This Sunday, Hessen (I refuse to write up Hesse) is holding regional elections and it looks like the ever-smiling Andrea Ypsilanti from SPD will get most of the votes. This is kind of a surprise, as Roland Koch, a member of the CDU old guard, has been ruling this state since 1999 with absolute majority.
Most of Frankfurt is covered with political ads on walls, streetlamps and other urban furniture. I've been trying to set up a map in my head to know who aims for what district, but I couldn't. All I know is that there are many ads from Die Linke (The Left) on my way to work, and they have even left some leaflets in my mailbox. I've seen more from Die Grünen (the green party) as I approached the river, and right-wing parties such as NPD or Die Republikaner seem to concentrate in the Eastern part of Frankfurt...
On the contrary, posters from CDU and SPD seem to be everywhere. I find the campaign from SPD rather dumm, but it looks like it's been effective anyway. It's basically about stating the bad things Koch wants to do (He: calls for extremely low salaries) and then how wonderful and refreshing are Ypsilanti's plans for Hessen in comparison to him (She: fights for minimum salary). On the other hand, Koch's advertisements center on his experience and figure, trying to give an impression of strength (what Ypsilanti seems to lack).
It's surprising for me to see that all parties and candidates seem to be very ideology-conscious and aren't afraid of showing off the ideas that inspire them. For instance, Koch is willing to present himself as a conservative. Even though the things he's said about foreigners and immigrants weren't the most intelligent option in a city where 30% of the population comes from a different culture, he doesn't try to sweeten or hide his discourse and is willing to act on it. The same happens with Die Linke. I read their leaflets and their program and it was like I was teleported to the 60's. All parties have got one or two issues they want to clearly state their opinion about (the building of the new airport, the change in educational laws, etc.), but apart from this the debate seems to be very abstract and ideological.
As a Spaniard, I'm not able to vote in this elections, but I think I'll be able to choose my representatives for the city council in the future. I'm now an official resident in Frankfurt to both the German and the Spanish Administration. It feels sort of weird, like I've abandoned my beautiful Madrid for a new home (which I've done). It's like a step in the middle -- I'm not a German, yet I'm not fully Spanish anymore...
The documentation for sending out my vote for the Spanish general elections should be arriving to my house in short, yet I have the impression that some problem is going to occur. Call me pessimistic. However, I'm very confused and I don't really trust any of our options. I still have to think carefully who I'm going to put my "trust" in, as I really believe it's my duty to vote, but it won't be like the first or the second time, where I was full of energy and hope and utterly convinced that the right Had To Be Stopped. However, I wouldn't know who to vote for in Hessen, either...
Elenis: So, K. I've heard you're studying cinema in the US.
K.: Oh, yes.
Elenis: Then what are you doing testing games in Frankfurt?
K.: I-- don't know.
Elenis: That's alright! Me neither.
I was thinking about going to the laundry shop but time goes by oh so fast. *sniffs her own sleeve* Okay. I guess we can still wait a couple of days.
After my research on male cross-dressing in film (... still don't know if I want to take this as my future thesis' topic, even when the professor supposedly liked it), I was pretty sure I wanted to do two things before I die:
However, I'm very apathetic when it comes to define myself. I guess I don't care much. I'm a woman, and I feel comfortable with this, but I'm also comfortable between transpeople of all sorts. After all, I'm not the typical woman, if that thing exists. I wouldn't mind to be defined as a member of the third sex or even to be addressed in masculine if somebody couldn't understand me between the barriers of the concept woman. And I believe that I'm very androgynous in terms of appearance and personality -- well, maybe slightly more feminine in personality, but again, what's 'feminine'?
I'm equally attracted to masculine, feminine and androgynous people. I don't have any problem at all with cheery nancy boys or tough butch women. In any form of intercourse. I also don't find anything wrong with ultra-femmy girls (as my Sarah and Babette are :)) or hairy, macho men. It's fun that lipstick lesbians and bears tend to be despised by a small part of the LGBT community (by saying they 'reinforce' stereotypes), while butches and effeminate sissies can be looked down for exactly the same reason, or so some people say.
Anyway, I believe it'd be gorgeous to pose one night (and maybe more) as a character I've consciously constructed. Dressing up would be a whole theatrical experience for me, like playing a role or cosplaying, as I do when I dress up for Halloween -- a day I use more make-up than the rest of the year altogether. :) I've got some ideas for my boys, but sadly I can't tell you the names now. ;) One would be a dischanted old rocker and the other a horny, clumsy youngster. As for my girl, I only know I'd like to call her Stella/Estela, and she'd believe (and dress like) she was born from a multi-coloured flower.
It'd be fun to impersonate a character for some time instead of writing about him/her as I usually do. Actually, I'm thinking we could all do something like this someday, maybe softening the transgender side and putting more emphasis on the roleplaying. Which also leads me to think I'd really like to roleplay again... Okay, we'll see. Laundry first.
P.S.: I'd forgotten to add a wonderful quote attributed to RuPaul: 'I do not impersonate women! How many women do you know who march around in 7-inch heels, 3-foot wigs and skin-tight outfits?'
Temo que a partir de ahora escribiré este blog en inglés, aunque no garantizo que no se cuele alguna entrada en español (o en alemán, si me siento valiente) de vez en cuando.
Las razones son varias y distintas, pero la principal es que me apetece y casi diría que lo necesito. Lo siento por las personas que me leen a las que no les agrade el cambio. Podemos seguir en contacto a través del email o los otros sitios que frecuento.
Mi inglés dista mucho de ser perfecto y está un poco oxidado; si os apetece corregirme los fallos que veáis, hacedlo sin problema. :) Cuando llegas a un cierto nivel, comienzan a ser un escollo los problemas de estilo y las preposiciones. Más que el vocabulario, ellas son mi calvario...
I'm in a VIP lounge at the Barajas airport for the first time in my life.
Reason: I lost missed my flight yesterday and had to buy a new ticket. Business class, because otherwise there were no seats.
Reason: I forgot my ID card, passport and all at home.
Reason: I was distracted.
Reason: Me.
I feel prominent. A little too prominent, and a bit shy. Like I'm impersonating some famous young writer/scriptwriter/game tester who doesn't look very J-class, but she likes visiting VIP lounges just for the sake of it. Because she can, and she likes being comfortable and feeling a little superior. I reckon she's very burgueois at heart, just like those left-wing intellectuals who travel with all commodities and then speak out about their enrichening experiences in poorer countries. (It's easier to be left-liberal this way.)
My flight's got a delay and it looks like I'll be here for a while, so I'll try to enjoy the impersonation and explore the VIP lounge a bit more. There are newspapers and magazines, a coffee bar (I guess) and free internet. Most of the computer users are kids; the parents are reading, using their iPhones or taking a nap. Two German children are playing online games at my left, and another one was chatting some moments ago at my right. *smiles* The kids at my left are so blonde and cute they almost seem like pulled out from an ad...
On Monday I'm going back to work. It seems weird. I hope that the days get longer soon, because I hate that it's completely dark when we go out (at 17.20 pm). However, I'm becoming increasingly fascinated by the lands of eternal night. How would it be to live six months in a cold, cold place, barely seeing the sun? :?