finding cain

Would you lease your window space to advertisers to make some extra cash?     A Dutch startup called Add My Window is allowing city dwellers to rent out their public facing windows to companies looking for alternative ad space. Advertisements come in the form of large stickers that get placed inside the window. The stickers provide vivid image outside but still allow some light to pass through because they contain hundreds of small holes.    According to Pop-Up City , Add My Window "allows people to register for an account via their website and list the windows which they would like to rent out. On the very same website, advertisers can have their pick of windows on which they choose to promote their business. There is an option to select the duration of time which an ad will stay up."    Sure, you'll tick off your neighbors or your landlord with these advertisements. But if you're having trouble with the rent or mortgage, Add My Window will pay

I was doing some cleaning in my old room at my parents' house and found a dusty, old audio cassette inside a drawer: Breakfast in America by Supertramp – a band I know nothing about. I took the tape home and put it in my damaged, but still working Sanyo boombox. My initial reaction was, "How bad does this sound?" I fully rewound the black rectangular plastic, pressed play and then I started to listen. I was expecting some disco or folk rock type of music, but I was surprised when I heard a familiar voice. " Kumusta ka na d'yan? Eto, okay naman kame dito," a sweet female voice uttered the words. "Miss ka na namin. Uwi ka sa Pasko ha." It was my mother's voice on tape. Before Facebook, Skype or Yahoo! Messenger, Filipino families bridged the geographic gap by using ingenious ways. We didn't own a telephone in the 1980s, and, aside from postcards, handwritten letters and old-fashioned greeting cards, my father, who was then working in

While drinking my morning coffee, I realized that since leaving Manila I have not seen a single child here in Tanauan playing the yo-yo. When I was a kid I used to play with yo-yos all the time, and it makes me sad that children nowadays don't even know what they are. I don't know if the touchscreen has completely overtaken every other traditional toy, but I'm sure kids these days are glued to their iPads, smartphones, and anything with Internet connection. Too bad yo-yos can't connect to Wi-Fi. Here's an interesting short documentary I've stumbled upon while scouring the web. And yes, it's about yo-yos.

Robert De Niro is by far one of my favorite actors. Since his first brilliant performance as Johnny Boy Civello in Mean Streets , De Niro has been one of America's greatest thespians.     The 71-year-old icon was recently invited to give a commencement speech to the 2015 class at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and delivered a heavy dose of reality to students. "Tisch graduates, you made it," he began. Then, with a pause, he continued: "And, you're f*cked."    The actor splashed his humor throughout the entire speech, but his underlying message was simple. He told the graduates, "On this day of triumphantly graduating, a new door is opening for you: a door to a lifetime of rejection. It's inevitable. It's what graduates call the real world."    Graduation speeches could often get boring. A lot of schools choose speakers who are unlikely to encourage, inspire, or provide advice that will be remembered after the po

Every so often, we meet people who are just insanely remarkable that you just can't help but want to be around them all the time. A perfect example is my longtime friend, Darren. Not only is he good looking, funny, and extremely talented, but also a loving husband and a cool dad.    He was born in Dumaguete, grew up in Bulacan, and studied journalism in Manila. In the early days at the Lyceum, he aspired to be an investigative reporter with the Philippine Daily Inquirer or The Manila Times. He wanted to find out what was really going on in politics and business. He wanted to expose the lavish lifestyles of corrupt government officials and the financial abuses by big corporations. He grew his hair long, bought several books on investigative journalism, and decided he would become such a reporter.    In 2000, after being thrown out of my parents' house, I went to live with Darren in his tiny studio apartment. We were both fresh out of college and unemployed. Jobs were scarce

There's an immediate transformation when a guy wears a suit. He suddenly feels smarter, richer, more powerful and more appealing. If you've got a corporate meeting, job interview, wedding or funeral to attend to or dinner date at a fancy restaurant, chances are you'll be wearing a well-tailored suit or a tuxedo.    But I'll be honest, I hate suits. They're pricey, boring, uncomfortable, stressful to shop for, and I feel like a total geek whenever I have to wear one. The first and last suit I bought was because I had to –  a requirement to join a Mad Men-inspired party. Luckily people here in the Philippines are casual. And it's too hot for a suit, anyway. For special occasions, we prefer the Barong – a lightweight embroidered formal shirt more suited to the climate.    Five years ago I had to travel to Cebu for a major trade show, and I was suddenly surrounded by Don Draper–ish executives. Nearly everyone was wearing a perfectly pressed suit and tie, ex

