Hillary Clinton Makes Me Proud To Be A Democrat

Last night I caught one of the best speeches to ever come from a Democratic politician. Hillary Clinton put aside any differences and pleaded with the fellow Democrats to unite under Barack Obama. While I could imagine how much it pained her not to be the nominee, she moved forward for the greater good of the party and the nation.

She immediately dispelled any questions Democrats had by declaring that she is “a proud supporter of Barack Obama”.  She asked her supporters if we voted solely for her or for the ideology and platform of the Democratic party to put an end to the 8 years of misery we have faced under GWB.  She also complimented the Clinton Presidency, which has been forgotten by so many during the primaries. If Ronald Reagan were to ask are we better off now than we were 8 years ago the answer would be a resounding NO. She called upon women to use her candidacy as a springboard to strive for more. She uplifted the crowd in realizing that we choose the course of the country. It is in our hands.

She also made several key quotes/catchphrases such as when she pointed out the Republican National Convention being held in Minnesota: “It makes sense that George Bush and John McCain will be together next week in the Twin Cities, because these days they’re awfully hard to tell apart”. While she mentioned that john McCain was a dear friend of hers and she enjoyed working with him in the Senate, she focused on the fact that the current course of our country goes beyond friendships. This isn’t personal John McCain, it is politics.

It is now up to the rest of the Democrats and Barak Obama to take charge. Hillary has done her part. She could not be any more forceful on how she wants her supporters to put aside the hard feelings created during the primary. It is time for Barack to make his case against another four more years of a Republican Presidency. After this speech by Hillary, it is all on Barack Obama to bring this country back to its former glory.

Lost Weekend At The Ballpark

Mets lost two. At least I came away with a sports bag, t-shirt, good memories of Shea and photographs.

Grill Room at Shea

Saturday late afternoon before the game I went with my friend Helen for a bite to eat at the Grill Room at Shea. Since the ballpark is coming down season’s end, we felt one last hurrah at the place was in order. I had faded memories of going to Diamond Club or Grill Room mostly cause I went when I was 7-8 years old. The Grill Room is different from Diamond Club in that the Grill Room is first come, first serve whereas one must make reservations for the Diamond Club and reservations should be done about a week in advance. I learned one other important tidbit about using either restaurant: You must have Diamond Club Membership in order to use either place. For the longest time that was not the case but the Mets have implemented a policy this season as this is the last one at Shea and more and more people want to do some things they know next year they will not be able to do so. I only found this out when Helen and I (with 3 of Helen’s friends) went to the Grill Room. We were surprised as this is not what is told over the phone but the hostess, who was very gracious, explained the policy.

Nonetheless we were allowed to dine there. The food at the Grill Room is better than the concession stands and is somewhat upscale but not as expensive as one would think. The bucket of wings comes in a souvenir bucket you can take home. Wings were spicy and good. I had a burger which was a step up from the Bubba burger and came with bacon and spicy/salty potato chips. The bar is a full service bar and the place can hold a large group. We enjoyed our dining experience.

In the hallway leading to the Diamond Club Restaurant and Grill Room are the World Series trophies and busts of Mets players and personnel in the Mets Hall of Fame.  The Grill Room was decorated with images of Met victories on the wall, old and new. Even though it takes a membership to get in, call to see if you can get passes to either restaurant. For Mets fan, it is a nice treat.

Here are a few photographs I took while there.

F.W. Woolworth

No longer there but the building and sign remains in Nyack, New York on Main Street off Cedar Street.

100th post

I’m amazed I got this far. A small milestone for sure but I feel the need to recognize it. When I started blogging, I felt I may actually run out of things to say and quit the same month.  Now it has gone into 6 months and my mind is still bursting with thoughts and my life has been rollercoasting along nicely. I don’t edit what I write (only check for grammar and spelling mistakes) because I can’t edit what goes on in life nor what goes on in my mind. It is pure, unadulterated stuff. Sometimes shocking, sometimes stupid, sweet and weird, but always me. This blog has provided me a creative outlet as well as been therapeutic. Same time I hope it has been entertaining and shown that a mind can be a terrible thing ;-).

i don’t plan on making a blog celebrating my 200th post or more. While I have a little bit of a narcissistic streak which is evident since I write a blog about myself and my travels through life, I will not subject anyone who reads this blog to such torture. I reserve that for my family and friends.

Looking forward to future postings!

