Weekly Mail January 28, 2018

Hey There:


Saturday, Timmy participated in his first Pinewood Derby. I had never heard of this, but apparently it's a big deal in the Cub Scouts.

Tim got to work with power tools and hot glue guns and a whole bunch of other stuff I still haven't used to this day. I'm the least handy person I know, and it was my job to put the wheels on this thing. I told Timmy that there was a 50/50 chance his car would come apart right there on the track. He was assigned number 3 for his car. Dale Earnhardt. (He would have preferred 95 for Lightning McQueen, but I'm sure there's a law against that somewhere in the Cub Scout manual)

Speaking of Dale Earnhardt, the day he died at the Daytona 500, was also the day of my sister's bridal shower. My dad, my uncle Eammon and myself were at our house flipping between the Daytona 500 and watching the XFL. More on the XFL later in this broadcast, for now back to the Pinewood Derby...

So Timmy raced twice and came in third out of 4 in the first heat and 2nd out of 4 in his second heat. We were both just happy that the car was able to finish. A good time was had by all.

Actually the reason this is coming out late is because I met up with my crew from Woodside for a bit tonight. As always, and especially tonight, a great time.



****************************************************************************

However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows 

Jesus, discussing the end of the world with his disciples-Matthew 24:36



OK, so we don't know when it's going to happen, but after this week, and at the risk of annoying my Lord and Savior, I think we have a pretty good idea of how.  

Hawaii governor David Ige confessed last week that the reason he waited 17 minutes to alert his constituency that the nuclear missile headed towards his state was nonexistent was that he forgot his Twitter password.

According to CNN, Governor Ige knew within two minutes that the alert sent out was a false alarm but he was unable to tweet out the correction.

"I have to confess that I don't know my Twitter account login and passwords... I will be putting that on my phone." Ige told reporters last Monday.


And there it is folks. THAT's how the end of the world is going to happen. Somebody, somewhere is going to forget their password and the end will be upon us. Mark my words and take it to the bank. (Though it will obviously be too late to collect).

This is most definitely a 21st Century issue isn't it? I mean think about some of those classic end of the world movies like Fail Safe and Dr. Strangelove. If those movies were made today, you could have the president forgetting the password to call of the missiles. And it would be totally believable.

Because it could happen to anyone. It does happen to everyone. You can't get out of bed in the morning without having to type some damn password in somewhere. Cell phone, e-mail, forget about at the office. At both of my jobs I have several different programs I have to log into before I can start my day. Every program requires a different password.

Drives me bat$-it. And they wonder why I'm so cranky at the office.

My computer at home has taken to offering me suggestions for passwords whenever I have to register Timmy for something on-line. It's usually some concoction of numbers, letters and symbols that I wouldn't be able to remember if I was being interrogated by ISIS. In Daniel Craig's first Bond movie Casino Royale, he was being tortured to give up a password that would transfer funds to a terrorist group. Bond refused even as he was being tortured. I'd a been like "Dude, I don't remember!" How could anyone not buy that explanation?

Yes my friends the end of the world as we know it will happen because Kim Jong Un or Vladimir Putin or Donald Trump or whoever takes their place is going to forget a password.

You read that here first.


POLITICS: De Blasio blows off Trump.

A group of mayors from around the country were scheduled to meet with President Trump at the White House last week to discuss infrastructure, a topic which has been neglected by both Republicans and Democrats for years. The Dope from Park Slope was amongst the mayors invited.

But at the last minute De Blasio changed his mind.

“I will NOT be attending today’s meeting at the White House after @realDonaldTrump’s Department of Justice decided to renew their racist assault on our immigrant communities. It doesn’t make us safer and it violates America’s core values,”


I'm not going to get into the whole sanctuary cities debate here, maybe some other time when I really want to raise hell with all of you (or some of you). What I do have to say is that I'm not buying the DFPS's story about canceling on Trump at the last minute. I think that was his plan all along.

If it wasn't sanctuary cities, it would have been the wall, or the tax bill or anything he could have used to show the world that he has no problem telling Trump to shove it. And to do so by maxing out the exposure.

