How A Simple Online Time Clock Can Save Your Business Thousands Each Year
For businesses, time is money. This means that accurate record-keeping is essential for a company to function and save money. Online employee time tracking software simplifies a large portion of employee recording, keeping by automating the timekeeping process. This helps businesses better manage hours, keep track of productivity, and reduce overall employment costs through effective […] The post How A Simple Online Time Clock Can Save Your Business Thousands Each Year appeared first on Kagay An......»»
Reflecting on Your Business Setbacks
Challenges are an inevitable part of any endeavor, especially a business one. From unforeseen economic shifts to internal operational hurdles, every business owner will inevitably face obstacles that test their resolve. As we live in a fast-paced world, we sometimes forget about looking back, and what better time to do it than the Holy Week? […].....»»
Lalamove empowers aspiring women entrepreneurs to start their small businesses in PangNegosyo program
Lalamove, a leading on-demand delivery platform, has launched the Panalong PangNegosyo program for its thousands of women partner drivers to give out a business-starter package to three lady riders or drivers......»»
Cebuano Larz Dawson first runner-up for Mister Tourism Universe 2024
CEBU CITY, Philippines— Another Cebuano is putting Cebu on the centerstage of pageants. Larz Kent Dawson, 22, from Tisa, Cebu City recently bagged the first runner-up title for this year’s Mister Universe Tourism. Dawson, who was crowned Ginoong Pilipinas 2023, added another title in his bag, this time on the international stage. “Joining Mister Universe.....»»
Training on COA compliance for government institutions
To guide government institutions on their compliance with the Commission on Audit Circular 2020-006, the Center for Global Best Practices will be launching a two-session online training titled “COA Guidelines and Procedures for One-Time Cleansing of Property, Plant and Equipment Account Balances” on April 18 and 19, 2024 from 1:30 to 4:45 p.m. via Zoom......»»
'PHVote Guides: How to register as an overseas voter in the 2025 elections
For the first time, overseas voters may experience online voting, on top of the usual personal and postal modes.....»»
Extreme Heat as a ‘New Pandemic’: Thousands in PH Cancel Classes During ‘Hottest Year’
(Part 1 of 2) CEBU CITY, Philippines — The decades-old Gabaldon building of Leyte National High School in Tacloban City has narrow hallways, high and dark ceilings, and overcrowded classrooms. On hot and humid days, the rooms can feel stuffy and suffocating, prompting students like Dwight Lebrea, a 17-year-old Grade 12 student, to find ways.....»»
Aboitiz Group raises 2024 capex
The Aboitiz Group is poised to expand its various business units this year, supported by a substantial increase in capital expenditures......»»
Time to Shine: Make Your Mark for Earth Hour at SM Malls
Small actions can make a big difference. This year, SM Supermalls invites everyone to #GiveAnHourForEarth by joining millions around the world in the annual Global Lights Switch Off on March 23 from 8:30pm to 9:30pm. This 2024, SM marks 16 years of commitment in supporting the annual campaign initiated by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).....»»
Villanueva returns to US for fight vs Pierce
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Veteran ring warrior Arthur Villanueva returned to the United States after eight years as he takes on Elijah Pierce on March 29 in Atlantic City, Georgia. Villanueva, an ex-ALA Boxing Gym stalwart, will return to the United States for the first time since 2016. The 35-year-old Villanueva of Bago City, Negros.....»»
‘Margaritaville’s’ Jimmy Buffett, 76
“Margaritaville” singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett has died on 1 September at his home in Sag Harbor, New York. He was 76. A statement from his official website reads: “Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, music and dogs. He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many.” Buffett succumbed to Merkel cell skin cancer to which he was diagnosed four years ago. “He continued to perform during treatment,” the statement said while playing his last show, a surprise appearance in Rhode Island, in early July. Buffett, whose real name is James William Buffett, was born on Christmas day in 1946 in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and grew up in Alabama. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Southern Mississippi in 1969. He credited early years playing and singing in the streets and bars of New Orleans. Buffett’s recording career spans more than 50 years. His hits include “Margaritaville,” “Come Monday” and “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere.” His fans call themselves “Parrot Heads.” He also wrote songs about his plane being shot at by Jamaican police (“Jamaica Mistaica”), getting lost in the Sahara Desert (“Buffet Hotel”) and smugglers he had known around the Florida Gulf Coast (“A Pirate Looks at 40”). Buffett also authored bestsellers on both the fiction and non-fiction lists of the New York Times Book Review. The bona fide business mogul put up diversified lifestyle brand businesses, such as Margaritaville hotels, restaurants and retirement communities, along with sidelines such as Land Shark beer. Buffett is survived by his wife of 46 years, Jane (Slagsvol) Buffett, his daughters Savannah Jane (Joshua) and Sarah Delaney, his son Cameron Marley (Lara), his grandson Marley Ray and devoted dogs Lola, Kingston, Pepper, Rosie, Ajax and Kody. He is also survived by his Montana sister, Laurie Buffett McGuane (Tom), their children Heather Hume, Anne Buffett McGuane, Maggie McGuane and Thomas McGuane IV; his Alabama sister, Lucy Buffett and daughters Mara Delaney Buffett O’Dwyer and Melanie Leigh Buffett “and many more wonderful cousins, nieces and nephews.” His family requests that donations be made to Jimmy Buffett’s Foundation Singing for Change, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Dana Farber Cancer Institute or MD Anderson Cancer Center. The post ‘Margaritaville’s’ Jimmy Buffett, 76 appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
TONY BENNETT : GRIT AND GRACE
