The name of the game is negotiations

Hey friends--time to get you caught up again on what's happening in the great state of CA. As I sit writing this, I'm snacking on plain organic yogurt, raisins, oats and dried dates all mixed together. No, California hasn't changed me into a crazy, tree-hugging, nature loving health nut (although i do like nature). It's just that the Doritos have been open for two weeks and are getting stale.





So let me see--lots of stuff has happened as usual, so I'll just some fun moments. I'm still closing in on the job decisions, but have managed to negotiate my way into a pretty little signing bonus so you'll know soon when I make my decision. What else...a little while back, Nicole and I went to help out our friend Marcy in taking the kids she teaches on a field trip to the park. Marcy runs a class for an after-school program at an elementry school in east oakland, which is sort of like the Ill Hoods for those of you who need a comparison--generally a little bit ghetto. So picture me in a group of maybe 50 elementry school kids, mostly Mexican and African American, not a single Caucausian in the mix--needless to say, my blue eyes were a big hit ;) Anyways tons of fun, the kids are incredbily cute--one kid, Jose, tried to teach me love poems in Spanish to say to Nicole (Me gustas Pepsi, me gustas Coke, something something something i like the taste of your lips even more...damn i need to learn more Spanish). I ran the basketball station and refereed/participated in some pretty intense games of 3 on 3 ;) Also, while sitting in the bleachers and keeping an eye on Cesar and Maceio, I had a conversation with an elderly man dressed all in black--apparently his son had been killed in that same park a year earlier when he was shot 13 times. Although we went on to discuss the importance of providing mentors for kids at an early age, I was sort of struck by what felt to me like a pretty extreme contrast between what i was used to, and what I was hearing about in Oakland. I'm not sure if it's a Canadian/US thing, or just obviously that I grew up in a good neighborhood, but it made me think...sad to hear about that man's loss, but interesting and a little touching to hear his thoughts on how to help young people get a good start.





What else...oh, went to see Manu Chao last night at the Bill Graham auditorium in SF with Nicole, Prya, Marcy, Nadia and Armando, which was a ton of fun. The whole show was super high energy, way too many hippies dancinc their crazy hippie dances, but aside from that, really awesome. And on the topic of music, got to hear my friend Raul play bass with a little combo at an outdoor pizza joint, which was kinda fun. Definately am missing music and performance a little bit, so I'm hoping to hook up with Raul and do some playing, maybe fool around in the studio a little bit.





Finally, I've made some sweet new purchases! In order to tell their story, I've enclosed something of a photo essay. I hope you enjoy!

















Hmm...what to do with this....

















This also poses a problem...

















Sweet! Kestrel carbon fibre racing bike!

















Sweet! New Court Forces that I got a bomb ass deal on!

















The inevitable conclusion...ah well, at least I can get around now...and look good doin' it ;)

Next stop--LA! Update you guys from there!

The California Chronicles begin

At last, the moment I’m sure you’ve all been waiting for, a sign of life from the front! To my family, friends, and other readers who have stumbled across this missive by accident—what's happening! This post actually represents something of an important historical moment: first, it is evidence that Cubically Inclined, long dormant, has stirred in the depths and will rear it’s ugly head once more. Second, it marks the inaugural address of my new life here in the USA. Third, it serves the more mundane purpose of filling you in on what has transpired in the week or so since I left Canada for a strange and distant land called “Kahliiphjorn-ya” (the ‘j’ is silent, I think).

Where to begin…a fair amount has happened over the last week, so I’ll try to give you some of the highlights. I arrived late on Tuesday night last week after a relatively painless flight. I say relatively painless because upon learning I had no return ticket, the US customs officer promptly diverted me to an "interview" (read-interrogation) with an immigration officer—apparently they were concerned that upon entering the US, I would join the ranks of illegal immigrant laborers in full defiance of domestic law. Having done my best to reassure the officer that yes, I was going to work in the US but not until I re-entered and applied for my work visa, and no, I was not going remain the US indefinitely, and yes, she could trust me not to connect with migrant Mexican laborers, I was allowed through customs and onto the plane. Some hours later, I watched as we descended into a dense fog bank that was blanketing San Francisco—a little unnerving, not being able to see to the end of the wing during the landing, but the pilot managed to set us down safely.

After completing her last final on Thursday, Nicole walked in the first of her two convocation ceremonies, this being her Development Studies major. I met Mr and Mrs. Anand outside the auditorium along with Nicole’s nephew/cousin (don’t ask, I still don’t get it) Arjun. Mr. Anand promptly delegated the responsibility of the filming to me, so I had my hands full trying to capture the ceremony on video. Later that evening, we went to dinner with the families of Nadia and Priya, Nicole’s two close friends who had also just graduated. The highlight of the meal was my entrée, hazelnut encrusted swordfish on a bed of pearl couscous—all I can say is good, fresh seafood is a treat.

The next day, Mr. and Mrs. Anand took Nicole, Arjun and I car shopping. We looked at a range of vehicles, from the Audi A3 (Mine and Arjun’s favorite) to the Camry (Mr. Anand’s favorite) to the Acura TSX (Nicole’s favorite). No firm decisions have been made yet, although Nicole may end up taking her Mom’s Acura TL—did I mention I test-rode a few bicycles as well? Ball till I fall ;) Anyways, later that night we went to have dinner with some family friends out in Walnut Creek, a suburb north east of Berkeley, and incidentally the location of one of my prospective jobs. Now this is kind of cool—do you guys remember the movie “Mrs. Doubtfire?” You know the scene towards the end, in the restaurant, where they are eating dinner and Robin Williams is changing back and forth between the Dad and Mrs. Doubtfire? We ate at that restaurant! Definitely a fine meal, I had some really good lamb and enjoyed what was possibly the best bottle of wine I’ve tried to date, finishing off with a memorable crème brule.

On Sunday, Nicole walked in her second convocation, for her business degree—her brother Brandon came up from LA, and we sat outside in the Greek amphitheatre with her parents—I got sunburned, of course. Afterwards, Mr. and Mrs. Anand took off to drive back down to LA, and Nicole, Brandon and I came back to the apartment to hang out, which has sort of been the M.O. until now. We’ve spent some time with friends, done a fair amount of cooking (including some tasty Palestinian and Thai food), and even went into the city yesterday to do a little shopping. I got a really sweet pair of court forces from Nort (the shoe store underneath Recon) for only sixty bucks! And that brings me to today—Brandon is leaving back for LA, and Nicole and I will start to look at the apartment situation and do some packing and cleaning. We’ll be here in Berkeley until the start of June, when we’ll head down to LA for a couple of weeks, and then it’s off to the south to see Tallahassee, Miami, New Orleans and maybe Atlanta. Oh, and we’re seeing Manu Chao at the end of May which should be awesome too!

So there you have it, that’s what’s been going on with me so far…I know there’s lots more to update you guys on, but remain patient and I’ll start making some regular posts ;) I’d love to get some emails from everyone so feel free to send me a line—until then, take care, stay healthy, peace love and blessings!