An Open Letter to the People Behind Me At the Symphony Concert

You know? This was the first time I had the opportunity to enjoy the free concerts given by the Houston Symphony in the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. Just because of my love for all things Star Wars related. I had the opportunity to enjoy a similar concert in January at the Jones Hall, paying for a ticket in a indoor venue. I totally loved it. It was a tribute to the musical genius of John Williams, not limited to Star Wars only, also including suites from other works he has done along his extensive career - Harry Potter, The Patriot, Indiana Jones, E.T., etc. So obviously it was quite a good concert to be at.

This time I was somehow hesitant to attend. The concert would start until 8 pm, on a weekday, and I would be facing a long commute from Houston to the Woodlands - 45 to 50 minutes, some of them literally sitting in the traffic - but I decided to go at the end. We had a break from the rain and thunderstorms we had for a week, thus driving in the sun was a good reason to join my friends and to enjoy a walk along the beautiful Woodlands Waterway and a delicious early dinner at my favourite pizzeria, Grimaldi's.

When I walked to the best seats we could find by the mezzanine - free! - I noticed this time the symphony would be playing other themes from one of the music genius of our era, Mr. John Williams. This time the repertoire would be shorter than the one at Jones Hall, but they would be starting the "Star Wars - Main Title" instead of one from the Harry Potter movies; for Harry Potter, they would be playing "Hedwig's Theme" - my favourite piece from the movies - instead of "Harry's Wondrous World". Last time my friend and me arrived late to the venue, so the orchestra were already playing that theme by the time we arrived to our seats. And the surprise was that they would favor suites from the new Star Wars movie - "The Force Awakens" - instead of the better known from the Original Trilogy. So I felt happy to be there, since a different set of themes would be played this time. When they played the first suite, "Star Wars - Main Title" (actually the version from "A New Hope") I was truly excited as well as when listening "Hedwig's Theme". I was literally playing the notes in my head with the orchestra. I enjoyed as well the introductions Mr. Brett Mitchell, the conductor, would give for each of the performances. For example, I totally agreed when he introduced the piece from "The Schindler's List" talking about how John Williams said to Steven Spielberg that he could find a better composer than him for it, and Steven replied: "I know, but they are all dead." A film genius acknowledging a music genius.

However, at the moment this piece was being played, with the subtle yet powerful sound of the violins and of course the violin solo, enhancing the deeply tragic and emotional nature of the movie, I started noticing a whispered, yet loud conversation behind me. I briefly turned around, and I saw you two sitting with a wine glass in your hand, talking about non-sense gossip completely ignoring the powerful performance given onstage. I just shook my head in total disapproval but took my eyes and my ears back to the piece being played.

Then Mr. Mitchell talked about the pieces chosen from "The Force Awakens" and yet, you would not stop talking. I limited myself to make a brief comment to my friends but forced myself to ignore you and focus on the oncoming performances. And I was not disappointed. I had my eyes focused on the instruments being played, and my ears on the notes and silences, but yet in my head I could picture the scenes in the movie. I felt goosebumps at the moment in the piece "Jedi Steps and Finale" where a solitary French Horn played the notes of "The Force Theme" marking the moment when Rey hands old Anakin's lightsaber to Luke Skywalker. It was a "right in the feels" moment. By then, I literally had to place my right hand behind my ear and to lean my body to the front of my seat, to avoid your conversation from disturbing my experience.

Maybe you thought, "these Star Wars fans"! Well, a year ago, I wasn't one of them. So I can sort of understand your prejudice. But this is more than just a mere fascination about a 40 years old epic space opera. I simply love music. I acknowledge that my musical knowledge is more limited than I wish it was, but that does not refrain me from loving music and appreciate it. And I could have understood better your disruption if you were children: I was a hyperactive girl myself, and I know what's like to be bored and in need of conversation or physical activity. But you both were grown-ups, with some level of education, I presume. I must confess I would have expected more from you.

