Virgen del Guadalupe Pillibloging

Society lost in Irony

Now that we have a black president who just won the Nobel peace prize, he uses the occasion to speak of war and why its necessary. Good god this decade ended with the irony of ironies. Starting with a president elected by a Supreme Court with Justices his dad had picked, to a Terrorist attack on 9/11 masterminded by former CIA operatives and now this slap to the mind. Have we evolved completely from 1990's cynics to full blown Ironists? Everything I see is filtered through this prism and we're so overwhelmed by it that we just let it go. Comedy news shows tell more new now, The Ratings leader of News is anything but a news channel. I hope the next decade returns us to some sense of honesty but I know how alluring the power of denial and laughing off the yucky parts of life are. Even when the true is upon us, like the WMD's in IRAQ we couldn't confront it like rational people. We've passed the buck on and allowed our lives to be more filled with the failings of another people (black men in particular are scrumptious to America, (Kanye West, Tyson, OJ, Micheal, Tiger) plus our celebrity women) than with rationally taking step to make people/things better. Why should I its all fucked up anyways or I didn't make it that way/not my fault.
For years I've been wondering if it was me who was becoming more cynical with age or if everyone was doing their damnest to get more snarky. The real irony is that our pop culture makes allusions to the reality but is swallowed up by the Irony filter that makes death the actual true behind its significance (ie the Dixie Chicks, Kanye's Katrina outburst). We all chuckle because we're all in on the joke but the joke is on us not just politically but also morally. I don't mean this in a religous sense because even though the Right Winged/Conservative Irony sphere continues it contantly needs to create its own space to not be swallowed up by the main stream Irony. In someway I blame the internet for being the breading ground to transform our cynisim into complete and uter ironic contempt. Because it appeals to our lower standards and not our higher points of humanity we are letting the zeligest of our new cyberlife (what's your status say now) blind us to the irony of being completely disconserned and disconnected in the new overly connected world. We take picture not for the picture and memory's sake but to post it up. On one level I think its good it makes people think of what they present of themselve and maybe where they want to go for "that profile picture", but our short sightedness of this cultural movement is going to be the defining point of my generation. What new spaces of personal relationship and global ones will either further endanger the world or help save it. Now isn't that Ironic.

a reflection

with the rise and fall of the great bi-racial class of famous people like Tiger woods and my recent discovery of Stuff Educated Chicano a pattern that I still haven't put my head around is surely happening. From the Super Racial/ reaction of the new Post-Racial political world by the Tea Party folks the landscape of race in the United States is completely in flux. Granted that any landscape of race is evolving and de-evolving with and in contradition to the times but in this time of the watershed moment of Obama comes the simmering and full blown reaction to the change and new found resentment of the unknown future for all cultural groups. The neutering of the left poltical culture has a void that has been capitalized on by a viciam hood obessed society and political movement that values the Loudest winnier over the morally or jusifibly correct without much limits to they're tantrums. Yes republican/ tea baggers I mean you.

New and only features

I've been remunerating that I want to write more then sporacticly on my blog but had no real focus outside of just documenting my family's travels and or pictures. The Friday Pilliblogging will be started again but the newest and most exciting for me is that I've decided to add a thematic focus to some of my writing. Apparently I'm something of a Pop Culture critic, I'd like to say I'm good at it but its really more of trying to intellectualize the rapidly and yet ever present moods and currents in our American culture through the vast regions and types. And in a way trying to capture a small sliver of what I believe is a emerging world culture, not the UN/ Legalistic/ Government/ Olympic world culture but the uneven social connections that is being sped up by technology and global events. The unique position of the United States in being at once a foundation for and antianthem to the world culture is of particular interest to me even though I don't think my writing can every give it the justice it deserves.

I had a great name for the new Popular culture piece and I can't remember it. If people would comment and leave suggestions I'd love to hear them. And now back to remunerating about the culture wars and how it effects the world we all live in.

