Scott Stapp, 08/04 - Interviews - Christian Music Today

i have found out some pretty amazing things about the creed band recently; call me ignorant if it's been a while, but:

creed broke up(i found this out a while back), but mark the guitarist and the drummer teamed up w/former creed bassist and some other vocalist from mayfield 4 to make another band with a few other guys; it's now called alter bridge(that's where they went!); so i can still relish mark tremonti's guitar work, which i have always admired for a long time.

and...

going by the above link, scott stapp is now a christian; don't assume that's WHY creed broke up though, because while creed was not officially a christian band, scott himself stated that it was because they had other interests. although, take a lot at the below quote and decide whether that means they broke up cause stapp became a christian(you could argue it was like that)

(taken from the alter bridge website about why they broke up:
"Mark and Flip:
We were just going different directions, he had a lot going on his life personally and professionally and we just wanted to play music. After taking a break it was apparent that Scott wanted to make a studio record but not tour as much and we wanted to tour and get back to work. When we got together to do the next record, it just wasn’t happening musically. There was no progress being made so we just decided to part ways. There’s no animosity there. We talked on the phone and wished each other good luck.")

and no, alter bridge is not considered to be a christian band, like creed was:
"Are the band and album spiritual? Did you try to go in a more secular direction? How different will it be lyrically? The album is entitled ONE DAY REMAINS – that seems spiritual.

Flip:
It’s not super spiritual, but the band members are all spiritual. Spirituality will always be a part of who we are but the album’s more about life experiences. You can take from it what you will but it’s not an agenda of ours. There was no difference in opinion between Tremonti and Stapp when it came to the direction of Creed’s message. We’re not trying to be secular or spiritual; we just want to express positivity in our lives."

so we still got 4 more ppls to pray for...

but, let's get back to scott stapp, whom i'm happy for, since he's now a christian:

"What had triggered those spiritual changes in your life?

Stapp: A lot of personal things. I was hurt and beaten down. Five years ago, I had a divorce that I didn't really want. I was so busy with Creed that I don't think I ever really dealt with that emotionally. She [his ex-wife] elected not to be involved in my son's life, leaving me as a single father, and I was really worried about my little boy [Jagger, who turns 6 in October]. And there were other things that came along in the trappings of fame, things that hurt some of my relationships. So when I finally had time to reflect on everything, I was broken down to the point where I had no other way but to look up. I couldn't handle it all. I was asking a lot of questions—of myself, of God—looking for answers.

My dad always said I was hard-headed, that it would take something like that to wake me up spiritually, and I guess it did. My heart had gotten so beat up that I didn't have anything left to give. I was emotionally and spiritually dried up, so I was just searching for God. I reached out to my pastor and my father for some guidance. I was really soul searching and, I guess, on my path to coming home spiritually. And once that process began—and I'm still going through that process, and probably will for the rest of my life—that's when things started changing in my life. I started making some proper decisions, getting things in order. It's kind of like cleaning up your house. I was looking for direction for what God wanted me to do—and that's when I got a call about The Passion."

Prior to this recent renewal, how would you have described your faith?

Stapp: I'd have called myself a struggling Christian who was trying to find holes in everything he had been raised to believe. I was a doubting Thomas. I was raised in a climate where I believed in God because I was afraid of going to hell—and I didn't think that was the right way to fall in love with somebody. I always believed in God and Christ, but I was in rebellion—trying to make my relationship with God fit into my life instead of making my life fit in with him. I was stubborn.

It just took all of that to come to a screeching halt, to get to the point of having nothing, for me to finally realize, Hey, what are you fighting with this for? Until then, I hadn't claimed my faith as my own; I had just grown up with it. But I finally got to that point after years and years of running from God. Christ stepped in when I asked him."

"Can you give me a specific example of how that "relearned love" is manifesting itself in your life?

Stapp: It's simple for me: It's giving without expecting anything in return. Prior to this, the way that I loved people around me, I always expected something—even if that was just expecting them to treat me like I treated them. But now I understand that real love is just giving without expecting anything. That's what love is to me, and that's what I feel that Christ showed us."

and later in this interview, he says he now declares himself a christian:

"On Creed's website, you had answered an FAQ in part by writing, "Who are we to say that being a Christian is the only way to heaven?"

Stapp: Well, I can honestly tell you, I didn't write that.

But your name was on it.

Stapp: [Turns to tell his manager sitting nearby to call his record label and "tell them there's something on the Creed website that I didn't write … again." Then he addresses Christian Music Today again.] I didn't write that. I would never answer a question that way. That sounds like something the owner of my record company [Wind-Up Records] would say.

[Stapp, clearly perturbed at this revelation, says something else to his manager, then addresses us again.] I would never say that, dude, because that's not what I believe. We'll be sure to make a note of that. That stuff happens all the time, because my label, you know, they're about making money. They don't want to disenfranchise people. Creed wasn't a Christian band, but I would never insinuate or say anything that would make that kind of a statement. I'm glad you told me about that.

So, where do you stand in regards to that statement?

Stapp: Oh, I'm a Christian. I was a Christian in Creed, but nobody ever asked me.

You've been really open in this interview. Is that because I'm with the Christian media? Or would you answer these questions similarly for the mainstream media?

Stapp: The nature of my answers are a lot different now that I'm no longer with Creed. I'm a solo artist now, and I don't have a band to hide behind. So when someone asks me if I'm a Christian, I have to say yes, because I am. But do you know I was never asked in 10 years if I was a Christian personally? We were only asked if Creed was a Christian band.

Well, you never got interviewed by us!

Stapp (laughs): But I'm glad nobody asked, because my life wasn't right with God. The Christian community latched onto a lot of my music, because there were a lot of things about my struggle they related to. But I didn't really want to come out and be identified as a Christian, because I didn't want to be a hypocrite, because my life wasn't right. I didn't want to make any kind of public profession until I felt like my heart was right.

I've since learned that my life's never gonna be right, and I'm always going to be scrutinized and looked at under a microscope. And it took me, since I was 17 and left home, running from God, to now, as a 30-year-old man, when I honestly feel like I've come full circle and my heart's finally in the right place. I'm still going to make mistakes, but I don't have any problems with publicly professing my faith now. It just took me a long time to get to the right place in my relationship with Christ.

It's just crazy how things have come full circle for me as a solo artist. I kind of look at everything that happened with Creed as a preparation—me going through things to get my life ready for God's plan. It's been a journey and a learning experience.

So, are you now a "Christian artist," or an artist who happens to be a Christian?

Stapp: I'm an artist who's a Christian, because I don't write music to be evangelical. Now, if that happens, it happens. My dad's a dentist, and he's a Christian. Now, does he put in Christian fillings? No, that's just part of his three-dimensional life. Now, there are people that are Christian artists, because they have a purpose to be evangelical for Christ. I don't feel I've been called to that yet. Now, that could change. There's no telling what kind of call God will put on my life."

i like though, how he was hesitant about saying he was a christian, because he did wrong, afraid that he'd give a wrong impression of christians. and the fact that now he learns that's life.

ESPN.com - NBA - Smith: Sacramento's crumbling Kingdom:

"In the meantime, the owners got mad at the city over a new arena. Who doesn't believe they're trying to get the franchise to Las Vegas, where they own a casino? They were among this new breed of owners with a lot of money they really didn't work long to earn and frustrated athletic fantasies. So they said they'd spend whatever they had to spend. Until they found themselves writing $10 million checks after the season to the owners practicing financial stability, like, oh, Donald Sterling. So they gutted their bench for a million here and there and there was no one left when Webber wasn't C-Webb and Jackson was on the bench."

damnit... and i thought the lakers were in disarray... it's like the pot calling the kettle black

Boondocks - Vote Kerry/Edwards!

LOL!

Team USA > Turkey

+supposedly, they did better down the stretch, and rallied to defend well
+one of my fave PF's, duncan, did his thing all over the court
-they almost blew a huge lead; every point, every defensive possession counts
-none of the younger players did their thing offensively; only the guys WITH EXPERIENCE, aka ai and td, did their thing in double figures
-perimeter shooting NEEDS to get better; this is international bball, so you gotta take advantage of the easier 3

"guns n roses - you could be mine" is too good... it's ol skool rock... one of my favorites from the good ol days... but no, i don't throw up the horns, heh heh. i gotta print out a tab of it soon and work on it; i love the riffs. i almost always stop the .wmv file short of the ending though... he seems to stress that one note way too long. good ol feminine rock star singers...

the time at which i took this screen capture was about 3:20 PM in davis. killer weather alright; i didn't know it'd come back w/a vengence; it seemed recently that it was getting cooler, but i guess i was wrong; i need to stop studying and grab a slurpee cause it's that hot outside. 

Penny Arcade!

LOL!

ESPN.com: Page 2 - For Celts, this Glove fits

i don't know whether to be happy or disappointed... rick fox and gary payton are now both celtics??!?!??!?

then again, most bay area ppl don't like derek fisher being on gsw either; we're all in the same boat.

woohoo! i can nail EWGF/WS+2, b,f+2,1>2, df+4,4 a LOT more consistently now. i think i found the MAGICAL TIMING OF HAPPINESS!

saw the most incredible thing yesterday; an ant about the relative size of this -> - was pulling a dry blade of grass the size of THIS -> ------------------- it was more or less attached to his behind as he was chugging it along, but he had no help as he was yanking it along... it totally amazed me... if you think about it, humans have no real advantage over other animals and creatures other than our intellect... if you think about athletic abilities, we simply pale compared to other creatures. if we moved our legs the speed of ants, we'd probably not need any cars.

ai turned out clutch when usa needed it the most, and i'm happy for him, but i think if they were really good, they wouldn't have needed to be clutch like that to win; like larry brown says, this is pretty much their offensive receipe for success:

-give the ball in to duncan deep and let him do his low post stuff
-hit some outside js when ppl are open
and last but not least:
-play some hardcore d(technically, this IS a larry brown team, so they NEED to play some d)

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/040804

there's a lotta points taken from the article about ways to improve team usa, but here's some interesting quotes that had me grinning:

-he recommends our (now departed, *sniff sniff*) brian cardinal as our bench:
"Cardinal: You bring him in when you need an energy boost -- namely, when you're flat, when you're getting out-hustled and you need someone to make a three and run back up the court screaming and pumping his arms."

