I'm listening to James Brown. Just finished making and eating a few snickerdoodles with a mug of cinnamon apple tea. They turned out a bit too crunchy (normal for our oven seeing as it's a piece of crap that burns the tops of things and leaves the centers uncooked) but good other than that.
My roommate, Emma, walked in as they were coming out. She tore a ligament in her knee after falling down yesterday and now has it wrapped up and immobilized in a type of half-cast. I made her try one, and after tasting it she said "I didn't realize how much I needed sugar until I had one!" and then proceeded to eat 4 more :) Nacho, a different roommate who's a good cook and therefore a bit judgmental about food. He had one and came back for seconds.
Thank goodness they ate some. I made enough for at least 8 people.
Which brings me to the title of the post. Snickerdoodles (aka sugar and spice and butter) make people feel good. And sharing snickerdoodles while eating them yourself makes you feel even better. I'm feeling great right now.
And to make things better, I came across this gem on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5HRzaOFhec
Enjoy.
miércoles, 24 de noviembre de 2010
lunes, 22 de noviembre de 2010
miércoles, 17 de noviembre de 2010
Dragons... and why I like the metro
Three days ago I painted a picture of a dragon on an index card with a mix of instant coffee, old red wine, and charcoal, inspired by one among many video lectures I've been watching lately in a series of 10-20 minute talks sponsored by TED. (If you're interested, they can be seen here http://www.ted.com/talks) This particular one talked about video games, psychology, learning, and motivation. One of the games mentioned has the goal of teaming up with other players to kill dragons. I'm thinking about the role of games in "formal education" as well as in learning outside of a school building.
Then as I was leaving the metro on my way home from work, I passed by a man with a great sweater walking with his 3 or 4 year old grandson. Since I'm teaching elementary school this year, and more specifically 4, 5, and 6 year old kids, I find adults' conversations with children of that age more interesting than I ever have before.
The only part of the conversation I over heard was the grandfather saying, in a very driven tone of voice, the following:
Exacto. Es un dragon que podemos usar para....
(Translation: Exactly. It's a dragon that we can use to....)
And then I turned the corner up the stairs to exit, so I missed the end of it.
I've been thinking about it and coming up with possible endings all afternoon.
This is one reason that I like riding the metro to work. And dragons.
Dragon picture courtesy of Google images. This is NOT the painting I mentioned at the beginning of the post. My painting skills are not up to a feat like this. Yet. ;)
Then as I was leaving the metro on my way home from work, I passed by a man with a great sweater walking with his 3 or 4 year old grandson. Since I'm teaching elementary school this year, and more specifically 4, 5, and 6 year old kids, I find adults' conversations with children of that age more interesting than I ever have before.
The only part of the conversation I over heard was the grandfather saying, in a very driven tone of voice, the following:
Exacto. Es un dragon que podemos usar para....
(Translation: Exactly. It's a dragon that we can use to....)
And then I turned the corner up the stairs to exit, so I missed the end of it.
I've been thinking about it and coming up with possible endings all afternoon.
This is one reason that I like riding the metro to work. And dragons.
Dragon picture courtesy of Google images. This is NOT the painting I mentioned at the beginning of the post. My painting skills are not up to a feat like this. Yet. ;)
lunes, 15 de noviembre de 2010
Adventures at home: Intuitive Sourbread Bread Making
Some people have pets to take care of and feed. Other people have children. I have a sourdough starter.
Although there are lots of types of bread that can be made with out one, some breads need a starter. Once it is active and healthy, a sourdough starter is a mix of natural yeast, water, and flour that has a consistency like pancake batter. I spend a few days during my first week in my apartment here in Madrid trying to activate a powder sourdough starter mix that my mom bought for me in Alaska by mixing it with water and flour and trying to keep it as warm as possible. In theory the mix would have started bubbling within a day or two. Mine barely bubbled, so I was worried it might be dead or unhealthy (or just inactive because our apartment was a bit cold, and while working during the day, it was hard to make sure the starter was warm enough while I was gone.)
Like a pet or a child, starters need to be fed. Once a week, I use about a cup of my starter and replenish/feed it with a cup of warm water and flour. After leaving it in a warm place for 3 hours, it now bubbles nicely. This feeding process keeps the yeast healthy and keeps the starter ready for whatever baking I might want to do in the following weeks.
BEFORE PICTURE: Risen dough. It's ALIVE....
To date, I have made 4 loaves of sourdough bread and one batch of sourdough pancakes. The first loaf was dark on the outside, less than cooked on the inside, and fairly ugly. After flipping it over and baking for twice the recommended time it was finally cooked but even uglier than before.
Since then, each loaf has turned out better than the previous one. Whether it's because I'm getting better at making dough, because the starter is more well-fed, because I'm figuring out the trick to working with my apartment's horrible oven, or just plain luck is unclear. (More about my oven in a post in a few days...)
AFTER PICTURE: Second loaf of sourdough bread. Before being devoured by Kim, Omar, and I with chicken and avocado. Followed by salsa dancing at Azucar near Atocha.
After the second loaf (seen above), I brought my sheet of sourdough recipes and some starter to brunch at a friend's house to make sourdough pancakes. I don't know what happened to it, but I haven't seen it since even though I'm sure I put it in my bag before leaving.
My latest attempt was 2 loaves at once. Small loaves since the last 2 were enormous. Since I couldn't find my recipe sheet and was too stubborn to look up a recipe online, I made the dough by what little I could remember and "intuition." A spoonful of sugar, a pinch of salt, some yeast, a bit of water, starter, and lots of flour. I added flour and kneaded until it "felt" right (not something I expected to do successfully since I had only made bread twice before in my life...)
They turned out wonderfully and were both gone within 2 days. My roommates helped.
Especially good warm with a spinach/herb cream cheese/onion spread that I mixed up as an experiment.
Yet another good adventure while at home alone.
Take home lesson: In baking, as in many things, using a combination of intuition, a sense of adventure, and experience often works out better than following the technical, no questions asked, step-by-step approach of someone else's recipe.
Although there are lots of types of bread that can be made with out one, some breads need a starter. Once it is active and healthy, a sourdough starter is a mix of natural yeast, water, and flour that has a consistency like pancake batter. I spend a few days during my first week in my apartment here in Madrid trying to activate a powder sourdough starter mix that my mom bought for me in Alaska by mixing it with water and flour and trying to keep it as warm as possible. In theory the mix would have started bubbling within a day or two. Mine barely bubbled, so I was worried it might be dead or unhealthy (or just inactive because our apartment was a bit cold, and while working during the day, it was hard to make sure the starter was warm enough while I was gone.)
Like a pet or a child, starters need to be fed. Once a week, I use about a cup of my starter and replenish/feed it with a cup of warm water and flour. After leaving it in a warm place for 3 hours, it now bubbles nicely. This feeding process keeps the yeast healthy and keeps the starter ready for whatever baking I might want to do in the following weeks.
BEFORE PICTURE: Risen dough. It's ALIVE....
To date, I have made 4 loaves of sourdough bread and one batch of sourdough pancakes. The first loaf was dark on the outside, less than cooked on the inside, and fairly ugly. After flipping it over and baking for twice the recommended time it was finally cooked but even uglier than before.
Since then, each loaf has turned out better than the previous one. Whether it's because I'm getting better at making dough, because the starter is more well-fed, because I'm figuring out the trick to working with my apartment's horrible oven, or just plain luck is unclear. (More about my oven in a post in a few days...)
AFTER PICTURE: Second loaf of sourdough bread. Before being devoured by Kim, Omar, and I with chicken and avocado. Followed by salsa dancing at Azucar near Atocha.
After the second loaf (seen above), I brought my sheet of sourdough recipes and some starter to brunch at a friend's house to make sourdough pancakes. I don't know what happened to it, but I haven't seen it since even though I'm sure I put it in my bag before leaving.
My latest attempt was 2 loaves at once. Small loaves since the last 2 were enormous. Since I couldn't find my recipe sheet and was too stubborn to look up a recipe online, I made the dough by what little I could remember and "intuition." A spoonful of sugar, a pinch of salt, some yeast, a bit of water, starter, and lots of flour. I added flour and kneaded until it "felt" right (not something I expected to do successfully since I had only made bread twice before in my life...)
They turned out wonderfully and were both gone within 2 days. My roommates helped.
Especially good warm with a spinach/herb cream cheese/onion spread that I mixed up as an experiment.
Yet another good adventure while at home alone.
Take home lesson: In baking, as in many things, using a combination of intuition, a sense of adventure, and experience often works out better than following the technical, no questions asked, step-by-step approach of someone else's recipe.
jueves, 11 de noviembre de 2010
Roommates
I have such good roommates.
This morning (afternoon) I woke up at 2 pm. I woke up late because I've been a bit sick, so I didn't sleep very well because of a cough.
I went into the kitchen for some green tea and breakfast, and Emma and Nacho were both sitting there at the table. Nacho had just finished making fideua, a typical seafood dish made with thin noodles and vegetables from Valencia, the region in Spain where he's from. He's a very good cook. He offered me some because he had made too much (most likely on purpose), so I had a plate for breakfast. Que rico! How delicious!
(For a description and picture of fideua see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fideu%C3%A0)
Then I went to hang up a load of laundry that I had done the night before and found the washing machine full and running. I asked Nacho and Emma about it. Apparently Emma asked him whose clothes were in the machine, and when he told her that I hadn't slept well because I'd been up coughing all night, she hung up all my laundry for me.
Then I tried to wash the dishes (mine from the night before making soup and some of Nacho's from the fideua). Emma was already in the middle of doing them. I told her to leave half so I could finish them. Sat down with yet another mug of green tea and talked to Nacho for a bit, and when I looked over she was on the last pan. I asked what she thought she was doing by not leaving me any to do, and she just dismissed me with a "eh. I was already cleaning them and in the dish-washing zone. You've done my dishes other days." and finished cleaning it.
I asked if either of them wanted some green tea or any other kind of tea (they never do, so it was mostly a joke), and they made fun of me for drinking so much tea. Then they decided that I'm still sick because I don't have a "nice madrileno man" (guy from Madrid) to take care of me properly. I told them that if they felt like finding me a quality one that I wouldn't be opposed to it but that I don't plan to look for one myself, and they said they would work on it. (Hopefully a joke.) They're as good as being sarcastic and giving people crap as they are at cooking and sharing.
En fin, I'm happy with where I'm living and the people I'm living with.
Me, Nacho, and Emma on our couch before a black-and-white birthday party.
