SantiagoBear

11:50 pm: Somewhat unbelievable
Last night, while I was busy having insomnia, I received an email from my father. We don't talk, much. In fact, most of my friends assume that my father is dead. He isn't, in fact. Just sometimes wishes he were . . .

He's 81, as he says it he "has a lot of missing parts" which includes a bladder, etc. His 2nd wife died some 5 or 6 months ago, and he set about putting his affairs in order - - - then he stayed healthy. Well, as healthy as he can be.

Anyway, he sent me this thing that I've seen a hundred times before where there's a paragraph containing words which have only the first and last letters in the correct places, and all the other letters present, but scrambled, and "Can you read this?"

Of course I can. But he asked for a response, and I responded.

We sent about 16 messages back and forth using email, not any chat program. He asked me about whether the gender of "problema" changes. It is, for those who are interested, always masculine: El problema or los problemas. We talked about languages that we spoke, what I thought of a couple of "teach yourself Spanish" free internet sites, and so on. We talked about playing and singing music. He talked about having to have something after his wife had died, and so started playing Country guitar again, after 15 years without doing it. We commiserated about arthritis in the fingers affecting our abilities to play well. He complimented me on my voice, saying that (from somewhere) he has a tape of me singing Mallotte's "The Lord's Prayer" and that he's never heard anyone sing it better. "Not even Jim Nabors."

I'm not fond of my father. He was extremely abusive of me, physically and emotionally, when I was young, and the emotional abuse continued into my early adulthood, until I basically broke off all ties. Darrell made me contact him, some 15 years ago, saying that if he died, and I hadn't been in touch, I'd lament it. So, from time to time, I respond to an email message.

We do NOT talk on the phone. I call my mom, from time to time, and we chat. I do not wish to chat with my father.

But when he told me that he remembered me singing "The Impossible Dream" at my high school graduation, and how he loved it, I was shocked. I didn't even remember singing that. But he did.

Maybe, despite all the pain and abuse, he actually loves me.

Do I have the courage to follow up on that thought? I'm not sure.

05:11 pm: Ok . . . .. Here's the (not so) latest
It's been awhile, I know. And to Amaristee: Yes. I've heard for Toynbee Tiles, but I've never seen one live and in person. Apparently the Santiago tile has been gone for several years.

9 June, at about 3:00 a.m., I started to vomit. I hadn't eaten anything for several hours, and so there was really nothing there to vomit up, but that didn't seem to stop me. I kept this up several times per hour for 3 days. On 10 June, about midnight, Saba (my doc) came to see me - - David had called him. Carlos had told me to call him various times, but I'm very stubborn about such things . . "It's just a bug. It'll pass." But I hadn't slept in two nights, and I felt terrible. Saba gave me a shot to stop the stomach probs, and another to put me to sleep. I slept about 4 hours, and woke up vomiting again. Friday afternoon, Ramon called Saba who said, "Emergency Room."

So - - I go to Clinica Davila's ER where I'm given a CAT scan of the head (my head had been aching horribly), and lots of iv fluids (apparently my sodium and potassium were at dangerously low levels, and my heart was about to stop). Nothing to swallow, which was fine with me. They also gave me some anticonvulsive meds, and tranx iv. I was generally happy.

During the night, I finally stopped vomiting. I fell asleep, but you all know that in hospitals, they come by to wake you up virtually every hour for blood draws, bG tests, and to see if you need anything. On Saturday afternoon, I was allowed to have a cup of tea and a glass of water. Nothing more. Saturday night, I got a cup of tea and a bit of Jell-o. Best tasting Jell-o I'd ever tasted. Sunday morning, tea and jello. I'm beginning to get bored, and am feeling much better, which means I'm cranky.

Oh Oh!!!! I almost forgot. Saturday night, they give me a spinal tap. (Lumbar Puncture). That is to say, they tried. I was in my bed, which I thought was odd, and initially sitting up, then lying on my side. The Anesthesiologist who did the procedure couldn't seem to get the needle into my spinal column. He just poked around about 5 times in 4 different locations on the back, when I finally said "Enough." Next morning, they took me to an actual operating room, where a nice looking, red-headed surgeon took 30 seconds to get the needle in, and with no pain whatever. Apparently, the dehydration had affected my spinal fluids, too, because it took quite some time for them to get enough of a sample. It didn't hurt, but it was a bit uncomfortable trying to hug my knees for 20 minutes.

So - - Getting back. I'm allowed soda crackers and clear soup, along with the tea and jello, for dinner. Monday morning: water crackers (completely tasteless), tea, and jello. About that time, my blood sugar began to decline - - - it had apparently gone up a lot while I was sick (and not eating anything?). Well - - - the iv fluids in which they were giving me the trace elements that we all need to survive were laden with glucose. "You need it for alimentation" say they. That's all well and good, but you put pure sugar water directly into the bloodstream of a diabetic, and you get high blood sugar readings as a result. Sheesh!!!

