Monday, April 30, 2007

EVERYTHING IS GOLDEN


LAS VEGAS - He’s Oscar De La Hoya and everything is golden.

Wherever he goes he attracts crowds of affectionate followers. They’re anxious to get close to the handsome man with the inky black hair and the movie star face. Grown-ups nudge little children out of the way just to be near him.

The autograph hounds force slips of paper in front of his face and then he’ll sign his name hundreds of times. Over and over he’ll sign “Oscar” with a big “O” and then he’ll smile at you. If you’re lucky, he may even shoot you a wink of the eye.

Before he married the beautifully demure Millie Corretjer and became a father, women of all ages would throw themselves at his feet and mob him at public events. After 15 years in the fight racket, he’ll stroll through the casinos and hotels on the Vegas strip and the cocktail waitresses and blackjack dealers yell out they are hoping he wins, and they tell him they are betting on him, too.

He is what his nickname implies: “The Golden Boy”. So strikingly handsome that HBO boxing analyst Larry Merchant once called him “George Clooney with fists.” Fight fans love him, women swoon for him and the suits from corporate America chase after him in an attempt to get him to endorse whatever it is they are trying to hustle.

On Saturday night, the King Midas of the fight game will bring the entire city of Las Vegas to a standstill.

Even for Oscar De La Hoya’s standards, this is big. Really big.

His fight against Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is already the highest grossing fight of any fight ever staged in Las Vegas, the boxing capital of the world. The tickets sold out in a matter of hours to the tune of nearly $20 million and the people will be hanging from the rafters in the “house that Tyson built” – the MGM Grand Garden Arena. If you want a seat you can still get it from the on-line ticket scalpers, but it will cost you $22,800 for a chair twenty feet from the ring.

When asked if he has been involved in a bigger fight than this, Oscar just grins and shakes his head, “No, this by far has to be the biggest…it just feels and it seems much bigger than any other fight I've been involved with. Leading up to the events, just with all the interviews I've been doing, photo shoots in various magazines and people wanting to go to the fight, celebrities - it just feels really big. When I was involved with the Trinidad fight we didn't have this, we didn't have all this. It's really exciting, this is what it's all about,” he says.

And then he smiles the same way he did on the night he won the Olympic gold medal in 1992.

He has a quick and ready smile and after the numbers are tallied for Saturday’s fight he will have a lot more to be happy about because he alone will become the undisputed king of pay-per view. Over the years his fights have brought in over half-a-billion pay-per view dollars and he will surpass Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield by becoming number one on that list.

Oscar De La Hoya understands the business of boxing perhaps as well as any fighter that has ever lived. You are as apt to read a story about him in the Wall Street Journal as you are in The Ring magazine. He is the President of Golden Boy Enterprises, owns his own lavish $15 million office building and is involved in everything from boxing promotions to real estate development to newspaper publishing. And he has plans to one day open his own bank.

The only thing blocking the immediate door is of course his opponent – Floyd Mayweather, Jr. The 30 year-old Mayweather wears the black hat in this epic and he cast himself in the role of the villain early on in the promotion.

With a record of 37-0 (24) KO’s he is generally regarded as the number one pound-for-pound boxer on the face of the planet and he is not shy about letting anyone know it. His forked tongue lashes out and stings as often as his quick and speedy punches do. He makes no secret about his feelings for De La Hoya or his company, “Oscar De La Hoya is a fighter with no personality and all of those guys over at Golden Boy are nothing but puppets!” snarls the petulant Mayweather.

In this insensitive era of hip-hop, Mayweather counts as one of his closest friends the rapper 50-Cent who will lead him into the ring against De La Hoya singing the words to his as yet un-released new single. The singer has also reportedly bet $1 million on Mayweather to beat De La Hoya.

The diminutive Mayweather, who is called “Little” Floyd by his father, Floyd, Sr., makes no apologies for his behavior or his harsh viewpoints. “My lifestyle is flashy and flamboyant, forever,” howls Floyd. “Come May 5th it’s blood, sweat and tears for Floyd Mayweather!”

De La Hoya has been forced to listen to Mayweather’s childish rants and comedic carrying on for the past three months. In February, the two embarked on a nationwide, multi-city press tour to hype the fight and during that time Mayweather tore the lid off his garbage can of trash talk and emptied its contents in De La Hoya’s face.

