Sunday, May 26, 2013

...Just A Fan: How I Became a Passionate Sports Guy...







Sports are a big part of my life. I enjoy watching it, I get excited rooting for teams, and I usually have a coarse voice a day after a good game because I've been shouting my lungs out. But unlike those "die hard" Ginebra Fans, "purple-blooded" Laker Fans or "true green" Celtics fans, I don't root for a particular team. I have favorites from time to time, and I switch allegiances whenever I feel like it. Let me explain why:






Learning the Game of Basketball


I started watching the PBA when I was a kid, because our house help had a huge crush on Alvin Patrimonio and Ronnie Magsanoc. Chot Reyes' Coney Island team won a championship against a team I forget now, but I was introduced to the great Alvin Patrimonio, his "Minister of Defense" Jerry Codinera, "The Bullet" Dindo Pumaren, and I think there was an Olsen Racela somewhere there. They later became the Purefoods team that I'd root for when I watched, but it was the 90's. You were either a Ginebra fan, or an Alaska fan. With my limited knowledge of the game, I enjoyed watching how systematic Alaska played as opposed to what looked like "tsamba" basketball by Ginebra/Gordon's, most exemplified by that Bal David game-winner from halfcourt, with the frenzied crowd cheering like they actually expected it would go in as a three point shot would. I'd trash talk in favor of Alaska, but I cheered for Purefoods. 

During these years, I was beginning to enjoy the game of basketball. In the NBA, there was that one team everyone was talking about; the Chicago Bulls. I saw how they won that third championship before Jordan retired to play baseball, and watched the second of their two three-peats. It was easy to ride on the Bulls bandwagon then because of Micheal Jordan. And hey, I watched Space Jam like it actually happened in real life. 

The Dark Ages, Fil-Shams and Retirements


Then the PBA had Fil-Shams. It was a time I stopped watching the PBA. Purefoods had Noy Castillo and some fat point guard named Rob Johnson leading the team. Rey Evangelista remained a workhorse, but he was close to retiring as well. In the NBA, Jordan has already decided to walk away from the game of basketball. It was a time (at least for me) where there wasn't much basketball to be watched.

Before entering college, I was conditioning myself to be a "Tiger". However, I was watching how well the team of James Yap and Paul Artadi was playing, and I was rooting for them to break the DLSU 4-peat (as I learned that only UST is the only other team to have achieved such honor in the Final Four era) after finishing second in the eliminations for a twice to beat advantage against what looked like a fiesty Ateneo team. Ateneo would later overcome the twice to beat, and later beat DLSU in the Finals, for their first championship in over a decade. 

Rekindling Interests


I was already hooked on James Yap. And as fate would have it, Purefoods were able to draft BOTH James Yap and Paul Artadi! They would later trade for, or pick players I enjoyed watching in other leagues, like Marc Pingris, Peter June Simon, and Chico Lanete. I had my team back.


In the NBA, while browsing through channels, I came across a Japanese channel showing a game of the Sacramento Kings. I couldn't understand the Japanese commentators, but I was mesmerized by the passing ability of all five guys on the team. Thanks to dial-up networking, I was able to read up on the Kings, and learned more about the team. I liked them so much that I patterned my playing style to Doug Christie, and wished to have the passing ability of Jason Williams. 

Switching Allegiances


As years went by though, Purefoods dispatched of the players I liked one by one, except for James. I hated Coach Ryan Gregorio for his rotation, and I eventually felt that James was over hyped. He'd have a good game shooting lights out, and then have three "off nights" after that. I still cheered for that team, but I wanted a fresh start. The Welcoat Dragons then entered the PBA. I liked to watch a team build their name from the ground up, and led by Jojo Tangkay, Junjun Cabatu, and Jay-R Reyes, you can't go any lower in the PBA. They struggled and evolved, and they drafted nicely. As the Rain or Shine Elastopainters, I loved that they drafted Jervy Cruz and TY Tang, but hated the fact that Sol Mercado is shooting like he's Reggie Miller. I finally found myself cheering for Rain or Shine after they hired Coach Yeng Guiao (who I credit for making the rest of the league look at Cyrus Baguio, Wesley Gonzales, Larry Fonacier and Gabby Espinas, among others) and dispatched Sol Mercado. I have been cheering for them ever since.


In the NBA, after years of not getting over the hump, and having our hearts broken by Robert fuckin' Horry, the Sacramento Kings slowly disbanded their team. During these times, Caron Butler made me notice a Miami Heat team struggling for recognition. The next season, I stopped watching the Kings after they traded Doug Christie to the Dallas Mavericks, of all teams, and I watched a young Miami Heat team eke out a 14-game win streak to end their regular season to enter the playoffs. Then some kid named Dwayne Wade dunked over Baron Davis and later Jermaine O'Neal in two rounds of the playoffs. I was sold on the Heat.

