A Warm and Fuzzy Mitt

From the start, I could never understand why Mormons were anything to be afraid of. Sure, people fear what they don't understand.  However when you grow up in New York City, there are a barrage of things you should be afraid of and thankfully, seeing a Mormon on the street isn't one of them.

My past dealings with Mormons wasn't very different from most New Yorkers. I would see them riding on mountain bikes in depressed neighborhoods, spreading their gospel.  Nothing about them appeared frightening. How could they be? They were always clean cut, blond and donned in neatly pressed white shirts and black pants. They never bothered anyone or swiped your iPhone. The few Mormons I met later in life, led me to believe they were model citizens. Therefore, why was it such a big deal that a Mormon might become the next president of the United States?


Besides being too rich and too Northern, being Mormon was the other reason why voters and the Republicans never connected with Mitt Romney. The newly released Netflix documentary, Mitt, appears to be an attempt to convince us that there is another side to Mitt and just maybe, we should have voted for him.

Mitt begins with the painful realization that he lost the election to President Obama. While Mrs. Mitt and the five-sons-Mitt, do their awkward best to comfort him during this loss, Mr. Romney nonchalantly responds by asking if anyone has the President's telephone number, so that he can concede.


The film then takes us back in time, before his run for the Republican nomination. Mr. Romney, with legal pad in hand, directs his family members to articulate the pros and cons of running for president. Right from the start, his wife interjects that she doesn't want him to run.  His family then all chime in affirming that they're not too crazy about the idea either. After all, being the leader of the free world comes with incredible amounts of pressure and an annoying loss of privacy.  Regardless of their reasons, they all surrender to their sense of duty and decide America would be a better place with Mitt the Man, in the White House. As we all know,  John McCain wins the Republican nomination and chooses Sarah Pailin as his running mate. The result of this misstep results in hilarity, a second career for Tina Fey and of course, the first African American President.

The next scene opens with his 2008 acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention. After this scene, there are a slew of "behind the scenes" meetings with family members. Eventually, we get to see how Mr. Romney responds to his victories, (His first debate against the President.) as well as his defeats and frustrations. (The second debate.)

I must admit Mitt succeeds at demonstrating how decent, caring, loving and bland Mr. Romney and his family are. Regardless, my problem with Mr. Romney has everything to do with the fact that I couldn't connect with him. After all, he, nor his family and friends look anything like my family and friends. We don't drive the same car, share the same values about work or money. (I'm not opposed to having his money.) Again, I came away feeling like he was a nice guy but not someone I could have a beer with. (Mr. Romney doesn't drink, either.)  This disconnect is reinforced by the fact that there are very few people in the film who are hispanic or brown. Case in point: I don't feel any better watching Mr. Romney's son giving a speech, in broken Spanish, to a small group of latinos in Florida. His other  brief interaction with minorities is with a group of African Americans at a fast food restaurant. Yes, Mr. Romney and the Republican Party have a lot to improve upon, in the matter of minority placement.

By the end of this documentary, I am left wondering why this film is being released now. Of course, the obvious reason is that Greg Whitely, the film's director and producer wants to see his multi-year film project come to fruition. Yet, could this film also be a way to measure how the public feels about Mr. Romney? This film, along with his recent "Slow jamming the news" appearance on The Jimmy Fallon Show, seem to hint that we may be seeing more of "The Mitt-ster"  in the near future.

Even Super Heroes Grow Old

My son Alex can best be described as a card. I say this because I can never quite get a fix on what he's thinking.

Regardless of my inability to guess what's on his mind, he often says and does things that make me wonder whether there's a message or purpose behind his actions or just a need to throw a head fake; just to see if I'll wince or move in the direction he wants me to. Case in point, he recently emailed me, The Life and Times of an Aging Superhero Captured in Oil Paintings by Andreas Englund.  

