want to see a great movie?
Want to see a beautiful talented actress? Want to fall in love with a dog? watch "RED"
you can thank me later
Friday, January 28, 2011
Thursday, January 27, 2011
the little things , drive me crazy....
As I said a few blogs back when I was a kid I was a political junkie. At one point I thought ,"Well I'll go to law school and then run for office and have a career in public service"- oh , yeah I believe the idea that someday I'll be president ran thru my pre-teen head. Of course at the same time I was having some, "oh my God how long can this Vietnam mess last? Who do I know in Canada?"thoughts as well. Probably not conducive to being a future Commander in Chief.
A few years down the road, disillusioned, I turned my attention to other endeavors, but I have always kept one eye on the world of political hi jinx.
The other night , I think it was the CBS evening news, there was a story about some congressman who were living in their offices. Not many, about eight, and they were all men (of course), but this was supposedly a big ethical stand they were taking. They're not part of the Washington Elite, "why we don't even live here! We sleep in our office on the couch!"
Much was made of the fact that they had their clothes hanging in a storage room, and they ate cereal at their desk and they took showers in the gym locker room. What Spartans, these men are! What a bold principled stand they are taking~
I swear to God , I wanted to get in the truck drive down to the Capital, grab these goons by the scruff of the neck and drag their butts to a Motel 6.
What a bunch of phony weasels ( I apologize to the weasel community in advance). Get out! Have some respect for the Capital, it's not some flophouse. The Frat days are over boys. You don't want to be a Washington insider? Go find a apartment in Maryland! Maybe all you guys can rent a house together and you can write your name on the milk that you buy so that the congressman from Kansas won't use it in his cornflakes.
Oh , this story just annoyed me- I hate that sanctimonious BS, "Look at the sacrifices I'm making for you folks back home" Funny, I didn't see any of your staff living in the office with you. I guess that 22 year old kid right out of college who is working for you , for peanuts, he's part of the Beltway, so it's okay for him to spend money on rent.
I hope the people back home are embarrassed. (probably not, "Oh Look he's just like Jimmy Stewart in that movie! A true Patriot)
A goon.
ps with apologies to all goons
A few years down the road, disillusioned, I turned my attention to other endeavors, but I have always kept one eye on the world of political hi jinx.
The other night , I think it was the CBS evening news, there was a story about some congressman who were living in their offices. Not many, about eight, and they were all men (of course), but this was supposedly a big ethical stand they were taking. They're not part of the Washington Elite, "why we don't even live here! We sleep in our office on the couch!"
Much was made of the fact that they had their clothes hanging in a storage room, and they ate cereal at their desk and they took showers in the gym locker room. What Spartans, these men are! What a bold principled stand they are taking~
I swear to God , I wanted to get in the truck drive down to the Capital, grab these goons by the scruff of the neck and drag their butts to a Motel 6.
What a bunch of phony weasels ( I apologize to the weasel community in advance). Get out! Have some respect for the Capital, it's not some flophouse. The Frat days are over boys. You don't want to be a Washington insider? Go find a apartment in Maryland! Maybe all you guys can rent a house together and you can write your name on the milk that you buy so that the congressman from Kansas won't use it in his cornflakes.
Oh , this story just annoyed me- I hate that sanctimonious BS, "Look at the sacrifices I'm making for you folks back home" Funny, I didn't see any of your staff living in the office with you. I guess that 22 year old kid right out of college who is working for you , for peanuts, he's part of the Beltway, so it's okay for him to spend money on rent.
I hope the people back home are embarrassed. (probably not, "Oh Look he's just like Jimmy Stewart in that movie! A true Patriot)
A goon.
ps with apologies to all goons
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
the persistence of memory....
Oy, more snow.
I can't remember a winter like this around here (Long Island NY) where the snow just hangs around- it's been a month with snow on the ground. I lived upstate for a few years, where constant snow was a given , but not around here. Snow storm number 7 the radio has just informed me.
Let's see- I did a few loads of laundry, baked a bunch of stuff all afternoon, all the books and movies and cd's I put in alphabetical order last week, I'm now breaking them into genres(alphabetically , of course)
As I was reading the paper today (Daily News) I saw an article that the restaurant Gonzalez y Gonzalez is closing this weekend after 22 years. This was a favorite of mine nearly from the day it opened, good food, good prices, friendly service, Good location (Lower Broadway near Houston st.). In the evenings they had great bands as well. Close to the Angelika Cinemas and Film Forum, for years it was a lil' slice of heaven. I will confess that I haven't been there recently, but then again I haven't been anywhere recently (that's a whole other story)
They had a huge light up sombrero on the sign out front- if you watched the first season of the Real World NY, yeah like 20 years ago, they showed that sign quite often, it was a fun bit of kitsch.
Two of my fondest Manhattan memories are connected to that restaurant:
Mid December 1991 , I was Christmas shopping downtown, it's about 8 o'clock and there are lots of people out bustling- there was an outdoor flea market in the parking lot next to the Tower Record store down there. A light snow is falling and believe me there are few things as....lovely as the city when it snows. After shopping I need to warm up and I had about an hour to kill before the movie I was going to see started so I went to Gonzalez..... That crazy sign blinking away in the snow, sublime.
It's a random Monday night in spring, not a holiday just a day, a Mon.
