Here is a schedule of events that transpired while Kimberlea was here:
Tuesday/Wednesday: recovering from time zone change
Thursday: 9 am, leave for Valencia. 4 hours later de-bus. Wander around Valencia looking at the different Fallas.* Watch a parade in which billions of sparks are flying everywhere, landing on people, most of whom leave unharmed. Unfortunately, a few hairs and particles of flesh are burned off Kimberlea's head. After this, continue wandering around looking at Fallas and for a place to eat. After dinner watch the burning/fireworks explosion of the main children's falla. Stay in very squished quarters with thousands/maybe hundreds of other people for a few more hours to watch the burning of the main falla. Basically I have never seen so much fire in my life. Return home at 3 am.
Friday: Try to figure out what happened to ourselves. I attempt to teach a class to my 6 and 8 year old. The 6 year old tells my my zip-up sweatshirt is tacky. Then we went to a place nearby called Don Pimpón.
Saturday: authentic Spanish grocery shopping experience. Wandering around Madrid. Visiting a museum. Went to a jazz bar where we watched these really snotty ladies who couldn't clap (no matter how many drinks they ordered) sneer at people around them.
Sunday: visiting the open-air market for souvenirs, chocolate and churros, a hurge park, the cow parade.
Monday: Kimberlea went weapon shopping.
Tuesday: Coffee and watching the royal horses get baths.
All in all it was a a grand time. :D
*For information about what a falla is, check here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Fallas
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Do it.
In lieu of a regular post, I will direct you to the following link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBJPTyyX8Cs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBJPTyyX8Cs
Saturday, March 14, 2009
The Swindling Canoeist and Other Criminal Acts
Recently I’ve been reading an article about a skip-tracer with some of my business students. Basically, it’s about this guy who tracks down people who try to skip out of town and leave debts behind, etc. There’s one part about a guy who committed life insurance fraud in a death he faked in a canoe. The line which caused much consternation among my students was,
“…much in the news since swindling canoeist John Darwin and his wife Anne were jailed last year…”
We had to break each word down and discuss it for a long time. Finally one student threw up her hands and moaned, explaining to me in Spanish her understanding of the article—a man in a canoe, rowing around, cheating people out of their hard-earned money. We had a good laugh once it was straightened out.
Moving along. Since I essentially grew up in a house, I’m not familiar with the ups and downs of apartment life. Overall, I like the connected sense. Hearing snatches of other people’s music, knowing when someone is putting in a new cupboard, etc. I especially like the baby and his grandma who tickles him so hard that he bounces her name when he’s trying to get it out. However, there is one thing I do not like. And that is the lifestyle of my neighbors on the other side of my headboard. I used to have neighbors who loved each other very much. Several times a week, they loved each other very much. Such things can be ignored with a little help from music in the headphones. However, they must have moved because that room is now the entertainment room for a family who does NOT love each other so much. In fact, they fight a lot and watch TV till very late. Even with all this considered, it wasn’t until they downloaded Instant Messenger that I got truly annoyed. Bee-dee-doop. Bee-dee-doop. *Low, vicious grumbling from my side of the wall*
I take comfort in the fact that I have taken revenge on basically any past or potential enemies in my apartment building with one simple purchase. I’ve been wanting to do it for a long time, and finally I got so jealous of one of my students that I just went out and bought one. I am now the proud owner of a Hohner Recorder. Bam. You may look for an album titled, “The Musical Stylings of Kate” on iTunes any day now. Later, when I want to appeal to a wider, more hip-hop style audience, I will produce an album called, “The Musical Stylings of K-Dub.” First, I have to figure out how to stay in the same octave for the whole song. I have already taught myself at least four, maybe 5 songs. Parents, you can look forward to such musical gems as, “Mary Had a Little Lamb” and “Ode to Joy” when I’m living at home looking for a job.
In final news, just in time for Kimberlea’s arrival, I have contracted a head cold. I’d like to know which of my students to blame, but they’ve all been sick within the past month, so I just don’t know. I plan to take it easy so that I will be ready for our big shindig in Valencia. Google “Las Fallas”…it’s pretty good. And, lucky for me, I have the nicest roommate in the world who supports me in my whiny, snot-ridden state and doesn’t mind if I use roughly 50% of our toilet paper supply to empty my nose.