Quick background of each of the roommates:
Emma -- She is a 24 year old law student. She was born in Mexico where she lived for 12 years before living in Sacramento for 2 years and then moving to Galicia (Spain) with her mom and stepdad. Her mom is Mexican and her dad is from Pennsylvania and doesn't speak a word of Spanish. He's currently living in California and working as a chef. Now she has been in Madrid for 2 or 3 years studying. She has a lot of friends, likes dressing up to go out dancing, has tons of shoes (mostly heels), and is extremely honest, intelligent, and direct while still being kind.
Nacho -- He is in his first year of an engineering program here in Madrid. He's 22 years old and from Valencia (Spain). The other day he made 8 liters of sangria in our kitchen because a few people were coming over. Half of it is still in our refrigerator because he overestimated so badly. He likes sweet drinks, soccer, and cooking. His parents own an Italian restaurant in the town he's from. He gives everyone shit. All the time. He likes traveling, drinking, and meeting new people.
Joseph -- The one roommate not mentioned in the story above. He's from Paris and is 24 or 25 years old. He speaks some Spanish, but not a lot. Since our schedules don't coincide much and since he spends a lot of time with some of his French friends, I don't see him as much as I see my other roommates, but when I do, he's always very pleasant. He's studying for a masters in business and will only be here for 4 months. He's married and has a 2 month old baby boy. His wife and baby are both in Paris, so he flies home almost every other weekend to visit them and talks on Skype a lot. He doesn't like cooking very much and usually eats pasta with butter and shredded emmental cheese. As in... 6/7 days probably. He likes to watch movies and is a nice, although sometime not very present, roommate.
This morning (afternoon) I woke up at 2 pm. I woke up late because I've been a bit sick, so I didn't sleep very well because of a cough.
I went into the kitchen for some green tea and breakfast, and Emma and Nacho were both sitting there at the table. Nacho had just finished making fideua, a typical seafood dish made with thin noodles and vegetables from Valencia, the region in Spain where he's from. He's a very good cook. He offered me some because he had made too much (most likely on purpose), so I had a plate for breakfast. Que rico! How delicious!
(For a description and picture of fideua see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fideu%C3%A0)
Then I went to hang up a load of laundry that I had done the night before and found the washing machine full and running. I asked Nacho and Emma about it. Apparently Emma asked him whose clothes were in the machine, and when he told her that I hadn't slept well because I'd been up coughing all night, she hung up all my laundry for me.
Then I tried to wash the dishes (mine from the night before making soup and some of Nacho's from the fideua). Emma was already in the middle of doing them. I told her to leave half so I could finish them. Sat down with yet another mug of green tea and talked to Nacho for a bit, and when I looked over she was on the last pan. I asked what she thought she was doing by not leaving me any to do, and she just dismissed me with a "eh. I was already cleaning them and in the dish-washing zone. You've done my dishes other days." and finished cleaning it.
I asked if either of them wanted some green tea or any other kind of tea (they never do, so it was mostly a joke), and they made fun of me for drinking so much tea. Then they decided that I'm still sick because I don't have a "nice madrileno man" (guy from Madrid) to take care of me properly. I told them that if they felt like finding me a quality one that I wouldn't be opposed to it but that I don't plan to look for one myself, and they said they would work on it. (Hopefully a joke.) They're as good as being sarcastic and giving people crap as they are at cooking and sharing.
En fin, I'm happy with where I'm living and the people I'm living with.
Me, Nacho, and Emma on our couch before a black-and-white birthday party.Quick background of each of the roommates:
Emma -- She is a 24 year old law student. She was born in Mexico where she lived for 12 years before living in Sacramento for 2 years and then moving to Galicia (Spain) with her mom and stepdad. Her mom is Mexican and her dad is from Pennsylvania and doesn't speak a word of Spanish. He's currently living in California and working as a chef. Now she has been in Madrid for 2 or 3 years studying. She has a lot of friends, likes dressing up to go out dancing, has tons of shoes (mostly heels), and is extremely honest, intelligent, and direct while still being kind.
Nacho -- He is in his first year of an engineering program here in Madrid. He's 22 years old and from Valencia (Spain). The other day he made 8 liters of sangria in our kitchen because a few people were coming over. Half of it is still in our refrigerator because he overestimated so badly. He likes sweet drinks, soccer, and cooking. His parents own an Italian restaurant in the town he's from. He gives everyone shit. All the time. He likes traveling, drinking, and meeting new people.
Joseph -- The one roommate not mentioned in the story above. He's from Paris and is 24 or 25 years old. He speaks some Spanish, but not a lot. Since our schedules don't coincide much and since he spends a lot of time with some of his French friends, I don't see him as much as I see my other roommates, but when I do, he's always very pleasant. He's studying for a masters in business and will only be here for 4 months. He's married and has a 2 month old baby boy. His wife and baby are both in Paris, so he flies home almost every other weekend to visit them and talks on Skype a lot. He doesn't like cooking very much and usually eats pasta with butter and shredded emmental cheese. As in... 6/7 days probably. He likes to watch movies and is a nice, although sometime not very present, roommate.
miércoles, 10 de noviembre de 2010
lunes, 8 de noviembre de 2010
Here I Go Again by Whitesnake
Song of the week:
"I don't know where I'm going
but I sure know where I've been
hanging on the promises in songs of yesterday.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time
but here I go again, here I go again.
Tho' I keep searching for an answer
I never seem to find what I'm looking for.
Oh Lord, I pray you give me strength to carry on
'cos I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams.
Here I go again on my own
goin' down the only road I've ever known.
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time.
Just another heart in need of rescue
waiting on love's sweet charity
an' I'm gonna hold on for the rest of my days
'cos I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams.
Here I go again on my own
goin' down the only road I've ever known.
Like a hobo I was born to walk alone.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time
but here I go again, here I go again,
here I go again, here I go.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time.
Here I go again on my own
goin' down the only road I've ever known.
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone
'cos I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams.
Here I go again on my own
goin' down the only road I've ever known.
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time
but here I go again, here I go again,
here I go again, here I go,
here I go again"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oohFGOmcxuo
"I don't know where I'm going
but I sure know where I've been
hanging on the promises in songs of yesterday.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time
but here I go again, here I go again.
Tho' I keep searching for an answer
I never seem to find what I'm looking for.
Oh Lord, I pray you give me strength to carry on
'cos I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams.
Here I go again on my own
goin' down the only road I've ever known.
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time.
Just another heart in need of rescue
waiting on love's sweet charity
an' I'm gonna hold on for the rest of my days
'cos I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams.
Here I go again on my own
goin' down the only road I've ever known.
Like a hobo I was born to walk alone.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time
but here I go again, here I go again,
here I go again, here I go.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time.
Here I go again on my own
goin' down the only road I've ever known.
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone
'cos I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams.
Here I go again on my own
goin' down the only road I've ever known.
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone.
An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time
but here I go again, here I go again,
here I go again, here I go,
here I go again"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oohFGOmcxuo
jueves, 4 de noviembre de 2010
Halloween
lunes, 1 de noviembre de 2010
Soup of the week
My friend Ann just asked me if I had any soup recipes for soup beginners. She's the inspiration for this post about my lastest home-by-myself cooking adventure. Here's my response.
-----------------------------
Do you have an immersion blender by any chance?
Lastest soup experiment (and it's vegan, so extra plus there)
Grill up a little diced garlic -- one tooth (Spanish is "diente" clove maybe? i forget the word in english..) in a pot w/ some olive oil (extra virgin is the best)
Toss the garlic (unless you really like garlic)
Keep the oil -- will have a little garlic-y taste
Add 4 chopped carrots and 2 regular sized chopped potatoes
Add water until the veggies are just covered. (Oil might splatter, be careful)
Boil until veggies are soft.
Drizzle with olive oil and add about 2 tbsp of white vinegar (to taste)
Blend with immersion blender until consistency is even
Add more water if you want. And a little more olive oil.
Sprinkle w/ salt, pepper, and oregano.
Will stay good in the fridge up to 4 or 5 days and probably would freeze well also.
To make it a little creamier (and less vegan), melt in a little cream cheese.
It comes out a fabulous autumn-y pumpkin-y orange. So that's always nice :)
Very good w/ fresh bread. Once I figure out my oven (it's a little... special), I'm thinking of making some sourdough...
The same type of idea works with pretty much any veggies, so it's perfect if you have any that are about to go bad. I made it w/ spinach and zucchini the other day, and it was delicious as well. Kind of looks like baby food when it's green, but not in a bad way.
Buen provecho! Enjoy!
I was too hungry to take a picture before I started eating it, so it's not the most beautiful picture in the world. But it gives you an idea for the color of the soup. See picture at the top for a pre-snacking photo.
jueves, 28 de octubre de 2010
A Gnarls Barkley kind of day
I work four days a week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday.
While it would be a thousand times better to have Monday or Friday off, it doesn't look like there's any chance of my schedule changing until next semester.
So since today's Thursday, and I don't work today, here's a post about what there is to do in Madrid on a Thursday while everyone else is working.
1. Sleep in until 11
2. Do laundry
3. Feed sourdough starter w/ 1 cup of flour and 1 cup of warm water and let sit in a warm place until bubbly. Then refrigerate until you feel like baking something.
4. Make a bookmark out of scrap scrapbook paper and a page torn out of The Great Gatsby.
5. Listen to Gnarls Barkley
6. Drink 2 cups of Eroski (local supermarket) brand instant coffee. With plenty of sugar. It's the most sour coffee I've ever tasted, but I'm too stubborn to throw it away.
7. Read blog by a watercolor artist who makes paintings out of NYC craigslist.com missed connections posts.
8. Shower
9. Listen to more Gnarls Barkley
10. Read about upcoming events in Madrid on couchsurfing.com. While listening to Gnarls Barkley.
11. Get sick of listening to Gnarls Barkley and start listening to Cat Stevens
12. Buy carrots, flour, and a bottle of red wine. For a rainy day.
13. Look around bedroom and consider tidying up a bit.
14. Decide to tidy up another day.
15. Paint nails. Bright red.
16. Make and eat tuna salad with toast.
17. Drink another cup of sour Eroski-brand instant coffee. Gross.
18. Eat chocolate with almonds. Lots of it. (Helps get rid of the instant coffee aftertaste)
19. Go to Goya to see an exhibition/video series on the history of psychiatry: Psiquiatria: salud o muerte en vida (English title of the exhibit: Psychiatry--an industry of death)
http://madridfree.com/psiquiatria-salud-o-muerte-en-vida/
20. Take notes
21. Go to a local park and have a non-sour cafe con leche while reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and people watching.
