“First impression”

Smart Gilas Pilipinas dominated their preliminary matches against UAE (92-52) and Bahrain (113-71). Their only slip up was against the host and powerhouse team China which dealt them a 60-75 loss. Through out the preliminary round, naturalized center Marcus Douthit was a steady cog in both the offense and defense of the Philippines. The wingmen of Smart Gilas were also able to score inside and use their speed to run their opponents to the ground. In their two wins, Smart Gilas was able to dominate inside the paint where they had the size and athleticism advantage. They would not have this advantage however with a team like China. Still, the Philippines made a good first impression in the tournament by making it to the next round despite of their poor shooting from beyond the arc and problems with turnovers. Smart Gilas also played with only 10 men, without Christ Lutz and Marcio Lassiter as FIBA Asia secretary general Hagop ruled them as ineligible.

“Obstacle”

The second round of competitions started with a hint of controversy from Smart Gilas. The night before the game, there was a news that FIBA Secretary General Patrick Baumann has already made a decision that allows Lutz and Lassiter to play for the Philippines as Smart Gilas made an appeal and submitted the requested documents to prove their eligibility. Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas (SBP) also helped in getting Lutz and Lassiter the nod to play in the tournament. However, at the start of their game against Jordan, the two players were still not allowed to play. This led the Philippines to put the game under protest while they tried to clarify to FIBA Asia officials that there was already a go-signal from FIBA that the two players were already cleared to play. During the second quarter of the game Lutz and Lassiter were finally allowed in the game which immediately led to a significant change in the play of Smart Gilas. They were down by 17 pts in the first quarter and things changed when Lassiter and Lutz finally came in. This now led to reports that Jordan also put the game in protest, but FIBA ruled in favor of the Philippines.

“A dark horse emerges”

The play of Lassiter and Lutz proved to be very important for Smart Gilas in the second round. This is not to say that Lassiter and Lutz are “superstars” but this is proof that coach Rajko Toroman built a team around the “team” concept and that his pieces on the team had an important part to play which spells success for the team. Smart Gilas was able to match-up well with the other teams by the time they had their wingmen back. Smart Gilas played lockdown defense against Jordan and Japan, limiting them below their scoring averages. More importantly, Smart Gilas was able to shut-down the designated scorers of their opponents in the second round: Daghles and Wright struggled (Jordan); Kawamura was hounded all night (Japan); and Gorges was neutralized especially in the second half of the game (Syria). In all three games, Smart Gilas showed that they can play international caliber defense by shutting down their opponents.

On the other end of the court, things also picked up. Alapag, Lassiter, Tiu and Casio were beginning to knock down shots from the three-point line. The transition offense was also a problem for the other teams since Smart Gilas kept pushing the ball at every opportunity, even centers Douthit and Taulava would sprint during fast breaks. Despite having the height disadvantage, Smart Gilas scored more inside points against their opponents. Smart Gilas won all three games in the second round: 72-64 against Jordan; 83-76 against Japan; 75-52 against Syria, and all of a sudden, the world began to notice.

The recent wins of Smart Gilas even merited a headline in the FIBA website. The Philippines is now through to the quarterfinal round where they will face the outside-gunning team of Chinese Taipei. Many sports analysts believe that Smart Gilas should match-up well with Chinese Taipei and that this is a more manageable game compared to facing either Iran or Korea. IF and WHEN the Philippines does go through to win against Chinese Taipei it will face the winner of the IRAN vs JORDAN match-up. If Smart Gilas goes to the semifinals, this basketball-crazy country will erupt! It will be anybody’s ball game. Bilog ang bola. (The ball is round). The wait has been too long but now things are getting clearer as the Philippines is emerging and other teams are noticing.

Floyd Mayweather Jr.  (41-0-0)

I have only seen a few fight of Floyd Mayweather Jr. in full. His other perfomances, I have only witnessed through highlight reels. If there is one thing that is really striking about Mayweather is his ability to defend himself. He likes to throw a combo of punches and afterwards make a quick duck or side step to elude counter punches. Floyd uses the shoulder roll to make it hard for his opponents to hit him square in the face. The difficulty that boxing analysts see is that Floyd has a problem when dealing with southpaws. Nonito Donaire has a video posted in youtube showing why. I’m no expert with boxing style, especially of Floyd’s, so I’m just stating what I actually observed while watching his fights. But as Floyd said, he’s 41-0, so must have done something really well.

