I remember feeling completely overwhelmed in the grocery store when I first got here. I didn't know where anything was in the stores. I didn't know what anything was, either. All I saw was a sea of unfamiliar products and unfamiliar brands, and I had no way of knowing what kind of quality I was in for. I had no idea how I was going to manage without the conveniences of canned soup and boxed macaroni and cheese. For a long time, I sustained myself solely on grilled cheese sandwiches.
However, four months later, I am happy to report that I could probably navigate a Mercadona in my sleep. I can whip up some darn good meals from these ingredients that only a few months earlier seemed so strange. I have gone to a large assortment of grocery stores, checked out their shelves, and seen what they have to offer. And I've eaten far fewer grilled cheese sandwiches in recent months.
To this day, I still buy familiar American brands. Heinz. Hellman's. Old El Paso. Dannon. Coca-Cola.
But now I'm developing some new brand loyalties as well. I know that Hacendado is usually pretty reliable. Bimbo is guaranteed to be good bread. Pascual has decent milk. And I have yet to come across a dish soap that is better than Fairy.
Moral of the story? Some of the things that once overwhelmed me have become so inconsequential. Give it time, and you can make a life almost anywhere. Or at least, give it time, and you'll eventually learn how to grocery shop anywhere. I guess 'making a life' is still in the works.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Traveling Mercies
So I got the Kindle! It came yesterday! And can I just say... I'm hooked.
I am not sure if it's the Kindle itself, or the book I'm reading, but I can't put this thing down. I started reading a new book around 1:00 yesterday, and I'm already halfway through.
I decided that the first book that I would read on the Kindle would be Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott. I will admit that I actually have this book at home, on my bookshelf. But it's not doing me much good here. I actually asked my mom to send it to me a few months ago, but either she didn't find it, or she forgot. And I still wanted to read it. The fact that I can now have any book (besides the Harry Potter series) in my hands in less than a minute (and in English, no less), is a great power to have.
I am loving this book, and I would just like to share one small sentence that brought my soul to its knees:
Now, back to the Kindle...
I am not sure if it's the Kindle itself, or the book I'm reading, but I can't put this thing down. I started reading a new book around 1:00 yesterday, and I'm already halfway through.
I decided that the first book that I would read on the Kindle would be Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott. I will admit that I actually have this book at home, on my bookshelf. But it's not doing me much good here. I actually asked my mom to send it to me a few months ago, but either she didn't find it, or she forgot. And I still wanted to read it. The fact that I can now have any book (besides the Harry Potter series) in my hands in less than a minute (and in English, no less), is a great power to have.
I am loving this book, and I would just like to share one small sentence that brought my soul to its knees:
How perfect is that sentence? In 14 words, Anne Lamott has summarized the most basic wishes for my life in Spain. Love the journey. God is with you. Come home safe and sound. So fitting."'Traveling mercies,' the old people at our church said to her when she left. This is what they always say when one of us goes off for a while. Traveling mercies: love the journey, God is with you, come home safe and sound."
Now, back to the Kindle...
Monday, January 24, 2011
Pittsburgh's Going to the Superbowl!
Yep, I stayed up until 4am to watch the AFC Championship.
And yep, we won!
And yep, that means that Pittsburgh's going to the Superbowl!
It also means that I couldn't be more excited!!
You can take the girl out of Pittsburgh, but you'll never take Pittsburgh out of the girl! I bleed black and gold.
(Oh, and the second best part? My roommate is from Green Bay. This is going to be epic.)
Sunday, January 23, 2011
fighting words.
So, I'm happy to report that my venture into reading in Spanish is going well so far. I'm understanding everything. I'm finding lots of new vocabulary. I'm feeling confident, productive, and smart. All good things.
The best part? Today's "lesson" was fighting words. Here's a short list of my new vocabulary:
¡Lárgate!: Buzz-off!
