Virgin [welcome to] America

Please, please, DOT, grant them their government operating authority so we can fly.


On board, you can pick your own movies, videos, live TV; listen to music and make your own playlists (that will transfer to connecting flights); choose your food options in a picture-in-picture format while watching your show; play games; or talk to people in other seats, all on a 9" in-seat monitor.

And, first class seats are ridiculously cheap.

Jersey Boys on Broadway

I'm lucky enough to know Matthew Scott through his awesome aunt and uncle (who I am forever grateful to for too many things to list).

He's the swing on Broadway's Jersey Boys, and this particular day, he was performing as Frankie Valli -- to rave reviews and adoring fans. People couldn't get enough of him outside the stage door. Matt's so talented, he also performs the Bob Gaudio and Tommy Devito roles superbly (from what I hear on the streets).

If you get to see him perform, consider yourself lucky.



Clockwise from top left: Fans crowding Matt; Matt poses with anyone who asks; a fan raving to Matt's mom (who saw the show with us); and Mike jumping in front of the August Wilson Theater on Broadway.

Independence Day from Washington D.C.

Finally, a fourth of July spent in Washington D.C. We even had a view of the fireworks (with the tip of the Washington monument, the red light on the left) from our apartment window. The guy across the street was busy in his kitchen during the entire show.

Beach Yoga

My friend Aaron teaches yoga on the beach at Rose and the Pacific Ocean a few times each summer -- free to anyone who happens to be in Venice, California.

This kick off date for yoga in June was particularly special because it came complete with a kirtan at the end with Dave Stringer and friends performing.

When Organic Isn't Really Organic | TIME

When Organic Isn't Really Organic:
Albert Straus, owner of the Straus Family Creamery in the small northern California town of Marshall, decided to test the feed that he gives his 1,600 cows last year and was alarmed to find that nearly 6% of the organic corn feed he received from suppliers was "contaminated" by genetically modified (GM) organisms. Organic food is, by definition, supposed to be free of genetically modified material, and organic crops are required to be isolated from other crops. But as GM crops become more prevalent, there is little that an organic farmer can do to prevent a speck of GM pollen or a stray GM seed from being blown by the wind onto his land or farm equipment and, eventually, into his products. In 2006, GM crops accounted for 61% of all the corn planted in the U.S. and 89% of all the soybeans. "I feared that there weren't enough safeguards," Straus says.

excerpted from Time Magazine. Bold emphasis by me. I'm wondering if my grits are GMO.

Philip Johnson's Glass House.

I can't wait to see this.

New York Times article.

Tours are completely booked this year, and all weekend tours are sold out until next Spring already. Best chance is to go on a weekday, sometime in 2008!

Remember to eat here in NYC.

I have always loved meatloaf. And now, apparently, meatballs are the in food.

Jump Utah!

While in Utah, we jumped in the Coral Sand Dunes Park. Then off to the Grand Canyon the next day.

Road Trip

Roy's Motel & Cafe in Amboy, California is just a tiny ghost town. Erin and I stopped in search of food in the middle of the desert on our way to Kanab, Utah. Mission was not accomplished. Roy's isn't a functioning stop for anything other than bathrooms though the man sitting inside the diner with two dogs told us they'd be restoring the gas station and the diner one day. He also told us we were a hundred miles from the nearest eatery.

After shooting photos and a hundred miles later at some time past 3 p.m., Erin and I pulled into Searchlight, Nevada. Our choices were McDonalds or a casino. We opted for the casino -- which turned out to be surprisingly decent.

We poked around the Pink Coral Sand Dunes State park yesterday, and hiked on the north rim of the Grand Canyon today.
Photos soon.

A Call for Justice Against Poverty

I got this in my email today and read the whole speech by Bono. It is available as an online book called The ONE Campaign - on the move and for sale in tangible form (proceeds support the ONE Campaign).

Here's the text of the email:
Having worked in politics for a long time, I've heard thousands of speeches in my life, but none as moving as Bono's at the 2006 National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, DC. It was profound. It was a spiritual call to arms against injustices that we -- together as ONE -- can end. He elevated every person in the room to rise up and do something. See for yourself.

The speech is now available in a small, beautiful book called On the Move. Proceeds from On the Move support The ONE Campaign.

Here is one of my favorite passages:

"God is in the slums, in the cardboard boxes where the poor play house. God is in the silence of a mother who has infected her child with a virus that will end both their lives. God is in the cries heard under the rubble of war. God is in the debris of wasted opportunity and lives, and God is with us if we are with them."

You can read more through a new tool we're using called digital paper. It lets you literally flip through the pages of the book.

Go here for a virtual tour of On the Move and order your own copy.

This is an incredible time to be a ONE member. More than 100,000 members joined in less than a week and we've had a string of major back-to-back victories as we build our movement into a force unlike any other. We are growing. We are on the move. We will end extreme poverty. Bono's On the Move book reminds us of that. It guides, inspires and shines light for all to see. Please read it, and share it.

