
<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18700616624_d02c5c4f21_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Sharing a mosto">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18700616624_1dbc08a1ae_t.jpg" alt="Sharing a mosto"/>
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Plenty of milestones this month. Nora finished her third year of preschool and is now officially a First Grader. It was pretty emotional, since she's had the same amazing teacher, Viky, for all three years. I've been a fan of hers [since the beginning](/2012/09/06/meeting-noras-teacher/). All the parents got together and organized a book of photos and had each kid do a drawing, and then one father spent probably a dozen hours building it into a book of which copies could be ordered.  <a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18702639013_054b231e54_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Last day of Kindergarten">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18702639013_4deb77dd44.jpg" alt="Last day of Kindergarten"/>
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Nora feeling melancholy on the last day of school.

On the last day of school, when Viky was ready to send out each kid one by one with their special surprise for each parent (a photo of them in a _papier mâché_ airplane with the background edited to look like sky and clouds), we parents barged in and presented her with some flowers and the book. Viky, who was exhausted from the whole school year and, as I learned later, from the news that morning of a family death, was appreciative, but too worn out to really appreciate it in the moment. All proud of ourselves, we parents went home with our airplane photos happy that we'd done something nice for Viky.

I could see that it wasn't a time to properly thank her for everything, so, before leaving, I told Nora to go give her a hug so we could leave. It was one of those hugs where you can tell that it meant something more than just a hug to both parties. Nora was fine walking across the street to the grocery store, but in the store she began sobbing as the reality of the chapter finishing really sunk in. I remember that feeling at various graduates and comings of age, and did my best to express to her that being sad and cherishing the moment was an acceptable and good use of her energy.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19323265605_bc4899543b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Viky's present">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19323265605_60a38c66a9.jpg" alt="Viky's present"/>
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Viky receiving her book.

A week later, there was a meeting with all the parents and Viky, a post-preschool debrief. There, Viky presented everyone with individual ring-bound tomes of pages, each containing a huge collection of drawings, photos and personal stuff from each child _for all three years_. She totally outdid us. What a truly amazing woman. I cannot thank her enough for her tireless dedication to her students. Especially since Nora really needed someone with extra tender loving care for these three years.

Sadly, Ian will miss Viky as she rotates back around to the 3-year-olds this September, since Ian will start his first year of preschool in September 2016, but Ian isn't going to need the extra comfort that Viky provides; he's more resilient than his sister.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18700871744_305eedf8d9_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Echo de menos a Viky">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18700871744_fd94618e9b.jpg" alt="Echo de menos a Viky"/>
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A drawing that Nora did for Viky a week into summer vacation. It reads, "I miss Viky".

### Applauding Street Performers

One weekend we had some shopping to do in Bilbao, and we saw one of the more impressive diabolo performances I've ever seen. Stay to the end to see what Ian thought of it.

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

### Nora's Drawing

Nora has been doing a lot of drawing lately, and, for whatever reason that pops into the mind of a six year old, many of the drawings are in the form of little postage-stamp-sized \[greeting\] cards. She has made dozens, but here are two.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18700605004_8c1b48d17a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Nora's Little Cards">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18700605004_0755bcbb59.jpg" alt="Nora's Little Cards"/>
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I remember back when I thought every drawing needed to have a flower or four in it. And I used to draw just a blue bar at the top to represent the sky, but using blue to outline a fluffy cloud is good.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19323126345_1488d1bf60_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Nora's Little Cards">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19323126345_97aef03f56.jpg" alt="Nora's Little Cards"/>
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Here's one with a dime to give you a sense of scale. Here, she has shown what Viky tells us is a common step in the evolution of learning to spell: only writing the vowels. She wants to write "_Echo de menos a Ian_" – you should know what that means if you've been paying attention in this post – but she's got the "ET" sound from "_hecho_", and "_menos_" is compressed to just "EO", and so on.

This was during a day or two when Ian was staying with his grandparents, but Nora wasn't. What impressed me the most about this is the thought bubble symbolism and the frown on Nora's face. The frown is the same size as FDR's mouth. Find a dime and look how tiny that is!

### Ian's Speech

Ian has advanced to the stage where he can understand just about anything you tell him in Spanish. If you tell him, "Go to the living room and get the red box off the table," he'll probably understand. Whether or not he will choose to comply is another matter. In English, he also understands, but less so. I'm doing what I did with Nora, which is, when he asks me "_¿Dónde coche?_", I repeat, "Where is the car?", sometimes letting him repeat it in English, before answering.

