Social Net.. Working

Just out of curiosity, I searched for an old classmate’s name in Facebook as I have found an old photo with her in my memorabilia box. I clicked on the photo that I think is hers on the third page of the search results and thought about what could she be doing in her life now. I am only expecting to see her profile photo as I knew that a lot of FB users would set their privacy to ‘Only Friends’ but as her public profile opened, the trail of her life in all the years that passed was on my face in an instant. And there was her 657 friends.

I am not so much into social networking but I do have existing but ‘not-really-active’ profiles in MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, Meet Up and Friendster.

Okay, Friendster had already lost its popularity but people still open it once in a blue moon and some are still posting their updates there once in awhile.

As I am writing this, I have 24 friends in Facebook. Yes, you got that right! It’s only 24 (and half of them are relatives!) And if I would be setting a day to find all of my real true friends in the planet, maybe I’ll reach the count of 50, more or less. Seems that I have a limited world, huh?!

Of course, I know a lot of people and I have a lot of acquaintances. But I don’t add all of them. Isn’t Facebook supposed to be a place to connect with people who are our ‘friends’? Or maybe, it’s just me.. or maybe, I see it in a different perspective. I can only have my ‘friends’ in my friends list and they are the ones who I allow to see and witness what’s going on in my life as I am updating my status and photos and sharing my full profile.

‘Friends’ to me defines the people I know and who knows me personally. They could be people I’ve known long way back or friends I made at work and a few acquaintances every now and then which I developed personal connections. They are the people I can relate with and who can relate to me back. But I have one weak spot here. There are a few people that I met and created a ‘more-than-just-a-plain-acquaintance’ rapport but I am anxious to add them because I ‘might’ not be accepted for whatever their reason could be, though the chances of being turned down is bleak because everyone’s business is all about adding people and that’s not a really fair thought to have in mind.

I remember there was this real estate consultant guy who I met in one of the property shows last year. He sent me a message in FB introducing himself as such and along with it was his friend request. I didn’t accepted his request because I don’t know him at all. Our connection starts and ends with both of us being in the real estate industry and nothing more. But I am always open for possibilities. I am sure that we exchanged business cards then and there can always be a reason to call, or to send SMS, or to chat, or to write an email – if one really wants to connect with you. There’s a lot of ways to be friends and once I established that connection, then you’d surely land on in my friends’ list, either you add me or I add you.

Otherwise, I have a LinkedIn professional profile wherein I can add business network connections and it doesn’t really matter to me if everyone could see my career updates and what I am doing in my professional life all along.

I don’t think Facebook is a numbers game. I still go for quality instead of quantity.

MySpace is a place to meet random people. It’s totally not a place for friendship. Users will write about themselves ( and most of the time, it's not really about 'them') and who they want to meet. People add people, like its a lottery game. Strangers would send message wanting to be friends or wanting to have a ‘relationship’ with you which is kind of weird. They would write how your profile amazed them when there is really nothing in your profile but a headshot and age and location. I don’t feel sorry for ignoring friends requests there and deleting messages from wanna-be friends. But I must say that with the hundredths of requests and messages that I received from this social networking site, there’s one or two people who made it to my friend category. One of them, I sent a message myself.

I signed-up for Meet Up to create connections and to literally meet people. Meet Up has groups that you can join to meet like-minded people according to what interests you. Its objective is to do something, learn something and share something. I joined Dubai Coffee Meet Up Group (because I love coffee), The Dubai Writers Group (because I aspire to enhance my craft), The Career Coaching Group (because I think I need help from the pros), Change Your Life and NLP Coaching (because I may get tips on how to improve my life more), Net Meet Up (because I might get a really good business opportunity here), and Serendipity in Dubai (because I am up for any surprise that would come my way). There are varieties here and the networking concept isn’t just about online connections but you go out there to meet people face-to-face who can be a business connection, some maybe recreational activity partners and some may become friends that you may add in FB.

