Two old men walk into a bar............

 A long time ago I was a fixture of Hollywood - hey, my first office on my own as a CPA was in the Taft Building at Hollywood and Vine!  Later I moved over to 6430 Sunset Blvd - Sunset and Cahuenga.  A couple of times each week, I'd be over to Musso & Frank on Hollywood Blvd for their flannel cakes - the M&F version of a pancake.  These were different - they were thicker.  The only 'rival' to their uniqueness was at Dupars when they had a restaurant at Laurel Canyon and Ventura Blvd in Studio City.

I got 13 birthday greetings yesterday.  one of them - only one of them - was local - Irv Reifman.  Two more were friends living in the US.  The other 10?  All outside of the US.   I was looking forward to retirement in Thailand.  Alas, Katherine hated the place, hated the culture, hated the people......such is life..........I had contemporaries in my age range.....I had a support network.

I am back in the US and although I have made a great start in reestablishing my life, I am lacking one important thing - a support group of friends contemporaries........and I while have no doubt I will find this support group - over time - it is an absence than impacts me now......such is life......

Leif Salvesen was my roommate at Thunderbird.  He has been sending me annual birthday greetings - here is this year's videocard: 

 https://www.bluemountain.com/view/r664fb996251840f78404878d52ce2feb?source=bma999&&utm_medium=pickup&utm_source=email&utm_campaign=receiver

Irv Reifman and I 'finally' met in 1975 although we had both known about one another since the early 1960s - we were on the floor of the LA Sports Arena during the Democrat Convention of 1960 - Irv was a Kennedy supporter while I was part of the Draft Stevenson campaign......we met at 6pm and it took a 100 minute drive to Musso&Frank for dinner.....it was sublime......it was superb.....it was deja vu for me.......I LOVED MY BIRTHDAY, YESTERDAY.......AND WHO KNOWS, I MIGHT EVEN FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET THE  FOOD PICTURES I TOOK TO THIS BLOG..........



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