My first impression of the generic, aging hero depicted in the series of oil paintings was that it was comical, realistic and extremely attractive. Naturally, I also felt that sending me these paintings was his "modus operandi" which is also part of his "charm". As he often does, he chides me and calls me old and reminds me that I'm set in my ways. To a large extent, I agree with the notion that I am less young and less likely to embrace all things unfamiliar to me. I also concur that like most people, I proceed through life with a degree of caution that is in line with the degree of successes and failures that I have faced in my life.

My response to Alex about these paintings was a hearty laugh and I expressed that I absolutely loved them.  Oddly enough, my feelings about these portraits did not diminish. As with most things sent to me via the internet,  I would look at them once or twice and then forget they exist. In contrast, I saved this link and found myself looking at them, once or twice a week. I would examine the face of the aging hero and I soon discovered a certain dignity and serenity, as well as a sense of pride in his face. Despite these evident qualities, there was no arguing that the world around him remained a tough one.  The facts remained that he was a getting older. I also couldn't help wondering if there were any regrets in his choice  of wanting to make the world safer from the perils of evil. To complicate matters further, evil always seemed to be getting younger and in many ways, never going away.

Looking at these scenes, as much as I did, I couldn't help relating to them in a personal way.  After all, how many times have I felt myself fighting the endless fight? There's also the constant reminder that the world is changing around me and new perils are lurking somewhere in a dark corner, ready to engage me in battle. However, pretty much like the generic hero, I acknowledge finding a certain dignity, serenity and pride every time I look into the mirror. Yes, there are a few more lines on my face than I remember and it's taking me a while longer for my body to recover but forge ahead I must. After all, this is the life I've chosen.

After this long self examination, I am left wondering if this is the message Alex was trying to convey to me.

President Christie, We Hardly Knew Ye....

I'm pretty sure that outside of New York and our immediate metropolitan area (New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut), most people have little idea the George Washington Bridge exists.

Many of those familiar with this crossing know it as the bane of their daily existence. To others, it is the ultimate obstacle in either their escape to, or from New York. These heartfelt emotions have everything to do with the fact that this New York / New Jersey gateway is almost always snarled with congestion, lane troubles and never ending construction. Most savvy New Yorkers know better and are no where near the streets of the city, leading to this bridge on any given Friday afternoon or holiday. Our view of this bridge is best captured by our favorite New Jersey hero, Bruce, "The highway's jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive."   

Well, it seems as if Governor Christie will now share the common man's view of this bridge as both, "a death trap and a suicide rap" and most of us are left wondering if he'll be one of those Republican tramps who will be, "Born to Run," for president in 2016. 

My own feelings about Governor Christie are at best, ambivalent. I know my view of Christie is at odds with most people who see him as one of the most polarizing figures in today's political landscape. In short, people either love or hate the guy. However, my admiration for him grew because I cannot remember the last time I saw a politician actually do something positive, in the interest of those who needed help. In short, he ignored the partisan politics and welcomed President Obama, during the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Needless to say, he also has a reputation for chastising just about anyone who disagrees with him. However, I've always felt that New Jersey is a tough place to govern and as a result, New Jersey needs a tough governor. 

Regardless of your political views or feelings about Christie, I've included both of these New York Times articles because they seem to mirror my own ambivilance about Christie. The first one, "Christie's Apology, Done His Way" clearly illustrates how Christie does everything - BIG. Despite the bigness of his emotions, during his BIG, two hour press conference, you can't help but feel that he was a BIG victim of circumstance.  Whereas, the next article, "Stories Add Up as Bully Image Trails Christie," falls in line with those who feel Christie is a bully and of course, is a small and petty man.

Enjoy and be good!

The Apple iPad Mini with Retina Display of My Eye

New York City appears to be out of sync for me this morning. There's an unusual hush on the streets, as a result of the fresh snow. The few cars or trucks that pass are muted, as if driving on foam.

