Monday, August 31, 2009

Tedy: "I did my job."

Tedy Bruschi Retires

Tedy Bruschi will be remembered as one of the all-time great Patriots. His leadership was seen both on and off the field and his dedication, courage, and strength exemplified what type of player and man Bruschi was. Future Pats' linebackers will have huge shoes to fill.
My favorite Patriot, Tedy Bruschi, retired today after 13 seasons in the NFL - all as a New England Patriot. A 3 time Super Bowl winner, Pro Bowl linebacker, stroke survivor, tireless philanthropist, accomplished saxophone player (becoming the only person to ever play in a Super Bowl and perform with the Boston Pops) and loving family man - Tedy is an inspirational player and nearly universally respected.

Thanks Tedy. There is a great article here which includes these comments from Coach Belichick:

Belichick, who was unusually emotional in discussing Bruschi's retirement this morning.

"I've coached a lot of great players, and Tedy is up there with all of them . . . above them," said Belichick, who remarked that Bruschi always did the right thing on and off the field. "He's the epitome of everything you would want in a football player . . . I don't think I've ever seen a player do what he's done.

"How do I sum it up? How do I feel about Tedy Bruschi in five seconds? He's a perfect player. He's helped create a tradition here we're all proud of. He's a perfect player. He's a perfect player."



Sunday, August 30, 2009

Mo' Sleepy


One is 75. One is scorchingly hungover...

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Grant's Hands


"so you don't have to think" which hand is for what...

Restructuring Storage


Thanks Team!

Friday, August 28, 2009

So Sleepy


they need their rest...

My First Motorcycle

wow... this takes me back. The Admiral posted pics on his Facebook page of my first motorcycle, as it is now his & he is restoring it. My Dad's 1975 Suzuki TS-250 Savage. Awesome. An offroad / on-road hybrid. VERY fond memories of zipping around South Windsor on it, riding it to work at The Mill on the River, and cruising through the orchards behind Orchard Hill School. Great, great stuff.... The one I learned to ride on.

As The Admiral wrote:

Eric R. Carlson

Eric is psyched to start getting the TS-250 running in his spare time. It won't be the smoke that brings tears to my eyes.


Soon to be back on the road. 1975 Suzuki TS-250 "Savage". It has a very special history for me and will clean up very nicely. "T" is for Thomas and the "S" is for Stanley. I call it "Gus".


Well done, Admiral. Well done.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Nike's Game. Set. NYC.


Tennis court set up on Broadway between 23 & 22nd streets.

GATORGRAM!!


Growing big & strong!

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Matsui!


Godzilla in the house...

GREAT Seats!


WOW! Thanks Josh!!!

More Birthday Yankees!


Thanks to the incomparable Josh & Lisa. Starting @ Stan's Sports Bar.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Dinner on the Beach




The McKays!


Our delightful hosts on Nantucket. Sunday night dinner @ Jetties Beach.

HUGE Waves!


Hurricane Bill mostly missed us but kicked up HUGE Surf @ Surfside on Nantucket

Nantucket Duck Attack


I just got bit by a duck on my toe...

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Gets me every time...


Lady Liberty & New Orleans music. God bless America.

More Birthday!


Rockin' the river with the Radiators! The birthmonth celebration continues...

Storms Destroy Parts of Central Park

wow... article HERE.

“Central Park has been devastated,” Adrian Benepe, the city parks commissioner, said in an interview on Wednesday morning. “It created more damage than I’ve seen in 30 years of working in the parks.”

Monika Graff for The New York Times
A walkway in Central Park. The damage, which was concentrated in the northern third of the
park, included pin oaks, American elms and tulip trees dating to the turn of the last century.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

'Who is He'?'


Milo just dedicated this song to me & my unborne child. The Bill Withers classic, "Who is he? And what is he to you?" Umm... Your father! So great... Milo rules & I had a very fun evening, including this from-the-stage shout-out to me & child from the incomparable Milo Z.

and Milo just posted on my Facebook page: "Milo Z Funk

You guys are gonna have one funky baby!! Great to c u."

