
<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148701597_b23927c33a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Ian in Susinos">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148701597_3df0f8a68a_t.jpg" alt="Ian in Susinos"/>
</a>

With her sixth year firmly under her belt, Nora has had a good start to her seventh. Meanwhile, her adoring and adorable little brother finished his second solar lap [in style](/2015/04/26/ian-is-two/). Ian continues to babble in increasingly coherent ways. Sometimes when he's bored, he'll test out different sounds, like a child learning to speak. He's already got some good solid English phonemes, like when I say "bridge", he repeats "-idge", which is a sound that's tough for native Spanish speakers learning English. 

### Ian's First Sentence

While the kids were with their mother, aunt and grandparents in Extremadura over the Easter holiday, Ian was filmed saying his first complete sentence in this heart-meltingly adorable video. He says, "_¿Gusta, Nora?_", which means "Like it, Nora?" Any Spanish 101 student would probably get marked down for not saying, "¿_**Te** gusta, Nora_?" Brace yourself for the adorableness...

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ojO-zLry49E" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Pretty good first sentence, if you ask me.

### Skater Girl

After a completely wrong meteorological forecast made us not do a trip we've been wanting to do, we found ourselves at home on a gorgeous Saturday, so we finally consented to let Nora practice rollerskating. She inherited a pair of inline skates from her best friend, Carmen, who is conveniently two years older than Nora is.

Once we got the skates on her, and we got her upright, holding onto our hands, it quickly became clear that we had no clue whatsoever how to teach someone to skate, as it has been decades since we learned and skated last. Not to worry. We sat her down and I googled "how to skate" on my smartphone, and, like a character in _The Matrix_ that didn't know Kung Fu or how to fly a helicopter a minute earlier, I was now an expert.

Nora has never been very athletic or graceful at running or climbing or swinging, so we had pretty low expectations for her skating abilities, but we were _very_ pleasantly surprised. Within an hour, she was skating back and forth across the school playground holding onto only one hand, and later that same day she managed to skate several meters by herself. She only had one real butt-busting fall, and never fell in a bad way on her hands or knees.

Here she is on the day she learned.

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ltoyKUsmVWs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

The second half of the video got taken over by Ian, of course. When asked to say, "Daddy, I love you", his attempt sounded an awful lot like, "Daddy, screw you!" Hmmm... If he weren't so cute, he'd be in more trouble.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148137267_f5acb84308_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Bench Kids">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148137267_72af2428bf.jpg" alt="Bench Kids"/>
</a>

### Kite Flying

We made our first trip to the beach (a 5 minute drive) this month, and took Nora's _Hello Kitty_™ kite, which proved to be a great success, and a demonstration that an almost-two-year-old doesn't _really_ understand the concept of taking turns.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17169493069_2d640193a8_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Beach Kids">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17169493069_983cab9eb0.jpg" alt="Beach Kids"/>
</a>

My tribe of sand people.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17329749586_8f56352609_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Beach Kids">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17329749586_bf8ce23ab6.jpg" alt="Beach Kids"/>
</a>

Kite flying kids.

### Pareidolia or Prodigy?

On April 14, I was watching Ian as I do every weekday morning, and he was aping what he's seen his sister do, and had a pencil and some pieces of paper. It looked like he was trying to draw circles. I was on the phone with my wife at the time, and I commented to her, "Ha! Ian is using a pencil and it really looks like he has just written 'n' and 'o'. If he writes an 'r' and an 'a', I'm going to flip out!" I watched as he moved a little right on the paper and made another glyph. No way! It really looked like an 'r'! I'm commentating this the whole time to my wife. The suspense was high as he set pencil to paper for the fourth time... THere's no way he'd write an 'a', right? Not a chance! When he did, the crowd \[of one\] went wild! I think I may have frightened him a bit. Being the reasonable person that she is, my wife didn't believe me at first, but then I sent her a photo, and she was amazed!

Behold, my 23-month-old son wrote his sister's name, in lowercase, even! She's six and can't even read lowercase yet!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17355758905_efe2c07a36_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian wrote ">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17355758905_d527eab692.jpg" alt="Ian wrote "/>
</a>

This is, of course, an excellent example of [pareidolia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareidolia), which is defined as, a psychological phenomenon involving a vague or random stimulus which is perceived as significant. Like when songs are played backwards and people think Elmo is saying "go kill your neighbor's dog, Thomas!" or something. The only significance in what he wrote was placed on it by my overly-excited pattern-matching brain.

