Feb 04 2009
All’improvviso
Houston builds its own American routine in me. Wake up early in the morning to have breakfast at the hotel that “feels like home”, grab a portion of eggs (only twice a week, their impact on cholesterol levels was never clear to me), a standard cup of coffee with half-and-half milk, some orange juice, bread or bagel depending on appetite, and off you go.
Westheimer tends to be busy at all times, and I cannot quite tell what the rush hour really is here. Probably seven, as that was the only time when I was greeted with a terrible traffic jam on my way from the airport.
8.15 am – Just before the Derek hotel, left down the sideroad that runs parallel to the I-610, right on San Felipe road and again left on Briar Oaks lane where the posh St. Regis hotel stands out as a landmark. My rental car — a Ford Fusion that is larger than my needs which, mind you, are large as well — roars to the sound of Elena Roger recreating Mina’s famous hits. The CD is a gift from two dear friends of mine, E and her significant other, given to me in presentia before I left for this business trip to Obamaland.
I decided to take only that CD with me this time, innocently imagining that I would choose my rental car this time and it would come with a suitable aux plug-in for my Ipod. It turns out to be that Ford is automatic in everything, so it does not need any more holes, which means I am stuck with the radio — which I tried repeatedly, and almost cried at when Casey Cason’s Top 10 review blasted to me from the loudspeakers one cloudy morning — or a 6-slot CD player. Ironically, I only have one CD. Elena knows this, and she seems to redouble her efforts to please me as I slowly play the Mina Che Cosa Sei performance in 10-minute segments every day, relentlessly. If you are a music lover, or not, you may concur with me on this — there is always one song that you will want to replay over and over again in almost every album. In this one, it is Mi Sei Scoppiato, which I sing along although my vocal chords are gradually being taken over by an upsetting flu. The lyrics are cheesy, but I like this song, it has become a classic, and in a way a wish. Who would not want somebody to burst out inside us, or who has not ever experienced that?
Mi sei scoppiato
dentro al cuore all’improvviso
all’improvviso non so perché
non lo so perché all’improvviso
all’improvviso
sarà perché mi hai guardato
come nessuno mi ha guardato mai
mi sento viva
all’improvviso per te
7.30 pm – I leave the car inside the hotel’s parking lot, organize my schedule for the next day, answer T’s e-mail, attached to which is a magnificent picture of Lake Tahoe, where she is skying before we meet in two days, and then I get ready for dinner time. As I sift through emails and decide on how busy I want or can afford my next morning to be, I think about how some things happen. She intrigues me. She came to me just like that… perhaps…it may be all’improvviso, but I am just finding out.
Muy cierto, hay canciones que una repite una y otra vez sin descanso, y cada repetición te dan ganas de más.
La estrofa de la canción debe ser hermosa, lamentablemente mi italiano no me permite apreciarla…porque no sé italiano!
Besos!
Dear W,
Me alegra saber que la he/hemos rescatado, cuando fue necesario del ritmo radial. Al menos asi , se que las semillas de obsesion resultan en utiles flores, o en un foto contada que dice valió la pena. Por si le interesa, cuando oigo ese cd siempre regreso al track 3, indiferentemente, lo considero un golpe a puño cerrrado y mirandome a los ojos, en el pecho.
Por lo demás que decir, tiene siempre usted un ritmo, un calor especial para contar las cosas, que adoro. Hay algo de serena tempestad, ojo ya he notado que no es por el idioma.En fin, un beso.
Oops, Erica. Sorry about the absence of translation in my last post. The lyrics of the song go something like this:
You have burst inside my heart,
suddenly, suddenly
I don’t know why, I don’t know why
suddenly, suddenly
It may be that you have looked at me
like nobody has ever looked at me before
I feel alive,
suddenly, for you.
You see? It’s cheesy, but it rings like a good romantic comedy of the 1950s or early 60s, let me picture Doris Day and Rock Hudson as the starring couple…
Thanks again for dropping by. By the way, I will certainly turn to you next time I am faced with a superbowl match. I need to understand what the game is all about…
Take care
W.
Geez,
You have not only rescued me, but given me a CD to memorize as I drive home in the traffic jam every single day in chilly Houston. Emi, I am glad and flattered that you like the rhythm of things in this limited effort at prose I endeavor to pursue. Sometimes things flow, like life itself, and oftentimes they simply freeze for days, months or years. I think I have been frozen for quite a while, even in this blog, so getting out there and breathing in new challenges cannot be but a pleasure. If I add the company of a great gift and Roger’s velvet-like voice throughout the journey, I am all set!
By the way, Roger’s rendering of track 3 is magnificent. I still have to listen to the original version by Mina, but this woman never ceases to amaze me — she is on a par with the show’s mentor!
Take care, my dear, and send a kiss to your loved one from me.
Regards,
W.