Frequently I amaze myself at how intelligent and knowledgeable I am. And this time was no exception.
As I mentioned Yesterday we were out at Manhattan Beach. The area is well known for its saturation of Russian people. Not necessary Jewish but Russian of all religions. So yesterday I was standing at the water and watching the people walk up and down at this bayside promenade when I noticed that many of them were carrying palm branches in their hands.
This puzzled me being Easter Sunday but I thought it might have been a Russian custom. Until a light went on in my brain and I realized that according to the Russian Orthodox calendar yesterday was Palm Sunday. Then it all made sense and suddenly I was very proud of myself.
Next Sunday, the 12th will be their Easter Sunday and I am curious to see if they will go and walk around dressed nicely as they did it yesterday on Fifth Avenue. This particular area is very picturesque and I can not imagine a nicer location than this to walk around in a nice Spring weather.
I also had a chance to visit a very nice local Russian supermarket. Most of the workers are Russian speaking as well as the costumers but the workers all speak English.
One advise, don't go in hungry! Everything look so appetizing that it is hard to resist. All the breads look fresh and tasty. The cold cuts are in a large variety and unbelievably good. Hands down better than any American supermarket. There are also the usual staple of American brands but they pale in comparison to their own.
At closer look one finds that most of the Russian labeled items are made in the US but still just the packaging make it all the more appetizing. And I said it before that even the unknown or unusual is better than the old being used to stuff.
There are no more Hungarian meat stores in New York but at this point I really don't need them, I have the Russians.
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Monday, April 6, 2015
Easter Sunday
Today was Easter Sunday. People who went out to strut their stuff as it has been the custom been lucky because the better part of the day was really nice and springlike.
I spent the better part of the weekend on Manhattan Beach in our weekend hideaway. Had a great time. Yesterday we went on an ginormous walk in the area. That neighborhood is populated predominantly by Russians. And wherever they move in they build their homes in places of the existing houses.
I saw many such homes in Queens but they were nothing compared to the ones I had the opportunity to see yesterday. Opulent is not a strong enough word to express what they look like. I can not even imagine the wealth these homes represent. Some of them are real palaces some just huge and unusual. But they are all well kept and they are all in nice and clean areas.
Last night we went to a nice local seafood restaurant where I had a half a dozen raw oysters among other food. The rest of the food was very good.
Today we came back to my place because my girlfriend's little daughter had her first sleepover tonight with her friends. And I guess that is a big thing for little girls because she has been talking about it for weeks. The next one I'm sure will go down much easier.
Providing there is parent who will volunteer their home for such an event!
I spent the better part of the weekend on Manhattan Beach in our weekend hideaway. Had a great time. Yesterday we went on an ginormous walk in the area. That neighborhood is populated predominantly by Russians. And wherever they move in they build their homes in places of the existing houses.
I saw many such homes in Queens but they were nothing compared to the ones I had the opportunity to see yesterday. Opulent is not a strong enough word to express what they look like. I can not even imagine the wealth these homes represent. Some of them are real palaces some just huge and unusual. But they are all well kept and they are all in nice and clean areas.
Last night we went to a nice local seafood restaurant where I had a half a dozen raw oysters among other food. The rest of the food was very good.
Today we came back to my place because my girlfriend's little daughter had her first sleepover tonight with her friends. And I guess that is a big thing for little girls because she has been talking about it for weeks. The next one I'm sure will go down much easier.
Providing there is parent who will volunteer their home for such an event!
Sunday, April 5, 2015
Saturday
Today is Saturday, the day before Easter Sunday and the first day of Passover. Neither has much importance to me but still I do get carried away by this multitude of holidays.
Just to show what an equal opportunity person I am, last night we had a beautiful Seder. Today I am not supposed to eat bread so I'll observe that for a while but not for long. Now, tomorrow is Easter Sunday and my girlfriend will cook a nice ham for me. This will show that I'm not against either holidays but not for each one either.
For me the eating part is the only important factor in them.
Saturdays we usually do our weekly supermarket shopping but this time we will skip it. Last week we bought humongous amounts of stuff and since we have this giant of a refrigerator in the kitchen we really don't need anything. We always do little incidental purchases during the week and that makes it unnecessary to do anything today. So, today is a day of rest.
