thefutureisred

Welcome To World Blog Surf Day & Holidays Away From Home

Welcome once again to World Blog Surf Day! Take a tour around the blog-world as you link from country-to-country, expat-to-expat learning about one particular topic.

I took part last time when we discussed food. Now, we're describing holidays and celebrations in our new country. This time, though, WBSD catches me in an off mood. I've just started a new job, moved to a new house, just returned from 2 months in the US with family and I find myself off balance and out of sorts. I've had an equally difficult time getting my head around the holidays here in Salta and Argentina in general.

It seems there's a new one just about every week. Saints, soldiers, politicians. Holiday! A war begins, a war ends, a break in the war. Holiday! And while we've asked around for some sort of calendar of events, no one seems to have one. Yet everyone else seems to know about the holidays in advance.

We find out when we show up at Lila's school to find it vacant, doors shut and locked.

Then came October 12, Dia de la Raza.

Day of Race, I believe would be a adequate translation.

It's also called Día de las Culturas in Costa Rica, Día de las Américas in Uruguay. Día de la Resistencia Indígena in Venezuela. And Columbus Day in the United States.

Yes, Columbus Day. A day I can't remember celebrating ever. It is not a day off school. It is not a day stores are closed. It's really just a bank holiday, which general means very little to those of us bank-unaffiliated folk.

Even the most cursory knowledge of Native America culture, though, tells you this day is not a day of joy. In fact, there's been great opposition in even naming this day a holiday in the United States because of the connection with cultural genocide, murder, rape and kidnapping. Somehow the traditional United States public holiday of barbecues and going to the movies seems particularly unfitting, especially since Columbus never even set foot in North America

All of this would explain why I was shocked to learn October 12 is a true day off in Argentina.

Then again, why not? Renaming while still observing a holiday seeks to reposition the meaning of the day. It represents another side of history. In 2004, a pro-Chavez mob toppled a statue of Columbus in Caracas symbolically overthrowing the old regime as a statue of Saddam Hussein had been similarly brought down the year before in Baghdad.

In other countries, Dia de las Americas and Dia de la Resistencia Indigena focus on the culture existing in these great lands long before a European foot touched ground.

Myself, I often wonder how different South America would have been had European influence not arrived.

De la Raza is a day to commemorate another side of history, one only briefly touched in my high school history classes. This is not the day the Spanish conquistador entered a new land, claiming it for himself and his queen, but a day to remember how entire groups of people were murdered and enslaved.

It's a solemn day, a day of retrospection and a day during which all of us -- whatever the race, culture and affiliation -- can look inward and reflect.

Is it possible to reclaim a holiday in such a way? Does it truly allow all sides of the history to be represented? Let me know what you think in comments below.

* * *

As for World Blog Surf Day, I imagine many of the other blogs involved in this month's World Blog Surf Day will describe the wild and wonderful celebrations from all other countries, so forgive me for taking the tone down. I hope it has been a worthwhile deviation.

Now on with the festivities at Expanish Blog where you can learn everything you need to know about living and learning Spanish in Buenos Aires. You can also follow along at Empty Next Expat's Twitterstream to hear more as the day unfolds.

Wanted poster courtesy of bionicteaching

Guess Who's the New Editor of Matador Life?

It all happened very suddenly.

One day I received a tweeted message from my friend Vicky Baker, Guardian journalist and author of Going Local Travel blog -- for travelers who want to break off the beaten track. She wanted to let me know about a position for contributing editor on Matador Life -- a section of the Matador Network, the worlds largest online travel magazine. The Life section focuses on thriving between trips.

Less than a week later, I was hired. Yes, I am now officially, as of two weeks ago, editing Matador Life.  (Quite a testament to the efficacy of social media.)

It’s been an interesting transition. Much of the work is similar to what I’ve been doing here for the last couple years, but now, I’m working with a team of about 36 people, many of whom I knew through Twitter, Couchsurfing, Burning Man  and just general blogging.

The editors are spread all over the world – with quite a few of us in South America. That means all meetings, discussions and decisions are made via e-mail and chat. It's impressive how well it all works.

That everything is shared and discussed forces me to be more awake and aware. I find myself reading more, and wasting a lot less time as I juggle writing and editing articles, working with outside contributors, reading the articles on Matador and generally trying to stay in touch with what’s going on in the rest of the world. I'm also learning a lot about blogging and the backend of running a website.

