The Dream Is Still Alive

Jeremy Lin.

His name redefined what the saying "Dream Big" is all about.

Run This Town

Move over, badminton addicts.

The latest sports craze in the country today is running.

A marathon is scheduled practically every weekend. Do organizers ever run out of causes for their events?

Friends have been urging Raft3r to join the bandwagon. The average registration fee for a run is $12.

Assembly time is so early that the sun is not even up yet.

Kung gigising ako ng ganon kaaga, dapat ako ang bayaran nila.

Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me

I get excited every time I see a tennis court.

It's exactly the same thrill one gets during foreplay.

As Good As It Gets

Raft3r gets back together with his first love.

On February 19, I returned to the tennis court to hit some balls.

Despite all the excitement, the first few minutes were total embarrassment. It became apparent that years of absence from playing certainly took its toll.

My serve was pretty lame. My strokes were gone. I hit balls like a novice.

Half an hour after, I began to see some improvement. But still I was not satisfied. I wanted my form back. I knew it would take time.

Right now, patience is Raft3r’s biggest foe.

Post script: This is the 300th post of The Deadbeat Club.

Blade Runner

Raft3r wants to start running.

Seriously.

I think running would be an excellent way to keep in shape.

With daily overtime over, I now have a lot of free time in my hands.

Running has always been something I wanted to do but my tight schedule always got in the way. Excuses, excuses - I know.

There is also a jogging trail within the premises of Raft3r’s workplace. This is good. So I don’t have to worry about getting mugged while trying to burn some calories.

One thing I worry about is my running gear. You see, I don’t wear short shorts.

Funny How Time Flies (When You're Having Fun)

Raft3r's first live Slam experience.

These were taken exactly a year ago when I was - at least - 10 pounds lighter.

My Favourite Game

Have you heard about this?

It’s Pete Sampras vs. Andre Agassi.

An exhibition match between the two tennis icons is set on October 2009 in Macau.

Yeah, it’s old school tennis once more.

This early, Raft3r and his bunch of tennis fanatic buddies already bought tickets for the said event.

We just need to book our flights and we are good to go.

Although I am not a fan of either player, the excitement they both bring to the game is unparalleled.

Now if only Pat Rafter could momentarily put down his surf board and decide to return to the circuit.

Kingpin

Being a newbie at work, Raft3r has a lot on his plate.

If they ask you to do something, you oblige. No questions asked.

If they tell to jump, you say how high.

So when a company sponsored bowling tournament was announced, guess who participated wholeheartedly?

Yes, Raft3r volunteered to play.

Pakikisama (camaraderie) is still a highly regarded Filipino trait in the workplace. Peer pressure is one big fat bitch.

I haven’t bowled since high school. This became very evident during the tournament. Raft3r was immediately tagged as the good looking kid who couldn’t bowl.

Redemption came when after three games, I finally found my rhythm. Strikes and spares were my new best friends.

Bowling is the only sport I know where one can drink beer while playing. And we still wonder why it is just an exhibition game in the Olympics?

Road Trip

Raft3r is watching the US Open this Saturday.

Friends from LA are flying over to Baltimore and joining me for an entire day of tennis matches. I couldn’t be any happier.

I get to see a lot of my tennis heroes. Sadly, Rafter nor Hingis would be there. But there are still many tennis greats to look forward to. Hopefully, most of the top seeds would be playing on Saturday.

Raft3r definitely wants to catch a glimpse of all the Russian starlets and Slovakian chicks.

We are driving to New York and staying at a motel in New Jersey. It's just 10 miles away from Flushing Meadows.

On Sunday, we are hitting the streets of NY. There have been talks of watching something in Broadway. Raft3r begged off.

I'm not into musicals. I would rather spend those three hours inside Virgin Megastore and Toys R Us. That's my kind of thing.

Before we head back to Baltimore, we are also checking out Niagara Falls, Atlantic City, and DC. An hour per city, I guess?

We'll see how this trip turns out. The itinerary changes by the second. But it's gonna be fun all throughout.

I can tell right now that this long Labor Day weekend is gonna be very expensive.

Keeper Of The Flame

The Beijing Olympics is upon us and the Chinese sure knows how to throw a party.

Since Raft3r’s training class is like a Benetton ad campaign, everyone is rooting for their respective countries.

An online buddy is currently in Beijing for the games. Lucky kid. All I have is a Beijing Olympics jacket from Old Navy.

Raft3r is looking forward to the tennis finals between Nadal and Gonzalez. I wanted to see Blake play. He deserved it.

Too bad Roddick ain’t playing in Beijing. His decision to pull out of the Olympics hasn’t reaped the expected rewards. He suffered another loss this time at the quarterfinals in Washington.

Sharapova is out with an injury, too. I read somewhere that athletes now prefer magnetic therapy to help them soothe their booboos.

Magnetic field therapy is one of the fast growing alternative forms of medicine.

