How much is enough!

(photo from a post by: Inquirer.net)

I must admit that the first time I heard @Ricky_Martin 's new CD, Música+Alma+Sexo (MAS), I was not pleased. In fact, it sounded too "fresita" (childish/girly) compared to previous releases, where he seemed to be in a lonelier/darker place. This place/feeling/mood was confirmed while reading his new book "ME".

Anyways, it took me a while to like his first single "Lo mejor de mi vida eres tú" (The best thing about me is you), a duet with Natalia Jiménez from Spain's "La 5ta. Estación" (sang in English with Joss Stone). I was quick to judge, and then realized that this song is really about how happy he feels to be a father of two beautiful boys, Mateo and Valentino. The best thing in his life! My daughter is also the BEST thing in my life. So now I totally LOVE this song!

But, I still wasn't thrilled about the CD. It was after attending his first concert of 2011 in San Juan, Puerto Rico that I sat down and listened to it completely. The music is good, his mood is more positive and happy. He celebrates life, love and, just as his title reads: Music, Soul, Sex. Ricky finally freed himself from what the could not share with the world: his homosexuality; and he wrote about it in my favorite song "Basta ya" (It's enough).

I'm sure anyone can relate to "Basta ya". We have all been imprisoned, one way or another, by our upbringing; our beliefs - be it religious or not; by the choices we make in life; our parents; partners (domestic violence); society; and our sexuality. Some people strive for what they really want out of life. But there are others who are afraid to fight for it, or too lazy! And then, we get comfortable and accustomed... and waste our lives wondering about the "what ifs"...

As the saying goes: "There's no wrong that lasts a hundred years, nor a body that can resist it!" WAKE UP! We need to be freed, un-slaved, and when that time arrives, we'll shout "It's enough!".

That is why I wrote this post. I want to share Ricky's song... my favorite song... and inspire you to never give up on your dreams. We have to BELIEVE hard enough... and find a way to live a happier life!!

Remember, with every crucial decision comes sacrifice and definite changes. Will you do it?

BTW: #NoALaTrata #StopHumanTrafficking

BASTA YA (IT'S ENOUGH)

Acercándome hacia la verdad

(Approaching the truth...)

Busco el modo de explicarle al mundo

(I look for a way to explain to the world...)

Lo que ya no sé callar.

(What I can no longer keep inside.)

Y una lágrima dejé escapar

(I let a tear escape...)

De esta cárcel donde se castigan

(from this prision where they punish...)

Sin piedad los sentimientos.

(feelings without mercy.)

Contra todo... contigo voy a estar.

(Against everything... with you I will be.)

--- Coro (chorus)

Basta ya...

(It's enough...)

de hacerle una prisión a lo que siento

(to imprison what I feel...)

Y negarme lo que quiero.

(and deny what I want.)

Basta ya...

(It's enough...)

de condenar la voz que llevo dentro

(to condem the voice inside of me...)

Y fingir que soy sincero.

(and pretend to be sincere.)

No me asusta más el miedo... Basta ya. (ohh)

(I'm not afraid of fear... It's enough.)

La razón me hizo despertar

(Reason awoke me...)

Las palabras que guardé en silencio

(the words I kept in silence...)

Se cansaron de esperar.

(where tired of waiting.)

Aquí empieza mi revolución

(This is the beginning of my revolution...)

En mi mano llevo la bandera

(In my hand I carry the flag...)

Que defiende el corazón... uh yeah

(that defends the heart... uh, yeah)

Contra todo... contigo voy a estar.

(Against everything... with you I will be.)

---- Coro (chorus)

Basta ya...

(It's enough...)

de hacerle una prisión a lo que siento

(to imprison what I feel...)

Y negarme lo que quiero.

(and deny what I want.)

Basta ya...

(It's enough...)

de condenar la voz que llevo dentro

(to condem the voice inside of me...)

Y fingir que soy sincero.

(and pretend to be sincere.)

