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Where in the World is Valerie?

A chronicle of my junkets and adventures. Maybe some random babbling.
 

Do Jews shout differently than Gentiles?

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Philip Roth seems to think so. Have a listen for yourself.

Jet Set

Sunday, November 08, 2009

Off to Europe, mostly not for fun. Willem Dafoe is in first class reading a script. The suits picking up the bill only do business, not complaining! I need some shuteye before rocking up to the office straight from Heathrow. AA's 777s have built-in TVs and almost lie-flat beds. It's about time they entered the late 90's!!

See you in a week or so....

Labels:

Jet Set



Off to Europe, mostly not for fun. Willem Dafoe is in first class reading a script. The suits picking up the bill only do business, not complaining! I need some shuteye before rocking up to the office straight from Heathrow. AA's 777s have built-in TVs and almost lie-flat beds. It's about time they entered the late 90's!!

See you in a week or so....

Labels:

Bookworm

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Ahh, to have enough time to read a book every day...

Is this where Dante had in mind when he wrote L'Inferno?

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

[DISCLAIMER: this post may inflame Texans and especially Houstonians. If one of them happens to be my brother's ex-fiancee, here's hoping you spontaneously burst into flames anyway.]

Three days in a town is not enough to grasp the essence of a particular place, especially when most of the 72 hours is spent behind a desk. I did not have great expectations of Houston when I found out I'd have some business to take care of, in mid-summer no less. My impression has not changed much. Turbulence on landing and on take-off, sweltering heat, and lack of pedestrians anywhere would do it. We drove three blocks, which is heretical for New Yorkers.

I will give Houston this: everyone (minus the ex-fiancee devil spawn) is incredibly nice. I have a few friends who live there and some who are soon relocating. Plus, prices are really low. Still, not enough reason for me to pack my bags and buy a ginormous house.

Back to the Salt Mines...

Monday, August 10, 2009

I have a tremendous amount of work awaiting me on my return from Lisbon. You will not hear much of me for the next month, don't take it personally....

Portugal

Wednesday, August 05, 2009

It's a good thing and a bad thing that more Americans don't go to Portugal. It's cheap, friendly, not overtrodden (except the Algarve), easygoing, and has really great uncomplicated food and wine. The seafood is out of this world. Don't think about it too hard, just go.

Try-athlon

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Many of you have expressed concerns about my mental health lately. Just to clear the air, lots of people do triathlons every year. Several thousand just participated in this morning's NYC Tri. Moreover, the Hudson is safe for swimming. It's similar to bathing in a swamp, yes, but the EPA tests it regularly. (Not sure if that will inspire confidence; maybe the fact that I wore a wetsuit is better.)

After having swum 1500 meters in said river, biking 40k (25 miles) up and down the potholed and puddle-slicked West Side Highway with extremely aggressive competitors whizzing past, and running 10k (6.2 miles) after that, I am exhausted and cognitively fuzzy but HOOKED! Training for this event has been challenging, and my cycling is still very slow. It doesn't help that I'm riding the bike I've had since I was ten, with some modifications to make it race-ready. The upside is that I have been eating ravenously but have trimmed down a lot. The triathlon club I joined has been great for preparation, and there are some great people in it. As an added bonus, triathletes are HOT.