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To this day, I claim to be a passionate fan of the game. "True" fans who cheer for their one team could label me as a bandwagon fan or a casual fan. As in food, I eat a lot, but I have favorites. But not being able to eat my favorite food does not stop me to enjoy other food immensely. 

I enjoy sports passionately. In the eyes of a mere spectator, ten men playing with one basketball looks stupid, grown men banging bodies with each other for an irregularly-shaped football is absurd, and twenty men kicking a single football in the grass looks boring. In my eyes, I see competitors trying to win a game. I shout when I cheer; alone or in a crowd, I will curse and shout when there's a bad play and clap rabidly at every great play. I don't care who's playing, I just enjoy the competition. 

Some of my friends don't understand why I defend a team they're dissing or why I diss a team they're cheering for. As a passionate fan, I watch games, I read stories, and I check out stats. I have favorites, but I check out as many teams I can fit into my head to be confident enough to know that I am knowledgeable in what I'm about to say or write. I don't hate on teams, I just want to bring "super" fans' heads back down to earth. I don't blindly say my favorite teams are invincible, but I will back up my words if someone challenges my claims. As someone who enjoys competition, this is where I get my fix; lengthy, (and hopefully logical) back and forth discussions with fellow fans. I have learned to recognize and channel out absurd and idiotic comments that attempt to be taken seriously, and engage instead in more intelligent discussions with fans who actually understand the game. 

To get my fix, I study the games that I don't understand, so that I may be able to keep up a conversation with just about any sports nut. To date, I can claim to have above average knowledge of the NBA from about 2002, PBA from probably the start of the James Yap era, and the UAAP from Mike Cortez's missed dunk in the Finals. I also have a basic understanding of football to be able to enjoy Steven Gerrard and Lionel Messi's games and thus casually follow Liverpool and Barcelona, respectively. I enjoyed and learned a lot of American Football from movies, but I understood the game by playing Madden and watching the games with my Uncle Owe. I tried to have a basic understanding of baseball to at least have a topic of conversation with my boss during our free time. For individual games, I enjoy watching tennis, MMA, F1 Racing, and boxing. I actually am trying to understand cockfighting to have something to talk about with my dad. Yes, it is somewhat of a sport. 

I don't get to watch a lot of games. Math proficiency is not my best asset to be some "Moneyball"-type of analyst. I don't get to talk to players. To compensate, I check out analysts' opinions, I try to analyze as best I can from the box scores and play-by-plays, and develop my own analysis and opinions. Eventually, I come up with stuff to say based on what I think, and what my gut feeling tells me. I'm not always right, but I enjoy the times that I am. 


I am not a "true" fan of a particular team where I'll go through its ups and downs. I don't wear jerseys of players or collect their shoes. I want to claim, though, that I am a fan of sports. I have my favorites, but I will cheer for any team at any time because I like how they play, and I do understand the rivalries and why I can't cheer for some teams. 

I will not "die" for a team, but I will cheer wildly when I watch games. I am, after all, just a fan. 

Monday, May 6, 2013

...Pangingialam ng Pakialamero: Statements and Mottos...

















"Anything sounds weird if you say it a hundred times"
-  Ted Mosby, from How I Met Your Mother


In our daily lives, we encounter common statements from our friends or random people that seem to make sense, but once you take a step back and think about it, are really kind of stupid. We may be guilty of blurting these out at times when the situation arises, but really, with everyone else saying it, it has almost become senseless. The more we hear it, the stupider it sounds. I'm not even sure if that's a word, but the spell check says it is.

I learned that it's actually called something; Semantic Satiation. It's a psychological phenomenon where a word (or in the case I'm presenting, a phrase) loses its meaning/essence because of constant repetition. With people overusing these phrases I'm enumerating, I have have become sick of it, to the point that it has lost its meaning to me. And probably to you too.


Y.O.L.O.
You see this: Just about everywhere, especially when it became a fad

                                                


"You only live once", so the saying goes. It was the mantra of people who wanted to take risks, and there's no better time to do it than right at the moment. While it seems like it isn't so bad, some rapper makes an acronym about it, and kids are throwing it out like Japanese were shouting "Banzai!" during the World War II era. It has been completely taken out of context, and now people use this phrase as an excuse to do something stupid.


Haters gonna hate
You see this: When people are criticized

                                                 

What, and lovers gonna love, workers gonna work, and speakers gonna speak? Fanboys/fangirls or the topics of criticism usually use this statement to close an argument. Usually, this is also used to stoop down to the level of irrational critics who blurt out totally irrelevant things to criticize (whoa, critics gonna criticize). It is such a primitive argument that those who can't think rationally can't even answer back. It is the perfect ending to these types of arguments; both parties agree to disagree, with both feeling they won.


