I went down to the Tropica Bar last night, just down the street. Interesting little place. A tiny bar with Tiki features at one end of a large dingy barroom that is otherwise filled with a couple of tables and a lot of gambling machines. There was an indifferent young woman keeping bar, a single table with a couple chatting, and two middle-aged women playing the machines and squabbling with each other the whole time.

I enjoyed the time off and read my paper while on the TV a Czech soap played. When the soap ended, a new show came on. There is a young woman partying in a disco, and an older woman buys her a drink, which comes in a test tube, and the younger woman downs it in a flourish. This happens again, and then it’s the next morning and David Caruso is taking off his sunglasses. Oh, I know, this must be Criminalca Miami!

Of course it comes as no surprise that American television shows air in Europe, this has been the case for years. It just made an interesting moment, that’s all.

I went back to my room to get an early bedtime, and turned on the TV to CNN International. “Brett Favre has retired!” was the big news. Boy, I leave the country for a month and things go to hell in a hand basket.

I started to channel surf since the CNN folks were mostly just apoplectic about it being too early to tell us anything about the primary voting. I found a German language show called “Switch” which itself looks like you’re watching someone channel surf, except that what they are watching are spoof versions of popular shows. The two that I recognise are a CSI Miami take off, in which the David Caruso character goes from one squatting seemingly profound moment to another where he takes off his sunglasses, says something, and puts his sunglasses back on — always dramatically. The other is a take off on The Office in which the Michael (Steve Carrel) character is Hitler, who is constantly frustrated by his bungling staff.

No, I am not making this up.

Gives one pause.

I turned off the tube and went to bed.

Woke up at 04:00 to hear that the primaries were a toss up so far. Lots of bloviating by various hired guns.

Went back to sleep for a while.

Got up at 06:00, Hillary has won Ohio and Rhode Island, Barack has won Vermont and will likely take Texas, although CNN is calling it for Clinton right now, but there are a lot of votes to count yet, and mostly in Obama territory. Obama looks to take the Texas caucus, the second part of that “Texas Two-Step.”

Off to breakfast, and to post these entries. I will try today to get a ticket to see Casanova by Lantern Magika. This production is designed by Josef Svoboda. In a past life I did theatre design, and he is a minor god in those circles. To be able to see a show he designed is pretty cool. I also want to get a ticket to a concert, although there is also a Playwriting Contest sponsored by The Prague Post, which is presenting a bill of English language theatre this evening, the only opportunity to see it while I’m here. We’ll see…

Ciao ciao!