Good Company

Saturday, February 18, 2023

The American Bar Association is considering whether to keep requiring the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) for entrance to law school.  

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/17/us/law-schools-lsat-requirement.html

Many schools already allow the substitution of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), also applicable to non-professional graduate schools generally.  While they are both too distant in the past for me to make a meaningful comparison, both tests rely on reading comprehension and analytic ability.  Test opponents, looking at the racial imbalance in the legal profession (https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/news/2020/07/potlp2020.pdf#page=37), fault the test(s).  Another opposing view is that the test(s), along with law school itself and state bar examinations, the final hurdle to the profession, do not correspond to actual lawyering.  

My view is colored by my own experiences.  In high school and college, I was a lackluster student, easily diverted and inconsistently serious.  However, I did well on the standardized tests and that usually allowed me to progress.  When I took the LSAT in 1998, I had been out of school for over three decades.  The good results that I achieved spoke loudly to me as well as to the Cardozo Law School admissions office.  After all that time, I maintained sufficient cognitive ability and sitzfleisch (the capacity to remain seated in a chair for an extended period of time) to endure law school.  The precise LSAT subject matter -- 5 kids go to the movies and choose their seats in an elliptical fashion --  may have been far removed from contracts and torts, but it was right down my problem solving alley.  This time, my classroom work was commensurate with my test scores.

Sunday, February 19, 2023 

"Approximately nine out of 10 metro markets registered home price gains in the fourth quarter of 2022 despite mortgage rates eclipsing 7%, according to the National Association of Realtors®’ latest quarterly report."

https://www.nar.realtor/newsroom/nearly-nine-in-10-metro-areas-posted-home-price-gains-in-the-fourth-quarter-of-2022

Increases in the top 10 markets exceeded 14.5%; seven of those markets were in Florida and the Carolinas.  California remains the most expensive state overall, but saw some contractions -- metropolitan San Jose -5.8%; metropolitan San Francisco -6.1%.  In addition to the general increase in home prices, the doubling of mortgage interest rates during the year was an important disincentive to purchases, so plan on having your brother-in-law sleeping in your basement for the indefinite future.

. . .

The death of William Greenberg, Jr., was just reported.  https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/17/dining/william-greenberg-jr-dead.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

I first sampled his baked goods in the late 1960s, when he had a shop on East 8th Street in Greenwich Village.  Even then, his prices were as elevated as his craft.  His family sold the business in 1995 and it seemed to disappear from my view for many years.  Recently, however, a William Greenberg Desserts shop opened at 285 Amsterdam Avenue, formerly occupied by the saintly Jacques Torres.  "Jr." is gone and the prices soar above most competitors.  Sentimental fool that I am, though, I bought a heart-shaped petit four for my favorite Valentine last week.   

Monday, February 20, 2023

On this Presidents' Day, another way to avoid reminding the South that it lost the Civil War, we Jews continue to manifest our ethnocentricity with a quiz on the relation of U.S. Presidents to Jews.  https://forward.com/quizzes/536765/presidential-jewish-trivia-quiz-presidents-day/?s=res

Least surprising was Richard Nixon's hostility.

. . .

This afternoon, we welcomed 15-year old grandson Boaz for a short stay.  We are delighted to have his company and he received an outstanding Holy Land welcome.  Since he arrived by train at Penn Station, we conveniently had dinner at Ben's Kosher Delicatessen Restaurant, 209 West 38th Street.  He had a brisket/corned beef combination sandwich  ($22.99) and I had a roast beef/tongue combination ($23.99).  Boaz is a healthy eater, befitting an energetic teenager, however he didn’t take to the chopped liver that his adoring grandmother offered from her sandwich ($14.49).  He was more receptive to the potato knish that we shared ($4.99).

Then, he and I went to Madison Square Garden to see the New York Rangers play the Winnipeg Jets or get played by the Winnipeg Jets.  An unsatisfactory conclusion to the evening.

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

The three of us went to the Tenement Museum, 97 Orchard Street, for a presentation on the contrasting lives of immigrants, post-war Jewish refugees and the Puerto Ricans following them.  We sat in the actual apartment they occupied, furnished as they knew it.  Let me note that the Museum’s bookshop has an excellent selection of books and materials dealing with New York City, the Lower East Side and the immigrant and minority experience.  

. . .

