NBA Playoff picks

Here are my playoff picks for the NBA

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/playoffs;_ylt=AjeBUwbp2X9WoUGX7n9D0HO8vLYF

Eastern Conf

(1) Boston vs (8) Atlanta = Boston in 4
(2) Detroit vs (7) Philly = Detroit in 4 (yes, two sweeps)
(3) Orlando vs (6) Toronto = Orlando in 7
(4) Cleveland vs (5) Washington = Cleveland in 7

Western Conference

(1) Lakers vs (8) Denver = Lakers in 6
(2) New Orleans vs (7) Dallas = New Orleans in 6
(3) San Antonio vs Phoenix (6) = San Antonio in 7
(4) Utah vs. (5) Houston = Utah in 5. ( Alston, and Yao injured? I dont think so)

Sean Connery's Finest (Celebrity Jeopardy)

I'll take TheRapists for 200; AnAl bum Covers; The PenIs Mighter than the Sword....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etmHaeaNsCw





Hhaha, these were hilarious skits...

Houston, Toronto, Cleveland, Seattle, Chicago, make deals at trade deadline.

Let's summarize first before we go any further. So many trades at the deadline! I'll have to start with my favorite teams first.

1) Houston gives Bonzi Wells, Mike James to New Orleans and Kirk Snyder to Minnesota. Houston gets Gerald Green, slam dunk champion from a year ago, from Minnesota and Bobby Jackson from New Orleans

For Houston, I think this trade was to give more playing time to Luther Head and Carl Landry. Jackson is close to retiring. Gerald Green has potential but only a high flyer at this point. Houston had to let go its glut of guards

New Orleans got even stronger I think. James and Wells will help them a lot and keep them at the top of the standings

2) Toronto gets Brezec from Detroit for Juan Dixon

Where is Juan going to play with the Raps having Calderon and Ford? Toronto is better off keeping Graham who had been languishing on the bench because of Dixon. This shows more confidence in Graham by trading Dixon. Brezec? He was just a filler for the trade.

3) THE BIG THREE TEAM TRADE

Cleveland gets: Ben Wallace and Joe Smith from Chicago, Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West from Seattle
Cleveland gives: Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden to Chicago. Donyell Marshall, and Ira Newble to Seattle

Seattle gets: practically no one. Newble and Marshall and Adrian Griffin. Rebuiding phase! They also get Barry and Elson from the Spurs. Barry was waived
Seattle gives away: Wally Szczerbiak, Delonte West

Chicago gets: Larry Hughes and Gooden.

Seattle is rebuilding and they got nothing on these trades.

Cleveland finally gets some help for Lebron James and they got so much stronger. Once Varejao gets back, who will be the help on offense for Z in the frontcourt? Wallace and Varejao are no scorers. I guess this is where Smith comes in. They lose a good perimeter defense player in Hughes, rebounding with Gooden. I guess James will take the brunt of the offense now. Wally is an outside shooter that will help but is not a defensive player. West really gives them that point guard they really need and moves Gibson to SG.

By getting Hughes and Gooden, Chicago is in good shape for next season.

4) San Antonio Spurs acquire Kurt Thomas and give away Elson and Barry.

This trade is pretty much meh. You can never go wrong with veterans.

Trades galore part 1

So much movement in the NBA. Part 1. Yesterday there were even more trades!

Gasol --> Lakers


I love Gasol but I am a Kobe hater. I'm still contemplating whether to cheer for them. Maybe for Gasol to do well, but that's it.

Shaq--> Phoenix, Marion --> Heat

He had his first game yesterday. Can't really say much. He needs to play a little bit more. I don't like the trade and I agree with Kenny Smith who said that the Suns window to win is now just two years. One thing is for sure, the Suns will not be one of the best free-throw shooting teams anymore. 3-12 for Shaq in the free throw line. Ouch! He's lucky he's got a good FT shooting team. Maybe it will rub off on him.

Miami got a gem in Marion. Very good player to build around and will do well with Wade. I have to admit though, I am starting to like the trade.

