Category Archives: Reviews

Good For The Waistline, Good For The Pocketbook, Too

cheeseburger

It’s time to cut out some of the fast food drop-ins on your way home from work. Notice I say some, because there are days when you’re just too tired to cook, or you don’t have time to cook, or you’ve got to have a greasy cheeseburger, no matter what!

On those days when there’s no getting around it, be prepared. It doesn’t have to be a fast food burger. I buy a pound of ground beef, but instead of freezing it, I shape it into four burgers (very simple–nothing whatsoever added to it). Those individually wrapped burgers are always in my freezer. I freeze burger buns, too. Instant meal!

And if you want to make it healthier, smother every burger with tomato, lettuce, pickle, onion and a little cheese. The more lettuce, the better. It adds crunch.

Another thing you might want to consider is, once the kitchen is cleaned after dinner, put up the “Closed” sign. I don’t mean literally, but I remember my mother wiped and dried her kitchen sink. She shined the faucet and folded the towel and, believe me, you didn’t mess up her sink after that. It was her way of closing the kitchen for the night. It was a good policy. No one in our family had a weight problem back then.

And, incidentally, if you want to read a book about losing weight the fun way, try reading a book written by Janice Taylor titled All Is Forgiven, Move On. I mention her book because one of her suggestions is to close your kitchen at 9:20 p.m. every night.  My mom was doing that back in the 50’s.

Janice also has some nifty charts, some great recipes and motivation ideas for getting healthy and staying that way.

You might also want to visit Janice’s site http://ourladyofweightloss.com/ It’s an interesting read.

“Dumbfounded” by Matt Rothschild

Before I even started reading this memoir, I had to chuckle over the Author’s Note. Matt wrote:

“I’m not going to feed you that same old baloney about how memory is imperfect…The truth is that while everything in this book happened, it didn’t always happen the way I say it did. Sometimes I changed names or descriptions of people and places. Big deal. Sometimes I altered chronology…made people look foolish when they weren’t so foolish, made people look good when they were fools…–I know you’ll love this one–said things happened in one place when they really happened somewhere else. Okay, so maybe that is a big deal…Some of this stuff is damn funny and some of it’s tragic. Just don’t take the window dressing too literally.”

I suppose Oprah would have apoplexy over that statement. It had the opposite effect on me. I wanted to read more.

You don’t expect a book written by a Jewish fellow to start off with a chapter involving Santa Claus, but this one does. The first chapter is titled Why I Don’t Believe In Santa Claus and it has nothing whatsoever to do with religion. As a matter of fact, Matt didn’t even know he was Jewish until he was in the second grade.

Abandoned as an infant by his mother, Matt was raised by his grandparents, while their daughter, his mother, chose to hobnob across Europe. If this makes the book sound like a tearjerker, pack that notion away. Although some chapters are poignant, for the most part, the book is fresh, humorous and, at times, uproarious.

His grandfather, who was a genteel, aristocratic gentleman, had the good luck to marry a woman who was a real firecracker. She jokingly referred to the Rothschild family as a crazy cult. Speaking to her husband, she made remarks like:

“…your cult’s had so much shock therapy that if they held hands, they could provide enough electricity to power New York City.”

Getting to know Matt’s grandmother through his eyes is an unforgettable trip you won’t want to miss.

Peppered throughout the memoir are other fascinating characters–Elaine, who once convinced him that since they spent so much money in FAO Schwartz they should be entitled to some free gifts, The Petty Thieves.  His short association with a reclusive old woman living in his building, who hadn’t been seen by any of her neighbors in thirty years, Greta Garbo Lives Next Door, leaves you wistful, wishing he had time to find out more about her.  And there was his third-grade teacher, Ms. Wood, who delighted in giving him D’s on his papers, which he hid from his grandparents until they were eventually found, All in the D’s. His grandmother didn’t pull any punches that day,

“Oh, Matthew, what the hell are these?”                                                            .

Although this book is written by a person who lived just steps away from the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Fifth Avenue, you never get the impression that it’s from the perspective of a rich kid. If anything, you feel Matt didn’t even realize he was rich until he reached puberty. (That’s another amusing story to read about).

What makes this memoir beautiful is that it is honest, in spite of what Matt tells you in the Author’s Note. His writing is witty, sincere, unerringly compassionate, hilarious and totally entertaining. Pick up this book; it’s a memorable read.

[Goodnight, Mr. Newman. We loved you.]

“Auditions” by Barbara Walters

Even before you read one word of Barbara’s book, you understand what a remarkable life she has led. Printed inside the front and back covers are the names of all the people she has interviewed–the famous and the infamous.

Reading about her childhood, with its constant ups and downs, was fascinating mainly because her father was the founder and owner of the Latin Quarter. Her mother was like any other kind and doting mother, except it appears she showered more attention on Barbara’s sister, Jackie, who was autistic. To her credit, Barbara admits to being jealous of that at times.

But the real reason I bought Barbara’s book had to do more with the loud, reverberating crash women heard when she smashed through the glass ceiling into a field that had always been a male bastion. She became the first female co-host of the Today morning show. In 1974, that was unprecedented. Then a couple of years later, the even louder boom–Barbara Walters became the first woman “ever” to anchor a network evening news program. Single-handedly, she turned the knob and opened the door for all the women who followed her. I will always admire her for that.

The book is a history book written in an entertaining format. Her in-depth interviews with personalities like: Katherine Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn, Anwar Sadat, Clint Eastwood, Oprah, Fidel Castro, Henry Kissinger, Elizabeth Taylor, Golda Meir, Margaret Thatcher and many others, including all of the Presidents the United States, while always revealing onscreen, are even more captivating on the pages of her book, where she discloses additional tidbits of information.

A good read! If you happened to live through it all with Barbara, even better.

2008 Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony

08/08/08 A propitious day in China, believed to bring prosperity, and to China’s utter delight, an opportunity to perform for the world–The Olympic Opening Ceremony.

For as long as I can remember, I have loved watching the Olympics. Of course, I enjoy the competitions, but I try real hard to see the Opening Ceremonies. Usually, they are extraordinary, spectacular extravaganzas. And this year, China did not disappoint. Their ceremony left me breathless at times, at other times awed by the precision of the 15,000 people who performed and created one of the most memorable Opening Ceremonies I have ever seen.

The Parade of Nations always makes my eyes water. The magnitude of so many countries coming together, despite their political differences, gives me hope for humanity. When the torch was finally lit, I was emotionally drained.

I’m not alone in my admiration for the spirit of the games. Fitness Diva also loved the Opening.

 I hope that you all got to watch China present the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics last night or this morning. I have to say, without a doubt, China ROCKED IT!!! I have watched all the Olympics since I was old enough to know what they were, and China’s incredibly spectacular display of pyrotechnics, performance, and purely awe inspiring displays was off the charts. Never has an opening ceremony been as monumentally opulent and magnificent.

See what I mean? When you love them, you really, really love them.

To see some marvelous photos, go to fash eccentric.

Enjoy.