The schools are shut down, the temperature outside is at 20 degrees, the airports are closed and I'm nursing myself back to health, after a lousy holiday chest cold. Even though I did feel miserable for a few days, I do feel lucky because this episode wasn't complicated by the usual sinus infection. Although I haven't confirmed my cold recovery routines with the experts, what seems to work for me is staying away from the bike or trainer, staying on the couch for hours reading or eyes glazed over watching TV, keeping a window open while sleeping and taking in large quantities of food and liquids.

This time around, being locked up in the apartment got me thinking about 2013. I have to say the year had been an incredibly good one for customer service related stories.  The one that stands out is the extremely positive outcome I had with The Apple Store.

Throughout the years, I've owned a Mac desktop, MacBook, iPod Classic, iPod Touch, iPod Nano, iPod Shuffle, Apple TV, Apple AirPort Extreme, Apple iPhone 5 and most recently, I received the gift of an iPad Mini with retina display.  My wife owns an iPad with Retina Display and our three adult children own a MacBook, MacBook Pros, AirPort Extreme and iPhones 4S, 5 and 5S. My first Mac was a Mac LC and I truly loved the simplicity and inherent intuitiveness of the operating system and programs. This Mac was also a favorite of the kids, when they were growing up. Back then, however, the early days of owning a Mac was pretty much a leap of faith. Things often did go wrong and you didn't have the benefit of taking the machine to an Apple store. You were often left taking your albatross to an authorized retailer. If you were lucky, you and the kids were left without a computer for only weeks.

Fast forward to the future and along with Starbucks, the first sign that you live in a civilized society is that there's an Apple Store near you. These stores define what I can only describe as the ideal retail community experience. First, they are beautiful to look at, they are filled with staff who are knowledgeable, well trained and customer focussed. Besides offering their entire Apple line-up, they also feature a wide variety of  accessories, software and peripherals.

My most recent excellent adventure with the Apple Store began late November, when I decided to order my iPad Mini with retina display.  I had been holding out to replace my Kindle for about a year, sustaining myself on the hope and rumors that Apple was in fact introducing a mini with a high definition display. All of the Mac websites were predicting a release date, some time after Thanksgiving. Surprisingly, Apple quietly announced and made them available for on-line order and pick-up on November 12. Upon hearing the news, I immediately placed the order on-line and elected to pick up the mini at my local Apple Store at Ridge Hill. After receiving my confirmation, my wife and I headed to the store and in about half an hour, I was the very first person walking out with the latest iPad Mini. Of course, missing were the lines of staff and strangers applauding my great retail triumph but I was flying high, nonetheless.

For approximately two weeks, I played with my new toy and quickly became accustomed to the engineered beauty of the device and the seamless operating system. The new device, along with my iPhone 5, became my "go to" devices. I use my mini for: iMessaging, as a TV remote control, paying bills, surfing the web, banking, viewing photos, making purchases, retrieving email, reading the New York Times and reading books. I haven't opened any of the iWorks programs and I still use my MacBook for work and complex activities. My plans are to take a course or two at the Apple Store and possibly use it at work but for the moment, I'm in no rush. A few folks at the store pointed out that I would notice the crispness of the screen, when playing games. As is my custom,  I could only respond that I don't play games and as usual, I drew quizzical stares.

Within this time, my wife had forwarded an email to me from the Apple Store indicating they were crediting us $412.00, because we did not pick up the reserved iPad Mini. They further added that if we wanted to purchase the device, all we had to do was make another reservation and pick it up at the store, if they were in stock. My wife and I gave each other a few looks and I explained that perhaps, we had been mistakenly debited twice and they were crediting us for the error. Regardless, I advised she contact her credit card company, just to make sure. She did manage to call the credit card company and they confirmed that her card had been correctly debited once and then, Apple had credited her card for the same amount. She explained to them what had happened and they responded that at this point, we did not have to do anything. After hashing out the situation, neither of us felt comfortable not paying for the item. For better or for worse, we both felt a personal kinship with Apple and felt cozy within the warmth of our Apple environment. After all, we had been given years of pleasure and it just felt wrong; like stealing a wad of cash from your mother's purse. I also wanted to add AppleCare to my mini and I was wincing at the idea of getting arrested at the door because the item may have been reported stolen. Finally, we felt the pressures of an Apple Karma of sorts. In short, I imagined all of our wonderful products exploding simultaneously!

