Thanksgiving 2010.
I wish, I wish, I wish I was a wishing well. On Thanksgiving morning I was wishing that I could find more motivation to get something done. The amazing thing is that I was able to muster enough enthusiasm to get anything accomplished whatsoever. Even brushing my teeth was an accomplishment. I was just not feeling the holiday spirit, as they say.
Nor was I in the mood or frame of mind to be driving all the way to Metuchen, New Jersey where my family usually reunites for the traditional Thanksgiving Dinner. The drive takes about two hours down the New Jersey Turnpike from Philadelphia to Exit 11. New Jerseyans all identify each other by what exit they must take off the Turnpike to get home. I knew that giving in to the urge to call and cancel out was a sorry thing to do no matter how good the excuse. Blame it on the weather or blame it on the Bosa Nova. In the end I knew that I would be throwing on some holiday appropriate clothes. I knew that I would be getting the car and heading for the Turnpike despite my misgivings and the nasty weather mostly because of the tradition of it all. Say what you will old traditions definitely do die hard.
The weather was seasonal, blustery with some snow, hail and rain in the forecast for the rest of the day. Truth be told, this kind of blustery weather was actually my favorite kind of weather for sleeping in with a good book and the newspaper. My two cats were way ahead of me, already curled up for a nice long afternoon’s snooze. The roads were soaked and dangerous with fall leaves everywhere making the going even more slippery. To go or not to go? How inviting the old, soft couch in my living room seemed. I would have loved to just take a short nap, to calm myself down. Short naps, however, can be dangerous. I know that short naps can turn into long naps, especially with football games playing on the tube. It is so easy to find a hundred excuses not to do something that you really do not want to be doing in the first place.
My daughter lives in Charlotte, NC. My brother and his family live in West Palm Beach, Fla. And my sister and her family live in Delray Beach, Fla. Another niece lives in San Ramon, Ca. and her sister and family live in Wash. DC. Only my New Jersey nieces live close enough for a holiday get together. With a family that is so scattered to the winds it is hard to make family get togethers work in a way that accommodates everyone’s needs and schedules.
So in the end, despite all of our misgivings and procrastinating, we usually end up doing the most expeditious thing in most cases. After all no one really wants to be left alone on Thanksgiving, do they? And I do hate disappointing people, letting them down, especially when they are counting on me to do something for them. I’ve already done way too much of that sort of thing in the course of my life. And I do not like it when the tables are turned and I am counting on someone to do me a favor and they let me down. So it works both ways. I let you down, you let me down, we let each other down –where does it all end? Better to break the cycle and just do the things that we commit ourselves to do in the first place. And in that vein, let me take this opportunity to wish all of my friends and relatives a very happy and safe Thanksgiving, 2010.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
The More Things Change
The French, bless their little hearts, have a famous expression that goes like this - "Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose!" Translation- The more things change, the more they stay the same! And they are correct of course. I am thinking today about the upcoming US mid term elections which are only a few days away. I do plan to vote though I am less than enthusiastic about my choices. I will hold my nose and vote the big D for democrat party candidates.
The mass media folks have been saying for weeks (over and over again ad nauseum) that the Republicans can expect to claim enough seats to take over control of both the Senate and the House. I cannot believe that such will come to pass. I have even put my money ($5.00) to the test. I bet a man in my gym class that after all the smoke settles that the dems will still be in control of both houses of Congress. Some of my friends have since told me that I will most probably lose this bet.
Maybe so. But I just cannot bring myself to believe that the good folks of America will abandon President Obama after only two years in office at the time of his greatest need for their support. Not to mention that they would just be shooting themselves in the foot, cutting off their collective noses to spite themselves. Why in the name of all that is holy would they vote to put the G.O.P. back into power?
Why would they give the keys of power back to the very same people who all but destroyed the American economy in the crash of 2008? President Obama and his capable inner circle brain trust basically pulled a rabbit out of a hat in their efforts to save and shore up the few jobs that were still available while managing to save the financial system from a complete and total global financial colllapse. Not a bad record for only two years in office. And let us not forget that President Obama was able to end combat operations in Iraq after eight years of futility.
This in addition to Obamacare, the most important overhaul of the US healthcare system in fifty years. (The G.O.P has sworn to repeal Obamacare in the next congress if they manage to gain a majority of the seats). This must not be allowed to happen. We here in the USA agree that majority rules. That is the essence of Democracy is it not? On the other hand no party has a monopoly on stupidity.
We all say that we all want what is best for America. I only wish this were true. Something that should be beneath all good and true and loyal Americans is to wish an incumbent President to fail in the performance of his job. Rush Limbaugh has openly said that he prays every night for President Obama to fail. In my book that smacks a lot of treason. Yes, it is treasonous to wish your own President to fail.
