Life Changers

Note: This is an old post from my Multiply site last July 8, 2009.

Last week, I discussed primarily on Twitter because I tried using that community website. I never thought I would use it but I am actually visiting and posting updates on it as much as possible. Ever since my Join Date last June 23, I already have 55 updates. That is roughly 3.4 updates per day. I am not sure if this trend will continue in the following weeks but with the current pace of logging in at Twitter every time I open Mozilla Firefox, Twitter might be part of my routine for years to come.

Will it be or will I lose interest on it after some months? I do not see it happening right now especially given the fact that I get most of the NBA rumors (this year’s free agency period is awesome except that Cleveland – my team – lost in getting the legitimate free agents)

If I continue tweeting, it will be one of the things that would change my way of life. Over the past years, there is a lot of stuff that influenced or changed my routine. Other than the obvious ones (i.e., cellphone, Internet), I will be citing some of the memorable ones.

Guitar. Ever since I started to learn how to play the acoustic guitar during sophomore year in high school, my perception on music had vastly changed. I started to appreciate the beauty of playing musical instruments. I switched from listening to pop and R&B to rock. Rap metal helped in the transition but it would have been more difficult for me to get fond of the solo leads in rock songs if I did not pick up a guitar. Right now, I get ecstatic upon hearing smooth lead guitar solos. Playing the guitar was my hobby every week from high school to my first year at work. The level of satisfaction grew further after I received my first electric guitar (an Ibanez RG) as a birthday present last 2004. I have to thank Patsoy for enticing me to have an electric guitar because I was astounded upon hearing the various effects it could produce. I did not improve in playing solos but my guitar experience was sufficient for me to play melodies with my friends when we hang out. You can ask Ferdie about this especially after he sang to the tune of ‘Swing, Swing’ on a Subic outing before.

It has been quite a while since I last played my guitar but I might get my guitar pick one of these days and strum the chords of 1979.

iPod Touch. Three years ago, getting an iPod was the least of my priorities. It was expensive and… that’s basically it. When I finally had some savings and iPod Touch 2G was at stores early this year, I took the opportunity to get one. Maybe, it was because I appreciated how valuable it is during boring times when I borrowed Caress’ iPod Touch last year. Ever since I had this MP3 player, I get to play cool games like Tap Tap Revenge, iShoot, Bookworm and Monopoly during idle times. It easily wakes up my bored senses. iTouch also changed my driving habits. If you live in Antipolo and endure almost five hours of grueling traffic daily, you will need your favorite music every now and then. I seldom get to hear that on radio (except when DJ Monica is choosing the songs). I get more relaxed when driving these days because of my iPod Touch. I do not get to listen to the radio though but the overall satisfaction that this Macintosh device gives me outweighs radio listening easily. I also get to watch past How I Met Your Mother episodes from time to time as well. Thanks to Paul for buying this device for me in US.

Lost. Watching TV shows was not my habit during college. I sit hours in front of my PC chatting with my friends or playing card games. Everything changed after I watched the first episode of Lost in Studio 23. I was amazed by the picture quality of it. It was just weeks since I went to the islands of Palawan so watching the beach scenes in the show bring nostalgia to me. Kate and Shannon were uber-ly hot as well. I soon followed the show until I decided to buy the whole series in DVD. The first season of Lost has got to be one of the best seasons in TV show history. Because of Lost, I got enticed on following various TV shows: Prison Break, Heroes, Grey’s Anatomy, How I Met Your Mother, Scrubs, That 70’s Show and House to name a few.

The Catcher In The Rye. Way before TV shows buzzkilled my interest to read lengthy novels, I was a huge bookworm. My literature craving started when I read the emotional, angsty JD Salinger classic during high school. This novel was the perfect fit for me then. I was driven mostly by teenage angst that is why I could easily relate to the Holden Caulfield’s feelings. The book was written in first person perspective, thus making it more emotional. I dwelled in escapist angst for nights thus prompting me to read several awesome novels like The Solitaire Mystery, A Song of Ice and Fire series, Harry Potter, The Alchemist, To Kill A Mockingbird, and Dekada ’70.

I may spend days and weeks when reading these novels but I will never trade the time I spent on it to other practical stuff because novels vastly changed my perspectives in life and it enhanced my repertoire.

Car. Ask me five years ago if I think I will drive a car and my answer would probably be an anxious NO. My father’s warnings on the potential dangers of driving may have an effect on it but I loved the luxury of being a passenger then. I have the freedom to sleep when I am stressed out and I do not have to worry on causing wrecks. This changed a lot when I started to work. Makati - no matter how traffic-infested that godforsaken city is – is a nightmare to a commuter. I get to line up for minutes waiting for an FX to arrive and getting my butt cramped in a corner with fat people for hours is not convenient at all. If I drive for two to three hours during peak hours, commuting takes longer than three and a half hours. But the best thing about driving is, I get to leave my gimiks whenever I want to. I do not care if it is quite late already because I know I am secured in my vehicle. I can enjoy the airconditioned breeze for all I want as compared to the hot and dusty atmosphere inside (or outside) the jeepney. Driving my car maybe quite expensive but for all the comfort and security it brings, it is a good premium to pay. I even prefer to drive my car when I am sick rather than sleep in an FX.

Let’s ask the ultimate question: does having a car mean you can get a girlfriend? Uhmm… no! That is actually a stupid question. Having a car does not get you a significant other but it gives you an advantage when you are courting. If you got a relationship because of a tangible asset rather than your whole personal package then that girl is not for real and you should consider dumping her. OK, your tangible assets can be one of the reasons but it should not be the only reason why you won her heart.

Limewire and Torrents. No need to expound on this one.

Multiply. Blog # 100 is near. ‘Nuff said!

Yahoo! Messenger. This has got to top my list. Way back in high school, my cellular phone had vastly changed my life. I normally chat briefly with my friends via text messages so when I learned of YM, I fully utilized it. Day in and day out, you can see me online. Chatting with my friends takes out the boredom out of me. I can still remember my internship days before when I was prohibited to use the Internet. Man, it was terrible. My morale was at a low because I felt like I was alone in an island. I did not feel homesick when I was in America last year because of Yahoo! Messenger. Reaching out has never been this easy.

Looking at this list, it looks like it is a long way to go before I consider Twitter as a life changer.

Tweet

Note: This is an old post from my Multiply site last June 26, 2009.

First of all, you can follow me at Twitter: http://twitter.com/jeffdelprado

Wow! A very short introductory paragraph for me (er, that does not count as a paragraph). I guess this is the effect of tweeting the past few days. You read it right: I am now on Twitter. I normally do not like joining community groups and the like because I find few reasons or purposes in being part of which. I do not have a Friendster account because I did not like the idea of collecting friends and wasting precious time doing nothing but looking at other’s Friendster websites. Actually, Friendster has more functionalities now than it had when I decided to delete my account but I am not convinced to join it now that I have Multiply. As for Multiply, my friend, way back in college, had to enumerate the reasons as to why I should be part of it. For starters, you could upload pictures in it. You can upload music and videos as well. But I guess, the most significant aspect in my Multiply would be the journal part. You may ask me: why not settle for Blogspot? I want to use minimal sites as much as possible. I actually considered it because of various limitations in Multiply but I am too lazy to migrate to Blogspot.

Up to now, my friends are still urging me to join Facebook. It is actually a good fit for me because of the games it introduces but I have lots of games right now that I might not find time for that in Facebook.

But still, I joined Twitter. At first, I thought that I made the silliest decision with regard to community groups. I tried using Twitter and following other people. I was enticed to join this because ESPN columnists have been over-plugging the website. They use it a lot for rumors in the league and that was the primary reason why I joined Twitter. I added celebrities as quick as possible. I have few friends in there (and no friend of mine actually enticed me to join).

Celebrities tweet a lot everyday. Witty comments are the best. Because of that, I felt the urge to tweet as well. After all, I change my status message in Yahoo Messenger a lot. I have a habit of checking for the latest updates. I also love to write things about myself such as blogging but I cannot blog everyday. That was when I realized that Twitter was a perfect website for me. If I am lazy to write journal entries, I can just insert witty comments in Twitter. Short and effective. No need for the reader to endure reading my lengthy journal entries. The only problem is that, it is limited to 140 characters. Bloody hell! I do not want to taint my tweets with text message language. I have few Twitter followers at the moment but I do not care the same way if few people read my journal entries. I tweet or blog because I want to do it. It is my eros - my passion - so it does not matter if someone cares or not.

