Heute morgen sitze ich wie immer Gedanken versunken im Bus und neben mir quatscht ein Schlipsträger mit ner gestilten Alten: “Wie war es in Barcelona?” In Gedanken fühle ich mich angesprochen: “Ich war gar nicht in Barcelona. Ich war noch nie in Spanien.” Und während die beiden emotionslos über Barcelona unterhalten setze ich meinen iPod auf und höre Musik. Zuerst geht die Reise nach Las Vegas – Will Smith “Gettin Jiggy with It” – das Video spielt in Las Vegas und wer sich ein bißchen wie ich auskennt, der weiß wo jede Szene gedreht wurde. Und dann “Miami”. Ach, Miami. Ich komme aus dem Park Central Hotel am Ocean Drive und wackle mit Dirk zum Strand. Sonne, Sand, Wasser, Meer und Palmen. Schöne  Körper – was fürs Auge. Zack, quietsch. Raus aus den Träumen. Wir haben fast jemanden am Busbahnhof erwischt.

Ich bin heute was später los und der Wassermann stand schon um 7.30 Uhr am Kiosk. Als ich heute abend um 16.30 nach Hause kam, stand er immer noch da. Ich frage mich, wie geht der aufs Klo? Vermisst den keiner oder er keinen?

Im Bus dann der Skandal. Neben mich setzt sich eine ältere Dame und holt den General Anzeiger aus der Tasche. Ah. Ich hab kein Zeitung. Gerade lese ich die erste Headline und merke: Die ist von gestern. Was soll das denn?

An der Schranke Lessingstraße fährt wieder ein Güterzug nach dem anderen und die Leute stappeln sich. Mir fällt aus Pink Punk Phanteon der Song “Vor sieben Schranken wirst Du stehn. Sieben mal den Güterzug sehn…” Das ist echt ätzend. Es gibt Phasen, da steht man 25 Minuten vor dem Ding. Ich renne dann immer die Unterführung Nassestraße runter.

Auf der Rückfahrt hat mein Driver von der 611 – Bus Nr. 9903 einen echt heißen Reifen geliefert. Der fuhr wie meine Mutter. Vollbremsung – Vollgas. Neben mir standen zwei Burschen, die wohl beide Musik machen. Ich würde die in Richtung Bla stufen. Ich wechsle gerade die Band, da fragt der eine den anderen: “Spielst Du Gitarre?” “Ja” “Haste ne Freundin?” “Nein” “Das ist gut.” Ich lache. “Naja. Weniger Stress mit den Frauen” erwidert mir der Kumpel. Irgendwoher kenne ich solche Probleme. Allerdings nur mit Sängern.

So. CSI kommt. Ich muss los.

Gruß und ne schöne Nacht. Love Rev. Danny

Who wouldn't love a guy that gets a standing ovation?

Alex Gonzalez is coming back to Toronto. Okay, okay not that Alex Gonzalez. A day after signing Johnny Mac to a two-year, $3 million deal, ESPN.com is reporting the Jays have also agreed to a one-year, $2.75 million contract with the other Alex Gonzalez, who hit .238 with eight homers in 112 games with Cincinnati and Boston last year.

Like his namesake, Gonzalez is also a shortstop, so his signing all but ends the Marco Scutaro era in Toronto, which, as I implied yesterday, is fine by me. Don’t get me wrong — Scutaro is cool and all, but at age 34 and coming off a career-year, he’s due to get waaaay overpaid. I’ll gladly let someone else do that.

Gonzalez will be 33 on Opening Day, having kicked around the majors since breaking in with Florida in 1998. He hit 23 homers in 2003 and added a walk-off in the World Series, which the Marlins won that year, and hit 16 and .272 as recently as 2007 before missing all of the following year with a broken kneecap. Since leaving Florida in 2006, he’s had a pair of stints in Boston and spent two seasons in Cincinnati.

Also of note (and kind of sadly), Gonzalez has a three-year-old son in Miami that’s been in a coma for two years. That really, really sucks. Anyway, all the best to the new man in town, both on and especially off the field.

As so many of my fellow unemployed friends know, it’s hard to be thankful sometimes, and it’s oh-so-easy to sink into modes of anger, self pity, and depression as we are hit with bills, rejection and isolation during these seemingly endless months of unemployment. I find myself feeling these emotions on a daily basis, but today I want to give thanks, because, as miserable as I sometimes feel in these times if hardship I do have much to be thankful for.

