Ignorance, by Milan Kundera

Molly, my housemate, recommended my reading a book by Milan Kundera. She had never read Ignorance, but she is a great fan of the Czech-French writer, so I gave it a try.

The title is a pretty strong starting point. The novel focuses in the lives of two Czech immigrants who return to Prague after the end of the communist regime. They both feel unattached to what was once their home and realize that the reality they had for their country is no longer true. The novel reworks the Odyssey, as a trip back home where no one is really expecting Odysseus and he isn't receive as he thought he would. Ignorance to what has been forgotten and ignorance to what wants to be forgotten.

I didn't like the lack of action in the book. It may be more about the feelings, but there is a void in the book I can't understand. I couldn't see complex characters and in general the book was irrelevant to me. I've heard great things about Kundera, but this book wasn't what I had expected.

You Don't Mess with the Zohan

Last night I watched You Don't Mess with the Zohan, a 2008 American/Israeli comedy film, directed by Dennis Dugan and starring Adam Sandler. The movie pictures the life of Zohan Dvir, an isreali soldier whose dream is to go to America and start a hairdressing business. In his way to the top of the business he will have to face love, his old enemies and lots of funny moments. I am very thankful to Guille (Bangkok) for recomending me this movie. It is stupid but absolutely hilarious! YOU MUST WATCH IT!

What are you? Bionic?
No, I only like the ladies.

The Age of Innocence, by Edith Warthon

Today I finished reading the first book I bought since I got to Singapore: The Age of Innocence, by Edith Warthon. I was looking for a 300-page cheap book, and the edition of Vintage Classics was perfect to fulfill my requests. I also chose it because I had seen the name of the book in several lists of the best novels of the 20th century, and I thought I couldn't go wrong with it.

The Age of Innocence was first published in 1920, and it won the 1921 Pulitzer Prize. The story is set in upper class New York City in the 1870s. It depicts the love story of Newland Archer, a succesful lawyer, and May Welland, a beautiful young lady from an important family. But there is no interesting love story without a third wheel, who is played by Countess Ellen Olenska, May's cousin. It is not just a love story, but a reflect of a society that lacks comprehension, that acts superficially and that can protect you today and kill you tomorrow. I liked the book, but I would never read it again. I think that the vocabulary was way too complicated (that hadn't happened to me in a long time) and the story wasn't captivating.

Puchi Puchi is home

Today I went to my parents' to get my Puchi Puchi. I phoned Pedro (the doorman at my parent's building) and he said that he had 2 packages waiting for me. And those 2 packages were the 2 Puchi Puchis me and Catu had won on eBay. How exciting this was! So instead of having lunch with my coworkers in the office i decided to have it at my parents'. The package had been sent from London, and the item had been made in China. The first impression hasn't been as great as I had expected. I am kind of disappointed with my Puchi Puchi! Gosh, waiting for a week and now I don't get what I wanted... The touch of the toy is not as real as popping real bubbles. Anyway, as Catu said, we couldn't expect much more after paying just 2,19£.

Update: After great dishonor to myself and Catu, it seems like everybody loves Puchi Puchis now. Raul, Roberto, Eva and Susana are bidding for one... I guess we are pioneers on the Tech side of the Spanish life :P

José Andrés On Top Chef

Last night I watched the 11th episode of the 4th season of Top Chef. And guess what? José Andrés, the Spanish chef, host of a TV show for the Spanish Public TV and owner of 5 restaurants in Washington DC, was there! It was a great surprise seeing him on Bravo TV as the guess judge for that round. The contestants had to battle in the famous Restaurant Wars, were two teams have to open a restaurant in 8 hours. In one team we had Antonia, Richard & Stephanie who decided to open a Gastro Pub called Warehouse Kitchen. From the beginning we could see that they were the strong team, great team-players, no old quarrels and my favorite cook in the team (Richard). On the other team, the remaining cooks: Dale, Lisa & Spike; who went for an Asian restaurant (Dale, Asian... I think I've heard that before).

