Thank You Mr. Safire

Four evenings a week I assume my pose. I set up in the den, with my husband's laptop, I pick one of my crime dramas on Tivo, my husband calls them my d & d (death and dismemberment) shows, I throw some clothes in the washer as the laundry room is conveniently located right off the den and I sit down to write my post. But, before I write a single word, I do my research, scanning dozens of news sites and the like for inspiration. For me, a post is not a knock off but a writing exercise. It has always been about practice. I am hoping that through sheer diligence I can become a better writer. To that end, I frequently hit the books; dictionary, thesaurus and sometimes grammar. We simply do not learn enough grammar. Nevertheless, it was nice to know that the quest for words and meaning was well worth the effort.

William Safire reminded us of that every week in his column On Language, in the New York Times Magazine. As our foremost language dilettante and champion of the English language, he made the language more accessible. Many people may not know who he was and his death yesterday may not raise many eyebrows, but, for us who have an interest in words, his enjoyment of the language, his diligent research into the origin and structure of modern English terms and the ease in which he was able to convey this knowledge will be missed. In these days of email, texting, twittering, and instant messaging, it is easy to forget how to write properly. Thankfully, we had Mr. Safire to inspire us to construct a better sentence and/or concoct a better phrase and for this, we are truly grateful. Thank you Mr. Safire.

Ohhhhh, I can't believe Patrick Swayze Died

Oh sigh, Patrick Swayze has died, claimed by pancreatic cancer at the tender age of 57. I can't say that I am necessarily a fan but I am one of those people who loved the movies Dirty Dancing and Ghost. What is not to love about Ghost other than it is one of those tearjerker romance movies that we all hate to love. But, for me, it is the setting of the movie Dirty Dancing, a predominantly Jewish Catskills mountain vacation resort, that stoked my memories. Of course, the movie was not actually filmed in the Catskills but that is beside the point.

Anyhow, as a member of the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) I attended the annual conference at the Concord Resort Hotel, one of the famous Jewish Catskills resorts whose heyday was in the 50s, 60s and 70s and unrelated cousin of Grossinger's, the famous other one, every year of high school. In fact, I joined the club for the trip, the only requirement was to take at least one business course, I took one year of typing, to cement access to 3 whole school days in the Catskills, where my friends (most of whom were Jewish) and I skipped out of the planned festivities in favor of seeking the brighter side of life at the resort. Essentially, we were up to 'no good' but not the type of 'no good' that would keep us out of Ivy league colleges or anything.

Growing up in Westchester County in the 70s and 80s, the Catskills was the vacation destination of choice for many families and I always loved going up to the mountains. Also, our 6th grade trip was to the Catskills as well. Somehow, the movie Dirty Dancing bought a little of that back to me; the cabins, the giant banquet halls, the cheesy entertainment, I loved it. All of this really had nothing to do with Patrick Swayze per se but these are my takeaways from the movie of which he was a star. Not every death strikes all of us, but this is definitely one of those that makes me go, Ohhhhh, I can't believe Patrick Swayze died.

A Moment of Silence

A moment of silence in in order for Senator Edward Kennedy who died today at the age of 77 due to a brain tumor that was diagnosed last year. Massachusetts has lost a tireless crusader and statesman. There will be a gazillion tributes and eulogies so I will skip all of the details and instead stop to acknowledge a few other notable deaths over the last few weeks. Sometimes I try to make note of those who made an impression on my world; people in my personal history book.

John Hughes, filmmaker who encapsulated the 1980s of my youth in film and who had a great sense of comedy. My kids are now fans of his movies because they were innocent, fun and engaging.

Les Paul, legendary guitar inventor and player. If you play guitar then you already appreciate his mastery.

Dominick Dunne, journalist, raconteur and celebrity voyeur. I loved his stories in Vanity Fair. He also played a large role in turning celebrity criminal trials into a spectator sport.

All will be missed and all definitely remind me of my mortality. Live on and try to enjoy life, you only have the one.

When Great Artists Die

When great artists die, you can't help but cling to their memory. After another endless round of Michael Jackson retrospectives, I have to admit that I have readily watched every one. Each one has renewed my appreciation for his body of work. The man worked very hard, from the time he was a little boy, and he gave us a great show every single time.

Michael Jackson loved the stage and the stage loved him. He was truly amazing. Many are dubbing him "the world's greatest entertainer." I am starting to believe that. After watching the memorial service today, I am again sad to see him go.

Michael Jackson is Dead

In the midst of preparations for his upcoming worldwide comeback tour, Michael Jackson has died at the age of 50. His death has rocked the world. We have been watching and surfing all of the televised news and music channels since word of his cardiac arrest hit the wires early this evening and I can tell you that not one media outlet has reported any other news since. It is midnight EDT.

I am stunned and there is nothing I can say that has not been said more eloquently and more gracefully. Farrah Fawcett, former Charlie's Angel, 1970s fashion icon and former real life wife of the Six Million Dollar Man, died today as well but celebrity has its ranks and her death was eclipsed by the death of the King of Pop. Michael Jackson is a legend; an extraordinarily talented entertainer and trailblazer whose music is part of the soundtrack of my youth and more recently, gleefully revered by my children.

His performances and videos still thrill us until this day. So, it makes sense that he was a bizarre human. After all, if a human is endowed with superhuman qualities in one area, another area must, by default, be lacking. Notwithstanding, like Elvis, he will live on because he can never really die, he is and has been for most of his life, simply unreal. Long Live the King. The King is Dead.

So Long, David Carradine

Growing up in the 70s, there was no escaping the legend of "Kung Fu." We all watched and we all thought that David Carradine was cool. Along with Jack Nicholson, Christopher Walken, Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro, he epitomized cool for our generation. I probably left some out but it doesn't really matter. We will always remember the breakout roles of these actors where their essence of cool reverberated.

Though they had long careers and other well lauded roles, we remember the moment they burst on the scene; that is the place where we always return with fond memories. David Carradine was 72 years old and shooting a movie when he died; the circumstances are questionable and I will leave it at that. For our generation, Bruce Lee introduced us to kung fu but David Carradine brought it home for us.

Another Icon Lost: George Carlin

Alas, another American icon of my youth is gone. It seems lately that the people and things that I grew up with are moving out of this world. Sometimes I speak about what I write to these “older folk” and they say, “Oh, they’ve been talking about that for years” or “forget about it, things will never change.” Now, they are just too set in their ways to accept change. Not, George Carlin.

George Carlin started out entertaining the parents of the generation he came to represent but he didn’t stop with them either. His comedy broke so much new ground that by the end, he really could be funny without reservation; the crux of his matter had become part of the vernacular; the taboos that he wrestled with a distant memory to the new breed. And as these new comics continued on breaking new barriers, albeit some using too much vulgarity without originality, George Carlin stayed as sharp and as witty as ever. For this, we are very grateful.

71 is way too young to die these days. I’m sure he's out there right now thinking, “Why the #^%* did I have to die before they gave me the #^%*ing medal? At least, I would like to think so.

The Day Journalism lost an Original: Tim Russert dead at 58

Today I have very little to say because I am stunned by the sudden death of Tim Russert. Tim Russert is one of my favorite journalists; intelligent, unbiased, unrelenting but fair. My husband and I grew up with Ted Koppel, Peter Jennings, and Bill Moyers to name a few. We like our journalism the old fashioned way; doing your own homework, asking the tough questions and never taking sides. It is hard to see that these days. My Sundays with Meet the Press will never be the same and I absolutely cannot imagine the presidential election season without him.

Farewell Tim. We will miss you!