Admittedly, It was easier to get my dyslexic head around the original version: a New Yorker magazine cartoon showing one spouse catching the other “in the act,” as it were. The caption: “Believe me, it’s not what it is.” Now, Bourbon distiller Maker’s Mark — or more accurately, their ad agency — has apparently decided...Read More
Four Easy Steps; Total Cost: < $250 “Untitled Jean-Michel Basquiat Painting Auctioned for $110 Million, a U.S. Record.” –headline, nbcnews.com (5/18/2017). For those without the means — or acquired taste(?) — to drop $110 million for an abstract painting (by Jean-Michel Basquiat), I have a much cheaper alternative. Step 1: buy the recent New Yorker...Read More
Answer #3: ‘No Comment’ “If you do drug policy and you’re asked whether you use drugs, you’ve got two choices. You can say, “Yes, I’m a lawbreaker. Please come arrest me and ignore everything I say because I’m a bad person.’ Or, “No, actually I don’t know what the hell I’m talking about.” Since neither...Read More
Hornet Bodies “the Size of AA Batteries” Jonathan Franzen’s non-fiction — and it’s impossible that this story could be made up — is as good as his fiction (“Freedom,” “The Corrections”). Click here for his account of house-sitting for friends in the current New Yorker.Read More
Q: How long does a property tax hangover last?A: Two years-plusOne of the sticking points, literally, for would-be Buyers of foreclosed properties is an unpleasant hangover from the erstwhile housing boom: bloated property taxes.In today’s, foreclosure-tinged market, it’s not unusual to see homes listed for 30% or less of their assessed tax value (no, that’s...Read More
