Growing up in Fairfield County Connecticut, 30 minutes outside of New York City, was a wonderful experience for me. Even though we were technically in New England we were New Yorkers at heart. All of our TV stations came out of NYC and we followed the New York sports teams. The newspapers we read were the Times, the Post and the Daily News (Maybe the Greenwich Time but that was to see if the police blotter mentioned any friends of ours). Anytime someone mention The City we knew that they mean New York. As I have traveled this great country of ours I have come across differences that make us unique as a nation. Some differences make me scratch my head and wonder, while others are pretty amazing.
I have noticed that one of the things that I thought was universal was how we in lower Fairfield County refer to what the rest of the country calls either a Hero, Sub, Hoagie, or Grinder amongst other names. If you were to go into a deli in that part of the country you would see that we called our version none of those things. We called it a Wedge. They called it the same thing in Westchester County New York, or neighboring county to the west.
I remember when I went off to college in Boston and went to a deli near my dorm and ordered a roast beef WEDGE at the counter. The guy looked at me like I was a bug. "You want me to give you a wedgie?" Then I looked at him like he was an idiot (which he was). I said, "I want a roast beef sangwich on a long roll."
"Oh you mean a Sub or a Grindah."
"No, I meant a Wedge but I'll try one of what you're talking about."
"All right smart guy. You want a vanilla frappe with that?"
"No, but I'd love a vanilla shake instead."
It was an eye opening experience as to taking for granted that with which we have grown up. Not really sure why I posted this today. Maybe it is that I've been reconnecting with a lot of people I knew back in Greenwich, CT, from where I hail. I've been reminiscing about days gone by and nights spent cruising, or partying, or just standing around chatting. A lot of those late nights ended at places called The Country Squire, or Pat's Little Hub, or The Colonial Diner. We'd talk and laugh about that night's events eating a some fries and a roast beef wedge or California burger wedge. They were good times and as much as I enjoyed them as they were unfolding I never really appreciated the absolute joy that they encapsulated. Maybe that's a good thing. In recent weeks I've gone back to those nights in my memory and have seen faces and heard voices that gave me joy and happiness then. The amazing thing is that in my revisiting of those nights I am receiving that same joy and happiness all over again. Pretty cool thing that is. I can almost taste that same roast beef wedge.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
2009 Here I Come!
Well New Year's greetings! This is just a short note to say that I pray that all of you had a blessed Christmas surrounded by loved ones and may 2009 be the best year ever for everyone!
There is no doubt that this year will have it's fair share of ups and downs but we are in control of how high the peaks are and how low the valleys will be. So, enjoy the good and when trouble comes, and it will, take heart and know that it will not last forever and that we can chose to find joy even in the darkest times if we are patient.
So, get to it and start reveling in 2009 because before you know it will be over.
'Nuff Said!
Mac
There is no doubt that this year will have it's fair share of ups and downs but we are in control of how high the peaks are and how low the valleys will be. So, enjoy the good and when trouble comes, and it will, take heart and know that it will not last forever and that we can chose to find joy even in the darkest times if we are patient.
So, get to it and start reveling in 2009 because before you know it will be over.
'Nuff Said!
Mac
Friday, December 12, 2008
Survivorman Versus Man vs. Wild
I love watching Survivorman on The Discovery Channel and used to get into Man vs. Wild but don't really care for it anymore and here's why:
Les Stroud, the host of Survivorman goes into every situation on his own with several cameras. He mans them all. So when, on that show, you see him trudging off into the distance you have to realize that he has to walk ALL the way back to pick the camera up again. That's a lot of work, and in a survival situation it seems ludicrous to do. However, that is his dedication to bringing the realism to YOU, the viewer.
There is nobody standing off camera munching on a ham sangwich offering a half to Les. No, if he doesn't find something to eat he goes hungry, Bow-Bow-Bow! It is captivating television. I've seen him dig into certain creepy-crawlies that he has caught with such relish that I have thought to myself, albeit momentarily, "Hmmm! I should try some ground squirrel, wood grub, or Booby bird." The show is real and raw and addictive.
