R.I.P. J.D. Salinger

1919-2010.

Now we can go emo like the young kids did after reading "The Catcher in the Rye."

But seriously, time to honor him.

Kobe, The Lakers So Far… And Existence (Tertia Pars)

Return to Reality

With only a little more than thirty games remaining in the regular season. The question now becomes more pertinent: are they going to make number two?

And it is in these times that things are more doubtful. The Lakers have given up the lead to the Cavaliers, with whom they lost all games already. The schedule will strike the other end of the scale, as they will be going on various eight-to-ten day road trips. Kobe still isn't playing a hundred percent, and we can't say that everything will be alright, because, obviously, the team is on the verge of facing its own demons and rebuilding itself as a team. Those are the true woes of the Lakers for this part of the story.

And we need not answer with statistical probabilities, as these are still mere abstracted potencies that do not really show us anything about a genuinely good Lakers game. What we need now are things that are REALLY needed, things that should be evident by now and consistently seen in the following games. And maybe, they could teach us a lesson or two in life.


1.Passion is a must, and it seems that the Lakers have lost this save for Kobe Bryant. They need to keep the flame alive and the constant hunger for the trophy more intense than before. The problem with the Lakers is that they slack off and refuse to squarely handle pressure. They must be aware that all of them play a significant role in the Lakers offense, and once one goes soft, the team would eventually break down. They have to seize all scoring opportunities, shoot less and attack the basket more. Furthermore, the bench should either try keeping the lead or increasing it. A face-down defeat is a huge win, and they must bring it on. Basketball is just about bringing the ball from one side of the court to the other, and making a basket with much intimidation brings out the difference.

2.Maximizing each and every one's skills and capabilities would be important in clinching the crown. The big men should assert their presence in the paint on both sides of the court. For this Lakers team, efficient scoring and tight defense would be the simple key to a huge victory. Never should there be a moment that those in the court should take lightly. Penetrating and drawing fouls have been, I think, what the Lakers missed for the past games this month. And they should already mark the paint with "No Trespassing" by playing inside defense, while focusing sights on the snipers that could shoot the ball from beyond the "arc d'trey." Awareness of skills and situations is a primary concern if they really want to reach the light at the end of this dark tunnel.


3.The right combinations make the right game, and yes, there is such a thing as putting the right people in the court. This calls for the bench to step up and play like the starters do most of the time. Once everyone is able to get the rhythm of the game, shooting and defending would never be a problem. Passes, strong side zones, and the ability to initiate the triangle with varying and switching roles that lead to an easy basket become our own measuring sticks of team chemistry, and if in

4.Give Kobe Bryant some air to breathe. He keeps the team alive in tight situations, but his teammates should, too. Pau and L.O. are the ones that lead the forefront in these times. Once they fall or go soft, then everything is bound to fall apart. They must keep their heads up and learn to play as real big men. Honestly, Drew can't be fully trusted, but now is the time to earn the trust of his teammates on both sides of the court. Ron Artest needs to step up more in terms of offense, and the bench duo of Brown and Farmar should make the most out of their minutes. Remember that the team is as strong as its weakest player (and I mean Ammo and Sasha, but they don't really matter that much… or until Kobe will be out for a few games), so there is a need to go together, to work problems out together, to act as if Kobe Bryant is not the superstar, to go with each other's flow. Once this is done, once each one as a team member achieved the Ubermensch status, this Laker team will not make it in the Finals.

The Lakers still have time left, and these remaining games are not about "just" winning. It is winning… with an attitude, an attitude that kills, devours, and reduces opponents to nothing, a kind of attitude that becomes a part of their very own character that they will bring to the 2010 NBA Finals. And if they were able to end the decade with their second straight trophy, then the basketball prophets who try to make sense of what it means to be a legend might just have succeeded in doing so.

Postscript: Life Is A Laker Game. Play It.



I admit that this is a discussion that is out of the boxes of basketball analysis, but then, my continuous encounter with the current Lakers team brings about a double-binding, towards a synthetic view of two realities that occur to me from within and without. In watching a Lakers game, seeing the box score, or just reading about how the network of Lakers fans comment about the win (with some dissing those who diss the Lakers or Kobe), it seems that this basketball team does not only present itself as a product of history. More than that, it presents itself as a hermeneutical key, that which could be used to interpret and make sense of existence as a whole. It brings together history and existence, and this insight could not just be left alone in the corner of the mind. It must be shared, expressed, and given meaning.

See life as a regular season game, where in every morning that I wake up and start my day, it's just like every regular season game taken seriously. I carry with the present me the past that I have been, the present world I am immersed in, the present circumstances that present themselves to me, and the future that I hope that achieve, a future that might just be as promising as I expect it to be. In each day I find myself living, I find myself preparing for the jump ball, for the ball to be in my hands, and attack my way towards the basket.

In every day I live, I am always situated in the court, like I could never get out of it. And, as complicated as being in the court one can be, life is, as always. I go there with a certain attitude, a kind of mentality in playing my game. I have my own style, my own flow, my own moves. It is up to me to execute one of the three options: shoot, pass, or dribble. I may choose to dribble past life, to overcome the many hands , feet, and faces of the brick walls of problems, to have the courage to drive through them. I may choose to pass, to decenter attention from my self and ask help from my teammates in order to reach my objective. Or I may shoot, to go for the basket, carrying all my strength and determination to covert a score. Whatever I do, it is towards one end: to convert opportunities into achievements, to bring together individual moments and integrate it to this whole called life.

Eventually, I have to get to the other side of the court, to play D, to not let opponents get past me. In me requires strength, toughness, and determination. With all the storms that faze life, one can only do is to prepare and be on guard. And if the opportunity to make something out of it comes up, then come and grab the board, and take another chance of seizing life, to bring the ball to the basket once again.



In the end, it boils down to playing the game. Sometimes, we win and celebrate, but there are times that we lose and feel the need to get over it. But then, what is important is the way one played the game, that each win and loss was a great game from the very start. Ultimately, it is passion that sets everything, much like what would set the Lakers this year. It is that which will bring us to the Finals, and ultimately, to the everyday glories that we long for.

And if we fail? We learn to let be. Learn from the lessons. Move on. Strive to live a better life, never denying it from any opportunity to prove oneself. After all, it is in doing such that defeats become parts of our success after all.

