I got a kick out of this article today about a thirty-something lawyer couple in my Brooklyn locale who have installed an adjunct to their townhouse with a large, clearly visible glass shower where they lather up in full view of the neighbors. The tipster reporting the story described the two as “not unattractive,” which I […]
Category Archives: Posting
Hand Rolled
Friday, August 9, 2013
A quick glance at the cover of the August edition of ‘Cigar Aficionado’ can tell you a lot about those who have a penchant for the panatella and read this magazine. Jeff Bridges is shown, smoke in hand, next to the tease ” ‘The Dude’ On Acting, Music And The Zen Of Cigars.” Other featured […]
Two-Fifty New York
Friday, July 19, 2013
Hot in New York. It’s never good when you’re looking toward the weekend, anxiously anticipating the ‘relief’ of a 93-degree day. But that’s what the city is in the summer, and running from it only takes more out of you. I made this observation with Tom Myers, who was out from Northern California last week: […]
Ten Years On
Monday, July 1, 2013
I found myself in the “Friends Circle” of the “Celebrate Brooklyn” concert series in Prospect Park on Friday night, the a cappella strains of Lady Blacksmith Mambazo in the air and the place awash in a sea of white, liberal guilt. Kids on annoying top-dollar push scooters abounded, many of the younger ones outfitted with […]
R.I.P. Jimmy G.
Friday, June 21, 2013
The word ‘everyman’ has been used a lot to describe James Gandolfini’s portrayal of mob boss Tony Soprano, particularly in the hours since the actor’s death Wednesday night in Rome. Physical descriptions – ‘balding’, ‘overweight’ – pop up in attempt to explain his accessibility, how what he did spoke to so many people. But there […]
Curbed
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Following up on my pal Denis Munro from the previous post .. he sent a reply once to a letter I mailed him in my early twenties. “Good to see your sardonic wit still intact,” he wrote. “Guard it always.” It was sound advice from an older friend that I perhaps failed to fully appreciate. […]
A Plain-Living Scotsman In America
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
My long-standing Scottish friend Denis Munro was in town last week completing the final leg of an Atlantic cruise with a short stint in Manhattan. Denis isn’t what you’d call a “man of excess.” His rule of thumb for both food and language is the same: keep it simple. ‘Exotic cuisine’ includes anything with salt […]
Boston Strong
Monday, April 22, 2013
Quite the one-week news cycle. From my somewhat skewed perspective, there are two distinct sides to the recent occurrences in Boston. There are the facts, which in this case are blatantly disturbing: innocent people losing their lives and limbs for no defensible reason. Long after all of this has receded from the general public’s frontal lobe, […]
The Ebert List
Friday, April 5, 2013
R.I.P. Roger Ebert. I’m not a big fan of list-writing but in this case it seems appropriate. Ebert will be missed for the following five reasons, and more. 1) He was an excellent and prolific writer who never over-wrote. Ebert’s ideas and interest in his subjects were paramount but his prose was accessible. If you […]
Eat-In Kitchens
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
“Of course the coffee’s HOT! So don’t be stupid!” Mazzola bakery, down the street on Union, includes this admonishment on their coffee cups. It’s the little shit that I appreciate about New York, still found in select corners and available to anyone willing to pay attention. I was giving a young visitor a tour of […]