Somethings in life gather so much of their own momentum that even if it were to try and halt its own inertia, fate would slap it across the face with a raw 40 pound tuna and send it on its way. With Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather in retirement last year, a new ‘pound for pound’ star blossomed into the peak of his career. This was none other than the Philippine sensation, Manny Paquiao: a soft-spoken, well-mannered, religious and extraordinarily gifted fighter who used to sell dougnuts in Manila for a nickel a piece. Born into an impoverished family, they were so poor at one point that Manny’s father actually cooked and ate the family dog. Now a prolific boxer, fans around the world have seen him involved in epic battles with Juan Manuel Marquez, Antonio Barrera, Eric Morales: saw him out-class De-La Hoya, destroy Hatton and pulverize Miguel Cotto most recently. But it is in this last year or so that his boxing class has truly developed under the watchful eye of his trainer and ‘Master’ Freddie Roach.

Mayweather, who could not stay retired for long, stepped out to fight Marquez.  Paquiao, having devastated Ricky Hatton was in the process of setting his sights on  Miguel Cotto in November. So it seemed that the former world pound for pound champion and the new pound for pound prodigy were on an aligned collision course. Mayweather needed to beat Marquez, and Paquiao needed to beat Cotto in order to set up what would possibly be the fight of the decade between ‘Money Mayweather’ and ‘The Pac Man.’

Marquez was made to look average. Average he was not, but that is how Mayweather made him look. One felt so sorry for Marquez and sympathised with his frustration at Floyd’s elusiveness and ability to hit him at will. He was virtually made to miss over and over again, and was punished for every single mistake. Take nothing away from Marquez, and give every praise to Mayweather, who was in scintillating form and dominated him the way Paquiao never could. One could argue that Floyd’s performance that night completely out-shone Manny’s. But let us remind ourselves of how Manny destroyed Hatton inside of two rounds, Mayweather only managing it by the tenth. However, Floyd’s first knock-down of the Hatton fight was arguably one of the greatest left hooks ever witnessed. On the back foot, in the corner of the ring, while side stepping! I do digress.

What Mayweather did to Marquez,  Paquiao answered with his performance over Cotto. Inch by inch, closing off the ring, picking him apart and darting in and out with waspish tactics. By the eighth or ninth round, it was evident that Cotto had nothing left in the tank. He was running on his pride as a fighter, the only thing keeping him on his feet. The referee should have stopped the punishment earlier, as Cotto’s face was beginning to resemble a bruised watermelon with Paquiao’s relentless marauding taking its toll. And so the inevitable result bubbled to the surface. Mayweather defeated Marquez in dominant fashion, and so too did Paquiao. The two ‘acclaimed’ best pound for pound fighters in the world are indeed the best ‘pound for pound.’ At this moment in time, no-one else even comes close.

So now we are closer than ever to a real possibility of a clash between the cream of the crop. But there is only one space on the throne for these two kings of the division. Mayweather or Paquiao? Class, skill, speed and strength versus class, skill, speed and strength. Skill wise and physical conditioning-wise, they are nigh inseparable. However, I believe the advantage does lie with Mayweather. His defensive skills are superior, he’s bigger, has more reach, has a more well-rounded boxing style and is unbeaten. It would be a crying shame for both of them to come this far, and miss out on a momentous duel. I am not a superstitious man, but somewhere right now, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Paquiao have just been slapped by a 40 pound tuna.

Pierwsza walka Rafaela Marqueza z Israelem Vazquezem. Pojedynek odbył się 3 marca 2007 roku w Carson.

Przecena w sklepie Pretorian – sprawdź teraz!

Se per un istante Dio si dimenticasse che sono una marionetta di stoffa e mi facesse dono di un pezzo di vita, probabilmente non direi tutto ciò che penso, ma penserei a tutto ciò che dico. Valuterei le cose, non per il loro valore, ma per ciò che significano. Dormirei poco, sognerei di più, essendo cosciente che per ogni minuto che teniamo gli occhi chiusi, perdiamo sessanta secondi di luce.
Andrei avanti quando gli altri si ritirano, mi sveglierei quando gli altri dormono.
Ascolterei quando gli altri parlano e con quanto piacere gusterei un buon gelato al cioccolato.
Se Dio mi desse un pezzo di vita, mi vestirei in modo semplice, e prima di tutto butterei me stesso in fronte al sole, mettendo a nudo non solo il mio corpo, ma anche la mia anima.
Dio mio se avessi un cuore, scriverei il mio odio sul ghiaccio e aspetterei l’arrivo del sole. Sulle stelle dipingerei una poesia di Benedetti con un sogno di Van Gogh e una canzone di Serrat sarebbe la serenata che offrirei alla luna.
Annaffierei le rose con le mie lacrime per sentire il dolore delle loro spine e il rosso bacio dei loro petali.
Dio mio se avessi un pezzo di vita, non lascerei passare un solo giorno senza dire alle persone che amo, che le amo. Direi ad ogni uomo e ad ogni donna che sono i miei prediletti e vivrei innamorato dell’amore.
Mostrerei agli uomini quanto sbagliano quando pensano di smettere di innamorarsi man mano che invecchiano, non sapendo che invecchiano quando smettono di innamorarsi!
A un bambino darei le ali, ma lascerei che imparasse a volare da solo.
Ai vecchi insegnerei che la morte non arriva con la vecchiaia, ma con la dimenticanza.Ho imparato così tanto da voi, Uomini… Ho imparato che ognuno vuole vivere sulla cima della montagna, senza sapere che la vera felicità sta nel come questa montagna è stata scalata.
Ho imparato che quando un neonato stringe per la prima volta il dito del padre nel suo piccolo pugno, l’ha catturato per sempre.
Ho imparato che un uomo ha il diritto di guardare dall’alto in basso un altro uomo solo per aiutarlo a rimettersi in piedi.
Da voi ho imparato così tante cose, ma in verità non saranno granchè utili, perchè quando mi metteranno in questa valigia, starò purtroppo per morire.
Dì sempre ciò che senti e fa’ ciò che pensi.
Se sapessi che oggi è l’ultima volta che ti guardo mentre ti addormenti, ti abbraccerei fortemente e pregherei il Signore per poter essere il guardiano della tua anima.
Se sapessi che oggi è l’ultima volta che ti vedo uscire dalla porta, ti abbraccerei, ti darei un bacio e ti chiamerei di nuovo per dartene altri.
Se sapessi che oggi è l’ultima volta che sento la tua voce, registrerei ogni tua parola per poterle ascoltare una e più volte ancora.
Se sapessi che questi sono gli ultimi minuti che ti vedo, direi “ti amo” e non darei scioccamente per scontato che già lo sai.
Sempre c’è un domani e la vita ci dà un’altra possibilità per fare le cose bene, ma se mi sbagliassi e oggi fosse tutto ciò che ci rimane, mi piacerebbe dirti quanto ti amo, che mai ti dimenticherò.
Il domani non è assicurato per nessuno, giovane o vecchio. Oggi può essere l’ultima volta che vedi chi ami. Perciò non aspettare oltre, fallo oggi, perchè se il domani non arrivasse, sicuramente compiangeresti il giorno che non hai avuto tempo per un sorriso, un abbraccio, un bacio e che eri troppo occupato per regalare un ultimo desiderio.
Tieni chi ami vicino a te, digli quanto bisogno hai di loro, amali e trattali bene, trova il tempo per dirgli “mi spiace”, “perdonami”, “per favore”, “grazie” e tutte le parole d’amore che conosci.
Nessuno ti ricorderà per i tuoi pensieri segreti. Chiedi al Signore la forza e la saggezza per esprimerli. Dimostra ai tuoi amici e ai tuoi cari quanto sono importanti.