Thank you,

Susan McCue, ONE.org

Giro d'Italia live online

Dammit. Robert got me hooked. We hovered over his desktop this morning having coffee and watching Day 2 of the tour.

Watch the Giro d'Italia on RAI here, every day, live.

And since the RAI links are unreliable (at least on Mac), visit the official Giro website for updates (English and Italian), or the gazzetta for updates in Italian.

I guess once an American starts winning, we'll eventually get to see the Giro on U.S. TV. Back in 1996 I used to have to watch the Tour de France on ESPN2 at 2:30 a.m. for measly 30-minute highlights.

If you buy bottled water, read this

First, the NRDC: Bottled Water - Executive Summary and the full report here based on a four-year study.

You might find this disturbing:
"Some of this marketing is misleading, implying the water comes from pristine sources when it does not. ...one brand of "spring water" whose label pictured a lake and mountains, actually came from a well in an industrial facility's parking lot, near a hazardous waste dump, and periodically was contaminated with industrial chemicals at levels above FDA standards.

or:
"...about one fourth of bottled water is bottled tap water (and by some accounts, as much as 40 percent is derived from tap water)..."

and a bit more
Even when bottled waters are covered by FDA's specific bottled water standards, those rules are weaker in many ways than EPA rules that apply to big city tap water. For instance, comparing those EPA regulations (for water systems which serve the majority of the U.S. population) with FDA's bottled water rules:

City tap water can have no confirmed E. coli or fecal coliform bacteria... FDA bottled water rules include no such prohibition (a certain amount of any type of coliform bacteria is allowed in bottled water).

Well, actually, just go read that executive summary -- it tells you the rest!

Engine Trouble

2007 is proving to be an exciting drama filled year. First, I was chased by the NYPD in January. Yesterday, on my return to Chicago, we had an incident in the air.

So I had a bad vibe that hovered since morning. I couldn't place it. I wandered around Chicago with an ominous feeling all day long. We boarded the plane -- the flight attendant was unkind about helping me put my five pound small bag up in the bin, but everything else was rather uneventful.

Take off. Um, sparks. Flames. Smoke...where I happened to be sitting, immediately behind the wing. Really bad burning smell seeping through the cabin.

What I love about United is Channel 9 Audio -- air traffic control communication is open to all passengers, which I happen to find fascinating audio. The most exciting thing in the past was hearing the Air France pilot speak -- gotta love an accent. So our pilot explains to air traffic control that we had a 'bird strike' -- a "fairly large bird, like a goose or something."

Shortly after take off, at about 5000 feet, a goose (or something) went straight through our right engine -- hence the sparks, flame, and smoke. The burning smell entered the cabin, at which time the pilots turned off the A/C controls for that engine. While the engine was fine at 5000 feet, they were concerned how it would react when we reached cruising altitude and chose to turn us back around to land in O'Hare just to be sure.

Non-emergency landing. Sit on aircraft and wait for inspection. Announcement: This aircraft is being taken out of service. We found significant damage to the blades in the engine. At this time, please take all of your personal belongings and deboard the plane.

It was a good call from the pilots, who later also explained that the plane was taken to a hangar for further inspection for internal engine damage, and that in 30-something years of flying, he had "never smelled anything quite like that."

Dining Out for Eastern Market

On Monday, May 21, Dine Out for Eastern Market, a special fundraiser to help rebuild our beloved and historic neighborhood market, lost in a fire on April 30.

A Lyon in the Kitchen

My mom is a chef. I bought my All-Clad eight months before I bought a bed. I cooked almost daily in my 150sf Greenwich Village apartment which was so small, my kitchen only had a pint-sized fridge that fit under the counter. Imagine my excitement when I heard from my old college buddy Nathan Lyon that he has his own cooking show on Discovery Health, focusing on local fresh foods. It's a philosophy I've always abided by, encouraged by my neighborhood in NYC and my stint in Italy.

I lived across the street from Pearl Oyster Bar and on the same block as Murray's Cheese store. I went to Faicco's for my meats and the baker for my breads. Given zero freezer space and about nine cubic feet of fridge space, I always cooked and ate fresh, and I always had to go out for my ice cream.

Living in my medieval village in Italy was much the same. I bought from the local market on Tuesdays, and on Saturdays, I bought the seasonal produce off a truck -- the sweetest cherry tomatoes (I popped them in my mouth like candy), artichokes so gorgeous that my American friends who visited thought they were fake, and arugula so tasty I ate it senza dressing.

Tune in on Thursday nights to watch Nathan, who is made for stardom, and check this out!

Google Fools

Toilet ISP service. Free, through your very own commode.

Thanks for the laughs, Google. I wonder how many people will actually sign up for this service?

Vintage.

I love vintage things because often, they're just better designed and better manufactured. Companies go the cheap route these days, and mass production has taken the quality out of most things.

On the way back from Myrtle Beach, I saw this vintage Esso station, est. 1912. I jumped, of course.

JUMP SEATTLE!!!

Seattle had awesome jump spots.


and of course, the Starbucks HQ...we just happened to be at a restaurant supply place across the street.

