La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
The title is how my father said Fountain of Youth. It was a NYC thing. Some people would say it’s a Brooklyn thing, but I’ve known people from the other boroughs who pronounced it the same way. Another favorite was “mere youth” pronounced without the “r” and “h.” Try it for yourself.
When I was 14, I stopped with my family in St. Augustine, Florida, on our way to Miami. Our goal was to see where Ponce de Leon found the real fountain of youth. It was all a lie. Not only did Ponce not find it, he wasn’t even looking for it. But the Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park is fascinating. Anyway, that was when I first heard my father pronounce the phrase. Córdoba is a city of many beautiful things and one of those is fountains. I haven’t drunk of their waters, so I don’t know if any have magical powers. More likely just bacteria and parasites.
Today’s photos are among the line of seven matching fountains in our neighborhood that grace the Paseo of Córdoba. In Christmas colors now, they add magic and drown out the traffic noise. The line of fountains begin right after the winter wonderland butterfly park ends. It was a nice walk home.
The Christmas cactus continues to bloom, happily. We don’t turn it, we don’t move it, we just admire it. The cats continue to be cats. Dudo is ever skinnier, but content and still curious. Moose is a lover with us and a lover and a fighter with his brother.
Today is Three Kings Day Eve and the parade will pass right by our door this evening. Click here for last year. The weather is expected to cooperate.
El título es como mi padre decía “fountain of youth” (fuente de la juventud). Era algo propio de Nueva York. Algunos dirían que es algo propio de Brooklyn, pero conozco gente de otros distritos que lo pronunciaba igual. Otro favorito era “mere youth” (mera juventud), pronunciado sin la “r” ni la “h”. Pruébenlo ustedes mismos.
Cuando tenía 14 años, paré con mi familia en San Agustín, Florida, de camino a Miami. Nuestro objetivo era ver dónde Ponce de León encontró la verdadera fuente de la juventud. Todo era mentira. Ponce no solo no la encontró, sino que ni siquiera la buscaba. Pero el Parque Arqueológico de la Fuente de la Juventud es fascinante. En fin, fue entonces cuando escuché a mi padre pronunciar la frase por primera vez. Córdoba es una ciudad con muchas cosas hermosas, y una de ellas son las fuentes. No he bebido de sus aguas, así que no sé si alguna tiene poderes mágicos. Probablemente solo bacterias y parásitos.
Las fotos de hoy están entre la hilera de siete fuentes iguales de nuestro barrio que adornan el Paseo de Córdoba. Ahora, con los colores navideños, añaden magia y ahogan el ruido del tráfico. La hilera de fuentes comienza justo después de que termina el mariposario invernal. Fue un agradable paseo a casa.
El cactus de Navidad sigue floreciendo, feliz. No lo giramos, no lo movemos, simplemente lo admiramos. Los gatos siguen siendo gatos.
Dudo está cada vez más delgado, pero contento y sigue curioso. Moose es un amante con nosotros y un amante y un luchador con su hermano.
Hoy es la víspera del Día de Reyes y el desfile pasará justo por nuestra puerta esta noche. Haz clic aquí para ver el año pasado. Se espera que el tiempo acompañe.
• Acabábamos de terminar de almorzar. Debería haber guardado los manteles individuales inmediatamente.
Click the thumbnails to enlarge.
Haz clic en las miniaturas para ampliar.
Wow, such beautiful pictures, Mitch! Thanks a lot! Jan from Perth.
Thank YOU, Jan from Perth!
I wouldn’t drink that water either. Dudo is inspecting for crumbs or drips. He takes that job very seriously. There were a pack of Yutes in sweatpants using the bowling alleys in the community center on Saturday afternoon.
David Godfrey:
Meeyah yutes, as my father would say.
Great water and light shows. Some people keep wanting to relive their misspent yoof.
That was me, Boud
Boud:
I wouldn’t mind having some youth back but I do NOT want to relive any of it.
Placemats to cats are snack holders!!
Love the colorful fountains though I don’t think they can return my yute!
Bob Slatten:
If those fountains could return my yute widout making me relive it, I’d take a sip.
Alas, so many magical powers turn out to be just bacteria and parasites. I love all the gorgeous bright colours in your photos today. And that Christmas cactus flower — breathtaking!
Debra:
The Christmas cactus is an incredible gift. And, yeah, the magic of bacteria and parasites.
