Women with Balls and Money

Top-earning female athletes are either golfers, or tennis players. Pictures and words are from Forbes.com, my comments are italicized. This is not an example of "save the best for last." It's a no-brainer that I love the athlete who's on top (or bottom of my entry) of the list. Aahhh, sarcasm.

Let's start:

Paula Creamer
Golf
$6 million
Cramer's victory in the 2005 Sybase Classic made her, at 18, the youngest LPGA event winner in 53 years. She's signed on with Adidas, NEC and Taylor Made. Whenever I hear/read "youngest", I just nod my head. Yet considering she already has won a tournament, a few more wins, and more publicity, she'll move up to the list in a year or so. Haha.

Ana Ivanovic
Tennis
$6.5 million
The 20-year-old Serb has shot up to No. 1 in the world after winning the 2008 French Open. She counts Adidas, Yonex (rackets) and Juice Plus among her major endorsements. Ahhhna. Add Rolex and Verano Motors to her endorsement deals, having heard she got a really pricey deal with Yonex. I think they're prepping Ana to tennis publicity stardom. Yeah she got the killer forehand, another Grand Slam or so would attract even more endorsers (and money). I just hope she has a good agent, and work more for the money just to beat the top-earning female in this list who's really spending a lot of time off-court doing photoshoots and so (sooo un-tennis mentality).

Danica Patrick
Auto Racing
$7 million
Patrick's Indy series win in April should set her up for more riches to come, provided she avoids becoming a one-hit wonder. Racing. Wow. Just, wow. More patches sewn into her suit and she'll be on her way to more than $7 million. Too bad you can't see the racers while they're racing because of the helmet. If there were transparent helmets with the same safety quality (it would be interesting), racers would have more endorsement deals.

Lorena Ochoa
Golf
$10 million
Six tournament wins so far this year have netted Ochoa $1.8 million in prize money to go along with major endorsement deals with Audi and Lacoste. Do you ever wonder why golfers and tennis players are the ones raking in money from endorsement deals? It's because they do not have uniforms. They could wear whatever they want on court/field/course/whatever. So if you want to have a lot of endorsements, play golf or tennis.

Annika Sorenstam
Golf
$11 million
The Swede has racked up more career prize money than any female golfer in history--some $22 million. The eight-time player of the year has 72 LPGA tournament wins to her credit, including 10 majors. Sorenstam has announced she'll retire from the tour after the ADT Championship in November, just after she turns 38.

Wow, she's dang amazing!

She'll retire. Then she can go back and win again. Ahhh, the beauty of golf.

Michelle Wie
Golf
$12 million
A limited schedule this year (injuries, college enrollment) didn't hurt Wie's endorsement career. But if the teen sensation wants to extend her deals with Nike and Sony, she'll need to spend more time on the course in 2009. College enrollment. I am proud of Michelle Wie, she was accepted in Stanford, and unlike tennis players, she decided to study. She got kicked out in her latest tourney because she forgot to sign her scorecard, wtfreak?! The thing with golf is that even if you're already uhmm, over the calendar (31++) you can still play competitively and win. Unlike in tennis wherein the career lifespan is relatively short. Boohoo.

Justine Henin
Tennis
$12.5 million
After ringing up $5 million in prize money during a white-hot 2007, Henin walked away from the sport this past spring, just before her 26th birthday. I think I almost cried when I found out she (world number 1) retired just like that. Just like that.. Considering her competition, I think Justine is/was the best female tennis player. I really hope one day she bumps her head (metaphorically) and realizes she wants to play tennis again. Justine Henin is soo great (not just good) a player I think the WTA lost a really important icon. And she's not into off-court stuffs, considering her not-so-many deals. She's really a tennis player, not a businesswoman (unlike what the top-earning athlete in this list said, "I'm a businesswoman." Yeah right).

Venus Williams
Tennis
$13 million
Big sister Venus defeated Serena at this year's Wimbledon final, showing she's got plenty left in the tank. She's parlayed success on the court into her own fashion line, EleVen, a collection of casual and performance footwear and apparel. Having won Wimbledon for 5 times already, her confidence would probably be sky-high coming in to the Olympics. I still love the shorts from EleVen, too bad they are only sold in Steve and Barry's. And she graduated with honors. (She graduated which is not common in tennis life.)

