Greetings to my friends and faithful readers in Blogland...Yes, my productivity in blogland has waned substantially in recent weeks--mainly because I've had less interest in writing and musing on life and more interest on, well, living it...
February finds me with no major complaints, the biggest of which, the overpowering darkness of Northern European winter has finally given way to the point where it is light both when I leave the house and leave the office.
Still, I have no doubt that my thoughts of going to Sweden, Finland or Estonia for "midsummer" (quote marks because "midsummer" marks both the first and last days of summer in these Baltic climes) are still pegged to my residual darkness trauma of the last few months.
Before a few special items (several of which I've recycled from my more assiduously maintained Facebook page), some basics:
* Living arrangements: while having a late-twenties American flatmate can result into the descent into some fraternity-house-style living habits, the recent engagement of a cleaning lady has brought many smiles to Rue d'Oultremontstraat... It's been nice having intelligent American company to come home to, particularly as the Obama administration gathers steam, though middle-east discussions can get a bit dicey, as it's hard for me to convince him that one side in a conflict can indeed be right all the time.
* Work: Am enjoying my organization--though being in a foreign outpost of a strong company that has a very strong culture has been very much an education...
* Dating: no wedding bells by a long shot, but the quality of my conversations seems to be improving. I'm attributing this mainly to the amount of available light.
* Sports: My beloved Wisconsin Badgers have come back from the dead, last seen turning a six game basketball losing streak into a five game tear back through the standings of the eleven-member Big Ten Conference of America's finest state universities... As for Tottenham--listless performances of late leave the Mighty Spurs stuck dangerously near the trap door to relegation and the oblivion of the so-called Coca-Cola Championship. Only pleasure to be taken from the season has been the relatively weak performance of the Hated Arsenal Scum. But of course the Scum are faring far better than we are. Ptui.
* Lugano: Travel has been at a premium of late, as I become ever better at conference calls and web exchanges at work. But a recent IABC conference got me out of Belgium for a few days and over to Lugano--the small Swiss lakeside city that is best described as "Italy went to Obedience School".
Lugano is extremely attractive, and it's main academic institution, the Universita di Svizzera Italiana (translated as "the university of Italians lucky enough to be Swiss") is also to European professional communications schools what my alma mater London Business School is to business schools: Numero Uno.
The conference was excellent--http://europe.iabc.com/ has more details.But what stole the show was Lugano itself... Italian and Swiss seem to be two contravening paradigms, and for the most part they are.
I would have dug the local cuisine more if my lifelong aversion to Parmesan Cheese and its near-relatives wasn't on full guard for the visit, or if the little white spear in otherwise excellent pumpkin soup at the main dinner event didn't happen to be a chunk of rabbit, one of the two main species I don't eat because I think they are cuter than I am (the other, of course being my old friends, the pigs).
Still, the setting is breathtaking. The secret of Lugano is its low elevation--300 feet--while surrounded by alpine mountains. Thus Lugano has a surprisingly mild climate described as mediterranean, with the occasional palm tree. In the architectural detail, Lugano is clearly Italian--churches, public buildings and street signs being clearly Italian in style.
But other flavors emerge. French fashion houses, Credit Suisse, German names like the Lido Seegarten hotel (the conference hotel), and a mixture of modern and more-Swiss-looking architectural styles. Add in the neon ads for classic Swiss watches on the lakeshore: Rolex, Rado, Tissot, Jaeger le Couture and the picture becomes clearer--particularly from the deck of the spectacular Casino Lugano. Still, the most telling difference between Italy and Svizzera Italiana: the parking. Orderly, rational, coherent parking--not like a bunch of people had hydrochloric acid spilled in their laps.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Random Thoughts
One of the coolest things coursing around Facebook these days is the "25 Random Things" note--notes written by Facebookers about disparate but generally interesting facets of their lives. I was sufficiently inspired to write three of these: 25 Random Things, 20 Random Beers, and 21 Random Places Where I've Lived. For your reading pleasure:
25 Random Things
1. I haven't done anything political for pay since 2004, but politics remains my favorite subject of news and conversation
2. My current job as the most challenging I've ever had--and while it can be a bit scary, I'm really starting to enjoy the people
3. While I'm both a US and UK citizen, I can't vote in Britain because I don't have a UK address.
4. My lack of a UK address doesn't deter me from 'voting' on the most important matter facing the Brits--English Football.
