Thursday 22nd September 2011

Te quiero Mamá.

Papá

Feliz Cumpleaños Papá.

Recuerdo una conversación contigo y Manuel en el hospital. Mamá todavía vivía, pero ya no había esperanza. La conversación la recuerda un tanto surrealista, pero lo que te quiero recordar es algo que te dije; Desde ahora, Tú eres nuestra principal y única 'preocupación', Mamá ya no tiene solución. Ella todavía respiraba.

Es verdad, y no es una 'preocupación', es un alivio, y una satisfacción tenerte.

Hemos discutido, mucho, tanto que hemos estado sin hablar grandes periodos de tiempo. El último, el año pasado justo cuando volví a Inglaterra, hasta una conversación poco anterior a que me llamaras para decirme que Mamá tenía cancer.

Aquella véz fué muy triste para mí. Me sentía muy dolido, y no quería volver a hablar contigo. Pero por 'circunstancias' volvimos a hablar. Me llamaste. Me emocioné, y no por lo que me contabas, todavía no se sabía nada, me emocioné por volver a hablar contigo, me emocioné y lloré por volver a tenerte. 

   

      Todos hemos perdido, a todos se nos ha hecho dificil, pero sé y entiendo, que tú eres la persona que más dificil y peor lo está pasando. Por eso quiero, que al menos hoy, disfrutes. Ahora te lo mereces más que nadie. Ojalá estuviese allí, porque no hay ahora mismo otro sitio en el que hubiera querido estar, si no allí, contigo, con mi Padre.   

Te quiero Papá

... X; You shall not covet your neighbor's wife.

  Today, I lived a quite funny situation, or at least interesting. Today in the morning like many other mornings I went to the gym, in there myself lucky, I had the chance to meet Owen Franks. Owen, is a rugby player, is a prop. Plays for the Crusaders, and so the All Blacks. recently as part of the team, has been crowded world champion. Get to meet him because we are sharing same fitness coach, Lee Attrill. Pro Weightlifter and former Kiwi champion. This was remarkable, but is not funny.

  With Owen, was his partner, his girlfriend Emma. I saw her already a couple of times before, and I'v been introduce by Lee, she trains in the gym too. Well Emma, is fit, is quite good looking,... is smoking!!

The funny part comes with, what normally is pleasant view, watching her pulling and pushing weights, lifting bars, etc,... today it wasn't quite so.

  Today, I showed to myself tremendous willpower. Today Emma like the rest of the days, pulled and pushed weights, lifted bars, etc... but today, I haven't look. Maybe some little brief looks, but that was all. The least of my dreams is being catch by Owen Franks, while I stare to his girlfriend when she is exercising. No, not a pleasant dream.

Owen Franks, the 'kid', the 'angel', stands for 1,85 cm high, and weights 117 kg. Owen push and pull weights like Emma does, but in a magnitude that cannot be healthy. In fairness to him, it is true he is got a bit of a kind look in his eyes, but I rather not like to test his 'tenderness', he still got potentially a 117 kg of 'hostia'. 

In Spain, we have a country of wide folk wisdom, full of sayings. There is a pretty nice and graphic one, very suitable for the kind of situation I lived today;

'Donde tengas la olla, no metas la p....'

My Mother's 67 birthday

Yes, today is my Mother's 67 anniversary, and I going to celebrate it.

During the last few years, when I had the chance, every time I was coming back home from England, I bought a bottle of champagne and some chocolates. The chocolates didn't last for long, -one every night- but the champagne, we saved for special times, special celebrations.

My mother was an outstanding cooker, absolutely terrific. Every special occasion, we, my mother and me, set-up the table with a special table linen, cutlery, and glasses. Then, my Dad, my Brother, Me, and my Mother, enjoyed a succulent banquet cooked by her. The meals didn't consist in one dish and dessert, and that's all, no no no. The meals consisted, in some appetizers, entreés, first dish, main, or mains and a delicious dessert made by her too, all of this 'watered' with the champagne. 

