Windows to the New World

In the apartment, there is alas, no porch or balcony. 

Not that it matters too much as there are the windows on to the street.

The flat is at ground level on a reasonably busy street in Midtown. As well as decent vehicle traffic, there is quite a bit of foot traffic. Within a few blocks is the Music Circus, the Memorial Auditorium and what is left of the Convention Center (under redevelopment). Since people are generally cheap, a lot of people park in the neighborhood and walk to the venues. It is on these days, the people watching peaks.

The "Porch"

Allow me to explain. Sitting on the couch, we can observe the comings and goings of all sorts of people. The windows are right at upper body level, the screes are dark and we are in shadow, so people just walk by and don't even see us.

On most days, the windows are open and we hear all the conversations of the folks walking by. Even in these sweltering days of summer (over 100ºF/40ºC each day) we still open up the windows and "sit on the porch". There are a few people in the neighborhood that stop by and chat which is nice, but generally we sit, chat, watch and listen.


So, if you find yourself one evening walking in Midtown remember, we might be there, like Statler and Waldorf......

Ah, where have you been?

Yes, I have been absent for a while.
I have been busy!!!
New job!
New relationship!
New me!

So' I am back on the blog. Lots to catch up on and not sure where to start. So for today, I'll leave a hint for the next post.... the highest form of civilization is....

Stand by!

Fastnacht Mardi Gras Pancake day.....

It's all the same.
I have lived in four different countries (five if you count Wales and England separately). In each country the day before Ash Wednesday was celebrated. In Germany it is called Fastnacht, Switzerland it is Fasnacht. In the UK it is Shrove Tuesday and here in the US it is Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday.
The celebrations vary. In the UK, it is a simple affair where people make pancakes on the day thus its common name of pancake day. This was a tradition we celebrated with the kids in Switzerland to celebrate their British side.

In Switzerland and Germany, they celebrate with street parades, loud music and lots of drinking.And here in the US, it's the same. I haven't lived in the US for a long time and last night was my first Mardi Gras. 



I went to my local bar. It was on the parade route for a local brass band and it was wild! Loads of people all in good spirits. It's funny how the same event, celebrated in different places and in slightly different ways, can also be the same no matter what the cultural background is. Sure it was a bit low key compared to New Orleans or Luzern, but it was fun and I really had a great time.

Thank you for....

Something happened in the US while I was away. It's not bad but it affects me and I have trouble reacting to it.

Not too long ago, actually, it was a long time ago, it just doesn't seem like it, I raised my right hand and swore to "...support and defend the constitution of the United States...". Thus I became a soldier, like my father and step father before me.

I did my enlistment, got my DD214 and an honorable discharge, and then got on with my life. That was the end of it as far as I was concerned.

Germany 1993 - Spot the Californian.

While living my life overseas, my military past was never a item of conversation and if it did come up, it was usually just a simple "Yeah, I was in the Army, did my 4 years and got out". Simple and direct. meanwhile, the US has had transformed on how former military service is acknowledged. 

As I am on the job hunt, my military past comes up often. I am very proud of my service but it was a long time ago. So I am often faced with someone saying "Thank you for your service". I honestly am always at a lost what to say. My service is personal to me, not something I want lauded about. When people say this, and I know it is heartfelt and honest, it makes me uncomfortable. I did serve during a war and almost went, but it was generally just a job for those years. So I feel rather disingenuous with the praise as I don't feel it is that big of a deal. Again, this is only my personal feelings. I know a lot of vets and I only speak for myself here.

However, I smile and say something to the effect of "Oh, thank you but really it was nothing". 

A different country now, better for recognizing veterans, but for me, no need for thanks. I love my country, did what I felt I had to and that was that. Carry on.

What, and how, we eat

We all eat. 

I have recently had a bit of the old culture shock on this activity in the past week. Two specific items came up, one food related, one utensil related and both brought home to me there is a long way to go on this path of "reintegration" into American culture.

