Coming of age of sorts
Queen’s "Another One Bites the Dust" was the first record I bought with my own money. It was a 45 record, yes, vinyl, with a flipside that could’ve used more traction on our record player. I remember struggling not to spend my recess money while saving for it, and the pride and freedom that came from the feeling of “having your own” bought with hard-earned (scrimping on recess money is hard-earned!), money. It was liberating. Oh the power it gave me, to be 11, and be able to play the song whenever I want, over and over, when I was mad, happy, sad, ecstatic, bored, and to dance like no one was watching (even though my siblings probably were), and lose myself to the song. It was a coming of age of sorts. I watched Bohemian Rhapsody with those memories washing over me as the songs took me back to my 11-year-old self, in Cainta. I sat in the movie house reliving the life of the band centered on Freddy Mercury’s struggles. The sound system at the Ayala cinema made ...