Page Two Hundred Twenty-Nine.
I was invited to sell my mazto ball soup at an arts benefit over this last weekend. I feel like my matzo ball soup is gradually taking on a life of its own, but I don't mind that. I can't really say that I sold a lot, only about 10 quarts, but that's okay. The attendance was somewhat lower than anticipated so that was probably the reason I brought too much back home with me. I really did better than many of the other vendors, so I'm not going to complain.
I also made a fantastic connection. The vendor sitting next to me is on the board for another arts festival which is held every November and she LOVED me and my soup so she invited me to that other festival. The chairwoman for this other event happened to show up too, and was quite smitten with my product as well. She sent my application this morning.
Arts festivals are really a world all their own. I ran into an old friend, Randy, who's married to a jeweler who does exceedingly well working the circuit. Randy was manning his wife's booth and he told me that she travels all over Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Illinois and anywhere else possible. They put 35,000 miles on the car last year hawking her wares, but she supports the entire family financially. So there you go. It really is possible to make a living as an artist but hard work, perseverance, salesmanship and travel are definitely part of the equation.
And then you have people like me who sells artisanal foods at these events. I mean, let's be honest, you don't often see matzo ball soup being sold at arts festivals. I'm a novelty act.
When I was a child I read an Archie comic book in which Betty wanted to paint a picture of date-nut bread for the local art show. She started out by making a loaf to use as a model. Everybody in the neighborhood could smell the bread as it was baking so people kept approaching her to purchase some date-nut goodness. Eventually, she simply sold loaves at the art show and everybody was so thrilled with her bread that she won a prize. There you go. Art is art whether it's jewelry, date-nut bread or matzo ball soup. (As a matter of fact, when I was 18 I donated some homemade cookies to an art opening at a local non-profit art gallery. I won a blue ribbon for those things even though there was no official category for food. I forgot all about that until writing this blog.)
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Monday, April 28, 2014
Green Day's American Idiot - A Review
Page Two Hundred Twenty-Eight.
I recently saw the Broadway touring company of Green Day's American Idiot down at Playhouse Square. In a nutshell, it was good but not great. If you attend live performances to see the staging of a great and uplifting story, miss this. If however, you like loud, great rock music, fantastic sets, good singing and dancing then by all means attend this show the next time you see it being staged. Simple enough. My rating? 6/10
I recently saw the Broadway touring company of Green Day's American Idiot down at Playhouse Square. In a nutshell, it was good but not great. If you attend live performances to see the staging of a great and uplifting story, miss this. If however, you like loud, great rock music, fantastic sets, good singing and dancing then by all means attend this show the next time you see it being staged. Simple enough. My rating? 6/10
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Some Secrets To A Great And Healthy Omelet
Page Two Hundred Twenty-Seven.
Making an Omelet? Here's just a few little hints.
First of all, you can't skimp on the fat in the pan. Don't even try to reduce the fat content of this particular meal by adding less fat to the pan. All that'll happen is your omelet will be stuck to the skillet. You MUST use enough butter or oil. One thing you can do to make the omelet healthier is use a combination of fats. Reduce the amount of butter but then add some vegetable oil also. This combination will get the job done while reducing the saturated fat of the dish.
Another way to make a healthier dish is to use fewer yolks. The yolks of the egg are where the fat and cholesterol are, so ease up on them if on a health oriented diet. I typically go with 3 whites to 1 yolk, tossing the other 2 yolks down the drain. This combination reduces the fat by 2/3, obviously, but I still eat a pleasantly yellow omelet. I also get a high protein meal as the whites contain all of that muscle building goodness.
Finally, You can't cook up your veggies or meats while cooking your eggs. If adding veggies or meats like ham or salami, you should pre-saute them, then set aside and keep warm while cooking the eggs. Omelets cook really fast, way too fast to cook the other items. That's why the filler needs to be precooked. Another way to think about this is to remember that various foods cook at different rates. This is cooking 101 here. Eggs cook really fast, much faster than veggies. So... only add the hot veggies, meats or grated cheese for the last 30-40 seconds of the stove top time. That way you've timed everything together.
I bet I eat 5-7 omelets per week. Never boring and tres tasty!
Making an Omelet? Here's just a few little hints.
First of all, you can't skimp on the fat in the pan. Don't even try to reduce the fat content of this particular meal by adding less fat to the pan. All that'll happen is your omelet will be stuck to the skillet. You MUST use enough butter or oil. One thing you can do to make the omelet healthier is use a combination of fats. Reduce the amount of butter but then add some vegetable oil also. This combination will get the job done while reducing the saturated fat of the dish.
Another way to make a healthier dish is to use fewer yolks. The yolks of the egg are where the fat and cholesterol are, so ease up on them if on a health oriented diet. I typically go with 3 whites to 1 yolk, tossing the other 2 yolks down the drain. This combination reduces the fat by 2/3, obviously, but I still eat a pleasantly yellow omelet. I also get a high protein meal as the whites contain all of that muscle building goodness.
Finally, You can't cook up your veggies or meats while cooking your eggs. If adding veggies or meats like ham or salami, you should pre-saute them, then set aside and keep warm while cooking the eggs. Omelets cook really fast, way too fast to cook the other items. That's why the filler needs to be precooked. Another way to think about this is to remember that various foods cook at different rates. This is cooking 101 here. Eggs cook really fast, much faster than veggies. So... only add the hot veggies, meats or grated cheese for the last 30-40 seconds of the stove top time. That way you've timed everything together.
I bet I eat 5-7 omelets per week. Never boring and tres tasty!
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Quito Chapter 5. Telling William And Thomas.
Page Two Hundred Twenty-Six.
So Quito went home and found William and Thomas tuckpointing the chimney. (Tuckpointing is when you make the mortar in between the bricks look really good.) Parents had been nagging them to do it for a couple of days, and now Will and Tom were finally getting around to it. (They had a very tight schedule, you know.) They continued to work on the dark, brown chimney as Quito began telling them about his cold-fusion super-powers. At first they didn't believe him. "I don't believe you", said William while mixing the cement with his trowel.
"I don't believe you either, beguiling as your story is", piped little Thomas as he lay the new mortar. But then Quito lifted up the new, lemon yellow Maserati in the driveway and carried it around in his paws as he flew around the bright, sunshiny backyard. After that little demonstration they just had to believe him, for heaven's sake. They were properly amazed as he told them everything.
"So you have no idea whom the villains are when they'll come after you and attempt to neutralize your unearthly gifts?" squeaked Thomas.
"Nope, nope, nope", woofed, woofed, woofed Quito after putting the Maserati back and then reclining on the chaise lounge and sipping some pink lemonade.
"Well, you have us to protect you when they do show up", declared William.
****************** Many Augusts came and went; six to be exact. Parents had 2 more beautiful, stylish and hip children, Jackson and Jordan. As soon as they were each born Quito told them of his powers, just so they wouldn't be surprised when they saw him flying around. In fact, even Parents got used to his powers. They had him replace the aging roof as he could do it without an aluminum ladder. And, they also had Quito make and install a new concrete counter top in the kids' bathroom because he was able to lift it himself. Zachary, Judd and Nathanael continued to be nutty maniacs. But they were really kind, smart and nice. Also, their home was so beautiful that Architectural Digest came out and took photos for a spread entitled "Gorgeous Homes of Retired Eccentric Professors" Subsequently, all the neighbors overlooked their respective personality disorders.
