Monday, January 27, 2020
Why do American houses have so many bathrooms?
https://www.theatlantic.com/
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Why do American houses have so many bathrooms?
https://www.theatlantic.com/
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Naz forwards this collection of New York's Chinatowns, now 11 in number within the city limits according to the author. https://untappedcities.com/
The article offers a list of restaurants in the various locations, so it can serve as a starting point for your exploration of a neighborhood. Judging by those restaurants that I am familiar with, they are sound choices.
The article offers a list of restaurants in the various locations, so it can serve as a starting point for your exploration of a neighborhood. Judging by those restaurants that I am familiar with, they are sound choices.
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Speaking of ethnicity and the often absurd concern about cultural appropriation, let's look at the fuss over "American Dirt," a novel by an apparently bourgeois Latina about Mexican immigrants/refugees. The New York Times says that it "falls right into the roiling argument over art and cultural
appropriation — how the stories of marginalized people should be told
and who should be given the platforms to tell them." https://www.nytimes.com/2020/
The Los Angeles Times reports that it has evoked "angry charges of cultural appropriation, stereotyping, insensitivity, and even racism against [the] author." https://www.latimes.com/
The Los Angeles Times reports that it has evoked "angry charges of cultural appropriation, stereotyping, insensitivity, and even racism against [the] author." https://www.latimes.com/
While critics of the book have raised concerns about the whiteness of the publishing industry generally and some allegedly tone deaf aspects of the book's publicity campaign, the real beef, as I see it, is that the author, who got a big advance, hasn't been sufficiently oppressed. You mean that John Steinbeck wasn't from Oklahoma?
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Only two members of our India tour group were not Americans (David and Heather, delightful Kiwis) and while we seemed to share a common angst about the state of our nation, we tacitly agreed to leave those concerns back home, for the most part. However, one news item struck at the heart or at least the belly of the six of us from the New York metropolitan area. We first read on-line that Fairway Market was going to be liquidated in bankruptcy. Not surprisingly, that was wrong information since it came from a Rupert Murdoch publication.
Actually, 5 of its stores, including the original on Broadway at West 74th Street, are being bought by the parent company of Shop-Rite supermarkets, the fate of 9 others uncertain. If this store continues to operate more or less as-is, I will be greatly relieved, for I shop at this Fairway 5 or 6 times every week. If not, I will be left with options, but not good alternatives.
Trader Joe's, which has been the nemesis of my Fairway, is on Broadway at West 72nd Street. While less comprehensive than Fairway, it has an excellent array of house-branded products at good prices. But, everything is packaged; nothing is made on site or sized to order. And the crowds. At 8 AM Sunday, the cocktail hour in downtown India, as the doors were about to open, I can attest that about 200 people were waiting to get into Trader Joe's. I kept walking.
Zabar's, on Broadway at West 80th Street, is deservedly legendary, but adds more than a half-mile to my shopping trip, is more costly in the vital area of bagels and lox, and has a narrower choice of coffee beans and tea leaves. There are other possibles, but not probables, around. Citarella Gourmet Market, immediately adjoining Fairway, has an excellent fish counter and bakery, but is expensive and limited in other items. Gourmet Garage, on West 66th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue, is overpriced across the board, although it is only two doors from the Goldfarbs in case you want to bring them something on your next visit.
Zabar's, on Broadway at West 80th Street, is deservedly legendary, but adds more than a half-mile to my shopping trip, is more costly in the vital area of bagels and lox, and has a narrower choice of coffee beans and tea leaves. There are other possibles, but not probables, around. Citarella Gourmet Market, immediately adjoining Fairway, has an excellent fish counter and bakery, but is expensive and limited in other items. Gourmet Garage, on West 66th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue, is overpriced across the board, although it is only two doors from the Goldfarbs in case you want to bring them something on your next visit.
Whole Foods Market is at Columbus Circle, a one-mile round trip, so I don't even know if its prices have come down to earth. While Jubilee Marketplace, 180 Riverside Place, measures no further than Fairway from Palazzo di Gotthelf on the map, I've never set foot in it. Additionally, there are the usual bodegas and "Korean" grocers, with good cut flowers, odd products and high prices, only to be sought out in an emergency.
It's worth reading what Adam Gopnik has to say about some of the broader issues raised by Fairway's plight.
Tuesday, January 28, 2020
Last night, defying our drooping eyelids, we went to a performance of Beethoven's Seventh Symphony by the Manhattan School of Music (MSM) Chamber Sinfonia, a very talented collection of undergraduate and graduate music students. We sat at the front of the balcony, allowing me to see all the faces on stage, which made me think of Stuyvesant High School. Cross-referencing the names in the program, I observed 22 Asians out of 41 musicians, 1 black and 1 Hispanic (sounding name). The complexion (!) of the string section was striking, 19 out of 28 Asians (1 Japanese name and 18 Chinese/Korean names). Ethnic domination was most evident among the violins, 14 of 17 Asians.
