Another relaxing summer day today. I got to sleep in for 11 hours which was a nice thing for me. I stayed home for majority of the day. Registered for the Chinese SAT II Test with listening and I will be taking it November 7, 2009 at Valley Christian High School. It is approaching and I will have to be ready for it.
My mom and dad will buy our plane tickets to and from Taiwan in the next few days. It appears that we will be leaving Sunday August 23 and come back Monday September 7 on Labor Day. With us going out of town, we have a problem with our dog Rusty. We have found the perfect solution to where he will go. He will go to my friend Kevin's house and stay for 2 weeks. We will pay them and will provide orders such as when to walk him and feed him. So that will save us some money from bringing him to the kennel.
Summer is so relaxing. I have so much free time and I will take advantage of that. My dog's birthday is coming up on Thursday, then my mom's on Friday, then July 4th on Saturday.
SUMMER TIME
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
My Summer
Today was a really nice summer day. I got to sleep in on this Monday and didn't have anything. I first filled out some forms for my physical for Philmont and my blue cards for playing sports. Then, headed to REI and bought some final stuff for Philmont. I will pack next week for the 2 week long odyseey. I took things slowly and relaxing and on my own pace today. I cleaned up my room for the most part and it is pretty neat.
These next two weeks, I will relax and just rest. I might even go to some cross country workouts later this week or next week. Then, it's Philmont from July 12th to 27th @ New Mexico. It will be a tought 2 week backpacking trip and won't be easy. Will have August off and lots of free time. Will go camping with my family on August 7-9 and go to a L.A. Sparks game on August 11. Finally, going to Taiwan from August 23 to September 6. School starts September 10th so I will have a few days to change my time schedule. My family and I are thinking what we will do with Rusty, our dog.
It will be a fun summer but I will have to study for chinese SAT II and complete Health online. I will do some studying for next year courses too. summer time is so cool.
These next two weeks, I will relax and just rest. I might even go to some cross country workouts later this week or next week. Then, it's Philmont from July 12th to 27th @ New Mexico. It will be a tought 2 week backpacking trip and won't be easy. Will have August off and lots of free time. Will go camping with my family on August 7-9 and go to a L.A. Sparks game on August 11. Finally, going to Taiwan from August 23 to September 6. School starts September 10th so I will have a few days to change my time schedule. My family and I are thinking what we will do with Rusty, our dog.
It will be a fun summer but I will have to study for chinese SAT II and complete Health online. I will do some studying for next year courses too. summer time is so cool.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Summer Camp
I'm back from my Boy Scouts Summer Camp that took place Sunday to Saturday at Cherry Valley, Catalina Island. It was a fun 6 days away from home and I did many activities and finished three merit badges. I challenged myself and did things that I never thought I could've done. I went away from the technology and the city lights and my phone was turned off the whole camp meaning no distractions. But I had lots of fun and I will describe the highlights of each day.
Sunday
Sunday was the travel day as we all met at the Queen Mary at Long Beach and then we got our gear onto the boat and we took off. I didn't really feel like going as my foot was aching from the hike last week. We took the Catalina Express instead of the Catalina Classic Cruise as the Cruise was being fixed. The Express took under a hour but it was really rocky. They showed the U.S. Open for Golf and I watched part of it. I almost threw up. After arriving at Two Harbors, we hiked 1.3 miles to Cherry Valley. Then, we got all the orrientation of the camp and where everything is. Our campsite was the 1st one which was good compared to last time we came in 2005. We had the last campsite. There was an opening campfire Sunday night.
Monday
1st day of camp. We took our swim test and we swam in the ocean water. It was really salty and it was a bit tough for me but I passed it. I was too scared to breathe underwater. In the afternoon, we had our merit badge classes. I had Rowing, Orrienteering, and Wilderness Survival. It was a pretty easy day. I showered after the swim test and that felt good. At night, I had my orrientation for the Discovery Scuba Program where I watched this video on Scuba Diving.
Tuesday
We had merit badge classes in the morning and it was mostly all going over the requirements. Stayed onshore for rowing. Then in the afternoon, I went to the Scuba Locker. My gear was over there and I was going to do my dive. The instructor helped me and two other scouts from Oakland put on our gear. It felt tight at first and heavy but we went into the water. There, we practiced some basic techniques such as hand signals, clearing water from our eyes, purging, etc. I was nervous by then and didn't feel great going down there. But after a while, I decided I was ready for it and I went down with the group. We went underwater and stayed underwater for about 20 to 30 minutes as we dove down to 40 ft. I brought a waterproof camera and took pictures of things with it. Saw this globe and wheel down there along with many fishes like the gerabaldies and this big fish that swam back. It was so cool underwater. I breathed perfectly and nothing went wrong. I was so happy afterwards. It was so cool, 1st time doing it. I won't forget the experience of scuba. But I did it and overcame my fear.
Wednesday
Wednesday was the high adventure day. Our troop 693 was assigned to canoe/kayak to emearld Bay and then hike 3 miles back to Cherry Valley. The older scouts were assigned the kayaks and I paired up with Ricky. We went onto the open water and kayaked. We went pretty fast but had to wait for the war canoes as it was moving at a slower pace. Soon, got to Emearld Bay and then we played in the water for 2 hours. Then, we hiked back along the dirt road which was pretty simple. Nothing much more to say. Stopped a few times for water. It was an easy hike. Afterwards, I took my third shower of the week to keep clean. There was a commisioner campfire and there were skits. Our troop had a nice skit, run on and yell. I slept pretty well again on the comfortable mattress bunk.
Thursday
Back to normal schedule day. We had merit badge classes in the morning. In rowing, I finally rowed out of the rowboat and it wasn't easy. We went out to the end of Cherry Cove and I rowed back in. I had some trouble in the beginning getting control but with help of my row mates, I started moving back into shore. During free time, I wandered around and didn't do anything. Went on the mine tour and got my beads there along with the sea lab and nature trail. It was quite interesting listening to those stories of the mine. We played some highland games during the night and we all banged things making drum noises. Then, went on the honor trail in which they told us about our honor to god, country, and ourselves. That night, I spent the night out in the wild as part of the requirements for wilderness survival merit badge. I built my shelter earlier in the day and put lots of brush on top of lots of logs. It was a pretty good night sleep although I fell alot downhill and hit Hojo in the head. There were 33 of us that slept outside. It was a great experience to spend a night out in the wild. Also, we were informed that Michael Jackson died as there had been crazy rumors out there. I was really shocked.
Friday
Last official full day of camp Friday. Finished up the merit badges in the morning. I got a complete in rowing, orrienteering, and wilderness survival. In free time, I first went rowing as Hojo had to complete the requirement. Then, snorkeled for a few minutes but water was too cold. Then, I decided to go small boat sailing with the two Edwards. We boarded a sail ship and our troop friend took us out of the cove. It was scary as the boat rocked back and forth. It went on one side as we were going but I learned that was normal. We had to switch sides often to go with the wind. It was really fun though and a cool experience. I took some pictures. At night, I was honored as a warrior, second time people coming to CCV. There was also the closing campfire.
Saturday
The travel day back home. We packed up our stuff and hiked back to Two Harbors. There, we said our final goodbyes to the wonderful camp staff. Then boarded the Catalina Classic Cruise ship and headed for Long Beach. I slept on the 2 hour boat ride. I got home in the afternoon to find so many things had happened. One of my friends grandma passed away last Sunday, Michael Jackson died, and other news.
Anyways, summer camp was really fun. It was my best one yet. I did so many fun activities, kayaking, rowing, snorkeling, scuba diving, small boat sailing, and much more. It was a nice 7 days away from home with no distractions. All my pressure from the school year were released. Cherry Valley @ Catalina Island was soooooooooo fun.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Backpacking Trip
Yesterday, my Philmont crew and I went to San Gorgino Mountain, just south of Big Bear, for our last Philmont Training hike. We are going to Philmont from July 12th to July 27th next month. Anyway, it was about a 1 hour 15 minute drive from Cerritos to that area. Getting into the trailhead wasn't easy as we had to drive through this dirt road full of rocks. It was rocky and bumpy, back and forth. We were at 6,000 feet elevation.
