Showing posts with label spanish. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spanish. Show all posts

Saturday, September 26, 2015

Saturday Verse: "Entre lo que veo y digo..." - Octavio Paz

 1

Entre lo que veo y digo
entre lo que digo y callo,
entre lo que callo y sueño,
entre lo que sueño y olvido,
la poesía.
     Se desliza
entre el sì y el no:
               dice
lo que callo,
        calla
lo que digo,
        sueña
lo que olvido.
            No es un decir:
es un hacer.
             Es un hacer
que es un decir.
            La poesía
se dice y se oye:
             es real.
Y apenas digo
        es real,
se disipa.
    ¿Así es mas real?

2
Idea palpable,
        palabra
impalpable:
             la poesía
va y viene
    entre lo que es
y lo que no es.
          Teje reflejos
y los desteje.
        La poesía
siembra ojos en la página,
siembra calabra en los ojos.
Los ojos hablan,
            las calabra miran,
las miradas piensan.
            Oír
los pensamientos,
                ver
lo que decimos,
            tocar
el cuerpo de la idea.
            Los ojos
se sierra,
       las palabras se abren.

                                       - Octavio Paz

English translation here.

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Music for your Midweek: "La quiero a morir"

My taste in music changed drastically on my mission. the cheesier the better. One of my very favorite songs that we would hear on combis and buses was DLG's (Dark Latin Groove!!!!) "La Quiero a Morir" :



It wasn't till after my mission that I discovered the true story behind this song. It was originally written in French by Frances Cabrel and released in 1979. It was a huuuugeee hit, and so he decided to release a version in Spanish in 1980 which made it an even HUGER hit. Sort of like the Hallelujah of latin america.

Shakira does a lovely version...



and so does Jarabe de Palo and Alejandro Sanz...



But you gotta watch DLG perform it live. It is a sight to behold.



It doesn't even matter if they're a little flat.
Watch them dance.
Toooooo sexy.

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Music for your Midweek: Natalia Lafourcade "Ella es bonita" and "Azul"

Here's a playful, lovely performance brought to you by Natalia Lafourcade and my favorite La Blogotheque. I've loved her song "Azul" since 2010. It's become an anthem of sorts. Hope you like it:


Thursday, September 26, 2013

Voy a reir, voy a bailar

So I've started my 6:00 am (!) workout routine, and one of my favorite classes to go to is Zumba. Without fail, EVERY TIME we do our cool-down to this song, I start to tear up. How embarrassing. Hopefully everyone just thinks it's sweat dripping out of my eyes or something. It's just such a great song, and I'm such a sap these days. Give it a listen:


Great, right? For those of you who don't speak Spanish, it's a seize-the-day sort of song. Here it is with English subtitles if you're into that sort of thing.

I've gone through a lot of emotions since my dad passed away. Pretty much every emotion possible. The one that has been hardest to explain, is JOY. Joy that I'm still here. That my mom, and Christian, and Jeremy are still here. Joy that I can make changes and progress. Joy that my dad is in a better place, doing what he loves, without any pain. Joy that I have a job, an education, my health, and the ability to do what I want.

I knew 2013 was going to be a big year, I just didn't know why. I spent New Years Eve by myself, reflecting on the edge of darkness at the Great Salt Lake. I knew I would need to make some changes. And after our world turned upside down in June, I knew I had to start NOW. So I'm starting to get my finances in order and build a career. Trying to break down assumptions I've lived by. Trying to be pro-active and find more ways to serve others.

You guys are a great help. You keep me in check.

Thank you for that.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Music for your Midweek: La iaia

I just discovered Catalan music...

...and it is rocking my world in a BIG way.

I can hardly handle it. SO GOOD. And I went into a frenzy last night adding any and every catalan song to a spotify playlist and I got so anxious I actually gave myself a headache. That's how I feel about music, guys. Too much. Too much feeling.

Catalan is a magic language. I can kind of understand it since I studied spanish, but it's odd. A mix between a language of the future and a language of the past. I can't tell where it fits. I'll understand a whole sentence, and then be completely stumped by the next verse. 

This song I'm going to share with you is a perfect example of that. Gobbldigook, and then a rousing chorus of "twist and shout". I hope you love it.

Also, when I get my head on straight, I'll make a proper Catalan playlist, and put the link on this post. If you add me as a friend on Spotify, you can find more international playlists. They are stored under the file "Not English" (creative, I know). There is some really great stuff in there if I may say so myself. 

