A Few Things

1. I don't get this live blogging and I definitely feel left out. What gives?
2. I've seen Putin. At least I think I have. He lives on the same street as me, and I've seen a Rolls-Royce followed closely by a huge Cadillac stretch SUV. Medvedev also lives close to me, but he's in London. So it's probably Putin. Hells to the yes.
3. I have a hot professor. Yes. Seriously. She is the epitome of the hot librarian/teacher. She teaches our singing class (which is awesome) and she's unbelievable. Other members of the group agree with me, so I'm not crazy. And no, Elliot, I'm not going to take pictures of my professor.
4. We met a fellow English speaker on the Metro! She was from UT-Austin studying Russian. It was honestly the first time I was glad to hear someone say "y'all," so refreshingly American.
5. I just had the best night ever. I met a group of Carleton kids outside the Arbatskaya metro and we decided to go to a place called the Margarita Cafe. It's named the Margarita Cafe after the novel, The Master and Margarita. This novel happens to be one of my favorites. The Cafe is located on the Patriarch Ponds, which is where the book begins. So we set off, walked along New Arbat, which is filled with casinos and clubs, and made our way to Patriarch Ponds (honestly, just the fact that we went to Patriarch Ponds has me freaking out. The Master and Margarita is kind of a Bible to me). We got to Patriarch Ponds and walked around it and were about to give up on finding the Cafe, when suddenly it was right in front of us. We walked to it, opened the door, and it was full except for a table for 4. There were 5 of us. They almost turned us away, but let us stay and got an extra chair. As we walked in, we realized that the song that they were playing and that the entire cafe was singing along with was one that we had learned in class today. So we started singing too, and we immediately blended in with the rest of the restaurant. I'd write a review of the place, but that'd be lame and Cafe Margarita was beyond review. There were maybe 30 people in the restaurant, ranging in age from me to probably 70, all Russian except us. There were 2 violinists and one piano player, all extraordinarily talented. The female violinist was absolutely incredible, and if I were going to be a musician I'd want to play in this cafe. We ordered caviar and a bottle of Pinot Grigio, and both were superb. What made the restaurant was the atmosphere, the musicians obviously loved the music and the audience was enraptured, they passed out shakers to allow us to participate as well, but for the most part we just sang at the top of our lungs. The first two songs were popular Russian songs that we learned in class, and the rest of the repertoire consisted of Vivaldi's Four Seasons, a 1920s reel, Hotel California, and a few others that I had heard before but didn't recognize. The decor of that cafe was simple, it had several bookshelves and small statues, but it was also very small. We exchanged a few words with the group at the table next to us, they were mostly older Russians, dressed very well, drinking copious amounts of vodka. I'm definitely going to return there and make sure I get there earlier and eat a meal, the food around us looked absolutely delicious and the menu was not absurdly priced. In essence, this was the perfect restaurant, and its association with one of the best books I've ever read gave this night the added flair that made it truly legendary.

The 12 Steps to the Best Spring Term Ever™

I have been thinking over this spring break and I have come up with The 12 Steps to the Best Spring Term Ever™.  These are guidelines we may choose to follow that will help us along in having the best spring term that anybody at Carleton has ever experienced.  If we follow these guidelines, I'm confident of our success.  This is a living document, much like the U.S. Constitution, and we may make changes and interpretations as needed.  Thankfully, it will be the men of the Ocho (and any acquaintances lucky enough to be invited to join us) that will experience this Best Spring Term Ever™ as outlined.

The Best Spring Term Ever™ consists of the following:

1. Good music.  We will enjoy good music at all times.

2. Outdoor cooking.  We will cook outdoors as much as possible.  We have the grill, which is great, but we can also cook other ways outdoors.  I'm not sure how, but it is imperative that we take advantage of this. Alfie has already been thinking in the right way with his carne asada BBQ.  This is absolutely necessary. 

3. Outdoor sports.  Remember vortex football in the fall?  We must do that again, and this time our feet won't freeze off.  We will also play stick ball. And every other possible outdoor sport.  Whenever we can.  Barefoot.  As much as possible.

4. Minimal studying.  Winter term is for studying.  Spring term is for the opposite.  So, if we don't study, our fun factor will inevitably increase, and after all, that's why we're at college.

5. Good weather.  Given that we are omnipotent in the Ocho, we will control the weather.  It will always be 70+ and sunny.  This is as much about mindset as it is about the actual weather.

6. Rotblatt.  We will do our best to be in the running for the Rotblatt All-Star Team.

7. Spring Concert.  Enough said.

8. Baseball Challenge.  I don't know how many of you know about this, but Alfredo and I discussed it and both agreed it was necessary for some Friday or Saturday night this Spring.  It consists of the following: Watch a baseball game.  Drink a beer and eat a hot dog for each and every inning that passes.  Do this until you are unable to.  Follow #2 when preparing hot dogs.

9. Plenty of Ocho parties.  These are a given, but will definitely contribute to our fun factor as well.  See Stadium 110 whiteboard for ideas. Party over here!

10. Live blogging.  This has been discussed.

11.  No inhibitions.  If we throw ourselves fully into everything, we will enjoy it more. Don't hold back.  We're only here for ten more weeks.

12. Beer (or other booze).  We must do everything that is listed on this, uh, list, with the accompaniment of some type of refreshing beverage.