09.02.21 - Tem mais passado do que futuro

Hallooooo,

Hope all well 'n that. We've had an action-packed week shooting and editing Gaby's course, which we're hoping to launch at the end of the month, weather permitting. That's been the main focus but we also got out on Sunday night to see some friends who live down the road for the first time in ages, which was nice and involved lots of dogs.

Otherwise it's another week another playlist, and my phrase of the week ("tem mais passado do que futuro" / "[x] has more past than future") is quite a stark way of describing someone or something as over-the-hill or on its way out. 

And as an update to last week's primer on Palmeiras not having a "mundial" - their wait goes on, as they were eliminated by Mexico's Tigres UANL before they even reached the final against Bayern Munich. Not funny at all, I'm sure you'll agree.

Speak soon!

Fredge of Tomorrow

02.02.21 - Palmeiras não tem mundial

Hallooooo,

Hope all well Med-side. Not much to report here, other than a trip to see Taynah and Rafa's new flat in the centre of town (with lashings of hand-smoked steak, which I was very impressed with), and another to pick up Zila and dip her in our pool for a bit. New compilation too. 

Having said that, Palmeiras won the Copa Libertadores final (the South American equivalent of the Champions League) on Saturday, so now seems as good a time as any to analyse today's phrase of the week: "Palmeiras não tem mundial".  

The "mundial" is the FIFA Club World Cup, which has been running officially since 2000, and pits the champions of each continental footballing body against each other, to determine who will be "world champion" each season. So this year, Palmeiras will represent South America, Bayern Munich will represent Europe having won the Champions League in August, and teams from Africa, Asia, North America and the Middle East will be making up the numbers too. The tournament should have taken place in Qatar in late 2020 but was postponed for obvious reasons. 

Palmeiras' rivals from across town, São Paulo FC and Corinthians, have both won the Cup in recent history (in 2005, and 2000 & 2013 respectively), but Palmeiras haven't - hence "Palmeiras não tem mundial". They have, however, won the Intercontinental Cup which took place in Rio in 1951 along similar lines (and included Nice FC among the participants!). 

So the club does have some sort of claim to the title of World Champions, albeit one that is not officially recognised by FIFA, who only consider the post-2000 champions to be canon (FIFA dismissed the 1951 tournament as "outside their jurisdiction" but didn't shut it down, which some interpret as tacit approval).

This technicality has led to a fierce debate among fans, spawned countless memes, and is the focus of much derision and pedantry judging by my weekly football outings and the corresponding Whatsapp group, which is made up mainly of Corinthians and Palmeiras fans and can get very heated. It is often used as a one-size-fits-all rebuttal whenever any of the many Palmeiras fans get too big for their boots, but this tactic often triggers yet another re-treading of whether or not Palmeiras were ever world champions.

It took me a long time to grasp the extent of this rift, mainly because no one in Europe really cares about the Club World Cup, typically viewing it as a series of glorified friendlies, and a money-spinning exercise which often distracts teams from more important goals back home.  Liverpool are the current world champions, but winning the Champions League and the Premier League either side of the tournament obviously meant a lot more. Whereas for Latin American teams, the Cup is the only opportunity to play the more prestigious teams from Europe in a competitive setting, so victory is considered to be the ultimate achievement.

None of which looks set to change any time soon, as Palmeiras will no doubt get absolutely destroyed by Bayern's second-string team in an empty, air-conditioned stadium later this month. But despite my family ties to Corinthians I am secretly rooting for them, if only to banish the spectre of "Palmeiras não tem mundial" forever, so we can all move on with our lives.

Lesson over. Speak soon!

/WallStreetFreds

26.01.21 - Sou dono do meu próprio nariz

Halloooo,

Hope you've all been having a whizzy jolly time in Antibes! 

Over here we've been hard at work on multiple fronts, including a gruelling all-day session recording Gaby's course yesterday to make the most of a city-wide holiday - Ridaut directing, Adny on clapboard duties and me on the teleprompter, and occasionally fetching food. We also had a bit of a scare when a bottle of wine fell on Gaby's foot, but nothing a trip to the A&E couldn't fix.

