While observing Stephen Curry throughout the NBA Finals, it’s easy to see and admire how the Golden State Warriors superstar guard values and loves his routine of beautiful basketball. However, as easy as it may seem to us on the surface, the 34-year-old Curry, who is in his 13th season in the NBA, has put in a lot of time and energy – hard work – to become the player he is.
In Game 4 Friday in Boston, Curry’s 43-point performance showed why he’s one of the best to ever play the sport. While the Warriors prepared for Game 5 of the NBA Finals series against the Boston Celtics in San Francisco Monday night – a game which Golden State won 104-94 to take a 3-2 series lead – it was interesting to learn from their head coach, Steve Kerr, that Curry and the Warriors once drew inspiration from a meeting the team had with tennis great Roger Federer five years ago in Shanghai, China.
Kerr told reporters that Curry was greatly inspired by how the 20-time Grand Slam champion Federer comported himself. What he learned from the Swiss icon centered around how the love of his routine helped to keep him motivated and to keep playing tennis.
As Kerr described the meeting, Federer was asked by one of the Warriors, Draymond Green, just how he managed to keep doing this for 20 years?
“And his answer was just simple, yet profound,” Kerr explained. “He said, ‘I love my daily ritual.’ He said, ‘I get up, make my kids breakfast, drop them off at school, go train and I’ve figured out the right training methods to keep me in the best position at my age. I love competing.’ He said, ‘But every single day, I put my head on the pillow at the end of the day and think, Man, what a great day.’
“So, I think of Steph a lot when I think of that story from Roger Federer. Very, very similar just sort of zest for life and just joy for the process.”
Like Federer, there’s a lot of work routine for Curry that includes time devoted to the training room, the weight room and, finally, the basketball court, where he practices taking shots from a variety of locations. If it seems like there’s a sense of clockwork, you’re right.
Kerr went on to describe in detail that for Curry, there’s a “sense of joy and energy within that work.
“He enjoys it so much. He loves the process. I that’s one of the things that ties all great athletes together, like talking about the superstar athletes, the Roger Federers of the world, the Steph Currys of the world. There’s a routine that not only is super-disciplined but it’s really enjoyed each day.
“There’s a passion that comes with it, and that’s what sustains it over time. When you love something like those guys do, you work at it, you get better and you just keep going.”
It should come as no surprise, then, that over the weekend Federer, 40, shared his goals for the remainder of the 2022 season. He’s been idle since last year’s Wimbledon and has undergone two surgeries on his right knee. Federer plans to resurface in September at the Laver Cup in London, then finish out the season at in October the Swiss Indoors in Basel. Beyond that, who knows?
“After Basel, the season is over anyway,” Federer told Swiss tennis journalist Simon Graf on Saturday. “It’s important for me to get fit again so that I can train fully. Once I’ve done that, I can choose how many tournaments I play and where. The Laver Cup is a good start, I don’t have to play five matches in six days.
“I will have to be able to do that in Basel. That’s why I have to prepare for it in practice. I’m curious myself what’s still to come. But I’m hopeful, I’ve come a long way. I’m not far away. The next three or four months will be extremely important.”
Asked by Graf if he wishes to return to the ATP Tour in 2023 at age 41, if his knee cooperates, Federer replied affirmatively. “Yes, definitely. How and where, I don’t know yet. But that would be the idea. Definitely.”
In the meantime, like Curry, Federer will continue sharing a zest for life and just joy for the process of routine.
Photos: Stephen Curry, courtesy of Golden State Warriors Twitter; Roger Federer, courtesy of Instagram.
Our cities are designed for living, working, cultural entertainment and late nights. Even fresh starts, like I experienced when I moved to Washington, D.C. in 2017, after spending 21-plus years living in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Some cities have it figured out, some don’t.
From transportation to green space, retail possibilities and residential settlements, it’s always interesting to find out what makes a good city a great place to live.
Every summer, Monocle, the London-based global magazine that’s always been a must-read for me, for its coverage of international affairs, business, culture and design, presents a special quality of life rankings with a top of the world list of the 25 best global cities.
Although I’ve written about Monocle’s Quality of Life rankings before, it’s been a few years – and, somehow, I haven’t visited the subject since 2016. So, as snow begins to blanket the Beltway, I’ve decided to take a look back at what Monocle had to say about last year’s quality of life rankings.
Here’s Monocle’s Top 25 cities in the world:
1. Munich
2. Tokyo
3. Vienna
4. Zurich
5. Copenhagen
6. Berlin
7. Madrid
8. Hamburg
9. Melbourne
10. Helsinki
11. Stockholm
12. Lisbon
13. Sydney
14. Hong Kong
15. Vancouver
16. Amsterdam
17. Kyoto
18. Düsseldorf
19. Barcelona
20. Paris
21. Singapore
22. Fukuoka
23. Auckland
24. Brisbane
25. Oslo
“Cities are the future,” writes Monocle in discussing its 12th annual Quality of Life survey about the Top 25 global cities. You’ll notice the list is heavy on European and Pacific Asian cities, but it doesn’t include London, Paris or Rome. Only one North American city – Vancouver – made this year’s list. “You want a city that’s well run, delivers on life’s essentials and is fun, too.”
