via

As far as I can tell she doesn’t speak a word of English, though she understands some, and her Spanish is way too fast for me to follow, but somehow we communicate. In fact, the language barrier didn’t stop her from talking me into buying a bag of cactus one time. I’m sure cactus is lovely in meals, but as I haven’t a clue how to cook it my one foray into adventurous cooking was not all that successful. Still, I’ll probably buy another bag if she brings it again, but my favorites are the fruits and, of course, the tamales.

She’s probably in her 50s or 60s and, come to think of it, she may not actually be Mexican. I say this because, for one thing I really don’t know, and for another … well, when she first started bringing around the tamales they were pretty awful – bland and the masa falling apart and all kinds of stuff. Not, of course, that all Mexicans or all Latin@s are born knowing how to make tamales, or anything – she may have been an office worker or a doctor or something in her home country and is just selling tamales here as a way to make a little extra income - but if one is going to sell them, I think they should at least taste good, no?

Anyway, she kept bringing them and I kept buying them and over time they got better and better, until now they are very tasty, the masa is firm and they are well-wrapped. Yum. I look forward to her ringing the doorbell even if she does keep her finger on the button so that it goes ding!ding!ding!ding! – I can live with that.

Except when she showed up at my door yesterday, I wasn’t so happy to see her because I didn’t have any money for tamales or anything else. Feeding six people is a lot different from feeding two, and we tend to run out of money and food long before we run out of month, as they say. So when she rang – ding!ding!ding!ding! -and said somethingsomething tamales! I opened the door and said, “No, sorry. I don’t have any money!”

She didn’t quite understand at first and for the life of me I couldn’t remember the word “dinero”, so I rubbed my fingers together (I think that is the international sign language for money?) and shook my head, saying I don’t have any money, no cash. She nods as if she understands and then reaches into her basket and starts picking up tamales and putting them in the foil wrapper anyway!

So here I am out there saying, no no, and here she is saying who knows what (she really is the fastest talker I have met in any language) and calmly counting out a bunch of tamales and putting them into the foil – and then all of a sudden I catch the word “Sabado”.

Sabado? I say. I can pay you on Saturday? She smiles, nods decisively, puts the package of tamales in my hands, says a bunch of stuff and repeats Sabado and starts to walk off again with her basket almost before I can thank her.

Tamales are a treat anyway but that night they tasted especially good – not only because they made a change from the simple, spare meals we’d been having, but because they were flavored with… what? The milk of human kindness? The graciousness of one woman who saw more than just a customer, and more than what her customer told her?

I don’t know, but sometimes someone shows up at just the perfect time to remind me that although all may not be right with the world, some people make the world worth living in.

[tamale photo is from here]

what am i?

 via

I think this is one the best.

via

[updated title and category]

“We were here.” There are more elaborate, colorful and probably meaningful examples of ancient cave art, but to me there has always been something haunting about these.

Aborigine cave art at Carnarvon Gorge. via

Brave stand. via

Nap Time

When I was very young I wrote stories all the time, and sometimes even illustrated them. The older I grew, though, the less I wrote and the less confidence I had in writing at all, to the point where I just haven’t written anything resembling fiction in years.

Well, until last week. And, strangely, what broke the logjam was my cultural diversity class, where I had to write a journal as if I was a member of a minority group (not much fiction there, lol). The journal needed to cover where the group originated, was the area colonized and all sorts of things like that. As a Black woman who is researching her family history and slavery and African origins and all that, the assignment could almost have been made for me.

So, I wrote as if I was a Chinese woman immigrant. Or, rather, a series of them, four generations I think, and included stuff like the Chinese Exclusion act (of course) and such. Difficult to put it all in 1000 words, but that too was good practice and certainly more challenging and requiring more research than if I had just written what I know. There is not, however, a lot of readily accessible information on early Chinese female immigrants. I thought of asking Kai, but it was for such a short piece (and in such a short amount of time) that I just looked for myself. I am curious now, of course, so will probably do more research on my own as well.

Anyway,  the point is the entire thing ( all 1000 words lol) was fiction, and since I had to do it, I did it. And it was fun! And easy and I think that that tiny, quickly and not very well written piece has helped me overcome my fear of writing fiction a bit.

Might as well start creating some worlds, no?

[image at top is a fantasy spider mom and baby that I made years ago]

I have, right now, a 4.0 average and I don’t see that changing much as time goes on. Well, until I hit algebra, that is, maybe.

The work is pretty easy as this is the first block of classes and because many of the students have been out of a classroom environment for a lot of years, they seem to try and ease everyone in at first. I have been assured that the classes get progressively more challenging as time goes on. That’s good, as I like to stretch a bit and compete against myself to obtain the grades.

One immediate advantage, though, is that there is quite a bit of writing. In fact, as it’s an online university, it’s ALL writing. That’s what I wanted and that’s what I got.

I’m actually in University of Phoenix’s junior college, Axia, and I think once I get my associates degree, there I will end with them, as they don’t do english degrees. Not surprising as the school is mainly geared toward business and such. I will either transfer to somewhere else or, as the paper itself does not mean all that much to me, will go through some of the many open course writing/english courses online.

In fact, I plan on starting on those as soon as I get a computer. Even if I do decide to go on I don’t have the patience to wait two years to get to the stuff I really want to do.

Anyway, overall I am pleased. They have a few tools that are helpful in cleaning up your writing (one of which has previously told me that unless I am fitting someone for farm clothing, it’s better to use a different word than “overall”, but, oh well). And an excellent research library, which former students have free access to for life, so that’s a plus.

I’m pretty happy with things an am glad I did sign up. Even if it doesn’t all turn out like I want, even taking that step and changing the course of my life a little, opening up new vistas and sort of being a renewing force has already made it worthwhile.

Via Phila’s Friday Hope Blogging:

A new device uses GPS to lead desert-crossing immigrants to water:

The Transborder Immigrant Tool was developed by UC San Diego prof and activist Ricardo Dominguez and UCSD lecturer Brett Stalbaum. Both believe it will save the lives of hundreds of people who die each year during their trek across “Devil’s Highway”.

Here’s how the tool works. The phone, loaded with free GPS software, displays a digital compass that locates water stations installed by John Hunter, founder of the Water Stations project. Stations that are too far will not be displayed. The phone pinpoints “safety sites” — such as Border Patrol station, a clinic or a church — and includes poetry written by Amy Carroll to “welcome you to the U.S,” said Dominguez. Encrypted to avoid detection by authorities, phones are $30 and should be available by summer.

Heh. I love the “poetry” touch.