Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Waving and wisting

Hey, look up! New banner! For those who don't know the flag on the left is the flag of the City of Chicago. Every part of it means something, and it's long been one of my favorites. The one on the right is of course the flag of Argentina, also one of my faves. They're two great flags that wave great together. OK, I'm a dork, but you already knew that.

People often ask me what I miss now that I'm living down here. I don't have a clear answer for that, really. I'm still settling in. Work is busy (and good), and I'm having a real blast exploring my new city. I don't really miss anything outside of many, many people. But then I got this note from the Obama campaign about a chance to get my hands on a ticket to their election-night festivities in Grant Park. I suddenly felt very far from home. Assuming the polls are right and good will triumph over dumb, this will be one of the most monumental evenings in Chicago history. One of our own will become President of the United States. And I won't be there for it. I mean, how cool is it going to be for Chicago? An amazing, amazing day. I have Josh here, but he's not quite the freakishly obsessive fanatic that I've become over the course of the year. And I frankly don't know anyone else here who shares my "passion" for this election. Seriously, I have a problem. But we'll find a way to party. I suppose it's OK to start believing, isn't it? Can we convert hope to belief yet?

As far as other things I miss are concerned, I miss seafood a bit. There's not much of it, and what little you can find is very expensive. But I actually haven't noticed that much. They say chicken is the seafood of the land, don't they? OK, no they don't. I just find it weird that I'm eating chicken again in the first place. I also miss my bed. Have I mentioned that here before? Only on every posting you say? I suppose that has nothing to do with "life in Argentina" - only "my life in Argentina." I'm sleepy.

Buenos Aires has a reputation for crime, but thus far I haven't seen much evidence of it. Recently, however, I was on my way to a friend's house for dinner, driven by other friends. We were stopped in a row of cars near a train station. Quickly, my friends rolled up the windows. A kid just ahead of us was trying to get into cars. Cars with people in them. I didn't even notice. The crazy thing was, I was planning to take the train, but my friends insisted that I not go that route. None of us were harmed or aggrieved in any way, but it was a reminder to keep on my toes. In sum, it helps to have friends who know what they're doing.

You can feel summer coming around. On Sunday, the deck by our pool was pretty crowded. Maybe this week I'll check it out myself. If I'm not too busy blogging.

I went to lunch with Nico a couple weeks ago at a place we'd been before. He told me, "I like this place because it's one of the few restaurants downtown where you can talk without having to shout." No less than a minute later, a kid screamed bloody murder. Then he got louder and louder. I've never heard anything like this. It was amazing. We laughed (once the tyke was hauled out of there). There are a lot of loud kids here, louder and more disruptive than in the states. At least that's how it seems to me. The dogs, on the other hand, are almost all extremely well behaved, even the strays (of which there are many). They're totally docile and are almost always off their leashes just walking along with their owners. They must be bred differently. Of course, I proffered this theory during lunch with a friend on Saturday, and as soon as we left, we were followed by a dog (with owner) who barked his fool head off for three blocks. One other note on the dogs, there's poop everywhere. Every morning they hose down the sidewalks in front of every business in town, including apartment buildings. They do this because they have to. It's the aspect that the greater Buenos Aires area shares with Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood.

And since that ties us back to the new banner up top, albeit in a gross way, why don't we stop today's ramblings right there.

I've written some other things in other places recently. On FtY, I look back at albums from the 1990s you never heard, but you should have.
And on Road Games, I talk myself off the ledge that is Michigan Football, 2008. My commenters manage to get me back in the window. Rob, special thanks for your words there. They made me feel good.

I almost forgot. It's not celebrated here, but since I didn't get any photos up in this posting, here's a blast from the past. Happy Halloween everyone!
I's from Staines!

3 comments:

Lahill said...

Right on, Andrew. It's bad karma to celebrate before the fat lady sings (or the hockey pugh lady sinks) but I want you to know that we did order our tickets for Grant Park. We'll give a cheer for YOU. By the way, re your missing bed, has anyone told you about Schmear money? It's supposed to be an Argentinian custom.
Un saludo muy afectuoso de su Papa.

Kozy said...

I heard that clubbing until 5 in the morning aids with the hibernation!

Josh said...

You can't celebrate in Grant Park with seafood, but there is always Park Las Heras with milanesa.

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