songbird's crazy world

The 1970's.  My teen years.  My musical tastes were developing.  I liked a lot of different types of music, anything I heard on WABC, NYC's top 40 station, was good...pop, rock, country, movie ballads, all good. For awhile I was really into the singer-songwriter style.  Harry Chapin.  Don McLean.  Jim Croce.  John Denver.  And then along came Bohemian Rhapsody , and swung me right back towards rock... I mean, listen to that song.  It starts and ends with Freddie Mercury's incredible, powerful, wonderful voice.  Add beautiful vocal harmonies, mysterious and intriguing lyrics ... it's a ballad, it's hard rock/heavy metal, it's opera. It's a capella singing at its finest, it's beautiful piano, it's a fast paced guitar solo.  And the technology -- the dubbing and overdubbing -- The song captures and holds you... It's an incredible song  by an amazing artist. I had to buy the 45.  I was so disappointed when I played it on my old phonog

Ever use Timehop?  It's an app that searches out your old posts on various social media.    It will tell you what you posted on Facebook or Twitter one year ago, two years ago, five years ago. Looking at my Timehop every day --I do an awful lot of whining about the winter weather.  Complaints about the cold, complaints about the snow.  I really need to stop that. And I am so glad we are finally warming up, that it's officially spring. But it seems to me, winters used to be milder here on Long Island.  Sure, we had cold weather, and spectacular winter storms, but they were few and far between.  I remember my 9th grade science teacher telling us that we were spared the worst effects of winter because we were surrounded by the warm ocean currents.  The first time I ever remember dealing with single-digit temperatures was when I was in college upstate. Anecdotal evidence, to be sure.  But when the vast majority of scientists tell us that we are experiencing a period of clim

So today is my parents' 56th anniversary.  They got engaged on a moonlit night in Miami, and got married a few months later, on Easter Sunday.  There are very few pictures of the wedding; the photographer my mother's cousin hired was not a union member, and the unionized catering hall staff said they'd walk out if the photographer was allowed to take pictures.  All the posed shots of my mother and father in their wedding attire were taken the following summer, and had to hide the fact that my mother couldn't button the wedding gown anymore -- I was born 11 months after they got married... So my mom had her valve replacement up at Columbia-Presbyterian (which explains my late night drive on the Cross Bronx).She was in the hospital for four days.  She's doing well in her recovery. Becca has decided to hold off on the apartment search for a few months.  She thinks she'll do better in the summer, the apartments she's seen lately are either too expensive or t

Having lost my iHealth activity monitor just as I was getting interested in using it, I ordered a new activity monitor. This time around, I chose a Fitbit Charge. I like that the device is permanently mounted in the wristband.  The band is slim and comfortable to wear. The clasp takes a little getting used to.  I hear that some people get skin irritations from the band, but thus far I haven't had a problem. The Charge measures steps, flights of stairs, distance, calories burned and sleep quality.  Data appears on your device at the touch of a button, or on the app.   The device syncs with the phone via Bluetooth, and even gives you caller ID.  I'm going to have to get used to a vibration on my wrist when I get an incoming call. I probably should have spent the extra $20 and gotten the Charge HR, which also measures heart rate.  At the moment I'm using a heart monitor app on my phone. I'm not using the food log on the Fitbit dashboard, so I'm not

So I found myself alone in my car at 11:00 one night, driving on the infamous Cross Bronx Expressway.  Conditions in the Bronx  have vastly improved since The Bonfire of the Vanities, but that highway is still a nightmare.  Potholes, construction, big trucks and lunatic drivers. And for some reason I was thinking about a friend of mine, a woman I haven't seen in awhile.  I was remembering a conversation we had.  My friend lives in New Jersey, and her  teenage daughter is involved in an activity with events all over the state.  My friend was telling me about the various activities, and how she had to drive her daughter.  Then she said "but the event next week is too far, I am going to have to ask my husband to drive her because I won't drive that far." The day she said it, I had just come back from a road trip, Becca and I had gone to Boston to check out a few colleges. Just the two of us.  I'd driven all the way to Boston and all the way back. I thought tha

