Something lighter
I've just discovered this Eight from the Eighties so we'll give it a go, shall we?

1) What's in your room?
An unmade bed, some books and my shoe collection.

2) Do you have fame?
Not anymore, that was more of a childhood thing ;-) Anyway my scrambled eggs are famous.

3) Are you on a road to nowhere?
I'm on my way, i don't now where i'm going but i'm on my way...

4) Ooh, are you a little runaway?
Perhaps but i love staying at home when the time is right and i write, read or just cuddle on the sofa.

5) Have you ever felt the earth move, under your feet?
As in an earthquake, no thank you. As in 'that boy just looked at me and he's so cute i want to live with him happily ever after', the last time i was 15. Oh, and the earth moves under my desk every time Resident Evil gives me one of his looks. Please note that's in a bad way.

6) I've been waiting for a...
A bank account with no leaks, please. And maybe some Hagën Dasz.

7) If you love somebody...
Stay in love.

8) Tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies
My real name is Diaz, Cameron Diaz. Nice to meet you.

Monday Memories
Today's question:
What's one of your earliest memories of something awful that was "news"?

November 13th, 1985. I was eleven years old. A river overflowed and wiped the Colombian region of Armero out of the map. 26.000 people died, thousands of houses dissappeared. I was too young to know much about Colombia and its natural disasters, but that was a story i will never forget because of Omaira.



She was a 13 year old girl that was trapped in between the rocks, the mud and the sand. For a few days, she could speak and plead for help. She also made jokes about how fat she was and how difficult it would be to get her out. I remember her short black hair and how i was sure somebody eventually would rescue her. The media covered this story but there was nothing anyone could do. And then she died.

Maybe this isn't my earliest memory of a tragedy in the news, but it sure was the first time i cried for somebody real in front of the television.

Salsa
Siz and Vic threw a party last night: their first 'kidless' party in 12 years. Given the fact that big m is nine years old and that my sister has always been the official party girl, it's a veeery long time. Tom had to work and Six came along.

We drove up the hills to the huge house, that was decorated so well it looked like a Have-A-Great-Time Theme Park. An incredible amount of food and drinks, lots of space for dancing an a chill out area upstairs. These people are professionals.

At some point, Six and i were asked to dj and we were totally useless at it. We didn't understand the system so there were long pauses between songs and we got stares from the 60 guests, but we thought that was kind of funny.

Anyway, i was doing my best picking the music: a little bit of Moulin Rouge, then the ethnic Amparanoia and the sure bet, La Cabra Mecánica. Some danced, some didn't. Then a girl came up to us and said she'd like to hear some salsa. It was magic.

The whole room started to swing and clap and dance and get up from their chairs. "They wanted salsa all along", said Six, looking quite amazed. "I've never seen such a large group of people loving salsa so much", she added, giggling. We left at 2 am. You could still hear the salsa from outside the house.

Different lives
Lately, i've regained contact with someone i met as a teenager, in those dreamy summers in France. He was an on and off boyfriend, but mostly i feel he was a pal.

I remember how my mother was impressed by his manners ('bonjour madame") and how he was always about to teach LovelyV and me how to windsurf. We never really got round to it: rain, better plans, full agenda...

He wanted to learn how to fly. A couple of months ago, i had a dream and he was in it. I had lost touch with him when i was about 18. So i decided to try yahoo! and see if he was anywhere on line. Lucky me.

It's funny how stories can come back to you if you press the right keys. Now he is a pilot in his thirties who spends his days on planes, travelling the world and living as an eternal Peter Pan. We email each other pretty regularly.

A few days ago he wanted to go waterskiing on a lake in the African country he is at now but he didn't have a boat. So he used a pick up truck. To be honest, I'm not sure whether i'm jelous of his life or he's jelous of mine.

Shhh...
Dreamy Friday Five

1. What's the last vivid dream that you remember having?
I think it was a friend reunion of some sort. Many people i haven't seen in a while were in it. I clearly remember H talking to me while i nodded my head in approval. Weird.

