Sure Thing

Monday, December 23, 2019

I am a careful reader of what I will always consider the society pages of the newspaper.  In spite of all the attempts by the New York Times to democratize it, renaming it Styles, including all manner of fibberty dross and offering coverage of diverse marital pairings, the society pages interest me because they are where I'm not.

Yesterday, there were back to back items that reminded me what's wrong with this country, as if I needed reminding.  Groom #1, a graduate of Princeton University, "is an M.B.A. candidate at Stanford and was previously a management consultant in the Summit, N.J., office of the Boston Consulting Group, a management consulting company based in Boston."  Bride #2, Harvard graduate, "is pursuing an M.B.A. at Stanford.  Until May, she worked as a venture capital investor at Bain Capital Ventures."

How about curing cancer?
. . .

Except if you are from around here, until recently you knew little about Michael Bloomberg, announced candidate for president.  That has changed in the last few weeks as tens of millions of dollars of his advertisements have been broadcast to television viewers all over the country.  Unlike other businessmen running for or occupying the presidency, Bloomberg places his political experience above his business experience, as formidable as it was.  Here is a good report of his entry into local politics. 
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/22/us/politics/Michael-Bloomberg-nyc-mayor-election.html

I had some minor, but jolting, exposure to Bloomberg's first campaign for mayor of New York in 2001.  I knew his opponent personally and did some grunt work on the campaign.  For election day, I volunteered to be a poll watcher and was assigned to a location in East Harlem.  I took an uptown bus early that morning; polls in New York City open at 6:00 A.M.  I got off the bus around East 106th Street and First Avenue, near to the public school holding the voting booths.

Everywhere I looked, as soon as I got off the bus, I saw Bloomberg posters attached to any upright that could hold them, traffic lights, street lights, traffic signs, awning stanchions.  And, this was a neighborhood that, at the time, sat near or at the bottom of the civic totem pole, economically, educationally, voting turnout.  While the area had a colorful political past, represented in Congress by Fiorello LaGuardia (before serving as mayor) and Vito Marcantonio, probably the most left wing Congressman of the 20th century, both of whom fluctuated among political parties, it remained solidly Democratic from mid-century on.  Yet, Bloomberg posters were omnipresent, having appeared overnight. 

I called campaign headquarters, imagining that I uncovered an isolated phenomenon, to learn that this was a commonplace occurrence.  In retrospect, this was no surprise as a subsequent headline testified.  "At $92.60 a Vote, Bloomberg Shatters an Election Record."  https://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/04/nyregion/at-92.60-a-vote-bloomberg-shatters-an-election-record.html

Forbes estimates Bloomberg's current net worth at $56,000,000,000.  https://www.forbes.com/profile/michael-bloomberg/?list=billionaires#4eb7b97f1417  

Voter turnout in November 2020 should reach 130,000,000 and, to play it safe with our undemocratic voting system, assume Bloomberg would need 70,000,000 votes to safely win the Electoral College.  2001's $92.60 is now worth approximately $134.27, which means that Bloomberg would have $46,601,100,000 left over to redecorate the White House.

. . .

The New York Times has an on-line quiz, asking for identification of famous faces, that most of us will do well on, I am certain.  https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/12/23/upshot/recognizability-quiz.html

What's most interesting is how (un)well our fellow Americans do.  Vladimir Putin better recognized than Joe Biden by the general public?  Rihanna (who?) more familiar than Elizabeth Warren?

Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Speaking of endangered species, there is an extremely disturbing report that "Chinese Restaurants Are Closing."  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/24/upshot/chinese-restaurants-closing-upward-mobility-second-generation.html

As owners age, their children "who have college degrees and good-paying jobs, don’t intend to take over."  According to one survey, "the share of Chinese restaurants in the top 20 metropolitan areas has been consistently falling.  Five years ago, an average of 7.3 percent of all restaurants in these areas were Chinese, compared with 6.5 percent today." 

It's obviously a national problem, calling for federal intervention.  Otherwise we are heading for a culinary meltdown on the scale of Three Mile Island, if not Chernobyl. 
. . .

I read the article above after lunch, so don't fault me for choosing pizza today.  In fact, my neighborhood is surprisingly weak in Chinese food.  When asked for a local recommendation the other day, the closest I came was La Salle Dumpling Room, 35 West End Avenue, one half mile away.  My other choices were Han Dynasty, 215 West 85th Street and Tri Dim West, 467 Columbus Avenue (82/83).  Honorable mention for Sala Thai, 307 Amsterdam Avenue (74/75). 