We started our hike. Our plan was to hike 7 miles up to 10,000 feet to our campground and view the peaks there but we soon abandonded tht plan. Instead, we hiked only 4.5 miles for numerous of reasons. First, it was all uphill. And we were at a high altitude, meaning we would be short on breath. We took a break every 5 minutes. Second, one of our adults had a bummed knee that was still healing. So we took it easy for him. Third, nobody had a mood for the hike. We all were very tired and didn't have our legs. But we made it all uphill to our campsite, taking 5 hours total including lunch.
Our campground was at Jackstraw Springs and we set up camp. It wasn't too bad as there were pretty good campsites. I tented with Eric P. and that was pretty cool. We filtered water from the nearby spring and cooked dinner. It was freeze dry food so what we had to do was only boil water. We went to sleep at around 9 PM after playing some cards.
Today it was all downhill. It was really easy, 4.5 miles coming down. We had less stops and completed it in just over 2 hours. That was cool as we got home around after noon. The bad part was it was really rocky and I kind of sprained my ankle again. I was breaking in my new boots and used them. Really comfortable. My right ankle wasn't 100 % as I sprained it last week and I turned it again today. I also turned my left ankle a bit but that isn't as bad. I will be soar for a few days. I was really stinky and came home and showered. Did that feel good.
Tomorrow at 11, I am leaving for Catalina Island for boy scouts summer camp at Cherry Valley. It will be very fun as it is close to the ocean. I will be staying there for 6 nights and come back on Saturday. So no blogs for 6 days. I have to finish packing my stuff. I will take lots of pictures at Catalina Island, my second time there.
We started our hike. Our plan was to hike 7 miles up to 10,000 feet to our campground and view the peaks there but we soon abandonded tht plan. Instead, we hiked only 4.5 miles for numerous of reasons. First, it was all uphill. And we were at a high altitude, meaning we would be short on breath. We took a break every 5 minutes. Second, one of our adults had a bummed knee that was still healing. So we took it easy for him. Third, nobody had a mood for the hike. We all were very tired and didn't have our legs. But we made it all uphill to our campsite, taking 5 hours total including lunch.
Our campground was at Jackstraw Springs and we set up camp. It wasn't too bad as there were pretty good campsites. I tented with Eric P. and that was pretty cool. We filtered water from the nearby spring and cooked dinner. It was freeze dry food so what we had to do was only boil water. We went to sleep at around 9 PM after playing some cards.
Today it was all downhill. It was really easy, 4.5 miles coming down. We had less stops and completed it in just over 2 hours. That was cool as we got home around after noon. The bad part was it was really rocky and I kind of sprained my ankle again. I was breaking in my new boots and used them. Really comfortable. My right ankle wasn't 100 % as I sprained it last week and I turned it again today. I also turned my left ankle a bit but that isn't as bad. I will be soar for a few days. I was really stinky and came home and showered. Did that feel good.
Tomorrow at 11, I am leaving for Catalina Island for boy scouts summer camp at Cherry Valley. It will be very fun as it is close to the ocean. I will be staying there for 6 nights and come back on Saturday. So no blogs for 6 days. I have to finish packing my stuff. I will take lots of pictures at Catalina Island, my second time there.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
First Day of Summer
Today feels like a weekend day. It feels like a Saturday. Yesterday felt like a Friday. But its summer time and theres no school anymore. I slept in today and got just under 10 hours. I am starting to get relaxed now.
Yesterday, I got a haircut. I chose #3 and now have less than an inch of hair now. I am practically bald but its ok, its summer time. Besides, I want short hair going into summer camp and Philmont.
This morning, I went swimming. It was a hot day so I decided to go swim laps at CPE. Peter let me in as it was supposed to be adults only and I swam 60 laps. It was a really good workout. Also, it was my first time in a pool since last August. This afternoon, I also played some basketball at Friendship Park. My friends and I first played a game til 50 counting by 1's and then we played some juniors. So I got a lot of exercise today.
Going on a 16 mile one night hike to San Gorgonio Mountain tomorrow in the San Bernardino Mountains. It will be tough but its the last training hike before going to Philmont in July. Still have to pack away some things.
Yesterday, I got a haircut. I chose #3 and now have less than an inch of hair now. I am practically bald but its ok, its summer time. Besides, I want short hair going into summer camp and Philmont.
This morning, I went swimming. It was a hot day so I decided to go swim laps at CPE. Peter let me in as it was supposed to be adults only and I swam 60 laps. It was a really good workout. Also, it was my first time in a pool since last August. This afternoon, I also played some basketball at Friendship Park. My friends and I first played a game til 50 counting by 1's and then we played some juniors. So I got a lot of exercise today.
Going on a 16 mile one night hike to San Gorgonio Mountain tomorrow in the San Bernardino Mountains. It will be tough but its the last training hike before going to Philmont in July. Still have to pack away some things.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Last Day of School
School's out!!!! It's summer time now. The long 10 month school year ended today. It has been a very fast freshmen year of high school and it has been tough. The journey isn't easy. But I made it through and got experience on how high school is like. And now, we get over 2 months off to relax and enjoy and then start studying again.
Today was also the last day of Finals. My 2 finals today were history and math. For Mr. Wat's test, it was again confusing and I got a 256/350 but it didn't really matter much to my grade as I had a 97. Mr. Wat also gave us a 55 pt curve. Boy Mr. Wat is really nice. He curves every test. It has been fun in his class this year for MUN. We also saw the music video Mr. Wat made for us for the pennys for patient drive. He changed the lyrics of Let it Rock and included all of us. Really cool. It should be posted on youtube soon.
In math, the final was 50 questions but 500 points, meaning each question is 10 points. But having a multiple choice math test is good as you can just plug the answers into the equation to see if it is true if you are stuck. Overall, I don't think it was too bad. I didn't understanding one question on the bearing but its ok. So after that, school ended. I came home and relaxed as summer vacation began.
This freshmen year was like a roller coaster ride. It had its highs and lows. High school is a lot diffrent from middle school as you have to study everyday for quizes or openers (math). You cannot slack off and that's wht I did the first part of the year. But after a few months, I finally picked it up and realized my mistakes and tried to fix them. Some were fixed and some are still in the work of progress. But sophmore year is where it all counts now towards college. First semester, I had a 3.3 GPA and was on the freshmen basketball team. Second semester, I played golf in the spring and should finish with a 3.5 GPA as of rite now. It will only go up as I'm not sure how math will end up. It is on the border. I realized sports take up a lot of time as you have to be dedicated and devoted to it. It can take away your study time. I joined Key Club but didn't really do anything as I was filled with many activities. I had a lot of fun this year with all the activites there are in high school such. Although my grades weren't up to my expectations, this year was a learning year. It has been Soooooo fast. I still remember the first day of school where I kept my eye on my schedule the whole time.
Next year sophmore year, I will probably do Cross Country and not do basketball anymore. It doesn't seem right for me. In the spring, I will still do golf as I am working on my golf game rite now. I will practice a lot in the summer and will try to attend as many workouts for cross country as possible. Also, I saw my preliminary schedule for next year. It will be full of honors class so I will have to be ready. Also, I want to join some clubs and participate more. Next year will be sophmore year but I don't want to think about school right now.
So its summer time and I will use the time off to do a few things. First, going to summer camp for boy scouts from this Sunday to Saturday at catalina island, Cherry Valley. I will do some scuba diving and some kayaking, canoeing, and lots of water activites. Then after a 2 week break, I will be heading to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico on a 2 week backpacking trip. It's summer time and I will be packed.
