Errors and Corrections: Reggaeton

Twenty months ago I said:

It turns out reggaeton is in 3/4 time, and that's why it's hard to make with iDrum (it only makes beats in 4/4.) After a while I figured it out, I made like three songs... I need to work on the lyrics... but they will probably sound like our first song:

Today I learned that I was incorrect.

The kick drum emphasizes a 4/4 beat, while the snare comes on the "and" of the 2nd 16th note and right on the 4th 16th.

Sorry, Daddy Yankee. Sorry, Calle 13. Sorry, Puerto Rico. Sorry, Reggaeton.

San Juan by night.

I probably had the most fun last night.

I went out with my mom's contact in San Juan. He took me to the streets that surround a mercado in Santurce.

On Friday nights, young people drink in the streets. There will always be a place in my heart for drinking in the streets (see: Urban Iditarod, Holy Land.)

Public drunkenness is probably the way I learned Spanish. In Andalucia pre-disco evenings are spent boozing in public plazas. They call it Botellón.

Last night we hung out in a market...



that doubles as a party.



We festejar'd hard.



And then we went to a hipster electro party that I found por MySpace.

The San Juan connect left, but I met up with the MySpace friend recognized me. I was the only non Puerto Rican hipster. I was very drunk, and I had a lot of fun.

People are partying the exact same way all over the world. They had several DJs playing that infectious Paris sound. I loved it.

It was at this party that I realized a certain inalienable truth: Eighty five percent of my Spanish is Mexican slang.

"Soy un Chingon" in Mexico means "I'm really cool" in Puerto Rico it means "I fuck a lot."

"Estoy en pedo" in Mexico means "I'm drunk" in Puerto Rico it means "I am in fart."

¡Oh idiomatic expressions!

Anyhow, I leave this piece of land completely surrounded by water, tomorrow for another less tropical island.



I'll be in Nueva York til December 11th. I might stay longer, if I get married.

El Yunque

El Yunque from JoshuaHeller on Vimeo.

Arrivals

I flew across the continent last night. Well maybe it was two nights ago, these things are still unclear to me.



I've slept long enough to readjust myself to perceive reality like a normal person.

I arrived at The Ritz-Carlton San Juan yesterday afternoon. I am staying on a concierge floor, which requires a key to get to. I had to take the elevator to the seventh floor, walk to the stairs and sneak to the ninth. At the top I waited for my mom in a lounge. They offer classy snacks like Proscuitto and Gruyere cheese. My mom arrived, I fell asleep.

Last night we went to a restaurant in Old San Juan that specializes in a fusion between Pan-Asian and Pan-Latino foods. It's globalization gone right.

I ate Szechwan Duck Nachos.



Allow me to explore more.

Viajes // ATTN: Friends in San Juan, New York, Chicago

I work via the internet so I'm taking a few weeks off from Los Angeles.

I am going to be in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Tuesday, November 27th.

I am staying at a swanky hotel financed by my mom's work.

On Sunday, December 2nd I am flying to NYC. I will spend a good deal of time there, perhaps 8 days.

I have a flight from Chicago to Los Angeles on December 19th. So I have to figure out how to get to the capital of the Midwest. I think I will take the 18 hour train.

There are talks of visiting my old tropical paradise, Isla Mujeres in December.

To be determined.

I am planning to offset my carbon by planting a tree, or more realistically by donating money for somebody else to plant a tree.

I am not rich, I just squander my savings on travel exploits.

IF YOU ARE IN ANY OF THESE LOCATIONS, PLEASE INFORM ME, SO WE CAN PROVERBIALLY "KICK IT."

-Joshua Heller

The adventure continues...

Through the miracle of cheap airfare, internet work, and physician recruitment conferences, I will be going to Puerto Rico at the end of this month.

My mom invited me to stay with her in San Juan. The hotel has all sorts of amenities, including but not limited to wireless internet on the beach.

If you have to work, you might as well work beachside, with a coco-loco in your hand.

A few months ago I gave up my seat on a flight. The airline gave me a free flight to anywhere in the contiguous US. So I'm flying into New York, and taking a $250 (roundtrip) JetBlue flight to this tropical territory.

Upon my return I plan on spending a week (or several) in Nueva York. Followed by some time in Chicago, as I have never been to the United States' windy city. I have however spent too much time in Mexico's windy city. Pachuca.

I feel like I'm going on tour. So PLEASE book me to perform comedy, music or philosophy at your establishment. I'll make t-shirts and name the tour after you, if you're interested.

For Halloween I walked to a tiki-themed lounge. I hung out with an old dude who grew up in this neighborhood. The seventies were a wild time in North Hollywood. You could drink PBRs, listen to Journey, and smoke pot with your professors.

I'm on a weird schedule, because I work from home until midnight, so I can't socialize with people. Luckily, I don't know anybody around here. So the fact that I have to work during that time makes me forget that I don't have friends.

A huevo, carnales.