tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48116342472108556512024-03-05T20:43:54.947-08:00Transcultural vogueingMaeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.comBlogger94125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-622285623188904692011-07-27T09:16:00.000-07:002011-08-06T09:31:17.960-07:00Direct Consular Filing, OVERSo if you haven't already started the process, <a href="http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=721270">direct consular filing will be a thing of the past starting August 15th, 2011</a>. Which means if you want to petition your alien spouse's visa from Chile, you'll need to do it through <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis">United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)</a>, in Chicago, I believe.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-29559011308635791702011-07-17T18:11:00.001-07:002011-07-18T14:16:16.385-07:00My love for Chilean soccerStarted in Canada in 2007 with "la rojita". June, I believe. With Sanchez, Medel, Vidal, Toselli, Isla, y varios más headed by Harold Mayne-Nicholls. La prensa chilena le siguió para todos lados al equipo informando a todo Chile de los cortes de pelo, el shopping, y las andanzas de estos jovenes alegres en Toronto. De hecho, la presa chilena fue criticada por lo mismo porque decían que hizo desconcentrar al joven equipo. A lo mejor se destrayó, pero a la vez me hizo a mi más interesada que nunca en el fútbol chileno, ya que conocíamos a los jugadores <span style="font-style: italic;">y</span> a sus familias. Los periodistas incluso iban a las casas de las familias para entrevistarlas, ver los partidos con parientes y amigos de los jugadores y hacer a todo Chile conocerlos.<br /><br />Los partidos eran emocionantes para todo el país. Por primera vez, in my humble and bastante amateur opinion, Chile tenía un buen EQUIPO, no solo a "<a href="http://fiveprime.org/hivemind/Tags/salas,zamorano">SaZa</a>", sino a una manga de buenos jugadores quienes jugaban (y juegan) bien! (Well, most of the time anyway. No one's perfect.) Chile veía a <span style="font-style: italic;">la rojita</span> con tanta o más emoción y fe que a la selección adulta. No sé si soy yo o si Chile por primera vez tenía confianza en sus jugadores nacionales como equipo.<br /><br />Despues del altercado que tuvieron con los pacos canadienses, lo que mas me acuerdo de <span style="font-style:italic;">la rojita</span> en Toronto es cuando Medel sacó la pelota del arco Chileno (ni me acuerdo contra que equipo) y el protagonismo de Toselli en los triunfos. Bueno, y la mencionada interacción con la prensa chilena fuera de la cancha.<br /><br />Bueno, y ahora varios de aquellos jovenes que jugaron en Canadá, ahora son parte de la selección. Y me rompe el corazón cuando pierde Chile, como perdió hoy día. Lo único que quería era que avanzaran para poder verles jugar más porque JUEGAN BIEN CTM!Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-45595063393226338412011-04-28T11:12:00.000-07:002011-04-28T11:37:28.290-07:00Standard of LivingI took a consumer survey today that asked me if I would be willing to experience a decrease in standard of living in favor of my environmental concerns, (for me this means to use less energy, buy less stuff, pay more for organic local food, grow your own food, etc.) I didn't like how the question was posited, because it assumes that having less pollution (cleaner water, air, land) isn't an increase in standard of living. Honestly, some people are annoyingly clueless. (In this case survey writers. What's worse, there was no place on the survey to express this.)Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-5202702567573926612011-04-14T18:28:00.000-07:002011-05-03T12:48:14.212-07:00Proving domicile in the USA on the I-864 (the affadavit of support)How to show domicile on the I-864 when you're living abroad. I totally had an "immigration zombie" moment with this one.<br /><br />I believe the reason showing domicile is important is because U.S. Immigration wants to be sure that you will be arriving in the United States with or before your spouse. If you're not living in the States, but your alien spouse is, I imagine that makes the I-864 pretty worthless to the government.<br /><br />The domicile part of the I-864 is sort of confusing because if you are applying DCF, it's because the U.S. citizen applying is a "resident" in another country. However, you have to prove your "country of domicile" is the United States. You can be a resident somewhere outside the U.S. and have you country of domicile be the United States. If you go to Part 4, question 15 on the <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-864instr.pdf">I-864 instructions</a>, it gives you options A, B, and C. For most people trying to prove B and/or C is the way to go.<br /><br />Possible proof of domicile:<br />On the I-864 instructions they list the following as proof of U.S. domicile:<br /><ul><li>your voting record in the United States,<br /></li><li>paying U.S. State or local taxes,<br /></li><li>having property in the United States,<br /></li><li>maintaining bank or investment accounts in the United States,<br /></li><li>having a permanent mailing address in the United States.<br /></li><li>evidence that you are a student studying abroad or that a foreign government has authorized a temporary stay.</li></ul>Or if you don't have these, you can show the following:<br /><ul><li>accepting a job in the United States,<br /></li><li>signing a lease or purchasing a residence in the United States,<br /></li><li>registering children in U.S. schools.</li></ul>On the visa forums, users make even more suggestions of what to submit as proof of domicile:<br /><ul><li>a letter from parents/siblings/etc. saying that you are welcome to live with them while you get set up in the United States<br /></li><li>a bill from a U.S.-based health insurance in your name or that you're included on</li><li>that you are giving up your lease or selling your house abroad</li><li>if you will be studying in US, send them documentation that you are enrolled in a college or university<br /></li></ul>Also there's a <a href="http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Guide_to_Proving_US_Domicile_Intent_When_Living_Outside_the_US">wiki at British Expats</a> which is super helpful. It gives suggestions on how to prove domicile in the USA.<br /><br />For more info on this, i.e., other people's experiences, it's very helpful to do a search for "I-864 and domicile" or something to the effect at british expats forum on the <a href="http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=35">"USA, Marriage-based visas" branch</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD">Here's a link to the USCIS forms</a>. As of April 14, 2011, anyway.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-51617535064168095642010-12-07T15:11:00.000-08:002010-12-07T15:24:15.038-08:00Say what?I used to think the most difficult Spanish in the world was Chilean Spanish. It probably still could be considered more difficult than not. Why Chilean Spanish is difficult to learn is that Chileans mostly:<br /><ul><li>speak softly</li><li>speak in a monotone</li><li>cut off the last syllable of many words (e.g. cansá instead of cansada)</li></ul>A Cuban guy came to fix my stove upon moving into our apartment. His Spanish was wonderful. (His English was pretty good too!) I could understand every word he said in Spanish. This only confirmed my knowledge that Chilean Spanish is the hardest.<br /><br />And then my sink wasn't draining well, so last week, a different Cuban guy came to fix it. Oh my god was his Spanish difficult!!! His English was non-existent, so we communicated in Spanish, but I had to ask him to repeat himself often. When I asked him what had caused the semi-clog in the drain, I didn't understand one word of his reply! So I asked him, "Estaba tapado?" He replied, "Sí". And I had to get rolling anyway, so I saw him to the door and left myself. I think if I had conversed with him for a while, I eventually would have caught on. He left me pretty floored however.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-19829870394779630702010-12-03T11:49:00.000-08:002012-08-14T22:47:09.888-07:00On bilingual kidsWhen people comment that V and my future kids are going to be bilingual, I tell them that our kids will speak English with a Chilean accent and Spanish with a gringo accent. hahaha.