One day in December of 2008 everybody was hanging out together. Quito was now 6, William was 9, Thomas 8, Jackson 2 and Jordan was a 1 year old toddler. They were eating a breakfast of ham and cheese omelets and homemade rye bread with orange marmalade all of which Jackson had made as he was refining his cooking skills. They were all concentrating on that day's New York Times, specifically a story about the effects of Gamma Rays on Man In The Moon Marigolds. Jordan was thinking that she'd like to study this type of thing when she went to university so she was just glued to the article as Jackson was reading aloud to everyone. The article ended and Jackson turned the page.
He encountered an article entitled "Villain to start adding more commercials for salty & sugary snacks to children's TV programming." Seems that Miss Wanda Villain, heir to the great Villain Dental Clinic fortune, had made the decision to invest in salty and sugary snacks to increase her dental business and was now buying up much time during cartoon shows to advertise these tooth rotting products. The article continued that Miss Villain of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, who's hobbies included: skiing; wind-surfing and watching children get fat and lazy, had come up with this fool-proof plan by which to make more money and then control the world. (She also knew that the extra commercials would make the kids crazy. And being a villain, driving kids crazy just thrilled her.) "I also need extra money because I want to install a new furnace in my home and it'll be really expensive", she was quoted as saying.
"Well, that's not very nice", said Jackson who was now changing Jordan's smelly, poopy diaper.
"And she lives in such close proximity to us", said Thomas.
"I'm not cool with this. This isn't groovy at all", said William.
"That stinks!", said Jordan. Nobody was sure if she was referring to the Villainous situation or her own diaper.
"Hmmm..." arfed Quito.
Then the doorbell rang.
Continued next week... Chapter 6. Miss Wanda Villain
So Quito went home and found William and Thomas tuckpointing the chimney. (Tuckpointing is when you make the mortar in between the bricks look really good.) Parents had been nagging them to do it for a couple of days, and now Will and Tom were finally getting around to it. (They had a very tight schedule, you know.) They continued to work on the dark, brown chimney as Quito began telling them about his cold-fusion super-powers. At first they didn't believe him. "I don't believe you", said William while mixing the cement with his trowel.
"I don't believe you either, beguiling as your story is", piped little Thomas as he lay the new mortar. But then Quito lifted up the new, lemon yellow Maserati in the driveway and carried it around in his paws as he flew around the bright, sunshiny backyard. After that little demonstration they just had to believe him, for heaven's sake. They were properly amazed as he told them everything.
"So you have no idea whom the villains are when they'll come after you and attempt to neutralize your unearthly gifts?" squeaked Thomas.
"Nope, nope, nope", woofed, woofed, woofed Quito after putting the Maserati back and then reclining on the chaise lounge and sipping some pink lemonade.
"Well, you have us to protect you when they do show up", declared William.
****************** Many Augusts came and went; six to be exact. Parents had 2 more beautiful, stylish and hip children, Jackson and Jordan. As soon as they were each born Quito told them of his powers, just so they wouldn't be surprised when they saw him flying around. In fact, even Parents got used to his powers. They had him replace the aging roof as he could do it without an aluminum ladder. And, they also had Quito make and install a new concrete counter top in the kids' bathroom because he was able to lift it himself. Zachary, Judd and Nathanael continued to be nutty maniacs. But they were really kind, smart and nice. Also, their home was so beautiful that Architectural Digest came out and took photos for a spread entitled "Gorgeous Homes of Retired Eccentric Professors" Subsequently, all the neighbors overlooked their respective personality disorders.
One day in December of 2008 everybody was hanging out together. Quito was now 6, William was 9, Thomas 8, Jackson 2 and Jordan was a 1 year old toddler. They were eating a breakfast of ham and cheese omelets and homemade rye bread with orange marmalade all of which Jackson had made as he was refining his cooking skills. They were all concentrating on that day's New York Times, specifically a story about the effects of Gamma Rays on Man In The Moon Marigolds. Jordan was thinking that she'd like to study this type of thing when she went to university so she was just glued to the article as Jackson was reading aloud to everyone. The article ended and Jackson turned the page.
He encountered an article entitled "Villain to start adding more commercials for salty & sugary snacks to children's TV programming." Seems that Miss Wanda Villain, heir to the great Villain Dental Clinic fortune, had made the decision to invest in salty and sugary snacks to increase her dental business and was now buying up much time during cartoon shows to advertise these tooth rotting products. The article continued that Miss Villain of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, who's hobbies included: skiing; wind-surfing and watching children get fat and lazy, had come up with this fool-proof plan by which to make more money and then control the world. (She also knew that the extra commercials would make the kids crazy. And being a villain, driving kids crazy just thrilled her.) "I also need extra money because I want to install a new furnace in my home and it'll be really expensive", she was quoted as saying.
"Well, that's not very nice", said Jackson who was now changing Jordan's smelly, poopy diaper.
"And she lives in such close proximity to us", said Thomas.
"I'm not cool with this. This isn't groovy at all", said William.
"That stinks!", said Jordan. Nobody was sure if she was referring to the Villainous situation or her own diaper.
"Hmmm..." arfed Quito.
Then the doorbell rang.
Continued next week... Chapter 6. Miss Wanda Villain
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Gefilte Fish
Page Two Hundred Twenty-Five.
'Tis the season for Gefilte Fish. I think I've covered this already in this blog, but in case I haven't, here's what gefilte fish is: finely chopped fish, onions, spices and other stuff all mixed up and turned into "fish loaves" smaller than a child's fist, then boiled to cook. Traditionally eaten with horseradish.
It's an acquired taste I think. Though I LOVE the stuff myself, I will admit that it is an oval, gray food which could be very intimidating to the uneducated palate. Most gefilte fish comes from a somewhat expensive can or jar. Few people actually make the stuff anymore, though some butchers and old ladies still do. It tends to run slightly sweet and salty, which may be why the hot/bitter horseradish goes so well with it; all the flavors balance each other out. It's extraordinarily healthy, running very high on the protein content and low on the fat.
It has turned into a traditional Jewish food though that's not how it started. According to tradition, centuries ago it was a Polish, seaside food which was then adopted by the Polish Jewish population. It's likely still found in the Polish seaside. Because we see so so much of it at Passover time, some non-Jews tend to think that it's a traditional Passover food. Not so. Traditional Jewish food, yes; traditional Passover food, no. Try it sometime. You may like it.
'Tis the season for Gefilte Fish. I think I've covered this already in this blog, but in case I haven't, here's what gefilte fish is: finely chopped fish, onions, spices and other stuff all mixed up and turned into "fish loaves" smaller than a child's fist, then boiled to cook. Traditionally eaten with horseradish.
It's an acquired taste I think. Though I LOVE the stuff myself, I will admit that it is an oval, gray food which could be very intimidating to the uneducated palate. Most gefilte fish comes from a somewhat expensive can or jar. Few people actually make the stuff anymore, though some butchers and old ladies still do. It tends to run slightly sweet and salty, which may be why the hot/bitter horseradish goes so well with it; all the flavors balance each other out. It's extraordinarily healthy, running very high on the protein content and low on the fat.It has turned into a traditional Jewish food though that's not how it started. According to tradition, centuries ago it was a Polish, seaside food which was then adopted by the Polish Jewish population. It's likely still found in the Polish seaside. Because we see so so much of it at Passover time, some non-Jews tend to think that it's a traditional Passover food. Not so. Traditional Jewish food, yes; traditional Passover food, no. Try it sometime. You may like it.
 |
| Home made gefilte fish with horseradish on a bed of greens |
Monday, April 21, 2014
Funsize - A Movie Reveiw
Page Two Hundred Twenty-Four.
