Flight of Ideas 2.0: July 2019

Wednesday, July 31, 2019

"Unsaid"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

And I would say goodbye

Only I could not

So I bow my head saying nothing

Just letting time pass by

I find the words

that simply do not come out

I struggle to open my lips

And I do not know what it's about

III

Am I scared of not knowing

or Am I scared of knowing?

So I hold my tongue here

Beneath my hearts pounding.

DXC , Eton Centris , Quezon City. August 1 2019. 2:10am

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

"3 Pack Experiment: Core Set 2020 Edition"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

It was the tail end of am very tiring week and I had wanted to crack open packs so badly so I stopped by my Local Game Store at Spiral Valenzuela and with Richard picked these 3 packs and rubbed my hands in anticipation. Though I had a wishlist in my head whatever I would be getting would be something that I never had before so I was quite excited. I was so busy that I was not able to write anything during the spoiler weeks so I might not draw the cards that I wanted. I was crossing my fingers though.

And here are the three rares that I got.

My mind was completely blown! These were the three things that I wanted.

1) Marauding Raptor!

Look at that 3/3 for 2 mana Dino! I was excited for another reason though. I wanted to pull off that Marauding Raptor + Polyraptor Combo in EDH! And I grew closer to it. All I need now is to update my current Naya Dino Deck by adding a Porphuros. Impact Tremors is already in there. Time to bring on some Dino pain!

2) Lotus field

Just look at this wonderful land. And the other card that looked at this is Muldrotha who would only get the sacrificed lands from Lotus bloom back anyway.

3) Sorin!

I have always been lucky with Sorin. I remember getting 3 Sorin , Solemn Visitors in the past from packs and being able to buy a "damaged" Sorin Markov for a mere 50 pesos. Hehehehehe

I have a current vampire EDH deck that badly needs this upgrade. I am already thinking about turn 3 Butcher of Malakir ; Vona, Butcher of Magan or Licia , Sanguine Tribune. Exciting!

"Ang Tahimik Na Paalam"

ni:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Ang hirap talaga nang di nasasabi

Mga bagay na matagal nang andito

Parang mauubusan na ng oras

Ano pa? Ano ang gagawin ko?

Nakangiti ka , Nagpapaalam

Di masabi na sana wag na lang

Pakikinggan ba ang sumamo?

Kahit na ang pangarap mo ang hadlang?

III

Kaya tinikom ang bibig

Yumakap ng mahigpit

kumakabog ng sobra ang dibdib

Nanalangin na di mo marinig

4 na taon lang naman sabi mo

4 na taon eh parang ilang siglo

Pero sabihin man sarado na ang pinto

Maghihintay na lang muna dito.

Optum Bldg.N , UP Ayala Technohub , Quezon City. July 31, 2019 4:07am

"The Doll Queen."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

It was one of those small cafes in Gangnam that were trendy but where you did not suspect any celebrities to actually hang out in. Today the cafe was graced by 2 Main Dancers from 2 different groups. The more senior was the YuuA fro Oh My Doll who was here to deliver her message and younger Eve who had no idea of what was to transpire.

The sun was bright as YuuA entered and asked V to be in a discrete distance so they could talk. The Dragon shrugged his shoulders and waved a waiter to order a drink.

"It seems that you have caught his eye." YuuA told Eve as she sat down. The two of them would have been mistaken for sisters ,both were brunettes with hair that grew toward their slim waists. Fans of both groups would agree that the seniors lips were more attractive but truth be told they had the same lips.

"Never did one to mince words huh Unnie?" Yves waived at the waiter and proceeded to order when he came near. "Are you still on a diet unnie?"

"It seems that I can eat anything I want now and not get fat. I will have a salad though."

"I will have the same." The younger looking girl waived at V who was standing by the door and smiled so widely that it seemed cringey to anyone who noticed. V waved back. YuuA glared at him.V didn't seem to notice.

"You must be wondering why I wanted to meet you?" YuuA interjected himself between the 2 waving people.

"Aside from the fact that you want to murder me because I slept with him? Yeah I am bit curious."

"Please Eve. If I wanted you dead I wouldn't have bothered with the meeting.Now are you willing to listen?"

