2006-05-31
She's getting bigger, as are her teeth...
Went to the vet yesterday, after Mette's eye was dripping green goobers to the point of being glued shut. Eighty-five dollars later, we left with a tube of eye ointment and a dog bribed with vet treats. Turns out that at some point during her adventures at the cabin, Mette managed to get both of her corneas scratched and one of them is infected.
I figured the hospital visit merits a fairly recent photo of our most spoiled and beloved family member. Here she is at some point while I was in Brazil, moments before lunging in a vain attempt to tear off Birgit's arm, no doubt. (She always looks nonchalant and innocent right before she strikes... :>)
Profiles from Szanto Kovacs
Stray communiques
Went into school today. Took care of a lot of paperwork. Actually, there was less paperwork than I had imagined. I thought I had to fill out a form for Bonnie, but it turned out I didn't. That was a relief. Signed a letter to work for the Institute of Global Studies this summer. Easy money -- an extra $1000 that Birgit and I hope to blow on a trip to Montreal or some new mapping software. (Yes, I'm actually at that point in life now where I pay for software. Not that I support such capitalist logic, but if we are going to run a business legitimately... God, I'm turning into a true, capitalist subject. Scary... brilliant!)
Sat at Mapps cafe and wrote a letter to my brother. I had to digest Brazil for a week before I could stomach writing it. It came off pretty straight forwardly, I believe. Essentially, I poured my guts out in it, letting him know how I really feel. Should be interesting to see how it ends up after editing. We'll see if I have the gall to send it. I often do. It makes me feel better, but I rarely hear back from family members that receive these things, which makes me question such letters' effectiveness. Oh well... I am a writer. Not a talker.
After writing such a cathartic letter, I decided that I needed to go pick up some cathartic music. I headed up to Best Buy and bought Atmosphere's God Loves Ugly. I heard this album many times before when I subscribed to Real Rhapsody. I bought my first rap album in years about a month ago when I purchased Atmosphere's You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having. I listened to it in the car today on the way to school, and I realized that I really needed "God Loves Ugly," which is just a classic piece of Twin Cities music! It's blaring right now. Also picked up a cheap $9.99 strategy video game -- Army Men or something -- for the dusty Nintendo Gamecube hidden behind our DVDs in the basement. It is so hot here this spring, I can't imagine how hot it is going to be this summer. I am already stockpiling such entertainment so I can hide out in the basement and have something to do when I take a break from reading cartography journals.
Hoping to order my camera today. I guess I'm on a shopping streak. Oh well... I found a store that might take my 50,000 baseball cards off me for a $100 or so. I hope so. They're in the basement collecting dust, and quite frankly, they are pretty ridiculous. I am going to encourage my kids to collect comic books or something, because baseball cards are pretty lame. At least comics I could be rereading right now or admiring the art. I was always envious of my friends who collected comics while growing up. My parents were the uptight Christian types back then. Baseball cards were pretty safe and tame in comparison to "satanic" X-Men or Fantastic Four comics. Shit, I can't wait to raise kids differently... another sign that I'm aging, I suppose. Let's hope like a fine cheese or wine and not like a cantaloupe!
Sat at Mapps cafe and wrote a letter to my brother. I had to digest Brazil for a week before I could stomach writing it. It came off pretty straight forwardly, I believe. Essentially, I poured my guts out in it, letting him know how I really feel. Should be interesting to see how it ends up after editing. We'll see if I have the gall to send it. I often do. It makes me feel better, but I rarely hear back from family members that receive these things, which makes me question such letters' effectiveness. Oh well... I am a writer. Not a talker.
After writing such a cathartic letter, I decided that I needed to go pick up some cathartic music. I headed up to Best Buy and bought Atmosphere's God Loves Ugly. I heard this album many times before when I subscribed to Real Rhapsody. I bought my first rap album in years about a month ago when I purchased Atmosphere's You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having. I listened to it in the car today on the way to school, and I realized that I really needed "God Loves Ugly," which is just a classic piece of Twin Cities music! It's blaring right now. Also picked up a cheap $9.99 strategy video game -- Army Men or something -- for the dusty Nintendo Gamecube hidden behind our DVDs in the basement. It is so hot here this spring, I can't imagine how hot it is going to be this summer. I am already stockpiling such entertainment so I can hide out in the basement and have something to do when I take a break from reading cartography journals.
Hoping to order my camera today. I guess I'm on a shopping streak. Oh well... I found a store that might take my 50,000 baseball cards off me for a $100 or so. I hope so. They're in the basement collecting dust, and quite frankly, they are pretty ridiculous. I am going to encourage my kids to collect comic books or something, because baseball cards are pretty lame. At least comics I could be rereading right now or admiring the art. I was always envious of my friends who collected comics while growing up. My parents were the uptight Christian types back then. Baseball cards were pretty safe and tame in comparison to "satanic" X-Men or Fantastic Four comics. Shit, I can't wait to raise kids differently... another sign that I'm aging, I suppose. Let's hope like a fine cheese or wine and not like a cantaloupe!
2006-05-30
Reward if read
Today, in the middle of creating my syllabus and making sure the dog's eye isn't glued shut, I am also into scanning my real journal, which has far more texture to it. That is, I prefer messes, and the Internet, particularly blogs, do not allow for the proper amount of messy journaling that I prefer. My personal site does, but that is kind of a pain to update on a regular basis, because it has become so big and unwieldy. I've always loved the scratch'n'mash texture and permanence of scanned text and objects on the Internet. It reminds me of a religious archive. My uncle Flip was the first to show how this could be done, back in 1998. He used to scan bugs and larvae and birch bark and everything that shouldn't be scanned, to put on his website. It looked like a botanical garden -- an interactive usable one.I guess what I'm getting at, and I should quickly, as I hear my dog attempting to break down the last barrier between our plants and its teeth, is that I'm going to start posting scraps from my handwritten journal. It started with the "Lost" portrait I did below and hope to make into a real "Wanted" poster someday. And I continue with another caricature shot... from the front of my journal. I guess I'm feeling vain today.
