| More notes on Rome |
[Jun. 21st, 2008|04:45 pm] |
- Romans wear an irrational amount of clothing, preferably in layers, regardless of the temperature. Wearing long sleeves, jeans, and perhaps even a sweatshirt or sweater seems to make sense to them when it's 30C.
- You must have your shoulders and legs covered to enter any of the churches in Rome, but sheer see-through garments (with or without anything underneath) seem to be good enough.
- Learn to avoid throngs of people being led by somebody holding something odd (umbrella, flower, bow, feather, etc) up in the air. These are tour groups, and they will inundate any area they enter.
- Watching Japanese tourists is always a good entertainment value.
- Many of the pigeons in and around Rome seem to be pedestrian-only. Watching some guy try to light them on fire in St. Peter's Square is truly a unique experience.
- The immigrant peddlers run the gamut from ingenious to obnoxious. The night I was at the Coliseum taking pictures, they were out selling tripods. Some, unfortunately, walk right up to your table in restaurants peddling their crap. At the Trevi fountain, we almost had to physically push away the guys shoving 5 Euro roses in our faces.
- Most Americans here right now have some sort of "in". My situation (here for work, but making a vacation out of it) is hardly unique.
- Cypress trees are cool
- Buy your tickets for the Coliseum at Palatine. Yes, that line looks long and slow-moving, but it's about 10 times worse over at the Coliseum. Seriously, the guide books aren't kidding about this.
Oh, and yes, the pictures are updated. |
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| When in Rome |
[Jun. 20th, 2008|08:16 pm] |
I've now been in Rome for going on three weeks. Sam was here for the first two weeks (the entire trip was originally supposed to last two weeks), but as business trips often are, this one got extended. I think once you've been in a city for two weeks, the sites have all been seen and you find yourself in a routine. Sure, there is much more to see (and I will definitely be seeing things this weekend), but after two weeks you've sort of checked all the major stuff off your list. Eventually, the hotel becomes "home" when you say things like, "It's time to head home." You have a commuting routine of sorts, even if it is completely different from home. Suddenly a place like Rome becomes rather ordinary.
While this isn't my first trip to Italy, I was pretty young when I was here last. At the time, we were going through all sorts of different countries in Europe, all of them foreign to me, and I really didn't fully appreciate the cultural differences and sociological idiosyncrasies of Italy at the time. I can't say if some of these are Rome-specific or are typical of all of Italy, but here are some fun things I've observed so far...
- Pedestrian Romans do not yield to the left nor the right. As first, I thought I was just missing some subtle clue about which side to pass on, but no, there is just no attempt to make it easier to pass on a sidewalk and the like.
- Romans have an unusual obsession with wearing sunglasses indoors. This is especially true on the subway. It's not uncommon to be heading into work in the morning, surrounded by people wearing sunglasses, with the exception of one guy, way up ahead, who is clearly another American. When confronted about this, the locals just say they're too lazy to take them off.
- Elevators are tiny. I'm not just talking about retrofit elevators that have been shoe-horned into old buildings, I'm talking about elevators in new shiny buildings. Perhaps related, handicap accessibility is non-existent. Same deal as the elevators, new buildings seem just as bad as old ones.
- Bathrooms are often odd. (I remember this from when I was here as a kid.) The plumbing is often creative, involving unexplained pipes outside the walls and extra valves and such. The Italians also seem very concerned about needing assistance while in the bathroom; there is usually a pull cord for an alarm hanging from the wall. Also, they seem very fond of putting wall-mounted telephones there.
- Fiat jingles, that loop endlessly on TV screens at the train and subway stations, start to stick in your head after a week or so.
- The car horn may be Italy's national anthem.
- Buses in Rome are worthless. They follow neither fixed schedules nor routes, and asking for something like a map or a schedule will usually result in a snort from the person you're asking. Avoid them.
- The subways, and to some degree the trains, are often unpleasant, crammed at rush hour, usually hot, and perhaps the most reliable way of getting around. 16 Euros buys you a one week unlimited pass within Rome, and it's worth every Eurocent.
- 250 mL makes much more sense for a personal-sized bottle of wine than those weird 187 mL things we get in the U.S. Bonus that drinkable local stuff can be had at the Termini grocery store for E1.02 per bottle.