Serena Williams
Tennis
$14 million
The younger of the storied Williams sisters, Serena has bounced back with a vengeance with three tournament wins this year, matching her combined total from 2005 to 2007. Her endorsement stable includes Hewlett-Packard, Nike and Kraft.

She's on a good year for tennis, despite having injuries this year. I love it when Serena gets pissed off in a match, and in interviews. She makes interviews really interesting. Bitching off and the likes. Haha. One thing annoying with the Williams sisters is that they do not play for some time, then when they compete again, they win. Soo unfair! It's like they can just get in and out of the field anytime they want. And what's more annoying is that they CAN actually do it. Haha.

Maria Sharapova
Tennis
$26 million
There's nothing like the combination of talent and good looks to woo corporations looking to spend endorsement dollars. Sharapova's Australian Open title this year was her third Grand Slam win, along with 16 other singles titles. She's recently added Sony to an endorsement portfolio that includes Pepsi, Colgate-Palmolive, Nike and Motorola. She's so effing rich and celebrated she won awards she didn't deserve. Example: ESPY award. She had the worst year in 2007 yet she still won it. That's plain injustice. She's just celebrated and romanticized so much and I think Anna Kournikova (all looks and minimal tennis skills) was behind this. Kournikova hyped the media about Russian players and tadah Sharapova was next in line. Maybe Russians have plans on dominating the world. Hmm..

MORAL: Wow, right? Throw your school books away and grab a club or a racquet! These freaks of nature (aka athletes) are filthy rich. Imagine how their parents have influenced them with the sports they are excelling in now, when they were still bottle-feeders. Surely, they didn't decide to do tennis or golf all the way back in the days they still don't know how to tie their shoelaces. Most often than not (I can only support my words with tennis sources, not with golfers) their parents are with them during tournaments. Tennis players have tournaments scheduled every week, and their parents are seated in their boxes whenever they play (even if the tournament is not that "bigtime"). They usually act as the coach. Get a life.

I Need to Want It

I hope this does not feel financially-related in any way. I just feel broke, because I am almost broke. You know that song by Alanis Morisette that starts with, "I'm broke but I'm happy.." (Yes, it is the song Hand in My Pocket.) My sister and I always sing THAT part whenever we buy things we categorize under WANT and not NEED. I have been splurging on books, concert tickets and gadgets. Rawr. In the span of 2 months, I have bought a Philips dock system for my iPod, 2 Haruki Murakami books (which are not mura in my standards), a Western Digital external HDD, concert tickets to Avril Lavigne, Alicia Keys, and Panic at the Disco (haven't paid but reserved for it already). With these, my initial plan to buy a smartphone is as good as witnessing Big Bang right before our pet dog speaks/barks the words, "I am Butchoi," to my face.

Mind you, I'm not really a big spender. It's just, most of the artists I like are just coming here in the country. Then with the things, the external HDD was a necessity, the speakers were on "Sale" though they still cost like fashizzles for me. In short, nagsabay-sabay lang sila! Yes, that's it. After this, I wouldn't buy clothes, hoodies, shoes. (NOOOO!!! Is there a chastity-like belt for shoppers?) Maybe I won't even spend for anything next year (aside from the occasional gifts for birthday people, school supplies, etc.). Boohoo.

Next time you'll see "FOR SALE" or "SELLING" messages here. -_-


MORAL: Live life to the fullest. You can't bring your money to the grave. Haha. I commute, so if all of a sudden I walk under a bus, got hit by a train, etc. at least I have experienced buying the concert tickets, and/or holding the books/gadgets somehow. Hmm, my siblings would probably sell my stuff if that happens.

Weird, Pare, Like Weird You Know

July 12, 2008 = One of the weirdest days of my life.


I caught a cab around 8:35am, my LS199.6 (Situational Leadership) class strictly starts at 9:00am. I got hold of a Kia Pride taxi - yes those nitty gritty cars which have aircon that gives off air similar to what you produce using a fan with prints of Minnie Mouse and shortless Winnie the Pooh. My yaya said, "Nako, kawawa ka naman. Abot ka kaya?" Obviously it's because of the Kia.


But lo, behold, and hold-up! The Kia was boasting with really cool air, and the driver was driving like Hamilton and Schumacher! All the while I was waiting for the car to dislodge itself and disconnect its parts one by one, like the rear bumpers would fall off, the chassis would run ahead of us, the wheels would just come off, practically crash the whole thing somewhere else. I arrived in Ateneo by 8:55 and was able to sign the attendance by 8:57am. Haha, I was spared from the push-ups required for the latecomers. (Dear Igop, Thea, Jon, Glen, Tommie, and the rest. It's a drag to suffer DOMS right? After all of those push-ups?)