Still, it was a funny incident.

### Sleepover

Nora had her first sleepover / pajama party this month. She and one other friend went to a third friend's house to spend the night. Apparently they had to be told at 1am, several hours after lights out, that they needed to be quiet and go to sleep. Nora informed me that she and her talkative friend had decided, "Hey, let's just stay up all night long talking!"

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17355545311_297af955ab_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Pajama Party">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17355545311_720430dee5.jpg" alt="Pajama Party"/>
</a>

They had a doughnut centipede for breakfast the next morning. The party was a complete success.

### Conquering the Neighborhood with Love

Ian's open personality and charisma continues to open doors for him. I take him every morning to the grocery store after dropping Nora off at school. It's a family owned (they are all siblings) store across the street from the school. When Ian walks in, he immediately showers _Hola_'s on everyone. At last count, they have 1.2 billion nieces and nephews, so they are all good with kids. Ian is particularly fond of Leti, the woman who works in the cured meats and cheeses section of the shop. He shouts "_¡Tetiiii!_" whenever he sees her and runs into her arms. One day this month, she had the idea to put some safety glasses on Ian. They fit perfectly.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148700547_38f33869e6_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian in Susinos">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148700547_99366eb1b0.jpg" alt="Ian in Susinos"/>
</a>

Ian and Leti. (proud dad photographer in the mirror)

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148700797_7ec157a343_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian in Susinos">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148700797_503331e843.jpg" alt="Ian in Susinos"/>
</a>

Bruno, the butcher, put on his glasses, too.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17169935509_d579997606_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian in Susinos">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17169935509_993baeb4e7.jpg" alt="Ian in Susinos"/>
</a>

Then, Leti broke out a clown nose that Ian had no problem donning.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148701597_b23927c33a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian in Susinos">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17148701597_3df0f8a68a.jpg" alt="Ian in Susinos"/>
</a>

It did seem to force his mouth into this closed frown.

Ian knows all the regulars that come to the store at that time of the day. One of them is a local grandfather, with two granddaughters that he takes to school, named Nando (short for Fernando). Whenever Ian sees him, Ian shouts, "_¡Nando! ¡Pan!_" and Nando dutifully goes to get his daily bread and break off a ginormous chunk to give to Ian, who says, "_¡Gacias, Nando!_"

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17354383972_c52edf2a65_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Walking home with Nando">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17354383972_8bcd250985.jpg" alt="Walking home with Nando"/>
</a>

Several times this month he has walked home (Nando lives a little past our house) with Nando, hand in hand. With the love and attention he gives to people, it's no wonder that he has so many friends at such a young age. What a lovely child, and a lovely man Nando is for assuming the grandfather role when Ian's grandparents aren't around.

### Second Tooth Lost

Nora lost her second tooth this month. It was the incisor neighbor to the first tooth lost that was reported as "loose" on the day the first one was left for the [Ratoncito Pérez](/2015/03/18/el-ratoncito-perez-the-spanish-tooth-fairy/), the Spanish rodent tooth fairy. This time, however, she left a note asking the rat to just bring her candy and money and not take the tooth as payment. Personally, I would never have consented to such an affront to free market capitalism ("Transactions don't work like that, young lady!!"), but I wasn't involved in either the letter writing or the mouse's actions. As with many such parenting mountains, it turned out to be a molehill the next morning which was the last time she seemed to care where the tooth was.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17354013362_27526f27cf_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Second tooth lost">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17354013362_01ebefebf1.jpg" alt="Second tooth lost"/>
</a>

As you can see, her permanent incisor is right there trying to jostle for a place. This girl has some orthodontics in her future.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17168131258_5c08578f43_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Second tooth lost">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17168131258_0e5612b48f_z.jpg" alt="Second tooth lost"/>
</a>

Proud girl on the playground right after it fell out. [Her eyebrow](/2015/04/09/brow-stitch/) continues to heal, but it's too early to tell how much scarring there will be.

### Church Park

Here's a little clip of how Nora and Ian play together at the park by the church. I think this might've been the first day that Ian figured out how to go down the slide on his belly. Make sure your volume is at a reasonable level, as the church was pretty excited.

