rain, sleep, and sadness

i wake to rain in the middle of the night and immediatly review the clothes lines in front of the teachers’ house. did i leave anything to dry? i am miles and miles from those wires and cords, from that wooden house on stilts over swamp, where dear souls sleep, where i once slept, but my reactions are still of those habits. last night, woken by rain and thunder, after realizing nothing of mine hung now soaked because i no longer live there, i entered a sad sleep.

strange sounds of the city

a sudden heaving
a surge of vibrations
a distant cloud of movement
bellows
invades
grinds
this space.

dust.

i wanted my windows open.
he taught me how to close them
you will see, he spoke as he walked away after
closing one side with the outside shutter and the other side
with the inside plane. you will see how it starts to pile up in the terrace.and so it is.
a grey pile is forming along the green wall. fuzz is collecting aroung the pipes. the city blows and settles in this box set ajar that is
this terrace.
i don’t want to hate this high wall nor fight with the lamina roof blocking me from sky, but i may end up sabatoging it. piece by piece it may start to fall.

a view. a vision. if i stay,
must come from within. the obstructions,
force my eyes upwards,
to glimpse between concrete and metal
sky
blue, white, or grey,
to behold that which is not of human hand or mind.
i look up more than i have in years. through the cracks,
the light still enters. on the roof,
the pigeons rest. and there, on the black cable,
it might be a dove.

la risa apesar de....

ni desde mi cama...no se puede ver el sol, ni desde mi cama..ves, ¿ya entiendes mi depresión del lunes cuando me quedé en la cama con fiebre hasta el medio día y que me ha seguido todo la semana? ceci, acostada en el colchón colocado a las 4 de la mañana en el piso, empezó a reír. la salto para ir al baño y al salir abro las puertas de vidrio que dan desde la cocina a un tipo de terraza. la ventana de mi pieza también abre a esta "terraza" encerrada por paredes, dos pintadas de verde para hacernos pensar en la hierba que nos hace falta, y un techo de lamina dura y pesada que abre a medias con un palo. una de las paredes es más corta y por allí entra la luz. a distintas horas del día puedo mover una silla blanca de plástico a diferentes puntos para sentir los rayos del sol. no es que el departamento se queda en oscuras. hay luz, pero difusa.

salgo a esta "terraza" y le digo a ceci, todavía acostada en mi pieza, y mira, !que vistazo tengo yo! con eso ella se levanta riéndose y sale a ver los pedacitos de edificios grises (que una vez eran blancas) y uno de ladrillo rojo tocando cielo azul. y mira ese generador. es domingo y hoy descansa, pero los otros días, hace un ruido constante. todavía no puedo verlo como un amigo.
uhu, sí cara, entiendo tu depresión. no hay pájaros, ni monos, ni arboles.
ni rosales, añado. hay risas por la resignación temporal sin fatalidad. ¿quieres un té?

y en dos minutos estamos tomando té verde de agua calentando en una jarra eléctrica (el aparato gracioso del casero que duerme en la pieza de el lado). la conversación sigue sin seguir un hilo. se va a la una.

la vida sigue. sola y acompañada. sonriendo y llorando en las calles. lo esperaba. solamente ahora lo estoy viviendo. es duro y dulce.

recuerdo bien las palabras de un amigo: sin tu sentido de humor estas muerta.

English Conversation Class

Business English with a Social Focus

Circle the correct word or phrase that best completes the sentence or question.

Jim: How old should you be / are you?
Jen: I am / must be /should not be 34 years old.
Jim: Surely / It is necessary that you are married.
Jen: No, I shouldn't be /am not /must not be married.
Jim: Couldn't you / Shouldn't you /Do you have children?
Jen: No, I shouldn't / do not /must not have children.

There is silence between the couple, him sitting behind the desk, she on the other end. He scrunches his eye-brows and looks at his hands being wrung dryly. The woman doesn't take her eyes off of his.

Jim: I can't/ shall not/ will not believe it.
Jen: It must be/is/shouldn't be true.
Jim: And your family is in/on/over the United States in California?
Jen: No, my mother lives around/in California, and my father resides under/around/in Virginia.
Jim: No family is with/in you here?
Jen: Yes, this is true/real.
Jim: If one have/has a business, one must have/should have/could have a vision or a plan for the future.
Jen: Yes.
Jim: Musn't/Do/Shouldn't you have a vision or a plan for your life?
Jen: Yes/No/Possibly. For now I could/should/will study.
Jim: I could/should/must die with out my family.
Jen: It is/are/was 14:00. I will/must not/should not see you tomorrow.
Jim: Take care with yourself /of yourself / of your family / with your choices.