Since Twitter is limited to 140 characters, I will write on things that need more than 140 characters but I will try to make it as brief as possible for the rest of this journal entry.

Lakers win their 15th NBA Championship

Congratulations! It was a well-deserved victory for the Los Angeles Lakers. They showed that they are not just an entertaining team but a team with a championship poise and execution as well. It showed in Game 5 where they demolished the Magic. They did not want to prolong it and give the Magic a chance. I do not need to devote a whole journal entry for this even if I rooted for the Lakers to win because they are not my team after all. It’s still LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers.

Do Not Drink A Beer That Has ‘Super Strong’ Printed On It If You Do Not Plan To Get Drunk

Title says it all. At the eve of my birthday, I was very glad at the sight of an imported beer in our dining room. I get to listen to the BS Report, munch a popcorn and drink a Germany-made beer. Cody’s has 8.9% alcohol volume. If you do not have an idea of how much that is, San Mig Light just has 5%. The beer can is twice the size of our beer cans and it was like sipping a bit of rubbing alcohol when I was drinking it. The beer is full yellow as well and the fact that it was not cold made the feeling worse after a few minutes of drinking it. It was worth it though because I seldom get tipsy these days.

Burn Bugsy Burn

Hard drinks again. Thanks to Jeb for treating me shots of Burn Bugsy Burn. Ever since I tried the Smoker’s Delight in Palawan, I have been craving for a fiery and smoky drink. Burn Bugsy Burn is the closest to it. Last week, I celebrated my advanced birthday party with my college friends in Uncle Moe’s along Julia Vargas Street and it was nice to talk to them about the old times. I am actually considering on writing a journal entry about college life especially given the fact that my college friends always talk about notable moments these days (i.e., “Help me Seniors!”). This would take a lot of reminiscing so I have to gain proper momentum and time for it.

Sue Bird on my Avatar

Last year, I put Becky Hammon in my YM Avatar. This year, it is time for me to put my other WNBA crush on my avatar – Sue Bird of the Seattle Storm. As most people do not give a damn about WNBA, I will introduce Sue to you. Sue Bird is the starting point guard of the Seattle Storm and was part of the USA Olympic Team last year. If I am not mistaken, she is the best passer these days. She just entered the pros in 2002 so I think she has a legitimate chance of getting the record in assists. By the way, she was the first overall draft pick at that time. In my opinion, she has the prettiest face in WNBA. You will notice that both Becky and Sue are point guards. Well, it’s just understandable because I think the prettier players would normally come from the petite positions because the others would be ‘muscular’ already.

Top Five NBA Franchises This Decade

After the Los Angeles Lakers bag the crown, the NBA 200X time window has been sealed. It is time to give the rankings this decade. Some may argue on this top five because teams like Miami and Boston were bottom dwellers in some parts of this decade but a championship is a championship. I would rather have a championship crown than decades of being a bridesmaid. Nobody remembers second placers.

1. Los Angeles Lakers (4 titles: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009)
2. San Antonio Spurs (3 titles: 2003, 2005, 2007)
3. Detroit Pistons (1 title: 2004)
4. Boston Celtics (1 title: 2008)
5. Miami Heat (1 title: 2006)

NBA Draft

The climax of my birthday happened at the early parts of it. I got to watch the NBA Draft 2009 in TV by 7:30 AM. This year’s draft class is considerably weak but it is still fun to speculate on how the draft went. I always take time looking for information on rookies during the entire NBA year so I have an idea of who should go first. Blake Griffin was a no-brainer. What struck me was the fact that Ricky Rubio fell to the fifth pick. Memphis passing up on it was understandable. But Oklahoma and Sacramento?! The trade that the T’Wolves had finally made sense. Nice steal. But they could have had another good pick at sixth if they chose Stephen Curry. Who did they choose? Another point guard. He is also a small player so I do not really know what is going in their minds then. There were some surprises well: Hansborough got picked before Lawson. DeJuan Blair fell to 37th. I was flustered when the Cavs had the chance to steal him at the 30th. But at least, Cleveland picked former UNC Tar Heel Danny Green.

That’s all for now. I may blog in the next few weeks as the UAAP season is about to begin. Have a nice weekend, everyone.

Kaboom!

Note: This is an old post from my Multiply site last June 14, 2009.

June 12, 2009. Philippine Independence Day. National Holiday. No work. Awesome. If I wake up early on a non-work day, it just means that something great is on TV. Yes sir, just like the sports weekend I had last May, I was treated to another great day for sports last Friday. The NBA Finals is at its pivotal point in Game 4 in Orlando, Florida. The Los Angeles Lakers are leading 2-1 and the Orlando Magic is trying to tie the series to give their team a chance for the golden glory. As for me, I had a feeling the series was over when LA took the commanding 2-0 lead because Orlando, even if it weaved powerful magic (pun intended) in this year’s postseason, will either have to beat the powerhouse Laker squad in all of the home games in Orlando or they have to beat them twice in the most crucial games at Tinseltown. But for the Magic to get close to that goal, they have to win this important Game 4. By 9 AM, I turned on my TV to watch history unfold in my very eyes.

The Battle of the Disney Cities was ongoing and it was a tight first quarter. I was still too lazy to eat my breakfast in between timeouts so I tuned in to other channels. Up one channel was ESPN and Major League Baseball’s most colorful rivalry was in hand. The New York Yankees are battling the Boston Red Sox in Fenway Park where they will end their three-game swing in which the Red Sox have handed the Yanks their asses in all seven games in the season. It was at the top 7th inning and the score was tied at 1-1. Yankees were making their run as their top batting order was at hand. The current most hated Yankee, Alex Rodriguez, was at the plate and there was a runner in scoring position. A-Rod hammered a double, thus breaking the tie and putting the Yankees up 3-1. It gave me a sick feeling that I maybe the jinx to the Red Sox remarkable wins against their archrivals. Rain sputtered in Fenway and the innings past by with the score at 3-1.

I got to witness highly noted Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia play and he was remarkable in his first inning. Uh oh! It looks like this has a Yankee victory written all over it. Is it time for me to press the channel down button? For some strange reasons, I got caught up with this regular season baseball game more than the crucial Finals basketball game. The bottom eighth inning came and suddenly the Red Sox were making a run. They had one guy at base. Make that two. One runner in scoring position. No outs yet. JD Drew singled and Green scores. 3-2. The crowd erupted and I am suddenly reawakened. Girardi replaces his star pitcher who eventually gives away a single which loads up all the bases. No outs and bases loaded. This is awesome. Crowd is already going nuts and I am standing. Jason Bay comes into the plate and delivers the game-tying single. Go Red Sox! It suddenly felt like a postseason game to me. People normally say that baseball is boring but when the sport hits moments like this, it reaches the climax similar as end-game winning shots in basketball. The scoring changes are not quick but you know the moment when it is coming and it is long that is why it is more suspenseful.

No outs. Bases loaded. Tied game. Crowd going bonkers. Mike Lowell suddenly hits a pop-up. Oh no! All he needs to do is make it deep so that it would deliver the tiebreaker. It seemed minutes when the ball was up in the sky. It reached the fielder’s glove. He throws it towards home and unexpectedly, JD Drew scores. BAM! Red Sox lead 4-3. The pop-up was deep enough. The comeback was complete and I was celebrating in early morning. The Yankees were able to defend in the next at-bats to prevent further bleeding but the damage has been done. Even the strong top batting order that featured Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon, and Mark Teixeira was not sufficient for the Yankees to tie the game. Boston Red Sox completes the sweep and they are now 8-0 against their archrivals.