Drew went to see Marvin again at the nursing home earlier this week.  Drew asked him what he needs, and the only thing Marvin asked for was a clock.  It seems there's no clock in Marvin's room, and he's finding it hard to keep track of time.  Marvin's brother Les told Drew to buy Marvin whatever he needs, Les will be glad to pay for it.  The poor man wants so little.. The facility staff is meeting today to discuss a plan for Marvin, that is, where he should go once he finishes with rehab.  Drew has had a few good conversations with the folks the facility in anticipation of this meeting.  The social worker told Drew to anticipate a call from Adult Protective Services.  APS has been involved with Marvin's situation for since at least 2013,  they took over his financial affairs because they felt Shelley wasn't handling Marvin's limited resources properly, and there was some concern that his living environment wasn't suitable. I'm sure they will liste

Hadn't been here in awhile, and decided to stop by for a bite to eat. Drew ordered the sliced London Broil sandwich, which was cooked to order, tender and tasty. I ordered a Philly cheesesteak, which was a bit of a disappointment. Thin slices of beef on a kaiser roll, with a minimal amount of bell pepper and cheese, it was served with au jus . Cheesesteak with au jus ? But the meat was a tad bit too dry, and needed something to remoisten it.  The au jus worked perfectly for that. I really like this diner, but I won't be ordering that sandwich again. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Awhile back, Drew and I picked up dinner from a then-newly-opened Smashburger on Long Island, and I was not pleased.  In hindsight I think we just had a bad night -- Drew mixed up the burgers,  I wound up with the one he ordered, and he wound up with mine, so I was a bit peeved.  Later, after he heard so many good things about the chain, Drew went back.  And really liked what he ordered.  I wasn't so sure I'd want to try it again. But last summer, I found myself working temporarily in the Financial District.  And I watched a new Smashburger being built about a block from my office.  And I decided I would try Smashburger again as soon as the place opened.  Then the job relocated to Long Island, with occasional trips to the city to meet with the client. So one day I came across a news item:  Smashburger was giving away burgers, but only at its newest location at 136 William Street.  the irony?  The giveaway was the day before my next meeting with the client.  Ugh. So of cou

My dream concert, one I really wish I could have gone to see. Funny, though, I didn't know about this concert when it happened, I stumbled upon some videos on YouTube...  10/15/1977 in Olympia Stadium, Detroit.  A crowd of 17,000.  And four incredible performers.  It was a charity concert, the proceeds benefited World Hunger Year. I mention "world hunger" and you probably already know at least one of the artists.  Harry Chapin. I've written before about 7/16/1981.  How I was in Eisenhower Park, waiting for the Harry Chapin concert to begin, when we learned he'd been killed in a car accident on the Long Island Expressway.  I'd seen several of Harry's concerts, I had several albums.  I was a fan for many years, even before he did a concert in my high school auditorium.   I knew he devoted much of his time to world hunger organizations, as well as a local organization, Long Island Cares.  Harry's activism was as much a part of him as his music.

Music makes pictures and often tell stories, all of it magic and all of it true. And all of the pictures and all of the stories, and all of the magic, the music is you. Music makes pictures and often tell stories, all of it magic and all of it true. And all of the pictures and all of the stories, and all of the magic, the music is you. An artist touches you.  His words, his music become a part of you.  Memories, hopes, dreams, all find expression in the music. And talk of poems and prayers and promises And things that we believe in How sweet it is to love someone How right it is to care How long it's been since yesterday What about tomorrow What about our dreams And all the memories we share How poignant the lyrics are. How they spoke to me back then, even in my teen years, before I had much life experience to reflect upon.  How much deeper the meaning now, decades later.  I can look back at life experience, good and bad. You fill up my senses Like a night in a fores

