The Mean Streets of Buenos Aires
Aug 29, 2009 Argentina
Argentina’s three most gullible criminals just tried to mug me. I was walking home when three gangbangers approached and surrounded me. I initially thought they were just normal beggars or perhaps porno-flier distributors (they guys are everywhere). But the littlest one, maybe 16 or so, immediately got in my face and started demanding shit in [...]
Tags: astronomy, crime, Galileo, mugging, pickpockets, planetarium, subway
Museo de Awesome
Aug 28, 2009 Argentina, TEFL, images
We finally got our lesson assignments for the next two weeks. The summary: Tuesday –> high beginners –> house chores Wednesday –> low beginners –> talking about past vacations Thursday –> basic beginners –> describing daily and weekly routines Tuesday –> high intermediates –> compare & contrast dating customs Wednesday –> basic beginners –> houses [...]
Tags: art, avant garde, Frida Kahlo, grammar, Latin America, modernism, museums, South America
Flickr Me Liquor
Today was our first chance to observe an actual ESL class in action. It was very eye-opening & helpful, but actually made me more nervous for my own classes. Tomorrow will be more lectures with another hour of in-class observation. Monday we start doing lesson plans for Tuesday; Tuesday we do lesson plans for Wednesday [...]
Tags: Arbi, art, Congreso, groceries, Kazim, museums, Puerto Madero, Recoleta, teaching
Dr. Strangelove Finds a Home
Aug 25, 2009 Argentina
Tiny update because I have to share some good news. I pushed & shoved and bribed & bartered and managed to get a single room here at the Azul Residence. It just goes to show that good things come to those who wait who throw down cold hard cash. This is a good compromise though, [...]
Tags: dorm
The Choo-To Train
Aug 22, 2009 Argentina
A lot has happened in the last couple days, but I wanted to share my cultural experiences from Thursday. After class that day the founder of BAIS took Rachelle (another TEFLer; very fluent in Spanish) and me to look at a few apartments. We had to take the subte a number of times and so [...]
Tags: BAIS, beer, Brahma, Brazil, English, Korea, Nokia, Philippines, Portuguese, Quilmes, Rachelle, Spanish
Gaeilge for Fun & Profit
Step 1: Learn Gaeilge Step 2: Move to Ireland Step 3: ???? Step 4: Profit! Today we had our last session on Gaeilge (it was about 4 hours over 3 days), and I have to say how impressed I am with this pedagogical tool. It conclusively proved the effectiveness of the school’s methods, and it [...]
What a Sick Rollercoaster
Aug 18, 2009 Argentina, TEFL, music
On the bright side: My TEFL class, unlike almost everything else so far, has been more or less just like I imagined it. On Monday I woke up just before 9am ready to meet the taxi by 9.45am… only for Rosie, the dorm mama, to come grab me at 9.30. Lo and behold, who should [...]
Tags: Buenos Aires, concert, Gaelige, homework, ipod, Ireland, percussion, theft
This City is Controlled by Pigeons
Aug 16, 2009 Argentina, personal
Buenos Aires is incredible. I arrived on schedule at 10.20am on Saturday, but have been unable to blog because I lacked a 110-220v outlet adapter… which — GREAT SUCCESS — I have finally managed to miraculously procure at seemingly the only electronics store open on Sunday. Tomorrow is the St. Martin’s holiday so I’m relieved [...]
Last Post from North America
Aug 13, 2009 personal
My great South American adventure starts in 8 hours. For the curious, here’s my itinerary: Drive from Ft. Wayne to Detroit, fly American Airlines to La Guardia. Then I transfer via shuttle from La Guardia to J.F.K. where I have an 8-hour layover before heading straight from J.F.K. to Ministro Pistarini International, Buenos Aires on [...]
Cole-Lee Wedding
My brother got married this past Friday! The wedding was at Benham’s Grove in Centerville, and they’re now on their honeymoon somewhere in Mexico. This whole past week has been a blur, but a lot of fun. Photos courtesy of Katie & Ken Cole.
Unconscionable Math
Aug 5, 2009 politics
Post-of-the-week is an entry by “Taunter” that’s blowing up the internets. His must-read essay entitled “Unconscionable Math” explains the healthcare industry’s practice of canceling your policy — known as “rescission” — right when you need it most. The money quote: If, as I suspect, rescission is targeted toward the truly bankrupting cases – the top [...]
Tags: corporatism, healthcare, HMO, probability, rescission, statistics
My Conversion to Orthodox Judaism
Aug 2, 2009 images
Well the conversion hasn’t happened yet, but Kevin Kuhn did find my Jewish doppelgänger during his recent trip to Israel: It’s uncanny, I tells ya.
Tags: Israel, Kevin Kuhn