General: September 2007 Archives
Sometimes it's like that. Get-togethers with friends can be fine, good,
or leave you feeling really really fortunate to know such wonderful
people. (of course drinking lots of good beer helps too)
Yesterday, we had another Movie with MadridMan gathering as discussed on the message board. We went to see "La Jungla 4.0", or "Die Hard 4.0", or "Live Free or Die Hard" as it was named in the USA. Wow. What a movie. I REALLY enjoyed it - lots of rather unbelievable action as is the recipe for Hollywood movies of this type. It was MUCH better than "Die Hard 3". Bruce Willis can STILL be an action hero, I say.
Anyway, message board members Jamongris, Valenciano_en_Madrid, & I met at the Cine Ideal where they show (mainly) American movies in Versión Original with subtitles in Spanish. Got our tickets and chose middle-center seats in the theater which, by movie's start, housed about 10 person for the 4:30pm movie. I was NEVER bored during all the action, but exercised lots of eye-rolling with each inhuman action scene. Action, explosions, fights and falls but not very bloody and several tongue-in-cheek statements by Willis as is his "motus operandi" in these DIE HARD movies.
Yesterday, we had another Movie with MadridMan gathering as discussed on the message board. We went to see "La Jungla 4.0", or "Die Hard 4.0", or "Live Free or Die Hard" as it was named in the USA. Wow. What a movie. I REALLY enjoyed it - lots of rather unbelievable action as is the recipe for Hollywood movies of this type. It was MUCH better than "Die Hard 3". Bruce Willis can STILL be an action hero, I say.
Anyway, message board members Jamongris, Valenciano_en_Madrid, & I met at the Cine Ideal where they show (mainly) American movies in Versión Original with subtitles in Spanish. Got our tickets and chose middle-center seats in the theater which, by movie's start, housed about 10 person for the 4:30pm movie. I was NEVER bored during all the action, but exercised lots of eye-rolling with each inhuman action scene. Action, explosions, fights and falls but not very bloody and several tongue-in-cheek statements by Willis as is his "motus operandi" in these DIE HARD movies.
So enough about the movie. We nodded to each other with entertained facial expressions upon leaving the theater and headed out into the street. "Okay! Now what?" Valenciano_en_Madrid offered to take us to one of his favorite bars in Madrid. It's called CafeeKe and is located near the base of the steps of the Arco de Cuchilleros (just out of above photo to the right) on Plaza Mayor's southwestern corner. I called my buddy Steve and he joined us there soon after arriving. Got a nice 4-person table on the terrace with good views.
Time passed as fast as topics of conversation and consumption of delicious Belgian beer (called Chimay, I think). The generous waiters (from Morocco and Cuba) were great, friendly, talkative, and gave us good cheese cubes and nut-mixers for free tapas with our somewhat pricey beers. MAN, how time flies when you're enjoying yourself. Before we knew it it was about 10pm and TWO of us had to get make trains and buses to get home before it was too late.
Steve and I, having more flexible work (?) schedules, decided to walk
through the Plaza Mayor on the way to our respective homes. Steve says,
"Shall we have a last drink? And maybe something to eat? I'm hungry."
Eh! Why not. We look around the still-crowded Plaza Mayor and try to
decide on an overpriced, touristy terrazas. But which one? They're ALL
so wonderfully touristy! hehehe... How 'bout La Torre de Oro?
Sounds good to me. We sit down at the terrace near Plaza Mayor's
northwestern corner and the waiter approaches immediately. OKAY! Let's
go wild! We chose a high-priced Gambas al Ajillo and the Chopitos. All turned out to be fair-to-good. Wine for Steve and beer for me.
Chit chat, enjoy the view of the illuminated paintings of the northern side's "Casa de la Panaderia", drink, eat, more chit-chat. I notice a table of 3 American girls/women at the adjacent table and we all begin to talk. They're from Chicago and just off the boat (plane) in Madrid, arrived that day. They're staying for quite awhile it turns out, all English teachers.