22. Return home, thinking cynical thoughts.
23. Think about studying some basic French.
24. Decide not to.
25. Google the sponsor of the psychiatry exhibition. Find out that the organization is closely tied to scientology. Feel glad that I only left my e-mail address and not my home address or phone number on the questionnaire at the end of the exposition.
26. Google directions to a bar in Lavapies where some couchsurfers are meeting up for dinner.
27. Meet up with a friend named Ruben at a stop on the 4 line. Go together to said bar in Lavapies to meet up with some random couchsurfers
28. Drink beer (Mahou). Eat boquerones. Meet a girl from Texas. And a girl from Brazil. And a couple of guys from Andalucia. Drink another beer. Eat a fried potato-pepper-chicken thing. Chat. Drink one more beer. Eat a tostada (toast) with jamon (Spanish cured ham) and tomato.
29. Walk with the group to Salitre 36 (address) to see a live forro band. Forro is a type of Brazilian music/dance that I had never heard of before.
30. Try to dance forro. Do it badly and end up dancing a weird mix of merengue and freestyle-ish-hip-hop-ish dance.
31. Continue dancing.
32. Take the metro home.
32. Drink green tea and set alarm to wake up for work tomorrow.
33. Go to sleep at 1:15.
I guess having Thursdays free isn't so bad after all. :-)
While it would be a thousand times better to have Monday or Friday off, it doesn't look like there's any chance of my schedule changing until next semester.
So since today's Thursday, and I don't work today, here's a post about what there is to do in Madrid on a Thursday while everyone else is working.
1. Sleep in until 11
2. Do laundry
3. Feed sourdough starter w/ 1 cup of flour and 1 cup of warm water and let sit in a warm place until bubbly. Then refrigerate until you feel like baking something.
4. Make a bookmark out of scrap scrapbook paper and a page torn out of The Great Gatsby.
5. Listen to Gnarls Barkley
6. Drink 2 cups of Eroski (local supermarket) brand instant coffee. With plenty of sugar. It's the most sour coffee I've ever tasted, but I'm too stubborn to throw it away.
7. Read blog by a watercolor artist who makes paintings out of NYC craigslist.com missed connections posts.
8. Shower
9. Listen to more Gnarls Barkley
10. Read about upcoming events in Madrid on couchsurfing.com. While listening to Gnarls Barkley.
11. Get sick of listening to Gnarls Barkley and start listening to Cat Stevens
12. Buy carrots, flour, and a bottle of red wine. For a rainy day.
13. Look around bedroom and consider tidying up a bit.
14. Decide to tidy up another day.
15. Paint nails. Bright red.
16. Make and eat tuna salad with toast.
17. Drink another cup of sour Eroski-brand instant coffee. Gross.
18. Eat chocolate with almonds. Lots of it. (Helps get rid of the instant coffee aftertaste)
19. Go to Goya to see an exhibition/video series on the history of psychiatry: Psiquiatria: salud o muerte en vida (English title of the exhibit: Psychiatry--an industry of death)
http://madridfree.com/psiquiatria-salud-o-muerte-en-vida/
20. Take notes
21. Go to a local park and have a non-sour cafe con leche while reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and people watching.
22. Return home, thinking cynical thoughts.
23. Think about studying some basic French.
24. Decide not to.
25. Google the sponsor of the psychiatry exhibition. Find out that the organization is closely tied to scientology. Feel glad that I only left my e-mail address and not my home address or phone number on the questionnaire at the end of the exposition.
26. Google directions to a bar in Lavapies where some couchsurfers are meeting up for dinner.
27. Meet up with a friend named Ruben at a stop on the 4 line. Go together to said bar in Lavapies to meet up with some random couchsurfers
28. Drink beer (Mahou). Eat boquerones. Meet a girl from Texas. And a girl from Brazil. And a couple of guys from Andalucia. Drink another beer. Eat a fried potato-pepper-chicken thing. Chat. Drink one more beer. Eat a tostada (toast) with jamon (Spanish cured ham) and tomato.
29. Walk with the group to Salitre 36 (address) to see a live forro band. Forro is a type of Brazilian music/dance that I had never heard of before.
30. Try to dance forro. Do it badly and end up dancing a weird mix of merengue and freestyle-ish-hip-hop-ish dance.
31. Continue dancing.
32. Take the metro home.
32. Drink green tea and set alarm to wake up for work tomorrow.
33. Go to sleep at 1:15.
I guess having Thursdays free isn't so bad after all. :-)
viernes, 22 de octubre de 2010
Life of Pi
Courtesy of www.couchsurfing.org
The backstory:
This past Monday I met up with a guy named Chris that I met through couchsurfing for a book swap and a beer. (It can be a little tricky to find books in English in Spain other than the Twilight series....)
He's from Perth but has been traveling through Europe (E and W) for 5 months now. I gave him Banker to the Poor and he gave me Life of Pi, which I've been meaning to read for a few years. He's buena gente, and it was an excellent excuse for a Monday afternoon adventure. The book is falling apart and missing one page. It has obviously known more people and cities in its life than I have. A used book is a good thing.
The book:
The story of a boy named Pi (like 3.1415...) and his life. His father owned a zoo. I've never been a huge zoo person, but after reading the descriptions of zoos and all sorts of animals and the ways they are like humans in this book, I've found myself craving a zoo visit. My friend Natalie sent me a link a few weeks ago that I didn't give enough thought to until I started this book. Apparently two twin panda babies were born in the Madrid Zoo about a month ago. I may have to go visit them after I finish this book. Until I finish it, I don't think I'll be doing much. It has me completely enganchada (hooked). I almost missed my metro stop today because I was reading too intensely.
http://gawker.com/5658528/behold-the-most-adorable-newborn-panda-twins-ever
On hyenas (p115):
"...in this state, the hyena's behavior was highly unpredictable and it could decide to attack me without warning. After a number of laps it stopped short at the stern bench and crouched, directing its gaze downwards, to the space below the tarpaulin. It lifted its eyes and rested them upon me. The look was nearly the typical look of a hyena -- blank and frank, the curiousity apparent with nothing of the mental set revealed, jaw hanging open, big ears sticking up rigidly, eyes bright and black -- were it not for the strain that exuded from every cell of its body, an anxiety that made the animal glow, as if with a fever. I prepared for my end. For nothing. It started running in circles again.
When an animal decides to do something, it can do it for a very long time. All morning the hyena ran in circles going yip yip yip yip yip. Once in a while it briefly stopped at the stern bench, but otherwise every lap was identical to the previous one, with no variations in movement, in speed, in the pitch or the volume of the yipping, in the counter-clockwise direction of travel. Its yipping was shrill and annoying in the extreme. It became so tedious and draining to watch that I eventually turned my head to the side, trying to keep guard with the corner of my eyes. Even the zebra which at first snorted each time the hyena raced by its head, fell into a stupor.
Yet every time the hyena paused at the stern bench, my heart jumped. And as much as I wanted to direct my attention to the horizon, to where my salvation lay, it kept straying back to this maniacal beast."
(This description struck me because of how similar the hyena's behavior is to that of about half the students in my first grade classes (6 years old) at the school where I'm teaching. The repetition, the yipping, doing the same thing over and over for a very long time, the tediousness, among other things....First graders aren't usually as violent as hyenas, and adult humans probably are similar in a lot of ways, but it's not as obvious as it is with first graders.)
On noticing details and necessity (p 139)
"There were six oarlocks, U-shaped notches in the gunnel for holding an oar in place, and five oars, since I had lost one trying to push Richard Parker away. Three oars rested on one side bench, one rested on the other and one made up my life-saving prow. I doubted the usefulness of these oars as a means of propulsion. This lifeboat was no racing shell. It was a heavy, solid construction designed for solid foating, not for navigating, though I suppose if we had been thirty-two to row we could have made some headway.
I did not grasp all these details--and many more-- right away. They came to my notice with time and as a result of necessity. I would be in the direst of dire straits, facing a bleak future, when some small thing, some detail, would transform itself and appear in my mind in a new light. It would no longer be the small thing it was before, but the most important thing in the world, the thing that would save my life. This happened time and again. How true it is that necessity is the mother of invention, how very true."
On fear (p 163-164)
"I must say a word about fear. It is life’s only true opponent. Only fear can defeat life. It is a clever, treacherous adversary, how well I know. It has no decency, respects no law or convention, shows no mercy. It goes for your weakest spot, which it finds with unerring ease. It begins in your mind, always. One moment you are feeling calm, self-possessed, happy. Then fear, disguised in the garb of mild-mannered doubt, slips into your mind like a spy. Doubt meets disbelief and disbelief tries to push it out. But disbelief is a poorly armed foot soldier. Doubt does away with it with little trouble. You become anxious. Reason comes to do battle for you. You are reassured. Reason is fully equipped with the latest weapons technology. But, to your amazement, despite superior tactics and a number of undeniable victories, reason is laid low. You feel yourself weakening, wavering. Your anxiety becomes dread.
The backstory:
This past Monday I met up with a guy named Chris that I met through couchsurfing for a book swap and a beer. (It can be a little tricky to find books in English in Spain other than the Twilight series....)
He's from Perth but has been traveling through Europe (E and W) for 5 months now. I gave him Banker to the Poor and he gave me Life of Pi, which I've been meaning to read for a few years. He's buena gente, and it was an excellent excuse for a Monday afternoon adventure. The book is falling apart and missing one page. It has obviously known more people and cities in its life than I have. A used book is a good thing.
The book:
The story of a boy named Pi (like 3.1415...) and his life. His father owned a zoo. I've never been a huge zoo person, but after reading the descriptions of zoos and all sorts of animals and the ways they are like humans in this book, I've found myself craving a zoo visit. My friend Natalie sent me a link a few weeks ago that I didn't give enough thought to until I started this book. Apparently two twin panda babies were born in the Madrid Zoo about a month ago. I may have to go visit them after I finish this book. Until I finish it, I don't think I'll be doing much. It has me completely enganchada (hooked). I almost missed my metro stop today because I was reading too intensely.
http://gawker.com/5658528/behold-the-most-adorable-newborn-panda-twins-ever
On hyenas (p115):
"...in this state, the hyena's behavior was highly unpredictable and it could decide to attack me without warning. After a number of laps it stopped short at the stern bench and crouched, directing its gaze downwards, to the space below the tarpaulin. It lifted its eyes and rested them upon me. The look was nearly the typical look of a hyena -- blank and frank, the curiousity apparent with nothing of the mental set revealed, jaw hanging open, big ears sticking up rigidly, eyes bright and black -- were it not for the strain that exuded from every cell of its body, an anxiety that made the animal glow, as if with a fever. I prepared for my end. For nothing. It started running in circles again.
