Dr. Filomena

Miami skyline

Consider me pleasantly surprised. The decision to spend a couple of days here was one made at the last moment. Granted, it did take us ook us two hours to get off the plane once we landed as the airport had been shut down for three hours due to heavy rains and our plane had to wait in line. But the pilot had taken us all around the big bad scary clouds and touched down without as much as a tremble despite promises of heavy turbulence, so the wait was not a big deal. 

Waiting for a taxi after a three-hour airport shutdown

We decided to get a taxi instead of renting a car and boy did that turn out to be the right choice! It would have taken forever to get the car plus the taxi driver knew how to get around heavy traffic to the place in South Beach where we were supposed to stay the night. Except that our room had been flooded. We ended up getting a room five blocks away and although it’s just about the worst dump you can imagine, it’s relatively clean, air-conditioned and only a block away from the beach.

Oversized mojitos

After a 24 hour trip starting in Brussels, getting fingerprinted in Chicago and thanking the pilot for the smooth ride around the cumulus nimbii (?) we really felt like a walk down the Ocean Drive. Yummy lobster salad with avocado and mango! Should have checked the prices of cocktails as they could have served as a hint that the humongous glasses placed on our table easily have constituted a dinner all on their own. Considering they contained about four regular mojitos each, the $25 price tag wouldn’t be excessive. Had I been able to drink that much. Apparently, another diner that evening had consumed three of those with his food. Things that make you go… hummm.

I was under the impression that was where the sun don’t shine? Note the sun umbrella in the back… South Beach may well be the gay capital of the world.

The beach is something else. Aptly described by our tour guide as South Florida’s Silicon Valley, it’s the place to swim, sunbathe, watch and be seen. We took a bus/boat tour of the city and learned about its roots. The art deco buildings are beacutiful as is the entire Coral Gables district. Little Havana and Little Bahamas along with a number of other Littles, however, serve to remind that this is one of the poorest cities in the US.

Living the Good Life… or was that Livin’ La Vida Loca?

The stark contrasts were apparent this morning when I went out for a jog along the beach. Groups of semi-conscious kids finally heading back to their hotels yelling jibberish to each other from two-feet distance, tripping over homeless old men covered in newspaper trying to get some sleep, not disturbing the beautiful and fit ladies doing yoga and not catching a glance from the early morning joggers. Squirrels seemed unfazed as did the flock of green parrots.

Paradise.

Cappuccino and breakfast at the Cafe des Arts warmly recommended (I know, I know)

Svoj glas na evropskih volitvah sem oddala že pred nekaj dnevi, po pošti. Neizbežno so sledila vprašanja prijateljev in obraznoknjižnih znancev, za koga sem volila. Bolj je bilo presenetljivo vprašanje: “za koga naj volim?”

Nisem volila za stranke, ki svojo podobo gradijo na nacionalizmu, ker zanj v naši družbi ne bi smelo biti prostora. “Borili se bomo za slovenske interese.” Hmm. Kaj mislite, kateri par ima bolj podobne interese? Slovenca Boško Šrot in Janez Novak, ki je fizični delavec v njegovi pivovarni ali taisti Janez Novak in John Smith, ki dela kot fizični delavec v neki angleški tekstilni tovarni (če kakšna še obstaja). Kakovost našega življenja v prihodnosti bo v veliki meri odvisna od tega, koliko se bomo kljub slabšim gospodarskim razmeram znali upreti tako zelo privlačnemu populizmu, ki deli na naše in vaše. In vlada.

Nisem volila za stranke, ki ciljajo na eno samo versko skupnost in poskušajo enačiti pripadnost religiji s pripadnostjo določeni stranki. Tudi zbujanje nestrpnosti na podlagi verskih prepričanj bi že davno moralo samo slab spomin. Imagine!

Nisem volila za stranke, ki po mojem mnenju nimajo dovolj sposobnih in izkušenih članov, ki bi bili primerni za odločanje o pomembnih vprašanjih, ki bodo odločilno vplivala na našo prihodnost.

Nisem volila za “popolnega, brezmadežnega kandidata”, ker se zavedam, da kaj takšnega ne obstaja. Najmanj od filma Nekateri so za vroče naprej mi je jasno, da nihče ni popoln. Razen morda Hitlerja, ki ni pil, ni kadil, ni užival živalskega mesa in je živali ljubil bolj kot ljudi.

Volila sem za osebo, ki ima po mojem mnenju dovolj izkušenj, da bo znala krmariti v vodah politike in ob tem ne bo pozabila, da je naša prihodnost v na znanju temelječi družbi, ki bo vsa razpoložljiva sredstva vlagala v vseživljenjsko izobraževanje in razvoj okolju prijaznih visokih tehnologij. In da, za osebo, ki se bo po mojem mnenju tudi odločno in uspešno postavila za interese slovenske države v celoti, če bodo ti iz kakršnega koli razloga ogroženi.

Na vprašanje “za koga naj volim” seveda niti slučajno ne nameravam odgovoriti s konkretnim predlogom. Vsak se odloča sam in po lastni vesti. Pomembno je le, da na podlagi nekega tehtnega razmisleka in ne trenutnih emocij. Z vsako reformo evropskih pogodb je evropski parlament pridobil nekaj moči. Če bo Irska oktobra potrdila lizbonsko, bo od januarja naprej tokratna zasedba precej močnejša od prejšnjih, saj bo postopek soodločanja, v katerem v zakonodajnem postopku soodločata parlament in svet, postal “običajni” zakonodajni postopek, tako da se bo uporabljal na skoraj vseh področjih.

