Odds and Ends

Here are some totally unrelated random thoughts and observations.

-I have not noticed any crime (but am aware and being safe).
-Water does move down the drain in the opposite direction (we tested it in Larry's sink, since my toilet flushes with a big rush of water that goes straight down).
-The weather is fantastic - like a warm East Coast fall. (warmer than SF right now)
-The wine is amazing and cheap.
-The beef is amazing and cheap.
-People are very attractive, and even those that are not (by "normal" standards) have amazing character in their faces.
-People we've dealt with so far have been very friendly (once they realize we speak Spanish).
-I love my little apartment. It's cozy and quiet.
-We sat in an outdoor cafe until after 2 a.m. last night.
-The bars are closed today (and from midnight last night) because there is an important election today in Buenos Aires for governor (mayor).
-People speak with their hands, like Italians.
-I heard a saying that Argentines are Italians who speak Spanish and think they're French - kind of a criticism - it does sum up who they are, but really they are Argentines, who like most Latin American cultures, are a wonderful mix of many cultural elements, blended together to create their own unique expression of themselves. Perhaps they are Italians (and Germans and Spaniards and Poles, Armenians, Jews, Arabs, and some Chinese etc.) who speak Spanish and think they are French, but they know how to live, and if they've got an attitude (which I have not noticed), they damn well deserve to! We love to talk about "our way of life" that we have to bomb other countries to preserve - here they are able to do that without a war economy or fear that some obscure terrorist group, that may not even really exist, is going to bomb them and try to take away their freedom.
-They do have penicillin.