New York August NYC Meet-Up 2021

[Calzone]

Today I learned that my friend Dan, who I befriended on the Peekskill Metro North train platform over the past 11 months, was the dancer who wore all the lights on a horse in the Robert Redford film "The Electric Horseman."

Dan explained to me that the grip on the set told him, "I hope you don't get hot and sweat too much because you might get electrocuted."

This I would say is interesting smut. Also another example that the world is not that big.

Another interesting thing is that Dan described getting paid half via check and half in cash as part of a money laundering set-up, but I also expressed it was a way to avoid taxes buy both employer and employee.

Dan was not a member of SAG BTW.

What I find so profound is how many artists stay invisible and under the radar. Both Dan and I are good examples. We both currently are employed by NYC hospitals and are involved in medical research. Dan is about my age.

Today, Dan gave me a bag of acorns from the red oaks on his property. The acorns are supersized and likely the biggest I have ever seen, muy grande. Dan says the trees have trunks that are 4-5 feet in diameter. These are ancient trees... I think I will spout them as part of my accidental experiment with acorns from a white oak. I was told that red oak trees are a tick repellent by the neighbor who has bad boundries.

Oh I forgot, it did not take long, but "Maggie" and I have taken note that I have a local "Stalker" that happens to be the neighbor who has bad bound-ER-EEs.

I likely should have been more modest and not mowed my lawn topless, but as you know "Artists by definition are exhibitionists." Maggie has taken note how she gets snubbed by this woman, and pretty much she gets the dirty look that has "You suck factor."

All I can say is that all I was doing was minding my own business...

Snarky Joe and Devil Christian know that I tend to draw out the crazies, and you kinda know "It takes one to know one." Lucky me...

Cal

 

[Range-rover]

**Gear alert**

Well I didn't find a cheap Leica M yet (still searching) but I found this,
an Yashica YF.

 

[Crazy Fedya]

Bob,
it will come. I was able to trade some gear for Leica M1 and 35/2.8 Summaron about 6 months ago. I had about $200 cash layout for the gear. And 2 years ago I bought M3 and rigid 50/2 Summicron for $600. Deals like this are rare, but they are still out there. Selling that M3 and rigid Summicron with other gear paid for 1600 sqft concrete mixed with pavers driveway and frond and side bluestone stoops.

 

[Crazy Fedya]

I have drastically reduced my collection that was about 700 cameras and uncounted lenses to about 200 cameras and less then uncounted lenses. It got traded for gear, rifles and sold to pay for home improvement.

 

[Crazy Fedya]

All in all, I did new roof, siding, gutters, driveway and two stoops. It was paid with refinancing and supplemented with gear sales.

 

[Range-rover]

That's great you were able to make a great return on that gear you sold, I'm thinking a lot of selling of my Comic book
collection to pay for a few camera goodies.

 

[Calzone]

I have drastically reduced my collection that was about 700 cameras and uncounted lenses to about 200 cameras and less then uncounted lenses. It got traded for gear, rifles and sold to pay for home improvement.

Sam,

You are still Crazy. LOL.

In your case, "Crazy is good."

Calvin-August

 

[Calzone]

"Zingo Navy SEAL thought I was one of them. We both worked at Grumman and were close in age.

The 10x10 pergola I erected without following the instructions. I laugh at a T-shirt a friend name Jack had that read, "Real Men Don't Need Instructions."

"Maggie" pointed out that assembly of the pergola that weighs 830 pounds assembled requires two assistants and pretty much the challenge was doing the work of three people by just me and a hundred pound 68 year old woman.

So a lot (mucho) clever problem solving, applying advanced engineering skills, and creativity merged and came together as an improv string of me just thinking on my feet. Anyways it was a crazy challenge and a lot of fun. It was like the kid's toy "Lincoln Logs" that I had as a kid except scaled up into a prefab cedar kit.

Another thing that this exercise proved is that I am mighty stubborn.

Along with the new enlarged front stoop, the 11x14 patio made of pavers, the new pergola really expresses the sparkle and the vision of great potential we saw in an otherwise neglected house that was a bit shabby. I feel very lucky that were secured it at a great price, and realize how difficult it is to find an over hundred year old house that has not been stripped of its original details or gut renovated.

Well maybe in NYC there are lots of old apartments that have not been updated in decades, although the 100 year old row house in Long Island City, the fire trap with faulty wiring, is the exception.

We did a drive to a village called Katona that is north eastern Westchester. I would say the homes are built and developed on 4 acre building lots. While very pretty, I would not want to pay the taxes on those properties.