The Art of the Game in Office Life

This past week the new list of partners in my department were released. 3 out of the 4 are hard working, extremely accessible for Q&A sessions and are team players. 1 is not. So when the list came out, almost every one was shocked to see his name on the list. He epitomizes the suck-up colleague. With peers who are his position’s equal and below, he is constantly irritated when receiving new projects, has little time for questions and overall walks around with a dark cloud. On top of this you know when he is upset because he gets beet red and I swear I saw steam come out of his ears when I asked him to assist me on a matter. Yet he has another side. With partners and people of influence, he is courteous, helpful, polite and makes himself available to projects they have requested his assistance. He does this with a smile and walks around with a bounce in his step. The Jekyll and Hyde act is apparent to many except for upper management. In other words, he knows how to play the game.

The game. Yes, it exists in every situation: Dating, Work, Marriage, even Friendships. The games are different in each instance but share a common theme. Mainly to gain power. We all have played it at some point, and even when we refuse to, we are sometimes pulled into it. The workplace game is one of brown-nosing, manipulating the facts to one’s benefit and being the double agent. In this guy’s case, he is the office snitch. He will pump people for information only to run off and tell someone higher up what he has learned. Strange bedfellows indeed. 

Which is why the day after the announcement I wondered why everyone was surprised. He played the game. He played it well and was able to achieve his goal. Others may be kicking themselves because they feel cheated or refuse to stoop to such level. I have seen many intelligent, hard working people be passed up for partner. I myself am not on the partner track and have been told so in not so many words. Main reason I’ve been told by friends who are privy to such information is that I do not play along with the game. I’m considered an outsider, one who purposely does not participate in this game and therefore will not get looked at unless I last for 15 years in the company. Since I do not plan to last that long, I’ve reconciled my feelings that I will not achieve such a position. Do I want it? Sure. But I will not sell my soul to get it. I also firmly believe that work does not define a person, it is how they behave and act in society that defines a person.  One of my colleagues took it hard that this person became a partner. So hard she left early the day the list came out because she couldn’t stomach sitting in the office.  She is head over shoulders superior to this guy. But she does not play the game. I told her so long as she doesn’t play, it will be a longer road for her to become a partner.

The Game. We are sometimes helpless pawns in this never-ending cycle. In a perfect world, we would all be judged by what we know. But since this is far from a perfect world, it is more who you know (or who you blow depending on the situation) than what you know.

Concert Cougars on the Prowl

Friday night I went to see Neil Diamond in concert. I know what you are thinking: You, Raj, see Neil Diamond? But you are a rock and roll man, a piano man, the greatest rock piano god no one has ever heard of (okay, I dream this is what runs through people’s minds but it’s my blog and I can think what I want). Long story short, I was given the tickets as a trade off of giving two of my Mets season tickets to an elderly couple in my building. Not wanting to turn down such a gift I accepted and together with my sharer in season tickets, Helen, off we went to MSG.

I’ve been a casual fan of Neil Diamond. Liked all the hits, most notably Sweet Caroline. They play it at practically every sporting event so it gets drummed into your head. While I respected Neil for being a singer songwriter, I do not have a passion for his music. Adult Contemporary always struck me as somewhat stuffy and just old. I couldn’t find the pizazz in the music. I would never change the station if this genre of music popped up but it was good for the present and then forgotten when the music was over. That being said I was indifferent about attending the concert.

What I saw was truly surprising. Not only did Neil, who is closer to seventy as the days tick by, rock the place, he had women swooning to his lyrics. Countless women, older and younger but mostly older (i.e. 40s-70s) were channeling their youthful days and appeared to believe Neil was singing to them. Boyfriends, husbands, male friends, often sat back looking mesmerized by the transformation of their companions when Neil began to sing. One particular young lady in a low cut horizontal striped top who bounced without trying caught my attention. Her significant other seemed to inch further away from her as the concert progressed. She became more and more enamoured by Neil. Jiggling more than some people do with change in their pocket, she was rocking with eyes locked on the Solitary Man. Neil sang new songs from his new album as well as oldies and goodies. He showed a great spark and zest on the stage. As did his band. Excellent use of horned instruments and drums as well as backup singers who could probably hold their own without him, he had a commanding performance. While some of Neil’s moves seemed choreographed, it didn’t bother his fanbase as they drank it in. I spied on two occasions articles of clothing being tossed near the stage. I can only imagine what clothing they may be. As the curtain came to a close and Neil did his final song and bowed and thanked the crowd, our jiggling fan ran forward and grasped his hand. Whether it was to put a phone number in his palm or something else, only she and Neil know, but she enjoyed every second of touching him.