I don't judge you. Not everyone is wired the same way. Some people consider classical music to be boring, and think of it as just background music. But this was not a jazz bar, or a concert pub when you feel like talking with your peers even when the sound of the music is loud enough to discourage a proper conversation. Even if it is a free concert, perhaps you would prefer to seat in the lawn where you can seat farther from adjacent concert attendees who really want to enjoy the experience, rather than seat and talk loud enough to get angry stares from others. And it's not about your freedom of speech: it is about the behaviour you are expected to have at a performance like this, to allow others to truly enjoy the experience.

Anyhow, I loved the experience and I am totally grateful towards the fantastic performance by the Houston Symphony, the amazing job of Mr. Brett Mitchell, to the sponsors who made this event possible, and to Mr. John Williams just for existing and creating such superb pieces. But you, casual concert-goer, please take this as a plea from me to you: next time you are sitting at a free open-venue symphony concert, if you notice someone looks back with a disapproving stare, while you are talking about non-sense during the performance, please either try to lower the volume or simply shut up. The music-lovers out there like me will be definitely grateful if you do.

Sincerely,

A Pavilion Concert-Goer

Mirrorbright (Chapter One)

I've resumed writing some fiction - and started with this my incursion on what it is called "fan-fiction" - thanks to the Star Wars saga. Not so long ago I've read the book "Bloodline" by Claudia Gray, which talks about events on a galaxy far, far away six years before The Force Awakens movie, using Princess Leia as the main character. One of the main scenes inspired me to write this. Those who liked Episode III The Revenge of the Sith will find this sort of familiar... Hope you like it! 

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, material mentioned on this. All rights reserved to Lucasfilm.

Chapter 1

"So this is how liberty dies... with thunderous applause."

Bail Organa remembered the last words Padme said to him. He could still see the disappointment in her young and beautiful face. Next time he saw the Senator of Naboo, both of them were in an asteroid medcenter, away from Coruscant and the Senate, and she was giving birth before exhaling her last breath. A heartbreaking last breath, used to remind Master Kenobi that there was still good in Anakin Skywalker, the great Jedi Knight from The Clone Wars, who had turned to the Dark Side and now was known as Darth Vader. He had betrayed the Jedi Order and the Republic, to help Chancellor Palpatine to implement the Galactic Empire.

And now she was gone. The courageous child Queen who fought for her people of Naboo against the corrupt Trade Federation, the brave Senator who fought arm by arm along the Jedi Knights in the Battle of Geonosis had passed away. All she left was her memories to all those who knew her, and two newborn babies who would have to be separated to hide them from the Emperor and Darth Vader, their father.

The ship was descending toward surface, marked by the breath-taking view of the beautiful snowy mountains of Alderaan. Their destination – the Royal Palace – was getting closer, while Bail was thinking of his last encounter with the remaining Jedi.

"Split up, they should be", said Master Yoda.

"My wife and I will take the girl", replied the Senator. "We've always talked of adopting a baby girl. She will be loved with us".
As soon as Captain Antilles landed his ship, the Tantive IV, on the grounds of the Alderaanian palace, Senator Organa started walking towards the exit of the ship with the little baby girl bundled safely in his arms.

He approached the palace balcony, where his wife, Queen Breha Organa of Alderaan, was sitting with the beautiful view of the lake and the mountains, while there was a soft, crisp breeze caressing her royal head-dress.

"She's beautiful", said Queen Breha, visibly holding the tears at the sight of the little girl in her arms, while her face was beaming with a sincere smile.

Bail saw the little one's face. She was awake, with a serene expression on her little face. Would she look like her mother, or would she get her looks from the fallen Jedi knight?

"Her name is Leia." Senator Organa remembered the name given to the little girl by her dying mother.

"I like it. Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan. I like the sound of that." And then, Queen Breha, holding tenderly her baby girl, started humming an old lullaby she had known since she was little.