On the other hand, there is the side of Floyd that might be a formula for his own undoing. In the episodes of HBO’s 24/7, Floyd had mood swings and took shots at people that he did not like. He had a heated confrontation with his father, Floyd Mayweather Sr. and instigated that his father was not a part of his team. Floyd Jr. trained with his uncle Roger Mayweather. Cuss words and insults are a staple when the scenes showed Floyd’s traning camp. Also, it baffled me when Floyd Mayweather Jr. took shots at Oscar dela Hoya, laughing at the fact that Ortiz considers him an idol. Now, Floyd is by all means entitled to his own opinion but dela Hoya is the guy promoting this fight under Golden Boy Promotions. And taking shots at your own promoter is worth a reconsideration. Bob Arum, from Top Rank, thinks that Floyd is losing it and is probably worried that he is no longer the fighter that he is. But confidence is something that Floyd does not lack, chanting always that he is the best while doing his workouts, an evidence of his cocky personality. The fight this coming weekend will be the judge of that.

Victor Ortiz (32-0-1)

In his training camp, Victor Ortiz is accompanied by blue collar workers which he says reflects the work ethic that he has. Victor Ortiz always reflects on his rough childhood which inspires him to be the greatest. Victor Ortiz is mostly remembered now because of his epic fight against Andre Berto. He has shown the ability to withstand blows in his previous fights and even comeback to win. Ortiz is a combination of speed and power. His boxing style often invites a slugfest. A stark contrast to Mayweather’s technical and cerebral approach. Boxing analysts are wary about Ortiz’s ability to defend himself as he is often caught off guard and tagged with hard punches. Also, Ortiz’s staying power has not been tested and proven yet since his fights almost always early. He has 11 knockout victories which ended in either the 1st or 2nd round. Ortiz also shows a mild manner when outside the ring. In 24/7 he even reached out to some kids and talked to them about being inspired and not letting anyone put you down when you have a dream. Again, this is contradiction to his opponent’s cocky, boisterous and party-animal attitude. But come Saturday, when Ortiz steps up to face Mayweather, he needs to be his “vicious” self in order to damage Floyd Mayweather’s perfect record.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao Megafight

Many fighters believe that both Pacquiao and Mayweather are just warming up for the megafight that all fight fans (and even casual foxing fans) are waiting for. Pacquiao is fighting Juan Manuel Marquez in November. For boxing champ Nonito Donaire, Mayweather Jr. wants to measure how he would fare now against a southpaw (Ortiz) to know if he can take on the lefty pound-for-pound king, Manny Pacquiao. Nonetheless, its going to be a real treat for fight fans all over the world to witness this fight. And among those people who will watch are those exactly what Floyd thinks – people who will watch to see him finally lose – includes me.

There was no time to mope around for the Philippine team since their first game was scheduled already against UAE. Smart Gilas played the game with only 10 men in its roster. In the opening minutes of the game, Smart Gilas had a shaky start. They committed a lot of turnovers and missed point blank shots. UAE on the other hand, had a blistering 5-0 start. Smart Gilas eventually found their groove late in the first quarter and ended it on a strong note at 17-12. In the second quarter, their strong play continued as they finally stamped their class against the energetic UAE squad. Smart Gilas surprisingly had a better inside game despite the height advantage of UAE, led by guards Barroca, Alapag and Casio, who penetrated to the basket at will. UAE had a hard time making their presence in the post down low as Douthit, Williams, De Ocampo and Aguilar played great inside defense.

After the halftime break, Smart Gilas never looked back and continued the onslaught with their penetrations and great defensive efforts. Alapag and other outside gunners would occasionally hit three point bombs. Aguilar and Taulava had highlight reels as they treated to crowd to slam dunks. UAE struggled all game long with their outside shots and could not get anything from the inside because of the defense of the Filipinos. At one point, UAE even missed an uncontested lay-up on a fast break play. In the end, Smart Gilas Pilipinas routed UAE, 92-52.

Smart Gilas will face host and powerhouse China next where they hope to have Lassiter and Lutz in their line-up.

Box score:

PHL- 92: Baracael – 15, Douthit – 13, Taulava – 13, Casio – 11, Barroca – 9, Tiu – 9, De Ocampo – 7, Alapag – 6, Williams – 5, Aguilar – 4

UAE 52: Ahmed – 12, Banihammad – 11, Ahmad – 10, Al Zaabi – 7, Salem – 6, Al Braikhi – 3, Al Hattawi – 3

“Fight Pacquiao”

Many of the comments also urged Mayweather to just fight Pacquiao. It has been a match-up that is dubbed as the mega-fight of boxing and certainly a fight that is most awaited by boxing fans. Fans are tired of Mayweather’s antics and excuses that diminish the chances of the fight between him and Pacquiao to ever happen.

