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Weekly Winners #15 - May/11 to May/17

Sunday, May 18, 2008

 
 
A soccer filled week!
 
I had an unusual three WW posts this week, featuring Santi, geese and spiders!
 
 
I talked about soccer in my 'Chronicles of Sarnia' (yuk, I'm so clever)
 
 
I wrote about the kids in Argentina for the Bloggers Unite! campaign...
 
...and I just told you about my perfect day yesterday!
 
What else happened?
Well, Juan also played! He even scored in their 1-0 victory on Wednesday...
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...and so did Carolina
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...and even Flor!
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But I will write about later.
 
I also took some beautiful sunset pictures...
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We celebrated Santi's birthday on Thursday, with our customary breakfast in bed
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...and dinner out...
 
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And then, of course, more soccer!
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Oh, and of course, some silliness, courtesy of Juan's camera...
 
That's it for today. We're starting what will be a very interesting week for us, with some big surprises. I will keep you posted!
 
Now back to sleep, it's 6AM on a Sunday!
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Perfect day!

Saturday, May 17, 2008

CanadaI almost missed my post today, and that would have been the first day so far this year! :-)
We're on the road again, and yes, it's due to soccer.
 
Santi's team (the Waterloo Warriors) is playing the WOYSL's Kick-off cup in Strathroy, ON. The thing is that my team, the Waterloo Panthers, is also playing its Kick-off Cup, but they're in Tillsonburg, ON (about 100 Km apart). So guess what? I spent the whole day driving back and forth, going to see Santi's games and then back to coach mine... I'm in a hotel now, and I'm exhausted!
 
But it paid off, because both teams had a perfect day. Santi's team beat Guelph 3-0 in the morning, and Santi scored the third goal (which I missed, because I was already on my way to my own game). Then they beat Windsor FC 2-0 in the second game, so they have advanced to semi-finals.
 
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Scene of the game against Guelph
In between those two games, I went to Tillsonburg to help Steve coach the Panthers. We beat London City Black 1-0 in our first game (a very tight one!) and then had a somewhat easier win in the afternoon, beating Sarnia 4-0. I asked Juan to take a few pictures, which he did...
 
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Of course, he was with Jordan (Steve's other kid) and he's 9 years old, so the inevitable happened...
 

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Tomorrow, we don't have any games until 1:40 PM, so guess what? We get to sleep in! I'm dropping Santi off at this game, and then driving to Tillsonburg. We -the Panthers- need to play one more game, but we're in the semi-finals already.

As I said, a perfect day! Both teams with two wins, five goals scored, none against. For the Warriors, pretty much what they're used to.

For my guys, their best performance in a tournament ever.

 
Argentina
Casi me pierdo el post de hoy, y hubiese sido la primera vez en lo que va del año! :-)
Estamos de viaje otra vez, y sí, otra vez por el fútbol.
 
El equipo de Santi (Waterloo Warriors) está jugando la copa "Kick-off" de la WOYSL (Western Ontario Youth Soccer League) en Strathroy, ON. El asunto es que mi equpo, los Waterloo Panthers también están jugando la Kick-off, pero en Tillsonburg, ON (a unos 100 Km). Así que adivinen qué? Me la pasé manejando de un lado al otro, yendo a ver los partidos de Santi y después de vuelta a dirigir los míos... Ahora estoy en el hotel, y estoy reventado!
 
Pero valió la pena, porque ambos equipos tuvieron un día perfecto. El equipo de Santi le ganó 3-0 a Guelph por la mañana, con Santi metiendo el tercer gol (que yo no ví, porque ya estaba camino a 'mi' partido). Luego le ganaron 2-0 a Windsor FC, así que ya avanzaron a semifinales.
 
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Escena del partido con Guelph
 
En medio de esos dos partidos, yo me fui a Tillsonburg a dirigir junto con Steve a los Panthers. Ellos le ganaron a London City Black 1-0 en un partido muy apretado, y luego tuvieron una victoria un poco más holgada, ganándole a Sarnia por 4 a 0. Le pedí a Juan que sacara algunas fotos del partido, lo que hizo...
 