"Mirrorbright, shines the moon, its glow as soft as an ember
When the moon is mirrorbright, take this time to remember
Those you have loved but are gone
Those who kept you so safe and warm
The mirrorbright moon lets you see
Those who have ceased to be
Mirrorbright shines the moon, as fires die to their embers
Those you loved are with you still-
The moon will help you remember"

"Our little princess...", said the Queen, with a voice deep filled with emotion. They had been trying for a long while to have children, with no success.

He couldn't help but think of the little boy who had been taken by Master Kenobi to be delivered to Tatooine. He felt somewhat troubled on separating both twins, but made himself to believe that it was for the best, as Master Yoda had said. A pang of guilt went through him anyway. While Leia would grow up as a Princess, treated as royalty and loved by a family and the Alderaanian people, the little boy to be named Luke was to grow up in a moisture farm, living in an Outer Rim planet with two scorching suns and a hostile weather, controlled by the Hutts. He wished he could have taken both children under his protection. But that would be dangerous for the twins, especially if they were to be Force-sensitive as their father. He found consolation in the thought that Obi-Wan would be keeping an eye on the boy. In the meantime, he would raise this little girl to become a Princess, and to be part of the Rebellion against the Galactic Empire once she grew up.

With the soft sound of the lullaby sung by her adoptive mother and the warmth of her arms holding her, Leia fell asleep. Bail looked at her, totally captivated by the serenity of the little one that from that day on, would be known as his daughter. With her innocence and few hours being part of the galaxy, this little baby would not be able to imagine all that the future had in store for her. But at the specific moment, surrounded by the peace of the mountains and the lake, she would have nothing to be worried about, at least for the here and now. He thought of Padme and felt sad that Leia would not be able to meet her. Her daughter would not know of the courage and virtues of the former Queen of Naboo. But he and Breha would do their best to mold her at the image of her biological mother, and personally he would keep working in the shadows to give her a better future, to overcome the dark times that could be foreseen with the Empire governing the Galaxy.

And for her father... he'd rather keep her as much as possible away from the sight of the Dark Lord of the Sith. At least, they have arranged Padme's funerals to make her look as if she was still pregnant when she died, so the former Anakin Skywalker would not know of any living offspring with her, and would hopefully stay away from his daughter.

Random thoughts: Claudia Gray's "Bloodline" (SPOILERS)

Welcome to a new section of this blog: my first impressions about the book "Bloodline" that was released last week on May 3rd. I finished the book shortly afterwards, but I had some hectic days that prevented me to post this.

My immediate reaction after reading this book (Spoilers are coming):

 

OMG. Finally finished reading this book. And if my own personality was not as similar as Leia's I would be crying my heart out right now.

I have no words. Perhaps it was more my prior admiration for Leia that compelled me to read the book as soon as I could, turning page by page with the hope of finding out what happened 6 years before "The Force Awakens" on a galaxy far, far away.

But Claudia Gray does a great job developing Leia Organa's character. She is the same feisty, duty-bound Princess we met back at the Tantive IV in "A New Hope". I could write two pages worth of the events we do know from her taking place, but the point is that she portrays her same as stoic, but with her own flaws as a human being. And one of those flaws is the way she handles the fact of being Vader's daughter. When "The Force Awakens" came out, I was already suspecting she had not come to terms with her inheritance the same way as the old Expanded Universe (now called Legends) books had portrayed - see "Truce at Bakura", "Tatooine Ghost" and the "Thrawn Trilogy" - which it is interesting per se since we could take this as a proof of what Yoda said: "Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future.". Had she publicly acknowledge this in the early stages of the New Republic changed something? Being a Game of Thrones fan, it reminded me of the following quote by Tyrion Lannister:

"Never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like an armor, and it can never be used to hurt you."

