Tuesday - The New York Times vs. Saint Bobby Bowden

Good morning my many loyal and faithful readers. I know that most of you read the New York Times on a daily basis, but for those of you dwelling in the hinterlands, I have taken this opportunity to post an article in today’s Times regarding Saint Bobby Bowden aka the head football coach at Florida State University.
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“BOBBY BOWDEN FUMBLES CHANCE AT GREATER LEGACY -By Harvey Araton. Published: March 24, 2009

Presented with the opportunity to forge a legacy as a teacher with integrity, Bobby Bowden has chosen to stand for his record as a football coach.

Given a chance to take one not for the team but with the team, Bowden has opted for a common 21st-century American alibi: I’m in charge, but don’t hold me accountable for what’s going on.

The specter of losing as many as 14 victories from his grand total of 382 has moved Bowden to accuse the N.C.A.A. of “killing a flea with a hammer.” If he believes that institutional classroom cheating is an insect on the face of big-time college football, it is time for Bowden, 79, to flee Florida State.

Let me add that I have never been of the opinion that Bowden or Penn State’s Joe Paterno — three years his senior and one career victory his superior — were too old to coach or deserved to be run from their campuses by Sunday morning quarterbacks and chat room quacks. They had won too much, given too much, to their respective universities to be dismissed because their programs fell from championship-contender grace.

Bowden won nine games last season, paling next to the national championship that Florida’s Urban Meyer won, but no dadgum disgrace. The real dishonor is in how he has tried to distance himself from the involvement of nearly two dozen of his players in a cheating scandal involving a total of 61 Florida State athletes in 10 sports.

Earlier this month, the N.C.A.A.’s committee on infractions responded to Florida State’s internal investigation and admission of academic impropriety by imposing probation for four years, taking away a small number of scholarships and vacating the victories in which the offending athletes participated in the 2006 and 2007 sports seasons.

On cue, Florida State said it would appeal the vacated victories in all the sports, but anyone who can count to 383 knows why. Thanks to its president, T. K. Wetherell, a former Seminoles football player, the university has put itself in the position of appearing to value Bowden’s duel with Paterno for immortal glorification more than its academic credibility.

“To hold coaches accountable for something they had nothing to do with and didn’t know anything about, to penalize teams two years later when people have already graduated and don’t even know that they were involved, just flat-out isn’t right,” Wetherell said at a news conference last week.

In a letter to Myles Brand, the president of the N.C.A.A., Wetherell suggested the formation of a blue-ribbon panel to review the policy of vacating victories as a form of punishment — now that his university is suddenly in violation of said policy.

Before a Florida State media-relations attendant could intervene, he also went off on an emotional rant that included what The Orlando Sentinel called “an elaborate hypothetical story involving Florida quarterback Tim Tebow” meant to illustrate Wetherell’s disdain for the way the N.C.A.A. handled aspects of its ruling in the academic fraud case.

Sounds like a president who could benefit from the guiding hand of a higher authority. Too bad. When Bowden needed an explanation of the facts of administrative life, he got the common vilification of the N.C.A.A. When he needed an adviser, he got an enabler.

Wetherell’s assertion that Bowden had no knowledge of papers being written and test answers provided for athletes taking an online music course doesn’t excuse either of them. It just makes you wonder how excessive the culture of athletic entitlement at Florida State had become under their watch.

In its annual academic progress report for Football Bowl Subdivision teams that participated in bowl games last fall, the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida had Florida State graduating 69 percent of its football players over a six-year period, compared with an overall student-athlete rate of 80 percent. Not bad on both accounts, but if Seminoles needed fixers to pass Culture of World Music, what was done for them in classes that involved a bit more brainpower than distinguishing the Beatles’ hits from those of the Dave Clark Five?

Now, it is quite possible that the N.C.A.A., in the final analysis, will not have the stomach to proclaim the Bowden-Paterno winner by news release. Oklahoma won a similar appeal of vacated victories in 2005. But by not challenging the vacated victories, Florida State and Bowden could have separated themselves from the operational standard in big-time college sports, which university and coach typically interpret as such:

When student-athletes screw up, they are young adults who must be accountable. When they win big, Coach deserves an upgraded contract for the job he did with his “kids.”

Paterno aside, Bowden’s field legacy was never in question, but he missed a higher calling. He could have said, “My program, my recruits, my responsibility.” He would have deserved a silver medal.”
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I only report - you decide.