Johnny Welch – comico, attore e scrittore messicano.

In sottofondo: “Jigsaw Falling Into Place” – Radiohead

Click para leer Márquez, por Arturo Pérez-Reverte

Pérez-Reverte nos obsequia éste domingo con uno de sus personajes más poderosos. No se ofenda don Arturo por ser Márquez uno de sus pocos personajes reales. Su figura mira todo lo que se narra en Territorio Comanche. Por eso apenas se habla de él, porque el cámara nunca sale en las historias de la tele. Como tiene que ser. La cámara es invisible, y el ojo siempre el mismo. El ojo del espectador. Márquez está detrás del espectador, dentro de cada espectador, señalando con su mirada, mira, mira ahí, y creemos que miramos nosotros desde nuestras casas, pero el que mira es Márquez. Siempre Márquez.

Como operador de cámara veo en Márquez un personaje cercano y muy real, un descreído medio loco, un yonqui del plano. Me alegra que Reverte haya decidido escribir sobre su antíguo camarada y nos amplíe el personaje, del que apenas conocemos unos trazos. El resultado es asombroso, porque un genial fabulador y un personaje extremo son el germen ancestral de toda leyenda.

Para terminar, me encuentro en youtube un vídeo narrado por mi admirado escritor, con imágenes de Márquez, en Serbia.

]]> http://pacejmiller.wordpress.com/2009/11/22/pacquiao-mayweather-its-all-about-the-nickname/ Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:30:36 +0000 pacejmiller http://pacejmiller.wordpress.com/2009/11/22/pacquiao-mayweather-its-all-about-the-nickname/

Mayweather-Pacquiao: it's gotta be done

The fans want it.  HBO’s president Ross Greenburg promises it.  Top Rank chief Bob Arum says he would be an idiot to not make it.  Freddie Roach has been wanting it for some time (and thinks Pacquiao will definitely KO Mayweather).  Rugged Man demands it**.  The fighters?  Well, they haven’t really said they don’t want it.

Pacquiao will always espouse that crappy ‘I let my promoter decide who I fight’ line, but at least he has said he’s willing to fight anybody and when asked point blank in a recent interview he said for the record that he wants to fight Mayweather.  And besides, if both Arum and Roach are determined to make it happen, then that effectively equates to Manny wanting the fight.

Therefore, the way I see it, whether the ultimate boxing match between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr will happen may depend on which of Floyd’s two nicknames he wants to adopt: ‘Money’ or ‘Pretty Boy’.

If Floyd is all about the ‘Money’ (as he claims to be), then there’s no way this fight won’t get done.  Initial reports indicate that a fight between the two biggest names in boxing at the moment who also happen to be the top 2 pound-for-pound fighters in the world (how rare is that?), would surely challenge if not smash the PPV record set by De La Hoya-Mayweather in May 2007 (2.44 million PPV buys).  There is not a single fight out there between any two living fighters that would generate anywhere close to the type of money that Pacquiao-Mayweather would make.  Even with a 50-50 purse split (discussed further below), Mayweather would make more than double what he could make going 70-30 with any other fighter in the world.

On the other hand, if Floyd wants to remain a ‘Pretty Boy’, he can keep on ranting about how boxing ‘is a business’ or ‘doesn’t work like that’ and that he won’t do business with Bob Arum (his former promoter with whom he had a difficult falling out).  Or, as Freddie Roach best put it: “When [Mayweather] says he wants 65 percent of the revenue, that’s like saying he doesn’t want to fight.”  Not saying that Floyd can’t get the ‘Money’ and remain a ‘Pretty Boy’ by outclassing Pacquiao without taking a beating, but there’s no way Floyd thinks that it will be a walk in the park for him.  He’s seen Diaz, De La Hoya, Hatton and Cotto.  All of them (except Hatton who went out too early) looked like they had been through meat grinders after the fight.  His father, Floyd Sr, is so traumatised by Pacquiao’s dominance that he has accused the Filipino superstar of being on performance-enhancing drugs.

So does Mayweather even want the fight?

I think he does, even if it’s just for the money.  As made abundantly clear on his heated interview with Rugged Man, Mayweather doesn’t care about his legacy.  Actually, he already believes that his legacy (as one of the greatest of all time) is set in stone.  Perhaps, but if he doesn’t end up fighting Pacquiao or (to a lesser extent) Shane Mosley, that legacy will be tarnished forever.  Mayweather has already carved out a reputation as a dodger of dangerous opponents (regardless of whether the reputation has merit).  A single bout against Pacquiao which Mayweather says he can easily win will go a long way towards erasing that reputation, and more importantly, will make Floyd more money than he’s ever seen.  No one doubts that Mayweather has the ability to beat Pacquiao, which is what makes his reluctance so frustrating.

