Faces

Ivory quote # 2

True, natural beauty is in the simple things.

En vérité, la beauté naturelle se trouve dans le choses simples.

Winter... Spring..and then Winter Again

I live in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Minnesota is a state in the northern central region of US (known as Midwest). This state is known for its long (very long) winters. They are also very cold winters. But one would hope that by the end of March, and with Spring officially "announced", the snow would melt away and green would slowly start to surround us. And that DID happen. We had a few lovely and sunny days with temperatures rising up and signs of Spring everywhere: small buds on the trees, more birds flying around, etc.
But yesterday the Winter King decided to pay us his last visit of the year and everything went white again. Unbelievable! Well.. everything is possible in the land of 12,000 lakes. Anyway, we tried to make the most of it. I admired how beautiful the trees looked with snow on their branches and children everywhere made their (probably and hopefully) last snow man of the season.
Ok, now...that's it! We want the Spring Fairy to come and bless us with green trees, sun, warm temperatures, birds and lots of flowers! ... Achoo! Oh no.. what about allergies? Oh well, no season is perfect. Thanks mother Nature! :-)

Ivory soap and quotes

Ok, if this information is more than you wanted to know... let me know :)

It's been a long time that I use, almost exclusively, Ivory soap. Why?

The Soap So Pure It Floats!
An established American icon of pure clean, Classic Ivory Soap is a simple, pure formula that cleanses your skin by removing dirt and oils which can clog pores. The classic, 99 44/100% pure formula contains no heavy perfumes or lotions so it leaves your skin feeling naturally clean with a light, Ivory-clean smell. Discover the consistent quality and value that have made Ivory the leading pure soap on the market for decades.

For your convenience, Classic Ivory Soap is available in the family-size
4.5 oz bath bar and the 3.1 oz personal size bar
in a variety of package choices.

(source http://www.ivory.com/YourIvoryProducts_ClassicIvoryBarSoap.htm)

Last time I bought some it was a 12 pack but it wasn't until today, when I reached for the last bar of the packet, that I noticed that each bar comes with a quote. A different quote in each bar!
How come I didn't notice this before?

Anyway, I am glad I did and I will be paying more attention next time. But I identify soooooo much with this quote that I wanted to share it with you. It's in English and French on the wrap paper and I like both versions, so I am going to copy them literally.

"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things."

"Profitez des petits plaisirs de la vie, car un jour vous vous rendrez compte qu'ils étaient vraiemnt de grans plaisirs."

Insomnia 2: mr. alien

What happened to mr. alien? What is he thinking? Why did he change color? Why did he run the other way?

If you have answers to any of these questions, please let me know (post a comment)

Insomnia 1: old habits and hobbies

This is what happens when I can't sleep at night. I go back to old habits and hobbies. I haven't done this in a while, so be nice... :-)

New phone and new mobile blogging

I got a new phone today. It has a camera on it. Finally I am catching up with cellphone technology. Now I will be able to send pictures from my phone directly to my new Paulino on the GO blog. Like this one:

I then I can edit the post and add some text to it... or not :-)

Patrick's Cabaret demo

Wow, more than a month and a half without blogging... what a slacker :-)
And I have so many thing to tell.. anyway until I get to them I will post a demo video I edited to promote Patrick's Cabaret.

Here it is:

Esperanto is not dead

Even though I haven't made much efforts to improve my Esperanto lately, I keep finding examples that show that this is not a dead language at all.

Look at this cute video:

Let's burn down the house!

Well... not literally.
I just started experimenting with a new home project: Melting Crayons.
I was going pretty well... until I have a little accident in the oven and now it's partially covered in crayon wax... oops!
But I have been more careful lately and I am having fun and some good results.
This is my last badge:

Before melting

After melting

Esperanto>Youth>Spain>Madrid

My friend José is one of the organizers of this really cool gathering for young people (like me!) who would like to learn more about Esperanto or practice this interesting language with other cool people. If you are near Madrid, don't miss it! I wish I could be there, guys! Good luck!

ENCUENTRO IBÉRICO 2007 Del 9 al 11 de marzo en el albergue juvenil "San Fermín" (Villaverde-Madrid). Organiza HEJS, la Sección Juvenil de la Federación Española de Esperanto. Para más información: www.esperanto.es/iro2007/index.htm IRO 2007 Iberia renkonto Okazos de la 9a ĝis la 11a de marto en la junulargastejo "San Fermín" (Kvartalo Villaverde de Madrido). Organizos HEJS, Juna Sekcio de HEF. Pli da informoj : www.esperanto.es/iro2007/index.htm

EPOTI featured on the Bob and Rob show!

This is a post from a blog where I collaborate English Practice over the Internet

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By now most of you know about podcasts and how useful they are for learning English. One of the ESL podcasts we (EPOTI group) like is "The Bob and Rob show". It has very good information on language and culture and it's very educational yet informal and even funny.

Some EPOTI members have developed a relationship with Bob and Rob. I think Ignacio has been mentioned in several lessons and the rest of us post comments quite frequently on their blog.

In their Latest show Lesson 72: Money they mention our website www.letslearnenglish.info! They even added the link to their side bar. Thanks Bob and Rob!!!

May be they did this because I (Paulino) have been helping with corrections to their transcripts (listen to voice message on Lesson 72 or find corrections on their discussion board -registration needed-) OR maybe because another EPOTI member (Jiri) sent them some beer and chocolate!