After that LENGTHY introduction, here is La iaia! I know nothing about them, except that I love them:

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Missing school.

You are missing school when you visit this website for fun, and have an e-mail subscription for Spanish grammar from this website.

It's getting bad guys. My ability to speak and translate Spanish is wavering.

To make up for this, I've been listening to a lot of Spanish music at work. I've made an *!Espanol! mix on Spotify. Clink on the link to listen to i!

*Despite majoring in Spanish, I still have a hard time remembering how to do upside down exclamation point and stuff

I've also tried reading more so my brain doesn't turn to mush.

In the past couple months, I've read:

The Princess Bride - William Goldman

World War Z - Max Brooks
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut
An Arsonist's Guide to Writers' Homes in New England - Brock Clarke
The Children of Men - P.D. James

I know. These aren't exactly the most intellectual of choices. But I'm not quite ready to jump into textbooks again. I guess I should be studying so I can eventually take the Foreign Service Exam, but I'm dragging my feet.

I'm kind of tired of tired of grown-up novels. They're generally cynical, even when they try to be hopeful. All of these books (with the exception of The Princess Bride), left me feeling sort of glum. But I'm on the lookout for some new reads. Any suggestions?

It's only been a couple months, but I'm already excited to eventually return to school when I finish my VISTA year. We'll see how that goes...

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

The end of don Quijote

I took the final for my don Quijote class yesterday. It went all right. I did very well on my term paper though. It was about the cross-dressing women of don Quijote; their motivations and characteristics, how it connects with the traditional Spanish societal values. I'm quite proud of myself. Let me know if you want to give it a read. It's in spanish though.

I'm sad to leave don Quijote. I'm sad that our world today is so much like his was. Noble ideals, honor, and sincerity are not very trendy. At least in America, we like to applaud the smart, the snarky, and the cynical. The realists. There is little room for the don Quijotes of the world. We crush them.
So, he was crazy. So, he was foolish.
I really liked him.

This is the song "To Dream the Impossible Dream" from the Man of La Mancha, the musical that is based on don Quijote. The video is from the BYU Homecoming Spectacular back in October. Yep, that's Brian Stokes Mitchell. He is great. Since I was working at the event, I got to watch from the orchestra pit. It was incredible. I don't know who took this video, but it's sort of contraband, so watch it before they take it down.



This song has extra meaning now that I've finished the book. I can't hear it without tearing up.

Farewell don Quijote.

"Tuvo a todo el mundo en poco, 
fue el espantajo y el coco
del mundo, en tal coyuntura,
que acredito su ventura
morir cuerdo y vivir loco"

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

What are you doing this Thanksgiving?

I'm going to be watching a lot of Gossip Girl on Netflix.

"I'm Chuck Bass. And I'm wishing you a scandalous Thanksgiving."
Yeah.
It's a problem.

But I'm also going to do some more worthwhile things.

. Write a paper on Borges
. Read  a few capitulos of Don Quijote
. Start moving out of my apartment
. Try out this Yam Frosting recipe from the Carolina Chocolate Drops
. Eat some food
. Learn how to play "The Suburbs" by Arcade Fire on the piano
. Sync my iPod
. NOT go shopping on Black Friday
. Go on my Avenues run
. Rock and roll all night and party everyday
. Get rid of all my belongings. Seriously. I need to de-clutter bigtime. Virtual garage sale? Maybe.
. Go to a birthday party
. Watch the Jonsi Go Live dvd
. Drink some mate
. Start cutting up old sweatshirts to make a quilt
. Play some kickball
. Put up Christmas decorations
. Visit the Timpanogas temple for the first time
. FINALLY go to the dollar theater to see Planet of the Apes*
. Oh yeah. And see family and eat food and stuff.

Man. I'm going to be busy! Maybe I won't have time for Gossip Girl anyway.

*You probably thought I was going to go see "The Help," didn't you. I do want to see that too. I'll get to it eventually. Do you want to know my opinion about that book? Ironically, there is a character in the story called "Gretchen". She has a short conversation with Skeeter; she has only one page in the whole novel. Anyway, we share the same name, and the same point of view. Check it out.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Winners

Today I am a winner.

Today I read 40 pages of don Quijote in an hour and a half. This usually takes much much longer.

I am happy of myself!
And I understood everything too!

