Dear Santa Claus

dear santa claus,

i have been a good boy this year. well, i think so.

i have been a collector all my life. when i was in elementary, i collected nba cards and i still have my michael jordan and david robinson card collections intact. in high school, i collected magic the gathering cards and my red cheese deck is still with me. i also collected comics and i was able to keep those that are dear to me like the superman-doomsday series, which helped me write my college thesis. for the past several years, i have been collecting basketball jerseys of my favorite players. and this year, i have begun collecting basketball shoes.

i was fortunate to have owned two of the most memorable kicks during my high school years: nike air jordan 12 and nike air penny 3. i used these shoes mostly on cement courts, whether it was a daily pick-up game in the minor seminary or an official league game in our village tournament. unfortunately, the wear and tear it has undergone forced these kicks to retirement. in college, i had two memorable basketball shoes: and 1 mad game and nike hyperflight. i wore them for two basketball championship runs in the inter-seminary meet where our team won back-to-back titles. however, it also underwent tremendous wear and tear, and eventually threw the towel from competition.

since i graduated from college, i was the one who bought my own basketball shoes. growing up with a very supportive family who have provided my needs and wants throughout my life, i realized that i should start purchasing my own basketball shoes as i started earning on my own. my first purchase was nike air force operate, a shoe that i constantly visited when i was in the states in 2005 but never really had the chance to purchase it until it found its way to a nike outlet store in barangka. before embarking on the 30 day silent ignatian retreat, i bought a nike air force stat, which, like air force operate, were shoes worn by amare stoudamire - one of my favorite nba players at present. both shoes have played through countless games on both wooden and cement courts, for pick-up games and serious competition. both of them are with two of my closest friends at present.

two years ago, i saw one of my dream shoes - nike air max penny 2 - the last pair on store, with my exact shoe size, on sale with a hefty 40% discount. i immediately bought it, as it was one of the shoes that i never really got to have when i was in high school. it has served me well, giving me a championship in our high school alumni league and a playoff appearance in an inter-school faculty basketball league, until its retirement last semestral break.

the pursuit for my dream shoes did not stop there. last year, i copped nike air max penny 1 and nike air max 2 cb 94 - the shoes that i have wanted to have when i was in grade 6. since i had the financial capability to buy one, i got a them. i only use the barkleys when playing on wooden courts while i kept the pennys in deadstock. for cement courts, i bought an adidas ts commander as my pair of beaters. and just last month, i bought a nike zoom kd 3, which replaced air penny 2 for major basketball events. i still have a kd 4 blackout coming, and i hope to complete payment by monday. i learned to take better care of my shoes, and so established a humble collection of basketball shoes that i love.

however, there is this one shoe that i really consider as my holy grail - that pair of basketball shoes that i wanted to have yet have eluded me much - it has to be air jordan 11.

(photo source)

when i was in high school, i drew basketball shoes in my notebooks, particularly jordan 11s. since i only see them on tv or in the newspaper, all i had then was a doodle of jordan 11 concords on my notebook. i've seen and tried counterfeits, but i think there's no substitute for the real thing. and even when i was earning, i never really had the chance to buy the original. it was this longing for the original that made me look for it and hope for the day that it would find its way on my feet. until i learned that the concords will be released this year, i was given a new chance to get myself a pair.

however, this sneaker game has gone overboard, as seen in the black cements last month. resellers have stocked up prices, sizes are harder to find, and strategies for copping have been limited. until titan had this contest one has to write a 96 word essay why they deserve to have a pair of concords. unfortunately, i snoozed on that contest. i really thought i would not be able to get my pair of aj xi concords unless i subject myself to a wallet-slashing reseller.

until this afternoon, while researching some songs for our christmas program, i encountered a post of facebook that titan will be receiving poker chips that would assure a slot of buying the concords during its release on december 23. the release of the chips began at 2:23pm and there were only 22 chips up for grabs at titan katipunan. i gave it a try, i mean, if i'll get one, then thank god; if no, then it's really not meant to be.

and the try paid off.

and so, my dear santa claus, please make my christmas this year a truly memorable one. the chip was just one of three more steps to go. i still have to fall in line, get a wristband, and purchase. and the other is, i have to raise funds to cop my own holy grail.

santa, i have been a good boy this year. i've been through a lot and having the concords in my hands is a great xmas gift to me. the chip is just the start of the line. until then, i do hope that on the 23rd, the concords will finally be mine, and have a merry christmas.

love,
preacher in basketball shoes

p.s. now as to where to find the payment, i guess i might as well burn the bridge when i get there.