And if there’s anything that I want to share with the world, I tweet. I don’t care if no one cares. It’s just that there are times that I feel like I need to say something to the world to give me a feeling of correlation without revealing my true identity. It was so because I am using a pseudonym at Twitter.

Oh, I almost forgot I also have a Multiply account that doesn't multiply at all. Well, I used to keep my write-ups there ages ago but then blogsites came out so I need to shift.

Everything here is from my own point of view but I would love to hear yours.

So.. Friends, anyone?

Logo Credits:  bobreyes.com, rec.udel.edu, flickr.com, gsb.columbia.edu, meetup.com

Taglines

What's for Breakfast?

“Goodmorning Mr. Sun!”

I remember how the little kids would open up their eyes in the morning. The first thing they will notice is the brightness that surrounds them and they knew for sure that it is because Mr. Sun is already up that’s why they have to wake up. Oh, we all have to thank Barney for that!

But I would say, “Thank you, Dear God, for another day."

How often do we thank God for our ‘everyday’? For each morning that we open up our eyes to, for the foods that we eat, for the career that we have, for every friend that we got, for our family who loves us the most .. and for the many other things in our lives.

And now I just told him, “Thank you, Dear God, for giving me this time to be able to think and ponder what I want to pursue in my life but please lead my direction so I would not lose my way.”

There is this pressing force inside me for being out-of-job at the moment but I know that I am more at peace now with the world knowing that I have this ‘freedom’ to bring myself again to a new road towards self-fulfillment.

Well, I am hoping that I would soon find that road leading to my wishes.

I have to go back to my hula routines again. Been lazy about doing it for days now. Sometimes I intentionally try not to do things that must be done because it interrupts my ‘brain flow’ especially when I am in a state of calamity.

You might say that it’s an exaggeration. Maybe.

But I need to think and plan and act. Well, I think I’ve been doing this stuff for a month now.

Results? NIL.

I played my friends’ CD of hip Arabic music and took my hula hoop and tried my best to relax while I’m playing the hula, trying to keep it from falling to my feet. One, two, three songs.. I’m beginning to feel my sweat. Nothing beats the feeling of revving up.

After two more songs, I need to rest. And I need coffee now.

While making myself a hot cup, I thought about a good breakfast meal. Everyday, it’s all about oatmeals and cereals and sandwiches and omelets. How about a real breakfast for today?

Fried rice. Egg cooked sunny-side-up. Beef tapa. Tomatoes. Some soup to go. Yummy! I then rummaged through the fridge for the tapa (there should be!).

My mind was floating while I am working in the kitchen. I am trying to ‘locate that road’. The road to my self-fulfillment: career-wise. I need a break. I want something new.

As I let the beef simmer in it’s sauce, I dissolve some ready-mixed soup into the water and let it cook for 5 minutes. I started preparing the fried rice after.

The smell of garlic surrounds the kitchen as I placed it in butter, when it’s starting to brown, I dropped the carrots that I chopped into little cubes then the rice follows. I sprinkled a little salt and some chopped spring onions for a twist. Done. My sunny-side-up egg is next. Picked some tomatoes to slice (taking off everything inside).

I cannot believe that I am doing this on an ordinary day. When I have a full-time job, all I do after I wake up in the morning is run for bath and fix myself a cup of instant coffee. The 3-in-1 kind because it saves time. Then I would dress up and hit the road.

This day is a special day.

“Bless me, Oh Lord, and these Thy gifts which I’m about to receive from Thy bounty, through Christ, our Lord. Amen.”

Good breakfast, indeed.

*Tapa is a way of marinating meat in soy sauce and a few spices and letting it simmer with its own sauce and a little oil.

Photo Credit: landolakes.com

Images and Words

SHEIKH ZAYED ROAD, DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

"Dubai.

Full of life. Full of lights.

The city never sleeps."

Taglines

Images and Words

"Some things, magic things, are meant to stay whole.

If you look at their pieces, they'd go away."

-from Bridges of the Madison County

Quoting Myself

"Life brings you moments you can never forget."

Packages

People comes in packages. And we have to accept them as they are or totally not deal with them about anything.

