Bonde Do Role - Solta O Frango

A long-awaited splash of rain for DC

Me gustas cuando callas...

I'm not very well-read in Neruda. I would like to be.

I've been to his home/museum in Santiago de Chile and I enjoyed reading his autobiography. However, poems have always been challenging for me. I'll have to mull over this one a little more.

The Brazilian Girls, a New York City band, set the Neruda poem to a song. Have a listen.

Me gustas cuando callas

Me gustas cuando callas porque estás como ausente,
y me oyes desde lejos, y mi voz no te toca.
Parece que los ojos se te hubieran volado
y parece que un beso te cerrara la boca.

Como todas las cosas están llenas de mi alma
emerges de las cosas, llena del alma mía.
Mariposa de sueño, te pareces a mi alma,
y te pareces a la palabra melancolía.

Me gustas cuando callas y estás como distante;
Y estás como quejándote, mariposa en arrullo.
Y me oyes desde lejos, y mi voz no te alcanza:
déjame que me calle con el silencio tuyo.

Déjame que te hable también con tu silencio
claro como una lámpara, simple como un anillo.
Eres como la noche, callada y constelada.
Tu silencio es de estrella, tan lejano y sencillo.

Me gustas cuando callas porque estás como ausente.
Distante y dolorosa como si huieras muerto.
Una palabra entonces, una sonrisa bastan,
Y estoy alegre, alegre de que no sea cierto.

Pablo Neruda

I Like You when you're quiet

I Like You when you're quiet: it is as though you were absent,
and you hear me from far away and my voice doesn't touch you.
It seems as though you eyes had flown away
and it seems that a kiss had sealed your mouth.

As all things are filled with my soul
you emerge from the things, filled with my soul.
You are like my soul, a butterfly of dream,
and you resemble the word Melancholy.

I like for you to be quiet, and you seem far away.
It sounds as though you were lamenting, a butterfly cooing like a dove.
And you hear me from far away, and my voice does not reach you:
Let me come to be still in your silence.

And let me talk to you with your silence
that is bright as a lamp, simple as a ring.
You are like the night, with its stillness and constellations.
Your silence is that of a star, as remote and candid.

I like for you to be still: it is as though you were absent,
distant and full of sorrow as though you had died.
One word then, one smile, is enough.
And I am happy, happy that it's not true.

Upstate New York Ho!

The rental agency surprised me with a Ford Mustang convertible instead of my requested compact car. It's nice to drive something that is topless and with a little bit of umph. But I had to spend a lot more money on fuel. From this photo, one can tell Missouri really didn't like flying at 70 mph with the top down!

The weekend to visit mom in upstate New York was a blast! While I put in 12 hour days writing my papers and studying for my finance class, I got to see mom and took long walks with her and the dogs through the meandering countryside. I had the most fantastic dinner at the Main Street Cafe in Narrowsburg, NY. It was calf liver with lightly fried onions. Mom had the Chilean Sea Bass (to my disapproval), and my sister had a lamb stew. We topped it off a bottle of syrah from Bridlewood in Santa Ynez, CA. It was a lovely meal.

Cogswell Temperance Fountain

The fountain is right outside my office building. I always thought it's related to Benjamin Franklin. But upon closer inspection, it is the Cogswell Temperance Fountain. Here's what I found about the fountain.

"Henry D. Cogswell was an eccentric dentist from San Francisco who made a fortune from real estate and mining stocks. He wanted to be remembered forever. He also believed Americans were drinking too much alcohol. So, he paid for the building of a number of water fountains like this all over the United States. "

"Cogswell himself designed each fountain and each is unique. Atop the DC fountain is a water crane; in the center are two entwined dolphins."

"The Cogswell Fountain in DC no longer has water, although there is a city water fountain located a few feet away. Given the notoriously poor quality of DC's water, one wonders whether Cogswell's scheme to get Washingtonians to drink water for their health is such a great idea."

"NOTE: For many years, DC had a Cogswell Society. The master of ceremonies at their dinner was known as the "lead Crane". He would offer a toast to Temperance; the proper response (with drink in hand) was "I'll drink to that!""

Morning golf outing last Saturday

This is the second time I golfed this summer. It's been too long and I'm terrible at the sport. I got on the green on my first drive. Everything went downhill from there.

Thursday Penn Quarter Farmers' Market

It was a bit rainy this afternoon, but I slipped out of the office to get some veggies for dinner. For $8, I got a pint of fresh cherries and 1/2 lb of lettuce.

"Wherever I have gone in this country, I have found Americans."


- Governor Alfred Landon (KS), 1936 Republican presidential candidate

Vesper

"A dry martini," Bond said "One. In a deep champagne goblet."

"Oui, monsieur."

"Just a moment. Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel. Got it?"

"Certainly, monsieur." The barman seemed pleased with the idea.

"Gosh, that's certainly a drink," said Leiter.

Bond laughed. "When I'm...er...concentrating," he explained, "I never have more than one drink before dinner. But I do like that one to be large and very strong and very cold and very well-made. I hate small portions of anything, particularly when they taste bad. This drink's my own invention. I'm going to patent it when I can think of a good name."

-Ian Fleming, Casino Royale

Kramerbooks on a Sunday night

I had to get out of the house and get away from studying! I headed to Kramerbooks with the intention of reading my new book "I, Lucifer," getting coffee, a drink, and dessert. Instead I stayed at Kramer's until half past 12 talking to Lindsay, a woman who writes for the DCist. I'm enjoyed getting out and engaging in random but enjoyable conversations, but I'm short on sleep today!

Friday in the city

I unepectedly found this street performer at the Chinatown-Gallery Place Metro station last Friday. Apparently he's sponsored by the DC Commission on the Arts. Anyhow, it's great to see some culture on DC streets. I stayed and enjoyed the music for about 20 minutes before heading home.