Maybe it’s just posturing to put himself in the best position when the time comes to talk about the purse split.  Maybe he just wants to stir up more controversy and paint himself as the ‘bad guy’ for more publicity for the fight.  Maybe’s he’s genuinely afraid of Pacquiao.  Or maybe he’s just a douche.  Regardless, Floyd Mayweather Jr has been mouthing off about Manny Pacquiao since the Filipino’s impressive victory over Miguel Cotto.

“I’m in a no-win situation,” Mayweather said.  “If I beat Manny Pacquiao you know what they are going to say?  ‘You are supposed to beat him, you are Floyd Mayweather, you are the bigger man.’  If I knock him out they’ll say, ‘You’re supposed to knock him out [because] he’s been knocked out before.’  I’m in a no-win situation and when I beat him no one is going to be surprised because he’s been beaten before.  Whatever I do to Pacquiao has been done before.  He’s been beaten on three occasions.  And if I knock him out I don’t want the world shouting because he’s been knocked out twice before.”

When Floyd Mayweather Jr says fighting Pacquiao is a “no-win situation” for him, all it is doing is make him look like he is looking for a way out.

Floyd has also been trying to shift the blame to Pacquaio in case the fight doesn’t happen.  As quoted in Dan Rafael’s blog at ESPN, Mayweather says that Pacquiao doesn’t want to fight him because Manny knows he can’t beat Floyd.  Despite not having said once that he wants to fight Pacquiao, Mayweather is now saying that Manny has not come out and said publicly he wants a piece of Floyd.  This may be true, but Pacquiao doesn’t need to.  Arum makes Pacquiao’s fights and Arum has made it unequivocally clear that he will do everything he can to make the Mayweather bout happen.  In contrast, according his own words, Mayweather is his “own boss”, speaks for himself and “tell it like it is.”  This actually makes Floyd look worse because it just means it has been his own personal choice to dodge all the top, prime welterweights, and that if a fight with Pacquiao doesn’t happen, it’s because Floyd doesn’t want it to.

In response, Bob Arum simply said: “All I want to say is that my guy [Pacquiao] has said, ‘We’re here, we’re ready to fight Mayweather.’ “  This was confirmed in the link above to the video interview.

In the end, I don’t think Floyd really has a choice.  Neither does Manny for that matter.  If either one of them backs out from this fight to take on another boxer (or retire), especially when all the stars are seemingly aligned, there will be so much public backlash and animosity against that man that it will have a permanent impact on his reputation and career.

Purse and weight negotiations

The logical purse split for a fight of this magnitude is 50-50.  Most commentators are now of the opinion that this will not be difficult to achieve given the amount of money that is at stake.

From Pacquaio’s side, the man doing the negotiating is obviously Top Rank’s Bob Arum.  And on Mayweather’s side, Richard Schaefer of Golden Boy will represent Floyd (as Floyd has signed a 5-fight deal with them).  Al Haymon and Leonard Ellerbe are Floyd’s advisers who will liaise closely with Schaefer to ensure the negotiations reflect Floyd’s intentions.

There will probably be a bit of back and forth with both sides arguing that they should get he lion’s share of the purse.  Mayweather’s camp will argue that he is undefeated and that his PPV numbers against their common opponents (De La Hoya, Hatton and Marquez) were better than Pacquiao’s.  On the other hand, Pacquiao’s camp will argue that Manny’s most recent PPV numbers (the Cotto fight did at least 1.25 million buys) are more impressive than Floyd’s (the Marquez fight did 1.05 million PPV buys) and that when Mayweather fought De La Hoya and Hatton, the global financial crisis hadn’t struck yet.  Plus, Marquez really only made a name for himself because he was in two very tight contests against Pacquiao.

I believe they will settle on 50-50 in the end.  Both Mayweather and Arum’s egos are too big to allow the other to get even a couple of percentage points on them.  And honestly, I think 50-50 is a fair result.  There is no doubt that Pacquiao is the bigger international superstar at the moment and is by far the more exciting fighter, but Floyd is an equally big draw because he’s also a crossover star and people would pay to see him lose.

As for the weight, there shouldn’t be much controversy.  147 pounds.  Pacquiao may try to seek a Cotto-esque weight of 145, but as we have seen Mayweather’s fight with Marquez, Floyd doesn’t really care about the contracted weight restrictions.  The weight should be a big advantage for Mayweather as we know that Manny maxes out at around 148 on fight night whereas Floyd, who refused to be re-weighed for the Marquez fight, should be at least 155.

Preliminary prediction

So assuming this megafight will happen some time around May 2010, it’s time to make a preliminary prediction.

I just want to preface this by saying that there is no point comparing the Manny Pacquaio of the past to the Manny Pacquiao of now.  Too often I see people downplaying Pacquiao’s chances in this fight based on what happened to him more than 10 years ago (when he suffered 2 KO losses and a draw as a weight-drained Flyweight or Bantamweight) , against Erik Morales (who won their first encounter via decision but was knocked out in the 2 rematches), and against Juan Manuel Marquez (with whom Pacquiao had a draw and split decision win over, though both were questionable).  Morales was Pacquiao’s last loss and it was more than 4 years ago when Pacquiao was at super featherweight (130 pounds).  The two fights against Marquez were at featherweight (126 pounds) and super featherweight (130 pounds).  Pacquiao is a true 140-147 pounder now, and he is much better at this weight.  He has somehow managed to increase his speed, power and endurance, and he is now significantly more experienced, patient, and obedient when it comes to following Freddie Roach’s game plans.  There’s just no comparison.  If he fought the fat, old Marquez we saw against Mayweather now…well, I’ll let you draw your own conclusions.

As for the Pacquiao-Mayweather, it’s a tough call, but I see three possible scenarios.  The first is that Floyd Mayweather Jr is simply too big and too skilled, and just outboxes Pacquiao with his superior reach and defense to claim an easy points decision victory, kind of in the same mould as the Marquez fight.  Floyd has a 5 inch reach advantage (72-67) on Pacquiao, and is the naturally bigger man with phenomenal speed and an awkwardness that will frustrate any fighter.  Pacquiao has never fought someone as quick, skilled and big as Mayweather, and it could prove to be a gap too wide.

