Missing Moro

I held a basketball for the first time after nine long months. I went through some shooting drills at the Moro Lorenzo gym this morning hoping to get a feel of what's it like playing ball again. I haven't held a ball since tearing my ACL in a game last September.

My knee held up pretty well considering I haven't gone to rehab since recovering from surgery. My lateral movement was fine, and I was able to make quick cuts too. The only thing I was afraid on trying was jumping on full potential. I just didn't want to risk a bad fall.

I'll be spending the next eight weeks doing rehab so hopefully I can be back on the court by July.

The world awaited

When the dust settled, it was the Pretty Boy over the Golden Boy.

Floyd Mayweather Jr scored a split decision win against Oscar Dela Hoya in their Saturday night (Sunday morning) fight in Las Vegas. This ends weeks of jawing and taunting between the two superstars.

With the very successful turnout of the bout, I think it's clear that there should be a rematch. Despite both saying that this may have been their swan song, the potential hefty payday for both fighters is just too much to ignore.

Spiderman 3

I watched Spiderman 3 earlier today at Greenbelt 3's MyCinema courtesy of a colleague. She invited us to her cousin's birthday party which consisted of a private screening of the film, dinner and dessert at Capricciosa and Cold Rock respectively.

The film was okay, nothing spectacular in my opinion. There was one thing that annoyed me though. I just didn't like it having too many subplots. You watch movies to get entertained, not to work your mind out.

I hope this is the last of the series. Having another installment doesn't sound very appealing to me.

Can you believe it?

The eight-seeded Golden State Warriors finished off the top-seeded Dallas Maverick with a convincing 111-86 rout to capture their best-of-seven first round series, 4 games to 2.

Having been under the shadow of its more popular in-state rivals (LA Lakes, LA Clippers, Sacramento Kings), the Warriors are now California's finest.

How do you gauge a professional sports team's popularity? When celebs troop to the games and watch. On hand during Golden State's playoff run are Jessica Alba, Owen Wilson, Kate Hudson, Snoop Dogg and Woody Harrelson among others.

Photos courtesy of AP and Getty Images.

Rehabbing

After five months, I finally went to my first post-op rehab session. I was able to sneak some time off work yesterday afternoon to go to Medical City and see my doctor. He said that while my leg strength is remarkable, it lacks muscle endurance and it will get easily tired. The biggest thing was that he thinks that I'll never get my full ROM back as there has been a pretty long lull between my surgery and rehab. There is very little chance that my knee will get to the ideal flexion and extension range.

Regardless, he thinks I should be fine. The next 8-10 weeks will be spent in the gym doing rehab work. Hope it turns out good.

Battle-ready OG

Baron Davis sure knows how to prepare for war.

BDiddy is pimpin'. Straight-up gangsta.

These being said, his Golden State Warriors lead the top-seeded Dallas Mavericks, 3-1, in their best-of-seven first round series.

Pic taken from The Basketball Jones

Cell change

I've been comtemplating getting a new phone for the past months. I finally got one last night.

My early choices were:

Dopod 838 Pro: easily the hands-down winner, but it was just too expensive.
Treo 680: : Not-so-good reviews.
BlackBerry 8800: : Kick-ass phone, but useless if I won't use the push-email technology. No camera though.
Nokia E61: : Excellent reviews, and it's a Nokia. No camera as well.


Then they released the Nokia E61i recently. It's basically the E61 on steroids, with a 2mp camera to boot. It was a no-brainer. I just had to get one.

Road-tripped

Went to Calatagan yesterday to facilitate another strategic planning session. It was such a long road trip, that we had to cut short the program due to pure exhaustion. Most of the participants haven't had rest so we felt it was better to take it easy and postpone some of the activities. The trip back to Manila was worse. Traffic was bad from Batangas to Tagaytay. I was out cold the moment I got home.

Trip to Calatagan: 3.5 hours
Actuall Planning session including breaks: 3 hours
Trip back to Manila: 4.5 hours

Not exactly one of my better days.

Mid-shifting

I went on midshift today. And it seems fun.

I'm liking this shift cause I don't have to get up early. And since I'll stay late anyway even on normal schedule, I might as well lobby for this.

Of course, it will never see the light of day. Just wishful thinking on my end.

Offsite stress

I was totally drained out yesterday. I spent the more than 12 hours offsite at the Daksh office in PBCom Tower as part of the Daksh-IBS transition. We're pulling out our P&G and Kodak Tier 1 operations from Daksh and consolidating it within our own Contact Center group. We were running the formal offers for the Daksh employees who will be affected by move. Those who accept the offers will be absorbed by IBS, their tenures retained.

So far, we're at about 63% acceptance. Not bad.

On meetings...

I went to a meeting that I wasn't even supposed to attend. Heck I wasn't even invited. I just had a simple question that needed an immediate answer. And the best resource people were part of the meeting.

Two-and-a-half hours later, I step out of the meeting with no clear response to my question. Apparently, it wasn't so simple at all.

Unearthly A-Rod

Through April 21st (15 games played)... this is Alex Rodriguez's stats:

Avg: .372 HR: 12 RBI: 30

- Two walk-off homeruns (1 grand slam, 1 three-run)
- Has hit successfully on all games
- leads the majors in HR, RBI, and total bases.

Dude killing it early in the season. I hope he murders the rest of the way.

Bleeding Carolina Blue

I came across this inspiring story while going over the AOL Sports Blog site.


http://www.aolsportsblog.com/2007/04/19/unc-mascots-death-gives-nj-man-life/

UNC Mascot's Death Gives NJ Man Life

Posted Apr 19th 2007 7:05AM by Sportz Assassin. Filed under: North Carolina Basketball, ACC Basketball, Carolina

By now, most of you know the sad story of University of North Carolina mascot Jason Ray, who died three days after being struck by an SUV in northern New Jersey. Rest assured that while his passing was a very sad story ... everything else about Ray is a happy tale.

The kid who was full of life decided to help others get a second chance at one. Ray was an organ donor and his organs have already come to great use. The Press of Atlantic City share a remarkable story of a New Jersey man who's life was saved because Ray was a donor. Dennis Korzelius, 43, was married just two months before being told that his liver was failing and he was certain to die. Not, may or could die ... he was already preparing for his death.

Ray's death made another liver available to the long list of people needing one. Korzelius was 2nd on the list, and was called to come to the hospital immediately because the top person on the list probably wasn't going to live long enough to receive the liver [in an ironic twist, the top person was from the Georgetown section of Washington. The Tar Heels lost to Georgetown the night before Ray died]. The man from Georgetown passed away and Korzelius can get Ray's liver.

