We arrived in San Juan in the early afternoon, and took the short taxi ride to our hotel, the Intercontinental San Juan Resort and Casino.  We were shocked when the front desk clerk told us we must pay a $500 deposit “for incidentals”.  We had purchased a vacation package months ago, which included our airfare and hotel.  We knew we’d have to pay for parking and taxes, but didn’t expect to pay such a large sum up front.  It cut into our walkin’ around money quite a bit.  To make matters worse, to pick up the rental car we’d reserved we had to pay a $400 deposit.  At the end of the week, Avis would refund the deposit less the rental fee.  Thankfully, that was the end of our troubles for the entire vacation (save one rainy morning).  The desk clerk gave us a sweet room upgrade on the eleventh floor with a beach view.  Plus, the girl at the Avis desk–conveniently located in the hotel lobby–upgraded us to a Nissan Rogue.  It was quite nice, and made us feel better.

We spent that afternoon hanging out near the hotel, deciding to take it easy.  There were several restaurants across the street, so we ate, and got directions to the nearest supermarket from two police officers.  Pueblo is quite similar to Albertson’s.  I was fascinated by all the exotic products.  Brands we know well in the USA make items for the Latin American market that we never see here.  And items that we do have look different.  Two-liter Pepsi bottles were tall and slender, and Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes are called something else entirely.  Soda was less expensive than in the USA ($1.07 for two liters), but dairy products were much more: milk cost $5.99 per gallon.  The Puerto Rico equivalent of Merita or Hostess is called Holsum, and I bought a package of their little donuts with powdered sugar called “Donitas”.  They were delightful, and over the course of our vacation I must have eaten eighty little donuts.  I even wrote a song about them:

Donitas, me gusta comer Donitas.
Te quiero, mi amor, Donitas.
La comida de Dios, Donitas!

I would like to make a music video for my song in a very Univision style, with lots of blown-back hair, camera zooming, and a scene where I pick my face up out of a pile of powdered sugar, like the scene from Scarface where Al Pacino lays face down in a  mountain of cocaine.  I can’t say enough good things about Donitas.

But, even better than Donitas was a treat I had for the first time ever the day we spent in Old San Juan.  The historic eatery called La Bombonera sells something called Mallorcas, and they are a gift from heaven.  They look like small spirals of dough sprinkled with powdered sugar.  You can get them in this soft form, but I had mine grilled, without the cheese or meat that others prefer.  They were indescribably good, and I wished I had a larger stomach so that I could have eaten more of them.  More about La Bombonera later.

After dinner our first night, we went down to the beach, then swam in the pool after dark.  The constant breeze and cool water was completely refreshing.  The pool, which was huge and had a waterfall and a bridge over it, was open all day and night, but we sometimes went down too late to get towels from the gazebo, and had to feel very cold coming up in the air-conditioned elevator.  Then, back in the room, we opened the sliding glass door to the small balcony, and delighted in the breeze that blew back the curtains.  Most of the time that we spent in our room was with the door open.  Some nights we could see the cruise ships leaving San Juan and heading east, and the sight of their bright lights sailing toward the horizon was enchanting.  So ended our first day in Puerto Rico.

More to come.

The number of people selling food in Puerto Rico is impossible to exaggerate.  Where ever one stands here, several dining opportunities are within view.  At street corners, men and women sell fruit.  At roadside kiosks, vendors sell all manner of fried and roasted meat.  Restaurants fill every building.  I know that seems like hyperbole, but when I say that you can’t turn your head without finding a place to eat, I mean it.  In people’s homes, from people’s cars, from stand-alone structures and on foot, food is for sale.

Perhaps the most unexpected thing I have found amidst the huddled masses, baking in the heat here is a kind and jovial politeness.  Almost without exception, everyone with whom I have come into contact in Puerto Rico has been very nice.  Even in situations in which one might expect a degree of curtness or even aggression, there is none.  For example, Miriam and I attempted to access the former United States Navy base called Roesevelt Roads on the east side of the island.  At three different checkpoints we were turned away.  But, each guard with whom we spoke was friendly and polite.  In America, security guards are so often complete jerks, that I was taken aback.  And, even when it sounds like Puerto Ricans are angry and shouting at one another–and people here are loud, to be sure–it isn’t what it seems.  On a sidewalk beside a vast expanse of lawn that sits before San Felipe del Morro, as we enjoyed delicious piraguas, we saw a family pass.  The children were shouting as children always do, and the mother seemed to be speaking sternly to them.  But, what they were really saying, in Spanish, of course, was how beautiful the kites were, and how nice the weather was.

Puerto Rico is crowded, dirty, and poor as can be.  But the people here are warm and friendly.  I will miss this.