However, I cannot see Floyd knocking out Pacquiao unless Manny loses his cool and is tagged by a big counter (like when Mayweather KO’ed Hatton).  In his last few fights, Pacquiao has demonstrated a vastly improved defense and plenty of caution and discipline.  He no longer jumps in recklessly and rarely leaves himself wide open, so the chances of a counter-punch KO are slim.  Besides, Pacquiao showed in the Cotto fight that he can take a punch at welterweight.  I have since watched the Cotto fight a couple more times, and Manny really got tagged with some nasty shots.  Stiff jabs, jolting uppercuts, ripping body blows.  And he took them all.  Pacquiao had a busted ear drum to go with bad swelling from the fight.  He could have used his trademark in-and-out style all night to beat Cotto but instead chose to stand his ground and take the shots head on.  As he said, he wanted to test Cotto’s power, and he passed the test with flying colours.  There is no way Mayweather hits harder than Cotto.  With Floyd’s brittle hands, there’s just no way.

On the other hand, the second and third scenarios I see both have Manny Pacquiao emerging as the victor – either by unanimous decision or KO.  Pacquiao has comparable hand speed to Mayweather and possibly better foot speed, and definitely more power.  Floyd may be a defensive specialist, but Manny is an offensive specialist.  I can see a situation where Pacquiao utilises his seemingly endless energy to pressure Mayweather all night and keep raining rapid combos down on him.  Floyd may bob and weave and shoulder roll and block, but every blow that connects will count.  Floyd may be fantastic at toying with guys that can only throw 1 or 2 punches at a time from orthodox angles, but it remains to be seen how he can handle someone like Pacquiao – a tireless freak with speed and power in both hands that attacks in 3, 4, 5, 6 punch combinations from angles you just don’t expect and don’t see coming (just ask Miguel Cotto).

This assessment is somewhat similar to what Freddie Roach said on ESPN:  “Whatever Floyd gives us, we’ll take.  Manny will [hit] him on the arms, the shoulders, wherever he can, and Mayweather will feel it.  There’s no way Mayweather can win the fight running, and that’s what he does best.”

Zab Judah was probably the closest thing to Pacquiao that Mayweather has fought, but he was too undisciplined and has a soft jaw.  And let’s not forget, Judah hit Mayweather with quite a few shots early on in that fight (including a genuine knockdown that wasn’t counted), but didn’t have the resiliency or stamina to carry it through to the end.

Jose Luis Castillo, who lost 2 decisions to Mayweather (the first of which some thought he won – though Mayweather had a shoulder injury at the time), sparred with Pacquiao in the lead up to the Cotto fight, and said that Pacquiao is faster and hits way harder than Mayweather.  And this is the Pacquiao at 144 pounds compared to the Mayweather at lightweight (135 pounds).  Maybe he’s still bitter about his first fight with Mayweather, but if there’s any truth to what Castillo said, then Mayweather could be in for a long night.

Accordingly, in my Pacquiao-wins scenario, if Floyd runs, I see him losing a decision.  If he stands his ground, I see him getting knocked out.

So which of the 3 scenarios is most likely?  At this stage I have to go what would appear to be the most unlikely – Pacquiao by KO!  People may say that Mayweather’s style will give Pacquiao fits but the same could be said the other way around.  If Pacquiao stays patient and keeps the pressure on and is disciplined with his approach, I think he can win.  Otherwise it just means Floyd Mayweather Jr is really that good.  And after watching some of Floyd’s past fights on YouTube, I would not be surprised if he is.  The guy is truly amazing.

At the end of the day, I have a feeling that the Cotto fight will be the reason Pacquiao will win.  Floyd took an easy fight in ‘lightweight’ Marquez, and Pacquiao took the hard fight in Cotto, and I believe that will ultimately be the difference.

** For those who don’t already know, Rugged Man is an emcee who recently OWNED Mayweather on radio for 20 minutes.  Essentially, he took it right to Mayweather from the start about avoiding the big fights and said what has been on every non-Mayweather-ballhugger’s mind for years.  YouTube ‘Rugged Man’ and ‘Mayweather’ and listen to it.  It’s not only revealing but also extraordinarily hilarious.

Marquez is interested in a fight with Hatton in Manchester. This will be great for Ricky’s comeback… I believe it’s bad to retire on a loss, retire on a win & get pride – that’s what Ricky needs to do. Marquez is a great opportunity… he use to be a class-A fighter in his prime, but is now slightly washed-up, as you seen in his fight with Mayweather. I think the fight will be like Hatton’s ‘Jose Castillo’ fight that happened in mid 07. Castillo was in his prime when he fought Mayweather, Castillo was one hell of a challenge for Mayweather, that’s why they had a rematch. Hatton fought Castillo when he was washed up, fighting Marquez is quite a challenge for Hatton still. Hatton’s speed may have diminished some what, but he’s in his early 30s, Marquez ’s boxing assets have been some what diminished I bet due to his old age, his power will not be as strong as Hattons for sure. Look at this youtube video, Hatton’s power rocks Floyd:

If it was not for that unfair referee, Hatton would of stood a better chance. Zab Judah nearly beat Mayweather with his speed & highly-accurate punches, put Hatton’s power & Zab’s lightning speed & procession together, & Mayweather may just be defeated.

Reklama inspirowana filmem “300″, w której wystąpili m.in. Oscar De La Hoya, Juan Manuel Marquez oraz Ricardo Lopez.

Przecena w sklepie Pretorian – sprawdź teraz!

WOW – I cant wait for this one!

On Monday Floyd Mayweather Jr called out Manny Pacquiao in this video, stating that Manny had avoided the question “Do you want to fight Mayweather?” on several occasions. See the interview below:

But Manny has answered back to Floyd and issued this statement:

I thought the Pacquiao Vs Cotto fight at the weekend was one of the best I’ve seen this year and Manny looked to be in great form. However Mayweather’s comeback fight was a sheer masterclass in boxing and he really schooled Juan Manuel Marquez, so if this one goes ahead, I think it might just be one of the greatest fights of the decade!

