Other Articles
You're American. In Australia. And you need to pay the bills. The first call you'll make, of course, is to Cleo magazine, a sort of older Seventeen or younger Cosmo. Why, you ask? Because American men can do what Aussie men can't: discuss feelings (especially mundane ones).
So began my non-travel freelance career, writing some His Say columns. This section highlights the some of the lowlights of my writing career, though some of it is funny (like riding with cops in Russia and Germany, or reporting on Mormon Mocking in Sydney). Some good, some bad, mostly entertaining.
His Say: Shopping For Her
Every man has, at some time, experienced the awkward tension which strikes the moment his girlfriend steps into the shop's changing room to try on...something. Thumbs are twiddled. The time is checked and rechecked. Garments on nearby racks are thoughtfully fondled, as if to demonstrate to potential onlookers the very legitimacy... [Read article]
Every man has, at some time, experienced the awkward tension which strikes the moment his girlfriend steps into the shop's changing room to try on...something. Thumbs are twiddled. The time is checked and rechecked. Garments on nearby racks are thoughtfully fondled, as if to demonstrate to potential onlookers the very legitimacy... [Read article]
His Say: She's Working, I'm Not
It's the simplest of concepts: you grow up, get a good job and support your family (my mother amended that slightly by telling me that I was to grow up, get a good job and support her). But last summer my company announced that the "good job" part of the... [Read article]
It's the simplest of concepts: you grow up, get a good job and support your family (my mother amended that slightly by telling me that I was to grow up, get a good job and support her). But last summer my company announced that the "good job" part of the... [Read article]
Playing The Ponies In Northern Moscow
It was a clear and sunny Sunday, and I was at the Ipodrome Raceway, in the outer-north section of the city, watching Russian harness racing at its finest. I'm one of many people who sometimes forget that Moscow has a raceway - and die-hard punters and an entrenched gambling sub-culture... [Read article]
It was a clear and sunny Sunday, and I was at the Ipodrome Raceway, in the outer-north section of the city, watching Russian harness racing at its finest. I'm one of many people who sometimes forget that Moscow has a raceway - and die-hard punters and an entrenched gambling sub-culture... [Read article]
Russian Cooking Comes Of Age
As fodder for guide book humor, Soviet cuisine led with its chin. It's not that there wasn't any good food available in the country, it's just that you had to search long and hard for it. In between looking and finding, visitors were faced down by enormous portions of overcooked... [Read article]
As fodder for guide book humor, Soviet cuisine led with its chin. It's not that there wasn't any good food available in the country, it's just that you had to search long and hard for it. In between looking and finding, visitors were faced down by enormous portions of overcooked... [Read article]
A Day With Russia's Most Hated Public Servant
In the United States, it's the IRS. In the Soviet Union, it was the KGB. In England it's Manchester United fans, but in the new Russia, motorists and passengers alike loathe, fear and despise the ubiquitous members of the Gosavtoinspektsia: GAI. GAI ("gah-yee') are traffic officers who stand at intersections throughout... [Read article]
In the United States, it's the IRS. In the Soviet Union, it was the KGB. In England it's Manchester United fans, but in the new Russia, motorists and passengers alike loathe, fear and despise the ubiquitous members of the Gosavtoinspektsia: GAI. GAI ("gah-yee') are traffic officers who stand at intersections throughout... [Read article]
Kindly, Fussy Bangaman (And Other Russian English)
Creative English is a worldwide phenomenon; Japanese tee-shirts or Indian shop signs written in it have been the subject of articles ad-nauseum. But there's a charm to the English spoken in Russia that must be mentioned. Often times - especially with names that go on forever - it's simply a holdover... [Read article]
Creative English is a worldwide phenomenon; Japanese tee-shirts or Indian shop signs written in it have been the subject of articles ad-nauseum. But there's a charm to the English spoken in Russia that must be mentioned. Often times - especially with names that go on forever - it's simply a holdover... [Read article]
Where Are The Nooklear Wessles?