Kobe, the Lakers So Far… And Existence (Secunda Pars)

Figuring Out Kobe

I've seen myself in the early part of the decade hating the Lakers because they've been too much, or too great for everyone else. Especially Kobe Bryant.

Yes, that ball-hogging freak who wants to make a name for himself. The one who has don jersey number eight and acted as if everything depended on him. As if Shaq wasn't there. As if Brian Shaw wasn't there. As if Phil wasn't the coach. Shot after shot after shot (save few lob passes to Shaq), all is Kobe. And we're all saying like, "this kid is too much."


But come the three-peat championship, 2004, and the alleged cases against Kobe, and here we face a problem for the Lakers. With most of the championship and near-championship Lakers gone, Kobe Bryant was then left as a leader of a young team that offers less of a promise and more of a problem. The only one out there who could provide some support is the sub-par inconsistent forward Lamar Odom, who, in a way, knows how to score alongside Bryant. The heartbreaker came early in the season when Rudy Tomjanovich had to resign his post, alongside with Bryant's injury. And what was the result? Nada. No playoff appearance. And in their underdog state, I started becoming a fan of Kobe Bryant, because I want to witness a possible change that could come to him, a kind of conversion from selfish star to excellent teammate. And the next few years became a witness to this grand change, I should say.

The next years seemed to be more promising. Derek Fisher and Phil Jackson were back in the Laker business, in keeping Kobe Bryant happy in the big city. Also, new men came in for the Lakers squad in replace of old ones. But then, 2006 and 2007 were just big disappointments. Probably the closest ones to being success were Kobe's 81 points against the Raptors, setting a new 2nd highest NBA individual score in a game, and the 3-1 advantage of the Lakers over the Phoenix Suns (which, unfortunately, was followed by three straight defeats from Steve Nash and the Suns and deprived of the chance to advance in the playoff tree). After all this, perhaps Bryant's disappointment reached its maximum, with a clear statement before the start of the '07-'08 season: he wants to be traded.


But in what was supposed to be his last year as a Laker, he got perhaps the best gift shipped to him: Pau Gasol. Others judge this as a trade bust for the Memphis Grizzlies, but for L.A., it was a win-win situation: Memphis has been given cap space to develop young talents, and Los Angeles got something to keep Kobe intact: a reliable teammate. From struggling between the fourth and fifth position in the West, the Lakers managed to climb slowly to the top spot and ended with a 57-25 record. However, the upgrade wasn't enough as the Lakers, short of strength in the post and of the presence of Andrew Bynum and Trevor Ariza, lost to the Celtics in six games.


Nobody expected that 2010 will be for them, but most critics speculated that they are the team to beat. They had a complete roster, and, despite a few setbacks, they again landed the top spot in the West. They went through a rough road in the postseason, in search for consistency and team chemistry, and they eventually reached the Finals, beating the Orlando Magic in five games for their fifteenth franchise championship.

Perhaps we could divide the Lakers metanarrative into two phases, setting the Mamba as a focal point. From '02-'05, we have what we call a "Kobe Bryant v1," the ball-hogging scoring machine that everyone loathes, and from '05 to the present age, we have the "Kobe Bryant v2," the Black Mamba that everyone came to look up to and idolize. This is the Kobe Bryant that strived to form a team, to make everyone better by being selfish both in and out of the court. He is the Kobe Bryant who is more than 81 points, more than the three-peat and the fourth, more than the individualistic player that everyone knows.

Then what? He is the epitome of disciplined basketball, of achieving the impossible, and, most importantly, of team leadership. He is the chief now, and with the way he runs the team, the Lakers could reach great heights that was never expected back in 2005.


And this is the Kobe Bryant that I look up to, and he bears a significant mark that transcends all the stats, the awards, and the highlight reels. What I look up to him is his work ethic, the way he carries himself as someone who knows how to treat business as business, with no bull whatsoever. He is not an Allen Iverson or Shaquille O'Neal that grabs the attention of the cameras and the videophones and creates controversy and shallow creativity. Rather, he is the poker face of the NBA, more than determined to enjoy while being very serious, while toppling the different records set in the Association, while constantly sweating his way out, and, most importantly, while establishing himself as a true basketball player worthy of being imitated. Behind it all is a burning bush that speaks "Winning is living."

Sure, we can compare Kobe with MJ, and unquestionably, almost everyone would go for the latter. I myself would, but we now live in different times, where performance comes in a constant flux, and everything has been more competitive than before. And with many different superstars of Kobe's time coming and going, it is he who uniquely stands among the rest. Sure, we can say that LeBron James could soar greater heights, and he could actually lead a championship team. But, unlike LeBron who is the NBA's spoiled kid since '03, Kobe was able to walk his way up the ladder of skill and fame. He underwent a rigorous phase of asserting oneself as a player capable of playing in all kinds of teams, and I believe that the winning Lakers is not the only witness to this. In fact, his '08 Olympic Stint became a witness to the level of immaturity LeBron has and the team performance that Kobe possesses. In fact, LeBron could use a good tip or two from Kobe in order to improve the way he plays with his team.


Of course, other comparisons could be made, and with what I have shown here, there are still a lot to contest. But what I want to stress here is that the superstar that Kobe Bryant has been is not just a product of sheer genetics and multiple scoring feats. More than that, he is the result of hardwork, rigor, discipline, and a continuous rupture of self brought about by the different phases of flux that dawned upon his team. He stood up and proved to the world that to assert oneself, to show success personified, takes real hard work and the ability to adjust to certain circumstances in order to conquer the weaknesses coming from within and without.

To the fool who says Kobe hasn't gone this far, look at the Ubermensch of our time. I do not absolutize Kobe Bryant, but he is one of those who learned to stand up and make a difference in ways possible. He made a player out of Trevor Ariza and Shannon Brown, he scored and passed well in spite of four injuries that hounded him in every game. He knew unselfish play which led to the trophy. He allowed himself to be transformed under the guidance of Phil Jackson. He learned post-up moves at the rather old age (in professional basketball terms) of 31. He was the youngest in his era to grab four rings. All out of sheer determination that carries with it a vision. Now, who wouldn't want to emulate the way this guy works? Who wouldn't want to trudge the great and noble path to greatness?



And we return to the situation at hand, the problem with the Purple and Gold.

