Quite Amazing Actually

I may have mentioned that I started painting in order to make my flat a bit more liveable. I ended up having an art exhibition.

Well, it started. You can view the pictures here. I'll link to the other artist's painting when I get it.

Note: I know that they aren't 'high art' but I had a lot of fun doing them.

Rock, Inc.

Got the very fortunate chance to see The Vessels again last night in London. Yes, they rock and are a great group of guys to know. Talented, open hearted, and funny.

They are on tour and you should take the chance if you get it to go see them (or better yet, as the saying goes, make your own luck and go).

A sample of their complex style is here.

By the way, London was in rare sunny form yesterday.

Language

I am often asked how I was able to get around several East European countries for several years without speaking each of the languages. That is a good question.

Much of what is communicated when speaking is actually visual. Facial expressions, hand gestures, body language do a great deal in expressing what is being said. As such, I got pretty good at anticipating questions, punchlines, and offers (inter alia). That isn't to say that I didn't pick up some of each language (or completely fail to understand) but overall, I was able to rely on my increasingly honed skill of 'watching to hear'.

Although I must confess, in Bulgaria, this was sometimes a bit trickier.

For an example of this, below is a "French" language discussion of a flying machine (yes, it's a flying sheep). I'm sure you can figure exactly what is being said without understanding a word. Enjoy.