tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19814573315095687532024-02-02T14:06:57.921-08:00A Mexican in Beantown - Lost in TranslationAlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-57933495912362430942012-09-18T12:43:00.000-07:002012-09-18T12:43:56.078-07:00Cartas a Sebastián - 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Sebastián,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">La semana pasada cumpliste 6 meses. No
puedo creer que ya hayan pasado 6 meses desde que naciste. Esta es la primera
carta que te escribo aunque he querido hacer esto desde el mero día que
naciste.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">No se cuando te voy a dar estas cartas
para que las leas, pero mi intención es tenerlas listas para cuando el momento
se presente.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">La razón por la cual son en Español es
porque tengo la esperanza de que crezcas siendo bilingüe y que ames hablar y
leer en Español porque esta es la lengua de tu mamá y porque el Español es
hermoso como idioma.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Ahora que tienes 6 meses hemos empezado a
darte de comer un poco de comida solida en vez de pura leche. Tu primera comida
fue aguacate. El domingo (Septiembre 16, 2012) fue nuestro primer intento,
pusimos tu sillita, te pusimos uno de tus baberos y finalmente estrenamos los
platitos y cucharitas que nos regalaron para ti. Parece que te gusto, aunque
realmente no sabes que hacer con esa comida en tu boca, has tomado pura leche
hasta ahora. Ayer lunes no fue tan fácil, realmente no estabas tan interesado
en comer y escupiste el poco aguacate que pudimos poner en tu boca, esta bien,
no hay prisa.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzElNTp62FxwQ66UfjztoezaEq5I7cFKtzopbJvzuWtL00x8weEwjLBPgov5nsynRJpeGAdxlonMtgeMs1JXaBvKANaPF80uXublxlr9uT0z8LnGvCReSjgDF16qbrKUphnb1syXg-m4gJ/s1600/Primera+comida-blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzElNTp62FxwQ66UfjztoezaEq5I7cFKtzopbJvzuWtL00x8weEwjLBPgov5nsynRJpeGAdxlonMtgeMs1JXaBvKANaPF80uXublxlr9uT0z8LnGvCReSjgDF16qbrKUphnb1syXg-m4gJ/s320/Primera+comida-blog.jpg" width="205" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">También estas siendo mucho mas expresivo,
“hablas” un montón y te encantan los sonidos que salen de tu boca, a mi me
encanta oírte y aunque me despiertas muy temprano adoro oírte en las mañanas.
Eres en definitiva la mejor parte de mi día.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg35pYjzDvi2E6-GM5qqWIhztylXMsy4KIOQafeoIbnkoYRklYHlk7-ii2z5iDG5s_RMSOP2X6TqzZHvrnrlvn9RNv1ii7XJhcvEo18ryORbcSCCsnAkLjMgpeWHVlFWEfsG3WUjd8tn6CJ/s1600/sonriendo-blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg35pYjzDvi2E6-GM5qqWIhztylXMsy4KIOQafeoIbnkoYRklYHlk7-ii2z5iDG5s_RMSOP2X6TqzZHvrnrlvn9RNv1ii7XJhcvEo18ryORbcSCCsnAkLjMgpeWHVlFWEfsG3WUjd8tn6CJ/s320/sonriendo-blog.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Probablemente estas primeras cartas tenga
una parte del pasado y del presente porque hay tantas cosas que quiero
documentar de tu día a día que no quiero que pase un día mas sin escribirlas.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA3-8yql4_zKVZSHYSuTteNozcjATZGQGSP0wTuVycVQFnumOeHaepFQfKKzH1WyPqOh4x_zNVvRUnEVNVYO8PBf6dwIPBYBYHlJUorBGm2JV6anaAYvr53562OztkgnhwRBjWM-7i3xr_/s1600/6+meses+-+blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA3-8yql4_zKVZSHYSuTteNozcjATZGQGSP0wTuVycVQFnumOeHaepFQfKKzH1WyPqOh4x_zNVvRUnEVNVYO8PBf6dwIPBYBYHlJUorBGm2JV6anaAYvr53562OztkgnhwRBjWM-7i3xr_/s320/6+meses+-+blog.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Lo mas importante de este primer mensaje
es también decirte que tu papá <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>y yo te
adoramos, que no hay nada mejor para nosotros que estar contigo, que has venido
a traer luz a nuestras vidas, eres el pedacito que nos hacia falta en nuestra
familia.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Te quiere siempre,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="ES-MX" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: ES-MX; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Tu mamá<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-34765877313509981752011-04-20T13:12:00.000-07:002011-04-20T13:12:36.247-07:00Providence, Rhode Island – A little tour around the city<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Some weekends ago I had the opportunity to go to Providence, Rhode Island. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the advantages of living in New England is that we are really a cluster of little states together so it is easy to travel to other places within an hour. Yep, we are that close from Providence.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Since we spent the weekend over there I had some time to enjoy myself. The first day I did some walking around the city. For what I heard, they have worked really hard in cleaning up streets and laying out the city so people can enjoy it. There were many places that were within walking distance.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I started my tour at the R.I. Convention Center, they have a great service for tourists, there is someone explaining you how to find things, the best routes and plenty of maps to use!<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">My first stop was the Providence Mall. This place is huge (4 floors with a 5<sup>th</sup> for IMAX and food court). The layout is really nice and it has a walking tunnel that connects from the Westin/Convention Center all the way to the mall which is really neat if outside is snowing and cold and you feel like walking. Also, the view from the tunnel is just so nice, here you have it.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht5-9sXuJh_7IMNAWuFDqhzv3gztd2x-iYpMkQQIfSrrs3RUJcLZSIxvFSWlqawHEu0xCUM4z8U0sayHnZ7cz1e0vURXHPqj9BPvudIRIqFPUpa-AZngfe6BnX7fFwbc6Zntql93ShVCFB/s1600/Providence+mall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht5-9sXuJh_7IMNAWuFDqhzv3gztd2x-iYpMkQQIfSrrs3RUJcLZSIxvFSWlqawHEu0xCUM4z8U0sayHnZ7cz1e0vURXHPqj9BPvudIRIqFPUpa-AZngfe6BnX7fFwbc6Zntql93ShVCFB/s320/Providence+mall.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Then I walked to the State House that is a mini replica of the White House, isn’t it pretty? I couldn’t get in because it was Saturday and it was closed. Since this building is at the top of a hill, you have a nice view of the city and the avenues from there.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHBzeXUq9V-ELUABl8Zq7_5MRfyu6n03SFthGlbb2HCmoFi_LxzmwyfQJJRi4l2AiqeqwRsSdFGZxMvktg9y14ELygyhnV0Vpu3syEMB6byx3u4_BAk9RmgIiIBogtewQ63k5OsMpOjkVc/s1600/RI+State+House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHBzeXUq9V-ELUABl8Zq7_5MRfyu6n03SFthGlbb2HCmoFi_LxzmwyfQJJRi4l2AiqeqwRsSdFGZxMvktg9y14ELygyhnV0Vpu3syEMB6byx3u4_BAk9RmgIiIBogtewQ63k5OsMpOjkVc/s320/RI+State+House.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuEtZFk2BBLvQBIs1RGhj5e-WXm2XSM2WrHv2ctD2nkVnrpzWGZOFuIqQZ4i7qNS5XTJ7uKIwKhJCL1sx2Uss4gE26Ysglvd1VNREvjnHeZWtuAqfxQUke1aq0Fo1Zjrkkwc7U_Y13bIn2/s1600/State+House+view.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuEtZFk2BBLvQBIs1RGhj5e-WXm2XSM2WrHv2ctD2nkVnrpzWGZOFuIqQZ4i7qNS5XTJ7uKIwKhJCL1sx2Uss4gE26Ysglvd1VNREvjnHeZWtuAqfxQUke1aq0Fo1Zjrkkwc7U_Y13bIn2/s320/State+House+view.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH4rI6rYSOurL6z2ajgNpbBewyEGXrJYtvTPtUUejSMnKqfJdJ3EGxiPnY8WIPkSmzBskZzr7RFHoarh9AWnhHl2LvEjrV2Ogp8c8IyYbP4sz7a_7rWV8P4-43r6k7vKLfifC3vj7FJ5oD/s1600/State+House+view1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH4rI6rYSOurL6z2ajgNpbBewyEGXrJYtvTPtUUejSMnKqfJdJ3EGxiPnY8WIPkSmzBskZzr7RFHoarh9AWnhHl2LvEjrV2Ogp8c8IyYbP4sz7a_7rWV8P4-43r6k7vKLfifC3vj7FJ5oD/s320/State+House+view1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">After that I started walking towards the RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) Museum, or so I thought so. After walking some blocks I realized I was going the wrong way so I was trying to read my map and a very nice lady helped me to find my way back to the museum. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiezKwDDsY2kJ45j_B4nCWNUvl-62RoUkFEHTXBHQeu6mCpJXt4DTtwD9lKQbaK1Gd90ybRqguZyd1UhqnGiknYXVbdepX_akexM3M2bh7CQhGiqiYGh-a4a89KPtfwuhePPY87zIDBGCPs/s1600/museum+of+design.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiezKwDDsY2kJ45j_B4nCWNUvl-62RoUkFEHTXBHQeu6mCpJXt4DTtwD9lKQbaK1Gd90ybRqguZyd1UhqnGiknYXVbdepX_akexM3M2bh7CQhGiqiYGh-a4a89KPtfwuhePPY87zIDBGCPs/s320/museum+of+design.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I hadn’t been in a museum in a long time and I absolutely picked the right day since I got in for free! It seems that Bank of America gives you access to many museums for free the first weekend of every month. It finally paid off having an account with them!<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The museum is huge, 6 floors! I enjoyed my visit so much! I loved the Egyptian section, I have always been intrigued by this culture and was reading that they used to bury their love ones with head statues that didn’t represent the facial characteristics of the person being buried but an ideal of them, so they just labeled the statue with the name and presto! No wonder why we have such a hard time trying to accept how we look like! Not even then human beings were satisfied with their appearance. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I tried to take some pictures of the art pieces but my camera doesn’t do a very good job with the lighting (or it may be is a user problem) but I did take a picture of the bathroom, isn’t it cool?<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqKZMNwYQdjaLkLj06TO4s88L7JjCXzUT6BnIrJ1B6NyqLUHBUVQ0uK6-6mAMpPe3fwugGym3wknZ7_iAi_uoY0J9JpHOUnZb73vqBNUM-8KuCz899_iPJf8-DwCMexxekBFZCmMwzAnjp/s1600/Bathroom+at+museum.