My Tie

This lovely tie was bought for me by my Aunt K. She was quite aware of my infatuation with all things New York City and I had recently become employed by an agency of the city. I worked on Chambers Street, right across from the Tweed Courthouse Building. That's just above the park in the lower center of the tie picture.

At the time my taste in ties was particularly retro. None of the ties I wore were more than a few inches wide and none were especially colorful. In fact they all tended toward black and navy blue. I wore this tie once.

Recently, during the slow process of cleaning out things and boxes others up in order to one day move into my new home I came across this poor bedraggled tie hanging deep within my bedroom closet. I can't bring myself to wear the thing but I don't want to just throw it away. So I took a picture. If you find yourself falling in love with the poor item it will be available for sale at the yard sale I'm participating in on the sidewalk in front of St. Paul's/St. Luke's Lutheran Church on the corner of Decker Avenue and Catherine Street in Port Richmond, Staten Island on Saturday, June 14th, 2008. There'll be plent o' junk for all.

Memorial Day

I won't talk about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan because my own feelings are long, complicated and too depressing to wade through right now. I will, however, put up this link to CNN about the Americans killed since the Long War began over five years ago. My father always was annoyed that Memorial Day became a sort of general military celebration instead of what it should be - a day to commemorate and pay homage to the thousands of men (and women) who've had their lives cut short while serving in uniform.

Iraq War Dead
Afghanistan War Dead


Whatever your feelings about the war, these Americans served where few of us have the courage or inclination to do so and they generally do so with at least a fair degree of honor (Abu Ghraib as the big exception and that's got a lot to do with the bosses) and without the frothing at the mouth craziness too often expressed in the news or movies.


So take a few minutes and remember these dead men and women and think about their families and the gap they'll never fill. This war isn't working out the way it was planned or presented to the public, but those things aside for the moment, it reminds us that their are hundreds of thousands of Americans willing to submit to the discipline of the armed forces and then risk their lives in order to do the really dirty work we need done.

Married

So I've been distracted from posting my bits 'o' nostalgia because I got married. I haven't forgotten my loyal readers (both of them) and I will return shortly. But I did (did I mention?) get married and I'm getting a house done so I'm a little off track with Ape Shall Not Kill Ape these days. Later.