Victoria

Not always, but sometimes I sleep with it on. I dunno. Maybe I like to hear the tick-tock of the Unitas 6497 lulling me to sleep.

Not much call for Cuban cuisine where you are, I imagine. If you ever get down to Windsor, look up "Latino Greek Restaurant", a stones' throw from the Castle itself. http://www.latinotaverna.co.uk/cms/index.php?alacartemenu They serve the best Picadillo and Taramasalata in England (don't ask)... @Emmzy: Delicious! Rabo encendido?

POTR has been very ill. Pneumonia and other "things". It would be nice if we bucked him up somehow...but how?

I had one, similar to this: (Dumb gadget, BTW) Cleobis, Rolex all the way. In my grandparents day, it was also Longines.

Love the Mamas & The Papas. (One of the few bands of the 60s I can stomach) I liked how you laid out the Glassh

Perfect. We're 100% in agreement.

YAY, you received it. Looks super-elegant, Demon! This is a wonderful hobby, isn't it? I love how we inspire one another. And buying each other's watches is just too freaky. One day, you can wear or strap a watch you have seen many times on the Wristchecks! Hi Deltatahoe. @SZ1: Just saw it. VERY impressive.

There are very few basements in Florida. The bedrock is simply not strong enough as we are a few feet above water. Americans always seem to have a "Family Room" as part of their middle-class houses. That family room is called a Florida Room here, appropriately enough: a light, airy room which is closest to the veranda/pool. That's where I intend on having this home theatre. The choice will be up to him, since a closed, dark space is best for sound. I'm not sure I'll live in Coral Gables when I marry, but I better! I didn't come from Belgravia to end my days in Hialeah. @HikeUSA: OUTSTANDING! And hey, I have that chaise-longe too!

Then all IDs are a form of biometric data. In a complex society, identification helps the person, more than it will ever harm them. Presumably, if a government reached power more to your liking and trust, you would be more amenable? I hope I misunderstood because this reduces your stance into something petty (disliking a particular government), rather than into something philosophical. Internal passports were used in Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia. No thanks for me.

Err, yes, they do like their pork for Christmas, but it is by no means their daily staple. Almost every dish they have is pork-free. My fave of theirs is the palomilla steak (cubed steak), ropa vieja (shredded beef on tomato sauce), and picadillo (ground beef and raisins). You have to be careful as I had to be, not to confuse Tex-Mex with pure Mexican food, TeeJay. Fajitas are Tex-Mex. They are not unknown in Mexico, but not part of their cuisine. Sadly. I love fajitas too! But I detest in general, those pancakes, the tortilla (which in Cuban and Spaniard-Spanish means omelette). I love Coke...but I also love Pepsi. I'm easy.

Yes, but National IDs are a form of internal passport. I am against National IDs whether or NOT they have stored biometric data. That just makes them simply beyond the pale. So the question is, if they didn't have the biometric data, would you be against National IDs?

V, I am reminded when you went to Greece for Christmas, RWG was down. Did you see this Wristcheck? Only I have mine on the DSN 112! Beauty.

In the past three days, I've had Chinese, Italian, and Cuban. Here is the latter, a "dorado" (Mahi Mahi) with rice and black beans. They like to fry their foods too much, and I can't get used to having everything with rice. At least it's not spicey food like Mexican food, which I can't stand. Today, I'm thinking Japanese (sashimi).

For a WIS, that's like peeking under a girl's dress, Scoobs. @Raymond: HOW beautifuuuuul!

Ahh, I begin to understand your own rationale, Narikaa. It's funny. I can GUARANTEE you there are Germans, Belgians, Brazilians, Spaniards, Greeks etc. who are reading this thread and scratching their heads. They just do not get this Anglo-Saxon froideur against National IDs. It's hard to explain it to them, because they were born having a National ID (even I had a Personalausweis when I was a German citizen). To them, it's as normal and as unscary as a Sunday roast is for us. I'm against it, but a people which fears government progress and tightening restrictions is living in some dreamland. The alternatives are NOT the Wild West or Gattaca. Here is Hitler's Personalausweis, BTW. (Occupation: MALER, LOL!)

MONDAY Pesto. Pane. Panerai. But Woman cannot live by bread alone. My DSN PAM 112 and some scrumptious lobster ravioli. TUESDAY The rarely worn PAM Purdey 152 by Repgeeks in-house collector, Toro Bravo on my much-worn Barbour jacket. Custom-made Dirk Nero (Buccaro) strap with beige stitching. Gorgeous. I mentioned it in the 005 thread, remember? Open officier cover showing the dial. I loved this watch ever since I saw it on Ola. ...thanks for getting the ball rolling, HikeUSA!

Understood, but in effect, he's against National IDs whether or not he's comfortable with Big Brother. It just so happens that he is. Life is funny. We all arrive at similar conclusions through very different paths.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I don't think TeeJay is in favour of National IDs? Are we debating amongst each other, for the sake of debating, when we agree?

The only UFO I believe in is Madonna.

This is the Frankensteinian question we've had to contend with, since the Industrial Revolution when machines superceded men. It's really not that we don't trust our goverments. It's that we are not sure of our technologies. They're scary, and seem to run away with ideas before our laws to protect us are in place. Isn't that what those who are opposed to IDs, have really been saying above? Oh, BTW, forgot to add: Post-Modern World: Superior Technology

Thank you, Kanye West.

This shot has been haunting me all day. Your home theatre is indeed a sanctuary, Volker. Congrats!! P.S.: My boyfriend is already thinking ahead when we'll have our own (when we marry). He frequents a home theatre forum: http://www.avsforum.com/ Do you know it? Lots of good tips there, apparently. I am leaving the wonk-work about the electrics/electronics to him. I'll take care of the d

Cskent69, I can't believe I missed your thread! Great minds think alike, eh? And fools rarely disagree. @Demon: Thanks too! In some twisted way, I think the merchants and we enjoy the lack of exact 1:1 replicas. How boring would this hobby get if we did have them? Just think of all the "Why is there no excitement anymore" threads we had mid-year in 2007, when the Fiddies, uPOs, and other "ultimate" watches were out.

Racism is a modern construct, as you know, TeeJay. I'm not one of those people who believe that yesteryear was rosier than today, or that governments were more accomplished than the ones now. I know you weren't implying the opposite, but we are far more tolerant as a species today, than EVER before. So it wasn't racism back then, the concept that your race made you superior to others. But it was... Greeks/Romans: Superior Civilisation Middle Ages: Superior Religion Renaissance: Superior Culture Enlightenment: Superior Science Industrial Revolution: Superior Economy Victorian Era: Superior Nations Modern World: Superior Race It's always something.

Congrats and welcome!