Si Zoe Valdes mi-a ascultat indemnul.

Eternitatea clipei e o carte scrisa fara har, dar cu inspiratie autentica. E asa-zisa poveste a unui chinez plecat in cautarea si recuperarea tatalui sau, emigrat in Cuba. Tanarul nostru, foarte inzestrat, de la cunostinte medicale, la arte martiale, meditatie si potenta, peripeteste pe meleaguri diverse, iar actiunea e oricum, numai lineara nu.

Asa-zisa, pentru ca periplul sau capata accente de odisee, drumul nefiind decat un pretext pentru a da frau liber imaginatiei. Cu ocazia asta, am priceput si eu ce inseamna de fapt realismul magic. E acel mod de a scrie ca si cum ai fi normal, dar cu o sticluta de metal in buzunar, plina cu nebunie concentrata, din care mai tragi cate o dusca din cand in cand.

Mai pe inteles: se intalnesc doi iubiti care nu s-au mai vazut de mult. Pana acum, nimic special. Vor sa se sarute. OK, in regula. Deodata, unul dintre ei scoate o limba lunga de cativa metri, isi infasoara partenerul si strange. Apoi ii da drumul si celalalt ii spune: Aproape ca uitasem ce parfumata iti e rasuflarea. Intalnire tipica de indragostiti, nu?

Meritul involuntar al lui Zoe Valdes este ca, nefiind o scriitoare la fel de inzestrata precum Marquez, Asturias sau Carpentier, a fost nevoit sa se exprime intr-un realism magic mai apasat si, deci, mai evident.

Asta nu inseamna ca Eternitatea clipei e o carte slaba. Dimpotriva, este placuta si chiar ofera cateva momente speciale care te fac sa traiesti exact ce exprima titlul.

Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Kronika najavljene smrti

str 92, VBZ 2003.

Momak je ubijen i ubila su ga braća da se osvete zato što im je obeščastio sestru, zbog čega ju je muž posle prv bračne noći vratio roditeljima. Ovo je ceo zaplet romana.

Jedino ko stvarno inajviše želi da momak bude ubijen je majka devojke – brak je bio vrlo isplativ, mladoženja bogat i iz vrlo ugledne porodice

Mladoženja je čudan.

Prvo, Markes kaže ko je ubijen. Par stranica kasnije kaže i ko ga je ubio, a sasvim malo kasnije i zašto, dakle, praktično na samom početku, već je sve poznato. Mi kao čitaoci postavljeni smo u situaciju koja je situacija meštana sela u kojem se odigrava radnja: oni takođe, praktično od početka, znaju ko će biti ubijen, ko će ga ubiti i zašto.

Ova knjiga je za mene roman, naravno, kratki roman, a ne novela, iako ima samo 92 strane, širina prikaza događaja, broj likova, i vremenski period pokriven daje argumente za roman.

Kad su pitali Markesa kako to da je odoleo da  nikad ne napiše krimić, odgovorio je da to nije tačno i da je napisao “Hroniku najavljene smrti”. Naravno

Odatle, roman se raslojava i račva na sve strane, da bi se na kraju vratio samom ubistvu.

Kraj je antiklimkas, na taj način, jer znamo praktično sve što smo trebali da saznamo.

Ma koliko da sam se trudila nisam mogla da nađem izdanje na srpskom, jedva sam našla i ovo na hrvatskom. Sad ni poznati romani poznatih nobelovaca ne mogu da se kupe, osim antikvarno. Hoće li se štampati samo estradno đubre i lektira? Čitam da se u Velikoj Britaniji godišnje proda 270 miliona knjiga, i pitam se koliko je knjiga prodato kod nas? Ako Britanija ima oko 60 miliona stanovnika, onda svaki u proseku kupi 4,5 knjige. Sumnjam da se kod nas proda 34 miliona knjiga.

Znači, ako nije pitanje “ko je ubijen”, “ko ga je ubio”, “zašto je ubijen” ili “kako je ubijen” šta nam ostaje od pitanja oko čijeg odgovora se gradi klasični krimić, ili (da prebacimo loptu van književnosti) oko odgovora na kojem se gradi naša zainteresovanost za događaje vezane za stvarna ubistva? Na interakciju okoline na ubistvo. Ovde ubistvo nije odnos (ako tako može da se kaže) između ubijenog i ubica preko zločina (ili događaja koji su uzrok tog zločina), već je odnos između ubijenog i njegove okoline (rođaka, prijatelja, poznanika, suseda, žena, neprijatelja). Odatle, tema novele nije ubsitvo, vec odnos okoline prema

Na stranu što čak niko nije siguran da je stvarno on taj koji je imao seks sa devojkom, većina sumnja da je to bio on, ali devojka je izrekla njegovo ime, i to je dovoljno.

Naravno, moglo bi se dokazivati da zločin jeste delimično van ruku aktera, odnosno da je makar delimično društveno uslovljen – ako je zločin zbog novca, onda je uzrokovan i potrebom koju društvo razvija i neguje – jer novac kupuje sve; ili ako je zločin iz strasti, a svaki zločin strasti jeste, na kraju zločin zbog gubitka poseda, onda to opet prozilazi iz naučenog, iz porodice, filmova, opšte klime, klasnog doživljaja… Odavde ne sledi da zločinci nisu odgovorni za svoje postupke, već da bi zločini mogli biti makar malo ređi u drugačijem društvu. I sad stižemo do srži romana, a to je da je ubistvo ovde apsolutno i samo posledica društvenih odnosa, ubistvo je nametnuto običajima, i prvenstveno je nametnuto ubicama. Jasno je  da oni ne žele da ubiju momka, ai trude se da ih neko spreči u nakani, ali jedva da ih ko sprečava. Zato, niko i ne sprečava ubistvo. Niko ne misli da …. treba da bdue ubijen zato što je “obeščastio” devojku, ali nikog (osim par pristojnih građana) ni ne pokušava da spreči ubistvo.

