I love you, man

Two years ago today, my dad passed away unexpectedly. This is something I almost exclusively talk about with family or close friends that knew Mapi, which means that many of my friends and acquaintances are unaware that I carry this with me. I don't precisely know why it is that I keep this close to me. I have a theory that it may be because I worry that if I bring this up, more questions may follow and I think that since my dad and I had such an amazing relationship built on trust, that I should continue to honor our special relationship whereby we could talk to each other and know that we were maintaining client-attorney priviledge.

My dad was so important for me in Albany. When I moved here, I was literally alone. I did not know anybody here, not even friends of friends of friends. I was a man on an island. I remember still on August 21, 2006, I was driving on Central Avenue towards the Downtown Campus with my mom in the car. My cell rang with a call from an "Unknown" number. I answered and was so happy to hear my dad's voice. I pulled in to the McDonald's on Central and we talked for a good 20 minutes. After that, my dad made it his business to call me about 5 times a week. I was never able to tell him how important those calls were for me in feeling company in this new place.
And our calls were so silly. I knew it was him calling all the time and I would answer with a folksy, "Hiiiiii Bob, how are ya?" And he would say something corny in his broken English, like, "Hiiii Nick, Welllllllllllll, I fine, I fine." I am so happy that on this day, two years ago, he did call me. It was a Sunday afternoon and I was lying on the carpet in my apartment - I don't know why - and we talked for our typical 20 minutes. I still remember that conversation, and most importantly, I remember that the last things we said to each other were, "Chau, te quiero." That gives me a lot of consolation on days like today. My sister was not so lucky. She was in a conference that day, and was not able to take his call. He was the one who got her into soccer - since he needed somebody to kick the ball around with when I was at school - and she, in turn, started a soccer team for Liberian refugees that carries our pet name for him.

I think a lot about a lot of things that my dad missed out on life. He missed out on my graduation from graduate school and the great job I got. He missed out on my sister's graduation from college, and her trip to Ghana. He never had grandchildren, and that upsets me because he would have been an amazing grandfather, and I am so upset that my kids will miss out on him. He would have been the type of grandfather that would completely spoil his grandkids. That really bothers me a lot, even to the point that I am more upset about what my kids missed out than what I missed out on. I think about all the things I will tell my kids about their Nono.There is some consolation on days like this. When I look back on pictures and think about my time with him, I come to the conclusion that even in the short time we had together, we soaked up almost every minute of it. It was difficult that he lived in Argentina. But, even so, those precious few moments we had together were not spoiled one bit. That helps me sleep at night because I think that my dad knows how much my sister and I loved him and that even though we were very far and did not have him at hand that it did not mean he was absent from our lives.

I love him so much, and miss him so much, and I miss his phone calls so much. He was my consiglieri. I am so sad I was not there for him at that moment. But Mapi, no te hecho la culpa de nada, Viejo. Entiendo, entiendo todo ahora. Fuiste una gran persona y nunca voy a terminar de necesitarte.

Moment of truth

This is what all those hours on Flight Simulator have been for. It's creepy, but when I am on a plane I always think that if something as tragic as this were to happen, and there is no other pilot on board, I may be of some assistance.

And then I would finally have a good answer for the question, "Do anything exciting this weekend?"

Chasing Waterfalls: MA edition

Earlier this session, I achieved the second lowest seniority rate in the office when a new addition was made to the team. Ironically, our new colleague hailed from Fulton, thereby doubling the Fultonite population on our floor, and making it so that our per capita Fulton representation is now three times above the national average. Currently, according to census data that I have reviewed, only Roessleville, NY has a higher per capita Fultonite population than our office.

This past weekend, I went hiking in the Berkshires with my aforementioned colleague, and in a surprising turn of events, the hike also became installment numero dos of Chasing Waterfalls after we encountered this cascade.

I saw it, I documented it - it counts.

We were joined on the hike by Idgie, who yes, is named after this Idgie. Look at that face...there is no way you can resist it.The other great part about being in the Berkshires on Friday - besides that it also meant I was not at work - was that it was a homecoming of sorts. Both of the summer camps I worked at during my college years are in the Berkshires. And, even better, it's like being in that James Taylor song...

"Now the first of December was covered with snow

And so was the turnpike from Stockbridge to Boston

The berkshires seemed dream-like on account of that frosting

With ten miles behind me and ten thousand more to go"

By the way, there are a lot of people in Colorado that bad mouth East Coast mountains and they all need to shut their pie-holes. I was winded after the first steep climb. And as I write this looking out my windows, I can see mountains in every direction. In Colorado, if you live on the Front Range, you can only see mountains to the West.

Second really, really, ridiculously good looking hockey game in a row

Seriously, they're going to have to start charging people to get into the Albany County Hockey Facility to see the Night Owl Hockey Club's weekly intra-squad scrimmage. Last night, I scored the 5th most amazing goal AND dished out the 3rd most amazing assist of my life.

The goal was unlike last week's beauty in that it did not dramatically tie the game in the waning seconds. But, it was pretty spectacular anyways. I snatched a loose puck at our blue line, skated all the way down the ice with a defenseman right on my heels. I made a nice little move and shot the puck over the goalie's glove shoulder.

What was most exciting for the crowd, however, was that I fell on my back immediately after shooting due to a failure to stop properly. This was especially troublesome considering all that speed I had gained after skating nearly three quarters of the length of the rink. The combination of those factors led to a spectacular collision between my body and the end boards.

