April 13, 2025
# 1707
Cover:
Jehan Georges Vibert's Palm Sunday in Spain captures the vibrant spirit of a religious celebration with meticulous detail and rich storytelling. Painted in 1873, this watercolor showcases Vibert's mastery in portraying human expressions and cultural nuances. The scene likely depicts a procession or gathering, emphasizing the communal and festive aspects of Palm Sunday in Spain. Vibert's use of light and color brings the composition to life, creating a sense of warmth and reverence. His ability to blend realism with artistic flair makes this piece a compelling representation of 19th-century Spanish traditions. It's a testament to his skill and cultural insight.
Text by AI
Palm Sunday
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Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Russian icon (Cathedral of the Annunciation, Moscow)
Anonymous Russian icon painter (before 1917) Public domain image (according to PD-RusEmpire) - http://www.icon-art.info/masterpiece.php?lng=ru&mst_id=614
Triumphal entry into Jerusalem,
The Gospel of Matthew states that this happened that the prophecy might be fulfilled of: Zechariah 9:9[ "The Coming of Zion's King – See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey". It suggests that Jesus was declaring he was the King of Israel.
According to the Gospels, Jesus Christ rode on a donkey into Jerusalem, and the celebrating people there laid down their cloaks and small branches of trees in front of him, singing part of Psalm 118: 25–26 Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord.
The symbolism of the donkey may refer to the Eastern tradition that it is an animal of peace, unlike the horse which is the animal of war. A king would have ridden a horse when he was bent on war and ridden a donkey to symbolize his arrival in peace. Christ's entry to Jerusalem would have thus symbolized his entry as the Prince of Peace, not as a war-waging king. Thus there have been two different meanings (or more levels of biblical hermeneutics): a historical meaning, truly happening according to the Gospels, and a secondary meaning in the symbolism.
In Luke 19:41 as Jesus approaches Jerusalem, he looks at the city and weeps over it (an event known as Flevit super illam in Latin), foretelling his coming Passion and the suffering that awaits the city in the events of the destruction of the Second Temple.
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Commentary
Panic at Tedx Talk @ Babson College, in late March, about one year ago.
At 5.30am on the day of, I rested in my great chair. Just wanted a moment to permit my eyes and mind to rest.
As I rested, a bizarre event took place in my mind. As in a dream, without willing it, without conjuring it up, in very slow sequence, my talk presented itself to me as an entertainment. Slowly, line by line floated past, each line pausing in front of me until it was sure it received from me the recognition that it deserved. Feeling loved and appreciated, the line moved on, making way for the next.
I was floating above my easy chair, watching myself as I absorbed each line into my consciousness, more securely than ever before. The near-asleep review imbued me with an understanding of my story that hitherto escaped me. I no longer needed to remember specific words. I had written the story. It was mine to tell. Now, I just had to have fun.
After seventeen minutes, I got up from the chair, turned on the lights, and presented the story to the mirror.
I confess that I was brilliant!
Unfortunately, there was no carryover of confidence. When I arrived at the venue I read/recited my script three more times. My moment of truth raced at me, concern and worry tagging after it, Then I was offstage watching my colleague race through her story. My uncertainty grew. This was my first time presenting to an academic audience; to a group of 500 listeners. Critics? Thinking, my friends and family want so much for me to succeed. I want so much for them to feel proud of me. “That’s my dad!” “That’s our friend, Dom!” Am I going to fudge this up? Like, totally? Like, they have to stretcher me off the stage?
Then she walked off, towards me. She had delivered well and I told her so as we passed. “Break a leg,” she responded.
Then I walked on. The key for me was my opening remark, thanking Celina, a student, for recommending this opportunity to me. It broke the ice.
Anxiety pushed me into my main story, but here was to be my second line. It never happened. This is what I didn’t say: “And I’d also like to thank my family and friends who helped me during this process. I know how much they are wishing I do well, and I love them for that. I can feel their hopes and am driven by a desire not to disappoint them. Thank you.” That line never happened, but the rest of the story did.
In the event, I pulled it off. How do I know? I received a mailbag full of my family and friends’ reactions.
But, truthfully, I can still feel the fear as I waited in the on-deck circle offstage for my preceding Tedx speaker to complete her delivery to our audience. Thinking, “What am I doing here." I was certain that I was going to totally forget my delivery.
In the event, I didn’t.
Here is the link to the talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOmHsa5vP3A
Here’s me delivering, having survived the panic attack.
Here is the link to the talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOmHsa5vP3A
Here are the speakers and the support staff.
In the event, participating in the Tedx talk brought me great joy, not the least of it was relating to my friends and family who helped me prepare and celebrate.
