Books – Page 4 – Keith Robertson

Week in Review – March 10th, 2024

“Super human Marco!”

Julie posted a note and videos about Marco’s participation in the “Tri for Marco” mini-triathlon at St. Francis school. The competition was renamed when Marco was battling cancer.

Look at what this super-human is doing eighteen months after all that surgery. So inspirational. Marco is so beloved at his school. He still thinks he’s running an Olympic distance triathlon in Hawaii in April, and I am not foolish enough to bet against him.

Here he is completing the final running portion. Notice all the lacrosse players stopping practice to applaud him:

Swimming away from the field easily:

We had some heavy rain earlier this week, which naturally led to street flooding across the city. Our friend, Lynn, was trying to move her neighbor’s car when she was splashed by a rude driver. Her neighbor captured the moment perfectly:

Lynn reports that she was saying “Hello!” Sure you were, Lynn.

I had training and fitting for my new hearing aids on Wednesday. I really like the gentleman that tested me, fitted me, and trained me up on operation. We have great music discussions at my appointments – he had made a visit to a used record store last weekend. The devices are pretty sophisticated, with ability to choose different situations – I’m looking forward to trying out the “Noisy Environment” and “Reverberant Room” settings. Loud restaurants and bars are where I have difficulty hearing everyone.

The directional tuning might be helpful in meeting rooms – we’ll see.

I certainly noticed an improvement in the full spectrum sound when listening to music. I’ve really been missing out on a lot of high frequency information. On the drive home, the low thud from the turn indicators changed to a much more traditional clicking noise.

We watched an episode from the new season of “Somebody Feed Phil” on Wednesday evening. This one was from Dubai and had my mouth watering at every stop. The mix of cultures in that city has led to some fantastic food options.

The positive energy and enthusiasm that Phil exudes is really second to none.

The NOLA Gold rugby match last weekend had me doing a bit of research. I was trying to remember the name “Andy Irvine” (star of so many Scottish international games that I attended at Murrayfield in Edinburgh) – it finally came out of my old brain. He was such an amazing player.

During the NOLA Gold match, I commented several times that #15, the right winger, was the best player on the field. I found out who he is and, of course, he’s from Edinburgh. He had great speed and vision of the field – naturally given the amount of time he’s spent playing sevens.

Diana and I had a “Zoo Date” on Friday. I dropped off and picked up McD from her hair appointment and we headed to the zoo afterwards. Rain was forecast and we thought we could enjoy the zoo in between downpours. Right as we arrived, the heavens opened, and all the school buses loaded up and left. We traded in our library card for “free” tickets and entered into the zoo. We encountered maybe eight folks during our tour of the zoo. The first area we came across was the flamingos. They are hilarious with the extending necks. Clearly, the flamingo with the longest neck is the king of the jungle.

We went to the primate area from there.

The orangutan and gorilla were quite entertaining – the gorilla was really making a mess of his area.

The gorilla was really making a mess of his area:

We both thought the black and white Colobus was lovely –

After the monkeys, our next stop was the Red River Hogs. They were quite lively in coming to see us, and we were amazed by their wispy ears:

Next were the rhinos – such massive beasts lumbering around in the rain:

Next were the leopards – very sleepy.

The elephants were mostly hanging out by their inside area, so no good photos.

We found ourselves over by Monkey Hill, the highest land in New Orleans, and the name of one of our favorite bars, just behind the zoo.

We were lucky to end up in the “Wings across the World” exhibit as the heavens opened again. We had the entire area to ourselves. Some of the birds were free range in the area, and others in enclosures. I loved the Toucans:

This guy is an aracari, but he looks a lot like a toucan:

I think my favorite bird was the hyacinth macaw – such a beautiful colour and quite feisty:

One of the free range birds was the Argus pheasants – a very interesting bird:

Our next shelter from the downpour was the reptile house. Neither of us were excited about entering, but the challenge of finding the snakes, frogs etc, hiding in their environments was fun.

The green anaconda wasn’t hard to find:

Here’s the reason we had trepidation about entering the reptile exhibit. The black and white rattlesnake:

The last thing I’ll give you from our zoo date is the Komodo dragon – very sleepy:

As we left the zoo, I captured these pictures of the Audubon that these places are named after:

Our date continued at the Parkview Inn and the Gilded Perch bar. Callie took great care of us – hard to imagine a 22 year old carrying on a better conversation with us than she did. The Inn is very lucky to have her. Here are some pictures of the peacock above the bar and the related Muses shoes::

We met Anne at Chaise Delachaise for Happy Hour – and what a great deal it is – mussels, sliders and frites half off, as well as all wines.

I loved our happy hour. Diana got the octopus, which was delicious. We’ll be back here soon.

We started Saturday with a run around Audubon park with Laura “the gazelle.” I chose to do my run/walk , while Diana did her best to keep up with Laura “you’re setting the pace,” Diana.

In the afternoon, we went to the Kingpin for the Panorama jazz band – they sounded like something you would hear from a French café – clarinet lead and singing. Here’s a video with local celebrity, Cooper Manning, and the band:

Sunday began with a very long walk down the streetcar tracks to the Ogans on Webster. Diana got in trouble on the way back. One of the streetcar drivers misunderstood her hand signals and whistled and wagged a finger at her. Hilarious. I’m still laughing.

Now, we’re settled in and watching the Oscars. Here’s my ballot. How did you do?

We’ll see how all the ballots tabulate in the morning.

I watched “The Holdovers” several times this week until getting to the end. I love this movie, and am picking Paul Giamatti as the Best Actor – a bit of an upset, I know.

I loved this quote from the movie, “We cannot sacrifice our integrity on the altars of their entitlement.”

I finished “Come and Get it” by Kiley Reid. This was a very good book with excellent dialog – I loved the “Ohmygoodness” and “Ah didn’t know that Ah thought that way”. Very much recommended.

Speaking of the Oscars, here’s a wonderful film score:

Some local, New Orleans music:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!

Week in Review – March 3rd, 2024

“Miami Beach Strategery”

We flew to Miami on Monday afternoon, checked into the Lifehouse hotel, and met up with Chickie (our majority shareholder’s son) for Happy Hour at the South Pointe tavern.

This is what the hotel website says about the history of the hotel:

“In the 1920s, Miami Beach’s first commercial strip, Española Way, became an artists’ colony. Creative types seeking life by the sea moved to the city in droves, including an artist who discovered a unique Tudor home in the South of the Fifth neighborhood. We transformed their eclectic beach cottage, now a landmark, into a House that’s only steps from the ocean, yet far enough away from the noise of South Beach tourists.”

We had been skeptical about the hotel and our “Writer’s Suite”, but everything worked out very well.

After Happy Hour, Chickie had us booked in for an impossible table at Carbone. Probably one of the best Italian meals that I’ve ever enjoyed. Wonderful, old school service and every single dish an amazing treat.

Tuna tartare, beef carpaccio, various salads, amazing pastas, steaks, and on and on. Just a wonderful meal and experience all around. I would love to do it again. We are so spoiled at these company events.

Tuesday began with breakfast at the Patio at the Continuum, our majority shareholder, Phil’s, residence community. Everything was delicious, as always.

We migrated form there to Phil’s condo and began our strategic discussions. Those lasted a few hours, and then it was time for lunch, back at the Patio. Everything went very well with the strategery, which led to a lot of fun at lunch and dinner.

The fig and prosciutto sourdough pizza that we shared was ridiculous. As was the truffle carpaccio.

