Sunday, March 15, 2015
Hangin in Osaka, Japan...
Jacob and Kazue will be getting married at the Hat Ranch on May 2
This year. The party on Kakeroma was like a weddin enactment for benefit of that group of friends.
I must admit that my and Jim's July 4th wedding was sort of that way too. The judge did the real deed.
The food party etc yesterday in Osaka was to celebrate withe her family, plus it included a visit to the neighborhood temple, and the cemetery to celebrate the marriage with the spirits of her grandparents and anscestors. No photos.
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Hyperbole and a Half: Depression Part Two
Hyperbole and a Half: Depression Part Two
This is a very appropriate story in the light of this week's
unexpected death of Mr. Robin Williams.
He is missed. Depression is no joke, and this story from
Hyperbole and a Half really tells it like it is.
Carol Hat Lady
This is a very appropriate story in the light of this week's
unexpected death of Mr. Robin Williams.
He is missed. Depression is no joke, and this story from
Hyperbole and a Half really tells it like it is.
Carol Hat Lady
Thursday, October 14, 2010
soon to leave guanajuato....
hola amigos.....jim and carol here at the local internet cafe.....only about 10 pm...
things are definitely hopping in guanajuato. cervantino just started last nite, and they are putting up rather fancy looking sound stages in many spots that we once strolled lazily thru. the cafes plan to be open till 2 am very soon. we only saw part of the opening ceremony last nite, over the heads of people packing the street by the alhondiga, and that was on a large screen. very well and hi tech productions it seems. we almost went and bought tix to a show for tonite, but realized we were too tired to appreciate it, after a late party at rozes house last nite.
there is so much culture here. jim is very impressed. there is the modern art,the singing in the streets, the artisans selling everywhere, the ancient culture which crops up everywhere. so many layers. and we are only seeing some of it.
roze has some wonderful room mates, well, friends. they have so much fun. one gal from oregon, one from norway, one from mexico, and two guys from mexico. all speak spanish together. they are all lovely people. some of them did a photo shoot with us the other day wearing hats.
tomorrow am we leave here and take the bus to guadalajara. we go first class, on a bus that gives you snacks and has movies like an airplane. whoa! one nite there with our friend miguel from talent, and then on to the beach in nayarit......we will fly home on tuesday nite.
things are definitely hopping in guanajuato. cervantino just started last nite, and they are putting up rather fancy looking sound stages in many spots that we once strolled lazily thru. the cafes plan to be open till 2 am very soon. we only saw part of the opening ceremony last nite, over the heads of people packing the street by the alhondiga, and that was on a large screen. very well and hi tech productions it seems. we almost went and bought tix to a show for tonite, but realized we were too tired to appreciate it, after a late party at rozes house last nite.
there is so much culture here. jim is very impressed. there is the modern art,the singing in the streets, the artisans selling everywhere, the ancient culture which crops up everywhere. so many layers. and we are only seeing some of it.
roze has some wonderful room mates, well, friends. they have so much fun. one gal from oregon, one from norway, one from mexico, and two guys from mexico. all speak spanish together. they are all lovely people. some of them did a photo shoot with us the other day wearing hats.
tomorrow am we leave here and take the bus to guadalajara. we go first class, on a bus that gives you snacks and has movies like an airplane. whoa! one nite there with our friend miguel from talent, and then on to the beach in nayarit......we will fly home on tuesday nite.
Monday, October 11, 2010
another night in guanajuato
so jim and i are at the local internet shop again, my second time today. he is working with some photos he just took today and for the past several days.
we did a photo shoot today with a busker. he is a guitarist who plays the tables at restaurants for tips. this dude really wanted a hat or so, and every time we see him he brings it up. so today we finally decided to meet up and see if we could work out something. we strolled about with him for an hour or so and put a few hats on him and jim took pix. this included several singalongs with us and various people in very public places. rather fun.
we also had our first salsa lesson. it is harder than it appears. roze is quite the salsa dancer. she is all twirls and moves. whoa!
we went out and had miso soup tonite. this little japanese place was the best food we have had out for a while, except for the street food, which i still favor. one street vendor today sold us steamed peanuts, in the shell, with lime juice, salt, and chili powder dumped over them. really good. we just walk around,and seems that at certain times of day the street vendors really bust it out. one can get a different snack on each block. our local church here keeps having food sellers by their door. i think it is all related. the other nite they had a lot of food, plus a rock band, for hours.if we wanted to go anywhere, we had to go the long way around the block. finally met up with some tres leches cake with fresh strawberries on it.
