through the wall, part 2

I am sitting at my computer getting some work done and through the wall, where "joseph" lives, Beirut is playing. It sounds like it's on a news program and I can't quite hear it well enough to figure out what the show is and what channel it's on, so I can turn it on. I briefly went to the living room to flip channels, but found nothing with Beirut. I'm sure it was just a clip, but it made me overjoyed. I mean, a few nights ago Death Cab was coming through the wall and now Beirut. I am loving the fun, good music that "joseph" is listening to these days, even if it is thanks to television shows. So, this is all pretty random and quite possibly not that interesting, but I just wanted to share my little joys with the immense world of cyberspace. :-)

Bing Crosby & Nostalgia

I'm sick. And it seems progress- ively more so every minute. It is true that I could feel WAY worse. And for once I am thankful for my neighbor Jose Maria's blaring music through the wall. Today it's Christmas music. The old stuff. Like Bing Crosby. The stuff I grew up on. Okay... I'm going to sleep a bit more but "May your days be merry and bright. And may all your Christmases be bright."

I may feel like poop but it's nice to have some nostalgic music, that makes me feel at home.

Note: I have to say that I LOVE that White Christmas pics came up when I searched pictures of Bing Crosby. I love old movies like White Christmas & Casablanca & Miracle on 34th Street & Meet Me In St. Louis & all the old musical I grew up with. Happy nostalgia...

lentejas & neighborliness

I've written before about my neighbor "joseph." He's an older widower who likes to cook and hunt and likes to blare his classical music and movie selections through the wall late at night. He also seems fairly intrigued by us, his "young," "cute," american neighbors. He's offered me his freshly killed pheasant, his maple syrup, and various culinary inventions. A few weeks ago he gave me some paella, sometime before he gave me some homemade paté and boquerones (I'm not sure of the english word, they're like anchovies, but a different little fish and with vinager, very yummy). Today it was lentejas, which I love. And somehow I love being cooked for. It's very neighborly. I just need to make some time to cook something that is worth sharing. I mean don't get me wrong, I do love to cook but recently I've neither had time nor been very hungry, so I have lived primarily on coffee, salads, apples & peanut butter, soy yogurt, pasta,... you know the easy to grab, semi-healthy food for one. I'm not much for baking, but I did make some mean scones not too long ago, so maybe I can whip some of those up for joseph this weekend.

My Neighbor

I should actually be asleep right now. It is 2:22 am. And yet while I remain awake, my neighbor who one of my roommates calls "Joseph," is also very much awake (or at least his very loud television is).

Somehow it seems a common occurrence that Joseph around 2 or 3 am turns his television up to unprecedented volumes. Currently it sounds like the news, but he also is flipping channels, which scares me a bit. I am not so much bothered by the frequent blaring (really) classical or opera music early in the morning (particularly on saturday, when I'm sleeping in a bit). It literally sounds as if an orchestra is serenading me and actually present in my room with me. That doesn't bother me that much because, really, of all the noises your neighbor can make blaring classical music is by no means the worse.


But horribly loud war movies, even horribly loud news, at 3 am is not exactly my cup of tea. I need to say something to him and just haven't gotten up the nerve to do so. I guess I can be thankful that it is just the news. Unfortunately (which is part of why I was a bit embarrassed to say anything), often the late night blaring tv shows are not just war movies and load news, but instead some sort of exotic, porn, which either gets me to bang on the wall (which never helps and just makes me more angry), go sleep on the couch, put on my ipod, and/or just pray for him, for my heart, and that it would just go away.

My theory (I seem to like to figure things out, so always have some answer for the WHY questions, even if I really have no idea) for the extreme volume levels is that he just falls asleep and then hits the remote by accident. He is an elderly man, so his hearing may have something to do with it, or maybe he just likes the surround sound effect and is oblivious to the fact that other people in the building may actually be sleeping, or at least were sleeping or near asleep prior to the unruly noise.

So, I guess I can be thankful that tonight (a) I'm already awake so was not awakened, (b) it is just loud news (which by the way just ceased), and which (c) will actually enable me to say something without having to talk about the various subjects of his viewing practices. If you think about it, I'd love your prayers in this... both for my patience and my conversation with Joseph (who in all other ways is a great neighbor).

Oh no, it's back. Oh, now it's gone.... Nope, now it's back, but just music, oh and he actually turned it down a bit. Amazing!... Oh, now we have a war movie it sounds like. Well, now I actually am going to get some rest.