Corinthians!!! Baby! Yeah!!

I've been a little bit lost here in Brazil. People ask me which soccer team I like, and I don't know what to say. I just don't know the teams. Well last night I was converted to a Corintians fan. Renan and I went to the bar and watched a Corinthian's game and he gave me a C's shirt to wear... it was controversial, but that the Corinthians! Baby! Take that!

The C's won. Renan said I could keep the shirt, and that pretty much sealed the deal. I have Corinthians merchendise and the whole shebang. I didn't bring my camera to the bar, but Renan and I were able to re-enact the excitement.

People tell me that some games have lots of fights in the stands, but just when there are rivalries. Sao Paulo has three major leage soccer teams: Palmeiras, Sao Paulo, and Corinthians. If two of these teams are matched up against each other, the fans get riled up.

Rainy Weather

It has rained non-stop the the whole week. I think it's supposed to clear up on Saturday. I guess the rainy season is... rainy.

Tiago, advogado, dono, & anfitrio

Tiago has been a gracious host to me while I've been in Brazil. He is a lawyer and an asset to his family's business. I thought I'd post a few pictures of him in action.

Right now, Tiago is working on a civil case against the Jau police, who just this weekend waited dormantly across the street while watching a young black man get beat by a crowd of white guys. Some of the assaulters are being criminally investigated. I don't know all the details of the case, but that's the jist of it. I guess racism and special treatment are problems in Brazil just like everywhere else.

Grandma turns 75

I went to a birthday party on Sunday for Angela's mom... turned 75... she's a nice little old lady.

Panettone

Brazilians have a big muffin that they eat for breakfast here. It originated in Milan, Italy, but there are lots of people here with Italian descent, so you can see the connection. The big muffin is called Panetonne (pan-eh-tone-ee). I've never seen it in the states (although I never looked), but it is very common here in Brazil.

Presidential Coverage

This doesn't have anything to do with Brazil, but my friend Adam covered the the Presidential Inauguration last week for the TV documentary "My First Time". He had a lot of stories from Tuesday... things that can only happen when you have a press pass and a camera.

Usually, Adam wil do just abaout everything for his segment: directing, filming, editing. For the presidential episode, Adam directed and filmed for two of the three segments. On inauguration day, he followed Ian - the sousaphone player in the Gay and Lesbian band. The episode aired on Saturday evening.

You can see the episode segments online at:

http://www.lxtv.com/my1sttime

Capoeira Party!!!

After class yesterday, mestre Nino invited our academy (academy of Mestre Neilson) to his house for a party. Wow! Great party! Mestre has an absolutely lovely house, and the food was great too.

Mestre Nino is a very interesting man. Aside from being a capoeira mestre, Nino has a PhD. in Global Studies?.. I think that's the subject. He is a professor at the University of Jau I believe.

He's also an accomplished jazz and latin jazz drummer. He was cooking. I'm careful with my words, because I have family and friends who play excellent drums also, but he was awesome. He played a few sets for us, with a CD accompanyment... After which, the samba party ensued, with live drums. I brought my fast feet to the roda... Can't wait until Carnaval.

Joao Ribeiro de Barros

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jo%C3%A3o_Ribeiro_de_Barros

This is Jau's most famous person. He made a transatlantic flight in a pontoon airplane back in the day. There is a monument to him in the town square.

Visitors from Bahia, Natal

We've had some company lately, from Bahia and from Natal. Tiago's sogra (girlfriend's mom) is visiting. Also last week, some friends of Mineiro's came from Bahia. Lot's of fun. I gave them my autograph! I'll talk about my celebrity status again later.

Videos da Festa Municipal

Festa Municipal de Itaju

Coincidentally, the same day that Obama became our 44th president, the city of Itaju celebrated its birthday. Here in Brazil, the towns have birthday parties too! Here's some pictures & video.

Sorry for the lapse in postings. During this time, we've had our 44th president sworn in. There's a lot of excitement about our new president, especially abroad. Obama has a 100% approval rating here in Brazil. Lots of people ask me if I voed for him.

My friend Adam covered the presidential inauguration armed with a press pass, a camera, and four pocket-filled coats of gear (bags were off limits). It really sounded like an amazing day, and with his professional poise and his camera, Adam was able to do and see some very unique things. I can't wait to see some of his footage!

Anyway, it's not like I've been doing nothing over the last few days. I owe you some posts!

Territory of Shoes

I went to the shoe outlet center in Jau Saturday. This place is probably the best place to buy shoes in Brazil. They have everything, and the prices are very good, because Jau is the women's shoe capital of Brazil.

Here's some pictures. I have many more if you're interested in seeing them. I can take orders for shoes too. If you want some shoes, you can e-mail me your shoe size and which pair of shoes, even if it's not in a picture. You can get whatever you want... there is probably a variation of any shoe that I have photographed, just ask... I want a flower pattern, plad, 2 straps insead of one, a different heel, etc.

English Class

I sat in on an English class on Saturday. My neighbor Adauto is in the class, and he invited me. It was a good time. They watched the TV show Will & Grace and after we talk for a little while. After class, we went to the shoe outlet... see next post.

Another Agro-Commercial Business Post

Mineiro has a lot of friends in the agro business. That makes sense when fellow suppliers make delivieries to the same places, or do business with these same people. Tuesday, we visited a hydroponic lettuce grower named Macao before we went fishing. The planys are sprouted in a nursury, then moved to watering tracks. These plants are fed and watered without using any soil. It's a small world too. Macao has a som in my capoeira class.

That's a Hot Pepper

I ate a red one and a green one. They were both hot.

Gone Fishing

Mineiro and I went fishing the other day. We didn't catch anything. The sport moves a little slow for me, but that may be because I'm not a good fisherman.

Potatoes and Onions and Garlic, Oh My! (Part #2)

... The conclusion of the potato process...

4. After the furnace, there is an inpection stage. there are usually two or three people looking over the potatoes leaving the furnace. If there are defects/bruises, the potatoes are dicarded.

5. From inspection, the potatoes fall onto a mechanical potato sorter. This stage sorts potatoes by size: small, medium, and large. The potatoes are spun over gratings of increasing apertures as they descend toward the sacking station. Potatoes that are small enough will "fall through the cracks" to sacking stations along the side of the sorting stage. This is how you get those little salt potatoes for graduation parties.

6. The washed, dried, inspected, and sorted potatoes are bagged or boxed and moved to another room for loading.

The sacks of potatoes are very heavy. One sack weighs 50kg, or 110lbs. I struggle to lift a sack over my head. Tiago is very strong though, he can toss the sacks around more easily. There is one guy, Joao Maria, who can raise a 50kg sack over his head with one hand! Everyone at the business is very nice... very good people in Brazil.

I help out at the business only sometimes. I spend many afternoons at the business, but I usually just make coffee and study Portuguese in the office. I help out when there is a shortage of people to work, but that only adds up to about once every two weeks. More often, I'll help unload a truck making a delivery.