Heroes.

Afternoon

What is a hero, my dear reader? Someone who’s not exactly human or is an alien, and has special genes or supernatural powers, like the X-Men and Super Man? Someone who’s half human, half god and shines through his/her strenght or special abilities, like Achilles and Hercules? Ordinary people who became gods, because of their bravery, generosity and good deeds, like the African yoruba gods called orixás (in Portuguese)? A man or woman who has no special powers, but is very very smart and saves people’s asses, I mean, lives , like Batman and Odysseus (I love them both, must say! )? Ordinary people who get tired to be oppressed and/or see oppression and fight the power, like Zorro, Rosa Parks and Gandhi? A Brazilian single mother who feeds her kids and pays the rent with a minimum wage? A blogger who can ask so many questions without getting desperate? Whatever is your definition, we all agree on one point: heroes are special. Different, unique. They are or do something that average people are not able to do, for some reason. Real people or characters, heroes are the ones who make things happen. They transform the impossible in possible. Loved and hated, protected and persecuted, a hero is a badass. His or her deeds become immortal and he/she is an inspiration to people, especially kids. We all need heroes! They are the greatest symbol of HOPE!

So, who never had a hero, at least as a kid? Kids are small, completely new at this strange experience called life. They need heroes! I had many when I was a kid. Many when I was a teen. And still have a few ones . My mom was a hero to me. Daddy was more like a big teddy bear . I could talk about this subject for days, but let’s focus on my childhood heroes. Were they Brazilian? Nope. Japanese. Japanese??!! Yes. I spent my whole childhood surrounded by Japanese people and descendants (I use to say that I was adopted by them ), BUT, my heroes would be from Japan anyway because of tv! In the 80’s and 90’s, we had in Brazil, Japanese series about super heroes, usually five young people, three boys and two girls, in very colorful outfits (do you really think that the idea behind the Power Rangers is original?! ). But, sometimes, there was only one main hero (a guy) against the evil forces. The team of heroes is called Super Sentai and the episodes were made by a Japanese company called Toei (to know more about it, click here). My favorite Super Sentai series was Dengeki Sentai Changeman, or just Changeman, the first Super Sentai series to be on air in Brazil, in 1988 (according to wiki). A group of five young people fighting against the evil forces of Mr. Bazoo and his soldiers, including Chima (a beautiful woman who had the voice of a man! ) and Gyodai, an ugly monster (is it possible to exist a pretty monster?) who transformed normal sized monsters into giant monsters. And, when it happened, the Changeman had a special weapon to fight against them: a giant robot, a mecha. Almost every Japanese series about heroes has a mecha and giant monsters! My favorite robot has always been Daileon, from a series called Jaspion, about a boy who comes to Earth to fight the evil forces of Satan Gorth (who, for a strange reason, looked like Darth Vader … ). Daileon is beautiful and his music theme is amazing!

Changeman, from left to right: Change Phoenix (my favorite! ^^), Change Pegasus, Change Dragon, Change Griffon and Change Mermaid.

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Mecha – Change Robot

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We had many Japanese series in Brazil and some of them, like Jaspion, Changeman, Jiraya, Flashman, Black Kamen Rider were a HUGE success, among kids, teens and even adults (daddy watched Jiraya with me and my bro)! I remember that I got back from school and went straight to the living room to join my brother and watch Changeman and Jiraya (a ninja against an evil ninja organization). Many people nowadays criticize those series, because they were “cheesy” and full of what I call “special deffects”, like stones made of styrofoam. Basically, all the Japanese series about super heroes had the same plot: evil forces from this planet or another plan to conquer Earth and destroy humanity. But one or more gifted heroes will never let it happen! Jiraya is different because the villains are humans and have human ambitions, connected to human crimes. It’s a very very good and intersting series, which shows a little bit of the ninja universe! I wanted to be a ninja for a while, because of this! What makes me love the Japanese series until today is the intention behind each episode. Principles like friendship, union, fraternity, loyalty, love to animals and each form of life, respect for kids and old people, maternity, paternity are there! I think that the Japanese heroes were the first ones who convinced me that it’s nice to be good! They made me believe that if I have to fight for something, I will fight for the beautiful things of this planet! They could teach me to be good, without any type of indoctrination! The bad guys were bad guys, but even them had feelings! Even them became monsters because didn’t have someone to love them. This is really something! I think that the Japanese heroes from tv were the first ones who taught me that love is all that matters!

