That Time When Kobe Taught Me to Love Defense

Note: this is from the draft of a post I wrote some years ago in a LA Lakers fan community blog, with some slight edits.

In basketball, the defensive aspect of the game is often overlooked by most audience.  It’s just that offense’s elements – like dunks, alley-oops, fadeaways, 3-point shots, killer crossovers, and no-look passes – can easily incite excitement from its observers.  If defense is ever given any attention, it’s mostly on blocking – an incomplete and, sometimes, misleading indicator of good defense.

I love playing defense; I understand its value.  But during my early years of being basketball fan, I lacked the appreciation for it.  Yeah, I encountered stuff that preached the importance of defense with sayings like “Defense wins championships” and such.  But I never really quite fully grasped the idea.  I was also aware that Kobe was one of the best defenders of the league – being a consistent All-Defensive Team selection through the seasons.  But I was numb to that fact, taking it for granted with the same degree of apathy as knowing the fact that he plays for the Lakers.  My awe for his exciting offensive skill-set probably blinded me of his equally impressive defensive capabilities.

Then it all changed because of one game.  It was way back in March 15 (16 in my timezone), 2004 – a regular season game between the LA Lakers and the Orlando Magic; it was one of my most favorite duels between Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady.

First of all, let me establish how I consider T-Mac the closest thing there is (so far) to a Kobe Bryant-clone, hence, I respect him.  He was, like Kobe, an awesome well-rounded offensive player and also had his legendary clutch moments (e.g. 13 points in the last 35 seconds to steal the win from the Spurs).

In this particular game against the Lakers, during the first half, T-Mac single-handedly torched the Lakers.  In comparison, Kobe was quiet in the offense during the first half.

But in the second half, Kobe went to gunslinger mode and shot the lights out of the Magic.  Above that, Kobe took over the defensive assignment of guarding T-Mac and neutralized him.  And it blew. me. away.  That’s the time when something just clicked inside my head which made the fact of Kobe’s awesomeness as a defender dawn on me and made me fully appreciate and comprehend the awesomeness of defense.

The Lakers won that game, with a large part due to Kobe’s brilliant performance in both offense and defense.  It is also worth nothing that Kobe had a shoulder injury at that time, and isn’t completely at his 100%.  He was just that awesome.

From then on, I would fully enjoy Kobe as a defender almost as much as a scorer, and I get to love the defensive aspect of the game.

I understand why defense is not so popular with people.  It’s hard work.  And basketball is supposed to be play, right?  A tomahawk dunk?  That’s fun.  A buzzer-beating three-pointer?  That’s fun.  A behind-the-back assist? That’s fun.  Shadowing your man all game long?  Not at all.  Moreover, it’s unrewarding, as people will tend to remember that one time your man embarrass you with an ankle-breaker rather than those five other times that you made him miss his shot. 

But to those who learned to embrace defense, they find something romantic and thrilling about this underappreciated and grinding facet of the game – that there’s a special kind of satisfaction and achievement to be derived from it as much as in putting the ball through the hoop.  And thanks to that one Kobe Bryant moment, I get to understand that.

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Chain of Thoughts: 2014 Highlights

Time for another late annual recap.  I will just copy last year’sformat.

How I will remember 2014 for:

→ The expression “Boom panes!”

→ I could hear John Legend’s “All of Me” everywhere. 

→ ALS Bucket Challenge.  I didn’t find it fun at all.  Still, I hope it did indeed raise money for that cause though.

→ Loombands.  Now, that was a fad that died pretty quick.

This was a unique and ironic game because whoever plays this game will surely be frustrated by it but won't be able to stop playing.

→ Speaking of fads, there was the widespread addiction on Flappy Birds.  Personally, I didn’t get to play this app game, thankfully.  I did play Zombie Tsunami for a while though.   

→ Oh, and speaking of app games, if I had avoided Candy Crush in 2013 because of its addictiveness, it was in the summer of 2014 that I got to be briefly hooked on it. 

→ Tech support ended for Windows XP.  My five-year old netbook is still on XP. 

→ Speaking of my netbook, in early December, its monitor gave out; the damage was unfixable.  To still use it, I had to remove its monitor and attach a desktop monitor on it.  Fun set up actually.  Anyway, I now seldom use it now since my father gave me his laptop (Thank you so much, Papa!).                

→ The number of TV series titles I’m following significantly bloated in 2014.      

→ I re-discovered the awesomeness of file sharing.  I probably obtained nearly a terabyte worth of games, comics, movies, and TV shows from it.  (One of the probable reasons why I got into – as well as rewatched – a lot of TV series in 2014.)

→ At year end, I had 15 books in “The Pile” – books I bought which I haven’t finished or started reading yet. 

