Month: October 2018

Today was STAKE day not STEAK day. Today was the reason for our trip to New York City. The Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation asked us to help make recommendations about which proposals should be funded by the organization. The process works like this – we were given proposed studies to review. After reading the proposals (which included terms that neither of us have ever heard) we were asked to render an opinion about the study in regards to its meaningfulness to patients with inflammatory bowel disease. The first people to discuss the studies were the scientists. Patrice and I tried to understand what was being said; I don’t want to speak for Patrice but I was clueless much of the time. I did ask questions and did learn a lot. After the scientists were done, a stakeholder would give their opinion. Then the entire committee voted on the funding request. This was a fun and humbling experience. I really enjoyed being on the cutting edge of medical research but it really showed that being a doctor does not make me a scientist.

The Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation meeting was a whole day event so we didn’t have any time to do anything else. But we did see some interesting things today. For example:

AND FINALLY A SPELLING LESSON:

Tomorrow we head for home.

I told you that the reason for our trip to NYC was to meet with the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation on Tuesday. But let’s be real, we could have easily attended the meeting via some fancy internet online meeting service. Maybe Patrice and I couldn’t figure it out but the smart people at the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation sure could. One of the main reasons we needed to come to NYC is to decide once and for all, who provides the best Lobster Roll. Loyal followers of the blog have read about us consuming the amazing lobster rolls at Neptune Oyster in Boston. Last year we experienced what might have been as good if not better a product at Sarabeth’s here in New York (40 Central Park S, New York, NY 10021).

And the winner is ……………

Neptune Oyster without a doubt. But we need to go back to Boston and try Neptune Oyster one more time to make sure. One thing definitely nicer about Sarabeth’s is that you can make a reservation on Open Table. At Neptune Oyster, they don’t take reservations. Instead you give them your cell phone number and they call you when your table is ready. Sarabeth’s is across the street from Central Park South and it is warmer here than in Boston, all big plusses.

After lunch we headed to Christie’s to see the preview of their art auction. Our friend Allen told us about this and we wanted to see for ourselves. We saw a great deal of beautiful paintings and artifacts. This Picasso caught my eye.

We were shown around the gallery by Allen’s friend, Josh. He said that this place is like going to a museum. You get to see incredible works of art but with one exception, you can actually touch the artwork. But what kind of jerk would do that.

Tomorrow we will attend the meeting that prompted our trip to New York. We will be reviewing proposals requesting funding from the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation for research toward finding the cause and cure for inflammatory bowel disease. Tonight we had dinner with the the other members of the committee that will be reviewing the proposals. I learned a tremendous amount about research in just the few hours we spent with these very smart people. I look forward to learning more tomorrow and directing money to some other very smart people who can end the horror known as inflammatory bowel disease. The meeting starts at 8:00 AM (5:00 AM Los Angeles time) so we need to go to sleep.

Pleasant dreams, talk to you tomorrow.

This morning we started off at one of our favorite restaurants, Cafe Un Deux Trois (123 W. 44th St, New York, NY 10036). Patrice was unimpressed with the french toast but I ordered the Norwegian Benedict which was as good as I remembered. After that we headed south to the New York City Fire Museum (278 Spring St, New York, NY 10013). We noticed this place on our way to meet with my cousin Rob yesterday and had to come back for a visit. Previously we had visited fire museums in Memphis and Phoenix. This one was interesting and on a par with the Memphis museum but not even close to Phoenix. In Phoenix they call it the “Hall of Flame” and it is a remarkable collection of refurbished fire trucks. The NYC exhibit was interesting and worth the trip but if you are a fire enthusiast go to Phoenix instead.

On our way to the museum we saw this interesting statue.