Tributes have continued to pour in for Tony Bennett, the last of the great mid-20th-century American crooners who died on 21 July at 96, after outliving his fellow giants in popular music such as Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin and gaining a whole new generation of fans in the era of social media with his number-one duets album with Lady Gaga. That 2014 late-career triumph had made Bennett, at 88, the oldest living American performer to notch a number-one album on the charts. It was more proof at the time of the extraordinary odds-defying grit that undergirded the grace and elegance of Bennett’s persona as the living embodiment of classic American standards, a sound that in the post-rock era many had banished to the dismissive-sounding “adult contemporary” category. Sinatra himself crowned Bennett as “the best singer in the business” in a 1965 interview with Life magazine. “He excites me when I watch him. He moves me. He’s the singer who gets across what the composer has in mind, and probably a little more,” said the Chairman of the Board. Fifty-eight years later, Elton John, decades and a whole music era removed from Sinatra, was moved to say at Bennett’s passing: “Without doubt the classiest singer, man, and performer you will ever see. He’s irreplaceable.” Indeed, Bennett was sui generis, from his singular sound to his defiant artistry. “Neither a fluid singer nor an especially powerful one, he did not have the mellifluous timbre of [Bing] Crosby or the rakish swing of Sinatra,” wrote the New York Times in its obituary. “If Louis Armstrong’s tone was distinctively gravelly, Mr. Bennett’s wasn’t quite; ‘sandy’ was more like it.” You can hear that sandy rasp even in his early, ebullient years, in signature hits like “Rags to Riches,” “Cold Cold Heart” (originally a country ditty by Hank Williams, remade by Bennett and sublimely covered 51 years later by Norah Jones), and of course, his timeless “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” Touch of roughness The touch of roughness was what gave Bennett’s sound a rich, warm quality sort of like the hiss and pop of a vinyl record, conveying a more grounded, open-hearted, truthful sense to everything that he sang. In later years, as his lung power diminished with age, he cannily pruned his singing to a more direct, compact style, the belts now occasional but always at surprising moments, the lovely loping line maintained along with the heartfelt near-whispers. He kept to that sound and refused to change his style in the face of the sea change in popular music that would engulf his generation of swinging, jazzy entertainers. “Mr. Bennett stubbornly resisted record producers who urged gimmick songs on him, or, in the 1960s and early ’70s, who were sure that rock ’n’ roll had relegated the music he preferred to a dusty bin perused only by a dwindling population of the elderly and nostalgic,“ wrote Bruce Weber in the New York Times. Eight decades Time an unprecedented eight decades in the business some 20 Grammy awards, and the reverence of his peers and the public ultimately proved Bennett right: that his music still had a place in the modern world, that he could stick to what he did best — sing like nobody else the Great American Songbook, that canon of masterworks by the likes of Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Harold Arlen — and people of whatever stripe and age, undeterred by his gentleman’s suit and courtly manners from a bygone age, would sit and listen. Because great songs are great songs no matter the era, and as he once put it, “I wanted to sing the great songs, songs that I felt really mattered to people.” Asked if he ever got bored of his repertoire, Bennett said: “No. Do you get tired of making love?” “I was taught never to compromise; to never sing a cheap song,” he explained. “I never look down at the audience and think that they are ignorant, or think that I’m more intelligent than they are.” Bennett said these words in 2012, when, at 86, he had just released a new album, was doing grueling concert tours, and was also dabbling in painting in his free time. His historic 11 o’clock peak was two years away — the Cheek to Cheek album with Lady Gaga that made him an octogenarian with a number-one album on the Billboard 200 chart. (Attesting to his longevity and range, before Gaga he had collaborations as well with other epoch-defining female performers such as Judy Garland and Barbra Streisand.) “Here I am today, at 86, and I’m even more passionate now than ever before. I feel that I’m at the top of my game, and things just keep getting better and better,” he said with characteristic cheer in his 2012 book Life Is a Gift: The Zen of Bennett. In announcing Bennett’s passing on Friday, the Twitter account under his name revealed: “Tony left us today but he was still singing the other day at his piano and his last song was ‘Because of You‘, his first #1 hit.” What grit. What grace. The post TONY BENNETT : GRIT AND GRACE appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Biden says ‘hopeful’ on US debt deal within hours
President Joe Biden said Friday he is "hopeful" for a resolution within hours to the US debt ceiling standoff between Democrats and Republicans, raising hopes of an imminent end to the threat of default by the world's biggest economy. "It's very close and I'm optimistic," Biden told reporters at the White House. "I'm hopeful we'll know by tonight whether we're going to be able to have a deal." The Democratic president said he hoped for a resolution to the standoff "before the clock strikes twelve." It was by far the strongest indication that the drama in Washington might end, allowing the government to borrow and avoid a default likely to trigger a recession, mass job losses, and recession. Earlier, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the dreaded X-date, when the government runs out of money unless it can borrow, will now be June 5, not June 1. Yellen, however, warned that the deadline extension does not change the urgency. "Waiting until the last minute to suspend or increase the debt limit can cause serious harm to business and consumer confidence, raise short-term borrowing costs for taxpayers, and negatively impact the credit rating of the United States," she said in a letter to the Republican leader of the House of Representatives, Speaker Kevin McCarthy. According to unconfirmed US media reports, the deal taking shape would include an agreement to extend the government's