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-82533162071368336792010-11-30T14:37:00.000-08:002010-11-30T16:20:22.927-08:00Thanksgiving sort of ruined.I don't really like holidays a ton, except for el dieciocho and Thanksgiving. Yes, I'm a foodie. hahaha. Thanksgiving used to be my favorite American holiday. This year V and I had a lovely Thanksgiving lunch with my folks, for which I am thankful. But then, V asked me what we were celebrating. I couldn't remember if it was the first harvest that the pilgrims had after arriving to America, or if it was a feast that the Native Americans prepared for the pilgrims saving them from starvation. According to omniscient wikipedia, both answers are partially correct. Turns out the Native Americans taught the pilgrims to plant so that the pilgrims wouldn't starve to death come winter. It worked out well for the pilgrims, and Thanksgiving is celebrated at harvest time. So it celebrates the first harvest. Then the whites proceeded to kill almost all of the Native Americans.<br /><br />I've always known that. I don't know why it ruined Thanksgiving for me this year and not other years. Perhaps because this year I read <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bury_My_Heart_at_Wounded_Knee"><span style="font-style: italic;">Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee, An Indian History of the American West</span></a>. And so I guess having to explain Thanksgiving to a foreigner six months after reading this book, got to me. I'm just thankful my little nephew and niece didn't ask me. I might have gone off on an "unpatriotic" rant and ruined their childhoods.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-43162201699861074212010-11-07T19:00:00.000-08:002012-08-14T22:53:07.817-07:00Adios San Marcelino, poderoso salvador y protector del futbol chileno...I just mentioned to my husband how I was hoping to read what the gringa bloggers had to say about Bielsa and nobody's said anything really. At least regarding his choice to quit as trainer of the National team if Harold Mayne-Nicholls weren't re-elected as the president of the Chilean Soccer Federation (ANFP) -which he wasn't. So here goes. The Argentinean, Marcelo Bielsa, one of the best soccer coaches in the world, quit. I'm not a huge soccer fan, but I really like Bielsa. He's a Philosopher Coach, <a href="http://frasesbielsistas.blogspot.com/">literally</a>. And a bit of an enigma due to his general avoidance of the press and his soft-spoken way. I've watched several of his conferences the last few years and while he's soft spoken, his ideas are wise and pack a punch. Especially interesting to watch was the unexpected conference he called the day before the ANFP presidential elections. Usually pretty concise, here he spoke a lot longer than normal, sharing anecdotes. It was really fun to watch.<br />
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Soccer is important in Chile! They rarely have a good team. They don't make it to the World Cup often (because as any Chilean soccer fanatic will be sure to let you know, Chile has to compete against Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay to get to the World Cup whereas the United States competes against Mexico and Central America, which is plenty easier. ) But Chileans love soccer and love their national team even if sometimes juega como las weas (they play like shit). Well, that changed with Bielsa. Under his direction, they beat Argentina for the first time ever in a play-off game. They beat Paraguay in Paraguay for the first time in 28 years. They won in Lima for the first time in like 25 years. They also beat Colombia in an away game the first time ever. He helped form lots of good players, and he led them to the World Cup in South Africa.<br />
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Before I go on, I must drive home that Chileans are A CRITICAL PEOPLE. They criticize everything!!!!!! Seriously!! They have a wonderful public transportation system thanks to ex-presidents Ricardo Lagos and Michele Bachelet and all Lagos and Bachelet got for all their hard work was a TON of criticism. Honestly, here in most cities of the United States we are like 20 years behind the public transport in Santiago, la Quinta Region and probably most of Chile!!!! And lots of Chileans can't talk enough shit about it. *Vent finished* (I suppose being uber-critical is sometimes one of their more endearing traits! :P )<br />
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In Chile, when someone actually achieves the carino del pueblo, the people's affection, it does call my attention. And, yes, they-especially the men-do love soccer, but seriously the Chilean people's love for Bielsa goes beyond just soccer. <a href="http://foro.univision.com/t5/F%C3%BAtbol-de-Chile/The-Clinic-Homenajea-a-Marcelo-Bielsa-un-Santo/m-p/341462337">Honestly</a>. <a href="http://www.prendeleunavela.cl/">It does</a>. I think Chileans really like extraordinary but humble people, like Bielsa. I agree with the Bielsa-loving Chileans, Marcelo Bielsa is a Saint. And to that Bielsa responds: no hay Santo sin historia ni pecador sin futuro. There's no Saint without a past, nor a sinner without a future.<br />
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After the World Cup was over, the Chilean National Team went to the Moneda to be greeted by the president, and many Chileans outside la Moneda. When Bielsa gave Pinera a "lukewarm greeting", it was controversial. Because Chileans love one of them more than the other. hahaha. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1x1eA_hZrQ">Here I've found the truth about the presidential greetings!</a><br />
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Although the Chilean president denies it, many think that Pinera influenced the results of the ANFP elections so that Mayne-Nicholls lost and Jorge Segovia won the presidency thus provoking Bielsa to quit. I don't know if it's true. However, I don't like Pirana, so it wouldn't surprise me. But the real clencher is that the change of ANFP presidency will be good for Pinera's business interests. Since the team he's owner of, Colo-Colo, will receive more money with Segovia as president than it would with Mayne-Nicholls.<br />
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I was really sad to hear Bielsa was quitting! I honestly don't like soccer that much, but I like how Chileans are about Bielsa. And I like Bielsa. I was bummed. But I watched a part of a press conference where Harold Mayne-Nicholls spoke and he made me feel better. More or less he said that Chile had a wonderful opportunity with Bielsa. The ANFP put together a project for Chilean soccer that interested Bielsa enough to accept the position as the coach. He said we should be grateful for those four years, and the work that Bielsa, the players, and others involved in the project did for Chile. (He said it so much better than that, but that's the gist.) It made me feel better about Bielsa quitting. This whole Pinera in, Bielsa out situation also makes me happy I'm living in the States now. As a friend of mine said in facebook. "Todo esto me da asco!!!!!" Agreed!Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-77981512129220937702010-10-13T21:15:00.000-07:002010-10-13T21:41:55.133-07:00Immigration to the US: Filing a change of addressHeads up to present and future immigrants and their spouses.<br /><br />V and I have been in the States for like 7 months now, and just moved for the first time within the States, like a month ago.<br /><br />We just moved to Portland, Oregon, and thus had to file two forms. One was a change of address form for V, the permanent resident: AR-11. The other was for me. It's the I-865, the sponsor's change of address form. As far as I know, it needs to be sent in by mail. The AR-11 is supposed to be filed 10 days after the move and the I-865 about 30 days after the move. Lots of people don't do it, or do it late, but you could potentially get fined and I'm not sure what else for not doing it.<br /><br /><a href="http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=34">This British Expat Forum</a> has info on this. Just use the search box to find what you need.<br /><br /><a href="https://egov.uscis.gov/crisgwi/go?action=coa.Terms">The AR-11 can be filed online</a>.