Some good news, some bad news.
The good: i have a new hard disk. 80giga. Huzzah.
The bad: my brother's still busy installing it, so my pc is currently off-limits.
The worse: i should be preparing next week's calendar/timetable, but it's proving to be difficult without a pc handy.
The better.: no updates till all this is sorted out. I'm updating from the office so i can't even link to other sites. So in the meantime learn some magic tricks. No, learn to juggle.
Thursday, October 30, 2003
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
BREAKING NEWS
It's official!
Yours Truly will be in Rome from monday the 2nd to sunday the 9th of november. That means from monday!
Among the many things he'll be doing will be:
-being the guide for a group of over 14 students+ 2 teachers through specific roman monuments(the ones i can bullshit long enough about)
-Providing commentary and discussion for the Roberto Matta mural mosaic in Piazza di Spagna's underground station.
-on wednesday morning, possibly having an audience with [free inside!] The Pope!
-on wednesday afternoon, staging a performance/installation between Campo Dei Fiori and Piazza Navona. Details TBA.
-Visiting the exhibition "metafisica" at Quirinale.
-Attending the Official Opening Ceremony of the United World College of the Adriatic's Academic Year. Followed by buffet dinner for all. That's the main reason i'm going there.
-Visiting several record shops, ditto comic shops.
-Drinking around the place. Investigating on the possibilities of finding a good waikiki in roman bars. Last time wasn't too successful(but we did manage to fill our bellies free of charge)
As you can see, the clou events are on wednesday. Hopefully.
Definitive calendar/timetables are being worked on. Or rather, they will be, as soon as i finish reading webcomics.
All events will be thoroughly chronicled on this very Blog.
Won't Go Down, we're all about Your Privacy!
Tuesday, October 28, 2003
Just added a wee counter. Thanks to the sitemeter guys.
Of course, i still have to understand how exactly it works.
Lately.
So i realize i haven't posted any real content in the past couple of weeks or so. That's because i was either too busy metamorphosing into a slug in the library eight hours a day, or outside getting some social life taken care of on weekends, which is something that has quite surprisingly been going fine recently. Can't help wondering how long it lasts this time.
Anyway, exam tomorrow. Tomorrow? Yes, my dear reader. For last you had heard about exams was, last thursday, three o'clock, Contemporary History Oral. Things didn't quite turn out that way. Well, let's start from the beginning.
Some ten days ago i had to give my history teacher a paper on pre-fascist concentration camps in Ustica. Of course, i wrote it the day before. And the night before. Of course, i didn't sleep. Of course, on the way to Udine i started hallucinating.
I somehow managed to get the freshly printed 3000+word paper into the assistant's hands, even though giant carrots were bulging from the ground, the marble floors were making me pirouette and most traffic lights were morphing into chamaeleons or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle bad guys. On the way back, i almost got run over because i'd failed to see the green chamaeleon turn red.
Once i got back to Duino, having been awake for over thirty hours, the most logical thing to do was to go to sleep. But thirty was such a dull number. It was decided forty-two was far better. So i stayed awake until around five, topping around forty-four hours awake, for once reaching 42 conversation ensued. That explains this.
So on thursday i go to udine to give my exam. Contemporary history, 1914-today. The assistant comes. The teacher doesn't. The assistant informs us that the exam will be divided into two parts, the second being with the teacher on tuesday(tomorrow).
I was third on the list. Five minutes before the first examinee exits, i hear the guy on my left tell me:
"1914-today? No, it's 1814-today!"
and the the girl on my right:
"the second girl just left. You're next in the queue."
My reaction was immediate: i ran down the road to the closest bar, and had myself a shot of grappa.
Shortly thereafter, i entered the examination arena.
Before i even had time to sit down, the assistant asked me to digress a bit on the paper i had presented him the previous week. He said it was somewhat peculiar.
"students don't usually write so much about such specific facts".
Nice.
The first half of the exam was more of a friendly chat about italians deporting libians in the 1910s, the conquest wars, Omar-al-Mukhtar, the movie about him starring Anthony Quinn and its being censored on italian land, the fact that it is widely available on p2p, and why WinMX is better than Kazaa.