Live Milo Z


Laying it down

"What Is A Man?"

a pretty good essay, from a recent issue of Esquire magazine, by Tom Chiarella called "What Is a Man?":

how to be a man

A man carries cash. A man looks out for those around him — woman, friend, stranger. A man can cook eggs. A man can always find something good to watch on television. A man makes things — a rock wall, a table, the tuition money. Or he rebuilds — engines, watches, fortunes. He passes along expertise, one man to the next. Know-how survives him. This is immortality. A man can speak to dogs. A man fantasizes that kung fu lives deep inside him somewhere. A man knows how to sneak a look at cleavage and doesn't care if he gets busted once in a while. A man is good at his job. Not his work, not his avocation, not his hobby. Not his career. His job. It doesn't matter what his job is, because if a man doesn't like his job, he gets a new one.

A man can look you up and down and figure some things out. Before you say a word, he makes you. From your suitcase, from your watch, from your posture. A man infers.

A man owns up. That's why Mark McGwire is not a man. A man grasps his mistakes. He lays claim to who he is, and what he was, whether he likes them or not.

Some mistakes, though, he lets pass if no one notices. Like dropping the steak in the dirt.

A man loves the human body, the revelation of nakedness. He loves the sight of the pale breast, the physics of the human skeleton, the alternating current of the flesh. He is thrilled by the snatch, by the wrist, the sight of a bare shoulder. He likes the crease of a bent knee. When his woman bends to pick up her underwear, he feels that thrum that only a man can feel.

A man doesn't point out that he did the dishes.

A man looks out for children. Makes them stand behind him.

A man knows how to bust balls.

A man has had liquor enough in his life that he can order a drink without sounding breathless, clueless, or obtuse. When he doesn't want to think, he orders bourbon or something on tap.

Never the sauvignon blanc.

A man welcomes the coming of age. It frees him. It allows him to assume the upper hand and teaches him when to step aside.

Maybe he never has, and maybe he never will, but a man figures he can knock someone, somewhere, on his ass.

He does not rely on rationalizations or explanations. He doesn't winnow, winnow, winnow until truths can be humbly categorized, or intellectualized, until behavior can be written off with an explanation. He doesn't see himself lost in some great maw of humanity, some grand sweep. That's the liberal thread; it's why men won't line up as liberals.

A man gets the door. Without thinking.

He stops traffic when he must.

A man resists formulations, questions belief, embraces ambiguity without making a fetish out of it. A man revisits his beliefs. Continually. That's why men won't forever line up with conservatives, either.

A man knows his tools and how to use them — just the ones he needs. Knows which saw is for what, how to find the stud, when to use galvanized nails.

A miter saw, incidentally, is the kind that sits on a table, has a circular blade, and is used for cutting at precise angles. Very satisfying saw.

A man knows how to lose an afternoon. Drinking, playing Grand Theft Auto, driving aimlessly, shooting pool.

He knows how to lose a month, also.

A man listens, and that's how he argues. He crafts opinions. He can pound the table, take the floor. It's not that he must. It's that he can.

A man is comfortable being alone. Loves being alone, actually. He sleeps.

Or he stands watch. He interrupts trouble. This is the state policeman. This is the poet. Men, both of them.

A man loves driving alone most of all.

Style — a man has that. No matter how eccentric that style is, it is uncontrived. It's a set of rules.

He understands the basic mechanics of the planet. Or he can close one eye, look up at the sun, and tell you what time of day it is. Or where north is. He can tell you where you might find something to eat or where the fish run. He understands electricity or the internal-combustion engine, the mechanics of flight or how to figure a pitcher's ERA.

A man does not know everything. He doesn't try. He likes what other men know.

A man can tell you he was wrong. That he did wrong. That he planned to. He can tell you when he is lost. He can apologize, even if sometimes it's just to put an end to the bickering.

A man does not wither at the thought of dancing. But it is generally to be avoided.

A man watches. Sometimes he goes and sits at an auction knowing he won't spend a dime, witnessing the temptation and the maneuvering of others. Sometimes he stands on the street corner watching stuff. This is not about quietude so much as collection. It is not about meditation so much as considering. A man refracts his vision and gains acuity. This serves him in every way. No one taught him this — to be quiet, to cipher, to watch. In this way, in these moments, the man is like a zoo animal: both captive and free. You cannot take your eyes off a man when he is like that. You shouldn't. The hell if you know what he is thinking, who he is, or what he will do next.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Joe Satriani's Mother!