I'm getting very frustrated with the market for concert tickets. A concert in announced.  Tickets will go on sale on, let's say Monday, at 10:00 AM, at Ticketmaster or Live Nation or whatever.  You go on line at the appointed time, and despite being asked to type words or phrases to prove you're not a robot, you can't get tickets. But within minutes, there are hundreds of tickets available on the secondary market sites like Stub Hub. Sometimes you're lucky, if you go back to Ticketmaster or Live Nation an hour or two later, there are still tickets available, you just couldn't get them because of the heavy volume hitting the site at 10:00.  But all too often, your only choice is to pay inflated prices on the secondary market. I really had to admire what Cat Stevens/Yusuf did vis a vis tickets for his U.S. tour.  In order to gain entry to the concert, you not only need your tickets, you need the credit card which was used to purchase the tickets.  There we

I first explored this topic in a post last year. Two partial lunar eclipses last year. This year gets even more exciting, from an astronomical view.  Today is the vernal equinox.  It's also the full moon -- a super moon, as a matter of fact.  That means the moon is at its closest point to the earth.  And a solar eclipse, the biggest Europe has seen since 1999. Alas, not visible here in the United States. And in two weeks, a lunar eclipse.  It won't be visible here on the East Coast.  Sigh. A partial solar eclipse September 13 -- not visible here in the U.S. September 28, a lunar eclipse.  Visible here !!!!!!  Pray for good weather. A Christian minister believes these are signs of the Apocalypse.    Some Jews have jumped on the bandwagon:  Passover Blood Moon Preceded by Exceedingly Rare Solar Eclipse There will be a total eclipse of the sun for two minutes over the North Pole on Friday, March 20, the day of the Spring Equinox which coincides with the beginnin

We had the opportunity to revisit Monsoon Asian Kitchen and Lounge . Loved it last year . I still think the place is a bit pretentious, but the food is excellent. Once again the menu has been revamped. We started with the appetizer sampler platter. Bibb lettuce wraps with peanut dipping sauce were incredible. Spicy shrimp tempura had just the right bite without being overpowering. Yakitori steak was tender and flavorful. He liked the duck bun, I thought it was merely ok. Neither of us cared for the edamame dumplings, very bland. Main courses were shaking beef -- filet mignon in a sweet soy glaze -- and tempura shrimp. The tempura batter was light and not greasy, the shrimp came with an interesting assortment of vegetables. The shaking beef was tender and tasty.  Fried rice comes with a whole fired egg on top.  You're supposed to mix the egg into the rice, but we've never found a way to do that without spilling copious amounts of rice onto the table.  The d

The lure of free ice cream brought us to Dairy Queen on March 16, they were giving out cones in honor of DQ's 75th birthday. We stayed for a meal. This time around I ordered a burger. It was disappointing. The buns are oversized, meant for a double patty, so my single patty felt overwhelmed. Didn't care for the mushroom swiss burger, the mushrooms were very drippy and had an artificial taste. I'll try different toppings for my burger next time. Fries were crispy delicious, as always. I must say that the cone giveaway was well organized. The free cones were modestly sized but very tasty. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

I am unashamedly, unabashedly sentimental about all things Disney. My strongest memory of the 1964 World's Fair is riding "It's a Small World". The very first movie I ever saw in a movie theater was Mary Poppins . Sleeping Beauty was re released when I was in college, and I dragged a group of friends off campus to the local movie theater so that I could get my "fix". (I kind of think they all enjoyed it.) Hearing "When You Wish Upon A Star" leaves me teary-eyed. But Cinderella holds a special place in my heart. When I was a little girl, my Aunt Eileen would sing "A Dream Is A Wish". I can still hear her voice in my head. And when we drove up to the Catskills, where my grandmother rented a bungalow every summer, she'd point to the castle in Tarrytown -- the one you can see just before you get onto the Tappan Zee Bridge -- and tell us "That's where Cinderella lives." That Cinderella, she really gets ar

