Just today, the My Shopping Box delivery men arrived in our apartment bringing packages I ordered from Amazon all the way to the Makati, Philippines. (If you wanna see the detailed ordering process I went through, click here.) Even when I should have been sleeping 5 hours ago, I still managed to snap a few photos before my camera batteries got depleted. (Of course Penny Blanco! Just when I need you the most, you die on me!)

I just thought of showing you the actual photos before I go to slumber land.

I changed sheets. The brushes didn't stand out as much as it deserved.

real Techniques Core Collection.

real Techniques Stippling Brush; not as wide and dense as Charm's.

Just like everything new, they looked (and smelled) divine!

I didn't have much cash left so I only picked those I can afford at the time. Next time, I'll buy more pink and purple brushes. Oh yeah, if you didn't know, they're color-coded: Orange handles for the base, Purple handles for the eyes, and Pink handles for the finishing touches. I'm no expert in applying makeup and I don't do full makeup looks often, but it does help when you have good tools to help you when you need to be extra polished.

Hoping to post more about this one day and I cannot wait to give them their first bath!

No, this is not another attempt to purchase makeup from Sephora. This post will be updated with the progress report.

CURRENT STATUS: Packages Delivered [12/20/2012]

Last Saturday, a friend begged asked me to buy stuff from Amazon. I obliged with the promise that I can also buy what I want, without having to share the shipping fees. Win-win!

Okay, I didn't say they're not makeup-related;

December 2

• I placed an order using the Gcash Amex debit card.
• A few minutes later, I received a text saying I successfully paid Php 42.12. (This must be for the $1 card verification charge equivalent to $1. I read that this was refundable but as of this date, no refund yet.)

December 3

• I received a text saying I successfully paid Php 2519.19, a lot less than my purchase total.
• I found out that one item out of the five ordered was shipped separately. I think it was because it came from a seller that's nowhere near the other four.

December 4

• I received another text saying I successfully paid Php 42.12. 
• I received another text saying I successfully paid Php 84.24. 
• At this point, I already started to wonder what these charge were for. Apparently, Globe Gcash Amex doesn't have ONLINE billing statements for the ONLINE purchases it was solely created for. How ironic. 
• I called.the Globe Gcash hotline at 2882 to verify if the information as to which merchant I paid is obtainable for its customers-- I WAS TOLD IT WAS, BUT ONLY IF YOU CALL 2882. Then, I had to be on hold for a good 10 minutes before my questions were answered. Both Php 42.12 and 84.24 were for Amazon and Paypal verification, respectively. Amazon charged twice, one was for the initial use of the card, the other one was for the Amazon Prime trial (opting in the free trial allowed me to get the products shipped in just two days for free to Burbank, California where the My Shopping Box, US cargo forwarder associated with Globe GCash Amex, is located.) 
• Later that night, I received a text saying I successfully paid Php 1216.84. This was the payment for the 5th item that was separated on shipment #2.

December 5

• By 11:23 PM, Manila time, both packages have been delivered to My Shopping Box.

December 6

• At 8 AM, Manila time, My Shopping Box still hasn't updated the package tracking site. Maybe my packages still hasn't been keyed in? 
• As of writing, no refunds has been issued for all the verification done.
• I called the MSB hotline and was told that it will take 2-3 days of inspections and weight checks before the package is uploaded in my MSB profile. Good thing, I opted to use the Amazon Prime 2-day shipping.

December 8

• At around 5 PM, I received the shipping invoice from MSB and woaaah, this sucks.
  
  
• Freakin' USD 83.86 for things that are super light but bulky in nature. Almost twice the price of the items I ordered.  
• I checked with Johnny Air and apparently, they have the same computation, which is to use the volumetric size of the package for the nature of the items being shipped, instead of the weight. So whether MSB or Johnny air, the shipping cost would be the same as they also use the same rates.  

December 9

• Tonix, are we really gonna push through with having them shipped via Air travel? Should I try to shamelessly beg for a discount first? 
• Tonix responded with a 'go'.

December 17

• LOL haven't updated for more than a week. Been really busy. As of today, the status is still "ORDER DEPARTED US"
• The packages are expected to arrive this week according to their customer service representative.
  
  
• Tonix share: Php 6088.4432 (breakdown to be posted later; converted based from 42.12 exchange rate)

December 18

• I woke up with this text message.
  