Have you seen the movie Funsize? It came out in autumn of 2012 and is a juvenile and predictable movie about Halloween. Produced by Nickelodeon, it tells the story of a teenaged girl who looses her little brother while trick or treating. And it goes on from there.
It's really not bad at all for the younger set, though any supervision who might be babysitting said youngster may be a bit bored. It held my interest longer than it might entertain most adults because many of the outdoor scenes were filmed in and around the neighborhood where I live. In fact, a friend's house is in the background of one scene and a store where I occasionally shop figures into the plot line.
Funsize is not a great movie but a good Halloween movie for the preteen set. I give it a 4/10.
Have you seen the movie Funsize? It came out in autumn of 2012 and is a juvenile and predictable movie about Halloween. Produced by Nickelodeon, it tells the story of a teenaged girl who looses her little brother while trick or treating. And it goes on from there.
It's really not bad at all for the younger set, though any supervision who might be babysitting said youngster may be a bit bored. It held my interest longer than it might entertain most adults because many of the outdoor scenes were filmed in and around the neighborhood where I live. In fact, a friend's house is in the background of one scene and a store where I occasionally shop figures into the plot line.
Funsize is not a great movie but a good Halloween movie for the preteen set. I give it a 4/10.
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Are We Overprotecting Our Kids?
Page Two Hundred Twenty-Three.
Just a quick statement on this month's (April, 2014) cover story in Atlantic Magazine. Are contemporary American parents over-protecting their children to a degree where children's intellectual and creative growth are actually being thwarted? Good question. I'm inclined to say yes and I've been thinking it for quite sometime. We're inviting many problems by not letting our 9 year olds walk four blocks to school by themselves. The statistics indicate that 40 years ago child abduction by strangers was extremely rare and it still is today; the number hasn't changed. But we are living in a time of greater paranoia. Regardless of the numerous how comes, could this little act of being driven to school be one of the reasons why kids are so much fatter today than a generation ago? And so on, and so on, and so on.
The article is quite long but extremely enlightening and worthy, just so long as I'm not an overprotective parent who doesn't want to be told it.
Just a quick statement on this month's (April, 2014) cover story in Atlantic Magazine. Are contemporary American parents over-protecting their children to a degree where children's intellectual and creative growth are actually being thwarted? Good question. I'm inclined to say yes and I've been thinking it for quite sometime. We're inviting many problems by not letting our 9 year olds walk four blocks to school by themselves. The statistics indicate that 40 years ago child abduction by strangers was extremely rare and it still is today; the number hasn't changed. But we are living in a time of greater paranoia. Regardless of the numerous how comes, could this little act of being driven to school be one of the reasons why kids are so much fatter today than a generation ago? And so on, and so on, and so on.
The article is quite long but extremely enlightening and worthy, just so long as I'm not an overprotective parent who doesn't want to be told it.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Noodle Kugel To Dance For.
Page Two Hundred Twenty-Two.
Noodle Kugel is nothing but noodle pudding with a different name and. it's too good for words; in fact, even bad noodle kugel is still good. It's easy to make and it's not healthy at all, but who cares? Here's the best recipe I've found.
Ingredients:
NOODLE COMPONENT:
1 pound wide egg noodles
3/4 stick butter.
FILLING COMPONENT:
3 ounces cream cheese
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup apricot nectar
1 cup milk.
TOPPING:
3 cups crushed corn flakes - measured after crushing
3/4 stick softened butter
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350.
Cook and drain noodles; add butter.
While noodles are cooking, beat together all filling ingredients.
In 9" X 13" baking dish, mix noodles and filling.
Place all topping ingredients in large bowl and mix with fingers. Sprinkle over noodles.
Bake for 1 hour uncovered.
Yum, yum.
Noodle Kugel is nothing but noodle pudding with a different name and. it's too good for words; in fact, even bad noodle kugel is still good. It's easy to make and it's not healthy at all, but who cares? Here's the best recipe I've found.
Ingredients:
NOODLE COMPONENT:
1 pound wide egg noodles
3/4 stick butter.
FILLING COMPONENT:
3 ounces cream cheese
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup apricot nectar
1 cup milk.
TOPPING:
3 cups crushed corn flakes - measured after crushing
3/4 stick softened butter
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350.
Cook and drain noodles; add butter.
While noodles are cooking, beat together all filling ingredients.
In 9" X 13" baking dish, mix noodles and filling.
Place all topping ingredients in large bowl and mix with fingers. Sprinkle over noodles.
Bake for 1 hour uncovered.
Yum, yum.
Wednesday, April 16, 2014
Quito. Chapter 4. How Do You Know?
Page Two Hundred Twenty-One.
So, um, how do you know all this stuff about me and my new powers?", woofed Quito.
"Well, here it is", responded Judd quickly before his brothers had a chance to tell the story. (Again, he seemed proud to be saying anything remotely interesting.) "A couple of years ago, we all had the same dream on the same night. And even though it's been a few years, it was so intense that we all still remember it. We didn't know we'd had the same dream until we started talking and then we realized..."
"I was in a very famous New York city dance club from the 1970's named Studio 54", started Judd. "YMCA was blasting and everybody was dancing all over the place. They were really dressed wild too; lots of sequins on their shiny clothing and some people were in crazy costumes. I could barely see through the haze in the air due to the smoke from the smoke machine which also smelled so terrible I thought I 'd gag. Balloons, confetti and colored sprinkles were raining from the ceiling and everything was sparkling from the bright blinking lights. The music, colors and people were all really loud. But I was really there buying groceries for noodle kugel. You know, the noodles, the apricot nectar, cottage cheese, corn flakes... So I was walking around, pushing my yellow grocery cart and buying the food, but it was between rows of people dancing. Suddenly I saw a 6 foot high, shiny, chrome plated, pink wooden handled spatula walking toward me. Then she began talking."
"Judd, hi. My name is Tarantula, but my friends call me Ran. I want to tell you that one day in the future somebody you know will be slightly burned by a flaming ball from the sky and will then develop cold-fusion powered super powers. The reason he's going to get special powers is so he can protect the children of the Earth from all sorts of hard things like mean teachers, toys and computer games which look cool on TV but you get them home and they're really lame, things which will make them fat, terrible TV shows and movies, stupid songs and unreasonable parents. He's going to be able to fly and have super strength. He's going to have ESP for 5 minutes if he listens to any music by Henry Mancini and he'll be able to conjure up any person who's ever lived, even make believe people for 2 minutes to help him out when the bad guys get him. Except when he gets wet he'll loose all his powers, 'till he dries out. And he'll have other powers too which I'll tell you about later."
"But because of this, his life will be in danger 'cause the bad guys will always try to destroy him. And they can eliminate his super powers permanently, too. All they have to do is lift his front right paw and put it on his heart and while holding it there say, Oy Rebanish Alelim."
"Then Ran turned into a blue boutonniere made with hyacinth buds and butterfly wings and flew around. The Hokey-Pokey came on and everybody started doing that dance and then I was suddenly eating chicken fingers dipped into honey mustard sauce. All the confetti and things stopped falling from the ceiling and instead the club was open to the sky and all the stars were really twinkling and sparkling. Then Ran turned into a skunk and walked over to me. I picked her up and her fur was so soft. Then everything turned red and I woke up."
"And I'm telling you, my brothers and I all talked and discovered that we'd had that exact same dream. So when you showed up this morning with your powers, we weren't surprised." The three brothers looked at Quito. Only the sun's rays shining through the window and brightening the flying, sparkling dust provided any sound."