we did a photo shoot today with a busker. he is a guitarist who plays the tables at restaurants for tips. this dude really wanted a hat or so, and every time we see him he brings it up. so today we finally decided to meet up and see if we could work out something. we strolled about with him for an hour or so and put a few hats on him and jim took pix. this included several singalongs with us and various people in very public places. rather fun.
we also had our first salsa lesson. it is harder than it appears. roze is quite the salsa dancer. she is all twirls and moves. whoa!
we went out and had miso soup tonite. this little japanese place was the best food we have had out for a while, except for the street food, which i still favor. one street vendor today sold us steamed peanuts, in the shell, with lime juice, salt, and chili powder dumped over them. really good. we just walk around,and seems that at certain times of day the street vendors really bust it out. one can get a different snack on each block. our local church here keeps having food sellers by their door. i think it is all related. the other nite they had a lot of food, plus a rock band, for hours.if we wanted to go anywhere, we had to go the long way around the block. finally met up with some tres leches cake with fresh strawberries on it.
Hangin in Guanajuato and environs
For the past week we have been staying with Roze at her digs in Guanajuato. Some of you may have already heard that after Jim cleaned out the old shower on the balcony, we moved in. Very dry. We went out and bought an air mattress, and it is quite cozy.
The next problem was that the door to the balcony could only be closed from inside the house, and if we wanted to get in, there would be a problem. Not that it has been terribly cold at night. Fortunately there is a hole for a door knob, and being that the house broom has an extra short handle, we are able to use it as a latch that can be
opened from either side.
Almost every night lately, the street serenaders in their renaissance costumes, the grupos estudiantinas, though we do not think they are students anymore, stand around under our balcony playing acoustic music and singing with large groups of semi drunken people. They roam the city, singing and drinking for hours. It does cost to join them if you want a drink with them. They have great vocal harmonies and resonant guitars and even a big bass. The gents who do this all dress in black capes and stockings, and have slit sleeves (there is a name for those)
I may go and join them one nite soon, if I am not too tired.
This town seems to be definitely ramping up for Cervantino. They are cleaning things up, and preparing venues for the performances. They are also still very busy celebrating the Bicentennial of their independence from Spain. That is a big deal. We now know a lot more than we did about it.
Jim is doing a lot of lovely drawings, and is learning Spanish. He is a real trooper.
I too have been drawing in my little books. They are good fodder for telling stories to people.
People keep giving me the names of things in Nahuatl. They are hard to remember sometimes, but very interesting. We saw a poem in Spanish carved in stone on the wall of our hostel, and later saw a statue of the Aztec king who wrote it. Very beautiful, but I have not found his book yet. He refers to the bird, zenzontle, who sings beautifully. I should have bought the one I saw in a cage in Dolores yesterday.
We also at huitlacoche, which is a sort of mushroom that grows on corn this time of year. The little old lady down at our corner plaza market told me what to do with it.
We spent the other nite in the home of Erasmo, Rozes artist friend who graduated. He has the same birthday as Jacob, and his mom has the same as Jim.
She fed us a lot, and gave us a bed. Erasmo took us all to a hot spring near San Miguel Allende. It was in a huge garden, with ponds for the overflow. Part of it was a series of 3 pools that were roofed with brick and stained glass, like cisterns. You go in thru a sort of small passageway, swim and float about, and then out a passage to the next, and finally onto a wide porch with an enormous showerhead spraying you voluminously with warm water, as you look out over the pond, if you bother to open your eyes.
I am starting to get nostalgic over my last few days in Guanajuato. In a few minutes I will go find Jim at our fave cafe where we sketch and drink coffee. Me, decaf Americanos thank you. Today we are finally going to meet Rozes friend Armando and have our first salsa lesson. We were going to do 5 classes, but will be lucky to get in two this week. Never did get to do the dentist thing either. But we want to come back to Mexico again, and then we will know better what it is like and stuff, so maybe then....we feel that this is not our only time to be here in this interesting place.....
The next problem was that the door to the balcony could only be closed from inside the house, and if we wanted to get in, there would be a problem. Not that it has been terribly cold at night. Fortunately there is a hole for a door knob, and being that the house broom has an extra short handle, we are able to use it as a latch that can be
opened from either side.
Almost every night lately, the street serenaders in their renaissance costumes, the grupos estudiantinas, though we do not think they are students anymore, stand around under our balcony playing acoustic music and singing with large groups of semi drunken people. They roam the city, singing and drinking for hours. It does cost to join them if you want a drink with them. They have great vocal harmonies and resonant guitars and even a big bass. The gents who do this all dress in black capes and stockings, and have slit sleeves (there is a name for those)
I may go and join them one nite soon, if I am not too tired.
