J'veux profiter des gens qu'j'aime:.

I would like to write about those stupid gringos and how every time they have a massacre, like Columbine, Denver, Virginia and Newton, they say how broken their hearts are, how sorry they are for the innocence torned away too early, and how no words will ease the pain.

They forget to say that they brought this pain on themselves, by having very permissive laws regarding guns and such. And how the real problem is that they not only affect themselves, but also their neighbours and allies. For example, do you remember the infamous fast and furious operation, where the fucking gringos introduced illegal high caliber weapons to Mexico just to let narcos kill innocent people with them, well I do!. It seems that for those stupid gringos it's OK if some child in Mexico dies, so that some junkie in the US can have its dose. But if it's one of their own who dies, the whole world must mourn the lost of an innocent soul?...I say, nonsense!!.

I would like to continue ranting about that subject, but the truth is that I don't care. Tomorrow I'll be flying back home, to meet my family again. I'm really looking forward to see my parents, brothers and sisters, and specially, my grandparents. I know that things are not specially good health wise, but if there's something I've learned, is that if I'm ever going to be somebody in this life, I must listen and learn from those that came before me, and there's certainly no better example than that of my grand father, but that will be topic of another post. For now, I just want to spend time with those that matter the most to me, or like some might say, J’essaye le plus possible de voir mes grands-parents. J’me sens tellement feignant quand j’écoute leurs histoires du temps d’avant...

Au fond j'crois qu'la terre est ronde,
pour une seule bonne raison...
après avoir fait l'tour du monde,
tout c'qu'on veut c'est être à la maison...

And I wonder If you feel it too:.

Some years ago I attended a Microsoft recruiting talk, where a guy told us about how cool it was to be working among people who were not only experts in their field, but that had probably written the books you had read (and enjoyed) in college. To be honest, I found that idea quite interesting.

Fortunately, that's not the only way to meet these interesting guys. Just last week, I attended a conference where I had the chance to meet one of the authors of a classical distributed databases book. I don't know, but one of the things I like about the academic environment is that it precisely gives you the chance to work among this kind of people. You'll might never get to their level, but you'll surely learn a thing or two along the way.

Anyway, what did I enjoy the most about last week?. Well, meeting again some old colleagues, drinking wine in an old french castle, and running across a forest, with a loyal dog by my side =):.

If I go on with you by my side,
can it be the way it was when we met?.

Esta mañana blanca me acordé de ti:.

The more you grow old, the more you appreciate (and long) the experiences you had as a child. And I don't necessarily mean big events in your life, I'm talking about little details, like the type of bread you used to eat, some special drink, or even the places you saw on a daily basis. Things that at the moment don't seem very important, but that end up determining a big part of who you really are.

For me, one of those things is the amazing encaladillas, a type of sweet bread that is sold in my hometown to commemorate the departing of the dead. Trust me when I tell you there are few things in the world that can compare to the superb taste of a classic encaladilla =). Anyway, they are very popular and are only sold for a few weeks every year, so you must be prepared to fight to get one!!. 

Well, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit, but I do remember that every year they became harder and harder to get. First, the increasing demand forced my good mother to stop by the bakery several times a day, to try and snatch the encaladillas before anyone else. However, many people did the same thing, and there were times when we wouldn't get anything at all...

Then, the bakery where they sold the original encaladillas changed (I think it was because the owner died, but I'm not really sure), and as a result it became even harder to get a decent supply of encaladillas every year. This was about the time I went to college, and ever since, I've eagerly waited for this time of the year to try again that delicacy of the (dead) gods!!. 

The encaladillas have always reminded me of simpler times. They remind me of a place where no matter how complicated things get, I can always call home. And if our stories are true, that's also the place where my essence will keep coming, long after I'm gone =):.

Es tu olor en mí,
en barrio de coyotes,
fuego siento en mí..

Something good:.

It had been a long time, but last weekend I watched the second and third parts of what's probably the best film series of all time, The Godfather. You know how I tend to say that we should always try to see things with a different perspective?, well, this time I followed my own advice.

Let me explain. I probably watched The Godfather: Part III ten years ago, and I still remember getting very angry with the way they were finishing this great story, even more, I remember leaving the room 10 minutes before the ending, because I thought I was witnessing one of the greatest rip-offs in the history of humankind!!.

