Toast of the Neighborhood

from Thursday, July19th of the year2007.

So I woke up yesterday to discover that my phone had been taken by Valgeir’s son to be shown off to the Local Urchins on the Trampoline. Then, later, I discovered that they had had a whole photo shoot. See below:

img_0050.JPG img_0051.JPG Work

I’m not sure who taught these seven year-olds to work a camera, but you should all consider it work’t.

auntjemimalrg-760486.jpgOne of my worst fears is that I’ll leave New York and either something really exciting will happen or something awful. An example of something “exciting” (which I was actually there for) is that mysterious, delicious, Aunt Jemima smell, and an example of something awful is, or could have been, the explosion in Manhattan yesterday. This is a particular travel anxiety, made worse by the time difference. I liked this line from the Times, “Some people ran so fast their shoes came off. Others dropped their briefcases and purses. Men in tailored suits were caught in a lapel-singeing cloud.”

Last night I totally watched Norbit subtitled into Icelandic. So much to learn!

English –> Icelandic

Oh, HELL no! –> Nei, fjandakornið!
Hell to the no! –> Nei, fjandakornið!
Oh no she did NOT! –> Nei, fjandakornið!

Also, there is no reasonable Icelandic translation for “How you durrn,” which is probably for the best. This movie is wretched, by the way. It features completely out-of-control stereotypes in a way that I cannot even trace the ironic positioning thereof, an impromptu gospel number, fat suits…a real horror show. Unless you’re trying to learn how to say “Hell to the No” in Icelandic, I wouldn’t recommend renting it. I saw, tantalizingly, in the list of available subtitles, “Magyar” and “عربي”, so maybe on a rainy afternoon…

3 Comments

  • That sucks you missed the smell. It was so luscious. Were you at least in town for the blackout? I got lost in your neighborhood and had to literally climb a streetsign to know I was on “Pike.”

  • That one girl, who is definitely working it, seems to have a preternatural understanding of modelling techniques.

  • “It features completely out-of-control stereotypes.”

    Presumably unlike Aunt Jemima (!). Just saying.

    [Nico responds: Exactly!]