Chile's Quake 2010

Chile Toll at 700; 2 Million Are Displaced
(Link to Article from the NYTimes)

Hermanos Chilenos, reciban un abrazo fraterno en estos momentos dificiles.

Nos han dado una leccion a todos los latinoamericanos. Es admirable ver como estaban preparados para recibir tal catastrofe. Ojala en mi pais Venezuela sepamos seguir su ejemplo y se empleen las mismas medidas de precaucion que ustedes tan sabiamente han tomado.

Omara Portuondo Rocks the Sanders Theater!

Last night I was lucky enoungh to witness a historical performance by living Cuban legend Omara Portuondo. She was outstanding! A consummate performer, she had the audience at "hello". Her opening number, which is also the title of her latest CD "Gracias", was so full of energy that the Cambridge crowd was on it's feet almost instantly! The concert was the first of a series that will promote her album awarded recently with a Grammy. The repertoire was a mix of classic bossa novas, boleros, son montunos. Even though the majority of the musicians were Cuban the music had a clear and distinctive Brazilian tinge under the musical direction of Brazilian guitarist Swami Jr.

The performance had some pretty stunning highlights. One of them being a beautiful version of "Dos Gardenias" that featured a duet of Omara accompanied by Swami Jr. on guitar. She dedicated the piece to the late Ibrahim Ferrer. In addition to the heart wrenching ballads, and mellow bossa nova arrangements, Omara's show had plenty of Cuban Timba riffs and Coro sections that were hard to sit still to.

Her band, a sextet, had some stellar players. On piano, Harold Lopez Nussa, a young 24 year old winner of the Montreux Jazz Festival Piano Competition in 2005. Felipe Cabrera, on double bass, has had an extensive performing career, including being part of Gonzalo Rubalcaba's firt quartet "Proyecto". Rodney Barreto on drums, has played with Bobby Carcaces among others. And last but not least, Andres Coayo on percussion.

Omara proved to be an amazing entertainer. Her stage presence, energy and voice were all right on. As and audience member one can easily forget she is 80 years young. There were plenty of comedic moments and had so many wonderful interactions with the audience and her musicians, who she lovingly referred as "los Bebes" (the babies).

This was to say the least, a once in a life time treat. I'm very grateful to have been there and to Omara I say Gracias!

"Lento pero viene" de Mario Benedetti

lento pero viene
el futuro se acerca
despacio
pero viene

hoy está más allá
de las nubes que elige
y más allá del trueno
y de la tierra firme

demorándose viene
cual flor desconfiada
que vigila al sol
sin preguntarle nada

iluminando viene
las últimas ventanas

lento pero viene
las últimas ventanas

lento pero viene
el futuro se acerca
despacio
pero viene

ya se va acercando
nunca tiene prisa
viene con proyectos
y bolsas de semillas
con angeles maltrechos
y fieles golondrinas

despacio pero viene
sin hacer mucho ruido
cuidando sobre todo
los sueños prohibidos

los recuerdos yacentes
y los recién nacidos

lento pero viene
el futuro se acerca
despacio
pero viene

ya casi está llegando
con su mejor noticia
con puños con ojeras
con noches y con días

con una estrella pobre
sin nombre todavía

lento pero viene
el futuro real
el mismo que inventamos
nosotros y el azar

cada vez más nosotros
y menos el azar

lento pero viene
el futuro se acerca
despacio
pero viene

lento pero viene
lento pero viene
lento pero viene

Diblo Dibala & Loketo ~ Soukous

This style of music is called Soukous from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and, what can I say, it just makes me smile. I find it absolutely intoxicating and I can dance it for hours. The artist is Diblo Dibala & his former band Loketo. Diblo is one of the best Soukous guitar players. He is also know as the "Machine Gun" for his speed on the guitar. You can buy some of his music here. Oh boy, gotta love that video footage hahaha!!

Climate Change

Got this quote from a "Letter to the Editor" of the New York Times and I agree 100% with it. What do you think?

"The basic science of global warming is really relatively simple. As the oceans and the air above them become warmer because of increased carbon dioxide, more water evaporates into the atmosphere. As we know, what goes up must come down — hence the increased snowfall in Washington (which probably deserves it) and Pittsburgh (which most certainly does not).