5. Supporters of my English football team, Tottenham Hotspur, are known as The Yid Army.
6. I'm not a particularly religious Jew, but my passion for Israel and the Jewish People holds my own on other fronts.
7. I was the earliest active Obama supporter in the Netherlands when I lived there. I even got to speak at the Obama victory party in the NL.
8. I think Obama will be a great president, and will piss me off at times along the way
9. I don't hate Republicans--I used to be one from 1986-92
10. I've been blogging since 2005.
11. I've lost a bit of zeal for blogging since I moved back to Europe and got on Facebook--I have more to do, and an easier way of sharing thoughts in real time
12. I've gone from thinking I'm an expert to realizing I'm still a student in many respects--the more I know, the less I know!
13. There are nearly more places on the list of places I want to return to as there are on the places that I want to see for the first time.
14. The best places I've ever been are (in alphabetical order) Bariloche, Argentina; Bruges, Belgium; Jerusalem, Israel; Paris, France; Sarajevo, Bosnia; Stockholm, Sweden.
15. I think baby piglets are the most adorable thing on the planet and that nothing else remotely comes close
16. I'm contemplating a big step in my life--getting an unfurnished apartment and buying furniture.
17. I have not owned a car since 1996.
18. I have never driven into an auto accident--a fact that should make me less of an agnostic than I am, considering my driving.
19. I'm a connoisseur of European train travel.
20. I am a deeply committed beer connoisseur, having written nearly 200 beer reviews on Ratebeer.com (member number mklein818).
21. My university's sports teams also occupy a big spot in my heart--cheering on the Wisconsin Badgers in fertile and lean seasons
22. Dating has been an ongoing source of frustration
23. I cook a little--my main interest is in reduction sauces. Port wine with lemon and wholegrain mustard is awesome; recently did one with 11% alcohol Kasteel beer
24. The best educational experience I've had was with an organization called Landmark Education.
25. I'm capping this off by pouring a chalice of St Feuillien Cuvee de Noel--a fine amber brew from Le Roeulx, Belgium.
2o Random Beers
The following beer thoughts are designed to motivate, inspire, and if necessary elicit envy from those for whom such brews are not commonly available.
They are listed in no particular order, having given up on selecting "the best beer" many moons ago...
1. Palm: Legendary Belgian ale, civilized at a pilsner strength, but with flavor depth of heartier brews. Have been to the brewery in Steenhuffel and seen the famous Palm draft horses.
2. Kasteel Bruin: Rich and unctuous--at a potent 11%, not a brew to start the evening with. Best served in its own gold-lipped chalice. Makes an interesting reduction sauce with a bit of lemon, honey, garlic and whole grain mustard.
3. Primus: Probably the best lager in the world, alas only found in Belgium. Very different from German lagers in particuler--light on the hoppy bitterness and deeper in the malt department.
4. Val Dieu Brune: A divine brew--the only Belgian beer brewed at a non-Trappist abbey. Balanced sweetness and spiciness.
5. Grimbergen Brune: My favorite mass-market dark Belgian brew, available on tap from most pubs with a Maes sign on the door. Also decent availabilty in the US--now owned by Heineken.
6. Tripel Karmeliet: It's a multi-grain beer, so it's healthy, eh? At 8%, the health benefits are compounded by a potent punch. Oats are the added ingredient, along with barley and wheat malts. Sweet-sour-spice. And it comes from a place called Buggenhout. Can't beat that.