Armed with my iPad Mini, printed emails and receipts in hand, we dashed off to the Apple Store. Once there, we were greeted by several of the staff and led to the back of the store to meet with the manager. We then explained the entire situation to her and showed her the iPad, emails and the receipts. With eyes widened, her first response was that something like this had never happened before and additionally added that nobody had ever come into Apple claiming they had not been charged for an item. We assured her that neither of us felt comfortable knowing we were getting pleasure from something we had not paid for. She then directed us to a corner of the store and asked us to wait for a few minutes, while she research the situation. We noticed a flurry of activity, as a result of this errant iPad. Throughout the waiting process, a slew of employees stopped by to speak with us and ask questions. A number of them shook our hands or patted me on the back. Approximately, fifteen minutes later, the manager came over to say the store had made an error and we did NOT have to pay for the iPad. With both of our mouths open in awe, she explained that there had been a glitch in the system and as a result of the error, the iPad had been written off as missing.  As a result of the device being written off, our credit card could not be charged again. She then thanked us and shook both of our hands. We were both numb and finally, assured her that we would continue to spread the gospel, according to Apple!

In the midst of the confusion, I suddenly remembered I had wanted to purchase the AppleCare and as soon as I did, we left the store. Suddenly, my Apple iPad Mini, with retina display felt as new as when I had just pulled it out of the box, even though it had been in my hand all along. Man, did we feel good!    

Climbing the Walls Beats Out Super Pac!

If you're anything like me, I'm a bit fatigued by the daily jabs, gaffes and sometimes sheer lunacy of the Republican Primaries. However,  like a nasty car wreck on the highway, you can't help but look over to see what's going on.

President of the Moon too?

Within the last week alone, I've seen Mitt serenading a crowd of seniors in Florida with, "America the Beautiful." Not to be outdone, Newt has promised that his goal will be to make the moon our 51st state during his second term! Of course, a barrage of questions ran through my mind and the top three were: 1) What legal/illegal narcotic is he addicted to? 2) Is it actually legal to claim an orbital sphere as a state? 3) And finally, how did the moon jump ahead of Puerto Rico on the statehood line?

A terrific head of hair!

Another fascinating aspect of these primaries have been the millions of dollars the Super Pacs have been raising for their candidates. In short, Super Pacs are groups created by individuals or companies, in support of a candidate and they can raise limitless amounts of funds. However, one caveat is that it is illegal for the candidate to supervise or coordinate any of these group's  activities. As you might imagine, these groups are able to use their funds to pay for a vast array of campaign related expenses, as well as bombarding radio and television airwaves with ads, either lambasting or supporting a candidate. If you've been keeping up with the results of the primaries so far, the amounts of money have made an impact on the outcomes. Even though I was totally aware of the large sums of money, I had no idea about the actual dollar amounts until this morning. Therefore, I've attached a link to a neat little graphic featured in this morning's  New York Times called, "Who's Financing the 'Super Pacs.'" Besides specifying the amounts of money each group has raised for their respective candidate, you'll also discover the group (s) and individuals supporting all of the Super Pacs.

Super Pac Man!

If you're a Colbert Report fan, you'll want to pay particular attention to the monies his Super Pac group has raised! The fact that he's created his own Super Pac and has been focussing his comedy routines on the bizarre and obscure rules surrounding Super Pacs have shed a light on the obvious need for reform!

Finally, Trampoline's New Frontier is a beautiful and amazing feature on making trampoline wall climbing an olympic sport. After seeing this video, I truly agreed with the notion that these individuals are incredible and disciplined athletes.

Enjoy and be good!

The Bark Side

I hate sounding like a cynic but sometimes I just can't help myself.