While pizza in the Holy Land doesn't seem to be waning, it apparently is going in two different directions.  There has been a proliferation of $1 slice joints; Huff Post claims that there are "61 within the five boroughs today."  An I-Phone app helps you find them.  https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dollar-slice-nyc/id1080161348

On the other hand, artisan pizza, with artisan prices, are increasingly present.  https://thefoodcrowd.com/artisan-pizza/  Unfortunately, no app guides you to artisan pizza and Yelp's supposed list of Top 10 Best Artisan Pizzas in New York is an endless collection of every joint with a name ending in a vowel.  

I went to the nearby My Pie Pizzeria Romana, 166 West 72nd Street, which advertises using flour and Buffalo mozzarella imported from Italy to produce "Roman-style pizza by the slice with classic & creative toppings in a compact, no-frills setting."  Compact is generous; a bench runs along two short walls faced by six tiny tables, 18" by 10".  Sitting alongside someone is effectively a renewal of vows.  No one lingers.  The food satisfies while there, though.

My Pie offers 24 different varieties of rectangular 3" by 6" pizza slices, topped by mozzarella, pardon the expression vegan cheese, meatballs, mushrooms, onions, potatoes, truffles, prosciutto, spinach, chicken, eggplant, at prices from $3.95 to $5.95.  They are reheated when ordered, but only modestly suffer from such normally cruel treatment.  I enjoyed a meatball slice ($5.95), the bottom crust slightly brittle from the reheating.  A strength of My Pie is its soda collection, not only Diet Coke, the universal solvent, but San Pellegrino orange, blood orange and lemon, Orangina orange and lemon, and Antica Ricetta Siciliana.  "Made from the peel of the citron, to a traditional recipe using natural ingredients, Antica Ricetta Siciliana Cedrata encapsulates the flavors of bygone days and comes in an elegant glass bottle that highlights its refined bouquet and nice retro flavor."
. . .

Quote of the day: "I know windmills very much, I have studied it better than anybody."

Wednesday, December 25, 2019

My young bride has had a stiff cold for several days.  This morning, in solidarity with her, I shared it.  She reminded me that, in spite of the holiday, we are well stocked with cough medicine, antihistamines, ibuprofen,  nose spray and the like.  "More important," I interjected, reminding her that I shopped yesterday, "we have onion rolls, whitefish salad and chocolate-covered pretzels."

Friday, December 27, 2019

The World Series was over two month ago and most of us barely remember or care who won.  However, I just learned that it was was amazingly historic.  Major league baseball, as is the case with the National Hockey League and the National Basketball Association, uses seven-game, postseason tournaments to choose its champion.  Only the National Football League uses a set of win-or-go-home single games, ending in the Super Bowl.  There have been 1,420 best-of-seven postseason series in all three sports and, for the first time ever, the visiting team won all the games, ultimately a victory of the Washington Nationals.  https://www.theringer.com/mlb-playoffs/2019/10/31/20942186/nationals-astros-world-series-home-field-advantage-history

That's a 0.007042% chance of happening.  At mid-season, the odds for the Nationals even winning the World Series were 50-1, or 0.02%.  https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2844841-2019-world-series-odds-for-every-mlb-team-at-the-all-star-break#slide3

So, keep looking for love.  There's always a chance you'll find it.

Happy Hanukkah, Ziggy

Monday, December 16, 2019
"Priced Out of Harlem," a headline from this weekend's real estate section would have been unimaginable through most of my lifetime.  I now greet it with mixed emotions, pleased that this predominantly African-American neighborhood is viewed as an attractive place to live, but acknowledging that this results to a large degree by the displacement of African-Americans by whites, caused by and, in turn, causing a steep climb in real estate values.

Unlike many white New Yorkers, Harlem was not a mystery to those of us who attended CCNY, which ran, at the time, from 133rd Street to 140th Street, centered around Convent Avenue.  We all lived at home and, with rare exception, took the subway to school.  I took the "A" train to either 125th Street or 145th Street, according to where on campus my day began.  After school, I would shop for jazz records on 125th Street and, occasionally, on weekends, went to the Apollo Theater for jazz concerts.  I recall seeing Count Basie, Gerry Mulligan and Dinah Washington among others there.  However, I never set foot in any Harlem resident's home nor did any African-American classmate (and there were a few) come to Woodhaven.  Of course, I never invited any.
. . .

