Month: June 2009

Email 4, Part 3: Kvetches Of Spain

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From email update May 5th:

KVETCHES OF SPAIN

Ok, so this section is about language, not kvetches, but it was too good a pun to pass up, no? :)

Cool, language. My Spanish is getting better, and even though I often end a day completely exhausted from trying to speak and understand, communication certainly has its benefits. Two weeks ago, I hit a major milestone: made my first friend by speaking only Castellano. A nice old dude in my favorite tea shop; he recently published a book on el amor del alma (love and the soul). In keeping with my inability to meet Spaniards in Spain, though, he was an Italian Jew. Oh, well. :) Tonight I’m having dinner with a for-real Spanish family — I met the mother at the meditation center, and she gave me a standing invitation to visit their home. People have been incredibly friendly and generous — with their homes, their belongings, and their patience while I struggle to find words and keep up. Feels wonderful.

In other fun news: false cognates!

1) If a friend asks whether you’re constipado, they are not being gross or rude — they’re just concerned that you might have a cold. The word means congested.

2) Since the suffix “eria” indicates a vendor (a gelateria sells gelato; a peluqueria sells haircuts), you can imagine my disappointment when I found out that a ferreteria sells hardware.

3) Mealtimes at the meditation center, we had to make sure to give extra food to the women who were embarasadas. Pregnant. Heehee.

And how’s this for a dairy-alternative brand name? Yo Soy.

Heeheeheeheehee.

More Reasons To Blog

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Oh my. What a gift.

From BethanyMoves:

Beautiful blogger Katie left a comment recently, “be your own best gardener!” I love it. I’ve been holding it. Be my own best gardener…. and I’m trying. Sensing out what it is that would feed me, leave me feeling well cared for. What it is that my roots are asking for. And trying not to go into shock as I’m feeling a bit uprooted at the moment, raw. Best to start literal in this case. So I headed to the nursery with my box of plants in hand.

[. . .]

[. . .]

Bethany’s post, with so many gorgeous green photos, just left me speechless. This is the most I can hope for from my blogging, or from commenting on other people’s blogs: to give someone the little nudge they needed to go seek deep joy. To nurture themselves.

Bethany, I can’t thank you enough. This was exactly the encouragement I needed, today. Quieting the little voice in my head that says: “What are you doing with your life? Why are you wasting all this time on the computer? Why don’t you do something useful; something practical; something that earns you a living; something that fights oppression; something that actually helps people?”

That voice has been ebbing and stilling lately, but the other day it swelled and got loud again. Thanks to you, though, I can smile and whisper back to it, with all my lovingness, “Shhh…it’s okay. I know. You’re afraid. But don’t worry. Just take it moment by moment, and together we’ll wind up fine.”

Correos: Sometimes I Draw Pictures

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It’s been a real joy to continue writing cards and letters here in Spain.  The whole process, start to finish: composing in my notebook; transcribing onto stationery; stamping the date and address; carrying the full, ripe envelopes to the post office.

Truly, if you want to fill yourself with love for an afternoon, my advice is to write a letter.  To a parent, a grandparent, a lover, a friend going through a rough time, a friend you thought of the other day when you watered your plants or saw a beautiful skyline or when something made you laugh.

Occasionally, when the mood strikes, I make little sketches to accompany the words.  This is one of the reasons I love writing on paper, as opposed to computers: anytime you feel like it, you can just bust out with a hand-drawn diagram of a fish riding a bicycle.  I still smile to think about a sketch I drew to accompany a description of my refrigerator shelf: a standoff between the vegan and vegetarian factions.   (Beets, carrots on the one side; eggs and a carton of yogurt on the other — or something like that.)

Post office, Barcelona

And this weekend, writing an 8-pager to a certain inspirational someone in Michigan, who should emerge to give their blessings but two of my favorite artists: India Arie and Stevie Wonder.  Flanking my quotation of the lyrics to “Wonderful,” Arie’s exquisite song of gratitude to one of her musical heros.

Happy mailing, y’all! :)

love,

katie

Email 4, Part 2: Walkin’

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From email update May 5th:

WALKIN’

Tomorrow I’ll take a bus from Barcelona north to Pamplona, and after resting for the night I’m going to take a walk. The walk will take me 30 days, more or less.

Back in the day, El Camino de Santiago (The Path/Way of Santiago) was a pilgrimage route to the city of Santiago de Compostela, in the northwest corner of Spain. The most famous route of the pilgrimage, El Camino Francés, begins inside France itself and stretches east-to-west all the way to Santiago, paralleling the northern Iberian coast. Since the camino’s transformation into a tourism thing (some people still do it for religious reasons, but most don’t), kind souls and entrepreneurs have established pilgrims’ hostels along the route, where folks can eat and sleep cheaply, then move on at dawn.

I’ll be bringing just a trekking backpack with a sleeping bag, change of clothes, some good boots, a map, money and sunscreen. I expect cold mornings, hot afternoons, blisters, fellow travelers, exhaustion, elation, and of course, the unexpected. Needless to say, I’m ridiculously excited.

