I was going to blog earlier today when I got home from Italian class, but I thought I'd have something to report from later in the day. I don't. And now I have forgotten what I did have to say earlier.
Today when I got to Italian class our class had been moved again. I don't know why they keep doing that to us. Next week we'll be back in our old room. I actually like the rooms we get moved to because they are smaller and the acoustics are better.
Today Blas didn't ask us what we did on the weekend. Thank god! I hadn't done much but was prepared to lie. He went over the list of who is bringing what up until the final exam, since we now have this tradition of someone bringing a cake or snack to every class. I thought I'd complain a little and asked why I was the only man who had to bring something. I know it was a little sexist, but someone told me to say that (I forget who). Since I am not in my own kitchen, it is kind of hard for me to bake something really yummy. Well, the response was that Matias had brought a cake and there were no other men in the class. That was partially true. There are a few other guys in the class but they are kind of weird. I regretted saying that, because now that I have figured out what to bring, I am excited.
I sometimes wonder if Blas has a crush on me because he calls on me so much. I am pretty sure he is straight, and I think he likes some of the girls in class, but he pays so much attention to the guys and is really chummy and calls all of the guys by their names, but still doesn't know the names of some of the girls in the class. It is very strange.
My comprehension in class seems to be getting worse as people are feeling more comfortable to chat. It gets noisy and they talk about things that I don't understand.
Today for our break we had two treats. Natalia, the woman who I work with a lot in small groups brought brownies, even though she hadn't been scheduled, and another woman, also Natalia, brought something that looked like blondies and had pieces of merengue in them. Natalias brownies were better.
When the treats were unwrapped a huge discussion ensued among the cheering and clapping and I didn't understand a word of what was said. Then everyone got up and left the room, taking the treats with them. I asked someone what was happening and I was told they were going down to the bar. I guess the idea was that people could get coffee or drinks to go with the snacks.
The bar was noisy as always and as we sat at the table eating our treats, everyone was talking really fast and I understood about 1% of what was said. At one point, one of the older women in the class who Blas calls "Heavy Metal" because her daughter is into heavy metal (when he says it, he makes a funny flogger face and plays air guitar "HEAVY METAL!") said something to me from the other end of the table. I couldn't hear and had no idea what she was saying. The strange Bolivian guy who Blas calls Jesus (English pronunciation) because he thought Madonna meant mother, was sitting next to Heavy Metal. When I didn't understand, Jesus said something to Heavy Metal and they both laughed. I thought they were making fun of me. I wasn't happy. I think I'm doing well for taking two language classes that are being taught in a third language, and if people want to make fun of my lack of comprehension, that is fine with me. I just think Jesus is kind of weird and should not be making fun of people since he is the brunt of so many of Blas' jokes.
Today we did a class evaluation. As much as I would have liked to somehow say something about the things in the class that I didn't like, I had to give Blas a decent evaluation since the items on the form measured the things he did and not the things I would have liked for him to do. Also there were no questions about comfort level, or about the teacher respecting students, or anything like that. There were also questions about the department of students and people at the registrar and in the bookstore. I think I only gave one item an excellent evaluation and gave the rest of them good. I guess we'll be evaluating our Arabic class on Saturday too.
I decided that next year when I come back I will study Portuguese. Hernan and watched a You Tube video yesterday that taught ten phrases in Brazilian Portuguese. I like it. I think it will be fun to learn basic Portuguese. Of course, I'll end up having the same problem I have in Italian class - that the languages are so close and I'll be confused, but who knows, maybe it will be a better experience. I don't want to go on to Arabic 2 here because I am worried that I will be too frustrated, especially if I have Ybti again and we do "pass the book" in class.
I came home to a clean apartment, ate lunch and took a good nap. I was tired this morning because when Hernan came over yesterday we drank coffee and then I couldn't sleep last night. After my nap, I went to the gym and came straight back because it was so bloody hot.
I hope this weather is a freak and that a wave of polar air will come up from the south and cool things off. Well, actually I just checked the weather and today was 86, and tomorrow and Friday look the same, but Saturday they are saying a high of 69 and Sunday, 73. Strange, but I'll take it!
Raul, my conversation exchange partner canceled again today. I texted him and asked what he thought about tonight and mentioned the heat, because to be honest, I didn't want to have to walk to meet him. But, since he canceled, that is it for me. It's been over a month since we last met and I don't like having to walk so far to meet him (he is over by school and since I go at rush hour, there is no point trying to take a cab or bus, since walking is faster at that hour). I've also kind of lost interest in him - I think we have run out of things to talk about and my question about Ford Falcons may have been a major faux pas (I don't know if I wrote about that or not, but it felt uncomfortable and I learned my lesson).
Tomorrow Hernan gets to go back to his place in San Telmo. His tenant is moving out and he will be showing it and trying to rent it for a few more weeks. He's going to make dinner for me and we'll go from there to Puerto Madero. He told me there is a nice walk along the river. I didn't tell him I already did it. It will be different with him as he always shows me interesting things that are off the beaten path.
We're still trying to work out our plans for Buzios. The travel agent said the hotel that we booked in our package does not have any rooms, but there is a posada at the same complex with bungalows and they will give us a discount. Personally, the bungalows sound better to me. I looked at the photos and they look slightly funky but I'd rather stay in a funky bungalow than a funky hotel. I'm mostly interested in making sure we have a view of the ocean from our room and they are saying we would in a bungalow. Next I have to go to the Brazilian Embassy and get a visa. That will be fun since the embassy is in one of the big old mansions that once belonged to the super rich in Buenos Aires before the crash of '29. There are many of these large villas, which resemble palaces, scattered around the city. They were large and lavish, but when people lost their savings in the stock market they could not afford the upkeep, so many of them were sold off as embassies, a few are museums and I think some of them are government offices.
I'm looking forward to finishing up with school and breaking up my routine a bit with this trip. Also some friend from SF will be here next week and my friend Diane is coming in December. It will be nice to end this trip with some companionship. I'm sure Diane and I will have fun as we try to find things to do that don't involve us sweating too much.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Mildly Hellish
I do not want to be here in summer if this is how hot spring it. I guess I am really spoiled by the beautiful mild San Francisco temperatures. Today is not that bad, but it is still hot. I went to the gym and sweated a bit and stopped at the Disco and bought some fruit and now am enjoying my quiet, air-conditioned apartment.
If I had come down here to write a book, I could have written several by now. I didn't think I would be such a homebody here, but I don't know what I was thinking. I am a total homebody in SF and I actually like spending time at home. My apartment is really comfortable. The difference is that from my apartment I can take nice walks either through a beautiful national park, or to some interesting neighborhoods with good food. And, the walks are pleasant.
What I have discovered here is that it is hard to walk and there is no place to walk to. I watched a little Dr. Phil last night and he was talking to a woman who gets really irritated by little sounds her husband and kids make - like chewing, things they can't avoid doing. Dr. Phil told her she had an aggravated stress response. Today as I was walking to the gym and people were darting one way or another in front of me on the sidewalk, I could feel myself getting stressed out. It was not possible for me to walk one block without someone cutting in front of me from one side of the sidewalk to the other, or blocking the sidewalk. I could not walk in a straight line for one block. By the time I got to Callao, which is about 5 blocks from here, I realized how stressed I was and took a deep breath and thought about the Dr. Phil show last night. I don't know what to do about it, but for now it is an observation.
At some point between that deep breath on the corner and returning home, I came to a decision about next year.