- As an American in Rome, you often find yourself surrounded completely by other native English-speakers. When you find yourself in such a situation, you've probably made a bad decision.
- U.S. car emission standards are vastly superior to Italian ones. I seem to recall reading a couple years ago about about a newer "Partial Zero Emissions" Honda of some sort that, on a smoggy day in L.A., would actually emit cleaner gasses than were going in. Rome needs about half a million of those cars driving around.
- Stepping out into traffic will generally not get you killed, but it will definitely improve your odds of getting across the street |
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| Merry Christmas... 2006 |
[Nov. 12th, 2007|09:13 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  mellow | ] |
So last December, just after finishing up my degree, Sam asked what I wanted for Christmas. Still without any job leads, intending to move after finding said job, and needing a new car too, my answer was, "A job, a house, and a car." I got the job in August, the house in September, and the car on Saturday. It only took 11 months...
( House )
( Car ) |
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| It's dead. |
[Aug. 29th, 2007|10:03 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  mischievous | ] |
*sniff* *sniff* It's happened... It's gone, it's dead... My very first ATX power supply has finally died... *sniff* *sniff* It's lived a long, good life... 10 years, my old pal, running almost continuously for all that time... Whatever shall I do....
*sniff* sniff* I think I feel a song coming on....
"A long, long time ago... I can still remember, how that new computer made me smile...
And I knew I had my chance, I could get a computer new computer for college, and maybe I could be happy for awhile..."
"Bye, bye, my old power supply,
Drove my Ford to the gorge and I said my goodbyes..."
Rest in peace, my old Enermax friend.... I never thought I'd see you go... |
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| (no subject) |
[Jul. 25th, 2007|08:42 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  exhausted | ] |
An oft-quoted relative of mine once said, "Every time you move, you should cut off a finger. Then, the next time you think moving sounds like a good idea and look down at your hands, you can think to yourself 'No, that's really not a good idea...'"
And the move hasn't even really begun ... |
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| Trash Day |
[Jun. 19th, 2007|08:41 am] |
I just love laying in bed and hearing that distinct sound of the garbage trucks entering the neighborhood, knowing full well that I forgot to drag the trash to the curb. It's relatively easy to forgot which day is trash day, due to our wonderful local “trash day” rules. . .
- Regular trash is collected by the city based on either a color code or a day of the week, depending on your neighborhood. My neighborhood is governed by a color (which I can’t recall), and thus the trash collection day increments with each holiday, including New Years Day, Martin Luther King Day, President’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas (but not Veterans Day). Note there are 9 holidays listed there, so throughout the year there’s not even a correlation between date and day of week the trash is collected. If, however, you live in an area assigned a set day of the week, your trash day is incremented by one day following a holiday, but returns to its designated day the following week.
- Recycling and Yard Waste are collected by a contractor, and the collection day is based only on the day of week. My day happens to be Wednesday. This day changes due to holidays as if I happened to live in a neighborhood following the day-of-week trash collection scheme (see above). . . which I don’t. But that scheme applies to recycling or yard waste regardless of where you live.
Consequently, I have two trash days (most of the year), each of which change, differently, the week of or the week following holidays.
I can’t make this shit up. . . |
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| First swim of the season |
[May. 11th, 2007|08:53 pm] |
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While I wouldn't call the pool water "warm", it was certainly warm enough for today. The water hit 79 degrees F today, and we decided it was worth getting in. I usually judge a spring to be warm if we can swim by my birthday, but this year we're 4 days early. |
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| Worst. Airline. Name. Ever. |
[May. 11th, 2007|01:39 pm] |
Skybus.
Yeah, that really conjures up a great mental image...
...And you pay for each bag you check, aren't allowed to take food on board, and you can pay $10 extra to board early. Yeah, thanks, I'll pass.