Also, [just like Nora did](/2011/02/25/spanglish-shenanigans/) (although she did it at a much younger age) he sometimes refuses to use English words for things. I present to you Exhibit A:

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dtUpDv1INtM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

### Tying Shoes

Nora's reading and writing is progressing at a frustratingly slow pace. Sometimes you can help her sound out a word and she'll get to the end of the word, and you say, "Okay, so what word is that?" and she will have forgotten the sounds at the beginning of the word. Or other times we point to an "E" and she makes a "U" sound. So frustrating! I just have to calm myself down and remind myself that it'll happen when it happens and that there is really no rush at this point. I've learned to take this strategy with most developmental kid stuff. Ian is way behind where Nora was verbally, but I can clearly see that he's a happy, healthy kid that is progressing at his own pace, and I have learned to not worry about these things.

One of the benefits of this laid back attitude is that sometimes milestones just pop up without even having to work for them. One day this month, Nora announced that she now knows how to tie her shoes. Several of her classmates have known how to do this for months, so I can only assume that she's been practicing and studying with them. I was a bit incredulous, but then I watched as she did it with no problem. Then, because I know my daughter and her sense of showmanship, when she said, "I can't wait to tell Mommy!", I suggested, "Why don't we wait for Mommy to get home and tell her that we're going to do a magic trick. You will be in the kitchen with your shoes untied, and I will declare that I can magically tie your shoe from another room. We will close the door, and I will say some magic words for about 30 seconds, and then I will open the door and your shoes will be tied!" She _loved_ that plan.

While one can get wistful thinking, "One day I will pick up my child for the last time," there are certain last-times that I don't mind seeing come and go, such as diapers, wiping bottoms and tying shoes. Congratulations, Nora!

### Scarlet Fever

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19135732180_22d169f612_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Scarlet Fever Ian">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19135732180_17032265ee_m.jpg" alt="Scarlet Fever Ian"/>
</a>

While I had heard of scarlet fever before, I was sort of under the impression that it was one of those diseases that we'd more or less conquered, like measles or polio or smallpox. Well, I was disabused of my ignorance, and also enlightened as to the origin of its name, this month, when Ian contracted the disease. Ian's normally a super-active kid, so when he slows down and wants to cuddle, it's a pretty good sign that something is wrong. First he stopped eating, and the next day he had a fever. I think it might be easier to give a bull a suppository than to get Ian to swallow even a single drop of medicine, but we finally got him to drink a little ibuprofen-laden milk and that got him through the day. The following day, he was burning up in the morning, so I gave him a bath, and that's when I saw the rash that was covering him from head to toe. After dressing him and feeding Nora breakfast, we headed to the doctor's office.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19135746170_fd36a5d4c4_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Scarlet Fever Ian">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19135746170_6817481876_m.jpg" alt="Scarlet Fever Ian"/>
</a>

In the waiting room, Ian lay moaning in his stroller, and Nora entertained herself by untying and tying her shoes, managing to do it even with her eyes closed. Go Nora!

The doctor confirmed our suspicion that it was scarlet fever, or _escarlatina_ as they call it here. She told us that it was incredibly contagious and that the children should have as little contact with each other as possible. The day before they had been passing a water bottle back and forth taking swigs. Oh well. The doctor gave him a prescription of antibiotics in the form of a powder to be dissolved in water. I marveled at how nice it is to live in a world with antibiotics. According to my research on wikipedia, scarlet fever used to kill tons of children, and now it's but a disease of a few days (so I guess it _is_ sort of conquered as I had originally thought). The doctor went on to tell me how she had just had to give an injection to a child who refused to take his antibiotics, and she also mentioned the suppository option.

If we managed to get a few milligrams of that powder into Ian out of the five or six envelops we opened and dissolved into stuff, I'd be surprised. He did, however, recover fully within a day or two, and Nora nor anyone else ever showed any symptoms. I'm of the opinion that if you can fight off an infection without antibiotics, that's far superior than relying on them, so bravo to Ian's immune system!

### Thinking

One day this month, as I was preparing lunch, Nora and I had this discussion.

> Nora: "When the refrigerator door closes, does the light go off?"
> 
> Me: "What do you think?"
> 
> Nora: "I think it does."
> 
> Me: "How?"
> 
> Nora: "I think there must be a button that the door presses when it closes."

After that, I showed her where the button was. She hadn't known where it was or that it existed, she just reasoned her way there, by thinking of how one might design a system that turns off a light when a door closes. I was very proud.

On a related note, in the book of Nora's schoolwork that Viky gave us, there was one page on which Nora was asked to describe herself. She said something along the lines of, "I'm very smart, because my Mommy always tells me so." Viky even singled out that response in her post-preschool debrief as an example of how to give your kid a positive self esteem.

Later this month, we overheard her asking Siri (the voice activated search engine on Apple devices) "When the sun comes up, where do the stars go?" and "How are things underground?" Such an inquisitive mind!