As far as I know, I am supposed to spend 80% of the time I was awarded my sabbatical here. I don't think it specifies when that time needs to be specifically. Since it is too hot now and I am sure it is going to be even hotter in December, I don't want to be here this time next year. I actually liked June last year and July was a little cold, but still bearable. So, I am thinking that next year I will come from June to November, and then I will turn 50 in San Francisco with friends. I thought it would be fun turning 50 here, but it looks like I will be spending it alone (at the spa). Then, I'll be able to go somewhere early in December before prices shoot up for the holidays and maybe even be back in SF to do my family's traditional 7 fish Christmas Eve dinner (I want to do it here, but don't think I can find 7 different kinds of fish).
This is all feeling quite right to me. I can take tango classes before it gets too hot, and also I can do an intensive language class (whatever language I end up studying), and will only take one instead of two, still going to school twice a week. I've also decided I am going to look for another apartment, perhaps in Palermo, because I want to be able to walk to parks and be a little bit more away from the throbbing pulse of the city.
And for now I am planning on going to Buzios with Hernan.
It looks like we can't go after my classes are finished because Hernans' friend Catarina from Quebec is coming on December 17 and he needs to be back by then. So, I checked another travel agent and they have a package available from November 30, for 8 days. It would mean I'd miss my Arabic final, but I don't really need to take the final since I am not taking the class for credit. I'd also miss one more Italian class, but that is fine with me too.
I found a place that is on a cliff overlooking the ocean. Buzios has several different beaches and many of them are beautiful coves with clear blue water. It looks really lovely, like St. Tropez or something. If I like it, maybe next year I will take a trip there in July to escape a little BA winter!
And so, that is what I am up to these days other than trying to stay cool and get back to eating right and exercising. Hernan is stopping by later today and we'll discuss the plans for our little trip.
If I had come down here to write a book, I could have written several by now. I didn't think I would be such a homebody here, but I don't know what I was thinking. I am a total homebody in SF and I actually like spending time at home. My apartment is really comfortable. The difference is that from my apartment I can take nice walks either through a beautiful national park, or to some interesting neighborhoods with good food. And, the walks are pleasant.
What I have discovered here is that it is hard to walk and there is no place to walk to. I watched a little Dr. Phil last night and he was talking to a woman who gets really irritated by little sounds her husband and kids make - like chewing, things they can't avoid doing. Dr. Phil told her she had an aggravated stress response. Today as I was walking to the gym and people were darting one way or another in front of me on the sidewalk, I could feel myself getting stressed out. It was not possible for me to walk one block without someone cutting in front of me from one side of the sidewalk to the other, or blocking the sidewalk. I could not walk in a straight line for one block. By the time I got to Callao, which is about 5 blocks from here, I realized how stressed I was and took a deep breath and thought about the Dr. Phil show last night. I don't know what to do about it, but for now it is an observation.
At some point between that deep breath on the corner and returning home, I came to a decision about next year.
As far as I know, I am supposed to spend 80% of the time I was awarded my sabbatical here. I don't think it specifies when that time needs to be specifically. Since it is too hot now and I am sure it is going to be even hotter in December, I don't want to be here this time next year. I actually liked June last year and July was a little cold, but still bearable. So, I am thinking that next year I will come from June to November, and then I will turn 50 in San Francisco with friends. I thought it would be fun turning 50 here, but it looks like I will be spending it alone (at the spa). Then, I'll be able to go somewhere early in December before prices shoot up for the holidays and maybe even be back in SF to do my family's traditional 7 fish Christmas Eve dinner (I want to do it here, but don't think I can find 7 different kinds of fish).
This is all feeling quite right to me. I can take tango classes before it gets too hot, and also I can do an intensive language class (whatever language I end up studying), and will only take one instead of two, still going to school twice a week. I've also decided I am going to look for another apartment, perhaps in Palermo, because I want to be able to walk to parks and be a little bit more away from the throbbing pulse of the city.
And for now I am planning on going to Buzios with Hernan.
It looks like we can't go after my classes are finished because Hernans' friend Catarina from Quebec is coming on December 17 and he needs to be back by then. So, I checked another travel agent and they have a package available from November 30, for 8 days. It would mean I'd miss my Arabic final, but I don't really need to take the final since I am not taking the class for credit. I'd also miss one more Italian class, but that is fine with me too.
I found a place that is on a cliff overlooking the ocean. Buzios has several different beaches and many of them are beautiful coves with clear blue water. It looks really lovely, like St. Tropez or something. If I like it, maybe next year I will take a trip there in July to escape a little BA winter!
And so, that is what I am up to these days other than trying to stay cool and get back to eating right and exercising. Hernan is stopping by later today and we'll discuss the plans for our little trip.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Hellishly Hot
It is supposed to be spring here, but today was pretty hot. I think it was another day in the 90's but it was also humid. I hope this is a fluke and some cooler temperatures will return soon before the real summer sweat begins. It seems like spring was really short - just one month of decent temperatures.
So, it was too hot to do anything today. On top of that, I didn't know what to do. I took my time getting moving this morning and spent much of the morning sending e-mails, reading newspapers online and looking at travel sites (more on that later). Finally, around 2:30 or so I went to the gym. They had the air-conditioner on, but for some reason the windows were open too, kind of making it hard for the air-con to cool the place down. They also only had one of the big fans on. I didn't stay long, but did get a decent workout in. It wasn't crowded, I guess because it was Sunday and it was hot.
After the gym I went to the Disco, which also wasn't very crowded. As the cashier was ringing up my food, I realized she hadn't asked me any questions. After I gave her my credit card and photo copy of my passport, she finally did ask, "solo un pago?" - only one payment? I understood perfectly. I think the days of not understanding the questions at the checkout are gone (hopefully).
I came home and was glad to be in the air-conditioning again. When I first got here I stayed inside because it was warm and cozy, now I am inside because it is cool. It's turning out that Buenos Aires is not really a good city to spend a lot of time outside. Not a good thing for me. Definitely I am having doubts about this as a retirement location.
I spoke to Hernan briefly. He sent me an e-mail and said he's been diagnosed with depression and is going to start taking some meds. I feel sorry for the guy because he is so sweet and smart and creative, but he is unable to do what he wants to do because people here don't have enough money to support a vibrant arts scene. So, he supports himself by renting out his apartment and saves money by staying at his mom's. No wonder he is depressed.
I decided that I want to get out of town during the short time after I finish classes and before my friend Diane comes to visit. I've been looking at this website for a travel agency called Asatej and they have packages to a place in Brazil called Buzios, which looks like a cute little beach resort (actually series of beaches) that was made famous in the 60's (or 70's) when Bridget Bardot went there. There are some beautiful beaches and it looks like it might be a nice place to get away to. I'm tired of traveling alone and asked Hernan if he wanted to go, offering to pay for him since I know he doesn't have any money. I think he will be a good travel companion and we'll be able to spend a week together without driving each other nuts.
I was really hoping to find an affordable place that is right on the beach, but it seems impossible. Instead, I think we'll go with one of the places in the package that are located in the center of the little town, and I guess from there we can walk or rent bikes or motorcycles to get to the different beaches. One place that they offer has a nice pool too and I would be perfectly happy just lounging by the pool all day. I hadn't planned on going to Brazil on this trip, but now that the prospect is there, I am excited. I started studying a little Portuguese today just to learn a few expressions.
And that was my day. I spent the rest of the day just cooking, eating (of course) and watching TV. I was going to go out for a walk after dinner but it ended up being late and I didn't feel like going out.
And so, life here has become pretty normal, to the point that I am planning a vacation to get away. I guess there is a lesson in there somewhere, thought I am not sure yet what that might be.
So, it was too hot to do anything today. On top of that, I didn't know what to do. I took my time getting moving this morning and spent much of the morning sending e-mails, reading newspapers online and looking at travel sites (more on that later). Finally, around 2:30 or so I went to the gym. They had the air-conditioner on, but for some reason the windows were open too, kind of making it hard for the air-con to cool the place down. They also only had one of the big fans on. I didn't stay long, but did get a decent workout in. It wasn't crowded, I guess because it was Sunday and it was hot.
