A VIEW WITH A ROOM

Notes on topics of interest... and things.

AOG

AOG
Location
London/Madrid/Barcelona, UK / Spain / Europe
Birthday
September 24
Bio
American journalist living in Europe. I like Politics, Art, Culture, Cinema, Architecture, Travel, Literature, International Relations, Economics, Fashion, Music. This is my stupidass blog about my dumbass life in suckass Earth. I also blog at: www.spanishamericanenglish.blogspot.com and www.subvero.blogspot.com (in Spanish) Always up for a good story or a lead.

MY RECENT POSTS

MY RECENT COMMENTS

AOG's Links

Links to do with art and things
JANUARY 11, 2012 2:24PM

What am I looking for still?

AOG, Madrid


My search for the eternal past continues, but this time I think there is a lesson somewhere which is staring me in the face, but I just can't quite put my finger on it.

Thanks to the magic… Read full post »
5 Comments
NOVEMBER 21, 2011 10:52AM

Winning the lottery...sort of

AOG, Madrid


Once again Christmas rears its ugly head. Different countries tend to celebrate in different ways, all living out their version of the modern invention of Christmas as invented by Germany in the XIX century. 

In the case of Spain, this means the National Lottery,… Read full post »
5 Comments
SEPTEMBER 13, 2011 11:31AM

Rome sucks

AOG, Sitges


Word of advice, when you next go on vacation, never wear new shoes on the flight. Why? well, it could be that the airline looses your luggage and you are doomed to wear the same pair of new shoes for days on end.

Word of… Read full post »
4 Comments
JULY 13, 2011 6:31PM

Summer reading (with a Soviet twist) 2011

AOG, Madrid

Summer vacation is just around the corner and I've lately been a bit preoccupied with my Summer reading list. 

Every year I take a small army of books with me to whichever place I happen to be visiting, and every year I return home with 98… Read full post »
4 Comments
JULY 1, 2011 4:20PM

The moment I felt most American

 

AOG, Madrid

On election day 1988 my mother, my sister and I were on a Jumbo Jet heading for Europe. 

We arrived in Madrid and within less than an hour we were on a train heading for the region of Extremadura, on the… Read full post »
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JULY 1, 2011 9:16AM

Modern neighbors

AOG, Madrid


The cool thing about growing up in America is that most of us (not all) live in homes large enough to house a small third world village in the backyard. It is one of the perks of living in a large country… Read full post »
4 Comments
JUNE 21, 2011 5:28PM

What's the deal with Anthony Weiner?



AOG, Madrid

Ok, I confess, before all the media attention surrounding "penisgate" I hadn't much heard about Congressman Anthony Weiner. 

I mean, I live on the other side of the Atlantic, and I have the local European politician crew to… Read full post »
2 Comments
Editor’s Pick
APRIL 25, 2011 9:12AM

Royal Wedding 2011





AOG, London


I just spent the better part of my weekend traipsing all over London. I would like to say that you can't help but notice that there is a Royal Wedding in our midst….but I’d/… Read full post »
26 Comments
APRIL 18, 2011 8:24AM

Atheism in Spain 2011

AOG, Madrid

Spain these days likes to present the World its best non-religious face. Its Prime Minister, Mr. Zapatero, is a well known atheist who, nevertheless, attended a religious service when it visited the US in the company of the Obamas. 

And that is probably the… Read full post »
13 Comments
Editor’s Pick
APRIL 12, 2011 1:10PM

Yuri Gagarin

AOG, Madrid

Today it is 50 years since Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin climbed into his space ship and was launched into space, thereby kickstarting the space race between two superpowers which ended with the first man in the moon in 1969. 

It took Gagarin… Read full post »
15 Comments
APRIL 7, 2011 12:52PM

Outside

AOG, Madrid
 
Outside is different. What does this normally mean? Well, for starters, it means that everywhere you go, it is going to be different. Different? You may say, But of course!

Well Little Miss Smart Ass, you don’t know… Read full post »
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MARCH 29, 2011 3:34PM

Elliot Murphy

AOG, Paris

Last night I was in Paris, a city I love. My partner took me to a birthday party. It was Elliot Murphy's.
 
