blog (January, 2003)
El Mas Feliz
Before John & Simona bought the place nearly 2 years ago, all that connected El Mas Feliz (The Happy House, in Cátalan) to the nearest country road was a burro path through the small, green mountains. They've come a long way since then, but have more ahead than behind them, and perhaps always will.
Dawn was magnificent; I arrived last night without a real chance to dizzy myself with my surroundings, so stepping out of my caravan this morning was a rush.
I'm 4km from a rural farming village (1 payphone... internet -- what?) called Cabanes, outside Castellón, over an hour's jog from Spain's Mediterranean east coast, but I can see it just fine from here. Just fine.
movement
Action is the key to winning 50% of my self-battles. Always such a small thing -- only a flick of the finger to get the ball rolling -- but somehow so hard for me.
I decided to begin calling farms on my WWOOF list, tired of awaiting email replies. The first person I called asked me, after I struggled through a few sentences in Español, if I would like to speak in English. The rest of the call proceeded just as smoothly, and we decided I would leave Madrid for their finca (small farm) in two days, after a short trip to Toledo.
que pasa, people, que pasa
Why does a "bocadillo vegetal con lechuga" come with tuna fish on it?
This is a question we all ask ourselves.
caminando, esperando
If you've got no place to go and nothing to do, it's usually a good idea to follow african drumming sounds, if you hear them. I've seen a lot of Madrid in the last few days, and walked a lot. I have a blind man's sense of direction. This is great for travelling. Getting lost 10 or 15 times a day helps me see more of the city. Exercise too.
I've found a decent hostel, and moved there. By day I stroll the streets and some of the attractions, and study Spanish on park-bench breathers. At night, more studying and reading. My lack of command of the language is hindering my ability to make something happen for me here. I'm getting restless about finding a farm to work on. I've gotten no responses yet. I need some sense of security.
bienvenidos
Yes, well I made it. Three planes later I'm in Madrid, and all was going so smoothly until I began seeking accomodation. The two hostels listed in my guide turned up short, as one was full and the other was literally a poor-house -- which I should have no problem fitting into since I'm poor, except that the people lurking-sitting-drinking-burningthings on the grounds of the place looked as if they'd like to make me poorer, and I don't need any of that.
I did a lot of not sleeping on the trans-atlantic flight, and a LOT of walking with my big fat backpack around the city looking for a place, (not to mention I've already explored thoroughly half of Madrid's metro system,) so at around 6pm heretime I gave up and collapse in the bed of a single room rented from a "pension," basically a family's apartment with some extra rooms. 18 Euros. More than I can afford in general, but not bad for a night or two.
I still haven't heard back from the farm I was hoping to work and live on, yet, so it's past time to begin exploring other options. I have a list of about 110 of them around the country, from joining WWOOF, so something will work out eventually.
But I'm anxious, and I am sooo underprepared language-wise... And I have trouble holding the camera still to take pictures without the flash.
nadie lo hace como el toro
Well, finally things are moving a bit. I'm booked to fly outta here on Wednesday, (the 22nd,) to Madrid, for four months, tenatively. Then the adventures begin. I haven't planned enough yet. Lots to do.
the memphis blues again
Dylan was stuck in Mobile; I am in Rochester. I've described my present state to some as stagnant. I've been back at home now since Christmas Eve; the plan was to stick around for a couple weeks to recharge before heading to Spain to work on organic farms for awhile. I just began looking for a flight, though, so my stay here has stretched a bit longer than expected.
The site redesign has taken quite a lot of my time. I'm pleased with some of the results, but overall, nothing too spectacular. I've made the move from tables to CSS, got sendmail working for a comments page, and have that current media sidebar that is just soooo ultra hip for bloggers these days. A few other things to iron out, like images overflowing within div's...
Just when I finished altering my import script that transforms my Explorer Favorites file into a links page, Apple had to come out with a hot new browser called Safari (that has already hooked me) and change the bookmarks format around completely. But it is XML instead of HTML, which is a step in the right direction for the world, even though it sets me back a little.
Please give me a shout if anything looks weird to you.
Pictionary
Dave dragged the crayon around quickly in a circular pattern that expanded as it continued. I guessed "spiral" first, of course, then "vortex." Then came the cup beneath the spiral, and I said "canned peas" It didn't take much more than one leaf on the stem for me to know it was a rose, and three small flowers in a row made "rose garden."
I needn't explain "mobile home."