Rojo de ira: red with anger/wrath
Chillar: to shriek or shout
Apretar los puños: to clench the fists
Calumniar: to slander
Agarrar por el cuello: to grab by the neck
Ahogarse: to drown
Salvajada: savage act
Bofetada: slap
Palmada: slap or pat
Hacerse añicos: to break into a thousand pieces/smash to smithereens
Amargamente: bitterly
Encolerizarse: to lose one’s temper
Estafar: swindle
Exigir: to demand
....and my personal favorite, ¡Dame tu dinero o te rajo!: “Give me your money, or I’ll cut you!”
You can rest easy knowing I will now be able to hold my own should I find myself in a quarrel -- at least vocabulary-wise.
Friday, January 21, 2011
de buen humor
It's been a good week. I've been de buen humor, in a good mood.
The week started with badminton and ended with the Spanish version of kickball. It included the new ritual of 'rueda inglesa', which means that from now on, car rides home (in certain company) will be spent practicing English. (This makes me happy. Despite the fact that car rides are a great place for practicing Spanish, there are few things that I love more than hearing Spaniards attempt English.) We had our second meeting of "English Club" at school, which turned out to be 1 (yes, one) girl coming to chat with me during recess, and mostly in Spanish. (But shhh, don't tell.) I went out to dinner this week, just for the heck of it. I feel like I had a lot of good conversations. I was invited to Morocco. Or Cadiz. Oh, and I became an 'amiga' of one of the beggars who sits near the cathedral.
I also began reading a new book -- IN SPANISH. In the first 7 pages I have filled the front and back of a page from my little notebook with new vocabulary words. Tricky! I understood the jist of what was happening, but there are plenty of unfamiliar words. This is the first Spanish book that I am attempting to read on my own, outside of class. We shall see how it goes. But I'm optimistic. One of the teachers recommended it to me today as I was scanning the shelves of the school library. So I have some motivation to finish it. Wish me luck with this venture.
Tomorrow I am also supposed to be meeting another teacher at the public library, so that she can help me find a book in Spanish. I may be getting in over my head here, but I agreed to this appointment before taking a gander at the school library. If nothing else, hopefully she'll be able to help me navigate the public library a little better. And, best case scenario: I'll find another good book to read, and I'll make a habit of reading in Spanish. One can hope.
I have reinstated my "25 books a year" rule -- which really isn't that many, but it encourages continuous reading. I was a failure at reading last year -- only about 4 books all year. What a pity. This year I've got to do better. And I'm sure that I will. I have already finished 2 books, and since I have a Kindle on the way (WOOHOO!), I'm sure I'll be reading more. I've also decided to count each Spanish book as 2 books, which I think is fair, considering the extra time and effort that I will need to spend on vocab and comprehension.
So yes. I suppose if you want to call these resolutions, I'm making progress.
Oh, and also this week, I've been thinking about next year, and where I might want to be. And I'm working on some applications. I'm also inquiring about going back to volunteer at the place where I did my internship the last time I was here. So, I'm also on my way to becoming a productive member of society, which is always commendable.
Only complaint for the week?
Correos. I inquired about the package yesterday, and they said it was still in Madrid (though she was very sparse with details). They told me to call customer service, who said "there is no information available for your package". Rosa thinks somebody swiped the Kindle. I'm still holding my breath that it might show up.
Oh, I would also like to officially complain about the ola de frío. The cold is back -- with a vengeance.
The week started with badminton and ended with the Spanish version of kickball. It included the new ritual of 'rueda inglesa', which means that from now on, car rides home (in certain company) will be spent practicing English. (This makes me happy. Despite the fact that car rides are a great place for practicing Spanish, there are few things that I love more than hearing Spaniards attempt English.) We had our second meeting of "English Club" at school, which turned out to be 1 (yes, one) girl coming to chat with me during recess, and mostly in Spanish. (But shhh, don't tell.) I went out to dinner this week, just for the heck of it. I feel like I had a lot of good conversations. I was invited to Morocco. Or Cadiz. Oh, and I became an 'amiga' of one of the beggars who sits near the cathedral.
I also began reading a new book -- IN SPANISH. In the first 7 pages I have filled the front and back of a page from my little notebook with new vocabulary words. Tricky! I understood the jist of what was happening, but there are plenty of unfamiliar words. This is the first Spanish book that I am attempting to read on my own, outside of class. We shall see how it goes. But I'm optimistic. One of the teachers recommended it to me today as I was scanning the shelves of the school library. So I have some motivation to finish it. Wish me luck with this venture.
