Halfway down the Danube

New York City meet-up later this week

This is a nice central hip bar with a good mix of people and reasonable drinks for Manhattan:

Solas
232 E 9th St.
Between 2nd and 3rd Avenues

I'm not picky about the day or the time.

Update: 6:30 on Friday.

Cables and braids

Bet you didn't know I can knit.

My Mom taught it to me. (She also taught me not to swear.  'tschuldigung, Mama.)

One of the current projects is a sweater for Alan - a project that, I have to confess, was interrupted for almost a year because my maid made away with my cable needle.  As I never remembered to buy one when I was in a country that actually sells them, the project was stalled.

Then I did remember to buy them needles, brought two over, unpacked them... and somehow, right next to them, the missing one popped back into existence.  On the upstairs sofa where I never knit and where I never put anything.  I hope it had fun wherever it spent the last year.

Anyhow.  Now I'm back on track and just started with the front. Good thing I planned the sweater big!

I've seen things you people wouldn't believe.

Onion John sent me this recent footage from the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center in the Philippines:

There is part of me for which this makes perfect sense.

(Before you ask, there's this. And this.)

A Tale of Two Pacmen

Brett Favre relaxes in his hometown of Kiln, Mississippi.

The nightmare has come to pass: Brett Favre Demands Trade To 1996 Packers.

And Onion John cried, "Father, let this cup pass from me, for it is not even a good bad beer, like Schlitz, or even a Budweiser like that mad Welshman likes."

Even though Randy Moss is a wart on the keister of professional American football, it has to be said that Moss is a very talented wart. It also doesn't say much that the most smartly coached team in the NFL picked him up immediately, as if by giant electromagnet.

Carrie at Bad Mama knows I'm jonesing bad for football -- the shakes, the tremors, seeing John Madden flicker in and out of the corner of my eye -- and she sent me this beautiful link to the current Pacman Jones case (PDF). It's a comprehensive list of damn near everything NFL players have gotten in trouble with the law over the last few years. Learn why Najeh Davenport is called the Dumptruck!

I really should find a back-up sport for the interminable off-season. I picked up a Brooklyn Cyclones schedule, but it's not doing anything for me. Union Hall has two bocce courts and a bar, which sounds promising. Or I could read another book.

Update: Republican presidential candidate Brownback learns the third rail of Wisconsin politics. "That's really bad," he said. "That will go down in history. I apologize."

A Tale of Two Pacmen

Brett Favre relaxes in his hometown of Kiln, Mississippi.

The nightmare has come to pass: Brett Favre Demands Trade To 1996 Packers. And Onion John cried, "Father, let this cup pass from me, for it is not even a good bad beer, like Schlitz, or even a Budweiser like that mad Welshman likes." Even though Randy Moss is a wart on the keister of professional American football, it has to be said that Moss is a very talented wart. It also doesn't say much that the most smartly coached team in the NFL picked him up immediately, as if by giant electromagnet. Carrie at Bad Mama knows I'm jonesing bad for football -- the shakes, the tremors, seeing John Madden flicker in and out of the corner of my eye -- and she sent me this beautiful link to the current Pacman Jones case (PDF). It's a comprehensive list of damn near everything NFL players have gotten in trouble with the law over the last few years. Learn why Najeh Davenport is called the Dumptruck! I really should find a back-up sport for the interminable off-season. I picked up a Brooklyn Cyclones schedule, but it's not doing anything for me. Union Hall has two bocce courts and a bar, which sounds promising. Or I could read another book. Update: Republican presidential candidate Brownback learns the third rail of Wisconsin politics. "That's really bad," he said. "That will go down in history. I apologize."

Arkansas Wins Statovision!

Some people disdain the results of block voting. Still, you have to admit, that was some fine, fine banjo playing.

Alas, I doubt if we'll ever see Statovision produce a superstar like Israel Kamakawiwo'ole again.

Doug's Eurovision analysis is here.

Arkansas Wins Statovision!

Some people disdain the results of block voting. Still, you have to admit, that was some fine, fine banjo playing. Alas, I doubt if we'll ever see Statovision produce a superstar like Israel Kamakawiwo'ole again. Doug's Eurovision analysis is here.

