hot golf, hot food, hot art...

Fredrick, the swede, and i in the early stages of a fine round on the only 100% public course in town. the early stages were just fine and then i felt as if old age happened all at once. i was really just crawling forward, aiming at trees so i could be in the shade. it reached 41, that´s 106, a fifty year high. i promise to check the forecast next time. other than that, a pretty nice course, a bit dried out in this season but really inexpensive. a bit long for me, but not for the young guys. also, too many bunkers. maybe this winter i´ll try to find, refind some kind of game. as i´ve probably mentioned this course is just a dozen blocks from home, on the edge of the huge long park. up the street a few blocks is the club atletico excursionistas. the local level "c" soccer club. the newcomer "pros", they get a couple hundred bucks a month and the opportunity to be picked up by higher level clubs for more dough and so on up to the big leagues and real dough. last night was the home opener, a 1 - 0 victory in the rain. loved sitting in the rain. didn´t take the camera though, next time. i joined the club, so i can be in the clubhouse for cheap beer and burgers and futbol bullshit with a bunch of other old know it alls. great place.


While Dave was baking in the sun golfing, I was making instant silk screen art with a group of 30 on a terrace at the downtown cultural center, in the shade. This free 4 week workshop is hosted by artist Coco. He has a huge current showing of his work and his group projects at the center. The green flying razor blade to the left is a big metal sculpture of his, and the yellow piece uses a combination of printing techniques. Next week, 4 of us are going to attempt a group print.







Democrats Abroad hosted one of the best and most surprising meals... we took bus and taxi to a somewhat shabby barrio, went into an unmarked building, through two barred doors and up the stairs to this great Korean restaurant. No menus, the waiters just kept bringing on plates heaped with all sorts of things... each table had a sunken well with metal grill, with coals underneath where everyone cooked their meat or shrimps, etc., then dipped into all sorts of sauces... a truly great meal complete with beer or wine... for about $16 each.


and some hot local graffiti...

Lanin Street in Baracass barrio

(The advertisement on the left of Dave's charcoal grilled steak and ribs is an enticement to visit Buenos Aires and our patio)












We have started putting the word out that we will be needing a new place to live in alittle over three months. There are lots of nice furnished apartments in the spiffy sections of Buenos Aires we could easily rent, but finding a place where we can get messy, slop some paint around, that's not so available. Dave wants to build "big things" and lingers at every big shop we pass...so a friend suggested we check out the Baracass area on the funky industrial edge of town, down by the river and docks and such.....We ended up on Lanin street, where as you can see, an artist neighbor has created quite a fine thing with paint and little tiles...

We found a great house a block away from Lanin with a for rent sign and a big gravel side yard perfect for making messes....and grilling meat. Stay tuned for info on availability and price...

focus on artwork

For the last two weeks, Dave has been focused on finishing a sculpture he brought down to Argentina. He has been carving up on the roof, lugging it on the bus to the local museum where we both are in workshops, and here on the plaza of a downtown cultural center....

Here is my painting workshop in the musem attic..

local live music, work almost done

down one block, a sidewalk cafe, very personable, limited menu, unlimited cocktail menu, live singer thursday nights - that means it starts around midnight, goes till four - sort of a combination folk, pop, tango singer that is a skinny middle aged guy with a huge voice, he wanders the crowd, gets people joining in the songs, especially the folk songs and all of the ladies are up and moving. the upper body doing wide armed swooping folk dance loops and snaps while the lower part, belt down, is straight from brazil and twitching like a bat out of hell. as a whole, it works perfectly and can't help but induce a smile. later on, our singer invites people that were good singers in the walk around part to come up and solo, almost karaoke. so, about four, we walk home to listen to the last couple hours of the young kids and friends who have moved into the new building across the street and are singing along with, making rhythm with, dancing with the current pop folk hits. it's really quite refreshing, but a little late, oh well, live with it all.

two quick shots of a small figure carving that's almost done. my ego, which doesn't need any, got a boost when this reasonably famous local carver lady asked if i would exhibit it in a museum show displaying the range of argentine wood carving - i think i'm the retired foreign carver type - if i could finish by the end of feb. so, i backed off on most everything else, and am almost done. it's ok, but a pretty predictable smith carving, oh well.

a poster on the wall of the clubhouse of the local futbol club, i'm amember, of course. they're "level c", about the same level of play, and pay of the eugene ems. lots of young talent that may make it "to the bigs". hard to see, but in the upper left, you'll see a banner with a marijuana leaf and the words suggest that the green of the " excucursionistas - excursios -" .is as assured of success, as the marijuana green in the hills. it's a great spot for me , lots of old fart beer drinkers, futbol talkers, political talkers - that, by the way, is it's own full time hobby locally - real cheap drinks and eats for members { five bucks a month} . their main focus is on very serious training for young talent, starting about ten years. the folks have to pick up a tab, not too big, for the coaching. scholarships happen for serious young talent and the training regimen is serious marine tough. when matches start, in march, i'll try to get it together for a video.