After the gym I went to the Disco, which also wasn't very crowded. As the cashier was ringing up my food, I realized she hadn't asked me any questions. After I gave her my credit card and photo copy of my passport, she finally did ask, "solo un pago?" - only one payment? I understood perfectly. I think the days of not understanding the questions at the checkout are gone (hopefully).
I came home and was glad to be in the air-conditioning again. When I first got here I stayed inside because it was warm and cozy, now I am inside because it is cool. It's turning out that Buenos Aires is not really a good city to spend a lot of time outside. Not a good thing for me. Definitely I am having doubts about this as a retirement location.
I spoke to Hernan briefly. He sent me an e-mail and said he's been diagnosed with depression and is going to start taking some meds. I feel sorry for the guy because he is so sweet and smart and creative, but he is unable to do what he wants to do because people here don't have enough money to support a vibrant arts scene. So, he supports himself by renting out his apartment and saves money by staying at his mom's. No wonder he is depressed.
I decided that I want to get out of town during the short time after I finish classes and before my friend Diane comes to visit. I've been looking at this website for a travel agency called Asatej and they have packages to a place in Brazil called Buzios, which looks like a cute little beach resort (actually series of beaches) that was made famous in the 60's (or 70's) when Bridget Bardot went there. There are some beautiful beaches and it looks like it might be a nice place to get away to. I'm tired of traveling alone and asked Hernan if he wanted to go, offering to pay for him since I know he doesn't have any money. I think he will be a good travel companion and we'll be able to spend a week together without driving each other nuts.
I was really hoping to find an affordable place that is right on the beach, but it seems impossible. Instead, I think we'll go with one of the places in the package that are located in the center of the little town, and I guess from there we can walk or rent bikes or motorcycles to get to the different beaches. One place that they offer has a nice pool too and I would be perfectly happy just lounging by the pool all day. I hadn't planned on going to Brazil on this trip, but now that the prospect is there, I am excited. I started studying a little Portuguese today just to learn a few expressions.
And that was my day. I spent the rest of the day just cooking, eating (of course) and watching TV. I was going to go out for a walk after dinner but it ended up being late and I didn't feel like going out.
And so, life here has become pretty normal, to the point that I am planning a vacation to get away. I guess there is a lesson in there somewhere, thought I am not sure yet what that might be.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Purple Blossoms and the Ice Cream Bird
I'm enjoying seeing how Buenos Aires is changing as the seasons pass. I only knew it in the winter, with the crisp air, bare trees and the way the exhaust fumes start to burn your nose after a while.
Spring started to spring a few months ago, but it continues in one of the longest processes of rebirth that I have seen in quite a while. The last time I took a walk down Libertador and through Palermo Chico, I noticed that while everything seemed to be in full bloom, there were these trees, big, dark and gangly, that had no leaves on them and were still fully bare.
On a walk a week or two ago, I saw a tree that had these nice purple flowers on them, but I thought it was just one tree and no big deal.
But today as I took a taxi to school for my Arabic class and passed the Plaza in front of the Facultad de Economia, I saw a group of these trees with these amazing blue, purple blossoms that were almost neon in color as they stood out against the darkness of the bark of the trees on which they grew.
After class, I decided to take a walk over to Libertador again and see if my hunch that these were the same trees and that they would be fully in bloom was right. I was.
I don't know what these trees are, but they are really amazing. None of the photos I took really captures their color. They, along with the bird that sounds like an ice cream truck are making this process of spring very enjoyable, even though the weather got too hot too fast.
Arabic class was okay today. It could always be better, but it was not too torturous either. I did learn something new, again, in spite of the teaching. Four students were absent today - the ones who I enjoy the most. Nicolas, the guy who asks a lot of questions, Martin, the guy who jokes a lot, Claudia Duffy, the Irish-Argentine woman who sits between me and Martin and laughs a lot and Romina, the nice, quiet, sweet girl who joined our class a few weeks late and makes me feel like I am not so lost.
I didn't go to the phonetics class last night and have decided I am not going to go anymore. I don't like the method of "pass the book" where our teacher passes a book around and we all take turns reading things that have nothing to do with anything. It is ridiculous the way she teaches that class! At least my Saturday morning class is at my level, even though it's the same teacher and her methods are not much better. And there are people there who make me laugh, who I can ask for help and who I can roll my eyes at.
I arrived a little after 10, thinking I'd have to make the rounds and kiss everyone who was already there (it would have been my first time). Instead, when I got to class, Ybti was the only one there, and was sitting at her desk looking rather forlorn. I know the feeling! It's horrible when you think no one is going to show up to your class. We talked a little about where everyone was (we didn't know) and then I asked her what she thought of Obama. I picked up an Italian newspaper at the newsstand outside of school when I got out of the taxi. I saw the headline about Obama and then noticed that the newspaper was Italian. It was only 70 centavos and it had a good cartoon about Silvio Berlusconi's recent faux pas about Obama having a nice tan, so I got it. As I put the paper in my school bag, I asked Ybti what she thought of him. She said she thought he would be good, but she, like many, wondered how it was that we had 8 years of Bush. I explained that the election had been stolen. I need to let people know that we really didn't vote for him.
It took a while for people to start trickling in and Paris, the older woman from Lebanon who doesn't speak Arabic and gets Ybti all worked up when she gets lost was about the 4th person to arrive. She was pretty low-key today, though Ybti did shout at her a few times (I think she thinks she is hard of hearing). I did notice that Ybti was not as short-tempered with her today. When she got lost or asked questions, Ybti was kind of nice and treated her almost like she treats everyone else (Nicolas asks a lot of questions and gets lost a lot, but gets treated differently than Paris).
And that was it. Class was nothing remarkable other than the people who make me laugh the most were not there.
After class, I met Carlos, my conversation exchange partner at the Facultad de Economia. There was something going on there today and there was a buzz of activity in the courtyard, but we found an empty room that had benches that kind of looked like pews in church and we sat and spoke for about an hour, half in Spanish and half in English.
It's funny when I speak Spanish to him because I speak very Argentine Spanish now - with the y sounds sounding like j and the gestures and the Italian intonation. I love it! But it seems funny speaking to Carlos since he is Peruvian and he speaks Spanish more like the way I learned it. Should I be speaking this way or the way he speaks? I wonder if speakers of English as a second language feel the need to adjust the way they speak English when they are in places where there are noticeable differences.
I learned today that Carlos is half Chinese. His name is Carlos Luna Wong. He is a really interesting guy and he is fun to talk to. He likes to talk and he is friendly. I feel like I lucked out with him when I kind of bombed with so many of my other attempted exchange partners. The only problem is that after three hours of Arabic and then not having time to eat, it's hard for me to really enjoy our exchanges. Today with the heat, the smell of smoke coming from the courtyard and my being really hungry, I was beginning to feel light headed and weak.
Life here has become kind of mundane as I said before, but the purple flowers gave me something to get excited about. I am sure there are still a few more things that will surprise me as I head into these last few weeks.
Friday, November 7, 2008
What Should I Do?
I have sunk into a doldrums of sorts.
Being here has stopped being interesting and is now just kind of normal. That's good in a way because it also means that some of the stress of the early adjustment phases is not bothering me anymore, but it also means I'm kind of bored. I don't have any daily routine to keep me occupied. The election is over and I can only take an hour of CNN at the most. I'm bored.
