Hola banda de toros. ¡Saludos desde Valencia!

Sorry to miss you guys this year at The York Tavern. Alternatively, I don’t miss you so much that I would host you all here at the same time. My only home court advantage is that muster is not served in squirt bottles. I’d likely have to prepare myself to answer to the State Department. Seeing each of you separately is for consideration depending how this year’s lunch turns out. Just sayin…

Anyway, my holiday greeting is an assurance that I’ve made the right move. Not a cry for sympathy. Only send lawyers, guns and money if that moves your heart. As in… just send money.

Not that I haven’t had doubts in private. I mean, is embracing a siesta lifestyle what I really need? I certainly got more done before, where naps were a guilty indulgence and frowned upon at work.

But finally I did have a confirming sign sent by the divine. It was our first visit to the beach. As I was schlepping my pasty-white, sixty-year-old ass back to the boardwalk, I had an indisputable vision. There in a lounge chair was a beautiful, bronze-tan, señorita rubbing tanning oil on her naked breasts. And I thought, “yea, this was the right move”.  Thank you God! (à la Animal House) 

Of course reality is always different from expectations. Initially, I considered myself modern day, rugged Ernest Hemingway-like expat drinking vino in the street cafes waxing poetic about art, society, philosophy, history, and music.

Truth is, I’m a long-hair, lost romantic, Americana, clueless-immigrant, Don Quixote-doppelganger, always risking a whack in the back of the head by a windmill.

We are now applying for a two year renewal. Hard to imagine we are nearing our first year anniversary - January 1st. (fun fact, the only new year’s resolution that I have ever kept.)

In short, not speaking the native tongue fluently has cornered me into much time and focus on photography and writing. Also endeavoring to learn Español.

Tanto tiempo mis amigos!

Filippe Amonajaro  (The artist formerly known as Philamonjaro)

And, no… I’m not changing my identity as part of the witness protection plan. So you can just kill that rumor now.