18 December 2011
Merry Christmas-Suprise!
Hello All (12ish followers)!,
Well I know that I haven't written in a while and more of that is to come to catch everyone up. Where is a one paragraph synopsis that has happened over the last 2 months. Megan arrived on the 10th of October in Madrid. We spend a few days there and then went to Malaga, Costa del Sol, for a few days and then to back to Moron de la Frontera. Oh yea, since Camilo left to get married, I moved to Moron de la Frontera, effectively just Moron, so I could support Meg and I on my salary. We spent the rest of the month exploring around southern Spain before I had to go back to work on 2 Nov 2011. We saw Gibraltar, actually a British Over Seas Territory (BOST), Ronda and of course Moron. Then I went back to work and we have been doing that since. We have also traveled to Tarifa and Granada but we were only there for a day each. But while in Granada we got to see the lighting of the Christmas lights which was really beautiful and being with Megan made it all the difference. We were supposed to have Thanksgiving with some coworkers of mine but Meg ended up being sick so that never transpired. Then we found Megan is pregnant and now it is Christmas time.
Merry Christmas and I promise to update you all (all 12ish) as more information arrives
Stay Frosty
-C
12 August 2011
Kiteing
Hello All,
Here are some pictures from when I went Kite Boarding.
Look at my SWEET Pad for my mini vacation
Look at that SWAGGAH!
That is my instructor launching my kite for me. I am just over (under really in the scheme of things) the beach dune towards that h2o.
And this is me just about to launch my kite!
Look at how comfortable my hammock is. Also this could be used as a before picture.
Stay Frosty
-C
Here are some pictures from when I went Kite Boarding.
Stay Frosty
-C
Note to Self!
Don’t try and cut your hair yourself. Go to a barber or a stylist or a beautician or a coiffeur or heck even a tonsorial artist if you want to. I do know this from experience. So without further ado, below is the end result of how you have to fix your hair if you mistakenly put a 4” bald spot on the side of your head.
I hope you all enjoy!
Stay Frosty
-C
I hope you all enjoy!
Stay Frosty
-C
20 June 2011
Hmm where was I . . . oh yea lesson numero uno!
Well that was a fail. Not because I was a fail but because the wind wasn’t there. The instructor was using a 6 meter kite and he couldn’t even keep it afloat so what did I do you ask. Well I am glad that you asked, I went to the beach to work on my tan and get some salt h2o on my skin which I do have to say is pure awesomeness.
Now for those who are not already accustomed to the equipment of Kite Boarding let me fill you in. The kites are sized according to the square meters of space that they take up. They are also classified by the style but since I don’t have a grasp on that I am not going to attempt to confuse you with it either. So for training you are supposed to use a 1.5M or 2M kite until you can grasps turns and overall awesomeness that is Kite Boarding. Then after you get the very basics they bump you up to a 3.5 for more control maneuvers which is primarily single handed operation of the kite with both your left and right hands. Then once you have mastered that you go to a 6M kite for finer tuning and if you are good there then you go to that h2o where I will be tomorrow but that is the next blog I am going to write, since it has yet to happen, so stand by for more information. So at this point if you are able to guide a 6M kite you should be able to guide a 8-12M kite but since you are going to be on the h2o that is why you need another lesson.
So I finally get my lesson on my 2nd day down here in Tarifa, which I do have to say is extremely nice. The weather is very warm. The h2o is nice as well and is salty, just the way I like it, and the people here are extremely friendly. Be it for the fact that I don’t speak Spanish and well since they are a tourist destination they are used to it or for the fact that they are extremely friendly to begin with who knows but I still like it here. So I am on my way to the center and I get a call on my movil, which is pronounced “mobile” as in mobile phone, asking if I can come to the center because there are 2 more students that are going to be starting from the beginning so I can just in with them. This is good two fold. First since the wind yesterday was not cooperating the 45 minutes of lessons that I had has been nullified and second by having more people in the group I get more time allotted for the lesson. Normally the lessons are with groups of 4 people totaling 9 hours being that each pair of persons gets a kite and therefore get 4.5 hours of fly time over the 9 hours. So by having 2 more students instead of 3 more one of us is going to get more fly time and low and behold it is me since the other 2 people are friends who don’t speak English so they are paired up, naturally, and I am off by myself. So while going over the technical stuff that I learned yesterday with the other students I am left to set up the kites which is a learning process for me and one that I enjoy.
So after doing the whole group instruction thing for a while we are let loose to get flying the kites. I crash mine sometimes but overall I am doing much better than person numero dos who doesn’t grasp the “push-pull aspect of steering” the kite. So while Antonio, the awesome instructor, is helping those guys I have managed to learn self-launching of the kite and began the one handed steering all on my own. So after letting person numero tres take over my kite I am shagging downed kites. This is good for me since it gets me a chance to learn the launch windows of the kites which will help if I need to get some random person from the beach to help me launch. It is after shagging downed kites for probably 20 minutes or more we stop using the 2M kites and bust out the 3.5M kite for some more tuning and what would begin the lesson for one handed operations.
Now being that I have an extraordinary amount of time on my hands while at work, I mean after hours of course, I have watched countless YouTube.Com videos so I already have a basic grasp, haha pun intended, on how one handed operations work. So once I have been deemed qualified on the 3.5M kite I do the “truffle shuffle” over the creek to the shop and get the said 6M kite that wouldn’t fly for me yesterday. So once that is inflated I am basically left to myself since Antonio is helping the other two guys. After a couple of crashes Antonio comes over and gives me some pointers and they greatly help with self-launching. Now with the training kites that I was learning on are self-inflated but with the non-training kites they are not self-inflating and this is why I can essentially work autonomously with just a few pointers here and there. The good thing is that the 6M kite is actually starting to pull me a little. At one point towards the end of the session Antonio and I were talking about my progress and where to go for the next session and the kite actually pulled me about 3 meters because I wasn’t paying attention. So I did what I was trained to do and released the bar and the kite lofted for a moment and then tanked, hard. But that let Antonio and I continue our conversation and we decided that it was best to come back in 90 minutes or so and begin the 2nd session since I was progressing faster than the other two, thanks YouTube.com, and that the next session would be on the h2o.
This is all good news to me since I figured that would be retained to the beach for the 2nd session and the 3rd would be on the h2o. So I leave and get some lunch with the plan of rendezvousing 90 minutes from now and be riding confidently on the h2o by the time the shop closed. Although this did not happen because of a scheduling conflict, dang private lesson peoples, I am confident that before the afternoon siesta tomorrow I will be a wave riding-kite surfing machine! Or at least I will be able to get up on the h2o and be able to launch, re-launch, and get from point A to point B with some dignity.
Well it is time for me to work of the “Sun Drunk” hangover that I have, since I slept on the beach for 2.5 hours after finding out about my lesson, and I also have to cook some dinner and rehydrate.