He appeared genuinely upset and when asked what he thought of Mayweather’s behavior, Oscar was blunt. “What I’ve learned is that he’s a little brat.”

The two men could not be more opposite and that’s why this fight resonates with mainstream sports fans. It’s the age old battle of good versus evil.

While De La Hoya is conservative, soft-spoken and reserved, Mayweather does everything over the top. He wears a wristwatch the size of a small pie plate and it is festooned with so much bling that the numbers on the face of the watch can’t be seen. He carries around thick wads of one hundred-dollar bills that weigh his pockets down like the packs on a mule’s back. While De La Hoya trains everyday at the same time, Mayweather will strike out the door for roadwork at two o’clock in the morning if the urge strikes him.

Even though Mayweather’s antics are helping to hype the promotion of the fight and add over $25 million to De La Hoya’s already morbidly obese bank account, Oscar is unimpressed by Mayweather’s unpredictable behavior and it has left him shaking his head on more than one occasion.

When asked if he figured a boxing promotion needed a good guy and a bad guy to be a blockbuster, Oscar was convinced that it didn’t. “No, not at all,” said the polite and cordial De La Hoya. “You had one of the biggest fights to date with Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield and nobody was a villain there. I mean, both of them were respectful and were nice. It was just that people wanted to see that fight. You know, the fact that he says, ‘Oh, I cast myself as a villain.’ No he didn't, that's just the way he is.”

Even though De La Hoya the fighter seems to despise Mayweather’s mouthy insults, the businessman in him understands that this is what sells tickets. After all, De La Hoya hand-picked Mayweather as the opponent, selected May 5th otherwise known as Cinco de Mayo, a Mexican national holiday for the date of the fight and he negotiated many of the terms under which the fight will be contested. If he’s upset with Mayweather’s tone, he really has nobody to blame but himself. “He got under my skin,” says De La Hoya, “but he didn’t get into my head and that’s what’s important.”

At age 34, there won’t be another fight like this one for Oscar De La Hoya. His career as a prizefighter is in its last twilight. And, despite the gnat-like barbs of “Pretty Boy” Floyd, he seems to be enjoying this last big go-round.

He’ll make one more appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno as he always does the week before his fights. They’ll announce his name and the audience will cheer and the women will scream his name and they’ll coo over his good looks. Then he’ll fly into Las Vegas on a private jet and be shuttled through the streets of town in a stretch limousine. He’ll emerge from the car and the sparkling neon lights will reflect in his soft brown eyes. He’ll make his grand entrance into the foyer of the MGM Grand Hotel and once again the flashbulbs will be blinding and people from around the world will crowd around and strain to get close to him.

He’s Oscar De La Hoya.

And everything is golden.


May 2007

Friday, April 27, 2007

Word`s most expensive vodka

This is not a perfume, this is gem filtered vodka - Blackwood Distillers from Scotland have come up with the idea to produce world’s most expensive drink.

diva vodka

New luxury vodka is called Diva vodka. It first gets ice-filtered, then filtered through Nordic birch charcoal and then passed trhough a sand of crushed diamonds and gems (We can almost see someone crush and crumble the gems vigorously).

What is especially fascinating, is the price. In every bottle you’ll find semi-precious or precious stones, including diamonds, which will make the product price range from $ 70.00 up to $ 1,060,000.00 . Cheers!

diva vodka
diva vodka
diva vodka
diva vodka
diva vodka
diva vodka

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

FLIPPING THE SWITCH


“Pretty Boy” Floyd Mayweather, Jr. should have a lot to smile about. He’s generally regarded as the number one pound-for-pound boxer on the face of the planet. He’s the proud owner of an undefeated boxing record and he’s paid large sums of money to beat people up. He lives in a Las Vegas mansion the size of a small hotel and he routinely carries around thick wads of crisp one hundred-dollar bills that make his pockets bulge like the cheeks of a squirrel. He alone holds the keys to a fleet of luxury automobiles and owns enough bling to open his own jewelry store. With flawless mahogany skin, alert doe-like eyes and bright ivory teeth he is move-star handsome. The world would appear to be his oyster.

