Got Balls?

I watched PBA games yesterday with my officemates in the Cuneta Astrodome. First game was Air 21 versus Red Bull, where the latter won. Then, second game was San Miguel going against Sta Lucia Realtors. San Miguel won that match.

Bale fishboL muna kami habang hinihintay yung iba naming kasama. Pati yung Australian naming colleague napa-fishboL ng de oras.

First game went off quick. Late na kasi kami dumating. Basta ang magaling from Air 21's side was Ritualo kaso medyo bwakaw yung laro niya kahapon. From the other side, it was Tugade who lead the team and also grabbed the match's Player of the Game award.

KG Cañaleta Against the World

On the next match, it's cool to watch Danny Seigle in action. That night he was able to grab a double-double on points and rebounds. Too bad, he wasn't able to finish an alley-oop dunk from Robinson I think. Kung natuloy yun, malamang nag cartwheel ako sa ringside. Sayang si Wesley Gonzales. Star siya sa Ateneo tas bangko lang sa San Mig sa sobrang daming all-star ng lineup. He'll wait a couple of seasons more for him to be able to be used as frontman so I suggest he transfer to a team that could give him more playing time. Fuck the salary. Maganda bayad pihado sa San Mig pero kung hindi ka naman enjoy, no use. On the other side, wala na ko kilala sa Sta Lucia. Panay bagong players. Si Marlou, Espino, at Tolomia na lang kilala ko dun. Si Duremdes injured pa, pero partida hindi masyado nakalayo ang San Mig sa kanila. Anlakas pala nung Omolon na yun. Too bad my cam was off when he dunked just right on our side of the ring. Astig.

The Marlou Defense

Highlight din yung mga bading na cheering squad sa courtsides. Nakakasira ng focus manood. Ang leader pa nila e Manang Lola na nakakatakot na kasi sigaw pa ng sigaw kahit parang malalagutan na ng litid.

Anyway highway, grubfest was at Aristocrat afterwards. Chicha of the day ko ay shrimp chopsuey. Yub yub!

Tas pag labas may pang himagas pa. "Boss, chicks! Boss, chicks!"

=)

Lakas Tama Ka Pag Gento Kalaki Ininom Mo

Mission Debriefing

It was a great night of fun and action last weekend at the Operation Night Dagger bivouac. Again, kudos to Team SOE for organizing such event!

Ano bang mga nanyari?

Attendance ng Team SBB: Sultan, Jeng, Jorge, Inggo, Rommel, Hans, Garrboy, Jubaybomber, Oh-bee, Little John, Hakob, Hervi, Kuneho, Zeb, Arvin

Cameo appearance: Another Fred, Jason Phatboi, Kurnel Paji

Day 1
Arrival at Timberland, San Mateo: 5pm

From the parking lot, bihis kami tapos hike towards our designated firebase - an approximately 50 meter hill climb. Team SBB was assigned to the Red contingent along with Teams Semper Fi, Kamikaze, K9, Delta Seals, Recon 1st Battalion, ASG-NCR, Marine Force Recon, and other Lone Wolves.

Red Firebase Hill

On the other hand, teams from the Blue contingent were Apocalypse, Northern Alliance, RBG Mercs, Black Ops, Zero, Lost Boys, Rasta, OB, 1SD, and TTAG. I might have forgotten the other teams but as of the last count we of the Red Team were outnumbered by three is to one. Well, more meats to shoot then. Nangyari kasi, marami pang humabol na participants after the actual division of the teams kaya medyo naging lopsided. Oks lang naman samin.

On top of the Red Firebase, we hugged a corner to setup our stuffs and was oriented of the bivvy particulars by the red-assigned marshalls. We were also distributed our blinkers. It'll be the markerlight to represent when someone was hit.

The Red Angel... Maya, Marshall of the Red (Team SOE)

Binigyan din kami ng bivvy kits na may lamang kung ano ano. I personally liked the OP Night Dagger badge. Papatahi ko siya sa multicam ko soon.

The event was announced to start late so I opened my ultimate survival food, tuna-in-can and attacked it with much gusto with Hakob and Little John for all we know that was our last grub for the day. Jubaybomber coordinated with the other teams' squad leaders for tactical planning. It was a night game so assumingly there'll be tons of friendly-fire casualties. Para maiwasan, gumawa sila ng call signs. Challenge will be "11" at dapat ang sagot ng kabilang party ay "9", else raratratin siya ng walang habas. Hehe. Well, exaggeration lang yun. Basta ganun ang gagamitin para malaman namin na Red team din yung kasalubong namin sa dilim.

Along the briefing, I was assigned on a four-man recon team. Ako, si John Liit, si Hakob, at si Hervi. Our objective is to scout ahead of the pack and secure the nearest objective. Dahil pasaway, nauna kami bumaba ng hill via the grassy slope sa likod. Kaso nakita kami ng marshall, wala pa kasi go-signal. Kaya kunwari na lang namamasyal lang kami with matching kwentuhan at texting pa. Patok naman yung inoccent-look.

Green signal was raised by 8pm and we were able to reach and secure the nearest outpost. Within the first 30 minutes of the game, nakuhaan kami ng flag by the blue team. I dunno how that happened pero I heard inside job daw. Someone just walked into our base pretending to be on the red's side then grabbed the flag away. Anyway, that's just one objective down. The rest of the first night was a stalemate with both sides harrassing each others' camps.

Highlight that night from our side was when a huge mob of infiltrators from the Blue Team were able to crawl at the low-lying grasses right at the front slope of our firebase. May isang spotter lang na nag-report about that. Then, together with Team K9 and allied personnel, we swept that slope via an advancing firing line. Yung tamang nakalinya kami tapos pasugod habang bumabaril tapos supported lang kami ng isang fog light. Grabe, isa isang may tumatayo sa mga damuhan to confess "hit" and we never expected that that many blues were already that close to HQ already.

Firebase Red, the bright object on the far right, as seen from Firebase Blue.

That night, binisita din kami ng mga tropa namin na tumambay ng UP-CFA. Together with them, we were blessed by the presence of the Vietnam War veteran, Kurnel Paji!


From L-R Standing: Private Obi (ya can't see me!), Corporal Garrboy (ima strong boy!), Drill Sarge Jubaybomber (umayos ka, umayos ka!)
From L-R Kneeling?: Private John Liit (reach for the stars, Kurnel!), Kurnel Pudji (i believe i can fly!)
Far, on the background: The Sultan (what's wrong wif the boyz??)

Ayun, by midnight medyo inantok na ko but we should not leave our post. Ako, dun na natulog sa damuhan na binabantayan ko. Nagigising gising lang ako pag may maririnig akong malapit na putukan. Hehe. Sarap naman e. Yung tamang pag higa mo stars lang makikita mo everywhere. Astig.

Day 2
Past midnight, assault from the Blue team were relentless. Grabe, kudos from you guys! Di nyo kami tinantanan. Para kayong si Mike Enriquez.

Then we were guarding this outpost when a guy in gillie suit approached us.

"Respawn lang ako." Ibig sabihin, tinamaan na siya. Mag hihintay lang siya sa outpost ng ilang minuto para bumalik sa aksyon. "Anong Team nyo, Sir?" tanong namin. "Red Team ako. Apocalypse ako". Nagtaka kami kasi kalaban ang Team Apocalypse e. (FYI: We play on their site in Camp Masada, Payatas on some Sundays... at cute yung isang sniper chick nila... beep beep Garrboy!) Tapos sabi namin, "Ay malayo dito ang Outpost mo. Blue Team ka."

"Ay ganun ba, anong Team niyo?" tanong niya ulit. "Screaming BB's sir." "Ahhh Screaming BB's. Si Father **** ito". Ayun pala siya yung Bosconian priest na naglalaro ng airsoft. Hehe. Astig. Kilala niya yung group namin e. Naging magalang kami bigla ng de oras. "Ay father, dun po sa kabila yung firebase nyo. Blue Team po kayo." Hehe. Mamano pa sana ako e kaso baka batukan ako. Nyahehehe.


Pic from Camp Masada
From L-R, Standing: Obi, Garrkid, Stephanie, Inggo, Rommel, Brian, Jun, Tracy
From L-R, Kneeling: Jorge, Jacob
Lay wasted: Jeng

Eventually our original recon team roster got separated. By 2am, I was already hit like four times. Worst hit ko sa likod, malapit sa kuyukot. Pero pagaling na yung welt ngayon. I got it when we were sitting low on a grass, exchanging shots with an enemy frontier then suddenly our position were divulged because a very strong and uber annoying search light lit our area. Nung naramdaman kong tinamaan na katawan ko, gumulong ako patalikod para tumayo paalis tas yun dun ako napuruhan sa kuyukot.

Anyway, I was able to pull off some 2 hours of broken sleep before sunrise. Around 7am, our base were already surrounded by blues. Tapos bigla na lang may report ng suntukan from a nearby ditch. Hindi naman nagtagal at naagapan din. After the ruckus, the blue team were not interested to continue with the game. Siguro sa pagod at puyat na din. They were trying to assault our firebase the whole night non-stop. So technically, we were declared winners of the scenario. But the matter was still being deliberated by Team SOE.

Still, for most of the players, hindi na mahalaga kung sino nanalo or natalo. Ang mahalaga nag enjoy kaming lahat at may papupuntahang charity yung buong event.

I'm looking forward for my next bivouac!

Operation: Night Dagger

I'm pretty much jittery excited for the wargames con bivouac tomorrow. Presenting...

Operation: Night Dagger
(*excerpts sniped from Fil Airsoft website)

Where: Timberland Heights, San Mateo, Rizal
When: March 25-26, 1700H - 0800H

Proceeds will go to the Landslide victims in Southern Leyte. PHP300 per pax. With BB's and other airsoft stuffs for raffle.






Background Story:
STATUS AND CONDITION AT MID WORLD SECTOR

Border clashes between the countries of Pakjuthan and Landican Republic are uncommon. The focus of contention these two traditional enemies is an area that is dominated by a landscape called Bodez Brezuljak of “Dagger Mountain” as is roughly translated.

It is easy to see why Bodez Brezuljak is hotly contested. It has a road network infrastructure that controls the trade routes of the sector, as well as a series of pipelines that brings precious oil the seaports. To control the passages of trade and industry is to control the entire region. Clearly, the stakes of continued economic progress and security are high indeed.

Bodez Brezuljak is a troubled hotspot. The area is also infested by local tribesmen called the Utuh-tem, who believed that the locale is given to them by divine providence, and has shown marked aggression against any “invaders” into their land. But the rebel Utuh-tem are also claiming adjacent lands from the Kingdom of Dhaikiri – the only other country sharing its borders with Pakuthan and the Landican Republic, and is the source of the oil pulsing through Bodez Brezuljak into the seaports.

We think the Utuh-tem rebel group is small and quite insignificant to the conflict, but their territorial aggressiveness with the Kingdom of Dhaikri is making the situation more complex than expected. We have spoken with the Crown prince of Dhaikiri, who assured us that they will remain neutral unless utterly provoked into war. With the Kingdom having undergone a fifteen-year military modernization program, the General from pakjuthan and the Landican Republic alike have expressed utter hesitation to include the military giant in their list of enemies.

