Over the course of last week, i got to meet a few interesting people...
Manny Vega: Simply put, manny (real name Manolo) is an Ad executive in Cartalena... he looks like a typical colombiano... dresses like a typical colombiano and gives off that "peace dude..life is good" vibe. I'm sure you are going like....so what what is so interesting about that? ill tell you what is so interesting ; how many times in this day and age, do you meet someone who genuinely and i stress on the word genuinely are happy with the way their lives are going? and Manny isnt exactly Senor Success...hes just a regular guy, with a regular job that in his country nobody needs (theyre too preoccupied with kidnapping and getting their kids off Cocaine) . However despite that he is fueled with great ambition...but does he cry everyday about how horrible life is to him? or how he isnt getting his chance? no...he's making the best of what hes getting.. and he is geniunely content.......you have to experience Manny Vega in order to understand what i am talking about, his cheerful demeanor is definately worth commendation.
Meyer Lansky: Meyer Lansky works at some center for curing male reproductive disease in Havana...he looks like a Jewish Jewel thief especially the way he browses around to acquaint himself with his surroundings. He talks about his Job all the time and talks about it as if he is curing cancer....although his job is all about checking male genetalia all day long, which definately isnt something nice for a guy but i commend him for his passion.
what is interesting about Lansky is like all havanians he has a night job, he's a freelance repo man....simply put, banks hire him to reposess cars that were financed to the banks cheap clients and havent paid back. He told me this story once of a "drive" he had to do in reposessing an old 49 T-Bird ( for those of you who never been to Cuba, the newest Car there is a model 58) so anyways, back to the 49 T- Bird, the Car was bought by a retired Military police officer, who after retirment paid alot of his former subordinates to guard his Villa, Lansky being the slick thief he is snuck into the place and when confronted by the Guards paid them off with Egyptian 1 pound bills, claiming they were antique pharoanic banknotes which could be sold for millions, and simply drove off in the 49 T -Bird. a few seconds later one of the boys playing in the neighbourhood who was periodically treated to strawberry flavoured lollies from the retired General actually risked his life and jumped into the cabriolet and bit Lansky on his slim bony bottom. I had the rare oppertunity of being displayed Lansky's injuries in that spectacle and i tell you that kid had one lollies to many.......man he packed a nasty bite!!!!
Anyways the point i am mentioning to you either Manny Vega or Myer Lansky is that they are two ordinary people, who have a lot of problems in their lives. Barely making ends meet put always manage to smile in the face of the world. when i always come back to Cairo, i see many glum faces, very rarely do i see anyone who barley forces one out of their lips... im sure none of us have to dodge ass-biting cuban street kids or touch other peoples privates for a living, but we always walk around with long faces just as if we've been fired or dumped by our wives of 19 years. I mean do we really have problems? or we just creating them for ourselves in order to satisfy the level of drama needed to live healthily?
Bottom Line : people who complain, are only after attention, people who never complain are too overwhelmed with real problems that they want to forget about them hence never talk about them.
PS: if emotions were edible...a smile would be a Pizza...its just staring at you with a smile even though it is about to meet its eater.
If playing the victim were an ethnic group, it would be the Jew