We also walked by a flea market with this scary sign:

And here are the culprits:

After the museum we headed to nearby Daryl Roth theater. Enroute we walked through the artist community know as Soho. It has this name because it is SOuth of HOuston Street (pronounced “House Ton” because these people have never been to Texas or aren’t willing to acknowledge that it exists). Showing at the theater is a new play called “Gloria: A Life”. This is the life story of Gloria Steinem (staring Christine Lahti as Gloria). The play was very inspiring. I have to admit I felt a little odd because at most only 20% of the audience were men. The show was 90 minutes long and followed by a 20 minute “Talk Circle” in which the audience was welcome to contribute. The initial speaker was Faye Wattleton, a long time friend of Gloria Steinem and former CEO of Planned Parenthood. Ms. Wattleton was seated next to Patrice during the performance.

After a rest at the hotel we had dinner with my friend Allen at Mari Vanna (41 E 20th St, New York, NY 10003) a Russian restaurant with excellent food. We traveled 2,800 miles to have dinner with a friend from LA.

The Salmon Blini (essentially crepes) were spectacular. The remainder of the dishes were also good but the blini stood out. Dessert wasn’t too bad either. We had what they call “Broken Flower Pot”. It looked exactly like that but the chocolate was pure heaven.

Not sure how we will top this day but we will try.

When I left you last night we were heading out to see and hear Bruce Springsteen on Broadway. For those of you who have not heard of the show it is not performers singing Springsteen songs but rather the man himself not only singing his songs but telling us about his life and how events brought him to be with us today. The show in a word was “absolutely amazing”, okay two words. The “Boss” was on stage for two and a half hours without a break. The man did not disappoint in any way. The music was spectacular as expected but what I didn’t expect was how he managed to tell us about his life, make us laugh and make us cry (well full disclosure: Patrice got teary eyed, I cried).

The theater was cozy and I think they knew I had broken my hip when they gave me this seat.

After the show we went to dinner at La Masseria (235 W 48th St, New York, NY 10036) which is very close to the theater. The food was Italian and great. Sorry, I was too hungry to think of taking pictures.

We then headed back to the hotel and walked by the Richard Rogers Theater where the musical “Hamilton” is playing. Outside, there was a small crowd of people talking to and getting autographs from the show’s current star, Michael Luwoye. Patrice and I were amazed how low key and gracious he was. Patrice mentioned that we had see him perform in San Francisco which made him smile and reply with a very genuine, “Thank you”. He answered fan’s questions and signed autographs and didn’t seem to be in a rush to leave. I know my daughter-in-law is a big fan so I thought I would surprise her with a picture. Unfortunately I didn’t check the picture until I got back to the room.

Today we got off to a slow start since I was up late watching the Dodgers 18 inning victory over the Red Sox in the World Series. After an excellent breakfast at the Brooklyn Diner (155 W 43rd St, New York, NY 10036) we headed over to the Morgan Museum and Library (225 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016). Built in 1906 to house the private library of financier and banker J.P. Morgan, it was opened to the public in 1924. The Morgan has an incredible collection of artifacts and art work. Currently they have a special exhibit dedicated to Mary Shelley and her classic, Frankenstein.

After the library we headed to Soho to have dinner with my cousin Rob. First we were shown around Rob’s studio and we got to see all the exciting things he is working on. He even showed us his laser cutter and used it to make me a souvenir. See below

Not sure what we can do to top this tomorrow but we will give it our best try.

Patrice and I flew into the Big Apple today on our way to act as “Stakeholders” for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. On Tuesday we will meet with a lot of people much smarter than us to help decide what research projects will be funded by the Foundation this year. They might be smarter but they don’t have any more passion than we do for finding the cure to these awful diseases. As you probably know, two of our three wonderful children have suffered from Crohn’s Disease since they were only 11 years old. Watching them suffer was a torture I do not wish on any parent and of course no other children. Patrice and I know we have been very fortunate. Both David and Erica are doing great. We have seen many others not so fortunate. The medications that keep our kids feeling healthy were not available when David was diagnosed That is why “Team Reiss” walks each June to raise money. And the success of Team Reiss has given us the opportunity to help decide which researchers will be funded.

The meeting isn’t until Tuesday but we came early to have some fun. As my followers know we were in Boston recently so the 52 degrees that greeted us at JFK seemed balmy compared to the sub 40 temperatures we had in Boston. Actually we felt very much at home because the 14 mile trip from JFK to the hotel took us 1 hour and 20 minutes.

