Not surprisingly, street parking was near impossible, forcing me to break one of my commandments and pull into a garage.
Maiella occupies most of the ground floor of a new tower. It is large, the shape of a skewed square, wrapped in glass on two sides, interior walls of dark red brick and a high ceiling covered with thick slabs of wood. It was busy and noisy. Prices were almost reasonable.
An excellent heirloom tomato salad was attractively arranged ($17). Bernie and I shared calamari fritti ($18), a little too chewy, as was Bernie’s chicken parmigiana ($29), which I inherited a piece of. I had cacio e pepe, spaghetti and black pepper mixed in a scooped out wheel of pecorino cheese ($29), fattening and delicious.
The women had the salad, eggplant carrozza ($18), eggplant slices stacked with mozzarella, and roasted salmon ($32). No one had room for dessert. We also passed on strolling on the waterfront, just feet away, otherwise a pleasant way to end the evening.
Currently, only seven major urban areas have luxury homes with a median price under $1 million, six are in the Rust Belt. Less than 10 years ago, 35 areas were presumably more affordable. Personal income has not moved up that sharply.
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Tom Lehrer is gone. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/27/arts/music/tom-lehrer-dead.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
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The New York Times has three full pages today on "Inside the Rise of the Multiracial Right.” https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/07/24/opinion/minority-voters-trump-right.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
It looks at Black, Asian and Hispanic Americans who have become Republican/Trump supporters. It boils down to this: The Democrats failed to keep their promises to improve their lives. Instead, they chose Republicans who made no such promises.
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There was a terrible scene in midtown Manhattan this afternoon when a gunman from Nevada parked his car in front of 345 Park Avenue, walked into the building openly carrying a rifle, killed four people, including a policeman, before shooting himself in an office on the 33rd floor.
I worked in 345 Park Avenue from August 1980 through December 1982, moving back to the Holy Land to take the job with a major financial services firm. As I write this, nothing is known about the killer’s motive. I don’t want to be irreverent, but only an out-of-towner would park his car on Park Avenue on a weekday.
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What’s wrong with this picture? “The New York City police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, has said the gunman [who killed four people at 345 Park Avenue] had a documented mental health history and legally purchased a revolver in June using a Nevada concealed carry permit.” https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/07/29/nyregion/nyc-shooting-manhattan?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
The joint is narrow and deep. You pass a long bar when entering, backed by mirrored shelves holding at least 100 bottles of spirits.
I ordered from the three-course $30 Restaurant Week lunch menu, offering a good discount from à la carte prices. I started with D’Olived Eggs (sic), four hard boiled egg halves, made with extra virgin olive oil, chives and too much Maldon salt, flaky sea salt produced in the village of Maldon, England. I then had Pickle’s signature dish, Classic French Dip, “Roasted Sirloin of Beef, House Baked French Bread, Horseradish Aioli, Big Dill Pickles, Maldon Sea Salt, Mustard.” Actually, I didn’t eat the pickles, else the sandwich was excellent.
The waiter kindly wrapped the Oreo Icebox Pie for me to take home, which was my main course for dinner. In all, there was enough food to provide a satisfying lunch for two normal human beings.
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Thanks to Governor Ron DeSantis, today is “Hulk Hogan Day in Florida.” https://www.flgov.com/eog/news/press/2025/flags-half-staff-honor-hulk-hogan
In case those of you in the other 49 states feel left out, sleep with your friend’s wife and sue for invasion of privacy when the sex tape is released. Gawker Media, LLC v. Bollea, 170 So.3d 125 (2015). In these progressive times, that celebration is available to both men and women.
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The New York City Department of Education announced the composition of the next entering class of the city’s competitive high schools. At Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan, the most selective of the specialized schools, eight of the 781 offers this spring went to Black students while 27 went to Hispanic pupils. Asian students were offered 509 spots, and white students were offered 142. 95 students had either multiracial or unknown backgrounds.
