Originally uploaded by emaggie.
Friday, June 30, 2006
The view from Cafe du Soleil on one of our final San Francisco mornings
Originally uploaded by emaggie.
Another morning's damage repair probably thanks to the Toronado
Originally uploaded by emaggie.
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Maya offers up her best Beck Hansen imitation.
She told me this look was most influenced by his cover for "Mutations". But she also said something about having bangs down to her chin these days.
The oxidizing copper skin of the new DeYoung Museum after less than a year.
Originally uploaded by emaggie.
The look after dark in Kezar Stadium
One of my favorite San Francisco spots. Hard to imagine the 49ers playing games there until the 50s. But they darn sure did, I reckon. I really should track down some Packers-Niners shots from games up to that era.
Chuckles uncorks his horribly dull voice
If you want to dissect where the debate between the Bushies and everyone else starts and ends, look no further than today's Supreme Court ruling about Guantanamo Bay military tribunals. The Bushies lost this one, having been called out for violating international military law (you can't prosecute "conspiracy" against enemies, only specific acts) and the Geneva Convention. And the military lawyer - a JAG dude, I'm assuming - Commander Charles Swift called this ruling a high water mark for our society. Besides having the coolest title in the military (generals got nuttin' on being a frickin' commander), Swift knocked it out of the park on insta-responsing. "A return to our fundamental values," Swift deemed it and called it "a victory, folks." Yup, he even got the "folks" bit in there. So the Bushie supporting legal scholar took a broadside at the ruling by calling it "an example of justices making it up as they go along." Which I assume to also be a direct slam on Anthony Kennedy in his role as the new Sandra Day O'Swingvote. And Clarence "I eat alone" Thomas read his first opinion from the bench in his 15 years on the Court. Tell me that doofus wasn't the least qualified mind of his generation. If you want to know what sort of bootlicker justice Harrier Miers would have turned out to be, look no further than Chuckles Thomas. Regardless, big ruling. Court watchers surely will have that tingly feeling all day.
Hope your own tingles are justifiable. Rock on.
Hope your own tingles are justifiable. Rock on.
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
"You see the problem, dear Listener, is that your garden variety Liberal has way too many boners..."
Rush Limbaugh is the bloated, obscene gift that just keeps on giving. Now he's been busted for a pretty cheesy misdemeanor coming into Palm Beach from the Dominican Republic carrying mislabeled boner pills. It wouldn't mean a thing, except he's on probation for his prior drug problems and he's open to random drug testing at any time. I expect the horse head in the bed next to him in his trashy Florida castle ain't far behind.
Even a gift from the ironically-just Gawds like Rush's need for a boner rush or Axl Rose getting busted in Sweden can't seem to bust through the crap these days. A continuance of nothing going right in the various Wars the Bushies got us into, and the Katrina waste becoming most itemized. The pic on the front of the NYTimes of 10,000 empty FEMA trailerhomes stored in Arkansas for $250K a month in rent should be the biggest embarrassment of the day. But instead it's just part of the pretty typical bad newsiness. Hope y'all understand that's why I've been a bit off the job here lately - it's all shite out there. Instead we're getting ready for a big move to Seattle in a few weeks. Lots of changes coming in a bunch. Lots to look forward to. Hope your own plans for the near future are hard to sum up quickly. Rock on.
Even a gift from the ironically-just Gawds like Rush's need for a boner rush or Axl Rose getting busted in Sweden can't seem to bust through the crap these days. A continuance of nothing going right in the various Wars the Bushies got us into, and the Katrina waste becoming most itemized. The pic on the front of the NYTimes of 10,000 empty FEMA trailerhomes stored in Arkansas for $250K a month in rent should be the biggest embarrassment of the day. But instead it's just part of the pretty typical bad newsiness. Hope y'all understand that's why I've been a bit off the job here lately - it's all shite out there. Instead we're getting ready for a big move to Seattle in a few weeks. Lots of changes coming in a bunch. Lots to look forward to. Hope your own plans for the near future are hard to sum up quickly. Rock on.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
The pillar in the the courtyard of the Museo Nacional de Antropologia
The pillar in the the courtyard of the Museo Nacional de Anthological
Originally uploaded by emaggie.
Maya shows disgust as she hears of our departure from Mexico.