borrowing authority for two years, meaning no repeat of the current drama before the 2024 presidential election. Democrats, however, would have to offer concessions on Republican demands for sweeping spending limits on social safety and other domestic programs. McCarthy told reporters that negotiators had "made progress" but added: "Nothing is agreed to until it's all agreed to." IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva cited new data that she said showed the "US economy has proven resilient," but urged a "speedy resolution" to avoid the first default in US history. "We think of the US Treasury market as an anchor for the global financial system, and this anchor needs to hold," she said. With the country getting a three-day Memorial Day holiday weekend, members of Congress were leaving Washington on their own 10-day recess. Even Biden -- to the consternation of some in his own party -- headed to his Camp David retreat, then his home in Delaware. Yet Wally Adeyemo, the deputy Treasury secretary, told CNN that both Biden and McCarthy were focused on avoiding catastrophe. "The president decided, the speaker has said it, and we have to get something done before June," Adeyemo said. "The president is committed to making sure that we have good faith negotiations with the Republicans to reach a deal because the alternative is catastrophic for all Americans." The debt ceiling raise is an annual accounting maneuver that usually passes with relatively little notice. It simply allows the government to keep borrowing money to pay for bills already incurred through the budget. This year, the increasingly hard-right Republican Party has decided to turn the debt ceiling into leverage to force Biden to roll back favorite Democratic spending priorities. Republicans call this taking responsibility for the $31 trillion national debt. The White House accuses the opposition party, which controls the House of Representatives, of taking the economy hostage. Democratic minority leader Hakeem Jeffries slammed the Republicans from the House floor on Thursday, accusing them of risking "a dangerous default in a crisis that they've created." Economists have spent months raising the prospect of economic catastrophe should the government default, and top military brass added their own dire prognosis Thursday, warning that the crisis would have a "significant negative impact" on troops. "Readiness clearly would be impacted," Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters. McCarthy has pointed to a recent CNN poll showing 60 percent support for a debt ceiling hike if accompanied by cuts, although 51 percent of respondents in a new Monmouth University survey said they wanted the two issues to be separated. Although lawmakers are on recess, McCarthy has said they will get 24 hours' notice if they are required to return for a vote. The post Biden says ‘hopeful’ on US debt deal within hours appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Romulo Cafe: Honoring a matriarch and her culinary specialties
“It all started as my husband’s idea,” Sandie Romulo Squillantini, owner of Romulo Café, shared over an unforgettable lunch of the culinary favorites of her paternal family, the Romulos, whose fame and distinction began with the founding father, the legendary diplomat, general and writer, Carlos P. Romulo Sr. The old world setting of this delightful repast was at Romulo Café in Bonifacio Global City, a pleasant incongruity in a place replete with 21st century steel and glass skyscrapers. Sandie, the daughter of General Romulo’s son, lawyer Ricardo or “Dick,” and his wife, Teresita “Tessie,” herself the daughter of the late envoy Jose Romero, the first Philippine ambassador to the Court of Saint James, and her husband, Enzo, were dining at the Prince Albert Rotisserie of the Hotel Intercontinental Manila and were looking at the restaurant's Romulo Room, when he remarked, “You know, it’s too bad that not everybody can see these pictures of your lolo and his life. Why don’t we put up a restaurant for other people to see and learn about his life?” It was an idea that immediately clicked between the two of them, being familiar with the restaurant business as operators of corporate cafeterias and executive lounges. As to what food to serve, both agreed on serving the Romulos’ favorite daily and special dining fare that her grandmother, Virginia (nee Llamas), Philippine Carnival Queen of 1922, served the family and guests, including international dignitaries. An initial effort was to put together her Lola Virginia’s recipes, which, was not exactly difficult, “considering that the family was using it anyway. Next, they looked for a place and decided on the Tomas Morato area. “We were enamored by an old house which fit our purpose. Then, we brought our friend, interior designer Ivy Almario. We showed her pictures of our grandparents’ old house in Forbes Park called Kasiyahan, from which she took inspiration. That’s why the place is basically black and white because our dining room was black and white.” [gallery size="large" columns="2" ids="133445,133430"] Kasiyahan, a one-hectare property along Mckinley Road that also contained the homes of the Romulo sons and their families, has since been converted into the Kasiyahan Town Homes by the Zobel de Ayala group. It was the setting of many formal dinners hosted by the General and his wife, and its reincarnation today in Romulo Café, according to Sandie, “reflects the original elements of the storied home, including the hanging lamps and the wrought iron furniture, as well as the homey furniture. Ivy, thankfully, captured that old Filipino ambience typical of the genteel homes of the 1950s and 1960s era.” Sandie could not help feeling nostalgic, as she recalls that “while each of the Romulo sons and their families had a place to stay, we cousins, five boys and five girls, spent a lot of time together. We were one another’s playmates and we saw the weekly parties that our elders hosted for dignitaries including presidents, prime ministers and royalty. “It was our happy place as my grandparents intended it, that’s why they named it Kasiyahan. In Baguio, our home was called Kaligayahan.” Interestingly, other than the United Nations leaders and international politicians like Robert F. Kennedy, the Romulos also entertained celebrities, among them Burt Bacharach, “That’s why I have displayed his photo on