→ I had two trips this year.  In March, we had a mission trip to a leper community in Quezon.   Then in May, we participated in a Youth Camp in Cavite. 

→ I became back-to-back Bible Quiz champion in our church.  It was an awesome feel-good experience.  Best of all, the first prize was a tablet. 

→ I’m not much of an enthusiastic techie, and with a netbook and a smartphone, I found no use with the tab at all for a couple of months.  But then, I realized I could now play Plants vs. Zombies 2 because I now have a tab.  I remembered that I’ve always wanted to play this game ever since its release but wasn’t able to because I had no smartphone or tab.  Later in the year, I would also discover the special delight found in the practicality of an e-book.  So, thanks to the tab, 2014 was the year I finally got into e-book reading.

→ I passed the LET.  Yay. 

→ I had the silver anniversary of my journey towards Eternity (or I had my 25^th birthday, if you didn’t get that).

→ I actually only learned for the first time that the 1989 Batman movie was released in June 23 – the same date I was born!  (Aside from the movie’s silver anniversary, in 2014, it was also the 75^th anniversary of Batman’s first comic book appearance.)

No big deal, really.  Still, it felt kind of awesome sharing the same birthday with the Batman movie.

→ There were a lot of terrific comic book happenings, but probably the most exciting were the return of Peter Parker and the epic “Spider-Verse” event (which I urge Sony to adapt this into film).

→ In manga, Naruto and Kuroko No Basuke ended.  Both aren’t particularly exciting finales.  I’ve already grown tired of Naruto, but out of nerdy obligations, I still saw it through till the end.  And the finale of Kuroko No Basuke had been disappointingly bland and underwhelming.  Hunter X Hunter, after years of hiatus, finally picked the story again, but after a few chapters, went on another indefinite hiatus.  Boo. 

→ After years of providing our province’s electric needs, ALECO (Albay Electric Cooperative) had been taken over by San Miguel Corporation.  It was renamed APEC (Albay Power Energy Corporation), and, I think, for the first time in history, a private company now controls the power in the province of Albay.  During its first year of operation, APEC had earned the ire of the Albayanos.  Throughout most of the year, parts of the province had been plagued by infuriating sets of brownouts due to APEC’s incompetent management; rumored sabotaging by unhappy laid-off employees of ALECO (that has been fired due to their connections with its corrupt administration); presumed maintenance of its electric distributing system (and, maybe, even some overhauls); and, simply, the lack of power supply (the country will be facing a power crisis this 2015).  There was even a lengthy time during May – which had an awfully hot weather – when we didn’t have electricity for several days because APEC wasn’t able to promptly replace the broken components of a substation.  APEC was incapable of solving the crisis at hand by themselves, and it had to take the active help of our provincial governor for it to be addressed.  And despite of all their faults, they had the gall to overcharge their clients.  All of these exasperating things about APEC prompted me to coin the hashtag #APECfail (a pun for “epic fail”, get it?).          

→ Typhoon Glenda hit my hometown in July.  It was a legit destructive typhoon.  There were a lot of damages.  It even brought down my alma mater’s “Centennial Tree” – an iconic acacia tree that had been more than a hundred years old – which was able to withstand even the infamous “Reming” back in ’06, hence, I was a bit shocked when I learned that it was finally felled by a lesser storm.  Post-Glenda, I was actually expecting that we wouldn’t have electricity for about a month minimum.  But I was delightfully surprised (considering APEC’s problems) that it only took five days.  It was God’s grace, since, in many parts of the city and province, it took several weeks – and even months – before they got their power back.   

→ We were, however, spared from Typhoon Ruby in early December, ensuring an enjoyable Christmas since there would be electricity then.

→ There were some noteworthy airplane crashes.  But the most intriguing was definitely the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (MH370) back in March 2014.  In the middle of its scheduled flight from Malaysia to China, less than an hour after its takeoff, the plane disappeared from air traffic controllers’ radar screens.  Up until now, nobody knows what happened – whether it was hijacked, or crashed, or whatever.  It just… vanished.  And despite a multinational investigation and the largest and most expensive search-and-recovery venture in aviation history, there is still no answer – its disappearance still wrapped in Amelia Earheart-scale mystery.  Hence, it was inevitable for this to become another subject that conspiracy theorists can eagerly offer insights on.

→ Aside from the missing MH370, the most notable tragedies this year were the sinking of a South Korean ferry which took 304 lives – mostly students; the Ebola epidemic in West Africa; ISIS terrorizing in Syria and Iraq (in a related matter, I learned that the UN actually put hacks like Lt. Gen. Iqbal Singh Singha in charge of their peacekeeping forces… just sayin’); and Kim Kardashian’s terrifying butt-naked pictorial.

