I have been linked to by some very smart people and I owe them a thank you note, which they will get, and a link on my page (because they are deserving, not because they linked to me first) which I will do soon. But, before I add them to my list, I want to thank them publicly and call your attention to them (in no particular order) as they are all worth a visit:


Irish Elk is a beautiful looking page with fantastic pictures integrated with smartly written text;

Zya's Ramblings is an interesting page written by a poet/accountant who is a Portuguese/American/Aussie going to University in Australia;

Hannah's Collection is the work of an American IT student living, studying, loving, and growing up in the Netherlands;

Indigo Blues is a page that veers from the comic to the searingly sad as this woman, cloaked in anonymity, writes openly, movingly, and beautifully about her life and struggles and hopes for the future;

Photojournaliste is a blog by a Canadian who works internationally as a photo-journalist.

Thank you all for finding me "link worthy"!

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I am feeling pretty damn dapper today. I have a rare victory under my belt from yesterday, and let me tell you, what I convinced the judge to do yesterday is something rarely accomplished. I am wearing a seersucker suit with an orange* and blue tie and I stopped to get my shoes shined in Grand Central Station before continuing on to work. Yes, pretty dapper indeed. I haven't worn these shoes in a long time and they are beautiful -- purchased before I had children -- monk strap shoes from J. M. Weston.

So, I was sitting there, feeling dapper and relaxed as this very nice young man from somewhere below the U.S. Southern border with Mexico (I really don't know where he was from and didn't want to ask) put a mirror shine on these shoes. (Digression: If you haven't worn your shoes in a while, get them shined, the leather needs the polish and will soak it up. Also, use shoe trees when you take your shoes off). It's an interesting feeling to sit down in Grand Central and watch the ebb and flow of the race tide as people hurry this way and that way in their haste to get to work. You sit elevated when you get your shoes shined and so you are looking down, a little, at this pageant of humanity. They have newspapers at the stand, but I am a people watcher and I prefer to watch the crowd. No startling observations to report from my crowd watching. In fact, as there were way too few attractive young women in light summer dresses to observe, I turned my thoughts to the young man shining my shoes.

He did a first rate job. Shining shoes is not complicated but it is very hard work to do right and to do it right all day long. Some people just swipe the polish on and leave a surface shine when they are finished. This fellow worked the polish into the leather of the shoe. To do that requires the application of some force. I tipped him $5 on a $3 shine when he finished and thanked him sincerely so he knew I noticed how hard he worked and that I appreciated it. Remember, the money is nice but the kind word lingers in the memory long after the money is spent.

But, I was thinking about this young man as I walked away in my shiny, spiffy shoes and I realized that there must be something still very special about this country of ours that people think it is worthwhile to cross dangerous and guarded borders to come here and shine shoes. That they will have a better life here. That they may be shining shoes today, but they will be paying someone tomorrow to shine their shoes. This is still the land of opportunity for many, many people. We may forget what a special place we live in, but look around you more carefully and I bet you can find reminders all around you of people who have risked much to live here.

This thought seems particularly appropriate today as today is the anniversary of the first vote, taken in 1776, on the Declaration of Independence. You know, the men who signed that document were courageous, don't you? That these men were marked down on British lists for execution as traitors if captured, their lands forfeit, their families thrown out onto the street. These men knew that when they signed this document what they were risking. This makes them heroes in my book because they took the risks knowingly and willingly and not in the heat of passion. Would they sign it today? Would you? Interestingly, I recall that sometime in the 80's, the Declaration was reprinted in the form of a petition and college students in Iowa (or maybe Kansas) took to the streets to ask people to sign it. Distressingly, most people did not recognize it and a startlingly high number refused to sign on the grounds that the document was too radical.

So, today, as I walk the streets of Manhattan in my dapper little suit, with my shiny shoes, I feel grateful to be an American, grateful that my ancestors took the leap of faith and got on that leaky boat in Europe and came over here, and I feel even more grateful that this is still the country which attracts those ambitious people who want to build a better life for themselves and their families. I think that as long as remain a magnet for these kinds of people, we will endure.

Anyways, that's my little thought for the morning. Thanks for reading.