 

I had been holding my tears in most of the chapters, recognizing passages from the new canon - like "Vader Down" comics reference to Vrogas Vas - or the sole mention of Padme being an inspiration for her daughter, made me feel a big lump in my throat. But the keepsake box was too much for me to handle - I could hear the soft voice of Jimmi Smits as Bail Organa in my head, talking to his adopted daughter, with a background music piece being a mix of "Across The Stars" and "Princess Leia's Theme", while snippets from Episodes II and III would show as a background for the revelation being given, and I could not hold the tears anymore. Especially since a lot of SW fans that hate the prequels consider Padme a weak character, which she might end up being by the end of the trilogy, but not during the first two episodes - as a courageous child Queen and a impulsive yet brave Senator.

I agree that "Lost Stars" - the Star Wars canon book written by the same author - might provide us with an enhanced perspective since we are getting to know characters that are not familiar to us, on a timeframe of events we already know, but that we end up liking them. In this case we know Leia, surrounded by our favourite scoundrel - I'll be talking about that relationship in a minute - and mostly new characters, some of them recently acquainted in "The Force Awakens". It helped a lot following Claudia Gray's Pinterest to get her mental casting for most of the characters we don't know previously from Episode VII, but I found myself really engaged after reading about them. Maybe the one I ended up most infatuated with was (oh surprise) the Centrist Senator Ransolm Casterfo. Here Gray does one of the things I found more endearing from "Lost Stars": she portrays her characters as sentient beings, whose political allegiance should not be used as a base for prejudice. At first I thought Casterfo was a Empire-worshipping fanboy, but getting to know him could help me understand why he was like he was and why he did what he did. But Gray proves a point: not because you are a Centrist that means you are despicable. (Well, I cannot talk about the new character Carise Sindian. I utterly despise her.)

Another thing of the book I loved was the mention of the Jabba the Hut incident from "Return of the Jedi". I'm definitely getting a shirt with the image "Huttslayer" on it (like this one):

I liked newcomers Greer and Joph a lot. Having not seen them included in "The Force Awakens" as part of the Resistance led by Leia could mean a lot of things, but part of me thinks their history might have taken a tragic turn, due to her condition. Could they make a spin-off story for them??? Just wondering. Anyhow, I liked Leia interacting with them, when watching the races and sipping on jet juice - lol, with this and the Sabacc game I can tell a certain Corellian scoundrel has been a bad influence for the Alderaanian princess lol.

And well... talking about that one, Han Solo. For some of us, the simple fact of having them apart, in love but apart by the time "Bloodline" occurs might sound not like the best thing we might have foreseen for these two, but we have to face it: they are maybe two of the Galaxy's most difficult, stubborn people. Her nature was to be a politician and to serve; his was flying. Both had really strong characters - we knew it from the time they met at the detention block shootout. It reminded me of a quote by Mexican painter Frida Kahlo about her husband, Mexican painter Diego Rivera: "Perhaps you might expect to hear from me tales of suffering about my life with a man like Diego. But I do not think the margins of a river suffer for letting it flow." (Small license: she might have been talking about his extra-marital affairs, but in this case we can use it for the two strong-headed characters of Han and Leia lol).

I would have wanted to hear more about Luke and Ben. Their absences and the way Luke is described make it sound like Luke followed the Jedi way to the extreme: not to mess with the New Republic business, and living a life apart with his Jedi Academy. In some way, after the exhilaration of the Victory Celebration in Endor, makes me feel like Luke ended up living like what Gary Kurtz mentioned it was going to be originally the end of "Return of the Jedi": Luke as a lone Jedi Knight, walking off into the sunset alone.

And I could not imagine what was coming to Tai-Lin. (Insert shocked and sad face here.) In some way, I'd love to find out later that Casterfo was not actually sentenced to death and that he might make it to later episodes - only if they cast Tom Hiddleston, pleaseeee! That was why seeing Tom Hiddleston and Carrie Fisher together at the White House Correspondants Dinner two weekends ago was really nice for the people like me waiting for "Bloodline" release (and for Claudia Gray too, based on the mention she made on her Twitter account):

Anyway, I feel like I'm pouring my thoughts in a random way and that later I might have a greater picture of everything. However, I confirm what I have said previously: Leia is the strongest and most tragic character of the entire saga. And by the effect of his inheritance, both this post-"Return of the Jedi" material and the Sequel Trilogy are still the extended Tragedy of Anakin Skywalker - just hope it's not because there is a reincarnation in the future! (I am talking to you, Reddit rumored plot leaks for Episode VIII!)
 

