by: Lumad Aloranon
Wow! Mamords!
Baby-boomers use mamords to describe girls whose beauty is close to being perfect, if not.
A smart Bisdak somewhere in the Gingharian Sa Mga Bisaya coined it to describe marbles that are spotless,
the different colors they come look like neon lights just lit and so crystal-like clear that can serve as mirror.
Karapatsoy or patpat is the antonym.
Favourite among the boys!
Jolen, to kids growing up in Aloran in the 1960s, is probably the first among equals in toy popularity.
Classed according to size into small, medium and large, it is the medium size that are (the toys), the rest are-who cares!
Made of glasses, spherical in shape and come in different bright colors and its combinations and like ½ inch in diameter.
Oberhol is a popular game played with marbles.
Draw a line on the ground, that is the starting line (where you manukad), from there, measure a yard (the distances can be raised or lowered depending on level-of-difficulty) and bore four equally-distanced holes, the size of a marble.
The hole-designations are 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th. This is a two-player-minimum game, but the more the merrier.
There is also minimum standard of marble you can use, that is agreed-upon before the game starts.
Ha! If you think you can use your karapatsoy against our mamords, in your dreams!
From the starting line, each player throws a marble into any of the four holes that is agreed-upon.
The closest to the hole, gets to play first. From the starting line, roll your marble into the 1st hole.
If you make it, proceed to the 2nd, and so on.
When you make it to the 4th, go back to the back-3rd, back-2nd, then to finish or pinis.
If you miss a hole, you leave your marble where it is.
The next player would either take a shot at it, or roll his to the hole.
Shooting the target-marble is done either by throwing-a-dart like motion, or shatik (place a marble between your thumb and middle-finger then–fire!).
You skip a hole every hit you make.
So, a player can theoretically finish a game without making it to a hole.
This is continued until everyone, but one, gets to the finish-line.
There is only one loser (katsoy) in this game, and you need the worlds sympathy if it happens to be you.
The punishment is brutal!, un-civilized!, to say the least.
Each winner takes turn hitting your marble.
From the starting line, he hits (shatik) your marble once, then choose between rolling his marble to 1st hole or you put your marble the closest point outside the hole for him to hit it. If he chooses the former and fail, the pounding stops.
If he chooses the latter and fail, the pounding stops, if he hits it and neither marble is in the hole then the pounding is repeated to the next hole, and so on, but if either of your marble is in the hole (kolto), the pounding stops.
In the event your marble breaks, you have to replace it.
This is when you can use one below agreed standard. Some players do not bother pounding something that does not deserve a second look.
Kolto-pinis (from call-to-finish most likely).
It is a game rule:
Nobody quits.
The game is over when everyone says it is over.
Quitters are outlawed, barred from the game.
Losers do not quit, or lose chances of exacting revenge in future games.
Anyone can stand losing all his marbles, including the mamords that he always puts under his pillow, but who can stand the humiliation one suffers from being the katsoy!
He will be back with a vengeance!
When your marble is in a wrong hole, kolto.
You go back to 1st hole.
When you hit an opponent's marble and either his or yours end-up in a hole, kolto.
You go back to 1st hole.
Palmo is another fun marble game.
A hard wall, preferably concrete is required.
In the neighborhood, there was Iya Ikit's place, Iyo Payong's, Iya Putot's, Mama Sisay's and Nong Pangcoy's, and a few places else.
Our favorite was at Iya Ikit's.
Define the area by drawing vertical line from the wall, on both sides.
Then connect the two sides with a semi-circle line.
Within the defined area, draw a line (manuhan). And prepare a stick, gungi-say, two-inch.
Each player bounces his marble on the wall, trying to bring it closest to the manuhan.
The farthest one from the line, puts his marble for target first.
He bounces his marble against the wall.
If it gets out of the defined area, he loses it to the next player, then repeat it until it is in.
Next player takes his turn. The aim is to hit any marble that is inside, or at least bring his within the length of the gungi to the other.
If successful, he gets that marble and gets another chance to grab another one, else, the next player takes turn.
As everybody gains confidence, the defined area gets smaller and the gungi gets shorter if not eliminated.
This is my late younger brother's favorite marble game.
We had a wooden house, and a portion before you get inside, has the floors sloped a wee bit.
That is where we play.
At times, he feel safe because his marble is stacked between two floor slabs.
But nothing comes out-of-range from my preying-hands.
He always wins anyway, he is the younger.
Shomoy is another equally-exciting marble game.
This requires two-player-minimum, but the more the merrier.
Bore four holes on the ground, the size of a marble forming a square.
Bore the fifth one at the center.
Draw a line, say eight feet away-the starting line.
Each player takes a manu, by throwing a marble to the center-hole.
The closest takes the honor opening the round.
He collects one marble from each, plus his own, and throws them to the holes.
The aim is to put one in the center-hole. If he makes it, he has all the marbles, and another round is played.
If at least one makes it to any hole, then he has two choices:
The marbles are re-arranged.
The rest are placed closest to the one in a hole without touching it and the next player dictates which one should be hit-in shatik or dart fashion.
If he hits the target, only (hitting another be it by the one you throw or by the target marble is called pago)-not hitting any other, he has all the marbles.
Otherwise, he is out of this round, or;
Draws his magic jolen from his secret packet and takes a shot at putting it in the center-hole.
If he makes it, he has all the marbles, else, he waits for his next turn in the same round.
The round goes on and on until somebody wins.
The last but not the least is Plising.
Draw a circle on the ground and a starting line say, eight feet away.
Agree on the quantity of marbles from each player for the pot.
Lump all the marbles in the circle-center, leaving one in-front (this is the puntarya).
Each player takes a manu by throwing his magic jolen (batoan) from the circle to the starting line.
The closest to it, starts the round.
NB: The game modes:
Standard
Hit anywhere in the circle, and if you can get one and only one out of the circle, you have all the marbles.
Puntaryahay
Hit only the puntarya.
If you can get it out of the circle, you have all the marbles.
The player-in-his-turn either:
Takes a shot at the pot;
Places his batoan strategically-close (but outside of) the circle, inside would be a pago, where he loses his turn-waits for the next one;
Takes a shot at the pot from his current position;
Takes a shot at any batoan already in the area of the pot.
If he hits it, the victim is out of this round, and the victor gets the chance to take a shot at the pot.
The cycle goes-on-and-on until one wins or when unanimously-decided to do the round a-fresh.
One time I was in town at the same time a boyhood buddy who now lives in another province was also.
Over a few beers and with a few other friends, we chat.
I was delighted when he mentioned about my skills with jolen.
The days when I was above everyone else, the Jolen King!
And aptly so!
Only two other guys, both cousins from out of town stand the chance of beating me.
I carried that title proudly to my adulthood.