Monday, August 27, 2012

HispanWick?

I think most people who blog for a while start getting emails like this from time to time:
 

Hello Patrick,
After reviewing your blog, I think that you are a good match for our music community on HispanoBloggers.com, our free media syndication service for bloggers.
Participate in our blogging campaigns and we connect you with our network of media outlets--helping to increase traffic to your blog.
  
Join HispanoBloggers.com today, and happy blogging!
   
Mariana Gonzalez
Hispano Bloggers
info@hispanobloggers.com
www.hispanobloggers.com


 
This time around though, I was a little puzzled about how my blog could have suddenly have become a good match for a "music community" of any kind, let alone one of particular interest to Hispanic readers...
 


I'm guessing this has happened simply because I wrote that one post about that classy Costa Rican triathlete, Leonardo Chacón Corrales, and got myself flagged for keywords like Costa and/or Rica.

 
The thing is, I don't want to insult anybody. I mean, if HispanoBloggers wants to make me an honourary Latino, who am I to say no? I've always thought Latinos were among the sexiest of ethnic groups. I haven't felt sexy ever. Well, except for that one time, but that was just pretend as opposed to say, this:
 
 
 
 
 
Oh yeah. Get a load of me now.
 
 
Sigh. If only it could be so. Ah well, you know my life is pretty damn good and I can and should romance Mrs. Rantwick all the time instead of daydreaming about fake Tangos anyway... yep, I think all is actually as it should be.
 
 
Queridos HispanoBloggers,

Por mucho que me gustaría ser un hombre latino en lugar de uno blanco pastoso o que me escribió una gran cantidad de puestos que sean de interés para los lectores hispanos, ninguna de estas cosas son verdaderas.

Por lo tanto, es con pesar que estoy rechazando su gentil ofrecimiento para unirse a su blogger servicio de distribución de medios.
 

 Su Pal,

R A N T W I C K

PS - Mis disculpas si esta carta está mal escrito ... He utilizado "Google Translate" y no habla una palabra de español yo mismo.
 
 

 
Don't forget to just be yourself, because your self is just awesome,
 
R A N T W I C K

Monday, August 20, 2012

Blast From the Past

While I was away in Thunder Bay in July I saw this vintage cycle locked up outside the Hoito:


The Hoito is a Finnish breakfast place / diner that must be experienced if you go to Thunder Bay.




It is located underneath the Finlandia Club. Try the Finnish pancakes. Newsflash: There are lots of people of Finnish ancestry in Thunder Bay.

Also be sure to purchase and eat a "Persian", a local delicacy that is only found in Thunder Bay, believe it or not. They aren't much more interesting than a doughnut to local people, who know not the extraordinary way in which they have been blessed, but when the Rantwick clan visits Thunder Bay we celebrate them with great vigour.



They are freakin' delicious. The best Persians can be purchased, not surprisingly, from "The Persian Man", which has at least two locations in town, maybe more.

The wikipedia article claims that there are "persians" available in Wisconsin as well, but they feature white icing sometimes with nuts or coconut. That is utter nonsense. Everybody knows persians have a strangely hard to describe pink strawberry-raspberry flavoured icing. White icing. Pffft. Whatever, Wisconsin...

Where was I? Oh yes, the bike. Check out the licence plate!




I remember those from when I was a kid; everyone was supposed to license their bicycle in the City of Thunder Bay. I checked their web site and found no reference to any such practice these days.

It was kind of nice to see how seriously bikes were treated at one time. Almost like, um, vehicles!


Yer Pal,
R A N T W I C K