I am thankful for my parents. Yes, I sometimes feel the edges of my sanity fading into oblivion as I spend countless hours sulking in my childhood bedroom, or watching movies at 10:00 am with my retired father. However, without my parents I would be stuck in a lease right now, draining my savings account, talking to myself as I slowly loose my mind from lack of human contact. They were kind enough to see that though none of us would choose this living arrangement, I needed a place to stay while I looked for a job. I needed a place to store my things, a place that I could up and leave at the drop of a hat if I somehow found work out of state. This temporary living situation is making things more manageable for me. And so, though it is not always ideal, it’s the most financially responsible thing to do right now and I am so thankful that they (now empty nesters) were willing to allow me back into their home… for an indefinite period of time. And they sometimes feed me.

I am thankful for my friends. These last twenty-five weeks would have been agony without the great friends I have in my life. Thank you for the random phone calls, the emails saying hello, for getting together and sharing a meal, for spontaneous nights out on the town, and for trips to Miami… these events are my reminders of what’s important in life. Thank you for understanding what I am going through, and if you really don’t understand at all… thank you for at least trying, and for not judging me. Without you (my friends) I would be lost.

I am thankful to be a part of my Goddaughter’s life. I’m not the “mothering” type, but being actively engaged in her life is more rewarding than I ever could have imagined. I love seeing her grow, change and learn new things. When she calls me up and says, “I love you Auntie Chap,” I just melt. And she motivates me, in her own way, to find work so that I can open an education savings account!!

I am thankful that I’m single. GASP… did she just say that? Yes. I did. Don’t get me wrong; I have my moments, in which I miss having a partner, or long to meet someone new. Especially after I go to see New Moon and watch half-clothed young hotties romp around the wilderness. But, for more than just the obvious reasons (that my close friends know and understand), I am thankful to be on my own right now. Being unemployed is stressful, and as many of you know, puts stress on ALL of your relationships. I am thankful I don’t have to put this stress on my partner. I can sulk and hate my life in peace, and I can be rejected time and time again without having to worry about my partner asking me why, or failing to understand how hard it is right now to find work.

I am thankful for television. Okay, seriously, does this deserve to be on the list? Absolutely! What got me through my breakup this year? Watching Weeds. What got me through feeling completely isolated as I was living on a farm in the middle of nowhere? Watching Dexter (for 12 hours straight). Right now I have been watching old Gilmore Girls episodes… and they make me laugh. And that is a GOOD thing. It may sound cheesy, but these moments of preoccupation really help me. I’m not an athlete, who would maybe turn to jogging or something. Yoga can only do so much. I don’t really feel justified in taking up a new hobby (because it costs money), so I am thankful for television. And anyone who has known me for a long time will not be surprised by these sentiments at all!

I am thankful I have legs (Chap, that one’s for you).

So my dear friends, even if you feel like you have nothing, you probably have SOMETHING to be thankful for. So, go forth, give thanks, and eat Turkey (unless you are a vegetarian like myself).

Happy Thanksgiving!

Enjoy your thanksgiving in this world of shit. peace.

Transformer art

The last leg of my U.S. Tempra Tantrum tour took me to  Miami, Tampa and Jacksonville. It was amazing to feel like it was summer again, since Madrid was pretty cold when I left. When I was little, I used to visit Miami and Orlando quite often, but the last time was 15 years ago!

It’s funny how each city in Florida has it’s own style and rhythm. It seems like everyone in Miami South Beach is in party mood, and each place has loud music and lights all throughout the night. It was a little bit difficult to sleep, and if I hadn’t had an early meeting, I would’ve loved to enjoy Miami’s night life! So unfair!

While in Miami, we had a casual media dinner at a very nice restaurant, Urbanite Bistro. We had a great menu to go along with the Tempra Tantrum wines, which was a great success. As always, one of my favourite parts was meeting so many interesting people with whom I share a passion for wine.

In Tampa we went to Columbia, a restaurant that has been around for more than 100 years and is now operated by the 4th and 5th generation of the Gonzmart family.  We had the chance of having dinner with the family: Richard and his wife Melanie, their daughter Andrea, her husband, and their 4 month-old baby. They were all great and treated us like family. The wine list was spectacular with more than one thousand wines, most of them Spanish. We got to enjoy an amazing dinner paired with Tempra Tantrum and Montecillo Gran Reserva 1982 that was my grandfather’s favourite Montecillo vintage until he passed away.

