“You need a defeat to give value to your victories. It's the end of the road and I have to accept my defeat as I accepted my victories: with calm. I have to stay cool‑headed to try to analyse what I did wrong. I need to learn, and you learn more when you lose than when you win. I need to work on those points where I wasn't good, and from there try and do better for my next tournament.”--Rafael Nadal
Vamos Rafa!
Kapag dumating ang pagkakataon na tinatanong mo na ang sarili mo kung tama pa ba ang ginagawa mo, malamang sa hindi... mali na nga.
opisyal na, mga kaibigan. ala na ako sa kalendaryo. ilang taon rin akong nag-k-countdown sa araw na to. dehins ko rin naman alam kung ano talaga ang inaasahan kong maramdaman. magalak? malungkot? kebs? hehe masalimuot kasi lahat ng yun (atbp) naramdaman ko kahapon.
pero nagbabago man ang edad, hindi pa rin nagbabago ang tuwang naidudulot ng isang taos-pusong pagbati.
sa mga nag-email, nag-iwan ng offline messages sa YM, nag-PM sa friendster/facebook/multiply, nag-post sa aking wall sa facebook, tumawag, nagtext, webcam, and kung anumang paraan ng pagbati na nakaligtaan kong banggitin, sa lahat ng nakaalala, salamat, salamat. maraming maraming salamat.
congratulations on your ordination, ody! wish i could have been there today to witness it. remembering how we felt during your ordination to the deaconate, i think this time we would be causing flood na. hehe
i'm so proud and happy for you, father ody! ingat ka palagi. God bless.
AMDG!
ps. ganda naman ng invite nyo. :)
To my co- Bistro Girls Tetet ( Little Miss Magic) and Tatit ( Little Miss Fun), QK pals Francia ( Little Miss Lucky), Kalon ( Little Miss Naughty), and Jessa ( Little Miss Giggles), Canon friends Aldhel ( Little Miss Busy), Gina ( Little Miss Fickle), Dodo ( Mr Chatterbox), Peter ( Mr Fussy) and Jimmy ( Mr Uppity), and my UAAP peeps Mike ( Mr Clever), Ken ( Mr Mischief) and Ninio ( Mr Happy)...  ...just want to say you're greatly missed. Hope you guys are doing okay. Hugs! See you guys soon!
... and it made me think of this poem i wrote four years ago.
---------------------
Before The Inevitable Hungover
I hold in my hands
words where you've spilled
yourself for me
to see,
terms of endearment
that took me years
to utter,
the language of love
your tongue taught me
to speak.
Drinking my nth
bottle of San Miguel,
I realize
you taught me
a lot of firsts.
Beer, you said,
is an acquired taste.
Before you know it,
you'll forget
how the malt
even assaulted you
in the beginning.
Still scared shitless
of my lonely tomorrows,
I light your letters
on fire,
watch the flames
eat away
the plains of paper
holding testimony
to our yesterdays
and swear
I shall forget you.
03.March.2005
---------------------
sometimes the devil is in the details.
Pinoypoets, in partnership with the Ortigas Foundation, presents "Niloloob ng Nobela ang Tula: O ang Makata bilang Nobelista," a discussion on the particulars of and the relations between the novel and poetry, by poet and novelist Edgar C. Samar. This lecture is free and open to the public and will be held on February 28, 2009, 2PM at the Ortigas Foundation Library. It is the first of a series of 5 lectures in celebration of Pinoypoets' 5th Anniversary. For further inquiries, mail mail@pinoypoets.com, or contact Rhodge at 09238096002 or Xam at 09166390640/09297853276.