the wall of Romulo Café, Sandie said.” But if there was much merriment in the company of the Romulos, there was also great food which, of course, enhanced the overall atmosphere of conviviality. A family signature dish is her Lola Virginia’s chicken relleno, “the recipe for which I was able to get, that’s why our relleno is still made at home and not in a restaurant. It is a Sunday dish for the family.” Sandie was only seven years old when her lola passed on, but earlier, she has tasted many of the family’s. That she could lay claim to having “witnessed” how her lola whipped up her dishes is due to her lola’s cook continuing in the service of the family. “Lola taught her how to cook the dishes that the family loved and enjoyed, so she kept cooking them long after lola was gone. From our old house, I got her,” Sandie explains. Of course, she found out too her lola’s secret ingredients. “Since she was in the United States, she had to look for substitutes for stuff she couldn’t find. For example, chorizo then was not easily available, so she used Vienna sausage. So, she had to revise her recipe. She was very innovative. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="133425,133426"] “She also had to modify some dishes to suit the palace of her international guests. For example, many guests didn’t like their adobo oily, so she made sure to do it differently from the way we would want to enjoy the adobo that we are used to having. She used pork that was not fat but kept the vinegar, of course. Since the setting mattered, it had to be pleasant and all that, she opened her windows every time she cooked adobo so the house won’t end up smelling like food. Of her lola Virginia, the little girl Sandie saw her “being always in the kitchen attending to the food. So she would be in the kitchen to prepare dinner. We grandchildren would be around too because we all took dinner together on the dining table at seven o’clock sharp.” Among the things she loved to cook, according to Sandie, was “steak and lots of foot stuff from her Pagsanjan hometown.” Her lolo Carlos, on the other hand, loved his halo-halo. “He loved sweets. He would not eat food, but he would eat halo-halo, ice cream and malagkit like bibingkang suman. That’s why we have lots of that at Café Romulo.” Her lolo, she shares, “loved to eat. He belonged to the Chain de Rotisseurs. That was his thing. He loved restaurants. He would take us to dinner every week, whoever wanted to come. These were usually in his favorite restaurants like Hyatt Hotel’s Japanese restaurant, Tempura Misono, Au Bon Vivant, Las Conchas and Prince Albert And when someone was celebrating a birthday, he would tell the celebrator, “Okay choose what restaurant you want to eat in”. Then he would take us. But every week, he’d take us out to dinner, whoever wanted to come. So, he really loves food. [caption id="attachment_133424" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] photograph by sonny espiritu for the daily tribuneKARE-KARE.[/caption] But if the general loved food, there was one big caveat. “He was very much a stickler for dining manners,” Sandie says. “He was not uptight, though, because he could be relaxed and good-homored , but he was very strict about time. If he tells you, you be in dinner at seven, you better be standing already or going close to the kitchen by 10 to seven. Because if you’re not there, especially if you’re a journalist, he’ll tell you you’re late. He was also very strict about dress code. If he tells you, it’s black tie, you better be in black tie and the girls better be in long gown. One time an ambassador came in a suit. And he said to an ambassador, when he was saying hello, “Oh, Mr. Ambassador. I’m glad you’re early. You have time to go home and change into your black tie”. These are but few of the stories and anecdotes about General Carlos P. Romulo and how he regarded food and the art of eating, especially find dining. It is in the same vein of propriety and pleasantry that the great old man espoused, along with his wife’s insistence on preparing and serving food at their best, that Sandie and Enzo Squillantini have created Café Romulo. You are cordially invited to enjoy the specialties that were once prepared by the grand lady of the Romulo home in this beautiful restaurant reminiscent of the glory days of yore, just make sure you are properly dressed, you know your manners, and you know how to engage in polite conversation. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="133448,133449"] The general and his lady may no longer be around but they are in every detail that makes fine dining in this iconic restaurant indeed an epicurean pleasure and an exercise in charm and refinement. Another family favorite is kare-kare, which the family calls Tito Greg’s kare-kare “because it was to him, her second son, that our lola passed on her recipes and he has made her kare-kare his specialty, too.” Sandie was only seven years old when her lola passed on, but earlier, she had tasted many of the family’s favorite dishes. That she could lay claim to having “witnessed” how her lola whipped up her dishes is due to her lola’s cook continuing in the service of the family. “Lola taught her how to cook the dishes that the family loved and enjoyed, so she kept cooking them long after lola was gone. From our old house, I got her,” Sandie explained. Of course, she found out too her lola’s secret ingredients. “Since she was in the United States, she had to look for substitutes for stuff she couldn’t find. For example, chorizo then was not easily available, so she used Vienna sausage. So, she had to revise her recipe. She was very innovative. “She also had to modify some dishes to suit the palate of her international guests. For example, many guests didn’t like their adobo oily, so she made sure to do it differently from the way we would want to enjoy the adobo that we are used to having. She used pork that was not fat but kept the vinegar, of course. Since the setting mattered, it had to be pleasant and all that. She opened her windows every time she cooked adobo so the house won’t end up smelling like food. Of her lola Virginia, the little girl Sandie saw her “being always in the kitchen attending to the food. So she would be in the kitchen to prepare dinner. We grandchildren would be around, too because we all took dinner together on the dining table at seven o’clock sharp.” Among