* As for the orange tie, I am, perhaps, leaving myself open to being accused of making an unintentional political sartorial statement today. Today, in 1690 the army of England's Protestant King William III defeated the Roman Catholic King James II in the Battle of the Boyne in Ireland (Now celebrated on July 12 as "The Battle of the Orange" ). I intend to give all Irish bars a miss today and hope no one notices!

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I was paging (on-line, so, maybe I was clicking) through the Spectator and came across the following description of a religious service the author attended which made me laugh and I thought I'd share it here:


To cheer myself up, I went to a Sunday service at the evangelical Anglican church, Holy Trinity Brompton. Some of my best friends are happy-clappies, so about once a year I try and fail to sit through an HTB service. This year I lasted 15 minutes. For the first 10 minutes I successfully opened my heart to the power-point projectors, acoustic guitars and expressions of ecstasy. I even held out my hands and swayed, all the while terrified that I would have a religious experience and have to go to HTB for the rest of my life. Then the priest approached the microphone. ‘I think you’ll agree with me,’ he said, ‘that God is a great guy and deserves a round of applause. C’mon, everybody, let’s give God a big clap.’ Saved again.

Now, in all seriousness, can you imagine something like that taking place in a Mosque in Pakistan?

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All the hard work over the weekend paid off today in spades as the judge granted my motion in full after a good 45 minute oral argument. I completely turned her around from the beginning, when she said that she thought we were going to need to hold a hearing to take testimony just like the plaintiff wanted, to the end, when she said, "well, now that we've really parsed the issues it's clear that no hearing is necessary for me to decide this motion". To review, quickly, I moved to disqualify plaintiffs' lawyers on the grounds of a conflict of interest and to compel these lawyers to turn over all of the files they had since because of the conflict there could be no attorney client privilege. Oh yeah, almost forgot, I also moved to have the law firm return to the company all the legal fees they charged for this conflicted and improper representation. We had one session of argument with the judge prior to this and she allowed the other side to submit additional papers. I worked all weekend on the reply papers.

It was about as close to a complete and total victory as you can get. It's nice when the good guys win one.

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Did anyone see the NY Times dining section today? Wednesdays are always my favorite newspaper days because the dining section comes out. If you share this interest of mine, I highly recommend checking out Saute Wednesday, a great food website which, among other things, links to practically all of the newspaper food sections around the country and to some international ones as well. Perusing the different sections makes for a fascinating study of regional food differences.

Today's NY Times made me hungry and, at least initially, make me regret my low-carb diet. Why? The recipe for homemade marshmallow sauce and the recipe for homemade butterscotch sauce . They also had hot fudge and other homemade ice cream toppings. I have a weak spot for butterscotch. I don't know how I will pull through without trying this recipe. I include both of these recipes below in case my wife is reading today and feels inspired!

Now, just when I thought the Times was sadistically taunting all of us low carb types with this great ice cream sauce recipe collection, they did publish a marinade for flank steak that I am going to try this weekend. I'll report back if anyone is interested.


Marshmallow Sauce

1 egg white
3/8 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon gelatin
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract.

1. Place egg white in bowl of standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, and set aside. Measure sugar, and set 3 teaspoons aside.

2. Combine remaining sugar and the corn syrup in medium saucepan with 1/4 cup water, and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to combine. Cook syrup without stirring until it reaches 240 degrees, using a candy thermometer.

3. As sugar cooks, pour 3/8 cup cold water into small saucepan, and sprinkle gelatin on it. Let stand 5 minutes. Put pan over burner on very low heat, and stir to dissolve. Do not overheat. Leave pan on warm burner.

4. Just before sugar syrup reaches 240 degrees, beat egg white on low speed until foamy. Add 1 teaspoon of reserved sugar and the salt. Increase heat to high, and continue beating, sprinkling with remaining 2 teaspoons, until medium-stiff peaks have formed. With mixer running, pour syrup into egg white. Beat on high speed 2 minutes. Add dissolved gelatin. Beat until fluffy and cool, about 5 minutes. Add vanilla. Sauce will hold at room temperature for 4 hours. After refrigeration, sauce may be heated over a double boiler until lukewarm, and beaten in a standing mixer until fluffy.
Yield: 4 cups.