This town seems to be definitely ramping up for Cervantino. They are cleaning things up, and preparing venues for the performances. They are also still very busy celebrating the Bicentennial of their independence from Spain. That is a big deal. We now know a lot more than we did about it.
Jim is doing a lot of lovely drawings, and is learning Spanish. He is a real trooper.
I too have been drawing in my little books. They are good fodder for telling stories to people.
People keep giving me the names of things in Nahuatl. They are hard to remember sometimes, but very interesting. We saw a poem in Spanish carved in stone on the wall of our hostel, and later saw a statue of the Aztec king who wrote it. Very beautiful, but I have not found his book yet. He refers to the bird, zenzontle, who sings beautifully. I should have bought the one I saw in a cage in Dolores yesterday.
We also at huitlacoche, which is a sort of mushroom that grows on corn this time of year. The little old lady down at our corner plaza market told me what to do with it.
We spent the other nite in the home of Erasmo, Rozes artist friend who graduated. He has the same birthday as Jacob, and his mom has the same as Jim.
She fed us a lot, and gave us a bed. Erasmo took us all to a hot spring near San Miguel Allende. It was in a huge garden, with ponds for the overflow. Part of it was a series of 3 pools that were roofed with brick and stained glass, like cisterns. You go in thru a sort of small passageway, swim and float about, and then out a passage to the next, and finally onto a wide porch with an enormous showerhead spraying you voluminously with warm water, as you look out over the pond, if you bother to open your eyes.
I am starting to get nostalgic over my last few days in Guanajuato. In a few minutes I will go find Jim at our fave cafe where we sketch and drink coffee. Me, decaf Americanos thank you. Today we are finally going to meet Rozes friend Armando and have our first salsa lesson. We were going to do 5 classes, but will be lucky to get in two this week. Never did get to do the dentist thing either. But we want to come back to Mexico again, and then we will know better what it is like and stuff, so maybe then....we feel that this is not our only time to be here in this interesting place.....
Friday, October 1, 2010
jim and carol hit the road together!! #1 !!
so dear friends, this blog is being reactivated again, as jim and i are hitting the road, or the airwaves as it were, together into mexico!
we left home wednesday very early am, with the dawn,into the air, with jacob clucking at us over our weird water bottles and silver jewelry, and not to keep worrying about the hat business we were then leaving in his hands.... fret fret.....well, he can do it....have not thought much on that one for a few days.
here is mexico city. i think a lot of the people must conduct their lives on the streets. all the blanket vendors, the others under tarps along the sidewalks in many areas. and then the little old ladies, and other people, selling prepared food out of buckets and baskets off curbs and bicycles. oy! the us health departments would have seizures! people grilling corn over braziers on the sidewalk. or selling tacos and blue corn tortillas, or cooking on a griddle under a tiny duct tape covered umbrella.
roze and ani rose said to avoid the street food for about a week, but i cannot contain myself. it is too wild. so far so good on the ole estomago. we are keeping grapefruit seed extract in our waterbottles.
and actually, last nite we ate in a real restaurant and it was not very good.
we are staying in a hostel near the zocalo, which is a huge plaza by the cathedral and the excavation of the ancient templo mayor of the aztecs. most of the sidewalks
in that area are rather populated by blanket vendors with all sorts of souvenirs from mexico, guatemala, india, china, etc. much is commercial crap, but mixed with things actually handmade in mexico. jim and roze got into shopping for stuff. i got jaded quickly. there were aztec dancers with huge feather headdresses and seed bells on their ankles, dancing with drums amid huge clouds of copal. some of them were also selling stuff, but the most interesting were the native looking fellows offering aura cleanses. they had small altars on the ground with lemons, skulls, herbs. roze had it done and they blew copal smoke all over her and brushed her with a bouquet of basil. it all looked very, well interesting and primitive.
earlier in the day we were also there, and went thru the templo mayor museum and excavations. they built seven layers of temples on the same spot, one over the other.
the artifacts were inside the museum, wonderfully carved volcanic rock, gold,pottery.
we also saw a lot of that sort of thing yesterday at the anthropology museum. it is such an amazing cosmologyj, that is the aztec and mayan view of the world and how it all works. and the art created to support and explain it....all i can say is wow.
it is all hard to grasp, but i am getting snippets. some people today helped me learn to pronounce some of these names! whoa! it just does not seem so unusual when i am here. like almost normal or something. you see all these people who came from these ancient cultures, and they still seem to have some part of it going on.
