Humor

But let’s start with today’s factoid: https://www.dictionary.com/e/white-tie-vs-black-tie/ I’ve been collecting some humor for a while. Today is humor dump day.

Working

Double meaning today, that word working. I have resumed my school-year teaching schedule. Most weeks I have posted 25 hours of voice lesson times at home, in what has essentially become a second job. This week I started two new students, and thats after two new students as well in August. I also teaching music

Morgan Library

One of my favorite places to visit in NYC is the Morgan Library. Last week, the changing exhibition included: Mahler sketches for his Fifth Symphony: I love this place!

Pickled mango

On my food tour last week, I tried pickled mango and pickled pineapple. Both were superb. So I bought a box of mango last Saturday, made some pickled mango on Sunday and shared it with friends, then made more on Monday morning. This will be great in a leafy lettuce salad with sweet peppers and

Lilac

The lilac in my garden had gotten so tall and leggy that it was putting more energy into staying alive than it was into flowers in Spring, so the 8′-tall lilac ‘bush’ (more of a monstrosity) got a major trim over the weekend. Before: After: I’ll not have many flowers, if at all, in 2024,

Finally . . . .

Finally, a church home. When I moved here 15 years ago, I checked out four different Episcopal parishes, and at each one identified myself as a former senior warden and choirmaster/organist. I handed over business cards, and asked clergy to contact me as a newcomer. Not a single one did. “How can churches in this

Bios

Playbill. I read the bios because I want to know a bit more about the people I’m seeing on stage. And sometimes the bios surprise. Here are three from last week that were not the usual listing of shows and awards: VICTORIA CLARK (Kimberly Akimbo) is the Tony Award® Winner for Best Leading Actress in a

Eton College

This article popped up from Eton College this week . . . .

Lower East Side

Each time I go to NYC for more than a couple of days, I try my best to do something I’ve never done before. This week that included a trip to the botanical garden in the Bronx, and a Lower East Side food tour. Jon was our guide. We got a bit of history: architecture,

The Met

The Metropolitan Museum of Art. What a most splendid wonder! Seventeen curatorial departments. The oldest piano in existence. An entire Frank Lloyd Wright living room. The Temple of Dendur. More than 400 individual galleries. Encyclopedic resources. Monumental scale. I spent nearly five hours there on Monday, focusing on Dutch masters (see yesterday’s blog entry), musical