But Floyd is known to flip the switch on his moods. One minute he’s happy and charming, the next he is sullen and cheerless.

In less than two weeks he will come face-to-face in the ring with "The Golden Boy" otherwise known as Oscar De La Hoya in a mega-fight that only comes along in boxing once a generation. For this showdown, being plugged by promoters as "The World Awaits" he will be paid upwards of $10 million.

After this fight, at only age 30 and at the top of his game, Mayweather claims he will retire from boxing and nestle himself away to a life of peace and happiness. If all goes according to his plans he’ll be able to concentrate on various business interests and will be free to expand his music label “Philthy Rich Records” while living out his days with his family as an undefeated multi-millionaire. “I’m doing only one more fight and then I’m walking away,” Mayweather says. “I love this sport and the sport of boxing has been very good to me. I don’t need boxing anymore and I don’t need the money anymore.”

Life is good for Floyd Mayweather, Jr. but he can be a tricky man to figure out.

He often teeters between being friendly and engaging, but in an instant he can flip the switch to being nasty and ornery. His 30th birthday bash in Las Vegas this past February went on for seven hours. The party included his family, his own personal entourage of nearly forty people, his good friend and rapper 50 Cent as well as disgraced Miss USA winner Katie Rees. At the bash he was presented with a custom made cake by a celebrity chef as well as a gold championship-boxing belt. As he sipped virgin strawberry daiquiris, Floyd Mayweather, Jr, was gregarious and charming. He was the picture of peace and tranquility.

However, like the city where he lives, there seems to be a more sinister and dark underbelly to Floyd Mayweather, Jr. He can turn on reporters and other fighters in an instant, as I found out last year when I asked him how much of the money pie he would require if the fight with De La Hoya were to be made.

“I don’t come up into your job asking you what you make!” snapped a suddenly angry Mayweather. “Don’t come up into mine asking me what I make!” And then, just as quickly as he turned nasty, he was back to answering other questions in a calm and pleasant manner. Call it a Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde moment.

The young prodigy has had legal troubles and several brushes with the long arm of the law as he has grown up in the boxing spotlight. In 2002 he pleaded guilty to two charges of misdemeanor domestic violence. In 2004, a Nevada justice of the peace ordered Mayweather to undergo "impulse control" counseling and sentenced him to a one year suspended jail sentence after he was convicted of misdemeanor battery of two women in a Las Vegas nightclub.

Also in 2004, an arrest warrant was issued for Mayweather for failure to appear at a trial in his hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan where he was accused of kicking a bar bouncer in the head during a melee at The Radio Tavern. Mayweather pleaded no contest to the charge of misdemeanor assault and battery and he was eventually fined and ordered to perform community service.

He also faced a charge of felony domestic violence for allegedly striking the mother of his three children outside a Las Vegas nightclub in 2003. In the 2005 trial by jury he was acquitted of hitting, kicking and pulling his girlfriend’s hair. The accuser recanted her version of events while on the witness stand. Josie Harris testified that she lied to police because she was angry Mayweather had left her for another woman. In front of the jury, Harris described Mayweather as a “teddy bear inside”.

For the past several years there has been no troubles with the law. Mayweather has matured and many forget that he was a boxing boy wonder that won his first title at only 21 years old. He came up under the intense media spotlight in Las Vegas, the boxing capital of the world, where his every move was scrutinized and analyzed.

He has become a philanthropist as his purses have multiplied. He contributes large amounts of his vast fortune to the needy and at Thanksgiving he gives away turkeys and meals to the people in his hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan. He also contributes to numerous charities and makes sure that groups of children are provided with hats, mittens and coats during cold winter months. Children naturally flock to him and he is a devoted father.

In 2006, Mayweather inked a marketing contract with the prestigious William Morris Agency that is efforting the process to make him more attractive to the Madison Avenue set. Almost immediately after signing that deal Mayweather was more affable in public and was often smiling during interviews and his appearances in front of the cameras were much more serene. The abrasive and contentious young man had been replaced by one that was positively charming.

As for the makeover, Mayweather explained that outsiders mostly misunderstood him and he placed the blame for his persona on the boxing writers that cover him. “I mean, I'm a gentleman. I handle myself in an orderly fashion. I tried telling people a long time ago that I wasn't that person that they were making me out to be,” he says.