Eve sipped on the water that was given to her earlier. "I am all ears" she said.

"Good. Our companies are merging and I wanted you to be the first to know. We will be promoting against each other and together."

"How does that work exactly?"

"It means that our companies will be owned by Mr. Kim secretly but as far as the public is concerned we still exist separately."

"And?"

"And it means that Oh my Doll will be receiving the better songs and choreography next come back. You would be making a comeback as well but only to draw the attention away from the groups with a scandal."

"A scandal?" Eve almost blew the water she was drinking.

"Yes. The fact that you are pregnant with his child." YuuA pointed to V who seemed to be unaware of what was happening.

"I am?" Eve touched her belly and use a little of her power to confirm the life that was there. "We only..."

"Like I told you , you have caught his eye. And well his cells seem to be a bit erratic nowadays. He has had many children in the past and his talons have all taken care of them."

"You mean they have been killed?"

YuuA laughed. "Killed? We are talking about V here. The Dragon who swore that no one will ever die for his sake again?"

"So what do you mean exactly?"

"What I mean is that his children are well taken cared of. Some of them know him and some of them are oblivious that they interact with their own father on a daily basis."

"Do you have a child with him?"

"Over many lifetimes and realities."

"You sure sound like him when you say that."

"You know why he will always choose me right?"

"No. I don't see why he will choose you over me."

"Because I am YuuA. And you are a simple passing thought to him. Someone he will get tired of in a week or so. So please don't get it into your head that whatever this thing is will last."

"And what if I prove you wrong?"

"You are always welcome to try."

"Well I guess this meeting is done. The Company lawyers will drop by soon to finalize contracts. I am sure you'd be happy with the salaries and perks.Even if it does not include unlimited access to him."

"And why not?"

"Oh dear. No on has unlimited access to him." YuuA picked her bag from the table and was about to go when turned one last time to Eve. "Except for me.He always comes back."

"Maybe he won't this time." Eve retorted but knew that the uncertainty in her voice came out clearer than her own conviction.

"At least I know you understand." And with that YuuA left with V leaving Eve with 2 salads that she no longer had any appetite to eat.

"Midweek Magic 2019 #20 - Tajic and his Madara moves"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Tajic as I have often wrote about is one hell of a tough cookie. If he could gain a planeswalker spark he might have taken Gideon's place as the invulnerable dude who never seems to die.

Short of him being sacrificed or bounced back to your hand Tajic , Blade of the Legion always makes his presence felt. I would call him a Madara who would stand in the middle of a battlefield and wait for a Board wipe to destroy all of the enemies around him and then shrug off the dusts from his shoulders as if nothing happened.

I imagine that that is how it might have felt as opponents creatures goes to the graveyard and Tajic is happy to merrily chip away at my enemies life totals , it gets even better when his battalion mechanic is triggered and given that the Boros do not seem to have a shortage of fresh faced recruits it is easy to see that +5/+5 or 7/7 Tajic smashing his way through almost everything.

Even with the 4 mana CMC and then my commander Aurelia , Warleader being a 6 CMC commander once I get both of them on the battlefield it is a quick race to the red zone. And normally it isn't me.

In one game It was Tajic , Angelic Skirmisher and Aurelia the Warleader attacking for lethal and me gaining a ton of life in the process as I chose lifelink from the Angelic Skirmishers triggered ability.

The Boros really does know how to give a savage beating. Time to call an ambulance.

"Yorme Isko: A Step in the right direction"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

I am too old for promises. I am also too old to take a grain of salt about what politicians actually do and say. Isko Moreno has been changing my mind as of late. He might be the most charismatic leader to come out of Manila in decades. There are a lot of things that he has been doing right from the get go of his administration.

1) Cleaning/ Clearing

Day One of his administration he has cleared Divisoria and even the much feared Quiapo. I have often heard that no one wanted to clear the latter for fear of people in the area. This mayor was able to do though.

You see wider and cleaner streets. You can see the changes. Even cleaning monuments that were long neglected. especially those that were even near the City hall.

I passed by that place the other night with my family and it is now well lit and good to look at.

