It has finally come! No more “W.” Today is the day the United States of America and it’s constituents can officially call Barack Obama their president. What a momentous day in history. The first man of color to ever hold this post and hopefully not the last. This day will hopefully mark the beginning of change and hope that he promised to all of us who wanted it. Just one day after celebrating the life of a civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr., Americans will finally get to see the fruits of his(MLK) labor.

I love America.

I hope everyone had a happy holiday season!

There’s no other way to celebrate the new year than to be with friends and family. Oh yeah, and watch football games! I’ve been watching a ton of football these past few days. I’m a guy’s guy! Whatever that means.

Anyways. A friend introduced me to tumblr.com It’s another blogging website. I’m not totally abandoning ship on wrodpress but I will use Tumblr as my photoblog. As you can see, it’s on my blogroll as “My Photoblog.” I just started it so it’s pretty bare, so bear with me. Homonyms for the win.

Things to look forward to in 2009:
Inauguration Day for President Elect Barack Obama
Hopefully the economy recovering.

That’s all for now! Hope everything happens in your life that you desire this year!

Who would have ever thought that Manny Pacquiao could defeat Oscar De La Hoya in such dominating fashion? As the pre-fight pageantry was going on I found myself actually wondering if this was really going on. I don’t have a, Xbox or anything, so it wasn’t a video game so this really must be the dream match it was supposed to be. But if you were expecting two great fighters to come out and give it their all you were disappointed, only one did.

As the first round began I was probably the most nervous I’ve ever been for a Pacquiao fight. Oscar de la Hoya towered over Manny Pacquiao and it looked like “Pacman” had a long night ahead of him trying to figure out how to get close enough to strike. But then, Bam! A straight left to Oscar’s face. I thought to myself and Pacquiao probably did, “Hey, it isn’t so tough after all.” He made it through the 1st round and it was a relief to everyone watch because at least he was still standing.

For the next seven rounds however, one of the fighters was being shown a boxing clinic, and it wasn’t Manny Pacquiao. Famed trainer said before the match that De la Hoya was too smart and savvy for Pacquiao, that he had the smarts and style to find a way to beat the Pacman. But after the third round it was evident that De la Hoya had no answerd for Pacquiao’s awkward and aggressive attack. De la Hoya was being pummeled round after round and it the 7th round it looked as if he would go down when he was cornered and Pacquiao was relentless in his striking.

Was this really happening? It seemed too easy. The shorter man taking the fight to the taller more experienced man. Oscar’s legendary weapons, his jab and left hook were nowhere to be found. And Pacquiao looked like he couldn’t miss. Then in the 8th round Pacquiao utterly devastated De la Hoya with punches in bunches. He looked, ironically, like a young De la Hoya with crisp and concise punching in 3 and 4 punch combinations. I was in awe. The round ended and the fight ended also. The doctor and De la Hoya’s trainer advised him to stop fighting, that it wasn’t worth it. Oscar was dazed and confused but when he was asked one last time he wanted to end the fight he ultimately had to agree.

And so the pound for pound king Manny Pacquiao retained his crown, this adding to his legacy that he will fight anyone. What’s next for each fighter? Maybe retirement for De la Hoya? Maybe Mayweather for Pacquiao? Who knows, but what we do know for sure is that Both fighters are great. De la Hoya’s career is in its waining days and Pacquiao’s rise to the top just keeps getting higher.

Rarely ever does a fight become labeled the Fight of the Year before it even begins but this Saturday’s match between Manny Pacquiao and Oscar De La Hoya is all but guaranteed to be the most exciting fight of the year. And if it does turnout to be a flameout, there’s no denying the fire in each of the fighters’ eyes as they inch toward their unbelievable bout. A year ago a tilt between these two men was virtually impossible to dream of because of the vast weight difference. But now, as the “Dream Match” is being billed, Pacquiao and De La Hoya are both nearing the weight limit of 147 pounds(welterweight) ready to face each other.

