Stages, essence and other insights about life

Change. There's nothing constant in this world except change. Some changes are unavoidable, while others are expected. But at the end of the day, we always hope that the end result of this changes will be the best for us.

As for me, a surprising and promising change has happened. Although I'm still at the period wherein I'm still weighing things and finding my right footing, I can say that it is indeed a worthwhile experience. That is mainly the reason why I haven't updated this site for a while since part of the change I went into recently includes changing of mailbox. =)  I'm not in the position to divulge more information so let's just leave it at that. =)

Now, back to my regular posting. During my hiatus, there are few mails that was routed successfully to my  mailbox that helps me see things in a different light. So here's some insightful thought-provoking ideas from my ever-reliable agent, AGENT M.

Happyness

Been busy for the past few days months, not that I am complaining, its just that I am kinda overwhelmed and in the process of ironing things out. Anyway, so to my billions millions thousands okay, it is just wishful thinking. To my soon to be followers, *hint *hint, here is my once in a blue moon post. I guess with all the negative things happening around the world, we need a little something to enlighten us, especially this coming holiday season.

Oh, subject of this email is not even connected to the movie of Will Smith, The Pursuit of Happyness. Nor the connected to the book of the same title by Chris Gardner. Though I must say that the movie is very inspiring one. So if you have not watched it, I suggest you do. Otherwise, why not the book instead. =)

_____________________________________________
From: Agent M
Sent: Tuesday, June 01, 2010 9:22 AM
Subject: Happyness

“We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.”

“The reason people find it so hard to be happy is that they always see the past better than it was, the present worse than it is, and the future less resolved than it will be”

“When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us.”

“To be happy with a man you must understand him a lot and love him a little. To be happy with a woman you must love her a lot and not try to understand her at all.”

“We have no right to ask when a sorrow comes, 'Why did this happen to me?' unless we ask the same question for every joy that comes our way.”

“Don't rely on someone else for your happiness and self worth. Only you can be responsible for that. If you can't love and respect yourself - no one else will be able to make that happen. Accept who you are - completely; the good and the bad - and make changes as YOU see fit - not because you think someone else wants you to be different.”

“This is my wish for you: Comfort on difficult days, smiles when sadness intrudes, rainbows to follow the clouds, laughter to kiss your lips, sunsets to warm your heart, hugs when spirits sag, beauty for your eyes to see, friendships to brighten your being, faith so that you can believe, confidence for when you doubt, courage to know yourself, patience to accept the truth, Love to complete your life.

Mr. Bean Strikes Again

I'm a big fan of Mr. Bean, sometimes. There's something about his slapstick comedy or the "Charlie Chaplin"-ish type of comedy. 

But whether we like it or not, we find him somewhat funny if not amusing.  

So for all those who secretly enjoying Mr. Bean's antic, I would like to show you that He can be more than what we expect him to be. Just look the email from Agent M, showing the versatility of Mr. Bean.

From: AGent M
Sent: Friday, May 28, 2010 9:18 AM
Subject: MR. BEAN STRIKES AGAIN - Laughter Is The Best Medicine

WHAT IF?

Justin Bean-Ber. Ms. Bean.   Lady BEAN-GAGA     Bean Laden     "Legally Bean" Pope Bean-idict Pirates of the Carib-BEAN Harry Bean-Potter President O-bean-ma Team Bean-La in Twilight Bean Raider B'ean in Avatar Beans-ther in orphan

Bed is too low

A couple of days ago, I'm with my friends who's going to move to their new home this coming month. So they're in the shopping spree to spruce up their new love nest. We went to various home decor shops around the city. From thrift shops in Pasay to mall store and some specialty boutique. The couple even plans to go out of the country to visit Ikea.

Anyway, as I was roaming around the shop looking for table, I found this cool bed. I showed them to the couple and they started arguing what they don't like about the bed. While they were arguing, I remember this email sent to me by AGENT M. So guys, Enjoy!





