The Many Looks of Gani Nañagas

Every once in a while it is very important to stop, take some time off, and look back at where you came from. Just to find out if you are heading in the direction you really want to go.

That seems to be happening to me right now, and I have to say that despite the fact that my life currently has lots of ups and downs I am definitely where I want to be right now.

I was browsing my seldom used Friendster account and I realized that I've had so many hairstyles in the past four years. Here are some of them, not in chronological order...

There was a time I was either growing my hair real long, or I had just had it cut into a shorter version of what i was. I can't remember which one this was but I still like this look up to now. My hair is relatively long (but not long enough for me - haha) in this photo but still short enough that with enough hair product I can masquerade it for formal events.


Then there was the time my hair was the longest it's ever been my entire life. I'd grown my hair long (meaning I could ponytail it) thrice but managed to sustain that length for only a few months. This was, like I said, the longest I got it to. Looking back I guess I was a bit on the big side to consider keeping this look. It was fun, though. Maybe if I lost my huge stomach I could go back to this look again.


Then there was the "politician look" I had. This was for the wedding of my girlfriend's older sister. This was probably best suited if I always kept my hair slicked back with hair product. Sadly I don't do that. But this isn't a bad look, if I may say so myself.


The last pic I want to share is the time I had my head shaved. This is the most recent pic, of that I am most sure. I did this because it was around summertime and I was feeling hot.


I am pretty impulsive when it comes to my hair. I usually go extremes with it - either very long or very short. It is a big deal for me to grow it long, I've always wanted to have a ponytail. But when times dictate that I cannot have it, I tried going with the semi-long hair. When that didn't work I had my hair shaved off.

What was the point of this exercise? Nothing special. Just looking back at my life.

Out.

Arise, O 4th Gen iPod

Got home late last night, and the power was out.

So I did my usual evening rituals before going to sleep. Sadly too many thoughts were in my head and I had to do something to try to sleep. First I tried playing around with my guitar. No dice. I still know how to play, but I don't know what to play. So I was just plunking around with some notes and stuff when I remembered my iPod.

You see, a few weeks (or months, I really can't remember) ago the dreaded sad face showed up in my iPod. I was so distraught I started looking for possible remedies to fix it online. The warranty has been expired for at least over a year now. The only way to fix it was by myself and the only solutions I saw online was to open it up and either order a hard disk of the exact same model as my iPod's hard disk and replace it, or shake the hard disk. Apparently shaking the hard disk will get something inside unstuck and make it run again.

So last night I walk over to my dead iPod. I pull it out of it's carrying case and shake. Something clicks inside and the Apple logo appears. Joy, sweet joy. What's even better is there's some power left inside so I had enough time to listen to some tunes and get myself sleepy, which is what I exactly did.

I had to tell some of my friends (my friends who knew about my iPod's "death") the good news. Then Nick answers my SMS with some scary news. Shaking the iPod to get it to work will work, but he said it was only a temporary solution and that I'd better back up the files while I still can.

Dammit.

Now I don't have any spare or free cash around to acquire a new iPod. So too bad. I guess I'll have to enjoy whatever I can out of my trusty old iPod.

But since dreaming is free, I'd really love to own the 32gb iPod touch. It's P24k here so no dice about purchasing one. But I can really appreciate that product because not only can I use it to store music, I can also store my portfolio inside so I can show other people my works. And while it may not have the capability of becoming a portable disk drive (unless you download some 3rd party software, from what I've heard) at least the iPod touch isn't a hard drive so it won't break down as easily as, say, an iPod video.

So that's it I guess. I'll have to enjoy my iPod while I can. Maybe hope it doesn't die again. After all, hoping is free, right?

Out.

Slow Night

It's been way over a month since I last posted anything.

Two Saturdays ago my office basketball team played it's first league game. We lost 71 - 16. 55 point loss.

Goddamnit.

League basketball games are way more intense than weekend runs. I can only imagine how intense varsity games are.

I was way out of shape, I started heaving breaths after only two trips up and down the court. The only jump shot I attempted I threw too strong, hit the backboard only, about two feet above the ring.

But I had a blast.

It was fun, honestly. Office camaraderie showed. We all had a good time even if we lost, and we weren't sore losers. Plus I got some workout going, which is something I always need.

I did notice some things I need to improve upon for the next game. I have to be more aggerssive down low (I play center), I need to set picks, I need to box out, and I need to use both arms to rebound.

My final stat line? 0-1 field goals, 1 defensive rebound.

I suck.

Next game's this Friday. I can't wait.

Out.

Updates

It seems my last post was June 17, 2008. More than a month has passed since I last blogged. I know that's not good, because I told myself I would try to write more posts this year and increase my blogging. Well, the year isn't over yet and I've still got around five months left to rectify the situation.

First off, I went to Naga for the first time in four years. Four. And I must say that the place looks awesome. It has changed in four years, and a part of me regrets not going there sooner than I should have. It had to take the wedding of one of my best friends, Ben, for me to go there.

The moment I managed to go around the place that last Saturday of June I realized that I did miss that place. Even if I didn't grow up there or I have no ties there, I still studied there for four years. So yes, there were emotional ties I didn't even realize I had to Naga.

I saw the new look of the DACA Dept, I saw my landlady, and I saw new buildings inside ADNU. Those are just a few of the things I saw in Naga. There were also new minimalls, new hotels, and new restaurants. Naga really looks progressive nowadays.

Second, I turned 28 last July 12. 28 years old and where am I now? Still in the same place. You can read that any which way, and it all says the same thing. I'd better start moving now. Not sooner, not later. Now.

Finally, I bought GTA4 as a birthday gift to myself. Damn. What an amazing game. I don't even spend most of the time doing missions. I just explore, jack parked cars (I make it a point not to steal cars with people inside unless the mission calls for it), go out with people in the game.

The game is great, but it does have some flaws. Targeting and ducking for cover is still an aspect of the game I cannot get the hang of. Whether that's because I have lousy hand-eye coordination remains to be seen.

That doesn't mean I've abandoned NBA 2K8. As much as I get pissed off playing the game, I still come back to play it.

Finally I joined my office's basketball team. We'll be joining a basketball league. What position will I be playing? Based on the criteria our head coach wrote down, I'll be a power forward-center. I know, I can't rebound for shit and I can't defend. But I am comfortable posting up and I really couldn't do the things required of point guards, shooting guards, and small forwards. Besides, like I told our coach, I'll play PF-C like Vin Baker... when he was an alcoholic.

I always visualized myself as a small forward/point forward. Sorta like Toni Kukoc, Grant Hill or Lamar Odom. But my ballhandling isn't really that great so I guess it's back in the post for me. I'm still confident in my baby hook. I'll just have to do better in rebounding and defense.

And that's it. Quick updates on my life. Now to get a move on.

Out.

Animation Training

This whole week I will be busy at work with animation training from our animation director.

I've been animating professionally for four years now, and yet it still is a learning process. After one day's session with our trainor I could say I've found new tips and tricks on character animation. Hell, even the walk cycle we learned was something new for me. It's not as easy as my walk cycle, in fact it has more keyframes. But it does look smoother, animation wise. Plus this new technique of animating a walk cycle will be most beneficial because I can probably add more character to my, er, character with this. I've already seen the improvement in my walk cycle.

So today is another training day. I cannot wait for what we will do later.

Out.