We have received alarming news from our intel sources that the tow nations have activated their mobilization codes, are now amassing their armies at the said area of dispute. We analyze and compute a 95% probability of war breaking out in the region.

Our agents-in-place think there will be night campaign of a massive scale to finally decide which country will conquer Bodez Brezuljak. We have set out our systems to closely monitor the events in that sector, Henceforth, this monitoring operation will be codenamed……. “THE NIGHT OF DAGGERS”

++ Polar Bear
Recon Mission Leader

*****
Operation: NIGHT DAGGER - GAME BRIEF

Each team will have the following strategic objectives:

1. CAPTURE AS MANY OUTPOSTS AS YOU CAN. There will be five outposts inside the hostile area. Each secured outposts shall be considered as a respawning area.

Note: A small opposing force will be stationed within each outpost during the start of the game. Opposing force shall not be allowed to respawn.

2. CAPTURE THE "DUMMY GENERAL". A team should capture the opponent’s “dummy general” and bring it to their own base camp. Team’s respective “dummy general” is allowed to be strategically mobilized and placed anywhere in the field except in the no fire zone and out of bound areas.

3. CAPTURE THE FLAG. Flag will be permanently placed on each base camp. A team should overrun the opponent’s base camp and capture the flag. Captured flag should then be brought back to their respective base camp.

Key winning areas:

1. A team who captured BOTH the flag and the dummy general
2. Should both flags nor enemy dummy generals were not captured by both teams at the end of the game, the team that captures the most outposts wins.


Night Dagger Bivy rules :

1. Only Registered players shall be allowed to play.
2. Game kit shall be provided for every player.
3. NO FPS LIMIT shall be in effect. Thus, responsible firing shall be likewise encouraged.
4. NO BLINKER, NO PLAY rule shall be implemented. Blinkers with batteries shall be available at the site for a small fee.
5. NO ZOMBIE rule shall be implemented. Once hit, turn on your blinker and go back to designated re-spawning area. Re-spawning time is 10 minutes.
6. NO HIT CALLING.
7. Execute knife kill properly.
8. NO FOUL LANGUAGE.
9. NO PYROTECHNICS.
10. COOKING shall be allowed only on designated area. Food and drinks vendors shall be available all thoughout the event.
11. Secure weapons and equipments in safe areas. Notify marshall for any lost or found items.
12. SOE Marshalls in reflective vests shall be roaming all throughout the game.
13. When injured or lost or in case of emergency, notify marshall through two-way radio or blow whistle unceasingly until help arrives.
14. Channel 1 is designated radio frequency for emergency.
15. Channel 2 is designated radio frequency for the staging area & SOE
16. Observe no fire zone and boundaries.
17. No Parking inside the bivy site. (only designated roving vehicle will be allowed inside).
18. No littering. Timberland is a garbage free estate.
19. Alcoholic beverages is prohibited within the bivy site.
20. Marshal's decision is final.
21. Bawal nakasimangot.

We'll divide two teams: FIREBASE BLUE versus FIREBASE RED.

The entire event was hosted by Team S.O.E. Kudos sa inyo mga tsong for such a nice fun and charity event!! At sana panay gento ang mga kalaban...

- Model: d3ep_fire (Fil Airsoft forums)
- Gears by: Tactical Option
- Photo by: Eric Pambid (for Operation Full Circle 2 Advertisement)
Host: Airsoft Games Club, Incorporated - NCR Chapter (ASG-NCR)

Haay, Miss Deep, walang gamitan ng charms sa laro!

Verily Vindicated Vivification for Vendetta

Gidbye Mate!
T'was last Friday after work when me and my colleagues hugged a 20-person table at the Krocodile Resto in Greenbelt. This is to welcome an Australian coworker who has just arrived earlier and at the same time, to bid farewell to another one who'll be off back to Sydney on the next day.

Grub list: pork sisig, tuna sisig, crispy pata, adobong kangkong, steamed tahong, chikkin in gravy, calamares, beer, iced tea, frog legs (for Pedro's sake... first time ko 'to)!

The afternoon prior to that, we had a little powwow for the same reason. We're off goofing around, playing cricket with the Aussies using a broom, a chair, and a stress ball... inside the office!

Grub list: assorted ice drops, ice creams, drumsticks, assorted chips, assorted soda cans...

After the gluttonous meal, most of us charged the cinema to watch the day's last showing of "V for Vendetta". Truly, the Bayawak Reflex knocks out like Pacquiao's clenched fist. I was enticingly invited to Nyu Nyu Land as soon as I hit the comfy couch! If I'm not that interested to the movie and if not for Miss Portman's charms, I'd been off snoring the first instance the cold AC breeze blanketed me.

I went home around 3am, just after seeing a couple of gurlz in "Sagala" gowns hanging around Absinth. Ang tagal pa naman ng May. Baka uso.


Sponklong's Natal Day!
March 18, Saturday was our youngest sib's birthday! Piscean din siya, his name's from his dad, Richard the Second but we rather call him Sponklong, Sponk, Pong, Long Long, or Baby! We sometimes call him by a doorbell beep just as his dad was calling us with a two tone whistle. His nickname came from a classic Pinoy cartoon, Doctor Sponklong. I personally hope he'll become one someday... no, not a cartoon... a doctor.

Happy 13th Birthday, Sponklong!!!

Hey look, brotha... it's my rifle!

Same O' Saturday!
I went out early last Saturday afternoon to meet Garrboy near Promenade, Greenhills. Aboard the Garrbuggy, we dashed beside Camp Crame to shop for military gears to be used for airsoft games. I got myself another sniper's veil, a tiger-pattern camou shirt, and a garrison belt. Garrik on the other hand hoarded em all! Will elevate "camouflage" to another level? Abangan!

We headed to UP-CFA afterwards to find the place jampacked with modellers and players alike! I have two guest newbie players from Ateneo so it's my responsibility to orient (...or disorient?!) them to the community. Got myself a Warhammer game too against one of them... syempre patalo muna (naks!) para ma-engganyo silang maglaro pa ng madami (Wushus... reasons!).

Dinner was at Molo's Resto after a short rendezvous at Da Shakk with the usual grub suspects: sisig, calamares, kilawin tanigue, ceasar's salad (?), spaghetti (??), and nachos (?!?!?). Ice cream chucking afterwards at the store across Molo's. Yub yub!


It's Nice to Be Back!
It was a Sunday Gunbang session again and Team Screaming BB's was back to play where my training ground was - Last Castle, Pasig! Just beside the site of the Ultra Stampede, the old jail compound was quite shunned alright. Attendance from other teams were not that much as the last Sundays that we've played there. Our own attendance kinda dwindled as well with at least only 9 regulars from our team who played that day. Urban Camo Girl was not around. Too bad, that could be our last Last Castle game again for weeks. Hope to see her though this Saturday for the Operation: Night Dagger bivouac-for-a-cause to be held in San Mateo. OUr team will sign up for the event soon. It will sure be fun.

Last Sunday's games were cooL. There were cases of zombie players but at least they were quite tolerable. I was able to sack three confirmed kills in around 8 games and I kinda was satisfied with my performance. I used three different guns on that day: my H&K G3A3, a full-auto capable Sniper Rifle, and an FN P90 submachine gun.

Remember, Remember the Fifth of November!

V for Vendetta
Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert!

"This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is it vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished, as the once vital voice of the verisimilitude now venerates what they once vilified. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified, and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose vis-à-vis an introduction, and so it is my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V."

On the wake of a chaotic war, Great Bitain emerged with an oppressive totalitarian government. From the ashes of this government's own malignance, a masked vigilante only known as "V" emerged to spearhead a great revolution that aimed to overthrow the dictator. Along the way, he found an unlikely ally, Evey, who he had saved from corrupted undercover cops. Together, with V's charisma and brilliance, they've committed the greatest act of terrorism that will signal the fall of the government and will wage a country-wide "people power" revolution.

The movie's graphically awesome. The director was able to simulate the details and feel of living on a dark totalitarian future for Britain. From the way how the roles were portrayed up to the actual instance of V's narration of his experiences on the hands of the government's twisted schemes, the socio-political message that the film wanted to strongly imply was clear. And as if to verily mock, the central thought of the movie was subtly infused with concepts that are really relevant to the current global political condition. If it wasn't even obvious enough, the concept is even pertinent to the political atmosphere of our own country. Go figure.

It's cool how they managed to pull off a dramatic approach to depicting such case of an enigmatic film. I believe it should be credited on the screenplay's timing arrangements. They efficiently developed each main characters with scenes that also facilitated the progression of the storyline. No stills wasted.

Hugo Weaving, who played V (...and Elrond in LotR), did a great job on bringing life on the hero behind the impassive Guy Fawkes mask. Despite emotionlessness, Hugo had projected V well as this mysterious miscreant with only gestures and a cold voice to boot. Truly reminiscent of Parokya's Mister Swabe and "walang mag-aangas sa lalakeng may balbas" excerpt. Hehe.

Natalie Portman, who played Evey Hammond (...and leading lady to my daydreams hehe), made an outstanding portrayal of the role. I heard she was just a second option to play that part but I believe the crew should be thankful for sparing her the choice. Her transition from the mild-mannered employee to the gritty rebel was flawlessly portrayed and she really gave justice to what was expected out of representing Evey. I find her still cute even with the shaven head too. Dream lady talaga! Kudos to that.

I find the movie lacking in terms of musical scoring. I like the orchestra hit when V bombed the watch tower at the start of the film, yes... but other than that, I felt that the entire experience could have been more "clenching" if given an entirely different musical approach.

In all, I dig the socio-political theme, the dark provocative nature of presentation, the enigmatic aura of the protagonists, and the propagandist message.

Usapang Barako

*Kahapon pinag-usapan namin ni DD yung Boracay trip sa Starbucks dito sa tabi ng Rob Summit. Masarap ang kape. Pero mas masarap ang kapeng mura. Pero wala nang sasarap pa sa kapeng libre. Hindi naman ako nilibre ni DD. Wala lang. Naisip ko lang na sadyang pinakamasarap kapag ang nilalantakan mo e libre. Libre kutos lang ang hindi ko nagustuhan na binigay sakin nang libre.

*Hindi na tumama ang Starbucks sa pag spell ng palayaw o kahit ng mismong pangalan ko (sabagay kahit hindi sa Starbucks bihira ang tumama). Eto o may listahan ako ng mga hirit nila sa pangalan ko:

1) Oby (kagabi laang ito)
2) Kobe
3) Kobi (haging nang tumumpak)
4) Obie (sayang)
5) Kobie
6) OB (astig)

Partida, pag nagbigay ako ng pangalan sinasabi ko pa ang spelling: "It's Obi, Miss *sabay ngiti*... O. B. I.". Pero pag kuha ko ng grande ko sablay sablay pa din ang nakalathala sa baso. Pero kesa naman:

1) Randelle
2) Randel
3) Randle
4) Randall
5) Randal
6) Randlle (dinobol "L" nga... aruydyosko!)

Believe me, kahit mga taong malalapit sa akin bihira tumama sa spelling niyan.

Ang gara ng spelling...

*Nung nagsusulat pa ko dati sa isang pang-flip na local hobby & games magazine, sa Starbucks sa 6750 ko tinatapos ang mga articles ko. Hindi sa mukhang konyo ka tignan kapag may dala kang laptop sa Starbucks. Pero ganun na nga. Ang sarap maging konyo minsan. Try mo minsan. Yes, minsan. Minsan lang. Minsan.