Meanwhile, a little further up the beach, Lisa and Diana were enjoying their pool and beach time.

I’m very pleased that they had so much time together while we pretended to work a bit.

The girls joined us for drinks before dinner on Phil and Maria’s fourth floor terrace. It’s entertaining to view the size of the cruise ships that roll past the terrace. Oh, and I do enjoy a work environment where shorts and flip flops are perfectly acceptable.

Blair called an audible for dinner on Tuesday night – he really wanted to sit on the waterfront at Smith and Wollensky. This is a very popular place and so Chickie was deployed to negotiate a last minute prime table. Of course he was successful as you can see below:

The views out onto the water and over to the lights of downtown Miami were quite something. I enjoyed the custom martini glass:

How many senior executives does it take to order wine, and how long will they ponder? At least two and what seemed like ten minutes or more:

We slept in on Wednesday morning and opted for a walk along the beach front road rather than breakfast. I enjoy the art deco style hotels and the vintage cars parked in front of them. Kenny got a kick out of the old “Fire Dept” vehicle.

We had a coffee and then found a Cuban restaurant (they seem to be on every corner) for lunch. I chose this one based on the positive reviews of their octopus dish.

The octopus did not disappoint – completely fresh and delicious. We really couldn’t face another heavy meal, passing on the Cubano sandwich that I would typically have ordered.

Travel home to New Orleans on Wednesday evening was smooth. I knew Diana was tired and not at all hungry on Thursday evening when she passed up an invitation for oysters with Anne.

We had planned on an outdoor concert at the Broadside on Friday evening but the weather was a bit bleak and dreary and we were still tired from our travels. I was sorry to miss the event and there will be plenty more in the near future as the weather warms up.

I convinced Diana to attend the NOLA Gold rugby match on Saturday afternoon. I had made the mistake of having her watch some of the Six Nations series on Netflix. “It’s a very violent sport, not something I’m sure I want to go and watch.”

McD reported enjoying the event a lot more than she expected to. The entertainment around the game was well done – kind of like attending a minor league baseball game. Big Sam’s Funky Nation performed before the game and at halftime. He marched up and down the roof of the baseball dugout (the field used to be the home of the local baseball team.)

There were a lot of kids in attendance and they enjoyed interacting with King Creole.

We had great seats and they were quite affordable – $25 for two. The first half was pretty boring, and things picked up in the second with two tries from NOLA Gold to win.

I forgot to mention that the opposition was Old Glory from Washington, DC. Here’s the upcoming schedule. This was the kickoff game for the season.

Our neighbor, Hugh, is an investor in NOLA Gold, and had told me that the commentator would briefly explain the reasons for penalties and other rules, so that folks unfamiliar with rugby could learn and follow along better. The overall goal being to encourage return customers. The commentator did a good job of that, while not talking over the play.

This was a good afternoon of entertainment and I look forward to doing it again in the future.

We watched a good film on Saturday night, “Dreamin’ Wild” is based on the true story of Donnie and Joe Emerson, who released an album when they were 16 and 17 years old. It didn’t generate much interest at the time, and then was found 30 years later by a company that finds hidden gems and re-releases them.

Donnie wrote the music, played the majority of the instruments, and produced the record, all in a small shack that his father built on his farm. The real album is available on Spotify:

Casey Affleck plays the older Donnie, and gives a typically nuanced performance. I recommend this movie to any music lovers.

We’re just back from a walk and run in Audubon park – the weather is so nice today. It is not forecast to be so pleasant over the next couple of days – rain storms coming.

Most of the guys from the local krewe are skiing and snowboarding in Colorado today. I’m waiting for video of Thom taking his first snowboarding lesson. I would have liked to join them, but it would have been too much on the heels of the Miami trip.

I started “Come and Get It” by Kiley Reid on the short flights to Miami and back. I loved “Such a Fun Age” and am enjoying this one so far. I haven’t reached the key part of the story yet. Here’s the online summary:

“From the celebrated New York Times bestselling author of Such a Fun Age comes a fresh and provocative story about a residential assistant and her messy entanglement with a professor and three unruly students.

It’s 2017 at the University of Arkansas. Millie Cousins, a senior resident assistant, wants to graduate, get a job, and buy a house. So when Agatha Paul, a visiting professor and writer, offers Millie an easy yet unusual opportunity, she jumps at the chance. But Millie’s starry-eyed hustle becomes jeopardized by odd new friends, vengeful dorm pranks, and illicit intrigue.

A fresh and intimate portrait of desire, consumption, and reckless abandon, Come and Get It is a tension-filled story about money, indiscretion, and bad behavior—and the highly anticipated new novel by acclaimed and award-winning author Kiley Reid.”

Here’s a song from the large band that we missed on Friday night:

Something from the excellent new Julian Lage album:

Something from our local hero:

And finally some 70s cool (12 minutes of it):

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!

Week in Review – January 21st, 2024

“Cigar Box Guitars”

On Tuesday evening, we drove over to visit Merry Lee and Jeff at their condominium in the Warehouse District. It’s very modern and comes with lots of nice amenities – pool, bike room, gym, game room etc. The Superdome is just a couple of hundred yards away.

It’s quite the opposite of a Garden District home built in 1860. It’s nice that we’re just a five minute drive apart.

We had planned to eat at Tito’s on St. Charles, but with the bitter cold, decided on something very close to the condo. Merry Lee organized Maypop. This is how they describe their food:

“Our dishes are inspired by the vibrant, diverse culture of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, creating unique flavors and bringing a contemporary, locally-sourced twist to classic Southern-Asian dishes.”

The food was different, interesting, and very tasty. We tried the satsuma octopus and tuna appetizers. I had the spaghetti with crab – absolutely delicious with great broth to sop up with the Roti bread. Here are the appetizer and dinner menus:

The restaurant was quite modern and almost industrial looking:

It was well below freezing on Tuesday night and so we had all the taps dripping overnight. No damage so far. Phew! The New Orleanians never lack for humour – here’s the Mardi Gras beads being utilized as snow chains:

The next couple of days were cold, but not as cold, and so we stayed inside for the most part. Things warmed up on Thursday and I suggested that we go for an afternoon walk. We wandered down the street car line on St. Charles – enjoying watching folks setting up their front yard viewing platforms for the parades. They go to quite a bit of work to make sure they are appropriately decorated. Next week I’ll share a picture of the Mardi Gras flag and decorations that we have on the front of the house. Right when we arrived at Jefferson Ave., about 1.5 miles from home, the heavens opened. I had just a t-shirt and jeans on and got completely drenched very quickly. We ducked under the library porch and waited for the heaviest rain to pass. I was hoping to jump a streetcar back to Washington Ave., but none came. Oh well, let’s make the 1.5 mile trek home in the drizzle and light rain. I did check the forecast and radar minutes before our walk – how can a huge downpour be missed like that?

Diana met up with Merry Lee on Friday. They walked from our home down to Magazine for a sushi lunch at Sake Café. The Chihuly glass sculptures coming down form the ceiling caught McD’s attention. We did a walking tour of those at the Dallas Arboretum that was really something.

They wandered through several shops after lunch but didn’t purchase too much. Not knowing the weather for Mardi Gras makes it tough to decide.

We were double booked on Saturday – we had tickets to the New Orleans Cigar Box Guitar festival and the Chewbacchus parade was happening – with Kara, Nina, and Debra all walking as Wonder Women. I’ll talk about the Cigar Box event first.