Billi Pod

Men vs. Women - a biased report

In the name of fair and impartial reporting I have to share with you, my loyal and faithful readers, something that is making the internet rounds, obviously written and circulated by the Feminazi crowd who are still having problems dealing with the inherent differences between males and females. This is it:



He said . . . I don't know why you wear a bra; you've got nothing to put in it.
She said .. . You wear pants don't you?

He said .. . .Shall we try swapping positions tonight?
She said . . That's a good idea - you stand by the ironing board while I sit on the sofa.

He said . . .. What have you been doing with all the grocery money I gave you?
She said . Turn sideways and look in the mirror!

On a wall in a ladies room . .. "My husband follows me everywhere."
Written just below it, "I do not."

Q. How many honest, intelligent, caring men in the world does it take to do the dishes?
A. Both of them.

Q. How does a man show that he is planning for the future?
A. He buys two cases of beer.

Q. What is the difference between men and government bonds?
A. The bonds mature.

Q. Why are blonde jokes so short?
A. So men can remember them.

Q How many men does it take to change a roll of toilet paper?
A. We don't know; it has never happened.

Q. What do you call a woman who knows where her husband is every night?
A. A widow.

Q. Why are married women heavier than single women?
A. Single women come home, see what's in the fridge and go to bed. Married women come home, see what's in bed and go to the fridge.

Q. What is the one thing that all men at singles bars have in common?
A. They're married.

Man says to God: "God, why did you make woman so beautiful?"
God says: "So you would love her."
But God," the man says, "why did you make her so dumb?"
God says: "So she would love you."

Even though my responsibility is to report and then leave it to you well-educated and unbiased readers to form your own opinion(s), I do feel it is appropriate for me, just this once, to make the following "personal" observation:

With that, I still only report - you decide.

Billi Pod

March 18, 2009 - 19 Years of Sobriety

Today is a very important day for me because it is the anniversary of my 19th year of sobriety. As I reflect on the events of the past 19 years it is apparent to me that much has changed in me, almost all of it for the better.

I guess the most important change has been my ability to live my life by one of the fundamental teachings of Alcoholics Anonymous, that is, "One Day At A Time." This concept was totally foreign to me prior to March 18, 1990. Now, on reflection, it was the major thing that saved me during that first tumultuous and frightening year when it seemed that my world was crashing down around me. People who I thought were my friends were calling for my resignation, my young grandchildren were being approached by aggressive reporters and my home was being picketed by the KKK.

I think I survived, especially during that first terrible year, because I came to believe that my Higher Power, whom I choose to call God, would not deal me more than I could handle on any one day. I also began to make my way through the AA program by working the suggested 12 Steps Of Recovery, which are:

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1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol - that our lives had become unmanageable.

2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God, as we understood Him.

4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.

8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.

9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.

12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all of our affairs.
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As I have written before, at my retirement party in January 1995 I made reference to the role of Alcoholics Anonymous in my recovery by reading the following from the book called "Twenty-Four Hours A Day" --
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YESTERDAY, TOMORROW, AND TODAY

“There are two days in every week about which we should not worry, two days which should be kept from fear and apprehension. One of these days is yesterday, with its mistakes and cares, its faults and blunders, its aches and pains. Yesterday has passed forever beyond our control. All the money in the world cannot bring back yesterday. We cannot undo a single act we performed. We cannot erase a single word we said. Yesterday is gone beyond recall.

The other day we should not worry about is tomorrow, with its possible adversities, its burdens, its large promise, and perhaps its poor performance. Tomorrow is also beyond our immediate control. Tomorrow's sun will rise, either in splendor or behind a mask of clouds, but it will rise. Until it does, we have no stake in tomorrow, for it is as yet unborn.

This leaves only one day - today. Any one can fight the battles of just one day. It is only when you and I add the burden of those two awful eternity's, yesterday and tomorrow that we break down. It is not the experience of today that drives us mad. It is the remorse or bitterness for something which happened yesterday or the dread of what tomorrow may bring. Let us therefore do our best to live but one day at a time.” Twenty-Four Hours a Day, July 29, 30, and 31
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This is how I have attempted to live my life for the past 6,935 days.

I deeply regret that 5 dear friends, David Patterson, Ray Coker, Marvin Mounts, Tom Macdonald, and Randy Bentley, who were with me at the beginning of my first steps toward recovery, are no longer able to share with me the wonderment of these 6,935 days lived One Day At A Time. I miss you guys, I really do. I also must add that none of this time in recovery would have been possible without the continued support of my family and so many of you loyal and faithful readers. Thank you so very much.