But this weekend it all made sense. Of course the first two movies are master pieces, but the third one is not as bad as I remembered, it's actually pretty good. You have to keep in mind that it's really complicated to finish an excellent story, I'm looking at you The Dark Knight Rises, but as they say, eventually you realize that the past, even the grimy parts of it, keep on getting brighter. Anyway, this all reminded me of some experiences I've had, related to the Godfather story, and well, today I would like to share one of them. 

First of all, you have to know that my alma mater is renowned for two main things, both for its technical level and for its business-oriented nature. As a result, even if you're enrolled in a technical career, you must take several business courses. In general, I despise business, but the truth is that in some of these courses I learned some valuable lessons.

For example, one day a professor shared with us his particular understanding of The Godfather. He just asked a simple question: what's Godfather's real business?. He explained to us that more than anything, the Godfather was sort of a manager in a bank of favours. That is, he didn't really do any job, he just had people owing and asking favours from him. So, when he needed things done, he would just cash one of his favours, and in return he would get one more person owing him something.

Sounds simple, right?. The interesting part is that, even if we don't recognise it, we apply this same idea in our daily lives, and that professor taught us to be aware, and if possible, to take advantage of it. I won't go into details, but he explained how he used to analyse people, how he would gather information or try to gain little favours, so he could cash them later.

I didn't agree with many of these methods, but I have to admit that I still apply some of them. For example, I generally don't let people do me any favours, even small ones, or if they do, I return the favour as soon as possible. I like to think of it as politeness, but the truth is that I don't like owing anyone anything. There's just one exception, that is, my family and the people I really care about =):.

Get high, 
hit the floor, 
before you go.

No one’s gonna tell you when enough’s enough:.

There's a famous quote from The Dark Knight that reads, "You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain", and something like that happened to me last night.

I organised a traditional night of blood and war to celebrate my 29th birthday. Nothing fancy, just some Call of Duty 2, chips, beers, and some friends from my laboratory. For a while I could tell that I was really (really!) rusty, but eventually it all came back!!. The rush of aiming, shooting, and running in that classical WW2 environment is just amazing. However, I soon realised that I had turned into the kind of player that I hated some years ago.

Let me explain. Back when I worked at Quarksoft, I used to play CoD2 every day or so in a nearby internet café, after the afternoon meal and just before going back to work. Those were the good times =). Usually it was only my work colleagues and me killing each other, but every once in a while we would get challenged by other guys, and well, we usually accepted just to save our honor!. Even if we didn't win, it wasn't a slaughter either, so we ended up having a good time.

Anyway, one day a young man, I'm guessing less than 14 years old, asked us to play with him, and this time, it was a real slaughter!. That guy was really good, he didn't need bullets to kill us, he would just kill everybody else with melee attacks. For those who don't know, this is kind of a humiliation!. After the fourth time in a row that you're killed that way, you get mad and just want it to stop, but can't do anything about it, because you're not in the same league as the other guy. I just hated the way that guy was taking advantage of all of us...

And yesterday, I was acting precisely like that guy!. I would just silently chase the other players and then suddenly shout "Turn around!, Turn around!!", and when they did, I would just kill them in that old melee style =). Sometimes, they decided to run, but they just delayed the inevitable, 99% of the times there was no way to scape my melee attack.

Was it fair? Yes. Was it funny? Yes. Did they hated me for doing that all night night long? Probably. But now I know how that 14 year old guy felt like some years ago =):.

And the clock kept ticking slowly,
and you leaned over and asked me,
if I even had a clue where I was.

I'm on it:.

Today I had an interesting conversation with my laboratory colleagues, regarding the main motivations in life. Not surprisingly, we discovered that we all value different (different!) things in our own lives.  For some, the main motivation is money, for others it's love or health, but for me, it's definitely freedom!!. 

However, I learned long ago that freedom is really expensive, and that not everybody is willing to pay the price to get it. Even me, I know that I'm not really free, at least not as long as I don't get rid of some addictions, but as I told one of my colleagues today, the first step of achieving a goal, is to know what your goal is...

