Put Down Your Ham/Arms

So the big news this week was that the militant separatist group ETA declared the end of its armed conflict-they have done so before but it seems more serious this time, largely because Kofi Annan was there, and also Jimmy Carter sent a note, though the real influence broker was probably Gerry Adams. There's a good overview in the Times. ETA has definitely become less organized and less powerful over the last decade, but you can see from dispatches like this why they still hold power over people's fears. It's definitely the beret-sheet combo.

And moving on to the more mundane...we were in the grocery store yesterday and I saw these:

Yes that's right. Ham-flavored Lays! You will be pleased to learn that they also have a Gourmet version that is Jamón Ibérico-flavored. Ibérico ham is from a breed of pig that is finished on acorns and is very expensive, ergo the 'gourmet' designation. I checked the ingredients and both formulations owe a serious debt to monosodium glutamate. In fact, neither seem to have actual ham, so fear not, these fabulous products appear to be Pareve. Stranger things have happened. Even if not, this counters my preconception that the U.S. is the sole producer of completely gratuitous snack foods.

In spite of an encounter with an adenovirus that tried to drown me, I did get a couple good walks in this weekend to visit my buds Robert the donkey and Biff the dalmatian* (*not actually their names). Also the Emo Cows were back at Santa Barbara. It is not unusual to graze animals on even steeper pastures than this. We were talking about soil contamination in class last week, but erosion didn't merit any real discussion, leading me to believe that the laws of physics are different in the Basque Country, perhaps. Or maybe it's my ever-present linguistic issues. In addition to the Cult of the Artist Formerly Known as Prince, Elvis Costello is also prominently featured in lots of local graffiti. I have no real sociological insight as to why he is popular enough to show up at least 3 times within 1 block of our apartment, but I am starting to feel like he is an old friend.