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Pero claro, estaba con Jordan (el otro hijo de Steve) y tiene 9 años, así que sucedió lo inevitable...
 

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Mañana no tenemos partidos hasta la 1:40 PM así que podemos dormir hasta tarde! Luego lo dejo a Santi en su partido y me voy a TIllsonburg. Nosotros -los Panthers- tenemos un partido más, y luego jugamos semi-finales (ya estamos clasificados).

Como dije, un día perfecto! Ambos equipos con dos victorias, cinco goles, ninguno en contra. Para los Warriors, algo a lo que están acostumbrados.

Para mis chicos, la mejor performance en un torneo en toda su historia.

 
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Friday's Feast #22

Friday, May 16, 2008

Appetizer - What is the nearest big city to your home?
Well, define 'big'. I would say that if you consider Waterloo a 'small' city (it has 110,000 habitants, but it goes up to 450,000 or more if we consider the 'tri-city' area) then the nearest big city is this one:
 
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Toronto, Ontario - Canada (picture from Panoramio)
 
Soup - On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how well do you keep secrets?
I will go with a 10 here, and I will explain why: I simply forget about them! Last week, a co-worker told me that he had found out that somebody else was leaving. He thought I knew already, and when he realized I didn't, he asked me not to tell anybody. That was at around noon. When Gaby came to pick me up at 5PM, I did remember who was leaving, but I could not remember who had told me!!!
 
Salad - Describe your hair (colour, texture, length)
My hair is partly black, partly grey (grey quickly becoming the dominant colour). It's mostly flat, and I have it way too long right now (I would shave my head bald if it wasn't for the fact that my wife would kick me out if I did).
 
Main Course - What kind of driver are you? Courteous? Aggressive? Slow?
I'm a very courteous driver. I will always make room for pedestrians to go across the street and will make all the necessary signals. I have a tendency to driving a little over the speed limit, which has cost me two tickets since I came to Canada. But in both cases, I was somewhere between 15 and 20 Km/h over the limit, which isn't too bad...
 
Dessert - What was the last time you had a really bad week?
Can't remember, honestly. I have been extremely busy, but it's not that I've had a bad week lately. If you asked me 'when was the last time you had a really crazy week', then I would have to update my answer every Sunday...
 
 
See more posts here: Friday's Feast official home.

Bloggers Unite! - Our kids

Thursday, May 15, 2008



Once again I'm joining other bloggers around the world in a BlogCatalog event.

Last year, I wrote about acts of kindness, and to my surprise, my post came in 8th place (this is, to me, my biggest achievement as a blogger, you should see some of the stories I was sharing my prize with!).

Today's theme is Human Rights. As Ellen from Positive Communication points out very well, this is not only the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, but also the year in which the Olympic Games will be hosted by Beijing, China (where human rights are not being especially taken into consideration).

Please go here for a list of all the posts from Blogger Unite!

I come from Argentina, a country that is normally known because of its soccer, basketball or its '5 presidents in a week' moment in 2001. I lived for over 30 years in what is considered to be one of the richest countries in the world, and could not believe my eyes whenever I read about kids dying of hunger in the northern province of Tucumán or the many kids that live on the streets of Buenos Aires and Rosario (the two biggest cities).

In a place so rich, so full or resources like my home country (where we use to say that if you drop a seed anywhere, it will grow), the fact that we have so many kids dying of hunger, or not being able to eat well, or to go to school just breaks my heart. I was reading at Bebés y más about the paradox of this happening as we in the Northern Hemisphere worry about child obesity. Recent statistics indicated that 1 of every 5 kids in Argentina is somewhat malnourished (the official statistics speak of 13%). It's just unbelievably sad.