Dennis Korzelius used to hate basketball. He would rather have watched ice hockey or ride his Harley-Davidson motorcyle instead of taking in a game of hoops. But Korzelius said that changed when doctors told him his life was saved by a 21-year-old who bled "Carolina Blue."
Now Korzelius said he will have "Carolina Blue" pumping through his veins for the rest of his life. Ray's other organs have, no doubt, saved numerous other lives.

Donations to the "Jason Kendall Ray Memorial Fund" can be sent in care of Concord Christian Church to 3101 Davidson Highway, Concord, NC.

Krazy Korean

Virginia Tech mass murderer Cho Seung-Hui mailed NBC a package in between the two shooting incidents on campus. Officials said the package contained a rambling and often-incoherent, 1,800-word video manifesto, plus 43 photos, 11 of them showing him aiming handguns at the camera.

Some excerpts:

"You had a hundred billion chances and ways to have avoided today, but you decided to spill my blood. You forced me into a corner and gave me only one option. The decision was yours. Now you have blood on your hands that will never wash off."

"You have vandalized my heart, raped my soul and torched my conscience. You thought it was one pathetic boy's life you were extinguishing. Thanks to you, I die like Jesus Christ, to inspire generations of the weak and the defenseless people."

"Your Mercedes wasn't enough, you brats. Your golden necklaces weren't enough, you snobs. Your trust funds wasn't enough. Your vodka and cognac wasn't enough. All your debaucheries weren't enough. Those weren't enough to fulfill your hedonistic needs. You had everything."

---------

This is one deranged person psycho. Imagine the motherfucker comparing himself to Jesus. What an asshole.

He should've shot it out with the police instead of doing the most cowardly act of killing himself. He ain't got balls. Got no sympathy for him nor his family.

We are all Hokies fans

Having been a North Carolina fan for most of my life, I've seen many UNC-VT games over the past years albeit via television. Naturally, I was always rooting for the Tar Heels.

For now, it's time to drop the affiliations and what-not. I feel for those 32 innocent people who were killed by a Korean student during a shooting spree at the Virginia Tech campus a few days ago. May they all rest in peace.

As a result, I think there will be some form of racial backlash or prejudice towards Koreans. I doubt it will be major, but I'm sure it will induce some isolated incidents.

Go Hokies!

Another day at the office

It's been a crisis-management-and-conflict-resolution-filled week.

God, I love this job.

For real.

Pacman KO

As expected, most pinoys are going gaga over Manny Pacquiao's win over Mexican challenger Jorge Solis.

Bullcrap. I'm unimpressed. Yes, Manny scored a knockout. Yes, Solis was previously undefeated. But it was a whitewash from the time they signed the fight contract. Everyone, including Manny, expected nothing but a Pacman victory. Hell, I foresaw an early round stoppage.

As Freddy Roach said, Manny gets a barely passing mark - a 5 out of 10.

Next time, I hope he fights a real contender. Not some average dude who racks up wins going against nobodies.

Pearl-driven

Just came home from a successful strategic planning session with the Madeira Pearl group at the Linden Suites in Ortigas. More than three-fourths of the team were relatively new so the turnout was great. There was excellent participation and interaction among everyone. I enjoy facilitating a rookie crowd as against a set of veteran employees primarily because you can see the dedication and commitment in their eyes. It's something that escapes the more senior IBMers.

They have an outstanding team at the F&A delivery. I wish for nothing but their continued success.

Holy-days

Can't believe I actually missed work. The 5-day weekend was just too much. It was boredom at its finest.

I tried logging on to the IBM network over the weekend. Lo and behold, my AT&T connection wasn't working. No access to Sametime and replication. I think the IBM VPN was on holy week break too. Not sure if that was good news or bad since I was so bored I wanted to get work done.

Obviously, I couldn't.

A-Rod gets back at critics

Maligned for not being clutch since he joined the Yankees a few years ago, Alex Rodriguez showed everyone why he is baseball's highest paid player.

Bottom of the ninth. New York down 6-7. Bases loaded. Two outs. Two strikes. A-Rod hits a line drive over deep center. Walk-off grand slam homerun. Yankees 10, Orioles 7.

New York is lovin' A-Rod. For now, at least.

See full story below.

NY Yankees 10, Baltimore 7

By RONALD BLUM, AP Baseball WriterApril 7, 2007
AP - Apr 7, 5:17 pm EDT

NEW YORK (AP) -- Alex Rodriguez turned Kei Igawa's forgettable debut into a day he'll long
remember.

Bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, two outs and the Yankees trailing by a run. Just the type of pressure situation Rodriguez failed at during the last two Octobers. Nearly the same circumstances as two nights earlier, when he popped out and tossed his bat to the ground in
disgust.

"There's no way out," manager Joe Torre said. "There it is: You either produce, or you're going to read about yourself again."

This time was different. This time, A-Rod wound up getting shoved back onto the field by Derek
Jeter for a curtain call.

Down to his last strike, Rodriguez came through in the most dramatic way, sending a soaring drive into the center-field bleachers, Yankee Stadium's famed black seats. His grand slam off Chris Ray, A-Rod's second home run Saturday, gave the Yankees a memorable 10-7 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.

"It felt awesome," Rodriguez said in the clubhouse, still smiling, the ball perched on a shelf in his locker. "I was so excited, I felt like a fool running around the bases, like it was Little
League." New York fell behind by five runs early, and Igawa left after five mediocre innings with a 7-3 deficit. Dice-K he wasn't.

Jason Giambi hit a three-run homer in the eighth off Danys Baez to get the Yankees close. But Ray (0-1) got the first two outs of the ninth.

"Somehow, I knew it was going to come to down to me. Even with two outs and nobody on," Rodriguez said. "Somehow or another, it always ends up with me somewhere."

Robinson Cano singled, Derek Jeter walked and Bobby Abreu was hit on a knee by a pitch.
Rodriguez then connected on a 1-2 fastball. As soon as he hit it, he knew it was gone, and what
remained of a crowd announced at 50,510 on a 39-degree afternoon went wild.

On Thursday, he popped out with two outs and the bases loaded in the eighth inning of a 7-6 loss to Tampa Bay.

It's something about New York, that I love it here," Rodriguez said. "There's just energy. It's crazy, one way or another. Every night is always exciting."

