Blog Access Issues

Hello everyone.


For the last number of days I have been having issues with accessing the blogspot.com family of websites. I missed a birthday alert yesterday and I was unable to post on Christmas Eve. Anyway, right now it is in the middle of the night on the West Coast and in general the global web traffic is down and it seems to make a difference from here down in Salvador.

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Congratulations to Amy and Ryan for making it official. Amy you have been part of my family for a long time now, and seeing you at family events has been second nature. I am extremely happy that you are part of my tribe and me yours. I look forward to getting to know your family better.

Hey ladies (you know who you are), no more of that “afraid of commitment” bullshit anymore!

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Birthday Alert for BrotherJoe.

Spiderman’s dad celebrated the anniversary of his birth of the 26th. (Inside joke in Brazil)

Good job Joe for making it this far. You also I think will have a great 2010 as I have seen the massive amount of progress you have made with your house and property. I am envious of what you have in family and home. Well done.

BrotherBill

Merry Christmas / Feliz Natal

All is well down here in Salvador. I went to bed last night around 2:30 or 3 as we don’t eat the turkey until midnight. I did not know that and my giant cut into the bird at 10 PM brought mass panic to Felipe. There was a ‘lost in translation’ moment, looking back, it will be a funny memory.


I was part of a huge Secret Santa gift exchange and I was hooked up with a cool Portuguese/English tourism guide to Salvador. I really like it. I celebrated late into the night with about 30 people.

If I can I will try and Skype today, you guys are just waking up…

BrotherBill and Viviane

Christmas week update

Hey Cheryl, sorry for posting about Climategate before I told everyone that I proposed. The fact is that I had reservations, and I needed to wait. Timing is everything and now that it is behind us it was a great memory. It did not go off as planned, but it was a pipedream to think it would. No details here on the blog, but I will be happy to tell you the detail because you are in the loop. The close loop. We’ll talk later. But just to give my readers a small taste, we celebrated over sushi.


I have been keeping it low and down to earth this trip. Just hangin’ out with the Costas and mostly Viviane. I had a chance to cook for the whole family last Sunday. A planned event of great anticipation by the family. Viviane has been talking smack about my skills. We served soup, Mac & Cheese with Sausage, and for dessert we had strawberry refrigerator cake. The soup was a total conglomeration of memories of dad’s soup that he served Grandpa and Grandma back in the days on Afton and from all of the lessons I learned in Dubai as I made soup from scratch a dozen times or more on request of Viviane has she loves the stuff. The Mac & Cheese was all mine. I will stand up now and say that I have full confidence in myself to bust out this American classic with only the bare minimum of ingredients. Buying cheese in Portuguese is a test, but one I passed. I made more than enough. The pasta was not over cooked and I included raw tomatoes of chives right at the end because well, I think it rocks. (Don’t forget to season them both together for a 10 minutes plus before you mix them in). I had to unfortunately keep the jalapeños out though because I was not cooking for myself. The sausages (again, Portuguese and I got lucky) were boiled in Skol (beer) for 45 minutes before their skin was seared with a black char in a legitimate non stick pan (kind of hard to find in Salvador). Sliced on the bias and served with Philippe’s Mustard brought in country shrink rapped by Ryan. (Huge hit by the way).

Viviane was in charge of dessert. She trusted me and took my advice and we went with refrigerator cake. A mystery to all down here, including Viviane, but we went for it. No Coolwhip so that is a hurdle. We used good ole fashion whip cream and had to use the back of a spoon to make it cover the top smooth. Strawberries, of course, we dramatically placed atop. Now if you don’t know what the hell I am talking about email mom., she will clue you in.

Short story long, when the day was over, I felt really good to have the chance to one, feed the family, and two, (more importantly) keep Vilma out of the kitchen for 24 hours.

I have not watched football in two weeks. No worries, but after following the Fresno State – Wyoming game on the web I realized I will spend two bowl seasons in a row overseas in a country that has no interest in it. I will get better at watching this stuff online, but the rub is the connection speed. That is always the missing link that no one seems to be aware of. Pun intended.

I am very happy right now. I have AC in the flat. My babydoll loves me. Life is pretty good.

