I’ve finally gotten around to posting the photos–all 68 of ’em–from the trip Jill and I took to Vietnam in March. Enjoy.
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Category: Misc.
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More Weekend Happenings
Had a fun weekend. Jill and I went to dinner Friday night at the fabulous Obelisk. Exceptional vittles.
Earlier in the day–and I’m man enough to admit this–Jill treated me to a pedicure at Piaf Salon. Yes, a pedicure. My first one ever. I feel like I’m walking around on new feet now. (If you go to Piaf, be sure to see Keit–he’s Vietnamese and he’s great.)
Saturday night was a birthday dinner for Jill’s Seattle friend Lindsey L.R. at the excellent Marrakesh, a rollicking Moroccan joint. Photos should soon be posted on the celebrations page of their site. Lots of fun.
Oh, and I almost forgot: on Friday night Jill and I encountered an incongruous sight near Dupont Circle: a Jewish bike gang. They were in town for the Ride to Remember. The group was about 20 strong. They’d come down from New York. They had two rabbis with them. They rode enormous motorcycles. And two of them were wearing Harley Davidson yarmulkes. I’m not making this up.
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It’s No Banana Guard
“CUP-A-CAKE was designed and patented by mothers to solve the age old problem of sending cupcakes to school or outings with their children. Before CUP-A-CAKE, taking cupcakes anywhere caused a mess.”
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Nicotine and Vodka
Last weekend Jill and I were waiting for a bus near the Dupont Circle Metro exit. A whimpster-looking guy got off the Metro and started walking toward us. He was in his early-20s–sharply dressed and sporting carefully-tussled (and most likely highlighted) blonde hair–and as he got closer, yapping on his cell phone and staring into the distance, he said to whoever was on the other end:
“Okay, I just got off the Metro and I desperately need nicotine and vodka.”
Nicotine and vodka. That’d make a great band name.
I don’t know whether this is good or bad. The memorial has fallen into disrepair. Should it be cleaned up? Or is decay a fitting state for such a gruesome site?
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Weekend Happenings
Jill arrived on Friday and we had a good time that night at Wendy H.’s house. Photos here.
Then on Saturday night we saw the Washington Nationals beat the NY Mets at RFK stadium.
And yesterday we went to the zoo.
Great weather. The pandas were cuddly and fat–did you know those SOBs eat 40 pounds of bamboo a day? My favorite creatures, however, were the capybaras. Charming in a repulsive sort of way. I just figure they’re so ugly they MUST have great personalities.
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Sand Storm in Iraq
My buddy Brad H., who is a badass and flies FA-18 fighter jets in Iraq, sends along these incredible photos of a recent sand storm that enveloped his base. He writes:
“I just thought I would send a quick note with a couple of pictures from a sandstorm that rolled through the base this afternoon. I didn’t see it “coming”, since I pretty much sleep all day and fly/work all night. When I woke up around 7:00 PM, I could only see about 8 feet in front of my face.
I honestly didn’t think storms like this existed outside of Hollywood. When you see the shots, you’ll know what I mean. We had a section of jets airborne when this rolled through. Can you imagine trying to land in these conditions?”
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The Future of Weblogs and Journalism
The Economist: “Is Rupert Murdoch right to predict the end of newspapers as we now know them?”
OJR: “Advertising, editorial lines blur as bloggers’ salaries tied to traffic.”
Business Week: “Blogs Will Change Your Business
Also, as an aside, I discovered recently that Bluffton, South Carolina, right down the coast from my home town of Beaufort, is doing some really interesting stuff with Weblogs and grassroots journalism. (I’d never have expected it, as South Carolina is, how should I say this, not exactly a hotbed of new media innovation. But anyway.)
On their site, BlufftonToday.com, they encourage readers to send in news items, and all the staff writers have Weblogs. It’s pretty interesting. Pretty Korean, in fact.
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Ecuador Wrap-Up
A few more items re: Ecuador. I think this’ll be my last Ecuador-related post for a while.
First, an on-the-ground report from my Ecuadorian friend Dennis P. I emailed him to ask what he thought about all the turmoil. To paraphrase Dennis’s response in Spanish, he said this:
“It’s all a mess. I don’t know. I don’t really have an opinion. I may be leaving the country this summer.”
That’s a great encapsulation of the dismay inherent in the situation for Ecuadorians. It sucks. Maybe I can leave Ecuador soon.
Other stuff:
MSNBC: “Ecuadorean immigrants worry from afar.”
AP: “Political power on the airwaves: Ecuador radio station has role in ouster of president.”
Randy Paul: “Lucio Gutierrez’s departure from Ecuador to asylum in Brazil is not yet a done deal as the government of Ecuador (which despite my distaste for Gutierrez, certainly has its own legitimacy problems) is not going to grant him safe passage just yet.”
PubliusPundit: “WAS GUTIERREZ�S REMOVAL UNCONSTITUTIONAL?”
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Checking in on Ecuador
Jordan L. points out this interesting photo essay in the Ecuadorian daily El Comercio.
And as for the ousted Lucio Gutierrez, the AP tells us that he has taken refuge in Brazil.