TANGO PELIGROSO?
For a week now I have been freaking out (well, more than usual, that is.)
Last Monday my barrio of Boedo had a black out. Nothing new. Thank goodness I wasn´t in the elevator at the time, always a claustrophobic fear. But at the same moment my computer died! When I first arrived in Buenos Aires more than three years ago, I bought the best and most expensive surge protector I could get to protect my most valuable possession. If I have to jump off my balcony in case of fire, Phoebe the Cat and my Macintosh iBook come with. My whole life is in there. My brain is in there.
This is not the greatest country to have a Mac.
To make a long story short, there was no way out but to leave it at the MacStation in Recoleta for a week of diagnostics and only trust and pray that the memory isn´t toast.
So that´s why I haven´t been posting (for those of you who are keeping track.)
But I wanted to tell you about a really great read for dancers and non-dancers alike, MAMBO PELIGROSO by Patricia Chao (Harper, 2005). I had prepared to illustrate my post with a picture of the cover, but I can´t seem to do it here in the cybercafe. UPDATE: Here's the pic and my MAC is working again.
Even if you know nothing about the New York mambo scene, you will enjoy the fast-paced plot and interesting characters. If you are a tango dancer, you´ll recognize the same gossipy intrigues found on dance floors everywhere, with the plus of international political shenanigans.
The story is told from the point of view of the three main characters and takes us from New York to Miami to Cuba. Sure there´s sex, but it´s quality and not sleazy (unlike that piece of trash masquerading as a memoir, Kiss and Tango, which I hate to even mention in case another person will read it and think that´s the true scoop of Buenos Aires tango. Yuck.)
The Cuban scenes are a little sketchy, but the dancing is really real; the author was a professional mambo dancer and it shows.
A perfect beach or airplane book for those of you approaching summertime, but also for a great rainy day--if you´re not out dancing!
3 comments:
Hi Cherie,
You should also get an UPS. That way, when the power goes out you have time to turn your computer off properly. I have a Mac at home and the UPS has been a lifesaver.
Saludos,
Frank
Oh Frank, thanks so much for the suggestion, but
1) what is it?
and,
2) where can I get one quick?
Besos,
Cherie
Hi Cherie,
Sorry for leaving a message so brief that did not explain what I was talking about. My bad.
A UPS is short for Uninterrupted Power Supply. It is like a big battery that you plug into your outlet at home and then your computer plugs into the battery. If the power goes out, the battery kicks in simultaneously so your computer keeps getting its electricity without interruption.
Here is a link to a short essay on these devices and they actually talk about Macs on this one:
http://www.thesmallest.com/lessonettes/ups-indepth.html
The biggest name in the game is APC (American Company). Here is a link to a page in which you can look up dealers in Argentina.
http://www.apc.com/buy/index.cfm
You are going to need a desktop model. Just keep in mind that you are going to want to have not only your CPU plugged in but your monitor as well (in case you have a G4 or G5 if you have an iMAC then you only need one plug).
This is an important point since it only comes with one cable so you might want to buy an additional cable. Basically you are going to need to tell them how much power consumption your computer has or if you tell them what you plan on plugging into the UPS they can calculate which size you will need.
Post a Comment