When the songbird sings

Roger Federer finally wins his first Olympic gold, but not in the singles event. He and tennis doubles partner Stanislas Wawrinka beat Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson of Sweden 6-3, 6-4, 6-7, 6-3.

From the LA Times Olympics blog (Emphasis is mine.):

“Fittingly, the gold-medal match was on Federer’s racket. He served at 5-3 of the fourth set, 2 hours 59 minutes into the final. He got it to 40-15, hit a wide serve to Johansson and watched the return float wide. Then he jumped in the air three times like a 10-year-old.

“At the medals ceremony, when they played the Swiss national anthem and Federer and Wawrinka stood on the highest platform, both were clearly on the edge of tears.

“In three tries, Federer, for years the top singles player in the world and the winner of 12 major titles, has failed to win a medal in Olympic singles. Turns out, he was just playing in the wrong event.”

I had been waiting for any of The Fed’s matches to be shown on C/S since the station had an exclusive deal to air the Olympics and was affiliated with/owned by Solar Sports. We needed to upgrade our cable subscription if we wanted to be able to tune in to Solar, and that was an option that I did not even want to consider; it was highway robbery. It turns out that C/S was more interested in airing the useless basketball and boxing matches. Please, C/S, stick with the X-Files and Buffy reruns.

As Irony would have it, when I finally caught a tennis match airing last night (or was that at 3AM this morning?), it was the semis between Nadal and Djokovic. Wedgie boy won. I’m still wondering how the heck Djoker blew that point, (Hello! Drop shot, anyone? Long Pants was miles away at the back of the baseline.) though it was heartbreaking to see him sob on his way out of the stadium. For now, he’d have to be content with a bronze win.

As for the classy player, I hope that this win helps him defend the US Open title, which some analysts say, still won’t help him retain the no. 1 ranking. But hey, a slam is a slam.

This is too cute to not share.

SIDE NOTE:

So, China’s hopes of sweeping all five golds in badminton crumbled when Indonesia won in men’s doubles. I don’t know who’s bringing home the gold in singles, though. Will it still be Lin Dan? ::Yawn:: While I know he outclasses everyone in the field, I’d be happy to see anyone but him (or his mates) bring home the gold. Come on, diversity is exciting. It just might help the sport get more media attention.

“Fedrinka” photos and video from RF.com members. Pic with a collapsing dude from the Olympics site

I don’t understand a single syllable, but what the heck–Peter Gade’s gams look awesome in them short shorts. OK, these are instructional videos, so learn from the pro.

Backhand defense

Forehand cross-court drop

Moving to backhand net

Forehand net shot

If you are a regular player, footwork takes about half of your game. It’s one thing to hit the bird and send it where you want to, but if you can’t bring yourself to that side of the court from where you will send the shuttle back to the opponent, then you’d better have a lot of luck or tricks up your sleeve. Or at least you should know how not to look silly; that’s what I seem most of the time, but I can muster a few excuses.

Yet another Dane, Peter Rasmussen, shows how to glide all over the court. Yeah–he does look like he’s only gliding. I guess it helps to have legs to go way up there. This one’s in English.

Denmark is this year’s happiest country in the world, and I’m guessing that there are reasons aside from “democracy, social equality and peaceful atmosphere” that explain the Danes’ satisfaction with the state of their being. When I grow up, I want to go to Denmark.

So it has been over six weeks since my last post, and even that wasn’t my own. As with most bloggers, there are things that are better left said through other people’s (dead or alive) words or music or poems…whatever. I wanted to put lots of reviews or regurgitate some nice finds other than the Youtube videos, songs, or poems, but it has not been easy to put my thoughts together and turn them even into quasi-intelligent compositions. The juicy bits are in my Multiply which allows for posting of FYEO blog entries. At this point, feel free to run shrieking for your sanity as I make a run-down of what has been done/have happened in the past two months, and it could take you two months to finish reading the long and winding entry.

A post-Philippine summer of sometimes great and oft-times overhyped movies.

