Saturday, October 31, 2009

Rush Limbaugh scares the hell out of me...


The art of gift giving is a tricky one. Anyone who believes the old adage "'tis better to give than to receive" was never on the receiving end of a double signed second party cheque for $15.67 ( a gift from my old girlfriend's mother and father....I swear), or a cassette tape of "Rob McConnell and his Boss Brass" ( a gift from my old girlfriend....). My bride of the past twenty years, however, has always had a flair for being generous and buying the most thoughtful of gifts.

In the early 90's my wife gave my a "Grundig" portable short wave radio.I was always fascinated by listening to "American talk" radio personalities. That's when I first heard Rush Limbaugh.

In the 90's Limbaugh was considered nothing more than an overweight Republican windbag. The more that he criticized the Clinton's, global warming and "feminists" ( which he coined " femi-Nazi's" ), the more he seemed to be treated like a circus freak: Someone who no one really cared about or loved, but someone who people would throw money at because they were fascinated by the grotesque.

The radio was subsequently misplaced, probably by one of our many moves, or maybe it fell on the dung heap of obsolescence. Who knows? The radio may be gone, but Limbaugh lives on.

While surfing the 'net a few months ago, I came across a New York station that was only more than happy to indulge Rush for more than three hours while he spewed his trash talk about: women ( If something goes wrong in government, it's been " chick-a-fied", or scrutinized by a woman ), Obama ( his relatives live in huts in Africa), Nancy Pelosi ( "Nazi" Pelosi ), and socialized medicine ( " Our forefathers fought so we wouldn't have to go through this type of thing folks"...What that means I have no idea. ) Don't get me wrong: Free speech is something that your humble author is willing to fight for, but this is simply offensive and irritating. But the thing that scares me the most: Some Republicans are saying that Limbaugh is the "unofficial" head of the Republican party.

Can you believe it? A radio talk show host who spews this vitriol? Do you mean to tell me that the leadership of the Republican party is so rudderless that it turns to this type of of pompous dork to be it's leader? Jesus, what a sad state of affairs.

This really scared the hell of me. If only this type of narrow minded radio personality could be misplaced like that Grundig radio.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

What does Johnny think of the Toronto Maple Leafs?...



My father worked for the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce for 40 years. Although I never heard him say that he loved his work, I do think he enjoyed his time at the branch located in at Church and Carleton Street in Toronto. This is where Maple Leaf Gardens, the home of the Toronto Maple Leafs , was located.

One year, I believe it was 1968, the Leafs were in in the Stanley Cup playoffs and they were facing the Boston Bruins. Tickets to the game were a hot commodity and my father was given two rink side tickets from a generous supervisor. (That was the least the bank could have done for him considering the number of hours he worked there, but that is another blog). Anyway, my father decided to take me with him to the game.

Going to Leaf games then was considered the height of civility. Although I was quite young, I remember that men wore suits and fedoras. Women wore dresses and minks, without the fear of repercussion from some well meaning PETA devotee. To quote Henry Hill from the movie "Goodfellas": It was a glorious time.

As the two teams took the ice, I remember looking at the Toronto goalie and thinking of how different he appeared from the rest of the team. He looked like he was pushing 50 years of age and he seemed so small. Only later did I realize that this person was none other than Johnny Bower. Bower was a legend, helped the Leafs win four cups and was a fan favourite. The Leafs lost to Boston that year and have never won a Stanley Cup since.

I was looking through a Toronto newspaper the other day and I came across a picture of Bower. He was going to be attending a "sports memorabilia" show in they city, Man, he looked pretty good for someone who has to be in his 80's. As I looked at the photo, I couldn't help but think: If I took Johnny out for a Stella and some wings, what would he think of today's Toronto Maple Leafs?.

The Leafs now play at the Air Canada Centre which is a poorly designed glass and steel monstrosity situated between a series of condos. The once curvy women who occupied the rink side seats, are now replaced by anorexic pale skinned women who talk on cellphones. Men that once wore suits to the game, are now clad in cheesy Leaf sweaters with the name of their favourite player sewn on the back for no less than $150. The programs that once contained glossy photos of your favourite stars,are now hawking everything from designer clothing to Japanese made cars. But the one thing that has changed the most has the been the Leafs themselves. This once proud team that Bower so capably played for, has become a metaphor for everything that has gone wrong in North America in the past five years: Greed, incompetence, poor spending,and excuse making. The team that my father took me to see, is now a professional hockey team that has not won a single game this year, all the while charging the fan more than $150 a pop (if you're lucky) per ticket, while playing at a level that would embarrass even the lowest tier Russian team.

