In the realm of deliberate thought and thoughts wandering into consciousness -- and everything in between.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Ecclesiastes 3
It has been quite a year, but a new one is just round the corner...
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Ecclesiastes 3
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.
What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboureth?
I have seen the travail, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it.
He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.
I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life.
Monday, December 10, 2007
The Unrepentant Slacker
It's not that I've been busy lately, though that is true. It's not that there's nothing to write about, for there is plenty. It's just that sometimes one doesn't want to always be up to speed on everything. Everyone wants to slacken off once in a while. Oftentimes it's the blog that gets left behind.
Well, that's not really too bad, is it? Can't a blog be also some kind of release? Why else do many people blog anonymously? If slacking off is a release, then so be it. I just can't help but notice the irony -- blogging as a form of release but then slacking off means no blog. Hmmmm.
The end of the year is closing in fast. I'm not even sure Christmas would make a stopover before we hit New Year. Maybe that's why I'm slacking off, trying to slow down time. But it's futile. When I hit "publish post" it will show the days elapsed from the last entry.
Slacking off has a function in the universe. Even the best transmission would make a car pause for that split second before shifting into higher gear. Amongst spiritualists, it is the limbo before heaven, enlightenment before nirvana. But I'm not out to intellectualize slacking off. I'm just here to make an admission and not feel remorseful about it.
Who knows, the floodwaters would rush through the finger holding the dam, and next year this blog would be less quiet?
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Thursday, October 18, 2007
When do you emerge…
Holding your breath but unable to break the surface to catch your next breath
It is like a dream, a nightmare, a half-awake consciousness you want to escape but know cannot
Or wouldn’t because you’re not ready
Or tell yourself it is pointless
Cause you will go back underwater to hold your breath
And swim and glide at the bottom
When do you see the sky
Feel the wind on your cheeks and look around with a smile
Even underwater you are frowning
Where does this all lead to
You are not swimming around in circles but know you are bound by walls
Desperately you want to break the surface
And break it for good
And maybe admire the water from above or simply let it play around your feet
The water gets heavier
You sink lower
But the water gives you a chance
It whiffs you up and you break the surface
And you don’t have to go under again
Monday, September 24, 2007
Sunday, September 02, 2007
111, 104, 102...
Dang, if not for that disaster on the 10th hole...
Friday, August 31, 2007
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Friday, August 24, 2007
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Ping G5
After trying them out on the driving range, I realized these are the clubs for me. Not only are they forgiving, the weight balance seems to suit my swing speed -- I can feel where the head is. It also gives quite good feedback, that it tells me when I'm swinging it right. It is literally a game improvement club.
Not that the Callaway x-14's are slouches, just that they are probably for better players. I saw one guy hit this club really straight and long, then hooked badly when using the Ping.
Tried the Ping in the fairway today. Initially I was swinging them like I used to do the Callaways with not so good results. But when I swung them like I did at the range, ie, easy and smooth, my iron game fell into place. A good iron game just gave me confidence, I started putting great. Almost broke 100 today if not for a really bad driving off the tee.
Next might be a replacement for the Callaway X-460 driver, then soon more celebration, I hope...
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Friday, August 10, 2007
In Progress
I am making peace with myself
Myself averts my gaze
Myself turns down a handshake
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Haiku 2
rain from above and my eyes
the day you left
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Peeling the Layers Off a Nonthought
Alas, I take off each layer and reveal -- I have peeled the truth like an onion and am left with totally nothing.
Where did truth hide? How did it escape from the layers of processed thought?
I tried to look for truth but I have set it free instead.
Saturday, August 04, 2007
Made my weekend!
Putting has improved a lot too, not too many 3-putts. Earlier in the week, I tried all my putters (a Mizuno, a couple of cheap blade ones, and an Odyseey Blade 2-ball) on the putting mat, to "keep each other honest" so they say. I finally settled that the Odyssey is the best of the lot (for now). It probably somehow cleared some cobwebs in the head.
Finally able to use the 21-degree hybrid. I think the trick is to hit it like an iron and "pinch" the ball into the turf; great for punching out of the rough too. I can see this club seeing more use in the future. My driving and second shots weren't too bad but still couldn't string them together.
Soon, I hope... an even better reason to celebrate.
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Callaway X460
Callaway X 3 wood
Callaway x hybrid 21 degrees
Callaway x-14 3-SW irons
Ben Hogan 58 degree, 8 bounce
Odyssey 2-ball blade putter
Friday, August 03, 2007
Long Day...
That's why a bad day at the golf course
is better than any day at the office.
Gotta pack that golf shirt for tomorrow.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Laiya, Batangas
The Best Laid Plans...
It started with a disappointment. We had planned a trip to Hidden Valley in Alaminos, Laguna. But the place is no longer the quiet sanctuary of years ago. It has become a picnic ground for busloads of Korean tourists. We left in a huff.
We did manage to stop and take a snapshot of this church.
Using directions from friends, we made our way into San Juan, Batangas, and into the beaches of Laiya. It's quite easy to get to, once you know how.
What greeted us was a pleasant surprise. A white beach, perhaps the sand not as fine as Boracay's, but we didn't need to take a plane to get here. I guess because it is off-season, the resorts were not crowded, and you could find your own space.
