I have been happily ensconced in Patagonia now for a week. It has been lovely. We have had hot weather for so early in the season, but beautiful nonetheless, hot days and cool nights. Perfect for swimming and sleeping. There has been the usual chaos around the holidays in combination with setting up the house after an absence of nine months. But it has been really quiet nice and relaxing and couldn’t be more different than our life in Buenos Aires. (more…)
Categories: argentina · empty insights · self-indulgence
We are headed down South for the holidays and then some. Our interconnectivity is not a sure thing, so I don’t know if I will be able to post much. Anyway, my priority will be the kid’s blog which if I can get online and download photos I will be doing that. I will be playing it all by ear.
My gift to you is a suggestion. Buy this book on tape. Its very funny in a weird twisted way.
Peace and Joy
Categories: self-indulgence · too lazy to write anything
A reason, as an American, to be very, very ashamed – CIA Black Sites
The most annoying electronic Christmas Card of 2007 and maybe ever – gofyourself.com
Please tell me why Al Gore is not our president? watch both parts – Al Gore Nobel Acceptance Part 1 Part 2
The immigration problem that isn’t really one, but the republican presidential candidates will make it an hysterical witch hunt – Bob Herbert NYTimes Column
A very positive piece on Obama – Rolling Stone
I love dogs, but this is just stupid and a waste of my money,and if you blink you will miss Tony Blair – Barney’s WhiteHouse Christmas
Categories: Political · absurdity · too lazy to write anything
Blog Specialists – Santa Claus and North Pole related
http://www.northpole.com - can send emails to Santa and play games with annoying music, perfect for the younger believers
http://www.noradsanta.org – Very cool website with pre-Christmas activites and awesome Christmas Eve tracking of Santa around the world, its part of our Christmas Eve tradition
Santa Blogs, some not really for children
http://www.clauschronicles.blogspot.com/ – If Santa was a nice midwestern guy who liked football
http://www.santasjournal.com/journal/ – This Santa seems to have a writing block, not updated since May, or maybe he is busy
http://www.santaclaus-officialblog.com/ - This Santa is desperate for more site hits and there are lots of links to commerical sites, he must of hired an interactive consultant
http://www.santaspeaking.com/santasblog.aspx – This a blog from Santa updated daily with goofy entries about the going -ons at the North Pole. It also doubles a commercial site where for only $21.95 you can call Santa and have an “interactive” conversation.
Categories: kids · too lazy to write anything
Full disclosure here, I dont know how to have an unadulterated Merry Christmas. I think the last time I had a totally Merry Christmas I was 5. After that, Christmas got complicated . Expectations began to exceed the reality. For many years to come, whether that disappointment came in the form of not getting what I wanted, or familial stresses or with the pressure to create that Christmas when I was 5 for my kids, Christmas took on the quality of an event to be endured, survived, even to a point, dreaded. Well with now 40 or so Christmases, that I remember under my belt, I believe I have some Christmas wisdom to share. Some of it is practical. Some of it is a philosophy of keeping it simple that if you buy into, while no guarantees, I do feel you can eek out a few more moments of Peace and Joy. Because that is what it is all about. Peace and Joy.
Categories: empty insights · kids
It looks as if my fantasy of Al Gore running for president has died a slow, lonely death. He has officially missed key ballot deadlines, so I have now officially (along with the DraftGore movement) given up on the dream of President Gore.
Who am I going to vote for? I am going to vote for Barack Obama in the primaries in February. We concur on those issues that are the most important to me. But what really appeals to me is his ability to communicate with inspiration about his vision of the future of this country. He is a leader. I want follow him to a better world where we are leading other nations through understanding and respect and helping through partnership and charity. I also think we need to pay attention to our collective mental health. We need a president that will straighten us out, give us some clarity and lead us out of this shitstorm. That is not very concrete I know, but like I said, its not all about tackling of list of to dos, we need first to feel like we can fix all these problems. We need a change. (more…)
Categories: Political · political hopes and desires
Finally, I get to use my favorite word. Read this if you want to know how any of this is related.