7. De Koninck: The beer that is to Antwerp what Old Style is to Chicago, except that it has a distinct color and flavor. It's served in a glass called a Bolleke. Order one for an Englishman and see the reaction you get.
8. Liefman's Kriek: An intricately brewed and blended mix of cherry fruit and brown ales from Flanders. Different from most other Krieks, which are brewed closer to Brussels according to a different formula. Worth the effort to find.
9. Bush/Scaldis: No, not the $4 a 12 pack at the truck stop Busch, but a fiery and noble Walloon brew from the Dubuisson brewery. Known as "the cognac beer", a late-night brew served in a snifter-like glass. Sold in the US as "Scaldis" to avoid conflicts with that big Belgian brewery in St. Louis.
10. Westvleteren: Brewed by Trappist monks unconcerned by market forces or commercial gain, "Westy" is by far the most sought after of Belgian brews. Cars line up on the rare days cases are placed on sale, and commercial distribution is spotty and allegedly illegal. A bottle of Westy Abt, the 12% alcohol version, has a street value in Belgium of EUR 12. Steep for a beer. But have you ever paid the equivalent for indifferent cabernet sauvignon? You have. Admit it.
11. Ommegang: The best Belgian beer in America. Brewed by Belgium's Moortgat Brewery at a branch in Cooperstown, New York, this beer has a combination of sweetness, bitterness and depth matched by few beers anywhere. It's sister brews Three Philosophers and Hennepin are also excellent, and sister Rare Vos tastes a slightly amped-up version of Palm above.
12. Blanche de Namur: Am not a huge white/wheat beer fan, but by far my favorite is Blanche de Namur, from the dramatically situated Walloon capital of Namur, a top day-trip destination. Clean, sparkly acidity with a lemoniness that warns off the introduction of trendy fruit slices.
13. La Trappe Quadrupel: A 10% alcohol behemoth from over the border in Holland--easily the best Dutch beer. The beer equivalent of sticky toffee pudding.
14. Duvel: My first Belgian, from my days as a legal 19 year old tippler at the University of Wisconsin Union. Deceptively mild--a pilsnerlike flavor masking a potent 8.5 punch. They don't call it 'Devil" for nothing.
15. Tongerlo Brune: My first Belgian dark beer. Mild at 6% alcohol,but with some nice caramel flavors. A sentimental favorite.
16. St. Feuilllien Triple: A Walloon favorite with an exquisite mix of spices. Strong and warming. St. Feullien's dark and blonde beers are great too.
17. Gordon Scotch: Despite the name, very much a Belgian brew, albeit in a once-popular Scottish style. Strong at 8.5%, bitter, sweet, and well balanced. Served in a thistle glass that kind of looks like a tornado made of glass.
18. Saison Dupont: A unique brew--not sweet at all, but possessing a deep savoriness. Think soy sauce without the salt--just pure, deep, savory flavor. Great with food.
19. Fin Du Monde: Canada's best Belgian beer--mildly sweet, spicy and little hoppy. Great label with a dramatic map of Quebec.
20. And finally, the majestic Cuvee van de Keizer (Grand Cru of the Emperor), from Gouden Carolus in Mechelen,Belgium, where my office is. Cuvee is an annual brew, varying by year. I can still taste the Star Anise from the 2006 version. Belgium--and beer--at its best.
21 Random Places where I've Lived
1. San Jose, California: Stayed on a candidate’s couch for a month. Came to the conclusion that while Alice B. Toklas said “there’s no there, there” about Oakland, it was because she hadn’t been to San Jose.
2. Delft, Netherlands: One year in deluxe apartment in a rehabbed college building. View of a canal out of a sliver of my living room window. Fondest memory was when one of the guys at the Proeflokaal (tasting pub with 100+ beers) gave me a glass with a decal of a nearby drawbridge and the word Delvenaer (native Delftian)
3. Raleigh, NC: An antiseptic southern town—quite unusual in that I don’t normally find southern towns antiseptic. Best part is that Chapel Hill is nearby. Worst part is that Raleigh isn’t Chapel Hill.