To my NYC AA buddies, and you know who you are, thank you for allowing me to stand beside you during these difficult and trying times. Together we will survive, in sobriety.

In closing - not to preach but aren’t the 12 Steps and One Day At A Time, in and of themselves, pretty good guides to living a meaningful and manageable life?

I report - you decide.

Bill

Billi Pod's Next 13 Days in the Big Apple

Good afternoon everyone. Wow!! In checking my daily log I find that I have already scheduled entertainment events for 12 out of the 13 upcoming days. Wow!! And, what an interesting array of events, so ... without further delay, this is Billi Pod’s upcoming schedule, starting with tonight:

Thursday - March 12 - 8:00 - “Rumspringa” - Off Broadway. “On a cold December night, 57 year old married software executive, Steve meets 28 year old surfer, Brandon on Southwest flight 1049 from LAX to Chicago. Brandon is on his way to visit a love interest, Cecily, an expatriate riverboat casino blackjack dealer living in Joliet, Illinois. Meanwhile, an ominous rave party is percolating in a nearby Indiana cornfield - organized by a large group of rebellious Amish teenagers. These events set the stage for "Rumspringa", a dark comedy that explores the temptation in all of us to see what it's like on the outside of our own lives - and what can be gained or lost through such an exploration.” (complimentary ticket).

Friday - 8:00 - “The Unseen” - Off Broadway. “The Unseen is a psychological potboiler about two prisoners trying to crack the code of their cryptic imprisonment by a brutal, totalitarian regime. Only familiar to each other by their voices, the two men keep each other mentally and emotionally going through the cell walls as they share stories of their interrogations and torture, putting the pieces together about who their captors are and what it would take to get out. The puzzle is further complicated with the introduction of a new prisoner placed near them who only poses more questions than answers.” (complimentary ticket).

Saturday - 8:00 - “Christine Jorgensen Reveals” - Off Broadway. “Christine Jorgensen was born George Jorgensen, Jr. on May 30th, 1926 to unsuspecting middle-class Danish-American parents in the Bronx. She was drafted into an unsuspecting United States Army where she served out her time at a desk at Fort Dix in New Jersey from 1948 to 1950. She then flew to Copenhagen, Denmark where she was re-born as Christine Jorgensen, the first American transsexual. In 1958 Christine Jorgensen walked into a recording studio in New York and allowed herself to be interviewed - for 51 minutes. Arguably the most revealing, truthful and riveting 51 minutes ever set down on vinyl. Christine Jorgensen Reveals is a one-man-tour-de-force-painstakingly-accurate-reincarnation of those searing and revolutionary 51 minutes.” (complimentary ticket).

Sunday - 3:00 - “Reasons to be Pretty” - Broadway. “Neil LaBute's bristling new comic drama transfers to Broadway. Americas obsession with physical beauty is confronted headlong in this challenging new play. A tight-knit social circle is thrown into turmoil when Greg's offhanded remarks about a female coworkers pretty face (and his girlfriend's lack thereof) get back to said girlfriend. He and his friends are forced to confront a sea of deceit, infidelity and betrayed trust in their journey to answer that oh-so-American question: How much is pretty worth?” (discounted TDF ticket).

I saw this show during its Off Broadway run and liked it a lot. It will be interesting to see how it transfers to Broadway.

Monday - 8:00 - “Distinguished Concert Series” @ Alice Tully Hall. This Lincoln Center venue has undergone a multi-year renovation and has just re-opened. It is now breathtakingly beautiful and this will be my first visit since it reopened a couple of weeks ago. The concert will feature The Kansas City Chorale and The Phoenix Chorale. (complimentary ticket).

Tuesday - 8:00 - “Hedda Gablor” - Broadway. This is the press blurb: “Mary-Louise Parker heads the cast this new Broadway production of Henrik Ibsen's masterpiece. A woman of dangerous independence restrained by a conventional marriage, the newly married Hedda mourns the freedom and excitement of her former life by indulging in a cruel game, amusing herself with the misfortune she inflicts on those around her.” (Roundabout Theatre subscription series).

The show has gotten generally favorable reviews.

Wednesday - this is an important day for me because it is the anniversary of my 19th year of sobriety. Will write much more about this later.