2. Do you have any recurring dreams?
Not anymore. I had a recurring nightmare years ago, but my subconscious is much less masochistic now.

3. What's the scariest nightmare you've ever had?
The M&M's were in danger. It was awful. I remember sitting down holding little m in my arms and trying to cover her with my whole body. I woke up feeling incredibly anxious and scared.

4. Have you ever written your dreams down or considered it? Why or why not?
I did write a couple of dreams years ago, but they still didn't make much sense after some hours.

5. Have you ever had a lucid dream? What did you do in it?
Believe it or not, i've managed to get over a boyfriend through a dream. I simply dreamt that i was no longer attached to him and when i woke up it felt right. It was really inspiring. I was at a friend's house in Segovia and i only slept 2 hours, but the dream gave me such energy i got up and took a long walk.

Gimme five!
Five things from Sherry

5 THINGS YOU HATE
1. working late
2. being asked the same question a thousand times
3. me blushing all the time
4. bugs
5. rude people

5 THINGS YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND
1. men
2. japanese
3. violence
4. hit lists
5. my boss

5 THINGS ON YOUR DESK
1. a bottle of water
2. my cell phone
3. my pasta salad
4. a dictionnary
5. cigarrettes

5 OF YOUR CLOSEST FRIENDS IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER
1. Luis
2. Tom
3. Morgana
4. Six
5. Trix

5 THINGS YOU ARE DOING RIGHT NOW
1. working
2. looking forward to drinks tonight
3. thinking about my friend Ona
4. eating my pasta salad
5. checking my email to see if Kurt had anything to say in the past five minutes

5 NEGATIVE FACTS ABOUT YOU
1. nerves
2. impatience
3. lazyness
4. silly
5. wicked

5 POSITIVE FACTS ABOUT YOU
1. fast
2. artistic
3. optimistic
4. in love
5. trendy

5 THINGS YOU PLAN TO DO BEFORE YOU DIE
1. have children
2. a book. or many books
3. get dream job
4. be well off
5. finish what i start

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO
1. write
2. prepare party
3. speak Spanish, English and French
4. keep a weblog
5. give advice

5 THINGS YOU CAN'T DO
1. be patient
2. sing
3. save my money
4. wait til Martin's visit in september
5. stop daydreaming

Music surprises
The guy on the radio said that Alanis Morissette gave a 'surprise concert' a few days ago in Madrid. I'm officially pissed off now. I would've loved to see her live. And she gave her gig on of one of my days off. I suppose it wasn't meant to be, Alanis...

Not a good time for music around here. The band Alien Ant Farm had an accident yesterday and now they won't be playing at Festimad.

Apparently, the Spanish group Sôber is replacing them. That's the official version. The unofficial one is that Sôber were playing anyway as a surprise. I don't know what's with surprises and musicians.

Kurt tells me that Lenny Kravitz is marrying an 18 year old model from Brazil. Hardly any surprises there.

Kids, don't try this at home
Tom and i watched The Empire Strikes Back on tv last night (as did half of the Spanish population, i presume), the day after going to the cinema to see Attack of the Clones. I'm not into science fiction and large fan mouvements scare me, though i must admit this was fun for a while. I'm ready for the spam, but i was on the verge of falling asleep twice at the theatre and that is a fact. Anyway, i just wanted to point out that the political plot of these type of films really freaks me out.

I find it fascist and totalitarian most of the times, the way concepts of Good and Evil have no blurs, how the separatist must be aniquilated or absorbed, how the army can save your life if its on the right hands. I know it's just a movie, and a fantasy one for that matter, but in 1994 i went to see Disney's Lion King and the same thing happened. It's a children's film, but the inner message had strange components, such as the need of a king in society, the urge to have somebody ruling otherwise chaos falls upon the people.

I find that scary. That's all.