This was a three day festival with cigar box guitar nerds from around the world exchanging tunes and tips. Argentina, France, and all over the United States were represented. It was nice to observe the close knit community they have developed over the years. The event ran from 3pm until 6pm, an hour for dinner, and then 7pm until 10pm. Here’s one of the early set performers – he was working really hard.

We walked a few blocks to Manolito, a tiny Cuban restaurant for dinner. Here’s what they say about themselves and their name:

Our dinner and drinks were excellent as always from this little, delicious place. Kenny thinks their banana daiquiri is the best he’s had. His brother owns several daiquiri shops on Bourbon St. – quite a different drink!

The second cigar box set was excellent – starting out with the New Orleans based Cigar Box Serenaders. Sounds like something you might here in the Spotted Cat Music Club on Frenchman Street – but precisely executed:

That was a dresser drawer bass and a drum kit of pails and coffee cans. Very clever.

After this set, we braved the cold wind to watch a bit of the parade. No sign of Kara and the Wonder Women amongst the 3,000 walking participants:

Kenny and I returned to the inside and warmth pretty quickly, while Diana did her best to wait for the Wonder Women. After 45 minutes, she was back inside for this treat:

Memphis Lightning had huge energy and amazing guitar skills, capped off by his demonstration of being able to play guitar with both his right and left hands on this crazy double neck cigar box guitar.

We stayed for a couple of songs of the final act, Erin Coburn. A pretty lady who took us by surprise with a very heavy and noisy set to finish out the night. We left after a couple of songs. What an eclectic and somewhat typical NOLA day.

During the week, Billy (handyman), dropped off some delicious gumbo for us. Would a handyman in McKinney ever do that – no way. That’s on top of the fresh crabs and sauce he dropped off last week. I showed him my diagnosis on one of the faucet leaks – needs a new O-ring here:

We figured out the other leak as well. Kohler provides lifetime free replacement parts – so this should be with me for installation next week. We’ll see how I do. Better than a very expensive replacement faucet if I can make it work reliably. The service from Kohler was amazing (a total contrast from Thermador) – I would recommend them to anyone that plans to have their products for a few years – free replacement parts and instructions.

I’ve just watched the NFC Divisional game between Detroit and Atlanta – a really competitive game that the Lions won. Just when I’ve almost put the Cowboys disappointment behind me, another online joke picture comes along:

I was reading some New Orleans history – particularly about some of the great writers who have lived here. Most notably, Tennessee Williams, who wrote “A Streetcar Named Desire” while living here and remained until his death. And of course, Anne Rice and her vampire novels, written in a house just around the corner from us. I was taken with an explanation of where the title, “A Confederacy of Dunces” , came from. This is the title of a well known New Orleans based book by John Kennedy Toole. The book’s title comes from Jonathan Swift’s essay “Thoughts on Various Subjects, Moral and Diverting”: When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him.

I really didn’t love “The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store.” I tried, given so many number one best of the year reviews. Way too many insignificant and underdeveloped characters – I almost had to make a chart to keep up with them all. The main characters in a story like this need to be more fully developed. I almost felt like McBride was trying to appeal to every ethnic and religious group. Did any of you really enjoy this book?

I sampled a decent amount of “Let Us Descend” by Jesmyn Ward. Really not my scene at all.

All the rave reviews:

“OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK • Instant New York Times Bestseller • Shortlisted for the 2024 Carnegie Medal for Excellence

From Jesmyn Ward—the two-time National Book Award winner, youngest winner of the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction, and MacArthur Fellow—comes a haunting masterpiece, sure to be an instant classic, about an enslaved girl in the years before the Civil War.

“‘Let us descend,’ the poet now began, ‘and enter this blind world.’” —Inferno, Dante Alighieri

Let Us Descend is a reimagining of American slavery, as beautifully rendered as it is heart-wrenching. Searching, harrowing, replete with transcendent love, the novel is a journey from the rice fields of the Carolinas to the slave markets of New Orleans and into the fearsome heart of a Louisiana sugar plantation.”

This was just too harsh for me to bear. I know it’s historically accurate, but not what I need to spend my free time reading about.

This is the first time in a long time that I’ve returned two books to the library unfinished. I infer that I need to stop following the “best of” reviews.

Let’s start with a fantastic song from the Kinks.

“You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood BoulevardSome that you recognize, some that you’ve hardly even heard ofPeople who worked and suffered and struggled for fameSome who succeeded and some who suffered in vain”

To honour the passing of Shane McGowan. We loved seeing him at Tipitinas last year:

And finally, something from the king of “laid back.” Found it on a Spotify J.J. Cale radio station:

Coexist peacefully, with patience and compassion for all!

Week in Review – January 14th, 2024

“Resting Up”

When I left you, I was settling in to watch the Cowboys game. It was a good one, and they won the division. On to the playoffs! Thanks to Diana for signing me up for NFL Sunday Ticket so that I could watch the “out of market” game. I could even watch four games at once:

We did not make it to the Joe Krown show at the Maple Leaf. The girls were worn out from their afternoon in the French Quarter.

The middle part of the week was pretty quiet – recovering from all the New Year excitement and resting up for Mardi Gras.

We did make a trip to the nearest Home Depot to pick up pipe insulation and spigot covers for the upcoming below freezing temperatures. Diana remarked on the barbed wire around the top of the wall around Home Depot. I pointed out that it was actually razor wire – they really don’t want anyone climbing over that wall. Interestingly, there was a wall all the way around the parking lot and only one entry/exit point. We didn’t think we were in that bad of a neighborhood. Anne filled us in – that was put up right after Katrina when the store was constantly looted.

I decided to check a few things off my Diana To Do list. They were mostly outside of my skillset, or things I just didn’t fancy tackling. It seems like everything I take on with this house ends up being much more difficult than anticipated. I asked Tommy, our air conditioning guy, if he knew a handyman. “Sure, my brother will do it.” Billy showed up later in the day to check things out. And, yes, he’s as much of a character as Tommy. Just a great fellow. He just stopped by to drop off a bunch of fresh crabs and sauce for Diana – left over from his weekend feast.

Billy fixed a “broken” outlet, put a new outlet in the upstairs closet for the Dyson to charge, and ran power and mounted a new ceiling fan in the third floor area. Replacing the kitchen faucet and finishing the ceiling repairs are on deck for later this week. “Broken” is in quotes because there was really nothing wrong with the outlet – it had worked for a while and then stopped. Diana had mentioned to Billy that she’d like to figure out what the fourth switch on the kitchen wall went to. After checking all the fuse boxes and testing the outlet, Billy was at a loss. Then it occurred to him – the fourth switch. Ha!

I walked over to Aidan Gill’s for a haircut on Friday, and followed that by stopping in to try the Latin American restaurant across the street. Maya’s is a small place that I see each time I’m down on that part of Magazine, but had never tried. Their empanadas were good, and the large plates that other folks were having looked great.

Anne called on Friday afternoon and invited us to Happy Hour at Pizza Domenica. Another great place on Magazine street. Wine and pizza were half off between 3 and 5pm. What a deal! We had a pleasant visit and won’t see Anne again for a few weeks – she was off to visit her Mom in Florida, and then meeting up with Denny in Boulder.

I took Diana to a new place on Saturday afternoon – the Broad Theater is a very cool cinema in an interesting part of Mid City. It has so much more character than the massive AMC cineplexes. Diana was quite chuffed that a refill of wine and her large popcorn bucket was all of $5. We saw “American Fiction”, starring Jeffrey Wright.