No me asusta más el miedo... Basta ya. (ohh)

(I'm not afraid of fear... It's enough.)

Basta ya...

(It's enough.)

---- Puente (Bridge)

A partir de aquí

(From this moment on...)

seré fiel a mí

(I will be faithful to myself...)

Borraré el dolor

(I will erase the pain...)

En la historia de mi vida cada línea grita "basta ya".

(In the story of my life, every line screams "It's enough.")

Contra todo... contigo voy a estar.

(Against everything... with you I will be.)

---- Coro (chorus)

Basta ya...

(It's enough...)

de hacerle una prisión a lo que siento

(to imprison what I feel...)

Y negarme lo que quiero.

(and deny what I want.)

Basta ya...

(It's enough...)

de condenar la voz que llevo dentro

(to condem the voice inside of me...)

Y fingir que soy sincero.

(and pretend to be sincere.)

No me asusta más el miedo... Basta ya. (ohh)

(I'm not afraid of fear... It's enough.)

---- Puente (Bridge)

A partir de aquí

(From this moment on...)

seré fiel a mí

(I will be faithful to myself...)

Borraré el dolor

(I will erase the pain...)

En la historia de mi vida cada línea grita "basta ya".

(In the story of my life, every line screams "It's enough.")

Acercándome hacia la verdad

(Approaching the truth...)

Busco el modo de explicarle al mundo

(I look for a way to explain to the world...)

Lo que ya no sé callar.

(What I can no longer keep inside.)

The 17 Weirdest E-mail Names

Ok, so you think you have a cool e-mail address. E-mail name I must say. But is it cool in the eyes of others? I guess it wouldn't matter if you were still in high school or college but, when you are a working professional or you want to be taken seriously, you better consider it well.

I have been gathering information on some e-mail names at work, since I am working on some e-mail marketing strategies for our clients. And to my surprise, I have come across some of the funniest e-mail names out there. Most of them in spanish but, don't worry I will translate them for you. So let's see what your e-mail name** might say about you.

1. natasha_lamenor - (lamenor = theyoungest) so you might have 10 brothers and sisters, your name is Natasha and you really are the youngest of them all.

2. girly_rockstar - you love rock music, are a singer or play an instrument... and you're a girl... or want to be a girl!

3. yen.sexybabe - I don't think sexy women go around telling people they are sexy... unless you really are not but want to believe you are.

4. vincidark - he/she loves Leonardo da Vinci and likes dark places.

5. lacangri2007 - la "cangri" is a puertorrican expression used by Reggeatoneros to denote someone is important... and you probably opened your account on 2007. For more "cangri" definitions check the Urban Dictionary.

6. lanenadesam (samsdaughter) - your dad is called Sam, Sammy or Samuel. Or you probably have a boyfriend with that name and you belong to him. Or maybe you're related to the serial killer "Son of Sam".

7. borricua_007 - first of all, "boricua" is written with one r!... and it's another puertorrican term used to describe people from Puerto Rico. By using the "007", you're letting people know you've always wanted to be James Bond.

8. boricua_guerrero - (warrior from Puerto Rico) you are always fighting with everyone or belong to the Independent political party (PIP-Partido Independentista Puertorriqueño).

9. poderosalesdanimar - your name is Lesdanimar and deep down in your soul you are powerful... or have superhero powers!

10. sweetsecretary38 - this one is easy. You are 38 years-old, work as a secretary and, apparently, are very sweet.... or you're sleeping with the boss!

11. eragon124 - you are a mega-fan of "The Lord of the Rings" movie and have seen it 124 times.

12. knights_crusades01 - you were a knight in shinny armour, who fought in the crusades and this is your first reincarnation. Or maybe your life has been a crusade for as long as you've lived!

13. barbiejanice2004 - you are a "Barbie girl in a Barbie world", your life revolves around plastics (credit cards), it is fantastic and it has been ever since you changed your name to Janice in 2004.

14. lamasdeseada69 - (themostwanted69) easy! You're a porn star and love position #69... or have been wanted by the law 69 times.