Jiraya (I know, I couldn’t find a better pic … sorry!)

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Takumi Tsutsui, the young actor behind Jiraya. Ah, my teen years! How many long and deep sighs because of this boy! …

My favorite series until today are Changeman, Jiraya and Black Kamen Rider (about two young boys who are used in an alien experience to become evil kings. A gem stone is put in their bellies and the original idea was that they would fight until one of them becomes the king of Gorgon, the evil force. The problem is that one boy managed to scape and decided to fight Gorgon, becoming Black Kamen Rider or Kamen Rider Black, it’s up to you!). I had a Change Phoenix mask, used to play with my friends pretending that we were the Changeman. It was very important to us to have them as heroes! Sometimes tv companies can make something good! It’s amazing to think that part of my character came from tv heroes! But, if you have the chance to watch some episodes of these series, my dear reader, you will understand! Memories are tricky (especially if they involve deep feelings), but my intention wasn’t to give precise informations about the series. I just wanted to share with you my childhood idols . They have all the qualities of a real hero. Maybe that’s why until today, a great part of my generation cries when remember them! We really cry. If I pay too much attention at the Changeman’s soundtrack, I cry like a baby! Because I was beautiful and naive and brave behind my Change Phoenix and, thanks to these Japanese guys in colorful outfits, I still believe that I can fight the evil forces, which are everywhere, including inside of me!

Black Kamen Rider ^^

What about your heroes, my dear reader? Where do they come from? What did you learn from them? My heroes are women: mom, Change Phoenix, Storm (X-Men), some women from books and stories, Oyá (African yoruba goddess). With them I learned that we, women, also can fight for what we want! We are special too! My heroes are asian, black, white, native american. A real hero touches you for who he/she is! So, Odysseus and The Count Of Monte Cristo are part of me, too. Anyways, these Japanese guys are the ones I would like to hug! Don’t think that you don’t need someone to tell you that life worth it, despite of everything. So, call your hero!

To end this post, four songs from the soundtracks of my favorite series! Brazilian people, get ready to cry, if you lived that golden age!

I’ll be back, fighting against the evil forces! Stay tuned!

Luna

 

Dengeki Sentai Changeman (Opening) – Hironobu Kageyama:

Sekai Ninja Sen Jiraya (Opening Theme) – Akira Kushida:

Kamen Rider Black (Opening Theme) – Tetsuo Kurata, the actor behind the hero! Awww! <3

Flashman (Opening Theme) – I didn’t mention this series, because I didn’t watch it. But this video is here, because of my brother, who liked the Flashman (another Super Sentai). If someone knows who’s the singer, please, tell me! I couldn’t find this information!

Rebirth of a blog.

Hello, my dear readersHá quanto tempo! (Long time no see!) How are you doing? Hope fine. I’m alive, as you can see. I caught a bad cold a few days ago (believe it or not, it’s Winter in Brazil! And it’s cold!), but now I can breathe, feel smells and tastes, so, I think I’m ok. At present, I’m having a cup of soy drink with instant coffee and, while the most of people in the neighbourhood fall asleep, I try to find some inspiration to write on this blog again. Don’t be disappointed if I don’t sound very funny today. It will happen sometimes, anyway. And it feels like I’m getting back home after a long and unexpected absence. Everything has changed. Because even if the furniture is the same, at the same place, I’m not the same person anymore and need to get used to everything in a different way (yes, get ready for some philosophy, my dear reader! )

