June post
(Again, this comes just under the wire. It was another busy month wherein I did barely any writing that wasn't for work. Boo hiss.)
This month's prompt comes from livii, who asks: In June, talk to me about basketball and Ateneo! Explain to me exactly who you cheer for and why, and what you love about basketball itself. :)
OK, here goes!
Who do I cheer for and why: The answer is simple! I cheer for the basketball teams from my alma mater, the Ateneo de Manila University :) (Technically, that comprises the Ateneo Blue Eagles and Lady Eagles, which compete in the university league, and Team Glory Be, the sort of training team that competes in its own tournament.) I also keep an eye on the players who have gone to the pros or the national team, but I tend to focus on the college level. Caring about this all year round can get exhausting!
I wasn't able to follow the teams while I was actually in school. I think I would have done that if I had known how to get tickets, even if my college/university years were during what the fandom calls "the Dark Ages" (i.e., when the university-league teams weren't doing well at all), because there's something cathartic about cheering with the crowd and yelling at the opposing team/fans. (I know, it's mean :-p)
Back in those days, the school was practically giving away game tickets - I remember that you could get a free absence from English/"homeroom" class if you watched a game. Now, though, tickets are incredibly hard to come by, mainly because the Blue Eagles have done much better after I graduated. (NB: I wasn't the jinx! I physically witnessed them win 3 championships!)
What I love about basketball itself: Some of my Ateneo basketball friends are also students of the sport, so I've learned a bit about the X's and O's from them. It's pretty cool to learn something new. I don't think I know things inside out, but I seem to have developed an intuitive grasp of the game at least!
More than that, though, I think it's a community thing. It's nice to watch a winning team, but I'm also really fascinated with the history behind Ateneo basketball. It's always fun to hear my friends tell stories of players and games from way back when, even if I might have heard some of the stories a couple of times before. And I still love shouting in unison with a roaring crowd, drumbeats ringing in your ears - especially if good (Ateneo) wins over evil (not-Ateneo) in the end :-p
Basketball also makes me feel closer to my fellow Filipinos. Our passion for the sport is one of the things that makes us unique, and I think that the way Filipinos play basketball - despite being relatively short, or unable to afford fancy gyms, equipment, or even proper athletic shoes - shows off our ingenuity, grace, athleticism, and sense of fun. Things can get heated, especially if you take the breaks of the game too seriously, but it makes me more proud than anything else.
Bonus related reading: Rafe Bartholomew has written a book (that I haven't bought yet) and a host of pieces on Philippine basketball - here's a list of his work on Grantland.com (some digging required). And here is the blog he kept while in the Philippines on a Fulbright scholarship. I read it while I was at grad school to keep from getting homesick.
This month's prompt comes from livii, who asks: In June, talk to me about basketball and Ateneo! Explain to me exactly who you cheer for and why, and what you love about basketball itself. :)
OK, here goes!
Who do I cheer for and why: The answer is simple! I cheer for the basketball teams from my alma mater, the Ateneo de Manila University :) (Technically, that comprises the Ateneo Blue Eagles and Lady Eagles, which compete in the university league, and Team Glory Be, the sort of training team that competes in its own tournament.) I also keep an eye on the players who have gone to the pros or the national team, but I tend to focus on the college level. Caring about this all year round can get exhausting!
I wasn't able to follow the teams while I was actually in school. I think I would have done that if I had known how to get tickets, even if my college/university years were during what the fandom calls "the Dark Ages" (i.e., when the university-league teams weren't doing well at all), because there's something cathartic about cheering with the crowd and yelling at the opposing team/fans. (I know, it's mean :-p)
Back in those days, the school was practically giving away game tickets - I remember that you could get a free absence from English/"homeroom" class if you watched a game. Now, though, tickets are incredibly hard to come by, mainly because the Blue Eagles have done much better after I graduated. (NB: I wasn't the jinx! I physically witnessed them win 3 championships!)
What I love about basketball itself: Some of my Ateneo basketball friends are also students of the sport, so I've learned a bit about the X's and O's from them. It's pretty cool to learn something new. I don't think I know things inside out, but I seem to have developed an intuitive grasp of the game at least!
More than that, though, I think it's a community thing. It's nice to watch a winning team, but I'm also really fascinated with the history behind Ateneo basketball. It's always fun to hear my friends tell stories of players and games from way back when, even if I might have heard some of the stories a couple of times before. And I still love shouting in unison with a roaring crowd, drumbeats ringing in your ears - especially if good (Ateneo) wins over evil (not-Ateneo) in the end :-p
Basketball also makes me feel closer to my fellow Filipinos. Our passion for the sport is one of the things that makes us unique, and I think that the way Filipinos play basketball - despite being relatively short, or unable to afford fancy gyms, equipment, or even proper athletic shoes - shows off our ingenuity, grace, athleticism, and sense of fun. Things can get heated, especially if you take the breaks of the game too seriously, but it makes me more proud than anything else.
Bonus related reading: Rafe Bartholomew has written a book (that I haven't bought yet) and a host of pieces on Philippine basketball - here's a list of his work on Grantland.com (some digging required). And here is the blog he kept while in the Philippines on a Fulbright scholarship. I read it while I was at grad school to keep from getting homesick.