november 2023
Hey! Is life just about planning things and then doing them?
mexico
In an annual effort to escape the god-awful dreariness of Victoria, I was in Mexico for most of November.
This trip convinced me that the best way to travel is to stay as close as possible to a park. We stayed next to Plaza RĆo de Janeiro in Colonia Roma. It was lovely. My favourite food was at Taqueria Orinoco and TaquerĆa Ćlvaro ObregĆ³n. Hereās a little video of the trip!
The one downside was a lack of running water for about 24 hours (Mexico City is having water issues). Those were hard hours.
spanish
On a related note, I want to learn how to speak Spanish.
Itās become clear to me that to maximize my experience in Mexico, I need to speak and understand the language. So far my knowledge is quite limited.
I did start watching Spanish tv with the subtitles on. Itās quite helpful for getting used to the tone and cadence. I can recommend Elite, it feels like Riverdale but things are slightly less unhinged.
I kept a note of common phrases because I left my Spanish phrasebook on the plane:
Aside from the practical merits, I enjoy the tone and cadence of Spanish. It sounds smooth and soft and flowy. English is more jagged and sharp. I want to sink into that other tone more.
book
Lately, Iāve been staying up too late. Iām not sure why (probably the salsa classics ringing in my head from Mexico). Usually, reading a good book helps me fall asleep.
I donāt have a book Iām eager to read at the moment. Thereās about eight non-fiction books Iām trying to read but they are all too boring.
This is a plea for help.
I am in need of a fiction book recommendation. Preferably something spacey involving aliens or politics. My favourites of this genre include:
- The Three-Body Problem
- A Memory Called Empire
- Dune
- Children of Time
- Hyperion
Please provide any recommendations. PLEASE
other stuff
- Iāve been working on advent of code 2023 very slowly. Mostly in Typescript, a bit in Rust. My repo is here!
- I finished Dilla Time and was introduced to Slum Village which I highly recommend.
end
Almost a year of newsletters! See you next month š¤