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Hola, Verano

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Oh, summer.  You complete me.  Know what I mean?

Late Saturday morning, after a heady visit to the weekly mercado, I walked into town and settled down in Nuria’s kitchen to riff on a Heidi Swanson recipe for one of my favorite salads.  Lime, olive oil and salt make a simple dressing for a spunky mix of peanuts, cilantro, chili, perfect baby tomatoes, and frisée (I swapped it in for the cabbage that’s called for — and smiled to think that I may not have curls on my head but I sure do have them in my greens).  Chopping up the chili — the first one I’ve diced since arriving in Spain — I think I almost passed out with happiness.

Why do I always forget how wonderful salads can be?  Earlier this week I conjured a great one up out of next to nothing: arugula, a nectarine, and some roasted hazlenuts that were hanging out in the pantry.  It’s like, as long as you’ve got some good olive oil and a lemon, you can create these magical odes to summertime…the simpler, the better.

Any ensaladas in particular got you celebrating the changing of the seasons?

Email 4, Part 1: Workin’

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From email update May 5th:

WORKIN’

“the joyful dispatch of tasks and duties”

–Aeron Kopriva, June 2008

———

This phrase has stuck with me like a kind of melody. I hum it every now and then. And it totally captures the spirit of my time serving at the Dhamma Neru meditation center. Especially during the last course, when they put me in the garden in order to spare me from kitchen burnout, I felt such a peaceful rhythm in the work. Lacing up my new boots; pulling on jeans still earth-caked from the day before; lugging shovels and buckets across the silent field; uncovering hypnotic centipedes, an ant nest with eggs like seed pearls, and giant, iridescent earthworms. Making friends with the flies that dive-bombed my ears the whole time, hehe. Turns out that instead of jerking your neck and swatting frantically, you can pull up the hood of your sweatshirt to block their targets. Then they just give you soft buzzing background music, sweet li’l thangs.

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Email 4, Intro: Death Of The Cool, And A Change Of Address

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From email update May 5th:

When you part from your friend, you grieve not;

For that which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence, as the mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain.

–Khalil Gibran, The Prophet

————————————————————————

Querid@s maravillos@s amig@s y familia,

I am so happy to be in this plain, because you are the most beautiful mountains I have ever seen. As always, I hope this note finds you happy, healthy, positive, and peaceful. And maybe enjoying some springtime weather, because lord is it ever gorgeous here in Barcelona. I’d forgotten what perfect sunshine can be like.

Thank you so much, again, for your wonderful mail — electronic and postal. I love hearing how things are going in *your* adventures, and I truly appreciate all your support as I continue mine.

And speaking of mail, since my friends the Parks have upgraded to a cheaper but cozier apartment right by the beach (um, score…), the new address for mail to get to me is

[Redacted :) ].

I hope the letter, card, notebook and postcard writing has been fun for you, and maybe even inspired you to write some additional old-fashioned mail to loved ones in other cities, states, countries. (Or, you know, down the block!) For me, putting my love on paper and sending it out has definitely been a welcome anchor and a deep pleasure. Even if the note gets lost and never reaches its destination, the good wishes are there. Besides, this is the main post office in Barcelona:

photo found online
photo found online

So it’s not such a bad errand to run, you know?

Ok, so updates. Again, for your convenience, a breakdown by topic. In keeping with the subject line (and my dorkiness), the Miles Davis theme continues, mostly[*].

WORKIN’

WALKIN’

KVETCHES OF SPAIN

DEATH OF THE COOL

NEWLY ARMSTRONG/ WATERMELON WOMAN*

——————————————-

[To be continued…]

Email 3, Part 5: Spanish Fashion

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From email update March 30th:

SPANISH FASHION

If Barcelona is a harbinger of trends to come, get ready for the following:

something called “harem pants.” i don’t quite understand. i have seen one person who looked good in them, but she had that dancers’ carriage that can make anything look elegant. plus, she was working in the dhamma neru garden at the time, so mostly i just thought she looked very comfortable and practical, with lots of room to move.

for fans of the hipster rat tail, i give you: the dredlock hipster rat tail.

they are EVerywhere. well, it was only a matter of time.

Lots of these, too. Wear them and people will ask you directions.

Email 3, Part 4: Vipassana Summary

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From email update March 30th:

VIPASSANA SUMMARY

I haven’t said a whole lot about what Vipassana actually entails. It’s not because I’m try’na be all mystical, but because I think there’s a danger of overanalyzing it. Personally, I spent years thinking about meditation, reading about meditation, wishing I were meditating, and never actually doing the damn thing, hehe. Much of the philosophy is so fascinating that it’s easy to neglect the application, the ‘swimology.’ But for the sake of transparency and non-cultishness, here’s my own quick personal take on what I do, exactly, in Vipassana.

Vipassana In Three Not-Always-So-Easy Steps:

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