Barry Anthony
1952 - 2016
Barry was a longtime member of the South Bay New Orleans Jazz Club. He was an enthusiastic performer who played a hell of a trumpet. He also could have doubled for Gene Wilder, being a near twin physically. He was only 64 when a massive "nothing that could be done about it" heart attack felled him. He will be missed - and Gene Wilder can relax!
Monday, November 14, 2016
Saturday, November 12, 2016
Border Crossing
As usual in a Presidential election, a number of notables have threatened to leave America and go live somewhere else. This year, the destination list had a few surprises (for me) with sites such as Spain and New Zealand. Frankly, I think the planet idea is, um, doomed, but carry on! Nothing against Spain or NZ! For a full list of potential border crossers, please see "Hanging Chads" the 11/7/16 column.
Meanwhile in an effort to be as helpful as possible to all, I looked up how to behave in Canada which was the most-mentioned sanctuary. The first thing I learned is that Canadians are very very polite. Accidentally step on another's foot? Apologize endlessly. Moreover the stepped upon will apologize to the stepper for being in the way! This can eat up a good portion of time. Plan appointments with it in mind.
Canada already has a number of born-there dignitaries; a partial list includes William Shatner (except I think he's dead now,) Keaunu Reeves, Ryan Goslin, Jim Carrey, Pamela Anderson and Alex Trebek.
However Canada has generously said that we should feel free to keep Justin Bieber and Celine Dion.
Not surprisingly in a nation that apologizes profusely, a gentle handshake - palm to palm, no squeeze - is suggested when meeting First Nations (Indians?) as squeezing is considered aggressive. And since I don't even know whether or not, they are Indians or Native Canadians or hot-tempered, prudence is advised.
"Grab and go" as in something to eat and then "eaten on the hoof" while walking are very definitely considered bad manners. Take the time, go to a restaurant and sit down. Their streets are not grazing pastures. Although probably the worst that can happen to you (given their extraordinary good manners) would be a withering glare and a pointed look at your food item. If said Canadian is really in a bad mood, you may also be on the receiving end of a loud sniff.
Happily, they will not grab your lunch and throw it in the gutter. Any action as aggressive as that would probably kill them. Apologize, if this happens to you, and post-lunch, make a real point of neatly bagging up your detritus and putting it in the trash. No worries, émigrés! You'll get along fine in Canada!
Meanwhile in an effort to be as helpful as possible to all, I looked up how to behave in Canada which was the most-mentioned sanctuary. The first thing I learned is that Canadians are very very polite. Accidentally step on another's foot? Apologize endlessly. Moreover the stepped upon will apologize to the stepper for being in the way! This can eat up a good portion of time. Plan appointments with it in mind.
Canada already has a number of born-there dignitaries; a partial list includes William Shatner (except I think he's dead now,) Keaunu Reeves, Ryan Goslin, Jim Carrey, Pamela Anderson and Alex Trebek.
However Canada has generously said that we should feel free to keep Justin Bieber and Celine Dion.
Not surprisingly in a nation that apologizes profusely, a gentle handshake - palm to palm, no squeeze - is suggested when meeting First Nations (Indians?) as squeezing is considered aggressive. And since I don't even know whether or not, they are Indians or Native Canadians or hot-tempered, prudence is advised.
"Grab and go" as in something to eat and then "eaten on the hoof" while walking are very definitely considered bad manners. Take the time, go to a restaurant and sit down. Their streets are not grazing pastures. Although probably the worst that can happen to you (given their extraordinary good manners) would be a withering glare and a pointed look at your food item. If said Canadian is really in a bad mood, you may also be on the receiving end of a loud sniff.
Happily, they will not grab your lunch and throw it in the gutter. Any action as aggressive as that would probably kill them. Apologize, if this happens to you, and post-lunch, make a real point of neatly bagging up your detritus and putting it in the trash. No worries, émigrés! You'll get along fine in Canada!
Friday, November 11, 2016
The Traditional Thanksgiving Pie ISN'T Pumpkin?
