Caveat: Diving giraffes and other miscellany

A. Have you seen the famous French diving giraffes?

I believe they are computer-generated.

B. Unrelatedly… over the weekend, there were fireworks at Lake Park (호수공원) a few blocks from my apartment – because of the Childrens Day festivities. I knew what they were, but I also thought: that's what it would sound like if North Korea attacked.

Then, yesterday, as I stepped out my apartment to walk to work, the civil defense sirens sounded. "Ah, right," I thought. "It's exactly 2 pm, first Tuesday of the month." That's a typical time for a civil defense siren, although they seem to move around a bit within that general coneptual frame. But normally I'm either already at work or still sitting at home when the 2pm sirens go off. I think I witnessed one once before, some years ago, although they happen every month.

Everyone stopped driving. People in yellow vests went out into the street and stopped cars and even pedestrians. So I was standing on the corner of Junang-no and Gangseon-no for 15 minutes until the drill was over, thinking once again about North Korea. I took out my phone and looked at the Korean-language news site, to pass the time. The first article I read (er, tried to read) was about the USS Nimitz (nuclear aircraft carrier) visiting the South Korean city of Busan [美항모 니미츠호 11∼13일 부산항 입항(종합)]. Is there a pattern here?

In fact, the Norks seem to be behaving better lately. Or else they got what they wanted: South Korea gave them some money recently. Extortion works.

C. Lastly, another bit of miscellany:

"You
should sit in meditation for 20 minutes a day, unless you're too busy;
then you should sit for an hour" – old zen saying (or just someone on
the internet).

Caveat: hasta donde debemos practicar las verdades

Lo que estoy escuchando en este momento.

Silvio Rodríguez, "Playa Girón." Una de la canciones que más me gusta de la música latinoamericana.

Letra:

compañeros poetas
tomando en cuenta
los últimos sucesos
en la poesía
quisiera preguntar
me urge
que tipo de adjetivos
se deben usar para hacer
el poema de un barco
sin que se haga sentimental
fuera de la vanguardia o
evidente panfleto
si debo usar palabras,como
flota cubana de pesca
y playa girón

compañeros de música,
tomando en cuenta esas
politonales y audaces canciones
quisiera preguntar
me urge
que tipo de armonía
se debe usar para hacer
la canción de este barco
con hombres de poca niñez
hombres y solamente
hombres sobre cubierta
hombres negros y rojos
y azules los hombres
que pueblan
el playa girón

compañeros de historia
tomando en cuanta lo implacable
que debe ser la verdad
quisiera preguntar
me urge tanto
que debiera decir
que fronteras debo respetar?
si alguien roba comida
y después da la vida que hacer?
hasta donde debemos
practicar las verdades
hasta donde sabemos
que escriban pues la historia
su historia los hombres del
playa girón

que escriban pues la historia
su gistoria los hombres dl
playa girón

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