2) Media Savvy

Aside from making the old reverse words hip again Yorme Isko has been doing the rounds and showing it via face book live. Something that the older Mayors could do in theory but probably won't. I mean most of them are old and seem to be catching their breathe most of the time.If merely standing up is an effort then how can they even speak up to the camera like that while doing rounds?

Isko has impressed with his knowledge of the street levels of Manila and the places that need improvement. All while being entertaining and interesting enough to follow.

3) More to come

As I write this Yorme is making more changes and challenging a lot more of Manila. For the most part a lot has been supporting him but I think that it is only a matter of time before those who's toes he has stepped on would mount their counter offensives. And for that I wish the young Mayor good luck. Manila does need him if it is to move into the next phase of it's development. For now the step forward has been taken. The question now is how many steps can be taken before Isko will be stopped? Hopefully a lot more.

"Midweek Magic 2019 #19 - Still Traumatizing"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Nothing is quite annoying as a 2 card combo that ends you quite quickly. In today's battle with Janry Dimaano I found myself facing a Phenax EDH deck that had a lot of different win conditions up it's sleeves.

One such condition was an enchantment and a sorcery that has been plaguing me since my days of early magic. Fraying Sanity states that an opponent would mill the same amount of cards that went to that opponents graveyard this turn. And normally that would be 1 or 2 cards. Of course if you combine it with a powerful card this has the ability to empty out an opponents library. And that card is Traumatize. It has been traumatizing me since the days that I decided to fight a Blue/White Mill control deck with Mono Red Goblins.

This particular night I saw the same thing. I emptied half of my library and thanks to Fraying Sanity followed it up with the other half. And on my would be next turn I would be drawing nothing but air. Wonderful.And my favorite line of the night? "Sorry Doc , Nabunot ko eh..."

On to the next game.

"Mr. Lutang Presents: Mistform Ultimus"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

So I got home. And while talking to Aven and Hanie De Leon in bed I fell asleep. Eventually I had to be woken up to fix my sleeping position.And ito ang lutang moment.

Hanie: mahal ayos ka ng higa.
Me: Sige...I am all creature types.
Hanie: ano?
Me: all creature types. .
Hanie: matulog ka na mahal. Pinapaayos lang kita ng higa.

At yun ang araw na naging mistform ultimus ako.

Monday, July 29, 2019

"Midweek Magic 2019 #18 - Nehebs Relentless Assault"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

It has been awhile since I wrote about my games. And there is a reason for that. Wala akong kalaro. Before my gaming drought however I was able to pull off a spectacular win against my brother from another mother Mark Abude and it involved a Neheb and an Aggravated assault already in play.

I knew Neheb was a great creature but combined with his ability to produce mana for each 1 life point lost by my opponents post combat combined with the extra attack phase given by the Aggravated assault. He was a rockstar that could end games with him leading the charge or even holding back to let his minions do the damage for him.

Produce Mana , Sink that mana into another attack phase and what you and up with is a table with dead opponents should they not have a proper response.

Neheb. You are one hell of a bull.

"Limited Combo Time: Altar Coating Saheeli!"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

The core of this combo killer relies on relies on these 3 pieces.

Altar of the Brood + Liquimetal coating + Saheeli Rai = Mill out on turn 3 or even 2.

So how do we do that exactly? We cast the Altar of the brood on turn 1. Then on turn 2 the Liquimetal coating and on the third and lethal turn Saheeli Rai.

So how does the combo Mill out everyone? Liquimetal coating turns Saheeli Rai into an artifact.

Saheeli in turn using her 2nd skill copies herself and triggering Altar of the Brood and milling 1 card to the graveyard for each opponent. Of course when the new Saheeli Rai Token arrives it can then copy itself and that new token triggers the Altar of the Brood. You can do this infinite number of times or maybe just enough times to mill out all your opponents on turn 3 and lose said friends.

It's tough being a combo player at times. Then again that is just me.

"Midweek Magic 2019 #17 - Gitrog Monster Delights"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

I have often heard that the Gitrog monster was a beast. And that often times it would net you more than one card draw per turn. I have never experienced it until tonight.

