Showing posts with label UP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label UP. Show all posts

Sunday, October 4, 2015

Foul Play

Let me start by saying that though I will try to be objective, I probably won't be, and this post may be driven by my biases as a Filipino, and as an alumna of the University of the Philippines.

 Once a year, my school spirit intensifies, and I become an internet troll... only for the UAAP Cheer Dance Competition ;) I think it's because our school had never won, or even contended, in any other major sport, that I defaulted to pouring all my heart and energy into supporting the UP Pep Squad's athletic efforts. It was during my time in college that the Cheer Dance Competition started to gain popularity, and our school enjoyed an era of being undefeated. In more recent years, all the schools have raised their standards so high that it has really become anyone's game; the three teams that have been fighting for the top spot have consistently included UP, UST, and NU. Each year, though I always rooted for my alma mater, the performances had always clearly shown who the deserving winners would be. That's why I was shocked when I discovered that this year's champs were the NU Pep Squad. In fact, after watching their spot, I was sure they wouldn't even place!

I'm not dissing their entire routine: I loved the strength of their flips and somersaults, the neatness of their lines; but they had at least 5 major errors in their lifts and pyramid formations! (Also, what about that girl who dropped her pepperoni?)
OOGAH OOGAH
What really happened yesterday at NU's performance. Created by micvindelmer (http://twitter.com/micvindelmer) to help him move on. Please have some humor :)
Posted by Michael Vincent Delacroix Mercado on Sunday, October 4, 2015
UST's, on the one hand, was nearly flawless.


UP Pep Squad, now here's where my bias comes in, made me feel things! 


... and even inspired a new detail to my long-running fantasy.


Now, I don't want to believe that there was foul play in the judging, but how can that outcome be respected? *sigh*

 I took a short break from my fan-girling, and attended a mass service, sponsored by my high school batch. My heart needed that, because a few hours later, I was back home cheering not just for a school, but for our national team. 

The game had not yet started, and I was already getting riled up over news that the Chinese team had not been following FIBA rules (like having special lodging arrangements,) that administration had made it very difficult for the Filipino entourage to get tickets to the game, and that Gilas was delayed because of their faulty (*ahem*fishy*ahem*) electric car? I knew that game was going to be fought dirty, and I wasn't mistaken. 

From the second the game started, it became evident that the referee had a preference. Quick to call fouls against the Filipinos, no calls made against the Chinese. The players weren't showing good sportsmanship either, what with their excessive flopping and trash talking (you can tell from their body language and the tension on court.) 

In the end, we lost by 11; and it wouldn't have felt so bad if it had been a fair fight. Granted, China's shooting accuracy beat ours, but other factors could've made that match more even. 

 That's why this afternoon, with the UP men's basketball team losing to Adamson, our loss was easier to swallow seeing the teams put compassion before victory, there was respect on and off court (especially in that moment when one of our players got injured,) and there was no foul play involved.
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Sunday, September 13, 2015

Grandparents Day

My sister requested to have dimsum for brunch, at this cart-serviced Chinese joint we frequent only on Sunday mornings, because it's her last weekend in the country for a while. After a giant bowl of congee, and several plates of our usuals doused in chili oil, we headed to the shopping centre to run some errands. While waiting for her number to be called at a certain telecom's customer service, she wanted to grab some Rita's from a couple of shops down. We both quickly chose Gelatis, then noticed a promo: free kiddie cups when accompanied by grandparents. I grabbed my dad from next door, hurriedly and poorly explaining why, but he smiled when he got to choose Tangerine from the sugar-free selection. 

Yeap, I pretended my dad was my lolo, and who would contest that hair?

 My sister and my dad went to the dentist and the barber, respectively, while I met up with friends this afternoon. A friend whom I met 11 years ago, during an exchange program in UP, arranged for us to sing for her lola who suffered from a stroke. We spent a few hours with their family, reading verses, praying, singing, and then eating. She'll be flying back to the bay area tomorrow night, and wanted to leave her lola with a small blessing. 

I never met my mom's parents, and hardly got to know my father's, who lived in Bicol all their lives. I felt a tinge of envy watching Heidi's devotion to her lola, and wondered what it would've been like to know mine. My parents are now grandparents, but miles away from their two apo living in Washington; but I pray that the kids know how wonderful their grandparents are, and someday be as loving and sensitive to their needs as I had witnessed my friend be to hers. 

Oh, and one last thing »
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