Cheer Up!

My friend, Marie, whom I've known for years, is living in the Philippines. She IM me that she didn't do so well on the CPA (Certified Public Accountant) exam last weekend. The exam took 1000 passers out of 8000 examinees. I am sorry about that.

However, what I felt sorry most was I thought she was joking again like last time she told me she failed (which I was mad at that time because I didn't think it's funny.) Then she told me this time, the result was really final. Also, she was upset and crying when she was by herself. I felt so bad and told her I would call her at her house right away. And took a couple of minutes to chat with her, hopefully she would feel better. I knew she wouldn't in a brief time, but I still tried, and just let her know I'm on her side all the time.

Cheer up, Marie. We've all been through this. Everything's gonna be alright...

Goodbye, Jason Williams!

[Years in Memphis Grizzly (2001-2005)]

Jason Williams，暱稱 White Chocolate (白色巧克力)或 J-Will。最近宣布退休了，結束了他9年的NBA生涯。他可以說是影響我打籃球風格最重要的人物之一。

很多人都說J-Will是天才球員，能創造出很多令人意想不到的動作。但其實，J-Will在光鮮華麗的球技背後，總是自己在牆壁面前練傳球：藉由牆壁的反彈，他可以用手掌傳球，用手臂、手背傳球，甚至反手傳球！他就是這樣每天不間斷地自我練習，曾在雜誌上看過他在國王隊的好友- Chris Webber說：當他去找J-Will時總是看到JW在練傳球，看了連他自己都覺得無聊，而J-Will卻樂此不疲。

[圖：在Sacramento Kings (1998-2001)的哥倆好：J-Will and C. Webber]

從大學的時候，我就開始看剛出道的J-Will打球，他的球風實在令人賞心悅目。好幾次，跟大學同學一起看NBA十大好球，他利用寬闊視野展現出的美妙傳球或得分往往都能被選入當週好球，而且看到的時候，我們還會不禁大聲叫好！心裡有一種電流通過的感動--怎麼能想出這招啊？？太驚人了！(最恐怖的一次是在新秀明星賽，他用『背後手肘傳球』....手肘耶！而且是在背後！Incredible！)

[Years in Sacramento Kings (1998-2001)]

從此以後，在我的籃球偶像名單上，除了 Pippen, Jordan外，就是J-Will了(後來又加入了D-Wade)。不論是他的No-Look Pass，或是假動作傳球真上籃，每一招我都想學。也因此，我常常獨自在籃球場花了很多時間自己練習那些招式，不論是對著牆壁，或對著籃框。因為只要練習久了，就是我的，在比賽的時候我有機會就能用得出來。也真的，後來不論是在大學的全場比賽中或是後來在馬尼拉固定每週打全場的友誼賽中，有時候我就會神來之筆，用出了背後傳球，讓隊友輕鬆得分，自己則得到一次助攻(assist)。那種美妙，一直以來讓我覺得：自己能不能得分是其次，重要的是：傳出了一次絕妙的好球讓隊友得分或是讓球隊得勝更能讓我激動興奮！

[Years in Miami Heat (2005-2008)]

J-Will的球風，深深影響了我，讓我總是覺得：打球若是死版版的打，若永遠是一致的動作得分，一樣的標準傳球是非常無趣的。所以我總想讓自己在賽事中增加樂趣，也讓整個球隊的士氣提升，就常常會用一些背後傳球、向後傳、假左傳真右傳等；感覺最好的時候就是假動作把對方球員騙到撲錯方向，又是一次輕鬆我隊得分，所以打全場的籃球，總是能讓我享受Teamwork（缺點則是有時候會出現不必要的失誤...），因為若沒有團隊合作，贏球的機率將會少之又少。所以後來在馬尼拉打室內全場時，即使我身高算是隊中數一數二的，但隊友都習慣讓我當PG-控球後衛 (其實我之前最擅長的位置是SF-小前鋒)，因為我的控球、傳球基本動作都還不錯，隊友籃板抓到球丟給我快攻效率滿好的，而且我在動態進攻中常常可以抓到好機會傳出一個妙傳，隊友常總是讓我能好好享受扮演即興發揮的角色。回想起來，好久沒有跑全場了...當時在馬尼拉打全場時，心態成熟了、經驗也豐富了，大部分的隊友也都是好的沒話說，當時應該是我最享受籃球的好時光吧（大學時代次之）。I miss the old time in Celebrity Club Court. I miss J-Will. And, I miss basketball very much....