Once again, time flies, the girls/women leave, the bar starts to turn off its lights, and Steve and I shake hands and say our goodbyes until next time. I walk towards OPERA where I usually catch my bus but I know it's already too late for that. It's shut down for the night and so I'm in no hurry to get there. Will take the metro at Opera instead.
What a walk. My head's full of memories and beer. I'm walking down one of Madrid's narrow streets in Old Town. It's after midnight. And then a smile crosses my face when it hits me. $%/*&! I'M IN MADRID!!!!! It happens like that sometimes. Joy washes over me like a summer rain - or maybe it's just the warm beer, or something, I spilled down my leg. JUST KIDDING! But regardless (or "irregardless" as a masters degree-educated former coworker used to constantly say, making me crazy!), I'm in heaven on earth. I'm in Madrid. Hope I never wake up from this dream come true.
Photo from left: Steve (UK), Jamongris (UK), Valenciano_en_Madrid (ESP), & MadridMan (USA)
Time passed as fast as topics of conversation and consumption of delicious Belgian beer (called Chimay, I think). The generous waiters (from Morocco and Cuba) were great, friendly, talkative, and gave us good cheese cubes and nut-mixers for free tapas with our somewhat pricey beers. MAN, how time flies when you're enjoying yourself. Before we knew it it was about 10pm and TWO of us had to get make trains and buses to get home before it was too late.
Steve and I, having more flexible work (?) schedules, decided to walk
through the Plaza Mayor on the way to our respective homes. Steve says,
"Shall we have a last drink? And maybe something to eat? I'm hungry."
Eh! Why not. We look around the still-crowded Plaza Mayor and try to
decide on an overpriced, touristy terrazas. But which one? They're ALL
so wonderfully touristy! hehehe... How 'bout La Torre de Oro?
Sounds good to me. We sit down at the terrace near Plaza Mayor's
northwestern corner and the waiter approaches immediately. OKAY! Let's
go wild! We chose a high-priced Gambas al Ajillo and the Chopitos. All turned out to be fair-to-good. Wine for Steve and beer for me.Chit chat, enjoy the view of the illuminated paintings of the northern side's "Casa de la Panaderia", drink, eat, more chit-chat. I notice a table of 3 American girls/women at the adjacent table and we all begin to talk. They're from Chicago and just off the boat (plane) in Madrid, arrived that day. They're staying for quite awhile it turns out, all English teachers.
Once again, time flies, the girls/women leave, the bar starts to turn off its lights, and Steve and I shake hands and say our goodbyes until next time. I walk towards OPERA where I usually catch my bus but I know it's already too late for that. It's shut down for the night and so I'm in no hurry to get there. Will take the metro at Opera instead.
What a walk. My head's full of memories and beer. I'm walking down one of Madrid's narrow streets in Old Town. It's after midnight. And then a smile crosses my face when it hits me. $%/*&! I'M IN MADRID!!!!! It happens like that sometimes. Joy washes over me like a summer rain - or maybe it's just the warm beer, or something, I spilled down my leg. JUST KIDDING! But regardless (or "irregardless" as a masters degree-educated former coworker used to constantly say, making me crazy!), I'm in heaven on earth. I'm in Madrid. Hope I never wake up from this dream come true.
¡De Madrid al Cielo!
Today is the 6-year anniversary of the September 11 2001 terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington D.C..
Time helps to heal wounds but rarely helps us forget the events themselves. Violence is never the answer in resolving issues.
I had the radio turned at work on the morning of September 11th, 2001. The announcer broke in to say there was an explosion in one of the Twin Towers in New York City. One of the first report was that it was a small airplane so I didn't think TOO much of it at the time but the rest of the story would unfold over the next 2 hours.
The first tower fell and people were in shock. The office had setup a TV for us to watch and I walked in minutes before the second tower fell. "Wow. This is really BIG," I thought. All I could imagine was that 10s of thousands of people may have just died in this very moment - and I was a witness. This single event would change me forever in some way, I knew it.