Hernan is still staying with his mother because he is renting out his place in San Telmo, which means I don't get to see him a lot. My conversation exchanges are not really working out in the way I'd hoped. I like meeting with Carlos, who I will see tomorrow, but my other two partners aren't really going the way I would have liked. Raul and I have not met once in October. I was in Uruguay and then he canceled a few times. I didn't see him last week because I had a doctor's appointment, that ended up being rescheduled and he said he forgot this week when I texted him to see if we were still on. I think we're both feeling a little bored by our meetings. I don't think we have much in common other than both being English teachers. I also worry that I may have made a faux pas when I asked him about Ford Falcons.
I am slightly obsessed with the last dictatorship and from movies I've seen and things I've read, I knew that Ford Falcons were used by the plainsclothes thugs who went and picked up people to be tortured and murdered. I've seen a few Ford Falcons from that era around town (in fact there is one that parks outside of my building sometimes). The last time I met with Raul I asked him about them and I got the feeling that it was not a question to ask him.
From what he has said, I sort of knew that he is conservative. He thinks Menem, the president in the 1990's who went on a privitization spree that ended up in the peso crash of 2001, was a good president. I just wonder if he is one of those people that Juliana told me has been indoctrinated to believe that the dictatorship was a good thing for the country (like those in the US who think the Patriot Act is meant to protect us).
We're supposed to meet next Wednesday, but I am feeling like it has been so long and the thrill is kind of gone and now I am not really keen on meeting up with him. And then there is Matias, the slightly odd guy who I met at school. I was supposed to meet with him last Friday but felt strange after my acupuncture appointment and sent him a text to cancel. I have not heard from him since. Faux pas number 2?
I feel like I should start up my private tango lessons again, but it is hot here. I don't want to go to the classes, because even when it was not hot, I was sweating because I was so nervous. With Marcelo, I also sweated because he made me work hard. I hope that the tango studios are air-conditioned, but from my experience at school the air-con either is not sufficient, or is not on. I guess the only way to know is to try.
The other problem is that since I've been having foot pain from walking so much I have had to curtail my walks. I would love to go out and take a nice walk now as the heat of the day begins to subside, but I can't. I've been doing stretches and things for my feet, but if I walk too much, they begin to hurt again. It's terrible getting old!
I reconnected with three more friends on Facebook! It is an amazing thing. People that I have not seen or heard from in years. Two friends live in Chicago and I was thinking about them as I was watching Obama's speech in Grant Park on Tuesday night (actually for me, Wednesday morning). All of a sudden, the next day I heard from one of my old college buddies, Colby, who is living in Chicago, and then the next day heard from Jake, one of my best friends back then and former roommate. Technology is an amazing thing and if I didn't have this computer here to keep me entertained, what would I be doing?
Being here has stopped being interesting and is now just kind of normal. That's good in a way because it also means that some of the stress of the early adjustment phases is not bothering me anymore, but it also means I'm kind of bored. I don't have any daily routine to keep me occupied. The election is over and I can only take an hour of CNN at the most. I'm bored.
Hernan is still staying with his mother because he is renting out his place in San Telmo, which means I don't get to see him a lot. My conversation exchanges are not really working out in the way I'd hoped. I like meeting with Carlos, who I will see tomorrow, but my other two partners aren't really going the way I would have liked. Raul and I have not met once in October. I was in Uruguay and then he canceled a few times. I didn't see him last week because I had a doctor's appointment, that ended up being rescheduled and he said he forgot this week when I texted him to see if we were still on. I think we're both feeling a little bored by our meetings. I don't think we have much in common other than both being English teachers. I also worry that I may have made a faux pas when I asked him about Ford Falcons.
I am slightly obsessed with the last dictatorship and from movies I've seen and things I've read, I knew that Ford Falcons were used by the plainsclothes thugs who went and picked up people to be tortured and murdered. I've seen a few Ford Falcons from that era around town (in fact there is one that parks outside of my building sometimes). The last time I met with Raul I asked him about them and I got the feeling that it was not a question to ask him.
From what he has said, I sort of knew that he is conservative. He thinks Menem, the president in the 1990's who went on a privitization spree that ended up in the peso crash of 2001, was a good president. I just wonder if he is one of those people that Juliana told me has been indoctrinated to believe that the dictatorship was a good thing for the country (like those in the US who think the Patriot Act is meant to protect us).
We're supposed to meet next Wednesday, but I am feeling like it has been so long and the thrill is kind of gone and now I am not really keen on meeting up with him. And then there is Matias, the slightly odd guy who I met at school. I was supposed to meet with him last Friday but felt strange after my acupuncture appointment and sent him a text to cancel. I have not heard from him since. Faux pas number 2?
I feel like I should start up my private tango lessons again, but it is hot here. I don't want to go to the classes, because even when it was not hot, I was sweating because I was so nervous. With Marcelo, I also sweated because he made me work hard. I hope that the tango studios are air-conditioned, but from my experience at school the air-con either is not sufficient, or is not on. I guess the only way to know is to try.
The other problem is that since I've been having foot pain from walking so much I have had to curtail my walks. I would love to go out and take a nice walk now as the heat of the day begins to subside, but I can't. I've been doing stretches and things for my feet, but if I walk too much, they begin to hurt again. It's terrible getting old!
I reconnected with three more friends on Facebook! It is an amazing thing. People that I have not seen or heard from in years. Two friends live in Chicago and I was thinking about them as I was watching Obama's speech in Grant Park on Tuesday night (actually for me, Wednesday morning). All of a sudden, the next day I heard from one of my old college buddies, Colby, who is living in Chicago, and then the next day heard from Jake, one of my best friends back then and former roommate. Technology is an amazing thing and if I didn't have this computer here to keep me entertained, what would I be doing?
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Joy and Pain
I stayed up last night until 3:30 a.m. By that point, I was so wired up I couldn't really sleep - voices of Wolf Blitzer dancing like sugarcanes in my head. I woke up exhausted.
I started watching the election coverage long before anything happened or could happen. It was kind of like watching the pre-pre-Oscars. I didn't want to miss the first results though, so I kept myself entertained by switching between CNN in Spanish, regular CNN and the BBC. Each one of the programs had something annoying. CNN had that big bag of hot air, Bill Bennett, former secretary of education under Reagan, who took every opportunity he could to espouse some form of right wing ideology. Every time he started blowing hot air, I'd switch to another channel. On the BBC they had this annoying Republican pollster, Kelli Ann something, when she came on, I'd go to another channel.
At about midnight here it started to become clear that McCain had no chance. He had lost Pennsylvania and Ohio and it seemed like all of the other states that were leaning towards Obama were going to fall his way. I popped open my champagne at that point, thinking that midnight was a good time to open champagne.
But I decided I would stay up until they called the race, which seemed imminent right after the west coast polls closed. I must have dozed off, because when I looked at the TV, they had indeed called it for Obama. So then I decided to stay up and watch his speech. It was a very moving and historical moment and I should be thrilled to death, right?
Well, there was one very dark spot to yesterday's election. Three states had anti-gay ballot measures, Florida, Arizona and California, and all three look like they passed. In California, it means that thousands of couples who were able to get married in the past few months will find themselves in limbo until the courts figure out what to do. It means that thousands more will not have access to the same rights and privileges that any two random heterosexuals can gain just by signing a piece of paper, and it means that the religious regressives who are so itching to impose their views and values on the rest of us feel like they have had a major victory in spite of their major loss, and are going to be empowered to go further. I'm angry, I'm sad, but I also know that in the end, justice will win out and those hateful people will be exposed for the bigots they are. The question is just how long it will take.
