I hate..

I hate Jen. Seriously.

She's off taking her 7-day leave while I'm still slaving my butt off at the office.

I'm actually kind of confused. I know I complain a lot, and I still believe we're being treated as aliping saguigilid most of the time, but why am I not walking around the streets of Makati, dropping my resume at every office imaginable? Why do I declare every other day that I'll be resigning even without a new job but still find myself 2 years later at the same desk? Can it be that I like my job? No, it can't be. No. No. NO.

Better late than never

I have been delaying publishing this post because I've been looking for that perfect picture. It's been almost a week and I still can't find a picture of the whole team accepting their trophy. So...

Congrats Purefoods!!

You make me proud! =P

Getting over myself.

I wrote this last weekend:
You know those times when you're in pain and you fiercely wish you have a reason to be furious just to mask the hurting somehow. I bet it's easier that way.

I would like to take it back.

Not because I'm not hurting anymore. Not because I now have a reason to be mad. It's because now that I can see more clearly, I am so grateful that I don't have a reason to be furious. Sure, maybe it is easier to cope that way because you focus all your energy on the bad things and forget the pain. It's something I've seen Dr. House do - you cover up something with something bigger so you'll just feel the bigger thing and forget about the "smaller" one.

Yes, I still find it difficult to sleep and eat. I've thought about getting sleeping pills just so the nights can pass by more quickly. I still cry at the most embarrassing places at the most inopportune times. I am actually thankful now that I work long hours so I don't have to lie in bed wide awake till the wee hours of the morning. I dread the weekends because I don't have anything to keep me occupied. I still don't know what the future holds. Maybe I've already lost the fight even before it began. I really don't know. What I do know is I may be hurting, but I'm still so blessed. The boy I fell in love with so many years ago turned out to be the most wonderful man, who's never given me one single reason to regret what we entered into. All these years, not one single reason. I am still fighting and hoping, but I know in my heart that the worst thing that can happen is he'll turn out to be just a friend. A friend. Not in the near future, of course, but in time, I know we'll be good friends. And if that's what I can call the worst thing in my life, boy, am I truly blessed.

Something's amiss

I am a fast reader. I've always prided myself in that. Until recently.

A friend sent me a Harry Potter quiz - the usual stuff: HP Trivia and Guess the Characters. Being a self-confessed HP addict, akala ko mani lang. Was I wrong. Out of 100, I just answered like 20. I can't even remember the name of Ron's rat - you know, the Peter Pettigrew.

And it made me wonder - do I just see the words and not actually understand? Do I read just for the sake of conforming and be able to say that I read it? And to put it in a bigger picture - in the entire 22 years, did I just go through the motions and did not, as the cliche goes, smell the roses?

Excuse me while I kill myself.

You know those times when you're in pain and you fiercely wish you have a reason to be furious just to mask the hurting somehow. I bet it's easier that way.

my date for the weekend

Ah, SLEEP. How wonderful it is to bump into you again.

Laban kung Laban!

As expected, I was down with the flu (no, wait, I had the "chills") last Wednesday =( But then it went away come lunchtime so I was able to troop to Araneta and scream my brains out. Ain't life grand?

I met my friend around 3:45 in the afternoon just outside the Coliseum. We decided to proceed to the court around 4pm so we can see the players of San Miguel and Alaska (not on purpose, believe me) warm up and take some pictures I guess. Yada-yada-yada, Alaska won, yipee for... nobody.

Oh, wait, I cannot believe I almost forgot to tell you where we were seated!! We knew it was near (if you paid P700 for a PBA game, wouldn't you expect the same?), but when the attendant directed us to our seats, we were momentarily stunned. We were SO near. To give you an idea how near, we were on the same row as the courtside commentators, i.e. Quinito Henson, Sev Sarmienta, etc. If I lean over just a bit and extend my arm, I can probably touch the player's ass. Or the referee's. Not that I want to, of course *ehem*. And you know those instances when a player desperately hustles for the ball and ends up on the spectators' side? Let's just say should Marc Pingris have been his usual over-eager self, he would've landed on us.

On to the main event. I was looking forward to the Opening Ceremonies, because they're usually really really cool. The PETA performance was a bit blah, but the fireworks!! There were 4 men dressed in all black, complete with ski masks, who were suspended in the air. They were in the air doing nothing for around 5mins so I completely forgot about them until the fireworks came! Actually, they were the fireworks. The fireworks shot out from small contraptions in their knuckles and toes. It was amazing.

Now to the actual game. It was worth every single centavo, never mind that it ruined my budget for the month. I was quite happy when the 1st half ended with my team leading by around 19pts I think? But I half-hoped that Red Bull makes a run in the next half so it wouldn't be a blow-out (read: yawn-worthy). They didn't let me down - they erased Purefoods' lead during the 3rd quarter alone and even led by as much as 6pts in the 4th quarter, but like my dad always says (in reference to Purefoods) "just to die in the end." Nevertheless, I applaud Red Bull for their resiliency and like what my gimmick-mate said in her own blog, I can't help but compare them to Ginebra because of their never-say-die attitude. It makes even non-fans like me appreciate their effort. I mean, hey, if someone is willing to shell out money to watch a "real" game, better make it worth his while, right? Don't just shrivel up and hand the game to the other team in a silver platter.