Dinner @ Columbia, Tampa

Columbia´s impresive wine list

Columbia´s cellar

After Tampa we went to Jacksonville for more tastings, and then returned to Miami. I couldn’t leave back to Spain without enjoying Miami’s night life and having a Cosmpolitan, so even though we were tired from traveling all day, we went out for a while. We had dinner at a very fancy restaurant, Asia de Cuba, at the Mondrian Hotel in South Beach. I enjoyed having dinner out in the terrace with an incredible view of  Miami’s sky line, and the sea, it was great! And the hotel was great too, they even have a vending machine that sells cars!! It´s crazy!!

Trying to fit in Miami´s fashion style

Vending Machine @ the Mondrian Hotel

My week in Florida was incredible.  I signed hundreds of bottles, had the opportunity to work with amazing people, taste Tempra Tantrum with many consumers, and even enjoy a little bit of the Thanksgiving spirit that was all over the air. I realized that Tempra Tantrum Tempranillo/Grenache is perfect with turkey, so if you’re looking for a wine, that’s my Thanksgiving tip!

Enjoy the holidays!!

-Rocio

Más de una vez he tratado de descifrar las razones por las cuales los músicos cubanos se empeñan en tocar en Miami a pesar de la hostilidad de una buena parte de la comunidad cubano americana y la prensa local. El año pasado fue Paulo FG. Ahora, bajo la administración Obama, parece que cualquiera recibe visas para visitar Estados Unidos. No nos sorprendamos mañana si Raúl Castro viaja de incógnito para encontrarse con Juanita. De acuerdo a esta “nueva” moda, David Calzado y La Charanga Habanera promete encender el arbolito de navidad miamense este fin de año.

La justificación de siempre es que vienen para complacer a los muchos fans y amigos que tienen en esta ciudad. No obstante, es difícil entender que se expongan a tal stress sólo por darle un poco de felicidad a algunos seguidores.

Especialmente sorprendente resulta el interés de La Charanga Habanera en Miami, teniendo en cuenta que viajan regularmente el mundo entero. Claro, disfrazado de intercambio cultural, hay una función política. Y no es difícil anticipar los debates que se originarán sobre la intolerancia y la paranoia miamense. El exilio se mostrará fracturado una vez más y se hará un particular énfasis,  por supuesto, en las irreconciliables diferencias ideológicas entre los hombres nuevos -los charangueros de ultramar- y el exilio histórico.

Pero más allá de lo obviamente político, grupos ultra comerciales como FG y La Charanga Habanera persiguen un interés económico. Para nadie es un secreto que sobre la industria de la música cubana pesa el Embargo, bloqueándole la distribución internacional y el mercado americano en particular. Estas agrupaciones tienen prohibidas las relaciones con las grandes disqueras y limitado el acceso a los grandes conglomerados mediáticos. El creciente mercado musical hispano en Estados Unidos les es natural como a cualquier otro artista latinoamericano, pero les está vedado. En el 2007, el poder adquisitivo Latino se estimó en 800 mil millones de dólares. Para tener una idea de que significa este número, el producto interno bruto español del mismo año fue de 852 mil millones.

Entonces cabe preguntarnos  si nos honran con su visita para secarle las lágrimas a sus seguidores o si lo hacen con la intención de demostrar que sí existe un mercado para su música en Estados Unidos.

¿Será que su verdadero propósito es resquebrajar aún más el Embargo?

Aquí los charangueros posiblemente rescriban la letra a “Tu llorando en La Habana y yo gozando en Miami” para no ofender al mercado, cualquier cosa por unos dólares. Pero lo que más me preocupa es que eventualmente se salgan con la suya y logren tener lo mejor de ambos mundos mientras que el gobierno cubano niega impunemente el derecho de tantos cubanos, artistas incluidos, a visitar su propio país.

Aaron

Miami

This is the view I see off of my back porch, during the day and at night.  The building to the right in the first picture is my office building! It is also a Marriot hotel and residences, and there are several boutiques, high end real estate offices, a gourmet grocery store, and a bunch of jewelry stores in the lobby, along with us. The space was donated, I believe.