How long did it take before Americans realized that enslaving other human beings, degrading and demeaning them was wrong? How long did it take before Americans realized that women were capable of making the same decisions as men in terms of their political leaders? How long did it take before Americans realized that the internment of thousands of innocent Japanese-Americans during WWII was wrong? How long did it take before Americans realized that seperate but equal was not equal? We seem to be slow at realizing - we say one thing and do another when it comes to democracy and fairness. We love to impose our democracy on the rest of the world, but don't seem too good at actually carrying it out ourselves. Yesterday was a historic day because Obama was elected, and because three out of our 50 United States wrote discrimination into their constitutions.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
The Champagne Is Chillin.....
This morning on my way home from the gym I stopped at the chino and bought some bread for my lunch. I was planning on having some wine with dinner tonight while I watched the endless election returns, but instead got a small bottle of champagne. I sure hope I will have a reason to drink it.
It's very warm today. My computer is saying it is 29 degrees, which I think is probably high 70's, low 80's. It feels like summer. Strange to have summer in November.
I had my 2nd Spanish lesson today with my new teacher Leo. He had given me some worksheets last Thursday as a review of the subjunctive, one of the most difficult things about Spanish for me (and many others who study Spanish). It seemed easy when he gave it to me and if I had done it right afterwards, would not have been that bad. But I waited until 30 minutes before he was supposed to arrive before I made any attempt at completing the worksheet and I was totally confused. I looked online for some help but it only made me more confused. By the time he got here, I was in a daze.
I was a bit embarassed because the worksheets had spots and stains on them from food I'd dripped on them. They had been sitting on my coffee table since last Thursday. In addition, I messed up some of the exercises and didn't finish others. He was cool about it though and tried to explain the difference to me.
I found that his grammar explanations felt like a vise around my brain. I was trying to comprehend this theoretical explanation about why we use one subjunctive over another, but it just was not clicking. Finally I told him I needed some coffee and made a quick pot and we both had a cup.
He decided to move on to conversation, and between that and the coffee I began to perk up.
The thing I like about this guy is that he knows what I need, and I need to speak. Those who know me know that I am not always the easiest person to get to speak. When I return from 5 months here, there will be people who will say, "How was Argentina?" and my response will be "it was ok", and unless I am pressed for more, and pressed again, that will be the extent of the conversation.
So, Leo tried a few times to get me to talk, first by asking me what I did on the weekend. I had not done much, so that was a dud. He then asked me what I had done since last Thursday. Again, dud. He asked me what was new in my life. Dud. Then he asked me to tell him about a trip I had taken. He asked me if I had ever been to Europe and I began to tell him about my one and only trip there.
Then we talked about a trip to Nicaragua, and that led us to talking about politics, including my favorite topic of late, the U.S. election. Before I knew it, it was 3:45, and we were supposed to have finished at 3:30.
I kept making the same mistake as I tried to communicate during those two hours, but I never stopped to write anything down and couldn't tell you what the mistake was (other than I noticed I kept making it). So, even though I think I could have been a little more vigilant in trying to understand my mistakes, I think that the exercise of speaking in a foreign language is, in and of itself, very useful.
If learning is a process of creating new pathways in the brain, for me, speaking in another language is an important part of that process. I felt like I was driving around a very complicated roadway and at times would take the wrong turn and had to go back and try again. Thanks to Leo, I was able to find that correct path. And like driving, if you take the same turn over and over again, you reach a point where you don't have to think about where to turn anymore, it becomes kind of automatic (though at times you might still miss the turn).
When I am put in a position where I have to speak a lot of Spanish I can feel like my brain is being engaged on a whole different level. When Leo tried to explain the rules for the subjunctive to me, my brain shut down. But when I had to speak, it was like my brain had come back to life and was alive and awake.
Oh god, I have the TV on in the other room and I can hear the last gasps of John McCain rasping out the same old tired slogans "you'll know thier names!", "fight to the finish", "the Mac is back!" I wish he would just go play golf.
Ok, well, he distracted me from my musings about learning, so I think it is time to go and change the channel until I can assume CNN had begun reporting some results, enough that I will be able to open my champagne before I go to bed.
Oh, and if for some reason this election goes a different way than I am expecting. I think I'll just stay here.
It's very warm today. My computer is saying it is 29 degrees, which I think is probably high 70's, low 80's. It feels like summer. Strange to have summer in November.
I had my 2nd Spanish lesson today with my new teacher Leo. He had given me some worksheets last Thursday as a review of the subjunctive, one of the most difficult things about Spanish for me (and many others who study Spanish). It seemed easy when he gave it to me and if I had done it right afterwards, would not have been that bad. But I waited until 30 minutes before he was supposed to arrive before I made any attempt at completing the worksheet and I was totally confused. I looked online for some help but it only made me more confused. By the time he got here, I was in a daze.
I was a bit embarassed because the worksheets had spots and stains on them from food I'd dripped on them. They had been sitting on my coffee table since last Thursday. In addition, I messed up some of the exercises and didn't finish others. He was cool about it though and tried to explain the difference to me.
I found that his grammar explanations felt like a vise around my brain. I was trying to comprehend this theoretical explanation about why we use one subjunctive over another, but it just was not clicking. Finally I told him I needed some coffee and made a quick pot and we both had a cup.
He decided to move on to conversation, and between that and the coffee I began to perk up.
The thing I like about this guy is that he knows what I need, and I need to speak. Those who know me know that I am not always the easiest person to get to speak. When I return from 5 months here, there will be people who will say, "How was Argentina?" and my response will be "it was ok", and unless I am pressed for more, and pressed again, that will be the extent of the conversation.
So, Leo tried a few times to get me to talk, first by asking me what I did on the weekend. I had not done much, so that was a dud. He then asked me what I had done since last Thursday. Again, dud. He asked me what was new in my life. Dud. Then he asked me to tell him about a trip I had taken. He asked me if I had ever been to Europe and I began to tell him about my one and only trip there.
Then we talked about a trip to Nicaragua, and that led us to talking about politics, including my favorite topic of late, the U.S. election. Before I knew it, it was 3:45, and we were supposed to have finished at 3:30.
I kept making the same mistake as I tried to communicate during those two hours, but I never stopped to write anything down and couldn't tell you what the mistake was (other than I noticed I kept making it). So, even though I think I could have been a little more vigilant in trying to understand my mistakes, I think that the exercise of speaking in a foreign language is, in and of itself, very useful.
If learning is a process of creating new pathways in the brain, for me, speaking in another language is an important part of that process. I felt like I was driving around a very complicated roadway and at times would take the wrong turn and had to go back and try again. Thanks to Leo, I was able to find that correct path. And like driving, if you take the same turn over and over again, you reach a point where you don't have to think about where to turn anymore, it becomes kind of automatic (though at times you might still miss the turn).
When I am put in a position where I have to speak a lot of Spanish I can feel like my brain is being engaged on a whole different level. When Leo tried to explain the rules for the subjunctive to me, my brain shut down. But when I had to speak, it was like my brain had come back to life and was alive and awake.
Oh god, I have the TV on in the other room and I can hear the last gasps of John McCain rasping out the same old tired slogans "you'll know thier names!", "fight to the finish", "the Mac is back!" I wish he would just go play golf.
Ok, well, he distracted me from my musings about learning, so I think it is time to go and change the channel until I can assume CNN had begun reporting some results, enough that I will be able to open my champagne before I go to bed.
Oh, and if for some reason this election goes a different way than I am expecting. I think I'll just stay here.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Raisins With Seeds?
I think all raisins should be seedless. I mean, they are not like grapes where you can spit out the seed. They are all dry and shriveled up and it is impossible to know that there is a seed in them.
Well, I bought a pack of raisins at the Disco and I went to use them today and they have seeds. It's a good thing I tried one before I added them to my curry chicken salad. I have another pack of raisins in my refrigerator that I got at Coto that also have seeds, but I thought it was because they were cheap. It does seem to me that I bought raisins here before that didn't have seeds. Am I spoiled or what?