The time is 11:45- post movie this time, and I'm sitting having a late dinner. I'm seated up front next to the window, the place is packed , a band is playing in the back room. I look out onto Broadway and the street is filled with people. Ah, New York.
Adios ,Gonzalez y Gonzalez. I'll see you in hell Muchacho.
I can't remember a winter like this around here (Long Island NY) where the snow just hangs around- it's been a month with snow on the ground. I lived upstate for a few years, where constant snow was a given , but not around here. Snow storm number 7 the radio has just informed me.
Let's see- I did a few loads of laundry, baked a bunch of stuff all afternoon, all the books and movies and cd's I put in alphabetical order last week, I'm now breaking them into genres(alphabetically , of course)
As I was reading the paper today (Daily News) I saw an article that the restaurant Gonzalez y Gonzalez is closing this weekend after 22 years. This was a favorite of mine nearly from the day it opened, good food, good prices, friendly service, Good location (Lower Broadway near Houston st.). In the evenings they had great bands as well. Close to the Angelika Cinemas and Film Forum, for years it was a lil' slice of heaven. I will confess that I haven't been there recently, but then again I haven't been anywhere recently (that's a whole other story)
They had a huge light up sombrero on the sign out front- if you watched the first season of the Real World NY, yeah like 20 years ago, they showed that sign quite often, it was a fun bit of kitsch.
Two of my fondest Manhattan memories are connected to that restaurant:
Mid December 1991 , I was Christmas shopping downtown, it's about 8 o'clock and there are lots of people out bustling- there was an outdoor flea market in the parking lot next to the Tower Record store down there. A light snow is falling and believe me there are few things as....lovely as the city when it snows. After shopping I need to warm up and I had about an hour to kill before the movie I was going to see started so I went to Gonzalez..... That crazy sign blinking away in the snow, sublime.
It's a random Monday night in spring, not a holiday just a day, a Mon.
The time is 11:45- post movie this time, and I'm sitting having a late dinner. I'm seated up front next to the window, the place is packed , a band is playing in the back room. I look out onto Broadway and the street is filled with people. Ah, New York.
Adios ,Gonzalez y Gonzalez. I'll see you in hell Muchacho.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
joy to the world....
Bit of a kerfuffle last week when Ricky Gervais hosted the Golden Globes Lot's of people found him nasty and boorish and a bit of a bully, others thought he was hysterical and the perfect antidote to Hollywood pomposity.
Individually I thought most of the jokes were great, but after a while the pile up became sour. One after another, after another, after another...... no room to breathe. I figure in the opening monolog, let 'er rip, anything goes- but when you start to insult everyone who comes out to present, that becomes a bit nasty. Like shooting fish in a barrel, you have a prepared barb and the poor schlump or schlumpette walks out already looking foolish. And then of course they have to deliver those horrible bits of forced banter.
To each his own, I guess.
Of course the greatest definition of comedy/tragedy comes from Mel Brooks; (I paraphrase) "comedy is if YOU fall into an open manhole and die, Tragedy is if I get a papercut" Ah, perspective.
I was thinking today about perhaps the greatest comic creation of all time; The 2,000 Year Old Man. Mel and Carl Reiner in a perfect duet of creation. To listen to those albums is like ..... (add your own superlative here) I'll choose , Like looking into the eyes of God. They are smart, and wise, and silly, and funny, and shocking and most importantly , they are joyful.
The more I think about art that I respond to, I find that a spirit of Joy is so important. The joy of the performers as they create and the audience as they respond.
There are two bits on those records that still give me goosebumps every time I listen, and I have listened hundreds of times.
The 2,000 year old man is asked what he thinks about Paul Revere- the response "Anti Semite bastard" The audience roars! What? He said what? The old man goes on to explain that Revere on his famous ride was yelling out "The Yiddish are coming! The Yiddish are coming" More laughs. When he is corrected, he says , without a seconds hesitation, "Oy, I have to write his wife a note"
The anti-semite bit is astounding but the detail of writing the note, for me, makes it more than just a bit of shock- it becomes a glimpse into humanity, good manners can trump hundreds of years of slander. Or so he hopes.
Brooks is fearless.
My other favorite, and when I play it for people they still gasp- Is a another bit of word association, Reiner wants his reaction to a list of famous military heroes, all Generals, The old mans reaction to each and every name, "a Fag!" and to Custer "A Fag! The Biggest" When informed that there is no record of these men being Homosexual, the Old man is taken aback. "Who said such a thing?" "You did, you called them Fags" "FAG- Federal Army General! I didn't want to waste time on the record."
Bliss. Track down those 2,000 year old man albums and give them a listen. There is talk of Reiner and Brooks getting together for one more album-that would be a bit of heaven.
But like I said they were funny and shocking but underneath there was always a little nugget of humanity, a not so hidden bit of wisdom. Here's one:
"We mock the things we are to be"
The Ol' guy is talking about his parents and how silly they were, Reiner says "They sound like you" .....Yes.
Many years ago my Dad's mother was staying with us, we had a huge Sunday dinner all on the table ready to go, "Nanny, come on sit down and have dinner" " NO, that's okay , don't worry about me, I'll just have a Frankfurter" With her brogue it sounded more like frank- a- fu-ter.