Guillermo M. Silva

Guillermo M. Silva

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Silva, Guillermo M.
Guillermo was born November 19, 1920 in Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, Mexico. Guillermo is survived by sons, Jesse & Linda, Walter & Teresa, Armando & Mona, Alfonso & Beatrice, and Roger & Estella, and a brother Roberto, sisters Guadalupe and Guillermina, twelve grandchildren, two great grandchildren and nieces and nephews. Guillermo was predeceased by his wife Maria Dolores Silva, parents and brothers. Guillermo, prior to retirement, was a tradesman and completed several years of college. He was also a member of the Free and Active Masons in various Lodges in Phoenix, AZ for several decades. Guillermo was a two-time Past Master of the MONTEZUMA LODGE No. 35. F.8 A.M. in Phoenix, and a founding member and first Senior Warden of the HISPANOS UNIDOS MASONIC LODGE 83, and other lodges. Visitation will be held at Whitney & Murphy Funeral Home, 4800 E. Indian School Rd. on Sunday, November 8, from 5:00 to 9:00 PM. An honorary Masonic Ceremony will commence at 5:30 PM, followed by a Rosary at 7:00 PM. The Funeral Mass will be on Monday, November 9, at 10:00 AM at St. Francis
Xavier Catholic Church, 4715 North Central Avenue. Interment will follow immediately at Greenwood Memory Lawn Cemetery, 2300 W. Van Buren.

Published in The Arizona Republic on November 7, 2009

Post 500

WOW

http://img2.pict.com/01/18/06/f2cc3c3e9c355a5631783c9669/SOqD0/2zcg.gif

Zombies on my Lawn

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El Gran Silencio no piensa callar

Jueves 16 de abril de 2009 9:38

Victoria Infante [victoria.infante@laopinion.com]

La banda tiene planeado editar un disco nuevo este año. (Foto: suministrada)

No tener una disquera o una compañía distribuidora no siempre es desventaja para los artistas, como sucede con El Gran Silencio.

La banda de rock en español ha sabido aprovechar las circunstancias adversas para su propio beneficio. No en balde tiene casi 20 años de existencia, lo que la convierte en una de las agrupaciones mexicanas más veteranas de su género.

Como un ejemplo de su método de supervivencia, EGS decidió editar y promocionar por su cuenta su último disco, que fue grabado en vivo durante un concierto que ofreció en el parque Fundidora, en Monterrey, México, en 2008. Se incluyeron todos los éxitos, entre ellos el ya clásico Dormir soñando y dos temas originales, Se va y Timbalero. El material todavía no está disponible en Estados Unidos.

"Lo que pasa es que para las disqueras es difícil promocionar a un grupo como nosotros, o puede ser caro… porque no sólo nos tienen que promover en las estaciones de rock, sino en las de música folklórica, música popular, música electrónica o hip-hop", dijo vía telefónica desde Monterrey Tony Hernández, líder del grupo.

Esto porque aunque EGS está catalogada como una agrupación de rock en español, su música es más bien de fusión, con reminiscencias de funk, ska, cumbia, polka, rap, pop y todo lo que se le ocurra a sus integrantes.

"El horizonte [musical] es muy amplio; entonces les da miedo invertir en un grupo como el de nosotros. Ya no toman riesgos las disqueras", sostuvo el vocalista, cuya banda tocará hoy en un antro de Witthier y mañana en el festival de Coachella.

Ahora mismo, EGS ha desarrollado un método para vender sus CDs. Simplemente, los lleva a sus tocadas, pone una mesa, y un miembro del equipo se dedica a venderlos. Tony dice que en una noche llegan a vender entre 100 y 300 álbumes, o hasta más.

"Y con una disquera es imposible que en un día en una tienda vendas mas de 100 discos", dijo el artista, y explicó que mientras que para una compañía de discos es un fracaso vender 25 mil copias de un artista, para un grupo, vender 5 mil álbumes sin intermediarios, es todo un triunfo.

"Porque el dinero es íntegro y te da para hacer un nuevo disco; no inviertes tanto en la promoción, sólo en los shows, y te manejas con los fans directamente, ¿no?", sostuvo.