About a year ago a friend of mine, John, told me about his trip to NYC and seeing “Springsteen on Broadway”. He could not have been more enthusiastic about it. I remembered seeing “The Boss” when Patrice and I first started dating and the thought of seeing him again after 36 years of marriage seemed very exciting. I looked online to see the cost of the tickets and my excitement waned. Recently I saw another friend, Mike, who had just returned from New York. He said, “I saw Springsteen and it was amazing”. This made me crazy again. I told John about my hesitancy and he said that he got his tickets online the day of the show when people would reduce their prices. So today on the plane I looked for tickets and they were still crazy expensive. Then at the hotel very close to show time I checked one more time and YES, I found some excellent seats at a “reasonable” price. Yes, it is much more than I ever thought I would spend to see a concert but damn, I am 69 years old and as my friend Allen says, “Who wants to be the richest person in the cemetery”. So we are going to see “The Boss” tonight. Got to run to the show now. We can talk about Bruce tomorrow.

When last I left you we were on our way to Nick’s Comedy Stop. I should have stayed home and watched the USC Utah game instead. As painful as that must have been (USC got whooped) it would at least have been a lot cheaper. Nick’s was not very expensive but the comedy was not very good. We heard 6 comedians, 2 were okay and one was pretty good. The other 3 were awful. The venue was also awful. Nick’s is located next to another place that has musical entertainment and every comedian had to compete with a booming bass that made the walls shake.

This morning we got up at our leisure and headed to “The Friendly Toast” (35 Stanhope St, Boston, MA 02116) for breakfast. We had heard this was the place to eat and unfortunately many others had heard the same thing. The hostess took my cell phone number and said it would be a 30-45 minute wait. Since we were close to the hotel we decided to return to get something warmer to wear while we waited. Five minutes later (or less) we were called and informed our table was ready. The food was spectacular. Patrice had the always healthy waffles and fried chicken and I had the Lobster Benedict (See below)

After breakfast we got ready to leave the Fairmont Copley Plaza and head to the airport. The FCP is a very old but stylish hotel. The service is top notch. The rooms are not very modern but they have made the usual accommodations to make travel in the computer age more comfortable (e.g. electric outlet on the night stands so your phone can always be nearby). They also have this little surprise in the closet.

We will be home tonight but we leave Friday for New York. If you are one of the people with whom we said we should get together in NYC please email me. My brain is fried and I don’t recall with whom we made tentative plans.

No snow today but the course ended yesterday so today was our first free day. When discussing what we wanted to do today it was easy to decide. After two days of getting up for an 8:00 AM lecture (5:00 AM LA time) it was an easy decision….. SLEEP!

When we did finally awake we headed to breakfast at Tatte Bakery and Cafe (399 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116). The line at 10:30 AM was out the door. I ordered “egg in a hole” (egg inside a bagel hole) which was just okay. The bagel part was great. Maybe I didn’t like the egg very much because I ate my chocolate croissant first. The mocha coffee was delicious.

Patrice here now. Did you see the caption on that last picture? What’s up, is there a game on TV tonight that he wants to watch?

After breakfast we did some shopping. Patrice needed to get some things and I love going shopping with her.

After a brief rest back at the hotel we were off to watch the “Head of the Charles” boat regatta. Apparently this is a big deal here. Didn’t do much for me because my only knowledge about rowing is what I learned from reading “The Boys in the Boat” by Daniel James Brown (great book by the way).

After the regatta we headed to Coppa (253 Shawmut Ave, Boston, MA 02118) for late lunch early dinner. My niece’s husband is friends with the owner so we were guaranteed VIP treatment (“We have the table reserved for 5:00 PM so you have to be gone by then”). The food was excellent. Ironically we found ourselves seated next to a Boston firefighter and his wife with a mutual friend who works for LA City Fire.

I would love to write more but we are about to leave for Nick’s Comedy Stop. More about that tomorrow.

