Dogs!

Dogs!

I have been feeling uninspired over the past week. It is probably because I missed Sara while she was in New Mexico. She came back on Friday, so my mood has improved. So much so that I was even able to finish a journal article I have been working on. I was supposed to have it to the editor by November 1 - so it was just a little bit late. Ooops!

I can't believe we are heading down to DC on Wednesday. We will be attending the Anthropology meetings which can be fun just because anthropologists are very strange creatures. At the meetings you will see people of every color and flavor. What is not fun is that I have to give a paper that is yet to be finished. Hmmph! I should also be networking and perhaps even interviewing while I am there, but the employment room is one of the most stressful places I have ever been in. So I will avoid it as much as I can.

I do have a non-academic agenda for our time in DC. Sara has never been up the Washington Monument, so we are going to give it a try. I also want to see the new WWII memorial and the new museum of the American Indian. Most of all, I want to get some good Ethiopian food!

Ok, I should get to the title of this post. Thanksgiving Day I left the television on in the morning when I went to work on my article. When I came out to the living room, the dogs were on the couch watching the television. Mind you, they are usually completely oblivious to the television unless there is a dog barking, a cat meowing, or a doorbell ringing. Even then, the attention is fleeting. This time, however, they were completely engrossed. From where I first spotted them, I could not see what was on the television, but then I walked further and discovered that they were watching the Philadelphia Dog Show!

Some people watch football on Thanksgiving, other the Thanksgiving parade. Our dogs prefer the Philadelphia Dog Show!


Since I was posting dog pictures, I just thought I would add these two.

Whatcha want?


Ever consider getting some odor-eaters?

Yes, that is my giant shoe by Zephyr's head!

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Sara's Feet

Sara's Feet

People have been clamoring to see the recent artistic addition to Sara's feet. So without further ado:



The recent addition is the map and compass, which is still a work in progress (there will be color added to it sometime in the future). The tiguana (a mix between a tiger and an iguana - I know it is hard to see) was added in July, while the centipede (note the capsaicin molecule on its back) was added in March. The snake was the first inhabitant of the feet, arriving when Sara lived in New Mexico - a long, long time ago.

As you can see, the artist is quite talented - one of Boston's best (if not the best). Hence, the wait to have him work on you is about four months long. He is fond of Sara because she asks for interesting and unconventional work.

If you have any questions, you can ask Sara.

My horoscope today:

Libra

Daily extended (by Astrology.com)
Think about this: When was the last time you actually went away on vacation? Traveling for a business trip doesn't count, either. It's been far too long, hasn't it? Okay, so what are we going to do about that? Visit the travel agent on the way home from work tonight, just to get inspired. Then you can spend some time online looking at room and flight rates. One way or the other, you really should treat yourself to a trek.

I usually don't believe in astrology, but this was right on. Of course, who doesn't need a vacation, so it is just one of those tricks where they state the obvious and it seems to fit right into your life.

Still, I need a vacation - I need that treat.

Answers to Mariposa's Questions:

1. If you were a book which book would you be?

This is a tough question. I probably could ponder that one for a long time. I won't say that my dissertation, which I hope will soon be a book, for that would be a cop out. Instead I will mention the two that first popped in my head.
I feel that each of the brothers in the Brothers Karamzov by Fyodor Dostoevsky reflects an important part of my personality and as such I think that it would be a fitting book to represent me. I also feel that Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut illustrates the randomness of my life. So one of those two.


2. What are 3 things in your fridge?

Many types of cheeses, apple cider, and strawberries.


3. When are you and your wife coming to Chicago?

I have no idea. There are no upcoming conferences there and neither of us has applied for any jobs there. Actually, I am mistaken...Sara will be there tomorrow, but her presence will only be for an hour or so as she changes planes at Midway on her way to Albuquerque.


4.If you were a painting which one would you be and why?

Again this is a question that I could ponder forever. Unlike the books, however, nothing jumped in my mind. The first thoughts were something by Picasso for its complexity, something by Monet for its vagueness and softness, something by Rivera for its richness, or something by Dali for its absurdity. I am going to have to pass on this one and think about it some more.