The Lakers Victory Parade and Celebration was pretty cool today. They paraded down Figueroa from STAPLES Center to the Coliseum. There were over 250,000 people there todaym 95,000 in the Coliseum. It was all Lakers fever everywhere. The cool part was that they set up the Laker floor in the field. Lakers are the 2009 champions and will repeat next year...
Summer time
Today was also the last day of Finals. My 2 finals today were history and math. For Mr. Wat's test, it was again confusing and I got a 256/350 but it didn't really matter much to my grade as I had a 97. Mr. Wat also gave us a 55 pt curve. Boy Mr. Wat is really nice. He curves every test. It has been fun in his class this year for MUN. We also saw the music video Mr. Wat made for us for the pennys for patient drive. He changed the lyrics of Let it Rock and included all of us. Really cool. It should be posted on youtube soon.
In math, the final was 50 questions but 500 points, meaning each question is 10 points. But having a multiple choice math test is good as you can just plug the answers into the equation to see if it is true if you are stuck. Overall, I don't think it was too bad. I didn't understanding one question on the bearing but its ok. So after that, school ended. I came home and relaxed as summer vacation began.
This freshmen year was like a roller coaster ride. It had its highs and lows. High school is a lot diffrent from middle school as you have to study everyday for quizes or openers (math). You cannot slack off and that's wht I did the first part of the year. But after a few months, I finally picked it up and realized my mistakes and tried to fix them. Some were fixed and some are still in the work of progress. But sophmore year is where it all counts now towards college. First semester, I had a 3.3 GPA and was on the freshmen basketball team. Second semester, I played golf in the spring and should finish with a 3.5 GPA as of rite now. It will only go up as I'm not sure how math will end up. It is on the border. I realized sports take up a lot of time as you have to be dedicated and devoted to it. It can take away your study time. I joined Key Club but didn't really do anything as I was filled with many activities. I had a lot of fun this year with all the activites there are in high school such. Although my grades weren't up to my expectations, this year was a learning year. It has been Soooooo fast. I still remember the first day of school where I kept my eye on my schedule the whole time.
Next year sophmore year, I will probably do Cross Country and not do basketball anymore. It doesn't seem right for me. In the spring, I will still do golf as I am working on my golf game rite now. I will practice a lot in the summer and will try to attend as many workouts for cross country as possible. Also, I saw my preliminary schedule for next year. It will be full of honors class so I will have to be ready. Also, I want to join some clubs and participate more. Next year will be sophmore year but I don't want to think about school right now.
So its summer time and I will use the time off to do a few things. First, going to summer camp for boy scouts from this Sunday to Saturday at catalina island, Cherry Valley. I will do some scuba diving and some kayaking, canoeing, and lots of water activites. Then after a 2 week break, I will be heading to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico on a 2 week backpacking trip. It's summer time and I will be packed.
The Lakers Victory Parade and Celebration was pretty cool today. They paraded down Figueroa from STAPLES Center to the Coliseum. There were over 250,000 people there todaym 95,000 in the Coliseum. It was all Lakers fever everywhere. The cool part was that they set up the Laker floor in the field. Lakers are the 2009 champions and will repeat next year...
Summer time
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Finals Day 2
Well 4 down 2 to go for the finals...
Took my final for English and Biology today. They were both TOUGHHHHHH. Bio was really hard, especially the back page. I hope there is a curve. For bio, i hav the same feeling about every test of nervousness.
In english, I took Romeo and Juliet final. It wasn't too bad as only the quote portion were the toughest. The vocab wasn't too bad actually.
I got charged 4 freakin bucks for my biology book corners being bended in. So thats how they make money. Looking at it, it is a good donation to the school and district, who are short on money. Theres no more summer school for free. But that doesn't apply to me as I'm taking health online.
Last day of freshmen year tomorrow. It has been a journey full of up and down. Just math and history test left.
Time to study a bit more.
Took my final for English and Biology today. They were both TOUGHHHHHH. Bio was really hard, especially the back page. I hope there is a curve. For bio, i hav the same feeling about every test of nervousness.
In english, I took Romeo and Juliet final. It wasn't too bad as only the quote portion were the toughest. The vocab wasn't too bad actually.
I got charged 4 freakin bucks for my biology book corners being bended in. So thats how they make money. Looking at it, it is a good donation to the school and district, who are short on money. Theres no more summer school for free. But that doesn't apply to me as I'm taking health online.
Last day of freshmen year tomorrow. It has been a journey full of up and down. Just math and history test left.
Time to study a bit more.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Finals Day 1
Today was the 1st of 3 days of Finals at our school. I only had one final today, and it was Spanish. The result shouldn't be too bad but the hardest part was the culture section. Also, not sure if I got the saber and conocer stuff correct. O well. I should do pretty well on spanish.
Finals have the good side and bad side. First the good side is we get out of school at 12:00 PM and so we have the whole afternoon to ourselves. Its probably cuz we can study. Bad side is your final grade will be impacted on this final.
Tomorrow, I have Biology and English Final. Those two will be tough and will make or break my grade. I have been studying all afternoon and will continue tonight. I will suck it up and stay up to study as only a few days of school left.
Man those knucklehead Laker fans rioting last night were a huge disgrace. That's not how Laker fans should act after a championship. They didn't celebrate with dignity as they destroyed cars, looted stores, etc. I am bummed that I can't make the parade on Wednesday but will be able to catch the final part of it via TV when I get out of school at 12.
Wish me luck on my Finals the next few days.
Finals have the good side and bad side. First the good side is we get out of school at 12:00 PM and so we have the whole afternoon to ourselves. Its probably cuz we can study. Bad side is your final grade will be impacted on this final.
Tomorrow, I have Biology and English Final. Those two will be tough and will make or break my grade. I have been studying all afternoon and will continue tonight. I will suck it up and stay up to study as only a few days of school left.
Man those knucklehead Laker fans rioting last night were a huge disgrace. That's not how Laker fans should act after a championship. They didn't celebrate with dignity as they destroyed cars, looted stores, etc. I am bummed that I can't make the parade on Wednesday but will be able to catch the final part of it via TV when I get out of school at 12.
Wish me luck on my Finals the next few days.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
NBA Finals: Lakers vs. Magic Game 5
LAKERS ARE 2009 NBA WORLD CHAMPIONS.................................................
The goal coming into this season was redemption after Lakers lost game 6 to the Boston Celtics in a humuliting game by 39 pts. So at Day one, Lakers' goal were to win the Larry O'Brien Trophy this year. Mission Acomplished after Lakers defeated Orlando Magic in Orlando 99-86 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.
Orlando started the game strong as they seemed as if they would hold the momentum for this game. They had a 9 pt lead in the 1st quarter but the Lakers erased that lead with a 16-0 run in the second quarter and took the lead for good. During that stretch, Trevor Ariza was the key man as he made a couple three point shots. Ariza finished with 15 point and should get a big pay raise. The Lakesrs took a 12 point lead and never looked back. They extended that lead to almsot 20 points by the 3 rd quarter and the game was over. Lakers were the 2009 NBA Champs.
Kobe Bryant had 30 points 6 reb 5 ast in this close out game and was named the Finals MVP. He earned his fourth championship ring in the process, waiting 7 years to get his fourth one, tying him with Shaq and Tim Duncan. Kobe made a lot of clutch shots and sparked the comeback in the second quarter. Derek Fisher hit a couple of shots in route to 13 pts and he also picked up his fourth championship ring.
Pau Gasol earned his 1st ring as his coming to Los Angeles last year from Memphis was the main reason for the turnaround. Gasol finished tonight with 14 pts 15 reb. Lamar Odom had another strong game off the bench with 17 pts 10 reb. Boy Lamar knocked down three threepoint shots and had a nice reverse dunk. He is athletic. He had earned his 1st ring too.