### iGirl

From her dance class, Nora knows quite a few pop songs, and can sing along with the lyrics to several. This makes her infinitely more interested in music than her mother. Nora was literally not even a month old before she owned her very own iPod. [No, really, look](/2009/04/15/noras-first-ipod/). So I thought it might be time to dust it off and present it to her. She liked it, but there were problems. The 2009 iconic Apple earbuds don't really stay in her ears. No problem, I thought, I'll just order her some headphones. Sure enough, there is a whole array, on Amazon, of headphones for kids, designed to fit prepubescent craniums and to not allow music to be played too loudly, and some even come with stickers with which to decorate them. I let Nora choose which ones she wanted from a shortlist I'd selected, although it was clear that she'd go for the pink ones. I ordered them and they arrived a week later (during which Nora asked me every day when they would be arriving). She _loved_ them!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19136082140_cf4a1f6721_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Sassy iPod girl">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19136082140_8bda6f487b_c.jpg" alt="Sassy iPod girl"/>
</a>

The only problem was that they won't work with her six-year-old iPod shuffle, because that was one of Apple's product iterations where they went a little _too_ far towards minimalism (they do that occasionally), and the only buttons to control the playback are on the Apple earbuds cord, making third party headphones unusable. Undaunted, I went to my iGraveyard and found my most recent iPod model – the first one that would play video! – and gave that to her (pictured above). While she can't read the menu system, she's learned that the top menu item is how to get to the songs. We only had one incident in which she managed to switch the language to Chinese, and I had to research on the internet how to count the right number of menu items down to get to the language settings.

In the subsequent weeks, she has been listening to it less and less, but maybe for long car trips this could be a thing. Time will tell.

### Photos

And now, a random selection of photos taken in June.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19135484630_208155a379_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Bilbao Playground">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19135484630_b6d30d2fb1_z.jpg" alt="Bilbao Playground"/>
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Playing in a park in Bilbao. Bilbaínos will recognize where exactly.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18700616624_d02c5c4f21_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Sharing a mosto">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18700616624_1dbc08a1ae.jpg" alt="Sharing a mosto"/>
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Sharing a _mosto_, a grape juice drink the kids often order in Spanish bars.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19323303085_d00f4f4db4_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19323303085_383a1c0967.jpg" alt=""/>
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_¡Dos mostos, por favor!_

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19317246802_54602e8da9_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian and Nora on Motorcycle">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19317246802_7fa52cd840.jpg" alt="Ian and Nora on Motorcycle"/>
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Why do I get the feeling that this exact situation will occur on a real motorcycle some day?

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19297262196_240ce56eed_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Playhouse Lounging">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19297262196_97f01cb498_z.jpg" alt="Playhouse Lounging"/>
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One day my "It's too quiet! Something's wrong!" paternal alarm went off, and I found them inside their playhouse. When I stuck my phone in to take a photo, this is what it captured.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19299829716_8bbb97f5dd_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Official Bunghole Inspector">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19299829716_6419c22af8.jpg" alt="Official Bunghole Inspector"/>
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I'm adding Official Bunghole Inspector to Ian's CV.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19297236716_8b0a97586d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Speed on the water">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19297236716_481de116e6.jpg" alt="Speed on the water"/>
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Ian has put several kilometers on these tires.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19135690950_9300c1244d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Speed on the water">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/19135690950_05eb2bb53c.jpg" alt="Speed on the water"/>
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Speed demon!

The state of the offspring is strong!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18702626013_a286b8fe9f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Holding hands on last day of Kindergarten">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-june-2015/18702626013_293a738d20.jpg" alt="Holding hands on last day of Kindergarten"/>
</a>


State of the Offspring Address - June 2015


![](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-20-the-meaning-of-the-confederate-flag/200px-Confederate_Rebel_Flag.svg.png)The following post is an essay written by my high school World History teacher, Kevin McCloy, whom I rank as one of my all time best teachers and one of my better friends. It was originally written in a private response to someone on Facebook, but he executed it so beautifully that he shared it, and has graciously given me permission to share it here. This is McCloy's second appearance on this blog; his first was [a heart-rending tribute to his friend](/2011/04/25/a-good-friend-remembers-chris-hondros/), Chris Hondros.

Settle down, class! Everyone please take your seat. It's time for a history lesson... All the words below are his.

