songbird's crazy world

Part restaurant, part catering hall, part biergarten, Plattduetsche Park does it all.  We were mostly interested in the food, so we chose to eat in the main dining room  -   a small but very bright and airy room behind the bar.  I loved the Hummels in the bay window.  Waitresses in dirndls.  Easy enough to get seating here on a Saturday night in summer, when most patrons were more interested in the outdoor activities.  The breadbasket appeared on our table with amazing speed -- large rolls, both hearty wheat and pumpernickel. We started our meal with the Little Bavarians  -  mini pretzel rolls filled with slices of bratwurst, bacon and Swiss cheese, served with two types of mustard.  I could easily have made a meal out of these sliders.  I ordered the wiener schnitzel, a breaded and fried veal cutlet.  A very generous portion of veal, crispy on the outside, tender veal inside, not at all greasy.  It was ser...

So today is the annual BBQ.  I'm looking forward to seeing all the friends.  Our little group is shrinking -- people move away, couples split up, people die... I just want to hug everyone close, cherish this time. The family I talked about, the couple who lost their daughter...I found out what happened.  She was severely disabled, spent her entire adult life in a nursing home.  She wasn't expected to live nearly as long as she did.  Still heartbreaking, though.  Haven't seen much of my own kids lately.   Jen's been spending a lot of time with her boyfriend, they tend to hang at his house.    Becca, of course, has her own apartment, and even when she's home, she spends a lot of time with David-who-is-not-her-boyfriend (but we all know better).  I'm glad they've got busy lives.  But I miss them. Drew is counting the days until retirement, looking forward to the several celebrations that honor the retirees.  T...

So a few days ago I went to a party on the Nautical Mile in Freeport.  And found myself driving on Guy Lombardo Avenue. Yes, that Guy Lombardo.  Famed Big Band leader, generations of Americans celebrated New Year's Eve with him and his Royal Canadians.  Even if you've never heard any of his other music, you've certainly heard his version of "Aud Lange Syne". Lombardo moved to Freeport in the 1950's, and lived there until his death in 1977.  At one time he even owned a local restaurant.  When Robert Moses built the Jones Beach Theater, he had Lombardo in mind.  The venue opened in 1952, and each summer through 1978 there would be a musical:  Showboat , South Pacific , Sound of Music . The stage sits in Zach's Bay, with seating on the beach, and in the early days  the stage was separated from the seating by a moat.  Lombardo and his orchestra would board a yacht and sail across the channel from Freeport to Zach's Bay, and during intermiss...

It's Memorial Day weekend, the traditional start of the summer season, The weather finally turned warm and sunny this week, just in time for the holiday. We kick off the season with Drew's barbecue on Sunday.  It's a tradition. We've been to a couple of baseball games already, we've got a few more scheduled. No real vacation this summer, we've got a big vacation planned for October.  Maybe a few day trips? But one thing I know we won't be doing:  concerts at Jones Beach Theater. We love the venue, but there isn't anyone playing there this year who we'd like to see. Well, Jimmy Buffett is coming back in August, but after  last year's disaster , I just can't deal with the craziness.  Radio Margaritaville, here I come.

There's a significant rabbit population in Drew's neighborhood.     I spotted this little guy on Drew's lawn: But the ones I saw the other day were much harder to find. Do you see them? How about now?

Look who has taken up residence at my office:

My synagogue sends all sorts of notices via email:  the schedule of services, meetings such as Men's Club and Sisterhood, fundraising requests.... And whenever one of our members has a death in their family, we all get notified. Usually, if it's not a family I know, I read the notice and move on. Not this time. I didn't know the family, but the name sounded familiar. The notice said that a young woman had died, that she was survived by her parents and two of her siblings, and was predeceased by another sibling. Took me a few minutes, and a bit of Googling, but then I remembered. Her brother had died in a car crash at age 27, on Mother's Day in 2004.  The story had been mentioned in a newspaper article profiling our synagogue. I don't know what killed the young woman -- accident?  disease?  It doesn't matter.  Parents aren't supposed to bury their children. They've been coming to morning services to say Kaddish for their daughter. I c...