The Gitrog works quite well in a Dredge deck. Dredging 6 for a Golgari Gravetroll for example allows you to draw a card if a lang falls into your GY. Often times I get to draw more lands from the Gitrog Monster itself. And these are discard to my favorite Putrid Imp who lets me filter my library it makes my creatures bigger. Creatures like Jarad and Splinterfright. It also lets me put a lot of lands in my GY for a Splendid Reclamation or Wold Shaper set up. Often times with the amount of card draw I get from The Gitrog Monster I get a hold of a Living Death or Reanimate that lets me get more creatures on the battlefield that I can count.

And all because I can discard lands to an Imp to feed a giant frog. Hurray!

"3 things I have seen this week: Names"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

I have a never ending fascination with names. I usually guess how those names end up that way. There are names that become twisted so that you don't know how to read them at all or some that you somehow feel that someone made a clerical error in filing for their child's name. And so here are 3 more names that I have seen this week.

1) Cristian

This is the one that I felt that they had an error in filing or spelling. Pinoys usually put way too much H's in a name so I was a bit surprised when they took out the H that made this name normal. I guess he isn't that Christ like after all.

2) Kriczel

I saw this on a billboard on my way to the clinic. I don't know what they were going for is it a fancy Criselda or a Kristel without the T. I am assuming that they call this girl (Kris-sell) . Crick Sell doesn't sound all too nice.

3) Jaiouscel (jay-cel) - For this one I had to look at my patients ID and involuntarily blurted , "Kinuha niyo na po lahat ng vowels ano?"

I was curious as how to pronounce her name and it turned out to be a simple Jay-cel with a not so simple spelling.

I really enjoy meeting people with these unique and not so unique names. With all the patients I see each week I am sure to find weirder and weirder names.

"Mr. Lutang presents: halo halo"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Me: di ba dapat Olah- olah ang halo halo?
Hanie De Leon : huh? Bakit?
Me : eh di ba dapat yung normal order eh nasa ibabaw yung toppings bago yung yelo?
Hanie: eh ano ba dapat tawag dun?
Me: dapat bottomings ang tawag dun talaga. Nasa ilalim eh.
Hanie: itulog mo na yan mahal.

#OlahOlah!

"Chulane , Teller of Tales: The things I want to do."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

I remember the first time I cast an Explosive Vegetation on turn 2. I remember feeling giddy that I would have 7 mana available(including my impending land drop) in the upcoming turn. It was an effect that my brother Aj fondly calls as "Nagtatae ng mana". Mana Diarrhea or Ramp. I loved the feeling of having such an overflowing amount of mana to cast big creatures.

Then in the early days of EDH when I was making my Momir Vig deck I used Explore in every green deck I had. Coiling Oracle also did the trick for me. And when Return to Return to Ravnica came around I found myself liking Growth spiral as well. I loved drawing cards and playing extra lands but I can only do so in a limited basis.

Then came Chulane , Teller of Tales. And all I can say is that it is time to ride the Chu Chu Chu Chulane Train.

Chulane , Teller of Tales costs 2 colorless and Bant colors to cast. And he has the ability that states that when you cast a creature spell , draw a card , then you may put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield.

So when you cast a creature you have no choice but to draw a card and then check if you have a land in your hand(hopefully the one you draw if you don't have one currently handy) and put that land into play ignoring the current number of lands that you could play in a turn.

The Simic had always had this advantage over the other combinations.Now you have a commander that can allow you to do it as well. I imagine that this goes well with a zero to cast artifact creature card like Ornithopter or Memnite which you could bounce to your hand with Chulane , Teller of Tales ability and then recast for nothing.

I imagine that drawing and ramping will give you enough advantage to win the game. It might not outright hand it to you but you know that with this much advantage it can only be a matter of time before you get your combo pieces and win the game.

"Midweek Magic 2019 #16 - Tito Jarad and the 2 Jhoiras."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

It has been awhile since I played one of my main Golgari decks helmed by Jarad Golgari Lich Lord. And this night was the night that I would be up against two decks that had Jhoira of the Ghitu in them. And I was going to be up to my neck in beat down after Yo who was on my right had suspended 2 Eldrazi Monsters , An Ulamog's Crusher and a Bala Ged something. And Adrian on my left who also suspended 2 Big dragons. I could assume that they could take each other out but if history serves me right I have always been the one taken out early. I don't even know why. My decks are so weak.