The crux of my cynicism is centered on the fact that the extremely private George Lucas, has been featured just about everywhere you go. Could it be that all of the Lucas revelations, coverage and Star Wars teasers are related to the release of his upcoming movie, Red Tails?

The first hint I knew something was up was a while back during the year, when the folks at Volkswagen came out with the wonderful commercial, featuring a young Darth Vader trying to conjure up the powers of the force. In the end, his father gives him a little help. Since then, an extremely in-depth analysis was written in The New York Times Magazine.  This past Friday, he was interviewed by Charlie Rose on CBS This Morning. He will also share his home and thoughts with Oprah on the Oprah Winfrey Network.

Again, what tickles me is how much we get to find out about someone who is notoriously private as Lucas. We learn how much he thinks Hollywood sucks, how tough a time he had financing his new movie about the Tuskegee Airmen, how much he wants to make "artsy" movies, his emergence as a behind the scenes political powerhouse and we even get to learn about his new girlfriend!

Regardless of how the publicity apparatus rolls, George Lucas seems like a good guy, just the same. I also hope that a movie like Red Tails does well and I do plan on seeing it some time in the near future.

Finally, one of the added benefits we get from the Lucas / Star Wars wave of publicity is another great Super Bowl commercial teaser from Volkswagen called the Bark Side! I'll enjoy the commercial even more if the Giants have a rematch with the Patriots....and with the same outcome!

Enjoy and be good!

The Umbrella Man

I can hardly believe it's been close to three months, since my last blog.

I want to be completely honest and say that I am not apologizing for not writing. One reason for not wanting to is I don't want to associate any sense of guilt with not blogging. After all, the agreement I made with myself back in August was that I was doing this blog thing just for me. In short, if I don't feel like blogging for three months, then so be it. And should my two loyal followers have any problem with my decision, they have every right to call me at home and / or leave cold, icy messages on my voice mail (Although, I'm a bit crushed they haven't).

Another reason for dropping the writing has been that I've been teaching,  as well as searching for "greener pastures." Finally, I was also caught up in the preparations for Thanksgiving and of course, Christmas and New Years. I've also been 'subbing" for absent teachers at the Welcome Center, and squeezing in as much cycling as I could, during this unusually warm winter. I also have to add that for some odd reason, I've been watching a whole lot more football (Let's go Giants?). I've also been reading books at a an unusually intense pace! Since November, I've been catching up with my reading and hopefully, I'll give my reactions or reviews about these books a bit later (The Life of Pi, Lance and Steve Jobs).

In the meantime, I wanted to comment about something I had read about in the New York Times a few months ago and I was again reminded about him, while driving earlier this morning - The Umbrella Man.

For those of us who were around or who have read about the JFK assassination, there was a time when people didn't walk around with video cameras in their cell phones (Cell phones/smart phones hadn't even been invented, actually!) and the only visual testimony we had of what happened on this earth shattering day in history was the Zapruder film.

Well as we all know, the theories behind the assassination are endless and everyone has their own idea about whether there was a conspiracy involved in the death of JFK or if Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. The pure irony of this event is that the most powerful man on the earth is murdered and close to fifty years later, there isn't a definitive answer about what really happened!  Furthermore, the more time we take to examine these events, the less we know about what actually happened.

Case in point, the Umbrella Man! For many of those who have examined the film, as the President's motorcade is approaching, there is the strange and eery appearance of a man walking with a black umbrella on that fateful but beautiful day in Dallas. Conspiracy theorists have conjectured that this man was part of the plot and perhaps was there to signal the shooter (s) or perhaps he was a shooter himself.

In this particular video, Josiah "Tink" Thompson offers an explanation and further understanding of the mysterious Umbrella Man. While his reasoning is not as juicy or provocative as what the Conspiracy Theorists might want to hear, what  he has to say seems to explain a lot about those random occurrences in our lives that often defy explanation.

Enjoy and be good!