Kobe, The Lakers So Far… And Existence (Prima Pars)

Some contend that the problems have already been there, masked behind the speculations that the team of tinseltown has a great chance of getting that trophy back. The signs are there: Kobe, in spite of learning new moves in the post, gets older. Pau Gasol is out with a hamstring injury, and it could follow. And Ron Artest, while being a defensive upgrade for the Lakers, needs to work on speed and field goal efficiency rating to ride the bus to the championships by participating in fastbreak offense.

I do not concur. From the start, the Lakers have still shown themselves as a team still hungry for a championship. As of now, they share the best record (due to a recent loss to Toronto) with the Cleveland Cavaliers, another title contender who is as hungry as they were back in '09. So far, the Lakers, I should say, have been doing their best; however, not the best that they are supposed to be.

Perhaps, the woes have started in early December, when their main gunner Kobe Bryant broke his index finger. Yes, it might just be one injury that could take too long to heal, and one might think that since Kobe broke his pinky and was still able to grab the championship, everything could be alright. Right? Wrong. I think that this has become a turning point in the Lakers' regular season run, and I say this on the following reasons:


1.Those who play basketball, or at the least, who do shooting practices regularly would say that the pinky would be no big problem in shooting. Simply tape it to the ring finger, and you're 80% good to go. On the other hand, injuring the index and middle fingers would also mean injuring your whole shooting hand. Much of the force in shooting would involve the strength of the index finger, as it carries much of the force from the palms to the ball.

2.A hurting hand affects not only shooting, but also gameplay. During games, Bryant's finger was frequently hit, and therefore affects his disposition towards the game. If not for his thirst for the win, Kobe could have opted to sit out and let his teammates do the dirty job of losing. In fact, it was pure determination that saved him and his team. I would not like to go further, but what is important here is the emphasis on how the injury affects the game with Kobe around.

3.Kobe is not just the prime scorer and go-to guy of the Lakers both on and off the floor. He is also the head, that which facilitates gameplay, empowers teammates, and leads all the moves leading to the win (of course, with the direction of coach Phil Jackson). Thus, to have this injury is to be stabbed two times both in the head and in the chest. Not only are the crucial treys and jump shots affected, but also the way how each member would respond to those situations. Before, nobody would doubt that Kobe would make it. But now, each one has to step up and make crucial shots. I see this as a significant development that the Lakers should look upon, as there has to be someone who has to make the final say, to get the W for that game in case it got into a crucial, make-or-break situation, someone has to get the ball and put it down the hoop. In short, the Lakers HAVE TO heavily rely on the others, not just Kobe. And with this injury, I say that this is a serious note to be taken.

I'm not saying all negative. With Kobe partially disabled and "sidelined" in his role, the other Lakers, in one way or another, learned to step up and face the pressure the way Kobe does. So far, the eleven losses that the Lakers had as of now were from +.500 teams (save for a significant few), and by induction and speculation, we could sense that it has serious implications in the next months, most especially in June, where, as I speculate, all plays will be centered on the Mamba as the superstar of the team.


But looking at the other games considered as Lakers "easy-wins," a lot has been made when Kobe sits out and lets his teammates finish the game. Remember the best game of the season, against Dallas, as well as the other bouts with teams that are below .500. Besides the starting squad, I would like to commend three key players from the bench, the first being Shannon Brown for taking up the responsibility of scoring in crucial situations(remember 22 points?), Jordan Farmar for his improving style at the number one spot, and, of course, Lamar Odom, who, after shedding off much pressure as part of the L.A. Big Men Trifecta, began to make big treys and tip-ins that saved the Lakers from losing face. In fact, in the last games of the Lakers, the bench and the bigs hog up the most pluses in team performance. If there was anything significant about Bryant, it would be his key assists and a few thirty-plus points. Andrew Bynum had been very significant, despite some lapses mostly in the D. Gasol tries to bring back his figure after two consecutive hammys, and Odom, though inconsistent, fares up so well that he becomes a threat to the opponent. Indeed, we see here a deep Lakers squad that know how to work on their problems.


In the middle of this big problem comes another wound that the Lakers need to get over with. Double that and you have the current situation. Last Christmas was the greatest heartbreak for all the Lakers fans, as the hopeful repeaters succumbed to a huge 15-point loss against their top competitor, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and to lose to LeBron's squad is nearly tantamount to losing every ounce of hope to come up with number two (though I am not saying that we totally lost hope). Everyone thought that the Lakers were just in pretty bad shape during that game, and everyone expects a home bust at Quicken Loans after two months. But come February, after a game of tit-for-tats and breaking single digit leads, the Lakers again lost to the Cavaliers, leaving an angry Kobe and an anxious team who faces the pressure of securing the trophy for another year.

Face it, there is in fact empirical evidence that the Lakers have faced their formidable foe since the seventies or 2008 (of which I could judge that there are no mismatches without consideration on health or individual game momentum). Number one problem would be LeBron James, who practically owned his defenders, most especially the injured Bryant and Artest. I have to admit that this year, he just plays so well that he was able to carry his team single-handedly, and he poses a threat, a road block to the Lakers.

And from this, everything would follow. The Lakers' bigs were mauled and forced into foul trouble by Anderson Varejao, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and, most importantly, Shaquille O'Neal. In primary school terms, they were totally bullied, not just on the inside, but also on the outside, as shots came one after the other, without any Laker attempt to deflect a shot or raise a hand. Lastly, there are the troublesome shooting trio of Mo Williams, Daniel Gibson, and Anthony Parker. The second game left all Laker fans shocked. There were many instances where the side wings were so much open for threes. Of course, we recognize that as a pertinent weakness of the Strong Side Zone employed by Jackson to avoid passing between LeBron and Shaq, but these call for readjustments in the D. If the Lakers continue to let the Cavs exploit their Achilles' heel, then we have a problem in gunning for the second straight title.

And perhaps, the question of significance would still rise above those problems in gameplay. What is one, two regular season games, anyway? The Finals is what really counts, and the Lakers are still up there in terms of experience and crucial game situations. And what if we lose to the Cavs in the Finals? Kobe is still up and running, Pau will be there, and a stronger L.O. and Ronron emerges. Considering no one leaves or badly gets hurt, then we're still up for '11. Why is this a big deal for Laker fans, and for the team in general?

In answering this question, the big picture comes up and presents itself to us, and these are things which no stat (or some diachronic ones, actually) could ever describe or explain. I think that the hype and tension that everyone, including the fans, are feeling today all revolve around the pressures of holding on with the Lakers and with Kobe Bryant in particular. For what is at stake are things even more than pure basketball, than the raw fun of playing it. Hell, even more than that.

