Yo Jo!

One thing that Jo and I realised is that this is the 4th country where we've met up.

First was in BKK when we were in our 20s.

Then, when she moved to SG, I'd visit her and stay at her flat.

Then, we met up in HKG during the time I was living there.

And last week, we met up in TYO!

So, where to next, Jo?

Little Miss Sunshine

Nope, this isn't about the Abigail Breslin film. But mind you, that's one of my favourite comedies.

This is about celebrating the birthday of our very own Miss Sunshine - Jing-jing!

As she celebrated her milestone birthday, CAO peeps from past and present gathered to show her how much she's changed our lives for the better. Back in SMC, she gained the monicker "Sunshine" because of her warmth and radiant personality. 

Even after my SMC exit, we've remained steadfast friends and we've had the privilege of partying, traveling and just being goofy and silly together. There's even a group name for our group - JKLM - and I'm the honorary member.

Happy Birthday Jing! As the Stevie Wonder song goes, "you are the sunshine of our lives."

Fiesta Time!

Look who made it in time for her birthday!

It's Fiesta!

She surprised Melrose by coming home this December. We were already planning to spend her birthday via Zoom, but in true Fiesta fashion, she found a way to come home and celebrate with us IRL.

It's definitely a Fiesta when she's around.

You've got a Friend-ster

This is another one of those "After 4 years..." posts.

It was in 2019 when the Superfriendsters got together, and that was also the last time we "sort of saw" Clarisse.

"Sort of" because we were supposed to meet at The Podium, but it turned out that there was some confusion as to where and what time we'll meet, and she left by the time we got there. So, she just ended up joining us virtually via video call.

This year, Clarisse was back in MNL, and we made sure that we'd really meet. Like, physically. 

And we were able to!

It's been almost 2 decades since we became friends-ters. And the friends-ters-ship is still stronger than ever.

Old kids from the block

Fun fact about my Dad: His best friends now are his best friends from way back in high school. 

They're all 82 years old, and they still meet up as a group quite often. Usually, on Sundays, they'd meet up for breakfast at Pancake House, and they spend the morning just catching up. One of Dad's best friends - Ninong Tino - even goes to the house whenever there's a special occasion. 

It's safe to say that their friendship is "goals" worthy.

This is something that I can relate to. That's because after 30+ years since we first met in college, some of the Block I-1 kids are still together. We still see each other often, share meals, hang out, and talk about a wide range of topics, from our time as college freshmen to maintenance medicine.

The reason why I was in UP last Friday was exactly that. To meet up with some of my best buds from the block:

Mona, Wowie and I had a meeting at CMC, then headed off to the University Hotel for lunch. Incidentally, the managing consultant of this establishment is also a blockmate of ours - Rommel! So, it was like a mini-block reunion.

Of course, part of the discussion during lunch was organising a bigger block reunion at the hotel. Not only will we finally get to see each other, we'll also be supporting another block mate in his new endeavour. 

Gotta block off the dates for that one.

McReunion

This actually happened more than a month ago.

We were on our way from lunch with Tita Sally and Victor when my phone rang. Upon looking at it, the name of the person who was calling was Helene. She's a close friend from McDonald's who I haven't seen in 20-or-so years. Since lives it AUS, so, it was quite surprising that she was calling.

Of course, I had to pick it up. Indeed, it was Helene and she said that she's here in MNL for a short vacation. And the cool part is, she's going to White Plains, near where Dexter's is. She'll be meeting up with some of our 026 friends, and asked if I'd be free to join.

When you haven't seen a close friend for that long, the answer was obvious:

It was awesome to see Helene, Teng and Chingky again. And we had a grand time reminiscing our McDonald's days.

You gotta love unplanned meet-ups that push through.

Seoul Mates

It's always been the plan of Melrose to travel as a big group.

The past few years, some of us have traveled together. But those groups were smaller ones and the trips ranged from domestic ones like Cebu, to regional destinations like HKG and JKT..

But the past few months, talks of traveling as a complete group has been actively discussed, and it's the group's goal once this pandemic is over and we are all free to travel again.

And the group's target? Seoul!

We're hoping that we can do it next year when Melrose celebrates our 25th year of friendship.

And for that trip, our theme song would most likely be:

Hey, Silver, Seoul, Silver, Seoul, Silver, Seoul, Silver!

(Now, I can't stop singing this song in my head.)

Triple Treat!