-like i said, shooters, not gangstas :D
"2. You would never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER see someone like Stephon Marbury on our team."

-some quotes that had me grinning, when he talked about guys from the pistons that could've been a great help:
"4. We would play Rip Hamilton more.
He's only the best scorer on a team that just won the NBA championship. You can run him off picks, he's tireless, never takes bad shots, never goes beyond his means. He gets better when it matters. He's been a winner at every level. And he's a good guy.
By the way? He's not on the team. Unfortunately, he turned down our invitation after we waited until the last minute to ask him.
(I will now peel the skin off my body.)"

-prince on bench
"Prince: Put it this way: You wouldn't see Italian guys getting wide-open looks for 40 straight minutes with Tayshaun around." *damn right!*

-now this is where i actually might agree totally
"(Which reminds me: If we really wanted to win the gold, why wouldn't we just send our defending NBA champions? Imagine the 2004 Pistons headed to Athens in 10 days, completely intact with their coach, only with Duncan sliding into Mehmet Okur's spot and Corey Haim filling the role of Darko? Would anyone be against this? Seriously, anyone?)"
the only ppl who MIGHT disagree are the pistons themselves; it's a novel idea, but you're essentially putting the defending world champs 2 steps behind everybody else in the league when the next season starts.

nobody from my class' around dkc during SS2. ok, there's a few. played some stupidly rediculous games yesterday; one was dividing up the fellowship into guys and girls, and both have to write all these names of people on slips of paper, then dump them in a big box. a volunteer from each group represents them and draws a slip of paper and tries to describe the person w/o the actual name; gain 1 pt if you can say the exact name, pass if you can't. timed. so you have all the guys writing down names like "samaki walker" "tayshaun prince" "dwayne wade" etc, and all the girls are writing down names like worship leaders, actors they like, stuff like that. the classic one of the night was when one of the guys goes,
"YOU DIDN'T KNOW WHO RICK FLAIR WAS? YOU COULD'VE JUST DONE 'WWWOOOOOOO!' "
then there's the game where all the ppls was divided into groups of 4. you have to get all your guys onto this one piece of newspaper. then you divide it in half, repeat. here's some classic quotes off that:
"you're using the sacramento bee???? the classified ads? wth? yolo county is nothing! that's like no space at all! you should've gotten the la times instead!"
(one group had 1 guy and 3 girls)
emcee:so are you guys all cuddled up now? let's move on to our next game-
guy: NO MAN! let's keep playing! i think we can still fit ppl onto this paper even if we divide it in half.
(for the last attempt at getting all the ppl on the paper, he had one girl piggyback'd upon him and 2 girls bear hugging him)

they ended the free 7-11 music dl promotion; but i actually liked the process. and now they have these prepaid cards you can use, so if you're jittery about credit card online purchases, you can now prepay, then go online and dl. the only thing is that i would really like a cd burner so i can actually listen to the songs when in a car.

ESPN.com - OLY/SUMMER04/BASKETBALL - International exposure: Team USA loses to Italy

it's sad really... the only guys it appears from the article on USA who appeared to do their thing on offense was duncan and melo, and even then, i bet they had to struggle to get those numbers.

ever feel like this?

Welcome to uComics Web Site featuring FoxTrot -- The Best Comic Site In The Universe!

Damn! That's some good cheese! Why you didn't tell me this cheese was good? Muthaf***! LOL!!!!!

ESPN.com - GEN - Manute Bol suing cab company over injuries

poor manute...

did you even know you were driving manute bol, former gsw center, beyotch?

i can't cut and paste the conversations i see on mIRC while i'm dling tekken match vids, so i have to take a screenshot instead; click to enlarge; heh heh; WHATHAHTHAHTHTAT! 

still working on ewgf/ws+2, b,f+2,1>2, df+4,4... pathetic... i can't nail the combo. if you ain't fat, i can't nail it with consistency.

i have to drink at least 2 more slurpees before the summer ends... because of these 2 songs:

sugarcult - memory
guns n roses - you could be mine

such a contrast... memory is the typical punk rock song... it's only cause i can't get it out my head that i have to own it... i think it's when the rhythm guitarist starts playing the 2nd verse with harmonics(preview the entire song for free at www.sugarcult.com). and you could be mine is one of my favorite ol skool rock tunes... complete with Slash going nuts on the guitar for some riffs. ol skool rock is awesome... the only thing that puts me off are the vocals sometimes. but you don't know what guitar talent is missing from today's bands til you hear something from the 70s or so. basically anything pre-nirvana.

jon: hey rich are you doing anything today?
me: i might be free tonight
me: does jerm wanna go to jusco again? :D
jon: haha its not open on mondays
jon: we'll probably go tomorrow though
me: heh heh...
me: great...

(jusco is NOT pmt(aka pearl milk tea); it's an all-you-can-eat sushi buffet that's around $8 at lunch in davis; ever since jerm went once he's been hooked; i don't hate sushi, but it's mainly rice, and that's the catch; it fills you up very quickly; i'd rather save up and go to hot pot city; ok so the price is a lot higher, but it's more worth it)

pistons will own rockets on nov 3; but i'm sure the reason why most ppl wanna watch this game is cause of tmac and yao ming... that's ok; i can't wait to see prince d up on tmac just like 2k3 playoffs.

so, what's worse? the fact that the europeans' value of christianity has gone down the drain, or that the way some people are trying to bring it back is by trying to appeal and trying to become one of the world?

i thought the point of trying to become one with the world was that we had to send a message of "hey, we sin just like you; we're only human; but we know that's not the way, and we fight it with all our heart." wasn't that the type of mindset we were supposed to have?

so what's worse? the frying pan? or the fire?

but let's not point fingers too much; we still have to ask yourselves(you, the one who's reading this), if that makes you a better person... because i'm an american? because 58% of us yanks believe in God, whereas the Europeans believe in him about at the 33% mark? hey, demons believe in God; does that make them equal to angels?

well? what's your answer? better answer carefully now...

and remember, if you AREN'T a better person, then maybe you should do some sincere confession.

the deeds don't reflect the heart, but the heart reflects the deeds... think about that...

(btw i love late afternoon davis summer weather... the cool breeze is awesome... being outside is awesome, period)

(i'm chaffing; so much about the hard-earned back-shoulder tan; don't matter though; the skin probably was more BURNED than tanned)

(and tony's coming up to davis around the 15-17; me and jon gotta show this brother of ours around)

(www.jibjab.com; i'm sure you've seen the swf cartoon of bush and kerry; but if not, it's kinda funny.)

(i love the lead guitar riff that the lead guitarist plays on jeremy camp's version of "i will trust in you")

i didn't sign up for THIS when i wanted to be a spurs fan :D 

so i come out of the shower yesterday, and then i'm blinded in the mirror by my sexy good looks... :D

actually, i was more like blinded by the whiteness on my upper legs. and the steam rising into my glasses.

but otherwise, it looks like i've gotten a tan, as my back has healed. still some chaffage on the right shoulder, but otherwise, i'm ok. but i should still lay off the sun exposure. it would be no use, if i avoided stomach cancer unlike my dad, only to get skin cancer. however, it will always appear that my back will look 2x darker than my chest, and my lower arms more than my upper arms. farmer's tan is gone; but in its place we have the all-inspiring sandal tan(although it's still better than a farmer's tan). i'm just 20 diff shades or so all over my body.

breyer's reese's ice cream is pretty good. i just tried it. reeses' crumbled up, fudge, and pb ice cream.

and breyer's ice cream up in davis this week is a steal; 2 for 5.69, or about 2.85 each. usually ice cream's like 3 something for a half gallon or so. their coffee ice cream roX; nothing fancy, just coffee, cream, milk, sugar.

i tried going up to woodland cause that's the closest coldstone nearby, but i didn't get there in time for their free ice cream cake deal. however, woodland seems to be even more of a farmland around there and going up there, compared to davis. all i could see was fields and factories coming up there. but maybe i'm just around the davis section near the university. however, davis on a map isn't that much bigger.