It would be nice if the increased precipitation fell in arid areas, but there are reasons of nature why these are arid in the first place, and global warming will only worsen, not alleviate, that situation.

The heavy snowfalls most certainly do not confirm the absence of global warming. The only thing they confirm is the ignorance of the politicians who make that claim."

Zvi J. Doron
Pittsburgh, Feb. 17, 2010

The writer, a retired nuclear engineer, is co-author of a book (in German) about energy and climate, published in Switzerland in 2008. Here's a link to the article.

______________________________________

What We Can Do At Home:

According to the EPA, making a few small changes in your home and yard can lead to big reductions of greenhouse gas emissions and save money. Explore our list of nine simple steps you can take around the house and yard to reduce greenhouse gas emissions:

1. Change 5 lights
   Change a light, and you help change the world. Replace the conventional bulbs in your 5 most frequently used light fixtures with bulbs that have the ENERGY STAR and you will help the environment while saving money on energy bills. If every household in the U.S. took this one simple action we would prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions from nearly 10 million cars.
2. Look for ENERGY STAR qualified products
   When buying new products, such as appliances for your home, get the features and performance you want AND help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. Look for ENERGY STAR qualified products in more than 50 product categories, including lighting, home electronics, heating and cooling equipment and appliances.
3. Heat and cool smartly
   Simple steps like cleaning air filters regularly and having your heating and cooling equipment tuned annually by a licensed contractor can save energy and increase comfort at home, and at the same time reduce greenhouse gas emissions. When it's time to replace your old equipment, choose a high efficiency model, and make sure it is properly sized and installed.

4. Seal and insulate your home
   Sealing air leaks and adding more insulation to your home is a great do-it-yourself project . The biggest leaks are usually found in the attic and basement. If you are planning to replace windows, choose ENERGY STAR qualified windows for better performance. Forced air ducts that run through unconditioned spaces are often big energy wasters. Seal and insulate any ducts in attics and crawlspaces to improve the efficiency of your home. Not sure where to begin? A home energy auditor can also help you find air leaks, areas with poor insulation, and evaluate the over-all energy efficiency of your home. By taking these steps, you can eliminate drafts, keep your home more comfortable year round, save energy that would otherwise be wasted, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

5. Use green power
   Green power is environmentally friendly electricity that is generated from renewable energy sources such as wind and the sun. There are two ways to use green power: you can buy green power or you can modify your house to generate your own green power. Buying green power is easy, it offers a number of environmental and economic benefits over conventional electricity, including lower greenhouse gas emissions, and it helps increase clean energy supply. If you are interested, there are a number of steps you can take to create a greener home , including installing solar panels and researching incentives for renewable energy in your state .
6. Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle
   If there is a recycling program in your community, recycle your newspapers, beverage containers, paper and other goods. Use products in containers that can be recycled and items that can be repaired or reused. In addition, support recycling markets by buying products made from recycled materials. Reducing, reusing, and recycling in your home helps conserve energy and reduces pollution and greenhouse gases from resource extraction, manufacturing, and disposal.
7. Be green in your yard
   Use a push mower, which, unlike a gas or electric mower, consumes no fossil fuels and emits no greenhouse gases. If you do use a power mower, make sure it is a mulching mower to reduce grass clippings. Composting your food and yard waste reduces the amount of garbage that you send to landfills and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. See EPA’s GreenScapes program for tips on how to improve your lawn or garden while also benefiting the environment. Smart Landscaping can save energy, save you money and reduce your household’s greenhouse gas emissions.
8. Use water efficiently
   Saving water around the home is simple. Municipal water systems require a lot of energy to purify and distribute water to households, and saving water, especially hot water, can lower greenhouse gas emissions. Look for products with EPA's WaterSense label; these products save water and perform as well or better than their less efficient counterparts. There are also simple actions you can take to save water: Be smart when irrigating your lawn or landscape; only water when needed and do it during the coolest part of the day, early morning is best. Turn the water off while shaving or brushing teeth. Do not use your toilet as a waste basket - water is wasted with each flush. And did you know a leaky toilet can waste 200 gallons of water per day? Repair all toilet and faucet leaks right away. See EPA's WaterSense site for more water saving tips.
9. Spread the Word
   Tell family and friends that energy efficiency is good for their homes and good for the environment because it lowers greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. Tell 5 people and together we can help our homes help us all.