Ryan and Paul: you’re on the clock.

BrotherBill

She said yes.

:)

BrotherBill

Heat = Prosperity. Now hold your breath.

Algore is a Jackass

BrotherBill

Thanksgiving in June Lake

I spent the weekend with some of the family up in June Lake, CA. We showed and it was crisp and cold but no snow. All that changed on Friday night. It started coming down softly but I woke up to a near foot on the ground. The dozer was out to clean the streets but otherwise outside was very quiet and very calm. Total white out. Carson Peak has been out of view for the last 24 hours. Good times for all. We completed 3 puzzles and burnt firewood like it was going out of style.

ASU managed to commit only one personal for a change but some things don’t change. We have lost some close ones. We have held good teams to low numbers, but we don’t score worth a damn. No bowling for the Sun Devils. We end the season with a lose. I look forward to next year; we are young on both sides of the ball we have learn many lessons this year that build character. Only time will tell.

Pictures:

Chicks in space. Awesome!

Really good beef jerky. (and kind of pricy too)

View west from small town America

Welcome to June Lake. Glacier architecture

Mammoth Lakes, Twin Lakes

Mammoth Lakes, Twin Lakes from the hill top dam

Ranch 'n Texas cabin, Thanksgiving day

Ranch 'n Texas cabin, Saturday, Thanksgiving day weekend

BrotherBill

NoCal Splendor / Humboldt County

I spent a few days with my brother Joe, his wife Lynda and their son Parker in Arcata, California this week. I am holding on to most of the family video and photos for Christmas gifts and such but I wanted to post some of what I saw. It’s a beautiful place and a near polar opposite to Dubai.

The trip was a big reconnect with family for me. Parker is a tough little kid with energy and a ton of curiosity. He has love at home and is not afraid of getting dirty. He mimics really well and is verbal once he gets to know you. He has his mother’s eyes and his dad’s chicken legs. He loves anything that fits in his hands. He will be baiting his own hook soon. I guarantee he will be changing the oil in cars before he can drive them but right now we are just working on going potty on his little thrown.

BrotherJoe in the massive Redwoods

Beautiful old lighthouse in the Harbor of Eureka

Paul Bunyan and Babe the blue ox at the Trees of Mystery

Old town Eureka

Frontyard wildlife preserve

Down the hill from home into town

Tessa and Duza in a friendly girl fight

Osprey nest

The old sailor in Eureka Harbor

Amazing Victorian in Eureka Harbor

BrotherBill

Oi. Fala ingles?

Well I have been home now for over a month and I am remembering why I love this place. There is my family of course but the culture is so easy for me to fold back into. The simple things like how people drive and how clean the streets are kept is no longer not noticed. But something is missing. Viviane is not with me.


My time is Brazil was awesome. I was welcomed when I landed and was treated like family from the very beginning. I can’t wait to return the favor. I can’t wait to have Viviane with me as we drive through LA. Until she is here, my life with be incomplete. Time will change this, but the waiting is right now, so it is hard. I will see her soon as I will be back in Salvador in December for the holidays. She brings me peace and I love her and I don’t want to be anywhere else this year for Christmas.

So since I have been back I have been to Hi-Life-Burger, In-n-Out Burger, Z Sushi, Sei Sushi, and Obu Sushi. I forgot how happy SuperSalad makes me. I will hit that place again soon. I have finally cooked a few meals which made me happier than the old favorites that I craved. Down south in Bahia I was fed like a horse and I did very little cooking.

I forgot how much I enjoy American television. But with that said the commercials are nauseating. In Dubai they did not have the production know how to fill shows with commercial breaks, you would get a huge 15-20 minute block at the end of the hour and/or shows would start in crazy subsets of the hour. You could often avoid commercials. Now that I am back, I think I watch a dozen beer commercials every time I turn on the set. (But maybe that is because it is usually on ESPN) I have lost the instinct to turn on the TV for news. I go to the web and to the radio for that. TV is entertainment and education only. I don’t know how long this will last. I will either soon be out of touch or ahead of the curve. We’ll see.