(taken off of jadon lavik's music site, from his biography section):
“Contemporary culture lacks both the inward reality and the outward life-style of simplicity. We must live in the modern world, and we are affected by its fractured and fragmented state…Courageously, we need to articulate new, more human ways to live…Simplicity is not a lost dream, but a recurrent vision throughout history. It can be recaptured today.” Richard J. Foster

(taken from his song, "following you," which i legally dl'd):
when i look to you/ suddenly i see, i see the real me/ stripped of all those coverings/ that's my true, my true identity

prechorus:
this world has so much clarity/ with you walking in front of me

chorus:
and i'm following you/ yes i'm following you

i keep it short/ cause i have so much more/ i'm just listening/ with my eyes on you/ you're watching all that i do/ that's when my motives are true

bridge:
with all my heart/ with all my soul/ with all my mind/ and all my strength

i'm back in davis again.
 
saturday was fun w/joe and friends.  norman almost hit a home run, except it would've gotten out of the park...  and onto a crowded highway; ugh.  and i had a blast swimming again.  i need to buy some new swim trunks.
 
and my back was so ragged up for at least 2 or maybe even 3 days; sunburnt like crazy; most ppl get a tan when they go into the sunlight and come out blacker; i come out looking like a native american.  maybe that's why i can look like rudolph the reindeer every summer; i should rub sunblock on my nose more often.
 
http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/summer04/basketball/news/story?id=1847129 ; who would've thought out of all the ppl who miss shaq being the west the most, that'd it'd be poppavich?  well, i guess inside the nba, ppl don't tear at each other's throats the way the norcal and socal ppl have been at each other's necks for who knows how long.
 
you can bet this is what my current wishlist sorta looks like:
 
1.delay pedal
2.cd burner
3.joystick
4.preamp

Ha Seung-Jin... the gooks now are getting some nba action...
but we all know where the chinks are at...
yao owns all azns :D
(that said, i can't stare at his mug w/o breaking into a huge grin... the fact that you could probably blind him w/dental floss and his buckteeth say all, and i hope he and ratliff form a formidable portland paint combo)

it doesn't mean anything/ w/o you here with me/ and i can try to justify/ but i still need you here with me

-plumb

you are not alone/ know that i will find the times to be together/ when you feel alone/ listen to this song to make your heart feel better

-sanctus real

i decided to explore the treasure cave otherwise known as my bro's room, which has quite a bit of christian books, and decided to read this book by c.s.lewis(don't tell me he's a great christian writer; i'm quite aware of that), the book is called "the screwtape letters;" it took me a bit at first to realize what was going on in the book, but it's intrigued me; it's basically a fictitious correspondence between a superior devil to an inferior devil about how to claim souls; as we all know, spirits can't control human beings; they do however, control the power of suggestion, and that is how their power is used; in this book, the devils hope to manipulate the souls so they end up in hell. like how ppl assume there's a guardian angel for every being, this book assumes that there's a guardian devil for every being; the inferior devil is responsible for an english man. i'm still in the book, and so am not through to making full comments, but here's what i can remember off the top of my head;

-satan can't use reason to draw you away from christ; while you may think of atheists who draw up powerful arguments to sway you, you can almost argue your way back to christ, given the truth. satan however, CAN use the power of impulse and suggestion; he can suggest instinctive things, like suggest "lunch?" when you start thinking of the loopholes in atheism.
-he can't prevent you from praying; however, he can draw you away from praying for the actual person; perhaps the sins that you are praying for a specific person aren't really sins, but things that irk you about that person; the more these things get on your nerves, the more you're praying for a fictitious person and not the actual flesh-and-blood person
-how close something is to a christian can have a major affect; such as what you hate and what you care for; take for example, the book's example; the older devil suggested the younger demon try to focus the man's hate onto the things that are closer to him and push the things he cares for to the remote(the germans; this book takes place during WWII); the more you care for something almost imaginary, the more hazy details are and the less likely you're bound to care as much. etc.
-suffering is not all joy for satan; he knows that god allows it for a man to become stronger in his christian roots. this brief trial gives satan a good oppurtunity to shake the man. but if the man goes through it, it will become that much harder to sway him.

i'm thought today that it takes a certain man not to fear death... i certainly don't fear death... i don't think i do... but it also takes a certain man not to fear life, the pains and sorrows associated with success and failure of life... i think it takes a true man not to fear both... to not be afraid of failure in this life, and to not fear what's beyond that dark curtain.

matthew west - the end
(what he sings near the end is funny)

what the? shaq now in miami? well, i dunno whether to say this is a plus for the lakers or miami; prob for miami, until you realize shaq has LIMITED utility; i don't think you even need the pistons to run over the heat. same weaknesses stand w/shaq in miami; weak bench, limited ability to defend the pick-n-roll, defense in general sucks. indiana could beat this team. i think nets could as well. any team w/better depth basically.

on the flip side, lakers would look funny with this undersized SF and PF trade. this really would be kobe's team(unless he lands in jail or chooses to go to clippers; i think he's pretty much limited it to either la team) my new favorite teams would be bobcats and magic come next season; i would love to see if okafur remains the shot blocker every1 says he is. and the combo of francis and howard intrigues me.

there's something about watching "the terminator" on telemundo; hearing ahhnold say "i'll be back" in spanish(yo volvare) isn't as authoritative... still, term 1 is one of my fav movies... i watched it just for the heck of it. and to jog some of my spanish comprehension abilities.

ok, i ran outta things to say.

free slurpee on july 11th; just show up

i ain't sexist(really)... but if you don't crack up at this snippet i found from the web, i dunno... you must have no sense of humor...

Men strike back!

How many men does it take to open a beer?
None. It should be opened when she brings it.

Why is a Laundromat a really bad place to pick up a woman?
Because a woman who can't even afford a washing machine will probably
never be able to support you.

Why do women have smaller feet than men?
It's one of those "evolutionary things" that allows
them to stand closer to the kitchen sink.

How do you know when a woman is about to say something smart?
When she starts a sentence with "A man once told me."

How do you fix a woman's watch?
You don't. There is a clock on the oven.

Why do men fart more than women?
Because women can't shut up long enough to
build up the required pressure.

If your dog is barking at the back door and your wife
is yelling at the front door, who do you let in first?
The dog, of course. He'll shut up once you let him in.

What's worse than a Male Chauvinist Pig?
A woman who won't do what she's told.

I married a Miss Right.
I just didn't know her first name was Always.

Scientists have discovered a food that diminishes
a woman's sex drive by 90%.
It's called a Wedding Cake.

Why do men die before their wives?
They want to.

Women will never be equal to men until they can
walk down the street with a bald head and a beer
gut, and still think they are sexy.

In the beginning, God created the earth and rested.
Then God created Man and rested.

Then God created Woman.
Since then, neither God nor Man has rested.

me: i've seen a bunch of homeless ppl around davis
grace: oh
grace: i see a few here
me: there's a lotta ppl who go up to me and ask if i can spare some change
grace: but it's like they seem to disappear over night
me: heh
grace: it' slike the city takes them away cus they're taint'g la jolla er something
grace: la jolla = rich yuppies
me: heh
grace: u give em change?
me: sure, why not
me: sometimes a dollar if i'm extremely generous
me: once i even heard out one of them to see what his problem was
grace: oh yeah
grace: i've always wanted to sit down n talk to em
grace: but i don't seem them n e more
grace: oh there's this one guy in chinatown by my dentist office
grace: i saw him last yr
grace: n this yr again
grace: he always has a pet pigeon
me: i see
grace: this pigeon sits on his shoulder
grace: or around him
grace: n he feeds it n such
me: heh
grace: very strange eh
me: yea
me: most of the guys i've met usually have some hardships
me: one guy told me he had some shoulder pain or something
me: but then the cops took away his medication because his name rubbed off the prescription bottle
grace: =me: yea
grace: how he suppose to get his medicine?
me: shoot, i dunno
grace: SOMEONE HAS GOT TO GO N GET IT FOR HIM =(
grace: yeeea.. it's things like that .. that make me wonder why i'm doing cs and expecting to work at some office cubicle.. wen so many ppl out there need something/someone
me: it's true
me: not every job solves every problem in the world
me: and even when you've taken care of others, you still have yourself to feed
grace: yeaa
grace: duno wut i gonna do
grace: i feel like getting a teaching credential too. hehe
grace: but then.. i kinda wanna jus teach lil kids
grace: but then... i kinda wanna program..
grace: o boy. i guess i can teach programming to little kids?
grace: yeah
grace: someone's gotta support me if i ain't making money
me: yeap
me: funny thing; my sister in law also teaches 3rd graders
grace: she likes?
me: yea, i'd say
me: jerm's trying to go for teaching too
me: and while i'm not too sure, maybe laura's also considering teaching
grace: lol
grace: i'm thinking towards daycare too
me: i see

i've realized i've met a LOT of homeless ppl when i've gotten around davis counting this school year and last year. a lotta ppl just wandering around who ask me if i can spare some change. sometimes, if i'm generous, i give them a dollar, not just whatever coins i have in my pocket. i usually never refuse them.

long story short, because i don't feel like typing too much, i do it cause God commands me to. i say this, cause OF COURSE it's probable that a couple of those guys try to act poor to mooch off of others. but i'm less concerned about whether they are genuine, compared whether i AM genuine. whether i truly care for them. cause that's WHAT WOULD JESUS DO

and another thing; when you do encounter poor homeless men, and give them something, don't just give them something and shoo them away; ask them what their hardships are. ask them how their day went. i had one guy ask me for stuff.(i think i gave him a dollar) then he proceeded to tell me his hardship. i was touched. i truly felt like praying for the poor guy. so i am considering that whenever i meet ppl who ask me for change now; asking them how their day went. it's a start. to show i truly care, and am not just another person.

it's just one demonstration of the discipline of submission :D one more step to showing you truly love God.

you realize in the western conf of the nba a total power shift could occur to bring the power to... texas? imagine that kobe and shaq get traded to some texas teams; your future top western teams would include:
dallas: shaq, finley, dirk?
houston: tmac, yao
san antonio: kobe, duncan

now if this turns out to be the case, i like san antonio's chances. i still like houston cause of yao, but i'm still SLIGHTLY bitter that francis had to go; i think i like orlando more than the rockets now.

comment that summed up the nba 2k4 finals:
after anybody who thought that the detroit pistons couldn't recover from that wrenching defeat the other night(game 2), just take a look at the score
-al michaels, abc sports

Verizon Recalls Exploding Cell Phone Batteries

more bad news for you cell phone users... hey! not only can you lower your sperm count with these babies, but now you can permanently burn your crotch off with these technological beauties! but sorry, we'll have to charge you for roaming if you're crotch is on fire and you're forced to call the local police on a cell that's not in the designated area :D
(at&t users, rejoice that your crotch won't catch fire :D)

maria sharapova says she's not trying to become like anna kornakova, but she's into modelling as well :D lol... it's kinda funny watching her play tennis; she screams everytime she hits the ball; i might even stretch it and say she sometimes groans when she does.
to be honest, i think the rain delays and stuff totally changed the match between devenport and sharapova; wimbledon seriously needs to do something to get rid of the rain delays; i tried to audioblog an entry on this, but it looks like it'll take a while before it gets online. basically, tennis seems to be only one of the few sports which actually stops play due to a rain delay, and more specifically, wimbledon; most other sports just play through it. so either teach the players to do that, or install a retractable roof. because it is really annoying for the fans and the players.

