Nice Dialogue

When I emerged from the subway at 28th and Broadway I was deeply engrossed in my friend's manuscript. With my nose buried deep in lose pages, I walked and read until I got to 5th and 28th when a garbage truck almost ran me over for not paying attention (my fault).

It rolled up next to the curb right in front of me until I was standing face to face with the stink back of the truck. A garbage man jumped on the back of the truck and the woman waiting with me to cross the street said to him,

"You have such a hard job that nobody appreciates but I want you to know that I appreciate it."

The heartfelt comment put a smile on his face and mine as well.

Nasty Dialogue

Here is something I overheard on the subway platform this morning.

I walked by a woman who was standing right at the top of the stairs, flipping through the paper, as I came up. As I walked past her, she started yelling at the man walking next to me.

standing at the top of the stairs
"You could say excuse me. You hit me!!"

walking away
"Well, you shouldn't be standing in everyone's way!!!"

still standing in everyone's way
"Asshole. You hit a woman!!!!!"

still walking away
"SHUT UP!!!"

still standing there
"Come back here!!!! I'll kick your ass!!!!"

almost at the end of the platform
"SHUT UP!!!"

I waited to see which car he got into and then I decided to wait for the next train.

A Before Dinner Snack

Straight from the pages of The Onion comes this serious look at a recent grant by The National Endowment of the Arts and Crafts.
=================================================
NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR
THE ARTS & CRAFTS CRITICIZED FOR
FUNDING GIANT MACRAME PENIS

something to nibble on . . . .

This young couple got arrested after photographing their two year old smoking pot and then dropping off the photos to be developed at a local convenience store.

Earth Shattering News

It seems, young Prince William, heir to the throne of England, debuted his flesh as he made his water polo debut for the Scottish national universities squad in the annual Celtic Nations tournament against Wales and Ireland in Cardiff, Wales.

Things That Make You Go Yuck

It seems that some of our service men are coming down with an skinfection known as the Baghdad Boil. Sand flies are transferring these horrible parasites that live in their guts when they bite our soldiers about their bodies.

Read about it hear. Warning. The article comes complete with a gross out photo that you can link to for more details.

Yaw Fiyad!!

So....did you hear about this guy Rantisi? He is the Hamas leader who started screaming "Death to Israel, Death to Israel" and publicizing his plans to destroy Israel. Israel responded by killing him by fire bomb.

He is the second Hamas leader to be killed in thirty days. The Palestinians are outraged (although I refuse to believe that every single Palestinian gets behind Hamas) that Israel has done this and they elected a new leader but this time in secret. You would think after the assassination of the first guy, Rantisi's advisors would have encouraged him to keep a low profile and not piss off Israel. It took two killings for Hamas to realize that Israel is trying to wipe them out.

Between the suicide bombings (decreasing their own flock) and publicly condemning Israel, daring Israel to come to Gaza Strip and murder them, Hamas doesn't seem like the most clever of terrorist organizations.

The Apprentice

The Apprentice is over. Bill was chosen to be the apprentice.

The job he won is to oversea the building of a sky scraper that will blot out the sun from the Chicago skyline.

I think Kwame is the real winner. He has all the fame, will get a lot of job offers and he DOESN'T have to work for that megalomaniac Trump.

Bill's salary will be $275,000 or something like that. It's just not enough money to work for Trump. I'm not sure what would be harder to take. Having to listen to how fabulous it is to be him 24 hours a day or having to listen to him pontificate about what it means to be a good business man.

Harder than either of the above would be looking at his flacid face and horrible hair. The way he wears his hair is the ultimate sign of his arrogance. It looks awful, it makes him hard to look at or take seriously, you know he can afford to get it styled, yet he doesn't and if that doesn't scream of arrogance, I don't know what does.

And oh yeah, on a construction site, I don't really think it's necessary to wear suits. As a matter of fact, it's just unnecessary to wear suits all the time in general.

I dislike business, working for business, business to business. I have no idea at all why I enjoyed that show so much, but enjoy it I did.

The President's Speech

So, last night, I watched the President's press conference and you know what. He really is just such a seemingly earnest and likeable fellow (my grandmother always used the word fellow for a man who isn't Jewish).

Even though he fumbled through a lot of his spontaneous answers, I got the feeling that he really believes in the actions we're taking in Iraq. While I continue to have mixed feelings about all that business (loss of life bad; preventing future acts of war against the US good) I believed he really thinks what we're doing there is just. And I was happy to see that he is willing to back up his belief. He respects the troops and repeated several times that he will give them all the support that they need. I truly hope that carries over to the times when the Iraqtion is over and the troops are home and recovering from their military adventures.

While I think it is wonderful that he is making sure the troops are being well supported while overseas, it is important to remember that for many people who serve the action continues even when it's over.

I know I've said this before on this website and I don't mind saying it again. Even if you don't believe in war or occupation of another country, it is important that we support the people who fight the good fight. Not only when they are in places that are not their home, but once they've come home and they need jobs, medical attention, homes, and/or psychological counselling.

