Cross Town Thoughts
Romanian sojourn with little Bucha-rest. Odyssey Trek. Winding ancient Roman roads to gorgeous fortress towns, Black Sea. Gypsy journey until tempest Irene intervened. Wreaked global havoc. Travelers’ roulette. Won some, lost some. Missed connections, extended layovers. All’s well that ends well. Time to stay put. Gypsies, tramps, vamps, thieves (airlines). Fried. Finally a little sleep.
No more Dick Cheney, take him off my screen! Here’s to Marge Simpson.
Ben’s Hurricane Irene layover yielded an unexpected glorious day on Lake Michigan. Art Institute’s extraordinary collection worth it.
My recollection there is hosting a closing dinner in front of the Chagall windows during a 1990’s blizzard.
VMA show, Gaga’s non-Guido brilliant. Tony and Russell branded Amy Winehouse worthy of Billie Holiday status. Jazz, blues genius rarely heard. Songstress, poet. Bennett’s duet with her, ‘Body and Soul’ confirmed all of that. Rare talent. Bruno Mars’ ‘Valerie’ tribute spot on. Here’s to Joe.
Tom Friedman says that President Obama is like Tiger Woods. Not for the obvious reason, nor in that other way either. Tom’s contention is that Tiger has forgotten his natural talent, instinctive skill, as has PrezO. Each excelled and eclipsed all peers at young ages. Both later got distracted by bad advice, uber-technical tactics. Stuck in the hazards, unable to feel the shots anymore. Just hit the ball. Be the man. Have a vision and execute it. Stop thinking so much and just do it. Yes, that old Nike contract cliche was right. So is Friedman.
Happy double nickels to Sis Cyn. She takes the shot. And who are those wild and crazy guys driving a 1965 Cadillac El Dorado convertible around Bucharest?
Shakin’ all over the East Coast. Romanian travelers settled into Sibiu without a Cluj. Far-reaching quake centered in Virginia caused panic in Poughkeepsie. San Franciscan survivors of the ‘big one’ unimpressed.
Not that long ago, Trump was offering to put Gadhafi’s tent on his golf course in Westchester. Who are the bad guys? The so-called “Arab Spring” will not bring democracies. Chaotic tribal hodgepodges, theocracies, freshly minted despots will emerge. Follow the money.
Gypsies, tramps and… hopefully not thieves. Ben landed in Bucharest, Romania last night and is already off to Sinaia and Bresov. He and NYU roomie native will make a Vampire Trek to Vlad’s Bran Castle nearby. After a long love affair with Terminal 5 at Heathrow, Ben’s finally launched on his pre-career journey.
Meanwhile, prepster Anne & fam enjoying August on Shimmo. GemQueen continues beach time in RI. After a rainy drive from NYC, we’ll be happily raiding late summer farm stands. Hope Joey3 has time to make his ‘coogan’ recipe in PR.
Michele Bachmann warns of impending danger from the Soviet Union. She must have gotten warped in her time machine again.
On several dusky evenings recently we’d spotted a gray fox darting back and forth across the yard and under the front porch where a skunk family is in residence. Today’s Gazette reports that this same Foxy Loxy, apparently rabid, was killed by a croquet mallet in Williamsburg.
Foxy Loxy met his violent fate after wreaking havoc in the kitchen at A-1 Pizza. The staff chased him down the stairs where Foxy bashed through the screen door. Then Foxy decided to bite a poor unsuspecting customer in the parking lot. Poor teen was visiting his grandparents from Pennsylvania. Foxy’s last hurrah up the road was harassing little tots in their backyard pool. Dad. Croquet Mallet. Yuk.
‘Franco’ is back. September. Yup. James Franco on GH the soap. Katie Couric better not get in the way of my favorite menacing serial killer. Found a 2009 Richard Russo novel, That Old Cape Magic. It’s not Empire Falls nor Bridge of Sighs, but I liked it. Thought provoking. Marriage in the sandwich years. BoSox’ Ellsbury on fire, NYY A-Rod in the hot seat. BaggerWoods’ return to the links. Have to watch Quijote even without his Panza. Addictions are hard to break.
Jon Huntsman’s campaign story is soap opera fodder. But, New York Magazine’s article on the Romney v. Huntsman saga is epic. You heard it here first! Hope Congressional caped crusaders are having a great vacation leaving USA in the lurch. PrezO turns 50 today, already grey. Not easy.
CandyPants asks: What’s with the doily doo dads on Mika’s dresses? Not pretty.
Sports’ tragedy of the ages. Talented toddler phenom, Tiger Woods. He grew up and had it all. Majors Champ with potential to smash every record. Happy family. Fame, fortune. He earned it with hard work and great values. Or so it seemed.
‘Roids and whiskey and wild wild women destroyed the body, the career, the dream. More importantly, the life. Now, he’s bagged his loyal Stevie. When Quijote and Sancho were slaying windmills, there was a glow on the TV screen. Fade to dull grey, bye bye PGA.
What would I do without Jack Cafferty? He makes dinner prep fun. As I’m chopping and stirring, he gets me laughing and thinking. His jaundiced slant on events of the day are typically aligned with mine. It seems reciprocal. He reads my pithy points on the air often. There’s a whole page on my blog to prove it. Soon CNN’s Situation Room will be moving from 5-7 to 4-6pm. I hope Jack’s Cafferty File will still be there. I’d follow him anywhere.
“What’s your greatest fear if the U.S. fails to raise the debt ceiling? He asked last night and read what I said: “As a former international banker, I’m not scared at all. It’s a global economy. We all need each other. Rating agencies have become meaningless. Life will go on. What scares me is how dug in the ‘tea party’ is in wanting to eliminate government. But, don’t take away their Medicare.”
Mormon wars? Huntsman v. Romney? Jon Huntsman, Sr. and I go back to 1986 in the banking bizness. Jon, Jr. dipped in and out of Huntsman Chemical, and was on hand when his Dad gave me a salute at the family’s Park City ski lodge in 1994. Not surprised that Jon Jr. would run for Prez, but shocked that he’d do it this year against another Mormon. That doesn’t happen in LDS-land. Huntsmans and Romneys have deep ties to each other and the Church. Huntsman’s campaign advisors come from the McCain camp. There’s gotta be more to this story… 
Carol in Northampton, Ma., made her 24th appearance on the Cafferty File, 6/22. “Could a Mormon Ever be Elected President of the U.S.?”
Side Trek . NYC 