We meet people everyday. We deal with people everyday. Whether it’s friends, relatives, colleagues, ex-colleagues, plain acquaintances.. we need to go through ‘dealing’ with them to achieve the purpose of our daily lives.

Let’s get back to meeting people. I mean, new acquaintances. This is where everything starts.

Suppose we meet each other for the first time. I will introduce myself to you and you will introduce yourself to me. Commonly, we’ll exchange a few basic information about each other that’s mainly about the job that we do, where we’re from, where we stay and our status in life in general. I’m not talking about business here. This is meeting a new person because he or she might be introduced to you by a friend or by anyone you know and it was done for a purpose which is most of the time, a personal one. Or it could also be that you’ve just met accidentally, however the meeting happened.

When the introduction is done and the connection is established, more or less, knowing the other person would not end there. It’s either one of you is interested or both of you are (and someone needs to cross fingers here). At the onset, you ask general questions and then you gradually move in to get the ‘more’ personal details about the other person. Then you would learn the things that he/she do, the things that he/she likes, the things that makes him/her happy and how he/she goes about his/her life.

You would soon find out that there are things about this person that you like and there are also things in him/her that you don’t like.

Here is where the ‘packages’ comes in. It’s called that way because you have to accept the ‘package’ as a whole. You cannot tear the part that you don’t like about the person and throw it away. It’s as simple as the ‘Take it or Leave it’ policy.

I’ll be more specific. But I will write from my own type of package. I have to use some checklist on this part.When I would be asked about what I like in a friend, I would always reply enumeratively with:

1. Simple

2. Not a disco-addict

3. A non-smoker

4. Not loud

5. Conservative

6. Loves sports

7. No tattoos

8. Prim and proper

9. Decent

10. No body piercings (except the ears for ladies)

Okay, that’s my list. And then I met someone. I’ll give it a little thrill here. So, let’s say I met a guy. We had our introductions and after the first conversation that we had, I knew that I would definitely meet him and talk to him again. Why so? You might ask. Because I enjoyed talking to him and he seemed interesting. It could be on a personal note or he could be a valuable business contact. Who knows? But let’s stick on the ‘personal’ note.

Let’s say, he invited me again sometime to meet and have dinner. And he becomes ‘more’ interesting in my eyes. If you know what I mean. Our conversations now runs from family to sports to everything. I learned that he’s not the type who enjoys discos and he’s a sport enthusiast – like, name it and he can play the game. He dresses well, neatly groomed and proper. Check numbers 2, 4, 5, 6 and 8.

He looks simple and decent. Check numbers 1 and 9.

And then I popped out one very important question.

“Do you have any tattoo?”, that’s with a wink and a grin.

And he said ‘No.’ Relief. Now, back on the list. Check mark on number 7.

“How about piercings?”, I am crossing my fingers now.

He shook his head. Check number 10.

My type of package, I must say, right? He’s got it all. And then right after dinner, he took a stick of cigarette from his pocket and puff! How could I miss that??? Number 3 on my list is still unchecked!

He smokes and confessed that he can empty a box in a day. Now, what?

That’s what a package is all about. He is a nice guy. Of course, I would not discard him just because he smokes.

We should always remember that people comes in packages. Love them or leave them, but never deal with anyone halfway.

Photo Credit: polyvore.com

Images and Words

THE PEN

"Thoughts playing in my head -
Creating images..
of what had been, of what will be.
I don't keep a diary,
but I need to write about You & Me."

by TsoCoLate

Photo Credit: invitesink.com

20 Reasons Why Chocolate is Better Than ...

I have found that I have been keeping a page from the Lifeline Magazine (January 1998 issue) featuring this list. I am not sure now why I kept this material then but if it is for my love of chocolates or for the humor that this 20 reasons gives.. am sure you'll have a fun time going through this.