After a quick moment, Quito said, "how do I find the bad guys?"
"I think they'll find you", said Zachary.
Continued next week... Chapter 5. Telling William and Thomas
So, um, how do you know all this stuff about me and my new powers?", woofed Quito.
"Well, here it is", responded Judd quickly before his brothers had a chance to tell the story. (Again, he seemed proud to be saying anything remotely interesting.) "A couple of years ago, we all had the same dream on the same night. And even though it's been a few years, it was so intense that we all still remember it. We didn't know we'd had the same dream until we started talking and then we realized..."
"I was in a very famous New York city dance club from the 1970's named Studio 54", started Judd. "YMCA was blasting and everybody was dancing all over the place. They were really dressed wild too; lots of sequins on their shiny clothing and some people were in crazy costumes. I could barely see through the haze in the air due to the smoke from the smoke machine which also smelled so terrible I thought I 'd gag. Balloons, confetti and colored sprinkles were raining from the ceiling and everything was sparkling from the bright blinking lights. The music, colors and people were all really loud. But I was really there buying groceries for noodle kugel. You know, the noodles, the apricot nectar, cottage cheese, corn flakes... So I was walking around, pushing my yellow grocery cart and buying the food, but it was between rows of people dancing. Suddenly I saw a 6 foot high, shiny, chrome plated, pink wooden handled spatula walking toward me. Then she began talking."
"Judd, hi. My name is Tarantula, but my friends call me Ran. I want to tell you that one day in the future somebody you know will be slightly burned by a flaming ball from the sky and will then develop cold-fusion powered super powers. The reason he's going to get special powers is so he can protect the children of the Earth from all sorts of hard things like mean teachers, toys and computer games which look cool on TV but you get them home and they're really lame, things which will make them fat, terrible TV shows and movies, stupid songs and unreasonable parents. He's going to be able to fly and have super strength. He's going to have ESP for 5 minutes if he listens to any music by Henry Mancini and he'll be able to conjure up any person who's ever lived, even make believe people for 2 minutes to help him out when the bad guys get him. Except when he gets wet he'll loose all his powers, 'till he dries out. And he'll have other powers too which I'll tell you about later."
"But because of this, his life will be in danger 'cause the bad guys will always try to destroy him. And they can eliminate his super powers permanently, too. All they have to do is lift his front right paw and put it on his heart and while holding it there say, Oy Rebanish Alelim."
"Then Ran turned into a blue boutonniere made with hyacinth buds and butterfly wings and flew around. The Hokey-Pokey came on and everybody started doing that dance and then I was suddenly eating chicken fingers dipped into honey mustard sauce. All the confetti and things stopped falling from the ceiling and instead the club was open to the sky and all the stars were really twinkling and sparkling. Then Ran turned into a skunk and walked over to me. I picked her up and her fur was so soft. Then everything turned red and I woke up."
"And I'm telling you, my brothers and I all talked and discovered that we'd had that exact same dream. So when you showed up this morning with your powers, we weren't surprised." The three brothers looked at Quito. Only the sun's rays shining through the window and brightening the flying, sparkling dust provided any sound."
After a quick moment, Quito said, "how do I find the bad guys?"
"I think they'll find you", said Zachary.
Continued next week... Chapter 5. Telling William and Thomas
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Giving Up Church For Lent
Page Two Hundred Twenty.
I recently ran into a friend who gave up church for Lent. I'm not kidding. I truly thought she was joking when she told me, but she wasn't. She said that it really hurt her too. She felt terribly deprived by not being able to worship freely and in a manner with which she felt comfortable. After hearing her speak for a moment, I realized her point.
Can you imagine not being able to worship God in the manner to which you are accustomed or to be ostracized for it? We all know that this has happened countless times over the centuries and in various societies. Also, of course, it still is happening. In the news recently I heard a story about Christians who are harassed in certain Asian countries for praying as they do; Jews have a long history of receiving intolerance and Moslems in Western countries have been the recipients of definite prejudices since 9.11. And this isn't even to mention the Atheists or Humanists who are force-fed God and organized religion period by extremely ignorant friends or associates. We just can't let people pray, or not, as they see fit, in peace. The more I think about it, the more I respect my friend's decision to give up church for Lent. It really is a sacrifice for her.
How many people would go to another religion's house of worship for 6 weeks, to the exclusion of their own religion, just to gain a sense of gratitude for their own freedom of worship? Not very many, though they 'd be much less prejudiced afterwards.
I recently ran into a friend who gave up church for Lent. I'm not kidding. I truly thought she was joking when she told me, but she wasn't. She said that it really hurt her too. She felt terribly deprived by not being able to worship freely and in a manner with which she felt comfortable. After hearing her speak for a moment, I realized her point.
How many people would go to another religion's house of worship for 6 weeks, to the exclusion of their own religion, just to gain a sense of gratitude for their own freedom of worship? Not very many, though they 'd be much less prejudiced afterwards.
Monday, April 14, 2014
People Don't Do Things To Us...
Page Two Hundred-Nineteen.
Have you ever heard the saying: "People don't do things to us, they do things for themselves?" There's a lot of truth in that. When I realize that I may not be anywhere in the equation of another's actions, it makes it a whole lot easier to accept when they've done something which I interpret to be harmful or hurtful to me. And in turn, once I can accept somebody else's actions or words, even when they've impacted me negatively, then I can begin recuperating from them.
Just because somebody does something, anything, doesn't mean it had anything to do with me. Even if it directly affects me. I'm not the center of anybody else's universe.
Just because somebody does something, anything, doesn't mean it had anything to do with me. Even if it directly affects me. I'm not the center of anybody else's universe.
Friday, April 11, 2014
The Ten Commandments - A Movie Review
Page Two Hundred-Eighteen.
'Tis the season to view good 'ole Charlton Heston and mean 'ole Yul Brynner duking it out for the fate of the Hebrews. I'm in the middle of watching The Ten Commandments like I do almost every year at this time. It's fatefully inaccurate to the Torah but who cares? That flick never ceases to amaze me with it's over the top melodrama and baroque scenes. It's just a hoot. Will somebody please explain to me the meaning of Chuck's sideways ponytail? This classic definitely rates an 8/10.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Memorable Begian Waffles
Page Two Hundred-Seventeen.
Here's an easy trick to really memorable Belgian Waffles: add just a touch of almond extract and/or a touch of vanilla extract to your batter. It'll be heavenly. Also, feel free to add either of them to your whipped cream too.
Here's an easy trick to really memorable Belgian Waffles: add just a touch of almond extract and/or a touch of vanilla extract to your batter. It'll be heavenly. Also, feel free to add either of them to your whipped cream too.
Wednesday, April 9, 2014
Quito. Chapter 3. That's Not All
Page Two Hundred-Sixteen.
"What's cold-fusion mean?", arfed Quito after flying around the house and knocking down 2 Lichtenstein painting, 1 Picasso and 1 Tiffany lamp.
"Cold-fusion mean atomic power which can be created at room temperature. Normally for atomic power to occur, the temperature in the place where it's created has to get to thousands of degrees. But cold-fusion saves a lot of energy 'cause it doesn't have to get so hot", replied Zachary in between sneezes because apparently he either had allergies or a cold. He was, of course, a nuclear physicist so he knew all about that sort of complicated stuff.