I say if all of the so-called Red states want to fail, I say let them! If they want to withdraw from these United States and form their own country again I say let them (and good riddance to them!) We have come too far and have suffered too much as a people to ever willingly turn the clock back to the early 1950s. There, I have said my piece.
Now don't forget to vote this Nov. 2. I hope we will have cause to celebrate a renewed victory for President Obama and the American people! And may it be so speedily and in our time, Amen.
The mass media folks have been saying for weeks (over and over again ad nauseum) that the Republicans can expect to claim enough seats to take over control of both the Senate and the House. I cannot believe that such will come to pass. I have even put my money ($5.00) to the test. I bet a man in my gym class that after all the smoke settles that the dems will still be in control of both houses of Congress. Some of my friends have since told me that I will most probably lose this bet.
Maybe so. But I just cannot bring myself to believe that the good folks of America will abandon President Obama after only two years in office at the time of his greatest need for their support. Not to mention that they would just be shooting themselves in the foot, cutting off their collective noses to spite themselves. Why in the name of all that is holy would they vote to put the G.O.P. back into power?
Why would they give the keys of power back to the very same people who all but destroyed the American economy in the crash of 2008? President Obama and his capable inner circle brain trust basically pulled a rabbit out of a hat in their efforts to save and shore up the few jobs that were still available while managing to save the financial system from a complete and total global financial colllapse. Not a bad record for only two years in office. And let us not forget that President Obama was able to end combat operations in Iraq after eight years of futility.
This in addition to Obamacare, the most important overhaul of the US healthcare system in fifty years. (The G.O.P has sworn to repeal Obamacare in the next congress if they manage to gain a majority of the seats). This must not be allowed to happen. We here in the USA agree that majority rules. That is the essence of Democracy is it not? On the other hand no party has a monopoly on stupidity.
We all say that we all want what is best for America. I only wish this were true. Something that should be beneath all good and true and loyal Americans is to wish an incumbent President to fail in the performance of his job. Rush Limbaugh has openly said that he prays every night for President Obama to fail. In my book that smacks a lot of treason. Yes, it is treasonous to wish your own President to fail.
I say if all of the so-called Red states want to fail, I say let them! If they want to withdraw from these United States and form their own country again I say let them (and good riddance to them!) We have come too far and have suffered too much as a people to ever willingly turn the clock back to the early 1950s. There, I have said my piece.
Now don't forget to vote this Nov. 2. I hope we will have cause to celebrate a renewed victory for President Obama and the American people! And may it be so speedily and in our time, Amen.
Monday, October 25, 2010
A Perfect Day At The Beach
A perfect day at the beach
The sky, a deep pastel shade of blue
The ocean, deep green and full of salt
The beach, alabaster white for as far as the eye can see
The wind, gentle and caressing
The seagulls, calling and mocking, always on the hunt for fish
And all I needed to make it
A more perfect day
Was a big, beautiful kite to fly.
And you can be sure
That the next time
I come back to the Jersey shore
To my big, beautiful Jersey shore
I will be sure
To have a big, beautiful kite to fly
And that’s for sure.
jack h. markowitz
10/08/10
The sky, a deep pastel shade of blue
The ocean, deep green and full of salt
The beach, alabaster white for as far as the eye can see
The wind, gentle and caressing
The seagulls, calling and mocking, always on the hunt for fish
And all I needed to make it
A more perfect day
Was a big, beautiful kite to fly.
And you can be sure
That the next time
I come back to the Jersey shore
To my big, beautiful Jersey shore
I will be sure
To have a big, beautiful kite to fly
And that’s for sure.
jack h. markowitz
10/08/10
Thursday, September 30, 2010
November 29, 1947
Millions of Jews
The whole world over
Hold their collective breath
Huddled around their radios
Straining to hear
The latest bit of news
Hoping against hope
That the 20th century
The bloodiest of them all
Still might hold
The seeds of promise
For a tired people
An ancient people
A wounded people
Fresh from the killing fields of Europe.
The United Nations meets to decide the fate of the Jews!
For or against partition of Palestine and the Yeshuv!
UN General Assembly Resolution 181.
Roll call!
Australia votes yes!
Egypt votes no!
America votes yes!
Jordan votes no!
Canada votes yes!
Syria votes no!
Argentina abstains!
Chile abstains!
United Kingdom abstains!
A million Jewish hearts beat as one!
Then, suddenly, the final vote tally is taken!
Thirty three for, thirteen against, ten abstain!
Like a thunderclap from the heavens!