<br />The I-865 must be sent in. I believe that <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD">clicking here</a> and scrolling down you can get the most recent form.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-34964092089368297792010-06-21T11:52:00.001-07:002012-02-24T18:03:09.504-08:00Packing Light for TravelFirst I must just say "VIVA CHILE MIERDA, GANAMOS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"<br /><br />So before a trip:<br />-Definitely check the weather for where you will be traveling.<br />-Plan day by day outfits, if necessary, like especially if you'll need formal wear with jewelry, nice shoes, etc.<br /><br />Here's a packing list from Travel Light Guru Rick Steves:<br />-<a href="http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/packlist.htm">packing list</a><br /><br />Now, my own tips:<br /><br />If you have a tendency to overpack, when packing don't ask yourself "what will I need?", but "what can I live without?" - e.g. Perhaps your yoga pants can double as long underwear, pijama pants, and sweat pants. And maybe you don't really need that kitchen sink. Or the laptop. Or three pairs of jeans, maybe not even two.<br /><br />- Now this is just a general packing tip, to make it easier. A week or two before I leave for somewhere, I often find an empty corner of my apartment and open the suitcase I plan on taking and let it sit there. As I think of things I'm going to bring on my trip, I throw them in, so I'm not stressing out last minute about all the things I might be forgetting. Ojo: this can lead to overpacking. So do this for a week or two before traveling, and then when you are actually packing your bag, start filtering out things that aren't necessary. This is a comprehensive way of packing a bag, and probably isn't for everyone.<br /><br />- keep a rubbermaid with all your little travel gear in it, like TSA locks, fanny packs :), luggage tags, cosmetic bag, packing cubes if you use them, etc.<br /><br />- when I travel to other countries, I tend to accumulate some money in other currencies. Before leaving said country, I try to get rid of all the coins, unless I have a reason to hold on to them. For example, the new Chilean 100 pesos is very similar to the Euro coin, so I've heard they work for buying cigarettes from vending machines in Italy. Or they used to. You get a great exchange rate that way. Unheard of. But I digress... So, I actually usually arrive home with foreign bills if I think I will be traveling there again. Not a ton, maybe 20 dollars worth. Then I divide them in little ziploc bags by country, and next time I travel to say, Argentina, I've got 20 bucks worth of pesos just in case. And I keep the money with my passport, so I know where it is. That way it's also travel-handy, and I feel like a spy from a movie, :P hahahha. Except I guess I'd need a couple more passports to really feel like Matt Damon's Jason Bourne.<br /><br />Here are a few things that are almost always on my packing list:<br /><br />- a fold-up, eco-friendly grocery bag, <a href="http://www.envirosax.com/">e.g.</a> These I find AWESOME for travel. Especially in the airport. I carry it in my purse, and often I have lots of warm clothes like a thick sweatshirt and maybe a coat that I want to carry on the plane. In the airport, I can throw my coat, sweatshirt and extras in this sack for going through security and also if I'm too warm I can just carry it around in the bag. These bags are seriously the wave of the future! ha!<br /><br />-I find a pair of long yoga pants very useful when I travel, because you can use them as lounge pants, pijama pants, long underwear, and casualwear.<br /><br />-I'm all about having a beige, gold or bronze pair of dress shoes or sandals to wear with formal wear or anything really. Since they match my skin, I don't need to match every dress, skirt, and shorts; they also go well with jeans.<br /><br />- bikini: a personal must have. I think I wouldn't leave it behind even if going to Antartica. I have a fear of not being able to swim in a pool, at a beach, etc. because I didn't bring my swimsuit.<br /><br />- another good item: bolero mangas. I can't remember this word in English if I ever knew it, but one of those sweatshirts or sweaters that is basically just sleeves and goes over short sleeves, <a href="http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.elrinconcitodeatenea.com/media/catalog/product/cache/2/image/5e06319eda06f020e43594a9c230972d/i/m/img_1955.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.elrinconcitodeatenea.com/moda-joven-tallas-grandes/abrigos-chaquetas-y-boleros/boleros/bolero-negro-manga-larga-elastico-combinable.html&usg=__4V7fGuBOxJ2aYJBsYzj3Rzl8jno=&h=900&w=600&sz=25&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=5lULCwl-FNvx-M:&tbnh=164&tbnw=109&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbolero%2Bmangas%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26biw%3D1116%26bih%3D451%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=398&ei=cOW3TKikBZKcsQP6uLnxCA&oei=cOW3TKikBZKcsQP6uLnxCA&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=10&ved=1t:429,r:6,s:0&tx=45&ty=74&biw=1116&bih=451">like this</a>. It's a great piece of clothing, because it's small and light, packs easily and often when V and I would go to Vina for the weekend, I'd just bring that and two different short-sleeved t-shirts or tanks. That way I could convert my short-sleeved shirts into long sleeves. And I could still put a sweatshirt over the mangas. This cuts down on the need to pack so many long-sleeved t-shirts and short-sleeved. It's great for Vina weather where it can be hot in the day but it is usually cool at night.<br /><br />- I also travel sometimes with a little "Travel Pro" duffle. Rolled up, it was the size of those eco-friendly grocery bags, and it fits about the same amount, but it has a zipper, so I don't have to worry about stuff falling out of it while I'm in transit.<br /><br />- Another item that can be useful is a quart-sized see-through cosmetic bag. They sell them at Wal-Mart now, and probably on the internet. That way you can use the same quart-sized bag every time you carry liquids onto the plane. Yoopee!<br /><br />-<a href="http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/tips_menu.htm">Rick Steves travel tips</a><br /><br />Anyway, here are a few <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdRl3dBGxRs&feature=PlayList&p=A3016DA4167D6087&playnext_from=PL&playnext=1&index=6">videos</a> I found useful for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmIJox-srfc&feature=PlayList&p=A3016DA4167D6087&playnext_from=PL&index=0&playnext=1">packing</a> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhQzFbJ3CXE">light</a>. They contain excellent information!!! And lots of it!<br /><br />-I must say, I pertain more to the "rolling your clothes" way than the layering-folding style. Or the shove-them-in-the-bag style too. It's efficient and effective. haha<br /><br />Last of all, if you're stressing out before a trip, just make sure you have your travel partners, a passport and perhaps a credit card. Everything else can be figured out upon arrival. Boa viagem!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/tips_menu.htm"></a>Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-23039924711442778382010-04-11T22:12:00.001-07:002012-04-16T14:57:32.065-07:00Top 11: You know you're a chilenized yanqui when...11. You can't believe the amount of shopping people do in the States.<br /><br />10. You are overwhelmed (and perhaps even amused or disgusted) by the material wealth of the United States.<br /><br />9. Sometimes when a family member or friend suggests eating out, you say, "but we have so much food in the refrigerator at home."<br /><br />8. You ask for referrals for services and products all the time. You are also very practiced in negotiating prices.<br /><br />7. You occasionally use wordreference dictionary to translate from Chilensis to English.<br /><br />6. Spanglish is your language of choice.<br /><br />5. You can make a seven course meal even with the fridge and pantry almost empty.<br /><br />4. You check the dates on the milk, yogurt, etc. while shopping at the store to make sure it's not already expired.