Stay Frosty
-C
Now for those who are not already accustomed to the equipment of Kite Boarding let me fill you in. The kites are sized according to the square meters of space that they take up. They are also classified by the style but since I don’t have a grasp on that I am not going to attempt to confuse you with it either. So for training you are supposed to use a 1.5M or 2M kite until you can grasps turns and overall awesomeness that is Kite Boarding. Then after you get the very basics they bump you up to a 3.5 for more control maneuvers which is primarily single handed operation of the kite with both your left and right hands. Then once you have mastered that you go to a 6M kite for finer tuning and if you are good there then you go to that h2o where I will be tomorrow but that is the next blog I am going to write, since it has yet to happen, so stand by for more information. So at this point if you are able to guide a 6M kite you should be able to guide a 8-12M kite but since you are going to be on the h2o that is why you need another lesson.
So I finally get my lesson on my 2nd day down here in Tarifa, which I do have to say is extremely nice. The weather is very warm. The h2o is nice as well and is salty, just the way I like it, and the people here are extremely friendly. Be it for the fact that I don’t speak Spanish and well since they are a tourist destination they are used to it or for the fact that they are extremely friendly to begin with who knows but I still like it here. So I am on my way to the center and I get a call on my movil, which is pronounced “mobile” as in mobile phone, asking if I can come to the center because there are 2 more students that are going to be starting from the beginning so I can just in with them. This is good two fold. First since the wind yesterday was not cooperating the 45 minutes of lessons that I had has been nullified and second by having more people in the group I get more time allotted for the lesson. Normally the lessons are with groups of 4 people totaling 9 hours being that each pair of persons gets a kite and therefore get 4.5 hours of fly time over the 9 hours. So by having 2 more students instead of 3 more one of us is going to get more fly time and low and behold it is me since the other 2 people are friends who don’t speak English so they are paired up, naturally, and I am off by myself. So while going over the technical stuff that I learned yesterday with the other students I am left to set up the kites which is a learning process for me and one that I enjoy.
So after doing the whole group instruction thing for a while we are let loose to get flying the kites. I crash mine sometimes but overall I am doing much better than person numero dos who doesn’t grasp the “push-pull aspect of steering” the kite. So while Antonio, the awesome instructor, is helping those guys I have managed to learn self-launching of the kite and began the one handed steering all on my own. So after letting person numero tres take over my kite I am shagging downed kites. This is good for me since it gets me a chance to learn the launch windows of the kites which will help if I need to get some random person from the beach to help me launch. It is after shagging downed kites for probably 20 minutes or more we stop using the 2M kites and bust out the 3.5M kite for some more tuning and what would begin the lesson for one handed operations.
Now being that I have an extraordinary amount of time on my hands while at work, I mean after hours of course, I have watched countless YouTube.Com videos so I already have a basic grasp, haha pun intended, on how one handed operations work. So once I have been deemed qualified on the 3.5M kite I do the “truffle shuffle” over the creek to the shop and get the said 6M kite that wouldn’t fly for me yesterday. So once that is inflated I am basically left to myself since Antonio is helping the other two guys. After a couple of crashes Antonio comes over and gives me some pointers and they greatly help with self-launching. Now with the training kites that I was learning on are self-inflated but with the non-training kites they are not self-inflating and this is why I can essentially work autonomously with just a few pointers here and there. The good thing is that the 6M kite is actually starting to pull me a little. At one point towards the end of the session Antonio and I were talking about my progress and where to go for the next session and the kite actually pulled me about 3 meters because I wasn’t paying attention. So I did what I was trained to do and released the bar and the kite lofted for a moment and then tanked, hard. But that let Antonio and I continue our conversation and we decided that it was best to come back in 90 minutes or so and begin the 2nd session since I was progressing faster than the other two, thanks YouTube.com, and that the next session would be on the h2o.
This is all good news to me since I figured that would be retained to the beach for the 2nd session and the 3rd would be on the h2o. So I leave and get some lunch with the plan of rendezvousing 90 minutes from now and be riding confidently on the h2o by the time the shop closed. Although this did not happen because of a scheduling conflict, dang private lesson peoples, I am confident that before the afternoon siesta tomorrow I will be a wave riding-kite surfing machine! Or at least I will be able to get up on the h2o and be able to launch, re-launch, and get from point A to point B with some dignity.
Well it is time for me to work of the “Sun Drunk” hangover that I have, since I slept on the beach for 2.5 hours after finding out about my lesson, and I also have to cook some dinner and rehydrate.
Stay Frosty
-C
The start of my 22 day vacation
Well I would just like to begin this with the fact that I swaying back and forth in a peach colored canvas hammock that is extremely comfortable and extremely convenient for allowing me to catch up on my blog writings.
So after a confusing trip down here to Tarifa in the Cadiz province in Spain I finally arrived in what would exactly be described as a bungalow. Although I was hoping for a beach sided bungalow I am content with the fact that for the price I am paying I did extremely well for myself. I have two sun tanning chairs, a picnic style table, said hammock, an outdoor sink, small barbeque, a real live cactus, some chickens in a chicken coop and two lovely furry dogs among a dozen or so medium size bushes and small palm trees in a delightfully landscaped high hedged yard with 2 ½ other bungalows. One is the same size as mine just a different layout and the other is 1 ½ times the size and is the only one occupied, said dogs stay here. As far as the accommodations for the bungalow itself, well that isn’t half bad at all. . . . Sorry about that pause I had to push the hammock again since I had stopped swaying. I have what would be considered a queen size bed here in Spain in one room, 2 single beds in another, an L shaped couch, 19” T.V. bar style high-top chair equipped kitchen island for dinning along with a full size, for Spain at least, refrigerator and quaint kitchenette. Not to shabby when it is all tied together with hardwood, actual hardwood that is, flooring and several screened windows. Oh how I absolutely miss screened windows. It seems here in Spain that they don’t believe in them and that is really annoying since I would love to leave my windows open all year here but since they don’t have screening I don’t.
Anyways, enough about that stuff back to my trip down here. Well I had booked a lesson, well three actually, to learn how to Kite Board something that I have always wanted to learn for a while, but just never got around to actually learning. So I figured that with Tarifa being a so called “Kite Boarding Mecca” I would give it a go here in Spain. So while I was here with Timmy back in April, more on that in another blog which I promise is coming . . . eventually, I got a bunch of names of companies and what not and then did my homework as to see the difference in class length vs price that way I can get more bang for my buck, which is actually a little more now since the exchange rate has come down since I originally was planning on it or about 12 cents on the Euro which helps. So I found this place, emailed to set up a lesson, booked accommodations, what would end up being this killer bungalow, and I was all set. Well except for the fact that my Spanish cellular phone then decided to stop taking incoming calls and messages. Although it is nice to not get stupid messages it also meant that I missed a few messages saying that my accommodations had fallen thru and if I still wanted to do the lesson I would have to call and work things out. Well 10 days went by and the school didn’t hear from me and thus cancelled my lesson and accommodations. Then Thursday, a week before today, I called to finalize my arrangements and was told about what I missed and my only thought was FML. So after a whole lot of phone tag and emails back and forth I finally had a reservation and a place to stay but that wasn’t even finalized until Wednesday at 11:25 am when I was supposed to check in at 6pm and of which I did not get that message until 4:30pm after returning to my computer after being out walking around Seville and hanging out with some friends in Utrera and also getting a phone that works, Hoo-Ray!. So I get home and pack, 3 bathing suits, 2 shirts of the button down style, 1 pair each of shorts, socks, sneakers, and flip flops and some food, mainly tuna packets and energy drinks, and I was off and driving.