I asked the Big Man (Jim Lafferty, GM of Procter and Gamble Philippines) if the girls could just sing because he offered that before. Unfortunately he told me, "I decided that everyone will do push-ups." It was a clear picture - Thea's eyes grew larger, larger than Jupiter and I feared they would pop-out from their sockets.


Francine had a picnic raid at Faura Back (slang: FACK). Others ate chicken, baked macaroni, cake, etc. while I ate plants with dressing. Yehey! (Sometimes I wasn't sure if what I was eating was the backyard grass or the real salad, but the dressing was good I forgot to care!) I don't know if Francine was surprised with the whole idea because it was a drag to eat when all of the red ants are there sitting beside you. Nature appreciation!! Who would mind if mosquitoes feast the crap out of you as long as Francine is happy for her birthday. (Awww..)


I attended a seminar afterwards, about Sales and Entrepreneurshit. Oops, Entrepreneurship. The thing is that punctuality is a big issue (our org's name is on the line) and so was the availability of seats. It was already 1:30pm yet the whole place was deserted. I wondered if we got the venue wrong but no, there were others who looked like lost kittens as well.


Really tired, I went home and when I logged in to Yahoo! Messenger, I received two instant messages. Those were from my cousin and my aunt. Then after 5 nanoseconds, my blockmates were IM-ing me. After a second or so, my fellow org officers are sending me messages, too. Newfound orgmates/friends were buzzing and sending me IMs as well. Add to that the occasional buzz I get because I was already dumbfounded by the amount of chat windows in my screen. The whole screen was practically covered by the chat windows. And just when I thought it would stop, my highschool friends were asking me questions and my mind blanked, instead of my eyeballs popping out from the sockets, they were rolling inside.



I wondered if it read in my horrorscope that I would be really in demand in the cyberworld on that particular date and time. Like: "Aquarius, almost all the people in your contact list will IM you and invite you to virtual conferences tonight. You will go bonkers with the amount of messages you get, and be deafened by the volume of buzzes you get because of staring too much, getting shocked and replying less. In short, you're screwed. Haha!"




MORAL: Check the newspaper daily. Don't just read the headlines, the foreign news (which is the first thing I check everyday), the sports pages, and the entertainment/movie section. There are other parts as well, like the horoscope and the cartoons. You're not sure, your destiny for the day may be written there. Like, "IM the Aquarian in your contact list tonight. She'll be stupefied by it!"

Bus Rider

Note: This post is dated January 10, 2008. Gosh, it took me half a year to post this?! I don't have dementia or anything but heck JANUARY 10?!

I've been in this situation wherein I ride the bus (I am saving money for piano lessons so I now walk and ride the bus. However, when it is really warm and sunny, I usually think twice if I'll walk), after I got seated, people start to push themselves inside the bus, and then an old woman enters. The bus is a pretty shaky and dangerous (for me) ride, and when the driver is all reckless, he accelerates and stops suddenly. The end result is that the passengers who are standing are thrown back and forth, just like described in Newton's Laws of Motion.

Back to the old woman. She gets to feel the sensation of riding a theme park's roller coaster while riding the bus. Good thing I haven't seen anyone hurl during a ride. No one's offering her a seat. I have this thing that when no one is taking the initiative to do something, I volunteer (I think sometimes I have regretted doing so). So I offered her my seat, and she kept on thanking me. What's strange that after I stood up and gave her my seat, all the men were offering theirs. I am pro-women rights and ok, I like gender equality, so I think even women should (it's not mandatory, though) offer their seats to old people (and the pregnant). C'mon. You don't want your/anyone's grandparents experiencing Enchanted Kingdom's Space Shuttle ride while commuting without the safety devices.

I always have my iPod with me. If there are three things I won't leave home without, these things are my handkerchief (dunno why, but I can't leave without one), iPod/music device/something to listen to, and money. No cellphone. Sometimes it is fun when I don't have my cellphone, but when you get home and check it, it is a dread to see all the people's concern on your phone. Missed calls and unread messages. Nightmare. Bangungot! Anyway, back to the topic (if there's any) about always having an mp3 player, I think I'm becoming insensitive in some ways. Like the bus scene, I cannot hear people, I can't hear it when the guard is calling for me, if the beggars are asking for change, etc. I just can't hear people, but I can see them. So if the old woman was screaming or cursing from being pushed back and forth by inertia, I won't be able to hear her. But the heck, I can SEE her.