Otherwise we've been lounging by the newly-opened pool, I've made another mixtape, and my phrase of the day is the regional equivalent of "I'm my own man", namely "I am the owner of my own nose". 

'Til the next time,

Fredinburgh Festival (& Fredinburgh Fridge)

19.01.21 - Bum bum tam tam

Halloooo,

Hope all well sausage-side! Not much to report here, other than our pool finally reopening, which led to much rejoicing and paddling on Saturday afternoon. We even spoke to some of our neighbours! Since then it's been drizzly though, so everyone has gone back indoors to hammer their walls instead.

Otherwise I've made another mixtape, and my phrase of the day comes from this year's "sound of the summer" - a novelty Bach-sampling hit by MC Fioti about bottoms, which came out a few years ago but has been re-recorded to honour SP's Instituto Butantan, which was involved in the new coronavirus vaccine set to be rolled out nationwide.

And that's the waaaaaay the news goes. Speak soon!

Fred Sauce

12.01.21 - O circo pegou fogo

Halloooo,

Hope all well sausage-side! We've been hard at work at the Powys Content Sluice Node 27B/6, and Gabi picked up where she left off with her patients starting yesterday, now with assistance from her mentee Ana and her digital assistant Gisele (i.e. me using an old iPhone).

Otherwise we've been following the shenanigans taking place among our American cousins, which brought to mind the local expression "o circo pegou fogo", i.e. "the circus has caught fire", or "the sh*t has hit the fan". And made a mixtape, obvs.

Speak soon,

Fred-eral Bureau of Investigation

05.01.21 - Perrengue chique

Halloooo, and may I add Happy New Year!

We're back from Ilhabela having spent a lovely week doing very little except strolling from one beach to another, occasionally stopping for lunch, admiring the view and lazing by the hotel pool when the afternoon rain set in. Except for one day when we climbed up a three-part waterfall, and another when we were almost drowned and had most of our possessions swept away by the sea in quick succession. I also read the whole of the Existentialist Café book, which was most enjoyable!

On New Year's Eve we ordered a bunch of food from one of our favourite haunts, picking it up just before the heavens opened and the island ground to a halt, and had a candlelit dinner by the pool, complete with complimentary bottle of champers and fireworks next door.

The vibe was a bit different from previous trips, obviously, but the promised shutdown of non-essential businesses on Jan. 1st didn't materialize, no one apart from us really bothered with masks or social distancing (not even the cops), and life went on pretty much as normal when it wasn't raining. I even got over the lack of a self-service cake bar at breakfast pretty quickly.

Normal service has now been resumed back here, we've been reunited with the cats, the drilling has picked up with a vengeance, I've made a mixtape, and my phrase of the day ("perrengue chique") basically means "first-world problems". 

It's also the handle of an extremely entertaining Instagram account which reposts home videos of people trying to enjoy their holiday in exotic and luxurious locations in Brazil and around the world, only to be thwarted by queues, thunderstorms, flooding and other intrusions (the tidal wave at our local beach and ensuing carnage featured prominently).

Until next time - speak soon!

Fredvillainy

29.12.20 - É pavê ou é pra comer?

Hallloooo,

Most excellent to speak the other day, and hope you had yourselves a merry little Xmas in Erli - loved the pics! Ours was fairly low-key, involving lots of eating at both Gaby's parents and her aunt and uncle's on Christmas Eve, followed by more eating on Christmas Day for good measure.

After a few more days doing as little as possible we set off yesterday morning to Ilhabela, where we will be wintering until the New Year in a rather nice flat overlooking the sea. The whole state and island is due to shut down non-essential activities completely on January 1st, so we may have to get creative in order to feed ourselves for the last few days of our trip, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

I've made my final mix of 2020, and my phrase of the day is a prime Xmas-period dad joke/pun over here, involving a dessert called "pavê". When it's unveiled at Xmas dinner, the wit of the group will invariably ask: "É pavê ou é pra comer?" ("is it just to look at (pra ver), or to eat?"). And there is much rejoicing.

Speak soon, and Happy New Year!

Auld Lang Fred