Tvoj glas zato ni nepomemben. Mimogrede… Državna volilna komisija je objavila primere veljavnih in neveljavnih glasovnic: primeri v pdf. Razmisli in voli. Vsak glas šteje in če ne voliš svoj glas prepuščaš drugim. Jaz svojega ne dam!

Leti leti leti… dr. fil. Z nekaj pomoči.

(all photos taken on various occasions by dr. fil – please respect the copyright)

above: the new Honorary Citizen of Ljubljana, France Bučar gave an inspiring speech on values in today’s society, which received a standing ovation

above: the second new Honorary Citizen of Ljubljana, one of Slovenia’s top managers in his time Miran Goslar, instructed PM Borut Pahor on how to act in the current crisis; very interesting and possibly not quite as palatable for all as the first speech was

My blogging activity has definitely been declining. Again. Not that I ever considered myself a real blogger. This site started basically because of a nudge from a dear friend who thought I might have something interesting to say. Why he got that impression is beyond me. But I digress. Just to share with you guys a little bit of what has been going on around here.

above: never take yourself too seriously; Radio Ga-Ga, which recently turned 20 y/o should know (I just realised the first show was held on my birthday <G>)

Important info first. The cats are fine. Chuchi is being her wonderfully irresistible bitchy self and Perkmandeljc has become much more sociable and actually comes out to see the guests when they sit down in the living room. All the house parties must have done him good.

above: one of the house parties; just under 40 guests… ahem

Less importantly, I had a series of exams over a period of a month last month, starting with the last stretch of my EPSO competition. The final stage in this selection process, which took about a year all in all, was an oral exam in Brussels. I was successful and have been put on the reserve list. After that came an exam in the Political Science MA programme for Professor Cornell Clayton’s class on the constitutional development of the United States. What an interesting subject. Passing that one means I really should now start focusing on writing a thesis. Just do it, right? Not to make my life too boring, this exam was followed closely by my midterm French test.  Love the language! Have I mentioned that I do actually hold a full-time day job?

above: I have, of course, been cooking, baking and entertaining; pictured is my latest edition of wholemeal bread with a variety of seeds

Right now, we are making final preparations for a trip to Florida and Georgia. I am so excited about visiting friends there, especially my “American Grandmother” Pat! Lord knows our political views are less than compatible, but I love her nonetheless. Not to mention that she fixes a mean peach cobbler! Bunkey is a one of a kind, Wade is going to take care of the barbecue, Jackie will again claim he ain’t got no accent and we’ll probably end up in his shed playing darts with the all-country-music jukebox on. The squirrels usually don’t object.

When we return, I resolve to start writing the texts for my thesis to get this done and over with. More learning will follow as I’m thinking about picking up my legal studies again. Maybe. Just maybe.

Oh, if you’re an EU citizen, don’t forget to vote next week! The EU parliament may have a greater impact on your daily life than you imagine as it is and with the Lisbon treaty, which is most likely to be ratified in Ireland come October, the Parliament’s role in EU’s decision-making processes will increase significantly. Get informed and vote accordingly. Since I’ll be overseas at the time, I have already mailed in my ballot.

Anyway, the cats are fine.

Kaj se zgodi, če Laško postavimo na hladno in ga tam pustimo predolgo?

Na pobudo matere Prof. Alje in mojih dragih FB prijateljev sem dokumentirala pripravo današnjega kosilca, ki sem si ga sredi tedna lahko skuhala kar doma (hvala). Pravzaprav sem ‘čistila hladilnik’, kradla ideje po netu in čarala. Uporabila sem posodo, ki mi jo je podarila gostja hišoogrevalnega žura. Takole je šlo:

Pristavimo vodo za riž, da bo ta kuhan, ko bo omaka nared.

Sesekljano čebulo in česen damo v glineno posodo, začinimo po okusu. Jaz sem dala malo čilija, baje je dobro z origanom in janežem. Pokrijemo in postavimo v pečico (180°C). Ne, res ni olja.

Ko čebula v pečici postekleni, ji dodamo paradižnik. Načeloma pelate, jaz pa sem nasekljala hipotetično svež paradižnik, ki je bil ‘tik pred rokom’. Posodo vrnemo v pečico. Narežemo šparglje.

Ko mešanica čebule in paradižnika zavre, dodamo šparglje. Na tej točki ne bi škodile narezane črne olive, ampak jih ni bilo v hladilniku (priznam, zadnjih nekaj sem – ups – vrgla stran, ampak so bile res že bivše). Malo premešamo in posolimo – itak, da z grobo soljo iz piranskih solin – nato spet pokrijemo in vrnemo v pečico. Aha, dodala sem malenkost belega vina.

Šparglje postrežemo na rižu. Preprosto kot razširjena fižolova jed!

Dober tek!

Thank goodness for resourceful gentlemen who come to the rescue of forgetful dames with such sophistication.

Photo by dr. fil

No worries. I’ll cross that bridge on my own terms.  

Who’ll be the first to guess which bridge is pictured above?

Photo by dr. Fil at Trnovski pristan in Ljubljana
with considerable assistance of dr. Fil’s niece Prof. Alya

Can we outsmart a magpie?

Se vidimo!

http://www.radiokaos.info/ljubljana/cestitke-ob-dnevu-zmage/