Awes – wait for it – some baseball game. Now it’s NBA time. The Orlando Magic are proving that they are for real by mounting a large halftime lead against the Lakers but the latter proved that they want this championship more by coming back from the big deficit. The fourth quarter featured a tight contest but in the final minutes, this looked like an Orlando victory. NBA officiating was horribly tilted toward the Magic but I was too indifferent on officiating these days (it’s always awful so why bother? Suck the terrible calls up and play on). I was rooting nicely for the Lakers these times because I wanted Kobe to get his fourth ring. Hell, it’s about time. But the Orlando Magic seemed to show why they were for real. They were leading by five with less than a minute remaining. Oh well, at least the Red Sox won earlier…

It ain’t over until the buzzer sounds and a team is leading by at least a point. That was one lesson I learned the happy way early this year (). The Lakers were doing a last push. They scored a two-point bucket and the lead was down to three. Orlando Magic possession with just thirty-something seconds remaining. Should the Lakers foul? I hope they don’t. They defended and my TV channel changed. Stupid remote control! Not at this part of the game! I switched back to BTV and I found out that Dwight Howard was fouled with just eleven seconds remaining. Man Child has been shooting remarkably in crunchtime this postseason so I had less hopes of seeing a Laker victory more than over. Dwight attempts the first. He missed. OK, he is Mr. One-of-Two anyway. He might make the second and a four-point lead with eleven seconds is still difficult to reach. Dwight shoots. Dwight misses. Laker ball. Timeout. Wow! I said to myself, “if the Lakers win this game, Dwight will have a nightmare as these missed freethrows come to haunt him.” It was one of those weird feelings that I get whenever I watch a tight game and I observe a major flaw from a team which had every reason to win. When the Cavs lost a game against the Magic early this postseason, they missed freethrows and I was having these thoughts while the game was still ongoing. Usually, this weird feeling comes true. The team which fumbled a supposed-to-be won game ends up losing.

The Lakers have a long way to go. They still need to score a three. And, they are inbounding from the backcourt? Bloody hell! Why?! It will give the Magic a lot of chance to corner the ball handler and give the inevitable foul. This play is already obvious that I was still pessimistic of the Lakers winning this game. Further on, Kobe was choking. But on some strange way the events unfolded, the Magic forgot to foul and looked like headless chickens running. Maybe they choked too much that it removed their heads in the process. Derek Fisher pulled up for a three because Jameer Nelson gave him the sufficient opening. SWISH! Tied ball game. I jumped up from my sofa because I could not believe what just happened. Didn’t Jameer Nelson watch the Lakers’ playoff battle with the Spurs some years ago? Derek Fisher is a clutch shooter. He is a has-been but he has been fantastic so far in this series. Four seconds remaining and the Orlando Magic has another chance of redeeming themselves. That never came and we were soon headed to overtime.

Overtime featured a classic clash of the titans. Both teams traded buckets and it became a down-to-the-wire battle. This time, the Lakers had more opportunity. They led by five. However, it was trimmed down to zero thanks to the biased officiating that made the refs whistle an uncertain Fisher foul after Dwight Howard obviously pushed Pau Gasol to the ground. Good job to the Lakers for maintaining their composure. If there is one reason why the Lakers will win this championship, that would be because they showed maturity and composure. Suck it up and play on. They had the ball in Black Mamba’s hands and he was soon doubled. I initially thought that there should be a foul on that double because Jameer Nelson initiated contact by being in the wrong position but Kobe swung the elbow so I just let it be. The Orlando Magic have been getting majority of the calls and the elbow was unintentional anyway. After the elbow, Kobe passed it to a wide-open Derek Fisher. KABOOM! Yes, my friends. The very same has-been who made the cold-blooded three awhile ago. This time, it was the dagger that killed the Orlando Magic. LA by three. Derek Fisher must have (or should have) been saying this, “Who’s the has-been now, biatch?!” I am not a Laker fan, although they are always my fallback team, but I was celebrating after Fish hit that three. The once rejoicing fans of Orlando fell dead silent and they were in Oh-no-Not-again-we-are-choking-in-another-Finals-game mode. Houston, the team that beat Orlando in the 90s, was proclaimed Clutch City then. Can we call Orlando Choke City?

Wait, it’s not yet over. Orlando has one last chance to tie the game. After a few seconds from the inbounds pass, Orlando made that one last chance to tie a last chance to choke. The play ended with a wide-open Pau Gasol dunking the ball and Mickael Pietrus slamming both of his fists at Pau’s back. Flagrant foul! I respected Pietrus as a player but that was a lame, unsportsmanlike act. He should be penalized for this but the NBA did not give any penalty for it. Minus 1000 Awesome Points to David Stern and Stu Jackson. I know that a suspension will sink the ratings but fine the guy at the very least. The Lakers won another tight game and the Magic completed its choke. 3-1 and I now give the Lakers a 99% chance of winning the NBA crown.

In just one morning, I watched two teams crumble and two teams prevailed under pressure. Remarkable.

The only way for Orlando to redeem themselves of the status of Choke City is to win the championship this year. It is a feat that no team has yet accomplished. I do not think they will do it against this strong and mature Laker squad. But if Orlando redeems, Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson will take massive heat and LaLa Land will be called the Choke City after losing their last three NBA Finals trips.

I hope it does not happen.

I am rooting for the Lakers because I want Kobe to get his fourth championship ring. After all, I used to be a Kobe fan way back in his formative years in the NBA. Back when he was that eighteen year old rookie who won the slam dunk competition. I already have a fake Kobe jersey then and I cheered whenever he scores. I can still remember that as a one-time event because he was still a non-factor when I watched the first year he was in the NBA Playoffs. Of all the stars that I rooted for in their rookie year, Kobe is the most successful (LeBron will soon be but he is still a close second as of now). Kobe eventually won championship rings, was involved in a rape scandal, became cocky and hated Shaq. I lost interest in cheering for him and just considered him as ‘another star.’ I am not a die-hard Laker fan anyway. From my favorite number – 8 – Kobe changed his number to 24.He became the most polarizing basketball player of the present time. This is why Kobe Bryant is the most popular these days. I may not be hardly rooting for him as I did before but he has gained lots of interest from across the world because of his controversies.

Even his face in the NBA Finals created a buzz. He was even called Grumpy of the Seven Dwarves by his daughter. He is so focused on the goal that I had all the reason in the world to believe that they are going to win it this year. This is how Jordan did it. He was not the smiling leader who throws jokes to make his teammates smirk every now and then. He is a leader who leads by example. Kobe, like Jordan, demands a lot from his teammates because he wants them to excel. Focused, they both go for the kill. Kobe has shown that he is a ball hog at times but Jordan was as well. Kobe choked but he has finally learned to do the right thing when he dished out the ball to his open teammate – just like Jordan did. You maybe a single dominating force but basketball is a team sport so you have to trust your teammates. And that, is why Kobe and his Lakers will win this year. They could have done it last year but he and his teammates were immature. I think they have learned it this year as they have shown their poise and composure in Games 2 and 4. Kobe ain’t smiling either. He is so dead-set on the goal and I highly believe that they will get it. They have learned. Winners are losers who learned their lessons. The Los Angeles Lakers are not the underdogs but I am not rooting for the underdogs this time because I want the team that deserves it win it this year. After all, rooting for the underdog has become too cliché already.

No offense to the Orlando Magic. I think they are for real and they deserve to be in the Finals. They gave the Lakers a hell of a fight but the Magic just failed to close it out.

Speaking of clichés, I was able to watch the much hyped Drag Me To Hell movie last June 12 as well. I am a fan of horror movies that my officemates got OP when I discussed the horror movies that I loved. However, Drag Me To Hell is an overly cliché horror movie (more on that later). Do not get me wrong, the movie was entertainingly good. It gave the fright that most horror movies fail to provide. I loved the start of it. The mood was scary. It had legitimate horrific characters. That demonic being was creepy and its early manifestations were well-executed. Even the old woman had some shock factor. The movie showed a lot of promise early on. I was thinking if I should eat my popcorn or I should hold on my seats because there were numerous shocking scenes reinforced by great surround sounds. It was done non-stop that made the experience a lot of times better. A lot of girls were shrieking for a lot of parts and I was shocked (it did not elicit a scream but I was on the verge) at least once. The directors know how to scare their audience: white handkerchief, old car, rustling of leaves. It was awesome. Drag Me To Hell was money well spent on the big screen. Surely, one of the top ten, if not top five, of the most frightening horror movies of all-time

However…

Drag Me To Hell has a big difference from the scariest horror flick I’ve ever watched – The Grudge. This was primarily because of the former’s overuse of clichés. From Christine eating the ice cream during her depressed moment to the black cat. Even the title was an overused title background. According to my brother, the movie lost its credibility in the anvil scene because it seemed cartoonish after the eyes of the old woman’s ghost popped out. The movie burned all the promises it showed early on when it started hitting the climax parts. The possessed guy looked like a puppet in strings in a stage play. The graveyard scene paled in comparison to the previous scenes. The ender has to be the worst scary scene of the movie as it was too predictable and seemed rushed. The movie also lost its charm to me when there were funny dialogue moments midway.