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqKZMNwYQdjaLkLj06TO4s88L7JjCXzUT6BnIrJ1B6NyqLUHBUVQ0uK6-6mAMpPe3fwugGym3wknZ7_iAi_uoY0J9JpHOUnZb73vqBNUM-8KuCz899_iPJf8-DwCMexxekBFZCmMwzAnjp/s320/Bathroom+at+museum.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Then I found out that this school is one of the best of the country and from here many talented, world renowned artists have come out, have you heard of Chihuly?</div><div class="MsoNormal"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">When you leave the building and walk a couple of blocks you come across with the first Baptist Church in the country and again I couldn’t <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>get in because it was Saturday!<o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeyk8-Iu21C8nwe0arw-IaiXfZyfFDVxsNgjtzw6abRWki8ZtisJlzxS37a-rK59SuwaaHYZ6wAqlpEWaj_e-v_TXSzTYKORbRTmozSk0Yz7LvTCjHXMf0jwNVxUZdn7nn3JprtyBF5tQW/s1600/First+Baptist+Church.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeyk8-Iu21C8nwe0arw-IaiXfZyfFDVxsNgjtzw6abRWki8ZtisJlzxS37a-rK59SuwaaHYZ6wAqlpEWaj_e-v_TXSzTYKORbRTmozSk0Yz7LvTCjHXMf0jwNVxUZdn7nn3JprtyBF5tQW/s320/First+Baptist+Church.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">After that, I kept walking along the Providence River and finally met my husband to get some good eats at a street called Thayer that is right by Brown University. This avenue is full of hip places to eat and students! Average age? Uhm maybe 25? I felt old here!<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">We also went to Federal Hill, considered the Little Italy for many years. We had a chance to try the best cannoli’s in town and some very good pizza. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I would definitely recommend anyone to visit Providence, R.I. if you have a chance, good foods, nice city and very nice people! <o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWIXUCqcV74pepMa_97PGDmLr3Mo8KLCrlFGasIywrGyJOq_kNrYO470CVFTLrNXhCUqGJXxM9hq4zzOcb8qyP0SBOMuje1zv3lfDI8eBcNOJvDNBVPYzFCnsWpzHG7rVK0X49E21vkOWe/s1600/Providence+River.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWIXUCqcV74pepMa_97PGDmLr3Mo8KLCrlFGasIywrGyJOq_kNrYO470CVFTLrNXhCUqGJXxM9hq4zzOcb8qyP0SBOMuje1zv3lfDI8eBcNOJvDNBVPYzFCnsWpzHG7rVK0X49E21vkOWe/s320/Providence+River.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">We are already making plans to come back in the Summer! <o:p></o:p></div></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-86508725907306190762011-04-20T11:48:00.000-07:002011-04-20T11:48:37.225-07:00Coffee, anyone?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">I haven’t blogged in a long time, I even missed two 12 for 12 picture challenges so that means that I haven’t posted a single word in months.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It is so hard to go back to the saddle when you stop writing for such a long time. Inspiration has been elusive but I resolved to get back to the writing thing so here I am.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A good topic to start little by little is to write about little things in life that make me happy or help me go through the day. In this case I am talking about coffee and green tea lattes. They are two of my favorite beverages and living in New England there is nothing like a good coffee to gear me up for the day. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Pete’s<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>is my go to place for coffee, the quality is great and the people that work there already call me by my name, they know I will be having a soy latte; warm so I can drink it right away.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2-tFilqo5ayIv1HCjzJQ6WivUYrKZxlZ6fLqp0GN-Tz7xlZsf_eD3lsl_m5hHeP0UZzCP0ORkQgHVW5o5BLckPxXVC2RFU0qfErYVkt5DNq_48N4jf5vQnpL9s-WVjwUtt0BqiAQzJNc6/s1600/petes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2-tFilqo5ayIv1HCjzJQ6WivUYrKZxlZ6fLqp0GN-Tz7xlZsf_eD3lsl_m5hHeP0UZzCP0ORkQgHVW5o5BLckPxXVC2RFU0qfErYVkt5DNq_48N4jf5vQnpL9s-WVjwUtt0BqiAQzJNc6/s320/petes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">On sunny days I go for the Green Tea Latte with soy milk, great refreshing option, from Starbucks. I know I shouldn’t have that piece of chocolate chip banana bread, but that thing was calling my name.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0KnmQWw4bBYZwFXFxCxRgUBjZXdSurHHUpGjoTp_d0ypewL30bLBCNdQJIVLLDYSGt_ZEbkUwZigOYj6phBByNJML7aM52s7QKwJeOuAMlPst36Fmvmqgx4P6_-ktntabq-Nv4DXr3iy0/s1600/greentea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0KnmQWw4bBYZwFXFxCxRgUBjZXdSurHHUpGjoTp_d0ypewL30bLBCNdQJIVLLDYSGt_ZEbkUwZigOYj6phBByNJML7aM52s7QKwJeOuAMlPst36Fmvmqgx4P6_-ktntabq-Nv4DXr3iy0/s320/greentea.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">After I have my morning drink, I am ready to sit at my desk and start working away…<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS37eKqCkkmD6g48sAwlQMtvKW1cFsxmQhQQzym576x4879xKJPhH4hDvQ6rUjvWo9YjJ91oq8LP3jXE-PelLXV_r2x7R_KLt6CGCSuPWf7VLa_tOd7lOGHDayIqDZPYke0TO-ed8hxhKg/s1600/office.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS37eKqCkkmD6g48sAwlQMtvKW1cFsxmQhQQzym576x4879xKJPhH4hDvQ6rUjvWo9YjJ91oq8LP3jXE-PelLXV_r2x7R_KLt6CGCSuPWf7VLa_tOd7lOGHDayIqDZPYke0TO-ed8hxhKg/s320/office.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p><br />
</o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">What is your go to drink?<o:p></o:p></div></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-46409785034531119282011-02-14T11:01:00.000-08:002011-02-14T11:01:26.787-08:0012 of 12 - February 2011<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">One of the things I am trying to do is working more on my blog, you can only write more if you just do that, write more. I decided to start doing this 12 of 12 challenge. You take 12 pictures during each 12th of the month and narrate what you did that day. The unfortunate thing is that my February 12th wasn't that exciting! But hey, at least I took the pictures. Here we go:<br />
<br />
Started the morning getting ready to get out and run some errands. I was really happy to be able to wear my purple sneakers instead of snow boots!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicU9fv0efz0jzCkchBz5NaDRph9tfV44V2jTup9lYRQ7H0hncK1uJXEMG2RoRA7PRDXcuySIXe3ruOrS_XT-BwezulvwMtN7AAdnm-bIM6DxxkBHlSWoLuEp5LNACNCCd2LxY_xySUau4e/s1600/purple+shoes.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicU9fv0efz0jzCkchBz5NaDRph9tfV44V2jTup9lYRQ7H0hncK1uJXEMG2RoRA7PRDXcuySIXe3ruOrS_XT-BwezulvwMtN7AAdnm-bIM6DxxkBHlSWoLuEp5LNACNCCd2LxY_xySUau4e/s320/purple+shoes.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
First stop, Trader Joe's. We haven't been there in ages and there is one on Cambridge, very close from where we live. Obviously, as many places in Cambridge, the parking lot is horrible and people that go there live on their own little heads without concern about other people. My husband got very upset with the whole situation so I was only able to take a picture from the car!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin4-mlWDGaeVnA_XDAUGuhXBbtBbLGXO93v3B3iy9WsRb_QOh4matERQNIRQ68BzGtjAGJntQMefq1oWsohtA42VO-m_vf75xCBeN3BKcSi1ZgJwp8ZVdJmZd0HWV3fREKtFUxd7GnUccB/s1600/Trader+Joes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin4-mlWDGaeVnA_XDAUGuhXBbtBbLGXO93v3B3iy9WsRb_QOh4matERQNIRQ68BzGtjAGJntQMefq1oWsohtA42VO-m_vf75xCBeN3BKcSi1ZgJwp8ZVdJmZd0HWV3fREKtFUxd7GnUccB/s320/Trader+Joes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Next stop, haircut. I got a haircut and my red highlights retouched. I love the feeling after seeing myself in front of the mirror with my hair perfectly done for the day. I wish I could keep it like that every day. I have been going to this place: <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/bella-hair-waltham">Bella Hair</a> for a year now. I found them when I recently moved to MA and so far so good. Michelle is good as far as asking you what you want, listening and offering suggestions.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzdlujIllDlvt-tpOPU6OJrjTaLsMHxCyYgmuSkuY1eac471Tywv45Yo7t5D6yqWsx1aVtqxWuYKLJQpeWKJBenQKEHEHdSha8f7QFOAbLkCiZR1xTd18mElBxpEaTzhYxo7v9J9pFlD2H/s1600/haircut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzdlujIllDlvt-tpOPU6OJrjTaLsMHxCyYgmuSkuY1eac471Tywv45Yo7t5D6yqWsx1aVtqxWuYKLJQpeWKJBenQKEHEHdSha8f7QFOAbLkCiZR1xTd18mElBxpEaTzhYxo7v9J9pFlD2H/s320/haircut.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
After two hours of being pampered it was time for lunch. Henry and I usually don't have fast food but once in a while we crave it so we stopped at Wendy's for some quick lunch. I had the Southwestern Salad that has chili on it. Pretty fulfilling and one of the only ways that I eat chili. Henry can eat whatever he wants, since he is sooo slim (damn genetics) so he got a double burger.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUD7egAFuY09V1tx7TxLqb3lHVRIFzMfIhZ-BAfeXkkYSwt5hIhyevqIOGE5lRLu7g-NjP56BEV7zjJkUPr3Qycg8B0wEmBIuYnIjaJnIBjQfEBtcKCZhFlOIs2NQZgnU1ZrpUe17ezDZM/s1600/wendys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUD7egAFuY09V1tx7TxLqb3lHVRIFzMfIhZ-BAfeXkkYSwt5hIhyevqIOGE5lRLu7g-NjP56BEV7zjJkUPr3Qycg8B0wEmBIuYnIjaJnIBjQfEBtcKCZhFlOIs2NQZgnU1ZrpUe17ezDZM/s320/wendys.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