For years, This has been a family punch line and nobody liked it more than my mother. These days ,when I bring my Mom a glass of milk she'll say , "Oh no, that's too much, I don't need that Much" Or I'll bring her a blanket "Oh, that's too big, get me a smaller blanket"
I should be careful, We mock the things.......
Individually I thought most of the jokes were great, but after a while the pile up became sour. One after another, after another, after another...... no room to breathe. I figure in the opening monolog, let 'er rip, anything goes- but when you start to insult everyone who comes out to present, that becomes a bit nasty. Like shooting fish in a barrel, you have a prepared barb and the poor schlump or schlumpette walks out already looking foolish. And then of course they have to deliver those horrible bits of forced banter.
To each his own, I guess.
Of course the greatest definition of comedy/tragedy comes from Mel Brooks; (I paraphrase) "comedy is if YOU fall into an open manhole and die, Tragedy is if I get a papercut" Ah, perspective.
I was thinking today about perhaps the greatest comic creation of all time; The 2,000 Year Old Man. Mel and Carl Reiner in a perfect duet of creation. To listen to those albums is like ..... (add your own superlative here) I'll choose , Like looking into the eyes of God. They are smart, and wise, and silly, and funny, and shocking and most importantly , they are joyful.
The more I think about art that I respond to, I find that a spirit of Joy is so important. The joy of the performers as they create and the audience as they respond.
There are two bits on those records that still give me goosebumps every time I listen, and I have listened hundreds of times.
The 2,000 year old man is asked what he thinks about Paul Revere- the response "Anti Semite bastard" The audience roars! What? He said what? The old man goes on to explain that Revere on his famous ride was yelling out "The Yiddish are coming! The Yiddish are coming" More laughs. When he is corrected, he says , without a seconds hesitation, "Oy, I have to write his wife a note"
The anti-semite bit is astounding but the detail of writing the note, for me, makes it more than just a bit of shock- it becomes a glimpse into humanity, good manners can trump hundreds of years of slander. Or so he hopes.
Brooks is fearless.
My other favorite, and when I play it for people they still gasp- Is a another bit of word association, Reiner wants his reaction to a list of famous military heroes, all Generals, The old mans reaction to each and every name, "a Fag!" and to Custer "A Fag! The Biggest" When informed that there is no record of these men being Homosexual, the Old man is taken aback. "Who said such a thing?" "You did, you called them Fags" "FAG- Federal Army General! I didn't want to waste time on the record."
Bliss. Track down those 2,000 year old man albums and give them a listen. There is talk of Reiner and Brooks getting together for one more album-that would be a bit of heaven.
But like I said they were funny and shocking but underneath there was always a little nugget of humanity, a not so hidden bit of wisdom. Here's one:
"We mock the things we are to be"
The Ol' guy is talking about his parents and how silly they were, Reiner says "They sound like you" .....Yes.
Many years ago my Dad's mother was staying with us, we had a huge Sunday dinner all on the table ready to go, "Nanny, come on sit down and have dinner" " NO, that's okay , don't worry about me, I'll just have a Frankfurter" With her brogue it sounded more like frank- a- fu-ter.
For years, This has been a family punch line and nobody liked it more than my mother. These days ,when I bring my Mom a glass of milk she'll say , "Oh no, that's too much, I don't need that Much" Or I'll bring her a blanket "Oh, that's too big, get me a smaller blanket"
I should be careful, We mock the things.......
Saturday, January 22, 2011
double feature.....
Two random movie thoughts.
Some of the earliest movies were "actualities" a few moments of a train pulling into a station or perhaps people leaving a factory. Simple. The audiences at the time were spellbound.
Oh , how quaint, those silly , silly people so easily entertained.
Doesn't seem all that different from about a billion posts on YouTube, a guy falling off a ladder, a kitten yawning, traffic...........
I keep seeing ads for all the new phones , each with promises of opening doors to the brave new world of information and technology. Nearly all of them trumpet with great pride the fact that you can watch movies, right there on your phone. As a matter of fact one phone had "Avatar" loaded on the phone when you bought it.
Avatar, the epic 3D wide screen sensation, right there on your two inch screen. I'm sorry , but if you watch a movie on your phone, you are not allowed to say you watched that movie.
of course this coming from the guy who still has and uses the first phone he ever bought about 7 years ago. Works fine, holds a charge, I'm keeping it.
My phone does have one oddity though , of which no one can give me an explanation for, when my friend Leia leaves a message, the message usually doesn't reach my phone until the next day. Only Her messages! Where the hell are they for 24 hours?
Some of the earliest movies were "actualities" a few moments of a train pulling into a station or perhaps people leaving a factory. Simple. The audiences at the time were spellbound.
Oh , how quaint, those silly , silly people so easily entertained.
Doesn't seem all that different from about a billion posts on YouTube, a guy falling off a ladder, a kitten yawning, traffic...........
I keep seeing ads for all the new phones , each with promises of opening doors to the brave new world of information and technology. Nearly all of them trumpet with great pride the fact that you can watch movies, right there on your phone. As a matter of fact one phone had "Avatar" loaded on the phone when you bought it.
Avatar, the epic 3D wide screen sensation, right there on your two inch screen. I'm sorry , but if you watch a movie on your phone, you are not allowed to say you watched that movie.
of course this coming from the guy who still has and uses the first phone he ever bought about 7 years ago. Works fine, holds a charge, I'm keeping it.
