

This obsession with burgers can get sometimes get out of hand. Would you sleep in a burger bed? Photo courtesy of likecool.com

I can't blame people for going to extremes just because of burgers. I love burgers. There is a Jughead Jones hiding in me. In fact, I can't wait to try this new burger joint in Kapitolyo Pasig called Charlie's Grind and Grill that serve black angus burgers. Oh man, I am hungry again.

Sale! and Women-Friendly HR Best Practices

With the exception of cheesy romantic lines, no other words can probably elicit so much excitement and rapture among women than the word SALE.

From June 4-7, there will be a big brands sale exclusive to HSBC cardholders for SSI brands in Nuvo City. For those who do not know, SSI (Store Specialists Inc.) is the firm responsible for bringing mid-scale to luxury brands in the country (think Zara, Debenhams, Gap, Bass, Lacoste, Nine West, Ralph Lauren, YSL, Cartier, Marc Jacobs, Kate Spade, Gucci, Bally, etc). Discounts on items will go as high as 70% so my eyes sparkled with anticipation.

Note however, that I don't go for the ritzy, ultra-upscale brands. It's not only because I cannot afford them; I just don't think I can be comfortable spending way too much on single piece of item. My idea of indulgence is just zara, lacoste, debenhams, ralph lauren, gap, and the like.

When I was still a corporate slave in what seems like a lifetime ago, I always hated it when stores hold the first day of the sale on a working day. I was always tempted to take a leave (I think I did on a few occasions when my workload wasn't up to my neck). And now that time is in my hands, I can be the very first person you see eagerly waiting outside the door of the store on day 1 of the sale. The only problem is, I no longer have the money to splurge on shopping. What a cruel, cynical world!

I am reminded of a news article that I read before about a company in Japan that offers "shopping sale" leaves to its employees. The women working in this company no longer have to feign sickness on the day of the sale; they just take a duly authorized leave to shop. I guess this company realized that without a sale leave, the female employees won't be productive anyways, as their minds would be suffering from missing out on all the bargains. Either that or the company will suddenly discover a sudden outbreak of a flu that manifests on the day of the sale and miraculously heals the day after the sale. So, this firm gave what the women wanted: a paid leave to to go shopping; an opportunity for the women to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

This very same company also offers "heartache leaves" to females employees who have just gone through a breakup. This is to give time for women to nurse and lick their wounds, and get themselves together before reporting to work. The older the employee, the longer the heartache leave. The rationale being: younger women have more chances to find a new love compared to older women. Again, this company realized that heartbroken women are nowhere near productive during the first few hours or days following a breakup. This company understood its female employees and the complex dynamics of female behavior.

This Japanese company is very women-friendly. Sale and Heartbreak leaves are almost the equivalent of a maternity leave or a PTA session leave. Women in different stages of the life cycle have different needs and priorities. For the single, upwardly mobile woman, it is fashion (self-indulgence or gratification) and romance. For the married set, it is the family. I may be generalizing a little here, and I am sorry if I stereotyped the single and the married women. I just did a generalization to make a point: Human Resource best practices can be as creative as giving leaves like those I mentioned in the above. It need not be all monetary benefits (although time off from work has financial implications as well). An HR benefit strategy can also be very focused or targeted, meaning providing different benefits for different kinds of employees. The key is to understand your employees and know what ticks for them. Now I wonder if any company offers PMS leaves?

If I were employed in that Japanese firm, I'd be one satisfied employee. Sadly, I am not in Japan and I have chosen the road less travelled by becoming a starving freelance writer. I will still go to the sale tomorrow with my sister in law and just drool over the bargains that I see. I will do my best to restrain from shopping. God help me!

Rafa's Reign over Roland Garros is Over

The King is Dead!  Technically, not dead, just out. Out of the 2009 French Open, that is.  

(Photo courtesy of www.morethangames.co.uk)

Rafael Nadal, the King of the Clay Court is defeated at last.  His 31-match winning streak in Roland Garros was finally ended by the most unusual of suspects.   The man responsible for this huge upset is seeded 23 Robin Soderling of Sweden.    

(Photo courtesy ofwww.rolandgarros.com)

I began to entertain hopes of seeing cracks in Nadal's unassailability after he lost in the Madrid Masters finals to Roger Federer about a fortnight ago.  I thought that maybe Federer now has a very good chance to topple Nadal.  Perhaps Nadal can be beaten too, and I was hoping that Fernando Verdasco can avenge his semifinals loss in the Australian Open earlier this year by defeating him in a quarterfinal match in Paris.   Now, if Verdasco won't be able to finish the job, I have another layer of defense in Andy Murray in the semifinals.  Remember that Murray beat Nadal in the US Open semifinals last year and in the ABN Amro finals this year.  Murray also gave Nadal a scare in Monte Carlo earlier, although in that match, Nadal emerged victorious.  ESPN even shortlisted candidates who they thought could do the impossible job of eliminating Nadal in Roland Garros.  Apart from Federer, Verdasco and Murray, they were placing their bets on Djokovic, Davydenko, Tsonga, Del Potro and Gonzales.  

But none of these things will happen now.  Soderling pulled a big surprise.   Nadal is sent packing in the 4th round, too early in the tournament.   Hats off to Soderling!   I must confess I didn't know Soderling until today.  After a little research, I learned that he is the only Swede in the top 100 ATP rankings.  His coach, Magnus Norman, is a runner-up in Roland Garros in 2000, losing to Gustavo Kuerten.  He has 3 singles career titles, and is currently ranked 25 in the world.  He has never made it past round 3 in any grand slam.  This round of 16 match with the score 6-2 6-7(2) 6-4 7-6(2) is probably the biggest win in Soderling's career. 

Who would have guessed that Soderling will be the man to make Nadal throw in the towel in his favorite clay surface?  Nobody thought so;  everybody was stunned.   I am now hoping for another big surprise.   I want Federer to win this time.   With Nadal out, the coast is clearer for him.   I am keeping my fingers crossed.