Manny Pacquiao is coming up three weight divisions while Oscar De La Hoya is coming down weight divisions. De La Hoya hasn’t fought at welterweight since he fought Arturo Gatti in 2001 and has fought as high as 160 pounds. Pacquiao is coming off a victory where he defeated David Diaz at lightweight(135 lbs.) and is jumping two more weight classes to fight De La Hoya. Pacquiao gives up six inches in reach and four inches in height and most boxing enthusiasts are skeptical as to how Pacquiao can pull off the upset. He started at a near 2-1 underdog but days from the fight the odds Pacquiao finds himself at +135 according to Sportsbook.com, meaning a wager of $100 will net you 135 dollars. Obviously, this means that there is a good amount of money being placed on Pacquiao.

Whether you believe that Oscar De La Hoya still has his Golden Boy magic and can land his devastating left hook on Pacquiao’s chin or whether Manny Pacquiao can use his superior speed to get in and out to confuse De La Hoya, it will be an outstanding fight. Filipinos around the world, like my family, will be huddled around our TV watching and hoping Pacquiao will win and shock the world. But even if he can’t he’ll still be the champion of his people and his homeland, the Philippines.

After class on Tuesday I decided to walk around downtown again and try to put my camera to use. I found a spot by the HP Pavilion, The Guadalupe River Park. It would be a nice park had it not been for the hobos and truants surrounding and living in it. Even in the middle of the day I felt the need to check over my shoulder and make sure I didn’t look at anyone the wrong way. But I still managed to take some pictures in between avoiding the misanthropes.

From Random

A bridge in the park.

From Random

In front of the Tank.

From Random

This picture made me laugh. Who would have thought a shopping cart needed to be locked up. Homeless people are desperate indeed.

From Random

These were two random-ers that I could not avoid becuase they were in my way when I had to go up these steps. They were nice however, just hanging out and rolling up their own “cigarettes.” The guy on the left wanted a picture taken to show people what “San Ho livin’” is all about. If that’s what it’s about then I’m moving.

Taking pictures has become my new favorite hobby and I think it will be one that I will actually stick with.

From Random

All my hobbies in one picture. I used to want to be a bartender, learning mixes of drinks. That ended. My friends and I used to play endless hours of poker. We still play, but what’s the point? Golf has been the most recent hobby we’ve picked up. Basketball isn’t pictured but as with Golf, it’s been put on the shelf due to inclement weather. And lastly, my current hobby, taking pictures. I wonder what will be next?

Anyways, this has been a pretty pointless blog entry. I hope you come back some other time when I have something better to talk about. Later days!

I am not gay but I do have a couple of gay friends. But when all the results came in on election day and the ban on same-sex marriages passed, Prop 8, I was still saddened. Not for my own sake but for the sake of equality. Out of all the states in this country, I thought California got it. I thought we were the leaders of the free world, that we were way ahead of the country not just in terms of technology and money, but also in terms of ideals. Who would have thought that a state that has had it’s own struggles for equality from Cesar Chavez to Rodney King would not let gay marriage be. It’s quite disappointing. Who cares about the institution of marriage and how it has to be preserved for man and woman. Slavery was once an institution and it was correctly abolished because its ideals were outdated. At what point does the religious doctrine saying gay marriage is a sin become outdated? I’m not here to incite angry Christians because faith is not outdated. Faith is a commitment of love and loyalty. Same things that gays have for each other when they marry. But this is 2008 and we’re coming up on 2009, something about the Doctrine if severely outdated.

HE would want equality for all. And if He was around to see this, I’m sure he’d change his views because He wants love for all, not for some.

Hey everybody!

It’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve gotten my Canon 50d and I must say I love it. But I can’t even begin to tell you why or how. Frankly, I’m a rookie to the whole photography game. ISO, F-stops, Shutter speeds…it all seems so very esoteric to me. This coming from a person who took a basic Photography class in high school. My friend Arnold, whom I credit for me taking an interest in this hobby and spending way too much money on it, always scolds me for using my camera on Auto mode. I don’t have to set any settings and I just let the camera do it’s own work. That makes sense though. I did pay all that money for the features, I might as well control them myself. I’ve been mostly taking pictures of people, mostly friends, and going out and shooting random buildings or still life. So… bear with me, I, like my photos, are a work in progress.

From Friends

From Random

From Random

From Random

These are just a few of pictures I have taken in the last two weeks. The first couple are under the Auto setting but the last three are done in Manual which means I had to focus and find the right combination of aperture size and shutter speed. Then I do some touching up on some editing software. It’s all really tedious work for a hobby, but I guess it’s not a hobby if it’s not time-consuming. I like each picture in it’s own way but until I really learn the true value of good photography I’ll hold off on telling you why. Most of all, I like these photos because they are MY photos. I no longer have to steal pictures from my friends.

