Besos y Lagrimas

The new episode of SNL featured the third installment in the Latin soap opera spoof "Besos y Lagrimas" with JLo (the first was with Antonio and the second was with Christina Aguilera). You can watch it on the Global website here), it's funny because it's true!

Watch "Besos y Lagrimas" con Antonio Banderas in Comedy | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com


I had to put it up because little cp is feeling super nostalgic. And now how about a clip from the 1981 Chilean telenovela La Madrasta (click to view), which features a priest and a woman in a silk robe having a discussion with a man with a mustache. By contrast, here is a clip from the recent Chilean telenovela Cuenta Conmigo (please note the disturbing lack of mustaches):

p.s. both of these shows are produced and shown by Canal 13 in Chile
p.p.s. Our hearts and thoughts go out to our Chilean friends during this difficult quake time. We are so thankful that our loved ones are safe and hope for the best for everyone in little cp's adopted country!

'Twas the noche before Navidad

A Spanish/English version of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas from Spanish-Translation-Help.com. They also have some links to traditional villancicos (Spanish Christmas carols) and some English faves sung in Espanol.

‘Twas the night before Christmas y por toda la casa,
Not a creature was stirring-Caramba! Que pasa?

Los niños were tucked away in their camas,
Some in long underwear, some in pijamas,

While hanging the medias with mucho ciudado
In hopes that old Santa would feel obligado

To bring all children, both buenos y malos,
A nice batch of dulces y otros regalos.

Outside in the yard there arose such a grito
That I jumped to my pies like a frightened cabrito.

I ran to the window and looked out afuera,
And who in the world do you think that it era?

Saint Nick in a sleigh and a big red sombrero
Came dashing along like a crazy bombero.

And pulling his sleigh instead of venados
Were eight little burros approaching volados.

I watched as they came and this quaint little hombre
Was shouting and whistling and calling by nombre:

"Ay Pancho, ay Pepe, ay Cuco, ay Berto,
Ay Chato, ay Chopo, Macuco, y Nieto!"

Then standing erect with his hands on his pecho
He flew to the top of our very own techo.

With his round little belly like a bowl of jalea,
He struggled to squeeze down our old chiminea,

Then huffing and puffing at last in our sala,
With soot smeared all over his real suit de gala,

He filled all the medias with lovely regalos-
For none of the niños had been very malos.

Then chuckling aloud, seeming muy contento,
He turned like a flash and was gone como viento.

And I heard him exclaim, and this is verdad,
Merry Christmas to all, y Feliz Navidad!

Creepy Gnome

Sweet zombie Jeebus! Little cp better keep on her toes if she goes back to Argentina! The gnome sightings in Argentina are apparently part of a chupacabra-esque craze that came to its climax in 2007-2008. The story was reported by El Tribuno in Argentina, then The Sun in the UK, and then picked up by Fox News. There is of course the usual he said/she said back and forth that surrounds all urban legends, with skeptics saying reports of the extremely high percentage of locals that belive in or have seen the creature are unverified (which is true) or exaggerated (which is probable) and that the video or photographic evidence is faked (which is easily done). However, locals have apparenlty reported seeing gnomes (or duendes) for several decades already, but reports of sightings vastly increased in 2007 after some railway workers reported seeing one running around the tracks.

Argentinian teens shot this video of the infamous "creepy gnome", whch is the most well known evidence. And it struck again in Clodomira, province of Santiago del Estero, Argentina!


p.s. This post is in lieu of a We're Missing the Chile!:Epilogue post that may never come from little cp (hint hint). Be forewarned! I will continue to post creepy things like this about your beloved South America if my demands are not met!

Chickens! Cultural Moment: La Bohème

The latest offering by the Saskatoon Opera is Puccini's La Bohème. Puccini's best known work (except maybe for Madame Butterfly) and considered one of the most romantic love stories in opera. It is arguably the most commonly performed Italian opera and has inspired several popular movies, plays, etc. including Rent and Moulin Rouge (actually a cross between La Boheme and La Traviata). Pop culture references that I know off the top of my head include The Simpsons (of course) and Kate and Leopold (who doesn't love Hugh Jackman?).