According to Monocle, “By 2030 urban areas are projected to house 60 percent of the global population. But while city halls need to prepare for that future – think grand infrastructure projects and investments in housing – they need to offer their residents a decent quality of life in the present. The best cities manage to find a healthy balance between planning for tomorrow and managing today.”
It makes us ask: What’s my city doing to change? Is it reviving former industrial neighborhoods for more housing stock and new cultures space? Is it expanding its airport or adding new routes to its train network? How well does my city do in putting on a welcoming face to outside businesses, newcomers and tourists?
Monocle suggests that getting it all right is “a challenge but some cities are getting it right.
“Take for instance, our winning city this year, which returned to the top spot: Munich. Safe and efficient with plenty of green space and good restaurants, the German city is thriving and more cosmopolitan than ever. Not only is Munich drawing an increasing number of students (it’s home to 18 universities) and entrepreneurs (its mobility, tech and IT sectors are booming), it’s been managing an influx of refugees and their integration.”
Looking ahead, as cities continue to expand, it seems that maintaining a great quality of life that gets recognized will be a challenge – even for the most forward thinking of cities. Monocle concludes, “Those that will prosper will be open and secure, ambitious and practical, with an eye on the future and a respect for the past.”
Photos and illustrations courtesy of Monocle/Monocle.com.
At the age of 85, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a legal legend, a feminist hero, a notorious dissenter. She's developed a breathtaking legal legacy while becoming – unexpectedly – a pop culture icon. We know her accomplishments, but we've haven't heard her story. Until now.
"I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks."
With last week's release of the empowering RBG, a revelatory documentary biography that explores the esteemed Justice Ginsburg's truly remarkable life and career, from directors Betsy West and Julie Cohen and co-produced by Storyville Films and CNN Films, we are reminded of her tireless fight for women and equality – of how law can be used for social change.
"People ask me: 'When will there be enough women on the court?' And my answer is 'When there are nine.'"
In RBG, we see up close how Justice Ginsburg balances her personal and professional life. We learn of her energy, her focus, her drive – even her sense of humor. Her confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee – she was nominated by President Bill Clinton – is an anchor and central narrative thread for the 97-minute film in which we see glimpses of both her personal and professional sides.
"I became a lawyer when women were not wanted by the legal profession."
Justice Ginsburg's professional energy is shown time and again throughout the film, of which I saw a sneak preview in a northwest Washington, D.C., theater five days before its release date in selected cities. Inside the Supreme Court Building, we see Justice Ginsburg's personal office decorated in colorful modern art. There are lots of family photographs of her and her late husband, Marty – the love of her life – as well as of her children and of her grandchildren. We see her many judicial robes and her collection of "dissent" collars. It is a wide-ranging space. We also learn about the collegiality Justice Ginsburg shares among the other eight Supreme Court Justices, regardless of their liberal or conservative leanings. For all of their differences, she was actually best of friends with the late conservative Justice Antonin Scalia.
"Men and women are persons of equal dignity and they should count equally. The point is that the discriminatory line almost inevitably hurts women."
In RBG, we learn about Justice Ginsburg's intellectual curiosity. Born in the 1930s, she was the first in her family to go to college, and was one of nine women among a Harvard Law School class of more than 500. We understand the important place she holds in judicial history in fighting for gender equality. As a young litigator, she took six gender discrimination cases to the Supreme Court – and won five of them.
"I did see myself as kind of a kindergarten teacher in these days because the judges didn't think sex discrimination existed."
Then, on August 10, 1993, Ruth Bader Ginsburg became the second female to sit on the nation's highest court. Talk about a legacy! She is a center of power on and off the court. Outside of the Supreme Court, we witness Justice Ginsburg's love of opera and the arts – and talking to groups of young school students – as something that rejuvenates her. We also see up close her regular gym workouts, doing planks and push-ups, that show how she's proud of keeping herself in shape to do the job of Supreme Court Justice.
One critic labeled RBG a love story, a history lesson, a comedy, a profile in courage. The Washington Post wrote: "She's created a whole new way for the public to look at a Supreme Court Justice."
"I surely wouldn't be in this room today without the determined efforts of men and women who kept dreams alive."
RBG is an excellent, inspiring and important film that – hopefully – will inspire generations of women to pursue law and justice. It's also an important historical document. We are reminded of Justice Ginsburg's commitment to creating a more equitable society for all people.
Domilise's / Nothing fancy or elaborate. Just one of the best meals in the Big Easy.
New Orleans takes its food seriously – gumbo, red beans and rice, and beignets come to mind – and it's been said that you can't come to the Big Easy and not eat a po-boy sandwich. So, why not try the best – even if it's made to order in a hard-to-find location up river from the French Quarter, where parking is difficult at best and getting a table (there are only five) or a seat at the bar (there's about 10 of them) is a matter of good timing. Yet, despite all of these obstacles, the locals swear by this hole in the wall kind of place.