230 km, 150 minutes and a few wrong turns later and I was in Tarifa and still lost since I failed to get directions before I left. I guess I was hoping that I would just instinctively know where to go and apparently I was wrong. Well after making a few calls and driving around I finally met up with Javi who would get me settled in my bungalow. He showed me how to work the gate, the door lock, told me where the lights were and said watch out for the friendly dogs and that was good enough for me.
I’ll be right back. It is time for my first Kite Boarding lesson which is the beginning of awesomeness on the verge of EPICNESS!.
Stay Frosty
-C
So after a confusing trip down here to Tarifa in the Cadiz province in Spain I finally arrived in what would exactly be described as a bungalow. Although I was hoping for a beach sided bungalow I am content with the fact that for the price I am paying I did extremely well for myself. I have two sun tanning chairs, a picnic style table, said hammock, an outdoor sink, small barbeque, a real live cactus, some chickens in a chicken coop and two lovely furry dogs among a dozen or so medium size bushes and small palm trees in a delightfully landscaped high hedged yard with 2 ½ other bungalows. One is the same size as mine just a different layout and the other is 1 ½ times the size and is the only one occupied, said dogs stay here. As far as the accommodations for the bungalow itself, well that isn’t half bad at all. . . . Sorry about that pause I had to push the hammock again since I had stopped swaying. I have what would be considered a queen size bed here in Spain in one room, 2 single beds in another, an L shaped couch, 19” T.V. bar style high-top chair equipped kitchen island for dinning along with a full size, for Spain at least, refrigerator and quaint kitchenette. Not to shabby when it is all tied together with hardwood, actual hardwood that is, flooring and several screened windows. Oh how I absolutely miss screened windows. It seems here in Spain that they don’t believe in them and that is really annoying since I would love to leave my windows open all year here but since they don’t have screening I don’t.
Anyways, enough about that stuff back to my trip down here. Well I had booked a lesson, well three actually, to learn how to Kite Board something that I have always wanted to learn for a while, but just never got around to actually learning. So I figured that with Tarifa being a so called “Kite Boarding Mecca” I would give it a go here in Spain. So while I was here with Timmy back in April, more on that in another blog which I promise is coming . . . eventually, I got a bunch of names of companies and what not and then did my homework as to see the difference in class length vs price that way I can get more bang for my buck, which is actually a little more now since the exchange rate has come down since I originally was planning on it or about 12 cents on the Euro which helps. So I found this place, emailed to set up a lesson, booked accommodations, what would end up being this killer bungalow, and I was all set. Well except for the fact that my Spanish cellular phone then decided to stop taking incoming calls and messages. Although it is nice to not get stupid messages it also meant that I missed a few messages saying that my accommodations had fallen thru and if I still wanted to do the lesson I would have to call and work things out. Well 10 days went by and the school didn’t hear from me and thus cancelled my lesson and accommodations. Then Thursday, a week before today, I called to finalize my arrangements and was told about what I missed and my only thought was FML. So after a whole lot of phone tag and emails back and forth I finally had a reservation and a place to stay but that wasn’t even finalized until Wednesday at 11:25 am when I was supposed to check in at 6pm and of which I did not get that message until 4:30pm after returning to my computer after being out walking around Seville and hanging out with some friends in Utrera and also getting a phone that works, Hoo-Ray!. So I get home and pack, 3 bathing suits, 2 shirts of the button down style, 1 pair each of shorts, socks, sneakers, and flip flops and some food, mainly tuna packets and energy drinks, and I was off and driving.
230 km, 150 minutes and a few wrong turns later and I was in Tarifa and still lost since I failed to get directions before I left. I guess I was hoping that I would just instinctively know where to go and apparently I was wrong. Well after making a few calls and driving around I finally met up with Javi who would get me settled in my bungalow. He showed me how to work the gate, the door lock, told me where the lights were and said watch out for the friendly dogs and that was good enough for me.
I’ll be right back. It is time for my first Kite Boarding lesson which is the beginning of awesomeness on the verge of EPICNESS!.
Stay Frosty
-C
10 March 2011
Coming to America!
Well America look out I am coming back! For about a week or so maybe a little less or maybe a little more only time will tell. So one of my friends also known as Robert Gancarz turned me onto the fact that Hilton Head Island is going to be hiring firefighters, in the next two years. Hilton Head Island from what I know about it (thanks Wikipedia) is similar to the wonderful and exotic Cape Cod. It is extremely seasonal with slow winters, mild springs and autumns, and hotter winters. It is situated on the coast, duh where else are islands, of South Carolina just over the Georgia border. This is extremely convenient since my Mom and Grandma live in that section of Georgia. Also adding to the allure of HHI is the fact they are recruiting already certified firefighters and are a right to work state. So in theory once I successfully pass my written test, which is the reason for me going home now, and pass my physical abilities test I should be on the upper part of the list being that I am already certified and what not.
What I am hoping happens is that I am able to hold off long enough that I am able to complete my contract here in Spain. As of now I don’t know if that is a reality or a pipe dream since I am just beginning the process now. The good thing is that the test that I am going to take is making up a hiring list that is going to be valid for two years unless it is exhausted before that. After applying for the test I have gained more confidence in the process since the test is being given in four different locations. One is HHI itself, which is where I am taking it, and the other three are at colleges that have a firefighter academy associated with their firefighter degree programs. The other locations are OSU, Oklahoma State University, EKU, Eastern Kentucky University, and UNH, University of New Haven (Connecticut). So after I have submitted my application I do a little more looking into these colleges of which will be providing me some competition. Come to find out that all the schools only offer certification to the Firefighter I level as opposed to the Firefighter II level that is required by HHI for a direct hire. That means that the main pools of candidates; that I am competing against, aren’t even directly able to hired without getting more certification on their own. Confidence is being spewed from me at this point.
So as I sit here on the train from Seville to Madrid on the 9th of March 2011 I am pretty confident that come this time next year I will be a full-fledged municipal firefighter in South Carolina, if I want to be. So therein lays the problem. So I want to be a municipal firefighter in SC or so I want to wait for Massachusetts? Do I even want to be in Massachusetts? Should I take SC, if I do in fact get it, or should I pass?
But anyways I have begun my trip to the US of A that will take me from Seville to Madrid via train then onto Atlanta, GA via Amsterdam by plane. Once in the US of A I will spend Thursday night in the greater Atlanta area with my Mom, Aunt and cousins who I haven’t seen in the better part of ten years. Then I will go to Kingsland, GA for Friday then Saturday morning I will have to take the 2.5 hour drive to HHI, SC for the early afternoon exam before going back to GA. Then it will be off to Florida to visit with my Dad and Kristi before flying to Boston from Jacksonville on Tuesday afternoon. Then with a 23 hour 40 minute layover in Boston I will be headed back to Madrid via Paris on another airplane only to take the return trip via train again back to Seville. Hopefully the rain that I am experiencing here in Spain will turn into sunshine in the US of A. Otherwise I fear that I will be sick again after just getting over being sick for the last two weeks.