Why does a laundromat bring out the worst in some people? It's Saturday afternoon, and the laundromat is fairly busy. Attendant says she hasn't seen it this busy all winter. I see a guy taking laundry out of a dryer, so I ask if he's done with the machine. He says yes. But after I start loading the machine he tells me that the dryer isn't working properly, it takes a long time to heat up. So I take my clothes out of the dryer and start loading them into another machine. After the machine is loaded, that's when he tells me that machine isn't working at all. Is he getting his jollies out of my woes? So I tell him to please stop "helping" me. So he gets all macho, very confrontational. How dare I speak to him like that? He's going to make me shut up. You know, you're getting on my nerves, please just go away. More angry confrontational nonsense. So I rolled my eyes, looked at his wife and asked her to tell him to just leave

"Golda Meir 03265u" by Marion S. Trikosko - This image is available from the United States Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID ppmsc.03265.This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information.العربية | čeština | Deutsch | English | español | فارسی | suomi | français | magyar | italiano | македонски | മലയാളം | Nederlands | polski | português | русский | slovenčina | slovenščina | Türkçe | 中文 | 中文（简体）‎ | 中文（繁體）‎ | +/−. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Golda_Meir_03265u.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Golda_Meir_03265u.jpg It's Women's History Month, so I thought I might talk about one of my personal heroines/role models: Golda Meir. Born in Kiev, raised in Milwaukee, immigrated to Palestine.  She was a teacher, a Zionist, a kibbutznik, a fundraiser, a politician.  One

HAPPY  PI DAY

I will not scoff at Friday the 13th. I will not scoff at Friday the 13th. I will not scoff at Friday the 13th.

Looking back a few years on my blog entries.... There was a time, a few years ago, when I was really into watching "The Biggest Loser".  I cheered the contestants as they dropped pounds, I worried who would be able to maintain the weight loss.  Part of me identified with the contestants,  because I was following the Weight Watchers plan at the time, trying to find a time and place to exercise, losing a bit of weight and ....well, it felt good. Lost interest in the show, lost interest in proper diet and exercise. And when it comes to rationalizations, I am the queen of why I "can't" lose weight. I am seriously thinking that it's time I stopped saying "I can't." I reactivated my Weight Watchers subscription.  I've activated my iHealth activity monitor. I....I...well, I...er...weighed myself. I need to go grocery shopping...

The family "war" is about to erupt.  To the best of my knowledge, Shelley still has not been to the rehab to see Marvin, and she hasn't called the rehab to find out how he's doing.  If you are the caregiver, you should express at least some concern about the person you're taking care of, right? Drew, on the other hand, had a long talk with the caseworker at the facility.   He expressed his concerns that Shelley is unreachable -- she turns off her phone when she goes to bed at night.  He told the caseworker about the clothes incident on Saturday.  And he told the caseworker that he's concerned about Marvin going back to Shelley's house.  Marvin has had mobility issues for awhile now, he's had to rely on a cane.  On Saturday he told us  that when he goes to dialysis, he uses a wheelchair because his legs are so weak.    The stoop at Shelley's house has three steps and no handrail, and we don't know that Marvin will be able to maneuver those

Jen and Becca spent their childhood summers at day camp.  Later, in their teen years, they enjoyed a teen travel program sponsored by the camp.  Jen's first real job was as a counselor at the camp, and Becca worked as a CIT.  Jen continues to work there every summer. So of course they had lots of camp friends.  Boys and girl with similar backgrounds, similar interests. And because my girls are close in age, they know a lot of the same people from the camp. Jen and I were talking last night, and I asked her if she plans to work at the camp again this summer.  She said yes. And then she interrupted me because she got a text message from Becca. It was about a young man they both knew.  He'd been in Becca's group at camp, had travelled with her to various places up and down the East a Coast.   He'd worked at the camp.  He was there last summer, Jen said she spent some time hanging out with him. Last night Becca heard from one of her camp friends.  The

Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people. Carl Sagan Interesting article about a recent  discovery in space . Seems that NASA's Dawn spacecraft saw something ....interesting...on the surface of the dwarf planet Ceres, in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Two lights. Mineral deposits?  A frozen lake? Or...something else? We may find out soon, as Dawn continues its exploration. It is a human conceit to think we are alone in the universe.  