I do not normally bash clichés because for one, these are clichés because they are effective. But the clichés in Drag Me To Hell seemed to kill the moment for me. Instead of getting scared, I could not help but laugh at some parts in the movie. It was like Scary Movie turned really scary. Aside from the ending being anti-climactic, the movie did not have the scary factor that legendary horror movies, like The Exorcist, bring to the table – Drag Me To Hell was not disturbing. I am about to bash the crappy storyline but horror movies are not meant to have great storylines either.

All in all, I will give the movie an 8/10. It had more scary moments than most movies but it failed badly in some parts. I give a high rating because most horror flicks suck anyway.

Either way, June 12 was an excellent day for entertainment for me. It is currently midnight as of now so the Game 5 of the NBA Finals is on its way later. I want the Lakers to win but I think the Magic will prevail. Lakers in six.

Heartbreak

Note: This is an old post from my Multiply site last June 1, 2009.

Last Saturday, I attended Sari’s despedida in her house along with my P&G colleagues. It was an eventful night as we got to have our get-together and we gave our farewell messages to Sari. It was actually the very first time that we get to say our farewell message (of all the despedidas I have attended) because we usually write it on some stuff that we gave to the departing member of our team. The night ended. I get to witness someone leaving our team again. It is very sad because I consider her as a friend and I lost one of my key resources in my Problem Management Team. She was also my backup in that team so it was extra difficult for me. But as always, we have to move on after such moments. As to how my team would cope, I do not know. It was a tough moment.

The last month was filled with tough moments for me. For most of it, I had to struggle with my lingering flu. I used to catch flu easily when I was young but this has got to be the longest because it stretched for months. I also could not take sick leaves because I had significantly more work demands. Stress really crept up as I had to work from 8 AM to 7 PM for most days (except on Mondays). My skin was terribly sun burnt last month and I had to annoyingly peel it off. I prefer my natural skin color that is why I hate getting my skin burnt. String of bad luck. Then, I lost a valuable team player. Tough times, indeed.

I heaved a sigh of relief yesterday as the month is about to end. Maybe, my luck will change come June. I woke up at the last day of May and I opened my Internet browser. I remembered that there was a Cleveland-Orlando playoff game that day and I slept on it that was why I had to check the results. My heart was beating fast. I intentionally skipped the game because I thought that watching it or viewing it in the Internet as the action is ongoing was unlucky. The Cavs were having a tough series. You can add this to one of my irrational actions due to being a fan (http://jeffdelprado.multiply.com/journal/item/111/The_Fan) . The text of ESPN.com in my browser start to appear and the dreaded words begin to appear: “Magic Kingdom”

It’s over.

Without watching the game, the outcome still broke my heart. Along with the millions of Cleveland fans in the world, I had to endure this sad reality. The Dream Season is over. Just like every year, I am experiencing this my-team-has-been-eliminated-in-the-playoffs-what-now? feeling again. But as compared to the past ones, this has got to hurt more than the usual. The Cavaliers have a legitimate chance of winning the championship as they have the strongest team they had so far. LeBron James is playing the best basketball of his life and the Cavs had the best regular season record. Ever since LeBron’s Cavs reached the playoffs some years ago, they have always come up with ways of getting better than their regular season played out. They have beaten the odds by beating an experienced powerhouse Piston team. They put the Celtics to the limit last year and were considered the best team which faced the latter. This year, they had a strong team, but the LeBron magic that usually overwhelms our expectations did not occur. What happened was, the Magic made The King’s Magic fizzle.

What Went Worng?

Ever since the Utah Jazz stopped being relevant in the early 2000’s, I stopped following the NBA regular season. Watching the Playoffs was still an annual event for me and I still rooted for some teams. Blame the rigors of college life then. When I started playing Fantasy NBA, I was reading NBA stuff during the regular season again. However, I was more concerned on the player statistics that I won’t be able to answer your question of who is currently leading the NBA in wins and losses. Everything changed this year. Perhaps, it was because my fantasy team plummeted. The bigger reason, though, was the Cleveland Cavaliers hot start. For the first time in years, LeBron’s team has a legitimate chance of being the best team. They were steamrolling teams and their only loss at home came from the Los Angeles Lakers. Cleveland became the favorites of columnists. I felt glad seeing them with the highest percentage in Hollinger’s well-calculated simulations of winning the championship. The Cavaliers had the right combination for a winning team. They have the league’s best player. He was complemented perfectly by a strong supporting cast. They had a strong defensive mentality. They had the best scoring differential. Quicken Loans Arena was also the home of the most invincible home squad of the year. They employ a slow halfcourt game which is best suited in the playoffs. Name everything that champion teams have, they usually possess it. What went wrong?

After sweeping their early round opponents, it seemed inevitable that Cleveland will reach the NBA Finals. Boston Celtics were terribly hurting and the Orlando Magic were very inexperienced in playoff action. Game 1 against Orlando seemed to be in bag as Cleveland underwent their normal routine of pounding their opponents early on. I was actually about to leave the house because I was expecting them to bench LeBron in the fourth due to the large lead. By the time I was ready to leave, the lead was just one point. How the hell did that happen?! Cleveland had a nightmare second half – something that was out of character for a strong defensive team. The game became a nailbiter and it ended with Orlando winning it by one due to Rashard Lewis game-winning three pointer. That set the tone of the rest of the series. No matter how large Cleveland’s lead was, Orlando will catch up and they battle it up to the end. Suddenly, the inexperienced Magic became an unfazed foe.

Cleveland’s defense suddenly plummeted as the Orlando Magic started to shoot incredibly above the 45% FG percentage. Rashard Lewis was a matchup nightmare for the Cavs and the Magic shooters were suddenly shooting the lights out. After two miserable playoff rounds, the Orlando Magic were peaking at the right time. LeBron’s supporting cast suddenly went ‘poof’ as well. They missed wide-open shots and the strong Cleveland offense that pundits praised was inexistent. The only good thing that happened for Cleveland was LeBron James was playing remarkably. But as he acknowledges the game, this is a team sport. Thus, LBJ’s forty-point efforts were wasted.

I was confident of Cleveland going to the playoffs. For years, you can trust them that even if they do not have the sufficient firepower, they can give their opponents a hell of a time. Columnists even remarked them to be 100% better in the postseason. This time, it was the Orlando Magic who are doing it. By the time the buzzer ended in Game 6, the optimistic Cavalier nation was in the same spot they were years ago.

Failing to achieve your dream sucks. I remembered jokingly laughing at Jomic when he told me that they were dreaming to have a rock band before. I regretted it because I somehow buzzkilled his dream. “You don’t laugh at someone’s dreams.” Yes, no matter how unrealistic they are. Encouragement is the key to dreams. This is because most of which are hard to attain. Most of the time, you end up failing. That in itself is discouraging enough and this loss was a testament to that. Shame on you if you kill someone’s dreams. Therefore, Orlando Magic, shame on you for killing the dreams of the Cavalier Nation. Just kidding, of course. They do have their dreams too, you know… (in Pacquiao delivery)

Nevertheless, I am still a dreamer.

Losing Sucks

I hate losing. If there is one unfortunate thing when you follow sports, that has got to be losing. It swings my mood for a day or even a week because it is definitely a bitter pill to swallow. I admit that I cried at times when I was a child when I watched my favorite team lose an important game. You get passionate for two hours and it ends up with you losing. I have considerably experienced it numerous times. My teams were not the powerhouse dynasties in the 90’s and 2000’s. I had to endure Purefoods losing to San Miguel for most of their All-Filipino Cup battles. I felt helpless when Michael Jordan torched the Utah Jazz in the Finals. The first baseball game I watched featured my Atlanta Braves losing the World Series to the Toronto Blue Jays. After the Braves won the title in the following year, I had to watch them get eliminated every year in the playoffs. For most of the years, I had to put a YM status message “Thanks to the Ateneo Blue Eagles for a memorable season” because they usually come up short. As much euphoric I can get when I watch my teams succeed, I can also get devastated when I see them fall from grace.