Excited to lecture again
I'm sitting upstairs working on my summer syllabus. It's great fun. Actually, the last week in Brazil I spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about this class -- how to make it more streamlined than the first time I taught it. How to weed out stuff I found erroneous while teaching last semester (e.g., does anyone really care or need to know about fascist architecture, which in the end was never truly instigated successfully anyway, in a general European geography class?).
Working on that while watching the dog. Mette has a serious eye infection. At least serious enough that her right eye was glued shut this morning when she came out of the kennel. I reckon she picked it up in the woods at the cabin or when she went for a swim in Lake Superior at Brighton Beach. Oh well... she'll live. We have a vet appointment at 4 p.m. today. She could probably fight the darn thing off, but Birgit thinks it would be a good idea, and I'm trying to be less frugal about certain things... so the vet it is.
Found my camera online today, and I'm going to order it for my birthday. That's what happens when you turn 30 -- suddenly you decide what you want for your birthday and order it. I suppose that, partially, I have the Internet to thank, because I couldn't find it in any local stores here, only online. I'm really excited to have my camera back. It took the brightest and best looking pictures of any digital camera I've seen, and it fit in the palm of my hand. (Of course, that didn't help me in Rio, but well...)
I'm so pumped to teach and have a schedule again. My plan is to devour a book a week this summer for my new topic. That shouldn't be too hard. I really want to be out of the UMN by December 2007, but to make that happen, I have to keep on top of my research. Not slack off or let anyone in this soap opera department suck me into their time wasting mobilizations. I call the grad students here soap opera stars, because most of them complain about and vocalize every happenstance in their lives as though they are owed something for being penniless graduate students. They fight everything, tooth and nails, and even worse, they meet about four times a week and clog my inbox with their incessant banter about grad student rights to funding -- as though after six years you are owed more funding -- and concerns that the department is trying to herd them out of the program -- which of course, any good department will try to do. Kurva Isten Faszat, man! I go to Brazil and my inbox is flooded with four page long commentaries by numerous grad students that I don't really know or respect complaining and hypothesizing about how unjust our department is... they have no clue how others work! I may have said this before in this blog, but if not I will say it again: if I were the department I would fire every last one of us -- just to make sure no bad apples linger -- and hire scab grad students. Seriously... right to work department. I bet some students who weren't accepted last year would come gladly from their tedious planning desk jobs and get a degree in four years while earning free tuition, cheap health care, free dental, and a $12,000 stipend! Who the hell are these whining wankers?! And instead of spending 14 hours composing self-pitying emails to annoy everyone on the mailing list with, why don't these computer lab sitters work on their goddamn research?! I may not work on my research 24/7 -- and few students do -- but I sure as hell don't complain about a good gig when I know I have one either. RRRRRrrrrrrr...
But I digress. Perhaps the heat is getting to me. I need to put on some more The Bad Plus. The best jazz trio ever. I am now certain. I hypothesized this before, but I wasn't sure because I didn't think I knew enough about jazz. But I dare any jazz trio to cover Aphex Twin, Iron Maiden, Nirvana, Blondie, the Pixies, the Empire Strikes Back, and Chariots of Fire within three albums! Ha, top that! They are touring England, France, and Spain right now, before moving on to Austria. So if anyone over in Europe reading this feels like seeing the coolest jazz band ever, and I can vouch for their live act, phenomenal, check out their tour dates here.
Working on that while watching the dog. Mette has a serious eye infection. At least serious enough that her right eye was glued shut this morning when she came out of the kennel. I reckon she picked it up in the woods at the cabin or when she went for a swim in Lake Superior at Brighton Beach. Oh well... she'll live. We have a vet appointment at 4 p.m. today. She could probably fight the darn thing off, but Birgit thinks it would be a good idea, and I'm trying to be less frugal about certain things... so the vet it is.
Found my camera online today, and I'm going to order it for my birthday. That's what happens when you turn 30 -- suddenly you decide what you want for your birthday and order it. I suppose that, partially, I have the Internet to thank, because I couldn't find it in any local stores here, only online. I'm really excited to have my camera back. It took the brightest and best looking pictures of any digital camera I've seen, and it fit in the palm of my hand. (Of course, that didn't help me in Rio, but well...)
I'm so pumped to teach and have a schedule again. My plan is to devour a book a week this summer for my new topic. That shouldn't be too hard. I really want to be out of the UMN by December 2007, but to make that happen, I have to keep on top of my research. Not slack off or let anyone in this soap opera department suck me into their time wasting mobilizations. I call the grad students here soap opera stars, because most of them complain about and vocalize every happenstance in their lives as though they are owed something for being penniless graduate students. They fight everything, tooth and nails, and even worse, they meet about four times a week and clog my inbox with their incessant banter about grad student rights to funding -- as though after six years you are owed more funding -- and concerns that the department is trying to herd them out of the program -- which of course, any good department will try to do. Kurva Isten Faszat, man! I go to Brazil and my inbox is flooded with four page long commentaries by numerous grad students that I don't really know or respect complaining and hypothesizing about how unjust our department is... they have no clue how others work! I may have said this before in this blog, but if not I will say it again: if I were the department I would fire every last one of us -- just to make sure no bad apples linger -- and hire scab grad students. Seriously... right to work department. I bet some students who weren't accepted last year would come gladly from their tedious planning desk jobs and get a degree in four years while earning free tuition, cheap health care, free dental, and a $12,000 stipend! Who the hell are these whining wankers?! And instead of spending 14 hours composing self-pitying emails to annoy everyone on the
But I digress. Perhaps the heat is getting to me. I need to put on some more The Bad Plus. The best jazz trio ever. I am now certain. I hypothesized this before, but I wasn't sure because I didn't think I knew enough about jazz. But I dare any jazz trio to cover Aphex Twin, Iron Maiden, Nirvana, Blondie, the Pixies, the Empire Strikes Back, and Chariots of Fire within three albums! Ha, top that! They are touring England, France, and Spain right now, before moving on to Austria. So if anyone over in Europe reading this feels like seeing the coolest jazz band ever, and I can vouch for their live act, phenomenal, check out their tour dates here.