Piled boxes and compliments
I think this is the first time i move and i'm not surrounded by piles of boxes. As you can see, i've been busy over the weekend. I bought my domain and server last saturday and this morning an email was my equivalent of the guy with the truck, ready to move the stuff into our new -bigger, sunnier, independent- place. A bit like what Fred is about to do any moment now, only mine was a digital transportation, which envolves a smaller amount of sweat...

I went out for a walk around the neighbourhood today, with Morgana and beautiful baby Lucía. It was cloudy and sunny at the same time so i'm glat i took the camera with me. I intend to capture my favourite places in the city so i can send them to Martin in Québec.

Cute peruvian guy on the street stopped us and asked if "that was a baby" Morgana was carrying as a backpack (only it was on her front). She said yes. He said "well, she will obviously grow to become a gorgeous girl then". Morgana blushed and i laughed hard. I think it's the best compliment ever.

Here for you
We danced when the music was fading
We talked when the guests were falling asleep
You smiled the special smile when i thought i'd fall apart
and then you said
'It may not be all right but i'll be here for you'
here for you
here for you

King and queen of parties,
world healers in one single chat
I was your mattress in times of chaos
You were the brother I never had

Now the years have passed
and it's been far too many winters
since the last time
we danced and talked and smiled
and still
i remember your hand
gripping mine

I know you are gone
I feel you are gone
but, anyhow,
-just in case-
I will stay
here for you
here for you
here for you

29
It's my best friend's birthday today. He would turn 29. I miss him.

Sweetie daaaahhhling!
This is a tiny tribute to one of my favourite TV shows in the world. Absolutely Fabulous. If you haven't seen it, i strongly recomend this guide. You'll learn everything there is to know about Edina, her friend Patsy and daughter Saffy.



Saffy - 'I thought they didn't let people with drug convictions into America.'
Patsy - 'It's not so much a conviction, darling. It's more of a strong belief.'

Monday Memories by The Onion
Today's question is Do you have a memory about a particular pair of shoes?
Does the Pope wear a funny hat? Seriously, asking me that is begging for a two hour conversation (or maybe monologue).
Fact #1: There are two kinds of window shopping i could do forever: shoes and jewelry.
Fact #2: The most important item you are wearing right now is your pair of shoes.
Fact #3: The shoes i buy fall into three general categories. No heels, comfortable and cute / Power shoes, as in medium to high heels that make you walk like you're on a mission / Sexy shoes, deadly uncomfortable and, let's face it, too expensive for the use i give them.

My cousin M. married her Christopher Reeve look alike boyfriend. Chester, England, September 1994. I wore a very short dress, tan coloured, with a sort of Beethoven jacket and high heel power shoes in an ice colour. The wedding reception was at my aunt and uncle's garden and they hired an Irish band to play those songs where you have to dance in groups, make bridges, etc. I got seated at the "young people's table", with all my cousins whom i hadn't seen in ten years. It was fun, it was beautiful, it was emotive. So i got a little tipsy.

I started dancing with one of my cousins and tripped. I landed on the floor, my dress around my neck. The worst part (yes, it gets worse) is that one of my heels pierced the air and went all the way to my uncle's head, who was sitting next to my mother. I ended up wearing lace shoes three sizes bigger for the rest of the wedding and looking like a scarecrow. I fixed the shoes when i got back to Madrid but i haven't worn them since.

Deadlines
I've been talking too much about the novel i want to write. And some people, wisely, are asking me why i'm taking so long to start. I'm probably being too careful designing the facts of the story in my mind, describing the three main characters to myself and documenting the time in recent History where they'll live.

The first long story i wrote started on an impulse. I sat down at the typewriter and, when i had written about four pages, i knew it was going to be a novel. But i was 20 years old then, i had made a couple of big mistakes in life that had left me longing for a challenge and i had plenty of time on my side.

A few years after that i wrote my 'Last summer in Mallorca', which was the result of a bet i made with two friends: they thought i couldn't write a story that was entirely true, no fiction whatsoever involved. So much for my journalistic skills. I'm quite proud of the result, actually.