This time, here we go again. Another failure. It is so normal that the pain of losing is not that bad as it used to. Unless you are a fair-weathered or a bandwagon-hopping fan, you will lose more than you win. The winningest team in sports history, the New York Yankees, had their last World Series title in 2000. The Boston Celtics lead the NBA in championship crowns but they had to endure 22 years of failure before they won it again last year. Right now, I am in a heartbreak because it is painful to see your team finally having the shot to succeed but still come up short in the end.

Through the years, I have learned to cope with defeat. Of course, I never shed a tear when my team loses after I have outgrown that stage. There were times before when I always hated the opposing team (Jordan’s Bulls were the only exception to this). It still happens but I seldom give harsh, irrational comments on the opposing team after they defeat my team. There will always be biases but I try my best to give a fair account as to how the game was played. Before, losing was just plain sorrowful to me. In the present time, I try to make it to a point to congratulate the winner. I never fail to applaud the opposing team ever since I started watching UAAP games live in Araneta or the Blue Eagle Gym no matter how awful sportsmen they were. Things change.

But, I still hate losing.

My Playoff Bracket

Cleveland losing seals the lid on the last round of my playoff bracket (http://jeffdelprado.multiply.com/journal/item/106/NBA_Playoffs_2K9). Here are my final scores per round:

1st Round: 52/80 = 65%
2nd Round: 52/80 = 65%
Conference Finals: 32/80 = 40%
Finals: 0/80 = 0%

Total Score: 136/320 = 42.5%

Orlando Magic really screwed my bracket because they beat both Boston and Cleveland. I might have hit the mark by predicting Denver will go far but since Cleveland was beaten prior to the Finals, I was already deprived of 37.5% of the total score. This is not a good final score but having it over 50% is not easy especially if your predicted champion goes down before the Finals.

Who am I rooting for in the NBA Finals? As usual, the Los Angeles Lakers. I did not root for them in their playoff matches because I wanted Cleveland to have an easier time in getting the title but since Cleveland is out of the picture, I will be rooting for the Black Mamba again. I want them to defeat the Orlando a.k.a. “Dream Killers” Magic.

I am Mr. Bright Side

As usual, here is the stage when we have to accept defeat. Winning it this year was not meant to be. God has bigger plans in store for us and hopefully we learn from this loss. Enough of the clichés.

Last May was a tough month. But, life is not built for me to just look at the bad side of things. This is part of the reasons why I avoid emo music like the plague nowadays. Life is not built for me to just rant on the bad things. This is because there are so many things I have to be thankful for.

As much as it was tough, I think last month was still better than the normal. I got to have two brief summer swimming outings in Mt. Pinatubo and Club Manila East. It was great bonding time with my peers and I get to eat at Mr. Kabab each time. I get to blog more often and I am working more efficiently again. This is a good sign that my once-lost passion is back. Fewer wasted times and I am more self-fulfilled. Our HD TV and sound system were also set up in our house so all my Xbox 360 games and movies/episodes are remarkably better than before. I was treated with the best season enders of shows ever as I got to watch the best Lost, Grey’s Anatomy and American Idol season finale episodes ever. The NBA Playoff games were also superb as we had close matches in the 2nd round and the conference finals. If you look at the brighter side of things, even Cleveland reached farther than they had the previous season. The most important thing was, I am very happy for most of the month. To be honest, it was harder for me to recall all the bad stuff I put in the introduction than enumerating this list of awesomeness. Good times, indeed.

No, not good times. Great times. Or, I can say these are awesome times.

Stay awesome.

One Second

Note: This is an old post from my Multiply site last May 24, 2009.

One second remaining. I was sitting in my sofa looking gloomy. I was in such a laid back mood an hour ago because the Cleveland Cavaliers were leading by as much as 23 points. Twenty three. The same number of their MVP – LeBron James. One second remaining. That was how much time Hedo Turkoglu left the Cavs with after he hit his cold-blooded clutch jumper. The Orlando Magic are leading by two and after one second, they could be on their way to a 2-0 lead which would make it highly improbable for Cleveland to climb from as the next games would be held in Florida. One second remaining. I was like the Cleveland fans shown on TV – we looked doomed because we once thought that this could be our season. But no, the Magic have diffused our hopes by wiping out the normal large leads the Cavaliers come up with at the Q where they are 39-2 in the regular season. I was so confident on the Cavs whenever I watch them at TV because they will just blow out their opponents easily. This time, it felt like they were so vulnerable. One second remaining. And like the Cleveland fans, I am on a “here we go again” mode. I never had a team which won the NBA Finals ever since I started watching on summer of 1994. My Utah Jazz fell from Jordan’s Bulls. They were always a contender but they always came up short until Malone and Stockton decided to hang their jerseys. Cleveland never had a dominant team but it had a chance of going deep in the playoffs in the past four years. I can still say the same for Utah. Always the bridesmaid, never the bride. The closest team I rooted for to win the NBA championship was Dwyane Wade’s Miami Heat in 2006. Them and Shaq’s Lakers. After one second, it will be another heartbreak.

One second remaining. This had the likes of Game 1. We had a second remaining to come up with a shot and it was after a jump ball. I ended up in frustration then. It was the same storyline in Game 2. We blew a huge lead and the Magic, with all the momentum they got after beating the Celtics, were beating us in clutch. One second remaining. Mo Williams has the ball. He passes it to LeBron. Great! At least we will live or die by our greatest player. Number Twenty Three heaves a rainbow shot from beyond the arc – twenty three feet away from the rim. One second is slipping. 0.3. 0.2. 0.1. The red lights start to show up in the backboard. It seemed like the ball was up in air for ten seconds. I should be tense but Hedo’s previous shot took the life away from me. I was just watching. The arc was quite high and LeBron was well-defended so I am uncertain if it will go in. The ball starts to fall. It reaches the rim and it went through. Swish! KABOOM! I was suddenly jumping and screaming at the top of my lungs. It just took one second and my despair turned into jubilation. Like me, Quicken Loans arena exploded with cheers and the Cleveland Cavaliers were celebrating as if they won a championship. I was going nuts to a point that my mother was telling me to stop celebrating because I should be embarrassed of our neighbors. But I just could not care. This was a huge highlight. Instant classic game.

One second. That is how quick the tides could change in basketball. This is why I believe it is the most exciting sport ever. One second. That is how long it takes for a legend to be born. That time difference is how it takes to turn a depressed crowd into a rejuvenated one. One second. It is all clutch. This is where the great are separated from the good. There are 47 minutes and 59 seconds in the basketball game but people will just be talking of how great that second was.

This is why I love this game. I love close games. No matter how I felt despair prior to that shot, I love tight matches. When your team faces adversity, it will boil to how they perform in the final seconds of the game. These are the times when fans bring out their biggest uproar. These are the moments that people will be talking of for years – possibly to their sons and grandsons. I know that some fans hate close matches. This is because these have the tendency of putting you into a major heart break after the opposing team kills your team with a buzzer beating shot. It hurts but it delivers the most entertainment value. I would rather see my team lose in a closely-fought match than lose in large leads. It is because it shows that they had the heart to fight it to the end. They had their final stand.

Either way, I still love it the most if my team wins in a thriller. Why? Because it reflects composure and focus. It is succeeding over strong adversity. I want to be celebrating. I want to be in the winning end when people are talking of this clutch shot. Ever since I started watching basketball since 1993, I had my fair share of glorious moments and I will be discussing these.

Kenny Redfield hits the game-winning three of the Game 2 of the Purefoods-Alaska PBA Finals 2nd Conference of 1994. I will never forget this because this is the very first-ever basketball game that I have seen live. I was an avid Purefoods fan then and seeing their import, Kenny Redfield, shoot this clutch three in the dying seconds of the game to win the game for my team has got to be one of the special moments of my childhood. I never had the swagger that I have right now when I was watching then. I was just sitting all the time with my father and the only time I stood was in the final minute when everyone was standing. I did not shout or jump for joy then because I was too shy then. I surely rejoiced at home when Purefoods claimed the trophy after four games.

