From the top

Gingko, water tanks and music

Road hog Maria, aka Maria Andretti, got us in Manhattan early enough for a quick bite (an expensive slice of pizza), cold seats at the pizza parlor and a heated argument with Judy about the term Long Island and how Queens is part of it! No way can this be accurate. The Hampton yuppies are going to cringe at the thought that the middle class residents of Queens (I'm one of them) are considered Long Islanders! Wait till I get home and research it, Judy.

The object was to be at Mannes College for Music for the 4:30 pm chamber music performance. It goes without saying that Cecilia always finds something interesting along the way to note and take a picture of. The operative word is interesting but you might argue that the term is relative.

The gingko leaves (as in gingko biloba? Yes) on the ground are a manifestation of the end of Fall. These are beautiful trees whose fan-shaped leaves turn radiant yellows in autumn and line the streets of Manhattan. It is the same plant being touted by some researchers as having the ability to aid in retarding senility or Alzheimer's symptoms. I stopped Judy from munching on the leaves! Too late my friend. Shown in the picture is the naked gingko tree standing above the cold pavement.

Note the water tanks atop the roofs. Like red barns are a part of a farm scene, these wooden water storage tanks that dot the roofs of the City are a part of its skyline. Due to low water pressure, buildings over six stories high, pump water to these storage tanks for delivery by gravity to the lower floors as needed. Why wooden? I guess for better insulation.

Now, the program at Mannes Colllege. Three groups of students in their early 20's I'm guessing, performed Haydn, Britten and Olivier Messiaen compositions for quartet, respectively. Without a conductor I always felt that chamber music ensembles have a difficult task of harmonizing without overpowering each other's instrument, but these students seemed to have perfected that.

The young cellist performing the Haydn piece was so expressive, the Japanese violinist well-poised and all four complimented each other in delivering a magnificent String Quartet in C major, op. 74 no.1. The Britten piece was for oboe and string trio and again, the oboe solo was just a feast for the ears and emotions.

The most interesting of all was the Quartet for the End of Time by Olivier Messiaen. A religious Catholic, he wrote this composition while incarcerated in the concentration camps. It was first performed with his fellow musician prisoners to an audience of inmates and prison guards. What an unshakeable faith, with titles such as Praise to the eternity of Jesus and Praise to the immortality of Jesus.

The clarinet, cello and violin solos did justice to the theme of this 8-movement composition. In the middle of the cello solo, we elbowed one another when we observed how strange that this student was holding the bow differently, grasping it from the bottom where the bow hairs are, rather than the bow stick or I think they call it "frog"? It turned out that this talented fellow has only two fingers in his right hand, resembling lobster claw. This gave more meaning to his exemplary performance. Bravo, Brian Sanders.

Bravo to Judy also. Did we bet on this one, Maria? She's right, geographically Queens is part of Long Island; politically it is a borough on its own and part of New York City. Should I trust Wikipedia?

Saint Cecilia

Saint Cecilia and an Angel

by Orazio Gentileschi c. 1617

November 22nd - today is the feast day of Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of music and my namesake. (*Disclaimer : I'm not gifted with musical talent, it's not my birthday today, I am not a candidate for sainthood.)

Today is also the anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. We miss you Mr. President.

Happy feast day, Saint Cecilia.

Less is more

Life nowadays is too complex so let me just focus on a simple thing and leave the checking of portfolios and serious thinking to the scholars and economic pundits.

A distraction from the bone-penetrating 20F temperatures and the nose-diving economy, all day yesterday I went through my files which seemingly gets bigger and bigger each day. This is what I'd call an exercise in "voluntary simplicity". I'm not proud to declare that I have an aversion to pack rats. Luckily the disorder hasn't afflicted me so I swear just shoot me when that happens.

I'd also like to believe that I'm not alone in this; once a year I weed out my files and grudgingly let go of the ones that are old and have no room in the cabinet. I just hope the old connotation doesn't give my family an idea that they can get rid of me when I reach that stage. Slowly getting there but not feeling it yet. Side note: Soylent Green. For those of you who are too young to be familiar with this 1973 sci-fi film, I'd say just Google it and then borrow and watch it!

Paper, paper everywhere - there's just too much of it, catalogs, newspapers, supermarket circulars, you name it. And all unsolicited. There is no end in sight. And we're wondering where all the money is going and why there is a need to save planet Earth?

Mayor Bloomberg is thinking "outside the bag" by proposing a 6-cents charge to the customer for every plastic bag the grocer hands out. Great idea. You go green, Mr. Mayor. It's about time, was it in Amsterdam where I observed this practice?