Butterscotch Sauce
3 1/2 cups heavy cream
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons dark rum.

1. Pour cream into a large saucepan, and bring to a simmer over low heat. Pull saucepan almost off burner, and reduce cream until thickened and measures about 2 1/2 cups, whisking frequently, 30 minutes. Pour hot cream into 4-cup glass measurer, and set aside.

2. In the same saucepan, melt butter over low heat until foamy. Add sugars and corn syrup, and stir with wooden spoon until melted and bubbly, about 1 minute. Pour cream into saucepan, whisking constantly, until sugars have dissolved completely and sauce is smooth, about 1 minute. Remove pan from heat. Add salt, vanilla and rum. Serve warm. To reheat sauce, warm in a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Do not boil.
Yield: 3 cups.


Grilled Flank Steak
1/2 cup bourbon
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 pound flank steak.

1. In small bowl, whisk together bourbon, soy sauce and half a cup of water to make a marinade. Pour marinade into a gallon-size self-sealing food storage bag. Put steak in bag, and turn it over several times so that the entire cut is coated. Marinate in refrigerator 2 hours, turning steak once after an hour. Pour off marinade and blot steak dry with paper towels.

2. Prepare a fire in the grill. When flames have subsided and coals are glowing, grill steak 4 minutes on one side for rare, 5 minutes for medium rare. Turn steak, and grill 3 or 4 minutes more, to taste.

3. Transfer steak to a cutting board, lightly cover with aluminum foil, and let rest 5 minutes. Slice steak crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices.

Yield: 6 servings.

Posted by: Random Penseur at 07:25 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I saw someone reading a newspaper on the train this morning and the headline caught my eye: Soon-to-be-governor names special ethics czar. What is an ethics czar? I don't approve of the use of the word czar by our government. The definition from dictionary.com includes, besides the Emperor of Russia, the following: "A person having great power; an autocrat". I don't know when this first started, this trend towards naming government officials after the title once held by Peter the Great, but I don't care for it. How is an autocrat, no matter who styles him that, compatible with our system of representative government? It ain't. It's silly and I wish they'd stop naming people czar.

Posted by: Random Penseur at 07:18 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I know it's been mighty quiet today, but I've been in and out of the office all day. A breakfast meeting with someone who is becoming a new friend, I think. That's awfully nice. He's a little younger than I am but has led quite an interesting life -- government agent to B-school to the brave world of venture cap investing. It's exciting to make new friends and I think it happens less and less often as we get older. Friendships form from shared interests or shared experiences and, as you get older, I think you may become less open to all of these things and more focused on your home and home life. Alexis de Tocqueville wrote about this tendency in his brilliant book, "Democracy in America". He thought that we as Americans had a tendency to withdraw into our little fortresses and hold off the outside world. Personally, I think he was projecting a bit from his experiences growing up in France where the motto might as well be: "Strong fences make for good neighbors". Although, that didn't work as well as they liked, of course, with the strongest fence they ever built -- the Maginot Line (caution, this link is to a real Time Suck of the Day site). He also thought that community democracy as practiced through the concept of "self interest properly understood" was the only saving grace which could pull us out of our caves. I love Tocqueville. I think he was a genius. He was also only 26 when he wrote that book. I felt quite depressed when I got to 26 and had not managed an equivalent accomplishment.

Someone wrote that you should never apologize for not blogging. I don't really understand why that would be, but so be it. I'm not apologizing for not blogging today. Instead, I regret that I was not able to blog. I was thinking about it while I was waiting for the judge to call our case in the bankruptcy court today and I was looking around the courtroom trying to imagine the interior lives of the other people. This, to some extent, is a reflection of my interior life. I have to think everyone has one. I just don't know how rich it is. Do they reflect on things as they happen? Do they question their observations? Or is it all one long variation of reality television for them? Something not at all like "all the worlds a stage and I am just a player" because they remain too passive and don't even rise to the level of a player? You follow me, right? I suppose everyone has dreams, but do they critically examine their dreams or are the dreams just disconnected images of nice cars and swish clothes purchased with that lucky lottery ticket? What were the people in court thinking about today? Their dry cleaning? The next case? It's a total mystery to me. I'm glad I have this, though. It makes me happy to write and happy to reflect. It forces a discipline on my own meandering process of reflection which I think can only redound to my benefit. It's also a creative outlet in a career where creative writing takes a mighty big back seat to persuasive writing.