![](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-20-the-meaning-of-the-confederate-flag/500px-Confederate_Rebel_Flag.svg.png)

You've asked me to tell you about the "true" meaning of the Confederate flag. I will do the best I can to explain, but I need to make clear a few points from the beginning:

One, the flag is a symbol, as are all flags. Symbols stand for ideas, ideals and concepts. A mathematical symbol for addition, the "+" sign, is recognized by all who learn this particular concept as symbolizing the concept of addition. (It's not the same for all cultures believe it or not.) But, the "+" sign could also stand for the Christian Cross, if shown in that context. (Incidentally, there are also some who claim that the "x" is the sign of the true cross that Christ was crucified on, but that's another discussion.) But, let's stay with the idea of the "+" sign as also a symbol for Christianity and the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross for all mankind. To the classical pagan Romans under whose law Jesus was crucified, the cross was a symbol of treason and execution for crimes against the Roman state. (Imagine if some cult today ![](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-20-the-meaning-of-the-confederate-flag/Singchair.jpg)decided that the electric chair was a religious symbol of redemption through execution, and began to worship an executed convict as their "savior." _**That**_ would be how the Romans looked at the cross, so try to imagine their surprise, confusion and even disgust that a religion would use that symbol, the cross, as a symbol of redemption and salvation. The modern world no longer looks at it that way because the Christian faith outlasted the Roman Empire and the Christian symbol now has the meaning it does.)

So, secondly, all symbols have meaning, but not all people look at the symbol as having the same meaning. To different people looking at symbols, it all depends on what that symbol stands for, for _**them**_.

Now, the history of the "Confederate Flag" is also filled with controversy and frankly, misunderstanding and misinformation about history itself. I will simply say that what most people today recognize as the "Confederate Flag" was never actually officially the flag of the Confederate States of America. It instead is the Virginia Battle Flag. (Every Confederate state had several varieties of flags, as the Confederacy formed for the express purpose of allowing each State more independence from a "federal" government, so getting any sort of uniformity was difficult to say the least. Couple this with the fact that the Confederacy was brand new and formed in the chaos of war, and hadn't had the time yet to develop and maintain symbols accepted by all.)

![](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-20-the-meaning-of-the-confederate-flag/200px-Flag_of_the_Confederate_States_of_America_%281863-1865%29.svg.png)Now, the "official" Confederate flag that incorporated some part of the "battle flag", as adopted in 1863, was a large white flag, with the upper left corner portraying the "stars and bars" that most today incorrectly assume was the "Confederate Flag." (The "stars and bars" were where sits on today's modern US flag the blue field with the white stars.) Several different varieties were proposed, adopted and then changed. None of them were the "battle flag" that today is accepted as the flag of the Confederacy.

After the Civil War and during Reconstruction through the 1870's, no occupied former Confederate state was allowed to fly any variation of the "Confederate" flag, as it was now a symbol of rebellion and treason to the victorious Union, as well as a symbol of defeat and loss to the Southern states. (Think of how people now view the Nazi symbol and flag. The symbols of a defeated cause and ideology are no longer acceptable.)

![](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-20-the-meaning-of-the-confederate-flag/320px-Ku_Klux_Klan_Virgina_1922_Parade.jpg)However, the Ku Klux Klan (formed by Confederate veterans as a support network for fellow veterans) quickly came to the conclusion that all their woes and sufferings were caused by blacks, so they began their campaign of terror and violence against blacks. They adopted (naturally) various examples of the outlawed "stars and bars" as their symbol of white supremacy, and to many African Americans, it became the symbol of murder, hatred and terror. The Federal government, in occupying the defeated southern states, tried to prevent the attacks.

Reconstruction ended, corrupt political bargains were made between southern Democrats and Northern Republicans and the Federal government withdrew from the South and stopped enforcing laws that ensured equality and justice. As a result, Southern states were able to once again oppress blacks through laws no longer prevented by the Federal government. A system called "Jim Crow" laws was imposed, denying African American citizens their rights for the next 100 years. One hundred years of lynchings, violence, oppression and hatred against blacks in the South.

![](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-20-the-meaning-of-the-confederate-flag/174px-Jesse_Owens3.jpg)In the 1936 Olympics, Jesse Owens, an African American, stunned the Nazi world (and directly contradicted their belief in the "super race" mentality of white supremacy) by winning several events. Yet, in his own country he was treated as a second class citizen.

World War II saw many African Americans drafted (and many volunteered as well), to fight in segregated units, still oppressed by the very country they were serving, fighting against Nazi racism and oppression. When those veterans returned home after the war, they questioned why they had fought and died fighting Nazi racism, yet their own nation treated them almost as badly as the Nazi's had treated Jews in the years leading up the war.

As a result, the Civil Rights era began, as African Americans and those that sympathized with them campaigned to change the oppressive system, particularly in the South. Of course there were those that resisted, and of course they were white, as they saw the Jim Crow system as legitimate and legal and part of their birthright of white supremacy.

As part of the resistance to the efforts of Civil Rights campaigners, several southern state legislatures passed resolutions to once again fly the "Confederate Flag" over their State capitals. Some went so far as to even redesign their existing flags to incorporate the "stars and bars" again, something that hadn't existed since 1865. The all-white power structure fought tooth and nail to resist equality and racial justice.