Please allow me to introduce you to two members of this unique group:

Julie Shwietert-Collazo – Managing editor of Matador. I met her through Twitter about a year ago. She’s well read, well traveled and a fantastic writer and researcher. That she’s managed to keep pace with a newborn – the beautiful Mariel – amazes me as much as anything else she does. When I heard about the job opening from Vicky, I e-mailed Julie immediately.

You can read more about Julie both on Matador and at her own website, Collazo Projects.

David Miller – the senior editor of Matador.  Soon after writing Julie, I saw an email from David pop up in my mail box.  We chatted a bit back and forth, but when he offered the job, I didn’t have to think much before saying yes.

David is funny. He uses words like stoked and fired up a lot, and I notice other members of the team use them a lot as well.  David also clearly knows how to run a team because, as I said earlier, it works well.

You can read more about David --  who will be moving to Patagonia soon with his wife, Lau and their adorable 2 year old Layla -- at his blog.

What's Next For The Future Is Red?

It seems, though, the types of articles I’ll be writing for Matador overlap quite a bit with what I do here on thefutureisred. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel, so from now on, you can find my articles about yoga, children, parenting, work and travel on Matador. I’ll provide links for those along with links to articles from the other editors and authors.

As for original content on The Future Is Red? I will continue to write about Salta, travel in Argentina and topics that don't seem to fit for Matador. Like going to the gym, some lovely photos of Henry Moore's sculpture from Noah and a short dissertation on that lovely phenomenon known as camel toe.

I also have some surprises coming up, so stick with me.

Musculation, Anyone? No Thanks, I'd Rather Sweat

I often find myself comparing the life I lived in NY or anywhere in the US with that I now live in Salta. Food, people, places and the general way of life, nothing is the quite the same. It would be easy to assign a better-or-worse value, but that is a matter of preference. Mostly, I try to enjoy or laugh with whatever differences exist.

One particular place gets me every time: The Gym. (Yes)!

Enter LA Fitness in Atlanta, and you see all these people who are really into their fitness routines. I mean, really involved. They move back and forth the length of the building walking these fantastic fitness walks. Squatting, duck-waddling, lunge-and-leap-lunge-and-leap. The noises they make to go with their ministry of silly walks astounds as well.

Once, I entered one of an empty room -- where kickboxing and sculpting classes are usually held – to do a bit of yoga as a post workout stretch and found a man leaping into the air, turning around all the while making yelping-hawk-like sounds. He didn’t hear me come in because he had his walkman dialed up to 11.

Actually, everything is turned up to 11 here. Men and women, ripped from stem to stern, shoving, heaving and sweating their way through three hour workouts. Then there’s me. I go in, run, walk or ellipt, do a few machines, stretch and done.

Skip forward to me at the gym in Salta.

I walk in, go straight to the treadmill. I only use the one second from the left of a row of four because it’s the only one that works and has a place to hold my water bottle. The others? Let’s just say, Salta is the first place I’ve seen people lounging strategically places tables with chairs while sipping coffee from dainty white ceramic espresso cups and chatting. Lots of chatting.

I’m the only one who runs. Everyone else walks – ok, occasionally you’ll find a man running, but never the women. I’m also the only one who sweats.

Then, onto the muscle machines, that would be strength training equipment in the US and in Salta? I believe it is called musculation. Yes, musculation. I love the word. SO much so, that I haven’t actually bothered to clarify the meaning. All I know is all these men and women come to the gym for musculation. Were I to divine definition from context, though, that would mean hanging out on the equipment and more chatting. 

They help you stretch and musculate.

There are two men who work there helping people use the machines and configure their workouts. One, Mauritzio, is solid muscle. I know this because it’s customary to hug and kiss on greeting. Even the men. It’s something I love about Argentina. You feel at home the moment you meet someone, but it certainly takes on a different edge when you’re covered in sweat.

He and the other man will also help you stretch out after your work out. Of course, it’s really only the women who seem to take them up on their offer. Maybe that’s the meaning of musculation?

Here, in this world, I’m the nutty, muscle-clad crazy person sweating and pushing hard.

Soon, though, we’ll move to the house we just rented in the country. There, I’ll be able to run on a dirt path past cows and horses. I’d like to get a bike to ride into town and all around.

Yep, it’s a different world.

Photo courtesy of RightIndex's Flickrstream

My Most Inspirational Burning Man Moment

One of our camp mates, Gail, came to burn this year with a specific goal in mind. To rest, recharge and let go before returning home to San Francisco to begin chemotherapy.

Wednesday night of the week, we joined her for a survivor walk between the Man and the Temple. On reaching the Temple, she cut one of her braids and left it there to flame up and disappear along with the temple on the final night of the week.