Rather, immortality is on the line, the very fact that the Lakers were already expected to make another record, another big exit to end the decade. Since '02, no one has gotten back-to-back and grandslam championships, and with the most versatile, talented, and highly potential players on the line, the Lakers are set to do what they have done almost eight years ago. The battle is not just about delivering the enemy down to the ground. It's about rising with glory. It's about embodying hubris that doesn't end in tragedy, but rather, in flawless victory, in a victory where the Lakers will be forever sealed in history.

That, I think, is why the world watches Kobe Bryant and his team with eyes that blaze with seriousness and fury as his during the '09 Finals. It seems that everyone put the pressure on L.A. as the top team. Forget Cleveland, forget LeBron. The Purple and Gold is the monolith of basketball that has not yet reached its peak, and in order to really prove this, they have to get their second straight trophy.

That is why every regular season game seems like a Game 7 playoff game. That is why every shot Kobe takes is either that of glory or despair, that the big men post like no other game exists, that injuries have to be seriously taken and remedied. Boys and girls, for this time, it's not just the game that is on the line. It's life, not just of the whole Laker team, but of the world that watches them. That is why the two losses to Cleveland wounded them, as something that mattered most to them, and I can't blame Kobe Bryant from going too furious with what happened. Focus should be returned. Passion should be reignited. Hunger should be recognized once again, a kind of hunger that says "09 isn't enough. There has to be some more." And for a growing team that hasn't realized the destruction it could do, there really has to be some more.

And we could deduce. Each and every game against a potential playoff rival matters most. If not a preview, then it is an ordeal, something that the Purple and Gold have to overcome. They have to rule out, intimidate, and own each and every team. They have to make a statement, to induce fear and trembling. On the other hand, wins and losses come in the way, but they should be seen as moments for growth, of being able to be wounded and shrugged off, in order to let themselves wake up and realize that they are still on the way, that they have to be stronger and drop the adjective "soft" associated with each and every one of them. They have to attack and get it. They have to improve. They have to be the Lakers, the best that they should be.


And perhaps, nothing, or no one, experiences having one's life in the game on the line for the best player of the decade, the master himself, Kobe Bryant.

Hopeful

... that NCC-2 will usher great change in the Philippine Church, along the lines of openness to and active participation of the laity in parish communities, as well as to the larger units (the different Ministries, Religious Orders, and Dioceses) of the Church.

I hope that this will show, as our Department Chairman of the Philosophy Department says, the Church as its best, the bearer of the Spirit in the modern world, and not at its worst, a monolithic unit that closes upon itself and stays within its own sphere.

Oramus pro Ecclesia!

Tips On Surviving A Date Movie... Datelessly.

Some basic things:

1. Never EVER watch on the theaters. DVD will be fine.
2. Be ready with intellectual musings on love.
3. Grab all the critical theorists in your bookshelf, together with a few philosophers like Martin Heidegger, Jean Luc Marion, and your notes on Philosophy of Religion and of the Human Person.
4. Chocolates will do.
5. DON'T CRY.
6. Make an inspiring blog post afterwards.



Cheers.

When Life Was Great… Not On Our Own Terms

I've been to a lot of apostolates of indigenous peoples, but it was only in my immersion program that I was fully able to appreciate what it really means to live in a community where life was really great without the comforts of city life (of course I do confess using Mobile Facebook during the first and last day, but it was a different matter altogether).

Our immersion group was assigned on Sitio Maporak, Zambales. We had to board the bus going to Iba at seven in the morning of Friday. We reached the town at about eleven, took the jeep to the river, and crossed it (with much force, since everyone of us crossed the river as if we had been through a rough foot spa) to reach the peaceful community of Aetas near the mountainside.

Once we reached there, we got assigned to our foster parents. Mine was Tatay Alfredo, a sixty-three-year-old farmer who knows just how to build not just his family, but also the Aeta community. Not only was he able to send his daughters to school as scholars and his sons to different working places, he was able to keep a small farm both in the mountains and in his back-, no, courtyard.

He served us with a lot of veggies freshly picked from his farmlands. As soon as we arrived, we ate sardines on okra and the small, bite-size ampalaya, which has a different bitterness compared to the Manila-exported ampalaya that we have way back in the seminary.

After that, we went outside with his grandsons and granddaughters, headed straight to the river where each and every kid bathed in, picked green Indian mangoes, and had stories until the sun sets. On the first day, we had a total taste of barrio life, which I admit was not totally away from modernity, because before we slept, we had to watch TV Patrol and an episode of "May Bukas Pa," something that most of the mothers and elders in the place were looking forward to.

We woke up early the next day to do "Harvest Moon" work, as we watered the plants in Tatay Alfredo's farm. As we did that, he taught us a bit of Farming 101, telling us that veggies shouldn't be watered everyday, and that veggies would lose the taste of freshness if they will be sprayed with chemicals. We afterwards went to the Elementary School started by the Ateneo. All of us took part in building a simple bench where all our energies were spent on transporting sand, mixing cement, and laying it down, and we did it for the whole morning, while we were thinking of things to do for the community afternoon and playing with the bunch of kids we were with.

Come the community afternoon, where all of us presented, played games, and shared touching stories of being with our foster families. Of course, it was all important, as we were able to take a step back and reflect on our day-old stay in the community. But the most exciting part of the day was that all of us, boys and girls, were able to finally take a bath into the nearby river. We were all there, jumping and wading in joy, as we brought our towels, shirts, soaps, and shampoos and took a bath. All of us had fun playing like kids and cleaning ourselves up in the river, and when it was dark, we came back and rested earlier than usual (while some were still able to gather and tell their own stories).

The next day was basically a day of goodbyes for everyone. After packing our things and having our processing, we already bid farewell to our own foster families. We wholeheartedly thanked them and made our way back home to Manila.

And what did we bring back after this two-day stay in the mountainside? Well, more than the bags of bananas and indian mangoes, there is the experience of the joys and consolations of the simple life, a short length of time when we did not think of everything that concerns the city, most especially the looming concerns about academics. However, I had to admit that, like Father Roque, I was able to have true philosophical insights during my stay in the barrio. Most of us, including myself, admitted that it would be too hard to go back to the city, since the simple life is just too hard to leave, but then, it's time for us to live our life as they live theirs, so inevitably, we have to say goodbye.