Ryan Buenafe makes a circus of a layup to beat UE in the elimination round of UAAP Season 71. Dude, this is one helluva game. We were about to get our 2nd loss in the eliminations as we were down by 8 points against UE. However, the Blue Eagles were able to pull through and put the game in overtime after triples by Chris Tiu and Ryan Buenafe. Chris, however, had to be sidelined due to cramps. We seemed beaten but Ryan Buenafe, our sterling rookie, came up with one clutch play which had me replaying for several times because I could not figure how he made it against two defenders. All I knew was that I was celebrating after I saw it went in.

Michael Jordan hits the buzzer-beating fadeaway overy Bryon Russel in the Game 1 of the Bulls-Jazz Finals in 1997. Ouch! I had a share of clutch shooting defeats (like Rashard’s last Game 1) but this was one of the most remarkable. His Airness showed how it was done by shooting this tough but perfectly released shot. I could not help but imitate it when I was playing basketball in our compound then.

Alvin Patrimonio hits a Hail Mary shot over Shell defenders in a PBA All-Filipino Cup elimination game. Over all the years, I watched Captain Lionheart score clutch shots to bail Purefoods. I must admit that this molded my growth in loving clutch moments because it shows if you have the heart to shoot when it matters the most. In this game, Shell should have had the upper hand but Jun Marzan choked by missing two free throws. As the seconds dwindle down, Alvin Patrimonio scores on a jumpshot despite of great defense. I clearly remember this one because this is the first time I heard the term ‘Hail Mary shot’. I love that term.

Dwyane Wade sinks clutch free throws to fully resurrect the Miami Heat after being down 0-2 to win the pivotal Game 5 of the 2006 NBA Finals. This has got to be one of the best Finals games I have ever watched even if Bill Simmons remarks this one as badly officiated. Dwyane Wade carried his team to beat the Mavs by making a jumper in the dying seconds of regulation and by shooting free throws despite Dallas leading prior to it. Wade was simply legendary in this series.

Chris Tiu hits the game-winning three in the second round of eliminations to sweep the La Salle Green Archers in 2007. There are numerous Chris Tiu game winners that I witnessed that he has become the most clutch UAAP player in memory but this one was extra special because I was watching at the green side of things. I was with my officemates and I had no choice but to keep quiet the rest of the game. When Chris hit the three, I could not help but rejoice while we were in the sea of green spectators. I even gave Rachel a high five then because we were the only Ateneans in the crowd.

LA Tenorio hits a step-back three that completed the comeback from Adamson’s big lead in the first round of UAAP Season 67. I can still remember that it was the feast day of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It was the first game after Larry Fonacier was officially out of the season due to his ACL injury. We were down by a large lead in the first half after the Falcons had a good offense. Slowly but surely, the Eagles clawed up in time for Tenorio to hit his patented step-back game-winning three that ended with the Ateneo community celebrating and showing Larry’s mother in tears. If there was a game that could have strengthened the Ateneo fans in our failure years from 2003 to 2007, this would be it. This was the start of the clutch winning moments that we experienced for the next years. This was the compelling moment where we believed that against all odds, win or lose, we are going to cheer for our team. It was a long way to victory but this is the part of the journey that we should cherish because it taught us to rise above adversity.

Game 4 of Chicago versus Boston this year. Their series will go down as the greatest first round series ever. I even stayed up until 3 AM to watch this game because it was so awesome. Game 6 was actually better than this but I was not able to watch it live. Nevertheless, Game 4 was awesome because even if I was not rooting for any team, I could not help but get amazed. No one just wants to get beaten. Just when the Bulls looked defeated, Ben Gordon makes a magnificent three point shot to tie the game. This did not have a buzzer beater moment but it was just awesome to be noted as one of the moments I remember in recent memory.

Larry Fonacier blocks MacMac Cardona in Game 1 of the UAAP Finals in Season 65. Who says offense only gets the glory in clutch moments? This awesome stop still remains as the best clutch UAAP moment for me because it changed the whole direction of the Finals. The 13-1 Archers are down for the first time and the Blue Eagles are suddenly one game away from reaching the goal. The other thing that was cemented in here was MacMac Cardona suddenly found his kryptonite. He was blocked twice and probably was demoralized on it. You know what? MacMac became successful only after Larry was injured.

John Stockton shoots a game-winning three to put the Utah Jazz to the NBA Finals for the first time in history. I thought the Jazz are about to lose this game to the team that usually beat them in the 90s – the Houston Rockets. The Jazz were down by ten in the fourth quarter and it seemed like we were heading for a Game 7. But John Stockton – the greatest pure point guard who ever lived – led the Jazz to come back. He finished it by scoring the game-winning rainbow shot that had me double high fiving Dad. Promised Land, here we come!

With a second remaining, Macky Escalona lobs a pass to a wide-open Doug Kramer for a tip-in win in the Game 1 of the UAAP Finals Season 69. It had the similar making of the Cleveland win. The opposing team was heavily celebrating after the clutch shot that left one second in the shot clock. The clutch shooter pretty much annoyed me with his arrogance. But as long as there is still time, miracles can happen. I was jumping up and down in Gen Ad when Doug Kramer made this shot. It was a beautifully set up play drawn by Norman Black. In one second, momentums change.

In one second, things can change. That is the beauty of sports. It makes you reflect and realize how valuable real life lessons are. Never give up as long as there is life. When I was watching Game 2, I seemed devastated after Turkoglu’s shot. I thought we were done for the season. The Magic have crushed whatever the Cavs have built up for their momentum in the first two rounds of the playoffs by decimating whatever large lead Cleveland could come up with. After one second, things changed. I was rejoicing. Yes, we may have barely won that game but it surely swung the momentum bigger than a five-point win because it was a game winner by LeBron James. The Cavs should be more prepared of the issues in the first games by now and more importantly, they could have gained the confidence that they lost. I once stated that Cleveland needs to lose a game or two prior to the Finals if they want to be the champions. This is because adversity brings the best in you. It makes you realize that you are not there yet and it would keep your head down so that you would try your best every step of the way. Like what Chris Tiu stated in his championship speech in Gesu last year, “Adversity makes champions.” The Lakers are having some. The Cavaliers should also get some. Will this be for the better or for the worse? I do not know but we will see in the following games.

I am just sure of one thing. We are witnesses.

Kara DioGuardi Steals the Show!

Note: This is an old post from my Multiply site last May 21, 2009.

I was having a nice Swedish massage awhile ago and it put me into a trance. This stuff really brings out the escapist on me. After all, it is a very busy month so far. As I was forgetting that I spent 600 bucks for an hour, I also remembered how notable this day was. The Cleveland Cavaliers are in their Game 1… oh forget about it, they lost. Anyway, it was fair and square. Other than which, American Idol had its season finale. That pretty much seals the lid of this season’s shows. Last month, we had the sucky Heroes ending. We were treated by awesome season finale episodes of Lost and Grey’s Anatomy last week. And I just finished watching the best season ever of How I Met Your Mother last night.

I must say that the season ender of American Idol is the most legend – wait for it – dary episode that they had the whole year. The lineup was simply amazing. Great artists performed and the fun parts were very entertaining.

The very first part that I was able to catch was David Cook singing. The green lighting added flavor to his performance and I was treated with the classic David Cook sound. I did not even know the song but I still appreciated it. Nice way to start my day. I already had hunches of who will win (thanks to Dial Idol) but I was still going to watch this thing.

The show continued with further performances from the finalists. I was able to watch my favorite – Alexis Grace – perform again and I must say that I really like her Memphis accent. Too bad, she was not able to grow in me that I cannot consider her as part of my personal Top Five this year. Jason Mraz was also able to perform and he really is amazing. I just wished he sang more songs. The Golden Idol Awards was pretty funny as well because we have bountiful of funny contestants this year. Nick Mitchell was his usual hilarious self although I wished he had more airtime because his overacting seemed insufficient.