Thanks to the Hollywood summer extravaganza of big films and the not-so-unfounded paranoia that movie pirates will spread illegal copies via torrent networks and dibidi bazaars, major films are released on this part of the globe almost always nearly two days head of US weekend showings. When our schedules allowed, one would easily find my sister and I at Greenbelt cinemas on Wednesday or Thursday nights catching late screenings of whatever is a must-see movie of the week.

Iron Man was cool, and half the reason for its success was Robert Downey Jr. Indy IV was so-so. Sex and the City was, just as expected, a blown-up version of the series. It didn’t provide fresh content or ideas even as the story took off from where the series ended four years ago, and for all that it was worth, fashion was the only thing that…sort of…saved the flick if only one could actually wear the clothes. I didn’t notice anyone in NYC wearing anything that resembled the ensemble that the cast strutted in in the movie. Ponders. I love Ed Norton, so no matter how lame the CGI and the fight scenes were whenever he turned into the green giant in Incredible Hulk, I liked the movie. I liked hims so that I always wished he wouldn’t lose it at all.

Hancock was ok. It offers a different twist on the superhero genre, but in the end still fell flat on its backside because no one has an idea of what he really is (okay, an alien, but seriously!), what the we-can’t-be-together-although-we’re-meant-for-each-other complication is about, or the flimsy excuse for the bad ‘tude and poor hygiene. But maybe because it’s just difficult to hate Will Smith and Charlize Theron did better as superhero in this flick than in that MTV-produced flop she starred in a few years ago, so the film’s got some saving grace. Still, thanks to Keiichi, for the movie treat, and I’m still embarrassed about the popcorn-flavored butter.

I missed Narnia-2, so that means I’ll have to wait until the DVD or a decent dibidi copy comes out. I still have to catch Mama Mia and The Dark Knight this week. It’s quite difficult to pass on the chance to see Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan exchange musical notes. Did Colin Firth sing too? That would be like Mr. Darcy serenading…well, Lizzie Bennet’s mom. And don’t start about Heath Ledger’s creepy Joker. I know. He could be creepy with or without Joker’s mask. And Wanted? I don’t want it.

Books!

Good Lord, there’s just no end to my love affair with books, that I kept buying titles even when I have half a dozen others waiting to be read. I’ve read the first three of Twilight saga, and have to say that the first one is the best if you hate the complications of lost love and found again, or of love triangles and feisty suitors who don’t understand the meaning of the word NO. And contrary to what others say, Twilight, the first book, is more Pride and Prejudice than Rome and Juliet. The third one channels parts of Wuthering Heights, and Bella actually read a passage from the book to explain her actions to Edward. If only things would always be solved by quoting from books, maybe this world would be a better place. (But then, there are some books that just do.not.solve.problems.) The fourth title, Breaking Dawn, is coming out on August 2, and at this stage, I don’t care much anymore about what other powers the unconventional vampires in Meyer’s universe have, but what I want to know is whether Bella ends up being “turned” or walks down the aisle with Edward. I’m on Team Edward, by the way.

Sometimes, that’s the beauty of YA fiction–you could just skip to the end. Or wait for the last installment and skip to the last chapter before bothering with the rest of the story.

I also got myself suckered into buying The Host, which is Meyer’s attempt at sci-fi romance. I’m halfway through the book, and I can say that there’s a lot of Pavlovian and Skinner(ian?) conditioning going on in the story which mostly happens in a jazzed up cave somewhere in the middle of an Arizona desert. I’m starting to think that religion also has something to do with the story, although the concept of God is not mentioned anywhere…yet? On the outset, it’s as if humans should be thankful for getting its entire population used as hosts by aliens (as souls) because they’re bad anyway.

Others on the shelf: A Biographer’s Tale by AS Bayatt, Microtrends by Mark J. Penn, The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl, The Thirteenth Tale by Dianne Setterfield, The Physician’s Tale by Ann Benson, and Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath. I’m still halfway through Ian McEwan’s Atonement, Sussanna Clarke’s one-thousand-plus pager Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norris, Philip Pullman’s The Golden Compass, and Jeffrey Euginides’ Middlesex. And then there are other tomes on project management, writing, communication, and how to navigate the corporate jungle which I am too embarrassed to say I’m reading, but because I have to take some refresher.