My phone does have one oddity though , of which no one can give me an explanation for, when my friend Leia leaves a message, the message usually doesn't reach my phone until the next day. Only Her messages! Where the hell are they for 24 hours?
Friday, January 21, 2011
all hail, the baron.....
I am a big fan of food shows- the how to programs as well as the travel and cuisine variety . I've seen them all and love many of them, BUT there is nothing that compares to Bronx Flavor! A public access Tv show that features the many varied cuisines of The Bronx. Written, produced directed and starring , Baron Ambrosia, aka Justin Fornal . On a shoe string budget he creates half hour epics complete with a cast of dozens, action, special effects, and musical numbers. A true original. Here's a tease, the opening credits. Do yourself a favor and explore the Bronx with The Baron.
Monday, January 17, 2011
long ago......
When I was a young punk, I was a young Turk- I loved the world of politics. If there was a debate going on somewhere , I'd find it and jump right in. I always enjoyed a chance to mix it up, More often than not I would defend my still evolving beliefs, but every once in a while I would just be provocative and let 'er rip. Great fun.
It is amazing when I think about coming to age in the '60's and what the world was like. War, and riots and protests and assassinations and marches in the street. The world seemed to be coming apart at the seams. I can never forget that the daily paper, Newsday, on page two would print a weekly Vietnam "scorecard" how many American casualties and how many enemy casualties. I was always confused, "How can we be losing?, Look at the numbers!" How many Cong could there be?
The war was all around us- in the paper, on TV, boys from the neighborhood were serving overseas. I'll never forget Tommy, from across the street "treating" the street to a helicopter flyover one summer afternoon, about 100 feet above his parents house. Awesome and a bit frightening.
Phillip Malone, from next door, regaling the boys in the neighborhood with a demonstration of how he could torture and maim the enemy with his government issue steel comb.
I was lucky enough to have a sixth grade teacher, Mike O'Connor (who left teaching to move to Vermont and become a carpenter/ Christmas tree farmer) who loved politics and inspired his students to get involved. He was a lefty, but encouraged us to explore what we felt/thought whether he agreed or not. To this end our classroom had posters of Eugene McCarthy, William F. Buckley and Ralph Nader among others.
Our sixth grade class was an "experimental" class 14 kids, 7 boys, 7 girls and we were given lots of educational latitude. We were reading "Silent Spring" and "Unsafe At Any Speed" as well as building picnic tables for the school. We also ran the school dances and put on our own version of the Fillmore West Light Shows. Incredibly inspiring.
Remember The Scholastic Book Club? each month you got the form in class and would pick a few books and order them and then the next month the box would arrive with your books. I loved to open that box and hand out every bodies books. A wide variety, novels (the greatest boys book of all time THE SECRET HIDEOUT- well to me anyway), science experiments, joke books (the legendary Elephant Joke book), posters. One month I ordered a biography of Martin Luther King- it was geared for kids, it was short, but I was mesmerized. I promised myself that I would read it everyday. and for a few weeks I did.
Even as a kid whenever I would see King on TV or hear him on the radio , I knew that this guy was something different .He was truly a force for change, his message , his cadence, his courage, his calm created a challenge to the world , but most directly to the heart of America.
"How Long?"
It is amazing when I think about coming to age in the '60's and what the world was like. War, and riots and protests and assassinations and marches in the street. The world seemed to be coming apart at the seams. I can never forget that the daily paper, Newsday, on page two would print a weekly Vietnam "scorecard" how many American casualties and how many enemy casualties. I was always confused, "How can we be losing?, Look at the numbers!" How many Cong could there be?
The war was all around us- in the paper, on TV, boys from the neighborhood were serving overseas. I'll never forget Tommy, from across the street "treating" the street to a helicopter flyover one summer afternoon, about 100 feet above his parents house. Awesome and a bit frightening.
Phillip Malone, from next door, regaling the boys in the neighborhood with a demonstration of how he could torture and maim the enemy with his government issue steel comb.
I was lucky enough to have a sixth grade teacher, Mike O'Connor (who left teaching to move to Vermont and become a carpenter/ Christmas tree farmer) who loved politics and inspired his students to get involved. He was a lefty, but encouraged us to explore what we felt/thought whether he agreed or not. To this end our classroom had posters of Eugene McCarthy, William F. Buckley and Ralph Nader among others.
Our sixth grade class was an "experimental" class 14 kids, 7 boys, 7 girls and we were given lots of educational latitude. We were reading "Silent Spring" and "Unsafe At Any Speed" as well as building picnic tables for the school. We also ran the school dances and put on our own version of the Fillmore West Light Shows. Incredibly inspiring.
Remember The Scholastic Book Club? each month you got the form in class and would pick a few books and order them and then the next month the box would arrive with your books. I loved to open that box and hand out every bodies books. A wide variety, novels (the greatest boys book of all time THE SECRET HIDEOUT- well to me anyway), science experiments, joke books (the legendary Elephant Joke book), posters. One month I ordered a biography of Martin Luther King- it was geared for kids, it was short, but I was mesmerized. I promised myself that I would read it everyday. and for a few weeks I did.
Even as a kid whenever I would see King on TV or hear him on the radio , I knew that this guy was something different .He was truly a force for change, his message , his cadence, his courage, his calm created a challenge to the world , but most directly to the heart of America.
"How Long?"