Looking for a convenient place for a quick supper, we went directly across the street to the Sweet Dreams Cafe and Blue Moon Hotel, 100 Orchard Street.  What appears to be a simple Italian cafe turns out to be part of a serious reclamation project for Randy Settenbrino, an observant Jewish artist and his family.  He has turned a five-story tenement into an eight-story boutique hotel with 22 rooms.  Much of the furniture and fixtures throughout the building were salvaged from the abandoned apartments.  In the street level cafe, there are several large montages composed of newspaper and magazine pages also dating back to earlier residents, as well as Settenbrino’s paintings.

Oh, the food.  We were in a bit of a hurry, so I got a bowl of very good cream of mushroom soup and a tuna panini (together $20).  Besides the surprising story of Settenbrino’s enterprise, which is not evident from the street, the cafe has its own surprise — strict adherence to Kosher laws, once a given in this neighborhood, but now as rare as a local resident without a tattoo.  

. . .

We arrived uptown in time for the curtain at “Kimberly Akimbo,” a show that wanders from a serious theme into some silly plot lines, but worth seeing for a masterful performance by Victoria Clark, a Broadway veteran.

Wednesday, February 22, 2023

“You had to be there.”  This comment usually follows an obscure joke or an opaque description of an event.  In a broader sense, it's how some people regard cultural appropriation and authenticity, objecting to straight men portraying gay men, Whites writing about Blacks, comfortably housed people documenting the homeless and the like.  An example in the newspaper is a question to two Korean filmmakers: “[D]id either of you have reservations about making a film about adoption and not being adopted yourselves?”

Think of how much art would not survive the authenticity test.  While galleries would be full of self portraits and libraries full of autobiographies, works of imagination would disappear.  People should be allowed to tell their own stories, but not only their own stories.

Thursday, February 23, 2023

The superintendent of a Texas school district resigned after he left his gun in an elementary school bathroom where it was found by a third-grader.  https://news.yahoo.com/texas-third-grader-finds-gun-155954286.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

The official reacted with the cool demeanor of a Texas gunslinger: “There was never a danger other than the obvious.”

 

Friday, February 24, 2023

Yesterday, the Tennessee legislature passed a bill banning drag shows in public.  https://www.reuters.com/world/us/tennessee-takes-lead-republican-effort-restrict-drag-shows-2023-02-23/

 

Meanwhile, it ranks 40th in health care for its residents regardless of how they are dressed.  https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings/health-care

Family Ties

Saturday, February 11, 2023 

Roberto Clemente was a star baseball player who died in 1972 on a mission to help earthquake victims in Nicaragua. He was Puerto Rican and a big local hero.  However, a biography of Clemente written for children has been removed from Florida public schools because of references to the discrimination he faced in his life.  You see, Florida doesn’t like ethnic discrimination so much, it won’t allow its kids to read about it.

https://news.yahoo.com/roberto-clemente-book-removed-florida-014504078.html

Sunday, February 12, 2023

Speaking of ethnic discrimination, the United States Supreme Court is considering the constitutionality of affirmative action in higher education.  Actually, it is reconsidering the issue and poised to overturn precedents in another rejection of judicial restraint that has been the hallmark of the supposed conservative majority.  Chief Justice Roberts will be able to assert again his spigot theory of social relations: “The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.” 

Although a history major at Harvard University, Roberts seems to conveniently believe that history started this morning, at least in regard to race relations.  The past is past, best forgotten, the way it is in Florida.  Unfortunately, the present belies the Chief Justice’s rosy view.  A story appearing on-line this morning carries this headline: “Childbirth Is Deadlier for Black Families Even When They Are Rich, Study Says.”  

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/02/12/upshot/child-maternal-mortality-rich-poor.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Examining 2 million births in California from 2006 to 2017, the study “combines income tax data with birth, death and hospitalization records and demographic data from the Census Bureau and the Social Security Administration.”  It seems that while we might have liberty and justice for all we just don't have good medical care for all.  You can find the study itself here, but definitely not in any Florida school:

https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w30693/w30693.pdf

Maybe, in the best Nancy Reagan tradition, we should tell pregnant black women, Just Stay Healthy.

. . . 

We New York Giants’ fans had a victory today.  The Philadelphia Eagles lost.

Tuesday, February 14, 2023

In today’s headlines: “German ballet director suspended after smearing dog feces in critic’s face”  https://www.huffpost.com/entry/german-ballet-director-fired-feces-critic_n_63ee5b34e4b07f036ba20fee

. . . 

