my last math class was in 1994, a good 11 years ago. my undergrad didn't require advance aptitude in that subject. and at that point, i was kinda sick with math. modesty aside, i was good at it. but 11 years without constant exposure to arithmetic, algebra, geometry, etc. makes one rusty.
and that entrance exam for a law school certainly showed how rusty i was. the exam had 7 parts. i felt i did well in 6 of the 7 parts. there were occasional lapses in judgment (some very stupid lapses, which i am not inclined on revealing), and calculated guesses, but overall i felt good as soon as i put the pencil down some 3 minutes before the proctor told us to stop answering.
but the worst part of the experience was the math part. prior to the exam, i practiced on math tests in the gre. the results were good for someone who had not dabbled in math for 11 years. but i was slow. eventually i got myself to a point where i can almost answer 30 items in 30 minutes, with a few errors here and there. during the sunday exam, i realized i should have practiced some more.
40 items in 30 minutes. i figured i can hack 30, and probably guess the rest of the way. well, i ended up answering less than half of the 40 questions. i thought i was making good time, but when i looked up at the board, i was surprised to see that there were only 10 minutes left.
i finished the math part with over 50% of the answer sheet blank. i had to randomly put numbers on the blank spaces (it's a multiple choice, put-the-number-of-the-correct-answer type), hoping that i can blindly guess the correct answer. with 4 choices per question, i have a 25% chance of getting the correct answer on each of those 20+ items. those are not good odds. not good at all.
the math part will probably be the main factor for me not making the first cut. then again, i have a friend who skipped the math test altogether last year, and he made it to the upper half of thosed who passed the exam, which means he didn't have to be interviewed.
of course, i'm not banking on that to keep my hopes up. but i have to feel good about myself. now, two days after the exam, i still feel good. i just might make the cut.
then again, i may just be numbed by the experience. maybe it'll kick in sometime soon. then i'll definitely need a drink.
Monday, November 28, 2005
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
still in the kings' court
eight years ago, i returned to watching nba basketball when i caught a sacramento kings game. what caught my eye was the peculiar form of this young european (the "old" european was vlade divac) when he shoots the ball. his shooting hand is strangely curled under the ball as he, uhm, catapults the ball into the air. the follow-through is equally strange: his shooting hand appears to have been twisted. but there ain't nothing strange about the result. the guy can shoot.
later, i realized that the gm and the coach of the kings--petrie and adelman--were the same gm and coach of the last nba team i followed (portland trailblazers, drexler-era). i also realized that the team was solid up front (passing bigs webber and divac, sweetshooting stojakovic) and at the backcourt (williams, jackson, christie). and i also realized they play basketball, the team-oriented type. they like to move without the ball, they like to move the ball, they like to set up multiple picks and screens, they like to pass, and they like to pass even more--relying on each other to score the damn ball. most teams design plays for their superstars. the kings offense relies on basketball players who know how to play team basketball. isn't that what basketball (or any team sport for that matter) is all about?
so i followed the kings. i was ecstatic when they compiled the best regular season record in the nba. i was crushed when they lost that infamous game 7 to the lakers. i was excited when they tried again the following year, only to be crushed again, by the webber injury in the dallas series. i was at my fanatical best when peja had a breakout year, only to be frustrated as they tried to force-feed web back into the flow and lost to the wolves.
then, the kings' best team in years was slowly dismantled. turkoglu was traded. divac left, and eventually retired. webber was shipped to philly. christie to orlando. bobby jackson to memphis. even one-time kings--and vital cogs--jim jackson, mobley, and young upstarts songaila and evans left or were allowed to leave.
now the kings is a totally retooled team. the only king left from the lineup i first saw eight years ago is peja. the only kings left from the divac-era are peja, mike, and brad. with wells and abdur-rahim completing the first five, the kings cerainly look good on paper. but learning kings basketball is not as easy as 1-2-3.
which is why the kings are currently 3-5.
unlike previous seasons, i don't expect the kings to make it deep into the playoffs this year. it takes a while to learn the princeton offense, and it also takes a while for players to learn how to play with each other.
but you've got to give petrie and adelman credit (and the maloofs too, if they don't fire these two anytime soon). they are retooling the lineup at the right time (see divac, webber, christie), and are pretty much setting up the foundation for the future. there are some trade-able players/contracts, and some contracts are expiring at the end of the year. i think they will have moderate success this year, and next year, with enough cap room, they'll lock up peja for the long-term, and probably sign more significant pieces to bolster their lineup.
much like what they did in 1998, when they traded for webber, and signed vlade, doug, jason, peja, hedo, and bobby. their first season together was moderately successful. the next seasons were more successful, with one season just a game away from the finals.
so will i still follow the kings this year, and beyond?
of course i will. because i am a fan of team basketball, the one magnificently displayed by kings on both ends of the court this morning en route to their 3rd regular season win.
hindi kasi ako mahilig sa buwaya basketbol eh.
later, i realized that the gm and the coach of the kings--petrie and adelman--were the same gm and coach of the last nba team i followed (portland trailblazers, drexler-era). i also realized that the team was solid up front (passing bigs webber and divac, sweetshooting stojakovic) and at the backcourt (williams, jackson, christie). and i also realized they play basketball, the team-oriented type. they like to move without the ball, they like to move the ball, they like to set up multiple picks and screens, they like to pass, and they like to pass even more--relying on each other to score the damn ball. most teams design plays for their superstars. the kings offense relies on basketball players who know how to play team basketball. isn't that what basketball (or any team sport for that matter) is all about?