(i'm back in cupertino for july btw)
(pps: audioblogger's cool, but it loads so slowly; i've already posted 3-4x since yesterday, and look; only 1 post so far)

Mail and Guardian Online: Cellphones cut sperm count, says report

we're doomed... forget viagra... we need something else...

then again, living in the city as opposed to the country probably also reduces your sperm count...

Martina loses in 2nd round

been keeping up w/wimbledon? martina is a FORTY-SEVEN year old female tennis vet, who played in wimbledon just cause she could... while she's not as agile as she used to be, it was fun to watch her exercise her experience over her opponents and take them down using brain over strength... sadly, you can only get so far...

venus is also out, due to a contraversial call... but serena's still in... when it comes to women's tennis though, i like jennifer capriati; excellant return, very good strokes. her defense against serves is very formidable.

on the men's side, a casual fan HAS to love andy roddick; prob my fave american tennis player. i just love watching him blow ppl apart with his aces; he wasn't as dominant as he was in the us open, concerning his aces, but hey, no 4 in the world doesn't count for nothing; uberdweeb, if you're reading this, roddick's 1st opponent at wimbledon was a taiwanese guy; wang something... don't worry, that kid's still young; got a while to go; i would've rooted for him, but cmon, it's roddick. roddick btw, got 18 aces against him. it's almost like a bday present!(i think wang was 18) i could go on and on about how good roddick's aces are... the really good ones are where the opponent doesn't even MOVE... the serves of those are hecka fast and hit RIGHT on the line that it's rediculous. you watch, and go, huh? roddick already won another game? the opponent didn't even move!

shaq going to dallas is kinda ok w/me... i hate dallas, but they aren't gaining anything TOO big, longterm that way. and shaq fits in with his defensive weaknesses :D the lakers won't be as strong... dallas would IMO be stronger though, with two good big men. that's assuming dallas is not dumb enough to dump dirk for shaq. i'd just like to see a year where the lakers lack kobe and shaq, or have kobe, but completely suck, but that clippers are contenders, or even where both teams suck... would like to see how socal ppl actually feel... i wondered why i've heard kobe possibly going to san ant a bit... is that one of his potential places he wants to go?

assuming dwight howard lives up to his promise, i could be liking the magic soon; got the core rockets group(francis!) and pretty much just subbed howard for yao... i just hope they emphasize the d. though you could say the trade was 50-50, i still disliked that they broke up the rockets; i love francis and yao.

how often have you fretted so much about what you were doing, have done, and were going to do that you could not go to sleep peaceably for a night? frustrating... i bet...

USATODAY.com - Charges considered in death of Iraqi general

how can we expect other countries, and terrorist organizations to treat us with respect if we can't do the same? this is just one big cycle over and over; it happened during the cold war; we'd find whoever would fight against the communist force, then leave them to their fate. and yet, now, instead of learning our mistakes, we repeat them yet again.

we also failed to learn from our mistakes after wwII, when many nisei were placed in internment camps; after 9.11, many indians in the us simply "disappeared" back to their own countries. nobody learns from the 1st mistake.

the weather's above average hot anyway you see it; it's still hotter up here in hell :D 

I'm bored... so i decided to show you guys just how friggin hot davis is compared to the bay area; here is a trimmed snapshot of the weather in cupertino on friday; notice the moderate high; could be hot, but i guess only during noontime 


now, in comparison, here's the davis weather... yes... take noontime in the bay area and extend that over an 8 hr period and add 10 degrees, more or less... voila; you're in hell. 

MAN, does my voice crack up under all sorts of weird pressure... that said, like the recording suggested, i LEGALLY dl'd one song; i still have 1 credit, which i can use for another song, or get a new ringtone(7-eleven enables you to choose either one). it does seem like everyone's getting into the free mp3 thing; first it was pepsi if i recalled from the super bowl, then mickeydee's got into the mix, now 7-eleven... azn's dream, would be tapioca express gets into the mix :D buy a no. one, get a free jay mp3 dl :D

that said, i dl'd mark schultz - you are a child of mine; i've loved hearing the song everytime it comes on the air. it ain't rock, but hey, my tastes in music aren't limited to rock :D mark's lyrics in general from any of his songs tend to sing from God's perspective, not ours; think of "i have been there." here are the lyrics. i would've dl'd "casting crowns - who am i," but i liked the air1 mix, the one they have on the radio, not the album's version; they make the electric guitar fills a lot more hearable, and it gives the song a bit more upbeatness to it. ah well; this song is equally good.

I’ve been hearing voices
Telling me that I could
Never be what I wanna be
They’re binding me with lies
Haunting me at night
And saying there’s nothing to believe
Somewhere in the quietness
When I’m overcome with loneliness
I hear You call my name
And like a father You are near
And as I listen I can hear You say

chorus:
You are a child of Mine
Born of My own design
And you bear the heart of life
No matter where you go
Oh, you will always know
You have been made free in Christ
You are a child of Mine

And so I listen as You tell me who I am
And who it is I’m gonna be
And I hang on every word
Knowing I have heard
I am Yours and I am free
But when I am alone at night
That is when I hear the lie
You’ll never be enough
And though I’m giving into fear
If I listen I can hear You say

chorus

I am calling…
I am calling…
I am calling…

chorus (2x)

ESPN.com - NBA - Glove in hand: Payton opts to stay with Lakers

huh? considering the fact that he didn't fit in, he still wants to give this a try? well, maybe the fact that shaq's leaving's giving him more oppurtunities to feel better again.

like sam said; there's a HUGE possibility that about 1 yr from now, the laker bandwagon will... GO TO THE CLIPPER BANDWAGON; clippers are a good team, but they've really not being taken notice; just watch... geez, i hope that doesn't happen; socal ppl will suddenly go, "go clippers," but we know there wasn't such thing as a hardcore clipper fan in the first place... a huge lol waiting to happen from the norcal ppl... just glad i'm a warriors fan first and foremost, THEN a kings fan... just in case we ever hit the big time.

also, i love the possibility of tmac and yao ming, but i do like francis, and i really loved the chemistry he had w/yao and the rockets; hope he gets good success in orlando, cause he really didn't wanna go there in the first place. the sad part is though, as much as the nba is entertainment, it is also a business. things like that happen. shaq COULD go to orlando though, so factor that in... although, if he does, i'm not too sure francis would remain in orlando, but i don't want him to become a laker. the possibility of shaq+francis+okafur/howard is there though...

i also heard talk that shaq COULD go to dallas... i hope that DOES NOT happen... don't give me another reason to hate the already hated-on-my-part mavs...

my baked salmon w/miso didn't turn out THAT well; i probably didn't coat enough of the stuff on, cause the fish tasted SOMEWHAT salty; ie not enough brown sugar. was my 1st time though, in all respects. and the salmon steak i bought WAS pretty huge...

haha... check this out... i'm trying audioblogger.com... now i can record anytime for free from my phone, to here.

oh yea; go watch "best damn sports show period" on tuesday; mike dunleavy from norcal's favorite team, gsw's gonna be a guest

(gilbert arenas is also gonna be a guest on wed, but since he's gone, we all don't care bout him no more)

wow... are the lakers done(at least for a while, til the hollywood stars start chipping money in again?)

-kobe bryant's now an unrestricted free agent... i think he really wants to leave now... well, let's make one thing clear; i don't think he'll want to play for shaq; at the very least LA is going to lose one of its superstars.
-shaq will only play for phil jackson, at least that's what he says
-phil jackson is going to leave(therefore, shaq is going to go, by that logic)
-payton wants to leave, cause he doesn't fit into the role player thing, OR, he sucks now; really, so either way LA doesn't have it good w/him; the playoffs(didn't even have to be the finals) showed that he is NOT even a decent player now; i'd rather have george or fisher be a pg, or luke walton.
-malone is a free agent; i'd say he helps glue LA together, but injuries have been a factor in him deciding whether to retire; for him it's either stay or retire.

heh heh... if you're nor cal... you gotta love this... LA's gotta start over the hard way, like most other teams... like the pistons :D not like anyone in LA's listening... they prob think they can just buy talent again... (don't feel bad, LA; you have a chance to get tmac; he should be a good starting ground...) you gotta love the pistons success story... unless if you hate D, only love flashy offense, and only love superstars and scoring(in which i say to you, "your mentality is a disgrace to bball; pick up another sport")

pistons weren't even favored to win the nba championship this year...

poll

i'll be honest though... i thought pistons were (hopefully) going to come out of the east, and thought the spurs were going to win it all... i was wrong... 1 for 2. however i did think the pistons had a good chance of winning against the lakers IF THEY TRIED; guess what; they did. in fact, they tried TOO HARD. 2 of 3.

