-----Original Message-----
From: Dan Burke [mailto:dan@nowpublishingnow.com]
Sent: Monday, February 21, 2005 4:32 PM
To: Dan Burke; Erica Hintergardt
Subject: Monday’s suck, don’t they?


Well, I’m in Cuba as most of you know, and Mondays
seem to be quite a big day here. They are big here, I
think, or they are just big for me. Of which I’m just
not sure.

I hope your Monday is going well. I’m sure there are
all sorts of new crisis situations to deal with after
a relaxing weekend. Perhaps the boss has already paid
you a visit and reminded you how inadequate you are,
or how behind the company is, or perhaps how much you
all still need to do as a team to make the numbers
this quarter--and you may still be wondering why it’s
so important that you make these numbers, even though
you are a salaried employees. Well, if you don’t know
already, it’s because your boss makes a shit-load
more when you slave you ass off for him. And no doubt
it is a him.

Now, let’s take a break from the Monday grind for a
glimpse of Cuba.

Close your eyes. Take a sip of this 7-year-old bottle
of Rum and listen to the sounds of the crystal blue
water splashing against the Maracon.

Think about all of the 1950’s hotels that have not
changed one bit. Think of the people smiling as the
warm breeze sweeps across the scene with a light so
soft you can’t believe how inviting it makes
everything feel. And you do feel. You feel everything.
The people. The politics. The music. THE MUSIC.

It is deep in the suburbs where you can find special
treats. There, at The Casa De La Musica you can hear
the sound of Cuba beating like a healthy heart. There,
you can experience the salsa that has become so famous
in the states, from movies like the Buena Vista Social
Club, for example.

Today, Erica and I visited the museum of the
revolution. There you can see the history, in pain
staking detail, of what the people here went thought
to gain their freedom. This Cuba. This includes the
broken-down houses and struggling people. It also
includes the jewels which these eyes have never seen.
So glorious that I may never travel anywhere else.

In the evening, after we danced to the salsa of some
of the finest musicians on earth, we stopped by the
house of a good old friend. His birthday was
yesterday; he turned 78. We thought we would say hello
and take a picture.

Attached is a little something for your files. I hope
you are able to open it, and that you too will get a
taste of Cuba, if not just enough to break you away
from your cubicle for just one minute.

Love and kisses from Havana,

Dan

P.S. - If you don’t recognize him immediately, we’re
standing with Ibrahim Ferrer, the lead singer of the
Buena Vista Social Club in his home in Miramar.

P.S.S - It turns out we can’t send a photo from
here. I will send it later.

Click here to see the picture. God I love technology.