Retirement Liechtenstein Style

by Paul Talbot on March 13, 2010

A world class Liechtenstein skier has set a stylish new standard for retiring athletes.

Rather than a maudlin news conference with somber emotional trappings, Marco Buechel went out with aplomb.  Buechel made his last run of his career the other day at the World Cup in Garmisch-Partenkirchen Germany dressed for the occasion.

Liechtenstein Marco Buechel

“It was rather chilly” said Buechel, sporting a Tuxedo paired with black Bermuda shorts.

Liechtenstein’s Buechel has competed in a record-tying six winter Olympics.

{ 0 comments }

Eat Alone Without Keith Ferrazzi

Americana

Twice in the past two days the topic of eating alone in a restaurant has surfaced.
This morning I was reading an article which started off with a quotation pulled from Keith Ferrazzi’s book,  Never Eat Alone. The book reveals the steps one takes to become a master networker.

Just yesterday, a friend was telling me [...]

Read the full article →

Hosni Mubarak Bobs and Weaves in Germany

Egypt

Hosni Mubarak was in Germany earlier this week, and at a news conference with Chancellor Merkel was asked what he thought about the groundswell of support for his new worst nightmare, political rival Mohamed ElBaredei.

The reporter who asked the question referred to ElBaradei as a hero. So Mubarak figured the heroism theme was as [...]

Read the full article →

In Egypt, Only One Question Matters

Egypt

Will Hosni Mubarak give Mohamed ElBaradei a fighting chance?
That may be the only question in Egypt that matters.  As Egyptians celebrate, take note of, or downplay the return of ElBaradei, as pundits speculate on his ultimate political future, there seems to be only one question worth asking.
Will Hosni Mubarak be able to get away with [...]

Read the full article →

Mohamed ElBaradei and a Free Egyptian Press

Egypt

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has never bought into the notion of a free press. For decades Egypt’s state-run newspapers, radio and TV stations have ignored the Mubarak regime’s corruption and ineptitude.
I suppose Egyptians consume their state-run media with something of a sense of amusement, noting both all that has been overlooked and where the [...]

Read the full article →

The End of Huckleberry Finn

Books

How are you supposed to feel after reading “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn?”
I’m not so sure I should be excited for Huck when he gets to “light out for the territory ahead of the rest.”

This lighting out is such an intoxicant that it glistens.
This territory Huck wants to light out for… precisely what is it?  Twain [...]

Read the full article →

Hosni Mubarak Bristles

Egypt

Hosni Mubarak is an increasingly crotchety 81 year-old.  The Egyptian President has weathered sufficient criticism to break a man of less stern stuff.
But as the years pass by the President’s patience withers.  As befits a dictator, there is less and less room for voices, both inside and outside of Egypt, which fail to harmonize with [...]

Read the full article →

John Boehner’s Dangerous Addiction

Politics

House Republican Leader John A. Boehner needs to check himself into rehab.

Boehner, and an unsettling number of other Republicans on the hill, need to work on their own political recovery while America, without their constructive participation, works on its economic recovery.
Boehner can’t seem to say anything that is not cast in partisan political negativism. [...]

Read the full article →

What Does the Muslim Brotherhood Really Want?

Egypt

If you were to brainstorm a list of names for organizations guaranteed to rattle the cages of America’s security apparatus, it would be tough to top The Muslim Brotherhood.
Conjuring images of robes and beards and the latest designer explosives, this is the kind of moniker that assures a spot on at least a few watch [...]

Read the full article →

Ocotillo in Winter

Arizona

Now is the time of year when most of the ocotillo’s barbed shafts are silver.   The thin ones shine brighter in the winter sun than any of the other grays on the mountain.  Dead mesquite trunks are dull by comparison.   So are the boulders.
On these rugged slopes ocotillo do not grow straight but bend away [...]

Read the full article →