<br /><br />3. Half of your facebook friends are Chilean, and your friends and family from home complain that they can't understand most of you facebook page (because it's all in Spanish.)<br /><br />2. And you know you are <em>Santiaguized</em> when...acting like a total bitch (especially to strangers) - <em>te sale a flor de piel</em> - comes naturally.<br /><br />1. You think about a thought in a thousand different ways (te day mil vueltas a un pensamiento) before saying it to assure yourself there's not one possible sexual interpretation of what you are about to say.<br /><br /><br />hehehehe, feel free to add your own ideas :)Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-17923131300061379122010-03-31T21:20:00.000-07:002010-03-31T21:48:05.513-07:00Arriving in the States with an immigrant visaSo we were scheduled to fly out of Chile March 1st, but there was this "big tremmor" which shook the airport up and trashed it enough to delay our flight about a week. I consider us very fortunate, because many didn't fare so well in the earthquake. <br /><br />We arrived in Miami March 8th, I believe, and went through immigration. V was on his immigrant visa so he got in the "U.S. Citizens and Permanent Lawful Residents" line with me to go through immigration. It's called something like that anyway. So we went up to the immigration official/cop guy and I went through first and then V. After V got his finger prints taken, the officer lead us to a room close by. There was one other client in there waiting, and then the official. We were told to take a seat and we waited for about 40 minutes while the immigration official worked. It was like 5am. Yawn. But the guy got to us and was really friendly and helpful. V just had to sign a form and we chatted for a while with the guy and headed to Ft. Lauderdale for a vacation with my family. <br /><br />V was told that he can work with the visa that's stamped in his passport. Apparently it works like a green card while we wait for the green card to come in the mail. <br />Also the friendly official in Miami had recommended V get an I.D. card at the DMV, so he doesn't need to carry his passport. Also to get a job, apparently you need to present two I.D.s but we haven't gotten that far yet. And V has an international driving license so he doesn't need a driver's license just yet. So at the DMV, we were just about ready to finish getting his I.D. and the lady helping us said that when he comes into get his driving permit, he should bring the receipt she was handing me. I let her know he had an international driver's license. And after making a call, she informed me that if he gets an I.D. card, his int'l license would no longer be valid. Random. So we didn't get the I.D. card.<br /><br />That night I happened to open some more mail V'd received while we were in Florida, that we just hadn't gotten around to opening. He'd been sent a sort of "alien" I.D. card, so I imagine that will work as an I.D. for writing checks and buying booze 'til he feels like getting his Minnesota driver's license. We had quite the pile of mail. V had like 3 or 4 things, mostly from USCIS. He'd also been sent his social security card, and a couple random papers that I've forgotten what they are. I wonder if the I.D. card he was sent is the green card... hmmmm...perhaps.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-12248306510728673542010-02-02T16:15:00.000-08:002010-02-12T16:13:42.397-08:00phone solicitorsSo we registered for Ripley novios last year, and a few years before that I turned in my personal datos occasionally at the neighborhood Bandera Azul to try to win a moped, a cart full of groceries, etc. So by now a thousand phone soliciters have my phone number. Ugh. <br /><br />I get a lot of solicitting calls and find them super annoying because they are insistant to sell my husband and I things that we don't need. The typical phone soliciter calls asking if we want to get more long distance minutes for our home line for only like 4.000 pesos a month. Or even better, they want us to switch cell phone companies. To which I have responded on various occasions, my husband has 2000 minutes a month to talk on his cell phone for free because he works in coverage optimization for movistar. They ask me, what about you? I have a good plan as well. What's more I use my husband's phone all the time to make calls. You know we've never gone over the 2000-minute limit? That usually shuts a phone soliciter right down. They're Chilean. They know about making good use of scarce resources.<br /><br />You can always hangup on them too when you realize it's a solicitor. Sometimes I just do that. But it annoys me that they call me in the first place.<br /><br />Several months ago I was at my sister-in-law's house and the phone rang and her 10 year-old son picked it up and said "qui pa longhi?". He started snickering as he set the phone down and his ma picked it up. That cracked me up and I was inspired by him and the next phone call I got at home, I followed his lead answering the phone with a, "qui pa longhi?" I was sure it was a solicitor, but it turned out to be the secretary from Solaris confirming my massage for the following day. It wasn't even the young secretary who would've gotten a kick out of my new phrase for answering the phone. It was the 50-something secretary who just straight up didn't understand what I said and clearly found no humor in it. Cuak.<br /><br />And then there are the random surveys calls, comparing super cerdo with other pork brands, or comparing sports drinks, etc. Sometimes I answer those because I find marketing slightly interesting. There was that one surveyor that wanted to get an idea of our household income by asking if we had say, a plasma tv, computers, internet, etc. I know that some studies do ask those sort of things for that reason, but if that was legit, whoever set up that phone survey is an idiot.<br /><br />The other day Ripley seguros called to talk to V - they always want to talk to V, and I said he wasn't here and that furthermore we are moving out of the country in a month. That got us off the phone in a jiffy. God, why did I <span style="font-style:italic;">just</span> think of that. <br /><br />And then, it occurred to me, after like 3 years receiving these horrid calls, why don't I just answer my phone in English, duh? God, seriously. This is just occurring to me now. So I told my suegra the other day that from now on I'm answering my home phone in English to webear a los weones molestosos. (Afterall the principal reason for getting the phone line to begin with was so my folks could call me at home rather than on my cell.) My suegra really liked the idea and said, yeah, you should really make them make a HUGE effort to communicate with you, and then when they finally get the message across, working their butt's off to make sense in English, tell them in perfect Spanish: "lo siento mi esposo está de viaje. Llega la otra semana." Click. hehehehehehe. <br /><br />And ever since I've made this decision, my phone hasn't rung once. Awaiting my chance...<br /><br />Edited February 8th:<br />So I've had my chances. The first call was from the firefighters calling us back because we complained about a gas leak in the building. I switched to Spanish right away ;). And now I've just gotten a call from someone who I don't think I know. The conversation went like this:<br /><br />Hello?<br />Alo, alo?<br />Hello?<br />Alo, alo?<br />Yes?<br />*Click*<br />Works magic.<br /><br />Although I'm thinking next time I'll try to figure out who's calling before getting them to hang up on me or at least get more information. I'm thinking the next conversation with a stranger will be more like this:<br /><br />Hello?<br />Alo, alo?<br />Hello?<br />Alo? Alo?<br />Si?<br />Está __________ ___________?<br />Rrrodrrrigoouu? What?<br />*Click*<br /><br />And then just yesterday, the 12th, I answered a call:<br />"Hello?" <br />*Click.*<br />Like a charm. ;)Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-27297834804109451612009-12-29T11:38:00.000-08:002012-08-30T23:13:23.237-07:00cómo engrupir a una gringajejeje.<br />
<br />
So I was alerted by one of my readers that while I listed how to alienate AND win over Chileans, I only listed how to alienate a gringo and not how to win one over. My reader further expressed that he wasn't interested in how to win over gringos, but would actually like some advice on <span style="font-style: italic;">cómo engrupir a una gringa</span>. Así ha nacido este post.<br />