Needless to say, lumalabas ang pagka-squatters ko when I'm cheering for Purefoods. You name it, I do it. Okay, I don't resort to name-calling, I don't shout obscenities, I don't carry cartolina posters (I am amused by other fans' posters - a poster of a Red Bull fan read "May tama ka!" obviously as a parody to Mrs. James Yap, aka Kris Aquino's, famous line in Game KNB. Others read "Chakang Giants." I only wish I have even a quarter of their creativity =)), I don't dance around to taunt the other team's fans, but everything else, I do. I scream at the referees, I jump up and down, I scream at the opponents, and to be completely honest, I do feel the tiniest itch to do the jig. There was one time in the 4th period that I was so ecstatic, I jumped up and down with my arms raised like so, when suddenly, my semi-chunky bracelet popped right out of my arm and hit my seatmate in the head. Thank God he didn't give me a hard time about it, considering he was already quite old and it probably hurt. The guy who had to pick it up for me was grinning from ear to ear when he handed it to me. I could sense what he was thinking and I know it ain't flattering. But frankly, I don't give a damn.

Some random thoughts on the entire experience:

1. Lordy Tugade is one of the most arrogant SOB I've seen in the PBA, strutting like he owns the place. He can wow me with his accurate shooting, but there's no need for all that arrogance. You haven't proven anything yet, mister. And really, the arrogance sometimes overshadows what little talent you have.
2. It's nice to see Alvin Patrimonio so involved in the game.
3. I seriously loathe majority of the players of Red Bull. Please don't get me started on Topex Robinson! And their so-full-of-himself-Coach. Grr. But I like Cyrus Baguio and Junthy Valenzuela.
4. It's different when you watch the game live. Time flashes by just like that. Next thing I knew it was already 11pm and we were shouting to the players not to go to overtime so we can go home already.
5. I love looking at pretty and makinis ladies =) Go figure who I'm talking about. Sheesh, I am such a butch.

I had such a blast! And it does help if the one you're watching with knows her basketball and is not just there for the players *ehem, Cyrus!* =) Never mind that we were cheering for different teams. It boggles me to this day why we persist on watching PBA games together when one of us has to lose before the night ends. Love for the sport, I guess? And the sight of toned bodies helps a bit =P

In case you were wondering, yeah, I brought my camera with me but I only have the picture of the fireworks to brag about. Yeah yeah. Nakakahiya sila tawagin eh =(

REPEAT or REVENGE?

And the answer is - it's a fantastic REPEAT!

I am talking about my Purefoods TJ Hotdogs - okay, Chunkee Giants - winning over Alaska. From 0-2 and 1-3, with their backs completely against the wall, they stepped up to the challenge and repeated a feat so extraordinary (and against the same team, I must add).

While everyone else is going ga-ga over the World Cup, I am still stuck in my very own PBA warp zone. I have never been a fan of foreign tournaments, not even NBA (I was a semi-fan of Reggie Miller when he can still shoot the lights out from beyond the 3-pt arc), and the game tonight reminded me why. There's something heart-pounding about the action in PBA that no other tournament can come close to copying (maybe it's because I have a team to root for in the PBA?). When I try to watch NBA for example, almost everyone is a shooter and all shots hit nothing but net. Where's the challenge? Where's the excitement? Where's the feeling of not knowing who's going to win until the very last second? Where's the defense? When somebody drives hard to the basket, sure, someone's on his face but not in the same way as our local players do it. I am obviously biased, but that's how I see it.

Back to Purefoods.

Game 1 of the Finals (as of press-time, San Miguel and Red Bull are still slugging it out and I'm too lazy to check who's in the lead) is scheduled on Wednesday I believe, so I have this weird feeling that I'll be going down with the flu on that day. Please anticipate. Never mind that I have month-end reports to do. They can wait. Right? Besides, it's an overdue leave waiting to happen.

If Red Bull squeaks past San Miguel, it's the classic repeat of last conference's Finals. And that also means I have Ma'am Jelaine to play hooky with. You should see us - taking a half-day leave from work, leaving the office 5 minutes apart, meeting at Ayala Ave, cheering for different ball clubs when the game starts. Should it be San Miguel, I have my dad's pang-aasar to contend with. And prolly Dong to accompany me to Araneta. No matter which team Purefoods will face, I'll still be down with the flu on Wednesday. Or maybe diarrhea. Or a mild case of asthma.

Oh, I have to congratulate Alaska for a job well-done. Congratulations for not giving up early on in the game and for giving the fans one hell of a game. Honestly, I couldn't sit/lie still until the last 5 seconds because you refused to go away. But really, allowing Purefoods to win 3 straight games? That's abysmal. But congratulations still (even if just to quell my friend Jen's dismay and probably Sara's and Dee's? =)). Personally, my mantra ever since I've been a fan of PBA is any team but Alaska. I just can't stand them. I know, Jen, I'm not helping, right? =) You'll probably pounce on me tomorrow.

* And congratulations also to all the boxers who fought their Mexican counterparts this morning and came out sizzling! It was truly a knockout Sunday (well for me, atleast). What a good way to start the week!