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Saturday, September 30, 2006
Saturday, September 23, 2006
The Red Army
I got off work early last friday. I left at 3:00 pm for the Araneta Coliseum. I just had to be there. I had to be there by 3:30 pm. That's the time when San Beda fulfills its destiny. I wore RED.
San Beda College hasn't won the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) Men's Division Basketball title in 28 years. The last time the San Beda Red Lions won was 28 years ago when Chito Loyzaga was still the team captain. I was still in Grade One then. They've reached the finals a couple of times though. I remember high school batchmate Boybits Victoria and his college teammates almost bringing the title home. I knew that this friday would be the day that my (or should I say "our") wait will come to an end. It was the final chapter of the finals series of the 82nd season of NCAA Men's Basketball between the San Beda Red Lions and the PCU Dolphins.
It started to rain when I pulled away from the office in the minivan. Foreboding doom? Nah. The other car is colorcoding so I had to use the minivan. A plus in having small vehicle is that it is easier to park, in this case I was wrong. I reached Araneta but parking was hell. When I succeeded in squeezing the little bugger between two aluminum vans I immediately ran inside the coliseum.
I was able to get a ticket, which were soooo hard to come by since the finals series was touted as a date of destiny, courtesy of Tita Linda, mom's friend and co-faculty member of the SBC College of Arts and Sciences. Thanks Tita Linda!
It was a photo finish arrival for me, I entered the gates at exactly 3:30 pm, right before the game went live on Studio 23. I was there. I just had to be part of all of it. For one brief shining moment, I was a part of The Red Army.
I was kind of hoping to meet up with Arel and my other batchmates but I knew that at that point it was impossible since the coliseum was jam-packed. But then it really didn't matter since when you're there... when you're with other Bedans... when you're right smack in the middle of The Red Army... you are home... I didn't know the names of the guys and girls beside me. My hands hurt from all the clapping. My throat hurts from all the shouting... But it really didn't matter... We were all Bedans.
The game was a classic. When the Dolphins denied the Lions a sweep in game two, Studio 23's sports commentators had said then that all that was needed to make the series a classic was a cliffhanger of a final game. They got their wish. San Beda Red Lions won over the Gabby Espinas-led PCU Dolphins, 68-67. Though we didn't know each others' names, I shook hands with the guys beside me.
The Lions led by 20 points at the third quarter. But champions in their own right that they are, the Dolphins chipped away at the lead until it was only down to a single point with 24 seconds left.
As it stands, it was Samuel Ekwe's last free throw that mattered, he missed three previous ones. Without it the game would have been tied. He deserves to be the Rookie-MVP-Best Defensive Player awardee. As it stands, it was Yousif Aljamal's final rebound off a miss by PCU's Beau Belga with less than a second left that sealed the game. He grabbed the ball and latched on to it like there was no tomorrow. He deserves to be the Finals MVP.
As it stands, it was the game- (and season-) long heroics of the whole team. Kudos to Rogemar Menor, Pong Escobal, Alex Angeles, Raymond Maggay, Jay-R Taganas, Kristoffer Taupa, Martin Lloyd Antonio, Riego Meinardo Gamalinda, Eduardo Tecson, Jed Micah Evangelista, Eduardo Canlas, John Hermida and Kevin Espinosa.
As it stands, it was the season-long masterful strategies of Coach Koy Banal that gave direction to destiny.
It was fun to be there for the Red Wave. It was exciting to shout the Indian Yell with all its seminal Indian Chanting and "GO SAN BEDA FIGHT" cheers once again. It was an exhilirating experience to sing the Bedan Hymn again, this time as champions.
San Beda sure has something that differentiates it from the rest. Instead of girls and guys cheering and dancing at halftime, San Beda has Little Indians. But this time it was different. This finals game had what some would call the most emotional finals halftime experience for any Bedan.
Before the Little Indians took the court, the Red Army fell silent. Then... Without flair, a single cheerleader took the center floor. In his hand he held high the flag of San Beda College. His other hand rose from his side and found its way over his heart.
...and then the heartbeats started.
Every heartbeat was punctuated with striking the chest.
Everyone in the Red Army followed suit.
Then the drums chimed in.
Then the Red Army started chanting "PUSO!" in time with every heartbeat.
