My Finish Line

Just thought I'd share the picture that was taken of me at the finish line of the Nike Run Hit Wonder 10K last week. Do a search by bib # for 2233. I should be 4th row, 1st from left.

Bryce, one of the other guys I work with (search for 1635 for him, also an entertaining pic) told me I looked like Johnny from The Shining. Yup, I was glad to get that over with.

My Round the Clock/Spanish Roots IV

Whew, will the errand running ever cease? I feel like I've had barely any free time on my hands the past week and a half. I am back to a mostly normal work schedule for now, and most of my time after work is split doing home improvement and making all the phone calls that need to be made during non-peak hours since Sprint is a fucking pain and won't let me switch plans, grrr. I was out until 10pm two nights ago, didn't get to sleep until midnight, then had to wake up at 3 AM to be at the hospital for a few hours (an exception to the above), so I was a bit burnt out by Friday night. I took a nap today, though, and I feel recovered. Despite all the chaos, I do feel quite accomplished. In the past few days, I (and Deanna in some cases, accordingly) finished painting the dining room, picked up a nice TV, retrieved the missing part to the desk I bought last week, got the cable/internet working, squared away plans with my dad for what to bring up, stocked up on plenty of food (decent this time), changed bank accounts, and opened up my first investment portfolios. I even cleaned a little. Normally, I am fairly tidy, but when my free time is limited, I would rather choose something else besides scrubbing a tiolet bowl.

While my free time has been limited, I did have a chance to accompany Scott on his maiden voyage on his new Jamis Quest bike. We ended up taking the lakefront path way south, which I've never traversed. I should get down that way more often because it is just as absolutely gorgeous as the north side, and there are about 75% fewer people. That equals faster riding and more fun times. Scott was pretty burnt out by the time we turned around, but give him a few weeks and I think he'll give me some good competition.

Last night was pretty chill. Deanna invited me to go out with her and some friends, including Sarah, who is practically our third roommate now :). We were originally going to go to Sarah's friend's place, but when we found out that it was off the blue line on the NW side, we promptly changed our plans and stayed in Andersonville instead. Deanna, Sarah, and I hit up Hopleaf, an awesome bar with over 300 beers to choose from! I chose an Oatmeal Stout and Demolition Ale, fine selections if I do say so myself. In fact, Mandy and I talked about going out tonight and might start there as we bar hop along Clark. We'll see where the night will take us.

Speaking of Mandy, breaking news is that her beaux, Gebler, is leaving to go work in Germany for 3 months starting next week! So we'll try to wash away her sorrow at least for tonight.

Oh, and check out Pecker's study abroad blog. He and a lot of other buddies from college are partaking in the wonderful, extravagant party that is Europe. May they see just as many wonders and have as many hedonistic adventures as I did.

And with that, Pt. IV:

Sun., 9/19

The symphonic orchestra on Friday was great. The acoustics are perfect in that hall—I could hear every note. I went with Jenn, Michelle, Maryanna, Steph, and Carly. So many women on this trip. Not a bad thing.

Literally all of the women in Spain are gorgeous. But beware: every Spanish girl is inherently younger than she actually looks. It’s all in the way they: a) dress, and b) walk. Our culture teacher was discussing sex roles in Spain, and how men used to be the “lanzadores” who jumped on women, but nowadays it’s the exact opposite. I have no problem with that.

Friday after the concert I just went home, read for a bit, and crashed. Jon left for Madrid, so I had some real down time, I wasn’t exactly feeling great so I rested up and felt fine afterward. Actually, several kids on the program have fallen extremly ill--likely due to the extreme culture shock, adapting to the different day schedule and partying until 4AM for five nights straight. I consider myself lucky enough so far not to have caught the Seville bug--the bad kind, not the good.

Saturday, most of the JYS kids went to Córdoba. It’s a picturesque, heavily Arab city, with the famous Mezquita at its center, flanked by rows of orange trees and numerous columns, and boasting the gigantic circular arches that are so indicative of traditional Moorish architecture. After the trip, I had my first dinner completely alone at home; Maria, Irene, and Conci all went out. I ended up going out with Liz and some of her friends in her program to Plaza Alfalfa. This time, I didn’t get lost, AND Catedral, an undergound club most famous for its beds in windows was bouncing. I thought it was a myth, but I now know it’s for real. But Liz’s friends are extremely dramatic, and hopefully I won’t become involved too much.