So, the "Confederate Flag" is a symbol, but it is a symbol that means different things to different people. To die-hard secessionists and States-righters, it is a symbol of resistance to over-powerful government and a flag of freedom. To white supremacists, it is a symbol of racial superiority and oppression of minorities. To African Americans it is a symbol of hatred, slavery, terrorism, lynchings, murder, inequality and suffering. For them to have to live under a state government that still flies that flag, to have to drive down roads named for generals who fought to preserve the right to own slaves as property, to have to live in towns where statues celebrate Confederate dead who fought to keep them slaves.... that's what has many of them angry.

![](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-20-the-meaning-of-the-confederate-flag/320px-Flag_of_German_Reich_%281935%E2%80%931945%29.svg.png)So, imagine this: In the name of "history" and "heritage" and "pride", Jews would be forced to live under a government that still flies the Nazi flag. They would have to drive down streets named "Goebbels Avenue" and "Rommel Street" and "Hitler Boulevard." They would have to go to a courthouse where on the green next to the steps was a statue of an SS Trooper, proudly holding a Nazi salute, with the words "Our Nazi Dead" inscribed on it.

The Nazis lost. Their ideology was destroyed in war when the free world rose against them. Their legacy was the memory of concentration camps and crematoriums. Why would we ever let their symbols mean anything other than what they do?

And, as history shows, the Southern "white power" resistance to equality and equal rights was overcome. Jim Crow laws were abolished across the south. The Federal government set itself as watchdog over the electoral and legal process in the south. But, the symbols remained. States like Georgia and South Carolina still fly the "Confederate Flag" (even though it never was the "confederate flag") over their capitals in the name of "history" and "heritage" and "pride." What do you think those flags mean to the millions of African Americans who see them every day?

Recently however, several Supreme Court decisions have weakened if not outright eliminated those Federal safe-guards against political and economic attempts to restrict equal protection for racial minorities. The result have been sweeping changes in electoral procedures in several states, many of them in the south. All have been passed with the claim of either "prevention" of electoral fraud or "streamlining" the electoral process, but the end result is the same; making it harder for the poor and minorities to vote. African Americans are feeling greater fear that any progress that might have been made in the previous decades is now being eliminated and rolled back.

![APW2000040615291](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-20-the-meaning-of-the-confederate-flag/18812346369_5fffb286b3_m.jpg "APW2000040615291")The flags have not been taken down in over 50 years, even though they stand for a "nation" that was defeated in war over 150 years ago, a nation that was formed for the purpose of protecting the rights of white people to own black slaves, a symbol of white supremacists desire to intimidate and terrorize blacks, a symbol for all-white state governments to prevent the federal government from ensuring that "all people are created equal, and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, and that amongst these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

A flag is a symbol, and means different things to different people. But used by enough people to mean the same thing, and it becomes a symbol for that thing. I think it's time we realized that the Confederate flag no longer needs to fly over our state capitals. It only needs to be used now for illustrating history, not what we stand for today.


The meaning of the Confederate Flag


<img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-19-sports-is-a-socially-acceptable-outlet-for-xenophobia/18329946813_01d3473d64_t.jpg" alt="Your Team Sucks" class="post-thumb"/>Today I heard one of the best explanations for sports fandom that I've ever heard. The team sports as war tribalism metaphor has been obvious to me for a while. What I want to discuss today is not how it feels to be a player, but more about the sports fan culture that is built up around different teams. As someone who doesn't really participate in that – although [I try](/2010/06/24/why-i-love-the-world-cup/) every four years – it can be confusing seeing photos of my peers dressing their children in team colors and making really derogatory hateful comments about other teams and fans of other teams. But it has finally clicked for me as to why sports is so important.  First let's define xenophobia.

**xenophobia**: _n._ the intense or irrational dislike or fear of people from other countries.

But really it boils down to the fear of "other", of "those people over there". We all have it baked into our genetic code, because our ancestors who were slightly more fearful of the tribe on the other side of the hill, who worried about defending themselves, or offensively attacking, ended up surviving to the age of having offspring and protecting those offspring better than those that did not. Xenophobia serves a purpose and has helped our species survive.

The problem is that, as we have seen, xenophobia, while helpful for survival on the Savannah, can lead to the worst human behaviors: slavery, rape, genocide, war. But, _**we all have it in us**_. It would be great if we could create some artificial, arbitrary outlet into which we could channel our "Go Us! We hate Them!" instincts, to let us release those feelings in a way that does not lead to the actual slaughtering of neighboring villages.

Sports is the solution.

We don't need much more than "We're the blue team, they're the red team," on which to pour all of our hatred of the other. It doesn't matter to us that, over the years, all the players change, the coaches change, the stadiums change, and even the name of the team can change; humans are capable of identifying themselves as "a Yankees fan" or "a Real Madrid fan" and sticking to that for their entire lives.