When an animal decides to do something, it can do it for a very long time. All morning the hyena ran in circles going yip yip yip yip yip. Once in a while it briefly stopped at the stern bench, but otherwise every lap was identical to the previous one, with no variations in movement, in speed, in the pitch or the volume of the yipping, in the counter-clockwise direction of travel. Its yipping was shrill and annoying in the extreme. It became so tedious and draining to watch that I eventually turned my head to the side, trying to keep guard with the corner of my eyes. Even the zebra which at first snorted each time the hyena raced by its head, fell into a stupor.
Yet every time the hyena paused at the stern bench, my heart jumped. And as much as I wanted to direct my attention to the horizon, to where my salvation lay, it kept straying back to this maniacal beast."
(This description struck me because of how similar the hyena's behavior is to that of about half the students in my first grade classes (6 years old) at the school where I'm teaching. The repetition, the yipping, doing the same thing over and over for a very long time, the tediousness, among other things....First graders aren't usually as violent as hyenas, and adult humans probably are similar in a lot of ways, but it's not as obvious as it is with first graders.)
On noticing details and necessity (p 139)
"There were six oarlocks, U-shaped notches in the gunnel for holding an oar in place, and five oars, since I had lost one trying to push Richard Parker away. Three oars rested on one side bench, one rested on the other and one made up my life-saving prow. I doubted the usefulness of these oars as a means of propulsion. This lifeboat was no racing shell. It was a heavy, solid construction designed for solid foating, not for navigating, though I suppose if we had been thirty-two to row we could have made some headway.
I did not grasp all these details--and many more-- right away. They came to my notice with time and as a result of necessity. I would be in the direst of dire straits, facing a bleak future, when some small thing, some detail, would transform itself and appear in my mind in a new light. It would no longer be the small thing it was before, but the most important thing in the world, the thing that would save my life. This happened time and again. How true it is that necessity is the mother of invention, how very true."
On fear (p 163-164)
"I must say a word about fear. It is life’s only true opponent. Only fear can defeat life. It is a clever, treacherous adversary, how well I know. It has no decency, respects no law or convention, shows no mercy. It goes for your weakest spot, which it finds with unerring ease. It begins in your mind, always. One moment you are feeling calm, self-possessed, happy. Then fear, disguised in the garb of mild-mannered doubt, slips into your mind like a spy. Doubt meets disbelief and disbelief tries to push it out. But disbelief is a poorly armed foot soldier. Doubt does away with it with little trouble. You become anxious. Reason comes to do battle for you. You are reassured. Reason is fully equipped with the latest weapons technology. But, to your amazement, despite superior tactics and a number of undeniable victories, reason is laid low. You feel yourself weakening, wavering. Your anxiety becomes dread.
Fear next turns fully to your body, which is already aware that something terribly wrong is going on. Already your lungs have flown away like a bird and your guts have slithered away like a snake. Now your tongue drops dead like an opossum, while your jaw begins to gallop on the spot. Your ears go deaf. Your muscles begin to shiver as if they had malaria and your knees to shake as though they were dancing. Your heart strains too hard, while your sphincter relaxes too much. And so with the rest of your body. Every part of you, in the manner most suited to it, falls apart. Only your eyes work well. They always pay proper attention to fear.
Quickly you make rash decisions. You dismiss your last allies: hope and trust. There, you’ve defeated yourself. Fear, which is but an impression, has triumphed over you.
The matter is difficult to put into words. For fear, real fear, such as shakes you to your foundation, such as you feel when you are brought face to face with your mortal end, nestles in your memory like a gangrene: it seeks to rot everything, even the words with which to speak of it. So you must fight hard to express it. You must fight hard to shine the light of words upon it. Because if you don’t, if your fear becomes a wordless darkness that you avoid, perhaps even manage to forget, you open yourself to further attacks of fear because you never truly fought the opponent who defeated you."
viernes, 15 de octubre de 2010
Back home again in .... Andalucia?
This past weekend was a puente (long weekend, when there is no school on either Monday or Friday), so I took a trip down to Andalucia to visit some people and pick up a suitcase that I left in Estepa last June (where I was living last year.)
It felt like I was going home. I didn't have class Monday or Tuesday, so I spent my 4 days between Sevilla, Estepa, and La Roda de Andalucia. Within half an hour of arriving, I saw pretty much every person I knew in town. On a Saturday in Estepa, there are basically 2 things to do: grocery shopping at Mercadona and having a coffee at Cafe de Venezia (a cafe one block away from my apartment last year where I spent countless hours and euros...) I met up with Molly, Viola, and Kumar for a coffee before going to La Roda for the night/day and saw a few different bartenders, the son of a woman who works at the high school in town that I know, and the couple that owns the fruteria where I always bought my veggies all there in Cafe de Venezia.
It was a weekend of short but intense (in a good way) visits and SO nice.
When I got back to school here in Madrid on Wednesday a couple people commented on the fact that my accent in Spanish seemed more Andaluz after spending the weekend down there. Ha!
The olives in Andalucia are a thousand times better than the olives I've had in Madrid so far.
Here's to friends and long weekends. And Andalucia.
It felt like I was going home. I didn't have class Monday or Tuesday, so I spent my 4 days between Sevilla, Estepa, and La Roda de Andalucia. Within half an hour of arriving, I saw pretty much every person I knew in town. On a Saturday in Estepa, there are basically 2 things to do: grocery shopping at Mercadona and having a coffee at Cafe de Venezia (a cafe one block away from my apartment last year where I spent countless hours and euros...) I met up with Molly, Viola, and Kumar for a coffee before going to La Roda for the night/day and saw a few different bartenders, the son of a woman who works at the high school in town that I know, and the couple that owns the fruteria where I always bought my veggies all there in Cafe de Venezia.
It was a weekend of short but intense (in a good way) visits and SO nice.
When I got back to school here in Madrid on Wednesday a couple people commented on the fact that my accent in Spanish seemed more Andaluz after spending the weekend down there. Ha!
The olives in Andalucia are a thousand times better than the olives I've had in Madrid so far.
Here's to friends and long weekends. And Andalucia.
domingo, 3 de octubre de 2010
I have an apartment!!
After 5 days of feeling stressed, having some very strange experiences visiting apartments, and not sleeping very well, I've found an apartment! I slept there for the first time 2 nights ago and finished moving over the rest of my things yesterday. It's kind of old and quirky, but in a good way. I'm living with 2 guys: a chatty 22 year old Spanish engineering student from Valencia, and a quieter MBA (or European equivalent of a Masters in business...) student from Paris. There's one room still open, so that one will be a surprise roommate. They're nice and seem pretty laid back.
My room is a little small but comfortable, and the kitchen has a microwave AND an oven (I didn't have either last year....making zucchini bread in a toaster over is possible, but the oven will be simpler.) The apartment is a 5 minute walk from the metro line I'll take out to work every day.
And... when I was wandering around yesterday looking for a place to buy my abono pass (monthly transportation pass), I came across a cupcake shop! Not sure how easily I will be able to find it again, but I'll definitely try to.
Yes! Now to unpack....
My room is a little small but comfortable, and the kitchen has a microwave AND an oven (I didn't have either last year....making zucchini bread in a toaster over is possible, but the oven will be simpler.) The apartment is a 5 minute walk from the metro line I'll take out to work every day.
And... when I was wandering around yesterday looking for a place to buy my abono pass (monthly transportation pass), I came across a cupcake shop! Not sure how easily I will be able to find it again, but I'll definitely try to.
Yes! Now to unpack....
miércoles, 29 de septiembre de 2010
14 missed calls, a broken wheel, and a very nice man
Since my suitcase was lost/delayed, I left a message with the woman working at the missing luggage desk at the airport saying that I would be home after 6 pm for the next 2 or 3 days. After getting back from visiting the school where I will be working, I saw 14 missed calls.
Crap.
Must have been about the suitcase.
But why did they call at 12:30 pm when I left a message saying not to deliver it until the evening?
I called the number back at 6 pm, as soon as I saw the missed calls. Sure enough, it was the person from the airport who had tried to deliver my suitcase. My message wasn't delivered.
Since tomorrow is a huelga (strike) and most of the public transportation will be heavily delayed and most of the stores closed, the man asked if I would be home for the rest of the evening. I told him that I didn't plan to be but could be home if my suitcase would be delivered.
After calling a few other people at the airport, he, while off the clock, drove out to the airport, picked up my suitcase, and brought it to my door at 10:30 pm that evening and apologized a hundred times for the confusion/inconvenience/poor communication within airport employees (which wasn't his fault at all.)
I'm so happy to have my toothbrush, PJs, clothes, books, etc. that I don't even mind that a wheel is broken off. When you're packing a carry-on, it's full of the things you want right away. So when they check it plane-side, it's pretty inconvenient not to get it for 2 or 3 days....
Thank you, kind airport man.
Crap.
Must have been about the suitcase.
But why did they call at 12:30 pm when I left a message saying not to deliver it until the evening?
I called the number back at 6 pm, as soon as I saw the missed calls. Sure enough, it was the person from the airport who had tried to deliver my suitcase. My message wasn't delivered.
Since tomorrow is a huelga (strike) and most of the public transportation will be heavily delayed and most of the stores closed, the man asked if I would be home for the rest of the evening. I told him that I didn't plan to be but could be home if my suitcase would be delivered.
After calling a few other people at the airport, he, while off the clock, drove out to the airport, picked up my suitcase, and brought it to my door at 10:30 pm that evening and apologized a hundred times for the confusion/inconvenience/poor communication within airport employees (which wasn't his fault at all.)
I'm so happy to have my toothbrush, PJs, clothes, books, etc. that I don't even mind that a wheel is broken off. When you're packing a carry-on, it's full of the things you want right away. So when they check it plane-side, it's pretty inconvenient not to get it for 2 or 3 days....
Thank you, kind airport man.
martes, 28 de septiembre de 2010
MADrid
I'm in Madrid staying with a friend for a few days. I arrived yesterday morning and spent most of the day being very sleepy, trying to figure out how to get a suitcase that the airline lost, drinking coffee, and hanging out with Kim (who I'm staying with ) and her boyfriend. Today was an all day orientation. I really liked one of the speakers who talked about phonetics and using a phonetic approach to teaching languages in elementary schools (and who recommended spelling bees. Yes!)
Tomorrow there is a general strike, so the metro won't be running very often. I'm thinking of spending the day looking up apartment options online.... It's high season for apartment renting, so the prices are high and the apartments are getting taken up within hours of being posted online. Yikes.
Other than that, I'm nearly on a normal sleep schedule already, my suitcase should be arriving by tomorrow afternoon, and Kim's a really great hostess.