Watch out America!
Stay Frosty
-C
What I am hoping happens is that I am able to hold off long enough that I am able to complete my contract here in Spain. As of now I don’t know if that is a reality or a pipe dream since I am just beginning the process now. The good thing is that the test that I am going to take is making up a hiring list that is going to be valid for two years unless it is exhausted before that. After applying for the test I have gained more confidence in the process since the test is being given in four different locations. One is HHI itself, which is where I am taking it, and the other three are at colleges that have a firefighter academy associated with their firefighter degree programs. The other locations are OSU, Oklahoma State University, EKU, Eastern Kentucky University, and UNH, University of New Haven (Connecticut). So after I have submitted my application I do a little more looking into these colleges of which will be providing me some competition. Come to find out that all the schools only offer certification to the Firefighter I level as opposed to the Firefighter II level that is required by HHI for a direct hire. That means that the main pools of candidates; that I am competing against, aren’t even directly able to hired without getting more certification on their own. Confidence is being spewed from me at this point.
So as I sit here on the train from Seville to Madrid on the 9th of March 2011 I am pretty confident that come this time next year I will be a full-fledged municipal firefighter in South Carolina, if I want to be. So therein lays the problem. So I want to be a municipal firefighter in SC or so I want to wait for Massachusetts? Do I even want to be in Massachusetts? Should I take SC, if I do in fact get it, or should I pass?
But anyways I have begun my trip to the US of A that will take me from Seville to Madrid via train then onto Atlanta, GA via Amsterdam by plane. Once in the US of A I will spend Thursday night in the greater Atlanta area with my Mom, Aunt and cousins who I haven’t seen in the better part of ten years. Then I will go to Kingsland, GA for Friday then Saturday morning I will have to take the 2.5 hour drive to HHI, SC for the early afternoon exam before going back to GA. Then it will be off to Florida to visit with my Dad and Kristi before flying to Boston from Jacksonville on Tuesday afternoon. Then with a 23 hour 40 minute layover in Boston I will be headed back to Madrid via Paris on another airplane only to take the return trip via train again back to Seville. Hopefully the rain that I am experiencing here in Spain will turn into sunshine in the US of A. Otherwise I fear that I will be sick again after just getting over being sick for the last two weeks.
Watch out America!
Stay Frosty
-C
What do Maverick, Luke Skywalker and the guy from Iron Eagle have in common?
When I feel like all of them rolled into one person. So I am driving to work one morning about a month ago or was it two, either way it really doesn’t matter. So it is 7:15 in the morning and it is really foggy when I leave my house in Utrera. Fog isn’t usually that uncommon but in the city it is. Usually it happens out on the farm land which makes me believe that this is going to be a long and arduous trip into work, good thing I left earlier than normal.
Now the drivers here are frustrating, not in a “I will rid your bumper so close that you can’t see my hood” but more in a “please shut your blinker off so that I actually know that you do know where you are going” as well as “I know there are no other people coming from the other direction but please stop swerving from side to side” combination kind of way, and I am not even a native driver so I can only imagine what a competent native driver feels like. So when I get a chance to pass people who are doing 25 kph, I don’t know if we were actually doing 25 kph since my speedometer doesn’t space out enough that slow, on a straightway I will take advance of it. The cool thing is that the Mercedes SUV behind me has the same feeling and passes the slower cars, yes all four cars, which I pass almost as quickly as I pass them.
So we are zipping right along the rural highway at probably 65 kph in a 70 kph zone. Not a huge deal since the typical travel speed on this section of road is around 110 kph when it is sunny and dry out. The fog is, like I said, the crutch for this morning’s commute. But it gives me time to think and actually enjoy driving in the fog. The twists and turns that I normally take for granted are now enlightening, mystical and spooky all wrapped up into one. So as I drive, duck, dodge, dip and … drive through the fog listening to my random iPod driving mix I feel almost like Luke Skywalker when he is attempting to land on the swampy planet that Yoda lives on. He and I share, all be it in my mind, the same uncertain feeling that something might come up unexpectedly and we may have to perform evasive actions to save ourselves and our “ships”. Now Luke’s ship is actually a space flying inter-galactic star cruiser (or something like that) that has defeated many imperial star cruisers in a fierce space battle and mine is a blue Chevy Spark but they are the same in my mind at the moment. As I roll over the hills and around corners I feel like I am going to find Yoda or maybe a lost cow standing in the middle of the road but instead I find another pack of cars that are obsessively slow even for the intermittent dense fog that is scattered across the farm fields on my trip into work.
Now it is at the exact moment that I hit my blinker to pass this pack of vehicles that my iPod changes songs from Matisyahu’s “King without a Crown” to Brooks and Dunn’s “Hillbilly Deluxe” and I get that overwhelming feeling that Goose is sitting next to me saying “That isn’t a good idea Mave” and I reply “Sorry Goose but it is time to buzz the tower” I hit the accelerator, move into the left lane and fly right by the group or three vehicles this time with my “wingman” (the Mercedes SUV from earlier) right on my tail following. After I settle back into the right lane I see another vehicle coming the other way with blue lights on the roof, it is the “fuzz” a.k.a. the provincial police. On a side note I like that the police here in Spain have to have their roof lights on which means that you can see them from a mile away.
Now as I turn onto another rural highway still continuing to work I lose my “wingman” as they continue straight to another destination and I feel like I have lost “Chappy” from Iron Eagle. I feel like he got shot down and now the only thing that I have to carry through to the end of my mission (arriving at work) is an audio cassette that he made for me the night before just in case anything happened. The song that makes me think this is “Beverly Hills” by Weezer since the version that I have has Hugh Hefner in the beginning. I think to myself “self you have to preserve. You have an objection to complete and the only way you are going to succeed is to get thru this and get to work”. It is at this time that the fog rolls back and the road become clear. It is almost like the sea way parted and is guiding me to my destination.
Well as the roads are now clear the only thing I can think of is how can I going to type this into my iPod so that I can remember this all, then bang! Epiphany! Shh-zam! I have a voice recorder on my iPod. So I whip out my handy dandy iPod and record the voice memos. There are two voice memos which I have included for your listening pleasure but be warned now that the second voice memo does have a curse work in it since my voice cracked at the 15ish second mark.
I hope you enjoy
Stay Frosty
-C
Now the drivers here are frustrating, not in a “I will rid your bumper so close that you can’t see my hood” but more in a “please shut your blinker off so that I actually know that you do know where you are going” as well as “I know there are no other people coming from the other direction but please stop swerving from side to side” combination kind of way, and I am not even a native driver so I can only imagine what a competent native driver feels like. So when I get a chance to pass people who are doing 25 kph, I don’t know if we were actually doing 25 kph since my speedometer doesn’t space out enough that slow, on a straightway I will take advance of it. The cool thing is that the Mercedes SUV behind me has the same feeling and passes the slower cars, yes all four cars, which I pass almost as quickly as I pass them.
