4 March 2003

I tried to get the Fiat running yesterday. It started, after massive jumping action: charging both batteries off the kitchen AC and then hooking them up to the starter in parallel. Oh baby: vroom.

But then I noticed the wheels were literally frozen to the ground. Literally, connected to the pavement with four or five inches of solid ice. It seems everyone had shoveled the snow out of their parking spaces into mine, and now a solid layer of vengeful ice is keeping me from driving my car.

So today, I bought 75 pounds of rock salt and poured it all around the wheels. Tomorrow: liftoff.

In contrast to my relatively boring life, a mail from Alex:

From: Alex Graveley
To: Nat Friedman
Subject: Re: genitalia

> regale me with tales of your grand adventures abroad

Well I've just returned from riding around a moped in the hills of Chaing Mai. On the winding way up I sort of lost control and took the bike into a 2 foot cement gutter. I was fine and some kids stopped and helped me pull the bike out.

Everything was great until on the way down the engine died. Luckily, the same kids who helped me pull the bike out, came along and with the help of a screwdriver got the engine running again.

The sad part is that for the remaining descent the kids followed me and made fun of me in Thai. I'm not entirely sure but I think they were being really cruel and hurtful, and probably calling me gay.

-Alex