"New Slang" by The Shins

This is a song by The Shins that I really like. Here's a link to their website (pretty cool site). In fact I like it so much that I transcribed the changes and been playing it on bass. Feel free to capture/copy them if you feel like it.

I first heard it as part of the soundtrack of the movie "Garden State" which I loved also. Within it's simplicity the song evokes a lot of bitter sweet and nostalgic feelings in me, and I found the movie to be a lot like that as well. I'm posting the a link to the song as well as the movie trailer below. I highly recommend it!


Lyrics:

Gold teeth and a curse for this town, were all in my mouth.
Only, I don't know how they got out, dear.
Turn me back into the pet, that I was when we met.
I was happier then with no mind-set.

And if you'd 'a took to me like
A gull takes to the wind.
Well, I'd 'a jumped from my tree
And I'd a danced like the king of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would 'a fared well.

New slang when you notice the stripes, the dirt in your fries.
Hope it's right when you die, old and bony.
Dawn breaks like a bull through the hall,
Never should have called
But my head's to the wall and I'm lonely.

And if you'd 'a took to me like
A gull takes to the wind.
Well, I'd 'a jumped from my tree
And I'd a danced like the kind of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would 'a fared well.

God speed all the bakers at dawn may they all cut their thumbs,
And bleed into their buns 'till they melt away.

I'm looking in on the good life i might be doomed never to find.
Without a trust or flaming fields am i too dumb to refine?
And if you'd 'a took to me like
Well I'd a danced like the queen of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would 'a fared well.

Here's the trailer...

"Pollo A La Manolo"

Mi buen amigo y colega Manolo Mairena, aka Manolitz, tiene una larga lista de extraordinarios talentos. Uno de ellos es que se destaca en la cocina. Una tarde nos invito a comer a su casa y nos preparo este pollo. Tuve la suerte de poder tomar nota, asi que aqui les dejo este regalito. Si quieren algun dia impresionar a sus invitados, les garantizo que esta receta no falla porque es para chuparse los dedos.

Como nota aparte, si quieren apoyar a la buena musica, aca les ofrezco el link al CD de Manolo, el cual es excelente! Se los recomiendo altamente, esta buenisimo!

y ahora, A comerrrrr!

"Pollo A La Manolo"

Ingredientes:
- 2 Pollos (picados y sin pellejo)
- Hongos Babybella
- Alcaparras al gusto (Manolo usa medio frasquito)
- 8 o 9 Baby White or Russet Potatoes
- Can of Stewed Tomatoes in Juice
- Cooking Wine or Beer
- 3 o 4 Dientes de Ajo
- Sofrito casero o Goya funciona tambien
- 2 Cubitos de Pollo
- 1 Paquetito de "Sazon Goya"
- Cilantro fresco
- 1 Tomate Fresco picadito
- Sal y pimienta al gusto


Preparacion:

1. Poner en el food processor, los 2 cubitos, la lata de tomates, medio frasquito de alcaparras, y los ajos.
2. Freir el sofrito y la mezcla. Agregar la sazon goya y distribuir bien.
2. Agregar el pollo.
3. Agregar el vino o cerveza.
4. Agregar hongos.
6. Agregar el tomate fresco.
7. Cocinar en medium heat hasta que el pollo este cocido por completo.
8. Acompanar con arroz blanco, platanos maduros, algun vegetal verde y ensalada.

Happy Friday!

"My Kind of Woman!!!" ~ Animal

Is life, Stranger than Fiction?

Also from my MySpace Blog.

Sunday, March 25, 2007

Movie Review: Stranger Than Fiction.

I just love that feeling a good film sometimes gives me. That certainty of how ironic and unreal life sometimes seems. This movie brought up so many questions about life, death, purpose and humanity. In my opinion, a work of art. I am a huge fan of good cinema and this movie has a little of everything. If you enjoy magic realism of the likes of "Being John Malkovich" this movie will be an absolute treat. The script was pretty funny, not to mention the amazing cast: Maggie Gyllenhal, Will Ferrell, Emma Thompson and Dustin Hofman.

