Después de mucho tiempo intentando no hacerme una cuenta de Myspace, he sucumbido a la debilidad.
Y al hecho de que la mayoría de mis amig@s lo tienen.
Todo empezó hace unos meses en que me para poder acceder a contenido de Myspaces de gente que conozco, pero hace un par de días me he rendido a la evidencia y me he rendido a este gigante.
He empezado a enviar invitaciones a contactos.
La verdad es que el aspecto gráfico de mi página deja mucho que desear, pero tampoco es que este blog sea para tirar cohetes. Lo importante es el impresionante contenido :P
Un beso y a disfrutar de Internet que para eso está.
He puesto este vídeo tan chulo porque me recuerda a una época de oro y para que los que tienen estuvieron conmigo en esa época lo entiendan. Los demás espero que lo disfrutéis igual.
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Traveltip: Skype
Nada mejor para los viajeros que abrirse una cuenta en Skype y tenerla surtidita de Euros, Dólares, Yenes, o lo que sea con lo que pagues. Si no quieres perder amig@s, familiares y otras cosillas que tengas por ahí desperdigadas...
Con todo y con eso yo sigo siendo un poco desastre.
Besos a tod@s lo que no he llamado lo suficiente...
... o nada
ñ_ñ
Con todo y con eso yo sigo siendo un poco desastre.
Besos a tod@s lo que no he llamado lo suficiente...
... o nada
ñ_ñ
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
No me lo creo, Justin Timberlake, Scarlet Johanson y Timbalan
No me puedo creer que esté poniendo un vídeo de Justin Timberlake.
Y esque no me puedo quitar este tema de la cabeza, ni con todos mis prejuicios contra este tipo de música he de reconocer que desde que Timbalan le produce está haciendo unas cosas increibles.
La verdad es que con Scarlet Johanson de por medio no podía quedar nada mal.
Ahí lo dejo y que sepáis que lo he hecho en un momento de debilidad...
No me lo puedo creer...
Y esque no me puedo quitar este tema de la cabeza, ni con todos mis prejuicios contra este tipo de música he de reconocer que desde que Timbalan le produce está haciendo unas cosas increibles.
La verdad es que con Scarlet Johanson de por medio no podía quedar nada mal.
Ahí lo dejo y que sepáis que lo he hecho en un momento de debilidad...
No me lo puedo creer...
Monday, August 6, 2007
Vale, otra más de Akihabara y Harajuku... Y Barrington Levy - Black Roses y Murderer
Vale soy un pesado, pero es que hay tanto que ver en estos dos barrios...
Uno de los callejones laterales de Akihabara.
Este puente me recuerda mucho a uno que hay en Camden Town en Londres.
El final de Akihabara.
Una friki en Harajuku encantada de que le haga la foto.
Un señor con 6 rat..., perritos.
Los domingos es peatonal.
No os lo creíais, pero es verdad, peatonal...
Con las nubes enfadadas impresiona más.
Show en Harajuku.
Qué salaos...
Me ofrecen flores.
Más fotos.
Y más...
Ésta nube me llamó la atención entre tanta tecnología y frikismo.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Hoteles cápsula, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Asakusa, Kabukicho, Black Uhuru - Plastic Smile
Estas son las cosas que pasan cuando trabajas unas 12 horas al día, sales a ver unos fuegos artificiales junto a nosecuantos millones de personas más y después decides ir a Tokyo a eso de las 11 de la noche a un concierto en Kabukicho en Shinjuku, los del grupo que toca terminan y te llevan con ellos a tomar algo a un restaurante-bar y terminas durmiendo en un hotel cápsula para levantarte unas horas después para volver al curro y al salir de noche, tu, que debes ser imbecil, te vuelves a ir a Tokyo a ver a un colega y a pasar la noche en otro hotel cápsula de Asakusa de donde te levantas 5 horas después de haberte acostado para volver a currar otras 12 o así y al salir otra vez a Tokyo, esta vez a Shibuya de nuevo. Pero hoy he decidido volver a "casa" a dormir con el primer tren de la mañana. En cuanto me levante, si lo logro, otra vez para Tokyo...
Menudo infiernazo, si es que no aprendo...
Menudo infiernazo, si es que no aprendo...
Thursday, August 2, 2007
an unexpected gift
Yesterday we received a surprise in the mail: a letter and small gift from "Mrs. Kim," Alex's foster mom in Korea!
Until it actually happened, I wouldn't have believed how much this would mean to me. The letter was addressed "My beloved Da Eun" and "Dearest lovely Da Eun" (English translation, of course.) Mrs. Kim thanked Alex for growing up so well and said how much she appreciated all the pictures we sent. She said she is still caring for little babies and "they are all so precious in their own way." She also sent a little package of hair accessories for Alex to wear. Incredibly sweet!
