Who can beat Rafa (aka Rafael Nadal) on clay?

Today, I read that rafael nadal won his 72nd straight match on clay in barcelona. It is mind blogging to see that no one has beaten this champion in his past 72 matches. He is the clear favorite (in my mind) to win the 2007 French Open. At Roland Garros, Roger F. has a date with the 20 year old spaniard. I think the French open finals (for the 2nd year in a row) will be Roger F. vs. Rafael Nadal. Head to head, Rafael has the edge on Roger on the clay surface. Is Rafa the best? On his shoes, "Rafa Vamos" is the cliche which is splattered on the left & right arch of his quick feet. As for the sport of tennis, it is one which I started playing at the age of 9. I have had the fortune to meet players (like Tracy Austin, Ivan Lendl, and Andre Agassi) at various tournaments. Seeing Agassi & Sampras play in 1993 was a highlight in my world of tennis. I never saw one of my favorite players, Boris Becker, at a tournament. But, I did see Andre Agassi play a couple of matches in phoenix. Long live the Vegas Wonderkid!

Shock Therapy

So, why is that people are shocked when the incredible happens? Let's give some examples. Let's say a man goes from earning $25 K in one year to $49 K about 2 years later. That's a good example of a change in fortune. It's one reason why people would think it's an incredible feat. Here's another example. Let's say a man is diagnosed with testicular cancer and surgery is required. The tumor is removed and then the tumor is found to be benign. By the way, both examples are true stories. In this writing, both examples show that shocking events take place and people find it incredible. No matter what happens, people live to shock each other. What is defined as shocking though? You decide. The bottom line is G. Ripley has been through shock therapy. The first example in the paragraph is the true story of one man's income, plus the shock behind the vicissitude. The happiness of that man can be seen in his writings. Shock therapy is simply defined as therapy (or positive actions) that is meant to change one's lifestyle in exorbitant ways. In the words of Matthew McConaughey, "just keep living." Kudos to hollywood's own longhorn!

A New Endeavor

As of today, the year is approximately 78 days over. On this day, G. Ripley started a new endeavor. This new endeavor is a shift in companies, cash flow, and lifestyle for me. So, what did the first day at a new job entail? Well, it entailed "learning about a new business" and "managing one's focus on acquiring information about their new functionality (role)". About 7 years ago, G. Ripley worked at a job, in which, surfing the web for 3 hours was "the norm." Now, if you surf for one hour, it is considered to be lucky. Why? Times have changed for the author of this posting. Now, your time at a company is measured by productivity, and not by what websites are cool. Information is the most expensive commodity! The more knowledge you acquire about your job equates to a more positive end result in the game of life. I know a few people who live to work, but working to live is better! G. Ripley chooses the latter one, because life cannot be planned. The good & the bad take place at inopportune times. The first day involved no network access which means no surfing the web. In a past life, Professional surfing (websurfing, that is in this scenario) used to be my job function. Years later, the web is inundated with too many sites to see. This leads a person to focus on doing one function well. That one process is working! Carpe Diem!

Academy Awards Recap: Departed takes home 4 awards!

Well, the 79th Academy awards are over and "The Departed" won 4 awards. First, Martin Scorsese won the coveted award for best director which was elusive until tonight. Little Miss Sunshine brought home 2 awards, as Alan Arkin won for best supporting actor. Babel, Letters from Iwo Jima, The Queen, The Last King of Scotland, and Dreamgirls were also winners. Pan's Labyrinth was a big winner as the foreign film won 3 awards. Before the Academy Awards, G. Ripley saw "The Queen" at a movie theater. It was a good flick, and Helen Mirren was a sure nod for best actress. As for the awards show, Ellen Degeneres got up, close, & personal with the stars in the audience. It was hilarious. The Academy Awards were worth every minute.