4. Willesden Green, London: A rare affordable, well-situated, vibrant if rough-around-the-edges part of London. Better suited for a bachelor than a married couple.
5. Albany, NY: At 100,000 a very small big city—with big city politics, a major state capital and a University that has finally found some identity,. Best wings on earth.
6. San Francisco: As a famous wag once said, San Francisco has never had a smug free day. Nuff said.
7. Skokie, IL: Where I landed in greater Chicago in 1969, and where my brother bashed my head against a brick wall shortly thereafter. He still hasn’t apologized.
8. Hampstead Garden Suburb, London: A beautifully designed suburban community with absolutely no commerce of any kind. Round the corner from Golders Green, one of the world’s great Jewish neighbo(u)rhoods.
9. Madison, WI: Winters notwithstanding, one of the most pleasant, beautiful, and vibrant places on the planet. Summer evenings with Duvel in hand overlooking Lake Mendota, raucous gamedays punctuated by the Fifth Quarter, and January icefishing. Does anyone remember Madison’s Lady Liberty?
10. The Hague, Netherlands: A sterile city, and an extremely sterile studio apartment owned by an unusually garrulous if fastidious Dutchman. Got to commute by tram though, which was cool.
11. Kewanee, IL: Where I drew my first political paycheck in 1988. Tough campaign, and very tough little farm town. High point: Hog Days Parade. As in pigs, not motorcycles.
12. Burke, VA: Not quite an exurb of Washington, DC, though you wouldn’t know it from the 90 minute one-way commute. Redeeming bit was that it was close to George Mason University, where I hung out with the brothers of Sigma Phi Epsilon
13. Rosh Tzurim, Israel: When a boulder fell on my finger on this West Bank (Judea-Samaria) Kibbutz, I was literally between a rock and a very hard place. Learned a lot up close about Religious Zionism and the settler mentality. Vastly prefer secular Zionism instead.
14. Baton Rouge, LA: Expected a small New Orleans, found more of a middling state capital/college town with much better food than average. Love that etouffee
15. Baltimore, MD: A place with heart, soul, texture and personality, along with good food and some great watering holes. Best—the Mount Royal Tavern, with an amazing ceiling fresco.
16. Kilburn, London: First place I ever drank Guinness in the morning, appropriate as this is London’s most Irish of neighbo(u)rhoods. Was watching Ireland-Cameroon during World Cup 2002.
17. Bakersfield, CA: A thoroughly underrated burg, with sweeping mountain vistas, oil wells, low-slung buildings and inimitable tri-tip beef. Dominated by the ghost of Buck Owens, country music icon who called this bit of the ol’ southwest home.
18. Evanston, IL: Where I came of age in many ways. Was a total dork in high school, learned the basics of research as a telephone interviewer, and saw Magic Johnson’s MSU Spartans experience a rare upset loss to the Northwestern Mildcats. Now one of Chicago’s more fashionable urban suburbs—amazing what legalized alcohol can do for a place.
19. Rosslyn, VA: A mellow place across the river from DC—where a great flatmate helped me keep my sanity during my unhappy if productive years as a federal government communications contractor.
20. Montgomery, AL: The deep south at its deepest. Like living in a foreign country--gave me the appetite for the real thing. Best part was the food (the late Kat and Harry's with their super-cheap Ridge Zinfandel) and the singer belting out Toni Braxton better than Toni ever did...
21. Brussels, Belgium: The capital—and heart of Europe. The bucket of gold at the end of the rainbow. Despite the winter darkness, wet weather, anti-semitic politicians and confiscatory taxation. Such things are no match for magret de canard, daytrips to Brugge, and hot-and-cold running supplies of Kasteel, Rochefort, and Grimbergen Brune.