Well. It’s hard to explain this long and unexpected absence. Yes, I had problems with my computer (the same laptop I’m using now), it was a traumatic experience (I’m serious!) and I take time to recover from traumatic experiences or overcome them, don’t ask me why. Many things – good and bad – happened in my life and country in the last months. I don’t remember exactly when I started to use my laptop again (is this lack of memory a sign that I’m getting old? ), but, yes, I thought about to get back to this blog a thousand times before to make the decision! I know that this blog has readers and I know that it wasn’t kind of me to “disappear” (Sorry, people! ). But sometimes we fear to start something again. We, human beings, used to fear the unknown. I fear something else (this is a confession. It means that, now, it’s time to pay more attention at what you’re reading! ): to get involved. This blog is not a diary where I expose my super exciting routine to the world. It’s a relationship between me, the blogger and you, the reader. I’m not writing to myself (you probably have noticed that). And, God! … This is a responsibility! People care about this blog and ask me about it. People missed my posts. People comment my posts (not here, for some reason)! It would be easier to run and hide myself! Well … I tried. “Why?”, you ask me. Because you are responsible for the people who like you and/or what you do. Have you ever thought about that? Have you ever freaked out because of this? Basically we love to believe that we are free to do whatever we want. But this is not true. There’s other people in this world and, if they care about you, you better give them a little bit of your time and attention! In the beginning, I couldn’t expect that people would feel happier because of this blog. I was just writing, you know, without feeling any sense of responsibility. My absence showed me that this is more than a distraction to me and an entertainment to you. I can’t be away from this blog, there’s something about it! I realized that it makes people happy. Of course, sometimes my posts are not cheerful, but anyway, there’s a message on them and it reaches people. I would never expect that it would happen! Writers are usually recognized by their writing skills, by a small group of people, unless they were or are able to create something that touches people’s hearts. I don’t know if I will be recognized by my writing skills, by a small group of people someday. I must confess that I’m not making any effort to be . But I would never expect that my blog would be part of other people’s lives! And … gee! This is something! A huge responsibility (Am I good enough? Will I disappoint them?), but a great blessing!

Even if I only noticed that this blog means something to my readers maybe … yesterday, I’ve always put my best feelings on my writings. That’s me, I am very loving. And it works! People understand this language. Multi Maiden means something on internet not because I’m a brilliant writer or a clever mercenary (I don’t make money with this blog, if you want to know), but because my loving language reaches people. I don’t care about how many readers do I have, I avoid to check this information and fill up my blog with counters. You are not cattle, my dear readers, you are people, so, feel free to visit this blog whenever you want! If it makes you feel better, smile or think, that’s what matters to me! I’ll keep writing about everything and anything and, yes, my city and country will always be mentioned somehow! I will do my best to save some hours to be here, with you. This is a very personal post, but I had no choice. You deserved some explanation. And, if it happens to you, I mean, if you fear to start or keep doing something, don’t think about the thing itself. Think about what does it mean to people around you. If someone feels better because you do something, keep doing it!

Before I start to cry right here (writers are cold people, I hate to get sensitive! … ), I wanna say I’m sorry for this absence, even if I know that everything happens for a reason! Sorry, folks! And I want to say thank you to the person who convinced me to write on this blog again. I won’t give details about it, but we both know what happened yesterday and I want to say that it was the cutest request I’ve ever read! Thank you!  

Thank you all! I read more requests. My friends were especially lovely! Ok, I’m back. Hope to entertain you in a decent and funny way, from now on! So, get back to Multi Maiden, my dear reader! Let’s have some fun together! Stay tuned! And don’t be afraid to make people happy!

Luna

P.S.: This song, by a Brazilian heavy metal band called Angra, is about rebirth. Beautiful lyrics, beautiful song! I think it fits perfectly to this moment! Enjoy

A few words about my situation.