“Champion”

Certainly, if Mayweather’s contention is that he is better than Pacquiao because he has an undefeated record while Pacquiao had these kinds of losses, he is living in an illusion. Muhammad Ali, considered the world’s greatest boxer, does not have a clean record. It takes more than a 41-0-0 record to be the greatest boxer. And looking at the videos, this was a really unpolished Pacquiao, totally different of what a fighter Manny is now. It takes more than bringing in money and a clean record to be considered a champion. To Floyd, until you fight Pacquiao, you have no leverage to dictate who is the better fighter, it is the fans who decide that for now. And given your antics, accusations, and ducking of the mega-fight, clearly it is Pacquiao that has the edge on the fans. I’m not even going to enumerate the numbers on both of the boxers. Just by the mere fact that Pacquiao always out-classes Mayweather by being a better role model to boxing fans is enough to prove that the Filipino fighter is more worthy of the title, champion.

Check out Mayweather’s tweets and maybe you want to reply to him too:

http://twitter.com/#!/FloydMayweather

Now, on to more pressing matters. I’ve decided to shape up. I may be overweight. Last time I checked I weighed 75 kg. I’m not really looking to shrink in size rather I want some toned muscles and less flabs. This is probably the most ambitious self-improvement that I’m going to undertake.

For the first part, I want to improve my POSTURE. I know that I look like a hunchback most of the times. Boo. So I will try to resolve that first. For this problem I will use these tips:

• Always imagine that a string coming from the top of your head is pulling you gently up towards the ceiling. Visualization techniques like these are helpful.
• Don’t slouch when you walk. Be sure to try to walk as if you had a book balancing on your head.
• Be patient with yourself. Correcting poor posture can take a long time, especially if you’ve had bad posture for years.
• You can have someone tape a giant X on your back from one shoulder to the opposite hip. Then put a straight line of tape across your shoulders closing the top of the X. Wear this during the day, to help retrain your back. This works really well if you hold shoulders back before taping, use wide non stretch tape and ideally change tape each day.
• Don’t tighten up your muscles when you are assuming a straight posture. It will only stress the joints and muscles themselves and this affects the skeleton, therefore your posture and even the way you move and breathe. Try to eventually relax into it but if you experience back pains, stop it! You are probably causing unnecessary muscle tension. It is important to differentiate between back pains, and muscle exhaustion. Since the correct posture is foreign, the muscles needed to maintain that posture might not be strong enough yet. A guideline for this is that if it strains you to breath, realign your posture. Let the breath guide you, it needs to feel good! It can take weeks to strengthen the muscle imbalances and this is very tough work, but worth it in the end.
• If your head is hanging, you can’t be properly aligned. Keep your head at the level that allows you to look directly ahead without having to turn your eyes up. If you cannot do this without feeling tension in your neck, this means you are causing unnecessary muscle tension.
• A great side benefit of keeping your head straight, and your ears/shoulders/hips aligned is an improvement in your self-esteem and attitude. If you walk with your head up, you appear more confident, and feel more confident, which improves your attitude and mood, making it easier to walk with your head up.
• Try these steps to get in alignment: push your shoulders forward, then bring them straight up, then bring them straight back, then bring them straight down. Feel good? If your shoulders feel slightly stiff or tense you may have unnecessary muscle tension.
• If you need help remembering to keep your posture, think of a unique object or color. Every time you think of that object, check your posture.
• Try focusing on your calves. Let your posture and balance rely more on your calves. Try to feel an at ease attitude, and put a bounce in your step. You’ll find that it will free up the rest of your upper body to relax and assume a more upright posture that takes pressure from your back, shoulders and neck, and works on your ab muscles. This is awesome, since strong calves and abs rock!
• Consider wearing a special shirt designed to aid posture; such a shirt is a training aid that strengthens your back muscles and makes your shoulders work to maintain proper posture throughout the day.
• Some people are born with one of two embryological foot structures (Rothbarts Foot or the Preclinical Clubfoot Deformity) that results in bad posture. This can be corrected using an innovative, non-surgical, non-drug intervention referred to as Rothbarts Proprioceptive Therapy.

Now, let’s see how far I can go with this. What’s my benchmark for success? Hmmmm…. Probably when people around me notice an improvement on my posture.

That is all for now.

Source: Improving posture tips from: http://www.wikihow.com/Improve-Your-Posture

Of course, I won’t talk about what I have revealed in detail because that is like biting my own ass.

Anyway, let’s see how  this goes.

First resolution of the year: Less talk, less mistakes.

I know I have other far more pressing concerns to resolve but let’s start with something manageable, shall we?

Till next time.