→ Robin Williams passed away.  Well, there were a couple of prominent celebrities that died in 2014.  But Williams’ was probably the only thing that mattered to me.

Goodbye, Genie.  Be free.  (sniff)

→ “The Sony Hacks.”  Sony experienced several attacks by hackers named “Guardians of Peace” (GOP).  GOP released in the Internet several secret and critical information regarding Sony’s upcoming projects as well as copies of some unreleased movies.  Then, later, it was revealed that the likely suspect behind the attacks was North Korea because of their displeasure with “The Interview” – Sony’s comedy movie that ridiculed NoKor dictator, Kim Jong-un.  There were threats that a terrorist attack of “9/11” proportions would happen if Sony released the movie.  To my astonishment, despite Fed reports that such threats are unfounded, Sony actually folded and decided not to release the movie (eventually, Sony opted to release the movie but online).  This was really worth noting and being perplexed about since it’s the first time this happened.  Jimmy Kimmel reacted: "An un-American act of cowardice that validates terrorist actions and sets a terrifying precedent."  I totally agree. If it worked this time, it will definitely be tried again and again! What's stopping the bad guys from moving on and anonymously targeting another movie they don't like? 

→ In probably the most epic casting news ever, Marvel hired the awesome Benedict Cumberbatch to play Dr. Strange!  I’m just crazy for Cumberbatch right now.  The man is extremely talented and charming.  2014 was the year he jumped past Nathan Fillion as my most favorite actor.
→ Warner Bros./DC revealed how Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman will look like.

She hasn't won me over yet.  But at least she bulked up.

→ In one of the most idiotic things in, well, ever, Hello Kitty is officially revealed to be actually NOT a cat but a little girl.  Wait, what?             

→ In relation to their involvement with Janet Lim Napoles and the “pork barrel scam”, senators Revilla, Jinggoy, and Enrile were sent to jail.  Prior to getting jailed, in an attempt to win public sympathy, Revilla did some of the most absurd, hilarious, and shameless gimmicks in the already ridiculous history of Philippine politics.     

→ Vice-President Jejomar Binay’s political enemies in the Senate unearthed some of his dark (no pun intended) secrets when he was still the mayor of Makati City.  The senators had actually provided some compelling accusations, and Binay, in return, didn’t provide a compelling defense at all.  He did challenge Sen. Trillanes to a televised debate, but backed down when the senator accepted (Binay was probably bluffing and didn’t expect Trillanes to bite).

One of the strongest arguments that support the senators’ accusations that surfaced in Facebook is this simple infographic that compares the cost of building the Makati City Hall 2 vs. the building of London’s City Hall. 

→ This year’s hottest government corruption scandal (this is like an annual thing already) is tied between Binay and the discovery that crime lords incarcerated in New Bilibid Prison are living luxuriously like, well, crime lords.  They have first-class accommodations, drugs, money, stripper bars, and Jacuzzis.  And one named Herbert Colanga was even able to nurture a musical career while in prison – and actually found success!    

→ Everyone’s favorite senator, Miriam Defensor Santiago, announced that she has cancer.  Despite of this, she still remained the most entertaining and most prolific senator in the Senate.   

→ Back in August, an MRT train got derailed and rammed into a concrete barrier in which around 36 passengers got injured.  This accident renewed attention on the horrible conditions of MRT.  And while I lamented on the fact that the Philippines still doesn’t have a modern rail system yet, MRT management and DOTC just pointed fingers at each other in whose fault it was.

→ The Philippines filed a case against China in the world court regarding the latter’s invasion of the former’s Scarborough Shoal – and beyond.  The Philippines has a strong case against China, but I’m a bit skeptical that anything will really come out of it.  If China is proven in the wrong (which is quite apparent), I doubt the United Nations will really actively enforce the ruling.  Remember Iraq?  Iraq, under Saddam Hussein, had continually violated UN treaties, but the UN never really made any move – only the US did.

China is still pretending that they lack common sense. 

→ What’s great: Pacquiao earned wins over Timothy Bradley (Mommy D was allegedly casting voodoo curses on Bradley throughout the fight) and Chris Algieri in 2014.  What’s not-so-great: he became a coach-player in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

→ After a 27-game losing streak in a span of two years, the UP Fighting Maroons won a game during UAAP 77 (which the NU Bulldogs won in dramatic fashion).  The team was celebrated as if they had actually won the championship.  The university threw a bonfire party, there were TV guestings, and the UP Chancellor was even quoted of saying, “We have proven that we excel not just in academics” (lolwut?).  I really found it hilarious.  This win would serve as UP’s only win this season as they finished with a 1-13 record. 