25 Random Things
1. I haven't done anything political for pay since 2004, but politics remains my favorite subject of news and conversation
2. My current job as the most challenging I've ever had--and while it can be a bit scary, I'm really starting to enjoy the people
3. While I'm both a US and UK citizen, I can't vote in Britain because I don't have a UK address.
4. My lack of a UK address doesn't deter me from 'voting' on the most important matter facing the Brits--English Football.
5. Supporters of my English football team, Tottenham Hotspur, are known as The Yid Army.
6. I'm not a particularly religious Jew, but my passion for Israel and the Jewish People holds my own on other fronts.
7. I was the earliest active Obama supporter in the Netherlands when I lived there. I even got to speak at the Obama victory party in the NL.
8. I think Obama will be a great president, and will piss me off at times along the way
9. I don't hate Republicans--I used to be one from 1986-92
10. I've been blogging since 2005.
11. I've lost a bit of zeal for blogging since I moved back to Europe and got on Facebook--I have more to do, and an easier way of sharing thoughts in real time
12. I've gone from thinking I'm an expert to realizing I'm still a student in many respects--the more I know, the less I know!
13. There are nearly more places on the list of places I want to return to as there are on the places that I want to see for the first time.
14. The best places I've ever been are (in alphabetical order) Bariloche, Argentina; Bruges, Belgium; Jerusalem, Israel; Paris, France; Sarajevo, Bosnia; Stockholm, Sweden.
15. I think baby piglets are the most adorable thing on the planet and that nothing else remotely comes close
16. I'm contemplating a big step in my life--getting an unfurnished apartment and buying furniture.
17. I have not owned a car since 1996.
18. I have never driven into an auto accident--a fact that should make me less of an agnostic than I am, considering my driving.
19. I'm a connoisseur of European train travel.
20. I am a deeply committed beer connoisseur, having written nearly 200 beer reviews on Ratebeer.com (member number mklein818).
21. My university's sports teams also occupy a big spot in my heart--cheering on the Wisconsin Badgers in fertile and lean seasons
22. Dating has been an ongoing source of frustration
23. I cook a little--my main interest is in reduction sauces. Port wine with lemon and wholegrain mustard is awesome; recently did one with 11% alcohol Kasteel beer
24. The best educational experience I've had was with an organization called Landmark Education.
25. I'm capping this off by pouring a chalice of St Feuillien Cuvee de Noel--a fine amber brew from Le Roeulx, Belgium.
2o Random Beers
The following beer thoughts are designed to motivate, inspire, and if necessary elicit envy from those for whom such brews are not commonly available.
They are listed in no particular order, having given up on selecting "the best beer" many moons ago...
1. Palm: Legendary Belgian ale, civilized at a pilsner strength, but with flavor depth of heartier brews. Have been to the brewery in Steenhuffel and seen the famous Palm draft horses.
2. Kasteel Bruin: Rich and unctuous--at a potent 11%, not a brew to start the evening with. Best served in its own gold-lipped chalice. Makes an interesting reduction sauce with a bit of lemon, honey, garlic and whole grain mustard.
3. Primus: Probably the best lager in the world, alas only found in Belgium. Very different from German lagers in particuler--light on the hoppy bitterness and deeper in the malt department.
4. Val Dieu Brune: A divine brew--the only Belgian beer brewed at a non-Trappist abbey. Balanced sweetness and spiciness.
5. Grimbergen Brune: My favorite mass-market dark Belgian brew, available on tap from most pubs with a Maes sign on the door. Also decent availabilty in the US--now owned by Heineken.
6. Tripel Karmeliet: It's a multi-grain beer, so it's healthy, eh? At 8%, the health benefits are compounded by a potent punch. Oats are the added ingredient, along with barley and wheat malts. Sweet-sour-spice. And it comes from a place called Buggenhout. Can't beat that.