The phone lines were flooded. All lines busy as people called family and friends, asking about their safety.
About an hour later they sent us all home. Some were seen running down the hall in a panic. Some were calm and chatting. But we all grabbed our stuff and walked outside to the downtown Columbus, Ohio gridlock. I'd never seen ANYTHING like this before in downtown Columbus. It was bumper to bumper traffic, no one was moving, cars lined up as far as you could see in all directions. By chance, I did NOT take the bus to work today - and it's a good thing too because the buses were not running for security concerns. By chance, that morning I'd parked my car just outside of the downtown in bohemian "The Short North" neighborhood and walked in from there. Making my way to the car that day, walking faster than the stopped traffic, I was careful to observe the blank, expressionless faces of people in shock. My car was parked far enough outside of downtown to be able to make my way home without too much problem.
Got home about an hour later at 1pm or so, turned on the computer to find the internet understandably a total BUZZ. I had CNN turn on behind me too. That's when I got the story about what had happened and who claimed responsibility. All airplanes were grounded. Looking out my BIG picture window up to the sky, not a plane in sight. I got dozens of emails from Spain-based friends and strangers expressing their sorrow, shock, horror.
Throughout the day and for the subsequent days I had frequent episodes of tears and anxiety. It was almost as if I could hear the screams in my head and the pain in my heart as the dead, grieving souls flew past me on their way to some other place - or no place - as well as the pain of all those people whom had lost family and friends in those moments. The world seemed so full of pain & fear.
So odd. So strange. So surreal was this day. The world would never be the same again.
Time helps to heal wounds but rarely helps us forget the events themselves. Violence is never the answer in resolving issues.
I had the radio turned at work on the morning of September 11th, 2001. The announcer broke in to say there was an explosion in one of the Twin Towers in New York City. One of the first report was that it was a small airplane so I didn't think TOO much of it at the time but the rest of the story would unfold over the next 2 hours.
The first tower fell and people were in shock. The office had setup a TV for us to watch and I walked in minutes before the second tower fell. "Wow. This is really BIG," I thought. All I could imagine was that 10s of thousands of people may have just died in this very moment - and I was a witness. This single event would change me forever in some way, I knew it.
The phone lines were flooded. All lines busy as people called family and friends, asking about their safety.
About an hour later they sent us all home. Some were seen running down the hall in a panic. Some were calm and chatting. But we all grabbed our stuff and walked outside to the downtown Columbus, Ohio gridlock. I'd never seen ANYTHING like this before in downtown Columbus. It was bumper to bumper traffic, no one was moving, cars lined up as far as you could see in all directions. By chance, I did NOT take the bus to work today - and it's a good thing too because the buses were not running for security concerns. By chance, that morning I'd parked my car just outside of the downtown in bohemian "The Short North" neighborhood and walked in from there. Making my way to the car that day, walking faster than the stopped traffic, I was careful to observe the blank, expressionless faces of people in shock. My car was parked far enough outside of downtown to be able to make my way home without too much problem.
Got home about an hour later at 1pm or so, turned on the computer to find the internet understandably a total BUZZ. I had CNN turn on behind me too. That's when I got the story about what had happened and who claimed responsibility. All airplanes were grounded. Looking out my BIG picture window up to the sky, not a plane in sight. I got dozens of emails from Spain-based friends and strangers expressing their sorrow, shock, horror.
Throughout the day and for the subsequent days I had frequent episodes of tears and anxiety. It was almost as if I could hear the screams in my head and the pain in my heart as the dead, grieving souls flew past me on their way to some other place - or no place - as well as the pain of all those people whom had lost family and friends in those moments. The world seemed so full of pain & fear.
So odd. So strange. So surreal was this day. The world would never be the same again.
How time flies. It passed almost without notice. MadridMan.com's 10 Year Anniversary passed me without fanfare, without parties, without cork-popping champagne bottles. The 10-year anniversary passed on July 20th, 2007 for the domain name registration (then $100 per year to buy/renew!). The previous year, 1996, "MadridMan's Yankee Home Page" was actually born.