Whatever the case, in order to get Oscar De La Hoya into the ring Mayweather felt he had to change his image and his methods. “I had to lay back in the cut and be easy,” he said. Otherwise, he felt that if he was too vocal and angry that De La Hoya would never sign the contract to fight him.

During the initial day of the press tour to kick-off the fight promotion which was held at the baroque Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York City, the boastful and taunting Mayweather was back on full display. “Now I can get loose, like I want to get loose,” he said.

Casting himself in the role of villain he commandeered the microphone in front of the assembled media and began ranting, raving and frowning. “I respect Oscar as a man before I respect him as a fighter,” barked an agitated Mayweather. “But do I respect his fight game? Hell no!”

The “Pretty Boy” was running the table and he let out all of the frustration that had been building inside him since the fight was agreed to three months earlier. He derided Oscar’s apparent success and criticized his opposition. “I could have done the same thing to an old Hector Camacho. I could have done the same thing to an old Pernell Whitaker. I could have done the same thing to an old Julio Cesar Chavez,” claimed a defiant Mayweather. “I’ve beaten the top fighters in my own era. You put Oscar in front of me and I’ll beat him. I’m the top dog in the sport!”

Before the day was over Mayweather told Oscar, “You ain’t gonna’ do shit!” And when the two engaged in a mock stare down they began pushing and shoving against each other making the organizers of the event somewhat nervous that a fight was going to break out right there on the stage.

The one place in the world where Floyd seems to be most happy is in the gym. He is a tireless worker and he pushes his body to its very limits during training camp. Even when he doesn’t have a fight scheduled Mayweather can usually be found running the avenues outside of Las Vegas. The atmosphere of training is where he is most comfortable and it offers him the sanctuary he needs as the pressure for this fight builds. He trains whenever the mood strikes him but he does train everyday. Often times he will go to the gym or hit the streets to do roadwork in the wee hours of the morning.

It’s the cynical boxing writers that serve to make Floyd defensive. Their questions are fired at him rapidly and in such a manner that he feels he must throw up a defense against them. While he is able to effortlessly ward off the punches of his opponents he has a more difficult time with the questions. Always the questions.

During the post fight press conference for his last fight with Carlos Baldomir in November, Mayweather was overcome with emotion and in a rare display of weakness he broke down while addressing the media. He then claimed that his next fight with De La Hoya would be his last.

With tears streaming down his face, he had to be consoled by HBO executive Kery Davis. “I'm leaving on top, that's what it's about,” said Mayweather. “I'm not hurting for money, for nothing. I love my family.” In a shot at the media a morose Mayweather said, “They tore my name down, tore my family down and I still rose to the top.”

But by last week, the brash Mayweather was back and he had his game face on. After watching a late night televised interview with De La Hoya he told his uncle and trainer Roger Mayweather to “Grab my running shit!” Motivated by De La Hoya’s comments he was out the door to hit the streets for a late night run as he attempts to whittle his skills to their sharpest ever point.

Before exiting into the dark Nevada night, the feisty young Mayweather said of De La Hoya, “I’m gonna’ ice this motherf-----”.

The switch had been flipped.


April 2007

Saturday, April 21, 2007

Fast Food: Ads/"nakadisplay" vs. Reality

Each item was purchased, taken home, and photographed immediately. Nothing
was tampered with, run over by a car, or anything of the sort. It is an accurate
representation in every case. Upper photo,yan ang nasa menu, yung nasa baba is what u get..

KFC Famous Bowl

Subway six-inch turkey breast and ham sub

Wendy's Southwest Taco Salad

Burger King sausage, egg, and cheese croissant

McDonald's Big Mac

Taco Bell Nachos Bell Grande

McDonald's Filet O Fish Sandwich

Burger King Whopper

McDonald's Sausage McMuffin


Tuesday, April 17, 2007

THAT'S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR


They’ve known each other since they were small boys fighting their way up and their way out. They were stars of the Los Angeles amateur scene nearly 25 years ago and those who saw them when they were teenage boys knew someday that something big was in the cards for the pair of them. But nobody could have predicted the hand they were dealt would contain a fortune of notoriety, stardom and riches.