7. De Koninck: The beer that is to Antwerp what Old Style is to Chicago, except that it has a distinct color and flavor. It's served in a glass called a Bolleke. Order one for an Englishman and see the reaction you get.
8. Liefman's Kriek: An intricately brewed and blended mix of cherry fruit and brown ales from Flanders. Different from most other Krieks, which are brewed closer to Brussels according to a different formula. Worth the effort to find.
9. Bush/Scaldis: No, not the $4 a 12 pack at the truck stop Busch, but a fiery and noble Walloon brew from the Dubuisson brewery. Known as "the cognac beer", a late-night brew served in a snifter-like glass. Sold in the US as "Scaldis" to avoid conflicts with that big Belgian brewery in St. Louis.
10. Westvleteren: Brewed by Trappist monks unconcerned by market forces or commercial gain, "Westy" is by far the most sought after of Belgian brews. Cars line up on the rare days cases are placed on sale, and commercial distribution is spotty and allegedly illegal. A bottle of Westy Abt, the 12% alcohol version, has a street value in Belgium of EUR 12. Steep for a beer. But have you ever paid the equivalent for indifferent cabernet sauvignon? You have. Admit it.
11. Ommegang: The best Belgian beer in America. Brewed by Belgium's Moortgat Brewery at a branch in Cooperstown, New York, this beer has a combination of sweetness, bitterness and depth matched by few beers anywhere. It's sister brews Three Philosophers and Hennepin are also excellent, and sister Rare Vos tastes a slightly amped-up version of Palm above.
12. Blanche de Namur: Am not a huge white/wheat beer fan, but by far my favorite is Blanche de Namur, from the dramatically situated Walloon capital of Namur, a top day-trip destination. Clean, sparkly acidity with a lemoniness that warns off the introduction of trendy fruit slices.
13. La Trappe Quadrupel: A 10% alcohol behemoth from over the border in Holland--easily the best Dutch beer. The beer equivalent of sticky toffee pudding.
14. Duvel: My first Belgian, from my days as a legal 19 year old tippler at the University of Wisconsin Union. Deceptively mild--a pilsnerlike flavor masking a potent 8.5 punch. They don't call it 'Devil" for nothing.
15. Tongerlo Brune: My first Belgian dark beer. Mild at 6% alcohol,but with some nice caramel flavors. A sentimental favorite.
16. St. Feuilllien Triple: A Walloon favorite with an exquisite mix of spices. Strong and warming. St. Feullien's dark and blonde beers are great too.
17. Gordon Scotch: Despite the name, very much a Belgian brew, albeit in a once-popular Scottish style. Strong at 8.5%, bitter, sweet, and well balanced. Served in a thistle glass that kind of looks like a tornado made of glass.
18. Saison Dupont: A unique brew--not sweet at all, but possessing a deep savoriness. Think soy sauce without the salt--just pure, deep, savory flavor. Great with food.
19. Fin Du Monde: Canada's best Belgian beer--mildly sweet, spicy and little hoppy. Great label with a dramatic map of Quebec.
20. And finally, the majestic Cuvee van de Keizer (Grand Cru of the Emperor), from Gouden Carolus in Mechelen,Belgium, where my office is. Cuvee is an annual brew, varying by year. I can still taste the Star Anise from the 2006 version. Belgium--and beer--at its best.
21 Random Places where I've Lived
1. San Jose, California: Stayed on a candidate’s couch for a month. Came to the conclusion that while Alice B. Toklas said “there’s no there, there” about Oakland, it was because she hadn’t been to San Jose.
2. Delft, Netherlands: One year in deluxe apartment in a rehabbed college building. View of a canal out of a sliver of my living room window. Fondest memory was when one of the guys at the Proeflokaal (tasting pub with 100+ beers) gave me a glass with a decal of a nearby drawbridge and the word Delvenaer (native Delftian)
3. Raleigh, NC: An antiseptic southern town—quite unusual in that I don’t normally find southern towns antiseptic. Best part is that Chapel Hill is nearby. Worst part is that Raleigh isn’t Chapel Hill.
