The lanky phoenix rises

You may breathe again. Check out my new and more ergonomic blog.

See you there,

C

one more thing

If you need an Asian correspondent in your life who is actually posting on a regular basis, check out Marisa Beltramini’s blog from Japan.

http://theoriginofthebear.tumblr.com/

that shit’s hot

Where have you all been?

Holy smokes – I think an Angkorian dynasty could have come and gone since I last wrote.

I have been working on a new magazine that the Phnom penh Post is publishing called Lift. It is available online at phnompenhpost.com.

It’s a weekly mag written by and for young Cambodians. It’s a super exciting project and I’m thrilled to be part of it, but I haven’t had much time for CCR.

Hope to get back into blogging when things settle down, but don’t hold your breathe. Not that you needed my advice on that one.

hope all is well wherever you are.

-c

Behind the stories

I try to stay invisible in the stories I write for the PP Post, following the $50,000 advice of my professors at J-school, but of course I am there, and standing out like a sore thumb as I always do in this land of short people.

Here are some photos, taken by the fine photographers at the Post, that didn’t make it to print. A little something to help satiate my craving for self-indulgence – this is a blog after all.

Photo taken by my translator/sidekick Sina

This last weekend was the water festival. I wrote a story about a day with one of the dragon boat racing teams. Upon arriving on Tuesday morning, I was invited to join the team on their boat during the race. An extra 200 lbs might not seem prudent during a race where speed is the priority, but it turns out the boys from the provinces just didn’t give a damn. The morning was filled with cheap wine, group jam sessions on traditional Cambodian instruments and of course rice for lunch.

Around 1 oclock we jumped in the boat. I got to paddle for about 30 minutes to the starting line, and then moved to the middle of the boat and let the pros take over when it was game time. These races have been going on in some form for the last millennium. One of the best experiences of my life.

Photo taken by Tracey Shelton

This story is yet to be published. It is about how people get all of their merchandise blessed by monks. Blessings to make moto-bikes safer, make-up more beautiful, cell-phones more conducive to productive conversations etc. etc. While at the pagoda I decided to get a quick blessing to keep my mind in working order. Life seems to be going pretty well ever since.

The shower lasted for 15 minutes. Its tough to remain spiritually minded for that long. I started thinking about how I could be a better man and make the world a better place but eventually started to think about my posture, plans for the evening and lust for ladies, or whatever the hell runs through my mind on a daily basis.

Photo taken by Louise White

Steaming marijuana soup
Sometimes there are more pragmatic reasons for staying out of a story. The ganja is not used as a drug but as an herb, although there are stories that indicate otherwise. I had a great time with Sina, his girlfriend and the Khmer family who welcomed us for dinner and some stories. Did not get high, but left happy nonetheless.

And now…

YOUR PHNOM PENH ALL-STARS!

At point guard - baldy - A classic shoot-first floor leader

At shooting guard - Wren aka Muan (chicken) - positivity defined

At small forward - Panha aka Both - like robot for his machine like style of play, or something like that.

At power forward- Bpoo (uncle) - The Robert Parish of Phnom Penh

And at center - Phal Sophors - still a work in progress, but the most promising big man in the Kingdom

PG- Baldy – Normally I would be ashamed that I don’t know the name of court general of my team, but I swear that names are of little import in this country. You’re either younger, older, or way older and that is how you are referenced.

Bong Baldy (translated as uncle with small amount of hair), is the back-up point guard for the national team, but I knew him first as the ballinest ball handler out on the streets. Unlike most players, he exclusively wears jerseys, bball shorts and shoes, giving him more instant cred than his bare-footed counterparts, but he can also shoot, pass and dribble pretty well.

He shoots a lot, which is a pain in the ass for two reasons; 1- When there is a breeze blowing over the court, which is fairly often, it is almost impossible to make a shot outside of 5 feet, and 2- I would prefer to be taking those shots.

But for his confidence and awareness on the floor – he gets the starting spot. (I actually prefer the game of the starting point guard on the national team, a 20 year old kinda pudgy fella, but he never plays outside so he’s ineligible for baller status).

SG- Wren

Everyone calls Wren “chicken” because he’s skinny. Haha – assholes. He’s also been playing almost every day since I got to Cambodia and gotten a whole lot better along the way (although my authority on such matters has diminished since I stopped playing on a regular basis for the past few months – in fact my attendance at the court has fallen so far that I almost lost the legitimacy to write this post – but a promise made is a promise kept).