Tomorrow I am also supposed to be meeting another teacher at the public library, so that she can help me find a book in Spanish. I may be getting in over my head here, but I agreed to this appointment before taking a gander at the school library. If nothing else, hopefully she'll be able to help me navigate the public library a little better. And, best case scenario: I'll find another good book to read, and I'll make a habit of reading in Spanish. One can hope.
I have reinstated my "25 books a year" rule -- which really isn't that many, but it encourages continuous reading. I was a failure at reading last year -- only about 4 books all year. What a pity. This year I've got to do better. And I'm sure that I will. I have already finished 2 books, and since I have a Kindle on the way (WOOHOO!), I'm sure I'll be reading more. I've also decided to count each Spanish book as 2 books, which I think is fair, considering the extra time and effort that I will need to spend on vocab and comprehension.
So yes. I suppose if you want to call these resolutions, I'm making progress.
Oh, and also this week, I've been thinking about next year, and where I might want to be. And I'm working on some applications. I'm also inquiring about going back to volunteer at the place where I did my internship the last time I was here. So, I'm also on my way to becoming a productive member of society, which is always commendable.
Only complaint for the week?
Correos. I inquired about the package yesterday, and they said it was still in Madrid (though she was very sparse with details). They told me to call customer service, who said "there is no information available for your package". Rosa thinks somebody swiped the Kindle. I'm still holding my breath that it might show up.
Oh, I would also like to officially complain about the ola de frío. The cold is back -- with a vengeance.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
haluski
I made haluski for lunch today. And actually, it's not the first time that I've made it here. I am pretty sure it's the third time or so. And I'm definitely sure it won't be the last time. For such a delicious, homey dish, it's really quite simple. And each time I make it, I can feel the Polish ancestry growing stronger in my blood.
Which brings me to my next point. Here, I don't really consider myself to be anything but American. I think about ethnicity in a different way now that I'm surrounded by such a homogeneous group of people. (Most Spaniards are, in fact, Spanish.) In the US, we differentiate between our nationalities, I think mostly to distinguish ourselves from one another - to make ourselves more individual and unique. But here, I'm unique enough. I'm just American. I get funny looks when I tell people that I'm Irish or Polish. So I don't tell them that. Instead I say, "my ancestors were Irish." or "my family came from Poland." And really, being American is all I know. (Aside from having a grandma that makes mean pierogies and haluski.)
But either way, I'm loving the haluski. And when I share it with somebody who has never had it before, I get warm feelings of family pride. Heck yes, we can make cabbage taste that good.
Which brings me to my next point. Here, I don't really consider myself to be anything but American. I think about ethnicity in a different way now that I'm surrounded by such a homogeneous group of people. (Most Spaniards are, in fact, Spanish.) In the US, we differentiate between our nationalities, I think mostly to distinguish ourselves from one another - to make ourselves more individual and unique. But here, I'm unique enough. I'm just American. I get funny looks when I tell people that I'm Irish or Polish. So I don't tell them that. Instead I say, "my ancestors were Irish." or "my family came from Poland." And really, being American is all I know. (Aside from having a grandma that makes mean pierogies and haluski.)
But either way, I'm loving the haluski. And when I share it with somebody who has never had it before, I get warm feelings of family pride. Heck yes, we can make cabbage taste that good.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
going postal, and other things.
I told myself that I was going to be better about blogging. Maybe if I tell you, too, I will actually post more.
Anyway, I am stillimpatiently waiting for a package that mom sent me before Christmas. It was 'guaranteed' to arrive before December 24. Oh, you know.. just a month late. No big deal.
You see, the package got held up in customs, and I had to go through a whole bunch of bureaucracy to figure out all of that jazz. (And we all know by now that Spanish bureaucracy isn't much of a party, right?) I got an email last Thursday (a week ago) that said that the package was freed from customs, and that Correos would be delivering it. But still no word. I think I might try to stop into the post office tomorrow to see if they have any info. I'm really anxious about it. Want to know why?