Please, my dear reader, choose a sad song as a soundtrack to read this post! Try this one, but please don’t try to commit suicide or something!:

Something happened to my laptop. I don’t know what, but it’s something related to heat. My laptop has been turning off suddenly, without a reason, for days and, now, it just doesn’t start Windows! I don’t understand much about computers. I can use them pretty well, but don’t know how to express myself (in English!) correctly about what’s happening! It’s enough to say that I can’t use my laptop. Of course, I’m not feeling fine at all, because of this! At present, I’m in my brother’s bedroom, using his old laptop. This version of Windows Live Writer is not as good as mine (don’t know why), so, I don’t have many resources … Sorry, people! :(

I’ll travel to countryside tomorrow, to spend the Easter holiday with my family. I’ll take my laptop with me and my brother will try to fix it up. Let’s cross fingers! Yesterday, he took a look at my laptop and told me that nothing happened to my precious data! Phew! … Anyway, more than one person recommend me to buy a desktop computer. Well, they are far cheaper than a laptop and my brother can build up one! Anyways, I want my laptop back! Just because I love all my things! It was my birthday gift last year, I filled it up with cute stickers and everything about it is cute! Then, I lost my previous laptop due to similar reasons. It was old, but I liked it! :(

Sooo, I hope I can solve this problem as soon as possible! Please, keep visiting my blog, I’ll do my best to keep writing posts despite of this problem! Thanks for the understanding, a big hug and happy Easter!

Luna

A pink scarf and two great albums.

Hi againThis would be the only post of today. But I had to write a few words about Emílio Santiago! Well … as I told you before, I’m feeling much better because Autumn is coming! It’s +22C at present and there’s a cool breeze outside! I’ll probably feel more motivated to write posts on this blog, so, check it often, my dear reader! You’ll be surprised!

Many of you already know that I’m a knitter, right?! I’ll write a post about it sooner or later. But knitting is one of my dearest hobbies! Yes, it sounds a little strange, because I’m a woman from a tropical country and here we don’t have many opportunities to wear clothes and accessories made of yarn or wool. I don’t care about it, actually . My mother taught me the basics of knitting when I was a teen. But knitting became a real hobby to me a couple of years ago. It’s something I can do everywhere and I carry my knitting supplies with me every time I travel. I have a reasonable amount of colored yarn in my bedroom and studio and particularly love multi colored yarn! I love colors (I bet you didn’t know that …)! Sometimes, I spend a couple of hours on Ravelry, a knitting and crochet community on internet, browsing patterns. What do I like to knit most? I think I like everything, but scarves, hats, dishcloths, washcloths, small bags, headbands and accessories are far easier and quicker to knit, so, I knit a lot of them and leave cardigans, sweaters, coats for special occasions! I’m falling in love with amigurumi (knitted or crocheted toys)! I can’t wait to start to knit them, but some patterns require abilities or skills I still don’t have! Anyways, I love to knit! I consider myself an advanced beginner. And I like to knit and listen to Brazilian music at the same time . I always choose a couple of my favorite cds and knit for at most two hours (I’m not able to pay attention at an activity for more than two hours. Some people call it hiperactivity …)! Yesterday, my bro worked at home, in my bedroom and I saved a couple of hours to listen to Brazilian music and finish my pink scarf. I’ve chosen two great albums of two of the greatest Brazilian singers and songwriters: Gilberto Gil and Zé Ramalho! Maybe it’s a coincidence, but they are two of my favorite Brazilian musicians! I just LOVE them! My life is full of stories related to MPB (Música Popular Brasileira) and when my little cousin Erik was younger (he’s 8 years old now), I used to hold him in my arms and listen to Zé Ramalho on the couch. Erik loves Zé Ramalho until today! Actually, there’s nothing special about it, but kids start to develop their musical tastes at home, with their relatives. Many kids and teens not even know who is Zé Ramalho and this is a shame, because he’s one of the greatest masters of our music and culture! The same about Gilberto Gil! I honestly think that music should be taught at school and all the generations should share their music tastes! Zé Ramalho and Gilberto Gil are much more than musicians. They represent my country and culture! Everything in their music (lyrics, rhythms, experiences) is absolutely Brazilian! I can feel my country when I listen to Zé or Gil! It’s something hard to explain. But some singers, musicians or whatever (especially the current ones) have no identity. They don’t represent their country. I can recognize immediately Brazilian songs among others because they sound different, they are unique! Brazil is probably the richest country of the world when it comes to music!

