+Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico: "El ombligo del universo"

2010-08-11T12:50:00.001-07:00

Perfil satírico del Boricuazo.

A Commonplace Book: The Killings in Connecticut

2010-08-09T20:57:00.000-07:00

This is an excellent post by a former professor of mine.

A Commonplace Book: The Killings in Connecticut

Graf

2010-07-24T13:42:00.000-07:00

I found these graffiti pieces while walking down a side street in busy Rio Piedras, PR. Rio Piedras, for those of you who haven't been, is the historic market for the island's farmers. The charming thing about Rio Piedras is the coexistence of street vendors selling everything from avocados to pirated tapes from grocery store shopping carts to fufu retail outlets where paunchy business men hawk the latest fashions. Of course, there's lots of graffiti adorning (or defacing, depending on your perspective) the walls of buildings in mid remodel, run down lots, or sidewalk mini walls like the ones pictured. I was drawn to the first because of the contrast between the stylized kitty face and the heavy spray paint strokes in the background. The second is, of course, a stencil of Jim Morrison's face. The cracks in the paint give it an edge and fortuitiously compliments the idea of jim morrison, perhaps as a romanticized musician and broken human being.

Intervención filosófica

2010-06-23T15:09:00.000-07:00

Algunos postulados de Lacan sugieren una diferencia radical entre ser y saber. Podemos decir que ésta diferencia es sustentada por experiencias cotidianas que demuestran que el saber del sujeto agobia su ser y, inversamente, lo que el sujeto es no concuerda con lo que sabe.

Se impone la pregunta: de qué consiste saber ser Puertorriqueño?

La Mudanza

2010-05-22T16:34:00.000-07:00

Ganancia y perdida al origen.

Me acuerdo de la casa del barrio, el mangle, la quebrada,

Los chamacos me decían Raúl aunque me llamo Roberto (no bother).

El Datsun de Mario que usabas prestado,

Y a Mario, estorbo durante la era de Trujillo, velando siempre
por la brillantez de sus estribos.

La casa de Los Maestros, unjida por lágrimas fosforecentes.

Las quenepas que aguantaba tenebrosamente en el medio de mi lengua.

Las tres bicicletas que me robaron y cuando salistes a buscar a los tecatos.

El primo llorando en la marquesina,
Mi madre llorando en la marquesina,
Yo llorando en la marquesina,
El perro cagando en la marquesina.

No te confundas, en éste escenario todos tienen su papel apropiado,

Hasta la mudanza, no sólo las sillas y las mesas, pero más aún,
las ratas.

Americana/Puerto Ricana: reflections on cultural shifts

2010-02-11T15:22:00.000-08:00

We're seeing it, hearing it, and tasting it everywhere. From the powerful resurgence of raw denim couture with a working class twist, to the rustic, wispy appalachian sound of Bon Iver, to the slow food, local produce craze--the culture seems to be yearning for a mythical past.

This trend is not limited to the fashion scene either (well represented by indy shops like Freeman's Sporting Club (NYC) and Union Made (SF)) but is steadily pervading the other arts. Granted, the past has been mined (some would say exploited) for years in order to imbue all sorts of mass produced crap with an aura of respectability. Even so, the most hardened cynic would have to admit that perhaps there's something unique going on here.

It will be interesting to see how this new activation of the American myth will develop. I'm thinking specifically of the way it will be perceived and reinterpreted by places that have either a real (Puerto Rico) or symbolic dependency on the mythology of the United States.

It seems that these places have an opportunity to amplify this trend by focusing on the best of their history, and, in doing so, diversifying Americana through the manifold traditions that set its true foundations. Clearly, this means more than just romanticizing an ideal. It means re- imagining the possibilities that were either ignored or deliberately squashed from that past.

We have been taught to find value in the unique, now we are summoned to create authentic value. But what does it mean to go from unique values to authentic ones? And is it possible to make a distinction between them when they have been dulled by years of abuse? José Martí thought that (in opposition to the dominant imperialist ideologies) the real conflicts of his time did not stem from the alleged clash between the civilized and the barbaric, but rather between "false erudition and nature."

It may be that, like Martí suggested, underlying this opposition between the unique and the authentic (values which lend a certain charm to this quest for the core of a mythical American past) there's another foundation that needs to be found.

Details from my week in PR

2010-01-18T22:33:00.000-08:00

Dulce de Astorga: my great grandfather's recipe for a candy/cookie/pastry wrapped in white tissue paper, which he would sell in church after the service.

My great aunt's 80th birthday.

Visiting my grandfather's farm in Moca. He gave me well thought out advice on never compromising your principles. Also, ate bacalao con viandas, which was the poor man's lunch on the island for many years, and now it's considered a delicacy.