So we are zipping right along the rural highway at probably 65 kph in a 70 kph zone. Not a huge deal since the typical travel speed on this section of road is around 110 kph when it is sunny and dry out. The fog is, like I said, the crutch for this morning’s commute. But it gives me time to think and actually enjoy driving in the fog. The twists and turns that I normally take for granted are now enlightening, mystical and spooky all wrapped up into one. So as I drive, duck, dodge, dip and … drive through the fog listening to my random iPod driving mix I feel almost like Luke Skywalker when he is attempting to land on the swampy planet that Yoda lives on. He and I share, all be it in my mind, the same uncertain feeling that something might come up unexpectedly and we may have to perform evasive actions to save ourselves and our “ships”. Now Luke’s ship is actually a space flying inter-galactic star cruiser (or something like that) that has defeated many imperial star cruisers in a fierce space battle and mine is a blue Chevy Spark but they are the same in my mind at the moment. As I roll over the hills and around corners I feel like I am going to find Yoda or maybe a lost cow standing in the middle of the road but instead I find another pack of cars that are obsessively slow even for the intermittent dense fog that is scattered across the farm fields on my trip into work.
Now it is at the exact moment that I hit my blinker to pass this pack of vehicles that my iPod changes songs from Matisyahu’s “King without a Crown” to Brooks and Dunn’s “Hillbilly Deluxe” and I get that overwhelming feeling that Goose is sitting next to me saying “That isn’t a good idea Mave” and I reply “Sorry Goose but it is time to buzz the tower” I hit the accelerator, move into the left lane and fly right by the group or three vehicles this time with my “wingman” (the Mercedes SUV from earlier) right on my tail following. After I settle back into the right lane I see another vehicle coming the other way with blue lights on the roof, it is the “fuzz” a.k.a. the provincial police. On a side note I like that the police here in Spain have to have their roof lights on which means that you can see them from a mile away.
Now as I turn onto another rural highway still continuing to work I lose my “wingman” as they continue straight to another destination and I feel like I have lost “Chappy” from Iron Eagle. I feel like he got shot down and now the only thing that I have to carry through to the end of my mission (arriving at work) is an audio cassette that he made for me the night before just in case anything happened. The song that makes me think this is “Beverly Hills” by Weezer since the version that I have has Hugh Hefner in the beginning. I think to myself “self you have to preserve. You have an objection to complete and the only way you are going to succeed is to get thru this and get to work”. It is at this time that the fog rolls back and the road become clear. It is almost like the sea way parted and is guiding me to my destination.
Well as the roads are now clear the only thing I can think of is how can I going to type this into my iPod so that I can remember this all, then bang! Epiphany! Shh-zam! I have a voice recorder on my iPod. So I whip out my handy dandy iPod and record the voice memos. There are two voice memos which I have included for your listening pleasure but be warned now that the second voice memo does have a curse work in it since my voice cracked at the 15ish second mark.
I hope you enjoy
Stay Frosty
-C
03 March 2011
Top Memorable Sunsets
1) Last sunset of the summer, Antarctica March 2010
2) Sunset after vehicle fire, Winfly Antarctica August 2010
3) April 2005 on a cruise ship in the Bahamas
4) Boston skyline August 2007 on the Tobin on my motorcycle
5) Spain, 2 March 2011
6) Mt Bond, 30 Sept 1999 which is also the last day that I went hiking
7) Florida Keys with Green Flash while sailing, February 2003
8) Craigville Beach while walking Monday, winter 2008/2009
So I am sitting here looking out at the sunset that is happening across the airfield here at work (in Spain for those that do not know) and it is absolutely b-e-a-utiful! I attempt to take pictures but it just isn’t happening on my iPod Touch camera. Granted the camera comes in real handy but it just does not work for things that are long distances away. I mean it is only a 2.3 megapixel camera with no zoom so what can you expect. It works great for stuff that happens close to you. I would say anything over 10-20 feet away is the limit depending on the size and detail. Anyways I have compiled a list of my Top Memorable Sunsets. It makes the list if I can vividly remember what is happening during the sunsets. It is usually sparked by an event or a person or the way the sunset made me feel, oh geez here I go talking about my emotions again. So I hope I can vividly paint a picture for you as to why I have them on my list.
1) Last sunset of the summer, Antarctica 20thish March 2010
Well this was a very bitter cold time and it was also the last time I would see the sun for 5 months and light for almost 4 ½ months. So yea it is a big deal. I of course was working but we are half way up the hill outside of town that goes to the windmills that are used for energy. The weather is -20 or so but the wind is 15 knots so that makes it even more blistering cold. I am accompanied by my fellow winter-over firefighters. I don’t think that describing it as “AWESOME” would do it any justice so.
About this picture: Last sunset in Antarctica March 2010.
Left to right: Virginia Price, Corey "The Duke" Walsh, Peter "Fire Falcon" McHargue, Scott "Danger" Beu and Grant "Mini-Soda" Hanson. The picture was taken by Robert Weidman who is a personal photographer of mine and one heck of a photographer to begin with.
2) Sunset after vehicle fire, Antarctica August 20thish 2010
This is one of the first sunrises and subsequent sunsets that happened in Antarctica after the above mention sunset so other than that significance it also happened after a vehicle fire. Although I did not participate directly in the vehicle fire I was still involved and the overwhelming vibe from a job well done was contagious.
3) Bahamas on a cruise ship, April 2005
I remember this in particular because I was on my first cruise of my life and I was with an unbelievable person when the sun set. It was also one of the last times that I felt truly comfortable being myself but still being in pain. I would go in for back surgery 2-3 weeks later to fix my 3 herniated discs in my lower back. We were walking along the outside of the cruise ship, going to dinner I think or meeting up with the other part of the group we were with, and we stop to admire the sunset. There was a warm breeze coming from our backs and at that moment I was completely and utterly happy. There was nothing that could change the way I was feeling.
4) Boston Skyline on the Tobin on my motorcycle, early August 2007
I remember this because I had just come through the Tobin bridge tolls, first time through the tolls on my motorcycle, and the way the sun set over the skyline in Boston was absolutely gorgeous. I sat there on the side of the highway for what felt like 5 minutes admiring the sunset until a MSP Trooper asked if I was ok. I said I was just admiring the sunset and figured it would be better to do that parked then while riding. He agreed and shortly after that I left.
5) Spain, 2nd March 2011
Looking out over the airfield, which is nicely dotted with aero planes, onto the fields and rolling hills of southern Spain is absolutely gorgeous. The sun, although in the process of setting, is warm as ever. There is no breeze tonight which keeps the warmth local and not off heating the green grass covered rolling hills that can both protect and hide or enlighten and boaster anyone of the small towns that are within its mists. A few weeks ago I was driving and it was more prevalent that the landscape is as much a part of the culture and the language is. I look at this sunset and I can be transported to almost anywhere I have been before. Be it the exceptionally warm Cape Cod during the summer, the flat and dusty but yet nurturing fields of central Illinois during the spring and fall, or the humid rolling hills of Florida during the winter. This sunset brings all the places I have been within my reach again, if only in my mind.