I wonder if Heaven got an Accounts Receivable

Though his mind was not for rent, don't put him down as arrogant.

I wonder if Heaven got an Accounts Receivable

Though his mind was not for rent, don't put him down as arrogant.

Brief thoughts on the NFL draft

Virginia Tech safety Aaron Rouse was picked by Green Bay in the third round of the NFL draft yesterday.

"All those teams that looked over me, they just added more fuel to my fire. I've got a huge chip on my shoulder, man." [...] When asked if he had enough heavy clothes to bear the brutal winter climates of Green Bay, Rouse said: "I've got a cold heart and that's all I need."

Update: huh. Okay, I'll trust Edgar Bennett's eye. Another Hokie, David Clowney. As I know water flows downhill and the sun rises in the east, so too I know that horrifying jokes are being prepared, well in advance. Hall from Boise State and Harris from Rutgers? Someone is hopeful.

Brief thoughts on the NFL draft

Virginia Tech safety Aaron Rouse was picked by Green Bay in the third round of the NFL draft yesterday.

"All those teams that looked over me, they just added more fuel to my fire. I've got a huge chip on my shoulder, man." [...] When asked if he had enough heavy clothes to bear the brutal winter climates of Green Bay, Rouse said: "I've got a cold heart and that's all I need."

Update: huh. Okay, I'll trust Edgar Bennett's eye. Another Hokie, David Clowney. As I know water flows downhill and the sun rises in the east, so too I know that horrifying jokes are being prepared, well in advance. Hall from Boise State and Harris from Rutgers? Someone is hopeful.

Random sports blogging

While I patiently wait for Brett Favre to finish his decades-long plan to humiliate Dan Marino and then collapse into a pile of dust (which will then be packaged in microgram reliquaries for the Green Bay faithful), here are some sports links.

Alyssa Milano has a baseball blog. Yes, it's really her. I'm about a Koufax One, unlike certain readers here -- you know who you are, and it's not just Noel -- but wow. She's really into baseball.

La Loca pointed me to the recent New York Times Magazine article on expertise, myelin, and Russian sports training for kids. In return, I gave her a link to a Los Angeles Times article on plyometrics and the bizarre subculture of teaching yuppies to dunk a basketball. I'm going to add another about the Polgr sisters and chess.

And since both the Psychology Today article and the NYT Magazine article mention Ericsson's research at Florida State, I'm throwing in a link to a Cambridge handbook he co-edited and to a partial CV, for my own future reference.

Random sports blogging

While I patiently wait for Brett Favre to finish his decades-long plan to humiliate Dan Marino and then collapse into a pile of dust (which will then be packaged in microgram reliquaries for the Green Bay faithful), here are some sports links. Alyssa Milano has a baseball blog. Yes, it's really her. I'm about a Koufax One, unlike certain readers here -- you know who you are, and it's not just Noel -- but wow. She's really into baseball. La Loca pointed me to the recent New York Times Magazine article on expertise, myelin, and Russian sports training for kids. In return, I gave her a link to a Los Angeles Times article on plyometrics and the bizarre subculture of teaching yuppies to dunk a basketball. I'm going to add another about the Polgr sisters and chess. And since both the Psychology Today article and the NYT Magazine article mention Ericsson's research at Florida State, I'm throwing in a link to a Cambridge handbook he co-edited and to a partial CV, for my own future reference.

Review, Grand Fifth Sequel (gamma)

One of my Creepy New York Friends (TM) knows the people at what I will call for plausible deniability purposes Stockcar Games. CNYF heard that I've been basically lung-bruised and hallucinating for the past month, and brought by the mock-up demo that Stockcar put together to attract investor interest to cheer me up.

Oh my God. It's a flight simulator. And not Amelia Earhart's, either. I'm not sure how they're going to finesse the change in player point-of-view. Speaking utterly dispassionately, the architectural damage algorithm is amazingly realistic, and CNYF tells me that they're going to include the entire Northeast U.S. out to Detroit or so.

Also, one option is to land the plane. Motherfather.

This is the only day I can post this. Like I said, plausible deniability.