Coors Light is giving adult consumers a way of knowing when their beer is at the ultimate drinking temperature with the debut of the brand’s Cold Activated Can in a 24 fluid-ounce container. Thermochromatic ink turns the mountains blue when the beer is cold enough to drink. The company was the first U.S. beer brand to offer this type of product with the debut of Coors Light and Coors Cold Activated Bottles….

I have an equally effective technique for determining when my beverage is at the “ultimate drinking temperature”:  I touch it with my hand.

Today I had to go to school to drop off a paper, and on the way back I called to place my order.  When I told the guy my name he said, “Pepperoni/Butter-cheese?”  Like I said, I go there a lot.

Until this afternoon, Gainesville had a wonderful old soda fountain at Wise’s Drug Store on University Avenue, downtown.  It had been open for over seventy years, and was the kind of place where sassy ladies with names like Gladys would give you a hard time if you asked for a “hamburger with cheese” or didn’t know the difference between an ice cream float and a vanilla soda.  I had been going to Wise’s for as long as I’ve lived in Gainesville.  They made the best vanilla milkshakes anywhere, and served them with a spoon, and always gave you the excess in the stainless steel cup they mixed it in.  You could get malt added if you wanted, but I like things for their thingness, so I kept it simple.

Earlier this month it was announced that Wise’s would be closing.  They’ll still keep a drive-through pharmacy on SW 4th Avenue, but the soda fountain is no more.

As a dyed in the wool nostalgist, this is a sad occasion for me.  Clearly, soda fountains aren’t as common as they once were, especially ones still located inside drug stores where you could buy a hot water bottle and a shaving brush one aisle over.  Moreover, Wise’s closing means a significant site of Dana Heritage is now lost. I ate at that counter with many close friends over the years, some of whom have moved far away or with whom I have lost touch.  I shared many memorable moments there with my one true love.  On special occasions when Mrs. Hill would have an afternoon off, we’d have lunch together there at the counter.  And I know many others will miss Wise’s.  I even have two close friends who went to Wise’s directly after getting married last year in the courthouse downtown.  Since the closing was announced there have been long lines to eat, and while we were there this afternoon I could see some people weeping.

The economy being what it is, the building will probably sit empty for a while.  Eventually it’ll become a bar or club, or, more accurately, a series of bars and clubs that last a year or less each.

What a sad day.

As the price of everything has increased at a shocking rate since then, I have been amazed that McDonald’s has been able to maintain the Dollar Menu, and today they even have a Dollar Menu-based “value meal”, which includes a sandwich, french fries and a soda for less than $3.00.  I don’t know how they can afford to sell for that price, but I read this evening that it is working for them.  Profits are up.

This just goes to show that people will save money where they can, and it’s hard to pass up a $1.00 double cheeseburger.

• I began classes at the University of Florida.  This is remarkable, because had I waited any longer the window would have closed on me, probably forever.  The University announced this year that they were changing their admissions policy for transfer students.  Unlike other universities in Florida, UF doesn’t have to admit students with transfer degrees from community colleges.  They can pick and choose.  And when the average GPA for entering freshmen at UF is over 4.0, there is little incentive for them to take people like me.  I got in just under the wire.  School is challenging, but rewarding.  I feel very grateful to be where I am.
• This year I became active in a roller debry league.  I am not a skater, of course, but I spent a lot of time with the girls who are skaters, and contributed to the league in my own small way.
• I did lots of traveling in 2008.  In January I spent a weekend in Daytona Beach at the wedding of my closest friends; in June I spent almost a week in Chicago, which is surely one of the world’s great cities; in early August I spent several days in Hilton Head, South Carolina, which I didn’t care much for as a place, but can now say I’ve seen; went to Savannah twice; had a great weekend in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, which is a delightful little town; had an incredibly memorable week in Washington, DC, where I saw a million amazing things.
• I made lots of new friends, and reconnected with many old friends on Facebook.  I saw Burt twice.
• I got myself an amazing Fender Telecaster, which is ideal in nearly every way.
• I continued my incredible no-vomiting streak.
• I paid off all of my credit card debt.
• I watched lots of Olympics on TV.
• I became the last person I know to buy a laptop computer, and it’s changed my life.
• I discovered Samuel Johnson, which also changed my life.
• I had several photographs published in books, magazines, and even the website of the Wall Street Journal.
• I ate an astonishing amount of Hungry Howie’s pizza.
• I perfected the grilled cheese sandwich (the secret ingredient is salt).
• I read: Emma; Persuasion; Oroonoko; Wuthering Heights; Lady Audley’s Secret; Evelina; Robinson Crusoe; Roxana; Oliver Twist; The Monk; Clarissa; Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and tons of poetry.
• I saw Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band in concert; they played “Jungleland”.