Then some questions about Hitler and Mussolini. Got over those without too many problems.
Then came the tough part.
Him: "let's go back a little. Choose an independence war and comment it to me."
me: "hmmm...how about the american independence war?"
Him: "That was 1776. A bit early for this exam."
Me: "Oh! Yes, silly of me. How about the italian independence war?"
Him: "Okay. The first, the second or the third?"
I eventually weaseled my way out of the question.
Final verdict: 27/30. To be confirmed on tuesday. That's tomorrow, for me.
Haven't seen a history book since.
I'm currently blogging, listening to the radio and chatting, all at the same time.
Exiting the exam, i went to buy a bottle of Baileys at the liquor store in the bus station. When the baileys-selling-person found out i was from Chile, he began an extremely friendly chat about neoliberism under Pinochet and the similarities between Aldo Moro and Allende's political coalition programs. Interestingly, he was just as prepared in the topic as the exam assistant. Nice.
On the way back to Duino, lifting my eyes from a comic book for the first time in half an hour, i noticed my bus was going through places i'd never seen before. I got up from my seat, went to the bus driver, and politely began the following exchange:
Me: "Excuse my irreverence, but where the fuck are we?"
Bus Driver: "Medea."
Me: "Oh."
Ten minutes later, we got back to the beaten path. And then got to Duino twenty minutes late.
Ok, that's the story of the first part of my exam. I shall now proceed to have a drink before going on with the story.
Monday, October 27, 2003
And finally,
check out the cheap beer taste test (by way of Dorothy, whose site i visit and link to so often i've started calling her by first name)
This is a public service safety message. Stay tuned for more blog.
Date: Sun, 26 Oct 2003 14:34:53 -0800 (PST)
From: "Robin Luis Fernandez"
Subject: Please, delete eventual previous message.
To: [myself]@yahoo.it
[bcc: a load of other people]
Dear sirs,
If you happen to have recieved a message containing
nothing but gibberish from an email account extremely
similar to mine but nonetheless
unrelated(evaristocavallo[at]publisa.it), i suggest
you all delete it.
It would indeed not be very healthy to open it, in
particular not to open the large executable attachment
it comes with.
I apologize for the inconvenience, even though i am as
much of a victim of this as you are. Or more of a
victim if you haven't recieved such a message and this
is just a false alarm(if this is the case, hello! how
are you! we probably haven't heard from each other in
quite some time).
I shall do all that is in my power to avoid this from
happening in future, even if this may mean dismissing
the present account and getting a new one, which would
be quite a pity because i only use it for writing to
special, special people and have thus grown quite fond
of it. Really.
Please accept my most humble apologies, and possibly
proceed to turn off your computer and go out to enjoy
the more tangible sides of life. All this is of no
importance in the end, indeed we ought to remember
that life wasn't at all that bad before we had
computers.
Yours,
-Robin Luis Fernandez
And now, in italian:
Cancellate il messaggio di prima. Aveva un virus.
-R.
__________________________________
Sunday, October 26, 2003
Saturday, October 25, 2003
Quick post.
It's official: finally going to Venice tomorrow, to the Theatre Biennale.
Tonight, the 1st years gave a short but 75% nice show for the 2nd years, since it was "E.E. Day". Before the show, a *marvelous* performance by the Tambours di Topolò. They're only getting better.
At the show, i noticed everybody was dressed really cool. I asked around what the dress code was. Half of the people i asked answered "dress like Robin", the other half answered "dress like a '60s alcoholic hippie". I don't kno whether to be flattered or offended.
Anyway, 7:30 wakeup tomorrow. So goodnight.
Friday, October 24, 2003
Was reading this article on the bus on the way to my exam. I found one passage particularly provoking. Here goes.
"Phrases like "axis of evil" or "the road map" are not policy statements, but merely soundbites. Officials such as Richard Perle and Paul Wolfowitz talk like Rambo in public, as in private."
So the US has officials who talk like Rambo.
A president who acts like Rambo.
A governor of the State of California who is Rambo.
Scary, very very scary.
Wednesday, October 22, 2003
Tuesday, October 21, 2003
Forgot to point out Banksy's official site. I just bumped into this page over there which is undoubtedly the single most shocking thing i've read all day, which is relevant if you consider i'd been studying twentieth century armed conflicts for the past eight hours.