I mentioned in a comment that I'd post an example of a snarky line I included in a brief this weekend. It was in reference to a motion I was working on -- and am going to argue to the court tomorrow -- to disqualify opposing counsel on the grounds that they are engaged in a conflicted representation, having represented my client in the very recent past and are now suing my client. As Canadian counsel asked me, are you allowed to do that in NY because we certainly can't in Canada? No, I told him, we cannot either. In the affirmation in opposition put in by opposing counsel, she discusses how she met her current client, the plaintiff, in connection with the representation of a another client seeking capital financing which that client unsuccessfully pursued through the plaintiff. It occurred to me that opposing counsel just violated another disciplinary rule by disclosing without permission, confidential information concerning the representation of a prior client. Look at it like this, would you like your lawyer putting into publically filed documents that you Mr. Joe Smith had been turned down for a mortgage and credit cards? This was the equivalent, it seemed to me. She had also revealed client confidences of my client in her papers. So, I referred the court to this gratuitous piece of information, and asked, "Has this law firm ever met a client confidence it felt compelled to keep?" There, you just read a lot of text to get to one snarky line. I hope it was not a disappointment.

Wish me luck for argument tomorrow. I feel very good about it now. That could change in a heartbeat tomorrow.

The title is meant as a reference to the sound you might have heard if you pulled up the blog today and found. . .nothing. At least, until now.

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Sorry so quiet today. Not feeling the blogging mojo so much, I guess. I was here all weekend working on a reply to papers I was served with at 4:45 on Friday evening. (Go ahead, you know you want to say it: prick!) I put in two over ten hour days this weekend and have it totally turned around on my honorable adversary (read: the prick). I sent my draft papers in reply (a memorandum of law, an affirmation for me to sign, and an affidavit for the client) to my client for his review and comments and he called me and said:

"You know, when we spoke on Friday after you saw their papers, you sounded kind of glum and when I read their papers I thought we had a real problem. Well, I read your reply and I cannot believe how you turned it around in just two days. You did a great job, I'm really impressed."

And just like that, the tiredness fell away and I was re-charged and re-energized to fight the good fight.

A little appreciation, and a kind word, can go a looooong way (I type this as I am still drinking from Saturday's open can of Diet Coke and not even minding it much).

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Today in history is full of interesting things. In:

*1778 Mary Ludwig Hayes "Molly Pitcher" aids American patriots
*1820 Tomato is proven nonpoisonous
*1838 Britain's Queen Victoria crowned in Westminster Abbey
*1905 Russian sailors mutiny aboard the battleship "Potemkin"

And, I must confess I did not know this and am struck by the coincidence, if it was,

*1914 Assassination of the heir to the throne of Austria, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophia, in Sarajevo by a Serbian Nationalist,Gavrilo Princip. This incident precipitated a war with Serbia, eventually starting WW I (note, they just found the pistol used in that assassination)

-and-

*1919 Treaty of Versailles ending WW I signed

In between the assassination and the treaty, a grand total of:

*65,038,810 people were mobolized;
*8,538,315 of whom were killed;
*21,219,452 of whom were wounded;
*7,750,919 of whom were taken prisoner or were missing; and,
*37,508,686 of whom constitute total casualties.
*57.6% of those mobilized were casualties.


source for above figures.

Is it no wonder that it was called the War to End All Wars?