Man vs. Wild is hosted by a dude named Bear Grylls. Cool name. Kind of like Grizzly Adams, or Hank the Hermit. But when you see Mr. Grylls you realize that he neither looks like a bear nor are his teefs sporting any grills and to me that rings out as false advertising. Bear is an ex-British Special Forces member and loves to bring that up in most episodes.
When I first starting watching the show I liked it but there was something about it that just didn't sit right with me. On one show he was in the American West. He spotted some wild horses in the distance and the next thing that you know he was standing next to one with a chord made out of a vine and then placed it over the horse's neck so he could ride it. Now, I am not much of an equestrian, as a matter of fact, I have only been on a horse once and that one needed a quarter to run and stood right in from of E.J. Korvette's in Port Chester, NY. But I knew that it would not be that easy to corral a horse, let alone a wild one.
A little bit after this it comes out that portions of the shows are staged which was not disclosed before, but are before every show now. Now if that was pointed out at the beginning of the series it would not be a big deal, but it looks like they were trying to get away with something. Compared to what Les Stroud does it is cheap and deceptive.
So here's what I propose: A Survivathon between these two! They both get dropped off in some remote location with nothing but their wits and whoever walks out of the drop-off area alive is the winner. They get no help from ANYONE but themselves and their past experiences. They would be in an area where hidden cameras have already been set up where their progress, or regress, could be monitored. Sounds great doesn't? Yes it does!
So, Discovery Channel, make this happen! So let it be written, so let it be done!
Les Stroud, the host of Survivorman goes into every situation on his own with several cameras. He mans them all. So when, on that show, you see him trudging off into the distance you have to realize that he has to walk ALL the way back to pick the camera up again. That's a lot of work, and in a survival situation it seems ludicrous to do. However, that is his dedication to bringing the realism to YOU, the viewer.
There is nobody standing off camera munching on a ham sangwich offering a half to Les. No, if he doesn't find something to eat he goes hungry, Bow-Bow-Bow! It is captivating television. I've seen him dig into certain creepy-crawlies that he has caught with such relish that I have thought to myself, albeit momentarily, "Hmmm! I should try some ground squirrel, wood grub, or Booby bird." The show is real and raw and addictive.
Man vs. Wild is hosted by a dude named Bear Grylls. Cool name. Kind of like Grizzly Adams, or Hank the Hermit. But when you see Mr. Grylls you realize that he neither looks like a bear nor are his teefs sporting any grills and to me that rings out as false advertising. Bear is an ex-British Special Forces member and loves to bring that up in most episodes.
When I first starting watching the show I liked it but there was something about it that just didn't sit right with me. On one show he was in the American West. He spotted some wild horses in the distance and the next thing that you know he was standing next to one with a chord made out of a vine and then placed it over the horse's neck so he could ride it. Now, I am not much of an equestrian, as a matter of fact, I have only been on a horse once and that one needed a quarter to run and stood right in from of E.J. Korvette's in Port Chester, NY. But I knew that it would not be that easy to corral a horse, let alone a wild one.
A little bit after this it comes out that portions of the shows are staged which was not disclosed before, but are before every show now. Now if that was pointed out at the beginning of the series it would not be a big deal, but it looks like they were trying to get away with something. Compared to what Les Stroud does it is cheap and deceptive.
So here's what I propose: A Survivathon between these two! They both get dropped off in some remote location with nothing but their wits and whoever walks out of the drop-off area alive is the winner. They get no help from ANYONE but themselves and their past experiences. They would be in an area where hidden cameras have already been set up where their progress, or regress, could be monitored. Sounds great doesn't? Yes it does!
So, Discovery Channel, make this happen! So let it be written, so let it be done!
Friday, December 5, 2008
"A Wink's as Good as a Nod to A Blind Man. He Saith Knowingly. Wink, Wink. Nudge, Nudge."