Actually, I did cry ...for just a few minutes. It's about Drew's uncle Marvin. Drew is finally intervening in the situation. After what happened on Saturday, how could he not? The poor man deserves some dignity, after all, some comfort in his declining years. He's 88 years old, he needs someone to look after him. It's becoming increasingly clear that Drew's sister Shelley is not an appropriate caregiver on any level. Something needs to change. Marvin had surgery last week, and afterwards they sent him to rehab not home. Drew and I went to see him on Saturday, at the rehab center. He told Drew "At the hospital I told them I don't want to see Shelley, all she does is yell at me.  And I said I don't want to live with her anymore.  I have to tell them I didn't mean that." Shelley had not been to see him at the hospital or at rehab. He has no phone, no connection to the outside world. And he wasn't able to go to the dining ro

Located in a strip mall with a horribly small parking lot, Margarita's has quickly become a popular dining spot. The space is long and narrow, with very high ceilings.  The room is divided, the dining area on one side of the wall, the bar (with space for a live band)  on the other.  Tables are somewhat close together.  Mexican folk art decorates the walls.  The acoustics -- well, it can get very loud. Don't plan on quiet dinner conversation, especially after the band starts to play. The menu is very extensive, featuring steaks and seafood as well as tacos, burritos, enchiladas and the like.  I ordered arroz con pollo, chunks of grilled chicken stirred into seasoned rice -- nice garlicky flavor.  It was served with refried beans topped with just a dollop of melted cheese -- a nice accent, not overpowering.  Tostones -- fried plantains -- were served with dipping sauce.  The tres leches cake looked tempting, but I had fried ice cream instead -- be careful, the ice cream is ve

I was working from home on Thursday, the office was closed due to snow, and I had the TV on as background noise. So of course I heard the news.  There was an accident at La Guardia, a plane skidded off the runway while landing.  Fortunately, no one was killed, and there were no serious injuries.  But there was wall to wall coverage of the story on the local TV stations most of the afternoon. And then someone mentioned the 1992 accident. March 1992.  Same airport, same runway.  A plane that was not properly de-iced tried to take off, but wound up in Flushing Bay.  27 people died. Horrible accident, but they say that the safety precautions instituted after that night may have helped minimize the injuries on Thursday. I remember that night. It was just a few months before Becca was born, and Drew and Jen and I were living in Queens, in an apartment on the service road of the Van Wyck Expressway. Interesting location.   We'd see lots of traffic accidents on the highway below, a

So we heard about this restaurant in  Newsday : It’s the biggest BurgerFi in the nation, and as of Friday it is serving up hormone-and-antibiotic-free burgers and the like in Uniondale. The new 6,000-square-foot branch of a Florida-based “green” franchise burger chain seats about 200 people and uses solar panels for about 20 percent of its energy usage. The eatery, close to both Hofstra University and Nassau Coliseum, occupies the fully renovated Hempstead Turnpike building that formerly housed Social Sports Kitchen. Come the warmer weather, floor-to-ceiling windows will open to the outdoors. There are already two Long Island BurgerFi locations, in Oceanside and Woodbury. This one is the fifth to open in New York, and the 66th in the nation. BurgerFi  is at 1002 Hempstead Tpke., Uniondale, 516-280-3900. Well, with that kind of write up, we had to go. Exterior was really cool. Inside is loud, cavernous.  The gimmick here -- you place your order at the counte

The Bible says she existed and saved her people.  History says she's more of a myth.  But her story inspires. A couple of weeks ago, as I was flipping though channels, trying to find something to watch on TV, I came across an old movie, Esther and the King .  Filmed in 1960, it stars Joan Collins and it's based on the Biblical story of Queen Esther.  I saw maybe 15-20 minutes of the film.   The cinematography captured ancient Persia. Joan Collins was gorgeous, and it was so interesting to see her play an innocent,  sympathetic character -- so different from the roles that made her famous later on. I couldn't really get involved with the movie, though, because the writers took a lot of  poetic license with the story.  And it's a story I know so well. The Jewish holiday of Purim began last night and will be celebrated today.  Purim is yet another one of those "They tried to kill us, we won, let's eat" holidays.  In this case, the "we" were the