And to end this (seemingly unorganized) account of our rich experience, I would like to end with an emphasis on a fact. We were there not to feel that we are lucky to have a modern life. To do that would be to define life" fundamentalistically," on our own terms. Instead, we were there to experience the other, an entirely different world, with a different set of consolations and problems, but that which we could possibly enter. Perhaps helping this community comes as a corollary, for what is important is that we were able to be one with them and fully experience their life.

*Pictures to follow*

Nine of 2009 Music

Like any other year, two thousand and nine seem to be a colorful and controversial year for the music industry as a whole. Here are nine figures of the music industry which gained enough popularity to be remembered as the hallmarks of the music of 2009.

1.Michael Jackson


His death, together with "This Is It," brought everyone back to their early childhood days when imitating the moonwalk would be the coolest thing in the world and the guitar riffs of "Black & White" and "Thriller." Surely, Michael will be remembered forever as the icon of pop.

2.Lady GaGa


Simply put, she is the new Pop Queen of scandal and creativity, mixed together in the universal solvent of music. Not only had she written good songs and did eccentric dances, but she also came up with a performance-level personality on and off the studio (with the enlarged clitoris). Hyperreal, boys. It's all hyperreal, and the Lady is the new Madonna.

3.Taylor Swift


This girl flared up the charts with her top pop songs, "Love Story," "Fifteen," and "You Belong To Me," and she hasn't reached her peak yet. Furthermore, she has enough talent to shake and amuse her audience. Remember the "Thug Story" video she made with T-Pain? Yes, Taylor Swift is still on her way. We just hope that she keeps up with it.

4.blink-182

Out of the plane crash involving the late DJ AM and Travis Barker came the old (and new) Blink-182. Tom DeLounge, Mark Hoppus, and Barker, thought of joining forces once again for the crass immaturity and heavy pop-punk that the whole rock world misses. After touring with pop-punk bands like Fall Out Boy and All Time Low, they're set to complete their next album. Travis, Tom, and Mark, all of us missed you… a lot, and everyone's hoping for new greats and punk hit legends.

5.Lil' Wayne

Tha Carter III hit the stores late '08, but the presence of Lil' Wayne has been greatly felt this '09. With a plethora of potential top singles (like "Lollipop" and "Mrs. Officer") and collaborations (including one from, uh, Pete Wentz), he took over the charts and music news, making 2009 the bling-est year for Weezy. He had his last laugh for 2009 by taking his Gibson in the front stage and releasing a rock album, "Reprise," which shows Wayne's talent beyond rap.

6.Kanye West


The year 2009 would never be remarkable in the music industry without Yeezy, primarily because of his bashing of Taylor Swift right in the stage. But more than that, he's armed with his collaborations, his 808, and the shutter shades that he has made famous. He's had his sorries and reconciliations with Tay, and we expect better things from now on.

7.Electronic Rock and Crunk Core





Said to be just a few of the genres that emerged from the growing communities of scenesters and hipster musicians all across the West, these two genres of rock already has a growing influence on music in general. In 2009, the list overflows, and it continues to grow. In Electronic Rock we see the rise of the synthesizer and the countless rock remixes which come in a package with power-pop and punk song lines and riffs. Here we could add Metro Station, 3OH!3, Owl City, and a lot more. On the other hand, Crunk Core wields the powerful screams and instrumental patterns of post-hardcore combined with hip hop and autotune beats, and what comes out of it are the flooding of MySpace and Buzznet pages with bands like Brokencyde and Blood on the Dance Floor. For 2010, we're going to stay a little longer with them, so enjoy the moment as we bear with it.

8.The cast of "Glee"


The newcomers of the covers department appears not just on iTunes and other download servers. In fact, they're on TV. With thirteen episodes of covers, the fresh singers of Glee is sure to rock the screens with different does of Pop, Rock, and RnB. And of course, don't dare miss the great story.

9.Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, and Selena Gomez


My personal biases wouldn't want these to be put, but I think that objectively, I have to admit that they have entered the pop culture and infected everyone. Hannah Montana's alter ego rose to the charts and even had a movie. Ashley Tisdale seems to show that she's grown up and ready to take over not with her High School Musical tween character, but something more real, rougher and sexier. And Selena Gomez? Credit The Scene for her music.

Hell yeah, a lot to expect this '10.

Think Kobe Inspires? Come Friday and I'll Have My Own Existential Reflection

got this post from forumblueandgold.com . Apparently, this is just one of the millions of people inspired by the work ethic of the greatest basketball player in history (of course, next to Jordan, but his is a different case). I credit my Epistemology class for introducing me to appreciating great rigor.


"And, enjoy the stories.

Kunal: A couple of summers ago during the Kobe trade demand fiasco I learned that he would work out at my school’s gym at UCI early in the mornings. Since I had absolutely nothing to do that summer I started going to the gym at daybreak around 6:30 AM hoping I would be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of him or something.

In the mornings it was just me and some local firefighters, so I figured if Kobe does come he would come around that time. 5 weeks passed and 3 times he was there but I missed him because those were my break days from the gym.

Just when I was about to give up hope it happened. He walked in through the door with two bodyguards/trainers/randoms and went to the squat rack. My heart stopped, I was literally like 6 feet away from my hero, a guy whose work ethic had influenced me in many facets of life. After a few seconds of being paralyzed I tried to act cool and pretend like I wasn’t looking at him, but I would peek over every minute or so just to see if he was still there. I wanted to talk to him or get him to acknowledge me somehow but I was too afraid of messing up his workout and him giving me the death stare. So I lurked around just watching him lift and do some ab work and balancing drills.

Time passes and he is about to leave, before doing so he busts out a few one armed pull ups. I have no idea what came over me but I decided I was going to do them too. So as he walked away I tried it on the same bar, bad idea. I slipped and fell flat on my behind and knocked over a stand of towels next to me. Kobe looks back and laughs and says “Keep at it” and did the head nod thing. He walked out and I probably laid there for a good 5 minutes because I was giddy that Kobe talked to me, and also sore as heck for falling.

I know it is naive to think in this day in age that athletes are role models but even though they are human and exhibit shades of gray like the rest of us they have the ability to inspire greatness. Kobe does that for me, and his words have motivated me since.

DJ-F.L.A.S.H. I’m from Vancouver but went to high school in Victoria, BC, and if you didn’t know, a guy named Steve Nash made his name in Victoria in a school called St. Michael’s, we’d play in their gym and you’d see all these Nash tributes in the rafters etc., why am I telling you all this? Well, everyone with any basketball knowledge on east coast Canada is a Suns “fan”.

