Diaries Archives - Page 372 of 644

Descemer Bueno: Another Good Album

Unassuming, aimed at a broad public and drawing from the tradition of the urban bards without relying on vulgarity and superficial formulas, the album is as good as Bueno’s last name.

The Mean Salary of Cubans

That individuals holding bureaucratic, non-productive positions should earn the highest wages at State companies is not uncommon. Such are the historical distortions of Cuba’s labor system which, in this particular regard, is no different than any private enterprise system around the world.

Sculptures in the Sand of Havana

The tenth edition of Sculptures in the Sand took place on July 27th, in an effort to recover the Fiestas by the Sea that took place in the early years of the revolution during the last week of July.

Cuba: A Reply to Those Who Would Give Us Lessons in Governance

The opinions of those who believe they are capable of governing Cuba, who give us lesson after lesson about how to solve the country’s problems overnight, would be worthy of pity were they not so outrageous.

A Photography Course that Brought Me Closer to Latin America

This year, Havana’s renowned cultural institution Casa de las Americas will celebrate the work of Latin American and Caribbean photographers through numerous exhibitions, workshops and conferences.

Cuba’s National Library and its Nefarious Membership Policy

Surrealist Cuban writer Juan Brea’s collection of essays “La verdad contemporanea” (Contemporary Truth) ends with a series of reflections we could describe as intuitive or extravagant. “Man is the only animal capable of dying because of drunkenness or a kind gesture. This is what makes him different, not virtuous.”

Theft of JAWA Motorcycle Pieces Around Havana

Anyone who rides a JAWA-brand motorcycle here in Havana should exercise caution these days, for there are reports of a band of thieves who have been stealing their electrical systems (and the police have not yet been able to capture them).

One, Two, Three Small Joys

Joys that burst right in front of your face, like soap bubbles, to leave you with a feeling of emptiness, of frustration, but joys nevertheless, fulfilling their mission of oxygenating the blood, of cleansing a bloodstream contaminated by the sloth, intolerance, stagnation, ignorance, opportunism, close-mindedness, fence-sitting…and a horrifyingly long list of other ills that surround us.

On the Usefulness of Desire and the Virtue of the Useful

I used to be suspicious of people who carry handkerchiefs in their pockets. When I say “used to”, I mean when I was still living in Cuba. I can’t explain what I had against handkerchiefs exactly. I suppose I felt I was surrounded by things that called for something other than a handkerchief…

Cuba, Where Human Rights Are Seen as Wrong

My life partner, the optometrist Jimmy Roque Martinez, has just been approached in his place of work and accused of being a “human rights advocate”, and that he has been incited to become one by none other than yours truly. The Party is now suggesting that he ought to be laid off.