Monday, July 28, 2008

Winning Again

July 25th, 2008, 6:30 PM PST @ Joe Rodgers Field

Finally, we win again. I think it came at the hands of one of the worst teams in the league but still we won. A Hitmen win is considered newsflash these days.

As for the game, we won it in the last inning. We trailed by one run entering the last frame and I was able to get on a blooper to left-center and eventually scoring the tying-run. I've been hitting the ball like a little girl lately for this team. I'm not sure what it is but I crush solid hits for my work team and hit nothing but squibblers and loopers for Hitmen. Also, I made a big defensive error in right center when a liner from the skinniest guy ever lined one over my head for a 3-run homer. I charged in when he hit it hah.

I've been able to get on base someway and somehow though.

Batted : 3 for 4.


July 26th, 2008, 3:00 PM PST @ Best Fit Gym

I didn't make it to this game because I was helping my brother Tuan fix up his house (our old house). We got a lot done and we also ate a lot hah.

This was what he wanted for his bachelor's party.


July 27th, 2008, 12:50 PM PST @ Banning HS

We finished off our regular season with a solid 80-68 win over some team with all black guys. I say this because the rule is you can only have 2.5 a non-asian on a single-team hah.

Playoffs next weekend. Updates to come..

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

The Double Dinner

July 21st, 2008, 7:30 PM PST @ Pan Pacific Park

What a great way to finish the season. LegalZoom (8-4) finished their 3rd season with a solid, defensive victory over the Hollywood All-Stars on Monday night. Before the game started, we were definitely the underdog in this one.

The bottom of our lineup was staring at two girls and a new guy playing in jeans. Throw in the fact that Hollywood All-Stars are coming off convincing-win over first place Dead Presidents and you can see why we weren't looking too good. To put things in perspective, Dead Presidents have lost two games all season, both to Hollywood All-Stars.

We've owned Hollywood All-Stars this season though (2-0 on the season coming into the game).

I left work some time before 6pm to head out to the park for some early warm-up. I made a quick-stop at In-N-Out to get some dinner because of what happened the night before during the basketball game. I made sure I had enough energy so I ordered three cheeseburgers, some fries, and a drink. This meal could feed two people at least. If you know me though, I eat like a monster and eat like there's no tomorrow. What a pig hah.

Anyhow, back to the game details. I pitched on a full stomach and I was on queue. I had a 3-pitch inning and Hollywood All-Stars didn't come up with their first "legit" hit until the 7th and final inning. I'm not sure how I did it but I was mowing them down left and right. At one point, I remembered getting 10 straight batters although this number could be a lot higher. I just can't remember.

Gamenotes: We had one of the girls playing catcher and the other one playing in between first and second base (I labeled her position as 1.5B hah). John, the guy in jeans was playing at 2nd base. Hollywood All-Stars hit zero balls to the right side. Actually, they hit two but both were popouts to the first baseman, Dave hah.

They came up with four runs in the bottom of the 7th on a couple errors and 3 solid hits. Whatever, we win.

Here is the boxscore:



Here are the final season stats for the third season:

Monday, July 21, 2008

Health Jeopardized

July 18th, 2008, 6:30 PM PST @ Joe Rodgers Field

Man, our Hitmen softball team stinks. Sam didn't show up and when Lyno took the mound, I had a feeling that we had no chance of winning. I was up extremely early that day for work and I was out of it. I think it was 11-0 after 2 innings and we just never recovered although I did pop out with the bases juiced in the 2nd inning when we had already scored 5 runs. A hit there could of turned the game but whatever we suck. I think the final score was 15-7 or something. I'll post the schedule when it I get it.


July 19th, 2008, 3:00 PM PST @ Best Fit Gym

This was a blowout win for us. I got there late cause I had to finish up as "grill man" at my nephew's barbeque at Stearn's Park next to my house. We had the Korean ribs going, some chicken, hotdogs, and burgers. Solid day at the park.