The year Nash won his second MVP (I just call it “Kobe’s magical season”, 81pts, 35 ppg, and the shit that’s about to happen next), in my dorm we’d all watched the Suns-Lakers series together, all 50 macho rugby/hockey/basketball/football players in one living room, and I’d get the dirtiest looks from people when I’d cheer a Lakers basket, although I did have one more Laker fan to cheer with, he wasn’t as outgoing as me so I’d get most of the hate (especially when Kobe baptized Nash with that dunk, they kicked me outta the living room after that, suckers).

So it’s game four, by then I have a cast on my ankle because I’d just fractured it in a rugby game (got hit by two 250lb guys from both sides), the only benefit from not being able to walk for 3 months is that the Suns fans didn’t have the heart to kick me out anymore.

With the Lakers down 2 with less than 10 to play, I basically did the Laker’s commentary, that’s if you replace actual commentary with all profanities, so you can imagine what came out of my mouth when Smush got that steal (people use him like a punch line now, but Laker fans never forget the steal), and Kobe made a floater that would make Tony Parker ashamed of himself.
So OT, jumpball, Walton vs Nash, Luke almost tips it out of bounds but Kobe retrieves it, and I could feel the atmosphere in the whole room change in an instant, it’s like everyone in the room was about to be interrogated by Jack Bauer.

Bang! Game winner! Then came my first “defying laws of physics/medicine moment”, ’cause I swear to god I jumped like 40 inches (with the cast on my ankle) to chest bump the only other Laker fan in the room, and we both almost fell on our asses, but we couldn’t stop screaming.

It turns out that one ankle injury led to several back and hip injuries and basically ended my basketball career during my first season with the University of Toronto varsity team, (although I don’t think the chest bump did anything because I jumped off the opposite foot), but whenever I get down on myself for not being able to play anymore, I’d think of that Kobe moment and the biggest smirk will show up on my face, people on the subway look at me like I’m crazy but all I could hear is “final seconds, Bryant for the win, BAAAAAAAAAAANG!!!”

Isolate: Its august 22nd 2007 I’m back home from college for my brother’s wedding two days later. I’m one of 5 brothers and all of us have been Lakers fans for as long as we can remember and in turn HUGE Kobe fans because we’re all fairly young and don’t remember much before the mid to early ‘90’s. It was during the summer which means no Lakers games, so we were up late watching one of the FIBA America tournament games that were held in Las Vegas. When out of nowhere I scrapped all of my plans for my brothers Bachelor party and decided we were all going to pile into a car and drive the 4ish hours to Vegas to see Kobe in person at the game the next night. So the next morning we all piled into the car and headed to Vegas. We never told him exactly what we were doing, just that we were going to Vegas. (You could only imagine what he was thinking). Then when we pulled up the Thomas and Mac center on the UNLV campus he realized what was going on and started jumping up and down like a kid in a candy shop. We walk in and our tickets put us 12 rows behind the U.S.A. bench, close enough to actually hear Kobe, Lebron, Melo, Wade and everyone else talking. It just so happened to be Kobe’s birthday and when he got to the free-throw line for his first FT I looked at my brothers and we all started singing “Happy Birthday” as loud as we could, by the time we actually said “Happy birthday dear Kobe” everyone in the crowd had joined in, when we finished he looked up and winked at us. We’re all between 18-25 and we were all as giddy as kids. Best bachelor party ever!

Brian Q: I got my Bachelor’s degree last summer. It goes without saying that I had a roller-coaster of emotions going through me, between the exultation that I was going to complete something my parents couldn’t, and the jitters that come with upcoming post-grad life. I knew the were years of hard work put into school, and the ups and down with following the Lakers all the time, were coming to a head.

At the same time that our Lakers were making their run in the WC and NBA Finals, I was finishing off classes. With all the talk of Kobe’s incensed determination, I tried using that same fuel to cap off the best quarter grades I had since I started college. To top it all off, the Lakers played Game 5 the same day as my family’s graduation party (for me and other cousins that graduated). All of us were gathered at the TV, and when Kobe started jumping around in the wane of the 4th, it was like we both grew up, broke past that barrier of the past 4, 5 years, and got our degrees. Sharing that moment, even through a TV screen, will be a memory I carry forever.

Jodial: I’ve taken my wife to see the Lakers at Staples twice. The first time was in the spring of 2001, an afternoon game against the Knicks which the Knicks won by a point or two – I remember Fisher missed a shot at the buzzer. Kobe got hurt in the first quarter of that game and left without scoring a point – he went on to miss a bunch of games after that (this was while the team was struggling before they got it together and steamrolled the league in the playoffs).

The second time I took my wife to a Laker game was January 2006, against Toronto. You probably remember what Kobe did in that game. We were sitting about 10 rows back, even with the free throw line in front of the visitors’ bench, watching Kobe drop 55 on the Raptors in the second half from just a few feet away. Still the most amazing athletic performance I’ve ever seen. 0, 81. I tell my wife, “Kobe averages 40 when you go to a game.”

Bree: I have been a Lakers fan my whole life. You know when your little, you like whatever your parents like. Well thank goodness my dads a Lakers fan! Anyways, I would try to watch every game I had access to, so one year, my dad surprised me with Lakers tickets when they came to play the Jazz in Utah. I was so freaking excited to see them and my favorite player Kobe! I asked my dad if we can drive around downtown Salt Lake looking for their hotel and get maybe an autograph or just see him up close. So we found out where they stayed, so when their bus arrived for shoot around, my dad told me to go sit casually in the lobby and maybe see if I can get my jersey signed without any notice from the hotel staff kicking me out. So I was sitting waiting all chill, and all of a sudden Lakers players were coming out of the elevators one by one. Still felt calm but had huge knots in my stomached. Then Shaq came out and I’m like he really is a big dude! But then when I turned my head back to the elevator, Kobe was walking with a team official going over something. I totally froze and couldn’t speak! I was able to stand and I just had my jersey in my hand. And all of a sudden, he stopped and came over to me and said, “would you like me to sign that for ya?” I still couldn’t say anything! So he smiled and took the jersey and signed it. I started to cry like a baby and he looked at me and put his arm around me and padded my back and said, “it’s ok, have a good one!” with a smile and went towards the bus. So then I was able to walk out of the hotel with my jersey in my hand to show my dad and hopefully contain my emotions after my amazing experience. My dad was so happy for me.