7:30 - New York Philharmonic @ Avery Fisher Hall. This is the program: “Israeli percussion duo PercalDu is featured in the U.S. premiere of ‘Spices, Perfumes, Toxins!,’ a flamboyant concerto by Avner Dorman, conducted by Zubin Mehta. Assuring that no one on stage feels left out of the action, the program is completed with Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra.” (subscription series)

Thursday - 8:00 - “The Toxic Avenger” - Off Broadway. “He's New Jersey's first Superhero and he takes to the stage in this rock 'n roll monster of a comedy. Thrown into a vat of toxic goo by two bullies, a mild-mannered science student named Melvin Ferd the Third is reborn as a one-of-a-kind environmental crusader, The Toxic Avenger! Armed with superhuman strength and a heart as big as Newark, he's out to save New Jersey, end global warming and woo the prettiest, blindest librarian in town.” (discounted TDF ticket).

This sounds like a lot of fun, doesn’t it?

Friday - 8:00 - I have been invited to the final performance of “Enter Laughing” at the York Theater and it includes an invitation to the closing night party with the cast and crew. This will be the 7th time I have seen the show since it first appeared at the York Theater 2 1/2 years ago as a staged reading. I am going to miss it. I had previously scheduled a Chorale Concert at Avery Fisher Hall so I will give the ticket to the nice lady who lives on my floor (not in 1-B).

Saturday - 8:00 - “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” - Broadway. This is the second play of August Wilson’s Century Cycle - “Set in 1911, Joe Turner's Come and Gone tells the story of Herald Loomis who, after serving seven years hard labor, journeys North with his young daughter and arrives at a Pittsburgh boarding house filled with memorable characters who aid him in his search for his inner freedom.” (discounted TDF ticket).

I think this is the 3rd preview performance.

Sunday - March 22 - open at the moment (How can this be, you ask? Just give me time - it will be filled. I promise.)

Monday - 8:00 - “Rock of Ages” - Broadway. This show had a very successful run Off Broadway and I saw it with Sandy Mullon of Anna Maria, FL, during her brief visit in the City last summer. It has now transferred to Broadway and is in very early previews. The press blurb is: “In 1987 on the Sunset Strip, a small town girl met a big city rocker and in LA's most famous rock club, they fell in love to the greatest songs of the 80s. It's Rock of Ages , an arena-rock love story told through the mind-blowing, face-melting hits of Journey, Bon Jovi, Styx, Reo Speedwagon, Pat Benatar, Foreigner, Twisted Sister, Poison, Asia, Whitesnake and many more. Don't miss this awesomely good time about dreaming big, playing loud and partying on.” (discounted TDF ticket).

Tuesday - 8:00 - “Why Torture is Wrong, and the People who Love Them” - Off Broadway. “Back at The Public for another world premiere of a new play, Christopher Durang turns political humor upside down with this raucous and provocative satire about Americas growing homeland "insecurity. The play tells the story of a young woman suddenly in crisis: Is her new husband, whom she married when drunk, a terrorist? Or just crazy? Or both? Is her father's hobby of butterfly collecting really a cover for his involvement in a shadow government? Why does her mother enjoy going to the theater so much? Does she seek mental escape, or is she insane? Honing in on our private terrors both at home and abroad, Durang oddly relieves our fears in this black comedy for an era of yellow, orange, and red alerts.” (discounted TDF ticket).

I know, I know - I have many times observed that when works are described as either a “dark” comedy or a “black” comedy, the result is 99.9% of the time much much more dark/black than comedic. I have a gut feeling that this show will fall in the “love-it or hate-it” category. We will see.

So, in closing, my loyal and faithful readers, you are now up-to-date on Billi Pod’s entertainment schedule for the next 13 days.

I have also almost completed a posting about the past week’s entertainment frenzy, which I will post tomorrow, hopefully.

Go Gators and Go Yankees!!

Billi Pod

Saturday - A Big Apple Weekend

The weather this morning in The Big Apple is awesome. It is now 58 degrees. Just 4 days ago it was in the single digits. Wow!! I really have an interesting weekend of entertainment activities scheduled, and this is what it looks like:

Saturday - 2:00 - “Tales of an Urban Indian” - Off Broadway. The show is playing downtown at The Public Theater and has received very good advance buzz - “Acclaimed Canadian writer and performer Darrell Dennis tells the semi-autobiographical tale of a young Indian man, Simon Douglas. From living life on the "Rez" to navigating the mean streets of Vancouver's east side, Dennis weaves a funny and stirring story of identity, discovery, choice and self-respect.” (complimentary ticket).