roze wanted to see more modern art than the older stuff. also we did not want to travel anywhere on buses or trains today, just on foot. we went to the museum of jose luis cuevas, who is a well known living mexican artist. somehow he has his own museum; he must be wealthy. his little drawings were very weird and cool. jim and i got influenced right away by him. he did all these little pix because he was laid up in bed for a long time in the past couple of years. mostly he like to make big things, like drawing that are about 10 feet tall. this museum has a large central courtyard, and in the middle is a bronze giantess he designed who is 8 meters tall, that is 24 feet tall!! she is totally awesome! it was quite wonderful to hang out with her. there was also a show up stairs by alfred zalce, who had done these huge tapestry loom things, or maybe designed them and someone else did them, plus he had these copper bas relief pictures which were stunning depictions of mexican market vendors. i liked the fish and flower vendors a lot. unfortunately the bookshop was closed and the gal would not sell me any postcards.
tomorrow morn we will take off and do some more art sightseeing, but meet up w- roze later on and get the bus for guanajuato in the evening.
i am on the ´computer at the hostel and someone is again in line behind me, so i better get this thing sent out to the cosmous! somebody write to me !! ya sou!!
we left home wednesday very early am, with the dawn,into the air, with jacob clucking at us over our weird water bottles and silver jewelry, and not to keep worrying about the hat business we were then leaving in his hands.... fret fret.....well, he can do it....have not thought much on that one for a few days.
here is mexico city. i think a lot of the people must conduct their lives on the streets. all the blanket vendors, the others under tarps along the sidewalks in many areas. and then the little old ladies, and other people, selling prepared food out of buckets and baskets off curbs and bicycles. oy! the us health departments would have seizures! people grilling corn over braziers on the sidewalk. or selling tacos and blue corn tortillas, or cooking on a griddle under a tiny duct tape covered umbrella.
roze and ani rose said to avoid the street food for about a week, but i cannot contain myself. it is too wild. so far so good on the ole estomago. we are keeping grapefruit seed extract in our waterbottles.
and actually, last nite we ate in a real restaurant and it was not very good.
we are staying in a hostel near the zocalo, which is a huge plaza by the cathedral and the excavation of the ancient templo mayor of the aztecs. most of the sidewalks
in that area are rather populated by blanket vendors with all sorts of souvenirs from mexico, guatemala, india, china, etc. much is commercial crap, but mixed with things actually handmade in mexico. jim and roze got into shopping for stuff. i got jaded quickly. there were aztec dancers with huge feather headdresses and seed bells on their ankles, dancing with drums amid huge clouds of copal. some of them were also selling stuff, but the most interesting were the native looking fellows offering aura cleanses. they had small altars on the ground with lemons, skulls, herbs. roze had it done and they blew copal smoke all over her and brushed her with a bouquet of basil. it all looked very, well interesting and primitive.
earlier in the day we were also there, and went thru the templo mayor museum and excavations. they built seven layers of temples on the same spot, one over the other.
the artifacts were inside the museum, wonderfully carved volcanic rock, gold,pottery.
we also saw a lot of that sort of thing yesterday at the anthropology museum. it is such an amazing cosmologyj, that is the aztec and mayan view of the world and how it all works. and the art created to support and explain it....all i can say is wow.
it is all hard to grasp, but i am getting snippets. some people today helped me learn to pronounce some of these names! whoa! it just does not seem so unusual when i am here. like almost normal or something. you see all these people who came from these ancient cultures, and they still seem to have some part of it going on.
roze wanted to see more modern art than the older stuff. also we did not want to travel anywhere on buses or trains today, just on foot. we went to the museum of jose luis cuevas, who is a well known living mexican artist. somehow he has his own museum; he must be wealthy. his little drawings were very weird and cool. jim and i got influenced right away by him. he did all these little pix because he was laid up in bed for a long time in the past couple of years. mostly he like to make big things, like drawing that are about 10 feet tall. this museum has a large central courtyard, and in the middle is a bronze giantess he designed who is 8 meters tall, that is 24 feet tall!! she is totally awesome! it was quite wonderful to hang out with her. there was also a show up stairs by alfred zalce, who had done these huge tapestry loom things, or maybe designed them and someone else did them, plus he had these copper bas relief pictures which were stunning depictions of mexican market vendors. i liked the fish and flower vendors a lot. unfortunately the bookshop was closed and the gal would not sell me any postcards.
tomorrow morn we will take off and do some more art sightseeing, but meet up w- roze later on and get the bus for guanajuato in the evening.
i am on the ´computer at the hostel and someone is again in line behind me, so i better get this thing sent out to the cosmous! somebody write to me !! ya sou!!
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