Cinco de Mayo

Hoy las armas nacionales se han cubierto de gloria.

Ignacio Zaragoza, May 5th, 1862.

First of all, I'd have to say that the inspiration behind this piece of writing came back in St. Patrick's Day, when I read Seamus McKiernan's article on The Huffington Post titled "Why I don't celebrate St. Patrick's Day". At first, I thought it was sort of odd, but later on I could find a reasonable ground for discussion about this topic, and actually how many similar issues were found with celebrating Cinco de Mayo and those like me who have Mexican heritage. I saw the parallelisms between both festivities. I saw the common ground between the Irish and the Mexican immigrants, with the bonus of remembering all those brave fighters who were part of the St. Patrick's Batallion, switching sides to fight for Mexico in the US-Mexican War. (And the reason why I have always wanted to travel to Clifden, Connemara, Ireland on September 12^th, to see the Mexican flag flying in remembrance of John Riley and his “Patricios”).

To begin with, I do not actively celebrate Cinco de Mayo. I might end up going out to a party by mere circumstance, but not exactly looking forward to it. Not in the way it is celebrated nowadays in the States. Cinco de Mayo is way more than enchiladas and tequila. It is way more than wearing a large sombrero and a fake moustache. Cinco de Mayo, though the remembrance of a temporary victory over the French, represented a good chance of a feeble and outnumbered David winning over a cocky and strong Goliath. 

Having lived in Mexico showed me the two different perspectives toward this celebration. In Mexico, May 5th is a national bank holiday, since it is the anniversary of the Battle of Puebla, back in 1862, when the Mexican army defeated the French. Obviously, there would be official government ceremonies, but not wide public celebrations as seen in United States. My reasoning behind that remarkable difference might be in the person of the leader of that Mexican army, a general named Ignacio Zaragoza.

This is the story of a man who was born in one little town, where nine flags have flown over the time. A little town that belonged to three countries while he lived. A man who had it all against him. His family left the town where he was born to move south, two years before the ones that called themselves Texians defied a central government looking forward to become a independent country. Growing up, he was enrolled to become a man of religion, but the times were changing so he pursued a different career. He might have not imagined back then that he was to face a great challenge and even less that he would overcome it to give a glimpse of glory to his name. Back then, Mexico was a country troubled by long internal fighting between Conservatives and Liberals. Such division and struggles had influenced in the loss of half its territory and a number of serious problems which were such a hurdle for the healthy growth of a nation. This same division caused in the long run that a foreign power became interested into invading them.

8 years before the French invasion, there was a competition to write a National Anthem. The lyrics of the chosen one (the one still being used as Mexican National Anthem) say:
 
"Mas si osare un extraño enemigo
profanar con su planta tu suelo, 
piensa ¡oh Patria querida! que el cielo
un soldado en cada hijo te dio."  

(But if some enemy outlander
should dare to profane your ground with his sole,
think, oh beloved Fatherland!, that Heaven
has given you a soldier in every son.). 

This was not totally true until 1862. For that brief moment, a man knew how to unify and lead his army to defeat a better one fulfilled that half-stanza.  He commanded a poorly equipped and outnumbered Mexican army to defend the city of Puebla against elite French forces.

Ignacio Zaragoza was Texan-born, from a place known today as Goliad, Texas (though similar to Goliath, the name is believed to be an anagram to Hidalgo, the founding father of Mexico) This happened years before the Independence of Texas from Mexico. This mere fact might establish the first reason behind the popularity of Cinco de Mayo in the States: how a Texan-born, fighting for another country (though he was raised more like a Mexican than a Texan), could defeat what was the best army back then. A short-lived victory though, since a year later the French defeated the Mexican and helped establishing the Second Mexican Empire, with Archduke Maximilian of Habsburg as emperor, and Zaragoza passing away of typhoid fever before Maximilian was crowned.