As for the game, we were already up by 9 points when I got there and we won by 20 something. Here is the boxscore from that game:




July 20th, 2008, 4:50 PM PST @ Banning HS

This game had a scary moment for me. I started this game and exited with like 3 minutes left in the 1st quarter for Manny. I was sitting there on the bench next to Tom and all of a sudden I took a glimpse up towards the light. I went dizzy and immediately I stood up to gasp for some air. It didn't work. I quickly fell to the floor and sat down. Next thing I know I leaned back and laid on the ground, my head adjacent to the ground. All I heard was a bunch of "Oh shit!" and "Are you alright?" I got up after like 5 seconds and downed 2 and a half water bottles and went outside for some air. Tom said I was kicking and shaking when I was on the bench. I don't remember doing that at all. Hopefully, I won't die from this hah.

I'm still feeling a little light-headed and as if something on the top left of my brain aint right. I also feel that I can pass out at any moment right now. But I'm still at work.

I went home during the 2nd quarter and we were losing by 7 points. I heard we lost. I slept from 715pm to 745am. The good thing is that I woke up.

Past week track record: I've been getting very little sleep latey and I didn't eat or drink much water yesterday. I also strained a nerve around my left neck area in last Wednesday's championship game and had to sit out most of that game.

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Email to The Team - (4-Peat)

July 16th, 2008, 7:00 PM / 9:00PM @ LA Fitness Hollywood

Team,

For those of you who weren't there. Here is a little summary of what happened.

7pm #4 Blazers vs #1 LegalZoom
8pm #3 Ass Vomit vs #2 LA Suns
9pm #2 LA Suns vs #1 LegalZoom

The 7pm game was a warmup game. We trailed by 9 points early; the score was 16-7 half way through the first half. We finally decided to lock down in the final 10 minutes of the first half and led at halftime by 4 points. In the 2nd half, we blew them out of the water and won by 26 or something. It was an easy game. The championship game was a little tougher.

The 9pm game was a good one to say the least. Like the first game, we fell behind early. They led by as much as 9 points in the first half. And unlike the first game, this was going to be a tough one to comeback. The deficit was 5 points at halftime. Fast forward to around the ten minute mark left in the game, and we were staring at a 10 point hole with just under 9 minutes to go. We weren't looking good. That is, until Larry gets a rebound and goes coast-to-coast for an and-1 and hits his free throw. Deficit was down to 7. On the ensuing possession, we got another stop and Kev hits a big-time three in the corner-elbow to cut it to 4. And just like that, we were back in it. We got another stop and John hits 1 of 2 free throws to make it 3. Then they finally scored to go back up 5. We scored again to make it 3. Then we tied it with an ugly 3 pointer by some unnamed player to tie it, 44-44. There were still 5 and a half minutes left in the game and we had finally caught them. Now, I don't remember what happened next but I do remember calling our last timeout of the game with 3:01 left in the game. This kinda sucks cause the captain on the other team was trying to call a timeout right after they credited us with the timeout. I didn't tell the fellas at the time why I took it but we were down by 3 points with a good shooter going to the line (he ends up hitting both free throws to put them up 5). I wanted to extend the game as long as possible because the better team usually wins out the longer you play. So timeout LegalZoom and the clock stops. After exchanging a couple baskets and free throws here and there, there was about 45 seconds left and we were looking at a five point deficit. The four-peat was almost all but done..

