July 5th
Ana says:
I know the review about Invictus was really well done by Ana Navarro, so I don't want to add any more to her words but, even if I don't tend to mythify or idolize anybody, I find Nelson Mandela deeply interesting.
I am not really fond of politics and it doesn't awaken my interest either but I am really aware of human rigths and Apartheid in South Africa means to me a terrible, unforgivable mistake.
It's a fact that every single leader commits errors, as they aren't infallible; moreover, very often they have conflicts of interests, hidden reasons and so on. In contrast, Mandela was, in my humble opinion, a deeply honest politician who only wanted to unify a country divided by colours. It is a great "leitmotiv", isn't it?
For me, there is a quote which summarizes his style of life: "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul".
I am not really fond of politics and it doesn't awaken my interest either but I am really aware of human rigths and Apartheid in South Africa means to me a terrible, unforgivable mistake.
It's a fact that every single leader commits errors, as they aren't infallible; moreover, very often they have conflicts of interests, hidden reasons and so on. In contrast, Mandela was, in my humble opinion, a deeply honest politician who only wanted to unify a country divided by colours. It is a great "leitmotiv", isn't it?
For me, there is a quote which summarizes his style of life: "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul".
Having said all this, I’m sure you would like to read a fascinating 2008 article I’ve found quite by chance written by British journalist and author John Carlin, whose book “Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game that Made a Nation” is the basis for Invictus. Its title is Mandela’s Rock, a 2-part interview with Zelda La Grange, the President’s right-hand (incidentally a white woman), which shows perfectly how gracious and generous Mandela was (and still is) during his rule.
You can click on this link for the full story, but Jose Luis will email you the PDF file anyway.
Hi again! It's great to see that our blog is alive and kicking, even if it's only thanks to Ana's unyielding faith to keep it going. Anyway, may I write something else myself?
You know, this past weekend has been glorious for Spanish sport, not only in football, with the nail-biting win over Paraguay, but also in golf (Miguel Angel Jiménez, totally ignored by the Spanish media, won the French Open), motorcycling (Jorge Lorenzo and Marc Vazquez achieved great victories in front of the home crowd at Montmelo) and, last but not least, the amazing, the majestic Rafa Nadal gave Spanish tennis yet another resounding triumph at the cathedral of tennis, Wimbledon.
It seems our talent is endless, even if our authorities often disregard amateur sport and universities don't spend enough resources on promoting the practice of physical education, let alone organizing major leagues like they do, for example, across the Atlantic in the USA. That's the reason, in my humble opinion, why we excel at individual sports rather than, with a few honourable exceptions (namely, football and basketball, whose teams stem from highly professionalized leagues), team sports. But you might want to disagree with me.
Fair enough. I just wanted to embed a couple of clips to reflect all this Spanish success that make our country so proud. Starting with a CNN report (American accent) on the elated Spanish football fans and their joyful celebration in Madrid last Saturday:
Then, of course, there's Rafa's brilliant performance against Czech giant Thomas Berdych, this time narrated by Australian journalist Justin Armsdem (notice his distinctive accent?)
You know how much admire Pau Gasol and how often I have praised not only his career but also his personal values as well as his gift for English. Well, I'm afraid I cannot do the same with Rafa. I mean, he is arguably one of the best sportsmen (if not the best) Spain has ever seen, but as regards his language skills there's much space for improvement, as you can see in this BBC interview during the Queen's tournament (kind of a warm-up for Rafa before Wimbledon). Probably his innate shyness does not help but gosh, that broken grammar, the strong accent (boy, do I hate the way he pronounces "surface"!), ... well, I don't want to sound too harsh, but why doesn't he take a few lessons? Mind you, he's improved considerably in the last few months, he was much much worse, I tell you! After all, to be honest with you, he can cope just fine with the media and, as the female presenter remarks at the end, "Isn't he absolutely charming?" Some post-comments on the Youtube clip even suggest (diehard fans, no doubt) that his accent is ... so SEXY (!?)
July 4th
Hi folks, what’s up?
Enjoying the summer, are you? As for me, my days are rather uneventful for the time being. My wife works mornings, my daughter has just gone to a summer English camp, my son plays the guitar like mad and then hangs out with his mates in the afternoon / evening. Then there’s a bit of football now and then, as Spain continues its World Cup quest. Also these days I’ve been still busy at work, and I won’t end my tasks until Wednesday.
Now, Ana said in her latest comment on our blog that she doesn’t want it to die just yet. So I made up my mind to write something, not much I guess, for this new month so that I may encourage you to give it a go. So here I go again:
You know, a couple of days ago I was listening to BBC radio 2 when this song came up. An instantly recognisable classic, the kind of tune you’ve inevitably heard before. Many might remember it though the film Midnight Cowboy, that unorgettable Oscar-winning 1968 film starring Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight.
Whatever the reason, it’s the kind of song you will hear again and again tirelessly. I love its anti-urban lyrics, which tell the story of someone who seems unable to connect with his peers and wishes to leave for the ocean and the summer breeze. I also like the haunting acoustic guitar’s finger-picking and Nilsson’s melodic voice.
Here is the Youtube excerpt of the original black and white videoclip plus the lyrics scroller. Hope you enjoy it!
Keep clicking guys!
Enjoying the summer, are you? As for me, my days are rather uneventful for the time being. My wife works mornings, my daughter has just gone to a summer English camp, my son plays the guitar like mad and then hangs out with his mates in the afternoon / evening. Then there’s a bit of football now and then, as Spain continues its World Cup quest. Also these days I’ve been still busy at work, and I won’t end my tasks until Wednesday.
Now, Ana said in her latest comment on our blog that she doesn’t want it to die just yet. So I made up my mind to write something, not much I guess, for this new month so that I may encourage you to give it a go. So here I go again:
You know, a couple of days ago I was listening to BBC radio 2 when this song came up. An instantly recognisable classic, the kind of tune you’ve inevitably heard before. Many might remember it though the film Midnight Cowboy, that unorgettable Oscar-winning 1968 film starring Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight.
Whatever the reason, it’s the kind of song you will hear again and again tirelessly. I love its anti-urban lyrics, which tell the story of someone who seems unable to connect with his peers and wishes to leave for the ocean and the summer breeze. I also like the haunting acoustic guitar’s finger-picking and Nilsson’s melodic voice.
Here is the Youtube excerpt of the original black and white videoclip plus the lyrics scroller. Hope you enjoy it!
Keep clicking guys!