As a matter of catching up on a few photos we especially liked, this just about ends our Mexico series. Thanks for checking in.
Monday, June 19, 2006
We're back, Baby!
Hello America, how are you? We're just fine now that we're back in San Francisco after a month in Mexico - thanks for asking. All things considered, we had a good month in Cuernavaca. Maya survived just fine, Sarah got the clinical experience she was hoping for, and I didn't get dissentary. Or at least it wasn't an especially bad case. Before I return to the daily absurdities of life here in the good ol' U S of Freakin' A, I'd like to offer my brief review of Mexico. My rating of the country is a squishy B-minus. And while many people may object to just one overall grade, I offer the following defense of doing so with a handful of cheeky anecdotes.
Cuernavaca gets a C-minus. As far as cities go, it's the Mexican equivalent of, say, Tulsa.
The Mexican people get an A-minus. I'd give them an A, except for the one crooked cabbie I met that ruined it for everyone.
The food gets a D. Only because we couldn't eat it. The fact that the water is so much of a concern rates even lower.
The places we visited get a solid B. Acapulco was kinda crappy, Xochicalco was a trippy cool example of an ancient site that has been excavated and preserved, the towns of Taxco and Tepotzlan were authentically interesting, and we didn't see enough of Mexico City in one day to render anything like a legetimate judgment. We did come across a massive Gay Pride Parade on our way to our hotel which was a welcome taste of life back in San Francisco. While exploring the insanely cool Museo Nacional de Antropologia, we saw the actor William Hurt also checking out Mexico's rich history of, like, history stuff. Our hotel in Mexico City, the Camino Real, was totally arty farty (much more art than fart). But on the way to the airport yesterday morning I saw two billboards featuring Paris Hilton - one for her signature fragrance, "Just Me", and another for (I'm totally serious) Boone's Farm fortified wine. Any country that pays attention to her has issues. Including us.
The wall-to-wall political advertising throughout the country gets a C. I picked up something of a feel for the breakdown between national parties. And the center-left vs. center-right showdown will make for an important bellwether of the political wind blowing all the way up from South America to our southern border. Basically, we've lost the hemisphere given the policies of zenophobia emanating from the Bushies and their compatriots. So in actuality, I give the overall learning process of getting a better feel for what's what in Mexico and farther South a B-plus. Fascinating really.
So round it out to a B-minus for the small slice of Mexico that we saw. I'd suggest that we all should spend some time there and especially not just in the traditional Spring Break sort of locales. Even if you spend half your time on the toilet, it's worth the time spent exploring.
Hope you own feel for the world improved recently. Rock on.
Cuernavaca gets a C-minus. As far as cities go, it's the Mexican equivalent of, say, Tulsa.
The Mexican people get an A-minus. I'd give them an A, except for the one crooked cabbie I met that ruined it for everyone.
The food gets a D. Only because we couldn't eat it. The fact that the water is so much of a concern rates even lower.
The places we visited get a solid B. Acapulco was kinda crappy, Xochicalco was a trippy cool example of an ancient site that has been excavated and preserved, the towns of Taxco and Tepotzlan were authentically interesting, and we didn't see enough of Mexico City in one day to render anything like a legetimate judgment. We did come across a massive Gay Pride Parade on our way to our hotel which was a welcome taste of life back in San Francisco. While exploring the insanely cool Museo Nacional de Antropologia, we saw the actor William Hurt also checking out Mexico's rich history of, like, history stuff. Our hotel in Mexico City, the Camino Real, was totally arty farty (much more art than fart). But on the way to the airport yesterday morning I saw two billboards featuring Paris Hilton - one for her signature fragrance, "Just Me", and another for (I'm totally serious) Boone's Farm fortified wine. Any country that pays attention to her has issues. Including us.
The wall-to-wall political advertising throughout the country gets a C. I picked up something of a feel for the breakdown between national parties. And the center-left vs. center-right showdown will make for an important bellwether of the political wind blowing all the way up from South America to our southern border. Basically, we've lost the hemisphere given the policies of zenophobia emanating from the Bushies and their compatriots. So in actuality, I give the overall learning process of getting a better feel for what's what in Mexico and farther South a B-plus. Fascinating really.
