A Musical Smile from a Galaxy Far, Far, Away

One of my favourite restaurants in the neighbourhood (Ghetto Vecchio), has local bands come in to play a set the first Sunday of every month. This Sunday was a Swing and Jazz band called "Petit Comité" that had a good rythm, a singer with a great voice (albeit not so great accent when singing in English, but oh well, this is Spain!) and a fabulous clarinet. We really enjoyed their set, and that always puts me in a good mood, but what put a huge grin on my face was when they said they were going to take us on a little trip, to a cantina on some backwater planet with two suns in a galaxy far, far away... I couldn't stop myself from quickly pulling out my cellphone to make this video!

Want to see the actual smile? here:

Well, technically that's the smile from the very beginning of the set... since I'm usually the photographer there are no pictures of me during the set, I was too busy enjoying the music! :o)

Something to smile about :)

Like these "hospital" clowns (Payasospital, a group of "clowns" who go do acts in the childrens' wards in Alicante's hospitals) on stage during a benefit gala "Lola Busca Nueva Imagen" to raise funds for an association which helps children with cancer and their families.

The images don't really do them justice (you're missing all the sound effects done by the guy with the guitar, he's also got a tambourine taped to his belly!), but clown cowboys? Definitely goofy! The auditorium was roaring with laughter. Me included, and I'm not a fan of clowns! :p

The rest of the show was good too (several local rock bands, a couple of "modeling" shows by girls belonging to a couple of the Hogueras), and you could tell all the people who volunteered their time and effort for this benefit were having a blast. And that my friends is contagious! Made for a lovely Thursday evening, and helped out a good cause to boot! :o)

Something to smile about

It's been a crazy past several months, very hectic with lots of things to worry about and an insane amount of work... And it's not going to calm down until the summer. *sigh* But something that's helped, and always helps, is just finding simple little things that make you smile. Well, at least it has worked for me.

Like this afternoon in the local ice cream place, watching a boy from my neighborhood I have seen playing with the other kids in the pool downstairs these past two summers, getting an ice cream cone for a friend of his. A sweet little exchange between boy and girl that could be the beginning of something else. Adorable! :o)

Or receiving a long anticipated book in the mail... And anticipating the pleasure of cracking the cover and losing myself in the pages within.

And let's not forget the joys of not coughing after doing so for 5+ weeks non-stop! ;o)

There are lots of things to smile about you just have to stop and take a moment to notice them. And I'm going to try and remember to take a moment and share more of them here this Spring. See you around! :o)