Close that old door

Soñando, soñando, cierro bonitas puertas viejas y salgo al fin.

Dreaming, dreaming, closing nice old doors and going out at last.

Forty eight hours again

Este fin de semana hay que sacar tiempo para:

This weekend there must be time to:

Aprovechar el sol de hoy y olvidar la lluvia de ayer.

Come out into today's sun and forget about yesterday's rain.

Ver crecer las expectativas y los retos.

See how expectations and challenge grow.

Disfrutar viendo lo que otros disfrutan pese al tiempo.

Enjoy as other people enjoy themselves, come rain or come shine.

Dar un paseo nocturno, charlar, charlar y charlar.

Go for a night walk, talk, talk, talk...

Y antes de apagar la luz, dibujar.

And before turning the lights off, draw a little.

Where you stand, what you are

Raíces y la vida que se levanta sobre ellas.

Roots and life raising from them.

This street, that man, this life

No hay muchas sensaciones comparables con la de dibujar por la noche, con el ruido de los coches pasando bajo la ventana, abriendose paso entre la lluvia, las conversaciones tranquilas y susurradas con mi marido al ordenador al otro lado de la mesa y estar descalza con la calefacción puesta. Me hace recordar una charla de hace muchos años con mi amigo Jorge, en la que nos poníamos de acuerdo en que la música perfecta para las noches de lluvia era la de Cowboy Junkies. Con un rotulador en la mano van apareciendo figuras sobre el papel y dentro de mí se van formando nuestras historias con sus bandas sonoras.

There aren't many sensations comparable to drawing at night, with the noise of the street, of the cars passing by my window piercing the rain; to quiet and whispered conversations with my husband sitting at the computer on the other side of the table; to being barefoot and with the heating on. It reminds me of a long time talk with my friend Jorge, in which we agree to the perfect music for a rainy night: Cowboy Junkies'. With a pen in my hand some characters appear on the blank paper and stories get shaped inside me with their own original soundtracks.

Sun comes up, it's Tuesday morning

hits me straight in the eyeguess you forgot to close the blind last night

Oh, that's right, I forgot, it was me

I sure do miss the smell of black coffee in the morning,

the sound of water splashing all over the bathroom,

the kiss that you would give me even though I was sleeping,

but I kind of like the feel of this extra few feet in my bed

Telephone's ringing, but I don't answer it

'cause everybody knows that good news always sleeps till noon

Guess it's tea and toast for breakfast again

maybe I'll add a little T.V. too

No milk! God, how I hate that

Guess I'll go to the corner, get breakfast from Jenny

She's got a black eye this morning, `Jen how'd ya get it?'

she says, `Last night, Bobby got a little bit out of hand'

Lunchtime. I start to dial your number

then I remember so I reach for something to smoke

and anyways I'd rather listen to Coltrane

than go through all that shit again

There's something about an afternoon spent doing nothing

Just listening to records and watching the sun falling

Thinking of things that don't have to add up to something

and this spell won't be broken

by the sound of keys scraping in the lock

Maybe tonight it's a movie

with plenty of room for elbows and knees, a bag of popcorn all to myself,

black and white with a strong female lead

and if I don't like it, no debate, I'll leave

Here comes that feeling that I'd forgotten

how strange these streets feelwhen you're alone on them

Each pair of eyes just filled with suggestion

So I lower my head, make a beeline for home. Seething inside

Funny, I'd never noticedthe sound the streetcars make as they pass my window

Which reminds me that I forgot to close the blind again

Yeah, sure I'll admit there are times when I miss you

Especially like now when I need someone to hold me

but there are some things that can never be forgiven

and I just gotta tell you

that I kinda like this extra few feet in my bed

- Sun comes up, it's tuesday morning. Cowboy Junkies

As I sat quietly by her side

De la serie "fantasías marujas"

Mientras yo me entretengo haciendo unos dibujos en mis cuadernos, mi hija de cinco años maquilla a las modelos del Vogue.

As I sit drawing in my sketchbook, my five year old draws some make-up on Vogue's models.

Sweets, candles and sinners

Resumen de Semana Santa:
nos topamos con procesiones, virgenes, cirios, nazarenos, trompetas, huevos de pascua, chocolate, caramelos... Nos dedicamos a paseos, museos, familia y amigos.