Read on.. :-)



1. You can GET chocolate.
2. Chocolate satisfies even when it has gone soft.
3. "If you love me, you'll swallow that" has real meaning with chocolate.
4. You can safely have chocolate when you are driving.
5. You can make chocolate last as long as you want.
6. You can have chocolate in front of your mother.
7. If you bit the nuts too hard, the chocolate won't mind.
8. Two people of the same sex can have chocolate together without any disapproval.
9. The word "commitment" doesn't scare chocolate off.
10. You can have chocolate on your desk during work hours without upsetting your workmates or getting fired.
11. You can ask a stranger for chocolate without getting your face slapped.
12. You don't get hairs from chocolate.
13. With chocolate, there is no need to fake it.
14. Chocolate doesn't produce little chocolates nine months later.
15. You can have chocolate at any time of the month.
16. Good chocolate is easy to find.
17. One chocolate doesn't get jealous if it sees you having another chocolate.
18. You are never too young or too old for chocolate.
19. When you have chocolate, it doesn't keep the neighbors awake.
20. With chocolate, size doesn't matter. It's always good.

Teach me to go slow, Lord..

Teach me to go slow, Lord
And learn to wait on you
Don't let me jump ahead
While wondering what to do.

Teach me to go slow, Lord
Each promise You'll fulfill-
You answer in Your time
And in Your perfect will.

Teach me to go slow, Lord
And only my anxious heart
Keep my eyes on you
And don't let the teardrops start.

Teach me to go slow, Lord
Reach out and take my hand
For I am deeply troubled
And I just don't understand.

Teach me to go slow, Lord
Take one day at a time
Don't let me fall but lead me on
To peaceful heights sublime.

Teach me to go slow, Lord
Please work this out for me
When all is right once more
Let me give praise to Thee.

Teach me to go slow, Lord
And help me see above
This dark cloud 'til I can gaze
Into Your face of Love.

by Denise A. de Wald












Photo Credit: stjohnsyeadon.com

10 Simple Pleasures

Sunflower (A Myth)

I wrote this (more or less) 10 years ago for my cousin's school project in highschool. Glad I found this in one of the floppy discs that I kept for ages but it was a full hardwork before I was able to get this file as the disc needs serious recovery efforts..

***

Once upon a time, there was a man sitting beneath a Laurel Tree in the middle of the forest.  It is the only Laurel  Tree to be found, standing out among all the other trees, maybe because of the love that nourished its existence from day to day. And it was the love from the man in its leafy arms, who, in everyday of his life from the day his heart died, spent all his time under this tree.

 

Weeping aloud, the forest heard  his cry, “Oh, Daphne… Daphne… my heart you took, my love forever be  yours…”

 

Every  little seed, every  little flower, even the huge  trees and the tall bamboos; and each butterfly that passes knew for some reason how much pain he  bears and how hurt he is for the loss of someone most dear in his heart.

 

And in between breath, “When will I be with you… when can we hold?,” he whispered.

At the heart of the forest wherein beauty is the only thing to be seen, it is a disappointment to see a lonely soul crying his heart out.  Much more to see that it was from a man, staring at nowhere, resting his back at the lower part of the trunk and unconsciously playing with the dried laurel leaves on the ground.

 

He rested his head, closed his eyes and uttered again, “Daphne… Daphne…,”  almost without a sound. And there was silence.  Only the chirping of the birds and the brushing of the leaves in the trees can be heard. 

For long, he stayed just like that until he noticed the movement of a bush nearby as if a  rabbit or a medium-sized animal was behind it. But he haven’t  seen any animal around the forest eversince, only the flying creatures.  He wondered if there could be anyone who knew of the forest. 


“Who is that?” he asked in a loud, clear voice.


The bush stopped moving as if the creature behind became afraid of his voice.


He stood up, took a step forward and speaked again, “Someone is there behind that bush, show yourself!” His words sounded more of an order than a kind favor.


Seemingly afraid, a young lady stood up and showed herself not lifting her face up and both hands are in hold of a basket full of newly picked flowers.


“Who are you?” he asked in a deep, low voice.