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/meXumttubuM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

The state of the offspring is strong!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17354150032_0aff77988b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Watching Peppa Pig under the kitchen table">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-april-2015/17354150032_476e41c1fd.jpg" alt="Watching Peppa Pig under the kitchen table"/>
</a>


State of the Offspring Address - April 2015


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17089884760_45c238cd81_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17089884760_23a9a6cd6d_t.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

Ian turned two years old yesterday. It's hard to believe in both ways, that it seems so long ago that he was born, and yet it seems like yesterday. It's so nice to celebrate the completion of our family. His mother, unfortunately, had to work in the morning. We had a lovely celebration with his Spanish grandparents and aunt. As one might expect, he didn't really have any clue as to the significance of the day, but he had a grand old time.  On the morning of Ian's birthday, I went to the local grocery store to buy materials to make the paella. When I got there, a septuagenarian woman who Ian and I normally see every morning entered the store. She wasn't there to buy anything, but was there to see me. She gave me a coloring book to give to Ian, and another more advanced one for Nora. She had remembered that it was Ian's birthday and had (probably) seen me enter the store from her house and had come to give me the gifts. As she was giving them to me, she told me that, "Husbands come and go, but sons are forever," which I thought was a beautiful sentiment, but then she broke down in tears and hugged me. I don't know her story, if Ian and I remind her of family that she wishes she saw everyday like us or what, but it was a sweet, genuine and moving gesture.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17276907711_c0f1b0708b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17276907711_efc0224f89_z.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

Nora's best friend Carmen, who is exactly six years older than Ian, and her mother made this lovely crown for his birthday.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16654949834_02d32605d0_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16654949834_4188918fcc_z.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

"I'm getting bigger, Sister! Just you wait!"

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17275605072_4644bfe7ae_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17275605072_87024abb90_z.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

Paella for lunch, eaten the proper way, with a clam for a spoon.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16657175313_a9c2b64e81_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16657175313_a2726e48bf.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
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A "New York style" cheesecake that his mother made, which, unfortunately turned out to not really be very edible. But it sure looked good!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16654961114_8d385e2867_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16654961114_91c1d9579f_z.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
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Birthday boy!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17089883540_b022dd7b70_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17089883540_b71f88ce4b.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
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Family portrait.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17277405345_c58fbe1caf_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17277405345_7572bb9c4b.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
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All attendees.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17089885680_6ca9040a8a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17089885680_c156f0c353.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
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Ian's (and mine) favorite gals.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17277407535_28c1b4aabc_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17277407535_3c876b5168.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
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Six year old sisters really come in handy when it comes time to open presents.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17091214519_e5c04d4a54_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17091214519_deb5996974.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

A book and balloon powered car from Grandma and Grandpa (Rasmussen)!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16657190393_492a4ddc2c_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16657190393_e02643d2fe.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

A construction vehicle from Mommy and Daddy.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16654972494_e048b151c6_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/16654972494_842bbb9198.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

The best present of the day, however, was, hands down, the ginormous balloons from Great-grandma (my paternal grandmother). They got kicked around the living room for quite some time.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17070000637_2abd2d6a12_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17070000637_75e814f584.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

Later we went out for a walk, and Nora practiced her roller skates, although Ian demanded to hold her hand the whole time, which didn't really provide much support when she lost her balance.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17089884760_45c238cd81_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian's 2nd Birthday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-26-ian-is-two/17089884760_23a9a6cd6d.jpg" alt="Ian's 2nd Birthday"/>
</a>

Happy birthday, Ian! We love you an indescribable amount. Thank you for joining our family.


Ian Is Two!


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16995754797_780f250c55_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16995754797_149f171efe_t.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

For the past three days, my wife has worked super-mega-overtime to the point where she has gone to work before the kids get up and returned home after they are in bed every single day. So it was important that today, we all spend some time together. We've learned that we can't do that at home. If we try to spend time at home, there is always _something_ that an adult _could_ be doing – e.g. ironing, cleaning, cooking, etc. – that we end up saying, "You watch the kids while I go do this other important thing." Going on a day trip as a family is the best solution to actually making us interact as a foursome. It's been way too long since we've visited the nearby village of Santoña, which we can see right across the bay every day, but don't often go to visit. 

### La Taberna de Alberto

I'm going tell you guys a super-duper special secret, okay? The first rule of _La Taberna de Alberto_ is that you don't talk about _La Taberna de Alberto_. Got it? We heard about it from one of my wife's coworkers. There's this little pedestrian crossroads called _La Plaza del Paralvillo_, in which you will find a dizzying array of maybe five or six bars all with tables and chairs set out to entice a weary tourist to sit down for a glass of wine and a _ración de rabas_ (a serving of fried calamari, a local delicacy). Seriously, have a look around.