So long, 2008.  You were good to me.  As I do every year, I close with the Stephen Foster sentiment that has become my credo: Hard Times Come Again No More.

The best milkshakes I’ve ever had are at Wise’s Drug Store on University Avenue downtown.  I’ve watched the girls behind the counter make them, and it’s remarkably simple: ice cream, milk, vanilla syrup.  I used to be able to find Hershey’s vanilla syrup in Publix, but no more.

So, this afternoon I decided to request that my local Publix (called “Ghetto Publix” by someone I know who works there) get me some vanilla syrup.  It took forever for the grocery manager to come out and see me, but he brought with him some pages with descriptions of various vanilla syrup products from different manufacturers.  So, some day soon I may be enjoying delicious homemade milkshakes.

In Gainesville, the well-organized fireworks display takes place on the 3rd, presumably to allow students and others to head home and spend the holiday with their families.  This year, with huge budget cuts harming nearly every department on Campus, WUFT canceled the display.  Shortly thereafter, an anonymous donor ponied up tens of thousands of dollars and the event was back on.

So, at eight o’clock on Thursday evening, Sara (aka PopHer), and Steven and Kathleen arrived at our home and we chatted for a bit waiting for Sarah Jean (aka Ruby Typhoon).  Steve and Kathleen, traditionally not fans of fireworks, opted out, and Sarah Jean seemed unconvinced that the weather would cooperate–it had been thundering–also appeared to bow out.  But Robin (aka Patsy Clothesline) would be there, and Kat (aka Demonomia) was scheduled to appear.  It wasn’t long, though, before Sarah Jean and her husband Andrew did arrive, and we listened to the Gainesville Community Band and watched the fireworks with thousands of others at Flavet Field beneath a clear sky.  There was watermelon and chicken, cupcakes and drinks, and, though the pyrotechnics didn’t seem as substantial as in years past, we all still had a great time.

Friday morning Miriam and I drove down to Micanopy to experience the kind of small town parade that you only see in movies.  There was no marching band–Micanopy doesn’t have a high school–but we did see lots of tractors and horses and politicians waving flags.

In the evening we went to Steve and Kathleen’s house where we enjoyed a spaghetti dinner with Robin, Sara, Sarah Jean and Andrew.  Then, out in the street in front of the house we set off all manner of firecrackers.  We all had a fabulous time, even as revelers on nearby streets set of vastly superior pyrotechnics.  Inside we had ice cream novelties and played the most recent installment of Grand Theft Auto, continuing a tradition that harkens back to the legendary BBQ 2000, when I first experienced a video game that was actually fun to watch as well as play.

Today I worked all afternoon, but tonight is karaoke with the GRR girls downtown.

We left Gainesville on Tuesday morning before sunrise.  In fact, I probably slept only three hours the night before, and Miriam didn’t sleep at all.  We were at Gainesville Regional Airport by 5 AM, and in Chicago by 10 AM (Central).  Midway is apparently the neglected step-child of Chicago airports.  We took a shuttle bus into the city, and arrived at our hotel hungry.

To solve that problem we started walking, past the busy hot dog vendor in the plaza downstairs from us, and ate instead in Millennium Park, which is a magical place.  Many others were there to picnic as well.  The weather was perfect – in the low 70s and breezy with white fluffy clouds over head.  As we ate our hot dogs we listened to an orchestra rehearse Wagner.  From there we crossed the gardens and Grant Park, stopping at Buckingham Fountain (which is enormous), before arriving at the Field Museum.  I had visited the Field Museum when I was a child, but that was so long ago I can recall very little of it.  I doubt I loved it as much then, too.  Everything was amazing, including the T. rex, the plant and animal dioramas, the cases of minerals, and the building itself.  They even had a temporary exhibit about mythical creatures, including the Unicorn, and I got to touch a narwhal horn which was once presented as having come from the mythical beast.  As Jeff might say, I harnessed the power of the Unicorn.

After all that walking we stopped and had delicious iced novelties at a stand along Lake Michigan.  It was the best snow cone in history.  For dinner we took a cab up to the tourist-centric Navy Pier, but I was determined to ride a huge Ferris Wheel, and we did.  It was great.  The moon was rising over the lake, the skyline of the city was spectacular.  It was one of life’s perfect moments.