  

December 19

• I woke up around 5PM. The first thing that came out from my mouth was "FRAAAK!" Haha I remembered that the packaged was supposed to be delivered. 
• I called MSB hotline, got transferred from one line to another until I got a representative who gave me the exact progress. "The package is already on the way to you."
• But after I hung up the phone, a few minutes later, I was called by said customer service representative and told me that the delivery will have to be rescheduled the next day. The delivery vehicle broke down and will not be able to reach me. 
• I was promised that my package will be prioritize on Thursday. Sad, but I can live with it.

December 20

• I called MSB at 10AM to follow up. In verbatim, in a very jolly voice I was told, "Miss Jennever? Ako po yung nakausap niyo kahapon! On the way na po dyan yung packages niyo. Hintayin niyo na lang po." 
• Now, I haven't even told her my tracking numbers nor my name. It's not everyday that I receive that kind of personal customer service so I was really thankful. I wasn't able to understand her name because it was kind of inaudible, but whoever you are, I shall be calling back and give you a commendation.
• An hour after, here they are! The lightest boxes I've ever carried. Such as waste of volumetric weight space, if you ask me. 

These two boxes only contain FIVE items. Placed the 1L water bottle for size reference.

Both boxes came sealed so you know your packages haven't been snooped in.

Lesson 1: Don't EVER order stuff that are bulky as they will be measured in volumetric weight. And if luck doesn't go in your favor like us, the volume will be 9 freakin' times the actual weight of the package. In this case, you will be invoiced using the higher chargeable weight. My Shopping Box and Johnny Air have the same rules, even the same rates.

Lesson 2: Even if they are sent to the cargo forwarder on the same time and date, using the same Amazon sales order number, if the items are arrived in two separate boxes, they will be tagged by MSB as two separate packages, no excuses. It's so they can be tracked separately. In our case, the 5th item came from Kentucky, which is roughly 2795 kilometers away from Nevada, so Amazon really had to separate this shipment. If you want to avoid this from happening, you can send them to relative/friend first so they can reorganize stuff.

Order Details
(Edit as of April 16, 2014: I converted the dollar values so it would be easier to understand. Please only consider those in red font.)

Shipment #1

Php 2519.19  deducted by Globe for Amazon box #1
Php 42.12 deducted by Globe for Amazon card verification; equivalent to $1
Php 2270.69 MSB shipping to Philippines charge of box #1

Shipment #2

Php 1216.84  deducted by Globe for Amazon box #2
Php 42.12 deducted by Globe for Amazon Prime verification; equivalent to $1
Php 1261.45 MSB shipping to Philippines charge of box #2

--------------

Edit: So I guess the figures above were indeed confusing. The total amount I paid for was Php 3820.27. And I got the $2 back after 1 month. It was the charge for the Amazon card verification and the Amazon Prime membership verfication.

Edit: The total amount I crossed off on the first edit was the amount I paid to Amazon for all our purchases, not my share. Thanks to the commenters for pointing this out to be sorted

To read the GCash Amex FAQs, click here.

This should be titled...
How To Make Jenn Feel Stupid in 3 Ways
After weeks of lurking, I finally decided to buy a camera lens. At first, I wanted to order from resellers here in Manila but 1) Kimstore was out of stock, and 2) DBGadgets promised me a 3-5 days waiting time, did not came through and then promised me again 7-10 days waiting time, only to disappoint me. Whenever I'd follow up, I get excuses and not a hint of being apologetic. Still, the promises kept flowing.

@DBGadgets, follow through your promises. If you can't, at least be upfront about it.

And that's when furious me decided that Amazon would be my best bet. They offer the same price as Kimstore and DBGadgets, but the real deal-breaker for me before was the shipping fee. But even if the shipping fee was more than I would normally go for, I went all out and bought it.

The first credit card (CC) I entered was not mine (yes first, because there is a second). I thought it would be as easy as Order-Checkout-Enter CC details-Shipment-Yey!, But no, I had to learn so many things the hard way.

Hell broke loose after I received this email from address-verification@amazon.com asking me to confirm my billing statement and my account got temporarily on hold.

Click to enlarge

It hasn't arrived yet but I'm already giddy about it. God forbid if this delivery gets here late.


Update: It arrived 3 hours ago. 2 days earlier than expected, with no additional charges, contrary to those I've been reading about in blogs and forums regarding DHL deliveries.