Bibby --> Hawks


The Hawks need someone like him to build on the East playoffs where mediocrity is the name of the game

Webber--> Warriors

Meh, Webber is washed up. Signing won't do much

Kidd--> Dallas


Dallas instantly becomes a contender for a title and will surely get past their upset a season ago. He will lead them far in the playoffs.

Philippines win the Women's World Cup of Golf!

Congratulations to the Philippines winning the 2008 Women's World Cup of Golf on the sterling play of Dorothy Delasin in the last round making 4 straight birdies herself after struggling mightily in the front nine.

Click here for the link to the story and the interview

Woohoo Noypi ako!

It's Christmastime

It's that time again. As you may have noticed, the change in background music to keep in the spirit of the season

Below is an old link to an awesome youtube video. I knew about this two years ago, and now is a good time to bring it up again

Wizards of Winter - House Lights

Bamboo concert

Sunday November 25th - The former frontman of Rivermaya came to Vancouver with his own band called Bamboo. And boy was it an awesome concert! I only had one album of his and that was his first, but I instantly fell in love with his type of music.

You know what the amazing thing is? I thought he would play most songs from his new band, but in fact, most of the songs were from his days at Rivermaya. Everyone loved it as this brought back so many memories for many people.

If I can remember right, here were some of his songs at Rivermaya which he played:

1) Elesi
2) Kisapmata
3) Ulan
4) Hinahanap hanap kita - this has got to be my favorite Rivermaya song of all time!
5) 214 - Another one of my favorites!

His songs from his own band:

1) Noypi (Pinoy Ako)
2) Hallelujah
3) Masaya - Love this song!
4) Mr Clay - another one!

And some which I cannot remember at this moment. Another amazing thing about this concert was that I saw some people who enjoyed the concert who were not even filipino. I could see them grooving and genuinely liking the music, headbanging and all. I noticed they heard Mr Clay which they knew the words by heart and sang it all the way through. His music really crosses continents.

They're coming to Toronto so you guys better not miss them!!!!!

Living Scenery (Richard Simmons)

First time I watched this, I couldn't stop laughing. I still can't now...

Russell Peters

I love this guy!!!!!

Woody takes a swim

This is what you call taking one for the team.

To top it all off, he made 3 consecutive birdies after...

This is not what you think

What starts out as something X rated is really not what you think.

Get your mind off the gutter!!!!

Never ever give up

Some inspirational quotes to live by...

http://www.des.emory.edu/mfp/efficacynotgiveup.html

Paul Potts - an inspirational story

If you want a feel-good story that inspires, look at Paul Potts a contestant in Britain's You Got Talent. Here is a guy with no self-confidence, average-looking, had a hidden talent, and ended up winning the whole thing.

Update: I added the video where Paul Potts was revealed as the winner of the show.




The Semi-final performance where he sang "Time To Say Goodbye". There is also a little spiel of what happened after that first audition.



Here is the final, which he won....


And here is another talented singer. A 6-year old! Connie Talbot. She was a finalist



The revelation of the winner of BGT

Garnett going to the Celtics. Boston instant contenders

Photo courtesy of NBA. Com

OMG. Boston has just become instant contenders again. Like in Gabby's post earlier, both of us used to be big Larry Bird, hence, Celtics fans. I guess this will be one more reason to cheer for them now.

My ranking of favorite teams now goes like this:

1. Houston
2. Toronto
3: Boston

The starting lineup of Boston now consists of:

Ray Allen aka Jesus Shuttlesworth - Great shooter but fast and quick enough to penetrate.

Paul Pierce - an overall good player. There is nothing he doesn't do well. Hadn't had good players around him to make some noise.

Kevin Garnett - Probably the best all around player in the NBA right now. I've had him for my Fantasy Leagues, and he consistently fills up ALL statistics. Not only that, but he is a hard worker, intense and a good example to set for his teammates as if Allen and Pierce cannot do as well a job on their own.

Correction: I included Durant here when he shouldn't. I was confused between the Celtics and the Sonics. Durant is in the Sonics.