*Ang totoo nyan, mabibilang laang sa isang kamay ang paborito kong lantakan sa Starbucks. Habol ko talaga ay ang kapayapaan at ang nakakarelaks na "ambiance". Pesteng ambiance kasi yan, walang mabili sa Quiapo. Try ko sa Divisoria maghanap next time. I think of it like this, I go to Starbucks as if to "rent" a tranquil place to write my articles and/or unwind for a couple of hundred of bucks. Plus, there's a free coffee and choco éclair! Oha! Yan, napa-English tuloy ako. Pasensya, carried away lang po.

*Mabibilang laang nga sa isang kamay ang tinitira ko sa Starbucks: siyempre ang order ng bayan - caramel frappé... or any frappé in that case (mocha frappé is overrated I tells ya), cold caramel macchiato (huwag hot, di gaano malasa ang caramel sa mainit), hot choco (tas punuan mo ng sandamakmak na gatas... awwww! olats lang pag lactose intolerant ka), tas syempre éclair all the way ang chicha (sikret lang to ha... kuha ka ng isang cup na gatas, isawsaw mo dun yung éclair bago mo ngasabin.... awwwooowoooo!).

*Lupit ng nagpauso ng Starbucks. Naging status symbol na siya, parang i-Pod. Biro mo kahit ilang regular na politikong obrero mangongotong para lang gawing tambayan ang Starbucks. Noong tumatambay pa kami sa bahay ng tropa ko sa Tagaytay mga ilang taon na ang nakalipas, naisip ko pa na maganda magka franchise ng Starbucks doon. Wala kasing tambayan ang sambayanang konyo noon sa Tagaytay kundi yung 7-11 sa kanto, sa Mushroom Burger, o sa Olivarez. Tapos nito na lang nang magkaroon ng Starbucks Tagaytay at isa siya sa mga (ano tagalog ng "succesful"?)... basta yun, na branch ng Starbucks sa Manila outskirts ngayon. Nalaman ko na lang din later na hindi pala for franchise ang Starbucks at pag aari sila ng isang mayamang alta de familia na nagbabalak pang yumaman ng husto. Who doesn't?

*Masarap matulog sa Starbucks. Di ko pa nagagawa, pero pinapangarap ko. Sana maabot ko ang aking mga pangarap balang araw.

*Ugaliing palaging uminom ng tubig pagkatapos ng isang malupit na sagupaang kape sa Starbucks. Di ko alam kung bakit. But I have this queasy feeling inside my gut that the practice is healthy. Wala lang, nagmamarunong lang ako.

*Babala: hindi ako sponsored ng Starbucks. Walang pakelaman ng trip. =D

Anonanyari

Biyernes
@RHGC HQ, New Manila
*kain siomay, pritong pork, panseet, chikkin, inom cox
*laro ng tao-tauhan
*wentuhan

Sabado (gainit ng panahon)
@UP-CFA
*tambay
*kain hotdawg, pishboL, squigboL, siomay, inom C2
*pintura ng laruan
*wentuhan

@Bite Club, Katipunan
*pabondat sa higanteng borger
*wentuhan uli

@Da Shak
*pintura ng laruan
*kain pitza, inom cox
*nood animè
*nood sa board game (hindi Snakes & Ladders)
*wentuhang marame

Sunday (gainit pa din)
@Da Shak
*tumpukan
*kalikot baril
*kain borger, inom cox

@Timberland, San Mateo, Rizal
*suot fatigue
*kalikot baril
*barilan
*kain borger, inom tubeg
*barilan ulet
*suot ulit jologs na damet
*wentuhan

@Pares, Kamuning
*kain calamares, inom pepsee
*wentuhan

@Da Shakk
*kalikot baril
*nood "Princess Bride"
*inom cox
*wentuhan

Monday (sakit ng katawan)
@17/F The Office, Makati
*pasok opis
*kain baon
*umpog ulo sa keyboard

Ardent Cogitation

"There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness"
- Euripedes (480? bc -406? bc)

*A man courts a woman to "test" the waters if they, as couples, will click. A woman will have this preliminary screening if she'll accept his courtship or not. Couples that will pass through this stage will ascend a step higher on their intimacy level because the man, provided he has no other intention but love, has explicitly affirmed that he preferred the woman to be a prospect girlfriend and the woman, provided she has no other intention but love, has explicitly confirmed that he is a prospect boyfriend. That's on a flawless setup. What if both have other intentions than love? What if the affirmation and the confirmation are not explicit enough? What if in spite of it all, the idea of having him/her as a prospect beloved just doesn't sound appealing to you?

*Most women has a thing for complicated relationships (I'm not talking marital relationships of course). It is not necessarily a "happy" thing for them but more of "excitement". The thrill of expecting what will happen next after a lover's quarrel. The elation of having to deal with a handful of suitors sans care for the boyfriend. The buoyant anticipation of a bestfriend's confession of love whilst amidst a mutual understanding with another man. It gives them this sort of pride and wistful gratification of having an "active" lovelife other than the static boring ones. Ironically, when one "complication" could be solved with a decisive choice, most women would just resign to their stereotyped weaknesses, leave the problem unsettled, and put "It's Complicated" status on their Friendster account. Yes, they somewhat wallow on that.

*Men, by nature, is polygamous. But then, a polygamist does not know true love. If your lover has confessed his love for you then later loved another woman, sorry but he did not truly loved you. Men, by nature, is polygamous but he can surmount his nature. If he stayed with you until the end, be proud that he have found true love in you.

*Humans have masochistic tendencies in loving. I've discussed it, and never will again.

*Humans would rather fall in love than to simply love. It's the "fall" that hurts.

*Nice women would fall for either scruffy-looking, futureless, badasses or Porsche-driving, mommy-cuddled, cash worshipers. Men in between should suffer to pick off from their left overs.

Champion of Tianjin

As if a birthday gift, my designation to the UK project was withdrawn yesterday so scratch that stuff about going to adjust to the English time. Yahoo!

So, ayun. Yesterday, I just bought grub for the officemates, went out to watch a movie, then ran home to karaoke-frenzic relatives and family friends. All in a day! Parang artista sa booking... wahehehe. Pweh! Celebrations will not stop there, though. Later tonight, punta kaming Gilligan's ng Justice League "para maiba". Tas sa Saturday, bilihan ko na lang ng kung anong machicha yung mga UP-CFA boyz.

Anyway, DD was texting me last night for this package to Boracay come April. Tatanggihan ko ba ang offer or uumpisahan ko nang magpalaki ng katawan to attack the beach (as if!)? Abangan...

Salamats sa lahat ng birthday greets, on or off cam (i mean, on or off blog) man! Ambabait niyo! Si God na bahala sa inyo! Haha!


Fearless
Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert!

This'll be the last Kung Fu movie of Jet Li. At least, he'll retire from the role with grace.

The movie is your typical oriental adventure flick with a theme revolving around vengeance and triumph. The plot itself is common on most Chinese karate films which involved a young protagonist's struggle to excellence and his eventual revenge from a loss inflicted by a super kick-butt enemy. I don't know why, but I find everything in it very very "usual"... the redundance being needed to emphasize it. Same o' same o' plot, same o' same o' theme, usual super Kung Fu fight stunts, typical bland romance...

The only obvious departure from the common Chinese Kung Fu stories was that it ended tragically with the main character's death which was needed on the story anyway since it was a semi-fictitious recount of Huo Yuanjia's life. Huo Yuanjia was a Chinese hero who restored the glory of practicing martial arts. Truly, the film summarized the basic principles behind wushu and the art of its discipline. The Buddhist Channel even tagged the movie "the most Dharma-filled film of Jet Li" who is a practicing Buddhist himself.

Wushu is a collective term for the Chinese arts of combat.
Dharma is a written account of Bhuddist principles known as the "eternal truth".

Ever the admirer of girls with slits for eyes, the "supposed" leading lady, Sun Li is very very cute! Now that really needs redundancy. She pulled off a nice portrayal of a blind girl. However, I stressed on the words "supposed leading lady" because her "supposed" love story with Huo Yuanji didn't even spark! It seemed that the story wanted to create a relationship between the two but then not! Amf. If the director intended to develop romance here then I say it was pretty much underdeveloped. But then, I heard that some of the scenes had been cut for theatrical release. I even saw in one film outline that Michelle Yeoh had been a cast but her scenes were included among those that were cut. Total bummer.

Still, for the sheer emotional tension of watching the film, some funny scenes that tickled me much, action-packed combats, and a cute "supposed" leading lady, I give it a thumbs up.

*****

Hobo: Yuanjia! Yuanjia! When will you be the Champion of Tianjin?
Yuanjia: What do you think?
Hobo: It'll be today! It'll be today!!

Two Decades and a Half

Kainis! 18 years old na ko!! *grin*

I am now accepting gifts. Kindly, mail it to my address or have it sent to the office, noticed for me.

"Greetings are good but I need cash!"

Hehe.

On the other hand, iL be regularized here at my new work on this month. With it, iL also be transferred to a new project involving works from Leeds, UK so I need to adjust my schedule to accomodate the work hours in England. That's ideally 2:00pm to 11:00pm here in Manila, so I'm expecting that the next days would be very hectic plus the training. Kawawa naman blog ko. iL visit from time to time na lang. And hopefully check out my favorite blogs too.

Happy birthday to me!!

*****

Here are bits about Pisceans that is true for me...

Pisces is sympathetic and compassionate, and cannot bear to see another human being in pain. Indeed, Pisceans feel very deeply about other people as they do not have a strong sense of separation and individuality.

Pisces is an intuition sign which can receive great inspiration from beyond. Pisceans are thus the natural mediums and mystics of the zodiac who can communicate their inner vision through either the arts or sciences. Pisces can also be a sign of selfless or self-sacrificing devotion, and is capable of truly unconditional love for others. (Most Pisceans that I knew uses the medium of the Arts. Me included.)

The Piscean personality is the most unworldly one in the zodiac. It is the poet, the dreamer, or the psychic who enjoys being taken away from the mundane reality of everyday life. If Pisceans become trapped by circumstances in any one place, they will seek solace from their own inner world. (Meaning may sariling mundo! Ahaha! But weird but true, Pisceans are daydreamers.)

The other negative Piscean trait involves the illusion and confusion which surround their ability to tell the truth - known as lying by the more pragmatic signs. (Pisceans rarely lie or at least find it hard to... I, myself, could be too obvious when I lie. It's not our talent, yknow.)

The most idealistic, romantic and highly-strung sign, Pisceans are only too happy to lose themselves in their relationships. Being loved is central to their well-being. They are very caring, and make compassionate partners. (Amen.)

Deeply sensitive and soft-hearted, Pisceans revel in highly-charged relationships. Unfortunately, they are so easily hurt that they often emerge battle-scarred from a relationship with their dreams shattered. Many Pisceans also view their loved ones through rose-colored spectacles, refusing to admit that their idealised lover is only human after all. (Amen! Amen!)

When in love, Pisceans are filled with aspirations. Often seeking a spiritual life with their partner, they are probably the most romantic sign of the zodiac and can be very caring and sensitive. but the fact that they are dreamers can cause problems since expectation may be too high. (Ok... can't agree more.)