Do I have proof of this? Nope. Just my humble opinion, but that was the first reaction I had when I heard he wasn't going.

SPORTS: The Return of the XFL

Will and Grace, soon to be Roseanne, and just announced Murphy Brown are all being rebooted. So in the vein of no idea so bad that it can't be done again, here comes Vince McMahon to give the XFL another chance.

Unlike the first incarnation of the XFL, this one will have no gimmicks, nobody with a criminal record, (the old league's Las Vegas team was called the Outlaws for crissakes) and everyone has to stand for the national anthem.

OK, so when the XFL came around in 2001, one of the "gimmicks" they advertised was no fair catches, implying that if you caught the ball you could get immediately decimated by a defender. (The fine-print in the rules stated that the defender needed to allow a 5 yard window for the receiver to catch the ball). Another gimmick, and one I really liked BTW was instead of a coin flip to determine who kicked off, the ball was placed 10 yards or so down the field and one guy for each team would have to run and pick up the ball "steal the bacon" style. I thought that was brilliant.

It sounds like there will be none of that. No scantily clad cheerleaders infiltrating the locker rooms, no artificial battles between color commentators and coaches. "I said I'm not doing any of that wrestling crap" said New York Hitmen coach Rusty Tillman when Jesse "the Body" Ventura tried to goad him into a debate.

To me the one issue McMahon still has is that the players are all going to stink. Whether he has gimmicks or not, whether they stand for the anthem or don't. Anybody whose got a morsel of talent is going to play somewhere else. Whose going to pay to watch that? mcMahon says he's not beholden to TV since he isn't taking on any networks as a partner. That's smart, because what TV Network would sign up for this?

Look, I've made a lifetime of predicting $h-t that turns out all wrong, but I really can't see this working.


We made it through January folks. Hopefully better times are a comin

Have a Great Week

Weekly Mail January 21, 2018

Hey:

The walk from Penn Station to 47th Street was more tricky than usual on Saturday, what with the Women's Protest March taking place on 6th Avenue. I was of course walking against the flow of the march, more to the point, those who had already marched and were heading out of Manhattan.

Don't get me wrong, I'm glad they had the march. Again as I said last year it's going to have historical significance for years to come, and it's the perfect way to remind those in charge that the people still have the power.

 But it was a hell of a commute. Thank goodness the weather was really nice for January.

January 20th of course, was chosen mainly because that was the day last year when our nation's 45th President was sworn in. Which means that those of you who predicted Trump would be kicked out of office within 12-18 months are officially on the clock as it were.

Speaking of President Trump......


        ***BOOK REVIEW***BOOK REVIEW***BOOK REVIEW***BOOK REVIEW***

Title: Fire and Fury:Inside the Trump White House
By: Michael Wolff

When Ross Perot made his Presidential run in 1992, my rational for not voting for him was that the last person who wanted to see a President Perot was, well, Ross Perot.

Think about it. On July 1, 1992, he was ahead of both President HW Bush and Governor Bill Clinton in most major polls. On July 16, he dropped out. He reentered the race in October, and when he started gaining traction, came up with some cock and bull story about his daughter's wedding being sabotaged, and his poll numbers fell. He ended up with 20% of the vote and some stories to tell his grandkids about.

Of all the reasons why I thought voting for Donald Trump last year wasn't a good idea, that was pretty close to the top. The idea that he was doing this for $h-tts and giggles, to go back to NY with his 150 or so Electoral Votes and brag to his buddies how he embarrassed the Republican party and  gave Hillary Clinton a run for her money. Of all the people in the country, the world who thought President Donald Trump was a bad idea, nobody thought so more than the Donald himself.

According to Wolff's book this was exactly the scenario.


As the campaign came to an end, Trump himself was sanguine. His ultimate goal, after all, had never been to win. “I can be the most famous man in the world,” he had told his aide Sam Nunberg at the outset of the race. His longtime friend Roger Ailes, the former head of Fox News, liked to say that if you want a career in television, first run for president. Now Trump, encouraged by Ailes, was floating rumors about a Trump network. It was a great future. He would come out of this campaign, Trump assured Ailes, with a far more powerful brand and untold opportunities.