I am back in country for a College football season again. I love this stuff. I have spent a few Saturdays watching multiple TV’s and eating nachos. Overseas I had a huge dose of Soccer. English Premier League mostly and then Brazilian Leagues while in Salvador. I came home to Playoff Baseball. Skipped the season again and just am now watching the good part. Totally sticking with my National League and pulling for the Phillies. The company I worked for in Dubai was based out of Marlton, NJ which is near the state boarder and just outside downtown Philadelphia and that office of full of fanatics. I saw with my own eyes a Phillies 2008 WS banner in an office in Doha, Qatar behind the desk of a co-worker. She also happens to be a Quaker and lettered their on their rowing team. She is an impressive Eastern Pennsylvanian.

I have thought many times about the people that used to be in my everyday life: Indians, Sri Lankans, Indonesians, Brits, Scotts, Jordanians, Egyptians, Pakistani, Persians, Emirati, Saudi, Serbians, Brazilians, French, Australians, Kiwi, South Africans, Kenyans, Filipinos, Singaporeans, Palestinians, Iraqi, Turkish, Canadians, and other Americans too. I mispronounced many names. Some I never got right at all. From the other side I was asked more than once how I got Bill out of William. It seems so normal to me but more often than not it is considered a completely different name. (Especially on a credit card) Filipinas have some wild names: Princess Sunshine Conception, Lady Ann, Anonymous (not kidding), Charity Hope, Baby Kay, Monalisa for example.

I am still feeling a bit out of place. I don’t have many of the things right now that I used to have that helped me build my identity. My car and room are temporary. I am not working. Sometimes this makes me really anxious and I feel very lost. It is hard to keep a clear perspective of where I am and where I am going. Too many questions unanswered. I have been here before though so I am better prepared this time.

I have not posted in a while. This blog was used to stay in touch with family, but now I am here again. But I now have family out there. I now get to tell them I love them and I can use this medium to share my life back home. I am coming back. I will see you in December. (That is me talking to Brazil and not Dubai. Dubai is not on the visit list any time soon.)

Babydoll I miss you.
I love you.

William

10,000 Words, bring your sun screen

I need to post more often. I understand this.
I have read so many news articles regarding recent US political events that have me outraged. Totally outraged. I must be clear, I am not happy about the leaders of the land I love.
But for now I have blog readers to please...

Please view these photos as a replacement for my words...

Lets go fishing. Bring your flip flops and a 12 pack.

Older than Aunt Toni.

I ate 7 oysters here. It would have been 8 but I had to share. I miss Tapatio.

I spent 4 days here... yes it was nice. 2 boats and a bus ride away...

Just another average view...

Beach front bars and hotels. Did I mention the Brazilian bikinis? Oh baby...

Old town Salvador

Michael Jackson video... (it's called YouTube)

The elevator between upper and lower Salvador

BrotherBill

Truth to Power

Before we talk Brazil, I need to say Merci Beaucoup

I owe a big thank you to Arnaud and Corrine for their hospitality. They made us feel at home in France which was a huge bonus on this crazy trip we had after leaving Dubai. A home cooked meal from Arnaud is always a meal enjoyed and I had a few. Corrine made us a feast as well. Nothing like starting off a late diner with a jar full of homemade aged goose liver bathing in solidified fat to remind yourself that you are in France. It was killer.

Paris is the bomb, but I don’t want to bore you with the same old story of the city of light. Nancy was super cool. We took a trip to Verdun to have a history lesson about WWI and it was just that. Both extremely deep and educational.

Made a quick shot north and had dinner in Luxemburg. Or what Arnaud refers to as “a bank.” Well the world needs a few more of those right now so good for them.

Long story short Viviane and I took the TGV home and were back in Garches (west Paris) door to door in like just over 2 hours. Whatever it was it was fast. Like 320 km per hour fast. Shut up and do the math.

(I have TGV video but with this connection I keep crashing...)

While in Paris was stayed at family home of Emmanuelle DeChamps, and we met a great lady named Maria. She is Portuguese so of course Viviane and her got along great.

Give me a few days and I will post more about this great country…

BrotherBillinBrazil

A few shots of Salvador

I have not had the camera with me 24/7 and I have seen much more than I have photographed. I will make some return trips and do my best to capture more images for the blog.

Ciao.
BrotherBill