The next morning, Gail shaved Noah's head.

He'd been talking about doing it for a while. Well, full disclosure, I'd been trying to talk him into it for a while, but I suppose he needed a real reason, something that gave him the courage to let go and go bald. And if you ever have the great luck to meet Gail, you'll understand why. She is loving, strong and, well, just wonderful.

Friday, she and Stephanie, a longtime friend of Gail's and also an amazing woman, left Burning Man early so they could spend some time together. Their presence was sorely missed. It felt somewhat like we'd lost our grounding. Not that you need to be grounded for Burning Man, in fact it may well be better to unhinge, but the nature of the experience changed with their departure.

When they arrived back in San Francisco, Gail and Stephanie shaved their heads together. Stephanie posted photos of her newly-shorn, newly dyed pink head on Facebook along with a beautiful, poignant and succinct answer to why she chose this way to show her love and solidarity with Gail.

     Stephanie Says:

 
Thanks so much for your love and support! it's been an interesting change. Can't say I don't miss my hair but this is sorta fun for now. 

Gail lives in Berkeley, I used to nanny her daughter back in 98-99 and 2004.  We had a chat one night about how losing her hair was going to be hard. I got off the phone and knew that this was a way to support her if she chose to shave her hair off before going to chemo.

When she announced that she wanted to do it, I offered to do it with her and do it as a ritual.... On Sunday, we did the hair ritual as the temple was burning. We braided our hair together in two pieces, blonde and black and did the chop together. 

Her daughter who is now 15 cut the other half of our hair off. The other thing I'm doing is helping to manage her support calendar for meals and rides. It's really all I can do from a distance.

It just happens that my writing of this post coincides with Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The following are resources for information on prevention, treatment and support.

• Susan G Komen for the Cure - A global leader in the breast cancer movement since 1982. Includes Passionately Pink, an online resource for joining and building support teams wherever you are.

• Sharsheret - A national non-for-profit organization of cancer survivors dedicated to addressing the unique challenges facing young Jewish women living with breast cancer. Founded by Rochelle Shoretz, an old college friend of mine.

• Movember - A mustache growing charity event that raises funds and awareness of men's health. Another Burning Man camp mate of ours is shaving his beard, leaving the mustache for this. Perhaps he'll let me post his photos.

Also, check out my article on Matador called Share Your Stories and Resources for Breast Cancer Awareness Month written in conjunction with this post.

Please feel free to add your own resources and information. Or share your personal stories of friends, family, and whatever else you may have done to combat cancer.

Lies, Lies, It's All Lies! And Other Media Conspiracies!

Is it me or is the headline of Obama rescheduling his meeting with the Dalai Lama simply not news? Certainly not worthy of being front page Yahoo!

I also recently saw a TV news story on CNN about the International Monetary Fund meeting in Turkey. Basically, a reporter was standing in a tear gas filled street. He could barely talk, and we watched him run down the street to get to a place where he could breath again. Was three to five minutes of watching a man choke truly necessary? 

I suppose I've always been skeptical of what I read, hear on radio or see on TV and online, but I can track my strong distrust of the media to one particular date.

9/11/2001.

When I saw exactly what unedited media looks like. We heard and sometimes saw reporters on the scene. We felt them fight their natural reaction to run, and we heard the horror in their voices. News unfolded in real time, real life, because no one had a clue what was going on. There was no time to design glitzy graphics and taglines.

Then when things settled down a bit, the news became measured and slick once again. We returned to headlines of Mission Accomplished and Shark Attacks Up Again this year. And silly tales of how Sanjay Gupta contracted swine flu.  Swine flu -- aka H1N1 aka Hamthrax --another media kickstart frenzy.

Of course, how NY State now mandates the H1N1 vaccine for all healthcare workers, we don't hear so much. But it may be enough to make many NYC nurses, including a good friend of mine, quit their jobs. Which would mean fewer nurses in an already hurting field.

But things like Ahmedinejad possibly being a Jew? Who cares if he's a hypocrite? As my Muslim friend Ali -- or is his name Mohammed? -- says, "Jews and Muslims were cousins anyway?" And don't get me started on the Letterman revelation. Ok, I'm sorry, i can't resist. Jaded-me thinks this is one of the best examplese of tailored PR since the Jen-Brad-Angie debacle-drama. But I digress...

I don't exactly consider myself part of the news media, but i do know a bit about choosing images and topics for general publication. I prefer honesty, word and image that represent truth as closely as truth can be represented.