So - - anyway, Monday afternoon, I got an actual lunch - - but based upon a VERY diabetic diet. Pastel de Papas (shepherd's pie), tea, and jello. It was ok. They also gave me white bread and crackers for "once", and all the simple carbs I was getting had to also be increasing my bG.

Come Tuesday I'm ready to leave, and every Dr that I've seen (there were 4, all told) decided to come in in the AFTERNOON, rather than at the crack of dawn, as they'd done all weekend. Three of them said I was ready to go. The fourth simply wasn't coming. I called down to the nurse about 4:30 and said, "If she's not here by six, I'm checking myself out." She arrived at 5:59. PM. "We're really worried about this titer from your spinal fluid. It seems you've got stage 3 syphilis." WTF?????? How could I have Stage 3 Syph? I've never had stage 1 syph. I've had blood tests at least every 3 months for the past 24 years in conjunction with my HIV protocols, and never NEVER has anybody ever seen any of those nasty little spirochetes!!!!!
"You need to stay here, because the treatment is IV Penicillin 4 times a day for 14 days."

The Hell, says I. I'm going home. I check myself out. Next day, I go to see Saba and ask him for an order for a Syph test. It came back today. Negative.

Anyway, I had the closest thing to a complete physical exam that I've had in years, including endoscopy.

Seems that Davila is going to work well with my Blue Cross, which is something Catolica didn't want to do last time I was hospitalized. I'll just have to pay my copayments, and they'll bill BC/BS for the rest.

My last shipment of Meds is, once again, being held up by FedEx in Pudahuel. I'll go and get them on Tuesday - - they were only just released from Customs yesterday. I'll get a final 4-month supply when I go see NIH in September . . .and from then on, it's on my dime. I'm going to miss going to Bethesda. I've been going for 24 years . . . sometimes once a month, sometimes 3 or 4 times a year - - but they've done a lot for me . . I'm convinced I'm still alive because of the treatments they've experimented with on me. And I'll certainly miss Senora. She's worth her (considerable) weight in Platinum.

Anyway, I'll be going to seem them once a year for followups on the first study I ever did with them, back in the bad old days when we were dropping like flies. There are no meds involved, but it'll be a good excuse to get back to the States and go to CostCo and see my friends Stephen and Michael. Might also do something crazy like visit other friends from time to time while I'm on the Northern Continent.

Not much else going on in my life. Hillary's still nuts, the cats are doing well, and the keets are chirping.

Happy day.

12:25 pm: Late Update
Stolen from Jonny Hart:

BC - "Boulder, Boulder on the ground, tell me something real profound."
Rock - "So what's to tell?"

My life is just going on as it usually has been. Carlos and I see one another for lunch a couple of times a week, and he passes the night here on Friday or Saturday nights, but not both.

I had to pay the FedGov over $800 due to the backpayment I received, and that cost $200 more than I received from the State of Montana. I still have taxes taken out for Montana, because I have "income" from the house in Shelby, which is (thanks be unto God) still rented. I paid off the trailer in April, which is helping with the financial situation a good deal . . in fact, it says I'm getting $700 more per month than I had before, which is a good thing, indeed. $300 for the rent, and -$400 for the monthly payments. It may not be stated well, but it equals a net gain of $700.

I promised, about 2 months ago, to translate a Motorcycle manual for somebody, and have still not begun. I hate translating. You'd think being able to speak the language, more or less, would make it relatively easy - - but it's damn hard thinking in both languages at the same time. And, it's a lot easier for me to go Sp to En than from En to Sp. I need to get on it, though, or I'll feel guilty for longer, and I don't need that.

The chicken pen has been finished, for a bit, but I'm still waiting to get chickens (a cock and 2 hens) until I've got a good box for nests, and some alfalfa for the filler, and to line the earth. I also bought a very large birdcage (I can enter it, myself) for the parakeets. Of course, it's FAR too big for just 2 parakeets . . I'm going to get a few more birds. I can't afford a macaw, so I'm making up for my lack of parrots by getting the little ones. Paula laid 7 eggs this year, and 3 hatched. Last year, she laid 5 and one hatched. Who knows what will happen next year? Plus, with a few more pair of 'keets, I should have a lot of chicks.

Hillary is still crazy. I haven't spent nearly enough time training her, so a lot of it is my fault. She's a bit more than a year old, by now. And she's still beautiful. I bought a training collar to get her to "heel" more easily, but haven't used it yet. I'm giving her, and the cats, their rabies shots today.

Still need to get to a dentist for a bridge - - and possibly another extraction or cap. My mouth's a mess, but I hate going to the dentist.