2006-05-29
Hot like a sauna
Hot as hell in Minnesota this weekend. At least yesterday, 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Not that I would actually know how hot it was in Minneapolis, really, as Birgit, Mette, and I were up at my Mum and Chris' cabin. It was a blast! Four dogs, one cousin, two aunts, one niece, sister, Chris, Mum, Birgit, and myself, all hanging out, swimming, drinking (except Clair, as she is only six, I suppose) and watching the dogs run rampant. It was so refreshing after the Brazil trip.
More on the Brazil trip perhaps in the futuer, but first I have to sort of figure out what happened in my mind. You see, my brother and his wife had a meltdown of sorts toward the end, and everything became very surreal, very quickly. I was sort of hiding at the compound the last week, where there was absolutely not connection to the outside world, and then when I returned to Rio shit hit the fan. All I will say is that I had an absolute blast getting to know my Brazilian in-laws and step-niece -- who feels more like a sister than niece, because she is 26 years old. But I think my brother and his wife need some serious therapy. They stressed me out incredibly! The relationship, as I witnessed it, is incredibly unhealthy for both of them and everyone around them. It was so bad it got to the point where I was avoiding them. Then they got mad at me for avoiding them and attempted to control my every move so I couldn't avoid being with them. It was really weird. Very strange. But I can highly recommend Brazilian food, beer, beaches, people, and music! So definitely go. Just don't go with your estranged brother...
I'm melting right now and I hear Mette attacking Birgit with her razor sharp teeth, so I'm going to go downstairs and play fetch the piggy with Mette -- her favorite toy is a stuffed pig that my Mum and mother-in-law recently told me is a collector's item worth about $100-$200. Whoops... it was just a stuffed pig I received as a gift in Germany back in 1989. I named it Mr. Lucky, but it has never brought anything but heartache and extreme emotional pain to me -- I blame it for my six month stint in China back in 1991. So I was glad to have an excuse to not keep it any more, by giving it to my dog to tear apart the first day we had her. The problem is, it is now her favorite toy and she looks for it and won't ever leave it alone. So in a way, it is in my life more than ever before. Nonetheless, at least it is being put to use now and it won't survive her teething, which is starting; so soon I will be rid of the cursed pig! Who cares if it is a rare German Steiff... ha!
New photo for ya all... ciao for now.
2006-05-26
Brazil was a bust... so check out Adam's adventures in the Ukraine
Just a note to say that my chum, Adam, is over in the Ukraine right now, witnessing some very interesting things. Plus, he is a good writer; so please do give his blog a hit or two and get hooked on his adventures. You can find it in te right panel, three down from the top, under Russk Адам!. Otherwise, you can just click here to go there right now. Prost, Adam!
A view to risk death for?
A look at Rio from a friend's apartment balcony. That's a lagoon in the middle of hte city, I believe, that everyone says they walk around, although I've never met anyone brave enough to do it. The mountain rising up is typical of the city -- this one is average size and they are everywhere, including right behind and to the right of this building.
My only picture right now from Rio, as there was a bit of a family debacle before I left, so I don't have any others. Hopefully more will come shortly.
2006-05-09
Mugged, Rio Style
Ever seen the City of God. Well it ain~t no joke. Just got mugged at gunpoint today. The idiot only took my camera, though, not my bag with a $1000 Nokia phone and $100 of cash in my pockets. Nope. Instead all this little punk, rascal got was my $180 camera with debaucherous pictures from a Brazilian wedding. (See below.)
It wasn~t as scary as I would have imagined. I tried running from him, but there was too much traffic to cross the street. He caught up with me. Held a gone and shouted CAMERA. I handed it to him. He ran off. I zigzagged back to my apartment, and that was that. Over. no more camera, but at least I didnt get shot or stabbed. An American and Brazilian were killed last week a few blocks away, some cabby told us later. I guess it was my fault. I was taking pictures of urban development for my class on the boardwalk at Copa Cabana.
Tomorrow we may be heading up to my brother~s compound and fortress. It has three meter high walls and is built like a castle. I can~t wait to sit by the pool, listen to Johnny Cash, and start writing our novel. I think this episode will find its way in.
That~s all the news from here. Was almost killed. All it cost me was a camera to get out of it. I still have the phone and my money. And my good cheer. Regardless, I still really like Rio, but there is a reason one doesn~t have many pictures from here. Fuckin´ savages. I am sorry, but these hill slums really should be burned to the ground. They hold the city under siege!
It wasn~t as scary as I would have imagined. I tried running from him, but there was too much traffic to cross the street. He caught up with me. Held a gone and shouted CAMERA. I handed it to him. He ran off. I zigzagged back to my apartment, and that was that. Over. no more camera, but at least I didnt get shot or stabbed. An American and Brazilian were killed last week a few blocks away, some cabby told us later. I guess it was my fault. I was taking pictures of urban development for my class on the boardwalk at Copa Cabana.
Tomorrow we may be heading up to my brother~s compound and fortress. It has three meter high walls and is built like a castle. I can~t wait to sit by the pool, listen to Johnny Cash, and start writing our novel. I think this episode will find its way in.