Today I had the opportunity to meet a living legend of medicine, Dr. Eugene Braunwald, who was just a name to me until today. Dr. Braunwald was the editor of “Harrison’s Textbook of Medicine” when I was in medical school and he was responsible for a large part of my (and many other’s) education. Before the lecture I took the opportunity to talk to him and thank him for all he did for me. I also took the opportunity to take a picture with him.

After the conference ended we headed over to the Parish Cafe (361 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116) for dinner. We had their gourmet sandwiches. Mine was fantastic but Patrice’s was grossly under cooked. They obviously recognized me from my blog because they were very apologetic and got Patrice a properly prepared meal and didn’t charge us. Being mentioned in my blog with my following (+/- 200) can make or break a restaurant. The food was very good but their bread pudding only rated a D+ when compared to Masa (The Reiss standard when it comes to bread pudding).

After dinner we went to the “Improv Asylum” (216 Hanover St, Boston, MA 02113) comedy club. We had been there before and I remembered asking last time if they had a senior discount (don’t all comedy venues have senior discounts?). The cashier looked at me and said, “I don’t know”. Turns out they did and they still do. The show wasn’t as funny as we remembered from the last time but it had its moments.

The conference is over so tomorrow is a free day. We have lots of fun things that I want to do. I’d let you know what they are but Patrice hasn’t told me yet.

This morning I was up early (7 AM Boston time, 4 AM Los Angeles time) to get to the conference. The talks varied from good to bad as is typical for medical conferences. While I was busy trying to get smart Patrice did much more important work………. she looked for a place to have lunch.

Patrice gave me two choices, “Stephanie’s” a restaurant we visited on a previous trip (and enjoyed a great deal) or “The Map Room Cafe” located in the Boston Public Library. I was undecided until we stepped outside. Five seconds in 44 degree Boston weather made the library seem about as far as I could walk and it was only across the street. We got into the library very quickly (I can move very fast when I think I am going to die). Once inside we found the Map Room Cafe and it was very cute. Unfortunately a lot of others felt the same way and there wasn’t a place to sit. We asked one of the waiters if there was any other seating and she said, “Yes, there is plenty of seating outside”.

Stephanie’s is an excellent restaurant with an eclectic menu. The food is very good as is the service and ambiance. But the best part is that the place is well heated. I had the Shrimp Louie and Patrice had the Macaroni and Cheese (yes, and believe it or not, mac and cheese is one of her favorite dishes). Sorry, no food pictures today, I was still recovering from the walk to the restaurant to even think about pictures. The food was excellent but lunch time was over and we had to walk the grueling 350 yards back to the hotel.

After lunch I went back to the conference and Patrice explored the city a bit. She went to a place called the Mapparium which is a 30 foot stained glass globe designed to be “an emblem for the importance of good global citizenship”.

At night the conference sponsored a dinner at the hotel. I was so glad I didn’t have to go outside. The meal was excellent and we got to speak to some other doctors who were attending the meeting. At our table we had one from Philadelphia, another from Buffalo and two from the Boston area. They were less affected by the weather for obvious reasons. One of them did give us some hope, when he told us, “It is supposed to be warmer tomorrow and the weekend”.

That’s enough for now, I need to get under the covers.

Long time followers of this blog might remember that in October 2016 I became a Harvard Medical student. Well not quite. What I did do was attend a continuing medical education course presented by the Harvard School of Medicine. Like many medical students I decided to make 2017 a “gap year” from my studies at Harvard, but I have returned Year 2 this week.

Harvard does a great job of teaching medicine to old guys like me but let’s be honest that isn’t the real reason we are here. Medical education is available much closer to home and in much warmer weather (it is currently 48 degrees here and 67 in Hermosa Beach). What isn’t available at home is unbelievable Lobster Rolls. Our favorite (yes, we have tried several during our past visits to Bean Town) is from Neptune Oyster (63 Salem St # 1, Boston, MA 02113). A picture doesn’t do their roll justice but I know my friends and family love my food pictures.
Lobster Roll and Fries from Neptune Oyster[/caption]

Sorry for the short post tonight. We were up crazy early this morning to get to the airport and I am running out of gas. Tomorrow begins my second year at Harvard Medical School and I need to rest my brain.