There are many reasons for all this to happen, but there are no doubts about the main one: corruption. "Our society is corrupt", many will say. But they speak only about the politicians, and that is a gross oversight. Our entire society is corrupt.

Those who criticize the politicians, clergy, military, etc. and blame them for all our problems, are the same who will bribe the police officer that is writing them a ticket for running a red light, or the same that give the guy at the theatre an extra $10 "under the table" so they would magically find tickets in a much better row than the one they originally had. Those are the same who will never pay their taxes or put money towards retirement: "What for? So my money ends in some minister's pocket?".

Those are the same that will only go out and protest when their own money is at risk, but will continue to play dumb every time they are in front of those disturbing news (and images) about our dying kids. In the meantime, more than half of the population of Argentina (20 million people) is considered to be below the poverty line.

According to UNICEF, 22% of the urban population (6.000.000 people) live in indigence, not being able to obtain proper food. The malnourishment during the first two years of life leave irreversible sequels in the person's height and intellectual ability.

What can we do? I certainly don't know. I guess the best advice I can give is: do what it's expected of you. In all my years as an active worker in Argentina, I never -ever- stopped paying my taxes in time, and I contributed to my retirement every single month (I didn't owe a dime by the time I left, and that was money I will never be able to collect). Pay your taxes. Be responsible. Look for opportunities to do some volunteer work. There are so many unknown heroes that feed hundreds of kids with almost no support (either official or private). See what can you do for your kids.

I know, I don't live there anymore. But I still refer to Argentina as my 'home country'. It's the place I come from, and it's a huge part of what I am. Knowing about 'our' kids and how they struggle to live still hurts me. A lot.

Let's now review UNICEF's Right of the Child according to Mafalda, the most celebrated creation of that Argentine genius called Quino. Maybe we can end the day with a smile, and it will be all because of him. I left the originals in Spanish, and included my own English translations.

Sources:

UN Convention on the rights of the Child

1 - Right to equality, regardless of race, creed or nationality.
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Susanita: And what about the sign of the Zodiac? Now a Leo will think he's the same as us from Aries. Ha! That thing about equality is not bad, but there are equalities and there are equalities...
Mafalda: We're off to a good start...

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2 - Right to a protected physical, mental and social development
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Mafalda: And more importantly, protection against some methods of protection...

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3 - Right to a name and a nationality
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Miguelito: I wanted my name to be Batman!! And be Swiss, so I could eat chocolate all day!!

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4 - Right to adequate food, shelter and medical attention for the child and the mother
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Mafalda: We're here to get our immunization against despotism, please.

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5 - Right to special education and care for the child that is physically and mentally handicapped
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Susanita: My mother feels very moved by handicapped kids. She is so sensitive that she can't even experience the pain of realizing that they exist. Poor Mom!
Mafalda: Yes, there are so many good, sensitive people like that...

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6 - Right to understanding and love from parents and society
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Manolito: Work with me here... Shouldn't we get paid for being so lovabl...?

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7 - Right to free and compulsory education and to play and recreation
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Felipe: Our right to receive education is so indisputable... that we have no hope on a caring soul to come and take it from us!

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8 - Right to be first to receive assistance in case of a natural disaster
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Guille: So in case of a world hunger, we would get all the strawberry and vanilla ice creams first?

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9 - Right to protection against neglect and work that threatens their development
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Mafalda: We will have to go through all that once we grow up anyway...

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10 - Right to be raised in a spirit of solidarity, understanding, friendship and justice among people
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Mafalda: And let's observe these rights, OK? So we make sure we don't do what we did with the ten commandments!

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Pleasant surprises

CanadaI had two of those "Well, isn't that just great" moments since yesterday afternoon.
 