I spent most of Wednesday with Burt, who, unfortunately couldn’t come to town by train, and had to drive instead, spending what must have been a fortune to park.  But we had lunch together, then took the subway to the Shedd Aquarium and Adler Planetarium.  At closing time we went out and sat on some steps by the harbor.  The weather was splendid, but it was as bright as could be.  The city looked majestic.  Once Miriam was finished with her work activities we all had dinner at Giordano’s, right around the corner from our hotel.  It was delicious, and filling.  Burt had to be heading home, but Miriam and I walked over to Millennium Park again to listen to an orchestral concert.  We heard Respighi’s Pines of Rome.  There were so many people out enjoying the evening, and we decided to do the same, once again visiting the popular sculpture Cloud Gate, which everyone seems to love.

I had the next day to myself, and I spent the morning walking around the Chicago River and taking photos of the architecture.  Our hotel was right near the Wrigley Building and the Tribune Building, and just a stone’s throw from Marina City. Then I rode a bus down to the Museum of Science and Industry, which is on the south side of the city.  Along the way the bus passed by an amazing number of old townhouses with fabulous steps and doorways.  I was impressed how even at such a distance from the Loop district, great numbers of people live in high-rise buildings, each of which must have impressive views of the city skyline or the lake. I had been to the Museum of Science and Industry when I was a child, and I remember at the time looking through the periscope of the U-505 submarine and seeing an old car parked in an alley.  They’ve since moved the captured Nazi vessel to its own subterranean wing of the complex. The tiniest part of the exhibit made the biggest impact on me.  It was a metal identification badge with an eagle on a swastika, above which are the words “GOTT MIT UNS”.  What a disgusting claim.  The museum has the largest, and therefore coolest model train layout I have ever seen.  I played with it for a long time.  Proof that it is a big museum: the 727 suspended above the aforementioned train layout and full size locomotive. I stared at the Foucault pendulum for a long time trying to understand it, to no avail.  Admission was free; bus fare was only $2, and we passed Soldier Field on the way back.  In the evening we went out to dinner, then explored the theater district en route to see Wicked at the Oriental Theater.  It was a fancy place, and I was a bit surprised that I actually enjoyed the show a great deal.  Credit must be given to the lead actresses, especially Annaleigh Ashford who played Glinda.  I can’t imagine enjoying anyone more in the role (except, perhaps, Kristen Chenoweth, but that’s no surprise).  I have seen video of other actresses in the role, and I know I would not have liked the show as much had I seen someone else in the part. In any case, the story and feel were far enough removed from The Wizard of Oz that I never found myself comparing the two, which is good because nothing could live up to that standard, particularly Arlen and Harburg’s music.

Friday, the first day of summer, promised to be one of the best of my life.  I spend the morning doing more walking around, up Michigan Avenue with its lovely planters to the old Water Tower; along the river across its bridges; and to the Merchandise Mart. What amazes me about Chicago is how an Art Deco building like the Merchandise Mart can coexist with the nearby Gothic, French Renaissance, Structural Expressionist, Beaux Arts, Neoclassical and Chicago Style architecture.  Even the horribly ugly Daley Center is rendered less offensive by its proximity to much handsomer structures.  All I can say about the afternoon’s pilgrimage to Wrigley Field is that it was a dream come true.  It seems smaller in person, but is beyond a doubt the perfect place to watch baseball.  For the record, I paid almost $180 for two tickets in section 240, at the end of row 13; the paid attendance was 41,106; the Cubs beat the White Sox 4-3 off a home-run in the bottom of the 9th.  I was glad to call my dad during “Take Me Out to the Ballgame”.  We beat the crowd back to the Addison station and made our way via bus to a store called Penelope’s in a neighborhood near Wicker Park.  The shop girl explained the abundance of young people was due to the relatively low rent (her three-bedroom was $1,000/mo.)  Miriam bought some nice new clothes.  We rode the train back to the Loop and visited the Art Institute, where we saw many wonderful sculptures and famous paintings.  They even had furniture.  We got in one last evening walk before a late dinner.  The city still felt very safe at eleven o’clock, and the weather was cool and the sidewalks busy.

The next morning we met up with an old friend of Miriam’s, drove through the downtown one last time then had a delightful time at the Brookfield Zoo (gallery coming soon).  We stayed Saturday night at a great hotel nearer to O’Hare.  It was a much better value than the considerably more expensive Hyatt Regency on Wacker Drive. We spent all of Sunday travelling home, including what seemed like an eternity at Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta.  I was sitting on the wrong side of the airplane to get a good shot of Gainesville as were were descending, but I got this shot of Waldo Road.  We arrived home at six o’clock on Sunday evening after leaving our hotel at 6:00 AM that morning.  It was a tough day.

I love Chicago, and if it weren’t ludicrously cold for months on end I would want to live there.