A-Rod arrived at spring training, admitted after several years of denials that he and Jeter no longer were best buddies and has seemed more relaxed than during his first three seasons with the Yankees. He can't erase going 4-for-41 (.098) without an RBI in his last 12 playoff games
dating to 2004 and was dropped to eighth in the batting order in last year's final game, but carrying New York to big regular-season wins would be a start to putting past failures behind. He was 3-for-4 with six RBIs Saturday, hitting a two-run homer and doubling, and is batting .389 with three homers and nine RBIs.

Fans wanted a curtain call, and Jeter took the initiative to make sure A-Rod gave them one.
"We needed that," Jeter said. "We didn't want to waste another game."

Rodriguez has 14 slams and three of them ended games, tying the major league mark shared by Vern Stephens (1946, 1949, 1950) and Cy Williams (1924 and twice in 1926).

"He's a big key to this team," said Giambi, who last year criticized Rodriguez for not getting enough big hits. "We are definitely rooting for him. There is not a situation where we want him to do bad. We want him to do great."

Mariano Rivera (1-0) pitched a one-hit ninth, completing four shutout innings for New York's bullpen. Yankees starters have allowed 22 runs -- 19 earned -- and 28 hits in 17 1-3 innings for a 9.87 ERA.

Igawa was the fourth flop in a row for the rotation. Two days after Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched seven dominating innings to win his debut for the Boston Red Sox, Igawa started hearing boos after his 12th batter. He failed to string together a 1-2-3 inning and gave up seven runs, eight hits, three walks, a hit batter and two home runs, a performance that left him with a
12.60 ERA.

"Please don't compare me to Matsuzaka," he said through a translator, "but as a Japanese, I have to do my job."

His fastball, clocked from 89-91 mph, was the only pitch he consistently threw for a strike. Nick
Markakis hit an opposite-field homer into the left-field seats in the first. Melvin
Mora, who tied a career high with five RBIs, had a three-run double in the second after the 26-year-old left-hander walked Brian Roberts with the bases loaded.

Igawa bobbled Markakis' nubber in front on the mound for an error, fans started booing. The jeers were louder when Mora added a two-run homer in the fourth for a 7-2 lead.
"He threw funky, but he had a pretty good fastball," Mora said. "Maybe today was not one of his better days."

Baltimore, which had been hoping for its first 2-0 start at Yankee Stadium since 1997, was understandably depressed. Ray said he left the fastball to A-Rod up.

"He just looked like he was trying to overthrow to me," Orioles manager Sam Perlozzo said. "He was rushing his delivery."

New York evened its record at 2-2 and avoided what would have been a three-game losing streak, an unacceptable skid at any time of the season. Having heard the boos, A-Rod embraced the cheers.

"I'm doing the best I can to enjoy the game," he said. "I'm in a good place."

Notes
Hideki Matsui strained his left hamstring running out a second-inning grounder and left in the fourth. Torre said he probably wouldn't play until Friday in Oakland. Johnny Damon still recovering from a strained right calf, pinch hit in the eighth and struck out, then went to center. Steve Trachsel, making his debut with the Orioles after six seasons with the New York Mets, gave up four hits in 6 2-3 innings, allowing his only runs on A-Rod's first homer and Jorge
Posada's RBI single in the fourth.

Updated on Saturday, Apr 7, 2007 8:18 pm EDT

Rosie

Rosie O'Donnell is plain trash. She's one fat, ugly and insane bitch. She's again trying to create controversy with her outrageous comments on 9/11 and the British sailors who are held captive in Iran. I don't understand why she's even a host on ABC's The View. The bitch is baloney.

I hope the Donald buys her out of this universe.

Gator-raid

Congratulations to the Florida Gators. 2007 NCAA Men's Basketball Champions. Two in a row. Back-to-back.

Props to the three juniors who sacrificed guaranteed NBA money to go back to school. Al Horford. Corey Brewer. Joakim Noah. They have nothing left to prove now. Go ahead and get rich in the big league.

----------

On a side note, the North Carolina will probably be the consensus top seed next season barring any early departures. There are no McD's All-Americans coming in but they still have a very stacked roster. Pretty much anyone in the Tar Heels lineup can start in most D-I schools. They're looking fantastic for next season.

Thank you, WFM

I was at the Supply Chain Team strat plan yesterday at the Edsa Shangri-La hotel. WFM was moved out of HR last year, and was subsequently realigned to the bigger Supply Chain group (with Procurement, RESO, Security and Business Center).

It was probably my last formal team activity with my former teammates as well. By April 1st, I will have almost fully disengaged myself with recruitment already. From the looks of it, the plans and initiatives of the group seems promising. I know they have a lot of challenges to face, and I wish them the best of luck.

They have the power to make things happen this year. I hope they are able to deliver.

Bracket Busted

I had the University of North Carolina Tar Heels winning it all this season.

But the Georgetown Univeristy Hoyas had other things in mind. The underdogs pounded a 96-84 overtime win over the fancied Tar Heels, booking their ticket to the Final Four in Atlanta. Carolina seeming had the game wrapped up in the second half but an improbable collapse led a stunning Georgetown rally.

The Heels were arguably the most talented team in America, with their roster going 12-deep. But this group was made up by mostly underclassmen and this loss will undoubtedly raise their maturity level and fuel their fire for next year. Hopefully, only the seniors will be gone and everyone else will come back.

P&G at CME

The P&G account had a very successful strategic planning workshop earlier today at Club Manila East. There was a lot of collaboration and participation between all employees, regardless of role or level. Hopefully, this is a sign of greater things to come for the account this 2007.

Props to the P&G Stratplan committee for a job well done. Most of all, thank you to everyone who sacrificed their Sunday to support the event and be with the rest of the group.

Sweet Sixteen victory

The UNC Tar Heels move on to the Elite Eight as they used a big second half run to roll over the weary USC Trojans, 74-64, in their Sweet Sixteen matchup.

Freshman phenom Brandan Wright led the way with 21 points and 9 rebounds. Tar Heel best player and All-American sophomore Tyler Hansbrough had an off-night and finished with 5 points. He averaged 27 point during the first two rounds.

The Heels meet the Georgetown Hoyas in the East Regional final slated Monday morning (Manila time). It is a rematch of the 1982 NCAA Championship game which the Heels beat the Hoyas on a game-winning jumper by the legendary Michael Jordan. The winner will go on to Atlanta for the Final Four.

Coincidentally, both teams are sponsored by the Jordan Brand.

Debriefing P&G

My whole week is devoted to doing a ton of presentations for the entire P&G population. Each session is about two hours and I do two to three a day. This is in preparation for their annual strategic planning workshop this coming Sunday.

