I long,
to belong.
To lend my voice to a song,
sung by a chorus so strong.
Lifted by a bond,
unbreakable to beyond.

Getting new magazines in the mail is the only thing I have to look forward to when coming home.

"'The hardware is here,' Rob Buchanan said, wheeling in the trophies on Thursday night for an unusual award ceremony.

He was pulling a little wagon bearing a toilet seat painted gold and a toilet plunger painted silver.

'Let's get this over with, so we can go back to drinking beer,' he said, officially kicking off the 2016 Golden Toilet Awards.

Mr. Buchanan coordinates a volunteer water-testing program for the New York City Water Trail Association, an advocacy group, and holds awards each fall to honor, or really dishonor, the most polluted waterys in and around New York City. He also hand-paints the two trophies himself."

From the October 14, 2016, New York Times story: For New York's Foulest Waterways, a Seat of Dubious Honor. By Corey Kilgannon.

Write it down.

Asshole.

"I won't worry my life away."

From the song The Remedy (I Won't Worry) by Jason Mraz.

"King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, who took the throne of the kingdom once known as Siam shortly after World War II and held it for more than 70 years, establishing himself as revered personification of Thai nationhood, died on Thursday in Bangkok. He was 88 and one of the longest-reigning monarchs in history."

From the October 13, 2016, New York Times article: Bhumibol Adulyadej, 88, People's King of Thailand, Dies After 7-Decade Reign. By Barbara Crossette.

Rest in peace to the King of Thailand. Living there really gave me a glimpse of how much he's loved by the country. I'm so sorry for your loss, Thailand---and my heart goes out to you.

This Pa

...should've stayed home.

"At a counter, the relationship between chef and diner is a far more revealing exchange. Dining as theater? This is dining as backstage pass."

From the story, Tokyo Counter Culture, in the November 2016 issue of Condé Nast Traveler. By Peter Jon Lindberg.

"But I was, honestly, stunned when you yelled at us from down the block, 'Go back to China!'

I hesitated for a second and then sprinted to confront you. That must have startled you. You pulled out your iPhone in front of the Equinox and threatened to call the cops. It was comical, in retrospect. You might have been charged instead, especially after I walked away and you screamed, 'Go back to your fucking country.'

'I was born in this country!' I yelled back.

It felt silly. But how else to prove I belonged?'"

From the October 9, 2016, New York Times story: An Open Letter to the Woman Who Told My Family to Go Back to China. By Michael Luo.

Of course this sort of shit happened here in New York. As diverse as this city this, these types of ignorant people definitely exist. And growing up here, I've had my fair share of these encounters.

This even just recently happened to my sister and brother-in-law, who live right across the George Washington Bridge in Bergen County, New Jersey. They have a neighbor who harasses people of color in their area. She often screams "Go back to your country!" not only to my brother-in-law, but to neighborhood children who are minorities as well. It's absolutely deplorable.

With different races, ethnicities, religions, and Americans gaining more legal and societal rights in our current times, there will inevitably be those racists who think their own happiness is being negatively affected by it. But another person's growth does not equate to something being stolen from you and your life. There's nothing American about blaming others for your unhappiness.

That.

"The trio of butter, kimchi, and gochujang produces a ballad so beauitful, you'll want to play it over and over again."

From the column, BA Kitchen, in the November 2016 issue of Bon Appétit

"If someone tells you they've got a great pasta recipe, ignore them. Making a great bowl of pasta isn't about directions or measurements. It's about feel.

I should know. I've had to learn this lesson again and again over the past 25 years. I used to buy pasta cookbooks, turn to the recipes with the pretty photos, and try to cook them. The problem was, I never really learned how to make those dishes. I was just following instructions. And if you follow a recipe to a T, you stop trusting yourself---you only trust that recipe."

From the Editor's Letter in the November 2016 issue of Bon Appétit. By Adam Rapoport.