Footwork

Monday, July 2, 2018

We were on the road this weekend and I stopped for lunch today at Commonwealth BBQ, 659 South Street, Wrentham, Massachusetts, about 28 miles south of downtown Boston.  It's the real deal.  You can smell the hickory smoke about a mile away.  Most of their business is takeaway, but I sat at one of the 5 outdoor picnic tables even though the temperature was over 90˚.  I'm not completely crazy; there is no indoor seating.

The menu centered on pork, beef, chicken and the proper accompaniments.  I ordered the Mason Dixon, a beef brisket sandwich dressed with cole slaw (yes) and baked beans (no) ($11.95).  I selected French fries at no extra cost from the list of "Cowboy Beans, Cole Slaw, Black Bean Rice, Collard Greens, Seasonal Fresh Veggies, Mac n’Cheese, Potato Salad, Fries, Sweet Potato Fries."

The beef was very good, but machine-sliced, making it much less interesting and harder to hold one of the three sauces that you can squirt on.  I asked if they would hand slice, but I think they would sooner vote for Hillary Clinton. 

. . .

I am having trouble with the World Cup and not because the United States is absent.  The tournament is conducted by FIFA, the international federation of football associations, an enterprise more profitable and more corrupt than the Mafia, without even bothering to fire a shot.  The games are being held in Russia, a crime ring with a flag.  Further, they are being shown on television by Fox.  Talk about an axis of evil.  

Regardless of these contextual factors, the games display great athleticism in the near total absence of sportsmanship.  Players fall to the ground (dive) when an opponent stirs a breeze passing by.  Once on the ground, grown men writhe, grimace and clutch body parts in a display of agony that, I imagine, rivals childbirth.    https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/05/sports/world-cup/neymar-brazil-diving.html

 

Celebrations after scoring are also conducted with such wretched excess that I wish that only Presbyterians be allowed to play the game.  The worst displays of unsportsmanlike conduct by the multimillionaires on the field usually follow calls by referees that are even modestly disputatious.  Big shot international soccer stars rush at, surround, beseech and beleaguer the referees with a passion usually reserved for closing arguments in a capital punishment case.  Time is wasted and all concerned look stupid, the referees for appearing ineffectual and the players for the intense insincerity in pleading their case. 

. . .

After watching the dreadful Spain/Russia contest, I sent a message to the Oakland Heartthrob, who is traveling with wife and children in Europe.  Their first stop is Barcelona, so I asked him about the local reaction to Spain's embarrassing performance.  He responded that it was considered a defeat for Spain, not Catalonia which was anxious to secede even before the match. 
. . .

The weekend's real estate section told us where to find the most expensive homes in America by zip code.  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/28/realestate/zip-codes-with-the-priciest-homes.html

 

Six of the top 10 are in California, leading with Atherton 94207, in the heart of Silicon Valley, having a median asking home price of $11,997,550, almost double the next location.  This is far from me physically and financially, but I am at least able to close the physical gap between me and the two most expensive Holy Land zip codes.  Rather than Fifth Avenue or Park Avenue, 10013 and 10007 are downtown locations that became desirable only in recent years.  Much of the housing in these areas is contained in repurposed buildings, once factories, warehouses, lofts, offices.  I am tickled by the fact that the courthouses that I worked in, 60 Centre Street and 71 Thomas Street, are respectively in those zip codes.  Will they eventually be converted to condominiums as happened to the former police headquarters at 240 Centre Street, with its marvelously Beaux Arts architecture?  Or might they be leveled to allow new glass fingers to reach high in the sky?  In any case, the properties would attract dazzling prices and seduce politicians anxious to fill a budget gap.

But, let's return to Atherton, California.  While it may have the most expensive homes for sale, it is only second to Miami, Florida, as the home to the richest Americans. 
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-10/to-visit-america-s-richest-zip-code-first-you-ll-need-a-boat  May we conclude that Latin American expatriates are better off than Harvard dropouts?

If you don't have millions lying around, but still want a comfortable nest in an urban area, look at "Where to Find the Best Bargains in America's Biggest Cities."  https://www.realtor.com/news/trends/best-neighborhoods-find-cheap-rents-big-cities/

The list took commuting time and crime rates into consideration in identifying least expensive median one-bedroom rentals.  Choices ranged from Fairbanks/Northwest Crossing in Houston at $733 monthly to Parkmerced in southwestern San Francisco at $2,588.  For a bargain in the Holy Land, you have to go to Arrochar, Staten Island at $1,475, but remember the ferry is now free.   

Tuesday, July 3, 2018
The "National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement" provides some very interesting information. 
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/16466d8f7e00dabc?projector=1&messagePartId=0.1

US college and university students voted at a higher rate in 2016 than 2012; women students vote at a higher rate than men; Hispanic and Asian student turnout increased from 2012 to 2016, while black turnout decreased; social science majors voted at significantly higher rates than STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) majors.  Overall, student turnout in 2016 was 48.3%, compared to 59.7% of all eligible Americans.   http://www.electproject.org/2016g
. . .

Last week, I enjoyed gelato and ice cream back-to-back and, in close proximity, the tastes were distinctive, which is not always the case.  Here is a concise explanation; "gelato . . . uses more milk and less cream, and is churned at a much slower speed, resulting in a lower fat content and a creamier texture."
https://www.tastingtable.com/cook/national/difference-between-ice-cream-gelato-sherbet-sorbet-frozen-desserts?utm_medium=email&utm_source=TT&utm_campaign=Daily&utm_content=Editorial

While not defining, many fine ice creams (cf. Ample Hills Creamery) are loading up with stuff -- chocolate chips, Oreos, pretzels, cookie dough, peanut butter cups -- while gelato tends to be served straight up.

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

I've noticed that the number of telephone calls soliciting political contributions has definitely increased.  That means that I have heard from the DNC, DGA, DSCC, DCCC as well as a few individual candidates. I feel privileged to singlehandedly support the various tentacles of the Democratic Party.  

While caller ID usually tipped me to these political calls, if not by caller name, then by the metropolitan Washington area place of origin.  However, my mobile phone has attracted another breed of caller.  Every day lately, at all hours of day and night, I have gotten calls from Tonga, a Polynesian kingdom.  I customarily refused to answer and subsequently blocked the calls, not knowing what I was missing.  Tonight, though, I succumbed to curiosity.  After all, maybe one of my errant relatives had his passport and wallet taken in downtown Tonga and he is trying to reach me for an immediate infusion of funds.  Unfortunately for Robinson Crusoe Gotthelf, the telephone company aborted my call to Tonga 676-848-9283, citing "technical difficulties."  Sorry, guy.  Give me a call when you get home.