Among the wedding announcements in the Sunday society pages, there was report of an "elopement ceremony" at a Manhattan restaurant, complete with a photograph of the couple celebrating.  I have a hard time mixing elopement with Manhattan restaurants.  Once, elopement meant running away, hiding from family and friends, likely to discourage the effort.  For New Yorkers, elopement meant Elkton in Maryland, a state which had no restrictions on marriage.  "Elkton being the northeasternmost county seat in Maryland (and thus closer to Philadelphia, New York, and New England), was particularly popular" for those in a hurry.  One of my cousins took advantage of this, no photographers, no newspaper coverage; the good old days.
. . .

I was in midtown at lunchtime today and went to Urbanspace Vanderbilt, that bustling food hall adjacent to Grand Central Terminal, where I am consistently three times the modal age of the other patrons.  I bought a bulgogi egg roll at Korilla, a Korean joint, actually two pieces for $7.50, described as "Our marinated bulgogi steak with cheese whiz wrapped in a (sic) eggroll shell and deep fried to perfection."  Recommended.

. . .

Tonight, we went to Merkin Hall, a gem of a facility free of the occasionally glum seriousness of Lincoln Center.  The program was "Dreaming of a Jewish Christmas," performed by professional soloists and combined choirs of young men and women.  They sang:

"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"

"White Christmas"

"Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow"

"The Christmas Song"

"Silver Bells"

"The Christmas Waltz"

"Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer"

"Santa Baby"

"Do You Hear What I Hear?"

"I'll Be Home For Christmas"

All words and music were by Jews, except for the lyrics of the last two numbers.  Over compensation or insidious vitiation of American culture?

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Is this what it's like getting old?  I had an eye doctor's appointment today at 1:30 on East 76th Street, just off Lexington Avenue.  The nasty weather insured that I would take buses to get there, uptown on Amsterdam Avenue, crosstown on 79th Street.  (For the transit purists who will point to the subway stop at the corner of Lexington Avenue and East 77th Street, I must note that the uptown Amsterdam Avenue bus stop is three blocks closer than the 66th Street crosstown stop, my link to the subway on the East Side, effecting a tie on distance traversed by each route.)

So, I get off the 79th Street crosstown bus at Lexington Avenue and 79th Street and walk directly past Pastrami Queen, 1125 Lexington Avenue, between 79th Street and 78th Street, without going in, because I was feeling a bit schvach.  No pastrami, no corned beef, just me in decline. 

. . .

This is the oath that United States Senators must take at the commencement of a trial for removal of a federal official:

"I will do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws.  So help me God."  And then, there is the announcement by Senator Lindsay Graham about the impending trial of the president, "I am trying to give a pretty clear signal I have made up my mind.  I'm not trying to pretend to be a fair juror here."

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

I had the pleasure of spending a few hours with Benjamin Gonzalez, my grandnephew, born in Argentina, now a senior at the University of California Santa Cruz, home of the Banana Slugs.  We walked from Herald Square to Union Square on this moderately cold afternoon. 

While I imagined that Benjamin would marvel at the many wonderful sights and sites that we came upon, I was the one gushing and gulping as we moved along.  I saw so many things that weren't there yesterday, I swear.  More often than not they were audacious in their contrast with existing structures.  In some cases, when I recalled what had been replaced, the changes were for the better, aesthetically and for the safety and comfort of the occupants, although the new occupants were rarely the old occupants, the curse of gentrification (as in "Priced Out of Harlem").   

After a stop at the iconic Strand Book Store, 828 Broadway ("18 miles of books"), we took the subway to Chinatown and, inevitably, Wo Hop, 17 Mott Street.  After all, this kid should be around for well more than another half century to recall the good old days.

We both had large bowls of egg drop won ton soup at the special lunch price of $2.  Then, we shared honey crispy beef ($14.95), beef fried rice ($7.95) and Singapore chow fun ($8.75), which meant that we had an awful lot of awfully good food to eat.  I was able to leave Benjamin with friends from Argentina and rush home for a nap.

. . .

I needed the nap, because the day wasn't over.  At night, Irwin Wall, retired University of California professor of European History, spoke at West End Synagogue about the Jewish character of Sigmund Freud, part of a series including Marx, Einstein and Kafka.  One of the  many things that I learned from Professor Wall was that Freud was aggressively atheistic while remaining aggressively Jewish, a distinction between Judaism and Jewishness that many of us maintain.  Freud called himself "a godless Jew," yet, when he asked himself “Since you have abandoned all these common characteristics of your countrymen, what is there left to you that is Jewish?” he replied: “A very great deal, and probably its very essence” (Preface to the Hebrew translation of Totem and Taboo). 