[Season 2005-2006 NBA Championship. A fantastic year]

最後，請看J-Will的精彩NBA精華........ 相信你也會嘆為觀止：怎麼有人能這樣打球啊！？

Jason Williams Profile

Born: 1975/11/18
Height: 6-1 / 1,85
Weight: 180 lbs. / 81,6 kg.
College: Florida
Years Pro: 10

Jason Williams Profile (NBA.com)
HEAT Photogalleries 2005-06 (NBA Championship)
HEAT: HEAT Roster 2006-07
Wikipedia: J-Will Profile

At Outback, They Know Beef...

August.11.2007. Saturday. 我們一行四人終於到Makati去一嘗朝思暮想已久的Outback Steak。原本8 pm還想去馬尼拉文化中心觀賞『女子12樂坊』，但是因為想要慢慢品嚐Outback的美味，因此還是放棄了那場音樂會。

我們四人都點 Original Slow Roasted Prime Rib，它是把12 ounce (340 g) Angus牛排浸泡8小時後，再用精準的爐火烤出（A traditional slow roast of top choice Prime Rib for this long time favorite. Hand carved to order and trimmed just right）。看到網路上有些人說在台灣吃Outback的經驗都是即使點了Medium Rare，牛排還是覺得過乾。吃以前我也有一點這種擔心與疑慮，但是上菜後發現，我們的牛排完全沒有太乾這種問題，而且鮮嫩多汁火候恰到好處（有帶血），這樣到底是台灣的Outback爐火控制的問題還是如何呢？無論如何，除了有點昂貴以外(原價1495 p，加點 bottomless ice tea 95 p，並加稅12%與服務費10%後，約1900 p)，很滿意與滿足的一餐！

正餐前的黑麥麵包，四人一口就吃完一盤，可口！可續盤，奶油也是好貨。因為竟然有兩人還沒誇獎麵包就先對奶油讚不絕口！@@

南瓜湯或Salad自選一樣。Salad 有 Caeser or House Garden Salad可以二選一。

My Order. Side dishes: Garlic Mashed Potato & Jacket Potato. No doubt they're hot and delicious! Jacket Potato is totally great!

Vinson's Order. Side dishes: Fresh Veggies & Rice Pilaf.

Steven's Order. Side dishes: Jacket Potato & Fresh Veggies.

Didn't take a pic for James' Order. Because we were in a hurry to take a bite. Heh heh....

Our table's waitress Xan. 漂亮，友善，英文說得很好。有Natalie Portman的感覺。連帳單上都細心地寫上： It's a pleasure to serve you. Thank you! ~ Xan。所以最後照一張相片當作compliment. 還有與Xan合照是當天的highlight. :)


Outback Steakhouse Official Site Menus: US, Ph, Jp

Peninsula Hotel Nielsen's Dinner Buffet Wins.

[Pic from The Peninsula Manila Website]

July.12.2007，終於去了我朝思慕想的Peninsula Hotel (半島酒店) 吃Dinner buffet。為何如此難得？是因為全世界Peninsula只有7家，分別是在HK、NY、Chicago、Beverly Hills、Bangkok、 Beijing、Manila。Tokyo將在 September 2007 開幕，Shanghai 是2009。













Peninsula Manila是在繁華的Makati市中心，我們在 6:30 pm 進場，此時只有兩桌人，環境非常安靜、燈光非常優雅，氣氛比 Shangri-la Hotel 好很多。Buffet料理的種類雖然不及 Shangri-la 繁多，但是採取精品制，菜色精緻特別，且較沒有便宜菜色來打混。而價格比Shangri-la便宜許多，今年母親節在Shangri-la吃午餐需1600+ p，比預料的1300+ p貴很多。而此次dinner buffet 的消費，只需1100 p，Very reasonable。














Roast Beef (烤牛肉)，inside is Very Rare. The chef will put on a hot plate to cook (or not to). So you can choose Rare, Medium Rare, Medium Well or Well Done. Whatever you want.














Mixed Sashimi : Fresh and delicious. The arrangement was very well too.














Dessert bar : Many kinds of fruits, puddings, and cakes. Heard some cake was a beauty. But didn't try any because I was too full to touch them.


