The conversation went from philosophical questions, such as this, to more practical stuff, such as, where are you going to live?, and what are you going to eat, if you have no money to spare!?. 

Nonetheless, I still think that the only thing that matters in life is to be able to be master of your own decisions, or like William Ernest Henley would say, to be master of your own fate, to be captain of your own soul!. I don't know, maybe I say these things because I think that after all, we are all going to die the same way we were born: alone and without nothing to hold on to...

So, just enjoy life while you can, with the people that mater the most to you right now =):.

We're gonna live it up,
I promise,
just hold on a little more.

No te echaré de menos en septiembre:.

Like most of my generation, I had my first lessons about nationalism while being forced to both, sing the mexican anthem, and salute our flag every monday morning...for at least 12 years!!. As a result, every time I listen to the mexican anthem I can't help but feel a lump in my throat, and a tear sliding down my cheek =). 

However, ever since I was a teenager I decided that if I ever felt like crying, it would be for something I decided myself, not because of something that had been programmed in me. And so, my quest for something to cry for began...

I first tried girls, but I soon realised that very few people outside your family deserve any consideration at all. Soon enough, life gave me the reason, and I first realised what it meant to never see one beloved member of your family again...The following times were all family related, but some years ago I also discovered the effect that music had in me, and it changed my life!. Long story short, I tend to remember the last 10-15 years of my life not by events or people, but by the music that I liked at the time!. 

And why do I tell this?. Well, there are some bands that don't speak not me, but to my core, and that sometimes make me feel so overwhelmed, that I can't help but feel a tear sliding down my cheek!. Last week I saw two of these bands live, Sigur Rós and Beach House, and for a moment, I just felt...I dont' know...happy =)...

However, I also kept thinking that this kind of experiences are meant to be shared with someone you (really!) care about. However difficult it is, I'm still looking for that special someone that could appreciate these little things, the way I do...

Será como aquella canción de los años 80,

seré como el tipo que algún día fui.

Á lífi:.

A (little bit of) life in music:

1996, I discover what great music sounds like (Bee Gees).

1997, My first rock concert (U2).

1998, I saw my favorite band of the time, at their top of their game (Oasis).

...

2008, Best catalan band ever (Facto Delafé y las Flores Azules).

2009, Best concert with last-minute tickets (The Killers, Hello Seahorse!).

2010, Dreaming with music! (Beach House).

2010, I discover what a music festival feels like (Corona Capital).

2011, I let myself dance freely (Vive Latino: Chemical Brothers).

2012, I got off a transatlantic flight, to go directly to a concert hall (Bombay Bicycle Club).

...

2012, The first concert that has made me cry (Rock en Seine: Sigur Rós).

Kominn heim.

What about breakfast at Tiffany's?:.

A year ago I was on my way to a new life experience in France, and now that I'm about to start my second year in this land, I think it's a good time to make some reflections...

I have to admit that my previous knowledge of this country, and its culture, was rather limited. I did have some background information, mainly from an old Simpsons' episode and from a couple of weekend getaways. To be fair, I also had some mythical stories from the time my uncle studied here, back in the late 1980's. But to be really honest, I didn't know much about the country where I was supposed to live for the next three years of my life...

Anyway, I came to Grenoble, and I'm happy to admit that I don't regret it...I don't regret it at all!. I've had the chance to meet great people from all around the world. From renowned researchers, to humble PhD students, like me. From people from places as familiar as Puebla, to colleagues from the distant Cameroon and Brazil. I got the chance to visit one of my favorite countries, the mythical Hungary, and a beautiful nordic country, Danemark. But must of all, during these visits I had the chance to meet great colleagues from the software maintenance and model-driven engineering communities. 

You know, what I like the most is that you're no longer competing against some colleagues in a classroom, you're really competing against some of the brightest minds from all around the world!. Of course, it's not easy, we've already had some drawbacks (particularly some rejected papers), but that's what makes this new experience so interesting...

One final remark, during this year, both my alcohol tolerance and my love for films has increased dramatically, and I intend to keep it that way...=):.

She said, "I think I remember the film,
and as I recall, I think, we both kinda liked it..."
and I said, "Well, that's the one thing we've got!".

Just to know that you are near:.