8:00 - “Some Enchanted Evening” - Off Broadway. This musical concert is performed at the St. Bartholomew Church Theater, located on Park Avenue, between 50th and 51st Street, just blocks away from my apartment. I have seen several programs at this venue and they have all been very good. This is the press blurb: “Join The St. Bart's Players for an uplifting revue featuring music from the world's best-loved musicals, including Carousel, Oklahoma, South Pacific, The Sound of Music, Cinderella, and more. This tribute to Broadway icons Rodgers & Hammerstein celebrates the songs and lyrics that have forever defined musical theater.” (complimentary ticket).

Sunday - I will meet up with Justin Pifer and his parents, who are visiting from Pennsylvania, to see a matinee performance of The Tony Award winning Broadway musical “In The Heights” - This is the blurb from TimeOut New York: “This bouncy barrio musical has plenty of good old-fashioned Broadway heart, and that heart has a thrilling new beat: the invigorating pulse of modern Latin rhythms, mixed with the percussive dynamism of hip-hop. The fast dancing ensemble cast and joyous score give classic musical-theater themes a contemporary urban twist.”

Justin was able to score complimentary tickets for us. I am sooooooo happy about finally getting to see this show.

7:30 - “Hair” - Broadway. This will be an early preview performance of the show that had a sold-out run last summer at the performance space is Central Park. This is the press blurb - With a score including such enduring musical numbers as "Let the Sunshine In," "Aquarius," "Hair" and "Good Morning Starshine," Hair depicts the the birth of a cultural movement in the 60's and 70's that changed America forever: the musical follows a group of hopeful, free-spirited young people who advocate a lifestyle of pacifism and free-love in a society riddled with intolerance and brutality during the Vietnam War. As they explore sexual identity, challenge racism, experiment with drugs and burn draft cards, the "tribe" in Hair creates an irresistible message of 'hope' that continues to resonate with audiences 40 years later.” (discounted TDF ticket).

I saw “Hair” when it was first on Broadway 40 years ago, early in its run, and have a funny story to share, which I will do in the next posting.

OK, have things to do before I begin my theater binge.

Oh, the local papers have reported that Florida State may have to forfeit up to 14 games, lose some scholarships and be on probation for 4 years for a “wide-spread academic cheating scandal.” Sorry, Bobby, but it looks like you will have to coach until you are at least 90 to catch Joe Paterno in total victories. Actually, the Gator Nation hopes you will stick around at least that long, hopefully, longer ... you da' man!!!!

Go Gators!!

Billi Pod

Tuesday - Why Billi Pod Is A Reverse Snowbird

It is bitterly cold out and the snow accumulations remain. The Off Broadway show I had scheduled for tonight, “Hell’s Kitchen The Musical,” was canceled after the producer withdrew the complimentary tickets from my ticket service because the show’s ticket sales had taken off following a cast appearance on The Today Show. Oh, well. It was OK with me because the theater is located in Chelsea on the far westside, a long long walk from the subway station.

This has given me an opportunity to prepare my activities summary for the month of February, and in doing so I was somewhat surprised to discover that I had failed to post a summary for January. Why I don’t know. This “discovery” gave me an opportunity to reflect on why this southern born and raised retiree lives in New York City during the winter, rather than in warmer Florida. I will post some thoughts on this later, but first, the activities for February 2009 --

In checking my daily log (log, not diary - real guys don’t keep diaries), I find that during the month of February 2009 I did/saw/attended the following: 5 Broadway shows (33 Variations, The Story of My Life, Will Ferrell’s You’re Welcome America. A Final Night with George W. Bush, Blithe Spirits, and Impressionism); 18 Off Broadway shows; 5 classical music concerts (The New York Philharmonic and The London Philharmonic); and 2 movies (Doubt and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button).

I think the entertainment highlight of the month was being able to score tickets for future tapings of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report.

I had a negative result from my semi-annual HIV test and that is always good news,

I was able to spend some quality time with: student/bartender/manager Scott Reed and also with Scott’s Dad Stan from Lakeland; and, recent Penn State graduate and now a Big Apple resident Justin Allen Pifer.

On the “strange” side was the discovery early in the month that a prostitution ring had been operating out of apartment 1-B on my floor. See the February 1st posting for details.

I also received notification from the Yankees that I would only receive a 20 game partial season ticket package, but, as you now know, that was upgraded yesterday to a 41 game package. Go Yankees!! (Oh, and an aside to my oldest grandson Alex - today I verified that the offer was legitimate and not some scam operation).

Even though the weather for the entire month was cold and nasty there was only 1, repeat, 1 night during the month when I stayed in the apartment without going out to some entertainment event during the day/evening. That, my loyal and faithful readers is, in my humble opinion, an awesome statistic.