After that, we headed home, took a nap and started cooking dinner. We realized we were missing some ingredients so we headed out to <a href="http://www.sophiasgreekpantry.com/">Sophia's Greek Pantry</a> for some Feta cheese and Greek yogurt. Then we stopped at Eastern Lamejun Bakers right around the corner from our apartment to get some pine nuts. This is one of the things I love about our apartment's location, there are so many things that are at our reach within walking distance.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTKAwsxaVdooLsgi6gysggdvW2a_W-KfcCx8TIB_YB24QinH4UkTga5pKVD-H3WImg1fwkCuTlcEU_sDLhiFofzTl2ILFoqdw0HDsYOMH831RLu8Kyt8rocf1IHai3BxXKQZf9cFq3vXWd/s1600/Eastenr+Lamejun+Bakers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTKAwsxaVdooLsgi6gysggdvW2a_W-KfcCx8TIB_YB24QinH4UkTga5pKVD-H3WImg1fwkCuTlcEU_sDLhiFofzTl2ILFoqdw0HDsYOMH831RLu8Kyt8rocf1IHai3BxXKQZf9cFq3vXWd/s320/Eastenr+Lamejun+Bakers.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
We wanted to make empanadas so Henry cooked the stuffing. One was apples with cinnamon and sugar and the other one was spinach with mushrooms and feta cheese. Here is the apple one:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjTDEAY5Cft_FiJTE6T7_st54vlxkT287aQVBwSqtt39EsmCcPfQLiVV32d_lbWQkgdIAVL39zDiTXf0fCI5jLrUtwi562GburWEoieEqnfgjjchPB8Va0vGu91tNGK32XGipVU9QeLg6m/s1600/apple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjTDEAY5Cft_FiJTE6T7_st54vlxkT287aQVBwSqtt39EsmCcPfQLiVV32d_lbWQkgdIAVL39zDiTXf0fCI5jLrUtwi562GburWEoieEqnfgjjchPB8Va0vGu91tNGK32XGipVU9QeLg6m/s320/apple.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Here is the spinach with mushrooms:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF3ht-6pjHLvc5tzcNydVwuDpP8Gw8ZM6lIEWVuJIfCfaZYMzXmM_GY6WubRT1zRj6wkrQ2jZBrQ59iEEBYeDbD6-rZtBX2MejUwoqPJKrO-oSUhIdvL2MrJ9P5_GId4pWMzAfIdzUOqb8/s1600/sandm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF3ht-6pjHLvc5tzcNydVwuDpP8Gw8ZM6lIEWVuJIfCfaZYMzXmM_GY6WubRT1zRj6wkrQ2jZBrQ59iEEBYeDbD6-rZtBX2MejUwoqPJKrO-oSUhIdvL2MrJ9P5_GId4pWMzAfIdzUOqb8/s320/sandm.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Then, prep came in place, chopped cheese and started working on the puff pastry:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqE1ium5mdvSpMwyGMTMqC7nLH_8s6pr6TP0mf2yhkaNmbx0P28wNKUs73felcXByhdOfdBsNtacFcKBssT_x7frVXVf3dbR8UQK9_KzFVz1XrsdAMrEg3sB6EL2m7fI83H6GIL_Pdtw19/s1600/fetaand+puff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqE1ium5mdvSpMwyGMTMqC7nLH_8s6pr6TP0mf2yhkaNmbx0P28wNKUs73felcXByhdOfdBsNtacFcKBssT_x7frVXVf3dbR8UQK9_KzFVz1XrsdAMrEg3sB6EL2m7fI83H6GIL_Pdtw19/s320/fetaand+puff.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Henry mixed the cooked apples with some goat cheese and the spinach with some feta cheese:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEZJKiRyG5CmBwYq7psitnw0JrxYNYbwREC24W0eR5u4W9t9BxPkXJNayxryXmGOAK5aGeZ7jjqSUCWY0tBo9FbBCNITOltFtsQTo2kF9TrTbRt57706PMaBmZbIP8Etz3GoEnknUqX0L3/s1600/spinachandapple+with+cheese.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEZJKiRyG5CmBwYq7psitnw0JrxYNYbwREC24W0eR5u4W9t9BxPkXJNayxryXmGOAK5aGeZ7jjqSUCWY0tBo9FbBCNITOltFtsQTo2kF9TrTbRt57706PMaBmZbIP8Etz3GoEnknUqX0L3/s320/spinachandapple+with+cheese.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Then we started stuffing the empanadas and getting them ready for the oven. Sorry but I forgot to take a picture of how we stuffed them, here is one where Henry is working the borders of the empanada:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtgDu8Q86xLiZGEHkJIDioNB4yGftZyE747RjYBNgulzo5ma4oMy2tq1Kjxs6MrWh4vBkaumdCja44Q39pnU6pDfEtFvRt1mYuVzfHN2KWxXHj4TJ49KUAcL6Mr3Nd3iaMCuYOijJBy2VA/s1600/empanada+making.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtgDu8Q86xLiZGEHkJIDioNB4yGftZyE747RjYBNgulzo5ma4oMy2tq1Kjxs6MrWh4vBkaumdCja44Q39pnU6pDfEtFvRt1mYuVzfHN2KWxXHj4TJ49KUAcL6Mr3Nd3iaMCuYOijJBy2VA/s320/empanada+making.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
It took around 35 minutes for these things to cook. We were starving by the time they came out from the oven, but it was worth the wait!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi89UeBp3mcAvVyHsqUOffxCd2MxTBMIa-bA-cpLvsZK6kNlBSLrRNTWt9QxaW0vEbrdDASsDxTWEcTO1tKLC9ZGXSwRq1PkdrJV04oiGNDgsIi4asn9ij_m0KCT3krrf-aReDiraWSKnsF/s1600/empanadas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi89UeBp3mcAvVyHsqUOffxCd2MxTBMIa-bA-cpLvsZK6kNlBSLrRNTWt9QxaW0vEbrdDASsDxTWEcTO1tKLC9ZGXSwRq1PkdrJV04oiGNDgsIi4asn9ij_m0KCT3krrf-aReDiraWSKnsF/s320/empanadas.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
And finally we got to try these babies. They were delicious! Of course, throughout this process, Luci was our loyal assistant cleaning every morsel that hit the kitchen floor!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCp_9jc1K2ZmNJX2tz0piGhYjhP1BzBesBXT00FbX1NVcHzX1BUnyosUiMkSt9jtOPB9k3eyLAdHKH80BnhC2PncWKOQYUwYUPzfCy3Q7b6ee62L655mjADc2yp5aJP7Sv1Vpc8eEZNnVH/s1600/readytoeat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCp_9jc1K2ZmNJX2tz0piGhYjhP1BzBesBXT00FbX1NVcHzX1BUnyosUiMkSt9jtOPB9k3eyLAdHKH80BnhC2PncWKOQYUwYUPzfCy3Q7b6ee62L655mjADc2yp5aJP7Sv1Vpc8eEZNnVH/s320/readytoeat.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
And that is all for my 12 of 12! It is kind of difficult to come up with 12 pictures when your day is not that exciting!<br />
<br />
See you soon!</div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-44701575445911968892011-02-11T10:33:00.000-08:002011-02-11T10:33:20.863-08:00Update on wishes<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Even though I am still digging deep inside to find some inspiration to write about how my life in this snowy city has been I thought a good start is a short update on my wish list.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">As my friend Jonathan said, living debt free is going to propel your other wishes, so last weekend I sat with my husband and we went over the stuff we need to pay off in order to start working towards the other wishes. It was a liberating experience since that allows me to stop worrying about my future and start chipping in one day at a time. We finally put together a master plan for the next 5 years. It sounds daunting but the funny thing is that it wasn’t at all. It just took two hours of our lives and I was very pleased with the fact that my husband and I are on the same page that is always good news.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Also, the eating healthy part has been work in progress, we watched Oprah last week and her interview with <a href="http://www.kathyfreston.com/index.html">Kathy Freston</a>, she wrote a book called Veganist where she talks about the benefits of a vegan life style. We are not going to go 100% vegan because I just love fish and cheese too much but we decided to clean up a little bit our daily diet taking some points from her. So I guess that is also a good point.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Lastly, I have been taking bootcamp classes since November and still going strong. I don’t know if I have lost any weight but I am for sure not gaining which under the weather conditions I am living on right now is a BIG plus. You know, when it is freezing cold outside, half of the streets are covered with ice (they look and feel like a skating rink)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and sunset happens around 4:00pm you really don’t feel like moving too much, you are bored and the closest thing to you is the kitchen…so I am giving me some points for this too.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">And that is all for now folks! Here are some pictures taken from my backyard and of me with Luci walking through the neighborhood (check out the height of the snow banks).<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRmJddOl-IRcDmcaFIhj6o4FCqfAKJ7ZiWGcimGozGw_LFpDVzIf_-gcNEefgS7YYJVLM_9rz-_7BBoqmBXvlB66n3qclF3rEAXnNRsRfB0a7h9FGR6FQXujuTHakz9eGZl02zG0zC-s9D/s1600/P1000270.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRmJddOl-IRcDmcaFIhj6o4FCqfAKJ7ZiWGcimGozGw_LFpDVzIf_-gcNEefgS7YYJVLM_9rz-_7BBoqmBXvlB66n3qclF3rEAXnNRsRfB0a7h9FGR6FQXujuTHakz9eGZl02zG0zC-s9D/s320/P1000270.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw7X5OmpnJHEJT1BGEhL2SdoK6yGL5ONzJlfI9jwu5xJ6v6izCF_Tq_ya2HAqs7YljpwG530btuljxkM8rSDBFY3-CgwFhWlh_umOD7nAIdYDMEa2YnJOp0HZn_WWPUXSpTMs6bm7x3HtU/s1600/P1000412.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw7X5OmpnJHEJT1BGEhL2SdoK6yGL5ONzJlfI9jwu5xJ6v6izCF_Tq_ya2HAqs7YljpwG530btuljxkM8rSDBFY3-CgwFhWlh_umOD7nAIdYDMEa2YnJOp0HZn_WWPUXSpTMs6bm7x3HtU/s320/P1000412.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1lnN9Y2pfoSFUrO0Ue_pJIDXOZivrR2NryN1aY7Ok0qw3yVwI5zbisOZ4EL_ZiXkLhK6599VaO0WpwjCVGKkyOqfjJOKQKKG8XywE5cNPeFgoHU9DjEdHI6PXVm3t7IT7GYPVnqSRn-A/s1600/P1000413.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1lnN9Y2pfoSFUrO0Ue_pJIDXOZivrR2NryN1aY7Ok0qw3yVwI5zbisOZ4EL_ZiXkLhK6599VaO0WpwjCVGKkyOqfjJOKQKKG8XywE5cNPeFgoHU9DjEdHI6PXVm3t7IT7GYPVnqSRn-A/s320/P1000413.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-28443690167875313872011-01-25T13:09:00.000-08:002011-01-25T13:09:15.807-08:00My wish list for 2011<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As I was reading my previous post and assessing how depressed I have felt the previous weeks I resolved to do something about it. I didn't believe all these people that told me that winters were hard to go through until now. What an awful season to be around. I don’t even understand how people function on this kind of weather. I admire my husband that wakes up around 5:00am to go to work every day. I have to be at my office at 9:00am and it takes me forever to start moving!