La banda regiomontana está a dos años de celebrar 20 años de trayectoria. Aunque la gira por California incluye a nueve integrantes, sólo cuatro de ellos -Tony, su hermano Cano (guitarra) Isaac "Campa" Valdez (acordeón) y Ezequiel Alvarado (batería) son los miembros que han estado desde hace 15 años. Los cinco restantes son músicos invitados.

En puerta está un disco nuevo, que Tony promete saldrá a la venta este año y que tendrá una distribuidora que lo llevará a Estados Unidos y Europa, donde EGS tiene muchos seguidores.

Tony acredita la longevidad de su banda a la diversidad de ritmos que incluye en cada disco. De hecho, desde su nacimiento, EGS se distinguió por la inusual mezcla de sonidos rockeros con ritmos de música mexicana, como banda y norteña.

"Cada vez que hacemos un disco tratamos de que tenga todos estos ritmos, que tenga un horizonte musical más amplio, porque si sólo tocamos ska o hard core o punk es muy estrecho", explicó el músico.

Esto para las disqueras es una desventaja por lo antes expuesto, pero para EGS ha sido una oportunidad para atraer a sus shows a todo tipo de público. Por ejemplo, Dormir soñando es una mezcla de ranchera con batucada brasileña, mientras que Chúntaro Style es una cumbia revuelta con tambora. Y qué decir de Círculo de amor, que es un bolero con rap o Déjenme que estoy llorando, un rock pesado con rap.

"Tratamos de hacer algo que nos nazca y buscar la canción que pueda hacer la diferencia sobre lo que ya hemos hecho", dijo el entrevistado.

Precisamente esa diversidad en sus discos es lo que le ha creado a EGS una sólida base de seguidores, los mismos que pidieron su presencia en el importante festival Coachella, que se efectúa en Indio, California, del viernes al domingo.

"Desde el año pasado nos habían invitado, pero no pudimos ir por problemas de visa, pero este año todo salió bien", dijo.

Como premio a su paciencia, todo parece indicar que EGS tocará en el mismo escenario que lo hará mañana Paul McCartney, la carta mayor del evento de este año.

Tony espera con ansias ese día, porque existe la posibilidad de que se tope tras bambalinas con el legendario ex Beatle, su muso cuando no le sale una canción.

"Gracias a él tocamos mucho. Cuando siento que algo está mal musicalmente me pongo a estudiar la música de los Beatles, más que nada la de Paul", contó el vocalista. "Luego me vuelve a entrar la chispa de seguir adelante".

Fwd: Friday Pilli Blog

Lots of stuff to do this weekend, Garden cleaning and reorganizing.  Although I missed the Teabag parties I think were doing ok politically.  Co-worker is going to retire soon and I'm trying to get into some program somewhere.

Otherwise here is post 497 and another Pilli picture dump.

I'm official?

Think I must be since I now have business cards from work.  Exciting and somehow oppressive.

Sigue lloviendo

Over it

I've been struck by the saying that Obama pulled from the bible during his inauguration, "It is time to put childish things aside." These last few weeks have been very destructive to my spirit on a number of levels. Almost all of the tangible foundations of the last 15 years in my life have in less than 25 day been destroyed and altered beyond what I can comprehend. The doors that made those times in my life exciting, enjoyable and at times profound have crumbled to pieces. Signs of their collapse has been evident for sometime and not unexpected but the pillars falling so quickly so abruptly has unsettled the very core of my being. The past has wilted away to a sliver of nostalgia and regret. So my morbid mind and soul lament the guiding lights of my youth, the page turns with my eyes full of tears at what forever is lost.

To mourn the past I plan to let go of my attachments to it, the unrealistic nostalgic pipe dreams that feel at once uplifting and heavy to my soul. So I'm done with it and with some many things of before but now serve no purpose, I'm over it.

Hootie & Blowfish - Time
Time, why you punish me?
Like a wave bashing into the shore
You wash away my dreams.

Time, why you walk away?
Like a friend with somewhere to go
You left me crying

Can you teach me about tomorrow
And all the pain and sorrow
Running free?
Cause tomorrow's just another day
And i don't believe in time

Time, i don't understand
Children killing in the street
Dying for the color of red
Time, hey there red and blue
Wash them in the ocean, make them clean,
Maybe their mothers won't cry tonight

Can you teach me about tomorrow
All the pain and sorrow
Running free?
But tomorrow's just another day
And i don't believe in...