I've had LOADS of insomnia in the past month. I can't get to sleep, and so I'm exhausted during the day. It seems that the nights I have the worst time falling asleep are the nights before I have to be up early in the morning. Carlos is urging me to see a doctor, and I need to get my semi-annual blood tests, anyway, so I'm going to call Saba on Monday, and make sure to tell him about the sleep problems.

I've been piss-poor at answering mail. I have no excuse. I'm just not up to reading, analysing, responding . . . It's a sign of mental state. I'm satisfied, enough, with my life, but still not what you could call "happy." I know that depression and craziness is still my main "modus operandi" but don't seem able to do anything about it.

Anyway - - it's been way too long since I've posted anything, or even logged into LJ. Sorry if some of my readers, and folks on the friends list, seem to be being ignored. Rest assured, I'm ignoring everybody these days.

11:32 pm: Barney is the Antichrist
It's true.

Everybody knows that Barney is a cute purple dinosaur. And it can be proved that he IS the Antichrist, but using Latin spelling and Roman numerals.

First of all, in Latin, the U was represented by a V. Therefore, Cute Purple Dinosaur would be rendered: CVTE PVRPLE DINOSAVR. Let's extract the Roman Numerals from that phrase: CVVLDIV Now change those to Arabic Numerals: 100, 5, 5, 50, 500, 1, and 5. Add these together:

100+5+5+50+500+1+5 = 666.

I'm not making this up, you know.

09:49 pm: White Smoke????
Carlos and I just returned from a week's vacation, including drive time, to Chiloé, and I'll be posting something about that in a couple of days, including a picture or two . . . .

But I'm bothered  . . . We're allowing computers to do too much for us.  "Write like a pro . . no more embarrassing grammar errors."

What's wrong with learning the language in the first place?

03:34 pm: Happy CSA Day
I missed Groundhog day.  Damn.  I'm hoping he didn't see his shadow.  I'm not sure I could take 6 more weeks of summer.  It's hot.

I got a message from FedEx the other day, saying they'd tried to deliver a letter, and I wasn't home.  I called. 

"Oh, yes, Mr. Bear, We've tried 3 times now, and so you have to come here to pick it up."
"But this is the first notice I've received."
"I assure that it's the 3rd attempt."
"Then return it to the sender and refund their money."

FedEx doesn't really DELIVER anything here.  They drive by, never bothering to stop or ring the bell, and if you're not in the street to wave them down, they consider it a "delivery attempt." I have never actually RECEIVED anything from FedEx, since I've lived here, and lots of folks have tried.  THEN - - on the third drive-by, they actually slow down long enough to throw a "We tried to deliver" card over the fence.  It says plainly "Please call to arrange a delivery time." 

HOWEVER, since they only throw it over the fence on the third "attempt", they never come back out.  You have to go to their offices, which are either AT the airport or 2 Km to the east of the airport.  BOTH out in West Bumfuck, Santiago where there is no public trans, and you have to pay tolls if you decide to drive.  

When NIH sends me my meds, I drive out. I'm not going to drive out for a letter.

SOOOOOO

I email my Nurse at NIH. 

"You're the only folks I know who insist on using FedEx to deliver stuff to me, when the Postal Service is both faster and cheaper.  SO - - - I'm assuming you sent the Letter I'm not going to receive."

I was right.

April (my nurse) e-mailed me the letter.  It says my study is ending within the year.

Seems that when you combine IL-2 with HAART, the patients seem to get higher CD4+ cell counts, but they don't seem to die any less than the folks who get HAART alone.  IL-2 DOES have seriously nasty side-effects, so they're terminating the study.  (They've conducted it for about 15 years, now, so they've collected a lot of data.  How do I know? I was one of the first participants.)

Anyhoo - - -if you want to imagine the side effects, just imagine the worst flu you've ever had.  Multiply that by 10. Now add fevers high enough that 5 days later, all the skin on your body begins to peel off. Add to that that you can't piss, and if you stop drinking water, you'll die from overheating.  Then add the fact that you need to continually add eloctrolytes (GATOR ADE - - -ICK) to keep from not being able to process the water.

That's sort of what it's like.  For a week.

It's been about 8 years since I've had to take it . .. it's a one week on - six weeks off sort of med - - and they don't give it to you if your cell count is high enough.  Mine's been declining slowly for all that time, but it still wants to stay in the 600-800 range, so far. Not bad considering it was 245 when I started.

Anyway - - this was the 2nd study I've done for them, and they assure me that I'm a VERY good little guinea-pig, and they're looking for something else to test on me . .  I doubt they'll find anything.

The outcome seems to be that after September, my trips will stop, and so will my med-supply.  I'll have to buy them here.  One good thing MAY be that the meds I'm taking are fairly "old" for HIV meds . . and there may soon be generics. Nonetheless, they're pricey, even down here where full prices seem to be about a quarter of what they are up North for most (but not all - - - insulin costs about the same, for exampte) drugs.