As you can imagine, the results were completely different. While all the dishes from the Warehouse Kitchen had a consistent quality and seemed flavorful, the Asian team lacked team-work and execution... I am happy that José Andrés didn't pick too much on the contestants, but I am sure that he can do better with his Spanish accent than that!

The Office Season finale

Last night I watched the season finale of the 4th season of The Office. It was a good episode, one of those long ones, with Tobby leaving the office. I think that for the last 4 years, nobodys liked Tobby. I agree with Michael, when he says:

Thanks to Toby I have a very strong prejudice against Human Resources. I believe that the department is a breeding ground for monsters.

Hahaha, that was so good. Unfortunately Jim couldnt propose to Pam, which is kind of sad, because they are such a good couple. And to end up this post, my favorite quote from this episode:

Michael Scott: I am downloading some N3P music--
Jim Halpert: [quickly] That's not it. Yep?
Michael Scott: --for a CD mix tape--
Jim Halpert: Close.
Michael Scott: --for Holly. And I am looking for perfect songs that
work on two levels.
Jim Halpert: What are the two levels?
Michael Scott: The two levels being, welcome to Scranton and I love you.

I got my Puchi Puchi

English Xevi is back. And I have great news for everybody: I bought a Puchi Puchi. Don't tell me you don't know what a Puchi Puchi is! Puchi Puchi is the latest craze from those bubbletastic Japanese – an electronic bubble packaging popping simulator! They sold 1 million pieces within 2 months of going on sale, and people love them. The manufacturer, Bandai, says that they are out of stock, but thanks to ebay.es we were able to get 2 units (one for me and another one for my friend Catu). I can't wait to have it with me!

Street Kings

Last night, with my cousin Santi and his friends, we went to the movies. We weren't sure about which film to watch, and after changing plans for the forth time, we decided that we wanted to see Street Kings. This film features some great actors as Keanu Reeves, Forest Whitaker and Chris Evans. The film starts with Reeves holding a gun, loading it and puking his pants... Wauh, nice way to start! I didn't like the movie at all. Maybe it was because the sound in the theater was way too loud. Maybe it was because there are some incredibly explicit bloody scences. Or maybe just because the maybay was good at all.

Top Chef (Season 3)

Last week I started watching the 3rd season of Top Chef, my favorite reality show (see my post about the finale of the 2nd season). If you haven't watched it, this show is all about cooking. 15 people start the competition, and every episode there is a Quickfire Challenge and an Elimination Challenge. In the Quickfire Challenge the contestants have to create a small dish or an amuse-bouche with a given product or in special situation. The winner of the Quickfire gets immunity for the Elimination Challenge, where the show gets "nasty". This elimination challenge can imply different difficulties for the cooks: work with low-cholesterol food, cook in a luxurious barbecue, reinvent American classics, or cook for children.

Well, so this 3rd season, as far as the 4th episode, isn't that different from the other season. There are the typical characters: the egocentric chef, the though black guy, the crying female chef that misses her daughter, the aggressive big fat white cook... Thrilling, isn't it? I love this show, and I will keep you updated as I get closer to the finale.

Nice weekend in Madrid

This last weekend had a little of everything. We did lots of things: cooking, eating, going out... On Friday afternoon I went to Luis' apartment, and we unsuccesfully installed Ubuntu server on one of his computers. We were almost done, when we saw that the last package with the GUI was failing... That wasn't enough to stop us, so Fer, Alan and I decided to have dinner together at my parents'. We had a wonderful dinner: we cooked potatoes, some migas, cheese, pork sausage, fried eggs, salmorejo... I have to say that it was a good dinner. After this, we went to Alan's, and chilled out for a while. Luis joined us, as well as both Esthers. We had some drinks, enjoyed being together, and late at night we went back to bed.