The story is actually based on the novel "Scènes de la Vie de Bohème" by Henri Murger. Murger's work enjoyed little initial popularity but a subsequent play based on the collection of stories increased exposure and demand. It inspired another opera called La Bohème by Ruggero Leoncavallo, which descended into relative obscurity while Puccini's work became one of the most popular operas of all time. The story is set in Paris in the 1840's and follows several struggling artists, particularly Rudolfo and to a lesser extent his friend Marcello and their respective loves Mimì and Musetta.

Unfortunately, my musical knowledge doesn't really extend to the intricacies of operatic performance (yet) so you'll all just have to be satisfied with my juvenile "them thar singy peoples made my eardy boneses happy" impressions as opposed to an intelligent critique of their prowess. That said, I think it was a delightful opera and I enjoyed it thoroughly on the whole. You know, while "the man" says this is in the running for most popular opera ever, I can't say I recognized any of the songs offhand. The "Sì, mi chiamano Mimì" song stands out in my memory because I thought it was funny (what's wrong with the name Lucia?). Similarly the story has a few parts along these lines that are nonsensical prattling on, playing, or running around, but it's funny and adds to the charm and feel of the thing I think. Anyway, the tenor that played Rudolfo (Christopher Bengochea) was also in Rigoletto as the Duke. I actually liked him much more in this role, it suited him better than the playboy Duke character and I enjoyed his singing more because of it. While I generally don't prefer sopranos, the one that played Mimì (Marianne Fiset) was excellent and Musetta (Karen Charlton) was good too (she was a hussy but Marcello deserved it) and the better actress of the two. There wasn't too much in the way of lower registers in this one, but the part of Marcello is a baritone (played by Alexander Dobson) and was enjoyable and fun to watch, he played his character well I thought. And remember, if you get to go to the performance, keep your eyes peeled for JT as a hilarious Parpignol (and doubling as one of the background guys too). Yay JT!

Now, since I haven't had a non-english Simpsons in a while, here is El Homer de Sevilla (The Homer of Seville - Simpsons season 19 episode 2). The reference to La Boheme happens about 8 minutes in):

Cooking with Chickens! (#2): Gnocchi

Gnocchi (aka. gnocchi di patata) are little potato dumplings that are eaten like pasta (i.e. with sugo or cheese). They are a tasty Italian treat that can't be beat and is one of little cp's favorites. FYI It is pronounced "nee-yo-kee" and comes from the word "nocchio" which means a knot in wood (as in Pinnochio). From what I understand, in Toscana (Tuscany) some call them "topini" which means little mice (as in Topo Gigio). I don't really advise ordering them as that anywhere else though.

Ingredients:
1kg (2.2lbs) potatoes
1 egg
300g (11oz.) flour
salted water

This video is OK recipe-wise, but is clearly Inglese in its approach. First you don't have to use rock salt, regular salt is fine. Basically, make some mashed potatoes. But, no extras like milk or butter. You can season it if you really want to but if you boiled them in salted water you probably won't need any more salt (or anything really, maybe some salt in the water when you boil the gnocchi if you want), mix in egg and flour to make dough. Sometimes if people want to get fancy they add things to the dough like spinach puree or tomato, but that's pretty crazy. Anyway, you cut the dough into gnocchi by rolling a small portion into a finger-thick string and chop them off. In the video they leave them like that (Blasphemy!), but I assume it is because of how they served them with oil). It's much better if you shape them. We squish and roll each one with two fingers to make a folded indent, which makes some texture to catch the sauce. Some people roll them onto a fork (or gnocchi board), over the zester side of a 4-sided cheese grater, or whatever. It's all good as long as it's done with love (and preferably painstakingly).

