Ask A Mexican

Ask a Mexican
$13.00
Seriously, everything you wanted to know but were afraid to ask! This book is hilarious! It makes a great gift as well. My husband still references it a year later!

Ask The Dust
$14.99
I love both Colin Farrell and Salma Hayek as actors/performers, which was why I got the movie in the first place, and I was not disappointed by either performance.

Salma is a woman who is exquisitely beautiful and is an excellent artist. This movie, like the few others I have seen of her, she is a bit type-cast, but works very well with that, I think. There must be scripts out there who can stretch her performance abilities to the limit and I as a fan hope that will soon come about.

Colin was a surprise for me. I have, since the first movie I watched of him, thought him to be a very good actor/artist - most of his movies (that I've watched) have been action-packed, hard-hitting, yet here he portrayed an inexperienced debonair young man, and pulled it off beautifully. To me, he was real convincing in the role he portrayed, and he has a beautiful voice, so listening to the narration throughout the movie was easy on the ear. The length of the film did not bother me at all (just under two hours.)

It is a lovely story, and for me, it was well-played, and the characters were well filled by the actors who portrayed them, even Donald Sutherland. Being a romantic at heart and watching movies and reading books that are romance based, I usually prefer those with the fairytale, happy ending, no matter how unrealistic, so was sad about the ending of this movie, but it seems to fit the story very well.

Great actors such as Sutherland do not always have to be the star of the show to make an impact, and Donald Sutherland is one of those who has such a range and scope of talent, every role I have seen him in, he has fitted himself to the character, like a glove. So as Hellfrick, he is a good fit in this movie.

The dialog was interesting and gave me a few good giggles, got tears in my eyes, and made me squirm with embarrassment for the characters at times. With the conflict between Arturo and Camilla, the dialog was just fine, and the narration was well played by Colin Farrell.

Orange County: A Personal History
$24.00
While most writing and almost all journalism is attempting to make their subjects less complex Gustavo Arellano is accepting the complexity and relishing it. His book "Orange County' is a wonderfully complex story of his family, its migration, the towns where they settled, the history of the towns and the strange paradox that is Orange County, California. There are very funny repetitions of lists of Aunts (I think he's mocking Leviticus) the story of his being a nerd among the macho and constant jibes at the gabachos. My favorite part was the restaurant recommendations , one for each town except Leisure World.
This is the perfect book to give as a Christmas gift to anyone with a sense of humor who lives in Orange County. It is a quick read, it has new data and will make you think again about the place you live.
Well done!

Preguntale al mexicano / Ask a Mexican (Spanish Edition)
$17.99
DEAR MEXICAN: WHAT IS ASK A MEXICAN! ? Questions and answers about our spiciest Americans. I explore the cliches of lowriders, busboys, and housekeepers; drunks and scoundrels; heroes and celebrities; and most important, millions upon millions of law-abiding, patriotic American citizens and their illegal-immigrant cousins who represent some $600 billion in economic power. WHY SHOULD I READ ASK A MEXICAN! ? At 37 million strong (or 13 percent of the U.S. population), Latinos have become America's largest minority -- and beaners make up some two-thirds of that number. I confront the bogeymen of racism, xenophobia, and ignorance prompted by such demographic changes through answering questions put to me by readers of my Ask a Mexican! column in California's OC Weekly. I challenge you to find a more entertaining way to immerse yourself in Mexican culture that doesn't involve a taco-and-enchilada combo. OKAY, WHY DO MEXICANS PARK THEIR CARS ON THE FRONT LAWN? Where do you want us to park them? The garage we rent out to a family of five? The backyard where we put up our recently immigrated cousins in tool-shack-cum-homes? The street with the red curbs recently approved by city planners? The driveway covered with construction materials for the latest expansion of la casa? The nearby school parking lot frequented by cholos on the prowl for a new radio? The lawn is the only spot Mexicans can park their cars without fear of break-ins, drunken crashes, or an unfortunate keying. Besides, what do you think protects us from drive-bys? The cops? Description in Spanish: QUERIDO MEXICANO: QUE ES PREGUNTALE AL MEXICANO!? Son preguntas y respuestas sobre los americanos mas picosos. En ellas exploro los cliches de los autos achaparrados, los ayudantes de cocina y las amas de llave; borrachos y maleantes; heroes y celebridades; y, lo mas importante, millones de millones de ciudadanos americanos, patriotas y respetuosos de la ley, y sus primos inmigrantes ilegales, que representan unos $600 billones de potencial economico. HAY ALGUNA BUENA RAZON PARA LEER PREGUNTALE AL MEXICANO!? Contabilizados en 37 millones (o 13 por ciento de la poblacion de los Estados Unidos), los latinos se han convertido en la minoria mas grande del pais, y los frijoleros representan unos dos tercios de esa cifra. Aqui me enfrento con el coco del racismo, la xenofobia y la ignorancia que tales cambios demograficos han suscitado, a traves de las respuestas que doy a las preguntas de los lectores de Preguntale al mexicano!, columna del OC Weekly de California. Te reto a que encuentres una forma mas amena de sumergirte en la cultura mexicana, sin pasar por el combo taco-enchilada. ESTA BIEN. POR QUE LOS MEXICANOS ESTACIONAN SUS COCHES EN LOS PRADOS AL FRENTE DE LAS CASAS? Y donde quieres que lo hagamos? En el garage que rentamos para una familia de cinco? En el patio trasero, donde instalamos a nuestros primos recien llegados en casas-cobertizos de herramientas? En la calle, con sus banquetas pintadas de rojo recientemente aprobadas por los planificadores urbanos? En la entrada de coches, donde colocamos los materiales de construccion para la proxima ampliacion de la casa? En el estacionamiento de la escuela cercana que frecuentan los cholos al acecho de un nuevo radio? El prado es el unico sitio donde los mexicanos pueden estacionar sus coches sin temor a cristalazos, choques de borrachos o a desafortunadas raspaduras por llave. Ademas, quien supones que nos pueda proteger de los tiroteos? la policia?