A spontaneous chant which was very symbolic of how everyone felt. Twenty-eight years can do that to you. The words "BELIEVE" and "HEART. COURAGE. PRIDE." were echoing in the Bedan collective mind.
It was magical.
It was destiny.
San Beda College hasn't won the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) Men's Division Basketball title in 28 years. The last time the San Beda Red Lions won was 28 years ago when Chito Loyzaga was still the team captain. I was still in Grade One then. They've reached the finals a couple of times though. I remember high school batchmate Boybits Victoria and his college teammates almost bringing the title home. I knew that this friday would be the day that my (or should I say "our") wait will come to an end. It was the final chapter of the finals series of the 82nd season of NCAA Men's Basketball between the San Beda Red Lions and the PCU Dolphins.
It started to rain when I pulled away from the office in the minivan. Foreboding doom? Nah. The other car is colorcoding so I had to use the minivan. A plus in having small vehicle is that it is easier to park, in this case I was wrong. I reached Araneta but parking was hell. When I succeeded in squeezing the little bugger between two aluminum vans I immediately ran inside the coliseum.
I was able to get a ticket, which were soooo hard to come by since the finals series was touted as a date of destiny, courtesy of Tita Linda, mom's friend and co-faculty member of the SBC College of Arts and Sciences. Thanks Tita Linda!It was a photo finish arrival for me, I entered the gates at exactly 3:30 pm, right before the game went live on Studio 23. I was there. I just had to be part of all of it. For one brief shining moment, I was a part of The Red Army.
I was kind of hoping to meet up with Arel and my other batchmates but I knew that at that point it was impossible since the coliseum was jam-packed. But then it really didn't matter since when you're there... when you're with other Bedans... when you're right smack in the middle of The Red Army... you are home... I didn't know the names of the guys and girls beside me. My hands hurt from all the clapping. My throat hurts from all the shouting... But it really didn't matter... We were all Bedans.
The game was a classic. When the Dolphins denied the Lions a sweep in game two, Studio 23's sports commentators had said then that all that was needed to make the series a classic was a cliffhanger of a final game. They got their wish. San Beda Red Lions won over the Gabby Espinas-led PCU Dolphins, 68-67. Though we didn't know each others' names, I shook hands with the guys beside me.
The Lions led by 20 points at the third quarter. But champions in their own right that they are, the Dolphins chipped away at the lead until it was only down to a single point with 24 seconds left.
As it stands, it was Samuel Ekwe's last free throw that mattered, he missed three previous ones. Without it the game would have been tied. He deserves to be the Rookie-MVP-Best Defensive Player awardee. As it stands, it was Yousif Aljamal's final rebound off a miss by PCU's Beau Belga with less than a second left that sealed the game. He grabbed the ball and latched on to it like there was no tomorrow. He deserves to be the Finals MVP.
As it stands, it was the game- (and season-) long heroics of the whole team. Kudos to Rogemar Menor, Pong Escobal, Alex Angeles, Raymond Maggay, Jay-R Taganas, Kristoffer Taupa, Martin Lloyd Antonio, Riego Meinardo Gamalinda, Eduardo Tecson, Jed Micah Evangelista, Eduardo Canlas, John Hermida and Kevin Espinosa.
As it stands, it was the season-long masterful strategies of Coach Koy Banal that gave direction to destiny.
It was fun to be there for the Red Wave. It was exciting to shout the Indian Yell with all its seminal Indian Chanting and "GO SAN BEDA FIGHT" cheers once again. It was an exhilirating experience to sing the Bedan Hymn again, this time as champions.
San Beda sure has something that differentiates it from the rest. Instead of girls and guys cheering and dancing at halftime, San Beda has Little Indians. But this time it was different. This finals game had what some would call the most emotional finals halftime experience for any Bedan.
Before the Little Indians took the court, the Red Army fell silent. Then... Without flair, a single cheerleader took the center floor. In his hand he held high the flag of San Beda College. His other hand rose from his side and found its way over his heart. ...and then the heartbeats started.
Every heartbeat was punctuated with striking the chest.
Everyone in the Red Army followed suit.
Then the drums chimed in.
Then the Red Army started chanting "PUSO!" in time with every heartbeat.