The first one happened yesterday at around 2PM, as I was going out in a hurry for a very late lunch break. As I'm about to exit the building, I found a few of those special tables and chairs that are used by massage therapists, and two guys standing by them:
  • "Hello", they said, "are you here for the complimentary 10-minute massage?".
  • "Uh, I don't know... Was this something we were supposed to sign in for?"
  • "Oh, yes, but the two people we had scheduled for right now cancel, so we have a 10 minute window. Do you want to get some massage?"
I said yes, of course. And only went out for lunch 10 minutes later, feeling way more relaxed.
 
The other moment was this very morning. I got up at 6:30 AM because both Juan and Carolina had some left over homework to go through. We were so busy, that only after we left at around 8:15 AM I realized that I hadn't had any breakfast! Gaby dropped me off at work and I thought "I'm putting my laptop back on its docking station and then I'm going to Tims for a coffee and a bagel".
 
No. The moment I went in, I found all of my former colleagues from Testing Services having breakfast. Anne waved at me and asked me to join them, and I just couldn't say no... There were bagels, French toasts, bacon, scrambled eggs, sausages, baked potatoes, yogurt... and fruit and other stuff. Just perfect.
 
I feel I'm on a roll right now. I guess I should start thinking "Wouldn't it be great if I were given a raise?" and wait for signs that my manager is approaching (he normally whistles John Denver's "Leaving on a jet plane" on his way here, meaning one of us is going places)... I will start right away.
 
Oh, by the way: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SANTI!!! Please go over his blog and wish him a very happy 13th birthday.
 
 
Argentina
Tuve dos de esos momentos en los que uno dice "Bueno, eso estuvo muy bien!" entre ayer y hoy.
 
El primero fue ayer a eso de las 2PM, cuando me iba apurado a comprarme algo para un almuerzo tardío. Justo cuando voy a salir del edificio, me encuentro algunas de esas mesas y sillas que usan los masajistas, y dos tipos parados al lado:
 
  • "Hola", me dicen, "estás aquí para los masajes gratis de 10 minutos?"
  • "Uh, no sé... no era que teníamos que anotarnos para esto?"
  • "Oh, sí, pero justo los dos que teníamos ahora cancelaron, así que tenemos un hueco de 10 minutos. Querés usarlos y tener masajes?" 
Dije que sí, por supuesto. Y terminé saliendo a comer 10 minutos más tarde, bastante más relajado.
 
El otro momento fue esta mañana. Me levanté a las 6:30 AM porque tanto Juan como Carolina tenían tareas que terminar para la escuela. Estuvimos tan ocupados que no me dí cuenta hasta después de haberme ido de casa a las 8:15 AM de que no había tenido nada para desayunar! Gaby me dejó en el trabajo y yo pensé "Dejo la laptop en su docking station y me rajo para Tims a buscar un café y un bagel".
 
No. En cuanto entré, me encontré a mis ex-colegas de Testing Services desayunando. Anne me hizo señas para que me quedara y yo no le pude decir que no... Había bagels, tostadas francesas, tocino (panceta), huevos revueltos, salchichas, papas al horno, yogurt... y frutas y esas otras cosas. Perfecto.
 
Siento que estoy de racha. Me parece que voy a empezar a pensar "No sería bueno que me dieran un aumento?" y esperar por señales de que se acerca mi jefe (por lo general viene silbando la canción de John Denver "Leaving on a jet plane" camino hacia aquí, lo que significa que uno de nosotros sale de viaje)...
I feel I'm on a roll right now. I guess I should start thinking "Wouldn't it be great if I were given a raise?" and wait for signs that my manager is approaching (he normally whistles John Denver's "Leaving in a jet plane" on his way here, meaning one of us is going places)... Ya mismo empiezo a pensar.
 
Oh, a propósito: FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS, SANTI!!! Por favor pasen por su blog a dejarle saludos por sus 13 años.
 
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WW#25 - Visitors

Wednesday, May 14, 2008


We had left all our flowers inside while we were away, to protect them from the morning frost.
This is what we found when we came back...