By the way, I chanced upon a Star Movies showing of the film based on Patrick Suskind’s Perfume some three weeks ago. I remember having major creeps when I read the most “interesting” novel way back in college, and the film wasn’t any different. Ben Whishaw’s Jean Baptiste Grenuouille should be up there with Andy Serkis’ Gollum, and possibly, Heath Ledger’s Joker in the creepiest movie psychos Hall of Fame.

Series and great digital finds

Thanks to the networked world, I have watched the 2008 remake of Sense and Sensibility and the 2006 Jane Eyre miniseries. After watching the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie, the 1995 miniseries was a bit of a disappointment, except for Colin Firth’s Mr. Darcy. If you’re a fangirl of historical romance genre like me, then I highly recommend that you get copies of these series. The orig DVDs are pricey, so be creative in getting copies.

Badminton

I didn’t play badminton for over 8 weeks, thanks to the sudden downpours in the last weeks of May. Instead of hitting birds, I took much comfort instead in flipping through pages of the books I mentioned above. Surprisingly, I enjoyed the break from this sport and even considered hanging up my rackets for good. Maybe tennis would be a better alternative because at least on TV it’s so posh. Or get into some other physical activities, like yoga, boxing, or just sweating out at a gym (eww..dullsville!) But now that the rains had so far abated, I figured it was time to get busy again, pick up my racket and push myself to just try running around the courts like I was pretending to catch a flying something. I joined the BR queueing since the venue was the most convenient place to go to right after work.

What can I say, on the day I started playing, the BR organizers invited me to a dual meet with Prima, and like most not-so-smart decisions I made, I agreed to wear their jersey. I used to join Prima back in summer, but for some reason I just couldn’t warm up to the idea of playing with them regularly. They’re ok, of course, and the people are mostly nice. Also, if you have joined their games for 40 times, you’d get a free badminton bag, and if I remember correctly, a shirt; both have the team’s logo.

As luck would have it, I busted my already creaky shoulder on the first day of practice. I was sluggish, gasping for breath, and had only met my partner on the last practice day before the meet, so predictably, we were slaughtered.

Retail therapy

Geek glasses, shoes, jeans, shirts, bags, grocery…

Tennis

Holy mother of anything grassy! I nearly had a heart attack watching the epic Fed-Rafa showdown. Too bad, Rafa outmuscled and outplayed the Fed. Shit.

So, is the problem that’s been plaguing Fed this year mental? Is he truly human after all? What is mononucleosis? Should I watch Fed’s exhibition games with Borg, JMac, and a yet to be identified but hopefully not Rafa fourth party in Kuala Lumpur in November? (And can I afford it? Why isn’t there a link from the ruddy Axcess home page for the event?) And what’s with Rafa’s tugging at his trousers pedal pushers anyway?

Tennis v. stressful.

(I try not to write about work specifics. Most employers past, present and future have non-disclosure clauses, and I’d rather not ruin my chances. )

I normally hit my bed at 3 AM on weeknights and 5.30AM on weekends. Somehow, tonight, I think I have to sleep earlier than usual. I’ve just consumed my second mug of coffee to no avail. Words wouldn’t come out of my head, I can’t focus and I’m just very very tired. I’ll hold off writing about nerdy bits of my geeky world until tomorrow.

I have been playing in the past 3 Saturdays with “the other group” due to the fact that Titans hasn’t had it’s Saturday games in 6 weeks now. I’m about as sure that the next Saturday games will be canceled again. I don’t think the group is going to survive, given that in spite of a number of people’s request for games, we haven’t had one in over a month. Also, membership in the games have dwindled in the past four months because (1) there was no website and therefore no way to gather its remaining members in one place, and (2) game schedules have been unpredictable. I have had an experience when I went to The Zone only to find out that the games for that Saturday were canceled. After that experience, I have been forced to text the organizers each time I planned to attend the games. I can’t blame the organizers, of course; making court reservations and providing shuttles for the games are already a stretch on their part. Still, something’s gotta be done if the group is to survive for, say, another year.

