Category: Writing

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E Trades

Emotional trade-offs. Ian McEwan’s The Children Act is packed full of them. An English family law judge struggles with making the best of lousy situations. She is a detached woman, necessary for her work yet it spills over into her marriage. A study of rigid religious and social constructs so easily shattered. One simple word or gesture can change everything. The novel is ultimately unsettling.

Ebola trades. Science vs. psychology. Quarantines overly constrain. Self-monitoring causes strange side effects like having a hankering to get on a cruise ship, airplane, or subway train. The major issue is resources. Hospital staff, law enforcement to track down potential contacts, proper facilities. Exponentially expensive. In the meantime, stay away from those e-bowling shoes.

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Side Trek Thoughts

IMG_0776The Judge movie produced by and starring Robert Downey is finally hitting the screens. Filmed in SideTrek Falls locations around Western Massachusetts. Just follow the road over that red bridge. Speaking of which, Jennifer Garner’s production company has sold a sitcom to Fox about a young couple wanting to move to New York City but get pregnant and are stuck in Agawam. Down 91.

Michelle O finally got through to Barack. Man up! Fire that blankedy blank woman. Then there’s Zeke Emanuel who advises President on medical issues. Don’t worry. Ebola won’t come to our shores. It’s not good to listen to a physician who has announced that people should only live to 75 anyway.

I don’t dwell. Much. That often. Bon weekend.

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Of Mice and Women

Helen Gurley Brown dubbed wallflower women “mouseburgers”.  Lena Dunham’s new book gives advice to such women that takes Brown’s mantra to heart. Stay single as long as you can and have all the sex you want. Call the shots and don’t be a doormat. Trailblazers both. In a good way?

Speaking of mouseburgers. Secret Service Chief Julia Pierson’s performance in front of the House Panel to address glaring lapses in security was abysmal. Competence trumps gender. She doesn’t seem qualified to run a Quik Stop.

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Side Trek Joe

Happy Birthday to SideTrek’s loyal and prolific fan. Joey3Sticks. JoeyPants.

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This year’s Quotable Joe Quotes:

Pat’s are done. Season is over. (after first game)
Shortest summer ever! Please god no snow this winter.
Would kill to spend a day with Anthony Bourdain… in Paris or San Francisco.
I just got off the throne!
They cut all the trees. Call the fence company at the end of your street now!
It’s only a matter of time before a tragic event happens during an NFL game.
Oh my holy lord. Did you see auntie Lillian and May?
That leaf storm is staged!! I see a mysterious hand in the bottom right corner.
Just call them anchovies and get over yourself!!

 

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Crying Wolfowitz

Again. Texas Gov Rick Perry is joining the old NeoCons’ chorus warning another terrorist attack on our shores. Darth and Liz Cheney, Donny Rummy, Paulie Wolfowitz on every channel predicting (hoping for?) another 9/11. Those hijackers came from Afghanistan. Not Iraq. NeoCons broke it anyway under false pretenses. Now we are left with ISIS savages. Could they hit us here? Of course. Recruit from UK beheaded our poor journalist. But, it is beyond unseemly to hear these aging apologists lining up to say they told us so if it does happen.

Flashback. Rory hitting golf balls with Jimmy Fallon. Tiger acting as caddy. He didn’t look much different than the toddler on the Mike Douglas show years ago. No. Not Michael Douglas-Zeta Jones. Merv Griffin-era afternoon talk days. Yeah. I’m old. Bon weekend.

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Foto Finish

Rory took the reins and galloped to the finish line in the dark at Valhalla to win the PGA. If he could have played through, he would have. Then, after he trampled the field, he thanked them for their sportsmanship. Cunning, tough, smart. Have to admire Mickelson’s class. He could have complained about being rushed. He was. But, note to golfers. Play faster! Works for Rory.

During rain delays at the PGA, read a disturbing psychological novel. Hell hath no fury like a daughter scorned. Hell too cool for Harriet Lane’s horrible Nina in Her.  Personification of veiled hatred and evil. If only Joan Crawford were around to play the lead. She is the only one who could. Chilling read.

Great Ray Donovan tonight. Sweet tableau of familial bliss. Ha!

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Upper West Side Trek

photo 3-3Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Full circle. Things happen. Times change. Downtown reigns. Back again.  photo 2-4

The Mermaid Inn. Jackson Hole. Elizabeth’s Table. Momoya. All wonderful in their own ways. Vibrant, fresh, friendly.

Hotels are a test. NYLO pet-friendly. Allergy hell. After a night of 3 pills and a sock over my face, had to check out, but full refund. Last minute respite at old fave Excelsior Hotel . One suite left. No pets, no sprays. Good night’s sleep. Yay.

And you never know who you’ll run into at Tarallucci. A cool cat who should get a modeling gig. Jobs are good. IMG_0289

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Royal Roar

A tiger cub roared at Royal Liverpool. Rory ruled wire-to-wire. Sergio accepted well-earned accolades. Rickie lost the orange pants. Right direction. Solid round. Young guys stepping up and taking the shots. No hinking or dinking. Love it. Old Tiger finished British Open at the bottom of Hoylake.

I am probably the only one watching Ray Donovan last night to have recognized Ann-Margaret. Elvis the King’s former squeeze. Will she hook up with Mick? Gritty great episode.

Happy birthday shouts out tomorrow to a Prince and a Queen.

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Flânerie

As an aspiring flâneuse, strolling undetected along the backroads, random thoughts for the weekend. Apologies to Baudelaire.

World Cup. Argentina’s twelfth player. Not fair to have Il Papa silently praying behind the scenes. Did he sway the Dutch coach to leave the tall goalie on the bench? Pazzo. Due dueling Papas Benedict v. Francis for the Final. Ave Maria. Germany does have the best team. We’ll see.

Yay for Jon Voight Emmy nom. Ray Donovan returns Sunday.

Border crisis. 3-year olds bunched into buses by Central American scam-lords. Christian Right says round them up and send them back. Are they less God’s children because they weren’t lucky enough to be born here? It’s not an immigration issue. It’s a question of humanity. Who are we? Beck  most “Christ-like”? Mediaite. Strange bedfellows. Bon weekend, Charles.

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This Old Neighbor

Will never watch This Old House the same way again. Always marveled at the skill of the craftsmen. Richard soldering pipes. Roger caressing root balls. Norm inserting rabbets into dadoes. Tommy tooling mortises and tenons. Drill. Screw. Fasten-ating to watch. What I never appreciated before was those poor suffering neighbors next door. What they went through. Now I do.

photo-47Trucks blocking the driveway. Earth-moving machines bigger than the house. Louder than B-52’s. Bulldozer guy who seems to enjoy banging boulders with his shovel just to get his rocks off. So to speak. For some reason shirtless young carpenters’ hammering doesn’t annoy me quite as much. Photo voltaic panels save energy. Great. As long as you don’t like trees. Oh, and the gigantic garbage bin couldn’t have been dumped anywhere but our front doorstep?! Bong. Clang. And it’s not a muted drab brown. No. It’s screaming RED. Like Brasil feels about Germany today. At least the porta-potty is on the other neighbor’s lawn. photo-43

The carbon footprint of a “green” home?