the things she loved to cook, according to Sandie, was “steak and lots of food stuff from her Pagsanjan hometown.” Her lolo Carlos, on the other hand, loved his halo-halo. “He loved sweets. He would not eat food, but he would eat halo-halo, ice cream and malagkit like bibingkang suman. That’s why we have lots of that at Café Romulo.” Her lolo, she shares, “loved to eat. He belonged to the Chain de Rotisseurs. That was his thing. He loved restaurants. He would take us to dinner every week, whoever wanted to come. These were usually in his favorite restaurants like Hyatt Hotel’s Japanese restaurant, Tempura Misono, Au Bon Vivant, Las Conchas and Prince Albert. And when someone was celebrating a birthday, he would tell the celebrator, Okay choose what restaurant you want to eat in. Then he would take us. But every week, he’d take us out to dinner, whoever wanted to come. So, he really loves food.” But if the general loved food, there was one big caveat. “He was very much a stickler for dining manners,” Sandie said. “He was not uptight, though, because he could be relaxed and good-homored, but he was very strict about time. If he tells you, you come to dinner at seven, you better be standing already or going close to the kitchen by 10 to seven. Because if you’re not there, especially if you’re a journalist, he’ll tell you you’re late. He was also very strict about dress code. If he tells you, it’s black tie, you better be in black tie and the girls better be in long gown. One time an ambassador came in a suit. And he said to an ambassador, when he was saying hello, “Oh, Mr. Ambassador. I’m glad you’re early. You have time to go home and change into your black tie.” It is in the same vein of propriety and pleasantry that the great old man espoused, along with his wife’s insistence on preparing and serving food at their best, that Sandie and Enzo Squillantini have created Café Romulo. You are cordially invited to enjoy the specialties that were once prepared by the grand lady of the Romulo home in this beautiful restaurant reminiscent of the glory days of yore. The general and his lady may no longer be around but they are in every detail that makes fine dining in this iconic restaurant indeed an epicurean pleasure and an exercise in charm and refinement. The post Romulo Cafe: Honoring a matriarch and her culinary specialties appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
How A Simple Online Time Clock Can Save Your Business Thousands Each Year
For businesses, time is money. This means that accurate record-keeping is essential for a company to function and save money. Online employee time tracking software simplifies a large portion of employee recording, keeping by automating the timekeeping process. This helps businesses better manage hours, keep track of productivity, and reduce overall employment costs through effective […] The post How A Simple Online Time Clock Can Save Your Business Thousands Each Year appeared first on Kagay An......»»
Monitor How Employees Utilize Their Time With An Employee Time Clock App
Are you looking for a simple way to monitor how your employees use their time while at work? A useful tool called the employee time clock can provide employers with an in-depth look at the time employees spend on the job and how those hours fit into overall business operations. This solution will provide your […] The post Monitor How Employees Utilize Their Time With An Employee Time Clock App appeared first on Kagay An......»»
FIBA: Mighty Jimmy and the shot that introduced Gilas to the World
This story was originally published on Feb. 24, 2019 It’s Saturday night at Mall of Asia and the arena is absolutely rocking. Eternal basketball rivals in the Philippines and South Korea are delivering another classic. Gilas Pilipinas is down to the final minute of regulation against its longtime tormentor in the second of two semifinal games. The national team is up by two, 81-79. The Philippines is hosting the 2013 FIBA-Asia Championships where three tickets to the 2014 World Cup are at stake and the winner of this particular game gets one of those tickets. Given the rich history of both teams and what it would mean to the winner, this pivotal game has gone down the wire as everyone pretty much expected. Also knowing the history of both teams in international play, Gilas’ precarious two-point lead was not safe at all. A ghost was lurking in the background and a dreaded curse felt almost inevitable. Down to the final minute of the crucial grudge match between the Philippines and South Korea, guard Jimmy Alapag has the ball and a two-point lead. What he will do will help define not only his career but the legacy of the Gilas name as a national team. WAKE-UP CALL Even before the Philippines-Korea game, Gilas Pilipinas already had to go through one emotional game early in its homestand for the Asian Championships. In a preliminary round showdown against Chinese Taipei, the Filipinos collapsed in the fourth quarter, allowing the Taiwanese to steal a morale-boosting 84-79 win. In 2013, the relationship between the two countries hit a rough patch over the death of one Taiwanese fisherman. In an updated May 17 report by CNN’s Jethro Mullen, “Taiwan has reacted angrily after one of its fishermen was killed by a Philippine coast guard vessel.” Taiwan had frozen applications from OFWs seeking jobs in its territory and the government of then President Ma Ying-jeou demanded an apology, among other things, from the Philippines. While the national basketball teams of both countries never really had any prior animosity with each other, tension was naturally present as both teams squared off in Group A action. Gilas Pilipinas and Chinese-Taipei both entered the showdown with identical 2-0 records and the winner would take control of solo Group A lead heading into round 2. Taking a good lead into the fourth quarter, the Philippines was outscored by 18 in the last 10 minutes and the national team took its worst home loss in quite some time. “At the time, it was a huge game for us. We understood what was happening in Taipei during that particular time. We really wanted to win for what our kababayans were going through at that time,” guard Jimmy Alapag said on that first home loss in the 2013 Asian Championships. “We didn’t get the job done, and it was tough especially to lose a game like that, it was a very emotional and it was a game that