The abandoned oil refineries near Ponce: huge, dark, ominous, worthy of artistic exploration, but finally just another blight on the landscape.

Conversations with my father: topics too numerous to recall in detail.

Advice from my great uncle on how to reach 80 looking as fit as he does: eat well, don't smoke, don't drink, and never be afraid of hard work.

Guillermo Fadanelli (Badass Mexican writer of the underground)

2009-12-08T22:42:00.000-08:00

Source: http://fadanelli.blogspot.com/

Guineitos en Escabeche Pa' Todos

2009-11-24T21:02:00.000-08:00

This is a special post highlighting one of the best side dishes in Puerto Rico. Guineos en Escabeche (pickled green bananas - I know, the translation makes it sound gross, but bear with me) are made using a cooking technique developed by the Moors in Spain involving heavy amounts of vinegar, garlic and onions. The escabeche technique can be used to cook many things, from meats to vegetables and fruits. The dish is a testament to the wonderfully varied history of Puerto Rico, it replicates in your mouth the elegant majesty of Old San Juan's Muslim inspired architecture. But it's really just a bomb dish that will impress your American friends and make you seem more Puerto Rican than you really are. So, to get ya'll started you will find below the best recipe to make this reedonculous dish, my ma's, of course. (It's in Spanish, so if you're lazy put it in Google translate or, if you're brave, learn the language and earn the privilege). Out.

Bomb Guineos en Escabeche

Ingredientes:

3 – 4 manos de guineos verdes

3 cebollas grande

1 cda. de ajo (minced)

½ pote de alcaparrado

aceite de oliva

aderezo italiano o preparar un sobre de Good Seasons Italian

pimienta negra molida o en granos enteros

adobo

3 a 4 hojas de laurel

Procedimiento:

Cojer los guineos y cortar las puntas un poco y hacer un corte a lo largo del guineo no muy profundo. Luego poner guineos en agua hirviendo con un poco de aceite vegetal y sal a gusto. Cocinar hasta que los guineos esten suaves pero no tan suave que se rompan. Pinchar con tenedor para ver si estan cocidos. Pelar los guineos y dejar reposar hasta que esten frios. Cortar los guineos en rueditas de ¾ pulgadas. Poner en envase de crystal . No uses metal pues reacciona con el acido del limon y el ajo se torna verde (ugh!) no muy bonito a la vista.

Echale el aderezo italiano y adobo y mezclar con una espatula de goma. Prueba para asegurarte que esten con una capa fina de aderezo y bien de sal. Ponlos a un lado y empezar a preparar el escabeche como sigue:

Cortar la cebolla en ruedas, echa 2 cdas de aceite de oliva en un sarten y sofreir el ajo por lo menos un minuto. Echar la cebolla, hojas de laurel y sofreir un poco mas. Puedes echar los alcaparrados y aderezo italiano y mas aceite de oliva. Tambien puedes echar pimienta negra para que todo se cocine junto y los sabores intensifiquen. Dejar a fuego bajo hasta que la cebolla se vea transparente. Por lo menos 15 minutos tapado, fuego mediano. Echar el escabeche sobre los guineos y mezclar con cuidado hasta que los guineos esten brillosos. Se le puede echar mas aceite, aderezo italiano y adobo a gusto.

Ojo: Los guineitos deben de quedar medos sosos pero con mucho sabor a los demas ingredientes, recuerda que el aderezo italiano contiene sal, y si cocinastes los guineos en sal ya deberian estar sazonados de sal. Si le anadistes sal cuando primero los cortastes entonces han habido tres ocasiones donde la sal se le anadio. Te digo esto pues no quieres salarlos. Es importante probarlos en las diferentes etapas de preparacion pues es muy facil salarlos.

Dejame saber como te quedaron!

Fortuño: The Egg is My Friend!

2009-11-10T13:23:00.000-08:00

Source: http://www.contratodaautoridad.com

Photo and Video of the oil storage facility explosion (owned by Gulf)

2009-11-09T15:38:00.001-08:00

Source: www.yuquiyu.com

Puerto Rico's Viagra based economic policy (or Kenneth McClintock's limp dick strategy)

2009-11-07T13:48:00.000-08:00

I don't know if anyone else noticed, but what the fuck happened to Puerto Rico's economy? Well, it's in the tank. The "general strike" of October 15th, made a tiny blip in the mainstream media and, beyond the photo ops, it illustrated the wide spread opposition to the incompetent economic policies of the current administration.

