A request for the Houstonians

Does anyone want to have me eternally in their debt?

I was storing some stuff at Nick's place, but he's moving and can't keep it anymore. It's not really very much, it just 2 boxes that need a corner in a closet somewhere. It isn't stuff that's worth enough to get storage for 2 years, but it's stuff that's either useful or has sentimental value. If you can spare a corner somewhere, I'll love you forever.

Because everyone loves to wile away time

1. The old classic Dubai is nuts. The first time I saw this was probably a year and a half ago. I've looked it up probably 5 times since, and am astounded everytime.

2. New essay by Nassib Nicholas Talem. It's not the timeless classic that Fooled By Randomness is, but it's worth reading given current financial circumstances. It's not like he said this was going to happen or anything...oh wait.

Just wondering...

but who drives around Buenos Aires at 3am on a Friday night with Frank Sinatra blaring?

Anyway, I'm off to some hot springs tomorrow. There'll be pictures if I remember my camera.

El progreso?

Well, I can almost always understand when they put Spanish on American TV shows. Es lento y con los despacios.

Spanish on Spanish TV is another story, of course.

How do you run out of coins?

There is a nationwide coin shortage. Yeah, seriously. Shops even put up signs saying "no hay monedas." (There are no coins.) So, that's not a huge deal, except that people get around this city by taking the bus. The only way to pay for the bus is with coins.

How do you run out of coins? I take the bus out to the suburbs frequently for church, to play soccer, to get lost, and for other stuff. So now I am constantly trying to think of buying the right quantity of stuff so that I can obtain coins.

This is what I call a picture dump

In case you're wondering why there aren't more pictures on the blog -- and why they are always all at one time instead of spaced out -- it's because my upload speed isn't too fast. Plus Blogger makes it kinda hard to organize the pictures. Normally I at least semi-organize them to put them in order. Not this time.




This is a pretty famous statue. It's huge; bigger than I imagined before I got here. Those mammoth steel petals open up and close during the day.That's water all around it. As I write that, it occurs to me that this could've been planned to discourage graffiti. There's also security that I assume is 24 hours.



This is the Facultad de Derecho de la Universidad de Buenos Aires. If a law school had a building this cool in the US, I'd probably have to go there. You can see this building in the background of the previous picture.



Picture of the Duarte family tomb in the Recoleta Cemetary with Evita's placque on the top right.





This was the Sarmiento tomb, I believe, but I'm not so good with the camera. The cemetary is an impressive place. I'd rather just be cremated. Funerals aren't for the dead.




Why is there so much dog crap all over the sidewalks? Now you know. This is pretty standard. You'll often see dog walkers on bikes with 10 dogs on leashes running next to them. Que peligroso!




I never knew Uruguay was in the Orient.




This is where I eat lunch several times a week. In fact, I'm headed to Sudestada tomorrow.








This is what I normally order. On Monday, the waitress asked me if I just wanted the same as usual. That must mean that I'm a regular. I didn't take a picture of the dumplings, but they are excellent.

Notice the spanish book. It was a working lunch. Because I am all about the industriousness.

NYC? Yawn

If you think New Yawk cabbies are crazy, then it is very unlikely that you have experienced the joy of Porteno (Buenos Aires) cab drivers.

Also, tell them to take it off the meter in arrange for a fixed price, and they will go crazy to get you there fast. It's like riding in a Formula One car. Open the windows, enjoy the breeze. Feliz!