I listened  to "The 'Normalization' of Antisemitism," a broadcast by Gavriel D. Rosenfeld, President of the Center for Jewish History, today.  He gave convincing examples of rhetoric and memes that morphed from benign to ironic to vile, arousing less and less indignation along the way.  However, I think that he is overly optimistic when he cites the pushback against Kanye West as the representative of public opinion.  He ignores Kyrie Irving and Mel Gibson, as high on their respective perches as they have ever been.

Wednesday, February 15, 2023

"In the Ivy League, children whose parents are in the top 1 percent of the income distribution are 77 times as likely to attend as those whose parents are in the bottom 20 percent of the income bracket."  This fascinating piece of information comes from an excellent discussion of the legal landscape of affirmative action.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/15/magazine/affirmative-action-supreme-court.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=highlightShare

. . . 

There was a special celebration at dinner tonight.  The Boyz Club was augmented by the newly-minted epidemiologist, David Goldfarb, an acolyte of America’s Favorite Epidemiologist.  We gathered at Wo Hop, 17 Mott Street, in night air that was so mild (60+°) that we ate outside.  And ate we did.  Egg rolls, duck chow fun, Singapore chow mei fun, crispy honey chicken, shrimp with lobster sauce over shrimp fried rice, and beef with scallion and ginger.  It came to $25 each, but, for the first time in recorded history, there was food left over, enough food for 2 or 3 more people celebrating the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln the 16th president, Michael Jordan #23 Chicago Bulls, Adam Fox #23 New York Rangers, George Washington #1 in war and peace and your humble servant.  

February 16, 2023

Just in case you are tired of having peaceful nights' sleep, consider the results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading assessment.  Only one-third of American fourth graders tested "proficient" in reading.  https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading/nation/achievement/?grade=4

While proficient was not the lowest level, it is what it is.  NAEP is a congressionally mandated project, administered within the U.S. Department of Education.  How well one reads will strongly influence how well one writes and if you have (tried to) read any materials related to any newly-acquired electronic device, you know that we have a failure to communicate.

. . .

We missed Ken Klein at dinner last night, but he caught up with me at lunch today at Pho Vietnamese Sandwich Shop, 141 West 72nd Street, a reliable source of food from a deadly enemy.  They have removed the grungy hut on the sidewalk, so dining is all indoors in a totally forgettable setting.  The food, however, is easily remembered and appreciated.  I had a Bánh mì, the Vietnamese hero sandwich.  Mine was grilled sesame beef, with mayo, pickled radish, pickled carrots, cucumber, cilantro, hoisin sauce and a fried egg on a very crispy, 8" long baguette ($14.50).  This only proves that we had nothing to fight over.  

Friday, February 17, 2023

This is, of course, a very special day, but it became more special when it was announced this morning that NYU has appointed a woman as president, for the first time ever.  https://forward.com/fast-forward/536519/linda-mills-nyu-president-filmmaker-documentary-family-holocaust/

 

As it happens, Linda Mills is my original wife's first cousin once removed.  I knew her as a teenager and, by coincidence her husband, Peter Goodrich, joined the Cardozo faculty while I was in law school.  He and I only interacted casually in hallway conversations.  Besides her work in academia, Linda is a documentary filmmaker and has notably recorded a part of her family's fascinating story, "Auf Wiedersehen, 'Til We Meet Again."  Her maternal grandparents, my former mother-in-law's sister and brother-in-law, were prosperous merchants in Vienna.  When the Nazis took over Austria, they agonized over the future of their two adolescent daughters.  Anticipating "Sophie's Choice," the parents sent the younger girl on the Kindertransport to England, keeping the older daughter, Linda's mother, with them.  Fortunately, all three escaped the Nazis and eventually made their way to Los Angeles. 

Far and Near

Saturday, February 4, 2023

David and Cindy did not come to the Holy Land merely to enjoy the pleasure of our company.  Rather, their younger son Toby McMullen was performing this weekend at the Gramercy Theatre with the Are You Garbage comedy group (sometimes with and sometimes without a ? on the end) of Tom Cassidy, Kevin Ryan and H. Foley.  In fact, we attended the 7 PM show with a sold-out audience that was overwhelmingly white, heterosexual and gentile.  Nevertheless, we liked the show.

First, the four grown ups had dinner at Miznon North, 161 West 72nd Street.  We thoroughly enjoyed the Israeli/Arab, overpriced food not likely found in North Carolina.  We shared 2 orders of just-baked focaccia, with crème fraîche ($7 each); masabacha (spicy stew) of red-eyed peas ($13); beetroot carpaccio, a dish we always order ($13); "Broccoli Bonsai," a lot of broccoli ($15); "A beautiful cabbage melting into itself in a veg stock," very good in spite of its pretentious name ($18).  