“This is bigger than I ever dreamed of,” he told Ailes a week before the election. “I don’t think about losing, because it isn’t losing. We’ve totally won.”- 

That brings to mind the great Mike "Cubby"Sanfillipo's attitude towards the casino's of Atlantic City. "If we win, we win. If we lose we still win. We can't lose!"

But according to Wolff, or according to Donald Trump Jr, when it started to look as though his father was going to pull this off, he looked he he had "seen a ghost." Melania Trump was crying, and not as Wolff points out "tears of joy."

But Trump being Trump, of course instead of hopping on his plane, flying away to points unknown and leaving someone else to clean up this mess, convinced himself that he could be President, indeed that he should be President. And in his own bizarre way, developed a sort of Team of Rivals like what Abraham Lincoln had during the Civil War. He essentially had three chiefs of staff. Reince Preibus the GOP Chairman was the official chief of staff and represented the standard Republican Party. Steve Bannon, the former head of Breitbart who had taken over Trump's campaign, represented the alt-right faction, the border wall, the Muslim ban and whatnot.

Then there was the third faction led by Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, or as Bannon refered to them Jarvanka (amongst the more polite things Sloppy Steve called them). They represented the faction that tried to appeal to the more liberal side of things.

Of course as is made abundantly clear in this book, Trump is no Abe Lincoln. He's not even Abe Frohman (the sausage king of Chicago). What he is, by all accounts is that relative every family has, the one who watches cable news all day, that spouts off about it at family gatherings.

There has been some question as to how Wolff was able to source his material, but even if this ends up in the fiction section, it was a hard book to put down.

4 Auggies.

The official coroner's report came out on the death of Tom Petty this week. It concluded that Petty died of an accidental overdose of painkillers, having broken his hip while on tour. A big Tom Petty fan, I was obviously crushed when I heard of his passing, but 67 is also a pretty full life for a rock star.

Dolores O'Riordan though? That was just a shame. One of the most talented and underrated musicians I have ever seen.  And the fact that she was only a couple years older than me hit home even harder. I'm still reeling over this one.

*****************************************************************************

Last but not least.....


When Tara's dad passed away in October, one of the comforts that I took were from the people who took a few seconds to write me a quick note on Facebook, sending their condolences, good thoughts and prayers. I realize that little things like that can carry a whole bunch of weight.

And yet, when I saw the posts this week remembering Karl Ludwig Sr., I didn't click the sad face or write anything. A blurb on social media couldn't justify the feelings I had upon hearing this news.

As teens and into our 20's, Ray and I felt like we were the 5th and 6th Ludwig boys. I know we're not the only guys who felt that way, as anybody Kevin, Kris and Keith were buddies with probably had that same sense, but as Karl (the Ace's) two best buds, I know I can safely speak for Ray in that regard.

We spent many a day and night playing board games, watching TV and generally BS'ing all at 50-28 64th Street. Not to mention the New Years Eve's sharing the big guy's braunschweiger (probably to his chagrin) as we watched the ball drop followed by a game of touch football post midnight. (The Toilet Bowl we called it).

Those were the best times, really the happiest of times, times I can only hope that our own kids will talk about when they get to be our age.

Big Karl was an American original no question about it. A Navy veteran, and a retired NY police officer. There are a number of books and movies you can read and watch that will show just how much fun being a cop in New York City during the 1970's was. Anybody who held that job during those rough years qualifies in my book as a hero. And sure enough, the first time I met the big guy was when he came to tell us all about being a cop when Ace, Ray and I were in kindergarten together. For a brieif time after that, I told anyone who would listen that I wanted to be a police officer. That was until I decided I wanted to be President of the United States.

But I digress

Obviously, it goes without saying that my thoughts and prayers are with the Ludwig's this weekend and beyond. And to thank Big K and Agnes for putting up with Ray and I all those days and nights.