A spontaneous chant which was very symbolic of how everyone felt. Twenty-eight years can do that to you. The words "BELIEVE" and "HEART. COURAGE. PRIDE." were echoing in the Bedan collective mind.
It was magical.
It was destiny.
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Beda and Bites
Monday was hell. Actually it started last Sunday.
Mom went to visit one of our neighbors at their house. Our neighbor, Mr. Ed, was recovering from motorcycle accident. Mom went with a group of their neighborhood friends, all present or past members of the board of our homeowners association. Just my mom's luck that she got bitten on the knee by our neighbors' dachshund. Weird thing was she entered the house second. Ate Dee, who entered first, wasn't bitten. Six of the dog's fangs punctured her skin. Like I said, just her luck.
Mom was scared, who wouldn't be. Tita Edith, our next door neighbor, accompanied us to the emergency clinic. A few years back I accompanied Tita Edith and best friend Ian when Justine's son got bitten on the face. Thanks, Tita Edith!
Anyway, I found out that even if the dog that bites you is vaccinated, it is not enough. As a safety precaution, you still have to receive a lot of injections. Heck, better be safe than sorry. Anyways, at the emercency clinic which is also a dog and cat bite treatment center, E-med in phase 1, it was explained that mom would have to get injections of four types of medicine. I'm not much of a medical guy, but I'll try to reconstruct. These are:
We decided to go to RITM which is nearer our place. Had to take a leave of absence from work. I thought we'd be finished by noon, I was wrong. The lines and waiting period was so long that Mom was attended to at 3:00 pm. On the way home we nevertheless agreed that it was worth it since the doctors and nurses there were very experienced in this sort of thing.
Anyway, there were several choices involved. The inital Verorab given was intramuscular. Mom had the choice of continuing it or opting for the Verorab commonly prescribed by RITM which was intradermal. The intradermal option meant she'd have to start from zero which meant that the initial Verorab shots the day before nullified. She opted for the reset and was prescribed the intradermal.
ATS was tested again just to be sure, so was ERIG. Waiting time was 30 mins. She still had an allergic reaction to ATS, but she was okay with ERIG. So she was prescribed ERIG.
At the RITM there were a lot of patients, a lot were first bite patients, the others were follow up injection patients. The follow up line was so looooong! At about 4:45 pm Mom had her barrage of shots. I held her hand. I stopped counting the injections. There were about a couple for each arm, one near the butt, one on the hip, and a lot near the vicinity of the wound on her knee. The wound bled a little. Damn those have got to hurt. But Mom's one tough lady, which probably explains why she has a couple of tough kids (ooohhh, I'll be waiting for the side comments to that one).
Waiting time after the injections was 30 minutes for any adverse reactions. While we were waiting we traded stories with the others still waiting in line. One mom was bringing her kid for the shots because she was afraid. She was a first-hand witness to the effect of rabies. Her brother was bitten and he relied on folk medicine, "pagpapasipsip sa bato", they called it. It didn't work. In about a month's time he had to be confined in San Lazaro, crazed, fopaming at the mouth, afraid of air and water. Despite being restrained to the bed with belts he was still able to run around with the bed along the corridors. The only thing which was able to stop him was when an orderly chased him back to his room with the air from an electric fan. My sister had a similar story. One of their students died a month after being bitten by their cat. The student didn't tell anyone.
Through the whole ordeal I found out that RITM and San Lazaro can offer the medicine cheaper. In private institutions, you have to buy the whole vial of medicine and they will have to inject the whole vial even if the dosage is less becasue if they don;t the medicine will go to waste. At the RITM and San Lazaro, the exact dosage can be extracted from the vials and the remainder used for other patients. I'm not sure but Marian, my officemate, told me that in San Lazaro you find a partner patient in some cases so things won't go to waste.
I also found out that Verorab has to be administered based on the type and on a strict schedule. It depends on the doctor and the institution. E-Med prescribed the intramuscular to be administered on day 0, 3, 7, 14 and 28. RITM prescribed the intradermal to be administered on day 0, 3, 7 and 21. After all the stories we were finally out by 5:10, just in time for the 3rd quarter of the NCAA Men's Basketball Finals between San Beda and PCU. We trodded home, I had a splitting super-headache because of the heat and of all the waiting and lining up.