The movie was very enjoyable – a humorous send up of “woke” culture and the clamoring around African American literature. McD enjoyed it as well – I wasn’t sure that she would.

I did battle with the Kamado Joe smoker on Sunday morning. My intent was to make a rack of baby back ribs to accompany the Cowboys playoff game. The plan was to cook at 220 degrees for 3 hours. The Kamado wanted to be hotter than that, and when I closed the vents sufficiently to get down to 220, it stayed for about an hour and then it seemed like the fire went out. The ribs were finished off on the regular grill and tasted good but not as great as they would have if cooked slower. My new bluetooth thermometer (Christmas from Diana) was very helpful in letting me know what was going on in the smoker.

And then there was the Cowboys playoff game against the Green Bay Packers. What a disaster from start to finish. A huge disappointment from the team that has the number one offense in football. I’m contemplating becoming a Saints fan next year. There have just been so many years like this – a great regular season and then a complete choke in the first playoff game.

While I was yelling at the TV – I gave up when it became apparent that the Cowboys had no chance, Diana was staying out of the way with her new birthday puzzle that Mum sent. She really enjoyed it – with the “whimsy” pieces:

And of course she wasn’t walking away from the table until it was completed:

I’m working my way through “The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store” by James McBride. It topped a number of “Best of 2023” lists. I’m not sure I like it that much yet, but I have quite a bit left to go, so I’ll let you know. Here’s an online synopsis.

“In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, were digging the foundations for a new development, the last thing they expected to find was a skeleton at the bottom of a well. Who the skeleton was and how it got there were two of the long-held secrets kept by the residents of Chicken Hill, the dilapidated neighborhood where immigrant Jews and African Americans lived side by side and shared ambitions and sorrows. Chicken Hill was where Moshe and Chona Ludlow lived when Moshe integrated his theater and where Chona ran the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store. When the state came looking for a deaf boy to institutionalize him, it was Chona and Nate Timblin, the Black janitor at Moshe’s theater and the unofficial leader of the Black community on Chicken Hill, who worked together to keep the boy safe.

As these characters’ stories overlap and deepen, it becomes clear how much the people who live on the margins of white, Christian America struggle and what they must do to survive. When the truth is finally revealed about what happened on Chicken Hill and the part the town’s white establishment played in it, McBride shows us that even in dark times, it is love and community—heaven and earth—that sustain us.

Bringing his masterly storytelling skills and his deep faith in humanity to The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, James McBride has written a novel as compassionate as Deacon King Kong and as inventive as The Good Lord Bird.”

I may have shared this Duane Allman classic before. Either way, it’s worth repeating:

A very pleasant Jimmy Buffet cover:

And finally, a fun new sound that I came across:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!

Week in Review – January 7th, 2024

“Carnival Time”

The clean up from our New Year’s Eve party didn’t take too long, and then we were off to Oyster Fest at Denny and Anne’s home. This is one of my favourite events of the year. Very casual, with all kinds of friends coming and going on the back patio and enjoying oysters prepared in so many ways. Denny had promised to simplify the number of offerings this year, but I didn’t see very much evidence of that. The hardest part is shucking all the oysters to start. Denny and Greg are experts:

Thom took a turn at charbroiled oysters – all good until he poured on too much sauce and caused some very high flames.

This was the first year that all five of Kelly and Fred’s kids were in attendance. What a great group:

Thanks for another great year, Denny!

The return to work on Tuesday felt a bit harsh, but I struggled through.

Jack and Mason’s 21st birthdays were celebrated at Commander’s Palace on Thursday. It’s so nice that this is just 600 feet from our new home. It’s tradition that we accompany them on this birthday lunch. The old school service never ceases to make me smile. All dishes put in front of everyone at the same time – so much coordination needed. And I’ve never seen the wrong dish in front of the wrong person.

Of course birthdays get balloons on the table and chef toques:

That’s the ridiculous bread pudding soufflé with whiskey sauce in front of Jack. Mom and Dad look very proud:

The lunch was so leisurely (over 2 hours) that I had to walk back home to take a 2pm meeting. Poor planning on my part. I won’t need to worry about that next year.

Alicia arrived on Thursday evening. Diana took her for a ramble along Magazine street on Friday morning – stopping for an Empanola empanada and then lunch at Tito’s ceviche. I met them there and shared some of the excellent ceviche and quinoa salad.

It was an early start for Alicia and Diana on Saturday. They had committed to outdoor yoga in the sculpture garden with Kenny, Kara, and Nina. It rained on Friday and was pretty cold. They sucked it up and seemed to enjoy the yoga, and the coffee and beignets afterwards at Café du Monde.

Alicia was getting restless on Saturday afternoon, and so Diana took her for a walk to Superior Seafood. She tried an oyster and ended up liking them. Maybe not quite as much as the frozen French 75.

While the girls were out, I took a final stab at fixing the freezer door ice dispenser. I had called out a high end appliance repair guy on Friday and he was zero help. Couldn’t even find the parts diagram that I had up on my computer. I rebuilt the entire mechanism from scratch and made one washer position adjustment. Success! That was a lot of work.

Carnival/Mardi Gras season started on Saturday evening (Twelfth Night.) The first event is the Phunny Phorty Phellows and the Funky Uptown Crew riding streetcars and celebrating. We walked the 100 feet down to St. Charles and enjoyed the revelry. Some neighbors had hired a brass band to celebrate with the Krewes. Here are some videos.

Alicia enjoyed the festivities and meeting our neighbours, Roeland and Jules, and their dog, Lumi.

I’m watching the Saints game as I write this. They are not off to a great start. Shortly, I’ll be dropping the girls plus Kara in the French Quarter for lunch, and coming back to watch the final Cowboys game. They win the division if they win today, besting the Eagles.

If we’re still up for it, there is a good show with Joe Krown and Papa Mali at the Maple Leaf tonight. We’ll see.

I’m almost finished with “Wellness.” Here are some passages that I enjoyed so far. This is funny because Diana has some different features in each ear:

“She insists that one of her earlobes is slightly larger than the other, and he doesn’t believe her at first, not until they get our the ruler and measure.”

An entertaining simile:

“Agatha looks at her with red, wet, puffy eyes and a balled up chin. “Nooooo,” she says. “It’s not youuuuuuu.” Her words are coming out with a kind of musical fall to them, like bagpipes deflating.”

A very good description of what I witness often at gatherings in California:

“The presence of new people in the house seemed to serve as a kind of trigger for children to get aggressively and sometimes violently attention-seeking, and the parents, perhaps on their best behavior and not wanting to discipline their children harshly in the presence of friends, would just let it all kind of happen, and the kids, testing their delicious newfound freedom, would start acting up and shouting and roughhousing, whereby the parents would become even more frustrated, and the whole spiraling thing made Elizabeth feel guilty for being there at all.”

The reason for the title:

“What they did at Wellness was test claims made by specious health-related products to see if the products achieved results any better than a placebo. Basically they were a watchdog group, a subcontractor to the FCA and FTC, sniffing out bullshit. In 2008, some of the more well-known products that had come through the lab included: the SlimSkirt, a miniskirt made of some tight, rubbery, tensile material that felt like a big rubber band around your legs.”

