What's In A Name?

Monday, October 25, 2021

The real estate section offers an interesting list this week.  Where in the Americas are U.S. people looking at residential property via online searches?   https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/21/realestate/top-real-estate-destinations-in-the-americas.html  

 

No information is provided on outcomes.  Are these people headed for House Hunters International?  Are they looking to relocate or just vacation periodically?  Or, are they merely pretending to be busy when their spouse starts talking to them? 

 

The prominence of Mexico and Canada does not surprise me, although, because of my language limitations, I would have reversed them at the top.  The big surprise was Argentina in the 20th position, something that may well injure its vaunted pride.  Aside from Canada and its hockey teams, I  am most familiar with Argentina and consider it an attractive place to live, ignoring wild currency fluctuations. 

 . . . 

 

I went to Urbanspace Lexington, 520 Lexington Avenue, for lunch, the food hall carved out of the first floor of the Art Deco General Electric Building.  Two or three of the vendors have not reopened, consistent with my observations of light pedestrian traffic around Manhattan office buildings.  The few dozen other patrons were only a bit older than grandson Boaz.   For health reasons, seating has been restricted to an upper level, separate from food preparation, with a half dozen two-tops outside on Lexington Avenue or East 51st Street, where I perched after getting food from Bao by Kaya.   

 

A bao is a fluffy 4" dough disc folded over contents.  I had a combination, two baos -- shrimp tempura and Szechuan beef -- and popcorn chicken ($13.50).  The baos were crowded, the shrimp with red cabbage, red onion, cilantro, black sesame seeds and spicy mayo, the braised beef shank with carrot, red onion, cilantro, crispy shallots and Szechuan sauce. The popcorn chicken consisted of ten chunks of dark meat, slightly overcooked, but still on this side of tasty.

. . . 

 

Jews in America never had it so good.  We don't face the existential threat that Israelis do.  Despite persistent anti-Semitism, few opportunities are actually denied to us.  We have prospered in almost every corner of American life.  Yet, we continue to act, at times, like urchins begging for scraps of attention and approval.  Consider this article: "Why this will be the most Jewish World Series in baseball history."  https://forward.com/culture/477100/world-series-jewish-baseball-alex-bregman-garrett-stubbs-braves-astros-joc/?utm_source=Iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=campaign_3080695 

 

If that's not enough, the same online edition of The Forward has "The NHL has a historically good set of Jewish hockey players right now."    https://forward.com/fast-forward/477117/the-nhl-has-a-historically-good-set-of-jewish-hockey-players-right-now/?utm_source=Iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=campaign_3080695 

 

Message: Look at us.  We're normal.  Be nice to us. 

 

Tuesday, October 26, 2021

R.I.P. Herb Downer 

. . . 

 

An appointment with dedicated dermatologist Dr. Donnelly downtown gave me the opportunity to have lunch at 1803 NYC, 53 Reade Street.  So, what's with the name?  It's not the address and doesn't reflect a significant date in the history of the Holy Land.  It hearkens back to the date of the Louisiana Purchase, I was told, and accords with the restaurant's Cajun/Creole cuisine.  

 

About two dozen white-painted tables sit on the sidewalk under a sturdy shelter, decorated with faux foliage, attractive nevertheless.  Only one other table was occupied when I started eating at 2 P.M.  I never even peeked inside.  I had two appetizers, pricey but very good -- buttermilk fried oysters rolled in cornmeal ($18) and Cajun blackened shrimp ($12).  There were five pieces in each order, which made for an ample meal. 

 

Wednesday, October 27, 2021

The Boyz Club gathered for lunch at Joe's Ginger, 25 Pell Street.  While it promised outdoor seating, the seven of us could only be accommodated inside at a conveniently sized round table. We ate a lot -- soup buns, scallion pancake, beef pancake (scallion pancake wrapped around beef slices), cold sesame noodles, Singapore mei fun, beef chow fun, orange beef and spicy fried chicken on the bone.  The soup buns were the only item that rose above average, but there were no leftovers either.  It amounted to $22 per person. 

 

Thursday, October 28, 2021

The young cashier at Trader Joe's, 2073 Broadway, explained her name as soon as I pointed to the name tag that she wore.  Jazzmen.  Her parents were not in the music business, she said, but they wanted a distinctive spelling.   With that, I asked her to be patient for a moment while I extracted this classic photograph from the bowels of my phone.  

"A Great Day in Harlem or Harlem 1958 is a black-and-white photograph of 57 jazz musicians in Harlem, New York, taken by freelance photographer Art Kane for Esquire magazine on August 12, 1958. The musicians gathered at 17 East 126th Street between Fifth and Madison Avenue."  Wikipedia.   

 

With few exceptions, almost every important jazz musician of the time was standing there, including Dizzy Gillespie at the far right, sticking his tongue out at fellow trumpeter Roy Eldridge.  I identified a few others for Jazzmen, so many of whom were probably not even alive by the time that she was born. 

 

Friday, October 29, 2021

Headline in the business section of the New York Times: "Billionaires Of America Are Thriving."  Feel better now?