*****

Here's what a male Piscean should expect in a relationship with the opposite sex based on her Zodiac:

female aries - needs dedication
female taurus - excellent
female gemini - needs insight
female cancer - quite entrancing
female leo - romantic
female virgo - quite supportive
female libra - fairytale romance
female scorpio - tantalizing & fun
female sagittarius - too many problems (true! amf!)
female capricorn - thoroughly passionate
female aquarius - take care
female pisces - absolute bliss (yes.. hehe)

Interested ako dun sa Libra at sa Leo girls. Hmm... I wonder how is it like. =)

Weak Days

Fried-Day
Langya, ligaw talaga ako sa QC. Last Friday after work, I rushed to Hobby Depot somewhere in Thomas Morato to buy parts for my H&K G3 airsoft gun. I've been borrowing guns for two or three games now and I was missing my own rifle already. I love challenging myself and this time, I promised not to take a cab or asking a ride up to QC. You can never get me lost around Manila but you have a fat chance for it if you'll leave me in the middle of QC.

Ginawa ko, tanong ako ng directions sa tropa tsaka kung anong mga signboard ng mga sasakyang kong jeep. Luckily, I made it! That's after adding some hundreds of meters walk just to look for the exact avenue to turn.

Two of the store dudes are my tropa so I just rode with em back to... Molo's Resto? We heard from the Chief Oberon that they're ganging up there and obviously for an inveterate trip to alcoholdom!

Attendance: Chief Oberon, Pork, Jubaybomber, Kuneho, Me!, Manong Driver, Crispy...

The night ended with an empty bottle of Absolut Vodka, empty sizzling plates of sisig, empty bowls of tokwa baboy... ano pa ba? Basta lahat empty! So as the Oberon firmly adjudicates, "Faith is ABSOLUT!"

We headed back to the Shak afterwards and I just left the gunparts there before heading back to our home sweet house.

So-Tired-Day
It was Saturday.Nagtext si Tita kahapon. Mayroon pa daw siyang extra ticket for the Binibining Pilipinas 2006 Coronation Night sa Araneta. I so wanted to come. Number 7 is my sis's kinakapatid and lives on the same area as our's. She looks like her dad and fairly cute but in my opinion, her beauty's not the "beauty pageant-type". Number 10 was a schoolmate. She used to be a tropa of a tropa. She haven't changed that much, I say.

Anyway highway, I went early to the Shak to check my gun. Sabi ko, uwi na lang ako before 5pm para makasama pa sa Binibining. Punta kami ng UP-CFA a couple of hours after ng tambay. Same o, same o... paint lang ako ng figs ko habang naglaro yung mga boyz. There were Fine Arts students going overnight for their projects so their Prof offered us that we could stay late too. Grub menu were the usual too... hotdog, siomai, pishboL, wekwek, monay... astig nga e, isaw na lang kulang. Malayo pa kasi yung isawan e, nasa bandang Kalayaan pa.

By around 5pm tumatawag na si Tita. E ang kaso I realized I was too far to rush back home, get into my "formal wear" and rush again to their condo. In long, hindi ako sumama dahil tinamad ako dahil anlayo ko sa bahay at hindi ako kumportable sa pormal na kasuotan. =)

After UP, we went back to the Shak and mingled with the minions as Sultan and the privates of Screaming BB's were there. The Sultan gave me my own multi-camouflage BDU (battle dress uniform). Wow, I'm officially a team heckler... i mean "member" of the Screaming BB's! Wahoo!

No one can model a multicam BDU like Jason Phatboi does

Smile, Jason! This is what a full-geared multicam BDU looks like. (Note: cigar, sandwhich, and beverages are not a mandatory part of the gear). Now, for my application to the Ghost Unit of the team... I still need to prove my worth.

Private Obi, reporting for duty sir! Best of the best of the best sir! (Bagay ga?)

After that, we rode back to Molo's again for dinner. That night's cholesterol suspects: sisig, inasar (?) na manok, crispy pata, kinilaw na tanigue. Yub yub!

Since delayed telecast ang Binibini sa TV, tinetext na sakin ni Tita yung mga pageant results.

Some-day
Gunbang Sunday at last! After suffering "withdrawal symptomps" on two Sunday's without wargames, we're back in action at last!

My H&K G3 was ready for action when I reported at the Shak HQ. We played in Montalban, Rizal... a couple of minutes ride from the former Payatas Dumpsite, home to Team Apocalypse!

I heard that the Screaming BB's (SBB's) will share with Team Atlas to establish our own home site. No news yet on where will the place be, though. I say, we formalize it enough and have a team motto, "PAKYUMO BIGTIME!"... or the Latin equivalent of it so as to make it look sassy. Hehe.

Anyway, it was not a good games day for the SBB's. I only got one confirmed kill, and the place saw the worst pile up of zombies and bloodlusts on its history! Zombies yung mga makukunat ang balat at makakapal ang mukhang hindi umaamin kahit obvious na yung tama nila!

Example: Si George. May nakita siyang nakaupong kalaban straight ahead. Binaril niya na and kitang kitang tinamaan sa chest rig yung kalaban. Tumingin lang sa dibdib niya yung kalaban sabay nagtago sa likod ng puno!

Hwaw! Zombie on the lose! Zombie on the lose!

Bloodlusts yung mga overkiller, trigger happies na umamin ka na ng "HIT" with matching taas ng baril, raratratin ka pa din!

Example: Si Stepahine. Yes, yung babaeng member pa namin! Tinamaan siya. She shouted hit then raised her arms, a sign of resignation from the game. Pinagbabaril pa din, and I heard the crunchy sound of BB's hitting her BDU.

We just cringed as she shouted again for a "HIT" before there was a cease fire. We can't shout "HIT" for her since it will give our positions to the enemy. Stupidly, the dumb bloke who shooted her charged forward for some unknown idiotic reasons. I, her Kuya, and another one from the SBB Alpha sandwhiched the nincompoop with BB shower and he admitted a "HIT". Good riddance, I must say! Most probably we were simultaenous in mentally shouting "PAKYUMO BIGTIME!" to that bastard. I wonder how is he now, tending to his aching welts.

I had a lot of hotdogs that day. Kaka-adik kasi yung grilled hotdog ni Manang sa site. Prior to that, naka apat na waffle na ko that morning kasi bumili ako pagbaba sa MRT. Back at the Shak that night, nag mini dinner kami. Bumili lang kami ng maraming barbecue at isaw tas kanin tas talo talo na.

Back home, sinabi na pala ni utol sa tatay niya na naglalaro ako ng airsoft. Tinanong niya agad sa akin pag uwi ko, "Eto ba yung may mahabang baril na paintball?". Eek! Sa isip isip ko, paintball are for sissies!

Moan-day
Tatay ni Utol: Ano handa mo bukas?
Ako: Baka sa Sabado na ko mag handa.
Tatay ni Utol: Ah oke. Alis na ko bukas ng hapon.
Ako: Alis na ko.

*****

Ako: Ano ihahanda ko bukas?
Mami: Bakit?
Ako: Para sa birthday ko. Kaso pupunta akong Greenhills baka gabihin ako ng uwi.
Mami: Ay oo nga pala no!
Ako: Sa Sabado na lang kaya?
Mami: Wag. Maghanda ka kahit pansit. Pampahaba ng buhay.
Ako: O sige. Tsaka sambilaong lumpiang shanghai.
Mami: Sige, order na lang ako.
Ako: Sige, bayaran ko na lang. Tas sa Sabado na lang ako hahanda ulit.
Mami: Sige.
Ako: Alis na ko.

Batian Portion!
Dahil matagal na kong hindi nakapag libot libot sa inyong mga blog, maraming salamat at makakabawi din ako sa inyo!
Major: sa may Pasay City kami man! Ikaw ga?
Rodel: salamats. astig lang design ko kasi astig ako. kumontra me kotong. nyahehehe.
Laine: salamats. iL hop on your's in time. ;)
Jai: buiset! hahaha. kelan ga tayo ulit mag Ghost Recon? hehe.
Jho: magandang lunes!
Lica: wow gumana na. astig.
Racky: Prosit! Panindak lang yan. "HANO BIBILI KA BA NG HALO HALO O HINDI!!!" sabay pakita ng tattoo ng halo-halo. nyahehehe.
Ejay: hello man. ingats sa pagtalon baka mapatid. hehe. salamats sa pagtambay!
Hanmae: ikaw din, ingats sa pagtalon. hehe.
Dee Dee: buiset! minsan lang mag panggap e kokontra pa. kita kita tayo sa Gilligans. para maiba. nyahahaha.

Matapos lang ako sa ginagawa ko, daanan ko kayong lahat! Kokotongan ko kayo tigitigisa! Hehe.

Numbuh Six

Some clatter above a drawer in my room. Pay attention to the cute centerpiece treehouse toy. That's the headquarters of the Kids Next Door. It's this cool cartoons in the Cartoon Network that I quite have a fancy for some time now.

The toy is a five part purchase from Jollibee's Kiddie Meal back a couple of months last year. I was able to complete all five before I left my previous work.

"Taking numbers instead of names, five heroic 10-year-olds have formed a secret team with one dedicated mission: to free all children from the tyrannical rule of adults!"

That's their catch line. As for the members, here's a short intro from the cartoon network website:

Numbuh One: Nigel Uno, a.k.a. Numbuh One, "The Leader", is the leader and the embodiment of Kids Next Door's principles. He is a master tactician who devises elaborate plans for world domination. Also, he speaks with a cool accent (English, that is!). --> He's the skinhead kid in red sweaters and cool shades

Numbuh Two: Hoagie P. Gilligan Jr, a.k.a. Numbuh Two, "The Doofus", spends much of his time building all kinds of cool machines. He is prone to falling, especially downstairs, and often gets so excited that he doesn't get enough oxygen and passes out. --> He's the fat kid with a pilot's head gear and goggles.

Numbuh Three: Kuki Sanban, a.k.a. Numbuh Three, "The Flirt", is short on attention but long on charm. She always seems to be "in her own little world", usually in a state of perpetual bliss. This cute, happy-go-lucky girl is willing to do anything to help the Kids' cause... if she can just remember what that thing is. --> She's the cute long-haired Asian lad in a baggy green sweatshirt.

Numbuh Four (my peborit!): Wallabee Beatles, a.k.a. Numbuh Four, "The Tough Kid", is brash, impulsive, and a specialist in hand-to-hand combat. Even though his blind enthusiasm usually wreaks havoc with their plans, the other Kids see him as an unstoppable enforcer. --> He's the kid with a "Beatles" signature hairdo wearing a hiphop attire with matching hooded orange sweater.

Numbuh Five: Abigail "Abby" Lincoln, a.k.a. Numbuh Five, "The Quiet One", is the team spy whose specialty is doing super sneaky work in a stealth-like fashion. Aside from Numbuh One, she may be the only KND member with any common sense. Her big secret: She wears glasses. --> She's the black girl in a sports shirt with matching red cap and gold earrings.

The cartoon is currently running on their 49th episode. And, Jollibee is yet again releasing a five set collectible toy. I already have Numbuh One, Two, and Five. Two Kiddie Meals to go and I'm off with another set of toys to put here in my office table.

Hehe.