To celebrate it, he held a concert in a small venue in Paris, New Morning. 

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MARCH 7, 2011 4:47PM

The 'Ho-Hum' Boyfriend

AOG, Barcelona

I am not an expert on relationships, nor am I an expert on human relations. I know I will depart this planet having learned precious little about our species. With this in mind, I must bring up what just happened on the way to/… Read full post »
3 Comments
MARCH 4, 2011 8:06AM

Friendship economics

AOG, Madrid

It is not news that the Spanish economy is not doing extremely well. It is affecting the whole country and yesterday the unemployment rate went back up again.

Of course, to the uninformed observer, Spain's unemployment comes with a caveat: One, most of/… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 28, 2011 8:19PM

The King's Speech

AOG, London

I just saw the Oscar ceremony, and I have to say I'm slightly disappointed by the election of The King's Speech as the winning movie. As the best movie of the year. 

I had a hard time picturing this film as a contender for the crown… Read full post »
1 Comments
FEBRUARY 23, 2011 6:37AM

Childhood lemonade

AOG, Madrid

I think the first drink I ever learned how to make was lemonade. I can't say that anyone in particular taught me, I just 'knew' how to make it.

 Lemons, sugar, water and ice. What else could I need? 

3 Comments
FEBRUARY 20, 2011 8:06PM

True Grit

 

AOG, Madrid


I don't like cowboy movies. I don't like Westerns. I don't like Country & Western music. 

I never have. I doubt I ever will.

I don't much care for cowboys beyond the aesthetics and the images of masculinity they portray. 

I liked Brokeback Mountain… Read full post »
5 Comments
FEBRUARY 20, 2011 12:01PM

A life without Coca Cola

AOG, Madrid


There are things in my life which just exist, and I never give them a second thought. Streets, bricks, newspapers, bicycles, dogs, television, things which have helped to separate our world from our past worlds. 

We in the West, live immersed in objects… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 17, 2011 3:06PM

The chain letter


AOG, Madrid

Like many other people these days, I've grown accustomed, tolerate, smirk at, and even sometimes read over... slightly miffed, the numerous chain -letter emails I get throughout the year from my friends.

These are often only a form of spam with a cute… Read full post »
2 Comments
FEBRUARY 17, 2011 12:54PM

Meme of the day!

AOG, Madrid

A friend sent me this a while back. I thought I would share.

Copy and change the answers to suit you and pass it on.

It's really hard to only use one word answers.

1. Where is your cell phone? Home
2. Your significant other? Working
3. Your hair?/… Read full post »

2 Comments
FEBRUARY 17, 2011 9:33AM

Shock, fear and amazement

AOG, Madrid

You learn a little bit about your stupid self each day, don't you? I have sat in front of my laptop since about 11pm trying to find something to write about.
 
I have checked emails, signed up my spanish
… Read full post »
2 Comments
FEBRUARY 17, 2011 8:15AM

Fear of poverty

AOG, Madrid

I recently got back from London. I have to say that, for the first time in a long time, I got the feeling that the whole country is bracing itself for what is coming finance-wise.


Yes, I am talking about the fear… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 17, 2011 7:34AM

Sometimes I too am this cat

 

From Savage Chickens.

 

I sometimes feel like this cat. And when I say sometimes, I mean often. I think it is the curse of modern life that we too, like this feline, are too exhausted to enjoy any one thing. 

Why does life have to be so complicated these days? I… Read full post »

2 Comments
FEBRUARY 17, 2011 7:14AM

At least one other idiot

AOG, Madrid



Customer service from hell. That is what my friend just told me on the phone. Courtesy of Iberia Airlines.

He called, it seems, to confirm that the airline had his and his partner's names correctly, which they didn't since one of them said "Ms" on… Read full post »

2 Comments
FEBRUARY 17, 2011 4:59AM

The world according to Facebook

AOG, Madrid


This is the new map of the world as influcenced by facebook. As you may gather from it, a lot of places have been left out. Here's a hi.res link to the facebook map.


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