If people are going to spend their time protesting some aspect of war, sometimes I think it would be better if they were protesting to make sure that veterans are receiving the services they need after they return home.

And that's all I have to say about that.

Manic Monday

Good morning.

I have a confession to make. I'm not thrilled that Monday is here, but it's probably not why you think. It's not because Monday is the first day of the work week. It is because at midnight Sunday was finished and so was the most lovely Sunday I've ever spent with someone.

I had the most wonderful time with Jon this weekend. We went on a historical walking tour of the lower Eastside that explored the neighborhoods a lot of Jewish immigrants moved to and lived in at the turn of the century. It was wonderful. Very educational.

Due to the proximity of this neighborhood to Chinatown, it didn't take much convincing on Jon's part to get me to have lunch at Doyer's Vietnam, just about the best and cheapest place to get Vietnamese food in the city. I ordered the absolutely wonderful Lemon Grass Chicken, while Jon ordered the Setai Shrimp (spelling?). The generous portions were served family style and we dined ferociously as we were ravenous having skipped breakfast. Did I mention the to-die-for wontons we ate as appetizers and the hot banana served on a banana leaf with hot tapioca pudding? From beginning to end the meal was memorable.

After that, meandering up Broadway, checking out the shops in Soho and then a restful ride back to my apartment where we competed at Scrabble.

I don't know what it was about yesterday, but for some reason it was just better than any other day I've had in quite some time.

A Knock at the Door

"Yes. Who is it?"
"It's the police ma'am. Please open up."
"The police. Oh yes. Right away. What is it officer."

"Well, Mrs. Bunny, I'm afraid we may have some bad news."
The police officer pulls out this photo and shows it to Mrs. Bunny.
Upon seeing it, Mrs. Bunny starts crying hard and fast, tears streaming down her face.

"Do you recognize this man?"

Mrs. Bunny passes out and the officers move her to a couch and bring her some water.

(thanks to A at A Violently Executed Blog for providing the above link)

Friday Five

NB: The Friday Five was only late with their posting and not as I suggested, taking a hiatus due to good Friday. Either way, my questions still stand.

1) At what age did you start realizing how weird the concept of the Easter Bunny really is?

2) Were you religious as a child, meaning as a child, during your religious training (if you received this kind of training) did you attend weekly religious services? and if so at what age did you stop going?

3) Have you gone through the stage or are you going through the stage in one's life, where you are questioning the motifs and themes you learned during your religious training and what is that you are or were questioning?

4) Are you now in the stage of your life where you have come back to your religion either for personal reasons or for the sake of your children for whom you desire a similar religious upbringing?

5) Are you in a committed relationship with someone of the same faith as you or someone of a different faith and how is that going?

Rice is Nice

Here is a transcript of Dr. Rice's testimony before the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks.

Mid-day Lull

It's about 2:40 and the day is starting to drag. I look to my friends' blogs for a quick pick me up while have this quiet moment to myself.

I find some interesting links about milk bags on one friend's site.

I find an article about desperate women on another friend's site.

Plastic milk bags - seems silly to put milk in plastic bags when both cardboard and glass bottles are recyclable.

Writing about desperate women - seems redundant. I was not surprised to read that women can have a hard time meeting men.

Of course, I am talking about the links my friend's linked to and not my friends themselves.

I'm just restless, is all.

The Swan

I watched a very bizarre show last night called The Swan on Fox.

Do you guys remember that episode of the Twilight Zone where a woman receives plastic surgery only to find out in the end that her surgery didn't work, that she was still a gorgeous blond while everyone around her was pig faced?

It was kind of like that, except the opposite.

I don't know if the show is offensive or fantastic. I had such mixed feelings after watching it.

On the one hand, the show is saying that to be average is not good enough. But on the other hand, they are giving people opportunities to completely change their lives for the better by giving them plastic surgery and encouraging them to workout.

I cried at the reveals at the end of the show where two women who had undergone plastic surgery and three months of rigorous working out, dieting and psychological counselling (a nice benefit, I thought) saw themselves in the mirror for the first time in as much time.

They looked good (of course the makeup, hair treatment and stylish dresses didn't hurt) and were practically unrecognizable from their before shots. The tears of joy they cried sent me into a fit of spilling empathetic tears through smiles. That was pretty touching.

What I don't understand is how they are going to reconcile the difference between how they looked before and how they look now. More than rebuilding their self confidence in therapy, I think the focus should be on justifying not seeing your old face in the mirror anymore.

Fair to Middlin'

It's somewhere in the middle of the week and I'm working under the deep fog of sleepiness. My mind is restless, sharp and alert. My eyes are half closed and burning from tiredness. My body seems to be cooperating, content for now to follow my brain on the rollercoaster ride that is to be my day.

I hosted Tuesday Night Trivia last night which seemed to go well in spite of my lack of sleep. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. I've been having fun and doing great things. It's just that as I get older I find it harder and harder to operate without the appropriate amount of sleep. What that amount is, as of yet, I am not sure.

Anyway, trivia went well. The winning team was Passover - The Feast of Inconvenience. It was a small crowd which was perfect for me as I find that easier to speak to than a large one and the teams were spirited but for the most part polite. Funniest team name - I can't remember.