Lakers have done it. They finished this Finals off in 5 games instead of the predicted 6 I said. But they done it. Kobe was so happy that he jumped really high once the final buzzer sounded. The Kobe hugged Phil Jackson, who got a hat from his kids with the Roman Numerals 10. It was an amazing moment in Orlando. Remeber Kobe and Phil didn't see eye to eye 5 years ago and it didn't seem if they would be together again. Kobe hugged Fisher as they came into the league together. They played in all the finals together and endured the hardships and the championship.
Congratulations to Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom, Trevor Ariza, Luke Walton, Jordan Farmar, Shannon Brown, Sasha Vujacic, DJ Mbenga, Josh Powell, Sun Yue, and Adam Morrison on earning their 1 st championship. Also to the coaches especially to Phil Jackson. He is 1st alltime on NBA Coaches Championship list, 10th title.
Lakers celebrated heavily in their locker room by spraying champange. Everyone got wet, inculding Phil Jackson. This is actually the 1st championship I have been part of as a fan of Lakers. Last time in 02, I didn't really follow the Lakers. Boy fans are getting wild at STAPLES Center. Watching the celebration in L.A. Live on KCAL, there are a lot of people there. It is a good scene and hope it doesn't get out of hand, no cars burning, etc. I hear fireworks too.
Just want to make a qucik note to thelakersnation.com, who was set up in 2007 in an attempt to help Lakers win the championship. It was first Getgarneet.com, but after he was gotten by Celtics, changed to The Lakers Nation. Now the goal is achieved.
The Lakers parade is sceduled for Wednesday at 11AM but I can't make it. I wanted to go but I am still in school, the last day. There is a good thing for Lakers winning tonight. Now, I can study completely without distraction for FInals. The parade should be awesome as it is from STAPLES Center down Figueroa down to The L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
LAKERS ARE CHAMPIONS. 08-09. The Dream has come true, the destination has been reached. Ring #15 has been earned. Let's repeat next year and catch the Boston Celtics. GO LAKEEEEERSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now I can't wear this shirt anymore.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Special Olympics / CHS Idol
Today was a long day. Woke at 5 AM and then my family and my cousins, Cameron and Kerry headed to Cal State Long Beach at 6. It was the Special Olympics. We checked in and ate some doughnuts there and then started working.
We packed lunch for the volunteers and the athletes. We had to do over 8,000 lunches but we did it with over 200 volunteer help. Started around 6:30 and we were liked an assembly line. From one side, people put the buns on then it moved down to us. First we put the lettuce on but then we did it too fast so we shifted to packaging the lunches. I opened all the sandwich bags and placed it on the sandwiches. Then, they packaged it down.
After a break, we started putting the lunch bags together. We first opened some apples and placed it in bins. Then, we put the sandwiches into the lunch bags and it moved on. At around 9:00 AM we finsihed. We did it at a fast pace this year due to more volunteers. O ya, I also got a T-shirt for helping out. This is my 5th time helping out I think. It was been pretty intereesting the last 2 years packaging lunches at the Pyramid.
CHS Idol was tonight at our school. I went and it was a packed gym. Standing room only as there were 20 acts, performances, and solos. We had 2 breaks. They tried to make it like the real American Idol with the judges and it seemed pretty ligit. Josh Surh won the award after performing his song. There were quite a few bands which was cool. The Class Acts were neat too. You can find videos I posted on CHS Idol by going to youtube.com/ktcn414. It lasted for 3 hours but it was a pretty darn good talent show.
We packed lunch for the volunteers and the athletes. We had to do over 8,000 lunches but we did it with over 200 volunteer help. Started around 6:30 and we were liked an assembly line. From one side, people put the buns on then it moved down to us. First we put the lettuce on but then we did it too fast so we shifted to packaging the lunches. I opened all the sandwich bags and placed it on the sandwiches. Then, they packaged it down.
After a break, we started putting the lunch bags together. We first opened some apples and placed it in bins. Then, we put the sandwiches into the lunch bags and it moved on. At around 9:00 AM we finsihed. We did it at a fast pace this year due to more volunteers. O ya, I also got a T-shirt for helping out. This is my 5th time helping out I think. It was been pretty intereesting the last 2 years packaging lunches at the Pyramid.
CHS Idol was tonight at our school. I went and it was a packed gym. Standing room only as there were 20 acts, performances, and solos. We had 2 breaks. They tried to make it like the real American Idol with the judges and it seemed pretty ligit. Josh Surh won the award after performing his song. There were quite a few bands which was cool. The Class Acts were neat too. You can find videos I posted on CHS Idol by going to youtube.com/ktcn414. It lasted for 3 hours but it was a pretty darn good talent show.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
NBA Finals: Lakers vs. Magic Game 4
Last year in Game 4, Lakers blew a 24 point lead to the Boston Celtics at home and that lost the series for them. Well one year later, tonight Game 4 of the 2009 NBA Finals was a instant classic. Lakers battled back from a 12 point deficit at halftime and defeated the Orlando Magic in amazing fashion, 99-91 in overtime. Despite how tired the Lakers were, they maintained their cool and showed why they should be champions. So a 3-1 lead.
I watched this game on HD for the 1st time ever on my Sony 52 inch HDTV. We have satellite cable but it wasn't as clear as HD so today,m we bought this antenna. Tomorrow is the DTV transition but HDTV's don't need converter box. I set it up this afternoon and all the over the air channels are in HD. So this game was bright and crisp for me.
The 1st half, Lakers fell asleep. They weren't awake and were down 49-37 at recess. Laker big men were in foul trouble the 1st half and all 12 players played. That's pretty rare in a playoff game. Kobe kept the Lakers in the game in the 1st quarter.
After halftime in the third quarter, Trevor Ariza came to fire. He was 0-6 FG in the 1st half and then in the 3rd quarter, he was the one that sparked the Lakers comeback from 12 down. He nailed a couple threes on passes from Kobe who was double teammed and then drove to the basket more. He had 13 points in the 3rd quarter alone. Usually that's Kobe number, 13 in a quarter. LA took a 67-63 lead to the fourth. In fact at one point in the 3rd quarter, Magic fans chanted "Refrees Suck! Refrees Suck." That's bad sportsmanship by Magic fans.
In the fourth, LA let Orlando back in the game as Orlando took a lot of foul shots and Lakers took none. With about 10 seconds left, Dwight Howard was fouled by Kobe (a smart foul)with the Magic leading 87-84. One freethrow would of made the game into a two possesion game. But he missed both clanking off the rim. Magic had freethrow problems as they only nailed 59% of their free throws, 22-39. That's not gonna get the job done. So Howard missed both freethrows.
Next Laker possession, Lakers decided to take the ball out of bounds from the back court and it was a smart desinged move. Kobe inbounded to Ariza who tossed it cross court to Derek Fisher, who pulled up for three and nailed it in over the shoter Jameer Nelson. Tie game. Orlando missed their buzzer shot and it went into another 5 minutes of play.
In overtime, it started out slowly for both teams as it was 91-91 with over a minute to play as Kobe made both Laker field goal. Then Derek Fisher nailed a three from the top of the key on a pass by Kobe, who was double teammed. 94-91 Lakers and it was all LA from there. Pau Gasol had a game clincher fast break dunk and with that, the Lakers took a 3-1 series lead.
Who says Derek Fisher is old and can't make any shots anymore? Critics were criticizing him during Houston series saying he couldn't give it his standard anymore. Fisher only had 12 points but he knew when to be clutch and knock down the shots when it counted. D-Fish is third alltime on three point field goals made in NBA Finals history just behind Michael Jordan and Robert Horry. He played in his 30th finals game tonight.
Kobe Bryant kept the Lakers in this game the whole game. He made a couple of facial threes and jump shots and finished with 32 points 7 reb and 8 ast. Kobe did a nice job getting teammates the ball and they knocked down shots as Kobe was being double teammed. He has 8 ast all four games so far. What a number. Ariza scored all 16 of his points in the second half and they were clutch as he carried LA in 3rd quarter. Pau Gasol had 16 pts 10 reb and showed his toughness at the last play of the game when M. Pietris flagranted fouled him. He showed that he wasn't soft as he immediately retalliated with the look saying "u play physical I play physical".