Alone, I had a main course, "Kebab on a stormy tomato foam[.]  A faint memory from the alleys of Jerusalem” ($27).  It was one long skewer of perfectly-spiced, grilled ground lamb.  I forgave the pretentious name again, not only because the chef is named Victor Gothelf, but because it tasted so good.  

Sunday, February 5, 2023

The normally docile Melanie S. has thrown down the gauntlet, challenging my appraisal of Zucker’s Bagels & Smoked Fish as bagelmeister to the world.  She claims that Pick-a-Bagel, another local chain of half a dozen units, deserves the crown.  My opinion was reinforced today when David I went to Zucker's Bagels & Smoked Fish, 273 Columbus Avenue, to pick up bagels and whitefish salad, followed by Gaspe Nova and scallion cream cheese from Fairway Market, 2131 Broadway, to put together a brunch that would make a Southerner stop whistling "Dixie."  

The ball is in Melanie's court to establish the time, place and manner of a showdown.

. . .

An interesting survey claims that single women are more likely to own a home than single men.  In only two of the 50 states, North Dakota and South Dakota, is the reverse true.   https://www.lendingtree.com/home/mortgage/single-women-own-more-homes-than-single-men-do/

Of all the explanations, the most plausible is wives outlasting us poor husbands in the Game of Life.

Monday, February 6, 2023

I am very proud of my princely brother-in-law Stuart Poloner being named to Yeshiva University's Hall of Fame.  

 

Stu held the school's basketball scoring record for decades, eventually having his three season total only exceeded by a player who played four seasons.  Let's hear it for Stu.  By the way, it's not true that George Santos was his teammate.

Wednesday, February 8, 2023

Jackson Hole is a local, family-run chain, in business for 50 years.  However, when I entered their location at 521 Third Avenue, I realized that I had not patronized them in maybe 20 years.  They commonly affect a diner motif, Formica counter, vinyl-padded chrome stools plus booths and tables, with some cowboy touches along the walls.

I ordered, you’ll pardon the expression, the Texas Breakfast, hamburger, American cheese, fried egg and bacon on an English muffin, a half pound of meat and generously portioned throughout ($19.50).  In case my arteries remained open, I added waffle fries ($5), totally unnecessary, it turned out, to fill my stomach.

Thursday, February 9, 2023

“Missouri votes against banning children from carrying guns in public”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/09/missouri-rejects-ban-children-carrying-guns-in-public

 

Get your thoughts and prayers ready.

. . .

 

Unarmed, Michael Ratner and I ventured to Taqueria Sinaloense, 113 West 225th Street, in the Marble Hill neighborhood of the Bronx or maybe it's Manhattan.  Once upon a time, the northern boundary of Manhattan Island was defined by Spuyten Duyvil Creek.  Then, in 1895, the Harlem River Ship Canal was dug about one half mile below it, leaving Marble Hill as an island.  In 1914, the Creek was filled in, attaching Marble Hill to the Bronx and mainland United States.  This has produced a hodge podge of geographic identity.  Marble Hill has a Bronx ZIP code, Bronx area codes, and is patrolled by the Bronx's 50th Precinct, yet is part of Manhattan politically.    

In any case, the restaurant is very tiny, two small two-tops and a ledge with four stools, leaving room for only a couple of people barely to stand and order.  Everything is cooked to order by the one lady behind the counter and she does so commendably.  I ordered #2.

 

My gusto was chicken and I got a delicious fat burrito with cheese, lettuce and tomato and a can of soda at a bargain price.  I hesitate to recommend this joint, because a rush of business might immobilize it.  If you go, take only a skinny friend.    

There and Here

Saturday, January 28, 2023

The Oakland Heartthrob and I drove out to the closed Naval Air Station Alameda this afternoon.  Alameda itself is an island in San Francisco Bay immediately adjacent to Oakland.  Covering 1,734 acres, the Naval Air Station was an enormous complex that played a critical role in WWII and remained in operation until 1997.  

Now, most of it remains empty and in continuing decline, hangars, housing, offices, warehouses, docks, runways.  The opportunities for development seem vast, but politics has limited progress for the last 25 years.  Some businesses are dotted on the grounds, along with some housing, yet only a fraction of the space has new life.

One thriving operation, though, is Almanac Beer Co., 651 West Tower Avenue, Alameda, a brewery and tap room.  All but a couple of these taps were active, I was told, as I drank a pint of Happy Hour Helles, a lager with 5% alcohol ($7).   

