Salad

The one who flies to Stockholm from St.Petersburg via MUNCHEN must be out of her wits.

That’s me!

But: you get a chance to observe three different cultures in one day. Kind of rocks.

So what do I observe?

Russians: quiet, pretending to be indifferent, watchful, curious, self-imposing, stressed.

Germans: can’t figure them out! Everything at the airport was straight as a ruler, and ultimately boring. Or is it a stereotype? I like my German friends and acquintances……….

Swedish: chilled, slightly arrogant, indulging in quirky and laconic designs, a lot of water and light; engaging a lot in conversation between each other; a bit like Russians: touching each other while talking a lot.

I’d never seen wooden floor in an airport!

I went to this fabulous meeting at Visby, the isle of Gotland between Sweden and Finland. For four days we lived in the fields and forests. Ate meatballs for breakfast and rosemary cakes for dessert.

I was so shaken out of my stupid husk/shell. Want to start something, to stir something. Planning it with a friend of mine, writing dozens of emails every day to get support, encouragement and… other things.

Yesterday I watched Babel again. A great artwork.

Ah. And I flew back straight Stockholm – St.Peters. 1.5 hours, if not less. Awesome. Small Europe. I looked at the map the other day (I very rarely do) and was astonished!!!!!!!!! I’m living in Europe without leaving Russia!!! What a funny and tickling feeling!

Yes, Madam President, the people of your country are very talented…

…cooks.

Blackout!

For about half an hour.  Because someone forgot to pay the power bill.

Oh, the joys of being a public employee!

No Joke

George Carlin is dead.

It actually makes me sad.  This is a guy whom I admired for his blunt, no-nonsense political views more than his crass humour.  Which is weird, what with him being a comedian an all.

May he not exist in peace.

Civil Service

So I have a new co-worker.  The boss introduced him yesterday and said he’d be getting down to business right away.  My first impression, before crossing a word with him, was that he must be a big shot since he’s barely been interviewed and is nevertheless starting right away.  Half of me was happy because we’d have a stronger team, and the other half was getting ready for the competition.

How wrong I was, oh dear friends.  Here’s a close transcript of our first interaction:

Me: Hey there, welcome aboard.  I didn’t quite catch your name…

Newbie: It’s (Name).

Me: Alright.  I’m (Name), nice to meet you.  So, you’re an economist, I suppose.  Did you graduate from (school)?

Newbie: Hell no! Are you crazy? I graduated from (other school).  (School) is hard as hell!  Did you graduate from there?

Me: Well, yeah.

Newbie: Oh man, I hear they teach so much math there.  I hate math, never understood any of it.  Specially logarithms. Horrible!

Me: Umm, ok.  So I heard you used to work at the Central Bank.  Why’d you leave? Every economist seems to want to end up there.

Newbie: Nah, not for me.  I was bored out of my mind.  You couldn’t use the internet! Can you believe that!? I mean, you could surf the web and stuff, but no messenger, no facebook, no gmail, no nothing! It was hell!

Me: Oh, I see.  But did you at least like your job?

Newbie: No, not really.  Mostly inputting stuff to Excel, which I didn’t know what it was.  Not that I cared anyway.  Plus they were so strict with being on time and all that shit.  You actually had to punch in and everything.  So much hassle. I hope it’s not like that over here, is it?

Me: Well, you kinda have to punch in here as well.

Newbie: Yeah but, like, if you come and punch in, and then sort of dissapear until lunch time, are they on to you all the time, or will nobody notice?

Me: I guess if you’re gone for long someone‘s bound to notice.  But if there’s something that you need to do, like an important errand or something, you can just ask the boss.  She’s pretty flexible as long as you get the job done.

Newbie: Damn.  How about parking? Where do I sign up for a spot.

Me: (Laughing, almost out loud) Sign up for what? Are you joking? Not even all of the higher-ups have dedicated spaces.  Most of us just park out on the street.

Newbie: Damn it.

Me: So, where are you sitting?

Newbie: Near the end of the hall.