So I was between a rock and a hard place or to put it in more appealing terms I was between 2 Jhoiras( Do you like twins?) who were threatening to smash me. They were one suspend counter each from doing so and if I passed my turn I would be dead from Annihilate from Yo's beaters.

I had to find a way out. And as I looked into my graveyard I saw my Increasing Ambition which had an 8 mana cost that would allow me to fetch two cards from my library and I knew just the pair. It was Mike and Trike.

I discarded these 2 cards to my Putrid Imp which was already in play and I cast Victimize getting the infamous pinger combo in play. Adrian was tapped out and Yo had no response. Jarad staved off from being smashed. Not bad from a rusty old guy. Hahahahahah

"The Hammer Falls"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Why do I hesitate putting this final nail?

To be rid of you was what I wanted

I have prayed for it every day

So why now at this moment that I fail?

I guess I am still human to feel this

To be afraid of this consuming darkness

I guess a part of me hates dying

To dwell in this aching emptiness

III

And though your voice drones on

Drowning all the rational in me

I raise the hammer and find

I need not hesitate at all

Optum Building N , UP Ayala Technohub , Quezon City. July 30 2019 5:06am

"Looking old. Not today. Not in a couple of years at least..."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

There is one reason(well 2) why I would not use that app that makes you look old. And it is not about security. The first is that I don't think it would make much of a difference. I already look like my dad.Yes I do look like him from the thinning hair to the way that I smile or frown. I am reminded of the fact every day when I look in the mirror and I miss him. So yeah I won't even need to have the aging app to remind me.

And I also think I would be there in a couple more years. I would look that age. I look really horrible after my afternoon naps!!! I actually think that I might be scaring my wife and daughter when I wake up one day and look like a grumpy ogre. Of course they reassure me that I do not look anything of the sort. I beg to disagree but I am outvoted 2:1.

There is one thing about the aging app that I wonder about.I wonder how my dad would have reacted to it. Would it have made him look like my Lolo Dominador? Would he have laughed at it? Or would it make him worry that he was losing his good looks? I guess I just have to guess.And that he would have had a blast at telling me that he looks like his dad and that my hair would also going the way of the dinosaurs.

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

"How to not care."

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

So I was there raising my torch

And you warned me about it

But I was there still counting the inches

Half a heartbeat later, I started burning bridges

I hear the voices on the other side

Please , Please don't do it

I think I am tired of listening

Looking at them , Still burning bridges

III

So the sky darkened

And it is only the grey that I see

Crackling Flames then Unbroken Silence

Happy I burned bridges.

Optum Building N , UP Ayala Technohub. July 24 2019. 1:03am

Friday, July 19, 2019

"The Spotlight"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

I love the feeling of the light

It's warmth reminds me I am alive

I love how they call my name

And I hope it will always be the same

Here on this stage

Surrounded by those screaming again

And I feel loved over and over

Hoping for things to never end.

III

But things end

And I know that they will

So I bask in this moment

And I will for time to be still.

Optum Building N , UP Technohub , Quezon City. July 20 , 2019. 1:27am

"That Breast Feeling"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

While at a famous Chicken Fastfood.

Customer: May leg part ba?
Cashier: Sorry na Maam. Puro breast part lang po ngayon.
Customer: So walang leg part?
Cashier:......
Customer: Wing part wala din?
Cashier:....
Customer: Sige Rib part na lang.
Cashier: Sorry na Maam. Puro breast part lang po talaga ngayon.
Customer: Gusto ko pa naman ng legs
Cashier: (nagtitimpi na lang)
Customer: Sige cancel mo na lang order ko.

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

"Surrounded by the rain"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

You always leave me in this mess

The turmoil that comes from nothing

I stay here and wait for that day

And I hope without ever knowing

I sigh and know that it never changes

You hate me and you love me the same

You spew out venom and honey

and I crave for both in the same vein

III

I laugh off how hard things are

knowing things are better by far

I know for some reason

And it starts with your smile

Yet with the mood that you are in

All I can do is wait

A man in the storm

Surrounded by the rain.

