Things were going along swimmingly on Sunday night as CBS broadcasted the 100th Billy Joel Concert from Madison Square Garden, taped a few days earlier. He went through his old classics, like “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant” and “New York State of Mind,” and his new song, “Turn the Lights Back On.” Just as he was singing his signature song, “Piano Man,” to wrap up the show, CBS pulled the plug and abruptly went to a promo for the 11:00 news and a commercial for Bob’s Discount Furniture. Yes, the show started late due to the CBS telecast of the Masters golf tournament, but the CBS folks coul ..read more

March brings its basketball Madness, so my movie watching was severely limited. Numbering picks up from last month and asterisks indicate movies I have seen previously. All programs are rated on a scale of 1-5 cans of tuna fish, with 5 at the top of the ratings. 27. Upgraded* (2024, Prime Video) – Ana is an aspiring art dealer who works for a gallery in a low-level position and for a demanding boss. When the director of the gallery, Claire (Marisa Tomei, playing the Miranda Priestley role from “The Devil Wears Prada”), commands her to go to a big show in London but Ana is left to fly alone. Wh ..read more

Forget about the daffodils that are starting to bloom. The real sign of spring is when my landscaper, Pedro, shows up with the mulch. And also when Polar Cub ice cream on Route 22 in Whitehouse opens up for the season, which they did this week! It's 72 degrees today. Can we go to spring, go directly to spring and not revert back to winter? Then I can loosen my ban on ice cream that typically extends until Memorial Day. My biometrics are not working! When I try to use a fingerprint instead of a password, my phone fails to recognize it. Yes, I cover the whole icon. Yes, I press hard. Yes, I try ..read more

I appreciate technology as much as the next person. I like the way it makes our lives easier and lets us do things we never thought possible. But that’s not to say it doesn’t present challenges. In the last month or so, my phone died and I ended up with a new phone AND a smart watch, which is still keeping secrets from me. It started with the phone, which literally died one day in my arms. Dead as a doornail. Could not be resuscitated.  Despite all attempts and instructions from Google on reviving it, it was declared legally dead the next day at the Verizon store. I was told that I could ..read more

Another year, another list of movies, TV shows and other entertainment options. Asterisks indicate programs I had not seen previously. Everything is rated on a scale from 1-5 cans of tuna fish (don't ask), with 5 the top score. 1. On Golden Pond (1981, Cable TV) – Henry Fonda plays octogenarian Norman Thayer Jr. in this classic about a fractured relationship between a father and daughter, starring with his real-life daughter, Jane Fonda, playing Chelsea. And if that isn’t enough acting firepower, Katharine Hepburn is Ethel, his devoted and loving wife who is always trying to broker peace betwe ..read more

Some things take 2 years and 10 minutes to do. You don’t get around to doing it for 2 years and when you finally do, it takes 10 minutes to get it done. My sister was having problems with her Alexa, so I suggested she unplug it, wait a few minutes and then plug it in again. I also told her that if I were on life support, she should not try that technique to resuscitate me. Is it just me or does anyone else see the irony of the star of the movie “Ferrari” being Adam Driver? It took all the restraint I could muster NOT to lift the lid on the crockpot while my pot roast was cooking (for 8 hours ..read more

In the last month of the year, I managed to squeeze in two dozen movies and more, ending this year just one show short of last year's 180 total. Following this compilation, take a look at the movies and shows that I thought were the best of 2023. Numbering picks up from previous months and titles with an asterisk were new to me. The ratings are based on a scale of 1-5 cans of tuna fish, with 5 being the best. Happy viewing! 156.  Having Our Say* (2023, George Street Playhouse) – This two-person play packs in the warmth, humor and pathos as the aging Delany sisters – Sadie, 103, and Bessie ..read more

I’m perplexed by this whole false eyelash thing. I see so many women wearing false eyelashes that I am used to that by now. What gets me is the size and length of some of them. The nurse in my doctor’s office had a set of huge, thick eyelashes, so large that I wondered how she could either blink or see. She looked like she had caterpillars on each eye. I was so distracted that if she had taken a quart of blood out of my arm instead of just a few vials, I probably would not have noticed. This trend is extremely prevalent in women’s basketball, where I cannot figure out how a player can see the ..read more

All programs are rated on a scale of 1-5 cans of tuna, with 5 at the top of the ratings. Numbering picks up from previous months and asterisks mark the things I haven't previously watched. 145.  Selling Sunset* (2023, Netflix) – This addicting documentary soap opera about stunning California real estate agents returns for another season (11 episodes) of selling, infighting, gossip, 5-inch heels and arguments. There’s no point in providing a plot summary; just assume that someone is mad at someone else in every episode. It gets tiresome, yet I cannot resist; I binged the entire season in o ..read more

One of my woolen dryer balls has escaped. The other two won’t give him up, but I figure he’s hiding in the sleeve of something I washed and dried. Let me know if you see him on the street. He is off-white and fuzzy. Thanks. It is so annoying when you wash your hands in the ladies room and the counter around the sink is full of water. I always end up getting something wet besides my hands. When I was a kid, our choice of sneakers was limited to PF Flyers and Keds. My father, a shoe salesman who specialized in children’s and ladies' shoes, always bought us Keds. Now, sneakers have become items o ..read more