Rafael: One day me and my family went to Disneyland and as I walked out of a ride with my daughter I bumped into to Kobe. I was wearing my Laker jacket and he said I had a nice jacket and went his way. This was a really cool moment and just seeing Kobe tower over me was awesome.

Michelle: I grew up watching Kobe and the Lakers. I mean I had the first shoes designed for Kobe, the crazy 8’s. I would think wearing those shoes would give me the talent on the court just like Kobe. I was probably 9 at the time. There are so many memories dealing with Kobe, it’s hard to choose.

It was the 2000 WCF Game 7 against the Portland Trailblazers. That day I had to go to a wedding reception at a restaurant and I was pretty bummed that I was going to miss the game. I mean come on it was Game 7! I’m walking to the restaurant with my family and my cousin stops me and goes “{don’t worry, we brought our mini TV, we just have to get a table with a plug.” We go in there, plug the TV watch the whole game. We had literally the bride and groom and about 50 people including the waiters surrounding the table watching the game. They literally gave me the mic to hold against the speakers so everyone could hear and mind you the TV was so small yet everyone was around it. Then it happens, Kobe does a cross over on Pippen, goes down the middle, and throws an ally-oop to Shaq and the whole room is yelling and screaming. Everyone’s in good cheers, hugging everyone, and the energy was just amazing. Seriously the guests at the reception were hugging the waiters.

Whenever I see that clip of the infamous Kobe-to-Shaq, I think of where I was at and I get a mental picture of everyone’s face when we saw that play. I look at Kobe now and see how much he’s grown to be the best in the league and I’m glad I was able to witness the greatness in the making throughout the years."

In the next days, after my comprehensive exams (which are analogous to NBA Playoffs), I, too, will have my own.

M-V-P! M-V-P!

Jack, me want this shirt. Right now.

Sherlock Holmes

Best viewed after three straight hours of "Left 4 Dead 2"

all about the detective story on a steam-punk setting, action-filled investigations, and Jude Law not scoring on more than one girl for the rest of the film.

Enjoy.

Look Forward To: When In Rome

Nike Air Max Lebron VII

as much as I hate The King, I dig this.

New York Knicks Edition. Sign the deal, 'Bron, and championship COULD be for you

My Oh-Nine

Neither is 2009 a remarkable year nor is it something that does not have any trace of significance. However, I think that there were many things which happened in the last year (as of this hour that I was writing it) which are noteworthy, and these are experiences that served to be a significant part of my life. So for the year in review, I had a recap of nine gems of experience of the year two thousand and nine.

9.Of course, free times were spent like forever, considering the busy junior and senior year that I had. A particular favorite: Rock Band 2. It was the only way that I would bring out all the boiling passion for music and playing drums while looking up to the likes of Travis Barker and Andy Hurley. Can't form a band due to a busy schedule? Easy. Just prepare a few bucks and be the rockstar that you are.

8. The later part of the year was spent on relishing the last moments of college life. Our block went everywhere, ate anything, played all the games, and, most importantly, did philosophy in the most hardcore way possible (Okay, I was quite lying, we were digressing). It was the most important last year of our lives, and we were determined to spend it in the best ways possible.

7.For me, every year is a basketball fan's year, and for me, '09 has been the best year for a fan like me. First off, the Los Angeles Lakers, of which I am a fan of, won their 15th championship, and I consider perhaps as a climax to star Kobe Bryant's meta-narrative which dates back to 2000. The better side of it, though, is the fact that they haven't exhausted their full potential yet. With defensive star Ron Artest in '09's lineup, a back-to-back title is never far. The other one in the winning side of 2009 is my own school's basketball team. The Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles clinched their second straight title in the UAAP, which was followed by another title at the Philippine Collegiate Champions League. Indeed, it is a year of grace for the white-and-blue.

6.High school was the last time I went to a live concert (well, except for my Freshman OrSem), and with Mae & Katy Perry, I was able to bring back the experience of going live. I was with my brother Aaron, Mykee and Mon. Indeed, an awesome lineup of lively performances made charity more fun than ever, as the profits generated were used to offer help to the victims of Ondoy.

5.There are only one in a thousand chances that two siblings get to appear on a single school newspaper page, and me and my brother achieved the feat. While I was the interviewee for the article on my great teacher Fr. Roque Ferriols, SJ, my bro's head became the banner of the Blue Babble Battalion on that page. As soon as I got the copy, I immediately sent it to mom to have it framed.

4.Being a figure for public viewing isn't really my thing. But then, isn't it a rare experience to be featured on television? For me, it is, but as an altar server, that is. I felt honored that I was part of a historical event, to be able to take part in the liturgy for the funeral of the late President Corazon Aquino. More than the small three-to-five second flashes in the idiot box was the fact that I was there in the event itself. Hmm… Probably I will end up at the back of a 2,000 peso bill.

3.It became a running joke among the organization that we are "dorks on parade." But, what kind of org has a special reading room and tambayan at the De La Costa Building. Accredited orgs can own the MVP for all they want, but for the Samahan sa Pilosopiya, we have a sacred space inside the Philosophy Department. As part of the core member of the Samahan, I was one of the guys who put forward projects (i.e. inuman and other social gatherings) and plan on Pilosopo Tasyo, the annual philosophical journal of the Ateneo. What a great honor indeed to be part of the philo family!

2. Lots of time were spent contacting other seminaries, printing t-shirts, and asking Ateneo orgs to perform in our programs. But then, by the end of November, all the efforts were not wasted. The twelve college seminarians of San Jose Seminary, together with their older brothers from the theology, successfully hosted a grand Inter-College Seminary meet of five hundred seminarians. How could anyone be more proud than that? All for God's glory, I say.

1.And of course, the most life-changing moment for me was the time that I got the job as the College Seminary beadle of a turbulent first semester of my senior year. I felt very much honored to lead this small community through the turbulent times, and hard as it might seem, I was able to grow and let others grow. Indeed, I discovered my ability to lead, and at the same time, I learned different attitudes and behavior that have to do with leadership which, I believe, made a better person out of me.

But then, all of this is nothing without the best gift that 2009 brought me, the gift of family and friends. Thank you to everyone for making the recently ended year a great one. As we look forward to 2010, let us altogether hope that things would be better this time around for everyone of us.