I'd come to Severodvinsk, about an hour from Arkhangelsk, to see the submarines. An expatriate Italian bartender living in Arkhangelsk had told me I could take pictures of Soviet-built atomic-powered submarines right from the city's harbor. 'Course, what he didn't mention was that Severodvinsk was a " Closed City" - that... [Read article]
I'd come to Severodvinsk, about an hour from Arkhangelsk, to see the submarines. An expatriate Italian bartender living in Arkhangelsk had told me I could take pictures of Soviet-built atomic-powered submarines right from the city's harbor. 'Course, what he didn't mention was that Severodvinsk was a " Closed City" - that... [Read article]
And Now, A Little Trabant Joke
The Trabant (1949 to 1989) was the GDR's answer to the Volkswagen. Intended to be economical, convenient and ubiquitous, it succeeded in being only the latter. Despite production times from hell (the average Trabant owner waited nine years to get their lemon), the Trabi, as it was affectionately dubbed, is still... [Read article]
The Trabant (1949 to 1989) was the GDR's answer to the Volkswagen. Intended to be economical, convenient and ubiquitous, it succeeded in being only the latter. Despite production times from hell (the average Trabant owner waited nine years to get their lemon), the Trabi, as it was affectionately dubbed, is still... [Read article]
Cheesy Feet & Ducks: IBM's Voice Recognition Software
The idea of speaking into my computer and having it correctly type what I say has intrigued me since I saw the Star Trek episode Assignment: Earth, in which Gary Seven dictates to his IBM Selectric typewriter while plotting to sabotage a NASA launch. The thought that I can now actually... [Read article]
The idea of speaking into my computer and having it correctly type what I say has intrigued me since I saw the Star Trek episode Assignment: Earth, in which Gary Seven dictates to his IBM Selectric typewriter while plotting to sabotage a NASA launch. The thought that I can now actually... [Read article]
Headhunters Down Under
The team of plainclothes agents moves in, and takes position. The suspect is in the corner, the gentleman with the pierced face, shaved head, tattoos and a scuffed leather jacket. He is almost 2 meters tall. I've seen this kind of thing before, riding shotgun with cops in New York and... [Read article]
The team of plainclothes agents moves in, and takes position. The suspect is in the corner, the gentleman with the pierced face, shaved head, tattoos and a scuffed leather jacket. He is almost 2 meters tall. I've seen this kind of thing before, riding shotgun with cops in New York and... [Read article]
Gay Influence In Miami's Rebirth
The Miami Beach portrayed in the new big-budget action film The Specialist is a city on the cutting edge of all that is trendy, fabulous and chic. Only a few years ago, Miami Beach was falling apart, with crackhouses lining the sidestreets, and with so many poor and elderly residents... [Read article]
The Miami Beach portrayed in the new big-budget action film The Specialist is a city on the cutting edge of all that is trendy, fabulous and chic. Only a few years ago, Miami Beach was falling apart, with crackhouses lining the sidestreets, and with so many poor and elderly residents... [Read article]
...And Scattered Jehova's Witnesses
A late-night Australian nationwide television program has broadcast a "weather report" showing the five-day movements of door-knocking missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints [LDS], entitled "The Mormon Report." LDS missionaries, in Australia since 1850, are a common sight here, riding bicycles and travelling door-to-door to hand... [Read article]
A late-night Australian nationwide television program has broadcast a "weather report" showing the five-day movements of door-knocking missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints [LDS], entitled "The Mormon Report." LDS missionaries, in Australia since 1850, are a common sight here, riding bicycles and travelling door-to-door to hand... [Read article]
Retroshock: When The Familiar Is Unfamiliar
An American returning to the United States after living abroad finds himself in the unique position of being, for a time, a stranger in his own land. Everything he has attuned his body and mind to accept as normal no longer is. Hearing English spoken in the streets, not having to... [Read article]
An American returning to the United States after living abroad finds himself in the unique position of being, for a time, a stranger in his own land. Everything he has attuned his body and mind to accept as normal no longer is. Hearing English spoken in the streets, not having to... [Read article]
Blacks Fight To Block Developers, Save Heritage
When MaVynee Betsch heard developers' plans to build a golf course and luxury housing here, she went to the media and stirred what has become a cauldron of local and national controversy. During segregation this was Florida's only beach resort for blacks. Betsch (whose first name is pronounced May-Veen) is the... [Read article]
When MaVynee Betsch heard developers' plans to build a golf course and luxury housing here, she went to the media and stirred what has become a cauldron of local and national controversy. During segregation this was Florida's only beach resort for blacks. Betsch (whose first name is pronounced May-Veen) is the... [Read article]
A Stock Index Primer
With stock markets merging and European Monetary Union a reality, European indexes - especially the sector-specific ones like our Tornado European Technology Index - will play a role more important then ever before. Indexes help you decide whether or not a given stock is performing well. When you are deciding whether... [Read article]
With stock markets merging and European Monetary Union a reality, European indexes - especially the sector-specific ones like our Tornado European Technology Index - will play a role more important then ever before. Indexes help you decide whether or not a given stock is performing well. When you are deciding whether... [Read article]