The next award was on another highly controversial contestant – Katrina Darrell a.k.a. ‘Bikini Girl’. I must say she was pretty hot even if she had an obvious boob job. Not only did she get to show up in her sexy outfit, she also got to sing. Then, the American Idol backdrop went up and Bikini Girl’s microphone went mute. Oh my God! Kara DioGuardi is performing. We got the treat of watching Paula Abdul performing – not singing, she was lipsynching – this season but this time, we have a judge singing. I must say that Kara’s performance was not exceptional but she can sing. Suddenly, she just did what irked her a lot this season by stripping to show her bikini body. Now that is legend – wait for it – dary! I do not normally react like this in public writeups but I have to do it to replicate Kara’s guts awhile ago. I have to admit that I had this fantasy some time during this season that Kara shows up in a bikini in order to pawn Bikini Girl and what better way to do it in the season finale. Nice one, Kara. Shocker of the night. Show stealer. It made my day even if I knew that Kris Allen will be the new American Idol. Ladies and gentlemen, we just had the climax of the show.

Speaking of which, Kris Allen butchered Kara’s written song yesterday by singing off key. I stated last week that it is fine if Kris wins it all, but I could not help but get disappointed at him when he sucked in his last two performances. Fortunately, he redeemed it in a big way when he performed “Kiss A Girl”. I realized that Kris’ voice has grown on me despite of his vocal shortcomings. Now, he can win again.

Several performances later, Kris’ nemesis – Adam Lambert – gets to perform and he showed me why he is the best contestant this season. Forget the fact that he is gay. He rocked hard with Kiss. Holy Mackerel! KISS! First, Kara stripped then I get to see Kiss performing in my screen. This is simply awesome. Adam killed it as his voice is pretty much suited to Kiss songs. I wanna rock and roll all night! They wrecked a guitar. Awesome squared! I was enjoying every moment of it and this reminds me why I am considering listening to Adam Lambert’s first album. I just hope he does it with the band a la Queen because that will make him rock better.

Next up, Carlos Santana exhibited his guitar prowess. That guy is really one of the best ever. Skip some performances and we have the grand finalists singing “We Are The Champions” with Queen. I have been wishing hard that Adam performs a Queen song this season (audition does not count) and this is the perfect way to end things up. He does it with the band itself. We may have Kris Allen performing alongside but it’s alright because Kris’ voice complemented the song pretty well. Plus points to the American Idol again.

The show ends with the expected result. I stated last week that Kris has the better chance of winning (at 60% probability) because Adam was simply polarizing. I surely do not think that Kris is the better singer/performer/artist but kudos to him as well because he played his cards well in a popularity perspective. He peaked at the right time. He mixed mediocre with great performances. Whenever he performs great, it shone further. That’s how you play it, dude. He made America fall for him. He sucked at first but he did well at the end. That put me into a realization because that’s what happens when I fall for a girl. Ever since college (my significant crushes only), all the girls I thought were for real used to be someone I did not care about. Love at first sight my ass. Someone should grow into me before I consider it for real. OK, we are off topic. Let’s proceed on…

That ends the season but let us discuss more about AI. This is the first time I watched it completely and since I love lists, I will show my list of bests from what I have seen so far. OK, I just started watching last season but thanks to Youtube, I was able to watch some of the old performances. Does that make me credible? It doesn’t matter! I am making my list. It does not contain some remarkable contestants like Fantasia, Taylor and Ruben because I have not heard of them. It does not include Chris Daughtry as well because I will save listening to him for the future (so that there is still something to appreciate by then).

This Season

Best American Idol Performer: Adam Lambert. He is just extremely talented. Awesome song choices as well.

Top Five Performers:
Adam Lambert
Kris Allen
Allison Iraheta
Danny Gokey
Matt Giraud

Best Judge: Simon Cowell. I usually agree with his comments and I think it is just fine to be mean to contestants. America should be voting for talent not for being nice.

Ranking of Judges:
1. Simon Cowell
2. Kara DioGuardi. She is simply the hottest. She also makes smart comments. Most American fans hate her for ruining the established triumvirate but I think she is better than the other two. Although I hate it when she dances with Paula. Going nuts is just suited for Paula.
3. Paula Abdul. Even if she is incoherent for most of the time, Paula still adds flavor by being nice. She should stop making smart comments. She is more suited for the funny and uplifting part of Idol.
4. Randy Jackson. Yo! Yo! Man, check this out! You know for me, for you, you have been repeating lines over and over again. I can make a Randy Jackson drinking game, dawg! We all know that the contestants can really, really, really sing. Are you on dope?! What?!

Best Performances (in no particular order)
Alexis Grace – I Never Loved A Man
Adam Lambert – Mad World
Allison Iraheta – Alone
Kris Allen – Ain’t No Sunshine
Adam Lambert – Whole Lotta Love
Danny Gokey – Hero
Kris Allen – Heartless
Adam Lambert – Satisfaction
Allison Iraheta – Papa Was A Rolling Stone
Adam Lambert – Ring of Fire

What?! Ring of Fire is in there but there is no Tracks Of My Tears?! American Idol fans are going to attack me because of this. Dude, to each his own. That song wins chicks. I am not a chick. Go figure. Anyway, I was not so into it. There were several Adam Lambert songs that amazed me better than that popular song. Yes, I have Ring Of Fire in this list even if some people could have thrown their TV sets because of it. It is not everyone’s cup of tea and it is a bit extreme. I understand if you dislike it but I liked his execution of the song. Reminds me of Mars Volta.

Best Performance: Adam Lambert – Whole Lotta Love

This is a pretty close call between Mad World and Whole Lotta Love. But I am a Zeppelin fan and since Adam made a great rendition of it, I chose Whole Lotta Love.

Best Performance Night: Top Three

I got ecstatic in Rock Week because they performed Whole Lotta Love and Come Together but I think the Top Three matchup was the best. Adam’s rock songs were off the charts. Kris had me in LSS on Apologize and his Heartless rendition was the shiznit. It put me into a ‘throw Gokey away’ mode even if Danny had great performances as well.

Favorite Studio Version: Alexis Grace – Dirty Diana

Alexis’ pimp spot performance was not incredible. She was pitchy then but when I listened to the studio version of it, I had an instant eargasm. She was rocking in there. I overplayed it on my iPod Touch last March.

Overall Bests

Best Performances:
David Cook – Always Be My Baby
David Cook – Billie Jean
David Cook – Hello
David Archuleta – Imagine
Adam Lambert – Whole Lotta Love
Adam Lambert – Mad World
Carrie Underwood – Alone
Carrie Underwood – Angels Brought Me Here
Kelly Clarkson – Natural Woman
Kelly Clarkson – Without You
Kelly Clarkson – A Moment Like This
Alexis Grace – I Never Loved A Man
Brooke White – Let It Be
Katharine McPhee – Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Clay Aiken - Bridge Over Troubled Water
Clay Aiken – Unchained Melody
Clay Aiken – Somewhere Out There
Kellie Pickler – Bohemian Rhapsody
Kris Allen – Heartless

Hottest Contestant: Katharine McPhee
Runner-Up: Carrie Underwood

Funniest Contestant: Nick Mitchell

Best Underdog: Kris Allen

Most Artistic: David Cook

Favorite Theme: Beatles Theme Week in Season 7

Nicest Contestant: Brooke White

Best Instrument Player: David Cook. Gibson Les Paul guitar for the win!

Best Judge: Simon Cowell

Most Notable Simon Comment: “…it was a bit like ordering a hamburger and only getting the bun” (on Brooke White singing Hero)
Runner-Up: “It was like something coming out of karaoke hell into… a breath of fresh air!” (on David Cook singing Always Be My Baby)
Another Runner-Up: standing ovation after Adam Lambert sang Mad World

Worst Judge Comment: “Yo! Yo! Yo! Check this out! You know for me for you…” – Randy Jackson

Favorite Shocker: Check the title of this blog entry

Best Performance Ever: David Cook – Always Be My Baby

My reaction after watching this was “it’s over!" David Cook made a mediocre fun Mariah song into a haunting masterpiece. No wonder this song became #1 in FM charts in Manila. Ever since I heard this, I usually sang this song in videokes. Of course, I murdered the song especially given the fact that I was singing low notes in the Mariah version. Anyway, at least it delivered some laughs so it was usually worth it.