This entry is long overdue. But after my short (too short!) vacation back home in the Philippines, I've been extremely busy with work. I had more than three weeks of laundry waiting to be washed before I even got the time to attend to them. Hemingways, I was back in Pnas for the first time since I flew to KL. And for ten days, I got to do many of the stuff I've missed doing... and then some. Among the familiar and routinary were: - watching the UAAP games live
On the two Sundays that I was in Pnas, I was able to watch the Blue Eagles' Final Four game against UE and Game1 of the Championship/Finals against DLSU, both of which we won, of course. WOOHOO! - watching Noel perform at 70's Bistro It was very fortunate that Noel and the band had a gig at 70's on my first night back. It had been a long time since the four of us (Tatit, Tetet, Franz and I) were all there to watch Noel so it was also a reunion of sorts. Noel, in acknowlegement of my "balikbayan" presence, sang his OFW song, "Pauwi Na!" Hehehe - hearing mass at the Church of Gesu
- eating Tapa King deliveries, Jollibee Chickenjoy takeouts, shrimps and crabs from CdO
- watching my favorite TV shows
Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Saturday Night Live, Bubble Gang, Eat Bulaga - sauntering at the malls/complex
Megamall, ShangriLa, Glorietta, Serendra/Bonifacio High Street, Greenhills Promenade, Gateway - enjoying lunch/dinner/dessert/coffee at my favorite places Recipes, Big Buddha, Cafe Breton, The Old Spaghetti House (Katipunan), Manang's (AdMU), Chocolate Kiss, Galileo Enotica (Mandaluyong), Taco Bell Gateway On the other hand, I also got to try out a few new places I haven't been to: Banapple - Located at Katipunan Ave. near Blue Ridge. Though pies and cheesecakes are their boasted specialties, their pasta is also very very yummy. Highly recommended! Murphy's - An Irish Pub and Restaurant somewhere in Legaspi Village, Makati with live music on Wed-Fri nights. They booked Noel Cabangon for all the Thursday nights of September. Restaurante Pia y Damaso - Located at Greenbelt 5. They specialize on colonial Philippine cuisine inspired by Noli Me Tangere. I only had the chance to try their truffle cake, Sisa's Dementia, during a lonesome afternoon saunter at the new Greenbelt 5. I was also able to see my sister KC's showroom at Wilcon's, Libis. Check out her winning bathroom design:   September is an extraordinary month in our family. My father and sisters celebrate their birthdays (15th,16th &18th, repectively) during this month. September is also the month of my parents' wedding anniversary. I usually go home to CdO at this time but ever since my youngest sister KC went to UST for college, our parents are the ones flying in to Manila. And now, this year and onwards, I am, too. The 18th of September was one very special night. My parents flew in that day and we were scheduled to have our September Birthday Celebration/Family Reunion that night. My friend Franz was celebrating her birthday the next day, and as she was leaving for Sydney by the end of the month, was having her despedida on that night, too. September 18 was a Thursday and since Noel had a gig at Murphy's that night, the venue for the celebration was a no-brainer. And so I brought my family to Murphy's for dinner and Noel's live music that night. Franz and co came in much later, near the end of the first set. After the first set, my family went home ahead and left me to celebrate Franz' birthday and despedida with the gang. The night was also a reunion with Ody and Pope, who were with us during the celebration. I also got to witness my dear friend Ody's ordination to the deaconate. See pics at Tatit's multiply site. Witnessing a friend's ordination is so surreal. It's really like witnessing a friend's wedding but instead of marrying to a significant other, your friend is marrying God and the Church. And it's somehow overwhelming when you realize you have to share him now with the rest of the world. Ody, este, Brother Ody is now a deacon! Grabe. Surreal. Aside from the birthday celebrations and the despedida and the ordination, I also had a few reunions with some friends during my short vacation: - The Bistro Girls Reunion during Noel's gig at 70s Bistro wherein we also saw other friends from college, too: Dante, Tumpi, Bok & Babam
- with Aldhel, Gina & Dodo from Dodo's pad at Katipunan to Ortigas to Serendra to Greenhills to Galileo Enotica to Greenhills again
- with Tetet, Tatit, Franz, Ody and Pope at Murphy's
- with Safeway peeps Bernie, Mon, Jeff, Anamay, Ems, Gerald and Eileen at Recipes
- with Ems and Ponch at Tempura
Yes, the vacation was really quite short and I didn't get to inform some of my other friends about it because I knew I would have little time to be able to meet up with every one of them. A few other highlights: - wine-tasting with Aldhel & Dodo
- watching a Tagalog movie with Mama & KC
- introducing my parents to Noel
AND -- losing my new C902. And along with it, losing the photos and videos I took during my vacation. Azar! Apparently, I dropped it in the cab that my parents and I had ridden on our way to Mall of Asia and I only noticed the loss about three hours after. Three hours! Goodness!
 | i am... | Sep 21, '08 11:37 AM
for everyone |
Sobrang natuwa ako when I got the email. Ang bait ni Lord! :) Woohoo!!! Timing na timing ang pagdating ko!