Quito realized that he'd been gone from little William and Thomas for a long time and figured they'd be awake, roaming around and probably watching their favorite TV show, Dark Shadows, by now. Quito knew that Parents had probably already given them a nice breakfast of Belgian Waffles with local Ohio maple syrup freshly whipped cream and sliced ruby-red strawberries atop. And he was just as curious as you can imagine about how he became a cold-fusion puppy. He figured it was okay if he stayed at the neighbors for just a little while longer to learn more about his new "condition". Also, he needed to practice walking and lifting things normally again which the 3 brothers assured him he'd be able to do. They'd told him that the reason he broke the toilet was because he simply didn't know his own new strength. But with concentrating on a gentle touch, he wouldn't break things anymore. They also told him that getting wet eliminates all his cold-fusion special powers.
"So what started this whole thing, anyhow?" barked Quito as he and the gentlemen walked into the recently redecorated breakfast room with it's jade green wooden furniture, soft mint green walls, early-American style hammered copper lighting fixture and bright purple paintings on the walls. The eastern wall of windows were on fire like The Towering Inferno with the morning sun. The ray's warmth felt good on Quito's snout. Everybody sat down and the dog began trying to solve the Rubik's Cube which was sitting on the table.
"Well, here's the scoop", said Judd with the sort of voice that made you think he was proud of himself for saying something that somebody else actually wanted to hear. Meanwhile, Nathanael poured everybody tall glasses of freshly squeezed orange-grapefruit juice and served it over ice with sprigs of mint leaves. "That fireball from the sky was from the sun. We all know that the sun is a giant ball of gas which is on fire.Well, more often than you realize, some of that gas breaks away and travels quickly through space, still on fire. As it travels it attracts space dust, little rocks and stuff and gradually becomes a solid chunk. That's what landed next to you yesterday. When it scorched the little spot in your backyard, it made it and anything standing on it radioactive.That radioactivity is what made you super-powered.
"There's some other things also", interjected Nathanael.
"Wait!" said Zack and Judd almost in unison and almost in raised voices. "Should he know now?" asked one of them to the others.
"He's going to find out anyhow. He may as well hear it from us, right up front." Replied Nathanael. Then the men started arguing about whether or not to tell him something. They started calling each other all sorts of names. Dimwit, nimrod, dinkus-brain, stinky-butt, doofus and poopy-pants were just a few that Quito was able to make out. He also heard some actual constructive discussion between the brothers. After a few minutes, Zack and Judd shrugged their shoulders in a "guess you're right" sort of way. "Okay tell em", said somebody.
By this point, Quito was really curious, as you can assume, about what they were with-holding. As much as he had enjoyed flying all over the house he was also wondering what they were arguing about. (Just so you know, Quito was a very responsible, diligent, conscientious, good humored, likable and curious puppy. He cared about his projects and tried to do them as best as he could. He didn't pretend to know more than he did just to impress people. He knew that everybody had their own side to every story and that's it's important to listen to everybody's version of what happened and get all the facts before making any conclusions. He enjoyed helping others. And there were many other things that made people enjoy being around him. Basically, he was just a great dog. But he was really wondering what else was going on.)
"Well, here it is", said Nathanael as he was taking Ghostbusters off the Victrola because it was finished and then putting on Britney Spears' new record . "If you concentrate and think real hard about anybody who's ever lived, real of fiction, like on TV, in books or in movies you can make them come to life for 2 minutes and help you out of any jam you may be in. Also, you have ESP. You can now know what anybody is thinking for 5 minutes after listening to any Henry Mancini music." All 3 men looked at Quito, unsure of what he was thinking (because they didn't have ESP). For his part, Quito wasn't even sure what Quito was thinking. Except one thing he was definitely thinking was "who's Henry Mancini?"
Continued next week... Chapter 4. How do you know?
"What's cold-fusion mean?", arfed Quito after flying around the house and knocking down 2 Lichtenstein painting, 1 Picasso and 1 Tiffany lamp.
"Cold-fusion mean atomic power which can be created at room temperature. Normally for atomic power to occur, the temperature in the place where it's created has to get to thousands of degrees. But cold-fusion saves a lot of energy 'cause it doesn't have to get so hot", replied Zachary in between sneezes because apparently he either had allergies or a cold. He was, of course, a nuclear physicist so he knew all about that sort of complicated stuff.
Quito realized that he'd been gone from little William and Thomas for a long time and figured they'd be awake, roaming around and probably watching their favorite TV show, Dark Shadows, by now. Quito knew that Parents had probably already given them a nice breakfast of Belgian Waffles with local Ohio maple syrup freshly whipped cream and sliced ruby-red strawberries atop. And he was just as curious as you can imagine about how he became a cold-fusion puppy. He figured it was okay if he stayed at the neighbors for just a little while longer to learn more about his new "condition". Also, he needed to practice walking and lifting things normally again which the 3 brothers assured him he'd be able to do. They'd told him that the reason he broke the toilet was because he simply didn't know his own new strength. But with concentrating on a gentle touch, he wouldn't break things anymore. They also told him that getting wet eliminates all his cold-fusion special powers.
"So what started this whole thing, anyhow?" barked Quito as he and the gentlemen walked into the recently redecorated breakfast room with it's jade green wooden furniture, soft mint green walls, early-American style hammered copper lighting fixture and bright purple paintings on the walls. The eastern wall of windows were on fire like The Towering Inferno with the morning sun. The ray's warmth felt good on Quito's snout. Everybody sat down and the dog began trying to solve the Rubik's Cube which was sitting on the table.
"Well, here's the scoop", said Judd with the sort of voice that made you think he was proud of himself for saying something that somebody else actually wanted to hear. Meanwhile, Nathanael poured everybody tall glasses of freshly squeezed orange-grapefruit juice and served it over ice with sprigs of mint leaves. "That fireball from the sky was from the sun. We all know that the sun is a giant ball of gas which is on fire.Well, more often than you realize, some of that gas breaks away and travels quickly through space, still on fire. As it travels it attracts space dust, little rocks and stuff and gradually becomes a solid chunk. That's what landed next to you yesterday. When it scorched the little spot in your backyard, it made it and anything standing on it radioactive.That radioactivity is what made you super-powered.
"There's some other things also", interjected Nathanael.
"Wait!" said Zack and Judd almost in unison and almost in raised voices. "Should he know now?" asked one of them to the others.
"He's going to find out anyhow. He may as well hear it from us, right up front." Replied Nathanael. Then the men started arguing about whether or not to tell him something. They started calling each other all sorts of names. Dimwit, nimrod, dinkus-brain, stinky-butt, doofus and poopy-pants were just a few that Quito was able to make out. He also heard some actual constructive discussion between the brothers. After a few minutes, Zack and Judd shrugged their shoulders in a "guess you're right" sort of way. "Okay tell em", said somebody.
By this point, Quito was really curious, as you can assume, about what they were with-holding. As much as he had enjoyed flying all over the house he was also wondering what they were arguing about. (Just so you know, Quito was a very responsible, diligent, conscientious, good humored, likable and curious puppy. He cared about his projects and tried to do them as best as he could. He didn't pretend to know more than he did just to impress people. He knew that everybody had their own side to every story and that's it's important to listen to everybody's version of what happened and get all the facts before making any conclusions. He enjoyed helping others. And there were many other things that made people enjoy being around him. Basically, he was just a great dog. But he was really wondering what else was going on.)