Review, Grand Fifth Sequel (gamma)

One of my Creepy New York Friends (TM) knows the people at what I will call for plausible deniability purposes Stockcar Games. CNYF heard that I've been basically lung-bruised and hallucinating for the past month, and brought by the mock-up demo that Stockcar put together to attract investor interest to cheer me up. Oh my God. It's a flight simulator. And not Amelia Earhart's, either. I'm not sure how they're going to finesse the change in player point-of-view. Speaking utterly dispassionately, the architectural damage algorithm is amazingly realistic, and CNYF tells me that they're going to include the entire Northeast U.S. out to Detroit or so. Also, one option is to land the plane. Motherfather. This is the only day I can post this. Like I said, plausible deniability.

Super Bowl XLI predictions.

... it's the final minutes of the fourth quarter in Miami. The score is 6-6: the Colts have scored two field goals off of two Rex Grossman interceptions; the Bears have scored three safeties off an increasingly rattled Peyton Manning. (At an undisclosed location in Brooklyn, certain people have been vocalizing the melody to the song "Yakety Sax", originally recorded by Boots Randolph and made famous by Benny Hill.) Before the Colts return to the field, on the sidelines one sees Peyton Manning in a furious argument with Colts coach Tony Dungy. Peyton takes off his helmet and stomps away, sulking like Achilles. Dungy has decided. It is the time of Jim Sorgi. The Vinatieri extra point is good. Final score: Colts 13, Bears 6. Update: Well, he did it. I thought it couldn't be done, but he did it. He is truly the man. Unbelievable. Prince actually put together a worthwhile halftime show. In other news, much Yakety Sax was vocalized during the game. Manning played a workmanlike game -- the driving rain prevented the Colts from airing it out -- and the Bears' defense performed really well for a unit that had to be out there for three quarters. But the Most Valuable Player of the game really has to be Rex Grossman, who made the Colts' victory possible. Had the Bears a competent quarterback, Chicago would be completely insufferable, and I am sure Tony Dungy will wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat about it. But, as the saying goes, The Bears Still Suck.

One-Hoss Shay! One-Hoss Shay!

Brett Favre will return to the Packers.

(Obscure reference explained here.)

One-Hoss Shay! One-Hoss Shay!

Brett Favre will return to the Packers. (Obscure reference explained here.)

Strengthening our Nerd-Fu

Claudia brought home the Battlestar Galactica series on DVD, and we watched the pilot last night.

My, that was dark. Claudia left the room for the bit with the baby, but it didn't get any more cheerful afterwards.

But, you know, not bad. I missed several years of must-see nerd TV, from Babylon Five to the later seasons of Buffy, so my expectations were frozen somewhere around Deep Space Nine. This was better than that. So now we're only three years behind! Go us.

In other news, Armenia got 10 more cm (4 inches) of snow this morning. That's on top of the 15 cm already on the ground. But that was nasty crusty old snow, and this is fluffy lovely new snow. So, all good there.

Cultural note: if you borrow a snow shovel from your Armenian neighbor, you are committing to at least twenty minutes of conversation over coffee and pastries. The complete absence of a common language has no relevance whatsoever.

Strengthening our Nerd-Fu

Claudia brought home the Battlestar Galactica series on DVD, and we watched the pilot last night. My, that was dark. Claudia left the room for the bit with the baby, but it didn't get any more cheerful afterwards. But, you know, not bad. I missed several years of must-see nerd TV, from Babylon Five to the later seasons of Buffy, so my expectations were frozen somewhere around Deep Space Nine. This was better than that. So now we're only three years behind! Go us. In other news, Armenia got 10 more cm (4 inches) of snow this morning. That's on top of the 15 cm already on the ground. But that was nasty crusty old snow, and this is fluffy lovely new snow. So, all good there. Cultural note: if you borrow a snow shovel from your Armenian neighbor, you are committing to at least twenty minutes of conversation over coffee and pastries. The complete absence of a common language has no relevance whatsoever.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! Thoughts so far:

1. Cheese curds freeze really well.

2. The Negroni is a very classy way to drink a lot of gin.

3. I have to get an accordion.

New Year's Resolution:

To get Claudia to remove this blog's malware 'free counter' whose embedded pop-ups keep on crashing my browser. Argh, nudge.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! Thoughts so far:

1. Cheese curds freeze really well. 2. The Negroni is a very classy way to drink a lot of gin. 3. I have to get an accordion.