Later on we probably go to our weekend hideaway in Brooklyn and stay there until Sunday afternoon. I really don't mind this change of pace. Actually I am now looking forward to it.
Another important factor of this weekend is that the Stock Market was closed Friday but sadly it will be open on Monday even though most of the world's markets will be closed. I like it when the New York market is closed because it will not have a chance to crap out like it always does.
This is a weird country. They are so hung up on separating religion from normal life that there is absolutely no religious holidays being observed at all. Christmas in their minds is not a religious holiday.
Even when the rest of the Christian world observes Easter this country shuns it. Good Friday and Easter Monday are nothing as far as they are concerned. The Stock Market is a stand alone entity they call their own shots and that is why they are able to close whenever they want to.
But as they say, love it or leave it. I guess we just have to put up with it.
Just to show what an equal opportunity person I am, last night we had a beautiful Seder. Today I am not supposed to eat bread so I'll observe that for a while but not for long. Now, tomorrow is Easter Sunday and my girlfriend will cook a nice ham for me. This will show that I'm not against either holidays but not for each one either.
For me the eating part is the only important factor in them.
Saturdays we usually do our weekly supermarket shopping but this time we will skip it. Last week we bought humongous amounts of stuff and since we have this giant of a refrigerator in the kitchen we really don't need anything. We always do little incidental purchases during the week and that makes it unnecessary to do anything today. So, today is a day of rest.
Later on we probably go to our weekend hideaway in Brooklyn and stay there until Sunday afternoon. I really don't mind this change of pace. Actually I am now looking forward to it.
Another important factor of this weekend is that the Stock Market was closed Friday but sadly it will be open on Monday even though most of the world's markets will be closed. I like it when the New York market is closed because it will not have a chance to crap out like it always does.
This is a weird country. They are so hung up on separating religion from normal life that there is absolutely no religious holidays being observed at all. Christmas in their minds is not a religious holiday.
Even when the rest of the Christian world observes Easter this country shuns it. Good Friday and Easter Monday are nothing as far as they are concerned. The Stock Market is a stand alone entity they call their own shots and that is why they are able to close whenever they want to.
But as they say, love it or leave it. I guess we just have to put up with it.
Saturday, April 4, 2015
Good Friday
Today is Good Friday and the eve of Passover. These two occasions cover most of the people's religion in the New York area. Many people take the day off on Good Friday and Jewish people leave work early because tonight is Seder.
The result of this is that there were less cars on the roads and stores had less people. I like these unofficial holidays. Everything is open, everything is functioning but there are less people. I always worked on this day and it was always good to take the subways to and from work. There were no people on them and it was always easy to finds seats.
Good Friday is a Christian holiday. As a matter of fact one of the most important of all holidays.
The problem is that people don't give a hoot about its meaning. The pope and the cardinal can talk until they turn blue, people only care if they don't have to go to work. Religion and belief is limited to a small number while the rest is just going along for the ride.
I don't believe in any religion but I don't berate anybody who does unless it is done to the extreme. Extreme beliefs don't serve any purpose they are usually practiced for the persons' individual reasons.
Good Friday or Easter Sunday might be one of the holidays when Christians who usually don't go to church decide to go. Average Jews don't go to the synagogue unless it is one of the two major holidays. But even then the majority of Jews do not belong to any temple. Their belief is that if they cook the proper dinner at the proper holiday they are good Jews.
This should be called the religion of the stomach!
Overall today was a very good day. We relaxed at home until the late morning hours, thanks to the fact that Spring Break is on and I didn't have to take the little girl to school. It really felt good not to be awaken by the alarm clock but by a loving hug instead.
We had lunch with a very good friend of mine and his lovely wife. This was the first time they met my girlfriend and they hit it off from the start. My friend and I love to talk. Actually that's an understatement. We can talk for hours and hours. We went to this restaurant where we met at 1 pm and didn't leave until 4:15 pm.
And, we only covered a few things.