<br />
So here goes:<br />
<br />
First, what not to do: NO HAGAS ESTO<br />
1) plis porfavor, por el amor de dios, no seas ese weon latero, mata-onda que se acerca a la gringa en la fiesta (o donde sea) y empieza a pelar a Chile y decir que vale callampa. Weon, no vay a llegar a ningún lado. A lo más la gringuita, te va a escuchar tu opinión, decir, "perrrou a mii me guste Chiile. Pourrr qué nou te guusta?" Después le vay a dejar chata, y hará todo lo posible para no hablar más con vos, pero sin mandarte a la cresta, cosa que las gringas encuentran demasiado fuerte. La verdad es que no son tantos los weones que haga esto, pero lamentablemente, las gringas somos una suerte de imán para este weón latero. Ugh. Seguramente porque no le mandamos a la mierda al tiro y le soportamos mucho más de lo que debemos. Gringas, si encuentran a este weón, digale que en realidad tiene toda la razón, que Chile vale callampa, que te vay de acá luego, y anda a hablar con alguien que valga la pena.<br />
<br />
Ahora unos consejos de qué hacer:<br />
<br />
1) Be authentic. Sé auténtico.<br />
2) Hazle reir!! ;)<br />
3) Averigua lo que le gusta, y invítale a pasear.<br />
<br />
(Personalmente, después de vivir 6 meses en Chile, había conocido una cachada de gente carreteando. Es una buena manera para conocer gente, pero la verdad es que me empezaba a preguntar si los chilenos hacen algo a parte de carretear. (Ahora sé que sí.) Aunque es entretenido, el carrete me tenía chata, y un pelín acolica.) Lo único que quería era que me invitaran (hombre o mujer) a andar en bicicleta, ir a la playa, hacer trekking en el cerro la campana, tomar un cafecito, surfear, nadar, la wea que fuera!!!<br />
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4) Si quedas con la chiquilla, trata de llegar a la hora y no la tiras para la cola.<br />
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5) Escúchala. Anímate para otro tipo de conversación más analítica y seria, pero tambien webéala un poco en buena onda como cualquier chileno de corazón!!<br />
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6) Trata de decir lo que realmente piensas, sin tanto susto de caer mal por contradecir lo que ella dice. Quizas a diferencia del chileno promedio?, somos buenas para analizar nuestros pensamientos y compararlos con pensamientos distintos. Encontramos interesante cuando alguien tiene otro punto de vista, y puede explicar porqué piensa así, a pesar de que esa persona cree algo totalmente distinto a lo que creemos nosotras. Conversaciones interesantes extenderán el tiempo que ella quiere estar contigo y creerán un interés para juntarse contigo de nuevo.<br />
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7) Corrige su español, please!!!! Los essspañoles de essspaña son secos para corregirnos, no sé porque los chilenos no lo hacen tambien :( A lo mejor para no caer mal? Puess, tío, ess la osstia que te corrigen el esspañol.<br />
<br />
Bueno, esos son algunos consejos para empezar. Seguiré pensando en el tema a ver qué más se me ocurre decir.<br />
<br />
En fin, les dejo con unas palabras sabias de calle 13, Atrevetetetetetete! ;)<br />
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Ah, y evita de webear a las casadas. Por lo general no estamos ni allí con cagar a nuestros esposos!!! ;)Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-55602477306420604312009-12-04T12:11:00.000-08:002010-12-07T08:19:07.326-08:00How to alienate a gring@.Following <a href="http://buzzdelaabeja.blogspot.com/2009/12/how-to-alienate-gringao.html">Abeja's lead</a>, I'm going to make a list of a few things that alienate a gring@- of the American variety. I'm sure there are plenty, but here's a small list that came to my mind:<br /><br />1) Walk slowly on the sidewalks. Gringos always complain about Chileans walking slow and blocking their way. I find it annoying sometimes (when I'm in a hurry), but I'm a pretty slow walker, so I'm probably one of the people who other gringos find annoying ;)<br /><br />2) Charge gringos "<a href="http://laeskimita.blogspot.com/2008/12/el-precio-gringo.html">the gring@ price</a>." Especially if they've lived in Chile for a while.<br /><br />3) Provide HORRIBLE customer service. If the gring@ complains, tell them to go somewhere else to buy what they need. hehehehe<br /><br />4) Make racist or classist remarks.<br /><br />5) Be unfriendly.<br /><br />6) Misunderstand them or make it clear you didn't listen to them when you respond to what they've said. -- Like for example, when a gringa/o lets you know they are vegetarian and that they don't eat red meat, chicken, turkey, fish, or any type of animal cadaver, offer them the vegetarian plate, chicken with rice. ;)<br /><br />7) Tirales pa' la cola. Make plans with them and then don't arrive. Actually this one alienates lots of punctual Chileans too.<br /><br />Those are a few ideas that came to my mind offhand. There are plenty more.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-44215558974584914642009-12-01T05:05:00.003-08:002012-08-30T21:46:48.561-07:00How to alienate/win over a ChileanI must say, you guys had some hilarious comments on how to alienate Chileans. Sooooo true. First, a few ways to alienate a Chilean:<br />
<ul>
<li>Tell them you're vegan or vegetarian, hopefully at a barbecue.
</li>
<li>When you want them to pass you the bottle of Coke, ask them to pass you the <span style="font-style: italic;">azúcar con agua, color caramelo</span> (the caramel-colored watery sugar.)</li>
<li>Tell them you don't really like tennis, and that Massu and Gonzalez aren't that good anyway.</li>
<li>When you go out with your friends, instead of ordering a beer or a pisco sour, order mineral water. All night.</li>
</ul>
Now several ways to win them over:<br />
<ul>
<li>Tell them you love Chile and speak positively about their country. Obviously! hehehe</li>
<li>Use lots of chilenismos. I LOVE language, and eat up new expressions. (I've taken a six-month break from my <a href="http://mejoratucoa.blogspot.com/">Chilenis blog</a>, though I've started again-sort of.) I don't know that there's anything more flattering and humorous for Chileans than to see their culture spread to foreigners. Instead of "Esta wea es para el pico" "Ehsta whea ehs paa el piicou". Oh, and if you really want to blow them away, teach them a chilenismo they don't know. I find the word "<a href="http://mejoratucoa.blogspot.com/2009/11/lumami.html">lumami</a>" is a bit uncommon here. Some, but not all, Chileans know it.</li>
<li>Ask your suegra (or other Chilean friends who like to cook) for their recipes, onda porotos grandos, pastel de choclo, pescado al vapor, etc. Talk about cooking with older Chilean women, and let them know how the recipes they gave you worked out.</li>
<li>If speaking with a chileno "culto" (~highbrow), mention the poets Vicente Huidobro, Pablo de Rokha, Gabriela Mistral's prose (vs her poetry), the movie Tony Manero, etc. They'll be surprised you didn't choose to talk about Pablo Neruda. Or tell them about a Chilean literary figure that they've never heard about like <a href="http://www.memoriachilena.cl/temas/index.asp?id_ut=teresawilmsmontt%281893-1921%29">Teresa Wilms Montt</a>.</li>
<li>With some types of Chilean women, who tend to ignore you on purpose, ignore back. It really irks them and makes them interested in you. Obviously, if they are ignoring you on purpose, they probably will never be a fun friend to have. Fun Chileans usually don't ignore you, and may be interested in what you are like, since you're a foreigner.</li>
<li>Converse as they do, focusing as much on the speaker as on the topic of conversation. Be sure to tease (webear) the speaker as much as possible.</li>
</ul>
Other posts on "how to alienate a Chilean":<br />
<a href="http://emilyinchile.blogspot.com/2009/11/group-post-how-to-alienate-chileans.html">Don't call me gringa</a><br />
<a href="http://cachandochile.wordpress.com/2009/11/28/ways-to-alienate-a-chilean/">Cachando Chile</a><br />
<a href="http://annjeunabashed.blogspot.com/2009/11/how-to-alienate-chileans.html">Annje</a><br />
<a href="http://whatsarasays.blogspot.com/2009/11/how-to-alienate-chilean.html">La Gringuita Diaries</a><br />
<a href="http://gringalivinginsantiago.blogspot.com/2009/11/group-post-how-to-alienate-chileans.html">NY Gringa Expat</a><br />