November is a big, birthday month for Melrose since there are 3 of us celebrating our birthdays - 2 days apart.

First, there’s Lisa, then me, then Rommel.

And this weekend, we had a triple celebration!

Anything with Melrose is fun, so this event was 3 times the fun!

Fast and Furious Frendz!

The meeting was unusual.

It was by the roadside, it took less than 5 minutes, and it was fast exchange of food stuff.

But no matter how quick the meeting was, it was wonderful to see a ‘Frendz” again, live and in person, after more than 6 months. (The last time Mona and I met up was in January this year.)

Hope to see you again soonest, Mona. And not by the roadside, hopefully!

Super-lative!

If you go by the etymology, it would be easy to figure out when this group of ours began.

Our group name: "The Superfriendsters."

So yes, we became friends when "Friendster" was still en vogue, and asking for "testis" was the norm.

We all became friends at the Y&R office in Wynsum, which carried over to RCBC when we moved there in 2004. Then, some of us left the company, one after the other. But despite that, we've remained in contact, we've remained together, we've remained Superfriendsters.

While we only see each other once a year - sometimes less - whenever we see each other, it feels like we're picking up from where we left off yesterday. While some of us are in a different country, connections aren't lost. And when that time comes when we do get together, it feels like we're back in Y&R again.

And that's super!

From HKG to JKT

One of the best parts of traveling is reconnecting with old friends.

Just like today. Lunch was well spent with Keat, my constant lunch buddy when we were still in HKG.

Amazing how we haven't seen each other in 5 years, but when we did, it feels like we just saw each other last week.

I'll see you again soon, Keat.

Friends of long standing

One of the campaigns I'm currently working on is about long-standing friendships. My clients want to celebrate the joy and beauty of friendships, particularly those that have been around for decades.

I'm totally on-board when it comes to campaigns like this. After all, it's something that I'm a big believer of.

My longest standing friend is Eric, who I've known since we we're in kinder. (Yes! Kindergarten! At Learn and Play school in Sct. Gandia.)

Last Christmas, I got together with two of my close high school friends - Gary and Aldo. (And yes, Gary and I still talk about Star Wars as if we were still in high school.)

Then, there was the wedding in Boracay and Batangas, also celebrated with longtime and lifelong friends.

And the list goes on.

During last night's wedding reception, I met a lot of Mark's grade school friends. Which means they've been friends for more than 20 years! Amazing!

Some of them I've actually known for a while. Like Eric, Mike and Gelo - who is definitely one of the most genuinely nice people I've met.

But the others, I only met last night. And they're such nice and fun people. It was so refreshing to be surrounded by bright, happy people who exude so much humor, warmth and positive energy. It's just too bad that we didn't get to spend more time with them as we had an early flight the next day.

The good thing is, I'm sure that last night was just the first of many times I'll be spending with them. And that's something that I look forward to.

McFriendship

They say that life is peppered with happy accidents. Working at McDonald's was one of mine.

It was the summer of my sophomore year in college. I was thinking of taking summer classes or taking a summer job. Since none of my friends were taking classes that summer, I thought: "What the heck, I'll be a crew member at McDonald's Commonwealth."

Back then, working at McDonald's was a badge of honor. Being an all-American fast food chain, you had to speak impeccable English. In fact, the person who interviewed me was American. Which was - as one film once quoted - "surreal, but nice."

At first, I wasn't sure of my chances of getting hired. First, I was underage. They needed people who were 18 years and above. Thankfully, since it was summer, they hired people below 18, granting that they had a waiver signed by their parents. Now, I knew my parents wouldn't allow me to work so far from  home, so I did what any good kid would do:

I asked someone else to sign the waiver for me.

Then just like that, I was a crew at McDonald's 026 - a happy accident that resulted is so, so, so, SO many wonderful memories.

During most of my life at McDonald's, I was with the opening shift, or "The Openers." Now, in the McDonald's universe, the openers were usually geeky, wholesome, quirky and non-conventional. These archetypes were fine by me since I was geeky, wholesome, quirky and non-conventional to begin with.

I'd be at the store as early as 5am. Sometimes, my brother Biboy would drive me from Tomas Morato to Commonwealth - something he'd also do if I was a closer, or a member of the closing shift. Sometimes, my Mom would prepare breakfast before my shfit, and I remember one time when she got upset because she wasn't able to wake up early enough to make my breakfast.

