Merry Christmas from Mark and Deanna

May your days be filled with hope and love.

Gap Audition - Deanna's Solo Shots

Deanna's Inner Tiger Woods

I have always found golf to be the most boring sport ever created. Until I played mini-golf at midnight in the middle of the Mediterranean for 6 straight nights. I was hooked.

Deanna's New Toy from the Boy: Mamool

Towards the end of the summer, I felt that I could no longer go back to my old manual ways of carrying a datebook, writing appointments and placing them in my digital calendar. This was taking too much time and I was no longer productive. I was also beginning to take on more responsibilities both at KRLLC and my consulting project.

My habib sensed the growing frustration I had. One of his birthday gifts to me was an iPod Touch 4G. His name is Mamool (It means cookie in Arabic). It has always been by my side ever since. While Mamool does not carry the tons of music and videos everyone expects me to carry, I am proud to say I carry the most active calendar, most influential address book, most sensitive emails and photos of any user. I consider myself a newbie having to run to the Genius Bar ever so often when Mamool gets into a fit. I need to master the user's manual. Or I will just learn as I go.

My 2010 Thanksgiving Greeting

Wish List: Bullfight

Over the past few days, I remembered a video by Madonna that had bullfighters. Yes, that was the cheesy song "Take a Bow." It did have an easy to remember, simple message approach to it all and I hate to say it, I like the bullfighters.

Well, as Mark and I were going around Malaga, he pointed out to me that there is a "Plaza de Toros" and guess what, there are bullfights scheduled on my birthday in the nearby towns of Torremolinos and Merbella! Unfortunately, I will be bound for Sardegna as part of my Mediterranean cruise that day. Next time.

Day 01-Malaga Central, Spain

Ola!
Mark and I landed safely in Malaga after a 2 hour delay in JFK due to a sudden rainstorm. As soon as we landed, we attended to some errands: "cambios de moneda", transportation and hotel. We were so tired that we slept for a good 8 hours and woke up in time for a late dinner al fresco. Here are 2 pictures of the outdoor cafe at the Plaza de Chnitas and the Catedral de Malaga. Enjoy!

From Here to Jersey

The mosaic in the PATH Newport/Pavonia station is one reason why I look forward to going to New Jersey.

Back from the South Pacific!

Between our respective work, our "real work" and gym workouts, we have not been out and about since the day we arrived from Manila. Our jet lag kept us at home and away from the TV. Our first "outdoor" event is a visit to one of our favorite spots, the Lincoln Center Green Roof.

The One Movie I want to See this Summer

Mervyn LeRoy's good and old and really bad movie, "Moment to Moment" (1966) has an eye candy, flat acting and campy delight but has a lovely musical score by Henry Mancini. I dare you to watch it!