The assist occurred in the second period and happened towards the tail end of a long, aggressive shift where we spent nearly the entire time on offense. At one point, I got the puck behind the net moved to the right side of the goalie and drew the two defensemen and the goalie my way. That opened up the other side of the net, where the other wing was patiently awaiting my pass, which I masterfully threaded through three sticks. Once the pass got through, he had an open net to shoot into.If I'd only gotten into a fight, I would have converted the coveted Gordie Howe Hat Trick. That's my goal for the next game. I kid, I kid - I'm a lover not a fighter.

Goodbye, America

Well, it's been quite the run. For 19 years plus, this land has been a great place to grow up. In 2006, I took the final step in calling America home by applying for and being granted US citizenship. It's been a sweet marriage since then.

Out of the blue this morning, I was contacted by the Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) Office in Laredo, TX - which I am told handles storage keeping for INS. They informed me that as they reviewed my records in preparation for microfiche, they noticed several discrepancies with my application for citizenship which have subsequently been further investigated by the Office.

Apparently, there was a momentary incident after my permanent residency had expired and before my citizenship became effective where I was in this country illegally. This could all have been avoided had I read the fine print in the citizenship paperwork warning of such possibility. Tisk, tisk. And the people at INS are no fun and certainly don't believe in "misunderstandings."

After a lengthy phone conversation with INS Agent Ordsby of the Provo, UT Field Office, I came to the conclusion that it was probably best to "not fight the man" and assume the consequences of my misdeeds. I expected to have to pay a small fee or write a letter explaining the mishap. Little did I know that what the INS had in mind was to deport me to Argentina with a ten-year prohibition on setting foot in the United States, pursuant to their standard procedure in these types of cases.

This could be a problem on several fronts. First of all, I'm going to need somebody to water my plant for ten years. Second, I may have to quit my job. Third, I'm definitely not going to be able to go see Tim E in Cali.

You may be wondering why I am taking all of this relatively in stride. It could be because I am somewhat sleep-deprived after the last two-plus weeks at work. Also, given the favorable exchange rate vis-a-vis the Argentine Peso, I expect the modest refund coming from Uncle Sam will go quite far down South. In addition, I have an enormous craving for asado. I have not given much thought to what I will do for a living once I settle down in Argentina. My current career does not translate very well to the country's political structure. Argentina's governance system is a corrupt one where patronage is king. I suppose I should have taken a job with the Republican Party if I wanted to be able to fit in down there.

I have considered becoming a full-time airplane blogger. I have done some basic research and have found that there is no real source of pointless airplane and airplane accessory information for aviation aficionados. I would have that market cornered with my new blog: "Aviones que he conocido."

Goodbye, America. You have been good to me. See you on April Fools Day, 2019.

March madness at the Albany County Hockey Facility

Three random people in the stands last night at the Albany County Hockey Facility were treated to the highest concentration of March Madness yet this season. The weekly intra-squad showdown of the Night Owl's Hockey Club was one for the ages, and since it was a tie, everybody went home a winner. (<-- Wow, that was incredibly corny.)

After one period of play, Black (the side I happen to be on) was ahead 2-1. We expanded our lead to 3-1 early in the 2nd period. The White team marched right back to tie it at 3-3 before we answered right back with two quick goals to take a 5-3 lead into the 3rd period. Normally, a two-goal advantage heading into the final period is insurmountable, even in amateur hockey. Not to worry, though, the Black team collapsed defensively and allowed the White team to storm back, AND take a late lead with 3 minutes remaining in the game.

Right after we fell behind, I jumped out for my final shift of the night. With about 2 minutes left, we pulled our goalie for an extra skater. We weathered some close calls in our own zone sans a goaltender but finally one of our top skaters made his way out of our zone and carried the puck into our offensive zone with 37 seconds left. I was playing left wing (because I enjoy being to the left of most people) and hovered around unnoticed by edge of the faceoff circle.

When one of our forwards sent the puck towards the front of the net, I skated up looking for a rebound, and there it came, a giant pie-sized puck right in front of me with nothing but an empty net to look at. I corralled it and slung it in. WHISTLE...GOAL!!! ...
...and with a mere 19 seconds left in the game. The bench erupted, I three my hands up, teammates converged. It was glorious.

This is actually only the second most amazing goal I have ever scored, if you can believe that. But, it is far better than the previous second best goal I have scored. So there...

I realize that there have been no witnesses for either of my top two most amazing goals, but baruch atta adonai eloheynu meleh ha olam they actually happened as I have retold them.

If ever I am lucky enough that a woman wants to have children with me, I will ask said children to read about these goals on this very blog.

ESB time lapse and musings on geography

It's a good thing that the landmark in NYC that reminds me of my favorite person on Jay St also happens to be the tallest building in the City - that way, it's hard to miss it.

As part of my duties as an employee of the government, I have had to travel to New York, the greatest city in the world, and had the pleasure of visiting each borough. On my way back to Penn, I walked by said landmark, and life was good again.Granted, they are not the best quality shots in the world since they were taken on my cell phone. But, they got the job done.

By the way, the one time I was unable to snap a picture of the ESB it was because I had to drive to Staten Island and the opportunity to take this important picture never materialized. Now that I have brought it up, I am going to go on record and say that I don't think that Staten Island should be called an "island."

Look at it...
It's separated from mainland by a creek! As far as I am concerned, if a section of land is separated from the mainland by a distance lesser than I could pee across, than it should not be considered an island. It should just be...more land.