They STILL want to see me about once a year, to keep track of me, they say, but it'll probably have to be on my own dime - - the international flight (which sometimes costs more to Miami than it would direct to DC) has been on my own dime, anyway.  But since I won't be getting Meds from Uncle Sugar, the incentive seems to have gone . . .. .

Except that I'll miss the folks . . I've been going there for 22 years, now.  Some of them are like family.

Anyhoo - - I'm probably going to have to find sources of other stuff via mail-order that I've been getting when I take trips  - - -   And probably from Canada.

Why from Canada?  Because you can import stuff from Canada that you can't import from the US.  Don't ask me why.  Nuts and such can come from the GWN, but not from the States. Unless the Supermarket Chains import them, of course, and they aren't reliable.

On a cheerier note, Carlos and I are going to go South in the very first part of March - - I fly to the States on the 12th - my penultimate visit - probably to Chiloé. It's an Island off Puerto Montt - - huge, actually, and with (what I'm told) a culture almost entirely distinct from the rest of the Country.  There ARE ferries (and probably fairies), so we can make the trip by car, not by plane.

I'm going to have to pay taxes to the Feds, this year.  Maybe to the State as well. I've sort of quit in the middle, because it depresses me.

The UF (Unidad de Fomento) has been falling ....about CLP$8 every day for the past couple of months.  It generally only goes up.  Lots of things are priced in UF (houses, insurance, etc.) supposedly as a "hedge against inflation."  It basically means that if you buy a house, the amount you've borrowed continually increases every month until the loan is paid off. It also means that you can start an insurance polcy (on the car, for example) at one price, and your premiums are higher every month. 

People are beginning to change some prices to Pesos.Today's value for the UF is $21,230.28 The US dollar costs $623.87.  Not too bad.

Gasolene has been edging up, again.  It was down to as low as about $412 per liter.  Monday, I paid $438 at the cheapest station in town. At today's exchange that's US$2.66 per gallon (also US).  It's the least I've ever paid for Gasolene outside the US.  Well, I didn't actually convert it when I was paying $412 (that was about a month ago, when the peso was worth less), so I've seen it cheaper, but not in terms of . . . well, you get the picture.

Not much else to tell.  All else seems to be going well.

Sorry I don't post more.

10:14 pm: Merry Christmas to all
and to all a good night.

01:44 am: I know, I know, who cares? But . . . .
This is a "Donna Domestic" post.

If you're like me, and it just isn't Christmas Dinner without Mince Pie (I know - - You actually EAT that?????), it can be hard to deal with when Mincemeat just isn't easy to find.  Here, in Chile, it's nonexistent.  And, as I recall, when I lived in the States, it was getting harder and harder to find even Nonesuch on the shelves of most supermarkets.  Mincemeat just isn't all that popular.

HOWEVER - - one CAN make one's own mincemeat.  It takes a week or so, and most recipes yield 3 gallons, or so.  Who wants 3 gallons of mincemeat? And where do you get Suet, anyway?????

Have no fear.  Donna Domestic is here!!!!

It's not REAL mincemeat, but it sure tastes like it:

Chop 1 1/2 cups of raisins or raisins mixed with quince.
Pare, core, and slice 4 tart apples.

Place in a heavy saucepan with

Juice and Grated rind of one Orange
1/4 cup apple cider or other fruit juice.
(actually, leftover SWEET wine is great for this!)

cover and simmer until the apples are tender.  Stir in until COMPLETELY combined:

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
2 tablespoons finely crushed soda crackers (Saltines are a POOR substitute, but will do in a pinch).

This will keep for several days in the fridge.

When you're ready to make a pie, make pastry for two-crust pie and add 2 tbl brandy or cognac to the "mincemeat."  Fill the pie shell, and bake at 450º for about 50 minutes.

Damn, it tastes like home.

06:27 pm: A couple of notes/thank yous.
It's been awhile, and I really ought to say SOMETHING.  It's a busy season, of course, and I'm hopping from one foot to the other wondering what I'm gong to manage to do for Christmas.

I'm having my "mother-in-law and step-children" over for a traditional Gringo Christmas Dinner. I've bought the turkey, fixings for many of the trimmings, but still have to find sweet potatoes.  Some things are just hard to get.

I received kzorith 's annual care package, which was chock full of good stuff, as always. I find it weird that I can't bring pecans with me from the States without getting them confiscated and destroyed, but he can mail the SAME bag (CostCo brand) to me, and it comes through just fine.  I'm thinking, in fact, of buying and mailing much of my purchases this time around in the States, just because it's likely less expensive than the "excess baggage" charges I've paid the past couple of trips.  I'm sure I can send a good 10 kilos for under US$50.