Today will probably be another low-key day. It seems the family didn’t go to church for once. I awoke to the sound of the house phone ringing and the door banging. It turned out to be Conci, who apparently had forgotten her key and was stuck outside for an hour after having bought some bread—¡pobrecita! I wasn’t exactly sure if I should have answered the phone at first, in case it was someone else (we were told not to answer it anyway), and I figured if it was someone I knew they’d have called my cell, but nobody else woke up to let her in so after much stirring and grumbling, I took the initiative.

Mon., 9/27

I haven’t written in a while because for the longest time I couldn’t figure out how to recharge my computer battery, but it turns out the converter I had was actually for use with a lower -wattage battery, and Jon’s adapter works fine, so I will just borrow his indefinitely.

Anyway, we just got back from a spectacular trip to Lagos (LAH-gohsh), a beach resort town on the southeast coast of Portugal. DiscoverSeville, a Seville-based event planning company run by two recent American graduates, had the trip planned down to a T. We left Friday after fully concluding orientation (which took waaaay too long) and the entrance exam (whose proctor was extremely long-winded). We rolled in around 3:30 PM local time (Portugal is an hour behind, on GMT), anxiously awaiting the chance to hop off the bus and onto the beach.

Unfortunately, I had started to feel under the weather after waking up Friday morning, as it was apparently my turn to feel the effects of three weeks of partying hard. I took some Vicadin and Advil and a few cough drops with me, though, and I made it through the weekend OK. After changing, we headed to the Praia Dona Ana, renowned for its postcard-worthy “acantilados,” or cliffs. We played some football (the American kind) and tanned for a bit.

Afterward, the group went out for dinner at a really nice place downtown. I scarfed down an amazing cut of swordfish, and proceeded to vacuum the girls’ plates around me. Then, Sarah, Lydia, Margaret, and a few other people and I went bar hopping. Someone had recommended The Old Tavern as a good place to meet enthralling young tourists like ourselves and locals alike, but we arrived way before everyone else and found only the bartender and five 40-year-olds dressed in black biker outfits. Neat. We quickly moved on, but later found that we apparently we missed out, because by the end of the night the rest of our group had arrived and ended up dancing on tables.

We hit a few more bars, including Eddies, where we met a nice Irish man named Firn who recommended all the bars, naturally, we had already been to. Lagos really is a black hole for Australians and Britains especially. We learned that Firn and a few other people we met in Lagos had come with the intention to vacation for only a few weeks several years back and just never returned home. Now Firn spends half the year working at a bar and the other half skiing in the Alps. Why can't I do that?

Much to our annoyance, we were overcharged for our taxi ride home. It's tought to get a steady rate, especially as a tourist, since there are no meters in any Portuguese taxis. Nor, by the way, are there any radio stations that don’t play music in English. Also, the Portuguese have everything translated into English and German, but not Spanish, apparently to demarcate their culture and territory against their towering Iberian neighbor.

Saturday, we took a spectacular boat ride off the coast on these sweet, old-school schooners. The mates made a particularly scrumptious lunch complete with yummy, tangy sangria, which was impressive considering they had to accomodate several dozen kids. We dove in crystal-clear waters, and meandered in and out of the cliifs on smaller boat tours—quite scenic. I took an extremely long nap to reenergize myself afterward.

I awoke to find that most of the group had already left for dinner downtown, but was saved after running into Bea and Amanda in the lobby who were on their way to dinner. I tagged along and spent most of the night with them, Carly, Patrick, and Olivia. Olivia, Amanda, and Patrick, the resident gay in our group, shared more sex stories than I would have liked to have heard, including some from the previous night. Since I was still feeling somewhat low, I didn't end up drinking too much, although I couldn't pass up the two free shots Bea and Amanda offered me throughout the course of the night.

After being denied a cab ride home in a van (bastards), I made the walk back, mostly uphill, while supporting an intoxicated Bea who was battling with stiletto heels. We all made it back OK, except the American style party that had been thrown was already dying down, so I didn’t stay too long and quickly went to sleep.

The next day was chock full of bad boy surfing. I had been wary of going because of my health, but decided it was worth it to live in the moment to the max, and worry about the aftereffects later. We made the trip to a beach out of town in surf style, meaning 15 year old vans and jeeps with converted hoods. I sat in the front the whole time trying to fix the dying radio. My discomfort in this decrepit piece metal on wheels was balanced by the thrill of rugged offroading. We made a stop atop the edge of the cliff above the beach which held a breathtaking view of the sea below, then descended down the sand.