Once my suitcase with my pajamas, towel, books, and camera gets here, things should be a bit more comfortable (the suitcase they lost was originally my carry-on. There was no more space in Chicago in the overhead bins, so they checked it through to Madrid. Unfortunately carry-ons have the things you plan to use first....) After that, it's on to the apartment search!
Will write more later once there are more things to write about.....
Buenas noches!
Tomorrow there is a general strike, so the metro won't be running very often. I'm thinking of spending the day looking up apartment options online.... It's high season for apartment renting, so the prices are high and the apartments are getting taken up within hours of being posted online. Yikes.
Other than that, I'm nearly on a normal sleep schedule already, my suitcase should be arriving by tomorrow afternoon, and Kim's a really great hostess.
Once my suitcase with my pajamas, towel, books, and camera gets here, things should be a bit more comfortable (the suitcase they lost was originally my carry-on. There was no more space in Chicago in the overhead bins, so they checked it through to Madrid. Unfortunately carry-ons have the things you plan to use first....) After that, it's on to the apartment search!
Will write more later once there are more things to write about.....
Buenas noches!
domingo, 26 de septiembre de 2010
On the road again...
Four weeks at home is a good amount of time. I've copied my passport, printed my itinerary, and packed my bags as full as they can handle. My flight leaves in 3 hours from Indy to Madrid. I'm not looking forward to the inconveniences of traveling, finding an apartment, and reestablishing myself, but it's time for something new (and definitely time to start working somewhere again....) Those are the minor annoyances that come with moving to a new place. Should be an adventure!
martes, 14 de septiembre de 2010
A complaint and a thankful
Complaint:
I started my day today by waiting on hold for an hour and a half on an international call. I needed to set an appointment to renew my NIE card. (NIE = Numero de Identidad de Extranjeros = a card with an identity number for foreigners in Spain) Possibly the worst way to start a day.
If you're interested in hearing the music I had the privilege of listening to for 90 minutes, call +34 902 56 57 01. International phone call charges may apply.
Thankful:
After getting my appointment set, I went outside with a mug of coffee and sat on the back porch and remembered how much I love Indiana in the fall. The leaves haven't changed yet, but the stems of one or two have turned red, which means the rest of the tree will be following suit soon. It's chilly in the shade and warm in the sun, and there are tons of hummingbirds flitting about (my mom has two hummingbird feeders up on the back porch.) It's a beautiful day, and it's nice to be back in Indiana.
An beautiful day and afternoon adventure with Charise at
Flowing Well Park in Carmel, Indiana
I started my day today by waiting on hold for an hour and a half on an international call. I needed to set an appointment to renew my NIE card. (NIE = Numero de Identidad de Extranjeros = a card with an identity number for foreigners in Spain) Possibly the worst way to start a day.
If you're interested in hearing the music I had the privilege of listening to for 90 minutes, call +34 902 56 57 01. International phone call charges may apply.
Thankful:
After getting my appointment set, I went outside with a mug of coffee and sat on the back porch and remembered how much I love Indiana in the fall. The leaves haven't changed yet, but the stems of one or two have turned red, which means the rest of the tree will be following suit soon. It's chilly in the shade and warm in the sun, and there are tons of hummingbirds flitting about (my mom has two hummingbird feeders up on the back porch.) It's a beautiful day, and it's nice to be back in Indiana.
An beautiful day and afternoon adventure with Charise atFlowing Well Park in Carmel, Indiana
martes, 31 de agosto de 2010
Reflections on a Smoothie Purchase.
I had one layover between Paris and Indianapolis yesterday -- in Atlanta. After a nine hour flight, I was a little sleepy and REALLY thirsty, so Freshens smoothies caught my attention. It was a huge disappointment. I had two options: regular or large. I thought of going for the large since I was REALLY thirsty, but thankfully asked to see the cup sizes first. The large size must have held at least a gallon. Ridiculous. So I went with the regular, which was also huge. I don't remember noticing the difference in portion sizes when I arrived in Spain, but I've definitely already noticed the difference now that I'm back.
At this point my mouth started watering, anticipating my delicious, fresh, fruity treat. It stopped watering when I saw the Freshens guy pick up one of the cups and start the smoothie by squirting in at least a cup of Crayola orange liquid called "Peach mix -- Sugar Added!" Then there were two little scoops of frozen fruit, some ice, probably some more sugar, and some water. He blended it all up, and it looked more natural than it did back when it was just "Peach mix -- Sugar Added!" so I hoped for the best and opened up my purse to pay. $5.53. I double checked the menu since the price was more than I thought it was to make sure he didn't accidentally give me the large size and then I remembered: Sales tax.
(In Spain, the tax is included in the price, so you pay the price that's listed. It's simpler that way, I think.)
So I pulled out the right amount of USD and noticed that the bills seemed longer than I remembered them. (Euros aren't as long and are shaped more like Monopoly money. Apparently I'd gotten accustomed to their shape in the course of 11 months. It's normal, I think.)
I went back to my gate, sat down, and had a hugely unsatisfying gulp of peach flavored sugar goop. It was so sweet that it didn't quench my thirst at all, and after I had finished a third of it, my stomach started grumbling about it. I was too stubborn to throw away the rest after paying airport prices for it, so I finished another third of it before I was too sugared-out to continue and gave up. Yuck.
Thankfully when I arrived in Indy, I came home to my mom, dog, a back porch with a hummingbird feeder, a drying machine, and a refrigerator full of good things like salsa, hummus with cilantro, tomatoes from the tomato plant growing in the front lawn, yogurt, cheddar cheese, Bumbleberry Jam from Paul's Michigan Fruit Market, wholegrain English muffins, peanut butter, sour cream, plums, tortillas, and Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce. MUCH better than Freshens.
It's good to be back.
At this point my mouth started watering, anticipating my delicious, fresh, fruity treat. It stopped watering when I saw the Freshens guy pick up one of the cups and start the smoothie by squirting in at least a cup of Crayola orange liquid called "Peach mix -- Sugar Added!" Then there were two little scoops of frozen fruit, some ice, probably some more sugar, and some water. He blended it all up, and it looked more natural than it did back when it was just "Peach mix -- Sugar Added!" so I hoped for the best and opened up my purse to pay. $5.53. I double checked the menu since the price was more than I thought it was to make sure he didn't accidentally give me the large size and then I remembered: Sales tax.
(In Spain, the tax is included in the price, so you pay the price that's listed. It's simpler that way, I think.)
So I pulled out the right amount of USD and noticed that the bills seemed longer than I remembered them. (Euros aren't as long and are shaped more like Monopoly money. Apparently I'd gotten accustomed to their shape in the course of 11 months. It's normal, I think.)
I went back to my gate, sat down, and had a hugely unsatisfying gulp of peach flavored sugar goop. It was so sweet that it didn't quench my thirst at all, and after I had finished a third of it, my stomach started grumbling about it. I was too stubborn to throw away the rest after paying airport prices for it, so I finished another third of it before I was too sugared-out to continue and gave up. Yuck.
Thankfully when I arrived in Indy, I came home to my mom, dog, a back porch with a hummingbird feeder, a drying machine, and a refrigerator full of good things like salsa, hummus with cilantro, tomatoes from the tomato plant growing in the front lawn, yogurt, cheddar cheese, Bumbleberry Jam from Paul's Michigan Fruit Market, wholegrain English muffins, peanut butter, sour cream, plums, tortillas, and Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce. MUCH better than Freshens.
It's good to be back.
domingo, 1 de agosto de 2010
All the world's a stage
All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts
--William Shakespeare's As You Like It
This has been quite literally the case for me this past month. Although I have no real acting experience or training, in the summer camp where I'm working right now, acting is required all the time. There are different levels of acting; acting like the host of an all-camp game of clue, playing the part of an English teacher for two hours in the morning, acting like I care whether or not kids sit against the wall and enforcing it because the camp director cares even though I don't mind at all, acting like I'm enthusiastic about singing the song Ring of Fire for the 50th time in a month, pretending that I am awake when I want nothing more than to be in my bed, presenting the day's schedule (and then eating lunch afterwards) as a mime, acting like a narrator/marshmellow tree in a skit about cavemen teaching fire safety, playing the part of a superhero's love interest, and acting like Babe the blue ox for 15 minutes during a skit about American history and folklore are fairly different. But they are all acting.
Which is a small part of why I've been thinking about As You Like It (the rest of the scene is also quite good. Google it if you have the chance.)
It seems like everyone is acting in some way or another. I wonder how much of belonging to a certain profession or social class, how many relationships, how much of any social interaction or personal habit is really some type of acting. Acting out what is expected by others; doing what is required by a situation not because of personal interest, skill, or desire, but because of necessity; repeating behaviors seen in other people, adapting to a social or professional role in terms of behavior, attitude, vocabulary......
I also like the image of people entering and exiting stage. Some people are only in a place for a season. Others for longer, but never forever. But there is a constant coming in and exiting of characters as time goes on, and an expected shifting of roles.
I wish I had time to read more this summer.
The third session begins today. One more month of skits. One month until I fly home.
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts
--William Shakespeare's As You Like It
This has been quite literally the case for me this past month. Although I have no real acting experience or training, in the summer camp where I'm working right now, acting is required all the time. There are different levels of acting; acting like the host of an all-camp game of clue, playing the part of an English teacher for two hours in the morning, acting like I care whether or not kids sit against the wall and enforcing it because the camp director cares even though I don't mind at all, acting like I'm enthusiastic about singing the song Ring of Fire for the 50th time in a month, pretending that I am awake when I want nothing more than to be in my bed, presenting the day's schedule (and then eating lunch afterwards) as a mime, acting like a narrator/marshmellow tree in a skit about cavemen teaching fire safety, playing the part of a superhero's love interest, and acting like Babe the blue ox for 15 minutes during a skit about American history and folklore are fairly different. But they are all acting.
Which is a small part of why I've been thinking about As You Like It (the rest of the scene is also quite good. Google it if you have the chance.)
It seems like everyone is acting in some way or another. I wonder how much of belonging to a certain profession or social class, how many relationships, how much of any social interaction or personal habit is really some type of acting. Acting out what is expected by others; doing what is required by a situation not because of personal interest, skill, or desire, but because of necessity; repeating behaviors seen in other people, adapting to a social or professional role in terms of behavior, attitude, vocabulary......
I also like the image of people entering and exiting stage. Some people are only in a place for a season. Others for longer, but never forever. But there is a constant coming in and exiting of characters as time goes on, and an expected shifting of roles.
I wish I had time to read more this summer.
The third session begins today. One more month of skits. One month until I fly home.
miércoles, 21 de julio de 2010
"Days off are like gold"
Molly and I during a day off last session
"Days off are like gold."
