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New York Mysteries.Com

Pagliacci

A confession: I have never appreciated opera. Pretending to be entranced, I had sat through a performance by Maria Callas at La Scala. That was followed by a number of years in Rome and New York suffering through operas at the Met, both old and new.

This afternoon I watched a 1982 filming of Franco Zeffirelli’s production of Pagliacci. Finally, I got it. I was blow away by Plácido Domingo and Teresa Stratas singing on the Met’s recreation of a church’s very steep stairs. I’d been told that filming opera gave the viewer a sense of the drama. It’s true.

New York Mysteries. Com

FOOD

Is food our latest obsession? Does anyone cook at home anymore? Considering these weighty questions, I’m describing briefly some New York City restaurants I’ve recently dined in.

City Winery, 25 11th Avenue (at 15th Street)The website is scary. My friend and I wanted an afternoon lunch overlooking the Hudson. Armed with hunger and ignorance we walked into the enormous building identified by the sign, City Winery. On a Tuesday afternoon we wandered by wait staff until we found the perfect spot. Over wine and a large, delicious appetizer, fiery cauliflower, we looked out the enormous glass window at the boat-filled Hudson. To the south was Little Island. The main course was surprisingly tiny and dessert, cheesecake cupcakes, was divine. After lunch we roamed through the vast rooms to a deck and took an elevator to the top floor. The view of the Hudson and all that goes on in it was wonderful.

Quality Eats West Village, 19 Greenwich Avenue My friend and I had an early supper. We each had the $45 special. My first course could have been sent over from a public school lunch counter: mountains of iceberg lettuce slathered with a rich white sauce. The second course was salmon and bog choy, delicious. Dessert was something or other like yogurt, very tasty. My pino noir was $25 a glass. Oh, well, it’s only money.

Knickerbocker, 33 University Place I dined here with a friend and we loved it. It’s an old-fashioned, discreetly modernized steak house. Perfect service from a staff that’s been there forever, lots of room between tables, wonderful food – including great seafood. Of course, it’s expensive and worth every penny. Leave an enormous tip.

Cafe Un, Deux, Trois, 123 West 44th Street I hadn’t been in this restaurant in years. If you’re going to the Belasco which is next door, it’s perfect. This is a great combination of French class and NYC sass. Food is lovely. We went to lunch and then to a matinee. Highly recommend.

Libertine, 684 Greenwich Street Pretentious nonsense. I had something called scallops and seaweed. It was slimy. Followed by sausage and mashed potatoes I could have cooked at home. Dessert? Like a fool I ordered cheese. It arrived, all four little pieces. Gaetano’s was the previous restaurant. It too had lousy food but a great atmosphere. Vintage crooners: Sinatra, Bennett, Como, laced with Rosemary Clooney.

A New York Afternoon

New York Mysteries    August 12

A perfectly delightful New York Saturday afternoon: lunch at Cafe Un, Deux, Trois followed by GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR.

I had not been in Un, Deus, Trois in years. I had remembered it as being small and intimate. Not at all. Last Saturday it was bustling and smartly jazzy. Everything was perfect: the food, the decor, the lady’s room, the service.

Also, it’s next door to the Belasco Theater. We had perfect orchestra seats. Row H 112 and 113, on the aisle. I looked around the old theater and remembered sitting in the balcony, twisting my neck so I could see the stage’s far corner. The restored Tiffany lights shimmered on the various murals.  It was the first time I’d attended a theater in a few months. I chose GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR because I’m one of Sean Hayes’s many fans. Remember him on Will and Grace? The matinee performance was packed. Hayes’s initial entrance was greeted with loud applause. The show was his. Aside from Stephanie Janssen who played Levant’s martyred wife brilliantly, the other actors could have phoned in their lines. I remember Oscar Levant from An American Paris and Bandwagon. He came across as lonely and cranky. He’s remembered as being witty and playing the piano. 

NYC Mysteries.com

Father Leo

New York Mysteries    July 31

Are you going to Oppenheimer? Hard not to even if it is three hours long. My cousin, Leo Haigerty (1924 -2001), worked on the Manhattan project. When I was five years old my mother and I would visit her New Jersey family in the summer. One summer we were told that Leo was working on a secret project in New York City. My three year old cousin, my eight year old cousin and I were told not to ask Leo any questions, not t be nosy when he visited. Offhand I can’t think of anything we could have asked Leo. He was delightful with us kids. A natural teacher, he taught us about earthworms. He found some in the garden and had us examine them gently, knowing how children like to squish things.

At that time my mother and I were living in Loogootee, Indiana with my recently deceased father’s family who had kindly taken us in after my father’s ship was torpedoed. Leo’s parents lived nearby. After completing his mysterious work on the Manhattan project, Leo became a Roman Catholic priest. He ended his days as a chaplin at Perdue and is buried in the Priests Circle in Saint John’s Cemetery, Loogootee, Indiana.

I regret not having known him better. 

From Rashida

As the Israeli government escalates violence against Palestinians with our tax dollars, we urgently need more Members of Congress to hold the Israeli government accountable and speak up for Palestinians’ human rights.

This week, freshman Congresswoman Summer Lee was among the few Democrats to vote NO on a dangerous resolution denying Israel’s racist apartheid policies and reaffirming unconditional support of the Israeli government despite its human rights abuses.