What would Johnny think?...

Bloor Street Sushi Reviews # 4...



Where does the week go? It just seems like yesterday that your humble author was writing about the dim-witted parents of the " Balloon Boy", and now I'm writing my weekly " Sushi" review.

The weather was a little sketchy as Bella and I headed to:

New Generation Sushi
493 Bloor Street W,
Toronto


This place came highly recommended, so we could hardly wait to eat.

It was a little crowded when we got there, but the cute unassuming waitress who seated us, more than made up for any over crowding.

Bella had her usual "Bento" box, while I had the eight piece Sashimi plate.

After the traditional soup ( which was piping hot ), I got my plate. The presentation was orderly and neat, and the bright lighting of the restaurant gave the food an appetizing glow.

My plate was fresh and plentiful, but the salmon was just a tad on the bland side.
(Yes I know I'm being bitchy).

Bella's "Bento" was huge, and the tempura vegetables were fresh, crisp and hot. She ordered the teriyaki chicken and found it to be a touch fatty.

I had a glass of the house white wine ( Kressman, I'm betting) and the serving was healthy and the glass nice and cold.

The time that we spend here was pleasent enough, but I should confess that I don't think the restaurant lives up to all the superlatives that are heaped upon it. Yes it was "good", but I could not figure out why this place was jammed when all the other Sushi joints were almost empty. Oh well...

Dinner with a tip: $23.45

Bella and I give this restaurant a 4.2 out of 5



New Generation Sushi on Urbanspoon

Monday, October 19, 2009

We are all the "Balloon Boy"...



The first woman I ever lived with was a woman named Anne. Like most young couples, we thought our love would last forever, we would grow old together, sex would always be mind-blowing and we would look after each other in our "golden years". Alas, it was not to be...

One of the most irritating habits that Anne had ( unlike me who had 1000 of them ), was to reverently follow any insipid news story that any sort of angle of "human" tragedy. ( i.e.-The fictitious story about a woman who placed her baby in a scalding hot oven while the baby screamed:" Mommy don't!", or the story of the kid on the Micheal Jackson video who broke his neck while break dancing..Another urban legend). While her concern for the "human condition" always touched me, I could never figure out why she bought these dumb stories and why they always ended up being splashed on the front page of some crappy Hollywood rag.

I wonder what my old Anne thought of the " Balloon Boy". The story of this poor young lad and his celebrity seeking, undeserving parents from Colorado, have made headlines all over North America. Basically the sordid story goes like this: Trailer trash sleazy parents claim to have built this home made balloon capable of rising to great heights ( unlike the parents). One day the balloon drifts off, Dad claims his young son ( I think he is five years old) was aboard the flight, Colorado Law Enforcement gets notified, the balloon lands without the kid aboard. Media descends like a fat kid on a Smartie, and 2 million National Enquirer readers hold their breath until the kid is found unharmed. The Dad claims his son was in the house all along, the local Sheriff knows a line of bullshit when he hears it, and conducts a full investigation. The result: The parents of the boy have concocted this Kafkaesque scenario in the hopes of landing a reality show on some American cable network.

Now, it should be quickly deduced by anyone with an IQ of over 67 that these parents are swine and have no right reproducing, voting or having a driver's license. But one has to wonder why a couple would jeopardize their family, their sleazy reputations and what ever chance they have at stardom for such a stupid ploy. By giving these types of stories media time are we creating a society of media junkies? By watching these stories on the "Fox Network" and " CNN" are we contributing to the addiction? Are we party to this type of shameless whoring?

If we are, then we are all the Balloon Boy. Our love for this type of dopey story and the fallout surrounding it makes us all guilty of bad judgment and bad taste. It is a sad fact of life in mainstream North America.

Maybe Anne was simply embracing a trend that no one saw coming.

Who's to know?.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Bloor Street Sushi Reviews # 3...



















My oldest daughter Peta decided to accompany Bella and I to our Saturday outing to Toronto. After dancing at the Bloor Street Theatre for the day, Bella decided we should try:

New Generation Grill/ Sushi
486 Bloor Street W,
Toronto

This is one of the newer restaurants in the Annex. I think it used to be an Italian restaurant not that long ago.

