One late-summer Munich morning in 1986, Vivian and I were walking to the Alte Pinakothek art museum, and I made the mistake of questioning her business skills. “How did you learn to negotiate so well?” I asked. “In Argentina, it’s normal. We negotiate for almost everything.” “I take it you didn’t have much money growing […]
7 – Men Just Seem to Wander Read More »
As summer gave way to the chilly German fall, I stopped by Vivian’s apartment one Friday to pick her up for a date and found a man there. She introduced him as Martín, visiting from Buenos Aires. We shook hands and eyed each other closely. Later, when we were in the car, I asked, “Who’s
9 – Shut The Engine Off Read More »
TW: Sexual Assault “I was eighteen, nearly finished with high school, riding the bus home from the Goethe Schule. Four years earlier, I was proud of the uniform with the large ‘G’ that meant I was growing up. Now, even after shortening the skirt just a bit more than the school allowed and tailoring it
10 – I Guess I Still Have Work to Do Read More »
Vivian rented a room from an East German refugee named Ansgar. In early November, Ansgar’s girlfriend unexpectedly returned from an overseas assignment and found him in bed with another woman. Vivian hid in her room and pretended not to hear their fight, but the next morning, the girlfriend knocked on her door. “You have to
11 – The Problem is When I’m That Person I’m Happy Read More »
In midsummer of 1987, I was fired. A British firm acquired ExaSoft’s home office and decided to merge my Munich operation into its London office. They gave me until September to transition the Munich operation to a new managing director. After that, I would be unemployed. When I told Vivian, she asked, “Flaco, what does