B-sides

Chris Webber, the most famous and the most talented member of Michigan's Fab Five retired from the NBA last week. The Fab Five - Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson - played college ball for the Wolverines for two years, and went to two Final Fours and as many championship games (they lost both). They started as freshmen for Michigan during the 1991 NCAA title game - a first in NCAA history. I was on my first semestral break from college when I watched five bald young kids wearing baggy shorts, trash-talk and showboat their way to the championship game on TV. Some say it revolutionized college ball. That year's Final Four got me hooked for life.

This year, the US NCAA Final Four will feature all four No. 1 seeds for the first time ever. North Carolina, Kansas, Memphis and UCLA, will play for the top prize in US college basketball, after disposing of their respective Elite Eight opponents over the weekend. Worth staying up late for: UNC vs. KU - The last time the Jayhawks were in the Final Four, some guy name Roy Williams was coaching the team. He bolted for his Alma Mater, UNC, after KU lost to Syracuse and Carmelo Anthony.

This season, the NBA will possibly feature a 50-win team that will miss the playoffs. As of this writing, Dallas, Denver and Golden State all have 45 wins, with 9 games left to play. One of these teams will miss out on the eighth and last playoff spot in the very strong Western Conference. These three teams are only 5 1/2 games behind the current leader. On the other hand, the East's No. 4 seed, Cleveland, currently has 41 wins.

Later today, the Chicago Cubs will be entering their 100th season without winning a World Series title (If you are really bad at math, the Cubs last won the World Series way back in 1908). This is the longest-running championship drought in all four major leagues in American sports (MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL). If you have a thing for contrasts, the National University Bulldogs last won the UAAP men's title in 1954. It's not even close.

On the local front, Magnolia's Enrico Villanueva was traded for Purefoods' Marc Pingris last week. It should really be that simple, but for the PBA rules prohibiting direct trades between sister teams. So, Purefoods sent Pingris to Coke, who sent second-tier guard Chester Tolomia for Villanueva and Willy Wilson of Magnolia, before shipping them to Purefoods and Barangay Ginebra, respectively. From Coke, Pingris will move to Magnolia for a second round pick, while Wilson will end up in Ginebra for Mark Macapagal. Simple, huh?

Post-Hibernation

I spent my very first Holy Week in Metro Manila, reacquainting myself with Messrs. Regalado and Armstrong. I had to deal with the former if I wanted to have the slightest chance of finishing the enormous backlog that I created during the course of the last two weeks of the academic year. It's not that I had a choice to begin with. The last 200 pages or so were covered in two sessions. The last two sessions. I dealt with the latter, on the other hand, to keep my sanity. Jessica Zafra once wrote, that we are "a generation without closure" - we did not know what happened to Mr. Armstrong and his three kids, namely, Steve, Big Bert, and Little John. Well, GMA-7 delivered closure to those who still needed it over the weekend, by airing Voltes V's The Secret of the Mechanical Eagle, and The Last Saga. I have already seen both several years ago and several years apart. But, who's complaining?

Weng and I spent Easter Sunday watching the PBA's Graduates vs. Dropouts game on TV. It ended in a way only the PBA could have wanted, 90-all. Following FIBA rules on exhibition games, no overtime was played. The PBA and it's players' educational trust fund went home Php 2 million richer. The fund is meant for players’ post-PBA career studies. (A wiseass remarked that this puts our players at a distinct disadvantage since all of them graduated. On the other hand, the only "graduation" the DLRT boys know is on 6 fouls.)

P.S. LA and Larry have been traded to Alaska for Cortez and Bono. As a true-blue Atenista, and an SMB fan since a long, long time ago, I really wanted LA to follow Olsen's footsteps in SMB (calling it Magnolia doesn't sound right after all these years). I wish them luck.

Holy Thursday

Look at all my trials and tribulations
Sinking in a gentle pool of wine.
Don't disturb me now, I can see the answer
Till this evening is this morning, life is fine.

Always thought that I'd be an Apostle.
Knew that I would make it if I tried.
Then when we retire, we can write the Gospels
So they'll still talk about us when we've died.

Look at all my trials and tribulations
Sinking in a gentle pool of wine.
What's that in the bread, it's gone to my head
Till this morning in this evening life is fine.

- The Last Supper, Jesus Christ Superstar*

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* Mga Awit, Papuri, at Panalangin ng Days With the Lord

Advisory

Easter Sunday's charity match at the Araneta Coliseum, between graduates and dropouts, is set at 4 p.m. and will be televised live on Studio 23. Proceeds of the event will go to the PBA Players’ Educational Trust Fund.

Lenten Thoughts

Cleansing Diet

I am practically done with Specpro. Hooray. I found the answer to my assigned question about two minutes after Mia sent us the assignments last week, and I forwarded it to her posthaste. There were 20 other unassigned questions, which I and two - later four - other likewise lazyass blockmates decided to distribute among ourselves. I have already finished drafting the answers to 3 out of the 4 questions assigned to me, and solved the problem regarding the correction of typographical errors in a person's surname, not by referring to any Specpro textbook, but by calling up my sister, who incidentally, works in a Local Civil Registry office.

After getting the blue books last night, I think most of us can also already cross Labor out of the list of problems we have to worry about. You really have to make an effort to screw this one up to have to take it again.

Civpro, however, is another thing altogether.

Anyway, since Playing for Pizza won't be out in paperback until July, I picked up a copy of Conrado de Quiros' Tongues of Fire earlier today for my SCRA-free summer reading pleasure. Actually, the SCRA-free summer season really won't start until after the second week of April (after Civpro, see above), but really, who cares?

Just for good measure, I also got the latest issue of Time, DVD copies of The Land Before Time (yes, I have seen it before), Mona Lisa Smile, and Coach Carter. If The Land Before Time cannot desensitize your legal gobbledygook-filled brain, I don't know what will.

Looking (Way) Ahead

Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Force shall free me.

-The Code of the Sith

That will be my write-up for the Memorandum 2010. I can't wait.

In fact, I can't wait for March 18, 2008. Once this month is over and done with, there will be nothing but bliss for the next two months - that is, of course, assuming that everything goes well this month. I don't even want to think about the alternative. Right now, I am hoping and praying that VA will reaffirm my belief in the inherent kindness of human beings.

May God help us all.