I don't want to count the years that have passed since then, but i know it's time to continue working. The days aren't long enough and my stage fear keeps growing and growing by the hour, but the talking is over. I have a deadline now.

Cuisine
I don't know if i've told you Tom has gone on a diet. It's not a very big deal because he doesn't have to lose that much anyway. He's following a menu that is quite delicious so i can honestly say we still eat fabulously well in this house. I'm a spoiled brat when it comes to cooking. Tom does most of it because he spends more time at home than i do and frankly, because damn he is good at it! I never thought i'd say this but he can easily compete with mum's cooking any day.

I started experimenting in the kitchen a few years ago, specially when my mother had to work in Argentina for 6 months and i had the appartment (and its chores) to myself. I read recipes, bought fresh things from the market and enjoyed the whole process a lot. One of those days at my mother's house i decided to make roasted chicken.

I went to the supermarket, got the bird, went back home to call my sister and got the basic info on what to do with that dead thing on the counter of the kitchen. As it turned out, i made my first mistake going to the supermarket because the bird was -how can i say this- complete and not cleaned up. That means the parts one normally doesn't eat were there, including inside organs and extremities. Nice.

I'll spare you on what came next, as you can probably get the picture. I had to do the butcher job myself and it was not a pleasing sight to look at. My sister was on the other side of the phone the whole time, both coaching me and trying hard not to roll on the floor with laughter. Unexpectedly enough, the story had a happy ending and i managed to make a quite delicious roast chicken stuffed with apples. I might give you the recipe one of these days...

Dolling up for the Friday Five

1. What shampoo do you use?
I change all the time. I like that Herbal Essence one with flowers and also the new transparent Pantene. But i'm sure they're all the same in different bottles.

2. Do you use conditioner? What kind?
I do, i use conditioner to give my hair some discipline. I can't remember the brand, though. I remember the yellow bottle.

3. When was the last time you got your hair cut?
The end of February, can you believe that? I need to get it cut again!

4. What styling products do you use?
None, but i buy them all because i'm a silly cow who thinks she needs the products when she sees them on the shelve! *lol*

5. What's your worst hair-related experience?
Good one. I dyed my hair and i wanted to change the colour. I thought it would be a great idea to take the dye off my hair first, with something that turned out to be a bleacher. When i realized, i had half my head going orange and i stopped and added a new, darker dye. The result was Tom rolling on the floor with laughter, my hair in about five very different colours and the hairdresser grinning the next day. She knew she had a costumer for life.

A must
Can i have your attention please? This is a message for all you living or visiting Madrid right now. As you might know, it's the San Isidro fiesta this week and there are extremely lousy concerts programmed all over the city. Strange as it is, the mayor has managed to slip one sensational band into the list, probably because he didn't know what he was doing, and there is a great concert tonight.

So, if you're anywhere near Plaza de las Vistillas at nine o'clock, enjoy the show of Lichis and his band La Cabra Mecánica, for free. You will have a blast. And i won't, because i'll be at work. Just thought i'd share this very valuable information. You're welcome.

Fairy tales
I'd like to be the main character in a Meg Ryan movie today. Please. That way i wouldn't have to worry about my hair and i'd take walks through the park while jazz music played in the background. Everything would surprise me, so i'd have a permanent expression in between silly and cute. And it would never rain in New York City. Ever.

Wow
I'm back in Madrid and things have been happening while i was gone... people kept coming into ambivalence and even left some notes. Thank you. And the sun stopped by the city to see how things are going with the clouds. The postman delivered two letters into our mailbox, one being publicity, the second for someone else. My friend Martin wrote an e-mail saying he's willing to visit in September. That should rock.

Especially since we've been planning his trip for the past twelve years. Yes, i'd rather write that in letters instead of numbers, giving the absurdity of the figure. Normally, i'd be dancing around the roof with this piece of news, screaming into the telephone, smiling to myself in the elevator or singing something in French to the top of my lungs. But i guess i've waited so long for this that i can't believe it's going to happen. Or maybe i'm in a temporary shock. But anyway... wow.