RIP The Rev.

"The Reverend" James Owen Sullivan, drummer of the band Avenged Sevenfold (A7X), was found dead last December 28, 2009.

The Palawan Adventure

Too cut it short, just a glimpse of what we have done for the past week. And we go through it day by day.

DAY 1 - 25th of December

Left Manila at around 2:30pm.


Arrived in Puerto Princesa Airport at about 4:30 in the afternoon (with a bit of a turbulent landing out there), and then straight to De Loro to fix our things in our rooms.

We spent the night at Kinabuchs Restaurant and ate a few servings of live wormwood (tamilok). In spite of the pungent smell ('cause we forgot to add vinegar), it was tasty, and you can feel pure protein rushing through your throat, alongside some stuff that the poor little creature digested inside it.




DAY 2


Woke up and had breakfast pretty early, just in time for our first trip.


We were able to go to three out of seven islands of Honda Bay, stopping by from one to another to swim, snorkel, and find beautiful fish.


Dinner was served at KaLui, and it was then that I was able to get a taste of Experience Entrepreneurship. The theme of the restaurant is so native and local, and we even have to take our shoes off to enter the kubo and take a seat in the very low table. Among all the foods we ordered, we really enjoyed sinigang ni kaka, made up of bangus belly, shrimp, and soup mixed with coconut juice. Everyone went home really really full.

DAY 3

Sunday was the usual rest day for us. However, during the evening we went to mass at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral of Puerto Princesa, and took the time off to walk around the city proper. I never thought that in the local tiangge almost everything runs cheap. They'd sell pants and shorts for as low as fifty bucks apiece. Because there's no such thing as a fifty-peso curdoroy shorts, I bought a pair for myself before going home to rest.

DAY 4


Underground River time. We took a two-hour trip to Sabang,swam a bit in the bay, and set off for the other side of the island, to get to the Underground River.


Perhaps in my whole life, this has been the greatest miracle of nature that I have witnessed. We were able to witness 1.5 of almost 10 kilometers of the underground cave, and there were a lot of stalactite formations resembling different figures, from the simple bacon to the "cathedral," the cave's highest point. Undortunately, we were not allowed to go any further beyond 1.5Km, so we went back with loads of pictures and video clips of this huge thing.

We went home as we rode with the waves and the rough road back to our Inn.

DAY 5 and 6

This was considered our rest day, for us to work on some school requirements and help mom out with her dissertation. We stayed in our rooms to sleep and fix our things, going out every now and then to take some trips in the city and explore the hidden places of Puerto Princesa, away from the prying eyes of the foreign tourists and the rest who only want to see the main attractions. We ate at almost any place we can see, from the most simple panciteria to the expensive Nicnocs. We also went around and see how city life has gone in Puerto Princesa, and we were more surprised by the fact that the busiest resorts pay for less than a thousand bucks for their water and electricity, and beach land parcels were sold at a hundred per square meter. Hmmm, I'm thinking of buying for my family a small rest house around here.


DAY 7 - December 31, 2009 - the last day of the second-to-the-last year of the MY decade


We strolled around Palawan's very own Baywalk and had photos alongside the giant Christmas tree. Too bad my parents opted not to go out during that night to watch the program and fireworks at the Baywalk, so we would just stay at the Resort and join in their New Year celebration.

Merienda was spent at one of the Vietnamese restaurants alongside the highway. I ate one whole bowl of Vietnamese rice noodle soup (Chaolong). Worth it, but a little heavy on the stomach, I should say.

Though my brothers just wished to have our new year at home, I did not even think of it. Actually, going to a new year party without anything much to worry about back home seems to me a good idea. We've got everything: us being together as a family, the fireworks, the booze, the videoke, the food, and everything's all right. Yes, this was the first time that we celebrated the new year without the comfort of home, but everything was worth it.

DAY 8
Woke up quite late because of all the festivities in the inn. I spent the day preparing for our trip home, and we left at about five in the afternoon.

Trip to Palawan is 9 out of 10. I wonder what the next would be -- What, mom? Kuala Lumpur? After my graduation? Sure!

The Family Holidays

Christmas with the family is relatively spontaneous; however, my mom and I already have things in mind since October, considering everyone's schedule. Sometimes, things turned out as they were planned, and most of the time, they aren't.

But for this year, it's definitely one good planned Christmas: We're leaving for a trip.

Ever since October, my mom and I, together with my dad, already fished for abroad trips where the family might go: Kuala Lumpur, Macau, and other places. However, we found out that almost all of these were fully booked. Finally, we finally saw the 1-week Palawan trip complete with a house and an itinerary of all the places we will go. Oh yes, Christmas at its best for those who travel a lot like me and my mom.


Consider that an equalizer to all the past three years of celebrating Christmas along SLEX, on our road to Batangas after my Christmas Eve service. Since I served for the Cardinal during the holidays,we would stop over at Starbucks, buy some coffee and treats, eat while telling stories, and then go home, rest, and prepare for Christmas food as we wake up.

Now would be a different case. Possibly, we would eat a sumptuous meal and then prepare for our afternoon flight, and we will be back on the 1st of January 2010.

[From this part on, I write after arriving at Palawan and settling down at an inn.]

Setting all the grand Christmas plans aside, I would like to talk about the little things for Christmas, which appeared to be even more expensive than this one.


First off, we have the Valdez Brothers Christmas wish list. I didn't have anything specific to ask for this year, since I just need the moolah from my aguinaldo.However, Allan, my youngest brother, just asked for a pair of Nike SBs, and I promised to buy him in his birthday come February. Aaron, on the other hand, didn't ask for anything specific, but he did suggest that he expects something not just for Christmas, but also for his birthday.

For my parents, it has always been a different case. Though my mom just wanted us to give our efforts in our studies and work as a Christmas present for her, we gave her brand new pink Crocs for women. Even though she didn't quite like the color and the size is half-inch larger, she gladly accepted it (though my thrifty self could have subscribed to what mom wanted initially). For dad, we just bought him loads of stuff from Divisoria (well, sorry we had to refuse his request of branded goods. He already had too much of it).

And food? A lot would suffice. After the Manila Cathedral mass, we just feasted on three-layered choco mousse, pasta, ham, and chicken nuggets, while watching Van Wilder on Studio 23.

Nothing much here but spend the night with food and treats. Next day was more of preparation day for the family trip.

Up next, my Christmas sentiments and my Palawan trip.