Partition wins!
There are to be two states!
One Jewish, one Arab!
Hope is reborn!
The Jewish People again have a homeland at last!
After two thousand years of exile!
A Jewish homeland at last!
Hope!
Such a beautiful magnificent word!
Hope renewed!
Hope restored!
Hope rekindled!
With the simple stroke of a pen!
Hope, Hatikvah, again triumphs over despair!
No more need Jewish children
Tremble and shake in their beds
Homeless no more!
Stateless no more!
Powerless no more!
Cheering and crying
Dancing in the streets of Tel Aviv!
The world has changed
The tide has shifted!
From out of the ashes of Auschwitz
The Jewish Phoenix has arisen!
Resurrection! Redemption!
Shout it from the roof tops of Jerusalem and Haifa!
Shout it from the valleys of Galilee
And the orange groves of Jaffa!
Shout it from the mountaintops of Mt. Sinai and Mt. Hermon!
Am Chai Yisroel!
The Jewish People live!
By Jack Henry Markowitz © 2010
The whole world over
Hold their collective breath
Huddled around their radios
Straining to hear
The latest bit of news
Hoping against hope
That the 20th century
The bloodiest of them all
Still might hold
The seeds of promise
For a tired people
An ancient people
A wounded people
Fresh from the killing fields of Europe.
The United Nations meets to decide the fate of the Jews!
For or against partition of Palestine and the Yeshuv!
UN General Assembly Resolution 181.
Roll call!
Australia votes yes!
Egypt votes no!
America votes yes!
Jordan votes no!
Canada votes yes!
Syria votes no!
Argentina abstains!
Chile abstains!
United Kingdom abstains!
A million Jewish hearts beat as one!
Then, suddenly, the final vote tally is taken!
Thirty three for, thirteen against, ten abstain!
Like a thunderclap from the heavens!
Partition wins!
There are to be two states!
One Jewish, one Arab!
Hope is reborn!
The Jewish People again have a homeland at last!
After two thousand years of exile!
A Jewish homeland at last!
Hope!
Such a beautiful magnificent word!
Hope renewed!
Hope restored!
Hope rekindled!
With the simple stroke of a pen!
Hope, Hatikvah, again triumphs over despair!
No more need Jewish children
Tremble and shake in their beds
Homeless no more!
Stateless no more!
Powerless no more!
Cheering and crying
Dancing in the streets of Tel Aviv!
The world has changed
The tide has shifted!
From out of the ashes of Auschwitz
The Jewish Phoenix has arisen!
Resurrection! Redemption!
Shout it from the roof tops of Jerusalem and Haifa!
Shout it from the valleys of Galilee
And the orange groves of Jaffa!
Shout it from the mountaintops of Mt. Sinai and Mt. Hermon!
Am Chai Yisroel!
The Jewish People live!
By Jack Henry Markowitz © 2010
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Bleeker and MacDougal - The Hippest Street in Town
Scotch and soda
Mud in your eye
Baby do I feel high
Oh yeah, oh my
Higher than a kite can fly
Baby, do I feel high…
Scotch and soda
Jigger of gin
Oh what a spin you’ve got me in
Oh me, oh my
Baby do I feel high…
(lyrics by Kingston Trio)
Like a pigeon
tossed into the city sky
Where do you go?
Where do you fly?
Bleeker and MacDougal
The hippest street in town!
F train to West 4th
Play some B ball
On the corner
If you must.
Stop for coffee,
hot and black,
Espresso, Cappuccino,
Have a snack
Sit, snooze, sip,
Read some Kerouac.
Have a laugh,
sing a song
Who needs all that drug paraphernalia?
Who still needs to buy a bong?
Birdland, 8th and 44th.
Lovano, Liebman, Coltrane,
Big Sax Summit
Brother Phil on the keys
Food, people, wine
Not a sour puss in sight
Homing like a pigeon.
Bleeker and MacDougal
F train to West 4th.
To the hippest street in town
Did someone say
Cafe Figaro
May be shutting down?
Damn shame if you ask me.
In the blink of an eye
Here today, gone tomorrow
All the joy
All the sorrow
Poured out to the last good drop
Ah, well,
Let’s order another bottle,
Plenty of time
Until tomorrow
Plenty of time
Before the last train
Out of town!
Mud in your eye
Baby do I feel high
Oh yeah, oh my
Higher than a kite can fly
Baby, do I feel high…
Scotch and soda
Jigger of gin
Oh what a spin you’ve got me in
Oh me, oh my
Baby do I feel high…
(lyrics by Kingston Trio)
Like a pigeon
tossed into the city sky
Where do you go?
Where do you fly?
