This moment in life. A Prayer for Antonio Santos.

There are moments that tend to put perspective on life and I don't know about you, but I seem to be bombarded by them more and more and it just feels like this may be a year full of them.  I haven't really felt the need in a while to share some personal stuff, however, today I was part of something pretty special yet at the same time something that is extremely tough to cope with.  Carissa's father has been very ill as of late and he's gone from being diagnosed with pneumonia in both his lungs to what now seems to be cancer in advanced stages.  A biopsy this week will determine for sure what a handful of doctors are now finally seeing and we will know just how long he may have left with us.  Though his wife and Carissa's sister only found this out a few days ago, Carissa just found out today and we shifted our evening plans to be with him tonight.

The last few of weeks doctors were unsure about the diagnosis of pneumonia as the main issue as Antonio, Carissa's father, continued to deny major symptoms and stubbornly avoid sharing some details such as the difficult evenings of little sleep and coughing up of blood.  Though his wife, Imelda, would tell his doctor that there was something seriously wrong, Tony would shrug it off and say he's fine.  Whether it was because he was just being a stubborn, filipino male or whether it was fear of seeing his family around him suffer with him, for some reason he just didn't want to fully admit that something was wrong to the doctors and as time went by, things became worse.

A few years ago, he suffered from a stroke and was never the same.  He had to stop working, he quit smoking, and learned to just take it easy and enjoy the simple pleasures in life.  One of these simple pleasures was singing in the church choir which he began to do in his spare time.  Along with a group of fellow filipinos, he would enjoy  singing and look forward to every opportunity to be with friends and sing.  It was shared with me tonight that when he stopped singing it was because of a small cough attack that, in his words, felt like 'his heart had exploded'.  Looking back at this now today, we believe that this may have been when the cancer began to tear through his lungs.

He would stop singing yet continue to not admit to any major health issues even to the doctors.  Since his stroke,  some of his communication capabilities suffered and there were times where maybe his comprehension of the full picture wasn't there.  Yet at the same time, there was a knowing that he was coming to a crossroads in his life and he would quietly ask for special gatherings with friends and family as if he knew more than what he was willing to admit to even those closest around him.  He would finally ask to be taken in to be checked out which had to have been a last resort and even by that time, I can imagine that he was well past the early stages of the cancer.

When the pneumonia was diagnosed, plans for an early Feb birthday party for him were trimmed down considerably and though he was already losing plenty of weight, the thought of cancer wasn't there among family members and he had enough energy for a small gathering and even made his way down to greet his guests with a strong smile and a willing spirit.  Though we continued to pray for healing, symptoms continued to get worse as nights had him in coughing fits unable to breathe and large amounts of blood coming from his mouth.  As his daughter and wife were finally seeing things get worse and sharing these major symptoms with the doctors, Tony had to admit that he had in fact been suffering for a little bit of time now.  And if anyone has experienced a family member suffering from lung cancer, they'll be the first to tell you that it's not something you would wish for your worst enemy.

Since the doctors have diagnosed lung cancer and advised for final preparations, family and friends have been steadily coming to see him.  Over 40 masses have prayed for him and the well-wishes have given him the strength to eat more than a few tablespoons of food and even come down tonight to greet his guests once again which included the choir that he had to stop playing with a few months back.  When the guests first arrived, he remained in his room as everyone had a bite to eat and catch up with our family.  Some even shared their own heart-wrenching stories of family members who have suffered from cancer.  Hearing some of the similarities, it is tough to see that it can be anything but cancer now.  Though it was tough to hear, there was some perspective gained in that if he is indeed in his late stages that he may not have to suffer much longer.

He would make his way down a few steps with a smile, though he would cover it with a mask so not to accidentally spit out blood.  His friends greeted him with smiles and hugs and were careful not to get too close for his immune system is fairly low.  They took group pictures as he sat halfway down the steps only because it took so much energy to go down and then go back up.  After more greetings, his friends continued their dinner and I saw an opening to sit on the step below and share a word.