Thursday, January 13, 2011
let it snow, etc.
I love the snow
I'm starting to get tired of the shoveling, but still , I love the snow.
When we were kids when it snowed, we would shovel our driveway and then hike around the block asking folks if they wanted us to dig them out. We would make a coupla two three bucks. Walkin' around money. A slurpee and a candy bar and a comic book.
Now, none of these little punks in the neighborhood even go out in the snow! And where I am now the neighborhood is lousy with kids, but none of these little orchids will come out in the snow.
In MY Day..........blah, blah, blah. (fill in your own "in my day anecdote" here)
So ' I'm out there by myself, shovel in hand, walking the heart attack high wire diggin' the truck out of the drifts.
Oh and here's another bit of ol' man whining, How come the plow guy can't get a little bit closer to the curb? I dig out to the end of the driveway and I still have six feet to go. Damnation!
Oh, oh, oh ,oh, here's something else! The guy who lives diagonally across the street is a contractor, so he dug himself out with some heavy equipment. I got a $5.99 K mart snow shovel and he's got a back hoe! A little help maybe? (do you think part of the problem might be that he has lived across the street for 5 years and I can only think to call him "that guy"?, nah can't possibly be me)
So I'll finish the walk go inside and drink some ovaltine and look out the window and dig on Mother Nature as she channels Christo and Jean Claude and blankets the neighborhood.
ps I will admit that I started to write about some other topic of a more personal nature and got a bit overwhelmed- I'll get to it someday
I'm starting to get tired of the shoveling, but still , I love the snow.
When we were kids when it snowed, we would shovel our driveway and then hike around the block asking folks if they wanted us to dig them out. We would make a coupla two three bucks. Walkin' around money. A slurpee and a candy bar and a comic book.
Now, none of these little punks in the neighborhood even go out in the snow! And where I am now the neighborhood is lousy with kids, but none of these little orchids will come out in the snow.
In MY Day..........blah, blah, blah. (fill in your own "in my day anecdote" here)
So ' I'm out there by myself, shovel in hand, walking the heart attack high wire diggin' the truck out of the drifts.
Oh and here's another bit of ol' man whining, How come the plow guy can't get a little bit closer to the curb? I dig out to the end of the driveway and I still have six feet to go. Damnation!
Oh, oh, oh ,oh, here's something else! The guy who lives diagonally across the street is a contractor, so he dug himself out with some heavy equipment. I got a $5.99 K mart snow shovel and he's got a back hoe! A little help maybe? (do you think part of the problem might be that he has lived across the street for 5 years and I can only think to call him "that guy"?, nah can't possibly be me)
So I'll finish the walk go inside and drink some ovaltine and look out the window and dig on Mother Nature as she channels Christo and Jean Claude and blankets the neighborhood.
ps I will admit that I started to write about some other topic of a more personal nature and got a bit overwhelmed- I'll get to it someday
Saturday, January 8, 2011
going to hell in a handcart...but not hungry
I had a relationship with a lovely young lady a few years back. While it lasted, delightful.
(here I will interject that very few of my relationships end as "pals". Scorched earth would probably be a more accurate description- but that's a discussion for another time perhaps)
A delightful woman. Smart, funny, beautiful, the whole magilla.
When she was upset or felt that her life was in disarray (sometimes I was the source, but most times , not) she would do something to her hair. A new style, a new color- sometimes subtle, sometimes ....hmmmm....dramatic. One look would tell you all you needed to know. An inch or so off the length- okay. Bangs- uh oh. Platinum Blond- run!
"When I find myself in times of trouble...." This young lady would head for the salon.
I cook and/or bake.
I like to cook and will do so most nights, but I'm talking about when the clouds of doom are gathering , I will COOK. Head down, all business, try to dice and chop my way to tranquility.
Today I made a batch of brownies, an Irish soda bread, an onion tart, 24 meatballs and the sauce to go with them, a pot of black bean soup and a pot of minestrone.
And I did three loads of laundry
Run.
....but please take some of this food with you.
(here I will interject that very few of my relationships end as "pals". Scorched earth would probably be a more accurate description- but that's a discussion for another time perhaps)
A delightful woman. Smart, funny, beautiful, the whole magilla.
When she was upset or felt that her life was in disarray (sometimes I was the source, but most times , not) she would do something to her hair. A new style, a new color- sometimes subtle, sometimes ....hmmmm....dramatic. One look would tell you all you needed to know. An inch or so off the length- okay. Bangs- uh oh. Platinum Blond- run!
"When I find myself in times of trouble...." This young lady would head for the salon.
I cook and/or bake.
I like to cook and will do so most nights, but I'm talking about when the clouds of doom are gathering , I will COOK. Head down, all business, try to dice and chop my way to tranquility.
Today I made a batch of brownies, an Irish soda bread, an onion tart, 24 meatballs and the sauce to go with them, a pot of black bean soup and a pot of minestrone.
And I did three loads of laundry
Run.
....but please take some of this food with you.
Friday, January 7, 2011
well, that ain't right......
Many years ago I went to a high school chorus concert, a good friend of mine, a mentor, was leading the chorus, A very religious fella of the born again variety. They performed a choral arrangement of "Imagine". A bold choice at the time. There was one change made in the lyric, I bet you can see this comin'- "And No Religion too..." became "And ONE Religion too..."