But I'm not just sad because the dad of one of my best friends in the world passed this week, I'm also sad because it's making me remember some good times that don't seem that long ago.
Even though they are.

Take Care Everyone

and Have a Great Week

Weekly Mail January 14, 2018

And we're back......


Was out of commission for a few days last week with pneumonia, thankfully I had most of our Year in Review done so we didn't miss a beat. Now we're back and feeling better, just in time for a whole new pile of crap from our friends in the White House.


On July 21, 1972,  comedian George Carlin was arrested for disturbing the peace after he performed his famous "7 words you can't say on TV" routine in Milwaukee. He would refer to the words $h-t, pi$$, f-ck, c-nt, motherf-cker, c-ck$-cker and t-t$ as the Milwaukee 7.  Although these words aren't on any official FCC list as far as I know, it was a general rule of thumb that broadcasts used to stay clear of the law. (such as it is.)

Alas we've come a long way from those golden days of yesteryear. For anyone who tuned into the news channels on Thursday evening, got to see in big bold letters that President Trump referred to certain nations as "shitholes" CNN kept the banner up all night. On MSNBC, Rachel Maddow said the word once, then censored herself the rest of the hour, (though the crawl underneath referenced the word). Sean Hannity,  used the word "bleephole" while complaining about the show Morning Joe.

Earlier that morning, I had WFAN's new morning show Boomer and Gio on, and they were talking about the previous evening's Knick game. I'm not sure how it came up, but Boomer Esiason, Greg Gianatti and Jerry Recco were talking about Jen Selter who is apparently known as a "butt model".  Miss Selter was at the game rooting on Kristaps Porzingis who she has been rumored to be romantically linked to. Both Porzingis and Selter have denied anything other than the old "Just Friends" answer.

This sent Gio into a tizzy. "Look it's obvious they are having sex, why don't they just come out and say "Hey, we're having sex!"  This brilliant observation naturally sent Timmy into a fit of giggles and made me put the Sirris/XM 80's channel on.

So my Thursday started with me having to change the channel because they were talking about the star of the Knicks having sex with a butt model, and the day ended with the President of the United States calling Haiti and some African countries shitholes.  Followed by story on Friday that said Trump paid hush money to a prostitute he had a fling with shortly after his marriage to Melania.

Nice.

And the next time Timmy asks Tara or I why he can't have a sister, I'm still going to tell him that was Jesus's decision, but Thursday will be a prime exhibit for my case of being one and done.


MORE POLITICS-OPRAH 2020?

I didn't catch the Golden Globes. I don't normally watch them anyway. Probably the last time I watched them was when I worked at the Post on Sunday nights.

So I didn't catch Oprah Winfrey's awe inspiring speech which has caused many of her loyal fans (and many not so loyal fans) to suggest that the Queen of all Media should toss her billion dollar hat into the ring and run for President against Trump in 2020.

That's the answer! Run someone who has no political experience against someone else who had no previous political experience because THAT turned out to be a winning formula.

Now look, count me amongst those who think Oprah Winfrey is the epitome of the American Dream. Her rise from nowhere to become let's face it, one of the world's most powerful women, if not people, is something to behold. She's done that with a combination of smarts, work ethic and compassion. That's not only something we all could use right now, but it's also three things our current President is sorely lacking.

Now I've heard that Oprah in private is not the same outgoing all giving person that her public persona projects. I don't know folks, multiple sources have estimated her charitable donations at close to $400 million. That's a lot of scratch to give away. I realize there's more where that came from, but still.

My point is that if Oprah ran and won, she would automatically be the most generous President we've ever had. And there is something to be said for that.

But we're also seeing what happens when you elect someone who has no prior experience dealing with the government. I'm sure there would be no shortage of people willing to help her out, former Presidents Obama and Clinton to name 2, but still it just doesn't seem like a great idea.

To me Oprah's optimum role should be finding that young up and coming star in Congress and getting them the support and attention they need to make a run at the White House. Like she did for Obama in 2008. There has to be someone out there. And Oprah can be the one to find that someone.

But I don''t think Oprah is that someone. 