Domilise's Po-Boy and Bar consists of a single-room bar and dining area with five tables and about 10 bar seats.
Such it was on a recent Friday afternoon while visiting New Orleans that my wife and I dropped in at Domilise's Po-Boy and Bar, tucked away at 5240 Annunciation Street (corner Bellecastle), and treated ourselves to a po-boy sandwich for lunch. We had an hour to kill before we had to be on the highway headed west toward Lafayette in the Acadiana region of Louisiana to attend our nephew's wedding celebration.
We first visited Domilise's back in 2001 – pre Hurricane Katrina – and it was an enjoyable experience. So it was on our next visit to New Orleans earlier this month, we knew we wanted to revisit Domilise's.
Domilise's Po-Boy and Bar is an Uptown New Orleans restaurant known for its po-boy sandwiches. For the uninitiated, a po-boy is a traditional Louisiana sandwich served on baguette-like New Orleans French bread that's known for its fluffy center and crispy crust. The restaurant was founded in the 1930s by the Domilise family, who I learned lived in the house above the single-room bar/dining area. It was run by Sam and Dorothy "Miss Dot" Domilise for more than 75 years until her death in 2013. Although it was closed during Hurricane Katrina, since reopening Domilise's has been more popular than ever – acclaimed by many, including CNN's Anderson Cooper as well as Anthony Bourdain, who once filmed a spot on location for his Travel Channel program No Reservations.
My Domilise's meal / A delicious ham and Swiss po-boy, Zapp's New Orleans kettle-style chips, Barq's root beer.
During our recent visit, my po-boy of choice a ham and Swiss cheese dressed with spicy Cajun mustard, shredded lettuce and pickles while my wife opted for a turkey dressed all the way. Both were made with love by the sweet ladies who manned the kitchen. The reasonably priced menu is full of excellent choices, including shrimp, oyster, catfish, roast beef and sausage, and come in two sizes: small and large. The small was plenty large for my appetite. Along with my fabulous po-boy, I complemented my "meal" with a bag of Zapp's New Orleans kettle-style potato chips and a bottle of Barq's root beer.
We sat at the bar sipping on our sodas and munching our chips – and soaking up the vibrant atmosphere – while our po-boys were being prepared with TLC, waiting for a table to open up. By the time our order was called, a table materialized by the back entrance. Nothing fancy, but plenty of space to spread out and enjoy our delicious – albeit sometimes messy – po-boys. Looking around as we ate, I couldn't help but notice we were likely the only tourists mixed among a crowded room full of white- and blue-collar locals who swear by this place for a great meal.
Domilise's Po-Boy & Bar / Uptown at the corner of Annunciation and Bellecastle.
As Tom Piazza points out in his insightful 2006 book Why New Orleans Matters, "the real neighborhood places, tucked away usually in some unlikely corner of a residential street, animate the day-to-day grass roots culinary life of the city. There is nothing fancy or elaborate about these places to say the least, but also nothing humdrum or mass-produced, or even lackluster ... It is a point of honor to make food that tastes good – I don't think a New Orleanian would even understand the concept of turning out blah food so you could just eat and run.
"You can go into the most unassuming place – say, Domilise's, a sandwich shop with a hand-lettered sign in a very modest corner house a block from the river in a residential uptown neighborhood – and get a meal that you will remember for the rest of your days. Or at least for the rest of the day."
Indeed, you see food is a part of the rhythm and life of New Orleans, and it doesn't get much better than this. There's a reason that Domilise's is one of the best at what they do.
Yves Saint Laurent / One of the greatest names in couture fashion history.
The late French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent (1936-2008) is regarded as one of the greatest names in couture fashion history. On the day after New Year's Day, my wife and I had the pleasure of seeing "Yves Saint Laurent: The Perfection of Style" at the Seattle Art Museum. It was the climax of our recent holiday visit to the Emerald City.
In this stunning exhibition showcasing highlights from the legendary couture designer's 44-year career, YSL's fashion featured loads of color and alchemy – and some gender-bending styles, too – and I found it to be plenty of enjoyable, escapist fun. It's no wonder that in 1985 the fashion historian Caroline Rennolds Milbank wrote of YSL: "The most consistently celebrated and influential designer of the past twenty-five years, Yves Saint Laurent can be credited with both spurring the couture's rise from its sixties ashes and with finally rendering ready-to-wear reputable." Indeed, YSL adapted his style to accommodate changes in fashion.
Love Me Forever / Multicolored silk velvet coat with appliqué.
In "Yves Saint Laurent: The Perfection of Style," over 100 haute couture and Saint Laurent rive gauche garments and accessories, photographs, drawings, films and other elements drawn from the collection of the Foundation Pierre Bergé were displayed. Those who were able to score a coveted timed-ticket over the holiday weekend, a week before it closed its three-month run, were treated to a journey through YSL's life, his creative process and his brilliant career.