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So I went out for lunch with my coworker Alanna and as I was telling my brother (through the msn chat) that I was back, he asked me to listen to an interview on the internet that a Mexican radio station was having. I listened to it. We talked about it. I don’t even know if I should comment about it here because people are going to say that I am crazy but I will just say that there was a medium involved in the interview. It was really good to hear what she said. I know, I know, a lot of people don’t believe that normal people have some senses more developed than others - I do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The piece that woke me up from my depression was when she said that most of the families that she helps are the ones with parents that have lost a child. That confirmed that she was serious about her work. Anyway, the interview made me think about my loved ones that are not on this earth anymore. It reminded me that as a tribute to their lives and memory I need to live my life to the fullest. What if they are watching me or stop by once in a while to check on me? I would be ashamed to let them see how sad I have felt the last weeks. The lack of energy, the ambition that is nowhere to be found and then realized, well I have to take one step at a time.</div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">My friend Sam has her resolutions (goals) on her blog, many people post them as a way to keep tabs on themselves. I don’t want to call them resolutions, I want to call them wishes, just because I wanted a different name. So here are some of my wishes for this year, I will tell you if I achieve one, two, none or all in my future postings:<o:p></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzwjlCbdOzxbIvfBbXVh7vm5p93EVmjxeZrIau3jmhNOrZjLNoGhLXf0Pl6U0aqLekXeiGBqlohh0Ed3wPxSMMJkzXGq0zvN-gLj1MVz1p-SMiZokve3bOWeZLJZCKzqFnlU5vjzk5gG2b/s1600/Wish+list+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzwjlCbdOzxbIvfBbXVh7vm5p93EVmjxeZrIau3jmhNOrZjLNoGhLXf0Pl6U0aqLekXeiGBqlohh0Ed3wPxSMMJkzXGq0zvN-gLj1MVz1p-SMiZokve3bOWeZLJZCKzqFnlU5vjzk5gG2b/s320/Wish+list+2011.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Yes, they are all over the place! I know I need to narrow them now and be more specific but better to have them like this than not to have them at all, right?</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Have you accomplished your wishes/desires? How?<o:p></o:p></div></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-14750818740155855702011-01-11T12:04:00.000-08:002011-01-11T12:04:05.961-08:002011 – What to make of this brand new year?<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As the first month of this 2011 passes by I realized I haven’t written anything on my blogs for some weeks now. I had a ton of ideas about topics, wanted to show off my Christmas decorations, talk about the great Christmas celebrations I was part of and more. But then something happened that changed all my priorities. We had a loss in our family. It happened all of the sudden on December 26<sup>th</sup>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It happened here in Massachusetts and as God always knows, we didn’t travel to Mexico this time. See, usually by the 26<sup>th</sup> of December my husband and I are in Mexico City spending time with my family. This year we decided not to go since we had so many changes during 2010; the move, new job, new apartment etc. Of course that now I can tell you that we were here for a reason. A tragic one.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Since this loss affects so many people, I don’t want to go into details. It is not for me to tell this story. I just wanted to say, you will always be missed and remembered in my mind and my heart. Thank you for the smile and all the great little things you shared and did for me. Little things in life are what actually enrich a life. Thank you.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Because of the events that took place during the last two weeks I think I am going to need time to come up with words and topics. Or maybe I will be more prolific than before. I still don’t know. What I do know is that on New Year’s Eve, when the resolutions time came in, I just made one: To be happy, as happy as I can possibly be. I made this promise to my aunt that passed away some years ago, I promised her that I would live my life to the fullest and would live it based on the principles that she thought me. Now, I want to renew this promise. Remember that there is no better time to live your life than<i> now</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See you soon.</span></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-88811556944197623322010-12-17T20:38:00.000-08:002010-12-17T20:38:08.911-08:00Have you ever watched a movie that changed your life? “Presumed Guilty” changed mine<div class="MsoNormal">I started this blog some months ago to talk about my new life in New England. At the same time I started my blog in Spanish to discuss some of the same topics but in Spanish. The problem is that every time I start typing in Spanish and I read/see news from Mexico I feel that whatever I am saying is really silly, that I should be doing something to help my country to find its way back to a safe place where its citizens are not afraid to go out, etc. The problem is that I am far away and I am one and how can I make a difference?<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Three weeks ago my husband and I went to the<a href="http://www.drclas.harvard.edu/"> David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies at Harvard University</a>. We were there because we wanted to volunteer for the <a href="http://www.bliff.org/">Boston Latino Film Festival</a> and a meeting was being held that day for volunteers. After that, the head of the festival mentioned that there was a Mexican documentary playing next door. So we went in and what a surprise! They were playing<a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704322004574475492261338318.html"> Presumed Guilty</a>, not only did we watched the film, we had the honor to listen to Roberto Hernandez one of the producers of the film. Now, I do not know Roberto personally but when he spoke he didn’t introduced himself as this big wig guy, he said, I am a law student at Berkeley, Mexican and did this because things need to change in our country, if we don’t work towards change we are going to lose our country…. I finished his sentence in my mind: lose it to corruption, to drug cartels, to politicians that work in pro of their own agendas and then it hit me right in the head. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">This is what I feel every time I go to Mexico, if we don’t do something, we are going to lose our country. The best part is that I just have the feelings with no motion but Roberto and his team had done this film to put the finger on the corrupt systems we have in Mexico. Change is possible if we are all together on this. And thanks to Presunto Culpable and Roberto, my hopes for a better future have been reborn.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I am still thinking on how I can make a difference but in the meantime, a good start is promoting Presumed Guilty (Presunto Culpable). The movie has been played in many many film festivals and will be played in many theaters in Mexico this coming February. One of the objectives is to create awareness in Mexico not only about how the legal system doesn’t work (we all know that) but that change is possible. It costs $700 dollars to make a copy of the movie for a theater; the point is to educate as many Mexicans as possible. It is like, no Mexican left behind! So, since we are in a holiday season, I have no shame to ask, if you have some extra cash, please donate to this cause <a href="http://www.sffs.org/donate/donate-now.aspx?pid=804">here</a>, you will be giving a Christmas gift to an entire country. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Thanks for reading.<o:p></o:p></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-3992891129176107742010-12-17T19:35:00.000-08:002010-12-17T19:35:29.535-08:0012 for 12 - I am a little bit late but here I am!Ok, so two weeks ago I read about this 12 for 12 thing. You take 12 pictures throughout your day that represent what you did on the 12<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">th</span> of each month. I thought it was a great idea and I committed myself to do it. I did take the pictures and planned the blog posting but haven't had time to get to it, until now! Ok, so I am late for 5 days but it has to count that I posted, right?<br />
<br />
Here we go:<br />
