.it's beginning to look a lot like christmas + ffl championship + my nba ballot.

Please forgive me for being MIA for almost 2 weeks. Here I am! :) I’ve been busy with Christmas preparations and the start of a New Year. My quest to finish buying gifts early this year was not as easy as I thought. Last month (right around Thanksgiving), I wrote up a gift list and committed to getting through it as quick and painless as possible. I started off strong by doing some shopping over the weekend after Black Friday. I was able to get about half of the people on my list crossed off. Now I sit here a week before Christmas with presents that still need to be wrapped and gifts that still need to be bought. How did I get so behind? *sigh*

Anyhow, enough about my holiday stress. The good news is, I got my Christmas tree up a week ago and it makes me feel so warm and fuzzy inside when I see it. I love the twinkling lights and refreshing Christmas tree scent. This year I switched from the Noble Fir (which I bought for years) to my new favorite, the Fraser Fir. Wow, it is so beautiful. It's definitely beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here! Now on to sports! With my fantasy football league; I am on edge at the moment because I am in the Championship game this week. Yup, I made it to the big game and I’m so nervous because my team isn’t what it used to be. With Plaxico’s mess, Barber’s injury, and LT’s disappointing year, I’ve had to make some changes to my line-up. Wish me luck.

One thing that I haven’t touched on much is the NBA season. Just so you know, I’ve been watching and keeping tabs on the league. Mental notes are being taken by yours truly for future posts so I'll be chatting about that soon. Oh and yes, I know I promised you a NBA Rookie post; stay tuned for that as well. I can tell you that I am very excited for the Celtics vs. Lakers game on Christmas Day. You can bet I’ll be watching from the comfort of my home in my PJ’s with a warm cup of cocoa. Speaking of the NBA, I’ve cast my 2009 NBA All-Star Ballot. The game will be held in Phoenix, Arizona over Valentine’s Day weekend.
My NBA All-Star 2009 picks are:

Western Forwards:
Carmelo Anthony, Denver
Pau Gasol, LA Lakers

Western Guards:
Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers
Chris Paul, New Orleans

Western Center:
Greg Oden, Portland

Eastern Forwards:
LeBron James, Cleveland
Paul Pierce, Boston

Eastern Guards:
Devin Harris, New Jersey
Dwyane Wade, Miami

Eastern Center:
Dwight Howard, Orlando

If you wonder why those players, I have my reasons and I gave it a lot of thought. For instance, how could I leave out Melo after he tied an NBA record by scoring 33 points in a single quarter during his team's 116-105 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves last week? Or, how could I leave out Kobe who is still going strong all the while his 81 points scored versus Toronto back in 2006 is still fresh in my mind? I’ve also got silly reasons like; I think Greg Oden is hilarious. On top of that, he is finally playing some decent ball now that he’s back on the court, not to mention I met him (but I’ll save that one for another time...remind me though to explain the handshake, lol). Oh by the way, have you seen the 2008 ESPY performance by Justin Timberlake w/Oden?! Seriously, it's so great!



Love,
Christmas,
& Basketball~
-C

.it's a small world after all.

As you may know, I am a Filipino-American gal who was born and raised in San Diego, California. Who would have thought that Manny Pacquiao (the most famous boxer in the Phillipines) & Shawne Merriman (OLB from my hometown NFL team, the Chargers) would be hanging out enjoying a nice meal together? After discovering they are neighbors (in Los Angeles), the two became buddies. I'm sure that Merriman was quick to learn that Filipinos love to feed their guests. From the looks of it, Shawne is diggin' some Filipino food~

.torn. [letoya]

Hey Friends! First of all, WAY TO GO CHARGERS for a W (it's about time)!~ Secondly, I owe you a video of the week, so here it is. You've probably heard this artist sing before but you may not realize how or when. LeToya Luckett (known professionally as LeToya) was a founding member of the R&B female group Destiny's Child with whom she won 2 Grammys. Later she was unexpectedly replaced by Michelle Williams thus launching her successful solo career.

In the video you are about to see, there is a sports tie-in with my selection. Yes, a sports tie-in...LUCKY ME! Look out for an appearance by NFL FS Will Demps (currently with the Houston Texans #47). Some quick background info (so you can say you learned something new today)~ Demps was originally signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent after going undrafted in the 2002 NFL draft. He played college football at San Diego State and has also played for the the NY Giants. As a side note, he is the older brother of former NFL Safety Marcus Demps who was a member of the Detroit Lions practice squad in 2006. A non-related sports fact is that Will Demps has been known to do some modeling so I took the liberty of posting his photo for all of my gal pals. :) In case you are wondering, Demps' father is African American and his mother is Korean.

Enjoy the video~

P.S. My apologies if an advertisement pops up before the video starts. My intent is to post the highest quality videos for your viewing pleasure. Unfortunately, sometimes that means they'll include an ad. Thanks for your understanding...

-C