sin contar las horas

salida: domingo
llegada: miercoles
horas de vuelo: relativamente pocas
horas de espera: renuncio a pensarlo
numero de paradas: 4
ganas de llegar: montones

las peores horas son aquellas que te alejan de tus seres queridos
sin aun ver aquello que se aproxima;
el saber que es solo una etapa ayuda a llevar la carga,
ahora solo debo convencer a la aerolinia de que compartamos esa carga!

sum

20 min by car
125 euros fee
50 min of wait
5 min consultation
2 euros parking fee
20 min by car

at least my teeth are fine!

less and less

preparations arriving to an end
few hastaluegos ahead, even a party

less and less things on the to-do list
less and less days to final destination for a while

new acquientances arrive via email
new names without faces who render a hand to a blind future

less and less things on the to-do list
countdown starts

Glam up

confronting separation ahead is always a tough issue
you know the date is approaching, as steadily as time goes by uninterruptedly
you prepare your leave, you continue with your chores and little routines there is nevertheless something in the air, something that tells you 'this might be the last time in a while that i...........with my love'

memory is a funny thing
the majority of times we have memories of events, places, times and people that bear little connection with those moments we try to make a special occasion from
we remember a smell, an intense look, a soft skin, a light touch, a tight embrace; we remember how we felt, and very little of the candles or the expensive dinner

yet, it is very nice to go prepared for the Marinsky theatre to Thai restaurant in Brussels

y hoy que hiciste de provecho?

pues charlar via conexion de internet con un par de ex-colegas y grandes amigas
leer un blog de alguien que se fue donde me voy
charlar via telefono con otra gran amiga a la que la tecnologia le pica
leer el periodico, edicion digital
vegetar en mi sofa con mi laptop
y perder cantidades ingentes de tiempo en facebook

creo que ya basta por hoy

because we love you

unas lo dijeron cuando me anunciaron la sorpresa de su llegada
otras no lo dijeron cuando no me anunciaron la sorpresa de su llegada
en ambos casos lo sabia

todas mediterraneas, todas profesionales, todas ocupadas
todas llegan para estar juntas juntisimas
en esos ultimos momentos previos a mi inminente llegada

para hablar, charlar, cotillear, reir, llorar, abrazar, besar, pontificar, expresar, aprender, comer y beber, beber y fumar, compartir, discutir, comentar, narrar, dialogar, explicar....

sunny summer days in town

strolls on quieter than usual streets
visits to empty museums with full on air-con
lunches in understaffed snack bars
coffee and tea in lovely hidden squares
fruit and vegetables from the local market
mediterranean dinner washed with wine

the challenge

How do you do to prepare for the unknown? One could answer that you simply take it as it comes, and that's pretty much what life is about. I would certainly agree with them. My question however, is a more practical one. It has to do with the limitations of the physical body. Mens sana in corpore sano.
My aim, keep both healthy. My knowledge, (like everybody else) I get negative and grumpy when ill or uncomfortable with situations. My unknown, what will i find when i arrive. My questions, tho not necessarily in order of importance, do i buy a water filter for 2,000 or for 50,000 litres? do i take high heels? my pillow? a thermometer? nail polish remover? My limits, my own and the airline's luggage allowance.

looking like a clown

so they tell me i leave on the 30th
so i prepare as best as i can to live in a contient i've never lived before, in a country i've never set foot in
to top it off it's not only 99.95% Islamic country but one that doesn't even officially exist

i prepare medically, dentally (see elephant woman) and mentally
i buy clothes to the specifications, one here, one there, some old, some new
i put them all in my sofa and, surprise!! individually fine, a rather random together

i face some though challenges ahead me: culturally, food, language, attire, religiously
i mean to be taken seriously by colleagues, superiors and government officials
i shall face them looking like a clown, albeit a totally covered one

back like...

the elephant woman

i had my ipod full volume but i couldn't help hearing it,
the noise of my tooth being cracked
once, two, three! went under the drill

i take three pills every four hours
for the next three weeks
one for each of three removed

i used to be wise, even though i was young
now i'm older and no wiser anymore
they didn't leave a single wisdom tooth