When life gives you lemons, eat chocolate cake!

I’ve always had a sweet tooth. It’s the kind of aftertaste my mouth craves for whether it’s after a satisfying or a bad meal. Now with the certain turn of events, I realize that my affinity towards placating my meals with a taste of sugar goes beyond my appetite for food.

The last couple of days have been pretty rough, especially since I will no longer be reporting for FEU this UAAP season 73. I do not need to disclose the reasons here but the experience makes me realize that I have to accept that there are just certain things that are simply not in my control. Nothing more, nothing less. As Lena always tells me, this is my present, not my future. And I am not defined by this moment, only by the way I choose to overcome it.

What I am a little bit sad about though is not being with the team anymore. Although it’s only been 3 games, 1 cheer rally, practice and team dinner, I’ve become a bit attached in such a short span of time. I felt my heart tug a little when one of the boys chatted with me asking why I wasn’t there last Sunday. I learned a lot from them in terms of humility, hard work and teamwork.

As upsetting as it initially was, this weekend made me see how it’s personally not a big deal. Enjoying the night with my friends and being with my family made me see how my life is still pretty good. This is a small setback in the very large scheme of things. Something similar happened to me in high school and I remember just how great that ended up being.

As my heading says above, “I don’t deal in truths. But I’ve got stories” and when the appropriate time comes this one will definitely be one to tell.

So, in the words of John Mayer “There’s no such thing as the real world; Just a lie that I have to rise above. I’d like to think the best of me is still hiding up my sleeve.“

Thank you to my friends, family and Keena’s birthday who makes eating that chocolate cake taste oh so good. Click to see why!

Hot Pink Shoes to Fill

After covering my first official game two Saturday’s ago, I realized that no amount of prior experience – whether that’s in public speaking, debate, performing or even radio, could ever fully prepare me for my first UAAP report.

I’ve watched live many times before, but witnessing it as a reporter and sitting with the team on the court is like experiencing the game in high definition. Suddenly my senses are heightened and sharpened. You become almost acutely aware of everything around you.

The players look like giants. The cheers and the drums sound louder and lauder. The smell of sweat and the touch of the perspiring players as their skin braises mine during the half time huddle makes their hard work feel more tangible to a mere bystander like me. And lastly, I’ve never felt the taste of a championship being desired as strongly as the hungry boys playing on the courts of UAAP basketball.

Plus there’s the indescribable energy that the league is known for. The kind that fuels the never ending drive of the players and the relentless shouting of the fans.

Add that to the fact that my first game was against the back-to-back champions who just so happens to be my alma matter but rival to my pseudo new school and you’ve got a potentially short-circuit situation. Everything is turned up one notch higher from the cacophony of cheers clamoring for attention on opposite ends of the court to the jarring jerkiness in my heart.

But what’s ironic is that despite the distractions coming at me from all possible angles is that I find myself tuned into my own frequency. Perhaps that’s because i’m trying to focus but sometimes it feels like I’m experiencing the fast paced game in slow motion. Maybe that’s because my brain is trying to process it frame-by-frame.

Personally, my first game didn’t go the way I pictured it to be, nerves and all. But that’s me being my self-critical self who tends to be too hard on herself at times.

I can draw from all the past experiences I’ve had, but once I step onto that court I’m not Rica the thespian or Rica the debater. I’m Rica the court side reporter who’s armed with a microphone at hand and hot pink Nike dunks at foot and she definitely has her own shoes to fill.

But setting all my newbie frustrations aside, it was quite an exhilirating game to pop my UAAP cherry with!  Although I’m not representing my school, I feel lucky that I was given FEU who’s definitely a force to reckon with this season 73.  If i actually played basketball RR would be my idol haha. Click to meet some of the other CSR’s! Pics c/o Karen

Fear Fatale – FEU Cheer Rally

If you can harness your fear and take its often gut-wrenching grip by the reigns, then you’re definitely in for a better ride. It can take you to places and make you do things that you never thought you had the courage to do until you finally put all your insecurities aside and just do it.