Today was a very laid back day. I went to the gym in the morning, came home and made a yummy chicken salad with some rotisery chicken I got yesterday at the Disco. Then I took a nap. It was another one of those afternoon naps that went on for too long and it was hard to wake up.
I was going to go out for a walk, but decided against it. My feet have been really hurting me lately. Yesterday I took a look on the internet for plantar fascitis because my friend Sonja had it. I had no idea what it was when she had it, but I had a hunch that it could be a reason why my feet, in particular my heels, hurt.
I was right. Plantar facitis causes pain in the heels of the feet. I found some exercises you can do and today at the gym spent a good 30 minutes stretching my feet and legs. I haven't been doing enough stretching. When I was taking a lot of tango classes and lessons, my legs hurt, but lately, since I've been walking a lot, my feet started to hurt, especially my heels.
So, because I wanted to give my feet a rest, and also because I needed to be back in time for the Patito Feo finale, I just hung around here.
Today was the last episode of Patito Feo. It was a big extravaganza and everything worked out. Patitos father regained his memory and got back with his wife Carmen and Patito and her little brother Joaquin. Patito and Antonella made up and Antonella's girl group "Las Divinas" won the school video dance competition and the Las Divinas went on to become famous. But, Patito also got a record deal for herself and the finale of the show was a concert attended by thousands of screaming girls ranging fron 4-10 years old. My demographic.
The show was fun to watch, but I am so glad it is over. There was too much about it that was just ridiculous and maybe 8 year old girls wouldn't question, but I did. I was constantly talking to the TV and saying "what the ...?" , like when Patito and her girlfriends were sitting outside by the pool and they left her and then Patito stood up facing the water and these two evil girls who were hiding behind a bush ran up behind her and she didn't hear them and they pushed her in the water. Well, if that wasn't bad enough, then she drowned! She couldn't swim and never thought to just stand up in the stupid pool which could not have been that deep. Well, the good thing was that when her father, who still could not remember who he was left her house after telling Carmen that he did not love her because he didn't know who she was, he found Patito unconsious in the pool and dragged her out and gave her mouth to mouth. The shock of seeing this was enough to jar his memory and he regained his full memory. Kind of silly, I know, but I was hooked.
In the end, Patito took off her glasses and let out her braided hair and was a beautiful young woman (who became a pop star). The moral was that beauty is judged not by what is outside but by what is in your heart.
Speaking of heart. I watched CNN tonight (it is like a junk food addiction I have) and they showed a clip of Obama giving a speech somewhere after getting the news that his grandmother had died. I know she was like a mother to him. As he was giving his usual stump speech about wanting to unite America and get beyond the politics of division, I could see tears rolling down his cheek. It was very moving.
I've been really impressed by Obama's heart in this campaign. He was a really tough campaigner, but he never stooped to the level of Hillary in the primaries or McCain in the general election. He never slung mud, made personal attacks or told lies like the other guys did. He kept what he said focused on the issues and always tried to rise above the name-calling. I am hoping that tomorrow's ending will be as happy as Patito Feo. And then I hope President-Elect Obama can go and mourn in peace.
Well, I bought a pack of raisins at the Disco and I went to use them today and they have seeds. It's a good thing I tried one before I added them to my curry chicken salad. I have another pack of raisins in my refrigerator that I got at Coto that also have seeds, but I thought it was because they were cheap. It does seem to me that I bought raisins here before that didn't have seeds. Am I spoiled or what?
Today was a very laid back day. I went to the gym in the morning, came home and made a yummy chicken salad with some rotisery chicken I got yesterday at the Disco. Then I took a nap. It was another one of those afternoon naps that went on for too long and it was hard to wake up.
I was going to go out for a walk, but decided against it. My feet have been really hurting me lately. Yesterday I took a look on the internet for plantar fascitis because my friend Sonja had it. I had no idea what it was when she had it, but I had a hunch that it could be a reason why my feet, in particular my heels, hurt.
I was right. Plantar facitis causes pain in the heels of the feet. I found some exercises you can do and today at the gym spent a good 30 minutes stretching my feet and legs. I haven't been doing enough stretching. When I was taking a lot of tango classes and lessons, my legs hurt, but lately, since I've been walking a lot, my feet started to hurt, especially my heels.
So, because I wanted to give my feet a rest, and also because I needed to be back in time for the Patito Feo finale, I just hung around here.
Today was the last episode of Patito Feo. It was a big extravaganza and everything worked out. Patitos father regained his memory and got back with his wife Carmen and Patito and her little brother Joaquin. Patito and Antonella made up and Antonella's girl group "Las Divinas" won the school video dance competition and the Las Divinas went on to become famous. But, Patito also got a record deal for herself and the finale of the show was a concert attended by thousands of screaming girls ranging fron 4-10 years old. My demographic.
The show was fun to watch, but I am so glad it is over. There was too much about it that was just ridiculous and maybe 8 year old girls wouldn't question, but I did. I was constantly talking to the TV and saying "what the ...?" , like when Patito and her girlfriends were sitting outside by the pool and they left her and then Patito stood up facing the water and these two evil girls who were hiding behind a bush ran up behind her and she didn't hear them and they pushed her in the water. Well, if that wasn't bad enough, then she drowned! She couldn't swim and never thought to just stand up in the stupid pool which could not have been that deep. Well, the good thing was that when her father, who still could not remember who he was left her house after telling Carmen that he did not love her because he didn't know who she was, he found Patito unconsious in the pool and dragged her out and gave her mouth to mouth. The shock of seeing this was enough to jar his memory and he regained his full memory. Kind of silly, I know, but I was hooked.
In the end, Patito took off her glasses and let out her braided hair and was a beautiful young woman (who became a pop star). The moral was that beauty is judged not by what is outside but by what is in your heart.
Speaking of heart. I watched CNN tonight (it is like a junk food addiction I have) and they showed a clip of Obama giving a speech somewhere after getting the news that his grandmother had died. I know she was like a mother to him. As he was giving his usual stump speech about wanting to unite America and get beyond the politics of division, I could see tears rolling down his cheek. It was very moving.
I've been really impressed by Obama's heart in this campaign. He was a really tough campaigner, but he never stooped to the level of Hillary in the primaries or McCain in the general election. He never slung mud, made personal attacks or told lies like the other guys did. He kept what he said focused on the issues and always tried to rise above the name-calling. I am hoping that tomorrow's ending will be as happy as Patito Feo. And then I hope President-Elect Obama can go and mourn in peace.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
3 months and counting!
Today is my 3 month anniversary. I still remember that cold rainy day that I arrived back in August (seemed like January). My how things have changed.
Who would think that so much could happen in 3 months? I've started learning a new language, had a health crisis (or two), gained a few pounds (which I am working on losing now), made some friends...mostly I have reached a comfort level in my Spanish that makes me really happy. It is the reason I wanted to live in a place like Buenos Aires and be immersed in Spanish. After my first Spanish class over 30 years ago in high school, I've always struggled with being able to express myself fluently in Spanish. Even the past 3 months have been a struggle. But this week, with new medication helping me to feel like a whole human being again, I started to feel like I could communicate in Spanish.
Today I had some interesting plans lined up, expecting to be asked on Wednesday in Italian class what I did this weekend. I went to the gym first (after spending some time reading news and blogs online). After I came back, I ate lunch and decided I wanted to take a nap. I noticed that JC had texted me. I e-mailed him earlier in the week to see if he wanted to go to this Day of the Dead thing at the Recoleta Cultural Center, next to the cemetary. Hernan said he was going to read some poetry or something and there were going to be art exhibitions, poetry, music, etc.