Got Balls?

I watched PBA games yesterday with my officemates in the Cuneta Astrodome. First game was Air 21 versus Red Bull, where the latter won. Then, second game was San Miguel going against Sta Lucia Realtors. San Miguel won that match.

Bale fishboL muna kami habang hinihintay yung iba naming kasama. Pati yung Australian naming colleague napa-fishboL ng de oras.

First game went off quick. Late na kasi kami dumating. Basta ang magaling from Air 21's side was Ritualo kaso medyo bwakaw yung laro niya kahapon. From the other side, it was Tugade who lead the team and also grabbed the match's Player of the Game award.

KG Cañaleta Against the World

On the next match, it's cool to watch Danny Seigle in action. That night he was able to grab a double-double on points and rebounds. Too bad, he wasn't able to finish an alley-oop dunk from Robinson I think. Kung natuloy yun, malamang nag cartwheel ako sa ringside. Sayang si Wesley Gonzales. Star siya sa Ateneo tas bangko lang sa San Mig sa sobrang daming all-star ng lineup. He'll wait a couple of seasons more for him to be able to be used as frontman so I suggest he transfer to a team that could give him more playing time. Fuck the salary. Maganda bayad pihado sa San Mig pero kung hindi ka naman enjoy, no use. On the other side, wala na ko kilala sa Sta Lucia. Panay bagong players. Si Marlou, Espino, at Tolomia na lang kilala ko dun. Si Duremdes injured pa, pero partida hindi masyado nakalayo ang San Mig sa kanila. Anlakas pala nung Omolon na yun. Too bad my cam was off when he dunked just right on our side of the ring. Astig.

The Marlou Defense

Highlight din yung mga bading na cheering squad sa courtsides. Nakakasira ng focus manood. Ang leader pa nila e Manang Lola na nakakatakot na kasi sigaw pa ng sigaw kahit parang malalagutan na ng litid.

Anyway highway, grubfest was at Aristocrat afterwards. Chicha of the day ko ay shrimp chopsuey. Yub yub!

Tas pag labas may pang himagas pa. "Boss, chicks! Boss, chicks!"

=)

Lakas Tama Ka Pag Gento Kalaki Ininom Mo

Mission Debriefing

It was a great night of fun and action last weekend at the Operation Night Dagger bivouac. Again, kudos to Team SOE for organizing such event!

Ano bang mga nanyari?

Attendance ng Team SBB: Sultan, Jeng, Jorge, Inggo, Rommel, Hans, Garrboy, Jubaybomber, Oh-bee, Little John, Hakob, Hervi, Kuneho, Zeb, Arvin

Cameo appearance: Another Fred, Jason Phatboi, Kurnel Paji

Day 1
Arrival at Timberland, San Mateo: 5pm

From the parking lot, bihis kami tapos hike towards our designated firebase - an approximately 50 meter hill climb. Team SBB was assigned to the Red contingent along with Teams Semper Fi, Kamikaze, K9, Delta Seals, Recon 1st Battalion, ASG-NCR, Marine Force Recon, and other Lone Wolves.

Red Firebase Hill

On the other hand, teams from the Blue contingent were Apocalypse, Northern Alliance, RBG Mercs, Black Ops, Zero, Lost Boys, Rasta, OB, 1SD, and TTAG. I might have forgotten the other teams but as of the last count we of the Red Team were outnumbered by three is to one. Well, more meats to shoot then. Nangyari kasi, marami pang humabol na participants after the actual division of the teams kaya medyo naging lopsided. Oks lang naman samin.

On top of the Red Firebase, we hugged a corner to setup our stuffs and was oriented of the bivvy particulars by the red-assigned marshalls. We were also distributed our blinkers. It'll be the markerlight to represent when someone was hit.

The Red Angel... Maya, Marshall of the Red (Team SOE)

Binigyan din kami ng bivvy kits na may lamang kung ano ano. I personally liked the OP Night Dagger badge. Papatahi ko siya sa multicam ko soon.

The event was announced to start late so I opened my ultimate survival food, tuna-in-can and attacked it with much gusto with Hakob and Little John for all we know that was our last grub for the day. Jubaybomber coordinated with the other teams' squad leaders for tactical planning. It was a night game so assumingly there'll be tons of friendly-fire casualties. Para maiwasan, gumawa sila ng call signs. Challenge will be "11" at dapat ang sagot ng kabilang party ay "9", else raratratin siya ng walang habas. Hehe. Well, exaggeration lang yun. Basta ganun ang gagamitin para malaman namin na Red team din yung kasalubong namin sa dilim.

Along the briefing, I was assigned on a four-man recon team. Ako, si John Liit, si Hakob, at si Hervi. Our objective is to scout ahead of the pack and secure the nearest objective. Dahil pasaway, nauna kami bumaba ng hill via the grassy slope sa likod. Kaso nakita kami ng marshall, wala pa kasi go-signal. Kaya kunwari na lang namamasyal lang kami with matching kwentuhan at texting pa. Patok naman yung inoccent-look.

Green signal was raised by 8pm and we were able to reach and secure the nearest outpost. Within the first 30 minutes of the game, nakuhaan kami ng flag by the blue team. I dunno how that happened pero I heard inside job daw. Someone just walked into our base pretending to be on the red's side then grabbed the flag away. Anyway, that's just one objective down. The rest of the first night was a stalemate with both sides harrassing each others' camps.

Highlight that night from our side was when a huge mob of infiltrators from the Blue Team were able to crawl at the low-lying grasses right at the front slope of our firebase. May isang spotter lang na nag-report about that. Then, together with Team K9 and allied personnel, we swept that slope via an advancing firing line. Yung tamang nakalinya kami tapos pasugod habang bumabaril tapos supported lang kami ng isang fog light. Grabe, isa isang may tumatayo sa mga damuhan to confess "hit" and we never expected that that many blues were already that close to HQ already.

Firebase Red, the bright object on the far right, as seen from Firebase Blue.

That night, binisita din kami ng mga tropa namin na tumambay ng UP-CFA. Together with them, we were blessed by the presence of the Vietnam War veteran, Kurnel Paji!


From L-R Standing: Private Obi (ya can't see me!), Corporal Garrboy (ima strong boy!), Drill Sarge Jubaybomber (umayos ka, umayos ka!)
From L-R Kneeling?: Private John Liit (reach for the stars, Kurnel!), Kurnel Pudji (i believe i can fly!)
Far, on the background: The Sultan (what's wrong wif the boyz??)

Ayun, by midnight medyo inantok na ko but we should not leave our post. Ako, dun na natulog sa damuhan na binabantayan ko. Nagigising gising lang ako pag may maririnig akong malapit na putukan. Hehe. Sarap naman e. Yung tamang pag higa mo stars lang makikita mo everywhere. Astig.

Day 2
Past midnight, assault from the Blue team were relentless. Grabe, kudos from you guys! Di nyo kami tinantanan. Para kayong si Mike Enriquez.

Then we were guarding this outpost when a guy in gillie suit approached us.

"Respawn lang ako." Ibig sabihin, tinamaan na siya. Mag hihintay lang siya sa outpost ng ilang minuto para bumalik sa aksyon. "Anong Team nyo, Sir?" tanong namin. "Red Team ako. Apocalypse ako". Nagtaka kami kasi kalaban ang Team Apocalypse e. (FYI: We play on their site in Camp Masada, Payatas on some Sundays... at cute yung isang sniper chick nila... beep beep Garrboy!) Tapos sabi namin, "Ay malayo dito ang Outpost mo. Blue Team ka."

"Ay ganun ba, anong Team niyo?" tanong niya ulit. "Screaming BB's sir." "Ahhh Screaming BB's. Si Father **** ito". Ayun pala siya yung Bosconian priest na naglalaro ng airsoft. Hehe. Astig. Kilala niya yung group namin e. Naging magalang kami bigla ng de oras. "Ay father, dun po sa kabila yung firebase nyo. Blue Team po kayo." Hehe. Mamano pa sana ako e kaso baka batukan ako. Nyahehehe.


Pic from Camp Masada
From L-R, Standing: Obi, Garrkid, Stephanie, Inggo, Rommel, Brian, Jun, Tracy
From L-R, Kneeling: Jorge, Jacob
Lay wasted: Jeng

Eventually our original recon team roster got separated. By 2am, I was already hit like four times. Worst hit ko sa likod, malapit sa kuyukot. Pero pagaling na yung welt ngayon. I got it when we were sitting low on a grass, exchanging shots with an enemy frontier then suddenly our position were divulged because a very strong and uber annoying search light lit our area. Nung naramdaman kong tinamaan na katawan ko, gumulong ako patalikod para tumayo paalis tas yun dun ako napuruhan sa kuyukot.

Anyway, I was able to pull off some 2 hours of broken sleep before sunrise. Around 7am, our base were already surrounded by blues. Tapos bigla na lang may report ng suntukan from a nearby ditch. Hindi naman nagtagal at naagapan din. After the ruckus, the blue team were not interested to continue with the game. Siguro sa pagod at puyat na din. They were trying to assault our firebase the whole night non-stop. So technically, we were declared winners of the scenario. But the matter was still being deliberated by Team SOE.

Still, for most of the players, hindi na mahalaga kung sino nanalo or natalo. Ang mahalaga nag enjoy kaming lahat at may papupuntahang charity yung buong event.

I'm looking forward for my next bivouac!

Operation: Night Dagger

I'm pretty much jittery excited for the wargames con bivouac tomorrow. Presenting...

Operation: Night Dagger
(*excerpts sniped from Fil Airsoft website)

Where: Timberland Heights, San Mateo, Rizal
When: March 25-26, 1700H - 0800H

Proceeds will go to the Landslide victims in Southern Leyte. PHP300 per pax. With BB's and other airsoft stuffs for raffle.






Background Story:
STATUS AND CONDITION AT MID WORLD SECTOR

Border clashes between the countries of Pakjuthan and Landican Republic are uncommon. The focus of contention these two traditional enemies is an area that is dominated by a landscape called Bodez Brezuljak of “Dagger Mountain” as is roughly translated.

It is easy to see why Bodez Brezuljak is hotly contested. It has a road network infrastructure that controls the trade routes of the sector, as well as a series of pipelines that brings precious oil the seaports. To control the passages of trade and industry is to control the entire region. Clearly, the stakes of continued economic progress and security are high indeed.

Bodez Brezuljak is a troubled hotspot. The area is also infested by local tribesmen called the Utuh-tem, who believed that the locale is given to them by divine providence, and has shown marked aggression against any “invaders” into their land. But the rebel Utuh-tem are also claiming adjacent lands from the Kingdom of Dhaikiri – the only other country sharing its borders with Pakuthan and the Landican Republic, and is the source of the oil pulsing through Bodez Brezuljak into the seaports.

We think the Utuh-tem rebel group is small and quite insignificant to the conflict, but their territorial aggressiveness with the Kingdom of Dhaikri is making the situation more complex than expected. We have spoken with the Crown prince of Dhaikiri, who assured us that they will remain neutral unless utterly provoked into war. With the Kingdom having undergone a fifteen-year military modernization program, the General from pakjuthan and the Landican Republic alike have expressed utter hesitation to include the military giant in their list of enemies.