I asked if there was pain.  He said he felt good now.  I thought, "oh how stubborn", but didn't feel the need to share that.  And then as if on cue, he said, "It does hurt, when the blood comes out." I nodded and began to send him Reiki energy by putting a hand on his knee and just smiling.  I don't know if he was aware, however, I don't think he minded that I was there.  I said that I imagined that it was a lot of ups and downs when it came to how he was doing.  He nodded and said, "God is looking out for me though.  He will take good care of me," I almost started to cry when he said that.

Earlier, I had heard that he said to his wife that he was ready and that he wouldn't be able to deal with the pain much longer.  It was why he wanted to have the gatherings and to be with family and friends.  He would find moments like this to find the strength to share smiles and greetings.  Even when you are so close, it's sometimes so hard to admit that someone seen as so strong in their lives are now slowly being broken down.  I know that this is very difficult for his wife who also deals with pains of her own yet, however, is also finding the strength to believe that he can still somehow pull this out.  It was only when she witnessed his recent painful attacks during the night that she began to believe that this is something more than just a mere cough or cold that he'll get over.  To continue to feel that he will get better and that this will pass was what was the norm, however, this week has been one that acceptance of what this really is has finally began to set in.  And no matter how you slice it, this will not be easy at all.

He smiled as I continued to send him energy for at the very least I hoped that he could continue to be pain free if only for a while as his friends were present.  He would find the strength to come all the way down the steps and sit on the couch as his friends set up to sing for him, a nice surprise for me that I had hoped would happen.  They would sing some filipino love songs for him which were all absolutely beautiful and as I looked upon him as they sang to him and his family, I saw he was pleased and he smiled.  For someone literally spitting out gallons of blood only days ago, for him to find the strength to be there at this moment was incredibly heart-felt, in itself was a miracle, and showed immense courage to enjoy and share life as he could.  The love that was in the room during them singing was just what the doctor ordered and even I felt how unconditional it all was among each and everyone there tonight.  We left him this evening with a much better understanding of his situation and I'm sure we'll be prepared for whatever the news returns following the biopsy this week.

In the meantime, things become day to day and I pray for healing for Antonio Santos and to keep any and all his pain to a minimum.  I know the large number of dedicated masses has helped to provide him with the strength to do the simple things and I ask for continued prayers to anyone who reads this.  And if these are, in fact, his final days with us may they be ones filled with unconditional love such as that I witnessed tonight for that alone has the power to eliminate any and all suffering in everyone everywhere.

Want A Successful Community? Don’t Be A Social Media Manager

by RACHEL HAPPE on FEBRUARY 16, 2011

I’ve held the position that social media management and community management are not the same thing for a while. This morning, a blog post by Maggie McGary (and the subsequent comments) about the value of Klout for community managers made me pause again. There has been a lot of attention on defining and finding influencers lately and to me, everyone is an influencer in the right context. Looking at influence independent of context is a fool’s errand but it struck me that marketers may be after channels instead of influencers per se. They want the most bang for their buck to drive awareness and that makes sense.

Aggregation of content. Ratings. Word of Mouth. Awareness. The more you get individuals with a lot of attention to share your content, the more awareness it receives. That’s great social media marketing.

Once you have people’s attention though, how do you get them to actually change behavior? Pushing more content from well known people is not likely to help except to the extent that it keeps them aware. As a pretty basic example,  I’m not going to trade in my current TV just because well known people that I respect share a lot of information about new 3D TV. What will get me to switch? If half of my friends starting telling me stories about how much clearer, cooler and energy efficient (whatever the case may be) the new product is, over time I am likely to consider switching. That behavior change takes deep peer relationships, context, and time – factors that are not abundantly present in fast-paced social networks.  However, behavior change DOES happen in communities of peers – whether online or offline – through a flow of influence. The more complex the desired outcome, the more defined the community needs to be.

The same things that work brilliantly to grab people’s attention in large social networks can kill communities.  Why? Focusing on just the most viewed content and most active members leaves little room for the contributions of others and little reason for them to stick their neck out to participate or create content. I recently re-read advice given to our CR members from Burr Settles about building a community for FAWM and how instead of aggregating content and highlighting the most popular things (which were not necessarily the best), he works hard to highlight content that has had no feedback. Why? Because highlighting the least reviewed content encourages content creation and participation from every member. Highlighting the most popular only reinforces for the majority of members that their voices don’t matter because they don’t have popular attention. It is why using the 90-9-1 rule of engagement can subconsciously cause community managers to ignore 90% of their members – assuming that they just won’t be converted. Communities are about maximizing engagement and relationships to encourage learning and with it, behavior change.

