More wedding pictures

Amy and Miriam made the party more fun!

Penelope and Pablo, very elegant!

Amparo and Jesus.

Marian and Blas had matching coats.

Loren and his niece Crystal who actually had to run out and bang on the door of the plane so she could make her connection! We're so glad she made it.

Sue and Andrew came from England; here they are getting ready to throw their rice at the grooms.

Loren's niece Jenny and her husband Dave also flew in from the States.

Gail took time off from work to be with Loren and Blas and helped so much with all the preparations.

Every story

I'm putting together some things on for a class on narrative, and I was so happy to find this old Sesame Street Classic. I didn't watch Sesame Street growing up; I watched it with my daughter. We taped a lot of episodes and watched them over and over. A couple of my favorite bits were animated by super talented Sally Cruikshank. She has put some of her videos up on YouTube. I think this one--"Every story has a beginning, middle and an end" is a great version of a lot of narrative theory--and you can dance to it! It sounds a lot like what the Talking Heads were doing at the time, which is probably one of the reasons I like it.

My buddy

Another one of those cat rule: always help make the bed.
My cat was SO glad to see me when I got back. My neighbor had been taking care of him, so he hadn't gotten any slimmer, but he sure craved attention. While we were in Spain, we acquired a new guinea pig, named Muffin. We've all been surprised at how fond we've become of these guys. Muffin is only about half the size of Louis, pictured here. I just love Louis' haircut!
I would love to have a guinea pig at my place, but I'm afraid the last thing it would see would be something like this:

Wedding pictures!

I want to write more about the wedding ceremony later, but for now here are some pictures for family and friends--just a few!


We gathered at the Hotel before setting out for the Juzgado. Make sure the camera is ready!
The ceremony was held on Friday, Jan 12 in the juzgado of Zaragoza, on the Plaza del Pilar. The wedding guests gathered outside a little before noon. Friends and family were there from Portalrubio, Valencia, Barcelona, Guadalajara, as well as the U.S, Belgium, Germany and England. The civil ceremony itself was not long. A judge read the appropriate parts of the law (we especially appreciated the section that said that both members of the couple had to share equally in domestic chores!!). She spoke warmly and personally, and an interpreter repeated her words in English for Loren. The two witnesses were Blas's mother and a dear friend, Maribel. Yes, I cried.




Outside we threw rice!

The grooms were very handsome. Blas said this was the first time he'd worn a tie since his first communion.

The sun was out for the gazillion pictures that were taken in front of the fountain. Here are Blas's parents Daniel and Primi.

Blas's family, with Angela, Florencio and Carmen.

Rosemary,her friends Andrea and Sara, and their families.

Dear friends from the University.

Two generations of cousins: Blas's cousins Isabel and Antonio with his wife Gema,and their children Araceli, Marina and Aitana, and Rosemary's cousins Alba and Ruben.

Some of the very wonderful people who work with Blas and who have been such dear friends.

Folks who came all the way from the States! Dave, Loren's nieces Jenny and Crystal, dear friends Gail, Amy and Miriam.


At the Hotel Hesperia, there was a less formal ceremony with poetry, slides, music and some jokes. Very not Spanish, but wonderful--I did read the Sabina song. There was more crying, but the good kind. Then we started the party with drinks and appetizers before going downstairs for lunch and dancing. The battery of my camera died before I could get pictures of the dancing--too bad, because Loren danced the paso doble!

Welcome! Felicidades to the new parents!

Ofelia and Sachin became parents yesterday! Their baby, Arun Adria, arrived safely and Ofelia is doing well. I can't wait to see the pictures, but for now, here is a "before" picture from my brief trip to see them in Barcelona last week.

Wedding preparations

It gets very foggy here in Zaragoza in the winter, sort of like San Francisco. Our first friend from out of town has arrived for the wedding on Friday. We took her to see the life-size Belen (Nativity Scene) on its last day in front of the Basilica del Pilar, then had chocolate con churros y porras at La Fama. After almost 12 years of coming to this city, there are certain rituals to be observed. Rosemary had fun taking pictures of some of the figures, aiming for the creepy zombie effect. I think she was quite successful with this one.