On Saturday I thought that my sister and Miguel Angel were going to come to my apartment to help me with the hanging of a mirror and a picture. But they had other things to do, so I decided to go to Alcorcon to get my late Xmas present from everis. I already knew what the present was, but it was still exciting. It is a green bike, with the logo and everis all around the bike haha. I went back home, had something to eat, and went out for a bike tour. I didnt remember it, but biking is tiring! I think I didn't last longer than 45 minutes, but to me it seemed like going up the Tourmalet!

I had a quick shower, and went back to my parents' apartment. They were out for the weekend, so I decided that even if it would be the same being alone at my apartment or at my parents', my parents' is bigger and has a better TV! In the afternoon Guille gave me a call, and told me that all the people he was with at the library studying for their finals decided to take a break and go out for beers. We all met at El Capitan, a bar in Duque de Pastrana square, which looks little a small and dark bar, but with lots of success between the cool rich young people.

After the beers, Alan and I went back to his place, and after calling Fer, we had dinner again the three of us. That night the cook was Alan, and he didn't disappoint us. He cooked some beef, some pork loin, cheese, king prawns, eggplants and I did the salad. Again, and amazing dinner. I have to say that we are becoming amazing cooks! We had some drinks after dinner with the Esthers, and Alan, Esther, Esther and I went out without Fer (I was feeling tired) and Luis (who never made it to Alan's). We went to Mama no lo sabe (it was OK, but TOO CROWDED), to Vanitas (we didn't make it in), to Amor Brujo (closed) and to Black Star (which was playing 30-year-old music).

And yesterday I didnt do much. Stayed at home, watch a movie, went out for a walk... Tipical Sunday.

Cooking and movies

I prefer to make a meal for 200 people to making a film, because when cooking you don't have to talk about your dish for 5 years and nobody asks you why you did the pasta in just this way.

Francis Ford Coppola

After cooking some movies!

Back to French

I know I should be writing this post in French, but I feel so embarrassed of my level that i am writing in the other foreign language i know better (no way, catalan is not a foreign language :P). Well, I am taking online classes right now, and things are going ok. I feel like i lost so much after only using English for the last years of my life, but I am going to make a big effort to recover my french. Le passé composé, l'imparfait, les pronoms relatifs simples... This is going to be hard, mais je pense que je peux triompher (I am sure that out of 7 words 3 of them are wrong hahaha)

Heroes s02e01

The second season of Heroes just started! I am so excited about it. Last night I tried to watch it through the website of NBC, after they had announced that it would be available the day after its broadcasting on their website, but I couldn't do so. I just got an error message saying that the action I was trying to do was illegal outside the US. So I had to find an alternative way, and I thought of joox.net. They have everything you need. It is some kind of youtube like website, but with divX quality videos.

After watching the episode I am a little disapointed by the way this second season started. We have some new heroes: a brother and sister from south america whose powers (is the sister the only one with powers in that family? what about her mom?) are to (kill people??). And then the new friend of Claire "no-longer-Bennet" Butler is a flying man, like Claire's biological father Nathan Petrelli. In this first episode they show us the lifes of all our heroes 4 months after the finale of the first season, and it seems like most of them have gone back to anonymity. Suresh is bak in India, the Bennet family moved to California, Hiro is in the 17th century in Japan, and the rest of them are in New York.

Long life to Heroes

Hairspray!

Last night I went to Cines Ideal in Madrid to watch Hairspray. This musical film takes place in Baltimore during the 60's, and talks about how different people can overcome the obstacules of life. The main character is Tracy Turnblad (played by Nikki Blonsky), and her dream would be becoming a member of the The Corny Collins Show cast. One day, and after the sick leave of one of the dancers in the show, she gets the chance to start dancing in front of a camera. Then she will have to face all the problems of being BIGGER than the others, and trying to integrate black people in the show and therefore in society. It is funny how she wants everyday to be Negro day, and one of her black friends says: At our house... it is.