My son and I were watching the Tube the other day when a commercial came on that made us do a double take. This is the time of the year where skads of companies air commercials touting the good that they do to make you feel better about them and better about giving your money to them in form of commerce. I can't stand these self-serving commercials because I was taught by my parents, Sunday School, and the Word (That's the Bible for youse heathens) that when you do a good deed you leave it alone and don't draw attention to it. JUST DO IT and then walk away.
Well, now this commercial was from Best Buy, and perhaps dear reader you have seen it too. In it an employee is telling the viewers how they helped a customer pick out an HDTV/Plasma Display/Jumbotron/Enormo-TV and they also arranged to be there to set it up for said customer. The employee even helped the customer learn how to use the remote control, which the employee said was a challenge.
You may be axing (as we used to say long ago and far away),"What's so bad about all this? Best Buy wants people to know that they will go above-and-beyond regarding customer service." Well the problem that I have with it all is when they let you know, early on in the commercial, that THE CUSTOMER WAS BLIND! I kid you not! Best Buy sold an expensive TV to a blind customer. I know, the customer may have wanted that but it really came across in a way that, to me at least, makes Best Buy look like they were taking advantage of this dude.
I have imagined it going something like this:
"Can I help you sir?"(And it really should be MAY I, not CAN I)
"Yes I have heard so much about this thing called an iPod and since I am BLIND, which means I CANNOT see at all, I would love to get one for all of my music, being that I am BLIND and use my EARS far more than I would if I had the power of sight. Which I don't. Because I'm BLIND. Meaning I can't see. One of the Senses down, only four to go."
Waving his hand in front of the customer's face and getting no response, "Um, yeah, um, I have one right over here, yeah that's the ticket."
The customer reaches out and touches the TV, "My that's bigger than I thought that it would be."
"Um, this is the brand new model which just came out today, yeah today. It even has a remote control."
"Is the remote control easy to use?"
"Why yes it is! Even a Blin...um, yes it is!"
"OK, I'll buy it. How much?"
"$2,000."
"That's more than I heard."
"Will you be paying with a credit card?"
"Why yes I shall."
"Excellent! Then for all intents and purposes let's just CALL it $200. OK?"
"What?"
"Um, yeah, well, how would you like to be in a commercial?"
"Radio or TV?"
And so it goes. Keep looking for the commercial and I am sure that you will see it. And let me know if you think that I am wrong, which I am not, but let me know what you think anyway.
No Go Make Somebody's Day
Mac
Well, now this commercial was from Best Buy, and perhaps dear reader you have seen it too. In it an employee is telling the viewers how they helped a customer pick out an HDTV/Plasma Display/Jumbotron/Enormo-TV and they also arranged to be there to set it up for said customer. The employee even helped the customer learn how to use the remote control, which the employee said was a challenge.
You may be axing (as we used to say long ago and far away),"What's so bad about all this? Best Buy wants people to know that they will go above-and-beyond regarding customer service." Well the problem that I have with it all is when they let you know, early on in the commercial, that THE CUSTOMER WAS BLIND! I kid you not! Best Buy sold an expensive TV to a blind customer. I know, the customer may have wanted that but it really came across in a way that, to me at least, makes Best Buy look like they were taking advantage of this dude.
I have imagined it going something like this:
"Can I help you sir?"(And it really should be MAY I, not CAN I)
"Yes I have heard so much about this thing called an iPod and since I am BLIND, which means I CANNOT see at all, I would love to get one for all of my music, being that I am BLIND and use my EARS far more than I would if I had the power of sight. Which I don't. Because I'm BLIND. Meaning I can't see. One of the Senses down, only four to go."
Waving his hand in front of the customer's face and getting no response, "Um, yeah, um, I have one right over here, yeah that's the ticket."
The customer reaches out and touches the TV, "My that's bigger than I thought that it would be."
"Um, this is the brand new model which just came out today, yeah today. It even has a remote control."
"Is the remote control easy to use?"
"Why yes it is! Even a Blin...um, yes it is!"
"OK, I'll buy it. How much?"
"$2,000."
"That's more than I heard."