→ Despite being eliminated in the first round and a 1-4 record, Team Gilas Pilipinas had an impressive performance in the FIBA World Cup.  There was a lot of hype and excitement.  Then, the team fell flat in the Asian Games.  To be fair, overall, the Philippines sucked in the 2014 Asian Games (1 gold, 3 silvers, and 11 bronzes. Ugh).

Kobe looks amazing in black.  He's the Black Mamba after all.

→ Kobe Bryant finally got to wear a black jersey in a game!  I’ve always wanted an official black Laker jersey (which only happened during 2013-2014 season) and I’ve always wanted to see Kobe play in such jersey (Kobe only played six games in the 2013-2014 season and never had a chance to wear it); it had been long overdue.  Ok, this seems pretty petty.  But, as a Laker fan, there’s not much to rejoice about in 2014  The Lakers completed their most horrible season in history (and are now undergoing what looks to be a worse one).  Spurs won the championship, now tying the Lakers with the most championships of this era.  In the offseason, Pau left the Lakers.   There was a slim chance that LeBron would choose to go to the Lakers, but he instead went back to the Cavs.  And the most exciting Laker thing I had in 2014 was probably Linsanity joining the Lakers.  That’s just sad.
→ WWE had its historic Wrestlemania 30.  And Undertaker lost his match with Brock Lesnar  – destroying his perfect Wrestlemania record.  In my opinion, Vince McMahon’s  decision to let Lesnar be the one to beat the Undertaker in Wrestlemania was a big mistake. 

→ Hoverboards have not been invented in 2014, so there will still be no prevalence of commercial hoverboards in 2015 as Back to the Future II had predicted (bummer).  However, there are some intriguing developments in cybernetics.  A guy named Les Baugh, who had lost his two arms, received two mind-controlled cybernetic arms!  They’re not yet permanent add-ons, but the researchers are optimistic that such technology would soon be.

2014 could have been the dawn of cyborgs!

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Top 10 PC Games I Had Played in My Pre-Teens and Teens

In a past list, I already covered the vintage PC games (which run in Windows ’95) that I played during my childhood.  This time around, I’ll be tackling the favorite games of mine during another period of my life – when I was 11 to 16 years old, late elementary to high school.

     

“Top 10 PC Games I Had Played Which I Even Cut Classes For” could be an alternate title for this list.  I was so into them, that I could cut classes so I can play them.  Ah, those were the days.  It was in Grade 5 when I learned to cut classes so I can instead go play PC games in Internet cafes.  And when I was in high school, I was habitually cutting classes to hang out with my high school gang in the Internet Cafes near my school (and when I mean “near”, I mean hundreds of meters away).  Heck, the name of my high school posse was “Cutting Classes Club.”  Boys will always be full of mischief.  LOL.  Thank God, it never really got too serious enough that put our academics in peril (though we got into some minor troubles with our school nonetheless).

Anyway, these are the games that I was so into that I opt to play them during most of my free time, and often even compelled me to skip classes so I can play them.    

DISCLAIMER: Screenshots are not mine.  I just Googled them.     

10.) TEAM FORTRESS

What makes Team Fortressunique from other first-person shooter PC games from Valve Corporation is that there are different playable classes to choose from.  Each class has a different set of unique skills and weaponry, with each class having different strengths and weaknesses; thus, there is a “rock-paper-scissors” philosophy that players had to consider in choosing what classes to play.   There is a need for a team to find the proper mix of classes, to be as diverse and balanced as best as they can be.  This makes the game’s teamwork aspect more cerebral than Counter-Strike.  Nonetheless, despite having a more sophisticated gameplay, Team Fortress wasn’t nearly as popular in my gaming circles as other first-person shooter games like Half-Lifeor Counter-Strike. 

9.) NBA LIVE

 

NBA 2K, in the present, has emerged as the premier NBA video game series, but back in my time, the NBA Live series was more popular.  If I remember it correctly, I started with NBA Live 2003, and the last version of the game that I got to play was NBA Live2007.  I got to play the NBA Live games in both PC and Playstation but I was more comfortable playing it with the former. 

8.) HALF-LIFE

 

Half-Life is considered by many gamers as one of the greatest games of all time due to its mentally stimulating gameplay and brilliant story.  However, my affection for Half-Life wasn’t due to playing through its mission-narrative, where most of the praise is, but in its free-for-all multiplayer option wherein players battle each other, every man for himself, competing who will get the highest kills and least deaths.  I remembered that we really loved the part wherein a red button can be pushed after a period of time, which will start a countdown for an explosion covering the map, and everybody had to race to the bunker since anybody outside the bunker is automatically killed by the blast.   