Don't You Rhyme With Me

Monday, December 9, 2019

My favored candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination was Kamala Harris.  I envisioned her shredding President Lump on the debate stage and I am disappointed that she will not have the opportunity.  I am also almost equally disappointed how quickly some folks resorted to identity politics to explain her lack of success.   https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/08/us/politics/kamala-harris-black-women.html

 

There is no evidence that her candidacy failed because of race.  There is no evidence that her candidacy failed because of gender.  There have only been fact-free contentions that she could not succeed because of the ingrained misogyny and racism of our society.  Yes, misogyny and racism corrupt our public and private lives in myriad ways.  However, Hillary Clinton outpolled her opponent by almost 3 million votes and Barack Obama got more votes for the presidency than anyone else before or after. 

 

Kamala Harris's candidacy failed because she ran a lousy campaign.  Money dried up, endorsements dried up because her popular support dried up, not the other way around.  After her rollicking kickoff rally in Oakland and the riveting moment in the first debate picturing her being bused to school, she seemed to have little more to say that interested African Americans, women or the public at large.    https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/what-happened-to-the-kamala-harris-campaign/

 

She struggled with her past image as a tough prosecutor and waffled on the central issue of health insurance.  Not gender, not race, but politics beat her.  

. . .

 

It wasn't just politics that annoyed me this weekend.  On Saturday, I was unable to finish the crossword puzzle, leaving about 1/3 undone, a major defeat.  A critical factor was not recognizing CHIBA as a Japanese seaport and you want know why?  "It is the 14th most populated city in Japan."  Can you name the 14th most populated city in France?  How about Italy or England?  Are you kidding?  Oh, yes.  San Francisco, California.

http://worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/

Usually, I respect the New York Times as the newspaper of record, dubious crossword answers aside.  Its studied seriousness makes it hard to hard to ignore or refute.  However, as Boldness is my middle name, I venture forth to question its judgment in an area that I, too, have developed expertise -- cookies. 

Last week, it published "12 Stunning Cookies That Will Impress Everyone You Know."  https://nyti.ms/382kznM  Today, it explained how this project came to pass.  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/04/reader-center/holiday-cookies.html

It claimed that it turned to the "Babe Ruth of Cookies" to conceive and develop the recipes.  Well, I'm sorry, but the Sultan of Sweets had a feeble batting average in this game.  Of the 12 cookies, only one is a real chocolate cookie, Gingery Brownie Crinkle Cookies, containing cocoa powder, bittersweet chocolate pieces and bittersweet chocolate chips.  Another merely drizzles chocolate on the finished product, Peanut Shortbread with Honeycomb; one coats its thin cylinder shape with white, milk or dark chocolate, Homemade Pocky; one offers Nutella, the hazelnut cocoa spread, as an optional filling in its Thumbprint cookie.  This does not amount to a major league performance.

This great country was built on chocolate chip cookies and now, as so many of our institutions are being besieged, we must cherish what made us great.  Don't give up the chip!

. . .

The headline in print is "Warren Discloses $1.9 Million in Earnings as Consultant."  Gasp!  That shameless pseudo-progressive lining her pockets while the rest of us struggled.  One detail, though.  It took 30 years for her to earn this much, translating into $63,333 a year not quite a boondoggle when looked at that way.

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

This afternoon, riding on the subway after lunch with Max the Wonder Boy Emeritus, I received a telephone call on my mobile telephone that I was unable to answer.  It originated in White Pigeon, Michigan, population 1,522 in the 2010 census. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Pigeon,_Michigan

While I don’t have Senator Lindsay Graham to attest to my veracity, I ask you to believe that I have no conscious connection to anyone or anything in White Pigeon, Michigan.  I am reminded of Henry David Thoreau's reaction to news that a new cross-country telegraph line had been installed: "We are in great haste to construct a magnetic telegraph from Maine to Texas; but Maine and Texas, it may be, have nothing important to communicate."

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann on the president's  plan to identify Jews as a nation: "Jewish identity defined by a person who regularly engages in anti-Semitic tropes must be especially suspect."

. . .

Cindy Wilkinson, our favorite Steel Magnolia, submits this surprising bundle of information about the most expensive rental locations in the country.   https://www.rentcafe.com/blog/rental-market/market-snapshots/americas-most-expensive-zip-codes-2019/

The Holy Land dominates the list; Battery Park City, Tribeca and the grounds surrounding Palazzo di Gotthelf are in the top slots.  Only 4 of the 50 most expensive locations are not in New York or California. 