The readings came from all sorts of astrologers, numerologists and what not. Now, there is a news about a reset/change on the dates of the signs as a “new” sign is introduced to the picture. I’m not even going to glorify this discourse by explaining in detail. Here are the new signs:

Capricorn: Jan. 20-Feb. 16.
Aquarius: Feb. 16-March 11.
Pisces: March 11-April 18.
Aries: April 18-May 13.
Taurus: May 13-June 21.
Gemini: June 21-July 20.
Cancer: July 20-Aug. 10.
Leo: Aug. 10-Sept. 16.
Virgo: Sept. 16-Oct. 30.
Libra: Oct. 30-Nov. 23.
Scorpio: Nov. 23-29.
Ophiuchus: Nov. 29-Dec. 17.
Sagittarius: Dec. 17-Jan. 20.

If your sign has changed like mine (from Taurus to Aries), what does that do to what you have believed your entire life?

Since, I was reading about this trending topic. I decided to get a reading from Chinese Astrology. For some reason, the reading (especially on CAREER) gave me the creeps:

SNAKE 2011

Overview

If last year was a bit wild for you, things might calm down a bit in the Year of the Metal Rabbit. Your sign’s element is Fire, which has a harmful influence on the Metal year element — make sure you plot your course carefully. Even though your favorability for the year is only 65%, almost all your months will be favorable. Your determination and perseverance might need a tune-up. Are there ways you can boost your motivation? Give yourself a daily dose of self-confidence with words of affirmation. There’s room for you to accomplish great things.

Career

Without a moment’s notice, you might have to suddenly change directions in your career. Perhaps your job title will expand. Maybe your company will enter into a merger. Can you see how this might be an opportunity for something better? If you find yourself at a crossroads, take some time to figure out your direction. You might not find answers right away. Trust that your path will unfold regardless of your confusion. The Rabbit lends you more creativity and insight, so trust those flashes of intuition when it comes to your life’s work.

Relationships

If you’re attached, you might enjoy the quiet comforts of home more than usual this year. Compatibility issues should get easier — especially when it comes to your and your partner’s living habits. If you’re single, you might meet the yin to your yang in a new partner. Sensual pleasures will be heightened, so make sure your home smells good, looks good, and feels good. Silk sheets? Soft leather couches? Scented candles? Do whatever it takes to please your senses. Others will be drawn in to your home like a moth to the flame.

Health

The Rabbit is a bit of a hypochondriac, so don’t mistake stress or fatigue for something worse. You should enjoy relatively good health this year, but make sure you eat right and get plenty of rest. Are you prone to the winter flu? Go to the pharmacy and get your flu shot asap. Also, be careful about stress-induced migraines. If you’re a typical Snake, your nervous system is a bit more sensitive than others. Take care of your mental and physical health — the two are intricately connected.

Wealth

Your business savvy might help you negotiate some good deals in the financial department. This year will deliver several Triple Metal days — where the element of the year, month and day all match. Since Metal is the element most closely associated with wealth, this could be a boost to your bank account. Mark them on your calendar. Use your Snake charm with some common sense to get the best bargains and negotiate for large purchases. Legal matters will probably be favored, so use your Super Luck days to sign contracts, leases, and business deals.

If this keeps up, I’m sticking with the Chinese Astrology. Haha.

That is all for now.

Source:

Chinese astrology reading from www.astrology.com

My office mates have their plans already laid out. I envy such. They already know what they want to do. Unlike me, I am in limbo. It’s either I have many things that I want to do or I do not have enough courage to pursue the things that I want to do. I need to decide soon. (What am I passionate about?; What do I want to do for the rest of my life?) This is when I know that I am on my own in forging my own path. Exciting but also daunting.  This situation is pressuring me big time.

This is for the team:

(Sometimes, I feel the fear of uncertainty stinging clear
And I can’t help but ask myself how much I let the fear
Take the wheel and steer)

In other news, Cess is at Cebu right now for the annual Sinulog. Good times. I miss her.

Sources:

Drive by Incubus music video courtesy of www.youtube.com (uploaded by SergeitMolotov)

I told my boss I won’t be coming in today. My officemate sent me a text saying that nobody went to work except our boss. That’s another shit. The company is shaking things as it is and us not going to work makes the situation bleaker. The great migration.

I almost thought about not bothering with medicines since I could barely stand up. It was Cess who talked me through it. Got out. Dizzy and all. Managed to scour some Alaxan FR (yeah, I bought it since I’m a Manny Pacman fan, what up?!) and Strepsils for my bitching tonsils. Also managed to buy some apples. Apples always do the trick.

I ordered some food through mcdelivery. The delivery guy had difficulty in locating my address. But still my Quarter Pounder and Chicken was delivered well. The delivery guy was courteous and apologetic. Customer-oriented dude.

I’m still quite knackered right now. Question. If you have a very high fever and your face feels like its in a hot oven, could it lead to death?

That is all for now. Game 4 of the PBA semifinals is on.