A few months ago I watched The Tree of Life, and I remember saying, WTF is this shit?. I know that it's kind of a heresy to admit it, but something similar happened to me the first time I watched Pulp Fiction and The Big Lebowsky (though these films are in a complete different league!).  

Anyway, I'm telling this story because in a conversation I had with some friends last week, I was arguing that some movies need to be experienced more than once, before you barely start appreciating their beauty. Maybe the first time(s) you're in a bad mood, you don't have good companionship, the environment is not good, or you just don't have the necessary life experience. The tragedy is that we tend to judge things based only on the first experience.

And how did the topic come into discussion?. Well, there's a long tradition in some european cities to project movies in open air during hot summer nights, and Grenoble is a proud member of that tradition. So, last week's movie was The Tree of Life, and despite my previous experience, I decided to give it a try!. Maybe it was the 8.4° beer, the warm summer night, the freedom of my new MétroVélo bike, or something else, but this time I really liked the movie!.

I know this phenomenon is not exclusive of movies, but since almost everything I know I had learned through movies or tv series, this is something I can easily relate to =):.

To get through,
to the man in me.

If we're looking in the dark:.

I could tell you about the madness that these last weeks have been, including the search for a new place to live in, cleaning and moving out from my old apartment, updating a project just in time for its presentation, losing each and every one of the football games we played this season (and not only that, but also losing our only ball in the deeps of the Rhône river), getting all my clothes wet during my flight to another country, and having to explain to a german custom officer how I managed to get into some airport restricted area...

But no, I'll just tell you about how I got the chance to meet some legendary model-driven stars, in an european modeling conference. Moreover, it was really interesting to meet again some colleagues from the software maintenance community, and to see the relatively high interest that some industry folks have in this type of events. One final remark, once again informal conversations (5-10 min) seemed to be way more effective than formal conference talks. All in all, an excellent way to start this summer!!:.

No one's gonna find any answers,
if we're just trying to hide, 
from the things we know inside, 
are the truth.

Pas d’autre issue de secours:.

A few weeks ago I had the chance to see, for the second time in my life, one of the best bands of our generation, Beach House!!. The first time was two years ago, in an epic concert back in Mexico city, and despite the differences in space and time, I found some similarities, and some other things that I would like to talk about.

Well, the first and most obvious similarity is that a lot of people go to the concert barely knowing the name of the band they are going to see. I don't mean to say this is a bad thing, I actually encourage it. There's nothing like listening to a good song for the first time in your life, and if it is with live sound, you're up for an epic experience!!.

Since the concert was not in my city, I decided to share the transportation fees with some other guys (Covoiturage). One of them was a girl from the USA, in particular from Colorado, and after the concert she made a comment that I found particularly interesting. She said that she had really enjoyed the concert, and that it had been a good experience not to be surrounded by Marihuana smoke. She explained that in Colorado Marihuana is legal, in theory only for medical purposes, but that it's really easy to get a prescription to buy it. It's only natural that when you go to a concert, the place is full of people using it.

I'm not naïve, it's not like in Mexico and France people don't do drugs during concerts, but as this girl could tell, the percentage is fairly low if you compare it to other places (in my personal experience, it has never been more than 15-20%). There are many other variables to consider, like the type of music, the venue, the age group, etc. It's a complicated subject, and in my opinion, legalization is the only way to go, but that will be the topic of another post:.

Recycler cette colère,
car aujourd’hui plus qu’hier,
cette colère reste mon meilleur carburant.

Hoping to find some old forgotten words:.

Among other things, I'm a tv series addict. Certainly not as addicted as mythical Mr. Cejudo (legend has it he could browse the whole internet in offline mode, back in 2004), but I do spend a great deal of time watching excellent series. Anyway, I'm telling this because about a month ago I saw a particularly interesting reference in Family Guy's season finale (Africa by Toto), and it reminded me of similar moments in other great series like House (Midnight Train to Georgia by Gladys Knight) and Scrubs (Overkill by Men at Work and Light and Day by The Polyphonic Spree).

I really love moments like this, where you can listen to some old forgotten song and remember that good music is really timeless!!. And to prove it, here are the moments I've been talking about, enjoy =). (Just a little warning, some might consider the Family Guy video as NSFW, that is, Not Safe For Work)

Found yourself in a new direction:.

