HOLIDAY

Ev’ry day’s a holiday
And ev’ry meal a feast
At least, that’s what I’m thinking
As I make the Two-Backed Beast

BLOGMEET TREATS

Gatherings of bloggers (or former bloggers) do not run solely on the energy generated by their Witty Repartee, no, no. They are fueled by food and drink, the latter largely consisting of Adult Beverages.  The recent get-together at Eric’s was no exception, and there was plenty of tasty stuff to keep the hunger and sobriety pangs away.


A lovely bottle of Nolet’s gin. [Photo: Erica Sherman.]

A Nolet’s gin and tonic? Why, don’t mind if I do.


Two fine malts. The one on the left is from the Tobermory distillery on the island of Mull.

What? There’s single malt Scotch too? I suppose a wee dram or two (or five) won’t hurt.

Eric is a master at the grill. Here’s a pile of his dastardly mustardly country-style ribs... 



An assortment of home-canned goodies, courtesy of Miss Callie...



And then there’s the Sweet Stuff...


Pistachio and sour cherry biscotti.


Chocolate bread. (Yes, chocolate bread.)

Alas, I have no photos of Bou’s pumpkin-apple dump cake or of SWMBO’s apricot kugel (a perennial favorite), but you can bet they both got devoured.

CHAPEAUX

One of the little pleasures of attending the Hysterics at Eric’s - the annual birthday celebration hosted by our beloved Tennessee Renaissance Man and infrequent blogger - is the chance to play with his Collection o’ Covers.

Lookee:


Hats! Photos courtesy honorary blogger Gary Feinberg.

Eric has quite the Hatly Assortment.  Marine covers, both modern and antique... fedoras (including a marvelous Brooks Brothers trilby, vintage 1952)... a Glengarry cap... a selection of pith helmets... and even a fez emblazoned with the arcane symbol of the Knights of Saint Monica, protector of drunkards and wayward children.

About the only thing missing is a colander.

Oh - did we have a good time? Yes, we did. More pics and verbiage to follow.

FAREWELL, GRACIE

Gracie. Requiescat in pace.  (Photo: Meryl Yourish.)

Meryl Yourish reports the passing of her beloved sixteen-year-old kitty Gracie.

Gracie has been a part of my life - albeit at a distance - for the past nine years now. It’s hard to believe she’s gone, but, alas, that’s what our Animal Companions do. They stay with us long enough to become an indispensable part of our lives... and then they break our hearts when they leave us.

Our condolences to Meryl, who at least will have Tig to comfort her. Godspeed, Gracie - ave atque vale!

THE ELISSON BOOKSHELF

Time once again to fill you in on the books I’ve been reading.

The photo of the bookshelf above is slowly becoming less and less representative of my current reading, given that a goodly percentage of it - over 41% in the past seven months - is now in the form of e-books. Their main advantage over dead trees, of course, is portability: I can schlep a whole library’s worth on my iPad. Also, instant delivery of purchases makes e-books an impulse buyer’s dream. Having said that, I still enjoy a real, honest-to-Gawd hardcopy book, and my bulging shelves will attest to that enjoyment.

Here are the last few months’ worth of reads, with electronic versions marked with an asterisk:

April

• Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal* - Mary Roach

Mary Roach is a past master at looking at scientific topics with a skewed, somewhat tongue-in-cheek perspective. In this charming book she takes on the human digestive system, with all the revolting connotations that topic carries. Don’t miss the chapter about Elvis Presley’s hugely distended colon.


• The Trajectory of Dreams* - Nicole Wolverton

Lela White lives in the grip of a mental disorder that compels her to break into astronauts’ homes in order to monitor their sleep habits, thus keeping the U.S. space program safe from fatal accidents. Wolverton does a very effective job of placing you inside Lela’s head... a damnably scary place to be.


• The Day My Brain Exploded* - Ashok Rajamain

A first-person perspective on what it’s like to suffer a massive brain aneurysm... and survive.


• Ghost Wave: The discovery of Cortes Bank and the biggest wave on Earth* - Chris Dixon

Ever since I was a Snot-Nose, I’ve been fascinated by huge waves. Other people, far more insane than I, take their fascination to the next level by actually surfing the fucking things. Now, with the advent of Jet-Ski-powered tow surfing, truly monstrous waves are now surfable... if you’re crazy enough to want to do it. 


• The Drunken Botanist: The Plants That Create The World’s Great Drinks - Amy Stewart

If it’s a plant that grows on this planet, you can take it to the bank that people have made alcoholic beverages from it.

