Survivor Never Gets Old

Contrary to what most people may think, Survivor has never gotten old for many of its loyal viewers. Although the viewership has dropped from its previous seasons, the creativity of the production behind the world-renowned show keeps it going, and keeps capturing millions of viewers in the United States and internationally.

However, not all kudos goes to Probst, Burnett and their minions, some of the action we have to be thankful to the creative people in the cast. The cast usually carries a whole season with strong personalities, characters and strategies, and it what makes (at least for me) some good, intelligent entertainment.



Perfect display of my points stated above: Episode 10 of Survivor:Gabon.

Some notes before you watch the clip I included here.

• + Current tribal status: Merged
• + Alliance A: Matty, Crystal, Kenny, Suzie, Sugar
  
• + Alliance B: Corinne, Randy, Bob
• + Both Alliances are openly known. Alliance B knows they are screwed.
• + Bob owns a fake idol (made out of twigs, seeds[?], and tree sap for glue)
  
• + Nobody knows the fake idol exists, yet.
  
• + Bob is sent to Exile, meaning he has the chance to look for the real Hidden Immunity Idol (an object, when presented in a Tribal Council, can render all votes cast against you to be nullified)
• + IMPORTANT: While Bob is away to Exile, Randy gets a brilliant idea: he plans to get everyone to vote for him by pissing everybody off as best as he can. This is can be seen in the cookie drama (summarized by Corinne) also part of the clip I added. Randy is confident that Bob is intelligent enough to find the idol and he hopes that once Bob gets back, Bob would give him the powerful hidden idol. If he lures Alliance A to vote for him and he plays the Hidden Immunity Idol, Alliance B's votes would be the only ones that would count.
  
• + Bob fails to find the real idol.
• + Bob shows the fake idol to Sugar.
• + Sugar tells him to give it to Randy anyway, and telling him that the gesture can make himself popular with the bigger group.
  
• + Bob agrees, hopefully keeping himself in the game longer.
  

Although, you know by now what is going to happen, there are a lot of good surprises in this Tribal Council. Definitely one of the best, and definitely better than Edgardo's blindside in Survivor: Fiji.

The effect of all this mess can be seen in the following clip:








Cast notes (for those who don't watch):
Sugar (A), the sweet blond girl
Randy (B), the grown guy with a hawaiian shirt
Suzie (A), the hispanic mature woman
Crystal (A), the big black lady
Bob (B), the oldest guy there, was sent to Exile
Corinne (B), the brunette thin woman
Kenny (A), asian guy



Oh if you want another reason to watch this season, this has the most beautiful scenery I've seen in any Survivor show ever. Gabon truly is a Garden of Eden.

Why Fashion Victims Exist

Yes. I will talk about fashion. Shocking isn't it?



Recently, I had an eye opener.

They don't teach you in school how to tie a tie, that thin guys should never wear baggy clothing or that stocky guys should avoid white shirts. Yes. Simple small rules that could easily fit in one book but apparently doesn't find it elusive to what the usual schools teach us. I just find it ironic that society presents men (and more so women) in a lens when it comes to how we present ourselves and they fail to tell us how we do things like these. Sure, I remember reading from some Home Economics or Good Manners and Right Conduct book list that one should take a shower, brush their hair, cut their nails and wear a deodorant and that's about it. No rules on finding the right shoe, how to choose the right tie or how to test a fragrance or cologne.

A total contradiction to the fact that every man is born with a different skill set or knowledge is the reality that these above things are expected to be taught by parents or is innate to every individual. As cliche as it sounds but man is never created equal. Some claw their way through math equations or English exams -- others end up fashion victims. Some of these fashion victims grow up into thinking that fashion is for the talented, gifted or materialistically blessed. A very narrow worldview (which I personally held for quite some time).

In a proper parallelism, if some have to claw their way through Math equations, others will have to claw their way into finding out what their sense of style is and making that sense fit into modern fashion. And if they can learn how to do Integration By Parts if they try hard enough, surely fashion victims can learn to scout the deep alleys of 168 and Greenhills for a cheap but effective wardrobe makeover if they try hard enough.

Yes, it is always that drive to try and willingness to learn.

Nothing is ever out of reach.

Don't let yourself be a victim.