so i followed the kings. i was ecstatic when they compiled the best regular season record in the nba. i was crushed when they lost that infamous game 7 to the lakers. i was excited when they tried again the following year, only to be crushed again, by the webber injury in the dallas series. i was at my fanatical best when peja had a breakout year, only to be frustrated as they tried to force-feed web back into the flow and lost to the wolves.
then, the kings' best team in years was slowly dismantled. turkoglu was traded. divac left, and eventually retired. webber was shipped to philly. christie to orlando. bobby jackson to memphis. even one-time kings--and vital cogs--jim jackson, mobley, and young upstarts songaila and evans left or were allowed to leave.
now the kings is a totally retooled team. the only king left from the lineup i first saw eight years ago is peja. the only kings left from the divac-era are peja, mike, and brad. with wells and abdur-rahim completing the first five, the kings cerainly look good on paper. but learning kings basketball is not as easy as 1-2-3.
which is why the kings are currently 3-5.
unlike previous seasons, i don't expect the kings to make it deep into the playoffs this year. it takes a while to learn the princeton offense, and it also takes a while for players to learn how to play with each other.
but you've got to give petrie and adelman credit (and the maloofs too, if they don't fire these two anytime soon). they are retooling the lineup at the right time (see divac, webber, christie), and are pretty much setting up the foundation for the future. there are some trade-able players/contracts, and some contracts are expiring at the end of the year. i think they will have moderate success this year, and next year, with enough cap room, they'll lock up peja for the long-term, and probably sign more significant pieces to bolster their lineup.
much like what they did in 1998, when they traded for webber, and signed vlade, doug, jason, peja, hedo, and bobby. their first season together was moderately successful. the next seasons were more successful, with one season just a game away from the finals.
so will i still follow the kings this year, and beyond?
of course i will. because i am a fan of team basketball, the one magnificently displayed by kings on both ends of the court this morning en route to their 3rd regular season win.
hindi kasi ako mahilig sa buwaya basketbol eh.
Friday, November 11, 2005
bayaw brew, episode iii (ehe, sori leyt)
less than 48 hours after landing in manila, i was whisked away (thankfully so) to puerto galera. i thought i'd never actually say it, but bayaw i am so thankful for the warmth of the tropics! the beach, the sun, the sea, the scantily-clad--erhm.... let's not go there... ladida...
(roll music here, yung may parang bells or chime na sound)
ash i wash shaying...
...
my last night in the us was, again, with beer. at julie's house, a few of us gathered and had a marvelous home brew (we christened it IDA IPA) of indian pale ale and a table-full of pwede-na-rin-sigurong-tawaging-pulutan. i was conscious about not getting tipsy because of the long flight back the following morning.
disclaimer: hindi lang panay beer ang inatupag ko dun ha. trabaho. pero ba't naman ako magba-blog tungkol sa trabaho, di 'ba?
anyway, as the beer flowed (in my case, into three pint-sized mugs), as the food disappeared, and as people left, i realized that my trip was essentially made memorable by the good people i had the pleasure of meeting and spending time with.
when i arrived in amherst, i was telling people that if i ever have the chance to tour the us, i would prefer touring the countryside more than the cities. but when i got to new york, its unique charm stuck, and now, weeks detached from my visit, i still feel drawn to new york (especially the village).
it's not the place. it's the people.
like ken, my most gracious and hospitable host (miss his house, very near the connecticut river, na may heater, salamat sa diyos sa nakaimbento ng heater!).
like gina, who took me around new york far better than any of those red double-deck tour buses could. and stazi, whom i spent time with briefly (she had homework and soccer the following day).
like mary, and julie, who picked me up at ken's every morning.
like shan, who walked me around emily dickinson's house despite her having the colds.
like monica, who picked me up at the airport, and arranged for a cab to bring me back a week later.
like rob, and his fine brew of ipa.
it's people like these who make one feel less foreign in a land where one obviously is...
(roll music here, yung may parang bells or chime na sound)
ash i wash shaying...
...
my last night in the us was, again, with beer. at julie's house, a few of us gathered and had a marvelous home brew (we christened it IDA IPA) of indian pale ale and a table-full of pwede-na-rin-sigurong-tawaging-pulutan. i was conscious about not getting tipsy because of the long flight back the following morning.
disclaimer: hindi lang panay beer ang inatupag ko dun ha. trabaho. pero ba't naman ako magba-blog tungkol sa trabaho, di 'ba?
anyway, as the beer flowed (in my case, into three pint-sized mugs), as the food disappeared, and as people left, i realized that my trip was essentially made memorable by the good people i had the pleasure of meeting and spending time with.
when i arrived in amherst, i was telling people that if i ever have the chance to tour the us, i would prefer touring the countryside more than the cities. but when i got to new york, its unique charm stuck, and now, weeks detached from my visit, i still feel drawn to new york (especially the village).
it's not the place. it's the people.
like ken, my most gracious and hospitable host (miss his house, very near the connecticut river, na may heater, salamat sa diyos sa nakaimbento ng heater!).
like gina, who took me around new york far better than any of those red double-deck tour buses could. and stazi, whom i spent time with briefly (she had homework and soccer the following day).
like mary, and julie, who picked me up at ken's every morning.
like shan, who walked me around emily dickinson's house despite her having the colds.
like monica, who picked me up at the airport, and arranged for a cab to bring me back a week later.
like rob, and his fine brew of ipa.
it's people like these who make one feel less foreign in a land where one obviously is...
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