Now, the biggest thing that can go wrong is to over boil them. If you do that, they might turn to rubber, sludge, or even disintegrate (depending on how long you boiled them and the consistency of the dough you started with). It's best not to boil too many at a time because they will float when they are ready to come out. Also, some people fry them (with onions, etc. like perogies) instead of boiling, but I've never had them like that. As for serving, I've never seen anyone eat them with olive oil like in the video, but I assume that is why he didn't shape the gnocchi at all (as I said, the shaping process is to make it so the gnocchi will catch and hold sauce, but who wants to eat dumplings with puddles of oil in them?). We always eat it with tomato sauce or with butter and Parmigiano. But, to each their own I suppose. So there you have it! Buon Appetito! Next time, Nonna's chicken soupa...or maybe sugo...whichever I feel like.

For little cp who is sicky

and cute too (comic from Strange Brew).

Also, here is the walk off scene from Zoolander in Spanish just for you:

Death Panda

Death Panda is part of the Japanese metal scene described in the sweet documentary Global Metal by Scot McFadyen and Sam Dunn. The sequel to his first metal documentary Metal: A Headbanger's Journey (which I haven't seen yet but I expect some people to have some sort of metal movie night soon). I was quite pleased with the film! Very interesting to get different viewpoints on metal music and how it is affecting and being affected by different cultures that are new to it. I especially liked the Israel based metal band called Orphaned Land. Also, it made me really proud of Sepultura and their forward thinking ways.

Anywho, one of the stand out funny things was Japan's take on some aspects of metal music (namely visual kei) and there was a clip of a cartoon called Death Panda.

According to this blog:

"The Death Panda is a shock manga by artist Waita Uziga about a giant demonic panda bear from hell. A more cutesy guitar playing anime character called Death Panda (loosely based on the manga) was created and aired as one of the segments of TV Tokyo Channel 12’s wacky TV show "Takeyama sensei?!"

The video clips show an angry guitar playing and singing panda who laments man’s extermination of animal species around the world. The speed metal theme was created by (ex-Megadeth guitarist and now Tokyo resident) Marty Friedman and was sung by members of the popular all girl idol group AKB48."

You know, sometimes things just make you go "What the heck!?" but are awesome.

p.s. If anyone knows the translation let me know (I wouldn't want a repeat of the Polish fiasco).

El Grillo

Mike Bonales is a Spanish artist, animator, and designer. I found him through his comic South Pole, which was originally in spanish, but was translated to english here. He has also done some very powerful stuff couched in a deceptive animated format. Below is my favorite, entitled "El Grillo" set to the song “Persigue los sueños que hay en ti“ by the Spanish band El Grillo.

A Chickens! cultural moment: Rigoletto

Big thanks to Talina for bringing me to Rigoletto! I'm sorry to say I didn't recognize the what opera it was until the program said "La Donna e Mobile". Possibly one of the most recognizable little ditties of Italian opera. For little cp, here is the score (Hint: play the last note low and repeat song for full effect):

JT was excellent as one of the courtiers, though he was a bit of a man-slut at the beginning. Ha! My favorite was Michael Uloth the bass who played Sparafucile the assassin. Yes, I'm biased towards bass it's true but that long low note at the end of the Rigoletto-Sparafucile duet was pretty impressive. Anywho, the story of Rigoletto is another one of those, over-protective father shelters daughter, daughter falls in love with the first thing she sees (who turns out to be a huge womanizer), father sends assassins to kill wamanizing jerk, assassination is botched and daughter ends up dieing in jerk's place kind of stories. It was Gilda's own stupid fault though. Rather than give her life in place of the Duke couldn't she have, oh I don't know, called the police or yelled out to give him a heads up, or maybe tried reason with her father to call off the kill?! Oh well, what would opera be without melodrama?

Here is what the Saskatoon Opera has to say on the subject:

"For our 30th Anniversary season and the first in our new permanent home, The Frank and Ellen Remai Arts Centre, Saskatoon Opera presents Giuseppe Verdi’s early masterpiece, Rigoletto, the story of the hunchbacked court jester whose life turns to tragedy when his beloved daughter falls in love with the lecherous Duke of Mantua.