"Will you be paying with a credit card?"
"Why yes I shall."
"Excellent! Then for all intents and purposes let's just CALL it $200. OK?"
"What?"
"Um, yeah, well, how would you like to be in a commercial?"
"Radio or TV?"
And so it goes. Keep looking for the commercial and I am sure that you will see it. And let me know if you think that I am wrong, which I am not, but let me know what you think anyway.
No Go Make Somebody's Day
Mac
Friday, November 28, 2008
10 SONGS
Ten Songs is back again as it has been awhile and I have been grooving on some wonderful music of late and felt the need to share it with you my faithful readers. So here goes!
In no particular order:
1. I Am...I Said-Neil Diamond
I love this song even though some of the lines in it are kind of odd. "And no one heard at all not even the chair." What? OK, not really a poet is Mr. Diamond, but the song speaks to me as I am sure that it will speak to you if you give it a chance. So give it a chance!
2. Forever in Blue Jeans-Neil Diamond
Ok, so I am in a bit of Neil Diamond kick. So sue me! I downloaded this song last week and a friend on my clued me in on a Gap commercial with Will Ferrell doing his Diamond impersonation. Very good and very funny. Here it is so you get a twofer with this entry and all at no charge to you!
3. Secret Garden-Bruce Springsteen
Say what you want about his voice or anything else but the man knows how to write a song that can hit you right in the heart. I am a fan of The Boss and will continue to be a fan as long as he continues to be as good as he was when he first started, and he is!
4. It's Bad You Know
This is a cool-as-bones toe-tapping number. I heard it first in conjunction with the TV show The Sopranos and I grove on it a lot. It is kind of addicting. It's bad you know.
5. The Beast in Me-Nick Lowe
This is a cover or a Johnny Cash song and as much as I LOVE the Man in Black I love this version better. Nick Lowe is such an accomplished singer/song writer and I can't say enough about him or his work. This song is so tender, yet pleading. I love it!
6. I'd Love to Change the World-Tens Years After
A kick-arse song from the 60s and one that I can't hear enough times. It's a good song, still more than 10 years after its release.
7. Sweet Touch of Love-Allen Toussaint
I dare you to listen to this song and feel sad or stop your face from smiling. I don't think that it's possible. In fact I challenge you to keep your toes from tapping. Do you know why? Because of the sweet touch of love!
8. Jackson-Johnny and June Carter Cash
I love singing Karaoke, and do it from time to time. The place where I go is a small hole-in-the-wall type of place. No matter how many times I go I always hear this song sung by a man and woman who sound exactly like the originals. They are good singers in their own right, but they make this song so infectious. I find myself singing it several times a week when I'm hotter than a pepper sprout.
9. Maria Elena-Los Indios Tabajaras
This is a lovely instrumental of two classical guitars playing a lovely song. I grew up listening to these guys and they are talented. My oldest son has fallen in love with this song too. Give it listen and it will captivate you.
10. Love is Like Oxygen-Sweet
What can I say other than this is an oldie and a goodie.
All but one song can be purchased over at iTunes. So go listen and be moved!
ENJOY!
Mac
In no particular order:
1. I Am...I Said-Neil Diamond
I love this song even though some of the lines in it are kind of odd. "And no one heard at all not even the chair." What? OK, not really a poet is Mr. Diamond, but the song speaks to me as I am sure that it will speak to you if you give it a chance. So give it a chance!
2. Forever in Blue Jeans-Neil Diamond
Ok, so I am in a bit of Neil Diamond kick. So sue me! I downloaded this song last week and a friend on my clued me in on a Gap commercial with Will Ferrell doing his Diamond impersonation. Very good and very funny. Here it is so you get a twofer with this entry and all at no charge to you!
3. Secret Garden-Bruce Springsteen
Say what you want about his voice or anything else but the man knows how to write a song that can hit you right in the heart. I am a fan of The Boss and will continue to be a fan as long as he continues to be as good as he was when he first started, and he is!