On Halloween I saw the most dramatic rainbow I ever saw right in front of my house in the late-late afternoon. I was putting out the garbage on the curb, but before I could get a camera the light was fleeting. Near sunset the light gets crazy in the Hudson Valley.

So I only have 3 1/2 weeks of work left. Happy-happy. I'm at a point where I'm so relieved of stress that I often wake up at say 2:30 AM after having gone to bed at ten, but I get up refreshed and go downstairs into my Parlor as they called the livingroom back in the day, sit on a leather love seat that Maggie bought from Restoration Hardware because its called "The Professor's Chair," even though its a small couch, I pull out an electric guitar and practice about 2 hours before having to get ready for work at 4:30 AM.

Took perhaps a 15-20 minute knap on the Metro North ride into the city.

I'm amused because the second institution is unprepared to take responsibility of a 20 year old quirky Cyclotron. The situation is not so different that the recent withdrawl from Afganistan.

Anyways I give an "Oh-well" a LOL, and a loud "Ha-Ha" because I am "Happy-happy."

I expect the entertainment value to increase as Wednesday November 24th, my last day, approaches.

Mean-Augie

 

[Calzone]

My last day of work is Wednesday December 22d, where I have to come to work to basically say goodbye, so I won't count that day.

In November my last day of real work is Wednesday November 24th, but I have off November 9th and November 15th, so basically I only have 15 more days of work this month plus one day of work for the entire month of December.

The short work weeks and a three day weekend should make November pass like a blink of an eye. On Thanksgiving and until December 22d I'll be burning my vacation time.

15 MORE DAYS AND I AM DONE. NO MORE WORK (except for that last day in December). Happy-happy.

Next year I will have to get my Prototype Ti M6 overhauled and repaired. I beat this camera up for 13 years and now it is jammed. A M3-DS that had a brand new "L" seal because it was overhauled by Leica Germany has come home. I sold this camera to Brian who moved to Boston. It came back to me with sticky slow shutter speeds, and in working the shutter not only did I jam the camera but I also separated a curtain. Oh-well.

Then I have a Fuji 100/3.5 for a Texas Leica that has a shutter that will not cock, and also I have some 4x5 Linhof lenses that need cleaning and to have their shutters timed.

I'm in love with my old house and the bond is very-very strong. Every day when I come home there is no other place I would rather be, warts and all. What an old quirky house it is, very odd and unusual in an arts-C way. Mighty cute also. The new enlarged front stoop, the baby patio of pavers (11x14), and now the pergola (10x10) are adding a lot if sparkle and charm.

I look back on my urban landscape work and my street photography that I was compelled to create. I was obsessed in documenting my surroundings, but now it remains ahistorical archive of a NYC that no longer exists, but for a while it provided for me a strong sense of home. That is no longer the case.

"Maggie has an idea of getting a stackable washer and dryer for the kitchen bath. This would free up mucho space and the drains in the basement would support a great space for a darkroom.

"Don't tell Maggie."

I'm GAS'ing for a new Santa Cruz FTC which is a jazz guitar with a carved back and cutaway, but with a flat top. It is an odd combination of a carved back and flat-top, but that is kinda my style, meaning confused, odd, and kinda strange and very different. I sent in an order and know it is a custom build. A lot of the appointments are Art Deco so I can see that it kinda goes with the decor of the "Baby-Victorian."

"Don't tell Maggie."

Cal

 

[Range-rover]

What happen to the Fender amp you were restoring, did you get it done yet?

 

[Range-rover]

**Gear Alert**

Just received today by my trusty Fedex man a really nice condition Leica LTM 35mm F3.5 Summaron lens,
can't wait to try it out on my Yashica YF, heck I have Screw to M mounts I'll put it on my Sony with IBIS.

 

[Calzone]

What happen to the Fender amp you were restoring, did you get it done yet?

The blackface Fender Pro amp I found being thrown out in the Upper Eastside has not been restored yet. Been too busy with the house. It is a distraction for perhaps next year.

Augie

 

[Calzone]

Sadly Jazz guitarist Pat Martino died Monday at the age of 77. In 1980 he had brain surgery which resulted in him loosing his memory and he began to learn how to play guitar all over again and played for another 3 decades.

What a story of resilence and having to recreate oneself.

I'm kinda excited about getting a new Santa Cruz FTC built for me using old growth mahogany for the body and neck. The over-the-top "Calzone" factor would be "Snakewood binding on the body and neck fo an "all wood" guitar devoid of plastics.

Since the FTC has a carved back and a flat top it is a strange kinda guitar, but that's my style.

I learned from "Maggie" that if you want to stand out don't do what everyone else is doing.