From: Agent M
Sent: Tuesday, June 29, 2010 9:29 AM

Subject: The bed is too low

Yoga Instructor

Ever heard of "Need a hand?" Well, this is a perfect example. You can't blame the guy, he's just doing what an Instructor should be doing. That is giving them a "HAND". With this picture, I bet a lot of you are thinking of shifting to      teach Yoga. =)

From: AGENT M
Sent: Thursday, July 08, 2010 2:30 PM
Subject: Yoga instructor
Sensitivity: Private

Noisy world cup football instrument

Now that the World Cup is over and the Prophecy of the Octopus came through, its now time to reminisce the exciting games that made this FIFA 2010 so memorable. No, I'm not talking about how Brazil lost nor Germany's predicted lost courtesy of their own sears, Paul the Octopus. I'm talking about those noisy, disturbing horn you will hear from the background. Imagine that in the television, the sound of those horns is already disturbing if not annoying, what more if you are watching the games live. So I tried researching on that  instrument, but failed on getting the information. Luckily, Agent M, sent me this very valuable information. I was expecting that this instrument, called Vuvuzela according to the email, comes from Africa. Indeed it is, but I didn't expect that this instrument is as old as the tribesmen of Africa. I let you be the judge, just click more to see it.

From: AGENT M
Sent: Tuesday, July 20, 2010 9:21 AM
Subject: Noisy world cup football instrument

I found out where the Vuvuzela came from ....think of this next time you blow one! 

a Not so Funny Email.

I always receive a lot of hoax emails from urban legends to pay-per-forward scam emails. Most of the times, I reply to the sender to inform them that it is nothing but a hoax email. I sometimes even research to verify and validate the claims on the email. But there are times that no validation is needed, just look for "red flags" in the email and surely you can say that is hoax email. Below is the sample email coming from Agent M.

From: Agent M
Sent: Friday, July 20, 2007 10:27 AM
To: Agent Gadget; Agent WANG WANG; Agent Ding Dong; Agent Vavoom; Agent Papa; Agent Jatujak; M.O.RON

Subject: FW: Funny 

This is the coolest thing I have ever gotten. All you have to do is send it to 7 people and watch your screen, it is the funniest clip. I can't tell you what it is but I was laughing so hard I almost fell off my chair!!! So, send it to those 7 people and watch.

MAY OUR FRIENDSHIP NEVER COME APART ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART!

MAY YOU ALWAYS HAVE A RAINBOW OF SMIL ES ON YOUR FACE AND IN YOUR HEART FOREVER AND EVER!

FRIENDS FOREVER!

Forward this to at least 7 people and see what happens on your screen . you will laugh your head off!!!!!!!!!!!

If you forward it to 7 people a video comes on your screen.   

Obviously, Agent M falls into this trap. The email was sent to 7 other recipient including me. And after responding back to Agent M regarding this hoax email, it was confirmed that nothing happened. So how do you check if the email is a hoax. Here are some "Red Flags" that you should look into emails to verify it is a hoax. Please note that this list is just partial listing.

Top 10 Red Flags to Determine Hoax Email

1. Asking you to forward the email to x number of people. = When you see this, its automatically a hoax email, the chain letter type. (e.g. "Forward this to 7 people!!!!")


2. If the email states that something will happen when you forward the email. = Related to Item #1, regardless on how advance the email technology is, forwarding email will not magically give you the best video you will ever see nor will it create a magically awesome scene on your computer. In addition, there are no credible organization to use pay-per-forward scheme since it is tantamount to spamming. So Microsoft, Google or yahoo will never compensate you on every email you forwarded. It will also not help any sick kid in some remote location. (e.g. "if you forward this email, Microsoft will give USD 0.70 to some kid with a very rare disease.")


3. If the email contains Superlatives words. = Super, Most, Best, "Mostest", "Bestest" any thing superlative. (e.g. "The best video that I ever seen in my entire life!!!" "The Coolest Thing I ever gotten!!!")


4. Testimonial coming from someone "close". = anybody from brother to housemates to someone else ex-girlfriend. (e.g. "This is true, I also heard this from my batch mate's ex-house-mate's cousin's ex-girlfriend's father!") 


5. Citing from an anonymous person from a known, valid, credible company or organization. = It seems that mentioning a valid and credible organization sort of makes some anonymous credible also. (e.g. "According to the scientist from NASA, This is true." "I heard this from the guy in BBC.")


6. Citing from a research without stating the source of information. = if there are no citation of any journal or research document or even a site that will validate the research, then you can treat it as hoax. (e.g. "This is based on the research done by the scientists in WHO.")