That~s all the news from here. Was almost killed. All it cost me was a camera to get out of it. I still have the phone and my money. And my good cheer. Regardless, I still really like Rio, but there is a reason one doesn~t have many pictures from here. Fuckin´ savages. I am sorry, but these hill slums really should be burned to the ground. They hold the city under siege!
2006-05-08
Wedding, Rio Style
2006-05-07
First Day Summary
Okay, to summarize...
Arrived. Bougth cases of champagne for a wedding. Went to said wedding. Craziness... great party all night. Today... went to dinner at uncles. That~s all I really have time to write at the moment.
Also, they dont stop at red lights in the city to avoid car jackings. The city of God is on the hill above where my sister-in-law lives... and um... yeah. Okay, more soon. Rio is the coolest, most interesting city I have ever been to. It is huge and has mountains in the middle of it. It has so many beaches and the streets feel like a cross between Paris and Mexico. It is very surreal. Very cool. Pictures soon!
Arrived. Bougth cases of champagne for a wedding. Went to said wedding. Craziness... great party all night. Today... went to dinner at uncles. That~s all I really have time to write at the moment.
Also, they dont stop at red lights in the city to avoid car jackings. The city of God is on the hill above where my sister-in-law lives... and um... yeah. Okay, more soon. Rio is the coolest, most interesting city I have ever been to. It is huge and has mountains in the middle of it. It has so many beaches and the streets feel like a cross between Paris and Mexico. It is very surreal. Very cool. Pictures soon!
2006-05-04
Off to Florida with the Smiths and Hunter S. Thompson
I finished grading all of my students' assignments last night at 9 p.m., listening to Morrisey Live and the Bad Plus. Surreal. Overall, I was pretty happy with most of my students' final maps. I had worried that some of the students wouldn't pull it off, but those fears were for not. Many students did much better than I would have imagined.
I am meeting with Bob at 10:15 to hand over the spreadsheet. Then I'm off to class to watch my students present their final maps and discuss why they chose particular visual variables, etc. Birgit picks me up at 12:30. We go home, play with Mette for a couple of hours, have lunch, probably go for a walk, and then I'm off to the HH terminal for the unknown. Flying into Orlando. My brother is on his way to Miami right now with his wife. He is coming home tonight and picking me up at the airport. Then tomorrow we drive back to Miami. I think this is crazy, but I am excited to see his house again.
***
Then Friday... we leave Miami at 11:30 that evening. I confirmed the flight last night. I am hoping we can hit the beach or downtown for an hour or so. And then we will be off to Rio...
***
Yesterday was busy. Not much to write. I haven't even thought about the fact I am leaving for Brazil really. I was in lab for seven hours yesterday, then waited an hour for the bus ride home, and graded all evening. Mette feels ignored. Birgit is exhausted from work and taking care of Mette. And I'm pooped... perfect time to run off.
I'm in a computer lab right now with a bunch of historian students making PowerPoint presentations using statistics. It is a little surreal. Kind of annoying, as they are discussing. My brain isn't focused. I should run.
***
However, before I do, I must mention that I'm reading a book by Steve Martin called Shopgirl. It's a novella, and I'm hoping to finish it before I get to the airport. It pretty much hits the nail on the head when it comes to men, women, and the dating game. He's a bloody brilliant writer -- now if he could only act worth a hill of beans. (Although, I saw the movie called "Shopgirl" last week, and it is pretty true to the book. Definitely worth a rental.)
***
Hunter S. Thompson is in my carryon. My mp3 player is loaded with the Smiths and Atmosphere. I'm loaded up on anti-allergy medicine and have a suitcase full of sleeping aids. I am ready. See you all from the global south...
***
P.S. I just found this blog from Sao Paulo, Brazil, by hitting "Next Blog" in the upper right hand corner of my blog site. It randomly sent me here. Kind of freaky!
I am meeting with Bob at 10:15 to hand over the spreadsheet. Then I'm off to class to watch my students present their final maps and discuss why they chose particular visual variables, etc. Birgit picks me up at 12:30. We go home, play with Mette for a couple of hours, have lunch, probably go for a walk, and then I'm off to the HH terminal for the unknown. Flying into Orlando. My brother is on his way to Miami right now with his wife. He is coming home tonight and picking me up at the airport. Then tomorrow we drive back to Miami. I think this is crazy, but I am excited to see his house again.
***
Then Friday... we leave Miami at 11:30 that evening. I confirmed the flight last night. I am hoping we can hit the beach or downtown for an hour or so. And then we will be off to Rio...
***
Yesterday was busy. Not much to write. I haven't even thought about the fact I am leaving for Brazil really. I was in lab for seven hours yesterday, then waited an hour for the bus ride home, and graded all evening. Mette feels ignored. Birgit is exhausted from work and taking care of Mette. And I'm pooped... perfect time to run off.
I'm in a computer lab right now with a bunch of historian students making PowerPoint presentations using statistics. It is a little surreal. Kind of annoying, as they are discussing. My brain isn't focused. I should run.
***
However, before I do, I must mention that I'm reading a book by Steve Martin called Shopgirl. It's a novella, and I'm hoping to finish it before I get to the airport. It pretty much hits the nail on the head when it comes to men, women, and the dating game. He's a bloody brilliant writer -- now if he could only act worth a hill of beans. (Although, I saw the movie called "Shopgirl" last week, and it is pretty true to the book. Definitely worth a rental.)
***
Hunter S. Thompson is in my carryon. My mp3 player is loaded with the Smiths and Atmosphere. I'm loaded up on anti-allergy medicine and have a suitcase full of sleeping aids. I am ready. See you all from the global south...
***
P.S. I just found this blog from Sao Paulo, Brazil, by hitting "Next Blog" in the upper right hand corner of my blog site. It randomly sent me here. Kind of freaky!
