Holiday

Today is a holiday, I think it's Labor Day. I had an idea that something was different as I left my apartment and started walking down Arenales towards my gym. I saw two people walking their own dogs. Yesterday I saw people walking their own dogs, so I knew that if people were walking their own dogs today, it must be a free day for folks. Normally, the dog walkers are the ones walking the dogs when people are at work.

The funny thing about the dog walkers is that they can have 8-10 dogs that they walk, and the dogs look so happy and are so well-behaved, but when the owners are walking them, the dogs are pulling on the leashes and the owners don't seem to be able to control them. Also, the dogs bark when they are with their owners, but not with the dog walkers. It's a very interesting phenomenon. I wonder why the dog walkers have better control of the dogs - is it because they like walking in groups or that the owners are idiots? It just proves that a poorly behaved dog is more a reflection on the owner than on the dog.

Since it was a holiday, I walked over to Santa Fe because I have decided I am going to buy a down vest. I didn't bring any winter coat (I forgot to pack my leather jacket) and yesterday it was too cold for me to want to go out. I know that there will be some more cold days while I am here and also it will be chilly when I return to SF, so a vest seems like a good investment. I knew Santa Fe would not be crowded and I could check out the shop where I saw a vest in the window. (Today's picture is of Santa Fe with very little traffic. On a normal day there would be 6 lanes of cars on a four lane street, all fighting with the busses and spewing out lots of gray exhaust smoke.)

The only problem was the shops were closed.

I got to the gym, which is located in a building where there is a theater as well as the tango school. As I walked over to the turnstile to enter the gym a woman in the ticket booth of the theater said "esta cerrado" - it's closed. She was a middle aged woman but had a scratchy voice that sounded like she smoked too many cigarettes, kind of like Patty and Selma on the Simpsons. I asked her why because I wanted to know what holiday it was. She said it was a holiday. When I asked why again she said something about laborers, so that's why I figure it is labor day.

It is a beautiful day and even though my computer says it's only 12 degrees, I found it very pleasant walking around. I stopped at a sidewalk cafe and got a cup of coffee and then came home and had a little lunch. There doesn't seem to be much to do today. One of my conversation partners called me, but I'm not feeling like meeting him yet. I also texted Hernan to see what he is doing and he said he was eating breakfast. Doesn't seem like he wants to celebrate his birthday with me, but I will give him a call later and see how the drama is unfolding. I'm sure his birthday is just another source of crisis.