D' Bistro girls, it's a date ha! This is our fated reunion with Noel! Hahaha Feeling!
The 70s Bistro Events Schedule September 2008 01 - FMD / Datu's Tribe 02 - Truth Night: "Open Spoken" / Ithcyworms / Marcus Highway 03 - Makiling Ensemble 04 - Brownman Revival 05 - The Jerks 06 - Banana Nation 08 - Camerawalls 09 - Rubadub / The Chongkeys 10 - Session Road 11 - Johnoy and Kakoy 12 - Noel Cabangon 13 - WORLD MUSIC FEST: Kadangyan / Rinka / Project Ganamede 15 - FUND RAISING FOR JONJON FABROSO: Brownman Revival / Coffebreak Island / Itchyworms / Talahib 16 - Truth Night: "Open Spoken" / Radioactive Sago Project 17 - TROUBADOUR NIGHTS: Johnoy / Julianne / Nicole and Carlo 18 - Brownman Revival 19 - The Jerks 20 - Sunshine @ The Bistro 22 - 6 Cyclemind 23 - Nicole and Carlo 24 - FUND RAISING FOR TARA: Razorback / DRT / Milagros Dance Hall / Collective / Southern Grass / Shelter / Johnoy and Kakoy 25 - Johnoy and Kakoy 26 - The Jerks 27 - Pinikpikan 29 - Julianne 30 - Limitado Launch / Makiling Ensemble The 70s Bistro - #46 Anonas Street, Project 2, Quezon City For inquiries and reservations please call: Tel # 4343597 / Mobile # 09212883793 or e-mail bistro70s@yahoo.com
* players on my list
** blog in progress
[in chronological order of their last event final]
Roger Federer (SUI)
Tennis
Men's Doubles, Olympic Gold Medal
Roger finally did it! He won an Olympic medal and it was gold! He has been pursuing a spot on that Olympic victory platform for eight years and three Olympics, a spot that seemed to be elusive even for someone who has been the best player in his sport for what seems like a lifetime. But last Saturday night, his dream came true as he and Stanislas Wawrinka beat the Swedes Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson in Men's Tennis Doubles.
 
The match point came at Roger's serve at 5-3, and when that final shot missed off the Swede's racket, Roger, one of the most classy, poised and composed athletes in the world, displayed uncharacteristic emotion on the court, bouncing up and down and rolling around with his partner on center court.
 
Michael Phelps (USA)
Swimming
8 Olympic Gold Medals, 7 World Records (5 Individual, 2 Team)
It's official. Michael Phelps did the impossible to become the first athlete in history to win 8 gold medals in one Olympics, surpassing Mark Spitz's record of seven.
 
In addition, he set a total of 7 world records at this Olympics, 5 of them individual, and is now tied with Mark Spitz's career total of 32 world records.
He has won Gold in each of his event in this Olympics: 
400m Individual Medley
4×100m Freestyle Relay
200m Freestyle
200m Butterfly
4×200m Freestyle Relay
200m Individual Medley
100m Butterfly
4×100m Medley Relay
He has now a career total of 16 medals, 14 of which are gold; and a career total of 32 world records, 26 of which are individual.
WOW! as in WOW! This guy ain't human!
Rafael Nadal (ESP)
Tennis
Men's Singles, Olympic Gold Medal
Just a few hours before being the official World No.1 in tennis, the Spaniard Rafael Nadal did his country proud by winning the Olympic gold. This has been a great year for Rafa, winning French Open and Wimbledon back to back. By beating Chilean Fernando Gonzales in 3 straight sets, Rafa gave his country its first ever Olympic gold for tennis.