They fought each other as amateurs and twice again as pros and although they were fierce rivals they have always had a mutual respect for one another. Eventually they would team up and become business partners. Now, as Oscar De La Hoya prepares for one of the biggest fights of his career against Floyd Mayweather, Jr. – Shane Mosley is there to lend his friend a helping hand. They are otherwise known as “The Golden Boy” and “Sugar” and together they have forged a friendship that contradicts the violence of their chosen profession.

In a move that surprised many veteran watchers of the fight game, Shane Mosley volunteered to serve as a sparring partner in order to help his friend prepare for one of his most significant challenges. He recently flew to De La Hoya’s training camp in Puerto Rico, unloaded all of his boxing gear and made his way straight to the gym.

Mosley is as nice a person as you will find in the trenches of what the great Hugh McIlvanney called “The Hardest Game”. For him, the thought of helping a friend in need was something he took no time to think about. The boyish Mosley is eager to do what he can to ensure a De La Hoya victory. “Well, I mean, we’ve always been friends”, says the affable Mosley. “I’ve been sparring with Oscar for a long time. So, I know Oscar very well…since we were kids. I sparred with him before he went to the Olympics (in 1992). I missed the Olympics and I had to help him out for that, you know, so I’ve always worked with him. We’ve always been friends and we’ve traveled around the world together as amateurs. We grew up together.”

Exactly one year ago, just after De La Hoya had separated Nicaragua’s Ricardo Mayorga from his unpredictable senses after six rounds of fury, the fight between Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. was conceived. At the post fight press conference, it was “Pretty Boy” Floyd that was making the case to anybody that would listen that it was he who should get the next shot at De La Hoya because, as he said, “If it makes dollars it makes sense.”

The fight, which will take place at The MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas in only 2 ½ weeks is going to make a lot of dollars. Many have begun calling it the biggest fight in boxing since Lennox Lewis fought Mike Tyson back in 2002. If ticket sales, which sold out in one day, resulting in the largest live gate in Nevada history, is any indication of the widespread interest the fight is generating, it should be a pay-per view blockbuster.

Mark Taffett, the guru of HBO’s pay-per view arm thinks this fight could break records. “We know we have a special event on our hands. This is a bone fide mega-fight. It’s the SuperBowl of boxing and a Hollywood movie premiere all in one. We believe that this fight is special because it’s the biggest and the best participants in the sport going at it. The fight will take its place among the biggest events in pay-per view history.”

For Shane Mosley, a champion in three weight divisions, his involvement in De La Hoya’s training camp is as a non-paid volunteer. Though he will make money off the promotion because of his partnership in Golden Boy Promotions, his actual work as De La Hoya’s sparring partner is totally voluntary.

It’s similar to the storyline in Rocky III when Apollo Creed helped Rocky Balboa prepare for his big heavyweight championship rematch against Clubber Lang. It’s a sure case of life imitating art and you can think of Mosley as Creed, De La Hoya as Balboa and Mayweather, Jr. in the role of the crude and vitriolic Lang.

As a sparring partner, Mosley is the perfect foil and he tells the story of how this unlikely scenario came to be. “It originated a while back, way before they even signed the fight”, explains Shane. “They kind of thought, you know, ‘What do you think about sparring with Oscar and kind of helping him?’ Because I’m basically similar to Mayweather with the speed, I told them, ‘No problem.’ Then, when it came up again after they signed the fight, I was like ‘Just send me out there and I’m ready to go, you know, no problem.’ I love to be in the ring, I love to workout, I love to train and I love to help out a fellow friend.”

Mayweather, Jr., who fancies himself as the new age fighter in this villainous era of hip-hop, predictably sneered at the idea of Mosley serving as a sparring partner for his boyhood friend. Floyd has never been one to mince words and he’s also a world champion of trash-talking. Nobody escapes Mayweather’s forked tongue and he likes to get his licks in verbally whenever the opportunity presents itself. “If Shane Mosley is a sparring partner, then that’s what he is”, barked Floyd. “That’s all Shane Mosley’s ever been, was a sparring partner. I can’t really say nothing bad about Shane because he’s not his own boss. If I’m going to say anything or talk about Shane, I’m gonna talk to his wife or I’m gonna talk to Oscar because they’re his bosses. So all I can say is Shane ain’t nothin’ but a sparring partner.”

