Photo by Karen Magid
Hiking in cyberspace, I found a blogger who is in the Peace Corp, stationed in Mexico. Her name is Karen Magid. Karen has put up photos of some creative approaches to the figure of Catrina, so popular during Day of the Dead. The link below will connect you to her delightful fashion show:
CLICK: http://www.karenmagid.com/2011/11/04/day-of-the-dead-—-la-catrinas/
My absentee ballot arrived today. I’ve been torn about how to proceed: Libertarian, Green, Justice. The Justice Party is not on the ballot in NY, but these candidates endorsed by the Justice Party have qualified for recognition as write-in’s in NY. Ever the idealist, I’ve decided they are my choice.
Sorry, Barak, but I just couldn’t pull your lever again, after you appointed Summer and Geithner to fix the economy that they ruined. These Justice guys don’t stand a chance, but at least I feel good about what they say they would do (which I felt about you, until you betrayed our trust). ~eric.
CLICK LINK TO JUSTICE PARTY SITE: http://www.voterocky.org
For anyone who might want to dress like Frida Kahlo, here’s a link to a slide show on some of her threads:
TIME Magazine is running an article about a queen who was superior in authority to her husband, and highly revered by her people.
Last year I took an intermediate level Spanish class with Marina. But I can’t believe that I have no photos of her to attach to this post. She is so animated and enthusiastic about everything she does. She’s a joy to listen to, and an expert guide, as discovered during a short bus tour during Spring equinox at Chichen Itza. Debi Kuhn’s blog mentions that Marina is organizing a tour to Chiapas which looks very attractive. From Debi I now notice that Marina has her own blog. So, here’s a link directly to the tours she is currently offering:
CLICK: http://marinaaguirre.blogspot.com/2013/09/travel-with-marina-in-january-2014-we.html
If you enjoy the creative visual arts, you may find the link below delightful. It’s a five-minute video of drawing using the simplest elemental shapes. It encourages a meditative approach based upon gentle listening rather than your own personal “artistic juices.” Sorry I wasn’t able to embed the youtube video right here, as the mandala that gets drawn is more intricate than what I’ve shown below, which is NOT from the video; and watching one come into view is fascinating. But if you click the link, I promise that you will be transported:
Click: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g16B64myG-E
¡There are so many things to admire, and borrow, from other cultures! A favorite coveted device of mine is inverted punctuation. Spanish keyboards no longer have a corner on this market. Yet it hasn’t caught on in the world of English authors. Hey, we’ve got the tools at our finger tips now, with modern keyboards. If I hold down the option key while shifting and pecking the question mark, it’s there on my screen. I no longer have the excuse of needing a specialized keyboard. And the exclam doesn’t even require a shift. Just OPTION and 1. (On my Mac, accent marks have become a breeze: simply hold down any key to see the selection. Then choose the one you want.)
If you’re like me, I sometimes don’t realize that an author writing in English is posing a question until I get to the end of the sentence. O yeah, many sentences start with a verbal question immediately evident, making the mark redundant or unnecessary; but other situations are less clear. ¿Hidden questions warrant the courteous and communicative thing by alerting the reader right up front, do they not? ¡Gotcha! ¿Maybe you’re persuaded? Give it a try.
There’s an article in The Atlantic about punctuation today where I’ve added a brief comment urging the argument above. The article can be read here:
CLICK http://www.theatlanticwire.com/entertainment/2012/09/writers-favorite-punctuation-marks/57152/#
Photo by Marvin Orellana for New York Times
Mark Bittman, food writer for New York Times has an adventurous piece in today’s Sunday Magazine about traveling deep into Maya country, an hour south of Valladolid to a town where only Mayan is spoken, in a quest to sample ancient food. Here’s a link:
CLICK: The Yucatán Peninsula’s Food of the Ancients – NYTimes.com
A young Maya man deep in prayer at the end of spring equinox, 2012
Fall equinox is upon us. During spring equinox, March 2012, I attended what turned out to be an open air worship service at Chichen Itza (disguised as a tourist attraction for us gringos, who were welcome and plentiful in number). I imagine there were 20,000 people present, yet it was peaceful and refreshingly orderly. It was more than an astronomical event. Some were even there to worship!
I’ve had a lifelong interest in spiritual expression and devotion. Some folks emote, others attend, write, sing, dance. While an excessively outward expression of self-absorption (such as many of the hyper-artsy contrivances of Burning Man) doesn’t engage me much, I still remain a curious onlooker, hoping to glimpse whatever might be transcendent. Here’s a link to a short essay on spirituality at Burning Man. While not written to be terribly uplifting, it at least allows for the possibility. (I’m edified by learning this):
CLICK: http://lafrench.tv/2012/09/the-truth-about-burning-man/