This Adventure Drums guy is also a winner. My brother Jeremy showed me his videos, and now I am addicted. I fully respect drummers. I think drums are one of the coolest instruments; you can't pretend to be good at them, people will see right through you. They can tell if you are weak.

I mostly know this because I used to play a lot of Rock Band.

xkcd


Watch him play. It is fun:



You know who else is a winner? Kyle Beckerman. What a dreamboat. I finally went to a RSL game after such a long time.

Winners all around! What a good day.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Black Stone on White Stone

This poem is perfect for today in more ways than one. Look, I even counted the ways for you so that you could be sure that I'm not lying.

1) It is in Spanish, and Spanish is a poetic language.
2) It talks about a Thursday, and today is Thursday.
3) It talks about it being rainy, and today was rainy.
4) It talks about death, and Steve Jobs died yesterday.

So consider this a eulogy of sorts. 

It is by Cesar Vallejo; give it a read:

"Piedra negra sobre una piedra blanca"

Me moriré en París con aguacero, 
un día del cual tengo ya el recuerdo. 
Me moriré en París ?y no me corro? 
tal vez un jueves, como es hoy, de otoño. 

Jueves será, porque hoy, jueves, que proso 
estos versos, los húmeros me he puesto 
a la mala y, jamás como hoy, me he vuelto, 
con todo mi camino, a verme solo. 

César Vallejo ha muerto, le pegaban 
todos sin que él les haga nada; 
le daban duro con un palo y duro 

también con una soga; son testigos 
los días jueves y los huesos húmeros, 
la soledad, la lluvia, los caminos...

OH. You don't speak spanish? That is a shame. Here you go. But this is nothing like the original in Spanish. Like, nothing at all. You should probably just learn Spanish. It is worth it if only to understand this poem. 

OH. My friend Tiana got her mission call today. 
Riverside, California!
Guess what is part of her mission?
THE SALTON SEA!!!!

You know I love the Salton Sea. I talk about it HERE and HERE. I was thoroughly excited about that it's part of her mission. I couldn't adequately convey how cool it was. I think I sort of weirded Tiana out. Oh well. 

It's almost tomorrow. 
See you when I see you.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

"...the power of action..."


One of my favorite classes is on El Quixote. Did you know that is is often regarded as the best work of fiction...ever? We've just barely started reading it. 13 pages a day. It may not seem like much, but in spanish, it is a struggle. But I am beginning to see all the wonder about this "man of la Mancha". He is a man of action and character.


"One man scorned and covered with scars still strove with his last ounce of courage to reach the unreachable stars; and the world was better for this."

Saturday, September 17, 2011

What goes on in your heart


I'm in the Spanish mindset. I was reading a headline from the  New York Times ("Republicans Suggest White House Rushed Solar Loan"), and was thoroughly confused. “...solar?” I thought. “What in the world is that? Is it a corporation? But it’s not capitalized in the article.... I’ve never heard that word before!” Then I realized that in my mind I had been pronouncing it “sol-are” instead of “sol-er”. yeah yeah. Spanish.

And then I was talking to someone what and asked, "What impulsed you to make that decision?"And they looked at me kind of like, "what?" I mean, I guess you can say that in English, but it comes across awkwardly. (Fact: the word "awkward" doesn't really exist in Spanish. Which I guess means they are never awkward. Just like the word "chubby" doesn't exist in Norwegian. Interesting, right?).

All day, everyday, it's spanish spanish spanish. I've become such a language word. I love my grammar class. Can you believe that? Anyone who has spoken spanish with me would assume that grammar is my least favorite topic, but I'm starting to become fascinated by it. There are treasures and hidden meanings in everything. I'm unraveling the secrets of culture and accent. I feel like learning spanish makes me a new person.

But now to what impulsed me to write today. I'm starting to find my heart. I feel secure that I am on the right path. A path that will let me do my part in a bigger whole. Sometimes I forget what I've done. I got this e-mai from Arjun a couple days ago. I'll share it with you:

Dear Gretchen
Namaste!
How are you? i hope you are fine there. Well, we are all fine and working hard for the children.
Today i really much happier as i found your e-mail address. Gratchen, where r you now? i hopw you are working in the Church as a holy girl! We are soon celebrating our Dasain festival during tthat time we have holiday and we all enjoy a lot! Gratechen you are always wel come to visit our home. We never forget you and your kind cooperation and support. could you please tell me more news from there. i wish you all the best. May the Lord Buddha be always with you.
Yours
Arjun paudel

This is me, Arjun, and his wife with some of the children from the orphanage.
I had to do a screenshot to get this photo, so it's not the best quality.
You can see more of  my pictures from Nepal on Facebook.
Everytime I look at my pictures from that time, my heart breaks a little. I have ties to these people. It's the same when I look at pictures from my mission. It aches.