Me: Oh, next to Karla and Maki.  Cool, you’re in good company.

Newbie: Who are they? Are they hot?

Me: Karla is the really young girl that works in admin.  Maki is the half japannese woman that works in Planning. They’re both very nice.

Newbie:  Oh, the chinagirl.  I ain’t never seen a chinagirl that’s hot.  Just my luck.

Me: Umm…alright, so good to have you.  See you around.

Big in Japan

So today, on my way out to lunch, I bump into a Japanese-Dominican co-worker and we strike up a conversation. Not that being Japanese-Dominican is her main quality or anything (it sure as hell is not) : her background is relevant because the topic of the conversation was, precisely, Japanese culture.

She was telling me about how Japanese people’s reputation for being very respectful is true, but is also a source of unmitigated hypocrisy, as they will not complain when wronged or unfairly treated but will hold a hell of a grudge. Also, she told me that Japanese politics is as fucked up as Dominican politics, just on a different level. Over here, says she, the problem is that politicians and the economic elites hold the state hostage and use it to serve their personal purposes. Over there, they defend the national interest, but that can mean two things that often clash: the best social interests of the Japanese as a people, or the best interests of Japan as a world power.

Hmm, I wonder if this is true. But it’s just one person’s perception. And also, unlike Germans, there’s no study showing the Japanese are all alike.

In any case, I very much want to go to Japan. According to Tyler Cowen, they’ve got the tastiest beef in the world, the best restaurants, and the coolest gadgets (the first alone would be reason enough for me to visit). The films are awesome (and not just the anime ones), and they have Human Tetris!. Hell, even the news are entertaining.

Two Dogs

One at a seminar. Arrives late, throws all the papers he finds on his seat on the floor. Sits down. “That’s the work material for the seminar, pal”. “Is it? Does that mean we have to do work here? Cause then I’ll have to leave”. Jerk. Heckles the guy giving the presentation. Barks at him, more like it. He knows it all. He’s too good for that. He leaves early.

The second in the street. One of five puppies going across the road with their mother. She walks right through a puddle. Four follow suit. The fifth stays behind, hesitates. Explores the surroundings. Finds away around the puddle, then catches up. “I’m not going to get my paws all wet, no sir”.

Indy

Ok, so I went to the movies with dad and kid and saw Indiana Jones.

What can I say about it? Well, Cate Blanchett is extremely sexy as a russian. Also, if what you’re looking for are very good stunts, thrilling car chase sequences, breath-taking sceneries, and well-crafted special effects (and if you’re an Indiana Jones fan there’s a good chance you are) then it’s well worth your time (and dime).

If you’re looking for a coherent storyline, historical accuracy, character development, thought provokation, any non-adrenaline induced emotions or for that matter, good acting, then sit this one out. Then again, if you’ve ever seen an Indiana Jones movie, you shouldn’t bear such false hopes.

And it has aliens in it.

And Cate Blanchett is extremely sexy as a russian.

This Review. Amazing. Amazing Review.

Probably the awesomest movie review I’ve read in a long time. The reviewee: The Hulk.

“Hulk. Smash!” Yes. Hulk. Smash. Yes. Smash. Big Hulk smash. Smash cars. Buildings. Army tanks. Hulk not just smash. Hulk also go rarrr! Then smash again. Smash important, obviously. Smash Hulk’s USP. What Hulk smash most? Hulk smash all hope of interesting time in cinema. Hulk take all effort of cinema, effort getting babysitter, effort finding parking, and Hulk put great green fist right through it. Hulk crush all hopes of entertainment. Hulk in boring film. Film co-written by star. Edward Norton. Norton in it. Norton write it. Norton not need gamma-radiation poisoning to get big head.”

The World is But a Neighborhood

I’ve just come back from a conference, where a dear friend’s father was a panelist.

That is, the father of my colombian friend with whom I, a dominican, graduated from a scottish university last year. I almost didn’t recognize him because of how tired he looked: he’d just flown into Santo Domingo straight from St. Petersburg.