Elizabeth makes a fortune pitching this idea to United Airlines:

“This was the solution! Make the seats even narrower, the lines even longer, the competition for overhead space even more cutthroat – make it all famously bad and then tell people they can avoid it all and have a more or less normally below-average experience for a modest fee. Thus, if they knew beforehand that the experience would be dreadful but they didn’t pay the fee to avoid it, they would be less unhappy about the dreadful experience because, ultimately, they chose to have it. They did it to themselves.

It was her eureka moment, the moment that changed everything, the moment that led to her pitching the idea to United Airlines and collecting their fee, a fee so substantial that she and Jack could finally afford to make a down payment on a home – their forever home, out in the suburbs.”

I have a few more passages that I highlighted, but that’s enough for now. This is a very unique and enjoyable read.

A very pleasant and laidback track:

And something from the excellent Shuggie Otis album:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!

Week in Review – December 31st, 2023

“We all survived Christmas”

We ventured into the dangerous territory of Number Three Gypsy Hill on Christmas morning. The monsters were in pretty good form, and enjoyed their Pokemon gifts.

Francesca was excited about her unicorn sockies and the books signed by the Bush girls. I’m not sure Adamo was a huge fan of the books.

We didn’t stay too long and the crew needed to get packed up to head to their other Grammie’s house.

Back in the kitchen for Diana and Alicia. This time a ham and au gratin potatoes. Diana managed the timing of the ham with great results, and Alicia’s spuds were delicious. My contribution? Massive – I poured the glaze over and pinned the pineapple on as the ham went back in to finish. Here’s the group enjoying dinner:

The gift exchange was entertaining. Gianluca is getting concerned about his appearance and totally owned the “Bro Glo” self tanning cream that we selected from his list.

Giancarlo came with a number of books and artifacts to share. He said a little about each item, and then we each made a choice. Wasn’t sure where it was going at the start, but it worked out fine in the end.

And then things got really entertaining – Clorinda loves her silly animal toys that sing Christmas songs. So, Marco thought it was a good idea to get her and us both a new penguin that runs around the floor in circles and sings Jingle Bells.

It all started with the singing llama a few years back. It never ceases to get a big laugh from Clorinda. Here’s Marco doing the llama dance:

I found out earlier in the day that Marco and Julie’s little white dog, Yeti, was going to be staying at Clorinda’s home for several days under Alicia’s care. Clorinda has pretty strong feelings that a dogs place is outside, so I was interested to see how this would go. There was sufficient activity to distract her and, by the next morning, she seemed resigned to tolerating things.

Here’s a picture that Jude composed. I really like it.

I went on an excursion to Mavericks with Adamo and Luciano on Boxing Day afternoon. If you’re not familiar with Mavericks, it’s a surfing break near Half Moon Bay (about 10 mins from Pacifica.) It has some of the largest waves in the world and some very unique challenges. There’s a famous annual surfing competition about this time of year that draws thousands of spectators. You can’t really get a feel from the scale in this video, and there were about 30 crazy souls out there surfing. Very fun to watch.

The walk along the beaches to arrive at Mavericks was a lot of fun. Adamo and Luciano insisted on paddling around in the gooey sand.

I forgot to mention that, prior to the expedition, I helped Francesca give the kitties a bath. Hilarious.

Will, Christine, and Ollie came for dinner on Boxing Day evening. Grammie was certainly a bit concerned when Ollie and Yeti started rough-housing around. The Indian food, and ceviche that they brought from Redwood City, were all excellent. A real feast.

After dinner we did a small gift exchange. Last year, or the year before, we gave Campbell a Mardi Gras cushion that had sequins on one side. Clorinda was very entertained pushing the sequins one way and the other to make patterns. So…Will and Christine were very excited to gift her one of their well traveled pillows with the same feature. Apparently this has been to Burning Man and several other crazy festivals. Clorinda was initially quite excited with all the coloured tissue paper and then loved the pillow.

A hilarious game of throwing the pillow at Keith, getting wadded up tissue paper back, telling Diana to tickle Keith’s bare feet and such ensued. It brought poor Diana to tears.

Our flight home to New Orleans on Wednesday morning was delayed a couple of hours due to crew on a delayed flight. The airport was very busy, but we made the best of it and made it home smoothly.

Now it was time to start preparing for hosting the Krewe on New Year’s Eve. I took another stab at trying to get the ice dispenser to work. All the parts fell out and I had to guess how to reassemble. I have an exploded view now, so will be able to fix it in no time. Suffice to say – no ice dispensed via the door at the party.

We spent some happy time cleaning the wood floors and all the bathrooms, and then decided to “work together” on assembling a folding table for the food. You can see here what happens when the table isn’t locked in the middle before we try to stretch the cocktail skirt around it. What a pair!

Fortunately, Diana’s work on the dining table was much smoother.

Denny brought over a keg for the kegerator outside. He was not impressed with the new Cowboys tap that I got as a Christmas gift from Will.

Now it was time for me to go and pick up the catered food in Old Metairie. I thought I’d walk around the corner to Gracious bakery before making the drive. Is that a brass band I hear in somebody’s front yard?

Sure enough, somebody had hired a decent sized band to kick off New Year’s Eve. I wasn’t able to navigate past the crowd to pick up baguettes, and so opted to drive to the catering place and do that later.

The Italian shop was classic old school. Very friendly and helpful folks, with what appeared to be an excellent sandwich counter. The lady kindly helped me carry the trays out to the car. All of the food was excellent and well received by the Krewe.

I watched some of the Sugar Bowl parade in the afternoon and was amazed that those guys were brave enough to march Bevo, the longhorn mascot, through such large and boisterous crowds. He didn’t seem phased at all.

Folks started arriving around 7pm. The kids dropped off their parents and stayed for a short while. Here’s a glimpse into the hubbub:

And here’s a collection of pictures from the rest of the evening. We think our first party in the new home was a success. Happy New Year to all of you!

I’m still working through “Wellness” – it is a 650 page tome. The writing and story are very good so far – particularly a section on how Facebook algorithms really work. I’ll have much more to say next week – when we don’t have any big events happening. Time to rest up for Mardi Gras.

Butch Walker – such a great voice, and an amazing producer:

You know I’m a sucker for Mark Knopfler’s guitar sound and style:

That’s another year of blogging drawing to a close. Now I have to work on getting a book printed, so that we can review in old school fashion.

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!

Week in Review – December 24, 2023

“Happy Birthday Diana, don’t cause a fire!”

On Monday, Kenny invited Diana out for a birthday dinner at Superior Seafood. Diana particularly liked that Nina and Ian were able to join – the whole Kirsch family. They devoured several dozen oysters during the Happy Hour special.

We had a bit of an “oopsy” with the birthday cake. I joked to McD that she should blow it out. She did, with sparks flying towards my shirt. The waiter was quite concerned. No damage done and the Chief didn’t need to take any action.

Diana opened her birthday gift when we got home from dinner – a blue and white vase that she seemed to like quite a bit. I forgot to get a picture of her with it.

I may have created a monster by gifting a New York Times annual puzzle subscription. Diana has become addicted to the Spelling Bee – and in particular getting Queen Bee status by finding all possible words that are in the list:

After all that excitement, we proceeded to open Christmas stockings and gifts. I had been telling Kara, at dinner, about the silly high-end Italian oven that doesn’t even tell you the temperature it has reached or alert you when it gets to the right temperature. She suggested I get one of the thermometers that hang in the oven – great idea. An hour or so later and Santa had taken care of it for me.

We loved these Scottish pillows from my Mum. They’ll be fun for visitors to try to interpret. Mum also couldn’t resist another penguin friend for BP.