Good community managers intuitively do some of the following to encourage broad participation:

• Break up cliques or ask people to take those groups private/semi-private
• Proactively seek out and promote involvement, particularly from people that have not yet participated
• Encourage lurkers and quiet community members to get involved by asking their opinion or giving them specific roles and tasks
• Encourage less active members by asking other members to reach out to them
• Welcome new members and invite them to participate in a ‘baby pool’ before getting involved in the general community
• Generally staying behind the scenes and letting members do the majority of the talking

For social media managers it is much more important to be front and center, build a core group of followers that are broadly ‘influential’ in their own right and contribute a lot of content.

Both of these roles are important and serve different purposes in the new flipped funnelof the customer lifecycle. But confusing the roles can make it quite difficult to build a robust community that has long term impact on member loyalty.

What’s your experience been? Have you mixed up the two approaches and had success? The comments are where the action is… let me know.

Original Article - http://community-roundtable.com/2011/02/want-a-successful-community/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+TheCommunityRoundtable+(The+Community+Roundtable)

Eliza Dushku Featured in Fight Night Champion

Fight Night Champion is breaking down barriers with a new story game mode dubbed Champion Mode in the upcoming release of the game come March 1st.  There's been a lot of excitement around the new challenge for boxing fans and what's even better is that we brought aboard some great talent behind the creation of the story along with the stars that delivered fantastic performances in the game.

Video Games | GTTV | GTTV Episode 401

Xbox 360 | PlayStation 3 | Nintendo Wii | PC Games

Written by Oscar-nominated writer Will Rokos (Monster's Ball), the story puts you in the shoes of our hero Andre Bishop played by LaMonica Garrett (Transformers: Dark of the Moon), as he climbs his way through the boxing ranks and encounters challenges inside and outside of the ring.

Also featured in the Champion Mode story is the daughter of Promoter DL McQueen, Meagan McQueen, played by Eliza Dushku (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Dollhouse) who's appearing in her fifth video game.

Check out the video above to catch her interview with the folks at GTTV and listen to the audio podcast here with EA SPORTS Community Manager Alain Quinto who spent a few minutes chatting with the action star!

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I still have a soul

Who's next after Pacman retires?

Tonight Manny Pacquiao fights Tony Margarito for the vacant WBC Super Welterweight Championship in Dallas, TX where he last beat Joshua Clottey a few months back. As a Pacman supporter, I'm firmly behind my fellow countryman in his quest for an 8^th division title and should be the better of the two combatants in Texas Stadium. Just like Jeff mentioned in his blog the other day, we Filipinos are gambling folk and there's nothing I like better than a sure thing. There's no doubt in my mind that this one's a sure thing.

Manny's Last Fight?

Pacquiao will be fighting over 147 for the first time while Margarito will step in the ring for only his second bout in the weight class, the first being in a fight I'm sure he'd rather not ever have mentioned again. Manny looks to add to his legacy while Tony looks to redeem his.



It'll be speed and accuracy versus endurance and power as Margarito's chin will resist a bit of the punishment bound to fly at him in the way of right jabs, left crosses, and right hooks. Margarito will stalk Pacquiao around the ring as his longer punch will continually be avoided and followed by counters. There will be times where he will catch the smaller fighter on the ropes or in the corner and get in a few heavy shots, but for the most part his aggressive style will have him walking into punches from directions he will never have known possible. I'm predicting Pacman gets the TKO in the seventh after putting Tony down for the third time in the round.

Manny and his people know this is a good fight for him and though many will call for the immediate signing of Manny and Mayweather once again, it's very unlikely that'll happen, IMO. A lot has been said about Manny's side projects between fights and even during training for fights. There's nothing he won't do for his people however with a legacy stamped with 50+ wins and eight titles in eight weight classes, it will be time for him to hang up the gloves and devote his time to other endeavors. He has said himself that he has already accomplished everything he has ever wanted to from within the ring. His life in boxing has been a storied one and though it won't continue in arenas fighting for titles, his legacy will grow as he blazes a new trail to become the Filipino president one day.

