Conspiracy Theory

Remember the "Frozen Envelope" conspiracy theory that led to Patrick Ewing going to the Knicks? A lot of people subscribe to that particular theory. These people also believe that the NBA is rigged.

This year, for example, a lot of people think that the fix was in for the Spurs. Which is crazy, if you think about it. Why the Spurs? Wouldn't you think that the league would prefer that the Suns go all the way to the championship, since more people would watch? Wouldn't the league prefer that Spurs-Suns go seven, with the Suns (the more exciting team) prevailing, and going against...the Mavs? Why on earth would they have the Warriors win against the Mavs, and then lose against the Jazz, setting up one of the dullest Western Conference finals in history?

Then it hit me: This is the Year of LeBron!

It's straight out of a WWE script! To wit:
(1) Set up a "heel" turn by a beloved "face" team (i.e. the Spurs). Make them almost invincible.
(2) Have the "new face" (i.e. LeBron) struggle against an established "heel" team (i.e. the Pistons) and then "Hulk out" (games 3,4,5 and 6), winning the next four games in dramatic fashion.
(3) Have the Championship Match, with the heel almost winning...then the face pulls it out in the end against seemingly impossible odds.

And thus the King gets crowned.

You know what else the league would love? LeBron vs DWade for the title. Impossible you say, since they're both in the Eastern Conference? Cue Kobe and all his histrionics the past couple of days...

Kobe and Bynum get traded to Miami for Shaq and DWade!

Hey, anything's possible.

Watchlist 2007: Memorial Day Marathon

Spent Memorial Day Sunday watching movies. Took in Shrek the Third in the afternoon, and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End at night.

Shrek The Third. It's all just a money grab now. Shrek 2 was funny, especially with the introduction of Puss'n'Boots; the climax, with the spoof of Mission: Impossible, was especially cool. This movie had a few laughs, but overall felt more like a DirectToDVD film rather than something you're willing to pay ten bucks for. What's even more outrageous is that there's a TV special, a spin-off, and TWO sequels in the works. Oy. Make it stop.

POTC: AWE. This was a movie we were anticipating ever since the second one ended. We caught the last showing at 11pm, and the theater was still pretty crowded. Overall it did not disappoint, with a great story, great stunts, and great effects. It did have some flaws, however--the opening felt rushed, Jack was a bit too over-the-top, and the much-ballyhooed cameo was a big meh (PJ didn't even recognize who it was, and didn't particularly care)--but on the whole it was a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy. If you can, wait until the credits finish for that extra scene, much like the previous two.

Two Part 3s down, one to go. I'll try to catch Spiderman 3 before it disappears from the theaters.

The Fix Is In

Well, there you go. Blake got Guarini'd, and your new American Idol is...Jordin Sparks.

What a rip. Randy, shut up. "This is a singing competition, the best singer always wins!" Really? Where's Melinda then? Oh, right. "America" voted Melinda off. Couldn't risk having Melinda blow Jordin away.

The Jordin pimping was so obvious. Nothing against Jordin, but this TCO stuff is annoying.

Oh, and someone on TWOP found this reaction shot to Jordin singing...I'm still laughing, especially at Melinda. Priceless.

Burger Royale with Cheese

A couple of months back a couple of radio hosts (Money and Petros on PMS on XTRA570) were arguing over which burger was the best: Fatburger or In-N-Out. For my money it's In-N-Out, no contest; well-done with extra crispy grilled onions. Mmmm.

Of course, having grown up in the Philippines, these two burger joints pale in comparison to what I remember. There were several local joints competing for the title of "best burger":

1. Tropical Hut Hamburger, the first fast food burger I ever had. Heavenly stuff. My favorite was the Hawaiian, of which Jollibee's Aloha burger was a pale imitation.
2. Jollibee. Decent. I only really started liking this stuff when I got older. It was always Chicken Joy or nothing.
3. Burger Machine. The burger that never sleeps! The burger's flavored with exhaust fumes. Maybe that's why it was so tasty. Say, do these stalls still exist? Last time I was in RP (last year) I didn't see a single one.
4. Mushroom Burger. The one in Tagaytay. I still have fond memories of stopping here everytime my dad and I went fishing in Caliraya. This one time we ran into the Bad Bananas (Christopher de Leon, Jay Ilagan and Edgar Mortiz, along with Michael de Mesa) riding their bikes. My first brush with celebrity.

Not sure why Pinoy burgers taste so good. I've always thought they added pork along with the beef to make it more flavorful; or was it the worms that the burger patties were allegedly made of? In any case, I sure could use a Pinoy burger right now.

Aloha! Part 2: Maui

Amelie and friend at Wai'anapanapa State Park

The airport in Honolulu was a bit confusing--we didn't realize there were two terminals, one for mainland and international travel, and the other for inter-island hopping. It also didn't help that our airline had managed to change its name from "Mesa Air" to "go!". The important part was that we made it, and we were at Maui in thirty minutes!

