Archive for July 2nd, 2009

Burnination

Burnination

Click the image to enlarge.

I must laud the President for her two-day self-imposed quarantine, although another day of quarantine wouldn’t be too bad.  I don’t mind “anonymous informants,” either, but I do not think that very detailed descriptions of the President’s health are none of my business, but hey, the reports are there.

The last time, Presidential diarrhea and indigestion was described in terms of what she ate: puto at dinuguan. I never ate the damn things ever again because they reminded me too much of well-circulated news.

The President – hate her if you must – has the right to privacy, and I think that the reports and information passed on by unauthorized informants should be immediately pointed to the immediate direction of the shredder.

Let me make it clear that as much as I don’t like the President of the Philippines, and as much as I am for transparency in This Government, I am not interested in the President’s silicone implants, nor am I interested in lumps in her groin:

mb_july_2

Again, I don’t like the President.  Yet while I understand that the President must be whole, complete, swine-flu free and all, I don’t think silicone breast implants and lumps on her groin will affect her in the… uh, discharge, of her duties.  Yep, I hate the pun (or the double entendre, whatever comes first) as much as you do.

The news item should have been a timely update on the President’s health, but instead, it turned out to be a timely reminder of… I don’t want to go there.

Dear anonymous informant: too much information.  Fail?  I don’t think so: try burnination.

Postscript: The Manila Bulletin just changed the original article.

July 2, 2009 6 comments Read More
Lyrics Translations: OPM from Karaoke Mega Post

Lyrics Translations: OPM from Karaoke Mega Post

I’m particularly bored these days, and I figured I have to make the most of my talent: lyrics translations.

I’m not a particularly good singer, but there are those occasions where me and my friends go out for karaoke and I end up singing jologs/bakya OPM.  The term is derogatory: we have wonderful music in the Philippines, even if that dude Renz Verano did end up singing a lot of translated songs himself.  Maybe it’s colonial mentality or Anglophone imperialism… I don’t really know the answer, but I think we have a wealth of songs that we should really be proud of.

So here are eight songs – and a lyrics translation challenge – to get myself going.  Hoo-hah!

TRANSLATION 1.  I can’t believe I have yet to translate this song.

I Will Sing For You

“Aawitan Kita,” Armida Siguion-Reyna

I will sing for you, I will sing for you
Our own songs is what you’ll listen to
Listen to it closely my love
For you to feel the sweetness and care
Of the songs from right here at home

I will sing for you, I will sing for you
My country, my one true love
I will sing for you

I will sing for you, I will sing for you
Our own songs is what you’ll listen to
Listen to it closely my love
For you to feel the sweetness and care
Of the songs from right here at home

I will sing for you, I will sing for you
My country, my one true love
I will sing for you

I will sing for you, I will sing for you
My country, my one true love
I will sing for you

TRANSLATION 2.  I miss the Lea Salonga-Aga Muhlach tandem, so here we go.

Why Do I Love You So Much

“Bakit Labis Kitang Mahal,” Lea Salonga

The first time that I knew you, my only love
I feel nervous deep inside
Everytime I think of you

You’re the only person in my memories
Oh, wherever you may be
It’s your picture that I see

Whenever I sleep you’re the one I’m dreaming of
Because it is my only hope
That you’ll be right beside me

What’s in you that was seen
Speeds up the beating of my heart
Everytime I’m with you
My happiness is oh so true

Oh why, do I love you so much
Your embrace, is one I can’t forget
Oh why, do I love you so much
I promise, to love you all the way

The first time that I knew you, my only love
I feel nervous deep inside
Everytime I think of you

You’re the only person in my memories
Oh, wherever you may be
It’s your picture that I see

Whenever I sleep you’re the one I’m dreaming of
Because it is my only hope
That you’ll be right beside me

What’s in you that was seen
Speeds up the beating of my heart
Everytime I’m with you
My happiness is oh so true

Oh why, do I love you so much
Your embrace, is one I can’t forget
Oh why, do I love you so much
I promise, to love you all the way

Oh why, do I love you so much
Your embrace, is one I can’t forget
Oh why, do I love you so much
I promise, to love you all the way

TRANSLATION 3.  The immediate equivalent would either be Gin Blossoms or Ricky Martin.

