Time slips into the future

Cruisin' across the city to the other end of town, to Palermo, to have a Friday night group dinner at the Armenian Cultural Center, I notice the blanket flashes of lightning way down the street up towards the North. Summer has passed and when we exit the restaurant a few hours later, stuffed beyond belief - top notch food served in an auditorium family style - its rainy; steadily and warmly, a refreshingly humid rain.

Ethan and I both fly out of BA on Monday, both through Miami - the gateway to Latin America. He's headed on to NYC and I go back for two weeks to see friends and family in California before heading back to Buenos Aires in mid May. But I must say, the three day road trip while back home from May 5-7 to Humboldt County, Eureka to be more specific, to see my ex-roommate, ex-boss, ex-navy disordinance diver (READ - trained with the SEALS) and close, close friend step into the Octagon Cage for his first professional Mixed Martial Arts fighting debut, is really what I'm looking forward to. It's like the Super Dave story, an ongoing saga that's part of a larger syndrome. I've shot one fight story before (http://www.grphoto.net/cgi-bin/ICPro/showThumb.cgi?group=ufc_fight_club) and it left a definite impression in my mind when the guy I was covering lost. But FLETCHMONSTER is at the peak of his physical fight career and has what it takes upstairs to win. (You can read more about his preparation for his fight next weekend on his blog www.fletchmonster.blogspot.com or by clicking on the FletchMonster link at the top right link section of this blog.) We all wish you zen concentration and Master Ninja Warrior strength as you take this guy out!

Meanwhile, back in Buenos Aires my favorite expression in Spanish, or Castellano as it is pronounced here, still is 'es diferente', because Argentina really is different, even today after six months. And I still love it... a city that is alive, full of talk and walk and sit and listen and learn and to be alive. My other favorite expression, especially with my brethren taxi drivers is 'Nosotros tenemos plata sin vida y Uds. tienen vida sin plata', which roughly translates to 'We have money and no life and you have life with no money', which in many aspects is true. Consumerism naturally consumes North America, the United States, us, who we call Americans. But when you don't have any money, those choices don't exist, and you're forced to focus on other things... like your family and your friends and drinking mate in the park (which is about the cheapest thing in the world to do) and enjoying the weather - watching summer leave and to welcome the fall.

Easter & Empanadas

I'd like to write an entire piece on Empanadas but as bedtime draws near, I'll keep this brief. I LOVE EMPANADAS! (For those of you in the US of A, the closest thing to an empanada would be a 'hot pocket').

- they are CHEAP, especially here in Buenos Aires. If you can eat five, which is a stomach-full, you'll be setback about $1.70 USD).

- they are YUMMY, and come in more flavors than you can imagine; including Meat (in three varieties - suave, picante & 'squared'), chicken, ham & cheese... and a bunch of others. But those are the three main ones, no need to stray further

- did I say CHEAP?

- Delivery. the place a block away will deliver and a $0.30 tip on a $3 USD order is 'above the norm'.

So, Easter in Bs As (as Buenos Aires as it is known locally) was a work weekend - Digital (Photography) Work Flow. But the empanadas were CRUCIAL to the weekend and we thank San Remo Pizzeria for their aid and for being open over the holiday weekend. Long Live Empanadas!

ps - and when you have empanadas for breakfast, lunch AND dinner on Easter Weekend you have to be SURE that you have enough toilet paper, cause that's CRITICAL! dios mio... ES DIFERENTE! (as Ethan heads to the bathroom at 3am with a double layer of plastic grocery bags and the empanadas rappers. "Should I write 'OJO' for the Cartoneros on this bag of trash?"

FletchMonster Gonna Kick Some ASS!!

All's I can post right now, after a straight eight hours of DWF (Digital Work Flow - for Digital Photographers) is GO FLETCH GO!

www.fletchmonster.blogspot.com

YEAH!!!

GR

What I Been Doin'

(since this is all about ME!)

- I started taking pictures with my 1936 Leica III-C (on film, gasp!)
- I walked a long, long way in my same pair of black flip flops (today)
- I took as many taxis as buses in the past few weeks
- I kissed a sweaty Cartonero on the cheek (today)
- I kissed a girl on a crowded bus that I never thought I'd kiss again (today)
- I posed for a photo with a half-naked transvestite (ooh la la)
- I called MT on his birthday to wish him a happy 39th birthday (Happy Birthday Bro!)
- I stayed up all night
- I started smoking again (temporarily, maybe it had something to do with staying up all night?!)
- I worked a full EIGHT hour day (almost)
- I took pictures of a cute girl in a bikini sitting in a bunch of trash (today, with some Cartoneros)
- I won and lost at poker
- I finally made some business cards (first time in quite awhile)
- I authorized the replacement of my computer's hard drive (which sadly died)
- I confirmed my arrival to San Francisco for May 2nd (for a two week visit)
- I made coffee at home for the first time in weeks (today)
- I ate too much half-way decent guacamole (yesterday)
- I saw a lot of people picking through trash (always, I see)
- I learned two new words in slang for money (gita y tela)
- I conducted some business meetings
- I blogged about going to a mental hospital and never posted it (too difficult)
- I posted to my blog for the first time in awhile (today)
- I walked past Bar Britanico and realized it is still OPEN!
- I missed my friends and family in California
- I got stoked on my new job here in Bs As (or Baires as the locals call it)
- I drank too much soda pop
- I spent too much money (not on soda pop)
- I played an arcade rally driving game (today)
- I went to a mall (today)
- I ate at McDonald's for the first time in Argentina (today, at the mall)
- And finally (today) I realized (again) that life ain't soo bad!