Oh no – a penguin face-off.

Tuesday was another travel day. This time a direct flight from New Orleans to San Francisco. Weather in San Francisco delayed our take off by a bit over two hours, resulting in over seven hours on the plane – we could have flown to Europe. Alicia was a good sport and picked us up at the airport shortly before midnight.

Wednesday was a pretty quiet work day on Gypsy Hill. Diana did babysit Massimo and Francesca for a few hours. We were both very tired from the traveling.

We did make it out of the house and off the Hill on Thursday. Diana offered to take me to lunch. We rejected trying to fight the crowds at Pedro Point and instead made the short drive to Half Moon Bay and La Costanero. This is a place we had visited with my birthday gift certificate. Diana had the trio of ceviche samplers and I enjoyed a very fresh beet salad with grapefruit and other goodies, followed by a mushroom empanada.

Diana spent much of Thursday and Friday procuring all the ingredients for the Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner on Christmas Eve. Always a ton of work and delicious.

I “helped” Adamo assemble Frankie’s bike on Christmas Eve.

“I’ve assembled so many bikes over the years, that there’s absolutely no reason to pay any attention to the instructions.”

“I think that front mudguard is on backwards.”

“That’s the only way it fits.”

“That’s because you’ve got the front fork the wrong way round.”

“Oh, I do, and it has a little arrow sticker pointing to the front.”

A classic Adamo interaction.

Now, we needed a test pilot:

Diana, Adamo and Alicia slaved away in the kitchen for several hours to create the Feast. Scallops, lobster, sole, angel hair with anchovies, sardines, shrimp dip – I always forget one of them. The gang had a great dinner:

Amy was talking about being allergic to poison oak, and then Jude pipes up with, “Andy’s highly allergic to ocelots.” Firstly, we had to look up a picture of an ocelot, then investigate the story. Apparently they had both held ocelot cubs at a nature reserve in Napa. Jude had no issue, but about ten minutes later, Andy was all up in a rash. He joked that he now shares that when asked by a doctor if he has any known allergies.

Clorinda really enjoys her silly animal toys that sign Christmas songs – they never fail to bring forward joyful laughter from her. Several more seem to have shown up recently.

I really like this picture of Diana talking to her Mum that Jude captured:

After dinner, the little monsters went home and prepared for Santa.

And then, everything was finally quiet. I’m not sure why I can’t see any lumps of coal in this picture:

I have a t-shirt that says “Be a New Orleanian, wherever you are.” Clorinda typically asks me what that means. I found a little tag in one of the Christmas gifts that explains it well:

New Orleans: Sunken and sultry,

Magical and mysterious,

Down home and slightly dangerous,

There is no other place like it.

When you truly love something, you want to share it with as many people as possible. So whether you’re born here, a transplant, or simply passing through, we hope you can be a New Orleanian wherever you are.

My first book this week was “The Modigliani Scandal”, by Ken Follett. I chose it at the library because it was a small paperback, ideal for travel, and from an author that I knew I would enjoy over the holidays.

I enjoyed this one quite a bit. Not his best, but an entertaining and interesting read. Here’s an online summary:

“A high-speed, high-stakes thriller from Ken Follett, the grand master of international action and suspense. Look out for Ken’s newest book, A Column of Fire, available now.

A fabulous “lost masterpiece” becomes the ultimate prize—for an art historian whose ambition consumes everyone around her, an angry young painter with a plan for revenge on the art establishment, and a desperate gallery owner who may have double-crossed his own life away. Behind the elegance and glamour of the art world, anything goes—theft, forgery, betrayal, and maybe even murder. . . .”

I’m working my way through the new Nathan Hill tome, “Wellness.” Not quite half way yet, so much more to come next week. This is a very well constructed book so far, jumping around in time and revealing secrets that add to the overall plot. Hill is a unique and gifted writer, who has clearly spent months researching. Here’s an online summary of a long and complicated plot:

“When Jack and Elizabeth meet as college students in the gritty ’90s Chicago art scene, the two quickly join forces and hold on tight, each eager to claim a place in the thriving underground scene with an appreciative kindred spirit. Fast-forward twenty years to suburban married life, and alongside the challenges of parenting, they encounter the often-baffling pursuits of health and happiness from polyamorous would-be suitors to home-renovation hysteria.

For the first time, Jack and Elizabeth struggle to recognize each other, and the no-longer-youthful dreamers are forced to face their demons, from unfulfilled career ambitions to childhood memories of their own dysfunctional families. In the process, Jack and Elizabeth must undertake separate, personal excavations, or risk losing the best thing in their lives: each other”

Let’s start with something from the late, great Greg Allman. So much emotion conveyed with that unique voice and style:

If you want to read about an interesting and varied life, look up Charley Crockett. Here’s one about the DFW river:

And finally something from another late, great:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and compassion for all!

Week in Review – December 17, 2023

“Happy Almost Birthday, Diana

I had a haircut at Aidan Gill on Tuesday morning. I always like to pop next door to Juan’s Flying Burrito for lunch afterwards. I asked Diana if she’d like to join me, and she walked over. I forgot to mention that Aidan Gill’s was about a fifteen minute walk for me. It’s so nice to be able to walk to so many things. Juan’s is Timmy’s favourite place to eat and so we tortured him with pictures of our food and drinks.

I talked Denny and Greg into joining us at Dos Jefes on Tuesday evening to listen to Joe Krown. He recognized Denny as “the carwash guy.” And as usual, Denny didn’t have any coupons with him to share. Joe never disappoints – just an excellent pianist, even on a somewhat out of tune old upright.

It seems Santa was a bit “sleepy” at the Dos Jefes bar:

We flew to Dallas on Wednesday to have dinner with H0lly and Finn. We chose Rick’s Chophouse because we were able to stay in the hotel upstairs, and because I believe they have the best shrimp and grits to be found – still better than any I’ve had in New Orleans. Everyone enjoyed their dinners and we exchanged some fun gifts.

It was chilly outside, but we managed to snap a few pictures of the kids with the holiday decorations:

Travel home on Thursday was smooth, and we rested up on Friday.

We had been looking forward to trying Dakar NOLA for dinner on Saturday night. This West African and Senegalese restaurant serves a seven course tasting menu in one seating per night at 7pm. The chef and restaurant have won many awards over the last year or so:

https://nola.eater.com/2022/11/15/23460203/dakar-nola-new-orleans-most-exciting-tasting-menu-opens-forever-home

We enjoyed this experience tremendously – it was an excellent early birthday dinner for Diana. Here are an early seafood dish and the pecan pie like dessert:

And here’s the full menu:

The wonderful evening concluded with a group picture in front of the wall of West African masks:

Longtime Cowboys fans knew that the very impressive winning streak couldn’t last. And on Sunday, it all came crashing down, with a pitiful loss to the Buffalo Bills. We’ll see where things go from here. Maybe they got it out of their systems.

Sunday was Kenny’s (The Chief) birthday. We celebrated by attending James Booker fest at the Maple Leaf. What a great group of New Orleans piano players paying tribute to the legendary guy who, along with Professor Longhair, started it all.

Some pretty flowers have emerged on the side of our house. Not sure what kind they are.