I asked my brother what would he do if situated with that. He told me that if he's near his stop, he would offer his seat, otherwise, he would pretend to be sleeping. Great.


MORAL: Offer your seat and don't say, "I also paid my fare." In the LRT, some people really want to stand, so it's ok. Don't follow my brother's style. It is evil in some ways.

Mura Kami

Patience is a virtue... sometimes.

I have a story not about a story I have been reading but a story about how I went about buying a copy of a story I have been reading, desired by not being able to read stories similar to the story that I went off buying in the end.

What I typed above is just plain mockery of words and the human mind.

What I'm trying to say is that I have a Haruki Murakami book Sputnik Sweetheart. Murakami's pretty popular as I may say, and because I said so, believe it. I am more credible than Wikipedia. Why? Because I said so. OK? We don't need to argue on this. I have heard of his name before; however, it was only almost a week ago that I saw his books placed on a corner in National Bookstore, SM City Sta. Mesa branch. I found the covers of his books plain and striking. White cover with whatever images the cover artists thought to be in line with the book, like naked woman or just plain dizzy font styles. Another is that his books are not mura (cheap) and that is the pain in it. When I am intrigued by the story, I want a tangible copy of the book. Not an e-book downloaded off in the Internet which is really fun by the way since you get tons of free stuff you probably don't need in the first place and positively can live without.

I was checking his books and all of a sudden my phone vibrated inside my pocket. (I still get surprised whenever my phone vibrates in my pocket. Surprised by so much that when I am sitting on a couch/chair my leg would suddenly straighten out and I would slip a few inches off the chair. Yup, that surprised.) I answered it and put one of Murakami's book back onto the shelf. It was the LAST copy of Sputnik Sweetheart which I've been thinking of buying for a few minutes, because PHP425.00 is already a big deal for me (I used to NOT mind spending a lot, until I realized I have needs like clothes, shoes, blank DVDs, etc. and have to pay phone bills). It could leave a painful mark in my allowance jar where I throw a few hundreds every now and then planning to collect them at the end of the month then deposit the cash in the bank. (That's a clue to those who have interests of getting other peoples' hard-earned cold cash.) Where were we? I got sidetracked by the events-that-transforms-into-the-words I type. Hmm, oh yeah, back to the last copy of the book. A girl who was just passing by suddenly grabbed the book, looked at it and went off. She bought the book. I was astounded. I was standing there and watched the last copy fly from the shelf. Right then and there I felt betrayed by the book maybe because it "said" I gave second thoughts of buying it. Another thing I felt is that at least I get to keep PHP425.00 in my wallet.

I was wrong. I kept thinking about the book. I hate it. It always happens to me. Whenever I see something and wouldn't buy it yet (which is the sensible thing to do), then decide to buy it already only to find out it's out of stock already.

Example 1: The jacket. I saw it the first week in Greenhills and then I thought I would just buy it "next time" because well, I didn't want to spend money right then and there. When I went home, I told myself I will buy the jacket the next day I'm free. Weekend came there were no more size small for me, considering I went to Gateway, Greenhills (again), Robinson's Galleria, and SM Sta. Mesa. Only medium ones were left. After that, I decided to buy the medium ones the next day. Then, I went to the same places and didn't find any medium size of the design I wanted! Gosh I was soooooo annoyed. I thought maybe the jacket wasn't really for me. And to think that the small and medium sizes are already obliterated from the face of the earth, there are hundreds of Pinoys out there wearing that jacket. I just hope they all meet together and realize what kind of schmucks they are for buying all of the sizes leaving me with ridiculously large sizes.

Arrggh. So the next time I came to National Bookstore, the moment I saw the book I grabbed it and was ready to box-out the possible people who would want to buy the book.


MORAL: If you want it and really believe you need it, buy it. I'm referring to clothes here. However, my sister still believes in the "if you wait and come back to see it's still there, it's definitely for you" chipping in her experience of buying her jacket. She waited for 28 days (just like a monthly cycle!) and was shocked to see the jacket she wanted still there, waiving at her. If you're buying music CDs, wait for at least a month or so before you buy because most often than not, the record company would release a repackaged version of the album and it includes a crystal case, additional tracks, and all the regret you have of buying the first album right away. They didn't coin "Patience is a virtue" for nothing.

