A Sellers Market

 

When we sold our co-op in Yonkers, N.Y. in 1985, the buyer insisted that we not remove the ceiling lights in the dining room, which we had no intention of doing. Fast forward a few decades and with the shortage of appliances, some sellers are "taking cabinets and kitchen appliances with them." A seller in upstate New York told her agent she wanted to take the toilet in the main bathroom. It was  a self-cleaning toilet that lights up and the lid automatically opens when you walk in the room. It was something that her recently deceased husband wanted. It became the talk of the "open house" and the home sold for well over the asking price making the seller a well flushed widow. (NYT 7.25.21) tjs

Oh, to be in England

 

Oh, to be in England.......wrote Robert Browning. But he was thinking of April while I'm thinking about tomorrow - Sunday, July 11th when the sporting worlds collide in London. We will have the Wimbledon men's final by day and the European Soccer Championship in the evening. So you can have your strawberries and clotted cream early and maybe a few pints at night. Expect Royalty to attend both events.

The soccer game between England & Italy starts at 3:00PM (EDT) or 8:00PM London time. Try to tune in early to hear their anthems as they hail "our" Queen. Expect 60,000 maskless fans packing Wembley Stadium with England having home field advantage.

To fill out the tri-fecta we have Richard Branson, a Londoner, rocketing into space tomorrow as Virgin Galactia. Though he may be in space I suspect he will hear the roar of the crowd from Wembley Stadium.

Should be a busy weekend. tjs

Sorry, Charlie!

 

The Sunday NYT reveals that someone in California has filed a class action suit against a large purveyor of sandwiches alleging there is no tuna fish in their tuna sandwiches. This comes as a shock to me as my daily luncheon menu includes a delicious home made tuna salad sandwich. While it is true that the "redder" tuna heads for the sushi restaurants, I don't feel they are treating me as a second class citizen i.e. "What am I , chopped liver?"

After all, Charlie the Tuna has been around for sixty years with his reputation "on the line". But I do insist on certain norms - drained in water - not oil. Similar to James Bond's insistence on - shake, don't stir! But please don't burn my toast! tjs 

A Whale of a time.

 In the Old Testament Book of Jonah it describes him being swallowed by a whale and he remains in the belly for three days until God released him. But today we have an item datelined Provincetown, Mass where a lobsterman while diving bumped into a humpback whale and found himself in the whale's mouth. He had breathing equipment and after twenty seconds the whale spit him out. Perhaps he wanted mayo on his lobster  or maybe the man's deodorant caused him to be rejected or expectorated - sort of like Charley the Tuna being nixed. Truth is stranger than fiction. tjs

Quotes of the week

 

Poor Anna Wintour of Conde Nast - fourteen years ago she was satirized by Meryl Streep in "The Devil wears Prada". This week her home has been picketed by protesters shouting "Bosses wear Prada - workers get nada!"

European soccer (football) is under pressure to squeeze eight months of activity into six. Their unwritten rule is not to mention the F word - in this case the word is "fatigue"

Re - Donald Trump - 'He is not the future, and Republicans need to stop fearing him." - Barbara Comstock (R) Virginia Republican and former member of Congress.

tjs

Marital Bliss

 

As June is the time for weddings, we recently noted a fashion item that mentioned Elizabeth Taylor's eight wedding dresses. They were all white (!) For economy one would think that some could be reused. But can you name all the grooms? There is no prize for this trivia but here they are: Hilton - Wilding - Todd - Fisher - Burton (twice) - Warner - and Fortensky  Just like a revolving door. And they lived happily ever after. tjs

Grin and Bear it.

 The State of California is planning a Gubernatorial recall election - the last one in 2003 attracted 135 candidates including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ariana Huffington and Larry Flynt. This time our choices include a former pornographic film star, a 70 year old former model and Caitlyn Jenner - but the one featured in today's NYTimes is one John Cox who brings a pet Kodiak bear to his rallies. (Never mind that the real California deal is a grizzly) TAG is a nine year old half ton bear and very tame. He has appeared in several TV ads and in  series with Kevin Costner. TAG's behavior on the stump is usually impeccable - absent his offstage habits of flatulence and belching. The recall election isn't until the fall so Tad has to wear that brown fur coat all summer - what a bummer! tjs