The islands in the distance is Venetian Island, and the road is the Venetian Causeway, which runs all the way out to Miami Beach. I drove on it this evening (accidently…I thought I was getting on 395, but nope!) and its really beautiful, lots of homes and the bridges are intricately designed. Except, there is a toll, but it was only a dollar.

Sunday River’s New Campaign

Newry, ME — With every new ski season comes a new campaign to generate interest in the sport and its respected resorts. This year Sunday River will promote their resort with an intricately designed image on their websites, clothing, stickers, etc. Sunday River wanted to stay away from the current fad of bright and loud patterns that are reminiscent of the eighties, and go in a totally new direction. The resort wanted their new campaign to be prominently featured amongst complex, intricate designs created by the Native Americans. So, Sunday River went out and hired a group of Native American artisans, the Aryan Nation.

“Listen,” begins a distressed Sunday River executive, “we totally fucked up and we know it. We wanted to hire some Native Americans, but who the hell knows even knows an actual Native American person? We needed to find out how to locate some, so we went online to search them. Originally, we all agreed that Cherokees were pretty badass and that we should contact them, but every time we Googled them, we kept getting results for websites about jeeps. After that didn’t work, we then typed in ‘true Americans’, and that’s how we found the Aryan Nation’s website. We just assumed that ‘true Americans’ meant ‘Native Americans’, and you’ve got to admit that Aryan Nation does sound like a Native American reservation. Honestly, we didn’t know that we were hiring ignorant assholes. We just thought that we were getting some Indians.”

On the behalf of the Aryan Nation, Roger Whiteback, chief propaganda designer, states his brotherhood’s side of the story. “First of all, me and my partner, Stan Whiteface, were super-duper excited to do the Sunday River project. What they did was send us a rough sketch of what they wanted. Their original sketch was this picture of a weird image that had about four arms extended from the center, and within that image were the words ‘We Support White Powder’. So, I went to work on the background image first. I couldn’t make out what the hell that thing was supposed to be, but when I started to squint at it, it made sense. It was just a poorly drawn swastika. Well, I beefed it up a bit, and made it into one of the best swastikas I’ve ever designed. They got mad about that because later on, after we finished the project, they told me it was actually a snowflake and not a swastika. Then there was the incident with their slogan in the forefront of their sketch: ‘We Support White Powder’. They got all pissed when I took the letter ‘d’ out of ‘Powder’. Seriously? They hired the Aryan Nation, of course we’re gonna think ‘We Support White Powder’ is a typo, ya know?”

After experiencing a rough economic patch, Boyne has admitted that they’re unable to financially support a new campaign, and if they want to continue to promote their ski resort, then the Aryan’s finished product will have to suffice.

A Boyne spokesperson further explains their company’s stance. “We’re in the middle of a financial dilemma here and a racial controversy, but we’re just going to have to lean on the old proverb that ‘All publicity is good publicity’. Yes we accidentally employed the Aryan Nation, but it was for a very brief moment in time. We’re willing to admit that we had a brief exchange, but we don’t want people to think we’ve been rubbing elbows so hard with the Aryans that their lynching arms are bruised.”

To help put Sunday River back into the good graces of its loyal guests, and also distance themselves from white supremacy, Boyne employed a Jewish publicist to put a positive spin on the “We Support White Power” campaign, and prove that if a Jew could work for Sunday River, then their logo can’t possibly stem back to the days of the Nazis.

“Alright,” begins the Jewish publicist, Sal Steinberg, finally, after fifteens minutes of pleading for someone to turn the heat up at Sunday River’s press conference. “You’ll notice the words ‘We Support White Powder’ in the middle of this here sticker. Last winter was pretty tough financially, and there wasn’t enough money to put into a second campaign, but we did have enough money for a case of Whiteout. If you put your face a few inches away you’ll clearly notice that each sticker has squeezed in a Whiteout letter ‘d’ to make the word ‘Powder’. This makes each one unique and a collector’s item. Now, let’s talk about that background symbol. Since when did a windmill-esque image, on an axis, with four arms that eventually bend at a ninety degree angle, automatically mean it’s a swastika? We just thought it’d be fun to stray away from the traditional idea that a snowflake is a fancy, doily-looking object. We just took a simple, stripped down image to use instead. Everyone uses the fancy snowflake image, and as everyone knows, no two snowflakes are the same. So, we believe a snowflake like ours could definitely exist.” He’s right, it did exist. In East Germany.