Saskatoon Opera audience favourite, baritone Gregory Dahl, returns to our stage to sing the first Rigoletto of his career. His innocent daughter and her heartless seducer are sung by Vancouver coloratura soprano Lambroula Pappas and tenor Christopher Bengochea in their first appearances with Saskatoon Opera. Featured performers include Henri Loiselle as the heroic Monterone and, in their SO debuts, Katarzyna Sadej and Michael Uloth. Verdi’s magnificent score, including two of opera’s most unforgettable arias, the ethereal ‘Caro nome’ and the brilliant tenor touchstone, ‘La donna e mobile,’ has made Rigoletto a perennial favourite with opera-goers everywhere."

Bremenskie Muzykanty (The Bremen Town Musicians)

The Bremen Town Musicians is a Grimm fairy tale dating back to 1812. I remember this bedtime story from back in the day! The traditional version of the story was recently performed by the UofS summer drama camp players (featuring my little buddy O.C.). But, failing a video of that, I have the always enjoyable muppets who did a relatively authentic version in 1972 as part of the "Tales from Muppetland" series. I just have part 1 here but all of the parts are up on youtube here:


This other version is a very loosely adapted animated musical made in the Soviet Union in 1969 by Vasily Livanov at the studio Soyuzmultfilm and was called Bremenskie muzykanty (Бре́менские музыка́нты). As with most cartoons that came out in the 60's, it is a bit of a trip (cough* yellow submarine*cough). I mean what kind of crazy instruments are they playing? And why does the rooster look like Elton John? I guess he was popular in the S.U. during his early career too.

Of course the original story is somewhat different. It follows the the adventure of a donkey, a dog, a cat, and a rooster who run away from their cruel master and decide to become musicians in the forward thinking town of Bremen. On the way they come upon a cottage belonging to 4 thieves. The animals decide to perform for the thieves in hopes that they will give them food and a place to stay. Of course the terrible noise they make scares the thieves away and the animals settle in the cabin. Later, the thieves return and when one sneaks into the cabin to investigate he is scratched by the cat, bitten by the dog, kicked by the donkey, and screeched at by the rooster. He flees and tells his comrades that the cabin has been taken over by a horrible witch who scratched him, a murderer with a knife who stabbed him, an ogre who clubbed him, an a devil who screamed at him from the rooftop. Then the animals live there happily ever after. The End.

Try the guanábana

A recent visit to the La Bamba restaurant provided absolutely excellent authentic Mexican food and an interesting new beverage. After several guesses by the group (everything from guarana to ma-na-ma-na) we were never quite sure what the fruit in everyone's margarita was. Well once again google to the rescue! It was guanábana (aka soursop), a fruit native to mexico, central america, a northern portions of South America. It is prized for having a complex flavour ranging from banana, coconut, or vanilla to citrus (difficult to classify because we don't have anything like it here). At the time of harvest the outer skin is green in color with small, soft spines covering the surface (it is related to the prickly pear apparently), but when ripe, the fruit turns greenish yellow and becomes much softer. It is considered difficult to eat due to it's many seeds and membranous insides so it is predominantly consumed as a juice which is milky coloured and quite good. So there you have it, try the guanábana margaritas next time you get a chance!

Canción Del Mariachi

By Los Lobos as sung by Dániel Torres who came in 4th place in 2005 on the "Hungarian Idol" program Megasztár. I'm putting this up because it's been in my head and little cp likes the song. I was going to put up the opening scene from Desperado, but it was too sexy.

Soy un hombre muy honrado,
Que me gusta lo mejor
Las mujeres no me faltan,
Ni el dinero, ni el amor

Jineteando en mi caballo
Por la sierra yo me voy
Las estrellas y la luna
Ellas me dicen donde voy

[Chorus]
Ay, ay, ay, ay
Ay, ay mi amor
Ay mi morena,
De mi corazón

Me gusta tocar guitarra
Me gusta cantar el sol
Mariachi me acompaña
Cuando canto mi canción

Me gustan tomar mis copas
Aguardiente es lo mejor
Tambien el tequila blanco
Con su sal le da sabor

[Chorus]

Me gusta tocar guitarra
Me gusta cantar el sol
Mariachi me acompaña
Cuando canto mi canción

Me gustan tomar mis copas
Aguardiente es lo mejor
Tambien el tequila blanco
Con su sal le da sabor

[Chorus 2x]

p.s. But I must!