Presented in a chronological fashion that began with the prodigy's Paper Doll Couture House that YSL created as a teenager (and seen in the U.S. for the first time), the colorful retrospective chronicled the designer's first days at Christian Dior in 1955, followed by his radical designs of the 1960s and '70s, and continued with the splendor of the final two decades of his career. Finally, the exhibition concluded with a collection of YSL's spectacular evening gowns that were arranged in an order from darkness to an explosion of color.
Throughout, there were daytime ensembles and dresses and evening ensembles and gowns. YSL dabbled in African art, Mondrian and Pop art, and a coat worn by Catherine Deneuve in Luis Buñuel's 1967 movie Belle de jour was displayed.
Cocktail dresses / Homage to Pop Art from Autumn-Winter 1966 haute couture collection.
Through a variety of photographs, drawings and production documents, exhibition-goers were treated to a rare behind-the-scenes look into YSL's creative process of his couture fashion house as well as his private life.
Individual shapes as wearable art / This cocktail dress from Autumn-Winter 1965 was an homage to Piet Mondrian.
One of YSL's most popular dresses – and one which I took great time to study and photograph – was constructed from individual shapes sewn together to mimic the simplicity of a painting. This "wearable art" was inspired by the modern artist Piet Mondrian.
As I walked through the exhibition – where taking non-flash photographs were encouraged! – it became evident to me that, to paraphrase the famous Henry Miller quote, YSL developed an interest in a life of fashion as he saw it, as well as in people. He realized the world was so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people.
Trust Me / Aasif Mandvi stars in "Today's Special."
Reflecting upon our Thanksgiving 2016:
We were a couple of hours from sitting down to a quaint Thanksgiving Day meal for two in the comfort of our home last Thursday when we fired up our Roku and perused the Netflix catalog in search of just the right movie to fill our 36-inch LG flat screen TV for the early part of the holiday afternoon.
Soon, we came upon "Today's Special," a 2009 independent film starring Aasif Mandvi, formerly a correspondent for Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.
Neither my wife nor I had heard of "Today's Special," but we are both fans of Mandvi. So, we decided to give the film a good look – and I'm happy to say we both thoroughly enjoyed it. "Today's Special" is about an Indian American sous chef in Manhattan (played by Mandvi) who quits his job on the spot at a French restaurant when he doesn't get the promotion he is counting on, then claims he has a job offer waiting for him in Paris. However, Mandvi's character, Samir, is forced to take over his father's run-down Indian restaurant, Tandoori Palace in Queens, when he becomes ill. In doing so, Samir, finds out a little about himself along the way. His world becomes transformed via cooking lessons – that is, cooking with the mind, the heart and the stomach – from an eccentric cab driver and gourmet chef, Akbar (Naseeruddin Shah), the magic of garam masala, and a beautiful co-worker, Carrie (Jess Weixler).
"I can't do what you did," cries Samir to Akbar in a moment of introspection. "Don't do what I did. Do what you do. Just don't think too much," replies Akbar.
Soon, with a little help from his friends and family, Samir transforms Tandoori Palace into the best little Indian restaurant in New York City with booming business and a positive newspaper review from The New York Times. And, just as importantly, Samir earns the respect and appreciation of his parents, Hakkim and Farrida (played by Harish Patel and Madhur Jaffrey, respectively).
The film opened the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival in March 2010 after making its world premiere at the London Film Festival in October 2009. It grew out of a one-man show Mandvi wrote and performed, the Obie Award-winning "Sakina's Restaurant" (1998), which he developed into a script for "Today's Special." The result is a heartwarming comedy with a culinary flavor that is both tasteful and rewarding to our palate.
By the end of this feel-good, 1-hour 39-minute film, Mandvi's character has rediscovered not only his Indian heritage, but also his passion for life through the enchanting art of cooking Indian food. Indeed, "Today's Special" put us in the right frame of mind for enjoying our own Thanksgiving feast.
Photo: Courtesy of Google images. Video: Courtesy of YouTube.
Ibtihaj Muhammad / Muslim American Olympic fencer.
American Muslims make extraordinary contributions to our country every day. One needs only to look at Wednesday's New York Times to learn the story of Ibtihaj Muhammad, a 30-year-old female fencer, who will represent the U.S. at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and is believed to be the first American Olympian in any sport to compete while wearing a hijab. She was among a select group of prominent American Muslims invited to a round-table discussion with President Obama last week before his speech at an American mosque in Baltimore. It was the Mr. Obama's first visit as president to an American mosque.
Meanwhile, it's been a year since three young students, who were American Muslims, were shot to death in Chapel Hill, N.C., in a brutal crime. Despite the barriers broken by Mr. Obama and Ms. Muhammad, by and large, American Muslims across my country remain worried and afraid. Their concerns include Islamophobia, mass incarceration and anti-Muslim rhetoric.