maybe next year ppl won't hate on the pistons... i doubt it. (that said, i think pistons need to win a 2nd title again, to really show the hard-nosed that they weren't a fluke) ppl still think a superstar can take over. i bet everyone's going, "but LA had no chemistry... a superstar plus role players and chemistry... now THAT'S a winner!" really? all LA really had to do was give the ball to shaq on offense. a soap opera doesn't really take away from the game... they were obviously hating each other before they even got to the finals, but they did well... please, stop w/the nonsense. did you see game 5? they did just that... give it to shaq. did they win? no, because most possessions in game 5 looked more or less like this:

-give the ball to shaq
-shaq hook shots, misses
-ben wallace rips down the rebound(if this guy doesn't convince you to do a hops program just to rebound better, i don't know what will; seeing him work on the defensive end is a JOY)
-fast break, leading to either 2 or 3 pts from ANYBODY(stats show all starters for pistons were in double figures; at one point ben wallace was FIVE FOR FIVE)

btw, what's up with the saying of sports fans going, "my won"? or "yea, they beat my ?" the thing is, ppl always have a favorite team. for me, it's gotta be the warriors, pistons, kings and spurs, in that order. close 5 and 6 are twolves and rockets. however, i don't think i should be allowed to say "my warriors won," or "i hope my warriors get a good draft pick next season;" did i DO anything for that team? did damp call me up last night and say "gjob on that low post move?" no; 12 black guys(or ppl who act like they are) who i have never met in my life won the game, not me. so really, everybody should stop the nonsense of using the term, "my ." call them your favorite team, call them the team that you root for, do whatever you want to show that they're your FAVORITE team, but until you own them, or do something for them, don't call them YOUR team.

hey, i just dl'd "hello;" xanga ppl aren't the only ones who can upload pics to their site; blogger enables you to as well, so i'm trying a test run; this is a photo of my bro w/the guys from "the violet burning," his favorite christian rock band.
Posted by Hello

joe: hey dude
me: hey
joe: how bout them lackers?
joe: hahaha
me: haha
me: so you watched the finals too?
joe: i think i'll buy a pistons jersey and wear it around south central
joe: nope
me: dude... all pistons
joe: but did see the news highlights here
joe: haha
me: every one thought lakers in 6
joe: and i have conference calls w/a coworker in detroit
joe: so i get my updates
joe: i can't stand them stinkin lakers
me: but even pistons in game 2 were pretty close, until kobe launched the 3 ball
me: haha
me: but game 3, was all pistons
me: game 5, pistons actually won by OUTSCORING the lakers
me: they got to 100 :-)
me: then they brought out darko :-)
me: dude, if you wanna buy pistons stuff, you should buy this: http://palacelockerroomstore.com/products/urinal-screen.html
me: i showed it to jon and sam, and they started laughing
joe: haha...i've seen it before
joe: it's great
joe: they should show a photo of shaq or something
joe: it's like peein on shaq
joe: hhaha
me: haha
me: that'd be awesome

my top 10 list you rooted for the pistons because you're a pistons fan, NOT an anti-laker fan(in rough order)(i wrote this cause it just seemed like a lotta fans in norcal rooting against the lakers were anti-laker fans, NOT piston fans who really loved their team):

10. you would've not cared about the finals in the same way if the nets or pacers represented the east
9. you rooted for the pistons BEFORE they got to finals, before your precious insert-your-western-team-here team got beaten in the playoffs
8. you love d over offense anyday, the way the wallaces and prince get up in your face and send that pathetic excuse of a shot out into the crowd
7. you LOVE the fro, and think the face mask is now the next best thing in nba wear(next to the all-classic elbow-band and headband)
6. ben wallace w/the rebound, ben wallace w/the rebound, ben wallace w/the rebound, shaq w/th-no wait, ben wallace w/the rebound... (and you wish you could rebound like him too)
5. you thought the best play of round 2 playoffs was billups sinking that put-up-that-prayer 3, not fisher's 0.4 miracle
4. you LOVE all of tayshaun prince's 84 in wingspan, 6-9 ht, and went "DAAAAAMN!" when he did his thing on miller game 2
3. you knew pistons stood a chance before the finals even started(or at least, made some prediction like "pistons in 5" after seeing game 1)
2. you shouted, "bring out darko!" when 5 min were left in game 5, and started cheering, "go darko!" whenever he got the ball
1. you think pistons have a pretty good chance to repeat 2k4-2k5.

i think #1 pretty much sums it up IMO; a lotta ppl thought that what the pistons did was incredible, and YET, about 80% who replied to the online polls don't think pistons will repeat come next season. ppl STILL don't respect them.

DEEEEEE-troit BAAAAAAA-sket-BAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLL!!!

final score: 100 to 87.

were it not for the game 2 miracle by kobe, this would have been a sweep.

larry brown, i am happy for you.

ben wallace, you are the man. you had to do an incredible job of guarding shaq, and while that's like an exercise in futility, that was a full-out heartfelt workout that you gave... and even after that, you still had the energy to fight for every single rebound and drain a couple of shots.

prince, you did an incredible job on kobe, and for that, i commend you. plus, you had some nice wheeling and dealing for game 5; too bad you didn't make that layup when you were fouled, or it would've been SWEET

billups... no comment... he was the offensive backbone of this team. the fact that rip worked alongside of him instead of demanding more minutes meant they got even more done.

in fact, i love all you pistons. and let's not forget darko!

nba.com, post up some videos of big ben's putbacks and his block on shaq plz!

and laker fans, stop taking the pistons for granted now. because tonight has shown that defense does indeed win championships, and close teamwork is always gold over individual talent. it wasn't about what the lakers didn't do, it was about what the pistons did do. and btw, my remark about feeding shaq the ball=success? apparently, i was proven wrong; shaq was definitely fed the ball, but ben and sheed proved too much to him. he couldn't make a lotta shots.

team basketball, with the desire to hustle and be aggressive, and to play with all your heart will always win over talent. we are seeing it now.

i'm gonna repeat what i said to sam, for the entire www viewers to see, after the pistons won game 1 vs la:

"PISTONS IN SIX GAMES OR LESS"

looks like unless la actually plays with character and are willing to give it to shaq on all their possessions, the lakers won't be able to keep the series alive past tuesday.

oh yea, you can buy this for all the ppl in socal if you want(best item i've ever seen; must see):

Beat LA urinal

i love the detroit pistons... game 3 showed why; it's like tom tolbert said, "if it keeps going like this, and they lose the finals, we'll be saying what the pistons did wrong, instead of the lakers"... they are more than a capable team... who says defense doesn't win games? 88-68... haha what's kinda funny is when the game ended, the tv programmers got it wrong, and the score read pistons-68, lakers-88.

i wonder at times why i hate the lakers so much; part of it has to do with the fact that i'm norcal, but i think a lot of it has to do with the fans; a LOT of them are bandwagon fans; you may notice that whenever the lakers make the finals, suddenly EVERYBODY'S a laker fan(it gets more severe when you're in socal, according to sam)... as if the only teams they back are the ones which can win... which is why you see so little socal ppl as clipper fans... why? i think it's obvious. (don't mistake me; i don't think there's anything wrong with a team that wins, but if you're socal, where's the love for that other team you've got? i've got mine for my underdogs...)

and it occurred to me... i wonder at times if that's what God hates as well; "bandwagon fans" i have a feeling that many ppl support religion as a bandwagon fan; they want whatever gives them the wins, whatever looks like it's gonna win. and in most cases, that seems to be themselves. the israelites were like that; they worshipped whatever country's idol seemed to have the greatest success; for instance, at one time, they worshipped the assyrian god because it was the military beast at the time. they wanted the easy way out; this is human tendency.

but the truth, is that God wants followers who stick through the loses as well as the wins. he hates ppl who support him just because of what he gives them, because in a way, that's just loving the gifts he gives you. he wants you to love HIM. THAT'S true love. that is worth more than gold. he in a lotta cases, wants you to love him the same way he loves you; sacrificing everything, overlooking everything you are made of, but your heart for him. i wouldn't be surprised in comparing loving God to being a warriors fan(:D); notice how few warrior fans there are? because a lotta ppl simply don't want to support a team that sucks. (side note; i remember playing ea live 2k4 at my small group leader's house, and both of us were playing on the same team, so i decided we'd go w/warriors against clippers; some other guy remarked, "dude, that's like playing blind") but that's true christianity for you. and when you wait around long enough, they'll pull the occasional win out; ditto w/God; stick around enough, and he'll give the blessing to you.

on wed, i had some arcade fun w/some of the christians from my church... absolutely reamed them playing tekken 3. i used to be able to use heihachi, but i scrapped him, as playing with jin kinda screwed him up for me. now my main characters of interest are jin, nina and law. it's kinda funny when you play fighting games against me; if i absolutely ream you 1st round and notice you don't poke right, etc(basically are dead meat), i start playing lenient 2nd round, except i'm not good at disguising it while looking challenging, so it looks like i'm just walking forward into attacks. without attacking. but yeah; i love standing jab into throw, and standing jab into juggle starter.

do you like my comparison of christianity and bball? hit me up...

this is what ben wallace said to stuart scott after game 1(paraphrased cause i don't know exactly what he said):

scott: y'kno, a lotta ppl would think that an afro would be less aerodynamic, because the wind in the hair would slow you down

ben: well now, when i start running, the wind starts getting in that afro, and starts lifting me off the ground a bit, and i start jumping higher and get off the ground better

scott: so it's not about the game anymore, it's about afros and cornrows

ben: exactly

(HAHAHAHA)

i don't wanna brag too much, cause game 2's equally important, but...