We have received alarming news from our intel sources that the tow nations have activated their mobilization codes, are now amassing their armies at the said area of dispute. We analyze and compute a 95% probability of war breaking out in the region.

Our agents-in-place think there will be night campaign of a massive scale to finally decide which country will conquer Bodez Brezuljak. We have set out our systems to closely monitor the events in that sector, Henceforth, this monitoring operation will be codenamed……. “THE NIGHT OF DAGGERS”

++ Polar Bear
Recon Mission Leader

*****
Operation: NIGHT DAGGER - GAME BRIEF

Each team will have the following strategic objectives:

1. CAPTURE AS MANY OUTPOSTS AS YOU CAN. There will be five outposts inside the hostile area. Each secured outposts shall be considered as a respawning area.

Note: A small opposing force will be stationed within each outpost during the start of the game. Opposing force shall not be allowed to respawn.

2. CAPTURE THE "DUMMY GENERAL". A team should capture the opponent’s “dummy general” and bring it to their own base camp. Team’s respective “dummy general” is allowed to be strategically mobilized and placed anywhere in the field except in the no fire zone and out of bound areas.

3. CAPTURE THE FLAG. Flag will be permanently placed on each base camp. A team should overrun the opponent’s base camp and capture the flag. Captured flag should then be brought back to their respective base camp.

Key winning areas:

1. A team who captured BOTH the flag and the dummy general
2. Should both flags nor enemy dummy generals were not captured by both teams at the end of the game, the team that captures the most outposts wins.


Night Dagger Bivy rules :

1. Only Registered players shall be allowed to play.
2. Game kit shall be provided for every player.
3. NO FPS LIMIT shall be in effect. Thus, responsible firing shall be likewise encouraged.
4. NO BLINKER, NO PLAY rule shall be implemented. Blinkers with batteries shall be available at the site for a small fee.
5. NO ZOMBIE rule shall be implemented. Once hit, turn on your blinker and go back to designated re-spawning area. Re-spawning time is 10 minutes.
6. NO HIT CALLING.
7. Execute knife kill properly.
8. NO FOUL LANGUAGE.
9. NO PYROTECHNICS.
10. COOKING shall be allowed only on designated area. Food and drinks vendors shall be available all thoughout the event.
11. Secure weapons and equipments in safe areas. Notify marshall for any lost or found items.
12. SOE Marshalls in reflective vests shall be roaming all throughout the game.
13. When injured or lost or in case of emergency, notify marshall through two-way radio or blow whistle unceasingly until help arrives.
14. Channel 1 is designated radio frequency for emergency.
15. Channel 2 is designated radio frequency for the staging area & SOE
16. Observe no fire zone and boundaries.
17. No Parking inside the bivy site. (only designated roving vehicle will be allowed inside).
18. No littering. Timberland is a garbage free estate.
19. Alcoholic beverages is prohibited within the bivy site.
20. Marshal's decision is final.
21. Bawal nakasimangot.

We'll divide two teams: FIREBASE BLUE versus FIREBASE RED.

The entire event was hosted by Team S.O.E. Kudos sa inyo mga tsong for such a nice fun and charity event!! At sana panay gento ang mga kalaban...

- Model: d3ep_fire (Fil Airsoft forums)
- Gears by: Tactical Option
- Photo by: Eric Pambid (for Operation Full Circle 2 Advertisement)
Host: Airsoft Games Club, Incorporated - NCR Chapter (ASG-NCR)

Haay, Miss Deep, walang gamitan ng charms sa laro!

Verily Vindicated Vivification for Vendetta

Gidbye Mate!
T'was last Friday after work when me and my colleagues hugged a 20-person table at the Krocodile Resto in Greenbelt. This is to welcome an Australian coworker who has just arrived earlier and at the same time, to bid farewell to another one who'll be off back to Sydney on the next day.

Grub list: pork sisig, tuna sisig, crispy pata, adobong kangkong, steamed tahong, chikkin in gravy, calamares, beer, iced tea, frog legs (for Pedro's sake... first time ko 'to)!

The afternoon prior to that, we had a little powwow for the same reason. We're off goofing around, playing cricket with the Aussies using a broom, a chair, and a stress ball... inside the office!

Grub list: assorted ice drops, ice creams, drumsticks, assorted chips, assorted soda cans...

After the gluttonous meal, most of us charged the cinema to watch the day's last showing of "V for Vendetta". Truly, the Bayawak Reflex knocks out like Pacquiao's clenched fist. I was enticingly invited to Nyu Nyu Land as soon as I hit the comfy couch! If I'm not that interested to the movie and if not for Miss Portman's charms, I'd been off snoring the first instance the cold AC breeze blanketed me.

I went home around 3am, just after seeing a couple of gurlz in "Sagala" gowns hanging around Absinth. Ang tagal pa naman ng May. Baka uso.


Sponklong's Natal Day!
March 18, Saturday was our youngest sib's birthday! Piscean din siya, his name's from his dad, Richard the Second but we rather call him Sponklong, Sponk, Pong, Long Long, or Baby! We sometimes call him by a doorbell beep just as his dad was calling us with a two tone whistle. His nickname came from a classic Pinoy cartoon, Doctor Sponklong. I personally hope he'll become one someday... no, not a cartoon... a doctor.

Happy 13th Birthday, Sponklong!!!

Hey look, brotha... it's my rifle!

Same O' Saturday!
I went out early last Saturday afternoon to meet Garrboy near Promenade, Greenhills. Aboard the Garrbuggy, we dashed beside Camp Crame to shop for military gears to be used for airsoft games. I got myself another sniper's veil, a tiger-pattern camou shirt, and a garrison belt. Garrik on the other hand hoarded em all! Will elevate "camouflage" to another level? Abangan!

We headed to UP-CFA afterwards to find the place jampacked with modellers and players alike! I have two guest newbie players from Ateneo so it's my responsibility to orient (...or disorient?!) them to the community. Got myself a Warhammer game too against one of them... syempre patalo muna (naks!) para ma-engganyo silang maglaro pa ng madami (Wushus... reasons!).

Dinner was at Molo's Resto after a short rendezvous at Da Shakk with the usual grub suspects: sisig, calamares, kilawin tanigue, ceasar's salad (?), spaghetti (??), and nachos (?!?!?). Ice cream chucking afterwards at the store across Molo's. Yub yub!


It's Nice to Be Back!
It was a Sunday Gunbang session again and Team Screaming BB's was back to play where my training ground was - Last Castle, Pasig! Just beside the site of the Ultra Stampede, the old jail compound was quite shunned alright. Attendance from other teams were not that much as the last Sundays that we've played there. Our own attendance kinda dwindled as well with at least only 9 regulars from our team who played that day. Urban Camo Girl was not around. Too bad, that could be our last Last Castle game again for weeks. Hope to see her though this Saturday for the Operation: Night Dagger bivouac-for-a-cause to be held in San Mateo. OUr team will sign up for the event soon. It will sure be fun.

Last Sunday's games were cooL. There were cases of zombie players but at least they were quite tolerable. I was able to sack three confirmed kills in around 8 games and I kinda was satisfied with my performance. I used three different guns on that day: my H&K G3A3, a full-auto capable Sniper Rifle, and an FN P90 submachine gun.

Remember, Remember the Fifth of November!

V for Vendetta
Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert!

"This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is it vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished, as the once vital voice of the verisimilitude now venerates what they once vilified. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified, and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose vis-à-vis an introduction, and so it is my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V."

On the wake of a chaotic war, Great Bitain emerged with an oppressive totalitarian government. From the ashes of this government's own malignance, a masked vigilante only known as "V" emerged to spearhead a great revolution that aimed to overthrow the dictator. Along the way, he found an unlikely ally, Evey, who he had saved from corrupted undercover cops. Together, with V's charisma and brilliance, they've committed the greatest act of terrorism that will signal the fall of the government and will wage a country-wide "people power" revolution.

The movie's graphically awesome. The director was able to simulate the details and feel of living on a dark totalitarian future for Britain. From the way how the roles were portrayed up to the actual instance of V's narration of his experiences on the hands of the government's twisted schemes, the socio-political message that the film wanted to strongly imply was clear. And as if to verily mock, the central thought of the movie was subtly infused with concepts that are really relevant to the current global political condition. If it wasn't even obvious enough, the concept is even pertinent to the political atmosphere of our own country. Go figure.

It's cool how they managed to pull off a dramatic approach to depicting such case of an enigmatic film. I believe it should be credited on the screenplay's timing arrangements. They efficiently developed each main characters with scenes that also facilitated the progression of the storyline. No stills wasted.

Hugo Weaving, who played V (...and Elrond in LotR), did a great job on bringing life on the hero behind the impassive Guy Fawkes mask. Despite emotionlessness, Hugo had projected V well as this mysterious miscreant with only gestures and a cold voice to boot. Truly reminiscent of Parokya's Mister Swabe and "walang mag-aangas sa lalakeng may balbas" excerpt. Hehe.

Natalie Portman, who played Evey Hammond (...and leading lady to my daydreams hehe), made an outstanding portrayal of the role. I heard she was just a second option to play that part but I believe the crew should be thankful for sparing her the choice. Her transition from the mild-mannered employee to the gritty rebel was flawlessly portrayed and she really gave justice to what was expected out of representing Evey. I find her still cute even with the shaven head too. Dream lady talaga! Kudos to that.

I find the movie lacking in terms of musical scoring. I like the orchestra hit when V bombed the watch tower at the start of the film, yes... but other than that, I felt that the entire experience could have been more "clenching" if given an entirely different musical approach.

In all, I dig the socio-political theme, the dark provocative nature of presentation, the enigmatic aura of the protagonists, and the propagandist message.

Usapang Barako

*Kahapon pinag-usapan namin ni DD yung Boracay trip sa Starbucks dito sa tabi ng Rob Summit. Masarap ang kape. Pero mas masarap ang kapeng mura. Pero wala nang sasarap pa sa kapeng libre. Hindi naman ako nilibre ni DD. Wala lang. Naisip ko lang na sadyang pinakamasarap kapag ang nilalantakan mo e libre. Libre kutos lang ang hindi ko nagustuhan na binigay sakin nang libre.

*Hindi na tumama ang Starbucks sa pag spell ng palayaw o kahit ng mismong pangalan ko (sabagay kahit hindi sa Starbucks bihira ang tumama). Eto o may listahan ako ng mga hirit nila sa pangalan ko:

1) Oby (kagabi laang ito)
2) Kobe
3) Kobi (haging nang tumumpak)
4) Obie (sayang)
5) Kobie
6) OB (astig)

Partida, pag nagbigay ako ng pangalan sinasabi ko pa ang spelling: "It's Obi, Miss *sabay ngiti*... O. B. I.". Pero pag kuha ko ng grande ko sablay sablay pa din ang nakalathala sa baso. Pero kesa naman:

1) Randelle
2) Randel
3) Randle
4) Randall
5) Randal
6) Randlle (dinobol "L" nga... aruydyosko!)

Believe me, kahit mga taong malalapit sa akin bihira tumama sa spelling niyan.

Ang gara ng spelling...

*Nung nagsusulat pa ko dati sa isang pang-flip na local hobby & games magazine, sa Starbucks sa 6750 ko tinatapos ang mga articles ko. Hindi sa mukhang konyo ka tignan kapag may dala kang laptop sa Starbucks. Pero ganun na nga. Ang sarap maging konyo minsan. Try mo minsan. Yes, minsan. Minsan lang. Minsan.