I guess the most annoying part is saying the same damn things each time out.

I ain't complaining though. Just another day in the office.

Sparta!!!

I finally caught the movie 300. I've heard nice things about it that I made sure I found time to sneak it in my hectic calendar.

I have only one complaint. I think the film had a very anticlimactic ending. The 300 Spartans went through so much, waging war against the neverending Persian army yet they died boring deaths. How can such strong and valiant men die in such a measly, mediocre way.

Anyway, 300 is a great watch. I enjoyed the violence more than anything. Fills my once-in-a-while thirst for gore.

March Madness 2007

After the first weekend, my Tournament Bracket is in major disarray. Four of the eight teams I chose to reach each of the regional finals are out of the running. I have UNC, Texas A&M, Wisconsin and UCLA reaching the Final Four. I'm still good with all picks except for Wisconsin. UNLV scored a huge upset over the Badgers in the second round of the Midwest Regionals.

I got the Tar Heels winning it all in Atlanta. They meet the USC Trojans later this week in the Sweet Sixteen at New Jersey.

Oh yeah, did I mention Duke got punked out of the first round?

Calatagan, Batangas

Just got back from a successful and fun planning workshop with the IT folks. Never imagined the team being about 30-plus-strong now considering they were less than half of that during the same period last year.

The beach wasn't what I had in mind but it was okay. Nothing fancy or anything. Highlights involved island-walking - yes, the sea was only about waist-deep so you can walk your way to the nearest islands about 20 minutes away. During low tide, there ain't much water left. The seabed rises forming land bridges across the islands.

I was expecting to see a throng of laptops being lugged around but only one person had to work offsite to attend to an urgent issue. The rest had their thinkpads tucked away, if they even brought them. I never picked up mine so it was a waste of space altogether.

It fun having everyone in IT forget about work and its accompanying concerns and issues even for just a weekend. We're back to our normal lives come Monday and it's business as usual once again.

Thinkpads for Wakeboards

I'm joining the IT Strategic Planning workshop tomorrow at Batangas. It's an overnight event for all the IT folks across all accounts and business units. There will be no deskside assistance for anyone in IBS tomorrow. Hope they got everything covered cause help is nowhere near.

I'm foreseeing a mix of the sun, the sand, and a sea of laptops with wireless broadband.

MTV Asia > MTV Phils

MTV Philippines is back and I'm not so sure I'm digging it.

Sunrise for Sunrise

I was up by 530 am this morning for the Sunrise Strategic Planning session. They were having the workshop at Club Manila East in Rizal and the meeting place was at Eastwood. Had to meet some of the HR people who I'll be facilitating with at around 7.

We had over a hundred of the Sunrise folks come in and join. It was a bit difficult having to contain a them under one roof. It was fun though. They were very participative and eager to get work done and enjoy.

Props to their steering committee and the whole IBM AP team for a successful stratplan.

Year 1

I spent my first year anniversary in IBM having dinner and drinks with Larry and my teammates at Jaipur. He wanted to acknowledge the achievements of the team within the past three months. Admittedly, we were hard-pressed to produce results since the start of the year. Props to everyone for a damn good job.

Fittingly, I am celebrating my first year with the people I've work with everyday. As I slowly begin transitioning myself out of WFM, they see me less and less each day. I hate to say this, but in due time, my presence will hardly be felt at all.

Larry gave me the opportunity to make the final toast, I guess as a way of saying goodbye.

To the Workforce Management team... Thank you for a wonderful year. Here's to more achievements for you guys....

Cheers!

No more 20/20

I had my eyes checked the other day. It seems I'll be needing eyeglasses soon. I'm actually looking forward to it. Now, I have a reason to buy one and to use up my optical health benefit.

Going a step further, I was trying out frames even before I had my eyes checked.

Talk about excitement.

The grandfather account

Season starts this Friday.

Let's go. Bring it on.

Piso for every Juan

Cebu Pacific's One Peso Seat Sale for all destinations is one big baloney. It's quite impossible to book seats, plus their website cannot accomodate multiple searches unlike other airlines. I bet they only set aside a few seats per flight and not all flights carry the promo.

HR Strategic Planning 2007

We had our HR Stratplan session yesterday over at the Oakwood Suites. It was a whole day event with most of us staying overnight for the informal activities. All I can say is that it was very successful. We're expecting a phenomenal year ahead of us.

Oh and did I mention that the after-party was whack? Props to everyone who stayed til the wee hours of Saturday morning. Can't say if the headache was worth it, but it's definitely close.

This undoubtedly raised the benchmark for future stratplans.

Chosen challenge

I was just handed the toughest business unit assignment. It's been confirmed that I will be taking on the HR Business Partner role for the P&G account. Being the pioneer client, this team has been deemed the most demanding account in terms of HR issues and concerns. This stems from the time that P&G sold its employee services division to IBM, paving the way for IBS to be launched in 2004.

I'm looking forward to work on this difficult challenge. Admittedly, the task on hand comes out as daunting and pressuring but with the guidance of the rest of HR, I know I'll do a decent job to say the least.

Transition

It's going to be an interesting week ahead as I'm expected to jumpstart my new assignment in HR effective March 1st. I will be doing two roles on a concurrent basis - as HR Business Partner and WFM Recruitment Specialist (until April). I should be doing 100% HRBP work by May.

Life is sometimes fair

It sucks to be Kris Aquino (Yap) nowadays. I can just imagine the amount of stress she's going through. She's in a delicate situation, being seven months pregnant and she's bombarded with issues regarding her philandering husband, basketball player James Yap. Details of his extra-marital affair with a Belo Medical Group girl surfaced in recent weeks. Rumor has it that the girl might be pregnant. If it's true, then James will be having three kids within the same age range. James fathered a kid with a former girlfriend prior to being with Kris. And yeah, Kris might not be willing to admit but her child with Phillip Salvador is suffering from a mental illness.

If it's any consolation, she has a ton of money to go with her dysfunctional life.

It just goes to show that you can't have everything.

Gin Kings capture PBA title

Ginebra raced from behind to snatch Game 6 from San Miguel, 96-94, last night at the Big Dome. The win locked up the 2007 Philippine Cup for the preaseason favorites, four games to two.

Finals MVP Jayjay Helterbrand connected on two freethrows with 2.9 seconds remaining for the winning margin. SMB's Lordy Tugade overshot a desperation three, while Olsen Racela shot a banker after the final buzzer had sounded.

Great comeback win for the Gins as they rallied from 16 points down in the first half. More scintillating is their series comeback though, sweeping the last four games after they dropping the first two games.

