Saturday, December 30, 2023

We Really Need A New Year

Saturday, December 23, 2023 
Words are handy things.  I often use them to explain something.  However, sometimes they don’t do the job adequately.  I had lunch yesterday at Empire Garden in Boston with a congenial group of guys and I described the premises as “what I imagine the central Shanghai railway station looked like in 1928.”  Of course, what made me think that you would know what I imagined?

Here’s what I actually saw.

This ongepotchket decor, as we say in the trade, evoked an exotic locale for an elite clientele.  That was my image of the central Shanghai railway station in 1928.  Might someone else imagine a shabby, dingy, unwelcoming setting?  So, I’ve saved 1,000 words to use somewhere else.

Sunday, December 24, 2023
Things seem to be getting worse for Harvard University President Claudine Gay after her ineffective appearance before a committee of the House of Representatives.  It seems that, although she graduated from Stanford University and got a Ph.D. from Harvard, she should have gone to CCNY to learn to think on her feet.

Monday, December 25, 2023
“The Color Purple” was a novel that became a movie that became a Broadway musical that has now become a movie musical.  Today’s newspaper has a review of this latest effort.  A little box next to the review contains this useful information: “Rated PG-13 for incest, rape, racism and abuse.”  Enjoy.

Tuesday, December 26, 2023
Gentleman Jerry was available for lunch today.  We went to the cafe at Fairway Market, 2121 Broadway, now called the 74th Street Cafe, still recovering patrons after being closed for a couple of years. 

I had a big bowl of lobster bisque, very buttery with lots of little pieces of poached lobster ($12).  Then, a hearty bacon, egg and cheese sandwich on a large brioche roll ($10).  The food was very good and gave reason to return.

Wednesday, December 27, 2023
In my writing career, I have tried to respect two limits, not make fun of someone’s name or misspellings on Chinese restaurant menus.  But, never say Never.  The treasurer of the state of Alabama is Young Boozer III.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Boozerhttps://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Boozer 
 
What were his great-grandparents thinking?
                                                            .  .  .
 
I don’t care what anybody says, I don’t like wearing my hair long.  What remains is thin, straight and dull.  Going to Gary the Barber also gave me easy access to Urban Hawker, 135 West  50th Street, the food court devoted to Singaporean street food.  It was very crowded at 1 PM, not with the usual IT guys from neighboring office buildings, but with families going to or from the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, Radio City Music Hall or Broadway matinees.

I found a seat and dug into the excellent fish cutlets from Smokin’ Joe, two pieces of crispy fried fish fillets, braised cabbage, a fried egg and rice under a mildly-spiced, creamy tomato sauce ($17.50).  Another filling and fulfilling meal at Urban Hawker.
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I just saw the obituary for Tommy Smothers, the seemingly goofy one of the Smothers Brothers.  

In 1994, I visited Nate P., then studying for his Ph.D. at Berkeley.  It was the third leg of an eventful trip to California — Los Angeles to participate in a Jewish divorce from my Original Wife, Riverside to see Charlotte and John Stanley, Berkeley to spend time with Nate.

One day, we decided to visit wineries and drove the one hour to Sonoma County.  We stopped and tippled at 11 wineries, including the casual operation run by the Smothers Brothers.  Tommy was on the premises and he spent an hour or so schmoozing with us, displaying his actually intelligent, but genuinely funny, personality.  May his memory be for a blessing.
 
Thursday, December 28, 2023
Ken Klein said goodbye to his visiting grandchildren and swung to the other extreme by joining me for lunch.  We went to Parm, 235 Columbus Avenue, and found it jammed with families, unlike a normal weekday in a non-holiday period.  Originating in Little Italy, there are now half a dozen locations reaching to Boston.

I ordered one of their special sandwiches, The House Roast Beef, homemade roast beef, sliced thin with fresh mozzarella, mayo & hot peppers on garlic bread ($17).  A near-great sandwich.

