the SOCIETY lifestyle

[zimdude]

I like to read "society" columns and features, like Tim Yap, Maurice Arcache, etc. I wonder if any PExers are part of that, are regularly featured, or belong to that sector of society, whether they were born into it or made their way there...

[E46boi]

Is it just me, or does anyone else find Maurice Arcache's column a little difficult to read? It's like someone's stream of consciousness, with a smattering of "palanggas" and "moi's".

(Not that I'm putting the man down, it's just a little hard for me to follow what he's saying.)

And what exactly are palanggas? Is this some sort of term-of-endearment?

[KiTTY2babe]

Yeah, palangga is a term of affection usually used by people of Visayan origin.

---

I think those people featured regularly on society columns are born into it. It's pretty hard to make it in the so-called elite circle unless you want to be subbed and accused of being "trying-hard" or noveux riche.

[bepanthene]

Originally posted by E46boi
Is it just me, or does anyone else find Maurice Arcache's column a little difficult to read? It's like someone's stream of consciousness, with a smattering of "palanggas" and "moi's".

(Not that I'm putting the man down, it's just a little hard for me to follow what he's saying.)

And what exactly are palanggas? Is this some sort of term-of-endearment?

Moi feel the same way, too, palangga. :evil_lol:

He's one "funny" man....

[mostwanted]

Originally posted by bepanthene


Moi feel the same way, too, palangga. :evil_lol:

He's one "funny" man....

"man"? ;)

[E46boi]

Originally posted by bepanthene

He's one "funny" man....

Great pun! :lol:

[zimdude]

I find Arcache's writing entertaining nevertheless.
(and pics by Alex Van Hagen (?) on Kodak Max (?) plugging huh)

Tim Yap for today - lots of society chicks (pardon if it sounds sexist) in bikinis and the claim that "everyone in Boracay (or elsewhere) wears bikinis, no one wears one-pieces anymore."

Well if I were a girl, I haven't got the right to show off my flab! :teehee:

Yeah, born into it. Maybe my kids would have a chance. :D

[jopert]

good for your kids, im banking on my grandchildred to reach that "circle" hehe.

[tr|n|ty]

hmm whoever wants to consciously join this group must be pretty pathetic, in my opinion. some real people of that "class" actually shy away from the ostantaneous display of relative wealth in a third world country. there's more to life than being manila's 5 loveliest, writing a beauty/society column and bumming off your family's old money.

[BadGiRL]

IMHO, you get into their columns and let them interview you pa, you are then one first class wannabe who will never be.
This statement of course excludes people who make the "laws" of the high society. I mean, the people who are the yardsticks of high society.

[tAnGeriNe007]

when i was young, i used to *dream* that someday, i'd get to cover those parties...much more, i also wanted to be a dahling

...at sino ba namang hindi nangarap mas maging maganda, mas flawless, mas mayaman, at mas pedigreed di ba? at one point in our lives, we al must've wished.

i still enjoy looking at those society pages now- but not anymore to admire, but rather, to wonder if the palanggas are really as sunsiny- as perky- as purrrfect (like their perfectly braced smiles) as they "appear" to be in the cameras...

P.S. AT isa pang bonus sa pagtingin-tingin sa society pgs na to, kadalasan, mas "reliable" pa ang tsismis na makukuha dito about those social climbing wannabe artistas who think that having their pictures placed alongside the ay@l@$ and zUb!rI$ would elevate them to a nIrvaNa status...
oh well do we dare name some? :hiphop:

[zimdude]

thanks for the insights... well I'm curious... so, tAnGeriNe007, you got chismis here? :D

well, I gotta get back to work, so my grandchildren would have old money decades from now! :teehee:

[avonlea]

Originally posted by tAnGeriNe007
when i was young, i used to *dream* that someday, i'd get to cover those parties...much more, i also wanted to be a dahling

...at sino ba namang hindi nangarap mas maging maganda, mas flawless, mas mayaman, at mas pedigreed di ba? at one point in our lives, we al must've wished.

i still enjoy looking at those society pages now- but not anymore to admire, but rather, to wonder if the palanggas are really as sunsiny- as perky- as purrrfect (like their perfectly braced smiles) as they "appear" to be in the cameras...

P.S. AT isa pang bonus sa pagtingin-tingin sa society pgs na to, kadalasan, mas "reliable" pa ang tsismis na makukuha dito about those social climbing wannabe artistas who think that having their pictures placed alongside the ay@l@$ and zUb!rI$ would elevate them to a nIrvaNa status...
oh well do we dare name some? :hiphop:

Same here...