2006-05-03
Guitar Girl, Video Games, and End of the Semester Feelings of Euphoria
So this is it. It is coming down to this. I've got less than two days in this country, and then I am out of here into the unknown. Cool!
***
I met an interesting woman at the bus stop today. I see her almost everyday I am going into school. She gets on the 61 bus a few stops after I do. She is hard to miss -- an African-American woman with a guitar. Then we transfer at the same place to get to school -- or in the case of today, to get back home. So there we were, the only two people at a dumpy, detour bus stop next to a Subway restaurant. I haven't said more than eight words to her the whole semester. I believe they were: "That guy was a bit wacko, wasn't he?" I was referring to a creepy 60-year old chatting her up on the bus about the guitar, how his daughter played the guitar, how it is romantic and all that crap. So after walking the five minutes to the second bus stop, awkwardly following each others' shadow, I said: "That guy was a bit wacko, wasn't he?" From her response, I quickly realized that I probably seemed like a wacko for following in her shadow all the way down the hill, and I stopped the conversation there. (Luckily, a 3A rolled up right after that, and I was saved.)
Today, though, it seemed really awkward to just be standing there, the two of us plus one guitar for 15 minutes waiting for the 61, so I asked her if she was a music major. No. Oh, so you just take guitar lessons? Yeah. How long? Just started this semester. Awkward pause. She was another type of major (I missed that, as we were waiting in a warehouse district, and every other car is a semi-truck.) She had just switched to graphic design. She wants to design video games someday. That struck up the conversation. She's a sophomore. She moved here with her family from Denver about four years ago. She likes it here but misses the mountains. She won't take guitar again until next spring and she hopes she doesn't forget everything. Nonetheless, she won't miss hauling the big-ass guitar on the bus every other day.
The bus began to roll and I kept asking her about what games she likes to play. Then a dude across the aisle, another African-American which has nothing to do with the story other than the fact that I liked it, because in the state of Minnesota, on the north side of St Paul just south of Roseville, you don't get much diversity, and it was so refreshing not to speak to anti-social Scandinavians. So this was great! I was sitting on the bus speaking to a 19-year old female about video games -- which was cool in and of itself, because not many females I know like discussing video games -- and a guy who looked much younger than he let on, about the addictive tendencies of games. He works to buy more video games he told me. Crazy shit. Everyone around us seemed quite disturbed by the fact that three complete strangers -- one wearing a preppy, semi-nerdy collared shirt, another with a giant guitar strapped to her back, and the third with gold-rimmed sunglasses, camoflauge green trousers, boxer shorts showing from his knees up, and a torn up green t-shirt, could hold a conversation for 20 minutes about the evolution of video games, what their favorites are, and the benefits of different systems that came out and are coming out in the near future. It turns out that the only thing all of us agreed on is that video game golf can be highly addicting. This seemed very odd to me, because it was just a hunch that none of us were truly avid golfers at heart -- neither in playing the sport or watching it on television, but we all agreed that as far as video games go, it was one of our favorites. Bizarre indeed.
Michelle got off. I doubt I'll ever see her again. The semester is drawing to a close and who knows how our bus schedules will line up next fall. Still, I'm glad I chatted with her for those 20 minutes. It kind of gave me closure to the whole semester. I never would have guessed she was a guitar playing, video gaming type. You never know unless you ask, I guess.
***
I'm pretty much all packed. All I have to do is remember to throw in my razor and I'm ready to roll. I just received a bunch of CDs in the mail today, so tomorrow night as I grade my students' final assignments, I am planning to rip them to my mp3 player and charge it for the long road to Rio.
It just occurred to me that I know absolutely nothing about Brazil other than what I learned in a third grade social studies book. That's what the book was actually called: "Social Studies." I just remember learning about Brasilia, how it was completely invented for no purpose other than to create a secure capital in the middle of nowhere... I remember reading about Rio, or hearing about Rio?, and how big it is. And that is about it. I had a friend in the #55 Middle School of Beijing who was from Brazil. But he was a Chinese-Brazilian, so in China he didn't stand out too much, nor divulge what life was like in Brazil, because he had spent most of his life in China. So... I am completely ignorant. I have to admit, I never much cared for learning about Latin America. I was too busy trying to learn Chinese, studying the Khmer Rouge, hanging with German rellies, meeting up with European friends, and returning to Hungary...
Not any more. I'm kind of interested in Latin America now. The problem is I don't speak a damn word of Spanish, Portuguese, or any Latin-based language for that matter. So I have my work cut out for me. Shit. At least I have a tour guide.
***
I met with my new advisor today. It went really well. I'm pumped about working with him and about tweaking my new dissertation proposal over the summer. I have some courses lined up for next year -- to take. And I'm just feeling very confident about my position, standing, and abilities in geography these days. As good as I have ever felt since deciding to take a hiatus from Penn State.
***
Lok-- I mean, Mette, is being a bit obnoxious recently. She is into biting everything. She is exhausting. I am feeling a little bit guilty about leaving Birgit with her for 18 days, but what the hell, I guess, she will be fine. Still... that is kind of a tough break, as it is one of the most draining experiences I have ever had -- taking care of something that gets moody, etc. Reminds me of some bad relationships in the late 90s.
***
I don't have much more to say, so I suppose I should just stop. Bugger. I don't want to. I feel like spilling my guts and shouting from the rooftops. But there is nothing to shout and everything would just come out silent screams anyway.
***
One other thing. The time on this blog is not the time I write things. I get a kick out of that. It is set to Icelandic time. I just realized that the other night I wrote "G'night," but the time said something like 8:30 in the morning. It was 3:30 in the morning. I only wish I could make it until 8:30...