This was an excellent week of reading. “The Guncle” by Steven Rowley is one of my favourites in a long, long time. Alternating between laugh out loud humour and tear jerking sadness from one paragraph to the next, this is a writer at the very top of his game. I loved this book. I didn’t carry the hardback with me and so don’t have the quotations that I wanted to share. Here’s the online summary:

“Patrick, or Gay Uncle Patrick (GUP, for short), has always loved his niece, Maisie, and nephew, Grant. That is, he loves spending time with them when they come out to Palm Springs for weeklong visits, or when he heads home to Connecticut for the holidays. But in terms of caretaking and relating to two children, no matter how adorable, Patrick is, honestly, overwhelmed.

So when tragedy strikes and Maisie and Grant lose their mother and Patrick’s brother has a health crisis of his own, Patrick finds himself suddenly taking on the role of primary guardian. Despite having a set of “Guncle Rules” ready to go, Patrick has no idea what to expect, having spent years barely holding on after the loss of his great love, a somewhat-stalled acting career, and a lifestyle not-so-suited to a six- and a nine-year-old. Quickly realizing that parenting–even if temporary–isn’t solved with treats and jokes, Patrick’s eyes are opened to a new sense of responsibility, and the realization that, sometimes, even being larger than life means you’re unfailingly human.

With the humor and heart we’ve come to expect from bestselling author Steven Rowley, The Guncle is a moving tribute to the power of love, patience, and family in even the most trying of times.”

Here’s my annual list from Spotify of most listened songs:

I even got a short video from Jeff Tweedy thanking me for listening to so much Wilco. I remember I couldn’t get enough of “Take Me as I Am” after the Tedeschi Trucks performance at Jazzfest.

A good version of the Nick Lowe classic that I ran across this week:

I’ve been assembling a New Year’s Eve playlist as we’re hosting this year. This is a good one:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and compassion for all!

Fortnight in Review – December 10th, 2023

“Chefs Timmy and Denny”

I really had great intentions of posting here every week – any more and it’s too much work to remember the details. Things just got too busy again. Anyway, here goes with what I can remember.

On Monday, November 27th, we flew from San Francisco to Austin. This time we chose Alaska airlines as they had the only direct flight. The flight was comfortable and uneventful. The food on American is certainly better than on Alaska.

I was disappointed to find that Thom’s Market, just around the corner from our hotel, had stopped carrying Taco Deli breakfast tacos. I had been looking forward to my Tuesday morning breakfast treat. They had some new company providing tacos, and they were not nearly as good. Apparently they parted ways by “mutual understanding.” I’m going to have to go to the real Taco Deli next visit.

We were in Austin to attend my company Holiday Party on Wednesday night, and Tim (our CFO) invited the Executive Team to his home for dinner on Tuesday night. We drove around in circles for a while as our crack Administrative Assistant team had dropped one of the digits from the address. Had we been observant, we would have seen that there was only one house with a large blow up koala bear out front.

Tim and his wife, Heidi, put together an excellent feast for us. Tim loves to cook meat on his various grills, and this time served a delicious, melt in your mouth ribeye steak. We all commented that it was much nicer to eat like a family around the dining room table than to go to a restaurant.

The Holiday Party was a big success. We hosted it at Bar Peached again and had the whole restaurant and outside areas to ourselves. I thought the cocktail menu was very clever, and the snacks were delicious – particularly the hoisin duck baos. Spouses were invited this year and so Diana and Lisa had a good time chatting with everyone.

We flew from Austin back to New Orleans on Thursday afternoon. The flight was a little late, but otherwise all was smooth with the trip.

On Friday, I made another excursion to the Louisiana Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV.) I thought that I had all the papers necessary to register our car, but no – missing a copy of the title. I’ll round that up and try again…

I heard on Friday afternoon that two of my favourite restaurants were closing – Rabbit’s Foot and Seafood Sally’s. I was just getting used to walking to Rabbit’s Foot and enjoying a nice coffee and wonderful breakfast sandwich. Seafood Sally’s had a good oyster happy hour and a great outdoor seating location on Oak Street. Rabbit’s Foot was carrying too much debt from a very slow summer, and Sally’s had a kitchen floor inspection issue that shut them down for several months. Very sad, but I was determined to have one more visit to Rabbit’s Foot.

We had a lot of rain overnight on Friday, and several drainage pump units were not working properly. This made Rabbit’s Foot quite difficult to get to. I persevered only to find they weren’t able to open because too many employees couldn’t get there. Ugh!

This was the scene on the street to the right of the photo of the coffee shop:

After things dried out a bit and the flooding subsided, Diana and I visited the local toy shop to get some gifts for the “Toys for Tots” party on Saturday night. I really enjoyed browsing around the small, local toy shop. The party was two houses down from us at Roeland and Jules home. There were well over a hundred people in attendance, and you would not have known anything was going on from outside. We had a nice time and had a very interesting chat with our neighbor Hugh, Colleen’s brother from across the street. He has some 3-D printing businesses and is in the process of testing printed lungs in baboons – crazy technology.

Kenny’s official Fire Department retirement party was on Sunday. Denny was kind enough to pick us up and deliver us to the Union Hall. We had an enjoyable chat with Kenny’s mum, Miss Sue. She remembered meeting us last year and was still as sharp as a tack at ninety.

On Tuesday, I made another excursion to the Louisiana Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV.) This time I had all the documents they could possibly need and was successful in obtaining a new license plate for the BBB. I was shocked when it came time to pay – online information had me thinking it would be around $66. Then the lady said it was over $1,200 – bit of a discrepancy. Apparently some sales tax scam for new residents. I had already paid sales tax in Texas, but that didn’t seem to make any difference. Always something with this move. At least we’re all legal now.

Diana and the girls had oyster Happy Hour on Tuesday evening, so Kenny came over and we went to watch a basketball that his son, Ian was helping to coach. Denny joined us and we decided to visit the local Milan lounge for some pre-game entertainment. The folks in the bar were entertained as Kenny yelled out answer after answer for Jeopardy questions.

The basketball was good entertainment, with the Willow team losing in the last minute. We met Diana and Kara at the Kingpin, and were entertained to find Fred with a friend at a table in there.

On Wednesday night, we had Sips at Commander’s Palace down the street. This was an early birthday gift for Diana from Merry Lee and Jeff. One could sample around eighty different champagnes and wines, while enjoying the delicious snacks – the little cups of soup were ridiculous.

Jeff and Merry Lee came back to the house for a while and we listened to some eclectic Christmas music on the turntable.

Marcia Ball, Shelley King, and Carolyn Wonderland had their “Home for the Holidays” show at the House of Blues on Thursday night. I had two suggestions for a pre-concert dinner for Diana to choose between – Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 49 or Kingfish. She opted for the tiki inspired option. The dinner was excellent, finishing with some perfectly cooked and very large scallops.

A short walk, and we were seated and ready for the show.

The girls did their usual great job and we enjoyed it very much. Here are a couple of clips:

We walked several miles on Saturday morning, checking for gift inspiration in the small, local stores on Magazine Street. Unfortunately, we returned empty handed. Diana couldn’t even find any shoes in the “Feet First” store – very unusual.

Chef Denny invited the boys over for a steak night on Saturday. Alex, Kenny, Greg, Thom and I enjoyed the feast that Denny had put together. Hangar steak, twice baked potatoes, creamed spinach, and a yummy red wine sauce. Thom brought a selection of wines that we sampled. Good fun hanging out with the boys.

Sunday began with a couple of laps around Audubon park. Twenty mile an hour plus winds blew out the cobwebs during that walk. The Saints had a good win, and now I’m getting excited for the Cowboys and Eagles game this evening – a very important game for playoff positioning.