AND - - - I got a package from amaristee today.  It actually made it to Correos de Chile on Saturday, but I wasn't free to go pick it up until this morning.  It had the MOST adorable little Black bear in it - - adorned with rhinestones reading:  Sexy Little Bear.

amaristee is a sweetie, and I've always felt close to her - e'en though we've never met.  I can't imagine what moved her to send me such a lovely Christmas gift, but there it was, and I love it.

Not much else to report. I'm THINKING of having a bit of a gathering at my house on New Year's Eve . . . I don't generally celebrate it, but I want to see the "chicos," and we haven't gotten together for some time.  Juan Carlos is still in the hospital, and I doubt he'll be coming out.  So David probably won't be able to make it even if I DO hold some sort of event. 

I'm usually in bed before midnight, and I NEVER go out on Amateur Night.  Not safe. Although there are fewer drunks behind the wheel, here, than in Montana . . . .

Ah, well.  So much for the December update.

Hugs and Tugs all 'round.

11:47 pm: Well - - - - I did it.
All my friends have been telling me I have to have a dog.  I didn't think I wanted one, but the more I thought about it, the more appealing the idea became.  I didn't want a BIG dog, though. I was looking for a miniature breed.

I've always loved dachsunds, but they dig. And they'll kill anything that's either smaller than they are, or weaker than they are.  They are, after all, BADGER hunters . . so digging and killing is their nature.  They're quite intelligent, and make great pets, but - - - - No, I decided.

Then I have thought about miniature pinschers.  They're absolutely adorable - - they look exactly like dobermans that have been washed in too-hot water.  A LARGE mini-pinscher weighs in at about 2 kilos.  They're very proud, and strut about like little emperors.  But they can be quite nervous, and they bark a GREAT deal. They're also so small that mildredkitty  could actually kill one of them, almost by accident.  So - - mini-pinschers were out, too.

Golden retrievers a re great dogs . . . but they're huge, as far as I'm concerned, and they are increadibly dim. A lot of love surrounded by curly red hair . . . but no.

Then I thought of the noble Beagle.  A mini-beagle would have been perfect, but they're outrageously expensive.  So I looked at the available standard beagle pups available in the greater Santiago area.  I found a 6-month-old bitch, very docile, very quiet - she's on the large side of the standard limit, but is absolutely adorable. The owners had bought an apartment, moving from their house, and weren't allowed to take the dog with them.  SO - - - she was offered at half the price they paid, and has had all of her vaccinations, anti-parasite treatments, and well-puppy care. I have the "carnet" from the Veterinarian. 

I picked her up this morning.

Her name's Hillary.  She immediately began running about the yard. She determined her "bathroom" area, which she's used twice, but not varied from, and Carlos tells me that she'll likely use only that area from now on.  She's adorable. VERY sweet. She seems to have an aversion to coming indoors, which is fine.  Georgia doesn't seem to mind having her around, but mildredkitty  has been arching her back and hissing. She actually chased Hillary about the yard batting at her.  Hillary was doing her best to ignore the cat's existence.  It was actually quite funny.

She doesn't seem to bark at all, although she does whimper a bit when I'm not outside with her.

She's a pure-bred beagle, so I'm not going to spay her.  There are a couple of mini-beagles next door, and perhaps in a year or so . . .. . who knows.

-------------------------------------------

Everyone I know has been asking me if I'm happy about the results of the US Elections.  I'm elated, of course.  I was up until 03:00 Wednesday morning, until I heard Obama's acceptance speech.

YES WE DID

08:54 pm: I LOVE the Kinsey Sicks
You gotta love this.  From "I wanna be a Republican."

www.411xyz.com/ go

10:22 am: He Won!
Of course, this is no news.  Which means it's good news.

I was actually quite frightened that the "Bradley Effect" would result in a victory for McCain . . in fact, I  notice that the "5 to 11-point lead" that President Elect Obama had on Saturday dropped to a 1% advantage in the popular vote.

We white folk, it seems, are still not quite ready to be led by a black man - - even one who's half white.

But we seem to have overcome this prejudice, at least to the extent that we managed to get him into the White House.

For the first time in a LONG time, I'm proud of my countrymen.

There were 2,057 votes cast in Toole County, Montana. MIne was one of the 736 cast for the President Elect. A bit over 1000 of those votes had to have been from Shelby, where I voted. There's only one other "town" worth mentioning, Sunburst, to the north, and several big spread ranches/farms. Kevin, Oilmont and Ferdig are hardly worth mentioning.

Montana still seems to have gone republican for the presidency, while remaining democratic for the governor and the one senator.  But only by 2 points. 

06:31 pm: Who IS Michael Vincent and WHY is he trying to find me a Job?
I am amazed at how important the people here believe that the election in the US is.  Everybody is interested.  The local newspapers have had 4 to 5 pages of US election coverage every day for the past week.  EVERYONE wants to know if I voted.

