I <3 Xabi Alonso

Because he’s a midfielder, the love of my life scores like… once in a blue moon. So forgive me if I’m getting all fangirl-y about him lately. First was the penalty kick for La Roja against Italy and now the equalizer for the Super Copa match between Los Blancos and FCB. The guy’s on a roll!

Why so flawless, Xabier? <3

One Day + La Roja

Forgive the week-long absence. Things at the office got pretty hectic at one point and by the time I arrived home all I want to do is sleep. Naturally, a lot has happened in my fandoms. Let’s see if I can remember them all in a quick rundown:

The trailer for One Day. I love romantic flicks, much more if the main OTP has off-the-charts chemistry. While I’m on the fence regarding Anne Hathaway (don’t like her, don’t hate her either)... Jim Sturgess is reason enough for me to be on-board this flick. Not really sure if I’d rather read the book first while waiting for the movie to be released here.

Speaking of romantic flicks, I should really find a copy of Something Borrowed (the movie, not the book). Saw some being sold in Colon DVD stalls last Saturday but I think it’s better if I borrow instead from an officemate who already has one.

Oh, and La Roja had a friendly last August 10 against Forza Azzurri (Team Italy). They lost. Nothing surprising about that considering their track record in friendlies. The only good thing was that my bebe Xabi scored the lone goal for Spain in that game! Yayyy! The man is perfection personified as always.

Crossing my fingers that they do better once they play another Euro qualifying game in September.

Why hello there, Mr. Alonso!

This, my dear readers, is the reason why I will never fawn over any Azkals no matter how much I adore football. He has set the standards quite high. Hehe!

Isn't the accent quite charming?:) No wonder he is a favorite when it comes to interviews among players. The man has a good head above his shoulders, not to mention he's quite the eye-candy as well. If only you can be cloned, Xabier!

4–0, seriously?!?

I am starting to sense a pattern here. Qualifiers, they win. Friendlies, they lose. It almost seems like they’re trying to lose on purpose just so they can save their strength for qualifying games. Still, it hurts that they lost to two countries who have huge egos concerning association football. Wake up, La Roja! I know you can do better.

It comes from within

The new Spanish NT jersey makes its debut…

How hot are my La Roja boys in this commercial? I can let the skin peeling pass. It's Xabi Alonso, people! Whether he is shirtless or in a suit, the man can do no wrong in my eyes.

The new jersey they're modelling debuts on November 17 when La Furia Roja reunites for a friendly against Portugal. Pretty exciting, eh? I hope they win. The match should generate enough interest in their bid to co-host Euro 2016 with the same country.

My Grown-Up Christmas Wishlist

I'd be a hypocrite to say I don't crave for material things. I do. In fact, every December we've made it as a project to save up for a certain gadget or appliance that we fancy. Everything is paid in cash. The credit card is considered an evil entity in this household as long as spending patterns aren't normalized. And because I have bills to worry about, wishlists are the only way I'm motivated to work even harder for the things I really want. Allow me to share to you ten things I really want to receive (or buy) this holiday season, or hopefully by 2011.

A Canon 1000D camera - Not for me, per se, but rather for my sister. She has an eye for taking great pictures and I want to encourage that talent. Besides, we need a new camera if we are to push through with that summer trip to Tandag next year. Who knows, this might translate to better profile photos on Facebook right?

A Xabi Alonso soccer jersey - An imitation would be fine, but an original (branded) one would be even better. Those who know me are aware of how much I adore this guy. Who wouldn't love the name Xabi, eh? My World Cup 2010 memories bring me nothing but pure joy because of him and the rest of La Roja. If only the guy can be cloned.

An all-expenses paid trip (one week) to any provincial destination of my choice - I say this time and time again... I am in need of a long-overdue one week vacation. Working in a BPO environment can be very toxic. Once in a while, you need to de-stress yourself to relieve the pressures of the job. If someone offers me a (free) tour of Vigan or Iloilo for that matter, I'd haggle for leave credits from my boss and gladly go on that trip without batting an eyelash.

