Let's see if this works (it does! =))
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Monday, June 19, 2006
Running for a good cause
My marathon training has officially begun.
I will be running my 4th marathon-for-a-cause on July 16, and once again I am attempting to run the full distance in under 5 hours to raise money for the Bukas Sarili Foundation.
Ideally, marathon training should be done over a period of about 6 months. So it is clear that I am really pushing it by only starting my training about two weeks ago. So far, I've gone from 4.5km to 6.5km to 10km to 12km to 15km in this period. My goal is that by the end of this week, I'm at 20km, then at 25km on July 2, and at 30km by July 8. Yeah, I know, kinda aggressive. But if I can manage to run 30km before the actual marathon, I think I will gain enough confident to finish the race in under 5 hours even after my not-so-good training. Hay, I'll be keeping my fingers crossed...
The pledges have started coming in as well, and with a few weeks left before my run (assuming I finish the marathon), I am at around P15K. Hopefully, more pledges still come in. I never manage to collect the entire amount that is pledged (normally I end up collecting about 80-90%), but still, that is a lot of money that will go a long way in providing charity patients of the Philippine General Hospital with much-needed medical assistance.
Hopefully, the next time I blog about my training, I will already be in good shape both mentally and physically. And maybe I will manage to raise more money than I did last year. Wish me luck!
I will be running my 4th marathon-for-a-cause on July 16, and once again I am attempting to run the full distance in under 5 hours to raise money for the Bukas Sarili Foundation.
Ideally, marathon training should be done over a period of about 6 months. So it is clear that I am really pushing it by only starting my training about two weeks ago. So far, I've gone from 4.5km to 6.5km to 10km to 12km to 15km in this period. My goal is that by the end of this week, I'm at 20km, then at 25km on July 2, and at 30km by July 8. Yeah, I know, kinda aggressive. But if I can manage to run 30km before the actual marathon, I think I will gain enough confident to finish the race in under 5 hours even after my not-so-good training. Hay, I'll be keeping my fingers crossed...
The pledges have started coming in as well, and with a few weeks left before my run (assuming I finish the marathon), I am at around P15K. Hopefully, more pledges still come in. I never manage to collect the entire amount that is pledged (normally I end up collecting about 80-90%), but still, that is a lot of money that will go a long way in providing charity patients of the Philippine General Hospital with much-needed medical assistance.
Hopefully, the next time I blog about my training, I will already be in good shape both mentally and physically. And maybe I will manage to raise more money than I did last year. Wish me luck!
French Open recap
The French Open, tennis' 2nd Grand Slam of the year, concluded last week. Congratulations go out to Rafael Nadal who proved his utter dominance on clay by wiping out world #1 Roger Federer in the final. Congratulations also go out to Justine Henin-Hardenne, who was just as convincing in her title win over Svetlana Kuznetsova. It was an awesome fortnight of tennis. Would've been better though if the people I was rooting for won. I was hoping that Federer, Kuznetsova (or Clijsters), and the Bryan brothers would all win. Tough for me, I guess.
My favorite moment of the tournament though had nothing to do with the tennis being played. During the men's doubles final between the Bryan brothers and Jonas Bjorkmann and Max Mirnyi, the camera shot towards a large banner way up in the stands that said in big bold letters: "We miss you Steffi." And I just really realized how much I do miss watching Graf play. Time to pull out my Steffi tapes and relive the glory days then, I guess. =)
My favorite moment of the tournament though had nothing to do with the tennis being played. During the men's doubles final between the Bryan brothers and Jonas Bjorkmann and Max Mirnyi, the camera shot towards a large banner way up in the stands that said in big bold letters: "We miss you Steffi." And I just really realized how much I do miss watching Graf play. Time to pull out my Steffi tapes and relive the glory days then, I guess. =)
Sunday, June 04, 2006
My grandarents' 50th wedding anniversary
Not often that we get to see couples, even married ones, last very long. So it's always special when you see two people celebrating their Golden wedding anniversary. And it's even more special when those people are your grandparents.
It was held on a Tuesday night, in a church somewhere in Manila (I drove there with my family so they just gave me instructions on how to get there while I was driving, but I never really got the name of the church). Apparently, this is the same church where my grandparents got married, so it was kinda cool for their 50th anniversary to be held there again.
The church ceremony started around 6pm. I was the best man, so I marched first. It was good too because my two nephews marched right after me, and since there was no rehearsal or anything, I just told both of them to walk like me (which they did, and I was mighty proud of them for that! =))
From church we headed down the road to the Old Swiss Inn in Manila (didn't realize there was one there) for the reception. Most of the invitees were relatives, taking up about three-quarters of the area and so it was like a family reunion. The food was pretty good, and since there weren't that many people, the lines at the buffet never got too long.
The main part of the program was supposed to consist of a few speeches - from my grandfather, his brother, his sister, and my grandma's friend. There was a slideshow of pictures as well. Also, my mom performed a really awesome dance number with a dance instructor that was very very well received (she performed it at work during one of their events), before I took the mic to sing 'The way you look tonight' (I was thinking of singing something less gasgas but everyone suggested that I sing something that's more popular so that the folks won't get too bored. One of my grand-aunties said I sang very well and my grandma and my mom told me that she must have really liked it because my grand-auntie apparently doesn't just give out praise like that. Cool for me, then. =)
The program ended up being extended since my grandfather and all his siblings can play the piano, the violin, or both, and a lot of folks sing pretty well too. Then once the program itself was over, it was hanging out with everyone and catching up and playing with my nephews and lots of picture taking (sorry, Tita Gail, I promised to send you pictures but the night was so hectic that I wasn't able to take any. Tita Jill said she'd send Nanay and Tatay a CD with all the pics she took, and once she does that I can put them up online).
All in all a fantastic celebration, and everyone, especially my grandparents, were very happy. The ceremony itself was simple but for the fact that so many people stayed late into the night in party mode on a weeknight, this wedding has to be one of the best ones I've ever attended.
It was held on a Tuesday night, in a church somewhere in Manila (I drove there with my family so they just gave me instructions on how to get there while I was driving, but I never really got the name of the church). Apparently, this is the same church where my grandparents got married, so it was kinda cool for their 50th anniversary to be held there again.
The church ceremony started around 6pm. I was the best man, so I marched first. It was good too because my two nephews marched right after me, and since there was no rehearsal or anything, I just told both of them to walk like me (which they did, and I was mighty proud of them for that! =))
From church we headed down the road to the Old Swiss Inn in Manila (didn't realize there was one there) for the reception. Most of the invitees were relatives, taking up about three-quarters of the area and so it was like a family reunion. The food was pretty good, and since there weren't that many people, the lines at the buffet never got too long.