6) Mt. Bond, 30 Sept 1999
This would end of being the last time that I went hiking. I have been on hikes since but this would be the last time that I truly enjoyed hiking. It was also a funeral with the spreading of ashes on the top of the mountain. The actual sunset would take place down the trail but it would be the last day that I truly enjoyed hiking. Philmont, which I would hike in 2 years, was just not the same. Neither were the training hikes and the friendship that came along with spending 40+ days of hiking with the same 14 people. The last time I was at Philmont I knew that one of my good friends was enjoying the incredible heat, beautiful scenery, rich history and long miles just as I was, but from another section of the ranch. I would still be in New Mexico when Ben passed away in his home. I would also still be in New Mexico when the wake was held so the spreading of the ashes was all the closure that was afforded to me.
7) Florida Keys with Green Flash while sailing, February 2003
Although I was not much of a sailor I managed to go to Sea Base twice during my Boy Scouting career as a scout. I first went in 1999 and the second time in 2003. It was also the first time that I saw the coveted “Green Flash” that happens just as the sun sets over the horizon. You are supposed to watch and right as the sun dips below the horizon you may or may not see a green flash. If you do actually see a green flash it is supposed to bring some mythical … something or another to everyone that is watching it together. Be it what it is but I was having an exceptionally fun time with the company I was keeping and I did not want it to end. Well end it did! When we flew back into Boston it was in the middle of a snow storm and I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt but luckily I had my sweater which was promptly put on after we left the terminal. I have since gone on to unfortunately lose contact with all but one of the people I was traveling with then but I hope to hold onto that friendship for as long as I can.
8) Craigville Beach while walking Monday, winter 2008/2009
This is the last sunset that I can vividly remember. It wasn’t the coldest sunset that I have experienced, that would be Number 1, but it was with my dog Monday. Being the winter on Cape Cod the sun often set early and while I was working and commuting which accounted for 80 hours a week sometimes Monday and I did not always get a chance to walk on the beach since we were not living on the beach anymore. But this day we did and as luck would have it there were no other dogs on the beach this day so I could let him off the leash without thinking about chasing him. Plus we were playing with a tennis ball and at the time he loved it. Although I do not remember the sunset specifically I do remember that the sun was up when we got to the beach and when we left it was set. But what I do remember is that for the 30 minutes or so that we were on the beach Monday was having the time of his life. He would be covered in sand by the time we left but it was ok since he was getting into my truck to ride with his head sticking half out of the window. When I think of it in my mind I play it back like it was an iconic movie scene. I remember this even more since it would be the last time that I would play with him this much since I would leave the state in March of 2009 and not see him again to this day. He is in good hands and gets to play a lot more, more that I could have with him.
So that is the list of the top sunsets that I can vividly remember. I know there are more but they are fleeting and so they do not make the top memorable sunsets. I am sure that there are more to come and I hope that this post is a catalyst to remembering your sunsets and they bring you joy as mine do to me.
About the picture: This is in Lisbon, Portugal. I was there in Feb 2011 with Natasha, one of my personal photographers, Ryan Walsh, my cousin, and Dave Rothstein, my roommate.
Stay Frosty
-C
2) Sunset after vehicle fire, Winfly Antarctica August 2010
3) April 2005 on a cruise ship in the Bahamas
4) Boston skyline August 2007 on the Tobin on my motorcycle
5) Spain, 2 March 2011
6) Mt Bond, 30 Sept 1999 which is also the last day that I went hiking
7) Florida Keys with Green Flash while sailing, February 2003
8) Craigville Beach while walking Monday, winter 2008/2009
So I am sitting here looking out at the sunset that is happening across the airfield here at work (in Spain for those that do not know) and it is absolutely b-e-a-utiful! I attempt to take pictures but it just isn’t happening on my iPod Touch camera. Granted the camera comes in real handy but it just does not work for things that are long distances away. I mean it is only a 2.3 megapixel camera with no zoom so what can you expect. It works great for stuff that happens close to you. I would say anything over 10-20 feet away is the limit depending on the size and detail. Anyways I have compiled a list of my Top Memorable Sunsets. It makes the list if I can vividly remember what is happening during the sunsets. It is usually sparked by an event or a person or the way the sunset made me feel, oh geez here I go talking about my emotions again. So I hope I can vividly paint a picture for you as to why I have them on my list.
1) Last sunset of the summer, Antarctica 20thish March 2010
Well this was a very bitter cold time and it was also the last time I would see the sun for 5 months and light for almost 4 ½ months. So yea it is a big deal. I of course was working but we are half way up the hill outside of town that goes to the windmills that are used for energy. The weather is -20 or so but the wind is 15 knots so that makes it even more blistering cold. I am accompanied by my fellow winter-over firefighters. I don’t think that describing it as “AWESOME” would do it any justice so.
About this picture: Last sunset in Antarctica March 2010.
Left to right: Virginia Price, Corey "The Duke" Walsh, Peter "Fire Falcon" McHargue, Scott "Danger" Beu and Grant "Mini-Soda" Hanson. The picture was taken by Robert Weidman who is a personal photographer of mine and one heck of a photographer to begin with.
2) Sunset after vehicle fire, Antarctica August 20thish 2010
This is one of the first sunrises and subsequent sunsets that happened in Antarctica after the above mention sunset so other than that significance it also happened after a vehicle fire. Although I did not participate directly in the vehicle fire I was still involved and the overwhelming vibe from a job well done was contagious.
3) Bahamas on a cruise ship, April 2005
I remember this in particular because I was on my first cruise of my life and I was with an unbelievable person when the sun set. It was also one of the last times that I felt truly comfortable being myself but still being in pain. I would go in for back surgery 2-3 weeks later to fix my 3 herniated discs in my lower back. We were walking along the outside of the cruise ship, going to dinner I think or meeting up with the other part of the group we were with, and we stop to admire the sunset. There was a warm breeze coming from our backs and at that moment I was completely and utterly happy. There was nothing that could change the way I was feeling.
4) Boston Skyline on the Tobin on my motorcycle, early August 2007
I remember this because I had just come through the Tobin bridge tolls, first time through the tolls on my motorcycle, and the way the sun set over the skyline in Boston was absolutely gorgeous. I sat there on the side of the highway for what felt like 5 minutes admiring the sunset until a MSP Trooper asked if I was ok. I said I was just admiring the sunset and figured it would be better to do that parked then while riding. He agreed and shortly after that I left.
5) Spain, 2nd March 2011
Looking out over the airfield, which is nicely dotted with aero planes, onto the fields and rolling hills of southern Spain is absolutely gorgeous. The sun, although in the process of setting, is warm as ever. There is no breeze tonight which keeps the warmth local and not off heating the green grass covered rolling hills that can both protect and hide or enlighten and boaster anyone of the small towns that are within its mists. A few weeks ago I was driving and it was more prevalent that the landscape is as much a part of the culture and the language is. I look at this sunset and I can be transported to almost anywhere I have been before. Be it the exceptionally warm Cape Cod during the summer, the flat and dusty but yet nurturing fields of central Illinois during the spring and fall, or the humid rolling hills of Florida during the winter. This sunset brings all the places I have been within my reach again, if only in my mind.
