Pick your poison

When choosing someone to either be in a relationship with, to be friends with, to hangout with, support and to campaign for there is a risk involved in the decision we will make. The risk that they will live up to our expectations of them or that they will disappoint us and turn the other cheek.

What should we focus more on when choosing someone, the positive thing that they may bring to our lives of the negative thing that they might inflict on us? There are times that the good side tends to blind us from the possibility of the bad part coming out. However, the bad side also tends to overlap and hide the good side. There are moments when we rush into things that we forget to stop and analyze, the reason behind this is that our emotions tend to cloud our judgment. It blinds us from the reality of things, of what may come, of what may happen. It controls our thoughts and makes us think with our emotions instead of thinking things through.

Be not blinded, decipher and know who to choose. As what Sir Isaac Newton said "The third law of motion is that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction". Remember to not choose because you fear that the past will haunt you. Do not be persuaded by gimmicks that give you a false perspective on what is really on hand. Do not also believe the aesthetics because at times it is just but a mere mask to hide certain stuff.

Choose wisely on who is fit to save our country because you might just be one of them who picks our poison.

Its just you and me

Waking up in the middle of the night and just staring at the ceiling and thinking of that one person who you can't seem to forget, that one person who you've spent the whole night talking to or spent the whole day with and you still can't get him/her out of your head could only mean one thing. We are either obsessed, so infatuated or we are just plain and simply in love.

Emotions run high, our heart pumps faster and faster, we stutter and jumble our words and at times we are speechless. We even wish time would slow down or simply just stop because for the simple reason that we are in paradise. Call it paradise because we are in the presence of the person who makes us smile day and night, inspires us to reach our true potential, takes care of us and who we know we can trust and count on. Its the feeling that no one else matters, that the world suddenly stops and its is only that person who is moving.

Its hard to decipher if it is love because there are people who refuse to accept that they are in love. Why deny it? Why be afraid of what others may say? Admit and express your feelings. If it is there, then just take the leap! Let your guard down take a chance and be honest with yourself that you have feelings for that person. Jump, and remember if it hits its probably worth the fall.

Nothing beats the feeling of being loved, of just simply looking at a person's eyes and express how you feel and they reciprocate the same way of course. Sometimes just sitting down without words exchanged between the both of you is all you need, I mean come on you have each other what is there left to say?

Stand up and take arms

Have you ever been bullied around? Felt as if you were being treated like a low life. Or simply put been stepped on time and time again that the person or people involved forget to even care about your feelings? Well if you've experienced that or been in that kind of a situation more than once, then you my friend must make a stand. You have say enough is enough and make a stand.

"Fear the ones who are fearless." Remember that, remember that no matter what happens you have to stand up for yourself whenever people take you for granted or treat you like shit. Make your stand and show them that you are not afraid. People who inflict fear, who treat others as if they didn't matter, who treat others with no respect what so ever for as long as they get what they want. They are people who have no self-confidence, who are insecure and who are selfish. They have to inflict torment to other people so that they will feel better about themselves. They need to feed on the fear and suffering of others so that they can say that they are somebody when in fact they are merely cowards. They do not wish the world to see who they really are because they are afraid that people will not accept who they really are. They need to divert the attention of others or at times change the perception of others to hide and show that they are not weak and also to gain respect.

Stand up! Fight for yourself. When you do, you show that you are willing to make a stand for yourself, for your dignity as a person. You show that you are confident, that you know who you are and that you are not afraid to fight for it. Stand up and not leave but stand up and fight. Fear no one and fear nothing but God. It starts now, standing up.

Portland's Blazing final blow?

Converse used to have an advertisement about falling down seven times and getting up eight. It teaches us to not give up easily and to always keep on fighting til the end. That is what the Portland Trailblazers have done this season. They have had injury set backs time and time again not to mention management problems as well but they came out victorious each and every time by simply digging deep into their bench finding someone to step up.

They have had a roller coaster of a season. They were the team to watch out for since they had a powerful starting line up. With Andre Miller at the point, Brandon Roy in the two position while they had a powerful back court in the form of Martell Webster, LaMarcus Aldridge and Greg Oden. But that is only half of the story, their bench can produce when needed with the likes of Bayless, Przybilla and Rudy Fernandez. This however didn't last long when Greg Oden suffered another season ending injury. Then Przybilla followed but the Blazers gutted it out through out the regular season with Roy, Miller, Aldridge and Batum playing a pivotal role. They were able to get the 6th seed in the Western Conference Playoff picture, however a couple of weeks before the playoffs started they were hit with a big blow when Brandon Roy was struck by a knee injury and will be out for 2 - 4 weeks. This is a crucial injury since Roy is a big part of the team and 2-4 weeks is a long time, they could be out of the playoff picture by then.

Someone had to step up and during the first game of their series against the Suns and it would be the trio of Miller, Aldridge and Batum with Bayless coming off the bench with a monster 18 points to help the Blazers take game one. In this game we saw a Blazer team that played their heart out even if they were short handed. However, game 2 was a different story. The Phoenix Suns took them apart with a blow out victory to even the series, to make matters worst Batum had to leave the game in the closing minutes because he suffered a shoulder injury in a collision with Steve Nash. Game 3 would be a deciding game to see if the Suns can continue their domination over the Blazers of if the Blazers can take control of the series even if they were short handed. True enough the Suns continued their dominance with a insurmountable lead during the first half, and clearly out playing the Blazers in all aspects and the man behind that was Jason Richardson who had a point to prove. To make matters worst, Batum who was testing if he could contribute banged his shoulder during a lay up attempt in which he had to leave the game again as the first half was about to close. The second half was no different the Suns continued their dominance over the short handed Blazers, just as what they did during the second game.