I got out the photograph of Alex with her foster mom, which had been put away for a while. I showed it to Alex and explained to her about her foster mom who took care of her when she was a baby. A couple months ago I started explaining to her how she was born in Korea, but I'm not sure how much she gets it. In a way, this letter and gift were the perfect catalyst for me to reinforce the story I've been trying to tell her - the story of her beginnings. For a while I wasn't putting too much effort into it, because she's so young, but I'm convinced it's never too early. I expect we'll be talking about it with Alex and Sam through all their developmental stages, and bit by bit, as they grow, the story will become part of their identity.
I read in an adoption magazine that it's a good idea to practice telling your children their adoption stories, even when they're babies, because then by the time they can understand it you'll be used to talking about it and hopefully it won't feel strained or awkward. At the time, I thought it was a little silly, but the first couple times I talked to Alex about it, it was harder than I thought to find the right words. It's getting easier.
I have a friend with an adopted daughter who doesn't seem to want to acknowledge her daughter's birth parents at all. She's afraid it would be traumatic and she (the mom) really believes that her birth mom had (and has) no significant place in her daughter's life anyway. I can understand that viewpoint, but I wonder what that does to her daughter's image of her own biological mother and her own identity. Like all adoptive moms, I suppose, we will have to figure out what is the best approach for our families. I hope Alex and Sam will never fear talking with me about their birth moms.
Alex's birthday party is approaching and I'm thinking about having a green candle burning during the party in honor of her Korean mom, like we did last year. In addition, I'm considering adding other candles to represent her foster mom and dad, and myself and Bryan. I'm hoping this will encourage people to see, acknowledge, and be thankful for all the people who have loved and cared for her.
Until it actually happened, I wouldn't have believed how much this would mean to me. The letter was addressed "My beloved Da Eun" and "Dearest lovely Da Eun" (English translation, of course.) Mrs. Kim thanked Alex for growing up so well and said how much she appreciated all the pictures we sent. She said she is still caring for little babies and "they are all so precious in their own way." She also sent a little package of hair accessories for Alex to wear. Incredibly sweet!
I got out the photograph of Alex with her foster mom, which had been put away for a while. I showed it to Alex and explained to her about her foster mom who took care of her when she was a baby. A couple months ago I started explaining to her how she was born in Korea, but I'm not sure how much she gets it. In a way, this letter and gift were the perfect catalyst for me to reinforce the story I've been trying to tell her - the story of her beginnings. For a while I wasn't putting too much effort into it, because she's so young, but I'm convinced it's never too early. I expect we'll be talking about it with Alex and Sam through all their developmental stages, and bit by bit, as they grow, the story will become part of their identity.
I read in an adoption magazine that it's a good idea to practice telling your children their adoption stories, even when they're babies, because then by the time they can understand it you'll be used to talking about it and hopefully it won't feel strained or awkward. At the time, I thought it was a little silly, but the first couple times I talked to Alex about it, it was harder than I thought to find the right words. It's getting easier.
I have a friend with an adopted daughter who doesn't seem to want to acknowledge her daughter's birth parents at all. She's afraid it would be traumatic and she (the mom) really believes that her birth mom had (and has) no significant place in her daughter's life anyway. I can understand that viewpoint, but I wonder what that does to her daughter's image of her own biological mother and her own identity. Like all adoptive moms, I suppose, we will have to figure out what is the best approach for our families. I hope Alex and Sam will never fear talking with me about their birth moms.
Alex's birthday party is approaching and I'm thinking about having a green candle burning during the party in honor of her Korean mom, like we did last year. In addition, I'm considering adding other candles to represent her foster mom and dad, and myself and Bryan. I'm hoping this will encourage people to see, acknowledge, and be thankful for all the people who have loved and cared for her.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
9 meses y algo de Akihabara
Hoy hace 9 meses que salí de mi casa en Inglaterra con una mochila a la espalda. Podría haber tenido un hijo en el mismo tiempo, o haber terminado un curso en la universidad, o no sé...
Unas fotos de mi último paseo por Akihabara para celebrarlo.
Unas fotos de mi último paseo por Akihabara para celebrarlo.
family on display
Last week Bryan, Alex, Sam and I traveled to North Carolina for our annual family reunion. For some reason, we seemed to attract more attention than I remember getting recently. (Maybe Sam's noisy squawking and running in all directions contributed...) Anyway, all during the trip, a lot of people (strangers) commented on how beautiful our kids are. At first I didn't really think much about it, because of course they ARE beautiful. But then, while walking around Blowing Rock and the mall and other public places, I kept overhearing conversations springing up around us that had to do with adoption. I began to suspect that we are being noticed more because of our "blendedness" as a family. It's the old "living in a fishbowl" phenomemon we were warned about. You may think you are just out doing normal things all families do, but like it or not, you attract attention, and you might as well get used to it.