On July 20th, 2007 I was in Ohio, USA visiting my parents and other family after a 1-year absence in the homeland. That day came and went and I didn't give it a thought. How does that happen? Something SO PROFOUND in my life, something that shaped my character, my focus, and my professional future, and it went unnoticed.
My sister recently told me the same thing with the passing of her 10-year wedding anniversary in that a friend had to remind them of the milestone reached. I guess it happens. We tend to take things for granted to a certain degree WHILE taking care of the day-to-day details of maintaining the organism; in this case, MadridMan.com.
Ideas are tossed around in my head about how to observe or commemorate the occasion, the 10-year anniversary of MadridMan.com, and I really can't decide if it even warrants such commemoration. Like any big birthday, 16th (you can drive in the USA), your 21st (you can legally drink alcohol in the USA), your 30th (you're 30, for God's sake! No more fooling around with your life. You're finally a real adult!), your 40th (oh gawd. You're halfway there!) your 50th (wow, you're really old now), your 75th birthday (wow, you're REALLY REALLY OLD now! Tick Tock. Don't buy a new car!) probably deserves at least some small cake and gathering of close friends, right? I'm not sure. Maybe it SHOULD be taken for granted.
Should press releases be sent? Should the local TV stations be called and potentially face video cameras in my home - and with my awful Spanish (which is improving) and face potential public humiliation? Should I call the local government and request a meeting? hehee.. Okay. No. Not that much. But a dinner, at least? A big, blow-out "Party With MadridMan in Madrid", maybe?? At the very least this last one, right? But how? Where? And would anyone attend? Wouldn't it be shameful and embarrassing if I rent out a large, elegant hall, invite a hundred people, and 15 show up only looking for free food and beer? AND THEN I have to report that!? The potential for disaster always exists, I know, but the potential BOOM could be great as well. Regardless, it's a risk.
But who needs it, right? I doubt USATODAY.com publicly celebrated their, what, 20th Anniversary. I don't know. I just don't know what to do. I welcome comments on this one. I'm sure the majority of comments will be supportive and positive, thank you for those, but I'll welcome the negative ones too.
Saludos, MadridMan (2 glasses of Rueda wine and I'm all nostalgic)
On July 20th, 2007 I was in Ohio, USA visiting my parents and other family after a 1-year absence in the homeland. That day came and went and I didn't give it a thought. How does that happen? Something SO PROFOUND in my life, something that shaped my character, my focus, and my professional future, and it went unnoticed.
My sister recently told me the same thing with the passing of her 10-year wedding anniversary in that a friend had to remind them of the milestone reached. I guess it happens. We tend to take things for granted to a certain degree WHILE taking care of the day-to-day details of maintaining the organism; in this case, MadridMan.com.
Ideas are tossed around in my head about how to observe or commemorate the occasion, the 10-year anniversary of MadridMan.com, and I really can't decide if it even warrants such commemoration. Like any big birthday, 16th (you can drive in the USA), your 21st (you can legally drink alcohol in the USA), your 30th (you're 30, for God's sake! No more fooling around with your life. You're finally a real adult!), your 40th (oh gawd. You're halfway there!) your 50th (wow, you're really old now), your 75th birthday (wow, you're REALLY REALLY OLD now! Tick Tock. Don't buy a new car!) probably deserves at least some small cake and gathering of close friends, right? I'm not sure. Maybe it SHOULD be taken for granted.
Should press releases be sent? Should the local TV stations be called and potentially face video cameras in my home - and with my awful Spanish (which is improving) and face potential public humiliation? Should I call the local government and request a meeting? hehee.. Okay. No. Not that much. But a dinner, at least? A big, blow-out "Party With MadridMan in Madrid", maybe?? At the very least this last one, right? But how? Where? And would anyone attend? Wouldn't it be shameful and embarrassing if I rent out a large, elegant hall, invite a hundred people, and 15 show up only looking for free food and beer? AND THEN I have to report that!? The potential for disaster always exists, I know, but the potential BOOM could be great as well. Regardless, it's a risk.