The snorkeling is quite good, not the same as El Nido, but you get different sealife -- I saw an eel and what looked like a puffer fish.
Laiya saved our weekend.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
D.A. and S.A.
S.A.: Duh?! The opposite of....?
D.A.: Oh....
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Omega vs Seiko accuracy
The Omega has kept within 2 seconds over a period of 5 days. Very impressive.
The Seiko is now ahead by about 2 minutes after 5 days. Still not bad.
(Onega 2254 vs Seiko skx007)
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Sunday, July 08, 2007
Nearly there
Scored 113 today with a lot of 3 putts....Have to work on my putting.
Thursday, July 05, 2007
A moment
Perhaps these are all make believe, and we pay our money to be given an illusion and part with our money some more for that illusive dream of becoming someone we are not.
For instance do people really believe they can be a James Bond or a Batman, even with all the gadgets and the cars?
But what if for one brief instance you get a glimpse, no, feel yourself transform into that persona even knowing it's an illusion, but nevertheless...
No wonder Bimmers and cigars sell. And big motorcycles and expensive sportwatches and snappy suits and...
Whatever else we use to justify it, it's the experience, stupid.
Monday, July 02, 2007
Sunday, April 22, 2007
A time to mourn
This event has made the whole world take notice, not only because of the violence of the crime but also because of the questions it raised.
The hardest question is "how could it have happened?" In any critical incident, one always looks at two angles, the act itself and the conditions that allowed the event to happen. In this case, both the actions of the perpetrator and the conditions surrounding the event converged to allow this incident. Most people are still trying to make sense of it all, and the expression of grief and renewal needs to replace the initial shock.
It is a tragedy, one that shocks, but also one that calls us to wake up. If it could happen in Virginia Tech, one wonders if it could happen anywhere else.
It is a time of mourning, for the families of the victims, and for the whole world.
But is also a time to ask the hard questions.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Viloria and Pacquiao Redux
It's the same result, only different opponents.
Actually Viloria fought more valiantly. Too valiantly in fact he was getting himself hit too much! Quite the opposite of the previous fight. Perhaps he thought he could floor his opponent by landing power punches, too bad the other guy was strong too.
Pacquiao toyed around in the beginning, unlike the last fight when he immediately went for the KO. He paid for it with a cut, and risked a contest stoppage.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Bizarre Kidnapping
A man kidnaps children at his day care for 12 hours.
kidnapping news
Then the parents of the children hold a rally to support him?
channel news asia article
Then some say it is a political gimmick? By whom?
australia story
The President had to make game time with the kids and their parents, hopefully to make them see the light.
Throw the book at this serial kidnapper and attention-seeker!
article citing history of kidnapping as gimmicry
In today's world there is no place to toy with people's lives, specially children's, to bolster a sick ego.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
A Beginner's Lament
Today you get it then tomorrow you don’t
Just when you’ve found the Holy Grail
You lose it again
The game of your life is followed by the worst of them all
It’s a gentleman’s game but your patience must be a saint’s
Two steps forward, one step backward
Then two more back, before a single one front
Surely it must be easier
To train a dog how to sing
Than your muscles to swing
The ball is too small and the hole is too small
And what makes you think you can sink it
From a quarter mile even with a roll?
Not with a stick with a head that miniscule
Sometimes you wonder why you picked it up at all
The view is so wonderful if you can just look around
But most of the time your head is on the ground
The splash of water is a sound that you dread
And the wind on your face
Is not a good sign indeed
Most of the time you'll frolic in the sand
But no, not this time, you’ll avoid it if you can
Sure you'll never see a sight lovely as a tree
But not if it blocks
Your next shot from the tee
But one sweet zinger
A two hundred yarder
A twenty-foot putter
And you feel like a Tiger
You come back for more
And suffer some more
It’s a masochistic drill
For that one-time thrill!
Friday, March 09, 2007
No news from Canon
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
DON'T Panic!!!
http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/28/markets/markets_0945/index.htm?cnn=yes
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
It finally came together...
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Bits and Pieces
Today -- finally got my fairway shots in control, but my driving was terrible specially the first five holes; couldn't find my putting touch until the last two holes.
When will I put it all together?
Friday, February 09, 2007
Anna Nicole Smith, 39
Found in her hotel room.
She did idolize Marilyn Monroe who died at 36 in her sleep.
Thursday, February 08, 2007
Body Rotation
Gotta remember this...
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Got some help
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
Master Display
It was a great display of tennis mastery.
The Australian Open couldn't have produced a better Final.
Gonzalez was good, but Federer showed why he is ten times a Grand Slam champion. This Final, more than any other, has truly convinced me of the greatness of Federer's tennis.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Williams vs Sharapova
A friend called this match The Beauty and the Beast.
Another friend said that more men are now watching women's tennis after Sharapova came into the scene. But unlike Kournikova who displayed more than played, Sharapova is a true champion.
Anyway Serena displayed great tennis to win the Australian Open. It was a magnificent display to watch.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
China's Missile Downs Sattelite
It's a coming out party.
This will go down in history. A watermark event.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Fore !
Pick up golf that is.
Right now I'm choosing between Callaways and Ping. Tried the demo clubs and seems like the Ping G5 is easier to hit high, but the Callaway x-14 feels solid and could hit farther once you hit them right.
What am I getting into?