Football-Euro Style

Last night, after a game in Istanbul, Switzerland advanced to the 2006 World Cup over Turkey. People were honking their horns in celebration thoughout the streets in Zurich.

This morning, I came to work and heard from my co-worker that there had been violence aimed towards the Swiss soccer team and fans in Istanbul. Multiple Swiss players had been beaten up by the other team and ended up in the hospital. Swiss fans, were made to stay at the stadium after the match was over because there was concern for their safety. It was further told to me that despite the Swiss fans being kept in the stadium, some were beaten up by the security guards!

My co-worker and I were shocked by this news and could not believe that this would happen. But both of us thought "Oh, it's Turkey. And they want to be part of the EU?!" How uncivilized the Turks are. Hopefully, something will be done against the Turkish football team to punish them and their fans!

But wait, there is more.

So, I decided to read about it for myself on line and further build a case against the people of Turkey. Well, reading the news I found quite a different story.

Apparently, one Swiss play did go to the hospital after being kicked in the groin but this happened after he kicked a coach from the other team (or something like that). The situation was tense after the game ended but BOTH teams acted aggressively towards each other. There were not reports in the media that I found, of security guards beating Swiss fans or players out of anger. The violence which erupted after the match was minimal and existed between a few players. It was not wide spread and was provoked. Even the site swissinfo.com has no mention of security guards attacking fans. Only an interview with an official or coach about the game and how it ended.

Basically, the lesson is that we are racist. We let rumors of other societies acting like animals become a reason to further marginallized them or harbor prejudices. I am not innocent either. I was a believer in the rumors of violence against the Swiss and I am embarrassed to admit that I felt vindicated with the news. This goes to show that we need to be careful of what we believe. I think a similar lesson was learned out of the Hurricane Katriena disaster.

Das Schiff

Last night I went to Basel with Roger for a "Depeche Mode" party on a boat docked on the Rhine. Why did I think it would be fun!? Well, Roger is a great guy and I always laugh when we hang out. He is fun. But Depeche Mode? Come on....

The party was a promotion for the new CD to be released next week and for their upcoming tour. The are playing in Zurich and Geneva. The concert is sold out in Zurich but I'm not sure about Geneva. Anyway, last night they were giving away the new CD, some vinyls, and the grand prize- tickets to the concert, a DVD, and the new CD. Wow! I could hardly contain myself waiting for them to read the name of the winner.

But come on, what gives? Depeche Mode is like 40 now! Their music is really lame yet young kids, probably not even born until 1985 were at the show dressed in black and trying to look "New Wave". There was also the older crowd of fans who probably knew Depeche Mode from the 1980's. This group is likely nostalgic for the 80's and the day's of their youth. It was hilarious to see how the dancing style ubiquitous with The Cure and The Depeche Mode penetrated the younger crowd while the older people moved with a jerky familiarity. I was laughing a lot but the music remained extremely cheesy.

Was there something about the 1990's that required bands to tour with black gospel back-up singers? U2 and Pink Floyd did it. I'm sure many other rock bands did it too. Well, Depeche Mode was no exception. At the party they had a screen showing concert highlights and videos from the early 1990's; maybe 1993. And sure enough, on stage with the band were two gospel singers in big robes accompanying the strung out lead singer of Depeche Mode. And then what really cracked me up was when the camera cut from the gospel singers to a close up shot of Martin Gore's (the lead singer thank you Wikipedia)ass as he provocatively shook it in and out.

I still don't understand the crowd of people at Das Schiff. It's just amusing to me when people, in 2005, are stuck in 1986. Even kids who were probably barely born in 1986 are looking like teenagers from 1986. I really felt like I was in a John Cusack moving and I was probably "better off dead!"

My General Theory

On laziness:

(I tried to explain this idea I had to Colin last night but it didn't come out flawlessly. I think if I write it out it may become more clear.)

My experience is that one easily becomes lazy, especially when you think you are challenging yourself to do difficult tasks.

What do I mean by this you ask yourself? Well, I mean that just because you are performing a mentally difficult task or you are working on a time consuming project, doesn't mean that you have not become complacent and lazy.

First, non-laziness: One might deliberate about a tough issue (e.g. regarding politics or religion) and come to a conclusion. If one is critical and thoughtful about the various arguments surrounding the issue, it is said that one is not lazy or mentally complaicent.

Now, laziness: When one takes a specific conclusion they made about a tough issue (vide supra) and generalizes it for loosely related problems, they begin to show signs of complacency and laziness. It is false to assume that because one worked hard, challenged one's brain functions, and accomplished something meaniful that everything which follows is of similar rigor.

Ugh....I'm feeling lazy now or at least should get back to work!


(The fact that it took me two months to come back to this blog and finally post it completely disqualifies me from every commenting on this subject again. JGC Oct. 8, 2005)

French Fried

Colin and I just got back from a great trip to France. We spent 12 days in the country, driving from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic coast, then on to Paris.

Our trip started out in Montpellier, about 20km from the Mediterranean sea. The city was pretty hopping with a large youth population due to the presence of a big university. Apparently, we missed the Tour de France's ride through the city by a few hours.

The following day, we took a short bus trip and found a hotel close to the water on the Mediterranean sea. "Playas de Flotas", the small French resort city we stayed in, was interesting. I think the location is more for middle class French folks trying to get away from the city life and less of an international tourist spot. It was pretty but nothing like the French riviera we expected. Apparently, you have to travel further north and closer to Nice and Cannes if you want to see the beaches where the stars frequent.