So with 45 seconds left I gave Larry a very-not-confident "Let's go." What to do without this sucker?! He takes it to the rack, gets tripled and drops one to John for an easy layup. The lead is 3 for LA Suns. Then for some unknown reason, the little lefty on the other team tried to be a hero and jacks up a bad 3 pointer yelling "off" as he released it and John gobbles up the rebound. Of course, Larry takes it down and goes to the rack again and gives it to Moseley. But this time John hits Marlon on the right elbow for a 3 but the defender closes out. Marlon drops a easy pass to Larry on the baseline for a wide-open layup. Lead is 1. They quickly inbound the ball and the clock is now ticking at 27..26..25 and all I hear is "FOUL, FOUL, FOUL" but I thought I could take it from the little lefty so I didn't foul right away. He drives down the court from the left mid-court side towards the middle 1 on 2 and loses the handle: Merry Christmas Larry. Larry wastes no time and takes it down the court full-speed. He crosses over and goes right and throws a bullet to the left side of the court. I'm not sure how he saw Marlon waiting in the wings. Marlon was wide-opened. He pauses for a little bit and swishes a big-time 3 pointer in the far corner with about 18 seconds left. It was LegalZoom's first lead since it was 2-0. Timeout LA Suns. After the timeout, Marlon and I trapped the ball handler and Marlon came up with a steal. They weren't in the penalty yet so they fouled us a couple times knocking the clock down to six seconds. Kev went to the line and iced the game with 2 monster free throws and that was it. We stole the ball again. Ball game!

Fellas,
That was a ridiculous comeback. I'm not sure what it is but I guess we just don't know how to lose. We didn't want to lose. Determination that shit to the four-peat. Great solid team work.

V

Picture (from left to right)..
Top row: Brian, Kev, Larry, Marlon, Sean, John
Bottom row: Me, Troy, E.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Personal Missions

I'm about to list some things that I will get done before 2008 is over. People often call them, and list them, as goals. I choose not to because goals are usually unfulfilled wishes. People either set the bar too high or can't hold up due to bad habits, emergencies, and what have you. Its just excuses and laziness if you ask me. It's also lying to yourself. It's abandoning the plan because it's the easy way out. It's failure cause of bad habits (I'm guilty of all this too so don't be too ashamed hah). So yeah, don't lie to yourself because it's one of the worst things you can do and it's contagious. Just do what Nike does. Just do it.

This is my to-do list.

1. Read 5 books.

I just finished reading Tuesdays with Morrie and am currently reading The Five People You Meet in Heaven and The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.

The Five Books (all recommendations from friends):
The Time Traveler's Wife (bought)
The Five People You Meet in Heaven (Done)
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team (Done)
The Kite Runner (currently reading - page 100+)
Death Watch
(purchased)

2. Take a class for Fall Quarter to run the brain blood flow. (Online registration completed and signed form has been mailed in)

I am aiming for a mid-August, two-days a week introductory Spanish course. It will run to December at LBCC. I took three classes in 3 different quarters last year (Spring 2007, Fall 2007, and Winter 2008) at UCLA's Extension Program. I got two A's and one B.

3. Complete grad-school application for Masters in Math Education (along with some credential program, possibly a joint program). I am aiming to get back into full swing in the Fall of 2009 at CSULB. I am planning on becoming a teacher because I don't see myself working at a 9 to 5. I need the free time and I need to make a difference. You gotta get the criminals and druggies early. "Why become a lawyer and help defend someone when you can become a teacher and stop that someone from ever needing a lawyer in the first place."
(done minimal research)

***The first 3 bullet points are all education-based. I am a firm believer in education and knowledge. It's one of the best investments one can make. Besides, a smart person is cool and sexy hah.

4. Do push-ups or lift weights 3 times a week. I have a gym-set right outside my room so this should be easy. I will start to do push-ups before my league games. I'm in like 55 thousand leagues so that'll definitely help. At last count, 2 softball leagues and 3 basketball leagues.

Also, I will start to hit up the gym for lunch breaks at work.
(monday 7/28, wednesday 7/30, friday 8/1)
(monday 8/4, ...)

5. Spend the rest of my time with friends and family.

I will end it with those 5 bullet points. There are plenty of other things I want to do, like travel, watch movies, date women, etc. but my priorities lies with education, health, and love. I will interconnect all three together at the same time if possible. I just gotta find the right balance. A well balanced life is a complete life.
(brother's wedding 8/8) - family
(camping - zion 8/15) - sisters & hs friends
(cic bowling - 8/22) - hs friends
(cruise - 8/29) - college friends

Monday, July 14, 2008

More Receipts

Yard House:

