My journey towards finding my shot (basketball shot)

I want to point out a few things that I noticed today as I was shooting around with the TN kids as we all waited for choir practice is finish..

1) Andrew's shot is ugly as hell and is uber inaccurate! He knows this, but doesn’t seem to care or want to improve it.
2) Clara and Nhi’s shot form is pretty good and they make about 15% of their shots. Excellent considering they hardly ever play basketball.
3) I found my shot again!

So this post is to talk about my journey to finding my “shot.” Not like others that have perfect form, Andy, I have struggled for years with trying to find my shot. My shot would change each and every time I touch the ball and I wanted to do something about it.

The following took place between June 2009 to January 2010. (24 tick tock sound)

I stood between about 10 feet away from the rim and started with my regular shot. If you don’t know what your regular shot is, it’s the shot you usually use when you shoot a ball.

Then I played with other shots such as the Tim Duncan shot and the Kobe shot.

The Tim Duncan shot is the shot I would take two handed releasing the ball on top of my head. I liked it because I can launch shots from far with ease.

I also tried the Kobe shot where I would release the ball with my right hand and use my left hand as support. I wasn’t good at this shot from far so I didn’t stay with it that long.

I then went back to my regular shot which looks ugly but overall gave me the best control, accuracy, and power that I wanted.

The goal is to find the shot that works best for you. I used that same shot over and over and tweaked it until I felt it was as good as it could get. Shot from 10 feet until I felt comfortable then went out to 15, then 20 feet. Still using the same shot, but just changing how much power I put into it. The key for me was to work with one shot form and one distance until I got it down. Burning into my head exactly how I took the shot was vital for me.

My journey is now complete, as long as I don’t forget how I shoot which happens quite often if I don’t play for months.

- Chris please put your signature name next time :-)

I am honored to dance with you!

Good day at practice today Gentlemen. We got A LOT done even with the constant drumming from people i will not name. Lots of potential Vinneyencents, Andy, Bao, and Na. You'll all grow up to be master Lion Dancers.

Stay Frosty.

Shots Fired!

This one goes out to all the Little Boys that think they are ready to play in the Major League.

Defeat Bryan and the Frosty
That's very unlikely,
Gonna need more than a little fuzz on your sac
to put down Willy Bob and the Mac,
Movies, Dating, Food, 401k
BiA Brings the heat all day,
On our blog you pissin'?
Learn to aim cause boy you missin',
Make punks run like car alarms
WE ARE BALLERS IN ARMS!

Stay Frosty.

The POWER of Credit Cards!

Ok so I’ve been talking to a lot of my friends and many of them use debit cards (issued from their bank). These cards take money directly out of your bank account when you make a purchase. It’s usually the same card you use to go to the ATM or to make a withdrawal at your local bank. Sure these cards are convenient because you don’t have to worry about paying credit card bills every month, but they have one disadvantage which is they don’t help you build your credit history.

What the heck is a credit history? It’s your (financial) permanent record. Much like your school transcript, driving record, or criminal record, it sticks with you for a very long time. When you go out to buy a car or buy a house or even just rent a place… lenders look at your score to see how responsible you’ve been. So now back to the debit card, these cards don’t go on your “permanent record” so it can’t help you build your history. It’s like taking a Physical Education class, yes it’s a class but it doesn’t really help you GPA wise. So by now you should get the idea that credit cards help you build your history.

So when can you apply for a card? First, you need to be 18. Unless you’re like Andy and it takes you 6 years to finish high school, for most people when you enter college you should be around 18. This is why at every college there are tons of banks soliciting you to sign up for a credit card. There are tons of credit cards to choose from and the best part is many of them earn you rewards. Yes! Other than building your credit history, you get a bonus for using your card!

Usually when you first apply for a card they don’t give you a whole lot of rewards but luckily Citi Bank has good cards for college students. The one I recommend is Citi® Dividend Platinum Select® MasterCard® (or Visa Card) for College Students. When you sign up they will give you 5% rewards at supermarkets, drugstores, gas stations & utilities for 6 months; and 2% thereafter. So for the first 6 months you can earn 5% back when you buy food or pay for gas. OooOoo 5%? Some of you may not think that’s a lot but let me give you an example. Today I went to Chevron to fill up on gas. The price was at $3/gallon. So 5% of $3 is 15 cents. Doesn’t sound like a lot right? Then why are you bitching when gas goes up to $3.15? Now lets finish this math equation… $0.15 x 20 (my car has a 20 gallon tank) = that’s $3! So when you use your card that’s like getting one gallon for free! That’s equivalent to driving 25-30 miles for FREE. Now 5% doesn’t sounds so small (like Andy) anymore right?

So how much can you spend on a credit card? When you first apply your limit is usually $3,000. But it slowly grows as you continue to use your card. I’ve had my Citi card for about 5 years now and my limit is now $13,000. The higher your credit card limit, the higher your credit score! Your credit score depends on lots of other things too, like not spending too much and paying on time. But that’s for another post.

By now I hope I have persuaded you to go out there and sign up for your own credit card. Just don’t make the same mistake as me. Apply for one card ONLY. Wait a couple weeks to see if they approve you for their card. If they don’t approve, you can try one more company. But don’t go out there and apply for a million cards because guess what? This hurts your credit score as well! Now good luck, build that history, and go earn those rewards!

-401k

What the hell is a W-2? Why did my boss give this to me?

So for those of you kids that work part time you probably received a form called W-2 from your boss in past few weeks. Before you throw it away, there are a few boxes you may want to take a look at before.