7.) BATTLE REALMS

 

Despite the bugs, especially the capability to immediately destroy any structure by just selecting it and pressing “Ctrl+D”, Battle Realms was one of my most favorite strategy game to play back then.  Its Asian theme, the colorful variety of units from the four playable factions/clans (Dragon, Serpent, Wolf, and Lotus), the gorgeous graphics, and the multi-linear story of the mission mightily appealed to me.  It was also the first strategy game I played that I had encountered the concept of “hero”-type units, which is a major reason why this game is so memorable to me. 

      

6.) RAGNAROK! ONLINE

This is the first and only MMORPG (massively multi-player online role-playing game) that I got so engrossed with.  I don’t know what is its status now, but when this game first entered the country, prepaid cards are required to play it.  Hence, this is probably the game that has made me spend the most amount of money, for buying the prepaid cards and for paying for the Internet café sessions to play it.  Still, I really had fun with this game.  It was my first experience with MMORPG that I was greatly fascinated with the concept of maintaining a character in a virtual world.  Also another selling point was its animation style: cute, anime-style characters existing in a stunning 3D environment, which I found very appealing and delightful.  Eventually, after some time, I grew tired of the non-linear, repetitive gameplay, plus the expensive cost of playing it, that I quit Ragnarok! completely.         

 

5.) WARCRAFT III

I had never played the Warcraftgames prior this; Warcraft III was my first encounter with the Warcraft franchise.  From the first time I got to play this game, I loved it right away (beating my two opponents during that first game helped much in making me immediately love the game).  It’s definitely one of the smartest strategy game ever created.  Heck, it’s probably even more complicated than StarCraft.  I adored greatly the fantasy world and mythology that Warcraft IIIestablished (which World of Warcraftis enjoying now), and its story (from the campaigns) blew me away due to its depth, awesome characterizations, and superior narrative. 

Most importantly, Warcraft IIIalso served as the platform for the revolutionary game Defense of the Ancients, popularly known as DOTA, which probably has become more popular than the Warcraft franchise itself. 

4.) COUNTER-STRIKE

 

Counter-Strike was arguably the king of all first-person shooter PC games.  In Counter-Strike, players get to choose whether to play for the “Terrorist” team or “Counter-Terrorist” team.  Each round starts with all players spawning at the same time and having the opportunity to buy weapons and equipment (if they survive the round, these are carried over to the next round).  Each team should accomplish its respective objective (depending on the map) or wipe out all of the opposing team’s members to win a round.

3.) STARCRAFT

 

StarCraft is probably the most successful and most famous real-time strategy game ever created.  Along with Counter-Strike, this game was one of the earliest PC games that became popular.  Its sci-fi concept of three races – Terran, Protoss, and Zerg – competing for dominance in that particular sector of the galaxy was very interesting.  It’s as challenging and stimulating as Warcraft III, but StarCraft is higher in this list since it was my first encounter with the real-time strategy game genre of such scope and versatility.  Prior StarCraft, the only strategy games I was most familiar with were turn-based strategy games and simulation games; Metal Marines was my only real-time strategy game experience, and its gameplay is not even close to the complexity of StarCraft’s gameplay.  Hence, my great fondness for StarCraft.    

2.) STRONGHOLD

 

The economic aspect of real-time strategy games, i.e. the gathering and management of resources, are often merely secondary to its army-building aspect – the former being simply a means to accomplish the latter.  It was in Strongholdthat I first encountered a real-time strategy game in which both aspects are equally exciting and important to the gameplay.  Its “mission” feature even had an economic campaign as well as a military campaign. 

Stronghold is set in during the Medieval period in England, in which as a lord, you have to develop a flourishing economy in your land and at the same time build and maintain a strong military.

The game completely charmed me that even when my peers didn’t get into it, I was satisfied of playing it alone.      

1.) COMMAND & CONQUER: RED ALERT 2

 

It’s not the most sophisticated real-time strategy game around, it’s actually quite simple compared to StarCraft and WarCraft III, but it’s my most favorite for I tremendously enjoyed its simultaneously down-to-earth and wacky premise.  It also had Tanya, who was so hot and badass that she became one of my most favorite fictional female characters ever.  Moreover, most importantly, it was probably the PC game in which I was most good at.  So there. 

I have already written years ago an article solely about RA2, so if you want my more thorough insights about it, just go read that.  

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Chain of Thoughts: 2013 Highlights

Per usual of my yearly reviews, this one is late as well...  

The year 2013, for me, is defined by the following:
→ After three years, went travelling with my family again.

→ “Selfies” and “throwbacks.”  Maybe such practices had already been done prior, but it was in this year that these terms and doings had full-blown, extensive cultural popularity. 

→ Hashtags has been around since Twitter’s boom.  But doing hashtags become more popular and widespread after Facebook integrated hashtags to work in their site. 