So round it out to a B-minus for the small slice of Mexico that we saw. I'd suggest that we all should spend some time there and especially not just in the traditional Spring Break sort of locales. Even if you spend half your time on the toilet, it's worth the time spent exploring.
Hope you own feel for the world improved recently. Rock on.
Saturday, June 17, 2006
"Would you get a load of that funky chicken?"
Maya checks out the peacocks that populate the garden at the restaurant Las Mananitas, where we had our last night's celebratory meal in Cuernavaca.
Now THAT's a stick shift.
On one of the "ruta" buses driving home from the zocalo in Cuernavaca, I was impressed by this tripped out item that directly contrasted with the stripped down crappiness of the remainder of the bus.
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
The Road to Acapulco is muy bien!
We've been safely back from Acapulco for a few days. Just a few more days hereafter left for us in Mexico. The month has gone well aside from the random intestinal distress all three of us experienced. I'm still at best a functional retard (sorry, retards) with regard to Spanish, but at least I can direct my cabbies to and from daycare for Maya without getting lost or screwed on the fare. One dooshbag tried to overcharge me awhile ago - I beat him down like a rented burro even with my 17 functional words en espanol. But aside from that, the people here are fabulous. Friendly, hard-working-to-a-fault, immensely curious, and futbol crazy. I was so pysched to see Mexico beat Iran on Sunday, even though I'm only living a brief vicarious connection to their fandom. And I've had a few cabbies try to calm my expected discontent with the horrible first American match against the Czech Republic. If I learn anything of value before I leave, it will be a decent Mexican futbol cheer. That, and I desperately need to find a place that sells Mexican wrestling masks. I'll keep you posted.
Before I get too far past our weekend trip, I'd like to offer a few brief snapshots of life in Acapulco - Mexico's first beach resort.
First of all, we made a mistake in booking online what was undoubtably a cheap hotel room. The problem was that it was also at an entirely sleezy scam hotel right across the street from one of the 2 or 3 top resorts in the city (with a very similar name that confused us, based on recommendations from friends locally). When we saw what we'd drawn as a "deal" - with what looked on the drive-by like a rusting bike in the pool and a crappy chain stretched across the access road as a gate - we immediately went upscale and booked a room at the proper namesake on the beach side, the Fairmont Princessa. And we're damn glad we did. Maya spent most of her weekend eating a seemingly endless supply of french fries, we hung out almost entirely in the friendly confines of our resort address, and we didn't even use the chance to soak up the disco beat from anything closer than grenade range. But it is a truly top tier spot, if you go in for that sort of thang. Obviously, Acapulco's a prime example of the haves being kept at arm's length from the multitudes of havenots. It is, after all, in the poorest, least healthy state in Mexico (Guerrero). Can't say that we're headed back - the ocean's kinda gross and we don't really dig the whole pre-packaged resort feel. But it was an entirely cool getaway from Cuernavaca.
With regard to the getaway part, we also acted like muy importante Americanos by renting a car from the Hertz agency here and taking the tollroads or "cuotas" down to Acapulco. I opted for a Nissan Tsuru - basically the Ford Escort of this part of the World. And ended up with a brand frickin' new one - it hadn't been driven by a single goofball aside from the people that had dropped it off at the agency that morning. So when the mechanic handed it over to me (an American wearing a Jeff Spicoli t-shirt) he looked like I was kidnapping his daughter. The tollroad was ridiculously beautiful - rolling green mountains along the way with stands of cacti and crazily carved rocky passages almost the entire 190-ish miles to Acapulco. But the tollroad was also ridiculously expensive for most Mexicans, especially considering that it cuts through Guerrero and costs over $30American to get from here to there, one-way. Basically, all you see along the way are Jaguars or SUVs driving ridiculously fast that you're told to assume are from Mexico City and the occasional local pick-up full of people in the flatbed going from one exit to the next. In the end, the drive down was a funky way to see the obvious separation between the rich and the poor in Mexico. It makes me think that much more of Mexico would be fun to see by car. If you think I'm being a horribly naive Gringo, let me know.
There will be much more to comment upon in summation as we near the end of our time here. So please check back. Hope your own cultural exposure doesn't burn you in the days ahead. Rock on.
Before I get too far past our weekend trip, I'd like to offer a few brief snapshots of life in Acapulco - Mexico's first beach resort.