Mid-season thoughts from an nba fanatic

Hello, I am back with another post. This one is all about the ballers! I am talking about the NBA. I love the Lakers and I like the Suns too! I live in phoenix so I have to root for the home team. But, the suns have played like hurt ballers lately. The team has lost 4 in a row! They need to thank god that the all-star break is now. The team needs to regroup in the 2nd half. I know that Nash is injured and so are kurt thomas and boris diaw. But, the suns need to look for other leadership to help them in the 2nd half. Nash, Diaw, and Thomas will be back for the suns. The team will have to concentrate on the present team and win games without the 3 injured players. That's about it for me, tonight! Hope everyone had a good valentine's day! Remember that valentine's day is part of february, and february is the month of love. So, keep spreading the love for 2 more weeks. Enjoy the rest of february!

The Super Bowl, plus latest flicks

Ok, First, I want to dedicate this post to my homie, Primo. Primo is one of my many fans who enjoys to read about the talented g. ripley. Ok, so here's the scoop.

The Super Bowl is in 13 hours mountain standard time. The big game is going to be a great one, because it matches the best offense (Indianapolis) against the best defense (chicago). The bears will show why their defense is the most high scoring machine in the nfl. We know that REX (aka sexy rexy) is going to have his inconsistent game. But, his inconsistent game was great for the bears in the playoffs. He can shine and that's what he did in the playoffs this year. As for my dog, peyton manning (aka the quarterback that deserves to win), he has his work cut out. In the end, I am picking the colts by 7. G. Ripley is not good with giving final scores, but he's rooting for the Colts.

Back to my other hobby outside of sports, watching and critiquing movies. This past weekend, I saw "The last King of Scotland" and "Notes on a Scandal". In the former movie, I saw a talented actor, forest whitaker, who does a stupendous job as the ruthless Ugandan ruler, Idi Amin. In the latter flick, I saw two talented actresses, Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench. Cate does another magnificent job while The Dame (judi Dench) shows why she is an academy award winner. Remember that both ladies have won oscar gold once before. Will they do it again in 3 weeks at the academy awards in hollywood? WE SHALL SEE! Cate, I'll be rooting for you to win your 2nd academy award for best supporting actress. Note: Cate Blanchett won the academy award at the 2005 academy awards for best supporting actress for her dazzling portrayal of Kate Hepburn in the Aviator (a great Scorsee movie). The Dame won the academy award at the 1999 academy awards for best supporting actress for her beautiful performance in Shakespeare in Love.

As for Forest Whitaker, he did a fine job of playing the ruthless Ugandan uberdictator (is that a word? Yes!!). He showed the world that he deserves the chance to be in the same category as Leo (Blood Diamond); Big Willie (Pursuit of Happyness); Peter O'Toole (Venus); and Ryan Gosling (half Nelson). Will he win on Sunday, February 25? Right now, he's the clear favorite. Personally, G. Ripley wants to see Leo win for Blood Diamond. Go & See Blood Diamond because Leo deserves to win the oscar Gold!

Golden Globes are over! (My thoughts on Hollywood's biggest party of the year!)

Last night, The GG (Golden Globe) awards took place in the SWANKY, Beverly Hilton in BEVERLY HILLS (that's where I want to be, LIVING IN BEVERLY HILLS!) Ok, that is from Weezer, a great american rock band. Let's get back to the Show! Dreamgirls was shining as the movie took home 3 awards. I am glad that Martin Scorsee won Best Director for the Departed. I am happy that Babel won for Best picture. I am not surprised that the Queen won 2 awards. As for Forest Whitaker's win for best actor in "Last King of Scotland", he may win for best actor in 6 weeks. Yes, in 6 weeks, it's the real AWARDS show known as the OSCARS, BABY! I really like to sit down and watch the Academy Awards with my scoresheet. I enjoy tallying the winners and if the movie won most of the awards which it was nominated for. So, get ready for the big show on February 25 at the KODAK THEATER on HOLLYWOOD & HIGHLAND (H & H, one of my favorite streets in the FILM CAPITAL of THE WORLD)!