The parallels with Stuyvesant can only go so far. MSM is a private institution; tuition is more than $47,000 yearly. Even though an audition is the critical factor for admission, the acceptance rate is a high 46%. I called the school today to get some background. MSM has three major orchestras, the Symphony, the Philharmonia, and the Chamber Sinfonia. There is also the Wind Ensemble, the Jazz Philharmonic, the Jazz Orchestra, the Concert Jazz Band, the Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, and the Chamber Jazz Ensemble. Crossover may be allowed; students choose which group(s) to audition for. I was told that auditions were not blind, as they are now customarily for major classical orchestras.
The parallels with Stuyvesant can only go so far. MSM is a private institution; tuition is more than $47,000 yearly. Even though an audition is the critical factor for admission, the acceptance rate is a high 46%. I called the school today to get some background. MSM has three major orchestras, the Symphony, the Philharmonia, and the Chamber Sinfonia. There is also the Wind Ensemble, the Jazz Philharmonic, the Jazz Orchestra, the Concert Jazz Band, the Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, and the Chamber Jazz Ensemble. Crossover may be allowed; students choose which group(s) to audition for. I was told that auditions were not blind, as they are now customarily for major classical orchestras.
What does it all mean? Harvard's class of 2023 is 25.4% Asian American, not as high as Stuyvesant or the violin section of the MSM Chamber Sinfonia, but still damn impressive. I know that many Asian Americans resent being cited as the ideal minority, but there is a lot to be learned from their trajectory in American life.
By the way, I won't ask about Asian Americans playing Mitteleuropean music.
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
I had an errand in Queens this morning, the most polyglot area on earth outside the United Nations Delegates Dining Room. Therefore, at lunchtime, I couldn't resist going to Nuevo Jardín de China, 32-05 Broadway, Astoria, hoping that food was as delightful as the name. I was the only customer in the long narrow space, decorated simply without any distinguishing ethnic touches.
A way to look at voter preference through the stomach, not the head, is found under the headline: "Bernie Sanders, and How Indian Food Can Predict Vote Choice."
I had an errand in Queens this morning, the most polyglot area on earth outside the United Nations Delegates Dining Room. Therefore, at lunchtime, I couldn't resist going to Nuevo Jardín de China, 32-05 Broadway, Astoria, hoping that food was as delightful as the name. I was the only customer in the long narrow space, decorated simply without any distinguishing ethnic touches.
Its lunch menu offers
19 lunch specials, $12-14, Spanish, Chinese, mixed. While I
deliberated, the waiter put down a dish of fried noodles, the kind your
mother bought, and the watered-down apricot jam that passes for duck sauce. I
ordered Crispy Fried Chicken, Spanish Style. It came with fried rice
(shrimp and meat) and a salad of shredded lettuce and a slice of tomato.
There was also unnecessary bread and butter.
The
chicken had been cooked before, now dry. Dipping in the duck sauce helped; the fried rice was good and I was full when I got up to
leave. In sum, the name on the door is the most delightful thing about Nuevo Jardín de China.
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Henry Saltzman, retired from a career in secondary school teaching and educational policy development, spoke tonight about his his views of education to an audience at West End Synagogue, where we are fellow congregants. I found one of his observations particularly interesting. Throughout Jewish history, learning has been esteemed, the way a man distinguished himself, Henry noted. While many other groups have honored scholarship, usually restricting it to men alone, Jews have regarded it as an essential characteristic of masculinity. In fact, learning is held to be the peak embodiment of masculinity, above strength, swiftness or any other physical attribute. Of course, this idea was furthered over the centuries by denying women the opportunity to study the holy books.
Thursday, January 30, 2020
I went for my annual physical examination under the tender care of Michael Perskin, my doctor for a quarter century. When we started out, he was a geriatrician. Now, he's almost geriatric. We both came out of the examination in fine shape.
Friday, January 31, 2020
If you are having a hard time deciding among the Democratic candidates, the New York Times has published a simple quiz to help you. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/01/30/us/politics/democratic-presidential-candidates-quiz.html
After answering 10 questions, your answers are matched to the positions of the leading candidates. Policy is the focus, not that elusive electability.
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A way to look at voter preference through the stomach, not the head, is found under the headline: "Bernie Sanders, and How Indian Food Can Predict Vote Choice."
. . .
Speaking of food choices, one little bit about those Americans evacuated from Wuhan, China in response to the deadly coronavirus epidemic intrigued me. They are being held at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, California, quarantined all but in name. According to the New York Times: "On Thursday morning, their first full day back in the United States, the
group downed breakfast burritos, juice and coffee. For lunch, they
received a hearty taco salad with chicken." Got that? Mexican food! They return to the United States of America to be fed Mexican food. No pancakes or cheeseburgers like real Americans. Instead, the invasion that Stephen Miller fears has succeeded. Will these folks be forced to listen to mariachi bands? Couldn't they be served Fårikål - mutton stew: the
national dish of Norway? Cabbage and mutton are
layered in a big pot along with black peppercorns, salt (and, in some
recipes, wheat flour to thicken the sauce), covered with water and
simmered until the meat is very tender. Potatoes on the side.
There are still some Jews left in Riverside where the Walls are again wintering, hoping to avoid the coronavirus.
ReplyDeleteAs far as political candidates are concerned, does it matter what we decide? The game is rigged by politics and the electoral college.
ReplyDeleteGlad no political discussions marred our trip.