S: Is for glimpses of Space

As we journey through life in this age we are priveledged to see beyond our own backyard. Distant planets are just within a telephoto lense. This is an image taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera mounted on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The University of Arizona, Tucson, which operates HiRISE, has just released a new batch of these photos taken in the last several months. They reveal an alien landscape of craters, valleys, ridges, channels, weird surface patterns and other features in incredible detail. This image is the muffin-cup-like Victoria Crater, a site once explored by the Mars rover Opportunity. The camera is pointed 22 degrees east so we get a better view of the crater's slopes, "comparable to a view from an airplane window," the university says.
Some of the images are reminesent of flying over the Grand Canyon or the Sahara. Others are distinctly extraterrestrial in nature. The images reveal details about the surface of our neighbor in the solar system and prove we are not alone and that is a F.A.C.T.

T: Is for Treasury

The Financial elites are desperate. They are appealing the Bloomberg directive to reveal who received funding to keep from going bankrupt from the Federal Reserve.
In addition HR 1207 will pass in the House this month. The question is in what form. With an official $23.7 trillion committed by the Treasury and the Fed. This number alone shows you how serious this situation is. The banking sector is still broke and is using TARP funds to buy out failing smaller banks. The residential TARP funds returned will go toward helping bail out the collapsing commercial real estate industry. We are still facing a new wave of subprime loans written over the past year by FHA, Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, plus ALT-A, Option ARMS Pick-and-Pay Loans and the failure of prime loans that will stretch to 2013. On top of that we have commercial real estate loans now to deal with and credit card failure. Standing in the wings, are America’s creditors, especially the Chinese who are dumping $25 billion to $100 billion in dollar denominated assets monthly. No wonder they are terrified of an audit. I have stated more than once in this column, gold and silver related assets are the only answer. The world is about to find out that free trade and globalization has been a disaster. In America the safety net of the FDIC doesn’t exist. It is virtually broke and that is why a few months ago unofficially the FDIC asked the government for $500 billion. Putting this into perspective, about $700 billion would insure about 1% of all the qualifying deposits in the US. Not only will the Federal Reserve Transparency Act, HR-1207, pass the House, but also it will pass the Senate. Three more U.S. banks failed on Friday, bringing the total to 84. Can you say: North American Union...? I am not a conspiracist, just someone who sees the writing on the wall and this is a F.A.C.T.

C: Is for Comedy that is vanity only

A good PR friend invited me to see a new show being done on Theatre Row, since this is in my new papers jurisdiction, I of course was more than happy to attend and review. I wish I could say more positive things but this was a case when the shows producers, produce so they can act. Not a bad scenario when you are perfect for the role, the play is well written and not predictable and or you have talent. None of the above applied. Shrunken Heads was performed at Playwrights Horizon, but this was not one of their shows. Instead it was by a company called Wild House Productions. The lead producer Kim Weller cast herself as the character, with the most difficult range and what transpired was a one of the worst acting performances I have had to sit through in a long time. Playing Dorothy Putney, she was suppose to be a women who is a neurotic, vain and narcissistic therapy patient who stalks her therapist and causes no end of trouble. One of her lines 10 minutes into her entering the stage is "nobody likes me" and by this point I wanted to scream "your right get off the stage." High pitch shrills are what was used instead of a layering of technique to make us even care one ounce for her. Note to Ms. Weller, put yourself in an outfit that is flattering instead of squeezing into a look so you are age appropriate. Mel House was also a producer who was cast as Polly Hyde, the antsiest of Dorothy. Ms Hyde fared better than Ms Weller, though it was little more than a college performance.

There were thankfully two highlights and when they were on stage it was like a breath of fresh air that said "ah, acting oh, yes, it exists." The first was Diane Henry who played Jennifer, the 1st wife of the therapist. Her every line was perfection. She took what could of been a cliche role and made it bitingly funny and I kept wishing she was in a better production. This women has the it factor. She knows how to move and how to look and each one is dead-on. She is like an onion that as it peels just keeps getting better and more complex and we see into the heart and soul of the character. Newcomer David Geller Hurwitz, showed that he had some acting chops as well and I hope to see more of him. The rest of the cast was adequate. As for the play cliche with some humorous lines thrown in. As for the direction, mismatched.