And today is one of mine. I've been working at camp now for just about 3 weeks near a little town called Venansault in NW France. And even though I've had 2 days off and one free day between sessions already, this is the first time I've gotten around to updating my blog. In the course of 3 weeks, answering to Shades, my camp name, has become as natural as responding to Kristen.
Hopefully I will have a chance retroblog a bit later today, but in case my nap runs longer than I anticipate or I just don't feel like it, here's a quick post to confirm that I'm still alive and still in France.
My days are full and very long, especially compared to my life in Spain this past year, but now that we are in the second session, preparing activities and ESL lessons and evening programs doesn't take as much planning as when we did it all for the first time. Sessions are 13 days long, and I'll be working for 4 sessions total. Even though it's draining sometimes, having so many responsibilities every day and working non-stop is in some ways a welcome change. I wouldn't want to work here for more than 2 months, but there's something exciting and challenging and even fun about such a fast-paced, non-stop, always "on" type of environment.
A few pictures of who I'm working and what we do in the few moments when we aren't with campers: walking into town to go to the grocery store (first picture), hanging out our room (second picture), and cutting people's hair (third picture).
In any case, those are the ways I justify my decision to work here this summer in the moments (sometimes several in a day) when I ask myself how I ever ended up here, running around like a crazy person, exhausted after 4 straight days of less than 6 hours of sleep a night and extremely full days, covered in green face paint (which actually ended up being a different type of paint that is MUCH more difficult to get off), or wearing a blue onesie and acting like an ox in front of 60 people, or inventing a cheer about shoes, or trying to make a lesson about the future tense "engaging", or pretending to be a marshmallow tree, or trying to explain the rules of baseball to a group of kids who get confused between "How are you?" and "How old are you?"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One thing I remember wanting to think about and play with during camp this summer is controlled chaos. I like it. I want to develop my ability to create and manage it. Both by myself and with a team. And I want to be able to see the balance between chaos and control in situations.
And since a summer camp is in many ways the epitome of controlled chaos, it's not a bad place to try it out.
Now back to enjoying my day off .....
A photo of one of the buildings at Les Hermitans, the site where I am workingjueves, 24 de junio de 2010
J'aime faire du vélo -- I like to ride bikes
Bonjour!
This post is coming to you from my friend Aline's house in a small town in Brittany (France). I arrived on the morning 17th after taking 3 different buses (total of just over 25 hours, broken up by a night in Madrid with the lovely Becca Niles.)
(For those thinking about the amount of hours that could have been saved flying: there were various reasons for choosing endless hours in a bus over a plane. And it really wasn't as painful to be on a bus for 17 hours as you might expect. :) Maybe I'll blog about it sometime. Now is not that time.)
Random house along a river in Rennes
After the rush of packing up my apartment in Estepa, traveling with my brother, saying good-byes, and tying up loose ends during my last week or two in Andalucia, my stay with Aline and her family has been nice and relaxing. Emilie, my Belgian roommate from this past year in Estepa, was visiting also and just left yesterday. I will be here until the 29th when I take a train down to La Roche Sur Yon to begin my summer camp job.
Brittany is a Celtic region in NW France and the birthplace of crepes. Generally sweet ones are referred to as crepes while salty/savory varieties are called gallettes. * After spending a day in Rennes, a large city about an hour from Aline's house, we went to Aline's parents' house. That evening we went out to this creperie (girl in the picture is Aline) with a few of Aline's friends in a town nearby. I thought of taking a picture of my food, but it didn't look nearly as impressive as it tasted, and in town of probably under 300 residents, I felt weird about taking it. I had one gallete with cheese, smoked ham, mushrooms, and egg and a crepe with chocolate, banana, and whipped cream with cidre to drink. Delicious.
Since then, my days have been filled with lots of biking, baguette sandwich picnics, lazy afternoons reading books, wandering along the coast, and listening to This American Life, Joni Mitchell, and Learn French by Podcast between nodding off on the beach. Also lots of time enjoying meals with Aline and her family at home (while mumbling out all the broken French / Frespanol / Spanish with an attempted French r / English with an attempted French r that I can muster up after eight 10-minute sessions of Learn French by Podcast and the 2 or 3 informal lessons I've had with Aline and Audrey, my other roommate from this past year, also French, over the course of this year. They're patient with me, and we all laugh after a successful - or failed - use of wild hand gestures, animal sounds, etc. to tell a story. Aline helps translating too from Spanish to French, but it's sometimes fun to bumble around in a language that you don't actually speak, right? Maybe? Sometimes I like to think that making a fool out of yourself builds character. In any case, it definitely has built up my French vocabulary a bit.)
À la prochaine! Until next time!
One of many beautiful views from the Quiberon Peninsula , where Aline, Emilie, and I spent the afternoon biking this past Saturday. This part of the peninsula is a protected coast. Several kilometers down the road, the protected area ends, the beaches are sandier, and there are homes, a few spas, one or two resorts, and lots of restaurants, cafes, clothing stores, and candy shops.
* http://www.alimentation-france.com/france/specialites/les-crepes-et-galettes-bretonnes.html
miércoles, 23 de junio de 2010
These are my friends
And this is possibly the best idea for a costume party theme that I've ever experienced. ( A dress like a scientist party my sophomore at college is the only one that has come close.) I spent this past weekend in Tarifa (a beach town in Southern Spain with crazy amounts of wind) with my a big group of my friends from Estepa celebrating Suzy's 21st birthday and starting a week full of good byes. The theme: anything beginning with the letter S. S for Suzy. (She's the star in the front row).
domingo, 6 de junio de 2010
When in Rome ...
Post to come about my trip to Rome with my brother. Until then, here's a picture of us with the Colloseum.
In Italy with Dan
In Italy with Dandomingo, 30 de mayo de 2010
1:34 am
Even though neither of them read this blog, thanks to Alex and Stuart for ringing my doorbell 3 times at 1 am.
Though usually I wouldn't appreciate it, today it was perfect. I'd been in bed thinking about how tonight is my last night sleeping in my apartment here in Estepa for close to an hour trying to fall asleep. And after trying to ignore the bell the first two times, I'm glad I decided to answer. Just dropping by to say good bye. I'm leaving for Rome tomorrow, and they'll be gone by the time I come back, so today's the last day we'll see each other for quite a long time. Apparently if I hadn't answered, they were planning to show up at the bus station in the morning for good bye hugs.
Here's to good pals.
Though usually I wouldn't appreciate it, today it was perfect. I'd been in bed thinking about how tonight is my last night sleeping in my apartment here in Estepa for close to an hour trying to fall asleep. And after trying to ignore the bell the first two times, I'm glad I decided to answer. Just dropping by to say good bye. I'm leaving for Rome tomorrow, and they'll be gone by the time I come back, so today's the last day we'll see each other for quite a long time. Apparently if I hadn't answered, they were planning to show up at the bus station in the morning for good bye hugs.
Here's to good pals.
jueves, 13 de mayo de 2010
A day of gastronomy and spelling
Yesterday I made zucchini bread (as usual.) I'm a little bored with always making the same thing, but since the first time I made it, my roommates haven't stopped bringing it up. They like 
it so much that I know at this point that if I make any other thing to share with them, the response will almost definitely be "This is good. But the zucchini bread is better!"
So since today there was a Concurso de Gastronomia (Cooking Contest) up at the adult English school in town, I figured zucchini bread was both quite American and a safe choice to bring. It ended up getting 2nd place in the "English/American dish" category. (There was a different category for the best French dish) Not bad for my first try, I think. :-)
Here's a picture of a few of the dishes. The woman in the picture is my friend Angela. She comes to the English conversation table on Thursdays and works at a mantecado factory in Estepa. Her carrot cake won 1st place for the "English/American dish" and rightly so. Delicious.
I'm very full and happy.
Also today at school we had the semifinals for the first annual CEIP Lope de Vega (name of the elementary school where I'm teaching) English Spelling Bee. It's fun to see all of the s
tudents nervous and excited and running up and looking at the lists of who won the previous rounds for the 5th, 10th, or 50th time this week during recess. Since we started the contest, I've been thinking about spelling, phonetics in Spanish vs English, and pronunciation of words way too much. But I don't mind.
Now it's time for Sevillana* class, maybe a Cruzcampo afterward, and the beginning of a 4-day weekend. Que bonita es esta vida....**
*What is Sevillana? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sevillanas
**Reference to a song I just got stuck in my head: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azAjn8jHt5Y
it so much that I know at this point that if I make any other thing to share with them, the response will almost definitely be "This is good. But the zucchini bread is better!"So since today there was a Concurso de Gastronomia (Cooking Contest) up at the adult English school in town, I figured zucchini bread was both quite American and a safe choice to bring. It ended up getting 2nd place in the "English/American dish" category. (There was a different category for the best French dish) Not bad for my first try, I think. :-)
Here's a picture of a few of the dishes. The woman in the picture is my friend Angela. She comes to the English conversation table on Thursdays and works at a mantecado factory in Estepa. Her carrot cake won 1st place for the "English/American dish" and rightly so. Delicious.
I'm very full and happy.
Also today at school we had the semifinals for the first annual CEIP Lope de Vega (name of the elementary school where I'm teaching) English Spelling Bee. It's fun to see all of the s
tudents nervous and excited and running up and looking at the lists of who won the previous rounds for the 5th, 10th, or 50th time this week during recess. Since we started the contest, I've been thinking about spelling, phonetics in Spanish vs English, and pronunciation of words way too much. But I don't mind.Now it's time for Sevillana* class, maybe a Cruzcampo afterward, and the beginning of a 4-day weekend. Que bonita es esta vida....**
*What is Sevillana? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sevillanas
**Reference to a song I just got stuck in my head: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azAjn8jHt5Y
lunes, 10 de mayo de 2010
miércoles, 28 de abril de 2010
This post brought to you by Heineken
It seems to me that bars here in Spain are much more inclined to give out free stuff when you order a drink than the bars I know in the US. On evenings with a specific sponsor, if you order a mixed drink with Brugal or Ballentine or Beefeater or whichever other brand has a representative in a bar that night, you are given a scratch off card that you bring to a little table to claim your Brugal or Ballentine or Beefeater or whichever other brand promotional item. Sunglasses, bracelets, and bottle openers are three of the most consistent prizes.
Sometimes though these sponsorships get a bit out of control.
For example, several months ago, I went to Sileno (a bar in Estepa) for 2 Heinekens and walked away with a pair of binoculars, a keychain bottle opener, and a book called Discos historicos y discos que haran historia -- Historical disks and disks that will make history. Walking out of a bar with more drink-sponsored trinkets than the total number of drinks you've consumed that evening is both over the top and awesome.