Teško je odoleti, a ne tumačiti ovaj roman kao alegoriju. Takva vrsta romana koji su na ivici fantastike – sami po sebi događaji koji se opisuju nisu nemogući, ali jesu neverovatni. Jedno od mogućih alegorijskih tumačenja bilo bi: žrtva = žrtva, palančani = palančani, ubice = egzekutori režima, i običaj da braća osvete sestrinu sramotu ubistvom = diktatorski režim. Znam, znam, ovo je smela, da ne kažem, bezobrazna ideja. Mladoženja je sin genrala koji je je pobijao revolucionare, on i predstavlja bogataše i vlast. za vreme ubistva prolazi biskup, koincidenicja tog prolaska i putanja svih ostalih upletenih u priču postoji, ali nije slučajna. znači, tu je vlast i crkva i patrijarhalni režim.

Manny turned out to be a better fighter than I predicted due to the heavy beating he gave Cotto. Cotto certainly got a good few shots in their, but overall, Manny dominated the ring. Cotto, of course, fought better than Ricky Hatton. Hatton and Cotto would be a good match for Ricky’s comeback (if he makes one). Overall, the fight between Manny & Cotto was definitely worth watching, Manny demonstrated massive power & lightning speed. I was certainly impress by Manny’s performance, and Cotto’s courage for fighting on, but Manny is a fighter who I particularly don’t like/support.

Floyd Mayweather only came out of retirement because he saw Hatton get KO’ed by Manny (& Floyd knows hatton is quite tough, but I bet when Floyd seen the Hatton V Manny fight, I bet he was shocked). He also came out of retirement for the money, as he said, why retire when I can earn another million. I imagine Floyd will now be angry & slightly shocked at Manny due to his performance in the Cotto fight. The only way to avoid Manny’s lightning speed is to get a boxer who is an expert in terms of defence, & he’s the 1 & only Mayweather. I hope Mayweather says to himself “enough is enough”, Manny needs a taste of his own medicine.

It’s another big fight week. Which means different things to different people.

Especially we writer types.

Some count down to opening bells by waxing nostalgic on past events. Some immerse in head-to-head matchups seeking evidence of one man’s superiority. And others simply spend time gorging on hospitality food and drink buffets.

Not a bad selection in the bunch… if you ask me.

But I come here not to praise the fistic establishment, but to bury it.

And, while simultaneously pondering replies to a Facebook friend request from someone I’ve neither seen in about 20 years nor liked in about 21, I’m feeling just a tad bit crusadery.

Either that or it’s another mid-life crisis.

And though no one’s asked my opinion in so many words, I’ve nonetheless chosen this week to climb on the soapbox and enlighten with my own home remedy for boxing’s ills.

My personal sanctioning body, if you will.

For lack of a better idea, and because all the good ones are taken, we’ll keep our name simple.

Ladies and gentlemen… I present the IMHO.

Of course, with the arrival of a supreme being of sanctioning bodies all the others must immediately be dissolved. So with apologies to their office-bound hierarchies and corporate staffs, I bid adieu to the IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC and WBO.

Not to mention The Ring.

Sorry Oscar, you’ve been downsized.

Or if you prefer, voted off alphabet island.

Next, I hereby declare all existing championships vacant.

To all the men who’d been holding world title belts when the aforementioned ruling was handed down, thanks for your time. Your in-ring service is noted. Your worthy accomplishments are commended. Now please step back into line with everyone else.

Our new tagline: “Lineal, schmineal. We’re the IMHO.”

P.S. – You can keep your belts if you’d like. You know, to show the grandkids someday as evidence that you were young once. Kind of like 8-track tapes. Or pay telephones.

But now… it’s on to new business.

At the risk of alienating purists in the crowd – you know the type, folks who pine desperately for the days of eight weight classes and log-chopping training camps – we have an announcement.

The IMHO is a champion of technology. We endorse replay to determine whether cuts are caused by punches. We give scratch pads to judges flummoxed by carrying 1s on their scorecards. And we use computers to remove any trace of human bias from our ratings.

OK, full disclosure… the IBO beat us to that last one.

But now that it’s been disbanded (see Paragraph 12), we’re claiming it as our own.

Nyah, nyaaaaah.

Upon annexation, the immediate priority becomes filling title vacancies.

Referring to ratings as of Nov. 1 (www.iboboxing.com/top_100_computerized_rankings.html), the top four in each weight class will be matched up in mini single-elimination tournaments to be begun and completed by mid-2010.

Tourney winners will be awarded pristine new championship belts.

All losers will be placed back in the mix for mandatory title defenses.

Each freshly minted champion will fight at least twice per year, once against the incumbent No. 1 challenger and once more against a top 10 contender of his choosing. If a champion elects to fight three or more times in a year, other opponents can be chosen at his whim.

If you want to give an anonymous hometown kid a shot, go for it. If you want to pull the trigger on a guy 25 pounds lighter, knock yourself out. And hey, if you can win multiple titles and meet defense requirements in multiple classes… bully.

Just don’t ask for special treatment. Because you won’t get it.

Meanwhile, concurrent fights between contenders will be called just that: fights between contenders. Not interim title fights. Or title eliminators.

Or any other trumped-up code name that actually translates to “Please remit 10 percent of your anticipated purse to the address below, in exchange for a meaningless title belt.”

Diamonds may be a girl’s best friend. But they’ve got no place in boxing.

Similar terms like super, interim, unified, undisputed, emeritus or in-recess have also been barred forever. In fact, the mere mention of such imposters – or the very mouthing of the term “catch weight” at any official IMHO gathering – is grounds for permanent media suspension.

And contrary to this weekend’s jewelry-encrusted “title fight” of convenience, the IMHO’s weight-class boundaries are hard, fast and non-negotiable.

If a fighter chooses to defend his title two pounds lighter than the limit, so be it. But no title match will be sanctioned that requires any fighter to come in at anything other than the established weights.

It may irk the odd promoter or two – sorry Bob – but it ought to satisfy the hardest line of a fickle scribe horde that’s always quick to point out shortfalls in existing systems, all while quickly lapping what the alphabets serve like parched dogs at a soiled toilet.

You can’t have it both ways, people. And in the new IMHO era, you won’t. 

