Today was for the birds

Today was a mix of Coulda been a nightmare  and Whadda beautiful day !

We had to call Immigrations at 9:30 am to see if they had our files yet and if we can please, pretty please,

finalize our ID and Permanent Resident status here in BA.

We have a neighbor who is just so kind  and she said she would make the call for us.. we knew that there was no way that we would be able to manage with a call of this sort, with people who are a bit stretched in the Patience department. 

So she made the call and guess what  .. the papers were not ready yet. 

But we have to go down and renew things.. 

We grabbed a taxi and hit traffic and eventually got there .. they had again, changed things. 

They moved the front door. The Entrance. Is this a message ? Are we ignoring something someone is trying to tell us ? 

We walked around to the back ( where all entrances are, of course) and walked in, found the right person almost immediately and lo and behold, he was Nice ! Quick, efficient and we could understand him and he even said something in English for us ... Sit ! he said as he pointed at the chairs. 

And like good little doggies...er... immigrants, we sat. And in no time at all, we got the word, pay 10 pesos,  stamp stamp, it is still not ready, come back in November. Come to him. 

Not so bad after all. Quick taxi ride, excellent taxi driver and we were home and thinking about What to do.. Sunshine, blue skies and cold. What else ? go for a walk and have lunch outside. 

     So we walked along Libertador to Palermo Chico 

(I would live here in a minute if I could)

Libertador is this wide wide Avenue,  lined with parks and beautiful gardens and very, very, nice apartment buildings. And cafes . 

This is Rond Point, where we have our Sunday brunches outside with Pup in warm weather.

Good Bloody Mary's

We went to our new, favorite, little cafe, where we sit outside and tiny little birds come sit on the edge of the table and watch you eat. And if You are anything like Me ... you will be busy taking a bite, giving the birds a bite, taking a bite, oh , what the hell, give the birds the whole piece of bread.
Pup sat and did all of his tricks, thinking he was next in line for some of that sandwich but no, not today, today was for the birds.
While I sat and sipped my cafe con leche, one tiny little bird, sat next to my hand .. waiting.. picking up a crumb, just hanging out with us.
Of course, the camera was at home.
I promise, I am carrying the camera with me from now on, no matter where I go. Promise!
images via skyscraper life

A Day of Pup Beauty

Today was the day that some people around here looked forward to and one pup dreaded.
The boy was going to the Pup Beauty Salon , better known as Sebastians. Where Hugo with the huge arms would wash,blow dry and comb out the tangled, smelly, matted beast that we have been living with.
Of course, if it were not for the eau de Pup that was wafting through the rooms the past week, I would have been happy with his hairiness, his huge stuffed doggy-ness  , his cuddly big furriness.
But when I could tell he had been in the room, hours after , it was time to send him off for a few hours of dog torture.
He gets such a split personality .. a block or two before the groomers and he stops at the corner and tries to pull me into the street, over to the other side, away from That Place.
I sweet talk him into walking with me like a Good Boy and he does.
The closer we get to the Groomers, the slower he walks. Always looking around... does he really think someone is going to swoop down on us, grabbing Pup and rescuing him from a bath and a haircut ?
If so, then he has been reading too many of those Harlequin paperbacks for Pups.
Hugo gives him a big hello, Pup runs right to him , like they are best friends or something ! ... go figure.
This was Pup's smile before todays visit

He was so hairy, I had to keep pushing the eyebrows back, his face was square..
So we dawdled, did a few errands and generally hung out at home missing the poor tortured animal until time to go pick him up, or in Pups words ... rescue him.
There was never a happier reunion.
He wiggled, make little whimpering noises and yips and generally made people laugh and go Awwwww.

And here , ladies and gentlemen, is the new and improved Pup !!! ( sounds of trumpets blowing)

We gave him a quickie in the park then scurried home , I was afraid with less hair he might really feel todays cold. He had dinner then came in here where he hopped up on the bed and this is where he remains.