Well, that ain't right
The other day at the opening of the new congress, The Representatives read the Constitution aloud, into the record, a nice bit of state/stagecraft. Except they didn't read the entire document, some of the "icky" stuff (slavery, prohibition) was left out.
....ain't right.
A new edition Of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer is (are) going to be published with some modifications, the most glaring of course, is the substitution of the word "slave" for the "N" word.
.........
If your going to make the choice and do the thing, whatever the thing is, do it. Could it be painful? could it be awkward? Could it raise questions?
Yes?
Tough.
Do the thing! Prepare for the sh*t storm that may ensue, but don't be a wimp, don't blink, move forward.
Don't presume that you can make these changes because, ....well....cause...y'see.....
No. I don't see. You shouldn't do it. Things are messy, the past, the present, the future are all overflowing with dilemmas,you can't fix them, maybe you can learn from them, maybe you can gain some insight, glean a bit of wisdom, but that ain't going to happen if you hide the funky stuff because the neighbors are coming over.
Do the thing and take the hit.
ps on a slightly related topic, years ago I was working on a production of the musical "Tom Sawyer" (a wonderful show, by the way) and in doing research I visited The Mark Twain House in Hartford. A great library and research facility as well as...his house! which you can tour. And there,If memory serves on the second floor, in the kids playroom, was the table where Twain wrote Tom Sawyer. Right There! I love that kinda stuff.
Well, that ain't right
The other day at the opening of the new congress, The Representatives read the Constitution aloud, into the record, a nice bit of state/stagecraft. Except they didn't read the entire document, some of the "icky" stuff (slavery, prohibition) was left out.
....ain't right.
A new edition Of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer is (are) going to be published with some modifications, the most glaring of course, is the substitution of the word "slave" for the "N" word.
.........
If your going to make the choice and do the thing, whatever the thing is, do it. Could it be painful? could it be awkward? Could it raise questions?
Yes?
Tough.
Do the thing! Prepare for the sh*t storm that may ensue, but don't be a wimp, don't blink, move forward.
Don't presume that you can make these changes because, ....well....cause...y'see.....
No. I don't see. You shouldn't do it. Things are messy, the past, the present, the future are all overflowing with dilemmas,you can't fix them, maybe you can learn from them, maybe you can gain some insight, glean a bit of wisdom, but that ain't going to happen if you hide the funky stuff because the neighbors are coming over.
Do the thing and take the hit.
ps on a slightly related topic, years ago I was working on a production of the musical "Tom Sawyer" (a wonderful show, by the way) and in doing research I visited The Mark Twain House in Hartford. A great library and research facility as well as...his house! which you can tour. And there,If memory serves on the second floor, in the kids playroom, was the table where Twain wrote Tom Sawyer. Right There! I love that kinda stuff.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
do not adjust your dial......
I went to college in upstate New York, up near Buffalo- along the Southern Tier. Far away from home on Long Island, same state but an 8 hour drive. Sometimes longer, sometimes much longer. Maybe I'll tell some of those travel stories one of these days. I'm sure after another year or two of therapy I'll be able to deal with saying it out loud.
During the previous post, i touched on TV watching, misspent days and nights with Jim and Tammy Bakker and the PTL club. This conjured up some other cathode ray memories;
On one of the local stations in Buffalo, I kick my self, I can't remember which, they were network affiliated , but that was mostly in the evening ,during the day, they were on their own. There was one middle aged gent, (again, a pox on me, I can't remember his name) who was the weather man , he was also the host of the bowling show, and the host of the High School Quiz Show and the host of the afternoon show for the kiddies. They certainly got their moneys worth with this fella. He probably swept up the studio at night as well.
Love Local TV.
Of course not all "Local" Tv is out in the Hinterlands. New York had it's share, The great kid shows of the 60's, Sandy Becker, Chuck McCann, Sonny Fox. Officer Joe Bolton was always a favorite- I loved that they used a cop to host the Three Stooges, he was there in case things got out of hand. Can't forget Capt. Jack McCarthy, I forget what show he hosted, I want to say Popeye, but that's too easy. Once a year on St. Patricks Day, Capt. Jack would be the host/commentator of the parade. God love him, he knew every person who marched in the parade by first name and had a personal anecdote to share about each and everyone.
To my mind though, the single greatest personality to appear on NY TV was Stanley Siegel. Some of you are nodding in approval, others shaking your head in disgust and the majority are asking, "WHO?"
Ah, Stanley. To say he was one of a kind doesn't do him justice. To say that he was the perfect embodiment of the nervous breakdown that the City was going thru during the late 70's is just about right.
He was on for an hour starting at 9am, the Regis spot. When the show started it was basic daytime talk show fare, some opening remarks, a guest or two- someone selling a self help book or a TV star , maybe a recipe, maybe a clown from the circus...... you get the idea.
As the days and months passed things started to change, e or de volve, depending on how you felt about Stanley. As time passed the show became without question THE STANLEY SIEGEL SHOW! There was one topic every day; Stanley and how he viewed the world. The opening remarks became a rambling discourse about what he did since he saw us last. This would go on for a half hour. If he played tennis, which he did a lot, we heard about it. If he was having trouble with his Girlfriend, which he did a lot, we heard about it.