As Long As There Is Life

“Habang May Buhay,” After Image

Oh I want to live my life
Forever and a day
As long as it takes place
With you here by my side

Oh, my whole life
Oh, my whole life
To you, I give my all

It is my only prayer
For you to fall in love with me
It won’t fade into a flicker
The fire right in my heart

As long as there is life
As long as there is life
As long as the blood flows through my veins
Only to you, I offer it all

Oh, my whole life
Oh, my whole life
To you, I give my all

If we’ll ever have to let go
Oh, I would lose the game
I’ll never ever want to
Go on with my life

As long as there is life
As long as there is life
As long as the blood flows through my veins
Only to you, I offer it all

Oh, my whole life
Oh, my whole life
To you, I give my all

I just wanted you to know
Until the very edge of the world
My dreams are just for you

As long as there is life
As long as there is life
As long as the blood flows through my veins
Only to you, I offer it all

Oh, my whole life
Oh, my whole life
To you, I give my all

TRANSLATION 4.  I hope I captured the romance in English.  Bring on the falsettos.

You

“Ikaw,” Sharon Cuneta

You are the gift from God above
My prayers have been answered
Just so that for all time
Every fleeting moment
That the one I love is you

You are the light for my whole world
The other half of this heart of mine
There is no split-second
That I’ll spare for someone else
Now that it’s forever, just you

Every move that I’ll ever make
The reason is you
If there’s tomorrow that I’ll look forward to
It’s all because of you
And forever simply is not enough
Just so that every moment
Just so that for all time
The one I love will be you

TRANSLATION 5.  This is one of those funny translations that seem to actually work.

A Week’s Romance

“Isang Linggong Pag-Ibig,” Imelda Papin

Monday, we laid eyes on one another
Tuesday, we got to know each other
Wednesday, you confessed your love to me
Thursday, I loved you with all my heart
Friday, was a day so full of loving
Both our hearts were filled with joyful singing
Saturday, we argued all day long
And when Sunday came along
Oh my love, you left me all alone

Time flies so fast ever since you arrived
You left with haste, so fast I almost died
And when I slept you were there on my side
But you were not there when my eyes opened wide

Time flies so fast since you came along
But when you left, it was fast and so wrong
Your love’s so sweet from dusk until dawn
But in one fell swoop, everything is all gone

TRANSLATION 6.  And now for a Martin Nievera classic.

Just for a Moment

“Kahit Isang Saglit,” Martin Nievera

Oh how
My aching broken heart
Now that you’ve gone away
From my life

Just when
The sun started shining
And my world became happy once again

Oh how
Would I live tomorrow?
Now that you’re no longer
The one I love

What of
Our dreams for one another
The promises made between you and I?

I hope
That I’ll see you once again
Just to feel you heart beat next to mine
I hope
To feel once more, your sweet embrace
Just for a while, just for a moment
You in my arms

An orphaned heart is what I feel in me
Now that you left me here all on my own

I hope
That I’ll see you once again
Just to feel you heart beat next to mine
I hope
To feel once more, your sweet embrace
Just for a while, just for a moment
You in my arms

You in my arms

TRANSLATION 7.  I don’t know what happened to Banig Roberto, but the E-heads instant fans will prolly roll eyes.

When

“Kailan,” Smokey Mountain

I don’t know why I feel some fear
Everytime I see you near
I hope that you tell me your name

Many times I bumped into you
The book that I dropped, you picked up too
You never even told me your name

Every day I follow you
But you never glance my way
Oh tell me what should I do

Why do you keep avoiding me
Do you see scratches on my knees
I just want to get to know you

Here in my heart there is a place
Only for you a little space
Now can I get to know you

Every day I follow you
But you never glance my way
Oh tell me what should I do

Oh when (oh when), when will you get to know my little secret
Of all the things I try to do, you don’t get to notice it
Oh when (oh when), when will you caress my heart so eager and waiting
Of all the love I give to you, you don’t notice a thing

Here in my heart there is a place
Only for you a little space
Now can I get to know you

Every day I follow you
But you never glance my way
Oh tell me what should I do

Oh when (oh when), when will you get to know my little secret
Of all the things I try to do, you don’t get to notice it
Oh when (oh when), when will you caress my heart so eager and waiting
Of all the love I give to you, you don’t notice a thing

TRANSLATION 8.  When it comes to karaoke, this is a staple.