Lots going on around here. Jen and Becca were in a minor car accident Saturday night.  (Frightening thought for any mom!).  Jen's car was rear-ended while she was stopped at a red light.  Both girls were a little sore for a day or two, but they're ok.  There are some dings and scratches on Jen's car, but nothing major.  Significant damage to the car that hit them, though.  Becca tweeted that the driver hit on them ... The scary part, however, happened while they were exchanging information and waiting for the police.  Another, far more serious accident took place across the street -- when a truck ran a red light and hit a car, and the car went spinning out of control.  The car's driver was taken away in an ambulance.  My girls were lucky ... And you should have seen Jen do her happy dance Sunday night when she found out the school district opted for a two-hour delayed opening Monday morning because of the bad weather.  Sometimes she acts like she's still 1

Yes, I watched it.  It was actually a decent speech.  Lots of platitudes about bipartisan support for Israel, and the support Israel has received from the Obama administration.  Biblical references to Esther and Moses -- not unexpected.  Holocaust references, the "never again" rhetoric  -- also not unexpected, nice touch to have Elie Wiesel in the audience. He made his case forcefully but respectfully. How much nicer would it have been had protocols been followed. I am not convinced he's right, I am not convinced he's wrong.  I think the deal happens regardless of this speech. And he didn't offer an alternative.

Everyone who sees my Facebook feed knows my political views very well, I am very opinionated and very outspoken.  But I seldom discuss politics on the blog.  However, given that the March NaBloPoMo theme is news, today I would like to address  a major news event: Benjamin Netanyahu's speech before the US Congress. The  issue I'm addressing today speaks to me not only on a political level, but involves my identity. I am an American.  I am a Jew.  And until now, those two parts of me have always been compatible.  My Hebrew school education started in 1968, shortly after the Six Day War and the reunification of Jerusalem.  My bat mitzvah was in 1973, a few months before the Yom Kippur War.  Growing up, the message I heard was that American Jews must be Zionists, we must support  Israel,  we must defend Israel from attack, that the entire Arab world wanted to "push the Jews into the sea."  This was before Jimmy Carter brought Begin and Sadat together, before Bill Cl

The internet is full of tributes to Leonard Nimoy, who died Friday at the age of 83.  A fine actor, a philanthropist, a supporter of science.  Every geek's favorite grandfather. I am a science fiction fan, I love Star Trek .  A show for science fiction fans who think , it explored topics such as racism, gender identification and inequality, ecology/climate change, war, violence, rebellion, brotherhood... And, of course, I found Spock fascinating.  The ultimate science geek.  No wonder some of the loudest tributes come from astronauts, engineers, scientists. One thing that always fascinated me -- the origin of the Vulcan greeting.  A bit of trivia that speaks to me. The kohenim are the hereditary priests of the Jewish people.  The designation is passed down from father to son.    I am a  bat Kohen , the daughter of a  Kohen . In ancient times the Kohenim were the priests in the Temple in Jerusalem.  In modern times they play a role in various ceremonies in the synagogue.

This month's NaBloPoMo theme:  news This month we'll be talking about news. The places you get your news, the amount of time you use focusing on the news, and critiquing the news to see what works and doesn't work. Well, that's an easy one for me, I  love the news, world events, politics, even entertainment news and gossip. I subscribe to Th e New York Times, Newsday and The New York Daily News .  My Facebook feed includes The Times of Israel, The Jerusalem Post and Ha'Aretz , as well as news feeds from WNBC and WABC.  I watch the local news every day, and my Sunday morning viewing must include Face the Nation or Meet the Press . Two of the presets on my car radio are the all-news stations, 1010 WINS and WCBS-AM. I must have been 11 or 12 when I started reading the newspaper every day.  Newsday was an afternoon paper back then, you'd have to wait for it to show up...and then I'd argue with my mother about who got to read it first. Yes, t