Quote collection

Fashion:

"Nineties style isn't" (David Borenstein, December 19, 1999)

Doubts:

"The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt" (Bertrand Russell)

Media:

"The hand that rules the press (...) is the hand that rules the country" (Learned Hand, Memorial service for Justice Brandeis, December 21, 1942)

Thoughts:

"The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas" (Linus Pauling)

Art:

"An artist cannot fail; it is a success to be one" (Charles Horton Cooley, Life and the Student)

Fiestas
Yes. The sun is out. It's Friday (no ff though) and next week the city celebrates its patron, San Isidro. I'm not very sure of what has been programmed, given that our mayor is a person stuck in the 18th century with a worrying fascination for all things glittery and gold, but there may be something interesting in the neighbourhood.

Yesterday i found out through Kurt that there is a small town near Toledo where they celebrate a thing called 'Circus-bull of Cuba'. No misspelling there. Apparently they bring these dancers from Havana, you know, Copacabana kind of wave, and they dance all dressed up in feathers and fishnet stockings while small bulls run around them. I swear this is true.

No matter what mr. Manzano, our mayor, choses to offer for our fiesta, it'll never get as surreal, stupid, crazy and fucked up as that one. Or will it?

Good riddance (Don't you love that song?)
I swear if this weather doesn't get any friendlier i'm going to scream. Our appartment, formerly known as The Microwave, is Jurassic cold these mornings. Maybe it's the crazy temperature, but Tom and i have been daydreaming a lot lately. We're thinking about travelling, maybe even emigrating for a few years, starting over.

Come to think of it, there is something fascinating about the simple act of pretending you are leaving. You see yourself leading a whole different life in a new house, with new tasks in your life and adopting new routines. In fact, the same thing happens when it comes to my job. I guess i'm happy there despite all the nasty things i know my (many) bosses are. I suppose it could always get worse. But can it get better? Of course!

One of my favourite passtimes is to dream i storm into Resident Evil's office and i tell him i'm out of there. Because those are the first words i would say. "I'm outta here". I wonder what he would answer. Would he offer me more $$$, try to keep me there? Or would he look for the saddest expression in his face to say "We will miss you, good riddance"?

Where did the Spring go?
I didn't set foot outside yesterday. You can hardly blame me, i had several excellent reasons:

reason # 1::: It was so cold and dark outside the streets begged people to leave them alone. I hate it when the neighbourhood gets all grumpy.

reason # 2::: I hadn't slept much the night before and the couch seemed like a very inviting companion.

reason # 3::: I discovered over the weekend that Fred had never seen High Fidelity and we happen to have the dvd. Granted, the book is so much better, but does John Cusack look lost and confused in the novel? No. So i fell in love with Mr. Cusack. Again.

reason # 4::: I've decided i don't like this intruder called Winter Extension and i want Spring back. If you're reading this, you tempered season, please come back soon. We need you.

So are you
I talked to Martin last night. He's my best friend from Québec. We met when i arrived there at the sweet age of 15 and we've shared a strange bond ever since. We were born on the same day of the same month of the same year, in two different continents. He is very much like me. Or i'm very much like him, i don't remember anymore.

We talked for a while last night and it felt that these last years haven't really gone by and the closeness came back as soon as his voice laughed for the first time in the conversation. We talked a little bit about the past, a lot about the future.

At some point i told him i missed so much it hurt. He strongly agreed. And then i said i hated him for being so far away. He pointed out i was a creature of extremes. I said so was he. He has overcome his fear of computers, but he still gets panic attacks when he thinks of planes, so we said we'd write mails to each other for the time being.

Pat
Lately i take more pictures at our local bar than anywhere else in the city. Saturday night i borrowed a digital camera to do some work and i took some snap shots of my friend Pat. She's a terrible model: she won't stop moving, but finally the pictures came out really interesting. I have more, but i'm posting my favourites in a small size in order to preserve her privacy *grin*.