Because it contains a Kindle! Yep. A Kindle.
The girls that I teach on Monday and Wednesday asked me what the Wisemen brought me for Christmas. "Nothing." I said. "They didn't know that I was here."
"Oh." They replied. "So then what did Santa bring you?"
I told them that Santa brought a Kindle to my house in the United States, so my mom had to mail it to me. And I still haven't gotten it yet. (And no, they didn't know what a Kindle was.)
Next year, (if there is a next year), Santa should just bring it in through my window here in Spain. It would have saved me a 42€ customs fee and hours of trying to figure out how to rescue theprincess, I mean package.
And speaking of Santa and money.
One of the teachers that I work with told me the best story.
She said that her daughter had asked for a video camera from the Wisemen this year. Her reasoning? "Well mom, if I ask the Wisemen for expensive things, we are really getting them for free."
What a clever, well-intentioned child!
Anyway, I am still
You see, the package got held up in customs, and I had to go through a whole bunch of bureaucracy to figure out all of that jazz. (And we all know by now that Spanish bureaucracy isn't much of a party, right?) I got an email last Thursday (a week ago) that said that the package was freed from customs, and that Correos would be delivering it. But still no word. I think I might try to stop into the post office tomorrow to see if they have any info. I'm really anxious about it. Want to know why?
Because it contains a Kindle! Yep. A Kindle.
The girls that I teach on Monday and Wednesday asked me what the Wisemen brought me for Christmas. "Nothing." I said. "They didn't know that I was here."
"Oh." They replied. "So then what did Santa bring you?"
I told them that Santa brought a Kindle to my house in the United States, so my mom had to mail it to me. And I still haven't gotten it yet. (And no, they didn't know what a Kindle was.)
Next year, (if there is a next year), Santa should just bring it in through my window here in Spain. It would have saved me a 42€ customs fee and hours of trying to figure out how to rescue the
And speaking of Santa and money.
One of the teachers that I work with told me the best story.
She said that her daughter had asked for a video camera from the Wisemen this year. Her reasoning? "Well mom, if I ask the Wisemen for expensive things, we are really getting them for free."
What a clever, well-intentioned child!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
working hard (or hardly working)
So this is what it feels like to work again. You know, it's almost embarrassing, but I was exhausted after today! I had to take a siesta. Yes, the first day of my three-day work week, and I was wiped out. Good thing I've got those four-day weekends to recuperate.
I even made some money today. 30€ and a chocolate euro coin. Successful day, I think.
But I can't help but wonder. What am I going to do when my 12 hour work weeks turn back into 40 hour work weeks? Especially when they won't allot time for the ever essential siesta. What have I gotten myself into?
...Not sure, but I'm enjoying it while it lasts!
I even made some money today. 30€ and a chocolate euro coin. Successful day, I think.
But I can't help but wonder. What am I going to do when my 12 hour work weeks turn back into 40 hour work weeks? Especially when they won't allot time for the ever essential siesta. What have I gotten myself into?
...Not sure, but I'm enjoying it while it lasts!
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Los Próximos Tres Días
Maybe I'll take some headshots and sign autographs after the movie. ;)
Sunday, January 9, 2011
So this is the New Year...
I know that I'm WAY overdue with this post here. Sometimes, though, when things are good, I just can't think of any good way to convey it to you through blogging. So, if I should happen to take a while to post something, you can probably assume that it's going to be good (the event, not necessarily the blog post).
For most of my friends, Christmas break ends today (and for most Americans, it ended last week!). But, as always, I've got the extended weekend, meaning that I am still de vacaciones until Wednesday. The break has been good though -- maybe even great. I've had about 3 weeks to just hang out, relax, travel around, and engage in some tomfoolery. And who doesn't love some tomfoolery every now and again?
During this break, I've made new friends, traveled (finally) outside of Spain, took day trips to Madrid, gotten better acquainted with Toledo, and I think... at some point... we became "regulars" at a few locales. I finished a good book, I baked, I did a lot of laundry, I became accustomed to living alone... (and now I must quickly become unaccustomed to living alone).