***
I met an interesting woman at the bus stop today. I see her almost everyday I am going into school. She gets on the 61 bus a few stops after I do. She is hard to miss -- an African-American woman with a guitar. Then we transfer at the same place to get to school -- or in the case of today, to get back home. So there we were, the only two people at a dumpy, detour bus stop next to a Subway restaurant. I haven't said more than eight words to her the whole semester. I believe they were: "That guy was a bit wacko, wasn't he?" I was referring to a creepy 60-year old chatting her up on the bus about the guitar, how his daughter played the guitar, how it is romantic and all that crap. So after walking the five minutes to the second bus stop, awkwardly following each others' shadow, I said: "That guy was a bit wacko, wasn't he?" From her response, I quickly realized that I probably seemed like a wacko for following in her shadow all the way down the hill, and I stopped the conversation there. (Luckily, a 3A rolled up right after that, and I was saved.)
Today, though, it seemed really awkward to just be standing there, the two of us plus one guitar for 15 minutes waiting for the 61, so I asked her if she was a music major. No. Oh, so you just take guitar lessons? Yeah. How long? Just started this semester. Awkward pause. She was another type of major (I missed that, as we were waiting in a warehouse district, and every other car is a semi-truck.) She had just switched to graphic design. She wants to design video games someday. That struck up the conversation. She's a sophomore. She moved here with her family from Denver about four years ago. She likes it here but misses the mountains. She won't take guitar again until next spring and she hopes she doesn't forget everything. Nonetheless, she won't miss hauling the big-ass guitar on the bus every other day.
The bus began to roll and I kept asking her about what games she likes to play. Then a dude across the aisle, another African-American which has nothing to do with the story other than the fact that I liked it, because in the state of Minnesota, on the north side of St Paul just south of Roseville, you don't get much diversity, and it was so refreshing not to speak to anti-social Scandinavians. So this was great! I was sitting on the bus speaking to a 19-year old female about video games -- which was cool in and of itself, because not many females I know like discussing video games -- and a guy who looked much younger than he let on, about the addictive tendencies of games. He works to buy more video games he told me. Crazy shit. Everyone around us seemed quite disturbed by the fact that three complete strangers -- one wearing a preppy, semi-nerdy collared shirt, another with a giant guitar strapped to her back, and the third with gold-rimmed sunglasses, camoflauge green trousers, boxer shorts showing from his knees up, and a torn up green t-shirt, could hold a conversation for 20 minutes about the evolution of video games, what their favorites are, and the benefits of different systems that came out and are coming out in the near future. It turns out that the only thing all of us agreed on is that video game golf can be highly addicting. This seemed very odd to me, because it was just a hunch that none of us were truly avid golfers at heart -- neither in playing the sport or watching it on television, but we all agreed that as far as video games go, it was one of our favorites. Bizarre indeed.
Michelle got off. I doubt I'll ever see her again. The semester is drawing to a close and who knows how our bus schedules will line up next fall. Still, I'm glad I chatted with her for those 20 minutes. It kind of gave me closure to the whole semester. I never would have guessed she was a guitar playing, video gaming type. You never know unless you ask, I guess.
***
I'm pretty much all packed. All I have to do is remember to throw in my razor and I'm ready to roll. I just received a bunch of CDs in the mail today, so tomorrow night as I grade my students' final assignments, I am planning to rip them to my mp3 player and charge it for the long road to Rio.
It just occurred to me that I know absolutely nothing about Brazil other than what I learned in a third grade social studies book. That's what the book was actually called: "Social Studies." I just remember learning about Brasilia, how it was completely invented for no purpose other than to create a secure capital in the middle of nowhere... I remember reading about Rio, or hearing about Rio?, and how big it is. And that is about it. I had a friend in the #55 Middle School of Beijing who was from Brazil. But he was a Chinese-Brazilian, so in China he didn't stand out too much, nor divulge what life was like in Brazil, because he had spent most of his life in China. So... I am completely ignorant. I have to admit, I never much cared for learning about Latin America. I was too busy trying to learn Chinese, studying the Khmer Rouge, hanging with German rellies, meeting up with European friends, and returning to Hungary...
Not any more. I'm kind of interested in Latin America now. The problem is I don't speak a damn word of Spanish, Portuguese, or any Latin-based language for that matter. So I have my work cut out for me. Shit. At least I have a tour guide.
***
I met with my new advisor today. It went really well. I'm pumped about working with him and about tweaking my new dissertation proposal over the summer. I have some courses lined up for next year -- to take. And I'm just feeling very confident about my position, standing, and abilities in geography these days. As good as I have ever felt since deciding to take a hiatus from Penn State.
***
Lok-- I mean, Mette, is being a bit obnoxious recently. She is into biting everything. She is exhausting. I am feeling a little bit guilty about leaving Birgit with her for 18 days, but what the hell, I guess, she will be fine. Still... that is kind of a tough break, as it is one of the most draining experiences I have ever had -- taking care of something that gets moody, etc. Reminds me of some bad relationships in the late 90s.
***
I don't have much more to say, so I suppose I should just stop. Bugger. I don't want to. I feel like spilling my guts and shouting from the rooftops. But there is nothing to shout and everything would just come out silent screams anyway.
***
One other thing. The time on this blog is not the time I write things. I get a kick out of that. It is set to Icelandic time. I just realized that the other night I wrote "G'night," but the time said something like 8:30 in the morning. It was 3:30 in the morning. I only wish I could make it until 8:30...
2006-05-01
May Day Edition: "I was a socialist once... 'til I realized the profit margins were too low."
Okay, so I had it wrong about Reggie Bush. He is a fraud. Those diamond earrings looked like they were bought by an agent. Who I really feel bad for is Matt Leinart. Ending up with Denny Green in Arizona after being a lock for the #1 pick last year is akin to seeking asylum in the US and being invited to Guantanimo. Okay, maybe even more severe than that. But I digress... I don't know what has come over me. Why am I so into football right now, particularly considering that when it is actually on television I don't watch it that much? Maybe it is because the Twins stink so badly, and baseball has always been the soap opera that gets me through the summer. Maybe I'm just excited that Mike Tice is gone. Regardless, I'm done talking about football.