The Tooth, the Whole Tooth and Nothing but....story by Mark Solomon

Several months ago I went to my New York dentist about a toothache.
The filling on a lower molar had come loose, and the dentist made an
X-ray.
“Hmm,” he said, looking at the X-ray. “The cavity is very deep. Just a
minute. Hmm.”
He inspected it carefully, then left the room, and spoke to another
dentist and came back.
“The tooth has to be extracted. It’s a molar, number 17, and is close
to your facial nerves. If I remove it, I might cut a nerve, causing
part of your jaw line to sag. It happened to me, years ago when I was
young and I had facial paralysis for years. I’ll send you to a
specialist. You might need general anesthesia, and two dentists – one
to analyze the charts, and the other to operate. I don’t want to cut
in the wrong place and give you permanent nerve damage and deform your
face. The nerves are clearly intertwined with the root of the tooth.
There is risk of infection, and this needs surgery below the gum line.
I won’t do the extraction. Here is a list of my colleagues who
specializes in this kind of work.”
“What will it cost,” I asked nervously?
“Well,” he thought, running his hand across his chin. “Some of these
doctors charge $500 just to walk though the front door, but they are
good, very good. Maybe about $2000, but you won’t have any permanent
nerve damage.”
I left his office crestfallen. Facial paralysis! Permanent nerve
damage. My face would be deformed! In horror, Worse, my wife would leave me in a minute the moment she hears "paralysis."
I called Deanna.
“In my home country of the Philippines, my dentist charges only $150
for an extraction, $200 tops” she said. “Wait a minute,” she went on,
“you know we haven’t been there in a while.” (Note: A "while" meaning only three months ago!)
“ I could use up all those frequent flyer miles on my credit card, and
maybe we could go for free!”
“Call the airlines. Book a flight. Pack your bags. I’ll call my family!”
That night I booked a flight to MNL-Manila routing through NRT-Narita
Tokyo from JFK for free. One month later we were in Manila, and I was
sitting in a dentist’s chair.
A dentist looked at my X-rays. “The cavity is very deep. Just a minute. Hmm.”
Oh no, not again, I thought.
“Come back next Monday, and my son, CJ will extract your bad tooth.
It’s a molar, and has to go. My son is a dentist, you know, just like
my mother. It runs in the family.”
Next Monday I got my teeth cleaned while fearing future permanent
nerve damage and facial paralysis. My body shook. I could sense my wife was eager to surf match.com
“Quick, get the patient’s pulse,” I heard someone say, as the
sphygmomanometer was strapped around my arm. “Checking the pulse.
Readings are good.”
Someone held my hand. Then came the Novocain shots, and after 15
minutes, CJ (Cuthbert John) pulled the tooth and sutured the gap. Then
I waited for the sticker shock.
“How much does this cost,” I asked meekly?
“Hmm,” said the doctor,” Just a minute. Hmm.” Then his Mom entered, and
said, “for you, because Deanna is a dear friend, we give you a special
deal.” He went into a huddle with his mom. Spoke Tagalog.. Not $2000,
I feared. Please, it shouldn’t be that much.
“OK, for you we charge 2500.”
My body started shake again. Did I came all this distance for nothing?
“$2500.” I asked, meekly?
“No no no. Here in the Philippines, it’s 2500 pesos.”
46 pesos to the dollar. How much is 2500 in US dollars? I did the math
in my head. Double the pesos, drop two zeros. That’s… Oh my gosh,
it’s less than $50!
I’m still in shock.

Tomorrow we fly back to the States.

Thought for The Week

I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it. - Mae West

Wish List: Posters I would love to have in my collection

Sunset views from the office window

One of the perks of working late in the office is the chance for me to witness some special sunsets. Like these two - one taken in May and the other one in the end of June.

Tardy Post: Springtime in New York

Happy Sizzling 4th!

I know this is a lame photo, very unoriginal but nonetheless, telling. We have a scorcher of a day, and I am so glad we are in the city, all quiet and getting ready for our building hot dogs and bar-be-cue. Just a few people - long-time building residents (everyone's out of the city) eager to have a good time without the fuss.

Play Ball! SI Yankees vs. Brooklyn Cyclones

I am a latent loyal fan of the New York Yankees and have taken an appreciation for the effort and hard work the players put in the game. I am very impressed with the owner's selection of players and the teamwork these players exhibit during a game. Teamwork, just like in any sport, is critical to success. And I enjoy watching them play.

We took the Staten Island Ferry on a beautiful Friday evening to see the opening game of the SI Yankees against the Brooklyn Cyclones. Both are A-teams for the NY Yankees and NY Mets, respectively. It was exciting and I had a wonderful time. And I get to appreciate minor league baseball and its family-oriented focus that night.

Happy Father's Day!

Why I Love New York: Public Art!

Seeing works of art around you makes you pause and wonder how originality and creativity captured in an art object can elevate our mundane lives. This summer, we passed by an exhibit of sculptures on our way to a spontaneous Chinatown dinner. The exhibit of 10 sculptures, "Statuesque", is right in City Hall Park. These figurative sculptures are far different from my favorite sculptures of Tom Otterness I blogged in a previous post.

To know more of the exhibit and the Public Art Fund, click HERE.
About my favorite sculptor (or one of them), Tom Otterness, click HERE.

A Patriotic Post: Don't Tread on Me

Back in Time (BIT): Fleet Week 2010

The USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7) is a “Wasp-class” amphibious assault ship. The ship's motto, "Uncommon Valor," is based on Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz's words when he spoke of Sailors and Marines who fought at Iwo Jima in World War II: “Among the Americans who served on Iwo Island, uncommon valor was a common virtue.”



The USS Iwo Jima also carries a mix of 30 helicopters and 6–8 AV/ 8B Harrier I planes, my favorite. I love the Harrier because of its vertical/short takeoff and landing. You will see in the photos that I went through every inch of the Harrier, making sure that it is ready to fly.



Photo credit HERE.