Puerto Rico, not suprisingly, is reeling from the U.S. recession, which, according to most estimates, is not going away any time soon. The massive budget shortfall (3.2 billion, proportionately the highest deficit of any state in the nation), the crushing 16 percent unemployment, and the crippling recession are causing pandemonium and, of course, a requisite amount of pathetic navel gazing. The Fortuño administration, relying on the tried-and-true political tactic of passing-the-buck, immediately sought to portray the crisis as one that predated his tenure. In other words, a reasoning of the "if past administrations had..." we wouldn't be in this position, variety.

So, in order to the prevent the downgrading of Puerto Rico's credit rating from shit to negative shit, the administration has been "forced" to take some "tough" measures like laying off 20,000 state employees. And, just so they don't give the impression that they're a bunch of bitch ass thieves stealing the people's money, the governor mandated a 20 percent salary cut for his staff. The governor was interviewed by Univision's Jorge Ramos during the general strike, he asked him to explain the disparity between his salary 65k and that of some of his closest staff members which is still well over 100k . The governor looked befuddled for a split second, shit a brick, and then did the classic public relations maneuver of evading the question by acting like it wasn't even asked.

Of course the governor is not going to mention how the douchebags in his administration that are making over 100k while the island is 3.2 billion dollars in the red, are being cheuferred around the island, eat government subsidized meals at the priciest restaurants, and make enough dough to live like kings in their police protected gated communities. So why would they really give a shit about showing a little modesty?

Finally, Kenneth McClintock, the current Secretary of State for Puerto Rico, takes the prize for the most inane comment about how to solve the economic crisis. From CNN.com:

Puerto Rico is "still the pharmaceutical capital of the world, but we have to try to manufacture even more Tylenol to resolve our economic headaches," McClintock said. "We have to manufacture even more Viagra than we already manufacture so our economic statistics will rise."

So Puerto Rico is a pharmaceutical sweat shop. In other words, there are no Puerto Rican owned pharmaceutical corporations, just like there are no Puerto Rican patents on any of the drugs that are manufactured there. There's also no mention of developing a bit of self reliance for an economy that for far too long has been slavishly dependent on the good graces of foreign corporations or government handouts.

But perhaps I'm wrong, and McClintock's "limp dick" strategy for economic development will "raise" the island's economy. Veremos.

Fortuño almost gets egged

2009-11-06T10:01:00.000-08:00

Notice the sign behind Fortuño. How is this dude gonna stand there and talk about a $8.4 million "investment" for a ferry boat terminal when his administration just laid off thousands of state workers who are owed back pay?

The Boricuas of Calle 13

2009-11-05T13:19:00.000-08:00

Being an on and off fan of various Reggeatón artists, I've often thought about how this music is received in different parts of the world. The musical genre, whether you like it or not, is one, if not the, main export of Puerto Rico to the rest of the world (aside from Miss Universe hotties).

From humble beginnings in the Projects (residenciales) of PR to the streets and nightclubs the world over, the infectious beats and rhythms have proved their global appeal. Even so, at the level of lyrical content and visual style the genre has been plagued by sameness. That calle 13 has been been steadily building a loyal (and global) fan base under the radar reflects people's desire to see the genre expand beyond Don Omar, Tego Calderon, and the kingpin Daddy Yankee.

Enter the boys of Calle 13 with their bomb new documentary (Sin Mapa) making the rounds at international film festivals.
In sum, the film is a hybrid. It's a profile exploring the bands origins, their relationship with a growing fan base and their negotiation with success ("la fucking moda" as they call it). It's also a social commentary of sorts, on the plight of various indigenous groups in Latin America trying to preserve their traditions amid the shit storm of globalization, the precarious state of the global ecology, and the vapidity of fashion fueled consumption.

All in all, it's fun to watch some fellow young Boricuas traipse around offering unsolicited commentary on various people and places without being pedantic or patronizing. They deftly avoid the trap of the type of hollow, star studded documentaries that culminate in a guilt ridden call to action. What can you say, the boys are of their time. They understand that to connect in our age requires the requisite dose of absurdity laced with mockery and abuse of those who abuse.

What's also refreshing, as a fellow Boricua, is to see their treatment of widely contradictory cultural legacies affecting the island: close family versus broken homes, cultural unity versus minority exclusion, macho versus homo, and so on. More importantly, they do not shy away from exposing the continuing political and militaristic interventions that the U.S. carries out in the island with impunity.

Finally, perhaps in our age of resistance as chic, these types of new artists are just tapping into global anxiety and cynicism to sell more stuff with what's seemingly more "real" than anything else in our televisual trash heap. Even so, for the exluded, for the voiceless, it's a grand cathartic pleasure to watch artists with balls and irreverent insight speak the perverse truth to the absurd powers that rule our lives. In other words, "the Grammy's can suck my dick."

Here's to Calle 13. Pa lante, boys, pa lante.