Finally, presuming the fighters entering each mini-tourney as top seeds emerge victorious, the inaugural list of IMHO champions would look like this:

Heavyweight – Wladimir Klitschko

Cruiserweight – Steve Cunningham

Light Heavyweight – Chad Dawson

Super Middleweight – Carl Froch

Middleweight – Kelly Pavlik

Super Welterweight – Paul Williams

Welterweight – Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Super Lightweight – Manny Pacquiao

Lightweight – Juan Manuel Marquez

Super Featherweight – Humberto Soto

Featherweight – Chris John

Super Bantamweight – Celestino Caballero

Bantamweight – Hozumi Hasegawa

Super Flyweight – Nonito Donaire

Flyweight – Omar Narvaez

Junior Flyweight – Ivan Calderon

Strawweight – Oleydong Sithsamuochai

Not to speak for the masses, but we IMHO types think that’s a roster to be proud of.

And as for other day-to-day issues, they’ll be dealt with as they arise. In fact, I say bring ’em on and let’s get started. We’ve got promises to keep. And title fights to sign before we sleep.

After all, folks… it ain’t rocket science. It’s just boxing.

And in my humble opinion at least, we couldn’t do a lot worse.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

This week’s title-fight schedule:

FRIDAY

IBO welterweight title – Stoke, United Kingdom

Lovemore N’dou (champion) vs. Matthew Hatton (No. 50 contender)      

N’dou (47-11-1, 31 KO): First title defense; Ex-IBF champion at 140 pounds

Hatton (37-4-1, 14 KO): First title fight; Four-fight win streak since May 2008 (4-0, 1 KO)

Fitzbitz says: N’dou by decision

SATURDAY 

WBO welterweight title – Las Vegas, Nev.

Miguel Cotto (champion) vs. Manny Pacquiao (No. 1 contender)

Cotto (34-1, 27 KO): Second title defense; One loss in 15 title fights (14-1, 11 KO)

Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KO): First title fight at 147 pounds; One loss in 12 title fights (9-1-2, 8 KO)

Fitzbitz says: Pacquiao in 10

WBA super welterweight title – Las Vegas, Nev.

Daniel Santos (champion) vs. Yuri Foreman (No. 1 champion)      

Santos (32-3-1, 23 KO): First title defense; Two losses in 11 title fights (9-2, 5 KO)

Foreman (27-0, 8 KO): First title fight; Second fight in Las Vegas (1-0, 0 KO) 

Fitzbitz says: Santos by decision

Bah… não faço idéia do porque desse título… e nem porque tá nessa categoria, bããããs…

Na realidade, achei tão bonito ter pensado num título poético que resolvi deixar, mesmo não tendo nada a ver com o conteúdo que será escrito a seguir…

Esses dias recebi por email uma lista com 13 itens… eles me fizeram refletir sobre algumas questões e, nos últimos dias, esses tópicos nunca fizeram tanto sentido (mesmo sendo chavões de internet… essas coisas que a gente viu no msn ou no orkut de alguém pelo menos uma vez na vida).

Atribuem a autoria a Gabriel García Marquez.

Lá vai:

1- Quero-te não por quem és, e sim por quem sou quando estou contigo.

2- Nenhuma pessoa merece tuas lágrimas, e se houver quem as mereça, ela não te fará chorar.

3- Só porque alguém não te amas como tu queres, não significa que não te ame com todo o seu ser.

4- Um verdadeiro amigo é quem te dá a mão e te toca o coração.

5- A pior forma de amar alguém é estar sentado a seu lado e saber que nunca o poderás ter.

6- Nunca deixes de sorrir, nem sequer quando estás triste, porque nunca sabes quem se pode enamorar pelo teu sorriso.

7- Pode ser somente uma pessoa para o mundo porém, para alguma pessoa tu és o seu mundo.

8- Não passes o teu tempo com alguém que não esteja disposto a passá-lo contigo.

9- Queira Deus que conheças muita gente errada antes de conheceres a pessoa adequada, para que quando por fim a conheças, possas estar agradecido.

10- Não chores porque já terminou, sorri porque aconteceu.

11- Sempre haverá gente que te desiluda, por isso o que tens de fazer é seguir confiando e só ser mais cuidadoso em quem confiares duas vezes.

12- Transforma-te numa pessoa melhor e assegura-te de saber quem és antes de conhecer alguém mais e deixar que essa pessoa te veja como eras.

13- Não te enfureças tanto, as melhores coisas sucedem quando menos as esperas.

É… talvez título e categoria façam algum sentido agora…

Chega! Tá ficando sentimental demais essa budega… maldita tpm! humpf*

beijonabunda

em tempo: quem vive de passado é museu e historiador. Fikdik.

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Abnaa al Gebelawi (Children of Gebelawi), By Ibrahim Farghali, Cairo: Al Ain, 2009

In Ibrahim Farghali’s Abnaa al Gebelawi, all of the texts of the great Egyptian novelist Naguib Mahfouz suddenly vanish from the face of the earth. This happens without explanation, reason, or ostensible cause: wherever they might be found – not only in libraries and bookshops but also on bookshelves and bedside bedside tables – novels by Mahfouz in their original Arabic are simply nowhere to be found. The authorities’ attempt to remedy the situation in the face of worldwide and (notably, if somewhat incredibly) popular uproar are juxtaposed with sightings of Mahfouz’s characters in a variety of locales, seldom having anything to do with the settings in which they actually appear in Mahfouz’s books.

With six – now seven – books to his name, Farghali (b. 1967) is among the most prolific novelists of his generation. In his devotion to the genre and his formal conservatism, he is perhaps the worthiest heir to Mahfouz (1911-2006), the Nobel prize winner most known for his mid-century tales of Cairo. Unlike Mahfouz, however, Farghali is firmly steeped in a magical realist tradition. Running through much of his prose are echoes of Jose Saramago’s nightmarish humour or shades of Italo Calvino’s fascination with the fantastical nature of fiction. He is taken by twins, telepathy and teleporting, and his firmly middle-class characters – otherwise utterly ordinary – have been known to reappear after they have died.

In Abnaa al Gebelawi – Farghali’s latest and greatest work – we face the prospect of a world without literature. The myriad voices in the book — for the young narrator cum author assumes many guises throughout these pages — express concern as to the fraught future of Arabic literature, about the erosion of the liberal and humane values that Mahfouz and his work represent, and (reflecting perhaps the essential fear of all true writers) about oblivion at large.