A domain of my own (http://iamnofangirl.com) - Pretty far-fetched for now since I have no credit card. But who knows? Right now I'm enjoying my renewed interest in blogging. It's always nice to read through your past entries and realize how much you've grown emotionally (and physically!) since you wrote it.

DVDs (original ones) of my favorite TV series – Ugly Betty, Modern Family, Criminal Minds. Any of those three would be fine. Ugly Betty keeps me grounded and focused with my attitude at work. Modern Family provides me the necessary humor I need in my stress-filled life. Criminal Minds is my form of escapism on what it would be like if profiling was my current job.

I might add more but these are the immediate answers that came to my mind when coming up with this year’s wishlist. I never did one for my birthday so I think this should be aptly called, “my birthday-slash-christmas wishlist for 2010”.

You will be missed, Pulpo Paul…

July was quite a memorable month for me this year. Apart from my promotion, I was finally able to enjoy the World Cup frenzy which drove all (association) football nations crazy except for the Philippines. Who could forget the sleepless nights me and my sister had to endure anticipating the outcome of every La Roja match? Or my fangir-ly moments in the office as I jumped and shrieked in relief after that wonder goal by Andres Iniesta in the finals. But no one could ever argue that the biggest celebrity ever produced by WC2010 was none other than Paul the Octopus.

His predictions made him a household name and earned him the gratitude of every La Roja fan. Vicente del Bosque himself never fails to make a reference to him whenever honors are bestowed upon the team. But just a few days ago, news was released that Paul has passed on. He had lived a good life and will surely be missed come Euro 2012.

To hell with friendlies…

La Furia Roja is back with a vengeance! Their 3-1 win against Lithuania last October 8 in Salamanca kept them right on the road towards Euro 2012. It was a shaky start for the team as most of their veterans had been sidelined due to injuries. Heck, I never even knew my dear Xabi was down with the flu! But they recovered. VDB re-grouped the guys and came back with a vengeance in the second half of the game. Kudos to Fernando Llorente and David Silva. These fellows have definitely stepped up their game since their World Cup victory. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them gets retained in the starting line-up for future NT games.

Next game is on October 12 against Scotland. Like many supporters out there, I wish that Xabi Alonso and Sergio Ramos will be 100% OK to join the team.

La Roja Forever!

I thought my heart would break upon reading the news that you guys lost the friendly to Argentina. But hey, as my sister said… it doesn’t make you any less of the champions you already are right now. In a game, someone always has to lose. But I am proud that VDB takes the extra effort to field all players who weren’t able to play during the WC in their friendly matches. He believes in the capability of each person he has called up for the national team and he wants them to tap into their hidden potential.

Do I sound like a fangirl already? Good. Because I am proud to be one when it comes to this team. The bright side from the game? Xabi got to be captain again!

Sky Cable goes digital…

Cebu City suffers from the misfortune of being stuck with Sky Cable as its only cable provider. There's Dream Satellite TV though but it's not as well-known in regular households. Now just imagine my sister's horror when she woke up two days ago to realize we were left with only 54 channels in our lineup - one channel short of KBS World. What? No K-drama fix? NOOOO! So off we are to subscribe to Sky's Silver Package for their digital offer. Anything for the love of extra channels to boot. I'm getting ETC and 2nd Avenue back! Besides, it's the closest thing we'll ever get to TiVo anyways.

Speaking of television, it feels weird not having any World Cup games to look forward to these days. Did one month just flew by in a snap? I miss my La Roja guys. Shallow as it may sound, the fact that they were eye-candies made it all the more easier to root for their team. Thank goodness for Tumblr though. That site feeds my need for Xabi, Iker and Nando picspams with occasional La Roja guapitos on the side.

San Iker

My sister and I can never quite figure out how he does this mannerism of his. But we found it cute. And so we spent the entire day trying to emulate it. Not to mention going through every Tumblr post that featured him and Xabi Alonso. Where were this guys during the 2006 World Cup games? Why did I not discover them before?

 

I am so sorry Brazil (or should I say, Kaka), but I am switching my allegiance to La Furia Roja. It’s not like I’m expecting them to reach the finals anyway. I’m taking it one game at a time. Maybe I connected more with the team since I sat through that entire game they had with Switzerland and rooted for them to recover afterwards.