Good, Bad, warts and all, and more warts, We heard about it. In detail. Seemingly, with nothing left out. It was beyond train wreck- it was riveting. I used to be late to work because I couldn't drag myself away- I eventually got one of those radios that had TV band and a bunch of us would listen in the morning as the kiddies arrived (camp counselor).
It reached a point where one day a week , for about 20 minutes he would have his therapist on and Stanley would lie down on the couch and have a session , live on the air. No Holds barred.
A polarizing figure- you either loooooved him or detested him, there was no middle ground. I loved him. Here's one reason why and this will sound odd- there were times when it would get so uncomfortable that I would have to turn him off. I couldn't watch anymore, it was too raw, It was like Curb Your Enthusiasm x 100. BUT, how many other shows get you so involved, so invested in what's happening? Not many in my experience.
My favorite Stanley Memory- It was during a snowstorm, much like the blizzard that just passed,and the powers to be extended his show for an hour or two. The weatherman would come on and give updates , but Stanley had three hours to fill. Thank goodness he had guests that day, Eartha Kitt and Freddie Fender. Did Stanley stay in the studio and spend time with his guests? No, he put on his coat and hat and gloves and took a camera into Central Park and talked to the people out in the park during the storm. He got into a snowball fight with a bunch of kids, occasionally they would cut back to the studio and Eartha and Freddie were sitting on the set. (which I believe was a few bales of hay and a fence, I guess because Freddie was considered a country act) Freddie had his guitar and he and Eartha were singing bits of songs, oblivious to the camera.
They would cut back and forth, Stanley in the park, a weatherman, Freddie and Eartha.
Oh , it was glorious.
The lunatic had taken over the asylum
During the previous post, i touched on TV watching, misspent days and nights with Jim and Tammy Bakker and the PTL club. This conjured up some other cathode ray memories;
On one of the local stations in Buffalo, I kick my self, I can't remember which, they were network affiliated , but that was mostly in the evening ,during the day, they were on their own. There was one middle aged gent, (again, a pox on me, I can't remember his name) who was the weather man , he was also the host of the bowling show, and the host of the High School Quiz Show and the host of the afternoon show for the kiddies. They certainly got their moneys worth with this fella. He probably swept up the studio at night as well.
Love Local TV.
Of course not all "Local" Tv is out in the Hinterlands. New York had it's share, The great kid shows of the 60's, Sandy Becker, Chuck McCann, Sonny Fox. Officer Joe Bolton was always a favorite- I loved that they used a cop to host the Three Stooges, he was there in case things got out of hand. Can't forget Capt. Jack McCarthy, I forget what show he hosted, I want to say Popeye, but that's too easy. Once a year on St. Patricks Day, Capt. Jack would be the host/commentator of the parade. God love him, he knew every person who marched in the parade by first name and had a personal anecdote to share about each and everyone.
To my mind though, the single greatest personality to appear on NY TV was Stanley Siegel. Some of you are nodding in approval, others shaking your head in disgust and the majority are asking, "WHO?"
Ah, Stanley. To say he was one of a kind doesn't do him justice. To say that he was the perfect embodiment of the nervous breakdown that the City was going thru during the late 70's is just about right.
He was on for an hour starting at 9am, the Regis spot. When the show started it was basic daytime talk show fare, some opening remarks, a guest or two- someone selling a self help book or a TV star , maybe a recipe, maybe a clown from the circus...... you get the idea.
As the days and months passed things started to change, e or de volve, depending on how you felt about Stanley. As time passed the show became without question THE STANLEY SIEGEL SHOW! There was one topic every day; Stanley and how he viewed the world. The opening remarks became a rambling discourse about what he did since he saw us last. This would go on for a half hour. If he played tennis, which he did a lot, we heard about it. If he was having trouble with his Girlfriend, which he did a lot, we heard about it.
Good, Bad, warts and all, and more warts, We heard about it. In detail. Seemingly, with nothing left out. It was beyond train wreck- it was riveting. I used to be late to work because I couldn't drag myself away- I eventually got one of those radios that had TV band and a bunch of us would listen in the morning as the kiddies arrived (camp counselor).
It reached a point where one day a week , for about 20 minutes he would have his therapist on and Stanley would lie down on the couch and have a session , live on the air. No Holds barred.
A polarizing figure- you either loooooved him or detested him, there was no middle ground. I loved him. Here's one reason why and this will sound odd- there were times when it would get so uncomfortable that I would have to turn him off. I couldn't watch anymore, it was too raw, It was like Curb Your Enthusiasm x 100. BUT, how many other shows get you so involved, so invested in what's happening? Not many in my experience.
My favorite Stanley Memory- It was during a snowstorm, much like the blizzard that just passed,and the powers to be extended his show for an hour or two. The weatherman would come on and give updates , but Stanley had three hours to fill. Thank goodness he had guests that day, Eartha Kitt and Freddie Fender. Did Stanley stay in the studio and spend time with his guests? No, he put on his coat and hat and gloves and took a camera into Central Park and talked to the people out in the park during the storm. He got into a snowball fight with a bunch of kids, occasionally they would cut back to the studio and Eartha and Freddie were sitting on the set. (which I believe was a few bales of hay and a fence, I guess because Freddie was considered a country act) Freddie had his guitar and he and Eartha were singing bits of songs, oblivious to the camera.
They would cut back and forth, Stanley in the park, a weatherman, Freddie and Eartha.