The main part of the program was supposed to consist of a few speeches - from my grandfather, his brother, his sister, and my grandma's friend. There was a slideshow of pictures as well. Also, my mom performed a really awesome dance number with a dance instructor that was very very well received (she performed it at work during one of their events), before I took the mic to sing 'The way you look tonight' (I was thinking of singing something less gasgas but everyone suggested that I sing something that's more popular so that the folks won't get too bored. One of my grand-aunties said I sang very well and my grandma and my mom told me that she must have really liked it because my grand-auntie apparently doesn't just give out praise like that. Cool for me, then. =)
The program ended up being extended since my grandfather and all his siblings can play the piano, the violin, or both, and a lot of folks sing pretty well too. Then once the program itself was over, it was hanging out with everyone and catching up and playing with my nephews and lots of picture taking (sorry, Tita Gail, I promised to send you pictures but the night was so hectic that I wasn't able to take any. Tita Jill said she'd send Nanay and Tatay a CD with all the pics she took, and once she does that I can put them up online).
All in all a fantastic celebration, and everyone, especially my grandparents, were very happy. The ceremony itself was simple but for the fact that so many people stayed late into the night in party mode on a weeknight, this wedding has to be one of the best ones I've ever attended.
Friday, May 26, 2006
Congratulations
...to Romy Garduce, who successfully scaled Mt. Everest last Friday. He is only the third Filipino to accomplish this feat. I know this has been a long time goal of his, and not everyone who attempts the climb gets to the top so it's amazing that he managed this. I also heard that he just got off the plane, so I guess that means he is safe and sound. Which is great because stats seem to show that of all climbers who reach the summit, 20% of them die (scary stat actually, and I don't know where it is from)
...to Liverpool for winning the FA cup a couple of weekends ago. At least they ended the season with silverware, the second year in a row that they did this.
...to Martina Hingis for winning her first tournament since her comeback early this year. Granted, she didn't have to play against any of the top players. But she did beat long time rival Venus Williams along the way, as well as Dinara Safina (who I think is in the top 30 or sth). Seems that she has now reestablished herself as a solid contender, even after only a few months into her comeback after a 3-year retirement.
...to Taylor Hicks for winning American Idol. Now we have to wait half a year for the next season. Of course, there's Philippine Idol coming up. I wonder how that'll pan out.
...to Liverpool for winning the FA cup a couple of weekends ago. At least they ended the season with silverware, the second year in a row that they did this.
...to Martina Hingis for winning her first tournament since her comeback early this year. Granted, she didn't have to play against any of the top players. But she did beat long time rival Venus Williams along the way, as well as Dinara Safina (who I think is in the top 30 or sth). Seems that she has now reestablished herself as a solid contender, even after only a few months into her comeback after a 3-year retirement.
...to Taylor Hicks for winning American Idol. Now we have to wait half a year for the next season. Of course, there's Philippine Idol coming up. I wonder how that'll pan out.
Friday, May 19, 2006
Monday, May 15, 2006
The Fog
No, this is not about the horror flick that was shown in cinemas a couple of months ago.
Last Saturday, I attended Omar and Van's wedding, which was held in the Chapel on the Hill in Calaruega (in Batangas). This seems to be in the 'in' place to be wed nowadays; this year, a couple of my other friends got married there too (although I have to admit that I missed one of them and only attended the reception of the other one, so this was my first trip there).
It really is a nice, intimate location, and it's supposed to have a great view. I say supposed to because I didn't get to see it. That was because last Saturday it was storming in Southern Luzon, and the Tagaytay/Batangas area had a horribly thick fog that visibility was limited to several meters at most.
I took the Sta. Rosa / Tagaytay route to their wedding, and upon reaching Tagaytay I was met with the thickest fog I have ever seen in my life. I have driven through snow before, and that was scary, but I guess my driving experience last Saturday has just topped that on the my-heart-is-pounding-for-fear-of-my-safety scale.
What I was glad to see though (which Omar and Van pointed out and which compensated for the bad weather) was that despite the rains and fog and wind, a lot of people still came to the wedding. The chapel was full and majority of the seats at the reception in Taal Vista were occupied.
I was kinda glad that Jason and Yeth were there too. At least I had someone to convoy with on my way home (or well at least heading out of Tagaytay).
Last Saturday, I attended Omar and Van's wedding, which was held in the Chapel on the Hill in Calaruega (in Batangas). This seems to be in the 'in' place to be wed nowadays; this year, a couple of my other friends got married there too (although I have to admit that I missed one of them and only attended the reception of the other one, so this was my first trip there).
It really is a nice, intimate location, and it's supposed to have a great view. I say supposed to because I didn't get to see it. That was because last Saturday it was storming in Southern Luzon, and the Tagaytay/Batangas area had a horribly thick fog that visibility was limited to several meters at most.
I took the Sta. Rosa / Tagaytay route to their wedding, and upon reaching Tagaytay I was met with the thickest fog I have ever seen in my life. I have driven through snow before, and that was scary, but I guess my driving experience last Saturday has just topped that on the my-heart-is-pounding-for-fear-of-my-safety scale.
What I was glad to see though (which Omar and Van pointed out and which compensated for the bad weather) was that despite the rains and fog and wind, a lot of people still came to the wedding. The chapel was full and majority of the seats at the reception in Taal Vista were occupied.
I was kinda glad that Jason and Yeth were there too. At least I had someone to convoy with on my way home (or well at least heading out of Tagaytay).
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Top 3 baby, yeah!
Elliott is safe! Elliott is safe! Oh man, I am so pleased!
Even after his great performances last night, I still wasn't sure what would happen. I was hoping for the best but ready for the worst. And finally, after all this time, Elliott manages to snag a crucial top 2 spot with only 4 remaining.
In a shocking twist, frontrunner Chris Daughtry, who was hailed as this season's chosen one, was knocked out of the competition, leaving Elliott to battle it out with Katharine and Taylor next week for a berth in the finale.
Elliott has now outlasted Mandisa, Ace, Kellie, Paris, and now Chris. I'm not expecting that Elliott should make it to the finale now, because anything can happen. But I am hoping that the little E-train that could manages to sneak into the top 2 and defy the odds again.
3 songs from Elliott next week. Can't wait.