<iframe src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m0!3m2!1sen!2s!4v1429474742181!6m8!1m7!1soqK7ckjJ6M-ADHBRzT-9wg!2m2!1d43.44144!2d-3.455518!3f284.70166476213325!4f-7.766963920065223!5f0.7820865974627469" width="505" height="450" frameborder="0" style="border:0"></iframe>

On the most unassuming corner of the square is a tiny little sign that says "_Taberna Alberto_", and the entrance, which any normal person would walk right past is around the corner from the sign.

When you walk in, you are immediately struck by what a filthy shithole the place is. It looks like they haven't mopped or redone the floor tiles since Franco was in power. One wall was completely lined with decaying cardboard boxes. The space was tiny, but it was absolutely _packed_ with people. As any seasoned gastronaut traveller will tell you, these are the signs that you are about to experience something truly authentic.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16582982763_cbfeaee10b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16582982763_19399d06f5_z.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

When confronted with the menu, we glanced behind the bar and saw a selection of cheeses at various stages of rot deliciousness, and decided to go for the _Queso Manchego Curado_ and a pair of Rioja crianzas.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16995754797_780f250c55_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16995754797_149f171efe_z.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

The full "deck" was slightly more slices, but the kids were hungry.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17201527042_c7949dc56e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17201527042_6bd44e32e2.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

The kiddos atop some kegs and the wall of cardboard wine boxes. You can see a dropped slice of cheese there. Normally I'm pretty liberal on letting them recover dropped food, but _not from this floor!_

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17177251076_3b2ec51970_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17177251076_6c08113b44_z.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

I can't wait to go back and explore more of the menu. It's not cheap, but the service was extremely attentive. The bread in itself was _amazing_. I've found the quality of bread served with food in Spain to be an excellent canary in the coal mine mixed-metaphor litmus test for gauging how much attention to quality will be paid for the rest of the food.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17015651020_7c19a0fa14_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17015651020_a89d6974c4.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

A panorama behind the bar. Worth [exploring in more detail](https://www.flickr.com/photos/erikrasmussen/17015651020/sizes/k/) to get a feel for the cheese loving filth of it all.

Can't wait to go back. _Don't tell anyone!_

### Tapas Hopping

While we were manchego munching, we got a text message from our friend Elena asking what we were up to. I sent her the photo above of the cheese and the wine, with no extra context, and she said, "I'll be right there!" Fifteen minutes later she arrived.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17201528582_5566c06a9f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17201528582_0e322ea0d5_z.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

Sitting on bollards, waiting for Elena to show up.

We know almost nothing about Santoña, so it was nice to have Elena there to tell us the best places to go, and she found us some great places to continue our Tapas Sunday.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17202610281_450a6cac1f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17202610281_0e1cb8f8b0.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

We didn't eat any of these tapas. At this place we had _albondigas de verdel_ (mackerel meatballs). Fantastic!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17177254146_5dcc233320_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17177254146_00648da856.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

Ian decided it was nap time, despite a threatening canine, no doubt offended that the curb he'd just marked as his own was being audaciously occupied by a sleepy primate.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16995759777_6c97685a92_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16995759777_f920a889b5.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

I love the design of some of these places. This one has a sign that says, "Order one beer, and get the second free; you only pay for two!" It's accompanied by the slightly less clever English version, "Free beer here. (tomorrow only)" sign.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17203189935_3c6afd99e8_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17203189935_2131b0844f_z.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

Another intriguing concoction that I saw but didn't eat: toast topped with Spanish cured ham, goat cheese, asparagus, and what looks like, from the seeds, kiwi and strawberry sauce.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16582993353_2d7b5cfe57_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/16582993353_bd1c6b7262_z.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

Santoña is famous all over Spain for being "that place where all the good anchovies come from". My wife's employer is at the bottom left.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17015661390_3d782aa2b7_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17015661390_1d73812b24.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

This was the end of our tapas train. Cheese shingles (like the U-shaped terra-cotta grooves of Spain) with some sort of cream cheese, definitely "goatier" or "bluer" than Philadelphia™, topped with an anchovy. It was such a bizarre culinary invention that I'm glad I tried it, although it seemed to have a billion calories, but it was my least favorite thing I ate all day.