My husband and I started the day baking. This month the 12<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">th</span> was on a Sunday and on Saturday we went grocery shopping and planned to do some baking on Sunday. We started with banana chocolate/peanut butter chip muffins. Here I am mixing the ingredients:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitPOckxt5sumCA3VsJ5MBtael-ewf9tebzUq2qyiOWff9B1GJL7rfOPcP_frNcZl38U1rfb9PNjk3gxY_BTqARyoKcUc5RY_NoIepl1O_DqOuuyo8jdwVBHwB8m2_QTfR4xJ5yrKEoZ0qG/s1600/1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitPOckxt5sumCA3VsJ5MBtael-ewf9tebzUq2qyiOWff9B1GJL7rfOPcP_frNcZl38U1rfb9PNjk3gxY_BTqARyoKcUc5RY_NoIepl1O_DqOuuyo8jdwVBHwB8m2_QTfR4xJ5yrKEoZ0qG/s320/1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Then, we poured the mix on the muffin mold:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp5qdaapmtATpjT7RZ8ph_GSH6x_T4mODRxiGbiCdnxFR5wWWjr9Z8pjKW2sQYtcs71yYG3gwCViB6znWD8lm13tN6l83TDFXAmfv0DFnl6rGZvRN5qFS9q36RheYitvdIMENxJU4Orkrw/s1600/22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp5qdaapmtATpjT7RZ8ph_GSH6x_T4mODRxiGbiCdnxFR5wWWjr9Z8pjKW2sQYtcs71yYG3gwCViB6znWD8lm13tN6l83TDFXAmfv0DFnl6rGZvRN5qFS9q36RheYitvdIMENxJU4Orkrw/s320/22.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>And see what we got:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP-tt1qi-L4w1ceMcMHQt_VBcf_HDsOH9e4KA-LF3d2KsBvekUZVKnp5yWp2AQWfXWt5mJtSKEquoBXMhNeofDTlR0sh4qEvDXkOTSCMUt0JkRwSiqHTa-NjYrRjnKK74wwieGMaBsNjCz/s1600/44.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP-tt1qi-L4w1ceMcMHQt_VBcf_HDsOH9e4KA-LF3d2KsBvekUZVKnp5yWp2AQWfXWt5mJtSKEquoBXMhNeofDTlR0sh4qEvDXkOTSCMUt0JkRwSiqHTa-NjYrRjnKK74wwieGMaBsNjCz/s320/44.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>We did a stop to have breakfast and listen to my favorite CD for this season:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAOZqcu4JHJLfrAsXdNrPquhHdMUkgnI9r8COylEqtsvRzGTDXsYBZDMNgdxFWF0SDxtBrfB3d-lLnOUJ471d9fR_zYcV8m4Se6XAr9MgAvFNoi8w1zFc06L7OG1km9vXTLONd3dUEd15b/s1600/33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAOZqcu4JHJLfrAsXdNrPquhHdMUkgnI9r8COylEqtsvRzGTDXsYBZDMNgdxFWF0SDxtBrfB3d-lLnOUJ471d9fR_zYcV8m4Se6XAr9MgAvFNoi8w1zFc06L7OG1km9vXTLONd3dUEd15b/s320/33.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Then we got to try this little guy:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-P7fxXC0qTt6meREvOogz4SjW5fenwXsiu98nV7OZyoP6PKFIx_SnHCmx8wzgQUIfygTsuSkmTRn08Ks4FsIxfQjRRVKK2LbWY399EfuwqSsEXkFmcdw83MzvXuARjKlDHZB7hQpZNac/s1600/66.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-P7fxXC0qTt6meREvOogz4SjW5fenwXsiu98nV7OZyoP6PKFIx_SnHCmx8wzgQUIfygTsuSkmTRn08Ks4FsIxfQjRRVKK2LbWY399EfuwqSsEXkFmcdw83MzvXuARjKlDHZB7hQpZNac/s320/66.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>My husband wanted to bake his own bread, so I got to stand by the kitchen counter and watch him do his magic:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-eOqW1-2hTf7WyPsrIx_JPZjPNw67GQIONigUd-5sEXLguw77z9vJ5mdaEkkTrtJDdn3VaE49WKAscnOU6K-IoRqjJbmdalHygRH5EjzDDJGb2thkfrPML-InfQ8O2YSbUfJ2Q2Q9wEw/s1600/55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-eOqW1-2hTf7WyPsrIx_JPZjPNw67GQIONigUd-5sEXLguw77z9vJ5mdaEkkTrtJDdn3VaE49WKAscnOU6K-IoRqjJbmdalHygRH5EjzDDJGb2thkfrPML-InfQ8O2YSbUfJ2Q2Q9wEw/s320/55.jpg" width="260" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Look at my husband's work of art (edible art):</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Aow1pTs0bDRLEw0ExXwg-a6ly6ZCvvzPxtSUvkK02XJNIUlquCJN6EVbU7qxFyRtjpkfVqDoP_A7Dfq574oFXnf2yKwRWOsmXuCfopxoW2w5YeUAqKAJMxEHNzd5x3zTuDyI-ZEkyQ9g/s1600/6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Aow1pTs0bDRLEw0ExXwg-a6ly6ZCvvzPxtSUvkK02XJNIUlquCJN6EVbU7qxFyRtjpkfVqDoP_A7Dfq574oFXnf2yKwRWOsmXuCfopxoW2w5YeUAqKAJMxEHNzd5x3zTuDyI-ZEkyQ9g/s320/6.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>And since we had some maple syrup butter from the day before, we had to try the fruits of Henry's baking efforts:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjghTDi_L_XtjCCViM3Yqtj0CiWSnUDdpVSWcVD4Qp6mBmoUG1ZAUowdQE_IODfUQ51eLA-QA7yEICUrpN8H7OA5ZCs8x0NnIihiK5fYKoCOg_xbqbo_wScvXNCZlNGCJh8cP6fh2_eDHlP/s1600/77.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjghTDi_L_XtjCCViM3Yqtj0CiWSnUDdpVSWcVD4Qp6mBmoUG1ZAUowdQE_IODfUQ51eLA-QA7yEICUrpN8H7OA5ZCs8x0NnIihiK5fYKoCOg_xbqbo_wScvXNCZlNGCJh8cP6fh2_eDHlP/s320/77.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Then, I kept going with the Christmas tree decoration. We have it up since Black Friday but I was still working on the last touches. One of our favorite decorations...the North Pole train!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9MHe3jjJS_63yEL3G0oeXu__uxO4pTFj_6hDfO-2ScNWEK7hJrIGQMUO_zzd7nbLeVkRr8mgV7xamFKpUmuqfuIhNc7Tg-YsBNa_HQgSSeMcjMuzv8Hf9CcnmGykqvjHp6BMItIi1zLqj/s1600/99.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9MHe3jjJS_63yEL3G0oeXu__uxO4pTFj_6hDfO-2ScNWEK7hJrIGQMUO_zzd7nbLeVkRr8mgV7xamFKpUmuqfuIhNc7Tg-YsBNa_HQgSSeMcjMuzv8Hf9CcnmGykqvjHp6BMItIi1zLqj/s320/99.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>I also worked on wrapping up some of the gifts that we got at the Maple Syrup Farm that we visited in New Hampshire on Saturday:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwMjoHupTpf_Uh4HaADaa7ar117ujdJiEE7fdO38Zc3kCqO1_dqzFeGmJ-xXVEK195Df7LqKVO-i-28SVdbIGePMR2JIVy3m_d-JfUaP0LsT9td-I2NEEXLnVphkXheGOEKI8ZQ9wy6gw_/s1600/1313.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwMjoHupTpf_Uh4HaADaa7ar117ujdJiEE7fdO38Zc3kCqO1_dqzFeGmJ-xXVEK195Df7LqKVO-i-28SVdbIGePMR2JIVy3m_d-JfUaP0LsT9td-I2NEEXLnVphkXheGOEKI8ZQ9wy6gw_/s320/1313.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>After that, I ran to take a shower and get ready because we needed to head out to uncle Johny's house to celebrate his 60<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">th</span> birthday. Getting ready is always hard for me, I need to try on stuff and decide if my clothes match my mood:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu8Kj0k2AGdoeCPmiLaLAlhGcJtoDoJNFAQTOTvRcK_NHuGnztY0PS3aYcUSgdDU1iu891uuWeca8w1BeKDkREFIUzqA_VwGYfPPsUutsg5zpxgKUX3dGOSlwzw3yz5dTAstYIaSgBG6Hu/s1600/101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu8Kj0k2AGdoeCPmiLaLAlhGcJtoDoJNFAQTOTvRcK_NHuGnztY0PS3aYcUSgdDU1iu891uuWeca8w1BeKDkREFIUzqA_VwGYfPPsUutsg5zpxgKUX3dGOSlwzw3yz5dTAstYIaSgBG6Hu/s320/101.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>We headed out and had a great time at the party including watching the Patriots game (of course). I enjoyed a lot seeing my husband's family having such a great time, once again, I am happy to have moved closed to them. And that is the end of a day full of fun!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim_1lyNHDq52ynVimIZomFKaqntVtuujnttxCeW2EfOBCWQ6yL7ZzFjYIRzAM3h5n0r0KWIBDCKJsYVALo8Nl7CAJTmVmkplCZHGxMtLqD3GljXdlhYPWL2xPbMyCi3zMspT2sLDsxrroy/s1600/1212.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim_1lyNHDq52ynVimIZomFKaqntVtuujnttxCeW2EfOBCWQ6yL7ZzFjYIRzAM3h5n0r0KWIBDCKJsYVALo8Nl7CAJTmVmkplCZHGxMtLqD3GljXdlhYPWL2xPbMyCi3zMspT2sLDsxrroy/s320/1212.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-19546230018346997392010-11-25T07:05:00.000-08:002010-12-07T11:34:56.211-08:00Thanksgiving - A Great American Tradition<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px;">As many people know, United States is the first country with a holiday called <em>Thanksgiving</em>. Me, being from Mexico didn’t grow up with this tradition but was introduced to it by my friend Laura back in Arizona. Laura and her great family loved to have international students at their home to celebrate Thanksgiving. They explained the different dishes and how the tradition was born.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">They also introduced me to their very own tradition, which I loved and hope to replicate and pass along in the near future. Each person at the table will get three candy corns by their placements. Once we were all sitting, Laura and her sisters explained the significance of the candy corns. Each of them represented something that we were grateful for. So every person at the table had the opportunity to raise each of their candy corns and give thanks for whatever that </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #366388; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">candy corn</span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"> meant to them. That happened in 2004, so I don’t remember exactly what I was thankful for but I am sure one was for my family and friends, one for God and one for Laura’s family.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Not only we had a great big lunch but went for a long walk around </span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #366388; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Fountain Hills</span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"> where they have the tallest man-made fountain in the country and enjoyed playing games. I had a great time all together.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">After that celebration, I learned that there are many other ways to spend Thanksgiving, some people do it in front of the TV watching football, and some others drag the time they will have to spend with their family or others travel long distances to sit at the table with their love ones and friends. I spent many Thanksgiving only with my husband and learned to enjoy our lunch for two. We always had a good time together.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">This year, Thanksgiving will be again something very close to what I have been hoping for, surrounded by family, sharing good food and laughs. Since we moved to MA, holidays are celebrations that remind me of my own family. My husband has a family that is close to each other and makes a point to meet for the special occasions (they are also loud like my family). I am happy to be part of this family. I am definitely a social animal.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Also, Thanksgiving is a celebration that is about making a gratitude list and not about gifts or pressure. It is a great tradition if you ask me! And it is the kick off for the Holiday season, my favorite!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Happy Thanksgiving everyone!</span><span style="color: #0000bf; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-53204007106678417302010-11-16T16:15:00.000-08:002010-11-16T16:15:46.363-08:00Good bye Fall!<div class="MsoNormal">Well, it seems that we are almost at the end of the Fall. Everyone over here raved about how beautiful the Fall was, the change in the leaves colors etc, etc. I had to witness it in order to understand it.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Now I think…Fall is amazing! You have to remember that I come from a country where we don’t have this extreme season changes so I never experienced Fall before. In AZ we only have summer and less hot weather, so Fall is out of the question. But here in the <st1:place w:st="on">New England</st1:place> area things are different.