How Are You

“Kumusta Ka,” Freddie Aguilar”

How are you, my only love
I hope that you are doing well
I hope that you hear me clear
Don’t mean to wreck your sleep

Nights full of discoveries
I pass them by with these melodies
My feelings, so melancholy
Now I feel happy

My dreams are always made of you, my love
Even if my eyes are wide open now
Though you may be far, you’re feel so close
My love, how have you been

The night is deep, the sky is dark
The chilly breeze, the wind feels colder still
If I hold you in my embrace
I won’t feel cold and so alone

My dreams are always made of you, my love
Even if my eyes are wide open now
Though you may be far, you’re feel so close
My love, how have you been

How are you, my only love
I hope that you are doing well
Don’t you worry about me
Life is okay and easy

My dreams are always made of you, my love
Even if my eyes are wide open now
Though you may be far, you’re feel so close
My love, how have you been

TRANSLATION 9.  I can’t find that Richard Merk by-request song, so here’s one for the road.

Is It Aida, Is It Lorna, Maybe Fe

“Si Aida O Si Lorna O Si Fe,” Marco Sison

Oh my friend, oh my best pal
Here’s a story I need to tell
Maybe you can help me out for a minute
For this problem I have
Who among these three should be my girlfriend
Have pity on me, my friend
Is it Aida, is it Lorna, maybe Fe

All of them look very fine
Rich and up for sexy time
My group of friends are green with envy
I’m called a gigolo
They don’t know how heavy is this burden I tow
Oh help me my friend
Is it Aida, is it Lorna, maybe Fe

Oh my pathetic heart
It’s bleeding and confused playing the part
Who will be the choice I’ll make
The woman I’ll make
My one and only love

I’m so confused, I’m so confused
I feel annoyed and a bit used
Of all the choices that I have among women
In the whole world
Why am I so confused when they come in thirds
Please tell me my friend
Is it Aida, is it Lorna, maybe Fe

LYRICS TRANSLATION CHALLENGE.  You asked for rap?  You got rap, baby.  Rules bent a bit.

Binibirocha

“Binibirocha,” Andrew E.

After I emceed at Euphoria just last Saturday
I went to you know where, just my favorite hang-out place
7-Eleven Quezon City, yo there scheduled to land
There wasn’t one customer, and yo it was so sad
And I looked to the door, chick entered, oooh, so beautiful
“Hmmm,” so silly me, there is no scar on her skin that looks so cool
Her eyes were colored brown, she had braces on her teeth
She looks like Rita Avila, come to think of it
Her statistics’ 36, 34, 34
I had to figure out a way so that I can just score
She has a sense of style, she wore a hanging shirt
When she picked money from her purse, I got a rise from the upskirt
So I said right then and then, “Hey girl, I like your style”
She bit her lip, and gave a wink and flashed a brilliant smile
She asked me, “Hey aren’t you… Andrew E of Euphoria?”
Then she said, “Hi Andrew, my name is Binibirocha”

Binibirocha, Binibirocha, that girl is really my type
Binibirocha, Binibirocha, that beauty I really like (one more time in the place
Binibirocha, Binibirocha, that girl is really my type
Binibirocha, Binibirocha, that beauty I really like

So after another week, well would you look at that
I saw Binibirocha, I saw her at the disco
And boy, I was surprised, I lost my rhyme
Oh my God, I exclaimed, she’s with five people at a time
I said, “Hi Bini, do you still remember me?”
She was surprised shocked and shouted, “Hey, Andrew E!”
She went with me, oh hey, what can you say?
That night we left the disco, took a ride on her Pajero
From inside that Pajero, I started to feel her out
The heat from her caress, hey there was no doubt
Wha, it was chilly in the Pajero, but boy, was she so hot
The lobes of my ear, she almost bit the thing out
With the help of her lips, she started tickling me
She took my hand and placed right on top of her knee
It seemed she’s on a rush and she couldn’t wait a while
She rode astride my body and she showed me her sweet smile

Binibirocha, Binibirocha, that girl is really my type
Binibirocha, Binibirocha, that beauty I really like (one more time in the place
Binibirocha, Binibirocha, that girl is really my type
Binibirocha, Binibirocha, that beauty I really like

Break it down

July 2, 2009 1 comment Read More
“Secrets” to “Good Writing”

“Secrets” to “Good Writing”

“So, what’s your secret to good writing?”

I was taken aback by my friend’s question.  I’m not saying that my writing skills are bad – I wouldn’t be a writer if I’m terrible – but I’m not really into “secrets.”  After all, I’m not a multi-awarded writer or blogger or anything like that.  I really can’t give an expert opinion on the matter, except that I should instead channel and share the things I’ve learned over the years.

Yet my friend egged me on: what’s the secret to good writing?