I really feel sad about Titans, and it feels worse when people ask if the group still exists or if we’d have Saturday games because they want to play, and I can’t give them a 100% yes. I miss the old days too–the friendship (real and imagined), the chika, the out-of-town trips, the gimmicks, the after-games dinners.

For now, I’m playing Thursdays and holidays at BCMI with the Baddicts group, PowerSmash on most Saturdays, Blu Rackets with Headstrong on Mondays. I just got invited to join two badminton groups, so I’m trying one out this Monday at Powersmash and another, which plays at 9PM onwards on Wednesdays, at The Zone. Let’s see where the next few weeks will take this badminton stuff.

Hmmm…somehow being just an ordinary player allows for more options. Maybe we’ll bump into each other again, somehow.

Isang tulog
Isang ngiti
Isang palo
Isang habol
Isang “sana”
Isang nais
Isang linggo
Isang kilig

God, grant me patience for I have none.

This has been one of those days when I didn’t feel like hanging around much with anybody or talking to anyone. Carrying on a conversation took so much effort, proof that not everyday had to be bright and sunshiny, and that I did have my “off” days. I’m tired, sleep-deprived, nauseous, hungry and all I want to do is doze off for 14 straight hours.

* * *

So there was a huge rally along Ayala earlier. I’m not sure if the crowd is still there, and I am not sure either about what they are rallying against. Are they still fighting over Cha-Cha/Con-Ass/People’s Initiative? To be honest, I have practically stopped caring about Philippine politics or whatever political system that our trapos have come up with as long as my so-called constitutional rights are still being upheld, notwithstanding whether I practice them or not (i.e., vote). To me it’s all the same rotten banana and those in power are all the same twats.

* * *

I played badminton with the other group last Saturday. I realized that it had been weeks since I played and that if I didn’t hit the courts last Saturday, I wouldn’t be able to play until after the new year. So in spite of some trepidation, I went to PowerSmash and played good sets with people I had never had matches with when I was still active in that group. It was nice that Mike, Yoyo and Leio from our group were there too.

My badminton group celebrated its 2nd anniversary yesterday with a tournament and dinner at Power Smash Center. I wasn’t too proud that I didn’t get to participate actively in the preparations for yesterday’s activity, but these photos still attest to the fun that everybody had. Kudos to Mike, Cha, Rodel, Toots, Leio, Cris, all our sponsors (Jollibee, Chevron, Globe Telecom, Unilab, AD Vera Advertising, Badminton Asia Magazine, Columbia’s Candies) and the 250 badminton players who participated in the fun-filled event.

Good games, good food and most importantly, good photos friends. Thanks to Chris Haravata for the pics!

Our level’s (C) champions. When I grow up, I want to be as good as they are.

Men’s Level - A champs

And now, for my narcissism

I had the bestest and most awesome badminton partner any girl could have–Eval. Thanks padner! (We were serving le cock to the opponent and hoping that they wouldn’t hit it back to us. But demn! We lost by a point.)

Ang ganda…ng table.

Tom, Rodel and I were obviously hungry and couldn’t wait for the championship match to be over. The other two seemed too sweet to even think about food.

Checking for our match schedules.

Other snaps:

• Congratulations to Chito, Chewy, Bonito, et. al. Check the Pinoy Badminton, Inc. forums. Timog Titans is still around, promise! It’s just that the site went down yesterday.
• Google unveils “Trends” and ventures into social search:
  

  Google unveiled four new products at the company’s press event on Wednesday, May 10, stressing that in spite of other gizmos and services it released in the past few months, the search giant is, after all, focused on search. One of the most interesting products is Trends, which tracks the search popularity of various keywords over specific periods. More at Pandorasquared.

• Send mobile themes (Nokia, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, Panasonic) to your moms. Better yet, join the Myfonethemes affiliate program. Registration is FREE.

(more…)

I missed this one. 2004 Athens Olympics Badminton Men’s Singles Championships.

(Actually, I’m only testing how this googlevideothingamagig works. )