→ Psy attempted to replicate the success of “Gangnam Style” with “Gentleman.”  It’s just as catchy, but the “newness” factor is gone, so it’s not that impactful.  

 Psy never got Wolverine to dance it with him this time. 

→ Ylvis led the world in obsessing about what sound a fox makes.  (But everyone who had seen The Fantastic Mr. Fox would have already known that a fox does clicks and whistles.) 

→ Smart Gilas – the Philippines’ men’s basketball team – failed to win the gold during FIBA Asia championship.  But, still, there is a silver lining: as silver medalists, the Philippines finally qualified for the World Cup (this 2014)!  And sweeter still is that Gilas earned the qualifying win over South Korea, the consistent bane of the Philippines in past years’ basketball competitions.  Here’s a quote from one article I read about the context of that basketball match, which perfectly articulates the sentiment: “When it comes to bringing tears to the eyes of Filipino fans, the most dramatic Koreanovelas have nothing on the South Korean national basketball team. South Korea has been responsible for the most pain for the Philippine team when it comes to international basketball. The Philippines has not won against South Korea in a high-level basketball match since the 1985 Asian Basketball Championship.”  Yes. That’s so true. I haven't gotten over the Philippines' bitter loss to South Korea in the 2002 Asian Games; I was watching it live and felt a sharp, numbing heartache when the Koreans got the win after a buzzer-beating gamewinner.  That’s why that I was so ecstatic of Gilas’ victory over Korea.  

 #LabanGilas #Puso #Espanya

→ After Inquirer failed to stand up for Pol Medina, Jr. but instead made him the scapegoat of the whole fracas with St. Scholastica, the Pugad Baboy creator rightfully resigned.  He would then take his cartoon strip to the media web site, Rappler, wherein the strip took on a different formatting: each strip would have three different punchlines and readers can vote which they like the best.  Good job, Pol.    

Pol hit a nerve.  Hmmm.  Implying… guilt?

→ I’m surprised that all it took for Inquirer to drop Pol Medina was this one time.  Pol was merely doing what he has been doing for years: making cartoons.  Cartoons have historically been an honored medium of articulating and spreading thoughts and opinions on issues about society and politics by the use of cleverness and humor.  That's what cartoons are, and Inquirer should have known better.   Heck, in the past, I've read harsher and more cringe-worthy Pugad Baboy strips than this controversial lesbian jibing at St. Scholastica.  So why now?

→ Courtesy of a deodorant brand, there’s going to be a first Filipino in space.  And it’s not me.  I’m envious.  Going up there, seeing the glory of outer space, has been a fantasy of mine since my toddler years. 

→ People were recruited to start a colony on Mars?!  (Hmmm.  Tempting.  There’s a good possibility I’ll choose to go if given the chance.)  Among all of the year’s news, this was what gave me the sweetest thrill.  At last, humanity’s interplanetary expansion is happening. 

→ In my years as a Laker fan, the last season was the worst I’ve ever had.  Everything fell apart. 

And the worst thing that happened was Kobe Bryant’s Achilles injury.  T_T

→ Kobe did have a Wolverine moment and returned from his Achilles injury during this ongoing season.  He played a few games but a knee injury has sidelined him again, hence, we haven’t really had the chance yet to see if Kobe can still play in an elite level consistently.  

→ I have no problem with Dwight Howard’s departure.  I was actually apathetic whether he would stay or not.  But what appalled me a lot was how the Lakers basically begged Howard to stay through billboards.  That’s not the Lakers I know!  Dr. Jerry Buss has made the Lakers into the NBA‘s cream of the crop.  The Lakers is a proud organization that doesn’t bow to anyone.  They do not beg.  Heck, the Lakers didn’t do that to Kobe Bryant, why then do it to someone like Howard?    It baffled and outraged me.  This is a disturbing indication of where this organization is possibly going post-Jerry Buss.

Early in the 2013-2014 season, the Lakers’ box scores were like this.  Awesome rotation. 

→ The Lakers had been doing okay at keeping afloat at the start of the season.   They weren’t title contenders, but they were a lot of fun to watch when everything was clicking.  Everyone was contributing something.  The minute distribution and line-up rotation were delightfully effective.  The Lakers were adopting an eclectic identity.  I was excited.  Then injuries ate them up again.  And started losing a lot.  Now, getting into the playoffs is questionable for the Lakers.    

→ Philippines dominated the international beauty pageant scene.

When she was on Starstruck, she was my bet. 

→ It was an election year.  Same old story.  Tons of unworthy candidates won.  Sensible candidates were routed.  Majority of Filipino voters are fools. 

→ Again, Philippine politics is only good for one thing: entertainment.  And no matter how we pretend we care, as long as the political circus keeps us entertained, we will be too distracted to kindle change.      

