First find the distance to the second friend's house by halving the distance to the first friend's house: 8 miles / 2 = <<8/2=4>>4 miles
Then add that amount to the distance to the first friend's house: 4 miles + 8 miles = <<4+8=12>>12 miles
Then triple that number to find the distance from the second friend's house to work: 12 miles * 3 = <<12*3=36>>36 miles
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