Como Snake se convirtio en criminal

En honor a Indiana Jones:

- More free videos are here

Bienvenido a Mundo Simpson!

Conjeturo bien que es hora para un poste español de Simpsons (porque prometí a mi Mamá). Aquí está un website español de Simpsons. ¡Y ahora Simpsons video en español! Está del episodio donde Bart emancipates y entonces encuentra a Tony Hawk. La diversión sobreviene.



También encontré este clip de Futurama y del mí pensó que las voces eran divertidas

Stomp that pickle revert!

I named my snowboard Blinky! The snowboard and bindings are both from Millenium Three and my new boots are Exus Thirtytwo. The thing is I was going to write a thing about snowboards or a thing about how to snowboard, etc. but I realized that I could say a lot more by giving links to things that have already been written by people who know a lot more about it than I do. I know that's not necessarily the point but there ya go.

Here is a handy guide to some snowboard language ("Phat five forty!", "I'm getting agro on this kicker!", "Stomp that pickle revert!", and the ever popular "I gotta blast a dookie!" are not on there, strange).
Here is a list of snowboarding info, I especially like the one with the little animations for beginners.
Here is a handy guide on how to buy a snowboard.
Here is an explanation of the internal anatomy of a snowboard.

And now...Pingu!
p.s. I found a Swedish version of this with subtitles. From what I understand Pingu language is gibberish so I wonder did someone sit down and guess what they were saying or is there an actual script in Pingu language that can be translated like the claymation version of Klingon? I figured it was probably the former and it was probably dirty so then I found a non-subtitled version just in case. Please forgive my skepticism of European language dubbing.

Buon Vigilia di Natale!

Happy day of "fasting" everyone! Buon Vigilia di Natale (Christmas eve)! The day before any feast day there is a traditional day of abstinance from gluttony and Vigil Mass (note the connection to Vigilia de Natale). Nowadays this is really only for Christmas eve (which makes sense because every other day is a feast day in the Catholic calendar depending on which saints you like). The 1983 Code of Canon Law eliminated true fasting, but traditional Catholics still keep the fast in spirit by eating seafood, noodles, other forms of pasta, etc. for the Christmas Eve Supper (so no "meat"). Many Italian households always prepare a certain number of fish dishes (mostly a central/southern trdaition) . Seven is most common and this usually represents the seven sacraments (but may also represent the days in a week, the seven pilgrimage churches in Rome, the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, or just about any religious-y thingy that is a multiple of seven). We don't usually trouble with that many fishes though (baccala, shrimp, and pasta with fish sugo are the staples), I think we're doing good enough just observing the fish thing. Traditions are fun.

A note on goodies: Most Italian Christmas goodies like panettone (italian version of fruitcake) or torrone (nougat) are made with nuts (especially almonds) and honey. According to folklore, to eat nuts favors the fertility of the earth and aids in the increase of wealth and prosperty (i.e. more children and animals running around=good). The honey thing goes back to ancient Rome where it was offered at this time of year so that the new year might be sweet. Those wacky peasants and their tasty theories.

And now by popular demand...The Simpsons w Polska

Oh those Polish, how they love their Simpsons. Good times! It turns out that most of The Simpsons episodes, have been "lectored" but not fully dubbed. Lectored means that it was translated entirely by one (usually male) actor instead of a cast of characters. Apparently this is very common in Poland and most Russian speaking countries. It's also called a Gavrilov translation. Neat. I tried to find a lectored clip but I have no idea if the following clip is partially legit interspersed with crazy music clips are just all crazy.

[This clip has been removed because it turns out it is highly offensive. Who knew?!]


So then I found this clip but it is confusing, it sounds like there is Polish but I can't tell what is going on. I think I'm supposed to assassinate someone now but I'm not sure whom...


