MC Horoscope

I'm guessing they were elected to the All Star team even though they were injured and had hardly played at the time of the voting.

I would gladly support naming it the Brooks Robinson award! That's far more appropriate than the Cy Young award!

In general one's skill at fielding will be rather consistent from year to year, but it can also improve over time or get worse due to injury or inattention for whatever reason. There's also the fact that competitors at your position retire while great new players come into the picture, so you wouldn't think the same player would win the gold glove so many years in a row.

BTW, I'd include Maravich in the list of great passers! He could pull off some crazy stuff like unbelievable fakes. If you were on his team you had to pay close attention!

Gold Glove votes are notorious. It seems that once you win one you win it again for the next 10 years. The voters seem to be lazy about looking at the facts. It's just not done as carefully as voting for Cy Young or MVP, as far as I can tell. You won't see Anthony Rendon, for instance, getting one any time soon though he should be in the discussion at third base in the NL.

Thanks for all the great recommendations! You sure steered us right!

Our favorites were FIG and The Ordinary, and we also liked The Drawing Room in our hotel, The Vendue. The single best dish on our visit was at FIG, an appetizer of ricotta gnochi and lamb bolognese. I wish I had ordered two servings of this as my entree! I think my next favorite was steak tartare with fried oysters at The Ordinary. Perfectly fried. Oysters Rockefeller and asparagus soup with lump crab meat at The Drawing Room. Tuesday was half price wine night. Our bartender told us Bill Murray sat there Easter Sunday. He's often seen around town.

Monkfish meatballs in tomato sauce with raisins and pine nuts. From Lidia Bastianich's red cookbook. Fish from Pescadeli in Bethesda. Bread from the Portugese grocer in NJ that they use.

A favorite of mine. Also Umberto D.

He was the prosecutor in "To Kill a Mockingbird". An unenviable position! 

Sounds like Dusty Baker is getting tired of the bullpen situation! Opponents already know that once they get past our starting pitchers they have a good chance to win!

Two best actress nominees in a leading role (Bette Davis and Anne Baxter), two best actress nominees in a supporting role (Celeste Holm and Thelma Ritter), and the best supporting actor winner George Sanders!

(Of course it always matters what year you did your show and who was your competition, but that's very impressive!)

There is a Supano's on Light Street, about a block and a half from the Convention Center, and it's quite an oasis far from the madding (maddening?) crowd all heading down to Inner Harbor restaurants at break time. Had two lunches there this week: lasagna one day and veal parmigiana day 2. Lasagna hit the spot, my low expectation spot. Not bad. My friend had penne with marinara sauce and meatballs both days. He was satisfied.

Nothing fancy. It's a bar, really, with a projector screen showing a Frank Sinatra TV special with guest stars The 5th Dimension and Diahann Carroll. Wouldn't you like to fly in my beautiful balloon? Could have used a good Joe Piscopo parody of Frank right then, but hey! Made for a history/nostalgia lesson.

Also on menu: pizza, burgers, subs. Wish I had tried. Looked like locals in there for lunch, but quiet.

Robert Osborne of TCM (Turner Classic Movies)

Guy really knew his stuff. His intros were so enjoyable!

I have not, but I was telling a waitress that we used to go to Oval Room and really enjoyed the chef's short ribs and sweetbreads entrees and she said he has included those dishes in some of the tasting menus! We mean to check it out!

Our first visit was a special occasion dinner (early Valentine's Day). We'll be sure to return for a taste of the regular/seasonal menu!

Highlights Saturday Feb. 11

Tuna carpaccio with steelhead roe. Bursts of the sea!

Potato gnocchi special, with pork belly, mushrooms (best dish of the night!)

Goat Cheese Scarpinocc Ravioli with pear

Branzino with sunchoke whip. Perfectly fresh and moist!

(Lamb chops were a bit ordinary. Needed something).

Tiramisu

Friendly and attentive service, warm setting. We were in the front, glass enclosed room closer to the street. Looked a little bit cozy in the main room near the bar where there was always a lot of foot traffic going by.

Fabio was there. You might want to go while he's getting the place underway and making a really good impression.

Just past the Calvert Woodley wine shop.

If you have never seen a picture with James Dean then I recommend East of Eden. His interplay with Raymond Massey is terrific! What a loss!

Ha!

Historian Michael Beschloss said on C-Span this Thursday that inaugurations are celebrations of democracy, not winning a race. I will raise a toast for democracy, and humility. Not victory.

Canned Heat's Al Wilson had a fine falsetto! On the Road Again 

Influenced by blues great, Skip James: Hard Time Killing Floor Blues (Canned Heat's friend John Fahey "rediscovered" Skip James and brought him to Newport Folk Festival and a late in life revived career performing). Alternate verse: Ain't got no money now, can't pay my rent. Preacher gonna tell you it's heaven sent.

Jimmie Rodgers used falsetto in his popular blue yodels, but I agree that it's not so common in country music. I can't recall too many instances of it in Cajun music.

My friend's step-daughter just started there! I think she's studying pre-med. Hope she likes it!

A bit of irony here!

Walk Like a Man

This, from Wikipedia.

"In Musial's 3,026 major league appearances, he was never ejected from a game."

His best musical album is Blonde on Blonde, for me. I don't even listen for the lyrics sometimes, some of which can be too cute and seem like filler. Listen for the music. I Want You. Stuck Inside of Mobile. One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later). Absolutely Sweet Marie. Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands.

Ok, listen to the lyrics in Just Like a Woman!  They're great.

Good Rolling Stone article on the making of the album.

Another fine musical album for me is the Soundtrack to Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. The Mexican sounding guitar really pleases me. Not an obvious choice but a good one.

For lyrics, I don't think he ever surpassed The Times They Are a'Changin', Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited. John Wesley Harding.

His most fun album for me is Basement Tapes. Hands down. And some really stunning songs too. Goin to Acapulco, Tears of Rage, This Wheel's On Fire, Open the Door Richard. I Shall be Released.

Then there's New Morning. The song order is remarkable. Very good production job, IMO. Moving songs, The Man in Me, Father of Night.

Blood on the Tracks is too painful for me to listen to. It's critically up there, but it's just too painful.

Time Out of Mind. Some people even prefer the follow up, Love and Theft.

YMMV of course.

I would say Songs of Leonard Cohen, Songs from a Room, and Live Songs (which is not the same album as Live from London). But I am only familiar with his first 4 or 5 albums. I hope someone else chimes in.

May I make one more toast to Leonard Cohen? Passing Through.

We love this place and their pizza! High quality is right!