Easter summary:
on the street we run into many processions, virgins, candles, trumpets, paraders, chocolate eggs, candy... we took walks, visit museums, family and had some friend meetings.

Night and day

Back and front

Trumpets and bare feet

Religious and pagan

Guiding light and hidden treasures

Inside, outside: relish for our minds

Simple as a flower, and that's a complicated thing

Entramos en la primavera de puntillas. Y la primavera se descubre tal cual es. Tímida, inestable, huidiza e incapaz de cumplir tanta expectativa de sol y bienestar.

We've entered springtime on our tiptoes and has revealed itself. Shy, unstable, elusive and unable to fulfill so many expectations of sun and contentment.

Hace un par de días abrimos la puerta de casa a unos amigos y nos trajeron la primavera. No hay como unas flores silvestres recogidas directamente del campo, para hacerte sentir que hay un cambio. Un cambio que esas gotas en mi ventana me están negando día tras día esta semana santa.

Cada uno se consuela como sabe. Por ejemplo, mi marido hace días que está fascinado con su colección de fotos de un mosquito que atrapó en casa. Él, que se dedica a la investigación científica, ve en estas imágenes de microscopio esplendidas obras de arte.
Ayer, ante la perspectiva de otra mañana tormentosa, organizó una visita al laboratorio para amigos y niños. Tan sólo desearía que su entusiasmo se contagiara a todos y que todo el mundo encontrara en su trabajo la fuente de inspiración y el placer que él tiene en el suyo.

A couple of days ago we opened our door to some friends and they brought us the spring into the house. Nothing can compare to wildflowers, picked straight from the countryside, to feel the change of season. A change that many drops on my windows are denying day after day, all throughout Easter.

Everybody looks for their comfort. For the past few days my husband has been fascinated with his photo collection of a mosquito he picked at home. He, who's committed to scientific research, sees art in these microscopic images.
Yesterday, having another stormy morning aheade of us, he gathered friends and children and organized a visit to the lab. I'd only wish his enthusiasm were contagious. And that everybody found in their jobs their inspiration source and the pleasure he obtains in his.

simple como un mosquito

Yo, por mi parte, disfruto de un poco de tiempo extra para garabatear y darme a la ensoñación.
As for me, on the other hand, I'm enjoying this little extra time to doodle and dream away.

Prelude to the storm

Plencia, pueblo costero, antes de la tormenta.

Plencia, a sea village right before the tempest.

Viento gélido en la playa.

Icy wind blowing at the beach.

El encanto de un pueblo de vacaciones en invierno ( ¿o era primavera ya?)

The magic charm of a summer village, its emptiness in wintertime (or was it spring already?)

Hasta que llegó la tormenta.

Until the storm broke into town.

Good girls don't

girl skaters series; work in progress

"Ama, ¿a que cuando te haces muy mayor te mueres y vuelves a ser pequeña?"
Claramente mi hija pequeña cree en la reencarnación.
Si tuviera una segunda vida, para empezar yo sería chica skater. No creo que si me dieran a elegir cambiase mucho más mi vida. Pero sí pondría un patín bajo los pies. Estas chicas tienen un atractivo único, sólo comparable al talento artístico, cuando se desplazan o deslizan frente a la mirada de los demás. Hay tan pocas... Pero yo sería una de ellas. En otra vida, claro.

"Mom, when you grow very old and die, you become a child again, right?"
Clearly my youngest daughter believes in reencarnation.
If I had a second life, I'd be a girl skater. If Ihad to choose I wouldn't change my life, but I would just put a skate under my feet. When these girl skaters move or slide they have an unique appeal, only comparable to artistic talent. They are so very few around here... I'd be one of them. In a different life, of course.

Asphalt and air: final act

Asphalt and air han finalizado su proyecto fotográfico, por el momento, espero. Este proyecto ha sido una gran fuente de inspiración. Las fotos a continuación son mi pequeño granito de arena.

Asphalt and air's jar project has come to an end, at least for the moment. This has been such an inspirational project! The following being my little grain of sand.


7. delicate (delicado)

8. red (rojo)

9. secure (seguro)

10. pair (par)

11. sweet (dulce)

12. thirst (sed)

13. light (luz)

Painted from memory

When I was a kid I was always stumbling upon images of girls reading under a leafy tree, dozing or staring at life. It's been some time since I saw one, but I still keep some in my memory.