Barangay Ginebra

I went to watch Ginebra rout the San Miguel Beermen last night to take the Finals series lead, three games to two. The Gin Kings' Fast and the Furious, Jayjay Helterbrand and Mark Cagouia led the way with 26 and 28 points respectively.

I haven't watched a PBA game live in about a decade so it was a blast experiencing championship fever. Hopefully, they can finish the task at hand and capture the All-Filipino Cup tomorrow night.

Transfer

It's official.

I'm moving to my new role as HR Business Partner soon. On paper, my transfer is effective March 1st. Realistically speaking though, I'm looking at either April or May to assume the role full time as I still have some deliverables for WFM.

I'm looking forward to moving back to mainstream HR. This is unchartered territory for me. Hopefully, I'll be able to deliver. I don't want to let anyone down, most especially the people who believe in me.

Rampage wins UFC debut

I watched the rerun of the UFC 67 (Feb 3, 2007) bout of Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson against Marvin Eastman. The Rampage scored a knockout (by strikes) in the second round.

He was such a class act, very humble in victory. You know a guy is grounded when he doesn't talk trash to anyone.

I'm looking forward to the Chuck Liddell-Quinton Jackson matchup. Iceman vs Rampage. It should be one for the ages.

From Cyberone to 1800

Since joining IBM, I've relocated workstations twice already. Heck, we're moving again. The whole WFM team is relocating to the spanking new 1800 Eastwood Avenue building right in front of McDonald's.

The good? It's very huge. One floor there equals to about two-and-a-half floors in Cyberone. As a result, the whole team will fit with still enough space for expansion. Moreover, we'll be using IP-ready phone handsets already. They're easier to use than the old units we have. We'll also have huddle rooms for our dedicated use. No need to go get reservations from the business center. Oh yeah,we'll be having our own testing center as well.

The bad? The 7th floor of 1800 prohibits the use of mobile pedestals. I find no reason for this except that it will soon house the entire contact center operations. As with the normal call center industry practice, pedestals aren't allowed on the operations floor.

The hassle? As we will now be utilizing the IP phones, we will all be issued new local numbers. They won't allow us to use our existing locals. It'll be a bitch trying to update everyone.

The worse? The WFM team will now be serving three sites (Cyberone, IBM Plaza, 1800). It's gonna be hell doing the rounds on all these floors, especially for the selection team.

The worst? Our stay on the 7th floor is temporary. Meaning, we will eventually move out again once a permament fixture is found for WFM, and when the contact center folks move in.

All this trouble for our temporary settlement. I ain't even sure it's worth it.

Model Citizen

I did what a good citizen had to do. I got my 2007 Community Tax Certificate (more popularly known as sedula) earlier today. Should I had gone to get it at the city hall, I would've paid around 25 pesos. But I decided to get thru the City Treasurer's Office booth here at the office so I had to pay almost ten times that amount. To get one's CTC, the law says a citizen has to pay the city government 1 peso for every 1 thousand pesos he/she earns annually. Of course, nobody declares their true worth. So naturally I had to undervalue myself too.

Still, I could've declared nothing. But I chose to declare something.

I think I deserve a light pat on the back.

Convergys?

I've seen some ads/articles from some major dailies that Convergys is positioning itself as one of the major players in the HR Outsourcing industry. This was in line with their winning the bid for the Intercontinental Hotels Group HR backoffice account.

Uhh... last I checked, Convergys ain't even in the top tier of the HR Outsourcing industry. For contact centers, yeah probably.

Please. That must be some strong shit these people are smoking. Get real folks.

Random ramblings about Singapore

- It's such a secure and safe place that you don't even see policemen around. Heck, they don't even check your bags when you enter establishments.

- It's a very chic and cosmopolitan city, that (almost) everyone in their workforce is well-dressed. Maporma silang lahat.

- Some Singaporeans are insanely rich. I met a Indian guy whose daily driver is a Rolls Royce. It wasn't a Seraph or a Phantom, but it's still a Rolls. Oh yeah, he looked butt ugly too. I wouldn't trade places with him.

- Their public transportation system is outstanding. I feel like I never want to ride our own MRT/LRT anymore.

- Their public housing units (HDB's) are nicer than most condominiums here in Manila.

- Singapore's well-known cleanliness is a bit overrated. Most of their washrooms ain't clean. Of course, Manila washrooms are worse and incomparable. But still.

- With that in mind, Paragon's washrooms are the best (very clean and very nice).

- Tangs has the best fitting room I've seen.

- The Ministry of Sound at Clark Quay is freaking huge. It's like Embassy times ten minus Manila's social climbing crowd. That makes it a bajillion times better.

- Wherever Pinoys are in the world, they just have to congregate and mix it up at one place. Apparently in Singapore, it's the Lucky Plaza along Orchard Road.

- The Orchard Road experience is never complete until you jaywalk.

- Contrary to public perception, Singaporeans are actually nice.

- Contrary to what I've been hearing, I never saw Singaporeans blatantly making out in public. I was actually on the lookout. Too bad I didn't catch any.

Flying Tiger

I booked myself a roundtrip CRK-SIN-CRK via Tiger Airways with a promotional rate of USD 75. I thought it was an awesome deal so I had couldn't help but book in advance.

My whole trip going to Singapore took about 8 hours long. The bus ride from Megamall to Clark Air Base went for about two hours. I had to wait about another two hours from check-in to boarding. Then comes the three-and-a-half hour flight, plus an additional thirty minutes for the check-out/disembarkation proceedings.

It was hella tiring since I had to be at the Megamall terminal before 7am. Got out of Singapore's Budget Terminal at about 4pm. Since I had to wake up at about 530am, that meant I was up for more than ten hours. That is literally half-a-day. Got no complaints though. Flight was on schedule. No delays whatsoever. We even arrived earlier than estimated.

Was it worth it? Yeah, I think so. Not bad for a Php 3800 roundtrip ticket. Will I take it again? Absolutely, as long as it's around that price range. Other than the long ten hour ordeal, what's not to like?

Back in Manila

Just got back from a week long trip to sunny Singapore. Wifey Barbie played hostess-cum-GRO the whole time I was there. She went half-day from work most of the time to be able to show me around. Wasn't able to tour the whole island but it was a fun and enjoyable experience nonetheless. Thanks, Bu. Looking forward to another trip in the coming months.

Edit: Cebu Pacific has a promo for its Manila-Singapore route. Almost 5k/roundtrip. Hmm. I think I'll be booking for May.

