There are faces I’ll remember

It didn’t take long to know that this trip from Syracuse to Estes Park, Colorado, for my dear wife Karen’s family reunion was a success. All it took was one look at my beloved’s face. And the face of her sister Jana when we walked up to the place she and her family were staying.…

Are you ready for some football?

NFL training camps open before the month ends. I was sent on a pigskin chase already. Yeah, I’m ready. As deadlines have it, my September story for Central New York the Good Life Magazine is in the Double-D category. Due and Done. My story will touch on Central New York football fever, Fridays through Sundays.…

Rocky Mountains, hi, how are you?

I woke up this morning in rarified air. First person awake, I smiled at the thought of big family so close. My dear wife Karen soon to awaken from my stirring, my darling daughter Elisabeth and her terrific boyfriend George Three on the first floor below, sisters- and brother-in-law and nieces and nephews in other…

We have a butterfly bush blossom … but no hydrangea

In this slow season for the backyard butterfly garden behind the Little Bitty in the Syracuse city neighborhood of Eastwood, we have finally two purple blossoms to photograph out of the four bushes. I’m still blaming the cold spell and snow cover that did not melt from the first of the year until April. Over…

A party to remember and celebrate the life of Roosevelt Dean

I still vividly remember that Saturday night of April 4, 2009. I was sitting on my recliner in the Little Bitty in the Syracuse city neighborhood of Eastwood when the phone rang. Former New York state Senator Nancy Larraine Hoffman was on the line for me. I wasn’t working on any sort of story for…

No time to relax, it’s time for Funky Friday, Jazz Saturday and Blues Sunday

No time to relax, Central New Yorkers. This weekend’s downtown Syracuse opens up Clinton Square for the Northeast Jazz and Wine Festival. Funky Friday and Jazz Saturday have a new baby for all admire: Blues Sunday. Funky Friday will be dedicated to the honor of Syracuse guitarist Jeff Huston, who performed at last year’s fest.…

Lake Street Dive may find a surprise at the Blog of Funny Names

Sometimes you have to break out of the mold. I did it Saturday, my mind straying from the music somewhat for a moment as I watched the great young band Lake Street Dive. And that lead to a bit of a departure in this month’s contribution over at the Blog of Funny Names, where my…

I didn’t quite believe what I was hearing

For most of the minutes he appeared in front of the crowd of the big and important festival he put together so well for the community of Syracuse this past weekend, founder and executive director Frank Malfitano was a happy guy. As well he should be, I thought from my spot in the roped-off VIP…

In Amy Schumer’s Trainwreck, heart beats out rowdy

Amy Schumer’s comic mind surely worked overtime to come up with Trainwreck. The rising star wrote the script, as you probably know unless you’re living in one of the few places where they haven’t beamed her deserving face on a morning or evening show interview these past couple of weeks, and then passed it along…

Lake Street Dive unveils its Princess

The catch a rising star moment wrapped the M&T Syracuse Jazz Fet in its happy arms early Saturday night. Lake Street Dive, good to know you now. I only hope those plaques proclaiming it your day all four of you brought home, the bouquets placed in the arms of lead singer Rachael Price and bassist…