The Openers made sure that the operations for the rest of the day ran like clockwork. That included opening and calibrating all the machines, stocking all the freezers, and making sure that there were enough stocks for the whole day. These were things I relished doing on a daily basis.

One of the best parts of being an opener was the friendships I made.

Through the opening shift, a group of crazy characters was born. Crazy characters who later became some of my best friends. This group included Helene, Teody, Chris, Ces, Nadine, Glenn, Dhymphle, Anj, Chinky, Joc and Tang. We'd all come in at 6:00 am and finish our shift at 12 nn or 1 pm. After our shift, we'd go out to watch a movie.

Movie watching came in two forms. First, we'd ride the jeep to SM North EDSA where we'd watch the latest geeky film. Our tradition was that every week, a pair would be assigned to pay for the movie and food. It was a tradition that was strictly followed, no matter how meager our pay for that week was. Second, we'd bring a VHS tape (!) and go to one of our friend's houses in Fairview to watch it. More often that not, it was Nadine's house. And I remember watching the animated version of "Beauty and the Beast" there for the first time.

Later on, we started leaving McDonald's, mainly because of school. But even if we weren't openers anymore, the group made sure to stay in contact and keep our friendship intact.

It's a friendship that's now 25 years old!

This was a realization I made this weekend during Chris' wedding. Over breakfast, Ces and I were talking about our McDonald's antics, and she exclaimed that those antics were from 25 years back!

And even if our friendship is that old, I feel we've remained the same young, geeky, wholesome,  quirky and non-conventional kids from 026. Although we weren't complete, we brought the other members of the gang in our hearts.

 (Ces, Glenn, Chris and myself. McDonald's 026 represent!)

Here's to 025 years of friendship among the 026 kids!

Throwback!

After many years, the DY&R triumvirate of Clyli, Creno and Clest were finally reunited. Funnily, our lunch was along Emerald Avenue, the very street where we used to work and became fast friends.

Vintage Vibe

The vintage clothes stores here are amazing. So amazing, I need to space my visits because each time I'm in there, I walk out with loads of things. (Loads = 10 pieces or more.)

Not only is it amazing, it's also addicting. And that's the difficult part.

Since we're on the subject, they just sent me another photo from Maya's wedding. I'd consider this "vintage" because it shows the wonderful people and great friends from the old DY&R-A team. Just like vintage clothes and fine wine, our friendship just gets better and better as the years roll along. It was great seeing them, and I'm looking forward to getting together again.

Hopefully soon.

Losing John

Erwin called me up around lunchtime with gory and shocking news. Our friend John was found murdered in their house this morning. He had multiple stab wounds, and the motive for the killing is still unknown.

All I could think of was: "Why John?" He was such a nice guy who didn't have a mean bone in his body. We worked together during our Wunderman days, and I know him to be such a generous soul. He and Franz loved to travel, and we'd always look at their pics from Brazil, Spain, and their native Appledoorn. He'd always bring us Stroopwaffles from Holland everytime he'd go there. And he would always volunteer his messengerial services whenever he'd go to Amsterdam - just in case i'd like to send Roland something, and vice-versa.

He was also a big singer, like most Pinoys. During my birthday in 2003, we went to 8th day to watch Freestyle, and he sang "Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang" with Jinky, to the delight of the audience. John had a very good singing voice, and Chiqui, his constant "duet-mate" can attest to this.

It's during times like these when you look up and ask: "Why?"

We might never know the reason. I just pray that he's in a better place now. And I pray much fervently that whoever did this to John and Franz will pay for this heinous and senseless crime.

I know this is harder than it sounds, but, Rest in Peace, John and Franz. Our prayers are with you.

The Princess Diaries

Today, I had the distinct pleasure of being visited by royalty. HRH Princess Shash has chosen to descend upon Hong Kong and give one of her loyal subjects a visit. The stopover is part of her tour of China & its neighboring territories.


I’m just SO EXCITED to see that she’s here. It’s always a thrill when you see a friend outside the country. There’s nothing like discovering a different culture with someone who has the same interests, same likes, and same sense of awe. Princess Shash, who I also call “Shashie Friend” definitely fits that bill.

The story of our friendship is quite an interesting one. The time I met Shash and the time I became friends with Shash are two different instances. There was a considerable time gap between these two points. If I were to draw a “Friendship Timeline,” I met her at point A and became friends at point J.