Box 1: Wage, tips , other compensation is the gross (before taxes) income that you earned last year. Does it seem low? It probably will considering as a part timer you haven’t worked much. Here are a few tips to make the numbers in that box increase next year. Work more or ask for a raise!

Okay so the most important box you want to look at is Box 2: Federal income tax withheld. Depending on what you filled out on your W-4 when you first started working and how much you made, you will either have nothing in that box or something. The more you have in that box the larger the refund or the less taxes you will owe when you file. That’s right! You already paid taxes on your paycheck and now they make you pay more taxes? Double taxation! What a county..

*Information below is based off me assuming you are a dependent meaning your parents have you down on their tax return as their child. If you are under age 24 and a fulltime student, you are probably a dependent*

So back to Box 1, if it’s larger than $5,700 you are required to file a tax return because you will owe the federal government money and Uncle Sam wants it.

If it’s less than $5,700 you are not required to file a tax return. However, if you have anything in Box 2, you will want to file because you will get 100% of that money back as a refund.

For California purposes, if box 16 is larger than $3,637 you will have to file a tax return because you will owe money.

If you make less than that you are not required to file a California state tax return, but if you have a number in box 17 (state income tax), you may want to consider filing your taxes because like above, you will get 100% of that money back as a refund.

And to conclude, if your parents claim you as a dependent on their tax return, the chances are high that they are collecting money off you and not saying anything! They are getting a $1,000 refund just by having you as a child. Claim what is rightfully yours! Ask your parents to share it with you.

- CP

Haiku #4

Want to hear a joke?
Paper Airplanes is a Joke
You can read it here

- Mac

Ey! You tink I Set-si?

A girl asked a guy if he thought she was pretty and he said no. Then she asked him if he would want to be with her forever and he said no. She then asked him if she were to leave would he cry, and once again he replied with a no. She had heard enough and started walking away, tears streaming down her face.

The boy grabbed her arm and said...You're not pretty you're beautiful. I don't want to be with you forever. I NEED to be with you forever. And I wouldn't cry if you walked away...I'd die.

Never gets old.
Stay Frosty.

Asian Men & Bad Romance

Are you an Asian guy who just can’t seem to date the girl they want…or even get a date at all?! It’s okay son, this is meant for you! After much observation from my Asian homies, I will share my opinions (in a series of posts) on where they went wrong and break down tips on improving your chances with the ladies. *giggity giggity, alright!

Issue I

Problem: You have no balls…and possibly an inverted wiener.

I have seen countless times where Asian men settle or think they can't get a girl. If this is you, I urge you to si-top these habits right now! Asian guys have lost their confidence to approach the girl they want to date (who tends to be attractive and well put together). Since they perceive the girl as being out of their league, they don’t act on their feelings and admire her from afar. Sounds familiar? Well while you’re being a pansy, other men (usually from other races) are pursuing her – which gives her an idea of what her options are for dating. You obviously aren’t one of them because she doesn’t have a clue! Instead, you’re stuck dating people your parents or friends hook you up with (who are girls you weren’t interest in to begin with). Worse comes to worst, you settle on dating a girl from Vietnam who is a gold digger and says “I tock in-lit bay-bee. I lub yuu.” Like that would make you pitch a tent...

Solution: Just believe!

Inner confidence is about being brave, taking risks and feeling good about yourself. Even though you’ve been shot down in the past or feel like you’re no Fabio, you should continue believing in yourself. It's like why should a girl buy a product when the company who made it doesn’t stand behind it? Get out there and sell the girl on how amazing you are! Put your balls out there and if they happen to get stepped on, it hurts, but life goes on. Just rearm and re-evaluate the strategerie (according to the wise George Bush).

Until next time...go get 'em tiger!
-Willy Bob

Violence strikes! The Ballers are once again called to arms!

Peaceful Nights... Clear Skies... Blooming Flowers... Ha! I remember a time when these were reality and not luxuries of a dream. I remember a time when we would raise our glasses for joyous occasions and not for fallen comrades. Yes... there was a time, and that time will come again, but not without cost.

War is upon us! Those Paper Planes came down on us out of nowhere like a rain of fire. Like a plague, destroying everything we love and worked so hard for. Their crimes will not go unpunished for we will strike them down with a vengeance never before seen .

...They bring their war, we will stand, we will fight and we will leave victorious! There will be a day when the courage of men will fail, But that is NOT this day. This day we fight!

Men! Brothers! To Arms!

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Be sure to check out Paper Planes @
http://hiep-si-airplanes.blogspot.com/

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Stay Frosty.

Hypocrite.

Ebay: How I hate it when people bid so early on something I want.
Ebay: How I hate it when people wait to bid on something I'm selling.

Stay Frosty.

True Fail Story #1

In my first week of freshman year in high school, a teacher asked us to write an essay using double space. A few days later I received the paper back with some egregious deduction in points. I asked "my gott, me fail engrish? that impossible" The teacher said I didn't double space, but I told him I did: "Look mang' I press da space not one time but two time after every wordt." And then he started laughing. And I bolted out of the classroom and ran home to momma.

(disclaimer: fob talk and running home to momma not real, double-space error and deduction of points was real)

- Mac
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Andy I dare you to create a rival Hiep Si blog, it will be a glorious day when I laugh at your pathetic attempts at bloggation. Anyway here's how you can make a community blog:

go to blogspot.com, sign in, and go to dashboard
click create a blog
when you finish creating, go to settings for that blog
in the settings, go to permission
click add authors, and email them invites.