[AltarBoy^_^]

I amuse myself with Tim Yap's columns from time to time since most of what he covers are dance events. Fortunately for me, music is the only factor that inspires me to keep abreast with the write-ups. I saw for myself the type of people revolving around these events that he covers. We need not imitate or ascend to their glamorous plane, we can appreciate the true and not-so-true in everyone from a distance or maybe even take them to our own plane. Maurice Arcache's wit in his/her columns are also amusing. Anyway, it's their job to hype such events because they were hired to cover them. If only I had the money to make them cover my next birthday in Jollibee. :D

[bepanthene]

Di ko kilala si Tim Yap and the stuff he covers since I'm more familiar with Maurice. The stuff Maurice writes about sounds really intriguing, but in reality, they are awfully dull. Minsan kasi puro payabangan lang yung manga pa-sosyal na tao and that gets annoying and dull quickly. Like pupunta sila sa isang "grand" wedding of someone from Cosmo Manille's alta sociedad para lang iyabang yung designer gown nila, jewelry, new car, etc. I don't see the fun in trying to out-do each other.

And like Peps said, yung iba para maging visible in the media kasi they want a career in it. Or the others are just golddiggers--those Bvlgari watches are really nice!!! :naughty:

Maybe it's just me. I just find most of the people there pretentious and superficial, though they still are nice people. I suppose other people like that kind of lifestyle though. To each his own, I guess. :D

[durianita]

i get a crack out of seeing what tessa prieto-valdes shows up in for events. i'm trying to figure out whether she's screaming for attention or has been high on something (prescription, kasi sosyal) for most of her life.

interestingly enough, tessa prieto styles jolina magdangal.
http://www.inq7.net/lif/2002/jan/16/lif_6-1.htm

i can see jolina stepping into her shoes in about thirty years.:D

[a]

hell... if anyone wants to feature me... i'll be more than willing!!! just need a really big donation sa bank account ko para i can fit in... wehehehe :p

[rosychik]

Originally posted by PePs
i know for one who uses his appearances columns like that to get what he's dying for : a career in media. the people you see there is not the cream of the crop. it could be a big event with a lot of media coverage but a smaller event could be more happening without media coverage but with the right mix of people. the best parties are the ones that don't get written about, imho.

I agree w/ PePs. Normally, whatever occasion gets written about or featured in the lifestyle pages... you can be sure some PR person is behind that.

I should know. :wink:

[zimdude]

so Ginggay Joven is getting married...

[roxyd3428]

palanggas,
the wedding will be full of cosmo manille's lovely people
it will be fabi...

in fairness ke maurice he really writes his columns
but when he has typos
i sometimes had to call his staff (who is , presumably the typist)
to clarify things...

he would say..
ohh that stupid (name)

im so sorry dahhling..

the funny thing is
he does seem kinda of nice...

[nicebad]

me and my niece gets thrown in some of these crowd. but only because of our jobs. she's a part-time model (a fulltime student at thames) and me because i work for causes. but right after the "scenes" we shed all the pretensions off like we were shedding our clothes off.

the lifestyles are fascinating sometimes, mind-boggling most of the time and really kenkoy all the time. i would not want to be in that "fish tank" like for the rest of my life. sooo tiring... with a crowd like that, one gets too old and jaded too fast.

peace! :winker: to my socialite friends !

[ironman]

Originally posted by E46boi
Is it just me, or does anyone else find Maurice Arcache's column a little difficult to read? It's like someone's stream of consciousness, with a smattering of "palanggas" and "moi's".

(Not that I'm putting the man down, it's just a little hard for me to follow what he's saying.)

And what exactly are palanggas? Is this some sort of term-of-endearment?

Good ol Maurice ... he doesn't really write a column in the real sense of the word .. it's more an enumeration of names of people who were at a particular event.

[RALPH WALDO]

No one writes about SOCIETY better than Anton San Diego. :)

I admire the likes of Margarita Fores (owner of Cibo and Cafe Bola) and Kitkat Zobel... very simple women. The REAL high society. Unlike some feeling-like-a-virgin members of Catholic Women's Club. :mad:

[zimdude]

A relevant column by Michael Tan today:

http://www.inq7.net/opi/2002/jul/16/opi_mltan-1.htm

"YABANG!" Filipinos often hurl that comment at Westerners. It can be a furious invective that translates, "You arrogant fool!"

We stereotype the Westerner as being "too aggressive" (and therefore arrogant). Conversely, we like to believe that we Asians are, by nature, modest.