For her vote, Summer has faced attacks by right-wing leaders who want to maintain the unjust status quo. Her action takes political courage, especially since AIPAC’s network of PACs spent $4 million trying to defeat Summer last year as she ran for Congress. 

New York Mysteries

I know. I’m lazy. The BuzzFeed’s Here’s What Europeans Think Americans From Every State Look Like is absolutely hilarious. I hope you can download it.


Here’s What Europeans Think Americans From Every State …BuzzFeedhttps://www.buzzfeed.com › european-ai-american-list
4 days ago — 1. Here’s what Europeans think people from Alabama look like: · 2. Alaska: · 3. Arizona: · 4. Arkansas: · 5. California: · 6. Colorado: · 7.
I Asked AI What Europeans Think Americans From Every …Yahoohttps://news.yahoo.com › asked-ai-europeans-think-a…

The Titan/Titanic adventure

New York Mysteries. com

Are you as fascinated by the Titan/Titanic adventure as I am? I’ve copied this marine illustration of the ocean’s depth from CNN.  There are also facts and figures about sea adventures. 

Sea level

(0 feet)

Sunlight zone

130ft

Sunlight entering the water can reach down to 660ft.

Scuba diving

The recommended maximum depth for scuba diving.

393ft

Free dive record

One of the deepest dives with a single breath of air ever, recorded by Arnaud Jerald in 2022.

660ft

Twilight zone

Only a small amount of light can penetrate the water at this depth.

1,000ft

1,090ft

Scuba dive record

1,250ft

Ahmed Gabr set the record in 2014, training for years beforehand.

Empire State Building

1,575ft

Deepest underwater rescue

Two men were trapped in a submersible off the coast of Ireland for 76 hours and rescued on Aug. 29, 1973.

2,000ft

2,717ft

Tallest building in the world

Burj Khalifa, United Arab Emirates

3,000ft

3,300ft

Midnight zone

Nearly 90% of the ocean is in this range. It is entirely dark and near freezing.

3,953ft

Arctic Ocean

4,000ft

(average depth)

4,900ft

Giant Pacific octopus

5,000ft

The maximum depth of one of the ocean’s biggest octopuses.

6,000ft

6,683ft

Blue Ridge Mountains

(maximum height)

7,000ft

7,381ft

Sperm whale

(maximum depth)

8,000ft

8,000ft

Grand Canyon

(maximum height)

8,981ft

Golden Gate Bridge

9,000ft

The total distance that the bridge would stretch vertically.

Titan

Owned by OceanGate, the Titan was a human-operated submersible designed to take five people down to 13,123ft.

10,000ft

11,000ft

12,000ft

12,500ft

RMS Titanic

The wreck of the Titanic sits nearly 2.4 miles down on the ocean floor.

Sources: CNN, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Dive Magazine; Empire State Building (esbnyc.com); Burj Khalifa (burjkhalifa.ae); Monterey Bay Aquarium; US Department of the Interior; UC San Diego; Golden Gate Bridge (goldengate.org); Guinness World Records; Vertical Blue. Graphic: Amy O’Kruk and Annette Choi, CNN

New York Mysteries. com

June 23, 2023

Are you as fascinated by the Titan/Titanic adventure as I am? I’ve copied this marine illustration of the ocean’s depth from CNN.  There are also facts and figures about sea adventures. 

ai2html-graphic-desktop.e1edf7e8.jpg

Sea level

(0 feet)

Sunlight zone

130ft

Sunlight entering the water can reach down to 660ft.

Scuba diving

The recommended maximum depth for scuba diving.

393ft

Free dive record

One of the deepest dives with a single breath of air ever, recorded by Arnaud Jerald in 2022.

660ft

Twilight zone

Only a small amount of light can penetrate the water at this depth.

1,000ft

1,090ft

Scuba dive record

1,250ft

Ahmed Gabr set the record in 2014, training for years beforehand.

Empire State Building

1,575ft

Deepest underwater rescue

Two men were trapped in a submersible off the coast of Ireland for 76 hours and rescued on Aug. 29, 1973.

2,000ft

2,717ft

Tallest building in the world

Burj Khalifa, United Arab Emirates

3,000ft

3,300ft

Midnight zone

Nearly 90% of the ocean is in this range. It is entirely dark and near freezing.

3,953ft

Arctic Ocean

4,000ft

(average depth)

4,900ft

Giant Pacific octopus

5,000ft

The maximum depth of one of the ocean’s biggest octopuses.

6,000ft

6,683ft

Blue Ridge Mountains

(maximum height)

7,000ft

7,381ft

Sperm whale

(maximum depth)

8,000ft

8,000ft

Grand Canyon

(maximum height)

8,981ft

Golden Gate Bridge

9,000ft

The total distance that the bridge would stretch vertically.

Titan

Owned by OceanGate, the Titan was a human-operated submersible designed to take five people down to 13,123ft.

10,000ft

11,000ft

12,000ft

12,500ft

RMS Titanic

The wreck of the Titanic sits nearly 2.4 miles down on the ocean floor.

Sources: CNN, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Dive Magazine; Empire State Building (esbnyc.com); Burj Khalifa (burjkhalifa.ae); Monterey Bay Aquarium; US Department of the Interior; UC San Diego; Golden Gate Bridge (goldengate.org); Guinness World Records; Vertical Blue. Graphic: Amy O’Kruk and Annette Choi, CNN