I always wonder if he holds it against me for making him go there and I wish I could explain how it can't be avoided.. I just have to make it up to him afterwards.. besides, he smells like a flower now so he can go anywhere he wants..and he feels soooo good to snuggle.

OK, Enough is Enough

It was in the 30's today.
I am living in Argentina, people ! It is supposed to be sunny and warm or at least warm-ish. Not New York cold..
I am sitting here in my new uniform. Black zip turtle neck fleece top from REI .. I love that store and miss it so much.
Black fleece pants that are too big but they are the warmest thing I have .
Long wool sweater.
Thick socks and shearling lined clogs. ( Merrels from REI ... sigh)
And I am cold.

Yes, we have heat. Modern heat. But the cold has already made its way into my bones and only a week or more of warm weather will make it go away.

Poor Pup .. he waits and waits, hopefully watching for anyone who might go near the door .. .Time for a walk ?? No.... too cold.. hold it... please.... oh OK.. let's go for a walk.
So we take him to the park, stand in the sunniest spot we can find and huddle under all of our winter clothing, scarves, gloves and boots and grumble.
Oh yes, we smile and think the dog is cute and the pigeons are funny because they know me now and gather around if I stand still too long. Pretty soon, I will probably freeze in place and people will see me, standing there... not moving ... pigeons on my shoulders.
Then we scurry home and have gallons of hot tea and scones and sit under shawls and throws and heaters going and wonder How Long Is This Gonna Last ??
Pup just gets happy if we walk him so I guess the temperatures mean nada to a Pup.

Tomorrow he goes to the Groomer.
This is his last day of being a shaggy dog... a medium sized brown sheep ... a small brown curly haired bear.
Happily it is his last day of smelling like a dog.
But I feel terrible about it because he will be cold.. with a short haircut , I will have to knit him a sweater, better yet, buy him a coat. If he waited til I learned to knit and make him a sweater, he will be too old to go outside.
I feel terrible because he hates being groomed.. who wouldn't .. this guy with arms like The Hulk grabs him up, puts him on the table, combs out all those mats and tangles and bathes him and dries him and cuts his hair .. for hours.. the poor thing comes home and eats dinner and sleeps for about 14 hours after.
But he will look beautiful again, like the pretty Poodle that he is and he will once again, smell like a flower.

But with shorter hair. Right now his nose is square, tomorrow it will be all pointy again. 

Weird.. I get a haircut and my nose stays exactly the same.

So we walked to EST for coffee. We buy freshly French Roasted Brazilian coffee from these people. Then we went to the market where I bought fusilli and then we picked up the dog and took him for his park time.

I got a recipe from Jamie Oliver and decided I would adapt it to our taste .. so we went to the butcher and got chicken hamburgers..which I sauteed and crumbled up instead of sausages. Coming home and preparing to boil the fresh fusilli, I found that it was moldy. I really wanted to march back to the store and throw it at someone but 1- it was too cold 2- I am not in a hurry to see how the accommodations are at the local police station jail. So I threw them in the garbage instead and made it with penne. It was delicious and I will post the recipe here. It was also extremely easy to make. 

I will now go sit on the sofa and see if any of the husbands body heat wafts over my way, maybe I will convince Pup to sit with me on the sofa .. you can always tell me how warm it is where you live. Remind me of how much I complained this past summer about the endless heat .. a vague memory at best right now.

 Proper Blokes' Sausage Fusilli adapted from Cook with Jamie
Serves 4.
First make the sausage:

• 630g (22oz) ground pork
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon fennel seed, freshly ground
• 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns, freshly ground
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar

Mix everything together and let sit in the fridge for at least an hour. Alternatively you can use 630g of Italian sausages, squeezed out of the casing.

• olive oil
• 2 heaped teaspoons fennel seeds, coarsely crushed in a mortar
• 2 teaspoons hot red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 240g (1 cup) white wine
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 630g (22oz) fusilli or penne
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• a couple of knobs of butter
• a handful of freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
• small bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped

In a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, add a splash of olive oil and add all the sausage meat in, breaking it up and crushing with a spoon. Let it fry for a few minutes, until colored. Add the fennel seeds and red pepper flakes and cook over medium heat about 10 minutes or until crisp and golden brown. Add the oregano and the white wine and let it reduce to half. Add the lemon zest and juice. Reduce the heat to low.

