Good writing is not an easy thing, It takes talent and lots of work. If on top of that you decide to write in a language that’s not your native tongue, the difficulties increase exponentially, nevertheless, and in order to try to improve the “ROI” of my effort, I’ve decided to write this piece in my kid’s tongue.
To those who have trouble reading English, I suggest you use something like https://translate.google.com/ it may not be perfect, but it should do the trick for a general comprehension of this writing (tranquila mama, a ti ya te lo traducire yo).
What we leave behind (2020) I think can be considered an “Annus Horribilis” by pretty much any standard.
With the increasing advancement of science and technology and the consequences to our jobs and lives in general, many of which we can not fully understand yet (more about this later) we have to add the coming of a new virus that has brought the human species to its knees by almost any metric, especially in my case due to a severe case of heart failure after a really nasty cardiac infarction a couple of years ago.
These couple of years have been a really bumpy ride, after surviving the initial blow, I’ve been through a series of ups and downs after my heart got literally broken.
Being the latest episode a forced staying in the hospital for a month and a half due to infectious endocarditis provoked by a bacteria called “Abiotrophia defectiva” it seems like all of us have this cute bug in our digestive system without much trouble, but In my case, it decided to make itself comfortable in one of the three mitraclips I got installed last year in my mitral valve. Thus giving me the dubious honor of being allegedly the first human to have such kind of affliction.
Thanks to the emotional and material support of friends and family (food in the hospital is… a little hard to swallow), and to the impeccable job of the medical team at the https://bellvitgehospital.cat/en/home (There’s no doubt in my mind one of the best in the world), our friendly neighbor “Abiotrophia defectiva” was “evicted”, and the “Abiotrophia Spa with Yacuzzi hotel” installed in my Mitral valve got dismantled.
I won’t say nowadays I’m as good as new, my heart will never be the one of that 25 years old guy who had delusions of grandeur riding in the Tour de France, but then again, that is a delusion I abandoned a long time ago.
But at least, the latest echocardiograms show that my EF (ejection fraction) which seems to be the most important indicator of the overall health of the heart, is stable.
It’s not getting better (which was to be expected), but it’s not getting worst either, so as the Spanish believers say “Virgencita virgencita, que me quede como estoy” Little Virgin Mary, little Virgin Mary, keep me as I am” no better, but most importantly, no worst.
That brings me back to the microscopic elephant in the room, a.k.a. COVID19. 2020 will be forever known as the year of the COVID19, I’m assuming you all have been more or less affected by the COVID19, hopefully, less.
In my particular case as you can imagine, in my condition I have to be very careful trying not to get infected, therefore I try to be very careful, and I have reduced my interaction to a very small circle of people, out of which I always wear my N99 respirator, and have a generous supply of Purell, which I purchase by the gallon.
So what about 2021? Well call me irrational, but I think 2021 it’s going to be better, not because I think it can’t get worst, it can always be worst.
Lots of good scientists have been working hard in an unprecedented effort to bring a solution to the stalemate we are in, vaccines are here, they may not be perfect, and they use a new system RNA based of which we have a relatively low experience, but overall I think it’s going to help us get out of this mess.
I’m assuming I’ll be one of the firsts individuals to get the vaccine, not the very first, as there are people like senior citizens and health workers who should be getting it first, but right after there should be me, and eventually all of us.
Again, science and technology are making it possible to have a vaccine in a record time, we still have to be careful for a few months, but I am convinced that we are on the right path to get rid of this f**** virus. Does that mean that the troubles for our jobs and our industry, in general, are over? far from it, the same science and technology that makes it possible for us to beat this terrible pandemic have brought such changes in the TV and film industry that make the future somehow uncertain.
Let’s face it, traditional TV is over, same goes for films and commercials, I still remember arguing with my DoP friends about the end of film vs digital not that long ago, the industry is evolving and it will continue to do so at an even faster pace, needless to say, that means challenges, but also opportunities. I can’t help being an optimist, is in my nature, and I believe the future is bright, technology will allow us to focus more on the creative side of the business which has always been the most difficult part.
So I’m hoping by the summertime we might be able to get together at a lovely terrace, right before sunset, when the temperature is just right to wear a short sleeve and sit down to have some tapas, perhaps a beer or a glass of wine, and talk about thinks passed, and thinks to come. You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.
Love.
Diego