But who needs it, right? I doubt USATODAY.com publicly celebrated their, what, 20th Anniversary. I don't know. I just don't know what to do. I welcome comments on this one. I'm sure the majority of comments will be supportive and positive, thank you for those, but I'll welcome the negative ones too.
Saludos, MadridMan (2 glasses of Rueda wine and I'm all nostalgic)
Wow. It's official. I'm totally out-of-the-loop living here in Spain, having lost all touch with my homeland. Yesterday on Skype, Tuesday, my uncle was telling me all the WORK he had to do the previous day, Monday, LABOR DAY! I HAD NO IDEA it was Labor Day. Earlier this year I remember calling a few ex-workmates at their desk phones (using SkypeOUT) on Veteran's Day and no one answered. Again. NO idea. AND NOW THIS!!
Last Sunday morning rolls around, ta-da-da-da, just another gorgeous Sunday, I turn on the computer, go to USAToday.com, AND BLAMMO! There it is on the front page! OSU (THE Ohio State University for those not in-the-know) beats lowly state-local Youngstown State 38-6!
I didn't even realize they were playing! ARGH!!!! @#$%^&*! Gimme an L! Gimme an O! Gimme an S! Gimme an E! Gimme an R! What's that spell?? L-O-S-E-R!!! Yup. That's me. I CANNOT believe, NOR can I forgive myself, for not knowing, for not mentally preparing, for not listening to the game online!!! And now it's passed forever into the annuls of history. The game just blew by me like a wayward, wind-borne, empty hotdog wrapper swirling around the 106,000 seats of Ohio Stadium. And I missed wearing my bright red OSU T-Shirt on GameDay too! Man-Oh-Man! "What Would Woody Say?"
And to make matters worse - OR BETTER as the case may be.. (hehehe...) - I read that highly ranked, highly touted University of Michigan, OSU's arch enemies to the north, LOST to lowly Appalachian State 32-34. YOUCH! That's gotta hurt down deep. But it not only hurts UofM. It also hurts OSU since now, assuming the best, OSU will not likely be meeting UM as a regular-season-ending undefeated Big10/11 championship game. THAT'S ASSUMING, of course, IF OSU goes undefeated - which will be more of a challenge this year.
In a way, my forgetting the games from the United States is a good thing. It means, I hope, that I'm assimilating into life here in Spain, in Europe, outside of the USA, and adopting the lifestyle patterns of the local people. Now THAT holds some value, if you ask me.
Bet you didn't think THIS was the kind of Madrid-based-Blog you'd get today. Hope you're not disappointed. But don't worry. I promise I won't fill your eyes with non-Spanish topics here. It was just on my mind - cluttered as it is.
Now off to the gym to exercise my muscles, heart, lungs, ......and my eyes.
Saludos, MadridMan
Last Sunday morning rolls around, ta-da-da-da, just another gorgeous Sunday, I turn on the computer, go to USAToday.com, AND BLAMMO! There it is on the front page! OSU (THE Ohio State University for those not in-the-know) beats lowly state-local Youngstown State 38-6!
I didn't even realize they were playing! ARGH!!!! @#$%^&*! Gimme an L! Gimme an O! Gimme an S! Gimme an E! Gimme an R! What's that spell?? L-O-S-E-R!!! Yup. That's me. I CANNOT believe, NOR can I forgive myself, for not knowing, for not mentally preparing, for not listening to the game online!!! And now it's passed forever into the annuls of history. The game just blew by me like a wayward, wind-borne, empty hotdog wrapper swirling around the 106,000 seats of Ohio Stadium. And I missed wearing my bright red OSU T-Shirt on GameDay too! Man-Oh-Man! "What Would Woody Say?"