Unless we're speaking about the World Cup. Yes, Brazil is going to take it this year. I have a feeling... the last time people were kicking the ball around for global supremacy, I was in France playing the bohemian who could care less about scores. (Meanwhile, I would sneak online at Manu's house and shuffle my fantasy baseball roster and check to see if the US had in fact only lost to Germany by one goal!) In 1998 I was in Romania when the national team defeated England to advance in the World Cup playoffs. There was a mini-riot! Istvan and I ducked down and fled the bar, as bottles started flying, people started honking, and people started chanting "fuck Hungary." Someone heard us speaking English briefly -- we weren't sure what was safer, Hungarian or English -- and pointed us out in the crowd shouting -- "Brits" in Romanian. We ran like hell. Explaining I was a Yank probably wouldn't do me much good. The World Cup before that one, 1994, I was in a pub in Kaposvar, Hungary, noticing the Bosnia troop buildup outside as the US started sending troops to Hungary to "train" for Bosnia. Sam and I sat in the pub with a bunch of Norwegian and Corsican women (or are they girls at the age of 18?) getting trashed and feeling real manly -- which isn't hard when there is a 30:2 female-to-male ratio in the foreign exchange program you are on. This time, though, I'm going to the epicenter of World Cup freneticism -- Brasil! I can't wait to see this... I just received a Germany World Cup 2006 t-shirt from my in-laws. It's pretty cool, actually. I'm tempted to wear it into a Brasilian pub to see what happens. I'll let you know.
Sports... spots... pots... ...stop.
***
I'm cranking Atmosphere right now. For the first time since 1991 and the early Public Enemy albums, rap is moving me again. I can't explain it. Is it a late-20s personal crisis? Is it because I never really stopped liking the concept, I just couldn't handle the bad hip hop that predominated throughout the 90s and early millennium? Is it because the economy has become so shitty again that I am drawn to radical, anti-establishment art? Is it because he is a local artist that is adored by hip hop afficionados around the world and dedicates his album to I-94 East? (Hell, the first person turning me onto the group was my French friend Julien. I don't know. But his lyrics are intense and very autobiographical. Not that bad gangsta stuff, fictional hubris that just gets more and more outrageous to sell albums to naive pre-pubescent teens. He has one song on his newest album, "You Can't Believe How Much Fun We're Having," called "Little Man," which moves me more than any song I've heard in years. The guy is so self-deprecating. I heard someone call him emo-hop, which disturbs me a bit, as I hate emo music. Still, whatever he is doing, it is incredible progress for rap as a whole, I would argue from my novice perspective.
Needless to say, Birgit is not diggin' my new music selection. In fact, she can't stand rap. My new annoying feature is to rap what I am saying or thinking to her. I am really bad at rapping. No, I'm horrific, but that is the fun of doing it. And it drives her nuts, so it is a good way to get negative attention. (Yes, I'm very Pavlovian.) I can only do it a couple of times before she hits her limit, though, and the attention I get from her turns into annoyance, bitterness, and if I go too far, a firm smack to the back of my head.
***
I'm off to Brasil? Holy cow, man! I started packing this weekend. I'm supposed to be grading right now. I have time. I don't feel like it. I'm too busy starting to salivate about the thought of hanging on the beach, wandering Rio for a week. I went and got a bunch of accessories for my trip this weekend. A pair of sunglasses -- I always break mine, and I'm just hoping these make it to Brazil before I accidentally sit on them -- shorts, a t-shirt, and a bunch of socks, as there isn't a washing machine there. (Here's a link to the city where my brother's house is.)
I'm charging my camera battery right now. I've renewed my library books. I've been reading a bunch of cartography books this past week, trying to get school reading in so I can concentrate on reading Shogun when I'm there. (I read it years ago and bought it again at Half Price Books recently, as I don't remember anything about the book except it was one of the best I've ever read.)
Birgit is getting a little nervous, and excited, about me leaving. The dog has become quite a bit of work recently. Definitely teething. Chewing on everything isn't the problem. It's when she gets moody because her teeth hurt and there is nothing you can do... that's when she becomes snippy and all you want to do is run away from her. And well... it is a two person job raising a dog. I'm sure you could do it alone, but Birgit is the working person among us. I just hope she doesn't lose it. I know I lost it this weekend. The dog was going stir crazy, because it has been pouring for three straight days, and we don't let her dig in the mud. She normally runs around the yard for a good hour or we play out there, etc. Not this weekend. She was going nuts chasing her stuffed pig around our kitchen -- and then our living room, as we expanded her range to appease her slightly. She missed the neighbor dogs, who were rarely outside either. And basically, she just became a tyrant, chewing on hands, feet, peeing and pooping everywhere in the house, just being a passive aggressive dog. But today she is a little tamer, luckily. Still, I can't imagine what she is going to be like for Birgit if it rains the entire weekend.
***
I guess it is fitting that I say something about May Day somewhere other than in the title. So, um... I hope all my friends overseas that have the day off are enjoying it, getting their laundry done, and catching up on household chores, etc. I hope the immigrant strike/boycott works today. I just realized this weekend that there are three non-native US citizens in my nuclear family; so I really can't even question the fact that anti-immigrant people are assholes that hopefully accumulate massive amounts of bad karma for their activities. And I wish them all in-grown toenails. (Ha! Now that is violent protest.)
I should go check on my dog. I should grade. I should change clothes, as I'm dripping wet from hanging outside with the dog during a downpour. I should stop rambling about dumb shit or I won't have any readers by the time I post something from Brazil.