Even after his great performances last night, I still wasn't sure what would happen. I was hoping for the best but ready for the worst. And finally, after all this time, Elliott manages to snag a crucial top 2 spot with only 4 remaining.
In a shocking twist, frontrunner Chris Daughtry, who was hailed as this season's chosen one, was knocked out of the competition, leaving Elliott to battle it out with Katharine and Taylor next week for a berth in the finale.
Elliott has now outlasted Mandisa, Ace, Kellie, Paris, and now Chris. I'm not expecting that Elliott should make it to the finale now, because anything can happen. But I am hoping that the little E-train that could manages to sneak into the top 2 and defy the odds again.
3 songs from Elliott next week. Can't wait.
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Band Rage 6
Well, well, who would’ve thought that my band, Still Oz, would ever place 2nd in some battle of the bands competition?
Last Friday, my band joined one of the elimination legs in Band Rage 6. We haven’t played in maybe 2 months, and have barely practiced in that same period of time. However, because Bunky (our guitarist) is working night shift, it’s impossible for us to get full gigs now, and we’ve simply done lots of pro-bono, multiple band night gigs over the last few months just to allow us to do what we love doing. This battle of the bands thing, while not exactly our cup of tea, was another opportunity for us to play our music together.
So placing 2nd considering the circumstances was awesome!
Okay, okay, there’s a P.S. to this.
There were only two bands competing. Hehehe. It was still a lot of fun, though. Hope our guitarist sorts out his schedule soon so we can start getting full gigs again.
Last Friday, my band joined one of the elimination legs in Band Rage 6. We haven’t played in maybe 2 months, and have barely practiced in that same period of time. However, because Bunky (our guitarist) is working night shift, it’s impossible for us to get full gigs now, and we’ve simply done lots of pro-bono, multiple band night gigs over the last few months just to allow us to do what we love doing. This battle of the bands thing, while not exactly our cup of tea, was another opportunity for us to play our music together.
So placing 2nd considering the circumstances was awesome!
Okay, okay, there’s a P.S. to this.
There were only two bands competing. Hehehe. It was still a lot of fun, though. Hope our guitarist sorts out his schedule soon so we can start getting full gigs again.
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Another close call
Elliott was once again in the bottom 2, as was Paris. And although I think Paris is the 2nd best vocalist in the top 5, I am greatly relieved that Elliott made it to the top 4.
I don't think he's gonna last much longer though. The pimpfest for Chris and Katharine continues, and Taylor still remains the fan favorite (check out how much airtime Chris, Kat, and Taylor had in the group song, as compared to Paris and Elliott).
Well, even if Elliott goes, we know that he has made some significant mark in the lives of some people. After mentioning his desire to bring Donnie Hathaway's music back to the forefront, sales of Donnie's CD in Amazon.com spiked from an obscure rank of #4000+ to a high of #23. The ranking has gone down again since last week to about 300+ now, but it was interesting to see the impact a brief mention that Elliott made about a singer that a whole lot of people didn't know existed.
Even better than that, Elliott's fans have started a campaign to raise funds for the American Diabetes Association. As of today, only after a few days I think of this campaign being started, about $6000 has already been raised.
I believe that when he finds out about all this money being raised to fight the debilitating disease that caused him and his mother so much difficulty in their lives, his heart would soar. Assuming that he doesn't win AI5, that would be a good enough consolation prize.
I don't think he's gonna last much longer though. The pimpfest for Chris and Katharine continues, and Taylor still remains the fan favorite (check out how much airtime Chris, Kat, and Taylor had in the group song, as compared to Paris and Elliott).
Well, even if Elliott goes, we know that he has made some significant mark in the lives of some people. After mentioning his desire to bring Donnie Hathaway's music back to the forefront, sales of Donnie's CD in Amazon.com spiked from an obscure rank of #4000+ to a high of #23. The ranking has gone down again since last week to about 300+ now, but it was interesting to see the impact a brief mention that Elliott made about a singer that a whole lot of people didn't know existed.
Even better than that, Elliott's fans have started a campaign to raise funds for the American Diabetes Association. As of today, only after a few days I think of this campaign being started, about $6000 has already been raised.
I believe that when he finds out about all this money being raised to fight the debilitating disease that caused him and his mother so much difficulty in their lives, his heart would soar. Assuming that he doesn't win AI5, that would be a good enough consolation prize.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Visiting the dentist
Way back in college, I joined an ice cream eating contest. The ice cream came straight out of the freezer and was rock hard. So hard in fact that I broke a chunk out of one of my molars. Pasta was put over it and up until this year I never had any problems with that tooth.
That is, until I broke off part of the pasta and a few days later my tooth started hurting a bit.
I got worried that maybe the pasta got a bit loose over the years and my tooth started decaying without me realizing. And now without the pasta to cover any exposed nerve, it started hurting again.
So I went to see a dentist to have that tooth looked at. And well it seems I had a few of problems going on. Replacing the pasta ONLY was no longer a good alternative, and a crown had to be put on it. This meant that a couple of millimeters had to be 'shaved off' all around my tooth so the dentist could put a crown on it. And since the hole in my tooth was already below the gumline, some minor surgery had to be done in order to cut off some of the excess gum. Which would require anesthesia, and I am NOT a fan of needles. And to top it all off, if after a month, my tooth started to hurt like hell, then I would most likely need a root canal.
So in the last month, I've been to the dentist 3 times, and I have to go back there next week again. Minor surgery has already been done, and the fact that my tooth has been reduced means that I have experienced some sensitivity in that tooth. The only good thing is that my tooth hasn't really hurt too much and too frequently over the last 3 weeks, which means that I may not need to undergo a root canal. Thank God for small mercies!
Hopefully next week, all the work on my tooth will be done. Of course my dentist thinks that another molar on the other side of my mouth may need a crown too. Which kinda scares me, another month of dental work.
Maybe after this I can go get my teeth whitened. Or have braces put on (my lower teeth are really crooked). Ever seen a guy already in their 30s with braces? No? I figured as much. I think I'll pass on the braces part then. =)
That is, until I broke off part of the pasta and a few days later my tooth started hurting a bit.
I got worried that maybe the pasta got a bit loose over the years and my tooth started decaying without me realizing. And now without the pasta to cover any exposed nerve, it started hurting again.
So I went to see a dentist to have that tooth looked at. And well it seems I had a few of problems going on. Replacing the pasta ONLY was no longer a good alternative, and a crown had to be put on it. This meant that a couple of millimeters had to be 'shaved off' all around my tooth so the dentist could put a crown on it. And since the hole in my tooth was already below the gumline, some minor surgery had to be done in order to cut off some of the excess gum. Which would require anesthesia, and I am NOT a fan of needles. And to top it all off, if after a month, my tooth started to hurt like hell, then I would most likely need a root canal.