First of all, we made a mistake in booking online what was undoubtably a cheap hotel room. The problem was that it was also at an entirely sleezy scam hotel right across the street from one of the 2 or 3 top resorts in the city (with a very similar name that confused us, based on recommendations from friends locally). When we saw what we'd drawn as a "deal" - with what looked on the drive-by like a rusting bike in the pool and a crappy chain stretched across the access road as a gate - we immediately went upscale and booked a room at the proper namesake on the beach side, the Fairmont Princessa. And we're damn glad we did. Maya spent most of her weekend eating a seemingly endless supply of french fries, we hung out almost entirely in the friendly confines of our resort address, and we didn't even use the chance to soak up the disco beat from anything closer than grenade range. But it is a truly top tier spot, if you go in for that sort of thang. Obviously, Acapulco's a prime example of the haves being kept at arm's length from the multitudes of havenots. It is, after all, in the poorest, least healthy state in Mexico (Guerrero). Can't say that we're headed back - the ocean's kinda gross and we don't really dig the whole pre-packaged resort feel. But it was an entirely cool getaway from Cuernavaca.
With regard to the getaway part, we also acted like muy importante Americanos by renting a car from the Hertz agency here and taking the tollroads or "cuotas" down to Acapulco. I opted for a Nissan Tsuru - basically the Ford Escort of this part of the World. And ended up with a brand frickin' new one - it hadn't been driven by a single goofball aside from the people that had dropped it off at the agency that morning. So when the mechanic handed it over to me (an American wearing a Jeff Spicoli t-shirt) he looked like I was kidnapping his daughter. The tollroad was ridiculously beautiful - rolling green mountains along the way with stands of cacti and crazily carved rocky passages almost the entire 190-ish miles to Acapulco. But the tollroad was also ridiculously expensive for most Mexicans, especially considering that it cuts through Guerrero and costs over $30American to get from here to there, one-way. Basically, all you see along the way are Jaguars or SUVs driving ridiculously fast that you're told to assume are from Mexico City and the occasional local pick-up full of people in the flatbed going from one exit to the next. In the end, the drive down was a funky way to see the obvious separation between the rich and the poor in Mexico. It makes me think that much more of Mexico would be fun to see by car. If you think I'm being a horribly naive Gringo, let me know.
There will be much more to comment upon in summation as we near the end of our time here. So please check back. Hope your own cultural exposure doesn't burn you in the days ahead. Rock on.
Saturday, June 10, 2006
Maya gets some last minute instruction on what to say to the older boys on the Beach (translation: Back off - my Dad's in a biker gang!).
Thursday, June 08, 2006
We all gotta go sometime. Repeatedly.
With little more than a week to go on our Mexican travels, we passed a relatively important milestone yesterday. After Sarah had gotten sick on Sunday on her way home from a delivery in the pre-dawn hours, my turn came round. Along with just about everything else I've eaten since 5th grade. Call it whatever you want (I prefer Montezuma's Revenge). But it ain't pretty secondhand much less on the business end of this little bug. I'm nonetheless very pleased to say that after a day's worth of Gatorade and crappy Mexican saltines, I'm resurrected with a whole new lease on life. Must have been the iceberg lettuce smoothie I bought off the fender of that broken down El Camino in the neighborhood. Next time I'm definitely going with the spinich.
Since all of our GI tracts seem to be on somewhat steady ground, we're heading to Acapulco tomorrow for a weekend away. It's the rainy season, so we may be disappointed by what we encounter. But the forecast is relatively decent and hotel rooms are frickin' mucho cheapo. Plus we're digging the idea of hitting the road in a rental car. Expect a more extensive travelogue than I've offered recently somewhat along the way.
For those in the U.S. that have no idea that the World Cup starts tomorrow in Germany or that futbol is the akin to collective madness in places like Mexico, well...the World Cup starts tomorrow yada yada yada. The U.S. actually finished in 1st place in its region, one place above Mexico. I'd be muy exaggerato if I tried to claim much awareness of either the sport's intricacies or the history of the rivalries that make up so much of the quadrennial event. But I'll be watching, especially to see just how nutty the fans here get. The U.S. opens on Sunday versus the Czech Republic. Mexico hits the pitch against Iran tomorrow. Hope your own viewing plans for the weekend are muy importante. Rock on.
