Today on Tommy T’s obsession with random ruminations – “Why I don’t go clubbing” edition

(this was written before the COVID pandemic  made going to clubs a thing too dangerous to do, but my position on this hasn’t changed)   Why I don’t go clubbing You see, I spent an incredible amount of my lifetime in live music clubs – almost always to play. I have inhaled enough cigarette smoke to kill a hundred healthy men (in case you never noticed, most club stages put the musicians’ heads pretty close to the ceiling, where the smoke pools up) – sometimes I’d have to bend down to be able to see the audience. My Rickenbacker was … Continue reading Today on Tommy T’s obsession with random ruminations – “Why I don’t go clubbing” edition

Blue Moon

As the Emperor of the Friday Cocktail Hour, I hereby decree February to be Rodgers & Hart month. Why? Why the hell not?

Blue Moon was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in 1934 when they were under contract to MGM. It began life as a croonable ballad and went through many permutations over the years.

We’re going to begin with two traditional takes on the tune followed by some more eccentric versions. Larry Hart was a bona fide eccentric, after all.

There appears to be some Velvet Fog on the horizon. For the uninitiated, that was Mel Tormé’s nickname. Mel was the crooner’s crooner.

You can never go wrong with the first lady of song, Ella Fitzgerald:

Continue reading “Blue Moon”

Let’s Hear It For The Immigrants

The wife (Cruella) and I are travelling for the next two weeks. Actually we’ll be on a cruise ship. More about that next time. This time I’d like to say a good word for the newest Americans working the crappiest jobs who frankly saved our bacon over the last 24 hours. Our flight from San Francisco to Atlanta was delayed two and a half hours because of the winter weather on the East Coast. Just quickly, really Delta? Are you not aware that in late January, early February it can get really snowy on the East coast? And if so … Continue reading Let’s Hear It For The Immigrants

An Inspiring Discussion on Democracy?

So for a long time, I’ve followed Amanda Litman on Twitter. She operates an organization called Run for Something. What Run for Something does is look to inspire and find progressive candidates for local office. The idea behind it is to channel the frustrations that many of us are feeling about things such as, I don’t know, how cool we suddenly are with elderly people dying from a virus or how completely chill we are with turning our democracy over to authoritarians. Litman is pretty brilliant, and her strategy is one the Democratic Party should have started years ago because … Continue reading An Inspiring Discussion on Democracy?

The “White” Is Always Silent

Back in 2020, Joe Biden said he’d put a Black woman on the Supreme Court if he won the election. Last week he got the chance to make good on his pledge. The non-politicized (can you see my eyes rolling?) Supreme Court had been the subject of previous political pledges. Ronald Reagan vowed to put a woman on the Supreme Court. Donald Trump did the same thing, and conservatives were just fine with it and both women were confirmed with zero complaining from the right. By uttering the word “Black”, Biden transgressed the first rule of White Supremacy Club:  “The … Continue reading The “White” Is Always Silent

Door Dash Dis

 

Door Dasher on Motor Bike

 

Last Friday the wife (Cruella) and I wanted to go out to dinner. We have a favorite Chinese restaurant we frequent and the desire for their Barbeque Pork Chow Fun combined with our desire to get out of the house neatly.

We have been to this restaurant numerous times, in point of fact we discovered it during the pandemic, both to dine in and to get take out (or take away if you are reading this in the UK). Never a hassle, good food, and most importantly a chance to get out of the house and eat at a different table and gaze at something other than, well, each other.

As has become custom during the pandemic I went to their website to make sure of their operating hours and if they were continuing to offer dine in service. Nothing had changed, so off we went.

Much to our surprise their doorway was blocked and a small sign taped to the glass window announced that since the previous Tuesday they had gone to “Take Out and Door Dash Only”.

While we probably should have gone in search of other eating arraignments, our appetites were craving that Chow Fun, so we scrapped our plans to dine in and ordered to go. While waiting for our order to be completed I counted four people coming to pick up orders they had placed online or via the phone and a stunning seven Door Dashers. That’s eleven total orders in the span of ten minutes.

The other thing I noticed is that the prices had gone up. The chow fun, an order of garlic shrimp, and an order of potstickers came to $36, about 30% higher than we would have been charged prior to the pandemic. Now there is inflation to factor in, plus trying to make back some of what was lost when the restaurant was closed early in the pandemic, but 30% higher? That’s when it hit me. Actually it was the woman from Door Dash who hit me because she was staring down at her phone and not looking where she was going.

I’m being asked to subsidize all of their Door Dash sales. And so are my fellow diners.

You can dash on to more by clicking the link

Continue reading “Door Dash Dis”