As I decided and finally typed the title of this essay, I figured I was going to get a ton of flak because Filipinos are overly sensitive about this topic — and almost every little, insignificant thing. But I implore you to put down your pitchforks for a moment and listen. I am a Filipino and if you’re one too, I can understand why your blood is boiling right now. Apart from being hospitable, we should be nationalists too, right?… Continue reading →
Dear 19-year-old self
The first thing you need to do when you read this is to look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself why you’re wearing clothes three times your size. I know hiphop and gangsta rap is big during this time but really?
Second thing you need to do is to turn off that computer, get out of the house, and explore the world. There’s beauty in it although I know it’ll be hard for you to understand this right now.
2017, here we go.
As I unconsciously drove myself with robotic consistency to work today, I was thinking of things to do or change this year. I don’t do new year resolutions. Frankly because I’m afraid I won’t get to actually doing them — especially with the pressure of a non-existent clock ticking away every second.
This year, I’m changing that. I’m going to write down a couple of things that I think I should be able to accomplish — or at least try … Continue reading →
Why Can’t We Be Friends?
In War’s Why Can’t We Be Friends?, the line “why can’t we be friends?” is repeated 44 times and makes up 94% of the entire song. I’ve asked myself this question hundreds of times. Why can’t people seem to agree on anything?
One guy says something, another guy comes back with something else. A woman posts something nice on Facebook and people can’t wait to give it a piece of their mind.
Are people hardwired to argue? Were we … Continue reading →
The Culture Hype
Almost anything passes as definition of culture these days — more so in tech startups.
So, what’s the culture like in your company?
Oh, we have espresso machines, unlimited candy, free lunches, a couple of masseuse on standby — you name it! We embrace working remotely, enjoy unlimited vacations, and are entitled to 8-hours of sleep every night.
Oh, man. How I wish.
Silicon Valley has everyone talking a great deal about culture but do we really know what we’re … Continue reading →
How to Eliminate Your Short Temper and Avoid Completely Ruining Your Kids’ Lives
I am a father to two kids; one six-year old and a toddler. Both highly energetic and can easily wreak havoc while requiring the smallest amount of time. I love them both dearly but there are times when I want to crumple them into a ball and hurl them into the trash bin while yelling “Kobe!”
Parenting is tough—and I don’t think an aphorism would help in any way. In today’s technology-driven world, everyone is under constant pressure to deliver,
Moving along.
I started this blog 4 years ago as a way for me to record my thoughts. 25 thousand hits later, there’s a hint of melancholy as I’m finally parting ways with it — or WordPress to be perfectly accurate. There was a time when you felt like everyone else was on WordPress (emphasis on “was”). Although, I just felt like whenever I log onto WordPress, I always get lost into its different components and entirely miss the point of writing. … Continue reading →
But You’ve Got To Love Failure!
I love building things.
Notice how I said “building?” I don’t consider myself creative, I’m not an innovator and I’m nowhere near being a visionary. But I LOVE building things.
4 years ago, me, my brother, and a friend of ours thought of an idea. We were fed up with how bad traffic was in Metro. We thought, what if we could build a service that encourages ride-sharing, or more commonly known as carpooling.
We scoured the web for local … Continue reading →
An Uber-tastic Experience Riding With Uber That Almost Gave Me A Heart Attack
This morning, I decided to bring my car to the repair shop to have the carburetor checked. The car had been hard-starting recently and dies every now and then. It was a public holiday and so I thought it’d be the perfect time to cruise along EDSA. At 8:00 AM, I started the car (still hard-starting) and tried to kick the gas pedal back and forth. Another car inside our village passed through me and said there was white smoke … Continue reading →
How We Got Zero Eggs But Still Came Home Happy
Last Sunday, through the generosity of a family friend, we joined an Easter Sunday program for kids held at one of the malls in town. A fee of Php300 was asked from would-be participants prior to the event. It boasted of a pirate show, face painting, snow cones, cotton candy, pop corn, and a 15-minute use of a “bouncy pirate ship.” The main activity though would be an easter egg hunt throughout the entire mall. This included establishments wherein you … Continue reading →