May

• Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation - Michael Pollan
  
  A tale of how food is transformed from its raw components into Tasty Comestibles, viewed through the elemental lenses of Fire (roasting meats), Water (braises, stews, and other moist cooking methods), Air (leavening and breadmaking), and Earth (fermentation). A fascinating study by the author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma.
  

June

• My Beloved Life - Sonia Sotomayor
  
  Not so much an autobiography as a memoir, by the second newest member of the Supreme Court... and the freshman year roommate of one of my college girlfriends.
  
  
• Anti-Judaism: The Western Tradition - David Nirenberg
  
  Anti-Judaism, the use of purportedly “Jewish” ideas as straw men against which to direct one’s polemics, is distinct from anti-semitism, hatred directed specifically against Jews. The premise of this book is that the fundamental questions and dichotomies of Western civilization have been couched in terms of being “Jewish” or “non-Jewish” since the days of the early Egyptians.
  

July

• Prague Winter: A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948* - Madeleine Albright
  
  Albright alternates between her family’s history and that of her native country, Czechoslovakia in this historical memoir.
  
  
• Defending Jacob: A Novel*- William Landay
  
  What do you do when you’re a detective and your own son becomes the prime suspect in a murder?


• The Skies Belong to Us: Love and Terror in the Golden Age of Hijacking*- Brendan I. Koerner
  
  Some of us are old enough to remember a time in the 1960’s when airliners were being hijacked almost every week - sometimes more than one in a single day.  Koerner’s book discusses the peculiar popularity of skyjacking, focusing on one memorable escapade involving a lovestruck couple with vague political aspirations.  It almost reads like a novel, but it’s a true story.

August

• Bloodchild and Other Stories* - Octavia Butler
  
  The late Octavia Butler shines in this little collection of short stories, some with truly horrific, thought-provoking premises.
  

September

• Oh Myyy! (There Goes The Internet)*- George Takei
  
  From Star Trek actor to humanitarian spokesperson and Internet phenomenon, George Takei has had a very interesting history.  An amusing read by the Facebook superstar.
  
  
• And the Mountains Echoed* - Khaled Hosseini
  
  The often heartbreaking stories of the various members of an Afghan family.
  
  
• The Secret History of the CIA - Joseph J. Trento
  
  The depressing history of the shadowy intelligence service during the Cold War... depressing mainly because so much of what they did over the years was stupid and unnecessary, not to mention completely transparent to the Soviets.
  

October

• The Ascent of George Washington: The Hidden Political Genius of an American Icon - John Ferling
  
  Most of us think of George Washington as being somehow above politics, such is his status as American icon.  But the Father of our Country was intensely political and strongly determined to increase his personal wealth and status... and a master at dodging responsibility for numerous failures.  Ferling shows us a very human - and nevertheless still iconic - George Washington.
  
  
• The Irregulars: Roald Dahl and the British Spy Ring in Wartime Washington - Jennet Conant
  
  Many of us think of Roald Dahl as the guy who created Willy Wonka, but he was really a man of many parts, traveling among the highest social circles and nailing wealthy, beautiful, well-connected women.
  

So what have you been reading lately?

TO A HAGGIS

O, Chieftain of the Pudding Race
Doo dah, doo dah
Around you I will wrap my face
O, doo dah day

TIED UP IN KNOTTS

Knottsferatu!

Some of my Esteemed Readers may have seen the above little gem floating around the Internet.  Hardly a surprise, for anything George Takei sticks up on his Facebook page will circulate like clap at a whores’ convention.

The late Don Knotts, he of Andy Griffith Show fame, later the ridiculous landlord in the Three’s Company TV series, had the kind of phiz that practically forced his career choice down his throat: accountant or comic actor.  Alas, he is gone the Way of All Flesh now, and only characters like Barney Fife, Mr. Furley, and (Gawd save us) The Incredible Mr. Limpet remain behind to preserve his memory.

Gotta love that punim, though.  So versatile.  So amusing!  Lookee:


“I love a man in uniform.” - Aunt Beeski

SCARY NAILS, 2013 EDITION

The Missus sure do love her Scary Nails this time of year...

CHALLAH & STELLA

Yes, it’s all about Bread ’n’ Kitties here at the House of Elisson...


Today’s lovely loaf: a four-strand braid.


Miss Stella displays her favorite crossed-paws pose. “Hey, you gonna eat all of that challah, bub?”

It’s Friday.  Do you know where your bread and cats are?

STELLA

What are you looking at, Bub?

Meet Stella, the newest member of the Elisson household.