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Yes. Spiders. Hundreds of them.
I had no other option than to dispose of them with my own (bare) hands

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I realized I did something wrong in the video, as I speak in Spanish first, and then in 'English'... But the video is gross enough for you to ignore that!




More WW posts here, here and here

The Chronicles of Sarnia

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

CanadaLOL. I'm so clever... I crack myself up. Anyway, I left my recap of the Bluewater Early bird Tournament at the point in which Santi had played two games with his team, with two wins (10-0 and then 7-0).

IMG_0444Sunday morning was more of the same, with the Waterloo Warriors picking up another win, this time against Byron Blast, by a surprisingly big score: 11-0. I say surprisingly, because I was expecting this team to came in second in their group, and they were last instead.

This time, it was me, and not Gaby, who took a few pictures.

Santi played in the stopper position once again, which worried him a little, because he's not quite used to it. But he did alright anyway, and he ended playing up front, which is what he likes the most.

It started to rain immediately after that game, and it soon became evident that it wasn't going to stop. We had a few hours in between games, which we used to go back to the hotel and pack. Since that didn't take too long, Gaby took a quick nap! :-)

By the time we were back at the field, the rain was really hard. We decided that only me and Santi were going to stay, and Gaby would take the other kids to a Tim Hortons nearby. Even with the umbrella, I got soaked because of the wind.

The Warriors were to play against a team they know very well, called Southend Dynamos (which comes from London, Ont.). These guys are in the same division as Santi's team, and they have played against each other several times in the past, with both teams winning lately (I remember a 6-1 victory on the road last year, in which was Santi's first official game with the Warriors).

IMG_0448Our guys were probably tired, or maybe they just weren't in a good day. The truth is that they played very badly, and were totally dominated by their opponent. Southend kept creating chances at scoring (and missing impossible goals) and we were all depending on our goalkeeper's stupendous performance. I don't know how many saves Keeley had in that game.

Santi wasn't on the field, and didn't went in until after halftime. I kept thinking "Please put Santi in, please put Santi in...". It's that I know how much he likes to play in those conditions. And in fact, once he did go in, he had what I consider was his best performance of the weekend. He was very aggressive and fought for every ball like a lion (I know, cheap joke given the title of this post). He had a couple of shots (though one was wide and the other too weak) and was fouled quite violently at one point (the Southend player got a yellow card for that). Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, and after managing to keep the 0-0 in regular time, his team was beaten 1-0 in extra time.

It was a very disappointing way to end their participation, but all they could do was pack and leave (all soaked, of course). At least Santi had a great time in his first tournament as an 'official' member of the Waterloo Warriors, and me, Gaby and the kids had a great time together in Sarnia.

Did I tell you about what we did on Friday night? We crossed the border and drove around Pt. Huron, Michigan. Later that evening, we decided to go look for a place to eat, and I said "Well, we're in USA, we should be able to find a Fuddruckers nearby..." The closest one was at about 80 kilometres. Not a problem! We ended having some buffalo burgers in a town near Detroit.

I guess that when we say we're going out for dinner, we really go out!



Argentina LOL. "Las crónicas de Sarnia"... Soy tan inteligente... Me hago matar de la risa a mí mismo. En fin, dejé mi reporte sobre el Bluewater Early bird Tournament en el momento en que Santi había jugado dos partidos con su equipo, ambos con victorias amplias (10-0 y 7-0).

El partido del domingo por la mañana fue más de lo mismo, con los Waterloo Warriors obteniendo otra victoria, esta vez sobre los Byron Blast, por un sorprendente margen de 11-0. Digo sorprendente, porque yo pensaba que este equipo iba a ser que terminara segundo y en su lugar cerró la tabla de posiciones.

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Esta vez fui yo, y no Gaby, quien sacó fotos.

Santi volvió a jugar como stopper, lo que lo preocupaba un poco, porque no está acostumbrado a la posición. Pero de todos modos el jugó bien, y terminó el partido jugando en su posición favorita, que es la de centro delantero.