6) Mt. Bond, 30 Sept 1999
This would end of being the last time that I went hiking. I have been on hikes since but this would be the last time that I truly enjoyed hiking. It was also a funeral with the spreading of ashes on the top of the mountain. The actual sunset would take place down the trail but it would be the last day that I truly enjoyed hiking. Philmont, which I would hike in 2 years, was just not the same. Neither were the training hikes and the friendship that came along with spending 40+ days of hiking with the same 14 people. The last time I was at Philmont I knew that one of my good friends was enjoying the incredible heat, beautiful scenery, rich history and long miles just as I was, but from another section of the ranch. I would still be in New Mexico when Ben passed away in his home. I would also still be in New Mexico when the wake was held so the spreading of the ashes was all the closure that was afforded to me.
7) Florida Keys with Green Flash while sailing, February 2003
Although I was not much of a sailor I managed to go to Sea Base twice during my Boy Scouting career as a scout. I first went in 1999 and the second time in 2003. It was also the first time that I saw the coveted “Green Flash” that happens just as the sun sets over the horizon. You are supposed to watch and right as the sun dips below the horizon you may or may not see a green flash. If you do actually see a green flash it is supposed to bring some mythical … something or another to everyone that is watching it together. Be it what it is but I was having an exceptionally fun time with the company I was keeping and I did not want it to end. Well end it did! When we flew back into Boston it was in the middle of a snow storm and I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt but luckily I had my sweater which was promptly put on after we left the terminal. I have since gone on to unfortunately lose contact with all but one of the people I was traveling with then but I hope to hold onto that friendship for as long as I can.
8) Craigville Beach while walking Monday, winter 2008/2009
This is the last sunset that I can vividly remember. It wasn’t the coldest sunset that I have experienced, that would be Number 1, but it was with my dog Monday. Being the winter on Cape Cod the sun often set early and while I was working and commuting which accounted for 80 hours a week sometimes Monday and I did not always get a chance to walk on the beach since we were not living on the beach anymore. But this day we did and as luck would have it there were no other dogs on the beach this day so I could let him off the leash without thinking about chasing him. Plus we were playing with a tennis ball and at the time he loved it. Although I do not remember the sunset specifically I do remember that the sun was up when we got to the beach and when we left it was set. But what I do remember is that for the 30 minutes or so that we were on the beach Monday was having the time of his life. He would be covered in sand by the time we left but it was ok since he was getting into my truck to ride with his head sticking half out of the window. When I think of it in my mind I play it back like it was an iconic movie scene. I remember this even more since it would be the last time that I would play with him this much since I would leave the state in March of 2009 and not see him again to this day. He is in good hands and gets to play a lot more, more that I could have with him.
So that is the list of the top sunsets that I can vividly remember. I know there are more but they are fleeting and so they do not make the top memorable sunsets. I am sure that there are more to come and I hope that this post is a catalyst to remembering your sunsets and they bring you joy as mine do to me.
About the picture: This is in Lisbon, Portugal. I was there in Feb 2011 with Natasha, one of my personal photographers, Ryan Walsh, my cousin, and Dave Rothstein, my roommate.
Stay Frosty
-C
19 February 2011
Well it has been a here and there and everywhere kind of month
Well in the last month I have been a lot of places. First I have worked a fairly decent amount, traveled (with my wonderful girlfriend) and moved into a new place. So lets’ get to it, work has been really active lately. There are currently 3 newer people than me and 2 of them are on my shift (Hooray I am no longer the rookie) with the most recent coming in 2 days ago on the 15th of Feb. Although I have corresponded with him, Leo, I do not know him more than a cursory chatting at shift change. The former rookie, Joe, was only a rookie for two weeks of which one was when I was on vacation. The third new guy, who would actually be the first new guy after me, is Dave. He is pretty cool and I am currently his roommate, more on that later. Lately I have been working my tail off at work. It has decided to rain here, the rainy season ended with January, and in such has been causing fire alarms at all times of the day and night. I am also in the process of working on my driving certifications. This is a lengthy process since each certificate is 40-80 hours of classroom plus practical training plus driving. Then I have to test, both written and practical’s all before I am able to drive the vehicles. Although it does not seem like that much considering the responsibility associated with it, it is to me since I have been driving and pumping for the last 5 years of my fire career and because I didn’t want to pay the State of Massachusetts $50ish to get my national certification instead of my state certificate of completion I have to sit thru the whole class instead of just the reduced version for the already certified person. Oh well at least I have stuff to keep me busy.
So like I said once Joe got here I went on vacation with Natasha. We ended up traveling around the southern part of Spain, Portugal (mostly roads to Lisbon and back) as well as Madrid. Natasha arrived on the last day of Jan 2011 and was here for 11ish days. It was really nice to see her since we haven’t seen each other since Halloween 2010. She is now residing in the wonderful Commonwealth of Massachusetts and has stated publically that the East Coast is better than the West Coast, and you know me I am not arguing with a that logic. So once Natasha got here we visited Seville for one day and then traveled by car to Ronda; an afternoon, Malaga; night and morning, Marbella; morning, Estapona; night and morning, Gibraltar (as in the British Overseas Territory not a Country and the location of the video at the bottom of this blog); night and morning, Tariffa; morning, Cadiz; afternoon, and then finally back to Utrera for a much needed break in driving (for me at least). We then met up with Dave and burned up to Portugal; specifically Lisboa (a.k.a. Lisbon for the people not in the know). While in Lisboa we also met Ryan Walsh and some of his friends and went on a trolley tour around the city. Then, taking the scenic route, I drove back to Seville / Utrera for a night and shopping in the morning before going to Madrid to meet up with Ryan Walsh via the train (YES no driving!). I am not going to go into detail about the trip now but I will in further blogs, which will be coming this week, which will include a few enticing pictures to “wet your palate” so to speak.
So I have moved into a new place. It is really nice. It is a 4 bedroom 2.5 bath with a full kitchen, dining room and living room with a patio and a front porch area. Currently it is only Dave and myself with the anticipation of another firefighter coming in as a third roommate but the aforementioned firefighter screwed up and got another place the day after he was supposed to come see our place. Pfft! He wasn’t good enough for us anyways. It is nice since Dave and I have the biggest rooms. Well I have the largest and Dave has the second but he has a walk out patio but I have a view of the water fountain and during the summer my room is the coolest and also has the most windows. But as like every other time when moving into a new place there are some things that just are not included so we have been scavenging the bargain bins and Ikea for the required items to make our house a home.
Well that is enough for now. The video below is from Gibraltar of the Barbary Apes. Natasha took a video of two of the apes cleaning themselves and since she didn’t post it I am going to. Oh and it is sideways so prepare to turn your head to your left for 9 seconds. Hopefully youtube.com is kind enough to me as to keep it up for a while.
