Tag Archives: commentary

So Long, Farewell … From Winky Dink to Tron and Beyond

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  This RCA television was a professional model and purchased in 1980 through a family member who was in the electronics business. I recall how he struggled to get it out of his car to “deliver” it. I had seen its brother in the art department of a nearby university when I was taking sabbatical studies. That was 2001. We saw “Tron.” Tron was a futuristic  sci-fi movie that was released soon after I got that RCA television. Now they are both outdated. Thirty-four years later, the television is still in my living room. And still working. But here’s the … Continue reading →

83. Well, That Stinks!

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I was ready to sit down and start my blog; I knew what I was going to write about and I was preparing my accoutrements—music and visuals, when I clicked on Photoshop; it started to load, and then—nothing. I repeated the steps. Nothing. I got error messages indicating that Microsoft would inform me as soon as a solution to the problem was found.Not good enough.The program worked yesterday, and it was hiccupping as it was loading fonts. I tried to install the program again and was unable to. Well, that stinks! The computer is 5 months old and Vista, the … Continue reading →

53. Part 3: Glacial Potholes, Vintage Cars, Yiddish Books: a travelogue

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A short ride into Vermont; we make our annual visit to Hemmings Motor NewsFilling Station.Vintage cars are the thing here, and all kind of car memorabilia abound.My kind of 50’s and 60’s music is pumping. I take a walk on the treadmill at the fitness center, back at The Porches and then get a massage, which was part of the hotel package.Nice, very nice. As my mother would say, “So what could be bad?” Wednesday, July 11, 2007 We leave North Adams and go to Hadley, MA., which is central to several Universities; Mt. Holyoke, Smith, U Mass, Hampshire College, … Continue reading →

30. It’s Automatic: NY Phenomenon: Fun Fast Food

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One of my fondest memories of growing up on East 14th Street in Manhattan was the Horn & Hardart, Automat, near Union Square. My mother would take me on the Avenue B bus for a 10 minute ride, and the excitement would build. We’d often go shopping first at S. Klein on the Square, where one could find bargains galore; great stuff and everything at low prices. After some heavy shopping, we’d round the corner and pop into the Automat. It was a chain that started in Philadelphia by Joseph Horn and Frank Hardart, and became most popular in New … Continue reading →

33. Whole Foods: Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get

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While walking down the produce aisle at the Whole Foods Market, (a food store that specializes in supposedly healthier food, some organic, and decidedly higher priced than regular food stores) my Cerebral Jukebox honed in on soul music playing in the background, Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get. I was happy.  I felt like dancing.  I flirted with the produce guy over a bunch or cilantro, I boogied over to the radishes.  I looked at faces staring intently at the ears of corn and white peaches.  No one else was on planet 60’s with me. I decided to make gazpacho. I … Continue reading →

38. Technology: Don’t Read This Blog; You’ll Be Bored

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I am no technophobe. As a matter of fact, I love technology; I love learning about it, applying it, using it and conquering it. I am a techno-warrior.Over the years I learned my way around the techno mazes.I’ve explored the ins and outs, up and downs.I’ve been troubleshooting and upgrading and even getting friends’ computers up to snuff.But this has been a notable techno-wacky year. In early February I was the first kid on my block to unpack a shiny new Dell computer.Running Vista.  My new computer turned out to be a gleaming elephant of a paperweight for weeks.Every technician … Continue reading →

24. Part I: In A New York Minute: Underground Birthday

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    The way it used to look: Thoughts pull me back to my New York subway days. New York City is a public transportation town unless you live in the borough of Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island or the Bronx, where there is more breathing room and a place to park. I lived in The Bronx for the 7 years I was married to my first husband; it was hishim.It was a long commute for me to get to Manhattan to get to college, and later to get to work. Buses, trains, transfers, pushing, crowds.This particular train line, the (fitting … Continue reading →

Part 10a On a Formerly Feral Feline Family and the C Word

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original post 4/7/07/Yahoo Last night at a Passover seder, I was greeted by a dog. It came bounding down the hallway of the apartment building, barking, bonking, raising one helluva reverberating racket. I had made its acquaintance last year, and most likely it didn’t remember me; barking, bonking and raising one helluva racket is what dogs do. All night long, I thought my hostess’s father was playing footsie with me, but it turned out to be the dog. The dog, kept time with its tail knocking against the table as we read the Haggadah. The cat, on the other hand, … Continue reading →

19. The Kavorka: either you have it or you don’t

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As an admirer of the Seinfeld series, I have watched each episode over and over again; I am never bored. Seinfeld’s genius lies in his ability to view human nature and reflect it, with all its silliness and inadequacies, through the use of a marvelous ensemble cast. Seinfeld manages to weave several mini-themes throughout each main theme, which can best be described as a game of trivial pursuit. But it fascinates us because we all can see ourselves playing out the same ridiculous situations, or perhaps we just like to laugh along—at ourselves. As I was eating dinner this evening, … Continue reading →

27. It’s An Avatar World

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I woke up this morning at 4:00 A.M. with my brain burning.I never give in to the writing process when I am semi conscious; I usually just lie in bed and think and lose some of my best ideas to the sunrise. Today was different; this time I got up and wrote on paper instead of my pillow. It takes me a while to run with an idea; the seed is planted by a sentence I’ve heard, something I’ve seen, whether it be a strand of music, or a strand of hair on a brush. Eventually it all comes together, … Continue reading →