Cook the pasta according to package instructions (al dente). Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking water, then dump the pasta into the sausage meat, tossing. Add butter, Parmesan, and parsley, and a few spoonfuls of the reserved cooking water. Taste and season with the salt and pepper if needed. Serve immediately with some more Parmesan.

 http://manggy.blogspot.com/2010/03/proper-blokes-sausage-fusilli.html#ixzz0vaNdUvhX

Monday Morning - Look At This Blog !

Pearl, Why you little ...    ( click on the name)

Pearl lives in Minnesota. In many ways about as far as you can get from Buenos Aires and still be on Earth.

The best way to describe her in one word would be ... Hilarious ? Funny doesn't really cover it all. Smart, clever and goofy work too. I catch myself nodding in agreement to so many things she writes about .. that Been There and Done That sort of nod. 

I try to read Pearl first thing each day so I can start the day with a laugh. But any time of day is good.. laughs are like that, you can use them anytime and still have room for more.

So try Pearl and see if you get some laughs.

Just don't drive past her house with the car radio on too loud.. that makes her kinda cranky ...

A Cold Sunday in BA

Pardon me while I whine ... It is too cold here !
I don't want to get out of bed, I don't want to get out of my warm pajamas and Pup certainly does not want to get out of his warm nest that he sleeps in , when he follows me in here to the bedroom with the computer. The bedroom where Pup makes himself at home, where else? on the bed. But he has his own blanket on there so any people who have a problem with sleeping in a dogs bed, can relax.

You mean this is not My bed ?

After many many cups of coffee and a few hours of fiddling around online .. it was time to bundle up and go out into the arctic air. Antarctic air , I guess you would say?

Pup was happy, I grumbled, my husband was quiet.. he suffers with much more dignity than I do .. I like to share my misery .. 

We took Pup to his park and Good Grief, there were millions of people everywhere ! 

Why were they not home, huddled under blankets before the fire ?? 

Hovering over the gas heater? 

Draped across the stove with the oven on ? 

They are definitely a hardier bunch than I .. even the tourists were having fun and walking around as if they were not frozen tourist pops. 

We walked in the sun and I began to think that maybe it wasn't that bad .. but then again, it was.

There were actually people sitting on the grass in the parks, playing with the pups, listening to music, eating .. there was a family with many children and they were all sailing their boats in the reservoir, where the wind really was blowing and I froze in my place just watching. 

I was relieved to see that at least one creature in the park as cold as I.

We went a few blocks then headed back towards home, I kept myself going with thoughts of gallons of hot tea and maybe a scone if my teeth didn't freeze and crumble before we got back home.

The Facultad de Derecho is this wonderful building, the University of Buenos Aires . 

We go there on weekend nights to listen to live, free concerts by the Colon Orchestra. 

It is wonderful, this room that is many stories high, with old fashioned ,comfortable velvet  chairs to sit on while listening to this amazing orchestra. 

Music like this 

There is a footbridge over Ave Alcorte,   going north .. I took the photos from there..

 Looking towards Palermo

And the traffic coming from town towards us

Not bad for a Sunday. I am often reminded of NYC when everyone left town on Friday and traffic was horrible then the city would be quiet... then Sunday night all that traffic headed back into the city .. it happens here to some extent.
And this is the beautiful monument that I do not know anything about , on the grounds of the University.

This was my Sunday. The fresh air was good for us, but the warm home waiting was better. We had scones and tea and hot soup .. Pup has gone from one "nest" to another.
The upcoming week should be interesting. We have to call the people at Immigrations to see if they have our paperwork yet and can we please come get Stamped and Made Official.
I have to choose paint for the bathroom.
White.
It will probably drive me insane trying to decide on the Right White.
True.. it is just this sort of thing that will send me off the Deep End.