New Year's Resolution:

To get Claudia to remove this blog's malware 'free counter' whose embedded pop-ups keep on crashing my browser. Argh, nudge.

See Borat? I've lived it.

I'm going to spend eleven dollars on something I can experience just by calling a relative?

The Pure Product of America: That's because you're ahead of the curve! Not everyone has crazy foreign aunts who ask young teenagers if their body hair has grown in yet.

Oh God, don't remind me.

The Pure Product of America: You should get on the bandwagon! Awkwardness. Discomfort. Xenophobia. Andy Kaufman. Psychic surgery! You know about these things.

Elf-shot. Ancient Teutonic shamans would extract microliths, bits of flint from their victims' flesh. All sleight-of-hand. In the Philippines, they've upgraded it to chicken guts. That tumor is actually a gizzard.

The Pure Product of America: Don't change the subject. You could purge all that cultural ambivalence from your system. And get chicks!

What ambivalence? Believe me, it's not ambivalence. It's very very univalent.

Anyway. I've told Doug that he should at least see Borat's infamous Black Sea thong; but I suspect he's seen the non-ironic version already.

See Borat? I've lived it.

I'm going to spend eleven dollars on something I can experience just by calling a relative?

The Pure Product of America: That's because you're ahead of the curve! Not everyone has crazy foreign aunts who ask young teenagers if their body hair has grown in yet.

Oh God, don't remind me.

The Pure Product of America: You should get on the bandwagon! Awkwardness. Discomfort. Xenophobia. Andy Kaufman. Psychic surgery! You know about these things.

Elf-shot. Ancient Teutonic shamans would extract microliths, bits of flint from their victims' flesh. All sleight-of-hand. In the Philippines, they've upgraded it to chicken guts. That tumor is actually a gizzard.

The Pure Product of America: Don't change the subject. You could purge all that cultural ambivalence from your system. And get chicks!

What ambivalence? Believe me, it's not ambivalence. It's very very univalent. Anyway. I've told Doug that he should at least see Borat's infamous Black Sea thong; but I suspect he's seen the non-ironic version already.

Congratulations, whoever won!

Wow, YouTube is fast. The highlight clip from the Eurovision Amateur Theatrical Free Throw Contest.

Congratulations, whoever won!

Wow, YouTube is fast. The highlight clip from the Eurovision Amateur Theatrical Free Throw Contest.

Digital camera blog beg whatever

Recently came into a small chunk of change from a spokemodel gig -- not a joke -- and was wondering about a good cheap digital camera. I am so out of the consumer electronics loop. Assume that the primary user will be a miserly idiot savant who likes industrial landscapes and interesting women. And uses Windows, if that matters.

(We will return to regular guest-blogging shortly. On deck: Noel Maurer.)

Digital camera blog beg whatever

Recently came into a small chunk of change from a spokemodel gig -- not a joke -- and was wondering about a good cheap digital camera. I am so out of the consumer electronics loop. Assume that the primary user will be a miserly idiot savant who likes industrial landscapes and interesting women. And uses Windows, if that matters. (We will return to regular guest-blogging shortly. On deck: Noel Maurer.)

I salute you, Finland!

Finland completes part 3e of its plan for world domination. And I for one welcome our new Suomic overlords.

I salute you, Finland!

Finland completes part 3e of its plan for world domination. And I for one welcome our new Suomic overlords.

Saturday plans

Because there really is no excuse for not enjoying a New York spring. If you like the samples here, you should see the band MAKAR at CBGB's 313 Gallery this Saturday night, about 10:30 PM. (For those of you in Yerevan or Bucharest or Belgrade, I realize this might be a hike. Te absolvo.) Update: the New York City Math Teacher finds Makar "surprisingly tuneful and witty"!

Saturday plans

Because there really is no excuse for not enjoying a New York spring. If you like the samples here, you should see the band MAKAR at CBGB's 313 Gallery this Saturday night, about 10:30 PM. (For those of you in Yerevan or Bucharest or Belgrade, I realize this might be a hike. Te absolvo.)

Update: the New York City Math Teacher finds Makar "surprisingly tuneful and witty"!