DXC Eton Centris , Quezon City. July 18 , 2019 2:11am

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

"3 things I have seen in the past: Badge ins!"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Call Center Agents stay up all night and there are times that you would really know that they need a good 8 hours uninterrupted sleep. I have seen people badge in to things that they should not. Here are three examples.

1) Agent Badges in to Coffee Maker

One sleepy agent swiped his badge on a Coffee maker , put a cup under it and waited for the coffee to pour. Needless to say he was too sleepy to notice that his cup was empty when he left.

2) Agent Badges in to Gate

You know you are really tired when you hurriedly get your badge from your bag , swipe it on your gate and wait for it to open.

3) Agent Voice Prompt

And the last of the three is an Agent who swiped his badge on the elevator buttons and shouted " "22nd" at it. I was surprised because I didn't know that this particular building had such a hi-tech lift. And the most amusing part was that this building only had 4 floors.

"Doc In , Doc Out : Rush"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Patient: (Rushes into room) Doc!
Me: Ano po yun?
Patient: Puwede pong pabili ng...
Me: Pabili ng ano po?
Patient:(laughs) Sorry po.
Me: Sa kabila po yung canteen
Patient runs out of clinic...

Gutom na siguro.

"Untitled"

by:

Alessandria Venice R.De leon

A girl with a dream...

A girl with a wish...

Her life was simple, it was perfect

She had almost everything

But somehow

Something was still missing

And so she searched for it

The missing piece of her puzzle

The piece she so earnestly searched for

Just to feel complete

Time had passed and she began to lose hope

But somewhere along the way she discovered something

Dance

She discovered a hidden spark within her

Something that ignited her fire

The hidden Atlantis she searched for

The key that set her free from her cage

An electric current, dance

It was something like euphoria

She didn’t want the feeling to end

And so she chased it

Torn muscles, black hands

Her sacrifice, her pain

Everyday turned into a question

“Can I do this?”

“Am I cut out for this?”

Tears flew down her cheek

In over her head? Maybe a little

Her heart broke bit by bit

And overtime it became brittle

But just like how the water crashes against the shore, she always came back

Her story isn’t finished

The end is nowhere near

But come with me on this journey,

And I’ll show you

A girl with a dream...

A girl with a wish...

"Dance"

by:

Alessandria Venice R. De leon

Dance. Dance is many things. What is it? It’s a word, it’s an art. For some, it is freedom, it’s a way to express themselves. It is sadness, it is anger, it is happiness. It is quite literally the physical representation of emotion.

To me, dance is a dream. A sometimes far-away dream. But I’ll get there someday.

Dance is also a struggle.

Dance isn’t easy. It might even be one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my life.

I love to dance. Just like music, I can’t live without it. The first thing that pops into my head when I hear a song is how I could dance to it. If you ask my parents, they’ll say I can’t even walk around the house without at least dancing once. I’ve been told before that I can dance or that I’ve got a pedigree in dancing, thanks to my mom. So it was truly a shock to me and a great disappointment when I couldn’t get even the simplest of choreography's for a school project. I guess I got too confident. But then again, I’m never sure if I believe in myself too much or too little. I am a person who is admittedly emotionally weak, one mistake is all it takes to break down my already fragile confidence. Even now, as I’m writing this, my eyes start to sting. It doesn’t help that I’m overly critical of myself or that I’m a perfectionist who won’t settle for nothing less but absolute perfection when it comes to myself. With other people I am lenient, but when it’s me I point out every single flaw and mistake even when it hurts me.

Dance gives me pain. Even when it hurts me, I still go for it. Maybe I’m crazy. My body hurts, my heart hurts, everything hurts. Everyday turns into a question of “Can I do this?” or “Am I really cut out for this?” It breaks my confidence and self-esteem down just as quickly as it builds it up. But after all this pain, I’d have to admit...

Dance gives me joy. Dance has given me more joy and confidence than anything in my life. Aside from music, dance is the best thing that has ever happened to me. There’s something in getting a step right or being able to perform a choreography perfectly. Dance completely changes me.

