Tuesday, October 17, 2006

More of Erlangen

Erlangen, Germany - photo by Joselito Briones
© Joselito Briones


If only the weather can be like this always...

I went to the post office right after German class, to pick up a package that was supposed to have been delivered last Saturday by DHL. We were having breakfast when the delivery guy came. We heard the buzzer, and, in less than a minute, the time it took to get to the intercom system in the reception area from the kitchen where we were having breakfast, he was gone. He must be in quota system, or just very very eager to go home. When we picked up the intercom from the reception and heard nothing from the other end, we even went out to the balcony and yelled a loud "hello?!?". No answer. The time it took for him to ring the bell, write the note that he left on the mailbox notifying us to pick up the package from the post office, and be beyond the distance where he could hear our "hello" could not have been any longer than the time it took for us to get from the kitchen, pick up the intercom, and yell out from the balcony.

Erlangen, Germany - photo by Joselito Briones
© Joselito Briones


From the post office I passed by the city center and got myself a Leberkase sandwich. That's meatloaf sandwich in plain kitchen speak.

I then went to Frankenlabor, after dropping my bag in the apartment, to pick up some films, and on my way there took the pictures shown here. The first is a Siemens building, next block to the apartment (city blocks here tend to be big). On clear days like these, the stark contrast between the silvery metal of its enclosure, with its yellow awnings, against the clear cloudless sky is very striking.

The bottom picture is of a residential development. I always pass by here in between Frankenlabor and Handelshof. Next to it are huge areas of land that are currently under developement. In the next few years the whole area will become one huge suburban heaven.



XXX

Monday, October 16, 2006

Too bad he didn't get there first


© Joselito Briones


Heard of the latest James Blunt clone? He's not as extreme, and will not make you cringe when he does the high notes. He's actually good, Paolo Nutini. Depending on what he sings, his voice sometimes veers towards a sound-alike of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, and often Ray Charles-ey. It's also obvious he can pretty much imitate Blunt's voice if he try. It's a good thing that he doesn't. His music can be sampled by downloading this week's free iTunes song "New Shoes" or from his own website "Loving You (Live)".


XXX

P.S.
I've always thought of Blunt as the aural answer to hyperrealism (a visual style)... it's like now that there's so much out there, and the average attention span of an adult is shorter than a blink of an eye, it makes sense that one needed to be exaggeratedly emotional (or exaggerated anything) to be noticed.

XXX

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

She should be glad...

food prepared by me - photo by Joselito Briones
© Joselito Briones


I dropped by Handelshof this afternoon on my way back to the apartment from Frankenlabor. When I was emptying my bag on to the merchandise belt by the cashier, I noticed that the bag was wet, and the contents of the oven cleaner that I wanted to buy was all over it. With the politest German that I know, I asked the cashier if she had some paper towels so I can salvage the other items I had in the bag. What did she do? She sneered at me and told me to twist the bottle cap tight. That freakin' beeatch! Like it's my duty to check that all their merchandise is properly closed. If I were fluent in German I'd have told her what a piece of contemptuous shitty twat she truly is.

Anyway... food update again: Pictured, left, was last night's dinner: farfalle in onion and cream sauce, with grilled shrimps (marinated in ginger, lemon rind, and coriander), plus butter and garlic baguette. I know, the sauce looks a bit icky.


XXX


Here's something slightly amusing.

XXX

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