I borrowed “The Descendants” by Kaui Hart Hemmings from Clorinda’s library. This was a good read – mixing some ribald teenage character humour, with some very poignant and sad scenes. I would recommend it. It did take me a while to stop thinking of the main character as George Clooney, who played him in the movie version. Here’s an online summary:

“Narrated in a bold, fearless, unforgettable voice and set against the lush, panoramic backdrop of Hawaii, The Descendants is a stunning debut novel about an unconventional family forced to come together and re-create its own legacy.

Matthew King was once considered one of the most fortunate men in Hawaii. His missionary ancestors were financially and culturally progressive–one even married a Hawaiian princess, making Matt a royal descendant and one of the state’s largest landowners.

Now his luck has changed. His two daughters are out of control: Ten-year-old Scottie is a smart-ass with a desperate need for attention, and seventeen-year-old Alex, a former model, is a recovering drug addict. Matt’s charismatic, thrill-seeking, high-maintenance wife, Joanie, lies in a coma after a boat-racing accident and will soon be taken off life support. The Kings can hardly picture life without her, but as they come to terms with this tragedy, their sadness is mixed with a sense of freedom that shames them–and spurs them into surprising actions.

Before honoring Joanie’s living will, Matt must gather her friends and family to say their final goodbyes, a difficult situation made worse by the sudden discovery that there is one person who hasn’t been told: the man with whom Joanie had been having an affair, quite possibly the one man she ever truly loved. Forced to examine what he owes not only to the living but to the dead, Matt takes to the road with his daughters to find his wife’s lover, a memorable journey that leads to both painful revelations and unforeseen humor and growth.”

Kenny sent me this video of Joe Krown playing Booker’s “Classified” at Dos Jefes. It’s like he has four hands:

A great song from the new Band of Heathens acoustic album:

And finally, something from Josh Ritter:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and compassion for all!

Week in Review – November 26th, 2023

“A Unique Thanksgiving Travel Experience”

Tuesday started early with a drive to the New Orleans airport just after five a.m.. Our flight to Dallas was smooth and we had just under two hours to change planes and relax in the club. The flight to San Francisco left on time, taxied out to the runway, and then things took a bit of a turn. We seemed to be sitting still for a while. The pilot finally came on to let us know that the parking brake wouldn’t release and we needed to head back to the gate. After working on things for a while, they took the plane out of service and we waited to find out when the replacement would be ready – if there was going to be a replacement. Typically, we would have found another flight, but not two days before Thanksgiving between two major airports.

The replacement was scheduled for four hours later. A long time to spend in the club, and there were far too many kids in there. So, after that 4 hours of sitting around, we did take off for San Francisco. The flight was pleasant and we were a few hundred feet off the runway when, WHOOSH, we’re heading up at quite an angle and speed. Apparently the pilot saw another aircraft crossing our runway “way too close for comfort,” and decided to execute a “go around.” I looked out the window as we were ascending so quickly and saw the offender, and agree it would have been close.

The flight attendant had quite a sense of humour, saying, “Well you guys had an aborted takeoff and an aborted landing in the same day. I’ve never heard of that before.” We were travel weary when we arrived on Gypsy Hill.

Diana was up early the next day, chopping vegetables and prepping the stuffing. Alicia worked on potatoes au gratin. They were busy most of the day with feast prep. Thanks girls!

Thanksgiving at Adamo and Amy’s home began in the early afternoon and wrapped up in the early evening. Other than Francesca screaming for the iPad for a solid half hour before she passed out, it seemed quieter than usual and quite pleasant. I was able to watch the Cowboys with another big win and have good visits with Marco, Andy, and Jude. Will, Christine and Ollie joined us again and had a great time.

Clorinda thoroughly enjoyed herself and, for the first time in a few years, wanted to give a speech:

Look at these clever deviled eggs that Anne created in Florida:

I was up early on Friday, and decided to drive down to the prettiest Taco Bell in the country for breakfast. Here’s what this cantina on the beach looks like – beautiful views all around.

There were a lot of surfers to watch from the back deck. I had brought a book, and didn’t end up needing it with the surfer entertainment.

I watched a couple of excellent college football games on Saturday. Alabama had a very fortunate last minute touchdown to beat Auburn. Michigan had a strong performance to best Ohio State. Very close and entertaining games.

Marco, Julie and Yeti came for dinner on Saturday night. Alicia had made a yummy vegetarian curry. We have some nice leftovers to enjoy later today.

The New Orleans Saints are currently working hard to keep up with the Atlanta Falcons – hopefully they’ll improve as the game continues.

My first book this week was “A Symphony of Secrets” by Brendan Slocumb. It is the follow up to “The Violin Conspiracy. ” I think I enjoyed it a bit more than the debut, and would likely not recommend it to someone that doesn’t know quite a bit about music. I think the “Secrets” were obvious way to early in the book.

This paragraph entertained me, reminding me of Laura (our neuroscience friend) saying that one of her husband Alex’s best qualities was his “spatial awareness.”

“Eboni was brilliant – and at Columbia he’d encountered many very smart people. She told him once that she’d tested off the charts for spatial intelligence, which, in its simplest form, meant she was able to visualize shapes in three dimensions. She never got lost and could read a map at a glance.”

I love this section in which we meet Josephine Reed for the first time:

“-and then she turned another corner and from an open door, like mint in cool water or the smooth taste of fresh cream, the sound poured over her: a trombone, a clarinet, and then a trumpet lifting itself up like a benediction, blessing the air with a run of notes that Josephine breathed in like the smell of the earth after a spring rain.”

On listening to different recordings of the same music:

“For instance: on the first loop, he could focus on the cello line and wonder how the London Symphony Orchestra could play the lower notes so perfectly clear at such a fast tempo. The next time around, he’d sigh when the trumpet fanfares come through. Three times after, he was shocked that he hadn’t noticed the trumpets playing triplets, using two different notes. Man, this was double good.”

My next book was “Vanishing in the Haight” by Max Tomlinson. It is a murder cold case mystery set in and around San Francisco and it becomes very clear that the author spent many years in the area. His descriptions of routes, buildings, clubs are just too spot on to not be a local.

I sped through this book and enjoyed the pacing and unfolding of the plot very much.

This paragraph is interesting. I’m writing this from the hills on Sharp Park Road:

“Past the high school she cut a hard left without signaling, skidding onto Sharp Park Road. She climbed quickly into the hills, gunning the big V-8. The Torino roared towards the summit. But every time the road straightened out, she saw square headlights in her rearview.”

Here’s the online summary:

“Between fending off a lecherous parole officer and trying to get by in 1978 San Francisco, private investigator Colleen Hayes struggles to put her life back together so she can reconnect with her runaway teenage daughter. Then her life changes dramatically. She accepts a case from wealthy, retired industrialist Edward Copeland. The old man is desperate to solve the brutal murder of his daughter, a murder that took place in Golden Gate Park eleven years earlier—during the Summer of Love. The case has since gone cold, her murderer never found. Now, in his final days, Copeland hires Colleen to find his daughter’s killer in hopes he might die in peace. Colleen understands what it means to take a life—she spent a decade in prison for killing her ex. Battling her own demons, she immerses herself in San Francisco’s underbelly, where police corruption is rampant. Her investigation turns deadly as she pries for information, yet there is little to go on. However, a song on the radio makes her wonder—did the murdered girl leave any clues that others may have missed?”

Just one song this week, and it’s a great one:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!