7. If the last part or majority of the email is written in all caps, colored (multi-colored) and bold font with lots of punctuation marks particularly the exclamation point (!). = A valid email specially those containing critical information will be written properly. (e.g. "SEND THIS NOW!!!!!!!!!!!" "OMG, THIS IS TRUE!!!!!!!" "YOU WONT BELIEVE THIS !!!")


8. Outrageous Claims without citing source = Email that tells you a "SUPER POWERFUL VIRUS" that will burn your PC or a flesh eating disease from a banana. If you received such claims, check online news sites or website that was mentioned on the email. If there is such a disease or a virus, it will definitely be on the news. 


9. Blackmail = if the email contains some sort of blackmail or hostage on your part, then it is hoax. (e.g. "If you don't do this, something BAD will happen to your ex-lover's hamster.")


10. Self-affirmation followed by testimonials (see item #4) & anonymous sources (see items #5&6)= Most of the times, hoax emails contains self-affirmation to make you believe it is true. (e.g. "THIS IS TRUE!!!! My Brother's gradeschool classmate's sister-in-law heard this from a guy in CNN.")

If you received an email that contains any one or combination of items above, I can assure you that it is a hoax email. If you still have doubts, you can forward the email to me or check out my favorite hoax-buster, www.snopes.com.

Long Goodbyes

Don't you hate long  goodbye's. Like 5 minutes will turn into another 15 minutes and as if all of a sudden topics and reminders that should have been discussed before were being discussed now.

From:Agent M
Sent: Wednesday, April 28, 2010 1:27 PM
Subject: DON'T YOU HATE LONG GOODBYE'S ??? 

3 Minute Management Lessons about Credit, Turkey, your Job & your Boss

From: AGENT M
Sent: Monday, January 29, 2007 11:32 AM
Subject: 3 Minute Management Lessons about Credit, Turkey, your Job & your Boss

Lesson 1:
A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower, when the doorbell rings. The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs.

When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbour. Before she says a word, Bob says, "I'll give you £800 to drop that towel." After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob. After a few seconds, Bob hands her £800 and leaves. The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back
upstairs.

When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, "Who was that?" "It was Bob the next door neighbour," she replies. "Great!" the husband says, "did he say anything about the £800 he owes
me?"

Moral of the story: If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.

Lesson 2:
A priest offered a Nun a lift. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg. The priest nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg. The nun said, "Father, remember Psalm 129?" The priest removed his hand. But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again. The nun once again said, "Father, remember Psalm 129?" The priest apologised "Sorry
sister but the flesh is weak." Arriving at the convent, the nun went on her way.

On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129. It said, "Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory."

Moral of the story: If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great opportunity.

Lesson 3:
A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out. The Genie says, "I'll give each of you just one wish."

"Me first! Me first!" says the admin clerk. "I want to be in the Bahamas , driving a speedboat, without a care in the world." Puff! She's gone. "Me next! Me next!" says the sales rep. "I want to be in Hawaii, relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life." Puff! He's gone. "OK, you're up," the Genie says to the manager. The manager says, "I want those two back in the office after lunch."

Moral of the story: Always let your boss have the first say.

Lesson 4:
An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, "Can I also sit like you and do nothing?" The eagle answered: "Sure, why not." So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.

Moral of the story: To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Lesson 5:
A turkey was chatting with a bull. "I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree," sighed the turkey, "but I haven't got the energy." "Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?" replied the bull,
"they're packed with nutrients." The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him
enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree.

The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth
night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.


Moral of the story: Bullshit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there.

Lesson 6:
A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon
began to sing for joy. A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.

Moral of the story:
(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.
(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend.
(3) And when you're in deep shit, it's best to keep your mouth shut!

As time goes by

From: Agent M
Sent: Friday, December 04, 2009 1:11 PM
Subject: Where does time go?

Where does the time go?

'Remember yesterday, dream about tomorrow,

but you better live for today'

How quickly the years pass

Remember the year of innocence...

When it was lost....

When it becomes history...

Outrageous Outfits

From: Agent M
Sent: Thursday, April 22, 2010 5:11 PM
Subject: Outrageous Outfits

Come and get the new Reflector Boots. It comes with an over-sized plastic container that can be use as a raincoat.

Who says I can't fit to size 4 dress? 

You DON'T Wear black rubber shoes with Pink Bikini!!!

There's something odd on this picture.. hmmm. Oh wait, That creature should be on the other side of the cage. Who let the creature escape?