I came out of the show with a better appreciation of Neil. Sure he is lounge act-ish (at one point he sang while sitting at a table with a glass of wine and a single red rose in a vase) but people love it and he loves the crowd. You can sense him feeding off their energy. As with many older rockers, they know their schtick works on their loyal fans and will not change any part of it. He mixes his spirtuality into his music without being preachy. I can see he means it when he says he’ll never retire from this job because it is the best job in the world.

But my story doesn’t end there. I was prey to a cougar at the concert! A cougar, for those not in the know, is an older woman who seeks out younger men.  While I was getting drinks and food prior to the show a beautiful woman in her mid to late 40s came up to me. She was waiting for her friend who was getting souvenirs. She asked me if I was a huge Neil fan. I told her politely I was a casual fan to which she replied I appeared too young to know some of Neil’s older hits. While waiting for my order, she asked me if where I was sitting and then asked if I would like to sit with them as they sat by the side of the stage about seven rows away. I declined telling her I was with my friend and she was waiting at our seats for me to return. She smiled, touched my arm and soon her friend came back with teddy bears wearing Neil Diamond t-shirts and a poster. She told me she enjoyed chatting with me and wished me a good time at the concert. I told her the same and went off with my food. Now I am not in the Brad Pitt/Tom Cruise/Aaron Eckhart/George Clooney category but I must say it was a good ego stroke. She was attractive, sweet and nice overall. If I weren’t sitting with my friend I may have taken them up on their offer. I don’t discriminate, especially if the person doesn’t discriminate with me.

I feel I understood what touchin’ warm meant after that night.

Office Rant of the Day

Being on the legal side, I work closely with our business personnel all across the country. We conduct our business over the phone so relationships are cultivated without ever physically seeing the person. Originally I found this to be somewhat odd as my last firm I worked with clients face to face. Doing this for a few years, I’ve become comfortable with the theory and practice. I have also learned that just because I have not physically seen most of our business personnel doesn’t mean they can’t annoy me any less than someone I see daily.

One particular business person is out on the west coast. He has a warped sense of entitlement. He will send me agreements to review 4-5pm PST expecting me to have reviewed and provide comments by the next day. I have repeatedly reminded him that with the three hour difference the documents get to me between 7-8pm EST. I generally will only get to them the next day morning so I cannot possible provide him comments back by morning. Apparently no matter how often I say this he does not comprehend. His other belief is that I sit at work doing absolutely nothing waiting for him to send me agreements to review. Our department covers the whole nation, not just his office. Yet he will time and again send me stuff and act frustrated if it takes me a couple of days to get comments back. One time he actually tried to complain to my superiors but I immediately stopped that and put him in his place. Lastly he is lazy when it comes to cleaning up a document. Once a negotiation is completed, since we use MS Word and thus track changes, all one needs to do is accept the changes to make a clean document. Even if it is just the acceptance of a “period” he asks me to do it and send it out to him. I’ve reminded him I am not his assistant at his beck and call but once again he plays oblivious.

So today he finally got on my last nerve and I had to tell him off. He wasted my time discussing a section only to finally tell me he wants the language as it was. I told him that my time is as valuable as his and if he continues his behavior consider his matters no longer a priority to me. Furthermore I will not work with him and refer him to my lazy colleague who will NEVER get comments back to him. I sensed the fear slowly creep into him.

While I have never seen this person face to face, he annoys me as if he were sitting right next to me. Makes me glad we don’t see each other every day or I may have a case of work rage.

That’s Using the Old Noggin’

(AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)

Whatever it takes to get a victory.  Finally Santana has 10 wins and the bullpen was scoreless.

Why Didn’t it rain hard after the 6th Inning??

I took Monday off to enjoy a lazy summer day at Shea. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who felt lazy. The Mets bullpen felt the same way. With the treat of rain in the air, the Mets took a quick 3-0 lead. It increased to 5-1 and Pedro was pitching as well as we can expect under the circumstances. After 98 pitches and 6 innings his day was over. His line: 6 innings 3 hits 1 ER 4BB 3K. As the skies began to clear and blue became more apparent and beautiful, the next three innings were downright ugly. 6 runs in 3 innings pitched against a team that has a payroll 1/2 that of the Mets. Final score: Pirates 7 Mets 5. I could go on and on about the bullpen but it is wasted breath. All I can say is Omar better find a way to fix this or we’ll be out before September 1st.

Here are some pictures I took at Shea Monday afternoon. Since the ballpark is going to be torn down at season’s end, I had wanted photos of the Tommy Agee home run spot. We know it isn’t the EXACT spot, as the ball fell somewhere in the seats, but considering that part of the ballpark will not find its way into the new park, a photo to memorialize it was necessary. Enjoy!