It has also been alleged that magnet therapy helps improve athletic performance. This is good news for tennis players who have lost their mojos. Paging A-Rod.

Magnetic therapy products range from energy wafers to weight control.

Despite being in the internet age, sometimes going back to the basics can be the sweetest deal.

Bend It Like Beckham

Anyone up for Pilates?

Raft3r was introduced to it last year.

Since then, I got hooked. Not only is Pilates a great way to keep the fat off but it’s also a good form of discipline.

Pilates can be very challenging. Specially for someone who isn’t flexible, like Raft3r.

On my first workout, I poured buckets of sweat. Who knew stretching exercises can be so exhausting?

In 10 minutes, Raft3r wanted to wave the white flag. An hour later, my entire body ached. This comes from a guy who regularly plays three hours of tennis at 10 in the morning.

Raft3r went for another session the following week. I wanted to know how much more of this kind of torture my body can take. Eventually, I started to get the hang of it. Alas, my love affair with Pilates has begun.

Plus, there are a lot of hot chicks in my class. They have been really nice to me since I’ve been playing the “I need some help” card for the longest time.

Raft3r has his own yoga mat now. I also purchased a Pilates workout video and other gym essentials online. Ordering was a breeze and delivery was super fast.

I have also been introduced to Yogilates, a lethal combination of Yoga and Pilates. Man, that blows! An hour of yogilates is like 10 repetitions of a 200 pound bench press.

Raft3r has been encouraging friends to join the bandwagon. I bought my best buddy his own sticky mat and so far he has been enjoying the company of female gym goers.

Bringing him to class was a disaster, though. He now gets all the attention.

Wimbledon

My fascination with the world of tennis seized when Hingis bid adieu.

It didn’t help that Pat Rafter retired early from the sport and decided to be a surfer instead.

Most of my faves have either been in and out of injury (Haas) or have simply lost their mojo (A-Rod).

The Williams Sisters are still interesting to watch. Anna paved the way for slew of hot babes from Russia. They are pure eye candies.

Federer remains to be a tennis god. That was up until he lost to Nadal in the recent Wimbledon Finals.

Roger must be feeling like shit right now. Raft3r feels for the guy. The Federer Express was going for a record breaking six consecutive Wimbledon trophies and the spunky Spaniard snatched it away from him.

I know how it feels to lose something you badly want.

Match Point

Majuro is a city of tennis fanatics.

Everywhere you look, you see a tennis court. This was the first thing I noticed on my way to the hotel the night I arrived.

Even my office here has a tennis court. My hotel has one, too. Rafter is one happy boy!

I met the US Ambassador to The Marshall Islands and he, too, is a big tennis aficionado. He’s a pretty cool guy. Really nice. The following day, he lent me one of his rackets.

The Ambassador also invited me to play with him. You never say no to a diplomatic official.

Right after work, I headed straight to the tennis court to practice my serve. Raft3r was rusty. I haven’t played in ages and I didn’t want to look like an idiot in front of the Ambassador.

The Deputy Chief of Mission arrived first with his spouse. While waiting for the Ambassador, we decided to play doubles. I was paired with a local.

After the match, still no sight of the Ambassador. He was a no show.

I smelled fear.

Post script: Raft3r got a chance to play with the Ambassador the following evening. He whooped my sorry ass. Big time.

The Mighty Ducks

I was at the Mall of Asia a couple of nights ago. I was intending to purchase some DVDs when I happen to come across something really interesting.

I was passing by the ice skating rink when I saw a bunch of guys carrying hockey sticks. Raft3r decided to investigate further. Anything that involves a stick and some heavy hitting requires my utmost attention.

Sure enough I ended up watching some white folks battle it out on ice. I’m not quite familiar with hockey rules but it’s an easy sport to follow.

Most of the players were middle aged and on the heavy side. So the game was a bit slow though still entertaining.

When it ended, I wanted to form an all Pinoy hockey team. Cool, huh? First, I have to learn how to skate.

The Rafters

I am one huge tennis fan and Rafter is my favorite tennis player. I guess that explains my moniker.

Patrick Rafter, from Australia, has won two back-to-back US Open titles and has made two consecutive appearances at the Wimbledon Finals.

I’m no team player. So basketball doesn’t suit me.

I have the tendency to just think about myself and forget about my teammates. That is why I love tennis.

You are accountable to no one but yourself. If you lose, you cannot blame anyone but yourself.

I started playing only in 2000. My friends and I formed a small tennis league and we would compete against each other. That went on for three years.

Outside of the court, we were all the best of friends. But on every match, we made sure we had our game face on.

Just like in the professional league, we had points for every match won. At the end of each year, a trophy was presented to the one with most points.

Tennis is a very competitive game.

It’s about how hard you hit the ball, how fast you serve, how good you volley, and how well you return - a good analogy to life, if I say so myself.

I was ranked number one during our first year and twice the runner up in the next two. Rafter would have been proud.