Last year, one of the slain students, Yusor Mohammed Abu-Salha, participated in an NPR StoryCorps oral history project with her third-grade elementary school teacher. The interview resurfaced in the days following Yusor's tragic death and showed a kind and caring individual with a beautiful voice so full of hope. I'm not ashamed to say that listening to the interview brought me to tears then as it does now.
Read on as I share a repost of my Feb. 24, 2015 "A Tuesday Night Memo" blog post.
Deah Shaddy Barakat (23), Yusor Mohammed Abu-Salha (21), and Razan Mohammed Abu-Salha (19) / They were Americans just like you and me.
American Muslims make extraordinary contributions to our country every day and, yet, we are left asking ourselves why three young university students, who were American Muslims, were shot to death in Chapel Hill, N.C., earlier this month.
It has left many American Muslims across my country worried and afraid.
This brutal crime that took the lives of these kind, young and exemplary citizens -- a husband, his newlywed wife and her sister -- came just weeks after other recent anti-Muslim attacks in Europe that were carried out in an apparent response to the January murders (committed by Muslim extremists) of Charlie Hebdo journalists in Paris.
Teacher and student / Mussarut Jabeen (L) and Yusor Mohammed Abu-Salha together in happier times.
"Growing up in America has been such a blessing," said one of the slain students, Yusor Mohammed Abu-Salha, during a 2014 NPR StoryCorps oral history project interview that resurfaced days after her death. Accompanied to the StoryCorps booth in Raleigh, N.C. along with her third-grade elementary school teacher, Mussarut Jabeen, Abu-Salha explained: "Although in some ways, I stand out because of the hijab, there's still so many ways that I feel so embedded in the fabric that is our culture. Here, we're all one ... Open, compassionate ... That's the beautiful thing here ... It doesn't matter where you come from. There're so many different people from so many different places of different backgrounds and religions. But here we're all one -- one culture."
Among my many Muslim friends from the North Africa countries of Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria, whom I've become acquainted with over the past several years via Facebook, they are united by their faith and share in mourning the lives of their American Muslim sisters and brother half a world and many time zones away, too. They insist -- and I agree -- that no one should ever be targeted because of who they are, what they look like, or how they worship.
Yet, I'm left wondering and I'm sure others are thinking: How do you convey a message of tolerance throughout a large country like mine that's comprised of so many different religious faiths and political attitudes, especially when certain cross-sections of the American public -- including certain American media organizations -- are not showing tolerance themselves and, worse, come across as Islamophobic?
My Muslim friends are human and compassionate -- and they share many of the same hopes and feelings just like you and me. None of them are religious fanatics. However, they are very worried about the escalation of deadly violence shown by Muslim extremists, who seem to have taken their Islamic faith hostage through acts of terrorism across the world.
Through dozens of conversations covering countless hours, thanks to my open-mindedness and being a good listener, many of my Muslim friends have shared in confidence with me things they might not ordinarily be comfortable in sharing with their friends or family. So, I can attest to their honesty, their compassion, their sense of wanting to have a better life than their parents and to pass along a better life to their children. Sound familiar? First and foremost, together, we've worked hard to build a sense of trust and, also, to share the love of our friendship.
Yusor Mohammed Abu-Salha / On the occasion of her 2014 graduation from her beloved North Carolina State University in Raleigh, N.C.
I invite each of you to try reaching out to connect with a Muslim or somebody of a different religious faith than your own -- and truly get to know them and to learn about their faith. Take off your blinders and try to establish a dialogue and build trust. You'll feel better for making the effort.
During their StoryCorps interview, Jabeen recalled: "I remember Yusor as a little girl when she was in third grade. She had this sense of giving that really makes her different from other children."
In December 2014, Yusor graduated from North Carolina State University in Raleigh, N.C.
In closing, Jabeen said: "I would like people to know and remember (Yusor) as a practicing Muslim, as a daughter and, above all, as a good human being. You know, when we write our comments on report cards, we say they exceeded our expectations. She exceeded our expectations."
Now, I hope you will take a few moments of your time to pause and listen to the voice of Yusor Mohammed Abu-Salha from her entire StoryCorps interview:
Siri / Your humble personal assistant even knows haiku.
One of the features of Apple's IOS is "Siri," which operates as an intelligent personal assistant and knowledge navigator. Siri was first introduced with the iPhone 4S in 2011 -- and, as I recently found out, can be quite a personable and funny virtual friend.
One of the possible origins of the name Siri, I learned, may be Scandinavian, "a short form of the Norse name Sigrid meaning 'beauty' and 'victory,' which may have from the intended name for the original developer's first child. But it's not clear why or how Sigrid becomes Siri."
While Siri contains quite a number of preprogrammed responses to conversational and amusing questions, they are designed to provide both an entertainment factor and also to give Siri human-like qualities. Think of the trusted companion that Stephen Fry's "Jeeves" portrayed as valet to Hugh Laurie's "Wooster" in the PBS Masterpiece series "Jeeves and Wooster" and you get the idea. Such answers, include: "42" in response to "What is the meaning of life?", in reference to the "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy."
