Bags Bags and Bags

Yesterday was a tiring, yet very exciting day!

Having received funds for about 2/3 of the pledges, I went to Baclaran to look for school bags for the littlest kids. Days before, I have been browsing the web for designs and prices, so I already had an idea of what I wanted and how much I was willing to spend for it. I had the number of kids I needed to buy bags for, but I didn't know how many were girls and how many were boys. Days before also, I sent a text message to the social worker assigned to the home to ask for that particular info, but by the time I was at Baclaran, I have not yet received a reply. 

So at Baclaran, having found a vendor with the bags I wanted, I settled down to choose the designs, and had initially thought of getting 6 for girls and 6 for the boys. But I was still uneasy because what if there were more boys than girls, or vice versa? I wouldn't want a boy to use a pink Dora bag! 

To ease my mind, I decided to call up the social worker then and there. Alas, no answer! So I chatted with the saleslady while she was unearthing other designs she hoped I might like. After about 15 minutes, I dialed again, and luckily this time, the social worker answered. 

There was a slight change in the numbers and out of the 15 kids from Nursery, Kinder, Prep and Grade 1, only 2 were girls and all the rest were boys. Armed with that number, I went back to Ate Saleslady, more confident this time.

I would like to think I had divine help that day. 

Initially, the saleslady quoted php220 for the bags, to which I said I couldn't afford them. I told her I couldn't spend more than php150 for the bags, so she showed me the littlest versions. She quoted php180 for them, and after haggling, agreed to drop them to php140. Over small talk, I mentioned the bags were for the kids of the home, and without prodding from me, she again dropped the price to php120, AND upgraded them to the next larger size! How cool is that? 

 

My loot from Baclaran:

3 Thomas and Friends

3 Ben 10

3 Cars

4 Spiderman

1 Hello Kitty

1 Dora The Explorer

*in different colors and these bags are Made in Bulacan, a better version than the ones made in China, according to Ate Saleslady

Too bad I was not able to get a picture of Ate Saleslady. Nevertheless, a big thank you to Ate for her generosity. Her stall location is etched into my mind already - right near the church, in one of the eskinitas to the right, facing Roxas Boulevard. When we need more bags for future projects, I assured her I will go back to her store.