Mom

Mom in the USA

The past has it's own way of sneaking into you at the most unexpected moment.

The past did sneak in when an uncle from Canada posted a bunch pictures on one of those social media sites. The photos of him together with my late mother in New Jersey some time in the early 80's made me all choked up.

I was fifteen years old when mom flew to the land of milk and honey in search of the American dream. She made it via the backdoor, the Mexico-California borders and by simply saying "I'm an American citizen" to immigration officials.

Mom looked great and fit back then. She enjoyed all the comforts only uncle Sam could provide although deep inside, I knew that she sorely missed dad. That's the main reason why she decided to go home after staying there for more or less a couple of years. 

Oh yes, mom was at the prime of her life as you can see in this pic and for her upcoming death anniversary, I'm more than proud to publish it for all the world to see.

She passed away ten years ago on a day she had keenly awaited. It was the scheduled return of my brother after years of working in Taiwan but it wasn't meant to be. She was already unconscious early in the morning and never regained consciousness that day.

Seeing her helpless and in a coma was simply too much for me to bear and I just broke down.

We haven't seen each other for more than three months at the time. A rarity considering that she and my father lived with me for so long.

Remembering her sadly encompasses some parts of my early life that I really don't find worth revisiting. She was very strict and a disciplinarian. She might have gone overboard countless times but it's over and done with so I just have leave it at that.

I know she was far from perfect and ideal but if there's one thing I can't deny is the fact that she carried me in her womb for nine arduous months. She also spent all those sleepless nights whenever I'm sick, took care of me until I was strong enough.

She has raised a responsible and God fearing man. I am a failure in terms of acquiring material wealth but a success in leading an honest and principled way of life.

I'm a middle-aged man now, fully aware of mortality. Sooner or later, I'd also be joining my creator. When that day comes and if I'd be given the chance to see her in the afterlife, all I'd say to her is:

"Thanks for everything mom, love you!"

Noisy Neighbor

Imagine a neighbor alternately belting out Air Supply, Survivor and Bryan Adams tunes on videoke and playing his very own CD at max volume for hours.

Unfortunately, we used to reside next to this dick of a neighbor and all we could do is shut our doors and windows. Thank God we have moved to a new place early this year.

Oh man, the bass output emanating from this guy's stereo would make your chest ache and your ears bleed! I guess to some people, as long as it's loud, the better. Hello distortion and clipping?

But if by any chance I'd end up as a neighbor of say... Daryl Hall, of course, I wouldn't mind the glorious noise he and his guests would be making. I won't complain even if their amps are turned all the way up to 11. No, not one bit!

From Daryl's House here he is with Todd Rundgren.

Listen to the Music

It's the music that counts!

In one audio/video forum, there's this long and seemingly endless debate on sound quality against musical preference.

Which is more important?

Those on the side of sound quality insist that as long as you have a great sounding system, the music won't matter. Never mind if it's the saccharine and syrupy ballads of Barry Manilow and Air Supply or the nothing but oh so smooth jazz by Kenny G.

They went on and on blabbing to great lengths the joys of listening to the "right" system. Everyone threw in their respective take on the matter. Some were pretty objective, others subjective while a few bordered on the absurd.

I happen to be a member of the said forum and along with like minded and true blue music fans, we rallied and argued:

Aren't we all in this hobby because of the music?

Here are my thoughts on the topic:

It'll always be musical preference for me. 

They (preferred albums and songs) are not only my favorites, they also have stories to tell that go way back since I was a kid.

So, whenever I play America's badly mastered History CD, it reminds me of a 6th grader asking his uncle's then girlfriend about the songs of Dewey Bunnell, Gerry Beckley and Dan Peek. Whenever I play Bruce Springsteen's The River, I can still recall the days CBS, Sony, Columbia records not having a local distributor until Octo Arts thankfully came to the rescue.