Of course I voted. I always vote.  Of course, my vote was in Montana which is "leaning" red.  Maybe I'm nudging it out of the leaning category and into the "leaning blue."

And I'm not really a democrat.

Once again, the stock market went up, and the dollar went down . . but not too much. It's still over $640. I'm not complaining.

I know I won't want to get up in the morning. I'll be up all night watching CNN and listening to NPRs Webfeed.

11:38 pm: "A Great Man"
Ricardo Claro, 1934 - 2008, died early this morning of a heart attack.

Who, you may ask, the HELL, is Ricardo Claro?

Well, he was one of the richest men in Chile. He leaves behind business with a combined value of over US$2 bn.  He is being lamented by politicians and businessmen/women all over the world.  "A great man, and a great entrepreneur."

I was talking to a GMAT student after his class, and we were discussing Don Ricardo.  We discussed the fact that everybody - - EVERYBODY - - dies.  A death is not a tragedy. It's a fact of life. If the man who owns the almacén at the end of the block, where I buy my daily bread, were to die, his death would mean a great deal more to me than the "tragic loss" of Ricardo Claro. I shall die, and when I do, very few people will notice. Only those who might read these blatherings, or those whom I count as my friends will care.

Well, my creditors will care, too, but that's a different matter.

And we asked one another:  Was he truly great?  What makes a man "great?"

I really have no answer. I can name some examples of people whom I consider to be (or have been) great. The obvious occur:  Ghandi. Meir. Pope John Paul II. Mother Teresa of Calcutta. These are people who have changed the world. You might not agree with what they did or what they stood for, but you cannot deny their impact on the world.

I count Paul Newman as a great man.

"Paul Newman?  The ACTOR?"

No. Paul Newman the humanitarian.  When he was approached to lend his name to a line of food products, he was offered (as would be required, usually) an endorsement fee.  We can argue whether or not Newman's Own products were actually his recipes, or whether or not he even used them.  I don't care about that. 

What I DO care about is, when the time came to collect his endorsement fee, he said to himself, "I have more money than I'll ever need.  This product is sold as having a percentages of the profits donated to charity.  The only MORAL thing to do with this fee is to give it away."

He never made a red cent on any of Newman's Own products. He gave it all to charity.

He didn't have to.  He just did. It was a LOT of money. And he did it solely through his sense of morality.

This, to me, makes a great man.

I have a bit of a challenge for my readers, here.  Tell us about a great man, or woman, in your opinion.  What makes (or made) him/her great?  Why does this person come to mind when you think of greatness?

I find the topic interesting, on the day of the death of a Great Chilean . . . of whom very few people in the world have ever heard.


Ozymandius - - by Percy Bysshe Shelley

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

10:35 pm: Once
For my birthday, I was given a tin of Twining's Lapsang Souchong tea. I hadn't opened it until tonight, when I decided to make a pot of good tea for my once.  I had no idea that it has such a lovely, smokey flavor.  It tastes like bacon. 

It made a lovely accompaniment to the aged camembert I had to spread on toast.

I like it.

AND --- Speaking of gifts, I have been remiss:

pink_halen and his lover dasypygus visited the end of August and first of September. We went to San Pedro de Atacamas and back together. Carlos and I had a wonderful time, and both of our guests appeared to enjoy themselves as well . . .well I know that ONE of them enjoyed CARLOS - - but that's another story - - - and since they both had fun, why should I feel anything but happy for them?

ANYWAY - - - a couple of weeks ago, a package arrived from Denver.  It contained (along with some disks of photos taken on the trip) one of the nicest, if not THE nicest, backgammon sets I've ever seen.  It's absolutely beautiful.  I think I had mentioned that I had taught Carlos to play, but that I only had an old, wooden, back-of-the-chessboard set, with plastic checkers to use as stones.

First of all, I KNOW that backgammon sets, in general, are not cheap.  Secondly, it was HEAVY - - and was shipped International Priority from Denver, CO to Santiago, Chile.  Possibly more expensive than the set itself.

I want EVERYBODY to know how much I appreciate the gift. It's an incredibly thoughtful thing to have done.  And it's just another example of what wonderfully considerate friends I have in pink_halen dasypygus  and.

A public thank you.

And yet another - - -  I received, last week, an email from PayPal saying that my (lurker) friend gardenlezden had sent me a payment.  "A payment????" says I????

For some reason, she explained later, she'd been thinking of sending me a gift for some time, if not for me, then for mildredkitty .  I am truly greatful for her generosity, as well.  

And it's not bad timing . . .this month has been tight.  Next month will be MUCH better.

Have I mentioned how much I love my friends??????

11:18 pm: It's been awhile
 . .  . since I complained about the exchange rate.  Well, the US$ spent about a year in the VERY low $400s, but in the past 2 weeks has skyrocketed in value.  I find it odd that the economy in the US has gotten so bad, and yet the dollar has risen in value . . . at least in Chile.