The windy city

On my way to Seattle, I popped into Chicago... there were lots of ice floes just beneath us in the water here, so even if it didn't look so cold, I'm sure it was.

I love what I get to see from the sky.

Small town, big city.

Ok, so living in the city is a lot like living in a small town. When I used to live in Greenwich Village, my neighbors knew me, the butcher, the cheese guy... they all recognized me. If it'd been a while since I'd visited, they'd inquire if I was on vacation, or after my health.

So living in Dupont Circle with my friend is no different. He told me about how he was at the Cairo liquor store the other day, talking to the owner about a coffee liquor, so the guy says, oh, he'll order some. Four days later, my friend is in the store and guess what? Yeah, four bottles of the liquor were on the shelf and so my friend gets a bottle. Imagine that actually ever happening in your local Giant (Ralph's, Safeway, Piggly Wiggly or what have you)...another good reason to avoid the suburbs. Cool, huh?

2007 is the Year of the Pig

My annual newsletter is up!

William Dolby, January 1935 - 2007

Bill Dolby was one of my dads, and here he is with me and Lori in 1996 when we finished the Philly-DC AIDS Ride to raise money for AIDS services in the D.C. area.

I'm in Arizona now for his memorial services today on my new year. Bill passed away recently because he needed a pacemaker, and when he arrived at the hospital for the procedure, somehow, he didn't get it.

He was a grandfather, brother, father, son, husband, uncle, cousin, naval aviator, sailor, joker, singer, chef, volunteer, friend and neighbor. Rest in Peace, dad.

I'm an aunt!

I'm an aunt! My baby nephew was born today. Here he is, just a fourteen minutes old, and he doesn't look like an alien! My sister says he's a "Very relaxed baby -- Zen-like. :-)" and from this video, she's right on.

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day
Originally uploaded by cityflickr.

Apropos Love, captured in the Chicago airport yesterday during a layover. Happy Valentine's Day!

Kurt and David Got Married!

My friends got married in Rota, Spain where David is from, and had a fun celebratory party at Baltimore's Red Maple Lounge.

From Pearl Oyster to Hank's Oyster

I used to live across the street from famed Pearl Oyster Bar in Greenwich Village.

Now I'm in a historic art deco building with a view of just the tip of the Washington monument across from Hank's Oyster Bar. I'm here until I leave, so come visit, because you never know when that'll be. ;)

When life deals you a lobster roll, you've got nothing to complain about.

Baby E4

My sister is about to have the first grandchild in our family! We're calling him


Just had the baby shower -- tea and lots of great goods.
Three kinds of sandwiches, tomato quiche, spinach and cheese quiche, scones with mascarpone and jams, mini banana nut cupcakes with coffee buttercream icing, and chocolate covered strawberries.

Voice crush

"I think it's smashing," he said with a very light English accent, of my first name. I was talking to the customer service representative of my credit card. I had to dictate my name, since it's pronounced unexpectedly different than the way it's spelled. He asked me what it meant but I explained that my mom made it up. And then I explained how all my siblings have weird names too, to which I received his compliment.

I love the way you can hear someone smiling on the other end of a line. And how sometimes, you just make a sweet connection with a stranger, say goodbye, and think, there are still plenty of kind people out there.

Peace. Happy New Year. And more peace. We know we need it.

The nicest people live in New York City.

Just returned from a ridiculously fantastic two weeks in the city. I ended it the best possible way, by having dinner at my old neighborhood joint, the Blue Ribbon Bakery. I thought I was last there in June but just checking, it was Labor Day weekend of 2005 when everyone in New York was being so nice to me.

Eric, the manager there was gracious as ever, and is always super kind (he never corrected me when I'd been calling him by the wrong name forever). Jai, who has known me since I was seven years old met me there after his dinner date. I was starving, hadn't eaten especially well all week, and I asked him to join me so I could treat myself to a good last meal. Despite not having been there in 14 months, Eric remembered me, and offered us dessert on the house. He also knocked off Jai's soda, double espresso, and discounted our bottle of wine. Needless to say, I left a 30-something% cash tip and hope next time I could leave more (once I start working again!).

I've good reason to send the dozens of people I've sent to that place. And you should go, too.

P.S. I have always been a little unsure that Eric's name is really Eric, especially after I discovered I'd been calling him Ed for several months when I first met him. If you have any insight, please, share it! But for the time being, I'll keep calling him Eric. Besides, I think he hasn't quite figured out how to say my name either. :)

I'm not a serious drinker

And Peter has a way of making it very un-serious.

I started the evening at Fanelli Café in SoHo with Robert and Vera with a sapphire and tonic, extra lime. Headed to dinner in Brooklyn at their new digs. Parting with R&V, I left for Peter's place in the Heights. We started with a bottle of champagne. Gibsons followed with the last of the vodka. And we topped off with a bottle of sake, which he warmed in batches as we worked through it.

Luckily, I hold my liquor rather well for someone under a hundred pounds.