Some years ago I saw a particularly interesting story in the What the #$*! Do We (K)now!? film. It was about how native americans were not able to see Columbus' ships, when he first arrived to the new world. They couldn't see them, or maybe they did but decided to ignore them anyway, because those ships were very different to anything they knew. 

For them, a floating device should be similar to a canoe, and nothing else. The problem was that those new things were definitely not shaped as canoes. Of course, eventually they recognized Columbus' ships and their true function, but the morale of the story is that, most of the time, "we only see what we believe is possible, we tend to match patterns that already exist within ourselves". 

I'm telling this story because a similar situation happened to me these last weeks. I prepared an initial proposal for a combination of ideas that could be interesting for my current work, and I decided to present them to people working in two different domains. The responses I got from each group were totally (totally!) different. It's not that one of these groups is necessarily right or wrong, it just proves that the way you look at things depends a lot on your previous experience and knowledge, your existing patterns. Like I've said in previous posts, it's difficult to see things with a different perspective, but we should never stop trying!.

Anyway, in the following weeks I'll have the opportunity to discuss these ideas both with like-minded colleagues and with people with a much more different perspective than mine, we'll see how it goes  =):.

And in between,
it’s never as it seems.

What you want to be:.

Last month, two events made me remember a great lesson: There's more to life than just {work, money, programming, football, papers, music, tv...}. 

First, I had the chance to travel with my sister across Europe, backpacking style!. We shared some really good moments, and I also think that the trip served us well to put things in our lives in perspective. That's what I like about trips, it's not only about sightseeing, but also about opening your mind. Now that I think about it, that's a lesson I learned from my brother =).

The second event was Pep Guardiola's farewell. The goodbye of a true lider and role model!!. The whole world admired his work, but as the Oracle said: everything that has a beginning has an end. He could've continued working just for the money, or the fame. He could've accepted one of the multi-million offerts from all around the world. But no, as he explained in his goodbye conference, there's more to life than just football, and he (as we all) need to find out what that is.

I guess that at the end of the day, the key is to find the right time to enjoy those little things that make up your life:.

Being myself makes me feel,
like I know who you are.

Trying to find a way:.

Last week I had the opportunity to attend a software conference in Szeged, Hungary, and I think this was one of the best experiences I've had so far in my PhD. The combination of interesting people, good talks and a nice environment, was totally worth the effort it took us to get there!.

It's really interesting how you can find people so similar to you, I mean, not only in the topics you like, but also on the subtle things that define who you are. For example, one day I was having meal with a couple of friends, and at one point, one of them said that she considered herself to be sort of an antisocial (to be honest, that's common in our field). The thing is that she said it so casually, that some of the other guys were shocked by her affirmation. They couldn't believe that she could talk about it so openly, and without feeling like she needed to justify her nature, but not me!. It reminded me of a conversation I had with my brother some years ago, where I said the same exact thing, in the same exact tone, and caused almost the same reaction. I couldn't help but smile =):.

Little details like this, where you start recognizing little bits of yourself in the people around you, are really (really) interesting. Anyway, this was just an example, next time I'll talk about similar experiences, regarding Harry Potter, magic and saving the world!.

Alright, let's go outside,
and rise, rise, rise, to the meaning of life!.

All things go:.

En su clásica trilogía de la fundación, Asimov menciona brevemente una de las formas en las que las mentes más sofisticadas de la galaxia pueden comunicarse. Lo hacen a través de una conexión emocional, que no require de palabras de ningún lenguaje en particular. Nosotros podríamos tratar de entenderlo a través de miradas y pequeños movimientos, pero en realidad es más complicado que eso...

Sin embargo, creo que todos hemos experimentado parte de ese lenguaje alguna vez. Nos ha bastado una mirada, un simple gesto o un pequeño cambio en el ambiente, que no sabríamos explicar con palabras, para saber lo que otra persona piensa, sobre todo si esa persona es cercana a nosotros. La lección es que, en muchas ocasiones, lo verdaderamente importante no se puede expresar con palabras, hay que sentirlo!.

