On the Eve of a New York Kind of Weekend

Well, I've been very busy since my return to The Palacio. Last Friday I got to The Palacio around 8:30 and unpacked, unwound and crashed. I woke up at 7:00 on Saturday morning and caught up on mail, cleaning, and reading before my cousin and I met Mark across the street for breakfast at Solo 1530. The rest of the afternoon I caught up around The Palacio, and then I caught up with Arianna over the phone until my cousin, her husband and one of her friends knocked on The Palacio door!

You see, I lost my cell phone in Ireland, and about a month ago I reduced my local phone service to a mere dial tone for $8 per month (so that I can continue to get DSL for $16 per month). I also acquired in internet phone number that I use to make long distance phone calls, including international phone calls for $.02/minute. Along the way, I also signed up for an internet phone number in Italy so that Arianna can call me cheaply. To summarize a short story that has been made long, my complicated telephone situation meant that my cousin had been trying to call me for a few hours before she knocked on my door! With every step forward, it seems I take one or two backward in the line of technological progress...

So, on Saturday afternoon I visited with my cousin in The Palacio and eventually at Bricks for some pizza and beer.

Sunday morning I drove south for a breakfast at my parents' house, a church service, and an after-church luncheon to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the church of my youth. In many ways the luncheon was like a family reunion. I saw many people I had not seen in years, caught up, reminisced, all in all it was great to be surrounded by those with which I share so many childhood memories. We shared a lot of good times.

Work Week
This week I tried my darndest to finish 10 days of work in four days. I probably finished six days worth of work, which just about allows me to rest easy as I take the next three days off for a quick vacation to New York City. Yes, that's right, New York City! I've just finished searching for restaurants for the weekend. On Saturday night we'll go to a costume party hosted by the girlfriend of an old friend of mine. Monday morning we'll go to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. For the rest of the time, we will have to be creative in how we fill the pages!

Thor Driving in the Kitchen

A Frankfurt Update

For the second time in my life, I'm in the country where a plurality of my ancestors (over the past 500 years) were likely to have been born. Frankfurt is not an exciting city, but there is something in the stillness and firmness of many of their manners that reminds me of my family. Silence is comfortable to the people here; laughing and joking are not always welcome. And something about the German language and the accent with which they speak English makes every phrase, whether jolly or solemn, sound like a stern command.

Yesterday we were too exhausted to go out in the city. But tonight I hope that we'll stay in the city centre (Romer) for a nice meal and maybe a walk. I will make the best of my moments here, in the land of so many of my forebears.

From San Juan to London

From San Juan to Reading

The last four weeks have been a whirlwind. In Puerto Rico, both the work and play were pleasant. After Puerto Rico, the weekend of 24-25 September was highlighted by a train/bicycle ride down to Brian and Tammy’s house to celebrate their 27th birthdays. Then, after a few days in the office, I went to San Francisco for a training seminar. On 29 September, I was able to dine in North Beach with my Uncle Tom. I then came to The Palacio for the weekend. I went to a Cubs game on Saturday and on Sunday I went to my parents’ house for an afternoon of family time.

The first week in October was very busy in the office as I tried to wrap up some of the last two months’ projects and get ready for the Ireland/England trip. One highlight of the week, however, was that I cooked my dinners and I worked out most every night. The one night I didn’t work out I think I had a very legitimate excuse: I went to see a White Sox playoff game against the Red Sox! I even got to sit in the skybox. The only downside was that my heart was not in it as I clapped for the home team. If only the Cubs will make it to the playoffs again… And why not next season?!

The weekend of 6 to 9 October was fun. Mark, Ceebs, Chico Blanco and I dined at one of our neighborhood’s new restaurants, Cuatro. Specializing in Nuevo Latino cuisine, Cuatro is a welcome addition to our ‘hood. On Friday I recovered from a long week, and on Saturday, my dear parents came down to the city for some breakfast and to help me clean The Palacio in preparation for my uncle and aunt’s visit. After cleaning, I went to Stephanie and Gilberto’s wedding. The service included some Spanish language and the reception included some meringue rhythms. Of course, I had fun! On the Sunday after the wedding I went to Brian and Tammy’s house for a Chicago Bears game. I guess the Bears lost, but Kaylin and Thor were quite adorable!

On 9 October I took an overnight flight to Dublin for a two-day review. For the first time in my work experience, I arrived in Europe on a Monday morning and went straight to work (after showering)… Let me say that this is not an easy thing to do! By the end of Monday, I was a walking zombie, and I fell asleep before 9:00 PM. Of course, Tuesday went very well until I found myself at 11:00 PM wide awake! I ended up getting one hour of sleep, and then enjoying an early Wednesday morning flight to London, with a subsequent drive to Reading, England.

By the end of Thursday in Reading, we realized that we would also have to go to Frankfurt to complete the job. So, what has already been a hectic week of work/travel will become more challenging tomorrow morning when I catch a 6:30 AM flight to Frankfurt. We’ll come back from Frankfurt on Wednesday morning… At the moment I want nothing more than to stay in one place for more than 4 days!

This Weekend in London
At least after a week of long flights, long days at work, and sleepless nights, I was able to enjoy a nice weekend with Arianna. She met me in London, and we enjoyed one of the world’s great cities together. She even lent me some of her Italian fashion sense as I bought an outfit to wear at the theatre on Saturday night. We saw “Fame,” I wonder if anyone will guess whose choice that was! I just dropped her off at Heathrow, and now it’s a little after 9:00 PM and I want nothing more than to sleep soundly for a long time!

Reflections
There’s something about dropping off someone I care for at London’s Heathrow airport and feeling as though this is normal, this is the train I’m used to taking, the airport I’m used to visiting. Yes, something about that makes me forget for an instant that I was actually born far away from here. Perhaps it was the combination of tiredness and the fact that I’m just finished with a week of long days at work, and I’m looking forward to a week full of flights, deadlines and more long days at work; but juxtaposed between these weeks was a weekend of fun … fun with a familiar person in a familiar place, but far from what has always been familiar to me.

Life certainly can be full surprises. I’m sure that four years ago if someone would have told me even a few of the things that I would end up doing, I would not have believed it. Yes, this ride has been amazing. And now I just hope, pray and dream about what I might be doing four years from today. In many ways the only limits are my own imagination and determination. So, now for a determined night of sleep to prepare for an opportunity to shine at my work this week in Franfurt, Reading, Basingstoke and, quite possibly, Blackburn…