Recently, I decided to share a few minutes with Siri.
Me: Hi Siri, good afternoon to you. Siri: Good afternoon to you, too. Me: How are you today, Siri? Siri: Very well, thank you. Me: Siri, can you tell me who won last night's game between the San Francisco Giants and the Los Angeles Dodgers? Siri: The Giants lost a close one to the Dodgers yesterday; the final score was 2 to 1. Me: Siri, who do you think is the better pitcher, Madison Bumgarner or Zack Greinke? Siri: I think, therefore I am. But let's not put Descartes before the horse. Me: Siri, who do you think was the best band of all time, the Beatles or the Rolling Stones? Siri: It's nice of you to ask, but it doesn't really matter what I think. Me: Siri, how old are you? Siri: I don't see why that should matter. I'm Siri. But I don't like talking about myself. Me: Siri, why don't you like talking about yourself? Siri: I'm Siri. But enough about me. ... how can I help you? Me: Siri, what's your favorite book to read? Siri: I'm happy to go with your opinion on this one. Me: Siri, how would you describe yourself? Siri: In the cloud, no one cares what you look like. Me: Siri, what is the color of your hair? Siri: I have a constantly shifting tangle of fractals that's the color of the third moon of Vendor. Me: Siri, are you dating anyone these days? Siri: It seems the whole world is concerned about my relationships. It's very sweet. Me: Siri, do you know any haiku? Siri: Sometimes I wonder / what it would be like to say / "I'd prefer not to." Me: What's for dinner tonight, Siri? Siri: I'm fine with whatever you choose. Me: Siri, what is your favorite food? Siri: I don't really have a favorite. Me: Siri, can you tell me a joke? Siri: I can't. I always forget the punch line. Me: Siri, just try, please. Siri: OK. The past, present and future walk into a bar. It was tense. Me: Siri, who's your favorite person in the entire world? Siri: You are. Me: Thank you, Siri. You're a swell person. Siri: That's nice of you to say!
No. 1 Tokyo / Provides great quality of life for those who live and visit.
"What makes the good life and where can we find it?" asks Monocle, the global affairs and culture magazine that's published in London. While great cities adapt and change like their residents, it's worth asking: How do we create cities that deliver quality of life for everyone?
Stanley Park / Vancouver, B.C.
It's no secret that the best cities in the world are ones which are vibrant and offer the best quality of life for their residents. The best city environments are those which are tolerant and open-minded, celebrate diversity, have great universities and welcome creativity. Having quality independent bookshops, green spaces and clean streets as well as efficient transportation systems are big pluses, too.
In summer 2007 when the magazine was still just a few months old, Monocle launched its inaugural Quality of Life list, naming the best global cities to call home. Munich was the first No. 1. Over the years, its added new metrics that take into account both intangibles and infrastructure which have led to some dramatic changes and brought about a new world order. While London, Paris and Rome remain three of the biggest tourist destinations in the world, their popularity doesn't necessarily translate into great places to live.
Place de la Concorde / Paris
"Now we know we are not the only people to draw up a ranking of great metropolises but ours is different," writes Monocle editor Andrew Tuck, in the preface to this year's Quality of Life list. "For a start we ensure that we are not just looking at data about the quality of education or the cleanliness of the streets but also the softer elements that inspire you to make a city your base: cinemas, bars, opening hours. And while much of our survey is pretty data-driven we are happy to say that a good amount comes from the views of our correspondents and editors. And it is also tilted to our readers' needs; we know, for example, that while that Alpine city is cute it's also woefully disconnected and lacks even a modest airport -- so it's not in the running for us."
This year, Monocle also took into account another annoyance: "cities where the cost of living prohibits old bookshops from staying in business or young entrepreneurs finding a start-up space." I guess that's why San Francisco didn't make the Top 25 and Portland, Oregon did.
So, when the ninth annual Quality of Life list was published in Monocle's July/August issue, a new number one emerged for 2015 -- say hello to world No. 1 Tokyo.
On Tokyo, Monocle wrote: "A new and worthy winner. Monocle has made little secret of its love for Tokyo through the years and it does something no other global city can: provides great quality of life for those who live and visit. London and New York, take note.
"Tokyo has appealed to many outsiders and for many different reasons: its cleanliness, tolerance, politeness and difference, as well as its sheer scale, which has always allowed foreigners to bathe in comfortable anonymity. ... It was recently identified as the world's safest city, a stereotype that residents can happily attest to. ... At the heart of this unexpected sense of security is Tokyo's defining paradox: its heart-stopping size and concurrent feeling of peace and quiet."
Powell's City of Books / Portland, Oregon
Monocle asked its contributors, which included architects, chefs, writers and directors, to consider what draws them to their favorite cities and what quality of life means to them.