. . .

I admit to having trouble with year-end "Best of" lists.  Books, movies, television shows, recordings.  They basically add up to show how out of touch I am and remind me that I don't care very much about making up the deficits.  However, let's consider the list of the best local restaurant dishes.  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/10/dining/best-restaurant-dishes-in-nyc-pete-wells.html  

Normally, specially recommended dishes are bound to evoke crowds, over-priced menus and long waits for reservations.  To the credit of Pete Wells, the New York Times restaurant critic, this list bends towards modest establishments, where your level of satisfaction might exceed the depletion of your wallet.  Bon appétit. 

Thursday, December 12, 2019

Frank Sinatra's 104th birthday.

. . .

Jared Jushner, noted problemsolver, has an op-ed in today's paper.  "In signing Wednesday’s executive order the president makes clear that such anti-Semitic hate isn’t to be tolerated at home, either, except in Charlottesville, Virginia."  Or something to that effect.

. . .

I am reading The Color of Law, by Richard Rothstein, which argues that law and governmental policy supported the casual prejudice, self-selection and demographics which resulted in the segregation that we experience today, residentially, educationally and economically.  It is a companion to Ira Katznelson's When Affirmative Action Was White. 

Allow me to offer a telling quote from Rothstein.  "We don't hesitate to acknowledge that Jews in Eastern Europe were forced to live in ghettos where opportunity was limited and leaving was difficult or impossible.  Yet when we encounter similar neighborhoods in this country, we now delicately refer to them as the inner city, yet everyone knows what we mean.  (When affluent whites gentrify the same geographic areas, we don't characterize those whites as inner city families.)"

Friday, December 13, 2019

Harold Gotthelf's birthday < Frank Sinatra's. 

. . .

The British electorate has spoken.  Instead of merely making the United Kingdom unlivable for Jews, it will be unlivable for everyone.
. . .

"Clad in black suits, white shirts and black ties, hundreds of lawyers forced their way into the Lahore [Pakistan] cardiology hospital, smashing windows and damaging equipment."  In spite of or because of the arrival of the police, three patients died.  "Some of the lawyers involved in Wednesday’s attack said they were moved to act by a viral video by one of the doctors, who mocked and ridiculed them through reciting poetry and belittling remarks."  Don't go near those Pakistani lawyers with iambic pentameter.  They are tough dudes.

Balls in the Air

Monday, December 2, 2019

Let's begin with a cheerful note for the holiday season.  "Amazon Removes Holiday Ornaments With Images of Auschwitz After Criticism."

. . .

If your plans for 5770 a/k/a 2020 include buying your first home in the Holy Land, take a look at https://nyti.ms/37LCvms.  It identifies the neighborhoods that are most affordable in an overwhelmingly unaffordable market.  What passes for a bargain is a house in Riverdale, the un-Bronx part of the Bronx, for $225,000, with a median monthly cost of $1,625.

. . .

Did you know that the primary designer of the current New York City subway map, rode every mile of the system with his eyes closed to to get a feel for the curves and swerves?  https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/12/02/nyregion/nyc-subway-map.html   I think that he was the guy not moving from the doorway during rush hour. 
. . .

I'm sorry, but I can't help being lured to "Best of" lists at year end.  Here is a suggested list of the best TV shows of 2019.  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/02/arts/television/best-tv-shows.html?te=1&nl=watching&emc=edit_wg_20191202?campaign_id=20&instance_id=14215&segment_id=19226&user_id=1353d3a345e55ff509b5cbb17ed36984&regi_id=59975620191202

If you want samples, here is another list with embedded clips.  https://time.com/5736515/best-tv-shows-2019/
. . .

A new study illustrates that "inequality and economic growth now go hand in hand" in our country.  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/02/upshot/wealth-poverty-divide-american-cities.html 

"[H]efty incomes [are going] to engineers, lawyers and innovators . . . [in] the largest metros in the country: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, Houston, Washington."  This prosperity, however, has not been evenly distributed in the favored locations.  "In New York, the real wages for workers at the 10th percentile grew by about 15 percent between 1980 and 2015, according to the Fed researchers.  For the median worker, they grew by about 40 percent.  For workers at the 90th percentile, they nearly doubled."  It's good to be the king.