*Ang totoo nyan, mabibilang laang sa isang kamay ang paborito kong lantakan sa Starbucks. Habol ko talaga ay ang kapayapaan at ang nakakarelaks na "ambiance". Pesteng ambiance kasi yan, walang mabili sa Quiapo. Try ko sa Divisoria maghanap next time. I think of it like this, I go to Starbucks as if to "rent" a tranquil place to write my articles and/or unwind for a couple of hundred of bucks. Plus, there's a free coffee and choco éclair! Oha! Yan, napa-English tuloy ako. Pasensya, carried away lang po.

*Mabibilang laang nga sa isang kamay ang tinitira ko sa Starbucks: siyempre ang order ng bayan - caramel frappé... or any frappé in that case (mocha frappé is overrated I tells ya), cold caramel macchiato (huwag hot, di gaano malasa ang caramel sa mainit), hot choco (tas punuan mo ng sandamakmak na gatas... awwww! olats lang pag lactose intolerant ka), tas syempre éclair all the way ang chicha (sikret lang to ha... kuha ka ng isang cup na gatas, isawsaw mo dun yung éclair bago mo ngasabin.... awwwooowoooo!).

*Lupit ng nagpauso ng Starbucks. Naging status symbol na siya, parang i-Pod. Biro mo kahit ilang regular na politikong obrero mangongotong para lang gawing tambayan ang Starbucks. Noong tumatambay pa kami sa bahay ng tropa ko sa Tagaytay mga ilang taon na ang nakalipas, naisip ko pa na maganda magka franchise ng Starbucks doon. Wala kasing tambayan ang sambayanang konyo noon sa Tagaytay kundi yung 7-11 sa kanto, sa Mushroom Burger, o sa Olivarez. Tapos nito na lang nang magkaroon ng Starbucks Tagaytay at isa siya sa mga (ano tagalog ng "succesful"?)... basta yun, na branch ng Starbucks sa Manila outskirts ngayon. Nalaman ko na lang din later na hindi pala for franchise ang Starbucks at pag aari sila ng isang mayamang alta de familia na nagbabalak pang yumaman ng husto. Who doesn't?

*Masarap matulog sa Starbucks. Di ko pa nagagawa, pero pinapangarap ko. Sana maabot ko ang aking mga pangarap balang araw.

*Ugaliing palaging uminom ng tubig pagkatapos ng isang malupit na sagupaang kape sa Starbucks. Di ko alam kung bakit. But I have this queasy feeling inside my gut that the practice is healthy. Wala lang, nagmamarunong lang ako.

*Babala: hindi ako sponsored ng Starbucks. Walang pakelaman ng trip. =D

Anonanyari

Biyernes
@RHGC HQ, New Manila
*kain siomay, pritong pork, panseet, chikkin, inom cox
*laro ng tao-tauhan
*wentuhan

Sabado (gainit ng panahon)
@UP-CFA
*tambay
*kain hotdawg, pishboL, squigboL, siomay, inom C2
*pintura ng laruan
*wentuhan

@Bite Club, Katipunan
*pabondat sa higanteng borger
*wentuhan uli

@Da Shak
*pintura ng laruan
*kain pitza, inom cox
*nood animè
*nood sa board game (hindi Snakes & Ladders)
*wentuhang marame

Sunday (gainit pa din)
@Da Shak
*tumpukan
*kalikot baril
*kain borger, inom cox

@Timberland, San Mateo, Rizal
*suot fatigue
*kalikot baril
*barilan
*kain borger, inom tubeg
*barilan ulet
*suot ulit jologs na damet
*wentuhan

@Pares, Kamuning
*kain calamares, inom pepsee
*wentuhan

@Da Shakk
*kalikot baril
*nood "Princess Bride"
*inom cox
*wentuhan

Monday (sakit ng katawan)
@17/F The Office, Makati
*pasok opis
*kain baon
*umpog ulo sa keyboard

Ardent Cogitation

"There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness"
- Euripedes (480? bc -406? bc)

*A man courts a woman to "test" the waters if they, as couples, will click. A woman will have this preliminary screening if she'll accept his courtship or not. Couples that will pass through this stage will ascend a step higher on their intimacy level because the man, provided he has no other intention but love, has explicitly affirmed that he preferred the woman to be a prospect girlfriend and the woman, provided she has no other intention but love, has explicitly confirmed that he is a prospect boyfriend. That's on a flawless setup. What if both have other intentions than love? What if the affirmation and the confirmation are not explicit enough? What if in spite of it all, the idea of having him/her as a prospect beloved just doesn't sound appealing to you?

*Most women has a thing for complicated relationships (I'm not talking marital relationships of course). It is not necessarily a "happy" thing for them but more of "excitement". The thrill of expecting what will happen next after a lover's quarrel. The elation of having to deal with a handful of suitors sans care for the boyfriend. The buoyant anticipation of a bestfriend's confession of love whilst amidst a mutual understanding with another man. It gives them this sort of pride and wistful gratification of having an "active" lovelife other than the static boring ones. Ironically, when one "complication" could be solved with a decisive choice, most women would just resign to their stereotyped weaknesses, leave the problem unsettled, and put "It's Complicated" status on their Friendster account. Yes, they somewhat wallow on that.

*Men, by nature, is polygamous. But then, a polygamist does not know true love. If your lover has confessed his love for you then later loved another woman, sorry but he did not truly loved you. Men, by nature, is polygamous but he can surmount his nature. If he stayed with you until the end, be proud that he have found true love in you.

*Humans have masochistic tendencies in loving. I've discussed it, and never will again.

*Humans would rather fall in love than to simply love. It's the "fall" that hurts.

*Nice women would fall for either scruffy-looking, futureless, badasses or Porsche-driving, mommy-cuddled, cash worshipers. Men in between should suffer to pick off from their left overs.

Champion of Tianjin

As if a birthday gift, my designation to the UK project was withdrawn yesterday so scratch that stuff about going to adjust to the English time. Yahoo!

So, ayun. Yesterday, I just bought grub for the officemates, went out to watch a movie, then ran home to karaoke-frenzic relatives and family friends. All in a day! Parang artista sa booking... wahehehe. Pweh! Celebrations will not stop there, though. Later tonight, punta kaming Gilligan's ng Justice League "para maiba". Tas sa Saturday, bilihan ko na lang ng kung anong machicha yung mga UP-CFA boyz.

Anyway, DD was texting me last night for this package to Boracay come April. Tatanggihan ko ba ang offer or uumpisahan ko nang magpalaki ng katawan to attack the beach (as if!)? Abangan...

Salamats sa lahat ng birthday greets, on or off cam (i mean, on or off blog) man! Ambabait niyo! Si God na bahala sa inyo! Haha!


Fearless
Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert!

This'll be the last Kung Fu movie of Jet Li. At least, he'll retire from the role with grace.

The movie is your typical oriental adventure flick with a theme revolving around vengeance and triumph. The plot itself is common on most Chinese karate films which involved a young protagonist's struggle to excellence and his eventual revenge from a loss inflicted by a super kick-butt enemy. I don't know why, but I find everything in it very very "usual"... the redundance being needed to emphasize it. Same o' same o' plot, same o' same o' theme, usual super Kung Fu fight stunts, typical bland romance...

The only obvious departure from the common Chinese Kung Fu stories was that it ended tragically with the main character's death which was needed on the story anyway since it was a semi-fictitious recount of Huo Yuanjia's life. Huo Yuanjia was a Chinese hero who restored the glory of practicing martial arts. Truly, the film summarized the basic principles behind wushu and the art of its discipline. The Buddhist Channel even tagged the movie "the most Dharma-filled film of Jet Li" who is a practicing Buddhist himself.

Wushu is a collective term for the Chinese arts of combat.
Dharma is a written account of Bhuddist principles known as the "eternal truth".

Ever the admirer of girls with slits for eyes, the "supposed" leading lady, Sun Li is very very cute! Now that really needs redundancy. She pulled off a nice portrayal of a blind girl. However, I stressed on the words "supposed leading lady" because her "supposed" love story with Huo Yuanji didn't even spark! It seemed that the story wanted to create a relationship between the two but then not! Amf. If the director intended to develop romance here then I say it was pretty much underdeveloped. But then, I heard that some of the scenes had been cut for theatrical release. I even saw in one film outline that Michelle Yeoh had been a cast but her scenes were included among those that were cut. Total bummer.

Still, for the sheer emotional tension of watching the film, some funny scenes that tickled me much, action-packed combats, and a cute "supposed" leading lady, I give it a thumbs up.

*****

Hobo: Yuanjia! Yuanjia! When will you be the Champion of Tianjin?
Yuanjia: What do you think?
Hobo: It'll be today! It'll be today!!

Two Decades and a Half

Kainis! 18 years old na ko!! *grin*

I am now accepting gifts. Kindly, mail it to my address or have it sent to the office, noticed for me.

"Greetings are good but I need cash!"

Hehe.

On the other hand, iL be regularized here at my new work on this month. With it, iL also be transferred to a new project involving works from Leeds, UK so I need to adjust my schedule to accomodate the work hours in England. That's ideally 2:00pm to 11:00pm here in Manila, so I'm expecting that the next days would be very hectic plus the training. Kawawa naman blog ko. iL visit from time to time na lang. And hopefully check out my favorite blogs too.

Happy birthday to me!!

*****

Here are bits about Pisceans that is true for me...

Pisces is sympathetic and compassionate, and cannot bear to see another human being in pain. Indeed, Pisceans feel very deeply about other people as they do not have a strong sense of separation and individuality.

Pisces is an intuition sign which can receive great inspiration from beyond. Pisceans are thus the natural mediums and mystics of the zodiac who can communicate their inner vision through either the arts or sciences. Pisces can also be a sign of selfless or self-sacrificing devotion, and is capable of truly unconditional love for others. (Most Pisceans that I knew uses the medium of the Arts. Me included.)

The Piscean personality is the most unworldly one in the zodiac. It is the poet, the dreamer, or the psychic who enjoys being taken away from the mundane reality of everyday life. If Pisceans become trapped by circumstances in any one place, they will seek solace from their own inner world. (Meaning may sariling mundo! Ahaha! But weird but true, Pisceans are daydreamers.)

The other negative Piscean trait involves the illusion and confusion which surround their ability to tell the truth - known as lying by the more pragmatic signs. (Pisceans rarely lie or at least find it hard to... I, myself, could be too obvious when I lie. It's not our talent, yknow.)

The most idealistic, romantic and highly-strung sign, Pisceans are only too happy to lose themselves in their relationships. Being loved is central to their well-being. They are very caring, and make compassionate partners. (Amen.)

Deeply sensitive and soft-hearted, Pisceans revel in highly-charged relationships. Unfortunately, they are so easily hurt that they often emerge battle-scarred from a relationship with their dreams shattered. Many Pisceans also view their loved ones through rose-colored spectacles, refusing to admit that their idealised lover is only human after all. (Amen! Amen!)

When in love, Pisceans are filled with aspirations. Often seeking a spiritual life with their partner, they are probably the most romantic sign of the zodiac and can be very caring and sensitive. but the fact that they are dreamers can cause problems since expectation may be too high. (Ok... can't agree more.)