Chief, I understand this is not the procedure, but for this instance can we let this creature go?

There's a rumor that the black widow character in spiderman was removed.. I wonder why.... hmmm..

This is soo wrong! You don't wear ribbons anymore! That is sooo Fred Flinston!

I don't know what's wrong with this picture. Its only a lesbian couple.. Oh, that's not a girl? which one?

This terrorist must be taught how to disguise properly.

If you don't have anything to wear at the beach, wear a fish net. 

I don't know why the guy on this picture is smiling from ear to ear. That's not even his hand.

Original Sketch of Jabba the Hutt

Finally, we were able to get  the first sketch of Jabba the Hutt, one of the most intriguing characters in Star Wars saga. Who would expect that this large and 600+ years old antagonist was initially and originally a younger but a fiercer character. You will not see this picture anywhere in StarWars site, only here. Its one of the kept secret of  George Lucas.  Luckily our Agent M, was able to get a copy.

From: Agent M
Sent: Wednesday, April 07, 2010 1:46 PM
Subject: Original Sketch of Jabba the Hutt

Facebook Circa 1898

Ever wonder what could've happened if Facebook was existing during the 1896 Philippine Revolution? wonder no more.... Just click the images to enlarge it.

From: AGENT M
Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 8:53 AM
Subject: paano kung may facebook na noon pa?

Facebook 101: Make the Events private of else. . .

Aussie Love Story

From: AGENT M 

Sent: Monday, April 26, 2010 9:37 AM
Subject: Aussie Love Story

A TRUE AUSSIE LOVE STORY...   About eight years ago a wild Australian Sulphur Crested Cockatoo flew into a car and broke its wing.  The motorist took it to the Vet in Nerang , Queensland , who had to amputate     the wing.  We adopted her - for which we needed a National Parks and Wildlife permit - and kept her in a cage outside where she was often visited by wild Cockatoos. One of the things that impressed us was how she would push lettuce leaves through the bars of the cage, offering food to visitors. Last Sunday she again had a visitor.

Who Needs a Babysitter?

From: Agent M 
Sent: Friday, March 05, 2010 5:17 PM
Subject: Who Needs a Babysitter?

New Airport Check In

From: Agent M
Sent: Monday, January 11, 2010 9:10 AM
Subject: New Airport Check In....

I bet this will boost the ailing airline industry. =)

Poems written by WIFE and HUSBAND

From: Agent M 
Sent: Thursday, March 18, 2010 4:07 PM
Subject: Poems written by WIFE and HUSBAND

WIFE:

I wrote your name on sand it got washed.

I wrote your name in air, it was blown away.

Then I wrote your name on my heart & I got Heart Attack.

HUSBAND:

God saw me hungry, he created pizza.

He saw me thirsty, he created Pepsi.

He saw me in dark, he created light.

He saw me without problems, he created YOU.

WIFE:

Twinkle twinkle little star

You should know what you are

And once you know what you are

Mental hospital is not so far.

HUSBAND:

The rain makes all things beautiful.

The grass and flowers too.

If rain makes all things beautiful

Why doesn't it rain on you?

WIFE:

Roses are red; Violets are blue

Monkeys like u should be kept in zoo.

Don't feel so angry you will find me there too 

Not in cage but laughing at you.

ANG MGA PRESIDENTIABLES AYON SA MGA BITUIN

From: AGENT M
Sent: Saturday, March 1, 2010 2:01 PM
Subject: ANG MGA PRESIDENTIABLES AYON SA MGA BITUIN

ANG MGA PRESIDENTIABLES AYON SA MGA BITUIN

ANO ANG SINASABI NG MGA BITUIN sa kapalaran ng siyam na kandidato sa pagkapangulo ngayong linggong ito?

Narito. Basahin, limiin, unawain, at seryosohin. Ngunit laging tandaan ang paalala ni Zenaida `Syzygy' Seva, "Hindi hawak ng mga bituin ang ating kapalaran. Gabay lamang sila. Meron tayong free will, gamitin natin ito."

Ulitin natin. Pero sa pagkakataong ito, basahin nang malakas at imadyinin si Zenaida Seva habang binibigkas ang linya, "Hindi hawak ng mga bituin ang ating kapalaran. Gabay lamang sila. Meron tayong free will, gamitin natin ito." At inulit mo naman. Masunuring bata!