…losing three jobs, new lovers and a handful of friends
There’s so much to celebrate, at the turn of the New Year. For some of us who got this far, untouched by the epidemic, alive, and more transformed that we ever expected. It’s been nine mad months, looking ahead to new beginnings, hope, progression; and although feeling successfully lucky, we paid a price. At least I did, deeply, because just when I thought I was over my darkest period ever, personally, a new global one started. And don’t mention “reinventing” yourself: it was a new birth, all right. …
Another Holy Night might be another chapter of animal cruelty for millions of non humans who deserve more than a short, hard, disposable life as toys, or Instagram objects. Don’t buy, don’t even adopt, unless you’re ready to respect and love a life, more than your own.
These days, a big part of the world will be celebrating Christmas and New Year. Unless you’re a dog or a cat, because this moment could be the beginning of a true nightmare. Hundreds of thousands of animals around the world, possibly millions, will be bought as a Christmas gift. And most of them will end dead or in the streets. Why do we continue accepting this?
2020 will not make it easier for these animals. It’s been a hard emotional year, and we haven’t reached the end of it -despite the arrival of the different vaccines-. Shaken by the ongoing economic crisis, restricted by the second and third wave of infections, our lives altered to almost every single detail, our emotions have unleashed a wild desire to consume, celebrate and close a forgetful year, one that has deepened the gap between the privileged countries -those who have already bought and almost sold out the first huge delivery of vaccines- and the not so rich parts of the globe. …
You’d easily believe me if I told you that the Brad Mehldau solo piano concert in Madrid, last week on November 5th, was my first attendance to a performance since March. Being able to enjoy again the magic of music, with one of my favorite musicians alive, became unique. Feeling even more thankful than the artist himself for sharing what he makes best: unexplainable emotions. Precisely what we humans are made of.
On July 29th I felt somehow very lucky when I managed to find tickets for a Brad Mehldau Trio show in Madrid, programmed for November. I shared the happy news with the world, in Facebook, crossing publicly my fingers for all possible things to turn bad. A good friend commented: “have faith! we’ll have a vaccine for the virus in september ”. Less than three months later the show got cancelled, then reprogrammed only with the solo piano show, and it almost didn’t happen. As soon as Spain’s late summer second Covid-19 wave hit, seats and distance had to be reorganised… and reduced to 50% of the original capacity. But we got our seats! …
An international alliance has brought together governments, scientists, organisations and local communities to protect this Biosphere Reserve in the Southern Caribbean, and the third largest coral system in the world. But again, we’re running out if time.
October 12, 1492 marks a historically disputed date: the arrival of Christopher Columbus to the New World, more specifically to the island of San Salvador (baptized with that name by the explorer). He then moved on to the islands of Santa María, Fernandina, Isabela, Arena, Cuba and La Española, before returning to Spain. In quest of a shortcut to the Indies, he bumped into the Caribbean. As a matter of fact, his entire voyages to the new continent, America as we very often say, almost didn’t really touched the continent, with the exception of Venezuela’s Peninsula of Paria.
So Columbus was maybe the discoverer, for the old Europeans, of the Caribbean, and perhaps the beginning of its destruction. One of the many reasons why Spain’s National Day on October 12th, named with absurd grandeur as Día de la Hispanidad (Day of the Hispanicity), is always full of controversy and fair discussion. More so with the recent exploitation by Spanish far right parties to march in the streets of Madrid, proclaiming their epic pride about the conquistadores. But this year, the date received a completely different spirit, one of solidarity, progress and activism. …
A selection of all-time 30 documentary films focusing on Animal Rights, anti-speciesism, animal empathy and social change for non-humans.
Around five years ago, I was researching, reading and watching everything there is about Animal Rights, while preparing myself to film undercover my documentary Santa Fiesta (2016). Back then, I wasn’t even a vegan, so my comfortable existence was going to get a pretty solid spin. Not only because twelve months of watching animal cruelty and death in the countless religious celebrations we have in Spain would convert me to the cause. But also because my appetite for original creative and socially rebel documentaries would start a new collection: Animal Rights films.
Even though a lot of post-millennials still think we can find everything online, the truth is that once you start selecting a particular subject on documentaries, a lot of interesting material is not available. Coming from music collecting on vinyl, I know all about the dedication one needs to complete an artist, style or theme. …
The heart-melting photography of Andrés López
Many so-called pets don’t have a home, and can spend, weeks, months, or even years waiting for someone to choose them. It can be even more difficult for pets that have been abandoned, abused, or attacked. Despite the immediate reactions to their appearance, it only takes a few seconds to look into their eyes to fall in love completely.
Madrid-based photographer Andrés López wants to melt your heart and inspire you to adopt, so he creates beautiful portraits of animals that are still seeking their forever fam.
I had the chance to talk to Andrés about this project, “Invisibles,” a free service he’s been offering for more than six years to shelters and organizations to promote the adoption of cats, dogs, and other animals. …
We love you, dear visitors from all around the world, specially from the United Kingdom, Germany and USA. But when you come back, we need you to put the money away from torture and cruelty to animals. Specially bullfights.
Very soon our frontiers will open for every nationality. Hotels, restaurants, bars, music, parks, beaches. Everything we love about summer in Spain will be at its best, and we need it badly. Tourism, national and international, is an essential part of our economy. So many jobs stopped during the (still unfinished) State of Alarm caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. But we are getting up and working hard to show our best smile.
Theaters, cinemas, even music venues are adapting themselves to the so called New Normal. Culture, films, music helped us deeply to ease the hardest moments during our confinement. But now that football matches are back, the rest of the sports competitions will also return, and life will taste as it used to be. …
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