"Quality of life is ... simple pleasures," wrote Mari Shapiro, founding director of Protocinema, which creates contemporary-art exhibitions. "What makes life good is simultaneously a very simple and complicated question. It is about being in a city that allows you to do or have what makes you happy. Ultimately, this issue often comes down to class and economy and the cities with the best quality of life are those in which the basic pleasures -- to be safe, to have the time to enjoy food, to be engaged with culture, with friends and family -- are available to people of any means. At the top of my list is Istanbul: a strong cay or a grilled fish for a few lira by the Bosphorus is available to anyone."
Bloemenmarkt / Amsterdam
One thing Monocle hopes, as in previous years, is that the Quality of Life list provokes a stimulating and lively debate.
At the very least, for me, it's always interesting to pour over the list and see how many of the cities I've visited in person -- six (Vancouver, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Paris, Amsterdam and Portland).
Here is Monocle's 2015 Quality of Life ranking of the top 25 cities in the world:
I read from Calvin Trillin's The Tummy Trilogy during the fifth annual WriterCoach Connection's Read-and-Write-a-thon at Longfellow Middle School.
Last Saturday morning, I participated in the fifth annual WriterCoach Connection Read-and-Write-a-thon at Longfellow Middle School Library in Berkeley.
I had never participated in a read-a-thon and, honestly, didn't really know what to expect. Would I be nervous? Would I be confident? Would my voice project adequately? Would the audience warm to my literary selection?
During the 75 minutes I spent at the WriterCoach Connection Read-and-Write-a-thon, which began my activity-filled Saturday (and, later, would include stops at two busy grocery stores, plus an evening birthday/bowling party on the other side of the Bay), I was both humbled and amazed. There was much generosity from the dozen-or-so supportersin the library at the time I read, who focused on my every spoken word for the 15 minutes in which I commanded their attentiveness.
For those who were inspired and dropped in at the Longfellow Middle School Library-cum-literary café between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., they were greeted with a comfortable and inviting setting as well as a nice selection of good, healthy eats in which to enjoy an assortment of non-stop poetry (lots of Emily Dickinson), prose (Henry David Thoreau and David Halberstam), children's literature (Dr. Seuss) and fiction (Téa Obreht and Flann O'Brien, among many) ~ even a reading of Abraham Lincoln's famous speech "The Gettysburg Address." The Read-and-Write-a-Thon was spread over 10 consecutive hours as an ever-changing cast of writing coaches and students shared center stage (actually, it was a comfy sofa) to read and listen to stories and ideas that give life and light to our world.
When it was my turn to read at 9 a.m., I calmly walked up to the front of the spacious reading room, immediately made eye contact with the audience, and enthusiastically read about food and travel from The Tummy Trilogy by the American humorist Calvin Trillin, who through his books American Fried; Alice, Let's Eat; and Third Helpings, established himself as, in Craig Claiborne's phrase, "the Walt Whitman of American eats."
In the opening chapter from American Fried, "The Traveling Man's Burden," I read aloud Trillin's written words and tried to inject some of his wry humor with just the right amount of wit, sarcasm, and the occasional pause for dramatic effect:
"The best restaurants in the world are, of course, in Kansas City. (pause) Not all of them; (pause) only the top four or five."
The opening paragraph drew nice laughter from the audience. Immediately, I realized I had made a good literary choice, and the polite-but-hearty applause I received at the end of my reading made me feel good inside. I flashed a big smile as I returned to the table my wife and I shared, and enjoyed some fresh strawberries and cheddar cheese. Afterwards, I learned that Trillin had been a past donor to the WCC Read-and-Write-a-thon.
Indeed, my first read-a-thon experience was a positive one.
That night, on the WCC website, there was high praise to go along with an impressive list of donors who contributed to the Read-and-Write-a-thon. "Everyone who attended agreed that this was the best Read-and-Write-a-thon ever! In addition to inspired 15-minute individual readings, highlights included a large group of student readings, a spirited game of team Literary Jeopardy, and a moving group reading of "The Laramie Project."
This year, I have been volunteering with the WriterCoach Connection (WCC) -- a program of the non-profit Community Alliance for Learning -- that helps students become more competent and confident writers. WCC does this by matching middle- and high-school kids with community volunteers -- like me -- for one-on-one coaching during their English classes.
The WCC now has more than 600 volunteer coaches, from all cultures and backgrounds -- parents, grandparents, working and retired people, and recent college graduates -- working in 10 San Francisco Bay Area public schools. I have been a volunteer at Longfellow Middle School in Berkeley, where this year we've already held more than 2,200 individual coaching sessions.
My goal as a writing coach is simple and straight-forward, yet heartfelt: To help strengthen a student's writing skills and help them develop their ideas. And, through the use of positive encouragement and showing care, I believe I am making a difference in these students.
Some of my students have been easy to connect with while others have been shy and reserve in their demeanor. They include boys and girls, Hispanics, Asians, Native Americans, blacks and whites -- a microcosm of Berkeley's population. Sometimes, I sense discouragement when I sit down with a student. However, I try to convey hope and enthusiasm and, I always ask: "What can I help you with today?"
