Christiern

Singular, 7/4, singular--my interest is restricted to Y&R, but you are otherwise correct--I am a regular (thank you, TIVO) Y&R absorber who has not a second left over for Ms. Spears or any of the other messed-up, no-talent VH1 divas.

And what light might that be?

It is politics. The irony is that this is Dan Gould's thread, but how can you discuss these hearings without touching on politics? Especially since the Republicans have turned this into a bi-partisan issue. Funny, if the thread is moved to the political forum, Dan won't be accessing it--or will he?

The Republican committee members are obviously more interested in giving baseball a whitewash. Turning this into a bipartisan issue is the sort of thing that cries out for CHANGE! Let's get rid of these idiots.

Dark Shadows is interesting, in a campy sort of way, but soaps have come a long way--out of the shadows, so to speak. Y&R is well written, generally well acted, and rarely an insult to the viewer's intelligence. It is actually amazing that the show is as good as it is when one considers that they have to come up with about 6 hours a week (subtracting commercial and promotional time).

I agree, Burton is a first class moron. I find it amazing that even this issue has become bipartisan: Reps for Clemens, Dems against. How ridiculous is that?

I had already pointed my finger at Jeffrey Bardwell--we all knew it wasn't Victor Newman. The scarf? Well, when you are in bed, waiting to die and expecting a visit from the many you love, how do you dress for his visit? A little scarf is just the thing, isn't it? BTW, I think LIly is pregnant.

One of the characters in this conversation is a black guy who--in the story--owns a jazz spot ("Indigo"). It seemed perfectly natural to "slip" this in as they were sitting in the club and the white guy, a prospective son-in-law, had just given a "rare" jazz record to his girlfriend's father. Okay?

Don't even think of buying it--I've heard it,,, ....it doesn't work!

Here's the link to an interesting site for jazz videos.

Great program--thanks! Had the experience of meeting Nica a few time--extraordinary woman, great silver flask! Got a kick out of Monk falling asleep in the kitchen--that's exactly what he did when Jules Colomby and I put together a concert at the Village Gate.

If, by "conspiracy theories" you mean rival labels getting together and voting for the other's nominee(s) in non-conflicting categories, I can assure yo that this is an old game--I have witnessed that happening between Atlantic and Columbia.

Listening with eyes closed helps, but she sounds just as bad.

This afternoon I received a 2-CD set of my own "Stars of the Apollo" that I ordered the other day. Ny original copy had been stolen, so I was going to put the replacement in the original spot on my shelves. To my surprise, the spot was occupied by a 4-CD Fogelberg set that I have no recollection of ever seeing, much less listening to. The box it belongs in is not there, nor is the booklet, but the inner package and discs are in virgin condition. I looked the album up (it sells for $249 - $599!), so that's how I know about the box and booklet. Why I have this is a mystery, I guess my friend who extracted the Apollo set must have used Fogelberg to fill in the gap (he had done that before), but his "fillers" were usually junk CDs. Oh well, so I have a Fogelberg set, I didn't think I had any of his recordings. Is anyone here familiar with this?

Well, one has to close one's eyes, that's a given. Even so, there isn't much there to be admired. Those Grammys were wasted, but what else is new? I took a picture of 2 such wasted trophies this morning. What is it about Winehouse that you like? What does she have that makes her stand out? Is she good by today's standards or by any standard? Whom would you compare her to? A perplexed, inquiring mind wants to know. Now, this is a wine house I can get with...

There is irony in the fact that an awards ceremony whose sole purpose is to honor excellence has become a showcase for mediocrity. If this reflects the best there is, the music business is in worse shape than I thought.

No actual destruction, I just thought I'd use my Grammys to symbolize the sorry state of music today. I think the Grammy shows document the substandard popular music has reached.

I thought the Beatles tribute injected a bit of tasteful imagination into an otherwise bland hodgepodge of performances that painfully demonstrated why the record industry is going South. Cirque du Soleil never fails to entertain. Tony Bennett needs to stop fumbling in the spotlight and rest on his laurels. Love Aretha, but her appearances in recent years have not been good for her reputation. Tina looks amazing for her age and it was good to see her again. Wish Keely Smith hadn't been used as a prop for mediocre talent. Alicia Keyes is not much of a talent with or without the ghost of Sinatra. Amy Winehouse was pretty awful--much ado about very little. Little Richards was, well, Little Richard--and that's good. No fading star, he. Interesting that Obama won a Grammy and Bill Clinton didn't--both were nominated. Beyonce is another minimal talent, IMO. I would rather have heard Herbie play jazz. Haven't heard his Mitchell album, but it has to be better than Winehouse. Sorry to see him shaking like that. Country singer Paisley (sp?) was good. All in all a sad affair--50th Anniversary show ought to have been more than today's mediocrity with a few survivors thrown in.

He didn't look like Cheney, so I felt safe. Anyway, he was aiming at the pelicans.

On a clear day, I can see the Whitestone Bridge, but not the Williamsburg. Yes, thats the Empire State, and--if you look closely--you can also see the Chrysler Building, the Citicorp building, and the Plaza Hotel. Here's a closer look at those buildings, taken 3 months ago (wasn't the park beautiful?):

MG, that is the Triboro Bridge and, to its left, a railroad bridge that I cannot name. Weizy, I don't recall the BTU, but it keeps me cool and dry on nasty NYC summer days. It also is quite good at running up my ConEd bill!

...and wishing you many more to come!

Same views, different morning... and 3 hours later... ad here is my guardian pelican. He's looking east, I'm looking south, on Central Park West...