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Kat’s Gen Z Corner
Woodstock
Will and I spent a weekend in Woodstock for the second time — it’s become our favorite upstate town. Perfect for hiking, thrifting, and small town living vibes. A nice break from the other trail (the campaign trail!) that I did have a lot of guilt around leaving. But it was so needed to just be alone in the wilderness with Will for a few days. Reminded me that everything always comes back to us. Everything else is just noise.
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Tucker’s Corner
The Pitt
My mother and I watched a lot of “ER” when I was a kid. I always felt extra cool when watching with her because of how graphic ( I thought) the show was since my mother was the first person to not let me watch things due to their content. I always felt like I was bonding with the real person my Mom was rather than the parent she was trying to be. It makes me feel old to see the “new kid” of Cook County General Hospital on the massive hit “ER” become the grizzled veteran of a similar medical drama three decades later, but that’s where we’re at with the very good “The Pitt,” a show that reminds one of the simple charms of well-done procedural television.
The incredibly influential John Wells was a producer on that NBC smash and the story goes that “The Pitt” was once conceived as a sequel to “ER” but has evolved since into a very different show. Yes, we’re back in a hospital with more relentless pacing and no time for personal lives. (And the difference in language and image restrictions from NBC to Max changes the tone, too.) “The Pitt” unfolds over 15 real-time episodes, 15 hours in an emergency room in Pittsburgh where lives are changed – and sometimes saved or ended – in the blink of an eye. It’s a smart show that values character detail and intricate medical science that sometimes succumbs to doses of melodrama. But for everything that it does very well, that can be forgiven.
Noah Wyle does the best work of his career as Dr. Michael “Robby” Rabinavitch, the voice of reason and calm at the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital. But he’s also dealing with his own demons related to four years prior, when COVID turned ERs around the world into literal nightmares and took the life of his mentor. Brief flashbacks to that era look like a horror film, a reminder of how much trauma our medical professionals are carrying with them to this day. Wyle imbues Dr. Robby with just enough weariness to balance his innate kindness and intelligence. He is deeply emotionally present for his patients, colleagues, and students—it’s a teaching hospital—but also recognizes the systemic issues in his profession, especially in a subplot involving the powers that be looking for things like satisfaction ratings and threatening to take control of the ER from him.
As good as Wyle is here, “The Pitt” would be lesser if it was a one-man show. While I question how often Dr. Robby happens to be around for so many subplots to offer the right helping hand at just the right time, the writers enrich the ensemble of new faces as the season progresses. Standouts include Tracy Ifeachor as an experienced doctor with a secret, Gerran Howell as a new guy who struggles through some bad luck over the season regarding bodily fluids, Taylor Dearden as a young doctor who battles with anxiety, Isa Briones as the student who lacks in bedside manner, and the phenomenal Shabana Azeez as a student with a mother who happens to be a famous surgeon at the Pitt.
Is that relationship a TV convenience? Sure. And the writers have a habit of pushing that boundary between realism and manufactured melodrama—is every patient on this day stuck between life and death? There are no kids with easily breakable fevers and parents who go home happy? However, the sense that there are a few too many scripted stories is forgivable in the context of the history of the medical drama. We come to shows like this to witness the impossible and the unimaginable; to see people do that which we cannot and suffer that which we hope we never do. To that end, we forgive a bit of melodrama, only made more prominent here by how much of “The Pitt” strives for realism with elements like real-time pacing, no score, and some gnarly medical footage (a warning to the squeamish about such things).
It helps that the actors thrown into the patient subplots are uniformly strong as well, enlivened by the overall quality of the production. Stories involving siblings debating whether or not to override their dying father’s wish not to be intubated and parents realizing that their son has died from fentanyl exposure are devastatingly emotional. And these patient stories allow for some strong guest appearances, including Abby Ryder Fortson of “Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret,” Samantha Sloyan, and Mackenzie Astin, now old enough to have a dying father.
“We need to laugh, otherwise we’d never stop crying,” says a doctor, and it’s a line that sounds scripted but true at the same time. “The Pitt” is constantly pulling between realism and fiction—the granular details of a real ER vs. making that interesting enough for TV. Dr. Robby’s constant wisdom and the “bit of everything” in the patient roster on this particular day remind you it’s a show. But that has been true of great procedural dramas since the genre was invented. They’re windows into excellence and heartbreak, allowing us to see a bit of ourselves in both.
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Chuckles and Thoughts
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Six Word Stories
Forgotten letters, dust-covered memories rekindled.
AI’s Interpretation: The author seems to be evoking a sense of nostalgia and rediscovery. "Forgotten letters" could symbolize lost connections or old moments once cherished but now tucked away in the past. "Dust-covered memories rekindled" suggests that revisiting these letters has brought dormant memories or emotions back to life, reigniting a sense of reflection, warmth, or even longing.
