Fly Mets, Fly

Monday May 20, 2019

In a confessional essay printed this weekend, one obsessive compulsive quoted another: "I'd rather be nauseous with you than not nauseous without you."
. . .

I found this restaurant review on-line which had to have been created by voice recognition: "That miss fear is absolutely fantastic."

. . .

Tonight, we had dinner with Bonnie & Gil, visiting from Florida.  Since I know Gil from Stuyvesant High School, CCNY and Cornell University, I forgive his abandonment, which only came in his eighth decade. 

We dined at 8 1/2, 9 West 57th Street, a joint that deserves to be called and honored as an adult restaurant.  You enter on a grand curving staircase, befitting Fred Astaire, descending from street level to the large dining room.  Tables were large and well-spaced; background music was low and soothing; service was attentive and respectful (no introductions by Scott, "I am your waiter"); the menu avoided momentary trends.  It was also expensive. 

Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Today is the 115th birthday of Fats Waller.  If you need a reminder of his great talent, listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZZRAU3DeOo
. . .

America's Favorite Epidemiologist, taking a moment from her normal research, provides this list of local ice creamers.

https://ilovetheupperwestside.com/best-ice-cream-shops-on-the-upper-west-side/

While there are no surprises in this group, it is convenient to have them referred to in one place.
. . .

Unless you live and work in a cave, this article has to echo concerns that you have had about over-rewarded under-performing people.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/20/science/social-class-confidence.html

I would edit the title, however, to read "Why Supposedly High-Class People Get Away With Incompetence" because gall can be mistaken for "income, family wealth, professional prestige and other [socioeconomic] factors." 

. . . 
 

Tonight, I went to a cocktail party with about 150 men and one woman, but I had nothing to do with the guest list so don't bother me.  However, Tom Terrific was present and he pointed out Lawrence Block, one of the most prolific mystery/crime/detective writers ever.  He has published about 225 books, according to this web site.  https://www.bookseriesinorder.com/lawrence-block/

 

I have read about 4 dozen of his works (the Matthew Scudder and Keller the hit man series are my favorites), but knew that I was only scratching the surface.  Tom, who has also written detective novels, knows Block and he encouraged me to go talk to him.  Shy no one ever called me, but I didn't move, firmly clutching my second glass of Lagavulin 16 Year Old Scotch Whisky.  What do you say to a guy like Block, "Good job.  Keep it up."  He obviously doesn't need any encouragement.  "I like your work."  Now, that's a  grabber.  So, I left him in peace, with familiar companions of his own choosing.

Wednesday, May 22, 2019

When you walk down your neighborhood streets in the Holy Land, there are two dramatically different visual experiences.  Brand new things appear overnight or you notice something for the first time in spite of its being in place for a long time.

Giacomo Fine Food, 269 West 72nd Street,  has been in business for over 25 years, but I only noticed it today for the first time.  It's small, but not tiny; a grocery store that prepares food exclusively for takeout.  Fortunately, two wooden benches sit right outside the door, so the takeout may only be 5 feet long on a nice day.  While I sat there, many customers came and went, obviously more observant than I had been.

Giacomo features a relatively large selection of food made in house.  I had a pulled BBQ chicken sandwich on a baguette ($7.65), the chicken fresh, the sauce more tomatoey than spicy.  Certainly, with nice weather, I'll probably return to the benches and try other items on the long menu, accompanied by Boylan diet root beer at a reasonable price.

. . . 

Tonight, in the company of Stony Brook Steve, I attended my first Mets game of the season on a very lovely evening.  The first seven innings were a pitching duel between two of the very best pitchers in baseball.  Our guy gave up only 2 hits, but one was a home run.  Their guy gave up גאָרנישט, gornisht.  After seven innings, relief pitchers came in for both teams and we pounced.  Final score Mets 6-1 over the Nationals.
  

“Hold fast to dreams,
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird,
That cannot fly.”
― Langston Hughes

Friday, May 24, 2019

Happy Birthday, Oakland Heartthrob.

. . .

Speaking of hope, all you parents should be encouraging your kiddies to go to CEO school.  The headline reads, "It's Never Been Easier to Be a C.E.O., and the Pay Keeps Rising."  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/24/business/highest-paid-ceos-2018.html

The article links to the latest list of executive compensation.  https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/business/highest-paid-ceos-2018.html  Plowing through the numbers, you can see examples of very good performance, warranting high rewards, sometimes extravagantly high rewards, but also many examples of the inverse relationship between competence and reward referred to several inches above.  

By the way, where else have you ever seen in print "4,575,310%"?