Alcohol is now banned on the subways in London

and people throw big parties in subway cars.

 

NBA Finals

For a NBA fan in the US–I am excited beyond belief.

Lakers-Celtics.

I know I was a toddler when they last played, but I’ve watched enough ESPN Classic and know enough history to be fired up.

Check this out.

 

Ross on the BBC

It was great fun!

First of all, the British made fun of me, but complimented my taste in graduate programs, saying I could have gone to the Ivy Leagues but came for a “real” graduate school.

They assumed that I knew nothing about “soccer”, as they derisively called it, and were stunned when I knew a little bit. Then they asked me why “football” was becoming more popular in America, and if it was due to David Beckham.  I said no, not really, but Beckham made the ESPNs of the world pick it up.  I said a few things:
1) Most 25-year-olds and less in America played soccer as a child.  This is not true of older generations.  We are more familiar with the game and like it more as a result because we understand it better.  Generational replacement is driving popularity.
2) Women’s sports–soccer is a big-time girl’s sport, and women are becoming more involved
3) High-profile things like Beckham and World Cup 2002 success.

They asked me my favorite team, I said that Arsenal was my favorite.  I love Arsene Wenger, their manager, and the style of soccer he plays–it’s the most fun to watch.

Then we started talking about America.  They said they went to the World Cup USA 1994 and had a fantastic time, and I said “we Americans, hosting is what we do best!”

Finally, they asked for a prediction.  I said that America “face stiff questions” (common British phrase, I said it tongue-in-cheek), but then said “I am a true patriot and love my country.  I expect a reprise of 1776!”

EXPLOSIVE laughter from the commentators.

ERB

 

US v. England

Tomorrow I am going to be on the BBC!  The US plays (or as the British say, the US “play”) England in football, and I am going to be the Sample Foreigner Interviewed To Talk About His Team.

Will I be knowledgeable?

Will I be a cavalier cowboy?

Will I confuse “football” with “American football”?

Will I use British sayings?

Will I refer to the number of “caps” a player has?

We’ll see!

 

Oxford Is A Strange Place

If you walk down the streets of Oxford these days, near the Examination Schools, you will see hundreds of young British students waiting for their friends, parents waiting for their students, people giving gifts, covering each other with silly string, and handing out balloons and ludicrous hats.

It’s examination time in Oxford.

The University of Oxford’s primary purpose is to administer exams.  As I said before, in this Byzantine governance arrangement, the individual colleges hire faculty, admit students, and more.  The University does very little, except for administer exams.

And the students go crazy for exams.

Oxford students don’t work particularly hard in the fall and winter (the undergraduates, that is).  The only assessment you get is your final exams, and so it leads to a lot of cramming in May.  Then you sit in your subfusc (white tie, black robe) and take your three-hour test that comprises your entire GPA.  Afterwards, students meet you when walking out and drown you in silly string and party balloons.

It’s an odd time of year.

ERB

 

Lucian Freud, Roman Abramovich, and the cost of status?

Benefits Supervisor Sleeping, Christie’s Images Ltd., 2008

My mom is an art history major, and worked for years at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta.  When we would go to art exhibits, I used to ask her why certain works of art by Picasso or Cezanne that I didn’t think were that pretty were worth so much money.  If you don’t particularly like a work of art, why would you spend millions?  She would respond with a few explanations:

1.  The artist is well-known.  A Picasso or a Cezanne has inherent value that comes with their name, and they auction off for millions of dollars as much as an investment as anything.  (I got a question from my friend Bill once: what is the most certain investment you can think of?  What is the most predictably accruing use of your money?  My answer: something with a high barrier to entry, a very limited supply, and a large appeal.  My two solid answers: sports teams (costing around $400 million to buy, but certain to accrue over the long run) and priceless works of art by “Masters.”) The artist being well-known makes it a good investment.

2.  The work of art is somehow provocative–owning it becomes a status symbol.  This is how the Impressionists got their rise in the last half of the 19th century–Gustave Caillebotte and others made the Impressionists a fashionable Paris clique and, as a result, they made their name (even though their art was considered somewhat ugly at the time).