Is this the final blow to the Blazers' season? Or can their bench fight and gut it out until Brandon Roy comes back? Who will save the Blazers' season? Also, can the Suns prove a point that they are indeed title contenders? We will just have to find out when game 4 is under way.

Champions League Review

Which country will hold its head up high after this campaign? No, I am not referring to the World Cup, well not just yet. I am referring to one of the best if not the best club competition in the planet, the UEFA Champions League. It features the best clubs in Europe facing each other for not only bragging rights but also to be named the champions of champions. Last year's semi-final featured 3 English Clubs and 1 Spanish Club talk about dominating the cup competition. However, it was the Spanish club Barcelona FC who won it all. This year however is a different story. There are no English clubs but it features the Giants from Germany, Italy, France and Spain.

This year's semi-final is, as I would dub it, a Giant vs Giant match up. Bayern Munich is up against Olympique Lyonnais and FC Barcelona goes head to head against Internazonale Milano. This Giant vs Giant match-up would be a thriller.

In the first match of the first leg saw the heavily favored Bayern Munich get a slim victory over Lyon. This was really a poor performance for both teams especially Bayern who were expected to dominate Lyon. Unfortunately they left the door open for Lyon to snatch the upset of the season in their second leg fixture. Lyon's performance may be poor but you have to give credit to their defense. They literally shut down the always dangerous Franck Ribery and they didn't give Bayern any chance to play their wide game. All in all it may not have been an exciting match but it is just the set-up for a finale worth watching. Can Lyon come back in their home ground and upset the German powerhouse or will Bayern prove time and time again just as what they have done through out the whole season that they deserve to be in the Finals in Madrid?

The next and probably the most talked about match is the first meeting between the Italian champions Inter Milan and the reigning European champions FC Barcelona. There is a history behind this match up. FC Barcelona is trying to stamp their name in the record books in becoming the only team to win back to back Champions League titles. Inter Milan however is a different story, they would want to win their first Champions League title in over 45 years. To add to that, their manager "The Special One" Jose Mourinho is hungry for his first title and has had his own history with FC Barcelona. He has gone against the Spanish giants before when he was still managing Chelsea FC and has failed to get the victory at the Nou Camp, Barcelona's home fortress. During the first leg, Barcelona wasn't able to play its wide, up tempo, passing game since their maestro Lionel Messi was being silenced by the Milan defense. They may have scored the first blood but Inter Milan showed their master class and came back with 3 unanswered goals. Barcelona's manager, Pep Guardiola, was furious with his sides performance as well as how the referees treated his team. Clearly, he has a mountain to climb on the second leg in their home fortress but if anyone can make a comeback this season surely it is Barcelona with the fire power that they have with the likes of Messi, Ibrahimovic and Henry providing a long list of attacking options. But don't think Inter Milan, having a foot in the finals, will just rest on their laurels, they will surely try to do a repeat performance of their first leg dominance, Jose Mourinho will not let this opportunity to go to his first Champions League final slip away. Can Barcelona protect their home ground and over a mountain of a task or will Jose Mourinho and his Inter Milan continue their journey 45 years in the making to become the Champions of Europe?

Sore Loser

Growing up, my mom once told me that whenever I would enter a competition or a battle or a fight, that if I do succumb to the pressure of the situation that I am and I fail I must take it as a man. She added that I shouldn't fuss about it and leave the field of battle with my head held high because I did my best however my opponent was simply better. That was how it was suppose to be that whenever you would fail that you should accept it and learn from it, because it is in learning that we better ourselves. However times have changed! Whenever people would lose they would shout "Foul play!", they would refuse to accept defeat because of greed and because they refuse to accept the fact that other people are simply better than them.

Why do we result to crying foul whenever defeat comes our way? Why can't we accept that in certain instances that people are better than us and that we can't always win? Maybe its because we let pride get in the way. But its not only pride that clouds us, it is also the lust for attention, for power, for glory in short greed. In the words of Jedi Master Yoda "Greed the shadow of jealousy that is." People want more, they crave for more.

People who want more are the type who are not satisfied with what they have, in some instances its a good thing. For example when we crave for success, when we want to move forward in life, when we want to get something more out of life. However the bad part is if we already have what we want and we want more and more that it already affects other people. In which, when we do not achieve it, when our greed is not satisfied we think that the person who stood in our way hit us personally and then we cry foul! When in fact it us who is playing foul because we do not appreciate what we have, we do not know when to say "I am satisfied."

Crying foul, its what losers do best when their greed is not satisfied. They can't seem to be satisfied and can't accept that at that point in time they were just second best. Sometimes it is not being the best that matters, but it is knowing that you are not the best and learn on how to be the best. No one is perfect, that is why champions work hard to reach their goals. Those who cry foul are those who are lazy, who don't want to work even harder the next time around to win.