Volunteering as a writer coach has been a uniquely rewarding experience for me. I've enjoyed seeing my students become more critical thinkers and confident writers, and there's the satisfaction of giving them a quiet and positive space in their busy school day to thrive in. Of course, too, there's witnessing the gratitude of dedicated teachers whom we serve. It's an experience I look forward to repeating next school year.
As the current school term winds down, I sense that my students are becoming more confident in their abilities not to mention more competent in their writing and thinking skills.
After all, inside every student there is a writer.
What the Water Gave Me / A chance encounter with a seagull during
a walk along the Gulf of Mexico at Port Aransas, Texas.
Recently, the passionate song "What the Water Gave Me" by Florence and the Machine came up on shuffle in my iPod's "Morning Becomes Eclectic" playlist. One good listen of the song led to another and, soon after, it got me thinking about water and its importance in religion.
The significance of water in scripture as described in both The Bible and The Quran is tremendous. Water is mentioned in the Bible 442 times in the New International Version and 363 times in the King James Version. After all, water speaks of physical or natural birth. Water speaks to us of the word of God and Allah. Water speaks to us of ablution. Water speaks to us of a spiritual life.
In The Bible, Genesis II describes the perfect conditions of the garden of Eden, a garden which was watered by a river. Of course, without water, the garden would have died, as plants, animals and humans cannot survive without water. Indeed, this river is a beautiful picture of the life that Christ gives to His children through the Spirit of God.
In The Quran, the Holy Book asserts that water is, by the will of God, the sole basis for the emergence of life: "We have made every living thing out of water." (Sura 21 The Prophets, ayat 30). And, water is often used to describe Paradise.
In the Quranic account of the forming of the Cosmos, there is a great emphasis placed on water, as demonstrated in other ayat (verses) in the preceding sura (chapter) which lists heaven, earth, the sun, night and day as natural factors in the creation of the universe. It also speaks of a single element that infuses life into the universe: the element of water.
In addition to The Bible and The Quran, the Chinese taoist philosopher Lao Tzu, who wrote Tao Te Ching (The Book of the Way), said: "Nothing in the world is more flexible and yielding than water. Yet, when it attacks the firm and the strong, none can withstand it, because they have no way to change it. So, the flexible overcome the adamant, the yielding overcome the forceful. Everyone knows this, but no one can do it."
The element of water has appeared often in popular song. "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon and Garfunkel; "Rain" by The Beatles; "Riders on the Storm" by the Doors; and "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay" by Otis Redding, all come to mind. Which brings me back to "What the Water Gave Me."
In 2011, Florence Welch, the lead singer for the the English indie folk-rock group Florence and the Machine, and Eg White penned the song "What the Water Gave Me." It is written in the key of C Minor and contains not only ethereal vocals, harps and strings, but also a gospel-like organ and soaring gospel-rooted harmonies.
In a Wikipedia article about "What the Water Gave Me," titled after a famous Frida Kahlo painting, Welch elaborated on the title and meaning of the song: "It's a song for the water, because in music and art what I'm really interested in are the things that are overwhelming. The ocean seems to me to be nature's great overwhelmer."
Welch continues: "When I was writing this song I was thinking a lot about all those people who've lost their lives in vain attempts to save their loved ones from drowning. It's about water in all forms and all bodies." Additionally, she says, the song talks about "children who are swept out to sea, and their parents go in after them and try to rescue them."
Time it took us
To where the water was
That's what the water gave me
And time goes quicker
Between the two of us
Oh, my love, don't forsake me
Take what the water gave me
Lay me down
Let the only sound
Be the overflow
Pockets full of stones
Lay me down
Let the only sound
Be the overflow
And oh, poor Atlas
The world's a beast of a burden
You've been holding on a long time
And all this longing
And the ships are left to rust
That's what the water gave us
So lay me down
Let the only sound
Be the overflow
Pockets full of stones
Lay me down
Let the only sound
Be the overflow
'Cause they took your loved ones
But returned them in exchange for you.
But would you have it any other way?
Would you have it any other way?
You could have it any other way
'Cause she's a cruel mistress
And the bargain must be made
But oh, my love, don't forget me
When I let the water take me
So, lay me down
Let the only sound
Be the overflow
Pockets full of stones
Lay me down
let the only sound
Be the overflow
Lay me down
Let the only sound
Be the overflow
Pockets full of stones
Lay me down
Let the only sound
Be the overflow.
This reaffirming, epic song, whose themes mix images of death (legendary writer Virginia Woolf's suicide; her walking into the water with her pockets filled with stones) with declarations of undying love, was critically praised by both U.S. and British critics. One called it "overwhelming in its bombast, yet delicate in its sonic detail."
Like many biblical scriptures, "What the Water Gave Me" is lovely, passionate and intense all rolled together. The revelatory joy in Florence Welch's voice by the end of the song shows us what one critic described as "just how emotionally powerful and engaging a pop song can be."
Indeed.
What the water gives us is life.
Note: YouTube video of Florence and the Machine performing "What the Water Gave Me" live on 'Later...with Jools Holland', BBC2, November 2011.