5. What's in your suitecase or backpack?

Books, book, and more books. I also have pens, pencils, paper clips, change, Buddhist wrist beads, a wooden W with a wolf on it, old cough drops, asprin, and a highlighter.


If anyone else has questions or wants clarification on my answers, just ask...

Thank you to those of you who offered up suggestions as to what I should write. I will get to them in due course. While I do have a little free time at the moment, my brain is past the point where I can be thoughtful and coherent. And your questions deserve better answers than I can offer at the moment.

I have some other things I also want to write about...so hopefully I will get to them over the next few days.

Huh?

Randomness?

No se porqué pero hoy tengo tantas ideas que corren de aquí para alla en mi mente. Se confunden y no logro a distinguir lo que quiero entender.

Le lingue si confondono. Faccio il salto di una all’altra senza sappere perché. Saranno i nuovi farmaci che stanno faccendo uno scherzo nella mia mente?

Je ne sais pas. C’est possible…

Es ist schwer für mich – sehr schwer. Ich habe keine Ahnung. Veliecht werde ich ein bischien veruckt sein.

Eu quero saber porque a minha mente nào funziona bem. Mais eu não tenho nenhuma certeza...

It is time for me to leave. I am getting the needles put in to move my energy. I shall leave you with this …

Tell me what to write about and how…help me focus my thoughts into something you would like to know.

Vote

I voted!

Did you?

Not that there was much to vote on. At stake are:

• The Boston mayoral election that is all but decided.
• Four at-large city council seats.
• An unopposed district councilor.

When you think about it, my vote is more powerful on days like today when turnout is going to be low. So who did I vote for?

• The first Asian-American running for Boston city council (he is Korean).
• A popular Puerto Rican who might be Boston's first Latino mayor in the future.
• The only woman in the race.
• The last choice was among a bunch of middle-aged Irish-Americans. One of them is the sitting City Council president. He recently was shot at, so I was tempted to vote for him since he might have a new perspective on life in the city. His mass-mailings annoyed me, though. Another candidate lives near where we do, so I was tempted to vote for him. But I didn't. You might be thinking, well where do they stand on the issues? They are all mostly on the same page, so that couldn't be a determining factor. Well, all issues but one. Rent control. I voted for the one in favor of it - who also happens to be the one endorsed by the Boston Globe.

Ah, democracy in action - you gotta love it!

The weekend is almost over and most of the things I needed to accomplish remain unfinished. Rats!

There is much I would like to write about, but the time and energy are both short.

I need to get back to my class prep for tomorrow.

Nostalgia

Nostalgia

Yesterday, as Sara and I were driving somewhere, we pulled up behind a van that had So-and-So's Cutlery Service written on the side and back. I had never seen a home-service for cutlery at in this country.

However, it brought back a flash of my days in Mexico where some guy on a bicylcle would ride around the neighborhood offering his cutlery sharpening services. He had a sharpenning wheel on the back of the bicycle which would spin as he pedaled with the back wheel propped up.

I had not thought about that in a long time.

We also ended up going to our neighborhood Mexican restaurant for dinner. It turns out that this week is the Tri-national Gastronomy and Culture of Mexico Week (link in Spanish only). Several Mexican restaurants in Boston (and elsewhere, I assume) are offering special menus featuring some of the regional specialties from Mexico. I knew about the offerings at a restaurant in Sommerville that I have been wanting to try. Unfortunately, Sommerville is not an easy trip for us and this week is really busy, so we would have to miss it.

Our local place, however, was also participating. The owners are from Yucatan and they were offering some dishes from that state. We had ceviche, relleno negro, cochinita pibil, flan, pan de muertos, and hot chocolate. I had been looking around for pan de muertos because I always loved having it when I lived in Mexico. Apparently there are not enough Mexicanos in Boston to warrant a Mexican bakery. I was a little disappointed, but such is life. I was able to get some, however. The owner of the place said that he got it from a bakery in Providence. I think I remember the place he was talking about.

I wrote about the Day of the Dead/Halloween in Mexico a couple of years ago if you care to read more about it. Whereas there I felt I was a part of both, here I feel somewhat alienated from both. Maybe that's just part of growing up...

Nonetheless, the food and the memories of the cutlery sharpening guy on his bicycle made me a little nostalgic.