friendillion

“Meet the Real Life Forrest Gump” “Introducing Tony, the French Walking Guy” I have a question for you? When you travel, what mode of transportation do you normally use? Is it a car, a plane, a bike… Tell me, I’d like to know. It’s obvious that our mode of transport will vary depending on the type of our journey. Bike if it is near and Plane if it is far. But do any of you have traveled by foot? Yes, you heard me right… on foot. And I’m not talking about just walking a few meters from the parking lot to the grocery. I’m talking about at least a minimum of 100 kilometers. Anyone??? None??? I guess so. Nobody in this damn earth will walk a hundred kilometers. Guess what? Somebody just did. His name is Tony. A French guy who’s been traveling all over the world. The one thing unique about him is whenever he arrives in a particular country, he doesn’t take the bus, or train, or a cab, or any kind of mode of transportation. He just uses his two feet. Kinda an odd guy right...

“Do Maria Clara still Exists” ? Ayon sa libro ni Dr. Jose Rizal, si Maria Clara ay isang babae na halos nasa kanya na lahat ng magagandang katangian. Bukod sa kanyang pisikal na kagandahan, siya ay masunurin, mahinhin, makadiyos, mapagmahal, may-paninindigan, at may pamamalasakit. Kilala din ang dalaga sa pagiging talentado at may busilak na puso. Higit sa lahat, nakilala si Maria Clara sa katangiang konserbatibo. Sa madaling salita siya ay hindi ma-ARTE! Today, the Maria Clara types are now close to extinction. Women of today (although still blessed with beauty and talents), only have a few good characteristics similar to the fine lady written in the book. Ladies of today are more career oriented. Most of the time, these ladies are even more financially successful compared to their better half. They are the CEO of a promising company. Or they have created a new business model that sells their products like hotcakes. The only setback is they have become so busy that they don...

Everyone thinks that their property is an Asset. That could be true if that property raises its value over time (say in the next 5 years). But most of the time, our properties are considered a liability. Why? Because you have to take care of maintenance, renovation, property taxes, association dues, manpower, etc. Each of those expenses (not to mention the property value) can cost you a fortune. Over the course of several years or decades, they can cost millions. True investments don’t require that kind of ongoing outlay of cash. You can rationalize those expenses based on the fact that the house is providing you shelter. But that gets back to the original premise – a house is a shelter, and not really an investment. I grew up in a family where they don’t mind that most of their properties are liabilities. Just like in the Monopoly game, they only give importance to the  “Boardwalk and Park Place” . The rest is idle and left behind unattended. Recently, I just discove...

“Why we seek for Catriona Gray’s participation” All of us have somebody we idolized. For those who dig Basketball, they follow stars from Larry Bird, to Michael Jordan, to Giannis Antetokounmpo. Bookworms adore good authors like George R. R. Martin, J.K. Rowling, and Stephen King. For the ladies, they crave for non-other than their beloved pageantry. Every year, Filipinos take time to watch Miss Universe. An annual international beauty pageant that is aired to 190 countries worldwide and seen more than half a billion people. Until now, we all still feel the excitement that the recently crowned Miss Universe Catriona Gray (the 4th Filipina to win the pageant) brought us. She now ranks among the top Filipino personalities which include famous boxing champion Manny Pacquiao, Miss Saigon Lea Salonga, and even half Filipino like singers Apl.de.ap and Bruno Mars, and Hollywood actress Hailee Steinfield. So why pick Catriona on top of the others? Well, at first she is at the pea...

“The Positive Effect of Friendliness” It’s the time of the year again. It’s Summer, where it’s the perfect moment to hit the beach. People flock by land, air, and sea to visit the most popular beach spot in the Philippines. One of the most popular beach is the island of Boracay. Even with the recent bad rap against the famous tourist spot, travelers still go there to feel the famous white sand that still looks like a  “Polvoron” . People love to travel to vacate their boring routine life. They travel with their friends and loved ones in order to spend quality time with them. So whether they are in Boracay or some other island, they always come along with somebody. Ours were the same when we went to Boracay. My wife relatives live on the island so, therefore, we spent time with them. It’s a period to play catch-up and bond with the relatives. After all, we hardly see each other so this is the perfect occasion to tell stories of old and new. It’s also the perfect time ...

“How not to be  MAYABANG  po…” Me and my wife love to go to our hometown in  Balayan Batangas . It’s a roughly 2 hours drive from Manila, and it’s the perfect place for us to unwind and unload the pressure of city living. Balayan is a small town of happy and kind people. Everybody is a friend there even if you are a stranger. You are welcome to each and everyone’s house even if there’s no event. They love to communicate and bond with you at any time of the day. The only problem with this small town is that there is not enough jobs and businesses for the locals. Unless you are one of the locals who belong to the rich families with abundant of lands, you have no choice but to  “Flee away”  to scavenge for a livelihood for you and your family. So it’s either they go to Manila to work, or go abroad and take their chances of bringing a fortune to the family that they left behind. In Balayan, most of the locals go to Italy. Until now, I can’t decipher wh...

How accepting  Weird Animals  can teach us to understand  Weird Humans … We are all taught to choose our friends wisely. It’s imperative that we should do that. It’s the only way to stay away from the Haters, Betrayers, and Backstabbers. Having friends can determine where you are going. Your friends can either make you or break you. They could be really nice to you today and kill (not literally) you tomorrow. Because of this, we become  “Picky” ! We think hard and choose the right friends. The ones who are loyal, true, sincere, kind, honest and most of the words that you can find in the Walt Disney movies. Because we are the sum of the company that we keep. And by that, we are attracted to those who mirror our social identity. To put this perspective in real life… I’m going to ask you a question. You don’t have to answer or reply back. I just want you to grasp the substance of what I’m writing today. The question is this… “How many Real Friends do ...