The Last Straw

Badminton, as you know, is the sporting craze nowadays here in Manila. Courts are popping up like mushrooms all around, and many people have taken up the sport ---much to the dismay of the missus.

Ten years ago, badminton was just like any other neglected sport here. But the missus and her friends were regular shuttlers, meeting weekly at Camp Aguinaldo to play. But ever since the sport picked up its popularity, she lost the energy to play.

Why you ask? Let me put it by this example:

Imagine you bought an album of your favorite artist/band. Some of the songs are already getting their regular airplay in the radio-stations, while there are some songs that are still unknown to the listening public.

You then find one particular song that hasn't been aired. You listen to it, and you love it ---more than the other songs, including the ones getting airplay. You christen it as THE song that you like most in the album and best of it all is that only you, and the other people who bought the album, are the only ones who get to listen and enjoy that song.

Then, after two weeks buying the album, you turn on the radio. Suddenly, you hear a familiar intro.

It's THE song that you love, and it's now being played on air!

Now everyone hears it. Everybody now knows it. It not only gets airtime on the radio, but you'll see it on TV, with the ultimate insult of some lame-ass forgotten hearthrob actor/actress trying to sing it on a non-favorite Sunday noontime show ---out of tune.

Your song, for all terms and purposes, has been mutilated.

Now use that analogy to the missus on badminton, you'll understand why.

She was ok with me starting to pickup the sport (Before, I didn't like badminton AT ALL). But then her dismay began to pickup when the basketball-clad guys hitting the shuttles came, then came the Sexbomb Dancers on the cover of Inquirer-Badminton magazine, then came Boy Abunda being interviewed in a weekly Badminton show.

Then, well, the last straw came:


Yes, that's good ol' Ronald McDonald hitting a shuttle.

Good thing football isn't that popular here.

Yet?

Oh please no.