The exchange rate, as of closing yesterday (and it'll stay here until sometime on Monday) was worth $638.  No kidding. WAY more than it's been in the time I've been here.  In fact, it hasn't been this high since sometime in 2002.

I withdrew $250.000 today, from my savings in the US, and the net withdrawal was US$392.08. The rule of thumb for year has been that $250.000 would be around US$550.00  I'm transferring my US savings, at this point, little by little, to my savings account here.  Since I'm going to use it to make a down-payment on the house, the fact that the exchange is so much in my favor is really helping.

So . . . . even though it's NOT particularly good for Chile, the increase in the value of the dollar is good for me.

I find it odd, though  - - - they tend to want the dollar to be worth about $500.  when it was dropping, the Chilean Gov't was doing all sorts of monetary tricks to shore up the value.  They said we were suffering from the low value of the USD.  *I* certainly was.

NOW, they're saying that we're suffering from the high cost of the dollar.  Even though the cost of a barrel of oil has dropped to it's lowest point in over a year, the cost of gasoline here continues to rise.  I paid $746 per liter on Thursday.  That's just WAY too much.

Life goes on.
 

05:48 pm: A guilty admission
Or should that be Emission? This post is basically on farting. It may fall under the heading of TMI, or even WTMI. So, if the concept of farting is offensive to you (and I have no idea why it should be) or you don't WANT to know what my guilty admission re: farting is, I suggest you pass over the remainder of this post.

Blonde #1: "Why do farts stink?"
Blonde #2: "That's easy, silly. It's so deaf people can enjoy them, too!"

EVERYBODY farts. Everybody. If you think you don't fart, just wait until you relax, while going to sleep at night. My friend David SWEARS that he never farts. I have slept with him, however, and at night, the anal aroma brings tears to my eyes.

Ladies are particularly prone to deny farting. But ladies fart just as much as gentlemen do. Most people generate about 1/2 liter of fart-gas per day. On the average, this is distributed in roughly 14 gas-passing-events in a 24 hour period. If a person refuses to fart, and holds the gas in, then the number of farts may be reduced. The amount of gas, however, remains the same, and WILL pass - - often when you least expect it. (Anna Russell Mode ON: "I'm not making this up, you know!" /Anna Russel Mode: OFF)

You can read all you ever wanted to know about farts at http://www.heptune.com/farts.html . Really. And no. I didn't put a link in, because it's been SO LONG since I've posted any LJ HTML that I've forgotten the commands and am too lazy at the moment to look them up.

Farts come in a variety of . . . . well . . . .varieties.  There are the wonderful, earth-shaking, trombone-like farts that shake the rafters, but can be almost completely odorless, and then there are the quiet, deadly "stink-bombs" that we all recall from childhood.  And, indeed, they range from the SBD to the orchestral farts that we all try to pretend that someone else let.

Many people consider it inconsiderate to fart in public.  However, those same people might very well stand up from a conference table, where they've been struggling to wait until they can get to the bathroom, and find that the very change in position triggers a tuba. It's particularly difficult to refrain from farting in a gym, or other venue of exercise - - especially when doing limbering up exercises, crunches, or sit-ups.

Face it.  We all fart.  We have no choice.  It happens.  Adjust to it.

NOW - - my admission.

I LOVE to fart.  I adore farting.  The very sensation of the deflation of the bowel, of the shudder of the sphincter . . these are a delight to me. Farting is a sensual experience, and sometimes is an experience for more than just the senses of touch and hearing.  The sense of smell often gives my farting adventures an added pleasure that is somehow undefinable.

I have no problem farting in places where I know no-one.  In restaurants, on the Metro, walking down the street . . . I DO refrain from farting while I'm teaching.  As much as I can.  But I'm a fat guy.  I produce a good deal of gas; likely more than the 1/2 liter that the average joe comes out with. It's difficult and often painful for me to hold in a fart for very long.

Of course . . .the act of holding a fart inside makes the release all that much more delightful. I relish the sensation - - the relief - - the release - - the aftermath.

Farting, for me, borders on the aesthetic.  It's pleasing to the senses like few other things in life can be. A thunderous toot is a joy to behold, whether in private or public.  It's just GREAT.

I particularly enjoy farting in enclosed spaces.  I like to fart in empty elevators, and imagine the looks on peoples' faces when they get on (after I've gotten off). It's a load of fun.  A gaseous gift to the gentry. Subway cars are often too big to sufficiently fill with the farts of only one person, but I have fantasized about having a dozen, sweaty bears, fresh from the beanery, load into a metro coach and let go. Imagine the mixtures. The texture of the smells. The variety of the sounds as one anus vibrates at a higher or lower rate of cycles per second than another.

What a joy!

And then, at the next station - - all off and wait for the unsuspecting commuters to enjoy the remains of the trip.

