I want to wake up...

...in a city that never sleeps... And that is exactly what will happen.
Why is New York so special? Why are we endlessly attracted to this crazy city?
It is, certainly, more vibrant than almost any other city.

Manu, Shaams and I make sure that we go at least once a year. The same way in which the raccoon and I always make it to Cape Town, my sistas and me continue to end up in New York. We walk up and down Manhattan, stroll around the Village and enjoy the green air in Central Park--watching dogs and their pets (who believe to be their owners) run and enjoy.

We never get tired of it. It is never boring. The city hat never sleeps is always exactly that: an endless stream of energetic pulsations, which come up through the ground, fill your veins and explode in your heart.

I am looking forward to it, once again.

Youssou N'Dour

Last night we went to the 12th International Cape Town Jazz Festival, to see Youssou N'Dour perform. He sang Bob Marley's Redemption Song, propelling the crowd into bliss.

In my mind and my heart, Redemption Song is a sweet memory from the first time I came to Cape Town, 11 years ago. That time, I took the ride to Robben Island, to see the cell where Nelson Mandela spent a lifetime before peacefully pushing the apartheid government into extinction. The song was playing on the ferry on our way back, with the bluest sky ever hanging over Table Mountain--the sun light as clear as it can only be in the cape.

Seeing Youssou N'Dour last night was wonderful! Not only does he stand for everything I love in African music, but also for the spirit of Africa, the humility and the human dignity that is so unique to the continent. He is a bit older than I expected. He looks thinner than I thought he would. But he is larger than life.

Getting drunk with very young people...

...in rainy Seattle. This is not something that I would have foreseen. But it was a side effect of being called "the grooviest evaluator" by a class of students on their way out of college and into real life. And it was A LOT OF FUN.

Hanging out with kids that are making up their minds--at least sporadically--about what they want to do for the rest of their lives is compelling. They have the urge to find something meaningful, but the ease of knowing that life is just beginning. They are somehow troubled, but not yet too much, and believe that everything remains to be done, at the same time of being jittery about what the future will bring for each of them, individually.

This particular group, which worked as a Task Force for one of the research/advocacy projects of the PI, was deeply inspired by the work of gropus all over the world, working to hold their governments to account. They were passionate about budgets as a tool for advocacy, and passionate about making change happen. And even if only one of them takes this as a lasting input into what they want to do with their lives, it was worth it.

It also made me think about those people who have been an inspiration to me. Some are gone, many remain. And I have the privilege of working by their side, of building something together with them, and of learning from them. Strangely enough, I don't feel too far away from the Task Force kids--I am happy to say that I am still excited thinking about what life can bring and what changes might happen.

But, I should get drunk more often.

The urge to set impossible goals...

...has been a part of my life for many years. I just can't get enough. It seems that I have the quest of always overthrowing my last achievement, and reaching out for something even more challenging, crazier. Where others would take a step back and say 'wait a minute, I am not really sure if I want to get into this', I jump ahead.

Fearless. Thriving in excitement, swimming in adrenaline.

According to Dr. Brainscan, the key to my reckless behavior is the last word of the previous sentence. Adrenaline. While adrenaline is naturally produced in high-stress or physically exhilarating situations to improve our chances of survival, it also gives a depressed mind what it needs to keep running. To be adrenalized takes away the blues and makes your mind go into overdrive. It is addictive.

But there is something more besides the chemical addiction. We learn how to live and how to survive. We learn to stand at the edge. We gamble and we enjoy it. And this defines us as much as our addictions.

But, wait a minute... Is that REALLY different from the chemical addiction? Where does the circle end and where does it begin? Does it really matter?

Whatever.... Never mind. I love it, and I am riding high on a new challenge.

...You just grow into an animal yourself!

As everyone who reads this blog knows, the racoon and the cosmic mouse are obsessed with the chinese rat and Kanga-roo. We live and breathe with them, and thrive in their little eyes and with their larger-than-life personalities. They are an endless source of love and fun, because most of the time they are, well, lovely and hilarious!

The symbiosis between species can be mind-blowing. I know that some of you will say that I am a romantic, and that I am ignoring the fact that all of these creatures start out and can end up being perfectly wild but, hey, so do we. But sharing your life with other species is a a learning adventure, in which all those things that define "human superiority" can be re-interpreted.

Just watch this penguin, and smile...

On sundays and family traditions...

For many years, decades even, I used to abhor sundays. Sundays were the epitome of everything that was wrong in my life. While my friends would spend the day at the club, playing tennis and hanging out, having big family lunches, or watching movies, I would be at home, embedded in my dysfunctional family--barely eating, cleaning after everyone, surrounded by never-ending arguments, no VCR in existence, no phone to speak with my friends and, at least, vicariously experience a nice sunday. Nowhere to go.

Weekends were a monstrosity, because there was no place to hide, and reality would hit me right in my face.

Everything that made me hate sundays is behind what makes me LOVE them now. Sunday is the favorite day of this extraterrestrial rodent, for sooooooo many reasons... Just read some of them below, and tell me if they also stand for you:

1. Wake up without the alarm clock going off,
2. Breakfast in bed,
3. Endless minutes, even hours, cuddling with the racoon and the two little rats,
4. No need to leave bed, if wanted,
5. Long morning strolls through a beautiful neighborhood,
6. Buying fresh fruit, vegetables, cheese and flowers at the market, without having to drive,
7. Setting the flowers up at home,
8. Preparing lunch, or going out for lunch, without a hurry,
9. In season, spend hours watching American football, with friends, chatting, and having fun,
10. Continue to be in bed, if wanted...
11. No need to shower,
12. Read magazines, books,
13. Have dinner in bed, watching a movie...

POWER to the PEOPLE!!!!

It gives me the shivers... Goosebumps.

The scenes from Cairo, now that Mubarak finally stepped down, are amazing. It is an example of what can happen when people decide that enough is enough. To think that we were in Egypt two months ago, and none of this was in the air. And then, all of the sudden, people take Tahrir square, refuse to leave, and bring Mubarak to his knees.

History unfolding.

The big question is what comes next. Hopefully, the people of Egypt will not allow their victory to fade away. Hopefully, they will push for a transition from current military authority to a civil government that can develop the basis for institutional democracy. Hopefully, the will not give up the power they claimed, and continue to transform their reality.