I can't say this message on Sananda Maitreya(a.k.a. Terence Trent D'arby)'s messageboard didn't shock me. I had to read it twice to believe it actually said what it says.
On 10/17/2003, Mike wrote:
What kind of world do we live in when there is no or little Sananda played on American radio??! I have been hep to Sananda since he first came out when I too was stationed in Germany Back in the Late 80's. I have been spreading his music ever since!! I am currently station in Iraq due to this useless war. I have Neither fish with me and Have been allowing the Iraqi interpeters listen and they want more!! Who doesn't once they listen to the best artist alive today!! I also bought the movie the FAN because I caught at the end of the movie TTD singing while the credits where playing!! Does anyone know if Sananda smokes cigarettes?
francois14815 [at] themail.com
I won't comment on this. But it's good to see that the people stationed in Iraq show more brains than their leaders in admitting that 1)the war's useless and that 2)yes, there actually still is a war going on.
Whatever. There's some new content over on sananda's site. Anyone interested ought to check it out. But that's usually just me.
(have i really dealt with nerdy '80s music and contemporary geopolitics all in one post? Whew. I guess i'm starting to understand why some people think this blog is written by more than one person.)
Two questions have surfaced recently when this weblog has been mentioned in conversation.
1. "Couldn't you write more about the college?"
Answer: Hey, i have my own life too. But anyway, i'll make an effort to write a little more about what's going on, within the limits of what won't *really* get me in trouble if too many people read this page. And if i haven't been informing you guys about what goes on around here recently, it's because i've spent most of the past weeks locked up in the library. No, really. If i could have seen myself writing this a couple of years ago, i would've grabbed a time machine and showed up this moment only to punch myself in the face.
Wait.
Ok, didn't happen.
We're safe.
2. "How do i leave comments to your posts?" (or, as one of you out there asked, "how do i write on your blog?")
Answer: Well, now you can! actually, i'm posting this only to announce that, thanks to the fine folks at haloscan, anybody can comment, scorn or insult my posts! So go for it!
Seems like i'm finally getting the hang of this blogging business. Cool.
(PS: angelo, scusami ma oggi proprio non ce la facevo. Incombevano fotocopie ed esami.)
Monday, October 20, 2003
Radio 3
Just listened to the first part of Radio3 Suite's 10 episode Zappa retrospective. You should do it too. Don't miss the next ones, every day at 20:00 hours. Little or no info here.
And while you're at that site, check out these programs about Victor Jara!
Sunday, October 19, 2003
Soneto de separação
-Vinicius de Moraes
De repente do riso fez-se o pranto
Silencioso e branco como a bruma
E das bocas unidas fez-se a espuma
E das mãos espalmadas fez-se o espanto.
De repente da calma fez-se o vento
Que dos olhos desfez a última chama
E da paixão fez-se o pressentimento
E do momento imóvel fez-se o drama.
De repente, não mais que de repente
Fez-se de triste o que se fez amante
E de sozinho o que se fez contente.
Fez-se do amigo próximo o distante
Fez-se da vida uma aventura errante
De repente, não mais que de repente.
Oceano Atlântico, a bordo do Highland Patriot, a caminho da Inglaterra, 09.1938
Vinicius de Moraes would have been 90 years old today.
Spent a great night.
Had duinesi expecting my attention, which i gave them for a limited time. Then went on to Luka's b-day party. Bavarian beer.
Then enjoyed some time chatting with 3rd years, Junio Seela and Giulia. Then a group of iberoamericans and mixed 1st years met in school basement, where we set up the first indianata of the year. Hoping more will come. If i have my way, they will.
Oh, and i got to kiss some really nice girls.
Friday, October 17, 2003
Ok, so i've got tons of emails to answer, links to link to, events to point out to, but i'm *still* too busy.
That's fate.
So if you've been waiting for an email/phone call/whatever, i apologize, it'll show up in a day or two.
Anyway, i seem to be becoming a good student: i study six to eight hours a day, i write essays, i discuss history with my friends, i never sleep, i get drunk. And i'm enjoying it.