Christmas cactus looks lovely. Will have to treat our Desert Rose the same way. Boy, is it sensitive to EVERYTHING! Another leaf dropped off this morning…….
Smart boy Moose is.
Jim:
I was finally successful with our desert roses after I moved into constant sun at the corner of our glassed in terrace. But I also had to treat for bugs every week. I miss those, but we don’t have the right exposure for them here.
Not having grown up in a NY borough, I can never hear “utes” without thinking of the very funny movie, My Cousin Vinny. I also remember a business trip to SLC where the university teams are called the Utes (after a tribe–though college kids are also utes/youths, yes?). Had to take a photo of university banners on every lamp post in parts of the city proclaiming the name. Made me smile. Mary
Mary:
Joe Pesce was a classic in that movie. To my point about what’s known as a Brooklyn accent, he was from Newark, New Jersey. I also thought of Utes when I was writing this, so I added the “Y” to the beginning.
Oh, Dudo! He is growing skinnier. But he looks quite pert.
St. Augustine has always been a sort of magical place to me. I used to visit there frequently as Lon and Lis had a house there but the little town got so crowded they finally sold that house and moved to their little Florida cracker house on Gatorbone Lake where they are quite happy. Lis and I sure used to love shopping in St. Aug though.
Beautiful fountains. Spain is just one magical display after another, isn’t it? How many parades can there be? Many, apparently.
Ms. Moon
Ms. Moon:
This shot of Dudo is actually flattering. He’s so much skinnier than he appears. But, he is still pert. The other day he bounced through the hall alongside Moose just like a goat (a kid). Parades and processions seem to be a constant here. When we first arrived in Sevilla, we commented that there seemed to be a procession every day for one saint or another… or a virgin.
I was going to write something smutty about the various encounters I’ve had over the years with “fountains of youth”, but thought better of it 😜.
Never thought about the fact that fountains could be functional – as a sound-blocker – as well as being decorative!
That cactus is fabulous! You have managed to adapt your lifestyle to several capricious entities – cats, and now cacti… Jx
Jon:
A common reason for installing a fountain is to produce white noise. We had a big one in our back garden in San Diego and a couple at our hotel in Palm Springs. We wanted one for the terrace in Fuengirola but a friend of ours smartly and snidely said, “Oh, yes, if I lived on the sea and could hear the sounds of the surf throughout my apartment, I’d put in a fountain to drown it out.”
And the Cordoba Center in rainbow lights and a parade passing by your door. So much going on. So much delight with the lights.
ellen abbott:
Yes, so much delight. And the Hotel Córdoba Center changes their colors throughout the year.
Yute reminds me of the movie My Cousin Vinny. The Christmas cactus must be content with your admiration. I’m in an extremely bad mood today and you’ve already made me feel better.
Love,
Janie
janiejunebug:
You’re not the only one reminded of My Cousin Vinnie. I just watched a few clips from the movie. Still funny.
I watch My Cousin Vinnie every few years and it never gets old. Marisa Tomei as Mona Lisa Vito deserved that Academy Award and it always pisses me off when people say she didn’t really win.
janiejunebug:
I should watch it again. Marisa Tomei was brilliant!
Some people might think bacteria and parasites are pretty magical! 😉
Kelly:
Hah! Not me, said I.
Beautiful …happy new year my old friend xxx
finlaygray:
Back at you, my young friend!
Just love all the colours and imagination of those display. The fountains are beautiful with all the colours and water, quite festive.
larrymuffin:
The fountains are so beautiful all year.
When I was in an elementary school, I had to take a speech therapy class because, among other things, I had a tendency to pronounce “th” as “t”. This was in Ohio. Had I grown up in New York City, maybe it wouldn’t have been necessary!
Kirk:
You’re so right. You would not have had (or needed) speech Terapy!
All those water shots are making me wanting to go to the necessary room.
By Dudo has lost some weight!
Mistress Borghese:
Yeah, that can be a problem. It’s good they’re close to home.
Oh, gracious, ¡Feliz día de los Reyes!
I forget all about this now that I’m not in the classroom talking bout it 🙂
I love seeing Dudo and Moose, every single time.
Judy C:
¡Feliz reyes!
Love me a water feature!
And you know Ponce De León was just looking for trouble…. LOL
Those Spaniards!
XOXO
Sixpence:
I find it funny that the first thing many people think of when they see the name Ponce De León is the fountain of youth. For years, I had no idea that was a fiction.