two weeks from now at this time, if the fates have it, i’ll be boarding a plane to ixtapa/zihuatanejo, mexico. soy encantada. people keep asking me where in mexico that is, and in my geographical ignorance, i haven’t been able to answer … until now. it’s on the southwest side of the country. it’s a small fishing village 15 miles away from ixtapa and 35 miles from zihuatanejo. i fly to texas first (3 hours, 45 mins) and then texas to mexico (2 hours, 35 mins). i will not bring a computer. i will not check email. am hoping it will be an upscale sort of walden for me (if ever there was an oxymoron).
It is a small beach village of about 700 residents. Mostly Mexican but more and more American and Canadian citizens are staying full time.
There are miles and miles of sandy beaches, you can swim here though care must be taken because of the undertow and sometimes big surf. Ask around for more swimable beaches of Manzanillo Bay, Majahua and Play Buena Vista.
It is famous as a surf destination, (the most famous is to the north at La Saladita). It is not a built up beach resort, like Ixtapa, there are some good restaurants and hotels but not high rises. There are vacation rentals and bed and breakfasts.
hot, smart, tough, and a bit sad. the thin lines between space time love and hate. that’s what the long blondes’ second lp couples invokes. feeling all the complications of dating, independence and being a timeless, sensitive woman in a world that favors egoic alpha males … it’s what my ears like to hear. not linear. it’s messy… sexy messy. new wave, brit pop, punk, rock … chrissy hynde meets logan’s run meets the harajuku girls. when she made uk music magnme’s cool list, long blondes front woman kate jackson said, “they probably thought they didn’t have enough girls. it was so overrun with boring boys, they needed someone to bring a touch of glamour.”
well said sister. i love this record. it’s got the montage-collage sound of the world we’re living in right now. not old, not new. very now. makes me long for an atari as much as a guitar hero. makes me wanna dance, drink, give someone the finger and have a scandalous affair before settling into a state of complete zen detachment. it’s like liz lemmon saying: “suck it monkeys!” in one episode and then having a baby jones in the next. we’re all inconsistent …. it’s just that some of us deal with it better. some even make it look good.
When you have a public blog, it’s hard to decide what’s okay to talk about and what’s not. Sometimes I feel trapped … but other times I think it’s a good exercise. My dear pal Miss Laurs, with whom I am in daily, ongoing, delightfully hilarious contact, noted that the tone here on col’s blog has changed recently. Indeed, I am under a couple of different microscopes lately so I’ve tended not to divulge much of anything. After working in corporate America for over 8 years I live by the mantra — when in doubt, leave it out. She suggested I take a page out of John in IL’s playbook and tell a tale through music.
I’ve got a lot going on right now …
Trying to keep perspective …
Feels like I’m always taking care of everyone else, and I’m tired of it.
Ugh. The term itself makes me wanna blow chunks. There’s little value-added to the term value-added.
Question: if everyone is dealing with the same problem, wouldn’t it be advantageous to mix up the approaches you’re taking? (Hence the appeal of Obama).
I’m so tired of hearing honchos brag about the Harvard MBA’s they’ve got on the payroll. Does a Harvard MBA REALLY add that much value? You like the thought of it … the idea that you can go to the store and buy yourself the exact thing you need. You want to think that Harvard has done some good weeding out for you, more than you could do on your own. And surely they’ve done something valuable … But there are hundreds of other Harvard MBAs where yours came from. And your competitors are hiring them too. They’ve learned similar things at the same time. I’m not saying your guy is bad, I’m just saying you may need to be more creative than that. In addition to him, you might consider, gasp, finding some talented women and minorities. People from different industries, nationalities, backgrounds and cultures. Certainly it’s hard to merge disparate cultures and sensibilities, but that’s what it takes to get the advantage. To compete in today’s crazy mashup world, you actually NEED diversity (as opposed to doing it because you were shamed into it). Different kinds of people, different kinds of thinkers, different kinds of ways of viewing the world. The usual suspects can only take you so far …
P-Diddy and I saw Chris Rock at Madison Square Garden last night. It was very, very fun. He’s such a truth talker, and so real and funny. He’s noticeably more mellow these days, and I don’t mean that in the incredibly lame way Eddie Murphy mellowed out later on in his career. Chris is still edgy as hell, he hasn’t lost any of the fire and brilliance that brought him on the scene. He just seems more at ease with himself. Perhaps that’s the confidence that comes with experience and crazy, mad cheddar.
He mostly talked about politics, race, about men and women. He said white women have the best deal in the world. White men are working for them − the women get half their shit. I don’t think Chris has met a lot of chicks like me and my pals − nobody’s doing a damn thing for us, thankyouverymuch. But we’ll set that aside for now. He also said black men want white women too. And they prefer white women who are heavier − they’ll kick over bag ‘o bones Jessica Simpson to get to Rosie O’Donnell. “When black guys start hitting on them a lot, white chicks get worried, ‘Damn I better get to the gym!’” Had to laugh at that one because it’s totally true. My weight fluctuates a little bit every few years, and when I am in a more voluptuous state the brothas are all about me … when I am in marathon shape, not as much.
Before the show P-Diddy and I got some bites and caught up. She’s recently started online dating again. We discussed the fact that a lot of white guys online are after her mainly because she’s Asian. Now you should know, P-Diddy is about as all American as they come. So the thought of some dude rollin’ up on her and trying to appeal to her ethnicity is hysterical to me. She’s had guys brag about their travels in Asia, and awkwardly speak Chinese to her. She’s even had guys say her English is really good. WTF?!!! It’s silly when these lame guys try to package her up into their Asian chick fantasy! Bottom line she is an extraordinary gal and being Asian is only part of who she is. At the end of the day my feeling is to each her own. I’ve dated men of all races, nationalities and ages. Think it just boils down to the chemistry between two people, and that is impossible to predict.
In person, people tend to adapt their behavior to the situation — talking to a co-worker requires different language and attitude than what’s comfortable with a college friend. On social networks, everyone’s in on the same conversation.
Not only that, an indiscreet comment in a face-to-face exchange can be regretted and forgotten. Online, it can live for years, providing personal details to potential bosses and marketers.
“For the first time in history, we can’t tailor our image for our specific goals,” said Mark R. Leary, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University. “When we have to create an all-purpose social history, how do people juggle competing audiences?”
two weeks from now at this time, if the fates have it, i’ll be boarding a plane to ixtapa/zihuatanejo, mexico. soy encantada. people keep asking me where in mexico that is, and in my geographical ignorance, i haven’t been able to answer … until now. it’s on the southwest side of the country. it’s a small fishing village 15 miles away from ixtapa and 35 miles from zihuatanejo. i fly to texas first (3 hours, 45 mins) and then texas to mexico (2 hours, 35 mins). i will not bring a computer. i will not check email. am hoping it will be an upscale sort of walden for me (if ever there was an oxymoron).
Ugh. The term itself makes me wanna blow chunks. There’s little value-added to the term value-added.
