The Layers of Life Life goes on around us at all times whether we are paying attention or not. It is very hard to say how engaged we should be with every aspect of it at any given moment. I use the differences at the moment between my friend Mike and myself as an example. It is 8am and I am listening to Jose Diaz-Balart on MSNC while I am writing this story. When I…
Babbitt Today we went to the La Jolla Playhouse to see another play on our season subscription. The Playhouse put the play on in its largest theater, presumably because the starring role was held by Matthew Broderick, the actor that brought us first War Games and then, his most famous role in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Since his fame in the 80’s, Broderick has done some other notable work like in Mel Brooks’ The Producers,…
California Coastin’ There are lots of things I like about California living. First and foremost among them is the casual dress climate we enjoy here in San Diego. Almost the biggest decision I make all year long is when I shift from shorts to long pants and vice versa as the weather cools. I noted that this weekend was due to be a slightly cooler weather weekend with temperatures in the mid-60s with a slight…
Ignoring Reality Last night I watched the third Republican Debate. The issues in any of these debates revolve around a combination of social policies, global defense policies and economic policies. Everyone in politics is pretty clear that social and defense policies can stir people up, but nothing gets them more riled up than economic policies. It is fair to say that Republicans have always (at lest since WWII, which is the timeframe I can at…
EV Truckin’ Ever since coming out here to the hilltop, there have been several inevitabilities. One of them is that sooner or later I would get myself a truck. I’ve had my Tesla X for seven years and am a committed EV user for many reasons. I clearly like being able to avoid the pump, but I also enjoy the driving experience of an EV since the acceleration in particular is so brisk. However, I…
Leaving Las Vegas In 1995, Nicholas Cage portrayed an alcoholic suicidal screenwriter who chooses to drink himself to death in the city where secrets go to die. I like Nicholas Cage as an actor, but I really like Elisabeth Shue as an actress and found her portrayal of Cage’s prostitute girlfriend to be riveting. I’ve been a fan of Shue since her role as the Valley Girl girlfriend in Karate Kid. And then, between Adventures…
The Sphere We have come to Las Vegas to see the new extravaganza called The Sphere, brought to us by James Dolan, the owner of Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall and much more. I figure that anything worth putting $2.3 billion into to change the attractions landscape is worth a look. So, I gathered some enthusiasm for an excursion from San Diego by convincing Mike and Melisa to join me and Kim for…
The Full Spectrum I have written before about my old problem’s with Verizon and AT&T and trying to cancel services that these companies simply don’t want to cancel. They seem to have a business model predicated less on keeping customers happy than on making sure that it is as hard as humanly possible to cancel their service and thus stop paying them their monthly tariff. Usually, after holding incessantly on the phone for a representative,…
Corpo Diplomatico I am again watching a Ben Kingsley movie made in 2018 called Operation Finale about the seizure and extraction from Argentina of Adolf Eichmann, the architect of the final solution deployed by the Germans against the Jews of the Holocaust. Part of the snatch and grab process of getting Eichmann from the point of seizure near his suburban home to the commandos safe house. They transport Eichmann, drugged to near unconsciousness, thin the…
Buying Myself Flowers I spend more time buying myself flowers these days than I probably have my whole life. Most often they are not cut flowers, but rather plantable flowers that are part of my gardening diversions. Last month I planted a whole array of flowers ranging from miniature carnations to marigolds to Shasta daisies in an effort to find things that the bunnies would not eat and that would therefore keep the Betty Garden…