If it seems I am being to hard, please understand that when you ask me to give up three hours of my life (it takes time to get there)and I find out it is a vanity production...fine. Great actually if you have what it takes. But when it is this bad and this amateurish you deserve to be told. I want to thank Diane Henry and David Geller Hurwitz for making what could of been a disaster, bearable.

A: Is for Ayurveda

In a time when health care is on the minds of most Americans. When drug companies no longer seem safe and are called into question, alternative medicines and practices don’t seem so impractical. For over 5000 years Ayurveda has existed in India and is successfully practiced in many countries all over the world, yet there are less than a handful of practitioners in America. New Yorkers are lucky, as Vasudha Gupta and her husband started American Ayuveda located at 62 W 47th St. Suite 1506 just off 6th Ave. Vasudha is a quite spoken women who radiates energy and calmness. “Knowing your own body type, is a way of staying healthy and balanced. Ayurveda is a way of life.” Vasudha’s clients include infertility cases, people with skin disorders, weight management, arthritis, Post chemo patients, Crohn's diseases, IBS, Fibroids, PMS and Auto Immune diseases. “Forget Viagra, when your body is in a state of wellness everything else falls into place. By eliminating the root cause of illnesses and keeping ourselves fit, by following a dietary and lifestyle, as per ayurvedic recommendations, one can live longer and healthier.” Ayurveda, has five elements (earth, water, fire, air and ether), these make up three primary Doshas. Vata, pitta and kapha. When a body is out of balance it is because one or more of these doshas has been aggravated. Think of the entire universe as well as the body as a single concept, we all consist of earth, water, fire, air and ether. When one of those elements is out of balance, the earth reacts with a natural disaster. Our bodies react much in the same way. The good news is we all have the power to heal. When seeing Vasudha she used the pulse as a form of diagnosis. From there she can tell you your dosha and the food and life style for you and customized formulations that she make according to the body type. I was diagnosed and found her to be so faultless in her prognosis, that I followed her recommendations. I have already lost a significant amount of weight, gained energy and am no longer achy all over. Unlike a regular doctor, she is affordable at $150 a visit. For the first 3-4 months you need to see her once a month, but after that it is every two months. When you add up the cost $1050 a year to stay healthy is affordable, natural and less than insurance for a doctor you can’t even pick. You can reach her at 212-202-0225 and learn more at www.americanayurveda.us. Natural health can be yours and that is a F.A.C.T.

F: Is for Food with Soul

BB King Blues Club located at 237 West 42nd street is a staple to blues and jazz artists around the country. On any Sunday you can eat a soul-food brunch with a home-style "all you can eat" southern buffet, and hear gospel that will leave you feeling like you prayed all day and went to heaven. For $40.00 there is no better way to spend a chilly Sunday in New York or a blistering hot one. They same can be done on Saturday, but this time it is Strawberry Fields Forever, a tribute to the fab four. For the month of September you can catch New Orleans greats, Popa Chubby, The Subdudes and The Jambalaya Brass Band the ultimate New Orleans party band. The night I was there I caught musical legend Leon Russell. Russell was a sideman for George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Bob Dylan, B.B. King, The Rolling Stones and so many more. A consummate musician and songwriter, known best for "Superstar,"and "A Song For You," made famous by The Carpenters. Sitting in a room surrounded with fans, I listened to a soul whose music, is still as alive today as when it was written. Though he did a lot of covers, it was a memorable night. The only drawback to BB King’s is the price of drinks, which are tourist priced. The best time to get there is between 4-7pm for the early dinner, pre fixed at $20.00. I ordered the Nacho’s with smoke Pit Slow Roasted Chicken/Beef/Pork/Jalapeno Peppers/Cheddar for $16. The portion was generous and deliciously flavorful, though the chips were a little stale. All in all BB King’s is the place for soulful blues and that is a F.A.C.T.