Last week, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich paid 33.6 million for the painting above–Lucian Freud’s Benefits Supervisor Sleeping. When the Communist Soviet Union fell, a number of Russian entrepreneurs made billions of dollars off of oil and gas in the open market of the 1990s.  Recently, Putin has nationalized the oil and gas industry again, limiting individual profit, but these Russian oligarchs have moved to London (you see traces of them everywhere) and bought their way into English culture left and right.  Abramovich, at $18 billion net worth, is one of the most visible–he’s bought the London football club Chelsea and can be seen everywhere in the UK.

The Russian oligarchs have a reputation for being “nouveau riche”–very, very ostentatious and tacky with their newfound wealth.  The British despise it.  They’ll go into clubs and run up a $100,000 bar tab.  They have a bit of money, but social status is king in the UK, and the British feel like the Russians can’t buy it.

$33 million is a noticeable sum, but not  a big expenditure for Roman Abramovich–it’d be like one of us spending $50 on a painting that we liked.  Why’d he buy it?  Lucian Freud is a well-known artist, as the great-grandson of Sigmund, and his shockingly grotesque works are very trendy in the art world.  Maybe a combination of my mom’s explanations, #1 and #2?

 

The Blog Has Been Silent

Folks,

The blog has been quiet the last week.  I have been in Atlanta for my little brothers’ high school graduation–it was really great to be home.  The blog has also been quiet because I’ve been at work–and soon, I’ll write about two projects I’m working on, this summer (in India) and this fall (in Ohio).  It’s a drab, cold morning right now at London-Gatwick: Welcome back to England!

ERB

 

Obama vs. McCain

Chris Carlson/Associated Press

 

Question of the Day

From my friend Katie Chamblee:

“Let’s start talking about running mates.

But before we do, in honor of the fictional world in which Hillary lives, can we discuss Obama’s best prospects among FICTIONAL running mates?

Who would Obama’s ideal running mate be from, say, Harry Potter?”

Katie and I discussed this, and this is a good one. Let’s break it down:

Harry Potter

From Harry Potter, you can make a good case for several strong characters.

Most of the young folks: Harry, Hermione, Ron, etc. are (a) constitutionally ineligible, and (b) given Obama’s youth, probably are too (seemingly) inexperienced themselves to make serious candidates.

DUMBLEDORE:

Pros: Dumbledore has impeccable integrity. His years of experience adds to Obama’s credibility. He also has executive experience at Hogwarts, so he’s ready on “Day One.”

Cons: He’s been so anti-establishment for so long, it’s hard to see him accepting the Vice-Presidency. He’s old–which takes away a big Obama contrast vs. McCain. And his links with the evil wizard Grindlewald–if you thought Jeremiah Wright was a problem, you ain’t seen nothin yet!

PROFESSOR MCGONAGALL:

Pros: She would get the women’s vote. She has years of administrative experience. As a professor of Transfiguration, she can probably spell Obama and friends out of any jam.

Cons: She’s a bit aloof–and I can’t really see her on the stump. Obama also as an African-American candidate is breaking a lot of barriers–would having a woman, too, be too far? And would the Republican attack machine go after the Transfiguration background, calling her a “flip-flopper”?

MY CHOICE: ALISTAIR MOODY

Pros: As a member of the Order of the Phoenix and an Auror, Moody has serious national security credentials. He also has an impeccable track record of fighting evil, matching up with Obama’s vote against the Iraq war. He was also locked up in a trunk for a year–giving him tremendous street-cred. Finally, he would be an excellent attack dog

Any other fictional universes? Tudor England (My choice: St. Thomas More–impeccable religious credentials, NEUTRALIZES the Wright issue, and has a sustained record of fighting for change–he was martyred by The Man, for goodness sakes!)? The New Testament? The jury is open.

ERB

 

The New Chef

The food in England hasn’t been as bad as expected.  My college dining hall, though it looks like Harry Potter-Land, has actually been pretty terrible food, though, for much of the year.

But New College just got a New Chef.  She is awesome.  I have had four meals in New this term, and all have been A+  I am going more often.  She loves doing theme nights, too (tomorrow is African night).

Morale is high.

ERB