Monthly Archives: December 2008

Jose Mari Christmas

Posted on by Marocharim
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There are Christmas songs I like, like when The Pussycat Dolls sang “Santa Baby,” or perhaps “White Christmas,” no matter how racist it sounds.  Yet I sometimes wonder what Christmas in the Philippines would be like without the music of Mr. Jose Mari Chan.

From what I understand, JMC is a businessman specializing in the sugar business, but he’s really passionate about singing and songwriting.  Over the years, though, the name Jose Mari Chan has been synonymous with the Holidays.

I like to call him Jose Mari Christmas.  Somehow, “Christmas Man” or “The Voice of Christmas,” or “The Christmas Knight.”  But those nicknames have been already taken by Santa Claus, the voiceover guy for Christmas specials, and the renegade elf who became the North Pole’s version of Batman

Yes, I’m itching to translate JMC’s Christmas specials, but I’ve already fulfilled my weekly quota of translate-ables.  Yes, it’s quite tempting to translate “A Perfect Christmas” to the tune of something like… hmmm… screw quotas.  I’ll do “Christmas in Our Hearts” and “A Perfect Christmas” for today, because McDonald’s Session Road only allows me two hours of wifi.

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Santa Be So Emo

Posted on by Marocharim
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A couple of weeks ago, me, Manolo Quezon, Ding Gagelonia, Dean Jorge Bocobo, CaffeineSparks, the Jester-in-Exile, and Arbet Bernardo had dinner over at Savory at San Juan.  Politics was, of course, a requisite in a dinner with them, along with dating tips from Jester and Sparks… I still don’t understand dating for the life of me.  No wonder my love life is an epic fail.

Having the attention span of a mosquito with Alzheimer’s disease, my awesome powers of observation did not lead me to realizing that Rom and her friends did pass by N. Domingo.  It did lead me to a rather interesting sight as Savory was closing for the night:

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Yes, folks; that is the sight of Savory’s giant dancing Santa Claus with a plastic bag on his head.  And yes, I take bad pictures.

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Welcome to the House of Marocharim 1: Baguio Beans

Posted on by Marocharim
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Baguio Beans Coffee Shop
General Luna Road, Baguio City
Open from 1 PM – 12 MN, Fridays to Saturdays (1 PM – 2 AM)
Contact: Efren Soliman (0916) 580-9237

Disclaimer: As a blogger or reviewer, I believe that I shouldn’t get a free ride – much less a free lunch – for anything I review.  I didn’t get a single free item from Baguio Beans.  I paid my meal full price.

My fondest recollections of Baguio City include quaint little coffee shops.  Coffee here is pretty much necessary to ward off against the chill.  Before the days of instant coffee, there was always a steaming cup of Benguet coffee, complete with the flavorful coffee oil floating on top of the coffee.  Mixed with a bit of brown sugar, the coffee always gives me a feeling of home.

Of course, this comes with my quirk of drinking coffee cold.  Call me bourgeois, but I love frappe.

Whenever I’m home, I always shy away from Starbucks and Seattle’s Best Coffee.  I warm myself with brews in places like Kaffeklatsch in Legarda Road, Star Café in Session Road, and Cordillera Coffee at SM City Baguio.  Not only does the food come cheap, but they don’t mass-produce coffee.  In these places, coffee is almost always certainly about quality.

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Lyrics Translations: Marocharim Covers Relatively Recent Pinoy Rock

Posted on by Marocharim
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For all my ranting and raving about a girl from Ateneo, the case against the President, and call centers, and the writing part of blogging, I have completely forgotten about this blog’s major selling point: lyrics translations.  Next to Manny Pacquiao-related blog entries, lyrics translations are a major source for my dose of hate mail and comments that say I suck.

Anyway, I have translated many songs before, but one thing I always wanted to do translations of are relatively recent songs that pass for Pinoy rock.  The lot of people younger than I am are really into the lot of Philippine emo; I don’t have a problem with it, but they’re pretty much bait for lyrics translations.  Not only do they get stuck in your head, but it’s also an interesting prospect for the lot of kids who probably bang their heads to the tune of these songs.

Strange, since as much as people think I’m emo, my songs of choice include The Sex Pistols and The Misfits.  Shows you the kind of guy I really am.

Anyway, for this week, I am translating a few songs from relatively recent Pinoy rock.  Let the flaming begin. Continue reading →

A Pale View of the Hills*

Posted on by Marocharim
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sdc10454* – from a novel by Kazuo Ishiguro

The trip back home was a rather short, uneventful one.  There seemed to be no big difference in the sights I was used to: the houses that line the highway, green fields as far as the eye can see, markets bustling with traders and shoppers.  As I was watching some old Fernando Poe, Jr. movie, I looked out the window and saw, once more, the very familiar sight of home.

Once again, it was the familiar sight of fog that welcomed me back.  From behind the clouds, I could barely make out the jagged edges of the mountains that remind me of who I am, and where I came from.

Ah, home.  Indeed.

Proxy Aguinaldo

Posted on by Marocharim
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It’s like a bad scene from the Great Depression, only that I’ll still end up pretty much poor; there I was, asking the bank teller if she can change my P1,000 bill to crisp P50 bills.  I would have had it if she’s that cute barista from the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf some months back.  Heck, I wouldn’t mind if she’s Chloe McCully from “Kapamilya: Deal or No Deal.”  I’ll just sit there and stare.

And yet, I did mind, owing to the fact that the bank was closing up for the day, and that she wouldn’t change my bill to crisp bank notes.

No, I didn’t raise my middle finger and cursed the living hell out of the banking oligarchy, but it did make me wonder why I have six nieces and 10 nephews.  I didn’t attend a single baptism of my brood by proxy because:

  • I get nervous and twitchy whenever I enter a church.
  • I’m usually busy when I get called up to attend a baptism.
  • Every baby I have ever seen wailed like a banshee because they saw me.
  • Many of my relatives and friends think that I’m a bad omen.

Nephews and nieces by proxy means that I have to give aguinaldo by proxy.  While I do think that aguinaldo is extortion, it’s erring on the side of hypocrisy; after all, when I was young and jobless, I was on the receiving end of ampaw and money shoved into my hand on Christmas morning.  It gives me a fuller and better appreciation and understanding of money shoved into my bank account every payday, with every cent literally evaporating.

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