<a href="http://abbyline.blogspot.com/2009/12/group-post-how-to-alienate-chilean.html">Abby's Line</a>Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-6743115959544837542009-11-27T07:01:00.001-08:002011-07-18T14:38:33.918-07:00Immigrant Visa: DCF from ChileOr how to get a green card for your Chilean spouse, through the U.S. Embassy in Chile.<br /><br />Caveat Lector: these are some pointers on how to go about the visa process. What worked for me or someone else may or may not work for you. The information I provide can change and its best to be in contact with the embassy if you are thinking of doing DCF to make sure the rules haven't changed. Getting my spouse's visa was a little like playing "Calvinball", from Calvin & Hobbes. Or like being the protagonist of Dr. Seuss's "Oh! The Places You'll Go!", complete with a <a href="http://laeskimita.blogspot.com/2009/01/another-year-or-two-in-santiagocuak.html">total downer</a>. But as Dr. Seuss says, success is 98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.<br /><br />First off, "DCF" or "Direct Consular Filing" is slang, and not used by the embassy or immigration. It means to file your petition directly to the U.S. embassy in the country you are living rather than going through <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis">USCIS</a>. I believe they call it an "immigrant visa petition". DCF is used on the visa forums however, so its a good term to know.<br /><br />The visa I petitioned for for my husband was CR1, which is a 10 year residency visa with a condition that must be taken off two years after entering the States. The condition is for people who get permanent residency before they've been married for 2 years. (in the case of DCF, they'll be entering the country on a CR1 visa). Read more <a href="http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?autocom=custom&page=751guide">here</a>.<br /><br />That said. First you must qualify to apply. At the embassy, V was told that to qualify for direct consular filing in Chile, I (the U.S. Citizen) had to have any (chilean) visa that's not a tourist visa and have lived in Chile for six months with said visa. I wonder if you can have a <a href="http://www.familybasedimmigration.com/forum/showthread.php?t=824">student visa, though?</a>)<br /><br />If you are doing DCF from Chile, for a spouse <a href="http://chile.usembassy.gov/immigrant_visas.html">start here</a>.<br />You go to the embassy with the listed documents filled out and you turn in the petition for your foreign spouse.<br /><br />If they accept your petition, they'll give you some forms, like for example:<br /><ul><li>forms for your spouse's medical examination</li><li>the DS-230 (more biographical information, the applicant (the foreign spouse) must fill this out)</li><li>I-864<br /></li><li>perhaps something else that I've since forgotten?<br /></li></ul>Then we got a letter in the mail saying that our visa interview was in a month or so. My husband went to the doctor a couple weeks before the interview. The morning before the interview in the embassy, he had to stop by the doctor's office and pick up the results of his tests to bring with him to the embassy.<br /><br />His visa was approved.<br /><br />I turned in the I-130 on September 9th, and soon after (2-4 weeks?) I received a letter in the mail with the date for the final interview, which was November 4th. I accompanied V to the interview, but that wasn't necessary. At the interview, we were told the visa was approved, and V's passport arrived the following week. So, once my petition was accepted, it was a fast process.<br /><br />Also, V has six months to enter the U.S. on his CR1 visa from the date of approval, which means, you should bear in mind when you want to arrive in the States before petitioning the visa.<br /><br />Helpful resources:<br /><a href="http://chile.usembassy.gov/immigrant_visas.html">U.S. Embassy Chile: Immigration Visas</a><br /><a href="http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=35">British Expats: USA: Marriage-Based Visas</a><br /><a href="http://www.visajourney.com/forums/">Visa Journey</a> : wikis are good, term definitions as well, there's tons of information on visa journey. I registered and tried to post a couple times and it never worked. So I posted on britishexpats and got answers to my questions there. They answered quickly and were super helpful.<br /><br />A couple useful glossaries:<br /><a href="http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?autocom=custom&page=definition">Here's a glossary of Immigration Terms and Abbreviations</a>.<br /><a href="http://immigration.about.com/od/glossary/Immigration_Glossary.htm">Here's a second Immigration Glossary</a>.<br /><br />Forms you may need:<br />Check <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD">USCIS website</a> for most updated version.<br /><br />Forms for the petition:<br />I-130<br />G-325A<br /><br />For the final interview<br /><a href="http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/I-864.pdf">I-864</a><br />I-864A (for household members of your "domicile")<br />DS-230<br />Medical forms filled out by doctor<br /><br />FAQs - I'll do a future post that will answer the following questions:<br /><a href="http://laeskimita.blogspot.com/2011/04/proving-domicile-in-usa-on-i-864.html">What is domicile and how do I show that the USA is my country of domicile</a>?<br />How do I sponsor my spouse? (using the I-864)<br /><br />On the British Expat forums one man compares going through the visa process to planning a wedding, because your whole future depends on the outcome of ONE event. He calls these people working on immigrant visa paperwork "immigrant zombies" and compares them to bridezillas. hahhahaha. Touché. I definitely had my "immigrant zombie" moments!<br /><br />Hope this is useful for some of you out there. I'm not an expert. If you want expert advice hire an immigration lawyer. They run $3000-$5000 per case, at least that is what I was quoted. I didn't end up hiring one; our case was too simple to pay $3000.<br /><br />You can check out visa journey and britexpats for free. That's what I did.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-73675777167244572712009-11-24T18:29:00.000-08:002010-12-03T23:17:00.192-08:00And I was worried how we would surf when living in Minnesota...silly me<a href="http://www.bookofjoe.com/2009/01/is-duluth-minnesota-the-new-surf-city.html">hahahahaahhaha Is Duluth, Minnesota the new Surf City, U.S.A?</a><a href="http://www.lakesuperior.com/online/226/226surf.html"><br />Surfing the Big Lake</a><br /><br />Lake Superior:<br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/66xhQtZHvPg&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/66xhQtZHvPg&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><br />And perhaps we can apply this strategy to the Mississippi:<br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/18BL7MKjtZM&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/18BL7MKjtZM&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object>Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-42252779024837803222009-11-17T05:13:00.000-08:002009-11-25T13:09:24.656-08:00"A falta de pan, buenas son las tortas,"Elvis told me.<br /><br />On Saturday, V and I went to La Boca in Con-Con to surf for a few hours. We got there earlier than usual (like 10:30am) because V'd been told the surf shop would start opening earlier as summer approaches. It was still closed upon our arrival and after a few unanswered phone calls to the employees, we decided to walk down the beach and check out our rental options. We stopped by the next surf shop and they wanted to charge 7.000 pesos for each board. We had about 12.000 pesos between the two of us, so that didn't fly. (The other surf shop charges us 5.000 for each board.)<br /><br />So we continued walking down the beach, towards what looked like it could be an open-air rental shop, set up between two SUVs. As we approach, we don't see any boards or wetsuits, and are about to change direction when a guy sitting on one of the SUVs starts waving at us. I ask V who it is and he hasn't a clue. Walking towards the guy, V gets a better look at his jeep and recognizing the vehicle, says, "It's Elvis." "No way!!" We only know one Elvis in Chile and he's from Pichilemu, our first surf instructor. We chat with Elvis a little. He was there with several Pichilemu students participating in a surf competition. He asked if we came to surf, and we replied that we had, but that the surf shop hadn't opened yet, so we were chilling meanwhile. "My biggest board is a 6'9 he tells me, do you want to borrow it?" To which I replied, <span style="font-style: italic;">bueno</span>!