OK, now that we have those stats in hand, let me plug in the stats for January to give a 2 month total for January and February as follows:

7 Broadway shows; 35 Off Broadway shows; 8 classical music concerts; and, 4 movies. I stayed in the apartment 7 nights without going out to some entertainment event during the day/evening (bad weather and watching the BCS Championship game and The Super Bowl). I posted a total of 19 times to this blog.

And, this is what the next 5 days look like:

Wednesday - March 4 - 2:00 - “The Cripple of Inishmaan” - Off Broadway. “Set in 1934 on an island off the west coast of Ireland, Hollywood filmmaker Robert Flaherty arrives on the neighboring island of Inishmore to film his movie The Man of Aran and excitement ripples through the sleepy community of Inishmaan. For orphaned Billy Claven, who has been relentlessly scorned by the islands inhabitants, the film represents an escape from the poverty of his existence. He vies for a part in the film, and to everyone's surprise, it is the cripple who gets his chance.” (discounted TDF ticket). This has received rave reviews.

8:30 - “Heroes” - Off Broadway. “Three Tony®-nominees with three Tony Awards® between them star in the New York premiere of this comedy about World War I veterans who dream of escape from an old-soldiers' home.” (discounted TDF ticket).

Thursday - 8:00 - “God of Carnage” - Broadway. “Jeff Daniels, Hope Davis, James Gandolfini and Marcia Gay Harden star in Yasmina Reza's new Broadway play. Two sets of parents meet up to deal with the unruly behavior of their children. Will it be a calm and rational debate between grown-ups about the need to teach kids how to behave properly? Or will it turn into a hysterical night of name-calling, tantrums and tears before bedtime?” (discounted TDF ticket).

Friday - 8:00 - “The Rivals” - Off Broadway. “According to Prince there is the possibility for "23 positions in a one night stand." But how much confusion can be experienced when one is pursuing a true love? Richard Brinsley Sheridan's The Rivals is a comedy of bad "manners" that finds would be lovers complicating their own lives and relationships to bring to reality their deepest romantic and sexual fantasies.” (complimentary ticket).

Saturday - open at the moment.

Sunday - I will meet up with Justin Pifer and his parents, who are visiting from Pennsylvania, to see a matinee performance of The Tony Award winning musical “In The Heights” - This is the blurb from TimeOut New York: “This bouncy barrio musical has plenty of good old-fashioned Broadway heart, and that heart has a thrilling new beat: the invigorating pulse of modern Latin rhythms, mixed with the percussive dynamism of hip-hop. The fast dancing ensemble cast and joyous score give classic musical-theater themes a contemporary urban twist.” Justin was able to score complimentary tickets for us.

So, my loyal and faithful readers, these statistics and scheduled activities are why I am here in The Greatest City in The World during the winter. I ask you, seriously - where else could I be that would even come close to having these entertainment opportunities available?

Oh, I know that my lifestyle isn’t for everyone, or perhaps isn’t for anyone else, but it is me, Bill Norris aka Billi Pod, living out my dream(s) as best I know how. And, I am blessed.

I report - you decide.

Billi Pod

Monday - Breaking News From The Yankees!!

The phone rang around 1:00 and when I answered it a very nice young man, whose name is Scott, said that he was calling from the Yankee ticket office to discuss my partial season ticket plan order. OMG!! My heart started racing - no joke - it really did. The thought raced through my head ...”they are going to take away my 20 game package”... I took a deep breath and waited for the bad news.

Boy, was I wrong. Instead of taking my 20 game plan away they were offering me an upgrade to the 41 game package I had originally requested. The 41 game plan begins with Opening Day and then every other home game thereafter. I gulped and said: “Yes, Oh Hell Yes!!!”

I then asked about seat location and after a few minutes (his computer was running slow) he said I could be in the same section, 212, one row behind the original offer, and 6 seats closer to home plate, meaning, Section 212, row 5, seat 17. Terrific!!!
I gave him my credit card number and it is a done deal. OMG!!!

This partial season ticket package has an exchange policy and a very very big perk, it allows me to “...license the same seat location for all Yankee home games during the postseason.”

Man, I am pumped and very happy.

Quickly on other matters - The Big Apple is virtually snowed in. It began snowing last night and we have had about 14 inches so far. I have a show tonight and hopefully I will be able to make it.

Sorry about the huge gap since the last posting. I have no excuse. My bad. Will do a lot of reporting later on today and tomorrow.

Go Yankees!!

Billi Pod