One man approached us in the airport and said his daughter and her husband were considering adoption. He wanted to know how much it cost. I usually love talking to people about adoption (shamelessly promoting it, of course), but I am starting to balk at the "cost" question especially when it is being discussed directly in front of the kids. I want to be honest - yes, adoption does involve fees - but it seems pretty tactless to quote numbers - like putting a pricetag on your kids. And really, if you just met someone who had required infertility treatment to have a child, would you ask them (in front of the child), "So, how much did you wind up paying?"? I read one adoption magazine article that suggested, when asked how much you paid to adopt, to ask the questioner how much they paid for their house! I haven't done that yet but some day I may find the nerve. For now, my answer to the "cost" question is something like, "After the tax credits, it costs about as much as having a baby in a hospital" and "A substantial part of the fees go to support other kids in orphanages who are not adopted."
That said, it still saddens me that adoption fees are often high enough to be out of range for a lot of decent hardworking families. I bet a lot more kids would be adopted if the fees were lower. Once I read that for every healthy baby that needs a family, in the US there are 25 couples looking to adopt. No wonder international adoption is so popular. I also read that before Roe v. Wade, the demand for adoptable babies was pretty much equal to the supply. I'm not sure what adoption fees were back then, but it would be interesting to know.
One man approached us in the airport and said his daughter and her husband were considering adoption. He wanted to know how much it cost. I usually love talking to people about adoption (shamelessly promoting it, of course), but I am starting to balk at the "cost" question especially when it is being discussed directly in front of the kids. I want to be honest - yes, adoption does involve fees - but it seems pretty tactless to quote numbers - like putting a pricetag on your kids. And really, if you just met someone who had required infertility treatment to have a child, would you ask them (in front of the child), "So, how much did you wind up paying?"? I read one adoption magazine article that suggested, when asked how much you paid to adopt, to ask the questioner how much they paid for their house! I haven't done that yet but some day I may find the nerve. For now, my answer to the "cost" question is something like, "After the tax credits, it costs about as much as having a baby in a hospital" and "A substantial part of the fees go to support other kids in orphanages who are not adopted."
That said, it still saddens me that adoption fees are often high enough to be out of range for a lot of decent hardworking families. I bet a lot more kids would be adopted if the fees were lower. Once I read that for every healthy baby that needs a family, in the US there are 25 couples looking to adopt. No wonder international adoption is so popular. I also read that before Roe v. Wade, the demand for adoptable babies was pretty much equal to the supply. I'm not sure what adoption fees were back then, but it would be interesting to know.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
La soledad del viajero
Me pregunta mucha gente si no tengo miedo a la soledad. ¿Cómo voy a tenerle miedo?
Mi soledad es tan omnipresente en ciertos momentos que se ha convertido en algo tangible.¿Cómo voy a tenerle miedo si ha sido mi compañera durante tanto tiempo? Si ha estado conmigo cuando no había nadie más a mi alrededor. Si no me ha dejado solo en nigún momento.
Mi soledad me hace compañía. Me ayuda a dormir en lugares en los que no podría conciliar el sueño, me anima a seguir cuando pierdo el ánimo, me conforta cuando me desespero...
La soledad no es la única que me ha aliviado el camino, hay muchas otras personas sin las cuales no habría podido seguir mi viaje o no habría sido lo mismo.
Muchos no están aquí, pero se lo merecen..., lo siento...
Pero, bueno, este post es sobre otra cosa, así que un saludo muy grande soledad y gracias por todo.
Para quien no lo sepa, vuelo a Madrid en Agosto.
Espero ver a tod@s a l@s que quiero ver y que me quieren ver.
No se durante cuanto tiempo estaré allí, en mi ciudad, pero espero pasarlo en grande.
Mi soledad es tan omnipresente en ciertos momentos que se ha convertido en algo tangible.¿Cómo voy a tenerle miedo si ha sido mi compañera durante tanto tiempo? Si ha estado conmigo cuando no había nadie más a mi alrededor. Si no me ha dejado solo en nigún momento.
Mi soledad me hace compañía. Me ayuda a dormir en lugares en los que no podría conciliar el sueño, me anima a seguir cuando pierdo el ánimo, me conforta cuando me desespero...
La soledad no es la única que me ha aliviado el camino, hay muchas otras personas sin las cuales no habría podido seguir mi viaje o no habría sido lo mismo.
Muchos no están aquí, pero se lo merecen..., lo siento...
Pero, bueno, este post es sobre otra cosa, así que un saludo muy grande soledad y gracias por todo.
Para quien no lo sepa, vuelo a Madrid en Agosto.
Espero ver a tod@s a l@s que quiero ver y que me quieren ver.
No se durante cuanto tiempo estaré allí, en mi ciudad, pero espero pasarlo en grande.