I arrived in Portland yesterday afternoon, and then I made my way to
the Hotel Fifty. Kristie and I met Maria, Ben, and Sophie at
Pambiache, a cuban restaurant. We went to Maria's to see Bert, their
new puppy, then had desert over Ben and Jessica's. Not bad for my
first day in the city.
Unlike Jack, though, I had plenty of bathroom breaks throughout my
episode.
Other than that, the flight is going swimmingly.
From the Roman-Germanic museum in Cologne. During a digging project to create an air raid shelter in 1941, Germans uncovering this house from a Roman merchant dated back to the 3rd century. Here is a beautiful mosaic from his dining room. That's Eric and Glenn trying to look interested.
All we have in our dining room floor are scratch marks and bits of crumbs from last night's supper. It's nothing that the future archeologists will get too excited over.
For those who think all religions are alike: Take a look at this story.
Where are those voices rising up in protest at the inhumanity? Oh wait...nobody speaks out against Islam.
Here's another to review. I'm sure we'll see the outrage in the media on par with Imus and Michael Richards. You can't just go insulting Christians publicly, can you? What would happen if this Jewish man made comments insulting Islam?
You shall know them by their fruits...
We met my Uncle Tommy and his wife Carol on Friday night. We went to a pub, and it was exactly how I'd imagine it: regular customers, drunk men, barflies making playful comments with the bartender, and everyone knew Tommy. He was the Boyle Norm. Everybody knew his name.
One man, Mickey, came to the table and pronounced his love to Kristie. Normally, I'd be threatened, but this geezer had only two or three teeth, perhaps needed to chew the suds of his Guinness. Another man came up and pretended that I was Kristie's dad. He was a little man wrapped in the biggest, puffiest coat you could imagine. He looked like a hot dog wrapped in a loaf of Wonder Bread. If this weren't bad enough, he had the longest nose hair I have ever seen. It wasn't the usual curly ones that poke out, nor was it in a gang that sprouts. Rather, this was an inch-long string, like a repeller would drop down before exploring an underground cave. I was transfixed watching it sway with his breaths, like a metronome clicking to and fro counting time.
We went to my mom's house, school, and church, as well as visiting the graves of my grandparents. It was an excellent trip, perhaps one of the best.
Kristie and I are going to Ireland, this weekend to visit my mother's hometown and her brother, Tommy. I've never met the chap, but I've had some interesting conversations with him on the phone. We are meeting them the night of a birthday party in a pub (I'm still not sure whose birthday it is). Imagine this: a loud pub, an uncle I don't know, a step-aunt who was my mom's friend as a child, throngs of strangers, and Kristie and me. That's a recipe for success! And what does one get an Irish stranger for his or her birthday? An Irish joke book? A Guinness key fob? Knickers?
I'll probably have a beer.
Teachers are often six to eight years behind the popular culture, and this video proves it. Teachers are now talking about podcasting and blogging in the classroom as if they were invented last night. Perhaps this Johnny-come-lately attitude explains the dated fashions of American educators. If you don't believe me, stick your head in the next teacher conference in your town.
Rapping about perimeters is just embarrassing. No wonder the dropout rate is so high.
Word.
Take a look at my updated Flickr page to see photos from the latest trips. They include Brussels, Madrid, Naples, and France.