His departure from boxing will leave behind a void for a new Champion to take the helm.

I love to fly...still

It’s Sunday night, I’m on the last of six planes I’ve been on this week, and even though I love to fly it’ll be nice to be home. Normally I prefer the aisle seat so I can get up without having to interrupt anyone, it’s that polite Canadian manner that I’ve grown up with. On each of the five planes before this, I had an aisle seat but on this last one, I sit in 22A on United Airlines 97 from Chicago to Vancouver, and as the plane flies through the evening skies a quarter moon accompanies the ride above the sparkling lights of the cities below. It’s a perfect setting for me to reflect on this past week.

You see, NHL 11 and NHL SLAPSHOT launched this week and all spring and summer as the Community Manager on these titles, I’ve been excitedly planning and looking forward to the events that I’m now returning home from. My travel started on Tuesday when I rolled out of bed at 4:30am and kissed my wife Carissa good-bye and made my way to the airport for a 6:00am flight to NYC via Chicago. It would be in New York that we would officially kick off the launch of NHL 11 with this year’s cover athlete Jonathan Toews along with last year’s cover athlete Patrick Kane at the NHL Store in Manhattan.

This would be followed by a couple more flights to get to Dallas for the Stars Ice-Breaker event where plans were made for demoing the game. These plans were locked in and all we need to do was get on the planes, get into these towns and execute.

The launch in NYC would also serve as the venue where I also hosted 12 of the top gamers who played on the two NHL 10 EASHL Championship teams a few months prior. For winning the their respective console’s online tournament, these players who had never met before in person received the chance to celebrate their victory in the Big Apple and take part in the Launch Event festivities.

During that flight to Chicago, I couldn’t help but look back at last year’s Stanley Cup playoffs and how I was going to have a chance to meet these same two players who defeated my beloved Canucks two years in a row. At first it kind of irked me when it was decided that Toews would be the cover on NHL 11 not only given that, but also because of the fact that we had another Chicago guy on the cover two years in a row as well. Argh. I eventually came to appreciate and understand the reasoning behind the decision: Canadian Gold Medalist, a great personality (Mr. Serious is just a front ;) and the youngest captain in the league who also just happens to be the most recent one to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup to make that first pass to his team. Even though I’ve learned to accept it, doesn’t mean I totally have to like it ;)

I also wondered how these 12 gamers would get along with one another in person and how the event was going to fit with them hanging out and taking part in the festivities and get autographs for their copies of NHL 11. We planned for media to have their time with the players along with a trick-shot competition and an autograph session for people who also picked up the game from the store on Wednesday, which just happened to be my 36th birthday. No, I didn’t plan that, but I imagined that it was going to be something being in NYC celebrating what one friend on facebook called, “my celebration of escaping the womb”. Couldn’t have said it better myself.  A lot of different variables, though we planned to be ready for anything.  Well, almost everything.

Flying into Chicago though was something else that Tuesday morning. About a half hour out, we hit some serious turbulence that at first I thought we’d clear eventually, but as the pilot came over the intercom and asked everyone to take their seats and fasten their seat belts, it seemed we were in for a rough landing in the Windy City.

The plane began to rock back and forth as we made our descent and I couldn’t help think, if only for a moment, that what would happen if the plane tipped coming in and landed on one wheel snapping it off and skidding plane into the ground. Gulp. I remember looking around me and noticing a couple of people holding on to their armrests with a little bit of extra grip with white in their knuckles. I’d never had a fear of flying and, as mentioned, I actually love to fly.

However, coming in as bumpy as we were I had these crazy thoughts and even told myself quietly that if we landed safely I’d be extra good in NYC. I wouldn’t give Kane a hard time for ripping my heart out in the playoffs and I’d give extra shots to the EASHL Champs during our Championship dinner. In a matter of a few shakes of the plane I’d gone from a great flyer to one of the white-knuckled poor flyers that I’d always giggled at in the past.