Dance is like two sides of the same coin. It is painful, it makes you question everything about yourself, and it is dull and dreary, but at the same time it is beautiful, inspiring, and it is colorful.

Whenever people see a finished dance presentation, they’re quick to think that it’s easy, and so they try it for themselves, just like me. The truth is that what they see is only the smallest part of dancing or learning how to dance. They don’t see the pain, the sacrifice, or the tears (both in our eyes and muscles). There’s a lot that goes on behind a presentation. I recount one time I used my break to let my feelings out in the bathroom because I felt that I couldn’t do anything right when I wasn’t able to get the steps as quickly as my classmates that day. I’ve recovered and I’ve tried to build myself up again after that experience by pushing myself harder to learn the steps and be able to catch up with my classmates but I’ve realized that it really does take a lot to be able to dance good. It takes courage to try and to fail, patience to persevere, dedication to practice, and hard work.

My message to all the dancers and artists out there is to never give up. Things may get hard and you’ll feel like giving up but don’t. Things will get better eventually. And if you ever feel like you’re just not made to dance or it’s not what you’re destined for, the sheer fact that you’re there learning how to dance means that some part of you is meant to be there, so don’t you ever question it.

Monday, July 15, 2019

"Ghosted"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Did you see the things that I said?

The way that I phrased them

Oh so subtly as if you would care

Oh and oh because I did dare

Only to know if you did

Only to be here waiting

Only that you didn't

And I was here insisting

III

Asking for forgiveness

Begging for those words

Unknowing the answers

Shame shame they never came.

Optum. Building N. Quezon City. July 16 , 2019 6:46am

Friday, July 5, 2019

Sephara , Sky's Blade: An Orzhov Scenario"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

Sephara , Sky's blade is by no doubt a limited bomb and I gather that she might see a little more play in the EDH casual decks of certain players. Playing her is worth it but a bit harder that playing let us say that demon that only requires black creatures and a measly 6 life.

Of course one can argue that both Sephara and the Demon of deaths gate can actually exist in an Orzhov deck and I would be one of those people.

Consider that at around turn 4 you could have both of these big fatties out in play. On turn 2 you might have been able to cast a Midnight Haunting (If you were able to play a Plains and Sol ring on your first turn.) or a Spectral Possession if you are able to put in another Plains. Turn 3 is where it gets very interesting

You could cast Lingering Spirits on turn 2 getting 2 1/1 Flying White Spirit creature tokens. You can pay for the 2 mana flashback cost which gives you a total of 4 Flying Spirits. You can pay 1 white mana and tap these 4 creatures to play Sephara so that you have a beeft 7/7 flyer with lifelink.

She also makes your other Flying creatures indestructible. But wait there is more. How can we totally exploit this situation you might ask?

By casting a Darkest Hour we can now make all those untapped white spirits into black creatures. And you know what that means? You could pay 6 life. Sacrifice 3 of those black spirits and get a Demon of Deathsgate out! A 9/9 Flying Trampler! And thanks for Sephara is now Indestructible to boot!

An explosive turn 3 if I do say so myself and something that I am willing to trying in my existing Orzhov deck that features Teyza , Orzhov Scion. Oh what fun it would be having Angels and Demons at your bidding.

"Ajani , Strength of the Pride: Make it White , Make it Ajani!"

by:

Virgilio F.De leon Jr.MD

Ajani is the M20 White planeswalker representative. Now that Gideon is dead and Elspeth is well still in the process of reviving. Our good old Leonin has our backs.

So at 4 mana and a starting loyalty counter count of 5. What are the things that matter to Ajani , Strength of the Pride? That thing is Life. Yes. A deck with life gain. Existing Soul Sisters deck would gladly add him in.

Looking at his first ability another thing that matters is that you play a lot of creatures or planeswalkers in your deck. Since this first ability counts the number of creatures you have and your planeswalkers to give you a point of life for each of them. you control 8 soldier tokens and Ajani? thats 9 life!

And if you don't have a creature in play you could also use Ajani's token generating ability to make an Ajani's Pridemate. Another creature who thrives on the increase in your life. So if you needed you can generate this token and increase your life with the first ability on the next turn.