Later that night, a waitress at the Matterhorn Ski Bar overheard the Jewish publicist, in a nasally voice, saying the following (right before he left a meager eight percent tip), “I’m so nauseous right now. I can’t believe I said those things for money. I feel like one of those prostitutes, you know? The ones with the ungodly clothing and diseases. I hate myself. I’m going to have nightmares for weeks now about Moses chasing me with a pitchfork. My poor mother would never forgive me for getting involved with those Nazi lovers. I just want to go back to my condo in Miami.”

After dumping the body of the young woman who overheard the publicist, Boyne and Sunday River executives were hoping that the explanation of the logo would help the controversy blow over, but certain groups took notice. One of those groups, the Ku Klux Klan, overheard the conference, and one of their leaders had this to say, “As you’ve probably guessed, we are ecstatic that Sunday River surfaced their true feelings and beliefs. We finally have a safe place to go on a skiing vacation now. A place where we’ll be accepted in our hood and robes. It’s not easy going out in public when you dress like us. You have no idea how painful it is to be constantly judged and ostracized everywhere you go, just because of who you are. It doesn’t matter now though, because in Bethel, they tell it like it is. White Power all the way! Hell, they even support the Confederacy. I mean, they must support the Confederacy if they put a statue of a faggy Union soldier, on Bethel’s Main St., smack-dab between a homo flower store and a God damn taco shop! I love it! Reminds me of the good ol’ days in Montgomery, Alabama.”

After a private meeting, executives of Boyne and Sunday River held another press conference. “We have finally come up with a way to prove that we aren’t racist, and that we don’t support White Power,” exclaims a representative of Sunday River, who regularly quotes the movie Blazing Saddles. “Our superiors at Boyne Realty are currently installing a border length wall to stop racist people like the Aryan Nation and the KKK from entering Maine. We originally had the idea to build the wall years ago to keep out Massholes, and now it’s finally about to become a reality. Aside from those three groups, other people wishing to come to Bethel are still more than welcome and may enter from New Hampshire, because Canada will obviously be completely walled off. However, due to the wall being several miles wide, it was incidentally built on top of Gorham, New Hampshire, so people will instead have to go through the wall’s border patrol located in Berlin. Now, I know some people are worried, but as long as people have their papers in order, they’ll be fine. Everyone’s really friendly at the Berlin Wall.”

so it’s the big bird day weekend. Right now it’s close to six in the evening on Wednesday chillin’, with some kind of hurricane like winds outside hoping they are just passing along. Tired from a busy start of season, I’ve finished my first part of tomorrows meal, did some cleaning and sent out my last assignment for today.

Tonight it’s 80s Prom – my 4th and their 7th. There will be no dressing up tonight, can’t get it together. Don’t think I could go wrong with “being myself”, since I did attend an 80s prom in a polk-a-dot dress with ruffles and sequined shoes. So if you are headed out tonight – it’s $5 bucks to get in before midnight and $10 after. More info check here.

Last years gallery:  Booth and dance floor

First I am making a stop at The News but will be at prom after 11. Not sure where the “booth” will be, but be sure you will see the lights. Get me a drink to skip the line.

I’ve been on many cruises. I’ve seen the eastern Caribbean, southern Caribbean, and the west Caribbean. This was the first time I’ve been on a cruise ever since I have lived in Miami. So I took off on Friday at noon and jumped onto the Norwegian Sky, a cruise ship owned by the Norwegian Cruise Line company.

Surprisingly enough, according to a friend, the boat is an upgrade from Carnival or Royal Caribbean cruise lines. Unfortunately, as usual, everything was geared towards tourists and Middle America. The most unexpected thing was the food. Buffet food is usually random, but this ship had very decent buffet food. They also had a ‘eat whenever you want plan’, so unlike other cruise ships where you have a set time to have dinner; in this boat, you can head to eat whenever you wanted. They also had a French restaurant, an Italian restaurant, and a steakhouse as well for a “cover” charge. Lunch and dinner at the regular dining room was excellent. Unfortunately, we were on a 3 day cruise, so we did not think it was necessary to pay the “cover” charge for the other dining areas.