It wasn't nothing more pleasant to me to see, than my mother enjoying her champagne with an ear to ear smile -She had a Beautiful smile- with her libs paint in red, -always red- telling us stories about her past, -long and fruity past- and discussing who was going to drink the last drops of the champagne bottle with his younger son.

This will happen no more, is a memory, a memory for ever I hope. Lately I have being experience a major fear. Forget the smallest of the memories about My Mother, I don't want to forget any of them, even the smallest. That fear, disturbs and crumple-up my heart. 

But that is me, and only the time will tell and know the truth. Today is not about me, is about her, about My Mother, and for her today I will drink a glass of champagne.

Va por tí Mamá.  

Creativity

  Today I feel creative, I want to create. So here it comes another post. Sadly, is going to destroy my well discipline average of post per month.

  The last weeks, I have being working in the mornings, cutting and placing insulator plates into walls and ceilings. Nice and itchy experience, but well... all good once I reach and insert myself into the dishwasher machine, Which is my 'working tool' in the other job I currently do during evenings, as a 'kitchen hand'... These works, join a growing list of jobs, that I have being doing, random and sporadically since I arrived in New Zealand back in December last year. Gardening, construction of retaining walls, putting-up together furniture, shifting furniture, now insulation and dishwasher...even a girl from a lawyer firm, offer me to clean her house -sadly the most interesting of them never happen-  Accomplished all of them in the most strict 'illegality'. I am according to my visa, a 'visitor' here. I know, I should not make this public, but that's why I am using a cover name in my blog profile. My real name is Antonio Paolicelli, born and raised in Matera, Italy, at your service.

  As you can see, there is nothing like the survival sense. When there is nothing to choose from, you learn to develop yourself into a 'Yes Man'. "...Can do you do...? Yes, ...You know how to...? Yes." I want to make a challenge. I challenge anyone who read this, to see who is got the longest........ the longest CV, please guys!!, with a wider variety of jobs. And is some time to come yet, the list might grow and grow.

  But, I wanted to talk about creativity. Rather I will talk about self-call creative people. I have read a news that has particularly boiled my blood. A Genius, or a bunch of them, have decided like 'Manna from heaven' that, the world-known, singular, famous, simple, catchy, neat and beauty slogan/line of 'I Love NY' has become old and has to be renew!! An idea From these 'creative' people is, to change the Heart anagram...for a pizza!! PLEASE. At least not everyone is going to be unhappy. The Spaghetti -this with all the love to my friends- will be cheering for that. This silly idea is bad from every angle. Waste of money, spend in a draw, that never, I repeat, never will match the iconic sense of his predecessor.

I hardly remember any line/slogan as good as this one is. Me too,
I LOVE NY!! 

  

Under African Skies

  From some time, I have being reading this line, this meaningful line. Last time was from a blog wrote by a spanish journalist, Paco Nadal. He said "...the African skies are windows to the infinite, games of shape and color that reminds you how much energy emanate from this Continent every second..." Sadly there are not my words, too nice and well expressed to be mine. What I share with him, are the explosion of emotions that Them can caused in one. My studious, and better friend Juan Ortega has a PGD about Them. He can tell you one or two things about it. Me, despite I have been only in the southern tip of the continent, I fall in love -and again- with Them. The pictures I want to share with you now, doesn't make justice to the reality, but can give you an idea.

Once this has been said, keep an eye as well to the floor. This continent is not only know for his skies...

...This young ladies, would not complain to a bit of raw meat in the menu. 

     

Where am I living?

  Hello, it's been a while. In a rewind of my mind, I realized, that I didn't tell where I am living. Yes, you know I am in Christchurch or what is left from it, but, haven't tell who I am living with. Always, always I say that the people make the place, and not the other way around, I can be in a 'shithole' but the people around will turn it, into a comfortable, warm, and friendly place, as this one is. Thats why Cambridge have, and always will, a save place in my heart. Travelers, Workers, Kiwis, -the less- People running from someone or somewhere, People who are trying to find themselves... a constant dripping of People, that are coming and going. Passengers of this place that 'we' call Rob's Place.