Comenzó a llover inmediatamente después de ese partido, y pronto fue evidente que no iba a parar. Tuvimos unas horas entre partidos, las que usamos para ir de nuevo al hotel y empacar. Como no llevó mucho tiempo, Gaby se hizo tiempo para dormirse una siestita!

Para cuando volvimos a la cancha, ya llovía muy fuerte. Decidimos que sólo Santi y yo nos quedaríamos, y Gaby llevaría a los chicos a un Tim Hortons que había cerca. Con paraguas y todo, me recontra mojé, sobre todo debido al viento.

Los Warrios jugarían ahora contra un equipo al que conocen muy bien, llamado Southend Dynamos (que proviene de London, Ont.). Este equipo está en la misma división que el equipo de Santi ,y ya han jugado entre ellos muchas veces en el pasado, con ambos equipos llevándose victorias últimamente (recuerdo una victoria 6-1 como visitante el verano pasado, en lo que fue el primer partido oficial de Santi con los Warriors).

No sé si nuestros chicos estaban cansados, o si directamente no estaban en un buen día. La verdad es que jugaron muy mal, y fueron totalmente dominados por su adversario. Southend creó una chance de gol detrás de otra (y se perdió algunos goles imposibles), mientras nosotros dependíamos de la espectacular performance de nuestro arquero. No sé cuántas salvadas le conté a Keeley en ese partido.

IMG_0454Santi no estaba en la cancha, y no entró hasta pasado el entretiempo. Yo pensaba "Por favor pongan a Santi, por favor pongan a Santi..." , porque sé cuánto le gusta y cuánto se agranda en partidos así. Y por cierto, una vez que entró, demostró que tenía razón y nos dio su mejor performance del fin de semana. Estuvo muy agresivo y peleó por cada pelota como un león (ya sé, una broma barata -berreta, diríamos en ARG- acerca del león de Narnia). Tuvo un par de tiros al arco (uno desviado y el otro muy débil) y fue fouleado muy violentamente, por lo que a un jugador de Southend le sacaron tarjeta amarilla. Sin embargo, todo esto no fue suficiente, y luego de aguantar el 0-0 hasta el final del partido, su equipo perdió 1-0 durante el alargue.

Fue una manera muy decepcionante de terminar su participación en el torneo, pero todo lo que pudieron hacer fue empacar e irse (todos mojados , por supuesto). Al menos Santi la pasó realmente muy bien en su primer torneo como miembro 'oficial' de los Waterloo Warriors, y Gaby, los chicos y yo la pasamos muy bien juntos en Sarnia.

Ya les conté lo que hicimos el viernes por la noche? Cruzamos la frontera y manejamos alrededor de Pt. Huron, Michigan. Más tarde, decidimos ir a buscar un lugar para comer, y yo dije "Bueno, estamos en USA, deberíamos buscar el Fuddruckers más cercano..." El más cercano estaba en un suburbio a 80 kilometros. Ningún problema! Terminamos comiendo hamburguesas de búfalo cerca de Detroit.

Es que nosotros cuando decimos que salimos a comer afuera, salimos de verdad!

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Where were you? - #06

 
CanadaWell, it seems that my little game is failing to impress my readers. Last week, only Biddie took the time to answer my questions, and other than that, my "WWY" went pretty much unnoticed.
 
I will probably host this until the end of May and then I will have to call it quits and move on. What can I do?
 
Today's theme comes from a made-up word we used a lot back in my IBM years and identified the date in which a monthly process would be automatically triggered.
 
That word is "Monthiversary". So... once again: Where were you...
 