Great Caesar's ghost - hand me my smelling salts! And this is why I am half-fainting right here at the keyboard. Briefly - I came across what I thought of as a lovely compromise pie (more of which in a minute) and, spurred on as always, to be accurate I delved into the online belly of the beast known as Google. I wanted to make sure that pumpkin was the pie of tradition and, more importantly, by how much.
Brace yourselves:
Apple 20%
Strawberry 19% (and don't mortgage the house to pay for them in the Northeast)
Pumpkin (a respectable third) 16%
Cherry 13%
Blueberry 9%
Pecan and Lemon Meringue tied at 8%
Chocolate 5% in
Unwelcome statistics indeed. And here I thought I'd found the perfect compromise...
PECAN PUMPKIN PIE
Layer by layer, we discover - bottom layer, the crust of choice (store-bought Graham cracker here)
Spread carefully over it, the pumpkin mixture, all smoothed out to receive the final layer - the pecan mixture gently made to nestle atop the pumpkin.
This would have seemed to be a nearly perfect finish to the traditional turkey dinner. Especially since pumpkin is 16th in popularity and pecan 8% for a total of 24%. Take that apple pie.
Brace yourselves:
Apple 20%
Strawberry 19% (and don't mortgage the house to pay for them in the Northeast)
Pumpkin (a respectable third) 16%
Cherry 13%
Blueberry 9%
Pecan and Lemon Meringue tied at 8%
Chocolate 5% in
Unwelcome statistics indeed. And here I thought I'd found the perfect compromise...
PECAN PUMPKIN PIE
Layer by layer, we discover - bottom layer, the crust of choice (store-bought Graham cracker here)
Spread carefully over it, the pumpkin mixture, all smoothed out to receive the final layer - the pecan mixture gently made to nestle atop the pumpkin.
This would have seemed to be a nearly perfect finish to the traditional turkey dinner. Especially since pumpkin is 16th in popularity and pecan 8% for a total of 24%. Take that apple pie.
November 11, 2016
Thank you, veterans, for your service whether you were in an active war at the front of the action or back in a field kitchen peeling potatoes.
Thursday, November 10, 2016
"Was It Crowded at Your Polling Place?" A Cross-Country Sampling
San Diego, CA I voted by mail - that way I didn't have to deal with anyone.
Kansas City, MO We were told there were big crowds at 8:30 a.m. before we got there at 9:30 a.m. There were four of us voting at a time with seven poll workers. I.D. was your driver's license, but we didn't have to sign.
Harlingen, TX Voted early, so don't know.
Temple, TX One mail in and one walk in.
Anderson, IN Five people, five machines but by the time we checked in, we went directly to a machine and voted. Driver's license or state-issued i.e. required.
Redondo Beach Shared polls with a neighboring area of Manhattan Beach Largest voter turn-out in the 33 years we've lived here. At least 10 voting booths; all of which were in continual use.
Waiting for word back from Long Island and Florida as well as Illinois. As or if they filter in, will add them here.
Kansas City, MO We were told there were big crowds at 8:30 a.m. before we got there at 9:30 a.m. There were four of us voting at a time with seven poll workers. I.D. was your driver's license, but we didn't have to sign.
Harlingen, TX Voted early, so don't know.
Temple, TX One mail in and one walk in.
Anderson, IN Five people, five machines but by the time we checked in, we went directly to a machine and voted. Driver's license or state-issued i.e. required.
Redondo Beach Shared polls with a neighboring area of Manhattan Beach Largest voter turn-out in the 33 years we've lived here. At least 10 voting booths; all of which were in continual use.
Waiting for word back from Long Island and Florida as well as Illinois. As or if they filter in, will add them here.
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
Tuesday, November 8, 2016
How Ironic Is This?
The US Marine Corps, founded in 1775, celebrates their 241st birthday on November 10th, 2016, two days after Election Day as a sitting President of the United States is inviting illegal aliens to vote with no repercussions.
I don't think somehow that this is exactly what the Marines were thinking of back then...
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