'The Death Event and The Puerto Rican Bloodline'

The Reading Life



July 30
at 6:30 p.m., Cemi Underground, NYC's El Barrio
Book Presentation by Angel L.Vega Marzan
A guide to understanding the legal and administrative implications of the death event on the island of Puerto Rico and its impact upon you and your family bloodline.
Free
(Members of genealogy associations receive a 10% discount towards the purchase of the book with proof of group membership.)
Go to www.cemiunderground.com for more information.

Cotto Loses, Margarito Cheers

Commentary

When two of today's best Latino boxers below the Middleweight Division faced off on a Las Vegas ring last July 26, they put up a good and intense fight.
In the end, Antonio Margarito from Mexico overpowered undefeated welterweight champion Miguel Cotto from Puerto Rico. Margarito score a Technical Knockout with 2:05 of the 11th round.
The fight started slow at first. After the third round both Cotto and Margarito exchanged blows left and right, fighting toe to toe and fighting alongside the ring side ropes.
Margarito, who is known as the Tornado, has said he got stronger after the 7th round. And, it surely became the Tornado’s night.
In the start of the 11th round, Margarito scored a knockdown.
When Cotto’s corner saw he was banged up pretty badly, they threw in the towel to stop the fight.
But Cotto is no loser.
Cotto fought like the fighter he is as his family members, including his little boy, watched and cried.
With his eye nearly shut and his face bleeding, Cotto started to back up and Margarito charged.
After the fight, Cotto described Margarito as being an “excellent fighter” who “did his job better than I did.”
I say that both fighters deserved every penny for their boxing performance.
A rematch in the works?
Oh Yes! -- Ismael Nunez

Union Rincoena

IMG_9384
Originally uploaded by clarisel.

Today's featured photo from the Puerto Rico Sun photo group by Clarisel Gonzalez

La Union Rincoena in the Bronx is a social gathering place focusing on people who hail from Rincon, the westernmost town in Puerto Rico. Back in the day, there were social clubs in honor of different towns on the island in the Bronx and elsewhere in the city. There are fewer today. The Union Rincoena is still there.

Puerto Rico Convention Center Goes Green

On the Environment


Following the recent pledge by Puerto Rico's government to convert several of its public properties into "green" buildings, the Puerto Rico Convention Center and the Coliseum of Puerto Rico are to become the first properties on the island to be modified into eco-friendly buildings.

With an investment of $250,000, the Puerto Rico Convention Center and other developments within the 113-acre District will decrease the use of water by 30 percent and the use of electricity by 50 percent, for ongoing savings of $450,000 per year once the project is completed.

After completely incorporating these initiatives, the buildings hope to receive the US Green Building Council's 'Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED)' Certification, considered the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

Key elements of the Puerto Rico Convention Center “green project” include:

The installation and use of automated control systems for air-conditioning and lighting of the facility, as well as the incorporation of natural lighting to reduce overall energy consumption.
Providing preferential parking spaces around the facility for hybrid cars, as well as enhancing and encouraging the use of public transportation to the District.
Replacing conventional lamps throughout the facility and District with lighting materials that consume less energy.
Landscaping the District with native plants and other flora that require less maintenance and require less water, as well as utilizing an automated watering system to conserve the use of water.
Implementing already-established eco-friendly policies and green standards for the Center. This includes utilizing green products such as recycled paper products and eco-friendly cleaning supplies in the use and maintenance of the facility, as well as requiring contractors to apply and adhere to green standards and practices in their work with the facility and District.
Maintaining already-established waste reduction and recycling programs. -- posted by Mc Don Dees

This article was published in Donde Quiera at http://blog.dondees.com.

Theater

Featured story

Jets? Yes! Sharks? ¡Sí! in Bilingual ‘West Side’

More than 50 years after the musical “West Side Story” had its original Broadway premiere, it is set to return in February in a darker, grittier, bilingual revival, the show’s producers said (recently).
Arthur Laurents, who wrote the original book for "West Side Story," suggested the bilingual production and will direct.
In an element that its director, Arthur Laurents, said would heighten the passion and authenticity of the show, much of the dialogue — both spoken and sung — will be in Spanish.
For the complete New York Times report,
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/theater/17bway.html?ex=1231992000&en=34fa0f7e24d3c677&ei=5087&WT.mc_id=TH-D-I-NYT-MOD-MOD-M053-ROS-0708-HDR&WT.mc_ev=click&mkt=TH-D-I-NYT-MOD-MOD-M053-ROS-0708-HDR

Editor's Note: Gente, what do you think? Should "West Side Story" return as a bilingual production? What do you think of the idea of this musical returning as a "darker and grittier" revival? Would you go see it?