Iced Tea - $2.95
Sprite - $2.95
Pyramid Hefeweizen - $5.75
Grimbergen Double - $7.00
Heineken - $6.00
Lindeman's Framboise - $8.00
Delirium Tremens - $7.00
Black Tan - $6.00
California Roll - $11.75
Chicken Nachos Grande - $9.95
New Zealand Calamari $10.35
Chocolate Souffle - $7.85
Black Velvet - $6.00

Trader Joe's:

Pizza Palermo - $4.69
Tamari Almonds - $5.49
Mochi Strawberry - $3.29
Mochi Chocolate - $3.29
Sliced Peppered Turkey - $4.29
Brown Rice California Roll - $2.99
White Tortilla Chips - $2.29

Northgate Supermarket:

Limes - $0.99 / 2 lb
Brown Onions - $0.99 / 3 lb
Roma Tomatoes - $0.99 / lb
White Nectarines - $0.69 / lb
Bell Peppers - $1.29 / lb
Bananas - $0.79 / lb
Cilantro - 4 for $0.99

Food 4 Less:

White Bread - $0.98
Ground Beef - $7.48
Kroger Shredded Cheese - $2.00

Almost A Perfect Weekend

July 11th, 2008, 9:00 PM PST @ Joe Rodgers Field

We lost again. We're now 1-14-1 in our last 16 softball games. I'm not sure if it's some kind of curse or what but our Hitmen can't seem to win. Props to the other team as they were smashing base hits after base hits on Friday night.

Gamenote: We only had 7 players at the start of gametime and picked up 3 solid infielders that can hit. Let's just say that one of them hit a grand slam and the other had a opposite field 3-run homer. Yeah, and we still lost. I think it was 26-24 or something like that. We left the bases loaded to end the game. It was a great game. A great game but we were still on the short end of it.

Batted: 3 for 5.


July 12th, 2008, 3:00 PM PST @ Best Fit Gym

It was my season debut for NotGuiltyBrand.com. We actually won this game pretty easily. We were down 7 early but came back strong to cruise the rest of the way. I did most of my scoring in the first half.

I'll post the stat-link to this game when it comes up later this week. Actually, there's no link. You have to visit the website www.myptba.com.

Here is the boxscore:




July 13th, 2008, 3:50 PM PST @ Banning HS

Another forfeit win for LBC. I think we're now 5-3.
Please see http://www.sbleague.com/
Click on "Standings," then "Silver."

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Real Early

Newsflash: This isn't a league-game entry.

If you have been following my lame blog site lately, then you are super cool hah. Really though, thanks for reading.

Let me see. Real early.

I woke up really early this morning. 5:20am to be exact. I didn't sleep too well but felt zero ounce of exhaustion at get-up time. Usually I'm snoozing until at least eight something to get up for work. I'm always late for work. Today was different.

I was starving. Last night, I only had two tacos from a truck on PCH and Vermont in Harbor City around 7pm. Couple this with the fact that I missed work yesterday, slept in from 1230am to 130pm and you see why I was up early in the morning dark.

Anyway, I woke up, made breakfast (ramen with cabbage, tomatoes, onions, and lime), wash dishes, showered, packed lunch and drove off around 620am. I got to work at 706am.

Work has been slow lately which is great news. The past month and a half has been pretty tight. I've been shooting orders out like mad. It's good that I've caught up. This gives me more time to blog which I promised I would. I pretty much lied when I said I was gonna step it up and didn't. No worries, I will.

But back to yesterday. I was able to get some shopping in. I got some much needed new shirts. Let's see. I went to two different department stores and bought a total of about 10-11 shirts for a total of about $110. That comes out to about $10 per shirt which isn't too bad.

After picking up my shirts, I went to Pete Martin's Tennis Shop in Torrance with the homie P2. I picked up a Prince racquet at a discount price of $65 (homie's hookup). P2 picked up a Nadal racquet for $100. Rich guy.