Somebody really needs to start rating airlines (like they do hotels and restaurants) so they have *something* to compete on besides price. What a cheap ticket with no amenities that may or may not arrive at an airport out in BFE? One star for you. What to be coddled but pay a little more? That's a 3-star airline. Etc. Somebody. Please. Before airline standards get any lower. |
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| With Quackers |
[May. 2nd, 2007|09:10 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
It seems that most springs we have a visiting mallard or two on the pool. It's not quite an annual occurrence, but it happens often enough to be unsurprising and infrequently enough to amuse. I suppose it's not too surprising that an overflying duck might think, "Gee, that looks like an unoccupied body of water... I think I'll hang out there for awhile." Generally they don't leave too much of a mess, and they seem to lose interest in the place after a few days.
A few years ago, while the winter cover was still on, I witnessed what I can only assume was a mad mallard mating ritual (captured on video for your amusement). Yesterday, however, I awoke to a solitary female, sitting beside the pool, apparently enjoy an early morning sunbeam.
( Duck )
My dog was not overly amused, but she didn't feel compelled to chase the duck away.
( Duck with Hayley )
The duck took the obvious precautionary step of plopping in the water, and my dog (who really dislikes water) wasn't about to get her feet wet.
( Duck in Pool )
At some point that morning, the duck flew off to wherever she goes when she's not on my swimming pool. Later that afternoon, though, she returned with her mate. (Disclaimer: I am not a duck expert. I cannot uniquely identify ducks. It is entirely possible that this is a completely different female duck with her mate.)
( Two Ducks )
So all is well and good in Duckville, and eventually the pair decide to leave for better waters. I continue doing things around the yard that day, including unstowing the pool's solar cover. For those who haven't seen one, a solar cover is basically heavy-strength bubble-wrap that floats in the surface of the water and helps keep the water warmer. (The pool water is currently a balmy 70F, and I'd really like it closer to 80F.) I put the cover on the pool and eventually head to bed.
This morning, the ducks had returned and there was confusion in the air...
( Confused Ducks )
They actually spent a remarkable amount of time wading around on the cover. When I let my dog out, they waddled out to the middle of the pool, knee deep, and waited for the "threat" to pass.
So far, they haven't been sticking around enough for me to be concerned about them nesting in the yard. I would hope that the ever-present dog would deter that, but I could be wrong. |
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| Just call me "General" |
[Apr. 14th, 2007|10:33 am] |
Unemployment to-do list items:
- Ham license upgraded (the first upgrade of 2) -- Check. |
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| House fun |
[Mar. 18th, 2007|09:54 pm] |
Dear home-building industry,
When placing wood on the exterior of a structure, do be kind and paint or otherwise seal it. Placing a gutter over-top does not count. This is a handy way to prevent said wood from rotting in approximately 35 years.
Sincerely,
The Homeowners
In other news, squirrels no longer have a means of entering our attic. |
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| Snow |
[Feb. 14th, 2007|05:52 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
Um, anybody want to come over for a swim?
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| Dog food |
[Jan. 15th, 2007|09:13 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
My dog likes dried mangoes... Weird... |
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| Overheard in Key West... |
[Jan. 8th, 2007|11:22 am] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
"For those of you who've spent some time in Key West, you know that, by and large, the women here are bi and large..."
- A street performer in Mallory Square, Key West |
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| NWA can suck my... |
[Jan. 3rd, 2007|08:00 am] |
| [ | mood |
| |  annoyed | ] |
Northwest Airlines has just collected their last $50 from me. They charged me $25/bag for an over-weight fee on two suitcases. The fee itself wouldn't bother me if it made any sense, however...
- I am a "Silver Elite" member of their frequent flier program. Their "sister" airlines (Continental, Delta, etc) happily waive that fee for me, but not Northwest themselves will not.
- One suitcase was 4 lbs overweight, the other was 8 lbs overweight. Not a hell of a lot, but too much to deal with in the ticket counter line.
- We only had two suitcases out of an allowed four (for two travelers).
So, by their policy, two suitcases at 54 + 58 lbs (112 lbs total) is bad, but 4 suitcases each at 49 lbs (196 lbs) is fine. Way to piss off a loyal customer...
Update
$60 will buy you two decent-ish suitcases at the Key Largo K-Mart... Now I just need 80 lbs of bricks to top off the weight... |
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| ...but you already knew that. |
[Dec. 10th, 2006|10:16 pm] |
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Well folks, it's now official: I am full of BS. Or at least Ohio State seems to think so. I even have a piece of paper that says so :-D |
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