Suitcases and Passports

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Missed Connections

I can't tell you how much I love reading the missed connections on craigslist.org.

A few months after I moved to Austin, my friend Marni wrote one for me. I saw it, but I got all confused about the whole m4w or w4m thing and didn't realize it was for me.
I mean, it's like a strip club; is a female strip club a place where females go OR is it a place to go see females?! w4m and m4w mean someone's looking for someone else, but is the first place the searcher READING the ads or is it the searcher POSTING the ad... anyway, I'm so confused.

And then there was the night I went out in Austin, with the sole purpose of becoming someone's missed connection. I dressed up in something really memorable, but easy to describe. I went to an event at the art museum. I held the gaze of total strangers just a little too long... well, some of you know the rest of the story... those of you who don't... er... look, over there.. it's something shiny!

Back to how I LOVE missed connections... anyway, thanks, Tiina for your eagle eye. Sadly, there is another Claudette out there missing her connection. From craigslist austin:

Claudette - m4w - 55

Reply to: pers-405980133@craigslist.org
Date: 2007-08-25, 4:59PM CDT

Claudette is not such a common name, maybe I can find you just with your name. If your name is Claudette, and you spend a little time in the "slammer" a few years ago, perhaps that is you.

Location: S. Austin

Tango article in this weekend's NYTimes

I am SOOO supposed to be getting ready to head to Europe (in FOUR days!). That's also my excuse for not updating this more often! BUT someone just sent me a link to this article, complete with pictures and video, of tango in Central Park. And to make it even better, I know 2 of the people they interview in the video!

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/25/nyregion/25summer.html?ex=1345867200&en=4d672400dbfafdc2&amp;ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink
(ok, clearly I'm technologically deficient and don't quite understand how "permalinks" work... well cut and paste if you HAVE to!

It's just a little glimpse of that which makes me happy, maybe it will help you understand a little bit more of why I do it...
and if THAT doesn't... take a look at THESE shoes! Yeah, that's right, POLKA DOTS!

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Some lasting thoughts on Buenos Aires

I know I am a slacker and only posted once regarding my recent trip to BA... However, any of you who have spoken to me in the last week, know that I am still enjoying the cold I got as a souvenir (I really HOPE it's not TB; that joke was funny up until about 3 days ago!) so I feel like I am still "enjoying" the spoils of that trip....

Cafe con Leche and Passeadores de Perros!!

It's really hard walking in BA. There are such beautiful buildings. and people. and shopping. So many things to look at while you are walking. Where you should REALLY be looking is DOWN on the sidewalk in front of you! Everyday, on the walk to the subte, we would see these dog walkers, sometimes with as few as 3 dogs, often 12! The amazing thing was, despite the size and breed differences, all the dogs seemed perfectly happy with each other, so happy to be out with their pack. I wonder what the Dog Whisperer would have to say about that...

I really wanted to get a picture of an amazing sight. One afternoon when I was walking through one of the NICER neighborhoods, all of a sudden I noticed, there were waiters on the streets! Apparently, it is completely de rigeur to call down to the corner cafe (there's no such thing as a Starbucks, and narry a to-go cup to be found BTW) and order up your afternoon cafe and snack. Minutes later, a long striped apron wearing gentleman walks out of the cafe, down the street, carrying proudly your repast on a silver tray with a glass cover. I wish I could have gotten my camera out fast enough, my favorite moment was seeing one of these waiters, hopping over orange construction barriers, stepping over open trenches, always the absolute vision of composure with one's cortado.

Mmm. I miss my morning -and by that, I mean my 12:30pm - cafe con leche con tres media lunas...

Ships in the night

Most of you know I will be traveling for the next 4 months. Here is my schedule. I would LOVE to see if any of our paths can cross.
(LA people, that means I want y'all to come out to one of those last 3 Birdhouse Factory shows!!

Cirque du Soleil's DELIRIUM
Rotterdam 9/4 - 9/17
Hamburg 9/18 - 9/20

CirqueWorks' BIRDHOUSE FACTORY
Tacoma, WA 9/20 - 9/22
Arcata, CA 9/25 - 9/26
Modesto, CA 9/28 - 9/30
San Luis Obispo, CA 10/2
Thousand Oaks, CA 10/5
Escondido, CA 10/7

Cirque du Soleil's DELIRIUM
Manchester 10/8 - 10/9
Birmingham 10/10-10/12
Sheffield 10/13 - 10/15
Munich 10/16 - 10/21
Vienna 10/22 - 10/25
Prague 10/26 - 10/28
Budapest 10/29 - 11/1
Cologne 11/2 - 11/4
Zurich 11/5 - 11/9
Pesaro 11/10 - 11/12
Milan 11/13 - 11/16
Turin 11/17 - 11/22
San Sebastien 11/23 - 11/25
Lisbon 11/26 - 12/3
Madrid 12/4 - 12/10
Valencia 12/11 - 12/17
Barcelona 12/18 - 12/22

12/23 I am on a plane from Barcelona... Austin bound! There will then be the necessary and expected trips to Dallas and Houston for the holidays... BUT after that, I can be found at 3808 Brookview Rd. Come on by, y'all, I'll have a fire going in the backyard, a bottle of wine open and hopefully not a suitcase in sight... -cw

Friday, July 20, 2007

good air thoughts and observations

Buenos Aires has the one of the highest rates of plastic surgery in the world. They also have the highest concentration of psychologists in the world, too.
High plastic surgery...
Lots of therapy...
I wonder if these 2 are related.

On another note (or not so different) is the absolute prevalence of beauty here. I was walking to meet April for coffee (cortado con tres media lunas) and happened to pass by a high school that was letting out for siesta. It looked just like any other high school letting out for afternoon siesta, except the students were impeccably dressed and walking arm in arm and kissing each other hello and goodbye, guys and girls. Women and women, men and men, walking down the street arm in arm, deep in conversation. Everyone is always dressed well. Another anomaly given the country's economic situation and that 50% of the population of the country is now considered to be living in poverty. So many men in suits, everywhere you look. Women all dressed smartly in the hip fashions of the day. I tried to talk April into wearing her new fashionable jeans tucked into her boots like all the women were wearing today, but I think we both were reminded a little too much of Pat Benetar. And all the women are wearing heels! I shouldn't be surprised; I DID come here to dance tango, afterall. But they wear them ALL the time on the STREET! I've been mistaken for a British person 3 times already. I'm hoping it is because of my sensible walking shoes and not for my teeth or something even more insidious. (BTW, apparently, it's my accent. I guess that's better than reading annoying American from 50' away!)

Everyone is oh so very friendly here. When meeting strangers, if introduced by mutual friends or in a closed social setting you are expected to kiss on the cheek as part of your introduction. Or, if say, you are walking down the street with your friend and 2 porteno guys come up and start walking and flirting with you so much that you acquiesce and take their number and say you'll text them for coffee tomorrow, you are expected to kiss on the cheek as you part ways. Chau! (don't ask me how I know this last part, I think I read it in a book somewhere.)

That's enough for now. I'm home nursing a cold (must be all that cheek kissing) so no tango for me tonight. My feet are thankful, too. My apologies for the lack of photographic support... I forgot my camera's cable at home.
Stay tuned for my next installments when I can tell you about the 3 pair of shoes I bought in 2 days and the hundreds of men's arms I've been throwing myself into....