So in the last month, I've been to the dentist 3 times, and I have to go back there next week again. Minor surgery has already been done, and the fact that my tooth has been reduced means that I have experienced some sensitivity in that tooth. The only good thing is that my tooth hasn't really hurt too much and too frequently over the last 3 weeks, which means that I may not need to undergo a root canal. Thank God for small mercies!
Hopefully next week, all the work on my tooth will be done. Of course my dentist thinks that another molar on the other side of my mouth may need a crown too. Which kinda scares me, another month of dental work.
Maybe after this I can go get my teeth whitened. Or have braces put on (my lower teeth are really crooked). Ever seen a guy already in their 30s with braces? No? I figured as much. I think I'll pass on the braces part then. =)
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
What's it gonna take?
Last week, Elliott put in what I thought was the only legitimately good performance of the night. His rendition of ‘A song for you’ got mad raves from the judges and is being touted as one of the best AI performances this season and maybe even in AI history. His amazing performance got Randy commending his voice, Paula shedding tears (although she honestly did seem to be on something that night), and Simon revisiting and re-emphasizoing his comment earlier in the season that Elliott is potentially the best male vocalist in AI history. But even looking past the vocal aspect of his performance, Elliott, for the first time this season, seemed to be more at ease and have more confidence than he's ever had. And on that night, he exuded better stage presence than any of the other contestants – Katharine smiled a sweet smile half the time while delivering ‘I have nothing’, Paris didn't seem to connect all that much with her song, Chris was singing about wooing women while looking more angry or amped then romantic, and neither Kellie nor Taylor ever looked like they knew what they were doing there.
So I guess I have to say that I was quite disappointed that Elliott didn’t manage to snag a top 2 spot. He’s safe, yes. And I guess I have to be happy that he’s not out or in the bottom 2 considering he’s been there in the past. But on a night when he put in a fantastic performance and everyone else either sucked or was mediocre, it makes me wonder what he has to do or what has to happen for him to move up the ladder and possibly get to the finale. The way things are going now, unless the judges and producers drop Kat and Chris as their chosen ones, I don’t see how Elliott can outlast either of those two, or even Taylor.
I guess I am obsessing over this so much because I think Elliott needs a top two finish more than anyone else left to gain some success. Kat is young and pretty and will surely get offers (Kellie, too). There also has been talk that the band ‘Fuel’ is interested in signing up Chris to be their lead vocalist, and even if that doesn't happen, his band can still pick him up after AI (ala Constantine) and sell their own album. Taylor has already released a CD and will surely release another one even if he doesn’t make it to the finale. And apparently Beyonce’s father is interested in signing Paris. But Elliott doesn’t seem to have anything in the cards for him if he doesn’t have a top 2 finish. And I guess I will be really sad if Elliott never comes out with an album. Coz a voice like his has to be heard, and with everything he’s gone through in his life, I think he deserves a bit of a break.
Makes me wish now that I was a big Hollywood producer. Assuming that Elliott does lose before the finale, I’d snag him as soon as his contract allows and get him an album (and market is aggressively). Haha man, I am crazily obsessed! Oh well.
Go Elliott!
Thursday, April 20, 2006
A wonderful blue-eyed soul voice
To say I am pleased that Elliott Yamin is finally out of the bottom 3 in American Idol is an understatement. I didn't think he deserved to be in the bottom 2 the week Mandisa was eliminated, and he sure as hell shouldn't have been anywhere near the bottom spot last week after his amazing rendition of Queen's "Somebody to love!"
So I'm really glad that he was safe tonight. And now he's made it to the top 6 which is an amazing achievement in that he is truly the talented underdog of the competition. What is great too is that as the weeks progress, he keeps getting more comfortable on stage (he still needs improvement on his stage presence but has gotten a lot better and he doesn't seem as awkward or nervous as he used to be, and he is looking and smiling at the camera a lot more. Obviously the vocals are still there, fantastic as always).
Let me step back a bit...
My first post about AI this season was at the Top 24 stage when I said my top 4 were Taylor, Mandisa, Paris, and Katharine. I didn't really get to see Elliott at all prior to this, mainly coz I didn't watch most of the Hollywood elimination episodes. But on that first day, he made me notice with his solid cover of Stevie Wonder's "If you really love me" and I figured this was a voice I could end up rooting for too.
The week after that made me an Elliott convert - his "Moody's Mood for Love" was absolutely, jaw-droppingly amazing. After that week, he became one of my faves (it was also in that week that I threw Chris into my faves list and so now I had my fave 6).
Thing was, virtually everyone in my fave 6 had become quite inconsistent. Taylor's 'Easy' was ho-hum and his 'Don't fade away' left me thinking, "What the hell was that?" I thought Paris was off-pitch for most of 'How do I live' and her 'Conga' performance was lackluster. Mandisa made me cringe with her scream-ridden delivery of 'Praise you', and she was sub-par and uninteresting while singing 'Any man of mine' during country week. Katharine looked like a bad impersonator when she took on Christina's 'The Voice Within', and her high notes in 'All is fair in love' were horrendous. Also during Queen week, Chris shouted most of 'Innuendo' being unable to remain pitch perfect for most of the latter half of the song, and singing 'What a wonderful world' last night exposed his lack of vocal control (with his voice breaking up too much in the wrong places) and his tendency to go out of tune.
Elliott however has remained consistent. None of his performances, even his 'worst' ones (like 'Teach me tonight' and 'If Tomorrow Never Comes') were bad. And he always manages to arrange the song in such a way that it works with his voice and style.
After a few rounds of the finals stages, I ended up becoming an Elliott advocate. I still was (and remain to be) a fan of the rest of my fave 6, but let me put it this way - if I was in the US now, I'd be voting for Elliott for the entire two hours after the show.
I think the pimp-fest they threw Elliott's way last week when Ryan Seacrest blatantly asked America after his results show performance if that was a guy who should be voted off, and when word got out of his diabetes and the rest of his ailments in life (possibly getting him pity votes along the way) helped keep Elliott safe this week, and may have finally garnered Elliott a few more voters. Picking a song this week that people were familiar with helped too.
Next week, the theme is the Greatest Love Songs of all time. That seems right up Elliott's alley. And it seems all contestants get to sing two songs. Man, I hope he manages to put in one or two of the best performances of the season that week and manage to get to the top 5 (or maybe even further...)