We spent a lot of time at their Martini bar, which had 2 for 1 special from 6-8 PM. It was a good way to pregame before dinner, a show, or the casino. We even ordered Alaskan king crabs from the steakhouse on one of the nights and sipped on Martinis to the point we did not know if it was the boat shaking or us drunk.

We stopped by at Nassau (in which I will write a separate post on) and was scheduled to stop by at the NCL’s private island, Great Stirrup Cay, however that was canceled due to enormous waves. We managed to stop by at one of the entertainment shows and it was nothing extraordinary. The host threw some cheap easy-to-laugh jokes and that was about it. Maybe, if I get a little fatter, I’ll understand it more.

The boat reached shore early Monday and we headed straight back to work.

The cruise was a good getaway, however it would have been nice, if it was longer, and if we brought friends our age.

Fashionably Social told you weeks ago about model Daisy Lowe shooting in Miami for the Louis Vuitton Beachwear 2010 presskit. Now, Louis Vuitton has released an exclusive photo from the shoot in Miami. Currently loving the toussled hair, purple sunnies, red lips and naturally, the stacked bangles.

Posted: November 25, 2009

I’ll take another round turkey, a heaping pile of mashed potatoes and a mound of stuffing.  I’ll go for seconds, maybe thirds, on yams and cranberry.  I’ll make room for a slice of pie or three, and then it’s on to dessert and a plate full of Sleepers for Week 12:

QUARTERBACK

Alex Smith (San Francisco) vs. Jacksonville – Projection: 21-35, 220 yards, 2 TD
Smith didn’t look great on Sunday against Green Bay, but still threw for 227 yards and 3 TD.  Jacksonville ranks 25th versus the pass, so another solid performance is a high probability.

Vince Young (Tennessee) vs. Arizona – Projection: 13-21, 155 yards, 1 TD, 5-35 rushing
Young is not an exciting fantasy option, but it’s surprising how little it takes to get double-digit fantasy points from the guy.  With just 116 passing yards in Week 11, Young was still good for 14 fantasy points thanks to 73 rushing yards and a passing TD.

RUNNING BACK

Justin Forsett (Seattle) @ St. Louis – Projection: 13-71 rushing, 5-31 receiving, 1 TD
Even if Julius Jones returns from his bruised lung, Forsett has more than proven his worth in Seattle, and will get his touches.  The Rams are 28th in the league against the run, so this will probably be the last week Forsett qualifies as a “Sleeper”.

Jamaal Charles (Kansas City) @ San Diego – Projection: 14-65 rushing, 3-11 receiving, 1 TD
Against a tough Pittsburgh D, Charles still found a way to be a viable fantasy option by catching a 2-yard touchdown pass from Matt Cassel and returning a kickoff for 6.  San Diego is 21st against the run, so Charles could have another solid day.

Danny Ware (New York Giants) @ Denver – Projection: 9-51 rushing, 3-24 receiving
When the Giants travel to Denver for a Thanksgiving night showdown with the Broncos, Ahmad Bradshaw (ankle) will not make the trip.  With Brandon Jacobs (leg) a bit hobbled, the door could swing open for the Giants’ number three back.

WIDE RECEIVER

Antonio Bryant (Tampa Bay) @ Atlanta – Projection: 5-67 receiving, 1 TD
Bryant had 1248 yards and 7 TD just one season ago.  After battling injuries for much of this year, he’s healthy and could start to build a rapport with Tampa Bay rookie gunslinger, Josh Freeman.  It doesn’t hurt that Atlanta is 29th against the pass.

Earl Bennett (Chicago) @ Minnesota – Projection: 7-84 receiving
Over the past 3 weeks, Chicago’s leading ypc receiver (12.8) has a modest 15 grabs for 177 yards.  Not exactly a trend that would suggest a big game versus Minnesota, but here we go again, putting up the bucks for a guy who always fails to deliver a TD.  This could be the week…

Pierre Garcon (Indianapolis) @ Houston – Projection: 5-72 receiving
Over the past 3 weeks, Garcon is tied with Roddy White for 13th in the NFL in WR targets (28).  Over that span, he has 14 catches, 218 yards and 1 TD, including 108 yards last week.  By the way, he has Peyton Manning throwing him the ball.

TIGHT END

Jermichael Finley (Green Bay) @ Detroit – Projection: 4-39 receiving, 1 TD
How can I not go with Finley (again)?  He’s owned in less than 20% of fantasy leagues, yet, per game, is outperforming Jason Witten, Jeremy Shockey and John Carlson, all of whom are owned in more than 75% of leagues!  Plus, here comes Detroit.