  
Rafa is the highest-ranked player to win the men's singles at the Olympics. VAMOS RAFAEL!!!
Novak Djokovic (SRB)
Tennis
Men's Singles, Olympic Bronze Medal
After losing to Rafa in the semifinal, Nole redeemed himself by beating James Blake in the medal match for the Olympic Bronze.
  
Lin Dan (CHN)
Badminton
Men's Singles, Olympic Gold Medal
 
Lee Chong Wei (MAS)
Badminton
Men's Singles, Olympic Silver Medal
Yang Wei (CHN)
Gymnastics
2 Olympic Gold Medals, 1 Olympic Silver Medal
Men's Team Final (Gold)
Men's Individual All-Around (Gold)
Men's Rings (Silver)
Men's Pommel Horse (Rank 4)
 
 
Li Xiaopeng (CHN)
Gymnastics
2 Olympic Gold Medals
Men's Team Final (Gold) Men's Parallel Bars (Gold)  
 
[to be continued]
[I'm writing this entry in the middle of my night shift at work. :) Hehehe]
Tennis quarterfinals was delayed by almost 4 hours due to adverse weather conditions. As a result, I was only able to watch the match between Roger Federer and James Blake before I had to prepare and leave for work. It was a good thing their match was the first as otherwise, I wouldn't have seen a single match by "The Invincible Man" as he got ousted from the Olympics by Blake in this quarterfinal. The match was nowhere near the epic Wimbledon final less than two months ago. Blake didn't really play impressively. It was more of Roger giving an uncharacteristically lackluster performance when he, after dropping the first set, couldn't recover right away. I guess his mental resilience has really taken a beating this season. It was also the first time I saw him snarl in frustration during a match.
Rafa, who'll be hailed No.1 this coming 18th, and Nole both triumphed in their quarterfinal matches and hence, will be competing with each other in the semifinals. As always, whenever these two are playing each other, I'd be torn between the two. But I'd be glad no matter what the outcome.
Tennis semifinals will start later at 16:00 (Aug 15):
Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs Rafael Nadal (ESP)
James Blake (USA) vs Fernando Gonzalez (CHI)
In badminton, Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei both advanced to the semifinals. I wasn't able to catch their quarterfinals yesterday but I got to watch their elimination round matches days before. Hopefully, I'd be able to watch both of their semifinal matches later.
Badminton semifinals will be as follows later (Aug 15):
Lee Chong Wei (MAS) vs Lee Hyunil (KOR) - 18:30
Lin Dan (CHN) vs Chen Jin (CHN) - 20:30
In men's gymnastics, Yang Wei, proclaimed by Time as one of the 100 Olympic athletes to watch out for, finally got the Olympic gold (All-Around Individual Men's Gymnastics) that eluded him twice before.
Days before, he and his teammates, got the Olympic gold for the Team final. They redeemed the embarrassment they faced in Athens four years ago when they were the defending Olympic and World champion but finished fifth place. Li Xiaopeng, who won an individual gold medal in parallel bars in Sydney last 2000, has already surpassed his idol Li Ning by holding 15 titles after winning the Olympic gold medal for the Team final this year.
I'll be watching out for their individual events next week:
Yang Wei - Men's Pommel Horse Final (Aug 17), Men's Rings Final (Aug 18)
Li Xiaopeng - Men's Parallel Bars Final (Aug 19)
As for swimming, who else is more exciting to watch out for but Michael Phelps? He's such a hunk too! With a great body, nonetheless. :) As of two days ago, he has won 11 Olympic gold medals, already surpassing the world record 9, five of which he won in Beijing for Men's 400m Individual Medley Final, Men's 4x100m FreestyleHe Relay Final, Men's 200m Freestyle Final, Men's 200m Butterfly Final and Men's 4x200m Freestyle Relay Final. And he's not done yet!