Lo and behold that my pursuit of knowledge have brought me the conclusion that if a curious man is willing to absorb the basic rules of fashion, he will find his answers. Just like any investigation or piece of research, the right reading pieces can give substantial insight to allow man to partake in the wonderful world of manly fashion.

I just find it stupid that I can find articles on LOLCODE or The Big O and I failed to find these gems to help myself to fix how I look.

Well., it's never too late to learn!

Painting the White House Black?

Not much needs to be said... Barack Obama is the first African American to win the Presidency of the United States of America. After facing a very tough primary against Hillary Clinton and tough accusations from the Republican Party, he finally gathered enough electoral votes to secure the White House against John McCain.

I have not much to say publicly here except that I'm glad that there was no Bradley Effect on Obama. CNN polling shows that race was not a factor in the current elections:

Those who said race was an important factor voted 55 percent to 44 percent in favor of Obama. But Obama also was the winner by a similar margin among those who said race was not important, "which suggests that race was not a decisive factor in this election," Schneider said.

When it came down to who won, I'm just glad it came down to issues like the Iraq war or the economy and not petty issues like skin color or playing six degrees. In the end, it is the candidates own platform, programs and beliefs that should matter and I hope America got it right this time.

For more information on the CNN Poll, click here.



To those who wonder why a Filipino like me gives a damn: I think inevitably the United States and the Philippines have their fates intertwined. With an estimated 4 million Filipinos in the United States, I really think that what happens to America affects us too. Also, America has always been a part, one way or another, or Philippine History -- especially with their strong cultural presence in our country. I think the decisions and foreign policy of the next United States President will shape how that culture is to be viewed and perceived by the next political generation of Filipinos.



And finally, poking fun at race:

FGV: i wonder if he'd rename the White House as his first act in office
FGV: because the name itself gleams with racism
Ross: RACIST ka talaga
FGV: and really ironic
FGV: no i'm not
FGV: i'm just stating the facts
Ross: if youre not it wont matter weather the name of the house is white
FGV: i was just wondering, you know
Ross: eh yung bahay na pula nga e
Ross: white lady ang nakatira e

I know my friend meant it as a joke, and I hope that it will remain a joke for people around the world. Race should never be a factor in domains of leadership and service. It should never matter weather we have racial stereotypes or stigmas; because as this day has proven, if we can believe and try to break free of what people perceive us to be, we can be anything we want to be.

This day is a momentous event for people around the world and I think it deserves a few minutes of blogging.

Not Abandoned

Visiting this blog again, I find it full of memories on why I am doing I am doing now.

I don't think I should give up.

Once I get everything back on track, I will be set on writing more about the things I love, hate and believe in.

For all those who read, thank you and I will see you in a few more months.

Community Experiment

Well after my Datacraft career and GDC 2008 is over, I'm back to this place. I'm still wishing I could just speak to my computer and have it all typed because I really hate typing my ideas. I'd rather just talk about what I think because talking does not give you a carpal tunnel syndrome. Well, at least I get to edit this while I'm typing it. :)



Almost ten months ago, I have expressed my opinions about the game development community we have here in the Philippines, and how much it disappoints me that we don't have a greater sense of community for Filipino Game Development.

Well, I am taking my argument to the next level. As a simple community experiment, I made a solid post in a very prominent forum to discuss some issues regarding degree programs and hiring preferences of Filipino Game Development companies.

I wonder how many companies/developers would actually respond to such a valid question?

Or would everything again befall unto deaf ears?



Here is the post I made:

There has been some debate on whether aspiring developers should take a Bachelors Degree in Computer Science or a Bachelors/Associate/Diploma degree in Game Deisgn/Game Simulation/or whatever colleges offer.

Attending the Game Career Seminar this GDC, there was a strong stigma against these Game Dev degrees compared to regular four-year degrees like Computer Science. Although most companies recognize Game Dev degrees from few distinctly exceptional schools (not enumerated by the GCS panel), they still discouraged students to take the Game Dev degrees because of the proliferation of the incomplete and experimental degree programs out there.

With the rise of Game Dev degrees being offered in universities and colleges in the next five year, what advice would you give to aspiring developers who want to break into the industry? Would the industry here offer the same advice to avoid Game Dev degrees and a Computer Science degree would be a better option?