She’s a whole lotta kitty, Miss Stella is: a two-year-old Ragdoll, weighing in at something on the order of 14 pounds.  When she suddenly found herself in need of a new home - her owners being unable to continue caring for her - SWMBO’s brother and SIL in Denton, Texas provided her a foster home until we could come and get her.  She spent a blissful month with them, terrorizing their other two cats (one of whom, Brando, is her younger sibling)... and after a long but uneventful journey, she is now making herself at home here at Chez Elisson.

It’s nice to have a kitty here again.  Since Levon’s premature - and heartbreaking - departure, it has been all too quiet.  Now we can enjoy the company of this sweet new furbaby.

Now, where did she run off to?

<KOWALSKI>Stelllllllaaaaaaa!</KOWALSKI>

HORSING AROUND

Today I saw a man about a most enormous horse.
I pulled the silver handle and I launched him on his course.
He galloped through the cisterns and the culverts underground,
And through the darkness found his way, more swift than any hound.
His destination was a pool, all dark and deep and rank,
And when at last he reached it, why, into it he sank.
But do not weep or grieve for my enormous equine, brother -
Just give me but a day or two and I’ll create another.

Post-Scriptum:
Another steed! as massive as the first!
In size and shape much like a liverwurst.

ELECTRONICA IKEATICA

Yesterday, the Missus and I spent a little time at IKEA, wandering around the aisles of exotically named furnishings and household doodads.  But before we could do any serious shopping for that wonderful Swedish FÜKKENSTÖFF, we needed to fortify ourselves... so we stopped in at the store’s restaurant for some gravlax and meatballs.

Swedish meatballs, or as they are referred to in Sweden, “meatballs,” are often served with a splorp of lingonberry preserves.  After a hearty meal, it is traditional to retire to the toaletten, where freshly created “lingon logs” may be dropped off at the pool.

She Who Must Be Obeyed and I were sitting and enjoying our tasty svensk måltid when we saw a little girl - probably all of three years old - amusing herself by straightening up the chairs in what appeared to be a seating area for children.  There was a flat-screen television set mounted on the wall there, low to the ground.  After a few minutes, the Missus said, “Look at that,” inclining her chin in the direction of the teevee, where the girl was busily swiping her finger on the words displayed on the screen.

It was pretty obvious what was going on. Here was a child of the Digital Age, one who was likely more familiar with using an iPad and similar Ars Electronica at her tender age than anything made out of dead trees.  If it was flat and electronic, it just had to be a giant iPad!  She knew exactly where the controls were, too: When the screen failed to respond to her finger-swipes, she reached around the side and began mashing the input buttons in an attempt to reboot the device.

I suppose this is the future: Everything will be all Touchy-Screeny, and woe unto those who do not know how to use the interface.  We’ll all be like Tom Cruise in Minority Report, waving our hands around, communicating via ass-holograph... and a little child shall lead us.

The whole episode reminded us of a recent Adventure in Elissonian Stupidity.  A few weeks ago I had been sitting in our family room, looking at some photos on one of our many electronickal devices.  At some point I observed, frustratedly, that the screen was not responding to my finger-swipey attempts to move from one image to the next... at which point both the Missus and the Mistress of Sarcasm pointedly reminded me that I was using the Mistress’s MacBook Air, not my iPad.  Derp!

But that’s OK.  At least I know what the hell an iPad is.  Not all us Old Guys can say that.

AN EVENING WITH THE BOYS

The boys enjoy Meat and Malt in the Mishkan. [Photo ©2013 Kissed with Light Photography, used with permission.]

This Tuesday just past afforded me and a few of the guys an opportunity to enjoy a few wee drams and some Tasty Meatstuffs.  Yes - it was our annual “Steak in the Sukkah, Tipple in the Tabernacle” Men’s Club event.

It’s hard to argue over the merits of a Black Angus 20-ounce bone-in ribeye.  Kosher, no less!  Mine was done to a perfect medium-rare, and while the green salad and baked potato that kept it company on the plate were not especially fancy, they were just right.

And then there was the single-malt Scotch.  Six of ’em, with flavor profiles ranging to mellow caramel to full on peat and smoke.


Six - count ’em! - six kinds of Scotchy Goodness.  [Photo ©2013 Kissed with Light Photography, used with permission.]

Surprisingly, there were leftovers.  (Of Scotch, not steak.)  Those ended up in the Men’s Club liquor locker, to be trotted out during Simchat Torah, when it is traditional to drink until one cannot tell Genesis from Deuteronomy, and on random Sabbaths.  L’chaim!


Me and Mr. Aberlour. This bottle was the first to go. Ave atque (hic!) vale!  [Photo ©2013 Kissed with Light Photography, used with permission.]