It’s a powerful image of how tangible artifacts, like letters, can bridge the gap between the past and present, reminding us of experiences or people we might have forgotten. Do you feel this resonates with themes of nostalgia or something else entirely?
Justyna Kopania's Nostalgia is a deeply evocative oil painting that captures the essence of longing and reflection. Her signature textured brushstrokes create a sense of depth and movement, drawing the viewer into a world of emotion. The muted, earthy tones and interplay of light and shadow evoke a melancholic yet serene atmosphere, reminiscent of fleeting memories. The composition often features solitary figures, maritime themes, or abstract landscapes, symbolizing the passage of time and the fragility of human experience. Kopania's work invites introspection, allowing viewers to connect with their own emotions and memories through her expressive and timeless artistry.
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Steakhouses, Grill 23 Boston
Given their buying power, steakhouses have first access to quality meats. They often have cold chests where the beef is aged under controlled conditions, enhancing the steak's flavor and tenderness. Steakhouses use specialized equipment like high-temperature grills and broilers that can reach extreme temperatures (sometimes over 900°F). These high temps allow for a perfect sear on the steak, locking in juices and enhancing flavor through the Maillard reaction. Premium steakhouses often use wood-fired or charcoal grills to infuse steaks with a smoky, rich flavor that’s hard to replicate at home. Butchers in steakhouses use high-quality knives and slicers to prepare perfect cuts of meat, ensuring every piece is trimmed and portioned for the best presentation and taste.
Kathy and I had our monthly dinner at Grill 23, a steakhouse in Boston on Saturday. It was excellent.
We shared a serving of a lovely foie gras followed by a Filet Mignon for Kathy and an aged rib-eye for me. We were both pleased. With the steaks we ordered a terrific potato dish wherein the potatoes are thinly sliced, formed into a loaf, and fried. It was a delicious side order. See the top left of the picture just below.
We drank Taittinger Champagne, Faust Cabernet Sauvignon, and a split of an Austrian trockenbeerenauslese [auslese meaning late harvest, i.e. the grapes achieving maximum sugar content, and ‘beeren’ meaning the grapes picked berry by berry, and trocken meaning dried, referring to the shriveled state of the grapes caused by noble rot. These dried berries are incredibly concentrated in sugars and flavors, resulting in an intensely sweet wine.
The steaks were wonderful.
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SDM’s Book Club recommends:
Delirium should have won the Nobel prize for literature. A prized novel in my library.
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In the Mail
This from dear friend, Jim P:
Lovely photo of you and Anna. You gave her a lifetime gift in that film.
My life is crazy busy but always thinking of you, my friend.
Love,
Jim
PS: Ralph’s book is ready. I will have interview to you this weekend…
And this one from dear friend Sally C:
Hi, Dom,
A message for your film-critic friend Tucker:
With regard to your comments on the AI-usurping of real art:
Because so many in our culture are terrified of being authentically ourselves (having too often been punished for expressing our inherent and unique creativity), we now flee toward artificiality. How many of us seek to morph into artificial beings, as we live more and more ON and IN our phones, our umbilical cords into AI?
Robots like Data on Star Trek sought to acquire humanity. Flesh-and-blood humans seek to acquire artificiality by denying their very humanity. The entropy is disheartening. Time will tell if it is inevitable, or if we can use our humanness and our minds to find equilibrium.
Thanks for pointing out the soulless-ness of this situation which we now unwittingly celebrate and welcome into our very cells – and souls.
Not for me, my friend! And not me!
Sally
And Tucker responds:
Hi Sally,
Thank you so much for your lovely comment about the AI portion of my piece. I never really considered the reason why so many have rushed to artificiality and your stance that we've been pushed around by so many for so long is certainly an idea that holds water for me.
A favorite comedian of mine pointed out humanity rushed to invent AI and robots so that they could create art while humans are still working in Amazon warehouses having to pee in bottles. Something doesn't quite add up...
The light at the end of the tunnel is that for as many people that leap on the AI train, an equal number truly revile it. I'll take those odds. I think most folks that are pro AI don't understand the environmental impact let alone the fact that all AI art is co-opting other artist's actual work. I think if more people understood how it worked, more people would start having negative opinions of it. I think right now people just think it's a harmless internet trend.
Here's hoping they come around.
Thank you again for your kind comments!
Sally’s response to making her thoughts public:
No problem for me! Have at it!
I think your newsletter, Dom, is one effort (perhaps small, but not to be dismissed) to retain and celebrate humanity.
Sally
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Last Comment
My daughter joined a friend to watch the Celtics v New York Knicks. I watched the game on TV,
What a hoot!
We passed text comments back and forth like we were watching it together.
Sweet!
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