1) ...exactly one month ago? (13/Apr/2008) - Random event: Trevor Immelman wins the 2008 Masters in Augusta.
I was at Lester Pearson Airport in Toronto, from where I flew to San Diego for the second time in about 20 days. It was a long flight, leaving Toronto at around 7:30 and arriving in San Diego at 2:30 PM (local time) via San Francisco. Once there, they picked me up... and took me to work at the hospital! I only made it to the (crappy) hotel at around 6:30 PM (which in reality was 9:30 PM for me, due to the time zone change)
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Interesting whirlpool I found at the airport in San Francisco
 
 
2) ...exactly two months ago? (13/Mar/2008) - Random event: Demonstrations in China by Tibetan separatists turn violent.
I was at the office, getting ready for what would be the first in a series of trips that only ended in late April. I wrote about the time when I played the judge in Gilbert and Sullivan's "Trial by Jury" with my Church Chancel Choir. But "Trial by Jury" was the second half of the show. Before, we were doing things like this:
 
 
3) ...exactly three months ago? (13/Feb/2008) - Random event: Malaysian Parliament is dissolved by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
I was still celebrating my Canadian Blog Award and the sudden fame that my blog had achieved because of the article that appeared on "Clarín" (the biggest newspaper in Argentina). I posted what was my most successful "Wordless Wednesday" post that day (with one of my favourite pictures) and I remember I got up after midnight and went to the local WalMart to buy Valentine Day presents for my wife
 
 
 
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WW#24 - At least they're not on the fast lane

 
 
 

That was close!

Monday, May 12, 2008

CanadaMy cell phone just rang. And I recognize the number, it was from my kids' school (how wouldn't I recognize it, I have four kids in there, and the number is in my speed dial already).
 
Of course, it was the principal. "Is this Mr. Almada?", she said. "Yes", I replied, trying to guess which one of my three kids (Florencia doesn't have school today) was sitting right next to her, and more importantly, what had they done...
 
It can't be Santi, I thought, it's never him.
 
Carolina? Unlikely. She hasn't gotten into trouble for a long time now. I mean, she hasn't been caught! :-)
 
All I had left was Juan, who used to have an area of the Principal's office named after him, but is doing just great lately. Could we be in the presence of a relapse?
 
Nope. The principal wanted to talk to me. They had seen me taking pictures of Santi's school play ("The fiddler on the roof") and they wanted to know if I would be willing to give them to the school so they can use them for the school's yearbook.
 
"Of course", I said. "I offered them even before I started shooting, and I also have a video I'm working on".
 
Then I told the principal about all the thoughts that crossed my mind in the 10 seconds that passed between the moment I picked up the phone and she asked me about the pictures... And then we both laughed.
 
Somehow, I feel like I dodged a bullet here.
 
 
 
Argentina
Acaba de sonar mi teléfono celular. Y reconocí el número, era un llamado de la escuela de mis hijos (cómo no voy a reconocerlo, tengo cuatro niños allí, y el número ya está en mi lista de contactos).
 
Por supuesto, era la directora. "Es el señor Almada?", preguntó. "Sí", respondí, tratando de adivinar cuál de los tres (porque Florencia no tiene escuela los lunes) estaba sentado/a junto a ella, y más importante, qué habían hecho...
 
No puede ser Santi, pensé, nunca es él.
 
Carolina? Poco probable. No se ha metido en problemas por bastante tiempo. O mejor dicho, no la han pescado! :-)
 
Sólo me quedaba Juan, que supo tener un área de la oficina de la directora bautizada con su nombre, pero que últimamente se está portando muy bien. Podríamos estar en presencia de una recaída?
 
No. La directora quería hablar conmigo. Me habían visto sacando fotos de la obra de teatro ("El violinista en el tejado") y querían saber si yo podría facilitarles mis fotos para que las usuaran en su anuario.
 
"Por supuesto", dije. "Ya las había ofrecido antes de scar las fotos, y también tengo un video en el que estoy trabajando".
 
Después le conté a la directora acerca de todos los pensamientos que había tenido en los 10 segundos que pasaron desde el momento en que atendí el teléfono y hasta que ella me preguntó por las fotos... y los dos nos reímos.
 
De alguna manera, siento como si hubiese evitado un tiro.
 
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