While we were on vacation with Van and Ron, I was having a particularly odorous day in San Pedro, and when I got into bed with Carlos, I had no choice but to let one rip beneath the sheets.  Carlos hurriedly tightened the blankets around me and said, plaintively, "Don't move. Don't move. Don't move." in perfectly accented English.

Farts can bring out the best, and the beast, in all of us.

09:04 pm: I should probably say something more
The last time I posted about the value of the USD related to the dollar, I mentioned that it was at about $501. Well, it got WAY lower than that. For several months - - around 9 - - it was in the low $400s. It got as low as $403, but mostly stayed between $415 and $425. The fact that it's now back up to $568 is a wonderful thing for me, but losing a third of my pension to the exchange rate has not been a good thing for me.

The Spring has officially arrived. Unfortunately, that means that next Saturday night, Daylight Savings Time will begin.

I have always HATED DST. There is absolutely no good excuse for it, and studies done in Indiana, where they used to observe it by county, have shown that in counties where they USED DST, the use of energy was higher, per capita, than in counties where they did not. It does NOT, therefore, save energy.

When you dress in the dark, you turn on the lights. The coldest part of the day is the hour or two just before sunrise. Therefore, even if you go to bed when it's light out, and nice and warm, you'll use the heat in the morning when you get up.

If you leave the time as it is, you get up in the daylight, nice and warm, and with light so you don't have to use electricity, AND it's still nice and warm when you go to bed at night. Heat is provided by blankets.

The ONLY thing DST does is give people an excuse to go out later than they should during the week (when they should be resting for work the next day) and BUY things.

It's nothing more nor less than another perk for businesses.

I don't know about you, but nightfall at 8:45 rather than 9:45 doesn't bother me in the least.

But dawn at 7:00 is just too late.

Another 2¢ investment on my part.

07:30 pm: The most dangerous recipe in the world.
4 tbl all-purpose flour
4 tbl sugar
2 tbl unsweetened cocoa

Mix together in a large coffee mug.

1 egg

Add to dry mixture, and mix well. You should have a thick paste

3 tbl milk
3 tbl oil

Mix into the paste until you have a nice batter. It should be smooth.

Splash of Vanilla Extract

Mix well

Microwave on high from 3 to 4 minutes.

This actually works, and is quite delicious.

Why is it the most dangerous recipe in the world? Because you are now no longer than 5 minutes from home-made chocolate cake.

11:27 pm: Entonces
Era una semana muy rara. Mi vida aquí continua a mejorar.

Oh . . . . excuse me. I forgot that I write this in English. That's actually a GOOD thing, since my Spanish still leaves a lot to be desired.

Good things:
1. Today is our Anniversary. Carlos and I have been together for a year.
2. The US Dollar is at its highest level in two years. It closed at $568,39 today.
3. The house is coming together better and better as life goes on.

Bad things:

1. Because of vacations and trips last month, I'm hurting for cash this month - - although increase in the dollar helps a bit.
2. Esteban (the straight guy who lives here in the shed) is making me as crazy as before, but he's kept up with his promise to pay me what he owes me.
3. Gasoline costs $714 per liter. If you want a conversion, that would be US$4.76 per gallon. It's pricey.

I really have no reason to bitch. My life is pretty great. There ARE things I just don't understand.

For example, why is it that having the US Economy tank, the way it has been in the last couple of months, causes the USD to increase in value? It makes no sense to me whatsoever. When things are looking good, the dollar goes down. When they look bad, it goes up???? "You gots to 'splain me, Lucy."

I have no idea why McCain is anywhere NEAR as near to Obama in the polls as he is.

Well, actually, I do. I mean, my Mother, Father and Sister will vote for McCain not only because he's a little Bush, but more importantly, he isn't black.

No shit.

I went back to the US in September. My CD4+ cells are back up over 900, which was pretty good. The past year, they've been falling and were down to about 560 last time they were checked in the US, and about the same here. BUT, Viral Load is about 370. Not too high, in fact, but it's been undetectable for around 8 years. Of course, the fact that I was OUT of my meds for 2 months trying to get the shipment through customs contributed to that. The Doctor/Nurse at NIH were horrified. "OMG!!! You're probably resistant, now!"

We shall see.

The real problem is the fact that I've been paying absolutely no attention whatever to my diabetes. I've been doing the diabetic quick weight-loss diet . . which means that you keep you blood sugar over 500, and your body tends to drop protein, if not fat. I have succeeded in doing some irreversible damage to my eyes, if not my kidneys, and am back on insulin. This COULD be a manifestation of continued depression . . a diabetic form of the box-knife I've used in the past.

Who knows?

Suffice it to say that Carlos is making me behave. At least he's trying to. And he's such a nice man that I should just do as he says.

It's nice to be loved.

It's nice to love.