"Well, here it is", said Nathanael as he was taking Ghostbusters off the Victrola because it was finished and then putting on Britney Spears' new record . "If you concentrate and think real hard about anybody who's ever lived, real of fiction, like on TV, in books or in movies you can make them come to life for 2 minutes and help you out of any jam you may be in. Also, you have ESP. You can now know what anybody is thinking for 5 minutes after listening to any Henry Mancini music." All 3 men looked at Quito, unsure of what he was thinking (because they didn't have ESP). For his part, Quito wasn't even sure what Quito was thinking. Except one thing he was definitely thinking was "who's Henry Mancini?"
Continued next week... Chapter 4. How do you know?
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Bad Words - A Movie Review
Page Two Hundred-Fifteen.
I recently saw a good movie. Bad Words directed and staring Jason Bateman is a comedy about spelling bees. If you're sensitive to naughty language, DON'T see it 'cause there's a lot of 'em in this movie. However, there's no sentimentality in it. Not easy to find a complete lack of sentimentality in a movie which co-stars children, but they managed. (It's virtually impossible for anything to be too sentimental for me, but I realize most people don't like that.) Overall, it's intelligent, well-acted and good escapist fare. The buddy whom I saw it with thought they dragged out the ending too long but I disagree. I'd give it a solid 7 out of 10.
I recently saw a good movie. Bad Words directed and staring Jason Bateman is a comedy about spelling bees. If you're sensitive to naughty language, DON'T see it 'cause there's a lot of 'em in this movie. However, there's no sentimentality in it. Not easy to find a complete lack of sentimentality in a movie which co-stars children, but they managed. (It's virtually impossible for anything to be too sentimental for me, but I realize most people don't like that.) Overall, it's intelligent, well-acted and good escapist fare. The buddy whom I saw it with thought they dragged out the ending too long but I disagree. I'd give it a solid 7 out of 10.
Monday, April 7, 2014
Congresswoman Marcia Fudge
Page Two Hundred-Fourteen.
When I started this blog in December of '12, I swore to myself that I wouldn't get political at all. Well, I'm going to break that rule just a touch today. Recently, while signing up for Obamacare, things just didn't add up properly. Dollar figures just seemed incorrect, unrealistic and unchangeable. So you know what I did? I went to my Congresswoman's office and told them. That's why they're here after all. So the staff worker who specializes in health related matters made a few phone calls and sent me to another office in another part of town where they signed me up with correct figures that made me smile. I'm one of the few Americans who's actually quite happy with his congressional representative.
It was really a rather giddy day for me in fact. I think I'll vote for her next autumn (Representative Marcia Fudge). I don't know why more Americans don't use their Congressional representative when they have issues.
When I started this blog in December of '12, I swore to myself that I wouldn't get political at all. Well, I'm going to break that rule just a touch today. Recently, while signing up for Obamacare, things just didn't add up properly. Dollar figures just seemed incorrect, unrealistic and unchangeable. So you know what I did? I went to my Congresswoman's office and told them. That's why they're here after all. So the staff worker who specializes in health related matters made a few phone calls and sent me to another office in another part of town where they signed me up with correct figures that made me smile. I'm one of the few Americans who's actually quite happy with his congressional representative.
It was really a rather giddy day for me in fact. I think I'll vote for her next autumn (Representative Marcia Fudge). I don't know why more Americans don't use their Congressional representative when they have issues.
Friday, April 4, 2014
And Another One Still About Playhouse Square
Page Two Hundred-Thirteen.
I forgot to mention in yesterday's blog some of the stuff which will be coming soon to Playhouse Square. This season (2013-14) is almost over, but you can still catch: Flashdance; Jersey Boys; Green Day's American Idiot (all 3 are Broadway's traveling shows); Shakespeare's As You Like It; A lecture by Bob Woodward; Jessica Lang Dance Company; Pinocchio; Ethan Bortnick; Eddie Izzard; The Cleveland Jazz Orchestra; Rent; Tracy Morgan; Elvis Costello; Beck and a couple dozen other things.
And then Playhouse Square's major events this summer will be lots of entertainment by and about the International Gay Games. The Gay Games will be in Cleveland this summer and the entire city is getting gussied up and rolling out the red carpet for that*.
Some of the entertainment for 2014-15 which has already been announced includes: Motown The Musical; Dirty Dancing; Disney's Newsies; Kinky Boots; Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella; Pippin; White Christmas (all previous shows are Broadway's traveling versions); The Little Foxes; Five Guys Named Moe; A Christmas Story, Stomp, I Love Lucy Live and probably another 100 or so things.
Seriously, I bet I could go down to Playhouse Square 100 nights per year and see something different. If that's an exaggeration it's not intentional. And almost all of those things would be superior or good quality. Not everything is good of course. Over the years, I've occasionally gone down and seen some things which were just terrible. I mean awful. But at least I got out of the apartment and ate a hot pretzel. Getting out to see a dreadful show and eating a hot pretzel is still better than sitting home, watching TV and inhaling stale air.
*The International Gay Games are essentially a gay version of the Olympics. They began in the 1980's and now attract over 10,000 athletes; the majority of them are Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender but some are Heterosexual. The Games will be in Paris in 2018.
I forgot to mention in yesterday's blog some of the stuff which will be coming soon to Playhouse Square. This season (2013-14) is almost over, but you can still catch: Flashdance; Jersey Boys; Green Day's American Idiot (all 3 are Broadway's traveling shows); Shakespeare's As You Like It; A lecture by Bob Woodward; Jessica Lang Dance Company; Pinocchio; Ethan Bortnick; Eddie Izzard; The Cleveland Jazz Orchestra; Rent; Tracy Morgan; Elvis Costello; Beck and a couple dozen other things.
And then Playhouse Square's major events this summer will be lots of entertainment by and about the International Gay Games. The Gay Games will be in Cleveland this summer and the entire city is getting gussied up and rolling out the red carpet for that*.
Some of the entertainment for 2014-15 which has already been announced includes: Motown The Musical; Dirty Dancing; Disney's Newsies; Kinky Boots; Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella; Pippin; White Christmas (all previous shows are Broadway's traveling versions); The Little Foxes; Five Guys Named Moe; A Christmas Story, Stomp, I Love Lucy Live and probably another 100 or so things.
Seriously, I bet I could go down to Playhouse Square 100 nights per year and see something different. If that's an exaggeration it's not intentional. And almost all of those things would be superior or good quality. Not everything is good of course. Over the years, I've occasionally gone down and seen some things which were just terrible. I mean awful. But at least I got out of the apartment and ate a hot pretzel. Getting out to see a dreadful show and eating a hot pretzel is still better than sitting home, watching TV and inhaling stale air.
*The International Gay Games are essentially a gay version of the Olympics. They began in the 1980's and now attract over 10,000 athletes; the majority of them are Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender but some are Heterosexual. The Games will be in Paris in 2018.
Thursday, April 3, 2014
Another One About Playhouse Square
Page Two Hundred-Twelve.
Recently, Tuesday evening April 1st to be exact, I went down to Playhouse Square to attend
opening night of Broadway's Flashdance which is currently touring the country. It was good, not spectacular, but good. Honestly, I've seen better plays in my life, but also many which were far worse. I think it would warrant a 6 on a 1-10 scale. But that's beside the point. As usual, I treated myself to a hot pretzel. Then, as I was leaving, all the leftover, unsold hot pretzels were left out for theater goers to take with them for free if desired. I took 2. They're in my fridge right now waiting desperately, nay anxiously, to be eaten.