***
P.S. Hey Pisti, I haven't seen you on MSN. I hope you are doing well. We must chat soon!
Unless we're speaking about the World Cup. Yes, Brazil is going to take it this year. I have a feeling... the last time people were kicking the ball around for global supremacy, I was in France playing the bohemian who could care less about scores. (Meanwhile, I would sneak online at Manu's house and shuffle my fantasy baseball roster and check to see if the US had in fact only lost to Germany by one goal!) In 1998 I was in Romania when the national team defeated England to advance in the World Cup playoffs. There was a mini-riot! Istvan and I ducked down and fled the bar, as bottles started flying, people started honking, and people started chanting "fuck Hungary." Someone heard us speaking English briefly -- we weren't sure what was safer, Hungarian or English -- and pointed us out in the crowd shouting -- "Brits" in Romanian. We ran like hell. Explaining I was a Yank probably wouldn't do me much good. The World Cup before that one, 1994, I was in a pub in Kaposvar, Hungary, noticing the Bosnia troop buildup outside as the US started sending troops to Hungary to "train" for Bosnia. Sam and I sat in the pub with a bunch of Norwegian and Corsican women (or are they girls at the age of 18?) getting trashed and feeling real manly -- which isn't hard when there is a 30:2 female-to-male ratio in the foreign exchange program you are on. This time, though, I'm going to the epicenter of World Cup freneticism -- Brasil! I can't wait to see this... I just received a Germany World Cup 2006 t-shirt from my in-laws. It's pretty cool, actually. I'm tempted to wear it into a Brasilian pub to see what happens. I'll let you know.
Sports... spots... pots... ...stop.
***
I'm cranking Atmosphere right now. For the first time since 1991 and the early Public Enemy albums, rap is moving me again. I can't explain it. Is it a late-20s personal crisis? Is it because I never really stopped liking the concept, I just couldn't handle the bad hip hop that predominated throughout the 90s and early millennium? Is it because the economy has become so shitty again that I am drawn to radical, anti-establishment art? Is it because he is a local artist that is adored by hip hop afficionados around the world and dedicates his album to I-94 East? (Hell, the first person turning me onto the group was my French friend Julien. I don't know. But his lyrics are intense and very autobiographical. Not that bad gangsta stuff, fictional hubris that just gets more and more outrageous to sell albums to naive pre-pubescent teens. He has one song on his newest album, "You Can't Believe How Much Fun We're Having," called "Little Man," which moves me more than any song I've heard in years. The guy is so self-deprecating. I heard someone call him emo-hop, which disturbs me a bit, as I hate emo music. Still, whatever he is doing, it is incredible progress for rap as a whole, I would argue from my novice perspective.
Needless to say, Birgit is not diggin' my new music selection. In fact, she can't stand rap. My new annoying feature is to rap what I am saying or thinking to her. I am really bad at rapping. No, I'm horrific, but that is the fun of doing it. And it drives her nuts, so it is a good way to get negative attention. (Yes, I'm very Pavlovian.) I can only do it a couple of times before she hits her limit, though, and the attention I get from her turns into annoyance, bitterness, and if I go too far, a firm smack to the back of my head.
***
I'm off to Brasil? Holy cow, man! I started packing this weekend. I'm supposed to be grading right now. I have time. I don't feel like it. I'm too busy starting to salivate about the thought of hanging on the beach, wandering Rio for a week. I went and got a bunch of accessories for my trip this weekend. A pair of sunglasses -- I always break mine, and I'm just hoping these make it to Brazil before I accidentally sit on them -- shorts, a t-shirt, and a bunch of socks, as there isn't a washing machine there. (Here's a link to the city where my brother's house is.)
I'm charging my camera battery right now. I've renewed my library books. I've been reading a bunch of cartography books this past week, trying to get school reading in so I can concentrate on reading Shogun when I'm there. (I read it years ago and bought it again at Half Price Books recently, as I don't remember anything about the book except it was one of the best I've ever read.)
Birgit is getting a little nervous, and excited, about me leaving. The dog has become quite a bit of work recently. Definitely teething. Chewing on everything isn't the problem. It's when she gets moody because her teeth hurt and there is nothing you can do... that's when she becomes snippy and all you want to do is run away from her. And well... it is a two person job raising a dog. I'm sure you could do it alone, but Birgit is the working person among us. I just hope she doesn't lose it. I know I lost it this weekend. The dog was going stir crazy, because it has been pouring for three straight days, and we don't let her dig in the mud. She normally runs around the yard for a good hour or we play out there, etc. Not this weekend. She was going nuts chasing her stuffed pig around our kitchen -- and then our living room, as we expanded her range to appease her slightly. She missed the neighbor dogs, who were rarely outside either. And basically, she just became a tyrant, chewing on hands, feet, peeing and pooping everywhere in the house, just being a passive aggressive dog. But today she is a little tamer, luckily. Still, I can't imagine what she is going to be like for Birgit if it rains the entire weekend.
***
I guess it is fitting that I say something about May Day somewhere other than in the title. So, um... I hope all my friends overseas that have the day off are enjoying it, getting their laundry done, and catching up on household chores, etc. I hope the immigrant strike/boycott works today. I just realized this weekend that there are three non-native US citizens in my nuclear family; so I really can't even question the fact that anti-immigrant people are assholes that hopefully accumulate massive amounts of bad karma for their activities. And I wish them all in-grown toenails. (Ha! Now that is violent protest.)
I should go check on my dog. I should grade. I should change clothes, as I'm dripping wet from hanging outside with the dog during a downpour. I should stop rambling about dumb shit or I won't have any readers by the time I post something from Brazil.
***
P.S. Hey Pisti, I haven't seen you on MSN. I hope you are doing well. We must chat soon!
