Skip to main content

Of Doors and Donuts

Friends,
They say eyes are the door to the soul. I think doors are the door the soul –of a city.
  • Take the side door (holy door) to the city’s cathedral. There are at least a dozen churches I can think of in the downtown area. Throw a stone and you might hit one. I have yet to find a town with such a high church density as Cuenca. Speaks to a pious culture.
  • The beautiful metalwork on the second door doubles as security. Despite being such a devout town, every glass surface in town has bars (or doors that close at night) to prevent breaking and entering and every house has a stone and/or metal fence. Speaks to the culture’s views on theft. 
  • Door three reflects the traditional building material (adobe) and brings us back to the fact some abodes are humbler than others. In Cuenca it is not uncommon to find a wealthy family living next door to a poor family. Speaks to a higher tolerance and empathy among social classes. 
  • The final door is gratuitous. Speaks to my sense of whimsy.

And speaking of doing things a little differently, Lisa Smith has kindly provided cookies and banana bread this morning (thank you!). That said, it seems things are getting little unwieldy, so I better get back to Denver so I can get us back on the donut wagon next week.
Happy Friday!

P.S. Here’s another gratuitous pic I took of a traditional center patio –with the city’s Cathedral in the background.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Remote Donuts

Friends, I knew working from home was going to be weird, so I had mentally prepared for some of the inevitable challenges. I decided to keep as many personal routines as possible intact . I’ve been getting-up at the same time (even though it is tempting to sleep-in due to the shorter “commute”) and have kept-up with personal grooming (showering, dressing for work, having breakfast, etc.). I got a nice desk and dedicated ergonomic space and brew a pot of coffee every morning. As for the isolation, I suppose it can’t be helped. Sure, video meetings are nice, but they can’t take the place of hallway conversations. On whole I’d say my first week working from home has been a guarded success. Still, there were a few unexpected twists. Fresh air. On Wednesday afternoon I realized I had not set foot outside my house since Sunday –and quickly remedied the situation. Invisible chair. The edge of my camera view catches a corner of the room with some “invisible” clutter. As it …
Post a Comment
Read more

Donuts, here for your safety!

Friends, This week I discovered our Denver North office has a Bitcoin Teller Machine (BTM). What?!? A convenient way to cash-out on all your Bitcoin millions before the hype wears-off. Except, this teller only TAKES your hard-earned dollars and converts them to Bitcoin. It does not DISPENSE hard currency. What’s the use case for that? Never mind, duh! It’s the general scenario that will ensure Bitcoin never goes to zero (despite recent trends). Crime! Say you are a crime boss (or petty criminal) who wishes not to have your transactions traced. An anonymized crypto-currency is the perfect vehicle to contract for that hit job, buy and sell stolen goods or funnel your monies far from prying eyes. But what if your cash business still accepts, well, cash? What do you do with all that clunky paper? Depositing it at your bank so you can buy your crypto online defeats the whole scheme. Enter the BTM. First you rent some office space at Spaces (which, by the way, makes for a great front). The…
Post a Comment
Read more

Family and Friends

Friends,
I’m trying to maximize the time I spend with friends and family while in Ecuador. My dad had nine siblings, my wife’s dad 15. As you might imagine, my cousins and their families are fairly numerous (despite the fact five of my dad’s brothers didn’t marry or have children). Then there’s my wife’s family and my childhood friends. Needless to say, there is never enough time to see everyone, despite a valiant effort. Of course, I’m also working from “home”. Corny as it may sound, working half a world away, I realize I miss my Windstream “family” and I look forward to seeing you soon. In the meantime, there are donuts, here today courtesy of John Huddleston.  So, enjoy some comfort food with regards from my Cuenca family (pictured) to you!
Post a Comment
Read more