Off to Sing

I'm flying to Singapore tomorrow morning. I'll be visiting wifey Barbie and will be staying with her for a week. It's also my first trip to the lion city so I'm pretty excited.

I'm taking Tiger Airways by the way. So it should be an adventure riding the bus to Clark and all. Hopefully, my flight doesn't get delayed as it'll be a long day. Need to be at the Megamall bus terminal before 7 am, while the flight's at 1130 am. Assuming I arrive at Macapagal Airport at 9 am, I have more than two hours to burn but I doubt there's anything I can do there though.

Anyhow, I'm just looking forward to the week-long break I'll be having away from work. I've been going home real late the past couple of weeks. I seem to have had more 12-hour days this month than I've had over my first nine months in IBM.

There will be changes when I get back though, and I'm getting prepped up for the switch.

Work work work

I left the office about 1 am this morning. I was at work for a record 15 hours. Talk about doing overtime. I had several conference calls the whole day, the last of which ended at almost 12 midnight.

Good thing I'm going on a one week break. Work's been toxic lately.

Errr...

I passed on a pair of Pradas several weeks ago. I think I'm starting to regret it.

Numbers game

One Thousand Strong.

90th percentile.

Not bad for a first timer. I think it's exceptional.

The plot thickens

As the days go by, things get even harder. Though I'd like to say that it's a happy problem to have.

BTNH feat. Kelly Rowland, "So Crazy"

Rap group Bone Thugs-N-Harmony is coming out with a new album this year called, "Strength and Loyalty." Watch out for the single, "So Crazy." The song is reminiscent and similar to Nelly's Number 1 hit, "Dilemma" from 2002. Coincidentally, both songs have Destiny's Child's Kelly Rowland singing the hook.

It's not easily available through Limewire, but you can catch a bootleg version if you try hard enough.

The song is tight. Watch it blow up when it offically releases.

Mixed up priorities

We were giving someone a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Good perks, great compensation plus guaranteed travel. All he had to do was show up. For whatever reason, he missed his appointment. He stood us up. Now, we've rescinded the offer. He's asking for another shot.

Lesson learned? Some opportunities are like lives. You only have one.

Crossroads

It was probably the most difficult conversation I had to initiate in IBM. I'm glad everything turned out well, with a little bit of emotion involved on the side.

Thank you and I appreciate the support. Should plans push through, I'll miss you all.

For real.

Watch Out

I've been eyeing this watch for several weeks now. It was on sale at 50% off, plus I can utilize a 0% installment plan for six months. Not bad at all.

However, the inability to make a decision soon cost me the watch. I came back for it earlier looking to finally purchase. Alas, it ain't there no more. Worse, I still saw it last Friday.

Puñeta.

Friday Night Lights

Just watched the pilot episode earlier at ETC. It's one helluva plot mixing football with girls and drama.

Damn, it got me hooked like Whitney on coke.

Paper, Paper

I finally saw it in print. It's been a long time coming.

Was it worth it? Yeah, but there was a lot of red tape in between.

MTV

I'm liking the new MTV. For those not in the loop, MTV Philippines' franchise ended last December 31st (2006).

There has been a huge difference since MTV Asia (Singapore) took over. It's definitely loads better.

ABL 2007

The season starts today. Can't believe I have to sit out this season due to injury.

Fuck.

IBS Kickoff 2007

Everyone had a blast at the annual IBS Kickoff celebration at the Crowne Plaza hotel last night. The event's success makes it a precedent, that all future kickoffs should be able to emulate and sustain. Now that's gonna be a tough act to follow.

Haste makes waste

Sometimes planning too soon is counter-productive. There are many unforeseen circumstances.

Enough of this childishness

Some people need a lot of growing up to do.

To Nicole's cheerleaders, better luck next time

To The Point
by Emil Jurado
Manila Standard Today
5 January 2007

Excerpts:

The Court of Appeals decision upholding the decision of Makati Regional Trial Court Judge Benjamin Pozon on Philippine jurisdiction over convicted rapist Lance Cpl. Daniel Smith, but at the same time saying that the custody issue has become moot and academic because Smith had since been transferred by the executive to US embassy custody, is Solomonic in some way.

At the same time, it pulled the rug from under those who claimed that it had raised constitutional issues, or that the executive officials who made the transfer possible could be held in contempt. Worse, that the President could be impeached for it.

To me, it seems that the appellate court wanted to play safe by riding on both horses. What is important, however, is that the Court of Appeals did not want to intervene in a purely diplomatic issue as a result of the country’s commitment to the Visiting Forces Agreement, and much more for the sake of national interest.

While those rooting for Nicole also saw the decision as their victory, the bottom line here per the Court of Appeals decision is that there are far bigger interests involved in this case than merely upholding Philippine jurisdiction over the convicted rapist. It is good enough for the executive department to see fit to comply with our international commitment which forms part of the law of the land. After all, failing to comply could make us into some sort of outcast, not only to the US but to the entire international community. Who would ever trust us again in our international commitments?

Yes, Nicole’s lawyers, the militants and the opposition will try to make the Smith case a political issue, especially so since this is an election year. But the people know better— the lack of national outrage proves this. To Nicole’s cheerleaders, I say better luck next time.

L/Cpl. Smith stays at the US Embassy

Good job. Chalk up another point for the Americans.

Oorah.

Ho hum

The year 2007 is already a few days old yet I still see no black and white...

I'm getting a bit impatient here...

Happy New Year!

May everyone have a prosperous year ahead!

UFC 66: Chuck Liddell vs Tito Ortiz

I was never an MMA fan, but I just had to watch the Liddell-Ortiz bout this morning. The Iceman Chuck Liddell pummeled The Huntington Beach Bad Boy to retain his light heavyweight title. Liddell scored a knockout victory over Ortiz in their first meeting at UFC 47 (2004).

Liddell cements his mark as the pound-for-pound best UFC fighter.

Saddam executed

A lot of people have waited years, even decades for this moment. Hopefully, this marks a sign of a new and better Iraq.

Good riddance, Saddam. You will not be missed.

RP turns over Smith to US

L/Cpl Daniel Smith was handed over to the US authorities late last night in accordance with the VFA guidelines.

Finally. This has been long overdue.

So, how'd you like it now?

As the US Marines would say, "Oorah!"

Coach Carter

I finally caught the film over at HBO earlier today. I missed it when it had its cinema run.

Good stuff.