Not only is sports not destructive for the most part, but it's constructive, creating an enormous industry of merchandise and entertainment. You can feel good when your team wins without the other team being dead, and you can feel bad when your team loses without dying. It really is a remarkable adaptation.

[![Mały fan](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-19-sports-is-a-socially-acceptable-outlet-for-xenophobia/6861364761_9eec26b675.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/drabikpany/6861364761 "Mały fan by Piotr Drabik, on Flickr")

Most of the ideas here are my paraphrasing of those of [John Siracusa](https://twitter.com/siracusa) on the [Reconcilable Differences](https://overcast.fm/+EtBp8x0ik/1:21:03) podcast, which I highly recommend.


Sports is a socially acceptable outlet for xenophobia


<img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-12-telecaress-to-touch-someone-across-a-long-distance/18119274683_f34913d2a2_t.jpg" alt="Telecaress" class="post-thumb"/>My eldest child, born in 2009, does not remember a time before she could instantly summon a video call with her grandparents on the other side of the planet. It took science fiction writers no time at all to predict such technology as soon as they saw a black-and-white television broadcast back in the early twentieth century. Obviously we'd be able to hold "face to face" conversations over long distances as if the other person were just on the other side of a pane of glass.  

<iframe class="left" src="http://gfycat.com/ifr/PowerfulIllfatedFlycatcher" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" width="240" height="180" style="-webkit-backface-visibility: hidden;-webkit-transform: scale(1);"></iframe>

So how will we communicate over distance in the future? This year, Apple released the first consumer level device that literally lets people _touch_ each other over a distance: the Apple Watch. It's still very crude, and really only the touch equivalent of the telegraph, allowing single taps to be transmitted, but it, like the telegraph, bodes of a more connected and flexible future of touching each other over distance. As such, I've decided to give my best shot at coining a term for such communication.

**telecaress**: _v._ to digitally transmit an act of physical contact from one person to another over distance, with a sensor at the transmitting end, and a mechanism to reproduce a facsimile of the action at the receiving end.

I'm old enough to remember back with AT&T's marketing slogan was "Reach out and touch someone." They were just trying to get people to pay those exorbitant long distance charges (remember those?). Now perhaps my kids will actually be able to touch each other.

<iframe style="margin:0 auto;display:block;" width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HO17B-ACRn0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Apple pundit, John Gruber, put forth an interesting hypothetical scenario in his initial [Apple Watch review](http://daringfireball.net/2015/04/the_apple_watch). Imagine with him:

> You’re 16. You’re in school. You’re sitting in class. You have a crush on another student — you’ve fallen hard. You can’t stop thinking about them. You suspect the feelings are mutual — but you don’t know. You’re afraid to just come right out and ask, verbally — afraid of the crushing weight of rejection. But you both wear an Apple Watch. So you take a flyer and send a few taps. And you wait. Nothing in response. Dammit. Why are you so stupid? Whoa — a few taps are sent in return, along with a hand-drawn smiley face. You send more taps. You receive more taps back. This is it. You send your heartbeat. It is racing, thumping. Your crush sends their heartbeat back.
> 
> You’re flirting. Not through words. Not through speech. Physically flirting, by touch. And you’re not even in the same classroom. Maybe you don’t even go to the same school.

This is how my children might flirt, as they sit idle in their self-driving car. Pretty weird and foreign, huh? Our current tech on this is still very, very primitive, but I'm convinced that telecaressing's arrival into our lives is not a matter of if, but when.

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lvtfD_rJ2hE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


Telecaress: v. to touch someone across a long distance


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18677169272_17c3331dae_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18677169272_a70fac3ca4_t.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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Last Sunday we were invited out for a paella picnic with [@bnanno](https://twitter.com/bnanno). She and her husband know many more places around Cantabria to visit, and they took us to a special place just past _Cabezón de la Sal_, near a town called _Ruente_. We met up at a place that was easy to get to – she actually sent me GPS coordinates – and then we followed them in our car to the park. Several times we wondered how much further it could be, as we wound through small villages and around mountains. We ended up in an enchanting green forest wonderland.  <a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18059249094_edaf954997_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18059249094_175aed1481_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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This was our habitat for the next seven hours. It had a very untouched prehistoric vibe to it. Aside from the picnic tables and gravel road, what we were seeing was exactly what a neanderthal might've seen a hundred thousand years ago.

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  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495721719_2f089acc90.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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We opted not to try and cross this deteriorated bridge.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494158228_5cda03f95e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494158228_04fbf60a8b.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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Nora helped cut the mushrooms for the paella.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494209280_085c0df1e8_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494209280_538e5e64d0_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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Chopped veggies.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495727439_e9066eef46_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495727439_f8a8626799_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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Our chef, with his portable gas stove.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18677169272_17c3331dae_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18677169272_a70fac3ca4_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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Hungry children looking forward to some paella.