Categories: absurdity · too lazy to write anything
Last week my husband and I took my 12 year old son and his friend to the Police concert. I like the Police and listening to their music certainly congers up happy memories of college and my young adulthood. My son loves music, itunes and his ipod. Like a lot of kids, he has a tendency to listen over and over again to what is fashionable to his peers at the time. (he is going through a big Weird Al jag right now). But to his credit, he is always willing to try out some “old” music and certainly eager to go to a live concert. He is a very enthusiastic concert goer, he claps and jumps around, tries to sing the songs and is becoming a proficient people watcher. Together, Henry and I have enjoyed a Bob Marley Birthday tribute (with whats left of the Wailers and Peter Tosh’s band) and a summer music festival featuring Black Eye Peas. This time Dad joined us, reluctantly. (Punk not Pop is his genre) While I think he enjoyed the concert through Henry, that wasn’t the point, he was providing transportation. (more…)
Categories: kids
Like now. Breaking laws about laws. Seems pretty concrete and not too complicated. Emptywheel does a good run down of this latest round of egregious sins and the video is below. Right on Senator Whitehouse.
Here is a link for the second part of his speech http://youtube.com/watch?v=lPT9JxTBxok
If that’s not enough for you, there were two more revelations this week. Its had been the contention of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) that there have been over 5 million emails missing from the White House that were written and sent during the period of 2003-2005 (Iraq War, Valerie Plame, Abu Ghraib, 2004 election). CREW revised that number this week by doubling it to now 10 million. These are technically missing (convenient!?), not deleted, unlike the video of some CIA interrogations that also made news this week.
Categories: Political · absurdity · political hopes and desires
Just when you think you can slip him into the dictator box…
Progressive blogs tend to love Chavez and hate Bush but of course its really a bit more complicated than that. I hate Bush and I hate the economic and military influence that the US has had on much of Latin America and its politics since the mid- sixties. These are unfortunate facts that lay the foundation for the chaotic political and economic reality of South America today. Is Chavez the answer? Is 21st century socialism the answer?
Chavez is a bright man no doubt, but he seems stuck with the mental maturity of my 12 year old. There are times when what he says is really rational and makes a lot of sense and shit it is a sovereign country. Who am I to say they cant redistribute the enormous wealth that their natural resources provide. Is it really a crazy idea to nationalize the infrastructure with the intention of servicing all the people. Why not? He seems to lose traction though when he starts talking about the scorch marks that the devil Bush left at the UN podium prior to his own speech. And his idea that he should be able to be voted into perpetuity along with few absolute powers like media control (free speech) and central bank influence, doesn’t sound like a man that trusts the democratic process. And not to mention the Castroesque day long speeches, what is up with that?
I think he is a loose cannon that holds a lot cookies. It will be interesting to see what he will do now. He seemed the gracious loser yesterday and obviously there wasn’t a fix on..or was there. Perhaps this “photo finish” election result is part of his bigger plan to lull us all into a sense that democracy is alive and well in Venezuela…..Lets hope he grows up a bit and we stay out of it.
Categories: Political
*downgraded to Portenos, people in the provincias are much calmer and dont fancy picking off pedestrians
One of my first posts way back, asked the question “what’s up with the crazy driving here, why??” While I have lived here, no one has been able to answer that question to my satisfaction. Often when I ask a local friend, “what is it exactly that happens to you when you get inside your car and you drive like you are insane?”, they will without fail say something that indicates that I have exaggerated the reality and am guilty of hyperbole. Coming in a close second is they honestly don’t have a clue what I am talking about. Just recently a good Argentine friend finally enlightened me about two driving mysteries, that until now were unsolved. (more…)
I am feeling a lot less in exile these days. But my blog is still a mess of political and personal thoughts along with experiences of living in Argentina. While I can't promise, I will try to balance talk about my kids with something more universally relevant. And sorry if salty talk is offensive but I was a derivatives trader in another life and it cant be helped.