We first met in college, way back in 1989. We were part of CMC’s block I-1, a group of wide-eyed freshmen bravely entering the world of independence that was UP. It was a considerably big block, and it was but natural that clusters began to form within the group.

Among the clusters were “the guys”: Me, Jack, Chuck, Gani, Daryl & Rommel – 6 guys in a block of more than 30. Because we were outnumbered, we instinctively clustered. There were “the Assumptionistas”: Ovvian, Rosalyn, Tintin and Janet. If this were an American school, they’d be the Cheerleaders.

Then there were “the Geeks,” or the A-list of our block – the venerable ”high-society” if you must. I remember them occupying two benches in CASAA where they’d all meet up. They’d be writing on some sort of a logbook, sharing “Super Lemon,” and basically just chilling out. Shash was part of “the Geeks” along with Debbie, Chona, Kathleen, Mona, Eds, Grace, and eventually Gani and Daryl joined them as well.

Needless to say, I wasn’t a member of “the Geeks” because I was A GEEK! Unlike their A-list counterparts in teen flicks, the nice thing was that they were never mean to the uncool kids. I remember getting to drop by and hang out with them once or twice (Oh, ok. Just once…) This was quite an honor for a nerd such as myself.

By the time our sophomore year kicked in, a lot of our block mates left CMC and found their own niches. Ovvian went to HE to pursue Interior Design. Chona went to BA. And Shash, I heard she went on to the College of Economics.

Contact between Shash and me during those 3 remaining years were few and far between. There were the occasional run-ins along the academic oval. Bumping into each other during the lantern parade. The chance meeting along Palma Hall. Each one would consist of the customary “hi” and “hello,” and nothing more.

A few years after, 1994 if i'm not mistaken, I came across her name again. That time, I was already working as a copywriter at Adformatix, and she was up for an AE post in the same agency. When Jojo told me that she was probably going to join our team, there was this initial sense of uncertainty.

For one, we were never really that close in college, so I couldn’t really vouch for her. Another reason was the fact that we haven’t seen each other in 5 years, and often, those years add up to an awkward feeling when you see each other again. My mind was trying to figure out how to bridge those lost years.

Her first day at work came, and all the uncertainty just vanished. I remember the first time we greeted each other, it was like meeting an old friend and picking up where you left off. It was strange, given our history – or lack thereof. But everything flowed smoothly from then on.

From teammates in Optima, we became part of an inseparable group: Shash, Xtine, Fiesta, Kuya Ers and me. We worked very well at doing the advertising bit, handling the ad work for AsianBank and Nivea. It was during her Adformatix stint that Shash was christened “Princess Shash.” This was due to her very refined and very classy demeanor. Well, she did graduate from Colegio de San Agustin, so you couldn’t expect anything less.

Our friendship and teamwork extended way, WAY after work. We eventually became lunch mates; buying pork chop from the Jeepers then concocting our special “Maggi Savor/Ketchup” sauce. We were meander mates who’d go to Makati Cinema Square at lunch to buy goodies at Plaza Fair. We’d also go out after office, attacking Glorietta to shop, or simply to check out Donut Magic because Xtine said they have “to die for” donuts. (They really did!)

Going a step further, we chose to spend holidays and long weekends together. On record, one of my favorite out-of-town trips was our first foray into Subic as a group. It was at the beach house of Abe’s relative, and we commuted all the way up there. We ate dinner at the “Coffee Shop” which served humungous tacos and Iced Tea that you had to concoct yourself. Then in the morning, we’d go to the market to buy fish and meat for lunch, then cook by the beach.

Then there was the “daing” experience: after lunch, we all slept under the sun like daing left out under the sun to dry. After the afternoon nap, we’d run back to the beach for an afternoon swim. Those were simple pleasures, but made extraordinary because of the people we were with.

This was followed by other memorable get-togethers: the Ad Congress in Baguio where we found out that Shash is as princess-like when she’s drunk, Joji’s wedding, followed by Jojo’s wedding (where we all got dressed up in our Filipiniana finery!) And of course, who can forget our AX Christmas Parties where Optima won the “Best in Décor” for 3 years straight. We did Sesame Street during our last year together: I was Ernie. Shash was Mumford the Magician.

Eventually, I left Adformatix to join the corporate world. While I told all my AX friends that we’d still stay in touch after that, I likewise accepted the possibility that we’d drift apart after. At SMC, I’d be moving around a totally new circle and there’s the prospect of being immersed in a different kind of system.

