Old School Players to New School Fools

People. I have rejoined this century, or at least an older part of it. I am now the proud ownder of a small Samsung cellular telephone. I´m texting old-school style with T9 Abc. And it takes me about 10 minutes to write a text, Spanish or English, like my mom.

Why a phone you ask? I specifically made a point not to have a phone-like device on this trip for many reasons. But now I have reasons to believe I am benefitting from a phone. Running back and forth across Buenos Aires to check my email or Facebook to see what bar to meet my friends at is getting old. And since I have more blissful Buenos Aires time, I´ve opted for the no-contract pay-as-I-go option.

Originally I was only going to stay with Pati for the month of April, but she will be having an operation the first week of May so I offered to stay and help out for that week. When I asked her when I should plan to find another place she replied, ¨I like your face. Stay as long as you like¨. I know. I told her it was a mistake to say that because I will stay forever and it´ll be obnoxious after a while, but she insists. Who am I to argue? We will split the bills and continue living as jigsaw puzzle partners and roommates, and that´s alright with me.

our most recent puzzle masterpiece

What else have I been doing? As I told my dad yesterday, I´m kind of failing on the whole learning more Spanish thing right now. The school I signed up for only has room for me to take like 1-2 hours per week, which is the opposite of helpful. My dad said, ¨well honey, you´ll just have to go back after you return in October for the Spanish part¨. Ha. So I sent off a string of panicked poingnant emails to Craigslist Spanish teachers last night demanding 10 hours per week starting ASAP. I start tomorrow with my new Colombian teacher Lisbeth at 3pm, and we´re on next week for a full 10 hours. Boom.

I´m also becoming a staple at La Bomba del Tiempo, which is a weekly drum show at one of the cultural centers here. Like religion, I go every week to shake my tail feather.

dancers at la bomba

Yesterday kicked off the Feria de los Libros. Did you know BsAs is the 2011 UNESCO Heritage Literary site? I waited in a pretty bad-ass line today to buy my ticket in and was totally overwhelmed by the convention center-sized display. Hundreds of booths, cafes, books, books, books, lights, shiny objects. Now, I can spend hours in one Barnes & Noble. Imagine this place is the size of like 100 B&Ns. I could have died. Amazing.

Of course I stopped in the booth with all the books about yoga, healing, energy, all that good stuff. And wouldn´t you know it, they were reading auras. I have always wanted to get my aura read ever since Lu showed me hers at the office. What better time to do it than at the book fair in Buenos Aires in Spanish? I can think of plenty. But, here´s the deal. I am in balance. My aura is greenish-blue. I am a good communicator, as my throat chakra is very open, I´m calm, relaxed, and I need fresh air and the outdoors. I should play an instrument or use my hands in some way for work because my hands have strong energy. And know what else? This lady saw something because she got really serious, looked at me and said, ¨my child, you cannot control everything. You struggle with that and while you´re improving, you have to let it go. Life will bring what it will bring, nothing more, nothing less. There are too many forces outside of you to control. Let go.¨ Damn lady. Did you sit in on my first session with my therapist or something? People - these aura readings are the real deal. (Let me believe this. Don´t rain on my parade if you disagree.)

After the reading I realized I couldn´t look at any more books or words or chakra readings, and took a long walk back home. On my way I found PEANUT BUTTER!!!!! I have been looking high and low for my beloved peanut butter, and now I have it. BsAs is as it should be.

What else is happening? My hair is growing. This is a good thing, and people - when it gets all long and beautiful again please don´t ever let me cut it all off because I want to donate it or for any other reason! Also, my bangs are growing out. Probably the biggest lesson I´ve learned in 2011 is that I am not a hair-cutter and I will never attempt to cut my own hair ever again. Because even though it´s growing out and looks semi-normal, I don´t know what I´m doing I have way too much bangs circa 5th grade (I just finished living those bangs down and now they´re back at 29). It´s not even a little cool.

sometimes when the wind blows my bangs look like this and i don´t realize it. yikes!