Saturday, October 19, 2024
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We went to an afternoon showing of the documentary film “Oliver Sacks: His Own Life.” Beyond his name, I knew almost nothing about this brilliant, unconventional character. (Doesn’t being brilliant automatically make one unconventional?)
Ric Burns, the filmmaker, spoke afterwards and explained that he only met Sacks months before his death. While he filmed Sacks then, he also drew on a large store of archival material and an array of contemporary talking heads. It is well worth seeking out, because the film captures a person dedicated to understanding others while grappling over decades with understanding himself.
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At night, we went to the Manhattan Theatre Club to see “Vladimir,” a new play. Before entering, I had no idea whether it was about Lenin, Putin, Guerrero (Hall of Fame right fielder, 1996-2011) or his son Junior (first baseman Toronto Blue Jays). As it happens, it is named for the most unpleasant one, Vladimir Putin. Although he never appears, his evil spirit lurks over a journalist pursuing a massive economic fraud and covering the Second Chechen War. The play is based on real events and serves as a warning to us of the dangers of autocratic oppression.
Sunday, October 20, 2024
“Top U.S. Metros with Highest Shares of Remote Workers in 2023;” the title of this report is clear.
Looking at 109 metropolitan areas, using census data, it found that Austin, Texas, Raleigh, North Carolina and Denver, Colorado had the highest percentage of remote workers. The Holy Land does not appear in the top 10. Working from home was never an option for me and I doubt that I would have taken it if it were. Whether writing computer code or drafting legal opinions, I wanted the scrutiny of colleagues, best offered face-to-face.
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I had lunch with Jeffrey Heller for two reasons. He is good company and, because he spent 13 years bicycling 16,000 miles through all of the
lower 48 states promoting the rights of refugees, talking to gas station attendants, diner employees, motel desk clerks, state troopers, truck drivers and folks curious about the guy on the recumbent bicycle, he heard from people that I never have. In brief, his view is that there are mostly good people out there, though many misinformed. Prescription: Not so clear.
We ate at Hummus Place, 305 Amsterdam Avenue, down four steps from street level. It has a dozen tables; hard surfaces make it sound like a bigger crowd. There are some more tables outside on the busy sidewalk.
I had a brunch special, spinach shakshuka, orange juice, silky smooth hummus, pita and coffee for $21. That was a good deal for very good food.
Monday, October 21, 2024
What was the most popular baby boy’s and girl’s names the year you were born?
Sorry, we don’t know what they are calling themselves today.
Tuesday, October 22, 2024
We added a neuro-opthalmologist to the payroll today. Actually, it’s not my personal payroll, but Medicare’s, the program that, in conjunction with Social Security, has made us alte kockers healthier and wealthier than any preceding generation.
Have a problem with that? Vote Republican.
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Dr. Fouladvand examined me for glaucoma, the term for a group of eye disorders that damage your optic nerve, not a good thing.
But, first I ate. Montagu’s Gusto, 645 Second Avenue, is a newish sandwich shop, opposite the exit to the Queens Midtown Tunnel. It’s a busy place, about 80% of the floor space devoted to food preparation, leaving room only for four small two-tops and a ledge with six stools.
It offers sandwiches and salads. I had the Droopy, roast beef on sourdough with carmelized onions, arugula, pickled cucumber and horseradish ($13.95). I wanted to love this sandwich, but I could only like it. It seemed tired, needing aioli to pep it up.
Wednesday, October 23,2024
With the Mets failing to advance to the World Series, Holy Landers have lost a serious point of contention, Mets vs. Yankees. Just in time, another matter has arise that will divide households — the best bagels in New York.
Several of the 17 recommended are familiar to me, including Absolute Bagels, 2788 Broadway, certainly near the top. However, I find the absence of Zucker’s, now at half a dozen locations, unforgivable. Don’t skip it. The bagels are excellent and the whitefish salad is the reigning champ.
. . .
The Boyz Club assembled for lunch at Wu’s Wonton King, 156 East Broadway. The building once housed the Garden Cafeteria, the fabled gathering place for the writers on the Yiddish newspapers located down the block. When I lived in Greenwich Village eons ago, I used to ride my bicycle there on Sunday mornings for lox and eggs and onions, with a side of mashed potatoes or noodles and cheese. My mother’s birthplace, 13 Essex Street, is a half a block away, another connection to the site.
The place was busy. Gentleman Jerry noted that all the other patrons appeared Asian; not a tourist in the crowd. The five of us ate soup buns ($8.99 six pieces); scallion pancake ($5.99); braised beef lo mein ($11.99); seafood chow fun ($19.99); “Famous Garlic Aromatic Crispy Chicken” ($19.99). The scallion pancake lacked crispness, else all was consumed with pleasure.
Who called Trump a “sleazeball,” a “narcissist” and said that the former president is “stupid as well as being ill-tempered,” adding that Trump is “not very smart, irascible, nasty, just about every quality you would not want somebody to have”?
A) Bernie Sanders
B) Mitch McConnell
C) Melania Trump
. . .
For my first Ranger hockey game of the season, I had the company of Sam Fuchs, All-American Boy. Sam played football for Stuyvesant High School and now volunteers as a coach. He told me of a program that allows high school kids to play a sport at another school in their district, if their school does not offer the opportunity, the PSAL All-Access Program. https://thhsclassic.com/18308/sport/new-psal-policy-opens-the-door-for-student-athletes-to-compete-in-more-sports/
It's a modest attempt to balance equities in the New York City public school system. In the increasingly challenging college application process, participation in a sport has to be a plus.
Before the game, we enjoyed the largesse of Chase Bank, which has tied itself firmly to Madison Square Garden, offering free food and drink to a limited number of ticket holders. The menu was empanadas, tuna tacos and flautas, an excellent start to the evening and it should have been the end of the evening, sparing us the first outright loss of the season.
I live a block from Absolute bagels and yes they are wonderful. The only problem is that there is always a line. oh well........
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