songbird's crazy world

The speech in Philadelphia last night... Hillary is not an orator, not a great speaker like Bill, or like Obama.  But she got the job done. I was shaking with emotion watching it.  Madam President.

The backpack

Last night we headed over to Bethpage Ballpark for a Ducks game.  Or rather, a Ducks doubleheader. To backtrack:  We make it a habit to see 7 Ducks games every year, one game against each team in the Atlantic League.   We try to go when there's a promotional giveaway, or when they schedule Grucci fireworks after the game.  Wednesday night was Grucci fireworks night. When we purchased our tickets for last night's game, we had no idea that someone would give us Mets tickets for Tuesday night's game, nor that Tuesday night's game would become a doubleheader due to Monday night's rain. When we purchased the tickets for last night's game, it was supposed to be a single game against the New Britain Bees.  But, just like the Mets, the Ducks were rained out Monday night.  They decided not to turn their Tuesday afternoon game into a doubleheader, but instead, they would play two games Wednesday night. Game one would start at the usual time (6:35), but w...

The glass ceiling shattered Tuesday night.  It was a wonderful night in Philadelphia.  But I wasn't watching the proceedings on TV.  We had tickets for a baseball game. Or rather, two games.  We had tickets for a single game Tuesday night, Mets vs. Cardinals.  The Mets game scheduled for Monday night was rained out, so last night they played a single-admission double header. We had great seats, on the third base line, over the visiting team dugout. There were a handful of Cardinals fans in the stands, and they were all seated in our section.  Stands were half empty for the first game, which began shortly after 4:00 in the afternoon.  Packed house for the second game.  The weather cooperated, neither too hot nor too cold.  I wore my Mike Piazza jersey, he's being honored this weekend, his number will be retired. Syndergaard pitched the first game.  Usually he's a joy to watch, but this time around he struggled. ...

Since Paul Simon, Demi Lovato and Boyz II Men performed at the DNC convention last night, and since future DNC events (on the main stage and elsewhere)  include performances by Lady Gaga, Lenny Kravitz, Idina Menzel, Cyndi Lauper, Snoop Dogg and Katy Perry.... ...I don't think Hillary will have any problem getting licenses to play music at her campaign events.

So last week my mother was feeling under the weather.  It didn't seem too serious.  But on Sunday morning, her situation deteriorated, and my sister took her to the emergency room.  And the  ER doctors felt the situation warranted a short stay in the hospital, so they admitted her. It's not terribly serious, they think she'll be going home today or tomorrow. It was eerie driving up there to visit her yesterday, eerie to walk those halls again. She's on the same floor where my father was a patient last September and October.  Some of the nurses even remember my father, remember our family. It was hard to keep perspective, hard to keep from getting over emotional.  Hospitals suck.

So we still do summer blockbusters, but now the experience is more civilized. Almost every motive theater is the region has now converted to  armchairs and reserved seating. We chose our time to see Star Trek Beyond based on where we'd be able to sit.  Lovely experience.  (Just don't remind me about the increase in the cost of a ticket.) And of course we had to see Star Trek Beyond, we loved the original series, we love the spin offs, and we're really enjoying the reboot. the internal logic of the rebooted series involves time travel.  A Romulan form the 24th century travels back in time, arriving in the 23rd century, specifically on the day James T. Kirk was born.  the timeline is therefore altered, everything we, the audience, thought we knew has been erased.  Essentially the creative team hit the "reset" button. Star Trek often employs deep character interaction and heavy doses of philosophy and moralizing.  This is not one of those times....

Queen Elton John The Rolling Stones Earth, Wind and Fire Adele George Harrison R.E.M. The Turtles Luciano Pavarotti They, or their representatives, have all told Trump to "cease and desist".  He can't use their music in his campaign.

A modern political convention should be a very scripted piece of theater.  The GOP 2016 is turning into a trashy  reality show.  But what can you expect, look who they nominated!

Nothing like a political convention to bring people together.  I haven't spoken to my cousin Don in months, but last night we were texting our comments on the RNC fiasco.  Can't wait to see what happens during the DNC convention next week... Seems like old times...Back in the day, whenever a new Harry Potter book was due out, I had to order three copies, one for each of the girls and one for myself.  I just paid for three Kindle copies of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, I treated my now-adult children.... The Rio Olympics are coming up next month, and with the games we will get a mega dose of Brazilian culture.  Drew's Aunt Pierina used to live in Rio, and when I first met Drew she frequently took us to a great Brazilian restaurant in Manhattan. I think I  want to go out for Brazilian BBQ now... We are seeing the new Star Trek movie Saturday.  Drew already bought the tickets and picked out our seats.  What a difference from the very...

Playlist downloaded by my younger daughter yesterday: "Girls Just Want To Have Fun", Cindy Lauper "How Will I Know?", Whitney Houston "I Wanna Dance With Somebody", Whitney Houston "Open Your Heart", Madonna "Material Girl", Madonna "Summer of '69", Bryan Adams "Bad", Michael Jackson "The Way You Make Me Fell", Michael Jackson "Man In The Mirror", Michael Jackson "Hungry Like The Wolf", Duran Duran "Girls on Film", Duran Duran I obviously did something right with that child.