 

He took a step again to get near her but she suddenly dropped off  the basket and run as fast as she could.  He did not run after her, instead, he picked the basket with flowers and he showered the flowers at the feet of the Laurel Tree and tied the basket at the back of his horse.

The next day, the young lady was there again picking  flowers~gathering them all in apron above her dress. He arrived and when he saw her a mile away, he got down from his horse and walked towards her without noise, careful  not to get her attention because he’s afraid she might  run  away again. When he got near, he came to her with the empty basket.

“Maybe it would be easier for you if you place all those beautiful flowers in your basket…”, he said softly while handing her the basket. The surprise in her eyes was obviously seen. She wasn’t afraid of this godly being in front of her but the sight of him weaken her knees and makes her heart beats faster than ever. A few of the flowers have fallen from her apron and before she knew it, the man was picking them up and placed them in the basket.

He stood up and handed her the basket.

He smiled. She smiled. 

“What’s your name?” it was the young lady who asked.

He smiled again, glad that she speaked. 

“I am Apollo… and you are?” he asked.

“My name is Fleur,” she responded looking down at her feet, blushing a little.

He lifted up her chin and looked directly at her eyes. 

“You are beautiful, young Fleur… why are you always here?” he asked again. 

“I pick flowers as you can see. I sell them in the flower shops in town. The shop owners told me my flowers are the most beautiful they’ve seen. How about you? I always see you under that tree for quite long now…,” she said pointing out to the Laurel tree.

The expression on his face saddened. 

“It’s called the Laurel tree. I’m always here because my heart is with that tree since Daphne died. She’s my heart… my life…,” he took a deep breath, “…the Laurel tree and Daphne ~ they’re only one.” 

In a way, she understands what he is saying. 

“And that is why you’re wearing Laurel leaves on your hair?” she asked.

He nodded. 

“Fleur, you don’t need to  tell anyone about the significance of the Laurel tree to me… I know you are my friend.” He said hoping that the young lady respect his plea.

She nodded.

Days. Months. Years passed. Apollo and Fleur became good friends and the forest was their paradise. They didn’t  failed to see each other everyday. But one day, Fleur didn’t come and Apollo wondered why. The next day, he saw an old woman picking flowers with a basket. It happened for days and not being able to help it, he approached the old woman. 

“Who are you? Do you know Fleur?” he asked in a soft voice. 

The old woman looked up at him. 

“I am her mother. Fleur is sick and she cannot come to pick flowers, so I did.” She replied.

His worries are seen from his eyes. 

“I want to come with you . I need to see her.” He said.

The old woman shook her head. “No, she doesn’t want you to see her sick and laying helplessly in bed. I’ll tell her you want to see her and I’ll tell you tomorrow what she wanted to do when we see each other here." 

He spotted a rare yellow orchid, picked it and gave it to the old woman. 

“Give this to her and tell her that I missed her and that I really wanted to come…,” he said.

The next day, he arrived there early morning and so did the old woman. She handed him the basket full of flowers and told him to give it to her. 

“Meet her at the Laurel tree, she’s already there…” the old woman said in a very weary voice and tears are on her lids. “Take care of my daughter, Son. She won’t be here for long…” and the old woman turned her back crying.

He’s confused by the old woman’s words. There’s a lot of question in his mind but he opted to run fast towards the Laurel tree where Fleur is waiting.

He found her seated on the ground, resting her back on the lower trunk, her fingers playing with the dried Laurel leaves, just like the first time she had seen him.

She looked up on him and smiled. He cannot afford to smile back at her because of her weak and helpless appearance. 

“Shower me  with flowers…,” she whisphered.

He did as he has been told. She laid her body down and bathe with the mixed fragrance and  beauty  of the flowers surrounding her.

“Why?” he asked. 

“Apollo, I have you here,” she said feeling her heart with her right hand, “but Daphne is there,” pointing to his heart. “I don’t want to come between you and your love for Daphne. I tried to hide what I feel for you. All these years, every moment we are together- the love in my heart grows stronger and stronger for you. So, I backed off, knowing that I cannot help it and this complicated my heart seriously,” she paused, catching her breath. “I will always look up on you and adore you even after I’m gone…” she paused again. 