All the Lakers tonight was do what they were supposed to do to win. Orlando couldn't close out the game with free throws while the Lakers did. Dwight Howard had 16 pts 21 reb and 9 blk and it was wasted with him not nailing any foul shots. Lakers only had 8 turnovers tonight while Magic had 17. They were costly. The Lakers sucked it up. Kobe Bryant played the whole second half and did not rest. This is why he gets his long rest during regular season along with D-Fish so they'll be fresh come playoff time like tonight.
3-1 lead. Close out game Sunday night in Orlando. I kind of want Lakers to lose so they can close it out on Tuesday but I want them to end it in Orlando too. I'll make my prediction sometime in the next two days. Look at this statistic, Lakers are 7-0 now in games after losses so far this playoffs. An amazing number. After every loss, Lakers have responded with a strong performance and win.
15 down, just 1 down for the destination. It has been a long journey and it will end in the next few days. I predicted the game 4 win.
Go Lakers!! 1 more win...
I watched this game on HD for the 1st time ever on my Sony 52 inch HDTV. We have satellite cable but it wasn't as clear as HD so today,m we bought this antenna. Tomorrow is the DTV transition but HDTV's don't need converter box. I set it up this afternoon and all the over the air channels are in HD. So this game was bright and crisp for me.
The 1st half, Lakers fell asleep. They weren't awake and were down 49-37 at recess. Laker big men were in foul trouble the 1st half and all 12 players played. That's pretty rare in a playoff game. Kobe kept the Lakers in the game in the 1st quarter.
After halftime in the third quarter, Trevor Ariza came to fire. He was 0-6 FG in the 1st half and then in the 3rd quarter, he was the one that sparked the Lakers comeback from 12 down. He nailed a couple threes on passes from Kobe who was double teammed and then drove to the basket more. He had 13 points in the 3rd quarter alone. Usually that's Kobe number, 13 in a quarter. LA took a 67-63 lead to the fourth. In fact at one point in the 3rd quarter, Magic fans chanted "Refrees Suck! Refrees Suck." That's bad sportsmanship by Magic fans.
In the fourth, LA let Orlando back in the game as Orlando took a lot of foul shots and Lakers took none. With about 10 seconds left, Dwight Howard was fouled by Kobe (a smart foul)with the Magic leading 87-84. One freethrow would of made the game into a two possesion game. But he missed both clanking off the rim. Magic had freethrow problems as they only nailed 59% of their free throws, 22-39. That's not gonna get the job done. So Howard missed both freethrows.
Next Laker possession, Lakers decided to take the ball out of bounds from the back court and it was a smart desinged move. Kobe inbounded to Ariza who tossed it cross court to Derek Fisher, who pulled up for three and nailed it in over the shoter Jameer Nelson. Tie game. Orlando missed their buzzer shot and it went into another 5 minutes of play.
In overtime, it started out slowly for both teams as it was 91-91 with over a minute to play as Kobe made both Laker field goal. Then Derek Fisher nailed a three from the top of the key on a pass by Kobe, who was double teammed. 94-91 Lakers and it was all LA from there. Pau Gasol had a game clincher fast break dunk and with that, the Lakers took a 3-1 series lead.
Who says Derek Fisher is old and can't make any shots anymore? Critics were criticizing him during Houston series saying he couldn't give it his standard anymore. Fisher only had 12 points but he knew when to be clutch and knock down the shots when it counted. D-Fish is third alltime on three point field goals made in NBA Finals history just behind Michael Jordan and Robert Horry. He played in his 30th finals game tonight.
Kobe Bryant kept the Lakers in this game the whole game. He made a couple of facial threes and jump shots and finished with 32 points 7 reb and 8 ast. Kobe did a nice job getting teammates the ball and they knocked down shots as Kobe was being double teammed. He has 8 ast all four games so far. What a number. Ariza scored all 16 of his points in the second half and they were clutch as he carried LA in 3rd quarter. Pau Gasol had 16 pts 10 reb and showed his toughness at the last play of the game when M. Pietris flagranted fouled him. He showed that he wasn't soft as he immediately retalliated with the look saying "u play physical I play physical".
All the Lakers tonight was do what they were supposed to do to win. Orlando couldn't close out the game with free throws while the Lakers did. Dwight Howard had 16 pts 21 reb and 9 blk and it was wasted with him not nailing any foul shots. Lakers only had 8 turnovers tonight while Magic had 17. They were costly. The Lakers sucked it up. Kobe Bryant played the whole second half and did not rest. This is why he gets his long rest during regular season along with D-Fish so they'll be fresh come playoff time like tonight.
3-1 lead. Close out game Sunday night in Orlando. I kind of want Lakers to lose so they can close it out on Tuesday but I want them to end it in Orlando too. I'll make my prediction sometime in the next two days. Look at this statistic, Lakers are 7-0 now in games after losses so far this playoffs. An amazing number. After every loss, Lakers have responded with a strong performance and win.
15 down, just 1 down for the destination. It has been a long journey and it will end in the next few days. I predicted the game 4 win.
Go Lakers!! 1 more win...
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Oral Finals
As I blogged yesterday, I was first today in Spanish Orals. And it was a pretty good one for me. Ms. Gullixson tested me on Level 1 Q 1, Lvl 2 Q 1, Lvl 3 Q 3, 4-6, and Lvl 5 Q 1. It wasn't too bad. I did not blank out. All the studying I did paid off as I answered the questions back directly and did not hesitate in my answer. I answered all of them correctly in the way that I wanted. So I should get a decent score on that.
This second semester, I was totally prepared for spanish orals. Last semester, I kind of slugged it out and wasn't prepared. I went today for a reason so I don't have to worry about it. The longer I wait, it will be tougher on me personally.
In English, we finished acting out Act 5 scene 3 of Romeo and Juliet. I was Romeo and we were in the last part of the story where me and Juliet killed ourselves. IT was pretty fun actually. I had to say this really long verse but it wasn't too bad. It was pretty fun today.
The math test was 100 pts. Don't want to talk about it. I don't have a good feeling about that.
5 days of schoool left.
This second semester, I was totally prepared for spanish orals. Last semester, I kind of slugged it out and wasn't prepared. I went today for a reason so I don't have to worry about it. The longer I wait, it will be tougher on me personally.
In English, we finished acting out Act 5 scene 3 of Romeo and Juliet. I was Romeo and we were in the last part of the story where me and Juliet killed ourselves. IT was pretty fun actually. I had to say this really long verse but it wasn't too bad. It was pretty fun today.
The math test was 100 pts. Don't want to talk about it. I don't have a good feeling about that.
5 days of schoool left.
NBA Finals: Lakers vs. Magic Game 3
Congratulations to the Orlando Magic on their first ever NBA Finals victory. They finally won one in their 7th try with a 108-104 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of the 2009 NBA Finals. Lakers played hard tonight in Orlando and gave it their all but have a lot to work on for Game 4.
Both teams were on fire in the first half as the Lakers and Magic both shot 50 + percent from the field. ORL shot 68 percent and LA shot 51 % I think. Yet Lakers hung in there leading the game (which was amazing) until giving lead up. Lakers trailed by only 5 points. Second half began and the Magic took control of 3rd quarter again as they expanded their lead. By the end of three, LA trailed by 6. But the fourth quarter went pretty well for the Lakers. They started the 4th quarter red hot making all 7 of their 7 shots they took. LA missed some but shot at a high percent in the fourth. Yet Lakers didn't finish off some business and that cost them this game. Magic shot an NBA Finals record 62.5 % from the field. They couldn't miss a shot.
Kobe Bryant had 31 pts but faded away in the second half after scoring 21 pts in the 1st half. He had 10 after recess. Kobe struggled to find his shot in the second half. Also, Kobe missed free throws. That is a rarity as Kobe had shot 90% from the line in the playoffs. Kobe only made half his foul shots, 5/10. He got his teammates involved too by dishing 8 ast for the third straight game. Boy Kobe has been playing the faciliting role early in the ballgame.