But the best reason to play Ajani in this 3rd skill. Yes it does not cost any loyalty counters but it can only be activated if you have 15 or more life than your starting total. Not a problem in dedicated life gain EDH decks at all. And then when the chips are down you could actually use this asymmetrical ability by exiling Ajani and to rid your opponents of their creatures and artifacts because they would come with him. If you have already built up an army of your own you can all have your opponents at your mercy. It goes without saying that with no army in the battlefield the chances of your opponents winning get slimmer and slimmer.

I hate to say it but given the right conditions this is actually a very good advantage over all your enemies.

Wednesday, July 3, 2019

"3 things I have seen this week: Luck Day"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

There are times when you feel that the universe is somehow conspiring to give you the worst possible day and then there are days like today that seem like that the fates seems to put all of your luck in one basket. Here are three things that I have seen today that made it such a fine day.

1) The Car

Normally when I arrive at my clinic in Eton Centris there would be a wait for cars to exit the parking lot and the guards would have to ask you to move so as not to clog up the 3 lane avenue facing Cyberpod 2. This was not one of those nights. I was surprised that when I was pulling up to my favorite parking spot( the one behind the ambulance and directly in front of Cyberpod two) the car that was parked their hurriedly backed up and left. And me. I got the best parking spot without a fuss.

2) The thing on the road

So I was able to park quite easily. And when I moved to the passenger side of my car to get my things there was something on the pavement. It looked familiar. It was violet. It was a 100 peso bill! And I assumed that it might have belonged to the owner of the car that had just vacated this slot. Well I don't know how in the earth I can contact them soooooo....I have a 100 pesos to add to what I would call my lucky stash.

3) The Korean Store

It has been nearly 3 months and I have not been able to cook my wife's favorite jajangmyeon and before eating my dinner I decided to try my luck.It was a lucky day after all and so when I came in to the korean store the Ate was happy to see me. I asked , "Meron na ba?"

The Ate said , "Meron na sir!"

And just like that I took out all 11 pieces of the jajangmyeon from Paldo. 3 freaking months and I just come in one day and it was there! Freaky.

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

"The Writer Writes"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD

I should be writing

And so I am now

It is only here where I find these things

These thoughts , these feelings

The pleasure of putting

Thoughts on paper

Shaping them into something

that did not exist a moment before.

III

Creation is not as easy

as others think it should be

Same with destruction

the same effort can be said

I smile at these words

knowing that they are mine and mine alone

And maybe hand in hand

Slowly becomes my Destruction and Creation.

Optum , Building N. Quezon City. July 3 , 2019, 5:56am

Monday, July 1, 2019

"Kykar , Wind's Fury: Let's give him some metal."

by:

Virgilio F De leon Jr.MD

Kykar is a big bird. There I said it.

With that out of the way it took me awhile to shake the cobwebs from my eyes after a short nap to realized how I can use this latest Jeskai Commander to land me a win. At 4 mana and 3 different colors Kykar, Wind's Fury could be a bird commander but that would mean not exploiting all of it's wonderful abilities.

So as a 3/3 flyer Kykar is one of thos squishy type of creatures that is within the range of a lightning bolt but then again he has both white and blue in his colors which has an arsenal of counters at it's disposal. So how do I plan to win with this guy? I plan to make an artifact affinity deck around him.

And it would all go so sweetly when I am able to play a Future Sight and Sensei's Divining top allowing me to look at my library and casting low costing artifacts from it. For each non creature card that I cast it triggers Kykars ability and I get to put a 1/1 spirit token with flying into play. If I cannot cast the said artifact or hit a land I will just draw that land and put the Top on the library and then cast it to continue. At this point an Impact Tremors or Phorphoros god of the forge can win it for me for each of those arriving 1/1 spirits.

I can probably draw a Blinkmoth Infusion , who has affinity and return all artifact cards in my hands and then recast them netting more spirits.

I can then patient just cast spells till I have enough spirits or draw the lone fireball or other X damage card in my deck to finish my opponents. Imagine sacrificing all those 1/1 spirits for that massive fireball. Beautiful.

Yup. Kykar is a big bird and I might not even swing it on anyone to win. He just needs to stand there to get the job done.