There's pleasure when one listens to audiophile recordings being played on esoteric stereo equipments - I agree. That music though won't reach out to me. But if by any chance an AM station out there would play Neil Young's "Powderfinger," static and interference included, I'll still listen to it and by the end of the song say "YEAH"!

But that's just me bros, peace!

***

Well, I'm not an expert on audio that's why I don't post as often as others. The reason I chose musical preference is obviously because of my being more of a music lover.

I admit to having  a very cheap system. Sorry, but it's all I can afford. Now, is my enjoyment being curtailed by my very cheap system? 

Guess not.

I still get goosebumps listening to Jeff Buckley's cover of "Hallelujah," contemplate on my mortality to the tune of Steely Dan's "Any World (That I'm Welcome To)", imagine vividly a scene from a Nazi concentration camp whenever I hear Rush's "Red Sector A" and roar with the crowd while Peter Frampton's doing his extended solo on "Do You Feel Like We Do."

To me, that's musical bliss and I already consider myself blessed no matter how bad sounding my system may be.

***

Enough said.

Spin It Again

Put the needle on the record!

When I was just about six, seven years old, I used to spin 45s and LPs a lot at my grandparents' house. The living room was my imaginary DJ's booth. There, I'd play Elvis, Santana and Deodato records and listen to them to my heart's content. It didn't matter if some tracks were unfamiliar to my ears. I didn't care, it was all right.

My parents on the other hand couldn't afford a stereo system so I had to be contented with our AM transistor radio. When dad flew to the middle east in the 80's, things got a little bit better and he was able to bring home a Pioneer boombox. 

Back in those days, I used to frequent record bars along the university belt area during my vacant periods. National Bookstore, Orient Pearl, MWF, and Ever Gotesco to name a few. The LPs on display there were a source of joy to me. I oggled at the artworks endlessly and listened to the new releases being played by the sales ladies. I could only sigh and wish that we have a turntable. 

Little did I know that a new format was about to come out. CDs of course. It was 1995 when I bought a CD player. Quite late you might say but it was still expensive at the time.

Perfect sound forever...

That's the CD's promise and I was once a believer until I befriended a regular hotel guest of ours at Inn Suites. Out of the blue, I asked if he could help me find some hard to find albums. He asked in return if it's in vinyl or CD. When I said it was the latter, it kickstarted a discussion that would span a decade at the very least.

Yes, the guy happened to be a certified vinyl aficionado. He gave me and another buddy of mine a crash course on Vinyl 101. On his many return trips to Manila, he didn't forget to bring old copies of Stereophile, The Absolute Sound and Audio Advisor. Through these highly esteemed publications, I got enlightened, learned the finer points of analog and became familiar with the likes of Jon Atkinson, Sam Tellig, the late Harry Pearson and of course, the most popular analog advocate of them all, Michael Fremer.

How come I never got into it?

First and foremost is the cost. This is undeniably a very expensive hobby. An ordinary average working guy like me can't afford any of those high-end audio systems.

Aside from the hardware, there are the essentials e.g. phono preamps, tonearms and cartridges as well as analog survival kits like anti static brushes, cleaning solutions, inner/outer sleeves, etc.

I was able to steer clear of the analog itch until the day I bought the hot rod Sakura AV-200T tube amp at Hyperaudio - home to many audio hobbyists and owned by the venerable audio guru and vintage equipment restorer Rene Rivo.

My visit coincided with the first ever holding of Vinyl ATBP, an all analog bazaar that has now become a quarterly meet for all black polyurethane lovers. It was still relatively early when I arrived but the store's premises was already abuzz teeming with people digging through crates and crates of records like crazy! 

A patron then played Al Jarreau's popular 1983 album Jarreau. I was stunned to say the least upon hearing familiar songs like  "Boogie Down," "Mornin'" and "Save Me." There's that unmistakable analog sound I said softly to myself.

Suddenly, there's this insatiable urge within to spin them records once again.