Pau Gasol again had a consistent game with 23 pts on 9-11 shooting. He bodied up to Dwight Howard pretty well tonight. But Pau only had 3 rebounds, which we don't see often on his statline. Lamar Odom didn't play that aggressive and active like he had done in the previous games but came up big in the 4th quarter. He finally woke up as L.O. probably ate some candy. He finished with 11 pts but was in foul trouble during the 3rd quarter. Trevor Ariza knocked down a couple 3 point shots and had many steals. I think Ariza knows what the Magic are running as he was in Stan Van Gundy's system for sometime. Jordan Farmar was the other player who stepped up off the bench as he matched Odom with 11 pts. Not bad Farmar as the Bench Mob has almost disappeared. Sasha Vujacic, labeled the machine, has been dis assembled...:)
Tonight Lakers missed 10 foul shots. It was costly a bit. Lakers did a nice job rebounding as they had 11 offensive rebounds, allowing many 2nd chance points for L.A. The total rebounding numbers were pretty close. Lakres have to knock down their foul shots. That's mostly what it takes along with a better job not making Orlando get on fire and knock down those shots.
It's only 1 loss so Laker fans don't worry about it. Lakers finally played a good hard fought game 3 as they didn't fall asleep like they did in the previous games. Lakers fought til the end. After Kobe made that shot with 0.5 seconds left, he immediately went to foul Lewis, showing everyone that he wouldn't give up on the game. That is pure determination there by the Black Mamba.
I'm still sticking to my Lakers in 6 prediction. L.A. will win game 4 Lakers haven't lost consecutive games in the playoffs so far. Game 4 is Thursday.
Both teams were on fire in the first half as the Lakers and Magic both shot 50 + percent from the field. ORL shot 68 percent and LA shot 51 % I think. Yet Lakers hung in there leading the game (which was amazing) until giving lead up. Lakers trailed by only 5 points. Second half began and the Magic took control of 3rd quarter again as they expanded their lead. By the end of three, LA trailed by 6. But the fourth quarter went pretty well for the Lakers. They started the 4th quarter red hot making all 7 of their 7 shots they took. LA missed some but shot at a high percent in the fourth. Yet Lakers didn't finish off some business and that cost them this game. Magic shot an NBA Finals record 62.5 % from the field. They couldn't miss a shot.
Kobe Bryant had 31 pts but faded away in the second half after scoring 21 pts in the 1st half. He had 10 after recess. Kobe struggled to find his shot in the second half. Also, Kobe missed free throws. That is a rarity as Kobe had shot 90% from the line in the playoffs. Kobe only made half his foul shots, 5/10. He got his teammates involved too by dishing 8 ast for the third straight game. Boy Kobe has been playing the faciliting role early in the ballgame.
Pau Gasol again had a consistent game with 23 pts on 9-11 shooting. He bodied up to Dwight Howard pretty well tonight. But Pau only had 3 rebounds, which we don't see often on his statline. Lamar Odom didn't play that aggressive and active like he had done in the previous games but came up big in the 4th quarter. He finally woke up as L.O. probably ate some candy. He finished with 11 pts but was in foul trouble during the 3rd quarter. Trevor Ariza knocked down a couple 3 point shots and had many steals. I think Ariza knows what the Magic are running as he was in Stan Van Gundy's system for sometime. Jordan Farmar was the other player who stepped up off the bench as he matched Odom with 11 pts. Not bad Farmar as the Bench Mob has almost disappeared. Sasha Vujacic, labeled the machine, has been dis assembled...:)
Tonight Lakers missed 10 foul shots. It was costly a bit. Lakers did a nice job rebounding as they had 11 offensive rebounds, allowing many 2nd chance points for L.A. The total rebounding numbers were pretty close. Lakres have to knock down their foul shots. That's mostly what it takes along with a better job not making Orlando get on fire and knock down those shots.
It's only 1 loss so Laker fans don't worry about it. Lakers finally played a good hard fought game 3 as they didn't fall asleep like they did in the previous games. Lakers fought til the end. After Kobe made that shot with 0.5 seconds left, he immediately went to foul Lewis, showing everyone that he wouldn't give up on the game. That is pure determination there by the Black Mamba.
I'm still sticking to my Lakers in 6 prediction. L.A. will win game 4 Lakers haven't lost consecutive games in the playoffs so far. Game 4 is Thursday.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Spanish Orals tomorrow
Spanish orals are tomorrow and I volunteered to go first. I won't have any regrets as I am confident in my answers. I want to get it over with so thats why I went first. I have reviewed it numerous of times already and so I feel well prepared. Once that is done, I can focus on finals...
Math QUIZ tomorrw but its a 100 point one on chapter 8 of law of cosines and sines. I feel ready for that one too as it is only 4 lessons. The problem solving will throw me off though.
Imma go study now...
Math QUIZ tomorrw but its a 100 point one on chapter 8 of law of cosines and sines. I feel ready for that one too as it is only 4 lessons. The problem solving will throw me off though.
Imma go study now...
Sunday, June 7, 2009
NBA Finals: Lakers vs. Magic Game 2
What a game 2 it was tongiht at STAPLES Center. Game started at 5 which was good on this Sunday night. Dodgers also played at 5 at home against the Phillies in a national TV game on ESPN. Game 2 of the NBA Finals and it was an amazing game in many different ways. This game was at least more well entertained than the boring game 1 blowout. I think the NBA set this game up so there would be more drama. Anyways Lakers won in overtime 101-96 and now take a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals.
1st quarter was so low scoring. 15-15 at the end of one and it was the lowest combined score in any quarter in NBA Finals history. No one could get their offense going and it was a slow start as both teams shot around 30%. Anyways both teams woke up eventually in the second quarter. At halftime, Lakers led by 5. Rashard Lewis kept the Magic in the game in the second quarter with 4 three pointers. Lamar kept Lakers in this one in 2nd quarter. In the third quarter, Lakers kind of let the Magic back into the game a bit and Lakers didn't play that well defensively but stuck in there down by 2 at the end of three.
Then the fourth quarter began and from that point on till the end, the score was within 6 points until Lakers pulled away late in overtime. Magic scored and the Lakers would repsond with a field goal. Lakers got lucky that Courtney Lee didn't toss in that lob to him with 0.6 seconds left in regulation. Lakers dominated in overtime and played good team basketball. Lakers played pretty good defense and didn't allow Magic to make many shots. Most of the Magic's shots were all tough.
Kobe Bryant had 29 pts 8 ast and had many good dishes to Pau Gasol down the stretch. Kobe had 23 pts in the second half. But he tried to do too much. That last play of regulation, if Kobe had passed it to Trevor Ariza, who knows what could've happened. Kobe made a bad gesture when he pointed his finger at Shannon Brown but its ok. This is Kobe's team and he responded well as a leader in leading the team in situations. Kobe was guarded pretty tightly by Magic defenders so it was tough for him which explains those turnovers he had.
Anyways, Lamar "Candyman" Odom played another good game, his 4th straight good game. L.O. finished with 19 pts and 8 reb. He help set the tone in the fourth quarter and second quarter by making many shots and driving aggressively to the basket. He had a nice play in the second quarter when he blocked J.J. Redick's layup as it appeared he couldn't get him. L.O. had 2 blocks.
Pau Gasol was consistent yet again with 21 pts 10 reb. His layup + 1 helped clinch the game for Lakers. Pau Gasol played good defense on Dwight Howard and made things tough on him. Trevor Ariza made a couple of threes and Derek Fisher nailed some shots. D-Fish had a nice charge in the second half. He is so good in taking charges. So the starters played pretty well overall with exception to Andrew Bynum, who was in foul trouble the whole game.