Oh, but The Simpsons Movie was fully dubbed into Polish. Unfortunately I couldn't find a clip of that either but here are some guys talking about the movie:

It seems that my first escapade into Polish Simpsons has been a moderately hilarious failure. Oh well, I'll keep looking. I did find the self-proclaimed "biggest Polish Simpsons website" here.



CP sez "increase your Polish-ness", fun words to learn and know that will help to navigate the website:

Napisy = Subtitles
Obrazki = Images
Inne Obrazki = Other Images
Fan Art = Fan Art
Programy = Software
Audio = Audio
Wygaszacze = Screen Savers
Tapety = Wallpapers
Themes = Desktop Themes
Skiny = Winamp Skins
Gry = Games
Wideo = Video
Ineraktywne = Interactive

p.s. Actually I have no idea if any of this is really Polish. They said it was but I don't know. K is this actually the spider pig song: "Swinski pajak, Swinski pajak. Robi to co kazdy swinski pajak. Uwaga, to swinski pajak" ? The online translator wouldn't tell me but at least some of the words are right aren't they?
p.p.s.You know what?! I don't even believe in Poland! It's all a lie! A lie I tell you!

We're all going to archaeology hell!

That's right! Because we all forgot to celebrate the feast of Pope Saint Damasus I patron saint of archaeologists on December 11th. I'm not sure what sort of penance should be done to make up for it...40 lashes? no beer for a month? no deer for a month? feel really guilty? recant on the deathbed? Wait...some of those things are for different things. Dang what was I talking about again? Oh well. Hey, did you know that December 19th is a big day for Vietnamese saints? There are 12 saints with today as their feast day and 5 of them are Vietnamese martyrs. Curiously, all of them were strangled.
St. Augustine Moi
St. Thomas De & Companions
St. Dominic Uy
Bl. Francis Man
St. Francis Xavier Mau
Of the many other interesting saints of the day (and several uninteresting ones), I think my favorite is St.Manirus. He was a Bishop and an apostle to Scotland and he evangelized the Highlanders in the northern regions. He was revered for his kindness and goodwill. Awww. I like him because he was nice to kittens (note: may or may not be true) and he wasn't martyred (note: usually a prerequisite for sainthood).

Authors sidebar: I find delving into the lives of various saints interesting (and often comical, I know that's politically incorrect but it's true) - see my first post about saints from March. So much intrigue, violence, sacrifice, heroism, and lunacy - everything you'd want really. And while I often make light of the irony (can we say euphemism boys and girls?) inherent in many facets of religion, it is also sobering to think of the violent aspects of religious clashes through history, especially when it is brought to new lands. All the more reason to never forget the past...

And now for no reason a Simpsons clip from the Czech Republic...


p.s. there are over 100 Vietnamese martyrs (collectively known as the Martyrs of Vietnam) who were recognized by Pope John Paul II in 1988 and there are over 50 Vietnamese saints with known causes and backgrounds. Not all of them were strangled. Some were beheaded.

Go Riders Go!

Best game ever (so far)! WooHoo! http://www.saskriders.com/














Football is pretty kickass, but everything is better with foreign Simpsons:

My new baby

This is my new Olympus Stylus 7.1MP Waterproof Digital Camera (770SW). It is shockproof up to 5ft and I can take pictures in the rain (or underwater). The instructions even recommend that you immerse it in water if it gets dirty! See, I wanted an indestructable camera because, you know, besides being accident prone I work in the field. Anyway, the salesguy picked up the display camera of this and smashed it on the counter! Cool stuff. They even knocked $50 off but it was because he wanted me to buy the 4 year warranty. Also it takes video and has really good macro even if the zoom could be better. I brought it with me to do my helicopter work and I was pleased. And of course, cameras are better with the Simpsons (this time in italiano, no more english Simpsons for you).The guys who run this blog are pretty funny, in their profile they have an audio clip of them singing the "Oh Mindy" song. Hahaha, those wacky Italians.