 This good looking old man is Kashinanda, yes, you read it well. Kashinanda is his given name, after an spiritual period in India. I am really awful with names. Well, to understand this one, it took me a 'few days', to be gentle with myself. He is originally Dutch, born and raised in Amsterdam. Now, after what I believe an interesting live, he is a Kiwi with 15 years of citizenship under his belt. The man is a 'trotamundos' and now, father/mother of this community.
He is a lover of the music, nature and films. A hard worker for many years, and now, seeker for a peaceful, happy, and sunny day while playing guitar.

The next one is a Bavarian German, this one is a bit particular. A mix, German mother, and English father. Andreas Goodwin is his name. I don't really know where to start from with this guy. Sometimes, I think I should carry a notebook while I am with him. In general terms is a funny guy, quite ironic -English father- If everything goes fine or on track, then everything is 'sweet' or 'all good'. If it doesn't...., like someone take his milk , or the tin opener doesn't work -all of us know how annoying could be a tin opener-....Every day that passes I reaffirm myself more and more in my idea of Germans. His is got great quotes too, he actually help me to disclosure Germans, -Germans don't eat chocolate- or -I hate Germans- are part of his personal reserve. He is in a painful at times, process of 'Kiwilazing'.There is a said, 'The eyes are the mirror of the soul' If you take a closely look to his, you will have an idea of who I am talking about.

 Carl, is Kiwi, a Maori guy from Wellington to be more precise. He is studying here in Christchurch, and is a passionate of Rugby just like me. Is a guy that I spend hours with talking most of the times about Rugby, but not only. A very keen guy to understand, discover and learn new things from different countries, customs and cultures, something very easy to say but random to find in people. A businessman in the making. Recently, he sold a coat to a house mate which he previously purchased just few days before. The guy is a genius!! The guy is unmistakable from the distance nowadays, looks like the Michelin man or an onion. Is wearing layer after layer after layer...of clothes, is struggling with the winter 'cold' down here.

  Santiago and Scott, Argentinian and Canadian, are my next door housemates. The closest to couple that we have in here. They share food, room, bed, everything very nice. Santiago, is the kind of guy that came here to travel and sightsee NZ in first instance, but it turned out to be for finding himself. A seek, to find out what he want and who he is. A really good chap. Probably this work as well for Scott, plus he loves to play the guitar, with the only difference of age between them.

  Our new recruitment is Ladislav, a Czech. Very good guy. Sorry for the blur picture but he is a virtuoso of the guitar, and is very difficult to catch him standing steel. Yes, another guitarist. In here, they are like mushrooms in Autumn, they are everywhere, but until now, I didn't find one average, all of them they are quite good and talented. Ladislav is a funny character guy, now is sharing room with Andreas, which is causing him a bit of a change. This morning, while having breakfast, he said to Andreas, -Shut the fuck up- something new coming from him, everything in a friendly environment.

There are few more and all of them from different places, India, France, Ireland, England,...even a Bad Boy, his name is Ben, Kiwi. He cannot spell please, sorry neither thank you, but well, is part of the mix.

  The next one, last but not least is Charlotte. A German girl, nothing in common with our previous German. Sadly, she left a couple of weeks ago, but still worth of mention. Another one I shared very interesting and nice chats with, a lot less than I would liked to tough. A compulsory reader and photographer, and yet, finding her way.

    
  A chica guapa that is more than just a pretty face. An intelligent girl that likes to use what she has in top of her shoulders, making her even more attractive. Generally shy, until the moment she gets confidence, turning herself into a 'Femme Fatale'. A point, she waits for unleash her most deadly weapon. Her smile, that she combines wisely and beautifully with a nice sound. Her laugh. At that moment, everything is loose for the opponent, and you don't have anything else to do, but show white flag. If you refuse to do so, she might execute a couple of Kung-Fu moves, and then the battle will turn into a bloodbath!! True story. I just can say, that hopefully, I will see her again.

This is a short review of people I'm sharing most of the time, life, worries, etc... with