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">My husband begged me to take walks with him so we could see the leaves…I am glad I gave in, we got some amazing pictures and I was in awe to be in the presence of nature. Then I started thinking about how being able to live through the seasons makes me feel closer to nature. Going through the changes reminds me on how our own lives go through cycles; we grow, blossom and then time to rest and renewal comes to blossom again.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">It is definitely getting cooler here and I hate the fact that at 5pm the sun (if it shows up) is gone and everything is so dark (I will devote a posting on this) but I am learning to take it as part of the cycle and trying to enjoy it…more time at home to spend with Luci (the dog) and my husband. Time to read and cultivate the mind again. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Here are some pictures that allow me to show you what I am talking about:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRhk9xcvvLBvVODeKHju8XLjI-I5-ABQduudpRhl3nqlRpx8MBRtzCsdiatCBCIsFdcIthb7KhjkmRBkEN8VtYF2LotbfqTlKmMGZ5k1O65_mzquzoqfkZAmC-lKA8uKxyA2KFi2S8rdg/s1600/arboles1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRhk9xcvvLBvVODeKHju8XLjI-I5-ABQduudpRhl3nqlRpx8MBRtzCsdiatCBCIsFdcIthb7KhjkmRBkEN8VtYF2LotbfqTlKmMGZ5k1O65_mzquzoqfkZAmC-lKA8uKxyA2KFi2S8rdg/s320/arboles1.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXmYY2LqZRUTeuXc2j1Y8aGrsbETX3M-gdmo-CjU7IaQHoH9SUsojGxZ0nSdFfRNVvXMUe6My5a-ntbUaOYNMSe_kv1o8u0BUsuL54mznV4gWODguLL5gPm056KKIZvWS_U-bXNj6_Xix-/s1600/ale.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXmYY2LqZRUTeuXc2j1Y8aGrsbETX3M-gdmo-CjU7IaQHoH9SUsojGxZ0nSdFfRNVvXMUe6My5a-ntbUaOYNMSe_kv1o8u0BUsuL54mznV4gWODguLL5gPm056KKIZvWS_U-bXNj6_Xix-/s320/ale.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS5k6rA_VaA7H_6zrrehny3yyAdFKVbbauII-9RFb2gPhz4CweGoydvYCBAGJZ6uvNDg1YipBoH9nXcBeEF85UNTaHEYh7zpzzLcEpeRi3kcMj91A62CuOzrPUi1seQ2M3imAgpvWrM8Pq/s1600/boston2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS5k6rA_VaA7H_6zrrehny3yyAdFKVbbauII-9RFb2gPhz4CweGoydvYCBAGJZ6uvNDg1YipBoH9nXcBeEF85UNTaHEYh7zpzzLcEpeRi3kcMj91A62CuOzrPUi1seQ2M3imAgpvWrM8Pq/s320/boston2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhheVW4eKhivb3-HrAodpo1ouq-DjoW39AZuwXG4ByE32Jgzr5EINChrz1jsgw2PzM6h8PTXE3NvgBw54hr007A7g5768jS4ywWNnvZFlK1urHTVs9CnAi6tm1xQDSw9ZAUEFjiDcFW7nbK/s1600/arboles2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhheVW4eKhivb3-HrAodpo1ouq-DjoW39AZuwXG4ByE32Jgzr5EINChrz1jsgw2PzM6h8PTXE3NvgBw54hr007A7g5768jS4ywWNnvZFlK1urHTVs9CnAi6tm1xQDSw9ZAUEFjiDcFW7nbK/s320/arboles2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig4rVT9vTRctsGYXUXvPmx9RWqZ0y0nYy7uRmTx_VoFNJSmOWrQA2h3HsGGNwAL47xIaKW94IK0P8ANywI5MhT1EGH8nR4nmIPa0ShTkcb2G6ft6MfWqIH8DWuDHek5iEWDji5vCMtkpr6/s1600/arboles3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig4rVT9vTRctsGYXUXvPmx9RWqZ0y0nYy7uRmTx_VoFNJSmOWrQA2h3HsGGNwAL47xIaKW94IK0P8ANywI5MhT1EGH8nR4nmIPa0ShTkcb2G6ft6MfWqIH8DWuDHek5iEWDji5vCMtkpr6/s320/arboles3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEias6bljCcvKqiEJ9yVt4AnNWmsMgE_Y_JuC01dffy9nVXNKudPpDcElvlByRcF_D2tL6SANb5GAJfJjpDFKMmLOVZJ3A1ljQ3TVeJvU8MnGAZyWrM_E12pWPB4h_L8NNaY76Su0vKA5V0t/s1600/boston.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEias6bljCcvKqiEJ9yVt4AnNWmsMgE_Y_JuC01dffy9nVXNKudPpDcElvlByRcF_D2tL6SANb5GAJfJjpDFKMmLOVZJ3A1ljQ3TVeJvU8MnGAZyWrM_E12pWPB4h_L8NNaY76Su0vKA5V0t/s320/boston.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEUGP0bPqtKb0JMSw5wirVuERUfVdEHr708kivQVG7bNUOuERZTHhhZzzSFDyjBNOVuLVE52T874bD4zkfUdLN_b6f_plvSaP0SKD4iZBL0Thw9au1vKAyeHGToRkjRyro2W3v5lFGJIp3/s1600/DSCN1656.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEUGP0bPqtKb0JMSw5wirVuERUfVdEHr708kivQVG7bNUOuERZTHhhZzzSFDyjBNOVuLVE52T874bD4zkfUdLN_b6f_plvSaP0SKD4iZBL0Thw9au1vKAyeHGToRkjRyro2W3v5lFGJIp3/s320/DSCN1656.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4BwRijTt4Ints_2awneCQMOkuVetDln3afCXNLFVqAAJZI4MrgFYMGH04s0w3XlbQRn3AM0A3qPybfIlBOHA2JjM3oaCDTV0IEFdl4-t98y9gzqyG7k1CV0kuEaKfzmIpWqi1M5vZpaxf/s1600/DSCN1507.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4BwRijTt4Ints_2awneCQMOkuVetDln3afCXNLFVqAAJZI4MrgFYMGH04s0w3XlbQRn3AM0A3qPybfIlBOHA2JjM3oaCDTV0IEFdl4-t98y9gzqyG7k1CV0kuEaKfzmIpWqi1M5vZpaxf/s320/DSCN1507.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnKrwLoyC7-b-svJQailS6XaTZVIbeD6mUNQyVtWvHyBYchyOuoIOh8aW8KGMWLF1s4l7a05LJ_fIUewedichDNJeQuBynhd0crqeL0a-hVhCop9D82f7xzpuwj0UqaeH83LKTeea0RdJh/s1600/DSCN1568.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnKrwLoyC7-b-svJQailS6XaTZVIbeD6mUNQyVtWvHyBYchyOuoIOh8aW8KGMWLF1s4l7a05LJ_fIUewedichDNJeQuBynhd0crqeL0a-hVhCop9D82f7xzpuwj0UqaeH83LKTeea0RdJh/s320/DSCN1568.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA2zcxBaVNzeh4eZOEGMDS7Z-AhKxpBj6ilMZMWSV-CWwd-zAhV4AJwNMCm3smpLG5O-x6KVyftYXHsSdflcKthOgh8o4FjkpO7TPIs-wuFFy19mrh7v8KefBaVANEyVFFGql_QdnCBctP/s1600/DSCN1581.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA2zcxBaVNzeh4eZOEGMDS7Z-AhKxpBj6ilMZMWSV-CWwd-zAhV4AJwNMCm3smpLG5O-x6KVyftYXHsSdflcKthOgh8o4FjkpO7TPIs-wuFFy19mrh7v8KefBaVANEyVFFGql_QdnCBctP/s320/DSCN1581.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOWUleuG2SPi1ru3rPsOj5W-ih6KCLFaoZ74PcOdn1rv8iJ5hn_JhYuMljc-QtfHigrWZL326owm11MFSULqpHCZui2xfBpZ7cpkjW0fPRUYdL5DQSe-zUglbUlO2KisXXkPQySzu4xuV5/s1600/DSCN1586.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOWUleuG2SPi1ru3rPsOj5W-ih6KCLFaoZ74PcOdn1rv8iJ5hn_JhYuMljc-QtfHigrWZL326owm11MFSULqpHCZui2xfBpZ7cpkjW0fPRUYdL5DQSe-zUglbUlO2KisXXkPQySzu4xuV5/s320/DSCN1586.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcPS4WhRuy3A9TVfnkpcpZ6eb330hh2GieKC7fIl0XVgTWFV_DzGrB2j8vi4rvNBr3yb8NyxgtOoBpobcikcblO1kYQ0GPE8teo_LDpc5Q7E-PfkzV_ynhcdQ3QIVEYDMNa5BtCuOi_X0X/s1600/DSCN1655.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcPS4WhRuy3A9TVfnkpcpZ6eb330hh2GieKC7fIl0XVgTWFV_DzGrB2j8vi4rvNBr3yb8NyxgtOoBpobcikcblO1kYQ0GPE8teo_LDpc5Q7E-PfkzV_ynhcdQ3QIVEYDMNa5BtCuOi_X0X/s320/DSCN1655.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><br />
</span></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-82978638942344159692010-11-02T18:55:00.000-07:002010-11-02T18:55:50.942-07:00Thank you Patriots Fans!<div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Ok, so I have said before I am a transplant from Mexico City/ Arizona to New England. As everyone knows, people from New England are sportsfanatics; they love the Red Sox, Patriots, Bruins and Celtics. I think this is one of the only places where men AND women wear sports apparel of their favorite teams year long with no shame whatsoever.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">And I am married to one of this loonies. My husband got tickets for the Patriots game against the Vikings. For a week he went back and forth with his friend about menu options, times to meet etc, etc, etc. For the whole week I cried to everyone that would listen that I would invest 8 hours of my life in a game that I didn’t care for and that I would much rather spend the money (and time) doing something else.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Sunday came along, I fought all morning with my hubby about stupid little things because I was expecting him to throw me out of the car (close to a Mall) and go to the game without me. But he is a trooper and a devoted husband so he just rolled his eyes and took me to the game.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">And now I owe him a public apology. I had a GREAT time! Being there, tailgating with all the Patriotsfanatics and being part of that moment gave me a glimpse of why people love so much the game. For few hours everyone was pretty happy, eating, drinking, dancing, meeting people and smiling at each other because all of them had one thing in common, they wanted their team to win and have a good time. I think that is a reflection of the American culture.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">So I had a chance to meet with very cool people that are open to share their foods and drinks with everyone, then went inside the Gillette Stadium, that is a gorgeous place, and had a great old time all together. Here are some pictures:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6UGuD2e_OO8mtYK_yFqNlQbkIN3llju53K3W9I34RMOxADBHvdFQttpmSm3vguKQApDsQTiYPvOKwXxr9R1G7LAVb6Ef-92yCEolXyRym8SYtaq4IWidgGXIY17H63TVWKrzS29hHt2tp/s1600/Hubby+and+I.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6UGuD2e_OO8mtYK_yFqNlQbkIN3llju53K3W9I34RMOxADBHvdFQttpmSm3vguKQApDsQTiYPvOKwXxr9R1G7LAVb6Ef-92yCEolXyRym8SYtaq4IWidgGXIY17H63TVWKrzS29hHt2tp/s320/Hubby+and+I.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOwIbqmVhi3UUF3zBb1VNPIrMeZzPt-CJtBS9FeUKxCSrrNN-ItX6E5M1InFUpMxeNpr6a-onjgAJKpeLU0-nkMMsiMsaY8afYw1GoIexOU-H5t28MOqwU00bEwLLJ8eHS-_CEs43vbiWm/s1600/Patriotsfanatics.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOwIbqmVhi3UUF3zBb1VNPIrMeZzPt-CJtBS9FeUKxCSrrNN-ItX6E5M1InFUpMxeNpr6a-onjgAJKpeLU0-nkMMsiMsaY8afYw1GoIexOU-H5t28MOqwU00bEwLLJ8eHS-_CEs43vbiWm/s320/Patriotsfanatics.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJF0WnENI7xKeMZwhSNOBlfzWmrYDIL0tWL784IM1ApZfSnrCwAfCu60-k-yVVecKX17IkWoxlJsiDDRtPFJYyk-hCJ1qgvitFA34PLenszvOCQIOSekdTd1oG6xB0133Tu6WSL4veGhH9/s1600/Afternoon.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJF0WnENI7xKeMZwhSNOBlfzWmrYDIL0tWL784IM1ApZfSnrCwAfCu60-k-yVVecKX17IkWoxlJsiDDRtPFJYyk-hCJ1qgvitFA34PLenszvOCQIOSekdTd1oG6xB0133Tu6WSL4veGhH9/s320/Afternoon.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi5GRFHp7swLHebdcbqqdoWIgfXAQns2urk1aaiQTiTzOTTqPW-aseadMFARm3-yTX4xM9PFY9NrnVeWn43iH2SSmK3ejBbB0LhXcPR5yLg19eEgWJZc0RoHsdYhZdKWWnK2kF4HdebFyU/s1600/Chris.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi5GRFHp7swLHebdcbqqdoWIgfXAQns2urk1aaiQTiTzOTTqPW-aseadMFARm3-yTX4xM9PFY9NrnVeWn43iH2SSmK3ejBbB0LhXcPR5yLg19eEgWJZc0RoHsdYhZdKWWnK2kF4HdebFyU/s320/Chris.