### Walk it off!

With our sufficiently satiated bellies, we decided it might be time to walk the length of Santoña's beautiful maritime walkway. The wind was pretty cold, but the sun came out a bit and made it a lovely afternoon. We were right at high tide, with a new moon the day before, which always makes sea walks around here more photogenic.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17202617331_1c33003193_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17202617331_22d731b80f.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

Worth checking out [the full-res version](https://www.flickr.com/photos/erikrasmussen/17202617331/sizes/o/?hc_location=ufi).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17015663870_a88714c6b9_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17015663870_fa44468e43.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

"Hey, Nora, go down there to the end of that platform so I can take your picture!"

<iframe src="https://vine.co/v/ez35LiLlpPi/embed/simple" width="505" height="505" frameborder="0"></iframe>

<script src="https://platform.vine.co/static/scripts/embed.js"></script>

Obligatory marine bollard still life.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17177264036_5647daa0d6_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17177264036_05d0ca6e61.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

So many parts of Santoña are lovely!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17017048829_a051940b7b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Santoña Sunday">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-19-la-taberna-de-alberto-and-other-santona-sunday-activities/17017048829_db49448b84.jpg" alt="Santoña Sunday"/>
</a>

_I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay, watchin' the tide roll away, ooo. I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay, wastin' time..._

What a wonderful afternoon. I mean, who couldn't spend hours staring at this?

<iframe src="http://gfycat.com/ifr/MarriedCleanDiplodocus" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" width="505" height="284" style="-webkit-backface-visibility: hidden;-webkit-transform: scale(1);"></iframe>


La Taberna de Alberto and other Santoña Sunday Activities


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/17087111202_fd669421e9_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Nora's cut eyebrow stitched">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/17087111202_4092d7b161_t.jpg" alt="Nora's cut eyebrow stitched"/>
</a>

One of my children got hurt. But first, let's talk about me!

When I was in the sixth grade, a [gifted and talented education](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gifted_education) program I was a participant in organized a multi-day field trip from western North Carolina down to Huntsville, Alabama to the US Space and Rocket Center. I would've been about twelve years old. I remember having a pretty good time on the bus ride there. About a half hour before we arrived to Huntsville, I got up to get something out of the overhead compartment. I was in the window seat, and I reached over my seat mate and up to the latch to open the overhead compartment. When I unlatched it, the spring-loaded door flung open, and I lost my balance, falling over the legs of my companion, the empty aisle providing nothing for my arms to slow my fall, and the armrest on the seat across the aisle literally hit me between the eyes. [![United State Space and Rocket Center, Huntsville](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/3036262947_cb14a896c6_m.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/douggarner/3036262947 "United State Space and Rocket Center, Huntsville by Doug Garner, on Flickr")As it turns out, the skin on the bridge of your nose is quite taut, and it ripped open. All I recall was a thud, and not that much pain, but I freaked right the hell out when I saw all the blood. By the time an adult arrived to assist, there was a puddle of it on the floor. Apparently my classmates would later joke about having to "step over Erik" whenever they avoided that puddle/stain for the rest of the trip.

Some of the teachers on the trip were traveling in a car behind the bus, and the whole caravan pulled over at the nearest opportunity. I was transferred into the teachers car, still dazed. I remember some serious talk about taking me to a hospital, and one of the teachers produced a wad of cash, from which large bills were thumbed off. For what, I don't know.

The busload of kids continued on to the destination, and I rode with a couple teachers to the Huntsville Emergency Room. Apparently there were two busses, because by the time I rejoined the kids, there were rumors that I had actually fallen through the glass window and out onto the highway. Gotta love how information spreads!

[![Rockets](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/2173346615_42db38502e_m.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/7954439@N06/2173346615 "Rockets by Linda, on Flickr")About that time, my parents received a phone call from one of the teachers informing them of my accident. They had an important decision to make: "Would you like the plastic surgeon or just the regular emergency room doctor to sew Erik up?" A few minutes later, as I was lying on a gurney in the ER, still holding a gauze to my face, the ER doctor comes in and tucks his tie between the buttons of his shirt – this was the first time I'd seen that move – puts on his latex gloves, looks me in the eye, and utters a sentence I'll never forget, "This is going to hurt..._A LOT_."