SPORTS: Trouble in (football) Paradise?

It should come as no shock to anyone that three lying scumbags like Robert Kraft, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady would occasionally butt heads. If I'm going to give the devils their due, I'm kind of surprised Belichick and/or Brady haven't decided to jump ship to try to save another franchise just to prove that they can and satisfy their massive egos.

But according to an ESPN report a couple of weeks ago, something like that is what caused Belichick to trade backup QB Jimmy Garoppolo to the 49'ers for much less that he was worth earlier this season.

According to ESPN.com's Seth Wickersham...

Two weeks before the Nov. 1 trading deadline, Belichick met with Kraft to discuss the quarterback situation. According to staffers, the meeting ran long, lasting half the day and pushing back Belichick's other meetings. The office was buzzing. The meeting ended with a clear mandate to Belichick: trade Garoppolo because he would not be in the team's long-term plans, and then, once again, find the best quarterback in the draft and develop him. Belichick was furious and demoralized, according to friends. But in the end, he did what he asks of his players and coaches: He did his job. One morning in late October, Belichick texted San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and asked him to call. Belichick had long admired Kyle's father, Mike, who not only had been one of the NFL's smartest tacticians but had also personally defended Belichick to commissioner Roger Goodell during the Spygate scandal. At the combine this past February, Kyle, weeks into the 49ers job after being the offensive coordinator for the Falcons, met with Belichick for hours to learn from his team's humiliating Super Bowl loss. Belichick believed that Garoppolo would excel under Shanahan, and when he and Shanahan connected on the phone, Belichick offered the quarterback for a second-rounder.

.....Brady, though, seemed liberated. Kraft hugged Brady when he saw him that week, in full view of teammates. A few days later during practice, some players and staffers noticed that Brady seemed especially excited, hollering and cajoling. Brady was once again the team's present and future. His new backup, Brian Hoyer, was a longtime friend and not a threat. The owner was in Brady's corner. "He won," a Patriots staffer says.

So Brady considered Garoppolo a threat to his job, so he urged Kraft to urge Belichick to trade him for peanuts.

This is why there was some hope for Giants fans that Belichick would come back to his roots and take the Giants opening at head coach. I can't see that happening. Even if Belichick said adios to Brady and Kraft, I couldn't see him coming to a team with an iron fisted GM like the Giants have in Dave Gittleman. Can I see him leaving the Patriots? Absolutely. But he would go somewhere where he called all the shots. And the Giants aren't that team.

*********************************************************************************

I was just about to get on the train to come into the city on Saturday when I saw a CNN alert that a ballistic missle alert that had been issued for Hawaii was a false alarm. All I could think of was 1) That would have been some night at the office and 2) it would put the Islanders beating up (once again) my Rangers into some perspective. Also, the folks who write the scripts for Hawaii Five-O just got handed a freebee. (hey, if we don't laugh, we'll cry folks.)

All right before I get myself in real hot water....

To leave on a positive note, please check out this article from CBS News about a 5th grade class in NJ that helped right a terrible wrong from 60 years ago. I saw the story on CBS Sunday Morning and it helped restore some of my faith in humanity.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/students-who-took-couples-honeymoon-story-to-heart-take-action/

Next week I'll have a review of the Michael Wolff book about the first year of the Trump administration. I should be finished with the book by then.


Have a Great Week

Weekly Mail 2017 Year in Review Part Two

JULY 


July 10- Here Come Da Judge....

This was the All Star Game Home run Derby. We all were hoping for a Giancarlo Stanton-Aaron Judge final. Now Yankee fans can call this batting practice. GRRRRRR!


July 21- I guess this means Melissa McCarthy is out of a job...

President Trump's fact challenged yet somewhat lovable Press Secretary Sean Spicer resigned. Unlike the aforementioned Alec Baldwin's lame a$$ Trump impersonation, McCarthy's Spicer take was brilliant.

July 24- How many times did I say this year I don't care if he gets knocked around as long as he doesn't get hurt. It....Never....F-cking......Ends!