we knew we needed,” he added. The crushing loss meant that the Philippines had little room for error in round 2. While Gilas didn’t have any world beaters lined up in the second round, anything less than a perfect run would have meant an early clash with Asia’s established powerhouse teams in the knockout stages. On the other side of the bracket, defending champion China, Iran, and South Korea were battling for position and were expected to finish in the top-3. That means if Gilas Pilipinas failed to finish no. 1 in its group, the national team would have faced one of those teams in the quarterfinals. Gilas picked up a crucial win over Qatar in the 6th of August and the day after, the Philippines got some help from those same Qataris as they beat Taipei in a close decision. At the end of round 2, all teams finished with identical win-loss records but Gilas Pilipinas would take over first place after all tiebreaks were considered, barely edging out Taipei. The Philippines ended up avoiding defending champion China, Iran, and South Korea and instead got Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals. No. 2 Taipei drew China and the third-running Qataris were matched up with the South Koreans. “I think that was the moment we grew up and grew closer. I think that was the lowest of the lows, just because of the atmosphere and what was going on between both countries. It kind of felt that we let our end of the bargain down, you know what I mean? We’re on our home soil and we didn’t take care of business. I think that was one of those moments where we had to really check ourselves and find a way to make it right,” forward Gabe Norwood said of the Taipei loss. “But it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. In tournaments like FIBA-Asia it’s important that you have short-term memory whether it was a win or a loss. We needed to let go of that game and continue to stay the course, keep our focus in the tournament,” Alapag added. On August 7, four days after Gilas lost to Taipei, the rift between the Philippines and Taiwan would reach a resolution and the latter country lifted its freeze hiring and other sanctions on the former. The Philippines also did issue on official apology over the death of the Taiwanese fisherman a couple of months prior and the National Bureau of Investigation in Manila recommended the pressing of homicide charges to erring members of the Philippine Coast Guard. DARK HISTORY If the word “rival” is to be defined as a, “person or group that tries to defeat or be more successful than another person or group” then sure, the Philippines and South Korea are rivals. Both countries are rivals in the Asian basketball scene and they have been going at it for a very long time. But if the word rival can also mean “equal” or “peer,” is the Philippines really a worthy basketball rival to South Korea? The Philippines’ history with South Korea in terms of basketball is dark. Very dark. Consider the most high-profile matches between the two countries and you’ll see that the Philippine national team is just not at the level of South Korea. Or at the very least, Koreans always seem to reach 120 percent of their potential when they play Filipinos and we barely bring out 80 percent of our abilities when matched up against our East Asian neighbors. The 1998 PBA Centennial team, arguably the greatest Philippine team ever assembled, was demolished by South Korea in the Asian Games. A national team set up for gold only settled for bronze. Speaking of a bronze medal game, the original Gilas Pilipinas team lost a podium finish to South Korea in the 2011 FIBA-Asia Championships. That team squandered a double-digit lead and collapsed late. Of course, who can forget the semifinals of the 2002 Asian Games in Busan when Olsen Racela had the chance to put the Philippines up four but missed two free throws. South Korea would win with a booming triple at the buzzer off a broken play and would later take down China to capture the gold medal. South Korea is the Philippines’ basketball nemesis for all intents and purposes. A worthy adversary that always seem to emerge victorious at our expense. Still, all that previous disappointment didn’t seem to bother Gilas Pilipinas six years ago. The team was not scared and instead, they were excited even. One factor to greatly consider was that fact that the game was in Manila. It makes all the difference to play at home. “We understood the bad history that we had with Korea. We haven’t been very successful with them in quite some time but we knew from Day 1 that if ever we got an opportunity to play them at home, then we have a great chance,” Alapag said. “Man, pre-game, it was just the focus. Everybody was up for the challenge, I don’t think anybody was really nervous, I think it was just the anxiety... we wanted to get out there and do it already,” Norwood added. Playing at home had its perks for sure, but it also had its drawbacks. For all the painful losses the Philippines suffered at the hands of South Korea, it would have been devastating if Gilas actually took a beating in Manila. Stakes were extra high in this particular chapter of this long, ongoing saga. “There was always pressure, it was something that we acknowledged early. Playing at home, it’s great having that support but at the same time, there is some added pressure because you wanna make sure that you make our home crowd proud of the team that they watch and ultimately, win games,” Alapag said, making sure to note that the national team knew of the disadvantages of playing at home even before the Korea game. “It was there but it was something that we acknowledged and we wanted to make sure that we took advantage of the opportunity playing at home,” he added. ALL FILIPINO, ALL HEART Once it was go time, the Philippines-South Korea game went about pretty normal, as you would expect any game from these two national teams. But even before halftime, an injury to Gilas center Marcus Douthit changed the complexion of the semifinals showdown. All of a sudden, the Philippines was without its anchor, without its best player. Sure, there were players on the Gilas bench that can come in and replace Douthit’s size but there was simply no one on the Gilas bench that can come in and replace his talent, production, and just overall presence. June Mar Fajardo was in that Gilas bench but it 2013, the would-be five-time PBA Most Valuable