Little Things // Simple Joys

            Barcelona life continues to unfold in front of me as 4-day school weeks zip by and the 3-day weekends are made the most of. Upon walking home during the week I successfully directed a guy to the nearest metro stop and I had to give myself a pat on the back for not drawing a blank in a Spanish conversation and also a feeling of local knowledge felt reassuring. Many other things have brought me simple joys lately all the way from friends sending letters, Barcelona always providing enjoyment to me as I explore, and just things that are simply inherently good that never fail.

      Barcelona has been providing me recently with a handful of new discoveries but most notably the Labyrinth Park. After a solid metro ride and some poor directions from a local it was found. Labyrinth Park is tucked away in the mountains and has a hedge maze reminiscent of the gigantic one in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. After finding my way to the middle and not finding a sphinx on my way or not finding the “tri-wizard cup” in the middle, I moved on…however the park had much more to offer than just the maze. All of my friend’s pictures had shown only the maze and they all told me that it was the extent of the parks entertainment but as I walked I was struck by peaceful little waterfalls and beautiful green walkways that lined the park and something about it made me feel at home. It was so similar to scenes at parks that i had grown up adventuring and imagining in. I definitely plan on going back up there with food and just making a day out of it with a notebook.
       A friend of mine in Barcelona was generous to lend me her classical guitar here in Barcelona and to be rebuilding those callouses on my fingertips has been a pleasure. I had to go buy some nylon strings because it only had three of its own and after working the rusty and crusty tuning pegs until they could turn properly, I had myself a playable guitar. I had to adjust to the nylon strings and the higher action on the guitar but I have enjoyed it all. It has been fun to mess around, change up tunings by ear, and just dive into new things. After only playing cracked and half strung guitars all the time I gave up on always trying to always get to standard tuning and playing songs that I knew. Guitar shouldn't be played just to make sure i can still play what i have learned. Instead recently I just play strings or tune them until they sound good together, no particular tuning in sight or song to mimic, and those times have been so fruitful. No need to record anything. Those times remind me that guitar (and music in general) is an art and I need to stop working at it and just play it. There is a big difference. I think it is one of those things in life that I just needed to step away from and then approach with a fresh mindset, so the all in all, the time away did me well.

       Playing around with the vicious cat is always a costly fun but nevertheless, a fun worthy of being had. The other morning I kicked a Ping-Pong ball around in the kitchen for her for a good while and she repaid me with quite a few laughs as she slid back and forth across the smooth floor.

           

   Another gem in Barcelona is “The Bunkers” (an old anti aircraft fort) which sits atop one of the main mountains in the city. A metro ride to the foothills, a walk up stairs to get to the trailhead, and the trail itself are all a journey in themselves but of course are well worth it. There is nothing quite like it once you get to the top and breath in that fresh air and see the expanse of Barcelona sloping down into the Mediterranean
Sea. Valentines Day up there was crowded as one would expect such a beautiful spot to be and the romantics were in position. As some serenaded with guitars others read poems and my company and I all realized how incredibly single we were! Remarkable! Haha!

     City league soccer has kicked off and the squad is 3-0! Friends of mine from Spanish class were nice enough to let me on their team of the guys in their apartment. I have scored multiple goals in each game so I hope that repays their trust! An Indian fellow on our teams name is Yashvardhan so naturally our team name is “Prince Yash and the Slumdogs”. After the first game I felt like a geezer and was pathetically sore all over. Since then the soreness has toned down more and more each week but I still tell myself I need to be in better shape as I sit on my butt writing these posts…oh well. One of the things that any athlete can definitely attest to is the euphoric feeling that follows a solid performance. We all seem to bask in this glow every week as we walk back to the metro stop after hard fought games, some limping on hurt ankles and others nursing burns on their legs from the turf. It feels great to be back out there.

     The tea with honey that follows meals has been a newfound friend of mine lately, I guess my childhood nickname of “Codybear” still holds true. The tea comes in hot so I normally chat for a bit and go wash my plate but when I come back and the honey jar is in front of me along with my steeping tea, I get giddy with expectation. I hold the honey over the tea with care and let the crystals fall over the edge of my spoon and into the mug. These crystals often gather at the bottom to be enjoyed later in the finishing sips of tea. Needless to say I enjoy it and the post-lunch tea has made me late for class on a few occasions…definitely not my fault.

       A friend of mine at PLNU orchestrated the movement to get a bunch of my friends to all write on the same card and send it to me. I loved getting the personable messages from everyone even if it was just a few sentences; I could definitely still here their voices through the little inside jokes and such. A very dear friend of mine has sadly decided not to return to PLNU and his portion was the longest on the card and it meant a lot to me to read that. I am blessed to have such amazing friends who send me things like that, which remind me that distance and a time change is the only thing separating us…but don’t get me started on family : )

     I acquired a Spanish SIM card which offers free data for me. I have been utilizing this mainly on my walks to school where podcasts give me some fun dialogue in the mornings. I have been able to tune into my church sermons from back home and I feel a bit like an old person who just found the joys of technology and just can't get enough. Through my technological revelations I have been able to chat back home with my beloved sister Jenny about the sermons going on at my home church and I love picking her brilliant mind about what she made out of the message. On another note a dear friend of mine Mr. Peter Jolley turned me onto brilliant podcast called "Men in Blazers". The two blokes who run this podcast are great at mixing in a bit of comedy into their lighthearted discussions about Footy (soccerball). They offer some great viewpoints in a very level headed manner causing me to refresh my subscription constantly in hope of a new one to be downloaded. The "Notes" application on my phone stays constantly full my own thoughts which I bounce off Jenny and Peter when I have a chance. Also I have grown to be quite an admirer of Stephen Colbert. Like I said, simple joys.

            

    That’s all for now. Got to go sleep, I do that occasionally here. Thanks for reading my blog! You rock…and have an impeccable taste in blog reading. God bless you.