TANGO can, too....



Music by José Gonzáles.

And here's the original SONY Bravia add again in case you don't know it. It is indeed quite beautiful!

It's a bit like Tennis or Badminton - you really cannot do it on your own. So you have to tie the knot with your partner before you go up there (*gooourge* I'm hillarious again). But anyway, it's excellent fun. I'm pretty cräp at it, still - only just started. But I can feel that it's my thing. Strangely though, as I'm usually a serious sissy when it comes to mildly-dangerous stuff. And my fear of heights is definitely not to be underestimated. But somehow this is different. The safety measures are bluddy impressive and a little bit of fear also helps to keep level headed when attempting the more tricky routes (so I was told).

As our London hometown is not exactly Yosemite, we're depending on a few useful indoor facilities. Definitely outstanding is "The Castle climbing center" between Stoke Newington and Highbury. Man, they really know what they are doing and the courses and groups they offer are highly frequented for such an exotic sport. Find more info on their website >

[Btw. You can also just stay on the ground and watch some gorgeous bodies working their way up the walls...]

This is what is being celebrated in my adopted country at the moment: People decorating their cars with the most boring flag of them all (red centered cross on white background -- *yaaaaahn*). Now obviously I can't do that. My ever stronger growing patriotism for my own nationality and my characteristic constant stubborn state of gentle protest against any conformity, teamed with curiosity of reactions to occasional sarcastic provocation, simply forbid me to join in the "Come on England" craze.

As both teams are playing their last group matches on Tuesday (though obviously not against each other), I might - which is a rare occasion for me - come up with a compromise: flagging my car with both countries. The German on the left, England's on the right. It'll be risky and I could get beaten up pretty badly. But It'll be fun to see what reactions I might be getting. It will take all my courage to drive around the block once and then take the symbols down again... to make sure my car stays in one piece.

Yes, the ball is round and a games lasts for 90mins. That's basically it. I'm trying to catch as many matches as possible right now and am getting a little worried about a rather unhealthy life style which goes hand in hand with the beautiful game (= hanging in local pubs until late, screaming and shouting, not eating properly and drinking too much). And I'm normally not even into football to such an extend. But the sudden euphoria is down to two things. A) my friend Toni's charity predict-a-score, which I inevitably joined and now use as an excuse for the need to watch matches, leave work early and cheer for teams I don't know a single player's name of. B) my current in-between-jobs status allows me to enjoy a certain slackness and avoids any bad feelings when football is more important than building banners.

Worth a read is Billy Cometti's blog. Billy (an Italian-American residing in London) has become a frequent football-watching pal over the last week. And managed to embrace the frenzy with trivia and a passion for full pints (never halfs!).

The Buff Head Wear has become one of my most permanent item of clothing in recent months - besides underwear and socks of course. And yes, I wash Buff. PPlus I am happy to share Buff and its idea here and there, creating new Buffoholics on both sides of the Atlantic.

The guys at Buffera Ltd. have a great business philosophy, involving the people who wear and use Buff. Check them out and get your own: UK / USA (Oh, btw, the UK site has a much larger selection of original Buffs!)
www.buffwear.co.uk

I was determined to support an underdog for the Footy World Cup (kick-off this Friday) and my excitement when I decided to go for Côte d'Ivoire aka Ivory Coast, was overwhelming. I would be sooriginall and cool, sporting that small North-West African country's flag. But when I finally saw their national colours, disappointment kicked in. It looks like the mirrowed Ireland flag, or a vertical Niger without the orange circle in the middle. Not exciting enough to get my support, guys. Now I'm thinking Togo maybe... all WorldCup Teams here >