Anyways, here’s the link to my public album. If you’re one of my friends, I have another album with pictures of us, just ask me for the link.

My Album

Off to do some real homework! Have a great week!<a

Today is truly a historic day in our country timeline. Barack Obama has been elected the 44th President of the United States of America. He is the first African-American person to ever been elected to the position and from the outset he preached change and this is the fruition.

He also pleaded with the people that he cannot change the country on his own, he needed the help of the people. He needed their votes, their support, and their hard work to spread the hope of change and unity nationwide. When it looked like a presidential victory or even a nomination seemed so unlikely and far in the distance he assuaged us with chants of, “Yes we can!” When Obama came under attack by false claims about his character and it looked like people might not want to vote a black man into office he urged us, “Yes we can!” And after months of campaigning, traveling, speaking, and asking us to help him bring hope and change to this country we finally answered, “Yes we will.” Now he’s the first minority President in American history.

Thousands of people fled to Grant Park in Chicago where Obama held his victory rally. And millions more watched around the world including in Kenya, where his father is originally from. He paraphrased words of Martin Luther King Jr. and he spoke of healing our divided nation. He asked for the people who didn’t support him to help him because he will be their president also. People in the audience were in tears not because of sadness and maybe not because of joy either. It was maybe because this is a revolutionary step in this country’s progress. Not long ago colored people and white people could not associate themselves with each other. It has been a struggle for equal rights and it has been a fight for i to climb the social ladder. Well on this night a minority climbed to the highest rung in this country’s ladder. There’s no sweeter sight that that for all of the dreamers out there.

Peace, joy, change, hope, and unity. Can this country have it all at once?

Yes we can. Yes we will.

I’m returning to my blog because a few new things have come up.

First off, basketball season has returned! My beloved Golden State Warriors lost a close game to the New Orleans Hornets tonight, albeit without star guard Monta Ellis. I know they’ll be back to wreck havoc in the Western Conference.

My San Jose Sharks are doing their damn thing right now. Seven wins, 2 losses, and a lead in the Western Conference. Could this be THE year? I don’t know but I’m getting excited by the early returns of the season.

October is almost over and this weekend’s Halloween Birthday Bash of my friend Lorraine’s will culminate a month of birthdays and over-drinking. In my group of friends we have a total of three birthdays. But in my own personal family, we have six. It’s a great time of year.

The stock market is something that has recently piqued my interest. Could it be that I finally got the courage to put up some of my money and play the slides? Bailout Plan Schmailout plan, it doesn’t matter. In the few weeks I’ve been in the stock market I’ve owned shares of Bank of America, Gamestop, Activision, and NVidia. What I’ve learned is that the markets pretty much do what they want with a little help of market manipulation from the people. The manipulation lasts shortly however and the market will go back to whatever it was going whether bearish or bullish. I had plans of day-trading or “shorting” as the investor community  likes to call it to prosperity, but alas it did not work out. I’ve had my money in 120 sharkes of NVidia for two weeks. I’ve seen it go from $8.25/share all the way down to $6.50/share. It’s all quite stressful but I’ve learned that you’ve got to be in for the long haul. It’s less stressful and overall more profitable.

I just recently purchased my first digital SLR camera. It was quite and investment of funds but in the long run i think it will be a good one. I’ve always wanted to take pictures. Maybe so I could write funny captions but I know that taking pictures is something I’ve always been interested in. My friend Arnold bought a camera earlier this year and I’ve been tempted to buy one but these things aren’t cheap. I saved money and took advantage of Live.com’s 30% cashback on Ebay purchases. I got $200 back on my camera. I couldn’t resist that deal. If you’re interested in what I bought, it’s the Canon EOS 50D. It came with a kit lens. Under advice from people online and my friends I also got a flash and bag and filters, etc. DSLRs have a steep learning curve and I’m still a rookie but I’m hoping to learn enough to take stunning pictures.

Anyways, I’ll be back to post some of the pictures I take and hopefully write something about them. For now however, just enjoy my little return. I’ll be back for more!