Recent Miscellany (5 cents)

1. "Schlemiel" is a musical written by Robert Brustein, based on one of Isaac Singer's Chelm stories. Chelm of course is the Podunk of the Pale of Settlement, filled with people not quite bright enough to live anywhere else. Schlemiel is sent to spread the word to the rest of the world of the intellectual strength of the Chelmite elders. He gets turned around and finds himself back in Chelm, but believing he has found another town which is a clone of Chelm, complete with a woman who looks just like his wife (but is nicer) and kids who look just like his (but are more polite). It was performed as a modified concert reading, complete with klezmer band at the JCC and was quite a success. Brustein was in attendance.

2. Timothy Naftali, a UVa professor, has recently been appointed to head the Nixon Library in Yorba Linda, where he will hae the task of melding the National Archive's Nixon presidential and post-presidential material, with Yorba Linda's pre-presidential material. Before taking on this task, he has written a number of books on the Soviet Union, two with respected Russian historian, Fursenko. The newest book, "Khrushchev's Cold War" is a story of the Khrushchev decade from the point of view of the Russian leader. It was based on recently discovered notes by Khrushchev's note taker (a low-tech equivalent of Nixon's tapes), and provides insight into the Russian's way of thinking. Basically, they knew how inferior Russia's strength was, and decided to bluff us. They knew they could not bluff Eisenhower, but thought Kennedy was weak, and that he was simply a puppet of the wealthy capitalist families.

The premise was fascinating, and Naftali is an excellent speaker. He talked at a free session at the Washington Spy Museum. I bought the book (retail!).

3. The next day, I went to see former Secretary of State James Baker, speak about his new book at the 18th Street Borders. Perhaps I would have bought it, but could not purchase two full price books in as many days. Baker is very engaging and affable. I did not necessarily expect that, and talked about himself as a Houston lawyer, who chanced into politics. I am sure that the book is interesting.

4. Saturday night, we saw the Caps lose their second in a row overtime game, this time to the Atlanta Thrashers. Neither team looked its best. Our Russians clearly had an off night.

5. There were a number of book sales this weekend. My most interesting buy, I think, was a copy of one of Elie Wiesel's books, inscribed to Colin Powell.

6. Sunday, we went to a friend's house and saw her son-in-law, David Edelman, read from his new (and well reviewed) science fiction book, "Infoquake". Just may read it on the plane to Hawaii. Oh, yes, we are to fly to Honolulu on the 2nd of November. If the earth does not quake again.

7. Food: another very good meal at Rosa Mexicana, a decent, but not as nice a meal as usual, at Jaleo's, and a nice broiled rockfish at Crisfield's in Silver Spring. Does anyone go there any more? Pretty empty on a Sunday night.

8. Sukkah is coming down today. We had dinner in it one night, lunch twice, and I had a number of breakfasts. Altogether, not bad. We also had two sukkah meals out, one with our study group, and one freezing with friends in Rockville. Both just fine (if cold).

9. We also saw Al Gore's global warming movie, "An Inconvenient Truth". Well done documentary showing increasing carbon dioxide, melting glaciers, changing oceans and flooding coast lines. Goes well the Tutavu the week before, which is receding into the sea. And think about Venice and the perpetual walkways in St. Mark's Square. And then I saw an article yesterday that said that Hawaii's Big Island would sink beneath the sea in only about 80 million years. And then an even more mysterious one about the central downtown area of Mexico City, which is apparently sinking over 2 1/2 inches a year. Where is it sinking to? No ocean near there.

So, now we have the Big Bang theory confirming creation, and global warming leading to the next Noah.