Thursday, February 28, 2008
Old Timers
It's Still Valentine's Month, Right?
"We believe that love is like an amusement park ride that you get on and it goes really fast and you can't see a thing no matter hard you try because it's totally dark and it's also totally scary but you keep getting back on again because it's so much fun. Love = Space Mountain."
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Hard to Refute
“That’s
Thursday, February 07, 2008
This Primary Season
Delusional grandiose self-absorption is not a qualification for high office.
Disclaimer: I'm well aware that this rings true for a number of other candidates, living and dead, from all ends of the political spectrum.
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
If We Can't Laugh At Ourselves...
It was fun being a baby boomer... until now. Some of the artists of the 60's are revising their hits with new lyrics to accommodate aging baby boomers.
They include:
Herman's Hermits--- Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Walker
Ringo Starr--- I Get By With a Little Help From Depends
The Bee Gees--- How Can You Mend a Broken Hip
Bobby Darin--- Splish, Splash, I Was Havin' a Flash
Roberta Flack--- The First Time Ever I Forgot Your Face
Johnny Nash--- I Can't See Clearly Now
Paul Simon--- Fifty Ways to Lose Your Liver
The Commodores--- Once, Twice, Three Times to the Bathroom
Marvin Gaye--- Heard It Through the Grape Nuts
Procol Harem--- A Whiter Shade of Hair
Leo Sayer--- You Make Me Feel Like Napping
The Temptations--- Papa's Got a Kidney Stone
Abba--- Denture Queen
Tony Orlando--- Knock 3 Times On The Ceiling If You Hear Me Fall
Helen Reddy--- I Am Woman, Hear Me Snore
Leslie Gore--- It's My Procedure, and I'll Cry If I Want To
And my favorite: Willie Nelson--- On the Commode Again
Challenges
Nothing in the article surprised us, except this. After having interviewed a fair number of recently retired boomers, the author completely missed the fact that for many of us those very challenges are what make the experience so positive. Yes, the living costs are mostly lower in foreign countries, allowing for an earlier and/or better retirement. But the challenges -- be they linguistic, cultural, logistical or legal -- allow us to exercise our flabby mid-life brains and energize our comfortably hum-drum lives. As a direct response to the challenges, we learn new skills, build self-confidence and help hold Alzheimer's at bay for at least awhile longer.
A new home in Uruguay or San Miguel isn't the only way. I admire colleagues and friends who have jumped into a new career, gone back to school, entered an ashram or learned to play a musical instrument at age sixty-something or older. The goal for a successful retirement, it seems to me at this early stage of mine, is not to avoid challenges, but to enthusiastically embrace challenges, and the growth that necessarily ensues.
Roof Perros
While we're not so naive as to believe San Miguel is free of crime, we don't worry about it all that much. We know other folks must worry about it -- we hear car alarms going off at all hours of the day and night (arrrggghhhh!!!), see the bars on most all ground floor windows and many perimeter walls topped with glistening shards of broken glass. But we live on a small dead-end street in a closely-knit working class neighborhood where everybody pretty much knows everybody else. And just about everybody else has a perro (dog) patrolling the most likely access point for any thief -- the roof. Folks here call them roof perros. You seldom see them in the streets; they live up in their little concrete worlds 24-7. By day, they mostly lounge around or sleep. By night, they restlessly pace and sniff and react to the slightest disturbance, forming a loud chorus of yips and and yelps and howls that in any other place would wake the dead. An intruder might indeed enter your house in the night, but stealth would be out of the question. The noise drove us crazy at first, but by now we've come to think of it as the soothing sound of safety. Anyway, here's a photo of a particularly ferocious specimen during a recent cold snap.
Saturday, February 02, 2008
As Valentine's Day Approaches
I'm feeling overdressed, she said & he held her close & said as far as he was concerned she was always that way & her eyes glowed softly in the light of his desire
Friday, February 01, 2008
A Toast to The New Year
Dear friends,
As we begin this new year, I am sure we all consider ourselves blessed. Tuli and I count you, our student friends, as one of the greatest blessings in our lives. You bring us so much joy and helping you to learn Spanish gives our lives meaning. I would like to begin this year with the famous Spanish toast that we all know and then add some of my own words.
SALUD, AMOR, DINERO Y EL TIEMPO PARA GOZARLOS.
Notice that the last word is gozar. The last part of this toast can be said in three ways:
1. Y el tiempo para gastarlos, which means the time to spend them.
2. Y el tiempo para disfrutarlos, which means the time to reap the fruits of them.
3. Y el tiempo para gozarlos, which means the time to enjoy them.
I like the last one the most because I like the word gozar. The noun from this verb gozar is el gozo which means joy.
So here the toast with my own blessing attached to each part. Read it out loud and let the words resonate. I hope you enjoy it and that this blessing will be a reality in your life in 2008.
SALUD (Health)
I imbue my life with good health so that I may awaken every day filled with vitality and a sense of well being.
AMOR (Love)
I imbue my life with love so that love will reign in my heart every day of my life.
DINERO (Wealth)
I imbue my life with prosperity so that a river of abundance will flow through me, fountain from me and shower unlimited riches all around me.
Y EL TIEMPO PARA GOZARLO (And the Time to Enjoy them all)
I imbue my life with joy so that every moment of every day will be joy filled. May I live happily ever after.
Tuli and I begin this year filled with gratitude for our good lives and for your presence and support. We hope that In 2008 we can serve you better in your desires to learn Spanish and appreciate the Mexican culture.
Salud, amor, y dinero.
Warren and Tuli
