Touching in (roller coaster).

Photo from here.

Life is crazy.

Crazy good.

A couple of weeks ago I was looking for projects, trying to keep myself busy, looking for a good "story of my life" to relate to friends and family back home as I was about to visit.

Today things are very different. I wish someone could have warned me.

Roller coaster life. 

New job possibly maybe, most likely.

Tons of things to learn. New schedule to adjust to.

Looking for time to update you guys in between.

The wave is rolling high.

Thinking about you all the time.

I will keep up my promise of Mexico posts, lots of thoughts to relate about my visit there but have had no time to sit down yet.

Have been swept up my feet! 

Focusing on enjoying the ride (in between the panic attacks, that is). 

Hope you are well.

Lost of hugs,

R

Mexico City.

We are back, and our mexican time turned out to be fun, exciting and quite hectic. I found no time to post from there as I meant to, so please forgive my absence.

Have you ever been in Mexico City? For starters it is huge. So huge that landing in it is scary. On the plane you see houses, so you figure you are there. Then the houses keep going and going, and you wonder where you are headed. And the houses keep going underneath you and then the realization comes that you will be dropped right in the middle of all of those houses!

I grew up there and still today landing is overwhelming.

How do people deal with such a gigantic place? It turns out it functions as smaller cities within a monster city. I have not been to most of the different neighborhoods, nor do I think most Chilangos (the nickname for Mexico City dwellers, not always considered polite, but then again chilangos not always are) have.

You stick to your neighborhood, then you figure out what you like and find the area that provides it. I circle around mainly three or four different areas whenever I am there, and often run into people I know while meandering around. 

Our visit this time involved a friend's wedding, time with my parents and friends, revisiting of old routines and hangouts, another earthquake (seriously! you should keep me at bay at least for a couple of weeks just in case the trend continues). I will make a couple of posts with tips and suggestions about my home town, but please be patient, as it turns out the time I can spend at the computer has decreased some since my return (more about that later!).

Hope you are well,

R

Everybody's Fault.

Picture and more info about the SAF here

Early this morning the San Andreas Fault woke me up with quite a rattle.

The bed was shaking and I could hear the room creaking.

Having grown up in Mexico City, I am quite familiar with earthquakes (most notably I experienced this one when I was just a girl). So, it was funny for my sleepy self to think that all that shaking was caused by an epic raccoon fight on the roof.

The quake was over very quickly, giving me no time to get up or react.

I was back asleep in no time at all.

The way I see it, it is best to have periodic smallish quakes often rather than not to have them in a while, as the energy of the earth's plaques is released with fury when that happens.

This one, however, is the strongest I have felt in quite some time (4.0). After all I was, quite literally, sleeping right on top of the fault!

Have you ever been in an earthquake?

What was your first thought about what was going on?

I would love to hear your stories,

R

PS. For an interactive  map of the San Andreas Fault click here, and for a comprehensive explanation about how the Fault shapes the San Francisco Bay Area visit here.

Celebrate!

Image from  here

Last week was this little blog's first anniversary.
I can't believe I have been able to keep it up!
Ironically, I have been celebrating it by trying to be away from the computer, getting crafty.
I have been gardening, knitting and chopping my long mane off one inch at a time.
There are no inches left to cut off anymore!

December redux.

I can confidently tell you that December is, by far, my least favorite month of the year.

If I could dig a hole deep enough, I would spend the month in there, waiting for January to come.

Then, while reviewing my latest photos, I realized that this December brought some serious fun.
Besides parties with good friends and lots of yummy food:

There were magnolia buds,

Cows,

And a parade of lighted tractors.

We discovered a persimmon tree on our back yard,

Played with fire,

Had a beach all to ourselves (and lots of birds),

Saw Elk,

And ate the freshest of crabs.

I suppose I should be reconsidering that "least favorite" label.

Hope you are having fun!

R

Engaging conversation.

Without being aware that we are doing it, J and I switch back and forth between English and Spanish when talking to each other.

Last night, while watching a movie, someone on screen was proposing.

The following conversation ensued:

Me:   In what language did you propose to me?

J:   Mmmm...

Long silence.

Me:   *awkward stare*

J:   In the language of looooove, of course!

Another uncomfortable moment that resolved with both of us laughing hysterically.

PS. I should also mention that I actually don't remember in what language he proposed (but don't tell him, he he).

Collection of bones.

I am hoping this unveiling of my skull and bone collection will make some sense after my last post.

Wishing you tons of fun this weekend,

R

Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)

La Catrina by José Guadalupe Posada

The air is festive in my adopted land, and as much as I enjoy Halloween and it's cheesy-creepy atmosphere, it makes me very home sick (more than any other holiday, in fact).
Dia de los Muertos is approaching and I miss terribly it's aesthetic and meaning. It is celebrated on November 1st and 2nd, and it is a cultural tradition that dates back to pre-hispanic times and that has been hybridized with Catholic holidays (All Souls day and All saints Day).