I was El Rey de las Olas on the waves. I spent more time in the water than anyone else in our party. The waves were pretty huge to begin with in the morning (just about my height where we started), and got larger as the tide came in. After drying off and eating lunch, we all began to feel fatigue set in and chilled by the bar until the surf instructors readied the jeeps/vans. We all showered out by the pool at our Lagos hotel and boarded the bus for the ride home, which turned out to be pretty long as there was traffic on the highway coming into Seville.

What else happened in the week before that…I can’t remember, I didn’t go out too much right before the Lagos trip since I and a lot of other people were just plain feeling exhausted from the past few weeks.

Wednesday night was a quasi-disaster. Since Jon became a promoter for FunkyClub (foonkey-cloob), a nightclub outfit, he had acquired free passes to Boss, their main venue, so we invited María, and her best friend, Chuti, to go with us. We worked it up by saying it’d be free and we’d buy them drinks. Jon and Antony, the other American promoter and fellow Northwesterner, had to go arrive early in the night and iron things out with el jefe, so I went with María to a bar where Chuti works. After downing a few glasses of Cruzcampo, we took a taxi to Calle Betis and continued drinking there. When we passed Boss at 12:15 there was no line, but by 12:35 the line had suddendly balooned , as apparently everyone in JYS and else and their mothers who had free passes decided to go at that time. I ended up standing in line with Maria and Chuti for just over an hour, trying to get in touch with Jon multiple times to no avail, but they didn't want to stay any longer, understandably. So we just went bar hopping. Maria blames Jon (as per their “Guerra” =P) for abandoning her. Tear…

Anyway, classes started today. Classes are supposed to be places where people study, right? And I am in a STUDY abroad trip. Apparently that term is quite ephemeral, as we’ve had 3 weeks of vacation, and on the first day of classes, two of my three professors didn’t show up. In her apologist response to defend the Spanish educational system, my Señora’s excuse was that since American students have an “actitud relajado,” the professors who teach American students are permitted to have one too. Touchée, Conci, touchée. My first seminar in the morning was nice pretty agreeable, though—only 4 people attended, and the professor is very amiable and flexible. Later, I visited the new JYS office. It is quite posh for Spanish standards. They just got the internet working and put in four new desktops, though I can see this becoming a problem as all of us vie for computer time. But no more internet café bonos for me. Now that I figured out how to charge my battery, I can send pictures out to people also.

Tomorrow I shall go investigate options for guitar lessons and try to call the other rowing center whose number I got from an advertisement in the JYS office in la Universidad.

Mezquita interior, Córdoba


Praia Doña Ana, Lagos, Portugal


Cruising in Style


El Rey de Las Olas

My Run Hit Wonder

Wow, I actually have time to make a post at work. I'm still sans internet at home until Friday when the cable guy comes (although I have been mooching off a very weak but very convenient wireless signal somewhere in the area). We still don't have a TV yet, but I'm trying to strike a deal on craigslist. Craigslist is a godsend. It hasn't been so bad without a unit, though. In fact, I don't really watch TV that often. All I really want it for are movies, the few select shows that I watch, and my Xbox.

Last night, I participated in Nike's Run Hit Wonder downtown. It's an annual race event sponsored by Nike (duh) where you can either enter for a 5K or 10K. Of course, I did the 10K =). Normally, I wouldn't have thought to take part in any kind of running event; running pains me way too much compared to other sports, and the blisters I incurred on my feet are still healing. But a few other guys in my lab had signed up for it, and one of them, Tjoson, had to forfeit his spot for a "more important" med school interview, so he offered me his spot. Missing out on the crew racing from college, I couldn't refuse.

The course was amazing. We ran up Coumbus, zig zagged through upper and lower Wacker Drive, back around down the lake shore/marina, around the aqarium, back to the start line. It was great to run at night, not only because it was a rather hot/humid day, but also because you could run through the night-lit buildings. The Blue Cross/Blue Shield building was lit up such that the south side's windows read "Run Loud"--Nike's race slogan. I got to see Mia Hamm, too, which was cool.

It has always been a small fantasy of mine to run in a race only to be able to chug some water at the hydration stand, splash it all over me, and then recklessly chuck the beaten cup to the side. And last night I was able to do that =).

In other news, Deanna and I are almost done painting our new place. We wanted to make it feel like something of our own. We chose what we thought would be appropriate colors based solely on paint chips, contrary to my mother's advice, and we probably should have listened to her, because the first color we laid in the living room came out WAY too bright. But all is good. We found a solution. And even if it doesn't turn out perfect, it will at least keep us in good spirits during the winter.