Friday, December 29, 2023
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Happy New Year to the rest of you.
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Saturday, December 23, 2023

Feeding Frenzy

Saturday, December 16, 2023
The tragic murder of three Israeli hostages in Gaza by the IDF shows how chaotic the situation has become.  Freeing the hostages has to be Israel’s priority.  The destruction of Hamas is warranted, but doesn’t require the unfocussed violence that has emerged in the fighting.  

In the past, Israel has gone to great lengths to recover living and dead captives.  It is impossible to imagine that the ground and air offensive has made the surviving hostages safer, regardless of its effectiveness in weakening Hamas militarily, even while boosting it politically in Gaza and the West Bank.

I am not calling for a cease fire in isolation, but rather for an intense campaign through Egyptian, Gulf Arab, European and American channels to save Jewish lives.
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Grandnephew Benjamin and his girlfriend Monica are visiting from California where he works remotely for a Washington political action group.  Appropriately, we made a date for dinner in Chinatown.  I aimed for Shanghai 21, 21 Mott Street, long a favorite of mine.  I have especially enjoyed its soup buns, scallion pancakes and cold sesame noodles and I thought that they would be the basis of a good meal.  However, this unnaturally warm night brought out huge crowds and Shanghai 21 was promising a one-hour wait.  Of course, Wo Hop was only a few doors away, but their crowd waiting to get in was even longer, unlike any I’ve ever experienced there.

I directed us instead to Wok Wok, Southeast Asian Cuisine, 11 Mott Street, a Malaysian restaurant, another favorite.  We were seated immediately, but it too was soon full.  Possibly for the first time ever, I will admit to ordering almost too much food.  We had satay beef (5 skewers, $9.99); veggie spring rolls (5 pieces, $7.59); popcorn chicken ($7.59); Hainan cold, poached chicken (half, $17.99); Pad See Ew (stir fired broad noodles, $13.99); egg fried rice ($12.99).  Note that prices carry a 4% burden for credit card use.  It was all very good and worth it.  

Sunday, December 17, 2023
A new survey found that "Single Women Spend 124% More of Their Income on Rent Than Men in Major Cities in the U.S.”  https://www.renthop.com/research/singles-index/

The survey reviewed median rent for studio apartments, the most likely target for single renters, versus median income by location.  Sadly, the Holy Land was effectively No-Man’s or No-Woman’s Land, with rent calculated as 71% of income, which has to mean that no one lives here.  On the other hand, Wichita, Minneapolis and Colorado Springs allegedly offer the best buys.  In conclusion, marry a rich person.  

Monday, December 18, 2023
Stony Brook Steve joined me on a revisit to Caridad 72, 130 West 72nd Street, the newly opened successor to Caridad 78, one of the flagship Cuban Chinese restaurants.  Two weeks ago, I found their fried chicken more fried than chicken.  Today, I went for a classic, clichéd Chinese-American dish, shrimp egg foo young, accompanied by a pile of yellow rice ($18) and I found Caridad 72’s sweet spot.

Thursday, December 21, 2023
Hello, Winter and Happy Birthday to Ima Irit.
.  .  .

The Upper West Side's Power Couple left for Eastern Massachusetts to spend the weekend with the second and third generations.  It was an uneventful trip, with a quick stop at the Blue Colony Diner, 60 Church Hill Road, Exit 10 off I-84, an archetypical diner, with an eight pound laminated menu.  I had an excellent bowl of lemon chicken orzo soup, just right for a winter day ($4.95).

We caught up with our mob at the Time Out Market, 401 Park Drive, Boston, a big, well-organized food court with 15 vendors.  Most customers scan a QR code pasted on their table, order on their phone and have the food delivered to their numbered table, spared even the exercise of lifting and carrying a tray.  Old-fashioned me walked up to the counter at Cusser’s Roast Beef & Seafood and ordered a sandwich of rare roast beef with extra meat piled high, naked on an onion roll ($17).  Along with it, I had an order of onion rings, really strings, seasoned with mustard and cayenne pepper.  Delicious and not at all greasy.