I was watching the summer leagues and you guys have to watch for this guy Boston acquired. Jeff Green. He is another rookie that is impressing me a lot in the summer leagues. To have that coming off the bench is a reason why they could let go of Gerald Green, the most recent slam dunk champ. Gerald Green has the potential to be a superstar in this league but Jeff Green is not too bad either. Jeff Green is a very good all around player in the mold of a Paul Pierce.

One word.... WOW.... Celtics are going to rock!

First day

Well it was my first day in a new job as an Assistant Accountant and it went well I thought. There was a lot of work to be done, and what I did today is probably around 10-20% of what I will be doing (invoicing). And you know what? I say bring it on! I tell you, I must be in the right field because it is tedious work but I am really liking it so far. My friend is giving me one month to get sick and tired of it. If it was a bet, I would be a millionaire by now.. hee hee...

The people and the work environment was really nice. I am like Dilbert. I have a cubicle, although unlike Dilbert, my cubicle has a lot of space. I report directly to the Accountant (hence, assistant) and he is a pretty cool guy. So far at least. That is a real good sign.

My cousin brought up a good point. He says that this is a marathon and not a sprint. I'm so used to jobs that required "sprinting". The mindset has to change, and I feel this is more suited to what I want.

In around three weeks, I will get to see the gamut of tasks I have to do everyday and find ways to get every if not most of it done. Until then, I will just keep learning and do my best. That's the only thing I can control - how hard I work and how smart I work at it.

It feels great to have a big rock lifted off my shoulders. Scratch that.... a boulder lifted off my shoulders. Me, an Accountant. Sort of has a nice ring to it don't you think?

I got it!!

Oh man, it has been three days, and I still can't believe it's real. I'm so excited and still on cloud nine right now. I don't think it will really hit me till I start work in my job on the 24th. In case you're wondering, yes I am doing Accounting work. I will know more when I actually get into the job itself, then I can give a little bit more details.

I just can't believe that I was still able to get the job considering my experience. But he was looking for more... someone he could communicate with. My interview seemed more like a conversation and not an interview. There had been some common ground, we both had to deal with close relatives that died because of cancer yet we were able to move on and continue on with life. There was no BS in this interview, and what I said was true. He saw that. WOW is all I can say.

It's funny coz I received the phone call for the job offer after my dad and I were talking about getting an apartment along the Steveston seawall when I get a good paying job. Then I get that phone call. We were both high-fiving each other like we won the basketball championship or something. I was so happy to see how proud he was, but most of all I was in disbelief, I couldn't believe it, was it really happening? Until now, I still can't. I'm still wondering if it's a dream.

I can't thank enough the people that helped me through this and supported me. You know who you are. I have talked to most of you already. Even in some small way, everyone had helped me. No one is left out. That's why I am not naming any names here

My mom is indeed watching over me. Thank you mom. All the hard work, ups and downs, have finally borne some fruit. This is just the start of my career journey. I can't wait!!!!!

So... I got something in the mail a few days ago

My Accounting Diploma, so I guess it's official now.

FYI, I am not going to post it in this blog just for privacy reasons.

Numb By U2/ Paolo Cui - Concrete Kingdom

This song is old but I just came across the video just now and I find it fricking hilarious! I can't believe Edge is subjected to the abuse in the video. Although I would have liked to get licked in the face with those hotties. He was trying so hard to keep a straight face! Lmao.

Anyway, I'll let you guys watch, all the abuses he gets on here... It's also a good song by the way.



I also got the album of Paolo Cui, my cousin, on Itunes entitled "Concrete Kingdom". It's an excellent album to listen to when you're chilling. It's slow, soulful, acoustic-type, R&B type of music. Reminds me of a little bit of John Mayer, and a little bit of slow Dave Matthews

My favorite songs:

1) Clear View
2) Knowing For Nothing
3) Faith in Me
4) Free

Here is his page to sample his songs

http://www.myspace.com/paolocui

3 on 3 Tournament Recap

Warning: Uber long post

BCIT Burnaby BC - If there was a worst day to hold a 3 on 3 basketball tournament, this has got to be it. It was not drizzling but pouring! Yet all games continued on as scheduled. My team didn't advance to the next round and we also lost Aljerau in the first 5 minutes of our first game with a third degree ankle sprain. He was supposed to be one of our key players in our team. Our record for today was 1 Win 3 Losses.