Zé Ramalho and Gilberto Gil are from the northeast of the country. A lot of great Brazilian musicians were born in the northeast, it’s a very rich region which preserves our culture! So, when you listen to Zé Ramalho and Gilberto Gil you are also learning a little bit about my country, people and culture! They are not entertainers. As I told you on my previous post, I spent my whole childhood listening to good Brazilian music at home, on the radio, everywhere. Nowadays, the most of kids and teens can’t sing or recognize our classics! Our great masters keep performing and their music still play on the radio, but on specific radio stations. When I was a kid, the best MPB was really popular, available to everyone! I was a kid and used to sing songs of Caetano Veloso, Ney Matogrosso, Maria Bethânia, Elis Regina, Gil, Zé Ramalho, Fagner, Chico Buarque (I’m mentioning only the masters!)! The best Brazilian musicians wrote and sang songs for the soundtracks of our soap operas back then! I can’t say that things didn’t get worse, because, yes, they got worse! Believe me: when you listen to high quality music, read high quality books, etc., you become a better person! I don’t accept rubbish because I had a good education! Of course, I also like bad music, but I know that it’s rubbish! I will share with you, someday, my bad tastes. You will get shocked! *lol* I know it’s rubbish! And I don’t spend money on rubbish! If you listen to Gilberto Gil, you can’t accept Michel Teló (who doesn’t know him?!), unless you are completely drunk at a party! If we demanded high quality entertainment, it would be better to all of us! But, if people only know rubbish, they can’t demand high quality entertainment!

Gilberto Gil and Zé Ramalho can be appreciated by everyone! The two albums I mentioned (São João Vivo!, of Gilberto Gil and Zé Ramalho Canta Jackson do Pandeiro, of Zé Ramalho) are EXTREMELY POPULAR! They are tributes to two great masters: Luiz Gonzaga and Jackson do Pandeiro! These musicians are the best exponents of the northeast culture! They are dead, but their music is part of all of us. When I listen to Luiz Gonzaga and Jackson do Pandeiro, I really feel that I belong to Brazil! My rhythms, my reality, my culture! Despite all the differences between northeast and southeast, I feel Brazilian when I listen to their songs! So, São João Vivo! and Zé Ramalho Canta Jackson do Pandeiro are special for many reasons! It’s always a pleasure to listen to them!

Of course, I will share something with you! Save a couple of hours to enjoy this songs, if you can! They are lovely!

Stay tuned! I’ll be back!

Brazilian hugs,

Luna

São João Vivo! – Live album of Gilberto Gil, recorded at a show in São Paulo (unfortunately I wasn’t there …). Released in 2001, it’s a tribute to Luiz Gonzaga, the master of baião and forró (Brazilian music styles from the northeast). Gil sings many songs of Luiz Gonzaga in this album and a few songs of his own. It’s an excelent album and also a reference to the Festas Juninas (June Parties), typical Brazilian celebrations (I’ll talk about it in the future!):

Olha Pro Céu (Luiz Gonzaga) – A lovely hit of Luiz Gonzaga, by Gilberto Gil!

Madalena (Gilberto Gil) – Here you can see Gilberto Gil singing one of his greatest hits!

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Zé Ramalho Canta Jackson do Pandeiro – Released on 2010, this album is a tribute to Jackson do Pandeiro, the King Of Rhythm. Zé Ramalho sings songs of Mestre Jack (Master Jack). I love this album!

O Canto da Ema (Jackson do Pandeiro) – This is one of the greatest hits of Jackson do Pandeiro! I love it, I can listen to this song dozens of times a day! Still prefer the original one, but this version of Zé Ramalho is lovely! ^^

Chiclete com Banana (Jackson do Pandeiro) – This is a real hit! This song of Jackson do Pandeiro was recorded by dozens of Brazilian singers, including Gilberto Gil! This version of Zé Ramalho is delicious!