And then there were the Mets. This was regarding Zack Wheeler, ending up where he spent the better part of two seasons previous... On the DL. GRRRRR


July 30- Why Ace can get a job here and you and I can't Ray.

Two of my favorite Post reporters, the great Kathianne Bonniello and Susan Edleman, reported that a lawsuit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court claimed that a recruiter for NBC News asked a potential employee to provide Facebook or Instagram photos before they could proceed with the hiring process. This didn't bother me at the time because I wasn't interested in working there, but a job opened up in late November that I would have been perfect for....

AUGUST

August 3- Where is Roscoe P. Coltrane when we need him?

Yeah, at the time, I thought it was a chance to bust out a reference to one of my favorite childhood shows. But Tom Wopat C-list actor that he is, was just the first of a plethora of famous men accused of sexual misconduct.

August 10- All season I lauded the Mets for not trading Jay Bruce for garbage. So what do they go and do? WTG Idiots!

Ryder Ryan. A 30th round draft pick of the Indians. If he turns out to be good, I'll gladly eat my words. But this reminded me of when Phil Esposito was GM of the Rangers back in the late 80's. They had a defenseman named Brad Maxwell, who Espo traded away for "future considerations." When he was asked what those future considerations might be, Espo responded, "I don't really care, I just wanted him the hell off my roster."
At least HE was honest.


August 14- As soon as Gary Cohen said (Aaron Judge) has only 5 homers since the All-Star Break, I knew he was going to put the next one in the seats.

2017 may go down as the worst season in Mets history, which is saying a lot for a team that once lost 120 out of 160 games.

August 21- The Solar Eclipse...

I was on vacation that day, so I had some fun with it...

1) Whatever you do today, DON"T LOOK AT IT (followed by a clip of the Nazi's faces melting off at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark)

2) To those who looked at the eclipse without glasses. (followed by I Go Blind by Hootie and the Blowfish)

3) Of course he did- RE: An article reporting that President Trump looked up into the sky without glasses to see the eclipse. He also claims to live on a diet of McDonalds and Coca-Cola, so maybe he really is indestructible.

4) THAT was IT?- I sat out on my stoop and without looking to the sky, tried to see if I could tell a difference. It was barely noticeable from what I could gather. A complete letdown.


SEPTEMBER

September 5- First day of 4th Grade. I should be proud (and I am) but my little buddy isn't so little anymore.

With Timmy's birthday being at the end of August, I get a double punch. He gets a year older and a few days later he goes a grade higher. Next year at this time I'll be writing about his 10th birthday! WTF?

September 6-WOW!

This was regarding Craig Carton's arrest by the Feds for investment fraud. I figured he might lose his job at the FAN because he said something inappropriate. But not for something this stupid.


September 30- Mysti Nicole- A huge thank you to everyone who stopped by for Lemonade and Looms for Lara We got shut out early from the rain but still managerd to raise a little over $200.00. So proud of our kids for showing support and kindness for Lara Almost 800.00 raised to date.

I'm not gonna lie. 20 years ago, if you had told me I was going to live on long Island, I'd have said you were nuts. Shoot I'd have told you that if you said that to me on my wedding night, 12 years ago. But in the 8 years since I moved to Oceanside, I have rarely been prouder of my new town and the people in it than I was watching these kids raise money for Lara, a 14 year old girl severely injured in a car accident last September. What a community should be about.


OCTOBER

October 2- The first story I woke up to was the tragedy in Las Vegas. The next bad bad news I got was from Mouse about the death of Pally. I only got to meet him once, but when he heard I was married to Tara, he treated me like we were old friends. A NY Original. RIP.

50 innocent lives taken away in a mass shooting during a country music festival at Mandalay Bay. That would have been sickening enough Then, Steve (Pally) McFadden, who helped many of my friends who are in the hospitality business get their start, the McFadden of Ryan McFadden's, when Jimmy and Timmy Tubridy were working there with Tara and Kerry Connors. If not for that, I wouldn't have overheard Tara saying she knew those guys, and I wouldn't have told her I knew them too and well, you know the rest. Tom Petty's death, prematurely reported but ultimately confirmed capped off an awful awful day in America.