Thursday, October 16, 2003
Wednesday, October 15, 2003
Tuesday, October 14, 2003
Swamped Again!
As you might have noticed, updates have been rather slow here at WGD central recently. It appears the webmaster's currently too busy with his non-blog activities lately, so to honor an ancient internet tradition we are now posting the Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup, which as you all know indicates that blogging shall resume just as pointlessly as ever once we've finished working on this history essay. It might even go online afterwards so i can be scorned in public and probably even chased, beaten and hanged by a chain gang. Can't complain, that's what they're there for.
Monday, October 13, 2003
yes, i'm going through the archives...
Sunday, October 12, 2003
My weekend, fit the first.
Where Alcohol is purchased and consumed, bad timing causes delusions, Much music is heard, our hero causes disruption but ultimately gets rewarded for it, and unexpected encounters bring revelations to our readers.
Winamp: Jackson5-I Want You Back(Konishi Yasuharu ReadyMade Mix)
Let's start with friday. I'd left this blog with a bag full of junk. So i went out and bought some union pivo, just to make things heavier. Six 33cc bottles, 1,50€. The first one died on the bus.
Before going, i had time to say hello to Ana S. and Andrea T., who have been visiting Duino for a few days. I think it's safe to say that they're both doing fine. Ana i'll probably be seeing more of soon, since [SPOILER ALERT] it turned out today that i will be going to rome with the college, after all. It seems i have a project to supervise. No kidding.
Anyway, i made it to Piazza Unità just in time for The Hormonauts' soundcheck. Which meant Eelst's one had been hours earlier, at three o'clock in the afternoon as a matter of fact, but nobody had warned us. Bugger. The other Favae were quite angry about this, i was kind of frustrated because i should've expected it. Ho hum.
Other favae: Chrissy of course, with her mother, brother and grandma who had made a large strudel for Elio, as she usually does. Some groupies this band has. Then there were Ciro&friend, Francesca&bored boyfriend, Romina(new entry!), and i'm probably forgetting somebody. Had some fun conversations during the long wait for the beginning of the show. Called and got called by old friends. Found out that my cellphone battery tends to expire a bit too often for my tastes.
By the time the first band came on, half the beers were gone, or were lobbying to exit. The Galatine remained more or less untouched. Dinner could wait.
The Hormonauts are one great live act. must be seen to be believed. Even Chrissy, whose musical tastes are more traditional, enjoyed them. Next time they come close, i'm paying to see them. Worth it. Their act consisted of ska/rockabilly/swing/punk/whatever works, with cool outfits and quite an attitude to match.
They even managed to overshadow the second band, Africa Unite. Good reggae, but they eventually got a bit tiresome. I like my reggae more rhythmic, more shaken. Theirs was too reflexive, it wasn't the best choice to be placed between two bands that make you move quite a lot. As a matter of fact, Chrissy hated them and spent most of her time making fun of her from the front row.
At this point, Quite a few friends from Duino should have already been there, but were nowhere to be seen. Then i sat on the hand-rail in front of me, and heard them calling from three rows back. By the time Africa Unite had finished, more than half the piazza was full. Halfway through the concert, i checked again and it was completely full. So i called for them and told all 8 or 9 of them to come closer. No, there wasn't any space. I just wanted to cause some more confusion.
Elio came on. Must i add any more? Ok, by now i only had one beer left, which i prolonged throughout the gig. It much helped me in enjoying it, not that i wouldn't have without, but it did enhance my responses to the overall proceedings.
Just some short notes about the concert.
Carambola comes from Duino, Elio said on stage. Afterwards, in the backstage, he authorized me to boast that he'd said that because of me. So there.
More or less the usual show was played, minus Cani e padroni di cani, Mio Cuggino, Budi Giampi, Pagà no and Litfiba. Can't have everything, they finished late anyway. At one o'clock we were already in the municipality enjoying beers given to us by Cesareo himself. Met the cameramen again, they told me Marco Conforti(the band's manager) is taking this DVD thing quite seriously. Multi-angle etc. etc. And he also told me they had lots and lots of closeups on me, since i'd been in every show they'd filmed. Wow. So if it actually comes out, i'll be seen drinking my head off, screaming, dancing and disrupting crowds for the rest of eternity. Small price for fame, i'm already famous for some of those things anyway.