Three more days of work this week; a 4-day work week next week; another 4-day work week with a bonus of a three day weekend; and then a brief 3-day work week right before Thanksgiving and I'm done. In other words only 14 more days of work and then I'll be retired.

Ha-ha... Happy-happy...

Cal

 

[Range-rover]

The blackface Fender Pro amp I found being thrown out in the Upper Eastside has not been restored yet. Been too busy with the house. It is a distraction for perhaps next year.

Augie

Give it to me I'll do it!

 

[Calzone]

Give it to me I'll do it!

Bob,

I'll get to it, and I want to enjoy the experience.

To those who are not in the know, last year I found a Blackface Fender Pro Reverb amp being thrown out in the garbage on my walk home through the Upper Eastside. My guess is good old mom was cleaning up Juniors room while he was away in college.

Basically I found $2.5K laying on the sidewalk near the corner of 89th Street. I grabbed the amp, hailed a cab and $20.00 later I was dropped off at my Madhattan Luxury apartment in SpaHa (Spanish Harlem) like a bank robber who made a quick get away. Then I had to smuggle the amp into my 650 square foot apartment without "Maggie" taking notice.

Forensics are that the speakers are missing, but no big deal because I have a pair of Altec 417B's stored at a friends house out in Long Island and also a pair of vintage Jenson C12Q's stored at another friend's house out on Long Island. When I opened up the chassis it was a time machine that was as if it left the Fender factory: no modifications; all original; and it was the AA 165 circuit the first version of the amp (1965) with the lower power supply voltage and circuitry that is the most desirable of all the Pro Reverb versions made.

When I opened up the power supply my guess was confirmed, an electrolydic cap had shorted and taken out the fuse. So replacing the power supply caps was in due order, the speaker baffle had been hacked so I ordered a repo replacement from Mojo Tone, and I looked into how I would possibly modify the amp to voice it for my needs.

Know the old Fender amps pretty much use the same circuits, but the have different speakers and transformers...

So basically I found treasure that is really valuable to me. I also think it is "divine intervention" because my luck is rather remarkable, and stuff like this happens all the time. Also last year I bought my 2015 Audi A4 in nasty evil black for no money even though it had only 16K miles on it. When I drove it home "Maggie" gave me a dirty look and said, "You bought a brand new car," because it basically must of been stored in a garage at some beach house in the Hamptons for 7 years.

The Audi I could sell easily for a 25% profit even though it now has 20K miles on it due to the Pandemic, then we bought the Baby-Victorian a year ago and its value also increased about 25%.

I'm just talking about stuff that happened within the last year. Back when I worked at Grumman my friend Jack would say, "You step on shit, and then you open a fertilizer factory." My luck was pretty remarkable, and it still goes on.

Even with Covid three great things happened to me: I bought a house; I lost 15-20 pounds; and I am retiring early.

On the guitar front, my playing every day is really adding up into something. I have had a disrupted life, and the 10K hours required to master a craft or art becomes diluted if broken up or is irregular. I imagine that when I retire things will really begin and I will become the man I was meant to be. A unique style all my own is emerging. My playing is really advancing in leaps and bounds.

Today is "day-thirteen" in the countdown. Tomorrow, Friday will be "day-twelve." Then two 4-day weeks, and just a 3-day week before Thanksgiving...

Happy-Happy and Ha-ha.

Cal

 

[Nokton48]

Hey Cal

Congrats! Great ain't it ? LOL

Soon you will do what YOU want to do

I'm finding lots of treasure here. Having Blast.

 

[Calzone]

Hey Cal

Congrats! Great ain't it ? LOL

Soon you will do what YOU want to do

I'm finding lots of treasure here. Having Blast.

Devil Dan,

4.3 Million Americans quit their jobs in August. How many in September, then October, then November... Pretty much my turn will be December 22d . How much a Lazy Slacker burning vacation so he can stay at home and get paid from Thanksgiving till my "Official Last Day Of Work."

They say about 32% quit their jobs to start their own businesses, but 27% of new businesses fail in the first year, and 30% in their second year.

Retirement is real freedom. I just went into my office and opened a box of books I stored at work. I have been bring my stuff home, and today I'm bringing home some books on men's tailoring. Don't forget that I own a JUKI commercial sewing machine. Mine is made in Japan and not China. The Japanese ones are of higher quality I am told.

I took a class at FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) on sewing a man's dress shirt. Because I'm a skinny bitch clothes off the rack are all grossly oversized for me, and I am a size 38 when men's sizes begin at a size 40.