Friday, December 22, 2023
Through the good offices of Law Professor David, I was invited to have lunch in Boston’s Chinatown at Empire Garden Restaurant, 690 Washington Street.  The premises were very imposing, resembling what I imagine the central Shanghai railway station looked like in 1928.  The gathering was hosted by Seth Gitell, a former journalist now in the public sector.  The guests, 15 in total, were drawn from government, academe, journalism and those of us on their margins.

Empire Garden features dim sum during the day, carts and all.  I counted 8 or 9 dishes, three plates each to reach this big crowd.  Da-yay-nu, it would suffice, as we say at Passover.  However, this is an annual affair and Seth was making up for lost time.  He also ordered General Gau's chicken (clearly a relative of General Tso), orange beef, bok choy with garlic, beef chow fun, chicken lo mein, Chinese broccoli with garlic, moo shu chicken, moo shu beef and chicken fried rice.  I didn't see the bottom line, but I know that we exceeded $500.  Wait till next year.
.  .  .

BULLETIN -- One of my 15 lunchmates tested positive for COVID late this evening.  How retro!

    

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Saturday, December 16, 2023

Bad Sport

Saturday, December 10, 2023
In general, I can be considered a meritocrat.  I don't come from a wealthy or privileged background.  Whatever I've accomplished, it was mostly on my own with a little help from my friends.  I especially admire people whose mentality produced success.  So, it's been a bad patch lately.  Most notoriously, it was the three university presidents unable to handle leading questions from a hostile source.  Under those circumstances, they don't deserve the big bucks and the fancy offices.

Then, there was the professor of accounting who "said that when the former president tripled the square footage of his Trump Tower triplex on annual statements of financial condition it was just an 'error in calculation.'” 

When is it fraud, professor?  Quintupled?  Octupled?  Of course, if you are being paid $400,000 as an expert witness, you might be particularly sensitive to errors in calculation.

Sunday, December 11, 2023
A little ray of sunshine, at least for prospective home buyers in some large cities.  https://www.point2homes.com/news/us-real-estate-news/2023-owners-hit-by-home-price-decline.html

In the last year, the median price of single family homes in Memphis declined by 17.1%. while condominia in San Francisco dropped 10.6%.  If you happened to sell a single family home in Manhattan after one year, you made a little money, $50,000 on your $6,400,000 investment.  

Monday, December 12, 2023
Clan McMullen has descended on the Holy Land.  To enjoy their company, we went to lunch at Jing Fong, 202 Centre Street, the successor to the gargantuan enterprise at 20 Elizabeth Street.  This new version has about 100 seats, about one-eighth the original size, with the dim sum carts still buzzing around. 

The six of us ate a lot, 17 plates, 10 different dishes.  I was knocked out by the turnip cake, tasting exactly like a potato kugel from a first-rate Jewish kitchen.  We were guests, so I have no information about pricing, but I found Jing Fong reasonable on previous occasions.

Tuesday, December 12, 2023
I was on the East Side and looking for an early lunch today.  I went to Ess-A-Bagel, 831 Third Avenue, which served as my office for several years.  At 11:45 AM, the end of line was at the front door, almost all tourists, responding to well-deserved recommendations from myriad sources.  I didn’t resent the success, but retreated down East 51st Street to Urban Space, 570 Lexington Avenue, a/k/a Urbanspace Lex, confident that the usual local lanyard wearers won’t appear until closer to 1.  

Indeed, I stepped right up to the counter at Mysttik Masaala and ordered butter chicken with rice ($16.99) and naan ($2.95).  There was a generous amount of chicken, but I might have gotten there too early because the salt and pepper hadn’t arrived.  Although carefully cooked, it was bland.
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Immediately after the end of a soccer game, the president of a Turkish team punched a referee in the head, sending him to the hospital.  https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/12/world/europe/turkey-soccer-referee-attack.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

As I have said before, the American model avoids sports-related violence by giving us variety.  Unlike many countries in the world, we don't obsess over one sport alone (usually soccer).  Baseball season is over, the New York Football Giants are out of contention, the New York Knickerbockers are competitive, but the New York Rangers are red hot.  All my eggs are never in one basket.  One bad result may be disheartening, but, get ready, they are about to throw the first pitch, drop the puck, kick off or jump ball again.  Violence would be distracting.
 
