Time was when happiness was a good drink of tuba in San Juan. Five pesos sana su usad no lata; minsan agco pa rugang na naglalangoy na oang. Kun maray su ani, puede kang mag-beer. When you wanted beer you merely asked for San Miguel and you’ll get a frothy pale pilsen. Nowadays, you have to specify the brand: Carlsberg, Beer na Beer, or many of the imported names. If it’s San Miguel, shall it be Red Horse, San Mig Light, Strong Ice, Super Dry, Gold Eagle, or Cerveza Negra? You want it in can, bottled, or draft?
Life has become too complicated; it used to be a lot simpler.
As youngsters studying in St. Monica, we only had one pair of shoes: good old Custombuilt-brand, usually. We called them “tennis,” but we wore them not for tennis. We used them for going to school, for going to church, for playing basketball, for going to fiestas, for going to the city or pa bukid kun minggaigagatong. You would buy a pair of black, leather shoes like a day before graduation – kun marhay su pagono kin nuyog. Children nowadays wouldn’t hear of that. They have to have different pairs for different uses: walking shoes, jogging shoes, workout shoes, tennis shoes, basketball shoes, cross trainers, loafers, casuals, formal, etc. The 3,000 pairs of Imelda no longer sound absurd nor ostentatious.
Life used to be a lot simpler.
Basketball is a sport closest to many Baaoenos’ hearts – but not to the girls who competed for the boys’ time and attention. If you’re a Domino, a Yak, a Cardinal, a Bachelor, a Sighter, a Knight, a Bulwark, an Anchors, a Sylvania, a Mugmate, or a Blackjet, you know what I mean: too many a young lady’s heart was broken because guys were spending more time on the basketball court than courting girls. I’m straying from my topic though. I meant to recall that back then, when we wanted to play a decent game, we had to use a decent ball. There was only one good ball in town and we had to borrow it from Cario Bascuna, who had a Voit. Caso panahon nindi Tino Bernas sadto sinda qui Fr. Martires naguuram bola. Pero minsan, si Fr. Martires cono mig sabi, “No, Justino. The weather is raining.” To replenish fluids sweated out, you jumped across the creek and mig-bomba ikang tubig. Nowadays, they come to play each bringing his own Mikasa ball, naka latest Nike shoes, Adidas uniform, and a Coleman jug-full of Gatorade.