By the way, San Beda won. So now they're 1-0. All they need is to win the game tomorrow and SAN BEDA WILL BE THE NEXT NCAA CHAMPIONS!!!
So tomorrow, I'll be wearing red. BECAUSE REAL MEN WEAR RED!
GO SAN BEDA FIGHT!
For San Beda, our country and God!
U.I.O.G.D.
Mom went to visit one of our neighbors at their house. Our neighbor, Mr. Ed, was recovering from motorcycle accident. Mom went with a group of their neighborhood friends, all present or past members of the board of our homeowners association. Just my mom's luck that she got bitten on the knee by our neighbors' dachshund. Weird thing was she entered the house second. Ate Dee, who entered first, wasn't bitten. Six of the dog's fangs punctured her skin. Like I said, just her luck.
Mom was scared, who wouldn't be. Tita Edith, our next door neighbor, accompanied us to the emergency clinic. A few years back I accompanied Tita Edith and best friend Ian when Justine's son got bitten on the face. Thanks, Tita Edith!
Anyway, I found out that even if the dog that bites you is vaccinated, it is not enough. As a safety precaution, you still have to receive a lot of injections. Heck, better be safe than sorry. Anyways, at the emercency clinic which is also a dog and cat bite treatment center, E-med in phase 1, it was explained that mom would have to get injections of four types of medicine. I'm not much of a medical guy, but I'll try to reconstruct. These are:
- Verorab (which had to be injected on different days based on a schedule)
- Tetanus Toxoid
- ATS or ERIG
- Immunoglobulin
We decided to go to RITM which is nearer our place. Had to take a leave of absence from work. I thought we'd be finished by noon, I was wrong. The lines and waiting period was so long that Mom was attended to at 3:00 pm. On the way home we nevertheless agreed that it was worth it since the doctors and nurses there were very experienced in this sort of thing.
Anyway, there were several choices involved. The inital Verorab given was intramuscular. Mom had the choice of continuing it or opting for the Verorab commonly prescribed by RITM which was intradermal. The intradermal option meant she'd have to start from zero which meant that the initial Verorab shots the day before nullified. She opted for the reset and was prescribed the intradermal.
ATS was tested again just to be sure, so was ERIG. Waiting time was 30 mins. She still had an allergic reaction to ATS, but she was okay with ERIG. So she was prescribed ERIG.
At the RITM there were a lot of patients, a lot were first bite patients, the others were follow up injection patients. The follow up line was so looooong! At about 4:45 pm Mom had her barrage of shots. I held her hand. I stopped counting the injections. There were about a couple for each arm, one near the butt, one on the hip, and a lot near the vicinity of the wound on her knee. The wound bled a little. Damn those have got to hurt. But Mom's one tough lady, which probably explains why she has a couple of tough kids (ooohhh, I'll be waiting for the side comments to that one).
Waiting time after the injections was 30 minutes for any adverse reactions. While we were waiting we traded stories with the others still waiting in line. One mom was bringing her kid for the shots because she was afraid. She was a first-hand witness to the effect of rabies. Her brother was bitten and he relied on folk medicine, "pagpapasipsip sa bato", they called it. It didn't work. In about a month's time he had to be confined in San Lazaro, crazed, fopaming at the mouth, afraid of air and water. Despite being restrained to the bed with belts he was still able to run around with the bed along the corridors. The only thing which was able to stop him was when an orderly chased him back to his room with the air from an electric fan. My sister had a similar story. One of their students died a month after being bitten by their cat. The student didn't tell anyone.
Through the whole ordeal I found out that RITM and San Lazaro can offer the medicine cheaper. In private institutions, you have to buy the whole vial of medicine and they will have to inject the whole vial even if the dosage is less becasue if they don;t the medicine will go to waste. At the RITM and San Lazaro, the exact dosage can be extracted from the vials and the remainder used for other patients. I'm not sure but Marian, my officemate, told me that in San Lazaro you find a partner patient in some cases so things won't go to waste.
I also found out that Verorab has to be administered based on the type and on a strict schedule. It depends on the doctor and the institution. E-Med prescribed the intramuscular to be administered on day 0, 3, 7, 14 and 28. RITM prescribed the intradermal to be administered on day 0, 3, 7 and 21. After all the stories we were finally out by 5:10, just in time for the 3rd quarter of the NCAA Men's Basketball Finals between San Beda and PCU. We trodded home, I had a splitting super-headache because of the heat and of all the waiting and lining up.