I'm glad to see that the Cleveland Powers That Be are finally exploiting our Playhouse Square. Here it is, the 2nd largest concentration of theaters, stages and seats in North America and nobody outside of Cleveland knows about it. (There are probably some people in Cleveland who don't realize it.) Well that's about to change. They're doing some audacious streetscaping to put it on the map. Right now they're in the process of erecting 4, large, permanent steel archways proclaiming "Playhouse Square" over each avenue into the district. They've already installed 10 feet high TV screens above each major marquees on the north side of the street to advertise the corresponding show in that theater. Soon, they'll be installing "Playhouse Square" in 9 feet high - 48 feet long, letters atop one of the buildings. There are already a couple of news tickers, but I guess they'll be installing more. Then, the coup de gras: according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest, permanent, outdoor chandelier in the world will be strung up smack dab in the middle of Playhouse Square's primary intersection. Yeah, right. You heard me. Is somebody high?
General Electric has specifically designed this chandelier to allegedly survive a Cleveland, Ohio winter. This I gotta see. GE's lighting research facility is in Cleveland, a 7 minute drive from my apartment as a matter of fact. So you'd figure they'd know about our winters. Can you even imagine all those tiny little crystal tears crying because they're cold and lonely and just wanna go home? Lord help us.
The chandelier will be installed in a few weeks. The concrete and steel support system is already up. Then on May 2nd, after everything is finished there will be a special celebration with fireworks and the whole shebang.
So the next time you're here, in Cleveland, having surgery at one of the hospitals, going to a game, saying Hi! to the Beatles at the Rock Hall, or what have you, take in a show at Playhouse Square. Heaven knows there's no way you'll miss it (for the first time in it's 90 year history).
Recently, Tuesday evening April 1st to be exact, I went down to Playhouse Square to attend
 |
| Artist's Rendering |
I'm glad to see that the Cleveland Powers That Be are finally exploiting our Playhouse Square. Here it is, the 2nd largest concentration of theaters, stages and seats in North America and nobody outside of Cleveland knows about it. (There are probably some people in Cleveland who don't realize it.) Well that's about to change. They're doing some audacious streetscaping to put it on the map. Right now they're in the process of erecting 4, large, permanent steel archways proclaiming "Playhouse Square" over each avenue into the district. They've already installed 10 feet high TV screens above each major marquees on the north side of the street to advertise the corresponding show in that theater. Soon, they'll be installing "Playhouse Square" in 9 feet high - 48 feet long, letters atop one of the buildings. There are already a couple of news tickers, but I guess they'll be installing more. Then, the coup de gras: according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest, permanent, outdoor chandelier in the world will be strung up smack dab in the middle of Playhouse Square's primary intersection. Yeah, right. You heard me. Is somebody high?
 |
| Artist's Rendering |
The chandelier will be installed in a few weeks. The concrete and steel support system is already up. Then on May 2nd, after everything is finished there will be a special celebration with fireworks and the whole shebang.
So the next time you're here, in Cleveland, having surgery at one of the hospitals, going to a game, saying Hi! to the Beatles at the Rock Hall, or what have you, take in a show at Playhouse Square. Heaven knows there's no way you'll miss it (for the first time in it's 90 year history).
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Quito. Chaper 2. Quito The Astropup
Page Two Hundred-Eleven.
So the next morning, Quito woke up to the hypnotic, white noise of cold water running, as usual. He knew that almost every night little Thomas awoke and had to go tinkle. But the not really too old toilet needed a plumber because the water always continued running unless you lightly jiggled the chrome plated handle after flushing away the yellow. So Quito was forever waking up and first thing walking into the bathroom and jiggling said knob. Well, this morning when he took his first steps he went bouncing practically all the way up to his light blue bedroom ceiling, which as this was Shaker Heights, was 12 feet high. It was as if he were walking on the moon and there was less gravity than here on Earth.
"WHAT IN THE WORLD?!?!", he arfed to himself. He somehow made his way to the boy's bathroom with it's chartreuse glass cloth covered walls, but not without great effort. His movements actually looked more like a doggy swimming in a palm-encrusted Hawaiian pond than a normal canine walking to go fix a plumbing problem. And when he went to jiggle the shiny lever, he jiggled it right off the peacock-colored water tank and also cracked that same peacock-colored water tank. Subsequently, the tank proceeded to fall off the copper pipe it was sitting on and it, along with the cloisonne portrait of Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow which was sitting on it as decoration, went crashing to the floor breaking into a zillion pieces. Then, there was water gushing everywhere from that same copper water pipe. As Quito and bathroom got soaking wet he felt like he weighed a ton. Then he realized that he simply felt back to normal, like yesterday, prior to the pralines and cream gelato fireball.
He was really concerned, as you can imagine. He was quickly able to turn off the water which was so cold it was like the water that the Titanic sunk in. He then took some old yellow towels down from the linen closet and cleaned everything up. But he was freaking out, trying to figure out what had happened. After he dried out the bathroom and put the towels in the beautiful, shiny, new, royal blue Maytag drier he went to borrow a hair dryer from the next door neighbors so he could dry himself off. (Nobody in his house used a hair dryer, so there wasn't one around.)
His neighbors, 3 brothers who were all zany professors, lived in a large and beautiful, putty-colored, wood shingled, center hall colonial. They'd spent years renovating the home. But as they were all a bit nuts, every time they finished a project they put their tools and leftover supplies in the basement without organizing it. You cannot believe how disastrously their cellar was crammed full of old tools, sawdust, paint cans, wooden remnants, and even Noah's Ark which they happened to find on a long-ago trip to Turkey and had shipped home. The basement was gossiped about by the neighbors as much as the brothers. And that was a lot.
Judd was an astrophysicist; Nathanael was a biochemist and Zachary was a nuclear physicist. They were very eccentric but very pleasant retired gentleman who'd won 27 Nobel prizes between them and they chose to live together to save a few bucks. They were quite fond of their neighbors, particularly Quito and his family of humans, and always fed them whenever they cooked too much. Thankfully, they were home, watching Deputy Dawg, when Quito went over.
A while later... "Wait. Tell me the story again", asked Nathanael with a quizzical mix of astonishment and true lack of understanding because he was particularly daffy and somewhat hard of hearing. (Also they'd turned off Deputy Dawg because it's rude to watch television while company is over. But instead they put the soundtrack to Ghostbusters on the Victrola. And it was a little bit too loud.) So Quito related a second time the events of the morning. And, he gradually began drying off, but without realizing it. So 3 brothers continued listening intensely while eating their Curried chicken over white steamed rice which is quite an unusual breakfast but they had it left over from the night before.
"Tell me about your day yesterday", asked Zachary in between bites.
"It was normal except for the fireball which fell from the sky and almost burned me", replied Quito. "Otherwise, it was a perfectly average day."
"Was it a fireball the approximate size and shape of a scoop of pralines and cream gelato?", asked
Nathanael?
"Yeah."
"Afterwards, did you get a taste for homemade Hamburger Helper?", inquired Judd.
"Yup."
The three brothers looked at each other back and forth for a long moment. Then they all looked at Quito. Their expressions were understanding, joy, intensity, concern and anticipation all tossed into a Godiva chocolate gold gift bag, shaken up and then poured out into a Victorian, cut glass, candy dish.
"Quito, are you completely dry now?", asked one brother.
"Yeah. I think so", he replied while coincidentally reaching around and scratching his back.
"Okay", said Judd. "Now what I want you to do is concentrate on flight and lean back onto your hind legs and then push off and fly around the room, steering with your ears. But please don't hit the chandelier because we just had it cleaned. And cleaning a chandelier is a major household project"
Quito looked at Judd like he was a crazy nut (which, again, he was). But Quito thought, "what the hey?". And the next thing he knew, he was flying around and he did hit the chandelier which made quite a loud clatter.
