Great show at the Bowery Ballroom.  It was Patti Smith's 64th birthday and although it was a long wait for her to come on, she rewarded the wait with a great show.  Standing for 4 hours in one place to secure a good line of sight definitely took a toll on my body.  When I bought the tickets my wife asked incredulously, "How old are you?"

I have to admit concert going is not my strong suit.  I had a very pleasant experience over in Hoboken (less crowded, smaller venue, lower wait time) and thought I could reproduce it at the Bowery Ballroom--not so easy.  The most wonderful part of the entire evening was the lack of smoke: how many times in my youth have I endured the same tortuous process only to have it aggravated by clouds of tobacco smoke?  Too many!

How do you spell blizzard?

Mayor John Lindsay's name has come up in relation to the response by NYC (and I might add Nassau County) to the most recent blizzard to hit the NY-metro area.  It dumped 20 inches of snow in Central Park and much of the city is still paralyzed days later.

All three NYC airports were shut down, most forms of public transportation came to a halt and it does seem as though the government's response has been less than exemplary.

My kids, on the other hand, loved it:
Pictures of the blizzard

The NY Times also invited folks to submit their photos at:
NY Times' readers's photos

Liz Phair in Hoboken

I don't go to many rock 'n roll concerts (in fact I can count on one hand the number I've been to in the last 20 years), but last night I went to Maxwell's (http://maxwellsnj.com/) in Hoboken to see Liz Phair. My buddy and I took the PATH and then walked 3/4 of mile to the venue. It was a warm, rainy night--could be the last hurrah of fall--a few degrees colder and it would have been blizzard conditions. In any case, it was a terrific show. If you don't believe me, check out:

http://www.nj.com/entertainment/music/index.ssf/2010/12/liz_phair_rocks_maxwells_in_ho.html 

Here's a little flavor of the show:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9wGqMDB4qs

Cornel West in Denver opening American Public Health Association Conference

What a great opening! Inspiring and on target.

CDC Social Marketing Efforts

Here's one of many social marketing campaigns developed by the CDC in Atlanta:

Interesting story about zoos (Leonard Lopate show):

Ignoring the warning signs at our peril

Beneath the din being created by know-nothing candidates running for political office, there lies vast apathy about the political process in the US.  We can't have it all and we're missing the boat on what needs to be done.  Do we have the political will?  I'm increasingly pessimistic.  I'm afraid the midterm elections will sink us further into recession and doom the US to a long, long period of stagnant growth and high unemployment.  However, if you don't believe me, check out:
The Coming Storm
and
Thomas Friedman: October 27, 2010

Heavy reliance on test scores for teacher evaluation is misguided | A Statement on Education

Here's something you can support that questions the over-reliance on standardized tests to evaluate students AND teachers.

Heavy reliance on test scores for teacher evaluation is misguided A Statement on Education

Modern myths around the house

As the following articles suggest, old habits die hard. The two in particular that I've been trying to kill in my house are: changing the oil every 3,000 miles and using too much detergent in dishwashers and washing machines. If you want to read the articles, here are the URLs for them:

Soap Article

Oil change article



Enjoy!

Get your flu shot

I'm OK...are you OK?

As I was driving back to work today, there was an interesting piece on the Brian Lehrer Show (NPR).  He was interviewing the authors of a new comic book entitled, "The Adventures of Unemployed Man."  They requested villain suggestions from the listeners.  Anyway, I checked out the website and found it to be a timely publication:

http://unemployedman.com/



Check it out.

Brooklyn Tech Football Homecoming

Ok, here's a few pictures from today's Brooklyn Tech HS football game vs. Jefferson HS.  Back in the day, I attended Brooklyn Tech (1968-1972) and played football.  I took Harry to let him have a first-hand look at high school football.  He wants to play very badly and we are trying to hold him off for as long as we can.  He already plays soccer, lacrosse, basketball, and baseball.  Wow! The neighborhood around Tech has REALLY changed--it's hip and cool with restaurants and shops.  When I attended Tech it was in very bad shape and it was not unusual to see abandoned buildings and homeless people all around.

Rally in Washington, DC

Hey, if Glenn Beck can do it (while invoking the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.), Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert can do it too.  Arianna Huffington claimed that she would provide buses for anyone who wants to go from NY to DC for the rally.  Here's the scoop:
http://www.rallytorestoresanity.com/

and Colbert's:
 http://www.keepfearalive.com/

Life saving technique: NEW! No training necessary

Here's a life-saving video that simplifies what used to be called CPR (cardio-pulmonary resuscitation).  According to this video, this technique (Continuous Chest Compression CPR) is SUPERIOR to traditional CPR.  Save a life today:
http://medicine.arizona.edu/spotlight/learn-sarver-heart-centers-continuous-chest-compression-cpr

End the war on drugs

California is leading the charge! While there are valid arguments concerning the use of any mind-altering substance, the public health point of view often gets obscured by various moralizers and peddlers of fear.  The public health point of view is harm reduction.  It acknowledges the fact that people will do ..... (you fill in the blank of whatever prohibition seems to be in vogue), what people will do--the question is how can we mitigate or eliminate the harm to self and others.  The following opinion piece -- whatever your stand on the issue -- that those most vigorously fighting against this are doing so in what can only be called "enlightened self interest."

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/29/reefer-gladness/?hp

School health support

Many lament the growing health problems faced by our youth: alcohol and drug use, teen pregnancy, mental health issues, obesity, sedentary behaviors as well as many others.  While providing reliable information is ONE PART of the solution, many fail to recognize that information is not enough.  Skills related to self-management, relationship management, stress management, decision making, goal setting, problem solving, and communication are broad-based criteria that need to taught with plenty of time for children to practice these skills in as real to life situations as possible.  One organization that is leading the charge is:

 http://www.informz.net/admin31/templates/Template_Html_Adv.asp?MFQID=9639028&test=t

Check it out and put pressure on your school and school district to support comprehensive health education for ALL children.

Is money the answer for baseball?

Here's a great graphic from the NY Times on the value of spending more money on baseball players:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/09/26/sports/20090926-score-graphic.html?ref=sports

The state of our union

Here's an interesting and provocative piece on the current state of our union. It's quite lengthy and some might claim it's laden with jargon or unintelligible but I think it's spot on.

http://www.truth-out.org/memories-hope-age-disposability63631

A little late to the party...

I had put up a blog in my professional life and found how difficult it is to generate interest. I did it as a part of trying to collaborate with a local institution. However, despite the energy at the meeting, it did not carry over to participation on the blog. Therefore, I have deleted it and am going to try my hand at a more personal blog.

I've been living in suburban Long Island now for the past seven years working and watching my children grow. I'm a refugee from NYC where I was born and raised and while I'm only 35 minutes away on the LIRR, sometimes it feels like I could be in Georgia (where I really did once live).

For example, today I'm at home with the kids and I sent the picture above to my wife who's touring Governor's Island with her sister. We have a running battle with the kids over the amount of media consumed by them on a daily basis. We have a bit of a visual joke going on here as my son has a carton of ice cream in his hands and my daughter is holding the remote while I am subdued with their jump ropes.