Wednesday, December 13, 2023
Happy Birthday to my big brother.
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If you care about the Israel/Gaza mess, please, please take the time to listen to this talk by Rabbi Shai Held.  

Thursday, December 14, 2023
In "surveys of over 70,000 high school students at over 24 high schools in the United States . . . 64 percent of students admitted to cheating on a test, 58 percent admitted to plagiarism and 95 percent said they participated in some form of cheating, whether it was on a test, plagiarism or copying homework." 

This may be one area where China has some catching up to do.  A recent survey from four public universities in four provinces found "more than two-thirds of the respondents stated involved dishonesty in examinations and assignments at least once during the previous academic year."   https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/HEED-11-2021-0081/full/html
 
So, dishonesty is the best policy.
 
Friday, December 15, 2023
"Rudy Giuliani ordered to pay nearly $150 million to two Georgia election workers he defamed."  https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/15/politics/rudy-giuliani-verdict-pay-defamed-election-workers?cid=ios_app 
 
Maybe dishonesty is not the best policy, after all.
.  .  .

Jessica Hecht, who has a distinguished career on Broadway and television, spoke tonight at West End Synagogue about her philanthropic efforts, founding the Campfire Project, producing theatrical works in refugee camps in locations such as Moldova, Greece, and Uganda.  https://campfire-project.org/
 
This is purely her initiative, organizing volunteers to work in difficult even dangerous circumstances.  She is beautiful all the way around.   
 


 
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Saturday, December 9, 2023

Light Vs. Darkness

Saturday, December 2, 2023 
“Penguins Take Thousands of Naps Every Day”
We can learn a lot from penguins.

Monday, December 4, 2023
The Oakland Unified School District (California) reports that "Public Schools in Oakland Unified School District have an average math proficiency score of 21% (versus the California public school average of 34%)."  https://www.publicschoolreview.com/california/oakland-unified-school-district/628050-school-district

Maybe more classroom time is needed rather than distracting the students with empty theatrical gestures.  "Dozens of Oakland teachers are planning to share pro-Palestinian lessons with their students [Wednesday] as part of an unauthorized 'teach-in'."  https://edsource.org/updates/some-oakland-educators-plan-teach-in-to-support-palestinians

On the other hand, on Monday, November 27, a city council meeting held in Oakland featured a parade of community members voicing support for Hamas.  “One person called the October 7 massacre ‘fabricated’ and claimed that the Jews killed were actually killed by the IDF, not Hamas.”

A wasted mind is a terrible thing.
 
Tuesday, December 5, 2023
Last week, we learned that Israeli intelligence may have had prior knowledge of a forthcoming attack by Hamas.  Today, CNN reports that there was “a ‘significant’ and ‘unusual’ spike five days before the attacks in short selling in the most popular fund linked to Israeli companies.”  

This means that someone or other was betting that the Israeli economy was about to face difficulty.  Before October 7th, this would seem to be unwarranted speculation, unless Hamas leadership sought economic benefits along with strategic advantage.
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La Caridad 72, 130 West 72nd Street, is open just over one week, but it traces itself back to La Caridad 78, founded in 1968, closed in 2020, one of the Cuban-Chinese restaurants donated to us by Fidel Castro.

The new premises are bright, one long wall of white-painted brick opposite an off-white wall.  The furniture is dark wood and faux leather, balanced by oak-stained wainscoting.  

The menu features 22 lunch specials, $12.95-13.95.  I had “Fried Chicken Crackling,” four medium-to-small pieces of dark meat chicken, deep fried a little too long.  A very generous portion of yellow rice and beans comes with it, guaranteeing that you don’t leave hungry.  I’ll return for some of the Chinese dishes.