Since all of our GI tracts seem to be on somewhat steady ground, we're heading to Acapulco tomorrow for a weekend away. It's the rainy season, so we may be disappointed by what we encounter. But the forecast is relatively decent and hotel rooms are frickin' mucho cheapo. Plus we're digging the idea of hitting the road in a rental car. Expect a more extensive travelogue than I've offered recently somewhat along the way.
For those in the U.S. that have no idea that the World Cup starts tomorrow in Germany or that futbol is the akin to collective madness in places like Mexico, well...the World Cup starts tomorrow yada yada yada. The U.S. actually finished in 1st place in its region, one place above Mexico. I'd be muy exaggerato if I tried to claim much awareness of either the sport's intricacies or the history of the rivalries that make up so much of the quadrennial event. But I'll be watching, especially to see just how nutty the fans here get. The U.S. opens on Sunday versus the Czech Republic. Mexico hits the pitch against Iran tomorrow. Hope your own viewing plans for the weekend are muy importante. Rock on.
Monday, June 05, 2006
Maya just won't take "no" for an answer about going outside on a totally rainy weekend.
Originally uploaded by emaggie.
Friday, June 02, 2006
Introspection, thanks to a Gurgle in the Night
Well, it probably had to happen sometime this month. Everyone warns you about it with regard to Mexico - Montezuma's revenge, e. coli, the barfing and the pooping and the whole uncomfortable bag of tricks. But just when we were getting all cocky and had prepped for a weekend getaway to Acapulco, it hit. One of us got sick. And unfortunately it was Maya.
Now I want to say first of all that she's totally fine. As a matter of fact, it sounds like she's fallen asleep for a much-needed morning nap after eating and drinking a bit. If all goes well and we get her past this without too much other discomfort, it may just be one of those not-necessarily Kodak moments to add to the treasure trove. Here's just a bit of detail for those of you that have followed Maya's ebb and flow over the past 15 months.
Maya had been increasingly eating like a champ over the last few days. Her fave - simple cheese quesadillas - but we try to mix it up enough to cover the bases. Following the advice of almost everyone, we've been trying to be totally anal about using iodine to decontaminate our fruit. And unless she's been drinking pool water we thought we were "doing a heckuva job, Brownie" keeping anything other than bottled water from her reach. We didn't even get her in the pool yesterday. It should be noted that she did start going to a truly top-notch daycare center for a few hours a day this week after our nannie options totally flaked out (she won't even eat the stuff we bring for her, we've been told - too many other kids and toys and group nap/bonding time to distract her). But last night after heading to bed like normal, she started to make some noise 'round midnight. At first we thought it was the rather typical nighttime thunder and lightning for Cuernavaca. Then we heard something different over the monitor. A sort of gurgle. Nothing freaky, just sort of, ya know, gurgly. Didn't think too much of it at first, but then I went to check on her because Sarah's done so the last few nights that she's stirred. Well, let's just say that it wasn't a typical wake-up call.
Maya was covered with largely cheese quesadillas and I'm sure pretty confused about the reverse flow of her system. We did our best to hop into parent/decontamination mode. The next hour was pretty rough on all of us. In addition to our villa's supply of towels and sheets and rugs and pillows and, well...'nuff said. Her room has two double beds so we moved the whole famn damily over for an occasional slumber and laundry party. Maya mainly slept on Sarah until morning while I bargained with the great unseen Conference Committee in the Clouds that hasn't really heard much testimony from me in the last decade or two. "Get her through this and I'll offer up extra random acts of kindness one weekend a month plus every other Thursday afternoon yada yada yada" - ya know, typical metaphysical wagering.
As the sun rose and we assessed where we were at, things looked a lot brighter. Maya got rolling, more subdued than usual, but certainly acting like the kid we know. And after a few hours of getting her feet back on the ground, I'm hopeful that the worst is past. New parents can't help but get introspective on such mornings. We've been so lucky with her thus far, and not just in terms of splatter radius. So knowing that she's asleep in the other room right now feels like the Best Nap Ever. Any time you see your child in discomfort, it blows. I'm a little late to that lesson, some might say. But once she gets up and I wash any lingering stink off of her, you can bet that she'll get a little longer than the usual snuggle as she wipes the sleep from her baby blues. And no more tacos for her bought out of the back of some toothless woman's '78 Dodge Van.