There, below

In terms of raw percentage, I am not a big comics reader. (We all know what that means.) But I have friends in the industry, follow the blogs, accumulate geek lore on the subject et cetera. Anyway, recently there has been a perk, an upswing of interest in the great American symbolist cartoonist Jack Kirby, now that he's safely dead. I've been an admirer of his art for a long time, and not simply because I look like one of his characters. But let me give you his potted biography first. James Anthony Kirby was born in Columbia, South Carolina in 1917, the second of seven children; his family had settled in Harlem by 1924. Although Kirby dropped out of high school during the Depression in order to help support his family (his father died when Kirby was 10), he attended the night classes of the Harlem Renaissance artist Charles Alston, who also sidelined as a commercial illustrator for the leading fashion magazines of the day. Alston quickly recognized Kirby's talent. Through Alston, Kirby was hired as a single-panel cartoonist by the Lincoln Newspaper Syndicate at the age of 19. Although the Lincoln Newspaper Syndicate soon folded, Kirby picked up work in the new format of comic books, where he began developing his distinctive style. At the same time, he also picked up a new nickname, from the initials with which he signed his work: JAK. It would last him a lifetime. Now let me show you his work.

The true meaning of Halloween

It's all about the candy. And the devil-worship. And the costumes. But mainly, the candy. And the horror! Behold!

And leave a good-looking corpse

So I spent the afternoon pretending to be dead. That was OK, there were photographers present. The results should appear in next week's Onion. Look for the fellow in the Italian suit with the glass of scotch in one hand.

Yikes

Saw some people swimming in the Dumbovitsa today. You have to understand: the Dumbovitsa is the little river that flows right through (and, in some cases, under) the center of Bucharest. It used to be a real river, but it flooded and caused trouble, so the Communists put it in a really ugly concrete trough. Most of the time it's only a few feet deep. The water is brown and stagnant and smells of old socks. In the winter, there isn't even that; it's just an concrete ditch through the middle of the city, filled with frozen mud and trash. However... because of the recent heavy rains, the Dumbovitsa is unusually high. It's probably over 2 meters (maybe 7 feet) deep. And there's actually a little bit of current; if you watch a piece of trash on the surface for a minute or two, you can see it move very slowly. But it's still an unpleasant deep brown color and, well, I really wouldn't swim in it. But people were. I saw at least half a dozen of them today as I walked along the river on business. They were all wearing bathing suits, so this was clearly no idle whim. All boys or young men. They seemed to be enjoying themselves. When I saw it, I literally stopped in mid-step and said "Yikes!" out loud. I must have looked rather odd.

You want math puzzles?

Here's a math puzzle. Taken from the 46th International Mathematical Olympiad, held in rainy Merida, Mexico:

In a mathematical competition 6 problems were posed to the contestants. Each pair of problems was solved by more than two-fifths of the contestants. Nobody solved all 6 problems. Show that there were at least 2 contestants who each solved exactly 5 problems.

Give yourself four hours and thirty minutes. Incidentally, Romania won four gold medals, a silver, and a bronze at the Olympiad out of her six contestants. They're all high school students.

Dungeons and Dragons in Romania (2)

Or, see your Alpha Geek and raise. Last month, I mentioned that I had found some D&D players here in Romania. About which more anon. But first, answers to some questions about that post. Andrew asked:

Being a part of the Washington Establishment who rubs shoulders with the international elite, do the financiers, technocrats, etc. with whom you come into contact on a daily basis know of this habit of yours? I ask this because I'm rather embarassed for a professor of Old French to find out that I game; I can't imagine the horror that I'd feel if I were meeting a finance minister and s/he found out. Or is part of coming to terms with the inner geek the ability to have no fear that a foreign minister would also know of your habit?

Halfway down the Jumna

Over the weekend I fell in love with these short animated films by the cartoonist Nina Paley, based on Sita's story in the great Indian epic the Ramayana. They're set to the music of the 1920s American jazz singer Annette Hanshaw (whom I had not knowingly listened to before, and who has a lovely voice). The combination is utterly charming. The original link is via BoingBoing, and there are bit.torrents (erm, whatever they are) available via Sepia Mutiny, both very cool sites in their own right.