Later, he'll be competing for the Men's 200m Individual Medley Final and Men's 100m Butterfly Semifinal. Will he be able to get both golds, implying winning in all his events this Olympics? It is very much possible. We'll see. :)
From top to bottom, left to right: Lee Chong Wei (MAS), Yang Wei (CHN), Rafael Nadal (ESP), Li Xiaopeng (CHN), Michael Phelps (USA), Novak Djokovic (SRB), Roger Federer (SUI), Lin Dan (CHN)
Except for the top 3 tennis pros, I've been fortunate to watch them all compete in the Beijing Olympics (on TV, of course). Most of them are not done yet. Hopefully, I'd get to watch them all.
In celebration of its fourth anniversary, Pinoypoets, in partnership with the Filipinas Heritage Library, invites you to OUR LOVE FOR GLOVE DOVES: A Cognitive Poetic Approach to Why We Rhyme the Way We Do by Paolo Manalo, award-winning poet and best-selling author of Jolography.
The lecture will be on August 16, Saturday, 4 PM, to be held at the Filipiniana Section of the Filipinas Heritage Library, Ayala Triangle, Makati City.
For details, please email pinoypoetsgroup@yahoo.com or contact Romel Samson through 09166390640 / 09297853276.
August 7 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - NU vs UP
4 PM - DLSU vs UE
August 9 - Philsports Arena
2 PM - ADU vs UST
4 PM - ADMU vs FEU
August 10 - Philsports Arena
2 PM - UE vs NU
4 PM - UP vs DLSU
August 14 - Philsports Arena
2 PM - FEU vs ADU
4 PM - UST vs ADMU
August 16 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - ADU vs UP
4 PM - DLSU vs FEU
August 17 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - NU vs UST
4 PM - ADMU vs UE
August 21 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - FEU vs NU
4 PM - UE vs UST
August 23 - Philsports Arena
2 PM - NU vs DLSU
4 PM - UST vs FEU
August 24 - Philsports Arena
2 PM - ADMU vs ADU
4 PM - UP vs UE
August 28 - Philsports Arena
2 PM - DLSU vs ADU
4 PM - UP vs ADMU
August 30 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - UE vs ADU
4 PM - UST vs DLSU
August 31 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - ADMU vs NU
4 PM - FEU vs UP
September 4 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - NU vs ADU
4 PM - UE vs FEU
September 6 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - UP vs UST
4 PM - DLSU vs ADMU
September 7 - Cheerdance Competition
i just want to squeeze in this post before i catch a couple of hours of sleep (i still have to go to work in the morning!).
it was the longest men's final. the most amazing tennis match i have ever seen. worth staying up late for! and especially since rafa won!
i'm just so so so happy. rafa finally did it!
 naiyak talaga ako. as in. special mention to my company online during the match. cheers to us, tatit, ben, wabs, francis! woohoo!!!  will post more about this. i intend to, that is. hehe (pic from wimbledon.org)
Season 71 First Round Schedule (since April 30 todate):
July 5 - Araneta Coliseum
1 PM - Opening Ceremonies by the University of the Philippines
2 PM - ADU vs FEU
4 PM - UE vs UST
July 6 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - UP vs NU
4 PM - DLSU vs ADMU
July 10 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - NU vs UE
4 PM - ADMU vs ADU
July 12 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - UP vs UST
4 PM - DLSU vs FEU
July 13 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - ADU vs NU
4 PM - UE vs ADMU
July 17 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - FEU vs UP
4 PM - UST vs DLSU
July 19 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - UP vs ADMU
4 PM - DLSU vs NU
July 20 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - ADU vs UE
4 PM - FEU vs UST
July 24 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - DLSU vs ADU
4 PM - UE vs UP
July 26 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - UP vs DLSU
4 PM - UE vs FEU
July 27 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - ADU vs UST
4 PM - ADMU vs NU
July 31 - Philsports Arena (ULTRA)
2 PM - UST vs NU
4 PM - FEU vs ADMU
August 2 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - ADU vs UP
4 PM - DLSU vs UE
August 3 - Araneta Coliseum
2 PM - NU vs FEU
4 PM - ADMU vs UST
Go Ateneo! One Big Fight! 
| |
woohoo!!! 
you da man!!!
hehehe