Some historians go further in the analysis regarding the increased importance of this apparently isolated event. During the same timeframe, United States was through the Civil War, and though there were no direct support from the States to either Mexico or France, historians like José Antonio Burciaga believe that if the French had won that battle, they would have aid the South to free the blocked ports. According with several academic studies, Cinco de Mayo became quite popular during the 1940’s due to the Chicano movement, as a banner for the Latino movement in Latino en California.

However,  whichever the reasons Cinco de Mayo has achieved this higher relevance in United States than in Mexico, my concern is that, as McKiernan expressed, this celebration it is becoming in just an excuse to drink and recreate a fake stereotype of Mexican people. Not everyone in Mexico wears a sombrero, or drinks tequila. The most famous kind of enchiladas made around the States is not even common in Mexico. Though it is heartwarming - for those who share Mexican heritage like me - to see music and traditions being celebrated through United States, at a certain extent it becomes amusing and somewhat annoying when a non-Mexican says “Happy Mexican Independence Day!”, which in fact is celebrated on September 16^th, and it is actually a bigger of a deal in Mexico. Everyone gathers with family and friends, preparing traditional dishes and drinks, wearing traditional costumes and waiting for the ceremony of the “Grito”, where the Mexican President goes in front of the crowd waving the Mexican flag shouting Vivas in remembrance of the equivalent of our Founding Fathers.

Some might say: “Whatever! Good for you, we will drink the tequila!” and I do respect. But I do consider that there are still quite sensitive issues for Mexicans living in the United States, being immigration maybe the most important. I am not against an inclusion of Mexican customs as acknowledgement of the widespread Mexican heritage that many of us share; nevertheless, I would like to see more content in these celebrations. Cinco de Mayo should be a reminder of how we can achieve things even against all odds, if we learn to overcome the strengths of our adversaries and join all our efforts. To help people see Mexico is more than bad news related with violence, and that we should be proud of this heritage. Mexico is the country of Sor Juana, of Frida and Diego, Alfonso Cuarón and Emmanuel Lubezki. The country of Juan Ruiz de Alarcón, Gonzalez Camarena, Mario Molina, Hugo Sanchez and Chicharito. The country whose soccer representative defeated the Brazilian giant in the shrine of English football two years ago in London. The country of a general who, against all odds, in front of a few thousand ragged soldiers held the world’s most powerful army back then, covering the national weapons with glory.

Downton, The Great War, and what Mexico has to do with it.

Downton, The Great War, and what Mexico has to do with it.
(Or the fascinating way all topics end up related).

Well, this is me, jumping late into a fandom wagon. I have been hearing about some TV series, recently born sagas that have captivated the attention of many people I know. Due to many reasons (maybe being a nomad during the last 3 years and deliberately refusing to get a new TV set) have increased my reluctancy of becoming again any given series follower, perhaps since I reckon I refuse to create an attachment to a TV program that can be finished anytime at the producers' will. (It happened back with "Cold Case"). However, I decided to contradict this former behavior by starting watching Downton Abbey. I have read many good comments about it, and I tried to channel my tendency to crave anything even remotely related to Britain by watching the first episode of Season One. And I immediately fell onto a slightly obsession around the Crawleys, and their world one hundred years ago.

Maybe now that I am almost done with the three seasons (actually holding to the last episode since I already know what happens and I will not discuss it any further since I hate being a spoiler!) I reckon that one of the things that I really like about this drama is how the temporality of life is portrayed. For many of us, war is just an idea. We might try to simulate it by playing videogames, watching epic sagas, etc. But our perspective is not entirely affected by the awareness of clear and present danger. We take life and most of its commodities for granted. We might repeat as parrots that life is short, and you might not be here tomorrow, but there is not a high percentage of probability of having a dangerous situation that can give additional weight to our words (or so we perceive).