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg7wyC0yLAlR481jgYmS1o8fCOmxUJxYrkmcdP-CLX5YedO33L2Bb1bsXSquDgPQyyC17y4PYUX7MHG1EgAPtShKmSig58LvCwguWIKkznyV2jCzo_-80hXN6D4Ik3stYHxfqAU_LK3F9n/s1600/En+el+estadio.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg7wyC0yLAlR481jgYmS1o8fCOmxUJxYrkmcdP-CLX5YedO33L2Bb1bsXSquDgPQyyC17y4PYUX7MHG1EgAPtShKmSig58LvCwguWIKkznyV2jCzo_-80hXN6D4Ik3stYHxfqAU_LK3F9n/s320/En+el+estadio.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I don’t know if I would ever be a Patriotfanatic but I sure understand why people love the game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I do like the American way. When they want something, good attitude, positive thinking and a lot of hard work get them there and it seems that this coming elections will represent that culture one more time. They don’t like what they see and they are ready to go and change it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">As for me, Go Patriots! And Go Tom Brady! <o:p></o:p></span></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-31988329495790918952010-10-08T06:17:00.000-07:002010-10-08T06:17:31.736-07:00Shopping addiction anyone?<div class="MsoNormal">It is hard for me to write about this but I think I need to put it out there so I can stop it. I got a new job a month ago after not working for 8 months. I finally have my own money again!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">So what is a girl to do with her recent acquired income? Go shopping!! So first I bought myself two pair of glasses…from an exclusive boutique that is located in a very expensive area over here called Lexington Center. (The place is call Eye Look of Lexington).</div><div class="MsoNormal">. </div><div class="MsoNormal">Then I wanted to take advantage of a coupon I had from <a href="http://www.anntaylor.com/">Ann Taylo</a>r but I knew that a trip to the mall was needed for that so I tried the second best option; went online. I usually don’t shop online because I want to try things on but I know the size scale for this particular brand pretty well so I went ahead and shopped away...<a href="http://anntaylor2.richfx.com.edgesuite.net/image/media/244485_1220_bag100x117.jpg">this</a> and then <a href="http://anntaylor2.richfx.com.edgesuite.net/image/media/249538_7133_bag100x117.jpg">this</a> one too!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Then I wanted new boots and didn’t find anything in the stores that I liked. Coincidentally some days ago I read a great article about the <a href="http://www.zappos.com/">Zappos</a> culture of being happy. I have always liked their business model and they are indeed a GREAT online store…so I went there and found a lovely pair of <a href="https://shopping.zappos.com/images/z/1/1/8/1181307-t-THUMBNAIL.jpg">purple boots</a> for the fall…obviously it is impossible not to get anything since their selection is just amazing.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p><st1:state w:st="on">As many of you know, Massachusetts</st1:state> is the home of <a href="http://www.tjmaxx.com/">TJ Maxx</a>…I really wanted a leather jacket and last week I found it in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Marshalls</st1:place></st1:city>! It was made for me…so I gave her a new home at my closet that night.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">After that, a friend that loves upscale brands sent me this <a href="http://www.hautelook.com/">website</a> and I have been checking their sale events but nothing caught my eye until I saw it…a beautiful dress/coat for the holidays…so I had to have it.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Yesterday, I was taking a break and ended up getting two beautiful purses from <a href="http://www.zappos.com/">Zappos</a>…so I know I am developing an addiction and it has to end, right now, right here. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">So I promise to the universe (cyber universe) that I will stop shopping on impulse. I know myself better than that and even though I did deserve to get some great stuff as a celebration for my new position I also know that it is time for saving money and grow out from the thought that I deserve EVERYTHING I want, because as a girly girl…I will never have enough shoes, purses, clothes, cosmetics…you get the drift. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It is so hard to draw the line between spoiling yourself rotten and get a little something for a job well done!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">If you have a shopping addiction like mine, kick yourself in the butt, make a list with your last 10 purchases (including prices), make a conscious decision to stop, forgive yourself and move on! (At least you will be moving forward wearing a great outfit!)</div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-14510173962129399812010-10-02T03:32:00.000-07:002010-10-02T03:32:47.906-07:00Happy Birthday Honey!!<div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Today is my husband’s birthday! Not any birthday, it is his 40<sup>th</sup> birthday and we are going to have a weekend full of fun. It already started with a nice dinner at his parents’ house on Friday night where part of his extended family showed up to congratulate him. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">It was a special little get-together since he was the first grandchild born on his mom’ side of the family. That means that for some time he was the most beloved child of two uncles and two aunts and the adoration of two full sets of grandparents, how cool is that?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">We got to see some of his childhood pictures and it is so nice to see how much love was around my husband when he was a baby. Then we got to see some of the same faces 40 years after still showing the same love they showed on those pictures.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Being part of that moment just confirmed that we made the right decision coming to live to MA closer to his family. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Now, my wishes for my husband on this special date is that he keeps having his health, his lovely reaction to newly discovered things and that we can spend many more of these birthdays together. I love you honey!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Birthdays are special because you are celebrating the fact that a special person in your life was born and ergo part of your life. So birthday celebrations ARE important.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">And I don’t care if my husband doesn’t like cards…I got him one together with some little gifts…more on that on the next post. Stay tuned.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJcMjOqAxdkwm0hyzgw0FPdgWNR3-N2uu2taP3esJpVOwAmLU2jo5EHePekutwjeWIZLv5yVANdr6yRgZ84dyyn0wPOKlcucxNSXwXyfGoikOG-BzwQFgYFXQfgY_1XPAKPGVbkACHea1j/s1600/P9290130.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJcMjOqAxdkwm0hyzgw0FPdgWNR3-N2uu2taP3esJpVOwAmLU2jo5EHePekutwjeWIZLv5yVANdr6yRgZ84dyyn0wPOKlcucxNSXwXyfGoikOG-BzwQFgYFXQfgY_1XPAKPGVbkACHea1j/s320/P9290130.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><br />
</span></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-20731578354840764382010-10-01T05:04:00.000-07:002010-10-01T05:04:29.722-07:00Little things in life!<div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">I still remember when my now husband taught me that expression. We just started dating and he mentioned something that made him happy. Back then, he just had moved to AZ and was finding his way around. I do not remember what exactly he was referring to but I do remember his explanation on how little things in life are the things that make you happy on daily basis.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Since I moved to MA I have found more of those things in my everyday life. I was thinking about that yesterday. We were at –what it seems lately - our second home “Home Depot” and I remembered that I wanted a second set of house keys so when I walk Luci (our dog and only child) I don’t have to carry with all my keys (car and house keys are attached). So I got the new set and got one of those key chains that you can wrap around your wrist so you actually don’t have to carry anything on your hands. PERFECT for walking your dog. So I was and still am very happy with my new key set.</span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGhWPbU9pAHVnkOSOQV_Srae-VGWfcmOMWSE4R3ftq9VAKO_r3wKjJxmDKWG3RmMWiR9oZMdZNjYFYP5IHeS2R7CpTssGqVeuv1Byr8tyC7anCtKB7O3q1RkVmpY5pRk5BB3F1np-Gpb0C/s1600/P9280103.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGhWPbU9pAHVnkOSOQV_Srae-VGWfcmOMWSE4R3ftq9VAKO_r3wKjJxmDKWG3RmMWiR9oZMdZNjYFYP5IHeS2R7CpTssGqVeuv1Byr8tyC7anCtKB7O3q1RkVmpY5pRk5BB3F1np-Gpb0C/s320/P9280103.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They look so healthy</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Today we had a great dinner. My husband is a chef by profession and since his schedule allows him to arrive home like 2 hours before me, his job is cooking dinner for both. He stopped at the Farmers’ Market in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Belmont</st1:place></st1:city> and got some great produce: cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, fresh basil and fresh eggs. Yes, real eggs not the computer eggs you buy at the store. He made a pizza with veggies, basil and two types of cheese (feta & fresh mozzarella) and the result was a delicious and healthy dinner for two. That made me pretty happy. Hee are some pictures:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><br />