I think that Elliott winning is highly unlikely, what with Taylor and Kellie seeming to have majority of the votes and with the judges and producers seeming to favor the much more marketable Chris and Kat. However, I will continue to hope each week that more voters turn to Elliott and give him their support. I also hope that Elliott eventually gets signed by a producer. If you listen to mp3s of his performance (which you can download online if you have enough time in your hands to search for them), you will realize his voice is so easy on the ears and you will love listening to him sing over and over again. I really can't wait for him to come out with a CD. To quote Rod Stewart, "Elliott has a wonderful blue-eyed soul voice."
Good luck, Elliott!!!
So I'm really glad that he was safe tonight. And now he's made it to the top 6 which is an amazing achievement in that he is truly the talented underdog of the competition. What is great too is that as the weeks progress, he keeps getting more comfortable on stage (he still needs improvement on his stage presence but has gotten a lot better and he doesn't seem as awkward or nervous as he used to be, and he is looking and smiling at the camera a lot more. Obviously the vocals are still there, fantastic as always).
Let me step back a bit...
My first post about AI this season was at the Top 24 stage when I said my top 4 were Taylor, Mandisa, Paris, and Katharine. I didn't really get to see Elliott at all prior to this, mainly coz I didn't watch most of the Hollywood elimination episodes. But on that first day, he made me notice with his solid cover of Stevie Wonder's "If you really love me" and I figured this was a voice I could end up rooting for too.
The week after that made me an Elliott convert - his "Moody's Mood for Love" was absolutely, jaw-droppingly amazing. After that week, he became one of my faves (it was also in that week that I threw Chris into my faves list and so now I had my fave 6).
Thing was, virtually everyone in my fave 6 had become quite inconsistent. Taylor's 'Easy' was ho-hum and his 'Don't fade away' left me thinking, "What the hell was that?" I thought Paris was off-pitch for most of 'How do I live' and her 'Conga' performance was lackluster. Mandisa made me cringe with her scream-ridden delivery of 'Praise you', and she was sub-par and uninteresting while singing 'Any man of mine' during country week. Katharine looked like a bad impersonator when she took on Christina's 'The Voice Within', and her high notes in 'All is fair in love' were horrendous. Also during Queen week, Chris shouted most of 'Innuendo' being unable to remain pitch perfect for most of the latter half of the song, and singing 'What a wonderful world' last night exposed his lack of vocal control (with his voice breaking up too much in the wrong places) and his tendency to go out of tune.
Elliott however has remained consistent. None of his performances, even his 'worst' ones (like 'Teach me tonight' and 'If Tomorrow Never Comes') were bad. And he always manages to arrange the song in such a way that it works with his voice and style.
After a few rounds of the finals stages, I ended up becoming an Elliott advocate. I still was (and remain to be) a fan of the rest of my fave 6, but let me put it this way - if I was in the US now, I'd be voting for Elliott for the entire two hours after the show.
I think the pimp-fest they threw Elliott's way last week when Ryan Seacrest blatantly asked America after his results show performance if that was a guy who should be voted off, and when word got out of his diabetes and the rest of his ailments in life (possibly getting him pity votes along the way) helped keep Elliott safe this week, and may have finally garnered Elliott a few more voters. Picking a song this week that people were familiar with helped too.
Next week, the theme is the Greatest Love Songs of all time. That seems right up Elliott's alley. And it seems all contestants get to sing two songs. Man, I hope he manages to put in one or two of the best performances of the season that week and manage to get to the top 5 (or maybe even further...)
I think that Elliott winning is highly unlikely, what with Taylor and Kellie seeming to have majority of the votes and with the judges and producers seeming to favor the much more marketable Chris and Kat. However, I will continue to hope each week that more voters turn to Elliott and give him their support. I also hope that Elliott eventually gets signed by a producer. If you listen to mp3s of his performance (which you can download online if you have enough time in your hands to search for them), you will realize his voice is so easy on the ears and you will love listening to him sing over and over again. I really can't wait for him to come out with a CD. To quote Rod Stewart, "Elliott has a wonderful blue-eyed soul voice."
Good luck, Elliott!!!
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
CD fiasco
The other day, I was in Music One in Greenbelt when I decided to look for CDs. I wanted to see if any hard-to-find CDs from my wish-list were available. It was during this search that I stumbled upon an 80’s new wave collection that included “Take on me”, “Every time I see you”, “Ghost in you”, and my favorite new wave song, When in Rome’s “The Promise”. I guess it didn’t really matter how much the CD was, because it would certainly worth it. So imagine my surprise when I flipped it over and saw it cost only P275. Whoa! That was a find!
I guess on some level, alarm bells should have gone off in my head when I saw that it had about 20 songs in it, and cost only that much. Unfortunately, I remained oblivious to this clear indicator that something was not right.
So here I am, all excited about listening to this new CD I got. Upon loading it in my car stereo, well yeah you must have guessed it by now, imagine my sheer disappointment when I realized that all the songs were NOT the original artist’s versions! Ugh. This had to have been the worst CD purchase I have ever made in my life. Or well, okay, maybe in recent history.
One thing I have learned from this though is that when I find one of those inexpensive compilations lying around in a music store, I better check first if it contains the original versions.
I guess on some level, alarm bells should have gone off in my head when I saw that it had about 20 songs in it, and cost only that much. Unfortunately, I remained oblivious to this clear indicator that something was not right.
So here I am, all excited about listening to this new CD I got. Upon loading it in my car stereo, well yeah you must have guessed it by now, imagine my sheer disappointment when I realized that all the songs were NOT the original artist’s versions! Ugh. This had to have been the worst CD purchase I have ever made in my life. Or well, okay, maybe in recent history.
One thing I have learned from this though is that when I find one of those inexpensive compilations lying around in a music store, I better check first if it contains the original versions.
Monday, April 10, 2006
Shocker
Ah, the rollercoaster ride that is American Idol. It rarely ever goes the way that we expect it to go with respect to who gets booted out each week.