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/2718509819_1251769e01_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="My Eyes">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/2718509819_be1bb787c3.jpg" alt="My Eyes"/>
</a>

Memory of the actual pain of the procedure has faded, but I do still remember the view out the paper they covered me in with the hole only showing the area for stitching. It was probably only four or five stitches. A quarter century later, you can see the scar, but only if you really look hard and are told where to look: a little "V" right where the brows join.

## Like Father Like Daughter

Surprising all the household bookies, my son Ian was not the first of my children to receive emergency stitches. It's a constant battle to get Nora to wear her slippers when she's at home. She'd much rather just pad around in her socks on our hardwood floors. Yesterday, as she was leaving the bathroom to head towards the living room, she took the corner a little too hard and fell. Unfortunately, her head hit the sharp corner of a radiator, and she cut her right eyebrow open.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/16899323458_818736f65b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Nora's cut eyebrow">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/16899323458_9a5524ecf8_z.jpg" alt="Nora's cut eyebrow"/>
</a>

She had a stream of blood down her cheek and neck, but nothing like what I bled so many years ago. Her eye, itself, was unharmed. After holding a towel and some ice to it for about ten minutes, we doused it with hydrogen peroxide and plopped a _Hello Kitty_™ bandaid on it.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/17087102285_1082246fb1_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Nora's cut eyebrow">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/17087102285_e6d95191ec_z.jpg" alt="Nora's cut eyebrow"/>
</a>

Several hours later, when we pulled back the bandaid, we decided that, to be safe and minimize scarring, we should take her to the doctor. I drew the "stay at home with feverish little brother" straw, so I didn't go with her. A half hour later, Nora returned home with a single stitch closing her wound.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/17087111202_fd669421e9_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Nora's cut eyebrow stitched">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-09-brow-stitch/17087111202_4092d7b161.jpg" alt="Nora's cut eyebrow stitched"/>
</a>

From the two accounts I've heard of the stitching, she cried quite a bit, but understood the importance of remaining still and did so. As a parent, it's hard not to think, "My poor baby damaged her perfect little face!" Women do weird things with their eyebrows, but I suspect that even her light blond eyebrows will conceal any scarring.


Brow Stitch


<img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-08-smoking-in-bars-in-spain/16890967278_5d5ca3c750_t.jpg" alt="Smoking Man" class="post-thumb"/>I first set foot in Spain in January 2001, and visited off and on before becoming a permanent resident in June 2005. \[Wow, that's a decade!\] Due to the [structure of the human brain](http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2009/11/09/smell-and-memory/), my memories of that time can be easily triggered by smell. Since [Spaniards primarily socialize in bars](/2013/07/30/bar-culture-in-spain/), many of those memories are linked with the pungent odor of tobacco smoke, which was thick in the atmosphere of all Spanish bars during those years.  <a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-08-smoking-in-bars-in-spain/3212904652_c87e129d7f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Marga - Feb 5, 2001">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-08-smoking-in-bars-in-spain/3212904652_530746297b.jpg" alt="Marga - Feb 5, 2001"/>
</a>

The girl that brought me to Spain.

### Ley Antitabaco 2006

A mere six months after my permanent arrival in Spain, the socialist government, following the lead of New York City and Ireland, enacted [a law](http://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2005/12/27/pdfs/A42241-42250.pdf), which came into effect on January 1, 2006, restricting smoking in public spaces. It was not an outright ban, but rather a baby step towards a ban.

[![spanish smoking cigar](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-08-smoking-in-bars-in-spain/4792142456_c98544f0af_m.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/spooneater/4792142456 "spanish smoking cigar by Jean-Sebastien Chouinard, on Flickr")

Bars and restaurants _under_ 100m2 had to decide whether or not they were going to permit smoking, and they must clearly display their decision. As you might imagine, almost all the bars posted "We permit smoking!" signs. I honestly can't recall seeing a single one that chose to ban smoking.

Restaurants and bars _over_ 100m2 had to create "separate areas" for smokers and non-smokers. The exact definition of what consisted of a barrier between areas was about as clear as the air in such establishments. My go-to simile for this topic is, "Having a 'no smoking' section in a restaurant is like having a 'no peeing' section of a swimming pool."

The main result of the 2006 law was that larger bar owners had to spend money defining "spaces".

