hnamrnrdk

last night was pretty tough. it was my last day of school yesterday, and after my final (and of course the monthly gathering of the kids in my class and our teachers for cervecas y tapas) i had to say goodbye to all those wonderful people. although i teared up a bit i didnt think i was going to cry. then, walking home by myself, wide-eyed and adoring granada, the water works started… and pretty much didnt stop. i got home and after some sudoku and a little siesta, the girls and i went to get churros and met a bunch of our friends there. we ate churros and talked and sat around for a few hours, taking up at much space in that little cafe as humanly possible… then outside for more talking and standing around, jess and i tearing up and hugging each other every few minutes (it made it so much better to know that we didnt have to say goodbye to each other). we hugged and kissed some people goodbye, and then TAPAS of course (jess, mad-E, gari, kelly, ryan, and me). we had a great time just having a few drinks and chatting, enjoying each other’s company. then more goodbyes, more tears. then home. we walked in and i went to turn on the tv to see what kind of fútbol was on: liverpool v chelsea. and believe it or not… THAT made me cry. i think it was just everything (saying goodbye and my LAST opportunity for churros con chocolate), but knowing that i cant just turn on the tv and be guarenteed a fútbol game really hit me kinda hard… and i couldnt stop. but thank granada my roommates where there. we watched the oc and ate trailmix and yadda yadda yadda… today was much better. but i sat down at the computer and started to feel sad. i browsed my blogroll and took a look at bookis’s blog, and was reminded of a special blog he wrote for me. including THIS magnificant picture. i feel much better! thanx bks.

so im sitting here at paddy’s, my favorite local irish pub in granada. i come here quite alot, hang out with the bartenders (paddy of course, niall, and tony), laugh at the local drunks, and meet random people who turn out to be really cool fuckers. for example, last night jess and i came out to paddy’s to have a drink or two (paddy is a cocktail artist and makes the best long islands around). whilst we were sitting here, getting drunk and chatting it up with tony, we met a funny, old english guy from birmingham named dave. he seemed like a great guy, and told us that if we came back for the liverpool game tomorrow (that would be today) morning then he’d accept the pleasure of buying us a pint. how could we resist?

so i woke up to a call from my friend elliott to see if i was going to come watch the game (what a good friend to remind me that i had a free beer waiting for me). i woke jess up to see if she wanted to come too, got my computer and whatnot together, and walked to paddy’s. when we got here it was pretty dead, but there was dave waiting for us. [as ive been sitting here writing, my friend jack comes around and starts to read over my shoulder. he's english by the way. he wants to be written about in this blog, so i'm going to give him that pleasure.... in a minute... just wait jack, GEEZ.]

so jess and i just sat around thinking about the beers that we wanted to be drinking, and dave brought us a couple of pints. it was perfect… just as i was thinking to myself, “man, my mouth is dry and the only thing to quench this thirst is a beer,” dave presented us with the best and only thing i could have wanted at that moment. so we buggered off our computers and chatted it up with our new british friend. hes a middle-aged character, hanging out in granada, obviously living his life to the fullest. he told us about his son who is fluent in spanish and studying to be a spanish/english teacher. then he pulled out this little tin box and told jessica to go roll a joint (of what he called pollen… basically like condensed keef) in the girls bathroom. so she did. and we walked down the street to the little plaza about a block away, sat on the city bench, and smoked (for my first time since morocco).

when we came back, i decided that it was time to approach jack. oh jack… where do i start? 6 foot 6. body of a greek god. brains like ive never encountered and the face of an angel. but he’s got the eyes of a psychopath. he was of course was here when i got here, yelling and screaming about the game. 4-2. (he wanted to make sure i included that score… the most important part of this blog, if you ask me.) since he had been a bit preoccupied earlier and i didnt want to get punched in the face or the like by interrupting the game… but i thought that it was safe since it was all over, and they had won. so we talked about worldly accents, beastiality, pedophiles, and shark attacks. what a thrilling conversation.

so now here i am, chatting on AIM for the first time in forever, watching more (unimportant, jack tells me) fútbol games, drinking pint after pint of amstel (its all i can afford), and getting lots of mixed nuts from niall, my favorite bartender. as the bar gets more and more busy, and i start to hear more and more languages all around me, i am suddenly struck with the realization that soon i will be back in the states… where everyone speaks english, you dont get free food with your beers, and shawarma is not around ever corner and always open. i will miss my favorite bars, cigarette machines, and all the amazing, wonderful, open, interesting people that i have had the pleasure of meeting here in granada, and all along the way.

now before i get too emotional and start crying (for the… 2nd time) in paddy’s i will have to sign off, and remember that i dont have so say goodbye to granada YET. i guess its time for another pint…

so i know i havent really posted anything lately, and i sure have been up to quite a lot… but now it not the time to tell you all of that. here a little story about something that i saw on the streets of granada today…

i was walking home from school this afternoon at about 3.15 or so, walking along the river, soaking up the sun, and humming softly to myself. i had had a rough morning and was thinking way too much about having to go home soon, so i was doing all i could to put a smile on my face when all of a sudden i saw something scarry and disturbing (which did not help my mood).

i came to the corner of bar and restuarant and saw several people standing around, talking in spanish (claro). as i approached the crowd i saw what was causing the commotion… a dead guy. well, i’m guessing that he was dead because he was flat on the ground, lifeless, colorless, and seemingly dead. people were talking in whispered voices saying things like “la policia” and “emergencia.” i slowed down and tried to offer my phone to someone to make the call, but they were already calling the police.

i stopped for a couple minutes just to observe the strange picture that i was seeing on the streets of my beautiful town. the man, a dark complected spaniard, was completely lacking color in his face. he was lying half on / half off the curb that rose a few inches over the paved road. his face lay flat on the concrete, a cigarette next to his white lips. i cant be sure if it was there before or if it had been in his mouth, but there it was… half smoked, lonely and begging to be finished. his cold fingers were spread against the pavement and his feet twisted in an unnatural way, legs sprawled behind his body. there was a motor bike and a car practially covering him, but it wasnt at all as though he had been hit, but maybe collapsed there between the vehicles. a man was trying to move the bike to give him some air and maybe try to do CPR. i was too depressed and saddened by this scene to stick around much longer, but i asked someone to make sure that the police were coming and headed the rest of the way to my house.

when my roommates got home, we were all sitting around in the kitchen and i told them this story… starting with the titular line “i think i saw a dead guy today.” they were startled but agreed that it was a perfect title for my blog.

so there you have it. weird. i hope that i dont see anything else like this in my last weeks in granada. its usually such a homey, lovely place. much amor…