Last business day for 2006

I spent the last working day of the year participating in the FranklinCovey Focus workshop. It should be able to help me in terms of time management. My pre-workshop goal was to be able to utilize the the skills I will gain/learn so that I can prioritize properly. Ultimately, my goal is to be able to leave work around 6pm, 630 at the latest. My average work day ends at about 730-8pm.

Attending a workshop is one story, whether it helps me or not is another. I guess we'll find out next year.

Inked again

I had two new tats done tonight. This continues my streak of getting at least one done each year, dating back to a few years ago.

I'm not sure how long this streak will go on but I still have the rest of 2007 to think about it.

See you in February

I brought Barbie to NAIA this morning. She's flying back to Singapore after a short 5-night rendezvous here in Manila. She was panicking earlier as she felt she might miss her flight. I was a bit delayed in picking her up as my stomach was not cooperating.

All's well though. She made it with plenty of time to spare. She should be arriving in Singapore in less than an hour.

I'll see her in a couple of months, I'm booked to fly to the Lion City in early February

Happy Holidays!

A blessed Christmas to everyone.

Gifts

I was never the type who'd ask (or expect) for gifts. However, it just dawned to me that out of the more than a hundred people I've given jobs in IBM this year, only one gave me a Christmas gift.

Amusing.

Hurting Hammy

For some reason, my right hamstring is hurting like hell. It was the donor site from which my new ACL was harvested from.

Interestingly, I never had this much pain on my thigh considering it's been three weeks since my operation.

Weird.

Happy 25th

Quarter-life milestone.

Here's to another twenty-five years of adventure...

Cheers.

Back to business

I'm reporting back to work tomorrow after a three week hiatus. I feel much better now as I can walk normally albeit slowly. The surgical wound is close to fully healing but there's still pain on the bruised areas. Stiffness is very prevalent. It's difficult to flex and extend my knee and leg. With proper rehab, I feel confident I'll regain full mobility in a few months. Overall, I believe I'm just right on schedule.

Anyhow, my gratitude and appreciation go out to the following:

Many thanks to my physicians, Dr. Mikey Bengzon (orthopaedic
surgeon) and Dr. Lea Montemayor (anesthesiologist) for a successful
operation.

The staff of The Medical City, especially my nurses for
the round-a-clock supervision.

My HMO, Intellicare, for footing the bill. I racked up
about 140 g's in total.

My manager, Joan and the rest of WFM for multitasking in
my absence.

My friends, colleagues and family for all the
encouragement and support.

I'm looking to get back to status quo, and it all starts tomorrow.

Mon Tulfo's article about Judge Pozon, the RP-US relations, and the so-called rape...

ON TARGET
US-RP relations in jeopardy

By Ramon Tulfo
Inquirer
Last updated 02:14am (Mla time) 12/16/2006

Published on Page A26 of the December 16, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer

DON’T be deceived by Makati Regional Trial Court Judge Benjamin Pozon’s projection of being media-shy, of his seeming reluctance to be lionized.

Deep inside, he’s enjoying all the publicity over his conviction of a US Marine for allegedly raping a Filipino woman, and his adamant stand that the convicted American remain in Philippine custody.

Pozon may be a hero to leftists and women activists, but if you ask the man on the street, he’ll tell you that not only was the judge wrong in convicting Lance Cpl. Daniel Smith, he’s putting US-Philippine relations in jeopardy.

If you don’t believe me, try asking people who are neither militant nor xenophobic (hater of foreigners), which I did. They’ll tell you the victim, “Nicole,” was not raped. She had consensual sex with Smith with whom she was smitten the first time she set eyes on him.

How could there have been rape when Nicole was wearing tight-fitting jeans at that time and Smith had to wear a condom?

If you’re a woman, try taking off your tight jeans inside a car and you’ll know what I mean. If a woman on her own would have difficulty removing her jeans inside a cramped space, how much more her alleged rapist?

A woman friend (not girlfriend) was saved from being raped by a cab driver who forced her into a vacant lot because she wore tight jeans. And, of course, she shouted for help!

Nicole went with Smith in the van, and there was nothing in her statement that she shouted for help. Otherwise, the driver of the van would have testified that she did. She claims she was drunk at the time. So was Smith, who is younger than she is.

Nicole took offense at Smith’s companion calling her a “bitch” and the way she was dumped like a pig by the Americans in the street after she refused to get out of the van. That’s why she complained she was raped.

Since Pozon has already convicted Smith, he wants to have his cake and eat it too by having him remain in Philippine custody despite a provision in the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA).

The VFA provides that American servicemen accused of a crime would remain in US custody pending the outcome of their trial. And the trial, as legal experts interpret it, includes the appeal after conviction.

All that the US government, our country’s friend and ally, wants is for Smith to be confined in the US Embassy while the appeal is ongoing. Can’t we accede to an ally that has helped us tremendously in winning the war against the Abu Sayyaf?

For comments and inquiries please e-mail: isumbongmokaytulfo@yahoo.com

Copyright 2006 Inquirer. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Enough with the grandstanding, Judge. Your fifteen minutes has lapsed. Stop basking in the limelight.

Bring it on

I've received some criticisms regarding my posts about the subic rape case. Apparently, this person calls me the dumbest blogger for expressing my opinion. It's funny how I irked this person so much. Never thought it will spark hostility amongst anyone. Anyhow, I'm well aware that I definitely won't be pleasing everyone with my thoughts. Kanya-kanyang blog lang yan. I have all the right to say what I want, the same way anyone else can speak their minds out too.

Oh and if it matters, there are a whole lot of other folks who share the same sentiments as I do. I wonder if they've received the same backlash from this hoodrat.

Anyway, I left the comments despite being blatantly bastos. I can actually feel all the emotion and rancor behind (the comments). Oh well, to each his own. Whatever floats your boat.

Thumbs up!

I received good news earlier tonight from my manager. She gave me an update on the recommendations they sent upper management for approval. Aside from these changes, we're doing a bit of reorganization for Workforce Management. Looks like the Big Blue is looking out for its WFM team now.

I'm hoping this is a sign of more good developments to come. Further info on these next time.

Missing work

I dropped by the office after my check-up with the doctor. I've only been out for about two weeks but it seems a lot has happened already. I saw a lot of new faces. I was told that we had reached more than a thousand employees already. When I started in IBS, we were only about five hundred. Because of the company's steady growth (and reaching the 1000 milestone), IBS is giving all of us commemorative jackets. Oh and if I'm not mistaken, we're giving the 1000th employee a spanking new Ipod.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but yeah, I miss work. Rarin' to get back.