Maui was definitely more relaxing than Oahu. It's less crowded, so there's no stress from the big city (relatively speaking, of course). Oddly, though, Oahu felt more like Hawai'i than Maui did. I guess it's because the rest of the world is exposed mostly to Honolulu and Waikiki.

The Grand Wailea

Things I liked in Maui:
1. The Grand Wailea Hotel. Ah, Grand Wailea. The resort was beautiful, and the pools were amazing, kinda like a water park. During peak season I wouldn't even dream of staying here; we couldn't afford it. Heck, it was low season, and it was still pricey. But it was worth it; heck, from our room, you had a view of...
2. Molokini Crater. Granted, the little fishies off Cozumel in Mexico were more colorful; but the water here was much, much, clearer. The first couple of seconds in the water was cold, but I quickly got over it. Better snorkeling than Hanauma Bay (although I have this nagging feeling I missed a lot of what Hanauma Bay had to offer).
3. Hana Highway. Instead of driving, PJ convinced me to take the tour instead. Good call. The roads were twisting, turning, and so narrow that "two lanes" is a laughable description; it's more like "1.5 lanes". I think I could take it, though. The scenery was beautiful; lots of waterfalls (although some were dry), and one part looked like a bunch of cylon (toaster) heads. I wish I caught a red car driving the road so that it'll seem even more realistic!
4. The Banyan Tree in Lahaina. It looks like it's a grove of Banyan Trees, yes? But no, it's all just one tree. Wow.

Banyan Tree at Lahaina

Things I didn't like in Maui:
1. The sugar plantation near Kahului. What an eyesore.
2. The high prices. Gas in Oahu was 3.25; Maui, 3.65. Yikes. Even the Costco had slightly higher prices, with bread going for nearly $5 for the generic Kirkland bread. Ow. Lunch and Dinner were pretty pricey as well.
3. The speed limit (25-35). Same as Oahu. Although drivers here seem more aggressive. I actually had a couple of drivers riding my tail for doing the speed limit.
4. So much stuff to do, so little time. We didn't get to surf (or at least learn to surf). We didn't get to Kayak. I didn't get to bike down Haleakala. I didn't get to go ziplining. We didn't see enough of Hana and the waterfalls. Maybe next time...

Cylons at Hana!

I'd love to come back and stay at the Grand Wailea again. The kids sure loved those pools!

Aloha! Part 1: Oahu

Camille at Lanikai Beach

Just got back from Hawaii, so I'm still pretty fried at the moment, operating on Hawaii time (which is three hours behind from PST. We visited Oahu and Maui, and had a fun time. All-in-all, 12 days just isn't enough time to completely relax and enjoy those two islands. But we sure did try!

Hanauma Bay

What I liked about Oahu:
1. Hanauma Bay. Beautiful nature preserve, very calm and shallow waters. In fact, it's a bit too shallow, especially early in the morning, so snorkeling is a bit difficult. You have to try and avoid stepping on coral, and that's difficult when you can't really swim without gashing yourself on coral since it's so shallow. It got better later in the morning, just before we left (naturally). The Halona Blowhole a mile or so down the road was also cool.
2. The drive around North Shore, especially La'ie point. The scenery was surreal. Oh, and it was fun seeing the "sets" they used for Lost, especially the "Shrimp Shack" one in "Sydney".
3. The H3 highway. Driving through that tunnel, through the mountain...wow.
4. Pearl Harbor. I've visited it the last time I was in Oahu, and the experience still gets to me. I think it was Meryl Streep narrating that very touching film, right?
5. The view from Diamond Head. But the hike sucks, especially carrying the kids at one point or another. The shaved ice after the hike made up for it, though.

View from the top of Diamond Head

What I didn't like about Oahu:
1. The speed limit. It's a bit disconcerting, coming from California where people flash their lights when you're driving 5 miles over the speed limit. Then you get stuck driving 25 miles an hour.
2. The crowds in Waikiki. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency, which was beautiful, but the Waikiki area just had so many people. And this was the low season.
3. The streets of Honolulu. Oahu Revealed mentioned that the person who designed the road system in Honolulu was not all there. He was telling the truth. Trying to get to H1 East? Well, it's easy to find H1 West, but finding the onramp to H1 East was a nightmare.
4. This one Vietnamese restaurant near Legend Seafood. I think it was called "Old Saigon Restaurant" or something over at Kuhio Ave. Overpriced, and the service is rude. First, they tell us to leave our strollers outside, so we fold the strollers. Then we try to move the table since it was so close to the wall that we couldn't squeeze in. Can't move it, the boss will get mad. Then they served mediocre food starting from $10 up (better food can be had at the Internation Marketplace Food Court, for crying out loud). Then they tack on 15% gratuity even though it wasn't mentioned anywhere. Do NOT eat here. Go across the street to Legend Seafood, where the place was sparkling, the service was great, and the food was exceptional for the price.

La'ie Point

But hey, I'm reaching. Oahu was still fun, and we especially enjoyed our road trip around the island.