 

. . . 

Dinner was special. Bix, 56 Gold Street, San Francisco, is a former speakeasy, named for the legendary jazz trumpeter Bix Beiderbecke.  It is a large, two-story space, borrowing decorating touches from the 20s and 30s.  Service was impeccable, water, bread and butter were always at hand, and the food was generally excellent.  

After a round of interesting cocktails, a blood orange margarita for me ($16), we shared fabulous deviled eggs ($13), excellent salmon tartare ($17), chicory salad with pears, toasted pecans, and blue cheese ($15), and “Truffled Cheese ‘Croques’” (tiny grilled cheese sandwiches) ($14).

My main course was called Chicken Hash à la Bix, but it was really chicken croquettes and very good, too ($29).  Expensive over all, but what are vacations for?

Sunday, January 29, 2023

The ricotta pancakes at Rockridge Cafe, 5492 College Avenue ($9.50 short stack), made a perfect late breakfast or was it an early lunch or is that what makes it brunch?

. . .

We saw “Clyde’s” by Lynn Nottage at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre, a play set in the kitchen of a diner staffed by ex-cons.  I think that it is best described as a dramedy, a word that I will try to never use again, although that is no reflection on the work.

. . .

To have a proper conclusion to our short visit, we went to Fentons Creamery, 4226 Piedmont Avenue, for some better-than-average ice cream.  I had two large scoops ($8), Heavenly Hash, chocolate ice cream with walnuts and brownies, and black cherry, meeting the minimum daily requirement in at least four food groups.

Monday, January 30, 2023

Unlike our departure, our return was free of drama and comedy.  I learned something important, though, after visiting the new terminals at JFK and SFO.  Airplane travel has revived an earlier form of transportation.  Those little golf carts that scooted around for the lame, halt and lazy have disappeared.  Feet were all that were left.

Wednesday, February 1, 2023

If I find myself in agreement with anything emerging from the Murdoch fabrication factory, I remind myself that a stopped clock is right twice a day.  It was the Wall Street Journal that brought Stanford University’s Elimination of Harmful Language Initiative to public scrutiny.  You know, use “masked study” instead of “blind study,” “person who had immigrated” instead of “immigrant;” don’t use “gangbusters” and never ”beat a dead horse.”   https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-stanford-guide-to-acceptable-words-elimination-of-harmful-language-initiative-11671489552

 

Tutor a child, volunteer at a soup kitchen, write a check?  No!  Those things are likely to make a real difference and avoid mockery.

Thursday, February 2, 2023

Sometimes you have to live on the edge.  I went to Zucker's Bagels & Smoked Fish, 370 Lexington Avenue, one of eight locations in Manhattan that, on some days, offer the best bagels in the world.  I had an everything with a little container of egg salad and, skipping a cup of coffee, a can of soda.  Usually that would mean Diet Coke or Dr. Brown's Diet Black Cherry, but I felt bold and grabbed a can of Dr. Brown's Cel-Ray, the full carbohydrate version, the good doctor having abandoned the sugar-free formula of that nectar more than a decade ago, lamentably.  A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do.  

Friday, February 3, 2023

We welcomed Cindy and David McMullen this afternoon for a weekend stay-over.  While their hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina has fine restaurants, they fall into a narrow ethnic range.  Therefore, we chose to have dinner at aRoqa, 206 Ninth Avenue, a superior Indian restaurant.  The Guide Michelin commends its “selection of creative shared plates  . . . finished with creative flair,” so we attacked the menu creatively.

We started by sharing Kurkuri Bhel (crispy rice puffs, avocado, tomatoes, tamarind chutney with lotus stem chips) ($16), Lasuni Gobi (flour battered cauliflower in garlic sauce)($16), Corn Paddu (corn & rice fritters) ($16), Kataifi Mushrooms (mushrooms wrapped in shredded phyllo dough) ($20).  The girls quit at this point, but David and I plowed into lamb biryani ($25).  There was naan and chutneys, too.  Dessert saw all hands on deck again for Coppa Pistachio, chocolate and pistachio mousses (meese?) ($14) and Coppa Al Limone Di Sorrento, sponge cake soaked in lemon juice, topped with vanilla-flavored cream and lemon sauce ($14), but why are the names in Italian?

. . .

 

In case the descriptions above makes you hungry, consider dining at Montreal's finest restaurant, that is, if it existed. 
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/03/montreal-restaurant-that-never-was-online-reviews-canada