Isabel profile picture

Isabel

About Me

I came to this space mostly to see my friend Mario's stuff. (And now he's no longer on myspace.)
But I've also been curious to see what this space can offer. And have started to poke around a little bit. Honestly I'm kind of disgusted by some of what I know about myspace - about not so much what people do here but about the ownership of this space and what the owners do with all our information.
I have met some beautiful souls here - like the prolific and smart and sweet su_da-nym. Who knows who I'll meet later on...
I love the way everything smells after a rain. I often say random things like that. I guess I come from a culture where that is OK to do - say random things.
 

My Interests

I'd like to meet:

When I first saw this question the person who immediately came to mind, for some reason, was Grace Paley - I'm not even sure if she's alive anymore and if she is she might be very old. But a few years ago I went to see her give a reading and something about her writing and how she acted in person made me feel that she would be so easy to talk to and that I would be enriched by getting to know her and also that she would embrace me. But she is also very sharp-tongued. Another person like this who I think I would enjoy meeting is Faith Ringgold - I love her children's book Tar Beach. But in general I like to meet all kinds of people.

I love perico ripiao!
And this song:

Samba de uma Nota Só

Tom Jobim/Newton Mendonça

Eis aqui este sambinha
Feito numa nota só
Outras notas vão entrar
Mas a base é uma só
Esta outra é consequência
Do que acabo de dizer
Como eu sou a consequência
Inevitável de você

Quanta gente existe por aí
Que fala tanto
e não diz nada
Ou quase nada
Já me utilizei de toda a escala
E no final não sobrou nada
Não deu em nada

E voltei prá minha nota
Como eu volto prá você
Vou cantar com a minha nota
Como eu gosto de você
E quem quer todas as notas
Ré mi fá sol la si dó
Fica sempre sem nenhuma
Fique numa nota só One Note Samba

English lyrics by Tom Jobim

This is just a little samba
Built upon a single note
Other notes are bound to follow
But the root is still that note
Now this new one is the consequence
Of the one we've just been through
As I'm bound to be the unavoidable
consequence of you

There's so many people who can
talk and talk and talk
And just say nothing
Or nearly nothing
I have used up all the scale I know
And at the end I've come to nothing
Or nearly nothing

So I came back to my first note
As I must come back to you
I will pour into that one note
All the love I feel for you
Anyone who wants the whole show
Re mi fa sol la si do
He will find himself with no show 
Better play the note you know
 

My Blog

Old Poem: El Paraíso, What Heaven Was Like

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Posted by on Sun, 08 Nov 2009 07:32:00 GMT

Another great one by Medrano. Enjoy!

I translated this poem years ago. Really enjoyed translating it. Recently found it on the web on an online poetry journal For Immediate Release. http://www.poetz.com/fir/sept02.htmI read parts of the...
Posted by on Sat, 13 Jun 2009 03:44:00 GMT

A poem connected with birth, rebirth, and egun

She Made It It was then she remembered That even though she'd Fulfilled dreams, Attained goals . . . Somehow she'd managed. Not to get pregna...
Posted by on Sun, 26 Apr 2009 04:50:00 GMT

More poems and translation: Yrene Santos

Poems by Yrene SantosTranslations by Isabel EspinalFrom the book El incansable Juego (The Untiring Game)-----------------------------AgoníaDespués de tenertesueño bajo los párpados con tu partidael fr...
Posted by on Fri, 27 Mar 2009 03:34:00 GMT

A poem I once wrote

A poem I wrote years ago...Wake up and smellThat year she started sleeping         with poetry. At first just sleeping--         they didn't fuck         or hardly touch-- just getting into     ...
Posted by on Mon, 23 Feb 2009 06:27:00 GMT

AFTER THE INAUGURATION: MARCH FOR JUSTICE! Wednesday, January 21st

http://www.anewdayforimmigration.org/We are living in a historic moment of change. The election of Barack Obama has given the country renewed hope for just and humane immigration reform and worker ...
Posted by on Sun, 16 Nov 2008 01:55:00 GMT

Sign Letter! ACLU Calls On Obama To Close Guantánamo On Day One Of Presidency

To sign letter, go to: http://www.closegitmo.com/ACLU Calls On Obama To Close Guantánamo On Day One Of Presidency (11/10/2008)Group Launches Campaign Urging New Administration To Restore Fundamental R...
Posted by on Wed, 12 Nov 2008 11:06:00 GMT

An Open Letter from the Association of Indigenous ... to U.S. President-Elect Barack Obama

from http://mamaradio.blogspot.com/2008/11/open-letter-from-assoc iation-of.htmlAn Open Letter from the Association of Indigenous Councils of Northern Cauca, ACIN, to U.S. President-Elect Barack Obama....
Posted by on Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:20:00 GMT

Of witches and butterflies (De brujas y mariposas)

[scroll down for English]De brujas y mariposasMarianela MedranoEstá bienSentémonos a definirPitágoras creía en la reencarnación- yo creo en él -Entonces él es el gusano azul de las calladas tardesque ...
Posted by on Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:03:00 GMT

newsobserver.com | Immigration arrest at library raises concerns

This makes me mad and sad...http://www.newsobserver.com/news/immigration/story...A lamance County has been identifying and deporting illegal immigrants from its jails for more than a year, but now a li...
Posted by on Wed, 30 Jul 2008 03:04:00 GMT