<br /><br />The board was featherlight, absolutely gorgeous, perfectly waxed, sleak, and didn't have one nick. I put my wetsuit on and grabbed the board. Wading into the ocean I remembered the last time I rented a board from Elvis in Pichilemu, when I came out of the water, there was a huge gouge in it, that I couldn't remember causing. And that board was a bit of a beater, this one was a freaking Mercedes of surfboards. I pushed that thought aside and studied the waves to figure out which one to surf. They were freaking huge, so I decided to mostly surf the <span style="font-style: italic;">espuma</span> (foam?). (This is what is created when the waves break.) The first three times I try to catch the espuma, I crash as I'm still getting used to the shorter, narrower board, a far cry from the tanks I am used to surfing on. Finally, I get used to the board and absolutely fall in love with it. I was even able to surf a few medium-sized waves (rather than just espuma). The board was so easy to maneuver and responded really well to my movements. My thoughts changed from "I hope I don't gouge the board" to "Estos culiados me van a tener que sacar del mar, porque me enamoré y no salgo más." And then I went to ride a bigger wave and don't stand up quick enough or something. I feel myself losing control. The next thing I know I've nose-dived the board into the ocean bottom and the ocean is spinning me around like a piece of clothing in a washing machine. When I surface, I grab the really expensive board that was lent to me, to look it over for gouges. I didn't find any, thank god, and duly returned the board with a smile a mile long, after surfing one last wave. V and I then talked of going to Pichilemu this summer, and said goodbye to Elvis and crew.<br /><br />The rental shop was open for business and we rented a couple of tanks to surf on and enjoyed ourselves all the same.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-79475070972952058712009-11-10T04:23:00.000-08:002009-12-04T11:14:54.090-08:00Afinando el españolTo find the perfect definition/translation English-Spanish/Spanish-English:<br /><br />1) I look it up in wordreference, and see if there are any discussions about it, i.e. "<a href="http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=60692">cream of tartar</a>", or <a href="http://www.wordreference.com/es/translation.asp?tranword=squirrel&dict=enes&b=Search">squirrel</a>/<a href="http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=671521">chipmunk</a> (ardilla listada). And at this link, borgonyon explains "Estoy de acuerdo con fenix, se le puede llamar "ardillita" en el mismo sentido que llamamos "chinos" a todos los asiáticos, más como un nombre genérico." Beautiful! ;)<br /><br />2) If I want to know whether the word is Chilean or not (I've lost all perspective), I look in up in the <a href="http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/">DRAE</a>.<br /><br />3) If it's a new word or something I don't understand well, often I'll look it up in the drae, or click on the "Spanish definition" in word reference. Often, a word that is more commonly used in Spanish will have a crappy English translation, or it will have one translation when there are really like 5. This is where it's good to read the definition in Spanish.<br /><br />4) Also, if there are different translations for the same word like "rebuscado" can be translated as "far-fetched", "round-about", "overcomplicated", etc., obviously it's good to understand the different meanings related to different contexts, especially when the different words are in the non-native language. Again, I'll often look up the Spanish definition of each of these words.<br /><br />5) If it's a complicated thing, a concept, a medical condition, or something that might benefit from a look at <a href="http://www.wikipedia.org/">wikipedia</a>, I go there next. For instance to have another look at the squirrel/chipmunk difference, here are some links to wikipedia (this was actually more complicated than I'd imagined because there are a ton of different squirrel articles in wikipedia.):<br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_squirrel">Tree squirrel</a> - this is the squirrel I see in Minnesota. Once I look it up in English, I then click on "Español" to see what the wikipedistas have decided is the translation. Interestingly, there is no link to Español for this one.<br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squirrel">Squirrel (in general)</a> - This one doesn't have the Español link either, but it does have one in Esperanto and another in Gallego.<br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Gray_Squirrel">Eastern Gray Squirrel</a> - I believe this one inhabits Minnesota as well. Finally, I find an article with a link to the Spanish article on the <a href="http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sciurus_carolinensis">sciurus carolinesis</a> (ardilla).<br /><br />Then, the moment of truth as I look up <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipmunk">chipmunk</a> in wikipedia. I click on the Spanish link and find <a href="http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamias_minimus">tamias minimus</a>, also called the "ardilla rayada".<br /><br /><a href="http://pintadegringa.blogspot.com/2009/11/how-language-affects-thinking.html">So Lydia wasn't far off explaining this difference to her students, at least in relation to wikipedia.</a> ;)<br /><br />Edited Dec. 4<br />Ah and 6) Often I'll google expressions in both Spanish and English. Especially for <a href="http://mejoratucoa.blogspot.com/">my chilensis blog</a> because sometimes the words aren't super common and appear in neither dictionaries nor wikipedia.<br /><br />This is my translation method, that mostly works, except when there is no translation, like for the word "vogueing" for example. But then, at least we know there is no translation.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-17509215930706032242009-10-25T20:06:00.000-07:002010-12-03T23:21:23.540-08:00"Tengo el poto como colador"Translation: "My ass is acting like a colander."<br /><br />**Note: my ass isn't acting as a colander at this minute, I'm just posting this as a "travel tip"<br /><br />Many of us gringos in Chilito have gotten food poisoning from time to time. It's to be expected. Whether the <a href="http://emilyinchile.blogspot.com/2009/08/another-trip-to-er.html">Augustian changes in weather screw you over</a>, or you eat a typical Chilean delicacy sold in the street: canine shish-ka-bob, or you have fried fish at a market on a Sunday afternoon, or you ate the wrong piece of fruit, or your<span style="font-style: italic;"> once (tea)</span> the evening before consisted of quiche and beer, or you drank too much water right after arriving to Chile and before your body was acclimated, we all end up in the same place: at the porcelain throne.<br /><br />It's a painful experience, your stomach & intestines seem to grow a mind of there own. Some of us experience this time and again, unfortunately. But we will get through. Hang in there. Have someone buy you some gatorade, and divide your time wisely between the bathroom and the bed. If the vomiting doesn't ease off, and your ass doesn't stop acting as a colander in a few hours, it's time to go to the emergency room. I've got the magic pill that has kept me from the emergency room at least twice now. And some of you may have it too. It's Entero Micinovo (one of the few drugs in Chile that you need a prescription for, hehehe). A WONDER DRUG to stop the "churi-churi" as <a href="http://rortosposos.blogspot.com/2009/09/rotosposos.html">Don V (the one in the middle)</a> calls it. hehehe. It was prescribed the first time I went to the ER at the Clinica Alemana in Valpo. And if you take it when you don't have the churi-churi, you'll probably be constipated for a month.