4. It's Bad You Know
This is a cool-as-bones toe-tapping number. I heard it first in conjunction with the TV show The Sopranos and I grove on it a lot. It is kind of addicting. It's bad you know.
5. The Beast in Me-Nick Lowe
This is a cover or a Johnny Cash song and as much as I LOVE the Man in Black I love this version better. Nick Lowe is such an accomplished singer/song writer and I can't say enough about him or his work. This song is so tender, yet pleading. I love it!
6. I'd Love to Change the World-Tens Years After
A kick-arse song from the 60s and one that I can't hear enough times. It's a good song, still more than 10 years after its release.
7. Sweet Touch of Love-Allen Toussaint
I dare you to listen to this song and feel sad or stop your face from smiling. I don't think that it's possible. In fact I challenge you to keep your toes from tapping. Do you know why? Because of the sweet touch of love!
8. Jackson-Johnny and June Carter Cash
I love singing Karaoke, and do it from time to time. The place where I go is a small hole-in-the-wall type of place. No matter how many times I go I always hear this song sung by a man and woman who sound exactly like the originals. They are good singers in their own right, but they make this song so infectious. I find myself singing it several times a week when I'm hotter than a pepper sprout.
9. Maria Elena-Los Indios Tabajaras
This is a lovely instrumental of two classical guitars playing a lovely song. I grew up listening to these guys and they are talented. My oldest son has fallen in love with this song too. Give it listen and it will captivate you.
10. Love is Like Oxygen-Sweet
What can I say other than this is an oldie and a goodie.
All but one song can be purchased over at iTunes. So go listen and be moved!
ENJOY!
Mac
Zombie Dreams
I had a very unusual experience the other night in my dreamland. It has only happened to me once or twice before and that was due to me having the flu and a fever. What happened was that I was having a dream and woke up to get a drink of water. As I went into the kitchen to get my drink I was thinking about my dream which was about zombies. So I thought to myself that it was good that I got up to break out of the dream. I got my water and headed back to bed. I woke up a couple of hours later because the water had run it's course and wanted to come out, if you catch my drift. So I headed to the bathroom and realized that I had gotten back into the dream of zombies. Or more exactly the dream had waited for me to get my water and started right back up when I drifted off to slumberland.
I was apprehensive this time in going back to sleep, but I did and darned if the zombies weren't waiting for me again! But here's the thing: the zombies were not flesh eaters, yet. It seems that the zombies in my dreams were too stupid to know that they should be eating flesh. One part of my dream found us in a grocery store where they were frantically putting together peanut butter sangwiches. I laughed about it even in my dream and remember saying, "This is one wacky dream," in my dream. It was funny in an odd-I-hope-they-remain-vegetarians sort of way.
Why is it that I only have the continuation type of dreams when they are odd, or scary? I have had dreams where I have been in the throes of passion with woman whose beauty would make Helen of Troy look like a dog. And yet, when I have woken from those dreams in the middle of the night I have never been able to get back to them no matter how hard I try. And if I do get back the woman looks like cow with sexy legs, or a monkey with gorgeous lips, or my 3rd grade teacher.
Sure is strange, so I figured that I would share.
Now go get some sleep!
Mac
I was apprehensive this time in going back to sleep, but I did and darned if the zombies weren't waiting for me again! But here's the thing: the zombies were not flesh eaters, yet. It seems that the zombies in my dreams were too stupid to know that they should be eating flesh. One part of my dream found us in a grocery store where they were frantically putting together peanut butter sangwiches. I laughed about it even in my dream and remember saying, "This is one wacky dream," in my dream. It was funny in an odd-I-hope-they-remain-vegetarians sort of way.
Why is it that I only have the continuation type of dreams when they are odd, or scary? I have had dreams where I have been in the throes of passion with woman whose beauty would make Helen of Troy look like a dog. And yet, when I have woken from those dreams in the middle of the night I have never been able to get back to them no matter how hard I try. And if I do get back the woman looks like cow with sexy legs, or a monkey with gorgeous lips, or my 3rd grade teacher.
Sure is strange, so I figured that I would share.
