I really did not want to be anything sexy, cutesy, or girly for this hallowe'en. [One friend tried to convince me to dress up by saying, "It'll probably be good for tips" which made me cringe.]
Have you seen this vid yet?
SO, after much debate the night before to even dress up, I've decided to go as a hipster dude, which kinda ended up looking more like a french farmer...
My reasoning for this costume and why it won out... Well, I recently got suspenders from a clothing swap and really wanted to wear them and a mustache. BUT ALSO because working at a bar/pub/restaurant I knew I'd be inviting certain attention had I dressed up as say... a catholic school girl just because I have the skirt.
It was suggested to me to be a Goth because that's pretty opposite my personality but it still holds sex appeal. If anyone deems this Hipster Dude/French Farmer costume sexy throughout the night it will be my personality, not my body on display. We don't live in a time yet where a woman dressing in a revealing outfit wont get you a certain kind of attention from certain kinds of people. Knowing full well that certain kinds of people are gonna be intoxicated and not necessarily on their best behavior and I wont be in control of the kind of people I'll be in contact with, I'm going for the most androgynous and let face itsilly costume.
It's Jenn's birthday!! Which led me to create the ridiculous video below. I had some up close sloth footage, that I had been saving to share on her birthday. Then I finally read her facebook events page and realized she had a great request for her birthday this year. Option One was to go to her party and dance to fantasticly funky beats all night long. Her brilliance was with her Option Two, allowing her friends from all over the world participate in the dance party! The facebook event read:
If,
for some unfortunate reason, you cannot join me in person, send me a video
or photo of your best dance move. You have a week to practice. Don't let me down. Bonus points for
groups. Oh, and tell me what song you were jamming to. It will be the
playlist of the (quarter of a) century.
So naturally, I thought a sloth paired with some monkeys and a turkey, all grooving to a k-os song was the way to go...
Everyone gets asked "How's it going?", and once you've fallen into a normal routine you can get by with saying "Oh, just the same old, same old".
You know, the whole waking up, checking the solar voltage while listening to the insane call of a huge male Montezuma Oropendola nearby, making coffee then enjoying it by the water's edge. Taking out two loveable and intelligent bulldogs to the back patch if jungle, and then feeding them a breakfast of eggs and potatoes. Say hello to Seabastian, Piti, and Benjamin, and see what work they're up to for the day. Open up the computer to see what the world outside the island of Bastimentos is up to.
Then look out at the water to decide what kind of day it is. Is it calm and clear enough for a snorkeling trip? Mild waves for a standup paddle board run? Is there a boat anchored to kayak up to? Maybe it's too rainy for all that and it's a writing day or time to curl up with the dogs and a good book or see what projects I can do around the house. Is it scorching sunny and a perfect day to do laundry? Is it a warm cloud covered day, good for a walk to a neighboring property? Maybe I'll go for a swim or eat a coconut.
Time for lunch and I say hello to Cruz or Marta depending on the day and ask them about their week. "Hi Marta, I heard you killed your pig on Monday, how did it go?" Cruz is great conversation while Marta is more timid. I call Marta the ghost as she comes in to work and moves around so quietly I never know when she's arrived and have to go seek her out to say hello.
Some days I go into town for supplies, or have visitors or day trips. I'm usually content to stay just where I am though, and find many little things to pass the day. Then it's sunset on the dock with pelicans and maybe a chat on skype. Dinner for the dogs and myself. A short night walk to the front beach and some moments spent looking up at the stars. I'm either in awe of the brightness of the moon, or in awe of the darkness that eats the light of my flashlight. Some nights it's so dark you can't see your hand in front of your face. Some nights are so bright you can see clearly without any artificial light.
Then I think about the new things I've seen for the day. How many hummingbirds, snakes, butterflies, new bugs and fish crossed my path? Was the last time I saw a monkey really Tuesday? Has it been a whole month since I saw a dolphin jump?
Same old, same old is about to change a lot though. The owners of the house are back, the sit is over and guests are arriving soon. My hermit days are gone, and now I'll be with a bustle of people. On the dock with some wine and catching up of all things we had a very thought provoking conversation about what's next, what's possible in months to come...
I have a ticket home, and I can't commit to anything until I make it back home, make sure my head is screwed on right and see how I feel in a different environment surrounded by people who know me best. There's a strong pull though, maybe my year plus of traveling doesn't actually have to end just yet.
Tracy Chapman, I think I just got way more than one reason...
My aunt posted a link to this book on facebook and it really is Awesome. It's worth a read and since the author is just excited to share his idea you can read it free: Awesomebook
The Dali Theatre-Museum is the largest surrealistic object in the world. I loved exploring the different floors, each more disjointed then the
last. It's inspiring to be surrounded by art that seems to hold no
inhibition. I've been wanting to visit this Museum every time I've visited Spain and it lived up to the expectation. Although, what can you really expect from a building that is half a pink castle with eggs on top?
This was my favorite excerpt from the guide map:
"A Warning! If we take into account the idiosyncrasy of Salvador Dali... then perhaps we we recommend you not to follow the preconceived route... It does not have, not does it wish to have, any systematic function nor chronological sense."
Here's a short clip showing some of the jumble that the museum holds:
My favorite section was a room playing with reflection. Paintings seemed a blur until looked at in the reflective sphere placed on top of a painting, forming a perfect image that wrapped itself around a 3D surface. If you want to see Dali's more then just weeping clocks art, stop in. If you're in Spain near Barcelona, its a quick day trip by train (see Renfe approx. 10-15€ each way). See where this place is on a map. I'm sure you'll be highly entertained by this ostentatious expression of art.
I've been in Paris for three and a half months now. I've been tutoring and working at a really fun bar. I've been offered more hours at tutoring and a manager position at the bar as well as two other small jobs. I had to really think last week if I wanted to stay in Paris for a year. Really make this my city and commit to being here. If I stay in Paris I could visit other parts of France on my days off, other parts of Europe even.
If I took the manager position I could have stability while continuing to live in a city I've always wanted to explore. The thing is, I've been here for three and a half months and Paris is nice but it's not my city. I feel like it's a well built amusement park. The structure of everything is so precise and unchangeable. Everyone wants Paris to stay the same because it's a beautiful city, brimming with history and renaissance. It's charming when you want to wander around and appreciate the details of the architecture. But even the parks are manicured and the trees like the buildings are forced to not reach too high. Talking to Parisians it doesn't feel like a place to grow or be motivated to improve yourself. It's been unchanging since it landed on the hottest travel destinations and the first black and white photo was taken.
As much as I appreciate it and find it romantic it's set in its ways but I'm not ready to be settled into anything just yet. I think its safe to say that Paris will always be Paris and I can come back another time when I'm not so restless. I'll be here until the first week of July and then I'll jump off to some other place. I started a note on Facebook 'In the Hat' where from now till June destination suggestions can be added for consideration.
Why July and not just leap frog now? Well that's when my friend Jenn finishes her contract and we've been talking about traveling together again since our trip to Finisterre which I just posted Photo's of here!
Also we met a turkey on our journey, here's how that went...
I've liked Khan Academy since I saw it on Ted Talks which I posted here. (Funny enough it was exactly a year ago today that I posted the link)
This is the latest news update on its growing influence in education today.
Today was the craziness that is the Spanish lottery and from nine till noon you could hear the voices of children singing lottery numbers and their corresponding jackpot amount. If you want to actually understand it go here for fun facts.
This is what happens when more then 1,000€ is drawn...