And to make matters worse - OR BETTER as the case may be.. (hehehe...) - I read that highly ranked, highly touted University of Michigan, OSU's arch enemies to the north, LOST to lowly Appalachian State 32-34. YOUCH! That's gotta hurt down deep. But it not only hurts UofM. It also hurts OSU since now, assuming the best, OSU will not likely be meeting UM as a regular-season-ending undefeated Big10/11 championship game. THAT'S ASSUMING, of course, IF OSU goes undefeated - which will be more of a challenge this year.
In a way, my forgetting the games from the United States is a good thing. It means, I hope, that I'm assimilating into life here in Spain, in Europe, outside of the USA, and adopting the lifestyle patterns of the local people. Now THAT holds some value, if you ask me.
Bet you didn't think THIS was the kind of Madrid-based-Blog you'd get today. Hope you're not disappointed. But don't worry. I promise I won't fill your eyes with non-Spanish topics here. It was just on my mind - cluttered as it is.
Now off to the gym to exercise my muscles, heart, lungs, ......and my eyes.
Saludos, MadridMan
Some evenings the mood will strike me to get away from the computer and go to downtown Madrid. Thank goodness there's a bus stop 20 meters away from my door and the ride only takes about 20 minutes.
The bus takes me directly to the Plaza de Isabel II (a.k.a. Plaza de Opera), just next to the Royal Opera House. Sometimes I'll get off 2 stops early, just to the edge of the Royal Palace in Madrid, and wander about the pedestrian area in front of the Palacio Real and the Plaza Oriente gardens which are between the Opera House and the Royal Palace. This is a particularly nice area around sunset as the sun sets over the horizon over the Casa de Campo park and Spaniards and tourists alike come in droves to enjoy it. Watch out for the skate punks practicing their craft, though.
Other times I'll walk directly towards the Puerta del Sol and join the hustle & bustle of the combined Spanish and tourist crowds, making my way up one of the many little streets towards the Plaza Jacinto Benavente or Plaza Santa Ana in the Huertas Neighborhood. My destination? None, really. It's just nice having Old Downtown Madrid at such easy access. I'll oftentimes just walk to walk and take in the sights, the sounds, and the smells until I stop at some little bar where I may well be the ONLY non-Spaniard in the place, order a 1.20€ beer, get a free tapa or order a pincho de tortilla or patatas bravas. I like ordering patatas bravas in many places, trying to find the best Patatas Bravas in Madrid. Next Stop? The next bar which catches my attention and/or if I'm still hungry. Sometimes the perfect dinner is a light one; a beer and a plate of olives in an authentic Spanish bar, listening to the conversations around me.
It's so nice having Madrid in my front yard, my back yard, and all around me.
Saludos, MadridMan
The bus takes me directly to the Plaza de Isabel II (a.k.a. Plaza de Opera), just next to the Royal Opera House. Sometimes I'll get off 2 stops early, just to the edge of the Royal Palace in Madrid, and wander about the pedestrian area in front of the Palacio Real and the Plaza Oriente gardens which are between the Opera House and the Royal Palace. This is a particularly nice area around sunset as the sun sets over the horizon over the Casa de Campo park and Spaniards and tourists alike come in droves to enjoy it. Watch out for the skate punks practicing their craft, though.
Other times I'll walk directly towards the Puerta del Sol and join the hustle & bustle of the combined Spanish and tourist crowds, making my way up one of the many little streets towards the Plaza Jacinto Benavente or Plaza Santa Ana in the Huertas Neighborhood. My destination? None, really. It's just nice having Old Downtown Madrid at such easy access. I'll oftentimes just walk to walk and take in the sights, the sounds, and the smells until I stop at some little bar where I may well be the ONLY non-Spaniard in the place, order a 1.20€ beer, get a free tapa or order a pincho de tortilla or patatas bravas. I like ordering patatas bravas in many places, trying to find the best Patatas Bravas in Madrid. Next Stop? The next bar which catches my attention and/or if I'm still hungry. Sometimes the perfect dinner is a light one; a beer and a plate of olives in an authentic Spanish bar, listening to the conversations around me.
It's so nice having Madrid in my front yard, my back yard, and all around me.
Saludos, MadridMan
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