On the Prowl

I'm not the first to moan about house hunting in London, and I certainly won't be the last I can tell you that. "Its only going to get worse" says the woman at Thompson Currie. "The students are flooding in..." says Mr. Foxtons, as he licks his chops and skims the list. The dooms day prophecy shakes the walls of the office, a few papers fall to the floor. I hope my house has more solid foundations. But that's unlikely on a student budget. And if it's not solid walls, its a 'bedroom-livingroom-kitchen conversion.' I never did like to take dinner in my room, but if its a top floor property at least there won't be rats.

I've scraped the streets of London for estate agents. I make 30 phone calls a day. And I'm lucky if I get one viewing. It's a full time job. No one can afford to buy right now so the entire city is tethered to their rentals.

Today I told my latest estate agent - and hence, newest best friend - that I was becoming so familiar with the business that I might take it up. At least then I could afford a house.

But really. Who am I to complain? We all face the ugly housing market at some point in our lives, and we're never told it's getting any better. So what's the trick? Are these 11th hour pronouncement a ruse or is the shortage, truly, going to leave me homeless tomorrow? Either way the agents have me wrapped around their little finger. I don't want to take the risk. Tomorrow I'm optioning a garage. All they need to do is add the word, 'conversion' and I'm there.

Going Viral

I'm tweet tweet tweet twittering now, because a little birdie told me to. I'm learning all sorts of things like the social capital of a #, and the broadcasting potential of an @. I also know that Katy Perry is "back in Canada and FULL of VITAMINS" and I'm happy to report that President Chavez is THIS excited about football: "Ayayayyyyyyyy Paraguay.... Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooolllllllllllllllllllll!! Viva Venezuela!!"

I've already been publically shamed by a fellow tweeter, so my whole twitter universe now knows to address me as "Weeny." Luckily, it only consists of five followers. Not all news travels fast on the blogosphere.

But you'll know when "Weeny" goes viral.

Life Sentence

James Varone at Gaston County Jail. Photo: Ben Goff/The Gaston Gazette

If this doesn't make the point for national health care in the United States, nothing ever will. James Varone, of North Carolina, held up a bank for $1. He is now in jail. But he finally got what he wanted: A meeting with a nurse and an appointment with a doctor.

As told by Ed Pilkington of The Guardian: US Man Stages $1 Bank Robbery to get State Health Care

Holy Moley

In keeping with this blogs theme, I thought it was only fair to find some friends for Gaucho Gil on my travels. A cowboy's gotsta work hard to keep a woman - hardly a surprise given that his saintly ladies really do hang out in the strangest of places...

Staying holy under the trees [small village, Amazon Rainforest, Brazil]

An airport shrine - for the fearless only [Leticia Airport, Colombia]

Keepin' night drivers safe since 1989 [roadside, Colombia]

These saints just gave up and took off all their clothes [Mompox, Colombia]

Papa Americano

In lieu of finding the words to describe the past six months traveling up from Buenos Aires to Nicaragua (I honestly can't remember any, Spanish or otherwise) I'm going to begin with a numbered list. And pictures. In no particular order:

1. Boat Crash in the Amazon. The Brazilian civil defense unit eventually kick into action and we're rescued by an aircraft carrier... eight days later.

2. Hot Sauce

can never get enough

3. I like big butts and I cannot lie: Anything and everything in Rio.

Ipanema Beach

Jesus Walks...

Wouldn't you?

4. Working hard at The Naked Tiger

The hardest workers the hostel has ever seen

5.  Finding a Lost City

La Ciudad Perdida, Colombia

6. Sailing the San Blas

Jump in

7. Anything PHat. And yeah, that's with a PH.

Colombia's most famous artist likes all things PHat

8. Street Parties, Southern hemisphere styleeeee

Lapa Street Party, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

9. Sunsets and beaches (including tandem canoe trips as seen below)

Playa Blanca, Cartagena, Colombia

10. Papa Americano. I heard this song once a day without fail - for an entire year.
 

The Dog Ate My Homework

I'm not going to make any excuses for my absence as of late because I just don't have the words. (honestly, I've forgotten how to write). Instead, I'm hoping this will say it all. 182 days (six months if you're into numbers) of this. With some productivity thrown in there for good measure...

San Blas Islands, snapped during a five day sailing trip from Colombia to Panama

The Modern Day Saints

Last article for The Argentina Independent:

Soldiers of God on a Mission. Virreyes, Buenos Aires (photo: Kate Redburn)

God's soldiers have arrived on Argentine turf. Self proclaimed 'Modern Day Saints', the Mormon missionaries of Buenos Aires trawl the streets of the city for converts. They preach on the Subte. They preach on the buses. They preach in the rain. And when they hear no, they preach some more.

B.A. is home to three Mormon missions; and South America is currently playing garden of Eden to 50 different missions, populated with solid mid-Western stock; young men with glowing white teeth and an urgent message to share. I trekked down to the Virreyes Mission in the North of the City to hear it from the experts... Click here to learn how to do it, Missionary Style.