2nd week post-op

The doctor took out the skin staples on my knees earlier. He expects the incisions to heal in about a week's time. It hurt a bit since he had to take each of the dozen staple wires out slowly to minimize bleeding. There was a stinging sensation that lasted pretty long too.

My knee flexion increased to about 120 degrees. Doc said he expects full range of motion in about 6 weeks. He said I can only start strengthening rehab once full ROM is achieved. The basis of comparison is my other leg. In essence, my right knee should be as good as my left one by mid-January. That's a tough act, but hopefully rehab goes well.

IBM Christmas Party

It's a good thing I didn't attend the One IBM Christmas Party last Saturday at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza Tent. A colleague of mine said that the folks who went were mostly from Daksh. Uhh, I don't think I'd want to be stuck in a place with the Daksh crowd. There's just something about the call center vibe that I don't like. I'm not discriminating, but I've worked for a fandful of pure contact centers already and the environment is very different. It's just not for me.

Dead end despedida?

Had dinner with some friends last night. A good friend of mine hosted a despedida dinner for the girl he's wooing. She's going to California for several months and won't be back til about middle of 2007.

From the way my other friends and I see it, the situation doesn't look promising. Of course, we hope to be proven wrong.

Anyhow, money up na lang blek. The thrill's worth the investment.

----------------
Edit: Received word that everything took a turn for the best. Captured.

12 Dec 2006, 9:11 pm

Day 8 Post-Op

I went to the doctor yesterday for my eighth day post-op check-up. Feedback was mixed.

Here are the good points:
- I can drop the crutches and the immobilizer.
- I can put Tegaderm over the incisions which should make taking a shower a breeze. It used to be a bitch.
- He expects me to recover quick as my flexion is nearing 100 degrees after seven days. From experience, he says some folks need about thow weeks to reach 90 degrees.

Now the bad points:
- My skin staples need to stay another week. Damn, i can just imagine how painful it will be once he takes them out.
- The swelling and bruising will remain for about two more weeks.

Overall, I think I'm ahead of schedule. I'm starting therapy soon to regain my full range of motion. It probably will take me about 8-12 weeks to reach full leg extension and knee flexion.

More thoughts on the Subic rape case

Everyone knows her name. She's been seen on live TV during the trial. But why the hell do journalists still hide her under her pseudonym, 'Nicole'?

Once and for all, the slut's name is Suzette Nicolas. She cried rape to save her from the embarassment and humiliation of sleeping with an American soldier while being engaged to another.

------------

Evalyn Ursua, Suzette Nicolas' private prosecutor, wins the dumbest Filipina lawyer award hands down. For someone who holds a law degree, she surely is incompetent.

------------

Noted and well-respected priest, Fr. James Reuter, SJ, believes that what happened between L/Cpl Smith and Suzette Nicolas was consensual. Enough said.

He speaks the truth.

------------

There was a skirmish between the Makati police and the Americans (US Embassy security personnel and the four US Marines) after the decision was handed down. The Makati policemen were pulling Daniel Smith to one side, while his American security were shielding him from harm.

Truth be told, these four US Marines alone can wipe out the whole Makati police contingent in hand-to-hand combat.

On leave, on call

Since I'm currently on a three-week leave, I thought I'd be far away from the hustle and bustle of corporate life. Wrong. I still get my fair share of calls and texts from IBM folks. Didn't I tell you guys I won't answer any work-related inquiries while on medical leave?

Anyhow, I heard trouble and chaos are brewing in the workplace yet again. Movement is bound to happen at some point. Unless changes are made and issues get resolved, things are bound to get ugly, even uglier than Philippine politics.

Ne-Yo - Sexy Love (Duet Remix)

Ne-Yo's back with the official remix of his hit track, Sexy Love. This time, Candace Jones joins him in performing.

If you liked the original version, you'll be waxing your pole with this one. No pun intended, of course.

-------------------
Click to see my first post about Ne-Yo early this year: Ne-Yo

Caught sleeping again

I'm feeling pissed right now. I slept on a couple of auctions on Ebay and missed out on getting my bubblegum AM 90's!

Tangina.

Subic Rape Case

The verdict on the year-old Subic Rape trial against four US Marines was handed down earlier this afternoon. LCpl Daniel Smith was found guilty of raping Suzette Nicolas (aka Nicole) last year in Olongapo. The three other accused Americans were acquitted.

I honestly believe Smith (or any of the three others) was not guilty of any crime. The fact that this Suzette Nicolas willingly mingled and drank with these soldiers while she was engaged to another US Marine speaks highly of her character or lack thereof. Who would in her right mind party with people she barely knows knowing that she is set to get married to someone else. Just like other women who ply the flesh trade route in US military bases stationed across the globe, she knew what was coming. She knew what she was getting into and hell yeah she deserved what she got. She's nothing but a hoodrat whore, plain and simple.

She probably thought she could milk money out of the situation. For all the trouble that she had to go through, the court granted her a measly Php 100k for damages. For all the harassment and embarassment, it's not worth it. Buti nga.

I think it's safe to assume that the prosecution panel, Suzette Nicolas, her relatives and those who supported this whore will never set foot on US soil again. And if I were the US government, I'd make sure to cancel all the existing visas of these people. This should teach them a lesson.

It's funny how these people are all-out against the United States when in fact they dream of one day settling in the US for better opportunities. Truly hypocritical in every sense of the word.

4th day post-op

The swelling on my knee is literally going down as it's now on my ankles. It's known in the medical circles as ankle pumps. My knee is still pretty banged up though, as the bruises are still painful whenever I bend. I can now walk without crutches though I have to do it slowly. Flexion on my knee is about 100 degrees. I'm supposed to ge take therapy next week. Hopefully, I can start walking normally soon.

Stapled by a dozen

I cleansed my surgery wounds (by myself) for the first time this morning. All in all, I have one 2-inch incision and three small holes. These are punctuated by a dozen skin staple wires scattered among them.

Aside from the grossness of my wounds, they keep me paranoid of contracting infection. And it's not a good feeling at all.

Discharge

I just got home about an hour ago. I was discharged from Medical City this morning after three nights of confinement.

I can walk already with my crutches as long as I have my immobilizer on. The doctor also allowed me to bear weight on my right leg. I'll be doing knee bending exercises to help get my range of motion back soon. It's difficult but I think I'll be okay.

Birthday and D-Day

While I had my surgery today, Barbie celebrated her birthday in Singapore. The only thing I ever asked from her before she left (for Singapore) was to be with me during my operation. While I understand that would be difficult to arrange, I'm guessing she never really considered it.