Probably the most interesting and memorable moments in AI history, apart from the best performances by the best contestants, are those times when someone completely undeserving gets voted off or when someone undeserving remains in the competition. In season one, Tamyra Gray got voted out after her only slightly bad performance of the season. This, after everyone expected her to get to the finale with Kelly Clarkson. Of course, season 3 had two of the biggest ‘upsets’ in AI history. The first one was halfway through the season when eventual winner Fantasia Barrino, Latoya London, and Jennifer Hudson all ended in the bottom 3 after spectacular performances, with Jennifer Hudson being voted off. I still say that the person who had the best performance in the week they got voted out was Jennifer Hudson (with her powerful rendition of Barry Mannilow’s ‘Weekend in New England’). Then later on in the season, Latoya got voted off while Jasmine Trias remained in the competition, causing the often-high Paula Abdul to bawl her eyes out as Latoya sang her last song of the competition.
It took a couple of expected eliminations (I never really liked Lisa Tucker and always felt she was overrated) before we finally got our first taste of real drama (Katharine McPhee's bottom 2 showing doesn't count) - Mandisa got voted off. Mandisa was definitely one of the strongest vocalists this season, but on country night, she put in a sub-par performance. The thing about great vocalists like her (and Latoya and Anwar Robinson from last season) is that their votes seem to come from people who vote based on performance, and this group rarely forms a solid fanbase. Which means that when a contestant puts in one performance that isn't as good as what they normally churn out, the votes for them tend to thin out (even just a little bit) and as such, they end up in trouble or even get booted out.
This means that one of my fave 6 has gone. There’s a chance that Ace and Bucky will disappear in the next two weeks. The only problem I have is that Kellie Pickler is one of only three people who have never been in the bottom 3, and I get this feeling she may make it terribly deep in this competition. I just hope that this week’s theme - Queen songs - will clearly display her lack of vocal capability (maybe Ace too). Too bad Mandisa isn’t in anymore. It would have been really interesting to see her attempt 'Bohemian Rhapsody'.
Probably the most interesting and memorable moments in AI history, apart from the best performances by the best contestants, are those times when someone completely undeserving gets voted off or when someone undeserving remains in the competition. In season one, Tamyra Gray got voted out after her only slightly bad performance of the season. This, after everyone expected her to get to the finale with Kelly Clarkson. Of course, season 3 had two of the biggest ‘upsets’ in AI history. The first one was halfway through the season when eventual winner Fantasia Barrino, Latoya London, and Jennifer Hudson all ended in the bottom 3 after spectacular performances, with Jennifer Hudson being voted off. I still say that the person who had the best performance in the week they got voted out was Jennifer Hudson (with her powerful rendition of Barry Mannilow’s ‘Weekend in New England’). Then later on in the season, Latoya got voted off while Jasmine Trias remained in the competition, causing the often-high Paula Abdul to bawl her eyes out as Latoya sang her last song of the competition.
It took a couple of expected eliminations (I never really liked Lisa Tucker and always felt she was overrated) before we finally got our first taste of real drama (Katharine McPhee's bottom 2 showing doesn't count) - Mandisa got voted off. Mandisa was definitely one of the strongest vocalists this season, but on country night, she put in a sub-par performance. The thing about great vocalists like her (and Latoya and Anwar Robinson from last season) is that their votes seem to come from people who vote based on performance, and this group rarely forms a solid fanbase. Which means that when a contestant puts in one performance that isn't as good as what they normally churn out, the votes for them tend to thin out (even just a little bit) and as such, they end up in trouble or even get booted out.
This means that one of my fave 6 has gone. There’s a chance that Ace and Bucky will disappear in the next two weeks. The only problem I have is that Kellie Pickler is one of only three people who have never been in the bottom 3, and I get this feeling she may make it terribly deep in this competition. I just hope that this week’s theme - Queen songs - will clearly display her lack of vocal capability (maybe Ace too). Too bad Mandisa isn’t in anymore. It would have been really interesting to see her attempt 'Bohemian Rhapsody'.
Monday, March 13, 2006
Finally!
I finally got around to renewing my license last week. Line in Makati LTO wasn't too long (definitely not like QC LTO), and since it was just license renewal, it didn't take that long (one hour only, including the drug test and the physical). It's the first time, too, that my license picture is pretty decent. So yeah, that's one thing to cross out of my to do list. Stress level slightly lower now. Thank God.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
Food that fights back
Several years ago, I had a horrible allergy that left me with a nasty rash all over my body. So nasty in fact that even a day after I still had the rash, so I figured I would go consult an allergologist. She told me I had to go on an elimination diet to 'eliminate' any possible allergens from my body. A week (and five less pounds) later, I went back to my allergologist so that she could administer a skin test to see what I am allergic to. During the skin test, the doc exposes a portion of your skin to a variety of allergens. You are then instructed to wait for about 15 minutes and to NOT touch your arm at all.
As I sat outside her office while she talked to another patient, I started that section of my arm turn red. Not a good sign. Even worse, when I went back into my doc's office and showed her my arm, she had a look of concern and asked me if I scratched my arm. Of course I did not, but upon hearing her say that I knew I was in trouble.
Turns out I am allergic to the following: most non-fish seafood (like shrimps, crabs, lobsters, squid, clams, and mussels), anchovies, another type of fish, chicken, eggs, mangoes, mango trees, acacia trees, and talahib, among a lot of others. The doctor then gave me a list of all my allergies and for the next several weeks, I stayed away from all those.
However, I wasn't always allergic (I don't ever recall reacting negatively to mangoes for instance). So after a while I started trying out small amounts of each of those items, and at some point I realized I 'lost' my allergies. So at that point I no longer stayed away from anything. I did notice, however, that since then, I would always end up having rashes if I ingested shrimp heads (yeah I know, only the head, weird), crabs, and bagoong.
Now recently, I think that for some reason my allergy to seafood has come back. I was in Singapore recently and had some chili and white pepper crab, and that night, I had a bit of a rash, and the next day I had a small rash on my upper lip that stayed on for a couple of days til it caused my lip to get busted. Shortly after that, I had some kare-kare with bagoong, and almost as soon as I ate the bagoong I could feel my lips starting to swell. And just yesterday, I had some seafood pasta and a clam from seafood chowder, and I got the same reaction I got from the bagoong.
I recall my allergologist telling me that it is possible to have allergies that only appear during certain times of your life, and it may be brought about by a variety of things. Now over the last several months, my stress level has been higher than I have ever recalled it to be, due to so many things happening on so many areas of my life. I am guessing that the stress may be partly to blame for the return of my allergies.
So not only do the tough exoskeletons of these seafoods coz some level of grief when eating them, but now they even leave a rash and even some swelling. Great. Oh well, I guess maybe when I am no longer as stressed as I am now, my allergy may decide to go on another indefinitely long hibernation period. Just hope that happens sooner rather than later.
Oh and yeah, I never ever thought I would use the word 'exoskeleton' in a blog post.