### Ley Antitabaco 2011

Five years after the initial attempt to curb smoking in public enclosed spaces, the parliament finally went all the way. Starting on January 2, 2011 – probably to allow New Years Eve celebrations to continue smokily – it became illegal to smoke inside bars or restaurants.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-08-smoking-in-bars-in-spain/5551496446_0356e6f3b4_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Prohibited: Smoking Inflammable Gases">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-08-smoking-in-bars-in-spain/5551496446_bcc9c10dce_m.jpg" alt="Prohibited: Smoking Inflammable Gases"/>
</a>

My non-smoking peers and I were extremely dubious that the law would be enforced or even work to prevent the practice, but we were amazed that, with a few exceptions, it functioned beautifully. Bar owners, especially those that had built barriers five years earlier, were pretty annoyed, and swore that it would hurt their business (it didn't). It seems like the most inconvenienced were the smoking waitstaff, who, while previously theoretically banned from smoking _behind_ the bar, actually had to go stand outside and take proper smoke breaks to get their fix.

For non-smokers, it was like a sunrise on a beautiful day. It was _so_ much nicer being in bars and dance clubs. Especially for the women, my wife informs me, who could go out at night and not have their hair reek of tobacco the next morning. As my father-in-law says, now the only place unwelcoming for non-smokers is just outside the door to the bar. Ha! It's true that sitting outside a bar, a favorite summer activity of mine, does feel awfully smokey sometimes, reminding me of pre-2011 Spain, but it's nowhere near as bad as it used to be.

### Electronic Loophole

I've only spotted them a half dozen times, but it's really weird to see someone smoking an e-cigarette in a bar. As I understand the current legislation, since early 2014, e-cigarettes are banned in schools and government offices, but _not_ in bars and restaurants. I don't understand much about e-cigs, but apparently they even have disposables. And the Oxford English Dictionary did choose "vape" as a the word of the year last year, so they must be [growing in popularity](https://www.blu.co.uk/disposables). The RAE has [not yet](http://lema.rae.es/drae/?val=vapear) accepted _vapear_ as a verb.

Over the fifteen years I've known Spain, the laws and behaviors of its citizens have definitely been improving with regards to how and where nicotine is consumed.

![Smoking Man](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-08-smoking-in-bars-in-spain/16890967278_5d5ca3c750.jpg)


Smoking in Bars in Spain


<img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-03-meerkat-and-periscope-live-video-broadcasts-from-anywhere/16831286238_6e3403eb31_t.jpg" alt="meekscope" class="post-thumb"/>It has been fascinating to watch the results of the proliferation of smart phones in the last decade, both the imaginative apps that can be made and the cumulative effect of how having a computer, camera, internet communicator, and HD video camera in everyone's pocket has been shaping out society. Events like the [Arab Spring](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Spring) or the [demonstrations in Ferguson, Missouri](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferguson_unrest) have been enabled by internet connectivity, and also reported on, not necessarily by journalists, but by citizens on the ground, _in real time_.  Many times, a new technology is obvious to everyone, but it really needs all pieces to fall into place and then someone to actually implement it properly for it to be birthed into the world. The two most prescient examples from my lifetime are Wifi and MP3 Players.

In 1995, when I was getting in trouble at my boarding school for running null modem (and later ARCNET) cables through bathroom vents or out windows to play multiplayer games with my hallmates, I was also studying physics and electronics. I never did learn much about radio transmission and reception, but it seemed blindingly obvious that one could easily convert the ones and zeros going through the copper wires into radio waves and then back again on the other side of a wall. I even contacted a smarter, older college friend who was studying electrical engineering to see if we could build such a device. [Frequency hopping](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frequency-hopping_spread_spectrum)? That's way beyond me! Of course, smarter engineers than I had been working on this problem for twenty years by then, however the 802.11 protocol that could really be called the birth of Wifi was released in 1997.

Also, in 1997, I had megabytes upon megabytes of this new file format, called MP3, of songs on my computer, but if I wanted to listen to music on the go, I had to use a portable compact disc player. Again, it was blindingly obvious that all one really needed was a hard drive with a chip on it to decode the files, and you could carry thousands of songs in your pocket! Just like for Wifi, the related technologies weren't quite ready for that to be possible, but several years of R&D later, we had the release of consumer MP3 players, the Rio, the NOMAD, and eventually it was done right with the iPod.