Bleeker and MacDougal
The hippest street in town!
F train to West 4th
Play some B ball
On the corner
If you must.
Stop for coffee,
hot and black,
Espresso, Cappuccino,
Have a snack
Sit, snooze, sip,
Read some Kerouac.
Have a laugh,
sing a song
Who needs all that drug paraphernalia?
Who still needs to buy a bong?
Birdland, 8th and 44th.
Lovano, Liebman, Coltrane,
Big Sax Summit
Brother Phil on the keys
Food, people, wine
Not a sour puss in sight
Homing like a pigeon.
Bleeker and MacDougal
F train to West 4th.
To the hippest street in town
Did someone say
Cafe Figaro
May be shutting down?
Damn shame if you ask me.
In the blink of an eye
Here today, gone tomorrow
All the joy
All the sorrow
Poured out to the last good drop
Ah, well,
Let’s order another bottle,
Plenty of time
Until tomorrow
Plenty of time
Before the last train
Out of town!
Every Poem Is A Victory
Every Poem Is A Victory
By jack henry markowitz
© 2010
Every finished poem
Is a victory
Over the soul killing system
That has been trying for decades
To kill
The poet
Inside every one of us.
So write, write
And write some more
Whether miracle
Cant or drivel.
Just a few more bars
A few more stanzas
And I really do think
We’ll finally
Have the bastards
On the run.
By jack henry markowitz
© 2010
Every finished poem
Is a victory
Over the soul killing system
That has been trying for decades
To kill
The poet
Inside every one of us.
So write, write
And write some more
Whether miracle
Cant or drivel.
Just a few more bars
A few more stanzas
And I really do think
We’ll finally
Have the bastards
On the run.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
A VISIT WITH THE GRAND KIDS
I recently managed to complete my long delayed visit to my grand kids in Charlotte, NC with a minimal amount of discomfort and fanfare although the trip by air was not without some stress. There still remains the expected amount of discobobulation (sp?) that goes with the security checks that have become a major hassle to air travel. I could single out Continental Air for special mention in the department of needlessly harrassing passengers but I will rise above the occasion for the time being. Enough to say that I was not a happy camper. The plane was cramped (to say the least) and they bumped me to a later flight after mistakenly giving away my seat to a standby passenger because I was delayed getting to the departure gate. Partly to blame for my tardy arrival (yes, I do admit I was five minutes tardy) was the fact that my feet were hurting me so much because I had on a pair of ill fitting sneakers. This discomfiture made me hobble about in excruciating agony for the whole trip. Lesson learned. Never wear new shoes on a long trip. Always wear your most comfy, broken in pair no matter how unfashionable.
I am not a very seasoned traveller to begin with (not that I ever really was). I am not called old stick in the mud by family relatives for nothing. In as much that the airlines now charge for checking baggage, I only took enough essentials that would fit into my carry on. No toothbrush, no toothpaste, no razor, no shaving cream. A change of shirts and underwear and socks was about all I allowed myself. It was supposed to be a short trip so I wasn't going to need a lot. I did bring a bathing suit. As luck would have it, the hotel pool was closed during my visit for unknown reasons. I liked the idea of travelling light. I also liked the amount of money I saved by not checking any baggage.
I am a superstitious person (as I freely admit, a gift from my superstitious jewish gypsy mother) so crossing paths with a halloween black cat just as I left my house was not a good omen. Also I had to return back to the house on two more occasions to retrieve forgotten items thereby losing the celestial escort of angels that my mother used to assure me was assigned to all travelers on condition that they not return to their homes to retrieve forgotten articles. So I was apprehensive to say the least. In addition I was very apprehensive about the security search that the airlines impose on all travellers.
Sure enough, at the security check point, I was told to remove my shoes, my belt, and deposit all metal objects into the baskets that need to be x-rayed before allowing folks to continue to the boarding gates. My stuff was flying in all directions. I think it was here, during all the confusion, that I lost my passport. In addition to the humiliation of having my pants fall down in public for all to see I was stressed out to say the least. But apparently I was in good company. Everyone seemed to receive equally bad treatment as far as I could see.
Once on the plane all requested amenities now come with additional charges, so a cup of soda and a small bag of pretzels is all that is offered for free. I was glad for the gesture as my sugar levels were playing havoc with all the stress and rushing about. Once I reached Charlotte, NC I waited for an hour and a half for the courtesy van to arrive. This was partially my fault for being hard of hearing and mistakenly waiting in Zone B instead of Zone D. When I finally made the connection and hooked up with my ride I suggested to the the hotel clerk that they use military lingo to communicate such rendezvous points by saying Alpha, Beta, Charlie and Delta instead of a,b,c,d. The clerk thought this was such a good idea (apparently no else had ever made a similar suggestion) that he charged me the military rate for my hotel room (a whole ten bucks cheaper!) thinking that I was somehow involved with things military. I accepted the act of kindness for what it was worth.