Día de los Muertos is less about Death than about celebrating Life. It is a day to be reminded that Life cannot be without Death, and that because of the fact that we will all die someday Life is precious and should not be wasted. Everyday matters and should be enjoyed. An acknowledgement of the ultimate dichotomy, a theme I have been focusing on for a while now and should probably write a post about sometime soon.

It is also a celebration of those we love that have died, a day to remember them and keep them close to our hearts. In Mexico it is a tradition to set up little altars with offerings to our beloved dead (Ofrendas) that include their photographs, candles, marygolds (xempazúchitl), paper banners and some of the  favorite things of the deceased (like jewelry, music, food and drinks).

Here are a couple of nice examples of Ofrendas: 

Image from here.

I particularly love this ofrenda, where the brushes used by the deceased are on display.
This image and many other nice examples found here.

Sometimes ofrendas are set up right on the graves of those who we miss. Graveyards on Dia de los Muertos become festive with people eating, playing music, sharing, remembering.

You can buy this image by visiting here.

Pan de Muerto (image from here)

Food is a crucial element of Día de los Muertos. Bakeries make a special bread decorated with "bones": tasty, moist, sugar covered goodness (oh, I could trade my kingdom for a slice of that right now); and at markets and plazas everywhere you find sugar skulls in all sizes adorned with colorful details. If you are lucky, the person selling them will have some colored sugar to write your name on the forehead of your skull. My sister and I loved getting our own and would put off eating them for the longest time, they were so pretty. Looking back, I believe those little sugar skulls were our first lesson on mortality. A sweet festive lesson.

Calavera de azúcar (buy your own here)

As you know we are new in our neighborhood and I am not sure wether there are any kids out here, but just in case they come knocking on our door on Halloween, I am off to buy some candy. 

And maybe this weekend I will venture out to San Francisco in chase of some Pan de Muerto.

Hope you are having fun!

PS. To see a Catrina slideshow visit here.

Bone collection, sneak peek.

I have been meaning to photograph a few of the skulls and bones in my collection to show you and have not got around to it just yet, so I figured you would like to get a glimpse in advance.

Expect more soon!

Hope you are having a nice weekend.

The little swallow is a paper cut I made for J on our anniversary. Or was it his birthday?

Long way home.

The morning was gray and I was moody.

Would you mind if we take the long route home? he asked.

I ended up in my first corn maze ever.

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Happy Weekend!

I am very excited about this weekend.

J's garden's official opening was a couple of days ago so we will be celebrating. Dinner with good friends, free music at Golden Gate Park, picnics and wine.

The weather is cool and breezy  and we are happy.

Have a good weekend!

Impending rain by RR

Recording our Dreams (Wim Wenders).

Today I woke up to the news that the future is finally here: Some scientists are working on a machine that will be able to record our dreams.

Top row shows images subjects saw on video. Bottom row shows the corresponding images reconstructed by a computer based on the subject's brain activity. (AP photo/University of California, Berkeley, Shinji Nishimoto).

I was transported back to my teens and to one of my favorite movies: Until the end of the World by Wim Wenders (better known for the movie Buena Vista Social Club). 

Over a decade in the making, filmed in 15 cities of 7 different countries, Until the end of the World was released in 1991. The setting is 1999 and the plot is part mystery, part science fiction, and the ultimate road movie. For the score, Wenders asked various artists to write songs as they thought music would be like in 1999. The result is one of my favorite soundtracks of all time. I listened to it ceaselessly! Even my dad would hum to the songs. I bet he can still remember them today.

A dream recorder seems like a very cool invention with tons of practical uses, but judging on how things turn out both in Until the end of the World and this other movie (coincidentally also set in 1999), I am not quite convinced it is a good idea.

I am pretty sure I would spend more time than necessary watching and re-watching my dreams.

What do you think?

Impending Harvest.

Lately there has been an increasingly louder buzz around Wine Country about the impending grape harvest. 

Apparently the first grapes are already being harvested in Carneros and Healdsburg.

The ones in our back yard look pretty close. 

Can you see the little green grapes? That is called "chicks and hens", an uneven growth of the cluster caused by cool and wet weather while the vines bloomed. The uneven ripening is an issue, since they will have to separate and toss away the green grapes so the resulting wine is just right.

On a different note, last night we went out to celebrate our wedding anniversary. The weather was incredible. We ended the night playing Bocce ball and had a great time even though we had no clue of the rules.

Alien Visitors (Glimpses).

Been dealing with a lot lately and have not had time to post.

Thought you would like to see some glimpses of my parents' visit.

Hope you are having fun in the sun!

Remains of Jack London's Wolf House.

My parents meeting the horse and donkey (with my sister in the background).

SFMoMA.

Coit Tower.

Blooming tea.

China Town.

North Beach.

Transamerica Pyramid with my favorite copper building in the foreground.

Sacramento's tower bridge.

Old Sacramento.

Sacramento Bee tile.