→ Janet Lim Napoles.  Pork Barrel Scam.  Sexy, Tanda, Pogi.  “Di ko po alam.”

The most annoying face of 2013.  This or Miley Cyrus’. 

→ Three extensively horrible catastrophes (outside of those induced by the politicians) hit the country.  First, Islamic terrorists turned Zamboanga into an urban war zone for weeks.  Second, a destructive earthquake ravaged Bohol.  Third, and worst, was the massive devastation brought about by the horrifying wrath of typhoon Yolanda (which my hometown, thank God, was spared from) on Tacloban and the entire Samar/Leyte area.  Still, the Filipino people are known for their resilient spirit.  Filipinos will surely bounce back.     

→ To a degree, Manny Pacquiao bounced back from his disappointing 2012 matches.  He was not able to knock out his opponent, but a win is a win.  Pac-Man’s full return to boxing glory is just around the corner.  The next opponent is Timothy Bradley, who was unfairly decided upon by judges as the winner over Pac-Man in their 2012 bout.  Now, winning that one (this coming April 2014) is where real vindication starts.  (And since Mayweather is too big a coward to fight, maybe Pac-Man should try to avenge his loss from Marquez next)       

God bless you, Manny.  And through your triumphs, may God’s glory be magnified.

→ Everything got addicted to “Candy Crush.”   I did not attempt to try it in fear of being a junkie, too.  

→ The Rock, the greatest wrestler ever, found enough time from his Hollywood career to become champion again!  Unfortunately (but not unexpectedly), he lost the tile to John Cena in Wrestlemania. Still, he will always be the “People’s Champion.”  In addition, he is also a “Hollywood Champion” since he was named as the top grossing actor of 2013 (with $1.3 billion dollars earned!).   

→ WWE, finally, after several years of having the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Championship, decided to have just one championship again.  In the unification match, WWE Champion Randy Orton overcame World Heavyweight Champion John Cena to become the first WWE World Heavyweight Champion.    

Randy Orton.  Ultimate champion.  

→ It was a fantastic year for comics, movies, and TV shows.  Lots of awesome stuff. 

→ Superior Spider-Man reigned in 2013 – which provoked me to write at lengths on.  (Thank God, Peter Parker is really returning this coming April)
→ The Avengers had its Golden Anniversary.  In commemoration, Daniel Acuña assembled almost all of the legendary superhero team’s official and honorary members from its 50-year history in an epic poster.  

→ I have this accumulation of books still unread.   It’s just that whenever I see a book that looks interesting, I often give in to the urge of purchasing it for my collection, with the idea that a future opportunity will come for me to finish it.  (That “future opportunity” rarely arrives.)  I call this growing pile of books to read “the Pile.”  And the Pile just keeps on growing taller.  It seems that with every book I finish, two more books are added to the pile.  The year’s notable additions (which I also get to finish reading) to the pile were “The Gun seller” by Hugh Laurie (Yes, that Hugh Laurie, the awesome Dr. House himself), “Odd Hours” by Dean Koontz, “Pirate Latitudes” by Michael Crichton, “Krispos Rising” and “Between the Rivers” by Harry Turtledove, “Warrior” by Donald E. McQuinn, and “The Silmarillion” by J.R.R. Tolkien.
→ This happened:

My first time to have this badass hairstyle. 

→ And last but not the least, 2013 was the start of my attempt to “reboot.”  Still initializing… (Hoping that the rebooting process culminates successfully this 2014.)  

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Chain of Thoughts on My Family's Christmas 2013 Trip

During the Christmas week (Dec 21-30), my family went travelling around Cavite, Laguna, Metro Manila, Baguio, and La Union.  We attended a wedding, had reunions with friends and relatives, went to see the sights, and had the obligatory picture-takings.  Here are some of my notes and insights during the trip:

 - I forgot to bring my sunglasses.  And couldn’t find a new pair that would fit/look good on me during the entire time of our travel.  Its absence was a constant disadvantage to me throughout the trip.

- Nagged a lot about air con buses.  Travelling at night in them is freezing.  That is already uncomfortable, but it also totally enhances every other travelling discomfort a traveler has.

- Food and other products sold in bus “stop-overs” are around 50% (of its reasonable, usual selling price) overpriced.  If I have the mind of a conspiracy theorist, my train of thinking won’t find it hard to find a correlation between the air con buses and the “stop-overs”; air con buses would make their interiors horribly cold on purpose, so that their passengers would be forced to buy overpriced cup noodles or coffee to offset the coldness.  That’s how I see it.