Gracias a [Dios, Allāh, Buda o Jebús] hay una alternativa para aquellos a los que nos cuesta trabajo eso de las conexiones emocionales con personas de carne y hueso: la música!. Yo creo que no hay nada mejor para comunicarse que aquello que transmite una canción. Es decir, que el sentimiento de la melodía o de lo que dice el cantante te llegue a lo más profundo de tu ser, no tiene comparación. Ahora que lo pienso, en realidad no pasa sólo con la música, lo puedes reconocer al ver a alguien hacer algo con pasión. Cómo deja de ser él mismo por unos instantes, para llegar a trascender...

Bueno, me estoy saliendo un poco de tema, pero platico todo esto porque hoy tuve oportunidad de ver en vivo a unos cuates, Cannibales & Vahinés avec G. W. Sok, que me hicieron sentir algo que hacía tiempo no reconocía. Esto es parte de las pequeñas cosas por las que bien vale la pena estar por aquí =):.

If I was crying [...],
it was for freedom,
from myself and from the land.

Lo dices como si hubieras cambiado de sentimientos:.

Hace poco tuve un par de conversaciones que me hicieron reflexionar sobre algunas de las decisiones que he tomado a lo largo de mi vida, y la forma en que, pasados unos años, podemos ver lo bien o mal que actuamos y lo orgulloso o no que estamos de esas decisiones.

No lo sé, al final no me arrepiento de nada, pero no deja de ser interesante el volver la vista atrás y ver que ya no te reconoces en esa persona que eras hace 5 o 10 años. Quisiera pensar que es madurez, pero igual y sólo es una mayor indiferencia. Nos vemos en unos años para platicarlo mejor...

Te acuerdas?
Sí, me acuerdo.

He's brave and walking sure:.

Je suis content parce que la semaine prochaine je rentrerai chez moi!. J'ai deux objectifs pour cette visite, le premier est de passer beaucoup de temps avec ma famille, particulièrement avec mon frère, mes sœurs et mes grands-parents =). Le deuxième objectif est de recueillir mon nouvel ordinateur, mon premier MBP!.

Le jour de mon arrivée sera aussi le jour d'une de le meilleurs concerts qu'il y aura cette année à Mexico, c'est à dire, Bombay Bicycle Club...même si c'est compliqué, j'aimerais y aller!!.

When the light is out,
when the words have gone,
let me be the one to try it on.

Ça c'est pour la vie:.

Una vez más comprobé que para cada cosa hay un momento y un lugar adecuado para disfrutar en esta vida. Ese sentimiento es una de las cosas por las que bien vale la pena vivir!!.

Esta vez fue mi visita a París. Ya había estado ahí hace unos 3 años, junto con mi hermano y un buen amigo y aunque la ciudad me pareció interesante, no lo fue tanto como para llamarla la mejor ciudad europea en la historia de la humanidad...qué equivocado estaba!.

El ambiente nublado, lluvioso, la música de fondo, los pequeños detalles, el tener la ciudad siempre a media luz, y el tener mucho tiempo y energías para caminar por todos lados creo que fue la mejor combinación para quedar encantado de esta ciudad. Es difícil describirlo, pero cuando algo que creías que ya conocías es capaz de deslumbrarte y dejarte sin palabras, es simplemente impresionante =)...

Quise compartir esto porque también me recuerda a una de nuestras grandes tragedias, que es el ir perdiendo poco a poco la capacidad de asombrarse y de ver las cosas con ojos nuevos. Me recuerda a la confesión que escuché de un jugador experto de go hace muchos años. Este cuate estaba jugando contra un novato y a pesar de ir dándole una paliza, no estaba contento, y nos dijo el porqué. Extrañaba esa sensación de sentirse perdido, de no saber qué jugada exacta debía hacer, envidiaba al novato porque para él, el juego apenas comenzaba, iba a ir descubriendo cada una de las movidas y trucos del juego, pero el jugador experto ya había pasado por ahí y nunca más podría volver a sentirlo, por más que trataba, no podía ver el juego con los ojos y el asombro de aquel novato.

No lo sé, aunque a veces lo olvido, es importante dejar siempre una puerta abierta para tratar de ver las cosas con ojos nuevos y dejarse asombrar, aún por las pequeñas cosas =):.

Avec toi chérie,
la vie est belle.