The first thing that impressed me about this place was the price. We went into the dining room around 4:15 p.m. and found that we could still order from the lunch menu for about $5.99 a plate. How could you beat that?!

Peta ( the vegetarian ) ordered a vegetarian noodle dish, Bella ordered the Bento box with chicken and I ordered the assorted sashimi platter.

The service was amazing. Our miso soups came within seconds of ordering. Everyone agreed that it was the best soup that we've had in the Annex so far.

My sashimi consisted of six assorted pieces. Every piece was firm, flavourful and filling. Topped off with a glass of the house white ( I think it was Jackson Triggs) it was a great little meal.

Peta devoured her veggie noodle dish. I didn't sample any but guessing from the steam rising from the plate, I assume it was hot and fresh. She said it had just the right amount of spice and tang to it.

Bella thought her dish was "alright". I sampled the sushi and found them to be a little "gummy". However, the tempura vegetables that accompanied them were delicious. They were just the right consistency and were piping hot.

This restaurant is a neat little find. The decor was bright, but not overbearing,the service was fast and the price can't be beat.

The price for three people, including a glass or wine and a tip was $38.85


Rating-Out of 5 : 4.5
Child friendly: Yes





Thursday, October 1, 2009

Rachel Kramer Bussell is a different kind of cat..


I love the works of Norman Mailer. When I learned that he had helped found the Village Voice I immediately began to follow the publication on line. Living in rural Ontario, going on line was the best way to read the " Voice" given the fact we live about 700 kilometers ( give or take) from New York City.

One day while browsing the column section, I came across an entry entitled "Lusty Lady". How could any hetero male not be drawn to that title? I quickly double clicked on the said entry, intrigued by any "Lady " that would entice her readers with a title like that.

Reading the first few lines about a female authors night in NYC, I thought maybe that I was in for a diatribe somewhat akin to what the average housewife may hear on " The View". A few lines later the author named Rachel Kramer Bussell , put any fears to rest.

I quickly learned that Ms. Bussell has a passion for cupcakes, self determination, writing and spanking.No...not your children, other adults. I thought maybe I had misread or misinterpreted Ms. Bussell's column, but alas I had not. Self worth, spanking and cupcakes. Man, in a civilized
world of people who are dying to "getting to know" themselves, Rachel Kramer Bussell is a different kind of cat. Here is a woman who knows exactly what she wants, has the chutzpah to be frank, embraces her libido and loves cupcakes. What's not to love?

Although she no longer contributes to the Voice, you can view her site at: http://rachelkramerbussel.com/

Go ahead, you won't be disappointed. But be prepared: Her site is addictive. And she's a different kind of cat. Thank the Gods for that.

Polanski's Drill Sergeant...


When I was a young man I had a Drill Sergeant with the surname of Harvey. For the life of me I cannot remember his first name, but I do remember the life's lessons that he taught me.

One day while out on the parade square a recruit had the balls to ask: " Why are we doing this?". Instead of bellowing a response or berating the poor fellow, he took us all aside and told us the following: Marching in unison teaches teamwork, it builds character and evokes a sense of discipline. According to Harvey, character was essential for any successful man. It meant standing up for the underdog, doing the "right thing" when no one was looking, taking your lumps when you did the wrong thing, and making amends to anyone you had slighted.

Recently, the film director Roman Polanski was arrested on an outstanding arrest warrant. For those who don't know, Polanski plead guilty in the US for the rape of a 13 year old girl. Before he could be sentenced he fled the US and hid out in France. He was there for more than a decade before he was arrested last week in Switzerland. He is now awaiting extradition to the US for his failure to appear for sentencing.

Friends of Polanski and some in Europe are pleading for the US to annul the extradition request and allow him to stay in France. The victim in the case claims she wants to get on with her life and doesn't care if Polanski is extradited or not.

Don't get me wrong I am no fan of the US "sentencing" process. Too often men and women are jailed for excessive periods of time under such measures as the "three strike law". But this is not the case with Mr Polanski. There is no doubt as to his guilt. He admitted he was responsible. However, he flaunted the fact that he was released prior to sentencing, and chose to ignore the responsibilities that come with being a US citizen. He has also had the privilege of being able to continue his craft without any penance whatsoever. This just boggles the mind.

It's obvious to me that he never had a Drill Sergeant named Harvey.