Our dinner included small chunks of crocodile meat served on a sizzling platter. It wasn't the first time I've eaten croc, but it was the first time I've done it with my wife. Anne is not into exotic dishes, but she took a small bite just to try it. The meat was tender and delicious, and I ate the sisig like candy. I smiled at my wife and sipped my beer. A few minutes later an old friend called, sounding stressed out.    They found him living alone in an old concrete house in Santa Magdalena, a nice little coastal town in Sorsogon, bounded by Bulusan, Matnog and Irosin. They found him after three years of rigorous searching, three years of false tips, and three years of unanswered prayers.    On the night of April 23, 2012 in Makati City, Danny stabbed a 27-year-old car salesman in his right shoulder. The victim was found in his two-bedroom condo unit bleeding, half-naked, but still alive. There were bruises on his face and abdomen, and different drug paraphernalia wer

When the phone rang in the living room, early in the evening, its sound was nearly overlooked in the clash of loud music. My younger brother had just discovered System of a Down, and with the help of his small CD player he took it with him wherever he went, except to violin practice; like the Pied Piper of Hamelin you could always hear him coming.    This was in 2001. Randy was sixteen years old and while he wasn't really into rock music, he would always play the System CD on just to remind us that he had a different taste in music. The band's latest album includes a song called Chop Suey! and, while I was on the phone, the CD player was blaring loud metal riffs and rapid-fire percussion with angst-ridden vocals. The music I can usually live with. It's the lyrics I find annoying.    If you're a rebellious teenager who likes to smoke crack and jack off to amateur porn, you could reasonably mistake SOAD's lyrics for deep. But once you turn 20 and start l

     Sometimes you fall completely in love with music on first listen. It can be a dazzling guitar solo, the exemplary vocal harmonies, the powerful lyrics, or the amazing orchestral backing tracks. And, before you know it, you're in love with the song, the artist, the entire album.    The general public may not recognize these two ladies, but to indie music fans worldwide, BOY, composed of Swiss singer Valeska Steiner and German bassist Sonja Glass, are bona fide superstars. The two met years ago at a music camp in Hamburg, and the friendship that prevailed over the years has produced Mutual Friends — the duo's debut album.    I remember staying for a bit more at the bar, the first time I heard Drive Darling . I was immediately hooked. From the in-wall speakers behind me it came; a song I can describe only as pure, unadulterated music. I had never seen BOY perform before but I admired them instantly. And I loved that I didn’t know anything about them even more. An

One of the things I always like to visit at my friend Lisa's house is the black Burmese cat because my wife and I can't have one (we have two dogs, a Labrador and a Pit Bull, who hate feline creatures). I'm not sure Selina ever caught a mouse but the last time I went there, she brought me a sand lizard that I think lives underneath the old jackfruit tree at the front yard. I grabbed her by the neck and the reptile dropped out of her mouth. Dead. According to Lisa, her pet bags about two birds a week. She saw Selina snatch a maya last month; the following day a frog succumbed to her attack. Domestic cats aren't just the adorable creatures depicted in unbearably cute Internet videos. They're also lethal hunters. They kill time by killing wildlife, and they are responsible for slaughtering billions of other animals each year. Yes, a cat doesn't look nearly as deadly as the black mamba, as strong as the mountain gorilla or as menacing as the humans, but they shou

My new neighbor, Juliet, came up to me on the street yesterday while I was pushing my daughter in her stroller, and asked if we could talk. She asked me a lot of questions – where was I originally from and did I like it here and on and on – until I said why should I answer all this. "What about you?" We were standing near the front windows of a small coffee shop, so she asked me if I wanted to have a drink. She thought she had an idea I would be very interested in.    Well, since she's kinda cute and charming, I thought "Oh, why not." She might even be a good friend to have. Then we went inside the coffee shop and we both ordered iced latte. My two-year-old daughter was calm, but observant. I gave her a small cookie to keep her busy for a while, and then Juliet and I went on to discuss our little "business".    We talked about our families, the bad coffee we were drinking, and the weather. Then, just ten minutes or so later, in a strange twist of e

Two weeks ago, I was sitting at a beach pub in Roxas City with a few friends, smoking a cigarette while waiting for our drinks. I looked around and… Voila! Everyone has their eyes set on their smartphones and tablets. The availability of free Wi-Fi almost everywhere has resulted in significantly more people logging on to check their Facebook accounts and other social networking sites during their vacations rather than using their time off from work to reflect, relax and enjoy their surroundings.    Technology is supposed to make us more connected, but our mobile devices are actually getting in the way of real socializing. Reading e-mails in the kitchen and sleeping with your smartphone by your bed are now considered normal. Furthermore, people are glued to their gadgets even during fun times like concerts, parties, holidays, family reunions or intimate moments.    Now, don't get me wrong; I also love my tools, and some might consider me a tech nut. But guess what: When I go on