- I find the staff and management of fast food chains in Legazpi friendlier and more efficient than the staff and management of the fast food chains we have encountered during our trip.  Especially in Pacita Complex, San Pedro, Laguna; the KFC branch there almost ruined the Christmas Eve for us.

- Went to Enhanted Kingdom for the first time.  The only available tickets are those for unlimited rides, so we had those.  I rode this bad boy…

…and was so shaken by the experience that I refused to try other rides anymore (4D movie doesn’t count as a ride).  Look.  Throughout my life, I never rode any carnival rides more extreme than the Ferris Wheel.  Thus, I was not used to it.  Also had a headache afterwards.

- It’s still my dream to go to Disneyland someday.   But I’ll probably avoid the extreme rides. 

- Funny how people are willing to pay money so that they can experience terror. 

- Went to Manila Zoo for the first time.  I’ve got the same opinion of it as I have its city: it’s crowded and unimpressive.  It was the first time I saw an elephant and a hippo in person though. 

The elephant was as bored as me.

- Seriously.  Metro Manila’s air is thick with pollution.  And there’s too much traffic and crowds.  I don’t have the patience and the constitution to live in it. 

- Also went to Luneta and Manila Ocean Park (but did not go see any shows) for the first time.  (Also dropped by Mall of Asia [my third time to be there])   

The thing that thrilled me about Manila Ocean Park was there’s a great view of a US Navy ship docked in Manila de Bay.  I feel like a badass.

- Saw this in Luneta:  

The Korean War was arguably the time in which the Filipino military had its shiniest moment in international warfare history.  

- Baguio’s road ambience, taxis (which mostly are large cars like Crosswinds and Innovas), and taxi drivers’ driving greatly reminded me of the anime Initial D.

- The place we stayed in Baguio – Asia Pacific Thelogical Seminary (APTS) – has a more awesome view that Mines View Park. 

 I exaggerate not.

- Baguio is a pretty nice place.  Especially where the trees are rampant (particularly, Camp John Hay).  We checked out all the sites there.

Burnham Park. Only tourist spot in Baguio where we encountered beggars.

Strawberry farm.  Was foggy when we went there.  Fog is a staple there; greatly reminds me of horror films and Silent Hill.

Bell Church.  Seriously, why is there a lot of Chinese temples in our country?  Just shows how significant and deep China influences our country.  Let’s not pretend that we’re going to war with them someday.  Sigh.  Our country is more or less prepared for occupation.  Hmp. 

Mine’s View Park. Very crowded with tourists.  Taking photos with St. Bernards is a trademark in this place.  I was not interested in having a picture taken with a costumed Beethoven, until I saw this dog dressed as an Igorot.  Now, that’s brilliant and adorable.  I just had to have a photo with it.  His name’s “Casper.”  No one there was clever enough to name a St. Bernard “Beethoven.”

The Mansion. According to what I heard, the President is supposed to be spending his vacation there till New Year.

 Clean Comfort Room. You can find this in all tourist spots in Baguio. It seems there are more of these than McDonald’s branches in Baguio.

Botanical Garden. There’s a miniature Golden Gate bridge where you can pretend you are a Kaiju on an onslaught.

And I can’t help but pretend that this is the yellow brick road towards Emerald City. 

 Camp John Hay. This is, hands down, the best part of Baguio.

First thing that came to my mind when I saw the awesome forest sceneries: “Let’s take pictures as if we’re in the Hunger Games!” 

“Ukay-Ukay” at Harrison Road. Tried my hand on it. No luck getting some cool stuff. Just not my thing, maybe.

This Haunted House? It’s President Marcos’ former property, seized by the PCGG.

- Baguio City, though generally refreshing because of the dominant nature presence, is not immune to littering and garbage mismanagement problems.

- There was also some medium to heavy traffic in Baguio when we were there.  This is due to the amount of tourists – many of whom brought their own vehicles with them – coming up to the city at that time of year.  Getting a taxi ride is a hassle, too.   Baguio is probably as crowded in Christmas season as it is during the summer.

- After Baguio, we went to La Union, our last stop. 

After the cool, foggy mountain comes the hot, steamy beach.

- To Kuya Orly, Ate Ana and Kuya Edgar, Kuya Griam, Pastor Rey and Ma’am June, Ate Remy, Pastor Arlan and Family, Kuya Oca and Ate Pressy, and the entire Trinity Gospel Church – San Fernando: my family is greatly thankful for your loving hearts, as you graciously served as our hosts, tour guides, and/or liaisons that made our trip a truly blessed one.  May God bless you greatly for your generosity and thoughtfulness. 

- “Home is where the heart is.”  That is so true.  Was so restless to go back home.  So restless to go back to my heart.     

For more photos of the trip, check them out in “My Photos”; these memories are now part of my life in pictures… 

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