As I sat outside her office while she talked to another patient, I started that section of my arm turn red. Not a good sign. Even worse, when I went back into my doc's office and showed her my arm, she had a look of concern and asked me if I scratched my arm. Of course I did not, but upon hearing her say that I knew I was in trouble.
Turns out I am allergic to the following: most non-fish seafood (like shrimps, crabs, lobsters, squid, clams, and mussels), anchovies, another type of fish, chicken, eggs, mangoes, mango trees, acacia trees, and talahib, among a lot of others. The doctor then gave me a list of all my allergies and for the next several weeks, I stayed away from all those.
However, I wasn't always allergic (I don't ever recall reacting negatively to mangoes for instance). So after a while I started trying out small amounts of each of those items, and at some point I realized I 'lost' my allergies. So at that point I no longer stayed away from anything. I did notice, however, that since then, I would always end up having rashes if I ingested shrimp heads (yeah I know, only the head, weird), crabs, and bagoong.
Now recently, I think that for some reason my allergy to seafood has come back. I was in Singapore recently and had some chili and white pepper crab, and that night, I had a bit of a rash, and the next day I had a small rash on my upper lip that stayed on for a couple of days til it caused my lip to get busted. Shortly after that, I had some kare-kare with bagoong, and almost as soon as I ate the bagoong I could feel my lips starting to swell. And just yesterday, I had some seafood pasta and a clam from seafood chowder, and I got the same reaction I got from the bagoong.
I recall my allergologist telling me that it is possible to have allergies that only appear during certain times of your life, and it may be brought about by a variety of things. Now over the last several months, my stress level has been higher than I have ever recalled it to be, due to so many things happening on so many areas of my life. I am guessing that the stress may be partly to blame for the return of my allergies.
So not only do the tough exoskeletons of these seafoods coz some level of grief when eating them, but now they even leave a rash and even some swelling. Great. Oh well, I guess maybe when I am no longer as stressed as I am now, my allergy may decide to go on another indefinitely long hibernation period. Just hope that happens sooner rather than later.
Oh and yeah, I never ever thought I would use the word 'exoskeleton' in a blog post.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
A memorable encounter with a giant jellyfish!
(This blog post is a waaaay overdue but [1] it is still worth writing about and [2] I did promise to write about it. To refresh your memory, see the following related posts: going around the country and rafting in Cagayan de Oro.)
Last August 2 2005, my friend Ben and I headed over to Coron. I had never been to Coron and I thought that a stop in Palawan would be make Ben’s tour of the country more complete.
Even before Ben got to the Philippines, I had already warned him that it was rainy season and that a lot of his plans may end up getting washed out by rain but he didn’t seem too concerned. So when we arrived at Divelink in Coron at 11am that Tuesday and it was raining, his mood didn’t seem to dampen.
There were two other groups there with us – a Filipino family of three and a Spanish couple. We all arrived at the same time and welcomed by the Divelink folks. They told us that the plan for Tuesday was that at 2pm we would go snorkeling in one of the Siete Picados islands (not sure if I remember the name correctly) then hanging out in the Maquinit hot springs. We were served an early lunch before we all headed out to our respective cottages.
By 2pm it was still raining quite hard and I was ready to just lie in bed and rest (I had zero sleep the night before since I worked in the office until 430am to complete everything I needed to get done that week before taking a few days off). But at 2pm Ben was raring to head out. I am quite easy to convince, and I just came to the realization that I had never had a holiday that was completely rained out. So I figured it would be a cool experience to be snorkeling and island hopping with bad weather. The interesting thing was that the rest of the people there all headed out shortly after we did (I’m not sure if it had anything to do with the fact that they saw me and Ben head out excitedly toward the pier despite the rain; maybe they all figured they were there for just a few days so they might as well try and experience as much of Coron as possible, awful weather be damned).
Last August 2 2005, my friend Ben and I headed over to Coron. I had never been to Coron and I thought that a stop in Palawan would be make Ben’s tour of the country more complete.
Even before Ben got to the Philippines, I had already warned him that it was rainy season and that a lot of his plans may end up getting washed out by rain but he didn’t seem too concerned. So when we arrived at Divelink in Coron at 11am that Tuesday and it was raining, his mood didn’t seem to dampen.
There were two other groups there with us – a Filipino family of three and a Spanish couple. We all arrived at the same time and welcomed by the Divelink folks. They told us that the plan for Tuesday was that at 2pm we would go snorkeling in one of the Siete Picados islands (not sure if I remember the name correctly) then hanging out in the Maquinit hot springs. We were served an early lunch before we all headed out to our respective cottages.
By 2pm it was still raining quite hard and I was ready to just lie in bed and rest (I had zero sleep the night before since I worked in the office until 430am to complete everything I needed to get done that week before taking a few days off). But at 2pm Ben was raring to head out. I am quite easy to convince, and I just came to the realization that I had never had a holiday that was completely rained out. So I figured it would be a cool experience to be snorkeling and island hopping with bad weather. The interesting thing was that the rest of the people there all headed out shortly after we did (I’m not sure if it had anything to do with the fact that they saw me and Ben head out excitedly toward the pier despite the rain; maybe they all figured they were there for just a few days so they might as well try and experience as much of Coron as possible, awful weather be damned).
So we got to the first snorkeling spot. Visibility wasn’t very good but we could still see enough of the marine life (the most interesting thing I saw was a seahorse which I would otherwise have missed had Ben not pointed it out to me).
We were then brought over to the hot springs. Our boat actually had to drop anchor a couple hundred meters away from the shore because the tide was low. We had to get on kayaks and navigate our way through rocks that almost jutted out of the water for us to get to the hot springs. It was quite an experience though – the water was quite hot, almost too hot, in fact, the moment you first sit down in it. But you quickly get accustomed to the heat and all of a sudden it feels absolutely calming and therapeutic, especially considering that it was cool what with the rain falling on you while most of your body was submerged under the hot water. We hung out there for quite a while before heading back to Divelink.
We had dinner before heading back to our room (no nightlife on Divelink itself, I figure if you stay in another resort in the town itself I would think you can find some local hangout). Earlier that day, Ben spotted a mahjong set and he asked me if I could teach him to play it. So after dinner, we borrowed the mahjong set and I taught Ben how to play. We didn’t really get to play proper mahjong as that requires four players, but I managed to teach him the basics and we played several rounds of modified mahjong i.e. for two players only.