Downsize, scale back, minimalize or simplify, whatever the buzzword is, maybe that's the solution. Anyway, my bagful of confetti went for recycling. That's my small contribution. What a great invention this paper shredder, don't you think?

Thanks for some things

Somehow some of my favorite compositions are conceived while riding the train. The subway cars are one of the best places to post advertisements and I must confess I often find myself mesmerized reading them.

Here's a good one and it says a lot about how New Yorkers are a tough crowd to please.

It is a bank reward program with the following incentive: "Get $10 back for every $100 you spend on transit."

And here are some of the responses which really cracked me up:

"Great. So what you gonna do about my neighbor's tap dancing? "

"Fantastic. How about finding a cabbie who doesn't mind going to Brooklyn? "
"Great. What is your solution for gridlock? "
"Fantastic. How about fixing the potholes on Tenth Avenue? "

"Great. So what can you do about the cost of a studio below 23rd Street?"

Roughly translated: "Thanks for nothing."

I know, I know, maybe it loses some of its flavor without the accompanying photos. I tried to take pictures but it was too bright inside the train and people started staring at me as I focused the camera on the posters. Let me just say they did not portray people who are happy about the reward. It's more like the give-me-something-more-useful look.

I think this is funny but some locals may find it offensive. View the gallery in this link.

So what if New Yorkers bitch, moan, groan or complain? So what if they whine, are impatient or come across as arrogant? New Yorkers are real people.

Lighten up! It's only an ad and a good one at that.

Reds, yellows, blues and jazz

Nothing much, just an easy afternoon.

Walk in the woods

Music of Eva Cassidy and Norah Jones...

My favorite - Songbird by Eva Cassidy; oddly enough, she's American but became more popular in the UK and other countries in Europe than in her home country. She died of melanoma in November 1996.

Hair comes Chantal

The audience warmer at the Daily Show with Jon Stewart caught sight of her and uttered something along the lines of "'been wanting to touch that hair of yours" and he did! She may not have brought the show's ratings any higher but she certainly became the center of attention. You be the judge, the haircut suits her well and of course she's got beautiful hair; if I had that style I'll look like an electrocuted Asian hag.

I met and befriended her during our trip to Spain a couple of years ago and since then we've been in touch. From her home in Texas, she travels quite often to NY to visit and stay with her friend Phyllis whom we also met during our trip.

It was a simple but delightful dinner with our friends at our usual work hangout Simply Pasta but this one is extra special. Chantal hit the big 40 so we told her the rules are simple. You stay forty from here on and nobody better challenge that. No fanfare; we just had a make-believe birthday cake , a plate of profiteroles - three cream puffs each filled with toffee, chocolate and vanilla ice cream and drizzled with chocolate fudge. Lickity split house specialty.

Happy birthday Chantal. Till your next visit, we'll be sitting by the door.

Eat then run

Where's the rest of the food?

The morning is usually highlighted by family exchange of e-mails, from my loving nephews. A call from Mel always makes their grandma jump for joy and of course, one day that he misses, she worries about him.

Of late, the news is, like his brother Ped, Mel has been running not to compete but he has put on a few pounds ("love handles") and the need to shed off some of it is getting obvious. However, I would bet that he'll aim for the half marathons whenever he gets a chance. Residing on the other side of town, Park Slope which is the yuppie district of Brooklyn, he could walk a good mileage to work crossing the grand Brooklyn Bridge. That I'd like to do - a walk with a view! How many miles is that again?

It is hard to imagine weeks going by without the brothers getting together in the City taking breaks from this thing called work, and trying out the best eateries in town. Why they would exchange that for their best home-cooked fare, yes they are first-rate cooks in their own right, is beyond me. But I guess variety is what they're looking for.

"Soup's on!" is the buzzword during weekdays - an invitation for a lunch date in Manhattan with the boys. It's a family affair, Mel loves soup and has turned "semi-vegan" but can be convinced to have a slice of the best cut every now and then. Yesterday he had the duck soup again, (Remember the one that made me sick?), so I suggest for me to join them again it has to be a different place and no more web-toed fowl meals. Their old auntie no longer has great physical powers or an iron constitution!

Ped's new find is the Big Bowl , gotta try that one, I hope they don't serve duck!

Plans for the pre-Christmas dinner seems to be shaping up and it looks like the eating machines are going to be all greased up for the occasion. Feeding frenzy again!

The whole family might eventually end up taking up running, at the rate we've been eating. Don't underestimate their grandma, Inang. When she was in her late 80's she climbed the Warren Dunes and she's only 101 now, so she's still good to go. She has the constitution of a Mercedes-Benz.