I love musicals, I am not gonna lie, but I think that this one is a pretty good one, with a great setting, with catchy songs, and with some marvelous hairdressing. And by the way, John Travolta playing the plus-sized shut-in laundress mother as incredible!

Happy Feet

I just finished watching Happy Feet. OMG! It is an amazing movie. I am a big lover of animation movie, and this one was up to my standards. The story talks about a little emperor penguin who is different, just because he dances instead of singing, as all the other penguins do in his community. But after meeting 5 little penguins, who are led by the crazy Ramon, his life changes, and he tries to save his community from the pollution that is destroying their environment. I couldn't stop laughing after listening to quotes as:

Ramón: You did everything penguinly possible.

I have to say that this is a must-see movie. Love it!

Sicko, by Michael Moore

Today I watched Sicko, the last movie by Michael Moore, the famous populist American film-director. His last movie is about the use of health as a profitable activity in the United States. This isn't his first documentary showing the lack of freedom and social services in the US (remember Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11), and he uses the same approach he used in the previous documentaries. He tries to show the differences between the US system, and the one used in Canada and other European countries as France and the UK. It is funny to see how an American person is so surprised of knowing that in Europe we get 5 paid-weeks off work a year, unlimited sick days, "free" college and health, and retirement. It is confusing how he tries to use the f word all the time: FREE. This isn't free, this is solidarity, where the rich pays for the poor. There is a great sentence by a French doctor called Milliez, who says that in France "You pay according to your means and you get according to your needs". That is the whole point of democracy, not free as "no cost", but free as accessible to everybody and showing the solidarity of everybody towards their neighbor.

I got my Certificate of Proficiency in English

I don't know if this is a good idea. I mean, I don't know if I should write this post in English, since after getting my Certificate of Proficiency in English I shouldn't make any mistakes... I will try my best :P. I studied for this test almost a year, and I took the exam last June. I wasn't sure about my results on the test, but I finally got a C. Yes, I know this isn't a great mark, but I know I have the Certificate forever! Well, now I can start forgetting English and restart my French classes.

Darfur still alive

As I can see, I am not the only one to be greatly surprised by the news coming from the UN in New York. As some of you know (I have to say that these news haven't been covered at all in Spain), there is a region in Sudan called Darfur, where for the last 4 years there has been a horrible conflict that has caused the death of 400,000 or more civilians and 2,500,000 refugees. At last but late the UN is doing what it should have done from the beginning: the deployment of a 26,000-strong joint United Nations-African Union force in the area. Lets hope that this will bring back peace to a continent that is struggling to stay alive.

The IT Crowd

Last night I discovered a wonderful new tv show: The IT Crowd. This British show depicts an IT deparment of a fancy company. The company is based in the poshest London neighbourhood, and while all the employees are smart and good looking, there is an IT department on the basement where 2 freaks are in charge of all the technology of the company. I have only seen the first episode so far, but I think it is a great idea. They get a new boss: a young beautiful lady that knows nothing about computers but knows a lot about social relationships. I will tell you more as I watched more episodes.

Movies to come

There are so many movies coming that I want to watch. Spiderman 3, even though the first 2 ones haven't been my favorites, i am sure i will watch it on the movie theater. Yesterday we had Kirsten Dunst and James Franco in Madrid talking about the movie, which seems to be the most expensive movie ever (that isn't a good starting point... does anyone remember the same fact happened with Waterworld?) It is funny that when the 3rd part hasn't been released yet, they are already talking about hte 4th part, which would be ready for 2009/2010. Well, lets hope that vengeance doesn't take Peter Parker away :P

Other movies we are waiting for are Shrek 3 (trailer here), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (they haven't got to Spain yet... trailer here) and Transformers (trailer here). The last two are TV shows that are part of my childhood, and I am very much looking forward to watching those movies. And what can I say about Shrek, the wonderful ogre. Let's enjoy it!