Sunday Stealing

Memememe -- Part 2

11. You can build a dream house anywhere in the world. Where would it be located? I wouldn't need to build my dream home because it already exists. It's the condo on the top 3 floors of Chicago's Palmolive Building. It's the smallish building center-left, the one with the bright light. That rotating light dates back to 1930, when the Palmolive was one of the tallest buildings on the skyline and its beacon could help aviators flying over Lake Michigan. That condo offers spectacular views of the Lake and of Michigan Avenue. As a plus, the penthouse was once the home of Playboy Magazine. I think Hugh Hefner was a dangerous, terrible man, and I like the idea of this unreconstituted 70s-era feminist erasing all traces of him before resting my head there.

  

12. Have you ever taken a photo in a photo booth? Not since I was a little girl.

13. What's your favorite kind of mustard (dijon, spicy brown, bright yellow)? Not a big mustard fan, though sometimes I like a little bright yellow on a sandwich.

14. What did you do on New Year's Eve? Watched a movie with my online movie group. Was in bed before midnight because as a group we celebrated on EST.

15. Did your parents ever share memories of their high school days? My mom did all the time. She said those were the happiest days of her life. You know, she's the only person I've ever met who described herself as popular in high school.

16. What's the most famous thing to happen in your home town? I wish I could say something upbeat and positive, like Michael Jordan's unprecedented career as the best there was and the best there ever will be. But I suppose it's really the unique way Al Capone observed Valentine's Day. Both Mayors Daley strenuously objected to any glorification of those days, and so I thought it was funny that this lifelong resident of Chicagoland had to go to Vegas to see what's left of the famous garage wall.

 

The red dots are bullet holes.

 

17. Did you ever have a MySpace page? Nope.

18. Will you eat a cookie today? God willing.

19. Who is the last person you spoke to – not texted with – on the phone? I booked limo rides to/from the airport for my upcoming visit to Michigan. I never used this service before and I wanted to get a feel for the company.

20. Do you play poker? Not well at all.

 

 

Saturday 9

The Entertainer (The Theme from The Sting) 1973

Unfamiliar with this week's song. Hear it here.

Chosen in memory of Robert Redford: Aug. 18, 1936 - Sept. 16, 2025

1) The Sting marked the second teaming of Robert Redford and Paul Newman. The two enjoyed almost 40 years of friendship. One passion they shared was sports cars. Newman raced Porsches professionally and Redford was deft behind the wheel of a classic Karmann Ghia convertible. Think about one of your longest friendships. What did you two first bond over? My oldest friend and I have been obsessed Beatlemaniacs together since we first saw The Lads on The Ed Sullivan Show. It was 1964, and we were in first grade.

2) During their first movie together – Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid – Redford was late so often that Newman joked they should change the title to, "Waiting for Lefty." Do you have a friend who is perpetually tardy? Or are you that friend? I suppose I am that friend, although I'm never more than 5-10 minutes late. It feels later and more consequential to me because I took public transportation all the time before I retired, and trains will and do leave without you if you're late.

 

3) Back in 1936, when Redford was born, baseball's Hall of Fame opened in Cooperstown. Coincidentally, two members of his high school class of 1954 are represented in the Hall: Redford, with memorabilia from his baseball film, The Natural, and his teammate on the Van Nuys Wolves, Don Drysdale. "Big D" was inducted for his stellar Dodger pitching career. Have you recently spoken to, or corresponded with, one of your high school classmates? Earlier this summer I had dinner with Joan. We went to high school together (gulp!) 50 years ago.


4) Redford admitted he had a few run ins with law enforcement during his teen years. He specifically recalled being picked up for breaking into the neighbors' back yard and swimming in their pool. Were you a mischievous kid? Not much.

5) Redford went on to CU Boulder. He confessed to being a distracted student and only lasted a year and a half. While not good in class, he was popular with his coworkers at his after school job, mopping floors and cleaning bathrooms at a restaurant called The Sink. The restaurant is still thriving, and Redford returned whenever he was in Boulder. He wore a Sink t-shirt during a national press conference in 2018 and when asked what The Sink was, he was happy to plug his former employer. Do you often wear graphic tees, decorated with a favorite band, restaurant logo, team mascot, vacation destination, etc.? That's pretty much all I wear if I'm not working. Right now I'm wearing a Leathernecks shirt from WIU, purchased when my nephew was a student.

 

6) When he was a struggling New York actor, he and his wife lost their first child to crib death. Redford told AARP magazine that he blamed himself, and said it's a wound that never healed. Tell us about a time you felt guilty but shouldn't have. My oldest friend relocated to Los Angeles and it's been a disaster. I kinda foresaw this and tried to dissuade her, but at a certain point, I just put my concerns aside and helped her prepare her home for sale. After she got out there, as things began to slide downhill fast, I thought I should have been more forceful in stopping her from going. Or at least I shouldn't have facilitated her move. I know now that wasn't my place. She's an adult. It was her choice. I did what I could but now all I can do is love her.

7) Legendary costume designer Edith Head said she liked putting Redford in hats because they balanced his strong, square jaw. Do you take your figure flaws into consideration when you choose your clothes? I don't tuck blouses in because I am trying to camouflage my expansive behind.

8) Forever fit, Redford credited his physique on exercise and genes, not diet. He said, "Healthy food is good for the conscience, but Oreos taste a helluva lot better." What's the last cookie, candy or treat you indulged in? Pepperidge Farm Pumpkin Cheesecake cookies. They were delicious.

 
9) Random question: Do you prefer to bathe or shower first thing in the morning, after work, or before bed? In the morning.