Time is wasting
Time is walking
You ain't no friend of mine
I don't know where i'm goin'
I think i'm out of my mind
Thinking about time

And if i die tomorrow, yeah
Just lay me down in sleep

Time, you left me standing there
Like a tree growing all alone
The wind just stripped me bare, stripped me bare
Time, the past has come and gone
The future's far away
Now only lasts for one second, one second
Can you teach me about tomorrow
And all the pain and sorrow
Running free?
'cause tomorrow's just another day
And i don't believe in time

Time, why you punish me?

Hard times?

Gosh, is all I have to say, and that I feel a bit numb to what is going on around me.  Life altering changes both good and bad.  I felt this most acutely when after tying to clean and loofing around the house I started watching college basketball when the news of the police being shot was first broken.  A uneasy tension fell on me as I hoped they were just shot and not dead.  But like the sober news that was later told the threads of my friends and family's lives has turned from initial sad news to even worse news.  But life continues ahead undetered, Pilli is fully recovered from her bout with the flu but much like getting Obama in office there is going to be a period of time that all the crap that was hidden before will be coming to light.  Its painful and super unsettling to our detached public and person pyche to be confronted by so much horrific and bad news, 6 people killed this weekend, agh...sick family members and ridiculous economic times.  I pray for help for everyone but damn, it feels like things are starting to fall apart all over. 

Ghe-toes

Sunday was a nice day until, while starting our clean up after gardening during the mid-day Marisol dugg a digging fork into her shoe and pierced her poor toe. She braved the day and after being checked out is recovering at home at the moment. ***Update*** The toe was cleanly pierced and no bone was touched but the cuts did not require stiched, Mari has been toughing it out.

Wicked Sucess!!

So on Thursday night we set out at 7pm to the Orpheum Theater in SF for the 8pm showing of Wicked. After dressing up and making it over the Bay Bridge we arrived with 15 mintutes to spare. Once in our seats Pilli was a bit blase about the event as she didn't really know what to expect. We admired the building, ate some snacks and remarked on the stage and all its various parts. Having been in the mists of a long and eventful week this was the great climax. Once the show began Mari and I were both enthralled while Pilli was trying to grasp the words in the songs and all the activity at once. Since we sat in the Balcony we were right under the Main spotlights and Pilli would look up to see the stagecraft that created the illusions on stage. The first few dark numbers were not that inspiring to her but once the college/high school musical parts began she beamed with joy at the song and dance. From there on we enjoyed the Musical until the last half hour when Pilli's long overdue bedtime became a drag on her and she told me she was sleepy but still wanted to finish watching. Overwelmed at all the events from the show she fell asleep once we got home and ask if next time we could go when it wasn't a school night.

Closing in on 500

So although not all the post since I've started this are true posts, mostly pictures, I am at 490 in terms of posts to this blog.  It got me thinking that one I would have reached that much sooner had I tried to write more consistanly but that I need to use this more as an outlet for my thoughts and mind.  Plus I need to bring back the Pilli blogging she is so big now at 7 years old but we've been so busy and lazy that its tough to do it so regularly.  I will be trying have lots of things to write and little time to do it.  I'm exicted because Nnamdi is going to visit and just chill next week, Mari is finishing the Masters part of her PHD and pilli is that star of the week.  Ezra just was in town last weekend and we had a great Karaoke night with my long lost prima/tia Blanca who lives in the City, it was grand.  Well back to work for a bit then I'll be back to preview our family night.

Febuary blogging

Here is my from time to time blogging, now from a work that I have been at for 1 full year.  Feels wierd its my first 9-5 office job where I've just been here.  Budgets and economy suck, lost a 1.5 TB hard drive and am now trying to rebuild it.  I am broker than crap and need to make more money to make the bills.  Although I like my job and the co-workers.  well this i hope again and again is the beginning of posting regularlly but we'll see.