Stay Frosty
-C
So like I said once Joe got here I went on vacation with Natasha. We ended up traveling around the southern part of Spain, Portugal (mostly roads to Lisbon and back) as well as Madrid. Natasha arrived on the last day of Jan 2011 and was here for 11ish days. It was really nice to see her since we haven’t seen each other since Halloween 2010. She is now residing in the wonderful Commonwealth of Massachusetts and has stated publically that the East Coast is better than the West Coast, and you know me I am not arguing with a that logic. So once Natasha got here we visited Seville for one day and then traveled by car to Ronda; an afternoon, Malaga; night and morning, Marbella; morning, Estapona; night and morning, Gibraltar (as in the British Overseas Territory not a Country and the location of the video at the bottom of this blog); night and morning, Tariffa; morning, Cadiz; afternoon, and then finally back to Utrera for a much needed break in driving (for me at least). We then met up with Dave and burned up to Portugal; specifically Lisboa (a.k.a. Lisbon for the people not in the know). While in Lisboa we also met Ryan Walsh and some of his friends and went on a trolley tour around the city. Then, taking the scenic route, I drove back to Seville / Utrera for a night and shopping in the morning before going to Madrid to meet up with Ryan Walsh via the train (YES no driving!). I am not going to go into detail about the trip now but I will in further blogs, which will be coming this week, which will include a few enticing pictures to “wet your palate” so to speak.
So I have moved into a new place. It is really nice. It is a 4 bedroom 2.5 bath with a full kitchen, dining room and living room with a patio and a front porch area. Currently it is only Dave and myself with the anticipation of another firefighter coming in as a third roommate but the aforementioned firefighter screwed up and got another place the day after he was supposed to come see our place. Pfft! He wasn’t good enough for us anyways. It is nice since Dave and I have the biggest rooms. Well I have the largest and Dave has the second but he has a walk out patio but I have a view of the water fountain and during the summer my room is the coolest and also has the most windows. But as like every other time when moving into a new place there are some things that just are not included so we have been scavenging the bargain bins and Ikea for the required items to make our house a home.
Well that is enough for now. The video below is from Gibraltar of the Barbary Apes. Natasha took a video of two of the apes cleaning themselves and since she didn’t post it I am going to. Oh and it is sideways so prepare to turn your head to your left for 9 seconds. Hopefully youtube.com is kind enough to me as to keep it up for a while.
Stay Frosty
-C
17 January 2011
¡No Trabajar Aquí!
So I was walking around Seville and I noticed that in some respects it looks like an episode of South Park. There were “Peruvian Flute Bands” or at least that is what I am calling them, being that it is my blog and the ramblings are from my head. They are on almost every other corner where they can fit. In the area where the businesses are, by the metro station (the gypsies are there as well), by the restaurants… just everywhere. Here is a clip of the video if you have no idea what I am talking about. It is also where the name of this blog came from.
http://www.southparkstudios.com/clips/189014/no-trabajar-aqui
They are there all day from what I can tell. At first I thought that they were only there after the 2pm siesta but since I have been up in Seville at different times over the last couple of weeks I have found them at all hours, well when the working people are out. They seem to disappear about 10 -10:30 at night. From my understanding they are all gypsies so they don’t have any sort of job so they make their living off of the tips they collect. I can see them bring in a decent amount of money and actually making a living being that the average income per month per working adult here in Spain is 1,000 Euros or about $1,300 depending on the exchange rate. It is amazing that they can live off of that much comparable to the USA where that income would put you well below the poverty line even in areas where the income is low to begin with.
Well I am going to get going. I have to go the store to get steaks for dinner at the firehouse tonight.
Stay Frost
-C
http://www.southparkstudios.com/clips/189014/no-trabajar-aqui
They are there all day from what I can tell. At first I thought that they were only there after the 2pm siesta but since I have been up in Seville at different times over the last couple of weeks I have found them at all hours, well when the working people are out. They seem to disappear about 10 -10:30 at night. From my understanding they are all gypsies so they don’t have any sort of job so they make their living off of the tips they collect. I can see them bring in a decent amount of money and actually making a living being that the average income per month per working adult here in Spain is 1,000 Euros or about $1,300 depending on the exchange rate. It is amazing that they can live off of that much comparable to the USA where that income would put you well below the poverty line even in areas where the income is low to begin with.
Well I am going to get going. I have to go the store to get steaks for dinner at the firehouse tonight.
Stay Frost
-C
05 January 2011
I was updating my Facebook info and this is the end result in the 10 minutes of self reflection that it took for me to complete the update. Dang this is a long title!
Here is a synopsis of me that I think would accutatly reflect me at this point in my life. I was updating my facebook profile and this is the end result in the "info" section. So without much further adu.......
I’m from Massachusetts. We do have an accent. We’re from New England. I currently am in the working to travel phase in my life. This phase has moved me from my "home base" of Cape Cod where I grew up to New Orleans, LA after Hurricane Katrina for 9 months, to Peoria, Illinois for 6 months, to Antarctica for a year which included 7 weeks down at the geographical and physical South Pole. It has also brought me to the Seville province in Spain although I do hardly speak spanish. While here I plan on seeing Europe in 3 day intervals so I figure 1 major city every 3-4 weeks and with short excursions around Spain in the inbetween times.
I have been called blunt, abrasive and crude but I like to believe that those are good qualities since I am always being honest and to me that is the best quality someone can have. By my nature I am loyal and with my choice of profession, a firefighter, I believe I am even more loyal than what could normally be asked of average people.
I am inspired by the people who have gone to the places that no one thought was possible. By taking a chance and doing the things that other people have dreamed of, by casting off the lines of restrictions that keep adventurous people planted. Eccentric people have always keep the world advancing by going where only they knew they could, by doing what was called absurd and by following their dreams. I know that I can not live by this completely but I am choosing to not settle for the easy road and take the one less traveled and hopefully I will make it to the end, safe, sound and sane.
241fire.blogspot.com Yea, it is my blog. I started it in Antarctica and then have continued it onto my trips in Florida and now Spain.
Stay Frosty
-C
I’m from Massachusetts. We do have an accent. We’re from New England. I currently am in the working to travel phase in my life. This phase has moved me from my "home base" of Cape Cod where I grew up to New Orleans, LA after Hurricane Katrina for 9 months, to Peoria, Illinois for 6 months, to Antarctica for a year which included 7 weeks down at the geographical and physical South Pole. It has also brought me to the Seville province in Spain although I do hardly speak spanish. While here I plan on seeing Europe in 3 day intervals so I figure 1 major city every 3-4 weeks and with short excursions around Spain in the inbetween times.
I have been called blunt, abrasive and crude but I like to believe that those are good qualities since I am always being honest and to me that is the best quality someone can have. By my nature I am loyal and with my choice of profession, a firefighter, I believe I am even more loyal than what could normally be asked of average people.
I am inspired by the people who have gone to the places that no one thought was possible. By taking a chance and doing the things that other people have dreamed of, by casting off the lines of restrictions that keep adventurous people planted. Eccentric people have always keep the world advancing by going where only they knew they could, by doing what was called absurd and by following their dreams. I know that I can not live by this completely but I am choosing to not settle for the easy road and take the one less traveled and hopefully I will make it to the end, safe, sound and sane.
241fire.blogspot.com Yea, it is my blog. I started it in Antarctica and then have continued it onto my trips in Florida and now Spain.
Stay Frosty
-C
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