</span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_yioznSS6AOLEPusOsKieC5HuvdVhTvQeC_QonTQO52xyfIPiowquWVBkdWxawxb8UBKQiDMygvW7K4NBn2tcp3WLVwm9AveiSkwZTw2qoxcJE3X9MkbSH1Gs95bZoEuVplNZ1HFUcwzc/s1600/P9280110.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_yioznSS6AOLEPusOsKieC5HuvdVhTvQeC_QonTQO52xyfIPiowquWVBkdWxawxb8UBKQiDMygvW7K4NBn2tcp3WLVwm9AveiSkwZTw2qoxcJE3X9MkbSH1Gs95bZoEuVplNZ1HFUcwzc/s200/P9280110.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the veggie pizza</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkH6-LgMHpJ-1Bv0bgA1nqw6ypQSf4_m1Z4Ovn3Iekvx8m2w8IfOwF_8crtbOdeSycAZf_BQ8W3ZKRcr3em5pqwbZPriJ9AAb4tKa9aEZh3fFiyThRXuZaLiOTbyaULxCPhbRSrtnkE65J/s1600/P9280105.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkH6-LgMHpJ-1Bv0bgA1nqw6ypQSf4_m1Z4Ovn3Iekvx8m2w8IfOwF_8crtbOdeSycAZf_BQ8W3ZKRcr3em5pqwbZPriJ9AAb4tKa9aEZh3fFiyThRXuZaLiOTbyaULxCPhbRSrtnkE65J/s200/P9280105.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful tomatoe</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Then we walked to get an ice cream, the fact that now we can just step out from our apartment building and have so many options at our tip toes makes me pretty happy. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">So here it is, my gratitude list for little things in life that made me happy today. This is a great way to go to sleep…making an inventory of things that make me smile on daily basis. If you haven’t done a gratitude list before, I strongly encourage you to try it! You won’t regret it!</span></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-74432861726006443902010-09-30T16:33:00.000-07:002010-09-30T16:33:50.408-07:00The beauty of Yard Sales<div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">I remember that 10 years ago I used to come to <st1:country-region w:st="on">USA</st1:country-region> to visit friends and they used to take me to yard sales and antique stores (<st1:state w:st="on">Pennsylvania</st1:state> and <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">New Hampshire</st1:place></st1:state> area) and I used to hate it. Just couldn’t understand why I would want to buy something old and used. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Ten years forward and I am shopping in the Yard Sales circuit. Moving to <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Massachusetts</st1:place></st1:state> has put me in a premium area for yard sales. People that have lived in these cities all their lives have passed on their possessions for generations and are always trying to clean up their houses. And we, people that just moved into their apartments and don’t have a full furnished place are taking full advantage of it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Now, I LOVE yard sales! So last weekend my hubby and I spent some hours working the circuit and we made out great. My favorite finds: a nice desk that is almost 80 years old for my beading room ($5), a nice desk with wheels that can be used everywhere in the house ($15) - it is currently working as a kitchen table - and two purses that I bought at an Estate Sale. Here are the pictures of the two tables.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgloGDVnjU7newS1UHTfaN-M-cZ3uoFZ7eCDWGUSpJ-6AaIDHLWEmR5RUyQMM2OvYQj9SLdMUDl-mkggW9uC1hwsjYtR5Vx9dKjoXUPC-5_MhWjueBrwY6APO02fGY05kmmuy0JmCylaSRH/s1600/P9280112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgloGDVnjU7newS1UHTfaN-M-cZ3uoFZ7eCDWGUSpJ-6AaIDHLWEmR5RUyQMM2OvYQj9SLdMUDl-mkggW9uC1hwsjYtR5Vx9dKjoXUPC-5_MhWjueBrwY6APO02fGY05kmmuy0JmCylaSRH/s320/P9280112.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrfBNBy7k7-gi07dc93OEUuVxgaEjVGBYUwiyycXIQRljmxNv03xaG_J3wTnCKdbpqlqCVmX5nZPbVe3ALfBzReNSjRi_ho7HYprTnd9Minmd6GLFPvrehkVdIqR313Rp57BR1fmoV0pT/s1600/P9260102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrfBNBy7k7-gi07dc93OEUuVxgaEjVGBYUwiyycXIQRljmxNv03xaG_J3wTnCKdbpqlqCVmX5nZPbVe3ALfBzReNSjRi_ho7HYprTnd9Minmd6GLFPvrehkVdIqR313Rp57BR1fmoV0pT/s320/P9260102.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Just by a fluke, we came across with the last one, and it was awesome! I mean, I do not know the circumstances that lead to that particular sale and my respects to the family if someone passed away there…but wow, it was like being at a movie set, the house was a mansion and all the items they had available where of great taste. Obviously a little bit (just a tiny bit) way out of our price range but I couldn’t resist the purses. Great bargains. One is $150 in a regular store and I paid $25, the other one is a designer piece with retail value of $600 and I paid $35. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">I am so excited that I want to start mapping out my weekends around these events! Haha! No seriously, what a great opportunity for us, a couple that is starting a new life in this city. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">So, if you are planning a yard sale, go ahead and do it! Just remember to clean up the items that you put out there and be reasonable with the prices, you never know who you will be helping out with your house cleaning project. </span></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1981457331509568753.post-36480757207459637432010-09-25T06:17:00.000-07:002010-09-26T13:32:47.308-07:00Are we being fair to Obama? and What is the American Dream anyway?<div class="MsoNormal"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Being this my first post for this blog I feel I should introduce myself. My name is Ale and I was born and raised in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Mexico City</st1:place></st1:city>. In 2002 I decided that the time to explore the world had arrived and left to <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Spain</st1:place></st1:country-region> to get a masters degree. During that time I applied to Arizona State University (ASU) and got accepted to continue my masters. This is the reason why I moved to <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">USA</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Lived in <st1:state w:st="on">Arizona</st1:state> for about 7 year and moved to <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Massachusetts</st1:place></st1:state> in January 2010. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Since I moved right in the middle of the winter, my husband and in-laws were kind enough to give me time to find my way in my <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">new city</st1:place></st1:city>. I didn’t look for a job until July 2010. What a great experience! I read a ton of books, felt in love with the area, enjoyed the summer and had time to think about what to do next my professional life.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">August came along and got a job, an apartment and now I am definitely on my way to build some memories on this place. So far I LOVE to live here. The intellectual stimulation you get from living in a city with so much culture and history is amazing.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Now, coming back to the title of this post. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was recently watching TV and caught a piece on some people asking Obama if the American Dream was over for them. It was follow by the list of complaints on lack of jobs and investment on projects, the economy is not moving forward and etcetera. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">The thoughts that came to my mind were…Are we being fair to Obama? This reminds me a lot about the time that <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Mexico</st1:place></st1:country-region> changed ruling parties after more than 70 years! Yes, Vicente Fox was the first President in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Mexico</st1:place></st1:country-region> that belonged to the opposition (this happened in 2000). Anyway, obviously the party that lost the elections did everything on their power to boycott whatever Fox was trying to do at that time, plus the lack of experience and solid team behind him. It was obvious! No one that belonged to another party had held that position in the last 70 + years. But Fox had a ton of good intentions that made him pursue his dream of being the President of his country and change it for the best. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Obama makes me feel the same way. He has good intentions and represents the dreams of many people in this country. But my feeling is that Americans had forgotten that they gave the power to Bush for 8 years and he made many decisions that lead this country to its current state. It wasn’t Obama! Now it is his job to fix it and fix it fast. I am not saying that all his decisions have been right so far…but Are Americans really expecting Obama to shake his magic wand and fix everything that is not working? Just like that? It is not magic! It will take time and work, hard work from everybody.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">That brings me to my other question. What is the American Dream anyway? If we are expecting to go back to 4 or 6 years ago where you could get credit and go and buy a house even if you didn’t have a steady job then, no, we are not going back to that. If we want to live on credit all the time without savings for emergencies…no, we are not going back to that either. But if the American Dream is the possibility of buying a home, walking on the streets feeling safe, choosing to go to school or not and still have a decent way of living, then we can make it happen again, with time and effort. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">I will leave it at that for now…</span></div>Alehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12460777518485171543noreply@blogger.com3