After leaving it in my desk drawer for two and a half months, I rediscovered this wonder of a book. Which brings me to the current post. A list, courtesy of Heineken, of some of the most influential music disks of the past half a century or so.
1950s and 1960s
Elvis Presley: Elvis Presley (1956)
Louis Prima: The Wildest! (1956)
Miles Davis: Birth Of Cool (1957)
Little Richard: Here's Little Richard (1957)
Billie Holiday: Lady In Satin (1958)
Tito Puente And His Orchestra: Dance Mania, Vol. 1 (1958)
Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Gershwin Song Book (1959)
Ray Charles: The Genius of Ray Charles (1959)
The Everly Brothers: A Date With The Everly Brothers (1960)
James Brown: Live At The Apollo (1963)
The Rolling Stones: The Rolling Stones (1964)
The Beatles: A Hard Day's Night (1964)
Otis Redding: Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul (1965)
The Beach Boys: The Beach Boys Today! (1965)
B.B.King: Live At The Regal (1965)
Bob Dylan: Highway 61 Revisited (1965)
The Who: My Generation (1965)
Jerry Lee Lewis: Live At The Star Club, Hamburg (1965)
The Kinks: Face To Face (1966)
The Mamas And The Papas: If You Can Believe Your Eyes And Ears (1966)
Simon And Garfunkel: Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme (1966)
John Mayall's Blues Breakers: John Mayall's Blues Breakers With Eric Clapton (1966)
Nina Simone: Wild Is The Wind (1966)
The Velvet Underground: The Velvet Underground And Nico (1967)
The Doors: The Doors (1967)
The Beatles: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
Johnny Cash: Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison (1968)
Aretha Franklin: Aretha: Lady Soul (1968)
Sly And The Family Stone: Stand! (1969)
Creedence Clearwater Revival: Green River (1969)
The Rolling Stones: Let It Bleed (1969)
Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin (1969)
1970s
Black Sabbath: Paranoid (1970)
Deep Purple: In Rock (1970)
Santana: Abraxas (1970)
Marvin Gaye: What's Going On (1971)
Carole King: Tapestry (1971)
John Lennon: Imagine (1971)
Janis Joplin: Pearl (1971)
David Bowie: Hunky Dory (1971)
Neil Young: Harvest (1972)
Lou Reed: Transformer (1972)
Stevie Wonder: Talking Book (1972)
ZZ Top: Tres Hombres (1973)
Mike Oldfield: Tubular Bells (1973)
Alice Cooper: Billion Dollar Babies (1973)
Iggy And The Stooges: Raw Power (1973)
Supertramp: Crime Of The Century (1974)
Bruce Springsteen: Born To Run (1975)
Pink Floyd: Wish You Were Here (1975)
Eagles: Hotel California (1976)
Abba: Arrival (1976)
Ramones: Ramones (1976)
The Clash: The Clash (1977)
David Bowie: "Heroes" (1977)
1980s
AC/DC: Back In Black (1980)
Pretenders: Pretenders (1980)
Madness: The Rise And Fall (1982)
The Cure: Pornography (1982)
Michael Jackson: Thriller (1982)
Eurythmics: Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) (1983)
Prince And The Revolution: Purple Rain (1984)
Tina Turner: Private Dancer (1984)
Bruce Springsteen: Born In The USA (1984)
A-ha: Hunting High And Low (1985)
Dire Straits: Brothers In Arms (1985)
The Jesus & Mary Chain: Psychocandy (1985)
Kate Bush: Hounds Of Love (1985)
Metallica: Master Of Puppets (1986)
Dinosaur Jr.: You're Living All Over Me (1987)
George Michael: Faith (1987)
Guns N' Roses: Appetite For Destruction (1987)
US: The Joshua Tree (1987)
Pet Shop Boys: Actually (1987)
Tacy Chapman: Tracy Chapman (1988)
Madonna: Like A Prayer (1989)
The Stone Roses: The Stone Roses (1989)
1990s
Depache Mode: Violator (1990)
Pixies: Bossanova (1990)
Public Enemy: Fear Of A Black Planet (1990)
Sinead O'Connor: I DO Not Want What I Haven't Got (1990)
Neil Young And Crazy Horse: Ragged Glory (1990)
Nirvana: Nevermind (1991)
Crowded House: Woodface (1991)
Red Hot Chili Peppers: Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991)
Pearl Jam: Ten (1991)
Massive Attack: Blue Lines (1991)
Metallica: Metallica (1991)
Morrissey: "Your Arsenal" (1992)
Lemonheads: It's A Shame About Ray (1992)
Rage Against The Machine: Rage Against The Machine (1992)
R.E.M.: Automatic For The People (1992)
Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds: Henry's Dream (1992)
Suede: Suede (1993)
The Smashing Pumpkins: Siamese Dream (1993)
Blur: Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993)
Jamiroquai: Emergency On Planet Earth (1993)
Bjork: Debut (1993)
Portishead: Dummy (1994)
Soundgarden: Superunknown (1994)
The Offspring: Smash (1994)
Blur: Parklife (1994)
Suede: Dog Man Star (1994)
Nirvana: MTV NUnplugged in NYC (1994)
Green Day: Dookie (1994)
Foo Fighters: Foo Fighters (1995)
Garbage: Garbage (1995)
Elastica: Elastica (1995)
Supergrass: I Should Coco (1995)
Radiohead: The Bends (1995)
Pulp: Different Class (1995)
Alanis Morissette: Jagged LIttle Pill (1995)
Oasis: (What's The Story) Morning Glory? (1995)
The Charlatans: Tellin' Stories (1996)
Manic Street Preachers: Everything Must Go (1996)
Marilyn Manson: Antichrist Superstar (1996)
Fiona Apple: Tidal (1996)
Radiohead: OK Computer (1997)
Blur: Blur (1997)
Robbie Williams: Life Thru A Lens (1997)
David Gray: White Ladder (1998)
Hole: Celebrity Skin (1998)
Travis: The Man Who (1999)
Red Hot Chili Peppers: Californication (1999)
Skunk Anansie: Post Orgasmic Chill (1999)
Nitin Sawhney: Beyond Skin (1999)
2000s
Radiohead: Kid A (2000)
U2: All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000)
P.J. Harvey: Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea (2000)
Coldplay: Parachutes (2000)
The Avalanches: Since I Left You (2000)
Bjork: Vespertine (2001)
Ryan Adams: Gold (2001)
The White Stripes: White Blood Cells (2001)
The Strokes: Is This It (2001)
The Flaming Lips: Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (2002)
Doves: The Last Broadcast (2002)
The Hives: Your New Favorite Band (2002)
Radiohead: Hail To The Thief (2003)
The Darkness: Permission To Land (2003)
The White Stripes: Elephant (2003)
Amy Winehouse: Frank (2003)
Scissor Sisters: Scissor Sisters (2004)
Franz Ferdinand: Franz Ferdinand (2004)
Rufus Wainwright: Want Two (2004)
The Killers: Hot Fuss (2004)
Kings Of Leon: Aha Shake Heartbreak (2004)
Arcade Fire: Funeral (2004)
Beck: Guero (2005)
Muse: Black Holes & Revelations (2006)
Arctic Monkeys: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006)
Sometimes though these sponsorships get a bit out of control.
For example, several months ago, I went to Sileno (a bar in Estepa) for 2 Heinekens and walked away with a pair of binoculars, a keychain bottle opener, and a book called Discos historicos y discos que haran historia -- Historical disks and disks that will make history. Walking out of a bar with more drink-sponsored trinkets than the total number of drinks you've consumed that evening is both over the top and awesome.
After leaving it in my desk drawer for two and a half months, I rediscovered this wonder of a book. Which brings me to the current post. A list, courtesy of Heineken, of some of the most influential music disks of the past half a century or so.