So...now that I drive a hybrid ... Seems I am entitled to get a bumper sticker from the DMV that will allow me to drive in the HOV lanes even when I don't have a passenger. And I'm allowed to park in the "reserved for hybrids" parking at work. True, there are only two reserved spots, which means I have to arrive early to claim the privilege. But the landlord provides the two spots as part of his plan to make it a "green" building, which qualifies for certain tax credits. I feel so environmentally responsible. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton did a joint appearance today, and he endorsed her. Most of his supporters will vote for her.  Some are planning to run to a third party candidate. It's time to beat Trump.

Baby was a good car.  But Baby is gone. I am now the proud owner of a blue Prius. It's a hybrid,  runs on electric as well as gas.  Quiet, smooth ride. A dashboard worth of the starship Enter prise . I was thinking of calling the car "Galileo" in honor of Star Trek . But then Drew reminded me about Jeff Dunham and his wife's blue Prius. When I stopped laughing ... I named my new baby "Peanut".

Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to mourn the passing of our Baby. I will never forget the first time I saw Baby.  Sandpebble beige exterior, soft cloth seats.  Back seat large enough for two child seats.  Tape deck player in the radio console, what a joy!  Cup holders!  And that "new car" smell. Yrs, the 1995 Toyota Corolla was a wonderful car.  Easy to handle, good gas mileage. Baby and I shared a lot of miles.  Almost 197,000 miles.  Wish we could have made it to 200,000, but alas ... I'll never forget the road trips to Colonial Williamsburg and to Hersheypark when the kids were little. Then later, the trips to Boston and Rhode Island as the girls explored their college options.  The last big trip the Baby took me on was to Jen's college graduation in 2012. But...an aging Corolla ...I could live with  the engine noise and how that car burned oil.  How ice got into the door locks in winter, freezing the doors shut.  ...

Dallas. 5 officers dead,  7 officers and two civilians injured.  One sniper dead, 3 suspects in custody. It was a Black Lives Matter protest, a cry for justice after yet another incident of black men dying at the hands of police.  And yet it was a peaceful protest; the officers who policed the gathering wore regular uniforms, not riot gear, and even posed with protesters.  The sniper said he wanted to kill white people, especially white police officers. Watching the live video on TV last night was scary, terrifying, horrible. And it didn't help that Brian Williams kept reminding viewers that last night's events took place just minutes from Dealey Plaza, and that the shooting victims were taken to Parkland Hospital -- those of us who grew up in the 60's, even those of us who were too young to remember the JFK assassination, grew up with those events hovering over us, the after image shaping our young lives. And another image pops into my head -- the tensi...

... a baby was born.  She was 4 days late, my due date was July 4.  But she was a beautiful baby, a smart and charming baby, a darling little girl. 24 years have flown by so fast. Happy birthday, Becca.

The dictionary defines a  heat wave  as a lengthy period of excessively hot weather,  which may be accompanied by high humidity.   That describes our current weather conditions.  Hazy, hot and humid only begin to describe it.   But what did we expect?  After all, it's July. And frankly, I'd rather deal with this than anything January can throw at us. At least we've got air conditioning. 

NASA's solar powered spacecraft is now in orbit around Jupiter. We've probed Jupiter before,  of course, but this time NASA expects a lot of new data about Jupiter and its moons. I'm excited that we are exploring space. But sad it's done with probes, not people.

So the annual 4th of July barbecue has come and gone.  We ate too much food, as always.  And there are a ton of leftovers.  But it was good to see everyone, as always. The friend I'm worried about, the one who has issues with her foot, was able to come. She's still being treated for her issues, but she's healing well.  I was so happy to see her. But another friend told me that she's got issues, now, too.  She's going for a biopsy next week.  Prayers have been said. Drew is dealing with a very bad cold, the coughing...I think he may be developing a case of bronchitis.  Not good.  Kind of puts my own troubles into perspective.  My  car, my "baby" ... I bought the car in May 1995, a brand new 1995 Corolla in sand pebble beige.  I was so proud of that car!  It's 21 years old now, with 196,000 miles on it, and it needs a repair that will cost more than the book value of the car.  I knew it was coming....but still.....

What's more American than a baseball game for the Fourth of July? Why, fireworks, of course! Or, even better, fireworks after a baseball game. Last night the Ducks began a home stand against the Sugarland Skeeters, with Grucci fireworks scheduled after each game. And we had tickets for last night's game. And the weather forecast called for some pretty nasty thunderstorms to roll through the area in the early evening. It started to rain while we were on line outside the ballpark, but the entrance gate is covered by a huge awning, so no big deal. By the time we were seated in the Duck Club -- I had a burger, Drew ordered the steak special --the rain had become a torrential downpour. The start of the game was postponed from 6:30 until 7:00, and ultimately pushed back to 8:15. Game began with cries of "pull that tarp!" Our seats last night were in the VIP area, upper deck behind home plate. The upper deck seating (the VIP area and the private suites) is under an a...

It's a dilemma I never thought I'd have. I've become a bit obsessed with physical fitness.  Anyone who's known me for a long time will find that rather out of character, but...well, better late than never. So these days I'm really enjoying my Planet Fitness membership.  30 minutes of strength training, followed by cardio on the recumbent bike and/or the treadmill, then a little stretching in the mat room before using the massage chair or the hydrobed.  I love being able to use the gym near my office during the week and use the gym near Drew's house on weekends. I go to the gym 2-3 times a week.  And when I'm not there, I'm either walking outdoors, or using a Leslie Sansone powerwalking DVD.  Since the community pool opened, I'm there once or twice a week.  I do a little bit of lap swimming, it feels really good. And now I've dug up my old yoga DVD's and mat -- I take the mat out to Drew's back yard on Saturday and Sunday morning...