I was watching Greeny and the crew chat about the topic of Top 10 Tom Brady Facts at ESPN yesterday and was really amazed with the accomplishments he mentioned. Being unfamiliar with American #football, I did not really grasp what he has done until after the show. The last one is particularly impressive given that it is really difficult to stay long in a contact sport of any kind.
It also caught my attention that one of the crew was sharing how Brady dreams of throwing the football which they found amusing. This was also my first reaction but it made me think about Filipino pool player and billiards legend Efren “Bata” Reyes. Nicknamed “The Magician”, he would often tell of the story in interviews when he was still a young boy that he would dream of shooting pool while sleeping on pool tables in his uncle’s pool hall. He would become one of the greatest pool / billiards players in the world and earn him millions of dollars from winning more than 70 international tournaments.
Those Were the Days
I played pool in the local pool hall as a kid. The duckpin and pool hall near my elementary school made it easy for me and my friends to go there and watch tournaments and money games whenever players from out-of-town would come and just challenge local players to play for money. I did not bet on the money games but intently watched as the players hit the ball on the pockets and placed safety shots to make it difficult for the opposing player.
When my friends and I were not playing pool, we hung around at the duckpin hall where the girls would often go to play. It was a great way to spend an afternoon after school before I go home and where my mom would find me if I wasn’t home before dark.
Fire trucks and Sirens
I was at school one day and heard sirens wailing and thought nothing until we were dismissed from class and went out to see what’s happening. To make a long story short, the duckpin and pool hall burned down and it ended my dream of becoming a pool hustler like the local pool legends I used to watch.
I was sad for a few days but recovered easily. I played basketball with friends and it was my game. I played all day and anywhere: from makeshift half-court spaces to the covered courts in different barangays. It did not matter.
I played till the sun went down and had fun with it throughout my younger years. Basketball is as American as Football but there’s something about basketball that I really love. Maybe it was the ShowTime Lakers or MJ and the Bulls or even Kobe and Shaq. But whatever it is, it provided the best entertainment when I was at home, an awesome bonding experience with friends and physical activity that made for a healthy body.
And that, my friends, is the game I played as a child.
That’s it for now. Thanks for reading. It's been a while since I did a blogpost and I'm hoping to get back to regularly uploading contents. I hope that everyone is doing well and good these days.
Hive is finally starting to make moves so I guess that's good for everyone. Have a nice day and mabuhay to all!
A big shoutout to @bearone for the awesome #hiveph badge and to Canva where I created the thumbnail image above.