Tuesday, December, 3, 2019
I don't mind serving as a foot soldier in the War on Christmas, the subject of right-wing media paranoia, not for theological reasons, but because of the crass commercialism of the holiday.   Also, after the demise of J.S. Bach, it unleashed so much bad music on the world with the notable exception of Bruce Springsteen's "Santa Claus is Comin' To Town."  https://youtu.be/76WFkKp8Tjs

There is one aspect of Christmas that delights me year after year, although it may be peculiar to the streets of Manhattan.  As soon as Thanksgiving turkeys hit local dinner tables, flocks of hearty youth, upstate New Yorkers and Canadians, set up shop on our sidewalks selling Christmas trees.  They will remain for a month, sheltered by little wooden huts they construct next to their racks of trees.  

At least once a day, I pass one such enclave on Broadway between Palazzo di Gotthelf and the subway station, Trader Joe's, Fairway and points north.  My holiday pleasure, a small but genuine pleasure for a city boy, comes from walking down the center of the parallel rows of trees in order to smell the fresh-cut pines, firs and spruce.  It's far cheaper than buying a home in the Berkshires.

Wednesday,  December 4, 2019

I'm really trying to stay away from year-end "Best of" lists, but this list of best music of the year serves two purposes.  https://www.newyorker.com/culture/2019-in-review/the-best-music-of-2019-and-the-best-music-of-the-decade?verso=true

It honors the alleged best works, but, for many of us, it is a reminder how out of touch we are with popular culture. 
. . .

This afternoon, I saw the Metropolitan Opera's production of "Akhnaten," Philip Glass's opera about ancient Egypt.  I didn't have to go to the opera house, because it was being shown in high definition in several local movie theaters.  I was drawn to it by my mad passion for "Glass Pieces," a Jerome Robbins ballet using Glass's music, in fact much of it from "Akhnaten." 

The insistent repetitive music is unlike anything you have probably heard in an opera house before, which you may consider a plus.  A unique and surprisingly effective aspect of the work is the extensive use of jugglers -- yes, jugglers.  It also has historical validity, according to the Juggling Information Service.  "The oldest known depiction of juggling was found in the Beni-Hassan tombs from the middle-kingdom of the ancient Egyptian civilization.  These women jugglers were found amongst acrobats and dancers in one of the crypt's wall paintings.  The drawing itself was made about 2000 years before the birth of Christ."

Thursday, December 5, 2019
The New York Times reports that a study "on over 110,000 people nationwide to date — suggest[s] that the thing voters most want to focus on right now is whether to impeach the president."   https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/05/upshot/impeachment-biggest-issue-voters-poll.html

The article offers graphic illustrations of voter sentiment, which, for now, remains attentive to the impeachment controversy.  Claims to the contrary may be no more than wishful thinking by some partisans.  Of course, attentiveness and comprehension do not necessarily go hand in hand.

. . .

I was able to have lunch with Tom Terrific today at Hell's Chicken, 641 Tenth Avenue, a small, narrow joint, which features Korean food and fried chicken parts.   https://www.hellschickennyc.com/dinner 

We shared 8 wings and 6 drumsticks ($26), half of them cooked in a barbecue sauce and half in a spicy garlic sauce, unlike some places that serve their sauces on the side.  This makes for a very tasty, but sloppy meal.  Sauce on your hands, sauce on your chin, sauce under your fingernails.  The waiter supplied lots of napkins, but soap and water were necessary if I were to avoid sticking to anything I touched after leaving the restaurant. 

Friday, December 6, 2019

Stony Brook Steve sent me this animated illustration of the growth of the Holy Land.   https://youtu.be/f6U7YFPrz6Y

Talk about how mighty oaks from little acorns grow. 

. . .

I must wind down with an exaggerated case of good news/bad news.  As a beleaguered fan of the New York Mets baseball team, I am pleased with the pending sale by the Wilpon family of a majority interest in the team.  Having been badly stung by the fraudulent conduct of Bernie Madoff, the Wilpons often sat on the sidelines in the ever-rising high stakes market for ballplayers.  New deep pockets should help return the Mets to a major role in acquiring talent, although, as in other endeavors, money cannot substitute for judgment.  

Unfortunately, the prospective new owner is Steven A. Cohen, "a financier who is not unduly burdened by ethics and who sidestepped criminal indictment."   https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/05/sports/baseball/mets-steven-cohen.html

As much as I might pretend, my team is really his team.  Their long-overdue return to glory will burnish his image.  He will be waving from a float in the parade up lower Broadway celebrating a World Series victory.  I won't be soaked by Champagne in the locker room after a championship game.  I won't even be allowed in the locker room.

Is it possible for the ACLU to buy a ball club?