Oh , it was glorious.
The lunatic had taken over the asylum
Monday, January 3, 2011
not so fast......
I admit it!
I mocked!
I belittled!
I berated!
In the past I believe I wrote about Brother Camping. a hard core bible thumper, who seemingly is on the radio 24 hours a day. During a long drive I will skip around stations looking for something "unique" to listen to. I can't listen to stations that play music, odd- I know,.I love talkers. Not, call in shows, they depress and/or infuriate me, I like a show where someone with knowledge of their subject is given time to tell a story.
Often , this will lead to religious radio, they know their subject and are more than happy to share. Sometimes heartfelt and touching, sometimes fire and brimstone and sometimes just ...extraordinary.
The lyrics for the song, ONCE IN A LIFETIME, ("you may find yourself, living in a shotgun shack...") were culled from a radio preacher.
For a long time I have been fascinated by televangelists and their ilk (just wanted an excuse to use the word , ilk) The greatest of all reality television was back when , Jim and Tammy Bakker were building HERITAGE USA, their time share/Christan amusement park complex and at the same time where in the middle of all sorts of lawsuits and looming scandals.
The fate of the ministry was being decided, but there were also lots of live television shows that needed to be sent out to the faithful, The PTL (praise the lord or pass the loot) network was the lifeline that kept them connected to their audience and to the audiences checkbooks. If a show was set to start at 1 pm, the cameras turned on at 1 pm and somebody would walk on and host the show, Maybe Jim or Tammy, sometimes their daughter Tammy Sue, or one of the PTL singers.
For weeks the entire network was stream of consciousness television, Jim would lay it out , on the air, Live (!) what was going on, from his perspective. Sometimes on the set in front of the studio audience, but more often than not he would wander the grounds followed by cameras and show the home viewer what was happening at HERITAGE USA. Songs and prayers and tears and paranoia and joy and pain...... The most compelling TV I have ever seen. My pals and I first started watching in full ironic mockery mode, but after a bit you just had to watch to see what was going to happen next because it was totally raw. Amazing.
On TV , Jim and Tammy, had no filter , 24 hours a day they had their own network with a huge audience who hung on every word and the words just poured out.
Brother Camping on the radio is hardly as fascinating as the Bakkers , but I have become enamored of late because he is 100% sure that the world will come to an end in May of this year. He gives an actual date, but I can't remember it right now. I always think, What does he say the next day? The day after the end ,when every one tunes in to hear what went wrong. I'm sure he'll have an answer and I'm sure it will be based on a thorough reading of scripture.
I mock. I belittle. I berate.
This past weekend, in Arkansas, 2.000 birds fell out of the sky, dead. And tens of thousands of fish washed up on shore, dead.
hmmmmmm.
I mocked!
I belittled!
I berated!
In the past I believe I wrote about Brother Camping. a hard core bible thumper, who seemingly is on the radio 24 hours a day. During a long drive I will skip around stations looking for something "unique" to listen to. I can't listen to stations that play music, odd- I know,.I love talkers. Not, call in shows, they depress and/or infuriate me, I like a show where someone with knowledge of their subject is given time to tell a story.
Often , this will lead to religious radio, they know their subject and are more than happy to share. Sometimes heartfelt and touching, sometimes fire and brimstone and sometimes just ...extraordinary.
The lyrics for the song, ONCE IN A LIFETIME, ("you may find yourself, living in a shotgun shack...") were culled from a radio preacher.
For a long time I have been fascinated by televangelists and their ilk (just wanted an excuse to use the word , ilk) The greatest of all reality television was back when , Jim and Tammy Bakker were building HERITAGE USA, their time share/Christan amusement park complex and at the same time where in the middle of all sorts of lawsuits and looming scandals.
The fate of the ministry was being decided, but there were also lots of live television shows that needed to be sent out to the faithful, The PTL (praise the lord or pass the loot) network was the lifeline that kept them connected to their audience and to the audiences checkbooks. If a show was set to start at 1 pm, the cameras turned on at 1 pm and somebody would walk on and host the show, Maybe Jim or Tammy, sometimes their daughter Tammy Sue, or one of the PTL singers.
For weeks the entire network was stream of consciousness television, Jim would lay it out , on the air, Live (!) what was going on, from his perspective. Sometimes on the set in front of the studio audience, but more often than not he would wander the grounds followed by cameras and show the home viewer what was happening at HERITAGE USA. Songs and prayers and tears and paranoia and joy and pain...... The most compelling TV I have ever seen. My pals and I first started watching in full ironic mockery mode, but after a bit you just had to watch to see what was going to happen next because it was totally raw. Amazing.
On TV , Jim and Tammy, had no filter , 24 hours a day they had their own network with a huge audience who hung on every word and the words just poured out.
Brother Camping on the radio is hardly as fascinating as the Bakkers , but I have become enamored of late because he is 100% sure that the world will come to an end in May of this year. He gives an actual date, but I can't remember it right now. I always think, What does he say the next day? The day after the end ,when every one tunes in to hear what went wrong. I'm sure he'll have an answer and I'm sure it will be based on a thorough reading of scripture.
I mock. I belittle. I berate.
This past weekend, in Arkansas, 2.000 birds fell out of the sky, dead. And tens of thousands of fish washed up on shore, dead.
hmmmmmm.
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