I didn't want to go alone even if Hernan asked me to go with him because I knew he'd know a lot of people there and either I would have to be sociable or I'd be left awkwardly alone. I thought if JC went with me at least neither of us would know anyone there.
When I texted JC back, he asked me what time the "event" started. I told him 2, and it was already 3:30. He then texted back that he had food poisoning and would contact me later. I didn't buy the food poisoning bit. When I used to work in the newspaper in Philadelphia, food poisoning was the number 1 fake excuse people used to call in sick. It was a convenient excuse because usually you were over it the next day. So it was good for people who wanted one day off and didn't want to have to fake being sick when they returned to work the next day. Also, telling me he would call me later (to get together) raised a red flag.
So, I decided to just go over to the cultural center on my own and see what was happening.
Recoleta, around the cemetary, is a buzz of activity. The streets start to get busy with people walking towards or away from the cemetary, like ants coming from and returning to an ant hill. While most streets are deserted on Sunday, as you get closer to the cemetary, you can see a marked difference.
In front of the cemetary is a large park which has the weekend artisan fair and also some grass that people hang out on (I would never sit on the grass in any park here with the number of dogs that inhabit this place).
By the time I worked my way through the crowds in the periphery of the cemetary and got to the cemetary, I was already feeling claustrophobic (sort of), and decided I was just going to walk through these crowds to see if I saw anything and head elsewhere.
I walked past the cultural center and looked in and didn't see anything of interest and worked my way through the crowds in the artisan fair and eventually made my way back to the streets of Recoleta.
I came home and skyped with my friends Bozena and Diane and just got off the phone with my sister.
Speaking of counting, just one more day until the big day. I can not express how excited I am about this election. I remember my first election in 1980. We all know how that turned out. I was so depressed. Not just that Jimmy Carter lost, but that he lost by such a huge margin. When I was in 6th grade we had a mock debate between Nixon and McGovern. I was McGovern. I lost the mock debate and McGovern lost that election. I feel like I have been cursed since then. I played McGovern, he lost. I voted for Carter. He lost. I voted for Mondale. He lost. I was out of the country when Clinton ran. He won. I voted for Clinton in 1996. He was impeached. I voted for Gore. He lost. I voted for Kerry. He lost. My career as a voter has not been a happy one. And I have been forced to sit and watch as these people I did not vote for did things like instituting policies that have increased the division of wealth in our country to record levels, increase our deficit, gotten us into illegal wars and stripped us of constitutional protections. Who knows if Obama will really be able to affect the change I think he can, but I know I am finally going to have voted for a president who will win, and that just thrills the pants off me! I'd love to be sitting with a bunch of other people on election night with a bottle of champagne watching the results come in, but I guess I'll be here alone, maybe with a bottle of wine, just enjoying the beginning of a new day in America.
Who would think that so much could happen in 3 months? I've started learning a new language, had a health crisis (or two), gained a few pounds (which I am working on losing now), made some friends...mostly I have reached a comfort level in my Spanish that makes me really happy. It is the reason I wanted to live in a place like Buenos Aires and be immersed in Spanish. After my first Spanish class over 30 years ago in high school, I've always struggled with being able to express myself fluently in Spanish. Even the past 3 months have been a struggle. But this week, with new medication helping me to feel like a whole human being again, I started to feel like I could communicate in Spanish.
Today I had some interesting plans lined up, expecting to be asked on Wednesday in Italian class what I did this weekend. I went to the gym first (after spending some time reading news and blogs online). After I came back, I ate lunch and decided I wanted to take a nap. I noticed that JC had texted me. I e-mailed him earlier in the week to see if he wanted to go to this Day of the Dead thing at the Recoleta Cultural Center, next to the cemetary. Hernan said he was going to read some poetry or something and there were going to be art exhibitions, poetry, music, etc.
I didn't want to go alone even if Hernan asked me to go with him because I knew he'd know a lot of people there and either I would have to be sociable or I'd be left awkwardly alone. I thought if JC went with me at least neither of us would know anyone there.
When I texted JC back, he asked me what time the "event" started. I told him 2, and it was already 3:30. He then texted back that he had food poisoning and would contact me later. I didn't buy the food poisoning bit. When I used to work in the newspaper in Philadelphia, food poisoning was the number 1 fake excuse people used to call in sick. It was a convenient excuse because usually you were over it the next day. So it was good for people who wanted one day off and didn't want to have to fake being sick when they returned to work the next day. Also, telling me he would call me later (to get together) raised a red flag.
So, I decided to just go over to the cultural center on my own and see what was happening.
Recoleta, around the cemetary, is a buzz of activity. The streets start to get busy with people walking towards or away from the cemetary, like ants coming from and returning to an ant hill. While most streets are deserted on Sunday, as you get closer to the cemetary, you can see a marked difference.
In front of the cemetary is a large park which has the weekend artisan fair and also some grass that people hang out on (I would never sit on the grass in any park here with the number of dogs that inhabit this place).
By the time I worked my way through the crowds in the periphery of the cemetary and got to the cemetary, I was already feeling claustrophobic (sort of), and decided I was just going to walk through these crowds to see if I saw anything and head elsewhere.
I walked past the cultural center and looked in and didn't see anything of interest and worked my way through the crowds in the artisan fair and eventually made my way back to the streets of Recoleta.
I came home and skyped with my friends Bozena and Diane and just got off the phone with my sister.
Speaking of counting, just one more day until the big day. I can not express how excited I am about this election. I remember my first election in 1980. We all know how that turned out. I was so depressed. Not just that Jimmy Carter lost, but that he lost by such a huge margin. When I was in 6th grade we had a mock debate between Nixon and McGovern. I was McGovern. I lost the mock debate and McGovern lost that election. I feel like I have been cursed since then. I played McGovern, he lost. I voted for Carter. He lost. I voted for Mondale. He lost. I was out of the country when Clinton ran. He won. I voted for Clinton in 1996. He was impeached. I voted for Gore. He lost. I voted for Kerry. He lost. My career as a voter has not been a happy one. And I have been forced to sit and watch as these people I did not vote for did things like instituting policies that have increased the division of wealth in our country to record levels, increase our deficit, gotten us into illegal wars and stripped us of constitutional protections. Who knows if Obama will really be able to affect the change I think he can, but I know I am finally going to have voted for a president who will win, and that just thrills the pants off me! I'd love to be sitting with a bunch of other people on election night with a bottle of champagne watching the results come in, but I guess I'll be here alone, maybe with a bottle of wine, just enjoying the beginning of a new day in America.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Mumtaz
Mumtaz is one of the first words I learned in Arabic. I mean, it is one of the first words I really learned. I was flitting about my apartment one day, doing something mindless like cleaning or cooking, I don't remember, and this word came to my mind. I didn't know what it was. It wasn't until I went to class the following Saturday and Ybti came around and checked something we had written in our books and said (and wrote in Arabic) mumtaz! It means excellent.
It is interesting to me that I learned this word before any others, yet it was not a word we were explicitly taught. She never wrote it on the board, she never told us what it was, but she used it often with us. Some of the other words that we are "taught" and see once, I could not recall, or even if I saw them, tell you what they meant, if my life depended on it. It's just an observation, but for me the implications are obvious. I won't bore anyone else with what I make of this.
Today's class was smaller. The three libano-siriano kids who spoke some Arabic have stopped coming. Today there were maybe two people absent, so I guess our class has around 11 people. I didn't go to the "phonetics" class (I am now using John McCain air quotes for things I wish to deride), and it is a good thing I didn't because no one else went. There were two students, Ena and Carolina, both from more advanced classes. It would have meant I would have been the absolute lowest in the class with very little opportunity to hide.