Speaking spanish has helped me maintain that connection. 

I can't wait till I get to visit my friends in Bolivia and Peru. I'll be heading back to South America in April. URUGUAY. If all goes as planned, I may stay awhile, and hopefully get a chance to visit my old mission stomping grounds.

Oh yeah. "The Game" is today. I guess that's a big deal.


I just noticed that the U symbol is pretty trendy. You know, with feathers and everything.

We'll see if it affects their game.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Ven a Bailar: This has been the danciest day of my life

Saturday morning = Zumba
It is so fun. The instructors are from the spanish branch in my stake, and they are also Zumba instructors at a local gym. They know what they're doing. Every morning, they come in color coordinated outfits. I love it.

So here are some of the songs we dance to, along with others that I have listened to on the Spanish radio lately:





Longest intro ever, you can skip to 1:30








Oh man.
You would love to watch this class. We are awesome. There's a lot of booty shaking going on in there. After class I went to the music store and bought this:


It's Radiohead sheet music! I've been a little obsessed with their song "Videotape". Seriously. I dare you to listen to this song and NOT let it become an obsession. "You shouldn't be afraid / because I know today has been / the most perfect day I've ever seen". SO, this was the best way to learn how to play it on the piano. Got it the first time. LOVE it. the book has other great songs too. Except it is missing one of my faveys, "Let Down". Oh well. I tried teaching it to myself, but I couldn't get the beats right. Try counting the beats to that song. I'm pretty sure there are two time signatures, at least at the beginng. Impossible. 

ANYWAY

I went with Bethany and her friend Abby to swing dancing at Glen Echo Park.
OMG
I can't even describe it to you.



Think of it this way. Imagine a Star Wars convention. There are people who love it, and they are awesome and awkward. Like star wars kid. So this dance was like a ton of star wars kids of all ages, races, and gender(s). They were all awesome in their own way.There were more men then women (what!?) so we were always "cutting the rug" (that's dance speak for you newbs) with our new friends. Oh man. At the beginning, we learned dance steps, which were a struggle for some. But when they hit the floor, they would try and do every spin, dip, and twirl that they had seen in the movies or on "So You Think You Can Dance". The actual dance steps went out the window.  It was the weirdest/best thing ever. We laughed the whole time. I wish you could have been there.

So this was a very musical, dance-y day.

I am thoroughly exhausted.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

June Mix: New Brunette

I am using the Air as my primary computer this summer, which means I only have a tiny fraction of my music collection at my disposal. But I think this is also a benefit. It forced me to examine each of the tracks I had, and see if I should keep them because of low memory capacity. a sa consequence, I rediscovered some oldies but goodies. I think you will like them too.

1. The Perfect Nanny- Jon Langford
2. Greetings To The New Brunette - Billy Bragg
3. A Summer Song - Chad & Jeremy
4. Time of the Season - The Zombies
5. Needed Change - Skrillex
6. There's a Star - Ash
7. Viva la Vida - Coldplay
8. Calgary - Bon Iver
9. Maybe You Can Owe Me - Architecture in Helsinki
10. Singin' In The Rain - Gene Kelly
11. Parklife - Blur
12. Maybe Tomorrow - The Chords
13. Young Boy - Paul McCartney
14. (Nothing But) Flowers - Talking Heads
15. Te Imagino - De La Ghetto & Alexandra
16. Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps - Cake
17. No Matter What - Badfinger
18. In the Sun - Michael Stipe & Coldplay
19. Bugs - O'Death
20. Poor Places (Wilco cover) - The Punch Brothers
21. Surround Me - Ben Taylor

