As Far As You Know

The classic ballad by the Eagles: "Desperado."

I am using the hotel's free WiFi connection in my room, but it is SO slow. I mean it's S..........L..........O..........W. Just loading a simple web page takes far too much time. And I am trying to download half-a-gig video files! Very frustrating.

Andy Roddick clinched the Davis Cup quarterfinal win for the U.S., giving the Americans an insurmountable 3-1 lead against the Czech Republic this afternoon. That Roddick won the match on clay, against a tough opponent in the form of world #12 Tomas Berdych, was especially impressive.

The U.S. has the potential to go all the way this year and take its first Cup since 1995. Roddick and James Blake are among the top six players in the current rankings and the Bryan brothers have been #1 in doubles for a while now. That's a formidable line-up. Of course, the next opponent, Spain, has Nadal (#2) and Robredo (#7) as potential team members, but the tie will be played on hard courts in North Carolina. That, plus the almost certain point the U.S. will get in doubles, should make the Americans favored. It would be nice to see this squad make a title run.

I actually was saying far worse things in the car until a few minutes ago.

I took the tram/metro/train combo back out to the airport this morning to pick up my rental car. Took a while, mostly because the train was late. Then I couldn't find the Alamo desk in the terminal at first. Once I got the car, I couldn't start it. After I worked that out, I fumbled around trying to figure out just how the unfamiliar manual/automatic hybrid transmission worked.

And then things got complicated. Let me say at the outset that I should have gotten a map before leaving the airport. I thought I'd be able to get back to the hotel, but I ended up driving in circles for far too long, passing familiar landmarks, but then being led off course by an apparent maze of Barcelona streets. When I finally stopped to ask directions, I got on the highway, only to realize it was going the wrong way. Each of two moves I made to turn around only took me miles out of my way without a turnaround opportunity in sight. I was screaming in frustration!

Once I settled down, I figured out how to get back to the hotel, though I had missed the check-out deadline by over an hour.

No worries now, I am heading out of Barcelona.