Player was just not at that level yet. It would have been easy for Gilas Pilipinas to fold like cheap furniture and succumb to the overwhelming pressure of trying to overcome South Korea to reach a stage very few Filipinos have reached before. Gilas didn’t fold and instead, the Douthit injury rallied the team even further. “Alam mo sa totoo lang, puso na lang yun eh. Nung nawala si Marcus talaga, sabi ni coach kailangan doble kayod tayo. Dahil sobrang dehado tayo kumbaga, wala na tayong import, wala tayong malaki,” forward Marc Pingris said. With Douthit gone, Ping ate up all of his minutes and worked by committee with guys like Ranidel De Ocampo and Japeth Aguilar to fill in the gaps. “As a player naman, kami nagusap-usap kami na kahit anong mangyari, lalaban kami. Yung time na yun, talagang patay kung patay,” Ping added. Despite losing its best player to an untimely injury, Gilas Pilipinas’ confidence in winning never wavered. With their collective backs against the wall, the Philippine national team played even better. Unlike the later iterations of Gilas Pilipinas, the 2013 team, aptly called Gilas 2.0, had the luxury of having actual preparation before the FIBA-Asia Championships. The amount of work that came before the tournament and the Korea game, the bond built over countless hours of training, all of that helped the national team avoid a monumental meltdown in front of a rabid Manila crowd. “We were such a close-knit team in terms of our chemistry, in terms of the talent that we had, so we felt confident even when Marcus went down early in the game. If you looked at our huddle, you had 11 more very confident guys, not just in themselves but more importantly, in each other,” Alapag said. “That just boiled down to the chemistry that we had. I don’t think any of us panicked, we were all confident in each other. We’ve all been into that situation with our PBA teams, having the ball in our hands and making a play. Knowing that we had five weapons on the floor that could make the winning play, I think it made us very confident and we were able to sustain our composure,” the former Gilas captain added. THE GHOST AND ITS CURSE Shin Dong Pa, Hur Jae, Lee Sang-min, Oh Se-Keun, TJ Moon, and Cho Sung-min are just some players from the South Korean national team that inflicted incredible damage to the Philippines over the course of decades. The dreaded Ghost of South Korea takes form in these players and its curse is to give Filipinos the most heart-crushing loss possible. In 2013, the Ghost was Kim Min-goo and his curse was to beat Gilas Pilipinas in Manila. Despite losing Marcus Douthit and trailing by three points at the break, the Philippines started to turn the tables in the second half. Gilas Pilipinas unleashed Jayson Castro and the Blur led a blazing offense in the third quarter, finding a way to take a 10-point lead over South Korea, the Philippines’ largest of the night. But as the dust settled and Gilas holding a 65-56 lead entering the final period, an ominous figure would make his presence felt. The Korean Ghost has arrived and his name was Kim Min-goo. His curse? Beat Gilas Pilipinas in Manila. Kim was 22 and a senior in college when he made the South Korean national basketball team as a backup shooter in 2013. In nine games in Manila, Kim would play well enough to make the tournament’s All-Star team, averaging 12.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.7 assists. He led Asian Championships with 25 three-point field goals, 10 came in the last two games and five came against Gilas Pilipinas. Kim drilled back-to-back triples to open the fourth quarter against the Philippines. Later, his fifth triple — a four-point play at that — pushed the Koreans to within a point, 72-73. South Korea would take over soon after as Lee Seung-jun dunked the basketball on a fastbreak. The Ghost has arrived and his curse is in effect. “Ako pumasok sa isip ko yun nung lumamang Korea, na putek ito na naman,” Pingris said. “Pero ang sabi ko, sayang yung opportunity, kaya naman eh. So sabi ni Jimmy samin, no matter what happens wag kami gi-give up. Pinaghirapan natin to at may goal tayo, this year aalis tayo,” he added, noting the team’s goal to get into Spain and compete with the world’s best national teams. Faced with the possibility of dealing with a devastating defeat, Gilas had enough mental fortitude to keep things going. Trust your system, trust your preparation, trust your crowd, trust your teammates, and more importantly, trust yourselves. “You’re never out of the game if you’re playing at home,” Norwood said as they stared a deficit late against their destined rivals. “I think that was our mindset, keep it close and just find a way,” he added. Jimmy Alapag found a way. BORN READY Down 73-75, Jimmy Alapag was under heavy duress when he let go of a three-pointer from the left wing just in front of his bench. It was good to go. The Philippines was back on top by one as Alapag somehow managed to get his team to snap out of an initial shock following Korea’s strong fourth-quarter rally. The stage is now set for a wild finish and Jimmy will star in the final act of what has been an incredible show by Gilas and South Korea. “In situations like that, as an athlete and as a pro, that’s the situations that you dream about,” Alapag said. “Those are shots that you practice when you were a kid. When the shot clock is winding down, to have an opportunity to knock down a shot. It’s a shot that I practiced thousands of times,” he added. After the Philippines and South Korea traded baskets for the lead, Alapag made perhaps the most underrated play in this crazy and emotional encounter between two basketball rivals. Tasked with inbounding the ball just near underneath his own basket, Alapag found his Talk ‘N Text teammate Ranidel De Ocampo for an open look at three. Swish. Gilas leads, 81-77, with 91 seconds to go. “Ranidel was my favorite target for a very, very long time in my career,” Alapag said on the play that most people probably don’t even remember. “Once I saw that he got open, I wanted to make sure that I gave him as great a pass as possible and Ranidel has been known for a long time to take care of the rest,” he added. THE EXORCIST “Yeah, I was right under the basket,” Gabe Norwood says with a laugh when asked if he remembers the shot that changed the course of Gilas Pilipinas as a national team. Late in the fourth quarter