VALE ATQUE AVE

“And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the LORD showed him all the land, even Gilead as far as Dan; and all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah as far as the hinder sea; and the South, and the Plain, even the valley of Jericho the city of palm-trees, as far as Zoar. And the LORD said unto him: ‘This is the land which I swore unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying: I will give it unto thy seed; I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither.’ So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD. And he was buried in the valley in the land of Moab over against Beth-peor; and no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.

“And Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; so the days of weeping in the mourning for Moses were ended. And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him; and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the LORD commanded Moses. And there hath not arisen a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face; in all the signs and the wonders, which the LORD sent him to do in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land; and in all the mighty hand, and in all the great terror, which Moses wrought in the sight of all Israel.”  (Deuteronomy 34:1-12)

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Now the earth was unformed and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters. And God said: ‘Let there be light.’ And there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.

“And God said: ‘Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.’ And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.

“And God said: ‘Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters called He Seas; and God saw that it was good. And God said: ‘Let the earth put forth grass, herb yielding seed, and fruit-tree bearing fruit after its kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth.’ And it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, herb yielding seed after its kind, and tree bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after its kind; and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a third day.

“And God said: ‘Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so. And God made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night; and the stars. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.

“And God said: ‘Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let fowl fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.’ And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that creepeth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after its kind, and every winged fowl after its kind; and God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying: ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.’ And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.

“And God said: ‘Let the earth bring forth the living creature after its kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after its kind.’ And it was so. And God made the beast of the earth after its kind, and the cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good. And God said: ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.’ And God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them. And God blessed them; and God said unto them: ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that creepeth upon the earth.’ And God said: ‘Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed—to you it shall be for food; and to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is a living soul, [I have given] every green herb for food.’ And it was so. And God saw every thing that He had made, and, behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

“And the heaven and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and hallowed it; because that in it He rested from all His work which God in creating had made.”  (Genesis 1:1-31, 2:1-3)

Thus the cycle begins anew... for today, on the final day of the Red Sea Pedestrian Holiday Season, we conclude our reading of the Torah - the Pentateuch, AKA the Five Books of Moses - with the bittersweet valedictory of Moses, the man who would see the Promised Land from afar but who would never enter it himself, and immediately begin all over again with the great story of Creation.

Silly hats, dancing, and alcohol are all involved at this, the Rejoicing of the Law.  I suppose that’d make us lousy Baptists, except possibly the silly hats.

[Translations: Sefaria.org]

THERE GOES THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Yesterday evening, there was a report of a bear wandering around one of the subdivisions in northeast Cobb County.

Look, when the Mistress of Sarcasm reports having seen a bear in her back yard, I’m not all that surprised.  After all, she lives way up in the forested glens of upstate New York, where civilization is nought but a thin veneer.  Bears, turkeys, pheasants... hell, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Sas-fucking-squatch ambling down Main Street in her itty bitty town.

But here?  This here’s Southern Fried Suburbia.  Visiting bears are an unusual, although not completely unknown, phenomenon.  Yeef!

And it gets worse.  In nearby DeKalb County, there’s a pack of marauding feral pigs that have been terrorizing the locals, who now fear for the safety of their children while they wait at the bus stop in the morning.  (Funniest part of that link might be the URL, which includes the string “wild-board-loose-dekalb.”  Look out for the wild board!)

Jebus Creepus!  Is it time to move?  What’s next?  Penguins?


“We gotta get outta here!”

SPAM COMMENT OF THE DAY

Just as doctors must deal with unpleasant bodily fluids and plumbers must deal with shit, bloggers must deal with comment spam: comments that are placed solely for the purpose of disseminating links to various (mostly shady) websites. 

I love how comment spammers always manage to sound like the Festrunk Brothers.

Generally, I delete this crap without even looking at it, but this one struck me as amusing... mainly on account of the site it was trying to advertise.

Hi there, this weekend is pleasant in favor of me, since this time i am reading this great informative article here at my home. Check out my site ... hair removal from nose for men

Gotta love that syntax!  “Hair removal from nose for men.”  Can “wax removal from ear for men” be far behind?

And the post this little gem was attached to?  This one... which makes me wonder whether nose hair is an especially serious issue in the Russian and/or Ukrainian immigrant community.  My guess would be yes.

Update:  And here’s another one that just landed on the same post, further supporting my Russian Facial Hair Thesis:

Wow, this post is pleasant, my younger sister is analyzing these things, thus I am going to tell her. Feel free to surf to my blog facial hair removal qvc

Spam!  Gotta love it.  No, wait.  I don’t gotta love it.