Now go get some sleep!
Mac
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Hey You Get Off Of My Holiday Part Deux!
It is Thanksgiving Day 2008, so Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Last night I was at home preparing for the Thanksgiving feast that my son and I are going to attend today. I rented a movie, and he invited a chum of his to spend the night. After the movie we were channel surfing and settled on Iron Chef. The original Iron Chef from Japan not the crappy American knock off on The Food Channel. Well, and I kid you not dear reader, the commercials were all, and I mean EVERYONE COTTON PICKING ONE OF THEM, were about the "Early Bird" sales at all of the stores the day after Thanksgiving.
Walmart is opening at 3AM in our area. 3AM! Walgreens at 7AM (not too bad but they open usually around 9. And really, what kind of Christmas gift are you going to buy there? "Thanks Gramma for the Geritol and Depends. Wherever did you find them?") Macy's is opening at 5Am, and so is Kohl's. And Target. And K-Mart.
So, now retailers are urging people to shorten there Thanksgiving by going to bed early so they can get up and SAVE, SAVE, SAVE by bombarding TV viewers with commercials about their early openings the night before Thanksgiving thereby chipping away at the peace that should come the night before a holiday and taking their focus off of the the holiday right in front of them and throwing it on one four weeks away. More is not necessarily better.
As I father I like to get each child one present that means something to them instead of getting them a ton of things, which is what retailers urge us to do. How bad would it be if we started giving one quality present to those whom we give gifts to? Would it cause the economy to collapse anymore than it already has? Would our Christmases be ruined? Would the extra time spent in each other's company on Thanksgiving be overbearing?
Well, I know I seem like a crotchety old man venting about things he can't change. But the thing is WE can change them if we think the changes are worth having and fighting for. It wasn't always like this, and it doesn't have to be. The question that we need to ask ourselves is, "What is it that we really want?" And how we answer this question will tell everything about who we are as a nation.
Just something to think about, and perhaps even discuss at the dinner table today. So, go eat, drink, and be merry and bask in the warmth of the day.
Happiest of Thanksgivings!
Mac
Last night I was at home preparing for the Thanksgiving feast that my son and I are going to attend today. I rented a movie, and he invited a chum of his to spend the night. After the movie we were channel surfing and settled on Iron Chef. The original Iron Chef from Japan not the crappy American knock off on The Food Channel. Well, and I kid you not dear reader, the commercials were all, and I mean EVERYONE COTTON PICKING ONE OF THEM, were about the "Early Bird" sales at all of the stores the day after Thanksgiving.
Walmart is opening at 3AM in our area. 3AM! Walgreens at 7AM (not too bad but they open usually around 9. And really, what kind of Christmas gift are you going to buy there? "Thanks Gramma for the Geritol and Depends. Wherever did you find them?") Macy's is opening at 5Am, and so is Kohl's. And Target. And K-Mart.
So, now retailers are urging people to shorten there Thanksgiving by going to bed early so they can get up and SAVE, SAVE, SAVE by bombarding TV viewers with commercials about their early openings the night before Thanksgiving thereby chipping away at the peace that should come the night before a holiday and taking their focus off of the the holiday right in front of them and throwing it on one four weeks away. More is not necessarily better.
As I father I like to get each child one present that means something to them instead of getting them a ton of things, which is what retailers urge us to do. How bad would it be if we started giving one quality present to those whom we give gifts to? Would it cause the economy to collapse anymore than it already has? Would our Christmases be ruined? Would the extra time spent in each other's company on Thanksgiving be overbearing?
Well, I know I seem like a crotchety old man venting about things he can't change. But the thing is WE can change them if we think the changes are worth having and fighting for. It wasn't always like this, and it doesn't have to be. The question that we need to ask ourselves is, "What is it that we really want?" And how we answer this question will tell everything about who we are as a nation.
Just something to think about, and perhaps even discuss at the dinner table today. So, go eat, drink, and be merry and bask in the warmth of the day.
Happiest of Thanksgivings!
Mac
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