P.S.: Here’s my pink scarf. This is not the best picture I’ve ever taken in my life, but, you can check my knitting skills! Here’s the pattern, if you want to knit one for yourself. It’s a quick and easy project, I really liked to knit it! http://tinyant-art.blogspot.com.br/2012/08/v-scarf.html

R.I.P. Emílio Santiago.

Hi people

How are you doing? I’m doing fine, trying to handle all my duties and responsibilities, as ever, but much happier because Autumn is coming and the weather is finally getting cooler!

Well, sometimes unexpected things happen and we, bloggers, need to change our plans a little bit and write about something completely different. I read the news on internet, as ever, and knew that one of the most talented Brazilian singers, Emílio Santiago, died today. He was 66 years old. And everytime a famous person dies in Brazil, a lot of people feel the need to make a thousand compliments on him/her. Dead people become heroes or gods, in Brazil. Of course, there are rude and bad educated creatures here, too, who take the opportunity to say terrible things about someone who died. I don’t agree with both attitudes. So, I would never say something about a famous person’s death if I didn’t feel the need to do it! I think I must say a word or two about Emílio Santiago because I really like him! I’m not an expert in Brazilian music, but I know enough about it to make some comments. I’ve always said that the three greatest singers of this country are Ney Matogrosso, Milton Nascimento and Emílio Santiago! They are real singers, owners of unique, unmistakable voices!

I spent my whole childhood listening to good Brazilian music on the radio and of course I remember Emílio Santiago and his greatest hits! He was born on December 6, 1946, in Rio de Janeiro, studied to be a lawyer, but decided to become a singer, for our luck!He released dozens of albums! And his deep, warm, melodic, sensual voice is so Brazilian! Emílio Santiago could sing every type of music I guess, but his interpretations of samba and bossa nova classics are special! I don’t know all his repertory yet, but know enough to love him! His voice is SO awesome! While I write this post, I’m listening to his last album, Só Danço Samba, a compilation of samba and bossa nova hits! It was released on 2010. Wow! … I would like to be at the beach, layed on a rede, just enjoying the moment! I think I’ll always connect Emílio Santiago with the beach because when I was a teen, me and my family travelled to the coast and I listened to Emílio Santiago every single day in the hotel! The most of his songs have this vibe: beach … waves … cool breeze … relaxing time! This is a rede, by the way:

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Emílio Santiago will always be one of the greatest Brazilian singers of all time! So, I don’t agree when people say that his death was “a great lost”. We all will die someday! We can escape from everything, except from death! But music is something eternal! Emílio Santiago died because his mission here is over (according to my beliefs, of course). But, hey, it was a great mission! He made thousands of people happier with his voice and presence! His voice is unique, unmistakable, he’s part of our history and culture! He shared his gift with us and we, Brazilian people, can be proud to be Brazilians because of him! Our music is unique! “A great lost” is not the death of unique people who shared their gifts with us. A great lost is the life of the ones who don’t follow their dreams and try to be unique! A great lost is the life of the ones who have no courage to be themselves! Emílio is dead. Ok. I’ll be dead someday, too. And you, my dear reader! The question is: will we do something to be reminded? Well … I will!

If I could say something to Emílio, it would be: THANK YOU! Thanks for making this world a better place with your unique voice! Rest in peace! And feel happy: you will be eternal while people listen to your songs!

Of course, I’ll share something with you guys. I must say that Brazilian music is pretty unique, so, don’t expect pop songs! That’s all for now! I’ll return today! Stay tuned! Listen to Emílio Santiago! And be happy!

Luna

Verdade Chinesa – Emílio Santiago:

One of my favorite songs of all time! Beautiful lyrics, nice interpretation! A musical trip! I love to sing this song!

Saigon – Emílio Santiago:

This is his greatest hit! A classic! Beautiful song! The video is cheesy, but, please, pay attention at the song!

Tudo Que Se Quer – Emílio Santiago e Verônica Sabino:

Just listen to this song! It’s amazing!