Gravity Eyelids

My heart is broken

It 's worn out at the knees

Hearing muffled

Seeing blind

Soon it will hit the Deep Freeze

And something is cracking

I don't know where

Ice on the sidewalk

Brittle braches

In the air

The sun

Is blinding

Dizzy golden, dancing green

Through the park in the afternoon

Wondering where the hell

I have been

-Suzanne Vega

Well, I'm in Segovia province about 125 km from Madrid. Good to be out of the city - a nice change of pace. The place is beautiful- reminds me a lot of Santa Fe.

I woke up early and took my Banesto students to a museum. Three of them showed up too late to see this great Van Gogh exhibit, but I'll see it some other time. It was fun. We are bonding and their English has really improved. This guy Daniel called me the Puta Madre (mother of all whores) which is actually very good (means 'you're the balls'). That was a nice thing. I guess I have finally arrived at the tender age of 39.

Then they told me that the last teacher yesterday, Michael, (4pm to 7pm slot) covered too much material, which I had advised against, but my boss is a daft cunt and told him to do so. I told them not to worry, that I'd review it with them before they were tested on it.

What really pissed me off is that they told me this 50 something year-old British queen was dissing the United States. Only I may diss the United States. He was rambling on about how you have to tip and all this bullshit about them not letting you out of the restaurant if you don't tip. He also told them that if beers are five dollars you tip ten.

These guys like Americans. They don't like the English much cause they're still kind of bent about the defeat of the Spanish Armada.

I told Daniel and Hector, "The next time he says stuff like that; you tell him 'Bite my ass."

I translated it and they cracked up.

The museo was the Thyssen Collection. They had El Greco's and all that stuff, but it's so depressing. Everything's a crucifixion scene or the martyrdom of Saint Moe. We enjoyed the modern art much more. A little color never hurt anyone.

We were looking at a Rothko 'Verde on Maron.' It's a Green box on a purple background. Daniel looked at it and said, "Jake, what do you see?"

I said, "Same as you, a green square on a purple canvas."

"Jake, I think a person must fumar marijuana to understand this painting."

I could only agree with him.

-

I will be mostly tutoring one student Juan Jo (Juan Ho, short for Juan Jose). Nice guy. Should be cool. My digs are kind of cushy. It's nice here.

The music of the future

Will not entertain

It's only meant to repress

And neutralise your brain

Soul gets squeezed out

Edges get blunt

Demographic

Gives what you want

Now the sound of music

Comes in silver pills

Engineered to suit you

Building cheaper thrills

The music of rebellion

Makes you wanna rage

But it's made by millionaires

Who are nearly twice your age

One of the wonders of the world is going down

It's going down I know

It's one of the blunders of the world that no-one cares

No-one cares enough

-Porcupine Tree

I must now close my heavy eyelids. I have to get up at about 7am. Oi!

Real Madrid won the la Liga title tonight. And Atletico beat Osasuna but Villareal won, so Atletico misses the UEFA Cup after holding the spot for months.

This one lady who is one of the students this week said. "Atletico? You like to suffer?"

I guess I do, I really do.