Runner-Up: Katharine McPhee – Somewhere Over The Rainbow

Best American Idol Ever: David Cook
Runner-Up: Carrie Underwood

I have to give it to the rocker. After all, rock is my favorite genre. The main realization I had this season is that I still followed it despite the lack of females (and other than Kara DioGuardi is still there after every song) because I know that Adam Lambert will belt out an awesome rock hit. David is not only a rocker but he is the most artistic of them all. Add that to his haunting voice, amazing vocal range and instrument performances and you have the best overall performer of the American Idols. Carrie Underwood ends up second because other than she has boobs, she is a very excellent singer. She reaches the high notes effortlessly. Her voice is very beautiful. And she got me addicted to her performances. Other idols that I would consider as best would be Kelly Clarkson, Adam Lambert and Clay Aiken.

The Fan

Note: This is an old post from my Multiply site last May 17, 2009.

I am in a state of shock and awe. That, and my sun burnt skin around the neck irks me every now and then. I got it from yesterday’s summer getaway (yes, it still is summer!) at Club Manila East. I spent the whole day swimming with just one application of sun block on my face and my already sun burnt arms. Way to go, Jeff. I now look like a tomato. Dad even accused me of drinking last night because I was pretty much red. In the present, I still look like I took three straight bottles of Red Horse in a beer bong.

Sun burnt squared is how I would call it. I have not technically been into a beach this summer and I am probably having the worst sun burn in my life. The only other time I forgot I had it today was when I was eating the take-out chocolate cake my parents bought from Dulcinea. Yes, and also when I was watching the two-episode season finale of Grey’s Anatomy. I am such a fan of that show.

Speaking of being a fan, I think this month is the peak of being a fan. The NBA Playoffs is at its peak – we have games every day because this is the second round. Tomorrow, we have a double header which features two Game 7’s. Man, that’s what I call sportsgasm! OK, I made up that word and since it is something noteworthy like eargasm, you may expect a journal entry on that soon. I may not be in total nirvana cheering for my team in a stadium at this stage of the year but seeing my favorite team having a legitimate chance winning the title is a rarity that makes this month more special. Other than the fact that the NBA Playoffs is so awesome that I have to drink San Miguel Premium in cans at the morning while watching a nailbiter, this is also the time when season finales of shows occur. Forget Heroes because it sucks but if you get to watch the season finale episodes of Lost, Grey’s Anatomy, How I Met Your Mother and American Idol in a span of seven days, this is simply showgasm (OK, I think we have too much -gasm words here). I am simply at the height of being a fan right now and I love it.

Fanatic. I am not sure but that seems to be the root word of the term, fan. According to Dictionary.com, a fanatic is a person with an extreme and uncritical enthusiasm or zeal, as in religion or politics. The key word in here has to enthusiasm. If there is one thing that fans possess, that would be enthusiasm. It is that passion or, as my Philo teacher back in college puts it, eros. It is usually something that will not benefit you with practical purposes but you are going to do it because you like it. Go ahead and tell the people who watched the David vs. David concert last Saturday to not go because they will be wasting their precious money and they would have to put themselves in an inconvenient position in the crowd. You can always say that they can watch it in DVD where they can replay it to death. But shame on you should you tell an enthusiast what he should do. It does not matter if it is impractical. This is because this is what makes a fan happy. Yes, I may get sweaty and lose my voice while watching a UAAP game live but I will do it even if it takes me to line up hours for Upper Box B/Gen Ad tickets.

Being a fan, as long as you do not kill someone, does great things for sports or whichever stuff you are a fan of. It gives more color to your life especially if you are in a routine day in and day out. You spend hours reading through analysis in websites and newspapers. You debate with your friends as to which is better. You line up for tickets, watch games live, and celebrate if you win. If you are not a fair-weathered or a bandwagon fan (in cases of competitions), you will usually end up losing. But then, you still do it. Why? Because you love your pastime. No matter how much time wasted the Idol fans in US dial in for their favorite contestant’s numbers repeatedly, they will still do it.

How do we know if you are a fan? For me, here are my experiences.

1. If you know that watching a live sports event or concert is definitely better than watching it in front of a TV set.
2. If you spend at least an hour a day reading newspapers, websites, forums, or chats.
3. When you include your sports team in your prayers.
4. When you get devastated after your team lost in a crucial game.
5. When you wake up at 4 AM to watch a game in TV (that’s what I am planning to do later…I actually woke up at 4 AM yesterday thinking that the game is on Sunday Philippine Time)
6. When you spend on your favorite’s merchandise
7. When you wear blue on the day after Ateneo beats La Salle as if it is Valentine’s Day and you want to wear red.
8. When you wear black when your team loses.
9. When you do not want to change seat places because you feel that it might swing your luck.
10. When you do not want to pee because you feel that it might swing your luck.
11. When you do not want to switch the TV channel because you feel that it might swing your luck.
12. When you feel the urge to do the stuff in 8-10 because you need to swing your luck.
13. If you debate with your friends as to which team should win.
14. If you ‘boo’ in front of a TV set even if you know that the player shooting the freethrow will never hear your boo.
15. When you start to plan not to ‘boo’ the player because you realize that he is missing at times when you are not boo-ing.
16. When you treat a TV show as if it is a movie because you always have a popcorn and softdrinks when you watch it.
17. When you scream for joy and jump around the house after you see your team win at the final buzzer.
18. When you chant ‘get that ball’ or ‘defense’ in front of a TV set even if you know that the opposing team which is miles away from your vicinity will never hear your chant.
19. When you throw a pillow at your TV set because your team got badly beaten.
20. When you applaud right after watching a remarkable episode.
21. When you research for replays in Youtube and you replay it for more than ten times.
22. When you cheer for your team as if it won the championship even if you know that it just got lucky in a game in a series where it has no chance of winning.
23. If your favorite number is your favorite athlete’s favorite number.
24. You ask for an encore after the final song in a concert.
25. You treat your friends after a remarkable victory.
26. You talk about the game/show for hours the next day.
27. You poke fun at your archrivals.
28. You have at least dreamt for once that you made a game winner.
29. You give sports nicks to your friends.
30. When you join fantasy leagues and have to resort to a lot of Math in order to beat the competition.
31. When you plan to watch a TV show before you blog because you know that it has the potential of being awesome and being blog-able.

There are still lots of things to add to the list but I will stop at Number 31 to commemorate my most favorite baseball pitcher – Greg Maddux. And speaking of the last fan fact that I put, I actually planned to watch Grey’s Anatomy’s season ender before writing this blog entry. I must say that it was more than awesome as it would surely rank as one of the best season finales ever. Lost Season 5 finale should also be there as well as both shows elicited what the f*ck and holy sh*t reactions from me.

SPOILER ALERT!

Lost is always known for being mysterious and the season finale pretty much showed it. They finally got to show Jacob. The show is filled with more ‘what ifs’ for the final season after Juliet detonated the bomb. It is now too open-ended that it leaves the writers a hard time to make an elegant resolve for the next season. I give this show five stars for how things turned out. I am so glad because this is the very first show that I religiously watched.

Yes, I am still in a state of shock and awe. I just watched two core characters get killed at the last five minutes of the show. We all knew that Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl) is bound to die – it is actually a disappointment if we see her character live because of the plot progress her cancer brought but I must say that they nailed the killing correctly. Well, it is not yet a conclusion that she died but the way they executed the final minutes was fantastic. Everyone seemed to be rejoicing the fact that she survived and she suddenly flatlined. Then on the other part, we get to see Meredith finding out that their unknown patient who got hit by a bus is the very same person that they are trying to stop from going to military. In a sudden, the two former best friends were flatlining in different hospital rooms. The Grey’s Anatomy title shows in front of my screen leaving me speechless. It was so sudden that I did not have time to emote. It should make me ask for more but I was too flustered of how the season ended. It actually took me twenty minutes before I could start writing for this journal because of my state. Is it bad? Absolutely, no! Yes, it does leave me hanging but it was delivered in an unexpected way. There were rumors that Izzie and George would be leaving after this season but I never visualized it to end this way. Grey’s Anatomy has been so incredible this year that I am thinking that it has surpassed Season 2 as the best season of the show.

END OF SPOILER

Two down and three more to go. Another two will end this week. Will How I Met Your Mother end up with a bang so that I would declare this season its best season ever? Who will be the next American Idol? I was correct in my predictions last week as we now have an Adam-Kris finale. I give Kris as the 60-40 favorite to win this thing but I am not giving any fearless predictions on this one. Whatever is in store for me this week, I hope it is going to make me more of a fan than I am now.