In the end i said goodbye to band members and cult-followers alike, turned my heels and tried to find the Duino people, didn't, swopped that E.L.I.O. cd with another full of mp3s of last year's Cordialmente, went back to the backstage and had Ciro drive me home. A great night all along.
Can't go on, have an appointment in 5 minutes.
More soon. Eventually.
Saturday, October 11, 2003
About Trees.
Trees are interesting people sometimes. There was a bird convention in Duino today, something like a hundred of them on a tree in the nursery's yard. Every now and then they would all move to another tree, and after a while some smaller groups would move to collateral trees, probably to discuss other topics. Then somebody clapped, and they all flew away together to another tree in another field, which they had probably designated beforehand as the Emergency Tree.
As you can probably tell, i stood watching at them for something like half an hour. Maybe it was all just an elaborate prank on absent-minded humans.
Anyway, to somehow attempt to understand what they felt like, i resolved to go to Carso, find a friendly-looking tree, climb it and then play the harmonica for a while. But on Rilke Path most trees are wimps. i looked for a climbable tree, but they all had their lower branches cut off. They probably saw me coming. Blur's latest album has a song about trees. This is quite odd because it's an album full of melancholy ballads on love and loss and political insecurity, so a little rock song about trees sounds unlikely. But it's a nice song nonetheless. But the trees i saw today wouldn't deserve it.
On the stereo: Frank Zappa - Sheik Yerbouti
Friday, October 10, 2003
Getting ready for the concert...
Everything in its right place:
-Galatine
-Fave nametag
-bottle-opener
-empty tapes
-batteries
-E.L.I.O. Cd-R for a guy i met last time
-Feiez's egg-shaker
-Large, coloured chalk
-Appropriate headwear
-Appropriate Shirt
-Trousers that go with that shirt
-Tie that doesn't go with that shirt
-Extra T-shirt, just in case
-Walkman
-Microphone
-Multi-purpose brown mexican pullover(holds mike, holds place, attracts attention of people who know me)
-Cellphone
-Money, sweet sweet money to buy sour, sour drinks with
-keys
Uh, i think that's it. Oh! socks!
Ok, i'm off.
I just realized that this year i've seen this band six times. Ony once i've had to pay. Life is indeed good.
Five minutes ago...
Was feeling peckish. So i went and opened the fridge. And found it full of leftover iberoamerican delicacies left over from last night's Taster Session. Thus pulverizing all my theories on the non-existence of Santa Claus.
Anyway, saw an old friend, Beppe, last night, had a very nice chat 'till the wee hours of the morning. Also got a couple calls from another friend i hadn't heard from in a month or two. And will be seeing Eelst live tonight!
Life is good again.
Wednesday, October 08, 2003
I beg to differ...
So last night the Stachowiaks came over for dinner. Extremely pleasant night, good food, fascinatingly hilarious conversations. And i had to have two grappas down in the bar afterwards for dinner to decide a destination.
Anyway, at one point of the evening, it was pointed out that the current so-called music teacher plans to write a college hymn, with assistance of his students. Paul and Joanna have suggested to take the tune of Shpalman and add new lyrics to it. They were serious. They've already suggested it. Stefano, the aforementioned music teacher, said he hasn't heard the song but will consider it nonetheless.
I want to make it perfectly clear that if something actually comes out of this, i have nothing to do with it. Thank you.
Oh, and last night the School Building had to be evacuated because somebody emptied a fire extinguisher in the basement, which was full of people partying with the iberoamericans(it's their week).
Uh, that's all.
Tuesday, October 07, 2003
Monday, October 06, 2003
Frownland
My smile is stuck
I cannot go back t' yer Frownland
My spirit's made up of the ocean
And the sky 'n the sun 'n the moon
'n all my eye can see
I cannot go back to yer land of gloom
Where black jagged shadows
Remind me of the comin' of yer doom
I want my own land
Take my hand 'n come with me
It's not too late for you
It's not too late for me
To find my homeland
Where uh man can stand by another man
Without an ego flyin'
With no man lyin'
'n no one dyin' by an earthly hand
Let the devil burn 'n the beggar learn
'n the little girls that live in those old worlds
Take my kind hand
My smile is stuck
I cannot go back t' yer Frownland
I cannot go back t' yer Frownland
Captain Beefheart, 1969
Sunday, October 05, 2003
This is very representative of how i'm feeling these days. Once again Bruno's life runs parallel to mine. So much for originality.