A SEASONAL TRIFECTA

This year, the first day of Sukkot, the joyous week-long fall festival celebrated by us Red Sea Pedestrians, coincides with International Talk Like a Pirate Day.  It’s also my birthday according to the Hebrew calendar.  Why, it’s a Seasonal Trifecta!

You know what that means...


Lulav and etrog, the symbols of Sukkot.

That’s right.  I’ll be in synagogue, darrrrh-vening, and waving my lularrrrhv.  Arrrrh!

LIQUID REMEMBRANCE

The Sarah Lewis Memorial Gin & Tonic.

Alas, one of the unpleasant surprises of this year’s Penitential Season was the unexpected passing of our rabbi’s mother, who departed this world the Tuesday before Yom Kippur.

Instead of conducting services here, where he had not missed a Yom Kippur for 36 years, our rabbi found himself dealing with Matters Funerary in New Jersey.  After the holiday, he returned to Atlanta, where a packed house awaited him for evening services last night, giving congregants the opportunity to offer their condolences.

One of the stories he told about his late mother was that she had expressed an interest in trying out a cocktail that she had recently heard of, Gawd only knows where.  She was not a drinker by any means, but at the age of 92 she was ready to throw caution to the winds and try this Great New Thing... a Gin & Tonic.

Yes! A good old G&T!  (If you’ve never tried one, it’s new to you!)

The necessary supplies were procured, including a bottle of Gordon’s gin.  But alas, she passed away before she had a chance to taste of it.  (Given that the gin was Gordon’s, it is possible that she was better off.)

When we got home after that evening minyan, the Missus knew that it would be entirely appropriate to toast this extraordinary woman with the Gin & Tonic she should have had:   

The Best Honkin’ G&T Ever

1¾ ounce Nolet’s gin
½ ounce Jack Rudy tonic concentrate
Ice
Soda water

Combine the gin with the tonic concentrate in a highball glass with ice.  Add soda water; stir well.  Garnish with a slice of lime.

I love the way the Nolet’s plays off of the bitterness of the tonic.  You can use any brand you really like, of course, but since discovering Nolet’s, I have made it my go-to gin for this particular tipple.  And the Jack Rudy tonic has all sorts of subtle flavor notes that Schweppes tonic (a serviceable alternative) just does not bring to the table.

As for the late Sarah Lewis z’’l, ave atque vale!  May her memory be for a blessing... we’ll drink to that.

OLD FRIENDS

Old friends 
Old friends 
Sat on their park bench like bookends 
A newspaper blowin’ through the grass 
Falls on the round toes 
Of the high shoes 
Of the old friends 

Old friends 
Winter companions, the old men 
Lost in their overcoats, waiting for the sun 
The sounds of the city sifting through trees 
Settles like dust 
On the shoulders 
Of the old friends 

Can you imagine us years from today
Sharing a park bench quietly 
How terribly strange to be seventy 

Old friends
Memory brushes the same years
Silently sharing the same fears

- Simon and Garfunkel, “Old Friends”

When this song came out in 1968, I was a mere sprat of not-quite-sixteen.  To me, seventy was a distant dream, an idea to be grasped with the intellect but not the emotions carved by lapidary years of experience.  “Old Friends,” from Simon and Garfunkel’s landmark Bookends album, seemed to paint a reasonable picture of seventy back then, when all of my grandparents were still walking the planet and my grandfathers were about that age.

But now here it is forty-five years later, and I call bullshit.  I don’t know if it’s because my perspective has changed - forty-five years will do that to you - or if it’s because the world is different, but when I think of being seventy, I don’t picture grizzled old men lost in their overcoats, sitting on park benches and watching newspapers blow around their blucher-shod feet.

I mean, seventy is me in a little over nine years.

I was ruminating on all of this because my friend Stefan just turned seventy today, and, as is the custom, he treated the Minyan Boyz to breakfast.  Stefan is no kid, mind you, but he doesn’t fit the image of the Grizzled Oldster all that well.  When people say “seventy is the new fifty” with whatever degree of irony or sarcasm they care to project, they could legitimately be thinking of Stefan, who still works full time running his business and who occasionally betrays traces of the mental hardness that comes from being a former MP.  (Military Police, not Member of Parliament.)

If that is what seventy is like, bring it on.  Fuck Simon and Garfunkel.

PAID IN FULL

Take three minutes out of your life and watch this video.  Yes, it’s an ad... for a Thai telecommunications company, no less... but it’s an ad with a message that is especially poignant and powerful in the midst of the Red Sea Pedestrian Holiday Season.

Hollywood should only make movies this good.