Ben also told me that he wanted to teach me this card game that his family played every Christmas. It’s called crib and it’s a bit too complicated for me to explain it here. Anyway, we went through a test run before delving into the actual game. We had one set (i.e. race to 120 points) where I managed to score something like 24 points from my ‘box’. (Yeah, I know, you don’t know what that means exactly, but suffice it to say that Ben told me he couldn’t recall ever seeing a score like that from the ‘box’. Chalk it up to beginner’s luck.)
The next day was jam-packed. We headed out at around 9am to what is called the Skeleton wreck. There are a lot of wreck sites in Coron, but this was the only one that you can see without having to scuba dive. It was a bit surreal, almost creepy, the moment you pick it out in the water (it was still raining so visibility wasn’t as good which meant spotting the wreck in the water wasn’t all that easy).
But the most frightening experience I had was when this huge (and I really do mean HUGE) jellyfish ran, er, swam after me! It was so big that it was larger than my head! The guide said that those jellyfish don’t really have painful stings (it only causes itching apparently), and so I got into the water and looked at it closely in utter awe (seriously, it must’ve been like a foot and a half in diameter). I was tremendously calm up until I realized that it had come to within a couple of feet of me and I couldn’t get back into the boat. When it hit me, I freaked out then started scrambling in the water and headed to the boat balancer thingie. I don’t think I have ever panicked like that in the water! The funny thing was that the jellyfish seemed to change direction and started moving to where I had gone! (And please note that it wasn’t just my paranoia, even Ben told me later on that it did seem that the jellyfish was actually moving after me). In any case I got back into the boat and waited ‘til the jellyfish had gone before heading back into the water, and even then I kept looking around making sure that it wasn’t back.
We then headed to a small island where we had lunch while on the boat. I had never had lunch on a small banca before, so that was another first. I then got on a kayak and started paddling around before Ben joined me. We checked out the island where there wasn’t really anything to see apart from a kitten (I have no idea how that got there).
After lunch, we went to the hidden lagoon. I am not really sure what that place is called, but essentially you have to go there only at a certain time of the day to get the full experience. What happens is that there is a, hmm, “tunnel” that leads to the lagoon. At the time that we got there, the water level was nearly hitting the top of this tunnel. So to get to the lagoon, you have to swim underneath this tunnel. As I have mentioned before, I don’t know to swim, but I had a life vest, a snorkel, and fins on so I was had no issues being in the water. Again, the experience was quite unique. As you swim along, you keep hitting patches of the water with different temperatures – from cool to warm to cool again. And whenever you are passing through these changes in temperature, the water gets so incredibly murky that you almost can’t see where you are going, and you just blindly swim forward and wait ‘til the temperature evens out and you can see again.
The lagoon was quite deep, I reckon maybe 40-60 feet. And since I don’t move well in the water, I was several meters behind everyone else who had gone into the lagoon (there was another group of folks there at the same time). So I am unable to confirm whether I really did see what I think I saw through the murky water – some kind of brown ray (sting ray maybe? Definitely not a manta). Our guide said there weren’t any rays inside that lagoon, so I can’t be sure of what I saw. But if you ask me to put money on it, I would say that it really was a brown ray. Ah, if only the other folks weren’t much faster than me in the water, I could’ve pointed it out to them.
Our next stop that day was a trip to Barracuda Lake. To get here, you have to walk carefully over some craggy rock formations. Once you head into the water, you move a few feet and all of a sudden you see a sheer drop – from wading depth to several meters deep. And it gets even deeper than that. It feels freaky! I have snorkeled in really deep waters before and never felt my heart race, but here, I didn’t want to move away from the edge of the water (Barracuda Lake is completely surrounded by tall rock formations that start from under water and jut straight out of the water to the heavens, and I stayed close to this “rock wall”) I think what makes it freaky is the fact that the water is so murky that you actually can’t see the ocean floor. We stayed in the lake for a bit, mainly because the freakiness of it all made it interesting to remain in the water. But I guess not seeing anything gets a bit boring after some time, so when the novelty of the whole thing wore off, we decided to head back out (or well actually I think the novelty didn’t wear off, but we were running out of time and there was still another lake to visit).
Our last stop that day was Cayangan Lake. This time, no crags to climb over but a long, fairly steep dirt path from the shore to the lake. The lake itself I think is not all that interesting (I mean you do see some interesting fish but you can see a lot more of t hem when you are snorkeling in the sea), but the journey you take to get there, plus the stark contrast between this and the previous lake, make the whole experience pretty darn cool. A vacation to Coron (in better weather of course) is definitely something I would recommend to anyone.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Toss up
American Idol 5 is underway and for the first time in a while, I don't have a clear favorite. This is so unlike last year season when I was rooting for Bo, or the season before that when I was rooting for Fantasia.
So now I have four favorites - Paris, Mandisa, Katharine, and Taylor. I'd love for them all to reach the top 4 but I don't think that'll happen, so I will settle for all four of them making it to the top 6 (I'm pretty sure all four of them are a lock to get into the top 12). I'm kinda liking Elliott too, but I'll find out tonight if I am going to be rooting for any of the other men because I really haven't seen a lot of AI recently and I don't know who has great pipes among them.
Fearless forecast (based on what I've heard and what I've read):
So now I have four favorites - Paris, Mandisa, Katharine, and Taylor. I'd love for them all to reach the top 4 but I don't think that'll happen, so I will settle for all four of them making it to the top 6 (I'm pretty sure all four of them are a lock to get into the top 12). I'm kinda liking Elliott too, but I'll find out tonight if I am going to be rooting for any of the other men because I really haven't seen a lot of AI recently and I don't know who has great pipes among them.
Fearless forecast (based on what I've heard and what I've read):
- top 6 girls - Katharine, Paris, Mandisa, Lisa, Kellie, Ayla (or heck it could be Brenna just because the producers want to keep a contravida around for the people to cheer against
- top 6 guys - Taylor, David, Ace, Chris, Sway (mainly coz he'll be carried to the top 12 by the Filipino block vote. He's okay but he's not one of my faves, so I don't think I would vote for him if I was in the US), then either Will or Elliott but I want Elliott to get through.
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Jinx
Just when I congratulate Liverpool for beating both Man U and Arsenal, I find out that Liverpool lost their Champions League match against Benfica in Portugal 0-1. This means that for Liverpool to get through, they have to beat Benfica by at least two goals, or beat them 1-0 then win the penalty shoot out. A win by 1 goal that is not 1-0 will result in Benfica moving on due to the away goals rule. Oh well, that's football for you.
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