Dungeons and Dragons in Romania (1)

I have become a sort of consultant to the Romanian Dungeons and Dragons community here in Bucharest. There's a whole long backstory here. Short version: I used to play Dungeons and Dragons. Started back in high school, more than 20 years ago. Was on-and-off with it for a long time afterwards. Years might pass without playing, but I always got back to it. (If you don't know what D&D is... hm, better google it than have me try to explain. It is a geeky hobby. Very geeky. So? I've mostly made peace with my inner geek. I also like birdwatching. What can you do.) I was running a campaign when we lived in Serbia. (Oh yes, there are D&D players in Serbia. Quite a few of them.) I had to give it up when we moved here. By that time David was joining us, and we were pretty busy. So I put roleplaying games out of my mind. But I occasionally wondered if there were D&D players here in Romania. I asked around, but nobody seemed to have heard of any. Google showed nothing. Oh, well, I thought. I don't have the time anyway. But then... (More in a bit, if people are interested.)

Because my friends can never have too much shameless promotion

I don't usually do link posts. But hey, it's the weekend, and I have a place to sleep that isn't someone's living room, bathtub, or minivan. So I will live a little. John Krewson, formerly of Verona, Wisconsin, has a KAMANDI story in the latest Bizarro World comics collection (and Evan Dorkin and Sarah Dyer were somehow involved too). For those not in the know, KAMANDI is the Last Boy on Earth, as imagined by Jack Kirby, who apparently saw The Planet of the Apes under the influence of a psychedelic egg cream. In the future, the animal people have taken over! And only KAMANDI can save them! But KAMANDI is tired of his role:

Yesterday the greedy Snake Men of Las Vegas! Last week the Blind Mole Men of the Midwest! Last month the Brightly Tie-Dyed Ferrets of Boulder! I have problems of my own, y'know!!!

Joe Garden, formerly of Richland Center, Wisconsin, is campaigning to fill Conan O'Brien's late night talk show host position in 2009. Vote Joe! Tim Harrod, who used to live in Madison, Wisconsin, is now writing for Conan himself. Mighty thews indeed. I'd be remiss in not mentioning Johnny Pez's Wojtyla fanfic at this time. Never fear, it's not slash. And finally, Bad Mama's Peanut, currently of Madison, Wisconsin, has her casts off, yay! And now she wants to eat your brains, I guess because they're good for growing bodies. I trust Bad Mama will substitute some other high phosphorus food, like fish sticks, in place of brains. Mmm, fish sticks.

Weekend Photo Blogging

On Saturday, we went to the Hollandia Riding Club in Corbeanca. Alan and David loved watching the horses -- although Alan decided that ponies were all right but horses way too big. He did get to ride on the pony for about five or ten minutes. He looked his most serious, I've never seen this look on his face before. He smelled like horse afterwards and talked about "riding like a big boy" the rest of the day. Afterwards, he had a three-hour nap. That hasn't happened in months. Oh, all the excitement.

Read this...

... if you are the parent of a toddler or plan to become one. Finslippy is a very, very funny blog.

Pure poetry

Yeats has been my man for a long time. Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the center cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere The ceremony of innocence is drowned; The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity. Surely some revelation is at hand; Surely the Second Coming is at hand; The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out When a vast image out of Monday Night Football Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert A shape with lion body and the head of a man, A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun, Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds. The darkness drops again; but now I know That twenty centuries of stony sleep Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle, And what rough beast, its hour come round at last, Slouches towards Jacksonville to be born? Last night the Green Bay Packers met the best defensive line in the NFL, and tore through it like tissue paper in the rain. Packers 24, the Carolina Panthers 14. Oh yeah.

Reading material

Not yet added to our blogroll (because we're not using blogger or blogspot but MT and do much of our coding ourselves), but a few blogs that we are reading on a regular basis now and would like to recommend. Apt. 11D has moved -- Laura now lives in the suburbs in a veritable house and therefore got rid of the "Apt." in her blog name. It stays a very good blog, though, so update your bookmarks and check it out regularly. Bad Mama is a spanky new blog by Carrie from (and in) Wisconsin. She's a good writer, so read. The blogs I read mostly these days are, of course, about miscarriage, stillbirth, and other cheerful topics. It helps to read about others going through the same and it scares the sh*t out of me to read how many are going through the same. However, some of those blogs are written by incredibly smart, courageous, kick-ass women. So if you can stomach the naked truth, I would like to recommend the following: A little pregnant, with hilarious articles about what happens to your body when you actually do manage to get pregnant; Indigo Girl, who is required reading in these circles; Chez Miscarriage by "a DES daughter, one of the thousands of women exposed to diethylstilbestrol while in their mothers' wombs." I'm not a DES daugher, but this blog is still wonderful reading. An eye-opener; Last, not least, Julia. If you're not at all into these things (which I can understand, really), I'm also reading Matthew Yglesias whom I find amusing. 'kay. Enough suggestions for today.