I went out with a friend afterward to get something to eat. We stayed out a little later than I should have but it was fun none the less.

This morning, I'm doing some fun work, involving letter writing and RFP's and what not. So, I'm in a good place and a good frame of mind to do it, inspite of the FOG OF SLEEPINESS.

The Seder

Last night, I went to a seder at Jon's Aunt's house. It is the first time I've been to a seder outside of my own family and it was really interesting.

For me, the most interesting part of family gatherings is observing how they interact and comparing those interactions with those of my own family. It's nice to see similarities in how other big families behave with each other.

Probably the most enjoyable part for me was the presence of young children, the children of Jon's delightful cousins. There was a rambunctious eight year old boy, a bright and sensitive six year old and the most beautiful four year old girl I've ever seen.

I was just telling Jon that that little girl would be perfect for that poster encouraging couples to propagate and advance the species. Not only did she delight us with special songs she learned for the seder, but she enraptured us with stories from her life and by singing most of the sound track to the movie Annie (with some help from her very sweet Aunt).

Jon's family made me feel very welcome. There was no fuss, no special attention paid to me (which was perfect). I just seemed to blend in as if they'd known me for a long time. The seder was deep in New Jersey. Also enjoyable was the drive down. Jon and I had so much fun on the road, we were almost sorry when we reached our destination. The hardest part was perhaps waking up this morning because we arrived back in New York City so late. Getting up this morning was tough. I'm operating on four hours of sleep and about 5 cups of coffee.

Lazy Sunday in the quay

I just lost another Scrabble to Jon. Even though I made Quay on a trouble word with the Q on a double letter bringing be a total of 78 points for one turn, I still lost by 13 points. Pretty close game.......
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West Side Story is playing on the DVD. I'm always amazed the actor that plays Tony was cast as Tony. He is so bright and cheery and optimistic, he's completely unbelievable as a gang leader or ex-gang leader and that scene in the sewing shop where Tony and Maria pretend to marry each other. Come on. . . are we to believe that any of the other Jets behave that way with their girlfriends? I don't think so.

I am still of the belief that Russ Tamblyn should have been cast as Tony. He had the acting range, and that wonderful combination of vulnerability, toughness and athleticism. Actually, I think the movie would have been much stronger without Richard Beymer at all. Any of the other actors who played one of the Jets could have been moved up into the Riff role.
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At some point today, we're heading to Queens. On the way, we may stop at Macy's, maybe walk around the city a little bit (although) the weather is starting to turn sour. Tonight we're going to see my friend Triple EEE play at a bar somewhere on Sullivan Street. I'll be right back....I'm going to check the location.....here is the posting . . . .hopefully you can make it.
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SPRING FORWARD !!
with Eric Everett acoustic tunes to make you stomp, giggle, drink and reflect on the Zen of pine trees and such,

BUT DON'T FROGET (ribbit ribbit) to set your clocks forward so you can get there on time for EE to read your PALM 'cuz it's Palm Sunday too!

Sunday, April 4 - EE's "Return to the Village" show! NYC Baby!
at:
ZANZABAR - 237 Sullivan St, just S. of 3rd St. (212) 673-0050
7 till 10pm - no cover

For more on the place & their menu check out www.Zanzabarny.com!

The Apprentice

This evening, I watched another rousing episode of the Apprentice.

My favorite guy got voted off - the guy with only a high school education, that learned the Art of the Deal by reading Donald Trump's book and built his own successful real estate lending business.

I felt so sad for him. He, more than anybody, really, really wanted to work for Trump because Trump was is his idol. I was really, really hoping he would take it, but Mr. Trump decided that he was a little bit too reckless to run one of his companies. One of his close advisors suggested that Troy could be liablity as the CEO of one of his corporations.

Good bye Troy. I'll miss your optimism and your good sportsmanship.

You're a nice guy and I would like to work for you.

The Soup

Jon just got here and he brought with him one yummy calzone. He offered me some but I said no thank you until he started eating it.

Before he got here, I made some yummy chicken soup which he is now eating. So, I took maybe a third bite from the half he put aside while he eats my soup.

He said, "Hey! You said you didn't want any."

I said, "You're eating my soup. I put my blood, sweat and tears into that soup. (BEAT) No. Not literally."

He then laughed and suggested that I put this anectode on my blog which I have now done.

PAUSE
PAUSE
PAUSE
PAUSE

Jon, just offered me a bite of his calzone to make up for a few minutes ago.

I know. Perhaps, just a little too much of a slice of life for your taste.

The New Erectile Dysfuction Drug

I just saw a commercial for Cialus, a new erectile dysfunction drug.

The drug works for 36 hours and allows men to have spontaneous sex (I guess).

After the usual list of side effects the announcer warned that erections lasting four hours or more, although rare, require hospitalization.

Would that warning scare you away or make you think, WOW!! I COULD HAVE AN ERECTION THAT LASTS FOUR HOURS!!!!?

I would say that it is a very effective commercial.