Keep calm and (insert random word/phrase)
You see this: As a meme, with the height of popularity probably from mid to late last 2012

                                                         

Did you know that the above picture is a World War II British public-safety catchphrase? I didn't. Now I understand why there's a crown there. It has become such a popular meme that everyone seems to have used or misused it at least once. The inserted word/phrase sometimes just doesn't make sense, yet people make t-shirts out of it because they think it's cool. I can think of a couple of schools that have misused this meme, but I'd rather not say. You know who you are, bandwagoners.

Everything happens for a reason
You see this: When shit happens in your friend's life and he or she is being all "Zen" about it; in emo selfies involving shadows or paper cut outs

           


A friend lost his/her phone, and he/she is like "My life sucks, but it's alright, everything happens for a reason".  Yes, everything happens for a reason. You lost your phone because you were careless, you idiot. Don't think the universe conspired to have you leave your phone in a taxi somewhere. While fate, destiny, and the universe are nice ways to blame shitty things happening in your life, there are moments that you just have to accept that you did to yourself. Fate isn't always the "reason" for everything. By making "fate" responsible for every shitty thing in your life, you have ruined this beautiful quote for those who actually believe it.


What happens in (insert place here) stays in (insert the same place)
You see this: As tags on crazy parties

                                                     

Watching American movies, I learned a popular saying that goes "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas". I think I heard that in a Nic Cage movie. Anyway, the quote has been used just in about everywhere, that you wonder, is anything ever coming out? Albums have titles like, "What happens in Bora, stays in Bora" or "What happens in Palawan, stays in Palawan" and then you start to think why the hell they used those quotes as titles to their album if it's supposed to "stay" there. While it is true that sometimes, people just type this in as a shoutout, I still don't get why it becomes an "official" quote of a place just because one did crazy stuff there. You could have an agreement with friends that "no one outside our circle can know about this" but please, don't make it like there's a written rule in that place that says that.

(insert action twice) din pag may time
You see this: In pa-cool jej people statuses, bandwagon riders

                                           

I don't know how this shit started. When I learned it, it was quite amusing, as it implyies that you can squeeze something in your busy schedule for eating ("kain kain din pag may time") or sleeping ("tulog tulog din pag may time") or whatnot. But then it got annoying. People who had no jobs or are on vacation use the same quotes. You have all the freakin time in the world, why the hell do you need to announce that you're doing something "pag may time"?! Do what you want to do, it's not like you're packed with meetings or work!

Sunday, May 5, 2013

...Gratitude, for Making Life Worth Living: A Birthday Blog...


"Friends was about that time in your life when your friends are your family and once you have a family, there's no need anymore,"

- Marta Kauffman, Co-Creator of F.R.I.E.N.D.S. on possibly having a reunion movie



I removed my birthday in FB's display so as not to get the automatic "Happy Birthday!" from every random person on my profile. For some reason, I'm actually happy that my birthday's coming up. Turning 27, I don't think it is significant or anything, but I think I almost have life figured out, and I'm happy. I have come to terms with things that I cannot control, and am trying to solve those which I can.

That said, I fear that I'm near a time where I don't need my friends anymore, if the "Friends" creator is to be believed. That is why this year, I am not writing a list of random things I'm hoping on getting for myself or as gifts. I just want say how I am thankful to everyone who has shaped my life to how it is now; family, friends of old, and friends I'd want to be in my future. If you don't already know, let me say this to all of you:


               

I have been a shy boy from a small school, but my confidence has grown leaps and bounds since. I have to thank the familiar faces of my elementary school, Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila School, because I never felt alone during all my years in that school. The boys and mentors of Don Bosco Technical College of Mandaluyong made me more comfortable with myself. The girls of La Concordia College and Don Bosco Sta. Mesa were awesome friends to have as well during that time of my life; here are girls who you can hang out with in just about anywhere, and talk about stuff freely. It was like having a bunch of sisters even if you had just one friend. 



I'm thankful to have my dad, who has given me a wide room to grow on my own. I am especially thankful to have a mom like I have; a provider, an inspiration, and at times, just someone who needs me as much as I need her. I am thankful to have an older sister who has grown with me, as we've been able to keep up our late-night "kapit-kwarto kwento" sessions to Whatsapp talks. I am thankful to have a brother who looks up to me, as it kept me disciplined enough to at least be a worthy role model.

                    

My Lozada family has been awesome. Through their jokes, insults, and laughter, I have learned to laugh at myself, accept what I am, and be happy with it. Their spontaneous decision-making, which I seem to have inherited, is one that taught me great patience. Funny how growing up, I was at odds with my cousin Jon, but we have grown to be brothers as we have grown up. All my cousins have made my childhood fun to look back to; from crazy games, petty fights, scars from playing, the sleepovers, and just all the good times. I wouldn't want to trade it up for anything. My uncles and aunts have, in their own weird way, taught me lessons along the way deliberate or not, at times alcohol-induced, but not all the time. Since we lost Tito Nandy, my godfather, I have tried my best to grow up as fast as I can so that I may be able to have adult talks with all of my other uncles and aunts. As they have their own fields and led different lives, I have learned a great deal about life through their personal experiences and wise counsel.