The events of the book are staged around a relatively uncomplex love affair involving the narrator and the eccentric daughter of a well-to-do family— occasion for Farghali to probe the psychology of class and sex in contemporary Egyptian society. Further in, however, the story breaks up and morphs into countless alternative and subordinate plot-lines, until it becomes clear (although it is never stated) that the whole of Abnaa al Gebelawi is but the barely coherent waste of a single pluralistic mind – the mind of a young writer concerned with the literary wasteland around him. The allegorical dimension remains predominant, and in this way recalls Awlad Haretnah (Children of Our Alley, 1959), the title of whose earlier English translation Farghali translates back verbatim for his own.

As it happens, Awlad Haretnah was the only book by Mahfouz to suffer censure from the religious establishment. In it the history of a popular residential quarter in Cairo stands in for the sum total of humanity’s spiritual experience. That quarter’s oldest, strongest and most benevolent resident – for many generations hidden away in his mansion – is called Gebelawi. Gebelawi has envoys or representatives, descendants or grandchildren, whose struggles to spread peace and justice make up episodes of the saga. Each is a retelling of the life of one of the prophets of Islam, starting with Adam and ending with the False Messiah. Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad all feature, but at the end a rumour spreads that Gebelawi himself has died. In Arab literary circles it is frequently claimed that if not for Awlad Haretnah, Mahfouz would not have received the Nobel Prize. But it proved too much for orthodox, let alone radical Muslims, for whom Mahfouz would become the enemy soon enough.

a letter from Mahfouz to Mohammad al Badawi

Radical Islam had claimed many lives since the 1980s when in 1994 Mahfouz barely survived being knifed to death outside his house in Cairo. The irony was that, of all the helpless octogenarians his bearded young assailants could have targeted for apostasy, he was probably the least secular. A typical Cairene of the pre-bin ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Laden era, the man had led an all but exemplary (for which read profoundly unadventurous) life. He did not seek revolution, he did not take great risks. He had no utopian or transcendental illusions. And perhaps it was thanks to this and this alone that he was able to invent and reinvent the novel, the youngest genre in the language, defining it for generations of writers down to Farghali.

Applying every novelistic model at his disposal, Mahfouz produced a phenomenal number of readable books: social chronicles, political critiques, philosophical manuals. None was too difficult or experimental to render it inaccessible to even the most common reader. None sought to undermine whatever pillar of the status quo it came in contact with. Notwithstanding the elaborately veiled, painstakingly respectful Ages-of-Man narrative in Awlad Haretnah – a Muslim treatise on the meaning of life if ever there was one – in Mahfouz’s books, the family, the creed, the government are never attacked for what they are or what they stand for, but only for their most striking deviations, omissions or excesses.

For a magic realist like Farghali, Mahfouz may not be the most obvious point of departure; the Nobel laureate is, after all, best known for devotion to the real even in his least realistic works, and one would have trouble imagining him so much as hinting at the paranormal or the fantastical. Yet in Abnaa al Gebelawi, the grand opera to Farghali’s various arias, Mahfouz is an embodiment of something not so different from the sense of sight. His books stand in for almost everything Farghali values: Literature, Thought, Freedom, Knowledge, even Love. The premise could not have been more powerful.

Skrót walki Juana Manuela Marqueza z Manny Pacquiao stworzony przez telewizję HBO. Pojedynek odbył się 15 marca 2008 roku.

Promocja dnia w sklepie Pretorian – sprawdź teraz!

Nokaut Juana Manuela Marqueza na Juanie Diazie. Walka odbyła się 28 lutego 2009 roku.

Bestsellery w sklepie Pretorian – sprawdź teraz!

Un científico, que vivía preocupado con los problemas del mundo, estaba resuelto a encontrar los medios para aminorarlos. Pasaba días en su laboratorio en busca de respuestas para sus dudas. Cierto día, su hijo de 7 años invadió su santuario decidido a ayudarlo a trabajar. El científico, nervioso por la interrupción, le pidió al niño que fuese a jugar a otro lado. Viendo que era imposible sacarlo, el padre pensó en algo que pudiese darle con el objetivo de distraer su atención. De repente se encontró con una revista, en donde había un mapa con el mundo, justo lo que precisaba.

Con unas tijeras recortó el mapa en varios pedazos y junto con un rollo de cinta se lo entregó a su hijo diciendo:

“Como te gustan los rompecabezas, te voy a dar el mundo todo roto para que lo repares sin ayuda de nadie”.

Entonces calculó que al pequeño le llevaría 10 días componer el mapa, pero no fue así. Pasadas algunas horas, escuchó la voz del niño que lo llamaba calmadamente. “Papá, papá, ya hice todo, conseguí terminarlo”.

Al principio el padre no creyó en el niño. Pensó que sería imposible que, a su edad hubiera conseguido recomponer un mapa que jamás había visto antes.

Desconfiado, el científico levantó la vista de sus anotaciones con la certeza de que vería el trabajo digno de un niño.

Para su sorpresa, el mapa estaba completo. Todos los pedazos habían sido colocados en sus debidos lugares. ¿Cómo era posible? ¿Cómo el niño había sido capaz? De esta manera, el padre preguntó con asombro a su hijo:

“Hijito, tú no sabías cómo era el mundo, ¿cómo lo lograste?” Papá, respondió el niño; “Yo no sabía como era el mundo, pero cuando sacaste el mapa de la revista para recortarlo, vi que del otro lado estaba la figura de un hombre. Así que di vuelta los recortes y comencé a recomponer al hombre, que sí sabía como era. Cuando conseguí arreglar al hombre, di vuelta la hoja y vi que había arreglado al mundo”.

Gabriel García Márquez.

A Hundred Years of Solitude is one of my all time favourites, a book so rich in both language and characters, that I’d like to read through it at every conceivable opportunity.  The article below contains a very good story on Marquez, and a curious little linkage to dictionaries in Columbia:

http://www.tnr.com/article/books-and-arts/the-shadow-the-patriarch?page=0,0