NOW WILL YOU LAKER FANS TAKE THE PISTONS SERIOUSLY?

haha... this is only my 1st blog of the week... lesse here...

GO PISTONS! :D yeap, who's on top of the east? :D i love this... the pistons were doubted so much i think, but they're a lot more talented cast than ppl think... games were painful to watch as they matched up against the pacers(i rethought what i said about good defense; true the games were marked with a defensive mindset, but there's no excuse for wide-open jumpers that whiff or miss completely), but in the end they're the beast of the east. take that david letterman! they also fought hard and came back against the nets to everyone's surprise to win it. i love the pistons, truly my favorite team of the east. me and sam, jon, fred(one of my apt roommates) are prob the only true pistons fans rooting in the finals now... the rest are just laker haters :D oh yea, the whole sec of motown.

now, when it comes to matching up against the lakers, i won't lie, it's gonna be hard for the pistons, much harder for them than the lakers, but i truly believe they can top them if they tried. i think the main factor offensively's gonna come from billups; rip and kobe sorta break even, fisher and prince slight wt advantage to fisher, rasheed on malone i wanna say rasheed, but malone has been effective on kg and duncan, and shaq on ben i love ben, but we all know what happens there, as ben will have to call a double for this. billups needs to have a hot hand right from the get go if they want any chance to win... and then later in the series when jackson adjusts for a double on billups everytime, you have to get the team involved... and i've just tackled the starters; chances are that okur, one of the taller guys on the pistons will have to take the fouls for the hack-a-shaq.

weird... in the french open so many americans got knocked out... now there's virtually NONE... the last one i think to get knocked out was that beast jennifer capriati... the clay surface does something to them i guess... clay, if you haven't figured it out, is different from other tennis surfaces... the balls bounce higher, so you have to grind longer to earn your points... endurance is key, and so that could explain the surprise of roddick going out early(although he was weak from food poisoning or something?)... i remember my bro saying how michael chang was a beast at the french open though when he was still around... he simply outran and outendured everyone on the court, since the balls bounced so high.

i'll end with this art i found from someone at my church, cut and pasted from his site:

On a mission from God

By Darren Rovell
ESPN.com

It would seem like the bedroom of any other high school hoops star. Basketball shoes strewn about the room. A game jersey left where it was dropped. Posters of Michael Jordan and Julius Erving, two gods of the hardcourt, on the wall.

Seemingly, a typical room of a typical hoops junky.

If not for the hand-crafted wooden cross over the bed.

If not for the framed copy of the Ten Commandments that hangs beside it.

If not for the crude drawing of the NBA logo with a cross affixed over the heart of Jerry West's silhouette, the exclamation to Dwight Howard's own personal commandments, handwritten on notebook paper.

Howard, indeed, is not a typical teenager. He's this year's LeBron James, a 6-foot-10 power forward with the game that could make him the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, but with an evangelistic spirit that he hopes will "raise the name of God within the league and throughout the world."

The NBA arena, as is his want, will be his pulpit after he declared for the draft on Wednesday.

NBA scouts are believers in his game. But will NBA fans buy his message?

"I want to be able to speak to non-Christians so that I can get them saved or change their lives around," Howard said before last week's Roundball Classic in Chicago. He then flaunted his God-given skill, scoring 16 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in the first of a series of all-star games that the nation's top high school players use to showcase their court skills.

Howard, named both the Naismith and McDonald's national high school player of the year, is used to talking about his faith. He has attended Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy since kindergarten and his high school basketball coach, Courtney Brooks, is also a Bible teacher who quotes scripture before every game. His favorite song is a gospel hymn, "Praise is What I Do." And when someone asks for his autograph, Howard writes "God bless" alongside his signature, so that he can "let people know that everything that they've gotten is because of God."

While it has often been speculated that highly paid endorsers like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods have been hushed about their personal opinions by the multinational companies that pay them handsomely to pitch products, Howard said he has no intentions of giving up his goal of spreading the Gospel.

And if it's God's will, he says, then the riches will follow.

"I think I can make as much money or even more than LeBron. But it will be up to God for that to happen," Howard said. "If he wants me to market myself, then I'll do it. I'm not trying to give glory for myself. I'm trying to give glory for Him."

It may take divine intervention for this year's preps-to-pros phenom to make anywhere near the kind of off-the-court money that LeBron makes as a rookie with the Cleveland Cavaliers. That may have as much to do with the fact that James continues to command the media spotlight and among sports' richest endorsement deals, totaling an estimated $135 million. But perhaps more to the point, sports marketing experts are divided over whether Howard's message of faith will be a hard sell for companies looking for a player to pitch their products, no matter the wholesomeness of his religious convictions.

"This is the first time an athlete will be able to overcome what (former San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson) couldn't do," said Sonny Vaccaro, the Reebok executive who has been running the Roundball Classic for the past 40 years. "David was a leader in the crusade of being religious and being a great athlete, but Dwight's plan could work because we're in an era of niche marketing. He's taking a stand saying, 'I'm going to do this and some company is going to buy into it,' and that fact is that these companies have millions and billions of dollars to brand Dwight as their hero.

"If he's as good as I think he will be, he'll be the perfect role model for this segment of the population."

Others aren't so sure.

"Dwight's religious appeal is amplified by the fact that the majority of this country can relate to what he practices, but it would be a mistake to use his celebrity as a bullhorn for his personal beliefs," said Scott Becher, president of Sports & Sponsorships, a sports marketing firm.

"There are some people who are disgusted at a guy like (St. Louis Rams quarterback) Kurt Warner, who after winning the Super Bowl gives glory to Jesus Christ," said Mike Rohrbach, the long-time chaplain for the Seattle SuperSonics who also directs Run to Win Outreach, a youth sports ministry. "They think, 'I don't need to hear about religion when I'm watching the game.' "

Certainly, Howard will hardly be the lone evangelist in the league, as religion and sports seem to go hand and hand for a growing number of players. Each NBA team has a volunteer chaplain who leads non-denominational services before games, and players commonly reference "God," "Christ" or the "Lord" during postgame press conferences.

About 50 percent of the league's players attend at least one service during the season and seemingly every team has a player who considers himself a devout Christian, said former ABA and NBA guard Claude Terry, executive vice president of the Pro Basketball Fellowship, which oversees the NBA teams' chaplains.

"I would hope that Dwight's beliefs wouldn't hurt his chances to market products," Terry said. "I would think that marketers would want to embrace someone with such values. At the same time, I can understand that we live in an age where people are supposed to be tolerant of the choices others make and it could be interpreted that he is imposing his beliefs on them."

In an era in which even a player's image that was as squeaky clean as Kobe Bryant's could be tarnished in mere moments and companies aligned with that player could be faced with the fallout, Howard's profession of Christian ethics could help ease the fears of company officials who have grown weary of their risky alliance with athletes.

"Companies will welcome the good guys," said Dwight Howard Sr., a Georgia state trooper who moonlights as the athletic director for his son's school. "There will be a market for guys who stand by their religious principles."

The topic of religion has heated up off the court in recent weeks. "The Passion of the Christ," a Mel Gibson movie about the final hours of Jesus' life, has generated controversy and almost $300 million at the box office since its Feb. 25 release. The Supreme Court, meanwhile, is hearing the case brought by a California man who challenges that the phrase "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional. The use of the phrase often recited by schoolchildren has tied up courts for more than a decade.

Though more than 75 percent of Americans (160 million) call themselves Christians, high-profile athletes who have professed their faith often have struggled to land endorsement deals. Warner was one of the exceptions, signing more than $1 million in endorsement deals for two consecutive years in 1999 and 2000.

"The choice to talk about faith both helps and hurts in the endorsement world," said Rob Lefko, vice president of marketing for Priority Sports, who negotiated deals for Warner. "There are speaking circuits and companies run by Christian individuals or groups who find that athlete more attractive. And there are also companies who are hoping to appeal to the broadest possible group of people who think the stance on religion is exclusionary."

Howard said he realizes that religion hasn't always been seen as a selling point, having observed one of his role models, Robinson, struggle with airing his religious convictions publicly. Despite playing a major role in two NBA championships in a five-year period, Robinson did not score a slew of national commercials. A host of reasons could have contributed, including a lack of flash on the court, the size of the San Antonio market, as well as his clear religious preference.

"The more mainstream a product is, the more officials at most Fortune 500 companies have an increased sensitivity toward athletes using religion in their off-the-court message," said David Schwab, director of strategic marketing and media for Octagon, which represents many athletes who have been openly religious, including Robinson, former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Orel Hershiser and recently retired tennis player Michael Chang.

"It's clearly about the green when you are talking endorsements," said Carey Casey, president of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. "There is a system that has been followed in the past by athletes when they sign with companies to tone down some of their individuality. Dwight might need to abide by those rules if he wants to maximize his earning potential, but that doesn't mean he still can't dream about talking freely about his faith and signing big deals."

Howard's marketability might also be hindered by two factors -- relative lack of national exposure and lack of what marketers call "Street Cred," the ability to appeal to urban youth who spend their disposable income on athletic shoes and apparel.

Before James was drafted, two of his high school team's games were televised by ESPN, he graced the cover of Sports Illustrated, and he was on his way to becoming a household name. Howard played a game on ESPN, but he's still far from being known on a national level.

As far as his appeal to the urban culture, Howard is not exactly a great fit. Unlike James, who drives a luxury SUV, Howard is intent on keeping his 1984 Crown Victoria his father bought him for $900. Howard's favorite movie? "Finding Nemo." And he freely quotes lines from his favorite characters, Marlin and Dori.

"I know I haven't grown up on the streets and I don't have that bad-guy image like Allen Iverson," Howard said. "My message is different, and I still feel that I can touch a lot of different people."