Wednesday, December 6, 2023
Duty calls; jury duty, in fact.  I almost returned to the scene of the crime, because I worked for 14 years solely on civil actions and today criminal court beckoned.  Actually, it didn't matter, because the morning was occupied by paperwork, orientation and pep talks.  Of course, the courthouse abuts Chinatown.

For lunch, I went to the nearby New West Malaysia Restaurant, 69 Bayard Street.  Arguably, this is the New New West Malaysia Restaurant, having moved recently from the alley between the Bowery and Elizabeth Street.  Its new location has its own interesting history.  69 Bayard Street was long home to 69 Bayard Restaurant, whose every vertical and horizontal surface was plastered with dollar bills and other low denomination currency from around the world.  Now, the walls are bare brick with nary a negotiable instrument in site.

I ignored the menu and quickly ordered roti canai, my litmus test for Malaysian food, and was pleased by my choice ($5.95).  The pancake had the right balance of flaky and flexible, although slightly small in diameter.  The buttery curry sauce was delicious with a big chunk of potato floating in it.  The Baby Oyster Omelet covered the entire dinner plate and was enhanced by the small dish of sweet and spicy sauce on the side ($12.95).  Amply fueled, I returned to the courthouse to render justice without fear or favor.

Unfortunately, justice had been fully dispensed, because we were dismissed at 3:40 PM, to go home for the next four years.  I was truly disappointed, not only because I was ready for some true-crime action, but I had planned my next several lunches in Chinatown.  Actually, I am only excused from the New York State judicial system.  There's hope that the federal courts will reach out to me, with the Thurgood Marshall and the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouses sitting right down there.

Thursday, December 7, 2023
I never heard of "cum ex trading" and I'm sure that I'm not alone in that regard.   That demonstrates that we are mere sheep in the great stockyard of finance.  

According to today's paper, cum ex trading has cost Germany about $30 billion, France lost about $17 billion, and smaller sums were lifted from Poland, Norway, Austria, Italy and others in this scam.  And you majored in Art History.
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The word of the year for 2023 is "rizz," according to the publishers of the Oxford English Dictionary.

It supposedly means charisma, however, with more than 3 weeks left in 2023, another word has exploded into prominence and deserves consideration.  The congressional testimony of major university presidents on campus anti-Semitism promoted CONTEXT to the head of the class.  

When the President of the University of Pennsylvania was pressed on the hypothetical question of whether students calling for the genocide of Jews would be disciplined under the university’s code of conduct she responded, “It is a context-dependent decision.”     

Friday, December 8, 2023
An article today discusses Germany's attempt to curb anti-Semitism in and around the arts.  https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/07/arts/design/germany-arts-cancellations-israel-palestinians.html?smid=nytcore-android-share
 
An American philosopher and cultural critic claims "that Germany’s overzealous approach to combating antisemitism had turned into 'hysteria' that 'threatens to throttle the country’s rich cultural life.'"  In 1933, Germany arguably had the richest cultural life and legacy of any country anywhere.  A lot of good that did.
.  .  .

We were invited to celebrate Hanukkah at dinner with Aunt Judi and Uncle Stu.  That means another great meal by Aunt Judi.  The menu: matzoh ball soup, Aunt Judi's meatballs, roasted vegetables (onions, carrots, sweet potatoes), onion-crusted chicken breast, California roast (beautifully roasted beef), latkes (potato pancakes), apple sauce, savory carrot cake -- everything homemade.  Need I say more?

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Saturday, December 2, 2023

5¢ --> $5

Sunday, November 26, 2023 
The weekend paper contains an article by Joe Berger, longtime New York Times reporter, about his family’s experience among “the 140,000 Jewish Holocaust survivors who came to America between 1946 and 1953,” mostly settling in New York.