A 1 -3 record would seem like we didn't have a chance but not in this case. Our first game was an aberration as we lost 16-4 (more on that later). 2 of our losses were one point losses, however, losing it on a FT in the 3rd game and a winning shot on the last game.

Rules were pretty much typical 3 on 3 scrimmage games except possession alternates on every made shot. No "make it you take it". Also there are free throws. 1 free throw awarded after 7 fouls and a free throw plus possession awarded after 12 fouls.

Here are the individual recap of the games:

Game 1 = Loss 16-4
We lost Aljerau on the first 2-3 minutes of the game when he went down on a railing and twisted his ankle. He was done for the day and we had to take him to the hospital. He is ok, albeit in a lot of pain.

We lost 16-4 as we were overplayed. Not overmatched, however. We played lackadaisical defense and missed open shots we would normally make. We also made some bad decisions that led to bad turnovers.

Game 2 = Win 16-12
Having Jin play in our next 3 games helped a ton! He wasn't sure if the 3 on 3 tournament was continuing on since it was pouring out so he didn't make it to our first game. Jin is so effective because he is a pest for the opposing team. On top of all that, he has a good medium range game with good speed and quickness to penetrate inside. He was invaluable in Aljerau's absence and played great!!!

In this game, Carlo and Jason were making the shots we missed in the first game. We were leading early but then they caught up towards the end of the game. With our team leading 12-11, I made a crucial 2 pointer that gave us a 3 point cushion. Carlo finished it off with a few free throws plus the winning runner at the end of the game.

Game 3 = Loss 17-16 (OT sudden death)
The team we played against here hadn't lost a game yet at this point so we knew this would be a hard game. Honestly, they weren't as great as I thought they would be, considering the scores of their previous games.

It was a game of runs, and I was the "goat" at the end of the game. We already had 15 fouls at this point and was one of the key reasons why we lost. The opponent made their FT to win the sudden death OT.

What made this loss hard to take was that we had 3 chances of finishing the game. Carlo and Jason missed FTs to end the game in regulation. Come overtime, I was the goat. I was open at the corner for a 2 pointer when Carlo found me after his drive, then the ball slipped out of my hands and went out of bounds. They got possession, I got called for the foul on the block and the opponent made the FT to win the game. I felt there was not a foul and it was a legitimate block. i hurt my back in the process of going for the block :p

Game 4 = Loss 16-15
This was a showboat team. They all thought they were playing for an And1 mixtape it seems, but they werent that great. Jin and Carlo made great penetrations in the lane to make life tough on them. I wasn't much of a factor in this game and so, Jason, Carlo and Jin finished the game off.

Highlight of the day though. With us down 14-13, Carlo made a 2 point heave with a hand in his face from LOOOOOONG distance and made it! That gave us the lead at 15-14. Carlo had a chance to win it but his runner rimmed out. This would have been similar to our Game 2 win had he made it. On the next possession, they got fouled, made the FT to tie it. Then they made the winning shot at the end of the game.. :(

Even though we didn't do as well as we wanted to, I felt that this was actually the first time where we played hard and good enough to win every game but came out short this time. Jin, Aljerau, were good additions to our team from last year's competitions, and we are definitely giving Jin an "extension" next year :)

Now pay up boys ;)

Team Madapakasanatalaga - 3 on 3 tournament

For all you flips out there, it's supposed to read...

Team Madapaka Sana Talaga (I hope you trip.. really)
- it also has a double meaning in English. Think of a filipino saying the word "Madapaka"

Let's see if you guys (non flips especially) can figure it out

So we got 4.5 players. 0.5? That has to be me coz I cannot play on Sunday due to work. We have got 3 players back from last year and we came close to winning, and this time we got an even better team.

Let's see how it goes. Updates on Saturday after the games.