When Ybti asked us why we didn't go, I told her I was tired. I guess I could have lied and told her I had a doctor's appointment or something like that. Truth is, I am tired of that class and not sure if I want to go back. I'm being very nice and trying not to show my frustration with the class, that one in particular, which is higher than what it should be and ends up being "pass the book".
Today in our regular class, Ybti tried "pass the book" but it didn't work. My clasmates say when they are confused, and without having a book in front of them, many people were, and they said it. So, she read the dialogue to us and we said what it meant. A better option, but not the best (I would have loved to try to write the dialogue as a dictation and then practice it, but that is beyond her abilities as a teacher).
Once again, this woman Paris, who is an older Lebanese woman who for some reason can not speak Arabic, put Ybti in a bad mood. I didn't really catch what was happening, but at the beginning of class, Paris was sitting very comfortably with her legs crossed and she said something to Ybti about being confused. Ybti responded and Paris responded, but I was completely lost and ended up just observing the physical behavior. Ybti began to raise her voice, but Paris was still smiling and sitting with her legs crossed. It seemed she was being indirectly critical. Ybti was being kind of agressive and trying to move on and begin the class, but in a very dismissive kind of way. And that was it. Paris then uncrossed her legs and her body language became very shut down. It was not a pretty scene for me. I think Paris was probably asking why the class is at the advanced level that it is when we are beginners (at least the words I did understand lead me to believe that was the crux of the issue).
After that, Paris was pretty quite, even withdrawn and Ybti eventually calmed down.
The class is very funny because of the people in the class. One guy, Martin, is especially funny - I guess he is becoming the class clown. Claudia Duffy was there and sat next to me. She is easy to make laugh, so between Martin on her other side and my occasional jokes, Claudia was laughing a lot. I'm glad I am taking the class, and I am learning and making progress in spite of the substandard teaching. Mumtaz!
After class I met my conversation partner from Peru, Carlos. We met at the Facultad de Economicas on Cordoba. The building was quiet except for a few students in some of the classrooms and some people hanging out in the courtyard.
We spent about a half hour in Spanish and then switched to English. I like Carlos, he is easy to talk to. Today he was all dressed up in a pressed shirt and slacks because he met another classmate from his economics program to get some tutoring in math.
As we were finishing up with conversation exchange, he asked me if I could help him with a letter he had translated from Spanish to English. It had to do with an incident that happened between his wife and her former employer. The letter was pretty clearly written, but I didn't understand enough of the situation, so I spent some time clarifying things with him. His intention was to send the letter out and have people sign it and send it to his wife's ex-boss to express solidarity with her.
Briefly what happened was that her boss was paying her but not recording all of her salary, so her pay-stubs were inaccurate and she knew that her recorded pay was what would be used to determine things like unemployment benefits, severance pay, etc. Half of her income was under the table. When she questioned her boss about this, they began harassing her and her clients. Finally the V.P. of the company went Argentine on her (I was suspecting there was a cultural element too, her being from Peru), meaning he got loud and obnoxious and started yelling, and she felt threatened and never returned to work. Now they are trying to get an acurate record of her earnings and also an acurate severance package (based on her real earnings). They are working with different agencies in Buenos Aires, but also sending out these letters and asking people to contact the company. I kind of felt it was only inflaming the situation, but I didn't say that. I also felt that Carlos and his wife needed to sit down with a cross-cultural mediator to try to work things out, but I could be completely reading this thing wrong.
It's a lovely, warm summer-like day. I'm going to go out and take a walk now.
It is interesting to me that I learned this word before any others, yet it was not a word we were explicitly taught. She never wrote it on the board, she never told us what it was, but she used it often with us. Some of the other words that we are "taught" and see once, I could not recall, or even if I saw them, tell you what they meant, if my life depended on it. It's just an observation, but for me the implications are obvious. I won't bore anyone else with what I make of this.
Today's class was smaller. The three libano-siriano kids who spoke some Arabic have stopped coming. Today there were maybe two people absent, so I guess our class has around 11 people. I didn't go to the "phonetics" class (I am now using John McCain air quotes for things I wish to deride), and it is a good thing I didn't because no one else went. There were two students, Ena and Carolina, both from more advanced classes. It would have meant I would have been the absolute lowest in the class with very little opportunity to hide.
When Ybti asked us why we didn't go, I told her I was tired. I guess I could have lied and told her I had a doctor's appointment or something like that. Truth is, I am tired of that class and not sure if I want to go back. I'm being very nice and trying not to show my frustration with the class, that one in particular, which is higher than what it should be and ends up being "pass the book".
Today in our regular class, Ybti tried "pass the book" but it didn't work. My clasmates say when they are confused, and without having a book in front of them, many people were, and they said it. So, she read the dialogue to us and we said what it meant. A better option, but not the best (I would have loved to try to write the dialogue as a dictation and then practice it, but that is beyond her abilities as a teacher).
Once again, this woman Paris, who is an older Lebanese woman who for some reason can not speak Arabic, put Ybti in a bad mood. I didn't really catch what was happening, but at the beginning of class, Paris was sitting very comfortably with her legs crossed and she said something to Ybti about being confused. Ybti responded and Paris responded, but I was completely lost and ended up just observing the physical behavior. Ybti began to raise her voice, but Paris was still smiling and sitting with her legs crossed. It seemed she was being indirectly critical. Ybti was being kind of agressive and trying to move on and begin the class, but in a very dismissive kind of way. And that was it. Paris then uncrossed her legs and her body language became very shut down. It was not a pretty scene for me. I think Paris was probably asking why the class is at the advanced level that it is when we are beginners (at least the words I did understand lead me to believe that was the crux of the issue).
After that, Paris was pretty quite, even withdrawn and Ybti eventually calmed down.
The class is very funny because of the people in the class. One guy, Martin, is especially funny - I guess he is becoming the class clown. Claudia Duffy was there and sat next to me. She is easy to make laugh, so between Martin on her other side and my occasional jokes, Claudia was laughing a lot. I'm glad I am taking the class, and I am learning and making progress in spite of the substandard teaching. Mumtaz!
After class I met my conversation partner from Peru, Carlos. We met at the Facultad de Economicas on Cordoba. The building was quiet except for a few students in some of the classrooms and some people hanging out in the courtyard.
We spent about a half hour in Spanish and then switched to English. I like Carlos, he is easy to talk to. Today he was all dressed up in a pressed shirt and slacks because he met another classmate from his economics program to get some tutoring in math.
As we were finishing up with conversation exchange, he asked me if I could help him with a letter he had translated from Spanish to English. It had to do with an incident that happened between his wife and her former employer. The letter was pretty clearly written, but I didn't understand enough of the situation, so I spent some time clarifying things with him. His intention was to send the letter out and have people sign it and send it to his wife's ex-boss to express solidarity with her.
Briefly what happened was that her boss was paying her but not recording all of her salary, so her pay-stubs were inaccurate and she knew that her recorded pay was what would be used to determine things like unemployment benefits, severance pay, etc. Half of her income was under the table. When she questioned her boss about this, they began harassing her and her clients. Finally the V.P. of the company went Argentine on her (I was suspecting there was a cultural element too, her being from Peru), meaning he got loud and obnoxious and started yelling, and she felt threatened and never returned to work. Now they are trying to get an acurate record of her earnings and also an acurate severance package (based on her real earnings). They are working with different agencies in Buenos Aires, but also sending out these letters and asking people to contact the company. I kind of felt it was only inflaming the situation, but I didn't say that. I also felt that Carlos and his wife needed to sit down with a cross-cultural mediator to try to work things out, but I could be completely reading this thing wrong.
It's a lovely, warm summer-like day. I'm going to go out and take a walk now.
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