Back in Time (BIT): Fleet Week 2009

New York City Fleet Week 2009 had representatives from both the U.S. military and the Canadian Navy. The ships we visited in Staten Island were the USS Vella Gulf and the Canadian Navy’s HMCS Athabaskan.



The Vella Gulf is famous because of its involvement with pirates. On February 2009, the Vella Gulf responded to a distress call from the tanker Polaris in the Gulf of Aden. The Polaris reported that pirates in a single skiff were attempting to board the tanker with ladders, though the Polaris crew was able to thwart their efforts. Upon arriving in the area, the Vella Gulf intercepted a skiff with 7 men aboard. One of the 7 Somali men is now on trail in downtown Manhattan.



We have a fondness for the Canucks and we were so pleased to see their patrol boats. The HMCS Athabaskan is not only a patrol boat but also a destroyer, protecting Canada’s sovereignty in the Atlantic Ocean and enforcing Canadian laws in its territorial sea and Exclusive Economic Zone. She has also been deployed on missions throughout the Atlantic and to the Indian Ocean; specifically, the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea after Iraq occupied Kuwait, and most recently in Haiti. When we were there, the HMCS Athabaskan was sailing out of the Stapleton Harbor back to where else? Answer: Au Canada!

Photo credits:
USS Vella Gulf
HMCS Athabaskan

Back in Time (BIT): Fleet Week 2008

Click on the photo above to see my collage masterpiece.

The USS Leyte Gulf (CG-55) is a small ship compared to the aircraft carriers but take note, it is a “Ticonderoga-class” guided missile cruiser of the United States Navy. She was named in memory of the World War II Battle of Leyte Gulf in the Pacific. And it made me specially proud as I toured the ship.

The USS Leyte Gulf has a large complement of guided missiles for air defense, attack of surface targets at sea and ashore, and anti-submarine warfare (ASW). She carries two "Seahawk" LAMPS multi-purpose helicopters, whose primary mission is anti-submarine warfare (ASW).

Informally, the USS Leyte Gulf escorts aircraft carriers and is the first line of defense, protecting the aircraft carrier. This ship, is by far, the most interesting ship I have toured. The nozzles you see on the photos actually hold and release missiles. So the lecture about them was pretty intense. The ship is covered with numerous warning signs – from wearing protective gear to no leaning on the side of a missile door. Okay, sorry I slacked off for a moment.

Top photo credit.

Back in Time (BIT): Fleet Week 2007

The USS Wasp (LHD 1) is a U.S. Navy multipurpose amphibious assault ship. The primary mission of this Navy-Marine Corps amphibious warship is to support a Marine Landing Force, which may include the full range of Navy and Marine Corps helicopters, conventional landing craft, and amphibious vehicles.

Click on the photo above to enlarge it.

There are nore images for Fleet Week 2007 if you clickHERE.

Back in Time (BIT): Fleet Week 2006

The USS Kearsarge is one of 3 Amphibious Assault Ships and embarks, deploys, lands and supports Marine Landing Forces.

Every year since the late 1990's, Mark and I spend Memorial Day holidays touring the big military ships that sail into Manhattan. The ships become open to the curious public and we always have a lot of fun playing with the munitions that would not even fit in my closet or weighs just as heavy as my balikbayan box. We explore and poke around the assault ships and aircraft carriers that happen to be there. This is our tax dollars at work. We see sailors, soldiers, marines, pilots, military police, practically everyone that is assigned to the ship. We are proud of them just as they are happy to be around us.

Click on the photos to enlarge the photo groupings. Panoramic shots credit HERE

So You Want to Be a Crame Operator?

Click HERE to see the other signals.

A very nice Sunday New York Times graphic.

May 29, 2010: Glebe-Ketchum Hiking Trail

Andy - this one's for you.

I took this photo as we began on the Glebe-Ketchum Hiking Trail. Hiking in the woods always brings me a sense of peace. The trail is near our home in Bedford. At that time, I wasn't aware that Andy has moved on.

Happy Memorial Day celebration to one and all!

A Summer Chore I LOVE!

This is one chore I look forward to every summer!

Enjoying the harvest of White Hydrangeas

Vintage Photos of Harvard Square / Elliott Yards, ca. 1972 taken by Mark Solomon

The rail yards no longer exist and is now the Harvard University JFK School of Government.

Photos taken by Mark Solomon