Archive for January, 2003

Yahtzee – A True Traveler’s Companion

It is amazing to think that in a world with video games, digital move theaters, and personal entertainment devices, that something as simple a game using five small dice could survive. Countless times this game has rescued myself and my companions from the grip of boredom. It’s lightweight. It’s compact. It requires little brain power, unless you think that you have strong telekinetic abilities. I know that I think I can make all the dice roll sixes.

Future Father-In-Law

I am almost 29 years old and have been without a father for 9 years. A few weeks ago I met my future father-in-law for the first time. We had lunch at the hotel he manages in the Czech Republic. We can barely communicate with each other, because we speak different languages. Sometimes not being able to speak makes first impressions easier. I have no chance to impress him with my charm, but I do manage to squeeze a few jokes in. We are silently sizing each other up. I was watching how Kat reacted when her father talked to her. He was watching her when I was talking to her. Does she smile? Does she grimace? Do I raise my voice? Does he smile? Does he raise his voice? We finished lunch and then we toured the hotel where the reception is going to be. As he was dropping us off ,at the train station in Zdar, he patted me on the back of the head. This is sort of the international sign for acceptance. I felt like I was 12. It was nice.

Al Capone’s – Prague, Czech Republic or The Quickest Way to Get A Shot to Your Brain

It was just a few days after New Year’s and Kat, myself and some good friends from Czech met at Club Architektu, this cool wine cellar style restuarant. We were all feeling a little sluggish after New Years, so conversation was a little light. One our friends, who was traveling with us, showed up a little late, but he is always good to get things moving. So, we ate some dinner and decided to go to a bar called Al Capone’s.

It was a Friday night in Prague and Al Capone’s was packed. I thought to myself, “There is little chance that we could squeeze one person up the bar. There is no way in hell we will find a table for five.” But they pushed through and headed towards the back – Kat and I waited outside fully expecting them come back with hands in the air. The Sweet Goddess of Love and Beer was watching over us that evening, because they came back and gave us the high sign. Amazingly, there was a table for 5 just waiting for us in the back. This was certainly a sign that we needed to have some fun tonight.

Long Island Ice Tea’s for everyone. This should chisel away anyway post-new year’s funk. We ordered another round just to keep our moods in forward motion. Shortly there after we were all completely loose, laughing, telling stories and taking pictures. I stepped away for a few moments and when I came back there were a round of shots and a new friend out our table. Michael (pronunced Me-Kale) was celebrating his birthday, and there is nothing more dangerous than a friend’s friend celebrating his birthday at their local watering hole.

We lit the shots unfire and waited for them to burn out, slammed them back, and then took a sugary bite from a lemon slice. This sort of thing is what takes the party to the next level. We started talking about Sambuca, and how it was Michael’s favorite shot. “Wait! Sambuca is my favorite shot as well, and hell it’s your birthday. Let’s do one!” Now in American bars doing a shot of Sambuca is a pretty simple procedure. Two glasses filled….emptied…and returned. I was not fully prepared for what happened next. I quickly found the back of my head on the bar with a shot being poored into my open mouth. People around me shouting “Don’t swallow! Don’t swallow!” The bartender puts a lighter in my mouth and the volatile substance is set ablaze. Blue-orange flames dance in my mouth while I wait for the Bartender’s next ingredient. Cinnamon is added causing sparks to fly out of my mouth into the smoke filled pub. I get the the command to swallow, kick it back, and check the facial hair for damage.

It has been a few hours now and everyone is loose as hell. A constant supply of Long Island Ice Tea’s are brought to our table, always with a spare one, just in case of emergencies. We start talking about the different ways of doing shots, and the Czech’s are surprised at how “boring” it is the way we do shots. They decide that I need to do a shot called “apple strudel” I found myself with my head on the bar again, this time a tea spoon of cinnamon , a tea spoon of sugar, a shot of vodka, and a shot of Red Bull are all poured into my mouth. I was instructed to shake my head violently until all of the contents were properly mixed and then swallow. Very Tasty. The night gets fuzzier after that but a great time was had by all. I will drink with the Czech’s anytime.

I started off my work day eating Flinstone vitamins with the rest of the group. I had a Fred, ’cause yabadaba do ya! As things heat up in the middle east, and the reasons why we do what we do there become a little fuzzy, here is a link that will maybe shed some light on this nightmare. OIL

Excuss me readers for I have sinned, it has been a hell of a long time since my last post. Things have been crazy since October. I got engaged, saw my fiance off to visit her home in the Czech Republic, tried to remember how I ever survived without her during her month absence, traveled to Czech to visit her, survived for another week before her return, waited at JFK for her to get here. Tons of stories..I am trying to work them all out now.

But the reason that prompted me to write today, is the humor that happens when trying to understand the way that people communicate. Yesterday, Katerina (my fiance) was talking to her best friend on the telephone. When they talk to each other they speak Czech, which I have been trying to learn, but I still don’t catch enough of it to really tune into the conversation. So I am at the PC, working on the website. I notice that the conversation, that I didn’t understand, seemed to be getting a little louder and maybe a little heated. So, I interupted her and asked if everything was O.K. and if she was arguing with her friend. She started to laugh, and told me that everything was O.K. that they were talking about the difference between butter and margarine. Funny one, huh, guess that’s what I get for paying attention.