I assume my couple dozen readers would think that I write in a dark room with bloodied wrists, abusing my liver and my lungs on the way to The Great Filipino Novel.  To a certain extent I do (save for the bloodied wrists part), but those things don’t have anything to do with the “literary” or anything like that.  Yet I wouldn’t have had a very small measure of success – and many failures – as a writer if I didn’t have “secrets.”  To answer my friend’s questions, here are my “secrets” to “good writing.”

Humility

Carlos Fuentes once said that the first question he asks whenever he writes is, “Who are you writing for?”  The answer to the question is not as much as an “audience,” but the purpose of your writing.  Some people write because they want to share their thoughts and opinions, and others write because they want to express their feelings.  For me, a written work must always realize its purpose when it is committed to the relative permanence of text.

That doesn’t mean that you should expect people to pat your ego or kiss your feet just because you wrote something.  For me, it’s very important for a writer to keep himself or herself grounded, if only because there are so many ways to fail at writing.  That humility should define when to start, when to stop, and when to revise.

There’s a little saying that goes, “Write to express, and not to impress.”  That doesn’t mean that you should allow your grammar to falter just because you’re telling the truth; that just means that your purposes should always frame your writing.  I’ve seen too many people – myself included – fail in their writing because they put their ego above everything else.  While it pays to have a little bit of arrogance to back up what you show off, it’s also important to have a lot of humility to accept criticisms and points for improvement.  Without a purpose and without humility, you’ll have a hard time accepting those criticisms and that you’ll always take them as personal insults.

Diligence

What about “passion?”  Whatever happened to a “love for writing?”  Things like “The Writer’s Truth” and “literary creativity” are great and all, but these things are only possible if you write, and only if you keep writing.  Much of writing involves technical stuff like spelling, grammar, and punctuation: writers cannot do without them.

Often, what keeps a writer from being a writer is the unwillingness to write, and the refusal to learn.  It’s not enough for you to learn on the job or to get better as you write volumes upon volumes of notes and entries.  Every now and then, you have to open a book to learn how to write.

Writing is a very technical task.  While it’s good to have a love for writing and a passion for the written word, those things shouldn’t get in the way of practice.  Like any art or any lesson, a writer should always be open to new knowledge, and apply things that are useful to him or her.  The best way to express your love and passion for writing is to be diligent, to learn and apply new lessons, and to keep writing.

Remember: writers write, and non-writers don’t write.

Revision

If there’s any “secret” I cannot stress enough, it’s the down-and-dirty work of revision.  The ability of a writer to take a step back from his or her own work and edit where it’s necessary is what makes all the difference between good writing and bad writing.

Sometimes we can get too engrossed in what we write that we fail to take that necessary step-back to read and edit our own works as objectively as possible.  Through revision, the writer becomes a reader, and completes the writing process.

Revision also helps to get rid of that “I’ll-write-whatever-I-want” attitude so prevalent today in blogging or even writing, where people disregard this down-and-dirty task.  Some people view the process as“dishonest,” that the truth only comes out when you write and publish immediately.  I disagree with that notion: nothing is more honest than demonstrating the ability and the willingness to revise.

Writing is such an engaging and personal activity that we tend to be blinded by our own engagement in it.  Taking a step back allows the writer to get in touch with other relevant truths, to clean up lines, and to perfect the work.  Revision, for all intents and purposes, is to bend over backwards on your own work.

Lately I’ve been having this quirk of writing drafts twice and editing each draft twice over.  After I do that, I post or submitting the better draft.  It may have slowed down my writing speed, but it does give me better insights into flaws I really need to correct.  It was the result of “workshop trauma,” when I submitted an incomplete work for the panel sessions and got my writerly arse handed over to me for it.  While it may be inconvenient for some people to do that, I think that there’s nothing wrong with going over drafts at least once to check lapses, to cut paragraphs, or in some cases, delete the entire draft altogether and start over.

These aren’t much of “secrets,” as much as they are reminders to everyone (myself included) of the many things that make up good writing.  It’s not that I’m a good writer – I think I have yet to scratch the surface of what I can’t do, and that I haven’t been doing a lot of scratching – but that writing, to me, is no secret.  I’m sure these three “secrets” can help you improve on your own writing, make you a better writer, and probably make you a better person along the way.

Of course, I should take my own advice, and learn from others as well.  Do you have writing secrets to share?

* – Inspired by The Reality of the Tortured Writer and The Myth of the Tortured Writer from the Collective Inkwell.

July 2, 2009 0 comments Read More