The first thing that struck me when I saw the photo of Chesley Sullenberger of US Airways, the hero of yesterday’s “miracle on the Hudson”? I thought: this is a seasoned professional! In a society that values youth and tries to put older [higher-paid] employees into retirement, we should be happy that experience and maturity is obviously a valued asset at US Airways, at least for pilots. Sullenberger has been flying for 40 years, and got his training in the US Air Force. You might say he is a pilot of the “pld school”.

Ever since the deregulation of the aviation industry in 1978, airlines have been notorious cost-cutters, busting unions, and forcing employees – even pilots — to take pay cuts or early retirement. Let’s all be thankful that “Sully” was not a casualty of a cost-cutting guillotine. His cool demeanor [some passengers say he was the only one not panicking], and smooth landing were the products of his maturity and experience.

In short, let’s hear it for seasoned professionals! There are some jobs in which youth is not such an asset!

The Princeton Clubhouse is looking for a new marketing person. I thought, “hmm, let me check them out.”

I had no idea when I clicked on the link that this was a clubhouse with squash courts and rooms for you to stay in. What exactly is a clubhouse? Upon seeing the different facilities and services offered, I was reminded of several Seinfeld episodes where Jerry and the gang go and play squash or tennis. So pretty much it’s like a fitness club except much snootier seeming.

Who goes to Clubhouses in a recession? But then I thought about it and realized that people still workout during a recession, so why not be members of clubhouses too? And then I thought about it further and realized clubhouses are frequented by those who aren’t hugely affected by a recession, and even if they are, they are so rich that it won’t really have an impact on their wallet. And that is a good thing because the Clubhouse will employ someone who is most likely not clubhouse attendance caliber, but still benefit.

The exclusivity and House Rules drew me further in and I found it extremely fun to read through their rules. Here’s a sampling, but go to the site if you want to read them all.

Effective September 1, 2008

• Laptops and texting by cellular phone are permitted so long as they are silenced.

• Business Meetings, which require obvious use and display of papers, are disruptive to other members and are not permitted. A quiet business conversation among two or three people is permissible. Club employees have been instructed to call attention to violations and to request that the member conform to the rules. Members who refuse to remedy a violation may be escorted from the Clubhouse.

• No food or drink may be brought in from the outside for consumption inside the Clubhouse with the exception of members and guests consuming food or drink within their bedroom.

• No food may be brought into any Club sponsored events/programs when food is not furnished for the particular event/program.

• The Club’s address or telephone numbers may not be used on business related materials.

• The addresses and telephone numbers of members may not be revealed except with member’s permission.

• Working Press and members of the media are not permitted in the Clubhouse except by permission of management. Photography and audiovisual recordings of any kind are not permitted inside the Clubhouse except by permission of management.

• Club employees are not to be sent out of the Clubhouse by a member.

• Club management is empowered to enforce the House Rules on behalf of the House Committee.

• Dining Policies

  Papers and documents should be handled and displayed discreetly in dining areas, subject to the discretion of management.

Snow just makes me happy. I’m loving how my neighborhood of Astoria looks covered in winter wonderlandiness. Fortunately, I don’t have to drive in it!

One of the longest fought battles over time is that between cops and citizens. We are always afraid of them, even if we haven’t done anything wrong.

A long while ago I was pulled over by a bunch of cops who accused me out right of having taped buildings and other NYC landmarks with the intent to terrorize. That skirmish was followed up by a visit to my house from 2 extremely burly cops part of the anti-terrorism squad of New York City.

Your tax dollars at work.

Recently, three officers were indicted in a Subway brutality case. These officers sodomized a 24 year old man on the subway.

Powerful police officers will do nearly anything to get their way. Their doubts are often unfounded, their abuse of power is rampant and their racial profiling an every day reality.

The worst part is that even with this indictment this behavior will continue. I’m suggesting that there be an advanced course given to all police officers in training on quick-judgments, anti-substance abuse and medtiation and yoga. Hey, if it could work for prisoners, I’m sure that their aggressive counterparts could benefit from the same.

All I want is some responsible police officers who are not just a glorified fraternity with pistols.

First accumulated snow of the year! How great! Go out and enjoy before it turns into slush.

Last night in Mumbai, India, there were a series of coordinated terror attacks across the city. Reports coming in say there still may be hostages in some areas and there are over 100 dead with hundreds more injured. Arzan at the Mumbai Metblog (who also writes for the NYC Metblog) is covering the story and has lots of information about what’s going on as the news of the attacks unfolds.

Our thoughts are with the people of Mumbai and all the people affected by these attacks.

So now that Barack Obama has been elected President, let’s help him out and show our support for his plan of healthcare for all!

Attend HealthCare NOW’s rally and march calling for a national Single-Payer health care system. At the rally there will be a Phone-A-Thon supporting HR 676, the United States National Health Insurance Act. Let’s get it passed.

One Nation, One Plan!
Thursday, November 13, 2008
4:00PM – 5:00PM Rally
Corner 42nd & 7th Ave
5:00PM March to GHI 34th St & 9th Ave

It’s official here in NYC. New York has spoken! We have helped elect the Democratic nominee Barack Obama to be the 44th President of the United States!

Part of Red Black and Gold exhibit at RMA

I am quickly becoming a fan of the Rubin Museum of Art (RMA.) It’s one of the few places in NYC that continues to impress me with its vast list of programs and exhibits available. There’s a dearth of good Asian art collections around the U.S. but RMA along with the Asia Society do a good job in filling the void.

So as part of their marketing campaign or whatever, RMA features a blogging monk on their site. For anyone who knows anything about the tenets of Buddhism, this blog will not be beneficial to you. To all those who want to read an entertaining encounter of an endearing monk who is getting acclimated to the big city—you’ve hit the jackpot.

While he does not preach and there is a lack of spiritual insight and satisfaction in his entries, what you do get the same amount of entertainment as you do in your favorite reality TV shows. Some silliness, some reactive commentary and basically things that wouldn’t be interesting if the blogger weren’t a Buddhist monk.

As you already know, today is election day. I’m sure you’ve been reminded already, but as you can see from my previous post about registering to vote, I like to remind people about this stuff. So, here’s the deal:

You can use either the NYC Board of Elections poll location finder page to find your polling location, or use the Google Maps voting location link. I’ve found the Google version to be mostly accurate, except that it can’t map the address of my polling place (I think this is because the address is formatted incorrectly, but I still was able to figure it out).

After you’ve voted, you can get free stuff! Starbucks, Ben & Jerry’s, Krispy Kreme and Babeland are all giving away free stuff today. At Starbucks, you can get a cup of coffee; at B&J’s, a free scoop of ice cream; at Krispy Kreme, a free star-shaped doughnut; and at Babeland, a free sex toy. After all that you’ll be all hopped up on caffeine and sugar and uh, other things, so you can stay up late watching election results.

Don’t worry about long lines at your polling place, either, as it’s sure to be an entertaining wait with all the kooky characters that live in our fine city. But don’t expect an “I Voted!” sticker. Apparently most, if not all, NYC polling places aren’t giving them out. If you really want one, you can print one for yourself.