                 

I have not been particularly close with my Coo family, but I am thankful that I am given such trust by my Uncle Edwin to work in his company. I am thankful to be in a position during gatherings where I'm young enough to keep up a conversation with my cousins, but old enough to offer insights to my uncles on other topics. It also feels nice to reconnect with my cousins I have not been able to see as much as I've seen my Lozada cousins growing up. Despite just short conversations, I genuinely feel an appreciation on both our parts on wanting to establish our connections. Growing up, Philipp and Richard were the closest to our age, and they're cousins I wished I could've spent more time with.

            
                  
   

I'm thankful for my SDP family, who have guided me through college. Over the years, I feel that it may have evolved and may have taken a different direction from how I came to know it. Still, it has been nice to know the older alumni who have directly or indirectly inspired me not only in student politics and the AB life, but also how to handle life outside of college.


Kuya Ags and Ate Puch, who will finally tie the knot soon, have been two of my biggest reasons why I stayed in SDP, and continue to support the party even years after I have graduated. The family of lovely ladies (Ate Puch, Ate Pat, Ate Len and Tring) was gracious enough to accept Kuya Ags' boy, and we later welcomed a younger brother in the fold in Nico. This bond with them is one I always treasure, with or without them knowing about it.





The Mares and the Stellans - Che's friends - have been very welcoming. Thank you for the friendship, and making me feel like I am a friend as Voltaire the person, and not just Che's boyfriend.



My Philosophy blockmates have been great. For three years in college, I've spent most of my time outside of our classrooms to attend to extra-curricular matters. Yet despite the relatively short amount of time I've spent with them, they have all given me the opportunity to enjoy their company. In our Yahoo!Groups, I actually segregated the class in a way that I saw, and labelled every group. One of the groups, which I dubbed as "Team Flow" because they were already a 5-man basketball team (Kali, Robert, Christian, Imon, and Leonel, plus team manager Rey) and they were a group that "always goes with the flow" when a situation arises, actually kept their name. Over the years, the composition changed, and the relationships between the people in it have grown. Despite the childish label, I am thankful to be part of a group that I know I can count on in my worst times. This group now of Kali and Arianne, Imon and Ella, Benjo and Carin, Jan and Ariane, Chrisitian, Robert, and Rey, are friends I'd want to grow old with as we watch our kids grow old together as well.



The unlabeled group of friends I have with Ate Sof, Ate Len, Ernestine (my after-10PM ates), Ate I, Josef, Chip, and "Little S" Satrina, is one that I love to laugh with (special shoutout to Katrina abroad). I know exactly when this friendship started, how I somehow became part of this group, and I'm happy that I am. Even if I get SMS invitations after 10PM. During these times of late texts, I become uncertain as to whether or not I actually belong in this group, but I do want you guys to know that I love you all, and I thank you for being a part of my life.


The Hungry Rover team is a group that I barely hang out with outside of business, but they're a fun bunch. Ate I and Josef are in the other group, Mina has made things happen for this business, and Meo's been a great boss. Ate Abby, Kuya Bong, and our little promoter Gab have been an awesome team for the food truck. It's been about five months, and we're still learning. Our families have been supporting us from day 1.


I'm thankful for my somewhat best friend, Issa, for a friendship that I never thought was possible. She has been a wingman of sorts, an ear that listens, a person in need, and just a friend I can hang out with. She's been the Robin to my Ted, minus the romance.


I want to thank that girl from Canada, Katie. In a short while, you have made me feel special, and taught me not to be afraid of keeping my feelings. You were the chance I'm really glad I took. Thank you for the chance of letting me get to know you.


And finally, thank you, Che Marcaida, for being you. For "us". We have not been perfect, but we have made everything work. I know that you are trying to be the best that you can be, as I have been trying to be my best as well. Over the past 8 years, our relationship has evolved constantly as we have grown older together. Whatever happens, I regret nothing, and I value dearly every moment that we have spent together. Thank you for the patience, the memories, the present, and the future. Thank you for being a part of my life.

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It has been a great 26 years. I've been with a lot more people, but I can't thank each and every one. I have lacked sleep because I always try my best not to miss out on a chance to be with friends or family. I think I want that sleep time now. I can't be everywhere, but I try to be. I probably won't try as much now, but know that I would if I can, especially for those on this list. I was always an easy person to please, and I never really wished for too much. I didn't wish for any of these people around my life, but I'm lucky to have been graced with all of them.

Thank you, everyone, for a life worth living.