On stage at the Beacon. After drinking tequila with Sammy Hagar. Yay!

My 4 word review


Giant summer candy rock. Awesome.

Chickenfoot!


Birthday gift from The Wyfe. Awesome. Sammy is wearing a very faded OU812 t-shirt. Well played, my friend, well played...

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Sleepy American Mom-to-Be



sleeping like a little patriotic angel... with child.

Friday, August 14, 2009

"I Get High..."



"... every time I think about you..."

Funky, Funky


Funky, Funky
Originally uploaded by Guzilla
I believe George said it best.... "Funky, funky, funky, funky, funky, funky!"

"Dat's gonna be a funky chile!"

A Funky Chile


New Orleans funk legend George Porter Jr. blessed our baby. Dat's gonna be a funky chile...

Such a night...


Wow.... That was fun. Great group and incredible music. Saw Anders Osborne & Porter, Batiste & Stolz on a boat around Manhattan. With great people. Truly spectacular....

Thank you Matt! What a lovely birthday gift...

Thursday, August 13, 2009

My beer, my boat, my birthday


All aboard!

RIP - Les Paul


Nothing can be said that others won't say better than I... Thanks for the electric guitar, multi-track recording, and all of the music.

I am so pleased I was able to see Les perform a couple years ago... Even in his 90's then, he could still lay it down. An innovator, an originator, and one hell of a musician. Heaven's gonna have one hell of a jam session tonight!

Obituary HERE.

The Pod People


The poor Wyfe has been having back pains due to Li'l Gator so bought a large, strange body pillow called a "Snoogle." Apparently much more comfortable, which is good, but does give the appearance of being one of the Pod People.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Surprise Guests


What a lovely birthday!

Birthday Dinner


With surprise guests! Had a lovely dinnner at El Quijote, a Spanish restaurant right under the Hotel Chelsea that has been around since 1930. El Quijote even won an award from the Minister of Spain proclaiming it the best Spanish restaurant outside of Spain. Thanks Wyfe!

Baby Booties!


Beloved brother & sister-in-law John & Denise sent us these booties knitted by Denise. One pair are green with... What else? "Li'l Gators" and the others have... Wait for it... The Polish flag & a Polish eagle!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! Truly an incredible gift...

Special Birthday Breakfast!


The Wyfe made me a special birthday breakfast of mini-bagels, bacon, mango, strawberries & coffee. Yay!

Sunday, August 09, 2009

Oh hurray...


Fun times

Peter's House


A lovely weekend spent @ the oldest house in Sag Harbor

Visit our Museum


Sag Harbor! My first time & had a truly great time... I love whaling towns.

Broadcasting


Live from the American Hotel in Sag Harbor. Great brunch with killer Bloody Marys, wonderful oysters & a legendary lobster BLT. Delicious and Peter picked up the tab!

Saturday, August 08, 2009

Yankees Souvenir Photo



Sabbath

just when I thought I was having a great night... my brother trumps me, yet again.... by seeing Black Sabbath in Vancouver. and I thought Sox / Yanks in the new stadium was cool...

Friday, August 07, 2009

'Enter Sandman'


To the bullpen... Mariano Rivera

The Great Seal


1923-2009

Yankee Klass



Li'l Gator's First Yankee Game


I hate to say it.... But the new stadium is gorgeous

The New Yankee Stadium!


Red Sox / Yankees as a birthday gift! thank you Christian

Birthdays Start Here


One of NYC's best dive bars

Hunter Lynne


Welcome, welcome!

Proud Mama


congratulations to Lynne & Mark and welcome Hunter Lynne!

Tuesday, August 04, 2009

'Senor Freez'


The Wyfe, trying to be nice, bought me Mexican Free-Z-Pops. Awful.

Monday, August 03, 2009

The Reverend Al Sharpton


at a cigar club in midtown. Had a meeting there & there he was.

Saturday, August 01, 2009