The refs looked a bit shaky again. On some plays when a foul was called on the Magic, it wasn't a foul but the refs did the same to Lakers so it became even. Such as the fourth quarter when Kobe drove and Hedo Turkolu tipped the ball out of bounds. But it was Magic ball. On the next play, there was a physical play in which a Laker player slapped at the Magic but no call. Free throws were in favor of Magic but they eventually made it pretty even down the stretch. But it wasn't too bad and they did a great job controlling the game and making it a great game to watch.
Lakers did not box out well enough today. Magic outrebounded L.A. 44-35 and had too many offensive rebounds. Also, Lakers were lucky that Magic missed some foul shots and had 20 turnovers and had a bad shooting game. For game 3, Lakers have to cut down on their turnovers and rebound better. Rebounding will be the key for game 3 to see if Lakers can put a damper on the Magic.
Bottomline, Lakers won so now its 2-0. Lakers are 2 wins away from their 15th NBA championship. So 14 down 2 to go for the championship. This game 2 was a true nail bitter and a real "Finals" game. Down to the wire. This is playoff basketball.
Game 3 in Orlando on Tuesday night at 6 on ABC. I picked Lakers in 6 and will stick to it. I think LA will lose game 3 but win game 4 and lose game 5 and close it out with game 6 win at STAPLES Center next next Tuesday.
Go Lakers! Almost there...
1st quarter was so low scoring. 15-15 at the end of one and it was the lowest combined score in any quarter in NBA Finals history. No one could get their offense going and it was a slow start as both teams shot around 30%. Anyways both teams woke up eventually in the second quarter. At halftime, Lakers led by 5. Rashard Lewis kept the Magic in the game in the second quarter with 4 three pointers. Lamar kept Lakers in this one in 2nd quarter. In the third quarter, Lakers kind of let the Magic back into the game a bit and Lakers didn't play that well defensively but stuck in there down by 2 at the end of three.
Then the fourth quarter began and from that point on till the end, the score was within 6 points until Lakers pulled away late in overtime. Magic scored and the Lakers would repsond with a field goal. Lakers got lucky that Courtney Lee didn't toss in that lob to him with 0.6 seconds left in regulation. Lakers dominated in overtime and played good team basketball. Lakers played pretty good defense and didn't allow Magic to make many shots. Most of the Magic's shots were all tough.
Kobe Bryant had 29 pts 8 ast and had many good dishes to Pau Gasol down the stretch. Kobe had 23 pts in the second half. But he tried to do too much. That last play of regulation, if Kobe had passed it to Trevor Ariza, who knows what could've happened. Kobe made a bad gesture when he pointed his finger at Shannon Brown but its ok. This is Kobe's team and he responded well as a leader in leading the team in situations. Kobe was guarded pretty tightly by Magic defenders so it was tough for him which explains those turnovers he had.
Anyways, Lamar "Candyman" Odom played another good game, his 4th straight good game. L.O. finished with 19 pts and 8 reb. He help set the tone in the fourth quarter and second quarter by making many shots and driving aggressively to the basket. He had a nice play in the second quarter when he blocked J.J. Redick's layup as it appeared he couldn't get him. L.O. had 2 blocks.
Pau Gasol was consistent yet again with 21 pts 10 reb. His layup + 1 helped clinch the game for Lakers. Pau Gasol played good defense on Dwight Howard and made things tough on him. Trevor Ariza made a couple of threes and Derek Fisher nailed some shots. D-Fish had a nice charge in the second half. He is so good in taking charges. So the starters played pretty well overall with exception to Andrew Bynum, who was in foul trouble the whole game.
The refs looked a bit shaky again. On some plays when a foul was called on the Magic, it wasn't a foul but the refs did the same to Lakers so it became even. Such as the fourth quarter when Kobe drove and Hedo Turkolu tipped the ball out of bounds. But it was Magic ball. On the next play, there was a physical play in which a Laker player slapped at the Magic but no call. Free throws were in favor of Magic but they eventually made it pretty even down the stretch. But it wasn't too bad and they did a great job controlling the game and making it a great game to watch.
Lakers did not box out well enough today. Magic outrebounded L.A. 44-35 and had too many offensive rebounds. Also, Lakers were lucky that Magic missed some foul shots and had 20 turnovers and had a bad shooting game. For game 3, Lakers have to cut down on their turnovers and rebound better. Rebounding will be the key for game 3 to see if Lakers can put a damper on the Magic.
Bottomline, Lakers won so now its 2-0. Lakers are 2 wins away from their 15th NBA championship. So 14 down 2 to go for the championship. This game 2 was a true nail bitter and a real "Finals" game. Down to the wire. This is playoff basketball.
Game 3 in Orlando on Tuesday night at 6 on ABC. I picked Lakers in 6 and will stick to it. I think LA will lose game 3 but win game 4 and lose game 5 and close it out with game 6 win at STAPLES Center next next Tuesday.
Go Lakers! Almost there...
Surrounded by POLICE
On Saturday afternoons, I have chinese SAT II Class at CEC, right next to e-Teliyaki and close to the former Rite Aid. Well yesterday was an unforgetable and cool experience.
Class ended at 6 and I was walking out. The person in charge told us to wait inside until our parents came and I did. I was surprised at what happened and then finally found out. Helicopters swarmed in circles around and around the plaza and then the policemen came and blocked off all the entries to the plaza, about 6 I think. They had their gun pointed at the buildings next to us.
So then my parents couldn't come in due to the blockage. The police would only allow people to go out. They asked the police what happened and informed me. Someone called the police and said someone had a gun inside one of those buildings, which one we don't know. The police had their guns pointed straight at the buildings next to ours such as wilshre bank and the fresh and easy that probably won't open.
I went outside and then communicated with the police. My parents were parked on the street and told the police I was their son. I gave a police a thumbs up sign and he waved me over. I just casually walked onto Artesia BLVD and onto my parents car. As I walked by, I saw two police aiming their sniper over there. They had it set up on top of the First Choice Bank sign. It was pretty neat seeing the police on duty.
I don't know what happened to the case. Maybe it was just a hoax and a prank but I did not find it on the news. Who knows, it might be a D-Day thing as it was the anniversary of the invasion yesterday. But the situation yesterday around 6 was a pretty cool one and I was a bit scared as I was walking out. I thought to myself what if the suspect decide to open fire or the police accidently fired and hit me. But that was the first time I've been in a case surrounded by Police. I am stilll trying to find out what happened.
Class ended at 6 and I was walking out. The person in charge told us to wait inside until our parents came and I did. I was surprised at what happened and then finally found out. Helicopters swarmed in circles around and around the plaza and then the policemen came and blocked off all the entries to the plaza, about 6 I think. They had their gun pointed at the buildings next to us.
So then my parents couldn't come in due to the blockage. The police would only allow people to go out. They asked the police what happened and informed me. Someone called the police and said someone had a gun inside one of those buildings, which one we don't know. The police had their guns pointed straight at the buildings next to ours such as wilshre bank and the fresh and easy that probably won't open.
I went outside and then communicated with the police. My parents were parked on the street and told the police I was their son. I gave a police a thumbs up sign and he waved me over. I just casually walked onto Artesia BLVD and onto my parents car. As I walked by, I saw two police aiming their sniper over there. They had it set up on top of the First Choice Bank sign. It was pretty neat seeing the police on duty.
I don't know what happened to the case. Maybe it was just a hoax and a prank but I did not find it on the news. Who knows, it might be a D-Day thing as it was the anniversary of the invasion yesterday. But the situation yesterday around 6 was a pretty cool one and I was a bit scared as I was walking out. I thought to myself what if the suspect decide to open fire or the police accidently fired and hit me. But that was the first time I've been in a case surrounded by Police. I am stilll trying to find out what happened.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
NBA Finals: Lakers vs. Orlando Game 1
NBA Finals tipped off tonight at STAPLES Center tonight. It was a completely different atmosphere. The Laker signs and banners were all hung up all around STAPLES Center and the surrounding buildings, such as the new hotel being built in L.A. Live. It was Laker Land 100%. The Finals banner was hung up too. The player introductions and national anthemn were shown live on ABC.The opponent was Orlando Magic and it wasn't much of a game 1 as Lakers blew out the Magic 100-75. Lakers just flat out dominated right after the second quarter.