NOTES:
1. That's me! I hope.
2. That's me too!
3. It's summer.
4. I love Zombies (but only the musical kind)
5. Dubstep. You may have thought I would have fallen off this terrifying bandwagon. Nope. Not yet. in fact, sometimes I feel like I'm the only one on it. haha
7. So here's the thing. I know that for most of you, you heard this song over and over in like, 2008? 2009? Well I was on my mission still, so I didn't. But on the off chance I did get a chance to hear it in the streets of Peru or Bolivia, it just about made me tear up and i don't even know why cause the lyrics are pretty much incomprehensible. Whatever. There is a line that says "missionaries in a foreign field and I would say to the hermanas, "That's us! They are singing about us!" I don't think they were as impressed as I was. And now when we're driving in the car and I want to listen to this cd everyone kind of moans because they are sick of it. But I still love it. So there you go.
But what a boring music video.
8. New Bon Iver, mmmmmm
9. Maybe going to their concert. FUN.
10. I hear it has been raining and gloomy in Salt Lake. This one's for you.
11. Why don't people love Blur? I still think they are great. Damon Albarn. Luv him.
14. David Burns is super. If  any of you happen to find the Caetano Veloso cover of this song, I would love a copy.
15. Translation: She takes me to the moooo-oooo-oooo-ooo-oon!
16. I intentionally picked this video because it is soooo bad. Love it.
18. "I think this is the greatest song ever written, in my opinion," - Chris Martin. I kind of agree.
19. Iron & Wine + Midlake + The Shins + Punch Brothers + Yann Tiersen - cynicism = O'Death
21. I found this song in the midst of my "America Dreams" obsession (Auralee, Ingrid, and Whitney. You girls know what I'm talking about). If you haven't watched American Dreams yet, you really need to see the error of your ways. It only lasted 3 seasons, suffering an early and undeserved demise, just like Freaks and Geeks and Pushing Daisies. Anyway. YES. Ben Taylor is James Taylor's son. Great right? Right.

Friday, May 27, 2011

United States, I love you, but you're bringing me down.

WODdling soundtrack: Reik, Calle 13, Camila, Aventura

I miss saltenas.
I miss greeting everyone I meet on the street.
I miss South America.
I miss who I am when I speak in Spanish.

Luckily, I am not alone. Yesterday, I went and helped the Spanish branch with a Mutual activity. Hopefully this will be a weekly thing where I can help the ward out, and brush up on my Spanish at the same time. The kids were sweet, and though they are all at different places in life, at different schools, and facing different challenges, they were generally kind to one another. Really, they were great.

My name is the bane of my existence in the latino world as Gretchen is not easily pronounced.
So I was christened "Eli" (Ellie) instead, since Elisabeth is my middle name. And for the rest of the drive from Mutual, I listened to reggaeton.

I've liked the past week or so in Virginia and I keep telling people that I could really settle here. But sometime soon, I hope to get on a plane and not come back for a while.

 I need to go back to my "roots"



I want to go back to Santa Cruz and see the rest of Bolivia

And maybe even go to my on of my best friend's wedding here!

Till then, I will watch this video over and over again, sympathizing with Kermit the Frog.



and then watch this one over and over to pick up my mood.



DOUBLE POPPED COLLAR!
DOUBLE DOUBLE POPPED POPPED COLLAR COLLAR!!

Oh what a world we live in.

Friday, May 6, 2011

Cinco de Mayo

Last year we had a fiesta.
This year, I made brownies and ate PB+J. Boring.
At least I had these:

My first mission companion recommended this band to me because "la letra es bonita". She has good taste.


This was the first Latino group that I was ever conscious of. They have a soft spot in my heart.

OK. Some of you were present during "the summer of freaks and geeks". We used to watch multiple episodes of this vastly underrated show a night, waiting for a certain moment during the opening credits. Let's see if you can guess which part is was. Anyway. I feel the same way about this video, seconds :49 - :50. Love him.


This guy used to be half of Sin Bandera.

So there you have it. Four perfectly crafted reasons to love Mexico even more.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Why being a Spanish major is awesome/awful.

Not one, but several of my classmates bear a passing resemblance to Ezra Koenig:

I  know. SUPER distracting. 

Monday, February 14, 2011

a time for valentines

True love songs



I don't think it's necessary to speak Spanish in order to understand this song.

If the drum seems a bit off to you (as it does to me), you can listen to and download the studio version here.