2015 is proving to be another game changing year for a suite of technology that has finally come together to enable something that was obviously coming at some point. The bandwidth pricing has dropped enough, and mobile bandwidth has gotten fast enough, only recently with [4G LTE](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LTE_(telecommunication)), to enable one smart phone user to stream live video up to a server, and for that server to serve the stream back to many viewers. The two main contenders that have generated a lot of Silicon Valley buzz in early 2015 are [Meerkat](http://meerkatapp.co/) and [Periscope](https://www.periscope.tv/). It's amusing that both names use the same metaphor of something popping up and looking around for a bit before disappearing again.

## Meerkat

[![Meerkat Logo](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-03-meerkat-and-periscope-live-video-broadcasts-from-anywhere/16992756606_a468b554ab_m.jpg "Meerkat Logo")](http://meerkatapp.co/) Meerkat debuted in March 2015 at the South by Southwest festival and was quickly picked up and used by nerd celebrities. Some journalists did some live streams from Apple's March Apple Watch event. The idea behind Meerkat is very clever, as, except for the video streaming aspect, it uses Twitter for all its difficult infrastructure needs: namely authentication, liking and commenting. The most important thing you need to know about using Meerkat is this: **Every comment left on a stream in the app goes out as a live tweet.** Think about how clever that is for a second; the benefits are twofold. If you leave a comment, you are inadvertently telling all of your followers that there is a live stream going on right now, because your comment is appended with a link to the stream, which will either open in the Meerkat app for your followers, or will direct them to install the app. Secondly, it will vastly reduce abusive comments. As is always the case with internet abuse, there are ways around it, as there's nothing stopping anyone from making an asshole Twitter account which they can use to be mean to people, but making it difficult is an important step.

It's amusing that both names use the same metaphor of something popping up and looking around for a bit before disappearing again.

The other important thing to know about Meerkat is that, as of the time of this writing, the streams are transient: when the stream is over, you can't re-watch it. There are pros and cons to that, but the success of Snapchat definitely shows that there is an appetite for transient media sharing.

Of course everyone that saw Meerkat saw that Twitter was such a perfect fit for this sort of live streaming technology that it would eventually be a native function of Twitter. Well, it turns out that, the same day that Meerkat launched, Twitter announced that it has purchased a video streaming startup called Periscope, and a fortnight later it both launched the Periscope app, and reduced some social graph access that Meerkat had been using.

## Periscope

[![Periscope Logo](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-04-03-meerkat-and-periscope-live-video-broadcasts-from-anywhere/17018739125_742f630746_m.jpg "Periscope Logo")](https://www.periscope.tv/)Pretty much every review I've seen agrees with my opinion that Periscope is an inferior app to Meerkat. Even the icon is dumber. Unlike Meerkat, your chat in the app stays in the app, and is not broadcast to all of your Twitter followers. Unlike Meerkat, it doesn't show you the profile pictures of the people viewing your stream when you are broadcasting, you only get a viewer count. Periscope has this stupid little "hearts" interface, where every time a viewer taps their screen, a little colored heart is rendered in a little smokey stream of fading hearts. None of the tech pundits I've read or heard can really figure out what purpose that serves. The other main difference is that your Periscope stream is recorded, if you choose to allow it, and, I believe, made available for 24 hours. As someone who lives several timezones away from people I follow on Twitter, this feature is kind of nice.

If they were publicly traded companies, I'd be shorting Meerkat stock right now, because I've seen enough awesome apps built using social network APIs attempt to survive against the social network's own implementation to know that Goliath always wins these battles. It's a real shame, because I like Meerkat's UI and execution better.

## Conclusion

As I write this, these apps are barely a month old, so it is still very early days. Most of the streams you can watch if you install these apps are from people sitting at their desks pointing the camera at their keyboards, just trying the app out. In fact, both apps make it so easy to start a stream that you need to be careful when using them, as I suspect many streams are started accidentally by newbies. [Mashable](http://mashable.com/) has been pretty good at testing out what could be done with this tech, having daily shows where two young tech nerds discuss tech news of the day. It's a little disturbing how many of the streams have been done while people are driving. I'm a little surprised that it hasn't yet devolved into [Chatroulette](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatroulette) sexual exhibitionism, although it can't be far off. There are also competitors, such as [Stre.am](https://stre.am/). No doubt there will be others; it really is an alignment of technology that has allowed these apps to emerge.

I think I can summarize the real game changing impact these apps will have in two words: **Citizen Journalism**. In the future, when there is police brutality, or a terrorist attack, or a school shooting, there will be live feeds broadcast instantly from _inside_ where it is happening. Mark my words; that's going to be really powerful.


6 posts from April, 2015