Occasionally a game show comes along that offers something a bit different, and it gets well-deserved attention. Fifteen years ago, that was Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Eight years ago, it was Deal or No Deal. Today, it’s The Chase. Continue reading
Last year I wrote here on the blog about my return to regular puzzle book solving, a habit that’s been part of my life since I was in middle school, as the end result of determining what to do on my commute. One of the things I mentioned in passing is that I was slowly working my way through the challenging Nikoli series of logic puzzle books. This week, a bit of a milestone: I completed the last of the 14 books that they have released. Continue reading
New York is a place like no other, and as such there’s different rules by which one should abide. I for one get really cranky when I get stuck behind slow walkers playing with their cellphones on the sidewalk, or a group of people four across keeping me from getting around them. Actually, I’d just prefer if I could sweep the sidewalks of people altogether sometimes, but that’s not practical. Instead, I pray people read books like the NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette. Continue reading
Awhile back, when Calvin Harris was charting with “Feel So Close,” while at the same time seeing success with productions sung by other artists, he said in an interview that the days of him singing solo were over. Thankfully, he backed off that statement, as new song “Summer” is poised to be another huge anthem for him. Continue reading
I missed this one initially when it came out in February, but better late than never: While The Bird and the Bee have been working towards an album that may see the light of day this year, a new track surfaced on the “Endless Love” soundtrack, featuring additional vocals from The National’s Matt Berninger. Continue reading
New York as a city has certainly evolved, even has it retains much of the charm over the years that’s made it a place people have yearned to arrive at and thrive. A Huffington Post article, however, shows some of the inevitable change that happens when smaller businesses get replaced with larger ones, as the city ever changes, in a piece highlighting photos taken by James and Karla Murray for a new book, “STORE FRONT.” Continue reading
I’ve said it here on the blog a few times now: Amazon really seems to have its eye on making experiences superior for customers. Yet one of their more intriguing efforts is something I didn’t know about for nearly six months, until this week: Amazon Smile will donate a small percentage of the money you spend on qualifying items to the charity of your choice. Continue reading
When I was first getting into music, I was a fan of WKTU out of New York, and it led me to explore a number of dance compilations. A big name at the time was the “Dance Mix USA” series from Quality and Radikal Records. At their peak in the mid-90s, they were the go-to collection of dance hits, well mixed and put together, with a lot of great tracks that I recognized from the radio. Continue reading
A part of me is absolutely giddy about the news that Christine McVie has rejoined Fleetwood Mac. It’s been more than 15 years, and it was thought that she would never return, but this year, they will tour, including making stops in New York, Hartford and Boston. Continue reading
Having reviewed pretty much every Kylie release since I entered college (and she made her big U.S. return), I feel obligated, having chewed on “Kiss Me Once” since its release, to say something about it. My initial reaction, carried through from the album preview I posted here a few weeks back, wasn’t that great, and I still can’t say I’m quite as enthused about this as her previous efforts. Continue reading