Vaccaro, for one, believes that Howard can do just that.

"The cold reality is that there is only so much room for the lionized one and LeBron's the man," Vaccaro said. "But Dwight will be fine making his dollar in his niche and people will be very supportive of him and his beliefs."

this is the only daylight i have to throw something up on the blog, so lemme make it quick:

i wish i could've seen sam ho play electric guitar this sunday; it's only cause i'm so lazy and was unable to hear my alarm clock that i got up at 9:00. ah well; maybe in the near future when i'm done w/my sophomore year.

i have found this program which enables you to get revenge against any spammer; SpAmVenger; it enables you send as many copies of an email to any address you want... not that i would use it frequently, but man, it is pretty evilly tempting to use this upon one of those "NEKKID PICS CLICK HERE!" spamming emails... especially when i have clicked on the remove me from the list link to no avail...

12 stones and sanctus real's upcoming sophomore albums don't seem to be satisfying so far... so yea... pillar's sophomore album is gonna be the next one i add to my list... and it seems to be chock full of songs, that i like... just gotta wait til the 15th of june... which brings me to last 2 points...

twolves won on saturday... which is good, but what's better...

pistons are 3-2! i'm hoping they end this tuesday...

god works in mysterious ways...

i awoke at 8:00, but then turned off the alarm and went back to sleep... wake up, it's 11:30(aaacck! my 10:30 pass time went by!) so i get up, quickly turn on the cpu, log in, am just PRAYING as i try to log in and register for my classes and... the system lets me in; praise god, praise god.

i think it's official that every wednesday and saturday morning my legs will BURN, ACHE and HURT... for at least 2 months, so no need for me to repost every wednesday and saturday that OH GOD, PLEASE KILL ME NOW, I'M DYING... if i gain any vertical from this, that'll be good.

old nba news:

twolves are down 1, lakers have won 2 games... oh please, do not lose twolves...

game 2 of the pistons and pacers was just AMAZING... that was just a game of (exciting) defense... ben wallace was quiet offensively, but had 4 blocks and about 8 rebounds; rasheed backed up his risky guarentee by leading the pistons with 5 blocks. and let's give it up to motown's main man of the night, tayshaun prince for BLOCKING miller on a breakaway layup to win the game. (i have made a wallpaper of him blocking the layup, and dl'd the clip and watched it 30+ times :D) if you got bored watching the game you need to get a life... DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS... i hear a lotta comentators take devil's advocate and say the game was horrible offensively, which was why it was great defensively... i say, with the pistons having a grand total of 19 blocks and 13 coming from prince, ben and rasheed alone, how can you say that was NOT terrific defense? the game was bad offensively BECAUSE of the defense. when the lane becomes cluttered with guys and you start getting everything blocked, layups become jumpers become 21 footers outta fear of being rejected, which is why everything turned out bad; you either drove and got rejected or spotted up but the ball was going to rim out. game 3 was also good, cause they just extended their lead, and rasheed actually contributed offensively.

i am waiting for jerm to appear online on aim so i can finally taunt him, as he is a miller/pacers fan :D safe to say at least 3/4 of the ppl in my apartment are pistons fans :D D is awesome to watch, especially when it's detroit bringing the D.

white chicks... the wayan brothers are at it again...

so is ben stiller with DODGEBALL... "NOBODY MAKES ME BLEED MY OWN BLOOD!!!"

i'll be back this weekend; posting in advance cause saturday i'll probably be mooching internet, so no guarentees i'll throw something up on this blog.

my legs hurt today... basically, i actually started the vertical leap program, instead of sitting on my ass... i'm not even sure i did it correctly 100%, but whatever happened, my legs hurt like heck... add the fact that i drive a stick shift, and the atypical davis spring weather at noontime, and i was hurting trying to get back... but if my heart is in it to finish this stuff up, i'm hoping in about 3 months i'll get some 10 in increase in my vertical leaps...

twolves are down 1... kg needs to step it up...

pistons are down 1... sniff... that sucked... considering how at times they fought physical bball today... you could've made a case that either team should've won today, but me being the bwall fan that i am, i wanted the pistons to win; rasheed needs to step it up if they ever want to win; the reason they got him was cause they needed offensive inside presence... however, he is slightly hurt, so i could understand if he can't do stuff... but man, at least try... billups should've been more on the inside on the 2nd half too...

if ben wallace steps up and becomes an offensive force, that'd be awesome... i think maybe larry brown told him he was gonna make ben a better offensive player, to which he responded "cool"... he actually doesn't need it to be considered a threat; he's already such a good defensive player... but it's like icing on the cake... it wouldn't hurt... for right now, though, he seems like just an outside shooter... get some inside presence, and he'll truly be something... he shoots more in practice than anyone else... his work ethic is truly incredible... for instance, he outrebounds more other ppl not due to positioning, but simply cause of his jump... i don't think you'll ever see such a small player play a big man's position and get such good results...

also, what's up w/ppl thinking the east is a more defensive org? lesser points does not = better defense; it's not the entire story; lower shot percentage tells the story. although, give credit where it's due; pistons and pacers are both exceptional defensive teams, and in the west, you of course have the spurs, but the twolves, and sometimes the lakers amongst others can be up there...

here's something to think about; if twolves meets pacers for the finals, that's kevin mchale vs larry bird :D

oh yea; here's the options i've heard that tmac could go to if he chooses to leave magic(from espn; not too sure):
-spurs
-lakers(god forbid! don't tell me shaq speed-dialed him too)
-rockets
-suns

seeing tmac on spurs would be nice, but i'll be honest; spurs are a defensive team, tmac, as fun as he is, is an offensive force who needs to be given the ball to win; granted, sometimes spurs really need that offensive spark, but until tmac can prove he pulls steals like ginobili, give this one a pass... so that leaves rockets and suns... i'd like to see him go to rockets... imagine that combo; yao, steve and tracy... although, amare, shawn and tracy would also be cool to watch...

been lately listening to the steaming samples that sanctus real is putting up for their new album on their site... they're playing full length clips each week... so i'm doing the smart thing and getting as much listening time to see if i am going to be a repeat customer... so far it's sounded good...

remember the good ol days of street fighter 2 champion edition? bison was BR0KEN in that game... i really had no idea, but he is pretty much a 1-touch-and-you're-dead character... if you connect his short scissors kick, you can combo a crouching strong, then link a standing forward onto that everytime... the opponent is dizzied, then do crouching jab times two, standing jab cancelled into short scissors kick, crouching strong, standing forward, it all combos together, opponent is dizzied AGAIN! then just throw for the K.O.

oh yea; phil did me a nice favor and put up pics of his son(aka my nephew) up at a new site of his(you can find the link on the left)... he's awesome... hope someday i will meet his son...

x out the kings...
spurs are gone...
twolves i would root for, the sad part though is that they had to beat the kings to get where they are... but what's done is done.
the laker fans might be getting pretty cocky now; sac's out, and they eliminated the defending champs...
so in reality, i'm pretty much rooting for the pistons... if they lose on thursday, i am praying for a twolves and pacers finals(hey, this was one of my initial hopes for the finals, it could still happen, spurs and pistons and kings w/pistons are out the window though), i don't wanna see nets and lakers though... would be ok w/twolves and pistons. lakers and pacers, though i don't wanna see lakers make the finals(because they'd most likely win, unless of a combination of foster and o'neal can guard shaq and ron artest totally denies kobe), would somewhat be ok with(pacers made it to finals but lost to lakers the last time they did so), as a rematch would be cool.

i need to focus... i can't remember the last time i did that...

man it hurts watching the playoffs for me lately... my eyes burn...

first of all, lakers are up 3-2; they have just won 3 straight, and take it back to la for game 6; the buzzer beater by fisher was just painful to watch, considering the effort the spurs put in the entire game; you may not be a spurs fan, but if you're a laker hater, you cannot deny that out of all the remaining teams left, spurs stand the greatest chance of topping the lakers; if they don't do it, it's gonna be that much harder for them to go; minnesota comes close, but duncan+nesterovich on shaq is much better than kg+candyman. i KNOW the spurs can do it, but the question is, is their heart in it?

pistons are also down 3-2; considering the 3x OT game they faced and the fact that they still lost is a DAGGER... ben wallace played a TOUGH game of defense, but in the end, fouled out... ditto w/rasheed... and i thought the game would be over after martin fouled out...

kings are also down 3-2; don't get me wrong, i like the twolves, but i like the kings more

at least pacers are still tied w/heat...

on a non-baller note, this friday msm fellowship joined w/cef fellowship; gooks and chinks fellowshipping together... it was a beautiful thing... and we need to do this more often; a house divided against itself can't stand. my mind immediately gets drawn back to acts, when stuff just started happening to the disciples, simply because they did two things: they gathered together, and they prayed. that's it; unity, and prayer; these two things will change every christian you know; hearts will change, attitudes will melt, powers will be bestowed... you name it. there's like a TON of fellowships out there, but we gotta reunite together, or it won't work. i wonder if what i suggested about unity and prayer to warren(the mc of the night for msm) had any impact a while back, and whether it led to this.

jerm's up for this friday and saturday...

Fox Trot: H chord on electric guitar

haha... that's good man... that's good... i wish I could play the H chord...

or i used to think:

"how many notes can you play on your violin?"
"depends how badly you play"

may 8th, 2004...

birth of michael tsai... about 4:00 AM

guess who's an uncle to his bro's son man?

weird... it'll take a while to set in... i'm still in shock... and i'm only 20!

