A Spring In My Step

I enjoy music, almost every kind. At parties I never hesitate to, as they say, "shake what your momma gave you!" I can defend myself on the dancefloor, but nothing Fred Astaire would be proud of. My wife feels the same way and decided we should go take dancing classes. I was reluctant at first, simply because I don't like to feel tested for the way I move my body to the music. She insisted and last night we drove to where the class was given.

As soon as we entered, Salsa music flooded the mid-size hall and we saw two teachers and a couple practicing basic steps in front of a wall mirror. We were greeted by one of the teachers, also a coworker of my wife, and lined up beside them. They showed us some basic steps: left to right and forward to back. I was nervous at first, but then I let the music loosen me up and began to go with the flow.

Later we paired up and this time I wasn't feeling so loose. Where the left hand is supposed to be, when to push or pull your partner. I grumbled because of the strictness of it all. Dancing is supposed to be fun, not a rigid sequence of steps and perfect posture, but I got over that later on and had some fun dancing with my wife.

For next Monday we have to practice how to correctly twirl our partner. I haven't felt so much pressure since cramming for a college midterm. I'm exaggerating, of course, but we will definitely need to practice!

An Outing With Good Friends

An old friend from college and his partner came all the way from San Francisco to visit the Island this week. Bill and Larry had a hectic schedule every day, but separated yesterday evening to spend some quality time with us. Our motley crew consisted of our out-of-towners, Jan and wife Nana, Al and girlfriend Gilda, and my wife and yours truly.

The whole bunch assembled at Bill's hotel, brought each other up to date on our daily lives, and later decided to grab something to eat. Strolling along the streets of El Condado, we stopped at our impromptu destination: a local pizzeria, which name I can't recall. The menu was varied, but what really caught our eye was a pie christened La Puertorriqueña; a cheese pizza, covered in ground beef and sweet plantains!

We ate, reminisced our years at Mayagüez, and touched many a topic. After taking a couple of pictures to remember the occasion, we began to head back to the hotel, but stopped at a small local playground along the way. There we ran to the swings and pumped back and forth like when we were little kids. Since some of us were thirsty, we took a detour towards a gas station, then resumed our present course.

Back at the hotel, another friend of ours, Isaura, got off work and met us there. The night ended in miscellaneous chatter and long goodbyes. We were very happy to see our friend again and hope he and his partner come back to the Island soon.

Here's to you, Bill and Larry, and to good friends!

What US Congress Has In Store...

Previous Episode: Red, Green or Blue: What's The Difference?

Last night the debate for resident commissioner was on one of the local channels. The thing is that it was at the same time as The Apprentice. I first thought: "Hey, The Apprentice has a rerun sometime during the next week. I guess I'll watch the debate today then." I turned the channel back to the debate, but when the the first nominee began to answer by attacking his opponent I simply turned back to see The Donald and his wannabes.

I switched back and forth between the two, but after they fired one of the aspiring candidates I turned to the last 30 minutes of the debate. Even though they still pointed fingers, it was more cordial in a way. Much better than the previous gubernatorial candidate debate anyway. At least they presented more of their plans and answered the questions somewhat. In the end, they respectfully congratulated each other, something else that didn't take place with the candidates for La Fortaleza.

Politics in Puerto Rico is considered by many as our official sport because each person interviewed rooted and praised the nominee of their respective parties. That's the same closed minded attitude which will keep the Island stuck where we are as a society for years to come.

Time For My Close-up, Mr. Jobs

I was at work minding my own business, when a call came in to my cel. It was my good pal Digital. We exchanged hello's, but then he uttered 2 things he should've kept to himself:

1. The new iMac G5 arrived at CompUSA
2. The iSight's price was slashed by 50 bucks

Big mistake.

As soon as I left the office, my car practically drove itself to the nearby retailer. There I went directly to the Apple Shop, like I always do, and there it was in all it's 20 inch screen and 2 inch thick splendor. I was in awe at first, then disgusted, and back to being wowed by Apple's newest consumer PC. Dont worry, I didn't commit economic murder by buying one.

What I did do was snatch the first iSight I could find, run to the cashier, and walk out with my very own videoconference camera. As soon as I got home my wife and I tested it by chatting with her dad whose all the way in Laredo, TX. It worked like a charm and she was really happy to be able to communicate visually with her father.

Well, I guess now that this little iSight is stuck on top of my PowerBook, my life will apparently be transmitted like those reality shows on TV. Not likely, but I will have fun getting in touch with old friends in the States and make new onles along the way.

The Costume Is Now Complete!

When I arrived today from my lunch break, there was this pillow-like package waiting for me in the lobby. Realizing what it was, I quickly dashed to my office and opened the sucker up like a kid during Christmas. Lo and behold: the rest of our costumes had finally arrived! Of course I wasn't able to try mine on; I'm still at work.

This is great! The year before last I spent a bundle on Halloween costumes because I ordered mine too late. This year I planned ahead, did some research online, and now possess our atrocious attire for this October 31^st. Watch out, trick or treaters!

My Costume Has Layers!!!

Today I got the first piece of my costume for this year's PRJO Medieval Halloween party! Without revealing too much of what character I'm going as, it's the mask I'll be wearing with the rest of my ghastly attire. I'm still waiting for the rest to arrive, which also includes my wife's costume.

For those still costume hunting, here's where I bought mine:

• Costume Craze
• BuyCostumes.com

I've always loved Halloween! It's the only time I have to relive my childhood and dress up as anything I want. For last year's holiday, I conjured up a costume to dress up as Agent Smith from The Matrix movies. You can see the pictures right here.

PS: If you don't understand the subject, you'll get it when you see me on the 31^st. ;-)

A Night of Celebration And Chaos

Tonight was the boxing match everyone in Puerto Rico was waiting for; the return to the ring of Felix "Tito" Trinidad. I went to my parents' place to see the much awaited match between our comeback kid and a boxer from Nicaragua named Mayorga, who I might add probably went to Dennis Rodman for hair coloring tips; it was bright red!

The boxers had each their own style, but in the 8^th round we all knew it was over. Three knockouts and our Tito won the match! Everyone in the house, and probably on the entire Island, jumped for joy and cheered for our champion.

Maybe a little too much.

Since I was near the contender's home town, I was practically "held hostage" in my parents' house due to the fact that Tito's fans flooded the streets. The cops had to come in and take control of the crowds; they went as far as using tear gas! Anyway, an hour and a half later, the situation calmed down and I was ready to go to my home. On my way there I had to take a detour since the cops closed off the main road heading towards Guaynabo, probably because of some accident caused by inebriated fans

It really saddens me how our society is so overly excitable and takes their enthusiasm to such dangerous extremes. I'll definitely be checking the papers tomorrow morning and read about the post-victory aftermath.