My last backpacking trip was fairly extraordinary. I was by myself, it was my first time backpacking and I really didn’t know what to expect. Second time round I feel like a seasoned traveler (perhaps a touch immodest there) and meeting new people doesn’t seem like a big deal anymore. In fact, I approached this one with nonchalance. I don’t give much of a fuck in Sydney anymore because I like my friends and the more new people I meet the more I realise how rare it is to find people like your mates.

Anyway, this time round I knew I’d have Brooke in a week so it was just Hawaii and I’d figure I’d sit around on the beach most of the time.

Despite this, I per chance happened to stay in this lovely little backpackers called the Polynesian (2584 Lemon Rd, Waikiki, 18089221340) filled with lots of young, fun hot bods and met some wonderful people to pass the week with. Friendships while traveling has different terms. You naturally think wonderful things about people you might not really be friends with at home because (a) you’re all relaxed and happy in a beautiful setting (b) subconsciously you know you have to because you’re by yourself.

Point is is that I loved it there and I realised that I like it when I like someone and/or when I’m liked by someone, just as I hate it when I don’t like someone and/or they don’t like me. (and talking about “like” in the “like like” sense and the normal “like sense”.)

Thing is is that should we be aiming to just be content with ourselves irrelevant of whether someone is nice or rude to us? I would like to be, but it’s difficult. The other way to look at it is that being liked is a positive experience (thus it should be treasured) while being disliked is a negative experience (thus we shouldn’t let it affect us).

But is it possible to let the negative one roll off our backs while holding onto the positive one, or if you let one go you have to let the other go too?