Jameer Nelson checked into his first game in nearly 4 months and did well, getting 4 pts 3 ast in the 1st 4 min. of second quarter as Magic took a 33-28 lead over the Lakers. But from that point on, Lakers just took over and the killer instinct reached the Lakers. Kobe came in and got on fire. Lakers went on a 17-6 run and then closed out the lst half with a commanding 10 point lead, 53-43. Lakers did not lose their focus and kept up the scoring as it became a 82-58 lead at end of third quarter. It was over by that point as the game was no longer in doubt.
The Magic are known for their three point shooting accuracy and today they just couldn't make any shots. They shot horrible and that was a result of good defense from the Lakers. Orlando shot 30% from the field and only made 8 field goals in the second half combined I think. Lakers used their height advantage with Bynum, Gasol, and Odom in perfection. They were able to contain Dwight Howard, who only had 12 pts and was in foul trouble. On one play, Gasol blocked a shot and Bynum tipped it to the outside. Also, they rebounded well.
The Best of the Night obviously was Kobe Bryant, the Black Mamba. He became the Closer in the 3rd quarter and went on a scoring spree. It started from second quarter when he had 12 pts. Kobe finished with a career NBA Finals high with 40 pts 8 reb 8 ast. He got his teammates involved tonight also. Kobe made some incredible shots and was just in rhythmn right from the getgo. Pau Gsol helped out too with 16 pts 8 reb. Andrew Bynum started the game off strong with a dunk but never was into the game after picking up his second half. He had 9 pts. Off the bench, Lamar Odom had 11 pts 14 reb. Josh Powell even made a three at the buzzer. Luke played well with 9 pts and a couple of assists.
Lakers are looking great after game 1 but need a bit more involvement from other players. Trevor Ariza needs to knock down more shots and shoot more. Bynum has to stay consistent throughout the whole game not only the beginning of the game. Fisher knocked down some shots too. The bench might have to step up a bit more other than Lamar and Luke who did a great job tonight. But overall a good effort by the Lakers, their third consecutive quality game played, dating to game 5 and 6 of the Western Conference Finals.
Dang the STAPLES Center/LA Live is really crazy. 2 post game shows on Fox Sports West (The Showdown, aka Lakers Live) and ESPN's SportsCenter are live from there. FS West is right next to STAPLES Center and SportsCenter from L.A. is right across the street in the Nokia Plaza. It is rocking there.
13 down and only 3 more to go for the destination that started on April 19th. Remember Phil Jackson is 43-0 all time when winning game 1.
Lakers should win game 2 at home this Sunday at 5 PM on ABC.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
June Gloom
We felt some June Gloom today. It rained. I was totally unexpected for rain as it had been hot the last few days. It rained in the morning and the sun did not come out. I did not bring a jacket as based on the last few day's temp. trend, it was suppose to be sunny. But not today as I got wet during lunch, when it poured down the most...
My group presented our Cold War Projects today. We did ours on the Korean War. It wasn't too bad as we managed the time and class well. Presented the powerpoint first and then played a game where there were lots of inivolvement. It was quite fun being the teacher of the class. The game went well as we got to test their knowledge. I think we got a good score...
I checked by Ms. Preciado's room afterschool and saw my math chapter 7 test score. 200/200, 100 %. I had none wrong and did not get the bonus. It is my first 100% on a test in nearly 2 years. It's a good confidence booster...
We're reading Romeo and Juliet and we have a quote quiz on act II. I still have to study it some more but it isn't that bad if u put it into perspective. Talking about tests, I have 2 this Friday. One in biology on evolution in which I typed up the notes so I can study. It works better that way. So I will study that 6 pages. Then the Finals begin for me, with Spanish writtern final. I'm nervous but will have to read over my spanish book for the written part. The preterite will be in there and I have to focus on that a lot along with the vocabs from unit 4 to 8. Next week is a math chapter 8 quiz and the spanish orals. I answered most of the questions already...
NBA Finals Game 1 is tomorrow night at STAPLES Center. Lakers vs. Orlando. I'm sticking to my prediction of Lakers in 6. So far in these 2009 playoffs, Lakers have not lost back to back playoff games so everytime they lose, they will always respond with a win. Go Lakers tomorrow night. We can start setting a victory parade sometime in the next weeks...
My group presented our Cold War Projects today. We did ours on the Korean War. It wasn't too bad as we managed the time and class well. Presented the powerpoint first and then played a game where there were lots of inivolvement. It was quite fun being the teacher of the class. The game went well as we got to test their knowledge. I think we got a good score...
I checked by Ms. Preciado's room afterschool and saw my math chapter 7 test score. 200/200, 100 %. I had none wrong and did not get the bonus. It is my first 100% on a test in nearly 2 years. It's a good confidence booster...
We're reading Romeo and Juliet and we have a quote quiz on act II. I still have to study it some more but it isn't that bad if u put it into perspective. Talking about tests, I have 2 this Friday. One in biology on evolution in which I typed up the notes so I can study. It works better that way. So I will study that 6 pages. Then the Finals begin for me, with Spanish writtern final. I'm nervous but will have to read over my spanish book for the written part. The preterite will be in there and I have to focus on that a lot along with the vocabs from unit 4 to 8. Next week is a math chapter 8 quiz and the spanish orals. I answered most of the questions already...
NBA Finals Game 1 is tomorrow night at STAPLES Center. Lakers vs. Orlando. I'm sticking to my prediction of Lakers in 6. So far in these 2009 playoffs, Lakers have not lost back to back playoff games so everytime they lose, they will always respond with a win. Go Lakers tomorrow night. We can start setting a victory parade sometime in the next weeks...
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
We ARE DONE
So we are completely done with our cold war project.
We met today and finished it up.
I just finalized the powerpoint. We are going up tomorrow.
Should be fun but I'm kind of nervous a bit.
Not sure if our game will succeed though.
That's all for today, I'm tired. Gonna sleep soon.
We met today and finished it up.
I just finalized the powerpoint. We are going up tomorrow.
Should be fun but I'm kind of nervous a bit.
Not sure if our game will succeed though.
That's all for today, I'm tired. Gonna sleep soon.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Cold War Project
Our cold war project on Korean War is almost done.
I just finished adding the information.
All we have to do is finalize it and add animation.
And come up with questions for the game we r gonna play.
The PPT has about 20 slides. Should go about 25 min and then rest of time game.
We are going on Wednesday.
And Vincent, Justin, and me r gonna meet tomorrow at Justin's house.
We finished Act 1 of Romeo and Juliet today in English.
We are getting to the good part.
12 days left of school, spanish written finals coming up. After cold war project, i will focus on the bio test on evolution on Friday and then FINALS.
Man why can't our school district be like Diamond Bar. My cousins start school last week of August and end this Friday. So lucky. I'd rather do that so we can get more things in before STAR Testing. There has been talk about it but I heard it takes 80% of teacher's vote and that is impossible.
I just finished adding the information.
All we have to do is finalize it and add animation.
And come up with questions for the game we r gonna play.
The PPT has about 20 slides. Should go about 25 min and then rest of time game.
We are going on Wednesday.
And Vincent, Justin, and me r gonna meet tomorrow at Justin's house.
We finished Act 1 of Romeo and Juliet today in English.
We are getting to the good part.
12 days left of school, spanish written finals coming up. After cold war project, i will focus on the bio test on evolution on Friday and then FINALS.
Man why can't our school district be like Diamond Bar. My cousins start school last week of August and end this Friday. So lucky. I'd rather do that so we can get more things in before STAR Testing. There has been talk about it but I heard it takes 80% of teacher's vote and that is impossible.
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