The thing is, that at first I was not that interested since the time period when the series is developed (right after the Titanic sinking and then during the First World War) was not exactly my cup of tea. Personally, I have been strangely attracted to either the Regency period (i.e. early XIX century, when Jane Austen wrote her masterpieces) or the Plantagenet-Tudors hegemony (XV-XVI centuries). However, the dramatic plot moved me into looking for more information about it. I knew the main facts about The Great War (or World War I, as we call it across the Atlantic) but not really a great deal of it. I knew some events, like the sinking of the British passenger ship named "Lusitania" where a number of Americans were killed, and from my first source of knowledge about this particular event, I was told that due to this, United States entered the war. But reading more about the topic, it seems like this sole event was not the main reason.

And here is how Mexico appears on stage. During the second decade of the twentieth century, this country was engaged in the Mexican Revolution, a civil war started to overthrone Porfirio Diaz, who had become a dictator ruling the country for 30 years. There were a lot of external interests regarding the outcome of this armed conflict, due to the foreign investments done in Mexico during the Porfiriato. And obviously, these external interests tried to engage the fighting nation into their side of the conflict. So here is where Arthur Zimmermann, Germany foreign secretary, saw his attempts of creating a German-Mexican alliance frustrated. The "Zimmermann Telegram" was sent to the Mexican government led by Venustiano Carranza, in order to offer German support to Mexico to recover the lost territory back in the war against US, in exchange of Mexican support against the Allied Forces, led by the British. This telegram was intercepted by British naval intelligence and then sent to the United States embassy in London. When it was published on the Spring of 1917 in the States, this was interpreted as a direct German threat to the United States. Then the American forces joining the European conflict was something that followed right soon afterwards.

There has been some claims that Mexican government even analized the proposal, but it was immediately rejected based on the current situation of the country, already torn down due to seven years of conflict, as well as the unfeasible scheme of providing armed support in both ways (either Mexico to German, or viceversa) due to the British naval strategies that could block the supplies in both directions. Also reconquering the lost territories (from Texas to California) would imply severe adaptation schemes for the Americans already settled  and already used to the American laws.

Obviously, this topic sounds quite interesting and it seems like scholars have already analyzed if the Zimmermann telegram was nothing more than something used by the British in order to drag the United States into the war to secure the Allied triumph. And for me it is quite funny how you can link a modern British drama series with the Mexican revolution. It keeps my belief that somehow all topics end up related one to another.

I don't know how to love him...

I have not seen Jesus Christ Superstar, neither the movie nor the play. However, recently when one of my favourite singers (Melanie C) was going to appear as Mary Magdalene, I paid attention to the song she performs, called "I don't know how to love him". And I really liked the song.

Maybe my perspective is biased since I am her fan and I have not seen the whole play. However, from the lyrics I can say it is such a interesting portrayal of one of the female followers of Jesus. And I say interesting, since we are talking about a woman who was used to play an unpleasant role on society. I know, there has been a great deal of discussion about the true personality of Mary Magdalene, if she was really a sinner, a prostitute or according to Dan Brown, the wife of Jesus and the true chosen one to hold the power of the Christ church on Earth. Keeping this aside from any polemic discussions, let's stick to the baseline representation of Mary Magdalene as one reformed sinner. If she was who we have been told she was, the song cannot be more realistic about her perspective about this Galilean prophet, and His message of Love. Her, who was used to be the object of paid desire of man, found really confusing how to approach him, "how to love him". Us, as used to the modern idea of women having similar rights to men, having the right to vote and to work and do most of the things women like her obviously could not. For us might be difficult to understand, but if even the world of our grandmas was pretty different to ours, obviously thousands of years might be.