15. katy_dra.corazon - (katy_heartdr) this one has more than two possibilities. You either love mending hearts, love breaking hearts, have had your heart broken many times, or work as a Cardiologist named Katy.

16. armybrat - easy as 1-2-3.


... and last but, not least....

17. thecharlinator - your name is Charlie and you love the movie "The Terminator". Or you're like me, who really thinks Phineas and Ferb's Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz is hillarious!!


BTW, my e-mail name is a combination of first and last name, which is what most people use. Thanks for reading and feel free to ad some more e-mail names to my list.


**Some of the names have been modified because they were too obvious to be posted without permission.

An Angel from Heaven

Just a quick update of my life. If you’ve read my recent posts, you’ll remember me talking about quitting my job and following my dreams. Well, I have to say, it’s been one of the best things I could have thought of doing. I worked really hard to create an original and impressive résumé, with the help of a great writer and friend. After my last day at work, I took one week to organize my thoughts, expectations, and life in general. I took time to write, have fun with my friends, be with myself and of course run all the errands I had put off. The week really flew by fast and in a blink of an eye THE Monday to hand out resumes had arrived. Pum pum pum…Thankfully, during that previous week I had already made a list of all the emails I would send it and all the places I would personally go. So I woke up bright and early, sent the emails first and set out to impress. This was it, the make it or break it moment had come. I looked down at my list. I had 5 places to visit so I set out with my fingers crossed.

Fast forwarding, I handed out the first three without much luck. You know, when you give it to someone and that someone gives it to someone else and that’s it. Well, that WAS it. Less than five minutes in each place. “Oh man”, I thought, “what if no one calls me?”. I looked at my list again, only two places left. Again, with my head held high, I continued. This time when I got there, something happened. I handed it over to a woman who was sitting outside talking to someone else. She looked at it and said, “follow me”. She took me inside, introduced me to everyone and said, “we have a meeting right now and we are going to discuss this. We’ll call you after to schedule an interview”.

And that was it. They called, I went, and have been going ever since. It was almost like fate. Just as I was starting to lose hope, an angel was sitting outside waiting for me. They took me in almost like a family takes in an orphan.

After a week there, the woman told me, “you know, that same day that you came in I had just been saying how we needed an extra hand. How I couldn’t deal with the stress because we had too much work. I had gone outside to smoke a cigarette to calm my nerves and suddenly there you were walking towards me asking for a job. Like an angel answering my prayer”…I couldn’t believe my ears. She had thought of me the same way I had thought of her.

Coincidence or fate, I’m glad I followed my heart and took the risk. Taking chances, believing in yourself and fighting for what you want is what I learned with this adventure.

Have a good one guys! We all deserve it.

BTW sometimes I do wonder if I had been her answer or if she had been mine… Either way, I know I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be right now.

On a Wednesday

This morning I woke up wanting to write. Wanting to say anything. Let the words write themselves freely across the keyboard. No backspace, no re-reading 3 times before editing. Just writing whatever comes to mind. So, what came into my head? Unfortunately, not as much as I expected. First I thought, "It's hot". I kept putting my hair up in a bun. "I'm full" came next. I had just made myself scrambled eggs for breakfast. "What am I going to do today?"...Pause...More pause...I looked at the ceiling, then to the window, and back at the monitor... Nothing came to mind. I started to feel a little nervous..."Great, just great" I thought. So I decided to do what any person does when they get stumped. Read my emails. 15 minutes later, I came back to the post. But again nothing came to mind. I had gone blank, my initial desire to write was completely gone and the tension started to flood in.

I asked myself, why had this question made me feel so uncomfortable? What triggered all of this stress so suddenly? Almost automatically, and answering my question, I remembered my grandma, "I hope you find a job soon", then my dad "have you handed out resumes yet?" then my mother, "how's the job hunting going?" and so on. Somehow I had thought that leaving my job would relieve some of the pressure and unwanted stress I had been feeling, but in a way it just added a whole new amount. This was not what I had in mind. Of course I know LIFE is not easy and that I need a job to "survive" or as I would put it, pay the bills, but I still don't want it to be a stresser in my life. Will it be possible? I have no idea.