The approach into Chicago didn’t ease up. Every drop as we descended was accompanied with shakes and rocking and I found myself with some serious dry mouth. I looked out the window as the horizon rose and fell with the motion of the plane. I had five more flights to get through during the week and I wondered if all of them would be as bumpy as this one. Of course they wouldn’t, but man, crazy thoughts take over one’s mind as fear grips like a mo-fo. I still had to get to NYC and then from there to Dallas via DC a few days later. Would I even make to a few days later???

The plane was about twenty feet above ground when a gust hit the wing for one last tilt which made one lady yelp. And once the one lady yelped, others seemed to hold their breath as a synchronized inhale spoke for the entire cabin. And then the back wheels hit the ground followed by the front wheel and the cabin exhaled. Finally!

“And let me be the first to welcome you to Chicago,” said the pilot. “I guess there’s a reason they call this the Windy City.” The passengers let out a cheer and even I had to let out a Ric Flair “Wooo!” for touching down safe and sound. Upon leaving the plane I’d give the pilot a thumbs-up and he replied with a nod and a wink as if he’d done it a thousand times. I’m sure he had.

Of course, the week would go awesome as planned and I was extra enthused through all the events from NYC to Dallas. The flight before the one I’m on now was actually into Chicago as well and though I had a few thoughts tracing back to Tuesday, the approach and landing was nowhere near as bumpy. I’m glad that the experience didn’t remove my love for flying and if only making me appreciate the ground a little more than usual.

So as we prepare to descend into Vancouver, the window seat has been somewhat welcome. We were late getting out of Chicago only because they had some repairs to do to the auxiliary engines. I know there were some put off by the forty-five minute delay, but I had no problems waiting all night if it meant making sure the plane was safe enough to fly.

Looking out on the night sky, with all the fun of launching this week, I find it funny that with all the planning that went into this week, I can appreciate now how traveling for some can be the toughest part. I won’t let that stop me from flying in the future as I love creating and being a part of these events. I guess no matter how much you plan for them, however, one’s always bound to encounter bumps on the road…I mean, in the air.

MasterBatters, Kensington Slo-Pitch Div II Champs!

In what can only be called one of the most exciting finishes in Slo-Pitch Softball history, the MasterBatters overcame numerous hurdles, unruly opponents, sketchy rosters, and worst of all – blazing heat to win six out of seven games en route to the team’s second Championship in two years, this time taking a step up and winning the B Division!

With only barely being able to field a team, the MBs were matched up against A Division’s Beer Factor who finished outside the top 8 and were relegated to the B Division playoffs.  Without shade and without subs, the MBs played great defense behind Heather’s pitching and consistent batting from the entire team getting out to a 5-0 lead and never looking back.  The second game would see more of the same as Beer Factor would strand a number of players on base with big plays being made in the field by the MBs.  The series would be clinched with a catch made by Dave sprinting in from left field, right by Trevor roving, and making a 2-inch off the ground catch to close the series and send the MBs to Championship Sunday in a semi-final match-up against the Coyotes.

Heat would be a factor once again as record highs in the city would drain teams the longer they played into the day.  The Coyotes and MBs have had numerous battles this year splitting games and their squad sounded pretty confident once they found out they were playing us.  Add the subtle injuries players were starting to feel and it looked to be an uproad battle to the finals.  The teams would split the first two games with MBs winning the first with consistent fielding including a nice play from Byron-Quinto-Trevor-Dave to get an out at third, while the MB bats continued to roll with Dan finding the base numerous times when we needed support the most.  With a change in the 2^nd game moving Ollie into center, the Coyotes took advantage of a blazing sun and a capless CFer to get some big runs and taking game two.  A pitching change in the third would turn the tables back to the MBs as the Coyotes would have a hard time getting their bats on the Quinto-sidespin falling behind 9-0 and possibly getting mercy-ruled out of out of the playoffs.  Unfortunately, some hits and an poor throws on bunts on my part put them on the board and extended the game.  I would battle throws to first most of the day, though big thanks to Jenn for digging a couple out of the dirt.  On the flip side, huge props go out to our ladies who consistently found first on clutch hits and key bunts out-running throws or pushing our runners along into scoring positions.  The game wasn’t without more stellar defense including a belly-flop diving catch from Trev now on third to end an inning with runners on base while old-man Colin continuously found life to make catch after catch from the rover position.  In SS, Dave would secure the win with plays to first where Jenn consistently made outs whether throws were coming from him or Sheri on 2^nd who also was as cool as a cucumber given her counterpart on the other team was a complete douchebag with a mouth like a NYC trucker.  The team would need a break and re-fueling before taking on the surprising Canadian Flyers in the Championship Finals.