The result of this is that there were less cars on the roads and stores had less people. I like these unofficial holidays. Everything is open, everything is functioning but there are less people. I always worked on this day and it was always good to take the subways to and from work. There were no people on them and it was always easy to finds seats.
Good Friday is a Christian holiday. As a matter of fact one of the most important of all holidays.
The problem is that people don't give a hoot about its meaning. The pope and the cardinal can talk until they turn blue, people only care if they don't have to go to work. Religion and belief is limited to a small number while the rest is just going along for the ride.
I don't believe in any religion but I don't berate anybody who does unless it is done to the extreme. Extreme beliefs don't serve any purpose they are usually practiced for the persons' individual reasons.
Good Friday or Easter Sunday might be one of the holidays when Christians who usually don't go to church decide to go. Average Jews don't go to the synagogue unless it is one of the two major holidays. But even then the majority of Jews do not belong to any temple. Their belief is that if they cook the proper dinner at the proper holiday they are good Jews.
This should be called the religion of the stomach!
Overall today was a very good day. We relaxed at home until the late morning hours, thanks to the fact that Spring Break is on and I didn't have to take the little girl to school. It really felt good not to be awaken by the alarm clock but by a loving hug instead.
We had lunch with a very good friend of mine and his lovely wife. This was the first time they met my girlfriend and they hit it off from the start. My friend and I love to talk. Actually that's an understatement. We can talk for hours and hours. We went to this restaurant where we met at 1 pm and didn't leave until 4:15 pm.
And, we only covered a few things.
Friday, April 3, 2015
Thursday
Today is Thursday and as such it is the last day of school for the New York City schools before Spring Break. This means that the little girl will be home from now until a week after Monday. First day back in school, I think is April 13.
Her mom goes off to work so I will try to keep her entertained. I asked her what she wanted to do or see but as of now no definite plans have been developed. These kids are funny. They are perfectly happy staying indoors and skype-ing or playing computer games or watch kids' movies.
Thinking back when I was at this age (13) I don't think I was or we were any different. With the exception that we had no skype, no computer. It's was not that we didn't have it, it was because they were not yet invented. Looking back those were really the dark ages of civilization.
But we were never bored. There was a funny thing that kind of entertained us in our spare times. They were called BOOKS. We read and read and read. We read all kinds of books: adventure, literature anything that was available.
My parents had a series of encyclopedias. I loved to read those volumes. It never mattered which volume I picked up or where I opened it there was always something interesting to find.
Today's kids, now that I see them close up, are totally different. My only hope is that as the years go by they change because now their sphere of interest is about the size of a pea. There is no world existing outside of playing. Helping at home is unheard of, being serious just for seriousness' sake is unheard of.
In a way they are so lucky to be able to live this easy life. The sad thing is that they don't know how lucky they are. Everything they get is coming to them and they are entitled to nothing less than the best.
Maybe I am envious of this life. I went through the war and when I was at this age we just survived the ghetto in Budapest and I was glad for the food I got. I never demanded anything and I think that stayed with me for the rest of my life.
I really like this little girl and I wish nothing but the best for her. I also wish that she would never know the sorrow we went through in our lives.
Her mom goes off to work so I will try to keep her entertained. I asked her what she wanted to do or see but as of now no definite plans have been developed. These kids are funny. They are perfectly happy staying indoors and skype-ing or playing computer games or watch kids' movies.
Thinking back when I was at this age (13) I don't think I was or we were any different. With the exception that we had no skype, no computer. It's was not that we didn't have it, it was because they were not yet invented. Looking back those were really the dark ages of civilization.
But we were never bored. There was a funny thing that kind of entertained us in our spare times. They were called BOOKS. We read and read and read. We read all kinds of books: adventure, literature anything that was available.
My parents had a series of encyclopedias. I loved to read those volumes. It never mattered which volume I picked up or where I opened it there was always something interesting to find.
Today's kids, now that I see them close up, are totally different. My only hope is that as the years go by they change because now their sphere of interest is about the size of a pea. There is no world existing outside of playing. Helping at home is unheard of, being serious just for seriousness' sake is unheard of.
In a way they are so lucky to be able to live this easy life. The sad thing is that they don't know how lucky they are. Everything they get is coming to them and they are entitled to nothing less than the best.
