Busted Racquet

Day 16 : A picture of someone who inspires you. 

I haven’t been to this blog in a while, I think I almost forgot I had one.  It took me a while to come up with a picture of someone who inspires me.  I guess for the most part I was just uninspired (cue in sarcastic laughter).  No, I guess I just couldn’t think of someone… like a hero or something.  I have been detached (like you wouldn’t believe) for the most part of… I can’t even remember when I wasn’t.  See? 

So, anyway, after a season of heart breaks, of losing in 3 of the 4 grand slam finals (it’s technically 2 since he just made it to the QF of the French Open, but since he lost to Rafa, I’m counting it as a final), I have decided that Djokovic fits the bill.

  

Tennis, as much as it is a game of strength and strategy, is also a game of guts.  It’s you, standing there, all alone.  Sometimes, you’re down 5-0 and yet you have to hold your head up and serve for a game that’s obviously lost.  Or worse, you’re at the other end, forced to return a blistering serve from an opponent who certainly has your number.  It’s just so easy to choke, to just give up and call it a day.  And yet you’re there, fighting alone at one side of the court.  

That last match vs Nadal at the US Open was brutal.  Truth be told, Djokovic was on top of his game.  Imagine what it feels like to know that you’re doing everything you have to do, giving everything you’ve got and yet you still lose.  But that’s what makes champions. They don’t give up.  They take the beating, fight for their life, and get up and say, it will be better tomorrow.

When everything that can go wrong actually does and you're way over your head in shit, it takes a lot of courage to get up and believe that it will be better tomorrow. 

I remember one match when I was 12 or 13.  The tournament was going really well, until I faced Magnolia.  See? I still remember her name.  She bageled me, that bitch.  (For the uninitiated, bagel in tennis means you didn’t win a set, your opponent won 6-0.)  I didn’t want to continue the match, it was the first time I ever l ever lost that bad.  For the first time, I was aware that I was alone during a match.  It was so scary and I just wanted to go home and cry, but you have to continue and rely on your guts to fight.  I lost that match and Magnolia eventually won the gold.  And I went on to win my first bronze in tennis. 

A picture of

Something you want to do before you die.

I am going to go full on cheesy and sappy on this one. Whenever I see the word "die" or "death" it just makes me go insanely sentimental. So... Before I die I want to fall in love, the kind that makes you leap off of buildings, the kind that makes you kick your leg back when you hug or kiss. And I'm going to take all that mush in the most cliche romantic city in the world, Paris.

The verdict is in.

I am going to move to a place near the office. I've thought about distance, time, traffic, convenience, and my current day to day activities, and what I really want and what really suits my life right now.  I just need to find a place that will allow me to have the puppy with me.  I am surprised that a lot of condos and apartments do not allow pets. Instead of moving back home, I think I need to live in a new place, a new city, a new neighborhood.

Much as I love a modest home with the picket fence and the small flower garden, I think it's not for me right now. At least not for now.  And much as las pinas is home, I think I've out-grown it a little bit.

Besides...

"I couldn't stay where everything reminded me of the life that was gone."  ~ Water for Elephants

Silver Linings

I think I knew it all along, that it was all up to me to change things... but I couldn't get a quick start, just couldn't make that leap. Barely three months ago, I was in such a rut that just days before Christmas, I wished for a new job, a new home and the world to end. I was stuck at a crossroads. Too many decisions to be made, and I just didn't know where to start or where to go that even a deal with the devil seemed like an option.

And I think that's the universe's cue to come in and lend a hand. I think it also helps that someone up there is looking out for me.

I wanted a new job...
but I didn't know what I wanted. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do except for the job I'm already doing now, and any other offer didn't seem to be good enough. So, I was offered a promotion. New responsibilities, new challenges and fresh possibilities. It's fast paced, critical, pushes you to the edge, just the way I like it.

I wanted a new home...
But I wasn't taking the time to look at houses. I had too many excuses to put this off. Then Tascha, my puppy, got evicted from our condo. I had to send her away to my family back home while I look for... (surprise!) a new home.

I wanted the world to end...
But instead, I am given the chance to see the world. Even after declining the initial offer, I was told all I had to do was get a visa and a plane ticket and the rest will be taken care of. It was literally an offer I couldn't refuse.

Now what is it again they say about avoiding your destiny? That you cant?

I believe this is my chance to do good again.