Everybody's watching now
We have a new blogger in this land!
Fred is here to stay. And he's ready to be the talk of the town for a while...

A brief moment
I ran into a couple of ghosts of the Christmas past last night. One carried tickles and fun, the other brought the grey shades.

I kept the first parcel and left the second one behind without looking back.

You wear it well
My mum is elegant. There is something about her, some sort of allure, that makes her look too cool for school even in the wee hours. I guess i've tried to soak up my fashion sense from her, learning how to combine materials, colours, etc. Still, there are certain topics in 'fashion planet' we will never agree on. The biggest issue we used to have (when i was a teenager living with her, and a few years after that too) was vintage clothing.

There was no way of convincing her that the sixties were back, and then the seventies and now the eighties. I mean, she could tell they were back but she couldn't find anything trendy about it. She didn't like me wearing flares or hippy dresses, because she'd worn all that decades ago. It was a lost case for both of us. But it was fun.

Ankle strap shoes were the next big issue. I love them, she despises them. There is no rationality in these topics, because a shopper shops with the heart and only remembers the brain when it comes to paying, right? Well, when i was like eight years old i had a fever for patent leather shoes -that of course i never got- and i think that disease mutated into the ankle strap shoe virus i've suffered ever since.

I'm a big girl now and every time i see a pair of ankle strap sandals i think about her and laugh inside. Someday i'll buy myself ones. In red.

Is it Friday yet?
I've been waiting for Friday since last Monday and still i work the whole weekend, so i don't really know why i bother. Yesterday i couldn't stop giggling with this page. It's from a (oh-so-very-English) man describing the little things his girlfriend can do to make him go crazy. The part about plants is especially funny. I'd love to have my own piece of Vietnam in the sitting room.

And speaking of English humour, they seem to be losing it when it comes to their music. After missing the 100 top single list in the US (for the first time in 40 years), i think the whole country is wondering what went rotten with britt pop. Or rock. Soul. Opera. I think its an exaggeration yet at the same time i'm glad something gets their knickers in a twist for once.

You've probably noticed there's no Friday Five today. They are revamping the site. Time to talk about something different or watch tv. If you prefer the second option, do it quick, before the charming ex presidents make it to prime time.

And one last thing. There is nothing wrong with drawing on the back of your schoolbooks. There is nothing wrong with drawing your teachers. I don't even think it's wrong to picture them with arrows in their head. Punk must be definetly dead if this is true. We all need a break now.

A piece of spring
Yesterday was a long day. Mum slept over and we took a walk after breakfast. The weather was great and everyone kept saying that's going to change soon, so we took as much advantage of the sun as we could: drinks at a terrace in Chueca square, in the heart of the gay district. The sky looked particularly gorgeus from our table. We do have the greatest skies in this city. Morgana, her boyfriend D and baby Lucía joined us for a while. She was a month old yesterday and she hardly opened her eyes. I won't blame her. She looked beautiful and relaxed in her cot.

Afternoon at the paper: a lot of work, two bombs in Madrid and me wanting to get away from it all. Which i finally did at midnight. Joined Tom, Fred and Kurt for drinks. We all ended up at our house, discussing fascinating topics such as the worst psycho you've ever dated, the life of a girl who once cried watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, part II, and why reading magazines turns you into a compulsive and frustrated buyer.

At 4 am i realized there was another long day coming up. And that i had to wash my hair.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Random facts of today
Listening: Never tear us apart, Joe Cocker version. I used to play the INXS album all the time when i was 15.
Reading: 'Los aires difíciles', by Almudena Grandes. First book i truly enjoy from this author.
Drinking: Second cup of coffee.
Feeling: Jelous of all those friends and strangers enjoying a long weekend while i have to get my gear in action and go to the paper. Grrr.

Questions

If you live in L.A., where will you be on the seventh of June? I wouldn't have a doubt, if i were you...

If you're shopping for a great computer that looks well with your Prada top, what would you buy? Yeah, so would i.

What made this girl make this (silly) decision?