So back to Obama and the Dalai Lama? Is it so rare that a president would postpone a meeting, even with someone as high profile as the Dalai Lama,that it's not only worth mentioning, but worth splashing across the front page of everyone's browser? Or is there another agenda behind this sort of article? One that is perhaps designed to mislead instead of inform?

On reading the article, yes, you learn that it all has to do with the delicate balance between the US relationship with China and the role Tibet plays in that. But again, does posting the story itself turn what might have been a minor point into a major issue?

I Ate New York!

New York may no longer be my home, but it's still the place my stomach and taste buds go for adventure. There's no where I've been on the planet that serves up such an amazing array of authentic, unique, gorgeous food options.

Our three days there, I think I ate more than I've eaten in,  
well, a really long time. But it was there, and I knew I wouldn''t be back for a who-knows-how-long, so I wanted to squeeze in a bite, even just one taste of everything.

I mentioned a few of my favorite NYC food places in a June post for World Blog Surf Day -- which I'll be participating in again come this October 31 -- but actually being in New York, visiting friends, choosing places for lunch, dinners, deciding on gifts to take to friends, well, let's just say the palate opened wide.

Day one, we stopped at H&H Bagels for lunch just before arriving at College Residence on 110th street. I lived in this building for two years before Noah and I married, and I know the area well.

One block away, across from Saint John the Divine Cathedral on Amsterdam Avenue, you'll find the Hungarian Pastry Shop. This place fills with Columbia students and is a local haunt for many well known writers, poets, philosophers and artists. There was one guy, a regular, who, after his coffee and chat, stretched out on the seat by the front window for a nap. I bet he's still there today.

The Hungarian got mediocre reviews on Zagat's, but clearly those people have no souls. Either that, or they don't know what to order. My recommendation? Ask for an almond horn and hot chocolate. The chocolate arrives unsweetened to be perfectly complemented by the sugary crunchy cookie.

Two doors down from Hungarian lives V&T Pizza. It's old school, simple straight forward pizza, and it is wonderful. I'm a pizza purist, so I prefer without toppings, but I can occasionally be persuaded to go for eggplant. It's similar to Sam's Steak and Chops on Court Street in Cobble Hill.

Warning: You don't go to either place for ambience. Unless, of course, you're looking for grungy interiors, badly lighted and worn out. But if you want the best pizza -- neither sell by the slice -- this is where you'll go.

And if you happen to be in Cobble Hill for pizza, head a bit deeper into Brooklyn on Court Street to Monteleone's. We went there to pick up dessert for Rosh Hashana dinner at Aunt Jane and Uncle Cliff's .This is the place that made me realize I do, indeed, love cheesecake. There's plain, chocolate, chocolate swirl and Italian varieties.

Unfortunately, Monteleone's had already closed by the time we arrived, so we swung from Brooklyn to the East VIllage to Veneiro's. Their speciality? Canoli. The best. I repeat, the best you've ever had. Unfortunately, again, canoli must be eaten fresh or the shell gets soggy. We asked the women working behind the counter which cake woudl transport best, and they immediately got the owner on the phone to consult with us. We chose one tiramisu cake and a ricotta cheesecake which we immediately put in our cooler surrounded by ice.

Then we made one last stop before hitting the highway. Two dozen bagels at H&H. We chose H&H, thought, mainly because it's kosher. In truth, I prefer the bagels at Absolute Bagels. If you go early enough in the morning, the windows fog from bagels boiling in the back, and every baked good in the store is hot. The place itself doesn't look like anything special, but if you're ever in Morningside Heights, do stop by.

That was all the damage we could do in three days, but there are so many other amazing places in this burg. The Tea Lounge offers a huge assortment of teas. Apricot Floral is my favorite

Fa'an has amazing lychee martinis. Ghang Thai across the street serves the best Thai food of the area, arguably best of the city. Koreatown where even a simple bi bim bop is heaven. I spent many a late night in college over coffees at Tom's Restaurant, known mostly from Seinfeld, but also Susan Vega's Tom's Diner.

Then of course, there's D'Amico coffee (also good deli and exquisite hot chocolate in winter). John's Pizza, and Magnolia Bakery, two Lila birthday traditions for the years we lived there.

Billy's Bakery. Peter Luger. Sahadi. Katz' Deli. Odessa bar and restaurant. Fairway. Teresa's. Grimaldi's and the ice cream store across the street by the water. Yonah Schimmel's

Yes, New York City. Lots of aggressive people, but great food. Is there anything I forgot?

Photo Courtesy of Roger Karlsson's Flickrstream