Meeting my grand kids (the youngest for the first time) was as wonderful an experience as people claim it to be. My daughter and her husband and her inlaws were as gracious and accomodating as could be and we all had a generally good time seeing some local sights and visiting with family for Sunday dinner. The weather was glorious and I was genuinely glad to be away from Philadelphia even for a short while. I am always preaching to my friends that a change of scenery goes a long way towards improving mental health and it felt good to be taking my own advice for a change. It (the trip) has rekindled within me the desire to go visit new places and see new things. I hopefully expect to do a lot more of both once I finally officially retire in about two years from now.
I came back home greatly releived to find my two cats (Katrina and Rusty) healthy and the house still standing pretty much as I left it. I took an extra day off to catch up on sleep and lower my blood pressure before returning to work and the old routine. I am now back in the saddle at work and pretty much settled back into the regular routine. My daughter sent me pictures of the visit with the grand kids and they came out very nice. I see myself smiling a lot in the photos so I must have had a really good time. After all, in this new digital age of pixel perfection, pictures don't lie!
I am not a very seasoned traveller to begin with (not that I ever really was). I am not called old stick in the mud by family relatives for nothing. In as much that the airlines now charge for checking baggage, I only took enough essentials that would fit into my carry on. No toothbrush, no toothpaste, no razor, no shaving cream. A change of shirts and underwear and socks was about all I allowed myself. It was supposed to be a short trip so I wasn't going to need a lot. I did bring a bathing suit. As luck would have it, the hotel pool was closed during my visit for unknown reasons. I liked the idea of travelling light. I also liked the amount of money I saved by not checking any baggage.
I am a superstitious person (as I freely admit, a gift from my superstitious jewish gypsy mother) so crossing paths with a halloween black cat just as I left my house was not a good omen. Also I had to return back to the house on two more occasions to retrieve forgotten items thereby losing the celestial escort of angels that my mother used to assure me was assigned to all travelers on condition that they not return to their homes to retrieve forgotten articles. So I was apprehensive to say the least. In addition I was very apprehensive about the security search that the airlines impose on all travellers.
Sure enough, at the security check point, I was told to remove my shoes, my belt, and deposit all metal objects into the baskets that need to be x-rayed before allowing folks to continue to the boarding gates. My stuff was flying in all directions. I think it was here, during all the confusion, that I lost my passport. In addition to the humiliation of having my pants fall down in public for all to see I was stressed out to say the least. But apparently I was in good company. Everyone seemed to receive equally bad treatment as far as I could see.
Once on the plane all requested amenities now come with additional charges, so a cup of soda and a small bag of pretzels is all that is offered for free. I was glad for the gesture as my sugar levels were playing havoc with all the stress and rushing about. Once I reached Charlotte, NC I waited for an hour and a half for the courtesy van to arrive. This was partially my fault for being hard of hearing and mistakenly waiting in Zone B instead of Zone D. When I finally made the connection and hooked up with my ride I suggested to the the hotel clerk that they use military lingo to communicate such rendezvous points by saying Alpha, Beta, Charlie and Delta instead of a,b,c,d. The clerk thought this was such a good idea (apparently no else had ever made a similar suggestion) that he charged me the military rate for my hotel room (a whole ten bucks cheaper!) thinking that I was somehow involved with things military. I accepted the act of kindness for what it was worth.
Meeting my grand kids (the youngest for the first time) was as wonderful an experience as people claim it to be. My daughter and her husband and her inlaws were as gracious and accomodating as could be and we all had a generally good time seeing some local sights and visiting with family for Sunday dinner. The weather was glorious and I was genuinely glad to be away from Philadelphia even for a short while. I am always preaching to my friends that a change of scenery goes a long way towards improving mental health and it felt good to be taking my own advice for a change. It (the trip) has rekindled within me the desire to go visit new places and see new things. I hopefully expect to do a lot more of both once I finally officially retire in about two years from now.
I came back home greatly releived to find my two cats (Katrina and Rusty) healthy and the house still standing pretty much as I left it. I took an extra day off to catch up on sleep and lower my blood pressure before returning to work and the old routine. I am now back in the saddle at work and pretty much settled back into the regular routine. My daughter sent me pictures of the visit with the grand kids and they came out very nice. I see myself smiling a lot in the photos so I must have had a really good time. After all, in this new digital age of pixel perfection, pictures don't lie!
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