When I was a kid, the only family Easter tradition were choclate eggs. We spent some days in the summer house: my parents, brother, sister, cousins, uncles, aunts and my gramma. I don't recall the cold or the atrocius dampness of this time of year. I can just recall my gramma hiding chocolate eggs in the garden for us to look for, if it didn't rain. Neither I can recall an indigestion. That's memory: it only takes out for a walk the sweet, the color and the fun. The tummy ache has been totally erased from memory.

So Easter has come. Rainy, noisy. It calls for some chocolate eggs hide and seek at home. Tempting my memory and building up my daughters'.

Cuando era niña siempre me topaba con imágenes de chicas leyendo bajo un árbol, dormitando o contemplando la vida. Hace tiempo que no veo ninguna, pero mantengo algunas en la memoria.

Cuando era niña, la única tradición propia de Semana Santa en mi familia era la de los huevos de chocolate. Ibamos a pasar unos días a la casa de veraneo, mis padres, hermanos, primos, tíos y mi amama. No recuerdo el frío ni la atroz humedad típica de esta época del año. Tan sólo recuerdo que mi amama escondía huevos de chocolate por el jardín si no llovía y nosotros teníamos que encontrarlos. Tampoco recuerdo ningun empacho. La memoria es así, saca a pasear lo dulce, colorido y divertido. El dolor de tripas se ha borrado completamente.

Así que ha llegado la Semana Santa. Lluviosa, ruidosa. Tan sólo queda esconder unos cuantos huevos de chocolate por la casa. Tentando mi memoria y construyendo la de mis hijas.

Can't you hear the surprise knocking?

Cuantas cosas caben en un fin de semana, ¿verdad?

How many things fit in a weekend, right?

Tras todo lo planeado y conseguido, hubo incluso momentos de sorpresas

But for all we planned and acomplished, there was time even for surprises

Así es la magia

It's weekend magic

Las niñas encontraron un puñado de sombreros en casa de mis padres y se divirtieron disfrazandose y posando

Girls found a handful of hats at my parents' and had fun disguising in them and posing

Mi amiga Susana me sorprendió con un cuadro de punto cruz minúsculo de una ilustración mía. Me emocionó. Gracias Susana, otra vez.

My friend Susana surprised me with this cross-stichted version of an illustration of mine. It really moved me. Thanks Susana, once again.

Y además, hanna y stardust me han dedicado reinterpretaciones de mis personajes con capucha!

Furthermore, hanna and stardust have made their own interpretations of my hooded characters!

Truquemé

*1 Enjoy the spring sun before it starts raining

Disfruta del sol de primavera antes de que llueva

*2 Play, jump and skate

Juega, salta y patina

*3 A walk in the city

Un paseo por la ciudad

*4 Buy pens & sketch books

Compra rotus y cuadernos

*5 Lunch with the family

Comida con la familia

*6 Some singing, some listening

Cantar un poco, escuchar un poco

*7 Get you some licorice and candies

Agarra un puñado de regalices y gominolas

*8 And if possible, go out to dinner

Y quizá, salir a cenar

Have a nice weekend!!

Shedding an easy tear or two

Hoy quiero romper una lanza en favor de la sensibilidad.

A favor de la lágrima fácil, del drama y de la sobreactuación.

Me gusta esa facilidad para llorar, que lejos de la tristeza, tan sólo es un reflejo de la empatía.

La lágrima fácil.

Today I want to stick up for sensitivity.

For the easy tears, drama and overacting.

I like that easiness for crying, that far from sadness, is just a reflection of sympathy.

That easy tear.

Come on now

Acabo de comprar este libro para mi hija pequeña. Se lo va a pasar "de bomba", como le ha dado por decir ahora. Este libro te anima a hacer chapuzas, a garabatear, que es muy importante.

I've just bought this book for my younger daughter. She's gonna have so much fun with it. This book encourages kids to scribble all over it, which is really important for a kid.

Unos garabatos guapos sobre la Mona Lisa quizá...

A few cool scrawls over Mona Lisa, maybe...

¡Un poco de sangre en la batalla!

A little bit of blood for the battle!

Pintar con niños te puede sorprender. Y a mí me encanta exhibir sus obras.

Painting with kids might marvel you. I love to make exhibitions on our walls.