By the way, San Beda won. So now they're 1-0. All they need is to win the game tomorrow and SAN BEDA WILL BE THE NEXT NCAA CHAMPIONS!!!
So tomorrow, I'll be wearing red. BECAUSE REAL MEN WEAR RED!
GO SAN BEDA FIGHT!
For San Beda, our country and God!
U.I.O.G.D.
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Beda and Ballet
I got to watch "The Best of PBT", a celebration of 20 years of the Philippine Ballet Theater, the resident balllet company of the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Jojo Renta is a heaven-sent. He teaches arts and humanities subjects at the San Beda College of Arts and Sciences. Whenever he has tickets to arts and culture events at the CCP he brings along the faculty members, so I tag along with my mom who teaches in San Beda. We had lower box seats so we had a great view of the program, same seats we had when we watched Miss Saigon.
I never was into ballet, but whenever the opportunity came for me to watch a show at the CCP, I jump on it. The Best of PBT was a tribute to the artistry that is the Philippine Ballet Theater. I wasn't able to see a copy of the programme but it was a showcase of the different talents who made PBT one of the best ballet companies of the Philippines. Am not much of a ballet critic but I'll try.
Act One was classical. I think it was a group of the new ballerinas. Some balance and synchronization problems can be seen. The lead female ballerina on the other hand gravitates from the group, you can actually see how more graceful she was compared to the others. It was great, but it gets better as the night wore on.
Act Two was a number to welcome back the stars of the Philippine Ballet Theater, the female leads through the years. God they were great. Every move they made, with their gowns a-flowing, were so graceful. You can actually see the dedication they had to be able to perfect each and every move.
Act Three was a Filipiniana piece. I found it long but if was fine by me. What drew my attention was the great use of color. Flowing malongs and sablays, long furling cloths, all drawing inspoiration from tribal Philippine colors (Maranao, Badjao, I really don't know, but it was so beautiful).
Act Four after the intermission was the rendition of Carmina Burana. This was the piece de resistance. The purple and orange, masks and cloaks, all in a medieval gothic setting was so engaging. It reels you in, sends shivers up your spine but you can't look away from the visual spectacle right before your very eyes.
I'd like to watch their next productions after this one.
Speaking of San Beda College...
San Beda College is off to the NCAA Men's Basketball finals!!!
Good Luck guys! Here are some Youtube vids someone forwarded via our alumni mailing list.
GO SAN BEDA FIGHT!
For San Beda, our country and God!
U.I.O.G.D.
I never was into ballet, but whenever the opportunity came for me to watch a show at the CCP, I jump on it. The Best of PBT was a tribute to the artistry that is the Philippine Ballet Theater. I wasn't able to see a copy of the programme but it was a showcase of the different talents who made PBT one of the best ballet companies of the Philippines. Am not much of a ballet critic but I'll try.
Act One was classical. I think it was a group of the new ballerinas. Some balance and synchronization problems can be seen. The lead female ballerina on the other hand gravitates from the group, you can actually see how more graceful she was compared to the others. It was great, but it gets better as the night wore on.
Act Two was a number to welcome back the stars of the Philippine Ballet Theater, the female leads through the years. God they were great. Every move they made, with their gowns a-flowing, were so graceful. You can actually see the dedication they had to be able to perfect each and every move.
Act Three was a Filipiniana piece. I found it long but if was fine by me. What drew my attention was the great use of color. Flowing malongs and sablays, long furling cloths, all drawing inspoiration from tribal Philippine colors (Maranao, Badjao, I really don't know, but it was so beautiful).
Act Four after the intermission was the rendition of Carmina Burana. This was the piece de resistance. The purple and orange, masks and cloaks, all in a medieval gothic setting was so engaging. It reels you in, sends shivers up your spine but you can't look away from the visual spectacle right before your very eyes.
I'd like to watch their next productions after this one.
Speaking of San Beda College...
San Beda College is off to the NCAA Men's Basketball finals!!!
Good Luck guys! Here are some Youtube vids someone forwarded via our alumni mailing list.
GO SAN BEDA FIGHT!
For San Beda, our country and God!
U.I.O.G.D.
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