Maybe I am envious of this life. I went through the war and when I was at this age we just survived the ghetto in Budapest and I was glad for the food I got. I never demanded anything and I think that stayed with me for the rest of my life.
I really like this little girl and I wish nothing but the best for her. I also wish that she would never know the sorrow we went through in our lives.
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Wednesday
I was in the City, and I mean Manhattan, today to see my doctor. When I go there I like to take the subway. I think it is still the best transportation to most parts of the City. There is no traffic problems, no parking problems and because I travel with a senior citizen card I only pay half price. So, if the train is slow or late I can't complain, I get what I pay for, right?
Anyway, major subway stations are magnets for various types of interesting people. A lot of places are homes to certain types of musicians. Some are good, some are bad. But they are there hoping to make some money.
The transportation authority promotes a program called 'Music under the stars'. The groups that qalify are playing legally and I guess most of them are pretty good. Today I had the opportunity to see one of these groups.
When I entered the Herald Square Station at 34th Street I heard loud but good music and then I saw a fairly large crowd. As curious as I always am I went there to see it.
There were six young man including a drummer. The rest played brass and played very well. They were entertaining and played good music. Their group was called the Lucky Chops and between numbers they collected money, sold CDs and tee shirts. They were nice, clean cut young guys not more than 22-25 years old but played like old pros.
I can not understand why the late night shows that originate from New York don't grab a few of these talents and put them on instead those lame groups they always seem to find. I guess some union rule prevents them from doing it.
This was so far one of the most interesting thing of the day.
Anyway, major subway stations are magnets for various types of interesting people. A lot of places are homes to certain types of musicians. Some are good, some are bad. But they are there hoping to make some money.
The transportation authority promotes a program called 'Music under the stars'. The groups that qalify are playing legally and I guess most of them are pretty good. Today I had the opportunity to see one of these groups.
When I entered the Herald Square Station at 34th Street I heard loud but good music and then I saw a fairly large crowd. As curious as I always am I went there to see it.
There were six young man including a drummer. The rest played brass and played very well. They were entertaining and played good music. Their group was called the Lucky Chops and between numbers they collected money, sold CDs and tee shirts. They were nice, clean cut young guys not more than 22-25 years old but played like old pros.
I can not understand why the late night shows that originate from New York don't grab a few of these talents and put them on instead those lame groups they always seem to find. I guess some union rule prevents them from doing it.
This was so far one of the most interesting thing of the day.
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Tuesday
Today, finally I let my conscience tall me what to do, and I did. I went to the gym and had a long and very exhausting workout. This is the new gym that I signed up to and it is free. I really like it.
It is nearer, large and have good machines. Never crowded enough that I wouldn't be able to find machines to work on. I was there for almost two hours and feel really good.
My belly didn't get any smaller but hey, I'm trying!
Something else.
I already noted earlier that I hate today's music. What I like is the music of the 50s and 60s. So, whenever there is any doo wop show on television I always try to watch it. Public television usually airs those programs and when they have some locally one have to be a contributor to be able to buy tickets.
Well, yesterday I found a show titled Pop, Rock and Doo Wop, the music of the 50s and 60s that will be playing nearby and it is totally open to the public. I immediately bought two tickets for May 2. The place is in Long Island meaning we will not have to fight City traffic and there is ample parking.
This is to show everybody my wide range of musical interests. From pop to opera! How about that?
It is nearer, large and have good machines. Never crowded enough that I wouldn't be able to find machines to work on. I was there for almost two hours and feel really good.
My belly didn't get any smaller but hey, I'm trying!
Something else.
I already noted earlier that I hate today's music. What I like is the music of the 50s and 60s. So, whenever there is any doo wop show on television I always try to watch it. Public television usually airs those programs and when they have some locally one have to be a contributor to be able to buy tickets.
Well, yesterday I found a show titled Pop, Rock and Doo Wop, the music of the 50s and 60s that will be playing nearby and it is totally open to the public. I immediately bought two tickets for May 2. The place is in Long Island meaning we will not have to fight City traffic and there is ample parking.
This is to show everybody my wide range of musical interests. From pop to opera! How about that?
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