I'd question those assumptions. Let's start by looking at instances when we label Westerners as being "yabang". I'm going to give a concrete example here, using a common story that comes from Filipinos new to the United States. They go into a store and ask the sales clerk for a certain item. The clerk checks the computer and goes, "Sorry, man, but I don't have that in stock right now, but hey, I can order one for you if you want."

Many Filipinos have told me variations of that story and cited them as "proof" that the Westerner is "yabang". "Imagine," they point out, "he's only a clerk and he talks like he owns the store. And calling me 'hey man' and offering to get me the item. Yabang."

What we see here is a misinterpretation of the clerk's self-confidence, and typical American go-getter business attitude. When they offer to order the item for you, it's because they know it makes good business sense, rather than have you buy from someone else.

Contrast all that with a local store, where the clerk will give you a blank look and say, "Wala po kami." She's being proper in saying "we" don't have it, rather than "I". She's also being polite, using the honorific "po". She's as respectful and as modest as Asians want her to be, but she's also a liability for the business. There's a chance the store actually has the item but she doesn't know it. And if the store doesn't have the item, she's not about to order it for you. She knows she's "only" a clerk and she's living up to what her defined role is: meek, modest and hopelessly helpless.

Let me give one more example to drive home my point. Your son comes home with his bride-to-be, a Westerner or an Asian-American. She walks up to you, offers to shake your hand and goes, "Pleased to meet you, Dad." Oops. You think, "Disrespectful. The nerve, this is the first time we're meeting and she wants to call me dad. Yabang."

Then you console yourself by remembering your neighbor's story about his first meeting with his American son-in-law. "Hi there, Es-tay-ban," the fool said and, not content, went on to ask, while chewing gum, "Gosh, Es-tay-ban's a mouthful. Can I call you Steve?"

Get the picture? The clash of values isn't really over modesty. It's a clash between Asian feudal values that emphasize rigid hierarchies and Western capitalism's emphasis on egalitarianism and individual worth.

In the West, you are what you make of yourself. In Asia, you are never "you" as an individual; instead you are defined by your class, caste, age or sex with strict behavioral norms attached to your ascribed station in life. Modesty is imposed on those who are deemed inferior. As for those who consider themselves above the unwashed masses, we see a terrible immodesty, many times more mayabang than that of the Westerner.

Asians flaunt wealth and power. For the Filipino, this is usually done by over-dressing, decking himself with what he thinks are the symbols of wealth: flashy jewelry, brand-name accessories.

We live on, and demand adulation. Think of the long introductions for an "honorable" and "esteemed" guest speaker, using biodata prepared by who else but the guest speaker. The introduction may as well be a eulogy, as you read out the guest's credentials and achievements, from graduating valedictorian in kindergarten to his having eight (official) children.

It is amazing how this training to be immodest starts early in life. You see it even in school among the children of the rich and powerful, in the way they dress, in the latest electronic gadgets they carry. These kids don't walk, they strut around. Neither do they talk; they boast, they order people around.

Our feudal values demand that we brag about who we are and what our achievements are, which is why politicians never let us forget that it is through their largesse (even if with our taxpayers' money) that you have a newly paved street, or a hospital, all named after the politician's grandfather or mother. The cult of the personality, so rampant in Asia, belies our claims to modesty. Don't think of North Korea. Think of how we allow ourselves to be tormented by the faces of incumbent presidents on mass rail transit cards, on postage stamps, on our currency.

The swagger, the insolent voice, the conspicuous consumption of wealth are all part of an assertion of privilege, a long-playing ritual to intimidate others into "modest'' silence. In countries where such a culture dominates, like the Philippines, progress is slow. There is little room for innovation or creativity since individual merit is rarely recognized. The only way up, besides being born into privilege, is to join the circle of sycophants that sing daily praise to those in power.

Our language says it all. We do not have words for "modest" and "modesty" in Tagalog, except in the sense of how a woman is supposed to behave. We do have a word for "humble" – mapagpakumbaba, which emphasizes the way we are supposed to lower, even prostrate ourselves, in relation to the powerful. Alas, we are a nation humbled and hobbled.

----


Society events: the Ms. Violago who got married to a Tanjutco (?) is the sister of my batchmate in AdMU. I don't know them personally, trivia lang.

But heck, sometimes I wish I had the money to fund my tech projects (http://mparaz.com).

[MayorQuimby]

zimdude,

Nice article. It definitely hits the nail right smacking on the head.