Eurovision!

Yes, we watched it. Carlos and I, Saturday night, up past midnight. If you're an American or something, and you don't know what Eurovision is, A Fistful of Euros has a good description. This Kieran Healy post from last year is also nicely informative. And how was it, you ask?

A Quiet Weekend

We haven't posted for a couple of days because, well, we just haven't gotten around to it. Thursday and Friday were busy days because my deputy at work was out of the office -- her son is quite ill -- so I had to get into the office early and stay late. That meant more time alone with the kids for Claudia. So by Friday night we weren't either of us feeling like posting. Saturday we decided to take it easy. So we got a babysitter for the kids, and we went to the Hilton, and we paid 11 Euros each. And we did the treadmill (me) and the steam bath (Claudia), and the swimming pool, and the hot tub, and the sauna, and all that stuff. And then we sat down and had a salad and read _Suddeutsche Zeitung_ and _The Economist_ like two civilized human beings. Ahhh. Then today, Sunday, I had to go into the office for a few hours. Claudia did some shopping for a new phone (don't ask) and then studied for her Romanian class tomorrow. And, well, that was the weekend. Zip, zoom, where did it go. A note on downtown Bucharest: the merchants, at least in the ~200 meters of Callea Victoria north of the Hilton, are still a bit unclear on the concept of "retail strip". That is, at 2:30 on a Saturday afternoon, about one third of them were open and the rest were closed. Guys: the idea is, you all coordinate your opening hours. Some more parking and a place to grab a snack would also help. This is another corner of Bucharest that has me muttereing to myself about "so much potential" and "if they'd only just".

Life's getting busy

So our lives are getting busier. Alan is having a playgroup date every week now, although his brother had to stand in for him on the first date because Alan still has this green stuff coming out of his nose and I didn't want to introduce myself with a highly contagious mite. Playgroup is on Wednesdays and/or Fridays at the American School in Piperi. (And that is worth a post in its own right! It's a BIG school and truly a bit of the US brought to Romania. The art work, the design of the school, it all rings true of just another suburban school in, let's say, DC. Speaking of art work -- I really liked the one where the children had drawn monsters and described them with the help of an itemized list: "My name is ...", "I'm a ... monster", "I like to eat...", etc. One monsters description was "My name is Dad. I'm a scary monster. I like to eat pencils." Well.) I found a gym of sorts nearby Piata Victoriei where I'm going to join Yoga classes and possibly, if I can physically endure it, Tae-Bo classes as well. It's been four months since David's birth and I better start getting (back) into shape again! :-) We've made some friends and our social life is actually happening, sometimes. That all makes us feel more settled and at home and that is not a bad feeling at all. Oh, and we've started the Christmas decorations. I know, it's early. But Alan simply loves it and how could you resist that?

Tomato trail

So we took the "telecabina" up to the mountain top at 2000 meters. Maybe we would have thought twice, had we noticed the "Built 1970" sign, or the crud-covered emergency handle, or the picture of the Virgin Mary above the emergency phone. However, we hadn't and up we went, high above the tree tops, swaying madly to and fro. "At least", Doug said, "we'd all go down together". Not much of a consolation that was. (Click on the pictures to see the full versions!)

Makes my head hurt

I'm trying to teach myself something about blog design. Mainly, I want to get rid of this design and have something funky. Something unusual. Something that is ours and not someone else's. This stuff needs some concentration. Between the move, the kids, settling in, keeping things running (i.e. feeding all the boys), it's not so easy to find the time and the resources to educate myself on this topic. One of these days, I shall persevere. Tomorrow, maybe. Or the day after tomorrow...