I held onto the Juki that I bought new using a zero APR loan that cost me nothing, even though "Maggie" wanted me to get rid of it because it is big and heavy, but I'm sure I will be getting back into sewing and doing some cool stuff. I have a remarkable set of hands and in that FIT class I was a standout. Also know in art school I was strongly encouraged to explore being a sculptor.

Some fashion designer friends told me that going to fashion school is really not only expensive, but also a bit of a waste of time, and the best way to become great is just learn by deconstructing clothes and learning on your own the craft of sewing, tailoring, and fitting. I have the aptitude to really excel in this area.

Don't tell "Maggie" but I want to set up a wood working shop. Been looking at used Powermatic table saws. A barn would block the view in the back-backyard. I have some crazy ideas on building guitars and also furniture.

Anyways I do none of this for money because I already have enough.

Meanwhile I feel so happy and free of stress, but the Cyclotron is in deep trouble. At the second institution where my lab is at it will take at least 6 months to just get approval for hiring my replacement, then there is the overhaul/rebuild/upgrade. In the military they would call it a "Cluster-FXXX."

I found out some smut that earlier in June my big chief found out that we had lived up to our 20 year agreement for the two institutions to collaborate, and then when my big-big boss called me into a private meeting to ask me what I intended to do in the future...

When I told him I was going to retire by January he was "happy-happy." They had intended and had decided to walk away from the machine abandoning it, but they did not want me to be collateral damage. At worse I would be assigned other duties, but was warned I'd have to learn new things, but you know me: I'm a lazy-slacker and just pay me.

So I don't expect these shortages to go away. There is this expression, "When the U.S. sneezes the world catches a cold" because of the size of our economy. China's economy is nearly as big as ours, and they say China's economy will surpass ours by the year 2030. I believe China is in trouble and already other real estate developers in China have defaulted. I believe what is true for the U.S. is also true of China; it is not like during the Cold War when our economy was three times the size of Japan's economy, at that time the second largest. China is in deep trouble...

Also their one child policy means by 2030 their population will peak and an aging population will be a drag on their economy, like in the U.S., Europe, and Japan. Meanwhile they never-ever developed a consumer economy nor a middle class.

The point of my rant is that being self sufficient likely is the best policy for the future. Already they are saying that high energy prices cascaded into high fertilizer prices that will cause savage inflation in food prices. Remember Arab Spring? Inflation that was exported from the U.S. effected food prices and hunger and especially hungry children caused Arab Spring.

I'm glad that I have enough land to grow some of my food.

Never thought I would be in a survivalist mode, but it seems like a forced move. Early next year I'm getting a 18KW generator for the house.

Snarky Joe has it right in buying quality for the long-long term.

Also I've been reading the headlines that because of worker shortages that workers that get left behind become stressed and burdened with even more work.

I'm so glad that I am done. Happy-happy.

Cal

 

[robert blu]

...

15 MORE DAYS AND I AM DONE. NO MORE WORK (except for that last day in December). Happy-happy.

...Cal

Congrats! A new life will start!

 

[Calzone]

Congrats! A new life will start!

Robert,

I'm in a great space. Happy-happy.

At work I am amused at the disorganization, the chaos, and all the uncertainty that I'm leaving behind.

Its not easy being a lazy-slacker. LOL.

Tomorrow is day-12 in the count down.

Cal

 

[Calzone]

Today is "Day-12" in the countdown to retirement.

This morning the train conductor on Metro North was feeling ill. When I inquired it seems her daughter had Covid and was quarenteened.

Currently I have read there is an outbreak of sorts in Europe.

I'll be glad when I don't have to commute anymore.

"Maggie" showed me Breville "Smart Oven" that she wants to get to replace the el cheapo version that she bought. Then I got a Bed Bath and Beyond flier yesterday that on the back page has the Breville on sale 20% off along with a 20% coupon. So I think I will buy this item today and get 40% off.

Anyways this is my way to combat inflation. At heart I'm a CF.

My new friend Dan I learned today was favored by Bob Fosey the Core-E-O-grapher. I learned some smut from the world of dancing. B.F. was a short man and in his casting he would pick short men and tall woman. B.F. was short BTW.

Lots of crazy behaviors, sex, and drugs. B.F. burned through many friends and lovers, but Dan says because of his height B.F. had problems casting him. Dan also expressed that B.F. must of been very fond of Dan because he kept some distance as not to hurt or burn him like so many others.

So the takeaway of B.F.'s style was that he promoted his weaknesses. This is an interesting take on his originallity and how he developed his own style.

So even waiting on a Metro North train platform I seem to meet interesting people, even though, "I'm just minding my own business."

Dan is close to my age and fit. That is how I got to approach him because he looked athletic.

Calvin-August