The cliché goes: “Absence makes the heart grow fonder,” and realists counter it by saying: “Absence makes the heart go wander.” And I’ve seen myself do both in many instances. In the case of my Adformatix group, particularly Shash, Xtine, Fiesta and Kuya Ers, my heart grew fonder – big time!

Even if I was working in Ortigas, I’d find myself in Makati sharing a meal or a drink with the group. We’d still go to Angela’s in MCS to buy cheap clothes. We’d still eat at McDonald’s in the evening and sing “A whole new world” while waiting for our orders to arrive. Shash did a killer impression of Lea Salonga as Princess Jasmine:

“Soooaring, Tahmbling, Free wheeling. On an endlessdiamondsky…” (for those who haven’t seen the animated version, this is how Princess Jasmine sounded.)

Like most stories go, we eventually went our separate ways: Shash moved to another agency, Fiesta moved to Pinoy Central, Xtine moved to California, Kuya Ers stayed at Adformatix, and me – I left, came back, and left again.

When we went our separate ways, that’s when our “Princess Shash” became “Shashie Friend.” This was not meant to strip Her Royal Highness of her equally Royal Title, but it was to mark the transcendence to another level. If you may, it’s another additional title. (Just like HRH Princess Sophie, the Duchess of Cornwall. It’s something like that.)

It’s a title in honor of a friendship that would span agencies, geographic boundaries, even countries. A friendship marked by so many glorious occasions, among them:

1. Her wedding, (Xtine, Fiesta and I had to play hooky from work to attend this,)
2. The birth of her two little princesses (Xtine already left by this time, but Fiesta and I were there both times. Even having a little post noche Buena party during Justine’s birth)
3. The baptism of both Bella and Justine (I’m Bella’s ninong. Fiesta is Justine’s ninang.)
4. Xtine’s homecoming (where Shash, Melvin and Fiesta finally met Mario)

One of our group’s most cherished possessions in Adformatix is our photo wall. Near Xtine’s desk was this wall where all our pictures together were plastered. It started as a small group of pictures, then it grew, then grew some more, until it covered the entire wall.

When they moved the wall (It was actually Noncy’s cubicle and we were squatting on it), Xtine and I divided the pictures for safekeeping. I still have all those pictures of the group, along with the lovely family pics that Shashie Friend sends of her and the kids. They’re pictures worth cherishing, just like the friendship we have all these years.

While walking around Hong Kong with Shash and Melvin, I’m both amused and amazed that we’ve grown this close as friends despite the fact that we were just acquaintances – practically strangers – way back in college. That we could have been friends since 1989, but we weren’t. That the friendship could have had a longer history, but it doesn’t.

I believe that it’s one of those instances where it’s not quantity, but it’s the quality that matters.

Hey Prichy! You're right!

Lester, your true talent is spatial ability

Your ability to visualize objects in three-dimensional space gives you a unique view of the world. Because of this talent, you are much better than most people at imagining new designs including floor plans, page layouts, and three dimensional objects.

How do we know that's your true talent? While you were taking the test, we calculated your responses to each test question and rated your skills in 5 areas. You scored highest on spatial ability.

People like you are usually great when it comes to putting together assemble-it-yourself furniture or other household items — whether the items arrive with instructions or not. Your spatial skills also help you understand the finer points of how things work.

And that's just a small part of what we know about you from your test results. You also have other hidden talents that can have a dramatic effect on your career, your life and how other people see you.

Look who we have here...

Amazing is the only word to describe this. I ran into an old blockmate of mine from college today. The last time I saw her, it was during our freshman year in UP. That's 15 long years ago. And of all places to run into her, it had to be in Hong Kong!

I was taking the routine ferry ride from Tsim Sha Tsui to Central when I saw her in pier. Initially, I wasn't sure if it was her, after all, it's been 15 years. Then when I found myself one row behind her, it was an opportunity to take a closer look. So after repeated glances, I thought, "what the heck, this is a foreign country!"

So mustering as much courage I could possibly muster, I turned to her and asked:

"Ovvian?"

She faced me and after a few seconds said:

"Lester!"

Yup, it was our very own Assumptionista in Block I-1. The daughter of the famous sculptor. This made her our artist in residence.

We took the time from TST to Central to catch up. See what we've been doing with our lives the past decade and a half, and from what I've gathered, she's been using her time well. Since she'll be in town for a few more days, we'll meet up for another kuwentuhan session.

This is going to be SO MUCH FUN!