I'd better get back to my usual snarkiness before a group hug breaks out in here. Otherwise, we're still having a great time getting to know a little sliver of Mexico. I haven't really shared much over the past week, but we did a day trip last weekend to Taxco ("Silver City" known for its amazing area silver mines and jewelry craftspeople) and Xochicalco (totally trippy cool Mayan era city). Our Acapulco trip has been postponed to next weekend - it's the off-season for resorts so prices are low and re-booking things was a piece of cake. Plenty of other smaller plans we hope to spread out over the next two weeks before we head back to the States. Check back for more and thanks for reading. Oh, and hope your own laundry facilities are mercifully untaxed today. Rock on.
Now I want to say first of all that she's totally fine. As a matter of fact, it sounds like she's fallen asleep for a much-needed morning nap after eating and drinking a bit. If all goes well and we get her past this without too much other discomfort, it may just be one of those not-necessarily Kodak moments to add to the treasure trove. Here's just a bit of detail for those of you that have followed Maya's ebb and flow over the past 15 months.
Maya had been increasingly eating like a champ over the last few days. Her fave - simple cheese quesadillas - but we try to mix it up enough to cover the bases. Following the advice of almost everyone, we've been trying to be totally anal about using iodine to decontaminate our fruit. And unless she's been drinking pool water we thought we were "doing a heckuva job, Brownie" keeping anything other than bottled water from her reach. We didn't even get her in the pool yesterday. It should be noted that she did start going to a truly top-notch daycare center for a few hours a day this week after our nannie options totally flaked out (she won't even eat the stuff we bring for her, we've been told - too many other kids and toys and group nap/bonding time to distract her). But last night after heading to bed like normal, she started to make some noise 'round midnight. At first we thought it was the rather typical nighttime thunder and lightning for Cuernavaca. Then we heard something different over the monitor. A sort of gurgle. Nothing freaky, just sort of, ya know, gurgly. Didn't think too much of it at first, but then I went to check on her because Sarah's done so the last few nights that she's stirred. Well, let's just say that it wasn't a typical wake-up call.
Maya was covered with largely cheese quesadillas and I'm sure pretty confused about the reverse flow of her system. We did our best to hop into parent/decontamination mode. The next hour was pretty rough on all of us. In addition to our villa's supply of towels and sheets and rugs and pillows and, well...'nuff said. Her room has two double beds so we moved the whole famn damily over for an occasional slumber and laundry party. Maya mainly slept on Sarah until morning while I bargained with the great unseen Conference Committee in the Clouds that hasn't really heard much testimony from me in the last decade or two. "Get her through this and I'll offer up extra random acts of kindness one weekend a month plus every other Thursday afternoon yada yada yada" - ya know, typical metaphysical wagering.
As the sun rose and we assessed where we were at, things looked a lot brighter. Maya got rolling, more subdued than usual, but certainly acting like the kid we know. And after a few hours of getting her feet back on the ground, I'm hopeful that the worst is past. New parents can't help but get introspective on such mornings. We've been so lucky with her thus far, and not just in terms of splatter radius. So knowing that she's asleep in the other room right now feels like the Best Nap Ever. Any time you see your child in discomfort, it blows. I'm a little late to that lesson, some might say. But once she gets up and I wash any lingering stink off of her, you can bet that she'll get a little longer than the usual snuggle as she wipes the sleep from her baby blues. And no more tacos for her bought out of the back of some toothless woman's '78 Dodge Van.
I'd better get back to my usual snarkiness before a group hug breaks out in here. Otherwise, we're still having a great time getting to know a little sliver of Mexico. I haven't really shared much over the past week, but we did a day trip last weekend to Taxco ("Silver City" known for its amazing area silver mines and jewelry craftspeople) and Xochicalco (totally trippy cool Mayan era city). Our Acapulco trip has been postponed to next weekend - it's the off-season for resorts so prices are low and re-booking things was a piece of cake. Plenty of other smaller plans we hope to spread out over the next two weeks before we head back to the States. Check back for more and thanks for reading. Oh, and hope your own laundry facilities are mercifully untaxed today. Rock on.
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