“Fleur, no… please,” he uttered with tears in his eyes.

Tears flowed from her eyes, too. 

“I love you, Apollo… remember my words… I would always look up on you…” that was the last she could speak and her breath was gone.

He embraced her and cried. The wind blew making every flower on the ground move and swayed the others which are still on their roots. Even the Laurel tree swayed and a few leaves fell down as if it joined Apollo’s tears.

He whispered, “You are dear, my Fleur. I will always look down on you to see that no one will do you harm. We will be together and Daphne will surely understand. You came into my life when I am most depressed and down from the loss of a love. You gave my life a new hope and you showed me its beauty.” Tears continuously flow from his eyes.

He took her hand and kissed the back of it, embraced her more tightly and kissed her forehead. 

“Fleur, oh, Fleur… you didn’t  know I am the Sun… yet I do know~you are My Flower… of all these flowers in the forest and in all the land, you’d stand out to be the brightest, the smartest of them all. You will bring forth hope and beauty and you will be called… Sunflower.”

Photo Credit: flickr.com

Quoting Myself..

"Can you ever, ever stop your heart?"

Quoting Myself..

"Never judge a place where everyone is doing the same thing.
Because someone is there who's totally out of the ordinary."

Superstar

“Life is a hard road, a vale of tears, a dark wind rising, sound and fury, blues coming down like hail. And some days, your team loses in the World Cup!”, the words from the write-up of Brian Philips from Yahoo! Sports on 30 July 2010 and referring to no one but the world’s most expensive footballer.

It is with high-anticipation that a superstar can always pull-it off while the cameras are all directed upon him because there are many wonders to capture. In Cristiano Ronaldo’s case, it is leading his Portugal team to qualify for the Quarter Finals. For the last game in the Round of 16 match, it is the only thing to look forward to.

In the aftermath of the Portugal’s loss to Spain, Cristiano Ronaldo have tumbled deep from the pedestal that he’s stepping upon. Describing himself as a “broken man”, the existential horror of the human condition appears to have dawned on him all at once. He was quoted in an interview to BBC saying, “I feel a broken man, completely disconsolate, frustrated and an unimaginable sadness. I am a human being and like any human being I suffer and I have the right to suffer alone.”

The words that came from the man who clearly knows his responsibility as opposed to all the critism and whatever has been said against him being the team captain may very well be construed upon our own understanding.

The 25-year-old Real Madrid star was savaged in the media and in the press naming him as the Superstar ‘who once again failed to live up to his club form for his country at a major championship’. And the facts were listed all over the papers about this most expensive player at 94 Million Euros who came to Real Madrid from Manchester United but came trophyless last season. And failing to end a title drought for Real Madrid and get it into the Champions League final that his club hosted.

The stats says Ronaldo scored one penalty kick in 2006, one goal at Euro 2008 and one goal in South Africa.

Ronaldo, the world’s most expensive player, showed only rare flashes of brilliance at the tournament, however.

Everybody believed that he can do it. From the coach down to his team members to all the football fans out there. Because he is the leader and the captain. Or maybe because he is ‘Cristiano Ronaldo’? That’s why he ‘must’ do it?

I am not a big Ronaldo fan. And I am not writing this because he can swoon over all the girls in the crowd but it is with empathy that I ponder about the upshot of how losing that match against Spain on 29th July 2010 have made of him and how the world looked down on this Superstar.

Why are all fingers being pointed at this football superstar? He might be the forerunner of Portugal but the game is all about teamwork. You win as a team and you lose as a team. And it’s not supposed to be a one-man millstone just because the limelight is on him. Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho said that the entire Portugal squad must shoulder the blame for the exit of the team and that Ronaldo shouldn’t be made the scapegoat. The man should not be weighed down with all the responsibilities of the team.

Football isn’t a one-man game but losing a goal surely hurts.

Photo Credits: AFP/Getty Images