In any case, we are honored to be part of the Bob and Rob show!

Posted by paulino brener at 3:28 PM

Wash your hands! Lavate las manos!

Last week was pretty hard at school. We had a lot of sick children (i.e. absent) and a few teachers as well. I usually start teaching my Spanish classes at 11:10 am but I had to teach Morning Lesson (8:30 to 10:30 am) on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday for 2nd Grade that week. After having been teaching ML for the two prior weeks I was hoping to rest a little but it was not possible. At least I am glad that I didn't get sick.
During that week I taught all the lower grades (1st through 4th) how to say "lavate las manos" (wash your hands) and we actually washed our hands in class! It was a wait to contribute and to minimize the spread of whatever was out there (norovirus and influenza according to one school email).

Mayas and Folk dances

What an amazing and busy week! Classes resumed at Spring Hill School. Besides my regular Spanish classes I am teaching a block of two weeks to the 7th grade titled: Ancient Civilizations of Mesoamerica. This course concentrates on the Mayas and Aztecs. Mayas last week, Aztecs this week. It's very interesting being a class teacher. I am enjoying it a lot.

Also on Fridays 5th and 12th I taught Argentine and French folk dances at Tapestry Folkdance Center. I had a warm (even a little nostalgic I must admit) feeling when I had more than 30 people dancing gato or carnavalito with me. I'll teach my last class on Friday 19th.

Talkcast at Talkshoe

Lately I've been pretty hooked to Skypecast on Skype. But yesterday I took part of a new type of online show. This time hosted by my friend (and EPOTI member) Marian. He knows a lot about internet, blog, podcast, etc. and he has a very interesting blog.
Marian used a new website called Talkshoe. "TalkShoe™ - a new way to create Interactive Podcasts and talk with interesting people with similar interests around the world.
Other uses of TalkShoe include talk shows, discussion groups, fan clubs, and friends & family chats.
TalkShoe is also being used by businesses and organizations to improve communications with customers & suppliers, get out marketing messages, and facilitate better employee communications." (from Talkshoe.com)

If you are interested joining Marian here you have more information:
Talkcast information:
Talkcast Name: Webtutor: Internet Magic made easy
Host: Marian Heddesheimer - mh@rent-a-tutor.com
Next episode: EPISODE2 - Talk about Podcasting and Blogging, Thu, January 11, 2007 02:30 PM EST
This Episode is dedicated to podcasting and blogging. I will tell you how to start your own blog at blogger.com or your own podcast at blip.tv. We will also discuss how to promote your blog and podcast in some detail.
Phone number: (724) 444-7444
Talkcast ID: 12267
PIN: The phone number or 10-digit PIN you signed up with

Or click here:

Happy Birthday Song in Chinese

I have just received another cyber-present from Lingual Bee (David). He is originally Chinese but he lives in USA now.

Here is his song


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Social interactions: breaking the ice

I went to a New Year's Eve Eve (12/30) party this afternoon with my friend David. I haven't seen him for a while so it was great to see him again and to be out and about and social.. well.. I don't know why but I was not that social today. I am usually pretty good at parties at talking to different people both known and new. Was I shy? Is that possible? :-) May be just pensive. But I was not sad or having a problem or anything. Just quiet. I guess that might have seem strange to some people since I was asked "everything OK?" a few times. And yes! Everything was OK. Perhaps many people are not used to see me pensive or without a smile from ear to ear :-)
I really enjoyed the party, in a different way. I enjoyed observing people interacting. I liked eavesdropping here and there and mainly I got to observe body language. Something that helps me a lot when I am acting or creating a character.

One of the things that stuck in my mind was a question that my friend David used as a conversation starter. He is very original at times... well.. most of the time. ;-)

So, I would like to ask YOU (the reader) this question.

As we welcome the New Year I’d like to leave you with a question that calls for a little bit of reflection (although I hope you don’t have to think too hard to answer it). For some reason the coming of a new year calls people to reflect a little bit. I certainly hope that people develop a habit of reflecting a little more every day.

So here it is:

What makes YOUR WORLD a beautiful place?

I hope to hear from you, or anyone who would like to answer that question, at email@paulino.info


Take and give care,

paulino

Unexpected and Unrequested Xmas present

Credit Card companies can be so generous sometimes!

I just checked my bank balances online and found out that my bank had double my credit line! According to the representative "they check my credit activity and payments regularly and give me an automatic courtesy increase in my credit line if everything looks good".
Ugh! I couldn't believe it! Why wasn't I asked first! I actually think that is kind of rude. But then, there are many things that I don't understand about economy in general and US economy in particular. That's why I am a Spanish Teacher! And a very happy one! :-)

Hasta luego!

The b-day songs are coming in!

So, I have 3 songs so far. Two in German and one English.

The first song in German is by Patrick Scully. Patrick is a little taller than me and he is the director of Patrick's Cabaret, a place where I usually perform or curate shows. Shameless plug: My next show at Patrick's Cabaret will be in June, 2007: "Noche Hispana 3"


Here is Patrick singing in German:


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The second song in German comes from Marian. He is a part of the EPOTI team (English Practice over the internet). We organize Skypecasts weekly, keep a blog and a Moodle site called "Let's Learn English" where people can find plenty of things to practice English.

Here is his song



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And the third is by Duan Atter, the director of "The Warren: an artist habitat"

Here is his song:



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Enjoy!

And what are you waiting for to send yours!!!