“…much in the news since swindling canoeist John Darwin and his wife Anne were jailed last year…”
We had to break each word down and discuss it for a long time. Finally one student threw up her hands and moaned, explaining to me in Spanish her understanding of the article—a man in a canoe, rowing around, cheating people out of their hard-earned money. We had a good laugh once it was straightened out.
Moving along. Since I essentially grew up in a house, I’m not familiar with the ups and downs of apartment life. Overall, I like the connected sense. Hearing snatches of other people’s music, knowing when someone is putting in a new cupboard, etc. I especially like the baby and his grandma who tickles him so hard that he bounces her name when he’s trying to get it out. However, there is one thing I do not like. And that is the lifestyle of my neighbors on the other side of my headboard. I used to have neighbors who loved each other very much. Several times a week, they loved each other very much. Such things can be ignored with a little help from music in the headphones. However, they must have moved because that room is now the entertainment room for a family who does NOT love each other so much. In fact, they fight a lot and watch TV till very late. Even with all this considered, it wasn’t until they downloaded Instant Messenger that I got truly annoyed. Bee-dee-doop. Bee-dee-doop. *Low, vicious grumbling from my side of the wall*
I take comfort in the fact that I have taken revenge on basically any past or potential enemies in my apartment building with one simple purchase. I’ve been wanting to do it for a long time, and finally I got so jealous of one of my students that I just went out and bought one. I am now the proud owner of a Hohner Recorder. Bam. You may look for an album titled, “The Musical Stylings of Kate” on iTunes any day now. Later, when I want to appeal to a wider, more hip-hop style audience, I will produce an album called, “The Musical Stylings of K-Dub.” First, I have to figure out how to stay in the same octave for the whole song. I have already taught myself at least four, maybe 5 songs. Parents, you can look forward to such musical gems as, “Mary Had a Little Lamb” and “Ode to Joy” when I’m living at home looking for a job.
In final news, just in time for Kimberlea’s arrival, I have contracted a head cold. I’d like to know which of my students to blame, but they’ve all been sick within the past month, so I just don’t know. I plan to take it easy so that I will be ready for our big shindig in Valencia. Google “Las Fallas”…it’s pretty good. And, lucky for me, I have the nicest roommate in the world who supports me in my whiny, snot-ridden state and doesn’t mind if I use roughly 50% of our toilet paper supply to empty my nose.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
How to Be a Warrior and Other Valuable Skills
Recently, I discovered a vicious den of wickedness and pollution. The horrifying thing was that the said den was located...
on my blinds.
Yes. Between several of the lower slats in my oh-so-quality-roll-up-blinds, I found several colonies of wicked mold growing and polluting my life. I highly doubt that it was of the life-saving penicilling type. Therefore, I attacked it the way Astin has been quoted attacking dishes, "quickly. ruthlessly." Not to worry. The colonies have been subdued and a lot more fresh air has been circulating our house as preventative measure.
On Friday, we went for drinks with our landlord. It was kind of a weird shift for me, because I'm used to hating my landlord. But Astin says this is just because I've had bad ones. I am not so sure. At that time, I tried escargot, or snails, for the first time. It honestly wasn't bad. But since I wasn't sure if they fell in the same category as sea food, I didn't eat much.
In final news, I am suffering from a slight flesh wound. Recently, while trying to use a large knife as a weenie roaster, there was a collision between my index finger and the molten blade. No surgery was necessary, and I survive to this day. I do not suggest this method, but it was the only one available at the time that did not dirty up more dishes.
The End.
on my blinds.
Yes. Between several of the lower slats in my oh-so-quality-roll-up-blinds, I found several colonies of wicked mold growing and polluting my life. I highly doubt that it was of the life-saving penicilling type. Therefore, I attacked it the way Astin has been quoted attacking dishes, "quickly. ruthlessly." Not to worry. The colonies have been subdued and a lot more fresh air has been circulating our house as preventative measure.
On Friday, we went for drinks with our landlord. It was kind of a weird shift for me, because I'm used to hating my landlord. But Astin says this is just because I've had bad ones. I am not so sure. At that time, I tried escargot, or snails, for the first time. It honestly wasn't bad. But since I wasn't sure if they fell in the same category as sea food, I didn't eat much.
In final news, I am suffering from a slight flesh wound. Recently, while trying to use a large knife as a weenie roaster, there was a collision between my index finger and the molten blade. No surgery was necessary, and I survive to this day. I do not suggest this method, but it was the only one available at the time that did not dirty up more dishes.
The End.
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