Last minute thing last night: went to see The Polyphonic Spree. If you think that listening to a 20-member band that looks like a cult play happy music from the inside of a marijuana cloud (whew, what a mouthful) would cheer me up after that day’s earlier horrible dissappointment, you’re wrong.
Still, it was fun.
It all started a few months ago. A colleague at work brought a Dagoba Eclipse chocolate bar. It is 87% pure cocoa. For comparison, your regular Hershey’s chocolate bar contains around 35% cocoa. This thing was really dark. Too dark and bitter for him, and for most people he tried to unload the bar on.
Finally I got the chocolate and loved every bit of it. I always liked chocolate. I used to eat half a bag of Hershey’s Kisses every Friday. But this ultra-dark stuff is a whole new world.
I must have mentioned it to my dad, because he brought back from his last trip of Israel about ten bars of Cote D’Or Brute (86%) and Lindt Excellence (85%); neither Israeli brands, by the way.
On Wednesday I went chocolate hunting to the downtown Whole Foods Market. I bought two bars of Xocolatl (74% + chilies – the way the Aztecs liked it, sort of), one of Dolfin Noir 88% de Cacao and a single bar of Theo Venezuela Limited Edition Dark Chocolate (91%). The freaking bar was $7 USD!!! Better be incredibly good. I haven’t tried them. We’ll see.
I could not find any of the elusive Prima Materia (100%). That’s the next step. Maybe it’s time to do some online shopping.
Oh, and speaking of Venezuela: Have you joined La Polla America yet? Time is running out!
So you saw that post showing me and the three other Marcos and were wondering why in the world would they name us all the same.
It’s all due to the ahskenazi tradition in which you are named in honor of a deceased relative, in this case my great grandfather. For unrelated reasons an interesting document turned up recently – a small window into the life of early 20th century immigration to Mexico. Check it out:
Just like last weekend, I flew again to Mexico City for another wedding. Those frequent flyier miles are accumulating like the dirt under my bed (or something, that wasn’t a very good analogy). This time it was the turn for my cousin Galia and Ari. It was all very precious.
See the photos, then stop wasting any time and sign up for La Polla América, which is what you came here for anyway.
Now, here’s some free advice for parents-to-be: You don’t need to get too creative when it comes to picking names, as my family learned a long time ago. Just go for the sure thing and pick a name that reflects confidence, success, beauty, and intelligence.
Or just call your kid Marcos.
PS: You can’t tell from the picture, but I’m the one known as “Marcos Grande“.
It’s here! After the unparalleled success of last year’s FIFA 2006 Polla (82 participants!) we have put together a similar but better polla for the Copa América.
Here’s what you have to do:
Very exciting stuff.
My next-door neighbor recently built this on her front yard:
I’m not sure what it is. My best guess so far is that it is a memorial monument commemorating the 40th Anniversary of the Six Day War. Whatever it is, it makes it easier for people to find my house (“it’s the one by the trench”), so it is a welcome addition. I just hope that traffic in the block won’t increase too much, you know, with all the tourists showing up and stuff.Do you have any guesses? Please comment.
I flew back yesterday (on that new and wonderful direct Aeromexico flight) from Mexico City. You spend two hours on the plane and another two hours in the car trying to get anywhere from the airport.
Alberto Tawil and Yael Shifman got married on Saturday, and of course it was a blast. See the photos at The MKX® Photo Central (or not, it’s totally up to you).
[Update 6/7/2007]In the news:
How long until my T-Mobile contract expires?
Click here to see them.
click to enlarge