It took them four years waiting in a displaced persons camp to gain entry.  He contrasts this with present day conditions faced by asylum seekers.  Most notable is the support provided by private agencies and the speedy path to assimilation upon arrival available to refugees then.  Joe has described the events in full in his brilliant memoir “Displaced Persons: Growing Up American After the Holocaust,” published in 2002, still in print.
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Among the hostages freed Saturday by Hamas was Emily Hand, a nine-year-old girl with joint Irish and Israeli citizenship.  Reacting to the news, the Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar tweeted that “an innocent child who was lost has now been found and returned.”
While that description has a poetic feel, evoking a little girl who wandered away during a family picnic, it doesn’t describe what happened.  But, maybe that's the point.

Monday, November 27, 2023
I wish that the strife in the Middle East was over so that we can concentrate on critical matters, such as Hunter Biden’s laptop.
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I went downtown today to do some heavy duty holiday shopping.  In heading for a place to eat, I came across a new Urban Space, 124 East 14th Street, a smaller version of the food courts that I have patronized at 45th and Vanderbilt and 51st and Lexington.  Those two are usually full with lanyard-wearing IT folk and an occasional financial analyst.  By contrast, this location looks like a New York University dining hall, full of students, as it sits between two NYU buildings.

Unfortunately, my dissatisfaction with my food choice contrasted with the older establishments where I’ve never been disappointed.  I ordered an Original Fried Chicken Sandwich Combo from Bobwhite Counter ($12.19).  While the chunk of fried chicken was hefty, it was very dry and the mayonnaise and pickles on the bun did not rescue it.  There are 10 other vendors who might save this Urban Space’s reputation, however.

Tuesday, November 28, 2023
I came across a list of allegedly the happiest cities in the U.S.  
Today, Burlington, Vermont is unhappily known as the site of the shooting of three Palestinian college students from the West Bank who viewed the U.S. as a safe haven.
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The Holy Land would be a happier city if Ample Hills Creamery were back in business.  Alas, the latest effort to revive this once great ice cream purveyor has collapsed.  https://ny.eater.com/2023/11/28/23980146/ample-hills-founders-fired-jackie-cuscuna-brian-smith
  
Is there anyone out there with the taste, energy and money to restore this pillar of civilization?
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A public interest group filed suit today against the University of California Berkeley for the “longstanding, unchecked spread of anti-Semitism” on campus that has resulted in a current hotbed of anti-Jewish hostility and harassment.  https://brandeiscenter.com/brandeis-center-sues-uc-berkeley-for-longstanding-unchecked-spread-of-anti-semitism-11-28-23/
 
I'm a big "marketplace of ideas" fan, but I think "anti-Zionism" is very old wine in a relatively new bottle.

Wednesday, November 29, 2023
Speaking of the shrinking world of intellectual integrity, regard this comment from Jesse Green.  "As the chief theater critic for The New York Times, I have been asked not to review certain plays that creative teams apparently felt I, as a white man, could not appreciate."

I had the pleasure of Gary Mindlin's company at my first Rangers game of the season tonight.  He is a hardened fan who had already gone to a game this week.  We were pleased that the Rangers won, but they made it look hard, which was not pleasing.  However, the standings only record wins and losses, not aesthetics.  Gary generously treated me to a pretzel, the big, soft street kind closer to a bagel, costing $5 at Madison Square Garden.  
 
It made me think of Raymond the Bagel Man, who stood at the corner of Convent Avenue and West 135th Street, at the heart of the CCNY campus for many years before, during and after my presence. 
He charged a nickel for the soft pretzel that we all called a bagel.  Supposedly, at night, he went up to Yonkers Raceway, where he sold them for a quarter.
 
Thursday, November 30, 2023
It's beyond my research skills to tell you how much a soft pretzel costs in Zurich and Singapore, the most expensive cities in the world, or even Geneva, tied with New York in this regard. 

Will someone report back?
 
Friday, December 1, 2023
The New York Times broke the story today that will haunt us for a long time.  "Israel Knew Hamas’s Attack Plan More Than a Year Ago."  https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/30/world/middleeast/israel-hamas-attack-intelligence.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

How could it have happened?, we ask ourselves.  We (I think that many American Jews identify with Israel under these circumstances) let it happen. 
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