viernes, 28 de agosto de 2009

jueves, 27 de agosto de 2009

Blogging does?/does not? ruin friendships

Like this article affirms about FACEBOOK (How the title concerns the content of the text with precision? I have no idea but it is a good pitch for Facebook users to "dig" on it). As an occasional user of both channels I must admit discomfort and regret when I post too specific account of our activities or clearly irrelevant facts about life-our life. Who should care? Those who do would get to know it anyway...I understand the posture of the author very well. Sometimes I am compelled to feel the same (very, very bored, specially about the silly quizzes people compulsively take and even sillier results that strangely enough they volunteer to disclose!!!!). One should also appreciate the possibilities that this social networking offers. Mixed feelings: One can be creative, save time (no mass-emailing-impolite- but publishing-impersonal yet acceptable-), inform and get informed, have the option of a contact, etc. Anyone can also become annoying, silly, boring repetitive, a nuisance of www proportions! My limit: Never harass others to the point of urging to Twitter. MySpace is too much for certain ages and lifestyle. Who has the time to "secondlife" and "firstlife" efficiently?

By Elizabeth Bernstein in the Wall Street Journal Online:

" Notice to my friends: I love you all dearly. But I don't give a hoot that you are "having a busy Monday," your child "took 30 minutes to brush his teeth," your dog "just ate an ant trap" or you want to "save the piglets." And I really, really don't care which Addams Family member you most resemble. (I could have told you the answer before you took the quiz on Facebook.)
..."


I keep this cartoon in mind

domingo, 23 de agosto de 2009

We can´t blog so often

I am knitting 2 new projects, reading a dummie´s book on crocheting, finishing "Asta´s book," preparing the house, the wardrobes and supplies for the children to begin school in one week, catering for the family of 5 full-time, and supervising the construction of our new sauna.
J. is all about the building of our back deck (terrace); back to work on Monday.
E, J.A. and J.J. are too busy enjoying their last days of Summer holidays. Tomorrow E. has a get together with the Reaalkool group that will form for newcomers to 7th grade.
I would love to visit Yvonne before the end of the season.
We missed to contact so many people this Summer, but next year we can already organize terrace parties.
Sara should come and stay few days. How nice it would be to see her after 10 years.
Not hearing anything from Josefina disconcerts me. Are you around? Last thing I heard you were moving from UAE to Algeria...I think of you and your life with 3 toddlers...I miss our life in Washington. We were so young, so happy. We are still happy, are not we?

Returning soon! Documenting also.

martes, 18 de agosto de 2009

Why J. takes this sort of pictures????

J. used to surprise me with them long ago, now I get deeply confused when out of 300 photos taken during our family outings 275 are moved, blurry -in the digital age- or simply like the few below: weird. Maybe the interest on the images resides in their very senselessness?

1. Anytown anywhere?
2. !!!???!!!
3. Whose head is this? Who was supposed to be the main character on the picture?
4. The wrong family. Unidentifiable people that we have never-ever seen in our lives, not even during the capture!




A more constructive annotation, from TED(www.ted.com):


lunes, 17 de agosto de 2009

Friends are leaving

This time to Brussels. Foreign service. Some friends are also returning from Kiev, after 7 years abroad. This is why I am not that sad, and in any case we have the plan to visit them before next Summer. It is very hard to move around the world with children and forget about home, projects, routines and expectations. It is specially difficult to neglect one´s career. The life of a diplomat´s family is no paradise as it might seem.

My grandmother left her hometown Ovejas, Colombia (below, left) in 1941(?), for entirely different reasons. They made their home in Medellin, Colombia (below, right. The house in the city and a country house they visited sometimes). I think she never overcame loosing her sense of belonging despite the many gains. I can very well relate to that!




miércoles, 12 de agosto de 2009

Ex-libris, again




I love al of these, in no particular order. Mine should include blue, a monogram of some sort, sea life connotations, and silluetes no matter how complicated combining all of it might seem.

Mas ocupada que nunca


Por las vacaciones de la familia entera y la cantidad de cosas por hacer de este verano. Ha hecho sol por semanas y hemos aprovechado cada momento posible afuera de la casa, cocinamos afuera, comemos afuera, hasta dormimos afuera o con las puertas y ventanas de par en par. En una semana y media cuando volvamos a las rutinas nos ponemos al dia en forma. Como no estoy por el computador con tanta frecuencia, son pocas las paginas que he visitado, pero entre esas vi lo siguiente:

-De poco impacto grafico pero idiomaticamente atractivo, convincente. Nada de que "la margarina para la mesa y para la cocina a todos nos gusta mas..."Algo parecido podrian pensar los que se encargan de los anuncios de jabones y detergentes:



-Una idea simple, una solucion perfecta para un problema de todos los que leemos paperbacks de 500 paginas y apenas logramos mantenerlos abiertos sin despedazarlos:


imagen: "ya no quedan blogs"

-Claro. Lo visual no deja ninguna duda. La web que comercializa esta tiene muchas mas por el estilo o en todo caso originales:


www.threadless.com

- Un capricho de siempre: Un cameo griego. Azulado. Broche.