After lunch, the kids spent hours upon hours down by the creek, throwing stones and moving water, one cupful at a time.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495732509_fe89d608df_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495732509_ff1d3ee25b_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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Mossy forest paradise.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495738889_f70d145e08_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495738889_8c01371ef2.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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A _Homo sapiens_ child.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495758349_d5ddddcf34_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18495758349_24cc02eabe_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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Our bellies full, we went for a walk on a lovely path that was enabled for the blind, complete with braille panels to read about local flora and fauna, with the shape of the animals and leaves raised, and also _a handrail running the entire length of the path!_ It would be great for elderly or physically challenged people, too. Very cool.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18677203922_8cd2aee7b4_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18677203922_80a231b0ac.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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I mostly enjoyed all the greenery. There was moss on almost every surface.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494248870_ca4f50b54f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494248870_16bc3e719c.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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Big furry moss.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18655642986_e7249bab1a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18655642986_7feb97fd0e.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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I'm still amazed that some of the walls stood up at all. They obviously got the stones from the creek, because most of them were very smooth.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494264070_0d1a3b97dd_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494264070_f4dd23419f_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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This must be an elf house.

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  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18494277500_704335d447_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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I don't often get to spend time in the woods, and I very much enjoyed last Sunday.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18677236502_d7f802dd37_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Picnic in Ruente">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-11-paella-in-the-woods-parque-natural-de-saja-besaya/18677236502_b23398fef4_z.jpg" alt="Picnic in Ruente"/>
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After an afternoon snack of bread, cheese, and beer, it was time to part ways and head back home. I skipped dinner and slept for 14 hours. We hope to go back sometime soon. Thanks, [@bnanno](https://twitter.com/bnanno), for showing us another little Cantabrian treasure.


Paella in the Woods – Parque Natural de Saja-Besaya


[![Barcelona](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-08-barcelona-if-youre-going-to-see-only-one-spanish-city/5534801186_f38b829a1a_t.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/aigle_dore/5534801186 "Barcelona by Moyan Brenn, on Flickr")When people ask me what city they should visit in Spain, the first answer is always the same. Madrid is great and all, and has it's charm – however, name me another important city on the globe with no bodies of water, not even a river! – Barcelona really should be prioritized over its political and _fútbol_ rival.  It has been a long time since I visited Barcelona. To be more precise, it will be 14 years this coming fall. Too long! Barcelona is a very interesting place. The second biggest city in Spain, and one of the biggest in Europe. It elegantly combines the old with the new, featuring magnificent old buildings with the newest architectural trends.

The things I remember the most about Barcelona are the _Gaudí_ architecture, with the house in the _Passeig de Gràcia_. And the park. This was very funny because we almost missed it. We went there and started walking and walking around the mountain, but we only saw gardens and forest landscape. When we were almost ready to leave, we finally found what we had gone there to visit. It was a nice thing that we got to see it because we loved [the place, the colors, the shapes](http://www.expedia.co.uk/Barcelona.d179992.Holidays-City-Breaks). Also, the views of all the landscape from the top of the mountain are breathtaking. So, when you decide to take your city breaks to Barcelona, remember to go to the proper place on the mountain.

[![Casa Batlló view from Passeig de Gràcia](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-08-barcelona-if-youre-going-to-see-only-one-spanish-city/3902451398_62b11b954b.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/bastique/3902451398 "Casa Batlló view from Passeig de Gràcia by Cary Bass-Deschenes, on Flickr")

Obligatory tourist shot of _Casa Batlló_ from _Passeig de Gràcia_.

The city is full of interesting places to visit, with great buildings such as the _Generalitat_, the Town Hall, the bridge that connects the two buildings used by politicians to escape unseen. Of course, there is the unfinished [_Sagrada Família_](/2014/11/10/la-sagrada-familia-barcelonas-iconic-basilica/) that is spectacular with all the details in the tall towers. If you are lucky enough, as we were, and happen to be around this area on a Sunday morning some not so young people might be dancing a _Sardana_. If we did understand correctly this happens more or less spontaneously every Sunday. A group of people get together and some play music and others dance. They often do not wear special clothes or anything, so in theory it is open to anybody that wants to and knows how to dance.

[![Sardana](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-08-barcelona-if-youre-going-to-see-only-one-spanish-city/13998174876_b9ee72e44b.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/fotero/13998174876 "Sardana by Fotero, on Flickr")

_Sardana_ dancers.

One of the most known streets in the world is _La Rambla_. It really is impressive, always so full of people, so vibrant. People strolling, people walking fast and people from all around the globe. If you are not from a big cosmopolitan city Barcelona will surprise you with very different individuals from many different countries. It is a nice experience to understand about different realities and that there are many alternatives to the way we dress. Along the way towards the sea there are many flower shops with a colorful selection of them, many people that will try to get your attention (and your money) with cards (e.g. Three-Card Monte), or balls or other tricks that you can not even imagine.