"GOLLY WHIZBANG! THAT WAS COOLER THAN BEES KNEES!", Quito woofed loudly while smiling from ear to ear. The three brothers looked at him admiringly. Zachary said, "Quito, you're now a cold-fusion powered puppy. You're a real life astro-pup. And that's just the beginning."
To be continued next week... Chapter 3: That's not all.
So the next morning, Quito woke up to the hypnotic, white noise of cold water running, as usual. He knew that almost every night little Thomas awoke and had to go tinkle. But the not really too old toilet needed a plumber because the water always continued running unless you lightly jiggled the chrome plated handle after flushing away the yellow. So Quito was forever waking up and first thing walking into the bathroom and jiggling said knob. Well, this morning when he took his first steps he went bouncing practically all the way up to his light blue bedroom ceiling, which as this was Shaker Heights, was 12 feet high. It was as if he were walking on the moon and there was less gravity than here on Earth.
"WHAT IN THE WORLD?!?!", he arfed to himself. He somehow made his way to the boy's bathroom with it's chartreuse glass cloth covered walls, but not without great effort. His movements actually looked more like a doggy swimming in a palm-encrusted Hawaiian pond than a normal canine walking to go fix a plumbing problem. And when he went to jiggle the shiny lever, he jiggled it right off the peacock-colored water tank and also cracked that same peacock-colored water tank. Subsequently, the tank proceeded to fall off the copper pipe it was sitting on and it, along with the cloisonne portrait of Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow which was sitting on it as decoration, went crashing to the floor breaking into a zillion pieces. Then, there was water gushing everywhere from that same copper water pipe. As Quito and bathroom got soaking wet he felt like he weighed a ton. Then he realized that he simply felt back to normal, like yesterday, prior to the pralines and cream gelato fireball.
He was really concerned, as you can imagine. He was quickly able to turn off the water which was so cold it was like the water that the Titanic sunk in. He then took some old yellow towels down from the linen closet and cleaned everything up. But he was freaking out, trying to figure out what had happened. After he dried out the bathroom and put the towels in the beautiful, shiny, new, royal blue Maytag drier he went to borrow a hair dryer from the next door neighbors so he could dry himself off. (Nobody in his house used a hair dryer, so there wasn't one around.)
His neighbors, 3 brothers who were all zany professors, lived in a large and beautiful, putty-colored, wood shingled, center hall colonial. They'd spent years renovating the home. But as they were all a bit nuts, every time they finished a project they put their tools and leftover supplies in the basement without organizing it. You cannot believe how disastrously their cellar was crammed full of old tools, sawdust, paint cans, wooden remnants, and even Noah's Ark which they happened to find on a long-ago trip to Turkey and had shipped home. The basement was gossiped about by the neighbors as much as the brothers. And that was a lot.
Judd was an astrophysicist; Nathanael was a biochemist and Zachary was a nuclear physicist. They were very eccentric but very pleasant retired gentleman who'd won 27 Nobel prizes between them and they chose to live together to save a few bucks. They were quite fond of their neighbors, particularly Quito and his family of humans, and always fed them whenever they cooked too much. Thankfully, they were home, watching Deputy Dawg, when Quito went over.
A while later... "Wait. Tell me the story again", asked Nathanael with a quizzical mix of astonishment and true lack of understanding because he was particularly daffy and somewhat hard of hearing. (Also they'd turned off Deputy Dawg because it's rude to watch television while company is over. But instead they put the soundtrack to Ghostbusters on the Victrola. And it was a little bit too loud.) So Quito related a second time the events of the morning. And, he gradually began drying off, but without realizing it. So 3 brothers continued listening intensely while eating their Curried chicken over white steamed rice which is quite an unusual breakfast but they had it left over from the night before.
"Tell me about your day yesterday", asked Zachary in between bites.
"It was normal except for the fireball which fell from the sky and almost burned me", replied Quito. "Otherwise, it was a perfectly average day."
"Was it a fireball the approximate size and shape of a scoop of pralines and cream gelato?", asked
Nathanael?
"Yeah."
"Afterwards, did you get a taste for homemade Hamburger Helper?", inquired Judd.
"Yup."
The three brothers looked at each other back and forth for a long moment. Then they all looked at Quito. Their expressions were understanding, joy, intensity, concern and anticipation all tossed into a Godiva chocolate gold gift bag, shaken up and then poured out into a Victorian, cut glass, candy dish.
"Quito, are you completely dry now?", asked one brother.
"Yeah. I think so", he replied while coincidentally reaching around and scratching his back.
"Okay", said Judd. "Now what I want you to do is concentrate on flight and lean back onto your hind legs and then push off and fly around the room, steering with your ears. But please don't hit the chandelier because we just had it cleaned. And cleaning a chandelier is a major household project"
Quito looked at Judd like he was a crazy nut (which, again, he was). But Quito thought, "what the hey?". And the next thing he knew, he was flying around and he did hit the chandelier which made quite a loud clatter.
"GOLLY WHIZBANG! THAT WAS COOLER THAN BEES KNEES!", Quito woofed loudly while smiling from ear to ear. The three brothers looked at him admiringly. Zachary said, "Quito, you're now a cold-fusion powered puppy. You're a real life astro-pup. And that's just the beginning."
To be continued next week... Chapter 3: That's not all.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Beethoven's 6th Symphony
Page Two Hundred-Ten.
I'm listening to Beethoven's 6th symphony, The Pastoral, on the radio right now. It's one of my absolute favorite pieces of music of all time. It's all about a walk outside in the sunshine on a beautiful spring day after a long ridiculous winter. Can anyone relate to that?
About 17 or 18 years ago, I was trying to get motivated to clean my apartment. I really couldn't get going though. It just wouldn't happen. But I wanted a clean place so bad I could taste it. All of a sudden, the DJ announced that he'd be playing Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony next. I took it as a sign and gift from the Lord. If there's anything which can motivate me to shiny, sparkly-clean windows, it's the 6th. As soon as the music started I got out the wash pail and bottle of Mr. Clean.
If you think you don't know Beethoven's 6th, you actually may. It's in Disney's Fantasia. Do you remember the part where the horses are flying around the sky, it starts to rain and the Greek ruler gets drunk? That whole scene is set to the Pastoral Symphony.
While Ludwig's 5th does nothing for me, his 6th and, of course, 9th (The Choral Symphony) are just little bits of heaven. I find his 3rd (The Eroica Symphony) and 7th pleasant also. But please, keep the 5th away from me, unless it's Walter Murphy's version of course. Then it's okay.
About 17 or 18 years ago, I was trying to get motivated to clean my apartment. I really couldn't get going though. It just wouldn't happen. But I wanted a clean place so bad I could taste it. All of a sudden, the DJ announced that he'd be playing Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony next. I took it as a sign and gift from the Lord. If there's anything which can motivate me to shiny, sparkly-clean windows, it's the 6th. As soon as the music started I got out the wash pail and bottle of Mr. Clean. If you think you don't know Beethoven's 6th, you actually may. It's in Disney's Fantasia. Do you remember the part where the horses are flying around the sky, it starts to rain and the Greek ruler gets drunk? That whole scene is set to the Pastoral Symphony.
While Ludwig's 5th does nothing for me, his 6th and, of course, 9th (The Choral Symphony) are just little bits of heaven. I find his 3rd (The Eroica Symphony) and 7th pleasant also. But please, keep the 5th away from me, unless it's Walter Murphy's version of course. Then it's okay.
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