Initially I was hesitant to host the FEU cheer rally. Not that I’m not capable of hosting, but because it was totally out of my comfort zone on so many different levels. After all, it’s no secret that my tagalog isn’t exactly the best. Plus, any logical string of tagalog I can actually muster up is ripe with a conyo twang.  And it would be the first time I’d meet the school I was representing and vice versa.

But after a significant amount inner debate and debacle, I told myself that I have to stop letting fear make excuses for myself.  Panic for the unknown tends to over-exaggerate the future, making it seem much more foreboding than it actually is.

So, I took a deep breath and just dove headfirst into a pool of yellow and green.

Although I could’ve done better, given the circumstance the pep rally definitely turned out a lot better than I expected it to be, especially the part where I interviewed in TAGALOG. Ironically, that was my favorite moment haha. Actually, despite the initial insecurity what’s thrilling is when your instincts take over and kicks your fear fatale in the ass.  That’s when you know that everything is going to be okay.

With my first UAAP game just days away and many more potentially out-of-comfort-zone experiences to come, I know that this won’t be the last time I’ll feel this way.

But you know what? Despite the anxiety of taking the risk and putting yourself out there like this,  I certainly hope it wont be the last time I feel this way. Because if that was the case, then I’ll end up riding to  no where exciting.

This year’s Season 73 forecast is that my tagalog will definitely get better! Click to see pictures from the pep rally! Thanks to Aki for the pics!

Court Side Chronicles

Seven and a half years ago I started watching UAAP. I remember my adrenaline pumping and my screams roaring as Gec Chia made his unforgettable buzzer beater in Season 65′s semi-finals against the UE Red warriors.

Two years ago I entered college and cheered for my school as an official Atenean which made winning the season extra sweet.

One year ago my friend and I joked around that we should become court side reporters just because we thought our international twang would sound good on tv.

One month ago I walked into the ABS-CBN compound, aware that by entering into those doors, a window of opportunity could possibly open.

Fast forward to today and I would’ve never imagined that it actually would.

Three rounds and endless tortuous hours of anticipation later, the fact that I am actually an official UAAP court side reporter for Season 73 is still kinda surreal. It’s one of those things you always talk about but never imagined would actually come true.

It’s exciting yet frightening when you get your head out of the clouds only to realize that it’s not a dream anymore. You’re standing on real ground. My friends know how much and how long I’ve been patiently declaring to the universe for my time to come. And I’m really hoping it has.

Whether or not I would’ve gotten it, the experience of auditioning was well worth it. A story I would’ve looked forward to sharing with friends. There were so many equally or even more talented people around me, who not only have beautiful faces and killer smiles, but a charming personality as well. With the contestants, competition and callbacks  I couldn’t help but tell myself: This is how the contestants on American Idol must feel like!

I especially remember my second round of auditions where my nerves took a shot to my confidence and tangled my words up ALOT. I thought my performance was so terrible that I was ready to accept defeat – with myself as my number one contender. Personally, losing would’ve been okay. But losing when you know you it wasn’t your best makes for a sure knock out especially with no more rounds to go. I REALLY thought I blew it.

But God is kind and for some unknown reason someone out there believed that beneath that derange of inarticulateness was a person who made sense. I got a call back for the third and final round and I was determined to prove that it wouldn’t and shouldn’t be my last. With a smile on my face and conviction in my voice, what felt different this time around was that I told myself to just have fun and be myself. And I did.  Honestly, it makes a difference.

I know that this entry is long but words can not explain how extremely THANKFUL I am to have gotten this opportunity and to have such supportive friends and family who believed in me. Thank you God! Belief, I am now realizing is such a powerful feeling – whether it emanates from within you or the people around you.

As my dad told me last night “It was just there. You just had to open your eyes properly.”

My eyes are wide open right now and I’m excited to see what the future has in store for me. I remember telling my friends that if I got everything I wanted this year I would be more than willing to make the necessary sacrifices.

Even if it’s not my school, I’m excited to be part of this as a Tamaraw! Or as my tito says Tamaraw + Wings = Pegasus!

Special thanks to Job De Leon and Gab Aguila aka my “career consultants.” I wouldn’t be here without them : )

One of the past reports said to record everything. Take pictures! Write a blog! Which is exactly what I’m going to do because I want to remember every moment. Good thing I’m finally getting a camera again! Click to see pictures