My trip to Lisbon was fantastic. The weather, though rainy, was much more pleasant than it has been in Toledo (it was a bit more bipolar, as well). It was mostly gray, sprinkled occasionally, and the sun even decided to show its face every now and then. My friend was sick with what we self-diagnosed as Strep, and I can't believe she managed to actually still go out and see things. If it were me in that situation, I'm sure I would have been a much bigger baby. I feel like we got to see and do a lot of things, but we were never rushed. And that's the way, (uh huh, uh huh) I like it.
This New Year's Eve has to have been the best one of my mere 23 years of living. When we got to Lisbon, we had no plans for how we would spend the night. We were still not sure what we were going to do at 7:00pm on New Year's Eve. We asked the receptionist at the hostel if he knew of any place to go for dinner, and he invited us to have dinner at the hostel, with his friends. We ended up making some new Spanish friends (irony) who were also staying at the hostel. They shared their dinners with us, and we all went together to the main plaza before midnight. It was so great. We brought cans of grapes from Spain, and tried to do the traditional eat-all-12-grapes-before-the-clock-strikes-12 business, which was fun, though didn't work out so well. It's hard to eat a grape every second. Try it (when nobody is watching). But I think we deserve some slack since it was our first attempt! The atmosphere was so great. They had music playing in the plaza, (some live, and then some recorded) and fireworks going off from all 4 sides. It was incredible. It was definitely a great way to spend the first night of the New Year.
I'll post some more pictures of Lisbon in the near future. If you haven't seen, I've added a Flickr box to my blog, and I've been putting some pictures there. I feel like the world of picture uploading can be somewhat of a pain in the rear. But you know...
Just wanted to make a quick post to let you know that everything is going well.
2011 is off to a pretty good start.
For most of my friends, Christmas break ends today (and for most Americans, it ended last week!). But, as always, I've got the extended weekend, meaning that I am still de vacaciones until Wednesday. The break has been good though -- maybe even great. I've had about 3 weeks to just hang out, relax, travel around, and engage in some tomfoolery. And who doesn't love some tomfoolery every now and again?
During this break, I've made new friends, traveled (finally) outside of Spain, took day trips to Madrid, gotten better acquainted with Toledo, and I think... at some point... we became "regulars" at a few locales. I finished a good book, I baked, I did a lot of laundry, I became accustomed to living alone... (and now I must quickly become unaccustomed to living alone).
My trip to Lisbon was fantastic. The weather, though rainy, was much more pleasant than it has been in Toledo (it was a bit more bipolar, as well). It was mostly gray, sprinkled occasionally, and the sun even decided to show its face every now and then. My friend was sick with what we self-diagnosed as Strep, and I can't believe she managed to actually still go out and see things. If it were me in that situation, I'm sure I would have been a much bigger baby. I feel like we got to see and do a lot of things, but we were never rushed. And that's the way, (uh huh, uh huh) I like it.
This New Year's Eve has to have been the best one of my mere 23 years of living. When we got to Lisbon, we had no plans for how we would spend the night. We were still not sure what we were going to do at 7:00pm on New Year's Eve. We asked the receptionist at the hostel if he knew of any place to go for dinner, and he invited us to have dinner at the hostel, with his friends. We ended up making some new Spanish friends (irony) who were also staying at the hostel. They shared their dinners with us, and we all went together to the main plaza before midnight. It was so great. We brought cans of grapes from Spain, and tried to do the traditional eat-all-12-grapes-before-the-clock-strikes-12 business, which was fun, though didn't work out so well. It's hard to eat a grape every second. Try it (when nobody is watching). But I think we deserve some slack since it was our first attempt! The atmosphere was so great. They had music playing in the plaza, (some live, and then some recorded) and fireworks going off from all 4 sides. It was incredible. It was definitely a great way to spend the first night of the New Year.
 |
| Fireworks in the Plaza |
I'll post some more pictures of Lisbon in the near future. If you haven't seen, I've added a Flickr box to my blog, and I've been putting some pictures there. I feel like the world of picture uploading can be somewhat of a pain in the rear. But you know...
Just wanted to make a quick post to let you know that everything is going well.
2011 is off to a pretty good start.