It's (Almost) Game Time!

Here's a recounting of the events that transpired from July 16 to July 21, 2009.

I won't be posting the entire account -- yet. =p

I'll be updating this once in a while, until I've added all the details I can remember. =)

LET'S BEGIN!

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July 16, 2009

• Joe-e receives call from Aldwin. Aldwin was picked for the screening for Game K N B? and he was looking for teammates. The screening was on 9am the next day.
• Joe-e asks around the office, I stay silent
• Joe-e asks me, I think about it
• I agreed!
• We arrange to meet at 8am at the Q.Ave. MRT station

• Kei's wallet is lost! :(

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July 17, 2009

• I wake up at 5:30am
• I arrive at McDo below the Q.Ave. MRT station at 7:30am
• I have my breakfast while reading Folding Water
• Joe-e notifies me that Aldwin has arrived at 8am
• I get up to meet Aldwin
• We wait for Joe-e
• A group of people are at an adjacent table, 3 of them get up and go. I assumed that they were also going to the screening
• Joe-e arrives. It was already 8:45am.
• It's raining outside!

• We take a trike to the center gate of ABS-CBN
• A LOT of people are packed under tarp tents inside the gate.
• We wait a bit.
• People arrive in groups of 3. Players, too, obviously.
• We get in and seek shelter under the tents
• there's this guy who looks veeeery familiar. he also looks at me like I looked familiar.
• We wait some more.

• Eventually, we move to yet another tent, nearer to the studio gates.
• We fall in line for thermal scanning.

• We walk to Studio 9, where Aldwin, as texter, goes to a separate queue for registration
• there's that familiar-looking guy again
• We're in the studio!
• We fill up info sheets
• We are given a written test: part 1 is a 10-item IQ test, part 2 is a 10-item trivia quiz
• We submit our papers. They tell us that we can wait for 30 minutes or so for the results
• Very weak cell signal inside the studio -- but Joe-e can GPRS!
• Joe-e researches the answers to the tough trivia questions -- we have 3 definitely wrong answers!
• They announce those who passed the test. We passed!
• The others were sent home. We were told to go have lunch and be back for the mock games at 1:30pm.
• We were the 1st batch, and there were still a lot of people waiting in line
• We had lunch at The Loop.
• there's that familiar-looking guy again

• We went back to the studio gates at 1:30pm
• there's that familiar-looking guy again
• We got in again, and waited by Studio 9 with the passers of the 2nd batch
• we were waiting for the last batch to come out of the studio. turns out they were the 3rd batch.
• after the studio was cleared, we went back in by batch
• when they saw that there were a lot of passers, the 2nd batch was sent home
• several names were called from the 3rd batch. they were teams who came from provinces (tarlac, pampanga, laguna). the rest from the 3rd batch who were not called were sent home.
• the provincial teams were given a choice whether they would stay or go home early. work was already suspended early due to heavy rains.
• the provincial teams were advised to stay, so their trip would not be wasted. they stayed.
• a lengthy briefing
• start of mock games! but just for the diskarte round. i thought we would use the actual set. instead, they marked the stage with masking tape to indicate the "bases".
• two teams at a time were called to play a mock diskarte round, until they reach 10 questions or, more, until each player has successfully answered a question
• several personalities already stand out in the mock games, including Leo (and his cleavage) and Lou (and his booming "Sugod Ako!")
• in between games, more briefing on the mechanics of the other rounds
• Joe-e noticed that most of the first to be called were those from the 3rd batch
• and, yes, we were only called near the end

• question #1: saang UAAP team naglaro si Chris Tiu?
• I clapped first!
• And I forgot the answer.
• "La Salle?"
• WRONG!

• question #2: anong US TV show ang host si supermodel Heidi Klum?
• I clapped first again! I must redeem myself!
• "America's Next Top Model!"
• WRONG AGAIN!

• on with the game...

• on with the rest of the teams..

• a bit more briefing
• each player can bring along 2 companions
• they say that we'd be notified 2 days before taping, and expect it in around 2 weeks

• we go home
• it was almost 6pm

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July 18, 2009

• I am at Kei's
• Joe-e calls
• We go back to the studio on Tuesday! call time is 1pm!

• I txt Ma

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July 20, 2009

• Kei is granted her leave!

• Kaye informs Kei that Francis heard on the radio while in a taxi: someone found Kei's wallet and surrendered it to GMA/dzBB!

• Vic wishes me luck. WTH

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