The wedding is on Friday. Friends are coming from England, Belgium, Germany, the US, as well as friends and relatives from Valencia, Guadalajara, and closer to Zaragoza. The Marrying Boys, as my friend Fernando has dubbed them, will be wed at the juzgado, then we will walk over to the Hotel Hesperia down the street from our place for the reception. There will be about 80-90 people in all, including kids. We'll have an aperitivo with readings, slides, and sentimental stuff (not typically Spanish as I understand it, but hey) and then a sit-down lunch. We chose the menu last week and the food will be fabulous. Then dancing, of course! and if the party continues, so be it.

Yesterday, I tromped over about a fourth of the territory of the city, along with all the other folks shopping the sales, and finally found the perfect pair of shoes. I needed to do this because I had neglected to pack any shoes that went with my wedding outfit. I mistakenly assumed it would be easy to find a decent pair of shoes, but didn't realized that this season "zapatos de vestir" all either have extremely pointy toes (which I find both ugly and unwearable) OR a little twee bow/buckle.tassle on them OR are brown (I'm wearing blue) OR were in the 200 euro range. The good old Corte Ingles finally came to my rescue and I found the perfect shoes. Definitely would not meet the approval of some folks I otherwise adore, but B* PhD and Hedonistic Pleasureseeker would approve, especially as they were discounted 40%.

I have not yet decided what I will read at the wedding, but I have found a poem by Sharon Olds that I really like called "The Wedding Vow". I think I'll read something in Spanish, though.
I like the singer-songwriter Joaquin Sabinas' "Noches de boda". Here are the lyrics. There will be a few other readings that will be more solemn, so I think a ranchera that a lot of the guests are likely to know will be good.

My daughter informs me almost daily that the 11th commandment is "Mom shalt not sing in public and mortify her daughter" so I'll probably just recite it.

News from Zaragoza

On New Year's Eve, we ate our twelve grapes in time with the bongs of the clock. I've gotten better at it--the first time I tried, I only managed to choke down five before I started laughing, but now I can speed-eat the grapes with the whole family.


An early Reyes present --we have a new friend, Muffin. He's only about half the size of Louis, but just as cute.

I took a quick trip to Barcelona to visit friends who are about to have a baby. We spent a little time in the sun at the Parc Guell,
On Friday evening, we went to the Cabalgata de Reyes, the big parade when the Three Kings and their entourage arrive in towns all over Spain (how do they do that?) and kids wave their letters hoping to give them to Gaspar, Melchor, and Baltasar in person. This year, the weather was mild and the parade route was mobbed.


Sus majestades left some cool presents by our shoes. Later, our friend Gail arrived from Minnesota, our first wedding guest from out of town, but not the last. We had these lovely fishies for lunch, and ate the Roscon for dessert.

New Year's wishes

I am happy and grateful for special people in my life at the end of this year!


In Zaragoza, Santa is still climbing on balconies EVERYWHERE!


But in the malls in Spain, kids tell their wishes to the Three Kings, not Santa.


We wish you all the very best for the coming year.


What we are wishing now.

Poor Leo!

Not so sure about this snow stuff.

He tried so hard to fit into the toiletries case so he could come to Spain with us, but no luck.

Comida opípara

El rey pide consenso.

Las gambas nos miran con sus ojitos.

La ensalada esconde sus tresoros.

Las navajas MMMMM!

Pinya para la ninya.

La dorada tiene dientes enormes, pero poco le valen.

Nochebuena: canapes, gambas, carabineros,navajas, bigaros, sopa de cocido, cochinillo con patatas y pimientos, pinya, turron. Cava. Discurso de SM el Rey y programa de Raphael.
Navidad: canapes, necoras, bueyes de mar, dorada, ensalada, fruta y turron.
Hoy: habia que elegir entre 3 menus para la boda, bwah.