Here's to hoping we all find someone that we want to share our chair with.
Happy Valentines 

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Subversion and Diversion

Lots of snow : Lots of time inside
Which means I finally got to watch Exit Through the Gift Shop.
Cool. 
"I think the joke is on... I don’t know who the joke is on, really. I don’t even know if there is a joke."
I read La Invencion de Morel for my spanish class about a month ago. It explores some of the same themes as gift shop does. *SPOILER, for like, the rest of this post* In the novel, Morel attempts to preserve moments, just like Thierry Guetta in the movie. Morel does this by creating a machine that projects holographic recordings(?) of a week with his friends. Thierry does this by obsessively video-taping every moment of his family's life. "This way, I can capture them forever," he says. One could argue whether or not Morel or Theirry's "inventions" are successful, or even real.
It is interesting that in the preface to the novel, Jorge Luis Borges says that he considers the novel "perfect". But part of the core of the novel is questioning what perfection is. Morel creates a sort of immortality that is so real, the main character wants to become a part of it. But is the new reality he has become a part of (which actually costs him his life) actually "perfect"? So maybe what Borges is saying is that this novel is as perfect as perfect can be. Maybe his endorsement is more like Banksy's endorsement of Mr. Brainwash: "[he] is a force of nature; he's a phenomenon. And I don't mean that in a good way." No, Borges really liked Adolfo Bioy Casares, I just like thinking that their endorsements have a similar tone.
So this documentary premiered at Sundance last year. Banksy stenciled it up around Salt Lake and Provo, and I got to see a bit of what he did:

ANYWAY
I had no idea that I had a poster by Shephard Fairey in my room. He is featured in the movie.
It is this one:

Also, I think that if Banksy were a music artist, he would be Das Racist:

If anyone finds a clean version of their single, "You Oughta Know," I want it.
Also again, I really liked 50 Wonderful Things from 2010 by NPR. Especially this:



All I want for Christmas is Carl Kassel's voice on my answering machine.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Jane Austen Strategy for the 21st Century Girl

I was working on a paper for my Spanish literature class about the play Bodas de Sangre (Blood Wedding). While trying to find out how to say "marrying up" in Spanish, I came across this article. Good thing too, since I'll be graduating from BYU in next December. I can use the next year to prepare:


How to Marry Up

Despite your slovenly wardrobe, uncouth demeanor and lack of charm,
you feel that you're upper-class material. OK, fine. But how do you
make the leap from reading the funnies to actually appearing on the
social page? It will take hard work, conniving, patience and a lot of
luck, but you might pull it off.
Difficulty: Moderately challenging

Instructions

  1. 1. Be charming and fun. This is basic advice for anyone looking for a mate. Without these qualities you're really going to have a hard time of it.
  2. 2. Study the society page in your newspaper. It's essential that you're familiar with prominent families and local big shots. After a few weeks of investigations, you'll have a feel for the major players in the best circles. Focus on available prospects.
  3. 3. Upgrade your appearance. No matter how fabulous you already are (inside and out, of course) there's always room for improvement. Join a gym and lose the spare tire, get a new haircut and overhaul your wardrobe. See 28 Get a Drastic Makeover.
  4. 4. Enroll in finishing school to gain ease and familiarity with the finer points of social etiquette. Learn how to carry on witty and lively conversations, and if you lean toward bluntness, school yourself in the gentle art of diplomacy in all areas of your life.
  5. 5. Volunteer for a high-profile charity that attracts philanthropists. Any city is likely to have a publicly supported hospital, opera or symphony, or school. A fund-raising position will put you into direct contact with the well-heeled. If a conflict of interest arises, deal with it after that ring is on your finger.
  6. 6. Use your volunteer position to stay informed about major fundraisers, opening night at the opera or ballet, polo matches and museum dedications. Your work will give you credibility and help secure invitations to all the hot events. Find dates from among your fund-raising contacts by subtly dropping the hint that it's their duty to accompany you to an upcoming event. Avoid overplaying the guilt card or you'll have an unwilling escort.
  7. 7. Join a prestigious club. You have many choices depending on your interests. A country club is an obvious choice. Many yacht clubs have associate or social memberships for people who don't actually have a boat or lots of cash. See 428 Organize a Sailing Team.
Tips & Warnings
  • Marrying up will be successful in the long run only if you actually love your mate. Marrying just for money is likely to prove a disaster. See 287 Plan an Amicable Divorce.
  • You don't want to pick a mate just by reading the society page but you might as well see who's available. If nothing else, it will make the process interesting.
  • See 32 Plan Your Social Calendar.
  • When in doubt, keep your mouth shut.
Read more: How to Marry Up | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_136853_marry-.html#ixzz17RbDZLko

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