Two days later we rented a car in Montpellier and headed north. Our drive took us through the fortified city of Carcassonne. The place was packed with tourist and one could hardly walk though the entrance of the city. We continued our drive northwest through abandoned towns and rural villages along the Pyrenees mountains. Unfortunately, we didn't plan any time in the mountains, which create the Spain-France boarder.

About six hours later we arrive in the French Basque region and found our hotel in the small city of Guethery. The main city of the region, Biarritz, is only 12km north of where we stayed. Our hotel was an old building dating from 1809 and is still owned by the original family. The beaches and land around the ocean were beautiful. The water was warm (22C or 71F) with some nice waves. We saw a great swell come in which brought waves about 1.5 times overhead. This area of France is claimed to have the best surfing in Europe, although the best time to see consistent surf is in the winter.

We also drove into Spain one day to check out the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao (http://www.guggenheim-bilbao.es/ingles/home.htm). Inside the museum we saw a cool exhibition of steel sculptures by Richard Serra. Bilbao and the surrounding area are definitely a place we'd like to see again.

After playing in the waves of the Atlantic, we drove northeast to Bordeaux. The city was, like most of France, very old. We just stayed one night but had a nice tour of the historical part of town and a traditional dinner, which included various duck dishes.

The next day we drove six hours north to Paris. Fortunately, we got to stay with a friend of Colin's for four nights. Paris was completely overrun with Americans and other foreigners. However, it was great to walk around and see lots of the sites. Coincidentally, we caught the last day of the Tour de France and saw the finish of the race as Lance Armstrong won for the seventh time! We visited a few of the museums in the city along with some old parks, markets, shops, and Sushi restaurants.

Our journey ended yesterday with a train ride back to Zurich via Lausanne. Today, I am back at work while Colin is preparing for his semester.

It was really wonderful to see rural France along with the beautiful sites of Paris. My favorite spot, however, was the beach on the Atlantic coast in the French Basque region. I guess I'm destined to live near the ocean!

meaning to say this

I'm always trying to figure out things in Zurich. I mean, sometimes things really amuse me and I can't quite understand what it is that makes me laugh or be entertained. Recently, I realized that what really entertains me is seeing Swiss people act like Americans.

When I'm going out at night, or riding my bike around town, shopping at Coop, or just eating at the mensa, I routinely see things which make me laugh. But I can never put my finger on what strikes me as funny. But I realized a few weeks ago that it's Swiss people acting like any other silly group of Americans (or Brits for that matter). It's not that Americans act in a particularly unique way, rather Swiss people are constantly critical of Americans for their (universial?) behavior. Then, when the Swiss adopt this behavior it's ironic. This behavior either has no borders or American's influnce is greater than I knew.

Whatever the explanation, it's comforting to me to see that we are not all that different.

(my) Stupid Thoughts

Sometimes I feel like I'm a trained monkey doing work and never thinking about it. I feel like I no longer have any creative or imaginative ideas like I did when I was younger. The thought of coming up with original proposals for pursueing my own academic career frightens me.

When I was younger, I had so many curiousities and ideas but now they seem simple or I simply can't remember them. I rarely see a problem and come up with a novel idea on how to solve it. I know I was trained well to solve chemical problems but I feel the solutions I have come from a box and I just apply the tools I know how to use. I don't think of original solutions to problems anymore I just repeat the fixes already developed by my mentors.

Maybe I'm in the wrong field. I want to build things; to create things with my hands which have come out of my mind. I use to make new things. Now, I feel resigned to manipulate things with my hands in a way my boss tells me to. I can obtain results but only when directed to do so. How is it that I have become this way?

I want to be a thinker and come up with solutions to problems. But the problems seem so old and the battle is hard that I can't imagine I would actually make a difference. I know I'm not the first one to tackle a problem so what makes me think I can overcome the obstacles?

I use to have more confidence and faith in my intelligence. As you can read, I am a horrible speller and maybe stupid at many things in addition to writing. I am not looking for some piety for a casual reader. I just want to remember that I once acknowlegde my stupidity before I blisfully slip away into ignorance.

Occasionally, I read a paper in chemistry which contains ideas I have not learned. I just glance over the new material and look for the concepts familiar to me rather than challenging myself to learn the rest. I use to think there was nothing I couldn't learn if I just tried. Now, I am lazy and don't even think I could learn something new in my situation. I want to change this. I want to be somewhere where I am learning new things, not just applying the old tricks I learned like a dog.

Back again.

So it's been over a month since my last blog. I suppose my motivation for coming back today was based on two things. One, Colin and I had a discussion about my blog last night and I remembered that I wanted to keep this going. Two, I read an article in the SFgate about corporate blogging policies and it spurred me to update my blog. (Yes, I'm writing at work but not always about work!)

The past month has brought many changes in my life. For one, Colin is here living with me until August. It's been hard at times but wonderful to be with him again. The simple things, like enjoying a meal with him, walking to the Limmat and swimming in the river, going out to funny Swiss parties, traveling to Ticino for the weekend, or sleeping in the same bed, have been great. Some of the difficult things are trivial but not always easy to deal with. For example, adjusting to living with someone and sharing a small space with Colin has proven challenging at times. It has gotten a lot better because I have learned some patience and also realize that I'm a control freak.

I wish I had more strict rules with myself about this blog. I feel the tone of the blog set in the beginning is effecting my current posts. However, I'm not always sure what to include or exclude because some days I want to change the nature of this post to more of a personal diary, while other days I want to record events as I see them, not necessarily describing my emotional reactions.

Why does "blog" come up in the spell check? Countless people must ask the same question. I'm sure the creators of blogger.com are aware of the irony of it, but it's not that funny because the joke is pretty simple.