of what was essentially a heavyweight bout, the Philippines just landed two strong haymakers but South Korea would refuse to go down without a fight, beating the count of 10 each time. Down to the final minute of a crucial grudge match with a World Cup berth on the line, Jimmy Alapag had his hands on the basketball as Gilas would go to its halfcourt set. Jimmy will never let go of said basketball. Up two, Jimmy did what Olsen wished he could 11 years prior. Up two against South Korea in a pivotal semifinal game, Alapag received a screen from Marc Pingris, which was enough to momentarily shake off Kim Tae-sul. With some room, Alapag drifted to his left and let a three-point shot fly. Boom. Gilas leads, 84-79, with 54 seconds to go. The shot would later be remembered as the one that ended the Korean Curse, the one that finally exorcised the Ghost. “The first thought that came to my mind was don’t miss,” Jimmy said of the clutch jumper. “That last one, Ping sets a good screen and I got a clean look. It’s a shot that myself, and Jayson [Castro], and Larry [Fonacier], and Gary [David], and Jeff [Chan], all of us, we practice that shot time and time again after practice. So you know, it was a shot that I was confident in but in that moment, all you’re thinking about was don’t miss,” he added. It’s one thing to be confident in yourself and to be confidednt in your preparation. It’s a different thing to actually perform under such pressure. As soon as Alapag managed to shoot his shot, Gabe Norwood did what any other good teammate would do and got in position to get the offensive rebound. You know, just in case. Gabe got the ball alright, but he got it after it swished through the rim. “When he put the shot up, I tried to crash for the rebound but I basically knew that it was going in,” he said. “I had probably the best view, I was right under the basket. I think caught it after it went through too,” Norwood added. Alapag checked out moments later as the Philippines went to its defensive lineup in order to stop another Korean comeback. South Korea turned to its most effective shooter in Kim and as he rose up to try and answer Alapag’s triple, Norwood met him at the apex for the game’s most dramatic stop. Gabe blocked Kim and Gilas would finish things off with a final Marc Pingris basket on the other end. A historic 86-79 win was complete. “I still get chills thinking about it, to look up and see grown men just breaking down. My wife was trying to hold my kids and she was holding back tears. It was just an awesome moment, the bond that we had on that team, the stuff that we did to get prepare, I think we poured it all out in that game,” Norwood said on the monumental victory. “I think it probably didn’t hit me until the final buzzer sounded. Not just for me but for the entire team, when that final buzzer sounded, it was such a special group of guys and the fact that we could share that moment with not just with each other but the entire country, it’s something I’ll remember for the rest of my life,” Alapag added, savoring the moment of a Philippine win over Korea 28 years in the making. THE INTRODUCTION Gilas Pilipinas would lose to Iran the next day in the Finals of the 2013 FIBA-Asia Championships. The Philippines put up a fight but Hamed Haddadi would prove to be too powerful to stop. It would take another two years for Gilas to beat Iran but that didn’t really matter in the moment. The Philippines is headed to the World Championships for the first time in three decades. The Philippines has beaten South Korea and one singular shot has allowed the Gilas name to be known around the world. Jimmy wouldn’t say that though. At least not directly in that way. “For me, that shot was the biggest for my career. But really, it was our entire team. We’ve gone through so much and that was just one particular play that really culminated the entire game and all the contributions from other guys from Gabe’s defense, to Ping’s rebounding, to Japeth’s rim protecting, to Jayson and LA doing a lot of the legwork,” Alapag said. “Everybody had their part in contribution to the game. After the shot, after the buzzer sounded, it was just a very special moment for us as a team and for Philippine basketball to show that all of the sacrifices, all of the hard work, now it’s given an opportunity to re-introduce ourselves to the world,” he added. Jimmy wouldn’t say it, but his teammates would. That shot of his that beat South Korea in the 2013 FIBA-Asia Championships introduced the Gilas name to the world. It announced that the Philippines has finally arrived. Gilas’ breakthrough overtime win a year later in Spain against Senegal — a game Jimmy pretty much decided late as well — made it known that Filipinos are here to stay on the World stage. “I would say so, it got us to where we wanted to be in the World Cup. I think we shocked some people there as well. But just the work that went in, I think it showed the country that we can get back to where we want to be as long as you work together,” Norwood said. “Yung puso ni Jimmy, grabe naman. Makikita mo maliit pero gusto lang niya talaga manalo. Ang liit pero parang lion pag nagalit eh, nandoon yung tiwala namin sa kanya. Ano pa ba masasabi mo, Jimmy is Jimmy Alapag,” Pingris would add. [NOTES: At the time of original publishing, Gilas Pilipinas was fighting to make a return trip to the FIBA World Cup, this time in China in 2019. To secure its slot, the the Philippine national team needed to beat Kazakhstan in Astana plus a loss from Japan, Jordan, and/or Lebanon. One of the teams that can help Gilas is South Korea... ironically. Jimmy Alapag retired from national team play in 2014 and retired playing for good in 2016. He has since made himself a champion basketball coach in the ABL. Marc Pingris suffered an ACL injury in 2018 and is in the process of returning for his PBA team in the current 2019 season. Gabe Norwood is still in Gilas. He’s still an effective two-way weapon. He can still dunk and will stop your best player too.] [Updated Notes: The Philippines beat Kazakhstan to make the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China. Gilas got help from... South Korea. The Koreans beat Lebanon on the road, allowing Gilas to advance to the World Championships outright with a victory over Kazakhstan.] — Follow this writer on Twitter, @paullintag8.....»»
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