Before the finals even began, there were questions about the CF roster.  Players that were unfamiliar to many made up a pretty strong squad that defeated the Relics in their opening series before coming back and beating BullsHit in their semi-finals.  Though their coach was unable to produce lineups proving their players played enough games, we would take their word, focus on our game and play the finals out without question.  Add the fact that they also had a few players from the Fireballs joining them on their sideline, and it was a series that had the makings of potential fireworks.  Once again, no shade and little rest as the first game started.  The teams would exchange runs early before the MBs slowly crept away late taking the first game after key outs from Byron/Colin/Dave in the field.  Game two would see a pitching change on their side which would make a difference as the CF’s went out to an early lead after a muffed throw to first (again) and big hits on their side.  It would be the only 3 runs they would get all game.

Their bench began to gain confidence as the MBs, looking a little weary from long games and scorching heat started popping up balls and having a hard time getting on base.  Comments about a no-hitter and shutout began ringing on the other side, however the MBs defence still held their own with key two-handed catches from Dan in right and some big throws from the outfield to first to catch a couple of their slower runners (Great rule change, btw!).  In the sixth is when the tides would turn as a two-out pop deep to center by Byron was uncharacteristically played just short and dropped.  Dan would fly into home as would Byron beating the relay to put the MBs on the board down by only one run.  In the bottom of the sixth, the CFs would rally themselves getting runners on base.  With one out, the key play saw a hit into the field where Dave came up throwing to third where Ollie put his foot down in front of the bag and put the tag on their runner for the 2^nd out.  The third out would be a pop-up short to left which would have been a sure score from their runner from 2^nd, but Byron would make a diving catch to end the inning.  In the last inning, the comeback would be complete when Ollie would take his momentum from the out and turn it into a big hit himself.  Patience would be a virtue as I chased a bad pitch high for a second strike and after not finding a base all game, it didn’t look good.  Holding back on the next few pitches would put the count to full and I’d find a gift of a pitch that I swung on that zinged right past the pitcher’s head into center field for a double with Ollie representing the tying run at 3^rd.  Cue more drama as Trevor would swing at the 2^nd pitch and push the ball into the field scoring Ollie for the tie and moving me to third.  Jenn would find a bunt and on the throw to first for the out, we’d take the lead as I crossed the plate moving Trevor to 2^nd.  Dave would pop up to deep right and as their players celebrated the catch, Trevor sprinted around 3^rd and made it into home for a two-run lead.  It would be all the runs the MBs would need to close things out.

In the bottom of the 7^th, we’d get the first out with a hit straight back to me…an easy underhand to first.  They would get a hit into short right putting the tying run at the plate and a runner on 1^st.  Pop up to right where Dan’s two-handed magic would make the play.  Two outs, female at the plate…everyone knew the bunt was coming to advance the runner.  Then the pitch…and the bunt…and everyone behind me gasping for a breath.  Heather behind the plate, let up and I grabbed the ball, stuck it into my glove with a step and drilled a throw to first praying to God that it would hit Jenn’s outstretched glove.  The smack of the ball hitting the glove a step before the runner’s foot planted was sweeter than angels singing as the celebration began and comments of disbelief over the throw echoed amongst us.  It’ll be a finish I’m sure those who were present will never forget…especially to those Fireball players present to watch the game including our favorite 3^rd baseman who Heather over-heard sayin’ “Man, I hate these guys.”  I have a feeling he hates us even more J

A huge thanks to everyone on this team that made this year’s season so much fun to play in.  Though there were ups and downs, it couldn’t have ended any better.  But is it the end?