Friday Night

S, P, C and I went to the NJ Symphony comcert last night and I was wowed by the soloist! Kyoko Takezawa played the Beethoven "Concerto in D for Violin and Orchestra" and she was fabulous! At the end of the first movement, there's a long cadenza, and the way she played, it was as if there were TWO violins playing. I don't mean the usual double-bowing where the bow hits two strings at once and the fingers play one; she was fingering two strings and playing counterpoint to herself. It was exciting!

The concert opened with a hideous number by a person still alive -- 'nuff said! -- and ended with Sibelius's "Symphony No. 2 in D, Op. 43". The conductor was an emaciated Finn with elongated arms and legs. S was reminded of "Mr. Bean"!

Cathy is enjoying retirement and has surprised herself with how quickly she has adjusted. We've been going to the gym to walk lately. She does 30 mins on the treadmill; today, I did 15 each on the treadmill and bicycle. My physical therapy is over so I'm lucky to have C "motivating" me.

B (or W, as some of you know him) is at a writing residency in Costa Rica, of all places. He's having a great time and writing like a demon. There's a link to his blog somewhere on this page.

Just discovered that AOL access -- including email accounts -- is free, and was pleased to pass that along to my fellow residents, many of whom could probably appreciate the savings.

I have a new website: another bridge club, so it's pretty simple. mounthollybridgeclub.com, to be specific.

March already! I'm looking forward to the Celtics and Bruins in the postseason, March Madness (I'm a fan of the Rutgers women's team) and, of course, the Red Sox and opening day of Major League Baseball. (Too soon to start worrying about the Patriots.)

The more I look at it, the more I like the so-called Fair Tax. "The FairTax proposal is a comprehensive plan to replace federal income and payroll taxes, including personal, gift, estate, capital gains, alternative minimum, Social Security/Medicare, self-employment, and
corporate taxes. The FairTax proposal integrates such features as a progressive national retail sales tax, dollar-for-dollar revenue replacement, and a rebate to ensure that no American pays such federal taxes up to the poverty level....The FairTax allows Americans to keep 100 percent of their paychecks (minus any state income taxes), ends corporate taxes and compliance costs hidden in the retail cost of goods and services, and fully funds the federal government while fulfilling the promise of Social Security and Medicare. " See fairtax.org for details. If only!!