KICKER

Dan Carpenter (Miami) @ Buffalo – Projection: 2 FG, 2 PAT (1 FG 40+)
It’s time to see if Carpenter can be a cold weather kicker.  Safe bet, the Montana alum will be fine, and the Dolphins will get him into range at least twice against the Bills.  Carpenter has scored 74 (real life) points thus far in 2009, and has a big leg.

DEFENSE

Atlanta Falcons vs. Tampa Bay – Projection: 17 points allowed, 2 sacks, 1 Int, 1 fumble recovery
The Buccaneers have shown flashes of ability on offense, and there could be some again on Sunday.  That said, Atlanta is averaging 2 sacks and nearly 2 takeaways per game, and Tampa will really be no match at home.

Last night The W Hotel South Beach hosted its Global Glam party to celebrate the W Hotels The Store’s first ever Global Glam Collection. Five collections with exclusive original fashions designed by 35 designers worldwide are inspired by the five newest W hotels; South Beach, Santiago, Hong Kong, Istanbul and Downtown New York. Stand-out designers include A.V. Max; Alex and Ani; Daniel Benedict; David Aubrey; Foley + Corinna; Hat Attack; Lauren Merkin; Prairie New York; Rachel Leigh; Susan Daniels; and Wink.

The South Beach Collection is super haute and reasonably priced ($40-$400). A look book was sent to Social Miami and the South Beach Collection is described as remixed resort style.

‘All that glitters is beachy keen at the W South Beach. The inspiration behind this chic cool collection. Like a cosmopolitan escape. These beachside designs take their queue from the buzz of Manhattan.’

For accessories think metallic grays meet black and white lucite. The bangles, clutchs and cuffs are vibrant and richly embellished, very South Beach. While bodycon skirts, flowy tops and embellished sheers rule women’s apparel. Check out the W Hotel online store or visit the South Beach store at 2201 Collins Avenue.

While this blog deals primarily with issues relating to the Arab-Israeli conflict, every once in a while I feel compelled and inspired to post something different. This is such an occasion. Please take time to read and repost this powerful and important article by Terence Cantarella. In this piece Cantarella looks into the problem of unsolved Miami homicides through the lens of a mother struggling with chronic grief and depression. As a gifted writer, Cantarella reminds us that behind the troubling statistics, behind the sociological studies of urban decay, there lies the often neglected human dimension.

Although a year has passed since her son’s death, Tawana Fairell still can’t sleep at night. She can’t concentrate, can’t shed her feelings of guilt, and trusts no one. She’s not the same person she used to be. She can’t even look at Alex’s picture anymore. She had to turn it around to face the wall. Not knowing why her child was killed is torture. Knowing that the killer, or killers, freely roam the same city streets where she and her family live, haunts her like nothing else.

Seated at a picnic table at Charles Hadley Park in Liberty City, the soft-spoken single mother of three boys speaks eloquently about her late son with a mixture of heartache and exhaustion: “Sometimes I think God sees how much I love my sons and is jealous and is looking for ways to get my attention away. Everyone tells me God doesn’t work like that, but I just can’t understand why my son isn’t here right now. I picture the worst. I imagine him screaming and calling out for me and I wasn’t there for him. I sleep with every light on in the house. I’m afraid he might come to me in the night with that burnt side of his face. I get headaches every night on my left side and my left eye gets blurry. I feel like I’m going crazy.”

To read more, please click here.

heard this today and reminded me of a lil road trip to the farm:

i miss my friends! less than two weeks to 6 weeks of no law.

new york to anticipated nowhere.
pills.
hallucinogens.
controllable substances.
cigarettes laced with strychnine.
puffing the weeping willows;
smokestacks form the dark tracts
where sunlight pokes rabbit holes
into the clouds
of an industrial and commercial complex.

old dogs shuffling to ancient territorial grounds;
a man stands against the train’s door,
peaking beneath his douchebag sunglasses,
identifying perpetrators.
lumps of pride for all that should be protected.