Remember

Racial profiling in Worthington

The INS raids on meat-packing plants across the country have made the news. The coverage has been confusing, often implying that all the people detained were undocumented workers? This is not true: many hundreds of people were handcuffed and detained simply for being Latino, regardless of their citizenship or resident status. The result of the raid was chaos for hundreds of families, and the most vulnerable victims were the children who were left behind, at school, at home, with babysitters. Many good people stepped up to help out: schools, shelters, neighbors, volunteers. There has been an outpouring of aid and support, but the impact of the raids on the town has been damaging to all: creating suspicion where none is justified, disrupting school, commerce, and the lives of families and neighborhoods. The Minnesota Immigrant Freedom Network is one of many organizations coordinating legal aid, donations, and comfort to families affected by this unconstitutional police action.
Here are some pictures (courtesy of Diego Perez Velez and the MN Immigrant Freedome Network).
The Minnesota Immigrant Freedom Network and New-Minnesotans have also generously shared their experieces in these video interviews. A shout-out to alondra for all her hard work on behalf of the families who are suffering now because the wage-earner has lost a job.

felices fiestas

Here is a "Belen" we made out of clay several years ago. In our version, a llama and a camel visit the baby jesus along with the shepherd.

More on library budget woes

Just why is the Minneapolis Public Library in a financial bind now? and what is the City Council and Mayor's proper role in resolving this situation? Thise two email threads (here and here explain the history of some of the funding problems, and give invaluable insight into the politics behind the current struggles over funding.

As usual the STRIB (what a pathetic newspaper) is ignoring the story in favor of the stupid Vikings, so MPR has scooped the "news"paper in its coverage of the impact of Dec 11's budget decision. An interview on MPR's MidMorning show withMinneapolis Public Library Director Kit Hadley reveals how the City Council and the Mayor of Minneapolis have not only failed to deliver adequate funding to keep libraries open, but they have effectively sabotaged the Library Board's attempts to create a reasonable budget for the coming year. Before the City Council meeting, the Library Board had considered three different budget models for dealing with the shortfall, and solicited public input: what was better: maintaining all the branches but with drastically reduced hours and staff? closing three branches and the main library on Mondays? Even more drastic cuts? Public input was in favor of keeping branches open because of their immense value to the neighborhoods they serve, and the Board made a proposal that the City Council's Ways and Means commitee approved, But then on Dec 11, the City Council took back some of the money, making it one time instead of regular funding, and imposing other conditions. It was only at the Dec 11 budget meeting that the Library Board discovered that last minute changes alter their entire budgetary planning options.

Here is an excerpt from the story accompanying the interview"
(and bravo to Gary Schiff for being the Library defender in this one!)

[City Council member Gary} Schiff says if the goal is to help the Library Board keep all of its branches open, then the city should make a solid financial commitment.

"Because it's ongoing money that is most valuable to our libraries," Schiff said. "Ongoing is the most valuable. So this is not an action that we should be worried (about). Talk about sending messages, this is a blow. This is operating money they use to hire staff and keep buildings open. You don't hire staff with one-time money."

Schiff also argued that the Library Board had already counted on the $250,000 when they made another request for $105,000. Board members said that would guarantee that the three libraries on the chopping block could stay open, albeit at limited hours.

The Council did include the extra $105,000, but they also decided to drop another part of the deal that would have added $925,000 per year to library budgets from 2007 to 2016. A city official says that money is still available, if the board decides to use the $1.2 million to pay down debt as part of a long-term funding plan.

However, this and other changes appeared to take library trustees by surprise. The board had included that $925,000 in its $24.8 million budget.

Library Board President Anita Duckor says she doesn't know if they'll be able to balance their budget, much less be able to use the one-time dollars to keep the three libraries open.

(full story here)
confusing? Yeah, but it shouldn't be. This is a lousy way to do business, folks! How is the Library Board supposed to make responsible budgetary decisions when the City Council and the Mayor's office don't make all the information available to them? They know that the Library Board cannot levy taxes and that they are strapped by the cuts in state aid to cities. This email interchange shows that the issue of how the library is funded is complicated, but there are solutions. In fact, the City Charter mandates that the City support the library.

My paranoid view is that I think the city is trying to starve the Library in order to force the Board to close and then sell off buildings, or merge with Hennepin county libraries thus divesting themselves of the responsibility, but also removing one of the city's most precious assets from its control. Rybak and Ostrow in particular look bad here.