You now need a visa to do nails.

charming

VISTA's health issue

Anybody who has ever visited or vacationed in the Central American paradise will tell you that indeed people there seem to be happy, cheerful, productive and overall content with their lives. What’s their secret? The NEF report puts a lot of emphasis on environmental sustainability as an indicator of living well. Costa Ricans have long been at the forefront of the environmental movement. What can we learn from them in order to improve our day-to-day lives?

President Obama made a little girl’s day yesterday when he wrote her an excuse for missing school. Kennedy Corpus, a fourth-grade student in Green Bay, Wisconsin, skipped the last day of school to attend the President’s town hall forum on health care reform, along with her father. While introducing himself as he asked the president a question, Kennedy’s father mentioned that he had taken his daughter out of school to attend the forum. The president asked, with a straight face, if she needed an excuse note from him. The audience laughed but the president went ahead and wrote a note anyway (see above). I love the fact that he takes school so seriously that even on the last day, even for something as interesting and educational as a rally with the president, Obama thought it was appropriate to write a note to the school. It’s a great example, especially for parents who take their kids out of school in the middle of the year to go on ski vacations and the like!

Southcom commander Stavridis to head up US forces in Europe

here and in Latin America. For the last two and a half years, the Admiral has headed up US Southern Command (a joint command of over 1,200 military and civilian personnel representing the the US Army, Navy, Air Force, Mairn Corps, Coast Guard, as well as other federal agencies). Not only does he have distinguished naval career, Stavridis is also very cultured, widely read and traveled, but best of all, he’s a great listener — not something you see too much in people who have reached his level. I was heartened by his approach to Latin America — he rejected the term “backyard” in refering to Lat Am, saying it was offensive — and he seemed to listen at least as much as he spoke.  Stavridis holds a PhD in international relations from the Fletcher School and has one of the best bibilographies on the region I’ve seen. The admiral made lots of friends in Lat Am as well as in south Florida. No doubt he’ll do the same in Europe. Buen viaje, Almirante.

4 pieces of bacon

What’s it like to live in a bilingual, bicultural city? Well, life isn’t evenly divided between the two languages and two cultures. Sometimes, it doesn’t even seem quite fair. I was having breakfast at Little Havana’s famed Versailles early this morning when I spotted one of life’s little inequities. (See photos). Looking at the menu I noticed that if you order bacon in English, you get four pieces for $1.95. If you order bacon in Spanish, you get three pieces for the same $1.95. I thought this was so funny that I took photos. (Actually, the funny part was probably me taking photos of a laminated menu at 7:30 in the morning…) I asked the manager about the discrepancy and he didn’t quite believe me so he brought over a menu. Sure enough, I was right. He had his laugh for the morning but he also assured me that “no importa el idioma; siempre te damos por lo menos cuatro o cinco pedazos de bacon.”

Don't be fooled -- it's already hot and humid at 6am.

The air is already thick and wet this morning. I just wanted to share a view of the moon before the day gets into full swing. Enjoy your Tuesday.

I shudder to think of what would happen if we got hit by anything more than a force 2 hurricane…

Bus stop on Alton Road, Miami Beach, June 5, 2009. Note the "wet paint" sign.House on Alton Road, Miami Beach, Friday, June 5, 2009