October 3- It means squat if they don't win. Good luck Yanks!

They won. onto the playoffs they went.

October 15- OK Somebody explain to me what the f-ck just happened in the Jet game? Why was that not a touchdown?

The past couple of years, I've been avoiding the NFL as much as I can. Ever since Post columnist Mike Vaccaro wrote a column basically saying that no matter how bad the players act, no matter how crappy the league treats it's fans, no matter how much bad behaviour is rewarded, it doesn't matter because we the fans are addicted. We are the crackheads to the NFL dealers, the drunks to the NFL bartenders.

But with Tara's dad so sick, I wanted to spend the little time I had left with him doing what we did so often during my marriage, watching sports. Big Tim, a former football star himself, loved watching football, college and pro. So that's what we did.

And unfortunately I knew things were going south when ref Tony Carrente made his ruling, I explained it to Tim, and he didn't really say anything. If that had been the year before, he would have said that they league was trying to screw over NY, because "they all hate NY Billy."  I wouldn't have argued with him in this case either. 

October 21-Sorry Yankee Fans, Hell of a run though

And for a brief shinning moment, I felt sad for the Yankees and their fans. It was an unexpected run, they did it with home grown talent, and they knocked off a loaded Cleveland team who had made it to Game 7 of the World Series the year before.  All those good feelings would come to an end in December, when Derek Jeter gifted his former team a 59 HR hitter....

NOVEMBER

November 8- I realize deBlasio was a shoo-in, but 70% of the vote? That I don't get.

This still blows my mind. Maybe if I still lived in Queens or worked in Manhattan I would have a better understanding, but for someone nobody seemed to like, the Dope from Park Slope cleaned house. A couple of people thought I was suggesting hanky-panky, but that honestly never crossed my mind. I think low voter turnout, lack of a sufficient push from his opponent and city still reeling from the election of Donald Trump was the real culprit.

November 11- If I were a college basketball coach, I wouldn't schedule ANY of my games overseas, but if I HAD to play in another country, I'd make Midnight Express the in-flight movie. If that flick can't prevent stuff like this from happening, nothing can.

I wrote this in response to the story about the three UCLA Basketball players who were arrested for shoplifting in China. Midnight Express, was based on the true life story of Billy Hayes, arrested for trying to smuggle hashish out of Turkey. His prison experience should be enough to scare anyone out of doing something illegal in another country.

November 29- First Charlie Rose and now Matt Lauer?

The week before, I had ripped Matt Lauer a new one, wondering aloud how a bald, geeky looking fellow like him could command a salary of 25 million hosting one of the two preeminent national morning shows. A mere 4 days later, he was gone. Buried under an avalanche of deviant sexual accusations, that he didn't deny. Charlie Rose meantime, was accused of exposing himself in front of subordinates. It was a tough year for the perverts. Unless of course you were the President.


DECEMBER

December 11- #bragadocious

Timmy received a certificate for being a good citizen from his school. Also had lunch with the principal. He never ceases to amaze me.

December 31- Awfully Nipply in Times Square tonight...

I realize in this year of the #metoo movement, this could get me in trouble, but I wrote this watching Mariah Carey's performance in Times Square. In 10 degree weather, pouring out of a dress and fur coat. And Lord forgive me when Ryan Seacrest said that Mariah was taking care of her twins, I couldn't have been the only person in America who didn't think he was referring to her children..



                                                          October 30, 2017

I can't do any look-back at 2017 and not address this sad day. Much of the year for me was dominated by what was going on with Tara's dad. So much of what I wrote above was just a distraction from what was really important and what this year was really about for Tara, Timmy and myself. As much as you feel like the world should stop when someone you love passes, we know of course that it doesn't. Obviously when I look back on 2017, losing my father in law will always be the first thing that comes to mind, and that's how it should be. But every year has it's ups and downs, and I hope that everybody looks at these last two blog posts and at least has a chuckle or a shake of the head.

And once again, thank you all for you support, prayers and love this year. From my family to yours.



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