Once these worries started taking over I knew I had to get up and do something about it, because I cannot go all day moping. One of the things I've always loved to do when I get like this is just sit by a window and look out. All the time I need. Something about feeling the cool breeze in my face and watching the sun shine outside, calms me. I like observing the people around, walking and driving and even honking when the light changes and the first car takes its time to move (yes, I live in the city, right smack in the middle of all the craziness). Just watching outside has an effect of clearing my head and putting things back in perspective. I suddenly got the huge urge to go to the beach. On a WEDNESDAY! I haven't been able to do that in so long. So yes, answering the question that had got me stumped, I think I'll spend the day on the beach. Playing in the sand and swimming in the ocean on a beautiful day. I know this "freedom" won't last long so at least I'll have some fun with it.

Anyway, today i just wanted to write. No meaning, no message just me thinking out loud. I'm not used to doing that, just for fun, or just because. So I hope you liked it just as much.

Have a wonderful day, even if it's laughing and making jokes with your co-workers.

A Month In Heaven

Have you ever just suddenly wanted to be spontaneous and rebellious? You know, for real DO something crazy not just contemplate the idea, daydream or think about it? Like on your way to work, take a UTURN and go to the beach…maybe call in sick or just forget your responsibilities. I remember this TV ad once, it’s kind of fuzzy but basically it was a group of people in a car talking about taking a right turn and going someplace fun instead of going straight (pun intended) to work. We can all imagine what happened in the end…they didn’t turn. Most people, and I include myself, are afraid for some reason of work and responsibilities. Work…responsibilities…cleaning…debts! I hate these words, they’re long and have negative connotations. But these are the words that run our lives. It’s like we’re afraid of being reprimanded or as being seen as irresponsible or inconsiderate. When really we’re watching our LIVES fly right past us as we sit in our small cubicle looking at the computer monitor all day and putting up with the bullshit attitudes of our bosses or coworkers. SERIOUSLY?

So as luck would have it, I was presented with the opportunity (BTW anything that presents itself unexpectedly and sounds FUN/POSITIVE/DIFFERENT, do it) to go to Buenos Aires, Argentina for one month to study Circus acts like trapeze, “telas”, and bungee. At first I thought, wow this is gonna put a hole in my wallet. Next I thought, how am I gonna explain this at work? Third, this is crazy! I can’t drop everything and leave for a whole month. What about my payments? I already know I’m going to have to ask for a leave of absence, meaning NO salary, NO income whatsoever. Can I afford this?

All of these questions and worries kept popping in my head. Suddenly I realized they were all about WORK and DEBTS and RESPONSIBILTIES. The words I dreaded most! I hadn’t even stopped to ask myself, do I wanna go?... HELL YEAH!! Argentina for a month? Are you kidding me? Is this a dream? Is my alarm clock gonna go off and I’m gonna wake up and realize that it’s tuesday morning and my mundane routine is still on track? But it wasn’t a dream, this was the real thing, the adventure I had been waiting for. That’s where I remembered the TV ad. What should I do? WHAT SHOULD I DO??? Finally, I decided forget the debts…everything can wait till I get back. Yes. I’m young and these opportunities don’t present themselves everyday. I bought the ticket and started to find out everything I could about Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Months later, I look back and can say it was one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life. Another time I’ll tell you about the trip itself but for now what’s important is my decision and what I think of it now. When I came back, my whole perspective of life changed. I stopped doing things I didn’t like to do and started to do more of what I loved. I had more courage to take chances and risks without really thinking about consequences. The biggest and most recent has been leaving my job. I have a new dream and a huge desire to make it real. Even if it doesn’t come true I know I won’t regret trying. Plus I’ve already learned everything can wait till we come back.

Hope you enjoyed this…I’ve enjoyed writing it. Have a good one!