Wren has always been fast, but he used to be fast to no end. Two super fast dribbles past his man, around the oaf near the hoop and then the ball would go flying off the backboard and into that same oaf’s hands. Now he makes at least 20% of those shots, more if there’s no breeze. He has even added a floating jump-shot to his repetoire, which is possibly more difficult to pull off than applying deodorant without any hands.

Wren’s best asset is his attitude. There has never been a time when I pulled up to the court on my moto and he did not shoot an ecstatic smile in my direction. He has based his style around And1 mix-tape tour video’s that he watches on his super fly cell phone – such as this one featuring hot sauce. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGkJjVqt5sU&feature=related.

For this reason Wren’s game is kind of like a villa without a foundation, it looks nice, even fancy at times, but if he were to go against a decent player he would crumble. He does have really quick hands and gets heaps of steals – but its all relative.

SF- Both

Both is a well-built dude with good speed and strength who has three offensive moves as far as I can tell, all originating from the baseline. He has a decent baseline jumper. Another move where he drives along the baseline for a reverse lay-up and the last one is a drive along the baseline followed by a no look over the shoulder pass.

If your not familiar with basketball, no-look over-the-shoulder passes are similar to handing the ball to your opponent and then giving them a head start on their way to making a lay-up. Why does Both insist on this tactic? I cannot say, but I would suggest he has been spending too much time looking at the screen on Wren’s cell piece.

This hasn’t really been a pitch for why he is an all-star. Both gets some super strong rebounds and makes some aggressive moves to the basket. He is a more worthy foe than most, just plagued by poor decision making. Also has very high potential for defensive greatness but, similar to myself, often chooses to take the opportunity to relax. Sometimes brothas need to chill.

PF- Bpoo

Bright green kneepads take the eyes
Early stages of a comb-over can only be seen from the intimacy of the paint
Whistle in pocket
Thats right a whistle… why?
Because its Phnom Penh… and?
Every pick-up game has a ref … doesn’t that kinda suck?
Yep
But Uncle Green Knees knows the game and he balls
Better than most
Selectively shooting jumpers and
waiting for passing lanes to open with the patience of Siddhartha
A defensive director
Knee pads don’t do much for mobility
I always think that if he lived in America
He would be a sporting goods salesman
I have no idea why

C- Phal Sophors

The starting center for the national team and the narrative center of my article about the team. http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009100828796/Sport/cambodian-hoop-dreams.html
If anyone ever says I’m adverse to self promotion please inform them otherwise.

Phal Sophors is the only Cambodian player who has ever been a challenging opponent. He is stronger and faster than me and he outhustles me on the regular. I have only played against him a couple of times. He couldn’t defend me inside and outside, but not many people can to be honest. His footwork is really impressive considering how long he’s been playing – two years – he’s got a lot of skills to refine – shooting dribbling etc. but he plays for hours every day. I look forward to checking out his ballin in the future.

Thats the squad. See them in action any day between 4:30 and sundown on the Olympic Stadium outdoor courts. Apologies for the less than ideal lighting in most of the pictures, but this ain’t the Phnom Penh Post.

-c

They’re not cheeky but…

Heres a few more gems from the Phnom Penh Post. They’re both rather dry, my apologies for those of who who don’t give a damn about current events in Cambodia.

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009102829236/Education-and-Career/regulating-the-business-of-teaching-for-tomorrow.html

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/Special-Supplements/the-wonderland-in-waiting.html

Believe it or not, being a bore is a whole lot more work than writing nonsense blogs.

Still looking to find that balance between PP Post and CRC blog. Also still developing bball blog. Its like development in Phnom Penh, you keep hearing about it but you doubt it will ever happen. It will. It will.

-c

I haven’t stopped writing

I just moved to a new platform. For the last few weeks I have been trying to get started as a freelance writer for the Phnom Penh Post. It has been great so far. I have been doing a bunch of weird stuff and chasing down some fascinating people. Here is a link to one article about education. It isn’t available anymore on the post site thus the roundabout route.

http://ankorcivilization.blogspot.com/2009/10/bringing-teachers-back-home.html

and another one about bball

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009100828796/Sport/cambodian-hoop-dreams.html

I will write regularly on the blog again but I’ve gotta find a balance that is yet to be attained.

I have promised a Phnom Penh starting 5 post and I will follow through. Soon…

please forgive me. And start using google reader if you haven’t already. A great way to consolidate websites of interest.

-colin