then it’s back to work to the women
speaking with obscene west indie accents.
stairs crumbling before my feet –
each step heavier than the last.
promises of an early release;

jets writing in cuneiform;
the contrails expand into the blue sky.
the ocean — great mirror of the sky,
great reflector of the spirit –
blue highways on the water,
running the timeless current
from the gulf of mexico;
the waves descend into
intricate, elegant curls,
washing the basin of man –
the sounds distinguished as
vernacular for primordial soup.

airplane drops landing gear
in sharp angular increments
until fully unloaded
onto the screeching tarmac.
collect heavy luggage
with the instruments inside;
artifacts from my closet
indicate a long ago wish:
bo diddley as my uncle.
necklace full of small plastic skulls
like a cobra snake for a necktie;
crossing 40 miles of barbed immigrants,
beautiful, exotic –
mojo rising.

into the arms of a city
i can’t ever win.
there’s always
a triumphant embrace
but i manage to slip between pale fingers
to stare up at
blue necklaces, black hair, yellow eyes,
sandy breath, hour glass swagger, neon spotlights.
miami suction cup of nothing.

Since my last post I have been understandably very busy. I took another trip upto London to the US Embassy to get Max’s new US Visa. This trip was simple and we got the VISA back after 3 working days. As soon as we got that VISA everything kicked up a gear. The removal company was confirmed, the flights were booked, the accommodation was booked, transport to and from airports, hotels, we confirmed that we were moving out of our house and what seemed to be everything we have went onto eBay.

Here we are now, with only 3 days to go. I have been for the last 2 weeks in a mild state of panic, I have a constant nervous feeling that I’ve missed something but as a fairly well organised individual I’ve cross checked my spreadsheets to make sure I’ve covered all the bases. Even though as this is a massive logistic challenge I’m sure I’ll miss something along the way. I don’t consider the nervous feeling to be a bad thing in fact quite the opposite…. I’ve never felt more alive, this is a massive challenge and I’m loving every moment of it. In life…you rarely get an opportunity like this so I’m wrapping both my arms & legs around it and hanging on for dear life.  It’s not all cup half full though, I have been quite sad over the last week especially after watching “Children in Need” and feeling wistful wondering how I’m going to feel to leave my country & culture behind.. No more sarcastic British wit and how will I live without Terry Wogan??? I guess it was my reaction to the feeling that I might be losing out on some of the traditions that I’ve built up throughout my life so far and coupled with the dread that I might have missed something has lead to a pretty emotionally draining week….add a 2 year old, 6 week old on top of that and you can probably guess I’ve been less that “Chipper!”. All that aside now I’m here on my last day at work and with time running out I’m becoming more realistic about what I CAN do in the time I’ve got left… Sure I’m having to make some compromises especially when it comes to selling off your belongings on eBay but it’s only STUFF… I mean, come on, who in their right mind would dwell over stuff rather than embracing the new and exciting adventure ahead of us. So the rest of the week plays out like this :

• I’ll be doing the last of my “Things to do” tonight possibly until 1am (again)
• Removal company arrives at 9am in the morning and starts packing
• Drop the car off with it’s new owner on Friday, clean the carpets and finish off with the removal company
• Get up-to Heathrow and check into the hotel
• Go from the Hotel to the Airport and check our luggage
• Fly to Miami
• Get our luggage and get from the Airport to the Apartment near Dadeland Mall
• Check into the Apartment & Order a pizza & some beers and try to take the enormity of it all in.
• Sunday pick up the hire car and go to the beach….supposed to be 23′C
• Monday morning 9am….start my new job.

So there you go, wish us luck and I’ll try and keep you all updated as I go along, internet access permitting.

While traditional hospitals seem to slow down around the holiday season, this year they are moving full steam ahead.  There are new jobs opening and interviews taking place while we’re eating our turkey.  If you’re on vacation for the holiday, don’t forget to have your phone with you so that you don’t miss any new travel nurse positions that might be just right for what you’re looking for.  Also, as we talked about last week, you don’t want to miss that phone call from the nurse manager!

This Week’s New Positions Include:

ICU in Fort Worth, TX

Peds in Miami, FL

ER in Wynnewood, PA

ICU in Gainesville, FL

L&D in Orangeburg, SC

PICU in Mesa, AZ

MS/Tele in Conroe, TX

L&D in Modesto, CA

ER in Chinle, AZ

ICU in Sebring, FL

MS in Billings, MT

NP in Columbia, SC

ER in Tampa, FL

ICU in Grants, NM

OR in Ketchikan, AK