I truly enjoyed this film. I really liked Maggie Gyllenhaal's performance, but then again, I'm biased because after I watched "Secretary" and I just melt with her performances everytime. This was a pretty good film with a remarkable cast, and even though it's premise is very similar to Kaufman's films, I loved it. Will Ferrell's performance was excellent. If you are like me, a sentimental fool who enjoys surrealism and magic realism, you will enjoy it!

Any other surrealism lovers out there? Any other film of this kind I should watch out for?

Here's the preview....

"Travesuras de la niña mala" de Mario Vargas Llosa

(Encontre este archivo en mi Blog de MySpace y decidi transferirlo a mi Blogger, a ver si algunos de Uds han leido este libro tambien)

Friday, April 13, 2007

Book Review: "Travesuras de la nina mala" by Mario Vargas Llosa I just finished reading it and was hoping to find people to discuss this novel with anyone who read it and wanted to share their ideas about it. I loved it. I think it is brilliant. While reading it I just couldn't put it down... jesus matta Jesus matta siii travesuras de la niña mala se me hace una novela genial llena de todo..desde drama ,sufrimiento,pasion,sexo,amor,desamor a ti te gusto??? ami me cambio la vida marca una etapa en mi vida el antes de leer ese libro y el despues .. Posted by jesus matta on Tuesday, June 16, 2009 - 4:16 PM [Reply to this] [Remove] [Block User] Anita Quinto Ah! que bueno encontrar a otra persona que disfruto ese libro. Es interesante porque aunque el protagonista era Ricardo la verdadera historia de la novela era la nina mala...que tristeza me dio cuando muere al final, y que divertidas y locas todas las aventuras de esa mujer Posted by Anita Quinto on Tuesday, June 16, 2009 - 9:37 PM [Reply to this] [Remove] [Block User] jesus matta Jesus matta el libro me hizo llorar...reir...y pensar...cada esenario..fue recreado en mi mente....:) es para mi por mucho la mejor novela que e leido.. Posted by jesus matta on Wednesday, December 02, 2009 - 5:58 PM [Reply to this] [Remove] [Block User]

Temple Grandin: Living with Autism

I heard this piece on NPR's Science Friday "Talk of the Nation" and I though it was fascinating. They where interviewing a woman called Temple Grandin. To give you a little background, Temple Grandin revolutionized the cattle business in this country and a lot of her ideas and designs became standards in the industry. In addition to the fact that she's exceptionally good at what she does, she was diagnosed with Autism at the age of four and has written a bunch of books, one of them being "Thinking in Pictures". For those of you who are into education and psychology, this woman's life story is absolutely inspiring.

If you have the time, I encourage you to listen to the interview. After I listened to it, I googled her and found a video (posted below) on youtube, where she talks about her experience being a highly functional person with Autism.

HBO just released a movie called "Temple Grandin" starring Claire Danes, based on this woman's life. I still haven't had a chance to see it (Don't have HBO) but I can't wait for it to come out on DVD to order it on Netflix. Has any of you out there seen it already? Would love to hear your reviews.

Here's a really cool video of Temple... I watched the whole thing...she's amazing!

My New Bass!

Isn't it gorgeous! I'm in love with it...bought it Saturday. Still need to name it...I feel that it's a boy bass. Any name suggestions?

Here's a video of one of the most amazing solos I've ever heard. I think I'll be able to play it by mid-next week ...(yeah right)

Enjoy!

Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity | Video on TED.com

Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity | Video on TED.com



Ok, so this video was shown to us at BCDS, the school where I teach.

It is absolutely brilliant and hilarious! Enjoy

Addicted to Pandora!

A confession, I'm addicted to Pandora. It is essentially a tailor made free radio for your different tastes in music. I'm now listening to "Peruchin Radio" it is SO GOOD!! It is currently my favorite. If you're into old school Cuban pianists you will be pleasantly surprised with the variety that Pandora has to offer.

So, to you I ask, Which is your current favorite Pandora Station? Who are you listening to? Any recommendations?

If you're unfamiliar with it, here's an excerpt from their site describing what they have to offer...you will not be sorry, I guarantee!