4. Willesden Green, London: A rare affordable, well-situated, vibrant if rough-around-the-edges part of London. Better suited for a bachelor than a married couple.
5. Albany, NY: At 100,000 a very small big city—with big city politics, a major state capital and a University that has finally found some identity,. Best wings on earth.
6. San Francisco: As a famous wag once said, San Francisco has never had a smug free day. Nuff said.
7. Skokie, IL: Where I landed in greater Chicago in 1969, and where my brother bashed my head against a brick wall shortly thereafter. He still hasn’t apologized.
8. Hampstead Garden Suburb, London: A beautifully designed suburban community with absolutely no commerce of any kind. Round the corner from Golders Green, one of the world’s great Jewish neighbo(u)rhoods.
9. Madison, WI: Winters notwithstanding, one of the most pleasant, beautiful, and vibrant places on the planet. Summer evenings with Duvel in hand overlooking Lake Mendota, raucous gamedays punctuated by the Fifth Quarter, and January icefishing. Does anyone remember Madison’s Lady Liberty?
10. The Hague, Netherlands: A sterile city, and an extremely sterile studio apartment owned by an unusually garrulous if fastidious Dutchman. Got to commute by tram though, which was cool.
11. Kewanee, IL: Where I drew my first political paycheck in 1988. Tough campaign, and very tough little farm town. High point: Hog Days Parade. As in pigs, not motorcycles.
12. Burke, VA: Not quite an exurb of Washington, DC, though you wouldn’t know it from the 90 minute one-way commute. Redeeming bit was that it was close to George Mason University, where I hung out with the brothers of Sigma Phi Epsilon
13. Rosh Tzurim, Israel: When a boulder fell on my finger on this West Bank (Judea-Samaria) Kibbutz, I was literally between a rock and a very hard place. Learned a lot up close about Religious Zionism and the settler mentality. Vastly prefer secular Zionism instead.
14. Baton Rouge, LA: Expected a small New Orleans, found more of a middling state capital/college town with much better food than average. Love that etouffee
15. Baltimore, MD: A place with heart, soul, texture and personality, along with good food and some great watering holes. Best—the Mount Royal Tavern, with an amazing ceiling fresco.
16. Kilburn, London: First place I ever drank Guinness in the morning, appropriate as this is London’s most Irish of neighbo(u)rhoods. Was watching Ireland-Cameroon during World Cup 2002.
17. Bakersfield, CA: A thoroughly underrated burg, with sweeping mountain vistas, oil wells, low-slung buildings and inimitable tri-tip beef. Dominated by the ghost of Buck Owens, country music icon who called this bit of the ol’ southwest home.
18. Evanston, IL: Where I came of age in many ways. Was a total dork in high school, learned the basics of research as a telephone interviewer, and saw Magic Johnson’s MSU Spartans experience a rare upset loss to the Northwestern Mildcats. Now one of Chicago’s more fashionable urban suburbs—amazing what legalized alcohol can do for a place.
19. Rosslyn, VA: A mellow place across the river from DC—where a great flatmate helped me keep my sanity during my unhappy if productive years as a federal government communications contractor.
20. Montgomery, AL: The deep south at its deepest. Like living in a foreign country--gave me the appetite for the real thing. Best part was the food (the late Kat and Harry's with their super-cheap Ridge Zinfandel) and the singer belting out Toni Braxton better than Toni ever did...
21. Brussels, Belgium: The capital—and heart of Europe. The bucket of gold at the end of the rainbow. Despite the winter darkness, wet weather, anti-semitic politicians and confiscatory taxation. Such things are no match for magret de canard, daytrips to Brugge, and hot-and-cold running supplies of Kasteel, Rochefort, and Grimbergen Brune.
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