Let's start with the food item. Last week someone was over for dinner. I made pork, pasta and mediterranean vegetables.  The vegetables were red onion, bell peppers and zucchini, roasted in paprika and olive oil. During the course of the meal, it became apparent that the peppers were not my friends favorite. Since there were more veggies in the pan, I offered, more "courgettes". Her reaction was, "what are courgettes?". Ah, yes, I made that mistake of calling a zucchini a courgette. A usual term in the UK with no meaning here in the US. Some foods have completely different names. Examples;

• eggplant - aubergine 
• french fries - chips
• cookies - biscuits
• chips - crisps (not to be further confused with fries)

US Style

UK/European style

The second issue was how utensils are used. This started not directly with me but what we observed someone else doing at a restaurant. We saw someone eating, with a fork, in a very european way. There was a brief, and humorous conversation on this type of eating and how someone might have been taught this way. I confessed that I too, have eaten like this but it was not the way I was raised. I learned to use a fork in a "normal" US manner, but living in the UK and in Switzerland, I developed the habit of eating with the fork in an inverted position typical of the european style.

Most importantly though, was the discovery the other day it was National Margarita Day and the nearest mexican place was doing $5 margaritas!!!!
CHEERS!!!!

With salt.

Grid

I love maps, and if I'm on a boat, charts.

I find them interesting. When we observe the world visually, we do so at the limits of our ability to see straight line distances. On the ground this is hampered by objects, air quality and even the curvature of the earth. Therefore to make a logical representation of a large area and, to keep it from running into the abstract, we have developed maps. These help us maneuver around when we can't bridge the visual and spatial differences to get from point A to point B.

Between 19th and 20th looking south

Here in downtown, midtown, and to a certain degree East Sacramento, we don't need maps to get around. I know I have repeatedly extolled about the area here and you might suspect I would infer some near magical reason for this but no, it is simply because we have a grid system for the streets. And more importantly, a logical way of naming these said streets and making the address fit in the same logical way.

In general, east/west streets are lettered, with a small named alley in between, from "C" in the north to "X" in the south. "M" streed is missing as this is named Capitol Street, and it would bisect the capitol building on it's was from Tower Bridge in the west to the east.

North/south streets are numbered. From 2nd in the west to 69th in the east. But for today's blog we will stop at 29th, the eastern limit of midtown.

Downtown/Midtown

Address on letter streets start are prefixed with the number street on the west, example, just east of 16th street on H street will have the first 2 numbers at 16, followed by 2 more.

Numbered streets are a bit different, these are counted down from the letter street on the north. A address on 16th street south of S street has an address of 19xx as S is the 19th letter. 

So it is very easy to navigate the city, as long as you can count and read. Perfect.

Mod Cons.

Moving here, I took a hit on modern conveniences.

I was speaking to a friend the other day about apartments. She lives in midtown too and she said how when she moved from the suburbs, some of the things we used to take for granted are lost.

Big American Fridge!!

In the previous life, I lived in a house with ALL the modern conveniences. Swiss new build homes are built to an extremely high standard. Heavy duty foam insulation to keep the home warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Large domestic water heater, over 100 gallons of 140 degree fahrenheit hot water always waiting. Triple paned UV protective windows. Underfloor heating,  modern bathroom and kitchen with a dishwasher and of course, a utility room with a washer and dryer.

The ubiquitous California wall heater

Yeah, don't have that now.

The apartment building I'm in was built in 1959, think Eisenhower. It has been recently remodeled, but the basic infrastructure is still pre spaceflight.

A california wall heater and a small aircon unit. The bathtub is, well, quaint. The kitchen has new appliances but the units are old school. Laundry is in the laundry room in the back of the complex. I have slatted/louvered glass windows and who has those anymore? However, I do have a garbage disposal.

A happy kitchen.

I might be making it sound somewhat down trodden and lackluster, but it is not I assure you. I have made it my home. I have my pictures up, furniture in place and it is warm and inviting. It is quirky and unique. I love it!

And there is a pool.