[![la rambla](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-08-barcelona-if-youre-going-to-see-only-one-spanish-city/5202271102_47c27ccdd1.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/goldenkoi/5202271102 "la rambla by monkichichan, on Flickr")

_La Rambla_

At the end of this lovely walk there is another icon of Barcelona: the statue of Christopher Columbus, as I was taught his name in school, or _Cristóbal Colón_ if you're from Spain, or _Cristóvão Colombo_ if you're Portuguese, or _Cristoforo Colombo_, if you are from Italy, like he was.

[![Las Ramblas i Monumento a Colón](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-08-barcelona-if-youre-going-to-see-only-one-spanish-city/5614206451_c6e7a73603.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/andrewlevine/5614206451 "Las Ramblas i Monumento a Colón by Andrew, on Flickr")

You really can't miss the statue of Columbus. Or if you don't see it, look up.

I do not remember anything that we eat or any restaurant that we went to, aside from some paella and some sangria, overpriced must-eats if you dare eat with the tourists on _La Rambla_. In our next visit (hopefully there will be one without having to wait 14 more years) we will have to explore the city's gastronomic offering. They have many dishes in Catalunya that are simply not available in my part of Spain. Both my wife and I look forward to returning.

[![Barcelona](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-08-barcelona-if-youre-going-to-see-only-one-spanish-city/5534801186_f38b829a1a.jpg)](https://www.flickr.com/photos/aigle_dore/5534801186 "Barcelona by Moyan Brenn, on Flickr")


Barcelona – If you're going to see only one Spanish city...

Potes - Bridges and Mountains


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-06-02-the-15th-annual-laredo-beach-golf-tournament/18158234729_b47245beb6_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Laredo Beach Golf Tournament 2015">
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I was very excited to play in this year's beach golf tournament last Saturday. It is most likely the only one of its kind in the world, made possible by the unique geography of the beach in Laredo, which has a wide tidal area, where low tide reveals at least a hundred meters of beach that high tide covers. That, combined with the finest sand I've ever seen, makes for a flat, hard surface on which a golf ball rolls as straight and true as on the best golf greens of the world.  My golf clubs still had last year's beach sand on them. That's how often I have played in Spain in the last year. I have some golf shoes that I bought two years ago that remain brand new, and they peer out at me from the closet all year round begging to be used. Like puppies to have seen their master pick up the leash, they were delighted to be donned early Saturday morning.

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If I had taken the time to re-read [last year's post](/2014/04/28/the-14th-annual-laredo-beach-golf-tournament/), however, I would have been reminded that I was making a grave mistake. Golf shoes are absolutely prohibited in beach golf because they chew up the sand _way_ more than flat soled shoes do. Before teeing off, when I went down to the flat sand to practice, it was immediately obvious that I had made a mistake. I walked _very_ softly when I went to tap in my par on the first hole (my group started on hole #4), and when I went to mark down the scores, I saw the "Any player wearing golf shoes must immediately abandon the competition!" language on the back of the score card. I didn't have any other shoes with me, so I was left with only one option.

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Barefoot golf is surprisingly fun! I was the only one without shoes, but I think I might actually choose to play like this next year, weather permitting.

The holes varied from 80 meters (87.5 yards) to 160 meters (175 yards), in 10 meter increments (although not in order).

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See how perfectly flat that surface is?

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Unlike last year, the weather this year was absolutely perfect. There was not "a drop of wind", as the Spaniards say, which is extremely rare in Laredo.

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When you're off the green (outside of the red line), you're not allowed to use your putter. This makes the game much more interesting, as choking up on a fairway wood is awkward, and blading a wedge – hitting the middle of the ball with the blade of the wedge, my preferred method – requires a lot of control.

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I suppose you could do this in some "salt flat" region of the world as well?

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My foursome included a tall german gentleman that works at the local _Bosch_ factory and the estate agent that sold me my house.

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It's a novelty version of golf, for sure, but it sure is a hell of a lot of fun!

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I was only on one green, the last, "in regulation" (with my first shot), but I scrambled for pars left and right.

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My scores are on the bottom. All the handicaps were adjusted down to par-3 beach golf levels, and I had a 4 handicap. I had two bogeys and one double bogey (chip failure), so I shot my handicap. Usually, I find that shooting your handicap exactly is not enough to win a tournament, but it's often enough to medal.

And indeed I did. I tied for third place.

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By the end of the nine-hole round, the "greens" got pretty chewed up from all the foot traffic on them. That and the fact that the beach-going public arrives around 11am are the main limiting factors that keep it to just a two hour, nine hole event.

I'm already looking forward to next year!

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8 posts from June, 2015