Had a quite good weekend, although i'm still trying to understand some parts of it. And no, i didn't get too drunk this time. i remember everything, i just don't understand it.
Anyway, just finished several clumps of photocopies. And also just realized i forgot the ultra-mega-special booklet stapler in the teacher's office, which was not very clever considering the normal stapler dissappeared(yet again) this weekend. Left a very polite note on the noticeboard asking for it back. on A3 paper, with a large red marker. Kindness gets you everywhere.
So i'm going back to that ugly place. So much for spending the rest of the day at home. The only thing i ever come home for these days is sleeping.
Oh! Oh! Pixel Communism Shirt! i want one!!!!
Friday, October 03, 2003
Previous post may have had some spelling mistakes. didn't feel like rereading. So fuck you if you don't like my spelling.
Boy, am i friendly today.
(well, i'll be giving away beers in a couple of hours, i've got to compensate somehow. too much of a good thing can't be good for you, even if it's karma.)
new song by sananda!
So i haven't updated anything personal recently. So interesting things have been happening to me, i was just too busy to update. Mainly, i've been studying. Yes, really. In the library, even. Ironic, isn't it, that i finally manage to study so well in a place i actually had to escape from some years back.
Other things. I believe that Sketches For Urban Intervention I is officially over. My next step will be doing the official thing in trieste and udine in the near future, and in the meantime experimenting Sketches For Urban Intervention II here in duino. Duino's great because it gives me immediate opinions, comments and criticisms. Until now, opinions and comments have been positive, and criticisms have been put to rest every time i've clarified the legality of it all. Well, semi-legality, but that's what art is all about.
Bought some good books/comics recently. Part four of Persepolis finally came out in italy, i immediately grabbed a copy. I also got a copy of Alan Moore: Portrait of an Extraordinary Gentleman, which you can read more about here and here. And i can't stop recommending Panini Comics' reprint of Ken Parker, a masterpiece i've only recently started to rediscover.
The Alan Moore tribute book actually made me understand something important. Performance art is nothing but clumsy magic. If you're not careful with it, you'll get in trouble. I mean, look at what happened(to quote a previous item) to John Lennon when he started the whole "Paul Is Dead" thing. Nonetheless, i think i'm ready for it. After much reflection, i've realized what the one thing in life i'm actually really good at is, and decided that that's the road to follow. The one thing i'm actually good at is this: Getting Away With It.
And that brings me back to writing about real life. I'm studying quite hard(for my standards) for my exam on the 23rd of october, i actually got over most of the program(and 2 days ago i finally finished Hobsbawm's The Age Ogf Extremes!). I'm making the most of Duino, after all if i'm stuck here for a year i might as well take advantage of what it has to offer. So rock room, art center and pottery center are either conquered or with little red and blue flags on the map(emilio fede style). And of course the teacher's office is mine after midnight. Xerox machines are useful, very useful.
Finally, i've solved most problems with the person who had been giving me problems in the past month or so. Much less stress, and spending good times between one four-hour-study marathon and the other. And furthermore, fred and i currently have 37 litres of beer stashed away somewhere. There's a long weekend going on, we couldn't be caught unprepared. Of course it must be said that if i go around with him too long, i start feeling like Beavis&Butthead. We almost blew up Pala today, at lunchtime. Or actually, it was worse: we almost blew up the shit-tanks behind pala today. That was close.
Enough. I hope that'll keep people from calling or writing me for another few days, this has been happening to me kind of often recently*. Oh, for a world where everybody blogs, so nobody would need to go out or talk to each other anymore.
Oh! oh! check out Eelst live in Rome!
(*took me 1h 25mins to find that strip)
They're at it again! and they *just almost* stole my idea...
I already said it on their forum, but let it be said here, too: CONGRATULATIONS to giggi and SignsInMotion for the great ideas!
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