Therefour

Last night I watched the Williams sisters knock off their competition to the other side of the earth. They wanted to win in similar fashion. Venus 6-1 7-6 over Elena Dementieva who still looks like Barbie. Then Serena 6-2 7-6 over Zheng Jie. Anyway, they also beat the crap out of Natalie Dechy and Casey Dellacqua in the semifinals of the Ladies' Doubles. Rawr. It would be an all-Williams affair tomorrow. Singles, doubles, they're everywhere. Then there's another Nadal-Federer finals in the men's division. Zzz.

We already bought tickets for Alicia Keys' concert in MOA Open Field. Then I came across the news that Avril's having a concert here as well, in Araneta. Check the prices:

Patron VIP (101,103 1ST 20 ROWS) (Reserved Seating) 10500
Patron (Reserved Seating) 6750
Lower Box (Reserved Seating) 6750
Upper Box A (Reserved Seating) 2850
Upper Box B (Free Seating) 1400
General Admission (Free Seating) 600

WHAT THE HECK?! I would be living in the poverty line by then!

Dang. I really want to watch Avril!! Heck who cares if she sucks in live performances? Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn. I really (repeat 480x) want to watch her! After all, she names this, "The Best Damn Tour" and she's coming to the Philippines again! (I missed out her first concert because I was required to attend a high school event way back then. I also missed the Alicia Keys concert then. So they are both haunting me now, and I would be a fool to pass on this opportunity.)

Davai!!


MORAL: Even though Marat Safin lost, I'm still crushing (?!) him. Avril Lavigne and Alicia Keys are there to make me realize that eating Tofu Steak with Vegetables (replacement for beef) in Bento is a sucky thing to do because it's a waste of money. Instead, I must save my money for concert tickets (an amplifier, and an external HD). God bless me.

Bookit?

Why?

Why is it that I can read novels, the newspapers, magazines, and dictionaries (yes I read dictionaries and always bring one) yet I can't even have this "passion" to read assigned readings (Philosophy, History, even my Systems Analysis and Design book)? I mean there is no lack of attention span in my veins if we're even considering that. In Literature class before, I finished the required novel to read, The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, in a day or two. However, it was a drag reading photocopies of different plays. I'm still thinking of the answer. My answer to why...


Then it hit me.


I don't like reading those that aren't compiled, those that do not resemble a book or a notebook. I lose interest in reading my notes afterwards when I wrote them in pad papers. I didn't touch my History readings before (mind you, I really love History) not until we were going to have our exam the next day. I don't like reading/studying PowerPoint presentations but I don't want to print the PowerPoint because they look dumb on paper. PDF files are still negotiable BUT they are not even in the level of the purgatory. Given the chance, I still want a book, and I still hate highlighting books (I get the willies when I see books with highlights).

Amen.


MORAL: This is where taking down notes shows its importance. If you're having the same feeling as well, try writing a lot of things down. I love to write, type, think, and read. We could all do the same for the better future of our country. (There are papers sold that aren't made from trees. Let's help save the environment! Because we have to. Frankly my dear, we do not have a choice.)

Molting Hot Skin

So I went to Subic last weekend with my relatives after my LS199.6 class, wherein we watched the old school movie Hoosiers. My cousins and I arrived there around 4 or 5pm, and ate like refugees. My mom and sister, my balikbayan relatives, and other relatives from the country were already there a day before us. There were so many food my sister asked, "We're already leaving tomorrow right? It's like we have enough food for three days." But of course, instead of being idle, try gluttony. We ate breakfast food (we're accustomed to eat corned beef, pan de sal, egg, etc. in the morning) for supper. Great. (There were a lot of junk food there. And oh, factory outlets in Subic are smokin'! The discounts are great deals. If there were stores like those here in Manila, I would really be financially-disabled already.)

Anyway, after a lot of activities, and burning under the climate-change-affected sun, a while ago, I was like molting. I saw it when I was in my first class, MIS121. I saw my arm, and I was flabbergasted. OMGosh - skin. Next class came and it was worse. I thought my skin would peel too much and then my dermis would show up followed by muscles, tissues, etc.


MORAL: Sunblock, baby, is a necessity. Unless you are willing to toast your skin under the sun with all those ultraviolet (why aren't there ultrapurple?) rays. Deadly. Raawwr.