I grew up in the age of slam book, which was our Facebook in the ’80s. My first slam book was a small peach one, followed by a standard notebook size one and then a green hardbound one. My objective in having a slam book was to know more about my friends’ interests. My hidden agenda was to check who among my friends had the same crush as mine!
Let’s compare slam books versus Facebook:
- Presentation- in terms of the presentation, the slam book is more personal since Facebook’s layout is generic. Therefore, a slam book’s appearance reflects the owner’s style.
- Gender of the user- slam book is more popular to girls than boys while Facebook is popular to all genders.
- Age of the user- assuming that both of them existed in the same era when it comes to slam book, the range of the users’ age is from 9-17 years old whereas Facebook users are from minors to seniors.
- Accessibility- you need the slam book itself and a pen. Facebook users need a tablet, a mobile phone, or a computer and an internet connection.
- Interface with friends- a slam book offers a more personal interface with the user’s friends because it’s awkward to be asking a stranger to have a few minutes to answer the questions on it. On Facebook, strangers and friends can just “like” your post if they find it amusing.
Out of curiosity, I tried to be my 10-year-old self again and answered a slam book that I found online. Of course, I didn’t have an email and blog when I was 10 years old. I got my first email when I started working, a company email. I had my first blog five years later.
As a 10-year-old, I consider going to the plaza alone as a big achievement because I was afraid of crossing a busy street. Until now, I still have that fear. I just put on a brave front and try to focus as much as possible when crossing the street. Funny how I always wrote that I wanted to be a doctor when I almost always fainted at the sight of the hospital before.
Most children of my time believed in Santa Claus. It was magical. Christmas softened everyone’s heart. Actually, the gifts that my brother and I received were simple and inexpensive. It was the thought that somebody as special as Santa Claus took time to “visit” us that counted.
Pink was the dominant color in my childhood. I was already in college when I realized that I never really wanted that color for myself. I was just influenced that it was my favorite.
My parents loved to wear perfume. It is something that I did not get from them. Today, I barely wear perfume–only when needed. In terms of my role model, I looked up to my late mother because she was sociable and intellectual.
I used to write in the slam book that I love jazz. Truth is, I’ve never heard a piece of jazz music not until I was 15 years old! But in terms of singer, Whitney Houston has always been on my list since I was a kid. In the 80s, almost every kid knew the lyrics of her hit song “The Greatest Love of All.” Ironically, I don’t remember being a fan of any celebrity (actors/actresses) before.
I laugh at my 10-year-old self now when I remember that I used to write that I love Japanese foods. How can that happen when there were very few restaurants in Balanga when I was growing up? And kinilaw na isda is not even a Japanese dish. What was I thinking then? Hahaha.
The weekend activity that I was referring to was the Saturday visit to the church with Mary Ann to pray with Ate Meding and the Banzon kids. We prayed the rosary for Mama Mary. They called it Legion of Mary. After that, Mary Ann and I would eat in Denbell’s and then go home.
One of my favorite hobbies was reading magazines like Time, Newsweek, MOD, Woman’s, and Women’s. When I started working, I bought my own magazines like Good Housekeeping and Health and Home. I stopped collecting magazines when it became more convenient to research on the internet.
Two of my favorite TV shows were Shaider and O-shin. They were the only Japanese-produced show that I loved when I was growing up. Holy Week in the 80s was more serene than the present time. The Ten Commandments never fails to impress me especially the parting of the Red Sea scene. I think this movie led me to be interested in reading the bible. Because of this influence, I have always believed that God is love.
The World of Second Chances 