<br /><br />One of the sucky consequences of food poisoning is the sensitive stomach afterward. For the next week you have to watch what you eat and your diet will resemble this:<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />breakfast:</span> galletas de agua con quesillo (crackers and tasteless "cheese")<br />té (tea)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">lunch:</span> sopa de pollo y arroz (chicken and rice soup)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">dinner:</span> galletas de agua con quesillo<br />té<br /><br />It's an effective way to lose 5+ pounds in one week. Though I would prefer other, less painful, dieting possibilities to this one.<br /><br />**If I find the "menu" or list of food that the Clinica Alemana recommended I eat for two weeks after being sick, I will post it here, as I don't doubt it will be useful to some other poor gring@.<br /><br />Edit February 13th: Okis, so I didn't find the "regimen dietetico" from the Clinica Alemana, but I did find one from Integramedica. Here goes:<br /><br />bebidas sin cola, agua sin gas<br />té, aguas de hierbas, matico, menta manzanilla<br />gatorade, chamyto<br />galletas de agua y de chuño<br />pollo, pavo y arroz cocido, fideos cocidos<br />jaleas, compotas<br />manzanas y peras cocidas (el auga en que fueron preparadas)<br />evitar alimentos en conserva (enlatados, en cajas, en frascos)<br />evitar salsas<br />no fumar.<br /><br />Anyhoo, this is just one of the realities of living in the "third world".<br /><br />I've just come across my "regimen blando sin residuos" from the Clinica Alemana de Valpo:<br /><br />Alimentos permitidos:<br />quesillo o queso fresco<br />carne de vacuno sin grasa (posta, lomo liso, asiento, etc.)<br />pollo sin grasa y sin cuero<br />pescado fresco cocido al horno o a la olla (merluza, congrio)<br />clara de huevo<br />fideos cocidos<br />arroz cocido, salado o dulce con canela<br />galletas de agua, soda o chuño<br />azúcar, en cantidad moderada<br />jalea<br />chuño o maicena en agua<br />aceite crudo agregado al momento de servir los alimentos<br />aliños; solo sal, limón, canela, óregano<br />bebidas: té simple, auga mineral sin gas, coca-cola sin gas, infusiones de hierba antiespasmódicas (anís, manzanilla), agua de arroz con canela<br /><br />Ejemplo de Minuta:<br />desayuno: té puro y 4 galletas de soda con quesillo<br /><br />colación: maicena en agua con canela y caramelo<br /><br />almuerzo: sopa de posta con fideos cabello<br /> pollo cocido con arroz blanco<br /> jalea y 2 galletas de soda o agua<br /> <br />once: chuño en agua, 4 galletas de agua con quesillo<br /><br />cena: sopa de pollo con arroz<br /> posta molida con fideos cocidos<br /> jalea y 2 galletas de aguaMaeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-81981171731281421972009-08-05T06:12:00.000-07:002010-12-14T22:57:25.515-08:00R.I.P., and resurrected as of Aug. 26thRIP to my fave coa/chilensis dictionary : ( : ( <a href="http://www.mainframe.cl/diccionario/diccionario.php?letra=L&pagina=2">Here's what's left of this dictionary that once had more than 10,000 Chilean words and expressions defined</a>.<br /><br />SUCK! Or perhaps this should be in Chilensis. Puta la wea por la cresta!!!! Pero CÓMO EN MIERA?!?!? To do this post really well, I should really <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkUN5D81rT0&feature=related">re-subtitle the climatical scene to La Caída (Der Untergang)</a>, but that seems like a lot of work so I'm just going to patear la perra a little bit and get on with my morning, ya que el mejor diccionario del internet se fue completamente a la xuxa. Ya no sé dónde voy a buscar los significados de toas las chuchás que escucho en la conversación cotidiana acá en Chile. como la corneta la wea del diccionario. cagó. puuuuuta. internet reculiao.<br /><br />Edit August 26th: Okay <a href="http://www.mainframe.cl/diccionario/diccionario.php?letra=A">it's back.</a> Yay!Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-38476979589770996882009-06-24T13:56:00.001-07:002009-06-25T10:47:27.088-07:00Another encounter with a mimeI was heading to lunch at the little vega today. Walking, absorbed by my thoughts, I see I'm approaching two mimes, but I'm already 5 feet away when I realize this. Their "stage" is like 10 meters wide and 20 long and I'm very much on the stage with a whole crowd of onlookers watching to see how these mimes will <span style="font-style: italic;">huebearme </span>(mess with me). <span style="font-style: italic;">Huebeando a la gente</span> is the Chilean National Pastime, quite a fun one, when <span style="font-weight: bold;">you</span> aren't the object of the <span style="font-style: italic;">webeo</span>.<br /><br />Nothing left to do but play along. So one of them took me by the elbow, walking with me as a gentlemenly mime, then he took me by the hand. And then he stopped and exaggeratedly admired my butt. Here I saw my entrance, and I slapped him back side the head, and kept walking. Fortunately, they didn't follow me. But just as I get offstage, I think, "I should have gotten out my cellphone and taken a photo with the guy". Doh!Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-2172135577762959362009-06-04T09:10:00.000-07:002011-11-10T11:11:13.262-08:00Check out these nifty fashion-related objects<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHlwPUk_OSE7ZBMcdO4XwT-bTYJf6modOA5B1huwKqqQYTj2mKCJgzvGgTJxDx4pEKzfufcqyNev8sCXMlNpXbA-fR2rjgPtWdpmB-7s-zMkEOrU8GCSww0Wmfks00agf2dDyN1gTKdQZ6/s1600-h/trip+clip.bmp"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 288px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHlwPUk_OSE7ZBMcdO4XwT-bTYJf6modOA5B1huwKqqQYTj2mKCJgzvGgTJxDx4pEKzfufcqyNev8sCXMlNpXbA-fR2rjgPtWdpmB-7s-zMkEOrU8GCSww0Wmfks00agf2dDyN1gTKdQZ6/s400/trip+clip.bmp" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343508236841525634" border="0" /></a><br />I so want one of <a href="http://www.vivobarefoot.com/us/ladies/trip-clip-1.html/">these</a>, called a "trip clip" and tried to order one, but it didn't work. Which is probably better because my Chilenized ego is telling me I could sooo make one for sooo much cheaper. It may just involve a trip to Galeria Rosas. If I do manage to make one that works, I will be selling them. Hehehehe. I'll keep you posted.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.popgadget.net/2006/10/a_trip_with_trip_clip.php">This is how you use it</a>. And they could totally try to make these be styling, embedding them with rhinestones or something.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijsXBZYuFq1-6G2QAkhjuzWg-kX-xTGLgtGKLDeQllxKaZ9Lm4uPxAWqlnD9qU1Ay-gnn6MPCCo0J-_gWfXASFRSzzW6AzBoKGoDPu5_pH0X6Dviv_KYOsTuvMDf_RqDL6J0il-FUjjDrD/s1600-h/upcycling+cashmere+teddy+bears.bmp"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 288px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijsXBZYuFq1-6G2QAkhjuzWg-kX-xTGLgtGKLDeQllxKaZ9Lm4uPxAWqlnD9qU1Ay-gnn6MPCCo0J-_gWfXASFRSzzW6AzBoKGoDPu5_pH0X6Dviv_KYOsTuvMDf_RqDL6J0il-FUjjDrD/s400/upcycling+cashmere+teddy+bears.bmp" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343507407615320546" border="0" /></a><br />Love <a href="http://springwise.com/eco_sustainability/teddylux/">these</a>. They are sooo Cute!! I happen to have some pretty beat-up angora that may find a new end as soon as I buy my sewing machine. Because upcycling is where it's at.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4811634247210855651.post-22439826719998110452009-05-20T14:32:00.000-07:002009-07-26T15:16:04.436-07:00So there is an English library in downtown Santiago, sort of<a href="http://laeskimita.blogspot.com/2009/04/downtown-santiago-needs-english-library.html">In an earlier post, I said downtown Santiago needs its very own English libaray</a>. I was told that the "biblioredes" from the metro has a small collection of books in English at the Plaza de Armas metro stop. Miiiiiiitsch! So I donated a book in English, <span style="font-style: italic;">The DaVinci Code</span>. I handed it in at Los Heroes and they will take care of getting it to Plaza de Armas. And I definitely will be checking out the English books there at some undesignated moment in the future. This should be interesting.<br /><br />Edit July 26: So I went to the Plaza de Armas bibliored the other day and the only books they had in English were a couple of photography books. Mine had yet to arrive.Maeskizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15289291445097417350noreply@blogger.com1