Mosley, ever the diplomatic gentleman would not be drawn into Mayweather’s crass war of words. When asked what he thought of Floyd’s comments, Mosley took the high road. “I really don’t care about what Mayweather said. I’ve always worked with Oscar. I’ve sparred with him a lot of times. I spar with a lot of world champions to get them ready for their fights. So, those comments really don’t bother me. I’m having a good time in Puerto Rico. I came out here to help Oscar to sharpen up his tools so he can be ready to fight with Floyd.”

De La Hoya should surely benefit from working with Mosley. The conundrum in preparing for a fighter of Mayweather’s unique talent is finding someone that can match his eclectic blend of reflexes, speed and quickness. Mosley, among his many talents, is a skilled mimic when it comes to imitating fighting styles and he possesses the same savvy that Mayweather does.

“I’m just as fast as Mayweather and that’s going to help Oscar”, says Mosley. “That’s going to help him be able to think when he gets in there with Mayweather who is not as strong as I am, but I’m not out here throwing hard shots. I’m out here doing nothing but speed, a lot of speed, a lot of movement, a lot of what Mayweather will do. Anything and everything that Mayweather does, I’m trying to give it to him where he can have it. Left hooks, fast jabs and right hands. I’m giving him the works where he’ll be prepared when he gets in the ring.”

The book on how to beat the 30 year-old Mayweather has not yet been written. At 37-0 (24) knockouts, he has never been off his feet and he has barely been tested in his 11 year pro career. Along the way he has won titles at 130, 135, 140 and 147 pounds and he’ll be going for a title in a fifth weight division when he meets De La Hoya at 154 pounds. Mayweather is a physical marvel and disciplined taskmaster who is never out of shape and is continuously training to hone is body to a fine point.

Mosley has been watching his friend training under the auspices of trainer Freddie Roach, and so far he is impressed with De La Hoya’s progress. “Oscar has been looking very sharp and I think Freddie is working on making sure that he has more confidence in his right hand. His right hand is very hard. I felt it the other day. I think Oscar wants to make it a physical fight and he wants to stay close and cut off the ring and stuff like that but fight a physical, smart fight – not a fight where he’s just walking into punches. It’s the type of fight where he’s giving him angles as he’s coming in and cutting off the ring and giving him that sense of presence that he’s bigger and stronger and he’s going to knock him out.”

For the 33 year-old De La Hoya, now in the certain twilight of a brilliant career, it’s one of the first times that he’ll go into a fight as an underdog. The betting odds against him on May 5th are 2 ½ to 1 and he’ll have to draw on all of his ring experience to overcome Mayweather’s spastic style. That’s part of the reason De La Hoya asked his friend to come to his training camp and help him. “You can’t get any better sparring for him and for myself”, says De La Hoya as he smiles. “So, it’s like killing two birds with one stone. You know, we’re working together and obviously he’s a great champion. He’s gonna’ get great work out of it too, just like myself. It’s perfect that he can come down here and do me the favor.”

Only one question remains: “Who will win on May 5th?”

Well, Shane Mosley thinks he has the answer to that question and of course it’s no surprise that he’s in his friend’s corner. He and De La Hoya have known each other for nearly 25 years and he knows his friend well. “When Oscar gets to Vegas he’s going to do an absolutely great job”, says Shane. “Without giving too much away, I think that Oscar is probably too big and most likely is going to catch Floyd later on in the fight.”

Helping a friend train, becoming a loyal business partner and offering moral support. That’s the special relationship that Shane Mosley and Oscar De La Hoya have developed over their lifetimes in this game they call boxing – and that’s what friends are for.

April 2007

Monday, April 16, 2007

Coolest car ever!

10.ALFA ROMEO 8C COMPETIZIONE

9.A.D. TRAMONTANA


8.ONE

7.BERTONE-CONCEPT CAR



6.FIORAVONTI-CONCEPT CAR


5.CHEVROLET CAMARO
4.MAZDA HAKAZE

3.X-BOW

2.JAGUAR C-XF


1.TOYOTA HYBRID CONCEPT CAR