Deanna's parents came to visit last weekend. I kept making fun of D because she slipped into Minnesota accent mode; every time she said "bag" or "rag" or "tag," I made her repeat it, much to her dissatisfaction. Her dad was kind enough to lend me his tool set, notably his drill, which I needed to put some things up on the wall. (Note: apparently EZ drywall anchors do not screw into plaster walls. Bad iea.) It's great to actually be a working man around the house. All that stuff Dad and Tool Time taught me is paying off.

My room is slowly coming together. I'm still sleeping on an air mattress, and will be for even longer now that my parents informed me they won't be coming up until Oct. 1 with the rest of my furniture, but in the past few weeks I've acquired a nice desk and sold my A/C unit, so there is enough space for now. I can't wait to get a nice big bed again, though.

Seasons are changing around here. The weather has been wacky--it was so hot yesterday, but cool enough today to herald the beginning of Chicago fall--, college is back in session, and new people are starting in our lab while others are moving on to bigger and better things. Lots of college buddies are going abroad, and crew camp is starting up again (I'm so glad that's over with--I'm content to watch from the sidelines now). It's definitely a different world now, but there are still some solid things in my life to fall back on. The funny thing is, I've realized this point in my life is basically a bridge to the next phase of school, whence I will be dumped back into even greater academic rigors. It's nice to have the time off, though. I've already gotten great advice and good experience through work. I highly recommend a year or two off.

Scott just bought a new bike, so I'm going to help him assemble it after work today. I'm glad he's getting into cycling, because now I will have a partner downtown to ride with.

My Rant

The situation down south is utterly embarassing. I've been politically apathetic in the past, but this is just inescapable. Two heavily preventable watershed events in one decade--amazing. Screw 9/11, the repercussions here will be far more extensive. It's far more fundamentally serious. I hope some positve change will come about. I'm too frustrated, and concerned with finishing moving, to explain myself, but see here:


Anger, eloquence mark TV coverage of hurricane Katrina's aftermath
this is FOX NEWS, guys, what does that say about how serious this is?
Craigslist -- search for "race" and/or "looting"
Ted Koppel Rips, Rips RIPS Michael Brown of FEMA on "Nightline"
The big disconnect on New Orleans
Rapes, killings hit Katrina refugees in New Orleans
Budget Cuts Delayed New Orleans Flood Control Work
Agencies drilled for 'worst-case scenario'


And this is our commander in chief 2 days after the hurricane hit:
















Glad to see he's concerned and getting down to business.

Finally, put this into perspective: Bush actually admitted that things weren't perfect for once. This has to be serious!

My Big Move

Tomorrow, I will be moving out of my sublet and into my nice new place closer downtown in Andersonville. I'll be out of internet service at home for a little while--although I will have access at work during short breaks...oh, who am I kidding, I'll be messing around online at work a lot--until the Comcast technician comes the week after next to install our cable. He would have come next week, but Deanna's little bachelorette party at our place got in the way. I told her she should just have the cable guy strip. No, I will not be there, although Deanna said she and the girlies wouldn't mind if I took the cable guy's place...

While I'm glad I am finally moving tomorrow, I must say the exact moving date was up in the air until today. At first today, I was put out after receiving yet another call from the body shop telling me this time they still had to install the temperature control unit and it would take until next Tuesday or Wednesday. That's three weeks after I delievered it to them, and two weeks after they originally told me it would be finished. I know for sure by this point they are just jerking me around, making up excuses for not being able to finish on time. And this is the place my insurance company (which is actually quite good) recommended. I knew the guy on the phone was lying through his teeth, because I told him I absolutely had to have a car this weekend to move, and that the shop should pay for a rental until I get my car back, and he quickly acceded. So fortunately, I do have ample transportation, although it is limited space (I got a Hyundai Elantra.

Tomorrow is going to be one extremely busy day. I'm taking Eviatar to the airport in the early morning. Then, I have tentative plans to pick up a TV I saw on craigslist (hey, at least I can watch movies and play XboX before the cable comes). And then I have the rest of the day to move. I don't have too much stuff with me, as my parents are bringing the remaining furniture and clothes up in a few weeks, so it probably won't be more than two car loads.

Oh, and I got to see Scottiyang and his new place in Onterie (on Erie, near where I work). He's got a sweet pad with one other buddy in med school with a beautiful view of the construction plank blocking his window. Lovely. I'm excited, because I got him excited about cycling, in pretty much the same fashion that Eviatar got me into it. He'd been thinking about doing it, and he seemed much more interested after hearing that I'm really into cycling now. Eviatar is abandoning me for *more important* things, like going back to school. Thus, I will not have a bike buddy to work. So hopefully Scott can fill that void.

Enough writing--I have to be up in 5 hours!!