I went home after the racquet-purchase and just chilled with my Dad, and doing what I can to entertain him and work his muscles. It sucks to live the way he does. There's no way I could do what he does right now, which is sit around most of the day and do nothing but watch T.V. Once in awhile, my brother or myself will give him a magazine, book, or some photos to look at but that's about it. He does nothing else productive. So whenever I can, I'd take him for a stroll around the block in his wheelchair just to get him out of the house. I'm pretty sure it's good for him to take in the fresh air and see real things instead of from that virtual television set.

If you're reading this, I hope you really do take the time to hang out with your parents whenever you can. Spend as much time with them as possible because you never know what's gonna happen to them and/or when that something happens. Disabilities are very sad things and they're gonna happen. Sucks but it is what it is.

Some times I wish I'd done more with my Dad when he was still self-sufficient. But I let go of the thoughts cause it's only holding me back. It's just time-wasted. You can't go back in time so there's no point. So yeah, if you're reading this, just make sure you spend enough time with your parents, they're actually a lot smarter than you think. You can't learn wisdom. It grows with time and experience and they have more of it (at least they should hah).

I actually have a lot more to say but it's 4:00pm and I have to go play basketball now hah.

I wanted to finish this entry off with a couple books I've been attacking lately. I finished Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom. Solid read, right there.

I just started his other book, The Five People You Meet in Heaven. It's pretty decent so far. So if you get a chance, I definitely recommend checking out Tuesdays with Morrie.

Peace people.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Too Bad

July 7th, 2008, 7:30 PM PST @ Pan Pacific Park

We played the last place Cougars on Monday. On Tuesday, they were still in last place. They suck real bad. Okay, they don't just suck real bad they suck so bad that we look bad ass.

It sucks that they suck so much but it is what it is. Too bad hah.

Oh by the way, we mercied them 21-6 in 5 innings. LegalZoom is now (7-4).

Been Kind of Quiet

LegalZoom Softball
Season #1: 4-8-0
Season #2: 4-8-0
Season #3: 7-4-0, currently in season.

LegalZoom Basketball
Season #1: 7-0 season [finished 1st], 2-0 playoffs [won championship]
Season #2: 5-3 season [finished 5th], 3-0 playoffs [won championship]
Season #3: 7-1 season [finished 1st], 2-0 playoffs [won championship]
Season #4: 5-2, season ended, playoffs start on Wednesday.

Hitmen Softball
Season #1: 7-3-0 season [finished 2nd], 0-1 playoffs [eliminated in semi's]
Season #2: 8-2-0 season [finished 2nd], 0-1 playoffs [eliminated in semi's]
Season #3: 0-10 season [finished last], missed playoffs.
Season #4: 1-3-1, currently in season

LBC Basketball
Season #1: 5-5 season [finished 5th], 3-2 playoffs [reached semi's]
Season #2: 7-3 season [finished 2nd], 1-1 playoffs [reached quarterfinals]
Season #3: 4-2, currently in season.

CrookedStraight.com Basketball
Season #1: 5-5 season [finished 3rd], 0-1 playoffs [eliminated in 1st round].

NotGuiltyBrand.com Basketball:
Season #1: 3-7 season [finished 5th], 2-1 playoffs [lost in finals]
Season #2: 2-8 season [finished 5th], missed playoffs.
Season #3: 0-1 season, currently in season.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Number One Versus Number Two

June 30th, 2008, 9:00 PM PST @ Pan Pacific Park

Our softball game last night was a good one to say the least. Dead Presidents (8-1) and LegalZoom (6-3) were tied up in a slugfest.

I definitely choke in the last inning, walking 2 weak hitters in a row to start the inning. You just can't do this to a good team and expect to win. We actually had a chance and were on our way to a dramatic win in the bottom half of the inning but the lights went out with runners on 1st and 2nd with one out. We were down one after already scoring 2 runs in the inning.

A holler to my sisters' for showing up to this game. They're our first cheerleaders of the season.

Note: I definitely walked too many batters in this game, including 2 big ones to start the 7th, opening the door for DP to put up a fat eight spot. Ouch. On a lighter note, I had a lunch bet with Kendy on the first to get a homer in the game. Lunch me, sucka.