"Motherlover", and other oddities

I was walking by a store in the mall yesterday when I heard a very unusual sound.  Blasting from the speakers inside the store was "motherlover" - the comedy song from SNL with Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg.  I thought that maybe the store was playing the video or something inside.  Nope, it was only the song playing.  "Fine," I thought to myself, "some Chilean teenager heard the song in the video, didn't understand what it was about (2 guys who hook up with each other's mothers, for those who may not know), liked the music behind it, and got it for the store he worked at.  That sort of thing happens.  The song was even uncensored, where a couple F bombs are dropped in the chorus.  "Boy, if anybody working here understands English, that kid might get in trouble," I thought.

...Then after the song, there was a commercial break.

A throwaway, secretly filthy comedy song from a late-night TV show is getting broadcast nationally through Chile!  Uncensored!  It blew my mind, I can't imagine how many different angry letters radio stations would get in the states from people with delicate sensibilities and too much time on their hands.

It wasn't as if I needed any further confirmation that this city is insane.  Earlier in the day yesterday, I took a taxi across town.  Inside the taxi, on the dashboard where most people mount their GPS, the cabbie had put in a 8 inch, fully functioning television.  Right in front of the winshield, tilted in his direction.  And as he drove down the very narrow and winding streets with busses and motorcycles swerving alongside us, he would often glance over at the television, which was playing soccer highlights.  And it wasnt like the TV could have been easily placed on the floor next to him if a cop were to show up - it looked like it had been welded or glued permanently onto the dashboard.  This guy was all in.

I also rode in a taxi last week that was passed by a fire truck with its sirens blaring.  I'd say a good 2/3 of the people moved over, but some people just steadfastly refused to get out of the way until they started moving, when they would just change lanes at their convenience.  Once the truck passed us, though, the cab I was in immediately jumped in behind the fire truck and sped off right behind it, making sure to stay right on his tail so nobody could cut in behind us.  Eventually we came to a red light where the cab couldn't follow the truck through, but there was a good 4-5 block space where our cab might as well have been the fire chief who didn't have room to sit in the truck with the rest of the firefighters, and his car was in the shop.  Nutty.

I will say, however, that while I do enjoy these things for the most part, there are parts of this life that are starting to wear on me.  For example, the non-heating of the houses.  Until you've experienced it, it's really tough to describe what it's like living somewhere for an extended period of time that is the exact same temperature as it is outside, sans rain and wind.  At first I thought I'd just get used to it, but I'm so sick and tired of wearing multiple pieces of clothing all the time around the house.  My only reprieve comes when I take a brief hot shower, but then I have to use a still damp, weather-dried towel to dry off, and then shuffle quickly back into my room and find suitable underwear and clothing for the day.  The never-ending reprieve of it is like chinese water torture.  There are moments of brief reprieve when I'm in class, or near an "estufa", but the majority of the time, it is inescapable.

I bitched about this to a few friends here, and their only response was "Oh, wait until it's summer.  The heat makes everything just as intolerable."  Great.  I guess it'll either toughen me up, or turn me into the South American Unabomber.  Stay tuned.