"With Pandora you can explore this vast trove of music to your heart's content. Just drop the name of one of your favorite songs or artists into Pandora and let the Genome Project go. It will quickly scan its entire world of analyzed music, almost a century of popular recordings - new and old, well known and completely obscure - to find songs with interesting musical similarities to your choice. Then sit back and enjoy as it creates a listening experience full of current and soon-to-be favorite songs for you.

You can create up to 100 unique "stations." And you can even refine them. If it's not quite right you can tell it so and it will get better for you.

The Music Genome Project was founded by musicians and music-lovers. We believe in the value of music and have a profound respect for those who create it. We like all kinds of music, from the most obtuse bebop, to the most tripped-out drum n bass, to the simplest catchy pop tune. Our mission is to help you connect with the music YOU like."

Cool Widget

I just wanted to share this cool Web 2.0. thingy called Worldle.

I made this image with it. It essentially let's you input any text and it arranges it according to how many times you repeated a word. Click on the link and start creating your own!

HeLa: the little cells that could

Book Review: "The Inmortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot

After listening to this interview on NPR, I just had to order it. What an amazing book! I just finished it and it is such compelling work. I highly recommend it! I just couldn't put it down.

One striking thing about it, is that even though is non-fiction, it is written in such a way that is absolutely fascinating and entertaining. Skloot is a superb writer and, in my humble opinion, she takes creative non-fiction writing to a new level. Her journalistic approach and her novelesque writing style makes it so easy for one as a reader to get lost in the story. There are so many compelling scientific and social issues that this book brings up that I don't even know where to where to begin.

As a Venezuelan living in the USA, this book has given me an opportunity to look at another way of how the ripples of slavery continue to have an effect in the Health Care System of this country. It has also lead me to reflect on my own culture and how social, racial and economic status continues to define whether a person has access to quality care or not. I was particularly shocked to learn how only until recently health providers haven't had any restrictions as to what they could do to patients. There just weren't any laws to protect them. The concept of Informed Consent was created much after a lot of invasive medical studies and experiments where performed in patients. Most of these terrible cases where of course, practiced on the African American community.

I am still processing a lot of the information that I learned from the book, but one question that keeps popping in my mind is: How far is it too far? I'm all for science moving forward and finding cures for deadly diseases but, At what expense? and most importantly, At who's expense?It is clear to me that in a lot of these cases, the physicians had no sense of respect and treated their patients and families like disposable rag dolls...

Oh! muy importante! Here's a link to the Henrietta Lack's Foundation. Please consider making a donation. If you're not convinced, here's an explanation of what the proceeds are for. I got this from the author's website:

"The Henrietta Lacks Foundation, [is] a non-profit organization founded by Rebecca Skloot, author of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Henrietta was a poor black tobacco farmer whose cancer cells, taken without her knowledge, became one of the most important tools in medicine, with disastrous consequences for her family. Today, her family can’t afford the health care advances their mother’s cells helped make possible. The Henrietta Lacks Foundation will, among other things, provide financial assistance in the form of scholarships to the descendants of Henrietta Lacks; it will also work to provide the Lacks family aid in covering the cost of health insurance, giving those who have benefited from HeLa cells — including scientists, universities, corporations, and the general public — a way to show thanks to Henrietta and her family. The foundation also hopes to offer assistance to other African Americans in need who are pursuing education in science and medicine."

That's it for now, I will continue to post about this topic as I continue to read the book...

Hasta luego,

Anita

My First Entry!

Hello World,

So this is my first entry. I'm attempting to connect with people with similar interests, so I encourage you all to comment/subscribe and share ideas about the different topics. If you wish to learn a bit about me, here's a link to my website. If you prefer the short version, I'm a professional musician that lives in Boston. I was born an raised in Caracas, Venezuela. I moved to Boston in 1998 to go to College and even though music is a huge part of my life, I have a variety of other things I feel passionate about. This blog is in part an exploration of all those other things.

I'm going to be playing it by ear and see where this blog takes me. Two important disclaimers, first, I am not a good writer and I'm not pretending to be one. Second, I might be posting things in Spanish since, after all, it is my first language. Within reason I might try to translate stuff to English but there are just certain things in Venezuelan Spanish that just don't translate well, trust me. No worries though, for the most part I'll try to write in English and avoid cryptic Venezuelan slang like "Esa vaina está mollejua".

Looking forward to this new blogging thing...bare with me.

Anita