(he's prob gonna grow up a twolves fan :D and a vikings fan :D the sad part is that he's probably gonna be a twinkie, like most azns in minnesota, but don't tell phil that's how i feel :D)

i have to make sure i got the date right though; my cell phone can have a funny way of leaving me voice messages a WHILE later.

that's the only thing worth posting today... ONLY thing...

if i can get my bro to send me pics, you can send me an email requesting them; put requests in the comments box plz

i think i'll change what i initially said; from now on, 2 blog/week; 1 blog doesn't really give me a lotta time to do stuff, and in the end, it just leaves me writing down everything i wanna say for the weekend... that wouldn't help... so here we go, w/blog #1 of this week:

go kings :D i want the kings to represent the west for the finals this year; runner up would be spurs, then twolves. i was definitely surprised to see the kings take game 1 vs twolves though; hope it keeps up :D

spurs are up 2... that is awesome... game 1 was awesome... tony parker is a HUGE reason for the spurs' offense... he blows by ppl like you wouldn't believe... and considering that he's 21, he still has room to improve before he gets slow... he shook devean george, constantly runs circles around payton, drives around kobe like it's nothing... defense i don't need to talk about; it's the spurs, not the kings, for crying out loud :D that said, i love the play action that parker and duncan had at the end of 4th qtr game one; they ran a double pick n roll after parker got pissed; my all time favorite play of game 1 :D lakers are going down :D

and how bout the pistons limiting the nets to 56 pts :D ben wallace w/the complete package; 13 pts, 11 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 blocks... whadda player.

i thought about what sam has said, and it's so true; nobody wants to see defense for the nba finals; mark my words, though it wouldn't be boring(to me, sam, and bob, the spurs and pistons fans :D), ppl are afraid of the spurs taking the west and the pistons taking the east... defense ISN'T all boring and work; it can look good; both teams have their flashy streaks; you got parker on the spurs when they're on offense, blowing by ppl, ginobili always drives to the bucket, on the pistons, you have ben wallace just being an AWESOME defensive threat; rebounds, steals and blocks(THE complete package, and at about just 6-6 of ht)... they also now have rasheed, who is an excellant post threat, and of course on offense prince and hamilton are superb... ppl just dickride the espn guys; they may be right most of the time, but they're not right ALL the time. casual fans need to get something straight; defense is NOT all boring, and it's not unnecessary; defense wins your championships. i personally am amazed at the defensive ability ben wallace brings; he is not very tall, but he just outrebounds, steals the ball, and blocks ppl larger than him; that is athletic ability period.

i will have to buy a jump rope this weekend; so i can get on w/my hops program

what else; tues in davis is a great nite to eat out; it's like an azn night:
del taco: tues, 3 tacos are 99 cents. so at $4, you will be full dot com
31 baskin robbins: single scoop is 99 cents on tuesday nights.

phone service has been better in davis; cingular merged w/at&t, so now my phone actually gets reception in my apt :)

we replaced our living room tv, so no more lines across the screen when i'm watching the playoffs :)

favorite teams of mvc1: lilith/strider, red venom/wolverine, striderine, red venom/chun-li, double war machine; i think i would use striderine the best, but red venom/wolverine is up there too. both are just fun steroid teams; rush your opponent down and don't give them a chance to breathe; no duoing though. i've given up on strider/wm not cause i don't like this team, but it seems not as fun as double war machine. lilith/strider is also up there for duos; too fun w/this team, the only weakness is that lilith takes a while to get used to. heck, i've given up on mvc1; it's taken too much of my life away. (who the hell am i taking to w/this post?)

i read back on some of my earlier blogs when i first entered college... man, somewhere between then and now i lost my enthusiasm for college, what the hell happened? i want that again; i sounded so willing to dive into classes and stuff. i really need that attitude now again.

to close this blog, i'll give you 2 links; i'm always looking for new free music software, being the music freak that i am; here's what i've stumbled across:

OTS Turntables
this one's GOOOOODD... you can scratch your .mp3s, .wavs, and cds. change the pitch, tempo, decide when to fade in, when to fade out... the works... and it's free; this one's fun, fun, fun. ever tried playing lifehouse's "hanging by a moment" in reverse while scratching it to a switchfoot "dare you to move" going 20% faster in forward? :D can't save, but i did explain how i recorded stuff a while back. even if you don't scratch well, it's nice for your .mp3s; you can change the pitch and tempo; there's some songs that i've thought could be better if they were slower or had a lower voice; hint bob; you could practice worship songs by using this to change the pitch

Finale Music Notepad
write sheet music... BUT... you don't need to be a music theorist to do this(i know it's been a while for me); it will play the notes you put down as you're going along... this is GREAT for writing songs while you're not close to a guitar... and it will improve how you know music on paper as you're going along... definite recomend from me as well. it's free too; my only gripe is all the notes are played back on piano, but oh well

they should've called this friday's fellowship the "LOL night;" at least that's what it turned into...

but it occurred to me just how ppl seem to think the whole "speaking in tongues" thing is a freaky, unnecessary thing... basically one of the guys stood up and tried to get us to go to prayer hour every mon and thurs at church, saying back then, they had 3 problems when he actually went, and didn't go again til a while:
1)the lights went out
2)some guy started going "pshpshpshpshpsh..."
3)some other person started going "AAAAaaAAaaaaHHHhhhHhH!!!"

i call that prayer... time w/God... well, it's not exactly speaking in tongues, but everyone prays in their own way... everyone is touched by God in dif ways... you got a prob, bring some earplugs...

i goaded jerm into coming up to davis sometime soon; haha... what could he do... i had a counter-strike cd key, and he wanted to play :)

why do i always get a judgemental feeling that some ppl are being flaky, or talking like such and think they're cool, when they're not?

davis essentials: i need to get my swimsuit and goggles(or buy a new swimsuit; our apt complex has a pool), and a jump rope for my hops program... would like a delay pedal sometime in the future... my future pedal setup will be guitar-> dist-> flanger-> delay-> wah-> amp

What kind of asian are you?
(i'm either an azn-american or a fobabee...) maybe a tea egg :) cause i got the darkness going on sometimes :)

spurs and lakers... you KNOW that's going to be a good matchup... i'm anticipating this matchup even more than twolves and kings(hoping the kings win in that one, but they haven't been full strength)... spurs will roXor in 6... at least, that's what's i'm hoping for... i'm hoping they shock the world again by pulling a game 6 upset, just like they did last year... oh man, that was perhaps the best game i've watched last year... when everyone, even me, thought the lakers were going to come back... but guess who maintained their lead in the hornet's nest...

go pistons...

someday, i should watch the rundown... what the clips i saw, it looked good... i should write down all the movies i wanna see somewhere so i don't forget, but then i'm not THAT big into movies, though i like watching them sometimes...

if president bush were black

yyyyyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!!

it's come time to end my week's blog, so til then...

ok, so i only wanted to post once each week... but i couldn't pass this up... it was too funny for words...

great... this week is the 1st time i've become seriously sick at davis... i threw up all over my bedroom carpet in the middle of the night, so it WAS hecka nasty, made worse by the fact that i threw up spaghetti(think of the hard-to-clean-redness)... luckily it took me about $4 to clean MOST of the stains up... i'll thank safeway for the foam carpet cleanser... when will i ever learn... i WANT to say i got sick cause i ate bad spaghetti, but it could have been likely caused by a lack of sleep(have GOT to go to sleep EARLY), plus not covering my bedsheets properly, giving me a cold, headache feeling... don't worry, i'm better now... i basically didn't eat thursday, cause anything i stuffed in my mouth(including just water), i threw up... *sigh* when will i ever learn.

wayne brady is hecka funny... the episode where he's seen on chappelle's show made him look hecka badass, defying his clean-cut image... google "wayne brady" "dave chappelle" and click on the 1st link... you will die hard... "is wayne brady going to have to choke a bitch?"

am i surprised to see ginobili actually TOP this week's top 10 countdown... i didn't think he'd make it, considering that there were 2-3 kobe replays of his doing clutch plays, and 1 of shaq... but he's so far got 70% of the vote... are ppl seriously taking ginobili for real now? the replay had him drive by 3 grizzlies and dunk on pau... sweeet... there was one on the countdown too where dunleavy had a SWEET no look pass behind to jrich for the dunk... spurs are most likely going to win against the grizzlies in 5, maybe in 4.

chris mullin is now vice prez of warriors... maybe we can expect GOOD decisions from our management now? i am praying and hoping hard... warriors have had a history of the most stupidest management decisions... case in point, we had cwebb and spre once and actually made it into the playoffs... and last year, we ALMOST made it... only to start from scratch this year... well, can't blame everything on management... damp's prob going to leave on his own, so we'll need another good center... foyle's good already, but we'll prob need a backup... gonna miss damp... above-average center, we were really lucky to have him... a good defensive player.

oatmeal contains so much dietary fiber... about 1/4 of the recommended daily serving... this is quality carbs at its best... i decided to just buy a large can of that instead of the usual cereal i get... and the real stuff(not the instant oatmeal with the seasonings mixed in) is so filling... oatmeal sweetened with dark brown sugar is up there with orowheat's whole wheat bread as one of the better forms of carbs... definitely...

i have a little pet peeve with college freshmen in love... while i admit, it always varies from ppl to ppl, it just seems like when they're like that, they're just rushing into things... and if they're both christians, yet talk about each other all the time, then IMO that makes it seem like they don't have the right focus... in fact, i think i have a LOT of pet peeves... this is just one of them...

sometimes i wish i could swear in God's name so that i would actually carry out what i wished i could do... but i am afraid that i am going to break my promise, and then, where does that lie for me?

i'm out of ideas at the moment, so...

that's all from me for this week.