1950s and 1960s
Elvis Presley: Elvis Presley (1956)
Louis Prima: The Wildest! (1956)
Miles Davis: Birth Of Cool (1957)
Little Richard: Here's Little Richard (1957)
Billie Holiday: Lady In Satin (1958)
Tito Puente And His Orchestra: Dance Mania, Vol. 1 (1958)
Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Gershwin Song Book (1959)
Ray Charles: The Genius of Ray Charles (1959)
The Everly Brothers: A Date With The Everly Brothers (1960)
James Brown: Live At The Apollo (1963)
The Rolling Stones: The Rolling Stones (1964)
The Beatles: A Hard Day's Night (1964)
Otis Redding: Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul (1965)
The Beach Boys: The Beach Boys Today! (1965)
B.B.King: Live At The Regal (1965)
Bob Dylan: Highway 61 Revisited (1965)
The Who: My Generation (1965)
Jerry Lee Lewis: Live At The Star Club, Hamburg (1965)
The Kinks: Face To Face (1966)
The Mamas And The Papas: If You Can Believe Your Eyes And Ears (1966)
Simon And Garfunkel: Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme (1966)
John Mayall's Blues Breakers: John Mayall's Blues Breakers With Eric Clapton (1966)
Nina Simone: Wild Is The Wind (1966)
The Velvet Underground: The Velvet Underground And Nico (1967)
The Doors: The Doors (1967)
The Beatles: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
Johnny Cash: Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison (1968)
Aretha Franklin: Aretha: Lady Soul (1968)
Sly And The Family Stone: Stand! (1969)
Creedence Clearwater Revival: Green River (1969)
The Rolling Stones: Let It Bleed (1969)
Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin (1969)
1970s
Black Sabbath: Paranoid (1970)
Deep Purple: In Rock (1970)
Santana: Abraxas (1970)
Marvin Gaye: What's Going On (1971)
Carole King: Tapestry (1971)
John Lennon: Imagine (1971)
Janis Joplin: Pearl (1971)
David Bowie: Hunky Dory (1971)
Neil Young: Harvest (1972)
Lou Reed: Transformer (1972)
Stevie Wonder: Talking Book (1972)
ZZ Top: Tres Hombres (1973)
Mike Oldfield: Tubular Bells (1973)
Alice Cooper: Billion Dollar Babies (1973)
Iggy And The Stooges: Raw Power (1973)
Supertramp: Crime Of The Century (1974)
Bruce Springsteen: Born To Run (1975)
Pink Floyd: Wish You Were Here (1975)
Eagles: Hotel California (1976)
Abba: Arrival (1976)
Ramones: Ramones (1976)
The Clash: The Clash (1977)
David Bowie: "Heroes" (1977)
1980s
AC/DC: Back In Black (1980)
Pretenders: Pretenders (1980)
Madness: The Rise And Fall (1982)
The Cure: Pornography (1982)
Michael Jackson: Thriller (1982)
Eurythmics: Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) (1983)
Prince And The Revolution: Purple Rain (1984)
Tina Turner: Private Dancer (1984)
Bruce Springsteen: Born In The USA (1984)
A-ha: Hunting High And Low (1985)
Dire Straits: Brothers In Arms (1985)
The Jesus & Mary Chain: Psychocandy (1985)
Kate Bush: Hounds Of Love (1985)
Metallica: Master Of Puppets (1986)
Dinosaur Jr.: You're Living All Over Me (1987)
George Michael: Faith (1987)
Guns N' Roses: Appetite For Destruction (1987)
US: The Joshua Tree (1987)
Pet Shop Boys: Actually (1987)
Tacy Chapman: Tracy Chapman (1988)
Madonna: Like A Prayer (1989)
The Stone Roses: The Stone Roses (1989)
1990s
Depache Mode: Violator (1990)
Pixies: Bossanova (1990)
Public Enemy: Fear Of A Black Planet (1990)
Sinead O'Connor: I DO Not Want What I Haven't Got (1990)
Neil Young And Crazy Horse: Ragged Glory (1990)
Nirvana: Nevermind (1991)
Crowded House: Woodface (1991)
Red Hot Chili Peppers: Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991)
Pearl Jam: Ten (1991)
Massive Attack: Blue Lines (1991)
Metallica: Metallica (1991)
Morrissey: "Your Arsenal" (1992)
Lemonheads: It's A Shame About Ray (1992)
Rage Against The Machine: Rage Against The Machine (1992)
R.E.M.: Automatic For The People (1992)
Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds: Henry's Dream (1992)
Suede: Suede (1993)
The Smashing Pumpkins: Siamese Dream (1993)
Blur: Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993)
Jamiroquai: Emergency On Planet Earth (1993)
Bjork: Debut (1993)
Portishead: Dummy (1994)
Soundgarden: Superunknown (1994)
The Offspring: Smash (1994)
Blur: Parklife (1994)
Suede: Dog Man Star (1994)
Nirvana: MTV NUnplugged in NYC (1994)
Green Day: Dookie (1994)
Foo Fighters: Foo Fighters (1995)
Garbage: Garbage (1995)
Elastica: Elastica (1995)
Supergrass: I Should Coco (1995)
Radiohead: The Bends (1995)
Pulp: Different Class (1995)
Alanis Morissette: Jagged LIttle Pill (1995)
Oasis: (What's The Story) Morning Glory? (1995)
The Charlatans: Tellin' Stories (1996)
Manic Street Preachers: Everything Must Go (1996)
Marilyn Manson: Antichrist Superstar (1996)
Fiona Apple: Tidal (1996)
Radiohead: OK Computer (1997)
Blur: Blur (1997)
Robbie Williams: Life Thru A Lens (1997)
David Gray: White Ladder (1998)
Hole: Celebrity Skin (1998)
Travis: The Man Who (1999)
Red Hot Chili Peppers: Californication (1999)
Skunk Anansie: Post Orgasmic Chill (1999)
Nitin Sawhney: Beyond Skin (1999)
2000s
Radiohead: Kid A (2000)
U2: All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000)
P.J. Harvey: Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea (2000)
Coldplay: Parachutes (2000)
The Avalanches: Since I Left You (2000)
Bjork: Vespertine (2001)
Ryan Adams: Gold (2001)
The White Stripes: White Blood Cells (2001)
The Strokes: Is This It (2001)
The Flaming Lips: Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (2002)
Doves: The Last Broadcast (2002)
The Hives: Your New Favorite Band (2002)
Radiohead: Hail To The Thief (2003)
The Darkness: Permission To Land (2003)
The White Stripes: Elephant (2003)
Amy Winehouse: Frank (2003)
Scissor Sisters: Scissor Sisters (2004)
Franz Ferdinand: Franz Ferdinand (2004)
Rufus Wainwright: Want Two (2004)
The Killers: Hot Fuss (2004)
Kings Of Leon: Aha Shake Heartbreak (2004)
Arcade Fire: Funeral (2004)
Beck: Guero (2005)
Muse: Black Holes & Revelations (2006)
Arctic Monkeys: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006)
domingo, 18 de abril de 2010
Police - Monkey Relations in Gibraltar
Yesterday I went on a day trip to Gibraltar with my Belgian roommate Emilie and 13 people from Estepa's Escuela de Idiomas. For those who don't know, it's a funny little region on the tip of Southern Spain that's owned by the UK. It used to be strategic for the British military, but now I'm not really sure what's there other than tourism and tax free cigarettes, chocolate, and cigarettes sunglasses, and an interesting group of proud half-English-speaking, half-Spanish-speaking Gibralarians.
And, of course, monkeys. The monkeys were at least 50% of my reason for going, and they did not disappoint.
Here's a police officer. They have a funny relationship with the monkeys because technically they're supposed to be telling the tourists not to touch the monkeys, but then the monkeys climb all over the place-- all over the tour buses and trees and benches and police officers. Here's one example of a weird police/monkey relationship in Gibraltar.
And, of course, monkeys. The monkeys were at least 50% of my reason for going, and they did not disappoint.
Here's a police officer. They have a funny relationship with the monkeys because technically they're supposed to be telling the tourists not to touch the monkeys, but then the monkeys climb all over the place-- all over the tour buses and trees and benches and police officers. Here's one example of a weird police/monkey relationship in Gibraltar.
miércoles, 7 de abril de 2010
Walking
The human body is neat. I like to walk.
I read this description of walking the other day. Now I want to go hiking.
"Backpacking with my family in Teton wilderness, I am recurrently struck by the question of footing. With each step, the food has to come down somewhere. Climbing or descending over boulder fields, steep inclines, on and off trails, our feet make split-second decisions for us about where and how to come down, what angle, how much pressure, heel or toe, rotated or straight. The kids don't ever ask: 'Daddy, where do I put my feet? Should I step on this rock or that one?' They just do it, and I've noticed that they find a way --they choose where to put their feet at each step, and it's not simply where I put mine.
What this says to me is that our feet find their own way. Watching my own, I am amazed at how many different places and ways I might put my foot down with each step, and how out of this unfolding momentary potential, the foot ultimately commits to one way, executes with full weight on it (or less if it's a hazardous situation), and then lets go as the next foot makes its choice and I move forward. All this occurs virtually without thinking, except at the occasional tricky spots where thought and experience do come into play and I might have to give my youngest child, Serena, a hand. But that is the exception, not the rule. Ordinarily we are not looking at our feet and thinking about each step. We are looking out, ahead on the trail, and our brain, taking it all in, makes split-second decisions for us that put the food down in a way that conforms to the needs of the terrain underfoot in that moment.
This doesn't mean that there is no wrong way to step. You do have to be careful and sense your footing. It's just that the eyes and the brain are very good at rapid assessment of terrain and giving detailed directions to torso, limbs, and feet, so that the whole process of taking a step on rough ground is one of exquisite balance in motion, even with the complication of boots and heavy packs. There is built-in mindfulness here. Rough terrain brings it out in us. And if we do a trail ten times, we'll each solve the problem of each footstep differently each time. Covering ground on foot always unfolds out of the uniqueness of the present moment."
-from Jon Kabat-Zinn's Wherever You Go There You Are (127-128)
Photo of the view from El Chorro, an area near Antequera where Viola (my co-auxiliar in Casariche) and I went for a hike about 3 days after I typed up this post
For more info about El Chorro:
http://www.andalucia.com/antequera/chorro/home.htm
I read this description of walking the other day. Now I want to go hiking.
"Backpacking with my family in Teton wilderness, I am recurrently struck by the question of footing. With each step, the food has to come down somewhere. Climbing or descending over boulder fields, steep inclines, on and off trails, our feet make split-second decisions for us about where and how to come down, what angle, how much pressure, heel or toe, rotated or straight. The kids don't ever ask: 'Daddy, where do I put my feet? Should I step on this rock or that one?' They just do it, and I've noticed that they find a way --they choose where to put their feet at each step, and it's not simply where I put mine.
What this says to me is that our feet find their own way. Watching my own, I am amazed at how many different places and ways I might put my foot down with each step, and how out of this unfolding momentary potential, the foot ultimately commits to one way, executes with full weight on it (or less if it's a hazardous situation), and then lets go as the next foot makes its choice and I move forward. All this occurs virtually without thinking, except at the occasional tricky spots where thought and experience do come into play and I might have to give my youngest child, Serena, a hand. But that is the exception, not the rule. Ordinarily we are not looking at our feet and thinking about each step. We are looking out, ahead on the trail, and our brain, taking it all in, makes split-second decisions for us that put the food down in a way that conforms to the needs of the terrain underfoot in that moment.
This doesn't mean that there is no wrong way to step. You do have to be careful and sense your footing. It's just that the eyes and the brain are very good at rapid assessment of terrain and giving detailed directions to torso, limbs, and feet, so that the whole process of taking a step on rough ground is one of exquisite balance in motion, even with the complication of boots and heavy packs. There is built-in mindfulness here. Rough terrain brings it out in us. And if we do a trail ten times, we'll each solve the problem of each footstep differently each time. Covering ground on foot always unfolds out of the uniqueness of the present moment."
-from Jon Kabat-Zinn's Wherever You Go There You Are (127-128)
Photo of the view from El Chorro, an area near Antequera where Viola (my co-auxiliar in Casariche) and I went for a hike about 3 days after I typed up this post
For more info about El Chorro:
http://www.andalucia.com/antequera/chorro/home.htm
miércoles, 17 de marzo de 2010
Strawberry Pie
Two French boys just stopped by my apartment in Estepa, Spain to ask for some sugar for a strawberry pie they're making. And to invite me to come eat it with them and a few friends. I'm pleased. :)
miércoles, 10 de marzo de 2010
Hostel Food Post
I've been thinking about food. Here's a blog entry about the concoctions people in hostels pull together to save money while traveling.
For lunches I'm more inclined to make sandwiches, but the bit about an ungodly amount of pasta heaped with cheese for dinner is right on.
I'm not sure I agree with the bit about French travelers, but overall, it's pretty in line with my experience.
In any case, it's fun to think about food.
http://traveleatrepeat.com/2010/03/05/my-mom-told-me-its-not-polite-to-stare/
For lunches I'm more inclined to make sandwiches, but the bit about an ungodly amount of pasta heaped with cheese for dinner is right on.
I'm not sure I agree with the bit about French travelers, but overall, it's pretty in line with my experience.
In any case, it's fun to think about food.
http://traveleatrepeat.com/2010/03/05/my-mom-told-me-its-not-polite-to-stare/
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