Hope you like this piano cover anyway :D

My two cents about the Oscars

Well, I do not really understand the urging necessity of some human beings to keep a criticising attitude towards everything. I mean, I am critical as well, but with things as movies, I understand that the main purpose of a movie is to entertain. My prior statement goes along with the reactions shown about some of the movies that were nominated for the Academy Awards this time. We all know movie industry depends on a lot of things and interests far beyond the mere art of filming. We do know that for sure. Even so, we are

able to see them honouring most of the best movies done by the mainstream industry. So why the surprise?

Let's take for example "Les Misérables". I have read several comments against the movie, based on the average singing performance of the actors involved when compared with the stage representations. Well, I have news for you. Stage representations are done wherever else, from Broadway to Mexico City, from West End to Auckland. Even in the border town I grew up in is planning to do one soon. And obviously, you might find more gifted Fantines than Anne Hathaway or way more skilled performers than Russell Crowe. But let me tell you something. I would pay for watching a movie with recent Catwoman singing about her cruel and painful life, sacrificing her hair, or the only one Gladiator attempting to sing stage-like or hunk Wolverine showing why he is one of the most perfect men in this world. I would not care about the best singer of West End or Broadway, I'm not a musical comedy expert. And the ugly truth is that most of the moviegoers are not. If they were, we would have more stage than movie theatres. You have to make ends meet. It's a matter of business and money. And I really enjoyed seeing all the ensemble cast singing an arrangement of "One Day More" special for the night, since in the movie Fantine does not take part on it (she is supposed to be dead by then).

Let's talk about "Argo". I got into a silly discussion with a Twitter random guy (silly, since I just kept saying "Peace out") but the thing is that for every historic event, there will be three sides of the story: our side, their side and how it really happened. You should choose to see the content rather than the form. It would be sort of distracting the issue that political interests got involved (even more if the First Lady presented the award!) but what I find fascinating is how something as vain and superflous as movie industry can be deemed can serve a higher purpose: saving human lives. And at the end of the day, I reckon most of the nominated movies caused some stirs regarding their central topic: Lincoln about the abolition of slavery, Django about the Tarantino-violence and portrayal of slavery, Silver Linings Playbook about a unrealistic scheme about bipolar disorder (Note: only one reviewer said so, the one from The New Yorker), Zero Dark Thirty about supporting torture. Anyway, I enjoyed seeing Ben Affleck receiving his Best Picture award. He really made a great work. If you watch Argo and notice you feel like watching a 70s movie for the quality of the film, not only due to the way the people are dressed, it is because he cut in half the film and give it some special treatment to make it look like the material used back then. And even when you can google and find out about the storyline, and you might know in advance how it is going to end, the whole movie your attention is caught by the movie and you are at the edge of your seat.

Let's move into more mundane stuff since for the previous ones, everybody will have their piece of opinion. One interesting fact about the two actresses that got an Oscar home. It is not widely known that Anne Hathaway was originally cast for the role of Tiffany in "Silver Linings Playbook" (the one that gave Jennifer Lawrence her first Oscar for Actress in a Leading Role). However, scheduling issues with The Dark Knight Rises made her to decline the role, so David O. Russell looked for another actress. After taking several famous comedy actresses into consideration (even *ergh* Angelina Jolie) for auditioning, he reluctantly accepted to give Jennifer Lawrence an audition (he thought she was too young) but after an audition via Skype he found her perfect for the role. And now you see it paid back for both.

I liked the irreverent hosting by Seth MacFarlane. Several of his jokes caused more than one "gasp" by the audience, but other than that the guy was cool. Other notable performances were obviously the songs, where Adele had a lukewarm reception by the audience, opposite what they did with Jennifer Hudson (maybe the effect of being "close to home" aside her stunning performance were important here, but nevermind, Adele's got it all!).

Being more frivolous, I loved Jennifer Aniston's dress, and how Charlize Theron can rock a pixie haircut. And she surely can dance. It was a funny ceremony. Call me frivolous and vain, I don't care. Quoting Tarantino, "PEACE OUT!"