* * *

Finally, and on a lighter note, we have some birthdays:

*1577 Peter Paul Rubens, Flemish Baroque painter (Circumcision)
*1712 Jean Jacques Rousseau, social contractor (Confessions)
*1902 Richard Rodgers, composer (Rodgers & Hammerstein) who I mentioned here before.
*1926 Mel Brooks comedian/actor/director (Blazing Saddles, Spaceballs)
*1946 Gilda Radner, comedienne (SNL-Baba Wawa)
*1966 John Cusack actor (Stand By Me, Sure Thing, Better Off Dead)

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1. As we were discussing an upcoming event, I asked, rhetorically, "If not now, when?" only to hear from the girl child -- "Thursday". It's as good an answer as any.

2. The doorbell rang and it was the local Democratic Party chief looking for the previous owners of our house. My daughter and I answered the door. I explained that the previous owners had moved and he looked at us and said to my daughter, "so, are you a democrat?" And my little 3 1/2 year old looked back at him and just said, "no". He was nonplussed and that ended the conversation. I swear I did not coach her before hand and I managed not to laugh. But I did find it very funny.

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There is a very interesting looking exhibit at the NY Public Library, main branch at 41st and Fifth, on the Declaration of Independence. The Library is displaying the copy of the Declaration of Independence in Thomas Jefferson's hand, several other landmark versions of the document, early newspaper printings, and a letter from Benjamin Franklin to George Washington. This handwritten copy by Thomas Jefferson is one of only two complete copies known to be in existence. I'm going to definitely get over to check it out. Anyone want to come see it with me?

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It's probably not what you think. The Gay Pride Parade is going on right outside my office and the music totally rocks. I LOVE the gay house/dance music. Seriously, I go buy the Gay Pride CD every year down in Chelsea. How the hell do these people expect me to be able to concentrate on the memorandum of law I am drafting for submission to the Court on Tuesday (for argument on Wednesday) with this excellent, get up out of seat and dance, music pounding away just steps from my building? The music is killing my concentration! And it makes me want to get down there, join in, cheer, and "stand by my man"!!!

Let's hear it for gay marriage! All of you other Republicans who want to join me on this issue, come on out of your closets, so to speak!

Update: Now, I wanna be, a macho man.

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I have big plans tonight. We are keeping the kids up late and taking them over for a beach bonfire and s'mores party. My daughter has never had one but grasped the concept immediately upon explanation. I told her that you take graham crackers and chocolate and marshmallows and you melt them. And she chimed in, "and then you eat it, right?" She is very excited. And she should be. We will, of course, have to restrain the boy child in a stroller during the bonfire as it seems like a less than ideal time to teach him the old, fire-hot lesson. Sounds like fun, no? I also think it sounds like something right out of the 1950's, but that's ok. I like the idea of wholesome and old fashioned.

And you can't beat the beauty of sugar-rush, past their bedtime, over stimulated whining. And I mean me, of course.

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My post below, with the great pictures of the Old Penn Station in NY, got me to thinking back to the days when I used to spend weeks at a time in Detroit, MI on depositions. While taking taxi rides to and from airport, I would pass the time looking out the window for snipers. And that's when I saw this building, Detroit's Abandoned Michigan Central Station. It sits all by itself with nothing around it. It is a magnificent looking structure. You should check out the pictures in the link. Here is an old postcard of the building. And here is another excellent site with two fascinating photo essays, one called either Joy Road or Easter and the other the Detroit Train Station. Detroit was a very scary place. We spent very little time outside in the city itself. We'd go from hotel to office and back and eat all of our meals at the hotel. A large part of the time there, we stayed at the Detroit Athletic Club, which was this magnificent palace, as you can see from the link.

There was one day, however, when I had nothing to do and so I took myself off to the Detroit Institute of Art. Remember, if you will, that Detroit had a lot of money at one point and citizens who wanted Detroit to be able to hold its head up high in comparison to Chicago, for instance. Result? The DIA. This was a nice collection, as I recall some almost 10 years later. The real treasure there is Rivera Court , a series of murals painted by Diego Rivera showing the industrial process of the creation of cars. I could not find a link to Rivera Court at the DIE site and have, instead, linked to the museum store. But I did find this cool photo archive of Rivera at the DIE with views of him creating and showing his murals.

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Today is the anniversary of the murder, in 1906, of architect Stanford White. White, the most prominent architect of his day, was shot in Madison Square Garden, which he designed, by Harry Thaw. Thaw was the playboy / jealous husband of Evelyn Nesbit, a dancer. Let's look back, shall we?