*****

Here's what a male Piscean should expect in a relationship with the opposite sex based on her Zodiac:

female aries - needs dedication
female taurus - excellent
female gemini - needs insight
female cancer - quite entrancing
female leo - romantic
female virgo - quite supportive
female libra - fairytale romance
female scorpio - tantalizing & fun
female sagittarius - too many problems (true! amf!)
female capricorn - thoroughly passionate
female aquarius - take care
female pisces - absolute bliss (yes.. hehe)

Interested ako dun sa Libra at sa Leo girls. Hmm... I wonder how is it like. =)

Weak Days

Fried-Day
Langya, ligaw talaga ako sa QC. Last Friday after work, I rushed to Hobby Depot somewhere in Thomas Morato to buy parts for my H&K G3 airsoft gun. I've been borrowing guns for two or three games now and I was missing my own rifle already. I love challenging myself and this time, I promised not to take a cab or asking a ride up to QC. You can never get me lost around Manila but you have a fat chance for it if you'll leave me in the middle of QC.

Ginawa ko, tanong ako ng directions sa tropa tsaka kung anong mga signboard ng mga sasakyang kong jeep. Luckily, I made it! That's after adding some hundreds of meters walk just to look for the exact avenue to turn.

Two of the store dudes are my tropa so I just rode with em back to... Molo's Resto? We heard from the Chief Oberon that they're ganging up there and obviously for an inveterate trip to alcoholdom!

Attendance: Chief Oberon, Pork, Jubaybomber, Kuneho, Me!, Manong Driver, Crispy...

The night ended with an empty bottle of Absolut Vodka, empty sizzling plates of sisig, empty bowls of tokwa baboy... ano pa ba? Basta lahat empty! So as the Oberon firmly adjudicates, "Faith is ABSOLUT!"

We headed back to the Shak afterwards and I just left the gunparts there before heading back to our home sweet house.

So-Tired-Day
It was Saturday.Nagtext si Tita kahapon. Mayroon pa daw siyang extra ticket for the Binibining Pilipinas 2006 Coronation Night sa Araneta. I so wanted to come. Number 7 is my sis's kinakapatid and lives on the same area as our's. She looks like her dad and fairly cute but in my opinion, her beauty's not the "beauty pageant-type". Number 10 was a schoolmate. She used to be a tropa of a tropa. She haven't changed that much, I say.

Anyway highway, I went early to the Shak to check my gun. Sabi ko, uwi na lang ako before 5pm para makasama pa sa Binibining. Punta kami ng UP-CFA a couple of hours after ng tambay. Same o, same o... paint lang ako ng figs ko habang naglaro yung mga boyz. There were Fine Arts students going overnight for their projects so their Prof offered us that we could stay late too. Grub menu were the usual too... hotdog, siomai, pishboL, wekwek, monay... astig nga e, isaw na lang kulang. Malayo pa kasi yung isawan e, nasa bandang Kalayaan pa.

By around 5pm tumatawag na si Tita. E ang kaso I realized I was too far to rush back home, get into my "formal wear" and rush again to their condo. In long, hindi ako sumama dahil tinamad ako dahil anlayo ko sa bahay at hindi ako kumportable sa pormal na kasuotan. =)

After UP, we went back to the Shak and mingled with the minions as Sultan and the privates of Screaming BB's were there. The Sultan gave me my own multi-camouflage BDU (battle dress uniform). Wow, I'm officially a team heckler... i mean "member" of the Screaming BB's! Wahoo!

No one can model a multicam BDU like Jason Phatboi does

Smile, Jason! This is what a full-geared multicam BDU looks like. (Note: cigar, sandwhich, and beverages are not a mandatory part of the gear). Now, for my application to the Ghost Unit of the team... I still need to prove my worth.

Private Obi, reporting for duty sir! Best of the best of the best sir! (Bagay ga?)

After that, we rode back to Molo's again for dinner. That night's cholesterol suspects: sisig, inasar (?) na manok, crispy pata, kinilaw na tanigue. Yub yub!

Since delayed telecast ang Binibini sa TV, tinetext na sakin ni Tita yung mga pageant results.

Some-day
Gunbang Sunday at last! After suffering "withdrawal symptomps" on two Sunday's without wargames, we're back in action at last!

My H&K G3 was ready for action when I reported at the Shak HQ. We played in Montalban, Rizal... a couple of minutes ride from the former Payatas Dumpsite, home to Team Apocalypse!

I heard that the Screaming BB's (SBB's) will share with Team Atlas to establish our own home site. No news yet on where will the place be, though. I say, we formalize it enough and have a team motto, "PAKYUMO BIGTIME!"... or the Latin equivalent of it so as to make it look sassy. Hehe.

Anyway, it was not a good games day for the SBB's. I only got one confirmed kill, and the place saw the worst pile up of zombies and bloodlusts on its history! Zombies yung mga makukunat ang balat at makakapal ang mukhang hindi umaamin kahit obvious na yung tama nila!

Example: Si George. May nakita siyang nakaupong kalaban straight ahead. Binaril niya na and kitang kitang tinamaan sa chest rig yung kalaban. Tumingin lang sa dibdib niya yung kalaban sabay nagtago sa likod ng puno!

Hwaw! Zombie on the lose! Zombie on the lose!

Bloodlusts yung mga overkiller, trigger happies na umamin ka na ng "HIT" with matching taas ng baril, raratratin ka pa din!

Example: Si Stepahine. Yes, yung babaeng member pa namin! Tinamaan siya. She shouted hit then raised her arms, a sign of resignation from the game. Pinagbabaril pa din, and I heard the crunchy sound of BB's hitting her BDU.

We just cringed as she shouted again for a "HIT" before there was a cease fire. We can't shout "HIT" for her since it will give our positions to the enemy. Stupidly, the dumb bloke who shooted her charged forward for some unknown idiotic reasons. I, her Kuya, and another one from the SBB Alpha sandwhiched the nincompoop with BB shower and he admitted a "HIT". Good riddance, I must say! Most probably we were simultaenous in mentally shouting "PAKYUMO BIGTIME!" to that bastard. I wonder how is he now, tending to his aching welts.

I had a lot of hotdogs that day. Kaka-adik kasi yung grilled hotdog ni Manang sa site. Prior to that, naka apat na waffle na ko that morning kasi bumili ako pagbaba sa MRT. Back at the Shak that night, nag mini dinner kami. Bumili lang kami ng maraming barbecue at isaw tas kanin tas talo talo na.

Back home, sinabi na pala ni utol sa tatay niya na naglalaro ako ng airsoft. Tinanong niya agad sa akin pag uwi ko, "Eto ba yung may mahabang baril na paintball?". Eek! Sa isip isip ko, paintball are for sissies!

Moan-day
Tatay ni Utol: Ano handa mo bukas?
Ako: Baka sa Sabado na ko mag handa.
Tatay ni Utol: Ah oke. Alis na ko bukas ng hapon.
Ako: Alis na ko.

*****

Ako: Ano ihahanda ko bukas?
Mami: Bakit?
Ako: Para sa birthday ko. Kaso pupunta akong Greenhills baka gabihin ako ng uwi.
Mami: Ay oo nga pala no!
Ako: Sa Sabado na lang kaya?
Mami: Wag. Maghanda ka kahit pansit. Pampahaba ng buhay.
Ako: O sige. Tsaka sambilaong lumpiang shanghai.
Mami: Sige, order na lang ako.
Ako: Sige, bayaran ko na lang. Tas sa Sabado na lang ako hahanda ulit.
Mami: Sige.
Ako: Alis na ko.

Batian Portion!
Dahil matagal na kong hindi nakapag libot libot sa inyong mga blog, maraming salamat at makakabawi din ako sa inyo!
Major: sa may Pasay City kami man! Ikaw ga?
Rodel: salamats. astig lang design ko kasi astig ako. kumontra me kotong. nyahehehe.
Laine: salamats. iL hop on your's in time. ;)
Jai: buiset! hahaha. kelan ga tayo ulit mag Ghost Recon? hehe.
Jho: magandang lunes!
Lica: wow gumana na. astig.
Racky: Prosit! Panindak lang yan. "HANO BIBILI KA BA NG HALO HALO O HINDI!!!" sabay pakita ng tattoo ng halo-halo. nyahehehe.
Ejay: hello man. ingats sa pagtalon baka mapatid. hehe. salamats sa pagtambay!
Hanmae: ikaw din, ingats sa pagtalon. hehe.
Dee Dee: buiset! minsan lang mag panggap e kokontra pa. kita kita tayo sa Gilligans. para maiba. nyahahaha.

Matapos lang ako sa ginagawa ko, daanan ko kayong lahat! Kokotongan ko kayo tigitigisa! Hehe.

Numbuh Six

Some clatter above a drawer in my room. Pay attention to the cute centerpiece treehouse toy. That's the headquarters of the Kids Next Door. It's this cool cartoons in the Cartoon Network that I quite have a fancy for some time now.

The toy is a five part purchase from Jollibee's Kiddie Meal back a couple of months last year. I was able to complete all five before I left my previous work.

"Taking numbers instead of names, five heroic 10-year-olds have formed a secret team with one dedicated mission: to free all children from the tyrannical rule of adults!"

That's their catch line. As for the members, here's a short intro from the cartoon network website:

Numbuh One: Nigel Uno, a.k.a. Numbuh One, "The Leader", is the leader and the embodiment of Kids Next Door's principles. He is a master tactician who devises elaborate plans for world domination. Also, he speaks with a cool accent (English, that is!). --> He's the skinhead kid in red sweaters and cool shades

Numbuh Two: Hoagie P. Gilligan Jr, a.k.a. Numbuh Two, "The Doofus", spends much of his time building all kinds of cool machines. He is prone to falling, especially downstairs, and often gets so excited that he doesn't get enough oxygen and passes out. --> He's the fat kid with a pilot's head gear and goggles.

Numbuh Three: Kuki Sanban, a.k.a. Numbuh Three, "The Flirt", is short on attention but long on charm. She always seems to be "in her own little world", usually in a state of perpetual bliss. This cute, happy-go-lucky girl is willing to do anything to help the Kids' cause... if she can just remember what that thing is. --> She's the cute long-haired Asian lad in a baggy green sweatshirt.

Numbuh Four (my peborit!): Wallabee Beatles, a.k.a. Numbuh Four, "The Tough Kid", is brash, impulsive, and a specialist in hand-to-hand combat. Even though his blind enthusiasm usually wreaks havoc with their plans, the other Kids see him as an unstoppable enforcer. --> He's the kid with a "Beatles" signature hairdo wearing a hiphop attire with matching hooded orange sweater.

Numbuh Five: Abigail "Abby" Lincoln, a.k.a. Numbuh Five, "The Quiet One", is the team spy whose specialty is doing super sneaky work in a stealth-like fashion. Aside from Numbuh One, she may be the only KND member with any common sense. Her big secret: She wears glasses. --> She's the black girl in a sports shirt with matching red cap and gold earrings.

The cartoon is currently running on their 49th episode. And, Jollibee is yet again releasing a five set collectible toy. I already have Numbuh One, Two, and Five. Two Kiddie Meals to go and I'm off with another set of toys to put here in my office table.

Hehe.