Icecream Bar : Two kinds of icecreams. Put as more chocolate, condensed milk and honey dips as you like. The same as above, I was too full to try any.

This meal was a big satisfaction. So as you wanna know, if I want to choose between Peninsula's and Shangri-la's buffet, I'll take Peninsula's. Better price, better food, better dining environment. But if you favor in seafood more, going to Shangri-la would be a better choice for ya.

[Travels] 新天堂樂園 - PAGUPUD

這次7/18- 23旅行的行程遍經 Laoag (佬沃)，Vigan (維干 - 西班牙古城鎮)，最後兩天則在美麗的 Pagupud (帕古布)海灘悠閒度過。Pagupud距離Laoag往北兩小時公車車程，距離Luzon本島之最北端Mayraira Point不遠，當然，這裡距離台灣的距離已經非常近了，要是能有飛機能直飛的話，也許30 mins就能到達。

沒有污染的Pagupud，未有太多人為開發或破壞，保持了最自然的風景與白色海灘。來到海灘邊，我就是放鬆心情，當一個Beach Boy。早上一起床，打開房門，放眼望去就是美麗的清晨海灘，配合著規律的海浪聲，就有一種『幸福』的感覺。吃完早餐後，坐下來讀我的小說『Timeline』，偶爾抬頭看看近在眼前的海景。讀累了，就到沙灘前的躺椅聽著海潮之聲打個小盹。下午，拿了一條大毛巾到海灘上曬日光浴，然後一個人到海灘上散步，同時也漫步在清澈的海水中，拿著相機記錄下這新天堂樂園的景色，甚麼都不多想，這才是享受的生活！
喜歡這裡清幽的環境與天然的美景，我可以在這裡住上一個月也不會厭倦，希望我還有機會再次探訪這鮮為人知的人間仙境！

[Travels] Sunset In Boracay

Boracay is a world famous island of the Philippines. It's a fantastic spot for tourists. It's my 2nd time being there within 4 months. Sounds crazy huh? But I always dreamed of being back when I was staying in Manila. My classmate Tussey even lived on Boracay for a whole year. The life of Boracay has no exact schedule, no rush on anything. All you have to do is relax. Forget your duty in the fast pace city. Slow yourself down. Just let your body and mind enjoy in this tropical paradise. If you've never been to Boracay. Well, just try it. It is a must go! Trust me on this.

(All 3 photos taken by Jeff on June 10th.2007)

[Travels] Boracay + Great Milkshakes = HEAVEN ! !

[Pic by Jeff while sailing.]

在Boracay第二天早上，早上恰巧經過Jonah's Fruitshake.號稱是''The Best fruitshake in the island''.曾有人介紹過，聽說料好實在、味道濃稠。果不其然，點了店員推薦的Mango Melon，絕配！這兩種水果味道互相調和，居然如此順口，以前從沒有嘗試過。後來朋友喝完後，先行離座去海灘踱步照相去，我忍不住地再點了一杯，這次點了Milkshake一人獨飲。

驚豔！濃厚的奶香＋恰到好處的甜味，搭配上眼前一大片 Boracay White Beach 的美景，心裡只想著：Oh yeah.... this is HEAVEN...... Welcome to paradise.....

想起一首Queen的歌應景： HEAVEN FOR EVERYONE.
同時想起 Made in Heaven 這張專輯的封面，我也很想學Freddie Mercury (Vocal of Queen)振臂高呼啊！YEAH！

This could be heaven
This could be heaven
This could be heaven for everyone

In these days of cool reflection
You come to me and everything seems alright
In these days of cold affections
You sit by me - and everythings fine

This could be heaven for everyone
This world could be fed, this world could be fun
This could be heaven for everyone
This world could be free, this world could be one

In this world of cool deception
Just your smile can smooth my ride
These troubled days of cruel rejection, hmm
You come to me, soothe my troubled mind

Yeah, this could be heaven for everyone
This world could be fed, this world could be fun
This could be heaven for everyone, yeah
This world should be free, this world could be one
We should bring love to our daughters and sons
Love, love, love, this could be heaven for everyone
You know that
This could be heave for everyone
This could be heave for everyone

Listen - what people do to their souls
They take their lives - destroy their goals
Their basic pride and dignity
Is stripped and torn and shown to pity
When this should be heaven for everyone

Queen - Heaven For eveyone MV