This website has a rather long and detailed account of the murder. White was a notorious womanizer. Thaw was the son of a mining and rail road baron from Pittsburgh and was the heir apparent to that fortune. Thaw was also considered to be mentally unstable for most of his life. The trial that followed the murder was dubbed the "trial of the century" and the court-room was packed. I suppose it was the OJ trial of its day. There were fantastic allegations of drugged champagne, girls swinging on velvet swings, illicit sex (and isn't that the best kind?), and other scandalous and shocking revelations about high society. Thaw got off on insanity grounds. The movie, Ragtime, was based on these events.

One site has eleven of the great Stanford White buildings online, if you are curious.

White's firm designed the old Pennsylvania Railroad Station in New York, pictures of which can be found here. As you can see from the photos, it was magnificent. It was torn down in 1963. The destruction of Penn Station led to the formation of the historical preservation movement in NY and was directly responsible for the creation of the Landmarks Commission.

P.S. While poking around, I came across this link to Lands End, a White house for sale on the Gold Coast of Long Island.

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On this day in Â…

* 1876, Lt. Col. George A. Custer and his 7th Cavalry were wiped out by Sioux and Cheyenne Indians in the Battle of the Little Bighorn in Montana;

* 1942, some 1,000 British Royal Air Force bombers raided Bremen, Germany, during World War II; and,

* 1950, war broke out in Korea as forces from the communist North invaded the South.

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I saw an Aston Martin Vanquish this morning tooling down Madison Avenue. It made my head spin around. I did not drool, however. I have some pride, you know. Still, this is quite a piece of machinery. If you are curious, the cheapest one they list under their certified pre-owned program was just below pounds sterling 120,000. The thing is, I bet it actually costs a lot more than that in England because I suspect taxes on beasts like this are quite high.

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I came across a very interesting post about 50 Great Novels at the site, a fistful of euros. I was struck by how few of the authors I knew. The list was compiled by a large German newspaper and many of the authors are German, of course. Still, it was a thoughtful post and an interesting insight into another culture's view of great literature. I recommend going to check it out.

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This morning's reading was a veritable trove of good stuff today. Ok, two articles may not make a trove, but why quibble on such a beautiful morning?

The famous horde of Bactrian gold has been brought back out of hiding in Afghanistan. In the late 70's, a joint team of Russian and Afghani archaeologists discovered "20,600 pieces of gold jewelry, funeral ornaments and personal belongings from 2,000-year-old burial mounds". Everyone thought that this gold was lost under the Taliban, who had a habit of destroying the Afghani past and heritage. You can see a picture here of how beautiful the workmanship was.

As for architecture, we travel now to Ohio, to see an entire community of Frank Lloyd Wright inspired houses. I'd never heard of this community before, but you should follow the link and check out the pictures. I gather that the Ohio community was an offshoot of the one Utopian Community that FLW himself planned in Pleasantville, NY. Here and here are some other links to information about the Westchester community.

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What's the difference? The difference is being open and willing to become engaged by what you are looking at it. Most of the time, we look but don't see. Last night, coming home on the train, I saw. It just lasted a moment, but I saw. I'll try to describe what I saw.

I was on the train. We had passed over the bridge going from Manhattan to the Bronx and were entering this little canyon where the tracks are depressed and the walls on either side are high. I happened to look up out of the window for a moment and I saw a building, all alone, with nothing else around it. It was silhouetted against the sky. It was brick painted a tan or beige color, probably about 8 stories high, maybe 10. It was at an angle to me so that I was looking at its corner. And it was set against the sky, all alone. The sky was like thirty different shades of blue, streaked by some small clouds floating here and there. All of those shades of blue melded together into a blue that was achingly perfect and made more perfect by the small imperfections of the clouds. And this building thrust itself up against this perfect sky and looked, maybe because of the position of the angle or because of the juxtaposition of the three basic colors, two dimensional. It was like a painting.

The train moved on and it was evanescent. I think I gasped quietly at the perfection of that moment. I hope I conveyed it here.

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